Welcome to 2 Gringos!

Tired of the rat race and cold weather in the northeastern United States, we decided to chuck the life and try something new. We pulled up roots, sold the house, took only the most prized possessions and with child and Jack Russell Terrier headed to the Turks & Caicos Islands, British West Indies in September, 2005. This is our story...... so far. .

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British parliamentary reports don't often make global headlines, but that is exactly what happened with a report released Thursday that looked into the 2006 death of a former Russian secret agent in London.

The Owen Report  named for Sir Robert Owen, the senior British judge conducting the investigation  provides details on how rare radioactive polonium-210 came to be found in Alexander Litvinenko's body, and the series of events that led to the death of the former agent, who specialized in tackling organized crime.

The report was much anticipated in the United Kingdom, where a lawyer for the Litvinenko family described his murder as an act of nuclear terrorism on the streets of a major city that put the lives of numerous members of the public at risk. And, as expected, the report highlights the links between Litvinenko and the Russian government, even pointing the finger at President Vladimir Putin himself as likely having approved the alleged murder.

But as important as the findings are in terms of trying to establish how someone may have died on British soil as the result of radioactive poisoning, the report does not explicitly address a broader, troubling development  the increase in the use of Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) material as tools of war, terrorist tactics and even assassinations.

The use of CBRN weapons is certainly nothing new in the history of warfare. Large-scale use of gas killed an estimated 1.3 million in World War I, while the nuclear attacks in World War II were used with devastating effect against Japan. And the use of poisons in assassination attempts dates back to the Renaissance and ancient Rome.

But the modern norms against the use of CBRN that were established by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 1970, the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) in 1975 and the Chemical Weapons Convention in 1997 has meant that these forms of conflict have been rare occurrences.

The problem is that we appear to be seeing a lowering of these thresholds.

By one accounting, there were 13 CBRN attacks during the 15-year period from 2000-2015, and that does not count the Litvinenko case and other recent suspected assassination attempts. Meanwhile, the total for the other materials over the last 15 years is more than double the six that occurred during the 15-year period from 1985 to 2000, with eight of the 13 more recent attacks occurring in the last five years.

As a result, the modern day use of chemical material  from battlefield weapons to toxic industrial chemicals  by states and terrorists has killed or injured thousands since the dawn of the new millennium. Indeed, the use of chemical weapons by the Bashar al-Assad government in Syria alone is reported to have killed or injured thousands since 2013. And in 2002, the Russian government used an unidentified gas to subdue Chechen terrorists during the siege of a Moscow theater, in which more than 600 were injured or killed.

But it is not just states that have been employing chemical weapons and experimenting with biological pathogens  terrorists have been, too. U.S. officials believe the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria already is using crude chemical weapons against government forces and civilian populations in Iraq and Syria. And the group is believed to be seeking supporters with skills in microbiology, chemistry or related disciplines to develop more advanced weapons. In 2002, U.S. forces discovered evidence of an al Qaeda chemical and biological lab during initial operations in Afghanistan.

One need only look at what happened in the United States during the 2001 anthrax attacks to see the impact that a mere several grams of biological material can have, even when delivered through rudimentary means, like letters sent through the mail. Just as alarming is that those looking to cause harm can, with relative ease, find recipes on the Internet for developing biological weapons, including for growing Clostridium botulinum, the pathogen that causes the potentially fatal illness botulism.

The poisoning of Litvinenko is not the only example of this. In 2004, Viktor Yushchenko was campaigning for the Ukrainian presidency when he became seriously ill due to what was later found to be dioxin in his system. And U.S. officials may not be immune to the threat. In her memoir, Laura Bush detailed suspicions that several members of their delegation, including President George W. Bush, were poisoned during the G8 Summit in Germany in 2007. While the Secret Service investigated the incident, no definitive conclusion could be reached.

Clearly, norms against the use of CBRN are vital to the security of the United States and the safety of its population. Treaties such as the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, Biological Weapons Convention and the Chemical Weapons Convention were formulated to moderate state behaviors and have been largely successful, albeit with some important exceptions. However, with the proliferation of technology and the recent up-tick in CBRN activity by non-state actors, a renewed commitment is needed.

With that in mind, continuing international collaboration on CBRN issues will be key. Establishing and enforcing national laws, policies and regulations for limiting behaviors must also be in place. Penalties for use of CBRN, whether as tools of war, terrorist tactics or for assassinations must be absolute. Under no circumstances can norms against the use of CBRN be allowed to wane.

Slipping radioactive material into a spy's tea in the middle of London may not sound like a CBRN attack, but it is, as the Owen report has confirmed. Hopefully, the report's release will help focus global attention on the growing threat posed by these potentially devastating weapons.

Daniel M. Gerstein works at the RAND Corporation. He was the former Under Secretary (Acting) and Deputy Under Secretary in the Science and Technology Directorate of the Department of Homeland Security from 2011 to 2014.

This commentary originally appeared on CNN on January 21, 2016. Commentary gives RAND researchers a platform to convey insights based on their professional expertise and often on their peer-reviewed research and analysis.
Relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran are arguably at a historic low. Saudi Arabia has cut off diplomatic relations with Iran in response to mob violence against Saudi diplomatic facilities in Tehran and Mashhad. Those attacks were a reaction to Riyadh's execution of a prominent Shi'a Saudi activist who had criticized the Saudi regime. Saudi Arabia has been a close American partner for decades, while Iran's revolutionary government has been Washington's foremost opponent in the Middle East since 1979. But the resolution of the Iranian nuclear crisis through diplomacy has removed an obstacle to U.S.-Iran engagement on a number of regional conflicts, especially in Syria. The Saudi-Iranian rivalry threatens to obstruct American efforts to resolve the Syrian conflict and fight the Islamic State and other extremist groups.

It may be easy to conclude that the Saudi-Iranian rivalry is the result of long held religious and ideological animosities. Saudi Arabia, home of Mecca and Medina, Islam's two holiest sites, seeks leadership over the Muslim Middle East, while Shi'a majority Iran views Saudi Arabia's Sunni Wahhabi ideology as a challenge to its stability and regional ambitions. But the current fight between Riyadh and Tehran is also motivated by geopolitical and economic competition. Saudi Arabia views Iran as an ascendant power in much of the region. Iran sees Saudi Arabia as promoting unrest in Iran and actively opposing its regional allies.

But perhaps more than anything, the nuclear accord between Iran and the United States has induced a sense of abandonment in Riyadh. The Saudis may fear that Washington might one day replace its alliance with Saudi Arabia with a new partnership with Iran; or perhaps more realistically, that Washington might come to depend less on Riyadh given improving ties with Iran. Iran's capture and quick release of U.S. sailors in the Persian Gulf may reinforce Saudi fears. Washington and Tehran were able to resolve the incident peacefully through communication at the highest levels of their respective governments.

Saudi Arabia has a right to be nervous about its future, but the tendency to view or portray Iran as the cause of all of its problems is simply wrong. The Arab Uprisings across the Middle East are one source of Saudi anxiety. The declining price of oil and potential internal unrest in Saudi Arabia are another. Iran does pose significant challenges to the Saudi monarchy, but Saudi stability will ultimately rest on Riyadh's ability to create a sustainable political and economic system responsive to the demands of its increasingly politically aware citizenry. Blaming everything on Iran will not solve Saudi Arabia's problems; and more assertive actions against Iran are likely to strain Riyadh's ties to Washington.

The nuclear agreement shows that Iran is open to engagement, even with its foes, and could present a good opportunity to improve Saudi-Iranian relations. Hopefully both countries will come to this view for the sake of regional stability.

Alireza Nader is a senior international policy analyst at the nonprofit, nonpartisan RAND Corporation.

This commentary originally appeared on The Cipher Brief on January 21, 2016. Commentary gives RAND researchers a platform to convey insights based on their professional expertise and often on their peer-reviewed research and analysis.
Spain's VSN has introduced its MediaBank platform to the industry during NATPE, with the aim of launching in five months.





MediaBank is intended to drive the media management company into the content sales business.Currently in the last stage of development, the platform will enable users worldwide to buy and sell audiovisual content quickly and easily, adding features like regional copyright management, coding and decoding into different formats, and digital asset management.We know the needs of content aggregators and content sellers, which is why MediaBank aims to become a platform which adapts to the industry's workflow, said Carlos Gonzalez, sales manager, who together with CEO Jordi Utiel presented the product at NATPE.The main goal is to get producers to monetise their content safely, while buyers find easier to search and select content for their networks, Gonzalez added.MediaBank is VSNs first serious foray into the content sales business, as the Spanish company is traditionally known for broadcasting technologies and creating systems for audiovisual workflow management.
Spain's Mediapro is to provide technical advertising production solutions for NBC Universal's channels across LATAM.





The company, one of largest content producers in the Spanish-language market, will assist with the production of on-air promotions across the region, including Brazil. The NBC Universal project is to be carried out through Mediapro's Argentinean subsidiary, Promofilm.The Spanish firm will provide the facilities, technical means and human resources for all stages of the project, from receipt of the audiovisual material to editing, production and distribution.In order to carry the project, Mediapro is to open a second media centre in Latin America.
Sky Atlantic is to become the exclusive home to Showtimes growing portfolio of programming across all its territories in the UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria and Italy.





The channel will be able to show select content from the US home of high-end drama on a programme-by-programme basis after along-term licensing agreement between Sky and CBS.The deal will span all new and future series, including Billions, which premiered in the US with the best series debut performance ever for a Showtime original series. Other new series include the return of Twin Peaks and new seasons of current hits such as Ray Donovan and The Affair. The agreement also means customers will have on-demand access to an acclaimed catalogue of premium Showtime programming including Californication, Dexter and Nurse Jackie.Alongside scripted content, Sky will have an exclusive option to take all new Showtime distributed unscripted shows such as documentaries, late night and reality shows. Premiere dates for the programming may vary by country, and current rights agreements with other platforms will remain unchanged.In addition to new drama and comedy series, customers will have on-demand access to the Showtime back catalogue of shows. This will include the complete box sets of series, including The Borgias, Brotherhood, Californication, Dexter, Nurse Jackie and the original Twin Peaks. Customers who use the recently upgraded Sky Go mobile TV service and the NOW TV and Sky Online streaming platforms will also have access to the channel live and on-demand.The move is hugely significant for both parties. For CBS Corporation, it is the largest and most expansive international deal to date for Showtime and the first time its content portfolio has been licensed to a single media company across multiple European territories. It also marks a significant next step in the companys global expansion strategy to distribute Showtimes prestigious brand and broad programming slate as a bundled offering. Last year, CBS and Bell Media announced a similar exclusive agreement for Showtime in Canada.This is the most significant international deal in the history of Showtime , and further signals the value and prestige of its content brand in the global marketplace, commented Armando Nunez, president & CEO of CBS Global Distribution Group. This deal shows how robust and profitable Showtime has become as a standalone product and revenue stream. We look forward to working with our outstanding partners at Sky to present Showtime to its customers across Europe and on a wide range of their platforms.Alongside an expanding portfolio of the best shows from the US and around the world, Sky is also growing its investment in original production, which includes a successful partnership with Showtime to co-produce the gothic horror series Penny Dreadful.This is one of the most important content deals Sky has ever agreed, cementing Skys position as the market leader in Europe for world-class drama, added Gary Davey, managing director of Skys content division. We are enormously proud that Sky will be the exclusive home to new Showtime programmes for many years to come, building on a relationship that has grown over time.
MOSCOW, January 22 (RAPSI)  Russias Justice Ministry proposed amendments to the NGO foreign agents law aimed at clarifying the terms of political activity, RIA Novosti reported on Friday.

The law adopted in November 2012 requires that all NGOs engaged in political activity and receiving foreign funding register as foreign agents.

The law has been broadly criticized for its loose definition of what constitutes political activity.

Under the amendments, political activity is linked to such fields as state-building, securing Russias sovereignty and territorial integrity, enforcement of law, order and security, national defense, foreign policy, political system integrity, social and economic and national development of the country, regulation of rights and freedoms of man and citizen.

NGOs which are engaged in organisation and holding of public events, including meetings, manifestations, demonstrations, discussions and performances would be deemed to be involved in political activity.

Moreover, those NGOs which are involved in work aimed at achieveing certain results during elections or referendum, vote monitoring practices, establishment of election commissions or support of political parties would also be put on the list of those organisations which are engaged in political activity.

Influencing the work of government agencies, local authorities and officials should also be restricted, according to the amendments.

In February 2013, eleven Russian NGOs, Moscow Helsinki Group among them, lodged a complaint with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) protesting against the law.

After the Justice Ministry complained of NGOs' reluctance to comply with the law, it was granted authority in June 2013 to classify NGOs as foreign agents at its own discretion.
The Daily Caller, January 22, 2016

SHOCKER! 800 Million USD Investment In Afghanistans Economy Is A Total Waste

On the contrary, TFBSOs legacy in Afghanistan is marred by unfinished, poorly planned, and ill-conceived projects.

By Ethan Barton An $800 million Department of Defense task force intended to promote Afghanistan business was an utter failure, a government watchdog told a congressional subcommittee Thursday. The Task Force for Business and Stability Operations  a nearly $800 million investment in Afghanistan  has generally not delivered on its stated goals, Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction John Sopko told a Senate Armed Services subcommittee. The task forces activities in Afghanistan were stymied by several avoidable problems and repeated mistakes from its Iraq experience, including a lack of strategy, leadership and coordination, he told the subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support.

The task force was originally created to help revive the post-invasion economy of Iraq, Sopko said. It was redirected to Afghanistan in 2009 in order to reduce violence, enhance stability and stimulate the economy.

To date, SIGAR has not been able to find credible evidence showing that TFBSOs activities in Afghanistan produced the intended economic growth or stabilization outcomes that justified its creation, Sopko said. On the contrary, TFBSOs legacy in Afghanistan is marred by unfinished, poorly planned, and ill-conceived projects.

One such project the task force initiated was the now-infamous gas station that was budgeted for $500,000, but ultimately cost taxpayers nearly $43 million.

This project is just one example of well-intentioned TFBSO projects that had little-to-no chance of achieving desired outcomes, Sopko said.

Also, a lack of strategic direction and inconsistent management resulted in a scattershot approach to economic development, Sopko told the panel. The task force invested in everything from importing rare blond Italian goats to bolster the cashmere industry in Herat to landmine removal.

Based on the task forces own economic assessment, this inconsistent, unfocused approach has done little to spur economic growth in Afghanistan, he continued.

Additionally, the business task force, the Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development failed to coordinate their activities in several critical sectors, Sopko told the panel. This lack of coordination manifested itself in hundreds of millions of dollars worth of unfinished projects that failed to deliver intended outcomes.
realclearworld Newsletters: Mideast Memo

Iran played a prominent role in last week's international headlines. The International Atomic Energy Agency announced that the Islamic Republic had met the requirements of last year's nuclear agreement between Tehran and six world powers, and Tehran also released five American prisoners, among them Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian. Nearly lost however below the headlines were reports that the Iranian government -- almost immediately after the lifting of economic sanctions against its government -- had begun talks with European aircraft manufacturer Airbus regarding the possible purchase of more than 100 new airplanes for its civil aviation fleet.

Beleaguered by decades of sanctions and mismanagement, Iran estimates that it may require hundreds of new planes to replenish its aging fleet. While Iran only in recent days won the ability to do business with manufacturers, Tehran has reportedly been in talks with Airbus and American aircraft maker Boeing for months now.

Once the jewel of the region, Iran's civil aviation industry has been plagued in more recent years by restrictions on the import of parts, relying mostly on old Russian and Western aircraft to meet domestic and international travel demands. Although many of the newly acquired aircraft will likely be used or refurbished, the purchase couldn't come soon enough for the country.

"Iran has an active civil aircraft fleet of about 225 aircraft, most of which are better than 20 years old," Simon Elsegood, senior analyst at the Sydney-based Centre for Aviation, told RealClearWorld. "The fleet is also very small given the size of Iran's travel market. There are around 100 aircraft in the country that are inactive or stored due to a lack of spare parts, thanks to the sanctions."

The addition of the second-hand planes, adds Elsegood, will markedly improve Iran's civil aviation fleet, even if the purchased aircraft are more than a decade old. Iran has incurred rigid restrictions on the types of aircraft it's allowed to fly and land inside EU borders due to its poor flight safety record, one of the worst in the world.

Iran naturally hopes to put all of that behind it now and bring its fleet back to its former prestige. Next week, airline officials from all over the world will meet in Tehran for what is being billed as the first aviation conference of its kind to be held in the city in nearly four decades, and according to the Centre for Aviation the first meeting of global business leaders to be held in the country post-sanctions.

Amid the industry leaders scheduled to be in Tehran next week will also be various officials from the administration of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, primarily those charged with the handling of tourism and infrastructure. Post-sanctions Iran will likely lean heavily on the lure of tourism to its many historical sites and cities to help pump much-needed cash into the country's struggling economy. But for that, you need planes, runways, and reliable roads.

Rouhani, moreover, must deliver some tangible results to Iranian voters, especially with elections for Parliament and for the Assembly of Experts, an influential clerical body, rapidly approaching. Although the centrist president still enjoys strong approval across the country, Rouhani's base appears to be getting restless, and is underwhelmed by impending sanctions relief.

"Being able to fly on brand new western aircraft with a better safety record because of sanctions relief will make the people of Iran feel that they too have gained something from the recent nuclear agreement," said Mideast analyst Meir Javedanfar, author of the blog The Iran-Israel Observer. "This is important to Rouhani and [Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Javad] Zarif, who advocated the nuclear deal."

The Airbus purchases aren't just for domestic consumption, however. Rouhani hopes to lure as much as $50 billion in foreign investment to the country over the next five years, and to do so will require the help of the largely untapped Iranian diaspora. With sizeable Iranian communities in cities such as Los Angeles, Toronto, and London, Tehran is counting on its upgraded fleet to accommodate its airlines and would-be investors. But will it work?

The model of Airbus jets being eyed by Tehran "can operate pretty much any route that Iran Air would want to, except for Tehran-Australia/New Zealand," writes industry analyst Vinay Bhaskara. "Los Angeles would be pushing it, but at 6,614 nautical miles, it is technically within the range of the A340-600, which has been used by South African Airways to operate Johannesburg-New York JFK nonstop in the past."

Equally worrisome for the Rouhani administration should be the layers of bureaucracy and red tape that await these potential investors once they arrive in Iran. The Iranian government, according to Reuters, has more than 180,000 business regulations on the books, and the enigmatic Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps continues to play an outsized role in the country's economy.

"An investor may need to obtain several permits, intermediate approvals, consents, and authorizations -- out of 2,000 listed ones -- from different organizations to start business activity in the country," writes Al-Monitor's Alireza Ramezani. "This complicated bureaucracy consumes considerable time and energy."

More on this:

Iran to Buy 114 Airbus Jets, May Seek Boeing Post-Sanctions -- Bloomberg

The Iranian Diaspora in America: 30 Years in the Making -- PBS

The Forgotten Story of Iran Air Flight 655 -- Washington Post

Feedback

Questions, comments, or complaints? Feel free to send us an email, or reach out on Twitter @kevinbsullivan.

And be sure to check for all of the latest news and analysis on the Middle East at RealClearWorld.com.
Summary

Just a week before Moldova would have had to hold early elections, the country's Parliament approved a new government led by former IT and Communications Minister Pavel Filip. The vote allows the Moldovan Parliament to remain intact under a pro-European coalition. However, immediately after the legislature approved the new government, several hundred protesters - many of them supporters of pro-Russia parties such as the Socialist Party and Our Party - stormed the parliamentary building. Actions like this show that pro-Russia elements within the country will pose a challenge for the new government, perpetuating the divisions within Moldova's political system that undermine the small but strategic country's efforts to integrate with the West.

Analysis

Moldova's Jan. 20 parliamentary vote to approve the new government ended nearly three months of political deadlock in a country that plays an important role in the competition between Russia and the West in the former Soviet periphery. The previous government, led by former Prime Minister Valeriu Strelet, collapsed Oct. 29, 2015 after Strelet lost a no-confidence vote over allegations of corruption. Moldovan President Nicolae Timofti then put forth Ion Sturza as a prime ministerial candidate on Dec. 21, 2015, but Sturza was unable to get the required majority of votes. Moldova's pro-Europe coalition then proposed oligarch Vladimir Plahotniuc as a candidate in early January, but Timofti blocked Plahotniuc's nomination for "moral reasons." Following that, Filip was floated as a compromise candidate and garnered 57 votes in the 101-seat parliament - enough to become the new prime minister.

This back-and-forth in the process of forming a new government shows how divided Moldova's political system is. Moldova is split almost evenly between EU-oriented parties, such as the Democratic Party, Liberal Party and Liberal Democratic Party, and Russia-oriented parties like the Socialists, Communists and Our Party. This split has led to several government collapses and early elections in recent years. However, amid the country's latest political crisis, several Communist lawmakers broke away and joined the Democratic Party in a new bloc called the Social-Democrat Platform. This bloc, along with defectors from the Liberal Party and Liberal Democratic Party, gave Filip the majority he needed to form a government.

Despite the avoidance of new elections, which almost certainly would have given the edge to pro-Russia parties, the new Moldovan government's pro-Europe orientation and perhaps even its sustainability will encounter challenges. The pro-Russia Socialists and Our Party have led numerous demonstrations calling for new elections, including the protest outside Parliament as the vote occurred Jan. 20. These protesters set fire to the fence outside the parliamentary building, and hundreds of them broke through police lines and fought with riot police. Protesters are still on the premises at the time of this writing, albeit in lesser numbers. Representatives of some smaller pro-West factions, such as the Civil Platform for Dignity and Truth and the party recently formed around former Education Minister Maia Sandu, have also gathered to protest the new government, accusing it of weakness and corruption given its ties to Plahotniuc (who has connections with almost all of Moldova's major parties).

Such protests will probably continue - and could grow in size and intensity - while the new government is in power. Protesters might also try to maintain a presence in the parliamentary building and potentially other government buildings, similar to Ukraine's Euromaidan protests in late 2013 and early 2014 that eventually toppled then-President Viktor Yanukovich. Another, broader challenge will be Moldova's precarious economic situation. The country is still reeling from currency depreciation and a banking corruption scandal that cost Moldova more than $1 billion, equal to roughly 12.5 percent of the country's gross domestic product.

Conditions like these, along with the increasingly fractious nature of Moldova's Parliament, will give Filip's government very little leeway. In the case of yet another government collapse, early elections probably would be unavoidable and would give Moldova's pro-Russia elements the chance to stall, if not reverse, Moldova's efforts to integrate with the European Union.
President Barack Obama's State of the Union Address spent a couple of paragraphs discussing the terrorist threat to the American homeland. In the wake of the San Bernardino attack, he felt obliged to say what is obvious: that while the Islamic State group "can do a lot of damage" to civilians and property in the United States, "they do not threaten our national existence." On the other hand, new terrorist attacks would surely disrupt American life.

How powerful is the Islamic State really? Is it still expanding? Will its so-called caliphate in Syria and Iraq endure? Will its government territory become a permanent fact of international life? Is its jihadist ideology still as convincing as it once was? Here's an evaluation of the situation.

The Islamic State/ISIS should be seen as a combination of two phenomena. For clarity, let's use the acronym ISIS to refer to the jihadist movement in general, and Islamic State for the territorial so-called caliphate it holds in Syria and Iraq. Evidence is accumulating in Iraq and Syria that the Islamic State is losing, being pushed back and progressively dismantled. Its defeat is slow and painstaking, but it is also unmistakable. On the other hand, beyond Syria and Iraq, ISIS remains a grave terrorist threat that may well be multiplying.

Geopolitically, the Islamic State has lost a lot of its conquered territory - about 40 percent in Iraq, and approaching half that in Syria. It will surely shrink further in the coming months. Important resources - military, financial, and personnel - have been destroyed. The early excitement for and credibility of the caliphate ideology must be wavering among many ISIS fighters and potential recruits - although this is hard to measure. We know that life inside caliphate territory today is anything but a glorious advent. Terrorist attacks abroad might suggest global enthusiasm remains strong. Yet it stands to reason that, like any movement based on fanatical enthusiasm, the longer ISIS is stymied and the more senseless violence it commits, the less convincing are its claims to be the vanguard of a new world. The number of foreign fighters arriving in Syria may be decreasing, even as terrorist recruits in foreign affiliates may be increasing.

Jihadist organizations in perhaps 20 countries - though not many recently - have pledged allegiance to ISIS and its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. But this apparent spread of the Islamic State's reach is not what it seems to be; it's not militarily substantive, strategically reinforcing, or contiguous territory. Terrorist attacks seem to have increased across the Greater Middle East and within Europe in addition to the attack in the United States, at San Bernardino. But their frequency and intensity (and whether ISIS actually organizes them) are far from what most people once expected. No war is won by terrorism alone, and the menace posed by the Islamic State is different if ISIS is basically a loose terrorist network.

The future of ISIS



Evidence is accumulating that the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq is headed for extinction. It's being beaten back and dismantled, gradually but implacably, in spite of advances here or there. Finished as a geopolitical army, bent on territorial expansion and religious totalitarianism, ISIS will morph into a kind of al-Qaeda 2.0, meaning a transnational terrorist network more extensive, elaborate, and dangerous than al-Qaeda (excepting 9/11), but no longer a semi-state power threatening to convulse the entire Middle East.

ISIS as Al Qaeda 2.0 might establish new local territorial entities in outlying areas, for example the current effort to set up shop in Libya. But any such set-up will be under constant attack, unlikely to survive over time. The big outside powers have seen that failed states and ungoverned areas in the Greater Middle East pose an unacceptable risk to their own vital interests. Consequently, they are moving to freeze civil wars and to impose order over territory, Syria being the first instance.

Here are some other indices of ISIS decline. Drone strikes and other operations have killed many high-level ISIS military commanders and thousands of fighters. Total foreign fighters traveling to Syria and Iraq to join ISIS over the past few years may total about 36,000. However, given the thousands killed, disabled or defected, ISIS today may number no more than its 20,000-30,000 initial core. Given its lack of significant military activity in recent months, the number of remaining ISIS fighters could be even smaller.

In addition, the Islamic State has now been ousted from several cities and big towns it had taken (Tikrit, Sinjar, Baiji, and Ramadi). Oil extraction and refining and shipping resources, especially the key Baiji complex, have been taken back or destroyed. Its main suicide truck-bomb building facility was destroyed a few months ago; MILAN guided anti-tank missiles (furnished to the Kurdish Peshmerga by Germany) were already stopping them anyway. Significant stashes of weapons and ammunition depots have been blown up. Its international finance has been squeezed in several ways. (Reports indicate a depot containing millions of dollars in cash was bombed last week.) Coalition air strikes In Raqqa and surrounding towns have destroyed underground tunnels and warehouses. All this means effective intelligence is increasing.

Of course, remaining ISIS-controlled urban areas such as Fallujah must be riddled with improvised explosive devices, booby-trapped buildings, and other weapons, as was Ramadi. And the city of Mosul, Iraq's second largest after Baghdad, will present a much more complicated battleground than even Ramadi. But in all these situations, ISIS is fighting on defense, not attacking. If coalition forces, both through airstrikes and Iraqi, Kurdish, and Iranian land forces, were not so concerned about limiting civilian casualties, the Islamic State could be destroyed in a few months' time. As it is, ISIS's lack of humanitarian concerns just makes the going slower and rougher.

In terms of significant battlefield trends, a turning point has been reached. In losing Sinjar and Ramadi over the past two months, ISIS leaders didn't even try to reinforce their holdout fighters. These were just abandoned, with impassioned messages reminding them of the jihadist code: There are only "two good ends, victory or martyrdom," i.e. a battlefield death. In fact, when a group of fighters ignored the code and fled back to Mosul, they were rounded up in a public square and burned to death.

While Ramadi was being lost, instead of trying to reinforce its forces there, a surprise attack against coalition forces encircling Mosul was attempted, hoping to break a Kurdish/Iraqi siege on three sides of the city that is the Islamic State's main conquest in Iraq. ISIS came with the usual onslaught of suicide bomb vehicles and staggered attacks, but this time it didn't work. ISIS was thrown back by the Peshmerga in a single day.

Overall, ISIS has notched no significant military victories in six months. Several days ago, a typically barbaric attack was launched on the Syrian city and province of Deir al-Zour to complete a takeover. Perhaps 200 to 300 Syrian government soldiers, militiamen, and civilians were killed, and several hundred civilian hostages have been taken. The significance of this "victory" remains to be seen, but is unlikely to change the overall battlefield trend. An unexpected development is the fact that Deir al-Zour generated so little attention abroad, where the media focused on the Iran nuclear agreement and the release of American hostages. ISIS savagery is, to put it another way, no longer as shocking as it once was.

The path to vanquishing the caliphate

Nevertheless, Deir al-Zour points to another battlefield trend, that is, the difference between Syria and Iraq. In Iraq the battlefield has been simplified. It's no longer a chaos of competing military forces, but increasingly everyone else against the Islamic State. Sectarian rancor and ambitions are being muted in order to crush ISIS. News reports suggest that thousands of Sunni tribal fighters, with the Shia-led Baghdad government's support, are finally integrating with the Shia-led Popular Mobilization Forces.

Syria, by contrast, remains a battlefield chaos of several competing forces: Assad regime forces; insurgent militias (including the Al Qaeda-linked Jabhat al-Nusra Front) that fight each other as well as Assad; Kurds that fight Turkey as well as the Islamic State; and the Islamic State itself. Coordinated coalition airstrikes by American, Russian, French, and British planes indicate agreement by outside powers that the Syrian civil war must stop. No side can win militarily, and destroying ISIS removes a complicating factor because so long as ISIS remains on the territory, it would hold hostage any Syrian cease-fire.

The difference between Syria and Iraq shows the way to defeating and dismantling the Islamic State. ISIS's strategy, the so-called management of savagery, is to create chaos and then manipulate that chaos to its own advantage. Opposing military forces and civilians would be terrorized by barbaric fighting methods. Governments would be delegitimized because they couldn't protect their people. ISIS would become a protector of local populations after first brutalizing them unmercifully. Indeed, all this played out in conquered territory, but ISIS is now being rooted out, albeit more in Iraq than is yet seen in Syria.

The need for a sober appraisal

American media ought to present a more realistic picture than the sensationalized news it offers up, inflating ISIS successes and in the process demoralizing the American people. ISIS leaders surely are more pessimistic about its prospects than is American cable television. As Ramadi was falling, for example, al-Baghdadi sent out an audio message exhorting his fighters that "your state continues to do well," despite having lost "many of the areas it had conquered." Allah, he said, is testing the Believers, who will likely have to suffer more defeats before the final victory. This is an old story told by leaderships whose enterprise is going down.

But what about ISIS abroad? And what about the 20-odd declarations of fealty from foreign terrorist organizations? What about the Libya stronghold ISIS is trying to set up? Doesn't this show ISIS is going global successfully, threatening chaos even in Europe and the United States?

These attacks are spectacular, but they are not signs that ISIS threatens to seize power in key countries. They are brutal harassment of peoples and governments as well as morale builders for global Islamist militants. But with the possible exception of local conquests within failed states, ISIS will not be able to reproduce what it achieved in Syria and Iraq.

It's also unlikely that much substantive military and political connections exist between the Islamic State and any affiliates abroad. By no stretch of the imagination is ISIS now a single, organized global terrorist network, as is indicated by the usual media explanation that ISIS has either "organized or inspired" militants abroad. The San Bernardino attack that terrorized Americans and, amazingly, upended the presidential campaign of the most powerful country on the planet, is a good example. It involved two people, a young married couple, in effect a tiny sleeper cell, deciding the target, date, and methods on their own. Casualties, while awful, were modest on the scale of terrorist massacres.

As for Libya, ISIS's hopes to establish a new base in Sirte are not an expansion, but a retreat from its headquarters in Raqqa, which the leadership sees it may soon lose. If the ungoverned situation in Libya permits ISIS to succeed (it may well be prevented), the result would be a kind of government-in-exile whose "country" no longer exists.

Seen in broad perspective, the Islamic State has a fate, not a destiny. By this I mean that it is fated to follow into oblivion previous totalitarian operations, such as the Nazi Third Reich, for whom total war is the essence of existence. ISIS is not very likely to revolutionize world history. The difference is that ISIS will have been stopped at a much earlier point.

Its demise will happen either with a bang or a whimper, either by total defeat or disintegration from within after a period of containment. In either case it could be a rout at the end, with leaders either seeking "martyrdom," killing each other, or running for the exits.

(AP photo)
On January 19, 2016, President Obama vetoed legislation that, if approved, would have nullified the Clean Water Rule. The controversial rule, which redefines which water bodies qualify as waters of the United States under the Clean Water Act, was issued by the EPA and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in June of 2015 and was immediately challenged by several states and private parties. A joint resolution approved by the Senate last November and by the House earlier this month largely along party-line votes, would have disapproved the rule under the Congressional Review Act and prevented the promulgation of a similar rule. But the President vetoed the resolution, meaning the fate of the rule now rests with the courts.

Several challenges to the rule are currently pending in various courts. Many states challenged the rule in district courts across the country shortly after promulgation. Most district courts stayed or dismissed the lawsuits pending the Sixth Circuits decision in a separate action concerning whether the Clean Water Act gives circuit courts exclusive jurisdiction over challenges to the rule. However, one district court in North Dakota, which issued an injunction against the rule in thirteen states, has kept the litigation in that court active despite the ongoing proceedings in the Sixth Circuit.

Meanwhile, the Sixth Circuit has separately stayed the rule nationwide while it considers the jurisdictional question. The circuit court found that the petitioners had a substantial possibility of success on the merits of their claims that the rule was at odds with the Supreme Courts decision in Rapanos v. United States. Many commentators expect the challenge to the rule itself to end up in front of the Supreme Court.
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You Are Bidding On The Down Payment Only for 7.85 ACRES in Eastern Minnesota County Road Frontage. Good Soil. Easy Drive from Twin Cities. Huge Trees. Year Round Access. Parcel: This auction is for a 7.85+/- ACRE parcel of land in Pine County, Minnesota. The land is approximately 3 miles southeast of Hinckley, Minnesota or about 60 miles north of the suburban Minneapolis / St. Paul area. The land is nicely secluded. It is in a farming area although newer subdivisions have been built nearby. The ...

Price: $ 2,835 Seller State of Residence: Arizona Property Address: 32763 Cedar Creek Rd State/Province: Minnesota City: Hinckley Type: Recreational, Acreage Zoning: Residential Zip/Postal Code: 55037 Location: 852**, Tempe, Arizona

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Southern California Ranch - 8 Ac. in Wine Country SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA RANCH 2 HOURS FROM SAN DIEGO  FULL PRICE $25,299 -- TERMS OR CASH This auction is for the 8 acre lot in Riverside county, California, bordering San Diego County, less than 2 hours drive from San Diego, going north on freeway 15. The ranch is an undeveloped land located on the border of San Diego and Riverside counties in California. Only 1 hour and 45 minutes north of San Diego and Pacific coast, this ranch is perfect f...

Price: $ 402 Seller State of Residence: California State/Province: California City: Anza, Temecula Type: Recreational, Acreage Zoning: Mixed Location: 937**, Fresno, California

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Sheraton Vistana Cascades ~ Orlando, FloridaFREE CLOSING!Free 2016 Usage!!!! Buyers First Year Available: 2016Usage: AnnualUnit: 2 Bedroom, 2 Bathroom, Full Kitchen, Sleeps 8Annual Fixed Week: 25Deeded As Unit #2275, Week # 25Unit Is In The Cascades Condominiums2016 Maintenance Fee: $1,143.74 Due Annually January 1st PAID BY SELLER Special Assessments: $0.00 Property Tax: Included In Maintenance FeesDeeded Perpetual Ownership All fees are due in one week from receipt of the purchase contract. GO...

Price: $ 51 Seller State of Residence: New Jersey State/Province: Florida Type: Attractions Number of Bedrooms: 2 Number of Bathrooms: 2 Zip/Postal Code: 32821 Location: 328**, Orlando, Florida

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Reality TV World is now available on the all-new Google News app and website. Click here to visit our Google News page, and then click FOLLOW to add us as a news source!
By Elizabeth Kwiatkowski, 01/22/2016



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Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.
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In Manhattan, the average apartment price in the fourth quarter has hit a record of $1.95 million. This trend, according to real estate agents, is expected to defy the current status of stock market which is very volatile overseas, a report from NBC News said.

According to the report, real estate company Douglas Elliman said that the real estate sales in Manhattan grew 9 percent compared to the sales in the same quarter last year. The company, however, noted that the real estate prices are soaring as expected.

In fact, the real estate prices are now higher as it hit 12 percent with the median sales price of $1.15 million. The company also said that the current price per square foot is now at $1,645. With the higher prices, it goes to show that Manhattan is still one of the best locations where wealthy people choose to live despite the unstable financial market.

"Manhattan real estate remains a tale of two markets. The condo market, driven in part by new construction favored by overseas buyers, is on a tear, with average sales prices jumping 25 percent over the past year to $2.66 million, and the price per square foot up 26 percent to $1,959. For just new construction, average sales prices hit $3.29 million or $2,210 a square foot," the report said.

In a statement, Jonathan Miller, the company president of Miller Samuel, an appraisal firm, said that the real estate in Manhattan is still considered to be a "safe heaven."

"The (Manhattan) market continues to be a safe haven. The volatility and government intervention in China will just incentivize more outflows," Miller said.

Miller added that the in Manhattan alone, condo units account to about 19 percent of the real estate market. He also projected that the current share will be doubled next year because the number of units that will be constructed this year will be more than 5, 500 units.

"With a population of 1.6 million residing in an area of about 34 square-miles, Manhattan represents the epitome of big city life. Brimming with theaters, museums, restaurants, universities, quirky neighborhoods, and historic attractions, Manhattan is the ideal living choice for those who truly enjoy the urban lifestyle and the culture that comes with it," Elliman said.
If you purchased a "hoverboard" from Amazon over the holidays, good news! You can get a refund! Whether yours currently looks shiny and new, or more like the blazing pile of plastic above, Amazon is offering no hassle-refunds to their customers for their "hoverboard" purchases.

It's NOT A Hoverboard!

Can we please all agree that these things should not be called "hoverboards," due to their significant lack of hovering? By now, you'd be hard-pressed to find someone on the planet who hasn't heard about the looming threat of these "hoverboards." Most companies seem to refer to them as some version of a "self-balancing scooter", but whatever they're called, apparently "hazard" should be part of their official name.

Currently, these "fauxver"boards are being blamed for destroying a kitchen in Kent, England, a housefire in Louisiana, significant damage to a New York home, and forcing the evacuation of a mall in Washington after one caught fire.

In early December, airlines banned the products, fearing the safety issues they might cause. Additionally, the US Postal Service stopped shipping them by air, Overstock.com stopped selling them completely, and Amazon and Target both suspended sales of the item temporarily.

Get Your Money Back Before Your House Burns Down

Now, Amazon is being praised for taking the initiative to help their customers who purchased one of these cheap fire-hazards masquerading as a scooterboard. Currently, Amazon is offering full refunds for all "hoverboards" sold on their site, a move that the Consumer Protection Safety Commission commended.

When the reports started stacking up on the dangers these boards pose, Amazon removed several brands from their site. In an effort to put consumer safety first, those customers seeking a refund should contact Amazon directly with their requests.

Readers, did you purchase one of these "hoverboards" from Amazon? And if so, will you take advantage of the refund they're offering? Sound off below!
The soon-to-be-vacant seat of retiring Congressman Charles Rangel is going to be completed by three candidates. The congressman trashed the affordable housing plan of Mayor Bill De Blasio at a debate tonight, where many argued that majority of the new units for the housing plan would still be out of affordability of the district's constituents.

The proposed city-wide rezoning plan of the mayor at the Uptown Community Democrats candidate forum in Washington Heights, was also rejected by sitting Assemblyman Guillermo Linares, former Assemblyman Adam Clayton Powell IV, and Obama and Clinton Administration veteran Clyde Williams.

The mandatory inclusionary housing proposal of Mayor de Blasio would obligate all developers to include below-market apartments in new projects, either 25 percent for families averaging $46,000, or 30 percent for families making $62,000.

The rival Democrats pointed out that most residents of the district are making an average between $20,000 and $40,000 a year, which means that the new apartments are inaccessible to them.

"For you to tell me that they want to do rezoning, then you're going to tell me that you have to make $65,000 a year, does not make sense," said Mr. Williams. "The people who live in this community now cannot afford that. So there is no way that I would accept that and think it was good."

The de Blasio administration said that it would be prohibitively costly for developers to build housing for the very lowest income brackets, as reported by the Observer.

Peets Flip Board said the Department of City Planning analysis found extremely low car ownership rates among building residents in the area for the proposed housing plan, there are only five cars per 100 residents in areas near public transportation, and 11 cars per 100 residents in areas not easily accessible by public transportation.

Many of the residents in the area have incomes below $15,000 and don't have cars. Non-profit institutions provide the residents to assist them with their daily needs.
The Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump, has owned several New York real estate properties during the course of his decades-long career, but the Plaza Hotel seems to be the most iconic of all. Here are some facts about how precisely the famed Plaza deal went down and how he ultimately lost it.

Donald Trump negotiated with Tom Barrack for the deal of Plaza Hotel, who represented Plaza Hotel owner and Texas billionaire, Robert Bass, in just 30 minutes. The group expected the hotel to cost around $500 million at auction.

Trump offered $407.5 million for the hotel, which was a tremendous amount at the time. But Trump said: "It wasn't purely about the bottom line." So there was no contingency deal. A tenant named Fannie Lowenstein stood for Trump's plans for a condo conversion.

To get rid of Lowenstein, she was given a room as a rent-free for life in the Plaza, almost 10 times larger than her studio. The huge studio is said to have a view of Central Park, and also comes with new furniture and a Steinway piano. Trump handled almost all of the negotiations by himself. During the first year into Trump's ownership, the Plaza lost $74 million, as reported by the Real Deal.

At this time, Trump becomes indebted by $900 million via personally guaranteeing building loans. Nearly all of Trump's properties have been involved including the Plaza, his yacht and his jet, in exchange for more favorable terms on his personal guarantees.

After Trump bought the Plaza, it came under bankruptcy protection. After seven years, the Plaza Hotel was sold for $325 million to Prince Alwaleed bin Talal of Saudi Arabia and CDL Hotels International of Singapore.

According to the New York Daily News, Donald Trump, who is currently eyeing the White House presidency, has also been showboating his alleged net worth of $10 billion for weeks. This might be true as the real estate mogul has a string of buildings and mansions, many of it in New York and others across the country.

His vast wealth could give his White House ambition a run for its money.
The new governor of Central Bank, Philip Lane, earlier this month told The Irish Times that the mortgage rules will be reviewed beginning this summer. With that, the controversial lending rules that were introduced last year will remain as is and may take up to autumn should there be changes to be made.

Minister for Finance Michael Noonan first called for a review in mortgage cap for first-time homebuyers back in September. Most recently, DNG, a leading estate agency, has called for Central Bank to adjust its mortgage lending rules and allow first-time buyers to borrow as much as 300,000 with no more than 10 percent deposit, Irish Independent reported.

Currently, applicants who are buying a home for the first time can qualify for a mortgage loan amounting to 3.5 times of their income. DNG wants that changed to four times instead. For a loan of 220,000, borrowers are presently charged with 10 percent deposit, and 20 percent deposit if the amount is more than that.

Lane said that the Central Bank is open in modifying the rules where applicable and necessary, although he said that the new lending regime is going to stay.

"The rules, I think, could be adjusted upwards or downwards. It's not the case that the Central Bank picked the most severe rules. Those rules can be adjusted, recalibrated, but it's not the case that we'd expected to see [this reviewed] every quarter," Lane, who assumed as the bank's governor in November last year, stressed.

Meanwhile, these very mortgage rules are what caused the Central Bank of Ireland to receive the "Central Bank of the year Award" from Central Banker Magazine. The judging panel highlighted that the new residential mortgage lending rules introduced in Ireland have helped curb house price growth, as well as price expectations in 2015.
Ex- "The Vampire Diaries" star Nina Dobrev has just shared her abode in the sunny hills of California. The 27-years-old actress' bungalow is in itself a spectacle of lavish design features. Truly aesthetic, the home of Dobrev according to My Domaine is a 1929 Spanish styled house and was styled by Consort Design.

The four bedroom home that Dobrev eyed was an accidental listing that she happened to see when she was actively a part of CW's hit series "The Vampire Diaries."

"I was living in Atlanta for six years during my run on Vampire Diaries. During that time, I was constantly on the Internet looking at houses in L.A. I never really found what I liked, not everything," Dobrev told the outlet. "One day at Julie Plec's house, the creator of our show, I was getting ready for the MTV Video Awards and saw the listing. It was one block away. I ran straight over in my full-length gown. My realtor and I walked through the house in five minutes, and I put an offer in right then and there."

A lover of great design and sophistication, Dobrev knew where to seek help in bringing to life the beauty of her home.

"I've been following Mat on MyDomaine for some time and was a long-standing fan of his aesthetic," Dobrev added in the interview. "I love Consort's Instagram. I reached out and we were all so excited to collaborate."

Meanwhile, the "Crash Pad" actress also cited what she perceived her home to be like. One thing that the actress wanted to remain for her bungalow was instilling its natural historical feel and also the abundance of light to fill every area.

"I gravitate toward open, spacious homes," Dobrev said. "Light and bright is my favorite aesthetic. Maintaining the original character and history of the space was important."

Currently, Nina Dobrev has an estimated net worth of $6 million.
On Friday, Jan. 29, I was given the opportunity to sit down with the Atlanta-based rock trio Kick The Robot before their show at the Caledonia Lounge. Upon entering the shoebox venue a few hours before their show, I was greeted by Daniel Remel (bass and vocals,) Dylan Hansen (drums and vocals) and Jesse Scarpone (guitar and vocals) finishing up their sound check.
Christopher Brooks

A man who raped and bludgeoned a 23-year-old woman to death with a dumbbell in Alabama was executed on Thursday evening.





Christopher Eugene Brooks died at 6.38pm after the Supreme Court denied a stay of execution.





In the hours leading up to his death, no one had attended a vigil area to support the prisoner before his death.





'I hope this brings closure to everybody,' Brooks said as the drugs began to overcome him.





'I will take you with me in my heart,' he said to friends who witnessed the execution, according to AL.com. 'I'll see you soon. Bye. I love you.'





Brooks was the first prisoner executed in Alabama for two years and the first in the state to use a new lethal drug combination including the sedative midazolam.









The pair had met working at a nearby summer camp but were not romantically involved, her sister Corinne told WWLP.





Miss Campbell let Brooks and his friend Robert Leeper stay at her place for the night, but the next day she did not show up for work.





Police found the young woman's body, naked from the waist down, stashed under her bed.





Brooks and Leeper were caught days later after they were tracked down using Miss Campbell's credit card.





A bloody fingerprint belonging to Brooks was found on the doorknob in Mrs Campbell's bedroom, his palm print was discovered on her ankle and semen found on her body matched his DNA.





Brooks was found guilty of murder, rape and robbery whereas Leeper was only found guilty of robbery as DNA did not link him to Miss Campbell's body.





Brooks' execution took place in the Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore. His victim's family attended the execution.



Alabama switched the sedative from sodium thiopental to pentobarbital after Hospira, the maker of sodium thiopental, discontinued its manufacture in the United States in 2011. The state acknowledged in early 2014 it had run out of pentobarbital. But in a filing with the Alabama Supreme Court in September, the Alabama Attorney General's office said it had secured midazolam hydrochloride as a sedative.



Florida has used midazolam in its executions since 2013, without reported incident. But the drug was present in executions in Ohio, Oklahoma and Arizona in 2014, where inmates took a lengthy time to die. In 2 cases, reporters said inmates appeared to be gasping or choking through the process.



The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the use of midazolam in executions in a 5-4 decision. Writing for the majority, Justice Samuel Alito said three Oklahoma inmates challenging its use had failed to prove it violated the U.S. Constitution's prohibitions against cruel and unusual punishment. The court also ruled that the condemned had to suggest a more humane method of execution available to officials.



After administration of the sedative, the state protocol calls for the injection of rocuronium bromide, which paralyzes the muscles. The inmate would next receive potassium chloride, to stop the heart. The drugs are administered from a room outside the execution chamber. Under state law, Holman warden Carter Davenport administers the lethal injection.,P. Brooks was moved to a holding cell on Tuesday in advance of the execution. He was given a breakfast at 6:10 a.m., but did not eat it. Brooks saw friends and attorneys until 4:15 p.m. Thursday, according to Corrections officials.



There are 186 inmates on Alabama's death row. 5 have challenged the use of midazolam, saying it would not render them unconscious in time to avoid the pain from the other 2 drugs, which would be a violation of the Eighth Amendment's protections against "cruel and unusual punishment." The inmates also questioned whether Corrections officials consistently administer a consciousness test before administering the lethal drugs. Brooks filed a motion to join the case in November, and later to stay his execution.



"Midazolam will not anesthetize Brooks, and regardless of the dose, will not eliminate the risk that a condemned inmate will experience pain from the paralytic or potassium chloride," his brief said.



A district court allowed Brooks to join the lawsuit, known as the "Midazolam Litigation," but refused to grant a stay. A federal appeals court Tuesday refused to intervene, upholding the district judge's ruling that Brooks had not offered an alternative means of execution available to the Alabama Department of Corrections. The court also upheld the district court's ruling that Brooks had run out of time to intervene in the case.





The U.S. Supreme Court denied Brooks' requests for a stay of the execution Thursday evening. The majority did not explain its reasons. Justice Stephen Breyer wrote a brief dissent, saying the methods by which Brooks was sentenced resembled Florida's capital sentences, which the high court voted to strike down earlier this month in a case titled Hurst v. Florida.



"The unfairness inherent in treating this case differently from others which used similarly unconstitutional procedures only underscores the need to reconsider the validity of capital punishment under the Eighth Amendment," Breyer wrote.



Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, wrote a separate concurrence in the denial. Sotomayor wrote that "procedural obstacles" prevented the court from granting the stay, but added that the majority's decision to deny the ruling was based on two cases that Hurst overturned.





The request for the stay of execution was made to Justice Clarence Thomas, according to AL.com.





Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg agreed with Thomas's decision to deny the stay.

But Justice Stephen Breyer dissented from the ruling.





'Christopher Eugene Brooks was sentenced to death in accordance with Alabama's procedures, which allow a jury to render an "advisory verdict" that "is not binding on the court",' the dissent states.





'Moreover, we have recognized that Alabama's sentencing scheme is 'much like' and 'based on Florida's sentencing scheme,' Breyer wrote.





The long pause between executions in Alabama was unusual, but not unprecedented. The state resumed executions in 1983, but did not schedule any for almost 3 years after, following the gruesome death of John Evans in the electric chair on April 22, 1983. There was a 2 1/2 year gap in executions in the state between 1992 and 1995.



Brooks' execution is the 7th to take place under Gov. Robert Bentley's administration.



Brooks becomes the 1st condemned inmate to be put to death this year in Alabam and the 57th overall since the state resumed capital punishment in 1983.



Brooks becomes the 3rd condemned inmate to be put to death this year in the USA and the 1425th overall since the nation resumed executions on January 17, 1977. There is 1 more execution later this month, set for Jan. 27 in Texas.





Sources: Mail Online , Montgomery Advertiser, Rick Halperin, January 21, 2016




Red mesh bags and name badges dotted the walkway between the Zell B. Miller Learning Center and Bolton Dining Commons as slightly less than 1,000 students transferring to the University of Georgia explored the campus that will become their home this spring 2016 semester.
<p>Record Searchlight File photos</p><p>TOP: The Redding Police Department responds to the Redding Inn last August. The city is stepping up action against problem motels, and Councilman Brent Weaver wants to publicly list the most troublesome ones on the cityas website. ABOVE: City of Redding Code Enforcement Supervisor Debra Wright, left, and Redding Code Enforcement Officer Debbie Morgan, right , inspect rooms in August at the Americana Lodge in Redding. That inspection came several months after an earlier one found numerous problems with the motel. Not all of those problems had been fixed as of </p>

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By David Benda of the Redding Record Searchlight

The troubled Americana Lodge, locked in a legal battle with the city, has agreed to an appointment of a receiver if it can't bring the downtown Redding property up to building code and fix healthy and safety violations.

City Attorney Barry DeWalt said Thursday that the Americana has 45 days from the court order, which he said should happen within days, to apply for all necessary permits and then 90 days thereafter to finish the work.

In addition, the Americana Lodge must submit requests to fix all mold and asbestos issues to the relevant agencies within 20 days of the court order, the stipulation for appointing receiver says. It was filed in Shasta County Superior Court on Wednesday.

DeWalt said it was important to get a receiver appointed  even though he or she might not be needed  because "we didn't want to have to litigate whether they made compliance or not."

It gives the city sole discretion to decide whether the Americana Lodge makes deadline, DeWalt said, and if the motel fails, a receiver will be on site the day after the deadline to take possession.

The legal battle between the city and the Americana Lodge started last spring when code enforcement, police and fire officials made a sweep of the property on Pine Street. They reported finding, among other things, cockroaches, faulty smoke detectors, water heaters not venting properly, mold in rooms and sagging ceilings.

A city order to repair and abate the property was issued July 13, followed by a nuisance and abatement complaint filed in court in late October. The complaint asked a judge to appoint a receiver.

William Munoz, the Sacramento attorney co-representing the Americana Lodge, emphasized that a receiver has not been appointed, in the sense it hasn't seized control of the property.

"The receiver is not going to do anything until such time my client doesn't comply with the guidelines," Munoz said.

Munoz noted the motel has been working hard to bring the property up to code. Whether the work gets done before the deadline will depend on a number of things.

"It depends in part on weather. You also have to deal with the city, trying to get people out there to inspect. That all takes time, so I can't tell you when it's going to get done," Munoz said. "All I can tell you is my guy has had contractors out there since August working, and pretty much working every day."

What's more, each time city officials visit the motel, they find something new that needs to be fixed, Munoz said. "So it's a function both of the work being done and a function of the city ever being satisfied."

Both Robbie Clearie and Denise Craig, who own businesses next door to the Americana Lodge, said there have been people working on the property. They also have noticed a significant drop in the number of people staying at the motel compared with a year ago.

"What work has been going on, has been going very, very slowly," said Clearie, who operates Clearie's restaurant.

Clearie and Craig, who co-owns Boardmart, also are eager to see the Americana cleaned up.

Meanwhile, the Americana Lodge has agreed to pay the city's legal fees, whether or not it meets the deadline, DeWalt said. The city has contracted with an out-of-town legal firm to bring the motel up to compliance.

"The city gets paid the attorney fees either way," DeWalt said.
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By Nathan Solis of the Redding Record Searchlight

Shasta County took another step toward prohibiting medical marijuana delivery services from operating in the county as the Planning Commission approved a zone amendment on Thursday.

The amendment also requires those who grow medical marijuana at home to get permits to do so.

With the commissioners' approval, the zoning amendment goes to county supervisors for final approval, and if adopted the county would strengthen its control over medical marijuana regulation. In 2011 county supervisors adopted a prohibition on medical marijuana dispensaries in unincorporated areas of the county and in 2014 an ordinance to regulate home cultivation in code-approved structures was adopted by supervisors. It was later confirmed by voters.

County officials say the new amendment is necessary to avoid defaulting to the state's recent changes in the Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act, which overhauled medical marijuana regulation in California.

Commissioners approved the staff report and amendment proposal presented by Richard Simon, director of Resource Management.

Simon clarified an existing relationship between a patient and caregiver, who provides medical marijuana for some form of treatment, would not be impacted by the adoption of the ordinance. Instead the ordinance would target commercial delivery services outside the county, including purchases made on the Internet.

Several residents told the commissioners they opposed the ordinance.

Registered nurse Brad Tillson of Redding said there are patients who benefit from using medical marijuana in the county and should be allowed to choose how they receive their medicine.

Cathy Grindstaff spoke in favor of the ordinance, stating this move toward total regulation is what residents are asking for and should be considered when thinking of children.

Eric Karamian, a representative of 420 Express, a medical marijuana delivery service, spoke to commissioners about the benefit of medical marijuana, remarking that his business has a large patient base across the state. Karamian asked whether anyone ever has a glass of wine to fall asleep at night, remarking it is similar to medical marijuana.

Rob McDonald referred to the county's amendment proposal as "reefer madness," while shouting at commissioners throughout the public comment portion.

Jerome Venus introduced himself as a disabled veteran who takes medical marijuana. Venus said people should be allowed to treat their ailments the way they choose.

"With this new amendment you're creating a new black market," Venus added.

Tammy Brazil, owner of the medical marijuana collective The Queen of Dragons in Shasta Lake, said she has looked into building a structure on her personal property, which would be up to code so she can grow her own medical marijuana. But Brazil said the costs are too high and the current permit process is too difficult.

Brazil, who has lupus and Alzheimer's disease, takes a concentrated juice made from medical marijuana to treat her symptoms.

"I think we need to wrap this up in a better discussion," Brazil said, remarking the county's regulations are too strict.

With the planning commissioners' approval, the ordinance amendment will go to the Shasta County Board of Supervisors meeting at a later date for a final hearing and vote.
During a meeting on the Draft Gray Wolf Conservation Plan in Yreka on Thursday night, Liz Bowen of Callahan told California Department of Fish and Wildlife staff that she was concerned about having wolves living in Siskiyou County.

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YREKA  Some 300 people showed up at a hearing in Yreka on Thursday night to comment on the states draft Gray Wolf Conservation Plan.

Most of those who spoke represented ranching and hunting groups from Siskiyou County who were concerned about the wolves return to California.

I dont want a wolf kill on my place, said Ryan Walker, a Siskiyou County rancher, referring to wolves killing cattle. I need to know where the wolves are.

The conservation plan attempts to manage the growing number of wolves that have showed up in the state during the past year.

The state Department of Fish and Wildlife plan analyzes where wolves are likely to live in the state, what they will prey on, how they will affect livestock ranchers and humans. The state is also holding conservation plan meetings in Sacramento and Long Beach.

This past summer, fish and wildlife biologists documented the states first pack in more than 80 years. DNA analysis of the wolvess droppings indicate they came from the Imnaha pack in northeast Oregon.

Many of the ranchers who spoke Thursday urged the state to put radio collars on the wolves so they can take steps to protect their cattle.

Patrick Griffin, a wolf consultant for Siskiyou County, said after a calf was killed, ranchers wanted to know where the wolves were so they could prevent another death.

After the incident on the east side of the county, it would have been nice to know where the wolves have gone, Griffin said.

The DFWs Eric Loft told the crowd that getting the wolves collared is a high priority. However, state officials need to locate the wolves before they can collar them.

Weve lost track of the Shasta Pack. We dont know where they are, said Karen Kovacs, a program manager for the department.

Fish and wildlife officials said wolves probably killed a calf in Siskiyou County in November. Kovacs urged those in the audience to notify the department when they see a wolf or any evidence of one.

Mark Baird, a leader in the State of Jefferson movement, said he suspects the wolves are being trucked into the state, and he and others are looking for evidence.

But Loft denied that and said he, too, would like to see evidence of anyone in the fish and wildlife department trucking in wolves.

Siskiyou County Sheriff Jon Lopey said he was concerned about wolves harming people, as well as the economic impact wolves will have on ranchers.

Im very, very concerned, and so are my fellow sheriffs, both inside and outside California, Lopey said.

Rich Klug, with the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, said he was concerned about how wolves would affect elk herds. He said there are only about 7,000 elk in Northern California. If wolf packs grow too numerous, they could greatly reduce the numbers of elk, which are wolves primary source of food, he said.

About a half-dozen people also spoke in favor of wolves. Karin Vardaman of the California Wolf Center said she was eager to work with ranchers and state officials to prevent cattle deaths.

We have no desire to see cattle die, Vardaman said.

Im very, very concerned, and so are my fellow sheriffs, both inside and outside California, Lopey said.

Rich Klug, with the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, said he was concerned about how wolves would affect elk herds. He said there are only about 7,000 elk in Northern California. If wolf packs grow too numerous, they could greatly reduce the numbers of elk, which are wolves primary source of food, he said.

About a half-dozen people also spoke in favor of wolves. Karin Vardaman of the California Wolf Center said she was eager to work with ranchers and state officials to prevent cattle deaths.

We have no desire to see cattle die, Vardaman said.
<p>A wolf from a newly discovered pack in California is seen in an image captured on a Fish and Wildlife camera.</p>

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California wildlife officials are holding a workshop in Yreka this evening to take comment on a draft gray wolf conservation plan.

In December, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife released a Draft Gray Wolf Conservation Plan that attempts to manage where the wolves live, wolf-livestock conflicts and how wolves affect other wildlife in the state.

The state began working on the plan after it became clear that wolves would eventually be re-established in the state. Wolves were exterminated in California in the 1920s but OR-7 became the first gray wolf to return to the state when he migrated from Oregon in 2011.

OR-7 has gone back to Oregon, but other wolves have moved into the state, and a pack has taken up residence in Siskiyou County.

State officials are taking comment on the wolf plan at the 5 p.m. meeting at the Miner's Inn, 122 E. Miner St.

Tweets by @damonarthur_RS
This screen grab shows the home page to ManTherapy.org.

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By Amber Sandhu of the Redding Record Searchlight

Shasta County is looking at a new way to get men to seek mental health services, and it starts by having a good laugh about it.

Shasta County Health and Human Services Director Donnell Ewert said he's been referring people to ManTherapy.org, a website developed in Colorado that uses humor to discuss mental health and therapy.

The stigma against mental illness prevents men from seeking services, as they feel it's "not a manly thing to do," Ewert said.

According to a report by the Health and Human Services agency and the Suicide Prevention Workgroup, 80.6 percent of suicides committed in Shasta County were by men. Ewert said that the concept of preventing suicide starts by encouraging the men of Shasta County to seek services.

"It's about breaking down the resistance to get help," he said.

On the ManTherapy.org website, visitors are greeted by a fictional character named Dr. Rich Mahogany who talks about therapy and counseling and the concept of the website.

Joe Conrad, founder of Cactus Marketing Communications, said when his company developed Mahogany's character, they were looking for someone who would be "culturally popular and appeal to many demographics." He said he looked at a few concepts for the character and eventually decided he wanted someone who had the feel of Dr. Phil, Ron Burgundy and Ron Swanson. And after meeting John Arp, a Denver stage actor who read for the part, Conrad knew he had Dr. Mahogany.

The interactive website allows people to do an 18-point "head inspection" that consists of a questionnaire that asks about sleep patterns, alcohol or substance use and emotional status. Dependent on answers, an unofficial assessment pops up that addresses depression, anxiety, anger and connects with resources in Colorado.

And dependent on how things pan out for Shasta County, Ewert said if the county were to attain a license from Cactus, it would add Shasta County services and resources to the site. Ewert said his department conducted a small focus group to test how people perceived the website locally, and received positive reviews.

"Here, all the men are laughing," he said.

He added that mental health is still stigmatized in the community and seen as a "character flaw," but getting men engaged to talk about mental illness is the key to suicide prevention.

"We feel like it's appropriate for our community," he said. "It's quite male oriented humor, that's the target group."

Marc Dadigan, community education specialist at the Health and Human Services Agency, said not all men "recoil in horror" when they address mental illness. But whenever he's asked men how they deal with stress, he said they'll often give joking answers. And that's why he refers men to Man Therapy, because it addresses mental illness in a "less medical way."

Dadigan is part of Stand Against Stigma and the Brave Faces campaigns, which also address mental health stigma. He said in Shasta County it's especially important to involve men in mental health care because in turn, those men help other men. "Brave Faces gives men space to define strength on their own terms and not see struggle as weak," he said.

When the Man Therapy concept first came to Conrad through the Suicide Prevention Coalition of Colorado, he knew the best way to break the stigma of mental illness was through humor.

"It's an approach we decided would be effective," he said.

And he said since the website's launch, it's quickly spread around the world. Australia launched its own version of Man Therapy with a new character who connects people to resources in Australia.

In the U.S., Colorado has the highest number of visitors to the site, because that's where it originated. But California takes the second spot, even though Man Therapy hasn't been licensed anywhere in the state. But the biggest benefit of the website is that it's available all hours and people are entertained by it, Conrad said.

"I didn't know how significant of a public health issue it was," Conrad said about mental illness. "If you wait till someone is in crisis, for a man, it's too late."
Every year Indians consume about 22 million tonnes of lentils

India has developed three lentil varieties of a particular strain that was banned five decades ago amid concerns that it led to nerve damage and paralysis, a move aimed at stepping up local supplies to curb domestic prices and cut imports.



The government-backed Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has developed the lentil, popularly called pulses, variety after India agreed to lift a five-decade-old ban on the grade.



The new varieties are safe for human consumption, Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh said in a statement.



Annual output of khesari, the lentil variety, is estimated at 350,000 tonnes.



Every year Indians consume about 22 million tonnes of lentils used to make a thick stew called dal, commonly taken with rice or flat bread across South Asia.



About a fifth of the volume is imported from countries such as Canada, Austria and Myanmar, which grow the legumes mainly to sell to India.

Photograph: Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters
The so-called 'fourth industrial revolution' will bring ever faster cycles of innovation, posing huge challenges to companies, workers, governments and societies alike

Implantable mobile phones. 3D-printed organs for transplant. Clothes and reading-glasses connected to the Internet.

Such things may be science fiction today but they will be scientific fact by 2025 as the world enters an era of advanced robotics, artificial intelligence and gene editing, according to executives surveyed by the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Nearly half of those questioned also expect an artificial intelligence machine to be sitting on a corporate board of directors within the next decade.

Welcome to the next industrial revolution.

After steam, mass production and information technology, the so-called 'fourth industrial revolution' will bring ever faster cycles of innovation, posing huge challenges to companies, workers, governments and societies alike.

The promise is cheaper goods and services, driving a new wave of economic growth. The threat is mass unemployment and a further breakdown of already strained trust between corporations and populations.

"There is an economic surplus that is going to be created as a result of this fourth industrial revolution," Satya Nadella, chief executive of Microsoft, told the WEF's annual meeting in Davos on Wednesday.

'The question is how evenly will it be spread between countries, between people in different economic strata and also different parts of the economy.'

Robots are already on the march, moving from factories into homes, hospitals, shops, restaurants and even war zones, while advances in areas like artificial neural networks are starting to blur the barriers between man and machine.

One of the most in-demand participants in Davos this year is not a central banker, CEO or politician but a prize-winning South Korean robot called HUBO, which is strutting its stuff amid a crowd of smartphone-clicking delegates.

But there are deep worries, as well as awe, at what technology can do.

A new report from UBS released in Davos predicts that extreme levels of automation and connectivity will worsen already deepening inequalities by widening the wealth gap between developed and developing economies.

"The fourth industrial revolution has potentially inverted the competitive advantage that emerging markets have had in the form of low-cost labour," said Lutfey Siddiqi, global head of emerging markets for FX, rates and credit at UBS.

"It is likely, I would think, that it will exacerbate inequality if policy measures are not taken."

An analysis of major economies by the Swiss bank concludes that Switzerland is the country best-placed to adapt to the new robot world, while Argentina ranks bottom.

Winners and losers

There will be winners and losers among companies, too, as new players move into established industries with disruptive new technologies.

That is something uppermost in the minds of Davos attendees such as General Motors CEO Mary Barra, who is confronting the threat of driverless cars - another science fiction that has become science fact - or bank boss Jamie Dimon at JPMorgan Chase, facing competition from digital 'fintech' start-ups.

Such innovations, coupled with the rise of robots in both the manufacturing and service sectors, could automate vast numbers of jobs. Oxford University researchers predicted in 2013, for example, that 47 per cent of US jobs were at risk.

Such fears about technology destroying jobs are not new. The economist John Maynard Keynes famously cried wolf in 1931, by issuing a warning of widespread 'technological unemployment'.



The question is whether this time will be different, given the speed to change and the fact that machines now offer brain as well as brawn, threatening professions previously seen as immune, such as entry-level journalism or routine financial analysis.

Pessimists fear this will hollow out middle-income, middle-class jobs on an unprecedented scale, with the WEF itself predicting that more than 5 million jobs could be lost in 15 major economies by 2020.

But ManpowerGroup CEO Jonas Prising is more upbeat for the long term. 'If history is any indicator, we'll have more jobs being created in the end than are going to be destroyed,' he said.

However, beyond the Davos talking-shop there are doubts about how well business leaders will actually plan for the future.

"When you have these very big levels of disruptive change you need some pretty serious thinking and action," said Ian Goldin, professor of globalisation and development at Oxford University.

"But the CEO who really looks years ahead and looks at broader social issues is rare, even in Davos."

Image: HUBO a multifunctional walking humanoid robot performs a demonstration of its capacities during the annual meeting of the WEF in Davos. Photograph: Ruben Spinch/Reuters

Additional reporting by Noah Barkin and Martinne Geller
Texas Death House, 'The Walls' Unit. The holding cells, where the doomed

inmates spend their last hours, are on the left. The death chamber is

located at the far end of the corridor. Huntsville Unit, Huntsville, TX.





If Cannon was alive today, he would have turned 56 on January 13, 2016. But on April 22, 1998 the 38 year-old ate his last meal. Cannon ordered "fried chicken, barbecue ribs, baked potato, green salad with Italian dressing, chocolate cake or chocolate ice cream or both, a thick chocolate shake or malt and iced tea." New information in the case of Joseph John Cannon, being revealed for the 1st time today, casts a fresh look at the murder trial that reached the Supreme Court, prompted reaction from the Pope, and caused a nation to debate executing someone who committed at crime at age 17 If Cannon was alive today, he would have turned 56 on January 13, 2016. But on April 22, 1998 the 38 year-old ate his last meal. Cannon ordered "fried chicken, barbecue ribs, baked potato, green salad with Italian dressing, chocolate cake or chocolate ice cream or both, a thick chocolate shake or malt and iced tea."





The meal was delivered in the afternoon, not long after he entered a holding room located about 30 feet from where he was set to die. While eating, little did Cannon know that 160 miles away, at the State Capitol, Texas Governor George W. Bush had received pleas from Pope John Paul II at the Vatican, Archbishop Desmond Tutu from South Africa, and members from the Parliament in Italy, to stop the execution.





About 3 p.m. Warden Jim Willett reviewed the file of Cannon, known as inmate 634. Willett said he prayed for Cannon and asked "God to make this a smooth and trouble-free day for him." By 4 p.m. Willett entered the holding cell to find that Cannon had completed his meal. He verified that Cannon would make a last statement as this would help the warden cue the execution's commencement. Chaplain Jim Brazel stayed with Cannon while Willett went back to the office.





Wayne Scott, the director of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, along with a few regional and deputy directors waited with Willett until about 5:45 when they received a phone call from Gov. Bush's office confirming they could proceed. Shortly afterwards, the State's attorney general's office called to ratify the execution. Willett walked down to hall to the cell holding Cannon and the chaplain.





"Inmate Cannon," Willett announced, "it's time for you to go into the next room with me."





Joseph John Cannon

Cannon stood up and followed Willett without saying a word. When Cannon reached the doorway to the 9-by-12-foot death chamber, he paused. No one knows what was going through Cannon's mind at the moment, but what he saw was a tie down team of corrections officers waiting for him in the light green room with white floors and brown coving. He immediately walked to the gurney and laid down. The team began strapping Cannon in place with 5 yellowish-tan straps buckled across him. Looking up, he could see a 2-by-6 foot rectangle fixture crossing over him, casting light. As the straps began to tighten, he observed to the left of the light. Coming out of the ceiling, was a dark escutcheoned conduit bent to the right and downward so a microphone could record his last words.





Looking downward to his left, Cannon saw the executioner's room through a window. He closed his eyes and gazed to his right. There were 2 curtained windows, both with light green colored jail bars. Each window represented 2 separate rooms, 1 for his family, and 1 for the victim's family to watch him being executed.





Knowing Cannon was securely strapped, Warden Willett stood at the head of the inmate, while the chaplain stood at his feet. 2 members of the medical team entered the room, while the third member, the executioner, stayed in the room to Cannon's left. Typically, the medical team takes about 5 to 10 minutes to insert and secure 2 IVs into an inmate, with 1 serving as a backup. Willet and the chaplain could tell the medical techs were having difficulty as the female tech prodded and poked Cannon's arm.





Later, Willett would admit it was the longest IV preparation he'd ever witnessed. It took over 20 minutes before the technician peered up and asked, "Warden, I think we've got a good one in this arm. Can we go with just the 1?" Willett nodded affirmatively and the technician left the room. Cannon gazed at the IV in his arm and looked right to see people entering the 1st witness viewing room. Through the window, Cannon saw his mother. He looked at her with no expression. When someone nudged her she moved in closer to the plate glass window.



Cannon then looked over to the next window as members of his victims family entered their viewing room. It was the first time some of them had seen Joseph John Cannon since the day he brutally murdered their mother.



The five sons of Anne C. Walsh noticed the man strapped to the gurney appeared far different from the way he looked in 1977. After spending decades in prison, Cannon was now haggard and weighed far more than when he was 17, the age he decided to leave his home in Houston to hitchhike to Las Vegas, Nevada.









Source: The Examiner, Jack Dennis, January 20, 2016. Mr. Dennis was the private investigator in the first trial of Joseph John Cannon in 1980.




'India is the only country whose economy is strong and growing fast.'

Image: Prime Minister Narendra Modi taking a ride on E-Rickshaw, after the distribution at Rickshaw Sangh programme by the Bhartiya Micro Credit, in Lucknow. Photograph, courtesy: Press Information Bureau

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said his government is aiming not only to make India the fastest growing economy but to transform the lives of the poor people wherein the youth will have employment and can stand on their own feet.

Modi, while distributing electric rickshaws to a number of people in Lucknow, talked about a number of schemes of his government like Jandhan Yojana, Mudra Yojana and Atal Pension Yojana and said these all were aimed at transforming the lives of the poor people.

"Today, the entire world is facing economic recession and even the major countries are affected. Amidst this, India is the only country whose economy is strong and growing fast," he said in his address at the event.

He said the global bodies like the World Bank, IMF and rating agencies unanimously accept that India is going to progress rapidly.

"When we hear this, it gives satisfaction to us. But our target is not only to make India the fastest growing economy but to transform the lives of the poor people. We want that the youth should have employment and stand up on their own feet," said the Prime Minister who is on his first visit to Lucknow after assuming the top post in May 2014.

He said his government's effort has been to ensure that the youth do not have to wander in search of job but have some own venture and hire some others too.

"Our all initiatives have been for the common people so that they can live on their strengths and contribute to the economic development," said Modi who, along with Home Minister Rajnath Singh, had a ride in an e-rickshaw before the event.

Referring to the initiatives regarding the financial inclusion, the Prime Minister said banks had been nationalised 40 years ago with an argument that it was for the benefit of the poor people.

"40 years passed but the doors of banks had not opened to the poor people. After our government came, we decided that the poor people should have accounts in banks. By now, 20 crore (200 million) new bank accounts have been opened (since the Jandhan Yojana was launched in late 2014)," he said.

Modi said Rs 30,000 crore (Rs 300 billion) had been deposited in these accounts even though the government had said that these could be 'zero balance' accounts.

"The poor people live by their values and principles. That is why they did not want to keep their accounts with zero balance," he said.

He then talked about Mudra Yojana under which loans are given to the poor people.



"In 5-6 months, two crore (20 million) people have got loan under this scheme. Without any guarantees... just on the basis of trust, Rs 80,000 crore (Rs 800 billion) have been disbursed under this scheme," the Prime Minister said.

While talking about the electric rickshaws, he said these vehicles would benefit not only those using these and their families but also help in the fight against the global problem of climate change.

The e-rickshaw users will also be entitled to Atal Jeevan Bima Yojana and other such schemes, he said, adding it will be like a "protective shield" to them.

Modi said that drivers were the first contact for tourists and key in shaping the image of the country when they interact with the travellers.



He said e-visas are being given to more than 100 countries and special training will be imparted to drivers about their conduct.
'I was in love and so I got married very early. Love makes you do crazy things. If I had not married then, my life would have been different.'

'Today, I see women balancing their careers and homes. They are giving equal importance to their personal desires and their families, and that is great. I haven't been able to find that balance.'

Bhagyashree, up close and personal.

Image courtesy: Bhagyashree.

When Sooraj Barjatya made his directorial debut Maine Pyaar Kiya in 1989, he gave Bollywood two promising actors: Salman Khan and Bhagyashree.

While the former went on to become a superstar, the latter got married and quit the film industry at the height of her career.

But Bhagyashree has no regrets.

Seventeen years after making her smash hit debut, Bhagyashree still looks *gorgeous*.

Wearing a white t-shirt and trousers, she greets me warmly, hugging me, and strolls over to a corner of a sprawling room in her plush Juhu bungalow. She sips from a tall glass of nimbu-paani (lemon juice) and talks about her successful life:

My father Vijay Singhrao Patwardhan is the Raja of Sangli (a city in Maharashtra) even though our family has lived in Mumbai.

We would visit Sangli thrice a year, and a royal protocol would be followed there.

When I was younger, I would find it very odd and embarrassing when people, much older to me, would touch my feet because they had this reverence towards the royal family.

While children of my age grew up with cats and dogs, I got to choose my own elephant!

The Ganpati festival in Sangli was huge; around 6 lakh people came to worship this year. We have our own temple there. The visarjan can start only after my father finishes with his.

So my childhood has been quite different from other young girls.

But in Mumbai, we had a regular home, went to school and did normal things.

My father liked to study; his visiting card has three lines of (educational) degrees. When I look at it, I feel embarrassed because I barely completed my BCom (Bachelor of Commerce). He is an accomplished lawyer, an engineer, a businessman with factories in Mauritius and Africa...

My mother Rohini is a homemaker. She brought us up; we are three sisters. I'm the oldest.



Madhuvanti and Purnima are not into films. They're married -- one is settled in Chicago and the other is in Canada.

'I signed my first autograph in Washington'

Image: Bhagyashree in various stills from Kachchi Dhoop, with Madhuvanti and Shalmalee Palekar.

It's funny how I started working in television serials.

Amol Palekar was our neighbour. His daughter Shalmalee and my younger sister Madhuvanti were of the same age, and we would all play together.

When Amol uncle started the TV serial Kachchi Dhoop, he asked my youngest sister whether she would like to star in it. She was all for it because she loved acting and would take part in school plays.



I was very studious and had eyes for books only. I was a very obedient daughter and student. I never got remarks; I was the class monitor.

Amol Palekar had put up a set in Nataraj studio. The night before the shooting, he told me that he wanted me to play the elder sister.



I was shocked. I had never acted in my life nor had I ever been on stage. The last time I was on stage in school, I was a tree (laughs). So I was petrified. I told him I was not used to learning dialogues and wasn't sure if I would manage that.

So he explained it's all about what children do at home. He told me just come and play on the sets.

Apparently, the girl who was supposed to do the part had run away. Since the sets had already been erected, they would incur huge losses if they did not find a replacement. So I said okay.

The moment I said yes, my father gave me a long lecture. He wanted me to test the acting field, let it be a learning process -- how each shot is taken, why there are close-ups, trollies, mid-shots, how lighting is used...

I told him that it was supposed to be a summer vacation! (laughs) I was 14 years old then.



But I said okay, since I was an obedient daughter. So I went to the set with this open mind full of questions, and would keep asking Amol uncle how he worked.

It was a fun atmosphere. Once, just before a scene, Amol uncle's daughter Shalmalee burst out laughing just when she had to say a dialogue. And that made me laugh, then my sister laughed and the entire set laughed!



She just couldn't complete that dialogue and it went on for a long time. We had to re-take that scene for at least 46 times, after which Amol uncle said 'Pack Up.' After that, there was pin drop silence.



That was the first time he had raised his voice and it really scared us.



We shot Kachchi Dhoop in one month and I became very popular because of it.

I still remember, we had gone to America for the first time. We were at a Washington museum when suddenly, I heard screams. I turned back to see a mob of children, running towards me. We thought they would run ahead, but they had actually come to get my autograph! So I signed my first autograph in Washington. I couldn't believe it!

I did plenty of one-off serials but it was more of fun and games. I was totally focused on going abroad for my education.

But then Maine Pyaar Kiya happened.

'My dad glared at me so hard during the song Tum Ladki Ho that I almost died in my seat'

Image: Salman Khan and Bhagyashree in Maine Pyaar Kiya

Soorajji (Barjatya) and my family knew each other socially. Once, he saw me and wanted me to do a film. He had also seen Kachchi Dhoop.



All of a sudden, he landed at my home and said that he wanted to cast me in a film.

I said I wasn't interested; I didn't want this career.



He asked us to at least hear the story.

When he started the narration, I started crying. The moment I started crying, he thought I really understood the script.



I told him I loved the story but couldn't do certain scenes. So he made some alterations.



I said no again because I had to attend college. So he said I could shoot after college.



But I found another excuse.

He must have come back at least seven times. Sometimes, the problem would be a kissing scene, sometimes a costume.



But whenever destiny writes something out for you, you have to do it.

My family was very conservative; we were brought up in a very protective environment. When I was going to college, my father told me not to wear skirts and jeans. I wore salwar kurta all my college life.

I wore skirts and jeans in Maine Pyar Kiya without informing him for the song Tum Ladki Ho. During the trail screening, my dad glared at me so hard during the song that I almost died in my seat.

It was lovely on the sets. Our scenes were all drawn out on chartpaper. It had everything -- where who should go, how everyone should stand... the detailing for every scene was amazing. So everyone on the set knew exactly what to do.

Soorajji would be the first to arrive on the sets, even before his assistants, and the last to leave.

He had just gotten married then, and Salman (Khan) and I would tell him to pack up early and spend time with his wife.

Vanitabhabi would get food on the sets and literally serve him. We would all sit together and eat.

Everyday I would attend college, and then go for the shooting. My lectures were at 7am. I would come back in the afternoon, sleep for an hour or two, and then leave home at 4pm and reach Madh Island at 6pm. The shooting would get over by 4 or 5 am, and I would rush back home, take a shower, and go to college.

I started shooting for Maine Pyar Kiya when I was 18 years old. The film went into post-production for nine months, and I got married at 19. I was 20 when the film released.



'My parents did not attend my wedding'

Image: Bhagyashree with husband Himalaya. Photograph: Bhagyashree/Twitter

Himalayaji and I went to school together, and love happened over the years. We would have catfights in school but we couldn't do without each other.

But my father disapproved of our relationship. So I broke up with him. There is this saying that if you really love someone, set him free and if he really loves you, he will come back. I believed in that.

At our wedding, only Salman Khan and Soorajji's family attended from my side.

My parents were not talking to me and did not attend.

They felt I was too young (to get married) and I don't blame them. My parents thought if they don't come for my wedding, I will not get married.

I had told my parents to get us engaged, and that we could get married later. I even asked them if I could meet Himalaya at home, in front of them. But they did not agree to anything.

So I was left with no choice.

Everything got sorted after my son Abhimanyu was born a year later.





'I never said I would work only with Himalaya'

Image: Bhagyashree with husband Himalaya in the film Qaid Mein Hai Bulbul



I never said I would work only with Himalaya.

Once a journalist had asked me whom I would prefer doing intimate scenes with. I started laughing and said that I wasn't comfortable doing even hugging scenes with Salman Khan. I added that I had a husband, so intimacy began and ended at home.

Because of this, film offers did not come to me.

Once, Himalayaji was offered a movie and he accepted.

I thought working with my husband would be easier but when we started shooting, I realised it wasn't. You get so conscious!



I am a very shy person. At that point of time, I wouldn't even sit close to my husband when my in-laws were around. So sitting on someone's lap in public, even if he was my husband's, was difficult.

Those intimate scenes that I thought I would be comfortable doing suddenly looked very difficult.

Actually, there were lots of love stories being made after Maine Pyaar Kiya and Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak. Action movies followed but the roles offered to women were of painted dolls with no soul. I did not feel comfortable doing such films.

I did not want to compromise my relationship with my husband by doing something I was not comfortable with. We got married young and he was possessive like any other man.

Plus, movies demanded outdoor schedules and my husband wasn't comfortable with me going away for a long time. I haven't left my daughter alone for even a single day.

You put your personal desires on the back burner for the sake of your family.

Yes, I would have loved to balance things. Today, I see women balancing their careers and homes perfectly. Actually, I can't say if they are perfect but they are managing. They are giving equal importance to their personal desires and their families, and that is great. I haven't been able to find that balance.



'I played a husband-beater in a film'

Image: Bharat Jadhav and Bhagyashree on the poster of Zhak Marli Bayko Keli

I have done lot of movies in Kannada and Telugu. They were all powerful, women-oriented roles.

In one film, I played a husband-beater and in another, I played a journalist who tries to understand the lives of criminals.

I did a lot of regional cinema during those 10 years, like Prema Paavuralu (1990), Yuvaratna Rana (1998), Omkaram (1997), Avuna (2003) and Ammavra Ganda (1997). I did Bangladeshi movie called Sati Behula.

Last year, I did the television show, Laut Aao Trisha. It came at the perfect time because my daughter had just left for London.

Laut Aao Trisha was about a mother's search for her daughter and that suited me too.





'There's is so much emptiness that it's painful'

Image courtesy: Bhagyashree.



I was in love and so I got married very early. Love makes you do crazy things. If I had not married then, my life would have been different.

But I am not dissatisfied with life, no regrets.

I am remembered for just one film but I am not upset because that's the best work in my life. Twenty-five years later, people still remember me and respect me.

I gave up a lot of things when my children were born, as I had to take care of them. My children know what I have given up and they appreciate that.

I think I have spent my best times with my children and so I have no regrets. I have done everything a normal mother would do. I have gone for their karate classes, gymnastics classes, swimming classes, I have massaged them as babies, I have taken them for musicals and we would come back singing loudly in the car, I would take them to Juhu beach and had golas with them...

Today, my children are constantly pushing me to do what they feel is good for me. They are my biggest support system.

My son Abhimanyu has finished his education and is getting ready for films. He studied at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute as well as at Anupam Kher's Acting School. He assisted Ramesh Sippy and Rohan Sippy in their films, and now he is learning martial arts and dance. He has started meeting producers.

My daughter Avantika is not interested in acting. She is studying business in London.

Both my children have grown up and are busy with their careers. I'm alone now, and there's is so much emptiness that it's painful.

Now, I am waiting for the perfect script that I may be destined for (laughs).
Ahmedabad's cultural scene would not have gone beyond the garba, but for Mrinalini Sarabhai's pioneering efforts, says V Gangadhar who spent many years in the city.

IMAGE: Mrinalini Sarabhai performs with her daughter Mallika in New Delhi in 2004. Photograph: PTI Photo

When I set foot in Ahmedabad for the first time in 1958 to earn a living, the city was dirty, the sky was dark with smoke dribbling from the chimneys of its 60-odd textile mills. Almost everyone worked in the mills, and at their opening and closing times the roads were choked with mill workers, clutching their lunch boxes.

The next 20 years saw many changes. The textile industry collapsed and slowly, one by one the mills closed town. The city became more urban and crowded with traffic, shops and cinema theatres. Communal harmony began to disappear and the city was divided into 'Hindu' Ahmedabad and 'Muslim' ghettos. The 2002 communal riots left a permanent blot on peace and tolerance.

Yet Ahmedabad was blessed with a special culture ushered in by certain men of vision which led to the birth and nurturing of institutions like Indian Institute of Management, space agencies like ISRO, PRL, and meteorological and weather forecasting agencies along with those which helped industrial growth -- the National Institute of Design and ATIRA (the Ahmedabad Textile Industry's Research and Development Association). These agencies employed thousands of technicians and scientists and helped the all round growth of the city.

But there was a cultural vacuum. Barring bhajans, garba, film music and folk dances, Ahmedabad was left untouched by the fast-changing famous Indian cultural scene. There was hardly anyone to teach, practise and perform classical dances from different parts of India, like Bharata Natyam, Kathak, Kuchipudi and Kathakali.

This was the cultural scene which greeted the new young bride of the illustrious Sarabhai family, pioneers in the local textile industry and devoted followers of Gandhiji.

One of the Sarabhai sons, Vikram, excelled in science and took a PhD in physics from Cambridge, collaborating with textile tycoon Seth Kasturbal Lalbhai with whom he shared visions for developing Ahmedabad and making it a science showpiece in the country. On a trip to Bangalore, Vikram met Mrinalini, they fell in love and got married in 1942.

It was a great meeting of liberal, cultured, minds. Father, an illustrious lawyer, mother Ammu Swaminathan, a noted social worker, brother Govind Swaminathan, a criminal lawyer, and sister Captain Lakshmi Seghal, a leading figure in Netaji Bose's Indian National Army which sought the help of the Japanese to defeat the British in World War II.

Mrinalini, educated at a Swiss school, an American dance academy, then joined Tagore's Shantiniketan where she was personally taught by Gurudev, learnt Bharata Natyam and Kathakali from Guru Meenakshisundaram Pillai and Thakazhi Kunchu Kurup. In those early days she expressed her passion for classical dance and in an interview commented, 'Even at age 4 I knew I would be a dancer. Dance is the breath of my life and the stage, my mother. I was born with a desperate consuming desire to create and the need to question.'

Married and settled down in Ahmedabad, Mrinalini had to contend with certain harsh realities. Classical dances did not have much of a popular appeal and large sections of Gujarati society associate it with the Devadasi culture.

Vikram and the rest of the Sarabhai clan stood by her. Association with Gandhiji also helped. Soon, prejudices began to crumble as more girls and even boys joined Darpana, which she founded. This was possible thanks to Mrinalini's versatility in dance forms.

Darpana began to create dance drama, starting from bhakti themes to more modern ones on burning social themes like dowry evil, bride burning, joint family systems, Dalit discrimination and more themes from Indian mythology revolving around women. The male participation in these dance dramas rose sharply, enhancing the element of realism.

Ahmedabad's cultural scene would not have gone beyond traditional garba, but for Amma's (as Mrinalini was adoringly called) pioneering efforts, observed theatre lovers.

Mrinalini's children, now growing up, were inspired by Amma's passion. Daughter Mallika was a chip of the old block, eagerly taking part in theatrical and dance innovations. Foreign innovations came to Darpana in a big way. Beckett, Moliere, Tolstoy, Pinter and other playwrights helped to put Darpana firmly on the world theatre map.

Thanks to the Sarabhai initiative Ahmedabad was now a cosmopolitan city and the mixed population began to enjoy and appreciate international shows. Mallika proved to be a worthy successor, taking an independent stand on vital topical issues of the city. Staunchly liberal, the family guarded its liberal tradition and secularism. This did not go down well with right-wing elements and then chief minister Narendra Modi's government tried to file criminal charges against Mallika over frivolous issues.

Somehow the communal divide in Ahmedabad has not healed. The spirit of Darpana is trying its best, but much more needs to be done. The element of orthodoxy and conservatism still runs deep in Gujarati society. The affluent society of the Sarabhais does not care. But the upper middle classes and the middle class are still bothered by the communal divide. There is no coming together of Hindus and Muslims who are still tradition-bound.

Visiting the theatre, understanding its real themes and reading about what is happening in the world, still remain the privilege of the upper classes.

Several years back there was much eyebrow-raising in Ahmedabad when daughter Mallika reached forward to light the funeral pyre of her father: 'O, the daughter has breached the gender wall of Hindu society. They will get away because of their wealth and special status! Had the Sarabhais belonged to a lower strata of society, there would have been trouble.'

Those who belong to the same strata of Hindu society could get away with such progressive steps, but they need guts. They should not peep behind to check if 'Big Brother' was watching.
'For a Dalit boy to reach the PhD stage, it requires a lot of pain and hard work. He was a scholar, an intelligent student.'

'This is not about the loss of just an individual, but the loss of this nation.'

Dr Sunil Baliram Gaikwad (pictured, below), the Bharatiya Janata Party Member of Parliament from Latur (Schedule Caste ) constituency, tells Prasanna D Zore/Rediff.com that grave injustice was done to Rohith Vemula.

IMAGE: A protest over Rohith Vemula's death in Nagpur. Photograph: PTI

Two BJP MPs from Etawah and Bijapur and one former party MP, who is a national executive committee member, have requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene and make a statement to assure India's Dalits after the Rohith Vemula suicide case. Do you also want the prime minister to make a statement?

India's Constitutional democracy gives everybody a right to his opinion and views. Terming anybody 'anti-national' just because he exercises this fundamental right is unfair is what I am saying.

Are you saying that the meeting against Yakub Memon's execution is not an anti-national activity?

Just not this student (Rohith Vemula), but so many people met the President of India (to request him to grant Memon clemency).

Was a case of these people being anti-national slapped against them? Were they labelled anti-national? Then, why just Rohith?

The propaganda spread was that the vice-chancellor (Hyderabad Central University VC Appa Rao) had charged Rohith with anti-national activities, but isn't that right reserved to the police? That too after a proper investigation?

Had Rohith been found wanting in his educational/doctoral activities at the university only then would the vice-chancellor have had a right to take appropriate action against Rohit.

Had the police found out about this so-called anti-national activity only then would they have been the right people to charge Rohith with such a charge.

But in the absence of such investigation, and just because somebody is complaining about his (Rohith's) acts as anti-national and the ministry takes cognizance of it and informs the VC about it, is absolutely unfair.

Is this an act of injustice against the Dalits?

100 per cent, this is an act of injustice.

Do you think Rohith Vemula was charged with being an anti-national because he was a Dalit?

This is not what I am saying!

But then you said that no such charge was leveled, or action taken, against those in Delhi who met the President to seek clemency for Yakub Memon?

Yes, then why Rohith?

Why do you think Rohith was charged with being an anti-national?

Look, for some Dalit boy to reach the PhD stage, it requires a lot of pain and hard work. He was doing his doctorate in science. He was a scholar, an intelligent student.

This is not about the loss of just an individual, but the loss of this nation.

Rohith being a Dalit is secondary here. That he was an Indian first is very important for me and an Indian with such good calibre would have added to the nation's intellectual capital, but alas he had to commit suicide.

Rohith was an Indian first. We are all Indians first. That injustice was done to an Indian in India, where our Constitution guarantees us freedom of expression and thought, is injustice.

How fair is it to dub an Indian, an anti-national, for expressing his opinion?

Questions will be asked that if you think Rohith was an Indian first and a Dalit later, then why are you raising your voice only after his suicide and not at other times when non-Dalit students faced such injustice?

Nobody came to me and asked me about my opinions when such instances happened in the past. I am expressing my views today because people are asking me about it. Like you are asking me about my opinion in this case.

I am an elected Member of Parliament from the reserved schedule caste constituency of Latur. But it is not important for me that he suffered injustice because of his caste or his caste came into play after such injustice was done to him.

I categorically state that it is not my contention that he faced this charge because he was a Dalit. Had he not been a Dalit and had such a charge of being an anti-national leveled against somebody else for expressing his opinion, I would have called it unfair.

I too am an SC and I too have done my doctorate in management science from Ambedkar University. Let me tell you honestly that it takes a lot of effort and pain to do a PhD and more so if you are an SC.

A lot of people justified the action taken by the university against Rohith, but anybody can come under pressure when such grave charges are leveled against him.

While a case has been registered against Union Minister Bandaru Dattatreya in accordance with the SC/ST Atrocity Act, do you think the HRD ministry should also be charged under the same act?

I don't know who is responsible for that (Rohith's suicide). I don't want to get involved in this headache. As a SC person and as an elected representative of the BJP I must speak against this injustice done to Rohit or any other student in a similar state.

But you are asking me for my reaction just because I am an MP from a reserved constituency.

But for me I am an Indian first, Rohith was an Indian first and it is our fundamental right to express ourselves without any fear.

Have there been protests in Latur against Rohith's suicide?

All the Dalit organisations there have been strongly protesting against the injustice meted out to Rohit.

They have burnt effigies of the HRD minister (Smriti Irani) and expressed their displeasure against the BJP government at the Centre. These protests are also finding their way on social media.

What would you like to tell people in your Lok Sabha constituency?

We are followers of the principles of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar and the Constitution that he helped bring into force. He is the architect of the Indian Constitution and there is nothing we respect more than the Constitution.

Based on this Constitution it is the moral right of the people of my constituency and country to demonstrate against such acts of injustice in a peaceful manner.

Our Constitution gives us the right to demonstrate against such acts of injustice and the people of this country will protest and oppose such acts.

Finally, under Modiji's rule it is the responsibility of this government to protect the people of India from such injustice.
Police in Punjab and Delhi on Friday sounded an alert after the driver of a taxi hired by three unidentified persons was found dead in Himachal Pradeshs Kangra, in the aftermath of the terror attack on Pathankot air base.

We have sounded an alert in our area (Pathankot). We are taking this matter very seriously and we are making efforts to locate the missing taxi, Senior Superintendent of Police, Pathnakot, R K Bakshi said.

The taxi driver, identified as Vijay Kumar, a resident of Gaggal village in Kangra district, was found dead on Wednesday at the Kalta bridge in Kangra and his taxi missing, police said.

However, the SSP said the white-colour Alto taxi with registration number HP 01D 2440 was not hired from Pathankot. Neither the taxi was hired from Pathankot nor the incident (recovery of body) has happened here (Pathankot), he said.

Noting that he had got the matter inquired, Bakshi said three Punjabi-speaking persons had hired the taxi from Gaggal in Kangra district for Pathankot.

Three Punjabi-speaking people had hired the taxi from Gaggal at 8 pm on January 14. But on Wednesday, the body of the driver was recovered from the subdivision Jawali in HP which is about 40-50 kilometre from Pathankot, he said.

Police in the national capital also sounded an alert and asked citizens to stay vigilant.

The Alto car is missing. Search operations are on. Stay alert! the pinned tweet on Delhi Polices official handle read.

Asked on the threat perception, Delhi Police Commissioner B S Bassi urged people in the city to remain alert without disclosing any further details citing security concerns.

The alert was issued in the backdrop of the attack on IAF base in Pathankot where terrorists had first killed a cab driver and robbed his car before launching the strike on January 2.

Seven security personnel were killed and several others injured in the terror strike carried out by militants suspected to be belonging to Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed. All six terrorists were also killed in the gun fight that continued for three days.
Several disabled peoples organisations on Friday strongly objected to the use of the term 'divyang' to address the community and urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to not use it to replace 'viklaang'.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had during his radio address Mann Ki Baat on December 27 last year said that physically-challenged people have a 'divine ability' and the term 'divyang' should be used in place of 'viklang' for them.

'Even while not questioning the motive behind coining this expression, it is needless to say that mere change of terminology is not going to bring about any change in the manner in which people with disabilities are treated. Invoking divinity will not lessen the stigma and discrimination that persons with disabilities have been historically subjected to and continue to encounter in their daily lives,' the organisations said in their letter to the PM.

'We would like to reiterate that disability is not a divine gift. And the use of phrases like divyang in no way ensures the de-stigmatisation or an end to discrimination on grounds of disability,' they said.

They further said that the government should address the issues of stigma, discrimination and marginalisation that persons with disabilities are subjected to on account of the cultural, social, physical and attitudinal barriers that hinder their effective participation in the countrys economic, social and political life.

'We would therefore request you to refrain from using the term divyang and also shelve any plan that the government may be making to officially use this term,' they said in the letter.

Even on Friday, while addressing a rally in his Lok Sabha constituency Varanasi, Modi said that he wanted the people to change their mindset towards the physically challenged and that is why he wants the word divyang to be used by the commoners.
In a major anti-terror swoop across the country ahead of Republic Day, the National Investigation Agency on Friday took into custody 14 people suspected to be 'Islamic State sympathisers' for plotting attacks in different parts of the country.

Of the 14 suspects, six have been arrested while eight have been detained for further questioning, the NIA said.

A possible attack may have been averted with the crackdown that came at a time when the country was in a state of heightened alert, as investigators questioned the arrested people. Some of them were stated to be software engineers.

The arrests were made following simultaneous searches and raids conducted at 12 locations in six cities -- Bengaluru, Tumkur, Mangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Lucknow -- with the support of local police forces.

The Anti-Terrorist Squad, Maharashtra, also conducted raids/ reaches at two other locations.

In a press statement, the NIA said that certain incriminating articles, including but not limited to mobile phones, laptops, unaccounted cash, jihadi literature and videos and certain material for preparation of bombs were recovered from these places.

'These individuals were planning and making efforts to establish a channel of procurement of explosives/weapons, identify locations to organise training camps including training of firearms, motivate new recruits to target police officers, foreigners in India and to carry out terrorist activities in various parts of India,' it said.

The NIA said it received information that certain individuals from different cities in the country were in the process of organising themselves to commit terrorist acts in different parts of the country.

The NIA gave the names of those arrested as Muttabir Mustaq Sheikh, 33, from Thane district near Mumbai, Mohammad Nafees Khan, 24, of Hyderabad, Mohammad Shareef Moinuddin Khan, 54, of Hyderabad, Najmul Huda, 25, of Mangalore and Mohammad Afzal, 35, of Bangalore. The name of the sixth arrested person was not yet known.

Family members of some of the arrested people claimed they have nothing to do with any terror plot and that they were innocent.

The verification of the background of the 14 people picked up is in progress, the NIA said.

According to sources, the arrested people were part of a group named Janood-ul-Khalifa-e-Hind (Army of Caliph of India), a terror group which has almost similar ideologies that of the IS.

Sheikh had designated himself as ameer (chief) of the group and Huda as ameer-e-wyulat (chief of finance) and they were in touch through the Internet with some persons believed to be from the IS based in Syria, the sources said.

They said the suspects had been under surveillance for quite sometime and the decision to arrest them was taken as the group received instructions for carrying out some sensational attacks in the country.

The group had started receiving money through hawala route and according to a home ministry spokesman, Sheikh also received funds to the tune of Rs 6 lakh.

All the arrested suspects were being brought to the national capital for detailed interrogation as preliminary enquiry indicated that they were working on evolving a terror outfit with ideologies similar to the IS.
Sambia Sohrab, the main accused in Red Road hit-and-run case and son of state Trinamool Congress member Mohammed Sohrab, confessed on Friday that he was behind the wheels of the car which mowed down an Indian Air Force officer during a Republic Day parade rehearsal here, police said.

According to a top Kolkata Police officer, Sambia broke down during a prolonged interrogation being held since Friday morning and confessed that he was driving the white color brand new Audi on the fateful morning of January 13 which killed IAF officer Abhimanyu Gaud.

"Sambia has been giving us false statements to misdirect. Since day one of interrogation, he has been giving us contradictory versions regarding the mishap. Sometimes, he said he was not driving the car but it was Sonu, his friend and another accused, behind the wheels. But today some strategic interrogation helped us getting Sambias confession," the Kolkata Police official said.

Police sleuths have also arrested Sonu and Johnnie, both friends of Sambia.

During the investigation, it was found that on the night before the mishap, Sambia, his elder brother Ambia, Sonu and Johnnie, along with others, attended a party at Doighat in the Port area of the city.

Sambia, the officer said, has also admitted that he was alone in the car while Sonu and Johnnie were in another vehicle.

Incidentally, the two have been claiming that they were not travelling in the Audi, which Sambia was driving.

The Kolkata police has seized a Skoda, which the two accused claimed that they were driving.

Talking about Ambia and father and TMC member Mohammed Sohrabs whereabouts, another top source in the Kolkata police said as per their information, the duo were trying to cross over to Bangladesh.

"We have accordingly alerted forces at the Bangladesh border," the sources said.

A city court on Thursday had issued a arrest warrant against Mohammed Sohrab.

The three arrested have been booked under Indian Penal Code Sections 120(B) (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence), 212 (harbouring offender) and 427 (mischief causing damage).
Protesters raised slogans whilst attempting to disrupt the prime minister's address at the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University in Lucknow.

Sharat Pradhan/Rediff.com reports from Lucknow

The slogans 'Narendra Modi go back' rent the air as Prime Minister Narendra Modi rose to address a large gathering of students at the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University in Lucknow where he arrived on Friday afternoon to participate in the annual convocation ceremony.

IMAGE: The protesters yelled slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the convocation ceremony at the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University in Lucknow. Photograph: Sandeep Pal

The slogans were followed with chants of "Narendra Modi murdabad (death to Narendra Modi)," just as the police moved in to take the protestors into custody.

While the prime minister did not react to the protestors, he did make an emotional reference to Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula's suicide, which he termed "highly unfortunate."

In a nearly choked voice that led to a long pause in his speech, Modi said, "The reasons or politics behind the suicide apart, it is an incident in which mother India has lost a son. Just think of what his family must be going through," adding, "I can feel their pain and agony."

IMAGE: The protesters yelled slogans "Narendra Modi murdabad" during the convocation ceremony. Photograph: Sandeep Pal

Led by Ram Karan Nirmal, an LLM student, the protestors pointedly blamed the Modi government for the discriminatory and vindictive action against Vemula who committed suicide at the Hyderabad Central University last week.

IMAGE: Outside the university at many places, protests raged on against the Modi Sarkar -- especially against Union Ministers Bandaru Dattatreya and Smriti Irani. Photograph: Sandeep Pal

Among the protesting students was Nirmal Arya, a gold medalist topper in the LLM course, for which he was to be honoured by the prime minister at Friday's ceremony.

The Dalit students at the university, who have formed an independent union, also sought to raise their voice against the expulsion of three Dalit students by BBAU vice-chancellor R C Sobti.

"The university administration is blatantly biased against scheduled caste students who are being systematically targeted," said Ambedkar University Dalit Students Union President Shreyat Bouddh, who is among the expelled students.

IMAGE: During the convocation ceremony, Modi expressed grief about Rohith's suicide. Photograph: Sandeep Pal

Bouddh expressed fear that Nirmal Arya too may face the same fate as himself as the vice-chancellor is extremely angry over the protests.

"The university administration is capable of framing Nirmal in false cases in the same manner as they had done against me," Bouddh alleged.

"We do not know where Nirmal and Amendra Arya have been taken by the police. We are still trying to find out," he added.

IMAGE: A protester being taken away by the police. Photograph: Sandeep Pal

Modi was accompanied to the convocation by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

While UP Governor Ram Naik was present at the event, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav kept away from the event, deputing his cabinet colleague Paras Nath Yadav instead.
Danseuse Mallika Sarabhai on Friday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for failing to pay tributes to her mother Mrinalini on her death, saying this showed his "hate" mentality.

The classical dancer-turned-activist, who had fought 2009 Lok Sabha elections against veteran BJP leader L K Advani from Gandhinagar constituency as an Independent candidate but lost, vented her ire on Modi as he has so far not condoled the death of her mother, who also hailed from Gujarat.

"My dear prime minister. You hate my politics and I hate yours. That has nothing to do with what Mrinalini Sarabhai did to promote the culture of this country, to the world over sixty years," Mallika wrote on her Facebook post.

"She blazed a trailer for our culture in the world. That her death sees no word from you shows your mentality. How ever much you hate me, as our Prime Minister it behove you to recognise her contribution. You have not. Shame on you," she said in the post.

Veteran danseuse and Padma awardee Mrinalini Sarabhai, the exponent of classical dance forms who used her art to highlight the problems faced by modern society, died in Ahmedabad on Thursday due to age-related problems. She was 97.

Mallika has been a very vocal critic of Modi since he became chief minister of the state in 2001. She had filed a PIL in the high court against Modi-led state administration over the 2002 riots and had organised protests against the BJP government.

The state police had also filed a case against Mallika Sarabhai for illegal trafficking of Indians to US by way of taking them to that country as part of her dancing troupe.

However, the courts had given clean chit to Mallika in that case.
"If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast."
Students stage a protest against the suicide of a Dalit scholar in a Hyderabad Central University. Photograph: Santosh Hirlekar/PTI

Protests escalated on Friday at the Hyderabad Central University campus with students demanding unconditional revocation of suspension of four Dalit scholars and immediate action against those responsible for the alleged suicide of research scholar Rohith Vemula.

In no mood to accede to the appeal of the Vice Chancellor to return to classes and restore normalcy, the students said the revocation of suspension of four Dalit scholars announced on Thursday was not unconditional, as per the circular issued by the university.

We reject the conditions stipulated on it, student leader Zuhail said, accusing the university of mocking at them.

One of our beloved friends was institutionally murdered. We are fighting for justice, still the University of Hyderabad feels that this is an extraordinary situation. Are they still mocking us. We cant even understand the language you are using if the extraordinary situation goes away, will it (extraordinary situation) come back, Zuhail said.

Seeking an end to the impasse, teachers on Friday urged Vice Chancellor Prof Appa Rao Podile to initiate a dialogue with students and teachers.

The unanimous decision is that we are all teachers here. App Rao is also a teacher. He was also president of University of Hyderabad Teachers Association. He can understand the problems. So let him come and address the faculty, listen to them. That is what everybody unanimously decided, the associations former president K Lakshminarayana said after a meeting of teachers.

He said the VC should also go to the agitating students and talk to them to see that normalcy is restored on the campus.

Secondly, most of the people are also saying that he should listen to the students, because students are the victims. Unless you talk to the victims, solution cannot be found. It is not created by the teachers. It is created by the administration. On behalf of the administration, VC should go to the site of protest. We are all there. Students are not violent. There is no evidence to show that, he said.

He said the decision taken at Fridays meeting has been communicated to the VC.

Fifteen Dalit (SC/ST) faculty members and officers have given up administrative positions in solidarity with the agitating students, according to Sudharkar Babu, convenor of SC/ST Teachers Forum.

Eighteen of about 50 SC/ST faculty members and officers working in the varsity are assigned administrative positions, he said.

Asked if there is any possibility of talks between the university authorities and the protesting students, Zuhail said it will be discussed by the students joint action committee, if an offer comes.

A medical check-up was conducted on seven students who have been on an indefinite fast for the last three days, and the blood pressure of some of them was found varying, Zuhail said.

About reports that Wi-Fi facility for students being disconnected on the campus, he said some of the students have complained that the network on the campus was slow.

The university authorities had on Thursday terminated the punishment imposed on the students, but the protesting students were not satisfied with the revocation of the suspension.

Rohith, whose body was found hanging in his hostel room on January 17, was among the five research scholars who were suspended by university in August last year.

The suspension orders against D Prasanth, Vijay Kumar, Sheshaiah Chemuudugunta and Velpula Sunkanna have been revoked.

NSUI protests demanding Irani, Dattatreya's resignation

NSUI students protest against the HRD ministry. Photograph: PTI

Meanwhile, scores of the National Students Union of India activists marched towards the human resource development ministry on Friday , continuing with their protests over the suicide of a Dalit PhD scholar, and demanded the resignation of Union ministers Smriti Irani, Bandaru Dattatreya and HyderabadUniversity vice chancellor.

Stating that "revocation" of suspension of the four expelled students was never their demand, workers of the Congress' youth wing were stopped at Raisina Road here by the police when the protestors were on their way to the HRD minister's residence and detained.

"Revocation of suspension is not the demand of students. We want the immediate resignation of Smriti Irani, Dattatreya and Vice Chancellor Appa Rao," NSUI President Roji John said.

Accusing the Union government and the Bharatiya Janata Party leadership of "politicising" the matter, John said the protests would be "intensified" across the country.

Congress leader Randeep Surjewala joined the protesters and demanded an "apology" from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"This protest is for justice, which can be attained with the resignation of Union ministers Smriti Irani, Bandaru Dattatreya and the VC," he said.

According to police, the protesters were detained as they tried to push the barricades and that the situation could have gone out of hands subsequently.

"Around 60 persons have been detained, under provisions of law, following the protest today," DCP (New Delhi) Jatin Narwal said.
'Hundreds of engineers have complained that they are being threatened by criminals for allotment of contracts and extortion.'

M I Khan reports from Patna.

IMAGE: Angry demonstrations after the recent murders of engineers in Bihar. Photograph: PTI

The fear of rangdari or protection money rackets conducted by local gangsters and state-based Maoists has returned to haunt businessmen, traders, doctors, contractors and construction companies engaged in infrastructure development projects in Bihar.

A road construction company was threatened this week and asked to pay Rs 25 lakh (Rs 2.5 million) in Sitamarhi district.

Rajesh Ram, the munshi of the Bhawani construction company, which is engaged in road construction in Sonbarsa in Sitamarhi, has lodged a first information report, FIR, about the extortion demand and sought security.

Ram told local police officers that the criminals had threatened to kill company staff if they were not paid.

Again this week, Vikash Kumar, the owner of Ramdas Jewellers in Bakhtiyarpur, Patna district, was threatened with dire consequences if he did not pay Rs 20 lakh (Rs 2 million) to the extortionists.

Sensing the fear among the entrepreneurial community in Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Tejaswi Yadav have provided assurances that the state government will provide security to individuals and projects and not spare or shield any criminals and law breakers.

The extortion threats pose a major challenge for the two-month-young government of the grand alliance of the Janata Dal-United, the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress party led by Nitish Kumar, who has repeatedly stated that that the 'rule of law' prevails in Bihar.

The reality on the ground is very different.

In the last one-and-a-half months, newspaper reports indicate a spurt in extortion-related crimes, particularly the demand for protection money and murder upon refusal.

Dozens of cases of extortion threats went unnoticed in Bihar till the killing of two engineers employed at a road construction company in Darbhanga district on December 26 hit the headlines.

Then jeweller Ravikant Prasad was killed in Patna, the state capital, on Saturday, January 16.

Prasad was shot dead in broad daylight in Patna after he reportedly refused to pay rangdari to notorious gangster Durgesh Sharma, who has been absconding since 2011, accused of several murders and other serious crimes.

Prasad was the owner of Sonali Jewellery, located in one of the busiest areas in Patna, and his murder drove fear into the hearts of the local trading community. Tragically, Prasad's father Sidheshwar Prasad died of a heart attack a day after his son was murdered.

Although the Patna police have arrested nine criminals involved in the killing, Durgesh Sharma is still on the lam. Sharma, the police say, is constructing an apartment in Patna funded by the extortion money he has collected over the years.

Patna Senior Superintendent of Police Manu Maharaj says a proposal to seize Sharma's property will be sent to the state police's economic offence unit.

Doctors are soft targets for Bihar's extortionists. Dr Rani Devnath of Patna received a rangdari demand for Rs 500,000 on Monday, January 18, and was threatened with dire consequences if he refused to comply.

Another doctor Vivekanand Jha of Hajipur was threatened and his house was fired at when he refused to pay earlier this month. Dr Prem Pushp Lohia of Sitamarhi district was attacked in December after he failed to pay up rangdari to a local gang.

"Doctors are threatened to pay rangdari by criminals across the state, but hardly a few come forward to inform the police," says Dr Sachidanand Kumar Singh, president of the Indian Medical Association's Bihar unit.

Maoists have also put pressure on road construction companies and contractors. Armed Maoists created panic when they burnt down six machines including earth movers in Gaya district.

With the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies attacking him over the deterioration in law and order, Nitish Kumar insists Biharis need not be scared as his government is committed to maintain law and order.

'The government has launched a sustained campaign against organised crime,' Nitish Kumar said, acknowledging that his government had prioritised the investigation of the murders of the two engineers in Darbhanga.

Jailed gangster Santosh Jha's gang was allegedly behind the murder of the two engineers who worked for the Gurgaon based BSC-C&C Joint Venture Ltd in Darbhanga.

The police have arrested Jha's sister Munni Devi and her husband Sanjay Lal Dev for the crime.

The Indian Engineers Association has demanded a judicial inquiry into Bihar's organised gangs patronised by politicians and asked for the creation of a security force for on site protection to engineers working on development projects in Bihar.

"We have demanded that the government take stern action against the concerned DM (district magistrate) and SP (superintendent of police) who failed to provide security to the engineers working at the Darbhanga construction site," says IAE convenor Prabhu Shankar Maharaj.

The IAE feels rising extortion threats could impact development projects in the state.

"Hundreds of engineers have complained in private that they are being threatened by criminals for allotment of contracts and extortion. But they are not coming out in the open because of fear," says the IAE.

Industry organisations have urged Nitish Kumar to initiate immediate steps to check the deteriorating law and order situation in Bihar.

'Any compromise on governance will spell disaster for Bihar,' Satyajit Singh, who head a state industry organisation, said in a letter to the chief minister.

'The bad news is coming almost from all areas of Bihar and disturbing the common people as well as the people engaged in the infrastructure, trade and industry sector. There is urgent need to address law and order issues which is the USP of your governance model as well as the prime responsibility of the state towards its citizens,' Satyajit Singh said in his letter to Nitish Kumar.

After officials of over a dozen construction companies -- including Gammon India, Chadha and Chadha, Navyuga, SP Singla -- engaged in mega projects in the state, expressed concern over the rise in extortion threats, Deputy Chief Minister Tejaswi Yadav promised them he would visit project sites from time to time to make sure that all hindrances in work are removed at the earliest.

The Visakhapatnam-based Navayuga Engineering Company Ltd, which is constructing the Ganga Expressway in Patna, had sought security fearing a threat to its employees following the murders in Darbhanga.

Tejaswi Yadav, who also heads the road construction department, assured managers of the construction companies full security for their projects. He asked them to get in touch with DMs and SPs in their areas of operation and seek their help in the event of any threat perception.

'In case of any laxity on the part of the DMs and SPs,' Tejaswi Yadav added, 'you can approach the principal secretary of the department and me as well for any law and order related issue.'
Cameroon: Authorities must drop "non-denunciation" charges against three journalists

Publisher Amnesty International Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as Amnesty International, Cameroon: Authorities must drop "non-denunciation" charges against three journalists, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1382d5463.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Cameroonian authorities must immediately and unconditionally drop all charges against three journalists accused of failing to disclose information and sources, Amnesty International and Reporters Without Borders said on the eve of their trial before a military court.

Journalists Baba Wame, Rodrigue Ndeutchoua Tongue, and Felix Cyriaque Ebole Bola are due to appear before a military court in Yaounde tomorrow. They are the first journalists charged for the crime of 'non-denunciation' to be tried in a military court.

The journalists had been investigating a story about allegations of collusion between elements of the security forces and a leader of an armed group from Central African Republic that had been accused of previously attacking a town in the east of Cameroon. They were charged with failing to share information that could harm national security.

"Charging journalists for abiding by the ethical standards of their profession is a violation of the right to freedom of expression, and a worrying development in Cameroon," said Stephen Cockburn Amnesty International West and Central Africa Deputy Regional Director.

If convicted, the three journalists could be sentenced to jail terms between one and five years and/or a fine between 50,000 to 5 million CFA (approximately US$832 - US$8,325). Having received documents about the alleged affair, the journalists had written to the police to get more information. Receiving no reply they abandoned the investigation and did not publish the story.

They were originally charged in October 2014 under Article 107 of Cameroon's Criminal Code, and placed under judicial control, registering with the police each week and prevented from publishing in the media. The journalists deny they uncovered any information that could undermine security and say they wish to protect their sources.

"Cameroon's Criminal Code should be reformed in conformity with international standards to protect freedom of expression and the confidentiality of sources. The public have a right to information and national security must not be used as a pretext to stop journalists from doing their job," said Clea Kahn-Sriber, Reporters Without Borders Africa Desk Manager.

Cameroon has ratified both the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, both of which provide protections for journalists and their sources.

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Denmark: Parliament should reject cruel and regressive changes to refugee law

Publisher Amnesty International Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as Amnesty International, Denmark: Parliament should reject cruel and regressive changes to refugee law, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a138ee326a.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Proposed changes to Denmark's refugee law would have a devastating impact on vulnerable people who, in addition to having assets seized, would be forced to wait years for the chance to reunite with their family members trapped in warzones and refugee camps, said Amnesty International today.

The Danish Parliament is set to debate Thursday, ahead of a vote Tuesday, on proposed amendments to the Aliens Act, including one that would make "war refugees" wait for three years before being eligible to apply for family reunification. The process itself could then still take years.

"It's simply cruel to force people who are running from conflicts to make an impossible choice: either bring children and other loved ones on dangerous, even lethal journeys, or leave them behind and face a prolonged separation while family members continue to suffer the horrors of war," said Gauri van Gulik, Amnesty International's Deputy Director for Europe and Central Asia.

"Separation can have a devastating impact on families, including their rehabilitation from experiences of trauma and their ability to integrate and adapt to life in a new country."

While there has been a public outcry over the Danish government's proposal to seize certain refugees' assets, there are a host of other equally far-reaching and regressive measures being moved swiftly through the country's parliament. Among them are further restrictions on eligibility requirements for permanent residency, reductions to the length of temporary residence permits and the introduction of fees for family reunification applications (currently 7,000 Danish Krone or approximately 900 euro per application), as well as the travel costs of family members to Denmark.

The government has proceeded with these plans despite acknowledging that they risk violating Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which guarantees the right to family life. The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has also warned that these proposals risk violating other articles of the European Convention and the global Convention on the Rights of the Child. The measures - including amendments passed in November 2015 making it possible for police to detain asylum-seekers and migrants without judicial oversight - are part of the government's stated aim to make Denmark less attractive to asylum-seekers.

Following Thursday's parliamentary debate on the latest amendments, a final vote on 26 January would bring them into law. Amnesty International is urging states to press Denmark to change its worrying stance on refugees when it faces scrutiny at the UN's Universal Periodic Review on Thursday.

"The international community must call Denmark out as it enters a race to the bottom. Denmark was one of the first champions of the Refugee Convention, but its government is now brazenly creating blocks to the well-being and safety of refugee families," said Gauri van Gulik.

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Vietnam: Hold Elections for Country's Leaders

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 19 January 2016 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Vietnam: Hold Elections for Country's Leaders, 19 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a13a951a73.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Vietnam's Communist Party should use its twelfth National Congress to announce that free and fair elections will be held to elect the country's leaders, Human Rights Watch said today. Vietnam's donors, who regularly call for free and fair elections in countries such as Burma and Cambodia, should publicly call for pluralistic elections in Vietnam and an end to one-party rule.

The Communist Party Congress is scheduled to meet from January 21-January 28 in Hanoi. 1,510 party officials will elect the new Central Committee of the Party which, in turn, will select the top leaders of the country at many levels. Formally, the rubber stamp National Assembly then elects the President and Prime Minister.

"The future of more than 90 million Vietnamese should not be decided by a small group of communist party officials," said Brad Adams, Asia director. "Vietnam should finally adhere to its international legal commitments and allow an election by its citizens instead of yet another selection by the ruling party."

Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which Vietnam ratified in 1982, states that citizens have the right to "take part in the conduct of public affairs, directly or through freely chosen representatives" and to "vote and to be elected at genuine periodic elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret ballot, guaranteeing the free expression of the will of the electors."

The Communist Party stage manages elections for the National Assembly every five years. Genuine opposition parties are not allowed to organize or contest elections. The Communist Party dominates this process and only tolerates token candidates who are not members of the party.

Article 4 of Vietnam's constitution formally gives the Communist Party the right to rule the country, stating that it is, "the Vanguard of the working class, concurrently the vanguard of the laboring people and Vietnamese nation, faithfully representing the interests of the working class, laboring people and entire nation, and acting upon the Marxist-Leninist doctrine and Ho Chi Minh Thought, is the force leading the State and society." Efforts in2013 to amend this provision to allow for multi-party pluralism not only failed but resulted in key changes to strengthen the Communist Party's monopoly on power, further narrowing the legal space to exercise the right to pluralistic and freely contested elections.

With a monopoly on power, the Communist Party operates as a de facto government, controlling the country through a battery of broad and vague provisions in its penal code and other laws to silence and imprison critics and those calling for democracy.

Human Rights Watch called on the party congress to make commitments to improve the country's dismal human rights situation, including repeal of laws that allow peaceful critics to be turned into political prisoners. In November 2015, Vietnam passed a revised penal code which included provisions aimed at silencing bloggers and rights activists. The same month the public security minister, General Tran Dai Quang, reported to the National Assembly that from June 2012 until November 2015 the police had arrested 2,680 people who for unspecified national security offenses and targeted more than 60 groups promoting democracy and human rights.

Arrests of activists have continued. An illustrative recent case is the December 2015 arrest of prominent rights campaigner Nguyen Van Dai, who was charged him with "conducting propaganda against the state." Nguyen Van Dai's fellow activist Le Thu Ha was also arrested the same day on an unknown charge. Nguyen Van Dai, 46, is a human rights lawyer who supported the formation of many rights groups including the Vietnam Independent Union and the pro-democracy 8406 Bloc in 2006. He was arrested in March 2007 and sentenced to five years imprisonment. In November 2007, the appeal court reduced his sentence to four years. Nguyen Van Dai received the prestigious Hellman Hammett award in 2007. Despite intrusive police surveillance and harassment, in April 2013, Nguyen Van Dai helped found Brotherhood for Democracy "to defend human rights recognized by the Vietnam Constitution and international Conventions" and "to promote the building of a democratic, progressive, civilized and just society for Vietnam." In May 2014, thugs assaulted and injured him when he was chatting with fellow activists in a cafe.

Ten days prior to his recent arrest, Nguyen Van Dai and three other fellow activists were attacked and beaten in Nghe An province by a group of about 20 men in civilian clothes wearing surgical masks to hide their identity. Earlier that day, Nguyen Van Dai had given a talk about the constitution and human rights. On the morning of the arrest, he was supposed to meet with representatives from the EU delegation who were in Vietnam to hold a bilateral human rights dialogue with Vietnam.

"The recent arrest of a human rights defenders like Nguyen Van Dai shows that reform remains elusive," said Adams. "The party congress is a chance to show the Vietnamese people that the country is ready to modernize instead of remaining mired in one-party rule which suffocates free expression and aspirations for democracy. It is time for Vietnam to bring its laws into compliance with its international human rights commitments, not just with the interests of the Communist Party."

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ICC: First Major Hearing on LRA Crimes

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as Human Rights Watch, ICC: First Major Hearing on LRA Crimes, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a13b93255d.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

The first major International Criminal Court (ICC) hearing for a Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) leader is an important step for accountability for grave crimes committed in northern Uganda, Human Rights Watch said today.

The confirmation of charges for Dominic Ongwen, a one-time child soldier who became a senior LRA commander, will begin on January 21, 2016, in The Hague and is anticipated to last five days. At the proceeding, ICC judges will determine if the prosecutor has enough evidence for the case to go to trial.

"The LRA is a notoriously brutal force that for decades has attacked civilians across a wide swath of East and Central Africa," saidElise Keppler, associate international justice director at Human Rights Watch. "The ICC case against Dominic Ongwen is the first of its kind for LRA crimes and helps to show the ICC's unique role as the global court of last resort."

Led by the Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony, the LRA has committed atrocities against civilians for nearly three decades. The armed group has abducted tens of thousands of children for use as soldiers and sexual slaves and killed and maimed thousands of civilians in remote regions of northern Uganda, northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo,South Sudan, and the Central African Republic. Ongwen himself was abducted as a child.

Ongwen is charged with 70 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity in northern Uganda, where the group originated. Initial charges centered on alleged crimes committed as part of an attack in May 2004, on the Lukodi internally displaced people's camp in Uganda. In September 2015, the prosecutor indicated she was expanding the charges to include murder, torture, enslavement, and pillage as part of attacks on four such camps in Uganda: Pajule, Odek, and Abok camps, along with Lukodi. Charges of persecution, sexual and gender-based crimes, conscription, and use of child solders committed in northern Uganda were also added.

During the confirmation of charges proceeding, Ongwen will be entitled to protections to ensure the fairness of the proceedings and his rights as an accused. These include the right to a lawyer and the presumption of innocence.

There have been no trials involving charges of serious crimes committed by LRA fighters before any domestic or international court, though charges are pending against an LRA fighter, Thomas Kwoyelo, in Uganda.

The ICC has issued warrants for four other LRA leaders, including Kony. Kony remains at large, while the three other suspects are believed to have been killed.

Given the extent of serious crimes allegedly committed by the LRA outside Uganda, the ICC prosecutor should consider expanding the charges for other areas under the court's jurisdiction, such as Congo and the Central African Republic, if supported by evidence, Human Rights Watch said.

In December 2009, troops under Ongwen's command allegedly killed at least 345 civilians and abducted another 250, including at least 80 children, during a four-day rampage in the Makombo area of northeastern Congo. This was one of the worst massacres during the LRA's long, brutal history, Human Rights Watch said.

According to available research, the LRA abducted Ongwen from northern Uganda into their ranks around age 10 and gave him military training. He rose to become a senior commander implicated in serious abuses across Central Africa.

Judicial proceedings against Ongwen raise important issues regarding his status as a former child soldier, though the crimes he is charged with were committed as an adult. These are factors that could be relevant to his legal defense and mitigation in possible sentencing in the event of trial and conviction.

"The charges against Ongwen include LRA atrocities in northern Uganda, but don't cover thousands of victims elsewhere in Africa who also suffered at the hands of the LRA," Keppler said. "The ICC prosecutor should consider expanding the charges where there is evidence of LRA crimes in other countries to capture the breadth of abuse."

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Kuwait: Death Penalty in Flawed Trials

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Kuwait: Death Penalty in Flawed Trials, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a13be1bb.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Kuwait's first instance criminal court sentenced two men to death on January 12, 2016, after a flawed trial. The authorities should drop the death penalty charges on appeal.

The court convicted Hassan Hajiya, a Kuwaiti national, and Abdulreda Dhaqany, an Iranian national, of spying for Iran and Hezbollah, in both cases without adequate legal representation.

"Issuing a death penalty sentence, especially after flawed proceedings, is a terrible way for the Kuwaiti authorities to begin 2016," said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director. "The authorities should commute the executions immediately and reinstate the moratorium that had been in place from 2007 to 2013."

Hajiya's lawyer, Khaled al-Shatti, said that his client was held and interrogated on an almost daily basis from August 13 to September 1, 2015, by Homeland Security, the Interior Ministry body focused on internal terrorist threats, and the state's prosecution authorities, without any access to legal representation. His lawyer sought access to the interrogations but, al-Shatti said, the attorney general denied him and all of the other lawyers of the 24 other defendants who faced similar charges access to their clients.

Al-Shatti finally was able to represent his client before a judge in a "renewal hearing" on September 2, when the prosecution requested an extension of a 10-day pretrial detention period to continue investigations, which the judge granted. Substantive trial proceedings began on September 15, with lawyers present, and the court held 11 hearings before sentencing Hajiya to death.

Dhaqany was not arrested, nor was he represented by a lawyer before three judges inKuwait's first instance criminal court sentenced him to death in absentia on January 12. He is currently outside the country.

International law does not prohibit trial in absentia, but holds that it is an inadequate substitute for the normal trial process, where an accused is present to face his accusers. Courts trying defendants in absentia should institute procedural safeguards to ensure the defendants' basic rights, such as notifying them in advance of the proceedings, their right to representation in their absence, and affirming their right to a retrial on the merits of the conviction following their return to the jurisdiction.

State prosecutors brought charges of espionage and possession of arms without a license against 26 people in all, many of whom alleged abuse during the interrogation period. Judges found 24 people guilty of possessing arms without a license and 18 among them for spying.

One of those sentenced, Zuhair al-Mahmeed, in a note to one of the first instance judges during proceedings, alleged that during interrogations, officers from Homeland Security had beaten him in his head, neck, back, and face; kicked his legs; gave him electric shocks; made him stand for hours; and deprived him of sleep for six days. He also alleged that they threatened to strip off his clothes, hang him by his feet, mistreat other members of his family, and confiscate his and their citizenship.

A forensics report issued on August 23, reviewed by Human Rights Watch, found that three suspects, not including Hajiya and Dhaqany, had abrasions to their wrists caused by metal shackles and had varying degrees of bruising and abrasions to different parts of their bodies caused by a solid object. A fourth suspect had bruising to the base and back of his right-hand index finger.

Another forensics report issued on September 20, about 45 days after suspects alleged they were abused, found that five suspects showed signs of abrasions from shackles applied at various times to their wrists, and two showed signs that their ankles had been shackled earlier during their detention. The judge did not open investigations into any of the torture allegations.

Judges cleared al-Mahmeed of all spying charges and sentenced him to five years in prison for the possession of weapons without a license.

After a de facto moratorium on the death penalty since 2007, Kuwaiti authorities executedfive people in 2013. In September 2015, a court sentenced seven people to death in relation to the Shia Imam Sadiq Mosque bombing in June. On December 13, the appeals courtupheld the death penalty for one of them and commuted the other sentences. Al-Shatti hopes to appeal Hajiya's death sentence within the next three weeks.

Human Rights Watch opposes the death penalty in all circumstances as an inherently irreversible, inhumane punishment. A majority of countries in the world have abolished the practice. On December 18, 2007, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution by a wide margin calling for a worldwide moratorium on executions. The UN Human Rights Committee has said that,"In cases of trials leading to the imposition of the death penalty scrupulous respect of the guarantees of fair trial is particularly important."

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Relatives carry away a dead body from the beach following an overnight attack on a beachfront restaurant in Mogadishu, Somalia. (Photo: AP)

Mogadishu: Islamist Shebab gunmen killed around 20 people in a popular beachside restaurant in Somalia, police said on Friday, as neighbouring Kenya mourned soldiers killed by the Al Qaeda-linked group last week.

In the attack in Mogadishu, five gunmen detonated a bomb before storming the busy restaurant and spraying gunfire at terrified customers late on Thursday.

"They killed nearly 20 people, including women and children," Somali police officer Mohamed Abdirahman said, describing it as a "barbaric and brutal attack against innocent civilians".

Read: At least 19 dead in Somalia Shebab restaurant attack

The Shebab, which is fighting to overthrow the internationally-backed government in Mogadishu, carries out regular attacks in the capital, as well as against African Union troops in the countryside.

Somali Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke condemned the "savage" attack.

Last week the insurgents stormed a Kenyan army base at El-Adde in southwest Somalia, in the latest incident of an AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) base being overrun by the group.

A Shebab statement said that more than 100 Kenyan soldiers based at the mission were killed and others captured.

Kenya has so far refused to say how many of its soldiers were killed, injured or remain missing.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on Friday visited wounded soldiers recovering in hospital in the capital Nairobi and praised the "bravery and dedication" of the "fallen heroes" in an address to dignitaries and relatives of the dead and injured.

Huge explosion

The Lido beach area in Mogadishu is full of restaurants, including upmarket establishments popular with business people and diaspora Somalis who have returned home to the city.

After a huge explosion, gunmen burst into the restaurant on Thursday evening as diners were sitting down for their evening meal at the start of Somalia's weekend.

"The fact that they have chosen this location during a weekend night shows how merciless the Shebab militants are," Abdirahman added.

"They wanted to kill more civilians but the security forces rescued most of the people."

The Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab claimed responsibility for the attack, in which four of their gunmen were also killed, and one captured.

"The mujahedeen fighters targeted the Lido Beach," the militants said on the group's Radio Andalus, calling it a "major operation against the enemy of Allah".

Security minister Abdirazak Omar Mohamed told reporters that four of the attackers were shot dead by security forces.

The minister added that one gunman was captured when security forces entered the building to end the attack.

Survivors described the gunmen spraying those in the restaurant with automatic weapons.

Point blank range

Abdirahman Halane was close to the restaurant when the gunmen attacked, and said some of those killed were hit by an explosion as they tried to flee.

"The gunmen entered the popular Lido Sea Food Restaurant from the back door and started shooting a few minutes later there was a heavy explosion at the front gate while people were trying to escape," Halane said.

"There was confusion, everybody started panicking, and some of them ran towards the gunmen and they were shot dead, I was lucky to escape," he said.

Another witness described how some of those killed had died in the large blast, while others were shot dead at point blank range.

"There is a big mess here and many people died, I saw the dead bodies of 19 people who were killed during the attack," said Hussein Ali, who saw the bodies being carried out of the damaged building.

"Some of the people died in the explosion while fleeing and others were shot dead up close."
Bulgaria: Pushbacks, Abuse at Borders

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 20 January 2016 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Bulgaria: Pushbacks, Abuse at Borders, 20 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a13dbb10ba.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Bulgarian law enforcement officials summarily return asylum seekers and migrants to Turkey, often after stealing their belongings and subjecting them to violence.

In research in six countries between October and December 2015, Human Rights Watch interviewed 45 asylum seekers and migrants from Afghanistan, Syria, and Iraq who described 59 incidents of summary returns from Bulgaria to Turkey between March and November. Twenty-six people said they had been beaten by police or bitten by police dogs. All but one said they were stripped of their possessions, in some cases at gunpoint by people they described as Bulgarian law enforcement officials, then pushed back across the border to Turkey.

"Bulgaria needs to end the abuse and unlawful treatment of people seeking protection in Europe," said Lydia Gall, Balkans and Eastern Europe researcher at Human Rights Watch. "The Bulgarian government should immediately put a stop to summary returns, investigate allegations of abuse and pushbacks, and hold those responsible to account."

Fourteen asylum seekers and migrants who had been held in detention in Bulgaria described beatings by guards, lack of adequate food, and unsanitary conditions. Three also described being robbed and, in one case, beaten by Bulgarian law enforcement officials when the person tried to cross from Bulgaria into Serbia.

Human Rights Watch wrote to the Bulgarian Interior Ministry on December 15, raising concerns identified during its research. The Interior Ministry has not yet responded.

Some asylum seekers and migrants described being apprehended by people wearing uniforms and insignia consistent with those worn by Bulgarian law enforcement officials. Others were unable to describe insignia and uniforms because they were apprehended at night, but they said that those responsible for the abuse were wearing uniforms and were often accompanied by dogs. They said that officials stripped them of money and other belongings and took them in police cars to the Turkish border, forcing them to cross back into Turkey. In some cases they were also subjected to violence.

Human Rights Watch documented similar abuses at the Bulgaria-Turkey border and in detention centers in April and September 2014. The Belgrade Center for Human Rights documented similar abuses in November 2015. The new Human Rights Watch findings suggest that the Bulgarian government has failed to take the necessary action to stop summary expulsions and violence and abuse at its borders and its detention centers.

The migrants said that the pushbacks to Turkey in 46 of the 59 cases involved abusive and violent behavior, including beatings with fists and batons, kicks, and dog bites. In all but one case, asylum seekers and migrants told Human Rights Watch that Bulgarian law enforcement officials thoroughly searched them and took their money, mobile phones, food, drinks, and other items.

Asylum seekers and migrants trying to leave Bulgaria near the Serbian border also described being robbed and, in one case, beaten by people they described as Bulgarian law enforcement officials. They gave detailed accounts of being apprehended by people they understood to be law enforcement officials close to the Serbian border, then being stripped of their money, mobile phones, and other items.

In April 2014, the European Commission opened infringement proceedings against Bulgaria in connection with the allegations of summary returns. The procedure stalled after the Bulgarian authorities flatly denied any wrongdoing despite evidence from Human Rights Watch and other groups. In September 2015, the commission initiated new infringement proceedings against Bulgaria for failure to implement the Qualification Directive, which sets out the minimum standards for the qualification of international protection as well as protection from refoulement, which under international law requires not returning anyone to a country where they would be at risk of being subjected to torture or other cruel or inhuman treatment.

The summary return of asylum seekers before their protection claims are considered violates Bulgaria's obligations under domestic and international law, including the 1951 Refugee Convention, the European Convention on Human Rights, and the European Union Charter of Fundamental Rights, which guarantees the right to asylum.

While Bulgaria is entitled to secure its border, under universal standards embodied in the United Nations Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials, law enforcement officials, including border agents, may use force only when nonviolent means have been unsuccessful. Any use of force must be proportionate and minimize damage and injury.

Taking asylum seekers and migrants' possessions through the threat or use of force may amount to robbery under domestic criminal law. The Bulgarian authorities should investigate allegations of excessive use of force and robbery by its law enforcement officials.

"The failure by Brussels to hold Bulgaria to account for serious rights violations has left the pushbacks and violence against migrants and asylum seekers unchecked," Gall said. "The European Commission should seriously pursue these blatant violations of EU standards and press Bulgarian authorities to bring to them to a halt."

Accounts of Violent Pushbacks to Turkey

Between October and December 2015, Human Rights Watch interviewed 45 asylum seekers and migrants, including eight unaccompanied children, in Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Serbia, Slovenia, and Turkey. They described 59 incidents of summary expulsions from Bulgaria to Turkey. To protect the identity of those interviewed, pseudonyms are used.

In all but one case, witnesses and victims said people they described as Bulgarian law enforcement officials stripped them of their money, mobile phones, water, energy drinks, and food before taking them in police cars or trucks to the Turkish border and forcing them to cross.

Interviewees described being bitten by police dogs or seeing others bitten; being beaten with truncheons and wooden branches; and in one case, beaten in the head with a gun butt. Some said that Bulgarian law enforcement officials fired into the air after spotting groups of asylum seekers and migrants.

Sinisha, 22, from Afghanistan, described a November 2015 incident:

We saw the police car and started running. We heard a kid screaming behind, turned around, and saw the dog biting him. We stopped and saw how the dog dragged him about 15 meters, viciously biting him, he wouldn't let go. Then, about eight police officers came and one started beating the kid while the dog continued biting himThen the police told the dog to stop biting but grabbed my friend and had the dog bite his arm. Then another police hit me on the head with the butt of his gun. It bled badly. I asked the police for a napkin to wipe the blood from my face but instead he kicked me on the legThey took two mobiles, my money and new shoesThey brought us by police cars to the border and took wooden sticks and started hitting all of us and made us cross the border to Turkey.

Hamdast, 16, from Afghanistan, described how, after crossing into Bulgaria in early November from Turkey, he and 47 others were caught by Bulgarian law enforcement officials:

They made us stand in a line. They made us take off our trousers down to our knees and searched us to see if we had money. There were five police officers. They took 200 euros from me. They also took food and my phone. I had new boots, the policeman liked them and took them as well. My bag, which had been full, was given back to me emptyOne officer hit me on the face with a tree branch because I talkedThen police trucks came and took all of us to the Turkish border and the police kicked each of us while making us cross into Turkey.

Abdullah, 16, also from Afghanistan, said that in early November, people he believed to be Bulgarian law enforcement officials chased his group of about 40 Afghan men, shot at them, and then beat them:

When Bulgarian police saw us, we tried to run away. They chased us with dogs and shot at us. There were five police. When they caught us, they started beating us. They kicked me and the others wherever they could reach, [they kicked] my arm and my head. They did this for about an hour and threatened us with the dogs. They took my money and mobile.

Nazem, 18, from Afghanistan, said he had been pushed back to Turkey five times in November. He recounted a similar incident in mid-November:

We crossed the border. We saw a police dog behind us and hit it with a scarf so it ran away. A few minutes later, we saw a policeman behind us and he shot in the air. We sat down. The policeman recognized me and said, 'You are here for the third time.' Then he [had his] dog to bite me and he [the dog] bit my right arm. Then he [law enforcement official] pointed a gun to my head and said that if I come again he would kill meThey took US$500 from me and two mobiles and made us cross the border into Turkey.

Nasratullah, 23, from Afghanistan, said that people he believed to be Bulgarian law enforcement officials pushed him back to Turkey three times between late October and mid-November:

When police caught us, they beat all 22 of us. They searched us and took money and mobiles from everyoneFirst they searched us and found the money and started beating us. They had electric sticks. They beat me with the stick on my arm and on my back. I don't know for how long [they beat me] because when they beat me I lost consciousness. After they took everything from us they left us with only clothes, put us in cars and took us to the Turkish border and made us cross.

Five days later, Nasratullah crossed into Bulgaria a second time with a group of 50 men:

A police dog bit my friend in the leg. He bled and we took a scarf and tied it around his legWhen we tried to help my friend, they started beating us. They [five policemen] all had electric sticks that they beat us with. Then police cars came, they put us inside them and brought us to the Turkish border and made us cross.

In some cases, asylum seekers and migrants said that people they believed to be Bulgarian law enforcement officials had handed them over to Turkish police. Rahman, 20, from Afghanistan, who said he had been pushed back to Turkey three times, described a mid-November incident involving about 50 people:

They [Bulgarian law enforcement officials] took all they could from us and beat me There were four police and two dogs. First they shot in the air and then they let the dogs after usThey beat me with fists in the face. Then they put us in a [police] car, took us to the border and gave us to the Turkish police."

Abuse, Poor Conditions in Bulgarian Detention Centers

Fourteen asylum seekers and migrants, including three unaccompanied children under 18, described poor conditions in at least two detention centers in Bulgaria: Busmantsi and Elhovo. Four said they had experienced or witnessed abusive behavior, including beatings, by Bulgarian officials in detention centers.

Sina, 16, described his mistreatment during his 15-day detention in early November in Busmantsi:

The guards would yell, 'Why do you come to our country?'[after] five or six days, they [guards] kicked me one timeI didn't know how long I would stay at the campno one knewthe food was scarce, there was never enough to eat.

17-year-old Sehr, from Afghanistan, also described ill-treatment during his 30-day detention in Busmantsi in late October:

They [guards] beat me seven times there [in Busmantsi]. They [guards] hit me with wooden sticks and there was no reason for the beating. They hit me on my legs and on my back. They beat all Afghans there

20-year-old Gulzar, from Afghanistan, gave a similar account of beatings that occurred in mid-November in a detention center he could not name but where he was held for 15 days. He said that guards beat him and took his money.

Asylum seekers and migrants described dirty conditions and inadequate amounts of food in the detention centers. A 25-year-old man from Syria said that he was held for two days in very dirty conditions at Elhovo detention center and given bad food.

Nasratullah, the 23-year-old Afghan who had described being pushed back to Turkey, described dirty conditions and insufficient food in a detention center he could not name:

I was there for eight days [in early November]. It was a closed camp. It was dirty, the beds were broken, and they didn't give us enough food to eat. I never got full

Asylum seekers and migrants in all but two cases told Human Rights Watch that food rations in detention centers were insufficient.

Abuse at the Bulgaria-Serbia Border

Human Rights Watch interviewed three asylum seekers and migrants who described 11 incidents in which Bulgarian law enforcement officials apprehended them close to the Serbian border, stripped them of belongings, and brought them to police stations for 24 hours, often without water or food. In two cases, arrests involved physical abuse. Didar, 21, from Afghanistan told Human Rights Watch:

[In late November] my friend was beaten by Bulgarian police as we tried to cross into Serbia. They [police] asked us to show our money and mobiles and told us to take them out of our pockets. I took out my money and phone and gave to them but my friend hid his. When police found his money, they started beating him. Two police beat him, one with fists and the other one with a stick. He beat him on the face with the stick, he didn't plan to but my friend turned his head and the stick hit his nosehe is in hospital in Sofia because of it.

The Human Rights Watch researcher saw photos of the wounds that appear consistent with his account of being beaten with a police baton.

An 18-year-old Afghan man said he had been arrested seven times between mid-October and mid-November by Bulgarian police while trying to enter Serbia and described abuse and robbery during each arrest:

Every time Bulgarian police caught us they beat us, mistreated us and took our moneyThey kicked us, they used a wooden stick, they swore at us and used bad language. They talked badly about our mothers and fathers. They kicked us and hit us wherever they could. Every time they arrested us they did thisOne time when they caught us they brought us somewhere. They made us stay for 24 hours without food or water. They treated us very badly.

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Kuwait: New Cyber Crimes Law restricts expression and targets online activists

Publisher Article 19 Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as Article 19, Kuwait: New Cyber Crimes Law restricts expression and targets online activists, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a140fc494e.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

ARTICLE 19, the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI), the Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR), International Service for Human Rights (ISHR), and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) are seriously concerned about the impact of the new Cyber Crimes Law no. 63, which comes into force on 12 January 2016, on freedom of expression and online activism in Kuwait. The law was published in the official newspaper on 07 July 2015 after being approved by the National Assembly on 16 June 2015.

The new legislation contains 21 articles which seek to regulate a number of online activities in Kuwait. In particular, we are concerned that the new law, especially articles 4, 6 and 7, could be used to limit freedom of expression on the Internet, as well as to target online activists including bloggers andcitizen journalists.

Under international human rights law, any restriction on freedom of expression must meet the three-part test under Article 19 (3) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ('ICCPR'), i.e. it must be (1) provided by law; (2) pursue a legitimate aim as enumerated under Article 19 (3); and (3) be necessary and proportionate [in a democratic society]. We believe that the Kuwaiti Cybercrimes law fails those tests and is therefore in breach of international law.

Overly Broad Restrictions on Public Morality Grounds:Article 4 (4) punishes by imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years and a fine of not less than two thousand dinars and not exceeding five thousand dinars: "Item 4. Whoever establishes a website or publishes or produces or prepares or creates or sends or stores information or data with a view to use, distribute or display to others via the Internet or an information technology device that would prejudice public morality or manages a place for this purpose."

In our view, Article 4 is overly broad. In particular, it fails to define what constitutes 'prejudice to public morality'. We are therefore concerned that this article could be used to target online activists expressing controversial views on religious or other matters of public interest on spurious "public morality" grounds.

Overly Broad Restrictions Based on the Press and Publications Law: Article 6 is based on Article 27 (1, 2 and 3) of the Press and Publications Law (no. 3/2006) which punishes editors and writers who commit acts that are described in article 19, 20 and 21 of the law, with up to one year imprisonment and a fine of up to 20,000 Dinars. We are concerned that items (1, 2, 3 and 4) of Article 27 give powers to the Criminal Court to punish any of the described acts by revoking the license or shutting down a newspaper for a period not exceeding one year, as well as the confiscation of published copies. Some of the acts described in articles 19, 20 and 21 are listed below:

Criticizing the Head of State, which is in this case the Emir himself.

The publication of anything that would:

A. Show contempt or disdain for the State Constitution.

B. Insult or demonstrate contempt for the judiciary or prosecutors or prejudice the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary or interfere with what the courts and investigating authorities decide should not be disclosed.

C. Prejudice public morals or incite to breach public order or violation of laws or to commit crimes even if the crime did not occur.

In our view, Article 6 of the Cybercrime Law and Articles 19, 20, and 21 of the Press and Publications Law are excessively broad. In particular, we are concerned that Article 6 will significantly threatens freedom of opinion and expression on the Internet and the right to receive and impart information of Internet users in Kuwait. Furthermore, Article 6 appears to be designed to target activists and citizens journalists who are expressing their opinions about ongoing events in their country on social networking sites. While Kuwait has generally demonstrated considerable respect for freedom of expression compared to other Gulf countries, we are concerned that this article will turn Kuwait into a much more repressive state where bloggers and Kuwaiti citizens are punished for expressing dissenting or critical viewpoints on the Internet.

Sedition: We are further concerned about Article 7, which includes punishment not exceeding 10 years for a number of acts listed in Article 28 of the Press and Publications Law (no. 3/2006), including "the publication of incitement to overthrow the regime in the country." Human rights organisations, as well as individual human rights defenders, are also likely to be targeted under this article.

We firmly believe that the new Cyber Crimes Law is a direct assault on the right to freedom of opinion and belief and the right to freedom of expression and it is going to be used by the authorities in Kuwait to restrict freedom of expression and opinion on various social media networks. We are also very concerned that it could be used against human rights defenders, including bloggers and online activists, who cover human rights issues in their writings and bring them to the attention of international human rights bodies or organisations.

We therefore urge the relevant Kuwaiti authorities to:

Immediately repeal Articles 4, 6 and 7 of the Cybercrimes Law. At the very least, the application of Articles 4, 6 and 7 should be suspended pending its repeal so as to ensure that bloggers and activists are not unduly targeted.

Immediately repeal the Press and Publications Law. At the very least, the application of Articles 19, 20, 21, 27 and 28 should be suspended pending the repeal of the law.

Guarantee in all circumstances that all human rights defenders, including online activists, are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without fear of reprisals and free of restrictions including judicial harassment.

Signed,

ARTICLE 19

Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI)

Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR)

International Service for Human Rights (ISHR)

Reporters Without Borders (RSF)

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Tanzania: Another newspaper banned in continuing harassment of press

Publisher Article 19 Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as Article 19, Tanzania: Another newspaper banned in continuing harassment of press, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1415a5224.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

ARTICLE 19 is disappointed that the Tanzanian government has permanently banned Mawio newspaper, effective from 15 January 2016. We call upon the government of President John Magufuli to rescind this decision.

"It is worrying that the Tanzania government continues to use the 1976 Newspapers act to harass and intimidate journalists. We call for the immediate repeal of this law," said Henry Maina, ARTICLE 19 Eastern Africa Director.

Announcing the ban, the Minister for Information, Culture, Arts and Sports, Mr Nape Nnauye, said the decision was reached after the newspaper embarked on a series of news articles that, according to him, "had all the indications of inciting violence in the country."

"Recent news articles in Mawio, which had all the ingredients of inciting violence, include that in which they declared Mr Seif Sharif Hamad as the new President of Zanzibar and another that had a headline that showed that Zanzibar was about to shed blood," he explained to the media in Tanzania.

The East African newspaper was banned on 21 January 2015 after the newspaper's Bureau Chief, Christopher Kidanka, had been summoned and interrogated by the Director of Information Services, Mr Assa Mwambene, who doubles as the government's spokesman. During the session, the government expressed displeasure at the newspaper's reporting and analysis, including its opinion pieces.

Mr Mwambene accused the newspaper of having an agenda against Tanzania. He singled out a recent opinion piece criticising the Dar es Salaam administration's stance on Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Mr Mwambene also took exception to the cartoon in that week's issue of The East African, which he said demonstrated bad taste and disrespect to the person and office of the President.

As ARTICLE 19 noted in its individual UPR submission, Tanzania has not repealed or amended laws negatively affecting freedom of expression and the space for media to freely operate has become increasingly restricted.

We continue to advocate for the repeal the 1976 Newspapers Act, and other laws infringing freedom of expression, including the Film Stage and Plays Act, National Security Act, and any other legislation which contradicts the Constitution and the international standards on freedom of expression and access to information.

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Kenya: Intimidation and harassment of bloggers reaches new high

Publisher Article 19 Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as Article 19, Kenya: Intimidation and harassment of bloggers reaches new high, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a14264101a.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

ARTICLE 19 is deeply alarmed by recent escalation of arrests and prosecutions of online communicators, including bloggers, in Kenya. Section 29 of the Information and Communication Act regarding 'improper use of a licensed telecommunication gadget' is being increasingly used by state officials to target those communicating online.

Eddy Reuben Illah was arrested on 19 January, 2016 and charged with publishing prohibited material for sharing images of what he alleged were Kenyan soldiers killed in an Al Shabaab attack, via a WhatsApp group.

Illah has denied the charge and has been remanded in custody pending the hearing of his case on 9 February 2016. If found guilty, Illah will face a fine of up to50,000 Kenyan shillings and/or imprisonment for up to three months.

Illah's arrest came only two days after the Interior Cabinet Secretary Joseph Nkaissery warned of prosecution against any Kenyan found to circulate a 'gory' image on social media in support of Al Shabaab.

Nkaissery stated that the government had concerns that there were 'unpatriotic characters' who were keen to amplify the terrorist agenda through the sharing of photos and sympathising with Al Shabaab.

This statement comes at a time when ARTICLE 19 is aware of an increasing number of worrying cases where people have been detained as a result of their communications via online platforms and social media.

On the same day that Illah was arrested, another blogger,Cyprian Nyakundi, was arrested and is currently still being held by police. Nyakundi was detained after tweeting about a construction company that was linked to Mombasa Governor, Hassan Joho.

Additionally, last week Elijah Kinyanjui, a Nakuru based journalist, was arrested by Nakuru Criminal Investigations Department for misuse of a licensed telecommunication system. He was accused of sharing, via social media, an image of Nakuru Governor's daughter which was alleged to depict her in bad light.

Furthermore, earlier this month, Kenya Broadcasting Corporation journalist, Judith Akolo, was summoned by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and questioned for hours for retweeting a tweet questioning why an advert for police promotions was released on the eve of the deadline.

"Article 33 of the Kenyan Constitution expressly states that every person has the right to freedom of expression, including the freedom to seek, receive, or impart information or ideas. The recent wave of arrests of those communicating online do not reach the high threshold regarding limitations that can be placed on expression under Article 33 (2), and thus the actions by the police are unconstitutional," explained Henry Maina, Director of ARTICLE 19 Eastern Africa.

"ARTICLE 19 urges the government to abide by the spirit of the constitution regarding freedom of expression and to stop using this provision to clamp down on legitimate expression and democratic debate", added Maina.

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Country Report: The Right to Information in South Korea

Publisher Article 19 Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as Article 19, Country Report: The Right to Information in South Korea, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a142a8d8.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Constitutional Framework

The South Korean Constitution protects freedom of speech and the press of all citizens, without specifically referring to the right to information. The Constitutional Court ruled in 1989 that there is a constitutional right to information as an aspect of the right of freedom of expression. The court affirmed that there is a right to request disclosure of information held by the administrative agencies and that the government is obliged to comply with legitimate requests for information and emphasised that specific implementing legislation to define the contours of the right was not a prerequisite to enforcement of the right.

Right to Information Act

After several groundbreaking court judgments that paved the way for a right to information in South Korea, the government first formally recognised the right in 1993 with its changes to the Military Secrets Protection Act, allowing for the disclosure of military secrets in the public interest. In 1996, the Act on Disclosure of Information by Public Agencies (the RTI Act) was enacted as a consequence of the "activist" approach of the courts, and was one in a series of democratic reforms that the government saw necessary for making Korea a more open society. In 2004, the Act was revised to include some positive changes, for example the possibility of electronic disclosure and the introduction of "information disclosure review committees". In 2013, after several years of other initiatives to enhance proactive disclosure, Korea adopted the Act on Promotion of the Provision and Use of Public Data.

Provisions of the RTI legislation

PRINCIPLES

The purpose of the RTI Act is to secure participation of the people in state affairs and ensure transparency in the operation of state affairs. The original Act required individuals to state a purpose for requesting disclosure and obliged them to use the information "adequately" and in conformity with the declared purposes. These provisions were deleted in the 2004 amendments.

SCOPE

The Act allows all nationals to demand information held by public agencies. A separate Presidential Decree allows requests from foreigners who are permanent residents, in the country temporarily for scholarly research, or companies or organisations with an office in Korea. The Act prescribes the 44 obligation of "state agencies" to ensure the right to information; state agencies includes central government bodies, municipal governments, and public institutions under the Act on the Management of Public Institutions including companies in the majority ownership of the state and other institutions determined by the Presidential Decree. The Act also explicitly excludes from its scope information collected or created by agencies that handle issues of national security except for the obligations under Article 8(1) for creating catalogues. The term "information" means matters recorded in documents (including electronic documents), drawings, pictures, films, tapes, slides, and other media corresponding thereto that are made or acquired, and managed by public institutions for the performance of their duties

PROACTIVE DISCLOSURE

The RTI Act imposes an obligation on the bodies to actively provide information in the public interest. The government has long been active in promoting egovernment services as a means of improving access to information and to fight corruption. The 2013 Act on Promotion of the Provision and Use of Public Data promotes the release of electronically processed data or information created by public institutions with the intent to promote public access and the "smart industry." It focuses on the release and free reuse for public and commercial purposes of data in 15 strategic areas including traffic, weather, space, welfare, health, food, tourism, and the environment. Following its enactment, the government adopted the Open Public Data Directive and Societal Use Principles to promote disclosure by government bodies. Through its OGP Action Plan, South Korea reported it has established a 24-hour public online services website with important citizen information and released the Open Data Portal. In addition, central and local government agencies have a specific section on their respective websites entitled "Government 3.0/Information Disclosure" with proactively disclosed public information.

DISCLOSURE UPON REQUEST

The request must be submitted in a written or oral form and contain the name and resident registration number of the requester, the content of the information and the method of disclosure. Requests for information to be released in electronic form shall be complied with unless it is remarkably difficult. In principle, the requesters may select the form of access to information, although reproductions may be restricted if information is already in the public domain, if it would damage the original copies, or if the number of documents is an "excessive quantity" that the release would seriously impede the agency's normal operations.

Agencies must establish an "Information Disclosure Deliberative Committee" which decides upon requests. Under the Presidential Decree, agencies, mayors and other heads may designate among their civil servants a staff in charge of disclosure of information and arrange for such staff to handle the following in relation to disclosure of information. Bodies must also establish information management systems for proper preservation and expeditious search of information, have a department or human resources in charge of duties related to information disclosure, and endeavour to establish the information disclosure system by using the information and communications network. There are no provisions on providing assistance to the requesters, neither are there any procedures in place for situations when the request is incomplete. Under the Decree, bodies shall inform requesters that they do not hold the information.

Agencies must decide in 10 days, except when this is not possible due to an unavoidable reason; the permissible extension is another 10 days. In such a case, the agency must inform the requester of the reasons for the delay. If there is no response from the body in 20 days, it is deemed to have been rejected and can be appealed. The fees may be charged, but are limited to the actual costs determined by the Decree and the actual delivery costs. Fee reduction or waiver is foreseen if the information is requested for the purposes of "public welfare."

EXEMPTIONS

There are eight categories of exemptions which aim to protect secrets as defined in other acts; national security and foreign relations; public safety of the safety of individuals or property; investigation of crime, criminal prosecution and litigation; audits, inspections and other decision-making processes; personal information; trade secrets; and particular private interests. The majority of exemptions are subject to a harm test with the exception of national security information. The public interest test may be applied to only two exemptions: protection of private information when disclosure is needed to remedy public interest; and protection of trade secrets if disclosure is needed for the protection of lives, bodies or health or to prevent individuals from illegal or unjust business operations. The RTI Act foresees a sunshine clause, stating that the information can be released once the passage of time or other factors has reduced its sensitivity.

There is a clear procedure for allowing partial access when only a part of information may be refused if it is possible to separate the information without changing the nature of the request. The requesters have the right to be informed in writing without delay of the reasons for non-disclosure, the methods and procedures for appeal.

APPEALS

There are three different paths to appeal, an internal, external and judicial procedure. Internally, the ACT foresees an "application of objection", which is a confirmatory procedure, by which the requester asks the agency that issued a negative decision to reconsider its position. An external appeal is called "administrative adjudication", whereby an appeal can be made to the Administrative Appeals Commission under the Administrative Appeals Act. The external appeal is possible either after using the internal confirmatory procedure or separate from it. Judicial review is provided under the Administrative Litigation Act. The Ministry of Government Administration is in charge of oversight and planning for the Act and can inspect and review the activities of state agencies.

SANCTIONS

Sanctions are not foreseen in the RTI Act. The Act only explains that the members of administrative appeals are considered as public officials for the purposes of the Criminal Act or other acts.

PUBLICATION / REPORTING MECHANISMS / PROMOTIONAL MEASURES

The Minister of Government Administration and Home Affairs is in charge of promotional activities, policy-making and institutional reforms of the information disclosure system. The 2004 amendments added a requirement for a yearly report by the minister to the National Assembly.

Implementation of the RTI legislation

The South Korean courts have been particularly active in promoting and implementing the right to information. They found that disclosure should be the rule not the exception and that exemptions should be interpreted narrowly. The Constitutional Court also held that the system of classification of documents as secret should be subject to judicial oversight.In addition, the Supreme Court connected the public's right to know to the protection of whistleblowing in a notable case of a public official releasing a secret internal report. People in South Korea are increasingly requesting disclosure of public information; the number of requests more than doubled in the three years from 2000 to 2003, from 61,586 to 192,295 requests. More than 90% of the requests are handled either entirely or partially and in more than 80% of cases requests have been granted in full.383 A coalition of citizens and anti-corruption groups launched the Korean Social Pact on Anti-Corruption and Transparency (K-Pact) in 2005, calling for the law to be amended to improve public access to information to fight corruption.

With establishment of the Korean Open Data portal, accessibility of information has undoubtedly increased. There has been a promise by the current government that the state will increase the amount of proactively released administrative data from 16% to 60% by 2016. By the end of 2013, there have been around 85,000 public documents released proactively. However, civil society voices criticism over the government's pledges in relation to open data initiatives, saying that the intentions are not followed by strong action, as legislation is often vague in relation to setting out clear responsibilities for different agencies and clear options for citizens to access information.

Related legislation

STATE SECRETS ACT

The Military Secrets Protection Act was amended in 1993 to sets out rules on disclosure of classified information. The revision of this Act followed the Constitutional Court's decision, ruling that military secrets may only be classified following a legal procedure and if they create a clear danger to national security. However, there is another severely limiting piece of legislation for freedom of expression and the free flow of information, the National Security Law (NSL), enacted in 1948 as a response to the threat from their neighbour North Korea. Despite several attempts to repeal the law, harsh sentences, even the death penalty, are still prescribed for accessing, gathering, leaking, transmitting or compromising a national security secret. Even communicating with "anti-state" groups is punishable with 10 years imprisonment.

PROTECTION OF WHISTLEBLOWERS

The recent Act on the Protection of Public Interest Whistleblowers (2011) was enacted to protect and support "people who report violations of the public interest." Public interest is defined as touching upon the health and safety of the public, the environment, consumer interests and fair competition or criminally or administrative sanctioned acts. The Act applies to whistleblowers in both private and public sector and protects them from a long list of disadvantageous treatment, such as employment related detriments - removal or transfer from office, reduction of pay, removal of benefits and opportunities, bullying etc. Penalties for imposing such treatment are criminal sanctions and liability for damages.

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION LEGISLATION

In 1990, Korea adopted the Framework Act on Environmental Policy that serves as a basis for other more specific laws and regulations.The Framework Act stipulates that the Ministry of Environment may disseminate an environmental nature assessment map and shall publicise knowledge and information on the protection of environment, including on the current state of environment, and aim at making the environmental information easily accessible to the people, possibly through an environment information network. The State has also undertaken to publish permissible emission levels.

International Framework

South Korea has acceded to the ICCPR and signed and ratified the UNCAC. South Korea applied to join the Open Government Partnership (OGP) in 2011 and is a participating country in its second cycle. It has also endorsed the ADB/OECD Anti-Corruption Initiative for Asia-Pacific in 2001 and OECD Busan Partnership for Effective Development Co-operation, whose one of the key commitments is strengthening transparency and approving common standard for the electronic publication of data on development co-operation.

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Bahrain: Human rights defender Dr. Al-Singace enters 300th day of hunger strike, NGOs call for immediate release

Publisher Article 19 Publication Date 19 January 2016 Cite as Article 19, Bahrain: Human rights defender Dr. Al-Singace enters 300th day of hunger strike, NGOs call for immediate release, 19 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a142f23eac.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

NGOs from the around the world call for the immediate release of prisoner of conscience Dr. Abduljalil al-Singace on his 300th day of hunger strike. Dr. al-Singace began his hunger strike in March 2015 as a response to police subjecting inmates at the Central Jau Prison to collective punishment, humiliation and torture.



Since 21 March 2015, Dr. al-Singace has foregone food and subsisted on water and IV fluid injections for sustenance. Days later, Jau prison authorities transferred him to the Qalaa hospital, where he is still being kept in a form of solitary confinement.



Dr. al-Singace's family, who visited him on 7 January, state that the prison administration is controlling his treatment at Qalaa hospital, and has for five months continuously, denied his need for a physical checkup by his hematologist at Salmaniya Medical Complex.



According to Dr. al-Singace's family, he is not allowed to walk outside. He remains isolated in the Qalaa hospital, and is provided only irregular contact with his family. He is frequently denied basic hygienic items including soap, and is not allowed to interact with other patients in the hospital.



Dr. al-Singace is a member of the Bahrain 13, a group of thirteen peaceful political activists and human rights defenders, including Ebrahim Sharif and Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, sentenced to prison terms for their peaceful role in Bahrain's Arab Spring protests in 2011.

Dr. al-Singace was first arrested in August 2010 at Bahrain airport. He had just returned from a conference at the British House of Lords regarding human rights in Bahrain. Security forces detained Dr. al-Singace for six months, during which he was tortured, and released him in February 2011 during the height of protests. However, Dr. al-Singace was rearrested on 17 March 2011, after his participation in peaceful pro-democracy protests. In detention, officers blindfolded, handcuffed, and beat Dr. al-Singace in the head with their fists and batons. Officers threatened him and his family with reprisals.

On 22 June 2011, a military court sentenced Dr. al-Singace to life for attempted overthrow of the regime. Since then, he has been imprisoned in the Central Jau Prison, and has only recently received treatment for a nose injury sustained during torture. He has been denied treatment for a similar ear injury also sustained during torture since his incarceration.

In 2015, Dr. al-Singace was awarded the Liu Xiaobo Courage to Write Award by the Independent Chinese PEN Centre, and was named one of Index on Censorship's 100 "free expression heroes" in 2016. He has long campaigned for an end to torture and political reform, writing on these and other subjects on his blog, Al-Faseela, which remains banned by Bahraini Internet Service Providers. Bahrain has become a dangerous place for those who speak out, with peaceful dissidents at risk of arbitrary arrests, systematic torture and unfair trial.

We, the undersigned NGOs, call on the government of Bahrain to immediately secure the release of Dr. al-Singace and all prisoners of conscience, and to provide all appropriate and necessary medical treatment for Dr. al-Singace.

Signatories:

Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB)

ARTICLE 19

Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR)

Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD)

Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)

Croatian PEN

Danish PEN

English PEN

European Center for Democracy and Human Rights (ECDHR)

FIDH, within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders

Ghanaian PEN

Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR)

Icelandic PEN

Index on Censorship

Italian PEN

Norwegian PEN

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Copyright notice: Copyright ARTICLE 19
Iran: Release of Jason Rezaian welcome, but international pressure must remain

Publisher Article 19 Publication Date 19 January 2016 Cite as Article 19, Iran: Release of Jason Rezaian welcome, but international pressure must remain, 19 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a14525307f.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

ARTICLE 19 welcomes the release of Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian, along with 4 other prisoners on 16 January 2016, but maintains its call for sustained international pressure for the immediate release of remaining journalists and political prisoners detained for peacefully exercising free expression.

"The release of Jason Rezaian and 4 other prisoners is a positive step taken by Iran, however numerous journalists and political prisoners remain behind bars. We must continue to place international pressure on Iran to abide by its international human rights commitments and release all those still imprisoned for freely expressing themselves immediately and unconditionally," stated ARTICLE 19's Executive Director, Thomas Hughes.

ARTICLE 19 calls for the release of remaining journalists, artists and activists, including Hadi Heydari, Saeed Razavi Faghih, Mehvash Sabet, Ehsan Mazandarani, Hila Sadeghi, Hossein Ronaghi, Saeed Malekpour, Atena Faraghdani, Nargess Mohammadi, Bahareh Hedayat, Atena Daemi, Mohammad-Reza Alipayam and Mostafa Azizi who have all been detained for legitimately exercising their right to free expression.

Jason Rezaian was arbitrarily detained on 22 July 2014 and subsequently sentenced without due process. He should have never been arrested in the first place and the charges were never made clear, yet the release is welcome news for Rezaian's family, who have tirelessly campaigned for his release.

ARTICLE 19 has advocated for the release of Jason Rezaian since 2014. In September 2015, ARTICLE 19 also supported Jason's brother, Ali Rezaian, in addressing the UN Human Rights Council and calling for Jason's release.

The 16 January 2016 marked "Implementation Day" and the start of the relief of sanctions on Iran. This day also saw a historical "prisoner swap", seeing the release of 5 U.S. citizens (4 of whom are U.S.-Iranians) by Iran, and 7 Iranians who were held in the United States for violating sanctions. Amongst those released were Pastor Saeed Abedini who was arrested for his religious convictions and writer and researcher Matthew Trevithick, although the exact reason for his arrest remains unclear.

International scrutiny of the human rights situation in Iran should not be weakened, notwithstanding the progress on the nuclear deal and prisoner exchange. Instead, any increased diplomatic engagement should be leveraged to push for real human rights improvements in Iran. Including for the release of all those detained for expressing themselves.

This must include maintaining scrutiny on Iran through the UN Human Rights Council, in particular the mandate of Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran. Ahmed Shaheed, the present mandate holder, has been raising Rezaian's case internationally since his detention, and continues to advocate for those still behind bars. It is therefore crucial that the international community support the mandate, and seek its renewal in 2016.

Copyright notice: Copyright ARTICLE 19
Ban welcomes three-party ministerial meeting on dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Gabon

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as UN News Service, Ban welcomes three-party ministerial meeting on dispute between Equatorial Guinea and Gabon, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1d9f440c.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

21 January 2016 - United Nations Secretary-General today welcomed the holding of a trilateral ministerial meeting on the dispute between Equatorial Guinea and the Gabonese Republic.

The meeting took place last Tuesday United Nations Headquarters in New York.

The longstanding dispute between the two nations regarding the Mbanie, Cocotiers and Congas islands, and common boundaries, dates back to the early 1970's.

"He congratulates both parties for their demonstrated political will to instil new momentum in the process and to finalize a special agreement for submission to the International Court of Justice," indicated a statement issued by Mr. Ban's Spokesperson.

"The Secretary-General notes the progress made to date and the parties' willingness to do their utmost to come to a mutually agreeable solution to this longstanding dispute before the end of his mandate," it added.

The UN chief also reiterated his readiness "to provide good offices to help resolve this dispute."
Israel must immediately halt planned relocation of Palestinian Bedouin, say UN officials

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 20 January 2016 Cite as UN News Service, Israel must immediately halt planned relocation of Palestinian Bedouin, say UN officials, 20 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1da5b2e.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

20 January 2016 - Senior United Nations officials for the occupied Palestinian territory have called for an immediate end to Israeli plans to transfer Bedouin living in the Jerusalem area for a settlement expansion, long recognized as a violation of international law and an obstacle to realizing a two-state solution to the Middle East crisis.

"I am once again deeply alarmed to witness Israel's relentless push towards removing Bedouin Palestine refugees from their homes, destroying their livelihoods and their distinct culture," said Felipe Sanchez, Director of Operations in the West Bank for UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

"The children in these communities should not be experiencing the trauma of displacement that preceding generations already experienced," he added.

Mr. Sanchez and the Coordinator for Humanitarian and UN Development Activities for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Robert Piper, issued their call after a visit with diplomats from 17 countries yesterday to the Palestinian Bedouin community of Abu Nuwar, site of recent demolitions and aid confiscations by the Israeli authorities.

Twenty-six Palestine refugees, among them 18 children, including four with disabilities, were displaced on 6 January following the destruction of their homes, and other basic structures. On 10 and 14 January, Israeli authorities confiscated eight donor-funded residential tents that had been provided to the families as post-demolition humanitarian response.

"We came to Abu Nuwar to hear first-hand what residents have been through," Mr. Piper said. "We left with a strengthened resolve to continue our support to them."

Abu Nuwar is located in the so-called E1 area, planned by Israel for the expansion of Ma'ale Adummim settlement, and is among 46 communities in the central West Bank, most of them Palestine refugee communities, slated for transfer to three designated sites away from their current location.

A forced relocation of Bedouin communities to urbanized townships would threaten their culture and livelihoods, the two officials said. Bedouin families that were already "relocated" in the 1990s lost their income sources while their communities' social fabric was severely damaged.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has already stated that the implementation of Israel's proposed "relocation" would amount to forcible transfers and forced evictions, contravening its obligations as an occupying power under humanitarian law and human rights law.

"The destruction of property in this manner and the denial of donor-funded assistance to vulnerable Palestinian communities is unacceptable," Mr. Piper said.

"Under international law, Israel is responsible for meeting the needs of Palestinians living under its occupation and for facilitating humanitarian assistance, not for obstructing aid and pressuring residents to leave so that Israeli settlements can expand. The international community must ensure that plans to transfer these communities are revoked, if the two-state solution is to be protected," he said.

The two-state solution forms the main plank of efforts by the diplomatic Quartet, comprising the UN, European Union, Russia and the United States, to solve the Middle East crisis, with two states - Israel and Palestine - living side by side in peace and security.

Diplomats in yesterday's visit came from Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden as well as Switzerland and the United States.
Cyprus: UN chief holds first joint meeting with Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as UN News Service, Cyprus: UN chief holds first joint meeting with Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1db4a1aa.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

21 January 2016 - In his first joint meeting with the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders today, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged them to "capitalize on the current positive momentum" to reunite the island under a federal government.

"Significant progress has been made in this leader-led process over the past eight months, demonstrating that with political will, it is possible to reach compromises even on the most difficult issues," he told journalists after meeting Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader, Mustafa Akinci in Davos, Switzerland, on the margins of the World Economic Forum.

"At the same time, it is also clear that a number of sensitive and difficult issues still remain. I encouraged the leaders to capitalize on the current positive momentum. It will be crucial as they move forward to tackle outstanding issues across the different chapters."

The UN has been mediating talks between the two communities for eight years in an effort to reunite the Mediterranean island by establishing a federal government. The Secretary-General's Special Adviser, Espen Barth Eide, is facilitating intensive negotiations between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders.

The talks recently have focussed on such issues as property rights, compensation and crossing points among others.

The UN has deployed a peacekeeping force in Cyprus, known as UNFICYP, since 1964, when inter-communal fighting erupted.

"I encouraged Mr. Akinci and Mr. Anastasiades to continue working tirelessly towards finding a comprehensive solution to the Cyprus issue as soon as possible, for the benefit of all Cypriots." Mr. Ban said today.

"I also call on all interested international players, especially the guarantor powers, to do their utmost to facilitate and support the leaders in their quest for overcoming the division of Cyprus."

Special Adviser Eide, who attended today's talks, said last year that both leaders have continued to make progress towards "their shared vision of a united, federal Cyprus."
Davos: US Secretary of State John Kerry on Friday said the US-led coalition bombing Islamic State strongholds in Syria and Iraq will reach their goal of "seriously denting" the group by the end of 2016.

"I think that by the end of 2016, our goal of very seriously denting Daesh in Iraq and Syria and of trying to have an impact on Mosul and Raqqa will be achieved," Kerry told reporters on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, using an alternative name for Islamic State (IS).

"We are on track, we are doing serious damage to Daesh on Friday. They lost 35 per cent, 40 per cent of their territory that they control, 40 per cent in Iraq, 20 per cent to 30 percent total," he said.

The coalition includes Gulf states and Britain. Russian and French jets have also been pounding IS positions.

Kerry said he would meet the foreign ministers of 24 coalition nations in Rome on February 2 to discuss strategy and possible "additional commitments".

"(Defence Secretary Ashton Carter) was just in Paris meeting with coalition members, they are all committed," Kerry said.

The US has called on allies to contribute special forces as a key part of their effort to bolster coalition forces fighting the jihadist group.
UN condemns suicide attack targeting media in Kabul

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as UN News Service, UN condemns suicide attack targeting media in Kabul, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1dcc840b.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

21 January 2016 - The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) today condemned the suicide attack against media workers in Kabul yesterday that killed eight and injured 24 civilians, many of them from the media sector, as well as women and children.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the blast that deliberately targeted a minibus transporting staff of the Tolo media organisation from work to their homes. In October the Taliban issued a specific threat against Tolo and other named Afghan news organisations, designating them as military objectives.

"Strong and independent journalism, free from intimidation and fear of criminal violence, is essential for a healthy democracy and decent society," said Tadamichi Yamamoto, the Secretary-General's Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan and Acting-Head of UNAMA, in a statement.

"Afghanistan can be justly proud of its flourishing media sector. All steps must be taken to safeguard media professionals and freedom of expression against those who would use violence to impose their voice and views alone," he added.

Underlining that journalists, as civilians, may never be the object of attack or threats, UNAMA called on all parties to the conflict, including the Taliban, to rescind any threats against the media.

The Mission also reiterated that international humanitarian law, which applies to all parties to the conflict in Afghanistan, prohibits attacks against civilians at any time and in any place.
UN chief condemns terrorist attack at Pakistani university

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 20 January 2016 Cite as UN News Service, UN chief condemns terrorist attack at Pakistani university, 20 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1dd0340c.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

20 January 2016 - United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today condemned the terrorist attack by armed militants at Bacha Khan University in the city of Charsadda, Pakistan, which killed at least 19 people and wounded dozens more.

"He is appalled by such acts of violence and calls for the perpetrators to be swiftly brought to justice," noted a statement issued by Mr. Ban's spokesperson.

"The Secretary-General recalls that just over a year ago Pakistan experienced one of the deadliest school attacks in its history near the city of Peshawar, where more than 150 people died, mostly children," the statement noted. "He reaffirms that attacks against students, teachers or schools can never be justified. The right to education for all must be firmly protected. Schools and educational facilities must be respected as safe and secure spaces," it added.

In addition, the Secretary-General called for proportionate and necessary measures to be taken to ensure that schools in areas of insecurity and conflict are adequately protected. He also extended his heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims and to the Government and people of Pakistan.
Ban welcomes joint request by Colombian Government and FARC to set up UN political office

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 20 January 2016 Cite as UN News Service, Ban welcomes joint request by Colombian Government and FARC to set up UN political office, 20 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1dd2640c.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

20 January 2016 - United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the joint request from the Colombian Government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People's Army (FARC-EP) yesterday announcing their decision to request the UN Security Council to establish a political mission in the country to monitor any future ceasefire agreement.

A statement issued today by Mr. Ban's spokesperson said the communique was issued by the two sides from Havana, Cuba, where peace talks have been under way since 2012. According to the statement, the requested UN mission would constitute "the international component of a tripartite mechanism to monitor and verify a future agreement on a bilateral and definitive ceasefire and cessation of hostilities and the laying down of arms."

"The Secretary-General also welcomes the parties' request to the members of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) to contribute international observers to the mission to be established by the United Nations," continued the statement.

The UN chief congratulated the Government of Colombia and the FARC-EP on yet another significant step toward the peaceful resolution of the armed conflict. He reiterated the commitment of the United Nations to continue to support their efforts in the search for peace.

The FARC rebels have been in talks with the Government seeking to end a 51-year conflict that has left nearly a quarter of a million victims. Throughout the discussions, which started in Havana in 2012, negotiators have reached agreement on key issues such as the political participation, land rights, illicit drugs and transitional justice.

Addressing the UN General Assembly's annual high-level debate this past September, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said "Colombia is on the path to peace," aiming to bring an end to the longest armed conflict in the Western Hemisphere. He also announced that 23 March would be the deadline for signing a final agreement.
Cote d'Ivoire: UN peacekeeping force reduced in light of country's progress towards stability

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 20 January 2016 Cite as UN News Service, Cote d'Ivoire: UN peacekeeping force reduced in light of country's progress towards stability, 20 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1dd6240d.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

20 January 2016 - Reflecting the "considerable and continued progress" in consolidating peace and stability in Cote d'Ivoire, the Security Council today cut a further 1,500 troops from the United Nations peacekeeping Mission, which played a major role in halting violence in the country after disputed elections in 2010.

In a unanimously adopted resolution, the 15-Member body decreased the authorized ceiling of the UN Operation in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI) from 5,437 to 4,000 military personnel by 31 March.

UNOCI, set up in 2004 to facilitate implementation of a peace agreement after the West African country was torn apart by civil war, with an authorized ceiling of 6,240 uniformed personnel, helped restore legitimacy and stability in 2011, along with French forces, after incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo's refusal to concede defeat in the 2010 elections to Alassane Ouattara.

At its height, the Mission maintained some 7,000 uniformed personnel on the ground, mandated to help protect civilians and support the efforts of the Ivorian authorities to address the root causes of the conflict and establish lasting peace, including security sector reform, and the disarmament and reintegration of armed factions.

Earlier this month, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's Special Representative, UNOCI head Aichatou Mindaoudou, told the Council that the October 2015 election of President Ouattara to a second term provided the country's citizens with the opportunity to start a new chapter in their nation's history and consolidate achievements towards long-term stability.

During the General Assembly General Debate in October, Cote d'Ivoire's Permanent Representative Claude Bouah-Kamon praised the UN for its "irreplaceable" contribution to advancing peace, security and development over the 70 years of its existence.

"I wish to here reiterate the gratitude of the Ivoirian people for the invaluable role the United Nations played and continues to play at our sides," he said.
Yemeni journalist's death in air strike deplored by UNESCO

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 20 January 2016 Cite as UN News Service, Yemeni journalist's death in air strike deplored by UNESCO, 20 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1de7d40b.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

20 January 2016 - Deploring the death of Yemeni journalist Almigdad Mojalli, who was killed by shrapnel in an air strike in Sana'a, the capital, the United Nations agency responsible for defending media freedom today called on all sides in the strife-torn country to ensure the safety of all journalists.

"I call on all parties to make sure that journalists are able to carry out their work in the safest possible conditions, in keeping with the Genevan Conventions and UN Security Council Resolution 2222, which was adopted last year to improve the safety of journalists in conflict situations," UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Director-General Irina Bokova said.

The resolution condemned all abuses committed against journalists and strongly deplored impunity for such acts.

Mr. Mojalli freelanced for the Voice of America, the international humanitarian news agency IRIN and other media outlets, while he was on assignment in Jaref, in the south of Sana'a, when he was killed on Sunday.

UNESCO issues statements on the killing of media workers in line with Resolution 29 adopted by Member States at the Organization's General Conference of 1997, entitled "Condemnation of Violence against Journalists."
UN refugee agency warns over perilous Horn of Africa sea crossings

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 19 January 2016 Cite as UN News Service, UN refugee agency warns over perilous Horn of Africa sea crossings, 19 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1dea240d.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

19 January 2016 - Despite the ongoing conflict in Yemen, thousands of Ethiopians and Somalis are continuing to make a perilous sea crossing, which has already claimed at least three dozen lives this year, the UN refugee agency warned today.

Latest data on sea arrivals shows that 92,446 people arrived in Yemen by boat in 2015, one of the highest annual totals recorded over the past decade. A full two thirds arrived since March 2015 when the conflict began.

With 95 deaths reported, 2015 is the second deadliest year recorded to date. In view of this, and the loss of 36 lives in an incident on 8 January this year, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) today reiterated its warning to people contemplating the crossing over the dangers of this journey.

"The overall figures are disturbing," UNHCR spokesperson Adrian Edwards told reporters at a news briefing in Geneva.

"People continue to arrive despite unprecedented escalated internal conflict in Yemen and tragically, more people continue to lose their lives trying to cross the sea in overcrowded, unseaworthy boats," he added.

UNHCR began systematic recording of arrivals in Yemen in 2006. To date, only 2011 and 2012 have seen higher arrivals of Ethiopians and Somalis in Yemen than there were in 2015. Almost 90 per cent of last year's arrivals were from Ethiopia.

UNHCR in Somalia and its partners have reportedly been working with the international community and Somali authorities to improve political, security and socio-economic conditions in Somalia. They have also been actively pursuing durable solutions for refugees, returnees and people who are internally displaced.

According to the agency, these efforts aim at providing an alternative to Somalis to undertaking perilous sea journeys to Yemen. The number of Somalis who made the journey to Yemen last year compares to a high of just over 33,000 in 2008.

Meanwhile, many new arrivals are reportedly misinformed about the severity of the conflict, believe that the situation has become relatively calm in some of the southern governorates, or are following rumours of improved access into neighbouring Gulf countries.

New arrivals have been described as facing movement restrictions in Yemen, and there have been reports of some being caught in the conflict and killed. There are now fewer income opportunities and available services, and organized gangs and smugglers continue to operate along the Red Sea coast.

"UNHCR and partners in the Horn of Africa counsel would-be crossers about the inherent dangers of the journey, the realities of the situation on the ground in Yemen and the asylum and assistance options available to them," Mr. Edwards said.

Conflict continues to rage in the country and Yemenis are bearing the brunt with the UN estimating that over 2.5 million people are now internally displaced. Despite severely restricted humanitarian access and security constraints, UNHCR reached over 280,000 internally displaced Yemenis with essential household items and shelter material in 2015.

Yemen is also host to over 266,000 refugees, of which some 250,000 are Somali. Meanwhile, over 168,000 people have fled Yemen to neighbouring countries since March.
In Jordan, UN refugee agency chief urges greater efforts to end Syria conflict

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 19 January 2016 Cite as UN News Service, In Jordan, UN refugee agency chief urges greater efforts to end Syria conflict, 19 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1decd40d.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

19 January 2016 - The international community must make greater efforts to end the conflict in Syria or risk prolonging the world's biggest humanitarian crisis for many years to come, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has said during a trip to the region.

"It is essential that the international community and all actors that have an influence on the parties to the conflict - and the parties to the conflict themselves, first and foremost - exercise greater efforts towards peace," Filippo Grandi told reporters while visiting Jordan's Za'atari refugee camp.

Three weeks after taking up office, Mr. Grandi said he had chosen to travel to the region on his first overseas trip to focus minds on finding solutions to the nearly five-year-old conflict.

"If a settlement of the conflict is not found, this crisis will not end and we will continue year after year to ask the international community for huge amounts of money to support refugees that - until there is peace - will not want to go back," he stated.

Mr. Grandi urged governments to take advantage of two upcoming global conferences in London in February and Geneva in March to pledge more financial support for refugees and host countries, and increase the number of legal resettlement places for those escaping the conflict.

According to the High Commissioner's Office (UNHCR), the protracted nature of the crisis is having a devastating effect on millions of ordinary Syrians, as well as placing a huge burden on neighbouring countries that have so far taken in more than four million refugees.

Jordan is currently host to more than 630,000 Syrian refugees, putting a huge strain on the small kingdom's natural resources, infrastructure and economy. While almost 110,000 Syrians currently live in Za'atari and the country's other main camp at Azraq, the vast majority are struggling to survive in towns and cities across Jordan.

Addressing the plight of an estimated 17,000 Syrians currently camped near the country's north-eastern border, Mr. Grandi said he fully appreciated Jordan's security concerns and pledged UNHCR's help in screening individuals in order to allow those in need of international protection to enter the kingdom.

While at the camp, he met a Syrian Bedouin family who arrived in Za'atari in February 2013. A father of six, Mohammad Olayan said he had witnessed a steady improvement in conditions during his three years there.

"When we first came we were living in a tent and there were no services. Now we have two caravans, and there is electricity and proper sanitation," he said.

Despite the improvements, the family still struggles to feed themselves with the food assistance they receive, and Mohammad must borrow money or try to find work to keep food on the table. While his three young sons attend school in the camp, his two school-aged daughters say they are still too traumatized by the conflict and intimidated by the large class sizes to go. As a result, Mohammed and his wife and daughters spend much of their time inside their shelter.

"What else can refugees do?" he asked.

After three years in exile with no end in sight, Mohammad said he is considering returning to the family's small farm in Syria's southern Dara'a province despite the danger.

"We don't want to run away for the rest of our lives," he explained. "Maybe it would be better to die quickly in Syria than the slow death we face here."

The High Commissioner's visit also includes stops in Turkey and Lebanon.
Niger: UN and partners struggling to assist thousands newly displaced by Boko Haram violence

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 19 January 2016 Cite as UN News Service, Niger: UN and partners struggling to assist thousands newly displaced by Boko Haram violence, 19 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1df8440c.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

19 January 2016 - Citing a "very serious situation with acute shortages of shelter" in south-east Niger where some 100,000 people have fled to escape Boko Haram violence, the United Nations refugee agency today appealed for urgent humanitarian assistance and funding to help those that have been uprooted.

"Our team in Niger describes the situation as very serious with acute shortages of shelter and non-food items for the displaced," Adrian Edwards, spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), told journalists in Geneva today.

These newly displaced include local villagers, internally displaced people (IDPs), people who have been displaced several times, and Nigerian refugees, according to a recent UNHCR team visit. "UNHCR is redirecting available resources to meet the urgent shelter and other assistance," Mr. Edwards said, calling on donors for extra support to help this vulnerable population.

The agency's current Niger operation is about half funded with $24.9 million received against overall requirements of $51 million.

While struggling to cope with the humanitarian needs, UNHCR and partners have conducted a more comprehensive registration to simplify needs identification, delivered food in south-east Niger's Diffa region, and offered health care and sanitation.

However, many newly displaced, who have sought shelter alongside Niger's National Route No. 1, are without protection by the Niger army. Moreover, they do not have adequate access to water sanitation, shelter and school.

"Providing assistance and shelter is all the more difficult because people are living in spontaneous sites rather than in a camp environment," warned Mr. Edwards.

The conflict in north-east Nigeria has forced more than 220,300 people to find refuge in neighbouring countries such as Niger, Cameroon, and Chad since 2013. In Niger, insurgent incursions had displaced an estimated 50,000 people within the country, according to UNHCR.
Overnight aid deliveries reach four Syrian towns while situation in east 'extremely grave'  UN

Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 19 January 2016 Cite as UN News Service, Overnight aid deliveries reach four Syrian towns while situation in east 'extremely grave'  UN, 19 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1dfb840b.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

19 January 2016 - Overnight aid deliveries reached the Syrian towns of Madaya, Zabadani, Kefraya and Foah, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), which today announced it is planning on delivering more assistance.

"It was slightly delayed due to several issues - one of them was the weather- it's getting increasingly cold and difficult to move around in Syria so there are many, many obstacles to this, but the operation continues based on the so-called 'Four Town Agreement' which we do have," OCHA spokesperson Jens Laerke told reporters in Geneva.

Regarding delays to the convoys destined for Foah and Kafraya, Mr. Laerke said they were due to reports from armed opposition groups who said they needed more time to finalize arrangements in areas under their control. "That piece of information and the delay meant that also the convoy going into Madaya and Zabadani had to be delayed," he explained. "These convoys have to proceed at the same time. If there is a delay in one convoy, the other one will have to wait. It is a very, very finely calibrated operation."

Fuel in particular was delivered to the locations during this third joint operation with UN agencies, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) in recent weeks, but a diverse range of aid is reportedly still needed, including food, nutrition and health services.

Asked how many civilians in Madaya had starved to death, Mr. Laerke said it was believed five people had died from starvation since 11 January when the first aid convoy arrived. He noted this is not a UN figure, but rather one recorded by health staff in the town.

He described the situation in the eastern part of Syria as "extremely grave" and "catastrophic."

"If you are talking about Deir al-Zour for example, where we have the city under-siege by the Islamic State group, ISIL, we are extremely concerned about the plight of some 200,000 people in the western part of the town," the spokesperson warned. "We do not have unhindered access to the place."

Meanwhile in related news, UN human rights expert Hilal Elver today warned that some 400,000 people living in 15 besieged locations throughout Syria are trapped in desperate circumstances and in urgent need of emergency assistance. "An immediate and unconditional humanitarian pause in hostilities must be put in place to allow humanitarian aid and food to reach everyone in Syria," Ms. Elver said.

"As the brutal conflict in Syria continues, the plight of those already living in constant fear of deadly and indiscriminate bombardment is now compounded by the threat of starvation, with parties on all sides of the conflict continuing to entirely or heavily restrict access to essential supplies," the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food noted.

Turning to political development, reporters were informed that the UN Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, is "intensively occupied" with preparations for the Intra Syrian Talks, in order for them to start next week.

Yesterday, Mr. de Mistura briefed the UN Security Council by video link from Geneva, and was in touch with both Security Council members and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. The Special Envoy was reportedly also in contact with members of the International Syrian Support Group in an effort to find agreement on the list of participants for the meeting.
Journalist killed in air strike near Sanaa

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 18 January 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, Journalist killed in air strike near Sanaa, 18 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1e0e2411.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns Yemeni freelance journalist Almigdad Mojalli's death yesterday in an air strike by the Saudi-led coalition of Arab states in Jaref, a Houthi-controlled district in the southern outskirts the capital, Sanaa.

Aged 34, Almigdad Mojalli was injured by shrapnel from an exploding missile and died while being taken to hospital. He had gone there for Voice of America to interview survivors of last week's air strikes in Jaref in which 15 people were killed.

"We offer our condolences to Mojalli's family and friends and we pay tribute to his courage and to the courage of all the other journalists who continue to cover this war on the ground," said Alexandra El Khazen, the head of RSF's Middle East desk.

"RSF reminds all the parties to the armed conflict in Yemen that they are required to respect journalists by UN Security Council Resolution 2222, adopted in 2015, and by the Geneva Conventions."

Mojalli described himself on LinkedIn as a freelance photographer and fixer specializing in war reporting and coverage of humanitarian issues. He worked mainly for foreign media, including the US government's Voice of America, the London-based Telegraph newspaper and the humanitarian news agency IRIN.

He had covered atrocities by the Houthi rebels and the use of violence to disperse anti-Houthi demonstrators before the start of the war.

According to RSF's tally, at least eight journalists and media workers were killed in 2015 as a result of the conflict between the Houthi rebels and the forces that support President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi.

Yemen is ranked 168th out of 180 countries in the 2015 Reporters Without Borders press freedom index.
Washington: Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian headed home to the United States on Friday, days after being freed from 18 months in prison in Iran as part of a historic prisoner exchange between Tehran and the United States.

Rezaian, who had been staying in Germany with his wife and mother who also left Iran with him on Sunday, said he was grateful for his newfound freedom but was not yet ready to talk about his imprisonment.

"At some point, I will be ready to discuss my ordeal but for now, I just want to express my profound appreciation for the tremendous support I have received," the Iranian-American said in a statement early Friday morning.

"Today, I am incredibly thankful for my family, my fellow journalists, my colleagues at the Washington Post, and everyone else who fought for my freedom," he said.

After his release by Iran, Rezaian spent several days at the U.S. military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany, before leaving with his family for the United States on Friday.

Rezaian, who was born in California and holds dual U.S. and Iranian citizenship, was accused of espionage by Iran. He and his Iranian wife, Yeganeh Salehi, were arrested in July 2014, although she was later freed while he remained detained.

Salehi, in the statement, said she was overjoyed to be reunited with her husband "and that we are now together beginning an exciting new chapter in our lives."

"I am thrilled to be going to the United States and thankful beyond words for the overwhelming support Jason and our family have received from so many people, she said.

Rezaian's brother Ali along with executives at the Post had led the effort to seek their release, urging the Obama administration to press the issue with Iran.

Rezaian, in his statement, thanked U.S. and Swiss officials for their efforts.

The prisoner swap was announced as world powers, including the United States, implemented a landmark nuclear deal. In exchange for the release of five Americans from Iran, the White House offered clemency to seven Iranians who were convicted or facing trial in the United States.
Djibouti authorities step up harassment of journalists

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 19 January 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, Djibouti authorities step up harassment of journalists, 19 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1e128411.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns radio reporter Mohamed Ibrahim Waiss's mistreatment while unjustly detained from 11 to 17 January in Djibouti City and calls on the authorities to stop harassing journalists.

Mohamed Ibrahim Waiss, who works for La Voix de Djibouti, was reportedly badly mistreated at the gendarmerie's Research and Documentation Centre (SRD), where his interrogators forced him to sign a statement and to surrender his Facebook usernames and passwords in order to use his identity to post images insulting the opposition.

RSF also deplores the conditions in which he was held in Gabode prison, where he was denied any contact with his lawyer, had no access to a doctor after the mistreatment received at the SRD, and ate no food because it did not seem edible.

When he was brought before a court on 17 January, the judge had no choice but to release him because no charges had been brought against him. He was nonetheless ordered to present himself again on 24 January.

Waiss has been the victim of previous arbitrary arrests that were the subject of RSF press releases. He spent four months in Gabode prison in 2011, several days in December 2013 and ten days in August 2014.

And he is not the only journalist currently being targeted by the authorities. L'Aurore co-editor Kadar Abdi Ibrahim was arrested on 14 January for printing a photo on the newspaper's front page showing one of the victims of a massacre at Buldhuquo, when police opened fire on a banned demonstration killing at least 29 people, according to the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH).

He was released on 16 January but continues to be charged although the parents of the victim - a 7-year-old girl - said they would not file a complaint over the use of the photo. L'Aurore was launched by the main opposition coalition, the National Salvation Union (USN), a few months ago.

"In the run-up to the presidential election in April, the Djibouti authorities are trying to silence the voices of all those who criticize the government's actions," RSF secretary-general Christophe Deloire said. "We call on the authorities to abandon these prosecutions and to stop harassing journalists."

In Djibouti, newspapers have traditionally been the mouthpieces of the various political parties but the opposition outlets have gradually disappeared over the years. Journalists are constantly harassed and subjected to government-orchestrated intimidation campaigns and, when arrested, are often tortured before being released and then prosecuted.

The situation has worsened since the start of President Ismael Omar Guelleh's reelection campaign, as the authorities step up arrests of journalists and stop at nothing to silence the opposition. Guelleh is running for a fourth term.

Djibouti is ranked 170th out of 180 countries in the 2015 Reporters Without Borders press freedom index.
New Cyber Crimes Law restricts free expression and targets online activists

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, New Cyber Crimes Law restricts free expression and targets online activists, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1e14a411.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI), Article 19 Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR), International Service for Human Rights (ISHR), and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) are seriously concerned about the impact of the new Cyber Crimes Law no. 63, which comes into force on 12 January 2016, on freedom of expression and online activism in Kuwait. The law was published in the official newspaper on 07 July 2015 after being approved by the National Assembly on 16 June 2015.

The new legislation contains 21 articles which seek to regulate a number of online activities in Kuwait. In particular, we are concerned that the new law, especially articles 4, 6 and 7, could be used to limit freedom of expression on the Internet, as well as to target online activists including bloggers and citizen journalists.

Under international human rights law, any restriction on freedom of expression must meet the three-part test under Article 19 (3) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ('ICCPR'), i.e. it must be (1) provided by law; (2) pursue a legitimate aim as enumerated under Article 19 (3); and (3) be necessary and proportionate [in a democratic society]. We believe that the Kuwaiti Cybercrimes law fails those tests and is therefore in breach of international law.

- Overly Broad Restrictions on Public Morality Grounds: Article 4 (4) punishes by imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years and a fine of not less than two thousand dinars and not exceeding five thousand dinars: "Item 4. Whoever establishes a website or publishes or produces or prepares or creates or sends or stores information or data with a view to use, distribute or display to others via the Internet or an information technology device that would prejudice public morality or manages a place for this purpose."

In our view, Article 4 is overly broad. In particular, it fails to define what constitutes 'prejudice to public morality'. We are therefore concerned that this article could be used to target online activists expressing controversial views on religious or other matters of public interest on spurious "public morality" grounds.

- Overly Broad Restrictions Based on the Press and Publications Law: Article 6 is based on Article 27 (1, 2 and 3) of the Press and Publications Law (no. 3/2006) which punishes editors and writers who commit acts that are described in article 19, 20 and 21 of the law, with up to one year imprisonment and a fine of up to 20,000 Dinars. We are concerned that items (1, 2, 3 and 4) of Article 27 give powers to the Criminal Court to punish any of the described acts by revoking the license or shutting down a newspaper for a period not exceeding one year, as well as the confiscation of published copies. Some of the acts described in articles 19, 20 and 21 are listed below: Criticizing the Head of State, which is in this case the Emir himself. The publication of anything that would: A. Show contempt or disdain for the State Constitution. B. Insult or demonstrate contempt for the judiciary or prosecutors or prejudice the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary or interfere with what the courts and investigating authorities decide should not be disclosed. C. Prejudice public morals or incite to breach public order or violation of laws or to commit crimes even if the crime did not occur.

In our view, Article 6 of the Cybercrime Law and Articles 19, 20, and 21 of the Press and Publications Law are excessively broad. In particular, we are concerned that Article 6 will significantly threatens freedom of opinion and expression on the Internet and the right to receive and impart information of Internet users in Kuwait. Furthermore, Article 6 appears to be designed to target activists and citizens journalists who are expressing their opinions about ongoing events in their country on social networking sites. While Kuwait has generally demonstrated considerable respect for freedom of expression compared to other Gulf countries, we are concerned that this article will turn Kuwait into a much more repressive state where bloggers and Kuwaiti citizens are punished for expressing dissenting or critical viewpoints on the Internet.

- Sedition: We are further concerned about Article 7, which includes punishment not exceeding 10 years for a number of acts listed in Article 28 of the Press and Publications Law (no. 3/2006), including "the publication of incitement to overthrow the regime in the country." Human rights organisations, as well as individual human rights defenders, are also likely to be targeted under this article.

We firmly believe that the new Cyber Crimes Law is a direct assault on the right to freedom of opinion and belief and the right to freedom of expression and it is going to be used by the authorities in Kuwait to restrict freedom of expression and opinion on various social media networks. We are also very concerned that it could be used against human rights defenders, including bloggers and online activists, who cover human rights issues in their writings and bring them to the attention of international human rights bodies or organisations.

We therefore urge the relevant Kuwaiti authorities to:

Immediately repeal Articles 4, 6 and 7 of the Cybercrimes Law. At the very least, the application of Articles 4, 6 and 7 should be suspended pending its repeal so as to ensure that bloggers and activists are not unduly targeted.



Immediately repeal the Press and Publications Law. At the very least, the application of Articles 19, 20, 21, 27 and 28 should be suspended pending the repeal of the law.



Guarantee in all circumstances that all human rights defenders, including online activists, are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without fear of reprisals and free of restrictions including judicial harassment.



Signed,

Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI)

Article 19

Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR)

International Service for Human Rights (ISHR)

Reporters Without Borders (RSF)


RSF reiterates call for EU sanctions against CCTV and Xinhua

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, RSF reiterates call for EU sanctions against CCTV and Xinhua, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1e19140b.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls for European Union sanctions against state-owned China Central Television (CCTV) and the official news agency Xinhua for broadcasting and publishing what are presumably forced "confessions."

RSF is appalled by the growth of this practice by China's state media, which poses an alarming threat to freely reported news and information.

The latest victims include Gui Minhai, the owner of Mighty Current, a Hong Kong-based company that publishes books critical of the Chinese Communist Party. After disappearing in Thailand in October in circumstances that led many to suspect he had been kidnapped, Gui delivered a tearful "confession" on CCTV on 17 January, saying he wanted to be tried in China despite having Swedish citizenship.

Yesterday, it was the turn of Peter Dahlin, a Swedish citizen working for the NGO Chinese Urgent Action Working Group, to make a "confession" on CCTV, while Xinhua published a dispatch about his "confession" and reported that he had been arrested for "encouraging the masses to oppose the government."

"We are outraged by the dissemination of forced 'confessions' that have no informational value," said Benjamin Ismail, the head of RSF's Asia-Pacific desk. "By knowingly peddling lies and statements were presumably obtained under duress, CCTV and Xinhua become mass propaganda weapons and cease de facto to be news media."

Ismail added: "In view of their growing international role - seen in the increasing number of partnerships with CCTV and the many international media subscribing to Xinhua's service - these two organizations represent a threat to freely produced news in the public interest. We call on the European Union to urgently adopt a resolution sanctioning these practices, which are part of the Chinese government's repressive system."

RSF already called on the European Council to adopted sanctions against CCTV and its executives in August 2014.

Such sanctions would be in line with a previous European Union measure. In decision 2013/124/PESC of March 2013, the European Council found that certain Iranian officials - including Press TV's CEO and news director - had violated the right to a fair trial by their use of forced confessions and were complicit in the use of violence to make detainees "confess."

Other recent victims of this practice in China include Gao Yu, a journalist who disappeared on 23 April 2014 and who was shown on CCTV two weeks later confessing to having made a "big mistake" and admitting her "guilt." She was accused of "disclosing state secrets to sources outside of China." During her trial in November 2014, she said she made the confession under duress, because threats had been made against her son.

Xiang Nanfu, a regular contributor to the New York-based news website Boxun, was showed on CCTV 13 in May 2014 confessing to having "smeared the Party and government." When he was released on 19 August 2014, the police said it was "because of his poor health and above all because of a relatively good attitude in pleading guilty."

Designed to discredit independent news providers, this practice was also used in November 2013 against Chen Yongzhou, a reporter for the Xinkuai Bao newspaper.

CCTV producer Wang Qinglei was fired the same month after criticizing CCTV for broadcasting well-known social network commentator Charles Xue's forced confession. "Televised confessions serve political needs," Wang said in an open letter that was quickly removed after being posted online.

China is ranked 176th out of 180 countries in the 2015 Reporters Without Borders press freedom index.
After Tolo TV car bomb, entire media organizations under threat of attack

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 20 January 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, After Tolo TV car bomb, entire media organizations under threat of attack, 20 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1e1b740b.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is horrified to learn that at least seven members of Tolo TV's staff were killed in downtown Kabul late this afternoon when a minibus taking a group of the TV station's employees to their homes was rammed by a suicide bomber in another vehicle carrying explosives.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack. The minibus was operated by the Kabura production company, which is owned by the Moby Group.

"Journalists are targeted throughout the world but now entire news organizations are threatened by large-scale attacks," Reporters Without Borders secretary-general Christophe Deloire said.

"Jihadists are among press freedom's worst predators. As in Paris a year ago, killers decided to target a media outlet out of hatred for its editorial policies and hatred for free speech in general. We call on the Afghan authorities to assign all available resources to catching those responsible for this bombing as quickly as possible."

Tolo TV and 1TV - Afghanistan's two leading privately-owned TV channels - were named as "military targets" in a Taliban communique on 12 October 2015.

Signed by the "Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan's Military Commission," it said: "We henceforth regard Tolo TV and 1TV as military targets, not as news media (...) Nothing is safe from our attacks, neither personnel (presenter, reporters or crews) nor the building themselves."

RSF visited Afghanistan last November to organize a conference on security for journalists and to meet with senior officials - including Head of Government Abdullah Abdullah, information and culture minister AbdulBari Jahani and presidential spokesman Sayed Zafar Hashemi - to ask them to adopt concrete measures to protect the media.

Journalists have paid a high price in Afghanistan since 2001. At least 34, including 15 foreign journalists, have been killed in connection with their work. Most of these murders are still unpunished.

Afghanistan is ranked 122nd out of 180 countries in the 2015 Reporters Without Borders press freedom index.
RSF concerned about journalist held without charge since November

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 15 January 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, RSF concerned about journalist held without charge since November, 15 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1e1ea411.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is worried about Palestinian journalist Mohamed Al-Qiq's detention by the Israeli authorities for the past eight weeks without a trial or formal charge for supposedly "inciting violence."

A reporter for the Saudi Islamic TV station Al Majd, Al-Qiq, 23, was arrested at his Ramallah home in the West Bank on 21 November. He is currently held under a six-month "administrative detention" order issued on 20 December.

The Israeli security forces used violence to enter his home and interrogate him before arresting him. They also confiscated his electronic equipment. As a result of being on hunger strike for more than 50 days in protest against his arrest, he is now in a critical condition and has been transferred to a hospital in Afula.

RSF is concerned not only about the conditions in which he is being held but also the unclear circumstances of his arrest. RSF is not in a position to verify the reasons for his arrest but notes the lack of any formal charge and the murky procedure used to hold him. It therefore calls on the Israeli authorities to free him and to ensure that their investigation is transparent and impartial.

So-called "administrative detention" is permitted under Israeli law. It enables the authorities to order a suspect's detention without referring to a judge on the grounds of a supposed threat to Israel's security.

Al-Qiq's wife, Fayha Shalash, told RSF that, at the time of his arrest, the security forces interrogated him at length about his work as a journalist. She also said that he has been mistreated in detention and that his access to a lawyer has been restricted.

His brother told RSF that the Israelis arrested him for no apparent reason aside from his work as a journalist. "He followed the political situation in the West Bank," the brother said. "He covered clashes between Israeli soldiers and Palestinians, and analysed news developments."

Employed by Al Majd for the past six years, Al-Qiq was previously arrested by the Israeli authorities in 2003 and 2004, and received a 16-month jail sentence in 2008 in connection his membership of the student council at his university, where he was suspected of links with Hamas.

A campaign in support of Al-Qiq, who is a member of the Palestinian Journalists' Syndicate, is being organized on the streets of Ramallah and on social networks by Al Majd and his colleagues.

His detention comes at a time of great tension between Palestinians and Israelis. Since the start of the current violence in September, RSF has registered three closures of Palestinian media outlets and at least 50 attacks on journalists, some of whom were deliberately targeted by Israeli soldiers.
RSF condemns murder of two journalists in Diyala province

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 12 January 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, RSF condemns murder of two journalists in Diyala province, 12 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1e20b40b.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns today's murder of two Iraqi journalists employed by Al-Sharqiya, a privately-owned satellite TV channel, in Diyala, a province northeast of Baghdad.

Unidentified gunmen shot reporter Saif Talal and cameraman Hassan Al-Anbaki after stopping their car near Muqdadiyah, a city about 30 km outside the provincial capital. They were on their way back from a reporting trip to Muqdadiyah, where they had been accompanied by a senior security official.

Talal and Anbaki had gone there to investigate a series of fires in mosques and homes the previous day following an attack on a cafe.

"We deplore the murder of these two Iraqi journalists," said Alexandra El Khazen, the head of RSF's Middle East bureau. "This shocking double murder must not go unpunished. Iraq is a minefield for journalists. We urge the authorities to conduct an independent investigation in order to solve this crime and bring those responsible to justice. And we offer our heartfelt condolences to the victims' families."

Ali Wajih, who is Al-Sharqiya's news director and heads its London bureau, told RSF this was the second time Talal had been directly targeted by gunmen. This first was in 2013.

"It is now clear that the government is unable to guarantee the safety of independent journalists in Iraq, including those working for Al-Sharqiya, who are persecuted by Islamic State and by other armed groups that are protected by the authorities and certain influential sectors within the political class," Wajih said.

"Al-Sharqiya appeals to the United Nations, human rights organizations and the ambassadors of foreign countries with an interest in Iraqi affairs to assume their legal and moral responsibilities."

Journalists are often targeted in connection with their work in Iraq, where the security climate is very unstable. Al-Sharqiya, which no longer has any bureau in Iraq since 2007, has lost more than ten journalists in connection with their work since the station's launch in 2003.

Iraq is ranked 156th out of 180 countries in the 2015 Reporters Without Borders press freedom index.
Grenade attack on ARY News bureau in Islamabad

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 14 January 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, Grenade attack on ARY News bureau in Islamabad, 14 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1e237411.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) calls on the Pakistani authorities to respond quickly and effectively to yesterday evening's attack on the ARY News TV channel's Islamabad bureau by masked men on a motor-cycle, who fired several shots and threw a grenade that injured an editor.

When security guards fired back, the gunmen fled scattering leaflets in which responsibility was claimed by "Islamic State Wilayah Khurasan" - the terrorist group's "Khurasan" regional branch. The leaflets also accused ARY News of being an "extension of the ISPR," the Pakistani military's public relations department.

"We reaffirm our support our support for ARY News and all of its staff," said Benjamin Ismail, the head of RSF's Asia-Pacific desk. "As well as providing the TV channel with better protection, the authorities must take measures to prevent men armed with weapons of war from circulating in the capital.

"We also totally reject the justification given by this attack's instigators. The media are not military targets and the use of armed violence against them can only be described as horrifying attacks on media freedom."

ARY News journalist Kashif Abbasi had previously told colleagues that he had received threatening phone calls from the western region of Waziristan, in which the callers criticized him for not covering the Taliban's activities in the region.

The armed attack on ARY News, the first against a Pakistani media outlet in 2016, came just five weeks after a homemade bomb attack on the Express News bureau in Sargodha, in Punjab province, that injured a security guard and damaged one of the TV channel's vehicles.

Regarded as a liberal news organization, Express News had been the target of previous attacks that were claimed by the Taliban.

According to some journalists, Pakistan's extremist groups are stepping up their attacks on the media with the aim of getting them to resume covering their operations. The security forces often order the Pakistani media not to cover the activities of militant and terrorist groups.

Ranked 159th out of 180 countries in the 2015 Reporters Without Borders press freedom index, Pakistan is one of the pilot countries of the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity.
Palestinian reporter to censor himself after being held by Hamas

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 13 January 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, Palestinian reporter to censor himself after being held by Hamas, 13 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1e253411.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns the way Hamas mistreats journalists in the Gaza Strip and thereby forces them to censor themselves.

Ayman Alul, an outspoken journalist who works for an Iraqi TV station and often posts videos on Facebook, has announced that he will no longer cover living conditions or political developments in the Hamas-governed territory after being held for eight days.

Alul is regarded as controversial because of his criticism of living conditions in the Gaza Strip. Hamas members arrested him at his home on the evening of 3 January, confiscating his computer and mobiles phones during a search of his home. He was finally released on 11 January.

Accused by Hamas of disturbing public order and manipulating public opinion, he said he was tortured all the time he was held, a clearly traumatic experience that has led to this decision to censor himself in future.

"Hamas is trying to intimidate journalists by attacking a well-known Palestinian media figure," RSF secretary-general Christophe Deloire said. "As living conditions in the Gaza Strip are disastrous, Hamas wants to silence critics and does not hesitate to torture a journalist in order to control media coverage in its territory. This is unacceptable!"

Ramzy Herzallah, a 27-year-old cyber-activist who has often criticized the situation in the Gaza Strip on social networks, was also arrested by Hamas on 3 January. He was finally released yesterday.

Working as a journalist is extremely arduous in the Palestinian Territories, where freedom of information is constantly violated and the media are targeted by Hamas and the Palestinian Authority when they are not being hounded by the Israeli forces. See the RSF report entitled "Palestinian Journalists Caught Between Three Sides."
Press freedom violations recounted in real time January 2016

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 14 January 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, Press freedom violations recounted in real time January 2016, 14 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1e2e340b.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

14.01.2016 - Woman journalist detained for fourth time since 2009

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns journalist Rihaneh Tabtabai's detention for the fourth time since 2009. Tabtabai, who has worked for Shargh, Etemad, Bahar and other reformist newspapers, was jailed on 12 January to serve a one-year sentence on charges of endangering national security and anti-government publicity. Originally imposed by a revolutionary court in November 2014, the sentence was upheld by a Tehran appeal court two months ago. She is also sentenced to a two-year ban on political and journalistic activity in the media and online after she completes the jail term.

After being arrested on 12 December 2010, she was released on bail of 10 million toman (7,500 euros) on 16 January 2011. On 2 April 2012, she received a two-year jail sentence from a Tehran revolutionary court that was reduced to six months on appeal. She served the sentence from 21 June to 11 November 2014. She was also detained from 31 January to 26 February 2013, when she was freed on bail.

12.01.2016 - Journalist sent back to prison

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns Meisam Mohammadi's reimprisonment on 8 January. A onetime political editor of Kalameh Sabaz (a daily closed by the authorities in June 2009) and contributor to the Beheshti Foundation website, Mohammadi was arrested at his home by intelligence ministry officials on 10 February 2010 and was freed on bail two months later, pending trial. He was sentenced in May 2012 to four years in prison and a five-year ban on journalistic and political activities on charges of anti-government publicity and "meeting to conspire against national security."

Kalameh Sabaz's owner, former Prime Minister Mir Hossein Mousavi, the writer Zahra Rahnavard (who is Mousavi wife) and Mehdi Karoubi, a former parliamentary speaker and owner of the closed newspaper Etemad Melli, are still illegally held under house arrest and have been detained since 24 February 2011. Mousavi and Karoubi, who were both presidential candidates in 2009, have also been stripped of all of their rights. Their state of health is very worrying.

Press freedom violations recounted in real time (January -December 2015)

Press freedom violations recounted in real time ( January-December 2014)

Press freedom violations recounted in real time ( January-December 2013)

Press freedom violations recounted in real time (January-December 2012)

Press freedom violations recounted in real time (January-December 2011)

Press freedom violations recounted in real time (July-December 2010)

Press freedom violations recounted in real time (January-July 2010)

Press freedom violations recounted in real time (June-December 2009)
Russia: Raids, charges, detentions and fines of Muslims continue

Publisher Forum 18 Author Victoria Arnold Publication Date 21 January 2016 Cite as Forum 18, Russia: Raids, charges, detentions and fines of Muslims continue, 21 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56a1e6224.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Two more Muslims who read the works of the late Turkish Islamic theologian Said Nursi, Komil Odilov and Yevgeny Kim, were arrested in December 2015 and are in pre-trial detention on "extremism" criminal charges, Forum 18 News Service has learned. Odilov has already served a one-year suspended sentence for alleged "extremist" activity and is currently appealing to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg. Another long-running case against three Muslim men in Krasnoyarsk ended in December 2015 in convictions and large fines for two of the defendants, and will soon go to appeal. After being convicted on almost the same "extremism" charges, after the longest such trial yet in Russia, 14 male and two female Jehovah's Witnesses have appealed against heavy fines and suspended prison terms for continuing to meet to pray and read the Bible after their Taganrog community was banned. And the criminal trial of an atheist blogger in Stavropol for "insulting religious feelings" is due to begin on 4 February.

Two more Muslims who read the works of the late Turkish Islamic theologian Said Nursi were arrested in December 2015 and remain in pre-trial detention on serious "extremism" criminal charges, Forum 18 News Service has learned. The FSB security service launched the investigations into Komil Odilov in Novosibirsk and Yevgeny Kim in the Amur region capital of Blagoveshchensk. Odilov has already served a one-year suspended sentence for alleged "extremist" activity and is currently appealing to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg.

Another long-running case against three Muslim men in Krasnoyarsk ended in December 2015 in convictions and large fines for two of the defendants, and will soon go to appeal.

In December 2015, 16 Jehovah's Witnesses were convicted on almost the same "extremism" charges after the longest such trial yet in Russia, setting what they described as "a dangerous precedent for religious freedom in Russia" (see F18News 3 December 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2128). The 14 men and two women have appealed against their convictions for continuing to meet to pray and read the Bible after their Taganrog community was banned and the heavy fines and suspended prison terms they received (see below).

And the criminal trial of an atheist blogger in Stavropol for "insulting religious feelings" is due to begin on 4 February 2016 (see below).

The "crime" of Muslims meeting to read Nursi's texts

Nothing appears to advocate hatred, violence, or the violation of any human right in Nursi's writings. Despite this, numerous Russian lower courts have ruled that various Russian translations of them (and of some other Islamic and some Jehovah's Witness texts) are "extremist", and have had them added to the Justice Ministry's Federal List of Extremist Materials (see F18News 27 July 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2084).

Sharing such "extremist" texts, even in private homes, can make those involved liable to criminal and administrative prosecution (see Forum 18's "extremism" Russia religious freedom survey http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1724).

Meeting to read Nursi's books frequently results in criminal charges under "extremism" legislation for membership of "Nurdzhular" (a Russification of the Turkish for "Nursi followers"), a banned "extremist organisation" which Muslims in Russia deny has ever existed. The reasons for Russia's ongoing nationwide campaign against readers of Nursi's works are obscure, with quite different reasons offered for banning Nursi writings and "Nurdzhular" in different contexts. But the primary cause appears to be state opposition to "foreign" spiritual and cultural influence (see F18News 5 March 2013 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=1811).

Little or no reasoning is given in the court decisions which have added Nursi's works to the Federal List, Forum 18 notes. Among the few specific instances of "extremism" cited, for example, are Nursi's descriptions of non-Muslims as "frivolous", "philosophers" and "empty-talkers" (see eg. F18News 5 March 2013 http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1811). The freedom to criticise any religious or non-religious belief is, however, a central part of freedom of religion and belief. This freedom is also being challenged by the criminal trial of atheist blogger Viktor Krasnov, who is charged with "insulting religious feelings" (see below).

Detained for organising an organisation "which does not exist"

Imam and teacher Komil Odilov has been charged for the second time with organising "extremist" activity in Novosibirsk and is currently being held in custody. His appeal against his first conviction is still under consideration in the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR).

Odilov was arrested on 6 December 2015, his lawyer Yuliya Zhemchugova told Forum 18 on 11 December. Four days before, he had received a letter from Novosibirsk FSB security service Major Ye. Selyunin, which Forum 18 has seen, informing him that an investigation had been opened under Criminal Code Article 282.2, Part 1 ("Organisation of an extremist organisation"). On 11 December, he was charged with organising a "cell" of the banned "extremist" organisation Nurdzhular and ordered to be detained until 1 February 2016.

"We are building our objection on the fact that such an organisation does not exist," Zhemchugova told Forum 18. "Technically, anyone who studies Nursi's teachings can be linked to the organisation itself, as Odilov has been. His opinion is that such an organisation does not exist. Yes, they are Muslims, they performed traditional religious rites. Naturally, they engaged in no 'extremist' activity. Odilov is a cleric at the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Asiatic Russia and is held in great esteem."

Fellow Novosibirsk Muslims Uralbek Karaguzinov and an underage boy (name unknown) were also arrested in December 2015 on suspicion under Criminal Code Article 282.2, Part 2 ("Participation in an extremist organisation"). But both were released after 48 hours, according to Zhemchugova. Karaguzinov was also investigated during the first case against Odilov in 2011-13, but was not charged. Only Odilov now remains in custody.

He has not complained about the conditions there, Zhemchugova remarked to Forum 18 on 18 January 2016. However, fellow imam Ilhom Merazhov described them as "severe" and "overcrowded".

Forum 18 called the Novosibirsk FSB security service on 20 January to ask why Odilov was considered dangerous, when he would be released from detention, and when the case was likely to come to court. A spokesperson said he could not comment by telephone and immediately ended the call. Forum 18 put the same questions to the FSB security service in writing on 18 January, but had received no response by the end of the Novosibirsk working day on 21 January.

Odilov and fellow imam Merazhov were convicted in May 2013 under Criminal Code Article 282.2, Part 1 ("Organisation of an extremist organisation") for allegedly organising "Nurdzhular" activity. Each received a one-year conditional sentence. The investigation and trial lasted two years. After fruitless appeals to Novosibirsk Regional Court and the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, they appealed in January 2014 to the European Court of Human Rights (Application No. 6731/14 and Application No. 6738/14)?. An ECtHR spokesperson told Forum 18 on 21 January 2016 that no decision had yet been taken as to the admissibility of the cases.

Detained, raided and charged for meeting

Muslims who read Nursi's works are also under investigation in Blagoveshchensk in the Far Eastern Amur region. The FSB security service arrested Yevgeny Kim on 26 December 2015, when he and his friends, including their children, had gathered at Kim's home to celebrate the birthday of the Muslim Prophet Mohammed. He remains in custody and has been charged under Article 282.2, Part 1 ("Organisation of an extremist organisation"), with "disseminating the religious ideas of the international religious association Nurdzhular, fully aware of the fact that .. [it] had been recognised as extremist and its activities prohibited on the territory of the Russian Federation".

Anton Starodubtsev, who attended the celebratory gathering, described to Moscow-based human rights monitor OVD-Info how armed men in balaclavas stormed the flat between 7 and 8pm, then made the attendees lie handcuffed on the floor for five hours while the property was searched and individuals taken into another room to be questioned. The officers did not show any official documents.

Kim and his friends were then taken to the local FSB security service offices, where interrogations continued. According to Starodubtsev's comments, published by OVD-Info on 18 January 2016, the FSB is still carrying out searches of homes and workplaces and summoning people for questioning.

Forum 18 called the Blagoveshchensk FSB security service on 20 January to ask when the case might come to trial and whether anybody else remained in custody or had been charged with any offence. A spokesperson refused to comment by telephone, and explained that requests for information must be submitted in writing. Forum 18 had already done this by email on 18 January, but had received no response by the end of the Blagoveshchensk working day on 21 January.

Blagoveshchensk City Court ruled on 25 December 2015 that the FSB security service should be permitted to search the flat belonging to Darya Starodubtseva (Anton Starodubtsev's wife). Kim is registered at this address although he lives elsewhere. According to the court document, seen by Forum 18, the case against 41-year-old Kim was opened on 25 December after an FSB investigation showed that he had organised religious gatherings in Blagoveshchensk on ten occasions between early September and the end of November 2015, at which he allegedly "decided to quote from" and discuss Nursi's collection of writings "Risale-i Nur" (Messages of Light).

According to expert analysis ordered by the FSB security service (and carried out by Krasnoyarsk State Pedagogical University and the Siberian Federal University), speeches made by Kim and others at these meetings "were aimed at inciting religious hatred", promoted the "superiority of the Turkic peoples", and contained "negative evaluations" of Armenians and Russians. Kim is accused of presenting "Risale-i Nur" as the "answer to all questions" and as "attractive for believers in comparison with other religious teachings, including official Islam".

Such "expert analyses" have often been used to justify bans on books and prosecutions (see eg. F18News 20 November 2014 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2017). But there can be numerous flaws in such "expert analyses" (see eg. F18News 28 February 2013 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=1808).

Guilty and fined

Two other men accused of "Nurdzhular" membership, Andrei Dedkov and Aleksei Kuzmenko, were found guilty at Soviet District Court in Krasnoyarsk on 18 December 2015.

Although prosecutors had sought custodial sentences, Judge Yevgeny Repin instead imposed fines of 150,000 Roubles (about 18,750 Norwegian Kroner, 2,025 Euros or 2,205 US Dollars) on Dedkov under Criminal Code Article 282.2, Part 1 ("Organisation of an extremist organisation") and 100,000 Roubles (about 12,500 Norwegian Kroner, 1,350 Euros or 1,470 US Dollars) on Kuzmenko under Criminal Code Article 282.2, Part 2 ("Participation in an extremist organisation").

A third defendant, Azerbaijani-born Ismat Agzhayev, was also tried under Criminal Code Article 282.2, Part 2. But on 2 December 2015 the court halted proceedings against him until he recovers from illness, court spokesperson Anna Sheludko told Forum 18 on 15 January 2016. Both Krasnoyarsk Regional Prosecutor's Office and lawyers for Dedkov and Kuzmenko have submitted appeals against the judge's decision, she added.

The investigation of the three has been underway since January 2014. Court proceedings began on 24 July 2015 and were interrupted by the judge going on holiday (see F18News 3 December 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2128 and below).

No "foreign or international" questions

When Forum 18 called the regional Prosecutor's Office on 19 January 2016 to ask why it was appealing against the verdict, a spokesperson said that enquiries must be directed to the General Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation, as Forum 18 is a "foreign or international organisation", not registered in Russia.

Arrests, searches, questions

The Siberian Federal District Investigative Committee's investigation of 36-year-old Dedkov, 33-year-old Kuzmenko and 19-year-old Agdzhayev began in January 2014 (see F18News 12 March 2014 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=1936). Law enforcement officers seized copies of Nursi's text "Risale-i Nur" during searches of their homes (see F18News 11 February 2014 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=1927).

Texts from this collection have been subject to 34 "extremism" rulings in courts across Russia since July 2007, when the Federal List of Extremist Materials was first published (see Forum 18's "extremism" Russia religious freedom survey http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1724).

Before he was charged, Kuzmenko described to Forum 18 how Dedkov, Agdzhayev, and "several other Muslim brothers" were arrested after Friday prayers at Krasnoyarsk's Cathedral Mosque, while other worshippers, who had already left, were detained at the exit of a nearby hypermarket. Searches of suspects' homes "went on deep into the night". Officers seized more than 400 books from Dedkov's flat and car, as well as more books, computer discs, laptops and tablets from Agdzhayev and others. Kuzmenko also claimed that the FSB security service confiscated from him a Turkish-language edition of a book by Nursi.

According to Kuzmenko, he experienced "no brutality" from law enforcement officers during the searches and questioning. But he alleged that they "applied pressure" to one witness (which he did not describe in detail) to state that Dedkov had directed him to create a social network group dedicated to Nursi's writings.

In a press statement of 22 December 2015, the regional Prosecutor's Office claimed that Dedkov, "having decided to carry out the activities of the international religious association Nurdzhular", distributed Nursi's books in Krasnoyarsk and attempted to involve residents in religious lessons at "a network of places" which he had set up. He allegedly instructed Kuzmenko and Agdzhayev also to involve other people in the study of Nursi's works, to distribute books, and to hold lessons in a flat, "which [Kuzmenko] personally conducted, reading and explaining the contents of what was read".

"The fantasies of law enforcement agencies"

The FSB security service and prosecutors had no evidence of the existence of Nurdzhular, Kuzmenko told Forum 18, "because a priori there cannot be any, as this organisation does not exist anywhere except in the fantasies of law enforcement agencies".

In summer 2015, the trials of two Krasnoyarsk residents accused of running a women's cell of "Nurdzhular" came to an end at the same Soviet District Court. Tatyana Guzenko was fined 100,000 Roubles in July, while proceedings against Yelena Gerasimova were dropped in August as the two-year statute of limitations had expired (see F18News 24 August 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2093).

Financial penalties even if not convicted

The names of several Muslims who have been charged with "extremism" offences for meeting to study Nursi's works have been added to the list of "terrorists and extremists" maintained by the Federal Financial Monitoring Service (Rosfinmonitoring), whose assets banks are obliged to freeze. From 30 January 2014 the law has been relaxed to allow small transactions not exceeding 10,000 Roubles (about 1,250 Norwegian Kroner, 135 Euros or 147 US Dollars) per month.

Merazhov, who was given a suspended sentence in 2013, described to Forum 18 how he was unable to receive his university salary or make any money transfers when on the list (see F18News 11 February 2014 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=1927).

Forum 18 notes that the list appears to violate the presumption of innocence by including individuals not convicted of terrorism or "extremism". It also fails to distinguish clearly between those suspected or convicted of terrorism and of "extremism".

No clear timetable appears to exist for the addition or removal of names from the list. Some individuals known to have been convicted, for instance, have still not been added, yet others who are still only suspected of "extremist" activity, do appear.

In Krasnoyarsk, Andrei Dedkov, Aleksei Kuzmenko and Ismat Agdzhayev all appear on the Rosfinmonitoring list of 21 January 2016. Yevgeny Petry, Aleksei Gerasimov, and Fizuli Askarov, who were tried alongside Dedkov in a previous case (which ran out of time in 2012) do not. Neither Tatyana Guzenko, who was convicted of "extremism" in 2015, nor Yelena Gerasimova, who was not, have been added to the list. In Novosibirsk, Komil Odilov and Uralbek Karaguzinov have been added. Ilhom Merazhov's name has been removed. In Blagoveshchensk, Yevgeny Kim's name does not yet appear on the list.

In total, nine Muslims who read Nursi's works currently appear on the list, out of 31 known by Forum 18 to have been convicted since 2010. A further five (including Odilov) appear despite not having been convicted.

Stavropol "insulting religious feelings" trial to begin

The trial of an atheist blogger charged under Criminal Code Article 148, Part 1 ("Public actions, expressing clear disrespect for society and committed with the intention of insulting the religious feelings of believers") is due to begin on 4 February 2016, Forum 18 has learned. Viktor Krasnov (known on social media as Viktor Kolosov) is accused of committing this "crime" in two online conversations in the "Overhead in Stavropol" group on the VKontakte social network in the autumn of 2014.

The two conversations he is accused of holding disparage beliefs held by some Christians but do exercise his internationally-recognised right to freedom of religion or belief (see F18News 3 December 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2128).

Criminal Code Article 148 came into force on 1 July 2013 and critics noted it was so poorly defined that it (and the similarly aimed new Code of Administrative Offences Article 5, Part 26) could be used by anyone to prosecute actions officials simply dislike.

Considerable disagreement continues in both the Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) and Russian society over the criminalisation of "offence to religious feelings" (see F18News 14 August 2013 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=1864).

Krsanov's preliminary hearing, postponed to allow his lawyer to become acquainted with the case, took place in closed conditions on 19 January 2016 at Magistrate's Court No. 6 before Magistrate Aleksandr Filimonov. The case had already been transferred from Industrial (Promyshlenny) District Court at the Prosecutor's request in November 2015.

Taganrog 16 Jehovah's Witnesses appeal

Sixteen Jehovah's Witnesses found guilty of "extremist" activity in November 2015 have appealed against their convictions, Jehovah's Witnesses have told Forum 18.

The 14 men and two women received heavy fines (which the judge waived) and suspended prison sentences at Taganrog City Court after a re-trial lasting more than 60 hearings over ten months (see F18News 3 December 2015 http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2128). They were convicted of "continuing the activities of an extremist organisation" by meeting to pray and read the Bible after their community was liquidated in 2009.

Although the fines were waived (as the two-year statute of limitations had expired) and the custodial sentences were suspended, all the defendants submitted appeals on 10 December 2015, Jehovah's Witness spokesperson Ivan Belenko told Forum 18 on 15 January 2016. No hearing date has yet been set. (END)

For more background, see Forum 18's surveys of the general state of freedom of religion or belief in Russia at http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1722, and of the dramatic decline in religious freedom related to Russia's Extremism Law at http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1724.

A personal commentary by Alexander Verkhovsky, Director of the SOVA Center for Information and Analysis http://www.sova-center.ru, about the systemic problems of Russian anti-extremism legislation, is at F18News 19 July 2010 http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1468.

A personal commentary by Irina Budkina, Editor of the http://www.samstar.ucoz.ru Old Believer website, about continuing denial of equality to Russia's religious minorities, is at F18News 26 May 2005 http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=570.

More reports on freedom of thought, conscience and belief in Russia can be found at http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?query=&religion=all&country=10.

A compilation of Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) freedom of religion or belief commitments can be found at http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1351.

A printer-friendly map of Russia is available at http://education.nationalgeographic.com/mapping/outline-map/?map=Russia.

All Forum 18 News Service material may be referred to, quoted from, or republished in full, if Forum 18 is credited as the source.
Bangkok: Thailand is waiting to hear if it has dodged a potentially crippling European Union ban on seafood exports, after auditors on Friday wrapped up a probe into illegal fishing.

Last year, the EU hit Thailand with a "yellow card," warning it faced an outright ban unless the military government took action on illegal fishing and slave labour in the multi-billion dollar seafood industry.

Thai officials have said the ban could cost them up to $1 billion a year in lost exports.

An EU team has spent the last week assessing Thailand's recent reforms but declined to comment on their findings, citing the sensitivity of the issue.

"Human trafficking is an issue they are really concerned about," Thai Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan told reporters after his final meeting with the EU team Friday.

"They only told us to do our best," he added.

Thailand is the world's third largest exporter of seafood, a status that environmental groups say is achieved through rampant overfishing and heavy reliance on forced labour by migrant workers.

A Thai government task force set up after the "yellow card" warning said the country had introduced new fisheries laws beefing up law enforcement, expanding monitoring systems, and assisting fishermen including trafficking victims.

But the efficacy of the legislation has been threatened by resistance from small-scale fishermen, who say part of the decree favours large trawlers at the expense of local livelihoods.

"This law is extremely unequal," said Sama-ae Jehmudor, 62, the president of a fishermen association in southern Thailand.

"We only sell enough fish to feed our families," he told AFP.

Thailand's fish stocks have plummeted in the past fifty years, according to the British NGO Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), and the kingdom's waters are among the most overfished in the world.

Overfishing has pushed Thai fishing fleets further offshore, often to illegal areas, and encouraged the use of forced labour to boost profits, said EJF's executive director, Steven Trent.

"They've fished out the Gulf of Thailand and the Andaman sea... it's no longer economical to operate in the region without this virtually free labour," he told AFP.

He said Thailand's new fishing laws indicate progress, but the key issue is enforcement. The country will likely avoid an all-out EU ban, he said, but should stay on the watch list.

"The yellow card needs to stay there for the moment," he added.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen (C) celebrates her election victory in Taipei on January 16, 2016. (Photo: AFP)

Taipei: The Facebook page of Taiwan's newly elected president Tsai Ing-wen has been flooded with tens of thousands of hostile comments, many of them demanding reunification with mainland China.

Tsai, chairwoman of the China-sceptic Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), was elected Saturday in a sweeping victory by voters increasingly uneasy about warming ties with China under outgoing President Ma Ying-jeou of the Kuomintang (KMT) party.

The posts, many of them written in simplified Chinese used on the mainland and not the traditional characters more commonly used in Taiwan, started to appear on Tsai's Facebook page on Wednesday evening.

"I don't care who becomes the president in Taiwan... the only one thing I care is [when] we can recover the little Taiwan," Chenxi Cui posted in English on Thursday.

Another, Lily Liao, said: "Loving mother country is a pride, harming mother country is shame."

Lawyer-turned-politician Tsai brushed off the attacks, and responded with a series of posts encouraging democratic debate on the island.

"Last night lots of netizens from the mainland visited my Facebook page. To this, I want to say 'welcome'," she wrote in a Facebook message.

It was not clear who was behind the barrage of comments, but Chinese authorities have been known to encourage an army of sometimes paid posters to write entries supportive of party policies.

Tsai also posted a photo of a supporter waving a flag of the Republic of China, Taiwan's official title, featuring the Chinese phrase: "What is great about this country is that every person is entitled to exercising their own rights."

Taiwan is a self-ruling democracy since splitting with China in 1949 after a civil war, but has never formally declared independence, and Beijing sees it as part of its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary.

After her landslide win, Tsai pledged to maintain the "status quo" across the Taiwan Straits, but the president-elect has refused to recognise the "1992 consensus" -- a tacit understanding between the outgoing KMT and Beijing that has been the bedrock of warming ties since 2008.

Beijing responded to the election rout by warning that it would resolutely oppose any bid by Taiwan to seek independence.
Solar scams have exploded in Indiana. Here's how to spot, avoid them.
Each person can make an impact, big or small

If Jim Gash's goal was to change the judicial system in Uganda, he succeeded.

If Gash's goal was to write a book and produce a quality documentary about that experience, he succeeded.

If Gash's goal was to inspire idealistic college students to learn from his example and to find their own calling and pursue it, he succeeded.

The evidence of Gash's multiple successes was abundantly clear following a screening of the documentary on Jan. 14 at Abilene Christian University, where Gash graduated in 1989. The documentary, "Remand: Global Justice in Uganda," and the companion book, "Divine Collision," tell the story of Gash's involvement with freeing a young Ugandan man who was wrongfully accused of two murders and in the process revolutionizing Uganda's criminal justice system.

As remarkable as Gash's story is, the message he wanted to impart to students at the screening was that each one of them, too, can make an impact. It might not be as dramatic as what Gash accomplished, but any good deed is important.

"I want them to believe they can make a difference," Gash said in an interview following the screening.

His message fell on fertile soil. Several students commented on the impact of the documentary and how it made them want to help a hurting world, too.

"It moved me to tears," said Shelby Galvan, a junior nursing major from Anson who wants to become a nurse practitioner. Galvan has done mission work in Anson and Abilene but has never been out of Texas.

Gash assured the students that they didn't have to travel anywhere to do mission work. Their own backyard is a ripe mission field.

"Figure out how God wants to use you," he said, "and when he wants to use you," and don't worry about "where."

Rob McCabe is a senior social work major from Abilene. He is interested in going to law school and in learning about other cultures. He sees himself as becoming an advocate for justice, perhaps in an international setting.

The biblical mandate to "Love your neighbor as yourself," is one that McCabe takes to heart. He found it intriguing to hear Gash's story and to learn about a Christian following his passion even if it took him outside his comfort zone.

"Just go" was the message McCabe took from the documentary and Gash's comments.

That is exactly what Gash did in 2010 when he traveled to Uganda for two weeks on a juvenile justice project. Gash is a lawyer and law professor at Pepperdine University's School of Law in Malibu, Calif. It was the first time Gash had ever been out of the United States.

"I felt convicted," Gash said when urged to participate. "But it was just going to be once."

Since then, Gash has made 16 more trips to Uganda, taking Pepperdine law students with him on each trip as a learning experience and also a missions experience. On Gash's first trip, he met a young man named Henry who was in prison, awaiting trial for a murder he did not commit. While awaiting trial, he again was wrongfully accused of killing another inmate.

Not only did Gash and his students help free Henry from prison, and from the wrongful charges, they also set in motion a system to reform the Ugandan judicial system.

Before the reforms, the Ugandan criminal justice system did not allow for plea bargaining, which Gash said accounts for up to 98 percent of the court resolutions in the United States. Plea bargaining allows the accused to plead guilty to a lesser charge, such as manslaughter instead of murder, and to be released from prison on parole or serve a reduced sentence.

Plea bargaining allows for swifter justice and spares families of victims the sometimes grueling experience of a trial. In countries like Uganda that previously had no plea bargaining arrangement, the accused often would languish in dangerous, overcrowded prisons for months or even years before getting a day in court.

The documentary begins with Gash and Henry talking over the Internet after Henry was charged with the second murder.

"Is God hearing my prayers?" Henry asks, and then answers his own question. "I think 'no.'"

It ends with a similar Internet conversation but with a much different outlook, as Gash relays the good news to Henry.

"It's over," Gash tells Henry after the charges are dropped. "You are a free man."

In a conversation with students after the screening, Gash urged them to be receptive to God's calling, even it means moving out of a comfort zone like Gash did when he agreed to leave his Malibu home and travel to Uganda.

"Dream a little bit," he said. "Be willing to be used."
One of the smallest school districts in Texas will make history this fall as it transitions to a predominately four-day school week  the first of its kind in the state.

Olfen Independent School District, a kindergarten-through-eighth grade district outside San Angelo that boasts 56 students, approved the new schedule earlier this month.

Olfen officials cited a new law passed by the Legislature allowing districts more flexibility in setting calendars.

'We think this is going to be something great for our students and something that can also benefit a lot of parents out there,' said Olfen Superintendent Gabriel Zamora. 'I just saw the possibility, once the law was passed and everything. I never thought I would be in the district that had the right circumstances.'

The Olfen school board unanimously voted Jan. 12 to approve the change for the 2016-17 school year.

The new schedule includes four mandatory instructional days and an optional day on Friday. Students who do not receive passing marks on progress reports will be required to attend school on Fridays to receive tutoring, while passing students will have the choice to stay home. A handful of weeks during the year will have a full five days of instruction.

Zamora, who compared the optional day to 'Super Saturdays' in other districts, said it would include a few hours of tutoring in the morning and activities such as karate, tumbling and pottery in the afternoon.

Zamora proposed the change after the Legislature last spring passed a law altering how the state defines a school year. The law requires districts to have at least 75,600 minutes of instruction each year instead of the previously stipulated 180 days.

The new Olfen ISD calendar will have 160 class days that total more than 77,000 minutes, according to Zamora. The district will increase the duration of each school day by 25 minutes.

'The purpose of the bill was to offer traditional independent school districts more flexibility and local control,' said the bill's author, state Rep. Ken King, R-Canadian. 'Every school district has different needs.'

DeEtta Culbertson, a spokeswoman for the Texas Education Agency, confirmed that Olfen is the first school district in the state to offer a four-day week schedule, although others have unsuccessfully pushed for a similar schedule in the past.

'Olfen is a really small district, so the chances of something like this working at a Houston or a Dallas ISD, I don't know,' she said. 'It would certainly be something a district could explore.'

Zamora said the schedule is compatible with the unique needs of his rural district, where only one student lives within the district boundary.

Ramon Cavazos, who teaches social studies, Spanish and special education for the older students in the district, said he was initially skeptical of the new schedule but now he sees it as an opportunity to improve individual students' needs.

'This is my seventh year here, and this has always been an issue with us because we are, in some cases, up to 35 miles away from a student's home,' Cavazos said. That distance means if the school wanted to offer tutoring after school, it would need to run an additional bus route, he said.

'This is going to give us the opportunity to pull those students in on Friday,' he said.

Darlene Ortega, who has two children and one grandchild in the district, said she thinks the new schedule is a 'great idea.' She said she will be sending her children to school on Fridays regardless of their grades, in part because of the extracurricular programs the district plans to offer.

Cavazos said his older students have already expressed a desire to improve their grades so they can stay home on Fridays.

'I see it as an apple and stick approach, as far as the student's side is concerned,' he said. 'If you want the apple, then get with the program. If you want the stick, then don't do your work because you're going to come in on Friday. Eventually, you're going to get what you need either way.'
WASHINGTON  Imagine a governor of a large state deciding to cut costs and appointing a staff of bureaucrats who change the water supply for 100,000 people to save money but don't bother to have it treated properly for contaminants. For more than a year the people drink dangerous water without knowing it.

When doctors start seeing signs of lead poisoning, which causes behavioral problems and learning disabilities in children and kidney disease in adults  problems that can last for generations, questions begin to be asked. At first, the state officials ignore the results and deny there's a problem.

Local churches and charities trying to supply bottled water to terrified parents who can't afford to buy it run out. People who can afford to buy bottled water can't find it. For a while the governor hopes it will just all go away.

But then the national media swoops in and finds chaos. Finally, the National Guard begins distributing free water and filters. And finally, the governor takes his head out of the sand, requests aid from the federal government he despises and admits the state, which caused the problem, can't fix it. And even then, people are having a hard time finding and getting the water, filters and lead test kits they need.

Michigan. Flint. Gov. Rick Snyder. Ongoing crisis.

The cows were acting crazy, losing hair, showing grotesque malformations and dying, and nobody could figure out why. And then people began putting two and two together and realized a huge chemical company had bought land nearby for a landfill for its factory. The company and government studies said the farmers didn't know how to take care of cows. Only after a courageous lawyer pursued the case did he learn that a little-known and dangerous chemical, perfluorooctanoic acid, often called C8, had been dumped in the landfill and was being improperly dumped into local water tables providing drinking water for 70,000 people. For 40 years secret research had shown damage to and cancer in animals and that high levels of C8 infected local factory workers.

Parkersburg, W.Va. DuPont. Lawyer Rob Bilott. The Environmental Protection Agency charged DuPont with concealing knowledge of C8's toxicity and presence in the environment. DuPont was fined $16.5 million but did not admit liability. Eventually, the EPA learned that C8 was showing up in the general public through Teflon-coated pans and in the air and water. C8 is now found all over the world, and 60,000 similar chemicals remain unregulated.

In Porter Ranch, Calif., residents fear a gas leak from a Southern California Gas Co. well is making them sick. Movie-famous activist Erin Brockovich insists that after being in a home in the area for 10 minutes, she got a case of some kind of chemically induced bronchitis. Lawsuits are pending. House values are said to be plummeting. At this point there are only questions, no answers.

Every state and nearly every community confronts controversies over environmental protection and jobs and dangers to health and habitat. Sometimes the hysteria is unfounded. But environmental activists are no longer widely ridiculed as 'tree huggers' and 'bunny counters.'

Nonetheless, Republican presidential candidates are on a different page.

Donald Trump wants to cut the EPA. 'What they do is a disgrace.' He says climate change is a hoax.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush wants to repeal EPA's strictures on clean air and clean power.

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz voted against protecting ocean, coastal and Great Lakes ecosystems. He said climate change is a pseudoscientific theory.

Carly Fiorina wants to weaken the EPA.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee thinks climate change is unproven.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich says environmental policy making should be left to the states and local communities.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio wants to leave environmental protection up to businesses, not the government.

Votes have consequences.

Email Ann McFeatters, an op-ed columnist for Tribune News Service, at amcfeatters@nationalpress.com.
Varun Dhawan posted this picture on Twitter and wrote, "You know ur part of a gritty thriller when mornings are this god dam gloomy #Dishoom #dontmesswithnature"

New Delhi: Bollywood actor Varun Dhawan, who will be soon seen in the upcoming action film 'Dishoom,' is very excited to kick off its third schedule shoot. The actor is currently in Abu Dhabi filming for his brother's directorial.

As revealed by the actor himself, Varun Dhawan will be shooting some very important action scenes in the deserts of Abu Dhabi.

Expressing his excitement, the 28-year-old actor took to his Twitter and shared the information with his fans, "I'm off to Abu dabi for the 3rd and most important sched of # Dishoom. Can't wait to start shooting john,jacky,akshaykhanna,saqib and."

I'm off to Abu dabi for the 3rd and most important sched of #Dishoom. Can't wait to start shooting john,jacky,akshaykhanna,saqib and...  Varun Dhawan (@Varun_dvn) January 21, 2016

This is the first time Varun will be working in his brother Rohit Dhawan's directorial.

It will be a comeback movie for Akshaye Khanna, who remained absent from silver-screen for four years.

Directed by Rohit Dhawan, the flick also stars John Abraham, Jacqueline Fernandez and TV actor Ram Kapoor.
Today in history: On Jan. 22, 1973, former President Lyndon Baines Johnson, 64, dies in Johnson City. LBJ became president when John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas in November 1963. After serving as president, he returned to Texas and ranched in the Hill Country. Johnson lamented that his efforts to build the Great Society by establishing the Voting Rights Act, Civil Rights Act and improving housing and education was overshadowed by the nation's increasing involvement in the Vietnam War.
Friday will most likely be sunny with the high in the upper 40s and the nightly low in the mid 20s.

Expect the highs this week 30s to the 70s. The nightly lows might range from the 20s and into the 40s.

Your seven day forecast:

Friday: Sunny. Highs in the upper 40s. Northwest winds 10 to 15 mph.

Friday Night: Clear. Lows in the mid 20s. Light and variable winds.

Saturday: Mostly sunny. Highs in the upper 50s. South winds 10 to 15 mph.

Saturday Night: Mostly clear. Not as cool. Lows in the upper 30s. South winds 10 to 15 mph.

Sunday: Partly cloudy. Warmer. Highs around 70.

Sunday Night: Mostly clear. Lows in the lower 40s.

Monday: Mostly sunny. Cooler. Highs in the upper 50s.

Monday Night: Partly cloudy. Lows in the mid 30s.

Tuesday: Increasing clouds. Highs around 50.

Tuesday Night: Decreasing clouds. Lows in the lower 30s.

Wednesday: Mostly sunny. Highs in the mid 50s.

Wednesday Night: Mostly clear. Lows in the mid 30s.

Thursday: Sunny. Highs in the lower 60s.
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Mumbai: 'Rangoon', a period love triangle starring Saif Ali Khan, Shahid Kapoor and Kangana Ranaut, will release on September 30. The film, which is produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, Vishal Bhardwaj and Viacom18 Motion Pictures, will have Gulzar as the lyricist.

Read: Kangana Ranaut named as one-take actor on the sets of 'Rangoon'

Bhardwaj is also the director and musician behind the movie while Gulzar has written the lyrics. Bhardwaj's last two cinematic outings 'Haider' and 'Talvar', which he produced, were critically and commercially successful. Since both the movies released in the Gandhi Jayanti week of October 2, the makers decided to continue the tradition by opting for the Gandhi Jayanti week.

Not much is known about 'Rangoon' other than that it is set during the World War II. Kangana had called it a passionate love story. "It is a film which is set in the 1940s during the World War II. It is about three characters and one of them is a superstar and her mentor, who she is romantically involved with. Another one is a soldier. It is about INA, independence and so many other things. It is a very passionate love story," Kangana had said during an interview.
The outlook is bleak for nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in China amid an ongoing government crackdown targeting civil society groups, former NGO workers and activists said on Friday.



As state-run CCTV paraded Swedish human rights worker Peter Dahlin in a televized "confession" last weekend, fellow NGO workers on the ground say there has been no let-up in government pressure amid a crackdown that began around a year ago.



Dahlin's China Urgent Action Working Group had provided legal advice to Chinese seeking to lodge complaints against the government, as well as helping to train rights lawyers and legal advocates.



But the crackdown on more than 300 rights lawyers since July 9, 2015 has come amid a concurrent operation targeting NGOs, especially those involved with grass-roots rights campaigns like the nascent independent labor movement.



Last month, authorities in the southern province of Guangdong detained seven labor activists, four of whom have since been formally arrested and two of whom have been released on bail. The status of the seventh remains unknown.



He Xiaobo faces charges of "embezzlement," while Zeng Feiyang, Zhu Xiaomei and Meng Han were formally arrested earlier this month for "gathering a crowd to disrupt public order."



State media has said Zeng and the others "seriously disrupted social order" and "trampled" workers rights by becoming involved in labor disputes.



Former labor activist Chen Mao said many unofficial labor advice centers have been forced to close as a result.



Diminishing space



"There is now an ever-diminishing space in which NGOs can operate," Chen told RFA on Friday. "Now that the authorities have detained so many of the people that ran them, these [unofficial labor groups] have all shut down."



Chen, who left a similar organization a year ago, declined to say where he is now working, for fear of official reprisals.



"I am at another organization now, but I don't want there to be a misunderstanding," he said. "I have nothing to do with the labor advice center now."



According to the New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW), Chinese NGOs are often foreign-funded, yet work on issues that affect millions of ordinary people daily, including domestic violence and discrimination, child welfare, labor disputes and environmental pollution.



NGOs that work on human rights or civil liberties issues and rely on foreign funding are being targeted for police supervision under a draft Foreign NGOs Administration Law currently in the pipeline, HRW said in a report last year.



"As Beijing becomes increasingly paranoid, claiming that civil society has helped topple governments in 'color revolutions' around the world, it has opted for a management model that maximizes state control," the group said.



'A huge impact'



U.S.-based rights activist Yang Jianli said the ongoing crackdown on Chinese NGOs will likely have a big impact on all aspects of Chinese people's lives.



"This will have a huge impact, because in bringing the law to bear in dealing with NGOs, the Chinese government will be harassing and supervising them constantly," Yang said.



"I think we are seeing very hard times ahead for foreign-funded NGOs in China, and I think that people will be more restricted in what they can do," he said.



Liu Kaiming, who directs the Institute of Contemporary Observation in the southern city of Shenzhen, said the government had initially realized the value of the sector in the wake of the devastating 2008 Sichuan earthquake.



"The Chinese government realized then that it needed these civil society groups, and we can see how the government supported the charities offering services," Liu said.



"But it didn't encourage, and even harassed and persecuted those groups engaged in rights work," he said.



Freedom of association



Chongqing-based independent scholar Zhang Qi said the right to form civil society groups is a basic human right linked to the freedom of association enshrined in China's constitution.



"Freedom of association is a natural and basic human right, but the [ruling] Chinese Communist Party has always regarded social and political work as its own private domain," Zhang said.



"It doesn't want ordinary people or civil society groups getting involved."



He said one of the key drivers of civil society has been a lack of protection for workers' rights, which workers say aren't protected or defended by the government-backed All-China Federation of Trade Unions.



"As a result, the social status of workers has fallen overall, and there is no protection of their rights," Zhang said.



"The various pressures that this has created is seen by the Chinese Communist Party as a threat to its hold on power."



Reported by Wong Lok-to for RFA's Cantonese Service, and by He Ping for the Mandarin Service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie.




North Korea has detained a U.S. college student who was traveling in the country as a tourist, charging him with committing an unspecified hostile act against the reclusive, nuclear-armed state and threatening the unity of its people, official media said on Friday.



Otto Frederick Warmbier, 21 and an undergraduate student at the University of Virginia, was taken into custody on Jan. 2 as he prepared to leave Pyongyang at the end of a five-day visit arranged by China-based Young Pioneer Tours during the New Year, sources said.



North Korean authorities have accused Warmbier of entering North Korea for the purpose of bringing down the foundation of its single-minded unity and with having committed an unspecified hostile act, according to a report by the [North] Korean Central News Agency.



Reasons for the long delay in announcing Warmbiers detention were not immediately clear, but North Korea has frequently used detained foreign visitors as bargaining chips in efforts to secure diplomatic concessions, and the U.S. is currently seeking sanctions in the U.N. against North Korea following its Jan. 6 nuclear test.



In a statement Friday, the U.S. State Department said without naming Warmbier that it was aware of reports that a U.S. citizen was detained in North Korea.



In cases where U.S. citizens are reported detained in North Korea, we work closely with the Swedish Embassy [in Pyongyang], which represents U.S. interests in the country, Deputy Spokesperson Mark Toner said.



We have no further information to share due to privacy considerations, Toner said.
Afghan authorities say they have arrested eight members of the Haqqani militant network blamed for a deadly suicide attack on a bus carrying employees of the country's biggest TV station.

The National Directorate for Security (NDS), Afghanistan's intelligence agency, said in a statement on January 22 that those arrested were behind the attack that killed seven journalists and injured 26 others in Kabul.

A suicide bomber struck the minibus with workers from Tolo TV on January 20.

The Taliban claimed responsibility and said it had specifically targeted Tolo TV, calling it a "spy agency."

NDS said the arrests were made in a district in southeast Kabul but didn't provide any other details.

The Haqqani network, a Taliban affiliate and U.S.-declared terrorist group, is blamed for some of the deadliest and most sophisticated attacks on U.S. and Afghan troops in Afghanistan.

The group mainly operates out of Pakistani border areas.

Based on reporting by Reuters and tolonews.com
Syrian activists say at least 40 people were killed by air raids on two villages in eastern Syria on January 22.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the air raids killed some 30 people in the village of Tabiah and another 10 people died in a separate raid on the village of Bouleil.

According to the Britain-based monitoring group, the two villages have been targeted since January 16 by Syrian and Russian air strikes but the claim cannot be independently confirmed.

Opposition activist Omar Abu Leila said all of the victims on the January 22 raids were civilians.

The Observatory said more than 90 people, including whole families, have been killed in Tabiah and Bouleil since the raids began on January 16.

Tabiah and Bouleil -- located in the province of Deir al-Zur -- are both held by the Islamic State extremist group, which also controls most of the province.
A Russian soldier charged with killing an Armenian family of seven has pleaded guilty.

Valery Permyakov, a 19-year-old Russian private, pleaded guilty on January 22 to all charges. If convicted, he could face a life sentence.

The trial then was adjourned until January 29 at the request of relatives of the victims who are expected to testify.

On January 12, 2015, six members of Gyumri's Avetisian family were found dead in their house -- including a 2-year-old girl. All the victims were shot or stabbed to death.

A 6-month-old boy who was seriously wounded died a week later.

Permyakov was detained the next day near the Armenian-Turkish border.

The case led to mass protests in Gyumri and Yerevan against Russia's military presence in the country and calls for the trial to be heard by Armenian judges instead of Russian military judges.

In August, a Russian court found Permyakov guilty of desertion and other charges. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison. He was then handed over to Armenia for trial on murder charges.

Russia maintains a garrison of around 3,000 soldiers at the 102nd Military Base in Gyumri, some 120 kilometers northwest of Yerevan.
Armenian officials say winter holidays have been prolonged for a third time due to a deadly outbreak of swine flu.

The Health Ministry said on January 21 that the winter holidays for high schools across the Caucasus nation had been prolonged until February 1.

That is the third prolongation of the school winter holidays this month caused by the H1N1 flu virus known as swine flu.

An Armenian official said earlier that 18 H1N1 patients had died in the country since January 1.

The Armenian Defense Ministry said on January 21 that military personnel had been ordered not to leave their units due to the flu outbreak.

Authorities in neighboring Georgia said on January 21 that three people had died in the country from swine flu since January 1, adding that all health clinics are now working around the clock due to the outbreak.

Based on reporting by Vestnik Kavkaza, Interfax, and RFE/RL's Armenian Service
Prominent international rights groups have urged Russian President Vladimir Putin and his government to take action following "threats" and "menacing" language deployed by Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov and his inner circle against journalists and activists.

Amnesty International and the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) expressed deep concern about recent public statements and social media posts by Kadyrov and senior Chechen officials vilifying prominent journalists and Kremlin critics.

"Our research shows that menacing rhetoric against government critics has often been followed by violence, and has encouraged self-censorship among reporters," CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon wrote in a letter to Putin posted on the organization's website on January 21.

The letter followed a statement by Amnesty a day earlier calling on Russian authorities to "respond to a string of thinly veiled threats against several prominent human rights defenders, media workers, and political activists" by the "political leadership of Chechnya."

"Such threats should not be taken lightly," Amnesty said.

Kadyrov and his allies have unleashed a torrent of hostile rhetoric against liberal politicians, activists, and journalists over the past 10 days. Those targeted included Aleksei Veneditkov, editor in chief of the independent-minded radio station Ekho Moskvy, veteran human rights crusader Lev Ponomaryov, and opposition activist Ilya Yashin.

Kadyrov has ruled Chechnya, a mainly Muslim federal subject in Russia's turbulent North Caucasus region, with an iron fist since Putin handed him power there in 2007.

On January 15, he called opponents of Putin "enemies of the people" who should be prosecuted. In an essay published days later by a leading Russian newspaper, he called them "jackals" who must be punished in order to "save" Russia.

Over the past 10 days, Kadyrov's associates have posted videos and photographs on social media that Kremlin critics have interpreted as threats.

These included an Instagram video posted by Adam Delimkhanov, a Russian parliamentarian from Chechnya who is close to Kadyrov, showing himself and other men chanting "Kadyrov is the rock of Russia -- Allah Akhbar!" on a bridge near the one where Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov was shot dead in February.

Many of Kadyrov's critics suspect he was behind Nemtsov's slaying. He denies involvement, and efforts by relatives and associates of Nemtsov to have him questioned have been thwarted.

Both CPJ and Amnesty noted reports that the assassinations of journalist and ardent Putin critic Anna Politkovskaya in 2006 and Chechen rights activist Natalya Estemirova in 2009 were preceded by threats against the two women.

"We call on you to condemn any attempt to intimidate the press, and ask you to use your status as the guarantor of the Russian Constitution to ensure that state officials respect journalists' constitutional right to criticize the government and state agencies," Simon of CPJ wrote in the letter to Putin.

Amnesty called on Russian authorities to "urgently" protect "those who have been threatened, attacked, and harassed due to their work in defending human rights."

Putin has yet to comment on the barrage of heated language from Kadyrov and his allies.

But his spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said on January 20 that Kadyrov, in his incendiary essay in the national Izvestia newspaper, was only talking about "nonsystemic" opposition figures who are "outside the legitimate political arena."

It is "necessary to calmly read what has been said," Peskov was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency.
Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian, who was released last week in a prisoner swap with Iran, said on January 22 that he is heading to the United States with his family after completing medical checkups at a U.S. military hospital in Germany.

Rezaian, who was jailed in Iran for some 18 months on espionage charges he denies, said hes not yet ready to discuss his prison experience.

"At some point, I will be ready to discuss my ordeal but for now, I just want to express my profound appreciation for the tremendous support I have received," Rezaian said in a statement.

Two other Iranian-Americans who were also released in the prisoner swap, former U.S. Marine Amir Hekmati and Christian pastor Saeed Abedini, arrived in the United States on January 21.

Hekmati spent more than four years in jail in Tehran after being convicted of espionage. His family has dismissed the charges against him. Hekmati was originally sentenced to death.

Abedini was sentenced in 2013 to eight years in prison after being accused of acting against Iran's national security by setting up home-based churches in Iran.

The Iranian-Americans were released on January 16, the same day that international sanctions on Iran were lifted.

Based on reporting by The Washington Post and Reuters
Japan lifted sanctions on Iran on January 22, a move that follows confirmation by the UN's atomic energy watchdog last week that Tehran has complied with its commitments to curb its nuclear program under a deal with world powers.

"Japan would like to strengthen our cooperative relationship with Iran further and contribute to the peace and stability of the Middle East through our traditional friendly relationship with Iran," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said as he made the announcement at a press conference in Tokyo.

Japan's sanctions against Iran included suspensions on new investment in the Islamic republic's oil and gas sector. Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters that Japan is expected to sign an investment agreement with Tehran soon.

Global companies are scrambling to tap into resource-rich Iran after long being barred from doing business there. Japan's Suzuki Motor Corp. said a day earlier that it is contemplating a return to the Iranian market.

The United States, the European Union, and the United Nations lifted nuclear-related sanctions against Iran after the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency announced on January 16 that Tehran had met its obligations under the nuclear deal it signed with six world powers in July.

Based on reporting by Reuters and dpa
A massive crowd turned out in Chechnya to voice support for the regions Kremlin-backed leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, and to echo his escalating condemnation of the Russian opposition.

The January 22 rally in Grozny, the Chechen capital, followed more than a week of menacing rhetoric unleashed by Kadyrov and his allies against liberal Russian politicians, activists, and journalists.



It added to tension between Kadyrov and the targets of his threatening remarks, who have urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to rein in the regional leader.



Chechnya's Interior Ministry said as many 1 million people took part in the rally, but the crowd did not look that large and Chechnyas entire population is under 1.4 million.



Reports earlier in the week said that state-sector workers such as teachers were being compelled by the government to attend. Two people at the rally told Reuters they were forced to turn up.



Participants shouted "God is Great!" in Arabic and declared their loyalty to both Kadyrov and Putin, who made the former separatist rebel the head of the mostly Muslim region in Russias North Caucasus in 2007.



Demonstrators credited Kadyrov with bringing stability to Chechnya after two separatist wars in the 1990s and early 2000s.



Kadyrov has ruled with an iron fist and is accused of overseeing widespread human rights abuses and assassinations. Critics say Putin has tolerated or encouraged Kadyrov because he relies on the regional strongman to maintain control of Chechnya.



At the rally, praise of Kadyrov was accompanied by the vilification of the same politicians, activists, and journalists branded Western-backed traitors and "enemies of the people" by the Chechen leader and his lieutenants in recent remarks.



Demonstrators denounced prominent Putin foes including anticorruption campaigner Aleksei Navalny, opposition activist Ilya Yashin, and exiled former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, whom some participants called a "faggot."



They held placards with slogans such as "Yashin get out of Russia" and "Navalny is a friend to the West and an enemy to Russia."



Ralliers also targeted journalists including Aleksei Veneditkov, the editor in chief of radio station Ekho Moskvy, a frequent platform for opposition views.

"We want to strongly oppose those who throw mud at the country, call for sanctions against Russia, and attempt to escalate tensions," Husain Soltagereyev, the head of Chechnya's Council of Trade Unions and the event's organizer, told the state-run TASS news agency.



Several prominent Kadyrov supporters traveled from Moscow to attend the rally, including State Duma lawmaker Adam Delimkhanov, who is from Chechnya, and nationalist biker Aleksandr Zaldostanov, a staunch Putin supporter who is known as The Surgeon."



"A very deep bow to the leader of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov for his honesty and straightforwardness," Zaldostanov he told the crowd. "We can only answer the enemies if we stand united, united with the Russian president."



Kadyrov has always been a vocal critic of Putins opponents. But he stepped up his rhetoric with a January 12 diatribe calling opposition activists enemies of the people -- a phrase that evokes the era of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin -- who should be tried for "sabotage."

In an article in the daily Izvestia on January 19, he called them jackals who must be punished to save Russia and said they should be sent to psychiatric hospitals.



Russian activists and international rights groups such as Amnesty International and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) have urged Putin to take action following statements by Kadyrov and his associates, who have also used social media to vilify his detractors.



Earlier this week, Delimkhanov posted a video on Instagram showing himself and other men chanting "Kadyrov is the rock of Russia -- Allahu Akhbar!" on a Moscow bridge close to the one where Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov was shot dead in February 2015.



Many of Kadyrov's critics believe he was behind Nemtsov's slaying. Kadyrov denies involvement, and efforts by relatives and associates of Nemtsov to have him questioned have been thwarted.



In a letter to Putin posted on the CPJ's website on January 21, the organization warned that "menacing rhetoric against government critics has often been followed by violence, and has encouraged self-censorship among reporters."



The letter followed a statement by Amnesty a day earlier urging Russian authorities to "respond to a string of thinly veiled threats against several prominent human rights defenders, media workers, and political activists" by the "political leadership of Chechnya."



"Such threats should not be taken lightly," Amnesty said.



The opposition Yabloko party has announced plans to hold a street protest in Moscow on January 26 to demand that Kadyrov be dismissed.
Like every other year, the event is being held at Diggi Palace.

Jaipur: Asia's largest literary festival kicked off in pink city Jaipur on Thursday in a testament to the growing global influence of Indian literature and its appeal to both publishers and authors.

Regional language novelists and poets will rub shoulders with Nobel laureates and Booker Prize winners at the annual Jaipur Literary Festival where organisers will showcase works from India's array of states and dialects to thousands of book lovers.

Chief Minister of Rajasthan, Vasundhara Raje, inaugurated the event which began with the playing of Rajasthani traditional folk music.

Hundreds of thousands of writers, critics, publishers and fans are expected to pack Jaipur's streets for the five-day event from January 21.

From a handful of attendees in 2006, the festival has grown into the world's largest free literary event, testament to literature's surging popularity in an English-speaking country with a bulging roster of internationally celebrated authors.

Writers and Jaipur Literature Festival Directors Namita Gokhale and William Dalrymple welcomed everyone on the inaugural day.

"My co-director, William Dalrymple and I have worked through the year to create those feast for the dreaming intellect and we look forward to welcoming you under the blue marked skies, a drift with a few lakes and kites," said Gokhale.

Also described as the 'greatest literary show on earth', the event this year will witness the presence of illustrious writers like Ruskin Bond, Margaret Atwood, Alexander McCall Smith, Blake Morrison, Colm Toibin, Margo Jefferson, Marlon James, Katherine Butler Schofield, Stephen Fry, and economist Thomas Piketty among many others.

Showcasing the national talent would be journalists Barkha Dutt, Poonam Saxena, author Kunal Basu and usual suspects with the likes of lyricist Javed Akhtar, Gulzar, and writer Shobha De.

Jaipur has become the place where people get access to writers they would not normally get an opportunity to read.

Meanwhile, Rajasthan Chief Minister Raje emphasized on the habit of reading books.

"As a child, I remember that one thing I was passionate about was with books. As a child, I remember having to read under covers and I think a lot of you must have done that. The torch just under the covers, as you were not allowed to read. To date, I don't think I can and there are many people here, I don't think many of us can go to bed without reading a few pages of our books, however tired we may be," said Raje.

Access to all the events is free, and with no VIP treatment for the best-selling writers and poets, fans can get unique access to their favourite authors. In addition to die-hard bookworms, the festival's music and dancing events attract students, tourists, and even India's celebrity glitterati.

Canadian poet, novelist and critic Margaret Atwood, the guest of honour at the Jaipur Literature Festival (JLF), said when she visited last 27 years ago then there was no concept of literary festivals in the country.

"To be among such welcoming hosts and readers and to see this festival, which started very-very small and has now become the largest book festival in India, and the largest free book festival in the entire world, that is an amazing achievement," said Man Booker Prize winner Atwood amid cheers from her admirers.

The largest of its kind in the region, the festival heads a growing group of literary gatherings across South Asia, including the Galle festival in Sri Lanka, which begins the day after Jaipur ends, and an edition of the international Hay Festival of literature which began last year in the southern Indian state of Kerala.

Fuelled by an expanding middle-class and rising literacy rates, India's publishing industry is growing at a steady clip, and Indian and international authors and publishing houses see exposure at Jaipur as important for sales.

Like every other year, the event is being held at Diggi Palace. On Wednesday (January 20), a court heard a public interest litigation which said the venue is too small to host such a large event. Last year, the location saw a daily footfall of at least 35,000 people, while Diggi Palace can barely accommodate 2,000.
A Kazakh court has handed out jail sentences to two civil rights activists after finding them guilty of "inciting social hatred."

The court in Almaty sentenced Serikzhan Mambetalin and Ermek Narymbaev to two and three years in prison, respectively, on January 22.

Both Mambetalin and Narymbaev pleaded not guilty, saying the charges against them were politically motivated.

The activists were arrested in mid-October after investigators accused them of posting materials "inciting social hatred" on Facebook.

Mambetalin and Narymbaev insist the Facebook posts were quotes from a book that is freely accessible on the Internet.

The activists have been known for their criticism of the Kazakh government.

In 2010, Narymbaev was sentenced to four years after he was arrested at a protest rally urging Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev to resign.

He was amnestied in 2012 after spending more than 1 1/2 years in jail on charges of resisting authority.


U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says he believes Washington may be able to consider lifting sanctions it imposed on Russia over its involvement in violence in Ukraine later this year if Moscow complies with the Minsk peace deal.

In a speech to the World Economic Forum in Davos on January 22, Kerry said that he and U.S. Vice President Joe Biden had meet this week in the Swiss resort with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to help ensure full implementation of the agreements.

Kerry said, "with effort and with bona-fide legitimate intent to solve the problem on both sides, it is possible in these next months to find those Minsk agreements implemented and to get to a place where sanctions can be appropriately -- because of the full implementation -- removed."

Washington links a lifting of the sanctions to full implementation of the Minsk accords, which were agreed to last February by Ukraine, Russia, France, and Germany after the collapse of a cease-fire between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists.

The terms of the deal provide for a cease-fire, a pullback of heavy weapons, prisoner exchanges, local elections in rebel-held areas in eastern Ukraine, and greater autonomy for these regions.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview this month the sanctions were "severely harming Russia."

The sanctions have reportedly shaved about 1.5 percent off of Russian economic output in 2015.

Based on reporting by Reuters and Bloomberg.com
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says he has spoken to Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif about the three Americans that were abducted in Iraq last week.

Kerry confirmed at the Davos World Economic Forum on January 21 that he had spoken to Zarif about the issue.

The U.S. government has not commented publicly about reports by anonymous U.S. government sources that an Iranian-backed, Shi'ite militia kidnapped three contract workers in Baghdad.

Kerry said he asked Zarif "if Iran knew any way to provide help or if there were some way they could have an impact on getting the right kind of outcome."

"He said he would take that under advisement and try to do what he can," Kerry said, adding that Zarif said he "didn't have any immediate knowledge whatsoever about it."

Iraqi officials are searching for the Americans, whom the Baghdad security command said were abducted last week from a "suspicious apartment" in southern Baghdad.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi said in Davos on January 21 that he "doubts very much" that there is an Iranian link to the three men's disappearance.

Based on reporting by AFP and Reuters
Russian President Vladimir Putin has introduced martial law in four of Ukraine's regions, parts of which are under the control of Russian troops, as Ukrainian forces continue liberating occupied territories in the country's east despite another barrage of air attacks across the country.

Putin said at an online session of the Security Council on October 19 that he signed a decree declaring martial law in Ukraine's Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhya -- all of which Russia illegally annexed last month.

Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's ongoing invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, Russian protests, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here.

He didnt immediately describe the steps that would be taken under martial law but said his order was effective starting at midnight on October 20. His decree gives law enforcement agencies three days to submit specific proposals.

The package of moves, which come nearly eight months into the war launched by the Kremlin in late February, marked the latest escalation by Putin to counter a series of defeats to Ukrainian forces since the start of September.

By extending the decree to regions beyond Ukraine, the move ensures that more Russians, already angered by a military mobilization announced last month, will more deeply feel the consequences of the war in their own lives.

Mykhaylo Podolyak, an adviser to the Ukrainian presidential office's head, called Putin's move "a pseudo-legalization of looting of Ukrainians' property."

"This does not change anything for Ukraine: We continue the liberation and deoccupation of our territories," Podolyak tweeted shortly after Putin announced martial law in the four Ukrainian regions.

U.S. President Joe Biden, speaking at the White House, said Putin is trying to get Ukraine to give up.

"I think that Vladimir Putin finds himself in an incredible difficult position and what it reflects to me is it seems his only tool available to him is to brutalize the individual citizens in Ukraineto try to intimidate them into capitulating. They are not going to do that," Biden said.

U.S. State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel said earlier the declaration of martial law was a desperate tactic and any claim by Russia over the regions was "illegitimate."

Putin's move came as the Russia-installed leader of Ukraine's southern Kherson region said the evacuation has started of tens of thousands of civilians and Moscow-appointed officials in the face of a Ukrainian military advance.

Vladimir Saldo said 50,000-60,000 civilians would leave four towns on the west bank of the Dnieper River in an "organized, gradual displacement" over the next five or six days.

All of the Moscow-installed administration in the city of Kherson would evacuate, too, Saldo said.

Russian television showed footage of a number of people queuing for boats on the Dnieper River bank although it was not immediately clear how many were leaving. The forced transfer or deportation of the civilian population by an occupying power from the territory under its control is considered a war crime.

Saldo's statements came after General Sergei Surovikin, the new commander of Russian forces in Ukraine, said the situation in the southern city of Kherson is "difficult" and residents facing Ukrainian bombardment are to be evacuated.

WATCH: Ukrainian forces first got their hands on FH70 155-millimeter howitzers courtesy of Italy in May and received training in Estonia. RFE/RL journalists met with a frontline FH70 crew and watched them in action against Russian forces.

"The Russian Army will above all ensure the safe evacuation of the population" of Kherson, Surovikin said.

But Kyiv on October 19 accused Russia of staging a propaganda show in an attempt to "scare" the Kherson residents.

"Russians are trying to scare the people of Kherson with fake messages about the shelling of the city by our army and are also staging a propaganda show with evacuation," the Ukrainian president's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, wrote on Telegram.

Kherson was the first big city to fall to the Russian forces in February after the start of Moscow's unprovoked invasion, but Ukrainian forces have been steadily retaking nearby territory in recent weeks.

They have pushed as far as 30 kilometers south along the Dnieper River, threatening to trap Russian troops.

Meanwhile, fresh explosions were heard in Kyiv and other areas on October 19, with a missile strike hitting a major thermal power station in the city of Burshtyn in western Ukraine.

The coal-fired Burshtyn plant in the region of Ivano-Frankivsk, which supplies electricity to three western regions and to five million consumers, was hit and on fire, according to Svytlana Onysshchuk, the regional governor. There were no casualties in the strike at the plant, which was hit by four missiles nine days earlier as well.

Serhiy Borzov, governor of the Vinnytsya region in western Ukraine, said Russia had also carried out attacks on energy facilities in his region. Russian bombardment also cut power and water in some parts of Enerhodar in the Zaporizhzhya region on October 19, said Dmytro Orlov, the mayor of the southern city located near the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant that's been a flashpoint of the nearly eight-month conflict.

A power plant in Kryviy Rih, a city in south-central Ukraine, was also seriously damaged by Russian shelling, leaving villages, towns, and a city district without electricity, the regional governor reported.

Russian forces also targeted Ukraine's southern Mykolayiv region again with kamikaze drones early on October 19.



The Ukrainian military's southern command said in a statement on October 19 that its forces shot down 12 drones overnight.

More than a week of air attacks has destroyed almost one-third of Ukraine's power stations and cut electricity in more than 1,000 settlements.

With Ukraine gaining momentum in the war that is now nearly eight months old, European lawmakers on October 19 recognized the country's "brave" citizens by awarding them the 2022 Sakharov Prize.

"This award is for those Ukrainians fighting on the ground. For those who have been forced to flee. For those who have lost relatives and friends. For all those who stand up and fight for what they believe in. I know that the brave people of Ukraine will not give up and neither will we," European Parliament President Roberta Metsola said in the statement.

The annual prize is named after the Soviet physicist and dissident Andrei Sakharov and was established in 1988 by the European parliament to honor individuals and organizations defending human rights and fundamental freedoms.

With reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP
The Taliban splinter group that carried out a bloody attack against a university in Pakistan on January 20 has threatened further attacks targeting schools across the country.

A video statement was posted on January 22 in which Khalifa Umar Mansoor, head of a Tehrik-e Taliban (TTP) splinter group, said schools would be targeted because they are "nurseries" for people who challenge "Allah's law."

Twenty-one people were killed in the raid on the campus of Bacha Khan University in Charsadda Province.

Mansoor's group has also claimed responsibility for a 2014 attack on a school in Peshawar that left 150 people -- mostly children -- dead. It was the deadliest extremist attack in Pakistan's history.

"We will continue to attack schools, colleges, and universities across Pakistan as these are the foundations that produce apostates," Mansoor said. "We will target and demolish the foundations."

Following the 2014 Peshawar attack, teachers in Pakistan were given permission to carry arms to work. One of the teachers who was killed in the Bacha Khan attack reportedly fired on his attackers from his personal weapon.

The main TTP organization has disavowed the Bacha Khan University attack, calling it "un-Islamic."

Based on reporting by AFP, AP, and dpa


What has long been suspected now has an official imprimatur.

Nine years ago, Russian agents assassinated a U.K. citizen in the heart of London, most likely with the explicit approval of Vladimir Putin.

That was the conclusion of a British inquiry into the death of Russian spy-turned-whistleblower Aleksandr Litvinenko, who was poisoned in London in November 2006 after drinking tea laced with polonium, a rare radioactive isotope.

So what happens now?

On the new Power Vertical Podcast, we discuss the fallout and implications of the Litvinenko investigation.

Joining me are Mark Galeotti, a professor at New York University, an expert on Russia's security services, and author of the blog In Moscow's Shadows; Karen Dawisha, director of the Havighurst Center for Russian and Post-Soviet Studies at the University of Miami, Ohio, and author of the highly acclaimed book "Putin's Kleptocracy: Who Owns Russia?"; and journalist Oliver Bullough, author of the book, The Last Man In Russia and the Struggle to Save a Dying Nation.

Also on the Podcast, Mark, Karen, Oliver, and I look at Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov's latest antics and what they signify.

Enjoy...

Listen to or download the podcast above or subscribe to The Power Vertical Podcast on iTunes.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko says Ukraine will regain its control over the Russia-annexed region of Crimea and the eastern Ukrainian territory currently controlled by Russia-backed separatists.

In a statement to mark the Unity Day holiday on January 22, Poroshenko said the yellow and blue of the Ukrainian national flag "will return to their legal and natural places in Donetsk and Luhansk, in Simferopol and Sevastopol."

Unity Day marks the 1919 Unification Act of the Ukrainian People's Republic and the short-lived West Ukrainian People's Republic in Kyiv.

Earlier on January 22, Poroshenko's administration distributed a statement the president made speaking to CNN saying that Kyiv expects to receive a tranche of $7 billion from the International Monetary Fund.

With reporting by Interfax and UNIAN


A court in southern Russia has sentenced a man to 12 years in jail for treason.

Lawyer Oleg Yeliseyev told Interfax that the Krasnodar Regional Court found his client, Pyotr Parpulov, guilty on January 22 of committing treason while out of the country in 2010 and sentenced him the same day.

The entire trial was held behind closed doors and precise information regarding the accusations against him has not been released.

Parpulov, a former employee of the international airport in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, was arrested in March 2014, and his trial began in September 2015.

Parpulov's relatives have said he was accused of passing classified information to foreign agents during a trip abroad in 2010.

The case is one of several in recent years in which Russian citizens have been accused of treason or disseminating classified or sensitive information.

Based on reporting by Interfax and yugopolis.ru


A Berlin-based correspondent for Russian state television finds himself accused of incitement after reporting about migrants allegedly gang raping a 13-year-old girl.

Ivan Blagoy reported on Russia's Channel 1 that the Russian-German girl was kidnapped at Berlin's Mahlensdorf train station on her way to school, driven to an apartment, and raped and beaten over the course of 30 hours.

German media also reported on the case, but Blagoy's report claimed police had refused to launch criminal proceedings in an attempt to cover up the case, and quoted the teen's uncle as saying police had pressured the girl to say the sex was consensual.

To Berlin-based lawyer Martin Luithle, Blagoy's coverage was a reckless attempt to incite fear and hatred against migrants among Germany's 6 million Russian speakers, and is punishable under German law.

"What [the Russian journalist] is saying is that the state doesn't work anymore, the police don't work anymore," Luithle told RFE/RL in a telephone interview. "He tells the Russian-speaking people of Germany: 'Help yourself, the police can't protect you anymore.' This is a super-dangerous thing."

As word of the alleged rape and cover-up spread in Russia and among right-wing groups in Germany, Luithle took action by filing a criminal complaint over Blagoy's report, which he believes was fabricated.

The rape allegation comes after complaints that immigrants sexually assaulted and robbed women during New Year's festivities in the western city of Cologne were met with outrage in Germany, and portrayed by the Kremlin as evidence of a backlash over European "meddling.

If the German prosecutor's office decides that Blagoy did commit a crime, he faces trial and a possible prison term of three months to five years. However, the initial investigation could take several weeks.

In his report, made on January 16, Blagoy said officials could not comment on camera because it was a Saturday, and therefore an off day.

Berlin police commented two days later, posting a statement on their Facebook page saying it had been determined that the girl had gone missing for a short period, but soon returned home.

"The fact is -- according to the data of our Criminal Police Land Headquarters -- there was neither a kidnapping nor a rape," the statement read.

To Luithle, the statement is evidence that "we are living in a state where law is working. We are not living in a dictatorship. Our police have officially said there was no rape and no abduction.

Nevertheless, with anti-immigrant sentiment high, a couple hundred protesters assembled in Berlin on the evening of January 18 to express their outrage.

In the meantime, efforts to learn more about the specifics of the case have hit a brick wall. The Berlin police statement said "we expressly ask you to understand that we won't publicize more detailed information in order to protect the identity of the girl and her family."

And the girls aunt, who originally spoke to Blagoy on camera, told the Russian radio station RSN that the family would not comment further on the case, unless through a "qualified lawyer.

With no fresh information, some media outlets in Russia decided to run with speculation.

"Police denied, community confirms, one state-run NTV channel correspondent said in her January 18 report.

On January 19, RIA Novosti agency interviewed two Russian speakers who participated in the previous evening's rally in Berlin, demanding the police punish the supposed criminals.

"They couldnt have just made up [the fact] that she was raped, a man identified only as Aleksandr said on camera. "They showed it on the news, they wouldnt deceive [us], anyway.

And on social media, the message from the rally was passed on to Russian speakers by way of VKontakte and Odnoklassniki.

One message that was shared widely declared: Attention! This is war! and called on Russians in Germany to go to the streets on January 24 to protest the alleged police cover-up.

Those who ignore this can consider that the rape is on their conscience. This is the first peaceful precautionary protest of the authorities, the statement reads.
How we live our lives is usually a matter of choice. How we die is seldom of our choosing. Few people choose the time, place and manner of death. Unfortunately, most of those who do so are victims of pressures perceived to be insurmountable. In death, they seek an escape. Others are victims of disorders brought about by chemical imbalances that, in turn, are often caused by stress and strain.

Very few embrace death with a cool and calculated rationality for a higher cause and reason. Few deaths have captured the popular imagination and galvanised the nation to a higher cause than that of Bhagat Singh.

On October 30, 1928, Lala Lajpat Rai was assaulted by a British SP, James A. Scott while protesting against the Simon Commission. Though he died of a heart attack on November 17, doctors believed that the death was hastened by the injuries received.

Seeking revenge for the death of Lala Lajpat Rai, Bhagat Singh assassinated John Saunders, another British police officer on December 17, 1928. He eluded efforts by the police to capture him. On April 8, 1929, Bhagat Singh and B.K. Dutt thr-ew a bomb in the Central Legislative Assembly to make the deaf hear as their leaflet, which they showered into the chamber shouting Inquilab Zindabad! and Long live Proletariat, explained.

Bhagat Singh surrendered his pistol, the same one he had used to kill Saunders, knowing fully well that it would be the damning proof of his involvement in the case. He was convicted and hanged for this at the age of 23. By this he captured the nations attention.

Was Rohith Vemulas suicide similar to this? While I have no doubt some of his compatriots might think so, it is clear the two deaths were of a very different class and cause. Bhagat Singh beckoned death and chose to make a propaganda statement through it.

Rohith Vemula and his rather eloquent suicide letter make it amply clear that he was a victim of an oppressive system, or one he thought to be so. In it he expressed his inner turmoil and reason quite explicitly and succinctly: My birth is my fatal accident. I can never recover from my childhood loneliness. The unappreciated child from my past. May be I was wrong, all the while, in understanding world. In understanding love, pain, life, death. There was no urgency. But I always was rushing. Desperate to start a life. All the while, some people, for them, life itself is curse. My birth is my fatal accident. I can never recover from my childhood loneliness. The unappreciated child from my past. I am not hurt at this moment. I am not sad. I am just empty. Unconcerned about myself. Thats pathetic. And thats why I am doing this This was tragic but it was not for Inquilab Zindabad! The sad suicide of Vemula has, nevertheless, been politicised.

A virulent campaign has been unl-eashed by acolytes of the BJP/RSS in the social media. Two criticisms predominate. One is that Vemula protested against the hanging of Yakub Memon. Why is this a litmus test of a persons patriotism? There are a huge number of people in this country, this writer included, who perceive the hanging to be a miscarriage of justice.

Most of those who opposed the hanging oppose the death penalty. I do too. But, more importantly, I felt that since Memon was lured back to India by our intelligence officers with promises of leniency in exchange for inside information on the Dawood Ibrahim gang living under ISI protection in Karachi, this promise should have been honoured.

Others want to make something out of unsubstantiated insinuations that Vemula was not a dalit, that is in local terms not a Mala or Madiga, but a person belonging to the Waddar caste of stone cutters and quarry workers who are listed as a backward caste. The local police and the TRS leadership have been making much about the fact that Vemula was a Waddar and not a dalit. Suppose it was so. Does it mitigate the crime against him?

The ABVP-RSS combine has been circulating a video clip of Vemula where he is denouncing the notion of Hindutva in acerbic language. I have seen this clip. In this clip, ABVP supporters are interrogating Vemula and he answers that he will fight it everywhere and anywhere. He is speaking in Telugu. The literal translation in English of the term he uses to state this is a commonly used four-letter word.

This word is commonly used in English slang to denote various suggestions. For instance, to say **** off is a rude way to say get out. Likewise, in Telugu, the term has many usages. In the interrogation, Vemula is asked if he will do it to a Hindutva poster in the campus and he defiantly replies, Yes, I will. He is then asked what he would do to a Hindutva symbol in his home. He answers in the same way.

Now lets be realistic  to say I will **** a poster, doesnt mean anything but to tear it down. Lets not make too much of the language in a surreptitiously taped video. Many of us often use similar language to demonstrate our feelings.

One must see the events in UoH between the Ambedkarite students movement and the ABVP and relate it to the attempt by the IIT Madras to ban the Ambedkar Periyar Study Circle there.

In that case also it was under pressure from the BJP. To get an understanding of what Hindutva ideologues think of Ambedkar one must read the book on him by Arun Shourie, Worshipping False Gods.

The tragedy of Vemulas suicide is a time for introspection. Why did things happen this way? Why was he pushed to end his life? Perhaps there is something we might yet learn from this.
An outbreak of the H1N1 swine flu virus has killed 26 people in the territories currently controlled by Russia-backed separatists in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region, Russian news agencies reported on January 22.

The agencies quoted an unidentified representative of the separatists as saying all schools have been closed until January 30 to help curb the number of swine-flu cases.

The Ukrainian Health Ministry confirmed on January 19 that H1N1 has killed 51 people across the country.

Ukrainian Health Minister Aleksandre Kvitashvili urged people not to panic, saying We havent exceeded the epidemic threshold, and every year January is the peak of the flu season.

Swine flu outbreak has caused deaths in Russia and other former Soviet republics, officials say.

Armenian officials said 18 people had died from swine flu since January 1, where school holidays were prolonged until February 1 and military personnel were ordered not to leave their units due to the outbreak.

Health officials in Russia's second-largest city, St. Petersburg, said on January 19 that five local residents died of the H1N1 virus, adding that more than 310 individuals had been hospitalized with symptoms of the disease.

Swine flu deaths were also reported in Georgia and Kazakhstan.

Based on reporting by TASS, Interfax, and RFE/RL's Armenian and Russian services
The U.S. State Department says it has stripped five Russian honorary consuls of their accreditation in response to the harassment of its own staff in Russia.

"This action is being taken in response to continued Russian interference with our diplomatic and consular operations in Russia, including, but not limited to, widespread harassment of our personnel, as well as the forced closure of the American Center in Moscow and 28 American Spaces throughout Russia," spokesman Mark Toner said on January 22.

Toner warned Washington is "prepared to take further appropriate measures if there are additional efforts to impede" its diplomatic and consular activities in Russia.

Russia's Foreign Ministry expressed outrage at the move against the consuls in California, Utah, Minnesota, Florida, and Puerto Rico.

Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused U.S. "security services" of carrying out "provocations" against employees of Russian diplomatic missions.

Zakharova alleged the decision continues Washington's "policy aimed at curbing ties" with Moscow.

The State Department spokesman, however, said formal diplomatic relations would not be hurt by Washington's tit-for-tat move.

"This does not affect Russia's formal diplomatic operations, including its embassy, consulates general, or its cultural center in Washington, D.C.," Toner added.

Based on reporting by AFP and TASS
A former U.S. Marine released by Iran last week in a prisoner-swap deal landed in the United States on January 21 after being held for more than four years in the Islamic republic, where at one point he faced a death sentence.

"I am happy to finally be home. It's been a very long road, a very long journey. Unfortunately, many people have traveled this road with me," Amir Hekmati, 32, told reporters after his plane touched down in his hometown of Flint, Michigan.

Hekmati and four other Iranian-Americans were released in a prisoner swap over the weekend. Iran announced their release on January 16, the same day that international sanctions on Tehran were lifted.

He was arrested in August 2011 on espionage charges that were dismissed by his family. He was originally sentenced to death.

An appeals court later commuted the sentence to a 10-year jail term. He was reportedly held in solitary confinement and subjected to psychological torture.

Asked about his imprisonment in Iran, Hekmati said "it wasn't good," but that his Marine training helped him endure the ordeal.

Based on reporting by Reuters, AP, and NBC
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District 26 Representative Patricia Morgan (R- West Warwick, Coventry, Warwick), head of the Republican Policy Group, announces the groups newest initiative yesterday at the statehouse, the waste-o-meter, a device that will be used to record wasteful spending in Rhode Island as (l-r) District 29 Representative Sherry Roberts (R- Coventry, West Greenwich) and District 40 Representative Mike Chippendale (R-Coventry, Foster, Glocester) listen.
Despite being a cancer drug, Avastin is often used by doctors globally for eye ailments even though it does not have US Food and Drug Administration approval for that purpose. (Photo: Pixabay)

New Delhi: India's federal drugs controller issued an alert on Thursday, asking states to ensure Swiss drugmaker Roche's cancer treatment Avastin was not administered to treat eyes, after its usage hampered vision in 15 patients.

Despite being a cancer drug, Avastin is often used by doctors globally for eye ailments even though it does not have US Food and Drug Administration approval for that purpose.

Studies have shown eye injections of Avastin can curb vision loss.

However, fifteen patients at a hospital in Gujarat underwent surgery last week when they reported swelling and pain in their eyes following usage of Avastin.

The advisory, issued by India's top drugs regulator GN Singh, comes two days after Reuters reported Gujarat had asked distributors to recall one batch of the medicine, while the southern state of Telangana ordered a freeze on all its batches.

"Regulatory authorities may alert their inspectorate staff to monitor the movement of the said drug and its use in ophthalmology," Singh wrote in the alert notice, adding the drug was not approved in India for such usage.

Roche's India unit said it was aware of the government notification and reiterated it does not promote use of Avastin for eye ailments for which it does not have an approval.

Still, the company said on Tuesday it was taking events in Gujarat very seriously and initiated an internal probe.

The CH Nagri Municipal Eye Hospital in Gujarat's Ahmedabad city administered the drug to 7,000 people over the last decade but has now stopped.

Cases of shoddy medical treatment and spurious drugs are often reported in India, where the public health system remains overburdened and people, especially in smaller towns and villages, struggle to access basic health services.

Gujarat authorities are also investigating whether the drug involved in last week's incident was a fake copy of Avastin.
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When Richmonds police chief asked why Black Lives Matter wasnt present at the vigil for the 12-year-old girl killed here three weeks ago, his answer came from the woman who took down the Confederate flag flying in front of South Carolinas Statehouse.

If there was never, never another police-involved shooting of a black man, of a person of color, would the Black Lives movement be relevant? Chief Alfred Durham asked during a symposium Wednesday night at Virginia Commonwealth University.

His question drew a resounding yes from several hundred people at the Black Lives Matter panel discussion and then this explanation from Bree Newsome, the activist arrested in June after she scaled the flagpole outside the capitol to remove the flag.

We need to stop conflating ... homicides between two civilians with state-sanctioned murder, Newsome said.

The exchange was part of a two-hour, far-reaching session on the past and future of a movement that VCU psychology professor Shawn Utsey said should be called black minds matter.

It seems to me that we are at war for the minds of black people, Utsey said. If white people disappeared, the problems that black people confront would still exist.

Black people, he said, have internalized toxic ideas over the past 300 years that need to be replaced with a different reality.

The most violent actions against us occur in the classrooms  not at the hands of police but in the classroom, he said, where the minds of our children begin to become disfigured, and then we wonder why we behave toward each other like we do.

Utsey joined Durham and Newsome, a 30-year-old filmmaker from Charlotte, N.C., on the panel, along with Adria Scharf, executive director of the Richmond Peace Education Center, and Angelique Scott, a 20-year-old art student who was among the organizers of BlackVCUSpeaks.

The program, moderated by political science professor Ravi Perry, was part of a week of activities commemorating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. that drew an engaged crowd to VCUs Student Commons even as the Rams basketball team played at the Siegel Center.

The panelists took on a range of questions from students in the audience and from Twitter, including what to do when parents object to their childrens activism with Black Lives Matter.

I consider myself an activist and my parents do not like it, said Scott, who is from Brooklyn. They are very, very scared.

She advised an honest conversation with your parents to reach an understanding between generations of what happened in their day and the really intense stage of the struggle students are in now.

I dont want my kids in the future to have this conversation again. Things have to change, she said.

Newsome, who took down the Confederate flag after the massacre at Emanuel A.M.E. Church in Charleston, said she called her mother from jail after she was arrested.

She said were proud of what you did but we dont want another martyr, Newsome said.

Her action turned out to be a really awesome moment. It was the No. 1 thing on Twitter, she said, and that was not true for past freedom fighters.

Rosa Parks lost her job when she refused to give up her seat. I have fared better than a lot of people who made sacrifices in the past, she said, but to truly be a revolutionary ... you are recognizing there is a cause greater than your life.

Scharf said she sees Black Lives as the most important movement in generations and one that is percolating down to expand the sense of possibilities for the teenagers her center works with. My hope is that this moment of uprising will be sustained, she said.

But life expectancy is 20 years shorter for children in the city housing project Gilpin Court than it is in the West End, she said, and 50 years after Brown vs. Board of Education so many of our public schools are basically 100 percent racially segregated.

Some students at the forum questioned whether the movement was inclusive, especially of transgender women, and whether it was more about black male lives matter.

But the most contentious discussion came during the police chiefs defense of police departments and his questions about why the movement wasnt a presence locally at vigils for homicide victims.

Durham said he has never seen a Black Lives Matter representative involved in vigils or in helping the victims families after a shooting.

On Thursday, Durham said he didnt get an explanation for that during the forum and said he felt unfairly pressed about police incidents that are not a problem here.

During the forum, Durham said that while shootings involving police are a small percentage of slayings nationally, highly publicized cases are wrongly being used as a broad brush condemnation of all officers.

But Newsome said the difference was that in cases of black people killing black people, they tend to go to jail, unlike officers.

In explaining how some of the problems have occurred, Durham said law enforcement is now a paramilitary organization.

In his 25 years on the job, there has always been a war on something. When I came on it was the war on drugs, he said, and now its the war on terror.

We have been indoctrinated as police officers to fight a war, he said. But sometimes officers returning from fighting actual wars have not been adequately screened psychologically before being placed on a police force, he said.

Durham said law enforcement is dealing with issues we dont create and asked for an open dialogue.
This week our country honored the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, a great American whose faith compelled him to embark on a mission that disturbed the conscience of a nation. Through marches and peaceful protests, in meetings with both the powerful and the poor, he eloquently challenged a divided and  for many of its people  a dangerous and unjust America to live up to the ideal enshrined in its first declaration. All men and women are created equal, all endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness  no matter what their skin color, their heritage or their religion. King ultimately gave his life for this cause of justice, and today, some 87 years after his birth, we thank God for his life and mission.

One need go no further than the headlines of our local newspaper or cable news programs to be reminded that this fight for justice for all Gods children, in this country and around the world, is an ongoing struggle. Indeed, even on the American political stage, instead of inspiring Americans to the greatness of our ideals, some leaders are sowing seeds of derision and injustice against one group of Gods children, followers of the Islamic faith.

Some of the hatred bubbling to the surface today is the result of fear engendered by the troubled and dangerous times in which we live  which include, in particular, horrific violence brought on by extremists who claim to follow the teachings of Islam. Naturally, our belief in the sanctity of life encompasses our responsibility to protect life at all its stages: from conception until natural death. This means we must protect the lives of our families, our fellow Americans and ourselves.

However, make no mistake: There is no place among those who claim to follow Christ for unjust discrimination or hatred toward any group of people. Christs love is a love inspired by grace; not self-centered but universal in its scope; forgiving; and sacrificial, even to the point of death. We must love everyone, without exception.

In Nostra Aetate, the Second Vatican Council document on relations between the Catholic Church and other faiths promulgated in 1965, Church fathers wrote, We cannot truly call on God, the Father of all, if we refuse to treat in a brotherly way any man, created as he is in the image of God.

Indeed, they reminded us, He who does not love does not know God (1 John 4:8). Furthermore, they describe as foreign to the mind of Christ, any discrimination against men or harassment of them because of their race, color, condition of life, or religion.

In addition, as we read the signs of the times, the Scriptures tell us again and again to Fear not! and Be not afraid! St. John the Apostle writes that perfect love drives out fear. (1 John 4:18) Many of the hateful, fearful actions and rhetoric we hear on the airwaves or read in social media are the result of our lack of knowledge and understanding. We fear what we do not know.

King summed it up in a speech to Cornell University students. People fail to get along because they fear each other; they fear each other because they dont know each other; they dont know each other because they have not communicated with each other.

Pope Saint John Paul II spoke of the tensions and divisions caused by this fear of those we dont know in a 1985 speech to young Muslim students in Morocco. He encouraged Muslims and Christians to recognize what they shared in common  their humanity and elements of their faiths  and to work together to solve the problems of the world.

We recall John Pauls words to the young people in Morocco:

But God created all men equal in dignity, though different with regard to gifts and to talents. Mankind is a whole where each one has his part to play; the worth of the various peoples and of the diverse cultures must be recognized. The world is as it were a living organism; each one has something to receive from the others, and has something to give to them.

This week, as we remember Martin Luther King, who fought for justice for all, and the Supreme Courts Roe v. Wade decision, which denied justice to millions of the unborn, we stand united with leaders of other faiths  Christian, Jewish, Hindu and Islamic  in rejecting hate, particularly, at this time, directed toward Muslims. We Catholics embrace the Gospel message of love and, recognizing and respecting the differences between the faiths, seek to live in peace with all.
UPDATE: The National Weather Service is calling for seven to 15 inches of snow to fall in the Richmond area, beginning this morning with the heaviest snow coming this midday and into the evening.

The snow is expected to slow down overnight and into the morning. The area could see mix with sleet or freezing rain tonight and change into rain Saturday.

(This is a breaking news update. An earlier story is below.)

Central Virginia residents could see anywhere from 6 to 20 inches of snow beginning as early as this morning and lasting through late Saturday night or early Sunday morning, according to the National Weather Service.

Ahead of the winter storm, school systems across central Virginia announced Thursday that schools would be closed today, and Gov. Terry McAuliffe issued a state of emergency.

Areas north and west of Richmond are expected to see the highest accumulations, while those south and east could see snow mixed with sleet and rain.

Over the course of the two-day storm, far northwest Hanover County could get up to 16 inches of snow, compared with 8 inches in the southeast end of the county, said weather service meteorologist Larry Brown.

Similarly, those in the Midlothian area of Chesterfield County are expected to get about a foot of snow over the course of two days, while the forecast for Chester is about 6 inches, Brown said.

The variation in snowfall amounts is partly because northwestern parts of central Virginia could be a bit colder and therefore likely to experience snow for several hours Saturday, while other areas could see a wintry mix.

Areas of southeast central Virginia could see warmer weather hovering near freezing at times on Saturday, which could cause a mix of snow, sleet and possibly even rain, Brown said.

Theres a pretty big range, weather service meteorologist Matt Scalora said Thursday evening. Theres going to be much higher accumulations the farther west you go. It could range from as high as 7 inches on the east side (near downtown Richmond) to 14 inches on the west side, like up near Short Pump.

East of the city, including in Varina, the snowfall totals could be closer to 5 or 6 inches, Brown said.

There even could be significant variations within the city of Richmond, with the northwestern portion of the city expected to get up to 8 to 12 inches, compared with as little as 6 inches in South Richmond and the East End.

Brown said Thursday evening that the latest models show Goochland County being hit with heavy snowfall. Western Goochland, near Louisa County, could experience about 20 inches of snowfall, he said, and Louisa could exceed that amount.

Winds from the north at 18 to 21 mph will accompany the storm Saturday, with gusts as high as 32 mph.

Weather service meteorologists are confident the storm will conclude by early Sunday at the latest with sunny skies expected to arrive gradually during the day with a high of about 36. Temperatures could drop into the teens Sunday night with mostly clear skies.

Projected highs are 42 on Monday and 47 on Tuesday.

State of emergency

McAuliffe issued a state of emergency Thursday morning ahead of the upcoming storm that also threatens to bring heavy snowfall to Northern Virginia.

Thursdays declaration authorizes state agencies to assist local governments in response to the storm, which is expected to dump up to 2 feet of snow in parts of the state and bring strong winds.

McAuliffe said in a statement that residents should take the threat of this storm seriously. He said residents should prepare for travel disruptions and possible power outages.

Transportation crews are treating roads before the storm hits, the governor said.

Meanwhile, Virginia Transportation Secretary Aubrey Layne urged residents to stay off roads until the storm passes. Virginia State Police also urged residents to postpone travel plans and avoid driving when possible.

The Virginia National Guard plans to set up readiness centers along the Interstate 81 corridor between Lexington and Winchester and along state Route 29 from Warrenton to Danville, as well as near Richmond, Fredericksburg and Gate City.

In order to be able to respond rapidly when needed, we will get our personnel in place at key locations before the severe weather hits, said Col. Thomas L. Morgan III, director of joint operations for the Virginia Guard.

Richmond, meanwhile, will be opening two storm relief shelters at 10 a.m. today, the mayors office announced Thursday.

One shelter is at Linwood Holton Elementary School at 1600 W. Laburnum Ave in the citys North Side. The other shelter is at J.H. Blackwell Elementary School at 300 E. 15th St. in the citys South Side.

As the intensity and type of winter precipitation is uncertain at this time, I will make a decision regarding a possible local state of emergency once more information has been supplied, Richmond Mayor Dwight C. Jones said in a statement.

Residents flock to stores to stock up

At the Kroger grocery store in Chester, business was steady Thursday afternoon as shoppers stocked up on groceries and other supplies.

Jessica Chambers of Colonial Heights said she initially did not want to believe that a powerful winter storm was on its way, but she said news reports changed her mind and made her fill her grocery cart before the first snowfall.

I didnt think it would happen after the many warm days that we had this month, but I guess the weatherman knows better, said Chambers, pushing her cart across the parking lot.

Dominic Newman, also of Chester, said he was well-prepared for the worst-case scenario but decided to go back out to beef up his beer supply.

I dont mind being snowed in as long as I got booze and Netflix, Newman said. And if the stars align, it can even be quite romantic.

At the Pleasants Hardware in Midlothian on Thursday morning, a woman surprised employees by returning a snow shovel.

We got one back! one cashier said excitedly to another, who said that it was the only one left in the store.
Developers for two major proposed developments in Hanover County asked the planning commission to defer hearings on their respective projects Thursday night.

Developers for both Chickahominy Falls, a proposed farming-based community, and Big Oak at Bell Creek, a proposed mixed-use development consisting of 335 housing units, including more than 200 apartments as well as 123,500 square feet in office and warehouse space, requested during a meeting that the panel defer planned public hearings for the projects.

Andrew M. Condlin, a lawyer who represents developers of both, requested that the hearing for Chickahominy Falls be deferred to the commissions February meeting and Big Oak to the March meeting.

Cornerstone Homes, developer of Chickahominy Falls, is asking the county to rezone 180 acres of land from agricultural to either suburban residential or suburban multifamily for the project located off Cedar Lane and Holly Hill Road. Condlin said additional time for the proposed development, which would feature homes clustered in a village-like setting, is needed for small adjustments.

Big Oak developers asked the county to rezone 63 acres of land designated for agriculture near Left Flank Road and Bell Creek Road.

They are asking that 40.84 acres be rezoned to a multifamily residential district and 22.33 acres to a limited industrial district for the proposed project. Twenty seven single-family homes, 94 town houses and 214 apartment units are planned for the development as well as the office and warehouse space, according to planning documents.

A planning analysis of the proposed development states the project would not be harmonious and out of character with surrounding uses, a criteria used to evaluate rezoning requests.

Before motioning to defer the hearing, planning commission member C. Harold Padgett Sr. said considerable issues have been raised about the project, warranting the deferral.

***

The planning commission also deferred a public hearing for a smaller 59-unit housing development in the Cold Harbor magisterial district.
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The list of partners in and customers for the controversial Mountain Valley Pipeline grew this week with the addition of Consolidated Edison Co., one of the nations largest investor-owned energy companies.

Mountain Valley announced Friday that Con Edison, through subsidiary Con Edison Gas Midstream, will acquire a 12.5 percent ownership interest in Mountain Valley Pipeline LLC.

Con Edison also has agreed to be a customer of natural gas shipped through the Mountain Valley pipeline and, separately, through the Equitrans system, an EQT Midstream Partners pipeline.

Con Edison provides electricity, natural gas and steam to most of New York City and Westchester County, New York.

Pipeline opponents said Friday that Mountain Valleys announcement provides additional evidence that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commissions review of several proposed interstate pipelines should begin with a broad analysis of the projects cumulative impacts.

EQT Midstream Partners, a subsidiary of EQT Corp., has the largest ownership interest in the Mountain Valley pipeline at 45.5 percent, the company reported Friday. EQT Midstream will operate the pipeline.

Partners in the Mountain Valley joint venture also include affiliates of NextEra Energy, WGL Holdings and RGC Resources, parent company of Roanoke Gas.

Mountain Valley wants to build and bury a 42-inch-diameter pipeline to transport natural gas at high pressure from West Virginia to the Transco pipeline in Pittsylvania County. As currently designed, the pipeline will travel through the Virginia counties of Giles, Montgomery, Craig, Roanoke and Franklin before terminating at the Transco line.

The Mountain Valley Pipeline project has stirred fierce opposition, as has the separate but similar Atlantic Coast Pipeline. As interstate pipelines, the projects need FERCs blessing before construction can begin.

Both pipeline projects have applied to FERC for the certificate necessary to proceed.

Pipeline backers say the multi-billion-dollar projects will transport natural gas from hydraulic fracturing wells in the Appalachians to customers on the East Coast that could include utilities, industries and homes.

Opponents say the pipelines promise significant environmental damage, present sobering safety risks, continue the nations reliance on fossil fuels and violate property rights by wielding the prospect of eminent domain by private companies to acquire rights-of-way.

Many observers  including local governments, politicians, environmental and conservation organizations and residents in the path of the pipelines  contend that FERCs review of the pipelines should start with a broad perspective.

They have called on FERC to conduct an overarching programmatic environmental impact statement that would consider the cumulative impact of these and other pipeline projects through the region before preparing separate environmental impact statements for each.

To date, FERC has refused to conduct the broader analysis.

Roberta Bondurant has been active in Preserve Roanoke and Preserve Bent Mountain, two anti-pipeline groups in the region.

She said the marriage of Mountain Valley and Con Edison and the joint ventures goal to provide natural gas to the Northeast gives further evidence for the FERC and the Department of Energys inspector general to order a programmatic environmental impact statement.

The proposition that this region of the Appalachians should bear the environmental  and necessarily the economic  impacts of supplying natural gas to the Northeast requires independent and objective scrutiny by federal agencies, including the Forest Service, the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers, along with FERC, Bondurant said.

Meanwhile, Fridays news release from Mountain Valley quoted Ivan Kimball, Con Edisons vice president of energy management.

Con Edison is responsible for obtaining low-cost, reliable supply to meet its gas customers needs, Kimball said. He said the agreements with Mountain Valley and Equitrans will allow Con Edison customers to achieve significant savings.
SEOUL, South Korea  North Korea announced Friday the arrest of a U.S. university student for what it called a "hostile act" orchestrated by the American government to undermine the authoritarian nation.

In language that mirrors past North Korean claims of outside conspiracies, Pyongyang's state media said the University of Virginia student entered the country under the guise of a tourist and plotted to destroy North Korean unity with "the tacit connivance of the U.S. government and under its manipulation."

The North's official Korean Central News Agency said in a short report that the student, whom it identified as Warmbier Otto Frederick, was "arrested while perpetrating a hostile act," but didn't say when he was detained or explain the nature of the act. North Korea has sometimes listed English-language surnames first, in the Korean style. The University of Virginia's online student directory lists someone named Otto Frederick Warmbier as an undergraduate commerce student.

A China-based tour company specializing in travel to North Korea, Young Pioneer Tours, confirmed that one of its customers, identified only as "Otto," had been detained in Pyongyang, the North's capital, but provided no other details. Social media accounts for Warmbier show interests in finance, travel and rap music; he was on the University of Virginia's dean's list and attended high school in Wyoming City, a suburb of Cincinnati, Ohio.

Wyoming City Schools spokeswoman Susanna Max said Warmbier was the salutatorian of his 2013 graduating class in the highly rated public high school. She said school officials were in communication with Warmbier's family, which includes two sisters in Wyoming schools.

The U.S. State Department said in a statement that it was "aware of media reports that a U.S. citizen was detained in North Korea," but had "no further information to share due to privacy considerations."

North Korea's announcement comes amid a diplomatic push by Washington, Seoul and their allies to slap Pyongyang with tough sanctions for its recent nuclear test. In the past, North Korea has occasionally announced the arrests of foreign detainees in times of tension with the outside world in an apparent attempt to wrest concessions or diplomatic maneuvering room.

North Korea also regularly accuses Washington and Seoul of sending "spies" to overthrow its government to enable the U.S.-backed South Korean government to control the entire Korean Peninsula. Some foreigners previously arrested have read statements of guilt that they later said were coerced.

A few thousand Westerners are thought to visit North Korea each year, and Pyongyang is pushing for more tourists as a way to help its dismal economy. The U.S. State Department has warned against travel to the North, however, and visitors, especially those from America, who break the country's sometimes murky rules risk detention, arrest and possible jail sentences, although most have eventually been released.

Earlier this month, CNN reported that North Korea had detained another U.S. citizen on suspicion of spying. It said a man identified as Kim Dong Chul was being held by the North and said authorities had accused him of spying and stealing state secrets. North Korea has yet to comment on the report.

The U.S. State Department has said it could not confirm the CNN report. It declined to discuss the issue further or confirm whether the U.S. was consulting with Sweden, which handles U.S. consular issues in North Korea because Washington and Pyongyang do not have diplomatic relations.

North Korea has previously released or deported U.S. detainees after high-profile Americans visited the country. In late 2014, for instance, North Korea released two Americans after a secret mission to the North by James Clapper, the top U.S. intelligence official. Critics say such trips have provided diplomatic credibility to the North.

The Korean Peninsula remains in a technical state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea.

North Korea is holding at least three South Koreans and one Canadian.

Last month, North Korea's Supreme Court sentenced a Canadian pastor to life in prison with hard labor for what it called crimes against the state. The offenses he was charged with included harming the dignity of the North's leadership and trying to use religion to destroy the North Korean system, according to the North's state media.

___

Associated Press writers Dan Sewell in Cincinnati and Libby Quaid and Matthew Pennington in Washington contributed to this report.
RICHMOND  A woman who threw a piece of concrete through a window at the General Assembly Building on Thursday night during a legislative committee meeting apparently was trying to get arrested so that she would have a place to stay on a bitterly cold night, according to Capitol Police.

State Sen. Mark Obenshain, R-Harrisonburg, tweeted that he was in a Senate Finance subcommittee at 6:45 p.m. and one very agitated woman throws brick through GAB committee room window ... #andtheband playedon.

No one was injured in the incident, which apparently had nothing to do with the legislative meeting in Senate Room A, said Capt. Randy Howard of the Capitol Police.

Howard, who did not have the womans name, said it appeared from an initial investigation that she had just punched a female Virginia Commonwealth University student at Eighth and Franklin streets. The student, who did not know the woman, was not seriously injured and refused medical treatment.

Police said the woman then walked over to the General Assembly Building at Ninth and Broad streets and threw a chunk of concrete through the first-floor window.

It appears it was all an attempt to get arrested so she would have a place to stay, Howard said.

We accommodated her. We placed her under arrest.

The woman was charged with simple assault and vandalism. Police took her to the Richmond City Justice Center.
Gov. Terry McAuliffe said Friday that he shares Republican presidential candidate Donald Trumps dislike for the oath the Republican Party of Virginia plans to require voters to take before participating in the GOPs presidential primary.

In an interview with conservative talk-radio host John Fredericks, who supports Trump, McAuliffe said politics should be about addition regardless of party.

Instinctively, I dont like the idea of loyalty oaths, McAuliffe said. It smacks me the wrong way. I agree with Donald Trump.

Trump has blasted the so-called Statement of Affiliation the Republican Party has enacted to ensure that participants in its primary are indeed Republicans.

Last month the State Board of Elections approved the requirement at the request of the Republican State Central Committee. Before casting a vote in the GOP primary, voters must fill out a form that says: My signature below indicates that I am a Republican.

Trump has characterized it as an attempt to keep out independents and first-time voters, but party officials have said the statement will ensure the Republican nominee is selected by Republicans. A federal judge and an appeals court have denied an attempt by Trump supporters to block the oath.

Virginia, which will hold its primary March 1, does not register voters by party.

McAuliffe also said hed sign emergency legislation to block loyalty oaths if the bill makes it to his desk. That outcome is unlikely. The bill was filed by Democratic Sen. Chap Petersen of Fairfax, and would need to pass a legislature controlled by Republicans. The bills emergency clause, which means it would take effect immediately upon the governors signature, means the legislation requires the support of 80 percent of lawmakers in each chamber.

Fredericks also asked McAuliffe, an avid supporter of Democrat Hillary Clinton, if hed consider serving as secretary of commerce in a Trump administration.

McAuliffe said he knows Trump very well, adding that the real estate mogul wrote him a big check during one of his gubernatorial campaigns.

(In 2009 Trump donated $25,000 each to Republican Bob McDonnells campaign for governor and to McAuliffes unsuccessful campaign for the Democratic nomination, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.)

Im always open to doing whatever I can, John, to help this great country, McAuliffe said. But you know what, Im here as governor. I love this job. And Im not leaving early for anything.
CHARLOTTESVILLE  A judge has denied motions to throw out certain evidence in the case against the man accused of abducting and murdering a University of Virginia student.

Jesse Leroy Matthew Jr. appeared in Albemarle County Circuit Court on Thursday for a hearing about items taken from his apartment during the search for Hannah Graham in September 2014. Grahams remains were found on a county property about five weeks after she disappeared on Sept. 13, 2014.

Grahams parents were in the courtroom Thursday as Matthew, who is charged with abduction and capital murder in the case, watched capital defender Doug Ramseur argue that authorities obtained an overly broad search warrant that allowed them unfettered discretion over which items were allowed to be seized from Matthews apartment.

Ramseur called to the stand Charlottesville police Detective Jeremy Carper, an evidence technician who searched Matthews apartment five days after video surveillance spotted him walking with Graham on the Downtown Mall on the night she disappeared.

Carper recounted his search of the apartment, in which he collected various items listed on the warrant, as well as items that he suspected to bear trace evidence of blood, semen or anything that might contain DNA.

Authorities should not have collected a Samsung phone from the apartment, Ramseur said, as it did not have a battery and memory chip and therefore could not have been immediately confirmed to be Matthews, as well as other items that were not specified on the search warrant, including a pair of khaki shorts, a cigar tip and four toothbrushes.

Ramseur argued that case law requires police to be specific about which items can be obtained in a search, and that the phrasing of the warrant allowed them to seize anything they wanted, even if there was no probable cause to do so. He further stated that items such as the toothbrushes and the cigar butt were obtained so as to make a DNA profile of Matthew, even though there was no reason to do so at the time.
RADFORD  Radfords new president wont officially start for another six months, but Brian Hemphills visit to campus Thursday stirred excitement.

He seems like a fresh start, said Jasmine Erickson, a senior criminal justice major and senator in the Student Government Association at Radford.

Hemphill, who now leads West Virginia State University in Charleston, was named last month as Radfords seventh president. He was on campus Thursday to meet faculty, staff and students, and spoke at a formal introduction ceremony in the afternoon.

 Wow! is the first word that comes to mind, Hemphill said after Board of Visitors Rector Anthony Bedell recounted the eight-month, 76-candidate application process that resulted in Hemphills selection.

Hemphill emphasized his gratitude to Bedell and other board members, to the hiring committee, to outgoing President Penelope Kyle, to his family, and to what he said were hundreds of employees, students and alumni who sent encouraging messages after his appointment.

Your core values are my core values, Hemphill said, and promised to emphasize the universitys vital role in society.

Hemphill said that he plans a renewed focus on the academic core and student success. He received several standing ovations during his introduction and remarks.

Since 2012, Hemphill has been the president of West Virginia State University, which according to the universitys website has a student body of 3,166. Thats about a third of Radfords enrollment. He also has held administrative positions in enrollment and student affairs at Northern Illinois University, the University of Arkansas  Fayetteville, the University of North Carolina  Wilmington, and Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa.

A Radford University news release credited Hemphill with boosting the number of out-of-state and transfer students, and with improving retention rates and fundraising at West Virginia State University.

In a short session with reporters after Thursdays ceremony, Hemphill said that other goals for Radford include increased communication and collaboration with the wider community around the university, a strengthening of the universitys economic development role, and building the Radford University Foundations endowment. He said that he also hopes to foster strategic enrollment growth, which he said would target certain programs that will be determined by an upcoming study effort.

At the center of his efforts will be promoting what he called Radford Universitys brand across the commonwealth.

I will spend much of my time looking at how we can tell that story and get people excited about the university, Hemphill said.

Erickson and two of her fellow student senators already sounded fired up about the new president.

Freshman Julea Ambrozaitis, an elementary education major, said that Hemphill made a good impression  even his bow tie, patterned in Radford red and white, seems very school spirited, she said.

I think his remarks were great today, echoed Alan Ward, a junior majoring in economics. Ward said that he had looked up Hemphills background after his appointment was announced, and Im very excited to see whats going to be done.

Im going to be an alumni here, Ward continued. And I want to see the university succeed.
UPDATE 11:10 AM: A "dry slot" -- pretty accurately handled by many forecast models for a few days -- has brought snow to a slowdown or outright stop in much of Southwest Virginia west of I-77 and even some of the New River Valley.

Meanwhile, snow bands have continued to move up the Blue Ridge into the Roanoke Valley. Convective bands in northeast Georgia, northwest South Carolina and western North Carolina are moving northward and will help redevelop snow through the afternoon in Southwest Virginia. Also, the upper-level low over Alabama is beginning to take on its "negative tilt" -- the axis of the trough angling back to the northwest, the sign of a very energized upper-level system -- which will begin to turn some of the steering currents more to the northwest. That will also begin to pull moisture back into Southwest Virginia. Periods of snow will continue and perhaps intensify and become more continuous this afternoon. I still think we're headed for foot-plus totals -- many spots are halfway or more there already -- with whatever happens with the coastal low expected to form near the Georgia-South Carolina border this afternoon and take over as the main center of this winter storm. Having some heavy bands driven inland by this system into the evening could add several inches, continuing to put 15-20 inches and perhaps more in range for the Roanoke and New River valleys and along and east of the Blue Ridge, with less west of I-77. END UPDATE

-----

UPDATE 8:50 AM: Heavy snow with 1-2-inch per hour rates is setting up across much of Southwest Virginia this morning, with some locations already over half a foot south of Roanoke and likely to be there soon even into the Roanoke Valley. This has much the look of what I call a "front-loaded" storm with this early overrunning moisture aspect perhaps accounting for more than half of our total snow. Many locations will have a foot by the time sun goes down.

About dry slots: Radar is struggling to get its beam through the heavy snow band in Floyd County, near the radar site, and also various radar sites have trouble seeing precipitation in the Smokies down in North Carolina. So what may appear to be an area of no snow may not be such. Indeed, stations are generally reporting snow down that way. That said, models have been showing a dry slot cutting into far southwest Virginia west of I-81 later today. That fills in, in time, with the effects of an upper-level low to the west. Much of the big gap in Tennessee and Alabama has partly filled in with bands and showers of what is rain down that way. There may be lulls or even brief stoppages during this storm, but it is unlikely that snow will stop for a very long time this afternoon or evening in most of our region.

The big question on whether we, in the Roanoke and New River valleys and nearby areas, get "merely" a foot-plus snow or a 20+ inch whopper depends on how much snow banding we get off the coastal low this evening. At the least, light to moderate snow looks to continue into Saturday morning, but heavier bands moving in from the southeast overnight could ramp totals up drastically. Most of this effect is expected to stay east and north of us -- why Washington may get 30 inches -- but it's pretty close on the models especially Roanoke and the Blue Ridge eastward this evening. END UPDATE

----

UPDATE 6AM, 1/22: As you perhaps have noticed, the much-discussed snowstorm has begun in the Roanoke and New River valleys. Snow is likely to continue a large part of today and through the night, with perhaps a few lulls. We'll be approaching a foot by early evening and likely well over it by morning, with a few more inches early Saturday. Many locations in and near the Roanoke/New River valleys will end up with 15-20 inches with some pockets of even more, especially along the Blue Ridge and locations north of Roanoke. END UPDATE

------

The expected major winter storm is thriving over the South as of late Thursday evening, and a few radar echoes were getting close to the border of far southwest Virginia. It may be a little ahead of schedule -- it seems an overrunning snow band like this usually is -- so it will probably be white with the sunrise for areas south and west of Wytheville and perhaps even into some of the New River Valley and the Blue Ridge south of Roanoke. The first flakes may arrive in Roanoke around sun-up, 6 or 7 a.m. or so, maybe even a little before that. It appears moderate to heavy snow will be in full swing by mid-morning over most of the area, with some 1-2-inch per hour rates possible at times.

We'll probably have at least 6-10 inches by sunset Friday on the way to 14-22 total inches, locally 30 inches or more, in the Roanoke and New River Valleys, with snow continuing into the evening. Amounts may be a little less toward Southside and west of I-77 where a few spots may not quite make a foot, and quite a bit more along and north of I-64 where more locations will likely top 2 feet.

Position of heavy snow banding and any dry slots that may form in the precipitation shield are going to mean a lot on who gets the most snow. There may also be subtle easterly upslope wind effect that could raise totals some along the Blue Ridge. Sleet mix probably doesn't make it any farther east than I-77 or so, and no farther west than maybe Smith Mountain Lake and Lynchburg late Friday afternoon or early in the evening, and even that is doubtful, as it encroaches some into the wedge of cold air pushing along and just east of the mountains. Anywhere there is sleet mixing, snow will accumulate less rapidly for a while.

Once the energy of the storm transfers to a coastal low early Friday evening, the cold air will be pulled southward rapidly, changing any sleet mix to all snow. Some questions remain about how much direct effect our region gets off the coastal low, as its track and speed are somewhat in doubt. But it will swirl at least some moisture back upon us late Friday night and Saturday. Heavy snow bands flung inland by the pivot of the upper-level wind flow could add many inches to snow totals where they occur -- this would make some of those 2-foot-plus amounts possible in our region. If those stay more east and north, we'll continue to see light snow and then snow showers into Saturday with lesser accumulation adding up a few more inches.

So we're at the threshold of what may be a historic and in some cases record-setting winter storm for a large part of the Appalachians and Mid-Atlantic region. It's time for the speculation to cease and the nowcasting to begin. Please feel free to include your reports below -- but remember to tells us where you are, generally. "It's snowing!" doesn't help us much if you don't tells us where it's snowing!
Senior House tax writer Devin Nunes is making an opening bid in the GOPs hunt for a viable tax overhaul with a proposal to replace the 35 percent corporate rate with a 25 percent levy on cash flow, a measure of funds typically available after expenses, financing and investment.

The California Republican said in an interview that his American Business Competitiveness plan could move on a separate track from an envisioned international tax overhaul that is a top priority of Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas. Nunes proposal, introduced earlier this month, will be one of the items weighed as Speaker Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin and his leadership team try to frame tax priorities for a campaign agenda they plan to unveil by spring.

Its going to be revolutionary.  You are getting rid of the income tax. And you are putting in a consumption-type system, Nunes said. He referred to longstanding efforts by the GOP to refocus the income tax on consumed income, or spending on goods and services.
Mumbai: Trouble is brewing for actor Salman Khan as the Maharashtra Government on Friday moved the Supreme Court challenging Bombay High Courts verdict in the case.

The Bombay high court in December last year had acquitted Bollywood superstar Salman Khan, who was convicted and sentenced for five years in the 2002 hit-and-run case by a sessions court on the grounds that the prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the actor was at the wheel and under the influence of alcohol when the accident took place.

As soon as the verdict had come out, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had indicated that his government would challenge the decision in Supreme Court.

THE TWISTS AND TURNS IN THE 2002 CASE
POLICE were called to a Mexborough street after people living in the town said they heard gunshots for the second time in two days.

A resident of Victoria Road told the Advertiser that two shots were heard on the street at about 8pm on Thursday.

Police arrived on the scene and an area of the street cordoned off.

The resident said that a property has been boarded up.

Three men were arrested after gunshots were fired in the Frederick Street area of Mexborough on Wednesday evening.

It is not known whether the two incidents are linked.
TWO star students flamencoed off with the top prize in a univiersitys annual Spanish competition.



Dion Holli Smith and Victoria Taylor from Thomas Rotherham College took first and seconf place in the contest run by the Department of Hispanic Studies at the University of Sheffield.



The gruelling Latin showdown comprises a one-hour testing students knowledge of Spanish through through reading exercises and an essay written in the language.



Dion and Victoria scooped book token prizes of 120 and 100 respectively, courtesy of the Herbert Hughes Memorial Fund.



TRC marketing officer Catherine Duncum said: This is a big achievement for them as they had to compete against students from other schools and colleges across the Sheffield, Rotherham and Barnsley areas.



There were around 30 students on the day taking the exam.



It is also great news for the college and the modern foreign languages department as it continues our tradition of achievement in this competition.


Have you ever wondered how nature reserves come to be? RSPB Scotland purchased a piece of land known as Crook of Baldoon six years ago and this is the story of how we've been transforming it into a haven for wildlife ever since. If you enjoy part I, look out for part II - we'll be posting it in the next couple of weeks.

Crook of Baldoon: Part I

In 2010, RSPB Scotland launched an appeal to buy a piece of land on the west coast of Wigtown Bay.

For anyone who doesnt know the area, its a beautiful part of Dumfries and Galloway: a huge crinkled inlet off the Solway Firth, with pretty little coves and vast expanses of mudflat and saltmarsh stretching away under an endless sky. Its long been a place of significance for people, with evidence of ancient religious activities at sites like Whithorn, and a long history of trade from the once busy ports at Wigtown and Garlieston. But its the wildlife that really makes Wigtown Bay stand out.

The bay is the largest Local Nature Reserve in the UK, and plays host to a spectacular range of species, particularly birds. Ospreys fish on the open waters in the summer, and thousands of geese, ducks, swans and waders arrive every autumn, attracted by the promise of food.

These sorts of areas are incredibly important for wildlife, as where rivers flow out to the sea, they deposit rich nutrients and create a unique range of habitats. Birds, particularly the winter visitors, come here to feed on the millions of tiny creatures that hide away in the mud, fuelling up for long journeys ahead, or staying on to enjoy the bounty.

But saltmarsh and mudflats are an increasingly rare habitat around Scotland, as sites are developed, or altered by sea walls, and with climate change, theyre likely to become even more scarce in the future. So when the opportunity came up for us to buy such an area in Wigtown Bay, we were very eager to take it on.

The Crook of Baldoon actually came on the market unexpectedly. It had previously been managed as a farm, and was nestled right on the coast of the bay just to the south of Wigtown. It was already a fantastic place for wildlife, particularly for birds like golden plovers, but with a bit of work, we hoped it could be transformed into a natural haven for wildlife and people alike.

The RSPB doesnt buy new reserves very often, so an appeal to our members is always a serious undertaking. But fortunately, after massive support came flooding in, the appeal was successful, and by September2010, the Crook of Baldoon was officially named as the RSPBs 209th nature reserve.

Where do we go next?

Unfortunately, creating a nature reserve isnt as simple as buying a bit of land and sticking a welcome sign at the gate. Areas do not become wildlife havens by simply being left to go wild. In fact, the whole process can be incredibly complicated, starting off with surveys, looking at the current land use, monitoring water levels, salinity testing, considering the impacts of future climate change, and so on. And thats before youve even considered access and facilities for the public.

At the Crook of Baldoon, we started slowly, putting in a few signs, taking out a few fences, changing the management of certain areas, and talking to visitors, many of whom had been coming to the site for years. We also employed a full-time warden, Paul Tarling, whos still working at the reserve today.

One of the first things we started to change was the livestock grazing. Many of our reserves right across Scotland use livestock to keep on top of vegetation, mirroring a process thats happened in the countryside for hundreds of years, and continuing an environment that our farmland wildlife is now adapted to. Cattle and sheep had been present at the Crook before we arrived, so all we did was bring down their numbers to reduce the pressure on the salt marsh, which had been suffering from over-grazing. It responded quickly, and the following spring, thrift, or sea pink, put on an amazing show, creating a dusky haze that could be seen right around the bay.

Saltmarsh plants, like thrift, sea aster and lax-flowered sea lavender form some of the building blocks of the food chain at the Crook of Baldoon, encouraging insects, which in turn feed many of the breeding birds on the site. Skylarks in particular were seen in increased numbers on the reserve in 2011, and their numbers have continued to increase ever since, along with other birds like lapwings.

But our biggest challenge at the Crook wasnt on the saltmarsh, or on the mudflats, but on the fields behind where a thick crop of 27 hectares of willow was resolutely growing bigger every year. The technical name for the crop was short-rotation coppice, and the willow had been intended for biomass fuel. In some cases, bioenergy can be beneficial for wildlife, creating useful habitats whilst growing, and playing an important role in reducing fossil fuel emissions.

But in this case, the willow was simply not in the right place, and its presence over such a large area, was actually bad for the wildlife that should have been using the site. Getting rid of it, however, wasnt going to be as easy as we first thought.

Look out for part II of our Crook of Baldoon blog - we'll post it on Scottish Nature Notes in the next couple of weeks.
Commodity currencies such as the Australian, the New Zealand and the Canadian dollars continued to be strong against their major counterparts in the Asian session on Friday amid rising risk appetite, as the rebound in crude oil prices and expectations of more stimulus from the European Central Bank boosted investor sentiment.

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi on Thursday hinted that more stimulus measures may come in March as the downside risks such as global uncertainty, market volatility and geopolitical tensions have increased.

Crude oil for March delivery are currently up $0.11 at $29.64 a barrel. Crude oil futures rallied Thursday as traders bet the recent collapse in energy prices was overdone.

Thursday, the Australian, the New Zealand and the Canadian dollars rose against their major counterparts amid the rebound in oil prices.

The Australian dollar rose 1.32 percent against the U.S. dollar, 1.46 percent against the yen and 1.43 percent against the euro. The NZ dollar rose 1.89 percent against the U.S. dollar, 2.30 percent against the yen and 1.74 percent against the euro. The Canadian dollar rose 1.64 percent against the U.S. dollar, 2.27 percent against the yen and 1.76 percent against the euro.

In the Asian trading, the Australian dollar rose to a 9-day high of 0.7021 against the U.S. dollar and a 1-week high of 82.79 against the yen, from yesterday's closing quotes of 0.6998 and 82.36, respectively. If the aussie extends its uptrend, it is likely to find resistance around 0.71 against the greenback and 86.00 against the yen.

The aussie advanced to 1.5454 against the euro, from yesterday's closing value of 1.5532. On the upside, 1.52 is seen as the next resistance level for the aussie.

Against the New Zealand and the Canadian dollars, the aussie edged up to 1.0738 and 1.0013 from yesterday's closing quotes of 1.0711 and 0.9981, respectively. The aussie may test resistance around 1.09 against the kiwi and 1.01 against the loonie.

The NZ dollar rose to 0.6547 against the U.S. dollar and 77.19 against the yen, from yesterday's closing quotes of 0.6525 and 76.81, respectively. The kiwi may test resistance near 0.66 against the greenback and 79.00 against the yen.

Against the euro, the kiwi edged up to 1.6581 from yesterday's closing value of 1.6633. If the kiwi extends its uptrend, it is likely to find resistance around the 1.51 region.

The Canadian dollar rose to a 9-day high of 82.74 against the yen, from yesterday's closing value of 82.48. If the loonie extends its uptrend, it is likely to find resistance around the 86.00 area.

Against the U.S. dollar and the euro, the loonie edged up to 1.4253 and 1.5444 from yesterday's closing quotes of 1.4265 and 1.5509, respectively. The loonie may test resistance near 1.40 against the greenback and 1.51 against the euro.

Meanwhile, the safe-haven yen fell against its major rivals amid rising risk appetite.

Data from Nikkei showed that the manufacturing sector in Japan continued to expand in January, albeit at a slightly lower pace, with a PMI core of 54.2. That was shy of expectations for 52.8, and it was down from 52.6 in December, although the index remained well above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.



The yen fell to 3-day lows of 167.81 against the pound and 117.95 against the U.S. dollar, from yesterday's closing quotes of 167.35 and 117.67, respectively. If the yen extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 172.00 against the pound and 119.00 against the greenback.

Against the euro and the Swiss franc, the yen edged down to 128.16 and 117.00 from yesterday's closing quotes of 127.91 and 116.79, respectively. The yen may test support near 130.00 against the euro and 119.00 against the franc.

Looking ahead, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi and European Central Bank member Benoit Coeure will participate in a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum in Davos at 2:45 am ET in the pre-European session.

Flash PMI reports from major European economies for January and U.K. public finance data and retail sales data, for December, are due to be released later in the day.

At 3:30 am ET, German Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann is expected to speak at Symposium in honor of Professor Hans-Werner Sin in Munich.

Shortly after Bank of Austria Governor Ewald Nowotny will speak at the economic reporters' club in Vienna.

At 7:00 am ET, Bank of England Deputy Governor Jon Cunliffe will deliver a speech titled "The Bank of England in Europe: Does European Union Membership Constrain Non-Euro Central Banks?" at the Bruegel Research Institute in Brussels.'

Subsequently, Irish central bank Governor Philip Lane will deliver his first speech, in Dublin.

In the New York session, Canada CPI data for December and retail sales data for November and U.S. existing home sales data and leading indicator, both for December, are slated for release.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
Members of NSUI and ABVP clash in front of ABVP office in Bengaluru

BENGALURU: A clash broke out between National Students Union of India (NSUI) and Akhila Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad (ABVP) members on Thursday noon in Sheshadripuram police limits. Around 12 noon NSUI activists gathered in front of ABVP office to protest the recent suicide by a Dalit student Rohith Vemula in University of Hyderabad.

Soon clashes broke out and ABVP state secretary Basavesh Khore was allegedly assaulted by the miscreants and window panes of the office got damaged due to stone pelting.

Around 30-40 students, belonging to NSUI, arrived at the ABVP office in Sheshadripuram and raised slogans. Khore, who was present at the office, asked them to leave. However, some NSUI members assaulted Khore and also pelted stones at the building.

The local police station was soon alerted and they rushed to the spot. Five people were taken into custody, but it is not yet clear whether the arrested were NSUI members, police said.

Balaji, ABVPs the national coordinator for social media said, The members at our office told them not to protest in front of the building. However, they assaulted our state secretary.

DCP (Central) Sandeep Patil also visited the spot to take stock of the situation. He told this newspaper, NSUI workers had gathered in front of the ABVP office to protest. While they were protesting one of them, belonging to NSUI, pelted stones on the office and broke the window.

"We have arrested eight people in this connection and booked them for criminal trespassing. Police are yet to establish as to which party they belonged to.

Meanwhile, another complaint was registered by an ABVP member Prashanth, who claimed he was receiving threats from unknown callers from past few days.
Editors of the conservative National Review launched a scathing attack against Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump in a special issue released on Thursday.

In the issue, the editors of the magazine argue Trump is not deserving of conservative support in the caucuses and primaries.

"Trump is a philosophically unmoored political opportunist who would trash the broad conservative ideological consensus within the GOP in favor of a free-floating populism with strong-man overtones," the editors wrote.

The piece claims Trump's plan to deport 11 million illegal immigrants is beyond the capacity of the federal government and attacks the billionaire as clueless on foreign policy.

"Some conservatives have made it their to make excuses for Trump and duly get pats on the head from him," the editors wrote. "Count us out."

They added, "Donald Trump is a menace to American conservatism who would take the work of generations and trample it underfoot in behalf of a populism as heedless and crude as the Donald himself."

The National Review issue entitled "Against Trump" also includes essays by 22 prominent conservative thinkers opposing Trump's candidacy.

Trump quickly responded to the criticism on Twitter, claiming the National Review is a failing publication that has lost its way.

"The late, great, William F. Buckley would be ashamed of what had happened to his prize, the dying National Review," Trump tweeted, referring to the magazine's founder.

(Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore)

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Political News
The memo that Not All Men have gotten, but which all men should get. Including white men in general, and Germans in particular.

Hi, me again, harping about Koln, again. Or rather, translating yet another good Storenfriedas piece about just that, plus some rather shocking hypocrisies currently afoot in terms of actual German rape law and how it is currently being implemented:

In Koln there is a saying: When it rains and the sun is shining, then the Devil is celebrating Carnival.

All those who have been following media reports for the last two weeks on the topic of sexual violence could be attending such a devilish carnival; thats how contradictory the reports and the demands are. On the one side are the events of New Years Eve in Koln, after which suddenly justice minister Heiko Maas made the long-delayed new rulings on the rape law a top priority. Even sexual harassment will now, since its not just white German men doing the groping anymore, finally be punishable. The talk shows, tabloids and opinion pages threw themselves on the subject; a new hashtag, #ausnahmslos (#noexceptions) was created. Sexual violence, as everyone from Internet- and print-feminists to the CDU and PEGIDA agreed, should finally, finally be consequently punished. So far, so good, so worth supporting  if only it were not this racist component shining through so many of the demands, and which culminated in the mushrooming civil defence forces.

But at the same time  and in the face of all demands for hard punishment for sexual assault, ad absurdum  German courts are drifting in a quite different direction. TV star Gina-Lisa Lohfink has been ordered to pay 24,000 euros to two men because she accused them of rape. She was punished for false accusation, even though there was a video of her and both men, in which she kept saying Stop! The judge refused to recognize this as evidence of rape, and instead ordered her to pay a fine. A disturbing signal for all victims of sexual violence, yes, even for all women. Not only because this video exists, which shows that this sex was not consensual, but because Gina-Lisa Lohfink is also being punished for having the courage to accuse these men. So whats up with No Means No? Isnt Stop also Stop? How can it be that a rape charge could turn into a fine for the victim?

The willingness to testify against sexual assault is close to zero because the act of laying rape charges is in itself a humiliating and very burdensome experience for the victim. Victims rights groups have long been calling for anonymous evidence-gathering, non-public trials, accompaniment for victims, and an end to the unspeakable character examinations to which they are being subjected. No wonder that the number of unreported rapes is estimated to be as much as ten times higher than the reported number. Of this low number, only a laughable 8.4% of perpetrators are ever sentenced.

Under #ichhabenichtangezeigt (the German equivalent of #BeenRapedNeverReported) and #whyisaidnothing, women have been saying for years why they never accused their tormentors: out of shame, fear and insecurity. And if there is now the danger that during a trial, they will go from victims to apparent perpetrators, this victim/perpetrator reversal is a catastrophic signal that bids fair to make rape even more of a punishment-free crime than it already is. In the best case, perpetrators can even get rich off the victims, should they have the guts to lay sexual assault charges.

This judicial decision is not the only such case. Yesterday, in Frankfurt, the trial against Claudia D. began. Jorg Kachelmann is demanding criminal damages for assessments which he ordered to prove his innocence in a rape trial against him. The judge declared that he considered the claim valid; Kachelmann has a good chance of winning. Theres even talk of a criminal trial for Claudia D. For his part, the judge in that case, Michael Seidling, says: Todays verdict of not-guilty does not mean that the Chamber is convinced of Herr Kachelmanns innocence, and thus a counter-claim of false accusation against the plaintiff.

Another example: The General Students Committee [newspaper] of the Goethe University of Frankfurt reported on a student who publicly called himself a pickup artist. He considered his personal rights to have been violated, and took out a restraining order. That could be costly for the committee. Media who report critically over sexual violence run the risk of the personality of the perpetrator could be seen as more worthy of protection than public information or a discussion over just such sexual violence. Pickup artists have repeatedly whitewashed rape in the past, or even called for it overtly.

These court decisions send out a fatal signal. They let already cowed women know that they could be held criminally responsible if they cant provide sufficient proof against the perpetrators. Its foreseeable that before such a background, even fewer women will dare to accuse their tormentors, and the voices of white men, who act as though a rape accusation is virtually always a false one and a perfidious power play by frustrated women, will get ever louder.

The British interior ministry conducted an investigation in 2005 to find out what percentage of rape accusations were in fact false ones. About 8% were classified as such by police  although a later investigation determined that this classification was deliberate and unjustified. The actual number of false accusations lay at just 3%.

Its a dangerous trend that can be observed in German courtrooms. It contradicts politicians calls for harder and more consequent punishments for rape and sexual harassment. It intimidates victims and empowers perpetrators, including potential ones. The political discussion around the tightening of rape laws will turn into a hollow racket, should the perpetrator/victim reversal gain any more ground.

Its noteworthy that neither female activists of #ausnahmslos nor other corners of feminism have much to say about these developments. Even the self-styled defenders of female integrity have little interest in it. The reason for that is easy to see: Without exception, all the men named here who have been accused of rape, plus the aforesaid pickup artists, are white, and not north-African refugees. They are average German men. The victim/perpetrator reversal is thus not just the expression of a new, institutionalized sexism with old familiar misogynist coloring. It is at the same time symptomatic of the racist component in dealings with sexual violence. So, while theyre busy hunting down the north-African rapists of New Years Eve out there, in here white men are sitting in judgment of women who accuse white men of rape.

The devil would take pleasure in it.
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The BJP camp is upbeat, waiting to receive all-India president Amit Shah, who is expected to join State president Kummanam Rajasekharan's Kerala Vimochana Yatra at one to two venues.

Sources said Mr Shah did not want to distract party workers, fully geared for the yatra by announcing his itinerary. Senior BJP leaders had completed their meetings in all the 140 Assembly constituencies, even before Kummanam's Yatra was flagged off on Wednesday.

Meetings were attended by Kummanam Rajasekharan, former president V. Muraleedharan, O. Rajagopal, Ms Sobha Surendran, Mr C. K. Padmanabhan, Mr P. K. Krishnadas, Mr K. P. Sreesan and Mr K. Surendran.

Now it is almost clear that all BJP core committee leaders, including Mr Rajasekharan, are contesting the elections.

Mr Rajagopal is likely to contest from Nemom and Mr Muraleedharan is already active in Kazhakoottam. Mr Rajasekharan is expected to contest either from Thiruvananthapuram or Aranmula.

Newly elected general secretary M. T. Ramesh is likely to contest from Chengannur or from Aranmula and former State BJP president P. K. Krishnadas from Thiruvananthapuram.

But district leaders have expressed reservations about senior BJP leaders eyeing key constituencies in Thiruvananthapuram.

"Compared to LDF and UDF, our booth-level management committees have already started functioning. All feeder organisations belonging to BJP and RSS booth-level management committees have also been appointed, while UDF and LDF are way behind", claimed Mr Ramesh.

But not everyone is happy with leaders themselves deciding to contest. "Usually the RSS, led by State organiser P.R.Sasidharan and vibhag pracharak M. T. Kiran, has to approve the list of BJP candidates, which has not happened here", said a BJP leader.
Rawlins Cross sails into the Sunrise on new album, tour around the East Coast

Rawlins Cross has been on hiatus before, once for nearly a decade after a successful run during the 1990s as one of Atlantic Canadas most popular modern Celtic bands, but never one that was imposed by an outside force of nature. In the spring of ...
The Delhi Police tweeted a warning along with details of the car. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: The Delhi and Punjab Police on Friday issued an alert for a white colour Alto taxi, which reportedly was hired from Pathankot by three unknown people earlier this week.

"We have sounded an alert in our area (Pathankot). We are taking this matter very seriously and we are making efforts to locate the missing taxi," Senior Superintendent of Police, Pathnakot, R K Bakshi said today

The taxi driver, identified as Vijay Kumar, a resident of Gaggal village in Kangra district, was found dead on Wednesday at the Kalta bridge in Kangra and his taxi missing, police said.

However, the SSP said the white-colour Alto taxi with registration number HP 01D 2440 was not hired from Pathankot. "Neither the taxi was hired from Pathankot nor the incident (recovery of body) has happened here (Pathankot)," he said.

Noting that he had got the matter inquired, Bakshi said on Wednesday that the body of the driver was recovered from the subdivision Jawali in HP which is about 40-50 kms from Pathankot, thus refuting the earlier information sounded out by the police.

Also read: Man with suspected terror links held in Thane

The Delhi police have sounded out high alert in the city.

"A white colour Alto taxi no. HP 01D 2440 was hired from Pathankot by three unknown people. The driver of the taxi, Vijay Kumar from Gaggal, Kangra was found dead on 20 Jan 2016 at the Kalta Bridge, Dist. Kangra. The Alto car is missing. Search operations are on. Stay Alert!" the pinned tweet on Delhi Police's official handle read.

ALERT Pathankot Alto Carjacked... Here are the images of the suspects. #SayNoToTerror #SafeTogether pic.twitter.com/VfBC1b5qDY  Delhi Police (@DelhiPolice) January 22, 2016

Asked on the threat perception, Delhi police Commissioner B S Bassi urged people in the city to remain alert without disclosing any further details citing security concerns.

Delhi Police has approached media houses in helping it find the car and spread the alert message through retweets.

Terrorists had struck at the Indian Air Force base in Pathankot on the intervening night of January 1 and 2 in which seven security personnel were killed in the encounter that lasted for three days.

In a nationwide swoop, NIA alongwith state police forces and central security agencies claimed to have averted a major attack with the arrest of 13 'sympathisers' of banned ISIS terror group including their self-styled chief "Ameer".

The raids were carried out simultaneously in four states of Karnataka, Hyderabad, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh where 13 people had formed 'Janood-ul-Khalifa-e-Hind', a terror group which had almost similar ideologies that of ISIS.

Mumbai resident Munabeer Mushtaq had allegedly designated himself as 'Ameer' of the organisation, which was tasked to carry out blasts at various installations in the country besides attacking some foreigners, Home Ministry sources said.

The raids were conducted in collaboration with police forces in all the states.

All the arrested accused were being brought to the national capital for detailed interrogation as preliminary enquiry indicated that there was a proper structure of the terror outfit.

The NIA and central agency sleuths also recovered 42 mobile phones including eight from Ameer of the newly formed terror group, which had allegedly received hawala money from overseas, the sources said.

The sleuths recovered explosive material, detonators, wires, batteries and hydrogen peroxide besides 'Jehadi literature', they said.

On Wednesday, four men were arrested from Uttarakhand for alleged links to the ISIS. They had been under surveillance for visiting ISIS propagandist sites.

Yesterday, a threat letter warning against French President Francois Hollande's visit was delivered to the French consulate in Bengaluru. The letter was reportedly mailed from Chennai.

Read: French Consulate in Bengaluru receives threat letter, warns against Prez visit

India has been put on high alert and an additional 10,000 paramilitary personnel have been deployed in Delhi to ensure greater security cover ahead of the Republic Day celebrations where Hollande will be the chief guest.
A first-of-its-kind journey along India and Pakistan border

What binds the two most talked about nations - India and Pakistan together? What makes the
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Hyderabad: University of Hyderabad research scholar Rohith Vemula not naming anyone in his suicide note will not help the accused in the case, which include Union minister Bandaru Dattatreya and vice-chancellor Appa Rao Podile.

Legal experts say that in abetment to suicide cases a suicide note is not the conclusive proof and corroborative evidence and circumstances have to be considered as per several High Court judgements.

Read: Hyderabad varsity abused me: Dalit chief medical officer

Experts say that the claim of HRD minister Smriti Irani that Rohiths suicide note exonerated the accused is not valid and if police investigation finds evidence linking that the circumstances created by the accused including alleged social boycotting, expulsion and other troubles have led to the suicide then the accused have to be prosecuted.

More importantly in Rohiths case his first letter written to Prof. Appa Rao on December 18, 2015, will be the first piece of evidence to nail the accused. In that note, Rohith had written: I request your highness to make preparations for the facility euthanasia for students like me.

Read: HCU suicide: Teachers reject V-Cs talks request

Senior advocate C. Mallesh Rao said, All the circumstances have to be taken into consideration in this case. How many letters he wrote prior to his suicide and their content? In the letter he wrote to the vice-chancellor he had clearly mentioned about his intention to end his life and blamed the vice-chancellor.

This letter shall be read with the last suicide note. They are part of a series and not a separate thing. The culprits shall not claim innocence based on the last note.

Read: V-C revokes suspension of 4 other dalit students, makes decision conditional

Rohit had asked to serve 10 mg of Sodium Azide to all Dalit students at the time of admission with direction to use when they fell reading Ambedkar.

He also asked the vice-chancellor to supply rope to the rooms of all Dalit students.

Senior advocate Mr C. Mallesh Rao said, Serious steps taken by authorities like expelling students from public places in groups which is nothing but social boycott and solitary confinement; a previous letter written by Rohit to vice-chancell or which had clearly blaming him for troubling Dalit students; no response from vice-chancellor on it; other alternative pressure from Union Minister Dattatreya writing a letter to Srmit Irani and in turn she sending series of reminders.

Read: HCU suicide: Unrest derails varsity schedule

Notices given to Rohit and other Dalit students and fake assault case by ABVP, all these aspects have to be considered as circumstances that forced him to end his life, he elaborated.

Mr Rao added, In the later suicide note he wrote about system and society deficiencies and not against any individuals.

So the people at the helm of affairs who caused these deficiencies in the system in this specific case of him leading to his suicide have to be booked as abettors.

The omission of the vice-chancellor and other accused in addressing the issues troubling Dalit students are to be considered.
The VC, along with two other professors, went to meet Rohith's mother, Radhika, at her residence in Uppal area (Photo: PTI)

Hyderabad: The mother of Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula today refused to meet Vice-Chancellor Appa Rao Podile when he went to her house, saying she would meet him only on the campus along with four other students who were suspended.

The VC, along with two other professors, went to meet Rohith's mother, Radhika, at her residence in Uppal area.

"I went to meet Rohith's mother along with two professors who informed her that I had come and wanted to meet her. But she conveyed to them that she will meet me only on the campus along with four other students," Podile told PTI.

Read: 'Politics aside, a mother lost her son,' says Modi on Rohith Vemulas suicide

Podile, who is under attack over the dalit student's suicide, claimed that Radhika, during her meeting with professors Geeta and Prakash Babu, expressed regret for demanding his resignation.

"We (Radhika) have no objection to meeting him (the VC) anywhere in the campus along with the four students and not outside," Podile quoted Rohit's mother as telling Geeta.

Read: HCU suicide: Mystery over scratched paragraph in Rohiths last letter

The suspension of the four Dalit research scholars, against whom action was taken along with Rohith for allegedly assaulting a ABVP leader, was revoked yesterday by HCU authorities owing to intense pressure.

Rohith's younger brother, Raja , said Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani assured his mother of "initiating necessary action based on the report of the two-member committee".

Read: HCU suicide: No names in suicide note may not be helpful for accused

The team of Shakila T Shamsu, OSD in the Ministry, and Deputy Secretary-level officer Surat Singh, came to Hyderabad to look into the entire matter and interacted with all the stakeholders.

The HRD Ministry on Friday decided to set up a Judicial Commission to look into the sequence of events leading to the suicide of Rohith Vemula, a dalit scholar at the Hyderabad Central University.

Read: HCU announces Rs 8 lakh ex-gratia to Rohith Vemula's family

The Judicial Commission will submit its report within three months, a Human Resource Development Ministry statement said.

It said in order to prevent such incidents future, all VCs and senior administrators would be sensitised to reach out to students and there will be "zero tolerance" for any acts of discrimination on campus.

Read: V-C revokes suspension of 4 other dalit students, makes decision conditional

"The fact finding committee constituted by HRD Ministry in the wake of the chain of unfortunate events at the Central University Hyderabad submitted its report to the Ministry on January 22, 2016.

"Based on its observations and findings, the Ministry has decided to constitute a Judicial Commission to review the entire sequence of events and the circumstances and to establish the facts and correctives in the context of the University," the statement said.

Read: Opposition rejects Narendra Modis speech over Dalit scholar suicide

Rohith's body was found hanging in the varsity's hostel room on Sunday, which sparked massive protests across the country.
Judge denies conspiracy-laden effort to stop Kansas ballot drop boxes

A federal judge in Kansas Wednesday denied a conspiracy-laden effort to stop the use of ballot drop boxes and electronic voting machines.




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Hyderabad: UoH V-C Prof. Appa Rao Podile has said that he would consider other suggestions of the UoH teaching faculty only after the agitation is totally called off and peace is totally restored in the university.

UoH Teachers Associ-ation, meanwhile, has rejected the V-Cs feelers to engage in talks with the agitating students.

While issuing a statement regarding conditional termination of punishment of the students the V-C said, Other observations and suggestions from the teachers will be taken forward using internal mechanisms and within the limits of the university, after the agitation is called off completely and complete peace is restored in the campus.

A member of SC/ST Teachers Forum, who did not wish to be named, said they gave a list of demands to the V-C while tendering resignation to administrative positions.

They sought constituting a judicial inquiry with a retired judge having members of various SC/ST commissions as members, financial compensation to Rohiths family, withdrawing all cases against students, and they also asked V-C to meet the victims family as well as agitating students.

University sources pointed out that the V-C tried to reach out to the UoH Teachers Association and SC/ST Teachers Forum to resolve the present crisis. He wanted the UHTA to engage in talks with the agitating students, which found no takers from the teachers body. UHTA was never consulted when action was being initiated against students, the teachers argued.

Include HRD Ministers name in FIR: Students

Hyderabad: Students want the Gachibowli police to name Union HRD minister Smriti Irani in the FIR on Rohith Vemulas suicide. Her involvement in Rohiths suspension is apparent now, the Joint Action Committee for Social Justice, which is leading the students protest, said.

Police officials said they were not ready, and the inquiry was still on. Legal experts said that if the students can secure a favourable order from the court, the police will have to include Ms Iranis name in the FIR.

Meanwhile, the indefinite hunger strike by seven students entered the second day on Thursday. The students  G. Prabhakar, Uma Maheshwar, K.P. Manojan, Vaikhari Aryat, K. Krishnayyar, Jai Rao and T Ramesh  belong to different student unions.

The students said that apart from the demands made by the JAC, they wanted a law to protect students of marginalised backgrounds from discrimination in universities.

The JAC has sought compensation and a house for Rohiths family and a job for his kin, revocation of suspension of the four dalit scholars, criminal proceedings against officials named in the FIR on Vemulas death, among others.
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Reuters: Indian and French negotiators were haggling on Friday over the price of 36 combat planes for the ageing Indian Air Force, officials of the two nations said, just days before President Francois Hollande visits New Delhi to cement commercial ties.

The fighter jet deal is part of a $150-billion military modernisation drive India has launched, drawing global arms makers into one of the world's biggest markets.

Hollande and Prime Minister Narendra Modi stepped into the estimated $9-billion deal last year, ordering government-to-government talks after commercial negotiations with the plane maker, Dassault Aviation, collapsed.

The leaders agreed to scale back the original plan for 126 Rafale planes to just 36 in flyaway condition, to meet the Indian Air Force's urgent needs, as it faces China and Pakistan.

But even the smaller deal ran into problems over the unit price of the planes and other contract terms.

France's envoy to India, Francois Richier, said the two sides were holding talks in New Delhi but he could not say for sure if they would strike a deal ahead of, or during, Hollande's visit, which begins on Sunday.

"Discussions are taking place, can't say what will be the outcome," he told reporters. "It's not finalised yet. It's a complex negotiation. I am hopeful, but hopeful does not mean certitude."

A ministry of external affairs(MEA) spokesman said the deal for the 36 planes was in an advanced stage.

Hollande will be the guest of honour at the Republic Day parade on January 26, in a sign of deepening political and commercial ties. US President Barack Obama was given that honour last year.

Modi will welcome Hollande in Chandigarh, designed in the 1950s by the French architect Le Corbusier. It is one of 100 "smart cities" Modi has designated for rapid development, in which the French will be partners.

The two sides are also discussing a plan by French nuclear company Areva to build six reactors in western India, as part of Modi's push to ramp up nuclear capacity.

But negotiations have been stuck over the price, and French utility EDF's recent takeover of Areva's reactor business has slowed progress.

"EDF will be in the lead now, that is creating a change in the way nuclear negotiations will be conducted," Richier said.

A French diplomatic source said Rafale was far from being the main reason for Hollande's visit, but it would provide an opportunity to move the deal towards completion.
By Peggy Kelly

Santa Paula News

First Christian Church is one of the oldest, if not the oldest wooden churches in Ventura County, completed on the corner of Railroad Avenue and 9th Street in 1900. Designed in the Carpenter Gothic style, the church  Ventura County Historical Landmark #81  has served generations of worshippers since it opened 115 years ago.

And for more than a quarter of that time Beverly Bev Couch has filled the First Christian Church with music.

Beverly finally retired from the keyboard after playing organ at First Christian Church for almost 30 years.

What a great turn out for Bev, said Karen Portluck at the reception held in the musicians honor following Sundays service.

Portluck noted that not only was Beverly the master of the churchs organ but also the churchs unofficial historian who has carefully documented First Christian Church, its members and activities.

Beverly played at services whether regular Sunday, funerals, weddings or special observances for almost three decades, for various ministers, And noted Portluck, she stuck with us through thick and thin, good and bad

Beverly was serenaded, presented with flowers, gift cards and accolades during the reception honoring her long devotion to First Christian Church.

A native Santa Paulan, Beverly started taking piano lessons when she was 7 years old.

My first piano teacher was the pianist of the First Baptist Church, that Beverlys family belonged to.

How I happened to take organ lessons is that a good friend of my family and his wife purchased an organ for the church with the stipulation that I would learn how to play and practice there

She started organ lessons with the late Byron King at about 13 years old.

Soon Beverly was playing at various churches and for a multitude of functions.

I played at the Baptist Church in high school and until my early 20sI would fill in when the organist went on vacation, while the rest of the time Beverly played the piano for the church.

She went to play for another church where she spent 15 years at the keyboard then moved to the Universalist Unitarian Church for five years.

And, During the same time I played three years for a midweek service of the Church of Christian Science of Ventura.

Initially, Beverly was asked to play for First Christian Church services until an organist could be hired: A woman I knew there asked if I was playing anywhere and I told her no but I would just fill in. I started the first Sunday in January 1987, and Officially I ended at the end of Decemberalthough I played last Sunday.
VC Health Care Agency: Rotarians learn gem SP Hospital doing great

By Peggy Kelly

The head of the largest department in Ventura County told Rotarians at a recent meeting that Santa Paula Hospital is not only well but also thriving.

And, it was no easy feat said VC Health Care Agency Director Barry Fisher, who told club members that his father Robert Fisher had been the Superintendent and Principal of the Santa Paula High School District in the 1990s.

The healthcare agency, the largest in the county with about 3,000 employees and a $700 million in operating budget, purchased the shuttered Hospital on the Hill after it went bankrupt in 2003 and reopened the facility three years later.

Santa Paula Hospital is one of my favorite places to go, said Fisher who noted, Its the gem of the valley

When the hospital closed in 2003 it was a huge loss to the Santa Clara River Valley, but the county stepped in and purchased the facility that three days after its July 15, 2006 opening welcomed the first child born there.

The facility is one of the few recognized Baby Friendly facilities in the nation offering tours to expectant families, specialized care and programs before, during and after childbirth.

The hospital has 49 beds  12 in OB and six in ICU  and last year was the scene of 1,600 surgeries in its two operating rooms. A third operating room will be added to the hospital as the county is finding People prefer to come here, for healing enjoying the hospitals scenic views, friendly staff and relaxed feeling.

Its a gem but a hidden gem, that said Fisher is steadily rising in patient popularity.

Patient visits to the Emergency Room have also increased but Wait times are shortyoure in and youre out, its patient care orientated.

The hospital went from an initial loss its first year to a profit of $3 million in 2014, a hefty profit.

Last year the profit was $1.88 million but not due to a lack of business: We had to put more than $1 million in seismic upgrades and that ate into our profit, said Fisher, and the hospital pharmacy will be relocated and expanded.

The Affordable Care Act/Covered California has widened the patient base and offers a range of health care and preventative programs ranging from stopping smoking to preventing falls.

The latter combined with home checks conducted by AMR Ambulance on elderly residents has reduced the number of falls.

The focus of the Affordable Care Act was catching problems early, noted Fisher.

The countys own healthcare plan covers 18,000 people who utilize various clinics and services as well as Ventura County Medical Center and SPH.

In addition, the VCHCA oversees the medical examiners office as well as the animal shelter, the first municipal facility in the state to become no-kill. Santa Paula is home to the nonprofit SPARC shelter, the first in the county to be no-kill.

The countys Family Medical Residency Program  the largest and oldest in the country  is recognized as number one in the nation.

Ambulatory Care is a focus of the health agency with 16 primary care medical clinics, 26 specialty care medical clinics and six urgent care clinics.

In addition the county operates 10 behavioral health clinics, special programs for behavioral health and several public health clinics.

Behavioral health is seeking more participation from the Hispanic community which views mental/emotional illness as a stigma but Fisher said programs such as Project Esperanza at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church is proving effective in getting people to seek treatment.

The agency also operates mobile units including health access and education, tobacco cessation and mammography.

A fully integrated health system similar to Kaiser, Fisher said the hospitalists groups at VCMC and SPH have been joined for greater efficiency.

He complimented the Santa Clara Valley Wellness Foundations Sams SHIP program named for the late Dr. Sam Edwards which selected high school students for summer internships.

He noted the county offered two mobile clinics in December that also offered flu vaccines including a stop at the St. Sebastian Churchs St. Vincent de Paul weekly food program where 500 people received the vaccine.

Overall, said Fisher, We pride ourselves on the quality of all our physicians, all board certified as well as the care given to all, including the low-income on supplemental programs to those with private medical insurance.
Indianapolis, IN -- (SBWIRE) -- 01/22/2016 -- Bastian Solutions will exhibit at the RILA's Retail Supply Chain Conference (Booth #539) from February 28  March 2 at the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center, Dallas, TX. Bastian Solutions will be focusing on order fulfillment solutions and showcase a small AutoStore demo unit. Bastian Solutions will have software, consulting and applications engineers on hand to meet with attendees. Gregg Durham, Vice President Western U.S. and Mike Clemens, Senior Consultant will be on hand to speak with attendees.



To learn more, go to: http://bit.ly/1PwZHDs



RILA's Supply Chain Steering Committee oversees the structure and programming of the annual conference, and is comprised of top logistics/supply chain executives in the retail industry. Each breakout session is designed by a Session Architect from the Steering Committee, who is in charge of developing the content and selecting speakers for their sessionensuring that it reflects the top issues and insights in the industry today.



Following Retail Supply Chain Conference, Bastian Solutions will be exhibiting at the 2016 MODEX show April 4-7, 2016 at the Georgia World Congress Center. Bastian Solutions will be located at booth #3779.



About Bastian Solutions

Bastian Solutions (http://ow.ly/LaOTe), a global material handling systems integrator and expert in e-commerce fulfillment automation is an innovator in the fields of material handling automation, goods-to-person systems, wearable AR technology, supply chain software, and robotics. Bastian Solutions recently announced the acquisition of Forte Engineering. The merge creates a turnkey software suite for beverage distributors and strengthens the companies' overall product offerings and customer support.



Bastian Solutions is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA, with an additional 16 domestic offices and 7 international offices in Australia, Brazil, Canada, India, Mexico, and Qatar. Uniquely positioned, Bastian Solutions offers customers complete and innovative turnkey material handling systems, from design and simulation, all the way through installation and operations. Modern Materials Handling named Bastian Solutions 2015 Top 20 Systems Suppliers Worldwide.



Bastian Solutions provides integrated material handling systems reducing the total cost of order fulfillment and delivery cycle times for its customers; tremendous productivity gains and a quick return on investment are ensured. Automating supply chain logistics with harmony between material flow, information flow, and operational processes, yields a unique and important competitive advantage.



Follow Bastian Solutions on Twitter @BastianSolution.
Fort Lauderdale, FL -- (SBWIRE) -- 01/22/2016 -- According to statistics gathered by RealtyTrac and published by the Miami Herald, South Florida currently holds the number six spot on a list of metro areas in the U.S. with the highest foreclosure rates. Although economic recovery is still underway, about 1 in every 87 homes in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties is currently in the foreclosure process.



It is with these statistics in mind that Florida Cash Home Buyers is introducing their creative financial solutions for homeowners who find themselves facing this kind of debt. It is their aim to use these solutions to positively impact the state of economic recovery in South Florida by giving homeowners alternatives to traditional foreclosure. To learn more about these alternative options, visit http://floridacashhomebuyers.com/.



Omer Reiner, a representative of Florida Cash Home Buyers, stated "Despite the economic progress we are making in South Florida, the foreclosure rate remains high. It's important for homeowners to know that they do have options. Not only do we purchase homes through the expert negotiation on short sales, but we educate home buyers about all of the solutions that are available to them so that they can make the right decision in choosing the best one for their unique situation."



Reiner goes on to say, "Unfortunately, life can throw us some unforeseen blows. When people find themselves in a situation where they may be losing their home, the team at floridacashhomebuyers.com is here to provide them with solutions that can remove heavy burdens and give them greater peace of mind as well as cash in their pocket. Operating with the principles of fairness, honesty, and dependability, we work diligently as a team until problems are solved. As a community-minded organization who wants to be good stewards of company resources, we donate 10 percent of our gross profits to various charitable organizations. We strive to be easy to work with, respecting all individuals and listening to customers, employees, and investors, making sure that we value their opinions."



"Simply put , we have made it our mission to become South Florida's premiere home buying service. In order to achieve that goal, we engineer creative solutions to help solve the problems of homeowners who need to sell their home quickly. Our job is to help those who are looking for solutions to solve their real estate situation. We thrive on creating win-win situations for every person we serve and every deal we make. There is no greater satisfaction than helping someone with their housing situation when they need it."



Those who would like to learn more about South Florida Home Buyers and the solutions they offer can log on to http://floridacashhomebuyers.com/about-us/.



About Florida Cash Home Buyers

Florida Cash Home Buyers was founded in 2011, and, as of November 2015, has processed over $22,000,000 in real estate transactions. The team at Florida Cash Home Buyers attributes their success to hard work, a commitment to treating people properly and fairly, and a proven record of conducting business in an ethical manner. As professionals in the real estate field, Florida Cash Home Buyers has made it their number one priority to become experts at solving problems that today's homeowners face with creative solutions that bring them peace of mind.
Little Rock, AR -- (SBWIRE) -- 01/22/2016 -- iProv, LLC is excited to announce their new partnership with Naptime Academy! Naptime Academy offers research-based online training for Early Childhood Educators.



They are a State Approved venue for contact hours in 11 states. Naptime's unique approach to early childhood education training includes multi-media 30-60 minute courses that address very specific concerns in child care such as "Biting for Preschoolers," "Let's Talk About My Feelings," and "Picky Eaters." The convenient length of the courses means you can achieve your contact hours in manageable chunks during naptime!



Naptime Academy is the product of a research partnership with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), headed by Dr. Patti A. Bokony. Dr. Bokony, as well as being the founder of Naptime Academy, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Family and Preventative Medicine with UAMS. She has been published in several prestigious publications, including The Journal of Pediatric Healthcare, Early Education and Development, and Family Science.



"Working with an institution like Naptime Academy is what iProv is all about," says CEO and President of iProv, LLC, R.J. Martino. "They are a local business, focused on the care and education of our children. I can't imagine a more important mission!" iProv, LLC will be providing digital marketing and social media marketing services for Naptime Academy over the course of the next year.



About iProv, LLC

iProv, LLC is an IT and web development company based in Little Rock, Arkansas, serving small businesses across many verticals using flat-rate, monthly service packages that are custom-designed to meet business goals.



Internet marketing services include custom web design, search engine optimization (SEO), digital advertising, lead generation, social media management, and email marketing. Visit https://iprovonline.com or call 501-235-8194 to learn more.



Contact:

R.J. Martino

iProv, LLC

13503 Kanis Road, Little Rock, AR 72211

(501) 235-8194
Minneapolis, MN -- (SBWIRE) -- 01/22/2016 -- The year 2015 has come to its end, so the MageWorx team has decided to sum up the best results of the company. Furthermore, they have made the summary available to each and every user, who visits their official website so that each client could be aware of the what the company has achieved.



MageWorx is a reputable company, which currently offers advanced Magento SEO and product management solutions that are considered the best in the industry these days. Founded in 2008 in Virginia (the USA), the company quickly developed into one of the most successful teams in its niche. In 2009, they opened another office in Europe, namely in Belarus (Minsk) to make their products available for thousands of customers across the globe. In 2015, they acquired Webtex software and started investing into the development of Savvy Cube-SAAS advanced Magento analytics software. The experts working for MageWorx are sure that this will help to "expand the company into new product niches and strengthen its current positions on the market".



Among the most remarkable events the company has faced in 2015, were the development of Magento 1 and Magento 2 products. The team released seven fully-fledged Magento1 solutions specially designed to meet the needs of Magento store owners. These includes Amazon Fulfillment, Extended Report Option, Advanced Orders Grid, Cross Linking, Orders Editor, Rich Snippets and SEO Meta Templates Magento 1 extensions. Apart from that, 128 updates of Magento1 modules were released, which eventually helped to enrich the product's functionality and magnify their performance.



Speaking about Magento 2 release and development, MageWorx became the pioneer in designing solutions for the new platform version last year. Currently, they have already released four advanced extensions you can read about at http://www.mageworx.com/magento-extensions.html. These Magento extensions include the SEO Suite option, the Sitemap Suite, the Search Suite (Sphinx Integration) as well as the Store and Currency Switcher. Three other solutions are now in the process of development.



During the year 2015, the professional and knowledgeable MageWorx team has expanded to 20 highly-qualified specialists and that it another achievement the company is proud of. These people are capable of customizing and extending Magento products to meet the requirements and needs of clients.



For more information, please, feel free to visit http://www.mageworx.com/



About MageWorx

MageWorx is the US-based company, which focuses on the development and management of Magento SEO products. The company was created in 2008 and has won recognition among their clients since that time. In 2009, a new MageWorx office was opened in Belarus, which made the company's services available for the European clients. Currently, they have a team comprised of 20 professionals, who work hard on the development of advanced Magento solutions and have already succeeded in the process.



Contact Info:

Address: 222 South Ninth Street, Suite 1600, 55402 Minneapolis, MN, USA

Tel.: 612-756-9123

E-mail: sales@mageworx.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mageworx

Twitter: https://twitter.com/mageworxteam

Google +: https://plus.google.com/+Mageworx

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mageworx

Website: http://www.mageworx.com/
Copenhagen, Denmark -- (SBWIRE) -- 01/22/2016 -- In a world where overweight and obesity are on the rise the concern is not only massive for those affected. In many countries as much as 20% of total healthcare spending is used for obesity-related problems. Explaining the numbers related to why a third of the world's population is overweight and more than a third of overweight adults are obese, Patrick Wulf Hanson launches his book  "Obesity Causes and Consequences". The book covers the epidemiology related to obesity, including its worldwide distribution, and presents a "thorough, methodological and comprehensive but at the same time condensed and summarized overview of the pathophysiology, epidemiology and obesity-associated conditions and complications."



Focusing on obesity causes and obesity consequences, Hanson's book was written to increase awareness about the largely neglected condition in an attempt to promote more effective actions related to its prevention and management. Explaining the biological processes of overweight and obesity, Hanson's targeted readers are medical professionals, scientists in this field, students and affected people.



While most people speak up against obesity, very few actually contribute in the fight against the cause. Hanson is one of the people actively contributing towards solutions for obesity related problems. Through "Obesity Causes and Consequences", he also presents how obesity in children leads to complications later in life, for example, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Hanson, himself an obesity crusader, says, "There is no doubt that lack of awareness related to the causes of obesity and limited knowledge about how to manage the condition are major barriers in the global fight against obesity. Obesity affects everyone either directly or indirectly, so everyone also needs to pitch in and act. By increasing your own knowledge you are becoming an active and important part in the fight against obesity."



The book is available in its paperback form on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/dp/1519612168.



About Patrick Wulf Hanson

Patrick Wulf Hanson is a dedicated scientific/medical communicator and project manager with more than 20 years of experience from working in Denmark, Sweden and USA. Patrick has always been able to concretely interpret and describe the most complicated inner workings of the human body and other scientific organisms in a simple and understandable way. In his work, he has covered everything from planning and writing peer reviewed articles, newsletters, detailing and brochures for marketing to more complex medical translations and strategic global projects related to communication concepts with regulators and other authorities.



For information about Patrick Wulf Hanson: www.patrickhanson.dk.



Media Contact: Patrick Wulf Hanson

Phone: +45 26293104

Website: www.patrickhanson.dk

YouTube: https://youtu.be/ixVQZzqjylg
Nayantara Sahgal, among the writers to give back her Sahitya Akademi award in the wake of the Dadri lynching episode

New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi on Friday said some of the writers, including Nayantara Sahgal, have agreed to take back the awards they had returned citing 'growing intolerance' in the country.

"Sahitya Akademi has started sending back the awards to the writers...It has already been sent to Nayantara Sahgal.

Another writer Nand Bhardwaj has also agreed to take back the award. It would be sent to other writers as well," Sahitya Akademi president Vishwanath Prasad Tiwari told PTI.

He said the Akademi is also sending a copy of their resolution, which was passed in the October meeting, to all writers mentioning that there was no provision in its constitution to return the honours.

About 40 writers had returned their awards in the past few months to the Sahitya Akademi in the backdrop of Akademi's silence on the murder of fellow writer M M Kalburgi as well against the "communal" atmosphere in the country following the Dadri lynching incident.

On October 23, Sahitya Akademi passed a unanimous resolution appealing to state and central governments to take steps to prevent such incidents and asked authors to take back the awards they had returned to protest against "rising intolerance".

"The Akademi strongly condemns the killing of writer Kalburgi and appeals to the state and central government to take steps to prevent such incidents in the future,"

Krishnaswamy Nachimuthu, an executive committee board member had said, after the nearly two-hour meeting.

Meanwhile, a culture ministry source said, "There is is a list of 10 writers who have agreed to take back the awards they had returned. Sahgal and Bhardwaj are two confirmed names in the list."

According to the source, Sahgal decided to take back her award, as there is no provision to return the award, while Rajasthani writer Bhardwaj was "satisfied" with the response of the Akademi, condemning incidents of violence against writers.
Birkerd, Denmark -- (SBWIRE) -- 01/22/2016 -- In a world where overweight and obesity are on the rise the concern is not only massive for those affected. In many countries as much as 20% of total healthcare spending is used for obesity-related problems.Explaining the numbers related to why a third of the world's population is overweight and more than a third of overweight adults are obese, Patrick Wulf Hanson launches his book  "Obesity Causes and Consequences". The book covers the epidemiology related to obesity, including its worldwide distribution, and presents a "thorough, methodological and comprehensive but at the same time condensed and summarized overview of the pathophysiology, epidemiology and obesity-associated conditions and complications."



Focusing on obesity causes and obesity consequences, Hanson's book was written to increase awareness about the largely neglected condition in an attempt to promote more effective actions related to its prevention and management. Explaining the biological processes of overweight and obesity, Hanson's targeted readers are medical professionals, scientists in this field, students and affected people.



While most people speak up against obesity, very few actually contribute in the fight against the cause. Hanson is one of the people actively contributing towards solutions for obesity related problems. Through "Obesity Causes and Consequences", he also presents how obesity in children leads to complications later in life, for example, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Hanson, himself an obesity crusader, says, "There is no doubt that lack of awareness related to the causes of obesity and limited knowledge about how to manage the condition are major barriers in the global fight against obesity. Obesity affects everyone either directly or indirectly, so everyone also needs to pitch in and act. By increasing your own knowledge you are becoming an active and important part in the fight against obesity."



The book is available in its paperback form on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/dp/1519612168.



About Patrick Wulf Hanson

Patrick Wulf Hanson is a dedicated scientific/medical communicator and project manager with more than 20 years of experience from working in Denmark, Sweden and USA.Patrick has always been able to concretely interpret and describe the most complicated inner workings of the human body and other scientific organisms in a simple and understandable way. In his work, he has covered everything from planning and writing peer reviewed articles, newsletters, detailing and brochures for marketing to more complex medical translations and strategic global projects related to communication concepts with regulators and other authorities.For information about Patrick Wulf Hanson: www.patrickhanson.dk.



Media Contact:

Patrick Wulf Hanson

Phone: +45 26293104

Website:www.patrickhanson.dk

Youtube: https://youtu.be/ixVQZzqjylg
Boston, MA -- (SBWIRE) -- 01/22/2016 -- Market analysis of diamond mining



Technavios market research analyst predicts the diamond mining industry to grow at a CAGR of around 5% during the forecast period. The increased demand from emerging markets such as China and India for diamond jewelry is driving the growth of this industry. The average amount spent on diamond jewelry by married women is around USD 1500 followed by single women who spent an average of USD 1100 during 2013.



The environmental issues arising due to diamond mining is expected to pose challenges for the growth of the market during the forecast period. Diamond mining uses a variety of mining methods, some of which include the evacuation of large amounts of soil from the earth, causing land unsettlement. The mining activities also lead to the removal of other minerals and huge carbon footprints. As a result, new regulations are being set up to ensure evacuation, stockpiling and return of other minerals to allow the region to come back to its natural state.



Get More Details on this Report and a Full Table of Contents at Diamond Mining Industry 2015-2019



Segmentation by application and analysis of - industry applications, jewelry making



Industrial applications dominated the market during 2014 with a market share of 70%. This research report predicts this segment to reach a market volume of 105 karats by the end of 2019. Small pieces of diamonds are fixed in a saw blade or a grinding wheel for cutting, drilling, or grinding. Powdered diamond is made into a paste and used for polishing.



The report offers an analysis of each of the following segments and discusses its impact on the overall market growth -



Industry applications



Jewelry making



Geographical segmentation and analysis of the diamond mining market



Africa



Australia



Europe



North America



ROW



Africa accounted for 53% of the market share during 2014 and is predicted to retain its leadership until the end of 2019 with a growth rate of 6%. The growth of the diamond industry in this region is due to a large number of mines present in this region. South Africa is the market leader in this region contributing nearly 53% of the revenue.



Competitive landscape and key vendors - ALROSA, De Beers, Rio Tinto, Stornoway, Dominion



The diamond mining market is highly competitive due to the presence of numerous players. The industry has been witnessing consolidation with the smaller entities being acquired by major vendors. Most of the vendors invest heavily in R&D to succeed in this intensely competitive market.



The leading vendors in the market are -



ALROSA



De Beers



Dominion Diamond



Gem Diamonds



Lucara Diamond



Petra Diamonds



Rio Tinto



Stornoway Diamond



Other vendors in the market include Mountain Province Diamonds, Archon Minerals, Lonrho Mining, Diamond Corp, Peregrine Diamonds, Diamcor Mining, True North Gems, Tsodilo Resources, Shore Gold, Paragon Diamonds, North Arrow Minerals, African Consolidated Resources, Debswana Diamond, Koidu Holdings, Mwana Africa, Rockwell Diamonds, and MIBA.



Key questions answered in the report include



What will the market size and the growth rate be in 2019



What are the key factors driving the diamond mining industry



What are the key market trends impacting the growth of the diamond mining industry



What are the challenges to market growth



Who are the key vendors in the diamond mining market



What are the market opportunities and threats faced by the vendors in the diamond mining industry



Trending factors influencing the market shares of the Africa, Australia, Europe, North America, and ROW



What are the key outcomes of the five forces analysis of the diamond mining industry



Technavio also offers customization on reports based on specific client requirement.



Related reports



Global Coal Mining Industry 2015-2019



Jewelry Market in India 2015-2019



Global Precious Metals Market 2015-2019



Global Mining Equipment Market 2015-2019



Global Feldspar Market 2015-2019



Companies Mentioned in this Report: ALROSA, De Beers, Dominion Diamond, Gem Diamonds, Lucara Diamond, Petra Diamonds, Rio Tinto, Stornoway Diamond, Mountain Province Diamonds, Archon Minerals, Lonrho Mining, Diamond Corp, Peregrine Diamonds, Diamcor Mining, True North Gems, Tsodilo Resources, Shore Gold, Paragon Diamonds, North Arrow Minerals, African Consolidated Resources, Debswana Diamond, Koidu Holdings, Mwana Africa, Rockwell Diamonds, and MIBA.



About Fast Market Research

Fast Market Research is a leading distributor of market research and business information. Representing the world's top research publishers and analysts, we provide quick and easy access to the best competitive intelligence available. Our unbiased, expert staff is always available to help you find the right research to fit your requirements and your budget. For more information about these or related research reports, please visit our website at http://www.fastmr.com or call us at 1.800.844.8156.



Browse all Materials research reports at Fast Market Research



You may also be interested in these related reports:



-Precious Metals and Diamond Mining in Australia to 2020

-Precious Metals and Diamond Mining in South Africa to 2020

-Precious Metals Mining in Canada to 2020

-Precious Metals and Diamond Mining in Zimbabwe to 2020

-Precious Metals Mining in Russia to 2020
Valley Cottage, NY -- (SBWIRE) -- 01/22/2016 -- An automotive natural gas vehicle uses compressed natural gas (CNG) or liquefied natural gas (LNG) as an alternative to the diesel or petrol. A natural gas is widely used in lift trucks, buses, light and heavy duty trucks, motorcycles, cars, vans and locomotives.



A natural gas provides an economical and environmental friendly option over diesel or petrol. Currently, the penetration of automotive natural gas vehicle is less globally, but due to its operational advantages, in future the penetration is expected to increase globally.



Automotive Natural Gas Vehicle Market: Drivers and Challenges



Around the world, the governments have issued stringent regulations regarding the emissions and fuel efficiency. The global fossil fuel price has seen an increasing trend over the past 5-10 years. Due to these reasons, there is a growing demand for cheap and environmental friendly fuel alternative. Original equipment manufacturers of vehicles are promoting their products by showcasing the fuel efficiency and emission free features. This factor is fueling the demand for automotive natural gas vehicle market.



Request Free Report Sample@ http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-530



High upfront purchase cost, low awareness in many countries are some of the factors which are inhibiting the growth of automotive natural gas vehicle market.



Automotive Natural Gas Vehicle Market: Overview



Currently, the automotive natural gas vehicle market is still in the nascent state, thought the market experienced growth in sales in last 3-4 years.



The global automotive natural gas vehicle market by volume is expected to expand at a CAGR of around 5-7% during the forecast period (2015-2025), due to stringent government emission regulations and growing demand for fuel efficient vehicles.



Automotive Natural Gas Vehicle Market: Segmentation



The global automotive natural gas vehicle market can be segmented by fuel type, by vehicle type and by regions



Based on Fuel Type, the global automotive natural gas vehicle market is segmented as:



Compressed Natural Gas



Liquefied Natural Gas



Based on Vehicle Type, the global automotive natural gas vehicle market is segmented as:



Passenger



Commercial



Request For TOC@ http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/toc/rep-gb-530



Automotive Natural Gas Vehicle Market: Region-wise Outlook



The global automotive natural gas vehicle market is expected to register a single-digit CAGR for the forecast period. Depending on geographic regions, global automotive energy recovery market is segmented into seven key regions: North America, South America, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, Asia Pacific, Japan, and Middle East & Africa.In terms of market revenue, Asia Pacific automotive energy recovery market is projected to register a significant CAGR during the forecast period. Stable economic growth, growing automotive production, stringent government emission norms, changing consumer preferences, are some of the factors which are fueling the growth of automotive natural gas vehicle market in Asia Pacific. The significant demand for natural gas is from commercial vehicle segment in Asia Pacific. India, China and Iran are forecast to register a significant growth in the Asia Pacific automotive natural gas vehicle market, as these countries have significant network of gas infrastructure and CNG fueling network.



In Europe, countries like Russia and Ukraine have a high demand for natural gas in trucks and buses. The Europe automotive natural gas vehicle market revenue is currently dominated by commercial vehicles. The government policies, subsidies, increasing fossil fuel prices, stringent environmental regulations are fueling the demand for automotive natural gas vehicle in Western and Eastern Europe.



Full Report Analysis@ http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/automotive-natural-gas-vehicle-market



In North America and Latin America, compressed natural gas is seeing the high demand. Currently, U.S.A. is dominating the North America automotive natural gas market by value, on the other hand, Columbia is dominating the Latin America automotive natural gas market by value.



Automotive Natural Gas Vehicle Market: Key Players



Some of the key market participants in global natural gas vehicle market are Ford Motor Company, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, General Motors, Honda Motor Company, Volkswagen, Hyundai Motor Group, etc.
Fort Washington, PA -- (SBWIRE) -- 01/22/2016 -- Today, it is more important than ever for individuals reaching, or who have reached retirement, to have a thorough understanding of the financial world. It is also vital for those planning for retirement to ensure that their financial needs are met. One company that individuals can turn to for hassle-free and thorough retirement planning is Bucks County, PA-based, Secure Retirement Strategies. In fact, this renowned organization is eager to announce that they are taking new clients in need of retirement planning services in the Philadelphia, PA, area, New Jersey, and Delaware, this February.



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Every member of Secure Retirement Strategies functions as a proficient life insurance, long term care, and wealth management advisor. What's more, those searching for estate planning companies should look no further than this remarkable organization as they take a proprietary and methodical approach to make sure that not only their clients are protected, but also their loved ones. Those who are interested in learning more about the retirement planning services they provide can visit the "Services / Education" page of their site.



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To reserve a free consultation with one of their advisors this February, please give them a call at 866-481-5211, or fill out a contact form on their website.



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Secure Retirement Strategies is an independent financial services firm that strives to help people achieve financial security in retirement. They provide personalized financial services to guarantee their clients don't lose money due to market declines.



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A new genus of tree hole breeding frogs has been described and named by a group of scientists led by University of Delhi researcher S. D. Biju.

During fieldwork in four northeastern Indian states, Dr. Biju and his colleagues discovered several populations of tree frogs with unusual characteristics, including tadpoles that feed on the mothers eggs.

To investigate the phylogenetic relationship of these new frogs, they compared molecular data with known tree frog genera.

To clarify the evolutionary position of the Northeast Indian tree hole breeding frogs, we performed phylogenetic analyses of nuclear and mitochondrial gene fragments totaling 3,800 characters for 86 taxa representing all major rhacophorid lineages, the scientists explained in a paper published in the journal PLoS ONE.

Through their analyses, they identified a previously overlooked, yet distinct evolutionary lineage of frogs that the scientists recognize as a new genus.

We demonstrate that these frogs form a distinct evolutionary lineage that warrants recognition as a new genus, and provide a detailed account of their breeding ecology, larval behavior, morphology, and osteology, they explained.

They decided to name this new genus Frankixalus. The proposed English name is Frankys tree frog.

The genus is named after Prof. Franky Bossuyt of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Belgium), as a token of appreciation for his contribution to amphibian research and herpetology education, Dr. Biju and co-authors said.

The generic epithet is derived from the name Franky (used as a noun in the nominative singular) in conjugation with the genus name Ixalus Dumeril & Bibron, 1841, often used as a suffix in rhacophorid generic names. For the purposes of nomenclature, the gender of this genus is male.

The genus currently contains two species, Frankixalus jerdonii and a currently unidentified species.

This genus, which contains the enigmatic Polypedates jerdonii described by Gunther in 1876, forms the sister group of a clade containing Kurixalus, Pseudophilautus, Raorchestes, Mercurana and Beddomixalus.

Frankixalus frogs differ from other tree frogs in breeding, egg laying, and development. This includes having gel-encapsulated eggs, breeding in water accumulated in tree holes, egg laying on walls of tree holes, and tadpoles that devour their mothers eggs.

Since the new genus shows remarkable parental care behavior with specific microhabitat requirements for their survival, populations discovered from highly disturbed forests are already facing extinction threats, Dr. Biju said.

The distinctiveness of this evolutionary lineage is also corroborated by the external appearance, skeletal shape and life history features.

_____

Biju S.D. et al. 2016. Frankixalus, a New Rhacophorid Genus of Tree Hole Breeding Frogs with Oophagous Tadpoles. PLoS ONE 11 (1): e0145727; doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0145727
Researchers have raised the alarm about an overlooked bacterial disease that they say killed 89,000 people in 79 countries in 2015.

In a paper published in Nature Microbiology last week (11 January), researchers say that melioidosis is likely to be present in most of the tropics, including 34 countries where it has never been reported.

The disease is transmitted by Burkholderia pseudomallei, a bacterium that is known to be commonly found in the soil in South-East Asia and Australia, especially in rural areas. It results in a wide range of symptoms including shortness of breath and fever, and kills half those it infects.

The disease is mostly misdiagnosed [as tuberculosis] and treated with inappropriate antibiotics. Chiranjay Mukhopadhyay, Manipal University, India

The researchers say the disease is poorly known, hard to diagnose and resistant to most antibiotics.

There had never been a case of melioidosis reported in Laos until 1999, when a laboratory was set up, says David Dance, a clinical microbiologist at the Lao-Oxford-Mahosot Hospital Wellcome Trust Research Unit in Laos. Since then, 934 cases of the disease have been diagnosed in the country, adds Dance, who cowrote the paper.

Chiranjay Mukhopadhyay, a microbiologist at Manipal University in India, says: The disease is mostly misdiagnosed [as tuberculosis] and treated with inappropriate antibiotics.

India has recently set up lab facilities to identify cases, the paper says. But the country urgently needs a national policy to estimate the disease burden, and also a guideline to diagnose the cases and treat them, according to Mukhopadhyay.

To estimate the number of melioidosis cases worldwide, the scientists compiled all confirmed cases in humans and animals, and mapped places where the bacteria is found. They modelled the most favourable conditions for B. pseudomallei  such as specific soils and high rainfall and temperature  to establish everywhere it is likely to be found.

Countries where melioidosis is known or likely

The evidence provided in the paper is comprehensive and the projections realistic, says Natkunam Ketheesan, a microbiologist and immunologist at James Cook University in Australia, who edited a 2012 book on melioidosis to mark the 100th anniversary of its discovery.

Type 2 diabetes, a major risk factor for melioidosis, is also increasing globally and will impact on the burden of melioidosis, he says. He wants policymakers to make the disease a health priority.

Anastacio Sousa, an infectious disease researcher at the Federal University of Ceara in Brazil, agrees the estimates are convincing.

In places where the disease is studied rigorously, the figures are much higher. Does Australia have lots more cases than Brazil? Probably not, but they detect, diagnose and register melioidosis there. I hope this paper will help healthcare professionals and the health authorities take the disease more seriously.
An international team of researchers has identified a way to predict which reef fish can live across a greater range of depths, increasing their chances of surviving natural disasters such as cyclones and coral bleaching.

Study lead author, Dr Tom Bridge from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at James Cook University, says the research, published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, found that tail shape can help predict if a fish is likely to exist across a range of water depths.

"We found that the 'caudal fin aspect ratio', which measures the shape of the fishes tail, is the best predictor of which fish can live in a range of deep and shallow reefs." Dr Bridge says.

"In other words, fishes with more forked tails are significantly more likely to be found in both shallow and deep habitats than species with more rounded tails."

Dr Bridge says it's not known exactly why this is the case, though it's suspected that the forked tail allows fish to swim more 'silently'.

"The capacity for 'stealth swimming' is particularly important in deeper habitats, where light irradiance and wave energy are low and species rely on sensing changes in water pressure to capture prey and avoid predators."

Coral reefs are typically thought to occur in shallow, sun-lit waters, but new technology is revealing that reefs in the ocean's 'twilight zone', 50-150 m deep, support diverse and unique communities.

However conditions on these deep reefs can be challenging for coral reef fishes, with low light, high pressure, and low temperatures.

Study co-author Dr Osmar Luiz from Macquarie University says species that can survive in the twilight zone may be less susceptible to population declines and extinction.

"Identifying which species can occur over a broad depth range is important for understanding which fish are more vulnerable to local population declines and extinction, particularly from disturbances such as cyclones and coral bleaching events."

The researchers say the next step is to understand exactly what it is about the forked tails that provides fishes such an advantage in deeper water.
Experiencing mixed emotions shows emotional complexity, not indecision, and people living in different parts of the world vary in their ability to distinguish between multiple feelings they're having at once, according to new research.

A project from the University of Waterloo examined how people across 16 cultures vary in their tendency to see situations as either all good or all bad, or in a more complex fashion by seeing a little of both. Previous studies have linked lower emotional complexity with a reduced ability to control one's emotions, and higher incidence of depression.

"People in many western countries see mixed feelings as undesirable -- as if to suggest that someone experiencing mixed feelings is wishy-washy," said Igor Grossmann, a professor in the Department of Psychology at Waterloo, and lead author of the paper. "Actually, we found that both westerners and non-westerners who show mixed feelings are better able to differentiate their emotions and experience their lives in an emotionally rich and balanced fashion."

The research indicates that people living in self-oriented cultures -- such as Canada, the United States, Australia or Great Britain -- were less emotionally complex than people living in other-oriented cultures with a greater emphasis on feelings of duty and familial bonds. People in various parts of Asia and Russia showed considerably more complexity in their emotions. Western Europe and South Africa fell in the middle.

"People in those other-oriented cultures are more likely to experience emotional complexity because they are able to see different perspectives," said Grossmann. "For example, they might see a job loss as disappointing, but also as an exciting opportunity to spend more time with family or to try something new. Someone from a culture that is oriented towards personal achievement is more likely to see it as all negative."

This project involved three studies. One of them used a text-analysis tool to measure the prevalence of mixed emotional expressions in 1.3 million English-language websites and blogs. The other two studies focused on the ways in which people report their emotions across a range of daily experiences, examining whether they report experiencing mixed feelings, and whether they differentiate between different types of positive and negative experiences.

"Across the entire project, the degree to which a culture promotes focus on other people rather than the self, including greater awareness of others, was positively associated with all of the markers of emotional complexity," said Grossmann. "Further, when we looked at individuals who focus on others within each culture, they also showed greater emotional complexity on a personal level."

The paper appears in the most recent issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
Earth has some special features that set it apart from its close cousins in the solar system, including large oceans of liquid water and a rich atmosphere with just the right ingredients to support life as we know it. Earth is also the only planet that has an active outer layer made of large tectonic plates that grind together and dip beneath each other, giving rise to mountains, volcanoes, earthquakes and large continents of land.

Geologists have long debated when these processes, collectively known as plate tectonics, first got underway. Some scientists propose that the process began as early as 4.5 billion years ago, shortly after Earth's formation. Others suggest a much more recent start within the last 800 million years. A study from the University of Maryland provides new geochemical evidence for a middle ground between these two extremes: An analysis of trace element ratios that correlate to magnesium content suggests that plate tectonics began about 3 billion years ago. The results appear in the January 22, 2016 issue of the journal Science.

"By linking crustal composition and plate tectonics, we have provided first-order geochemical evidence for the onset of plate tectonics, which is a fundamental Earth science question," said Ming Tang, a graduate student in geology at UMD and lead author of the study. "Because plate tectonics is necessary for the building of continents, this work also represents a further step in understanding when and how Earth's continents formed."

The study zeros in on one key characteristic of Earth's crust that sets it apart geochemically from other terrestrial planets in the solar system. Compared with Mars, Mercury, Venus and even our own moon, Earth's continental crust contains less magnesium. Early in its history, however, Earth's crust more closely resembled its cousins, with a higher proportion of magnesium.

At some point, Earth's crust evolved to contain more granite, a magnesium-poor rock that forms the basis of Earth's continents. Many geoscientists agree that the start of plate tectonics drove this transition by dragging water underneath the crust, which is a necessary step to make granite.

"You can't have continents without granite, and you can't have granite without taking water deep into the Earth," said Roberta Rudnick, former chair of the Department of Geology at UMD and senior author on the study. Rudnick, who is now a professor of earth sciences at the University of California, Santa Barbara, conducted this research while at UMD. "So at some point plate tectonics began and started bringing lots of water down into the mantle. The big question is when did that happen?"

A logical approach would be to look at the magnesium content in ancient rocks formed across a wide span of time, to determine when this transition toward low-magnesium crustal rocks began. However, this has proven difficult because the direct evidence--magnesium--has a pesky habit of washing away into the ocean once rocks are exposed to the surface.

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Tang, Rudnick and Kang Chen, a graduate student at China University of Geosciences on a one and a half-year research visit to UMD, sidestepped this problem by looking at trace elements that are not soluble in water. These elements--nickel, cobalt, chromium and zinc--stay behind long after most of the magnesium has washed away. The researchers found that the ratios of these elements hold the key: higher ratios of nickel to cobalt and chromium to zinc both correlate to higher magnesium content in the original rock.

"To our knowledge, we are the first to discover this correlation and use this approach," Tang said. "Because the ratios of these trace elements correlate to magnesium, they serve as a very reliable 'fingerprint' of past magnesium content."

Tang and his coauthors compiled trace element data taken from a variety of ancient rocks that formed in the Archean eon, a time period between 4 and 2.5 billion years ago, and used it to determine the magnesium content in the rocks when they were first formed. They used these data to construct a computer model of the early Earth's geochemical composition. This model accounted for how magnesium (specifically, magnesium oxide) content in the crust changed over time.

The results suggest that 3 billion years ago, the Earth's crust had roughly 11 percent magnesium oxide by weight. Within a half billion years, that number had dropped to about 4 percent, which is very close to the 2 or 3 percent magnesium oxide seen in today's crust. This suggested that plate tectonics began about 3 billion years ago, giving rise to the continents we see today.

"It's really kind of a radical idea, to suggest that continental crust in Archean had that much magnesium," said Rudnick, pointing out that Tang was the first to work out the correlation between trace element ratios and magnesium. "Ming's discovery is powerful because he found that trace insoluble elements correlate with a major element, allowing us to address a long-standing question in Earth history."

"Because the evolution of continental crust is linked to many major geological processes on Earth, this work may provide a basis for a variety of future studies of Earth history," Tang said. "For example, weathering of this magnesium-rich crust may have affected the chemistry of the ancient ocean, where life on Earth evolved. As for the onset of plate tectonics, I don't think this study will close the argument, but it certainly adds a compelling new dimension to the discussion."
Hyderabad: National Investigation Agency arrested four terror suspects of ISIS/ISIL in Hyderabad on Friday morning as part of a nationwide crackdown. NIA seized explosives at Tolichowki from one of the suspects identified as Nafeez. Two others have been identified as Majeed and Ubed of Al Kareem colony in Lagarhouse.

TS Director General of Police Mr Anurag Sharma confirmed to Deccan Chronicle that NIA has arrested four suspected linked to ISIS conspiracy case. He however said he couldnt deny or confirm the seizure of the explosives.

NIA had launched a nationwide crackdown in connection with a conspiracy case booked with them RC-14/2015/NIA/DLI with Delhi branch.

A team of NIA officials from Delhi came to Hyderabad and carried searches across the city and picked up suspects from Madhapur, Masab Tank and Gachibowli.

The case was registered on December 9th in 2015 as per the Ministry of Home Affairs orders by Delhi NIA. Arrests were made in three to other four States. A CI cell official said, they are looking for more suspects in Hyderabad,

NIA said, Credible information has been received by Central Government that the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) also known as Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) or Dawlah-al Islamiyah fil-Iraq wa-sh Sham (DAISH), an international terrorist organization has been engaged in radicalization of Indian Youths and motivating them to join the terrorist organization as a result of which some Indian nationals have already joined it or are in the process of joining it for committing terrorist acts in the conflict zone of Iraq, Syria and Libya. The ISIL is also contemplating to expand its activities to other parts of the world including India.
When Charles Darwin visited the Azores islands in the 19th Century, the birds he observed were familiar to him. However, if he had travelled there 500 years before, he would have found an ornithofauna as particular as that of the Galapagos. The recent discovery in these Portuguese islands and in Madeira of five extinct species of rail, which lost the ability to fly due to having evolved on islands, confirms how fragile they are in the face of changes to their habitat like the ones that must have occurred after the first visits by humans over 500 years ago.

In September 1826, the British naturalist Charles Darwin visited the Azores archipelago during the HMS Beagle's return voyage to the United Kingdom after more than four years travelling the world. In his diary he only mentions the existence of starlings, wagtails, finches and blackbirds; however, on the islands also lay the remains of other birds which populated the islands a few centuries before his visit. A new study, published in 'Zootaxa', now highlights the discovery of five extinct rail species, two in Madeira and three in the Azores.

"The species of birds very probably disappeared following the arrival of humans and the animals that came with them, like mice, rats and cats," told Josep Antoni Alcover

Paleontological exploration by Spanish, German and Portuguese researchers has made it possible to "discover new species of birds that very probably disappeared following the arrival of humans and the animals that came with them, like mice, rats and cats," according to Josep Antoni Alcover, a CSIC researcher working at the Mediterranean Institute for Advanced Studies (IMEDEA-CSIC/UIB) and co-author of the paper.

The new species are: the Madeira rail (Rallus lowei), a flightless species with a very stout body; the Porto Santo rail (Rallus adolfocaesaris), graceful and probably not a very able flier; the Sao Miguel rail (Rallus carvaoensis), quite small, stout, flightless and with a somewhat curved beak; the Pico rail (Rallus montivagorum), larger than the Sao Miguel rail (but smaller than the continental species), graceful and with reduced flying capability; and the Sao Jorge rail (Rallus "minutus"), diminutive, relatively stout, with short legs, flightless and which does not have a definitive scientific name.

According to dating obtained from the bones of these birds, or from those of other species found which were associated to them, these five extinct species lived until fairly recently, especially the Azores rails. "At least one of these species survived until the 15th Century, so we are looking at a very recent extinction process," stresses Alcover.

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According to the scientist, in Madeira the extinction may have been related to a possible visit by the Vikings (whether it was a colonisation is still not verified), who could have transported mice to the island. These would have brought about the disappearance of rails and other birds.

"The bone remains of native bird species which are now appearing show that if Darwin had been able to study the fossils hidden on these islands, or if he had visited 500 years earlier, he would have found a much more singular ornithofauna, with many indigenous bird species, like that which was found on the Galapagos islands," Alcover highlights.

Ground-dwelling birds

Today, there are only 13 living rail species of the Rallus genus. "This is because other species, which only lived on islands, have disappeared recently," the expert clarifies. Two or three thousand insular rail species (rallids) are thought to have lived in the Pacific. In the Atlantic, only on the most remote islands, such as Tristan da Cunha and Gough, are there surviving indigenous rail species today; however, in the Antilles, Bermuda and on the islands of Ascension and Saint Helena, extinct species have been found.

The extinct birds found on the islands of Macaronesia "were smaller in size than today's continental rails, such as the water rail (Rallus aquaticus), from which they very probably originate," says Alcover. Fossils uncovered also make it possible to verify that all these species had a reduced flying capability. "Some were completely incapable of regular flight," the researcher reveals.

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While on continents, rails live near water, on islands, they occupy more terrestrial habitats. The reason for this is that in order to live on islands, they evolve differently, to the point where they become indigenous insular species. This evolution implies changes in their size and body proportions and a reduction or complete loss of their ability to fly; this is why they tend to walk.

"For that reason, the rails that reach islands and evolve on them lose their dispersive capacity: they cannot leave the islands and they are trapped in limited insular territories, which is why we observe an extremely reduced distribution area," the scientist explains.

"The history of insular rails is an intense story of evolution, and frequently, extinction," Alcover highlights.

This circumstance also makes them very prone to extinction when there are changes to the islands' ecology (for example, when they are colonised by humans). "The history of insular rails is an intense story of evolution, and frequently, extinction," Alcover says.

The tip of the iceberg of diversity

The fossil remains surfacing on the Madeira and Azores archipelagos represent one part of all the diversity of animals that used to inhabit these islands, and are now beginning to be discovered.

In addition to the five rail species the paper describes, there are other species, for example two indigenous species of scops owl. "This is only the tip of the iceberg of what is to come in terms of knowledge about the ornithological fauna native to these islands," according to the authors.

"The existence in the past of indigenous species of scops owls and rails points to the great magnitude of the devastation birds suffered on Atlantic islands after the arrival of humans and the fauna that came with them," the scientists conclude.
Master Herbs, Inc. issued a voluntary nationwide recalling of all 100 mL bottles of Licorice Coughing Liquid because it discovered to contain morphine that was not indicated on the label on Thursday. The FDA officially released an announcement to recall it and posted the company's press release.

The Pomona, CA-based company is pulling out all of its stocks of the cough syrup after finding out that its content included morphine. Without proper medical advice, taking the opioid morphine could be life threatening, leading to respiratory depression and even death. This puts all its consumers at high risk, particularly those who are hypersensitive to the drug.

It highly warned young children with a respiratory illness as they are especially vulnerable to opioid-related respiratory depression and, as much as possible, do not expose them to the opioid. Also, previous research have associated taking morphine together with other drugs can place patients at high risk. Master Herbs admitted the company is not familiar of the potential adverse effects the cough syrup will cause.

Chinese stores from different US states including New Jersey, Ohio, Nevada, California and Hawaii sell the Licorice Coughing Liquid. The drug label is allegedly displayed in two languages: Chinese and English.

People who have a bottle of this cough syrup at home should immediately stop taking the syrup and return it to the store where they bought it. On the other hand, both retailers and wholesalers were also directed by the company to stop its distribution, sequester those left on shelves and make arrangements for their return.

Master Herbs highly suggests that patients should contact or pay a visit to their physicians in the event they experience or suffer from any symptoms related to the use of the cough syrup. For further questions, you may contact the company via phone at 626-319-9915 or via email at 999herbs@gmail.com.
Taxi-hailing firm Uber is expanding its food delivery service. In the next couple of weeks, the company will be unveiling UberEATS in 10 selected cities across the United States.

Although the lunchtime-only version has been in service in several places, its full launching will extend its food delivery service between 10 AM and 10 PM with a variety of menu from local restaurants. Included in the list of its service are Atlanta, New York City, Seattle, Los Angeles, Houston Dallas, San Francisco, Washington DC, Chicago and Austin.

Aside from that, the firm created a separate app for its food venture, but it resembles just like its car hailing application. After placing the order, Uber's system will send the request to the restaurant and replies an estimated delivery time to its consumer.

After the restaurant is almost done preparing the food, it will contact an Uber driver within the area and allows them to decide either to pick it up or drop it off. Granting there is more than one order within the vicinity, Uber will allow a single trip for all the order, thus allowing the driver to earn bigger delivery fees.

The company revealed that its delivery will be within a 30 to 40-minute time frame, and delivery cost is about $5, depending on the location. Uber will get a percentage of the fee and will also charge the restaurant for every order made.

In Toronto, UberEATS began delivering food since last month. The standalone app allows residents to order from the menu of over 100 restaurants within the city and delivers from 10 AM to 10 PM.

Meanwhile, the company's current lunchtime-only service in the USA only accommodates orders made between 11 AM and 2 PM. Also, its delivery time is much faster at 10 to 15 minutes.

The company allegedly plans to retain the service and rename it "Instant Delivery." However, Uber drivers, instead of getting a percentage from the delivery fee, only gets paid at an hourly basis.
A new performance audit says North Carolinas unemployment office committed too many monetary payment errors in its chief jobless benefits program. The report from State Auditor Beth Woods office released Wednesday examined the North Carolina Unemployment Insurance program for five years through March 2021. Program claims are paid for with state unemployment taxes from employers. Estimates based on samples show $384 million in payments out of nearly $2.2 billion of them were considered improper. That's well above the federal government's 10% threshold. The agency overseeing the Division of Employment Security accepted the findings and said the percentage of improper payments has fallen recently.
I am writing in response to the Jan. 15 letter by J.C. Long that was published in the Morning News (President played the emotion card). Longs argument concerning Obamas cry for gun control and his desire to trample our Second Amendment was outstanding.

But the challenge for one REAL supporter of Hillary Clinton to come forward with a valid argument as to why she should be elected president, many of us are waiting to read. What are her qualifications? Where is her moral character that makes her worthy? How can anyone argue that her handling of Benghazi would make her a good commander in chief of our military?

Where is her honesty and integrity in handling the email crisis? The Clintons believe they are above the law. It has been shown time and time again. Our laws dont necessarily apply to the Clintons. Please, liberals, we dont want arguments why others should not be president. We want your argument as to why Hillary Clinton would make a good president.

KATHARINE SMITH

Hartsville
Hyderabad: An outbound passenger was confiscated with one crore worth foreign currency at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad on Friday.

The passenger, whos identity is not established, was found carrying euros and dirhams worth over one crore and was flying to Dubai by Air Arabia.

Rules stipulate that a passenger flying can carry currency equivalent only to 5000 US dollars in cash and another 5000 US dollars worth travel cheques and bonds. The suspect is being interrogated by the Directorate of Revenue intelligence.
The apex court had stayed the trial of the case before a Fast Track Court in Allahabad in 2006. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday ordered a CBI probe into murder of Bahujan Samaj Party leader Raju Pal in 2005 in Uttar Pradesh.

A bench comprising Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose and Justice Amitava Roy, while allowing the plea of the Pooja Pal, wife of slain leader, asked the probe agency to conclude the probe in the case preferably within six months.

On February 3, 2006, the apex court had issued notice to the then Mulayam Singh Yadav government and CBI in connection with the murder of the BSP legislator who represented Allahabad West constituency in the UP assembly.

The court had also issued notice to then Samajwadi Party MP Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf Ahmed, who were arrested by the police on charge of murder.

In her plea, Pooja Pal had sought a probe into the case by an independent agency citing threat to her life as well as to Raju's mother from the Samajwadi Party.

The court had then directed the Uttar Pradesh Police to provide security to the two.

The petitioner had alleged that it was a political murder carried out at the behest of the Samajwadi Party and claimed that the investigation carried out by the state police had not been fair and impartial and was shrouded in mystery.

The controversial BSP MLA Raju Pal and two others were shot dead and his wife and another person seriously injured by unidentified assailants in Allahabad on January 25, 2005.

The apex court on April 4, 2006, had stayed the trial of the case before a Fast Track Court in Allahabad.

Later, Atiq Ahmed and his brother was arrested and a charge sheet was filed against them for allegedly conspiring to eliminate Raju Pal.
Kochi: After 14 long years, the state government has made its first move to blacklist SNC Lavalin company by issuing show-cause notices to it.

The government issued as many as three notices to the company in compliance with the decision of the government to blacklist SNC Lavalin and their associates.

The company had a happy existence for 14 years even after the Comptroller and Auditor- General of India announced in 2000 that it had caused a loss of Rs 274 crore to the state exchequer.

Though Opposition Leader V.S. Achuthanandan had repeatedly sought to blacklist the company, the UDF government moved in that direction only in January 2014 when it filed an affidavit before Kerala High Court that the state had decided to take steps to blacklist it. Later, the government issued three notices.

According to sources, the company has decided to move the High Court challenging the show-cause notices and the decision to blacklist it.

As per the documents with Deccan Chronicle, the government sent a show-cause on June 10, 2014, a letter on December 10, 2014 and another show-cause on September 28, 2015.

The notices made it clear that the proposed blacklisting was to be in operation for any contracts in future and in perpetuity.

The communication dated December 10, 2014 from the Kerala State Electricity Board to SNC-Lavalin company fixed a date for personal hearing which states that in compliance with the decision of the government to blacklist SNC-Lavalin and their associates, it has been decided to afford an opportunity of personal hearing to the company.



The show-cause notice issued by the KSEB on June 10, 2014 states that the government had decided to blacklist the company.

Therefore, the KSEB was under instructions to take immediate steps for the compliance of the said decision.

The notice specifically made references to the controversial Malabar Cancer Centre project for an action of blacklisting.

The show-cause notice also pointed to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by the company for establishment of the MCC.

Interestingly, the CBI had submitted before the CBI Special Court , Thiruvananthapuram, that the proposal to set up a cancer hospital at Thalassery in Kannur district in return for awarding the Canadian firm a fixed price rate contract to modernise three hydroelectric projects in the state at an exorbitant cost of Rs 374 crore was the brainchild of CPM leader Pinarayi Vijayan.

Mr Pinarayi was later discharged from the case by the trial court and the revision petition challenging the acquittal is pending before the High Court now.
The state-owned shipbuilding group projected a 2015 deficit of RMB2.5bn ($380m) to RMB2.8bn, it announced to the Shanghai Stock Exchange. The anticipated net loss compared to a profit of RMB2.28bn in 2014.

CSIC said that the global shipbuilding market is facing a challenging operating environment with low newbuilding orders and declining contract prices. The falling crude oil prices have also led to reduced demand for offshore vessels and equipment.

Meanwhile, CSIC is believed to be in talks with compatriot China State Shipbuilding Corp (CSSC) over a merger deal, as part of Beijings efforts to consolidate the shipbuilding industry suffering from excess capacity and low utilisation.
Thiruvananthapuram: A resident of Kochuthura has accused the government of denying super speciality treatment to victims of Tirunelveli bus accident who were shifted from a private hospital to Medical College Hospital casualty on January 17.

Hours after the mishap on January 8, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy had declared before television cameras that free and excellent treatment would be given to all those who were seriously injured after a Volvo bus returning from Karakkal toppled at Tirunelveli.

After several rounds of surgeries, two of the victims, Raju Avarachan and his wife Jenny Raju, were shifted out unceremoniously from a private hospital, alleges an FB post by their acquaintance Shyam Athony.

Jenny Raju

On January 17, without the knowledge of relatives, the family was discharged and taken into an ambulance. The relatives who reached there were told that the duo was being taken to Medical College Super Speciality wing for treatment, a Facebook post by Mr Anthony said.

On reaching the hospital, officials said that the beds in multi-speciality were full. The victims were shifted to casualty wing.

Mr Raju has lost one hand and has very serious head injuries. Jenny also sustained serious injuries while their daughter lost a leg and underwent surgeries on intestine, sources said. Presently relatives shell out money for the treatment of the family.

When contacted, a senior health department official said the government would take care of their initial treatment costs as promised.

Four people including the said family were admitted to SUT hospital and the treatment bill came to around Rs 19 lakh after the hospital waived some charges. Government is yet to decide on the continuing expenses. The patients are presently out of danger but their treatment can stretch for a long period and hence they were shifted. Raju is serious while others are sure to resume normal life," he said.
KOZHIKODE: What does politics have to do with literary awards? Plenty, one may guess, but never for one to see. But if writer C Radhakrishnan and Akhila Kerala Ezhuthachan Samajam can be believed, the decision on Ezhuthachan Puraskaram, the States highest literary prize, was swayed by flaunting the

community vote.

Radhakrishnan has alleged that he was denied the prize due to the threat by the Samajam, a community organisation.

The award was denied after the Samajam leaders met culture minister K. C. Joseph and threatened him that the community would vote against the UDF if he was selected for the award, the author told DC.

The Samjam was angry that Radhakri -shnan portrayed Ezhu- thacahan as a Nair in Theekadal Kadanju Thiru- maduram, his fictional biography of the father of modern Malayalam.

Ever since I wrote the book, I have been under attack from the Samajam, the writer said. Its leaders met the culture minister, president of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi, director of the State Institute of Languages and vice-chancellor of the Malayalam University and warned them against giving me the award.

Prof T. B. Vijayakumar, the general secretary of the Ezhuthachan Samajam, admitted that they met the minister in December.

The award would have gone to Radhakrishnan but for our intervention. We have produced a truckload of facts to substantiate our claim, he said.

We told the minister that the 18-lakh-strong community members will vote against the UDF if the award was given to Radhakrishnan. We have a say in 10 constituencies, Prof Vijayakumar added.
Hyderabad: Major pipe bomb blasts and Paris style attacks were averted in the city as the NIA took four terror suspects linked to the ISIS module into custody in Hyderabad and seized explosives, gunpowder and ammonium nitrate.

The NIA officially arrested Mohammed Nafees Khan alias Fatima Khan alias Abu Zarrar alias Akram, 24 and Mohammed Shareef Moinuddin Khan, 54, an electricity worker. Both are residents of Tolichowki in Hyderabad.

Two other suspects identified as Mohammed Obaidullah Khan, 33, a resident of Tolichowki, and Abu Anas, 27, a native of Rajasthan, were arrested.

Read: Suspects not on Telangana cops radar

The NIA sleuths seized gunpowder, ammonium nitrate weighing 2 kg, a pipe (possibly to be used for making pipe bombs), timer and a booklet and videos on making explosive devices and Jihadi literature from them.

NIA grills Obaidullah, Abu Anas in custody

Telangana state Director General of Police Anurag Sharma confirmed to this newspaper that the NIA has taken four suspected terrorists linked to ISIS conspiracy case into custody.

NIA is still grilling Obaidullah and Abu Anas in custody and their arrest is not formalised yet.

Read: Hyderabad TWG staff shocked at Abu Anass arrest

Another police official said, Though overall NIA had taken 14 suspects into custody only five have been arrested so far. Improvised Explosive Device making material, mobile phones, laptops, cash and videos have been seized. They were working on procuring more explosives, weapons, identifying locations to organise training camps, including training of firearms, motivating new recruits to target police officers, foreigners in India and to carry out terrorist activities in various parts of the country.

Police said they had not procured fire arms so far. The NIA had launched a nationwide crackdown in connection with a conspiracy case booked with them RC-14/2015 /NIA/DLI with the Delhi branch. The case was registered on December 9, 2015, according to the ministry of home affairs orders by the Delhi NIA. Arrests were made in three to four other states. A CI cell official said, They are looking for more suspects in Hyderabad.

Read: NIA picks up 14 across country in ISIS crackdown

NIA said, Credible information has been received by the Central government that the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) also known as Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) or Dawlah-al Islamiyah fil-Iraq wash Sham (DAISH), an international terrorist organisation has been engaged in radicalisation of Indian youths and motivating them to join the terrorist organization as a result of which some Indian nationals have already joined it or are in the process of joining it for committing terrorist acts in the conflict zone of Iraq, Syria and Libya.

Read: Four held in Bengaluru, IS threat deadly real!
Press Release

January 22, 2016 Bam Eyes to Strengthen Barangay Governance In reforming the country, we need to start from the first step - reform our barangays. With this in mind, Sen. Bam Aquino has filed a measure seeking to strengthen governance in the country's more than 42,000 barangays to help unlock national progress. "To ensure an effective and inclusive government that promotes the active participation of its citizens, it is imperative that we strengthen barangay governance," Sen. Bam said in his Senate Bill No. 3085. According to Sen. Bam, the key to unlocking national progress lies in the government's ability to reach out to each individual in every barangay. "The success of a government initiative is measured by its impact on communities and on the lives of our countrymen, especially the Filipinos who suffer from poverty and those that live in remote areas often forgotten," the senator said. The measure aims to strengthen barangay governance by providing barangay officials and volunteers transformative capacity building, sufficient financial empowerment, and continuity of service. "Apart from attending to the basic needs of the community and delivering various government services, barangay officials and volunteers also facilitate citizen empowerment and engagement so that leaders are responsive to the true needs of the citizens they serve," Sen. Bam explained. In the proposed measure, the payment of honorarium of one barangay health worker and 20 tanods in each barangay in the country will be nationalized, relieving barangays of some financial duties. The move will free up space in the Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) of barangays, giving them more budget to spend for social programs, projects, personnel services. The measure requires the national government to conduct trainings for barangay officials, barangay health workers, and barangay tanods to make them more effective in serving their constituents. The measure will also change the term limits of barangay officials from three years with a three consecutive term limit to five years with a two consecutive term limit. Aquino said proposed reforms under this bill uphold the principle of local autonomy enshrined in the Constitution and advocate decentralization as declared in the Local Government Code of 1991. A counterpart measure has been filed by Liberal Party (LP) vice presidential candidate and Camarines Sur 3rd District Rep. Leni Robredo in the House of Representatives.
Press Release

January 22, 2016 Vista Land Inaugurates Floating Village in the South of Manila Vista Land and Lifescapes, in partnership with Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA), Department of Public Works & Highways (DPWH) and Dutch construction company Dura Vermmer with KingspanUnidek, will be inaugurated on Friday (January 22) a floating village project called 'Vintahanan' in Laguna Lake. The 'Vintahanan' project was conceptualized by Manuel Paolo A. Villar, the chief executive officer of Vista Land and Lifescapes, Inc., as part of the company's corporate social responsibility (CSR), throught its operating subsidiary Camella Homes. "Vintahanan" is derived from the words "vinta" or a type of boat and "tahanan" or home. The floating houses or "vintahanan" were built to serve as a model of a floating village with proper waste management system in place. It is composed of four 22-square meter bungalow residential units or houses, an information center that will serve as its office, and an event center that will be a venue for activities or functions. The floating houses or vintahanan are designed to float on flood water and when the water rises, they rise. The structure is fastened to 15-foot-long mooring posts with sliding rings, allowing it to float upwards during flooding. "The floating village and the pioneering technology utilized in building are perfect for an archipelagic country like the Philippines, one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change. It is an effective way of mitigating the damaging effects of climate change, particularly massive flooding and rising sea levels," said Villar. As the country's biggest home builder, Villar added, Vista Land is well-positioned to be at the forefront of new innovations. Vintahanan is considered to be a showcase or model that can be duplicated in other flood-prone communities in the Philippines. Vintahanan is located in Laguna Lake, Lakefront, Barangay Sucat, Muntinlupa.
Hyderabad: Complaints by Dalit students relating to caste discrimination in the University of Hyderabad over time fell on deaf ears. Though there were instances of some meritorious Dalit students scoring over 80 per cent marks in one semester being awarded just pass marks in the next semester and Dalit students lodging complaints against professors resorting to caste discrimination, the university failed to initiate stern action against any professor.

In some cases, the university rectified the evaluation errors and awarded higher marks to Dalit students after inquiry but no action was initiated against professors responsible for this. B. Anand, a Dalit and a PG student in Economics scored 83 per cent marks in the first semester and was in the list of students competing for gold medal. Shockingly, he got only 52 per cent marks in the second semester leading to protests from Dalit students, who alleged that he was deliberately awarded lower marks by some professors from upper castes to scuttle his chances of becoming a gold medallist.

Read: Hyderabad scholar death: Fugitive vice-chancellors photo circulated

Similarly, V. Vijay Kumar, a Dalit student pursuing masters in sociology, qualified four times in the UGCs NET. But the sociology professor had failed him in a subject due to which he could not submit the thesis so far. The student lodged a complaint with university administration, which inquired into the issue and found that he had actually passed the exam and declared him passed. Despite this, no action has been initiated against the professor.

Dalit Ph.D scholar Madadri Venkatesh, who committed suicide in Nov.ember 2013, was also a victim of caste discrimination on campus. While the university had not named any faculty as guide to monitor his research work, a general candidate was given a guide at the time of selection itself. After repeated requests a guide was allotted who was set to retire in two years against the norm of three years. During this period, Venkatesh could not complete his research work. When he sought a new guide, he asked him to start research afresh causing mental agony to the student.

Read: Hyderabad scholar death: HRD ministry orders judicial probe

In the case of Ph.D student M. Senthil Kumar, who committed suicide in 2007, he failed in statistical mechanics. We have inquired into several of these cases and submitted a report to the university administration. But there has been no concrete action from their side, said Prof V. Krishna.

UoH to give Rs 8 lakh ex gratia to Rohiths family

In a reconciliation move, UoH on Friday announced an ex gratia of Rs 8 lakh for deceased UoH scholar Rohith Vemulas family. This, however, was below the expectations of the Joint Action Committee for Social Justice. A combative member of the JAC said: The ex gratia amount is too little and an insult. Rohith would soon have been working in a good position somewhere if he was alive, and earning a lot more. We can collect the Rs 8 lakh and give it to the university or its VC. Our demand is for Rs 50 lakh which is the least the UoH can give.

Condition of students on fast worsens

Health of seven students on an indefinite hunger strike was deteriorating as the agitation in the aftermath of the Rohit Vemula death continued on UoH campus on the third day.

Read: Exclusive well constructed in University of Hyderabad

UoH doctors said BP of the fasting students was fluctuating and their health deteriorating. Police was considering the possibility of forcibly shifting the students to hospital. The hunger strike started on Wednesday. Their BP is fluctuating and their health is deteriorating. Condition might worsen by tomorrow, said UoH doctor Capt. Ravindra Kumar. We are conducting check-up every two hours, he said. Meanwhile, the students said they would not end the hunger strike until their demands were met. We will continue our strike till the VC is ousted, said K. Krishnaiah, one of the students. Gachibowli police is monitoring the situation closely.
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The driver of a San Francisco tour bus that struck and killed an 82-year-old man on Saturday afternoon in the Western Addition was cited for misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter on Thursday, police said.

Vincent Jones, 61, was found at fault for the collision and violated a city code prohibiting drivers from narrating during tours, said Officer Grace Gatpandan, a San Francisco police spokeswoman.

Moments before the 1 p.m. crash, several witnesses yelled and honked horns to warn Jones as he rammed into retired San Francisco Unified School District teacher Pieter Roell, police said.

The Hop-On-Hop-Off tour bus moved for several feet after striking Roell as he crossed Post Street at Divisadero Street. Witnesses said Roell may have been crossing against a red light.

Frank Zarich, a former San Francisco police officer, witnessed the accident and said Roell was waving his arms at the bus when it hit him.

He was pronounced dead at the scene from severe head trauma.

Lawmakers have pushed for more regulation of tour buses following other incidents.

A City Sightseeing double-deck bus injured 20 people, some critically, after it crashed into scaffolding near Union Square on Nov. 23. Legislators announced proposed legislation requiring more comprehensive inspection protocols for tour buses.

In 2014, a Classic Cable Car Charters bus struck and killed a 68-year-old city employee at a crosswalk in front of City Hall. After that crash, the Board of Supervisors approved a law in 2015 barring drivers from narrating their own tours.

The driver, Raymond Lucas, 65, was also cited for misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter.

Staff writer Jaxon Van Derbeken contributed to this report.

Jenna Lyons is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: jlyons@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JennaJourno
Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

A United Airlines flight from San Francisco partially slid off the end of a runway in Chicago Friday, prompting an emergency evacuation of 185 people aboard, none of whom were injured, authorities said.

United flight 734 landed in snowy conditions at OHare International Airport around 12:15 p.m. local time, a Chicago Fire Department spokesman said, and as it approached the north end of the runway, its front landing gear slid into a grassy area.
A gay San Francisco man sued his late husbands union pension fund Friday for refusing to recognize their marriage and pay him a widowers pension benefits.

Robert Pritchard, a hospice nurse, and Thomas Conwell, a hotel telecommunications engineer, wed in 2008 after the state Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in California. When Conwell died of a brain disease in February 2012, the pension plan of his union, Stationary Engineers Local 39 of the International Union of Operating Engineers, told Pritchard that Conwell had been single at the time of his retirement and death under the plans terms.

But the lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Francisco, said the pension plan expressly defines a spouse as a person to whom a participant is legally married, without reference to gender.

Pension plan officials invoked the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which defined marriage as the union of a man and a woman and denied federal benefits to same-sex spouses. But Pritchards lawyers said DOMA hadnt applied to private pension plans even before the U.S. Supreme Court declared the law unconstitutional in June 2013.

While DOMA has been the source of extreme discrimination against LGBT people and their families, it provides absolutely no defense in this case, said one of Pritchards lawyers, Amy Whelan of the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

In a statement released through his lawyers, Pritchard said, My husbands death is the worst thing that ever happened to me. ... My family is just like other families, and no one should be denied rights because of who they are.

Lawyers for the pension fund could not immediately be reached for comment.

The couple met in 2005. They quickly became inseparable, their lawyers said, and worked together on historic preservation projects, including an unsuccessful effort to save the Sacred Heart Church in the Western Addition neighborhood.

Conwell had worked at the San Francisco Hilton Hotel for more than 30 years, as a union member, when he took disability retirement in July 2011. His lawyers said Pritchard accompanied him when he applied in person for a disability pension that month and made their marital status clear on the application form.

Everybody knew they were married, said attorney Julie Wilensky of the Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center. To be told (later) that they were single and to be denied benefits was traumatic.

The plan paid Pritchard $14,641.52, the annuity Conwell was owed for the seven months between his retirement and his death, but denied him spousal benefits, the suit said. Wilensky said those benefits should amount to about $900 a month for the lifetime of Pritchard, who is in his mid-50s.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @egelko
Local wind and rain, coupled with the massive blizzard bearing down on the East Coast, were already making for a messy day at some Bay Area airports with nearly 100 cancellations reported in San Francisco early Friday and long delays expected later in the day, officials said.

By 8:30 a.m., 58 departing and 39 arriving flights had already been canceled at San Francisco International Airport mostly due to weather along the Eastern seaboard. The main airports being effected were in Washington, D.C., Newark, Charlotte and Philadelphia, said Nancie Parker, a duty manager at the SFO.
The Rockefeller Foundation announced at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland on Thursday that it is kicking off a $130 million campaign to reduce food waste around the world. The wide-ranging plan will stretch from thrown-out crops to excess food at the dinner table.

The century-old foundation, which has already taken on challenges like making cities more resilient to the challenges of the 21st century, has estimated that food waste represents a $1 trillion drain on the global economy, stretching from farmers in developing countries to multinational corporations.

And that amount of wasted food, the foundation believes, could feed more than 1.5 billion people.

The idea is that if you could really reduce food waste across the value chain, you could feed people across the planet, Judith Rodin, the foundations president, said in an interview. This is a people play, a profits play and a planet play.

Earnings

Fuel fueling

airline profits

Lower fuel prices are boosting airline profits and leaving enough left over for passengers to get slightly lower fares.

United Continental Holdings Inc. and Southwest Airlines Co. reported Thursday that fourth-quarter earnings soared as fuel spending dropped by about one-third, saving them hundreds of millions of dollars.

Both airlines announced plans to buy more planes and reward shareholders by purchasing more of their own stock, which makes remaining shares more valuable.

United and Southwest executives said demand remains strong, but they conceded that a dip in fares that began in 2015 is extending into the new year.

Starbucks

sales strong

An alleged war on Christmas by Starbucks apparently didnt dampen the chains holiday sales, but its outlook fell short of Wall Street expectations.

The Seattle company said Thursday that sales rose 9 percent in its flagship U.S. market during the final three months of the year. The jump was the result of an increase in customer visits as well as spending on items like breakfast sandwiches.

The higher sales came despite an online backlash from some corners when Starbucks unveiled its minimalist red cups for the holidays bearing only its logo. That was a change from past years, when the companys holiday cups were decorated with reindeer, snowflakes and Christmas ornaments.

Its performance overseas was weaker. In Western Europe, the company said it noticed a dramatic decline in consumer and tourist activity after the terrorist attacks in Paris in November. Sales for the unit including Europe, the Middle East and Africa rose 1 percent at established locations, down from growth of 5 percent in the prior quarter.

We have quite recently begun to see the effects of that regions resilience and recovery, the company said in an e-mail.

For its Asia region, Starbucks said sales rose 5 percent, down from 6 percent the previous quarter. The company said it did not expect a material impact from the attacks this month in Indonesia that resulted in temporary store closures.

During a conference call with analysts Thursday, CEO Howard Schultz also expressed confidence in the companys long-term investment in China, where it already has about 2,000 stores and plans to have 3,400 by 2019.

Taxes

IRS warns

about scams

The Treasury Department has a message for taxpayers getting calls from the IRS demanding immediate payment: Hang up.

Those aggressive, threatening calls are coming from phone scammers. And they are successful, too, costing more than 5,000 victims more than $26.5 million since October 2013. About 900,000 scammer contacts were reported during that period.

The callers fraudulently claim to be IRS officials and demand that taxpayers immediately send them payment. They often have some information about the person theyre calling and threaten criminal charges unless immediate payment is made.

This scam has proven to be the largest of its kind that we have ever seen, said J. Russell George, Treasury Department inspector general for tax administration.

It is critical that all taxpayers continue to be wary of unsolicited telephone calls and e-mails from individuals claiming to be IRS and Treasury employees.

The agency has responded with public service announcements reminding people that the IRS sends letters rather than calling taxpayers.

Recalls

Big flaw in

kid car seats

Britax Child Safety is recalling about 71,000 child car seats in the United States because the carrying handle may break, allowing the infant carrier to be dropped, the company reported Thursday in a regulatory filing.

The company said the problem affects some B-Safe 35, B-Safe 35 Elite and B-Safe 35 Travel System models manufactured between Oct. 1, 2014, and July 1.

Chronicle News Services
Dov Charney, the colorful ousted founder of American Apparel, appeared in Bankruptcy Court on Thursday to make a last-ditch effort to wrest back control of the company, accusing former partners of stealing away his multimillion-dollar empire and declaring that his new alliance with investors is the only way to save it.

There was a plan behind the scenes to steal the company from me, Charney said. Since then, its been a constant hide-the-ball.
No matter what grandma might have warned, simple exposure to frosty winter air wont lead to getting the flu.

But going to the office might.

Doctors suspect the workplace ranks among the biggest culprits in spreading the virus. Nausea and other symptoms force Americans to take nearly 111 million sick days a year, contributing to about $7 billion in productivity lost to the annual flu season, federal data show.

Businesses and workers can tackle the spread of the flu before anyone so much as coughs, said John Challenger, CEO at the Chicago outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. He suggested implementing telecommuting policies that let mildly ill employees work from home, along with more traditional provisions allowing sick time.

Many people arent so sick that they cant or dont want to do any work. They often can do some of the most important work while theyre home and ill  and they dont really mind, Challenger said.

For the workplace itself, he recommended routine disinfection of keyboards, doorknobs and other surfaces. Fewer meetings, more shifts and more use of videoconferencing also can cut down in-person contacts, reducing flu risks, Challenger said.

Anytime you have people working in close proximity of each other, it increases your chances of picking up the disease, said Heather Rosen, medical director at a University of Pittsburgh Medical Center urgent care clinic. She said those with flu symptoms might want to avoid shaking hands with anyone.

The respiratory droplets can be passed. If you cough and you have them on your hands, you can pass them on to the other person, Rosen said.

At Greentree Medical Associates, lead physician Jennifer Preiss said those infected are especially contagious in the first three days of flu symptoms, which include fever, coughs and muscle aches. She encourages people to cough into their elbows.

I think if someone said they didnt want to shake hands, I wouldnt push it, Preiss said.

Still, she said, it might be extreme for a healthy person to halt all hand-shaking for the sake of flu season. It also could strain social ties.

I find that to be a bit offensive and overstepping, if you will, said Jacquelyn Flesner, a certified business etiquette trainer who started the Etiquette Network. It falls into that category that, Im so concerned about my health and well-being that I wont even extend you the classic courtesy of shaking your hand.

Clinicians agree that annual flu shots are the best method to prevent an office epidemic. Nearly 44 percent of adults nationwide were inoculated for the last season.

Employers can buoy that rate by offering in-house vaccination clinics or giving workers time to be inoculated elsewhere, said Joseph Bresee, an epidemiology chief at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. Early projections indicate the shot should be about 60 percent effective this season in preventing the flu nationwide.

What weve found is that people are more likely to be vaccinated if its easy for them to be vaccinated, Bresee said.
Distressed homeowners who, with their lenders approval, arrange a short sale of their property  for less than they owe  cant be sued for the balance of their debt, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday.

The unanimous decision protects borrowers who increasingly resorted to short sales as property values fell at the end of the last decade. The Legislature amended state law in 2012 to provide them explicit protection against deficiency judgments, but a lawyer for the borrower in Thursdays case said that about 200,000 Californians had conducted short sales in the previous five years and were potentially affected by the ruling.

The little guy won today, said the attorney, Andrew Stilwell.

His client, Carol Coker, borrowed $452,000 in 2004 to buy a condominium in San Diego County. She fell behind on her payments, and in March 2010 JPMorgan Chase Bank, which then held the loan, sent her a default notice and began foreclosure proceedings.

The bank then agreed to allow Coker to sell the condo to another buyer for $400,000, collect the proceedings and release its lien on the property. But after the sale, the bank billed her for the $116,000 balance due on her loan.

The state law at the time, originally enacted in 1933 and amended in 1989, prohibited a bank from seeking a deficiency judgment, for the balance due on its loan, after the bank itself foreclosed on a home. But the law did not address short sales, which were rare until the late 2000s, and JPMorgan Chase argued that the antideficiency rule did not apply to those cases.

But the court said the rationale of the law applied equally to short sales.

For more than half a century, this court has understood the statute to limit a lenders recovery on a standard purchase-money loan to the value of the security, Justice Goodwin Liu said in the 7-0 decision.

Liu said the law was intended to maintain economic stability and protect property buyers from severe losses during periods of economic decline.

Cokers short sale of the condo  which she bought as a residence, rather than an investment  did not change the standard purchase-money character of her loan, Liu said. He said the short sale, like a foreclosure sale, allowed Chase to realize and exhaust its security in the property.

Stilwell said the ruling would also affect cases in federal Bankruptcy Courts in California, which rely on state laws affecting creditors and debtors.

The Supreme Court shut the door on banks trying to go too far to take advantage of the poor, the middle class, people who couldnt afford what they got into in this real estate debacle, he said.

The banks lawyers referred inquiries to bank headquarters in New York, which could not be reached for comment late Thursday.

The case is Coker vs. JPMorgan Chase, S213137. The ruling can be viewed here: www.courts.ca.gov/opinions/documents/S213137.PDF.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @egelko
Professor students and watchman of the quarters say he wanted the well for the ritual bath and other spiritual routine.

Hyderabad: As an instance of upper caste hegemony in the University of Hyderabad, dissenting voices point to an exclusive well dug for a Brahmin professor in the staff quarters campus.

A prominent professor of the Mathematics Department, who left UoH three years ago after his retirement, had constructed the well for his spiritual purposes. His students and watchman of the quarters say he wanted the well for the ritual bath and other spiritual routine. The professor, the brother of a priest in a famous South Indian temple, did not allow anybody to come inside his compound.

The UoH staff, who have joined the agitation, say that they had no complaint against the professor for performing his rituals since it was a personal matter. They say that they respected his right to practice his religion. But, they wonder how he could he alter the infrastructure of the varsity for his spiritual purposes.

We do not know if the well was constructed with permission from the university or without any nod. In both cases, it is not acceptable. How could the then administration give permission to dig a well for personal use. If he did not have permission, how could he construct it, asked Professor S. Ramudu.

After the professor vacated his house, (7A-teachers quarters), the well is in disuse. The new occupants have closed it and are using water from the common water line. When the maths professor used to live here, he only used water from the well and they did not use the common water line. He did not allow others to take water from it, said P. Yadgiri, watchman.

However, students say that the professor was not so regressive in his public life. We have heard that he did not allow people inside his house and we saw him with sandalwood paste across his forehead and always sporting a kudumi. But, he did not keep images of Gods in his office room as he considered it a public space. We know that he never drank water from outside. But he never appeared prejudiced while teaching us, said a ex-student, who did not want to be named.
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Property crimes in San Francisco increased 17 percent last year over 2014, driven by a sharp spike in car break-ins, police said Thursday.

Thefts from vehicles shot up 34 percent to a total of 26,491 in 2015, compared with 19,827 in 2014, said Cmdr. Toney Chaplin.

It was a continuation of a trend that has been under way for several years. Last years total was 150 percent higher than the 10,369 car break-ins reported in San Francisco in 2011.

In briefing a Board of Supervisors committee on the numbers, Chaplin said, The increase of these auto burglaries is because these are the lowest of the low-hanging fruits. Its the easiest crime for you to perpetrate. You dont need much to do it.

Such break-ins hit a monthly peak in July, when 2,630 were reported. It was the same month 32-year-old Kathryn Steinle was fatally shot on Pier 14, allegedly by a man using a gun that had been stolen from a federal agents car.

Since then, Chaplin said, the number of monthly car break-ins has declined by 33 percent. The drop coincided with the Police Departments formation in August of a task force, made up primarily of plainclothes officers, that focuses on property crimes.

The number of cars reported stolen in the city also increased last year from 2014, by 13 percent to 6,915.

As with car break-ins, car thefts have risen steadily. Last years total was up 65 percent from the 4,174 thefts reported in 2011.

One comparative bright spot was the number of other property-related larcenies and thefts. Those were up 2 percent last year, to 14,232, but that still represented a 26 percent decline from 2013.

Burglaries ticked down 1 percent in 2015, to 5,169, while robberies jumped 11 percent, to 3,621.

Many of the property crimes were reported in the boards District Six, which encompasses the booming South of Market neighborhood as well as the Tenderloin. Chaplin noted that the area is a hub, with plenty of unattended cars and people with expensive phones for thieves to target.

While property crimes were up last year, arrests dropped slightly. The arrest total of 3,477 last year was down from 3,513 in 2014.

Chaplin said car break-ins are among the toughest crimes to solve, because they often happen on empty streets with few witnesses and little or no surveillance-camera footage. Some car owners dont discover their loss for days.

Besides the task force it formed in August, Chaplin said, the Police Department is stepping up efforts to identify property-crime hot spots and times when thieves are especially active. The strategy then is to saturate a problem area with officers.

Chaplin said investigators are also working with other units and Al Capone-ing it  a reference to the gangster who was finally imprisoned not for his violent crimes, but for tax evasion.

Some of the guys weve identified as auto burglars are also involved in narcotics trafficking and human trafficking, Chaplin said. We may not be able to get them for the auto break-ins, but we can get them for other crimes.

Many police officials have blamed the rise in property crimes on Proposition 47, which reduced nonviolent property and drug crimes to misdemeanors. State voters approved the measure in November 2014.

Supervisor Aaron Peskin, however, pointed out that property crimes were already on the rise by then.

Four years of growth has happened before Prop. 47, he said. This is clearly a trend that has been happening for half a decade.

Vivian Ho is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: vho@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @VivianHo
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A pregnant Berkeley woman is reportedly being tested for Zika, the mosquito-borne viral infection sweeping through Latin America and the Caribbean linked to serious brain defects in infants.

Other Bay Area women have also been tested for the Zika virus, and probably more will be tested as the overseas outbreak continues, according to at least one Bay Area infectious disease specialist.

Testing began on the Berkeley woman after she experienced symptoms  a rash and achy joints  associated with the virus after a trip to Bora Bora and Easter Island before Christmas, according to Scientific American magazine. Berkeley public health officials confirmed Friday that tests were being done.

The virus, transmitted by infected mosquitoes, has been linked in the past year in Brazil with more than 4,000 cases of microcephaly, a serious and often fatal condition in which babies are born with unusually small heads.

Concerns over the spread of the virus prompted the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to issue a travel alert last week urging pregnant women to avoid 14 destinations, including Puerto Rico, Brazil, Mexico and Venezuela. On Friday, the CDC expanded its alert to eight additional countries: Barbados, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guadeloupe, St. Martin, Guyana, Cape Verde and Samoa.

The U.S. Virgin Islands reported its first case of Zika virus Friday. In the U.S., residents of Florida, Illinois, Texas and Hawaii have tested positive for the virus, and a baby in Hawaii was born with microcephaly. All had traveled to countries where the Zika virus is present.

Officials from the state Department of Public Health said no Californians have tested positive for the Zika virus this year, although the state has had five confirmed cases since 2013.

Meanwhile, federal health officials say doctors should ask their pregnant patients about their travel plans. They recommend anyone who has traveled to the counties where Zika is present and who has developed symptoms within two weeks, such as fever and rash, undergo testing.

Certainly in the next few months, well start to see more (Bay Area) people being tested, said Dr. Jeffrey Silvers, who is in charge of quality, pharmacy/therapeutic and infection prevention for all of Sutter Healths 26 hospitals and more than 300 clinics. If you find a pregnant woman who has traveled to any of these areas throughout her pregnancy ... she needs to be followed and tested.

Testing, he said, is done at the CDCs Atlanta headquarters and can take a couple of weeks to complete. Silvers said it is important to note that the virus cannot be transmitted from person to person, with the exception of mother to infant.

Berkeley public health officials said there have been no confirmed Zika virus cases in the city, nor have they received any reports of suspected Zika virus.

From 2007 to 2014, 14 U.S. residents tested positive for the Zika virus after traveling abroad, CDC officials said last week. From the beginning of 2015 through Jan. 15, 12 U.S. residents had contracted the virus. No one has been been infected with the virus within the U.S.

The Scientific American story identified the woman as Brook Meakins and reported she sought treatment from a physician in Berkeley.

Meakins said in an e-mail Friday she didnt feel it would be appropriate to discuss her situation before she received her test results. Its a very serious issue to me, and I feel so badly for the families that received confirmation of the virus, she said.

CDC officials also said Friday they were working with authorities in Brazil to investigate a potential link between the Zika virus and some cases of an autoimmune disorder known as Guillain-Barre, which can lead to paralysis.

Victoria Colliver is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: vcolliver@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @vcolliver

Zika infection threat growing

How is the Zika virus transmitted? It is transmitted through bites from the Aedes mosquito, a species found throughout the world. The same species carries dengue and chikungunya virus and is found throughout much of the Americas, including parts of the United States.

What are the symptoms? Symptoms typically last a few days to a week and are relatively mild. They include fever, rash, joint pain and conjunctivitis, also known as pink eye. Up to 80 percent of those infected may have no symptoms. The disease is rarely serious enough to cause hospitalization but can cause serious birth defects in developing fetuses.

How can the virus be treated or prevented? There is no vaccine to prevent or medicine to treat the virus. People can protect themselves by preventing mosquito bites by using insect repellent, wearing long-sleeved shirts and pants, and staying indoors in places with air conditioning or screens. Travelers, especially pregnant women, are advised to avoid countries where the virus has been reported.

Which places are affected by the U.S. travel alert? Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Cape Verde, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, St. Martin, Samoa, Suriname and Venezuela.
NOELEEN DRUCKENMILLER

Background: She's from Dublin, the youngest of 16 children. She came to Albany at 18. She went to Bryant and Stratton College for computer programming, worked on the help desk at Albany Medical Center and is now an operating room administrative assistant. She and her husband, Dave, who is a computer programmer at Albany Med, live in Brunswick. Combined, they have five children and eight grandchildren.

Her band is Triskele (pronounced TrisKaylee). a Celtic knot that symbolizes mind, body and spirit. She plays guitar and bodhran, an Irish drum. Sharon Wheeler plays guitar and mandolin. Jenn Kilinski plays flute and pennywhistle. They all sing.

How did you become a musician?

I grew up singing. I have the gift of my mother's voice. My father played the accordion and fiddle. I contemplated being a nun and worked with the Little Sisters of the Poor in Dublin. But God had other plans for me. As a teenager I was part of a band, the Scruffy Shower. We sang in senior homes and bingo halls and did a lot of busking on street corners to raise money for the poor. We also had a little fame. We actually got to play on Irish TV.

Your brothers stayed in Ireland and England. The girls all came to America.

After my mother died I came to live in Albany with my sister Betty. Years later I met Sharon at Albany Medical Center when Betty was dying. Sharon, being the healing arts manager, came to visit Betty and we became instant friends. That was the start of Triskele. Jenn joined us a little later. She also works at Albany Med as a music therapist in pediatrics. We've been together for six years. My daughter Christine played bass and sang with us for several years before she had her twins. I've taught my grandchildren songs in Gaelic like "Cead Mile Failte Romhat a Iosa" ("100,000 Welcomes Baby Jesus").

There's a wide variety of Irish music. What's your sound?

Most of our songs are traditional. We also do originals Our focus is on our voices and harmonies. We sing a lot of older songs people may not have heard, some in Gaelic. We tell the stories behind the songs. We're promoting Irish culture. In the beginning we sang American songs. My husband said, "Be true to yourself and your heritage."

What keeps Triskele going is seeing the joy on people's faces and the energy they give us, especially in the senior homes. This is how God is using me, to bring joy to people. We perform at venues all over the Capital Region like Cafe Lena, the Parting Glass and local summer concerts. We are going back to the Clifden Arts Festival in County Galway, Ireland. Last year we went out to Peoria where my niece, who is a nun, is in a comtemplative order, the Sisters of St. John. It's a 14-hour drive. I taught the band a Gaelic song.

My husband, who's our manager, does the driving and has the patience of a saint. We did a show in the convent and played at the big Irish festival in town. Also last year we sang at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall where we recorded our second CD "Triskele Live." Our first CD is titled "Look Back, Don't Stare" in memory of my sister Betty.

Triskele is doing a benefit show for the Sisters of St. Joseph with a pre-St. Brigid's Feast Celebration.

She's the female patron saint of Ireland. She was known to have Christ-given ability to heal. She was so beloved that she became known as "The Mary of the Gaels." A blessing became "Brigid and Mary be with you." It is customary on St. Brigid's Day, Feb. 1 to weave a St. Brigid's Cross out of rushes or reeds. It's blessed with holy water and hung outside front doors.

 Rob Brill
Katie Meek/The Chronicle

Red Hot Chili Peppers will join previously announced acts Pharrell Williams and the Dave Matthews Band as part of series of concerts taking place during the official Super Bowl 50 party at San Franciscos Pier 70  but youll need an invitation to get into this gig.

The six-time Grammy-winning Los Angeles rock group, best known for its hyperkinetic hits like Give It Away and Cant Stop, is scheduled to take the stage on Feb. 6 as headliner for a sponsor-heavy program called DirecTV Super Saturday Night Co-Hosted by Mark Cubans AXS TV, officials announced Thursday.
LOS ANGELES  Confronting a fierce protest over a second straight year of all-white Oscar acting nominations, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said Friday that it would make radical changes to its voting requirements, recruiting process and governing structure, with an aim toward increasing the diversity of its membership.

The changes were approved at an unusual special meeting of the groups 51-member governing board Thursday night. The session ended with a unanimous vote to endorse the new processes, but action on possible changes to Oscar balloting was deferred for later consideration. The board said its goal was to double the number of female and minority members by 2020.

The academy is going to lead and not wait for the industry to catch up, the academys president, Cheryl Boone Isaacs, said in a statement. Isaacs referred to an often-repeated complaint that the academy, in its lack of diversity, reflects the demographics of a film industry that for years has been primarily white and male.

The most striking of the changes is a requirement that the voting status of both new and current members be reviewed every 10 years.

Voting status may be revoked for those who have not been active in the film business in a decade. But members who have had three 10-year terms will have lifetime voting rights, as will those who have won or been nominated for an Academy Award.

The academys membership is made up of roughly 6,200 movie professionals around the world, and it was not immediately clear how many would be purged from the voting rolls by the new rule.

The changes, and possible balloting adjustments, will not affect this years awards, which will be presented Feb. 28.

In the short term, the new rules and processes may tamp down some of the criticism that resulted when no film focusing primarily on minority characters was among this years eight best picture nominees, and all 20 acting nominees were white.

Ava DuVernay, who was not nominated last year for her direction of the best picture nominee Selma, declined to comment on the changes, but tweeted the academys letter, and added, One good step in a long, complicated journey for people of color + women artists.

But the moves by the academy, which aims to replace older members with a younger, more diverse group, are certain to be met with some criticism, and perhaps resistance.

The academy will also expand its governing board by adding three seats. Those are to be filled by the groups president with an eye toward increasing the number of women and minorities on the board. Currently, about a third of the board members are women and Isaacs is its only African American.
Hyderabad: University of Hyderabad vice-chancellor Appa Raos photograph has been circulated in social media portraying him as a fugitive. The Facebook post made by one of the students went viral with scores of people sharing it on their Fb wall. He has been named as an institutional murderer and a habitual offender by the users.

The caption of the photo shared by one of the students read This habitual offender is at large. He has the habit of offending and harassing Dalit students. And now that has reached to the level of an institutional murder. A police case has been booked against this person and he is missing after murdering Rohit Vemula, a research scholar and a promising intellectual from University of Hyderabad. We need this criminal dead or alive in HCU. The social media users say the V-C went missing since Janaury 16.

Meanwhile, Cyberabad police officials have advised the V-C and family to move out of the campus after the protest started in the campus following Rohiths death. Reportedly, the V-C was willing to visit the campus to meet teachers on Friday, however, the police advised him against his decision.

We do not know what will happen if he visits the campus during this turmoil. It might not be safe for him to enter the campus at the moment, said a police official present in the campus.

Prophetic poem by Rohith shared

Now a poem written by Rohith Vemula in Sept. last week in his Facebook page has gone viral due to its prophetic content. The poem starts with these lines, One day you will understand why I was aggressive. On that day, you will understand why I have not just served social interests. One day you will get to know why I apologised. On that day, you will understand there are traps beyond the fences.

A few of the lines read: One day you will find me in the history. In the bad light, in the yellow pages. And you will wish I was wise. But at the night of that day, you will remember me, feel me and you will breathe out a smile. And on that day, I will resurrect.

Psychologists say he must have started thinking of ending his life. The poem named One day was posted on September 3, and has been shared by scores of people after his suicide. This poem was written after the first suspension order came from the university.

Many students say that Rohith must have guessed that his death would cause a political storm. He must have thought that the right wing would portray him in bad light after his death. These lines must be an indication of his suicidal thoughts.
WASHINGTON  One in 7 Americans will get at least half a foot of snow outside their homes when this weekends big storm has finished delivering blizzards, gale-force winds, white-out conditions and flooding to much of the eastern United States.

But in the nations capital, the snowstorm promises to leave a much bigger impact. The first flakes of what could become 2 feet or more of wet, driving snow began falling in Washington on Friday afternoon, sloshing in from the Ohio River Valley looking just as the forecasts promised.

Conditions quickly became treacherous as the storm moved northeast. Arkansas and Tennessee got eight inches; Kentucky recorded more than a foot, and states across the Deep South grappled with icy, snow-covered roads and power outages. At least eight people died in traffic accidents in the dangerous weather.

Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser asked residents to hunker down and shelter in place through Sunday.

The forecast does not show any evidence of lightening up, she said, stressing the life-and-death implications.

Meteorologists appear to have gotten this storm right. Their predictions converged, and millions of people received clear warnings, well in advance. Blizzard warnings and watches stretch through New York City into New England, stopping just short of Boston, but the Washington area should get hit the hardest.

This is probably going to be one of the top three snowfalls of all time for Washington, said Daniel Petersen, a forecaster at the National Weather Services Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Md.

As food and supplies vanished from store shelves, at least six states and the District of Columbia declared states of emergency. Schools, government offices and transit systems announced early closings around the region.

More than 7,600 flights were canceled Friday and Saturday  about 13 percent of their schedules, according to the flight tracking service FlightAware. By Sunday afternoon, airlines hope to be back to full schedules. All major airlines have issued waivers for the weekend, allowing passengers to rebook onto earlier or later flights to avoid the storms.

Snowfall will likely continue for about a day and half in the Washington-Baltimore area, leaving accumulations of two feet or more wherever high winds dont blow. Philadelphia could get 18 to 24 inches and New York up to a foot, although some forecasts suggest even more, Peterson said.
FLINT, Mich.  Ever since the full extent of the Flint water crisis emerged, one question has persisted: Would this have happened in a wealthier, whiter community?

Residents in the former auto-making hub  a poor, largely minority city  feel their complaints about lead-tainted water flowing through their taps have been slighted by the government or ignored altogether. For many, it echoes the lackluster federal response to New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Flint is 57 percent black, and 42 percent of its people live in poverty.
WASHINGTON  Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders says his plan for a government-run health care system from cradle to grave is like Medicare for all.

But with full coverage for long-term care, most dental care included, no deductibles and zero co-pays, the Sanders plan is considerably more generous. Think of it as Medicare on growth hormones.

Setting aside ideological issues, the scope of Sanders plan and its lack of detail have raised questions about its seriousness. Some health care experts see it mainly as a political document to distinguish Sanders revolutionary ideas from Hillary Clintons incremental approach.

Sanders runs the risk of looking like he is living in a fantasy land, for putting forward an idea he cant possibly deliver during his term in office, said Drew Altman, president of the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation.

Last Sunday, the Vermont senator released an eight-page outline of his Medicare For All plan, an idea hes long advocated. The campaign estimates it would cost $1.38 trillion a year, paid for with new taxes that would take the place of private health insurance premiums.

Sanders approach is also called single-payer, because the government would become the steward of the health care system, currently about one-sixth of the economy.

Heres a look at some things Sanders left out:

Medicare doesnt cover long-term care, not to mention dentures, and seniors face deductibles and cost-sharing when they go to the doctor. Many buy an additional private insurance policy to cover Medicare gaps. BernieCare, as it is being called, would be above and beyond.

Sanders says his plan will cost $6 trillion less over 10 years than the current health care system. But his path to savings is unclear.

Sanders own state had wanted a single-payer under the umbrella of flexibility encouraged by President Obamas health care law. But Vermont pulled back because of expected tax increases.

Bernie may have a bigger job on his hands than he understands, trying to get people to just take a look at this, said Sister Carol Keehan, CEO of the Catholic Health Association.

For single-payer to gain acceptance, Americans would have to change their mind-set, said Princeton University researcher Tsung-Mei Cheng.

You would have to have a social consensus that health care is a right, and not only everyone should have it, but everyone should have the same, Cheng said.
New Delhi: The HRD ministry, on the basis of the report of its fact-finding team, has decided to set up a judicial commission to look into the sequence of events leading to Rohiths suicide and submit its report within three months.

Meanwhile, trouble is brewing for the Narendra Modi government as the Telangana government report sent to the Centre has reaffirmed that the deceased student, who committed suicide at HCU, was a Dalit and the case comes under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act.

UoH officials were insensitive: Report

The Telangana governments report on Rohith Vemulas death shares details of the complaint and the FIR where it is alleged that Rohith under went mental agony and could not bear the atrocities, humiliation, harrassment, insults and injustice which he was subject to at the instigation and abetment of those named in the FIR, that caused his death. The ministries are studying the report and the social justice ministry, that is the nodal ministry on issues relating to SC/STs, has taken serious note.

The state government report to the home and social justice ministries also encloses the letter written by the minister of state for labour and accused in the case, Bandaru Dattatreya, to HRD minister Smriti Irani on August 17, where he alleged the university administration had become a mute spectator to events where the university had become a den of casteist, extremist and anti-national politics when a large section of students held a protest against the execution of Yaqub Memon and clashed with the ABVP over this issue.

Many allege that Rohiths suspension along with four other students followed the ministers letter and the clash with the ABVP leader led to his depression and eventual suicide. According to the report, while the first FIR was registered on January 17, under Section 174 CrPC mandating the police to enquire into the suicide, a second FIR was registered on January 18 for abetment to suicide and invoking Section 3 of SC/ST POA Act dealing with offences of atrocities against SC/STs.

The two-member fact-finding team, in its report to the HRD ministry, is learnt to have also found a lack of sensitivity shown in some areas by UoH authorities in dealing with the events that led to suicide. The report sent to the social justice ministry and Union home ministry, removes any doubt and says Rohith Vermula was a dalit scholar.

Smriti Irani calls Rohiths mother, promises probe

The Union Government is taking a serious note of the situation in UoH as HRD minister Smriti Irani called deceased research scholar Rohith Vemulas mother Radhika on Friday and promised a judicial probe into the incidents that led to her sons suicide. She also said the inquiry committee will be headed by a High Court judge. If V-C Appa Rao Podile was found guilty, he would be suspended, the minister told Rohiths mother. Striking a personal chord, Irani also explained that she hesitated to call her so far as the family was in a state of deep mourning.

I feel pain of mother, says Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi broke his silence on Rohith Vemulas suicide. Addressing the convocation at the BR Ambedkar University, Mr Modi said: India has lost a son and I can imagine what his family must be going through. I feel for his mother, and know what she must be feeling having lost her son.

Was concerned for students, says BJP MLC

BJP MLC N Ramachander Rao, a senior leader caught in the suicide storm in UoH, says he was making serious efforts to get the punishment order against the five research students lifted, but the suicide of Rohith Vemula happened in between. He told DC on Friday that discipline was important but no one wanted the career of the students to be affected and was to meet varsity officials on January 18 for this purpose.
Hyderabad: It is an irony that candidates with SSC or even lower educational background are not only contesting for divisions that cover IT sectors and posh localities of the city, but are using IT-enabled techniques while campaigning.

Candidate whose educational qualification is only SSC are contesting for Kondapur division, which is considered the heart of the IT sector. Ruling party candidate Hameed Patel had completed his SSC in the 1970s, TD candidate Neelam Ravinder Mudiraj obtained his SSC in 1993 and Utla Krishna, the Congress candidate, completed his matriculation in 1960s.

Except for TRS candidate Jagadishwar Goud, a Law graduate, the other contenders for the Madhapur division, where all the first generation IT companies were established, are G. Narsimha Yadav from Congress who hasnt cleared his SSC and E. Srinivas Yadav (TD), who has.

TD candidate Shahnaz Begum, who has cleared her SSC, will contest for the Hafeezpet division while candidates for Gachibowli division  K. Saibaba (TRS) and Ramarao (BJP) too have cleared their Class X. A few of the candidates from Serilingampally, Miyapur, Chandanagar, Vivekanandanagar, Allwyn Colony and Hyder Nagar have cleared their matriculation, while others havent managed to do so. These candidates are trying to reach IT professionals by utilising IT-enabled services.

All candidates have been sending bulk SMSes to selected voters under their respective divisions. Similarly, they have Facebook pages and are active on Twitter.

TRS hacks into TD bastion:

There is a vertical split among IT employees in Cyberabad over which party to vote for in the GHMC elections. Cyberabad is no longer a TD BJP bastion as formation of Telangana state and several IT associations have changed the equations. Operation Aakarsh of the TRS had seen several TD MLAs from constituencies in Cyberabad joining the TRS, thus shifting the political equations.

While software professionals who support the TD continue to showcase the Cyber Towers and emphasise that Information Technology saw a massive push by TD chief N. Chandrababu Naidu, those who support the TRS mention the TRS governments prestigious startup project, the T-Hub.

The TD supporters have already launched an online campaign in support of the partys candidates in the IT sector which covers GHMC divisions of Kondapur, Serilingampally, Miyapur, Madhapur, Gachibowli, Hafeezpet, Chandanagar, Vivekanandanagar, Hydernagar and Allwyn Colony.

The TRS supporters make it a point to mention that IT exports have reached the `35,000 crore mark in the last 1.5 years with the initiatives taken by the TS government. They also emphasise IT minister KTRs commitment in developing IT sector in and around the Hyderabad city. TRS candidate from Kondapur division Hameed Patel told DC that voters from IT sector were looking towards the TRS because of the initiatives taken by the government.

Upcoming IT projects will be established in this division. IT employees and software professions are adopting the party as their own now and they have a strong hope on the government that will support IT sector. The TS government is also targetting Rs 1 lakh crore exports mark by next year up from the Rs 35,000 crore in the current financial year. Simultaneous development is being taken up by the government at Adibatla, Uppal and Patancheru areas apart from Gachibowli and Kondapur. These projects are attracting the IT professionals and now they want to vote for the TRS for better infrastructure at the division-level, he said.

TD candidate from Kondapur Neelam Ravinder Mudiraj told this newspaper that their traditional IT professionals vote bank was stable and there was no doubt about the victory of the party. Naidu introduced IT here. After establishing Hitech City, Hyderabad came into the limelight. Our stronghold is not only Kondapur division, but also Madhapur, Gachibowli, Miyapur, Allwyn colony, Miyapur and Serilingampally, Mr Mudiraj said.

Techies do their bit for higher polling:

IT professionals are doing their bit to increase the polling percentage in the GHMC elections, with several IT associations launching campaigns to create awareness among voters in the IT corridor. Telangana Information Technology Association (TITA) has already launched Awaz Do Hyderabad  Awaz Do Techies aimed at increasing polling percentage.

TITA founder-president Sundeep Kumar Makthala told DC that the association has introduced an IVR system (Mobile No. 8471055557) to prepare a peoples manifesto. Through this IVR system, citizens can express their views. Based on the audio recordings, we convert it into text and will prepare a peoples manifesto. We will send the manifesto to all political parties and voters can choose those who promise to resolve their problems, he said.

Mr Makthala said that with coordination of 'Pramanya Strategy', TITA was working on motivating IT professionals to utilise their votes. The Pramanya Strategy has implemented the same IVR system during the US Presidential election, he said. He said TITA will be neutral in the elections, but would favour a political party if the general body meeting backs it.

TITA general secretary Kiran Mittakola told this newspaper that they are motivating IT professionals to participate in GHMC elections. Most of the localities where IT professionals stay, did not registered good polling percentage in the previous elections. Our aim is to increase the polling percentage as much as possible, he said. Apart from TITA, other IT associations including TSIT have also been taking the similar steps to increase polling percentage. However, these organisations are working either for the TRS or the TD.
NORTH HIGHLANDS, Calif. (KCRA) A Sacramento County homeowner credited firefighters with saving her 14 dogs, four cats and two birds during an early morning fire Thursday.

Sacramento Metro Fire crews were called about 3:45 a.m. to a fire at a home on I Street in North Highlands near McClellan Park.
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STAMFORD  A rookie patrolman fired three shots at a city man Thursday night after police say the man pulled a BB gun on the officer during a traffic stop.

Police officer Steve Estabrook approached Elias Garcia-Ramirez, 29, of Whitmore Lane, after he found Garcia passed out in his car, police said.

When Estabrook asked Garcia for his license and registration, Garcia pulled out a handgun and Estabrook retreated and fired three shots, police said.

The handgun was later determined by police to be a BB gun.

Garcia pleaded not guilty Friday at the Stamford courthouse before Judge Auden Grogins to charges of brandishing a facsimile firearm, interfering with police, driving while under the influence, driving without a license and improper parking.

Garcias attorney Mark Phillips told Grogins that Garcia did not know that the gun was in the car and when he opened the glove box it fell out.

Phillips also said details of the incident were not as dangerous as they seemed, which brought a reply from Grogins asking him if he had seen the police reports. She also pointed out the allegations in the police reports were very serious.

According to a release from Lt. Diedrich Hohn, Estabrook was on routine patrol at approximately 8:52 p.m. when he noticed a car with its emergency lights on that was stopped on the travel portion of Grove Street, just south of Forest Street.

Estabrook determined the driver of the car was passed out and police Chief Jon Fontneau said Estabrook then walked up and rapped on the drivers window.

After asking for his license and registration, Estabrook commanded Garcia to take his hand off the gun, but he refused, police said.

Garcia was taken out of the car and it was immediately known that he had not been hit by a bullet.

Police-involved shootings are rare in Stamford. The last police-involved shooting occurred in the South End in March 2011 involving Officer William Garay and suspect Marcellus Catchings, Capt. Richard Conklin said.

Catchings was reported waving a gun outside a Manhattan Street nightclub early in the morning of March 18. Garay found him, and during a foot chase, Catchings turned around and pointed a pistol at the officer. Thinking that he was about to be shot, Garay shot at Catchings but missed him.

Four months earlier in December 2010, Officer Richard Gasparino was shot in the face with a .357 caliber revolver during a drug and weapons raid on Lockwood Avenue.

The gunman, Ephraim Goitom, was later convicted of first-degree assault and criminal possession of a gun by a convicted felon and sentenced to 25 years in prison. He was later killed during a fight at a federal penitentiary.

Phillips said that Garcia has been in the United States for 11 years and has worked in the past for a church in New Jersey, connected to the Real Tabernacle Church of God on Atlantic Street.

Phillips told Grogins that Garcia is not a flight risk as he pointed out his clients wife, mother-in-law and two brothers in the courtroom.

After being held overnight on a $100,000 court appearance bond, Supervisory Assistant States Attorney Steven Weiss asked Grogins to keep the bond as set because Garcia was a danger to society, police and himself.

Grogins lowered the bond to $55,000 and scheduled Garcia, who does not have a criminal record in Connecticut, to return to court on Feb. 4.

Garcias family declined to comment on the case, and Phillips said that Garcia was doing as well as he could under the circumstances.

Standing in front of the courthouse, Phillips said he could not go into detail, but said he did not believe his client pulled the gun or aimed it at Estabrook.

Estabrook, who was sworn in as a police officer on April 1, 2015, began six months of courses at the police academy in Meriden the next day.

Phillips called the situation a misunderstanding on Friday.

Fortunately, one of the few things we know at this point is that it was not a real gun, Phillips said. I understand officers have a tough job to do. We are all very lucky that no real harm occurred.

In keeping with the departments protocol for police-involved shootings, Estabrook was placed on administrative leave and will remain there during the course of the investigation. The move is not punitive, Fontneau said.

The Stamford State's Attorney's office was notified of the police-involved shooting. The office has the option of conducting an independent investigation of the incident, Fontneau said.
New Delhi/ Jaipur: After months of controversy over alleged growing intolerance in the country, Sahitya Akademi on Friday said some of the writers, including Ms Nayantara Sahgal, have agreed to take back the awards they had returned at the outset of the issue.

Sahitya Akademi has started sending back the awards to the writers. It has already been sent to Nayantara Sahgal. Another writer Nand Bhardwaj has also agreed to take back the award. It would be sent to other writers as well, Sahitya Akademi president Vishwanath Prasad Tiwari told agencies.

He said the Akademi is also sending a copy of their resolution, which was passed in the October meeting, to all writers mentioning that there was no provision in its constitution to return the honours.

On October 23, Sahitya Akademi passed a unanimous resolution appealing to state and Central governments to take steps to prevent such incidents and asked authors to take back the awards they had returned to protest against rising intolerance.

The Akademi strongly condemns the killing of writer Kalburgi and appeals to the state and Central government to take steps to prevent such incidents in the future, Krishnaswamy Nachimuthu, an executive committee board member had said after the nearly two-hour meeting.

About 40 writers had returned their awards in the past few months to the Sahitya Akademi in the backdrop of Akademis silence on the murder of fellow writer M.M. Kalburgi, as well against the communal atmosphere in the country following the Dadri lynching incident.Meanwhile, a culture ministry source said, There is is a list of 10 writers who have agreed to take back the awards they had returned. Sahgal and Bhardwaj are two confirmed names in the list.
Addressing concerns swirling through town about the impact of General Electrics plan to move its corporate headquarters from Fairfield, First Selectman Michael Tetreau fielded questions Thursday from a gathering of real-estate professionals.

We dont have enough facts to panic yet, Tetreau, a former real estate agent said about relocation of the towns largest taxpayer, with a total annual bill of approximately $1.8 million. Theres a lot of good things to say about Fairfield, whether GE is here or not.

Tetreau told the meeting of the Greater Fairfield Board of Realtors that among the known facts are that GE is leaving for Boston, and that local real-estate developer/investor Kleban Properties wants to buy the 68-acre Easton Turnpike site. He said how many homes may end up on the market because local GE employees make the move to Boston is not yet certain. First, Tetreau said, town officials do not have a firm figure on how many GE employees live in town, and second, GE wont divulge that.

He recalled his experience selling real estate for 15 years, noting that over that time, Nobody asked me why GEs here. You may have different experiences, but thats not mine.

I dont think theres going to be a big deluge of homes on the market, the first selectman said. GE has said it will move 200 of the 800 employees who reportedly work its Fairfield headquarters. Of the remaining 600, Tetreau said, it is unlikely they all live in Fairfield, or that they would be moving.

Tetreau said answers to frequently asked questions about the GE property can be found on the towns website  www.fairfieldct.org  along with press releases. In something like there, there arent as many answers and facts as youd like, he said. As I read social media, Im just floored with all the questions, and some and the facts that arent facts. There are probably fewer facts than youd like.

Many of the questions centered around what might happen to the towns tax base when GE moves. Tetreau gave assurances that as long as GE owns the property, it will continue to owe the town $1.6 million in property taxes. The company currently also pays a roughly $250,000 personal property tax bill to the town on equipment, which would likely be lost if that is moved from the site.

Tetreau said there is no indication from GE or Sacred Heart University that the corporate headquarters will be donated to a non-profit such as the nearby college, removing it from the tax rolls, as has been the topic of some local rumors.

If that were the case, Tetreau said, the town would receive money, though not nearly as much, through the states Payment in Lieu of Taxes program. I have a hard time, personally, seeing GE going out to their shareholders and saying they gave away an $80 million property, he said.

Tetreau said it appears while GE is shifting its corporate focus, it is not looking to shed 600 jobs. I think GEs goal is to hand out very few pink slips, he said.

Within three days of GEs relocation announcement, Tetreau said Fairfield-based Kleban Properties stepped up, looking to purchase the property. And, he said, as of last Oct. 1, Kleban Properties had the distinction of being the towns largest taxpayer, nudging GE out of that spot as a result of the 2015 property revaluation.

Theyre obviously doing well, Tetreau said of the Klebans business. Theyre financially substantial. They are personally very excited to do this. And with GE getting back to both Tetreau and the Klebans over the weekend, thats my indication that theyre seriously interested in selling.

There may have been some disappointed realty agents in the room when Tetreau said GE already has a broker for the property. Its not listed because theres not a price on it yet, he said.

And, he added in answer to a question, the town has no plans to purchase the property.
New Delhi: In a major crackdown on the Islamic State and its followers and sympathisers in India, the security agencies arrested or detained over a dozen young men across major cities in the country for allegedly having allegiance to ISIS terrorists and forming modules to carry out terror strikes at vital locations and crowded places.

At least 14 young men were arrested or detained Friday by the NIA and other agencies  five of them were arrested and the other nine detained. All ISIS suspects were somehow connected with one Yusuf, believed to be Safi Armar, a former Indian Mujahideen (IM) member.

Of the 14 taken into custody, three belong to Mumbai, four each from Hyderabad and Bengaluru and one each from Mangalore, Tumkur (Karnataka) and Lucknow  all key cities where ISIS social media propaganda has been successful due to easy Internet access, raising the alarm within the security establishment of key cities becoming the targets for ISIS recruitment. Some of the youths were said to be software engineers.

Raids carried out in five states

The youths arrested by the NIA and other agencies from across the country were part of a group named Janood-ul -Khalifa-e-Hind (Army of Caliph of India), a group whose ideology is almost like that of ISIS.

The NIA gave the names of those arrested as Muttabir Mustaq Sheikh from Thane district near Mumbai, Mohammad Nafees Khan of Hyderabad, Mohammad Shareef Mounuddin Khan of Hyderabad, Najmul Huda of Mangalore and Mohammad Afzal of Bengaluru.

Read: Four held for plot to pipe bomb Hyderabad

Mustaq Sheikh is learnt to be the ringleader and an unaccounted sum of Rs 6 lakh was recovered from him by the law-enforcement agencies, which is suspected to have been transferred into his accounts using the hawala route.

The raids were carried out simultaneously in Karnataka, TS, AP, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh. The raids come at a time when a possible terror attack has been averted. The Punjab and Delhi police forces on Friday sounded an alert after it found the dead body of the driver of a taxi hired by three unidentified persons in Himachal Pradeshs Kangra, in the aftermath of the terror attack on the Pathankot airbase.

Meanwhile, of the nine persons detained in the nationwide crackdown, sources said one may be let off while the remaining eight maybe arrested shortly. However, the families of some of the arrested people claimed they had nothing to do with any terror plot and they were innocent.

The NIA crackdown came in the early hours of Friday. Sources said Sheikh had designated himself as Ameer of the group and Huda as Ameer-e-Wyulat (finance), and they were in touch on Internet with so-me persons believed to be from ISIS in Syria.

They said these people had been under surveillance for quite some time and the decision to arr-est them was taken as the group received instructions for carrying out some sensational attacks in the country. All youths, in the age group of 25 to 30, are educated, with some of them having completed studies in software engineering, the sources said. The NIA and other sleuths re-covered laptops, explosive material, detonators, wires, batteries and hydrogen peroxide, besides jihadi literature, the sources said.
Hyderabad: The four terror suspects picked up by the National Investigation Agency were not on the radar of TS intelligence agencies indicating a new crop of ISIS suspects, reveal officials. ISIS is a huge threat to Hyderabad say officials as the number of suspects are growing.

A top anti-terror agency official of TS police said, There are at least 35 IS suspects on our radar. But these four have come for the first time. It was suspected earlier some of Indian Mujahideen absconding operatives are joining the ISIS. One Mudabbir Mushtaq Shaikh @ Abu Musab of Mumbai is the local head of this group. The top level handler is suspected to be former Indian Mujahideen identified as Yousuf.

The ISIS terror suspects arrested in Hyderabad and other parts of the country have formed a group called Janood-Ul-Kh-alifa-E Hind (Army of Caliph of India). Mutt-abir Mustaq is a member of the group along with the two arrested Mohammed Nafees Khan and Mohammed Shareef Moinudding Khan from Hyderabad. The accused also received money through hawala and purchased several cell phones. Shareef Mohinuddin resides Tolichowki.

Meanwhile, the other terror suspect who was in custody of the NIA identified as Mohammed Obaidullah Khan runs a computer point at Toli-chowki. Intelligence agencies had earlier identified three of the terror suspects from city.

They were actually fighting for ISIS in Syria. Apart from those already arrested and deported like Salman Mohinu-ddin and Nicky Joseph and those who were co-unselled recently the terror trio cousins were ar-rested when they tried to go back, said an official.

Timeline

11-09-2014: As many as 15 students including a girl from Hyderabad were apprehended in West Bengal for allegedly trying to cross the border to join the ISIS. They were given counselling by city police and freed as they have no previous criminal history.

15-01-2015: Salman Mohiuddin, 32, was arrested at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport while he was trying to catch a flight to Dubai and intended to go to Syria via Turkey. He met one Nicole Joseph alias Nikki Joseph alias Asfa Jabeen over Facebook and as per his directions Mohiuddin readied to join the ISIS.

03-05-2015: An MS student in the US, Hafeez from Manchiriel of Adilabad district, has joined the ISIS and was killed during an exchange of fire between ISIS terrorists and the Syrian Army.

11-09-2015: Nicky Joseph alias Asfa Jabeen, 38, was from a Hyderabadi Muslim family and married to a Hindu real estate dealer. She was settled in Dubai and was acting as an alleged recruiter for IS. She was caught while being deported from Abu Dhabi at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport.

26-12-2015: Three missing youths from Hyderabad  Faruqui Hussaini, Abdul Basit and Mohammad Hussain  were apprehended by the Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) of Maharashtra. The three were found as the same who tried to cross border at Kolkata for joining the ISIS in 2014. Police has detained them under Unlawful Activities Act.

22-01-2016: Two youths from Hyderabad were nabbed by NIA teams during searches and raids in six cities across the country. Based on the inputs received from Central agencies and ATS Maharashtra, the NIA conducted raids. 24-year-old Mohammad Nafees Khan alias Fatima Khan alias Abu Zarrar alias Akram and Mohammad Shareef Moinuddin Khan, 54 were arrested by the teams.
Stockholm: Ecuador has asked Sweden to submit a new application over the questioning of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange in London, Swedish prosecutors said on Thursday.

The Swedish prosecutor said Ecuador had informed Sweden in a letter that it would conduct the interview of Assange and has asked for a list of questions the Swedish prosecutor wants answered.

"At the moment, we consider if it affects the possibilities to conduct the investigative matters and, if that is case, we shall submit a renewed request," Director of Public Prosecution Marianne Ny said in a statement.

Assange, 44, took refuge at Ecuador's embassy in London in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning over allegations, which he denies, that he committed rape in 2010.

Assange says he fears Sweden will extradite him to the United States.
Migrants run away from tear gas thrown by police forces near the Channel Tunnel in Calais. (Photo: AP)

Calais: Pubs in the French port of Calais might be packed with Brits on a Friday night, but the traditional tourists and truckers have all but disappeared, replaced by activists wanting to help refugees.

"Business is good tonight, but this is not a long-term solution for this town," said a waiter picking his way through a full house of muddy-booted volunteers, aid workers and journalists in the Friendly Pub on Calais' main drag.

"We need tourists, and they've all gone."

Calais is just a 90-minute hop across the Channel from Dover in southern England, and used to be a popular stop for British holidaymakers stocking up on cheap cheese and wine, and spending a day or two on its picturesque, windswept coastline.

But since the migrant crisis went into overdrive last year, thousands of refugees have found themselves trapped in a grim shantytown on the edge of Calais as they desperately try to sneak across the short stretch of sea.

The media obsession has all but destroyed the town's image, say locals, with the tourist trade drying up and transport companies looking for alternative routes.

"There are a lot fewer British and Belgians," said Sophia Dans, who runs the Nuit d'Ailleurs hotel in central Calais.

"People phone to ask: 'Is it safe to walk around? Will my car be stolen?'"

The reality is that the thousands of migrants and refugees in Calais are rarely seen in the town, and apart from a couple of protests over police aggression, there has been hardly any increase in crime.

"We don't have any problems -- no thefts or anything," Dans said. "But having police everywhere gives a terrible image for tourists. It's a shame -- there's huge potential in this area and it's going to waste."

'Absolutely no support'

The tourists have instead been replaced by a steady stream of British volunteers, who have come to help out in the grim migrant camp on the edge of town, nicknamed the "Jungle".

"We were sat around in the pub at home, talking about this huge influx of people desperate to reach our country but receiving absolutely no support from our government, so we decided to come and see what we can do," said Conrad Fielding, who runs his own catering company in southwest England.

With a group of friends, he has made three trips to help build shelters and deliver food supplies in the Jungle.

It is a relationship that works both ways, since Fielding has picked up a few recipes from some of the makeshift cafes and restaurants that have sprung up in the camp.

"I got a few cooking ideas from the Afghan guys here last time that have been very popular back home," he said.

Running a clinic in the camp, 23-year-old Emma Weinstein-Sheffield, from Somerset in southern England, said the presence of so many volunteers was starting to raise much-needed awareness of conditions in the camp.

"It's a horrible situation here -- it doesn't feel like Europe, it feels like a slum in a country far away from Europe," she said.

"But luckily we are getting people who want to help. We have doctors, clinicians, lots of people coming over for the weekend and a few who stay long-term. I spoke to my dad the other day, and he's decided to come help too."

'Too many activists'

But back in Calais, fear and anger have fuelled xenophobia among some locals, with many frustrated at the presence of the activists.

"There are too many (activists) -- they keep the problem going," said Bruno, a 53-year-old stood at the counter of a local cafe, who gave only his first name.

He said lorry drivers and tourist buses were afraid to travel through the town, and complained that migrants did not have to pay taxes on their cafes and restaurants in the Jungle.

"People have had enough. I'm not saying we should kill them, but we have to be a bit severe," Bruno said.

For the Brits in the Jungle, the answer is not violence -- they say the government in London must allow migrants to apply for asylum from Calais, thus making it unnecessary for migrants to camp out in the Jungle and try to cross the Channel illegally.

"Every time we come there are improvements thanks to all the support from volunteers," said Fielding. "But the sad reality is we could still be coming out here every month, three years from now."
US-led coalition and Russian warplanes as well as operations by Iraqi and Syrian ground troops could lead IS to stage more Paris-style attacks in Europe. (Photo: AFP)

Brussels: Islamic State military losses in Syria and Iraq may prompt some of its leaders to relocate to Libya where they will face less pressure, the EU's counter-terrorism coordinator said Thursday.

In an interview with AFP, Gilles de Kerchove also warned that the raids by the US-led coalition and Russian warplanes as well as operations by Iraqi and Syrian ground troops could lead IS to stage more Paris-style attacks in Europe.

De Kerchove cited the jihadist group's recent ouster from the Iraqi city of Ramadi and heavy air strikes in Syria where he said the organisation is now on the defensive.

There could be "some movement of senior leadership from the caliphate to Libya," he said, referring to the so-called caliphate declared by IS in 2014 and based in the Syrian city of Raqqa.

De Kerchove said Western powers should cooperate on counter-terrorism with the new Libyan government of national unity that was formed this week under a UN-brokered deal aimed at ending years of bloodshed.

It would be easy at present for the IS group to operate in strife-torn Libya, where there are an estimated 3,000 IS fighters, "because there are no air strikes for the time being in Libya and not a fully functioning government," he said.

'Perfect chaos'

"We know that the senior leadership in Syria is really monitoring what is happening in Libya. So if they feel the pressure is too high, there might be a temptation to move to another hotspot," de Kerchove said.

"There, for the time, being it's the perfect chaos they like."

He added that a number of setbacks suffered by IS in Iraq and Syria in recent months had already prompted the group to inspire or launch attacks in Beirut, Ankara, Istanbul, Tunis, Egypt's Sinai desert, and Paris, where 130 people were killed on November 13.

"The more there is pressure on Daesh, the more the organisation will first decide to mount attacks in the West, in particular Europe, to show successes," de Kerchove said, using the Arabic acronym for IS.

"More boots on the ground will be needed to get rid of them in Raqa and Mosul (in Iraq) but I think the (US-led) coalition has had successes."

He also said it was his understanding that Russian warplanes are increasingly attacking IS targets after initial charges from Washington that they were mostly hitting Western-backed groups opposed to Moscow's ally Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The increased air strikes -- which are also destroying trucks carrying oil that finances IS activities -- could force more IS foreign fighters to return to their homes in Europe, he said.

Separately, Hans Bonte, the mayor of Vilvoorde, told AFP that three people from his Belgian city just north of Brussels have died in Syria or Iraq in the last several weeks, bringing the total deaths of foreign fighters from Vilvoorde to at least eight since mid-2014.

"It's clear the number of people being killed are (being killed) at a higher frequency than it used to be," Bonte said.

De Kerchove said he would not be surprised if European fighters were dying at an increasing rate because of the intensifying air strikes, but he had no independent confirmation.
Pope Francis arrives for an audience with workers of the Catholic Shrines in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican. (Photo: AP)

Vatican City: Pope Francis is asking politicians to watch what they say and how they say it.

In his annual message to mark the church's world day of social communications, Francis on Friday urged politicians and public opinion-makers to be inspired by mercy. He said they shouldn't exploit others to fan the flames of "mistrust, fear and hatred" with their words.

He said: "Instead, courage is needed to guide people toward processes of reconciliation. It is precisely such positive and creative boldness which offers real solutions to ancient conflicts and the opportunity to build lasting peace."

His appeal seemed in part aimed at the anti-immigrant rhetoric swirling in Europe and the US. Francis has proclaimed 2016 as a Holy Year of Mercy, to show the forgiving, merciful side of the church.
The unidentified man has to inform the police whenever he decides to have a sexual relationship or a one-night stand with any woman. (Photo: YouTube Screen Grab)

York: In a bizarre incident, a North Yorkshire man has been banned from engaging in any form of sexual activity unless he gives a days prior notice to the Yokshire police in UK, according to a report in The York Press.

The man has not yet been convicted for any sex crime, but the police have sought a sexual risk order for the man. Sexual risk order is often sought for a person who is thought to be unsafe for the public, say reports.

The unidentified man has to inform the police whenever he decides to have a sexual relationship or a one-night stand with any woman.

An individual can be issued a sexual risk order by a court, under which the person becomes liable to inform the police about any sexual activity that he or she wishes to engage in. A person who has been issued a sexual risk order may not necessarily be a sexual offender. It says, the individual does not need to have committed a relevant (or any offence)" for the order to be imposed.

A sexual risk order can last for a minimum of two years, and on breaching, it can land a person into prison for a term of up to five years.

Sarah Green, the acting director at End Violence Against Women, said that such orders were essential to keep potential victims safe.
Tareena Shakil, 26, has told the Birmingham Crown Court jury that she only wanted to live under Sharia law and feared she would go to hell if she lived in England. (Photo: West Midlands Police)

London: A British Muslim mother on trial for taking her 14-month-old baby to Syria to join the Islamic State (ISIS) claims she was unaware of the terrorist group's true nature and had traveled to the war-torn country only to live under Sharia law.

Tareena Shakil, 26, has told the Birmingham Crown Court jury that she only wanted to live under Sharia law and feared she would go to hell if she lived in England.

The court was told before she left the UK she had talked on Facebook to a man named Fabio Pocas, whose online profile showed an armed man posing with the black flag of ISIS.

UK mother accused of taking baby to join ISIS denies terrorism He warned her of the perils of "living in the land of non-believers", telling her she could not live in a country not ruled by Sharia because it was forbidden.

She said: "He told me 'You cannot live in a state that is not under Sharia'.

He said 'Look sister, by staying in England, you're hanging over the gates of hell. If you die that's where you're going'.

"The impact on me was fear any Muslim would want to save them from hell, it's just how you go about it." She flew out of the UK in October 2014 with her child, telling her family she was going on a package holiday to Turkey.

Instead she traveled to Syria, where she remained for several months before returning to Britain in February 2015. Shakil, who claims she escaped from Syria, was repeatedly asked about tweets she had sent in the weeks before setting off.

In September, she tweeted Sally Ann Jones, who traveled to Syria and is thought to have married British extremist Junaid Hussain, who was killed in a US drone strike last year. Shakil claims she thought Jones was just "an ordinary woman".

"I didn't know who this woman was nor had I read any of the disgusting things she said online. It was only after, when interviewed by police that I found out who she was and what she had said," she said.

The former University of Wolverhampton student denies charges encouraging terrorism on social media and traveling to the northern Syrian city of Raqqa to join ISIS.

The trial is ongoing and expected to last a few weeks.
After receiving the GI mark in 2010, the perception of Feni has gone up globally. (Photo: Instagram)

Panaji: After bagging a Geographical Indication, Goa's 'Feni' is now getting ready to stand out among country liquors and to be tagged as 'heritage brew', a

senior official said here today.

"Goa government has already initiated a process to tag Feni as heritage brew outside the state. With this, Feni will get a opening in markets outside Goa," Mac Vaz, President, Goa Cashew Feni Distillers and Bottlers Association told PTI ahead of a conference of stakeholders scheduled to be held here tomorrow.

Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar will inaugurate the meeting tomorrow morning. "Because of the negativity attached to country liquor, people perceive this (feni) too as one of those country liquors. Now we want to give it a different tag and classification," Vaz said.

He said we need to realize that Feni is the 'Kohinoor' among alcoholic beverages. It attained the GI mark in 2010. After receiving the GI mark, the perception of Feni has gone up globally, he said.

"We Indians look down at our own assets, only when white men acknowledge it then we wake up and realize the essence of our assets," Vaz commented. "India has a USP globally, anything that comes from India has a natural pull," he said. For the makers of this liquor, getting GI sign has helped financially.

Vaz said post GI mark, sales have also soared four times. Goa has 28 units which bottle Feni across the state. Talking about the stakeholders' meet, Vaz said, "there was a need for celebrating Goan spirit as a proud alcoholic beverage from India.

"Just like Americans celebrate their Mustang horses we must celebrate our Marwari horses. Similarly, just like the West is taking their own spirits to the world like Scotch, Champagne and they are coming to India, we should feel proud to take swadeshi spirits from India to the world," he commented.

"Feni is an example of Made in India. For me Make in India is little diluted version of Made in India. Feni is the produce of India and we have been motivated with this emotion for over a decade," he said.
Ballgowns and tuxedo hems swished past event planner Riccardo Benavides, but the decorator behind the look of the San Francisco Ballet Opening Night Gala on Thursday, Jan. 21, was still shoving sheer-paneled screens into place with his own designer elbow grease. By 5 p.m., the entire rotunda of San Francisco City Hall was filled with society matrons and pink feathers. Dancing figures draped in fabric hung from the gilded dome, ethereally floating above dinner tables set for dignitaries. The days politicos and protesters had been ushered out of City Hall, and a sexy Disneyland had been ushered in.

If we make the theme Provocative, said gala decor chair Rhonda Mahendroo, lets see what happens. How will the after-party go? How will the dresses go? For Mahendroo, Benavides and a host of dressed-up women, Provocative translated to a lot of see-through fabric, be it hanging from the rafters or draped around a torso.

Gala chair Jennifer Brandenburg, a past president of the Ballet Auxiliary, liked the idea that Provocative might attract a younger and more adventurous crowd. Its a French word for a bit daring, she explained, as trumpets dramatically announced the call for dinner.

They do it the way people did in the old days, observed Raj Judge of Palo Alto, who attended with his wife, Rashmi. Theres a lot of attention to detail. Our dinner actually matched the flower arrangement at our table!

Judge was right. Every detail had been planned for months. A formal dinner prepared by McCalls included elaborately plated short ribs and a chocolate flowerpot topped with edible petals. Gala dinner chair Christine Leong Conners, who also serves on the Ballets board of trustees, was quick to point out that vegetarian and vegan options were available for the over 900 dining guests. Even the gluten people will be happy, she laughed.

Dinner is a big-ticket item for the Ballets opening night. Once dinner is over, however, access to the annual black-tie evening becomes a lot more accessible. I have a standing date for the standing room, said dance die-hard Marianne Maxwell, whod purchased a ticket for the post-dinner ballet performance only. This is my first time at the gala, and Im standing room tonight.

The evenings 2-hour ballet performance featured a collection of classical and modern pieces meant to give gala attendees a taste of the 2016 season  the companys 83rd. But as with every art form, everyones a critic. Some patrons loved the program. The choice of abstract music mixed with classical ballet was perfect, said Austin Harrison, whod flown to San Francisco from Los Angeles just to attend the gala.

Others disagreed. At intermission, Jill Ridder confessed she was hoping for a more contemporary presentation that stepped away from the traditional gender roles of the classic choreography. This is looking back at the past, said Ridder of the performances first half. This is a money group looking for culture, so theyre given a dinner of classical ballet. Theyll take anything.

Ridder is among the second group of people who attend the San Francisco Ballet Gala. The first group consists of bold-name society regulars who support the arts and arrive in diamonds. The second group includes people like Harrison and Ridder. They might disagree on the artistic value of certain shows, but the world-renowned San Francisco Ballet is blessed with fans who truly love ballet and take it very seriously. Artistic Director Helgi Tomasson has the impossible challenge of attempting to please all of them in one night.

The third gala group is the only collection of opening-night attendees that Tomasson doesnt have to worry about. The Ballet Galas After Party is famous for being one of San Franciscos best annual soirees  and an affordable one, at that. Once the curtain closes onstage, over 2,000 guests headed back across the street to a City Hall that Benavides had transformed into a multilevel, multi-venue nightclub, complete with a Neil Diamond cover band and raw bar.

We wanted the pomp and circumstance, said Oaklands Chris Nash when asked why he snapped up two tickets to the sold-out performance and after-party. We always think, Oh, we should go and we never do. Nash grabbed the arm of his date, Eji Ojo, as they entered City Hall. Even if you dont enjoy it (ballet), you get to look nice and people-watch.

The after-party is definitely a younger crowds scene. Jam-packed and more than a little sweaty, one of the late nights most popular activities was to snap selfies on City Halls grand staircase. The crowd is really young, said the Ballets very pleased Executive Director Glenn McCoy as he looked across a sea of delighted guests. The joy of dance  thats what were all about.

Daru Kawalkowski, a San Francisco Ballet sustainer liaison and a showstopper in a dress with a sequined dragon embroidered on it, marveled that the young after-partyers had really stepped up their sartorial game. Look around! No shirts, no jeans, no sweatshirts, no hoodies.  I mean, I had a fur hoodie, but that doesnt count.

While she had to be back at work by 10:30 the next morning, principal dancer Vanessa Zahorian switched out of her costume and into a ballgown. Now in her 19th season with the San Francisco Ballet, Zahorian never misses the opening-night after-party. This is the highlight, she gushed. Well, besides the dancing.

Beth Spotswood is a Bay Area blogger and freelance writer.
We arrive at 15 Romolo around 9:30 p.m. and hurriedly snag two seats at the bar. Instantly, menus appear, and a swift-moving bartender asks us what wed like to drink, without breaking eye contact with the half dozen glasses in front of him that hes filling simultaneously.

Its Saturday night, and the crowd around the small, spare bar is beginning to swell. Within a half hour, its shoulder to shoulder. No one looks to be older than 30. Behind us stands a group of young women dressed nearly identically in crop tops and leather jackets. Whats Manzanilla? one of them asks their designated drink-ordering member. Can I just get a whiskey sour?

I feel bad for this whiskey sour recipient, because amazing things are happening with Manzanilla here. Im sipping on a Slap and Tickle cocktail ($12), a kind of sherried riff on the martini, combining clean flavors of gin, vermouth and mint with tart, herbal Manzanilla Sherry. My companion has the Penelope ($13), a citrusy, rosy concoction of Palo Cortado Sherry, sparkling rose, Spanish brandy, grenadine, lemon and cacao; the Palo Cortados nutty brine shines through, matching bright, juicy fruit flavors.

Serious cocktails

These are serious cocktails, served and explained by an exceedingly competent staff. That many of 15 Romolos drinks not only include Sherry but actually taste like Sherry  a fairly esoteric and convoluted category of wine, resurgent among geeks but still fairly impenetrable to the public  is, to this wine geek, a great, and even sneaky, accomplishment.

But the Jerez-centric drink list is just the latest chapter in 15 Romolos 18-year history. Its a very good bar thats been succeeding for a very long time.

What a lot of people dont realize is that this whole corridor of Broadway is historically a Basque neighborhood, says Jon Gasparini, who owns 15 Romolo with Greg Lindgren. The space that the bar occupies was (actually, still kind of is) the Basque Hotel, one of many boardinghouses in this area of North Beach designed as lodging for shepherds and fishermen who had migrated from northern Spains Pais Vasco.

John Storey/Special to the Chronicle

The Basque Hotel, open since the 60s, was perhaps the greatest of them all, with a famous restaurant that offered enormous family-style meals and bottomless vin ordinaire for pennies. Chronicle restaurant critic Tom Sietsemas 1991 review describes a five-course $11 meal in a vast and affectionately quirky dining room that could pass for a boarding school cafeteria.

By the late 90s, the heyday of Basquetown had ended, the Basque Hotel restaurant had closed, and the Broadway corridor was getting packed with strip clubs. The hotel was quietly for sale for a while. It wasnt getting a lot of interest, Gasparini says. Most people wouldnt choose to open something up a steep alley with poor access off a strip joint.

This was before speakeasies were a thing. He and Lindgren, who had been talking about opening a cafe together, bought it. They reimagined the restaurant as a bar, and decided to keep the upstairs a 25-unit, single-room-occupancy boardinghouse. 15 Romolo opened in June 1998.

I wouldnt be honest if I said we knew from the beginning we wanted to focus on this Basque legacy, Gasparini admits. They always had Basque classic Picon Punch, but the spotlight on Sherry (which, granted, comes from the opposite end of Spain from Basque Country) didnt happen until a Sherry fanatic, Ian Adams, joined as bar manager about four years ago.

In an age when new concept-driven bars in San Francisco rise and fall with seasonal regularity, 15 Romolo seems to keep being cool without even trying. The location  just off the beaten path but still in the North Beach bar orbit  now works in its favor. Ditto the clandestine facade, the dim and dusty lighting, the unmarked interior walls. That chef Michelle Matthews food menu is Iberian-themed but not tapas feels refreshing amid this citys crowd of too-small plates. And all that Sherry  who could devise a hipper focus for a drink list?

John Storey/Special to the Chronicle

While we were early adopters of the cocktail movement, that hadnt been our primary focus in 1998, Gasparini says. In those days, what set a bar apart was ambience, crowd, music. The focus on quality food and drink came later.

Quality is an understatement for todays 15 Romolo. Thanks to Adams, the staff knows their Sherry, ready to offer pairings for dishes or advise on the smart, 20-selection glass list. A Tour de Jerez flight ($19) showcases Sherrys incredible diversity in four pours: honeyed, sour-apple Manzanilla; Amontillado, full of dried fruit and nutty to the extreme; challenging, precious Palo Cortado, where rich earthiness meets ocean brine; and finally, Pedro Ximenez, so figgy and raisiny and syrupy that youll want to pour it over pancakes. Or opt for the Old & Rare flight ($35), which includes a taste of the remarkable, butterscotch-laden Apostoles Palo Cortado from Gonzalez Byass ($31/glass).

Mellow weeknights

On weeknights, 15 Romolo is mellow and, in fact, a good spot for dinner. (You wont be sorry if you order the poutine  Kennebec fries, mozzarella curds, fennel-sausage gravy; $8.) But at weekend prime time, it feels like a total hookup scene. We get ages 21 to 71, Gasparini says. Thats the best feeling.

As we sip our cocktails at the bar this Saturday night, the room grows more and more frantic. This isnt what I thought milk punch would be! exclaims a gentleman behind me, confused no doubt by the clarified milk in the Miraculous Milk Punch (rum, brandy, green cardamom, nutmeg, clarified milk; $13). Its crisp in mouthfeel yet generous in flavor, reminiscent of buttered rum.

Around 11 p.m., Tiny Dancer comes on. A better song for the nights with the 71-year-olds, Im thinking, until it builds to the chorus. Every twentysomething in the bar starts belting out the words. They all know it by heart. Elton John and Sherry: What will San Francisco think up next?

Esther Mobley is The San Francisco Chronicles wine, beer and spirits writer. E-mail: emobley@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @Esther_mobley

To order: Tour de Jerez flight ($19), Penelope ($13), Miraculous Milk Punch ($13), poutine ($8).

Where: 15 Romolo, 15 Romolo Place, S.F., (415) 398-1359, 15romolo.com.

When: 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. Monday through Friday; 11:30 a.m. to 2 a.m. Saturday and Sunday.
There are few places where the cultural layer cake that is Sicilys Ionian coast is more evident than in Syracuse, where Greek and Roman ruins share blocks (and even buildings) with flourishes left by the Byzantines, Arabs, Normans and Spanish, among others.

The citys historical heart is the mile-long cleaver-shaped isle of Ortygia (Ortigia), a sloping, bite-size version of Europes most atmospheric medieval walled cities, complete with stone streets, scattered ruins, wide piazzas and arms-width alleys that nearly always promise a hole-in-the-wall trattoria with the best pasta and mussels youve had in a while.

Syracuse makes a good jumping-off point for a drive up the coast toward Mount Etna or inland toward the late-Baroque towns of Val di Noto (a UNESCO Heritage region), but the city itself has plenty to offer even for hard-core wanderers.

If you go

Hotel Grand Ortigia: Viale Giuseppe Mazzini 12, www.grandhotelortigia.it.

Caseificio Borderi: Via Emmanuele de Benedictis 6, www.facebook.com/CaseificioBorderi.

Archaeological Park Neopolis: Via Paradiso 14.

Syracuse Archaeological Museum: Viale Teocrito 66, www.italiantourism.com/museoarcheo.html.

Le Vin de LAssassin: Via Roma 115, Ortygia; www.facebook.com/levindelassassin.siracusa.

Syracuse Tourism: www.siracusaturismo.net (site in Italian).

Explore the city

Morning

The Grand Hotel Ortigia, a traditional European grand hotel built on the waterfront in 1900, is an elegant, useful base for exploring the island. Wander a few blocks toward the Ionian Sea side to the Mercato di Ortigia, a few blocks around Via Emmanuele de Benedictis of vendors in open-air stalls selling meats, seafood, spices and pastries. Most stalls are open by 8 a.m. and shut by 1 p.m. (check with your hotels desk clerk for times). At the end of the street is Caseificio Borderi, a deli and pocket cafe that tends to be full of locals. Order a sandwich for a picnic later from the guy working outside  just tell him to make his favorite. Its a 10-minute affair with five or six cheeses, half a dozen meats and a dozen herbs and vegetables minced by hand. Marvel at whats left of the nearby Greek Temple of Apollo from the fifth century B.C., but save wandering the rest of the island for afternoon.

Midday

Cross the canal to mainland Syracuse and catch a cab or bus out to the archaeological park, site of a Roman amphitheater, an ancient necropolis (including the crypt of Archimedes) and the Greek Theater. Its the biggest of several Greek theaters on this side of Sicily and is impressive, if only for when you realize that it wasnt built into the rocky hillside but was carved out of it. (Buy tickets at the tourist park across the street; if youre a serious history buff, get the combo ticket for the ruins and Syracuse Archaeology Museum a few blocks away.) Despite the steady flow of fellow travelers, there are a few quiet places on the path from the theater to the necropolis to sit, relax and picnic in the shade.

Afternoon

Dont be satisfied with just the past: Stroll back toward Ortygia along main street Corso Gelone for a glimpse of real, everyday Sicilian life (as well as for an espresso, a caprese salad and pastries). Its a working town that benefits from tourism but that hasnt sold its soul yet. Cross the canal back to Ortygia and walk the edges of the island along the waterfronts  bay and harbor on one side, Ionian Sea on the other. (The bay side offers better architecture and views, especially in the afternoon.) Take a breather for a glass of wine at one of the touristy cafes along the promenade near Fonte Aretusa, a natural spring fountain that is the basis for a Greek legend involving Artemis, the goddess of hunting. Turn inland on Via Capodieci and turn left on Via Roma for a stroll, stopping as often as possible at shops and cafes, until youre at Piazza Archimede, named for the mathematician, engineer, inventor and hometown hero Archimedes. The fountain is elaborate and the people-watching is excellent.

Evening

If you havent done it already, walk two blocks west to Via Cavour, a long, skinny pedestrian alley full of tiny boutiques, a few galleries, trinket shops, cozy cafes and at least one grocery store (good for picnic supplies or wine at non-tourist prices). Follow Via Cavour south and youll run into the broad, majestic Piazza Duomo and, of course, the cathedral. (About 45 minutes after sunset, when the sky is purple but still contains some light, is the best time for pictures of the Duomo, bathed in a golden glow.) Tip the street performers on Piazza Duomo and Piazza Minerva, then head to Le Vin de LAssassin, where the decidedly French menu, using Sicilian staples, is as culturally layered as the ruins down the street. Back at the Grand Hotel Ortigia, get a nightcap at the restaurant-bar on the top floor; outdoor seating looks out over Syracuses bay, sparkling in the nights lights.
No city in Ireland connects the kaleidoscope of historical dots more colorfully than Derry, which is in British-ruled Northern Ireland. Small and pretty, the city is a welcoming and manageable place for visitors  and most of its sights can be covered easily on foot.

Now a worthy tourist destination with the best city walls in Ireland, Derry was plagued by sectarian struggles during the 20th century. When Ireland was split into the North and the Republic in the early 1920s, Derrys waterway  the River Foyle  was a logical border. But, for sentimental and economic reasons, the Protestant North kept all of this predominantly Catholic Nationalist city. Subsequently, the two sides have fought over its status.

Even its name has been a source of dispute. Its Derry to the Catholics and Londonderry to the Protestants. I once asked a Northern Ireland rail employee for a ticket to Derry; he replied that there was no such place. Still, I call it Derry, since thats what most of the citys inhabitants do.

The name has a good pedigree, dating back to 546. In that year St. Columba established a monastic citadel here. He chose a hilltop site in the middle of an oak grove, or daire in Irish. The name stuck.

Fast forward 1,000 years or so to 1613, when the English arrived. To establish a Protestant toehold in this Catholic part of Ireland, they began planting the region with loyal Protestant colonists imported from Scotland and England. Since many were financed by wealthy London guilds, they changed the name to Londonderry.

To keep out the Irish, whod been forced onto less desirable land, the English surrounded the city with a stout defensive wall. Today those walls make Derry one of the best-preserved fortified cities in Ireland. They stand almost 20 feet high and nearly as thick, with 24 cannon standing sentinel.

The walls are a good place to start a Derry visit. Poetically described as the citys necklace, they form a mile-long loop encircling the original old town, and give a good view of its 17th century street plan. The top o the wall promenade (open from dawn until dusk) is a popular destination for Derrys inhabitants too.

The walls proved their effectiveness in 1688-89, when the Catholic King James II and an Irish army besieged the city. Derrys Protestant defenders, loyal to King William of Orange, slammed the town gates shut and outlasted their foes for 105 days.

The townsmen held off James with the help of Roaring Meg, a cannon renowned for the fury of its firing. Youll find her, beautifully restored, on the walls at the Double Bastion, a fortified platform.

From the Double Bastion, you can also enjoy a fine panoramic view over the Catholic Bogside neighborhood. These days, this gritty part of town is quiet and safe, but it wasnt always so.

For many years, Bogside was the tinderbox of the modern troubles in Northern Ireland. Most notably, the tragic 1972 Bloody Sunday events unfolded here, during a march protesting the internment of pro-Catholic activists. When a British regiment moved in to make arrests, 13 marchers were killed. The clash sparked a sectarian inferno whose ashes took decades to cool.

Today, visitors come to Bogside to honor this sad past and to view 12 memorial murals, painted along a 300-yard stretch of road where the march took place. Dramatic and emotional, these political murals  and others around Northern Ireland  form an enduring travel memory.

Sectarian violence in Ireland has given way to a settlement that seems to be working. Both sides have come to the position that an eye for an eye leaves everyone blind. In Derry, the growing hope for peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland is expressed in a powerful public-art sculpture of two figures extending their hands to one another.

Given the citys complex history, its worth taking the time to drop by the Tower Museum Derry. Occupying a reconstruction of a fortified medieval tower, this well-organized museum contains exhibits that help sort out Derrys tangled historical roots.

These days, the once-divided city sees itself as a shared city. The symbol of that recalibration is the Peace Bridge across the River Foyle. This pedestrian span, built with European Union funds, is intended to bring the two sides together: east bank and west bank, Irish and British, Catholic and Protestant, Nationalist and Unionist. And to the surprise of locals, its working.

In a sign of the times, a British army base that once occupied prime real estate near the old city wall has been transformed into an outdoor concert venue and a gathering place for all of Derry. Its an emblem of whats happened here; youll find that now the long-divided communities love their legend-Derry Irish city.

Rick Steves writes European travel guidebooks and hosts travel shows on public television. E-mail: rick@ricksteves.com
Scully, are you ready for this? he asks.

I dont know if theres a choice, she answers.

Ah, but there was: Let the nine original seasons (and two films) of The X Files remain one of televisions most memorable and most slavishly adored cult shows, and dont even think of trying to revive it.

But creator Chris Carter and Fox couldnt leave it alone. The result is a belated six-episode reboot premiering on Sunday, Jan. 24.

The two-episode premiere has some bumps, but its fun to watch, mostly because many of our old friends are back. Theres David Duchovny as Fox Mulder, still handsome, although a little more jowly than back in 2002 when the series ended. And he is again teaming with Gillian Anderson as Dr. Dana Scully  aging gracefully would be an understatement.

And oh, look: FBI Assistant Director Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) is back, as are a few other characters well leave unmentioned so as not to spoil the fun. The old X-Files office at the FBI is empty and long abandoned, but a couple of somewhat rushed and artificial plot points can fix that in no time flat.

Evolving relationship

The original series was about conspiracies, of course, primarily Mulders belief that the government was covering up the existence of extraterrestrials among us. Scully was a skeptic for a long time, and then she wasnt. She and Mulder developed a strong platonic relationship, and then it became something more. A child was born.

Carter has to update us on all of those topics and more in the first episode. His approach is to dispatch each one so quickly that you barely have time to process any of them. Meanwhile, theres a new case to be solved, one involving a young woman named Sveta (Annet Mahendru), who claims to have been repeatedly abducted by aliens.

On the surface, the case seems just like old times for Mulder, but the times arent old anymore. Theyve changed, and Mulder has more company in the conspiracy-nut category. Television mouthpiece Tad OMalley (Joel McHale), for one, has a bully pulpit known as Truth Squad on which he routinely rants about conspiracies. Theres little doubt that Mulder will be lured out of retirement by Svetas case  the pasture must have been pretty boring.

Mulder is hooked, but not on his usual conspiracy rant. He has a new thought, thanks to OMalley: What if the real conspiracy was that we were supposed to believe the whole aliens-among-us conspiracy to keep us from learning about a more insidious scheme?

Men against humanity

Maybe it isnt aliens we have to fear, but what Mulder calls a venal conspiracy of men against humanity. Examples include engineering a huge drought and brainwashing Americans into eating food thats bad for them and makes them fat.

Well, there goes the whole Im big-boned excuse.

Ive seen this before, Scully warns Mulder. Youre on fire with some truth. You want to believe. You want to believe so badly, youre on dangerous ground.

For the sake of X-Files fans, we can only hope so.

Ed Araquel/Associated Press

Fox initially offered only the first episodes to critics, but after some tepid early reviews, hastily made two more episodes available. It was a smart move. The second episode, Founders Mission, centering on an investigation into profiteering from genetic mutations, is better than Sundays premiere. The story (by James Wong) is better written, with a greater attention to nuance and detail, but by the second episode, we have also accepted that several years have passed in the lives of Scully and Mulder.

The third episode veers into loopy comedy as it unabashedly channels Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, in which the boys meet Lon Chaney Jr. as the Wolf Man, except that theres no Wolfman here  theres a Were-Monster. Written by Darin Gordon, the episode focuses on a poor sap named Guy Mann (Rhys Darby) whos led a happy existence as an insect-eating monster but was bitten by a human and transformed into a polyester-clad New Zealand native appalled at how human beings live.

Together, the three episodes represent what was good and maybe not so good about the original series. They also remind us that, somehow, even when Carter and company went off the rails, The X-Files was usually worth watching.

Challenge, opportunity

Carter is clearly aware of both the biggest challenge and the biggest opportunity in reviving the series after 14 years: Time has passed. The world has changed.

The writers acknowledge what theyre up against in even attempting a revival of the show when Mulder at one point says, Scully, since weve been away, a lot of things have been explained.

In other words, the truth isnt quite so far out there anymore.

David Wiegand is an assistant managing editor and the TV critic of The San Francisco Chronicle. E-mail: dwiegand@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @WaitWhat_TV

The X-Files: Drama. Premiere on a special night and time, 10 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 24, before moving to its regular time slot of 8 p.m. Mondays on Jan. 25, on Fox.
London: Text message reminders can help reduce people's blood pressure by encouraging patients to collect and take their medication and educate them about hypertension and its treatment, a new study has found.

Researchers from the Oxford University in UK and University of Cape Town in South Africa conducted a study on over 1300 adults with high blood pressure in the Cape Town area.

They compared text message reminders and interactive text messaging to a control group receiving standard care. Patients were randomly split into three equal-sized groups. All patients received written information about high blood pressure and healthy living.

The first group then received weekly messages at a time and in the language they chose (Afrikaans, English, or isiXhosa). The messages, designed in consultation with people in low-income communities in the area, encouraged patients to collect and take their medication and educated them about hypertension and its treatment.

Extra messages were sent to remind people when medicine was ready for collection or when they had a clinic appointment. The second group received the same text messages but were able to interact with the automated service by calling to change or cancel appointments or change the language or time of the messages. The third group received standard care.

Health workers used mobile phones linked to blood pressure measuring devices to collect health information about patients, and text messaging was managed automatically.

After twelve months, all three groups had reduced blood pressure. However, those who had received text messages had a slightly greater reduction in their blood pressure and were more likely to have achieved a controlled blood pressure.

Those who had had reminders were also more likely to have taken their medicine at least 80 per cent of the time ? almost two thirds of those getting information messages reached that standard compared to just under half of those receiving standard care.

"The improvements seen were equivalent to those expected from intensive one-to-one behavioural counselling, which is usually more expensive," said Andrew Farmer from Oxford University.

"When we consider that those good at sticking to treatment are 20 per cent less likely to die prematurely than those who don't manage that, any relatively low-cost intervention that helps people manage their high blood pressure successfully can save the very real personal, social and economic costs of the disease," he added.

The findings were published in the journal American Heart Association journal Circulation.
ATHENS  The death toll in Europes migration crisis rose Friday when two overcrowded smuggling boats foundered off Greece and at least 46 people drowned  more than a third of them children  as European officials remained deeply divided on how to handle the influx.

More than 70 people survived, and a large air and sea search-and-rescue effort was under way off the eastern islet of Kalolimnos, the site of the worst accident. It was unclear how many people were aboard the wooden sailboat that sank there in deep water, leaving at least 35 dead.

Coast guard divers were due to descend to the sunken wreck early Saturday, amid fears that more people had been trapped below deck.

At least 800 people have died or vanished in the Aegean Sea since the start of 2015, as a record of more than 1 million refugees and economic migrants entered Europe. About 85 percent of them crossed to the Greek islands from nearby Turkey, paying large sums to smuggling gangs for berths in unseaworthy boats.

Rights groups said the deaths highlight the need for Europe to provide those desperate to reach the prosperous continents shores with a better alternative to smuggling boats.

European policy toward its worst immigration crisis since World War II has diverged wildly so far. Germany  where most are heading  has welcomed those it considers refugees. Other countries, led by Hungary, have blocked or restricted them from entering and resisted plans to share the burden of refugees.

These deaths highlight both the heartlessness and the futility of the growing chorus demanding greater restrictions on refugee access to Europe, said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty Internationals Europe and Central Asia program director.

A manageable crisis has become a moral test that Europe is in danger of failing dismally, he said.

The U.N. refugee agency said daily arrivals on the Greek islands have surged to more than 3,000 in the past two days, and it cited refugee testimony that smugglers have recently halved their rates amid deteriorating weather conditions.

It is tragic that refugees, including families with young children, feel compelled to entrust their lives to unscrupulous smugglers in view of lack of safe and legal ways for refugees to find protection, said Philippe Leclerc of UNHCR Greece.
SEOUL  North Korea on Friday announced the arrest of a university student from Ohio for what it called a hostile act orchestrated by the American government to undermine the authoritarian nation.

In language that mirrors past North Korean claims of outside conspiracies, Pyongyangs state media said the University of Virginia student, who attended high school outside Cincinnati, entered the country under the guise of a tourist and plotted to destroy North Korean unity with the tacit connivance of the U.S. government and under its manipulation. The date of his arrest wasnt clear.

The Norths official Korean Central News Agency said in a short report that the student, whom it identified as Warmbier Otto Frederick, was arrested while perpetrating a hostile act, but it didnt explain the nature of the act. North Korea has sometimes listed English-language surnames first, in the Korean style. The University of Virginias online student directory lists Otto Frederick Warmbier as an undergraduate commerce student, and Wyoming City Schools near Cincinnati confirmed Otto Warmbier is a 2013 graduate.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich, campaigning in New Hampshire as a Republican presidential candidate, called the arrest inexcusable. He sent a message via his Twitter account saying the student should be released & returned immediately.

A China-based tour company specializing in travel to North Korea, Young Pioneer Tours, confirmed that one of its customers, identified only as Otto, had been detained in Pyongyang, the Norths capital, but provided no other details.

Social media accounts for Warmbier show interests in finance, travel and rap music; he was on the University of Virginias deans list and attended high school in Wyoming City, a suburb of Cincinnati.

The U.S. State Department said in a statement that it was aware of media reports that a U.S. citizen was detained in North Korea, but had no further information to share due to privacy considerations.

North Korea has previously released or deported U.S. detainees after high-profile Americans visited the country. Critics say such trips have provided diplomatic credibility to the North.

The Korean Peninsula remains in a technical state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty.
Real ID Bill Passes First Hurdle

A bill that would create a

has passed its first House committee. The compromise proposed by Rep. Paul Pacheco, R-Albuquerque and Andy Nunez, R-Hatch, is similar to approaches used in states such as California, Colorado, Nevada and Utah to comply with federal Real ID rules.

Getting Tough on Child Porn

A bipartisan bill to close New Mexicos

has also passed its first committee. Under current law, an individual possessing multiple images of child pornography could only be charged with one count of possession. A person possessing 100,000 images of child pornography is treated the same as a person possessing a single image.

'Three Strikes'

Legislation to reform New Mexicos existing three strikes law passed the House Regulatory and Public Affairs Committee Thursday on a party-line vote. The bill, Republicans say, would help close New Mexicos criminal justice

that has allowed dangerous career criminals out of jail free to commit additional acts of violence. The bill, also called Lillys Law, is named in honor of Lilly Garcia, the 4-year-old girl who was a victim of a violent road rage incident in Albuquerque last year.

Double Dipping

Ryan Boetel reports that

has yet to make up his mind on return-to-work legislation to help boost law enforcement ranks, despite his signature appearing on the bottom of a letter that indicates he supports the measure.

Money for Kids

House Democrats in the New Mexico Legislature have introduced a proposed constitutional amendment that would tap into the states permanent land fund to

and help improve conditions for children living in poverty here. Meanwhile, other lawmakers also want

.

No Regrets

Roundhouse reporter Dan Boyd reports, State Rep. Christine Trujillo acknowledged Thursday that she shouted,

at Gov. Susana Martinez during the governors State of the State address earlier this week.

Losing Bid

A company founded partly by former state senator Phil Griego lost a competitive bid to lobby for Rio Arriba County. The Rio Grande Sun reports that Griego and his partners, Severo Vincent Martinez [the former PRC chief of staff] and David Baca, bid $19,500 for the job, which is $10,500 less than the cost proposal submitted by winning bidder Joseph Torres.

Renewable Energy

Public Service Company of New Mexico executives and public officials dedicated the

Santa Fe County Solar Energy Center on Thursday.

The 472 rows of photovoltaic panels stand just under 10 feet high and represent the latest addition to the Public Service Company of New Mexicos renewable energy portfolio, which now includes 15 solar facilities throughout the state.

WIPP Plans

Some operations at the federal governments troubled nuclear waste repository in Southern New Mexico could resume by the end of 2016 under a plan approved by U.S. Department of Energy officials, but

about whether the facility would be ready to safely reopen, the Associate Press reports.

The plan approved by the Department of Energys field office in Carlsbad addresses recovery activities at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, day-to-day operations and maintenance, as well as the installation of a ventilation system needed before the underground facility resumes work related to the long-term storage of radioactive waste.

Digital Learning

Santa Fe Public Schools officials hope city voters will approve extending the funding for their Digital Learning Plan program on Feb. 2. The program provides money for laptop computer and tablets. Voting yes on the measure

. A no vote would drop property taxes $1.50 for every $1,000 of a homes assessed value.

This is the first time voters will have a say on the matter. For the past two years, the Santa Fe school board exercised the authority the Legislature bestowed upon school districts to impose a local tax to pay for technology improvements in the schools.

The 1.5-mill tax didnt go over well with some homeowners, many of whom were unaware of the school boards action and were shocked to see a significant increase on their property tax bills starting in the fall of 2014. The school mill levy was only part of it. Mill rate increases from county government and Santa Fe Community College, among smaller increases from other entities, also showed up on tax bills, causing the County Treasurers Office to be deluged with phone calls from angry taxpayers.

Raw and Wild

El Pinto Restaurant & Cantina is getting Raw and Wild with plans for

. If they get funding, Jim and John Thomas, the owners of the restaurant, will travel New Mexico and rediscover raw and wild indigenous foods while exploring landmarks like Carlsbad Caverns or the state's highest mountain, Wheeler Peak near Taos. They will also feature some of the characters they meet as they travel the backroads of New Mexico.



Thats it for this week. Take a look at some of the

on SFR's community calendar.

Santa Fe Reporter
In front of our house is a large and failing cottonwood tree. I've gotten a quote for trimming it and, after a rotten-root diagnosis, a quote to cut it down. I don't want to cut it down, though, so I emailed a "tree healer."

Early in our correspondence, I did not respond within 24 hours. I don't have much sit-down-at-the-computer time, and my email responses often lag. I recognize this as a bad habit, likely a character flaw, and certainly not one of the seven habits of highly effective people. It incensed the tree healer. With laudable response time on his part, he nailed me as representative of modern society's general inconsiderateness. His missive was long and full of grand-sounding words.

My husband pegged him as insane and urged me not to reply. But defensive anger has an agendaand a quick turnaround time. I questioned the considerateness of his snap judgments and explained the many immediate priorities on my daily lists that gave the tree's status less urgency.

This prompted his indictment of my lifestyle choices as destructive and unhealthy, illustrative of a society obsessed with oversubscription. I didn't answer this one, although I have in my head: My life is full. Sometimes it feels too full, but it's full of good, interesting things. Its fullness feels more like personal Tetris than personal torture, and it does not seem to be a societal blight.

I must have deleted the tree healer's emails, but I carry them with me anywaynot as fuel for outrage or a reminder of my failings, though his accusations contained kernels of those truths. I carry his weird example as a caution against rushed and mindless judgment.

We are so quick to judge others' choices and circumstances, so quick to suspect bad faith and point fingers. We assign only white hats and black hatsand we are always so confident that we wear the white hats. We wear them with great self-righteousness and, so costumed, feel smugly justified in passing black hats around to everyone else.

Whether we're Americans or Syrians or Mexicans, Christians or Muslims or Jews, Democrats or Republicans, city dwellers or rural folk, oil drillers or gasoline users, omnivores or vegans, childless adults or pregnant teens, tree healers or working mothers, black-hat-only and white-hat-only options make for a meager hat rack.

Its meagerness doesn't account for nuance, compassion or the complexities of our world. While the good-guy/bad-guy binary is the stock of some great children's stories and adult mythologiesand, unfortunately, much of our political discourseit's not the plotline to which I want to confine my children's thinking. Teaching my kids to use good judgment and think critically is very different from teaching them to be judgmental. Decency does not depend on discrediting others, and I could use more of that kind of healing.

How do I teach that, though? My 8-year-old son and I recently talked about the differences between using good judgment and being judgmental of others. He had a pretty good grasp of the concepts and framed his explanations in terms of a competitive second-grade Lego convention.

"So, if the judge looks at all the different projects and makes lists of what's good about them and then decides that one wins because it was the best in all the ways, then that's good," Theo explained.

"Yeah, I agree," I said and then summarized, because I can't help myself: "He's thinking through all the issues to make sure he's making the best, most informed decision that he can."

"And if the judge just says, 'You're the winner' because I'm his best friend, then that's not really good judging."

"Right. Or if he gives you a bad score just because he doesn't like the same things you do."

"Yeah. Or I can just make him like the same things," Theo said.

"Well, there's that."

"I made Daniel think that fairies are cool. He tried to make fun of me the other day, so I just explained to him how cool fairies actually arethat they can fly and be strong and build awesome machines from nature and have magic and do all these thingsand he was just like, 'Oh. Yeah. I guess they are cool.' So, now he can't make fun of me anymore."

I wasn't sure how to summarize this one, but it was a proud parenting moment. Maybe experiencing being on the judged side of judgmentalism is as good a teacher as any for remembering to withhold the judgment that puts someone else down. But it likely needs some heavy contextualizing to avoid fueling the down-the-hierarchy bullying that pops up on the playground and in the adult world in equal measure.

Contextualizing is akin to reflection, and reflection passes the baton to compassion. Kids don't get this on their own. It takes modeling, which is hard, and it takes talking, which requires listening. As Theo explained his judgment theories, I realized that teaching kids about judgment is a lot about teaching them to be self-reflectiveto think about the world around them and their place in it.

Theo said that teaching kids not to judge people just because of how they look or what they wear or because they like different things than you do is as simple as telling kids not to do it. But it's not that simple, as anyone who has ever been a kid will testifyor as anyone who remembers the "just say no to drugs" campaign will recall. Reflection, and self-reflection, is anything but simple. It requires humility, which is, perhaps, the most difficult thing to achieve, much less model and teach.

Theo's fairy-as-super-hero conversion tactic is not exactly humilityconversion tactics rarely are. That said, it seems to have come from a place of self-assured reflection more than superiority: judgmentalism stopped without being lobbed back.

The stopping is interesting: Maybe teaching judgment vs. judgmentalism is just about knowing when to stop.

In the high school parenting class I teach, I often hear teen moms' birth stories. It's an empowering tale for a teen momfor any momto tell and retell. It's a testament to her strength, her resiliency and her capabilities in the face of nearly constant, belittling judgment. Birth stories tell of the birth not only of our children, but also of ourselves as mothers. It's not uncommon for this powerful claim of a new mom's new identity to include a bit of sanctimony: an unmedicated labor as a badge of honor, for example.

I have heard from several students how their "nurse told me how strong I was when I was in my labor. She said I was stronger/quieter/tougher/faster even than the old moms." I love that my students' nurses tell them how strong they are. They need to hear that. We all do. But in the process, do they really need to slap down all the poor old moms, in which category I certainly fall?

Maybe I'm being defensive. I'll admit as much to my students: "Hey now! I was a geriatric pregnancy!" I also suggest that we can think through our individual decisions and own our own strengths proudly, loudly, proactivelyand stop there. Thinking. Strength. Humility. Full stop. If we can do that, I think we're teaching our kids to use good, self-reflective judgment. Full stop.



Santa Fe Reporter
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BENGALURU: As we are inching towards yet another republic day celebrations, the central government is all set to honor 24 brave juveniles of 2015 with the National Bravery Awards. The recipients were announced on 14th November and each one of them has a different story to tell. Thus, here goes the story of 9 recipients, as reported by THE HUFFINGTON POST.

Also Read: Life or Death: How to Stay Informed as a Citizen of the World

6 Things to Look Forward to This Republic Day
WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama is trying to round up support for his plans to host a high-level summit on refugees at the United Nations later this year.

The White House says Obama discussed his plans Thursday in a phone call with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The summit is slated to be held during the September meeting of the U.N. General Assembly.

The White House says Obama praised Merkels leadership on the Syrian refugee crisis and discussed plans to ask more countries to step up their contributions.

The leaders will raise the issue at a donors conference slated for February 4 in London.

Obama also expressed his condolences for the January terrorist attack in Istanbul. Ten Germans were killed when a suicide bomber set off the explosion near a group of tourists.

Read More: 'Sheroes Hangout' Going Viral; Acid Attack Victims Fighting Back

India Launches 5th Navigation Satellite on Board PSLV C31

Arun Jaitley Meets U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew At WEF
NEW YORK: A 26-year-old Indian-American entrepreneur from Nevada, in southwestern U.S., has been invited on Shark Tank, the popular American television series, the American Bazaar reported.

Shaan Patel will be pitching for investment for his startup '2400 Expert', a company that prepares students for SAT (scholastic assessment test) and ACT (American college testing) on the January 29th episode of ABC's hit show which has the ability to make multi-millionaires in a few years of those who manage to get a deal.

While SAT is more of an aptitude test, testing reasoning and verbal abilities, ACT is and always has been a curriculum-based achievement test, measuring what a student has learned in school.

Patel's start-up '2400 Expert' offers six-week courses in 20 major U.S. cities and online.

A Clark High School graduate, Patel put in nearly 2,000 hours of work into developing the curriculum and books for his prep course.

His product pitch claims 100 strategies developed by a perfect-scoring SAT student, double the course hours and half the price of top instructors.

"The secret to getting on Shark Tank is to ignore Shark Tank. Entrepreneurs who would like to get on Shark Tank should not focus on getting Shark Tank. Instead, they should focus on building their business," the American Bazaar quoted Patel as saying in an interview to CBS.

Patel who has bootstrapped the venture is not resting on the possibility of whether he gets a deal or not on the TV series. However, he is creating a buzz within the community with his call-up on the show, said the report.

"You should start with a great idea, but more importantly great execution of that idea. Once you have done that, Shark Tank will be much more interested in what you have to offer," Patel said.

Patel is also trying to "recruit" viewers for his Shark Tank episode. And he's throwing a viewing party on January 29, 2016 at his alma mater Clark High School where he'll also be giving away $30,000 worth of SAT prep books and another $100,000 in prep courses to the general public, revealed the report.

Also Read:

Sanders Ahead in Iowa, Trump Consolidates Lead

Sarah Palin Endorses Donald Trump as U.S. President

Source: IANS
WASHINGTON: A day after winning the endorsement of Sarah Palin, Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump won the indirect backing of another establishment figure as he held a 20-point lead in a key primary state.

Texas Senator Ted Cruz would be even worse for the Republican Party than the real estate mogul Trump were he to win the presidential nomination, former presidential nominee Bob Dole told the New York Times.

Warning of "cataclysmic" and "wholesale losses" for the Republican Party if Cruz prevails, Dole, who unsuccessfully challenged then Democratic President Bill Clinton in 1996, said Cruz had made enemies in Washington.

"I don't know how he's going to deal with Congress," Dole told the Times. "Nobody likes him."

Trump, on the other hand, could "probably work with Congress, because he's, you know, he's got the right personality and he's kind of a deal-maker", Dole added.

Dole has endorsed former Florida Governor Jeb Bush and previously said he might "oversleep" on Election Day if Cruz ends up the nominee.

Questioning Cruz's commitment to the Republican Party, Dole called him an "extremist" and said Cruz chooses "conservative" as his label.

"If he's the nominee, we're going to have wholesale losses in Congress and state offices and governors and legislatures," Dole said.

Dole said only Trump seemed to be able to take Cruz on, and he added that the real estate mogul seems to have "toned down" his rhetoric.

He added that Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton was beatable -- but not for Cruz.

"I think she'd be a pretty easy target in the general, if we nominate the right person," Dole said. "If (Cruz) does it, I think she'll win in a waltz."

The 92-year-old former lawmaker is only the latest establishment Republican to express concern about Cruz's growing strength in the Republican primary polls, after Iowa Governor Terry Branstad said he hoped that Cruz was defeated.

Meanwhile, Trump, who won former Alaska governor and 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee Palin's endorsement on Tuesday, led by 34 percent to 14 percent over Cruz among voters in New Hampshire's February 9 Republican primary.

Bush and Florida Senator Marco Rubio are tied for the third spot with 10 pct each in the new CNN/WMUR Poll.

But Cruz has grown the most since a December poll: He's climbed from 6 percent to 14 pct, largely on the strength of a favourability rating that has jumped from 46 percent in December to 55 pct now.

Trump, though, dominates on the two issues that likely voters have identified as most important: the economy and the threat of ISIS.

Nearly half -- 48 pct -- of Republicans say Trump would best handle the economy, far ahead of Bush, Cruz and Ohio governor John Kasich, with just 7 percent each.

And 32 percent say he'd best handle the Islamic State, ahead of Cruz's 14 percent, Bush's 12 pct and Rubio's 10 pct.

Read More: Rajat Gupta to Finish Sentence at New York Home

Trump Consolidates His Position in Presidential Race

Source: IANS
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Will the St. George Greenmarket open as usual for its winter session from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. this Saturday?

"Cancellations have been pouring in with this morning's weather report -- only baked goods are currently scheduled at St. George," said Liz Carollo, spokeswoman for GrowNYC which governs the City's Greenmarkets.

"The forecasters are calling for 5-to-8 inches tonight and and additional 8-to-10 tomorrow in our area, so we will hunker down with some movies and popcorn, with the snow shovels near at hand," says Dan Torrison of Rabbits' Run Farms of Pennsylvania.

Farmers Torrison and Lauren Churchill typically present their organic produce and meats, honey, goat hides and soaps at the St. George Greenmarket. However, it is their distinct goat cheeses for which they've become known. And, as a result, the farmers invested in a new, more efficient pasteurizer.

"Pasteurizing should now take 2-to-3 hours as opposed to 10-to-12 hours," explains Torrison. Now, he can make kefir and yogurt. And, as soon he gets the necessary licenses to sell those products, he'll be selling them on Staten Island sometime in the spring.

Rabbits' Run Farms now sells to restaurants. Their plain fresh chevre is sold in one-pound logs wholesale for $16 per pound and a discount after a six-pound purchase. Torrison and Churchill can be reached via Rabbits' Run Farm's Facebook page.

The St. George Greenmarket normally sets up behind the St. George Theatre at St. Mark's Place and Hyatt Street.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- For some people, it's the bike they received when they were a kid.

For others, it's the car their parents gave them after they learned to drive, or in their later years, the thrill of a long-desired trip abroad.

But the most memorable birthday for one Staten Island woman is her most recent.

On Friday, her 49th birthday, she learned that Bourlaye Toure, the serial rapist who terrorized her and five other borough women nearly three decades ago, has finally been deported to the Ivory Coast, his native African country.

"It's terrific," said the woman, whose name is being withheld, in a phone conversation with the Advance. "I got the best birthday present ever. I'm so glad that he's gone. Thank God."

Sources with knowledge of the case confirmed Toure was deported Thursday, nearly four years after he was supposed to be booted out.

Toure, 46, was originally scheduled to be deported in March 2012, after serving nearly 25 years of a 12-to-36-year sentence.

By law, inmates serving indeterminate sentences can be sprung for good behavior, after serving at least two-thirds of their maximum term of sentence.

Previously, in February 1988, Toure had pleaded guilty to 16 felony counts, including attempted murder and first-degree rape.

Prosecutors said he raped three women, sexually abused two others and tried to kill another in the borough between July 14, 1987, and his arrest 15 days later. Most of his victims were sleeping when Toure attacked them.

He struck in Concord, Grasmere, Grymes Hill, New Dorp and Stapleton.

In one incident, Toure, then 17, raped a New Dorp woman while her 18-month-old daughter slept nearby in a crib.

The brazen Toure, who was wearing a security-guard uniform, said, "Thank you, very much," before departing, said the woman, who was 20 at the time.

Toure was placed in the custody of the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after his release from prison, in anticipation of his deportation.

However, ICE couldn't obtain the required deportation documents, state Supreme Court Justice Wayne Ozzi wrote in a recent ruling regarding Toure's deportation.

Toure was released on immigration parole on Dec. 7, 2012, and told to report to Bellevue Men's Shelter, in Manhattan, which, he did.

He was arrested five days later, although not charged with a new crime or with violating his parole, and confined at Fishkill Correctional Facility in upstate Dutchess County, said Ozzi.

The next month, the state attorney general's office filed a petition for civil management.

Under state law, certain sex offenders can be placed on "strict and intensive supervision and treatment," live in the community and be very closely supervised by the Division of Parole. Those considered more dangerous can be civilly confined at a secure psychiatric treatment facility run by the Office of Mental Health.

Toure had been deemed a Level 3 sex offender -- the highest risk to repeat his crimes and a threat to public safety. Ozzi said Toure's civil confinement wasn't an imprisonment even though he was housed on the same grounds as a correctional facility.

Toure challenged the attorney general's civil-management petition and said he would agree to deportation.

Ozzi dismissed the petition, reasoning deportation was a better solution.

Those arrangements were recently made, paving the way for Toure's departure.

And it couldn't come soon enough, said the victim, adding her mind is finally at rest.

"I can't believe this," she said. "It's been (almost) 30 years from start to end. This is fantastic."
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Last year, the city offered the Department of Sanitation civil service exam for the first time in eight years.

Nearly 70,000 people took the test for 500 openings.

The test is understandably one of the more popular civil service exams. Sanitation workers -- requiring only a high school diploma or equivalent -- start at $33,746 and can make nearly $70,000 after five and a half years.

However, it is only one of many civil service jobs. The city of New York employs hundreds of thousands of people in its 80 agencies. In addition to the biggies, police officer, firefighter and sanitation worker, the jobs are in a wide variety of fields --education, engineering, corrections, recreation, safety and clerical. They are seen as well paying with good benefits and security.

Taking a test is the way to get started in the hiring process for most of these positions, and scoring high on the exam is a major goal in the highly competitive process.

Administered by the Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS), the tests are meant to level the playing field because they are open to everyone.

After the exam, an "eligible to hire list" is established, with candidates ranked according to scores. A list can be active for four years to fill vacant positions.

One major challenge is that many more job seekers take the exams than there are positions open.

POSITIONS AVAILABLE

Information about the the most popular civil service jobs, including education, fire, police and sanitation, as well as jobs that do not require exams, can be found at www1.nyc.gov/jobs.

An archive of job descriptions that provides a useful alphabetical listing is also available. The exam dates are past filing, but the listings provide background information on requirements and salary.

TWO TYPES OF ADMINISTRATION

There are two ways the city administers exams: scheduled and self-scheduled.

A scheduled exam, for positions such as firefighter, police officer and sanitation worker, has an exact date. These are non-computerized tests, generally given on Saturdays at high schools located throughout the city's five boroughs.

You gain entrance to the exam by filing an application. Then you will receive an exam admission notice within two to three months from the end of the filing period. This notice provides the date, time and location where you will take the test.

A self-scheduled exam has dates, but it is a rolling schedule. A candidate reserves a seat for a test administered at one of the Computer-based Testing and Applications Center. They are in Brooklyn at Joralemon St., 4th floor and in Manhattan at 2 Lafayette St, 17th floor.

WHEN ARE EXAMS

The complete exam schedule for the fiscal year, which ends on June 30, can be found in alphabetical order or in filing date order.

However, the year-long dates are tentative. For example, an exam for police officer listed for March 31 has been cancelled.

The most up-to-date information, for both scheduled and self-scheduled, is provided with the monthly schedule of current and upcoming exams.

Current information is also available on an automated message at 212-669-1357.

HOW TO APPLY

Applying for an exam is done online at the city's OASys website. Those who do not have access to a computer, may use one at one of the Computer-based Testing and Applications Centers.

At the OASys website, you will find a Notice of Examination (NOE) for the list of current examinations. The NOE includes job description, qualification and eligibility requirements, test descriptions and application information. It can be a long document and you must acknowledge that you have carefully read the Notice of Examination before you apply for an exam.

Application fees range from $40 to $101.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The Oscar nominations may be a little less white in the coming years with the Motion Picture Academy's landmark vote to address its own diversity problem.

Thursday's decision to include more minorities and women on its voting board comes after a week of harsh criticism over this year's nominations. They included only one non-white nominee among the 25 nominees in acting and directing categories this year.

"The Academy is going to lead and not wait for the industry to catch up," said Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs in a statement. "These new measures regarding governance and voting will have an immediate impact and begin the process of significantly changing our membership composition"

Among the changes they voted on Thursday night is the goal to double the number of women and diverse members of the Academy by 2020.

They're also introducing term limits: Starting later this year, new members' voting status will last 10 years, and will be renewed if that new member has been active in motion pictures during that decade.

Members can receive lifetime voting rights only after three 10-year terms, or if they have won or been nominated for an Academy Award.

So, in essence if a board member hasn't been active in filmmaking for 10 years, at the end of those ten years his/her status will not be renewed.

The academy promised to also use better recruitment tactics in selecting new, more diverse, members.

The Academy also created three new governor seats that will be nominated by the President for three-year terms and confirmed by the Board.

The vote follows a week of outrage over this year's Oscar nominations, which many protested for their lack of diversity.

Actor Will Smith joined his wife Jada Pinkett-Smith in an Oscar boycott (without explicitly calling it that) during an interview Thursday morning on "Good Morning America."

"The nominations reflect the Academy, the Academy reflects the industry, and the industry reflects America," said Smith, a two-time Academy Award nominee for "Ali" and "The Pursuit of Happyness." "It reflects a series of challenges that we are having in our country at the moment. There's a regressive slide toward separatism, toward racial and religious disharmony, and that's not the Hollywood that I want to leave behind."

In addition to a long list of actors who expressed concern over the Academy's diversity, film-lovers joined the protests. #OscarsSoWhite was trending shortly after the nominations were announced. The hashtag was started by former attorney April Reign, who said she was pleased with the Academy's vote.

"Never say it's just Twitter or that social media can't change things, because I think we're seeing it," she told the Los Angeles Times.

"But we still need to put pressure on the Hollywood studio heads to make more inclusive and diverse films because the academy can only nominate quality work that has been made," she added in the interview. "If people of color, marginalized communities, are still being stymied, if we're still being ignored by the Hollywood studios, then the changes that the academy is making won't result in people of color and marginalized communities seeing themselves on screen more often."
NWS deBlasio

NYC Schools Chancellor Carmen Farina, left, Mayor Bill de Blasio inside a science classroom at the Michael J. Petrides School in Sunniside on Tuesday May 26, 2015.

(Staten Island Advance/Anthony DePrimo)

CITY HALL -- The city will add 800 more school seats on Staten Island to address overcrowding, though not all borough needs will be met.

The new seats are among 11,800 the School Construction Authority and the Department of Education will add with a $868 million allocation in an amendment to their current five-year capital plan released on Thursday.

Where exactly the new seats will go on Staten Island hasn't been determined. The city is in the process of choosing locations for three new borough projects.

The 800 are part of 2,081 total seats the city will add on Staten Island over the next five years. That amounts to 1,736 elementary and middle schools seats and 345 high school seats.

The city will spend $250.12 million to add the capacity on Staten Island, encompassing five projects. The total cost for Staten Island plans -- including expansion, repairs and other needs -- is $646.15 million through fiscal year 2019.

Despite the new capacity being added, there are still unfunded needs in District 31's New Dorp and North Shore subdistricts as well as the Staten Island High School district.

The city isn't able to fund an additional 1,136 seats needed on the North Shore or 476 more for the New Dorp subdistrict. The Staten Island High School district needs 55 seats that are unfunded.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Thursday that 38,000 more school seats will be funded citywide in the next five-year capital plan, which will begin in July 2019.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Rep. Daniel Donovan has honored local teenagers for their achievements in community service on Staten Island and others for their dedication to the military.

More than 20 students were given certificates and medals by Donovan (R-Staten Island/Brooklyn) during the two Wednesday events, which recognized the high schoolers' good grades, test scores, extracurricular activities and dedication to serve their communities.

CONGRESSIONAL AWARDS

Service, initiative and achievement

Donovan welcomed seven borough students to his Staten Island District Office in New Dorp for a Congressional Awards ceremony, honoring the teens for achieving individual goals in four program areas: voluntary public service, personal development, physical fitness, and expedition/exploration.

The Congressional Award is a public-private partnership created by Congress to promote and recognize achievement, initiative, and service in America's youth.

During the ceremony, Donovan thanked the recipients for their extensive work in serving the public during their free time.

"All of you have dedicated at least 100 hours to improving our community," he said. "On behalf of our city, our country, and the United States Congress, thank you."

The congressman also made a point to thank each child's parents for being the driving force (literally) behind each teen's continued success.

"These kids couldn't have made as big an impact without your support, your time, your passenger seat, and your gas card," said Donovan. "Thank you."

Each student received bronze, silver or gold medals during the 4 p.m. presentation, followed by a handshake and personal request from Staten Island's former district attorney.

"You've already made a difference in your neighborhoods, but you have to keep it up," added Donovan. "Yes, the Congressional Award is special, but you must build on your effort. I want to read in the newspapers about the great things you've done when I'm an old man."

MILITARY SERVICE AWARDS

Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard and Merchant Marines

Following the Congressional Awards, Donovan headed to the SSG Michael Ollis VFW Post 9587 in Oakwood, where more high schoolers were being honored for their practice and dedication to serving our country.

The venue, re-named after Staff Sergeant Michael Ollis who died in Afghanistan, welcomed 15 students who received official nominations from Donovan as candidates for admission to a military academy: Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guards and Merchant Marines.

Each nominee was given a certification granted by a local committee that oversaw the competitive nomination process by reviewing grades, test scores, recommendations and extracurricular activities.

Each of the nominees must still earn admission to the service academy for which they were nominated by Donovan.

"You've spent your high school years reaching toward a noble objective: defending the greatest country in the history of the world," said Donovan during a speech to the students and their families. "You represent the best of us."
EPA officials

Susan Hedman, regional administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency, speaks during a press conference in 2010.

(MLive file photo)

Susan Hedman, regional administrator for the EPA's Chicago-based region 5, resigned Thursday amidst mounting outrage over the Flint water crisis.

Hedman's resignation is effective Feb. 1.

"EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy has accepted given Susan's strong interest in ensuring that EPA region 5's focus remains solely on the restoration of Flint's drinking water," an EPA spokeswoman told The Hill last Thursday.

While the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality has taken the brunt of criticism for its handling of the situation, Hedman was been attacked for downplaying concerns on her staff about the safety of Flint water.

In particular, Miguel Del Toral, a water specialist at the EPA's Region 5 headquarters in Chicago, wrote a memo in June laying out the problems with Flint water.

However, the final version of the memo left out Del Toral's criticisms that Flint was failing to follow federal regulations on corrosion control chemicals and testing for lead.

Also announced Thursday, the EPA is stepping in to promptly begin collecting and testing Flint water samples for lead. The agency issued an emergency order to the state demanding the state provide data to the federal agency and implement recommendations made by its task force.

The order also demands the state create a website within five days to make all reports, water sampling results, plans and progress reports publicly available.

Gov. Rick Snyder's office said they are willing to work with federal authorities.

"The state of Michigan stands ready to work with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and all agencies to fix the water crisis in Flint," Snyder's Press Secretary Dave Murray said. "As Gov. Snyder said in his State of the State Address earlier this week, government at all levels failed the people of Flint. He accepted accountability for that, and noted that federal, state, and local leaders broke the trust of the people. We should all focus on the needs of Flint - both immediate and long-term. Making the city whole again must be our top priority."

The EPA's entire order can be viewed here.

MLive's Gary Ridley contributed to this report.
NWS FRANCIS.JPG

Francis School in Great Kills graduated 22 students on January 17, in its last commencement. The school announced it it closing. (Staten Island Advance/Ryan Lavis)

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Fighting a losing battle against rising costs and slipping enrollment, the Francis School in Great Kills, which billed itself as Staten Island's only affordable, private, non-sectarian, co-educational college preparatory high school, is closing its doors.

Head-of-school Constance Costa said the January Class of 2016, comprised of 22 seniors who graduated last Sunday, was the school's last class.

With small class sizes and an intimate learning environment, the nearly 40-year-old school had carved a niche for itself as an affordable alternative for middle-class families with students, who for whatever reason, could not make it in a larger, mainstream public or parochial high school, or who were missing classes and credits to earn their diploma in four years.

As part of its mission, it kept its tuition rates competitive with those of borough parochial schools, so that parents of students who transferred from those schools would not experience tuition "sticker shock." The school charged $8,500 in tuition and fees for its most recent academic year.

"We were able to help so many students achieve their dreams over the years," said Costa, who was with the school, in some capacity, since it opened.

"They made lifelong friends here, and lasting memories. It was a very rewarding experience for all of us, and one that we are all very proud of. I don't know where kids like these are going to be served now. It's a shame," Costa said.

She said the closing was not unexpected, and the school had been transparent with parents about its plans. It did not accept a freshmen class in September; had worked with parents to find appropriate placement for undergraduates, and had worked with seniors to see that each of them completed state requirements for their diploma by January.

At its peak, the school enrolled more than 200 students, but enrollment slowly slipped below 100, and by the last year had fallen to under 60 students.

Costa attributed the enrollment fall-off to a shrinking high-school population pool and noted the borough's parochial schools are facing the same challenges.

Francis School began in the mid-1970s as St. Francis High School, a Catholic preparatory school on the grounds of the former St. Francis Friary atop Todt Hill. It had an enrollment of about four-dozen students. As the friary expanded, the school moved off-campus, into the building that housed St. John the Baptiste de La Salle School in Stapleton, a Catholic parish elementary school that had closed.

It shed the St. Francis title for Francis School, and was chartered by the state Education Department as an independent, non-sectarian school, to serve middle school and high school students from grades six to 12. The school began a search for its own building.

A vacant parcel at 4240 Amboy Road in Great Kills was purchased, where the school built a two-story brick building, which opened in 1988. That building is currently listed for sale, Costa said.

She said the school would seek to continue its mission at another, smaller site, offering a part-time evening program to teens over 16 who need course credits to complete requirements for their high school diploma, but are unable to attend traditional classes during the day because they may need to work full-time.
nws Lanza

Sen. Andrew Lanza listens to bills being called in the Senate on Thursday before the confirmation of Chief Judge Janet DiFiore. (Staten Island Advance/Rachel Shapiro)

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Day two of a stay in the state's capital solidified a few thoughts from day one: First, the members of Staten Island's Albany delegation might not all like each other all the time, but they seem to spend a lot of time together.

Secondly, for the Capitol building and Legislative Office Building being as large as they are, it sure is easy to run into one of the lawmakers. That's with Assemblyman Matthew Titone working from home while recovering from back surgery. He expects to be back in Albany on Monday.

And it's without Joe Borelli, now a city councilman and no longer an assemblyman. With just four lawmakers from Staten Island, it's even more amazing.

10:30 a.m. -- Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis and other members of the Assembly's GOP delegation call for passage of their "Spirit of '76" bill that allows for a piece of legislation that has 76 sponsors in the Assembly and 32 in the Senate -- enough to pass -- to bypass committee and move to the floor for a debate and up or down vote.

Currently, the Assembly speaker and Senate majority leader can stop bills from coming to the floor even if they are sponsored by a majority of members.

11:00 a.m. -- The Senate considers Gov. Andrew Cuomo's appointment to chief judge, Westchester DA Janet DiFiore.

Various senators speak of their support for her, including many Republicans (DiFiore is a Democrat and was appointed by Democratic Cuomo) and Sen. Diane Savino, who comments on the lack of resources the courts have.

The court system has been "deprived and starved for far too long," Savino says, speaking on the Senate floor, saying more resources are needed.

While Staten Island got its own judicial district nine years ago, now it needs more judges, a community court and a drug court, Savino says.

DiFiore is confirmed after about an hour of support from senators on both sides of the aisle.

Janet DiFiore will be heading up a court system that's lacking resources @dianesavino pic.twitter.com/cZAeEW49uq  Rachel O'Brien (@Writingrachel) January 21, 2016

12:30 p.m. -- Sen. Andrew Lanza chairs a meeting of the Investigations and Government Operations Committee, meeting with Sen. Brad Hoylman (D-Manhattan) and Sen. Marty Golden (R-Brooklyn).

Lanza, chairing the committee for the first time this year, is amazed at its power.

It has "broad reach, broad jurisdiction," he says, with the power to subpoena and ensure government accountability.

"I was shocked by the jurisdiction of this committee," he says. "It really touches everything."

1:00 p.m. -- Lanza and Assemblyman Michael Cusick (D-Mid-Island) meet with Alfred Cardillo, executive vice president of Home Care Association of New York State; Brianne Galli, associate for public policy for NYS Association of Health Care Providers; and Diane Barrett, director of government and public affairs for Continuing Care Leadership Coalition.

While both houses passed Cusick's and Lanza's bills last year, the governor vetoed the bill, which would have allowed home health aides through restricted areas after a storm, like Hurricane Sandy, in order to get to the homes of the ill and elderly who need their care.

Lanza called the bill a "no brainer," but after several days of allowing aides access beyond restricted areas, a week or so after Sandy, they were blocked.

The legislators and three advocates believe there was a lack of understanding about what the bill does.

They plan to get more sponsors on the bills, and are meeting with stakeholders soon, and the governor's office, to ensure what when it passes again, as they expect it to, the governor will sign it this time.
NWS Lemon Creek Park

Lemon Creek Park in Pleasant Plains is one of the Staten Island parks set to receive FEMA funds for repairs. (Staten Island Advance/Maura Grunlund)

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- This upcoming October marks four years since Hurricane Sandy destroyed homes, parks and playgrounds across Staten Island.

More than $1 million of federal funding from FEMA, through the Public Assistance program, will be used in an effort to repair some of the borough's parks and playgrounds.

The announcement was made Friday by U.S. Senators Charles E. Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, Congressman Dan Donovan and Mayor Bill de Blasio.

"Superstorm Sandy devastated our communities, and this FEMA funding will help cover the cost of repairing damages to several parks and playgrounds on Staten Island," Gillibrand said.

The $1,092,771 repairs will be made to: Schmul Park, Travis; Midland Playground and Skate Park, Midland Beach; Lemon Creek Park, Pleasant Plains; Cpl. Allan E. Kivlehan Park, New Dorp, and Silver Lake Park.

"This federal reimbursement will help New York City ensure that repairs made at these parks do not put a heavy burden on local taxpayers, many of whom were personally impacted by Superstorm Sandy," Schumer said.

Mayor de Blasio stated that repairs are already in place, and added: "This marks another step forward as we ensure that Staten Island -- and our entire city -- is stronger and more resilient after Sandy, providing our kids and our families with the safe open space they need."

The funding will be provided to the New York City Office of Management and Budget on behalf of the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation.

"Hopefully, these repairs bring more normalcy to the upended lives of thousands of Staten Islanders," said Donovan.
This was a story waiting to be told, and it has been.

Rating:

Direction: Raja Menon

Cast: Akshay Kumar, Nimrat Kaur, Kumud Mishra, Purab Kohli and Inaamulhaq

Indian businessman in Kuwait, Ranjit Katyal (Akshay Kumar) returns home one evening to party out with wife Amrita (Nimrat Kaur). A happy evening with friends follow  loudly flows the wine, and Katyal even attempts a belly dance!

Cut to scene two, and that glib, happy veneer is shattered by explosions marking the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990. And with that contrast, Airlift takes off on a gritty journey to portray Indias largest evacuation of its citizens from Kuwait (all 1,70,000 of them) and particularly Katyals role in it.

The narrative seamlessly accommodated layers of emotion as they blended with personal stories. Scriptwriters Suresh Nair, Rahul Nangia, Ritesh Shah and director Menon had researched the real behind the reel, and the entire length of Saddam Hussain's invasion of the gulf country.

'Airlift' is well shot, particularly the ones taken on air. Cinematographer Priya Seth has also done well capturing the Middle Eastern ethos.

Akshay's character provides a wall of support to not only his professional family but also to all Indians who were to be evacuated. Did he neglect his own family? But the call of duty to the country was greater.

Akshay Kumar has definitely pushed the envelope with his last two outings. The raw and gritty action of this film, the fear and tension on Akshay Kumars face when he is unable to execute the escape initially, is terrific. It's difficult to take one's eyes off Akshay Kumar and he makes one's heart swell with pride.

Nimrat Kaur is in character as a doting mother and the protective wife. The chemistry between her and Akshay in the film crackles. Purab Kohli and Kumud Mishra deserve a special mention. But actor Inaamulhaq's Arab accent as an Iraqi major -- the main antagonist -- is irritating.

The background music of the film is beautifully woven into the screenplay. Music director Arijit Datta deserves a special mention for keeping the music relevant to a war drama. You can also hear the sound of the punches.

Coming to the glitches, one couldn't understand when Akshay Kumar, who doesn't approve of Hindi music, is seen shaking a leg on a song in the opening sequence of the film. The first half of the film moves smoothly but the hasty evacuation towards the end makes the story lose grip.

This was a story waiting to be told, and it has been.
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Kabul: The Afghan Taliban said they will attend a conference organised by an international crisis group on resolving the war in Afghanistan.

The Taliban said Friday that representatives of their "political office" will attend the conference in Qatar's capital, Doha, organised by the Pugwash Council, a Nobel peace prize-winning group focused on resolving conflict.

The conference is "aimed at finding a solution to the conflict in Afghanistan," now in its 15th year.

Javid Faisal, deputy spokesman for Afghanistan's Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, says there will be no government representatives at the gathering.

Last year, a similar event organised by Pugwash was also attended by Afghan officials, though they came in a personal capacity and didn't represent the government.

The Doha gathering is not linked to an ongoing four-country peace initiative.
Noise-canceling

When weather station data comes with good operation notes, you can find out when changes were made and apply an appropriate correction. Because those notes are pretty good for US stations, NOAA actually does this for time of observation changes. In general however, thats not possible elsewhere around the world.

Instead, scientists rely on a process called homogenization. The premise is simple: if the behavior of one station suddenly (or gradually) departs from all its neighbors, something is wrong. Long-term trends wont differ between two points just 50 miles apart, and they dont change suddenly.

A number of groups have their own software algorithms for homogenization. One basic method is to chart the cumulative differences between two nearby stations. That catches not only sudden jumps but gradual drifts as wellwhatever their cause. That jump or drift can then be subtracted from the oddball station, producing a consistent record.

NOAA, NASA, the UK Met Office, and the Japanese Meteorological Agency all produce surface temperature datasets using independent methods, but there is also some overlap in data sources or techniques. So motivated by skepticism of human-caused global warming, University of California, Berkeley physicist Richard Muller organized a well-publicized project to create his own dataset, built from the ground up. This Berkeley Earth team chose to handle homogenization a little differently.

Rather than make adjustments, they simply split records containing sudden jumps into multiple records. Records that gradually drifted away from neighbors were just given low weights in the final averaging. But despite a number of methodological differences and a larger database of stations, their resultslooked just like everybody elses.

Enlarge Zeke Hausfather/Berkeley Earth

One station issue that has long been a favorite of those who reject climate science relates to the fact that cityscapes tend to heat up in the sun more than rural landscapes do. Just as moving a weather station from the post office building to an airport creates a cooling bias, a city growing up around a station can create a gradual warming bias.

Evaluating this urban heat island effect was also on Berkeley Earths to-do list. They found (as othershave) that it had no effect on their estimates of global temperatures. Zeke Hausfather, now a research scientist on the Berkeley Earth team, led a separate 2013 study examining this question. That study split about 10,000 US stations into urban and rural ones, examining their warming trends separately. There was some difference in the raw data, Hausfather told Ars. But once you do [the homogenization], theres no difference between urban and rural stations.

As another check, they homogenized all the stations using only the rural ones as the comparisons. We used the rural stations to adjust the urban stations, but the urban stations themselves were not used to adjust anything, Hausfather said. We got pretty much the exact same result as if we used all stations, urban and rural, which is a very strong indication that these adjustments are good at picking up these divergent signals, and the network itself is sufficiently rural that its not being swamped by urban signals.

Another way to test the homogenization process, specifically, is to feed it virtual datasets. That gives you the advantage of knowing exactly what the final answer should look like if the algorithms work reliably.

One of those studies was done by Peter Thorne and a pair of NOAA colleagues. I visited [NOAA] in 2008 and I said, Righttell me where your stations are, tell me when they observe, tell me nothing else. And I went and got five different climate model runs [and] sub-sampled them in space and time at the same locations, Thorne told Ars. Then I added in a whole bunch of data issues that I knew about, but they didnt. And they ran it on their algorithms.

And did the algorithms root out these manually inserted, non-climatic distractions?

In the world where I hadnt entered any changes, it returned virtually zero adjustments, Thorne said. Then you get increasingly hard, up to something where you have clustering of breaks [in records] that are mainly small, and they have pervasive [net warm or cool] biases. And the further along that spectrum you go, the more [the algorithm] starts to fall down. The way it falls down is it doesnt adjust enough. So it takes you in the right direction, but it doesnt take you far enough.

In other words, homogenization did its job, cleaning up the data to reveal the (known, because it was virtual) climate trend. It didnt inflate the trend by only adjusting things in one direction. And when the problems were small and hard to detect, the homogenization process erred on the conservative side.

Fetch me thermometer, ye scurvy blaggard!

While land weather stations have taken most of the political abuse, Earth is mainly a blue planet. Since the ocean covers over two-thirds of the planets surface, marine temperature records are kind of important to the global average. Unfortunately, pulling together those measurements makes the land datasets look like microwave dinners.

You have several orders of magnitude increase in difficulty of the problem, Peter Thorne said. Almost every single measurement is moving, measurements are undertaken under national fleet guidanceso the UK fleet of ships are taking different approaches to the US, to the Japanese, to the Russians, to the Australians, etcetera.

While we measure air temperature a few feet above the surface on land, we measure the temperature of the water at the sea surface. Air temperature measurements have also been made on ships (though there are perhaps one-tenth as many), but since the deck of the ship heats up in the sun much more than the ocean, they dont mean much.

The issue requiring correction here is the method used to make the measurements. Back in the day, a wooden bucket was tossed overboard, hauled back up, and a thermometer was popped inside. Once that bucket leaves the water, evaporation begins to cool it. Wooden buckets were replaced by canvas ones, allowing even more evaporation, and differences in deck heights meant that some buckets spent more time out of the water than others.

During World War II, a huge change-over took place as naval vessels swarmed the seas. Water temperature measurements were now made by thermometers in the engine cooling water intake pipe. That intake obviously led to a hot engine, raising the measured temperatures a bit. Whats more, ships of different sizes drew water from slightly different depths beneath the surface.

In the last few decades, dedicated scientific buoys have proliferated. While that has added a ton of high-quality data, its still yet another type of measurement that has to be reconciled with all the others.

The changes around World War II led to some very significant adjustments to the raw marine data. And that means they have a big impact on the calculated global warming trend over the past century. The single biggest effect in the climate record is the change from the buckets to the engine room intakes, and the engine room intakes are of the order of 0.6 degrees Celsius warmer than the buckets, Thorne said. So if we didnt correct for that effect, we would be saying that global warming was about 0.4 degrees Celsius per century warmer than it has been."

"Theres your big dirty secret," he continued. "The only adjustment that makes a damn bit of difference on the global mean surface temperature record is an adjustment to pre-1940 sea surface temperature data that actually raises the values, and therefore reduces the [warming] trend.

Enlarge / Looking at the raw and adjusted global temperatures, you can see that the adjustments actually reduce the total amount of warming. Zeke Hausfather/Berkeley Earth

There are more differences between the methods used to create sea surface temperature datasets than there are on land, as groups have come up with their own ways of tackling the substantial challenges involved. The UK Met Office simply takes all the measurements collected within each grid box on the map for each month and adds relevant corrections for different types of measurements.

NOAA, on the other hand, uses air temperature measurements taken at night (when solar heating of the ships deck isnt a problem) as a guide for corrections. NOAA also interpolates to fill in portions of the ocean without measurements that month, taking advantage of the fact that temperatures in the middle of the ocean are pretty consistent across considerable distances.

Despite these technical differences, the resulting global ocean temperature series are quite similar. But that doesnt mean there isnt still room for sharpening up these estimates. We need more groups looking at them, Thorne said. The National Oceanography Centre in Southampton have a fairly substantial project going on to try and create a new estimate, theres the [Japanese Meteorological Agency] estimate But these sea surface temperature products are where the real uncertainty is.

Talking about temperature datasets more generally, Thorne noted, There are fundamental problems here over funding bodies saying, Well, someones done it, why do you need to do it again? But the whole foundation of science is replication and verification. Its not an audit. An audit gets you nowhere. You need to attack the problem in a different way, that is an equally plausible way of doing it, and see whether you get the same answer or not.

So try it from space?

If we wanted to avoid issues with wooden buckets and volunteers scribbling in notebooks, we do have satellites whizzing around the planet and making temperature measurements. Although satellite records can obviously only go back a few decades, they are the go-to source for climate contrarians, because they show a slower warming trend in recent years than our surface records do.

Senator Ted Cruz brought it up several times during his recent Senate committee hearing. According to the satellite data, there has been no significant global warming for the past 18 years, he noted. Congressman Lamar Smith has referred to the satellite data as the gold standard while making similar claims.

Ars asked Carl Mears, who works on the Remote Sensing Systems (RSS) satellite dataset Senator Cruz was pointing to, how he feels about those statements. Well, I guess Im annoyed because I feel that theyre misusing the data, he said. Theyre picking a specific time period that generates the conclusions that they would like be true. If you look at a longer time period, you get a very different conclusion.

As far as gold standards go, these satellite measurements also have their own quirks and biases that have to be studied and adjusted for. Being on a satellite does not make a thing magic.

Over a dozen different satellites have provided measurements since 1978 (not all at the same time.) Each used a device that measures microwave radiation emitted by the Earths surface and by gases in the atmosphere. Like a burner on a stove, Mears said, the atmosphere glows. But its not hot enough to glow in the visibleit glows in the infrared and the microwave region of the electromagnetic spectrum.

Enlarge / This is what the planet looks like to the satellites on a July day. Carl Mears

Depending on exactly what frequency you measure, the instrument sees different distances into the atmosphere, Mears continued. Precisely at a frequency of microwave radiation emitted by oxygen, youll just see the stratosphere (where the ozone layer lives). But turn the knob just a bit, and you can tune in the tropospherethe 10 kilometers or so between the surface and the stratosphere. So what you get is an average temperature from that thick layer, which means these measurements are not interchangeable with weather stations six feet off the ground or the temperature of the sea surface. However, the satellites do get you upper air measurements otherwise only accessible to weather balloons, and they do it globally.

You can also use some sorcery to try to produce a satellite measurement more representative of thelower half of the tropospherea technique pioneered by the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) group that runs the other major satellite dataset. The instrument on the satellites turns side-to-side as it scans the Earth, but only the measurements facing straight downward are normally used. By combining those measurements with angled measurements pointed at the same spot during earlier or later passes, this technique extrapolates temperature downward a bit. (The UAH group is, however, about to switch to a new technique.)

That particular calculation adds additional uncertaintypartly because youre subtracting two large numbers to get a smaller number, which always leads to uncertainty, and youre never measuring exactly the same place on the Earth at the same time, Mears said. Its not an ideal situation.
Family of the deceased professor demanded for the CM Khattar's resignation owing to his ineptitude in ceasing the impending terror threat. (Photo: PTI)

Peshawar: The chief minister of Pakistan's restive northwestern Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province was today left red-faced when the family of a professor who was killed fighting with militants in the recent university attack demanded his resignation if he could not stop terror assaults.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak had visited slain chemistry professor Hamid Hussain's residence in Swabi district to express condolence to his family members over his death.

The family members asked Khattak to quit if he could not provide security.

Hussain, 34, was killed in the Wednesday terror attack on Bacha Khan University in Charsadda while trying to protect students using his licensed pistol against armed Taliban militants who stormed the university, killing at least 21 people. The deceased professor has been hailed as a "martyr" for the valiant stance that he took to during the onset of the attack.
Soldiers gather outside Bacha Khan University where an attack by militants took place, in Charsadda, Pakistan, January 20, 2016. (Photo: AP)

Charsadda, Pakistan/Islamabad: Stuck with 15 of his students on a third floor balcony of a campus building as gunmen came up the stairs, university director Mohammad Shakil urged Pakistani police arriving at the scene to toss him up a gun so he could shoot back.

"We were hiding ... but were unarmed," Shakil told Reuters, speaking after four Islamist militants attacked Bacha Khan University in Pakistan's troubled northwest on Wednesday, killing more than 20 people.

"I was worried about the students, and then one of the militants came after us," Shakil added. "After repeated requests, the police threw me a pistol and I fired some shots at the terrorists."

As more details of Wednesday's assault emerged, attention focused on at least two members of staff who took up arms to resist attackers bent on killing them and their students.

Some hailed them as heroes, as the country digested an attack which bore similarities to the massacre, in late 2014, of 134 pupils at an army-run school in Peshawar, about 30 km (19 miles) from where this week's violence occurred.

Others questioned whether teachers should be armed, as many are, because it goes against the ideals of the profession.

Such a dilemma may have been far from the mind of chemistry professor Hamid Hussain, as he locked himself inside a room with colleagues after gunmen stormed an accommodation block on the university campus.

When the assailants broke down the door, Hussain fired several rounds from his pistol, according to Shabir Ahmad Khan, an English department lecturer taking cover in an adjacent washroom.

"They carried on heavy shooting and I was preparing myself for death, but then they did not enter the washroom and left," Khan recalled.

Later on in the same building, Hussain fired again at the militants to allow some of his students to get away, surviving pupils told local media. Hussain was subsequently shot and later died from his wounds.

"Kudos to professor Dr Hamid Hussain. Our hero fought bravely n saved many," Asma Shirazi, a popular talk show host, said on Twitter.

The number of dead climbed rapidly after armed men stormed the Bacha Khan university in Charsadda. (Photo: AFP)

Teachers' Dilemma

Others, too, have credited the actions of Hussain and Shakil with helping to prevent the gunmen, armed with assault rifles and hand grenades, from spilling more blood.

Bacha Khan University also employed around 50 of its own guards who, witnesses said, fought for close to an hour to keep the gunmen isolated and prevent them from entering the girl's hostel as the police and army arrived.

Pakistan army spokesman General Asim Bajwa said the security guards responded "very well" to the attack before reinforcements reached them.

In the wake of the 2014 school massacre, teachers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where Peshawar is located, were offered weapons training. Yet some are wary of arming teachers and encouraging them to engage in battle.

Gun ownership is common in Pakistan, owing to liberal licensing laws, and particularly so in the semi-autonomous tribal belt near the Afghan border where the threat of militant violence is high.

Jamil Chitrali, president of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa University Teaching Staff Association, said more teachers were now carrying personal weapons, as security had worsened.

"Arms are against the norms of my profession," he said. "I am teaching principles and morality in the class. How I can carry a gun?"

Who Is To Blame?

Four gunmen, all since killed, were involved in Wednesday's attack, officials said. They used the cover of thick fog to scale the campus' rear walls, before storming student dormitories and classrooms and executing people at will.

Some 3,000 students were enrolled at the university, many living on campus, while hundreds of visitors had arrived to hear a poetry recital to commemorate the life of local Pashtun nationalist hero and pacifist Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, after whom the university is named.

The provincial government declared a day of mourning on Thursday as grieving families buried their dead and survivors recalled their ordeal.

Who was to blame remains a mystery. A senior commander of the Pakistan Taliban, Umar Mansoor, on Wednesday claimed responsibility, but an official spokesman for the group later denied involvement, calling the attack "un-Islamic".

The hardline Islamist movement was believed to be behind the school massacre just over a year ago, and educational institutions are an increasingly common target for militants wanting to frighten the public.

Pakistan has killed and arrested hundreds of suspected Taliban militants in the last year under a major crackdown against a group fighting to overthrow the government and install a strict interpretation of Islamic law.

The army said on Thursday the attack in Charsadda, near Peshawar, was coordinated from across the border inside Afghanistan, according to its investigations.

Army chief General Raheel Sharif has called Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and the US commander of international forces in Afghanistan to ask their help in locating those it holds responsible for the assault, army spokesman Bajwa said on Twitter.
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The most noteworthy political development in the context of electoral politics and the way parties prepare for polls is the BJP decision to re-anoint Amit Shah as party president with the strong backing of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Last years crushing defeats  first in Delhi and then in Bihar  havent quite dented the saffron partys faith in Mr Shah.

Which means the RSS, without which no decision of importance in the BJP is final, has gone along. Perhaps not doing so may have reflected poorly on the PM who has been closely aligned with Mr Shah since their Gujarat days, especially at a time when the Modi government is getting caught in a vortex. In just a few months from now, Assembly polls will be held in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, West Bengal and Assam.

BJPs stakes in Assam may be deemed to be the highest among these states. The party has developed a base there in the last 30 years, and the ruling party, Congress, faces an anti-incumbency of three terms. BJP cant have a better chance to dislodge Congress in the state. And they have already pushed their star campaigner, the Prime Minister, to the fore.

Mr Modi made a barnstorming visit earlier this week, and made some poll-related announcements. But whether the PM and Mr Shah will dominate the campaign, as they did in Delhi and Bihar without success, remains to be seen. In tactics terms, this is what the ruling party must analyse carefully. Another straight defeat can deal a body blow.
Why was Ufa followed by Gurdaspur and Lahore by Pathankot in double quick time? The easy answer is that the permanent establishment in Pakistan does not want peace with India for a variety of reasons that have been analysed to death. However, the more important question is what emboldens the generals in Pakistan to act with such impunity. The key lies in the changed geopolitics of the region.

But before this, it is important to unscramble as to how Pakistan had everything to gain by walking away from Ufa and why diplomacy on the hop is not a great idea. For 10 long years the Bharatiya Janata Party was in the Opposition and it kept saying that terror and talks couldnt go hand in hand. It strongly critiqued every attempt that its predecessor government made to engage with Pakistan  be it in Havana in 2006 or Sharm el-Sheikh in 2009, or even thereafter. As the wheel of electoral fortune turned, the BJP came into government on its own in 2014.

Pakistan that loves to portray itself as a victim of terror notwithstanding that it is the principal exporter of terror, sensed an opportunity to insidiously obtain equivalence with India on this issue. The previous government had smartly denied Pakistan this congruence for long by promising to engage across a spectrum of outstanding bilateral issues, but caveating it by insisting that the export of terror from Pakistan would have primacy in the pecking order of subjects on the table.

To get out of this box that Pakistan found itself in, especially after the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai in 2008, it sold the Government of India a pup by offering an exclusive format of talking primarily about terror in Ufa, Russia. Without looking at the teeth of the gift horse on offer, the BJP government accepted it. With one stroke Pakistan achieved its strategic objective of changing the BJPs position from no talks till terror abates, to talking about terror.

In 2006, the joint anti-terror dialogue was pegged at the level of additional secretaries in the ministry of external affairs of both the nations. The NDA government elevated it to the level of national security advisers, thereby giving it a far higher profile.

Having got equivalence on the question of terror, Pakistan had nothing further to gain from Ufa and, therefore, even before the ink had dried on the joint statement, Pakistan trashed the follow up process and consigned the document to the dustbin of history. To make sure that the phantom of Ufa did not resurface, Pakistan buried it by ordering their proxies to perpetrate the attack in Gurdaspur.

The Indian Prime Minister should have realised that his government has been played for a song and should have been more careful the second time around before embarking on the Lahore trip. Again, the only objective behind this entrapment by holding out the bait of out of box diplomacy was to get an Indian Prime Minister to visit Pakistan  something that had not happened in the past 10 years.

For such a visit provides a semblance of respectability that Pakistan desperately craves. This myth of differences between the civilian government and the military establishment in Pakistan is a good cop, bad cop act that Pakistan has perfected to play the international community and blindside India. The empirical evidence of this over the decade is too overwhelming to ignore. All that is required is to connect the dots.

What gives Pakistan the confidence to carry out this duplicity? It is the changed international environment in the region. Despite American anger at the harboring of Osama bin Laden, Mullah Omar and other leaders of the Quetta Shura, support to the Afghan Taliban, the Haqqani network and other Mujahideen groups, America figured out that it needs to keep Pakistan on its side if it does not want Afghanistan to slide into a morass like Iraq, Syria and Libya post its withdrawal from that country.

Realpolitik dictated that they needed to deal with the Pakistan Army. That is the reason why Americans rolled out the red carpet for Pakistan Army Chief Gen. Raheel Sharif when he visited Washington DC some months ago. For they knew that he is the real sheriff in Pakistan.

China has a long-standing relationship with Pakistan. In fact, the kernel of the relationship is between the Peoples Liberation Army of China and the Pakistani Army. The recent pronouncement by China to make Pakistan an integral part of the one belt one road (OBOR) initiative, by committing to invest $46 billion in Pakistan, has only consolidated the relationship further.

Even Russia  that till not very long ago had a non-existent relationship with Pakistan  has not only made overtures at the highest level, but even reversed its long-standing embargo with regard to arms sales to Pakistan. India should have read the tea leaves when it was offered membership of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) along with Pakistan, thereby demolishing the construct of de-hyphenation that India had assiduously attempted to cultivate over all these years.

Even the Ashraf Ghani-Abdullah Abdullah combine in Afghanistan has been warmer to Pakistan by taking a different line from the one espoused earlier by former President Hamid Karzai. It is only recently that the tilt is being partially corrected, though even today India remains a non-player in Afghanistan.

All this deludes Pakistan into believing that from a geo-strategic standpoint, it is in an exceptional sweet spot. Something that is a far cry from the pariah status it had achieved post-9/11 when Americans threatened to bomb Pakistan back to the Stone Age. This villainy only got reinforced after the Abbottabad raid that killed Bin Laden.

Because of these transformed geopolitical imperatives, the Pakistani establishment feels reassured that it can continue to indulge in its game of bleeding India with a thousand cuts without any hindrance, while outwardly presenting a veneer of eagerness to extend the dubious hand of friendship.

It is this altered power dynamic that is giving Pakistan the temerity to follow up Narendra Modis Lahore visit with the Pathankot attack. It is much like the nuclear tests of 1998 which led to the freezing of power balance in South Asia into perpetuity and encouraged Pakistan to follow former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayees Lahore visit with Kargil.

For Pathankot, Pakistan deliberately chose Jaish-e-Mohammed to do the evil deed for its founder, Maulana Masood Azar, is a special red rag to some influential eminences in this government. Exactly 15 years ago, they were witness to the ignominy of the then minister of external affairs Jaswant Singh, having to escort this terrorist to Kandahar to secure the safe release of passengers of the hijacked Indian Airlines flight IC-814 as they stood helplessly on the desolate tarmac of that godforsaken airport.

India would have to work at transforming this geopolitical landscape if it wants any forward movement with Pakistan. For notwithstanding the attack on Army public school attack in Peshawar last year, and the January 20 attack on Bacha Khan University in Charsadda, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, both of which left scores of innocent students and teachers dead, Pakistan continues to be hell bent upon nurturing snakes in its backyard.
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Patna: Strategist Prashant Kishor who helped the Mahagathbandhan to trounce the Bharatiya Janata Party in Bihar Assembly polls will be inducted as advisor to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

Prashant Kishor has been appointed as advisor to the CM for Planning and Programme Implementation, a notification issued by state Cabinet Coordination Committee last night said.

He would have a status of cabinet minister and get allowance of that level, the notification bearing signature of Principal Secretary Cabinet Coordination Department Brajesh Mehrotra stated.

In the present role, Kishor would have the responsibility to formulate plan and Kishor, the poll strategist was the main force behind Kumar's campaign strategy in Bihar.

Incidentally, Kishor was one of the key backroom players for Narendra Modi when he was the chief minister of Gujarat, and also when he was running as the BJP's prime ministerial candidate.

Prashant Kishor, a native of Bihar, had quit a UN health expert's job in Africa in 2011 and returned to India to form a group of young professionals who devised the strategy to project Modi as the face of good governance in the 2012 Gujarat polls and last year's general elections with resounding success.

Kishor, 37, who conceptualised and implemented Modi's popular 'chai pe charcha' initiative, substituted it with 'parcha pe charcha' (discussion over pamphlets) under which Nitish's poll managers sought feedbak from people on the state government's performance over the past decade.

Realising that the JD(U) cannot match the resources of BJP, Kishor's team also devised the 'Har Ghar Dastak' (knock on every door) that helped the party establish a personal connect with the masses.

When top BJP leaders were busy criss-crossing Bihar on helicopters, Nitish Kumar and workers of his party went knocking the doors of the electorate seeking their vote as part of the direct outreach initiative.

When asked why he switched over to Modi's rival, Kishor said," Nitish Kumar is one of the country's most credible politicians."

The usually "laconic" Kumar, members of Kishor's team said, was hardly a talking point when the team landed in Patna. Working assiduously behind the scene, they crafted a strategy where Kumar matched Modi's each trenchant criticism with equally sharp retort.

Kishor had brought together a group of graduates from India's premier institutes and multinational companies to work on Modi's 2014 election campaign under the name 'Citizens for Accountable Governance'. He dissolved CAG a few months after the elections. Kishor heads Indian Political Action Committee ( IPAC), led by a young team of technocrats.
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Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612eff990d0)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612eff08398)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612eff990d0)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612eff08398)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f000c0d8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612eff08398)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612eff08398)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612ee515568)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f01dffd0)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f01dffd0)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0
System error

error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.

context: ... 21: </%method> 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: </%perl> 28: <table width="90%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> 29: <tr> ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25

/usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948

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Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f01fcf30)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612eb99c760)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f01fcf30)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612eb99c760)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f022fe78)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612eb99c760)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612eb99c760)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612ee514c28)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f0975b00)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f0975b00)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0
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context: ... 21: </%method> 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: </%perl> 28: <table width="90%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> 29: <tr> ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25

/usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948

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Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f09bb9e0)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0a68af8)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f09bb9e0)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0a68af8)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f08b4c98)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0a68af8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0a68af8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612efbdf8d0)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f07f59e8)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f07f59e8)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0
More than 22 million phone calls to Centrelink went unanswered in the past financial year, with the welfare agency blaming emergencies and a complex payment system for its worsening performance.

Only 40 million of the 62 million attempts to contact Centrelink by phone in 2014-15 were successful, meaning the agency answered 4 million fewer calls than it managed the previous year.

Only 40 million of the 62 million attempts to contact Centrelink by phone in 2014-15 were successful.

The proportion of calls being answered has plummeted from 75 per cent in 2013-14 to 64 per cent in 2014-15.
But by the next morning, by the time the story had then appeared in print, something had changed.

Within an hour of publishing "The Big Sleep" online hundreds of people were reading the story; an encouraging start, if not out of the ordinary.

Would our readers click on a story about an elderly couple's suicide pact? Or was it too much for a sunny afternoon at the end of the week?

When my article about Peter and Pat Shaw, the husband and wife who took their own lives , went up on Fairfax websites at noon last Friday, I didn't know what to expect.

On my personal Facebook page, people of all ages were sharing the article, urging friends and family to read it. Then the emails, phone calls and text messages started.

Parents of children I'd gone to school with; cousins; colleagues; CEOs, politicians; doctors; people I had not seen for years. They all felt a compulsion to talk about it. They clearly felt that Peter and Pat Shaw, who had decided to end their lives before their bodies and minds deteriorated further, had done well to avoid that suffering.

One old friend wrote to say that her father had flagged his intention to take his own life one day in the future and that she felt deeply conflicted about it. The Shaws' story had made it easier for her family to discuss it.

Doctors and social workers who work in aged care emailed to say that they were saddened by the lack of choice around death in Australia. One emergency doctor said she had cared for elderly people who wanted to die while their families demanded "everything" be done to keep them alive. "Sometimes they scream they want to die, or that they don't want me to touch them," she said. "I then have to decide how far I need to go with treating the patient."

We estimate the story has now been read by nearly a million Australians. Thousands have made the effort to comment on the Facebook posts about the story, many sharing their own, often harrowing, experiences of seeing loved ones die in difficult circumstances.
Viktor Yushchenko before and after his mysterious illness. Litvinenko was born in December 1962 in the Russian city of Voronezh. He went to military college, in the footsteps of his grandfather who fought in the Second World War. He was quickly recruited into the KGB  training in Siberia then posted to Moscow in the late '80s. He focused on combating organised crime, and became convinced of collusion between officials of the FSB  including Vladimir Putin and Nikolai Patrushev  and the "Tambov" criminal group that smuggled heroin from Afghanistan to western Europe. Andrei Lugovoi, left, a former KGB officer, and his associate Dmitry Kovtun attend a news conference in Moscow. Credit:AP In 1998 he held a press conference denouncing the FSB, Russia's Federal Security Service and successor organisation to the KGB (of which Mr Putin was then the director), calling it corrupt, criminalised and a "system from which people needed to be protected".

He was subsequently arrested several times, and finally left Russia in October 2000 with his family. He landed at Heathrow, walked up to the first police officer in the arrivals hall and said: "I am KGB officer and I'm asking for political asylum." Russian ambassador to Britain Alexander Yakovenko speaks to the media after being summoned to the Foreign Office in London. Credit:PA In 2006 the family were naturalised as British citizens. Litvinenko was working as a journalist and adviser on Russian individuals and organisations (and almost certainly working for, or at least advising MI6). Suddenly, on the night of November 1, 2006, he began vomiting "again and again", his widow said. He was taken to hospital. Marina Litvinenko, widow of former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko, places her arm around son Anatoly during a press conference in London. Credit:AP

He and his family almost immediately suspected poisoning. Baffled doctors said that was unlikely, but two weeks later one noticed the symptoms were a good match for a leukaemia patient who had been zapped with intense radiotherapy. He made a note to radiology: "check radioactive sources of poisoning." A Geiger counter detected nothing, but on November 21 a hospital pharmacist suggested a radioisotope could have been used to poison Litvinenko. Blood and urine samples were sent to the British Atomic Weapons Establishment, which revealed the presence of polonium-210. Questions abound over the Kremlin's involvement in the death of Litvinenko. Credit:AP A second test confirmed the result on November 23  the day Mr Litvinenko, his body wracked by toxins and cell death, died after his third cardiac arrest. An autopsy revealed he had twice swallowed polonium-210, the earlier dose 100 times smaller than the latter, which killed him.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has backed Bashar al-Assad for years. Credit:AP Shocked police who had never had to deal with such an (apparent) murder before  realised they had a unique investigative tool, if they acted fast. Even invisible quantities of polonium-210 are deadly if ingested, and it quickly fades into the background due to its short radioactive half-life. But while it is active it leaves an indelible trail. Tracking Litvinenko's movements before his illness, they found heavy polonium-210 contamination in the Pine Bar of the Millennium Hotel in swanky Mayfair  where he had taken tea with two "businessmen". Artwork by Richard Giliberto. The men were Andrei Lugovoi and his associate Dmitry Kovtun  former Russian army officers. Lugovoi was a former KGB agent. Kovtun was a childhood friend of Lugovoi, who served with him in the army and was described as a "businessman in the oil and gas industry".

Both are now wanted for Litvinenko's murder. Former Russian security agent Alexander Litvinenko in his hospital bed at the University College Hospital in central London on November 20, 2006. He died two days later. Credit:AP They had met Litvinenko first on October 16 and 17 in a meeting room in a Japanese restaurant that later tested positive for polonium exposure, as did their London hotel rooms and their plane seats on the flight to Moscow on October 18. It was a failed assassination attempt, Sir Robert Owen concluded in his inquiry report this week. Slain Russian investigative journalist Anna Politkovskaya

A week later Lugovoi flew back to London  leaving a radioactive trail on a car, a photocopier, a sofa and his Sheraton hotel room (the Sheraton readings were the highest in the whole investigation). Kovtun then joined him in London, having left radioactive traces dotted around Hamburg in the meantime. According to an unnamed German witness, there he was overheard saying: "Litvinenko was a traitor, there is blood on his hands." Kovtun asked for the contact of a cook working in London, saying, "he had a very expensive poison and needed the cook to administer it to Litvinenko". The face of Ukrainian leader Viktor Yushchenko, shows the scars of an alleged poisoning. Credit:Alexander Zemlianichenko "It's meant to set an example," Kovtun said, according to the witness. In London Lugovoi and Kovtun (among other things) went on a "Big Bus" sightseeing tour of London with Lugovoi's family.

Bulgarian dissident and BBC correspondent Georgi Markov who was poisoned in 1978. About 4pm on November 1, Litvinenko met the pair in the Pine Bar of the Millennium Hotel, where Kovtun, Lugovoi and Lugovoi's family were staying. A staff member remembered the three men. Part of the order was "green tea with lemon and honey", brought to the table in a white porcelain pot. Bulgarian dissident Georgi Markov Later, Litvinenko recalled "it was green tea with no sugar and it was already cold ... I didn't like it ... maybe in total I swallowed three or four times".

Police later found polonium contamination in the hotel room used by Lugovoi, and much higher readings in the room used by Kovtun  the highest under the bathroom plughole. Andrei Lugovoi, a former KGB agent, was one of two "businessmen" accused of poisoning Litvinenko. Lugovoi is now a member of the Russian parliament, the State Duma. They also found "primary contamination" on the Pine Bar table used by the three men, on the chairs, and "extremely high" readings on just one of the bar's white teapots. The highest readings were on the inside of the spout. Given the amount of polonium possessed and used by the assassins, it "strongly indicated" the involvement of a state, Sir Robert said.

"Ordinary criminals might have been expected to use a straightforward, less sophisticated means of killing ... the polonium-210 used to kill Mr Litvinenko must have come from a reactor and such reactors are in general under state control." Sir Robert said this amounted to "strong circumstantial evidence" of Russian state responsibility for the murder. But, frustratingly, the public report released on Thursday didn't set out the key evidence relied on by Sir Robert in pinning the assassination on the FSB. That evidence was delivered in closed court  reportedly in testimony and documents provided by agents from Western intelligence services. It is that evidence, Sir Robert said, that made it a "strong probability" that Lugovoi poisoned Litvinenko under FSB direction.

So  how high up did it go? Litvinenko himself had no doubt. On his deathbed he signed a statement accusing the Russian President. "As I lie here I can distinctly hear the beating of wings of the angel of death," he wrote. "You have shown yourself to be as barbaric and ruthless as your most hostile critics have claimed ... you may succeed in silencing one man but the howl of protest from around the world will reverberate, Mr Putin, in your ears for the rest of your life." Sir Robert said Litvinenko's shocking claim  denied by Russia, and doubted even by many in Britain (Home Secretary Theresa May initially refused to hold an inquiry, though her hand was forced when Litvinenko's widow won the support of the High Court) was "probably" true. Sir Robert said many organisations and individuals within the Russian state had powerful motives to take action against Mr Litvinenko  "including killing him".

"Mr Litvinenko was, as a result of his actions both before and after leaving Russia, regarded as having betrayed the FSB. Moreover, according to Mr Lugovoi, the FSB had received information that Mr Litvinenko was working for British intelligence. Mr Litvinenko was an associate of leading opponents of the Putin regime, and he had repeatedly targeted President Putin himself with highly personal public criticism." It's likely this is a reference to an inflammatory article Litvinenko wrote in July 2006 for the fringe news site "Information Liberation", titled "The Kremlin Paedophile". Yuri Shvets told the inquiry "I strongly believe that [the killing] couldn't be done without Vladimir Putin's knowledge, because of one of the key traditions of the KGB ... KGB rule No. 1 [is] cover your back, and covering your back is to get approval from your superior." And Russian dissident Alex Goldfarb, who helped Litvinenko escape Russia, said it was an "inevitable conclusion" that "no one else than Mr Putin" approved the killing  "traditionally this sort of active measures from Soviet times are authorised at the highest political level". In his report, Sir Robert said these men could not claim to be impartial observers. He relied instead on Robert Service, a professor of Russian history at Oxford University.

Professor Service said it was "inconceivable" that [then FSB chief] Mr Patrushev didn't know about the operation. He said Mr Putin "endorsed" the FSB's operations and was more hands-on than a mere "general sanction" of its work. However, Mr Putin's specific knowledge and approval of the Litvinenko operation (and others) was a "known unknown". Sir Robert went further, however. Despite Professor Service's reservations, "drawing on the logic of his analysis relating to other matters ... Mr Patrushev probably would have told President Putin about such an operation". The "logic" is footnoted to a paragraph in Professor Service's statement to the inquiry. It says: "A politician with Putin's past career in the intelligence agencies and his sustained interest in security policy" would probably have prior alerts about assassination attempts. But it adds the analysis is "inconclusive".

Certainly it's true that Putin enjoys taking a keen interest in security operations. In the officially sanctioned documentary Crimea: The Way Home on Russia's annexation of Crimea, Mr Putin in a long interview proudly reveals that he invited the heads of his security services to the Kremlin, and personally supervised the extraction of deposed president Viktor Yanukovych from eastern Ukraine  staying up the whole night to micromanage the operation. Sir Robert didn't just build the case against Russia. He judicially dismissed arguments on both sides, and was wary of the testimony of Litvinenko's former colleagues and friends  and those with an axe to grind against the Kremlin. He rejected a "chemical fingerprint" theory that definitively traced the polonium to afactory in Sarov, Russia, though it "unquestionably" could have come from there. He also cast heavy doubt on evidence from a "Mr Potemkin" that the polonium came from an August 2006 shipment to the FSB in Moscow. He also dismissed an incident cited in Lugovoi's defence, that he encouraged Litvinenko to shake his eight-year-old son's hand at the end of the meeting at the hotel. Sir Robert concluded that Lugovoi knew he had administered a poison, but probably didn't know its nature.

He also ruled out claims of suicide or accident, and dismissed a polygraph test undertaken by Lugovoi in 2012 as "seriously flawed" in its technique and results. Lugovoi, now a deputy in the State Duma and awarded an honour for "services to the fatherland", said the report had "debunked the myth of the impartiality of British justice" and the charges against him were "absurd". Moscow's ambassador to Britain Alexander Yakovenko accused Britain of "blatant provocation" in making the link to the Kremlin and dismissed the report as "a whitewash for British special services' institutional incompetence" and an "attempt to put additional pressure on Russia in connection with existing differences over a number of international issues". It would "still further poison the atmosphere of our bilateral relations", a spokesman for Mr Putin said. But the British government, in turn, blew sound and fury that amounted to little.

Home Secretary Theresa May told Parliament the killing was "a blatant and unacceptable breach of the most fundamental tenets of international law and of civilised behaviour". She said she had received one recommendation from Sir Robert, which she could not reveal (almost certainly because it related to Britain's secret services). But she said she had written to her counterparts in EU, NATO and Five Eyes countries (the latter includes Australia), "drawing their attention to both the report and the need to take steps to prevent such a murder being committed on their streets". In terms of direct action, she announced that Lugovoi and Kovtun  already the target of international arrest warrants  would be subject to new "asset freezes" imposed by the Treasury. And Prime Minister David Cameron said Britain had "always believed" that it was a state-sponsored killing but "we at some level have to go on having some sort of relationship with [Russia]".

Polonium-210 has a half-life of just 138 days  meaning that, by now, it is 17 million times less radioactive as the day Litvinenko was poisoned. His body lies in a (now needlessly) lead-lined coffin in a corner of the beautiful, tree-lined Highgate cemetery in North London, in a section accessible only on official tours. His neighbours are mostly not particularly famous Victorian-era architects and north London residents. "It's an area people often choose because it's more private," the cemetery chief executive said. Elsewhere in the cemetery lie such famous corpses as Karl Marx, Sidney Nolan, Malcolm McLaren and Douglas Adams. But few lie as restless as Litvinenko.

Follow FairfaxForeign on Twitter Follow FairfaxForeign on Facebook Polonium-210  what is it? - Marie and Pierre Curie discovered this rare element in 1897

- It's a silver-coloured isotope of polonium found in uranium ore

- It has some industrial uses, eg, for example in commercial devices that remove static

- About 100 grams of polonium-210 is manufactured every year worldwide, by bombarding the element bismuth-209 with neutrons inside a nuclear reactor

- It is highly radioactive  and so extremely poisonous. The "safe" amount of polonium-210 to ingest is just 7 picograms (there are a thousand billion picograms in a gram)

- A microgram (one millionth of a gram) of polonium-210, the size of a barely-visible speck of dust, would deliver a fatal dose of radiation if swallowed

- Once ingested it sits in the body for a month, wreaking havoc by creating poisonous radicals from any molecule it encounters, and killing or damaging the body's cells

- Litvinenko is the only known polonium fatality.

Source: Royal Society of Chemistry



Poison, murder and plots:

- Anna Politkovskaya, a Russian journalist for the Novaya Gazeta newspaper (and close friend of Litvinenko), was murdered by gunmen outside her Moscow apartment on October 7, 2006. She was a prominent critic of Vladimir Putin. - In September 2004 Viktor Yushchenko, anti-Moscow candidate for the Ukraine presidency, was horrifically disfigured by a poison later identified as a dioxin. Shortly before becoming ill, he had dinner with the chairman of the Ukrainian Security Service and his deputy. The poisoning was attributed to Russian agents. - Sergei Yushenkov, a co-founder of the oppositionist Liberal Russia party in 2002, was shot dead in a street in Moscow in April 2003. Another founder of the party, Vladimir Golovlev, was shot and killed in Moscow the same year. - In February 2004 Chechen vice-president Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev was blown up as he left a mosque in Qatar with his son. He was a strong critic of the Putin administration. Three agents of Russian military intelligence were later arrested and accused of planting the bomb. - In 2003, Russian politician Yury Shchekochikhin died of apparent poisoning, after many years campaigning against corruption in Russia and FSB malpractice.
Seoul: North Korea said on Friday it had detained a US university student for committing a "hostile act" against the country, the third western citizen known to be held in the isolated state.

The state-run KCNA news agency said the student, Otto Frederick Warmbier, entered North Korea as a tourist and was "was caught committing a hostile act against the state," which it said was "tolerated and manipulated by the US government".

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un gestures as he watches a military parade in Pyongyang, North Korea in January. Credit:AP

KCNA said Mr Warmbier had entered the country with an "aim to destroy the country's unity". It did not elaborate.

Mr Warmbier is an undergraduate at the University of Virginia, according to the university's website. Gareth Johnson of China-based Young Pioneer Tours confirmed Mr Warmbier was on one of its tours and said he had been detained in North Korea on January 2.
His first film got him a lot of appreciation for his natural acting. Among those, he treasures the appreciation from actor Nagarjuna and producer D. Suresh Babu.

Tollywoods most-sought-after actor Raj Tharun, who shot to fame right from his debut Uyyala Jumpala, followed by two big hits Cinema Choopista Mama and Kumari 21F, is gearing up for the release of Seethamma Andarlu Ramayya Sitralu, which hits theatres this Friday. Whats more, the movie will create a record if it becomes a hit, as no other in the industry has had four successive victories. However, the Vizag-born actor  who is reportedly one of Tollywoods highest paid new-comers, charging over Rs 1 crore per film  says he was never interested in acting.

I wanted to direct. I used to make short films and upload them on YouTube, he says, adding that he has already made 52 short films so far. So when producer Ram Mohan called him up for Uyyala Jumpala, he said he was looking to direct, joining the team as a screen and dialogue writer.

But during the audition for the female lead, he was the one reading out the dialogues of the lead actor. We auditioned nearly 30 girls, but the producer didnt like any of them. He ended up choosing me, Raj chuckles.

They had already decided to cast me in the lead and without knowing that, I had been showing them photos of the other boys, he recalls. , Opportunities come rarely and I had to make the most of it, he adds.

His first film got him a lot of appreciation for his natural acting. Among those, he treasures the appreciation from actor Nagarjuna and producer D. Suresh Babu.

After the release, when I met Nag sir, he was talking to me, but I couldnt hear anything he was saying as fireworks were going off in my head. After all, I was meeting him for the first time. It was a great honour, he says.

After Uyyala Jumpala, he got many offers, but didnt rush in to sign anything. I was just 21 and wanted to choose the right subject, even if it took time, so I waited, he says. Thats how his next movie Cinema Choopista Mama, also turned out to be a big success.

I go with my own judgement and never seek advice. Luckily, I have chosen the right subjects till now, says the actor, who believes he has been very lucky to have worked with big technicians like Sukumar, Ratna Velu and Devi Sri Prasad in his third film itself.

Sukumar garu called and spoke to me for 20 minutes. When the director narrated the story, I realised it was a different subject and decided to do it. Thats how Kumari 21F happened, he recalls.

Success makes me more responsible towards choosing better scripts. Its great, but I am not under any pressure because I am practical, he says. He is not nervous when the release nears, even for his debut because I could always turn back to direction.

Now 23, Raj leads a simple life and his world revolves around Vizag, friends and films. He doesnt feel any competition with the star kids either. I personally feel that there is no competition. Im quite friendly with many of the young actors. Everyone has their own place. I dont believe that only people who have good backup get films, Raj observes.

The actor feels he is a boring person. I am a big boring person. I am not social and hate parties. If there is no shooting, I prefer to stay at home watching movies or sleeping." He has nine dogs at home and spends most of the time with hanging out them.

Meanwhile, Raj has signed movies with big banners  one with Manchu Vishnu is almost completed, one with Geetha Arts and another one produced by Dil Raju.
At least two forests at the National Arboretum are struggling on the site and tough decisions on their future will soon need to be made, the attraction's new patron Jon Stanhope says.

The former chief minister, credited as the arboretum's founding father, was announced as its first patron on Friday.

Former ACT chief minister Jon Stanhope has been made the new patron of the National Arboretum. Credit:Karleen Minney

While the voluntary position as a "roving ambassador" for the 250-hectare site will be non-operational, Mr Stanhope said he was looking forward to being involved in discussions with TAMS staff in control of the site.

"There are some forests within the arboretum that haven't performed," he said.
Woolies insiders claim the template was set by former chief Michael Luscombe and his chief financial officer Tom Pockett, who challenged critics of their strategy, targeting individuals including experienced analyst David Errington and hardware consultant Geoff Dart. Dart, who forecast the huge losses at Masters, was referred to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, and they had a "direct line" to Errington's global boss in Bank of America Merrill Lynch's New York offices. "That was when the arrogance and hubris came into the culture and that was when the seeds of Masters were sown," one analyst says. "That hubris led Woolworths on the most unbelievable misadventures and it wasn't just Masters ... the state Dick Smith is in today is because Woolworths had it for so long and couldn't do anything with it. "They let it get to a state where it was just irrelevant."

Supermarkets in super trouble Illustration: Simon Bosch. The difficulty for Cairns is O'Brien was part of the team that jacked up grocery prices to offset the mounting losses at Masters and Big W and meet short-term earnings targets that were intrinsically linked to executive pay. O'Brien lives in shadow of these decisions, says one analyst, and his ongoing presence is at best likely to retard any real cultural change, which will be essential to the revival of the supermarkets. "If I wanted to create a situation that made a turnaround difficult I would have the outgoing chief in the building," one analyst says.

"You've got this guy, still in the CEO role, who was there when things deteriorated under his watch. "Cairns could never be as frank about the problems at Woolworths with him around." Succession not simple Woolworths food managing director Brad Banducci is seen as a potential candidate. Credit:Louie Douvis Any new chief must have supermarket experience, one major investor says.

"Cairns hasn't done a bad job but he's not the chief executive officer and I think culture takes a long time to change," he says. "Turning around the supermarket business will be a 12 to 18-month journey, it's not a quick fix. "I don't know what shareholders are expecting but it's going to be a bumpy road." Culture needs to change Masters stores are too large to generate enough traffic to make a profit, says Geoff Dart. Credit:Glenn Hunt

Dart warned culture had to be the new chief's number one priority. He said the arrogance of the Luscombe years needed to be put to rest and Woolworths needed to get customers excited about the supermarkets business again. He said "culture would kill strategy every time" and Woolworths' handling of the Masters shutdown pointed to problems. "Woolworths did a snow job on workers, I spoke to people at home improvement very recently and they said it was business as usual and that came from [Masters boss] Matt Tyson," Dart said. The Masters boss, who came from the UK's Kingfisher hardware business, was rumoured to be planning an exit from the Masters business as far back as October, a claim he never outright denied. In the lead up to Christmas there was persistent talk Woolworths' joint venture partner, US giant Lowe's, might take a larger stake in the Masters business to reduce Woolworths' exposure to ongoing losses.

There was even talk Woolies approached Lowe's about taking on the entire business to ensure Bunnings couldn't reclaim its monopoly on the hardware market in Australia. Restructure heightens head office tensions Masters staff were spooked by the mooted changes. Credit:Rebecca Hallas Workers at Woolies headquarters showed Fairfax Media an internal document this week outlining a number of significant changes to the supermarket's management team as well as the downsizing of the Stores Transformation Team. The restructure affects a number of senior personnel, including Woolworths head of petrol and convenience, Michael James, who has been appointed director of stores replacing John Eales.

Woolworths supermarket director Dave Chambers is returning to New Zealand and his former role as head of supermarkets will be scrapped. Woolworths would not make any comment on the internal communication with staff but sources close to the operation suggest it's preparing the ground for a new chief from outside the business. Staff were spooked by the mooted changes despite assurances it was not about cutting jobs but the timing, just two days after Woolies pulled the plug on Masters leaving 7000 working facing an uncertain future, cast it in a different light. Masters nightmare finally ends Investors and analysts are urging Woolworths chairman Gordon Cairns (left) to move quickly to appoint a new CEO to replace the outgoing Grant O'Brien (right). Credit:Christopher Pearce

Errington, an outspoken critic of Woolworths' costly pursuit of a stake in Australia's $45 billion hardware market, congratulated Cairns on abandoning Masters this week. "This is the first time Woolies has made a decision in the best interests of shareholders for a long time," he says. Errington also claims Woolworths had to exit Masters to clear the decks for the recruitment of the right chief for the business. In his latest research note, Errington says a major distraction has been alleviated by the decision to quit hardware. "A new CEO can be secured with certainty as to where the company is headed now and this should provide the company with the ability to attract the highest calibre candidate," Errington says.

The workers out at Bella Vista want a new leader. Many of these employees have worked for Woolies for decades and are baffled no one wants to lead Australia's biggest supermarket chain. Marketing gaffes add to woes The hat... without Tasmania. Credit:Courtesy of Seven News Despite its big brand, Woolworths' reputation is battered. It's lost out in the sales battle with arch rival Coles for 25 consecutive quarters, or since the first quarter of fiscal 2010, and then there are the marketing misfires including this week's Australia Day caps featuring a map of the country without Tasmania. Perhaps it was then not surprising when Cairns revealed this week a number of local candidates had turned down the opportunity to apply for the top job and the focus was now on a shortlist of overseas candidates.

"I couldn't persuade any of the local candidates I had in mind to come for an interview and I suspect the ones I had in mind were doing outstandingly well in their own organisations." And he warned it could take longer than he initially indicated. "I'm not going to apologise if we get to March and I'm saying 'Look give me another couple of months or so, because we are nearly there'," Cairns says. One long-serving Woolies staffer said the ship had felt rudderless for a long time now and the absence of O'Brien, who was popular with staff, was eroding the already battered morale. "It feels like we don't have a leader, it's really strange and a lot of people are wondering if Gordon Cairns is going to take over as chief executive," the worker said.
Owen was referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and to Nikolai Patrushev, then head of the FSB and now secretary of the Russian security council.

"Taking full account of all the evidence and analysis available to me, I find that the FSB [Federal Security Service] operation to kill Mr Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr Patrushev and also by President Putin."

It isn't often that a judge in one country accuses the president of another  a superpower, no less  of participating in murder. This week, however, the chairman of a lengthy British inquiry into the 2006 poisoning of a former Russian intelligence operative, Alexander Litvinenko, did just that.

Alexander Litvinenko lies in a London hospital in November 2006, dying of radiation poisoning. In 2014, the British government opened an inquiry into Moscow's alleged involvement in the death of the former KGB agent.

The judge also said he was "sure" Litvinenko was killed by the radioactive polonium-210 isotope found in his body, and that this was administered by two former FSB colleagues he met for tea in London's posh Mayfair district.

Litvinenko's murder is one of the most publicly investigated in history, and much of what's in the report isn't new. But to have a recently retired British High Court judge say he is "sure" (for which read "beyond a reasonable doubt") about the guilt of Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun is a sobering moment for Britain  and should be just as serious for Russia. Since the murder, Putin has personally honoured Lugovoi, who has been turned into a national hero and senior member of the Russian parliament.

Just as widely accepted outside Russia is the finding that the two men were working on the orders of the FSB. But to say the hit was "probably" ordered by Putin takes quite a leap. It's a finding that Owen based on testimony from witnesses he acknowledges to have been biased, and from the historian Robert Service, about the way in which Russia's hierarchy works.

There are two things to say on this. The first is that Owen seems to have been more willing than he should to believe everything told him by Litvinenko's shady circle of ex-FSB friends. He relies in part on their accounts to establish the Kremlin's motive for murder. These include a book about a series of 1999 apartment bombings around Russia that triggered the second Chechen War and helped propel Putin to the presidency. Litvinenko and his friends maintain these weren't carried out by Chechen terrorists, as generally believed, but by the FSB.
During the past decade or so, things have changed. You see it in people wearing the national flag or sporting Southern Cross tattoos. A generation of Australians has grown up embracing national pride.

Until recently, patriotism felt somewhat alien to Australian sensibilities. The business of earnest parades and ostentatious flag-waving was for other countries. While Australians loved their country, this didn't need to involve public declaration. It befitted our laconic and understated national character.

It's a sobering and important message. And a reminder that patriotism can involve the better angels of our nature.

Ben Roberts-Smith knows a thing or two about patriotism. Australia's most decorated soldier, Roberts-Smith is also chair of the National Australia Day Council. In a speech last Sunday in Bankstown, he called for this year's Australia Day to be guided by "the spirit of mutual respect and understanding".

Yet there are times when this love of country takes on a menacing edge. Sometimes, one person's patriotism is another person's jingoism. Expressions of pride can involve demands that people  particularly those who come here as migrants  love Australia or leave it.

Unfortunately, this is what many associate with patriotism today. It's why many people recoil when I say that I consider myself a patriotic Australian. I'm often asked: How can you endorse patriotism but also support diversity? Can you really be patriotic as someone who isn't "typically" Australian? And doesn't national pride lead to racism? Doesn't it lead us to exclude certain people who are aren't part of the majority?

Here's how patriotism can leave room for diversity. Very simply, patriotism means a love of country. But our country is now inescapably diverse. Australian society has people drawn from more than 300 different ancestries; close to 30 per cent of us were born overseas, with another 20 per cent having a parent born overseas.

In other words, being Australian doesn't mean belonging to a certain race or ethnicity. Our national identity leaves room for people from anywhere, from any background, and from any faith. It leaves room for people to have hyphenated Australian identities. What ultimately matters is you are committed to the Australian project; that you call this place home and that you are part of our egalitarian, democratic society.

Admittedly, whether our national identity truly reflects our diversity remains open to debate. In aspects of our public culture, Australianness still involves a certain image of whiteness.
Pierre Boulez, especially in the volatile first half of his long life, was a musical reactionary who thought nothing of turning on cherished institutions and, indeed, other composers. He once described Shostakovich as "playing with cliches  It's like olive oil  I think of Shostakovich as the second and even third pressing". When asked how he planned to celebrate John Cage's 60th birthday, he said, "I shall send him a cake". Even Verdi was not spared: "I would rather go for a walk than conduct La forza del Destino."

His most notorious remark, "Blow the opera houses up", uttered in 1967, came back to haunt him in late 2001, when Swiss anti-terrorism police, on the alert post-September 11, arrested him and confiscated his passport. For a short time, the musician was known as Osama bin Boulez.

Boulez  who has died aged 90 at his home in Baden-Baden, Germany  was one of the towering figures of 20th-century music. His formidable talents as composer and conductor, and his quicksilver personality, combined the intellect of an Einstein, the handwriting of a spider, and (on many occasions) the lethal attack-speed of a rattlesnake.

His infamous pronouncements, though, formed only part of the complex Boulez construction. As he grew older, he became more revered. By the time he reached his 90th birthday, Boulez was almost a musical saint, as well as the last of the line of 20th-century avant-garde composers who included Stravinsky, Stockhausen, Berio, Ligeti and Xenakis, as well as Boulez's teacher, Olivier Messiaen, who described his hostile pupil as a "lion who has been flayed alive". As the London Daily Telegraph obituarist wrote, Boulez was an iconoclast who became an icon.

Pierre Boulez was born in Montbrison, in France's Loire Valley, the third of four children. He began piano lessons when he was five  at nine, he could play Chopin, while, at school, his best subjects were chemistry and physics. Spurning family wishes that he train for the priesthood, Pierre decided to make music his life. At 16, while studying higher mathematics at Lyon, he went to his first concert. Two years later, he moved to occupied Paris, where he studied at the Conservatoire.

In 1945, after a scraping a living by teaching mathematics to his landlord's son and playing an electronic instrument at the Folies Bergere, Boulez became music director of a new drama company formed at the Theatre Marigny by actor Jean-Louis Barrault. Boulez conducted in the pit, but also was well on the way with his own compositions, and to realising the modernist "total serialism" technique that would change the path of modern music. At the Marigny, he also organised concerts of music by other composers.
With Malcolm Turnbull now back in the country, it is possible to assess his visit to Washington. Much attention has focused on the major speech Mr Turnbull gave to the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington as a guide to his government's likely future outlook on foreign affairs and the US alliance, and how this has changed from that of his predecessor. The speech was notable for its style as well as its content. Like the rest of his demeanour during the visit, Mr Turnbull's words were low-key. Entirely absent was the manipulative scaremongering in which Mr Abbott too often allowed himself to indulge. It was also free of the tendency to fawn which has marred other Australian prime ministerial visits to our major ally. Overseas, the Prime Minister seems above all pragmatic: concerned just to get on with the business of diplomacy  rather as, in Australia, he seems concerned just to get on with governing. No point-scoring and a bare minimum of orchestrated showmanship. It is a refreshing change. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull was insightful and eloquent in Washington, as well as being breathtakingly hypocritical. Credit:Alex Ellinghauseh In its place was a careful analysis of the major issues which Australia and the United States face together. On Syria and the Middle East, he rightly sought to bring a sense of proportion about the scale of the problem Daesh presents to the world. Terrorism can be devastating, and the threat is undoubtedly serious, but it should not be exaggerated. A lasting solution, however, will not be something imposed by a US-led military operation; it must be conducted mostly by forces from the region. This seems only common sense  but until quite recently, the reluctance or inability of local forces to play a decisive role has made it hard to achieve. Mr Turnbull sketched a solution for Syria which might involve partition or power-sharing, with the chief objective to prevent the country continuing as a source of sectarian conflict for the entire region. Once again, it is a pragmatic approach, although it carries many risks and difficulties. Partition of the country into faith-based enclaves could produce a period of ethnic cleansing which could confirm the disaster which has overwhelmed Syria's minorities. Power-sharing, on the other hand, assumes a consensus between rival forces which clearly does not yet exist.

The Prime Minister also recognised, rightly, that Muslim communities, including Muslim minorities in countries such as Australia, must be embraced to allow them to help solve the problem of the small minority of dangerous zealots among them. They, after all, are best placed to do so, and have most to lose if the enterprise should fail. In doing so, he refrained from giving gratuitous advice to the Muslim community about ways in which their religion might be improved. This too was a welcome change. Perhaps his most interesting suggestion  certainly one that fits well with the agile and nimble Turnbull rhetoric  is that Daesh's effective online propaganda campaigns should be countered rapidly, its claims challenged and its arguments refuted. When it comes to conflict, the internet is a battlefield like any other. These are all good points. What we did not hear, however, is any sense that the United States and its allies have a comprehensive plan for the region  a strategy which sets goals for concerted action. It was not Mr Turnbull's to impose, of course, but it remains a major gap. Daesh bulks large in the imagination but, provided that the international community can combine to defeat it  as appears possible  its significance will be short-term only. The larger, longer-term issue for Australia's US alliance is the relationship between the United States and China. Turnbull has to position Australia in a delicate balance between two great powers. Did he manage it? The Prime Minister approached the topic through a discussion of the Thucydides Trap  the inevitability, referred to by the great Greek historian, that powerful countries will clash as their interests diverge and oppose one another. In doing so, he danced carefully around the point which might best express Australia's interest. That is that if dangerous conflict is to be avoided, both sides will have to give a little. This obviously is a difficult message to deliver in Washington, particularly for a neophyte leader  and Turnbull didn't deliver it. Instead, he urged the US to stay strong, and China in effect to stop its aggressive build-up in the South China Sea. That message is no doubt more acceptable to his hosts, but it may not strike quite the balance that the region, and Australia, needs.
If you'd told me when I was a child that I would live most of my adult life in Melbourne I would have been devastated. Back then, Melbourne was the place we Sydneysiders mocked. Any classmate who was dragged there on holiday was considered unlucky, while those heading north to the exotic wonderland of Queensland were envied. The consensus was that Melbourne was daggy, a city where it rained a lot, cut through by a filthy river, utterly inferior to the magnificent harbour that our Sydney boasted.

Yet, as I moved into the final years of high school, I began questioning a great many things I'd previously assumed. Perhaps sunny beaches and a stunning harbour were not, after all, for me. Indeed, it suddenly seemed that a fashionably gloomy, industrial landscape might better suit a Monica who was trying hard to imagine herself all subversive and counter culture. So, when most of my contemporaries headed off to schoolies week on the Gold Coast, I booked a week in Melbourne with my best mate and my brother.

Melbourne's cafe scene was one attraction to new arrival Monica Dux. Credit:Rodger Cummins

We stayed in a caravan park in Coburg, and saw Phantom of the Opera at the Princess Theatre. After the show we embraced adult sophistication by buying a bottle of Baileys Irish Cream, and drinking it in our caravan. We caught a tram to St Kilda and rode the roller-coaster at Luna Park. We shopped at the Chapel Street Bazaar in Prahran and visited cafes in Fitzroy and Greville Street, which in no way resembled the mugachino purveying establishments that I knew from my local shopping mall.

That week, Melbourne became magnificent in my eyes; a city where I'd successfully played at being a grown-up. So, a few years later, when I finished university and decided it was time I stopped pretending and actually grew up, I bought a train ticket and headed back, this time to stay. I didn't have much money, but a friend of a friend was away on holidays, so I took over her room in Carlton until I found a place of my own.
At a time when most of her tradie neighbours are knocking off for the day Samantha Small has grown accustomed to unlocking the doors and pulling back the pink curtains of her Fyshwick shopfront studio to start work.

The suburb's industrial setting would seem an unlikely choice for an artist, but after making art in spaces as small as a bedsit Small has fallen in love with its size.

"It's a bit like when people talk about money, you spend the money you've got, you use the time you've got and in terms of a studio you kind of think into the space," she says.
Harper's ''education'' was brought to a close in 2011 without Martel ever receiving a personal reply so the author could concentrate on his next novel. That new book is The High Mountains of Portugal, a novel in three parts which returns to the grand literary themes of Life of Pi, of love and loss and the tussle between religion and reason, as told using Martel's signature devices of religious allegory and zoological lore. It begins with the story of Tomas, a young man in Lisbon in 1904 who discovers an old journal and heads off in mad pursuit of a strange religious treasure carved by an excommunicated priest, shifts to a Portuguese pathologist visited 30 years later by an old woman wanting him to perform an autopsy on her dead husband, whom she brings to him in a suitcase, and then jumps 50 years to a lonely Canadian senator who flees the memories of his dead wife to live with a chimp he has rescued from a cruel sanctuary. Each interconnecting story looks at different aspects of faith. In Homeless, Tomas turns his back on God when his lover and son die as Martel sets out to show what it is to live in a state of "rupture and disenchantment" from faith. In Homeward Martel shows how it is for a believer to have their faith tested, and finally, in Home, the consequences of living with the object of one's faith. I grew up in a secular household, there was no religion whatsoever.

"I find faith," says Martel, "a very odd phenomenon because we live in a very reasonable age. At the end of a life no one says I've been reasonable my whole life and therefore I've lived a good life. Obviously the quality of one's life is defined by something else and as far as I can tell it is, one way or another, a form of faith, and faith is not reasonable; you can't get to faith through reason." Martel, 52, was born in Spain, but grew up in Costa Rica, France, Mexico and Alaska, trailing his parents, both French-speaking members of the Canadian foreign service who lived through Quebec's Quiet Revolution, a period of massive social, political and economic change coinciding with the dramatic reforms of Vatican II. "Quebec went from being the most backwardly Catholic society to being the most socially democratic secular province in Canada," Martel recalls. "I'm a grandchild of that revolution, so I grew up in a secular household, there was no religion whatsoever. Religion was something you saw in National Geographic." Studying philosophy at Trent University in Ontario was, says Martel, a "great way to make you an atheist or an agnostic depending on your level of anger". But a trip to multi-faith India in 1997 triggered a period of personal exploration in which he says he looked into the eyes of gods and animals, and tried to understand each on its own terms. Returning to Canada, Martel volunteered in a palliative care ward, spending four or five hours every Thursday tending to the dying, this time overlapping with the writing of Life of Pi. Far from making him depressed, the close-up experience of death clarified for him the tragedy of placing too much value on personal possessions and the importance of living in the moment.

Eventually he stopped looking for what he hated in religion  the sexism, the homophobia, the patriarchy  and realised there was a "great benefit to letting go, to stop trying to understand everything and trusting". Such an uncynical approach to belief is one of the reasons Martel believes Life of Pi resonates with readers. "I think most people in public don't want to sound like fools but in private we all have questions, wondering where we are going. No one likes ageing, everyone is afraid of death and I think in Life of Pi there was a forthright discussion of what reality is about. What do we want to believe here? Do we want to believe in more or do we want to believe in less, and what does that entail?" The spark for The High Mountains of Portugal came from an idea Martel had of a crucifix carved in the image of a chimpanzee, the icon for which Tomas searches. Wild animals serve as symbols for man's quest for unfettered freedom in Martel's writings, as metaphysical dream vehicles. In Pi the tiger teaches the shipwrecked survivor a lesson in co-existence, and their emotional bond saves Pi from despair. The chimp in The High Mountains invokes Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species the clash between theism and science, and carries a warning of species extinction.

Other elements of The High Mountains of Portugal date to Martel's first attempt at a novel started in university. It was also set in Portugal, in 1939, about a group of lost pilgrims, and had a dog as a narrator. This is the failed book referred to by the author-narrator in the opening pages of Life of Pi, which is mailed to a fictitious address in Siberia before the author meets in Pondicherry an elderly man who boasts of knowing a story that ''will make you believe in God". Unlike his fictitious narrator, Martel says he didn't ditch that manuscript but mailed it to his real home address in Montreal, where he recovered it and fed some of his notes into The High Mountains. What started Martel writing? ''A host of things,'' he says. ''Books that I read as a child that showed me how powerful stories could be; a fear of the working world, to which I seemed to have nothing to offer and that seemed a cruel, forbidding place; the discovery that creating a story on the page was intensely satisfying; and the luck of having people who encouraged me early on, my parents, and small-journal publishers, then book publishers." His breakthrough came while working in Paris as a security guard at the Canadian embassy, where his parents were staying. His first short story was published in The Malahat Review, one of Canada's leading literary journals. It won the Journey Prize for Short Fiction and became the title story of The Facts Behind the Helsinki Roccamatios, his first published book. Martel regards the lean decade that followed as "glorious years". "I had enough money to live frugally, but really I lived like a king. Think of it: I woke every morning and the only thing I had to do that day was work on my first novel  Self  or later on, Life of Pi. What else could someone ask for? I was alive creatively and had no other worries in the world." And the decade since Pi?
A recent report in the Washington Post has claimed that 27 selfie-related deaths were reported in 2015, with about half of them occurring in India.

Were all guilty of it  youre in the middle of a party or at an exotic locale with your friends and instead of enjoying the moment, you take your phone out and begin clicking dozens of selfies, just to get that one perfect image that captures the moment.

And while it may seem a harmless thing to do, a recent report in the Washington Post has claimed that 27 selfie-related deaths were reported in 2015, with about half of them occurring in India.

Just a week ago, a young man in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, was killed as he fell into a canal while trying to take a selfie. A similar incident happened at Jodhpurs Mehrangarh Fort when a tourist tried clicking a selfie.

In order to get likes, you think you have to get the perfect selfie. And the excitement of taking the perfect selfie without paying attention to their surroundings is whats dangerous, says Dr Diana Monteiro, a counselling psychologist from the city. But actually immersing yourself into clicking the right picture, experts say, stems from a larger problem low self esteem.

Just taking a selfie is fine, but if youre obsessed with taking the right selfie and constantly trying to put yourself into situations that would be a perfect image of yourself out there, that would be considered a disorder, Dr Monteiro says, adding that looking for extra validation through likes and comments on social media is a sign that you may have a problem with your self esteem.

The need to keep up with your friends, too, plays an important role in the obsession, says Dr Pulkit Sharma: If you see that your friends have put up something on a social networking site, you start to feel envious. And you want to outperform those in your group or those that you envy.

And with the selfie-addiction becoming a very normal thing with people of all ages, the only real option to ensure that selfies dont turn fatal is to keep a safe distance  not from sight-seeing, but from your smartphone.

Just like any addiction, the first thing to do would be you stop doing the activity that youre addicted to. Maybe try to monitor the time you spend on social media and try to spend that time with actual people around you instead, says Dr Monteiro, while Dr Sharma adds, Being close to technology only encourages this behaviour. People could also observe a gadget-free time every day for about three to four hours, where you wont login to Facebook or go online.
When it was announced in 2014 that seminal Detroit producer Jeff Mills would be a headline act at that year's Melbourne Festival performing with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, local techno fans rejoiced. Though Mills had been performing with orchestras overseas for years, he had only ever performed in shadowy nightclubs in Melbourne, and by all accounts the combination of Mills' drum machines with woodwind, brass and strings was alchemy.

This Saturday night Mills will perform with the MSO once again, but with two key distinctions. It will happen at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl, an outdoor amphitheatre as opposed to the stuffier Hamer Hall, and Mills will be joined by fellow Detroit techno luminary Derrick May, performing his own suite of songs in collaboration with the orchestra. Their double act with the MSO is a serious coup for Melbourne techheads; this is the first time the pair will share a stage with an orchestra on the same night.

Derrick May will be performing with Mills. Credit:Jacob Khrist

Mills' set will not be identical to last time; "a few compositions have been added to the score," he says, including a track that has been added specifically for he and May to play together.

The stage setup is pretty simple, Mills says. He'll be positioned close to the double bass and cello players to help them to keep tempo; "my drum patterns are almost like a metronome."
Jazz saxophone prince Ravi Coltrane will make his Australian debut in a six-night residency to launch a new city jazz venue from March 1.

Bird's Basement hatched from a longstanding friendship between Melbourne musician/entrepreneur Albert Dadon and Gianni Valenti, of legendary New York jazz club Birdland.

Jazz saxophonist Ravi Coltrane.

The partnership will ensure a stream of international guests among featured local artists, and Mr Valenti will land in Melbourne this month to oversee such esoteric details as the art of silent meal service.

With master chef Gigi Buono on board, "our menu is better", Mr Dadon says.
MIDSUMMA FESTIVAL

ELEGY 

Lab Kelpie and Gasworks Arts Park

Gasworks Studio Theatre

Until February 6

Elegy is performed by a young Australian (Nick Simpson-Deeks); a man who'll never be a refugee. He tells the story of a man who'd seen refugees on the TV and never thought he'd be one  until he was in his house with a half-packed bag, listening for missiles and wondering if there's any point in packing books.

Nick Simpson-Deeks in Elegy. Credit:Sarah Walker

Devised in 2011 in the UK, it's based on interviews with gay Iraqi refugees who fled after the liberation from Saddam Hussein. They felt safer before the war; before the public executions of homosexuals were greeted with cheers. But, while the social outcomes of political wars are vital to the discussion, this Australian premiere isn't about politics.

And although it returns to the relatable experience of young love, it isn't about love. It's not as easy as reducing the experience of fleeing everything to anything as easy as politics or love.
NSW teaching students will face personality assessments from next year, the NSW Board of Studies has confirmed.

The President of the NSW Council of Deans of Education, Chris Davison, said the assessments will draw from tests similar to those undertaken for the army and will weed out candidates unsuited to teaching before they begin their degrees.

"The challenge is to have one that works for teaching. You probably need a much higher degree of empathy than you do in the army," she said.

Professor Davison said that the national program was necessary despite tough new regulations on literacy and numeracy imposed by the NSW government.
A former private school student, believed to have taken ice, allegedly stabbed his parents in a terrifying early morning attack in Sydney's west.

Neighbours in the quiet, wealthy cul-de-sac in Oatlands woke at 4am on Friday to the blood-curdling screams of a woman fearing for her life.

"She was screaming so hard, saying, 'Somebody help! David, stop! Somebody help us, he's trying to kill us!' " said a neighbour, who asked not to be identified.

Police will allege the couple's son, David Anderson, 21, stabbed his father, Andrew, 55, and mother, Patricia, 53, during a rampage while on ice.
An international drug smuggling attempt has been thwarted following the discovery of almost 500 kilograms of illegal drugs hidden in bar stools and soup-mix packets from China, police say.

The drugs, which allegedly included 159 kilograms of ice, were concealed in three shipping containers that arrived at Sydney's Port Botany on January 1.

Australian Border Force officers inspected the containers after receiving a tip-off from their overseas counterparts.

They allegedly found the ice, which police said had a potential street value of more than $105 million, concealed in the seat backs of the chairs, while 340 kilograms of ephedrine, a "precursor" drug that could be used to make ice, was allegedly uncovered inside soup-mix packets.
Starting next week, a great Sydney experiment will begin. The city will be handed to the planners.

"It is something planners have dreamed of for a long time," says Sarah Hill, the incoming chief executive of the Greater Sydney Commission, the new body set up with rare clout to shape the future development of the city.

Urban experiment: Sarah Hill is the new CEO of the Greater Sydney Commission. Credit:Daniel Munoz

"This is that we have a real focus on the strategic big picture issues  rather than assessing development," says Hill.

The early tasks for the commission, a concept which enjoys the support of both Labor and the Coalition, are numerous.
Kaila Murnain seeks conference backing to become new Labor boss

Unions are preparing a public show of strength over Labor leader Luke Foley at next month's party conference by flexing their muscles to secure blanket opposition to any increase in the GST.

The move, at Mr Foley's first conference as party leader, is being viewed as a backlash to his comments about being open to considering a GST rise in certain circumstances and determination to be independent of unions on policy matters.

"Disclosure delayed is disclosure denied": Luke Foley. Credit:Joosep Martinson

Fairfax Media understands the right wing United Services Union is proposing that the conference adopts as Labor policy opposing any increase in the GST - a move that would bind all MPs to the position.
Four cyclists have escaped serious injury after one was hit by a bus on the Gold Coast early on Friday.

Gold Coast Acting Senior Operations Supervisor Stuart Cutajar said a group of cyclists were on a morning ride in Palm Beach, when one of the group was clipped by a bus at the intersection of Dogwood Drive and Nineteenth Avenue, about 6.10am.

A group of cyclists were hit by a bus on an early morning ride on the Gold Coast on Friday.

The impact destabilised the cyclist, causing him to fall off his bike, which then brought three other riders down, Mr Cutajar said.

One man was taken to Gold Coast University Hospital suffering minor injuries, including hip pain and multiple abrasions.
The Australian Workers Union tried but failed to convince the Queensland treasurer to guarantee a $35 million loan to protect jobs at Clive Palmer's nickel refinery.

AWU secretary Ben Swan says he personally urged Curtis Pitt to guarantee the loan in the interests of workers at Queensland Nickel's Yabulu refinery near Townsville.

But the government refused and the federal MP's company went on to sack 237 workers before entering voluntary administration on Monday.

Mr Swan said he also warned the government that it must consider who might have to foot the bill for costly environmental clean-up work at the refinery site if the company ultimately wound up being liquidated.
Oregon ranchers who sparked standoff threatened to wrap officials son in barbed wire and drown him



With the occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge almost three weeks old and tempers fraying at a community meeting in the nearby town of Burns, Oregon, one voice has been absent from the drama: the Fish and Wildlife Service employees whose work has been disrupted and offices turned into an armed camp by anti-government militants.



In a Raw Story exclusive, former and current employees of the Malheur Refuge have provided new revelations on the conflict between Dwight and Steve Hammond, two local ranchers who have clashed with federal government agencies for decades. The employees claim the Hammonds illegal grazing was damaging the refuge thats home to 320 bird and 58 mammal species. They allege the Hammonds lawbreaking ranged from aerial hunting of animals in the refuge to death threats against employees and their families to cattle grazing that was altering the entire species composition of critical ecosystems.



...Marvin Plenert, 80, who served as Northwest regional director for the Fish and Wildlife Service from 1986 to 1994, says the agency tried to accommodate the Hammonds. We gave them a day to cross through the refuge and they took two or three weeks to do it. They were in your face about everything. They kept pushing the envelope, cut fences, cattle wound up in the refuge illegally.



...In August 1994, the Fish and Wildlife Service tried to fence a waterhole used by the Hammonds cattle as well as by waterfowl. The family disabled a Caterpillar vehicle, blocking construction of the fence, and Dwight and Steve Hammond were arrested and charged with felonies for impeding, intimidating and interfering with federal officers.



The charges were lessened and eventually dropped after the Hammonds entered into an agreement with provisions including a halt to interfering with fence construction and moving their cattle through the refuge in one day, which Cameron says is doable.



Leading up to the 1994 incident were the death threats. Cameron says, My wife would take these phone calls, it was terribly vulgar language. They said they were going to wrap my son in barbed wire and throw him down a well. They said they knew exactly which rooms my kids slept in, in Burns. There were death threats to my wife and two other staff members and their wives. My family went to Bend rather than be in the community because it was so volatile at the time. The families of my biologist and my deputy manager family had to relocate as well for a short time.



At the refuge headquarters, one of the Hammonds said they would tear my head off and **** down the hole. One of the Hammonds told my Deputy Manager, Dan Walsworth, they were going to put a chain around his neck and drag him behind a pickup. Cameron says it became practice never to meet with the Hammonds alone and usually to have a law enforcement officer present.
Jetstar has apologised for cancelling a Perth flight to Bali on Saturday after one of its flight attendants called in sick.

Passengers waiting to board the flight were told over the airport loudspeaker at 6.20am that the flight was cancelled, the same time the flight was scheduled to depart Perth.

The report praised the efforts of the Jetstar crew aboard the Airbus A320, similar to the plane pictured.

A Jetstar spokesman said the airline was forced to make the last-minute cancellation when it was unable to find a replacement crew member for the attendant, who "became unwell" shortly before the plane was due to take-off.

Under Australian aviation regulations, the Airbus A320 requires four flight attendants be on board.
"They were terribly homesick here and dreamed of one day going back east," said Tong Hao, 56, a descendant of the settlers, from the Xibe branch of the Manchus, who arrived here emaciated and exhausted. "But sadly, it was not to be."

It was an arduous, 18-month journey, but there was one consolation: after completing their mission of pacifying the western frontier, the troops would be allowed to take their families home.

Qapqal, Xibe: Loyal to the core and prized for their horsemanship, several thousand Manchu soldiers heeded the emperor's call. In 1764, with families and livestock in tow, they embarked on a trek from northeastern China to the most distant fringes of the Qing dynasty empire, the Central Asian lands now known as Xinjiang.

Xibe farmworkers in a cotton field near Qapqal County, China in October. Credit:NYT

But 2 centuries later, the roughly 30,000 people in this rural county who consider themselves Xibe have proved to be an ethnographic curiosity and a linguistic bonanza. As the last handful of Manchu speakers in northeast China have died, the Xibe have become the sole inheritors of what was once the official tongue of one of the world's most powerful empires, a domain that stretched from India to Russia and formed the geographic foundation for modern China.

In the decades after the revolution in 1911 that drove the Qing from power after nearly 300 years, Mandarin Chinese vanquished the Manchu language, even in its former stronghold in the forested northeast. But the isolation of the Xibe in this parched, far-flung region near the Kazakh border helped keep the language alive, even if its existence was largely forgotten until the 1940s.

For scholars of Manchu, especially those eager to translate the mounds of Qing dynasty documents that fill archives across China, the discovery of so many living Manchu speakers has been a godsend.

"Imagine if you studied the classics and went to Rome, spoke Latin and found that people there understood you," said Mark Elliott, a Manchu expert at Harvard University. He remembered his first encounter, in 2009, with an older Xibe man on the streets of Qapqal county, an autonomous region in China. "I asked the guy in Manchu where the old city wall was, and he didn't blink. It was a wonderful encounter, one that I'll never forget."
London: A five-year-old child and two women died from hypothermia on the Greek island of Lesbos on Wednesday. Twelve bodies were found on Turkey's western coast on Thursday after a boat carrying migrants bound for Greece capsized. At least eight migrants including two children drowned when another wooden capsized north of the Greek island of Kalolimnos early on Friday.

The women and child died after crossing the Aegean Sea from Turkey in freezing weather. They were among more than 800 refugees, many of them Syrian families, who reached Lesbos on this week aboard nearly 20 boats, battered by wind and snow as temperatures plunged below zero, International Federation of Red Cross (IFRC) spokeswoman Caroline Haga said. Thousands of others wait in Turkey to make the same dangerous crossing.

Syrian refugees disembark from a Greek coastguard boat near Lesbos on Wednesday. Credit:AP

"These needless deaths are shameful  we must establish safer ways for people to escape conflict, persecution and poverty," Karen Bjornestad, head of the IFRC in Greece, said in a statement.

"Death should not be the result of a basic human desire to live in safety and find a future."
GREAT BAY:--- The St. Martin of Tours Catholic church here is celebrating its 175th anniversary in 2016, with a new book by Gerard van Veen, said Jacqueline Sample, president of House of Nehesi Publishers (HNP).

The book will profile each priest that served the parish since its inception in 1841. Some of the names of the eight chapters are The Reverend Sisters, Lay People in the Parish, and Our Patron Saint, said Sample.

Van Veen also makes reference to Pere Labat who met with the Dutch and French commanders on the island during his travels in the early 1700s and noticed a Catholic church presence in Marigot in 1705.

The author mentions how the parish in the North and the parish in the South of St. Martin came to be dedicated to St. Martin of Tours even though they have different founding dates and fall under different dioceses in the Caribbean region, said Sample.

Insights into how the Catholic church in the South came to acquire property on Backstreet and Frontstreet, and a passing reference to the murder of a Capuchin priest on the island in 1699, all make for interesting and exciting reading, said Sample.

Van Veen, a retired priest, actually follows in a long tradition of priest chroniclers like some of the parish fathers that he writes about in the upcoming book.

In St. Martin, and the Caribbean in general, church history is relatively young. We have to cherish it as a foundation for our future society, seeing that many things change but that an essential core keeps us going, said Van Veen.

The 175th anniversary title will include photos of past and present parish leaders and activities of the churches on Frontstreet and in St. Peters and Simpson Bay.

The commemorative title will be the fourth book written by Van Veen and published by HNP. You can trust that HNP will do a good job. I know from experience that HNP will not deliver an amateurish product. They take their job serious, they are highly professional and handle the work of an author with respect, said Van Veen.

Mr. van Veen writes as a parishioner about the positive modern developments of the Catholic Church in the South or Dutch part of St. Martin and also expresses his hopes for greater unity among parishioners within the parish, said Sample.

Gerard van Veen is one of St. Martins senior authors and writes a column on church and religious matters in the Weekender supplement of The Daily Herald.
GREAT BAY(DCOMM):--- Ministry of Public Housing, Environment, Spatial Development and Infrastructure (Ministry VROMI), announces that United Telecommunications Services (UTS) will commence on Tuesday, January 26 with digging cable pits on Back Street.

This work will be carried out during normal working hours.

Pedestrians and motorists must pay attention to the traffic signs that will be erected and to reduce speed and walk/drive with caution.

Ministry VROMI apologizes for any inconveniences this may cause.
PHILIPSBURG:--- A fourth suspect in the spate of armed robberies which took place last week on the French and Dutch side of the island was arrested on Thursday January 21st at approximately 05.15 p.m. by the Multidisciplinary team. The male suspect with the initials K.L. (20) for whom a warrant for his arrest was issued was seen in the Cay Hill area driving a jeep. When he noticed that the team was on his trail he tried to make his getaway. Nevertheless after a short pursuit by the Multidisciplinary team he was arrested and placed in handcuffs. The suspect was taken to the Philipsburg Police Station where he remains in custody for further investigation.

KPSM Police Report
GREAT BAY (DCOMM):--- On Thursday Prime Minister Hon. William Marlin concluded his first working visit to The Hague, the Netherlands when he met the Vice Chair of the Council of State Piet Hein Donner.

Issues discussed included the appointment of a Sint Maarten representative to the Council of State.

Ever since former Minister of Justice Dennis Richardson vacated the position Sint Maarten did not put forward another candidate. One of the challenges prospective Sint Maarten candidates face, is not having to reside in the Netherlands on a full time basis.

The intention now is to have the candidate in question travel to the Netherlands every month for one week.

The Prime Minister also explained his proposal to adapt the Sint Maarten Constitution in order to curb ship jumping.

Vice Chair Donner pledged his support to assist Sint Maarten in finding a Sint Maarten solution to the problem.

It is not only in Sint Maarten that we have a problem with ship jumping. Mr. Donner has also suggested that as soon as a proposed text is ready that we should send it to them to take a look at it in order to speed up the process, Prime Minister Hon. William Marlin said on Thursday from The Hague, the Netherlands.

The Prime Minister was accompanied by Sint Maarten's Minister Plenipotentiary, Hon. Henrietta Doran-York.
POINTE BLANCHE:---- The Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) has declared 2016 The Year of Romance in the Caribbean. The theme celebrates everything romantic about the islands in the region.

CTO would like its member countries and hotels to highlight the Caribbean as the leading choice for a romance vacation for consumers and travel planners selling the region.

CTO in cooperation with its private sector partner the Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association; assist member countries with an assortment of innovative ideas which can be implemented around the theme of romance to appeal to consumers, travel agents and tour operators.

Port St. Maarten Management thinks this is a great initiative and supports the efforts of the CTO to promote travel to the region. The CTO is headquartered in Barbados with offices in New York and London. It is the Caribbeans tourism development agency comprising membership of over 30 countries and territories including Dutch, English, French and Spanish, as well as a myriad of private sector allied members.

The primary objective of CTO is to provide and through its members the services and information necessary for the development of sustainable tourism for the economic and social benefit of the Caribbean people.

The cruise industry is already busy trying to attract millenninals looking for romance. In 2015 more than 22 million people worldwide took a cruise, and the cruise lines would like to find ways to encourage younger travelers to take a cruise.

The average cruiser is 46 years of age, according to Cruise Lines International Associations (CLIA) latest industry profile. According to the MMGY Global 2014 Portrait of American Travelers, millennials was the most interested in cruising, with 53 per cent saying they would like to take a cruise within the next two years.

A survey conducted by the online cruising agency Bon Voyage Cruises found that 14 per cent of cruise passengers say they have found love while on a cruise, with 41 per cent saying they are still with the partner and 12 per cent eventually marrying them. Millennial travelers are offering the cruise industry an opportunity.

CLIA reports that nearly 24 million passengers are expected to sail in 2016, a dramatic increase from 15 million just 10-years prior (2006), or even 1.4 million when CLIA began tracking passengers in 1980.

CLIA member cruise lines are scheduled to debut 27 new ocean, river and specialty ships in 2016 for a total investment of more than US$6.5 billion in new ocean vessels alone.

Travel agents are also experiencing a higher demand for cruise travel where eight out of 10 CLIA member travels agents stated they are expecting an increase in sales in 2016 over the last year.

Port St. Maarten accommodated 1,901,617 cruise passengers in 2015 via 683 cruise vessel port calls. Port St. Maarten also came in as the #1 cruise port in the Caribbean, the second year in a row by Cruise Fever.net readers who were asked to vote on the best cruise ports in the Caribbean in the 2015 Cruise Fever Fan Awards.

The cruise industry continue to make cruising the best overall vacation experience available. The industry is continuing to evolve to ensure there truly is a cruise for every travel style and budget even for romance travelers.

Port St. Maarten Management is of the strong opinion that all stakeholders need to work together in 2016 and beyond to further enhance the overall visitor experience on the island whether its cruise or stay-over. This is very important in order for the country to remain at the forefront in the industry as one of the preferred destination to spend a vacation.

Cruising also generates a substantial positive economic impact globally. Cruise industry expenditures according to CLIA generated US$119.9 billion in total output worldwide, supporting 939,232 full-time equivalent employees who earned US$39.3 billion in income in 2014.

The cruise industry continues to be innovative and has developed to date the following 13 trends showcasing how the sector has transformed to meet todays travelers styles and preferences: Rise of the Rover Cruise; More Ships, More Options; On the Map; G Day for a Cruise; Cruise Specialists; Connectivity and Cruising; A Love for Lux; Brands at Sea; Ships are the Destination; Stay the Night; Grand (parent) Travel Experiences; Cruise Voluntourism; and Culturally Customized.
Maho:--- Honorable Minister Silveria Jacobs attended The Caribbean Union of Seventh Day Adventist Principals workshop held at the Maho Sonesta Resort. Under the theme of Aligning Hearts and Minds, the purpose of the workshop is to ensure that every Seventh Day Adventist school in the Caribbean Union promotes academic excellence in a spiritually charged environment.

Along with the Minister, in attendance were representatives from the Caribbean Union Conference, the North, South and East Caribbean Conference, the St. Lucia, Tobago, Suriname, St. Vincent & the Grenadines and Southern Leeward Mission and the Grenada Conference. Secondary and Primary school principals were also in attendance of this rather important workshop.

Minister Jacobs highlighted that in leading by example, you are not only an inspiration to staff and students, but the community on a whole. While emphasizing the excellent results by Seventh Day Adventist school across the region, the Minister noting the abundance of Christian-based school on St. Maarten, and expressed the importance of not only teaching students academics, but the word of God as well.

The Minister implored educators to courageously raise the bar for students to achieve higher than imaginable and reminded those present that there is no better resource for a school than teachers who are empowered and equipped to do so. While concurring with the theme of the workshop, Minister Jacobs stated that is it important to align your hearts and minds with God to shape the future generations to be intellectually and spiritually aligned with God as well, and paraphrased Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in stating that education is both academics and character.

In closing, Minister Jacobs hoped that the workshop gives those in attendance the tools and resources to continuously inspire excellence from students and that this spiritually charged environment connects the attendees as friends, partners and members of the Adventists community. The Minister also looks forward to the local Adventists school sharing the positives of this workshop with their colleagues here on Sint Maarten.
COBI raises a further 6.3 million Euros bringing the total of its financial backing to almost 12 million Euros

Digital pioneers develop intelligent technology for bike-based mobility

Munich Venture Partners joins as a new investor; Creathor Venture and Capnamic Ventures further their investments

The financing sum doubles to ?12 million

The new capital will be used for internationalization and the development of new products

COBI, the developer of the first smart control centre for bikes, has completed another round of financing. The company has received almost ?6.3 million from Munich Venture Partners and other investors like Meinders & Elstermann ? International Print & Mediaservices. This brings the total investment raised by the company to 12 million Euros. Creathor Venture and Capnamic Ventures, investors from the previous funding round in April 2015, have also increased their investments. COBI will use the fresh capital for internationalization as well as the development of further products.

COBI stands for ?Connected Biking and is the first integrated system that intelligently connects a bike with a smartphone. The modular system integrates six bike accessories into one design object: Automatic front and rear light, navigation, smartphone holder with charging function, bell, alarm system, and bike computer. The result not only makes biking safer and more intelligent, but also creates a host of features to enrich your riding experience: It turns any bike or eBike into a Smartbike. The system can be pre-ordered online as an accessory for any bike from between 179 and 330 Euros, and will be pre-fitted by many bike manufacturers. Delivery will begin in time for the biking season in Spring 2016. More than 30,000 pre-orders have already been received.

Andreas Gahlert, COBI Founder and CEO:

?With the launch of the first COBI product imminent, it?s time to expand our business model and include further products. We are delighted that with Munich Venture Partners we have found a partner who brings with them a great network, and has a clear focus on Cleantech startups.

Pawel Schapiro, Investment Manager at Creathor Venture:

?At Creathor, we are very satisfied with the development of COBI. Most of our expectations from the time of our initial investment were exceeded by the team of COBI. Now, we are looking forward to the market launch this year and we are very happy about the two new investors MVP and Meinders & Elstermann, their expertise and network supporting the further development of the company. 

About COBI

COBI is the specialist for Connected Biking. The company develops and markets an integrated patented system to upgrade bikes with both hardware and software elements. It offers the user access to over 100 integrated features. The COBI team has years of experience in digital business and marketing. COBI was founded by Andreas Gahlert in Frankfurt am Main at the beginning of 2014, and now has more than 50 employees in Frankfurt, Hamburg and San Francisco. COBI became a sensation in December 2014 on the US platform Kickstarter. Raising 400,000 US dollars, the crowdfunding campaign became the second most successful biketech project worldwide and raised four times its target funds.



As a leading European Venture Capital firm, Creathor Venture invests in technology-oriented companies and entrepreneurs. Creathor Venture focuses on Mobile, E-commerce, Digital Media, Cloud Technology, Internet of Things, Sharing Economy, Fintech, Life Science and E-Health. Regional focus is on Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Scandinavia. The management team of Creathor Venture consists of the CEO Dr. Gert Kohler, Karlheinz Schmelig, Cedric Kohler and Dr. Aristotelis Nastos. The team has been investing successfully in the early-stage venture capital business for 30 years. During that time, the team has built more than 200 technology companies successfully, conducted more than 20 international IPOs and has achieved exceptional returns for fund investors and the financed entrepreneurs in the past, all in the position as lead investor. The current portfolio of more than 35 companies is actively supported in development, growth and internationalization by a team of 17 staff. Creathor Venture manages funds of more than EUR 180 million and holds offices in Bad Homburg, near Munich, in Cologne, in Zurich and in Stockholm.

The investors of the current fund include the European Union, through which the fund receives funding from the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP), and the ERP EIF fund of funds and the LfA  Gesellschaft fur Vermogensverwaltung GmbH, both facilities of the European Investment Fund (EIF), fund of funds, family offices and entrepreneurs.

As the largest investor in Creathor the management underlines its entrepreneurial orientation.
Lyzza said: What a load of ********. You have clearly never been to Germany. Germany is full of non-native Germans who have German citizenship. You have no clue what you are even spewing now. It's all the same bigoted, racist ******** anyway.



The only people who can't handle multiculturalism are the bigots, xenophobes and racists. Click to expand...

Do the letters F O hold any significance for you? Of course Germany is mainly populated with Germans. Just as France is mostly populated with French. Amd Italy is mostly populated with Italians. Etc. etc. etc. Also, with Germany being so limited in population, natural resources and arable land, I wonder whay it is that you think they kick our *** economically. The same holds true for Japan. And why do you think they do better in education. Or why they have free health care.I am certain that it is because they don't have as much multiethnic ******** to put up with. This gives them more of a sense of community. It also gives them a patriotic ideal that makes them happier to work harder. Though they don't work as hard as those in the U.S. have to, they still do more with it) On top of that, they are just happier, period. And it is well known that happier people are more productive people. As for your "racism" thing, I started a thread called, "Racism is good. Do you disagree?" If you want to tell me any of your brainwashed ******** ideas about racism, I suggest that you read that thread let me know what you disagree with on that topic.
A Revolutionary Public Service Worker-Organizer Summit Toronto  3 October 2015. On October 3rd-4th 2015, the Industrial Workers of the Worlds Toronto General Membership Branch hosted Working For Each Other, Working  Watch video 

A Revolutionary Public Service Worker-Organizer Summit

Toronto  3 October 2015.

On October 3rd-4th 2015, the Industrial Workers of the Worlds Toronto General Membership Branch hosted Working For Each Other, Working For Ourselves: A Revolutionary Public Service Worker-Organizer Summit, an event which brought together grassroots workplace organizers from around North America.

A major component of todays economy, the public services are often hit first and hard by austerity and other cut backs. As workers, we need to organize ourselves to fight these battles in the community centres, grocery stores, bedrooms and office towers where we work for the benefit of other people.

Plenary: Public Service Workers Struggles and Public Services After Capitalism.

The Demand of Identity: The Grievances, Organizing and Tactics of Queer Solidarity Unionism.

Keynote Panel: Solidarity Unionism in Action.

workingforeachother.org | torontoiww.org
Environment  January 22, 2016  Herbert Docena

How Elites Contained the Climate Justice Movement

The object is to change the heart and soul  Margaret Thatcher.

On the final day of the UN summit (COP21) held in Paris in December 2015, thousands of people defied a ban on public gatherings by converging at a boulevard leading to the business district in La Defense to denounce the new climate agreement that government negotiators were about to sign and celebrate at the conference venue in Le Bourget, 20 kilometres away. Hoping to counter governments attempts to control the narrative regarding the summit, they gathered behind giant inflatable cobblestones and a red banner proclaiming System change not climate change!

Departing from some other environmentalist groups, they held placards criticizing the undemocratic ways in which decisions regarding our relationship to nature are ultimately made only by capitalists and other powerful groups in the current global capitalist system.

In different ways, they put forward a more democratic alternative: a system in which the people decide on important questions such as what sources of energy to use and what activities to power and for whose benefit, how many trees to fell and to produce what goods for whom or, more generally, how to organize our relationship to nature and in pursuit of what ends.

Broad and as defiant as the action turned out to be, however, it was still not as large or as confrontational as some of the organizers had hoped. Unable to rally more people behind them, the radical anti-capitalists had little choice but to abandon their original plan to barricade Le Bourget and also ruled out marching on La Defense. In the end, the protesters could only gather, lobbing their cobblestones in the air, aimed at no targets. Meanwhile, the popping of champagne corks in Le Bourget or La Defense went undisturbed.

Out Of the Margins

Why, as this particular but not uncommon episode indicates, are activists struggling for a more democratic system unable to attract more people to their side? Or why, despite the intensifying ecological crisis caused by capitalism, is the movement for radical system change still confined to the margins?

Part of the answer surely has to do with how the worlds elites have increasingly resorted to more coercive measures to keep people off the streets or prevent them from conceiving or expressing anti-systemic demands. But  as shown by the large number of people who refused to be cowed by the threat of force or to buy into the governments discourse in Paris and beyond  it is not merely the presence or absence of physical or ideological repression that determine peoples willingness to take on the powerful. Indeed, it pushes us to ask why more people are not willing to defy repression to fight for a democratic system.

This essay seeks to contribute to understanding the causes of the movements weakness by drawing attention to another, typically overlooked, way by which the dominant seek to contain challenges to their undemocratic rule other than by trying to repress peoples bodies in order to dissuade or restrain them from overthrowing the system: that of trying to mould peoples very subjectivities  how they see their identities, how they make sense of their life situations, what they aspire to, whom they consider their friends or their enemies  in order to persuade people to actively defend the system.

I argue that part of the reason why activists struggling for a democratic alternative to capitalism find it difficult to draw more people to their cause is because a section of the worlds dominant classes have been waging what we can think of, extending Gramsci, as a kind of global passive revolution: an attempt to re-construct or secure (global) hegemony by attempting to fundamentally reform global capitalism in order to partially grant the demands of subordinate groups.

I show how, by purportedly trying to change the system, a particular section of the worlds elites have achieved some success in countering radicals attempts to reshape peoples subjectivities, thus preventing them from fighting for a radically democratic system.

A Resurgent Global Counter-Hegemonic Movement

To better understand how world elites seek to contain counter-hegemonic challenges to their rule, it is useful to go back to the late 1960s when new radical movements, including those mobilizing around ecological issues, burst onto the world stage as part of a broader resurgence of radicalism. Even before then, a growing number of people in industrialized countries and also in the Third World had been increasingly concerned about their deteriorating living conditions as a result of the ecological degradation that came with capitalisms renewed post-war global expansion.

Before the 1960s, many people still typically thought of these ecological problems and the impacts these had on their lives to be the result of others bad personal habits, unscientific management of resources, or insufficient regulation of big business. They therefore generally thought that these problems could be solved and their suffering ended by the inculcation of better personal habits, more scientific management of resources, or greater checks on big business.

Consequently, few directed their anger at the worlds dominant classes in response to ecological degradation. While there would be a growing number of protests as people spontaneously defended themselves against direct attacks on their wellbeing, they did not amount to the kind of organized and sustained resistance that threatened the ruling classes in earlier revolutionary upheavals in various countries.[1]

Starting in the 1960s, however, various intellectuals began to advance a different way of making sense of, and responding to, ecological problems. Herbert Marcuse, Barry Commoner, Murray Bookchin, or Chico Mendes, along with other scientists, journalists, writers, and organizers, began drawing not only from Marx but also from Morris, Kropotkin, Weber, and other critical thinkers to popularize new ways of looking at the world that challenged not just the dominant worldviews but even those propagated by so-called Old Left activists. Calling on the people as members of exploited classes and other dominated groups whose interests were antagonistic to those of the worlds elites, they argued that deteriorating living conditions were not just because of bad habits, poor management, or the insufficient regulation of big business by governments, but because of the historically-specific property relations under capitalism.

They revealed how capitalism drives capitalists, or those who own land, factories, power plants and other means of production and who therefore monopolize social decisions over production, to constantly intensify their exploitation of both workers and nature so as to maximize profits. To overcome their suffering, they argued that reforms such as regulating big business  while not necessarily wrong  would not suffice; they needed to challenge nothing less than capitalism, patriarchy, racism, and other forms of domination.

Though they did not necessarily agree on how to go about it, they urged them to end what Marx once called the dictatorship of the bourgeoisie, or the system of rule in which only those who own the means of production ultimately make production decisions. This would involve fighting for the abolition of private property relations and building a society in which everyone collectively and democratically own the means of production and therefore have a say in making decisions about how to organize production.

Only then, they argued, would it be possible to prioritize peoples welfare and the planets well-being over the need to constantly maximize profits. Through their myriad efforts to propagate these new ways of making sense of and acting upon ecological problems, these radical intellectuals began to reshape peoples subjectivities by providing alternative ways of looking at the world, of understanding their identities, of diagnosing and overcoming their suffering.

As indicated by the growing membership and supporters of radical anti-capitalist environmental organizations or movements that were concerned with environmental questions, ever more people would begin to see themselves and the environmental problems they suffered in a new light.[2] Many started to think of themselves as members of oppressed and exploited classes and also began to connect environmental problems and their social impacts to capitalist, patriarchal, colonial, racial or other forms of domination.

As one activist who came of age during this period put it: a complete disaffection with the system resonated deeply between East and West, North and South.[3] Protesters moved beyond critiques of particular aspects of capitalism and challenged the very essence of capitalism, according to the environmental historian, John McCormick. Many began to aspire to a post-capitalist, if not socialist, society. And they recognized the need to confront and overthrow the ruling classes and other dominant groups determined to perpetuate capitalism. Whatever the cause, notes McCormick, by 1970, there had been a revolution in environmental attitudes.[4]

With these changed subjectivities, people connected the struggle around environmental problems to broader struggles for social justice and equality and channelled their anger about ecological degradation away from fighting other individuals or other subordinate groups toward the dominant classes, their allies in the state apparatus, and other influential groups. Struggles around pollution, nuclear power, pesticides, and so on would become central to a reinvigorated global radical anti-capitalist bloc and re-ignited something that world elites thought they had ended: a global civil war.[5]

Although they did not necessarily succeed in  or did not even attempt to  seize state power, their actions, the historian Eric Hobsbawm argued, were still revolutionary in both the ancient utopian sense of seeking a permanent reversal of values, a new and perfect society, and in the operational sense of seeking to achieve it by action on streets and barricades.[6]

Or, as geographer Michael Watts noted of the uprisings that swept the world in 1968, they were revolutionary not because governments were, or might have been, overthrown but because a defining characteristic of revolution is that it abruptly calls into question existing society and presses people into action.[7]

Critical of existing society and pressed into action, a growing number of people began fighting for what later activists called system change to address ecological problems.

Intra-Elite Struggles

This resurgence of radical environmentalism in particular and of radicalism in general troubled those intellectuals drawn from or aligned with the worlds dominant classes in the United States and other advanced industrialized countries. Barraged with unrelenting criticism  pickets, protests, boycotts, direct actions  and besieged by demands for stronger regulation and system change, many U.S. business leaders felt under attack. One executive probably captured the mood when he said in jest: At this rate business can soon expect support from the environmentalists. We can get them to put the corporation on the endangered species list.[8] Not since the Great Depression and the New Deal, notes political scientist David Vogel, did U.S. capitalists feel so politically vulnerable.

Although the exact conditions varied, the situation was similar in other countries where radical movements emerged. Under siege, many dominant intellectuals and corporate elites struggled to understand what was going on, how to define their interests in the face of it, and how to react. Many thought that the so-called environmental problems were not problems at all or that they could be solved through the normal workings of the market or through existing institutions.[9] Insofar as they acknowledged the problem, many perceived only a threat to their companys or their industrys interests and sought to protect them by simply rejecting the grievances aired by subordinate groups, killing their proposals, and resorting to coercive measures to intimidate or discredit their proponents.[10]

But there were other intellectuals who pursued and advocated an altogether different response. Unlike most reactionary elites, these reformists were typically from patrician or bourgeois families in their respective countries. Others were from less privileged backgrounds but had assumed high government office or positions in civil society organizations, most notably the philanthropic foundations. But unlike government officials, they were what Weber called the notables: those who lived for rather than off politics.[11]

Among those from such backgrounds who would play leading roles on climate-related issues would be people like Laurence and David Rockefeller, of the famous dynastys younger generation; Robert O. Anderson, owner of the oil giant Atlantic Richfield; McGeorge Bundy, the former dean of Harvard and National Security adviser and later president of the Ford Foundation; Robert McNamara, former CEO of Ford Motors, Defense Secretary, World Bank President, and Ford Foundation trustee.

In other countries across Europe, Latin America and Asia, they included those with very similar backgrounds to their U.S. counterparts. Among them were the likes of Giovanni Agnelli, chairman of Italian car company Fiat; Aurelio Peccei, former president of Olivetti and convenor of the Club of Rome; Alexander King, an influential British scientist; Maurice Strong, former president of a large Canadian oil company and later head of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP); Barbara Ward, a British economist and best-selling author, and adviser to numerous world leaders; Canadian prime minister Pierre Trudeau; Indira Gandhi, prime minister of India; Gamani Corea, secretary-general of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), from Sri Lanka; Mahbub ul-Haq, World Bank vice president from Pakistan; and numerous other gentlemen lawyers and learned cosmopolitans.

Though they came from different countries, had their own specific interests, and pursued different and not always congruent projects, this loose network of elite intellectuals often pursued the same actions or took the same positions on particular issues. This was not because they were engaged in a conspiracy but because their background meant that they generally thought about and acted upon global ecological issues through the lens of a common worldview.[12]

Unlike other elites, they were generally more open to the view that global warming and other ecological changes were indeed happening. Thus, for example, the oilman-turned-philanthropist who funded some of the key organizations that would push for action on climate change, Robert O. Anderson, called for a steady mid-course between doom and gloom alarmists and those who resist acknowledging the clear danger to which the human environment is being subjected.[13] Similarly, the industrialists, executives, and scientists gathered in the Club of Rome would portray the environmental issue as nothing less than a global crisis.[14]

And, unlike other elites, they thought that the problem involved far larger threats than simply the diminution of specific firms prerogatives or countries economic competitiveness. They worried about pollution impairing their access to raw materials, intensifying international competition and prompting protectionism, and potentially even igniting inter-capitalist wars, such as World War I and World War II, that could once again fragment the global market and impede capitalist expansion. But more than that, they also worried that environmental degradation would further fuel public dissatisfaction and anger and therefore encourage support for radicalism. Breaking with other elites, they effectively concluded that in order to defuse such a threat, at least some of the grievances and demands of subordinate groups needed to be addressed  something that could be done only by fundamentally reforming global capitalism.

Bound by these common views, these enlightened reactionaries  to use Karl Polanyis label  set out to build a transnational reformist movement or bloc from above, bringing together otherwise isolated elites and drawing in members of other classes to push for their project of changing the system. They did this despite more conservative elites who wanted no change at all, and of course, against the radicals who wanted a very different kind of system change.

Undertaking parallel, sometimes even clashing initiatives, they deployed their vast economic resources and social connections  straddling the worlds of business, politics and science  to build this movements capacity to engage in ideological and political struggle on the world stage.

Radical Language, Reformist Ends

To attract support, they advocated a different way of making sense of, and, thus, of thinking, talking, and acting about global environmental change that absorbed certain elements proposed by radicals while departing from them on the most fundamental questions. Like radicals, they sometimes called upon or interpellated members of subordinate groups as belonging to the poor as opposed to the rich, and sometimes even borrowed from radicals in designating them as part of the periphery as opposed to the core.

But they studiously avoided calling them members of exploited or dominated classes whose interests are in conflict with those of the exploiting or dominant classes; instead, they preferred to emphasise their identity as members of one mankind whose interests are not at odds with the interests of the worlds elites  all inhabitants of Only One Earth , as the title of Wards bestselling 1972 book for the first UN conference on the environment put it.

Echoing radicals, they told people that global ecological problems had less to do with bad personal habits and more to do with the broader political and economic system. As the 1974 Cocoyoc Declaration, a follow-up to the 1972 Stockholm declaration written by Ward, ul-Haq, and others, put it: [M]ankinds predicament is rooted primarily in economic and social structures and behavior within and between countries. But unlike radicals, they stressed that the problem was not the system as such but rather the lack of regulation and inadequate scientific management of the system at the global level. Though they would disagree over what counts as excessive, all saw ecological problems as evils which flow from excessive reliance on the market system, in the words of the Cocoyoc Declaration.

So, like radicals, they explained to people that they could only alleviate their suffering by pushing for what radicals called system change. But against radicals, they told people that changing the system did not entail overthrowing capitalism, but rather enhancing the global regulation of capitalism through what the Club of Rome called radical reform of institutions and political processes at all levels. Countering both conservatives and radicals, they argued for the need neither to keep the system nor to junk it altogether but to improve it by reducing the excessive reliance on the market and by moving toward what the Cocoyoc Declaration calls the management of resources and the environment on a global scale.

The Club of Rome, for example, called for a world resource management plan[15] while the Trilateral Commission advocated international policy coordination for managing the global commons[16] in order to correct market failures, minimize inefficiencies, foster competition, and redistribute wealth in order to reduce poverty and mitigate ecological degradation. These proposals were what later scholars would call international ecological managerialism, or global ecological modernization.[17]

Put differently, they told people that they should aspire not to the creation of a post-capitalist society but to a greener, more regulated, capitalist society. For only by perpetuating reformed green capitalism, pursuing more trade, more growth and sustainable development could mankind solve ecological problems, address social grievances, and realise the vision of the good life.

As the Founex Declaration put it: development  meaning capitalist development  is the cure for the environmental problems facing the poor. Consequently, against radicals who urge people to view the dominant classes as their oppressors and the targets of opposition, they urged the public to focus their anger only on particular members of the dominant group  i.e. bad capitalists or those bad elites (variously, the USA, the advanced economies, big business, the oil corporations, the Republicans, and so on).

At the same time, they called upon the public to join the moral, responsible elites as partners in pushing for and bringing about system change. Much of what succeeding reformists would say and prescribe from the 1970s through to the 2000s essentially built on these recurring discursive or ideological themes.

Building the Reformist Movements Capacity

Reformist intellectuals did not, however, stop at rallying people to their side and exhorting them to fight for their cause. Often in coordination, but also sometimes competing with each other, they mobilized to equip their supporters with cutting-edge knowledge on global environmental problems  and with policy options for managing them  by funding or otherwise supporting hundreds if not thousands of universities and government or inter-governmental research departments and think-tanks.

Thus, for example, the Ford Foundation financed a whole battalion of academic centres, research departments and scientific networks such as the Aspen Institute, the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), the Brookings Institute, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Trilateral Commission study groups, and many other outfits.

The Volkswagen Foundation funded the Club of Romes Limits to Growth study. McNamara transformed the World Bank into the worlds largest centre for research on the relationship between environment and development. As its first Executive Director, Maurice Strong established UNEP as one of the key initiators of large-scale collaborative research on the ozone hole, biodiversity loss, and climate change. Reformists in developing countries formed the South Centre, a think-tank that became a key source of analysis for government officials from the South.[18]

This is not to say that they merely funded research with which they would agree. Indeed, probably as a result of their own lack of knowledge, uncertainties, or internal tensions, they chose, or at least strove, to diversify their portfolios by supporting different researchers approaching the problem from dissimilar perspectives, including those they would subsequently disagree with.

To improve their ability to advocate for the reforms they wanted, they also undertook various initiatives to identify and groom scores of highly educated middle-class professionals  lawyers, economists and scientists  who were supportive of their reformist vision, and devoted considerable resources and energy toward promoting the professionalization of their activism.

Ford, Rockefeller, Anderson and others, for example, bankrolled the formation of the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), Natural Resources Defense Council (NDRC), and possibly thousands of other moderate or non-radical groups across the world.[19]

These capacity-building efforts extended to a wide range of organizations, in part because of a deliberate strategy of taking risks and finding innovative people. Ford, even as it supported more moderate or even more conservative reformists, also funded public interest organizations that were more critical of big business and more inclined to raise questions of social justice.

Through such investments in generating knowledge and building movements, they assembled a loose, decentralized, transnational network of highly-trained reformists, occupying strategic positions in various governments, international organizations and civil society groups worldwide, which then pushed the worlds governments to adopt a raft of far-reaching environmental measures to address global environmental problems at the local and global levels.

Thus, for example, equipped with research confirming global warming and with studies assessing possible policy options, this global network of reformists mobilized to raise the alarm and push for unprecedented global regulatory interventions to address climate change. It was UNEP, for example, that encouraged scientists to speak up and to push for an internationally coordinated response.

Scientists and activists associated with EDF and other reformist groups organized a flurry of international conferences on the issue and pressed the worlds governments to commence negotiations on an agreement. And it was EDF and others that spearheaded the formation of the Climate Action Network (CAN), which would go on to be become the worlds largest network of NGOs calling for government action on climate change.[20]

Simply put, if it had not been for the independent but converging initiatives of these reformists  and the elites that supported them  the UN negotiations on climate change might never have happened. Although they did not necessarily agree on all the details, they did converge in pushing for a strong, legally-binding international climate agreement. They united behind demands for unprecedented internationally coordinated interventions in the global economy that could oblige certain countries and industries to drastically reduce their emissions and for establishing a kind of de facto global welfare scheme that could compel some countries to transfer finance and technology to others.

A Global Battle for Hearts and Souls

Thanks to all these investments in political and ideological mobilization, the reformist movement was able to go on the offensive from the 1970s onward. Effectively backed by the threat of the more radical alternatives posed by the movements to their left, it succeeded in overcoming conservative resistance and incrementally put in place a range of ambitious and far-reaching environmental regulatory measures in many countries, such as the National Environmental Policy Act and the Clean Water Act approved in the USA in the 1970s.

At the international level, this reformist bloc secured agreements tackling global environmental problems such as the ozone hole, biodiversity loss, desertification, and climate change. These measures, as limited as they may have been, likely prevented even worse outcomes had reformists not pushed for them. In so doing, reformist elites did more than just deliver limited relief and material concessions to members of the dominated classes; they also countered radicals attempts to reshape their subjectivities and succeeded in dispelling their attempts to channel peoples anger and anxiety toward fighting for radical system change.

This is because, by appearing to change the system and channelling limited benefits or advantages to subordinate groups, they undermined radicals capacity to convince people to diagnose their suffering as the inevitable result of capitalism and to see themselves as members of antagonistic classes whose interests are always incompatible with the dominant classes.

And, as an increasing number of people came to see themselves as members of harmonious communities, to believe that their suffering is caused only or primarily by the lack of regulation of capitalism, to conclude that they could improve their conditions without going so far as having to overthrow capitalism, and to view at least some elites as partners or leaders to support, so ever fewer would therefore be motivated to defy the powerful and to cast their lot with movements fighting for radical system change.

For this and other reasons, radicals worldwide have not only found it harder to gain new adherents from the 1970s on, but even once committed fighters would either lay down their arms or defect altogether.[21] Once on the upsurge, radical anti-capitalist movements would consequently be on the defensive, continuing to organize but increasingly pushed to the margins.

In the USA, Europe, and probably in other countries where the radical environmentalist message had only a few years before it could gain traction, radical critique would fizzle out and anti-capitalist environmentalism would suffer a precipitous decline.[22]

Conclusion

Thus, without always deploying the violence they constantly keep in the background, the more forward-looking of the worlds elites have at the very least been able to dissuade people from struggling to replace capitalism with a different, radically democratic system; at most, they have been able to persuade or motivate them to actively fight to improve an inherently undemocratic system in order to prevent it from being overthrown.

By organizing and mobilizing a transnational movement from above to wage a global passive revolution in favour of regulating the market, they have been able to defuse the class antagonisms that the radical intellectuals had sought to kindle. By so doing, they have not only prevented or restrained people from expressing or venting their anger, but have been able to harness that anger toward tinkering with the system in order to keep it the same.

as indicated by the willingness of a significant number of people to engage in mass civil disobedience action on the final day of the latest UN climate summit in Paris and the growing radicalization of many climate activists worldwide, they [reformist elites] still have not succeeded in completely defeating or eliminating this challenge altogether.

Had these reformist elites not mounted this global passive revolution, it is unlikely that the worlds governments would have attempted to establish global-level regulation to address global ecological problems. And had the worlds governments not acted, it is unlikely that they would have staved off a global counter-hegemonic challenge to capitalism.

And yet, it is also important to stress that, as indicated by the willingness of a significant number of people to engage in mass civil disobedience action on the final day of the latest UN climate summit in Paris and the growing radicalization of many climate activists worldwide, they still have not succeeded in completely defeating or eliminating this challenge altogether.

For reasons that have to do in part with leading reformists decision to accommodate conservative elites demands to weaken their proposed reforms, our movement has not only survived the reformist offensive but in recent years, we have even become resurgent again. But whether we will do more than survive ultimately depends on whether we can counter these more forward-looking elites sophisticated and well-organized attempts to change the hearts and souls of those we seek to draw to our side.

This does not necessarily mean always opposing the reforms and concessions that the more radical among the reformists are promoting, or refusing to work with them. But it does mean constantly subverting their attempts to channel peoples anger to only their chosen enemies and to confine them to just aspiring for a greener, more ecologically-conscious dictatorship of the bourgeoisie.

Put differently, it means pushing people to go beyond the horizon that the reformists seek to restrict them to, and to help empower them to dream of a democratic, because socialist, alternative. The alternative is that we just remain stuck in place without being able to march forward. 
Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.

This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media  main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.




'It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown' won't be on TV this year: How to see it
Jacob Kyrai Reed, 21, was arraigned Thursday in Linn County Circuit Court for second-degree online sexual corruption of a child, second-degree encouraging child sexual abuse, and four counts of luring a minor. The Class C Felony charges date back to Nov. 6 through 14, 2014, and February 26, 2015, when Reed is alleged to have communicated with and shown sexually explicit material to a minor child. Each charge carries a possible sentence of 5 years in prison.
June 14, 1921  Jan. 16, 2016

On Jan. 16, 2016, Edward Stanley Harriman passed away peacefully after a long illness.

Ed was born on June 14, 1921, in Portland to Loren Stanley Harriman and Helen Varena Schmid, both previously of Mennewaukan, North Dakota. His early years were typical of the life of the times battling adolescence and the Great Depression.

Ed joined the war effort in 1942 by enlisting in the U.S. Army in September of that year. He was stationed stateside in Kansas when he met his wife-to-be, Anita Bathurst. The two were married in a small ceremony on Jan. 6, 1945, just days before Ed shipped out to the South Pacific.

After the war ended, Ed was honorably discharged on Dec. 23, 1945. Ed and Anita moved to the Linn County area. They purchased some forestland above Sodaville and Ed and wife Anita worked to log it. With the proceeds, they moved into Lebanon and together built an apartment complex that continues to operate to this day.

In the late 50s, Ed went to work for the Western Veneer Plywood mill. Shortly thereafter, the couple a built a home on Seventh street where Anita could operate the Blue Bird Kindergarten until kindergarten was moved to the public schools. Ed retired from the plywood mill in the early 70s and returned to the forest. The couple resumed logging for the next 10 years supplying logs to the local mills and firewood to local residents.

While still logging, Ed also began making wooden toys that were then painted by Anita. The toys were donated to local charities at Christmas time. Over a span of four decades, Ed was often recognized as the "Lebanon Santa," having built over 10,000 toys for the less fortunate.

Age and failing health forced Ed to stop building toys around 2010. He had lived quietly ever since in a small house next to his beloved toyshop on Ash Street.

Ed is survived by his two daughters, Allison Boucher and Beth Harriman; son Ward Harriman; five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Suburban schools grow slightly, or lose less than state average

Numbers from the state Department of Public Instruction show that in suburban Milwaukee, about 27 school districts grew last year, or lost fewer students than average.
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LEBANON  The public is invited to vote on potential features to be included in Phase II of the Lebanon Skate Park Project.

Board member Sara McEldowney said 3D images of prospective skateboarding features will be placed on the skate parks website (http://lebanonskatepark.org) in January, February and March. Skaters and others in the community are asked to offer input.

Adrianne Shreves has donated the majority of the work to develop these 3D images, she said. Weve put the first batch of seven images on our website and our Facebook page. We will upload nine more images in both February and March.

Phase II will extend the park to the south and east, adding another 6,000 square feet of intermediate to higher level features.

The plan has always been to fully utilize the 1 acre of property given to us by the city, McEldowney said. Our fundraising goal to complete Phase II is only $60,000.

The goal is to add three new features.

Dreamland, which has designed several of the better skateparks in Oregon, will help us with Phase II, McEldowney said.

Dreamland was sought out, she said, due to the amazing skateparks they have created and their willingness to use donated materials and labor from our community to make Phase II happen. We will again need the help of many volunteers and donations from throughout the community.

She noted that young people volunteered more than 600 hours in 2014 and 900 in 2015.

The skate park board of directors hope to started Phase II construction this coming summer.

In addition to labor, we need donations of labor, concrete and lumber, McEldowney said.

The new park, which opened officially in July, has been a hit, she said.

On a nice day, there will be 15 to 20 kids skating there, she said. Its a well-used park and the kids are doing a really good job of keeping it clean and respecting the park.

McEldowney said it is exciting to have a place for kids to skate in Lebanon. Before, they were skating all over town and really didnt have a place to go. Now, they have a safe place and they are using it, enjoying it.

McEldowney said skate park users are also being encouraged to design a feature.

We have invited the skaters to submit a drawing of 3D image of a feature they would like installed at the park, McEldowney said. Other kids will vote on the images and the one that wins will be built and named after the person who submitted it.

Images may be submitted to: volunteer@lebanonskatepark.org.

Several new programs are planned at the skate park this summer.

The Lebanon Skate Park board is looking forward to providing the first skate camp this summer.

We are joining up with the Boys & Girls Club to host three skate competitions the second Saturday of each month in the summer and to keep moving forward with activities for our young people. McEldowney said. Anyone interesting in sponsoring one or both of theses programs would be greatly appreciated."

The Lebanon skate park was years in the making.

Drew Briese is a driving force behind the project and has said he was 16 when the first skate park concept meeting was held in Lebanon. That was more than 20 years ago.

The project took on a head of steam two years ago, and thanks to donations from the community and many volunteer labor hours, including from Briese Custom Concrete crew members, Phase I was completed last summer.
Jupiter's Great Red Spot as Seen by Voyager

NASA/JPL-Caltech

Close-up of Jupiter's Great Red Spot as seen by a Voyager spacecraft.

Great White Spot on Saturn

Carolyn Porco and CICLOPS; NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI

An image of Saturn taken in December 2010 by the Cassini spacecraft shows a storm with a latitudinal and longitudinal extent of 10,000 km and 17,000 km, respectively. The latitudinal extent of the storms head is approximately the distance from London to Cape Town. A "tail" emerging from its southern edge extends further eastward.

Hurricane Irene Grows Ominous

NASA via Ron Garan/@Astro_Ron

Astronaut Ron Garan tweeted this picture of Hurricane Irene from the International Space Station on August 24, 2011: "Ominous view #FromSpace of Hurricane #Irene east of the Bahamas @ 3:14pm EST today. East FL coast is calm b4 storm."

Neptune's Great Dark Spot

NASA/JPL-Caltech

Neptune's Great Dark Spot, accompanied by white high-altitude clouds, as seen by a Voyager spacecraft.

Saturn's Massive Northern Hurricane

NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI

The spinning vortex of Saturn's north polar storm resembles a deep red rose surrounded by green foliage in this false-color image from NASA's Cassini spacecraft. The storm's eye is about 1,250 miles (2,000 kilometers) across with cloud speeds as fast as 330 mph (530 kph).

Saturn's North Pole

NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI

The north pole of Saturn, in the fresh light of spring, is revealed in this color image from NASA's Cassini spacecraft.

Saturn's North Pole in Psychedelic Color

NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI

This spectacular false-color image from NASA's Cassini mission highlights the storms at Saturn's north pole.

Bizarre Hexagon Spotted on Saturn

NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

A bizarre six-sided feature encircling the north pole of Saturn near 78 degrees north latitude has been spied by the visual and infrared mapping spectrometer on NASA's Cassini spacecraft.

The Perfect Storm

NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI

Wednesday, July 13, 2011: A huge storm on Saturn has developed from a small spot that appeared 12 weeks earlier in Saturn's northern mid-latitudes. This storm, still active, is the largest and most intense observed on Saturn by NASAs Voyager or Cassini spacecraft. As seen in these and other Cassini images, the storm encircles the planet  whose circumference at these latitudes is 186,000 miles (300,000 kilometers). From north to south, it covers a distance of about 9,000 miles (15,000 kilometers), which is one-third of the way around the Earth. It encompasses an area of 1.5 billion square miles (4 billion square kilometers), or eight times the surface area of Earth. The frames at top are enlargements from the middle mosaic consisting of 84 separate images.



Tom Chao

Solar Prominence Sun 'Twister' - Solar Dynamics Observatory

NASA/SDO/GSFC

A stalk-like prominence rose up above the sun, then split into roughly four strands that twisted themselves into a knot and dispersed over a two-hour period (July 12, 2011). NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory took a video of the sun twister.

Saturn's Weird Hexagon Hotspot

NASA/JPL/GSFC/Oxford University

Cassini's composite infrared spectrometer discovered an unexpected "hot spot" at Saturn's north pole. Despite being in winter darkness for more than a decade, the hot, cyclonic vortex at upon Saturn's northernmost reaches appears very similar to that found on Saturn's much sunnier south pole, and it surprised scientists with its appearance. This image was taken Jan. 3, 2008.
This artist's impression shows the distant dwarf planet Eris in the distance with its moon Dysmonia in the foreground. Both call the Kuiper Belt "home." New observations have shown that Eris is smaller than previously thought and almost exactly the same size as Pluto. Eris is extremely re

Beyond the gas giant Neptune lies a region of space filled with icy bodies. Known as the Kuiper Belt, this chilly expanse holds trillions of objects  remnants of the early solar system.

In 1943, astronomer Kenneth Edgeworth suggested comets and larger bodies might exist beyond Neptune. And in 1951, astronomer Gerard Kuiper predicted the existence of a belt of icy objects at the far edge of the solar system. Today, the rings predicted by the pair are known as the Kuiper Belt or the Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt.

Despite its massive size, the Kuiper Belt wasn't discovered until 1992 by astronomers Dave Jewitt and Jane Luu. According to NASA , the pair had been "doggedly scanning the heavens in search of dim objects beyond Neptune" since 1987. They dubbed the first object they spotted "Smiley" but it was later cataloged as "1992 QB1."

Since then, astronomers have discovered several intriguing Kuiper Belt objects and potential planets within the region. NASA's New Horizons mission continues to uncover previously hidden planets and objects, helping scientists learn more about this unique solar system relic.

Kuiper Belt formation

When the solar system formed , much of the gas, dust and rocks pulled together to form the sun and planets. The planets then swept most of the remaining debris into the sun or out of the solar system. But objects at the edge of the solar system were far enough away to avoid the gravitational tugs of the much larger planets like Jupiter , and so managed to stay in their place as they slowly orbited the sun. The Kuiper Belt and its compatriot, the more distant and spherical Oort Cloud , contain the leftover remnants from the beginning of the solar system and can provide valuable insights into its birth.

According to the Nice model  one of the proposed models of solar system formation the Kuiper Belt may have formed closer to the sun, near where Neptune now orbits. In this model, the planets engaged in an elaborate dance, with Neptune and Uranus changing places and moving outward, away from the sun. As the planets moved farther away from the sun, their gravity may have carried many of the Kuiper Belt objects (opens in new tab) with them, shepherding the tiny objects ahead as the ice giants migrated. As a result, many of the Kuiper Belt objects were moved from the region they were created into the colder part of the solar system.

The most crowded section of the Kuiper Belt is between 42 and 48 times Earth's distance from the sun. The orbit of objects in this region remain stable for the most part, although some objects occasionally have their course changed slightly when they drift too close to Neptune.

Scientists estimate that thousands of bodies more than 100 km (62 miles) in diameter travel around the sun within this belt, along with trillions of smaller objects, many of which are short-period comets . The region also contains several dwarf planets  round worlds too large to be considered asteroids but too small to qualify as a planet .

The Kuiper Belt is shown beyond the orbit of Neptune. One of its inhabitants is Eris, on a highly tilted and elipical orbit. (Image credit: NASA)

Kuiper Belt objects

Pluto was the first true Kuiper Belt object (KBO) to be seen, although scientists at the time didn't recognize it as such until other KBOs were discovered. Once Jewitt and Luu discovered the Kuiper Belt, astronomers soon saw that the region beyond Neptune was full of icy rocks and tiny worlds.

Sedna , a KBO that's about three-fourths the size of Pluto, was discovered in 2004. It is so far out from the sun it takes about 10,500 years to make a single orbit. Sedna is about 1,100 miles (1,770 km) wide and circles the sun in an eccentric orbit that ranges between 8 billion miles (12.9 billion km) and 84 billion miles (135 billion km).

"The sun appears so small from that distance that you could completely block it out with the head of a pin," Mike Brown, an astronomer at the California Institute of Technology who discovered this and several other Kuiper Belt objects, said in a statement .

This artist's impression shows the distant dwarf planet Eris. New observations have shown that Eris is smaller than previously thought and almost exactly the same size as Pluto. Eris is extremely reflective and its surface is probably covered in frost formed from the frozen remains of its atmosphere. The distant Sun appears to the upper right and both Eris and its moon Dysnomia (center) appear as crescents. (Image credit: ESO/L. Calcada)

In July 2005, astronomers discovered Eris, a KBO that's slightly smaller than Pluto. Eris orbits the sun approximately once every 580 years, traveling almost 100 times farther from the sun than Earth does. Its discovery revealed to some astronomers the problem of categorizing Pluto as a full-scale planet. According to the International Astronomical Union (IAU)s 2006 definition, a planet must be large enough to clear its neighborhood of debris. Pluto and Eris, surrounded by the Kuiper Belt, had clearly failed to do so. As a result, in 2006, Pluto, Eris, and the largest asteroid, Ceres , were reclassified by the IAU as dwarf planets. Two more dwarf planets, Haumea and Makemake , were discovered in the Kuiper Belt in 2008.

Astronomers are now reconsidering Haumea's status as a dwarf planet. In 2017, when the object passed between Earth and a bright star, scientists realized it is more elongated than round. Roundness is one of the criteria of a dwarf planet, according to the IAUs definition . Haumea's elongated shape could be a result of it's rapid spin; a day on the object only lasts about four hours.

"I don't know if this will change the definition [of a dwarf planet]," Santos Sanz, an astronomer at the Instituto de Astrofisica de Andalucia in Granada, Spain, told Space.com . "I think probably yes, but probably it will take time."

Planet Nine

Planet Nine is a hypothetical world thought to orbit the sun at a distance that is about 600 times farther from the sun than Earth's orbit, and about 20 times farther out than the orbit of Neptune. (The orbit of Neptune is 2.7 billion miles from the sun at its closest point.)

Scientists have not actually seen Planet Nine . Its existence was inferred by gravitational effects observed on other objects in the Kuiper Belt. Scientists Mike Brown and Konstantin Batygin at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena described the evidence for Planet Nine in a study published in the Astronomical Journal in 2016.

If there is another world out there, astronomers Scott Sheppard, of the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, D.C., and Chadwick Trujillo, of Northern Arizona University, are likely to find it soon. The pair have spent the last six years working on the deepest survey of faint objects at the edge of the solar system, after proposing the existence of Planet X, a small dwarf planet beyond Pluto, in 2014 (opens in new tab).

So far, Sheppard and Trujillo have found 62 distant objects, which make up about 80 percent of all of those at the edge of the system. Last year, the two discovered dwarf planet 2015 TG387 , nicknamed "the Goblin," and the most distant KBO ever reported, 2018 VG18 , nicknamed "FarOut." In February 2019, Sheppard unofficially announced the discovery of an even more distant object, informally known as "FarFarOut."

"These distant objects are like breadcrumbs leading us to Planet X," Sheppard said in a statement . "The more of them we can find, the better we can understand the outer solar system and the possible planet that we think is shaping their orbits  a discovery that would redefine our knowledge of the solar system's evolution."

A visit from New Horizons

Because of their small size and distant location, Kuiper Belt objects are a challenge to spot from Earth. Infrared measurements from NASA's space-based Spitzer telescope have helped to nail down sizes for the largest objects.

In order to catch a better glimpse of these remote leftovers from the birth of the solar system, NASA launched the New Horizons mission . The spacecraft reached Pluto in 2015 and continued on with an aim to examine multiple KBOs. On Jan. 1, 2019 New Horizons flew by the Kuiper Belt object called 2014 MU69.

The first images taken of MU69 suggested a snowman-like configuration, with two round balls stuck together. These images seemed to confirm the idea of pebble accretion  a theory of planetary formation that suggests small rocky and icy bodies in the solar system are slowly pulled together by gravity.

However, images released a month after the flyby suggested that the pair were flatter than originally thought, more like two hamburger patties than snowballs. Their formation remains a mystery.

"The new images are creating scientific puzzles about how such an object could even be formed," Alan Stern, the New Horizons principal investigator, said in a statement . "We've never seen something like this orbiting the sun."

MU69 may not be the last object New Horizons visits. The team has already said that the spacecraft has enough fuel to fly by another KBO . NASA would need to approve an extended mission but visiting another object would help scientists gain a broader understanding of the Kuiper Belt.

"We've got fuel, and the spacecraft's in great health," Stern said in a webcast in December 2018. "So, I think there's a bright future ahead."

Additional resources:
Examples of organisms and trajectories observed in sackhole brines of Malene Bay, Greenland, using digital holographic microscopy. (A) Appearance of a nearly full-screen image containing objects suggestive of bacteria (arrows). (B) Zoomed-in appearance of a single bacterial cell. (C) Amplitude image of non-motile diatom. Note the clear resolution of cell walls and nuclei. (D) More slowly swimming, typical photosynthetic algal cell. (E) Zig-zag motility of a bacterium, observed as a projection through 60 seconds of time.

The first evidence of alien life may be recorded as a hologram.

Scientists have detected microbes in Greenland sea ice using a specially built digital holographic microscope, suggesting that the instrument could have similar success on icy moons in the outer solar system, if any of them harbor life.

Indeed, the holographic microscope could theoretically make a contribution to NASA's mission to the Jupiter moon Europa, which the agency plans to launch by the mid-2020s, the instrument's developers say. [13 Ways to Hunt Intelligent Alien Life]

"This was designed from the beginning to have a path to flight," said Chris Lindensmith of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, who presented the team's latest results last month at the annual fall meeting of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) in San Francisco. "We're ready to jump up and say, 'Pick us! Pick us!'"

Photographing life

Digital holographic microscopy (DHM) uses the interference of light (which is produced by an internal laser) to record information about an object as a hologram. A computer then uses this information to construct a viewable image of the object.

Digging the digital holographic microscopy unit into the sea ice during a field trial near Nuuk, Greenland. (Image credit: Shelly Carpenter, University of Washington)

DHM has several advantages over ordinary imaging microscopy when it comes to possible use on a space mission, Lindensmith said. For example, it's easy to make DHM instruments autonomous; there is no need for knob-twiddling to bring a target object into sharp view.

"The thing that makes it magic is, we don't have to do any focusing," Lindensmith told Space.com at AGU. "We can reconstruct any image in the object field."

DHM images can be recorded in the form of videos, which allow researchers to detect microbe motility  one of the least ambiguous signs of life.

The team built a field-ready DHM system thats about the size of an airplane carry-on bag, then put it to the test last March in three different sea-ice sites near Greenland's capital city, Nuuk, which lies on the giant island's southwestern coast.

The results were extremely promising, Lindensmith said. The instrument was able to resolve objects smaller than 1 micron (or 1 millionth of a meter), and it detected moving eukaryotes  organisms whose cells contain a nucleus and other membrane-bound organelles  in every single one of the more than 100 sea-ice samples it examined.

"Big eukaryotes  those things just scream out," he said.

The story was a bit different for the prokaryotes  organisms such as bacteria that have no nuclei or other membrane-enclosed internal structures. Most of them were not moving upon initial observation, and when motionless they were tough to tell apart from random debris.

However, the researchers were able to induce prokaryotic movement by adding the amino acid serine to the samples.

Similar goosing strategies would likely be employed on a space mission to get microbes to move, Lindensmith said. For example, samples could be heated slightly, or hit with light and/or a magnetic field. It would even be possible to offer up food to alien microbes without adding sugars or other contaminants from Earth, he added  simply kill a small portion of the native prokaryotes, and let the others swim over and feast on their brethren. [6 Most Likely Places for Alien Life in Solar System]

Going to Europa?

The DHM unit's performance in the Greenland ice could make it an intriguing contender for future life-detection missions to moons such as Europa and the Saturn satellite Enceladus, both of which possess global oceans beneath their icy shells.

Close-up of the digital holographic microscopy unit during field trials in the sea ice near Nuuk, Greenland. (Image credit: Shelly Carpenter, University of Washington)

NASA is already developing a Europa mission, a $2 billion project that's scheduled to launch in the early to mid-2020s. The as-yet-unnmaned spacecraft will perform 45 flybys of Europa from Jupiter orbit over the course of 2.5 years or so, assessing the moon's habitability with nine different science instruments.

The Europa spacecraft's payloads are not set in stone yet; NASA is considering adding a lander to the mission, possibly to hunt for signs of life on or near the moon's surface. If the agency does decide to go this route, a DHM unit would make a lot of sense, Lindensmith said; the microscope could be integrated into an instrument suite that also contains spectrometers, which would perform chemical analyses of target samples to complement the imaging work.

There shouldn't be any trouble getting a DHM instrument ready to go in time for the Europa mission's launch, he added. The unit that got a workout in Greenland last year is already nearly in "space mode," and the team should have a design for a bona fide flight version laid out by the end of February, Lindensmith said.

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope spotted signs of a plume of water vapor emanating from Europa's south polar region in late 2012 (though future efforts to confirm the plume have not been successful), and geysers near Enceladus' south pole continuously blast out large amounts of water ice, organic compounds and other material.

A DHM instrument could theoretically search for signs of life in Europa or Enceladus plume material collected during flybys, Lindensmith said, but such work would pose challenges that a lander-based instrument wouldn't face. For example, plume samples would be very small, so the odds of seeing something interesting would be lower. Further, plume material would be snagged by a spacecraft at high velocity, possibly killing and/or destroying any cells that were picked up.

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.
Of the 1.83 million refugees that the EU border protection agency Frontex estimates came to Europe in 2015, some 227,000 came from Afghanistan. The number of North Africans who have entered is far lower, but in recent weeks, German authorities have observed a significant uptick in the number of migrants from countries in the Maghreb region like Algeria and Morocco.

Most have no chance of obtaining asylum status. By shifting the Schengen external border to Slovenia, refugees could be prevented from continuing their journey to Germany. The unspoken hope in Berlin is that Slovenia might make less of a fuss about the not uncontroversial legal aspects of the move than would likely be the case in Germany.

Daniel Thym, a European law professor at the University of Konstanz in Germany, says the question of whether officials at the Slovenian border can simply turn asylum-seekers away is an open one. He describes it as a "legal gray area" that surely isn't in the spirit of the original vision of the EU's Dublin Regulation on refugees. But, he added, it might be possible to create legal constructs that would make it permissible.

Divergent Views

At first glance, the plan looks like a solid one, but it also contains a number of shortcomings, as officials in Berlin well know. Slovenia would likely have trouble controlling so many refugees on its own. Thus far, Germany has sent around 10 federal police officers to Slovenia to help consult their colleagues there, but they do not have any actual border patrol responsibilities themselves. So far, there haven't been any additional requests for assistance, either.

It's also unclear whether the government in Ljubljana will even be willing to help. The question of what shape this border cooperation could take is also an open one. Officials in the German Interior Ministry say that Austria, which first approached the German government with the idea a few weeks ago, so far hasn't made any concrete proposal.

The reason may be that views in Berlin and Vienna over how the borders are to be controlled have diverged so strongly. The German government and the European Commission don't want to implement measures that could destabilize Greece or the countries bordering Slovenia. Countries like Serbia "must not become a parking lot or 'no man's land' for stranded refugees," EU Expansion Minister Johannes Hahn said last fall. "It's a matter of turning the wave around without chaos breaking out in the Balkans," one source in the European Commission said.

Some members of the Austrian government view things differently. On Wednesday, Vienna announced its intention to cap the number of asylum-seekers the country takes in. Shortly after the announcement, Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz said he believed a resulting traffic jam of refugees would create "pressure" on Europe to find a common solution for the refugee problem. "If Greece can't better secure its external borders, there's unfortunately a risk that the country may soon have to temporarily leave the Schengen area," says Manfred Weber, the German head of the European People's Party group (the conservative Christian Democrats) in the European Parliament.

The German government wants to proceed more cautiously. "It cannot be in our interest for the situation in the West Balkans and Greece to further deteriorate," says Michael Roth, a senior official with Germany's Foreign Ministry.

Tensions Between Berlin and Vienna

Without a coordinated effort between Berlin and Vienna, it's highly unlikely that this Plan B could be successful. But Austria's introduction of an upper ceiling has done little to improve those prospects. Sources close to Merkel describe the plans as "grotesque." Although the Austrians have stated that they informed Berlin about the details of their refugee cap, no one in Berlin knows what will happen with the refugees who go beyond that limit. Inside the Austrian Foreign Ministry, officials aren't ruling out the possibility that they will simply be waved on to neighboring Germany. Slovenia is already doing that. The government announced on Thursday that in the future it would only allow refugees into the country that planned to submit their applications for asylum in Germany or Austria.

Nevertheless, there is unity between the countries on the issue of being able to deport asylum-seekers from Maghreb countries whose applications have been rejected. To that end, Germany wants to help these countries' embassies in Berlin in identifying the true origins of the refugees in question. Given that they often aren't carrying any legal ID papers, Germany would like to provide them with so-called EU Laissez Passer documents, thus making it easier to repatriate them to their countries of origin. "The current multi-phase return system is too cumbersome," German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, of the center-left Social Democratic Party, wrote in a joint letter with Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere, of the Christian Democrats, addressed to their colleagues in North Africa. The letter also indicates countries will be rewarded if they cooperate.

And if none of that helps? At the end of the day, it may be the case that Germany has to reject massive numbers of asylum-seekers at its borders. During her visit to CSU representatives of the Bavarian state legislature on Wednesday, Merkel said that step could only be taken as a last resort.

'A Fundamentally New Situation'

Experts are also divided on the question of whether it is even legal for German police to implement such an order. In an internal analysis, officials at the Interior and Justice ministries came to the initial conclusion that, under the Dublin III Regulation, each EU member state has the right to send asylum-seekers trying to enter its borders to a safe third country. But it is unclear whether, in formal terms, another EU member state could also be considered a "safe third country." The internal analysis concludes there would be "inherent legal risks" in doing so. But it appears to be tenable.

Furthermore, the paper states, a "fundamentally new situation" has arisen as a result of the "current systemic failure of the European (external) border protection and asylum system" with the "transmission of thousands of people seeking protection to the German border," which has in turn necessitated measures to ensure public safety. Ultimately, however, any decision will have to be a political one.

"You can attempt to justify such rejection of refugees at an internal EU border," says law professor Thym. However, he argues it is less certain that it would hold up in court. Either way, Thym concludes, Germany "is currently in a political situation in which the law is given only secondary consideration."
AMC announced today that David Schwimmer ("American Crime Story," "Band of Brothers," "Friends") and Jim Sturgess (21, Across the Universe, Cloud Atlas) will star in the network's upcoming original series FEED THE BEAST. A co-production between AMC Studios and Lionsgate, based on the Danish series "Bankerot," the series will be adapted by writer/showrunner Clyde Phillips ("Dexter," "Nurse Jackie"), who also serves as executive producer. "Feed the Beast" is a drama about two best friends, Tommy Moran (Schwimmer), and Dion Patras (Sturgess) who take one last shot at their dream of opening a restaurant. Production will begin in New York City in February 2016 and the 10 one-hour episodes are set to premiere in May 2016."Feed the Beast" tells the story of Tommy (Schwimmer) and Dion (Sturgess) who are like brothers. With all the love - and all the COMPLICATIONS - that comes with it. Dion can't stay out of trouble. Tommy can't move past it. For two friends on the brink of losing everything, a dusty pipe dream of opening up an upscale restaurant in their hometown of the Bronx is all they have left to turn their lives around. They push each other to follow through on their dreams, welcome love into their lives, and overcome their demons. They also betray, backstab, manipulate and coerce each other into the most dangerous situations imaginable. For Tommy, a successful haute Hellenic restaurant is his means to give his son a life he never had. For Dion, this venture is a perfect opportunity to secretly repay his debt to the Mob. Together, they take on the insanity of the New York restaurant world, and navigate its underbelly of petty criminals, corrupt officials and violent mobsters. With the vig running, there's more than food, wine and fresh starts on the line. One wrong move and people get chopped.Additional casting for the series includes Michael Gladis ("Mad Men," "House of Lies"), who will play Patrick Woichik, aka The Tooth Fairy, the soft spoken, brutally intimidating local mobster with a penchant for pulling teeth; Lorenza Izzo (The Green Inferno, Sex Ed), who will play Pilar Herrera, a woman who meets Tommy in a grief group, and is desperately searching for true love; Christine Adams (Batman Begins, "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D."), who will star as Tommy's late wife Rie Moran, John Doman ("The Wire," "The Affair"), who will play Tommy's father Aidan Moran, a shrewd and ruthless businessman and unapologetic racist; and Elijah Jacob ("Spot On") who will play Tommy's ten year old son TJ Moran."Under Clyde's creative leadership, "Feed the Beast" is a layered character piece and a highly entertaining story," said Joel Stillerman, president of original programming and development for AMC and SundanceTV. 'To have David Schwimmer and Jim Sturgess along with the rest of our wonderful cast bringing this story to life is incredibly exciting, and we can't wait to get started in a few weeks.""'Feed The Beast' is the kind of provocative, premium quality series that has become a Lionsgate trademark," said Lionsgate Television Group Chairman Kevin Beggs. 'We're delighted to expand our relationship with the iconic Clyde Phillips, excited to work with this bold ensemble cast led by the incomparable David Schwimmer and including the incredibly talented Jim Sturgess, and thrilled to bring this fast-paced drama about food, friends and family to life with our longtime partners at AMC.""David and Jim are each incredibly talented actors whose careers span theater, film and television. But more importantly, they both possess an inherent honesty and vulnerability in their craft which are essential in the flawed characters of Tommy and Dion," said Clyde Phillips, executive producer and showrunner. "Their grasp of the story, and their respective characters' journeys, is something I'm very eager to dive into with them.""Feed the Beast" is produced by AMC Studios and Lionsgate in association with Clyde Phillips Productions. Executive producers are Phillips, Henrik Ruben Genz ("Bankerot," "Borgen"), Malene Blenkov ("Bankerot") and Piv Bernth ("The Killing," "Forbrydelsen" and "Bron/Broen").
NBC SETS MIDSEASON PREMIERE DATES FOR CROWDED, HEARTBEAT, GAME OF SILENCE AND RETURN OF THE CARMICHAEL SHOWThe Voice Will Be Deployed as Lead-Ins to Previews of Several New SeriesUNIVERSAL CITY, Calif.  Jan. 22, 2016  Building on its extraordinary momentum this season where it's running 17% ahead of any other broadcast network in the 18-49 demo, NBC has announced the premiere dates of three new midseason scripted series, plus the anticipated return of its summer hit comedy, "The Carmichael Show."The launch strategy includes previews in proximity to "The Voice" for "The Carmichael Show," "Crowded," Heartbeat" and "Little Big Shots," the previously announced reality series about extraordinary kids hosted by Steve Harvey, who executive produces with Ellen DeGeneres.Inspired by THE LIFE of comedian Jerrod Carmichael, the series follows Jerrod and his opinionated North Carolina family as they navigate topics that all families face today in America. Nothing is too uncomfortable to explore, including police protests, guns and religion. Jerrod often finds himself debating such issues with his old-school father, Joe (David Alan Grier), his devoutly religious mother, Cynthia (Loretta Devine), his progressive live-in girlfriend, Maxine (Amber Stevens West), his recently separated brother, Bobby (Rel Howery), and Bobby's estranged and outspoken wife, Nekeisha (Tiffany Haddish). And somewhere in the middle of all of their disagreeing is the heart of this family.The first season of "The Carmichael Show" received strong reviews, including the Los Angeles Times ("Devine and Grier are unfailingly funny") and New York Newsday ("one smartly crafted comedy").Jerrod Carmichael, Nick Stoller, Ravi Nandan and Danielle Sanchez-Witzel serve as executive producers. "The Carmichael Show" is co-produced by Twentieth Century FOX Television and Universal Television.The March 8 preview episode of "The Carmichael Show" at 10:30 p.m. will immediately follow a half-hour preview of "Little Big Shots," which will be preceded by a two-hour episode of "The Voice."From the executive producers of "Hot in Cleveland" and "Grimm" comes this very timely comedy that proves life is crazy with a full house, especially the second time around.After 20 years of parenting, empty nesters Mike (Patrick Warburton, "Seinfeld") and Martina (Carrie Preston, "True Blood") are finally reclaiming their wild side. But when both of their two grown daughters (Miranda Cosgrove, "iCarly," and Mia Serafino, "Shameless") unexpectedly move back in and Mike's parents (Stacy Keach, "NCIS: New Orleans," and Carlease Burke, "Switched at Birth") scratch their plans to spend their golden years in Florida, their roost is full again.Suzanne Martin serves as writer and executive producer. Sean Hayes, Todd Milliner and James Burrows also executive produce. "Crowded" is produced by Universal Television and Hazy Mills Productions.The two preview episodes of "Crowded" at 10 p.m. March 15 will be coming out of a two-hour episode of "The Voice.""Heartbeat" is a character-driven medical series that follows the professional and personal life of world-renowned heart transplant surgeon Dr. Alex Panttiere (Melissa George, "The Slap"). There is nothing conventional about Dr. Panttiere, who is as cutting edge and unorthodox in the OR as she is with the two men in her life. Her approach to medicine is without boundaries, as is her approach to everything else in her world.Between Dr. Panttiere's hectic hospital life where she is caught between two brilliant but stubborn surgeons (Dave Annable and Don Hany) and her household of two kids and a gay rock star ex-husband (Joshua Leonard), Alex is constantly striving to overcome numerous daily obstacles and be the best mother and doctor possible.Jamie Kennedy, D.L. Hughley, Shelley Con, Maya Erskine, Joshua Leonard and JLouis Mills also star.Inspired by the real life and achievements of Dr. Kathy Magliato, "Heartbeat" is executive produced by Jill Gordon, Amy Brenneman, Brad Silberling and produced by Universal Television.On March 22, "The Voice" will serve as a lead-in to a preview of "Heartbeat."Four best friends have a dark secret they thought was buried 25 years ago, but they soon discover that you can't hide your past forever. From the executive producers of "CSI" and "Friday Night Lights" comes a gripping new drama about friendship, love, revenge and the moral dilemma of how far one will go in the pursuit of justice.Jackson Brooks (David Lyons, "Revolution") is a successful attorney who seems to have it all. He's engaged to a wonderful woman who happens to be his boss, Marina (Claire Van Der Boom, "Hawaii Five-O"), and he's on the fast track to becoming partner at his firm, but his world is turned upside down when his long-lost childhood friends unexpectedly reappear after 25 years.Jackson, Gil Harris (Michael Raymond James, "True Blood") and Shawn Cook (Larenz Tate, "Rush") always stuck together, like brothers. They spent their boyhood summers in the small town of Brennan, Texas, swimming in the quarry, shooting bottle rockets and doing everything they could to mine the fun out of small-town life. But their idyllic world turned chaotic one fateful summer afternoon when a well-intentioned and heroic attempt to save their friend Jessie (Bre Blair, "Last Vegas") from her alcoholic mother ultimately cost the 13-year-old boys nine months at Quitman Youth Detention Facility where their lives were changed forever.Now, 25 years later, the nightmare of the worst nine months of their lives has resurfaced, uprooting a mystery even deeper than their buried past. The brotherhood must now band together to right the wrongs of their shared past - a journey that will push the limits of their loyalty and ignite an unquenchable thirst for revenge.The cast also includes Conor O'Farrell ("The Lincoln Lawyer"), Deidrie Henry ("Justified"), Demetrius Grosse ("Saving Mr. Banks") and Derek Phillips ("Friday Night Lights")."Game of Silence" is executive produced by Carol Mendelsohn, David Hudgins, Julie Weitz, Tariq Jalil, Timur Savci, Deran Sarafian and Niels Arden Oplev (pilot). The series is produced by Sony Pictures Television and Universal Television.
SHREVEPORT, LA, (January 21, 2016)  Legendary artist Marilyn Manson will join the cast of WGN Americas hit supernatural thriller Salem in a special guest starring role, it was announced today. Production on the original drama's third season, produced by Fox 21 Television Studios, begins today in Shreveport, LA.Manson will portray Thomas Dinley, a barber and surgeon who is the go-to man in Salem, from a shave and a haircut to being leeched, bled, sliced open or sewn up. The four-time Grammy nominee is no stranger to the cable network's first scripted original, having previously collaborated with "Salem's" composer Tyler Bates on the shows opening title sequence. The hauntingly dark track, "Cupid Carries a Gun," sets the tone for the enthralling one-hour drama which boldly reimagines the infamous 17th century witch trials in a world where witches are real, but they are not who or what they seem to be.Continuing its bloody, sexy and fantastical reimagining of Colonial America, Salem's third season dawns with the triumph of the witches' plan to remake the New World by bringing the devil to earth and making Salem his capital. But the devil is a liar, and instead of a New World free from murderous Puritan hypocrisy, his own plan will bring nothing but death and slavery with the ultimate aim of leading humanity to destroy itself. And there's only one person on earth who can beat the devil -- the very witch that birthed him, his mother, Mary Sibley. The only problem isshe's dead. Or is she?Salem" stars Janet Montgomery ("Human Target," "Made in Jersey") as Mary Sibley, Shane West ("Nikita," "ER") as Captain John Alden, Seth Gabel ("Arrow," "Fringe") as Cotton Mather, Ashley Madekwe ("Revenge") as Tituba, Tamzin Merchant ("Jane Eyre") as Anne Hale, Elise Eberle ("The Astronaut Farmer") as Mercy Lewis, Iddo Goldberg ("Mob City") as Isaac Walton, Joe Doyle ("Raw") as Baron Sebastian Marburg and Oliver Bell ("The Saint") as Marys son.Created and written by Brannon Braga and Adam Simon, Salem" is executive-produced by Braga, Simon, Kelly Souders, Brian Peterson and Prospect Parks Jeff Kwatinetz and Josh Barry. The series is produced by Fox 21 Television Studios.
NFU Scotland believes that politicians across all parliaments, milk buyers, processors, and retailers must be in no doubt that the vast majority of dairy farmers in Scotland are faced with a huge task to maintain their businesses through the current crisis. Dairy in Scotland is a vital part of the rural economy and has huge potential, but for the primary sector, the current crisis cannot be overstated.

NFU Scotlands Policy Manager George Jamieson said:

It is critical and undeniable that all parts of the supply chain must better share the risks and the rewards of the volatile market we now face. Dairy producers are currently carrying too much of the burden and have not benefited enough from the opportunities.

Analysts remain convinced that the future is positive for the dairy sector, but for this to be a reality then we must see tangible evidence that processors, retailers and all end users, governments and the consumer can all work collaboratively to overcome the massive challenges of peaks and troughs of volatility and competition. Scotland wants to be a part of dairyings future, but all parties cannot take dairy farmers for granted.

While demonstrations and lobbying resulted in some well-meaning initiatives from some retailers, and we are aware that some processors have worked hard to limit price cuts, the situation is now more serious than ever, and we need more meaningful strategic initiatives from our customers that are more subtle and effective than reactive discretionary pricing.

There are still anomalies and a lack of transparency in dairy chains which ferments uncertainty and a crucial lack of trust.

An excellent example of failure within a chain is mature cheddar. Sales of mature cheddar have risen by 2.9 percent in volume in the past year, while extra mature sales have risen by 6.4 percent. That is fantastic growth in a competitive food sector but not one that has benefited producers as farmgate prices have fallen by 20 percent in the same period.
According to soil scientist Simon Fox from Emerald Crop Science, up to 50% of soils in Scotland are deficient in important trace elements, impacting on yield, crop health and tuber quality. Speaking at the SAC Association of Potato Producers annual conference in Perth on Wednesday (20 January), Mr Fox said growers could boost yields by an average of 15% by adopting a more comprehensive approach to crop nutrition.

If you can grow potatoes in the desert you can grow them anywhere; its all about meeting the crops needs. In the UK we tend to only focus on the three main nutrients, and completely forget about all the others that are just as important for optimum growth, he said.

Between 35% and 50% of Scottish soils were potentially deficient in molybdenum, calcium, sulphur, zinc and magnesium, with 18-25% deficient in boron and copper. This means the crops will be more prone to disease, will suffer from lower yields, less vigour, lower quality and inefficient use of the main nutrients, explained Mr Fox.

A crop thats deficient in molybdenum will look like it needs nitrogen, as molybdenum is required to process nitrate into ammonium. You can put all the nitrogen on that you want and it will make no difference if you dont address the molybdenum too.

Independent trials over the past three years had shown that using Emerald Crop Sciences OptiYield programme increased marketable potato yields by an average of 15% - or 6.95t/ha. Based on a comprehensive soil analysis, it formulates the exact nutrient requirements of the crop, delivered in a foliar application to maximise efficacy.
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Is Paloma, among the most ballyhooed restaurants to open in Stamford since the recession, pulling up its stakes in Connecticut after 18 months? Its landlord seems to think so.

A spokeswoman for Paloma said Thursday that the eatery opened by celebrity chef Aaron Sanchez will remain open, despite the fact that Building and Land Technology posted an online listing for the Harbor Point space and several other sources familiar with the situation told Hearst that the restaurants ownership is seeking to sell the business.

Questions on Palomas future arrive as CT Bites reported the sale of Dolce, across the water from Paloma, which means dove in Spanish, amid other recent sales and closures throughout Fairfield County even as downtown Stamford and Harbor Point ride a mini wave of new restaurants.

Last summer, Palomas co-founder Sanchez announced he was transferring his role in Paloma to a partner chef to focus on the expansion of his Johnny Sanchez restaurants, which has locations in New Orleans and Baltimore, Maryland. Sanchez, whose mother is Zarela Martinez  the former owner of the popular East Side Manhattan Mexican restaurant  has starred as a judge on the Food Networks Chopped cooking competition and other programs.

Sanchezs partner, Chris Bateman, left Paloma in October, according to his LinkedIn profile, and a spokeswoman did not make the restaurants current owners Bill and Gus Chimos available for an interview Thursday. The spokeswoman said in an email that the restaurant is not going anywhere and the owners aim to stay an anchor tenant at Harbor Point for years to come.

As of Thursday afternoon, however, Harbor Point developer BLT listed the entirety of Palomas small waterfront building at 15 Harbor Point Road as available immediately. A BLT broker stated the space remains fully leased to Paloma and did not offer further details as to why the space has been listed as available.

Paloma opened in the South End in July 2014, shortly before the abrupt closure of Mortons steak house in the downtown UBS building, long a rock in the community that became a poster child for the decline of Stamfords once mighty twin trading floors at UBS and Royal Bank of Scotland.

While the Capital Grille on Tresser Boulevard inherited Mortons mantle as the premier restaurant in Stamford, as ranked by patrons on OpenTable and other sites that capture diner opinions, Paloma caused a palpable stir and generated a Good review from the New York Times last spring.

Four sources familiar with Palomas situation all said their expectation is for the restaurant to be sold or closed outright, saying the eatery was bustling in the summer months through October, while seeing business decline perceptibly during cooler weather.

Since Palomas opening, BLT has since fully leased a pair of office buildings adjacent to Paloma, and has been building up a residential population in the twin Beacon at Harbor Point apartment towers steps from Paloma, with BLT now readying the former Pitney Bowes headquarters just up the road for new tenants under the moniker Silicon Harbor.

If the apartment buildings that have mushroomed at Harbor Point have provided eateries a boost, the neighborhood received a blow in BLTs decision to build the Beacon as an apartment complex versus its original vision of putting in a hotel, which would have provided steady turnover of diners on weekdays with residents filling seats on weekends.

Paloma has a lot of seats to fill with a capacity of 250. But Harbor Point has proven a draw for other venues, with Bareburger and Fortina having both opened last year to good foot traffic, and Boothbay Lobster Co., which is now hiring as it sets to serve wicked fresh Maine seafood from its storefront sandwiched between World of Beer and Sign of the Whale.

Alex.Soule@scni.com; 203-964-2236; www.twitter.com/casoulman
Lifestyle site Thrillist set out to find the most beautiful building in each state and Philip Johnson's New Canaan Glass House got the nod for Connecticut.

Click here for the full list

Started in 1949, Johnson built the glass dwelling on his 47-acre property as his own home. The house is iconic for its glass exterior, leaving a completely exposed interior. Among the first of its kind, New Canaan's Glass House inspired many modern homes.

Johnson was part of a group of architects known in the 1950s as "The Harvard Five." The group also included Johnson M. Johansen, Marcel Breuer, Landis Gores and Eliot Noyes. Together, they ushered in a modern architecture movement, and made New Canaan a mid-century modern mecca.

"The Harvard Five was so well known, and well respected that young architects wanted to be here too to work for those architects," New Canaan Historical Society Executive Director Janet Lindstrom told Hearst in 2014. "Even if you go now to look at the telephone directory, you'll see there are really a lot of architects in New Canaan, because it's still a place people know as a hub for it."

Other iconic buildings on Thrillist's list include the Hearst Castle, San Simeon in California, the Capitol building in Washington DC, the Empire State Building and the Breakers mansion in Rhode Island.
Fred W.A. Peters, an entrepreneur whose marina and boatbuilding operation turned out sturdy watercraft that introduced generations of sailors to a love of the sea, died Wednesday at his home in Cos Cob at the age of 81. The cause of death was not determined, but the death was attributed to natural causes.

For many years, Peters owned and operated Mianus Marina, now the site of a rowing club, and was the president of Albin Marine USA. An accomplished sailor and world traveler, Peters was a well-known fixture on the Greenwich waterfront.

He was born in Amsterdam, Netherlands, on June 8, 1934, to Martin J. and Gerarda Adriaanz Peters. Raised and educated in the Netherlands, Peters joined the military, trained as a communication specialist and served with the Dutch marines in the East Indies and New Guinea. He also served in the Dutch merchant marine and sailed around the world, later taking a position with the Holland America Line as a radio officer on voyages between New York and Rotterdam.

Peters immigrated to the U.S. in 1958. He married Monica Johansson in the early 1960s.

After working for Palmer Engines in Cos Cob, Peters began running a business from Cos Cob in 1965, selling Swedish-made boats from Albin Marine. As president of Albin USA, he built boats in Taiwan, later building a factory in Portsmouth, R.I.

Coming from Holland, and sailing in the North Sea, he built very rugged and seaworthy boats, fuel-efficient, too, recalled his daughter, Miranda Hussar, of New Canaan.

Along with some other manufacturers in the field, Albin built the so-called Down-easter power boats that gave many families their first exposure to sea journeys. Later models were built with family-friendly additions at a relatively affordable price.

Peters retired from business in 2008 and pursued his love of travel and boating, recently returning from a trip to Amsterdam.

He was a man full of life, jokes and good feeling toward everybody, his daughter said.

Beside his daughter, he is survived by two sisters, Beatrix McKane of Long Island, N.Y., and Tineke Parker of Miami; and two grandchildren. His former wife lives in Greenwich.

Family and friends are making donations to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, P.O. Box 96929, Washington, DC 20090.

A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. Monday at St. Catherines of Sienna in Riverside, and a reception will follow there.
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STAMFORD  After the explosion rocked her Highland Road home early in the afternoon of Dec. 3, 2014, Brenda Ortiz was hysterical.

For some moments during her frantic 911 call she was unable to tell the dispatcher what was happening, crying and screaming repeatedly, Oh my God! Oh my God!

The dispatcher on the other end of the line keeps saying, Brenda, Brenda, Brenda, I need you to take a deep breath for me.

At last Ortiz was able to tell the dispatcher that she smelled gas and had seen a masked man run away from her house, up Highland Road.

The 911 tape was the first thing the jury in the arson of Ortizs former landlord, Anthony Manousos, heard Thursday at the Stamford courthouse.

As the tape played, Manousos, 34, sitting at the defense table in a gray business suit, bent his head with his thumb and index finger holding the bridge of his nose. Sometimes his fingers rubbed his eyes and forehead, and appeared deep in thought as Ortiz shrieks filled the small wood-paneled fourth-floor courtroom.

Manousos is charged with first-degree arson and faces as many as 25 years in jail if convicted. On Wednesday he turned down a plea bargain that would have kept him behind bars for seven years in exchange for pleading guilty plea to the charge.

On the stand while being questioned by Senior Assistant States Attorney Paul Ferencek, Ortiz said that just before 12:30 p.m. on that Wednesday afternoon, she was sleeping, after working the night before as an event promoter at a bar in Stamford.

But she was awoken by a very strong smell of gasoline permeating her first-floor apartment that since February she had rented from Manousos for $1,650 per month in a two-story home with an occupied attic at 52 Highland Road.

Ortiz, 36, told the jury she went outside her door, into the foyer, where the odor was even stronger. As she stepped out of her door in bare feet, she realized there was gasoline was on the floor.

She used a stone to prop the front door of the home open to air it out and called her husband to ask him to call Manousos and get the problem straightened out. Then she heard the front door slam shut. Thinking that was odd because she had just propped it open with a rock, she went back out into the foyer and saw just the legs and black boots of a man walking up the stairway leading to the homes second floor.

She yelled, hello, hello up the staircase, but the man did not stop. Then she got scared. Seconds later there was an explosion.

Just like in the movies, Ortiz told the jury.

And at that same instant a man came running through the foyer wearing a hoodie and a paint mask, jeans and the same black boots she saw a moment earlier on the staircase.

Fearing the man wanted to hurt her, Ortiz said she didnt follow the man at first, but ran through the house to a different door leading to the outside from the kitchen. Then she got mad and followed the man, getting as close as about 15 to 20 feet away, before the man broke into a run heading west to Grove Street.

A little while after firefighters knocked the fire down, a policeman brought her up the street to get a look at a man who had been detained as he was coming out of an empty lot about 300 feet away from her home.

Yes, she told the policemen. Those were the same boots, the same pants. Ortiz said that was the man who had just run out of her home after it had been set on fire.

She was stunned when they told her it was Manousos.

When they told me his name, I couldnt believe it, Ortiz said, explaining that when she had seen Manousos on a couple of other occasions he dressed fancy. The man she was looking at on that day was slovenly, unshaven and in a T-shirt, and appeared dirty.

On cross examination, Manousos lawyer Michael Skiber asked Ortiz if she saw the man pour the gasoline or light the fire. Ortiz replied that she did not. Skiber also asked Ortiz whether she hired an attorney to sue Manousos, and she said she had. Skiber also questioned whether she really lost $2,000 in cash and her wedding ring and other things in the fire as she claimed.

He also asked why she had been pictured on social media partying in a Stamford bar just a week after the fire. Thats my job, Ortiz replied tersely.

Testimony in the trial is expected to continue into next week.

jnickerson@scni.com; stamfordadvocate.com/policereports
M otorcycle jacket manufacturer Belstaff has relocated its operations back to Britain as it looks to highlight its heritage with an eye on a flotation.

Gavin Haig, who joined as chief executive from Swiss luxury goods giant Richemont in 2014, said Belstaff had transferred its finance offices from Switzerland to London and relocated its trademark back to the UK this month.

This is beautifully in line with being a truly British brand, he added.

Belstaff, advertised by David Beckham, began in Longton, Staffordshire, in 1924. It was bought in 2004 by the Malenotti family of Italy, who moved the brand into the luxury market.

The Malenottis sold the business in 2011 to JAB, the holding company of billionaire German industrialists the Reimann family, whose investments range from coffee maker Jacobs Douwe Egberts to shoe firm Jimmy Choo.

Haig said: We are exploring the idea of an IPO but with no specific timeline. Our parent company JAB carried out an IPO with Jimmy Choo so at some point it is a possibility we would follow suit.

Belstaff, which has five shops in the UK and Ireland, is looking to open more concessions and promote new collections with the actress Liv Tyler and explorer Ranulph Fiennes.
K evin Spacey set off one of the security scanners at the Belvedere Hotel in Davos, and it fell to a twentysomething female security guard to frisk the actor.

She was so thrilled with her hands-on encounter that she performed a little jig when Spacey had been sent on his way.

Later, an exclusive dinner party at Davos emptied out surprisingly rapidly.

Why? Because word got out that Spacey was singing Sinatra songs for guests at the Skybridge Capital party at the Piano Bar on the Promenade and many of the fickle Barclays guests hotfooted it along.

Even chief executive Jes Staleys post-prandial anecdotes couldnt compete with a Hollywood legend in full voice.

Pyramid selling on EU reform for Dave?

Former German Vice Chancellor Philipp Rosler left the Davos audience baffled when he introduced David Cameron as his excellency  an honorific normally used for archbishops and ambassadors  before his big speech.

Perhaps, in the spirit of the old Ferrero Rocher advert, Rosler wanted to convey that the PM was really spoiling us with his delightful demands for European Union reform.

Osborne spots a trend

An apercu from George Osborne at Davos last night as the Chancellor noted that all the UKs living former prime ministers  Major, Blair, Brown  as well as the incumbent  Cameron  were in the Swiss resort simultaneously.

A future prime minister too perhaps, George?

No sugar coating for Soros

Billionaire investor George Soros wins the Davos honesty prize.

Asked by Francine Lacqua of Bloomberg at his annual Davos dinner last night what he made of the mood at the Word Economic Forum the man who broke the Bank of England rather plaintively replied: I dont know because I havent spoken to anyone.

Others would have made something up.
I reland is in a tizz about Brussels efforts to kill its sweetheart tax deal with Apple. But it should be more confident of its charms besides being a tax haven.

Apple has for years been lowering its global tax bill through the country, using jauntily named accounting tricks like the Double Irish and Dutch Sandwich.

But EU regulators have taken notice and could order the company to pay billions of euros in unpaid taxes to the Irish state.

Ireland doesnt want the money  it would rather keep Apples business instead and fears theres more than this one company at stake.

Many others have been knocking back a double Irish or two to slash their tax bills, and not just in the tech sector. General Electric and big pharma love Irelands taxes too.

Some might leave if Apple loses its case, but Irelands economy is not as reliant on low taxes as many fear.

The data suggests joining the European single market in 1993 was a far bigger driver of its dramatic economic growth than tax cuts, which began in the 1950s.

Europes investors were attracted to deeper benefits like its educated, mobile workforce and the potential of its farmland.

Sadly, opening the gates to Europe also ushered in a flood of lending that created a disastrous debt bubble. But thats a separate issue.

The lesson remains  tax avoidance shouldnt be a mainstay of Irelands economic policy.
T he knives are out for JKX Oil & Gas.

Activist investor Proxima managed one last dig at the London-listed oil firm, which drills in Russia and Ukraine, before next Thursdays big vote.

Proxima, run by Vladimir Tatarchuk, a Russian businessman with close ties to oligarch Mikhail Fridman, wants to seize control of the company by getting rid of seven directors and installing five of its own after a 90% slump in the companys value in five years.

Today, the 20% shareholder slammed JKX, which claimed on Wednesday to have the support of Institutional Shareholder Services, for not having responded to the issues it raised.

Tatarchuk said: It has never been clearer that the time for change at JKX has come.

"It has never been clearer that the time for change at JKX has come."

It is not the first time JKX, which rose 0.44p to 25.94p, has had to fend off activist investors.

In 2013, chief executive Paul Davies survived a bid to oust him by Eclairs and Glengary.

The Mario Draghi-inspired rally continued as hopes of more economic stimulus for the eurozone propped the FTSE 100 up 122.10 points, 2.1%, to 5895.89.

Antofagasta topped the blue-chip index, up 24.8p, or 7%, to 390.2p, after Citi called it a trough cycle survivor and swapped its sell tip for a buy recommendation, highlighting the copper miners strong balance sheet.

The rally eluded only Pearson, which retreated 18.5p to 753.5p as investors cashed in on yesterdays 17% leap. A raft of target price cuts from brokers also hit the education publisher.

Shares in Home Retail gained 4.5p to 141.7p, having started the week at 158p, as traders continue to bet on the outcome of Sainsburys takeover interest in the Argos owner.

Property giant Hammerson, the owner of the Bullring shopping centre in Birmingham, revealed it has bought the new Grand Central shopping centre in the city for 335 million. The shares improved 12p to 572p.

Birmingham's Grand Central shopping centre (Picture: Elliot Brown/Flickr) / Elliot Brown/Flickr

Character Group jumped 31.5p to 510p as it confirmed sales of its big toy brands, including Fireman Sam and Peppa Pig, were very encouraging. It also told shareholders founder and executive chairman Richard King would be taking a back seat as a non-executive director and chairman.

Silicon roundabout-based 7digital danced 1.18p, or 19%, higher to 7.3p as chairman Sir Donald Cruickshank, the former LSE chairman, showed his faith by buying 40,000 in shares in the music-streaming company out of his own pocket.
T hey call it Planet Nine. Nearly the size of Neptune, it lurks at the fringes of our solar system, orbiting the sun every 15,000 years. This putative planet has been deduced, rather than observed, and has a compelling story to tell about how modern science can be an act of faith.

We can figure out much about Planet Nine. Its closest approach to the sun is seven times further away than Neptune. Its 5,000 times the mass of Pluto, and in a wildly eccentric orbit.

Many astronomers will roll their eyes and say theres been feverish talk of a Planet X beyond Neptune down the decades, even centuries. But the new claim, published in The Astronomical Journal, is being taken seriously because it comes from respected scientists, Konstantin Batygin and Mike Brown of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

Brown was the astronomer who, in his own words, killed Pluto. More than seven decades after the frozen world was first glimpsed he found another distant object, Eris, suggesting that Pluto was merely one of many worlds wafting in the Kuiper Belt, a field of icy debris beyond Neptune. That led astronomers to demote Pluto to the status of dwarf planet (a controversial move  the Science Museums collection includes a bumper sticker that proclaims Honk if Pluto is still a planet).

Brown and Batygin have inferred the existence of Planet Nine from its gravitational tug, a method with a distinguished history. For example, astronomers at the Berlin Observatory found Neptune after the 19th-century French mathematician Urbain Le Verrier predicted its existence from irregularities in the orbit of Uranus.

Space odyssey: an artists impression of Planet Nine / Caltech/R. Hurt (IPAC) / PA Wire

Celestial mathematics suggest that an object sufficiently big to count as a ninth planet exists because of an unusual clustering of six known objects that orbit beyond Neptune: they seeded solar systems with Planet Xs of assorted sizes and orbits to see which best explained the objects paths.

Their simulations suggest Planet X was born alongside Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Then, as the building blocks of todays solar system clashed and smashed, a gravitational kick booted it into a distant egg-shaped orbit. On the way, it shepherded the six objects into peculiar orbits.

Talk to Robert Massey of the Royal Astronomical Society in Piccadilly and he will bellow Show me the image. Most telescopes that are capable of seeing a dim object at such vast distances can only see a speck of sky, so the Caltech team will have to use the Subaru telescope in Hawaii, which can detect a faint object in great swathes of sky. Even using this, and other instruments about to come online, it could take years to find Planet Nine. Only then will they think about what to call it  those who dream of a nice classical name, such as Proserpina, will have to wait.

This story carries a cosmic message. Stroll down Exhibition Road in South Kensington and you will see our fascination with the heavens is with the tangible. The Natural History Museum has just launched Otherworlds, which explores the beauty of our solar system. In the Science Museum we are celebrating the birth of the space age with Cosmonauts, which features the probes that first explored beyond Earth.

But science museums, with their emphasis on objects, increasingly struggle with modern research because it is focused on invisible realms such as molecular biology, subatomic physics and nanotechnology. These are the stuff of microchips, modern medicine and even of survival itself.

Brown and Batygin have inferred the existence of Planet Nine from its gravitational tug, a method with a distinguished history

Three decades ago researchers proposed that another candidate for Planet X  a mysterious brown dwarf star with the catchy title of Nemesis  could cause extinctions on Earth by triggering bombardments by comets. This unseen threat could in theory be seen  fortunately, it wasnt  but this deadly idea has not disappeared.

Last week I met the distinguished Harvard particle physicist Lisa Randall, who has linked a mysterious cosmic source of gravity called dark matter to the most famous terrestrial cataclysm of all, the demise of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago. She has even written a book about it  Dark Matter and the Dinosaurs: The Astounding Interconnectedness of the Universe.

We only know dark matter exists by inferring that it is real. Analyse the movements of stars and you can work out how much matter is making them swirl and how much makes galaxies clump together  and therefore how much mass makes our universe look the way it does. However, the stars that we can see account for only about one per cent of the mass of the universe. Ghostly neutrino particles contribute, at most, a similar amount. Add planets, gas clouds and other objects and thats another 10 per cent. But 85 per cent is unaccounted for. Thats dark matter.

Though unseen and unfelt, it affects the expansion of our cosmos, the orbits of stars around the centres of galaxies, and more besides. Randall suggests that a fraction of one kind of dark matter overlaps with the visible disc of spiral arms in our own galaxy, the Milky Way, and that this dark disc interrupted the orbit of a comet on the fringe of the solar system to send it hurtling towards Earth.

To see these cosmic connections between the physics of elementary particles, the majesty of the heavens and the biology of life itself, you need more than the evidence of your own eyes. Thats inadequate, and fallible too, if you know your neuroscience. You need faith in the practice, theories and instruments of modern science.

Roger Highfield is the director of external affairs at the Science Museum
H ome is

Paris, Portugal, southwest France and Venice. Id rather live in a poor room with my wife Jasmine than in a castle alone.

Where do you stay in London?

Chiltern Firehouse. Weve been friends with Andre Balazs forever, and the bedrooms are absurdly comfortable.

Chiltern Firehouse

Most romantic thing youve done in London?

When I was trying to seduce my wife, I rented a narrowboat on the canal near Notting Hill and we spent a dream weekend tucked up inside.

Best meal?

Anything at St John. Fergus Henderson is a genius. I lived in Notting Hill for six years and there wasnt a day I didnt travel to Smithfield to have lunch there.

Best place for a first date?

A walk along the river at low tide, when the boats are resting on the mud.

First thing you do when you arrive here?

Speak with the people, because I spend my life working in the American language and I dont like it much. I like the sophistication of the English and the humour.

What do you collect?

I dislike collecting, but when I buy shoes I buy 20 pairs so I can have them in all my houses and when I buy a T-shirt I buy 80.

Who do you call to have fun?

Matthew Freud and John Hitchcox, both of whom are very smart and very funny.

What would you do as Mayor for the day?

Get to work on the difference between rich and poor. In London the rich are really rich and the poor are really poor. Its not acceptable; its a bad social structure.

Whos your hero?

Humanity: from bacteria four billion years ago, to the fish, to the frog, to the monkey, to the supermonkeys we are today. Evolution is so beautiful, you have to admire us.

Which shops do you rely on?

Whole Foods, Portobello Market, and an electric bicycle store called Fully Charged in Bermondsey. The bicycle is one of the smartest objects ever.

Portobello Market / Marco Secchi/Getty Images

Building youd like to be locked in overnight?

The Bentley showroom in Berkeley Square.

Favourite London discovery?

I love the Grand Union Canal.

Best thing a cabbie has said?

Anything polite. When you go to France they insult you as soon as you step in the car.

Biggest extravagance?

In London the only thing you need is a helicopter. If you take the car to Brighton or Hastings, itll take your whole life.

Building youd like to buy?

Battersea Power Station. Its so industrial and at the same time so elegant. When Pink Floyd hung a huge inflatable pig over it for their Animals album cover (below), it was one of the strongest images of our generation.

Best advice youve been given?

Steve Jobs told me all you need is honesty  with yourself, with others, in politics and in everything else.

Best place for a nightcap?

Sweetings, a restaurant in the City. Drink a black velvet (half Guinness, half champagne) from a tankard and you are really in England.

The Ipanema with Starck S/S 2016 shoe collaboration is available now ipanema.uk.com
E ven those who dont like the story of The Revenant admit its vision of nature is stunning. Rosamund Urwin put it first and best here, saying: As a tourism ad for Canada, The Revenant works like a dream. Ive never seen a film that captures the wilderness more powerfully. But Ive also seen few films more stomach-turning.

Its torture porn trussed up to look like intelligent film-making, she argued, a theme hammered home more heavily by other, mostly female, columnists since. But even they admit that the filming itself is gorgeous. And that the wilderness has its pull.

The cinematography is the work of Emmanuel Lubezki, who has won the Oscar in this category for the past two years running. He made the whole film in natural light, using camera movements that absolutely immerse you in the landscape, so that you feel part of it, right there, not just an observer. Its a technique he developed with the visionary director Terrence Malick for his 2005 film about an early encounter between Europeans and Native Americans, The New World, the best solution yet found to the question when you look through a viewfinder, how can you get into the natural environment?

Leonardo DiCaprio in The Revenant

Since its release, The Revenant has been eagerly reality-checked. Survival expert Ray Mears, no less, has advised that raw bison liver would be nutritious and he has eaten it himself, but that getting inside a dead horse naked would not provide enough insulation for survival. We have learned that, though Leonardo DiCaprio, being a bit of a beast himself, genuinely ate the liver and probably the live fish, both the bison and the horse were actually props, not real  while the fearsome grizzly bear was a stuntman called Glenn Ennis in a bright blue, crudely fashioned bear suit, subsequently enhanced by CGI. But nobody has questioned the beauty and power of the wilderness we see, filmed in high Argentina as well as Canada.

The Revenant 20th Century Fox trailer.mp4

And that wilderness is what we crave. If The Revenant is any kind of porn, it is wilderness porn (just dont put those words into Google, please). It has always been one of the functions of movies to take us to places that expand our horizons. Westerns have always been relished for their immense landscapes as well as the shoot-outs. Gravity, which Lubezki also filmed, persuasively took you into limitless space itself, from the safety of your seat.

10 of the most awe-inspiring mountains 1 /13 10 of the most awe-inspiring mountains Mount Everest, Nepal At 8,848m above sea level, Mount Everest in Nepal is the highest mountain in the world yet also one of the youngest at only 60 million years old Press Ben Nevis, Scotland This ancient volcano stands 1,344m above sea level making it the highest mountain on the British Isles Press Matterhorn, Switzerland On the border of Switzerland and France in the Alps, the pyramid-like peak of The Matterhorn mountain stands 4,478m high Press Pitons, St. Lucia A warmer mountain experience offering striking views across the island from the 750m-high peak Press Table Mountain, South Africa Overlooking Cape Town it is one of the citys most memorable attractions where visitors can hike or ride the cable car to the top Press Machu Picchu, Peru Visitors exploring this world famous ruin can climb the 2 hour journey to its peak and experience the incredible views from the top Press Mount Fuji, Japan This sacred peak is the highest mountain in Japan and is also an active volcano, although it hasnt erupted since 1708 Press Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania It is not only Africas tallest mountain, but also the highest volcano outside of South America which offers seven official trekking routes. Press Mont Blanc, France The highest mountain in the Alps and western Europe at 4,792m above sea level. The surrounding mountains offer some of the most popular skiing regions. Press Amphitheatre, South Africa This sheer rock wall is over 5km long with a curved cliff face that rises over 3,000m high Press

The more crowded the city becomes, the smaller our living spaces, the less contact with nature we have, the more wilderness seduces as an image and idea, perhaps even a salvation. Currently the No 1 bestseller among nature books, taking over from the chopping bible Norwegian Wood, is Amy Liptrots The Outrun, the story of how she recovered from the low ebb of alcoholism she had reached after seven years in east London by returning to the exposed, elemental landscape she grew up in in Orkney. She cites contributing to the nature-writing website caughtbytheriver.net as an important part of her journey.

For those only seeking wilderness reverie as an escape, theres a site and a book actually called Cabin Porn, full of inspiration for your quiet place somewhere. Wilderness addicts submit pictures of their most lusted-after solitary houses, Scottish stone bothies and huts perched on a rocky ledge, far from civilisation. Frank, anyway. And of course wilderness can still be reached, in comfort even. As it happens, the amazing wilderness home that the deranged genius of the film Ex Machina lives in, although purporting to be Alaska, was actually filmed in the Juvet Landscape Hotel in Norways Valldal Valley, where it is possible to stay yourself (from 247 a night).

Or you can read yourself into it. For further behind this wilderness yearning lies the new nature writing that has become one of the most distinctive British literary forms of recent years. If it traces its origins back to Richard Jefferies and WH Hudson in the 19th century, it was kick-started again by Richard Mabey in the early Seventies with books such as Food for Free and The Unofficial Countryside. Alongside Mabey, its current unofficial capo is the Cambridge don, Robert Macfarlane, who published The Wild Places in 2007, about finding wilderness that remains in Britain and Ireland.

Other key figures include Jay Griffiths, whose book called Wild: An Elemental Journey of the same year was a valuable feminist contribution to what can look a bit like a boys club, if not a scout camp. The TV wilderness pioneer Bear Grylls, for that matter, actually is Chief Scout, among other distinctions, and his many alarming exploits included using the corpse of a sheep as a sleeping bag, long before Leo got a similar idea.

Going native: Colin Farrell in The New World / Allstar/NEW LINE CINEMA

Its becoming quite a crowded field these days and authors are having to get ever more inventively wild. In Feral, Guardian columnist George Monbiot hoped for the re-wilding of Britain with wolves, boar, bison and even perhaps bears, replacing the sheep he loathes. Richard Mabey wrote a frank memoir of coming out of depression called Nature Cure, while many writers, mostly men not doing well, have been trying to get inside a wood, a single meadow, tree or creature, for salvation.

But when it comes to real wilderness porn, it is going to be very hard to beat Being a Beast by Charles Foster, published in a couple of weeks, a book rightly described by Jay Griffiths as flabbergasting as well as stupendous and brilliant. Foster, an Oxford don qualified in medicine, law and as a vet, wants to rewild himself. So he tries to become a badger, an otter, an urban fox, a red deer and a swift. Literally. When Im being a badger, I live in a hole and eat earthworms. When Im being an otter, I try to catch fish with my teeth.

He may well be nuts but he can write. He takes you there. The badger chapter begins: When you put a worm into your mouth, it senses the heat as something sinister. Youd have thought it might make a bid for freedom by going down, into the deeper darkness that usually means home and safety, and head for your oesophagus. But it doesnt. It goes for the gaps between your teeth. So now you know.

Going native: Martin McCann in The Survivalist

He and his eight-year-old son Tom lived as badgers in their own sett in Wales for weeks. We put our front paws on trees and stretched as soon as we came out of our hole. We defecated on mounds chosen for their view of the hill. We acquired a thick patina of scent... Ill bet.

He became an urban fox lying in a backyard in Bow, foodless and drinkless, urinating and defecating where I was, waiting for the night and treating as hostile the humans in the terraced houses all around  which wasnt hard. He doesnt like urbanites much, admitting he likes to give people a nasty shock by coming up right behind them on his bike in Oxford before they know hes there, so atrophied have their natural senses become. We have been warned.

He may not actually quote Dr Johnson, who said of drinking that he who makes a beast of himself gets rid of the pain of being a man, but he knows the feeling.

Alas, it can never wholly work. I cannot, for instance, make children with a fox. I have to come to terms with that, says Foster dolefully, although as a father of six he does maintain that human children are more like fox cubs than theyre like anything else.

At least he has endeavoured to make a beast of himself a bit more thoroughly than most. As for the rest of us, penned up in the city as we are, perhaps wilderness, beastliness, can still be a resource just as an idea, a dream?

Even the beast Foster concludes: I cant always be in the wild. Sometimes I have to be in places that smell of fear, fumes and ambition. When Im there, it helps very much to know that badgers are asleep inside a Welsh hill, that an otter is turning over stones in one of the Rockford pools, that a fox is blinking in the same sun that makes me sweat in my tweed coat... Somehow that knowledge doesnt taunt him but comforts him, he says. His readers, too, maybe. Or then again we can always get a ticket to the movies.

Being a Beast by Charles Foster is published by Profile at 14.99 on February 4, in time for Valentines Day
T wo men have been found guilty of terrorism offences after they handed out leaflets in Oxford Street to drum up support for Islamic State.

Ibrahim Anderson, 38, and Shah Jahan Khan, 62, from Luton, were convicted at the Old Bailey on Friday.

Both men were part of a group that set up a stall on Oxford Street in August 2014, where they distributed leaflets which encouraged allegiance towards Islamic State.

When challenged by passers-by, the court heard some witnesses were told to go and die.

Appalled witnesses took pictures of the men and reported the matter to police, who arrested both men on December 16 in 2014.

During a search of Andersons home,police found a set of instructions on his computer for travelling to Syria to support jihad.

Anderson and Khan were convicted of inviting support for a banned organisation while Anderson was also found guilty of possessing of information useful to a person preparing an act of terrorism.

Commander Dean Haydon, of the Mets counter terrorism command, said: "These men were openly supporting a terrorist organisation whose behaviour is abhorrent to the majority of people across the world.

Their actions on a busy London street were challenged by members of the public, appalled by what they observed.

The MPS Counter Terrorism Command rightly investigated this case and would encourage others to come forward if they have concerns about terrorist related activity."

The men will be sentenced on Friday, January 29.
D etectives investigating the murder of a clubber at a north-west London wine bar have reissued their appeal to find a man they urgently want to speak to.

Josh Hanson, 21, died after sustaining a serious wound to his neck while at RE Bar in Field End Road, Eastcote, on October 11 last year.

A post-mortem examination gave a cause of death as haemorrhage, inhalation of blood and an incised wound to the neck.

Police investigating the killing said they urgently wanted to speak to Shane OBrien from Ladbroke Grove, but he is yet to come forward.

A 10,000 reward was issued for information leading to OBriens arrest and prosecution and police today said they still wanted to speak to the 27-year-old.

Wanted for questioning: Shane O'Brien / Metropolitan Police

Detective Chief Inspector Noel McHugh, from the Mets Homicide and Major Crime Command, said: We are very keen to speak to Shane O'Brien as part of our ongoing enquiries and we believe he could be anywhere in the UK.

I would appeal directly to O'Brien to contact us, or ask that anyone who has seen him or who knows where he is to contact us as well. I do believe someone out there will know where he is.

A substantial reward remains on offer to anyone with information that leads to O'Brien's arrest and prosecution and we hope this will encourage someone to come forward.

OBrien is white, 6ft tall and of muscular build.

Two men were arrested in connection with Mr Hansons death.

A 24-year-old man and a 29-year-old man who were on a flight to Gatwick were arrested October 28 on suspicion of perverting the course of justice and assisting an offender.

Both men were bailed until a date in late March.

Anyone with information about the murder or OBriens whereabouts should call the incident room on 020 8785 8099 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. Any sightings of OBrien should be reported to police immediately on 999.
F our men will start life sentences tonight after they stabbed a man more than 15 times in a west London supermarket which left him needing life-saving surgery in the street.

Mohammed Mohammed, 21, Zakariya Ibrahim, 19, Saad Sharif, 19 and Hanad Mohammed, 19 were found guilty of attempted murder at the Old Bailey on Tuesday.

On Friday, the men were sentenced to life imprisonment.

A fifth man, Abdi Wahab Mohammed, 26, was found guilty of GBH and sentenced to 10 years in prison after he drove the men to and from the scene.

On June 14 last year, a 29-year-old man was at the Emerald supermarket in Staines Road, Feltham, when he was stabbed in a frenzied attack at around 1.30am

The victim was punched to the ground and stabbed more than 15 times suffering knife wounds to his heart, lung and liver.

Police said the man only survived because of desperate efforts by police officers, paramedics and doctors from the London Air Ambulance to keep him alive at the scene.

He underwent emergency surgery on the street before more life-saving treatment at St Marys Hospital where he spent 10 days before he was discharged.

Police said the group fled the scene and added the attack was believed to be motivated by a previous dispute.

The five men were arrested by detectives from the Mets homicide and major crime command three days after the attack.

Mohammed, of Hanwell, will serve a minimum of 10 years and Ibrahim, of Ealing, has been ordered to serve at least 13-and-a-half years.

Sharif, of no fixed address, will serve a minimum of 15 years and Mohammed, also of no fixed address, was told he faces at least seven-and-a-half years behind bars.

In court, the victim said he does not know why he was attacked and added his life had not been the same.

In a statement read out at court, he said: I'm grateful to still have my life and to be able to at least walk and talk but my life has not been the same and my recovery will take a long time.

When I left St Mary's hospital I was very weak and couldn't walk very well. All my friends and family kept telling me that I was lucky to be alive.

I still have not seen the CCTV because I have had to give evidence in this case but this will help me understand what has happened to me.

Since the attack I no longer feel comfortable out in public and I have stopped socialising with a lot of people because I don't know whether they might be friends with the guys that attacked me.
A n east London woman jailed for killing a convicted paedophile has had her sentence more than doubled.

Sarah Sands, 33, had her jail term increased to seven-and-a-half years by judges at the Court of Appeal on Friday.

She was originally sentenced last year to three-and-a-half for the November 2014 killing of Michael Pleasted.

Sands carried out the attack within weeks of hearing that her 77-year-old neighbour had been released on bail ahead of his trial over accusations that he had sexually assaulted young boys.

Armed with a knife, she went to his flat in Canning Town to confront him about the allegations.

But she ended up stabbing him eight times and he bled to death.

Sands was cleared at the Old Bailey of murder, but convicted of manslaughter by reason of loss of control and sentenced in September.

During the trial it emerged that Pleasted, who also went by the name of Robin Moult, had 24 previous convictions for sexual offences between 1970 and 1991.
A teenage girl grabbed a female bus passenger by the hair and punched her in the head before hurling a glass bottle at her face, police said.

The victim was left shaken and with cuts to her face following the incident in north-west London.

Police today launched an appeal for information relating to the attack, as well as another bus assault in the same area on the same day. The second incident left a 34-year-old man with limited vision for weeks after the attack.

Scotland Yard said the girl, aged between 13 and 15 with long blonde hair, boarded a route 427 towards Hayes with a group of friends at Hillingdon Hill shortly after 1.30pm on October 4.

She began to argue with the bus driver and when the victim tried to intervene the girl grabbed her by the hair and punched her in the head, police said.

She was restrained by fellow passengers, allowing the 35-year-old to get off the bus, but as the victim sought refuge the teen is said to have pursued her before launching a bottle at her face. She was treated for a cut and given stitches.

Police wish to speak to this man in connection with a second incident / Metropolitan Police

In the early hours of the same day, a 34-year-old man was punched repeatedly until he was unconscious on a route N207 bus on Uxbridge Road. He was left with limited vision for weeks after the attack, police said.

The suspect, who fled the scene before police arrived, is described as a white man, aged between 20 and 25, of slim build, with short curly hair and a scruffy beard.

Police said the two incidents were not linked.

Contact Detective Constable Alastair Middleton on 07909 877121 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 with any information.
P olice are hunting a man who assaulted a fellow passenger on a bus in north London.

Officers want to trace a man seen on camera attacking a passenger before allegedly robbing two other passengers on board.

The victim, a 44-year-old man, was waiting to get off the bus when the suspect punched him in the face. He sustained a bloody nose in the attack.

The suspect then re-boarded the bus armed with an object and attempted to attack the victim again, who used his rucksack to protect himself.

Other passengers shouted at the suspect who then ran away.

Moments later, two other passengers, aged 24 and 28, got off the same bus and were assaulted and robbed of their mobile phones by the same suspect.

The 24-year-old victim was taken to hospital suffering cuts to his head, which required stitches.

Officers from the Brent Safer Transport Team released the footage of the incident that took place on board the route N18 bus from Piccadilly to Wembley, early in the morning on the 11th of June last year.

The suspect is described as a Middle Eastern man, aged in his 20s, with short dark hair and a goatee beard. He wore a camouflage hat and dark clothing.

Anyone with information can call 020 8733 3856, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
T he disappearance of a young woman 15 years ago is now being treated by police as a possible kidnap-murder.

Iwona Kaminska vanished four days after she arriving in London for the first time in July 2000 aged 20. She had just moved to the capital from Poland to see friends and improve her English.

On Friday, Scotland Yard announced it was offering a 10,000 reward as part of a fresh appeal for information into her disappearance. Officers believe was kidnapped and possibly murdered.

In an emotional appeal launched on what would have been Ms Kaminska's 36th birthday, her devastated family said they had "endured 15 years of heartache" and urged anyone with information to come forward.

Speaking from his home town in Moliborzyce, Poland, her "devoted" father, Jan Kaminski; said: "Iwona was excited to be visiting London to see friends and improve her English language.

"She was in constant contact with her family and adored her brother and sister. No contact from Iwona was out of character and we instantly knew something had happened to her. Someone took her from us all those years ago and we need answers to move forward with our lives.

Cold case: Iwona was last seen more than 15 years ago / Metropolitan Police

"Today is Iwona's birthday and she should be celebrating turning 36. Instead of celebrating we have spent 15 years longing to hear from our lovely daughter."

According to police Ms Kaminska arrived in London on 9 July 2000, for what was her first visit to the country, and began lodging with a friend near the Arndale Centre in Wandsworth.

She was last seen on CCTV four days later as she made her way to work a Polish-owned business in Hammersmith.

It is thought her route home would have taken her from her workplace on King Street, Hammersmith, to Hammersmith bus station where she would usually have taken the 220 bus to the Arndale Centre in Wandsworth.

At the time Ms Kaminska was described as being white, 5ft 2in tall, with light-brown, curly shoulder-length hair. She was of slim build and was last seen wearing dark-coloured trousers, black shoes and a dark green knee-length jacket and carrying a small black leather handbag.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact the Met's Incident Room on 020 7230 4294 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
S cotland Yards cyber crime unit today launched an inquiry into suspected fraudsters who set up a fake fundraising campaign for murdered university lecturer Daniel Young.

The scammers launched an online campaign to help raise money for the funeral costs for 30-year-old Mr Young, who was stabbed to death as he walked to work on Tuesday morning.

The appeal raised 580 of its 3,000 target in less than 24 hours and had been shared more than 70 times before it was taken down.

Morden stabbing - crime scene

Detectives branded the appeal despicable and the Yards Falcon cyber crime unit launched an inquiry into the page which was establish without the familys knowledge.

It is believed the Gofundme page may have been set up by San Diego-based scammers after the account used to create it was traced to the US city.

Among the people who have donated are former The Bill actor Ben Peyton, who lives in Morden, and people who say they went to school with Mr Young.

The development came as detectives are questioning a second suspect in connection with the murder.

A huge police operation was launched following the attack / Mark Chandler

The 35-year-old man was arrested yesterday on suspicion of stabbing the lecturer as he took a short cut through a park to Morden tube station.

Mr Young, who had started his dream job at Coventry Universitys London campus in the City on Monday, was fatally wounded in a seemingly random attack at around 8am.

A post-mortem examination at St Georges Hospital last night gave a cause of death as a stab wound. Police declined to comment on where the wound was located.

Homicide detectives were today still trying to establish a motive for the killing and are keeping an open mind as to whether he was attacked by a stranger or someone known to him.

Detectives continued to appeal for information from witnesses  including people who came across Mr Young and battled in vain to save him before paramedics arrived.

Detectives investigating Mr Youngs murder had previously arrested a 26-year-old man on suspicion of wasting police time and he was subsequently arrested on suspicion of murder.

He was bailed on Wednesday until a later date.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact the incident room on 020 8721 4961 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
A 14-year-old boy has been arrested in connection with an attempted arson on a bus in south London.

Detectives from the Mets roads and transport policing command said the teenager from New Addington was held on Wednesday and has since been referred to a youth offending team.

The arrest comes after police appealed for information following an attempted arson on a route T31 bus on Field Way in Croydon at 7.45pm on Sunday, September 6.

Police said they are seeking to identify another teenager, believed to be aged between 14 and 16 years old, and have reissued a CCTV image of him.

Anyone with information should contact Detective Constable Alastair Middleton on 07909 877121 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, quoting reference 3826214/15.
F our men and a woman have today been jailed for a total of 45 years for their roles in the manufacture and supply of illegal firearms and ammunition.

Aaron Murray and Uzair Patel were arrested in Bishops Avenue, Newham, on June 16 last year after officers found a 9mm self-loading pistol in the footwell of the minicab they were travelling in.

Patel was also found to be in possession of a bottle of ammonia.

An investigation found that Murray, 28, of Witley Point, Wandsworth, was buying old weapons and reactivating them at a workshop.

Bartec Pawlowski, who owned the workshop, was later arrested after it was found the group were using his skills from the Polish army to reactive guns.

Judge Graham Arran said Pawlowski, who denied the charges against him saying he was under duress, was recruited because he was in debt and perhaps frequently drunk.

You were not acting under duress or pressure from any other person, the judge added.

As detectives probed the manufacturing of the weapons, officers found Ishamael Brown, who was behind bars at Rochester Prison, and his partner Caitlin Adams were also involved.

Brown was found to be using an illegal mobile phone from his cell to source the weapons and sell them onwards to the criminal underworld.

Judge Arran, sitting at Harrow Crown Court, said Brown was the leading light in the operation.

Adams, mother to Browns six-year-old child, then collected the deactivated weapons from across the country and delivered them to the workshop for them to be reactivated.

Judge Arran said Adams became involved in the scheme because she was attracted by the apparent glamour of firearms and their illegality.

Between January and June last year, more than 40 guns, including an AK-47 style assault rifle were sourced by the gang.

Police said only eight reactivated guns linked to the group had been found.

A sixth person  Ehsen Abdul-Razak, who was also serving at HMP Rochester  was also found to be using an illegal mobile phone from his cell and acted as a middleman, brokering the deal between Murray and Patel, Judge Arran said.

Sentencing, the judge said: The conspiracy was in fact a simple one. It involved the acquisition of de-activated and therefore legal firearms and reactivating them.

The reactivated firearms were test fired. The test firings were filmed and those films must have been intended for promotional use.

The firearms were then sold on into the criminal world.

Brown was today jailed for 12 years after previously pleading guilty to conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons. His girlfriend, Adams of Campshill Road, Lewisham, was found guilty of conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Pawlowski, 42, of Thornsett Road, Wandsworth, was also found guilty of conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and sentenced to a total of 13 years imprisonment.

Patel, 28, of Abbey Road, Newham, and Abdul-Razak, 19, both pleaded guilty to the same charge and were each jailed for five years.

Murray, who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons, will be sentenced at a date in March pending psychiatric reports.

Detective Constable Claire Gentles, from the Trident and Area Crime Command, said: "The firearms and ammunition this gang converted had the potential to cause great harm on the streets of London and there is no doubt that the Capital is a safer place as a result of the network being dismantled.

The sentencing of Caitlin Adams should serve as a warning to others of the grave consequences of storing and transporting guns for others."
A man has been given three life sentences after he shot an innocent woman when he opened fire inside a busy south London barber's shop.

Joel Johnson, 27, of Baildon Street, Deptford, was sentenced at the Old Bailey on Friday and will serve a minimum of 14 years in jail.

Detectives launched an investigation last May after a 38-year-old woman was shot in the leg while sitting in a busy barbers on Rotherhithe New Road.

What started as a fight between several men outside the shop then continued inside, as Johnson appeared in the doorway and produced a gun before he opened fire.

The bullet passed through the womans leg and was later found on the floor. She was taken to hospital where she was treated for her injuries.

Johnson was arrested in June on suspicion of attempted murder and possession of a firearm. He was later charged with numerous gun offences.

In December he was found guilty at the Old Bailey of attempted murder, wounding with intent and possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.

He had previously pleaded guilty at the same court to possession of a firearm and ammunition in September, and was sentenced to seven years and three years to run concurrently.

Detective Inspector Maria Harris, from the Met's Trident and Area Crime Command, said: "Johnson has a history of violence and is a very dangerous man. On that day in May he fired a gun into a crowded shop without a care for who he may injure. It is fortunate that no one was killed that afternoon.

"Detectives from Trident continue to work hard to arrest those individuals who carry guns and threaten violence on the capital's streets.

"Today's sentencing reflects how seriously the courts take this behaviour and should stand as a warning to those who carry out these reckless and dangerous crimes."

Scotland Yard has continued its appeal for information to trace another man following the fight at the barbers shop and said the investigation is ongoing.

Detectives said they would like to speak to Igho Ejeta, 29, from south London or anyone who knows of his whereabouts.

Anyone with information should call police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
N ew average-speed cameras are raking in almost 100,000 per month from drivers on one of the capitals busiest roads.

The cheat-proof traps were placed at 32 sites on an 11-mile stretch of the A40 in west London.

They are catching almost 1,000 motorists a month, the Standard can reveal, and there are plans to widen the scheme  despite angry claims that the cameras are simply a Treasury cash cow and that the public was not adequately informed in advance.

The devices were activated at the end of October between the Polish War Memorial and the Westway flyover. Previously fixed-spot cameras were in use at seven sites.

By measuring average rates of travel, the new system prevents speeders evading detection by braking as they approach a camera.

'Cheat proof': The traps have been placed at 32 sites on an 11-mile stretch of the A40 / Glenn Copus

A total of 958 offenders were caught in the first month after the devices went live.

Speeders are fined 100 and given at least three penalty points on their licence, depending on how fast they are clocked.

Transport for London said the cameras  which it is extending to the A2, A316 and A406 North Circular Road later this year  would cut deaths and serious injuries.

Trap: The devices measure average speeds / Glenn Copus

But it faced accusations of failing to give sufficient warning of the cameras presence amid suspicions they are a revenue-raiser for the Treasury, which receives proceeds from fines.

London Assembly member Murad Qureshi, who raised concerns with Mayor Boris Johnson when the cameras were first proposed, told the Standard: It does appear to be a cash-cow for the authorities  and done without much public notification.

Its not obvious the change has been made at all. Ive no problem about getting drivers to kill their speed but this has been done behind their backs without telling them what is happening.

Barrie Segal, who runs the parking tickets website AppealNow.com, said: I hate speeders and if this scheme reduces road deaths that is very welcome  but if its done cynically to raise funds I would be rather concerned.

A Freedom of Information request by the Standard to the Metropolitan Police revealed that 1,303 notices of intended prosecution were issued between October 26 and December 30, including the 958 in November.

Drivers were clocked at up to 90mph. The A40 has 40mph and 50mph speed limits. The elevated Westway section between North Wharf Road and Bramley Road attracted most fines  305 over the first two months.

Average-speed cameras were introduced in London on the A13 in 2010 and halved road deaths or serious injuries in the subsequent 18 months.

TfL said a similar effect on the A40 would prevent 31 deaths or serious injuries over the next three years.

The Mayor wants to halve the road casualty rate by 2020. A total of 127 people died and 2,040 were seriously injured by London crashes in 2014, the lowest numbers on record. TfLs head of strategy and outcome planning, Lilli Matson, said: These 1,303 offences show just how important average-speed cameras are for the safety of all road users and highlight how many drivers are taking unnecessary risks.

By upgrading the safety cameras on the A40  and with those planned later this year on the A406, A316 and A2  we are ensuring London stays at the forefront of road safety innovation.

Average-speed cameras will go live on the North Circular between Hanger Lane and Bounds Green Road and on the A316 between the M3 and Hogarth roundabout in early summer, then on the A2 from the Blackwall tunnel to the Black Prince interchange in late September.
F irst they took over east London, now the hipsters are occupying the bestseller lists. Ladybirds series of adult books, including guides to the Hipster and Mindfulness, took over the Christmas bestseller charts and are maintaining an iron grip in 2016. Last weeks Sunday Times hardback non-fiction list showed Ladybird books occupying numbers one to five, seven and nine, leaving little room for any non-retro-illustrated works of more than 50 pages.

Other publishers are not happy. Victoria Hislop, at Daisy Dunns book launch last night, told The Londoner that there are grumblings in the publishing world about Penguins dominance  its worth noting that positions six, eight and 10 on that list are published by Penguin Random House imprints such as Doubleday and Virgin.

Hardly surprising: Penguins 2.4 billion merger with Random House in 2013 created the worlds largest publisher. It sparked fear from smaller indies that they would be pushed to one side. Their fears appear to have been justified. Literary agent Clare Conville, of Conville & Walsh, agents for Andrea Wulfs lauded Humboldt biography The Invention of Nature, notes that the saga doesnt do Penguin much credit. However, from a strategic and financial point of view, its worked very well for them.

Ladybird is publishing more hilarious books this year, starting with How It Works: The Mum in February. That means other potential contenders such as Simon Sebag Montefiores forthcoming book The Romanovs  publisher, awkwardly enough, Penguin  might languish in the second division.

Might we suggest a Ladybird Book of Losing Friends and Alienating Authors? Though that may seem like referencing Toby Youngs similarly titled book  and Penguin would never borrow someone elses idea.

***

How does Tim Peake find the time to do his job when hes constantly on Twitter, talking to the Queen or watching Star Wars? Certainly, he cant have much time for small talk with his fellow cosmonauts. Which is just as well, given that the British-Russian relationship that blossomed when Peake shot off into space with Yuri Malenchenko has been overshadowed by the latest Litvinenko revelations. Could be a bit chilly out in space now ...

Time for Cherie to have the last word

Since this decades most anticipated blockbuster, the Chilcot report, may not be released any time soon, The Londoner has learnt that some have decided to take matters into their own hands.

Tony Blair shouldnt worry too much, though  hes not in for another attempted citizens arrest. Instead, the cases for and against his actions will be made at the Emmanuel Centre, by David Aaronovitch and Tom Bower.

Intelligence Squareds Tony Blair on Trial will seek to get the last word on Blairs legacy, with an audience vote at the end and each side being allowed to bring in expert witnesses. Those names, however, havent been announced yet  should Cherie Blair take to the stand? She is a barrister, after all...

The creme of the social scene

Who hasnt Sexy Fish reeled in? The Berkeley Square restaurant opened last October and seems to have welcomed most of Londons social scene. But last night, on the off-chance that a few VIPs were yet to taste its seafood fare, it hosted a dinner for beauty brand Creme de la Mer. Guests included model Daisy Lowe and TV presenter Donna Air. Because who better to extol the virtues of your face cream than women too young and gorgeous to need it?

Dunns bash was all Greek to Boris

Last night The Londoner tripped along to Peter Harringtons Rare Books shop at 43 Dover Street, where the comely classicist Daisy Dunn was launching two books to stir the heart of many a dusty old scholar. The double launch was for The Poems of Catullus and Catullus Bedspread, one a series of translations and the second a biography of the romantic, and ultimately lovelorn Roman poet.

Daisy Dunn and Victoria Hislop: Picture by Iona Wolff

Even her editor raised the odd eyebrow when she said Dunns book had captured the attentions because of her writing style, her wit and her beauty. Guests at the party included childrens author Philip Womack, broadcaster Michael Cockerell and writer Harry Eyres.

Boris Johnson, who can rattle out a fair bit of Latin and Greek, was due to attend but failed to make a note of the address  a shame, since were sure he must have deployed a bit of Catullus in pursuit of the ladies once. He also missed Dunn speaking poetically about writing her book, including the time she was pedalled around Rome on a bicycle by a charming Italian called Alessandro  unfortunately it wasnt built for two.

***

A stellar line-up at the Jaipur Literature Festival, where guests included Margaret Atwood, Colm Toibin and Stephen Fry. Toibin is in the limelight now as the adaptation of his novel Brooklyn is up for an Oscar. Ive seen it six times in the cinema so far, he said. Nick Hornby changed the ending, and his ending always makes me cry. Hopefully hell be smiling come awards season.

A Downton kind of Lear

To the Donmar Warehouses rehearsal base last night for the launch of a film from the Primary Shakespeare Company to integrate Shakespeare across the curriculum.

For patron Hugh Bonneville, right, a love of the Bard can set you up for life. I can remember the very moment I first saw a Shakespeare play, he recalled. It was A Midsummer Nights Dream. I cant have been more than eight but I remember the visual impact. And then my first job was at the Regents Park Open Air Theatre, understudying for Ralph Fiennes in... A Midsummer Nights Dream. Before I get too old I might try out Benedict in Much Ado, he said. Not King Lear? Ive practically done that with Downton, he laughed.

A wealthy man with three daughters, worrying about inheritance? Julian Fellowes surely owes Shakespeare a dedication...

Career move of the day to former News of the World editor Andy Coulson, who is setting up a PR agency offering communications advice. Rule 1: change your voicemail password.
F ormer Conservative leader Lord Howard today poured cold water on David Camerons chances of securing major reforms in Europe, saying it was not looking very likely.

He said he would vote for an exit from the European Union unless Mr Cameron achieved genuine reforms in his negotiations with other leaders.

His comments fuelled hopes among Leave campaigners that the peer, a popular figure with Tories, would play a major part in the in-out referendum battle. They come after Mr Cameron hinted that a deal was slipping behind schedule by insisting he was in no hurry to get one signed up at a summit next month.

Asked on BBC Radio 4 how he would vote, Lord Howard said he would decide after seeing what Mr Cameron brought home from the talks: I have always wanted the United Kingdom to remain in a genuinely reformed European Union. It is not looking very likely, I have to say, that we are going to see a genuinely-reformed European Union.

Former Tory leader Lord Howard / (Toby Melville/Reuters)

He added: I have great respect and admiration for the Prime Minister. He may surprise us.

But Lord Howard said he had a lot of sympathy with those urging an exit unless there was significant reform.

Mr Camerons proposal for a four-year ban on EU migrants claiming in-work benefits in the UK has become the main sticking point in talks, although Germanys Angela Merkel has said she believes a deal can be struck.

Frances premier Manuel Valls today warned the massive influx of migrants from Syria and Iraq was putting the future of the European Union in grave danger. He said European societies could be totally destabilised unless tighter controls were put up at the EUs external borders to keep unfounded refugees out.

It could disappear, of course  the European project, not Europe itself, not our values, but the concept we have of Europe, that the founding fathers had of Europe. Yes, that is in very grave danger. Thats why you need border guards, border controls on the external borders of the European Union.

In an interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Mr Valls made clear he thought Mrs Merkel had been wrong to say her country would welcome so many refugees...A message that says Come, you will be welcome provokes major shifts of population. If you say anything in Europe today, a few seconds later it is on the smartphones of people in refugee camps near Libya.

Mr Cameron will hold talks in Prague with the Czech premier and president in an effort to win support for his reforms.
Yes indeed, this morning spare a thought for the long-suffering members of the Castleton PROBUS club who yesterday had to sit through one of my military history talks. Dammit, they were good, only about a third of them nodded off! The subject of my talk was the Austerlitz campaign of 1805 which, even with me droning on, is one of the very greatest battles ever fought in which I must admit, through gritted teeth, that Corsican thug, Bonaparte, earned his place amongst the Great Captains of History.

Consider, his army of around 200,000 men were all encamped up around the Boulogne- Calais area glaring across those irritating 22 miles of sea that kept them from dealing with les rosbifs once and for all. The news arrives that with the help of British gold the Russians and Austrians had been induced to form yet another coalition (of sorts) against La France. Within a month he had marched those 200,000 men down to the lower reaches of the Rhine - imagine trying to organise that in the days before radios, telephones and computers! He then executed a sweeping left hook around and behind an Austrian army of 30,000 in the city of Ulm and captured the lot!

Then he marched up the Danube chasing an approaching Russian army away and captured Vienna forcing the emperor of Austria to go north up to Olmutz and cry on the shoulder of his ally the emperor of Russia. Not satisfied with that, Bonaparte then decided to force the issue with the Russians and the remaining Austrians by advancing to the area near the village of Austerlitz which provided him with the perfect battlefield.

Dominated by a huge plateau called the Pratzen Heights he stationed a measly 50,000 men on top of it. He then invited the 'allies' to attend truce talks on the Heights and he made sure that they had the chance to look around and see how few men he had compared to the 85,000 they had. They swallowed the bait, the truce talks were called off and the allies advanced up onto the Pratzen confident of an 'easy-peasy' victory. Imagine their surprise to find that the French had actually withdrawn off the heights and were formed up below with the bulk of their forces to the north and their southern flank weakly protected by just a few formations thinly spread out.

The two emperors rubbed their hands with glee but they should have remembered that old saying to the effect that if something is too good to be true it's because its untrue! Anyway, they determined that on December 2 they would march the bulk of their troops of the Pratzen Heights in a huge left hook, drive through the skimpy French flank and come up behind the bulk of the French army in the north. What they didn't see was an entire Corps of French troops marching as fast as possible up from Vienna which, as the day wore on would feed more and more troops into the southern French flank. Nor did they see Bernadotte's Corps which, when the Pratzen Heights were vacated, joined a French advance back up the hill smashing the Allied centre. Those troops then began their own swing round to the right coming up behind the Allied left which had now become the meat in the sandwich.

The Russians and Austrians had been well and truly sucker-punched and within days their coalition had dissolved and peace was made. Incidentally, yet another example, given our massive contributions to the EU, of British gold being totally wasted in Europe! Still, you have to hand it to Bonaparte, the battle of Austerlitz put him up there with Hannibal who at Cannae in 216BC with an army of 50k annihilated a Roman army of 80k.

Oh for goodness sake - WAKE UP AT THE BACK THERE!
S enior Labour figures today warned Jeremy Corbyn of a potential haemorrhage of voters to Ukip this summer if the partys leader fails to address the concerns of traditional supporters.

Former ministers said if Labour does not correctly pitch its EU referendum campaign, voters in its heartlands who want to leave Europe may desert Mr Corbyn.

It comes amid concern that Labour could lose up to 200 council seats in Mays local elections, with the London mayoralty and power in devolved assemblies also at risk. Labours leadership team is already reeling from infighting that saw one of Mr Corbyns top aides quit this week.

Warnings over the referendums aftermath came today from Labour figures on both sides of the In or Out EU divide. Ex-Home Office minister David Hanson wants Labour to campaign to remain in, but said: Its also important we recognise Labour voters will potentially wish to vote to leave.

Its conceivable that post-referendum all the main parties could have a substantial part of their core vote disappointed with the outcome we need to ensure Labour voters remain Labour voters. Labour is haunted by the aftermath of the Scottish independence referendum when many supporters switched to the SNP, angry that Labour campaigned with the Tories to maintain the Union.

Concerns something similar may occur in England after the EU referendum were stoked by a party report this week highlighting how Ukip has established a strong position in traditional Labour areas. MP Graham Stringer said it was essential Labour did not go into the referendum campaigning to stay in Europe no matter what.

The former Cabinet Office minister, part of the Labour Leave campaign, said: Nearly half of Labour voters want out, so there is a huge danger. If a political party does not represent large numbers of its supporters, those supporters make a judgement that the party isnt what they thought it was and they may shift. He urged Mr Corbyn to make Labours EU support conditional on a better deal, to make a haemorrhage of voters less likely.

Mr Corbyns head of policy, Neale Coleman, has quit after apparently clashing with press chief Seumas Milne.Party insiders claim a pro-Ken Livingstone group is battling for power with a camp led by shadow chancellor John McDonnell.
A former Russian spy accused of poisoning Alexander Litvinenko today branded a public inquirys conclusions nonsense  as a senior MP predicted the suspect would not risk returning to the UK.

Ex-KGB bodyguard Andrei Lugovoi derided the inquiry into the killing of Mr Litvinenko, who was poisoned with radioactive Polonium 210.

Its chairman Sir Robert Owen concluded yesterday that Russian President Vladimir Putin probably signed off the assassination. Lugovoi, who was named with Dmitri Kovtun as the killer, told the BBC: Ive seen the nonsense conclusions of your judge who has clearly gone mad.

I saw nothing new there. I am very sorry that 10 years on nothing new has been presented, only invention, supposition, rumours.

However the comments by Lugovoi, now a Russian lawmaker, appear un-likely to sway many MPs after the inquiry detailed a trail of radioactive contamination at hotels, restaurants and Arsenals Emirates stadium, which he visited before the poisoning. Conservative MP Crispin Blunt, chairman of the Commons foreign affairs committee said: All the evidence suggests he cant clear his name and it was clear Lugovoi would not put himself at risk by coming to the UK to face trial.

Inquest: Alexander Litvinenko (Picture: Reuters)

The Kremlin has refused to extradite Lugovoi or Kovtun and the inquirys conclusions sent a fresh chill through Anglo-Russian relations.

It found the two men laced a pot of tea with Polonium 210 which Mr Litvinenko  a critic of Mr Putin who was himself a former FSB spy and was believed to be a consultant to MI6  drank at a meeting at the Millennium Hotel in Mayfair in 2006.

Russian President Vladimir Putin / Maxim Shipenkov/Reuters

Today his widow Marina, 53, who campaigned to prove the Russian state was behind the murder, said she was driven by the need to be able to explain what happened to their son Anatoly, who was 12 when his father died.

She told the Standard: When you know you have a son who will ask one day What happened to my father? I realised it would be necessary to do this. First responsibility is to be a mother, every time. Her lawyer Ben Emmerson QC accused Mr Putin of conspiracy to murder and said criminal proceedings against him could also happen in the future.

History shows us political sands shift and people who seem invincible one year suddenly find themselves on the end of a criminal indictment, he added. Mr Putin is not in a position to sit comfortably. One day, however long it takes, there is a very strong risk he will face justice.

Anatoly attended City of London School for Boys before studying east European politics at University College London, where he is due to graduate this year.

The family lived in a rented three-bedroom house in Muswell Hill but were forced to move when it was contaminated by Mr Litvinenkos poisoning, which the Health Protection Agency told them would cost 300,000 to clean.
T he failure of law enforcers to seize enough profits from criminal Mr Bigs is to be probed in an official parliamentary inquiry that was launched today.

The home affairs committee says its proceeds of crime investigation will examine weaknesses in how confiscation orders are enforced and gaps in legislation that make it easier for criminals to keep illicit gains.

It will assess the need for new laws and whether harsher penalties for non-payment should be imposed to boost the sums seized from offenders.

Committee chairman Keith Vaz said the inquiry  which follows revelations by the Standard on how crime bosses avoid repaying their profits  was being launched due to concern about flaws in the existing system for depriving crooks of their gains.

He said the aim is to find better ways of ensuring crime does not pay and to recommend new measures that will enable millions of pounds more to be recouped for victims and taxpayers.

Measures to deprive criminals of their proceeds has long been a point of frustration for the police and other agencies, added Mr Vaz.

Officers are often forced to watch as loopholes in the system are exploited. It is crucial authorities can put forward a message that crime does not pay.

This inquiry will investigate weaknesses in the current system  including the limited use of confiscation orders, poor data-sharing and enforcement  to identify how we can prevent Mr Bigs benefiting from their victims.

Mr Vaz said the committee was also prompted to hold the inquiry by the findings of a National Audit Office report which exposed the inadequacies of confiscation order enforcement.

These included poor IT systems, a lack of knowledge by law enforcers on relevant legislation and the failure of different government agencies to share data about cases adequately.

Mr Vaz said figures obtained by the Standard revealing 178 major offenders owe 675 million between them further highlighted the need for reform.

Written evidence will now be sought before parliamentary hearings at which ministers, lawyers, police, accountants and other experts are set to testify.

The problem of recovering criminals profits was highlighted recently by a National Crime Agency appeal for information about the hidden wealth of 15 convicted crime bosses with large unpaid confiscation orders.

They include former Notting Hill drug baron Karl Pettitt, who boasted of living in a very high-profile area of Madrid close to the home of David and Victoria Beckham funded by his illegal gains.

He is serving 15 years in jail after his 2007 conviction for importing 12 million of cocaine for distribution in London  but has not repaid a penny of his 1 million confiscation order. He owes 1.5 million due to interest charges.

Convicted London drug gang broker Wattie Soutter, 74, saw just 815 of his vast profits recovered and his confiscation order debt is now 3.2 million.
B affled detectives are trying to establish the identity of a smartly-dressed pensioner who was found dead on a remote hillside 24 hours after catching a rush-hour train from Ealing Broadway.

At 9.07am on December 11, amid a bustling crowd of commuters, the man with black slip-on shoes and receding grey hair bought a one-way ticket from the west London suburb to Euston station.

At 10.45am the following day he was found dead, lying face up with his arms by his sides, on the bleak slope of Indians Head, 200 miles away in the Pennines.

The mystery of the mans final pilgrimage has sparked what detectives today called one of the most unusual investigations in living memory.

Sgt John Coleman said: Ive been doing this job for a long, long time and I have never known anything like it.

Its sad really. There might be family who dont know hes dead.

Meticulous research over the course of past seven weeks has uncovered the mans last known movements as he travelled from London to the windswept spot overlooking Saddleworth moor, the infamous 1960s burial site of four victims of Ian Brady and Myra Hindley.

From Euston, he bought an 81 return to Manchesters main Piccadilly station, where he was captured on CCTV making an inquiry at the ticket desk at 12.07pm.

He made his way  probably by taxi - to the tiny village of Greenfield on the edge of the Peak District, near Oldham.

At 2pm He stopped off in a pub, politely asking the landlord how do I get to the top of that mountain?, pointing through the mist to the 1,500ft peak. The astonished landlord urged him not to try.

As darkness fell he was seen by a walker on the narrow track to the summit, his heavy brown jacket pulled tight against the wind and driving rain.

His body was found by a mountain biker on a muddy track the following day. In his pockets were twelve 10 notes, the used train tickets and the return to London that would never be punched.

There were no signs of injury, and all indications are that he simply lay down and died.

Detectives in Manchester have now turned to Scotland Yard to help fill in the gaps and allow the mans family to be told of his passing and attend his funeral.

He was in his 70s, white, slim, clean-shaved and had a large nose which may once have been broken. He wore a blue jumper over his white collared shirt, and blue corduroy trousers.

No documents, scars, marks or tattoos were found on his body. His DNA was checked and no match found against a series of databases.

Checks of missing person databases also yielded no clues as to his identity, and nor did enquiries with hospitals around west London. A post-mortem examination proved inconclusive and further toxicology tests are being carried out to establish a cause of death.

Detective Inspector Ian Harratt, Greater Manchester Police, has moved the focus of the investigation to London.

He said: We do not know if this man is local or if he is visiting the area, but we are hoping that someone will realise this man is missing and contact police.

Although we have had several phone calls from people with possible identifications for the deceased man from missing people around the country, which we are very grateful for, we have been able to rule these out as they are not the same person.

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 0161 856 8972 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
T hree Muslims and a Sikh are seeking $11 million damages against a US airline after claiming they were kicked off a flight because of their appearance.

The US citizens are suing American Airlines and its regional partner Republic Airlines after they said they were told to disembark from a flight from Toronto to New York on December 8.

In an 18-page lawsuit the four friends allege they were asked to leave the flight because the captain and crew "felt uneasy and uncomfortable with their presence on the flight".

They said the flight refused to take off unless they were ejected from the plane.

The student and three professionals of Bengali, Syrian and Punjabi descent claim they suffered discrimination, financial injury, humiliation, mental pain as a result of action taken by the airline.

The lawsuit accuses the defendants of "malicious," "wanton" and "callous" behavior that "showed reckless disregard" for the men's civil rights.

The friends were returning to New York from birthday celebrations in Canada.

The lawsuit seeks $1 million compensation each from American Airlines, Republic Airlines, Envoy Air and American Eagle, and $5 million in punitive damages - totalling $11 million, a member of staff at the Aboushi Law Firm told AFP.

American Airlines declined to comment.
A flight from London to Stockholm was forced to make an emergency landing today after a bomb threat.

The 72-passenger Scandinavian Airlines flight SK1530 from Heathrow was diverted to Gothenburg and a bomb squad was called in to search the plane.

According to police, the threat was made to air traffic controllers while the flight was in the air.

British racing driver Tom Onslow-Cole, who was on the plane, tweeted: Plane came down quickly, parked straight up at the end of the runway.

"Soooo, it was a bomb threat/scare. We are all safe and off the plane, big shout out to the pilot and crew for keeping their cool!"

Passenger Sam Barrett was travelling to the city with family for his 21st birthday. He said: "We were one hour away from Stockholm when the pilot announced that we were going to land at Gothenburg due to technical reasons.

"The plane landed and stopped alone at the top of the runway. We could see emergency services coming towards us and my dad told me it was likely a bomb threat.

A bomb threat brought our plane down.. Now we have to wait pic.twitter.com/EKHkSPJRaB  Sam Barrett (@TheBarrettR) January 22, 2016

"Everyone was calm and confused. Passengers opened up their news apps and found out that there was a bomb scare.

"The pilot and first officer officially told us it was a bomb threat sometime after we evacuated, inside a waiting area.

"Everyone seemed to accept it pretty much. Obviously we were disgruntled but there was nothing we could do."

The flight landed at Landvetter Airport around 10am local time.
T he brother of murdered hostage David Haines today backed a memorial for Britons killed by terrorists overseas which may be put up in London.

Ministers suggest it could be located either in Westminster or the National Arboretum in Staffordshire, though another area has not been ruled out.

Aid worker Mr Haines, 44, was the first Briton beheaded in Islamic State videos featuring Londoner Mohammed Emwazi, known as Jihadi John, who was killed in a US air strike in Syria in November. Mr Haines brother Mike said: We have been devastated by my brothers loss and know that other families have been affected in the same way. I would say to them, come and join us, be part of this memorial.

Share the grief and help celebrate the lives of those cut short by terrorism.

Foreign Office minister for counter-terrorism Tobias Ellwood, who lost his brother Jonathan in the Bali bombings in 2002, added: Sadly, there are victims of terrorism whose families do not have a place where they can grieve. It is therefore appropriate that we have a national memorial for those caught up in terrorism abroad. These people must never be forgotten.

A memorial to the Bali bombing victims was unveiled in 2006. It is situated at the Clive Steps, near the King Charles Street entrance of the Foreign Office.

The Government is now consulting on where to locate the new memorial, which will remember the 30 Britons killed by an Islamist fanatic on a beach in Tunisia last summer, as well as victims of other attacks
A t least two people have died after a shooting at a school in Canada, according to reports.

Police are responding to a "serious incident" at the La Loche Community School in Saskatchewan, which has been placed on lock down.

Teddy Clark, the chief of Clearwater River Dene Nation, told the local newspaper that at least two people had died but police have not confirmed it.

He told the Saskatoon StarPhoenix: The community usually pulls together really strong in times like this. Right now, La Loche is devastated,

It was also reported the suspect behind the incident is in custody.

Parents are reportedly forming crowds outside the school to see if their children have been hurt.

A statement on the school's Facebook page said the public have been told to stay clear until the scene is safe.

It reads: "There is currently an emergency occurring at the Dene Building and we are asking the public to stay away while the matter is resolved by the RCMP.

"The elementary school is also under a lock down which will not be lifted until we hear that it is safe from the La Loche RCMP.

"We will not be allowing anyone in or out until we have a clear idea of what is going on."

Brad Wall, premier of Saskatchewan, wrote on Facebook:"Words cannot express my shock and sorrow at the horrific events today in La Loche. My thoughts and prayers are with all the victims, their families and friends and all the people of the community."

In an emailed statement the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said: "Parents and community members are asked to not attend the Dene High School at this time due to the active, ongoing incident. Parents only are asked to attend the Ducharme Elementary School on Mission Street in La Loche.

"We are in the preliminary stages of investigation. Further details will be provided as they become available."
C onvicted murderer Stephen Avery has sent a three-page letter from behind bars protesting his innocence to an American journalist.

Avery, who is the subject of Netflix series Making a Murderer, was convicted in 2007 of killing photographer Teresa Halbach.

He was previously jailed for 18 years for sexual assault, but was cleared in 2003 after new DNA evidence showed he had no involvement in the attack.

Avery protested his innocence to both crimes throughout the documentary series but was handed a life sentence after being found guilty of murder by a jury.

The Netflix series became a must-watch across the globe and WISN 12 news reporter Colleen Henry wrote to Avery to see if he would talk about how the documentary affected him.

Ms Henry received a three-page handwritten response from Avery on January 21, within which he continued to maintain his innocence.

In a statement alongside the note, Avery said: The real killer is still out there. Who is he stalking now?

I am really innocent of this case and that is the truth!!! The truth will set me free!!!!!

Avery also said he would be willing to do a television interview, but the Department for Corrections said it will not allow it.

WISN 12 reported Avery launched an appeal last week to claim that his property was illegally searched, asked for a retrial and to be released from prison.

The state said Avery was a flight risk and should not be released from custody, the television station reported.
A t least 42 migrants are reported to have drowned in two separate shipwrecks off the coast of Greece.

Up to 100 people were thought to have been on one of the boats, which sunk overnight near to the Greek islet of Kalolimnos, prompting fears the death toll will rise.

Eleven children were among the 34 people drowned.

Forty migrants made it to shore and one girl was rescued from the second shipwreck off Farmakonisi but a further eight died when the boat went down close to the Greek island.

More than 700 people have died making the Aegean crossing from Turkey to Greece in the last 12 months. More than one million migrants arrived illegally in Europe last year.

Today, German Chancellor Angela Merkel is meeting Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Berlin to discuss the crisis.

Cabinet ministers from both countries will be in attendance.

Germany is already rethinking its open-door policy, partly because of outrage over assaults on women in Cologne at New Year.

Thousands of migrants - many of them Syrian war refugees - still arrive daily from Turkey.
Dispossed salt miners along the Keta lagoon

By Duke Nii Amartey Tagoe

It has happened again! The pillage goes on and on. The Keta Lagoon in the Volta Region has been handed over to a salt mining company for $30,000 (Thirty Thousand Dollars).





The deal between the Ghana Minerals Commission and Kensington Industries Limited of India, will enable the company grab 7000 acres of the entire lagoon whilst 300metres at the periphery representing 3 percent (3%) of the lagoon will be left for the local salt miners.





What is worse, the company has departed from the agreement it signed with the Minerals Commission to use sea brine for salt production and has resorted to the use of surface water and underground pool by means of pipes and very huge pumping machines.





It has also emerged that long before the Kensington Industries Limited was granted a license to mine salt in the Adina-Denu area, it had already encroached on lands belonging to the neighboring communities in flagrant violation of the Mineral and Minning Act.





In a letter dated 18th November 2009 addressed to the elders of the Dogbekope Community, Rajesh Mehte, a director of the company, acknowledged having encroached on their lands unlawfully without having been granted a license. We apologise and withdraw immediately.





Below are statements made by salt miners about the development!





Godswill Mawukope



Godswill Mawukpome

 More than three thousand people here in Ketu South and from other parts of the Volta Region derive our livelihood from the Keta Lagoon and that is why we are heartbroken that a government we have served and supported these many years could take over this resource and hand it over to some white men. The Indian Company has been given the entire lagoon and we cannot fish as we used to do some many years ago. This injustice must be rectified as soon as possible because hunger is looming at our doorsteps.









Janet Aglado

JanetAglado

One of our greatest worries is that the fresh water that used to flow from Togo into the lagoon, bringing in fish in the rainy season has been blocked by roads and dams constructed by the company. As a result the annual fishing and salt winning seasons that used to bring relief to the people have become a thing of the past since the lagoon dries up prematurely.





Vincent Gala

 What has happened to us in this place since the white men from India came here has been an eye opener and has taught us an important lesson that politicians do not honour their promises because if they do and they really seek to give us a better life, this injustice would never have taken place. What prevents the government from assisting us to do what the white man wants to do with our own salt because they are not going to cook with the salt in their homes but to sell like we also do to survive as a people? Between me and the Indian who is more important? We are the state and every resource is being held for us in trust by the people we have employed to guide the state. If they do otherwise, then I think a robbery of the people has taken place.





Janet Atsu

Janet Atsu

In the first place, the communities living along the lagoon were not consulted by the white men when they decided to take it. It could be that we are not recognized as the rightful owners or even a people with a stake in this lagoon. I say this because soon after the company took over the lagoon, they started an aggression against us by destroying our salt ponds in which new salt was going to be mined. When we protested they called in the police and an army of soldiers who came and beat us up mercilessly. An injustice is being committed here and we expect President John Dramani Mahama to move in very quickly and take the lagoon back for us else he would be considered as an accomplice in this crime.





Cynthia Gali

Cynthia Gali

It is highly unthinkable and we would have thought that by now the government, which we massively support and rally behind, would have made a statement. How can this government apportion the Keta Lagoon to foreigners to the neglect of its own people and indigenes who derive their entire livelihood and very existence from the lagoon?





Evelyn Kamasa

Evelyn Kamasa

I used to come and gather four bowls of salt from here in a day and during the rainy season, I used a net to catch fish and we set traps to catch crabs and mudfish. Since the arrival of the Indian company, we can no longer do this and our livelihoods have been destroyed. Some people sit in Accra without knowledge of social conditions of this place and yet take decision with adverse effects on our lives. What else can we do when there are virtually no opportunities for work in this part of the country? This is absolutely unacceptable and we demand that the people who claim to lead this country think about how the decisions they are taking, takes food out of the mouth of the already suffering people.





Elisabeth Gaglo

Elizabeth Gaglo

The area of the lagoon given to the Indian company is just outrageous and the demarcation must be done again. In any case, the government must consider that our interest must come first in this matter because we are citizens of this country and demand that we treated fairly. Kinsington must stop draining the lagoon water into their saltpans. They must use the sea water they told us they would use in their operations.





Esinam Kovey













Esinam Kovey

 Around this time of the year, we come here and collect salt, so that we can buy a piece of cloth for our children and pay for their fees when school reopens. Unfortunately, we can no longer do that at this time of Christmas because the water from the lagoon that forms the salt has been blocked and diverted into the small dams constructed by the white men. We do not accept the area of land they have left for us because we consider it as an insult. We share in this resource and we shall not allow anyone sitting in Accra to take it away from us and give it a white man.





















Gevornu Stellah

There has been a deliberate distortion of what happened here on the 2nd of December this year. The company decided to construct a road within the lagoon so that their heavy duty vehicles could move in and collect the salt they have gathered from one part of the lagoon but in the process of doing so and with complete disdain for our right to survival, the truck started pushing sand to cover the little salt we had managed to collect. This provoked everyone because the poor mans salt collected through manual labour in this hot sun must not be treated that way. They are simply seeking to frustrate us to leave, but they would have to go because we shall take back the lagoon.





Dakle Elisabeth

As a matter of urgency we want the government to come out and explain the extent of its involvement in this forceful takeover of the Keta Lagoon to the Indian company because Kensington could not have just walked in here. We are also calling on President Mahama to intervene and release our brothers whove been unjustly imprisoned by the police. Every day of their imprisonment is breaking the heart our communities and we demand their release because it is the company that destroyed and strayed into human settlements. What is happening is a disgrace for the government and to us the people whove sheepishly followed this government these many years.





Amegah Sena Gideon

Amegah Senah Gideon

 I am the only educated member of my family, but I ride a motorbike as my way of making a living to support my mother. On the 2nd of December, I got to the lagoon with a passenger only to realize that there were disturbances near the lagoon and a band of policemen were shooting without aim at everyone they could see. It was very chaotic and I was frightened. It was after a few moments that I realized that a bullet had penetrated my neck and had gone through my back. I can no longer ride the motorbike because I have a bullet wound in my neck and in my back and it will take some time to heal.





Priscilla Kuglenu

Priscilla Kuglenu

Since the clashes took place on 2nd December, the police have been deliberately picking up young men in the communities they consider as a threat to the company but all of them have nothing doing with the matter in concern. The police and the MCE are trying to intimidate and coerce us into submission by that will not happen because we shall take back the lagoon.





Torgbi Sape Agbo (V)



















Torgbi Sape Agbo (V)
H ollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger fought robots in the Terminator and an alien monster in Predator  but his biggest battle proved to be the traffic on a recent trip to Edinburgh.

Schwarzenegger, 68  who was in the Scottish capital for a dinner in his honour at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre  decided to take in the city's sights by bike.

But struggling to adjust to the UK's road rules, the actor set off in the direction of oncoming traffic.

Shocked members of the public were quick to warn him as buses and cars rushed by, with one shouting: "Youre on the wrong side, Sir."

The moment was captured on camera as the Austrian-born actor continued his cycle.

Schwarzenegger made sure to document the leisurely outing on social media as he stopped to take a series of selfies with excited fans.

My first Edinburgh bike ride. A beautiful city! Catch my tour on Snapchat: ArnoldSchnitzel. pic.twitter.com/zjIJ6bViW4  Arnold (@Schwarzenegger) January 21, 2016

Taking to Twitter he posted, "My first Edinburgh bike ride. A beautiful city! Catch my tour on Snapchat: ArnoldSchnitzel" alongside a picture of himself on his bike.

It's not the first time that the former governor of California has cycled around a British city.

In June last year the actor was pictured cycling around London on a Boris bike.

He paid a visit to Buckingham Palace - where he stopped to take a Snapchat selfie - before navigating the roundabout at Piccadilly Circus, or "Piccadilly Square" as Schwarzenegger referred to it.

Arnie Snapchats on Boris bike ride around London

Follow @StandardShowbiz for more entertainment news.
"Let books be your dining table, / And you shall be full of delights. / Let them be your

mattress,/

And you shall sleep restful nights"
Indiana's Pregnancy and Parenting Support Program Assists Over 10,000 Women and Lowers Abortion

Contact: Kevin I. Bagatta, Esq., Real Alternatives , 717-541-7832MEDIA ADVISORY, Jan. 22, 2016 / Standard Newswire / -- Since November 2014, Indiana's Pregnancy and Parenting Support Program has served 11,036 clients at 24,162 support service visits in Indiana. The taxpayer-funded program exists to offer women counseling and mentoring support as an alternative to abortion.Real Alternatives is the statewide administrator for the program. Kevin Bagatta, President and CEO of Real Alternatives said, "Thanks to this state program, Indiana women who are alone and facing an unexpected pregnancy have another person to assist them which empowers them to overcome obstacles and pressures so they can choose life for their preborn baby." Real Alternatives uses a growing network of 19 pregnancy support centers and social service agencies in Indiana to provide caring, compassionate, and trained counselors who offer free pregnancy support and parenting education services to women.In the program's first fiscal year ending September 30, 2015, 8,737 women from 47 counties were provided comprehensive counseling, mentoring, education, and support services for up to nine (9) months of pregnancy and twelve (12) months after the birth of their baby. The northern regional pilot program received funding of $1.0 million that fiscal year through the Indiana State Department of Health. The Program's administrative cost ratio, including start-up, was a very low 8.12%. Due to its rapid success, the Program has been increased to $3.5 million to provide services statewide to Indiana women.In July 2015, the Indiana State Department of Health reported that the number of resident abortions performed in Indiana in the year 2014 rose slightly to 7,621 from the previous year. Real Alternatives Vice President, Thomas Lang pointed out, "With the difficult economic times we have experienced the last couple of years, comes increased pressure to abort. For women who come to our Program pressured by others to abort, 87% no longer consider abortion after receiving services in our Program."Real Alternatives has been providing life-affirming pregnancy support services for 20 years in Pennsylvania. That high performance and fiscally accountable program has assisted over 260,000 women in need who sought out the Program's services.Its not surprising that Real Alternatives has assisted 12 other states with starting taxpayer-funded programs to reach out to women facing unexpected pregnancies in their states. Real Alternatives administers statewide Pregnancy and Parenting Support Services Programs in Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Michigan. Women in those states can receive services by going to www.realalternatives.org/PressKit/Video-PACrowd.htm or by calling 1-888-LIFE-AID.
By James Pearson and Ju-min Park

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea has detained a U.S. university student, the third western citizen known to be held in the isolated state, for committing a "hostile act" and wanting to "destroy the country's unity", it said on Friday.

Otto Frederick Warmbier, 21, of the University of Virginia, was in North Korea for a five-day New Year trip and was detained at Pyongyang airport on Jan. 2 ahead of a flight back to China, said Gareth Johnson of Young Pioneer Tours, which organised the visit.

According to the North's official KCNA news agency, Warmbier entered North Korea as a tourist and "was caught committing a hostile act against the state", which it said was "tolerated and manipulated by the U.S. government".

The U.S. State Department, in a statement, said it was aware of reports that a U.S. citizen had been detained in North Korea but gave no other details, citing privacy concerns.

U.S. Rep. Brad Wenstrup, whose district includes the area where Warmbier went to high school, tweeted on Friday that his office was asking the State Department "to assist however possible in getting Mr. Warmbier home."

Further official comment was not immediately available as U.S. government offices were closed ahead of an impending blizzard.

Johnson said China-based Young Pioneer Tours was in contact with Warmbier's family and U.S. officials.

"We are in touch with Otto's family, the U.S. State Department and the Embassy of Sweden in Pyongyang and doing all we can to secure his release," Johnson told Reuters.

The Swedish Embassy represents U.S. interests in North Korea.

KCNA said Warmbier had entered the country with an "aim to destroy the country's unity". It did not elaborate.

According to his social media profiles, Warmbier is from Cincinnati and is an Echols Scholar, awarded to the top 7 percent of incoming first-year students at the University of Virginia, where he majors in economics with a minor in global sustainability.

Warmbier has also visited Cuba, Ireland and Israel, according to his Facebook profile.

Warmbier was detained four days before North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in violation of UN sanctions, which drew condemnation from its neighbours and the United States.

A friend and former high-school classmate of Warmbier, who wished to remain anonymous, told Reuters: "Otto is a wonderful, warm person who should never have to go through anything like this. ... The idea that any of this happened is crazy."

Calls to the Warmbier home in Cincinnati, Ohio, were not immediately answered on Friday and nobody answered when a Reuters reporter knocked on the door of the house.

South Korea warned that the United States and its allies were working on further sanctions to inflict "bone-numbing pain" on North Korea after its latest nuclear test, and urged China to do its part to rein in its neighbour.

North Korea has a long history of detaining foreigners, and the U.S. and Canadian governments advise against travel there.

Pyongyang has in the past used detained U.S. citizens to extract high-profile visits from the United States, with which it has no formal diplomatic relations.

While the vast majority of tourists to North Korea are from China, roughly 6,000 westerners visit the country annually. Most are adventure-seekers curious about life behind the last sliver of the iron curtain, and ignore critics who say their dollars prop up a repressive regime.

Warmbier was on Young Pioneer's "New Year's Party Tour," which, according to the itinerary on the company's website, was to include watching fireworks in Kim Il Sung Square in the heart of Pyongyang, and an optional helicopter ride.

A South Korean-born Canadian pastor was arrested in North Korea last year and given a life sentence for subversion. This month, a Korean-American told CNN in Pyongyang he was being held by the state for spying.

In 2014, Pyongyang released three detained Americans. Last October, it freed a South Korean national with a U.S. green card after holding him for six months.

(Additional reporting by Christine Kim and Se Young Lee in Seoul, David Brunnstrom in Washington and Melissa Fares in New York; Writing by Tony Munroe; Editing by Nick Macfie and James Dalgleish)
DAVOS (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday he believed that, with effort and good faith on both sides, it would be possible to implement the Minsk agreements on Ukraine in coming months to allow for a lifting of sanctions on Russia.

In a speech to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Kerry said he and U.S. Vice President Joe Biden had meet this week in the Swiss resort with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to help ensure full implementation of the agreements.

"And I believe that, with effort and with bona-fide legitimate intent to solve the problem on both sides, it is possible in these next months to find those Minsk agreements implemented and to get to a place where sanctions can be appropriately, because of the full implementation, removed,? Kerry said.

Sanctions on Russia's banking, energy and defence sectors, imposed in July 2014, are part of the West's efforts to pressure Russia to help end the crisis in eastern Ukraine, in which more than 9,000 people have been killed since April 2014.

The United States has repeatedly linked a lifting of the sanctions to full implementation of the Minsk accords, which were agreed last February by Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany after the collapse of a ceasefire between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists.

The terms of the deal provide for a ceasefire, a pull-back of heavy weapons, prisoner exchanges, local elections in rebel-held areas and greater autonomy for these regions.

A U.S. State Department official, citing data from the International Monetary Fund, said this month that EU and U.S. restrictions imposed on Moscow had shaved about 1.5 percent off Russian economic output in 2015.

Russian President Vladimir Putin told Germany's Bild newspaper this month that the sanctions were "severely harming Russia", although the fall in global oil prices was having a bigger impact.

(Reporting by David Brunnstrom; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
Students, staff and faculty gathered in front of the Western Nebraska Community College main building on Jan. 21 to honor a student veteran with a Blue Star Flag Ceremony. This was the first time that the raising of the Blue Star Flag has happened at WNCC.

The Blue Star flag is a way to honor Staff Sgt. Derrick Perkins who is an active member of the Wyoming National Guard and is currently stationed at Kandahar Airbase in Afghanistan. Perkins has plans to take pre-nursing classes at WNCC next fall.

The flag will stay at the campus throughout the duration of Perkins deployment. The tradition of raising the flag will continue on for other WNCC students who are deployed.

Chris Wolf, director of military and veteran affairs at WNCC, read a poem at the ceremony which evoked the emotion of military personnel and their mindset as they are deployed. Wolf talked to Sue Yowell, Vice President of Student Services, last fall about having a deployment flag on the campus as a way to honor the students and their families as they engage in active duty.

Were grateful for the community support and were proud to fly that flag as well as anxious about having him return home safe and sound, said Wolf.

Perkins entered into active duty Air Force in March of 2001 for four years, including two deployments. After service, he enrolled in the University of Wyoming. He was deployed again in 2009 for Operation Enduring Freedom. After returning the second time, he enrolled in WNCC in the fall of 2014. The deployment this past fall will be his fourth time overseas for the Operation Freedoms Sentinel in Afghanistan.

The Blue Star flag was designed and patented during World War I and quickly became the symbol of a child in service. During World War II, the use of the flags became much more widespread. Many of the flags were handmade by mothers across the United States. The Blue Star Mothers is a designated Veteran Service Organization as of 1966 when the Department of Defense revised the specifications for design, manufacturing and displaying the Blue Star Flag. Today, family members display the flags on behalf of those who are serving in the Armed Forces. Organizations also fly the flag as part of their recognition of respect for people connected to an organization.

It is our wish as you pass by the flags each morning that you will keep Derrick and his family in your thoughts and prayers. We look forward to the time Derrick returns as a student to pursue his associates degree, said Yowell.

WNCC has an all-inclusive program for veterans to get support while they are in college. Wolf said that with the assistance of Upward Bound that works in conjunction with WNCC and the Trio organization the Veterans and Affairs office works as an all-inclusive program that follows veteran students all the way through to graduation. Advisors also discuss future plans with students so they have an idea of what they want to do after graduation.

Part of the military and veterans affair services at WNCC is the Student Veterans Organizations. Chris Baker is the president of the organization who served for six and a half years in the United States Army. He said that the military and veterans office will help veterans get help for whatever they need or will get them connected with somebody if they dont know the right direction to take.

Im going to graduate school, which I will hear back from in a week or so. I applied for the physical fitness doctorate program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. I wouldnt have a bachelors degree and I wouldnt know about this program without the help of the school, said Baker.
Flint, Michigan was built up during the heyday of the U.S. auto industry. After World War II, General Motors founded its Chevy and Buick divisions there. For a time, the city flourished as a hard-working, blue-collar industrial town.

Like Detroit to the southeast, the so-called Vehicle City fell onto hard times when a number of car factories were closed in the 1980s.

What was once a gritty town became grittier. Buick City was demolished. Poverty and crime rates went up, making it one of the most dangerous cities in the U.S. By 2002, the city had gone into a state of financial emergency, falling into debt to the tune of $30 million. Over the next decade, city and state leaders would try to stem the financial losses, but the city is still financially in the red today.

Today citizens of Flint have a more immediate problem. Their water is making them sick and they are officially under a health emergency. Last October, residents were notified that their water was unsafe to drink.

In April of 2014, the citys water system was contaminated by lead when a state-appointed emergency manager decided to save money by using water from the Flint River. The city had been getting its water from Lake Huron that was treated in Detroit. The river water didnt carry lead, but it was so rife with other contaminants that it corroded pipes and leached lead and other contaminants into residents drinking water.

According to news reports, a General Motors plant in Flint stopped using the city water when it was found to be corroding car parts. A hospital stopped using the water when it corroded its equipment. People complained about brown water coming out of their faucets.

It took an outspoken pediatrician, Mona Hanna-Attisha, who saw an increase in patients with rashes and hair loss, to call enough attention to the issue for someone to notice. She checked child blood samples and saw an increase of two and three times the amount of lead.

At least 100,000 residents have been affected by the contaminated water. Many travel to shelters in the city to receive bottled water. One of the shelters sits where Buick City once stood. The National Guard has been deployed to disperse filters and water.

Children are the biggest losers in this situation. Michigans chief medical executive estimates that nearly 9,000 children drank tap water since April of 2014. That doesnt count unborn children who were exposed when their mothers drank tap water, or children who visited the city during that time.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that lead exposure can cause hypertension in adults. Lead poisoning cant be undone.

Its a well-known, potent neurotoxin, Hanna-Attisha told CNN. Theres tons of evidence on what lead does to a child, and it is one of the most damning things that you can do to a population. It drops your IQ, it affects your behavior, its been linked to criminality, it has multigenerational impacts. There is no safe level of lead in a child.

It took some 8 months before the state declared a state of emergency.

Michigans Gov. Rick Snyder is now under fire for not responding to the situation with enough gravitas and concern. He apologized to the residents of Flint on Tuesday. On Wednesday, 274 pages of emails were made public that showed the governors office minimized complaints about the water and didnt take them seriously. State officials even publicly denounced the pediatricians work.

The situation was caused by officials at the Flint Water Treatment Plant who failed to install proper corrosion control systems. The Department of Environmental Quality has admitted it failed to require the necessary chemicals to remove the corrosive elements. The head of the plant and officials from the state environmental agency have resigned. All of Genesee County is under a state of emergency.

After the emergency declaration, some $5 million in federal aid has been freed up for assistance. FEMA is covering 75 percent of the costs for water filters, cartridges and other items.

The only job thats more important to me is the job of father, President Barack Obama,in Detroit Wednesday for the annual auto show, said of Flint. And I know that if I was a parent up there, I would be beside myself that my kids health could be at risk.

Ironically, Flint is only 70 miles from the Great Lakes, one of the largest fresh water sources in the world.

In a larger sense, the Flint situation underscores a difference between our political parties. While the Democratic candidates frequently talk about climate change and environmental concerns, the issue has rarely been broached in GOP debates. Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders has called for Snyder to resign and Hillary Clinton has said the issue should have all Americans concerned.

When asked what he would do about the situation, GOP presidential candidate Marco Rubio said he hadnt been briefed.

On Tuesday, Ben Carson became the first GOP candidate to comment on the crisis, saying the EPA was partly to blame and that the problem was proof of the ineffectiveness of government regulations. Donald Trump said something like this shouldnt happen, but wouldnt comment further.

Ted Cruz elaborated a little more, calling it a failure on every level of government, a betrayal, and heart-breaking.

According to the Washington Post, the American Society of Civil Engineers gives the countrys drinking water system a grade of D and says that in the next couple of decades we will need to invest hundreds of billions of dollars, maybe even trillions.

How our presidential candidates react to this situation is a good test of how they would behave as leaders. Americas infrastructure is in shambles, and we need someone who can recognize that problem and do something to help fix it.
While you may have heard about the research and development (R&D) tax incentive  the Australian Governments tax incentive to encourage innovation  you may be unsure how to apply for the incentive, or...
| By Mark McDonald

Your company brand is one of the most valuable assets you can build.

As Peter Thiel points out, a strong brand can be a monopoly on its own, and personal branding of a startup CEO can be just as valuable.

Building a unique brand around yourself as an individual can be an incredibly effective business and marketing asset. People like to buy from people, not some faceless organisation, and once youve built your reputation its much easier to get investors, business deals or valuable speaking engagements to promote yourself and your product.

But the most important point to consider is that most of us already have a digital footprint and as a startup founder the chances are you will have a strong one.

Its no longer a question of whether youd like to have a personal brand or not, but whether you choose to cultivate it and turn it into an asset.

Start with your audience





Building a brand in the 20th century was all about putting up ads and marketing messages. In 2015, branding is about providing value - especially when it comes to personal brands.

To provide value, you first have to determine who your ideal target audience is. It can be as narrow as your existing customers but I wouldnt advise that.

One of the best concepts on this topic is content marketing manifesto by Rand Fishkin of Moz, who himself has built a solid personal brand.

According to Fishkin, you should deliver value in a form of content thats fun, inspirational, beneficial and easy to share. Regarding target audience, you shouldnt just target your existing or potential customers, but anyone who they interact with. Instead of creating your content for potential customers, create it for influencers who are already reaching them.

Define your unique value proposition





You want to become a thought-leader in a specific area thats valuable to the audience you target.

You should think about your strengths, but also your passions. People like to interact with real people, so you want to make sure youre real, not just some made-up persona.

For example, VC and ex-serial SaaS entrepreneur Jason Lemkin has built an incredible brand in the area of SaaS business. He started with writing a great blog providing SaaS tips and answering a lot of SaaS and startup-related questions on Quora.

Founders of Buffer, a social media scheduling tool, decided to focus on personal productivity, life hacking and happiness. Its not necessarily related to social media marketing, but in the spirit of content marketing manifesto, theyve built a valuable brand that helped them scale to million-plus users.

Create valuable content

The next step is to start delivering, and the best place to start is creating content.

That includes blog posts, ebooks, guest posts across popular media, podcasts, infographics and slideshare decks.

But the possibilities go way beyond that. You can create a video blog or podcast and interview other thought-leaders - even sharing valuable articles and resources from other sources counts.

Obviously you want to have a strategy, determine the best channels and focus on them, instead of doing too many things but none of them properly. Once you become a trusted source of information people will regard you as a thought-leader and an expert to turn to.

Flesh out your online presence and social media profiles

Content is what builds your brand, but if you dont distribute your content, no one will ever find out about it. You can think of online channels like a personal website and social media as an engine for your brand building.

Your audience will also use social media and your website to stay in touch, interact with you and learn more about you. Make sure all of your profiles are consistent with your brand message, post updates regularly, interact with your followers and dont be afraid to repost old content again.

Build up your offline outreach too





Just like social media, meetups and events are a great way to market yourself and build up a brand.

You can start with meetup.com, find relevant events and get there to speak. Once you build a reputation, go to bigger events and conferences.

Interact with your audience and point them towards your online assets. A good way to do so is to have double-sided business cards with URLs to your website and social media profiles.

And get your online followers to attend and meet them in real life - walk over to them, get to know them in person. Put simply, people like real people, not some fictitious online personas.

Mark McDonald is the co-founder and co-CEO Appster, a leading mobile app and product development company with offices in Melbourne and San Francisco.

Do you know more on this story or have a tip of your own? Raising capital or launching a startup? Let us know. Follow StartupSmart on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
| By Dinushi Dias

Netflix has begun its crackdown on users trying to access content from other countries, but the VPN providers are already fighting back.

Just days after announcing it would enforce content licensing by geographic location, Netflix has started actively blocking VPN (virtual private network) users from accessing its service.

Reports are emerging that Australian viewers watching Netflix through Melbourne proxy service uFlix are receiving an error message: You seem to be using an unblocker or proxy. Please turn off any of theses services and try again.

In response, TorGuards Ben van der Pelt has invited VPN users with Neflix access problems to contact them for a solution.

TorGuard is monitoring the situation closely and we have recently implemented new measures that can bypass any proposed IP blockade on our network, van der Pelt told TorrentFreak.

This is a sentiment echoed by many Australian VPN users who utilise the technology to access the much larger US Netflix library.

One long-time VPN user tells StartupSmart the crackdown is pointless.

Most people know how to get around the restriction or will download the torrent, the user says.

If they dont know how to do it, chances are they will know someone who does.

While Netflix is available in nearly 200 countries, content differs greatly in each country, with most being denied the full range that is available the US.

Netflixs actions could also mean the lockout of 30 million users accessing it in countries where it's not even officially available, including China.

In Huffington Post Australia, uFlix managing director Peter Dujan says the move wont last as its a cat and mouse chase for Netflix to track down known IP addresses and match them to the proxy.

This is our job, so lets play, he says.

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Democracy is critical to Africas future. But if democracy is to take root and flourish, specific conditions must be met. Chief among these are free and fair elections. These in turn cannot take place if the voting public lacks access to information about important issues, or if voters are prevented from meeting with or rallying for their chosen candidates. In other words, freedom of speech and of the press, and freedom of association, are indispensable aspects of free elections, and of Democracy itself.

That is why the United States is concerned about the deteriorating electoral environment in Uganda, and the run-up to the Presidential and Parliamentary elections, set to be held on February 18th.

Eight candidates are vying for the Presidency, including sitting President Yoweri Museveni, who first came to power in 1986, but was only elected into office in 1996. He is currently running for a fifth term in office.

According to Human Rights Watch, Ugandas current election campaign is fraught with intimidation of journalists, including threats or warnings of possible repercussions for critical reporting; government harassment and intimidation of independent voices in the media and civil society; obstruction and dispersal by police of opposition rallies, with excessive illegal arrests, beatings and other use of force by security personnel. At least one member of a candidates staff, opposition campaign aide Christopher Aine, has disappeared.

For the sake of Uganda and all of its people, the upcoming elections must be free, fair and transparent. The United States believes that for this to happen, all Ugandans must have the opportunity to exercise their right to assemble peacefully, express their opinions, and participate in the electoral process free from intimidation and abuse. They also depend on government institutions and security forces remaining neutral, defending the rights of all people and protecting all parties equally, wrote State Department Spokesperson John Kirby in a statement.

"We call on the government, civil society, and political parties to do their part to ensure a peaceful, transparent and credible electoral process.
Friday, 22 January 2016 21:02:11 (GMT+3) | San Diego

SteelOrbis has learned that Vietnamese offers for US import cold rolled coil ( CRC ) are trending in the approximate range of $415-$425/mt CFR FO in US Gulf ports.
Scientists' claim of a giant undiscovered planet on the fringes of the solar system met with scepticism.

United States-based scientists said that they have found evidence of an object they nicknamed "Planet Nine" orbiting the edge of the solar system, but some experts have their doubts.

The US team used mathematical modelling and computer simulations to "find" the object they claimed was a planet. Their research said that it was about 10 times the mass of Earth and had an odd, highly elongated orbit about 20 times further from the Sun than Neptune.

They have not yet observed the object directly but said that its existence helped explain the strange orbit of a number of distant objects in an area known as the Kuiper Belt.

"It's a pretty substantial chunk of our solar system that's still out there to be found, which is pretty exciting," Mike Brown, a professor of planetary astronomy at the California Institute of Technology, said in a statement.

But other researchers said that they were unimpressed by the evidence, which was published in the current issue of Astronomical Journal.

"I am sceptical," Francisco Diego, senior research fellow at the department of physics and astronomy in University College London, told Al Jazeera.

"Such a large object would have been detected ages ago, since at the same distances, much smaller objects have been found, the very ones allegedly affected by this mysterious one."

Robert Massey, deputy executive director of the Royal Astronomical Society, told Al Jazeera that "this kind of thing has been said before and then refuted".

He added: "I think until you see an image of something, you have to maintain a degree of scepticism."

'Difficult to detect'

The Caltech team said that unlike Pluto, which was downgraded from a planet to a dwarf planet in 2006 due to an inability to clear its orbit of other objects, "Planet Nine" is a real planet.

"At 5,000 times the mass of Pluto," the statements said, "[it] is sufficiently large that there should be no debate about whether it is a true planet."

But not all researchers agree.

"It would not be a planet as such," Diego said. "Having a bizarre, very elliptical orbit and not having cleared its orbit from debris, as the International Astronomical Union requires from a proper planet."

Brown and other colleagues have now started searching for Planet Nine, but only a rough orbit is known, not a precise location, making that difficult, especially as it takes between 10,000 and 20,000 years to make a full orbit around the sun.

"They have to produce something more definitive, as at the moment you would struggle to find it," Massey said.

Even if does exist, Diego said the planet may well be difficult to see.

"It may be of a different nature from its neighbours, less bright due to a dusty and dark rather than icy and shiny surface, which would make it more difficult to detect."

Source: Al Jazeera
The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta will relocate the site of an annual conference in May to Amelia Island, Fla., following criticism of the public display of Confederate flags at Stone Mountain State Park in Georgia, where it has held the conference in recent years.

"The Atlanta Fed is committed to diversity and is sensitive to the concerns raised surrounding the display of Confederate flags at Stone Mountain," Atlanta Fed spokeswoman Jean Tate said in an interview. "So while that was one of the factors considered, we evaluated several potential venues based on accessibility, meeting dates, cost and an atmosphere conducive to thoughtful deliberation."

South Carolina removed the Confederate battle flag from the State House grounds after the fatal shooting of nine people in a historic black church in Charleston last year. The flag is still displayed at Stone Mountain, outside of Atlanta, along with carvings of Confederate President Jefferson Davis and General Robert E. Lee.

Georgia State Rep. LaDawn Jones, a Democrat from Atlanta, in July called for a boycott of the park until the flags are moved.

Companies and local groups "like the Atlanta Fed do have a duty to make their concerns known by not supporting Stone Mountain until they do the work to become more inclusive," Jones said. She is calling on the state legislature to change the Stone Mountain park from a "Confederate memorial" to "memorial of the Civil War era."

"People of all races and genders lost their lives during the Civil War and therefore all of those people should be acknowledged in our park," Jones said.

Speakers at the financial markets conference, to be held May 1 to 3, haven't been announced, Tate said. Speakers at Stone Mountain have included Fed Chair Janet Yellen, via video link, former Chairman Ben S. Bernanke and Vice Chairman Stanley Fischer.

The Atlanta Fed previously moved its financial markets conference from coastal Georgia's Jekyll Island and Sea Island, partly to reduce expenses in the wake of the 2007-2009 recession. Amelia Island is about 30 miles north of Jacksonville, Fla., near the Georgia border.

The Atlanta Fed district, one of 12 regional bank districts, includes Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and portions of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee.
AWARDS

Joyce Morgan, diversity coordinator at S.M. Wilson & Co., was named Private Sector Executive of the Year by MoKan.

EXPANDING

PLZ Aeroscience opened a global distribution center adjacent to its manufacturing facility in Pacific.

Chameleon Integrated Services opened an office in Bowie, Md., to support the IT consulting firms growing government business.

Netsurion, a provider of remotely managed data and network security services for multilocation businesses, opened an office in Weldon Springs.

HELPING OUT

Arturo M. Corral, principal for Sedona Management, and David Pickerill, executive director of Missouri Clean Energy District, have joined the MERS/Goodwill board of directors.

The Cuivre River Electric Community Trust Board awarded a $5,000 Operation Round Up grant to Agape Ministry of Warren County.

The St. Louis Regional Business Council awarded $100,000 in Small Change, Big Impact grants to 24 nonprofits and community agencies in 2015, including Affton Christian Food Pantry and Violence Prevention of SW Illinois.

First Banks Chester, Ill., branch donated $500 to the Chester Area Christian Food Pantry.

The Bank of Edwardsville employees and family members raised $4,410 at the 2015 Metro East Step Out: Walk to Stop Diabetes. In addition, the bank was a $5,000 walk sponsor.

Ameren Corp. made a $50,000 donation to the American Red Cross to assist with the regions flood-relief efforts.

ON THE WEB

Alliance Technologies launched a new website: www.alliancetechnologiesllc.com.

OPENINGS

SSM Physical Therapy opened a new outpatient physical therapy center:

 2649 North Illinois Street, Swansea, Ill.

PROJECTS

Korte & Luitjohan Contractors Inc. completed a remodeling project for Associated Bank in East St. Louis.

RECOGNITION

Cedar Lake Cellars, a winery and event venue, was named the areas best event venue by the Western St. Charles County Chamber of Commerce.

Jackie Kemp, business development coordinator at BSR Services, was named a 2015 All-Star of Snow & Ice by Snow Magazine, a national publication of the Snow & Ice Management Association.

Unity Hospice of Greater St. Louis named Anne Chida its 2015 Employee of the Year. Chida is a bereavement coordinator for the family members of hospice patients in Illinois and Missouri and also serves as chaplain for Missouri patients.
SunEdison announced Thursday that its chief operating officer, Francisco Pancho Perez Gundin, has left the company after just 9 months on the job.

The Maryland Heights-based renewable power company gave no reason for the departure, saying only that he has separated from employment at the company, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The company didnt say whether it intended to fill that position. A spokesman didnt respond to a request for comment.

Separately, SunEdison also said Perez was no longer the COO of its yieldco subsidiary TerraForm Power. He had been serving in that senior position for both companies.

Perez joined SunEdison in 2008. In January 2014 he became COO of TerraForm Power. In April, he also became SunEdisons COO, which was a newly created position.

The departure comes as TerraForm finds itself caught in a struggle between shareholders and parent SunEdison.

In November, SunEdison expanded its control over its subsidiary board by adding three new members and then removed both the chief executive and chief financial officer of TerraForm.

Perez remained as TerraForms COO, but he immediately resigned his position as a director on TerraForms board along with two other directors.

SunEdison said the resignations were because of their disagreement with the boards actions.

Last month, the Wall Street Journal reported that the November shake-up happened after SunEdison pressured board members to accept new terms for the purchase of assets that the parent company planned to sell to TerraForm. The sale is part of SunEdisons pending acquisition of Vivint.

By purchasing the Vivint assets, the yieldco would improve SunEdisons liquidity.

Last month, a key TerraForm investor, Appaloosa Management, demanded more information about that shake-up and the opportunity to examine the yieldcos books. The investor has said the asset purchase isnt in shareholders best interests.

Last week, Appaloosa sued to stop TerraForm from purchasing the Vivint assets.
DETROIT  General Motors Co said on Thursday that it was creating a car-sharing brand as it joins at least two other automakers testing the market for vehicles consumers borrow rather than own.

The brand, called Maven, will create new and expand existing car-sharing efforts, including one in Germany that will keep the CarUnity name and operate as it has since mid-2015.

In the United States, GM will use the Maven name for a car-sharing program set to start this month with a small fleet to be offered to the general public in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

This type of program will expand to other cities this year, with consumer demand determining the scope and pace, said Julia Steyn, head of GM's urban mobility programs.

Maven will also be the name for car-sharing among 5,000 people in residential developments in Chicago and New York. The Chicago effort will begin in the first quarter, and the existing New York one will be expanded and its name changed to Maven from Let's Drive NYC.

"Maven" is a Yiddish word for expert.

GM President Dan Ammann said Maven was not ride-sharing. That is offered by Lyft Inc, in which GM invested $500 million.

In ride-sharing, customers summon cars and someone drives them. In car-sharing, customers use a smart phone app or other device to access cars to drive themselves.

Ammann would not reveal how much the company is investing or how many GM cars will be in the Maven fleet.

Hourly rates start at as little as $6 for a small car or $12 for a large one, according to website MavenDrive.com.

GM's Maven, like the efforts by rival automakers, aims to convince skeptical investors that auto industry incumbents can move into new markets such as car sharing instead of waiting for upstarts to undermine their franchises.

Carmakers' mobility service ventures will have to compete with well-capitalized challengers such as Uber Technologies Inc , the ride-hailing company, or ventures that might be launched by Silicon Valley technology powers Apple Inc or Alphabet Inc.

Ammann said worldwide between 5 million and 6 million people use ride sharing and car sharing, a figure he expects to expand four- or five-fold by the end of the decade.

Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz luxury brand has grouped ride-sharing and ride-hailing ventures under the "Mercedesme" brand, which like GM's Maven aggregates a smartphone app, access to short- and longer-term rentals, and access to taxis and mass transit.

Ford Motor Co last week launched the FordPass brand as an umbrella for mobility services.
Theres no denying the U.S. has made steady reductions in air pollution since the 45-year-old Clean Air Act allowed the Environmental Protection Agency to begin regulating hazardous emissions.

But some of those public health gains would have been even more pronounced had global warming not started pushing temperatures up.

Thats because some pollution, such as ozone, is created when emissions from cars and coal power plants bake in the heat, said Joel Schwartz, a professor of environmental epidemiology at Harvard University. Not only that, but Schwartzs research has shown that more temperature variability and more extremes caused by climate change are also associated with higher instances of mortality.

Its getting hotter, Schwartz told a gathering hosted by the Washington University Interdisciplinary Environmental Clinic on the schools campus. Thats going to make more air pollution. We can do something about it, and if we do, fewer people will die.

Schwartz, whose epidemiological studies while an EPA scientist helped lead to the ban on lead in gasoline, said tightening regulations on ozone and other pollutants will continue to bring down pollution. But again, those reductions wont be as much as they would be on a cooler planet with more consistent weather.

The EPAs plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from the power sector will help though, Schwartz said. By curbing coal-fired power plant carbon dioxide emissions, coal-reliant areas like St. Louis can look forward to additional health benefits from lower levels of particulate matter and ozone.

Youre living in one of the places thats going to see the most difference, Schwartz told an audience of about 100 on Thursday.cq

The Midwest in general has a heavy lift to cut coal pollution, said Mark Smith, a regional EPA official with the air permitting program who is heading efforts to implement the agencys new carbon emission regulations in Missouri, Kansas, Iowa and Nebraska.

At the same time, were also very well positioned to comply and make progress, Smith said during a panel discussion after Schwartzs presentation.

The Midwest has vast wind resources it can tap into, and Smith said the transformation is already beginning. In 2001, 80 percent of power in EPA Region 7s four states came from coal and less than 1 percent from wind. Today, its more like 65 percent coal and 15 percent wind, Smith said.

Even without the (carbon regulations) being in effect, there are market changes that are changing the way your electricity is being generated, Smith said.

With more evidence coming out on the adverse health effects of coal, the low price of natural gas and falling costs for renewable energy, Schwartz said utilities are merely waiting for their coal power plants to age into retirement.

There arent going to be any new ones, ever, he said.
Clayco Corp.s plan for an apartment tower in the Delmar Loop is headed to the St. Louis Preservation Board, which has a say on whether the 14-story building would fit the neighborhood.

The project, at 6105 Delmar Boulevard, would have 209 apartments, 211 garage-parking spaces and storefronts.

Clayco has revised the proposal since it became public in December. The number of apartments remains the same, but the planned building has grown by a floor.

The latest design is an L-shaped building with the long side set back from Delmar. Earlier versions were for more of a U-shape with much of the building next to the street.

The Preservation Board is scheduled to consider the project Monday. The project site is vacant, but the board has authority in the matter because the address is within the citys Skinker-DeBaliviere-Catlin Tract-Parkview Historic District.

As a result, the board must decide whether the buildings large size is appropriate for the neighborhood.

In considering Claycos plan, the boards staff noted that new buildings on that block of Delmar must be within 15 percent of the average height of current structures. For now, the only building of more than three floors is the seven-story Moonrise Hotel.

Variations from compatible heights should be based on a new buildings use or location within the historic district, the staff of the citys Cultural Resources Office said in an agenda posted online.

Noting that Clayco would provide market-rate housing and transit-oriented development, the staff recommended that the board grant the project preliminary approval. The mention of transit-oriented development is a reference to the Loop Trolley, which will pass by the projects site.

Clayco officials did not return calls Thursday to discuss the project.

Company officials attended a meeting Wednesday night of the Historic District and Commercial District committees of the Skinker DeBaliviere Community Council, said Brandon Sterling, the councils executive directors.

After hearing from the Clayco representatives, the committees agreed to support the project. Sterling said Clayco hopes to begin construction in April and open the building in summer 2017.

He said Clayco executives assured committee members the apartment tower would not obscure the view of the downtown skyline from the Moonrise Hotels rooftop bar.
Regulators announced on Friday a new recall of about 5 million vehicles with potentially defective Takata Corp. air bags, covering some automakers not previously affected by the recall, one of the biggest auto safety recalls in U.S. history.

The new action brings to 28 million the number of Takata air bag inflators recalled and increases the number of vehicles affected in the United States to as many as 24 million, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said.

Fridays move was prompted in part by the death of the driver of a Ford Motor Co. pickup last month, as well as new tests conducted on suspected faulty air bags.

Automakers affected for the first time include Volkswagen AG and its Audi unit and Daimlers Mercedes-Benz unit.

This is a massive safety crisis, NHTSA spokesman Gordon Trowbridge said.

NHTSA in November said tens of millions of additional vehicles with inflators containing ammonium nitrate will be recalled by 2018 unless Takata can prove that they are safe.

The death on Dec. 22 of a Georgia man in South Carolina was the 10th worldwide linked with Takatas air bag inflators, NHTSA said. It was also the first to occur in a vehicle that was not made by Honda Motor Co.

The 5 million vehicles covered by the new recall include about 1 million with inflators similar to those installed on the Ford Ranger pickup, NHTSA said.

About 4 million other vehicles will be recalled due to additional testing on Takata air bags, including vehicles from Honda, VW and other automakers, the safety agency said.

Twelve major automakers have previously recalled more than 23 million Takata air bag inflators in more than 19 million vehicles in one of the largest and most complex safety recalls in U.S. automotive history.

NHTSA did not immediately say how many of the 5 million vehicles being recalled Friday may have been covered by previous recalls.

Takatas inflators can explode with too much force and spray metal shrapnel into vehicle passenger compartments and are linked to more than 100 U.S. injuries.

A South Carolina attorney said in a complaint filed with NHTSA that his client was killed when metal from the inflator canister exploded penetrating my clients neck resulting in death.

The attorney, Andrew Creech, said in the complaint, There is no doubt airbag shrap (shrapnel) metal killed my client, as this has been confirmed by death certificate and autopsy report.

The man killed in the 2006 Ford Ranger struck a cow that was in the road, Creechs report to NHTSA said.

Creech was not available for comment on Friday.

In November, Takata agreed to pay a $70 million fine for safety violations and could face deferred penalties of up to $130 million under a NHTSA settlement.

NHTSA in December named a former Justice Department official as a monitor to help regulators oversee the massive recalls.

The Ford death is the first reported since the July crash of a 2001 Honda Accord coupe that killed a 13-year-old near Pittsburgh, Pa.
The European Union Delegation issues the following statement in agreement with the EU Heads of Mission in Kenya

Following the lethal attack by the terrorist group Al-Shabaab against a Kenya Defence Force AMISOM location in Somalia, the European Union Heads of Mission in Nairobi expressed their condolences to the families and relatives of the victims of this terrible incident.

In order to show solidarity with Kenya, the European Union attended a special function today organized by the Government of Kenya at the Kenya Defence Force Hospital. The European Union stands alongside Kenya and the victims of terrorism in these difficult times.

Acts like these will not deter our efforts, and the EU will continue to work with the Kenyan authorities in our common fight against terrorism.
Bob Koerber heard the rumors as soon as he filed his paperwork to run for mayor.

In a small town like Hermann, population 2,389, there are few secrets.

Word on the street was that the incumbent mayor, Tom Shabel, was planning to file a lawsuit to keep Koerber off the ballot. The two men are neighbors. Shabel lives on East Third Street. Koerber lives a block away on East Second. For that matter, so does a third candidate, Rich Lauer, who has run for mayor before.

Koerber bought his house two years ago. A former business professor at the University of Memphis, he and his wife thought Hermann would be a great place to retire. They bought their house, started working on it, and lived there off and on as they were still finishing up business commitments in Tennessee.

Thats not how Shabel sees it.

He doesnt think Koerber qualifies for the ballot, but he denies having anything to do with a potential lawsuit.

Im not aware of anybody who said they were going to file a lawsuit, he told me when I called on Thursday. Then he proceeded to tell me all the reasons why his neighbor shouldnt be allowed to run. Over the past two years, the incumbent mayor says, the Koerbers came up occasionally on weekends. They didnt change their utility bill address until the summer of 2015, Shabel said. Koerber didnt get a Missouri drivers license until July.

For a guy who said he hadnt heard any talk of a lawsuit against Koerber, Shabel seems to have studied the issue carefully.

So I asked him again: Are you sure nobody in the city was talking about such a lawsuit?

His answer shifted.

The city attorney has recommended that we not waste city money challenging him, Shabel said.

But who asked the city attorney to look into the situation?

The city clerk, Shabel said.

Wrong again.

What Shabel didnt know is that city attorney David Politte left a paper trail.

Politte is an attorney in private practice in Washington, Mo., who contracts with Hermann to be its city attorney. On Jan. 4, he posted a note on an email listserv where municipal attorneys share information and seek advice from each other. Its a private listserv, but an attorney who had read my column on election shenanigans in Wentzville  where the council passed a law aimed at keeping one candidate off the ballot  thought the Hermann situation also needed some attention. This attorney shared Polittes email with me.

I represent the City of Hermann, Polittes email begins. Our Mayor is asking about challenging the eligibility of his opponent who filed to be placed on the April ballot based on his residency.

Politte went on to explain his understanding of the law, and the fact that he saw the lawsuit as a long-shot.

Our mayor would like for the City to petition to remove the opponent. Im recommending he obtain independent counsel and file on his own, Politte wrote. Any thoughts?

Indeed, several other municipal attorneys weighed in. This case is a stinker, they said.

Sounds like the Mayor is wanting to spend the citys money to fight his battle, offered one municipal attorney.

Koerber didnt need to see the city attorneys email to know who was behind the rumors that his candidacy might be challenged.

Hes the one, he said of Shabel.

Apparently, the mayor had second thoughts after hearing from the city attorney. He says he has no plans to spend his own money and challenge Koerber.

Of course, it doesnt help his case that last year, he appointed Koerber to the Planning and Zoning Commission. Or that Koerber last year ran for the Hospital Board.

The city election is set for April 5.

Win or lose, Koerber said he and his wife are happy with their move to the historic little Missouri River town about 90 minutes west of St. Louis.

We have a great little city here, Koerber said. We should have an election on the issues, not innuendos. Were really too small for dirty tricks.

The incumbent mayor begs to differ.
FERGUSON  In a case that featured allegations of police brutality, claims of missing evidence and the pitfalls of body cameras, the stage was set for a trial.

A flat-screen TV was positioned next to the judge. Three defense attorneys convened at a table. Six activists, charged with various crimes, whispered among themselves.

But a key figure, pilloried because of a well-publicized federal report, was missing: Ferguson Prosecutor Stephanie Karr.

She eventually emerged from behind a wall, laid a slip of paper on the judges bench and announced that the charges were being dismissed.

Karr declined to provide an explanation, providing yet another demonstration of the opaque  and arbitrary, some say  nature of St. Louis County municipal justice, in the city that brought the entire system under scrutiny.

Charges included property damage, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct and third-degree assault. They were arrested following a Feb. 9 protest outside the Ferguson police station to mark the six-month anniversary of Michael Browns death.

During the protest, someone had scrawled profane messages in chalk on the walls  one of them a racial epithet directed at an African-American officer.

According to a police report, about 40 people participated in the protest, but video taken by protesters reviewed by the Post-Dispatch shows fewer than a dozen.

One officer shouts, Everybody here is going to jail, as other police begin to chase down protesters.

The circumstances of the arrests were highlighted in a Department of Justice report as an example of how Ferguson officers routinely violated First Amendment rights.

The report, published in March, launched months of negotiations between the city and DOJ over reforms to its municipal court and police department. As those negotiations continue, comments from Karr casting aspersions on the report  particularly involving incidents regarding her  were made public on Twitter on the eve of the trial.

Late Thursday, the six defendants filed a lawsuit in federal court, alleging that Ferguson had destroyed evidence in their case and committed numerous constitutional violations. The suit claims that despite the criticism that the police department had doubled down and is equally or more abusive, authoritarian and oppressive than it was prior to Browns death.

Missing video

The most serious of the allegations that brought defendants to court on Thursday was an assault charge against Heather De Mian.

Last year, she often moved through crowds of protesters in a motorized wheelchair, live streaming events on her cellphone held aloft by a flexible wand. In Fergusons version of events, De Mian blinded an officer with a light on her phone and then struck him with it when he tried to push it away, cutting his left thumb.

But De Mian, who was born with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a connective tissue disorder, said officers knocked her out of her chair without provocation. In one video, taken by activists, she is lying on the ground, shouting, They hit me in the face and knocked my glasses off.

Fergusons policy calls for all officers to wear functioning body cameras while on duty and to retain the video in criminal cases. Several months ago, the city, in response to a public records request, said it did not have video from the camera worn by the officer who arrested De Mian and accused her of assaulting him.

On Thursday, Jeff Small, a city spokesman, said the body cameras Ferguson officers wore at the time, which were donated shortly after Browns death on Aug. 9, 2014, had numerous technical problems.

They just didnt work half the time, Small said. We have since upgraded our cameras.

The city did provide body camera footage from two other officers to De Mians lawyer, Javad Khazaeli, but that does not show her arrest, he said.

On Thursday, after Karr announced the charges were being nolle prossed, the defendants looked at one another, seemingly bewildered until their lawyers explained what the term meant.

Even my assault against an officer charge? De Mian asked, before erupting in laughter.

Police in February also arrested independent filmmaker Christopher Phillips, seizing his camera with an estimated value of $20,000. When the device was returned, the connection pins on the memory card had been damaged, Phillips said.

Some footage on Phillips camera from that night was preserved. It captured officers briefly turning the machine on after receiving it into evidence, according to a scene reviewed by the Post-Dispatch.

Everything is time-stamped, Phillips said after the hearing. Two hours after I was in holding, there is a clip. Instead of sealing and bagging it like they are supposed to do and not tampering with it, I have evidence they did tamper with it ... Maybe thats part of the reason why they dropped all the charges.

Khazaeli said he had been to Fergusons court roughly 15 times for the case and worked on it for many hours. I hope that this wasnt a plan to make us waste our time and hundreds of hours worth of resources, he said.

Khazaeli said the city had given every indication it intended to try the case, filing a brief just a day earlier.

On Thursday, Karrs notice that the charges were being dropped was handwritten, and it said the charges could be refiled.

I wont say for sure that will happen, but that would not be unlikely, Small said.

Karr's troubles

The DOJ report also criticized Karr for voiding a red-light camera ticket for then-Ferguson Municipal Judge Ronald Brockmeyer, dismissing a ticket for the relative of a Ferguson police department supervisor and canceling a parking ticket for an employee of a nonprofit day camp.

Additionally the report highlighted the arrest of a father who let his children urinate in the bushes at a city park and chastised Karr for failing to disclose at a trial that a police officer central to the case had previously been untruthful.

For most of the past year, Karr has refrained from commenting on the allegations.

But after a Ferguson-based protest group called Ground Level Support filed a complaint against Karr with the state agency that investigates ethics complaints against Missouri lawyers, Karr wrote a 10-page response, mentioning a DOJ lawyer by name.

The group posted the response to Twitter on Wednesday night.

Karr called the groups complaint another attempt to impugn my reputation by ascribing a purported universal bias infecting everyone affiliated with the City  police, courts or the criminal justice system in general.

She defended dismissing Brockmeyers ticket, arguing it was one of several citations called into question because of lawsuits challenging the legality of photo enforcement systems.

She denied an assertion that people without lawyers could not get justice in Ferguson court, saying she had canceled more tickets for defendants representing themselves than those with lawyers.

And she said the DOJ provided no evidence that the officer central to the case against the father arrested for his kids public urination had been untruthful.

The DOJ did not describe the previous police department investigation or how long ago it occurred or describe how the testifying officer was supposedly untruthful during that investigation, wrote Karr in her letter to the Missouri Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel.

The disciplinary counsel routinely asks for responses from attorneys who have complaints filed against them.

As for the parking ticket given to the employee of a nonprofit day camp, Karr said the camp mentors and tutors many African-American youths from disadvantaged backgrounds. The community service the organization provides clearly outweighed the parking violation, Karr said.

But she said when she attempted to explain that to DOJ lawyers, they had no interest in my deliberation and the thought process behind my decisions.

The Department of Justice declined to comment Thursday.
MARYVILLE  Jonathan Michael Malone, 53, was indicted Thursday by a federal grand jury in connection with a holdup of the One Stop Shop Gas Station here about 6:19 p.m. Jan. 14.

Malone, of Glen Carbon, is charged with interference of commerce by robbery, brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence and unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison on the first charge and a consecutive term of up to life in prison, with a minimum of seven years, for the other, officials said. He could get up to 10 years on the third.

According to court documents, Malone carried a .22 caliber semi-automatic pistol and threatened to kill an employee of the business, at 2621 Center Street, who handed over $275 in cash. Police set up a roadblock and caught Malone within minutes, based on the victim's description of him and his car. A gun and cash were recovered.

Malone is prohibited from possession a firearm because of a prior armed robbery conviction in 1995 in Madison County, the documents say. He was ordered held without bail.

No photo of Malone was available.
ST. LOUIS  If a police officer comes to a house for a domestic dispute, should the officer come into the house with a body camera running?

If a witness asks a police officer to turn off a body camera, should the officer comply?

How long should body camera data be stored? What if a victim comes forward after data are deleted?

About three dozen people came together Thursday evening in a town hall meeting at South City Church in the Shaw neighborhood to discuss such questions, and to think about what they want to ask public officials who craft policies about body cameras.

A select group of St. Louis police sergeants have been equipped with body cameras since December, when they started a 90-day pilot program. St. Louis County has been running a pilot program since September 2014. Before 2015, only four states required body cameras. Last year, 26 states introduced body camera legislation, organizers said.

Kayla Reed, with the Organization for Black Struggle and one of the event organizers, says the public should provide input and know what the St. Louis body camera policy is before it is put into place.

People want a lens to see how we can make police more accountable, she said. Some of us are like, Do we have to spend more money to make police more accountable? Can we do that in some other way? 

Cameras can cost from $300 to $500 each, not including storage costs for video.

John Chasnoff, an organizer of the event representing a group called Drone Free STL, said strong policies needed to be put into place to avoid a world in which everyone is under constant surveillance.

Police need to figure out how to handle videos of crime victims and witnesses. They also need their own protections  for example, a conversation an officer has about his own child while sitting in a patrol car doesnt have to be recorded, Chasnoff said. Some police have resisted cameras because they see it as a privacy intrusion.

Chasnoffs group believes a camera should be turned on when the officer is engaged with the public, and turned on as soon as possible. The exception would be if that would be unsafe, impractical or impossible.

Other event organizers included the American Civil Liberties Union, the Dont Shoot Coalition, and the Peace Economy Project.

Blake Lawrence, chief counsel for state Sen. Jamilah Nasheed, is drafting a body camera bill. Several such bills died in the last session. The new bill would require large police departments statewide to have the cameras. He said he got at least one call a month from a police officer who wanted them. The cameras would cut back on complaints about police and simplify discipline issues, he said. He encouraged those at the meeting to reach out with concerns and input.

Alderman Megan Ellyia Green, who has been outspoken against government surveillance, said she recognized the complexity of the body camera issue. She said any permanent policy enacted by the city of St. Louis should be codified, because if its not it can be changed easily by the next police chief.

The public should have some say and knowledge about the policy, she said.

If we just implement something without having the input of the community, the community should let us know, she said.
JEFFERSON CITY  The 2016 session of the Missouri Legislature is a mere two weeks old, but already it stands out as a milestone for at least one lawmaker.

During his three terms in the House and now his second year in the Senate, Republican Paul Wieland has tried to convince his colleagues to abolish the death penalty.

Im a conservative Republican. I am a devout Catholic. Im extremely pro-life, the Jefferson County Republican said. If I am going to be a defender of life, I have to be defending it on both ends of the spectrum.

Until this week, however, legislation hes filed to get rid of the death penalty has gone nowhere in a state that has executed 18 convicted killers in the past two years, a pace second only to Texas 24.

Tuesday marked the first time his proposal has been aired at a committee hearing, which is a key first step for a bill winding its way through the legislative process.

The hearing room was packed with death penalty opponents, police, prosecutors and onlookers interested in the spectacle.

It was clear that some of Wielands fellow Republicans were uncomfortable with the idea of ending executions.

State Sen. Bob Onder, R-Lake St. Louis, for example, said murderers serving life sentences are dangerous to other inmates.

Murders do happen in prison. It seems that other convicted prisoners have a right to be protected too, Onder said.

State Sen. Dave Schatz, R-Sullivan, rebuffed claims that that the death penalty does not serve as a deterrent to crime.

It may deter someone. To say it doesnt work, thats not correct, Schatz said.

Despite the negative reviews from some of his GOP colleagues, Wieland emerged upbeat from the hearing.

I think its an issue that needs to be brought forward and needs to be discussed, he said.

Wieland has bipartisan support for Senate Bill 816. Others on board include state Sens. Rob Schaaf, R-St. Joseph; Gina Walsh, D-Bellefontaine Neighbors; and Jill Schupp, D-Creve Coeur.

For now, however, Wieland is not confident the measure will go anywhere this year.

Its not a bill that were going to get passed right away. But this is a sign that were moving the ball farther down the field, Wieland said.

I just hope with term limits that Im around to see it, said Wieland.

If he wins reelection, in 2018, that gives him until 2022 to get his proposal over the finish line. (Kurt Erickson)

HE SAID IT: "Its time to stop playing politics with peoples lives. Do the right thing and give them access to health care. Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon, a Democrat, in his final state-of-the-state speech Wednesday, calling for expansion of Medicaid as envisioned under the Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare"). The Republican-controlled Legislature has consistently refused, which is preventing an estimated 300,000 Missourians from getting coverage.

HOT LINKS:

This report was compiled by Post-Dispatch political reporter Kevin McDermott.
WASHINGTON  One in 10 college women in a new survey said they were sexually assaulted during the 2014-2015 school year, and one in five said they had been assaulted over the course of their college years, according to a new survey by the federal Bureau of Justice Statistics.

More than 4 percent said they were raped during that time, but only 12.5 percent reported the alleged rapes to authorities, either on campus or to local police, according to the study.

The data, taken from a survey of 23,000 college students - 15,000 of them female - on nine unidentified campuses, should end any doubt about the depth of the problem, said Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo.

McCaskill and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., are lead sponsors of bipartisan legislation aimed at strengthening support for students alleging sexual assault and setting standardized guidelines on how police and campus officials should handle reports and investigations.

The only good news from this report is that it should finally put to rest those whove tried to minimize the threat of sexual assaults on campuses," McCaskill and Gillibrand said in a joint statement. "It shows in jarring detail how many of our college students are forced to contend with such violence, and should fuel our drive to pass our sweeping, bipartisan plan to tackle this systemic issuebecause no mother or father should have to wonder if their kid is going to wind up a statistic in a report like this.

The two senators hope to get the legislation attached to broader efforts on higher-education reform later this year. So far, that has not happened, and the bill on its own has not advanced through committee.

Researchers from RTI International - a non-profit research group in North Carolina - hired by the Bureau of Justice Statistics said they conducted a survey on the nine campuses that took, on average, 15 minutes for men and 16 minutes for women to complete. Students were given gift cards as an enticement to participate, and the survey's authors said a high response level gave them confidence in the study's accuracy.

Besides the 4.1 percent of women who said they were raped during the previous school year, 5.6 percent said they were the victims of "completed sexual battery."

The survey's authors defined sexual battery as "any unwanted and nonconsensual contact that involved forced touching of a sexual nature, not involving penetration. This could include forced kissing, touching, grabbing, or fondling of sexual body parts."

Rape was defined as "any unwanted and nonconsensual sexual contact that involved a penetrative act."

Some had questioned the statistics used by advocates of sexual assault victims, including President Barack Obama, and had pointed to actual Department of Justice crime data showing lower incidence and downward trends. A USA Today columnist criticized what he called "the great campus rape hoax" and the liberal site Slate.com ran a column recounting stories of alleged perpetrators being denied due process in campus investigations of what the accused said was consensual sex. The Slate column warned of an "overcorrection."

A false story in "Rolling Stone" magazine alleging a gang rape at a University of Virginia fraternity added to that debate. That story, since disavowed by the magazine, has engendered lawsuits against "Rolling Stone."

But this new study concludes that many alleged assaults and rapes are not reported, and it backs up Obama's and other advocate's claims of one in five women on campus describing themselves as victims of sexual assault. The report should answer doubters that the problem was as bad as they have described it, McCaskill and Gillibrand said.

The Bureau of Justice Statistics is a division of the federal Department of Justice.
UNIVERSITY CITY  Police said Friday they were looking for a person of interest in this weeks stabbing death of a man in his home.

They also said they did not believe the crime was linked to the killing of two men in an unsolved stabbing in 2013 less than a half-mile away.

August Lombardo, 70, was found slain Wednesday after what police said was a struggle during what may have been a robbery in the two-family building in the 7100 block of Amherst Avenue.

Police said a co-worker found the body about 7:30 a.m. Wednesday after using a key that had been supplied by Lombardo. They had last spoken Tuesday night. The body was in a bedroom on the first floor. He had been stabbed multiple times and had defensive wounds.

Although there are similarities, the case is unrelated to the 2013 murders of Gary T. Workes and Maurice Bud Karzin, University City Police Lt. Fredrick Lemons said. Both cases appeared to involve robbery, and the victims were found after failing to show up for work.

But Lemons said the person suspected of killing Lombardo had been incarcerated at the time of the other deaths. And he said police were gathering evidence in trying to build a case against someone else in that one.

Workes, 59, and Karzin, 77, his neighbor, were found June 13, 2013, inside Workes apartment in the 800 block of Pennsylvania Avenue., just north of Delmar Boulevard. Police had checked on them after Workes failed to show up for work as a delivery driver for Schnucks.

Anyone with information about the crimes is is asked to call police at 314-725-2211, ext. 8010, or CrimeStoppers at 866-371-8477.
President Barack Obama officially declared the Great Flash Flood of 2015 a major disaster Thursday night, opening up federal aid to the thousands of people who were affected.

This announcement makes federal funding available to those affected in 33 Missouri counties, including the metro-area counties of St. Louis, St. Charles, Jefferson, Franklin and Lincoln.

Individuals and business owners can apply for grants and low-interest loans to cover costs for temporary housing, home repairs, uninsured property losses, unemployment payments and a variety of other needs like medical, dental, funeral or transportation services.

Individuals can also take advantage of federal relief programs like crisis counseling, income tax assistance and advisory assistance for legal, veterans' benefits and Social Security issues.

On Friday, Gov. Jay Nixon asked Obama to declare the flood a disaster in 41 counties. Thursday's declaration did not include the counties of Callaway, Dade, Douglas, Howell, Miller, Oregon, Ozark or Pike.

Anyone who was affected by the floods in the 33 counties can apply for aid at www.DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 1-800-621-FEMA.
Embattled Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, grappling with a police shooting that could destroy his mayoralty, has lamented the code of silence around police brutality.

But now the famously outspoken Emanuel seems to be adopting his own code of silence.

The former congressman and top official in the Obama and Clinton administrations was listed as a featured panelist at the opening plenary luncheon of the U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting. The topic: Reducing Violence and Strengthening Police/Community Trust.

This took some guts: Emanuel was, before a national audience, going to address head-on the crisis that has engulfed him since the release almost 60 days ago of video showing a Chicago policeman shooting 17-year-old Laquan McDonald 16 times as McDonald appeared to be walking away. Emanuels administration had resisted having the video of the killing released, and emails show involvement of the mayors office in how to deal with the PR problem. Now there are accusations of a cover-up and calls for his resignation.

But Laquan McDonald didnt cross Emanuels lips at the Police/Community Trust forum. He didnt even mention the incident directly, instead proffering a variety of facts and figures indicating everything is awesome in Chicago.

Chicago is at a record-high, near-70 percent graduation rate. Our sophomore class is on track, according to the University of Chicago, to get 84 percent.

We now have 26,000 kids in summer jobs. ... Four years ago we were at 14,000.

The overall crime over four years is down about 35 percent.

We now have the largest re-entry second-chance program in the United States.

We doubled the amount  were now up to 400 police officers on bicycles.

During the entire 45-minute session, incredibly, the elephant in the ballroom went unacknowledged.

The Chicago Sun-Times previewed Emanuels appearance at the forum with the headline Emanuel to confront political demons head-on at national panel on policing.

Instead, he ducked his demons. An aide pointed out that he wasnt asked specifically about McDonald, and its true that his fellow panelists werent in positions to prosecute him: Baltimore Mayor and panel moderator Stephanie Rawlings-Blake (whose city saw rioting after the Freddie Gray death in police custody), New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu and former Mayor Marc Morial (whose city was found by the Justice Department to have had widespread police misconduct) and St. Louis Police Chief Sam Dotson (who had a close view of the Ferguson affair).

Asked for an update on crime in Chicago and the biggest problems you currently face, Emanuel said nothing about Topic A. Guns and gangs, he answered.

After Landrieu raised the civil liberties problems for police, Emanuel asked for another turn with the microphone  and mentioned high school dropout rates.

Morial spoke about the need for mayors to know how many civil rights complaints there are against the police, to avoid being bit, surprised by something.

Emanuel addressed Morial: Ive got nothing to add, but Im going to be a Jewish mother. Youve got to move that microphone up.

Landrieu talked about the need to have a transparent inquiry after a police shooting  an implicit rebuke of Emanuel.

Emanuel spoke about the need to target the most violent members of gangs and the gun dealers who sell most of the guns used to commit violence.

A mayor from New Jersey had a question about personal responsibility, providing another opening for Emanuel to admit failings in the McDonald case.

Were not going to answer until you tell us what exit you are on the highway, Emanuel quipped.

Turnpike, Rawlings-Blake corrected.

Emanuel, in his answer, spoke more about summer jobs, and the role of parents in teaching right and wrong. Still, nothing about Laquan McDonald.

Finally, in her last question, Rawlings-Blake made a halfhearted grasp at the elephant, asking the others to talk about the panels advertised theme: the trust between police and communities.

The trust factor is not just a goal  its a key ingredient to effective community policing, Emanuel said, then got as close as he would to the matter that threatens his tenure. The public has to know theres legitimate oversight, its certain and its not biased, and the truth is were working at that  our city, other cities  because theres been a lot of judgment that the oversight has been lax and theres not an accounting system.

And that was it. The once fearless Emanuel closed with an anecdote about a woman thanking him for the fine job the police do. The code held.

Dana Milbank

Copyright The Washington Post
Because everything is connected to everything else, and because China is extremely proud of its aluminum industry and wants to keep its people working even though theres been a worldwide glut of aluminum for the past five years, electricity rates in St. Louis could be going up faster than ever before.

Welcome to the global economy, with an assist to the Missouri Legislature. This is an election year, so if you think youre already paying enough for electricity (residential rates for St. Louis-area customers are up 50 percent since 2007), you should keep an eye on whats going on in Jefferson City.

The Post-Dispatchs Jacob Barker has reported that talks are underway about legislation that could change the way that Ameren Missouri and other investor-owned utilities have their rates set. Gas and water company lobbyists want to piggyback on regulatory changes that would make it easier for them to raise rates, too.

The effort is being led by Ameren, whose CEO, Warner Baxter, has promised to be relentless in seeking regulatory relief from the Public Service Commission.

Ameren wants Missouri to switch to the same formula rate rules that apply in Illinois. Each year utilities would merely present their expenses for the previous year, and the Public Service Commission would set current-year rates using a formula incorporating operating costs plus a reasonable rate of return.

Under existing PSC rate-setting regulations, Ameren was allowed a 9.53 percent rate of return (profit) in its most recent rate case, provided it met certain requirements.

Ameren argues that formula rate-making is more predictable and eliminates many of its risks and costs. Opponents of formula rate-making say it would allow utilities, by virtue of their monopoly status, to offload risk to customers. In effect, utilities would be paid for upgrades that they havent yet made. Regulators would not get to scrutinize their performance.

Ameren already has begun investing more of its discretionary capital in its Illinois operations than in Missouri, mostly because Illinois formula-based system carries less regulatory risk.

With six rate increases in Missouri in the last eight years, its not like Ameren is suffering. The company will announce results for 2015 next month, but in 2014 it reported a profit of $586 million, or $2.40 per share, more than double the $289 million, or $1.18, the company earned in 2013.

The company donates heavily to political campaigns and employs more than 40 lobbyists in Jefferson City. It is among the biggest sources of the freebies that many lawmakers crave. But its been unable to achieve its biggest goal  easing oversight by state regulators.

Now Ameren is working with Noranda Aluminum Holdings, its biggest customer  and historically, one of the staunchest opponents of rate increases  on a sweetheart deal. Ameren, which last spring gave Noranda a break on higher rates, would cut Noranda even more slack if the Legislature approves formula rate-making.

The incentive for lawmakers is saving jobs: Noranda is laying off 500 of the 850 workers at its giant smelter near New Madrid. It has said more layoffs, or a plant closing, may come in March unless it gets cheaper electricity  key to its production process.

This entire issue has way more to do with the glut of aluminum on world markets, caused by Chinas industrial policies, than it does with Missouris electricity rates. It may also have a lot to do with the millions in back taxes Noranda owes in Jamaica, where it mines the bauxite used in making aluminum. Noranda also owes $3.6 million in property taxes to New Madrid County.

Noranda has long been among the big industrial customers that have fought Amerens rate-hike requests. Ordinary consumers arent organized enough, nor do they have enough political clout, to go toe-to-toe with Ameren. The big industrial users do the fighting, and residential customers ride their backs.

Now Noranda is trying to cut a separate deal. But saving jobs in New Madrid and granting Ameren a formula rate-making deal would mean overturning a 1976 law approved by voter initiative that forbids utilities from charging for construction work in progress.

Lawmakers should be wary about undoing the expressed will of the people. They should be leery about making it easier to raise electricity rates in an election year, particularly if gas and water companies tag along.

Economically, Ameren is doing a lot better than most people in Missouri, where household income has been stagnant for a decade or more. And while we sympathize with Norandas workers, Chinas protectionism, not Missouris electricity rates, are to blame.
LONDON MARKET CLOSE: Stocks pull back as pressure on BoE to hike rates

Wednesday, October 19, 2022 - 17:20

The optimism in equity markets in London faded on Wednesday, with stocks pulled back as consumer inflation in the UK was hotter than expected.

The FTSE 100 index closed down 11.75 points, or 0.2%, at 6,924.99. The FTSE 250 ended down a heftier 281.76 points, or 1.6%, at 17,247.55. The AIM All-Share lost 9.51 points, or 1.2%, at 785.97.

The Cboe UK 100 closed 0.2% lower at 692.60, the Cboe UK 250 fell 1.5% to 14,806.44, and the Cboe Small Companies closed 0.7% lower at 12,369.96.

In European equities on Wednesday afternoon, the CAC 40 in Paris lost 0.4%, and the DAX 40 in Frankfurt gave back 0.2%.

The pound fell to $1.1242 Wednesday evening from $1.1291 late Tuesday.

New data showed consumer inflation in the UK was shoved back into double digits in September, which turns the spotlight firmly onto the Bank of England.

The consumer price index rose by 10.1% in September from a year before, according to the Office for National Statistics. The inflation rate picked up from 9.9% in August and returned to the same rate as recorded in July.

The latest figure came in marginally hotter-than-expected, with a reading of 10% expected, according to FXStreet.

AJ Bell's Danni Hewson said stretching household budgets to cover the "basic necessities of life has become harder and harder".

"Cutbacks have already been made. Big name brands ditched for value lines in the weekly food shop, thermostats have been dialled down, non-essential journeys put off or abandoned altogether," she continued.

"The fact that food and energy costs were the main drivers for September
The undeclared war between Saudi Arabia and Iran seemed to get hot on January 2nd when Saudi Arabia executed 47 people, including a prominent Shia cleric. That one death generated anti-Saudi demonstrations in Iran and an attack on the Saudi embassy. This led the Saudis to break diplomatic relations with Iran. This was yet another skirmish in a conflict that actually began in 1979 when Shia clerics gained control of Iran and made it clear that Shia Iran should lead all of Islam, not Saudi Arabia. Iran also began talking about how the Saudis were not fit to manage the Moslem holy places in Mecca. If you step back a bit you can see how all this is yet another round in the 1,200 year old war between Shia and Sunni Islam. This round is being fought in Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon.

This round of the ancient succession dispute (over who should rule the entire Islamic world) heated up quickly in the 1980s, when Sunni Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein saw an opportunity while Iran was in chaos as the Shia clergy there overthrew the monarchy and began reorganizing Iranian society. To outsiders this was a messy revolution and Saddam thought he could seize several major Iranian oil fields just across the border. So Saddam invaded. That land grab failed and turned into a decade of war that caused over two million casualties and put the Shia clergy firmly in control of the Iranian government (which was supposed to become a democracy after the monarchy fell).

Once firmly in power the Iranian clerics saw this as an opportunity to cut the Sunni (80 percent of Moslems are Sunni and Saudi Arabia is sort of their leader) down to size. The Saudis had long feared this and that was why they supported keeping the Sunni minority in power in Iraq. That led the wealthy Sunni nations like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait to finance Iraq as it struggled to deal with the Iranian counterattack in the early 1980s. Iran tried to strike back at Saudi Arabia by encouraging Shia attending the annual Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca to cause trouble. In 1987 the Saudis cracked down hard and 275 Iranian pilgrims died (along with 125 others, mainly Saudi police). That led to mobs attacking the Saudi embassy in Iran, which left one Saudi diplomat dead. Iran and Saudi Arabia broke diplomatic relations for a while. A year later Iran accepted a stalemate and a ceasefire in Iraq. Iran wanted revenge and began organizing terrorist attacks against Saudi Arabia.

In 1990, the Saudis demanded that the American coalition organized to drive the Iraqi invaders out of Kuwait, not invade Iraq. This promise was no secret, but it made little sense to most Westerners (who knew little of the Sunni-Shia conflict). Thus the Saudis were not pleased when the Americans went into Iraq in 2003 and deposed Saddam and his Sunni dictatorship. Iran saw this as a win. After 1990, the Saudis agreed that Saddam was bad and said they would ease him out. After more than a decade of effort (and financing over a dozen assassination plots or coup attempts) Saddam was still in power which what the Saudis preferred. The Saudis thought if they could replace Saddam with another Sunni strongman all would be well but Saddam was extremely resilient. So were his Sunni followers, who kept fighting after 2003. But now Iran had an ally, rather than an adversary, in Iraq, where the Shia majority voted itself into power in 2005. For the first time in over five centuries the Shia were running this area once more. Meanwhile the 1996 bombing of the Khobar Towers housing complex, which left 18 American military personnel dead, was eventually (after a three year investigation) traced back to Iran. After 2001 Iran also began energetically supporting Shai rebels in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain and much other clandestine mischief.

One of the more obvious moves was taking advantage of the 1975-90 civil war in Lebanon to turn most of the Shia minority into a lethal pro-Iran militia and terrorist organization (Hezbollah) in the 1980s. After 1990 Hezbollah came to dominate Lebanese politics. Neighboring Syria, where a secular dictatorship was run by a Shia minority and constantly at odds with Saddams Iraq, became an ally (and client) of Iran in the 1980s. Syria had been a sanctuary for Arab terrorists (secular or Islamic) since the 1960s and was the main support base for the 2003-7 Iraq Sunni terrorist campaign. That one was crushed, but not destroyed, when most Iraqi Sunnis, fearing expulsion from Iraq, turned on the terrorists. That did not bring all the material benefits (government jobs and a larger share of the oil income) many Sunnis expected, and that enabled the Sunni terror groups to continue recruiting and killing. In Syria, the Sunni majority noted the persistence (if not success) of the Iraqi Sunni terrorists and were advised by Iraqi Sunnis how to organize to fight a hated government. That led to the current civil war in Syria. That, in turn, has reignited the civil war in Lebanon (where Arab Christians are the largest minority, followed by Shia, Sunni, and several smaller groups). The

Arabian Peninsula states (all of them Sunni run but with a lot of Shia subjects) were alarmed at this Shia expansion to their north. In effect, there was a Shia wall up there and to make matters worse the Iranian clerics were talking openly about how much better off Islam would be if Shia (led by Iran) protected (and administered) the most sacred Moslem holy cities of Mecca and Medina instead of the Sunni Saud family. Iran saw their demands justified when over 2,400 Hajj pilgrims (including 450 Iranians) died during the 2015 pilgrimage because of inept Saudi management of the event that led to a huge stampede. At this points Shia clergy were openly calling for a change in management (from Saudi to Iran) in Mecca and soon. The implication was that this was an emergency and any means necessary (including Iranian nukes) were justified to make it happen. So yes, there is very much another Sunni-Shia war going on and Iraq, Syria and Yemen are right in the middle of it as are all the Persian Gulf states that control so much of the world oil supply.

January 20, 2016
It has been a disappointing year for the Taliban. I n early 2015 the Taliban undertook a major military effort against the Afghan security forces now that that foreign troops were no longer doing any of the fighting. That role ended in late 2014. As a result the 350,000 personnel of the Afghan security forces (170,000 troops and 180,000 police) have suffered 27 percent more casualties in 2015 compared to 2014. Taliban losses have also been very high, but they have lower recruiting standards and can offer drugs as well as money for those young tribesmen willing to take a chance during the fighting season (the annual warm weather period between the time crops are planted and harvested). Going off to try and gain some glory and loot during the fighting season is an ancient tradition in Afghanistan, especially there is not much alternative employment available in the countryside and the Taliban pay well.

Being part of an organized army is s different matter. American advisors believe that losing nearly three percent of its strength a year to combat deaths or crippling wounds, as occurred in 2014, is not sustainable. While the Taliban suffer higher losses the Taliban are more flexible in how they operate. This is more in line with the traditional Afghan way of warfare, which is more about raiding and ambushes than it is in operating like soldiers. The army and police are often standing guard in exposed positions (checkpoints or in bases) or obliged to go after fleeing Taliban, who often pause long enough to ambush the troops then move off again. Afghan soldiers and police know they are more effective fighters than the tribal warriors, but that their job requires them to expose themselves to danger regularly in order to maintain control of territory. The Taliban are not tied down nearly as much and that makes a big difference in morale.

The drug gangs provide the enormous quantities of the cash the Taliban need to operate as they do. Nearly all the 30,000 or so Taliban are paid and the Taliban leaders are paid much more. Moreover the drug gangs provide enough cash so the Taliban can compensate the families of Taliban killed in action. The drug gangs also bribe, and then control lots of government officials (civilian, military and police) and even some tribal leaders. The bribed officials will do things for the Taliban as well as the drug gangs.

The Taliban need all the money they can get because their 2015 plan was to eliminate Afghan security forces in the south (mainly Helmand province, where most of the worlds heroin is produced), the east (where most of the Helmand heroin is moved out via Pakistan and the Pakistani port of Karachi to the rest of the world) and parts of the north where heroin is also moved, mainly via Kunduz province to Central Asia.

The northern offensive failed, which is not surprising because in late 2001 the Taliban had still not been able to conquer all the northern tribes. The north never forgets and local tribal militias up there will go after any Taliban who come too close. Eastern Afghanistan is also increasingly hostile to the Taliban and other Islamic terror groups like the Haqqani Network. But there are so many Islamic terror groups in the eastern provinces along the Pakistani border, including a thousand or so ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) men and over 5,000 Pakistani Taliban and other Islamic terrorists pushed out of North Waziristan by the Pakistan Army in an operation that began in mid-2014 that the Taliban has a hard time maintaining any control in the east. These rival Islamic terror groups will often fight back if the Taliban tries to assert any control.

In the south the Taliban had some success in Helmand, where most of the 10,000 Taliban fighters lost in 2015 were killed. About 20 percent of Helmand is now under Taliban control and the government wants more American air power (bombers and surveillance) to enable the reinforced Afghan forces to push the Taliban out quickly and with fewer dead soldiers and policemen. Its the drug gangs that finance all the mayhem in Helmand, as well they might because Helmand is where most of the opium poppies are grown and where the portable labs use chemicals smuggled in from bordering Pakistan to convert the sap of the poppies into heroin. The drug gangs would prefer to bribe the army and police to stay away but that has not worked because the heroin (and much cheaper opium) is hated in most of the country because over five percent of the population has become addicted to opium or heroin. So the troops and police from other parts of the country face disgrace back home if they do not attack the drug operations when they have a chance. Most Afghans dont care if some tribes produce and export illegal drugs, they do care of the drugs are sold inside Afghanistan to Afghans. The Taliban understand this and have been living off the drug gangs since the late 1990s and justify this by promising to return to the system they imposed during the 1990s where the gangs were forced to export nearly all their production and were severely punished if any of the opium or heroin got out to the locals. That restriction disappeared along with Taliban control of most of Afghanistan in late 2001. It only worked back then because the Taliban offered security for the drug gangs in return for a large share of the profits and keeping the drugs away from Afghans. Some in the current Afghan government see that as a possible option now that the Westerners are gone. The Western donors have made it clear that the aid will disappear (and the bombs will return) if Afghanistan turns into a narco state (the national government is on the drug gang payroll). Many current government officials are already bribed by the drug gangs and the Afghans will keep wheeling and dealing with drug lords and foreign diplomats in order to keep the cash, but not the bombs, coming.

The drug angle has made most of the tribes hostile to the Taliban and the drug gangs. Westerners often lose sight of the fact that most of the violence in Afghanistan is all about the drugs and the disruption they causes to Afghan society and culture. Most of the 3,000 Afghan civilians killed in 2015 were because of this war against the drug lords and their hired guns (mainly the Taliban). The Afghan countryside has always been a dangerous place but it has become more dangerous because all that drug money has equipped many tribesmen with automatic weapons and fast vehicles.

Another largely ignored (outside the region) element is the growing number of casualties suffered by Islamic terror groups because of factionalism, feuds and infighting. By the end of 2015 the Taliban was fighting ISIL as well as some other anti-Taliban Islamic terrorists and a growing number of dissident Taliban factions. ISIL and factionalism are growing problems for the Taliban mainly because ISIL tends to persuade many very capable Taliban leaders to defect. The dissident Taliban factions survive by making deals with a local drug gang. It must be remembered that there is no one organization running the drug business in Afghanistan but dozens of drug gangs (many tribe or clan based) that tend to remain at peace with each other (for business reasons) and will hire the best mercenaries they can.

During 2015 only 27 foreign soldiers died (22 American, two British and thee from other countries) in Afghanistan. Most of these deaths occurred in the last three months of the year. In 2014 75 foreign troops died in Afghanistan and the peak year was 2010 when 710 died. Since late 2001 3,512 foreign troops (68 percent American) have died in Afghanistan. During the 1980s over 15,000 Russian troops died in an attempt to gain control of the country.

In Kabul a Taliban suicide bomber attacked a bus carrying employees of Afghanistans largest TV network. This killed seven people and wounded 25. At first it was believed the attack was directed at the nearby Russian embassy but it soon became clear that this was another attack on the media, to discourage coverage (especially unfavorable stuff) of Islamic terrorists or the drug gangs. The Afghan media, finally free after decades of war, is often outspoken in its criticism of Islamic terrorists and drug gangs. The Islamic terrorists dont need media coverage as much as they used to because now anyone can get their message out via the Internet, especially if it is accompanied by videos of people being tortured and killed.

January 20, 2016: The Afghan Air Force received the first of four used Mi-25 helicopter gunships from India. Afghanistan, India and Pakistan already operate some M-24s as well as the upgraded version (Mi-35). The Mi-25 is an export version of the Mi-24. India is replacing its Mi-25s with American AH-64s.

January 15, 2016: The Afghan Air Force received the first four of twenty A-29 Super Tucano aircraft. These will be used for training and air support of soldiers and police. The Super Tucano is a single engine turbo-prop trainer/attack aircraft that is used by over a dozen nations. This aircraft carries two internal 12.7mm (.50 caliber) machine-guns along with 1.5 tons of bombs and rockets. It can stay in the air for 6.5 hours at a time. It is rugged, easy to maintain and cheap. The U.S. is paying $17.7 million for each Super Tucano, which includes training, spare parts and support equipment and giving all this to Afghanistan as military aid. These aircraft are more useful to the Afghans than jet fighters (which the Afghans would like to have, if someone else would pay for them.) All twenty are to be in service by the end of 2017. The Afghans want to expand their air force with more attack aircraft and armed helicopters. While the Americans are bringing in more warplanes these tend to be used against ISIL first, and then whatever Afghan security forces need. The U.S. sees ISIL as a more serious threat to the United States while Afghanistan is more concerned with all the other Islamic terror groups and especially the Taliban. For example most of the American UAV operations (surveillance and missile attacks) is directed at ISIL and senior Taliban and Haqqani leaders. The Afghans are more concerned with the battles soldiers and police fight every day against Taliban and other Islamic terrorist gunmen.

January 13, 2016: In the east (Jalalabad) ISIL attacked the Pakistani consulate. Three attackers and seven security personnel died. This was the first time ISIL went after a Pakistani government target in Afghanistan. Apparently four suicide bombers were involved in this attack and the fourth one got away.

January 12, 2016: Mohammad Ali Jafari, the commander of the IRGC (Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps) boasted that the IRGC was responsible for training (and often recruiting, arming and paying) 200,000 fighters in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Pakistan and Afghanistan. At least a quarter of these are in Syria, followed by Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen. Pakistan and Afghanistan were not happy with the IRGC publicly admitting that Iran has sponsored local (and often illegal) Shia militias. Iran had to do some diplomatic fence mending over that. Jafaris comments confirmed Afghan suspicion of Iranian meddling in western Afghanistan and secret support for some Afghan Shia tribes.

January 11, 2016: Officials from Pakistan, Afghanistan, China and the United States met in Pakistan to try and restart the peace talks with the Taliban. But it soon became clear that the real problem was not Taliban peace talks (not likely because of factionalism within the Afghan Taliban) but the growing hostility between Pakistan and its neighbors Afghanistan and India. Pakistan is accused of harboring Islamic terrorists who make attacks on Afghanistan and India. Officially Pakistan denies any involvement but unofficially Pakistan says it tolerates Islamic terrorists who help it deal with Indian threats, especially those done via a growing alliance with Afghanistan. India insists, and the historical record backs them up, that they have no such designs on Pakistan. A perusal of Indian media over the last half century confirms that. Indians dont really care what happens in Pakistan as long as it does not hurt India. Thus Pakistani Islamic terrorists who attack the few Hindus and Sikhs in Pakistan is an issue inside India, but a minor one. The dispute over Kashmir is a bigger deal in Pakistan than in India but there is nothing to indicate Indian enthusiasm for war with Pakistan over Kashmir. Then there is Afghanistan, where Pakistan has been meddling well, forever. When Pakistan was created out of British India in 1947 the new Pakistan government continued, like the British and before that many Indian Empires, in Afghanistan. Many Pakistanis openly declare this to be a Pakistani right and obligation because Pakistan considers Afghans incapable of governing themselves and in need of Pakistani guidance. This view is not appreciated in Afghanistan and bothers India as well.

January 9, 2016: In northwest Pakistan (North Waziristan) an American UAV missile attack killed five members of the Pakistani Taliban. Just across the border in Afghanistan a similar attack killed at least twenty members of ISIL.

January 3, 2016: Afghanistan accused Pakistan of organizing the attack on the Indian consulate in the north Afghan city of Mazar-e-Sharif. The attack failed, but only after a 25 hour siege of a building near the consulate that the attackers were firing from. The attackers were heard speaking Urdu (the language of Pakistan) rather than the languages common in Mazar-e-Sharif (Dari or Pushtu). The attackers also displayed a discipline and tactical skill lacking in the usual suicidal Islamic terrorist attacks in Afghanistan. One reason the attack failed was the Afghanistan allows India to bring in highly trained security personnel to guard diplomatic facilities and major Indian aid projects. This discourages most Islamic terrorist groups and explains why the Pakistanis sent in four professionals for this attack. Apparently one of the reasons for this attack was the successful Indian crackdown on Pakistani sponsored Islamic terrorism in Kashmir. All four attackers and an Afghan policeman were killed while four civilians were wounded during the operation.

Since the security forces went after the Taliban who had entered the northern city of Kunduz on September 28th over 1,300 more Islamic terrorists have been killed in the city and then Kunduz province. The September Taliban attack on Kunduz left 289 civilians dead and 559 wounded. The fighting inside the city continued until October 13th and after that the additional police and soldiers sent north remained and kept hunting Taliban in the area. The Taliban consider Kunduz province a major route for smuggling heroin out of the country via Central Asia. The Taliban are still a threat in parts of Kunduz province, as can be seen in the areas where cell phone companies comply with Taliban demands and that cell phone service be turned off at night (so locals cannot alert police to Taliban activity). If the companies do not comply the Taliban will attack the cell phone towers and company personnel.

December 31, 2015: Pakistan established a hotline with Afghanistan so officers can use it to contact each other quickly when there are border incidents that could escalate into more violent incidents. The hotline was tested today and worked.

December 28, 2015: In the west (Kandahar) gunmen fired on two female polio vaccination volunteers (a teenage girl and her grandmother) killing the older woman and wounding the other. Despite attacks like this Afghan polio cases were at a record low (eight) in 2015. This compares to neighboring Pakistan where there were 108. In both countries Islamic terrorists (especially the Taliban) tried to ban polio vaccinations. Islamic terrorists in general tend to believe the vaccination teams are spying for the government and that the vaccinations are a plot to sterilize Moslems. In early 2014 Afghanistan suffered its first known case of polio in since the Taliban were overthrown in late 2001. The 2014 outbreak was alarming because many people can catch polio and not become sick so it was unclear how far polio has spread. There had been no polio in Afghanistan after 2001 because the Afghan Taliban changed their policy of opposing polio vaccinations once they were out of power after 2001. But Pakistani Islamic terrorists did not. This became a problem for Afghanistan because of the large number of Pakistani Pushtuns fled to Afghanistan to get away from the 2014 Pakistani offensive into the terrorist sanctuary of North Waziristan. Most Taliban, on both sides of the border, still believe the polio vaccination program is really a Western plot against Moslems. Thus even though the Afghan Taliban support vaccinations there is still violence. Despite that the government has been able to continue the vaccination program and contain the outbreak caused by Pakistani refugees. The 2014 offensive there was a success and the Pakistani vaccination teams are now able to visit nearly all the people who had earlier been inaccessible because of Taliban death squads. For over a decade the Pakistani tribal territories were one of the few places on the planet where people are still being infected. This caused small outbreaks in countries where people from the tribal territories visit (including Syria, where many Pakistani Islamic terrorists have gone and triggered at least dozens of polio cases so far).

December 21, 2015: Near Kabul six U.S. air force personnel patrolling outside Bagram Air Base were killed when attacked by a suicide bomber on a motorcycle.
Even if the United States bases forces in the Philippines that will not mean the U.S. will go to war over continued Chinese control of Filipino offshore waters. Despite a mutual defense agreement the U.S. did not consider the Chinese seizure of Mischief Reef in 1995 and Scarborough Shoal in 2012 an attack on the Philippines that American forces had to resist. More recently the United States refused to answer Filipino queries about whether the U.S. would intervene if China used violence to enforce its offshore claims by only attacking Filipino forces offshore. Filipinos can count and they know that the expansion of Chinese air and naval power since the 1980s makes any planned increase in Filipino military power useless. The Chinese are too numerous and too strong and if they become too aggressive the Philippines will not be able to resist with current and planned forces. That might changes if the Philippines bought affordable weapons that would damage Chinese forces. One way to do this is by using land based anti-ship missiles with enough range and heft to hit Chinese ships. One of the best candidates is from India, which manufactures and offers for export the PJ-10 BrahMos. This three ton missile is 9.4 meter (29 foot) long and 670mm in diameter. It is based on a Russian the Yakhont. Lacking the cash to finish development and begin production of the Yakhont the Russian manufacturer eventually made a deal with India to get it done. India put up most of the $240 million needed to finally complete two decades of development, an effort which produced the long delayed Yakhont and the more capable BrahMos. The PJ-10 entered service in 2006 and is being built in Russia and India, with the Russians assisting India in setting up manufacturing facilities for cruise missile components. India hopes to export up to 2,000, but no one has placed an order yet. Russia and India are encouraged enough to invest in BrahMos 2, which will use a scramjet, instead of a ramjet, in the second stage. This would double the speed and make the missile much more difficult to defend against. The 3.2 ton BrahMos has a range of up to 300 kilometers and a 300 kg (660 pound) warhead. Perhaps the most striking characteristic is its high speed, literally faster (at up to a kilometer per second) than a rifle bullet. The maximum speed of 3,000 kilometers an hour makes it harder to intercept and means it takes five minutes or less to reach its target. The BrahMos is designed to go after high value targets that require great accuracy and a large conventional warhead. The BrahMos can take out land bases or ships. The high price of each missile, about $2.3 million, restricts the number of countries that can afford it. If China lost some warships to a Filipino BrahMos and sought to stop such attacks with air strikes on the Philippines that would trigger the mutual defense treaty with the United States. China has other ways to retaliate, especially economic. China might pressure Russia to prevent India from selling the Brahmos to the Philippines. But at the moment the Philippines doesnt have too many workable defenses against the Chinese takeover of Filipino offshore waters, reefs and small islands, which makes new ideas, like land based anti-ship missiles a possibilty.

Meanwhile China continues to insist that it owns the South China Sea despite what anyone else in the neighborhood believes or international treaties say. The neighbors (especially Taiwan, Vietnam and the Philippines) continue to protest and build up their much smaller air and naval forces. Many Filipinos doubt that the United States would stand fast if China pushed hard. There are no signs that China is going to back down when it comes to its many territorial claims on neighbors.

The peace deal with MILF is still stalled in congress. This treaty creates Bangsamoro which is an autonomous Moslem area in the south. The legislature must approve the new law and that, as expected has proved difficult. MILF also has to get the approval of most Moslems in the south, which should be a lot easier, even if all of them dont get all they wanted. The government wants to get the Bangsamoro laws approved before the 2016 presidential elections.

The military reported that estimated NPA strength was down about 12 percent from the 4,400 armed personnel it had at the end of 2014. A major reason for the decline more people providing tips (made easier with the growing use of cell phones). This gives the security forces a better idea about where the leftist rebels are and what they are up to. The reduced NPA strength meant that, for the first time, a year went by without any major NPA military operations. NPA no longer has much popular support and increasingly relies on terror to generate fear. Communism has also lost a lot of popular appeal, which can be seen by the sharp decrease in the number of people who will turn out to openly support communist causes (like NPA). These communist rebels are now unwelcome and under constant attack in areas they have operated in for decades. This has encouraged many NPA members to back peace negotiations, something leftist rebels have been doing with increasing frequency since so many communist dictatorships collapsed between 1989 and 1991. Efforts to get peace talks going are stalled by hard core NPA factions that demand considerable government concessions (like the release of 30 jailed NPA leaders) before talks even begin. The government will talk, but not make concessions first.

The military reported that in 2015 at least 133 members of Islamic terrorist group Abu Sayyaf were killed by the security forces. Another 13 Abu Sayyaf men were arrested and apparently over 150 Abu Sayyaf were badly wounded by the military. These actions cost the security forces 18 dead and 80 wounded. Despite that Abu Sayyaf still attracts recruits and several hundred are still active in the Moslem south. Earlier in the month a video appeared on the Internet in which Abu Sayyaf officially pledged its loyalty to ISIL (Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant) and revealed new, more aggressive, leaders. In late 2015 ISIL announced that it was planning on moving into the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations. At the moment Abu Sayyaf Abu Sayyaf survives mainly via kidnapping for ransom, extortion and other common crimes.

January 21, 2016: China has, as expected, denounced the Filipino announcement of a new air traffic control facility on Pagasa Island in the South China Sea. The million dollar space satellite based system would cover a hole in the Filipino air traffic control network and handle the 200 or more flights a day that normally pass through. Pagasa is the second-largest (37.2 hectares/93 acres) of the Spratly Islands and is inhabited by 200 Filipinos civilians and a few military personnel. China has been increasingly belligerent in its claims to Pagasa and threatens to take it back by force. China reacted to the flight control facility by issuing an official protest and repeating its threats. Chinese military and civilian ships are showing up near Pagasa with increasing frequency and sometimes the Chinese vessels try (by getting in the way) to prevent non-Chinese vessels from getting too close to the island. The Philippines often has a coast guard patrol boat off the island (which is 480 kilometers from the nearest Filipino territory China does not claim) and that provides the possibility of a violent military encounter.

January 19, 2016: In the south (Agusan del Sur) troops found and attacked an NPA camp, killing five leftist rebels. The camp was built to accommodate 70 people and the NPA was not expecting the attack because the camp was full of weapons, ammo, explosives and personal equipment.

January 18, 2016: In the south (Basilan) several Abu Sayyaf members surrendered and over the next two days seven Abu Sayyaf men turned themselves in along with four assault rifles, a grenade launcher and a pistol. In the north (Camarines Sur province) two NPA rebels were killed and another captured after a brief clash with troops.

January 15, 2016: In the south (Lanao del Sur province) two men claiming to be ISIL members killed two civilians and were in turn killed by local civilians. Police suspect the two dead Islamic terrorists are actually local gangsters trying to use the fearsome reputation of ISIL to make it easier to commit crimes.

January 8, 2016: The government formerly protested recent Chinese tests on the new airstrip built on an artificial island atop Fiery Cross Reef. This reef is within Filipino territory but China disputes that and is using force and things like artificial islands to back up its claims. The tests on the airstrip involved three large aircraft landing and taking off. China ignored the Filipino protest, just as it does Filipino claims.

January 3, 2016: In the south (Basilan) soldiers rescued 26 passengers on a bus that had been seized by Abu Sayyaf. When the soldiers caught up with the bus the Abu Sayyaf men fled into the forest.
Wellesbourne Airfield

To avoid property being stolen from a van ensure all valuable items such as tools are removed from the van overnight. Protect your vehicle, secure tools and equipment.

Police have issued the following advise tips:

 Park your vehicle in a secure area (in a garage or behind locked gates, if possible).

 If you park it on a driveway, consider installing motion activated lighting and CCTV. Otherwise, park in a well lit, populated area.

 Where possible, empty your vehicle every night and lock your equipment way in a secure place.

 Forensic security marking kits are available to mark your property and parts on your vehicle. 'High clearance' vehicles are common targets for catalytic converter theft. Mark yours to deter thieves.

 Fit vehicle security equipment within your vehicle.

 Use high visibility signage to deter thieves but stating that no valuables are stored in the van overnight.

 Be aware of people acting suspiciously nearby.

www.warwickshire.police.uk www.westmercia.police.uk
Wellesbourne Airfield

The biogas produced by the plant would be fed into the gas grid or to a mini power plant on site.

The plant, which would cost several million pounds to complete, would consist of three domes measuring 17 metres high and three long four metre high traps, used to store crop matter before it is fed into the plant.

The fuel for the plant would be maize and rye, produced by farmers within 10 miles of the site, and would not produce a significant smell in the surrounding area.
Wellesbourne Airfield

Like the rest of the country in this 400th anniversary year since the death of Shakespeare, thee Beeb has gone mad for the Bard.

Yesterday (Thursday) they have announced their plans for The BBC Shakespeare Festival. It will launch on 23 April  to celebrate Shakespeare's birthday - and continue for a month across our services.

The BBC Shakespeare Festival 2016 is billed as "the most far-reaching celebration of Shakespeare's work ever broadcast". BBC director general Tony Hall said it aimed "to make Shakespeare irresistible to everybody".

Stratford-upon-Avon takes centre stage with the live broadcast on 23rd April, the day of the Birthday Celebrations. As previously announced in the Herald, the RSC have been working with the BBC to develop the programme, which had the working name of The Shakespeare Show. It is now being called Shakepeare Live!

David Tennant will host the broadcast which also include a host of well-known RSC actors, including Dame Judi Dench and Sir Ian McKellen.

Unveiling details of the live broadcast at the launch the BBC's Shakespeare Festival on Thursday, David said: "We have opera, we have ballet, we have hip-hop - all celebrating Shakespeare and what he's done for our cultural heritage."

It will also feature Joseph Fiennes - who played the lead in the film Shakespeare in Love - the English National Opera, Birmingham Royal Ballet, and rapper Akala, founder of the Hip Hop Shakespeare Company.

Meanwhile, the corporation also announced a number of original, star-studded programmes for the spring festival.

Russell T Davies, one of our greatest storytellers, has adapted the original verse of A Midsummer Night's Dream for primetime BBC One with a stellar cast, including Maxine Peake, Matt Lucas, Bernard Cribbins, Elaine Paige and Richard Wilson.

BBC Two is reviving one of the highlights of 2012 with three more episodes of The Hollow Crown, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Judi Dench and many others and executive produced by Sam Mendes, et al.

There are also new productions across television and radio, including a special Horrible Histories on Childrens BBC telling the story of Shakespeares early life.

For more details see www.bbc.co.uk
Wellesbourne Airfield

A West Midlands Ambulance Service spokeswoman said: The driver and passenger from one car, a man and a woman believed to be in their late 50s, were the most seriously injured. Their car had sustained significant damage and had trapped the man inside the wreckage.

The cross-service team of ambulance staff and doctor worked together to assess and treat his injuries whilst working closely with the fire service at the scene.

She continued: The man had sustained multiple serious injuries and required sedation by the doctor to help keep his condition stable as well as other vital trauma care.

After an hour and a half, the man was released from the wreckage and once immobilised onto spinal board he was carried to the awaiting air ambulance. He was then airlifted to University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire, a major trauma centre, for further emergency treatment.

The woman passenger had managed to get out of the car prior to our arrival. She suffered chest and neck injuries and was treated on scene before being taken to hospital by South Western Ambulance Service.

The ambulance spokeswoman added: The driver of the second car, an elderly woman, suffered a minor leg injury and received treatment on scene but did not require hospital care. The HGV driver, a man, and the driver of the third car, a woman, were uninjured.

Two ambulances, a paramedic area support officer and the Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance with a doctor on board were sent to the scene. Two ambulances and a paramedic officer from South Western Ambulance Service were also in attendance

Fire Crews from Gaydon, Stratford-upon-Avon and Shipston were mobilised, and in addition, the specialised road accident unit was mobilised from Coleshill.

Warwickshire Fire and Rescue said on Twitter shortly after the incident happened: One person is physically and medically trapped and it is time critical to release this casualty.

Fire crews are using hydraulic cutting equipment, and winches to release the casualty.

Police, ambulance and an air ambulance are in attendance. Crews will be detained at this incident some time.
Wellesbourne Airfield

Dad, David Bowies dead! This was my daughter Molly at 7.15am on Monday morning. She came into the kitchen, nearly in tears. Shes 15 by the way.

I guess the reason Ive been asked to write this is because I happened to meet and converse with David Bowie on half a dozen occasions back in the day when I was working as a journalist for the now defunct weekly music paper Melody Maker and then, a bit later, editing NME.

I cant claim that I knew him that well or anything but Facebooks full of folks telling their own I once shared a cab with David Bowie stories, so these are mine.

The first time I met him was in Canada in the early 1980s. He was kicking off what, at the time, was going to be his last Greatest Hits tour. I found him backstage and immediately flicked him a V sign, an intuitive reaction to him pointing a small video camera at me.

He grinned and kept on filming. I remember he still had fairly dodgy teeth at this point. Anyway, this was when video cameras were pretty new on the market and what I remember most from our encounter was his enthusiasm for this novelty contraption. Couldnt put it down. Just filmed everything, like a little kid at Christmas with a brand new toy.

I wonder if somewhere in the Bowie vaults theres footage of me flicking him the Vs?

What else? When he stood up, he was tiny but perfectly formed, like a dancer. Oh, and he liked Prince, a lot. On another occasion I accompanied him on a small tour bus across Europe while he was being part of Tin Machine, one of his least critically-admired incarnations. Again he was good fun. He was interesting and also  and this is rare amongst pop stars who are used to getting lots of attention  interested in what you had to say. You didnt do an interview with David Bowie, you had a conversation.

Strangely I remember that he talked passionately about the Dave Clark 5 and about how, back in the 60s when he was just starting out, they ran some kind of Tottenham mafia which made it hard for him to get gigs. Also he said he liked The Pixies, a lot.

When Tin Machines tour reached the Town and Country Club in Kentish Town, North London, I was hanging out at the drinks bash afterwards when he entered the room, bounded straight across to me and, in a state of great excitement, proceeded to explain how the building we were standing in was erected with Blackshirt money donated by the loathsome British Nazi, Oswald Mosely.

He then turned to the girl standing next to me and, effusively admiring her hat, wished to know where shed bought it. That was Bowie, always madly inquisitive about loads of stuff.

As I said, Tin Machine was hardly high on anyones list of Bowies greatest achievements. Inspired by a crazy desire to subjugate his superstar persona to the democracy of a no-frills, hard-working club band, Bowie was at a weird point in his career even for him. In short, it looked as if he could do with some help. Now, knowing his reputation as a magpie, scarfing up other peoples ideas, sprinkling some fairy dust on them and then successfully representing them as his own, I figured Dave might benefit from an earful of some new stuff, so duly made him a cassette.

The tracklisting went something like Lush, Moose, Chapterhouse, Adorable , Slowdive, The Jesus and Mary Chain, My Bloody Valentine, Telescopes, Ride  a veritable whos who of shoegazers making a name for themselves at the time and a line-up I felt sure would top-up Daves creative juices.

Just goes to show how wrong you can be! A few weeks after I sent him said tape, I received a very nicely wrapped package which contained a small broken-up jigsaw of Michelangelos David. When the pieces were all put in place, there was a message handwritten on the back in, if I recall correctly, green ink, the gist of which went something like, Thanks for the lovely tape. Not really my cup of tea. Try this instead. The this was a cassette tape of Different Trains, an interminable modern classical piece by avant-garde composer Steve Reich performed by the dreaded Kronos Quartet. Shudder.

The jigsaws in the attic somewhere. Guess Id better dig it out.

My last encounter with Mr Bowie was not long after I took over editing NME. All the staff hated me for reasons we neednt go into here but I figured  rightly as it turned out  that if I could deliver a journalistic coup, they might come around.

So what I did was arrange for David Bowie to meet Brett Anderson from Suede, who were then the hottest band in Britain. I sat in on and taped their conversation with Brett, being a big fan, asking tons of questions and Bowie, being Bowie, offering up sage avuncular advice about not doing too many drugs like he once did etc.

Again, a fun day made easy by Bowies polite and gracious ease in company, and his genuine interest in what Brett had to say.

Confession time: I was always a David Bowie fan  I recall, like so many others, his legendary, game-changing Starman performance on Top Of The Pops  but he was never my Main Man. Until recently. For some wonderful reason, about a year ago Molly got into Bowie big time. Learning the guitar riff to Rebel Rebel lit some kind of fire and since then shes foraged car boot sales and charity shops for Bowie vinyl which we play each and every day, making new, such amazingly mind-boggling discoveries.

For her 15th birthday she got a framed poster of the 2013 V&A David Bowie Is Here exhibition, bought off the mod bloke with the cool shop in Shipston, and just this weekend we liberated a copy of Lodger for a fiver from the Stratford Oxfam shop.

Dad, David Bowies dead! The look on Mollys face brought back just how I felt when I was at school and Jimi Hendrix died. Inexplicable loss and the realisation that no-one, no matter how great, cheats death and lives forever.

Except Mollys love of Ziggy, The Thin White Duke and all his other inspirational incarnations has affected  infected!?  me with a new-found appreciation of Bowies genius.

And, if that means anything, it surely proves that, even if he may now be gone, his work is still very much alive and most likely always will be while we continue to breed our own little spiders from Mars. So, David Bowie RIP  immortal after all.
Saturdays game at Kettering Town was called off due to a waterlogged pitch, while Tuesday nights clash at Dunstable failed to beat the big freeze.

It means Stratford have played just three times since the 1-1 draw with Weymouth back on 5th December.

The postponements have severely affected Towns match fitness, but with the weather becoming milder from Friday, Carl Adams side have a great chance of getting back on track against St Neots this weekend.

Its just getting ridiculous isnt it? said a frustrated Adams.

As Ive said before this fixture pile-up is going to massively affect our season. But what I must do is highlight that the be all and end all for this season was to stay in the league and its looking like well do that.

Everybody is turning up for training and doing what they can, but there is nothing like playing games. We are raring to go.

More on Stratford Town in this week's Herald
Moody's America Latina (Moody's) placed the ratings of Vale S.A. (NYSE: VALE) on review for downgrade. The rating action follows Moody's Investors Service rating action on January 21, 2016 that has placed the ratings of 9 mining companies in Latin America, and their rated subsidiaries, on review for downgrade. For further information, please refer to the press release dated January 21, 2016 and posted on www.moodys.com

The following ratings are placed on Review for Downgrade:

..Issuer: Vale S.A.

LT Issuer Rating: Baa3/Aa1.br, Placed on Review for Downgrade

BRL 800 million Senior Unsecured Notes (Debentures de Infraestrutura) due 2020 -- Baa3/Aa1.br, Placed on Review for Downgrade.

BRL 550 million Senior Unsecured Notes (Debentures de Infraestrutura) due 2022 -- Baa3/Aa1.br, Placed on Review for Downgrade.

BRL 750 million Senior Unsecured Notes (Debentures de Infraestrutura) -- Baa3/Aa1.br, Placed on Review for Downgrade.

The actions reflect Moody's effort to recalibrate the ratings in the mining portfolio to align with the fundamental shift in the credit conditions of the global mining sector.

"Slowing growth in China, which consumes and produces at least half of base metals, and is a material player in the precious metals, iron ore and metallurgical coal markets is weakening demand for these commodities and driving prices to multi-year lows," said Barbara Mattos, Moody's Vice President and Senior Credit Officer. "China's outsized influence on the commodities market, coupled with the need for significant recalibration of supply to bring the industry back into balance indicates that this is not a normal cyclical downturn, but a fundamental shift that will place an unprecedented level of stress on mining companies."

RATINGS RATIONALE

As part of an ongoing assessment of mining companies, Moody's sharply reduced its price sensitivity assumptions on December 8, 2015. Since then, credit conditions in the mining industry have weakened further, with prices continuing to decline. The likelihood has increased that prices for base metals, precious metals, iron ore and metallurgical coal will approach levels closer to Moody's stressed sensitivity scenario. In addition, the strong US dollar is a further factor contributing to weakening demand and driving prices lower since most metals are traded in dollars.

This broad ratings review will consider each mining company's asset base, cost structure, likely cash burn and liquidity, as well as management's strategy for coping with a prolonged downturn and the ability to execute on same. The review will assess each company's cash flow and credit metrics closer to our latest stressed price assumptions and the relative rating positioning.

Moody's believes that this downturn will mark an unprecedented shift for the mining industry. Whereas previous downturns have been cyclical, the effect of slowing growth in China indicates a fundamental change that will heighten credit risk for mining companies. This review reflects the belief that deteriorating industry fundamentals require a recalibration of the global mining portfolio rated by Moody's. Although all issuers in these sectors have been adversely affected by declining prices, severity varies substantially by issuer. Accordingly, the range of possible outcomes upon conclusion of the review for given issuers varies from possible confirmation of ratings to multi-notch downgrades. Moody's expects to conclude a majority of the reviews by the end of the first quarter. While this review focuses on companies rated in the range from A1 to B3, Moody's is also reevaluating higher and lower rated companies in the context of industry conditions. The higher rated companies, on average, are somewhat more resilient to low commodity prices and many of the lower rated companies have recently been downgraded.

This broad ratings review incorporates the ratings of Compania de Minas Buenaventura S.A.A. (Ba1), which ratings were placed under review for downgrade on December 16, 2015.

The principal methodology used in these ratings was Global Mining Industry published in August 2014. Please see the Credit Policy page on www.moodys.com.br for a copy of this methodology.
Workers plow snow from the sidewalk in front of the White House in Washington January 21, 2016. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

By Ian Simpson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A winter storm that could bury parts of the U.S. Middle Atlantic region under 3 feet (90 cm) of snow slammed into Washington on Friday, threatening the nation's capital with record accumulations as it barreled up the East Coast.

The blizzard started to blanket the Washington area during the early afternoon. Six people had died in car crashes as a wintry mix spread across Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky.

The storm could dump 2 to 3 feet of snow on Baltimore and the capital and bring winds of 30 to 50 miles per hour (48 to 80 km per hour) before winding down on Saturday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.

Philadelphia and New York were expected to get 12 to 18 inches (30 to 46 cm) of snow before the storm abates.

In Falls Church, Virginia, about 8 miles (13 km) west of the capital, a thick curtain of snow was already piling up on deserted streets on Friday evening, creating a peaceful tableau that disguised dangerous driving conditions.

"I want to be very clear with everybody. This is a major storm," Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said as the city braced for what could turn out to be one of the worst storms in its history. "This has life-and-death implications and all the residents of the District of Columbia should treat it that way."

The Weather Channel said more than 85 million people in at least 20 states were covered by a winter weather warning, watch or advisory and residents up and down the East Coast scrambled to stock up on supplies.

Airlines canceled more than 7,100 flights in the U.S. for Friday and Saturday, according to flight tracking website FlightAware.com. An additional 7,000 flights were delayed on Friday alone, reverberating to airports across the country.

Washington's snowfall could eclipse the "Snowmageddon" storm of 2010 that dropped 17.8 inches (45.2 cm), AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said. If forecasts prove accurate, the storm could rival the 1922 Knickerbocker storm, which dumped a record 28 inches (71 cm) on the city.

'IT'S GOING TO BE A NIGHTMARE'

"I think its going to be a nightmare, the rates of snow were talking about," said Marisa Kritikson, 27, a George Washington University nursing student who bought a snow shovel to dig out from her basement apartment.

Southeastern Pennsylvania, including Philadelphia, was expecting 10 to 18 inches (25 to 46 cm)

The approaching storm led New Jersey Governor Chris Christie to return home from New Hampshire, where he was campaigning for the Republican presidential nomination. Christie declared a state of emergency as well.

"The smartest thing for you all to do is stay home, stay where you are," Christie told an evening press conference.

New Jersey Transit said all bus, rail and light rail service would be shut down at 2 a.m. local time on Saturday. Service would be restored as "conditions permit," the agency said.

Residents along New Jersey's coast prepared for potential flooding during high tides on Saturday and Sunday. In Ocean City, emergency management officials warned of forecasts calling for the highest flood levels since Superstorm Sandy brought heavy damage in 2012.

High winds and a full moon could combine to create a high tide of nearly 8 feet (2.4 meters) in Atlantic City, officials said, still shy of the 10 feet (3 meters) Sandy caused in Ocean City.

In New York City, the National Weather Service issued coastal flood warnings for the boroughs of Staten Island, Brooklyn and Queens. Officials prepared for possible evacuations from low-lying areas.

Post-Sandy reconstruction has put the area in a stronger position to face the storm, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said.

The storm arrived in the Washington area, home to about 6 million people, after dropping 5 inches (13 cm) of snow in Arkansas and spreading a wintry mess of snow, sleet and freezing rain in parts of Tennessee and Kentucky.

Duke Energy reported that more than 112,000 people were without power in North and South Carolina on Friday evening. In addition to snow, the Charlotte, North Carolina, area could get up to a half inch (1.3 cm) of ice, making roads dangerous.

Federal offices in the Washington area closed at noon to allow employees to get home ahead of the storm.

"I have nine cases of wine, half and half and coffee, firewood and all my devices are charged. All I need now is a wing and a prayer, said Liz Scherer, 54, of Silver Spring, Maryland.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which includes the second-busiest U.S. subway system, took the rare step of suspending operations from late Friday through Sunday.

The forecast prompted the Virginia National Guard to ready 400 troops to deal with emergencies. In New York, 600 National Guard personnel were on standby.

(Additional reporting by Colleen Jenkins in Winston-Salem, North Carolina; Suzannah Gonzales in Chicago, Barbara Goldberg and Joseph Ax in New York, Susan Heavey in Washington; Lacey Johnson in Silver Spring, Maryland; Steve Barnes in Little Rock, Arkansas; Harriet McLeod in Charleston, South Carolina and Dan Whitcomb in Los Angeles; Writing by Frank McGurty; Editing by Diane Craft, James Dalgleish, David Gregorio and Lisa Shumaker)
A health worker fumigates the Altos del Cerro neighbourhood as part of preventive measures against the Zika virus and other mosquito-borne diseases in Soyapango, El Salvador January 21, 2016. REUTERS/Jose Cabezas

(Reuters) - The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) extended its travel warning to another eight countries or territories that pose a risk of infection with Zika, a mosquito-borne virus spreading through the Caribbean and Latin America.

Friday's warning adds Barbados, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Cape Verde, Samoa and the island of Saint Martin to a list of 14 countries and territories.

The CDC has cautioned pregnant women not to travel to these areas as Zika has been suspected to lead to birth defects.

The Zika virus is transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which is also known to carry the dengue, yellow fever and Chikungunya viruses.

Health experts are unsure why the virus - detected in Africa in 1947 but unknown in the Americas until last year - is spreading so rapidly in Brazil and neighboring countries.

There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika, which causes mild fevers and rashes. An estimated 80 percent of those infected show no symptoms at all.

Researchers in Brazil said on Wednesday they had found new evidence linking the virus to increasing incidence of microcephaly, a condition in which babies are born with unusually small heads.

U.S. authorities confirmed on Saturday the birth of a baby with a small head in Hawaii to a mother who had been infected with the Zika virus while visiting Brazil.

The agency issued an advisory last week against travel to Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname, Venezuela, and the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

(Reporting by Natalie Grover in Bengaluru; Editing by Don Sebastian)
Today, Renasant Corporation Chairman and Chief Executive Officer E. Robinson McGraw announced that the board of directors of Renasant Corporation (the "Company") and Renasant Bank, the Company's wholly-owned subsidiary, unanimously elected C. Mitchell Waycaster as President and Chief Operating Officer of both the Company and Renasant Bank. McGraw will remain in his capacity as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer for both the Company and Renasant Bank.

Waycaster has served as Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of the Company since 2007. Prior to being Chief Administrative Officer, Waycaster, who joined the bank in 1979, held various leadership positions within the Company and Renasant Bank, including President of Renasant Bank's Mississippi Division, Executive Vice President of Retail Banking, and Senior Vice President and Chief Credit Officer.

"With an impressive professional banking career that spans more than 37 years, Mitch has been an integral part of Renasant's success story, and his outstanding leadership for our bank has shown that he is well prepared to continue to be an essential leader as the next president of our company," said McGraw. "I look forward to working with him in his new leadership role."

Waycaster received his Bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Mississippi. He is a graduate of the University of Delaware Stonier Graduate School of Banking and the National Compliance School at the University of Oklahoma and the University of Colorado. He is also a graduate of the Mid-South School of Banking at the University of Memphis and the Tennessee Commercial Lending School at Vanderbilt University.

Waycaster currently serves his community as a member of the CREATE Foundation board of directors, as a board member of the North Mississippi Medical Center, as Chairman of the Board for the North Mississippi Health Services Foundation, as a board member and Vice President of the Japan America Society of Mississippi and as a board member and President of the Yocona Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America. In addition, Waycaster is a member of the Mississippi Bankers Association board of directors.

Waycaster and his wife, Christy, have two children and two grandchildren. They reside in Tupelo and are active members of First Baptist Church.
KENNETT SQUARE, Pa., Jan. 21, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Exelon Generation commends the New York Public Service Commission for voting unanimously today to move forward with an ambitious Clean Energy Standard that values the vital environmental and economic benefits of nuclear energy.

As operator of one of the nation's leading clean energy fleets, Exelon Generation fully supports policies that promote the transition to low-carbon generation while avoiding the premature retirement of clean, safe and reliable nuclear facilities.

"We salute PSC Chair Audrey Zibelman and the full commission for their bold action today in support of clean energy, renewed private investment and lower rates for New York customers," said Joe Dominguez, Exelon's executive vice president of governmental and regulatory affairs and public policy. "Progressive energy policies will help ensure that Exelon's upstate nuclear stations can continue delivering zero-carbon electricity and driving local economies for many years to come. We look forward to working with the governor, the PSC and other stakeholders to learn more about this ambitious plan."

Exelon's two upstate nuclear plants, R.E. Ginna and Nine Mile Point, provide significant benefits to New York families, communities and businesses that depend on the reliable electricity, jobs and tax dollars they provide. The plants also play a key role in meeting New York's greenhouse gas standards now and over the long-term. Combined, the facilities produce more than 2,500 megawatts, and their clean air generation enhances New York's ability to improve air quality in the state. The stations also contribute significantly to the upstate New York economy, providing more than 17,000 direct and secondary jobs as well as nearly $100 million in direct and secondary state and local tax revenues.

Exelon Generation operates the largest fleet of nuclear plants in the nation. The fleet consists of 23 reactors at 14 locations in Illinois, Maryland, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. Exelon will work with the governor, the New York State Public Service Commission and other stakeholders as New York's Clean Energy Standard takes shape.

Exelon Corporation (NYSE: EXC) is the nation's leading competitive energy provider, with approximately $33 billion in annual revenues. Headquartered in Chicago, Exelon has operations and business activities in 47 states, the District of Columbia and Canada. Exelon is the largest competitive U.S. power generator, with approximately 35,000 megawatts of owned capacity comprising one of the nation's cleanest and lowest-cost power generation fleets. The company's Constellation business unit provides energy products and services to approximately 100,000 business and public sector customers and approximately 1 million residential customers. Exelon's utilities deliver electricity and natural gas to approximately 6.6 million customers in central Maryland (BGE), northern Illinois (ComEd) and southeastern Pennsylvania (PECO). Learn more at: www.exeloncorp.com.

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/exelon-generation-applauds-nypsc-vote-on-clean-energy-300208344.html

SOURCE Exelon Generation
TORONTO, ON -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- First Global Data Limited (TSX VENTURE: FGD) ("First Global" or the "Company"), further to its press releases dated April 6, November 11, and November 30, 2015, states that on January 11, 2016, Paul Van Benthem, Yoel Altman, Paul Haber and others commenced a legal action against First Global, its directors and officers and certain of its employees and advisors.

Pursuant to their statement of claim, the plaintiffs are seeking, among other things, a declaration that the acquisition of 2297970 Ontario Inc. ("LTP") has been completed by First Global and general damages in the amount for $10 million for "breach of contract, defamation, business loss and loss of profits".

First Global is of the opinion that the legal action against the Company is frivolous and completely without merit.

The Company will be responding to the allegations contained in the statement of claim and is also currently considering all of its options with respect to this legal action including a possible counter claim.

The position of the Company with respect to the acquisition of LTP has been set out in its press release of November 30, 2015 and remains unchanged.

Although First Global did agree to acquire all of the issued and outstanding securities of LTP pursuant to the terms of a share exchange agreement dated January 26, 2015, this acquisition was subject to a number of conditions. In particular, the acquisition was to close only if LTP's liabilities were $1 million or less and only after the completion of a private placement of at least $3 million in convertible debentures (the "Debentures"). This latter condition was subsequently amended such that the acquisition would proceed only if a minimum of $3.2 million in convertible debentures was raised on or before April 30, 2015 (the "Revised Condition"). As this condition has not been satisfied and as the liabilities of LTP far exceeded $1 million the acquisition has never closed.

About First Global

First Global is an international financial services technology company operating in the payments sector. First Global's services are designed primarily for the domestic and international unbanked and under banked markets. Its two main lines of business are mobile payments and international money transfers. First Global's leading edge technology core enables mobile and online: payments, money transfers, shopping and peer to peer services.

First Global enables its strategic partners and clients around the world with its leading edge financial services technology platform. The Company facilitates the movement of money domestically and internationally in full compliance with regulatory guidelines, maintain a strong focus on compliance.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This press release contains forward-looking statements based on assumptions, uncertainties and management's best estimates of future events. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated. Investors are cautioned that such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements are detailed from time to time in the Corporation's periodic reports filed with the Ontario Securities Commission and other regulatory authorities. The Corporation has no intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

For further information, please contact:Andre ItwaruChief Executive Officer and PresidentEmail: [email protected]

Source: First Global Data Limited
IRVINE, Calif., Jan. 22, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Global Future City Holding Inc. (OTCQB: FTCY) (the Company) has appointed Peng Yi Rong as the Marketing Director of Hong Kong to promote the multi-level marketing (MLM) business of its wholly-owned subsidiary, GX-Life Global, Inc.

Ning Liu, CEO and President of the Company commented, I am confident that Peng Yi Rong will help us rapidly expand into the MLM market in Hong Kong. The integration of the GX-Coin digital security into our membership compensation plan will set us apart from other MLM businesses. With the help of Ms. Pengs expertise and extensive contacts in the MLM business, we should be able to gain access to the Hong Kong MLM market swiftly.

Peng Yi Rong has over 28 years of business and marketing experience. From 1987 to 1999, she was a successful entrepreneur. From 2000 to 2007, she acted as the General Manager of Marketing of the Guangdong branch office of Tai Kang Life Insurance. Ms. Peng joined the EMBA program at Qing Hua University in 2008 to further her studies in management and operations. Since 2010 to present, Ms. Peng has become a high ranking member of SMA, a large scale MLM company in Hong Kong.

About Global Future City Holding Inc.

Global Future City Holding Inc. is a holding company focused on implementing an EB-5 immigrant investor program for foreign investors who are interested in acquiring lawful permanent residence in the United States, and the marketing and deployment of its MLM loyalty-based retail program. The Company plans to focus its initial efforts on acquiring qualified investment projects that are aligned with its EB-5 Regional Center and launching the digital security-based MLM program. Additional information on the Company may be viewed at http://www.gf.city.

About GX-Life Global, Inc.

GX-Life Global is in the process of developing a robust, scalable platform to support multi-level marketing (MLM) opportunities throughout the world. The state of the art platform is intended to replace the Companys previous interest in EGD. GX-Life Global plans to replace EGD with GX-Coins which are an open source digital security that functions as a store of value and a medium of exchange. These coins are being registered by its strategic partner, Great Coin, Inc., a Nevada corporation. GX-Life Global plans to deploy the GX-Coins it acquires from Great Coin by distributing them to members of their MLM program community as loyalty points for the members participation in the MLM program. Members of GX-Life Global will be able to redeem their status points, reward points, and status reward points for GX-Coin at 100% of their points dollar value. Each member of the MLM program will be issued a GX-Life Global-branded debit card and a separate wallet that holds GX-Coins. Additionally, holders of GX-Coin will be able to use their GX-Coins to purchase products offered by GX-Life Global.

About Great Coin, Inc.

Great Coin, Inc., a Nevada corporation, is a technology company in the process of developing Great Coin or GX-Coin which is an open source digital security that functions as a store of value and a medium of exchange. GX-Coins will be freely tradable on an online trading platform, and the price of a GX-Coin once on the trading platform will be determined by market forces through trading activity. Great Coin plans to freely sell the GX-Coins directly and via GX-Life Global pursuant to a registration statement as a digital security. As a digital security, GX-Coin will be offered as an uncertificated security, the ownership and transfer of which are recorded on an encrypted, secured distributed ledger system using technology similar to the distributed ledger technology used for trading digital currencies.

Information about Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains "forward-looking statements" that include information relating to future events and future financial and operating performance. The words "may," "would," "will," "expect," "estimate," "can," "believe," "potential" and similar expressions and variations thereof are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements should not be read as a guarantee of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications of the times at, or by, which that performance or those results will be achieved. Forward-looking statements are based on information available at the time they are made and/or management's good faith belief as of that time with respect to future events, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual performance or results to differ materially from those expressed in or suggested by the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause these differences include, but are not limited to: the Company pursuing digital currency, which could have fluctuations in demand and pricing, the introduction and impact of new competitive products or digital currency, the Company's ability to acquire and maintain customer strategic business relationships in the MLM space, growth in targeted markets, and other information that may be detailed from time-to-time in the Company's filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. For a more detailed description of the risk factors and uncertainties affecting the Company, please refer to the Company's recent Securities and Exchange Commission filings, which are available at www.sec.gov. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Global Future City Holding Inc. Michael R. Dunn CFO/COO Office: (949) 769-3550 ext. 131 Email: [email protected]

Source: Global Future City Holding, Inc.
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Gramercy Property Trust (NYSE: GPT), a real estate investment trust, announced today that Gramercy Property Europe plc (the Fund), a Europe-focused real estate investment fund sponsored and managed by the Company, acquired an office asset in Rotterdam, Netherlands, for a purchase price of approximately 13.2 million. The building, totaling 60,290 square feet (5,601 square meters), is leased through November 2027 to Cofely Nederland N.V., a subsidiary of ENGIE, an international supplier of integrated building services including energy, technical and facilities management services.

The transaction is the Funds sixth in the Netherlands and is in line with the Companys strategy to build within the Fund a pan-European portfolio of single-tenant properties. Since inception in April 2105, the Fund has completed nine transactions amassing a portfolio totaling 256 million and spanning over 3.5 million square feet (330,000 square meters) in Germany, the Netherlands and Poland.

About Gramercy Property Europe plc

Gramercy Property Europe plc is an investment fund that targets single-tenant net leased assets and sale-leaseback transactions across Europe. The Fund has initial equity commitments of 350 million and will invest predominantly in industrial, office and specialty retail assets in Germany, the Netherlands, the Nordic region, the United Kingdom and other targeted European countries. Further information is available at www.gptreit.com/europe.

About Gramercy Property Trust

Gramercy Property Trust is a leading global investor and asset manager of commercial real estate. The Company specializes in acquiring and managing single-tenant, net-leased industrial and office properties purchased through sale-leaseback transactions or directly from property developers and owners. The Company focuses on income producing properties leased to high quality tenants in major markets in the United States and Europe.

To review the Companys latest news releases and other corporate documents, please visit the Company's website at www.gptreit.com or contact Investor Relations at 212-297-1000.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160122005107/en/

For Gramercy Property Trust

Brittany A. Sanders, 212-297-1000

Investor Relations

Source: Gramercy Property Trust
VANCOUVER, BC -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- JLL (NYSE: JLL) today announced the acquisition of Bill Goold Realty, one of western Canada's most successful commercial and multifamily residential property brokers. The transaction expands the reach of JLL's multifamily investment sales platform and enhances the services it provides clients in Vancouver. The acquisition is consistent with JLL's global growth strategy and focus on expanding its Canadian business.

Bill Goold Realty, which includes founder Bill Goold and six brokers, has a market-leading reputation. The multifamily investment sales provider completed more than 30 transactions valued at $335 million in 2015, the highest ever for the group. With services including sales of multifamily buildings and development sites, Bill Goold Realty has sold more than $1.2 billion in commercial and rental properties across the Lower Mainland and British Columbia, including North Vancouver, Burnaby, New Westminster and Victoria.

"This partnership allows JLL to benefit from the network and reputation for integrity Bill Goold has developed over more than 25 years," said Brett Miller, CEO of JLL Canada. "It also ensures our Vancouver and other Canadian offices, with Bill continuing involvement, will be able to bring opportunities to global markets and attract more investment to Canada."

This acquisition brings further scale to JLL's rapidly growing Canadian business and a way to help identify investment opportunities and attract regional, national and international capital into British Columbia's commercial real estate market. Goold will lead JLL's multifamily investment sales practice in Vancouver, and Bill Goold Realty's Ray Townsend will lead day-to-day operations.

"Joining JLL is a natural evolution for our firm, partnering our local expertise with a global network of resources, cutting-edge tools and broad-reaching connections to investors across the globe," Goold said. "JLL has become a dominant player in the British Columbia commercial real estate market over the past few years. With our local teams now working together, we will bring more capital and opportunities to British Columbia and attract investors from here and abroad. This is ideal for our current and future clients both culturally and strategically."

About JLL Canada JLL is Canada's fastest-growing commercial real estate firm. JLL has two offices in Toronto, with the headquarters located downtown. The firm also operates in Mississauga, Montral, Ottawa, Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton. JLL manages more than 50 million square feet of facilities across Canada. The firm offers tenant and landlord representation, project and development services, investment sales, occupier strategies and solutions, advisory and appraisal services, debt capital markets services and integrated facilities management services to owners and tenants in Canada.

About Bill Goold Realty Founded 25 years ago, Bill Goold Realty has a team of six brokers who have completed more than $1 billion in commercial property and rental building sales across Vancouver, the Lower Mainland and British Columbia. Their commercial realty team has been recogonized as No. 1 by the Vancouver Real Estate Board, with investor networks in Canada, North America, China and more than 30 countries. For the last three years, Bill Goold Realty has been awarded Remax's top commercial realtor in the world.

About JLL JLL (NYSE: JLL) is a professional services and investment management firm offering specialized real estate services to clients seeking increased value by owning, occupying and investing in real estate. A Fortune 500 company with annual fee revenue of $4.7 billion and gross revenue of $5.4 billion, JLL has more than 230 corporate offices, operates in 80 countries and has a global workforce of approximately 58,000. On behalf of its clients, the firm provides management and real estate outsourcing services for a property portfolio of 3.4 billion square feet, or 316 million square meters, and completed $118 billion in sales, acquisitions and finance transactions in 2014. Its investment management business, LaSalle Investment Management, has $57.2 billion of real estate assets under management. JLL is the brand name, and a registered trademark, of Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated. For further information, visit www.jll.com.

Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=2953732

Contacts: Kelsey Burgess +1 312 228 3458 [email protected] Glenn LaFollette +1 312 228 3882 [email protected]

Source: JLL
VANCOUVER, BC -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- Kivalliq Energy Corporation (TSX VENTURE: KIV) ("Kivalliq") today announced, pursuant to a professional services contract signed with Corex Management Inc., the following management appointments effective January 31, 2016: Michelle Yeung Chief Financial Officer and Jeffrey Dare, Corporate Secretary.

Corex Management Inc. serves a range of clients that are comprised of independent private and public companies listed on the TSX-V. The scope of the services provided to Kivalliq will include accounting, administration, finance and corporate compliance.

Appointment of new officers:

Chief Financial Officer

Michelle Yeung is a chartered professional accountant with five years of financial reporting experience. She earned her designation articling with a Vancouver-based accounting firm, providing audit, assurance and accounting services. Her latest experience includes providing financial reporting services to both private and TSX Venture Exchange-listed resource exploration companies, including serving as the CFO of Bluestone Resources Inc. (TSX-V: BSR). She earned her bachelor of business administration degree with a concentration in accounting at Simon Fraser University.

Corporate Secretary

Jeffrey Dare has over 7 years of professional experience with respect to managing external reporting and corporate compliance for TSX Venture Exchange listed issuers. He currently serves as the Corporate Secretary for Riverside Resources Inc. (TSX-V: RRI), Northair Silver Corp. (TSX-V: INM), Bluestone Resources Inc. (TSX-V: BSR), and Corex Management Inc., a private administration company. Through Corex Management Inc. he also advises a number of private companies spanning different industries and jurisdictions. Mr. Dare works closely with external partners and service providers in the areas of legal, compliance, transfer agency, audit, banking and insurance. Mr. Dare earned a BA from Simon Fraser University and has completed the Canadian Securities Course. After University he started his financial career working at a major Canadian bank.

These appointments come with the departure of Jonathan Singh from the role of Kivalliq's CFO and Corporate Secretary. Kivalliq's board and management team is very grateful for Mr. Singh's many years of dedication and hard work on Kivalliq's behalf and wishes him great success in his future endeavours.

About Kivalliq Energy Corporation

Kivalliq Energy Corporation (TSX VENTURE: KIV) is a Vancouver-based company with a portfolio of high-quality uranium exploration projects in Canada. Kivalliq holds Canada's highest-grade uranium resource outside of Saskatchewan. The Company's flagship project, the 105,280 hectare Angilak Property in Nunavut Territory, hosts the Lac 50 Trend with a NI 43-101 Inferred Resource of 2,831,000 tonnes grading 0.69% U3O8, totaling 43.3 million pounds U3O8. Kivalliq's comprehensive exploration programs continue to advance the Lac 50 Trend and demonstrate the "District Scale" potential of the Angilak Property. For disclosure related to the inferred resource for the Lac 50 Trend uranium deposits, please refer to Kivalliq's news release of March 1, 2013.

In Saskatchewan, Kivalliq holds a 100% interest in the recently acquired 13,711 hectare Hatchet Lake Property adjacent to the north-eastern margin of the highly prolific uranium-producing Athabasca Basin. Compilation of results from previous exploration by Hathor Exploration Limited and Rio Tinto have identified multiple, priority unconformity-related basement targets at Hatchet Lake for follow-up in 2015.

Kivalliq also holds a 100% interest in the 200,677 hectare Genesis Property located northeast of Saskatchewan's Athabasca Basin, with Roughrider Exploration Limited funding the current exploration program pursuant to an option to acquire up to an 85% interest in the property. This highly prospective project is located along the Wollaston-Mudjatik trend and extends 90 kilometres northeast from the Athabasca Basin to the Manitoba border.

Kivalliq's team of northern exploration specialists has forged strong relationships with sophisticated resource sector investors and Angilak Property partner Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. (NTI). Kivalliq was the first company to sign a comprehensive agreement to explore for uranium on Inuit Owned Lands in Nunavut Territory, Canada and is committed to building shareholder value while adhering to high levels of environmental and safety standards and proactive local community engagement.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

James R. Paterson, CEO

Kivalliq Energy Corporation

For further information about, Kivalliq Energy Corporation or this news release, please visit our website at www.kivalliqenergy.com. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Certain disclosures in this release constitute forward-looking statements that are subject to numerous risks, uncertainties and other factors relating to Kivalliq's operations as a mineral exploration company that may cause future results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements, including risks as to the completion of the plans and projects. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. For disclosure related to the inferred resource for the Lac 50 Trend uranium deposit, please refer to Kivalliq's news release of March 1, 2013. Other than as required by applicable securities legislation, Kivalliq expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

Kivalliq Energy Corporation www.kivalliqenergy.comInvestor Relations [email protected]

Source: Kivalliq Energy Corporation
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Pacific Life Foundation announced today that it will provide a total of $6.25 million in funding throughout 2016, an increase from the $6 million it provided in 2015. The 2016 grants will support the areas of arts and culture; civic, community, and environment; education; and health and human services. Grants will be directed primarily toward supporting the communities where Pacific Life employees live and work, including greater Orange County, California and Omaha, Nebraska.

The Pacific Life Foundations initial 2016 grants were presented to local Southern California organizations on the evening of January 21st at the annual Grants Reception, held at Pacific Lifes Newport Beach headquarters. The highlight of the evening was the presentation of the Walter B. Gerken Community Service Award and a $50,000 unrestricted cash grant to Special Olympics Southern California, Orange County Region. Since 1985, the Pacific Life Foundation has provided nearly $200,000 in grants to support the Special Olympics in Orange County. In addition, Pacific Life employees volunteer annually at their Spring and Fall Regional Games.

Results of the Foundations 2015 giving, along with a listing of new 2016 grants, can be found at www.PacificLifeFoundation.com. Highlights of the 2016 giving program are listed below.

Local Grants:During the Grants Reception, 168 Southern California nonprofit agencies were awarded more than $2.8 million in grants. In Omaha, Nebraska, $327,500 was granted to 29 local agencies. Grants will fund a wide range of programs including hunger relief, mental health, social support services for low-income families, environmental protection, and programs for individuals with special needs.

Capital Grants:The Foundation provided a transformative capital campaign grant of $1,000,000 to the Boys and Girls Clubs of Huntington Valley to complete construction of a new Club to open in the spring on the campus of Golden West College in Huntington Beach. This Club will be the first California Boys & Girls Club to be on a college campus.

Capital grants were also provided to Childrens Hospital Orange County Foundation ($250,000 toward a $500,000 pledge) to support their new childrens mental health center and a $250,000 contribution to Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach for their new 30,000 square-foot Pacific Visions wing. In addition, a $50,000 grant toward a $100,000 pledge was given to KidWorks Community Development in Santa Ana for their Building Dreams capital campaign.

3Ts of Education:Annually, the Pacific Life Foundation awards grants to K-12 schools where there are concentrations of children or grandchildren of Pacific Life employees. 3Ts of Education grants are provided in one of the following areas: Teacher Training, Textbooks, or Technology. In 2016, 146 K-12 schools nationwide will be granted $524,000. Since 1998, more than $6.6 million in 3T grants has been distributed to hundreds of K-12 schools nationwide.

Matching Gifts Program:The Pacific Life Foundation supports a robust matching gift program for employees. In 2016, the Foundation will match employee donations of approximately $435,000 to United Way and an additional $260,000 to U.S. nonprofit agencies and colleges/universities supported by employees.

About Pacific Life and the Pacific Life FoundationThe Pacific Life Foundation was established in 1984. Together with Pacific Life, the Foundation has contributed more than $90 million to community and national nonprofit organizations. Grants are made to organizations that address a broad spectrum of social needs.

Offering insurance since 1868, Pacific Life provides a wide range of life insurance products, annuities, and mutual funds, and offers a variety of investment products and services to individuals, businesses, and pension plans. Pacific Life counts more than half of the 100 largest U.S. companies as its clients. For additional company information, including current financial strength ratings, visit www.PacificLife.com.

Pacific Life refers to Pacific Life Insurance Company and its affiliates, including Pacific Life & Annuity Company. Client count as of June 2015 is compiled by Pacific Life using the 2015 FORTUNE 500 list.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160122005243/en/

Pacific Life Foundation

Marisa Schaeffer, 949-219-3243

[email protected]

Source: Pacific Life Foundation
Police escort Colombian drug trafficker Daniel 'El Loco' Barrera (C) as he is brought before the media, before being extradited to the U.S., at an airport in an anti-narcotics base in Bogota July 9, 2013. REUTERS/John Vizcaino

By Nate Raymond

NEW YORK (Reuters) - For the third time in 15 months, a Colombian drug kingpin pleaded guilty on Thursday to U.S. charges that he conspired to manufacture and distribute hundreds of tons of cocaine annually that he trafficked throughout the world.

The plea in Manhattan federal court clears the way for sentencing Daniel Barrera, who authorities say was one of the most prolific drug traffickers of the last two decades before his capture in Venezuela in 2012 following years in hiding.

Barrera, also known as "Loco" (Crazy), was extradited from Colombia in July 2013 to face three indictments filed in federal courts in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Miami, and pleaded guilty in 2014 in the New York cases.

The Miami indictment, along with the Brooklyn one, was later transferred to a federal judge in Manhattan in order to consolidate the cases for sentencing once his final plea was entered.

In court, Barrera pleaded guilty to two counts, admitting that from 1992 to 2010 he agreed with others "to manufacture several tons of cocaine to import into the United States."

Prosecutors and Barrera's lawyer, Ruben Oliva, had been seeking to negotiate a plea agreement to simplify his eventual sentencing on all three indictments.

But Oliva told U.S. District Judge Gregory Woods that no agreement could be reached and that there were "mitigating factors" he wanted to cite at sentencing, set for May 25

Barrera faces a sentence of 10 years to life in prison.

According to U.S. authorities, Barrera, 47, ran a cocaine manufacturing and trafficking syndicate that since 1998 processed about 400 tons of the drug annually.

Prosecutors said Barrera bought raw cocaine paste from the leftist rebel group FARC and processed it in laboratories in areas controlled by a now-demobilized paramilitary group, the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, or AUC.

Barrera was arrested in Venezuela in September 2012 with the help of authorities there as well as British and U.S. intelligence agencies.

Colombian authorities had been closing in on his organization in the weeks prior, detaining 36 suspected members and seizing five tons of cocaine.

(Reporting by Nate Raymond in New York; Editing by Dan Grebler)
By Trevor Hunnicutt

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investors yanked $5.2 billion from stock mutual funds in the United States during the sharply volatile week that ended Jan. 20, Lipper data showed on Thursday, marking three consecutive weeks of outflows.

World stocks and corporate credits came under severe selling pressure as oil sank below $27 a barrel to its lowest level since 2003.

High-yield junk bond funds were at the epicenter of the market anxiety, and they posted $2 billion in outflows, their third straight week not taking in net new money, according to Lipper.

"It's been a bad start to the year across the board," said Lipper research analyst Pat Keon. "With that type of volatility it seemed to be a lot of emotion-based trading out there that's causing these swings."

Investors pulled $412 million from taxable-bond funds during the weekly period, Lipper said, a relatively small figure but one that nonetheless delivered the funds their ninth straight week of withdrawals.

Altogether, taxable-bond funds have bled $42.3 billion over their nine-week streak of outflows, which started Nov. 19, Lipper data showed. Investors have pulled $25.6 billion from U.S. stock funds over the last three weeks; over the last week those funds lost $3.5 billion to investor withdrawals, according to the data.

Risk assets rebounded a bit on Thursday, providing new hope to investors that the worst may be over. And ETF investors were willing to take on some risk in bonds during the weekly period measured by Lipper, blunting the impact of $2.6 billion in outflows from mutual fund investors. Taxable-bond ETFs took in $2.2 billion over the same period, the data showed.

But continued fears of China's economic slowdown, weakening corporate prospects in the United States and uncertainty over intervention by monetary policymakers weighed on see-sawing financial markets.

Non-domestic-focused stock funds posted $1.7 billion in outflows during the week ended Jan. 20, breaking a three-week streak of inflows, Lipper said.

Emerging-market stock funds posted $1 billion in outflows over the period, their largest weekly outflows in a month. Emerging-market debt funds posted their 13th straight week of outflows. And international and global debt funds posted their second straight week of outflows, the Lipper figures showed.

Lower-risk bond funds took in money. Treasury funds, holding bonds backed by a U.S. government guarantee, took in $2.5 billion, their best result since April 2015. Precious metals funds, seen as a safe haven, attracted their second straight week of inflows, Lipper said.

Relatively low-risk money market funds posted $7.5 billion in withdrawals over the period, data from the fund research service showed.

The Lipper fund flow data is compiled from reports issued by U.S.-domiciled mutual funds and exchange-traded funds.

The following is a broad breakdown of the flows for the week, including exchange-traded funds (in $ billions):

Sector Flow Chg % Assets Assets Count

($Bil) ($Bil)

All Equity -5.199 -0.11 4,576.517 11,999

Funds

Domestic -3.478 -0.11 3,229.740 8,538

Equities

Non-Domestic -1.721 -0.12 1,346.777 3,461

Equities

All Taxable -0.412 -0.02 2,121.786 6,140

Bond Funds

All Money -7.503 -0.32 2,368.709 1,168

Market Funds

All Municipal 0.530 0.15 364.766 1,503

Bond Funds

(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by Jennifer Ablan and Andrew Hay)
Antoni Macierewicz of Law and Justice (PiS) party arrives to the headquarters in Warsaw, Poland November 9, 2015. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel

WARSAW (Reuters) - Britain will permanently station 1,000 military personnel in Poland from next year, Poland's defense minister said late on Thursday, in an apparent contradiction of an announcement by Britain about plans for temporary exercises on Polish soil.

On Wednesday, the British defense ministry said London would send 1,000 military personnel to take part in defense exercises in Poland, as part of an agreement with Warsaw to strengthen security ties.

But Poland's Antoni Macierewicz told Catholic broadcaster Radio Maryja that Poland and Britain have agreed at a meeting of foreign and defense ministers in Scotland that a number of troops would stay in Poland permanently.

"One of the decisions, which resulted from yesterday's talks (is) a permanent presence of the British forces on Polish territory, that is 1,000 soldiers, who will permanently station on Polish territory from next year," Macierewicz said.

"They will switch around, it will be a rotational, but permanent presence of 1,000 soldiers."

The British defense ministry was not immediately available to comment.

Warsaw, which is due to host a NATO summit in July, has repeatedly pressed for more North Atlantic Treaty Organization forces on its soil and in former communist-ruled Europe, arguing it needed a stronger response to Russia's aggression in eastern Ukraine.

But some of its NATO allies are reluctant to permanently station troops in central Europe, wary of violating a 1997 NATO-Russia agreement on the size of forces the alliance can have in former Warsaw Pact countries.

Moscow has previously signaled it would regard the establishment of a standing NATO presence on its borders as a hostile act.

Some western governments are also concerned about the cost of permanent new bases at a time when defense budgets are strained by fiscal austerity or costly engagements elsewhere.

Macierewicz said, however, that having British troops in Poland meant that permanent NATO presence in Poland was "realistic".

"Not so long ago we were told that it will be impossible to get permanent bases, NATO presence ..., that it's an unrealistic demand," he said.

"Well, it turns out it's realistic."

Macierewicz's spokesman was not immediately available to comment about the apparent contradiction with the British announcement.

Aside from the troops, Britain will also station a ship on the Baltic Sea to support the Polish fleet, Macierewicz said.

Warsaw and London have also agreed to form a joint "situational awareness" unit, tasked with gathering information on any potential threats to NATO's eastern flank, he said.

(Reporting by Wiktor Szary and Pawel Florkiewicz; Editing by Bernard Orr)
KIEV (Reuters) - Ukrainian prosecutors have launched a criminal investigation into the online publication by U.S. drinks companies Coca-Cola and Pepsico of a map that showed Crimea as a part of Russia, a Ukrainian lawmaker said on Thursday.

Russia annexed the peninsula from Ukraine in March 2014, leading to condemnation from Western governments and the imposition of economic sanctions on Russia. Ukraine and most other countries have refused to recognize the annexation.

Coca-Cola last month said that the map, which appeared on Dec. 30 on Coca-Cola's page on VKontakte, a Russian social networking site similar to Facebook, had been changed by an advertising agency without Coca-Cola's approval.

Georgy Logvinsky, a lawmaker from the party of Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk, quoted an official letter sent to him by the prosecutors' office, stating that "officials of Coca-ola company and Pepsico abused their powers, which caused significant damage to Ukraine's interests".

The letter said that the maps were posted on the official websites of Coca-Cola and Pepsico.

"Officials of Coca-Cola and Pepsi can go to prison. Prosecutors of Crimea have started criminal proceedings under Part 1 of Article 364-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine," Logvinsky wrote on Facebook.

This article cited by Logvinsky allows prosecutors to arrest suspects for up to three months.

The prosecutors' office, Coca-Cola and the Ukrainian office of Pepsico did not respond immediately to a requests for comment.

(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk; Editing by Matthias Williams and David Goodman)




FORM 6-K

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, DC 20549

Report of Foreign Private Issuer

Pursuant to Rule 13a-16 or 15d-16

Of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

For the month of January 2016

Commission File Number: 000-13345

CALEDONIA MINING CORPORATION

(Translation of registrant's name into English)

Suite 1000

36 Toronto Street

Toronto, ON, M5C 2C5

Canada

(Address of principal executive offices)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover Form 20-F or Form 40-F

Form 20-F x Form 40-F ______

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1): ______

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7): ______

Indicate by check mark whether by furnishing the information contained in this Form, the registrant is also thereby furnishing the information to the Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Yes ______ No x

If "Yes" is marked, indicate below the file number assigned to the registrant in connection with Rule 12g3-2(b): 82- ______









Signatures

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

Caledonia Mining Corporation (Registrant) By: /s/ Steve Curtis Dated: January 22, 2016 Name: Steve Curtis Title: CEO and Director

Exhibit Description 99.1 Notice of meeting 99.2 Management information circular 99.3 Form of proxy 99.4 Voting Instruction Form 99.5 Voting Instruction Form 99.6 Voting Instruction Form 99.7 Certificate





Exhibit 99.1 CALEDONIA MINING CORPORATION NOTICE OF SPECIAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a special meeting (the " Meeting ") of the shareholders (" Shareholders ") of Caledonia Mining Corporation (the " Company ") will be held on February 18, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. (Toronto local time) at the offices of the Company's Toronto solicitors, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, Scotia Plaza, 40 King Street West, 44th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, to consider and, if deemed advisable, pass, with or without variation, a special resolution (the " Continuance Resolution "), the full text of which is set out in the accompanying Circular (as defined below), to approve the continuance (the " Continuance ") of the Company into Jersey, Channel Islands, pursuant to the provisions of the Companies (Jersey) Law 1991 (as amended) (the " CJL "), to adopt new charter documents of the Company upon the Continuance, which shall include amendments to the existing charter documents of the Company including a change of the Company's name to "Caledonia Mining Corporation Plc," all as more particularly described in the accompanying management information circular (the " Circular "). January 18, 2016 has been chosen as the record date for determining those Shareholders entitled to receive notice of and to vote at the Meeting. The accompanying Circular provides additional information relating to the matter to be dealt with at the Meeting and forms part of this notice. In order to ensure representation at the Meeting, registered Shareholders must complete the enclosed form of proxy and submit it as soon as possible but not later than 5:00 p.m. (Toronto time) on February 16, 2016 or 48 hours prior to the time of any adjournment or postponement of the Meeting (or such earlier time as required by the applicable nominee) as set out in the accompanying Circular. Nonregistered Shareholders or Shareholders that hold their shares in the name of a "nominee", such as a bank, trust company, securities broker or other financial institution, must seek instructions from their nominee as to how to complete their form of proxy and vote their shares. Nonregistered Shareholders will have received the accompanying Circular in a mailing from their nominee, together with the appropriate form of proxy or voting instruction form. It is important that nonregistered Shareholders adhere to the voting instructions provided to them by their nominee. DATED as of the 31st day of December, 2015. By order of the Board of Directors CALEDONIA MINING CORPORATION (signed) " Steve Curtis " Steve Curtis Chief Executive Officer On behalf of the Board of Directors

Exhibit 99.2





CALEDONIA MINING CORPORATION









NOTICE OF SPECIAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS

AND

MANAGEMENT INFORMATION CIRCULAR  SOLICITATION OF PROXIES









December 31, 2015





These materials are important and require your immediate attention. They require shareholders of Caledonia Mining Corporation (the " Company ") to make important decisions. If you are in doubt as to how to make such decisions, please contact your financial, legal or other professional advisors. If you have any questions or require more information with regard to voting your shares of the Company, please contact Computershare Investor Services Inc. at 100 University Avenue, 8th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5J 2Y1.



A copy of this document has been delivered to the Jersey registrar of companies in accordance with Article 5 of the Companies (General Provisions) (Jersey) Order 2002, and he has given, and has not withdrawn, his consent to its circulation. The Jersey Financial Services Commission has given, and has not withdrawn, its consent under Article 8 of the Control of Borrowing (Jersey) Order 1958 to the circulation of this document in Jersey. The Jersey Financial Services Commission is protected by the Control of Borrowing (Jersey) Law 1947, as amended, against any liability arising from the discharge of its functions under that Law. It must be distinctly understood that, in giving these consents, neither the Jersey registrar of companies nor the Jersey Financial Services Commission takes any responsibility for the financial soundness of the Company or for the correctness of any statements made, or opinions expressed, with regard to it. If you are in any doubt about the contents of this document you should consult your stockbroker, bank manager, solicitor, accountant or other financial adviser. The directors of the Company have taken all reasonable care to ensure that the facts stated in this document are true and accurate in all material respects, and that there are no other facts the omission of which would make misleading any statement in the document, whether of facts or of opinion. All the directors accept responsibility accordingly.





CALEDONIA MINING CORPORATION

NOTICE OF SPECIAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS AND MANAGEMENT INFORMATION CIRCULAR

TABLE OF CONTENTS

NOTICE OF SPECIAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS i FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION 1 PART I - VOTING 1 SOLICITATION OF PROXIES 1 APPOINTMENT AND REVOCATION OF PROXIES 1 EXERCISE OF DISCRETION BY PROXIES 2 VOTING SHARES AND PRINCIPAL HOLDERS OF VOTING SHARES 2 RECORD DATE 2 QUORUM REQUIREMENTS 2 VOTING BY REGISTERED SHAREHOLDERS 2 VOTING BY NON REGISTERED SHAREHOLDERS 3 VOTES NECESSARY TO PASS THE RESOLUTION 4 PART II  APPROVAL OF THE CONTINUANCE RESOLUTION 4 PROCEDURE FOR THE CONTINUANCE 4 EFFECT OF THE CONTINUANCE 5 REASONS FOR THE CONTINUANCE 6 COMPARISON BETWEEN CANADA AND JERSEY CORPORATE LAW 7 OTHER IMPLICATIONS AFFECTING THE COMPANY AND SECURITYHOLDERS 13 SECURITIES MATTERS 17 CERTAIN CANADIAN FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS 18 CERTAIN JERSEY TAX CONSIDERATIONS 20 CERTAIN UNITED STATES FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS 22 RISK FACTORS 29 RIGHTS OF DISSENT TO THE CONTINUANCE 30 SHAREHOLDER APPROVAL OF THE CONTINUANCE RESOLUTION 32 RECOMMENDATION OF THE BOARD 32 PART III - MISCELLANEOUS 32 INTERESTS OF CERTAIN PERSONS OR COMPANIES IN MATTERS TO BE ACTED UPON 32 INTEREST OF INFORMED PERSONS IN MATERIAL TRANSACTIONS 32 OTHER MATTERS TO BE ACTED UPON 32 AUDITORS 32 LEGAL ADVISORS 32 PRINCIPAL BANKERS 33 STATED CAPITAL 33 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 33 APPROVAL 34 SCHEDULE A  MEMORANDUM AND ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION 35 SCHEDULE B  CONTINUANCE RESOLUTION 36 SCHEDULE C  HOLDERS OF OPTIONS OF THE COMPANY 37 SCHEDULE D  DISSENT RIGHTS 39

i

CALEDONIA MINING CORPORATION

NOTICE OF SPECIAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS





NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a special meeting (the " Meeting ") of the shareholders (" Shareholders ") of Caledonia Mining Corporation (the " Company ") will be held on February 18, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. (Toronto local time) at the offices of the Company's Toronto solicitors, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, Scotia Plaza, 40 King Street West, 44th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, to consider and, if deemed advisable, pass, with or without variation, a special resolution (the " Continuance Resolution "), the full text of which is set out in the accompanying Circular (as defined below), to approve the continuance (the " Continuance ") of the Company into Jersey, Channel Islands, pursuant to the provisions of the Companies (Jersey) Law 1991 (as amended) (the " CJL "), to adopt new charter documents of the Company upon the Continuance, which shall include amendments to the existing charter documents of the Company including a change of the Company's name to "Caledonia Mining Corporation Plc," all as more particularly described in the accompanying management information circular (the " Circular ").

January 18, 2016 has been chosen as the record date for determining those Shareholders entitled to receive notice of and to vote at the Meeting. The accompanying Circular provides additional information relating to the matter to be dealt with at the Meeting and forms part of this notice.

In order to ensure representation at the Meeting, registered Shareholders must complete the enclosed form of proxy and submit it as soon as possible but not later than 5:00 p.m. (Toronto time) on February 16, 2016 or 48 hours prior to the time of any adjournment or postponement of the Meeting (or such earlier time as required by the applicable nominee) as set out in the accompanying Circular.

Nonregistered Shareholders or Shareholders that hold their shares in the name of a "nominee", such as a bank, trust company, securities broker or other financial institution, must seek instructions from their nominee as to how to complete their form of proxy and vote their shares. Nonregistered Shareholders will have received the accompanying Circular in a mailing from their nominee, together with the appropriate form of proxy or voting instruction form. It is important that nonregistered Shareholders adhere to the voting instructions provided to them by their nominee.

DATED as of the 31st day of December, 2015. By order of the Board of Directors CALEDONIA MINING CORPORATION (signed) " Steve Curtis " Steve Curtis Chief Executive Officer On behalf of the Board of Directors









CALEDONIA MINING CORPORATION

MANAGEMENT INFORMATION CIRCULAR

FORWARD LOOKING INFORMATION

This Circular contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of Canadian securities laws, which may include, but is not limited to, statements relating to the possible receipt of a letter of satisfaction to complete the Continuance and a certificate of discontinuance from the CBCA Director (as defined below) and the possible receipt of a Certificate of Continuance (as defined below) from the Jersey Registrar (as defined below). Such forward-looking information reflects the Company's views with respect to future events and is subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including the risk that the CBCA Director will not issue a letter of satisfaction to complete the Continuance and the risk that the Jersey Registrar will not issue a Certificate of Continuance.

Although the Company believes the assumptions inherent in forward-looking statements are reasonable, any forward-looking information in this Circular represents the Company's views as of the date of this Circular and such information should not be relied upon as representing the Company's views as of any date subsequent to the date of this Circular. There can be no assurance that any forward-looking information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those expected or estimated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on any such forward-looking information. The Company expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

PART I - VOTING

SOLICITATION OF PROXIES

This management information circular (this " Circular ") is provided in connection with the solicitation of proxies to be used at the special meeting of shareholders (" Shareholders ") of Caledonia Mining Corporation (the " Company ") to be held on February 18, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. at Scotia Plaza, 40 King Street West, 44th Floor, Toronto, Ontario (the offices of the Company's Toronto solicitors, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP), or at any adjournment thereof (the " Meeting ") for the purposes set forth in the Company's notice of special meeting dated as of December 31, 2015 (the " Notice of Meeting ").

The enclosed proxy is being solicited by the management of the Company. The solicitation is being made primarily by mail, but proxies may also be solicited by telephone, by facsimile, by the internet, by advertisement or by other personal contact by directors, officers and other employees of the Company. The entire cost of the solicitation will be borne by the Company.

Unless otherwise indicated, the information contained in this Circular is given as at December 31, 2015.

APPOINTMENT AND REVOCATION OF PROXIES

The persons named in the enclosed form of proxy are directors of the Company. A Shareholder desiring to appoint some other person to represent him, her or it at the Meeting may do so by inserting such person's name, who need not be a Shareholder, in the blank space provided in the form of proxy and striking out the names of the persons specified or by completing another proper form of proxy. Proxies may also be submitted electronically pursuant to the instructions which accompany this Circular. In all cases, the completed proxy is to be deposited at, or supplied to, the offices of Computershare Investor Services Inc. (" Computershare "), 100 University Avenue, 8th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5J 2Y1 by not later than 5:00 p.m. (Toronto time) on February 16, 2016.

A Shareholder giving a proxy has the right to revoke the proxy by an instrument in writing executed by the Shareholder or by the Shareholder's attorney authorized in writing and deposited at the registered office of the Company, being Suite 4009, 1 King Street West, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5H 1A1, at any time up to and including the last business day preceding the date of the Meeting, or any adjournment of the Meeting, at which the proxy is to be used, or with the chairman of the Meeting on the date of the Meeting, or any adjournment of the Meeting, or in any other manner permitted by law.



1



EXERCISE OF DISCRETION BY PROXIES

The persons named in the enclosed form of proxy will vote the Common Shares (as defined below) in respect of which they are appointed in accordance with the direction of the Shareholders appointing them. In the absence of such direction, such Common Shares will be voted FOR the Continuance Resolution.

The enclosed form of proxy confers discretionary authority upon the persons named in the form of proxy with respect to any amendments or variations to matters identified in the Notice of Meeting and with respect to other matters which may properly come before the Meeting. At the time of printing this Circular, management of the Company knows of no such amendments, variations or other matters to come before the Meeting.

VOTING SHARES AND PRINCIPAL HOLDERS OF VOTING SHARES

On December 31, 2015, the Company had issued and outstanding 52,078,946 common shares (collectively, the " Common Shares " and individually, a " Common Share "), each carrying the right of one vote per share.

To the knowledge of the directors and officers of the Company, other than as set out below, no person beneficially owns, directly or indirectly, or exercises control or direction over, shares carrying more than 10% of the votes attached to all Common Shares. Allan Gray Proprietary Limited, a South African investment fund manager, has disclosed that two funds of which it is the manager beneficially own, directly or indirectly, and that it exercises control or direction over, 7,039,500 Common Shares representing 13.5% of the issued and outstanding Common Shares.





RECORD DATE

The Board of Directors of the Company (the " Board ") has fixed the record date as January 18, 2016 for the purpose of determining who is entitled to receive the Notice of Meeting. Shareholders entitled to vote at the Meeting will be the Shareholders of record at 5:00 p.m. (Toronto time) on January 18, 2016. The failure of any Shareholder to receive the Notice of Meeting will not deprive the Shareholder of the right to vote at the Meeting.

QUORUM REQUIREMENTS

The quorum requirement for the Meeting is that there be two members present in person or by proxy and that there be representation in person or by proxy of shareholders holding at least 5% of the issued Common Shares. As the Company has 52,078,946 Common Shares issued, the requirement for the Meeting will be that there be shareholder representation of at least 2,603,946 Common Shares.

VOTING BY REGISTERED SHAREHOLDERS

A registered Shareholder is a person Common Shares are registered directly in its own name in the records of registered shareholders maintained for the Company by the transfer agent and registrar, Computershare (a " Registered Shareholder ").

In order to ensure representation at the Meeting, Registered Shareholders must complete, date and sign the enclosed form of proxy, or other appropriate form of proxy and, in either case: (i) deliver the completed form of proxy to the Company's transfer agent, Computershare Investor Services Inc., 100 University Avenue, 8th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5J 2Y1 in the addressed envelope enclosed; or (ii) submit the completed form of proxy to Computershare, facsimile number (416) 2639524 or 18662497775, by no later than 5:00 p.m. (Toronto time) on February 16, 2016 or 48 hours prior to the time of any adjournment or postponement of the Meeting.



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VOTING BY NONREGISTERED SHAREHOLDERS

Only Registered Shareholders or duly appointed proxy holders are permitted to vote at the Meeting. Most Shareholders are "nonregistered" shareholders because the Common Shares they own are not registered in their names but are instead registered in the name of the brokerage firm, bank or trust company through which they purchased the Common Shares. More particularly, a person is not a Registered Shareholder in respect of Common Shares which are held on behalf of that person (the " NonRegistered Shareholder ") but which are registered either: (a) in the name of an intermediary (an " Intermediary ") that the NonRegistered Shareholder deals with in respect of the Common Shares (Intermediaries include, among others, banks, trust companies, securities dealers or brokers and trustees or administrators of selfadministered RRSP's, RRIF's, RESPs and similar plans); or (b) in the name of a clearing agency (such as CDS & Co., the nominee of CDS Clearing and Depository Services Inc.) of which the Intermediary is a participant. NonRegistered Shareholders are advised that only proxies from Shareholders of record will be recognized and voted at the Meeting. In accordance with the requirements as set out in National Instrument 54101  Communication with Beneficial Owners of Securities of a Reporting Issuer , the Company has distributed copies of the Notice of Meeting, this Circular and the form of proxy (collectively, the " Meeting Materials ") to the clearing agencies and Intermediaries for onward distribution to NonRegistered Shareholders.

Intermediaries are required to forward the Meeting Materials to NonRegistered Shareholders unless a NonRegistered Shareholder has waived the right to receive them. Company management does not intend to pay for Intermediaries to forward the Meeting Materials to objecting beneficial owners, as described in National Instrument 54-101 - Communication with Beneficial Owners of Securities of a Reporting Issuer, such that objecting beneficial owners will not receive the Meeting Materials unless the objecting beneficial owner's Intermediary assumes the cost of delivery. Very often, Intermediaries will use service companies to forward the Meeting Materials to NonRegistered Shareholders. Generally, NonRegistered Shareholders who have not waived the right to receive Meeting Materials will either:

(a) be given a form of proxy which has already been signed by the Intermediary (typically by a facsimile, stamped signature), which is restricted as to the number of Common Shares beneficially owned by the NonRegistered Shareholder but which is otherwise not completed. Because the Intermediary has already signed the form of proxy, this form of proxy is not required to be signed by the NonRegistered Shareholder when submitting the proxy. In this case, the NonRegistered Shareholder who wishes to submit a proxy should otherwise properly complete the form of proxy and deposit it with Computershare as provided above; or

(b) more typically, be given a voting instruction form which is not signed by the Intermediary, and which, when properly completed and signed by the NonRegistered Shareholder and returned to the Intermediary or its service company, will constitute voting instructions (often called a " proxy authorization form ") which the Intermediary must follow. Typically, the proxy authorization form will consist of a one page preprinted form. Sometimes, instead of the one page preprinted form, the proxy authorization form will consist of a regular printed proxy form accompanied by a page of instructions, which contains a removable label containing a barcode and other information. In order for the form of proxy to validly constitute a proxy authorization form, the NonRegistered Shareholder must remove the label from the instructions and affix it to the form of proxy, properly complete and sign the form of proxy and return it to the Intermediary or its service company in accordance with the instructions of the Intermediary or its service company.

In either case, the purpose of this procedure is to permit a NonRegistered Shareholder to direct the voting of the Common Shares which they beneficially own. Should a NonRegistered Shareholder who receives one of the above forms wish to vote at the Meeting in person, the NonRegistered Shareholder should strike out the names of the management proxy holders named in the form and insert the NonRegistered Shareholder's name in the blank space provided. In either case, NonRegistered Shareholders should carefully follow the instructions of their Intermediary, including those regarding when and where the proxy or proxy authorization form is to be delivered.



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VOTES NECESSARY TO PASS THE RESOLUTION

In order to pass, the Continuance Resolution must be approved by at least 66 2/3% of the votes cast at the Meeting in person or by proxy.

PART II  APPROVAL OF THE CONTINUANCE RESOLUTION

The purpose of the Meeting is to consider and, if thought advisable, to approve a special resolution which will result in the Company ceasing to be governed by the corporate law of Canada and to be governed instead by the corporate law of Jersey, Channel Islands. As a result of this change, the Company will cease to be domiciled in Canada, its head and registered office will be in Jersey and the name of the Company will be changed to "Caledonia Mining Corporation Plc."

The process by which migration will be accomplished, called a "continuance," the reasons for the continuance, and certain consequences that will result from the continuance are described below.

The Shareholders will be asked to consider and, if thought advisable, pass a special resolution (the " Continuance Resolution ") authorizing the Board, in its sole discretion to apply for the discontinuance of the Company so it is no longer a company governed by the Canada Business Corporations Act (the " CBCA ") and to continue the Company to be a company governed by the laws of Jersey, Channel Islands (the " Continuance "); and in connection therewith, to make an application (the " Continuance Application ") to the Jersey Financial Services Commission (the " JFSC ") pursuant to the provisions of the Companies (Jersey) Law, 1991 (" CJL "). Upon the Continuance, the Company will adopt the proposed Memorandum of Association and Articles of Association (the " Articles ") pursuant to the CJL (together, the " M&A ") and repeal the current CBCA articles and by-law and the name of the Company will become "Caledonia Mining Corporation Plc" in order to comply with the naming requirements for public companies under Jersey law. The M&A are set out in "Schedule A  Memorandum and Articles of Association" and the text of the Continuance Resolution is set out in "Schedule B  Continuance Resolution."





The Continuance will affect certain of the rights of the Shareholders as they currently exist under the CBCA. Shareholders should consult their legal and other advisors regarding implications of the Continuance which may be of particular importance to them.





PROCEDURE FOR THE CONTINUANCE

For the Continuance to be effective, the following procedure will be followed:





Shareholder Authorization





1. By special resolution, the Shareholders must authorize the Company to make the Continuance Application to the JFSC, requesting that the Company be continued as a company under the CJL.





Application to the CBCA Director





2. The Company must make an application to the director appointed under the CBCA (the " CBCA Director ") for the CBCA Director's letter of satisfaction to permit the Continuance, and the Company must establish to the satisfaction of the CBCA Director that the proposed Continuance will not adversely affect creditors or Shareholders.





Necessary CBCA Conditions for Continuance





3. According to the CBCA, the continuation of the Company as a body corporate to another jurisdiction, such as Jersey, cannot be completed unless the laws of that jurisdiction provide in effect that:





(a) the property of the Company continues to be the property of the body corporate;

(b) the body corporate continues to be liable for the obligations of the Company;

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(c) an existing cause of action, claim or liability to prosecution is unaffected;

(d) a civil, criminal or administrative action or proceeding pending by or against the Company may be continued to be prosecuted by or against the body corporate; and

(e) a conviction against, or ruling, order or judgment in favour of or against the Company may be enforced by or against the body corporate.

The Company believes that this requirement will be satisfied.

Jersey Certificate of Continuance

4. Subject to compliance with all the requirements of the CJL (including, but not limited to, the delivery of all required documents to, and approval of, the JFSC), the registrar of companies in Jersey (the " Jersey Registrar ") will issue to the Company a certificate of continuance (the " Certificate of Continuance ").





Transition





5. Upon the issue of the Certificate of Continuance by the Jersey Registrar, the Company will become a company governed under the CJL and the M&A will constitute the constitution of the Company, replacing the existing CBCA articles and by-law.





Consequences of Continuance





6. The Certificate of Continuance will constitute conclusive evidence of the following matters:





(a) that the Company is incorporated under the CJL;





(b) that the requirements of the CJL have been complied with in respect of:





(i) the continuance of the Company under the CJL;

(ii) all matters precedent to its continuance as such a company;

(iii) all matters incidental to its continuance as such a company; and

(c) that it is a public company.





Discontinuance under the CBCA





7. Pursuant to the CBCA, the Company must file the Certificate of Continuance with the CBCA Director and obtain a certificate of discontinuance. The Company will cease to be governed by the CBCA upon issuance of the certificate of discontinuance.





EFFECT OF THE CONTINUANCE

Assuming that the Continuance Resolution is approved by the Shareholders at the Meeting, it is expected that the Company will file the Continuance Application with the JFSC and the procedures outlined above will begin as soon as practicable, as determined by the Board in its sole discretion, in order to give effect to the Continuance. The Company will also deliver a regulatory announcement through the London Stock Exchange's Regulatory News Service, which will be distributed no later than the time at which the same information is published elsewhere.





The Continuance, if approved, will effect a change in the legal domicile of the Company on the effective date thereof to the laws of Jersey, Channel Islands and the name of the Company will become "Caledonia Mining Corporation Plc" in order to comply with the naming requirements for public companies under Jersey law. Upon the Continuance, the Company's registered office in Jersey will be at P.O. Box 218, 43/45 La Motte Street, St. Helier, Jersey, JE4 8SD.



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On the effective date of the Continuance, Shareholders will continue to hold one Common Share of the Company (which will then be domiciled in Jersey) for each Common Share currently held. The existing share certificates or Direct Registration Statements representing Common Shares will not be cancelled and will continue to represent Common Shares following the Continuance; however, upon a transfer of Common Shares represented by an existing share certificate, a new share certificate in the form adopted by the Company following the Continuance will be issued to the transferee. Furthermore, a new ISIN/CUSIP number will be assigned to the Common Shares following the Continuance. Holders of options of the Company on the effective date of the Continuance will continue to hold options to purchase, or otherwise acquire, an identical number of Common Shares on the same terms. A list of all holders of options of the Company is set out in "Schedule C  Holders of Options of the Company" to this Circular.





The principal attributes of the share capital of the Company will be identical, before and after Continuance, other than differences in Shareholders' rights under the CJL as compared to the CBCA and as supplemented by the Articles, including those described below under the headings "Comparison between Canada and Jersey Corporate Law" and "Other Implications Affecting the Company and Securityholders."





Immediately following the Continuance, the directors and officers of the Company will remain unchanged; however, the election, duties, resignations and removal of the Company's directors and officers will be governed by the CJL and the Company will no longer be subject to the CBCA.





Upon completion of the Continuance, the Company's Common Shares will remain listed and traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (the " TSX ") and AIM, the market of that name operated by the London Stock Exchange plc (" AIM "), and will continue to be traded on the OTCQX. The Continuance will, however, represent a readmission to AIM.





As noted above, on the effective date of the Continuance the property of the Company will continue to be the property of the Company, the Company will continue to be liable for the obligations of the Company, existing causes of action, claims or liabilities to prosecution of the Company will be unaffected, civil, criminal or administrative actions or proceedings pending by or against the Company may be continued to be prosecuted by or against the Company, convictions against the Company may be continued against the Company, and rulings, orders or judgments in favour of or against the Company may be enforced by or against the Company.





REASONS FOR THE CONTINUANCE

The Company's principal mineral property, the Blanket Gold Mine, is located in the south-west of Zimbabwe and, accordingly, the principal operations of the Company are outside of Canada. The Company has no business operations in Canada, nor does it own any assets there. While the Company's Common Shares are listed and traded on the TSX, and this is intended to continue, the continued listing does not require the Company to be incorporated in Canada. The Continuance is expected to provide the Company with a number of benefits, including:

(a) as Jersey is more conveniently located in relation to the Company's operations than Canada, it is expected there will be a reduction in the time and cost associated with international travel required to hold meetings of the Board;

(b) Canadian withholding tax applicable to dividends paid to Shareholders outside Canada will be eliminated; and

(c) since the Company has no commercial connections to Canada, there is no reason for it to be domiciled there and thereby subject to Canadian income and capital gains taxes or for it to bear the compliance costs associated with being a Canadian taxpayer. By contrast, Jersey has generally lower rates of income tax, no capital gains tax and a somewhat simpler tax regime overall.

The Board recognizes, on the other hand, that Shareholders who are individuals resident in Canada will lose the benefit of the dividend tax credit in respect of dividends paid by the Company and corporate Shareholders resident in Canada will no longer be able to deduct such dividends in computing their taxable income. The Board is of the view that the benefits outlined above outweigh this disadvantage, however, which is expected to affect a minority of Shareholders in any case. Accordingly, the Board believes it is desirable for the Company to complete the Continuance and change the location of its corporate existence and domicile to Jersey, Channel Islands.



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COMPARISON BETWEEN CANADA AND JERSEY CORPORATE LAW

The following is a summary of certain key differences between the CJL, the statute that will govern the corporate affairs of the Company upon the Continuance, and the CBCA. Because the corporate laws of Canada and Jersey have many points of difference, the following summary does not purport to address all differences between such laws. Shareholders should consult their legal and other advisors regarding implications of the Continuance which may be of particular importance to them.





The following sets out a brief summary of the key differences between the CJL and the CBCA, which are discussed in further detail in the narrative following this table.





Matter CBCA and Other Current Provisions CJL Resolution/Position Charter Documents Articles of incorporation and by-laws Share register shall be maintained in Canada Doctrine of ultra vires applies Memorandum and Articles of Association Share register shall be maintained in Jersey but other registers can be maintained elsewhere Doctrine of ultra vires does not apply M&A to be publicly available Registers will be maintained in Toronto and Jersey Capacity of the Company will not be limited by M&A Sale of Corporation's Undertaking Sale of assets/business requires shareholder approval by special resolution Shareholder approval not required M&A require Shareholder approval Rights of Dissent and Appraisal Shareholders have certain dissent rights Shareholders do not have dissent rights M&A confer dissent rights substantially similar to those conferred by the CBCA Approval of Arrangement to Compromise with Shareholders Approval by special resolution of shareholders generally required Approval by 3/4ths of shareholders required Approval by 3/4ths of Shareholders required Oppression Remedies Complainant can apply for court order to address oppression No oppression remedy similar to that under the CBCA but a shareholder can apply to the Royal Court of Jersey for an order on the grounds that a company's actions are unfairly prejudicial to certain shareholders No oppression remedy similar to that under the CBCA but a Shareholder can apply to the Royal Court of Jersey for an order on the grounds that the Company's actions are unfairly prejudicial to certain Shareholders

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Matter CBCA and Other Current Provisions CJL Resolution/Position Shareholder Derivative Actions Certain persons may apply to court for leave to bring, defend or discontinue an action in the name of or on behalf of a corporation Shareholders have a limited right to bring derivative actions under common law (generally must show fraud on the minority to do so) Shareholders have a limited right to bring derivative actions under common law (generally must show fraud on the minority to do so) Requisition of Meetings 5% of shareholders can requisition a meeting 10% of shareholders can requisition a meeting M&A will permit 5% of Shareholders to requisition a meeting Notice of Meetings Meetings may be convened on no less than 21 days' notice Meetings may be convened on no less than 14 days' notice M&A will require 21 days' clear notice to convene meetings Indemnification Corporations may indemnify current or former officers, directors, or liquidators and make interim payments to such persons Companies may indemnify current or former directors or liquidators; interim payments not permitted The Company may indemnify current or former directors or liquidators; interim payments not permitted Place of Shareholder Meetings Meetings shall be held in Canada No requirement regarding meeting location No requirement regarding meeting location Directors and Company Secretary Public companies shall have at least 3 directors; at least 2 must be independent; and at least 25% shall be resident Canadians Public companies shall have at least 2 directors, resident anywhere Following the Continuance, Board will be comprised of 7 directors, of which 5 are independent Stock exchange rules regarding independence will continue to apply. Issuance of Shares at Fair Market Value Shares to be issued at fair value It is not stipulated in Jersey law that shares need to be issued at fair value M&A will require shares to be issued at fair value Shares to be Fully-Paid and Non-Assessable Shares issued must be fully-paid and non-assessable Shares issued need not be fully-paid and non-assessable M&A will require shares issued to be fully-paid and non-assessable Share Buybacks Corporations may redeem their redeemable shares and purchase their shares for cancellation Companies may redeem their redeemable shares but shareholder approval required for companies to repurchase their shares Company may redeem its redeemable shares but Shareholder approval required for the Company to repurchase its shares

Charter Documents





Under the CBCA, a corporation must have articles of incorporation, which require the name of the corporation, the province in which the corporation's registered office is located, the classes and the maximum amount of shares the corporation may issue, the rights, privileges and restrictions that attach to each class of shares (should multiple classes exist), the authority given to directors to fix the number of shares and determine the designation of rights, privileges, restrictions and conditions attaching to shares of each series, a statement that the issue, transfer or ownership of shares of the corporation is restricted if applicable (and a statement as to the nature of such restrictions), the number of directors or a minimum and maximum number of directors, and any restriction on business that the corporation may carry on. The articles of incorporation may also set out provisions permitted by the CBCA or other law that should be set out in the corporation's by-laws. The CBCA further provides that the records of the corporation shall be maintained at the registered office of the corporation, or at such other place in Canada designated by the directors. CBCA corporations such as the Company also generally have by-laws governing the management of the company, although these are not expressly required by the CBCA.



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A company incorporated under the CJL has charter documents which consist of a "memorandum of association" and "articles of association" (collectively, the " Charter Documents "). The memorandum must state the name of the company, whether it is a public company or a private company, and, in respect of a no par value company (as is the case for the Company), the number and classes of shares which may be issued. The articles of association regulate the corporate business and affairs and management of the company. The Charter Documents are filed with Jersey Registrar and are publicly available. Any amendment to the Charter Documents must be approved by special resolution of the shareholders (called the " members ") of the Company. In the case of the Company, the Articles to be adopted as part of the Continuance will provide that a special resolution is passed where not less than two-thirds of the Shareholders who vote in person or by proxy vote in favour of such resolution. In compliance with the CJL, upon the completion of the Continuance, the Company will maintain at its new registered office in Jersey together with other corporate records (e.g. registers of directors and secretaries and minute books) and a duplicate of its share register in Toronto (which under the CJL will be known as an "overseas branch register" but, given that all of the Company's shares are to be registered on the Toronto register, the share register in Jersey will be for all intents and purposes just a copy of what is on the Toronto register).





The doctrine of ultra vires does not apply to Jersey companies and, accordingly, the capacity of such a company is not limited by anything in its Charter Documents or by any act of its members.





Amendments to the Charter Documents





As noted above, a company incorporated under the CJL may amend its Charter Documents by special resolution. The CJL also requires a special resolution to be passed for other fundamental changes, such as changing the name of a company, changing the status of a company (public to private or private to public), altering the share capital of a company, or approving a continuation to another jurisdiction. The CBCA has substantially similar requirements.





Sale of Corporation's Undertaking





Under the CBCA, the sale, lease, or exchange of all or substantially all the property of a corporation, other than in the ordinary course of business, requires shareholder approval by a special resolution and a shareholder is entitled to dissent and to be paid the fair value of its shares.





Although the CJL does not require the approval of shareholders in respect of a sale, lease, or exchange of all or substantially all of the property of a Jersey company, the Articles to be adopted as part of the Continuance will contain provisions requiring a special resolution and conferring a right of dissent.





Rule 15 of the AIM Rules for Companies (the " AIM Rules ") (fundamental change of business) will continue to apply to the Company, which requires the Company to obtain the consent of the Shareholders on the disposal when aggregated with any other disposal(s) over the previous 12 months, which exceeds 75% in any of the class tests.





Rights of Dissent and Appraisal





The CBCA provides that shareholders have the right to dissent to certain actions being taken by the corporation and to be paid by the corporation the fair value of the shares in respect of which the shareholder dissents. The dissent right is available to shareholders of any class if the corporation resolves to:

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(a) amend its articles to add, remove or change restrictions or constraints on the issue, transfer or ownership of shares of a class of the corporation;

(b) amend its articles to add, remove or change any restriction upon the business or businesses that the corporation may carry on;

(c) amalgamate with another corporation subject to certain exceptions under the CBCA;

(d) be continued under the laws of another jurisdiction;

(e) sell, lease or exchange all or substantially all of its property;

(f) carry out a going-private or a squeeze-out transaction; or

(g) amend its articles so as to modify, directly or indirectly, the rights of shareholders as provided in the articles.

The CJL does not grant a specific right of dissent to shareholders. However, the CJL: (i) requires that a special resolution be passed to change the articles of a company, approve a merger of companies, approve the continuance of a company in another jurisdiction or to convert from a public to a private company or a private to public company; (ii) permits an offeror who achieves 90% of acceptances to buy out minority shareholders and permits minority shareholders to oblige such an offeror to buy them out when a Jersey company is subject to takeover; and (iii) permits Shareholders to apply to the Royal Court of Jersey for remedies in various circumstances. In addition, the Articles will confer a right of dissent substantially similar to the dissent right available under the CBCA.





Approval of Arrangement





Under the CBCA, approval of an arrangement generally requires approval by a special resolution. Pursuant to the CJL, a resolution approving a scheme of arrangement, to be binding on shareholders, must be passed by a majority in number representing at least 3/4ths of the voting rights of members and the arrangement must be sanctioned by the Royal Court of Jersey.





Oppression Remedies





Under the CBCA, a shareholder, former shareholder, director, former director, officer, former officer of a corporation or any of its affiliates, the CBCA Director, or any other person who, in the discretion of the court, is a proper person to seek an oppression remedy, may apply to the court for an order to rectify the matters complained of where, in respect of a corporation or any of its affiliates, any act or omission of the corporation or its affiliates effects a result, or the business or affairs of the corporation or its affiliates are or have been carried on or conducted in a manner, or the powers of the directors of the corporation or any of its affiliates are or have been exercised in a manner, that is oppressive or unfairly prejudicial to or that unfairly disregards the interest of any security holder, creditor, director or officer.





There is no oppression remedy under the CJL. Pursuant to the CJL, a member of a company may apply to the Royal Court of Jersey for an order on the grounds that the company's affairs are being or have been conducted in a manner which is unfairly prejudicial to the interests of its members generally or of some part of its members (including at least the applicant member) or that an actual or proposed act or omission of the company (including an act or omission on its behalf) is or would be so prejudicial. These provisions under the CJL also apply to a person who is not a member of a company but to whom shares in the company have been transferred or transmitted by operation of law.





The Royal Court of Jersey has a wide power to grant an order to relieve the issue complained of, such as by regulating the conduct of the company's affairs, requiring the company to refrain from doing or continuing an act, or providing for the purchase of the rights of any members of the company by other members or by the company itself.



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Shareholder Derivative Actions





Under the CBCA, a shareholder, former shareholder, director, former director, officer, former officer of a corporation or any of its affiliates, or any other person who, in the discretion of the court, is a proper person, may apply to the court for leave to bring, defend or discontinue an action in the name and on behalf of a corporation or any of its subsidiaries (called a " derivative action ") if the directors of the corporation do not bring, diligently prosecute or defend or discontinue the action, and it appears to be in the interests of the corporation that the action be brought, prosecuted, defended or discontinued.





The CJL does not provide shareholders the right to bring a derivative action. However, Jersey's customary law follows English common law (but not statutory law, and not precedent derived from that statutory law) in respect of the ability of shareholders to bring derivative actions in certain situations although such situations are rare.





Requisition of Meetings





The CBCA provides that one or more shareholders of a corporation holding at least 5% of the issued voting shares in a corporation may give notice to the directors requiring them to call and hold a meeting of shareholders. Further, the CBCA generally provides that on receiving the requisition, the directors shall call a meeting of shareholders to transact the business stated in the requisition.





The CJL provides that one or more members of a company holding at least 10% of the total voting rights of the members who have the right to vote at the meeting requisitioned may give notice to the directors of the company requiring them to call and hold a meeting. The Articles will reduce this threshold to 5%, in line with the CBCA's provisions. The requisition must state the business to be transacted at the meeting and shall be sent to the registered office of the company. If the Board does not, within 21 days after receiving the requisition, call a meeting to be held within two months from that date, the Shareholder(s) making the request, or any of them representing more than 50% of the total voting rights of all of them, may call the meeting, but such meeting cannot be held later than three months from that date.





Notice of Meetings

The CBCA provides that any meeting of shareholders may be convened upon no less than 21 days' notice.

The CJL provides that only 14 days' notice is necessary to convene a meeting of a company; however, the Articles will contain provisions requiring the Company to give the Shareholders at least 21 clear days' notice of any shareholder meeting.

Indemnification





The CJL allows companies to indemnify any current or former directors or liquidators against: (i) any liabilities incurred in defending any proceedings (whether civil or criminal) in which judgment is given in the person's favour or the person is acquitted, which are discontinued otherwise than for some benefit conferred by the person or on the person's behalf or some detriment suffered by the person, or which are settled on terms which include such benefit or detriment and, in the opinion of a majority of the directors of the company (excluding any director who conferred such benefit or on whose behalf such benefit was conferred or who suffered such detriment), the person was substantially successful on the merits in the person's resistance to the proceedings; (ii) any liability incurred otherwise than to the company if the person acted in good faith with a view to the best interests of the company; (iii) any liability incurred in connection with an application made under Article 212 of the CJL in which relief is granted to the person by the Royal Court of Jersey; or (iv) any liability against which the company normally maintains insurance for persons other than directors. The CBCA also provides substantially similar rights to past and present officers and directors of CBCA corporations, although the ability to make interim payments to indemnified persons is allowed under the CBCA, while it is not under the CJL.







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Place of Shareholder Meetings





The CBCA provides that meetings of shareholders of a corporation shall be held at the place within Canada provided in the by-laws or, in the absence of such provision, at the place within Canada that the directors determine. A meeting of shareholders may be held outside Canada if the place is specified in the articles or all the shareholders entitled to vote at the meeting agree that the meeting is to be held at that place. The CJL does not impose any requirements with respect to the location of member meetings.





Directors and Company Secretary





The CBCA provides that a public company must have not fewer than three directors, at least two of whom are not officers or employees of the corporation or its affiliates. Further, the CBCA requires that at least 25% of the directors of a corporation shall be resident Canadians and, if there are fewer than four directors, one of them must be a resident Canadian.





The CJL requires that a public company have at least two directors. The CJL does not impose any residency requirements on directors.





Upon the Continuance, the Company's existing Board comprised of seven directors (being Leigh Alan Wilson  Chairman, and Director , Steve Curtis  Chief Executive Officer and Director, James Johnstone  Director , Mark Learmonth  Chief Financial Officer and Director, John Lawson Kelly  Director, Johan Andries Holtzhausen  Director and David Henderson  Director, all of whom can be contacted at the registered office of the Company) will continue in office. AIM and TSX rules regarding independent directors will continue to apply while the Company is listed on those exchanges. For example, the TSX requires listed companies to have at least two independent directors. The Company currently has five independent directors.





Minerva Trust & Corporate Services Limited will be appointed as Company Secretary, and may be contacted at the registered office of the Company following the Continuance.





Issuance of Shares at Fair Market Value





The CBCA provides that a share shall not be issued until the consideration for the share is fully paid in money or in property or past services that are not less in value than the fair equivalent of the money that the corporation would have received if the share had been issued for money. Further, directors of a corporation who vote for or consent to a resolution authorizing the issue of a share for consideration other than money are jointly and severally, or solidarily, liable to the corporation to make good any amount by which the consideration received is less than the fair equivalent of the money that the corporation would have received if the share had been issued for money on the date of the resolution.





The CJL does not require shares to be issued at fair market value. The Articles to be adopted as part of the Continuance, however, will contain provisions substantially similar to the provisions of the CBCA requiring shares to be issued for fair value.





The Company, where practicable, intends to follow the principles of the Pre-Emption Group guidelines that recommend that shares should not be issued for cash on a non-pre-emptive basis at a discount of more than 5% to the prevailing market price.





Shares to be Fully Paid and Non-Assessable





The CBCA provides that shares issued by a corporation are non-assessable and the holders are not liable to the corporation or to its creditors in respect thereof. In addition, the CBCA states that a share shall not be issued until the consideration for the share is fully paid in money or in property or past services.





The CJL does not require shares to be fully paid and non-assessable. The Articles, however, will contain provisions substantially the same as the provisions of the CBCA.

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Share Buybacks





Subject to certain solvency requirements, the CBCA permits corporations to redeem their redeemable shares and to purchase any of their shares for cancellation.





The CJL also permits Jersey companies to redeem redeemable shares and to purchase their own shares, if, in relation to a purchase, the purchase is sanctioned by a special resolution of shareholders and either the non-selling shareholders approve the purchase contract (in the case of private purchases) or the maximum number of shares to be purchased, the maximum and minimum purchase prices and the duration of the authority (which cannot be more than 5 years) are specified in the sanctioning resolution (in the case of purchases on a stock exchange) and also, in relation to both purchase and redemption, the directors approving the purchase or redemption make a 12 month forward looking solvency statement.





The Company, where practicable, intends to follow the Investment Association's Share Capital Management Guidelines, which recommend that an AIM listed company should only have a general authority to make on-market share buybacks of up to 10%, and in certain circumstances up to 15%, of such company's issued ordinary share capital.





OTHER IMPLICATIONS AFFECTING THE COMPANY AND SECURITYHOLDERS

The following table sets out further differences between Canadian and Jersey law and practice, which may affect the Company and the Shareholders and which are discussed in further detail in the narrative following the table.





Matter Canada Jersey Resolution Form of Proxy and Information Circular for Reporting Companies Reporting issuers must provide a notice of meeting, a form of proxy and an information circular with respect to a meeting Companies shall include certain statements regarding voting of proxies in notices of meeting Canadian requirements will continue to apply following Continuance, as Company will continue to be listed on the TSX Entitlement to Information Reporting issuers must comply with the rules regarding communication with registered and non-registered beneficial shareholders N/A M&A will provide for communication with Registered Shareholders and those who have beneficial rights to the shares held by Registered Shareholders Dividends Directors alone may declare dividends Members may also declare dividends, provided that they do not exceed the amount recommended by the board of directors M&A will permit Shareholders to declare dividends, but the Board will continue to approve the payment of interim dividends Borrowing Directors of a corporation may borrow money on the credit of the corporation without shareholder authorization N/A In accordance with AIM practice M&A will restrict the Board's ability to borrow substantial sums of money without Shareholder approval The City Code on Takeovers Canadian provincial securities legislation applies to takeovers The City Code on Takeovers and Mergers applies to takeovers of most public companies The City Code on Takeovers and Mergers will apply to takeovers; Canadian takeover rules are also expected to continue to apply

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Matter Canada Jersey Resolution Shareholder Proposals A shareholder of 1% of the total outstanding shares of a corporation can propose a matter to be discussed at a shareholder meeting and require the corporation to set out such matter in its management information circular, provided that the shareholder gives the requisite notice A shareholder of 10% of the total outstanding shares of a company can require the company to circulate a written resolution proposed by the shareholder M&A will enable Shareholders of 5% of the outstanding shares to require the Company to circulate a resolution to be moved at an annual general meeting Notice and Disclosure Obligations N/A Typical for investors in Jersey listed companies to expect notice and disclosure provisions that apply to English incorporated companies to be included in articles of association M&A will permit the Company to give a disclosure notice to any person that the Company has reasonable cause to believe is/was interested in the Company's shares within the last three years; such notice may require the person to inform the Company whether that person holds/has held an interest in the Company's shares and the M&A will incorporate with reference certain of the UK's disclosure and transparency rules

Form of Proxy and Information Circular for Reporting Companies



In Canada, the CBCA together with provincial securities legislation requires that reporting issuers provide a notice of a general meeting, a form of proxy and an information circular containing prescribed information regarding the matters to be considered at the meeting. As the Company will continue to be listed on the TSX, these proxy requirements will continue to apply.

The CJL requires companies to include in a notice of meeting a statement that a member entitled to attend and vote is entitled to appoint one or more proxies to attend and vote instead of the member, and that a proxy need not also be a member.

Entitlement to Information





National Instrument 54101  Communication with Beneficial Owners of Securities of a Reporting Issuer of the Canadian Securities Administrators applies to Canadian public companies and sets out a scheme pursuant to which such companies, including the Company, shall communicate with both registered and non-registered beneficial shareholders of a company.

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The Articles will provide for the Company's communication with not only Registered Shareholders, but also their nominees who have beneficial rights to the shares held by the Registered Shareholders. The Articles will provide members of the Company with information rights comparable to those granted to English companies pursuant to the United Kingdom's Companies Act 2006 . Specifically, members will have the right to nominate another person, on whose behalf such member holds shares, to enjoy information rights, which include the right to receive a copy of all communications that the Company sends to its members generally or to any class of members that includes the member making the nomination.





Dividends





The CBCA permits directors alone to declare dividends. Pursuant to Jersey standard practice, however, members may also (but do not have to) declare dividends provided they do not exceed the amount recommended by the board of directors. The Articles will reflect standard Jersey practice and allow Shareholders to declare dividends, notwithstanding that the Board will still be able to approve the payment of interim dividends and therefore the Company does not expect any change in its current dividend policy.





When Payment of Dividends Need Not be Made





The Articles will provide that the Company may cease to make payment for any dividend or other monies payable in respect of a share if, in respect of at least two consecutive dividends payable on that share, payment, through no fault of the Company, has not been effected (or, following one such occasion, reasonable enquiries have failed to establish any new address of the holder). However, the Articles will require the Company to recommence payments in respect of dividends or other monies payable on that share if the holder claims the arrears of the dividend and does not instruct the Company to pay future dividends in some other way. No comparable provision is found in the Company's current constating documents but it is considered sensible to include this provision, which is typical for AIM listed companies, in order to reduce the administrative burden on the Company.





Borrowing





The CBCA provides that, without shareholder authorization, directors of a corporation may borrow money on the credit of the corporation, may issue, reissue, sell, pledge or hypothecate a debt obligation of the corporation, may give a guarantee on behalf of the corporation to secure performance of an obligation of any person and may mortgage, hypothecate, pledge or otherwise create a security interest in all or any property of the corporation, owned or subsequently acquired, to secure any obligation of the corporation.





The Articles will include provisions consistent with market practice in the United Kingdom for listed companies restricting the Board's ability to borrow substantial sums of money without Shareholder approval. Specifically, in the absence of approval by an ordinary resolution of the Shareholders, the Board shall restrict borrowings of the Company so as to secure that the aggregate principal amount from time to time outstanding of all borrowings by the Company and any subsidiaries shall not at any time exceed an amount equal to three times the adjusted capital and reserves of the Company.





The City Code on Takeovers





Before the Continuance, the takeover rules imposed by Canadian provincial securities legislation apply in respect of any proposed takeover of the Company. Following the Continuance, however, The City Code on Takeovers and Mergers (the " City Code ") will apply to takeovers. The Canadian takeover rules are also expected to continue to apply following the Continuance unless Canadian registered shareholders cease to hold at least 10% of the Company's shares and the TSX is not the principal market for trading such shares. The City Code is based on six General Principles:





1. All holders of the securities of an offeree company of the same class must be afforded equivalent treatment; moreover, if a person acquires control of a company, the other holders of securities must be protected.





2. The holders of the securities of an offeree company must have sufficient time and information to enable them to reach a properly informed decision on the bid; where it advises the holders of securities, the board of the offeree company must give its views on the effects of implementation of the bid on employment, conditions of employment and the locations of the company's places of business.

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3. The board of an offeree company must act in the interests of the company as a whole and must not deny the holders of securities the opportunity to decide on the merits of the bid.





4. False markets must not be created in the securities of the offeree company, of the offeror company or of any other company concerned by the bid in such a way that the rise or fall of the prices of the securities becomes artificial and the normal functioning of the markets is distorted.





5. An offeror must announce a bid only after ensuring that he/she can fulfil in full any cash consideration, if such is offered, and after taking all reasonable measures to secure the implementation of any other type of consideration.





6. An offeree company must not be hindered in the conduct of its affairs for longer than is reasonable by a bid for its securities.





The Panel on Takeovers and Mergers (the " Panel ") is an independent body whose main functions are to issue and administer the City Code and to supervise and regulate takeovers and other matters to which the City Code applies in accordance with the rules set out in the City Code. The City Code is designed to ensure that shareholders are treated fairly and are not denied an opportunity to decide on the merits of a takeover and that shareholders of the same class are afforded equivalent treatment by an offeror. The City Code also provides an orderly framework within which takeovers are conducted. In addition, it is designed to promote, in conjunction with other regulatory regimes, the integrity of the financial markets.





Under Rule 9 of the City Code, any person who acquires an interest (as defined in the City Code) in shares which, taken together with shares in which that person is already interested and in which persons acting in concert with such person are interested, carry 30% or more of the voting rights of a company which is subject to the City Code, is normally required to make a general offer to all the remaining shareholders to acquire their shares.





Similarly, when any person, together with persons acting in concert with such person, is interested in shares which in the aggregate carry not less than 30% of the voting rights of such a company but does not hold shares carrying more than 50% of such voting rights, a general offer will normally be required if any further interests in shares are acquired by any such person.





Unless the Panel otherwise consents, an offer under Rule 9 must be made to all other shareholders, be in cash (or have a cash alternative) at the highest price paid by the person required to make the offer, or any person acting in concert with him, for any interests in shares of the company during the 12 months prior to the announcement of the offer and not be conditional on anything other than the securing of acceptances which will result in the offeror and persons acting in concert with him holding shares carrying more than 50% of the voting rights.





Shareholder Proposals





The CBCA provides that a shareholder who holds at least 1% of the total number of outstanding voting shares of the corporation, provided that such voting shares have a fair market value of at least $2,000, may submit to the corporation notice of any matter that the shareholder proposes to raise at a meeting called by the corporation and may discuss any such matter at the meeting. If such a proposal is submitted to the corporation at least 90 days before the anniversary of the date of the notice of meeting that was sent to shareholders in connection with the previous annual meeting of shareholders, a corporation who receives such a proposal is required to set out the proposal in its management information circular.





As well as providing a right for shareholders to requisition general meetings of a company (which is mentioned above), the CJL permits members of a company who represent not less than 10% of the total voting rights of all members entitled to vote on the particular resolution, to require the company to circulate a written resolution within 21 days of becoming subject to the requirement to circulate the resolution.

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The Articles will give Shareholders the right to require the Company to circulate to Shareholders entitled to receive notice of the next general meeting notice of a resolution that is intended to be moved at the meeting. Only Shareholders representing at least 5% of the total voting rights of all Shareholders who have a right to vote on the resolution at the meeting shall be entitled to exercise this right. Further, such request must be received by the Company at least 90 days prior to the first anniversary of the prior year's annual general meeting.





Notice and Disclosure Obligations





The CBCA does not contain notice and disclosure provisions. The Articles, however, will include provisions similar to those that govern English listed companies, which will enable the Company to establish who ultimately owns its shares. Such provisions will permit the Company to give a disclosure notice to any person whom the Company knows or has reasonable cause to believe is interested in the Company's shares or has been so interested at any time during the three years immediately preceding the date on which the disclosure notice is issued (the " Disclosure Period "). The disclosure notice may require the person to confirm whether he, she or it has such an interest and, if she, or it holds, or has held such interest during the Disclosure Period, to provide further information as may be required, including particulars of his, her, or its past or present interest in the shares held during the Disclosure Period.





Further, the disclosure notice may require the person to whom it is addressed, where his, her or its interest is a present interest and another interest in the shares subsists, or another interest in the shares subsisted during the Disclosure Period at a time when his, her, or its interest subsisted, to give such particulars with respect to that other interest as may be required by the notice. These particulars may include the identity of persons interested in the shares and whether persons interested in the shares are or were parties to an agreement to acquire interests in a particular company or an agreement or arrangement relating to the exercise of any rights conferred by the holding of the shares or the nature and extent of any interest in the shares.





The disclosure notice may also require the person to whom it is addressed, where his, her, or its interest is a past interest, to give particulars of the identity of the person who held that interest immediately after him, her or it.





If a person interested in less than 0.25% of the shares of a class receives a disclosure notice and does not provide the necessary information in the requisite time period, that person will not be entitled to vote personally or by proxy at any meeting of Shareholders or exercise any other right regarding meetings of the Company conferred by membership.





If a person who is interested in 0.25% or more of the shares of a class receives a disclosure notice and does not provide the necessary information in the requisite time period, that person will not be entitled to vote personally or by proxy, at any meeting of Shareholders or to exercise any other right regarding meetings of the Company conferred by membership, to receive a dividend, or to transfer or agree to transfer any shares or rights therein.





The Articles will also incorporate Chapter 5 of the UK Listing Authority's Disclosure and Transparency Rules (the " Rules ") with respect to vote holder and issuer notification rules, which AIM considers best practice for foreign companies to adopt. If the Company determines that a Shareholder has not complied with the Rules, by delivering a notice to such Shareholder, the Company may suspend the right of the Shareholder to vote its shares in person or by proxy at any meeting of the Company, withhold any dividend or other amount payable with respect to the defaulting Shareholder's shares, render ineffective the defaulting Shareholder's election to receive shares instead of cash in respect of any dividend, and prohibit the transfer of the defaulting Shareholder's shares, except with the Company's consent.





SECURITIES MATTERS

As a result of the Continuance, the Depository Interests (" DIs ") over Canadian shares that are currently traded on AIM in London will be DIs over Jersey shares, which will have a new ISIN and SEDOL. Under the AIM Rules, this requires a readmission of the Company's Common Shares to trading on AIM, albeit as a "quoted applicant," as defined in Rule 2 of the AIM Rules, and accordingly, the readmission will not require a full admission document, but rather a Schedule 1 to be submitted to AIM, no less than 20 business days prior to the date of readmission. It is currently expected that the readmission date will be March 21, 2016. This is subject to AIM approval and completion by the Company of all of AIM's requirements. The Schedule 1 will be made available on the Company's website. It is not expected that this process will create any further interruption to the normal trading facilities of AIM afforded to Shareholders.

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Similarly, the Common Shares will have a new CUSIP and ISIN. It is not anticipated that this will affect trading on the TSX or OTCQX. The Company will continue to be a reporting issuer in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia and to comply with Canadian public disclosure requirements and the United States (" U.S. ") disclosure requirements applicable to it.





It is expected that the Common Shares will, following the Continuance, continue to be tradeable through the relevant book-based systems in North America (the Canadian Depository for Securities and its U.S. counterpart, The Depository Trust Company) and in the U.K. (CREST). Trading in Common Shares following the Continuance would be under the new ISIN, SEDOL and CUSIP numbers referred to above.





CERTAIN CANADIAN FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS

The following is a summary of the principal Canadian federal income tax considerations under the Income Tax Act (Canada) (the " Tax Act ") as of the date hereof, generally applicable to the Company and Shareholders, including those who choose to exercise Dissent Rights (defined below under the heading "Rights of Dissent to the Continuance"). This summary only applies to Shareholders who are and remain at all relevant times resident in Canada for purposes of the Tax Act and any applicable tax treaty.





This summary is not applicable to a Shareholder who (i) is a "financial institution" for the purposes of the mark-to-market rules contained in the Tax Act, (ii) is a taxpayer whose "functional currency" for the purposes of the Tax Act is the currency of a country other than Canada; (iii) has entered into, or will enter into, a "derivative forward agreement" or a "synthetic disposition arrangement" as defined in the Tax Act with respect to shares of the Company; or (iv) a Shareholder whose share ownership in the Company is such that the Company will be a "foreign affiliate" of such Shareholder following the Continuance. Such Shareholders should consult their own advisors.





This summary is not exhaustive of all possible Canadian federal income tax considerations applicable to the Company or a Shareholder. This summary is of a general nature only and is not intended to be legal or tax advice to the Company or a Shareholder. Shareholders should consult their own tax advisors for advice with respect to the tax consequences of the Continuance based on their particular circumstances.





This summary is based upon the provisions of the Tax Act in force on the date of this Circular and the current published administrative policies and assessing practices of the Canada Revenue Agency (" CRA ") publicly available prior to the date of this Circular. This summary takes into account all specific proposals to amend the Tax Act which have been publicly announced by or on behalf of the Minister of Finance (Canada) prior to the date of this Circular (the " Proposed Amendments ") and assumes that the Proposed Amendments will be enacted in their current form. There can be no assurance that any of the Proposed Amendments will be implemented in their current form or at all. Except for the Proposed Amendments, this summary does not otherwise take into account or anticipate any changes in law, whether by legislative, governmental or judicial decision or action, or changes in the administrative or assessing practices and policies of the CRA. In addition, this summary does not take into account other federal or any provincial, territorial or foreign tax legislation or considerations, which may differ significantly from the Canadian federal income tax considerations discussed in this Circular.





The Company





While the Company is incorporated in Canada, it is deemed to be resident in Canada for purposes of the Tax Act. In addition, the Company would also be considered a resident of Canada if its "central management and control" is located in Canada.





When the Company is granted the Certificate of Continuance, thereafter it will be considered to have been incorporated in Jersey and will cease to be deemed to be a resident in Canada unless its "central management and control" continues to be located in Canada. The Company intends to relocate its "central management and control" to Jersey simultaneously with the Continuance. Hence, the Company should cease to be resident in Canada immediately following the Continuance.

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The Company will be deemed to have a taxation year end immediately before the Continuance. There will also be a deemed disposition of each property owned by the Company immediately before such taxation year end for proceeds of disposition equal to its fair market value at that time. The Company will also be required to pay a one-time tax upon emigration from Canada. The Company does not expect any tax payable as a result of the deemed disposition of its properties and its emigration from Canada.





Shareholders





Except as described below under the heading "Rights of Dissent to the Continuance", a Shareholder will not dispose of his or her Common Shares solely as a consequence of the Continuance.









Dividends Received after Continuance





Dividends received or deemed to be received by a Shareholder after the Continuance will be required to be included in computing the Shareholder's income. As a consequence of the Company ceasing to be a resident of Canada, the following provisions in the Tax Act governing dividends or deemed dividends will no longer apply:





(a) A Shareholder who is an individual will not benefit from the gross-up and dividend tax credit rules.

(b) A corporate Shareholder will no longer be able to deduct the amount of the dividends in computing its taxable income.

(c) Dividends received by a corporate Shareholder that is a "private corporation" or "subject corporation" as defined in the Tax Act will no longer be liable to tax under Part IV of the Tax Act.

Foreign Property Information Reporting after Continuation





Subsequent to the Continuance, a Shareholder may need to comply with certain foreign property information reporting applicable to a "specified Canadian entity" holding "specified foreign property" (as such terms are defined in the Tax Act) with a tax cost which exceeds CAD$100,000. Shareholders should consult their own tax advisors as to whether they must comply with these reporting requirements.





Shareholders with Tax-Exempt Status





Currently, a Common Share is a "qualified investment" for trusts governed by a registered retirement savings plan (" RRSP "), registered retirement income fund (" RRIF "), deferred profit sharing plan, registered education savings plan, registered disability savings plan or tax-free savings account (" TFSA ") by virtue of the fact that the Company's shares are listed on the TSX. It is the Company's intention that the Common Shares will remain listed on the TSX following the C ontinuance, such that they will thereby remain "qualified investments."





The Continuance, in and of itself, will not affect the "prohibited property" status of the Common Shares for trusts governed by a TFSA, RRSP, or RRIF.





Dissenting Shareholders





A dissenting Shareholder will be entitled to be paid by the Company the fair value of the Common Shares held by that Shareholder. The Company anticipates that the redemption of any Common Shares held by dissenting Shareholders will occur after the Continuance.





The amount paid to a Canadian resident Shareholder who dissents to the Continuance should be treated as receiving proceeds of disposition of the relevant Common Shares. Accordingly, the dissenting Canadian resident Shareholder will recognize a capital gain (or loss) in the amount by which the amount received as proceeds for the disposition of the Common Shares exceeds (or is less than) the shareholder's adjusted cost base of the Common Shares. Interest awarded to a dissenting Shareholder by a court will be included in that Shareholder's income for the purposes of the Tax Act.

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Generally, one-half of any capital gain (a " taxable capital gain ") realized by a shareholder in a taxation year must be included in the shareholder's income for the year, and one-half of any capital loss (an " allowable capital loss ") realized by a shareholder in a taxation year must be deducted from taxable capital gains realized by the shareholder in that year. Allowable capital losses for a taxation year in excess of taxable capital gains for that year generally may be carried back and deducted in any of the three preceding taxation years or carried forward and deducted in any subsequent taxation year against net taxable capital gains realized in such years, to the extent and under the circumstances described in the Tax Act.





A Shareholder that is, throughout the relevant taxation year, a "Canadian-controlled private corporation" (as defined in the Tax Act) may be liable to pay an additional refundable tax of 6% on its "aggregate investment income" for the year, which is defined to include interest and the "eligible portion" of taxable capital gains. Proposed Amendments announced by the Department of Finance on December 7, 2015 would increase the rate of such tax to 10%. Capital gains realized by individual or certain trusts may give rise to a liability for alternative minimum tax. A capital loss realized by a corporation may be reduced in certain circumstances by dividends previously received or deemed to have been received thereon. Similar rules apply where a corporation is a member of a partnership or a beneficiary of a trust. A Shareholder to whom these rules may be relevant should consult his, her, or its own advisors.





CERTAIN JERSEY TAX CONSIDERATIONS

The Board intends to conduct the Company's affairs such that, based on current law and practice of the relevant tax authorities, the Company will not become resident for tax purposes in any other territory other than Jersey. It is assumed that the Company does not become resident in a territory other than Jersey.





The following summary of the anticipated treatment of the Company and Shareholders is based on Jersey taxation law as it is understood to apply at the date of this document.





It does not constitute legal or tax advice. Shareholders should consult their professional advisers on the implications of acquiring, buying, holding, selling or otherwise disposing of Common Shares under the laws of the jurisdictions in which they may be liable to taxation. Shareholders should be aware that tax laws, rules and practice and their interpretation may change.





General





Under current Jersey law, there are no capital gains, capital transfer, gift, wealth or inheritance taxes or any death or estate duties. No stamp duty is levied in Jersey on the issue, conversion, redemption or transfer of shares. On the death of an individual shareholder (whether or not such individual was domiciled in Jersey), duty at rates of up to 0.75% of the value of the relevant shares may be payable on the registration of any Jersey probate or letters of administration which may be required in order to transfer, convert, redeem or make payments in respect of shares held by a deceased individual sole shareholder.





Income Tax  The Company





Under the Income Tax (Jersey) Law 1961 (as amended) (the " Tax Law "), from January 1, 2009, the standard rate of income tax on the profits of companies regarded as resident in Jersey or having a permanent establishment in Jersey is 0% (" zero tax rating "). Certain exceptions from zero tax rating apply, namely:





(a) companies which are regulated by the JFSC under certain sections of the Financial Services (Jersey) Law 1998, the Banking Business (Jersey) Law 1991 or the Collective Investment Funds (Jersey) Law 1988 shall be subject to income tax at a rate of 10% (these companies are defined as "financial services companies" in the Tax Law);



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(b) specifically identified utility companies shall be subject to income tax at a rate of 20% (these companies are defined as "utility companies" in the Tax Law); and

(c) any income derived from the ownership or disposal of land in Jersey and companies involved in the importation or supply of hydrocarbon oil in Jersey shall be subject to income tax at a rate of 20%.

It is anticipated that the Company will be subject to a zero tax rating.





Income Tax  The Shareholders





Shareholders who are not resident for income tax purposes in Jersey will not be subject to taxation in Jersey in respect of any income or gains arising in respect of shares held by them.





Shareholders who are resident for income tax purposes in Jersey will be subject to income tax in Jersey at the standard rate of 20% on any dividends paid on shares held by them or on their behalf. The provisions of Article 134A (Power of Comptroller to make assessment to prevent avoidance of income tax) of the Tax Law may, in certain circumstances, render investors who are resident in Jersey liable to income tax on the undistributed income of the Company.





Withholding Tax  The Company





Jersey companies chargeable to corporate income tax at the 0% rate are not obliged or entitled to deduct withholding tax on dividends. Where companies are chargeable to Jersey income tax at the 10% or 20% rates, dividends will be paid to shareholders following the payment of such tax by the company. The Jersey income tax paid on the company's income represented by such dividend will be available to the relevant shareholders as tax credits against such shareholders' personal liabilities to Jersey income tax.





It is anticipated that the Company will be subject to a zero tax rating and therefore not obliged or entitled to deduct withholding tax on dividends.





Goods and Services Tax





Pursuant to the Goods and Services Tax (Jersey) Law 2007 (the " 2007 Law "), tax at a rate which is currently 5% applies to the supply of retail goods and services, unless the relevant supplier or recipient of such goods and services is registered as an "international services entity".





The Company is expected to be an "international services entity" within the meaning of the 2007 Law, having satisfied the requirements of the Goods and Services Tax (International Services Entities) (Jersey) Regulations 2008, as amended and, as long as it continues to be such an entity, a supply of goods or of a service made by or to the Company shall not be a taxable supply for the purposes of the 2007 Law.





Tax Information Exchange





A paying agent established in Jersey that makes "interest payments" (as defined in the Taxation (Agreements with European Member States) (Jersey) Regulations 2005 (the " Regulations ")) to an individual beneficial owner resident in an EU Member State that is a "contracting party" (as defined in the Regulations) is obliged to communicate details of such payments to the Comptroller of Taxes in Jersey who, pursuant to the Regulations, must provide such information to the tax authorities of the EU Member State in which the beneficial owner is resident.





Identification of Shareholders





The Company can be required to make a return to the Comptroller of Income Tax in Jersey, on request, of the names, addresses and shareholdings of Jersey resident Shareholders (in practice this return will not be required at more frequent intervals than once a year).

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CERTAIN UNITED STATES FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS

The following is a general summary of certain U.S. federal income tax considerations applicable to a U.S. Holder (as defined below) arising from the Continuance and the ownership and disposition of Common Shares after the Continuance. This summary is for general information purposes only and does not purport to be a complete analysis or listing of all potential U.S. federal income tax considerations that may apply to a U.S. Holder as a result of the Continuance or as a result of the ownership and disposition of Common Shares after the Continuance. In addition, this summary does not take into account the individual facts and circumstances of any particular U.S. Holder that may affect the U.S. federal income tax consequences to such U.S. Holder, including specific tax consequences to a U.S. Holder under an applicable tax treaty. Accordingly, this summary is not intended to be, and should not be construed as, legal or U.S. federal income tax advice with respect to any U.S. Holder. This summary does not address the U.S. federal alternative minimum, U.S. federal estate and gift, U.S. Medicare contribution, U.S. state and local, or non-U.S. tax consequences to U.S. Holders of the Continuance and the ownership and disposition of Common Shares after the Continuance. Except as specifically set forth below, this summary does not discuss applicable income tax reporting requirements. Each U.S. Holder should consult its own tax advisor regarding all U.S. federal, U.S. state and local, and non-U.S. tax consequences of the Continuance and the ownership and disposition of Common Shares after the Continuance.

No opinion from U.S. legal counsel or ruling from the Internal Revenue Service (the " IRS ") has been requested, or will be obtained, regarding the U.S. federal income tax consequences of the Continuance or the ownership and disposition of Common Shares after the Continuance. This summary is not binding on the IRS, and the IRS is not precluded from taking a position that is different from, and contrary to, the positions taken in this summary. In addition, because the authorities on which this summary is based are subject to various interpretations, the IRS and the U.S. courts could disagree with one or more of the positions taken in this summary.

Scope of This Disclosure

Authorities

This summary is based on the U.S. Code (the " Code "), U.S. Treasury Regulations (whether final, temporary, or proposed) (" Treasury Regulations "), published rulings of the IRS, published administrative positions of the IRS, the Convention between Canada and the U.S. with respect to taxes on income and capital of 1980, as amended (the " Canada-US Tax Convention (1980) "), and U.S. court decisions that are applicable and, in each case, as in effect and available, as of the date of this Circular. Any of the authorities on which this summary is based could be changed in a material and adverse manner at any time, and any such change could be applied on a retroactive or prospective basis which could affect the U.S. federal income tax considerations described in this summary. This summary does not discuss the potential effects, whether adverse or beneficial, of any proposed legislation that, if enacted, could be applied on a retroactive or prospective basis.

U.S. Holders

For purposes of this summary, the term " U.S. Holder " means a beneficial owner of Common Shares participating in the Continuance or exercising dissent rights pursuant to the Continuance that is for U.S. federal income tax purposes:

1. an individual who is a citizen or resident of the U.S.;

2. a corporation (or other entity taxable as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes) created or organized in or under the laws of the U.S., any state thereof or the District of Columbia;

3. an estate the income of which is subject to U.S. federal income taxation regardless of its source; or

4. a trust that (a) is subject to the primary supervision of a court within the U.S. and the control of one or more U.S. persons for all substantial decisions or (b) has a valid election in effect under applicable U.S. Treasury Regulations to be treated as a U.S. person.



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Non-U.S. Holders

For purposes of this summary, a " non-U.S. Holder " is a beneficial owner of Common Shares participating in the Continuance or exercising dissent rights pursuant to the Continuance that is not a partnership (or other "pass-through" entity) for U.S. federal income tax purposes and is not a U.S. Holder. This summary does not address the U.S. federal income tax consequences applicable to non-U.S. Holders arising from the Continuance or the ownership and disposition of Common Shares after the Continuance. Accordingly, a non-U.S. Holder should consult its own tax advisor regarding all U.S. federal, U.S. state and local, and non-U.S. tax consequences (including the potential application and operation of any income tax treaties) relating to the Continuance and the ownership and disposition of Common Shares after the Continuance.

U.S. Holders Subject to Special U.S. Federal Income Tax Rules Not Addressed

This summary does not address the U.S. federal income tax considerations of the Continuance or the ownership and disposition of Common Shares after the Continuance to U.S. Holders that are subject to special provisions under the Code, including (except as otherwise specifically noted) U.S. Holders that: (a) are tax-exempt organizations, qualified retirement plans, individual retirement accounts, or other tax-deferred accounts; (b) are financial institutions, underwriters, insurance companies, real estate investment trusts, or regulated investment companies; (c) are broker-dealers, dealers, or traders in securities or currencies that elect to apply a mark-to-market accounting method; (d) have a "functional currency" other than the U.S. dollar; (e) own Common Shares as part of a straddle, hedging transaction, conversion transaction, constructive sale, or other arrangement involving more than one position; (f) acquired Common Shares in connection with the exercise of employee stock options or otherwise as compensation for services; (g) hold Common Shares other than as a capital asset within the meaning of Section 1221 of the Code (generally, property held for investment purposes); (h) own, directly, indirectly, or by attribution, 5% or more, by voting power or value, of the outstanding Common Shares; and (i) acquired Common Shares by gift or inheritance. This summary also does not address the U.S. federal income tax considerations applicable to U.S. Holders who are: (a) U.S. expatriates or former long-term residents of the U.S.; (b) persons that have been, are, or will be a resident or deemed to be a resident in Canada for purposes of the Tax Act; (c) persons that use or hold, will use or hold, or that are or will be deemed to use or hold Common Shares in connection with carrying on a business in Canada; (d) persons whose Common Shares constitute "taxable Canadian property" under the Tax Act; or (e) persons that have a permanent establishment in Canada for the purposes of the Canada-US Tax Convention (1980). U.S. Holders that are subject to special provisions under the Code, including U.S. Holders described immediately above, should consult their own tax advisors regarding all U.S. federal, U.S. state and local, and non-U.S. tax consequences relating to the Continuance and the ownership and disposition of Common Shares after the Continuance.

If an entity or arrangement that is classified as a partnership (including any other "pass-through" entity) for U.S. federal income tax purposes holds Common Shares, the U.S. federal income tax consequences to such partnership and the partners (or owners) of such partnership (or entity) of participating in the Continuance and the ownership and disposition of Common Shares after the Continuance generally will depend on the activities of the partnership (or entity) and the status of such partners (or owners). This summary does not address the tax consequences to any such partnership (or entity) or partner (or owner). Partners (or owners) of entities and arrangements that are classified as partnerships for U.S. federal income tax purposes should consult their own tax advisors regarding the U.S. federal income tax consequences of the Continuance and the ownership and disposition of Common Shares after the Continuance.

Pre-2007 Shareholders Not Addressed

U.S. Holders should note that the Company may have been a "passive foreign investment company" (" PFIC ") for 2006 and prior tax years. A foreign (non-U.S.) corporation is classified as a PFIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes in any taxable year in which, after applying relevant look-through rules with respect to the income and assets of its subsidiaries, either: (i) at least 75% of its gross income is passive income (the " income test "); or (ii) 50% or more of the value of its assets either produce passive income or are held for the production of passive income (the " asset test "), based on the quarterly average of the fair market value of such assets.



23



If the Company was a PFIC as to a U.S. Holder at any time during such U.S. Holder's holding period fo
Spark Central in Wellington: The listed telecoms company issued a warning to its shareholders about Zero Commission's offer.

Spark has warned investors they may be sent letters offering them less for their shares than they are worth.

In a release to the NZX, Spark said it had received notice from Zero Commission NZ that it intended to make an unsolicited offer for some investors' shares.

"Spark New Zealand advises that Zero Commission NZ Limited has notified its intention to write to certain Spark New Zealand shareholders with an unsolicited offer to buy their shares at $3.02 per share," Spark said.

"The market price for Spark New Zealand shares was $3.24 per share as at close of trading on 21 January 2016, so the offer is 7 per cent lower than the closing price on that date."

Spark did not not endorse the offer, and advised shareholders to read Zero Commission's disclosure document and terms of offer carefully, seek independent legal advice, and check the most recent market price for Spark shares.

It said shareholders were free to reject the offer.

Shareholders who accepted Zero Commission's offer were likely to be in the position of being an unsecured creditor of Zero Commission during the period between their shares being transferred to Zero Commission and receiving full payment for them, Spark said

Zero Commission is owned by Aucklanders Philip Briggs and Roy Jackson, and makes what it calls "discounted" offers for shares.

Zero Commission denied its offer could be described as "low-ball", a term that is frequently used about offers for shares that are below market price to owners of small parcels of shares.

In a statement, Briggs said: "Zero Commission confirms that it is making an unsolicited no brokerage offer to selected Spark small shareholders holding between 1 to 800 shares."

But, he said: "We are disappointed with the text of the Spark announcement on this matter and feel it is misleading. Namely, that the offer is not to certain shareholders but is specifically to those small shareholders holding between 1 to 800 shares and further, our offer is a no brokerage offer.

"The Spark announcement is a case of telling the truth but not the whole truth. Zero Commission undertake offers to small shareholders, not low ball offers. Shareholders can do the math on our offers and seek independent advice if they so wish.

"Zero Commission has been undertaking such small shareholder offers since 2010 and have assisted many thousands of small shareholders in quitting their small shareholdings.

"The FMA 2014 monitoring report on unsolicited offers highlighted our average discount at being $45. That is around half the average minimum brokerage charged in New Zealand, a clear example that we provide a valuable and appreciated service to small shareholders.

"Saving that sort of money for small shareholders is the opposite of exploiting them."

In 2011, Zero Commission agreed "enforceable undertakings" with the Financial Markets Authority to include a standard wording with each of its unsolicited offers to buy shares.

That, said Briggs, had been superseded by disclosure requirements under the Financial Markets Act.

"We just follow the requirements of the Financial Markets Act, and go beyond it," Briggs said.
A TPPA "Trojan horse" will cost New Zealanders their sovereignty, protesters in Palmerston North say.

The 12-country agreement is due to be signed in Auckland on February 4 and looking seemingly inevitable despite numerous protests across New Zealand.

The deal involves Australia, New Zealand, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam.



In Palmerston North, a group of protesters gathered on Friday to march, two weeks out from the signing.

Warwick Smith/ Fairfax NZ. 220116 News photo Warwick Smith/ Fairfax NZ. Spontaneous Palmerston North protest march against the signing of the TPPA (Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement)

At the protest was medical specialist Fred Hirst who described the deal as a Trojan horse.

"There is so much baggage behind it."

He pointed to the lack of openness.

"There hasn't been the discussion, there may be good aspects of it, but the government has said 'trust us, we know what is best'."

"Specialists say they want a dialogue, but [the government] are negotiating in secret and signing on behalf of New Zealanders without consultation."

He also worried about the impact on Pharmac's ability to negotiate for medicine on New Zealand's behalf.

"Pharmac negotiates with a fixed budget to get the best medicine that can be purchased within that budget."

However, the TPPA would see the cheaper generic medicine harder to come by, with patents to be extended. That could mean up to 10 or 12 years before cheaper alternatives were able to be purchased.

"It could be another three to five years of high-cost medicine, before much lower cost generics are available."

That would force Pharmac to prioritise which medicine it could afford and how many people would be affected.

The deal would also enable corporations to sue government for loss of profit.

Hirst said Germany was being sued for closing nuclear powerplants, while Australia was being sued for plain packaging on cigarettes.

Kyle Sutherland had the same concern. He said the deal would affect New Zealander's sovereignty.

"Our government are then looking over their back before making the best decision to benefit the people, for fear of being sued."

He said the agreement was being touted as a free trade deal, but questioned how true that was.

"Only five or six chapters of 30 are about free trade. How can you call it a free trade agreement when it is that portion."

Indigenous and environmental activist TeAo Pritchard organised the lunchtime walk "to make us visible".

"The Manawatu is ours and we want to make claim to that - it is not for corporations.

"This is our community, we won't be letting it go without a fight."

Pritchard said they would not let the deal signing stop them. She said they would look at the outcome of February 4 and address what came of it.

"You don't give up on it just because someone signed a piece of paper without your consent."

She was encouraged to see a variety of people show up for the protest and she said they were actually "walking their talk".
Police are closer to tracking down a gun-wielding man who robbed a Waikato bank.

Since CCTV footage of the man was broadcast on Thursday, police have been given numerous nominations on his identity.

Waikato Police Senior Sergeant Damion Rangitutia said police were working through that information on Friday.

SUPPLIED This man was captured on CCTV outside the ASB Bank in Te Awamutu.

"While we are acting on those nominations, we actively encourage anyone else who recognises him to come forward.

"Don't think your information isn't of value."

The man - carrying a backpack and wearing a hoodie, tracksuit pants and sneakers - was captured on camera approaching the ASB Bank in Te Awamutu.

WAIKATO POLICE This man was captured on CCTV approaching ASB bank.

About 4.15pm on Wednesday, a man entered off George St and pointed a cut-down shotgun at the teller.

He demanded cash and the teller handed it over, Western Waikato CIB Detective Sergeant Bill Crowe said.

"He has then fled the bank with an amount of cash, running down an alleyway towards the rear of the adjacent Countdown supermarket.

"At this point in time, it is unclear if the offender had a vehicle nearby and we have not ruled this out from our inquiries."

Police have warned that if anyone recognises this man, he is not to be approached.

Two customers, two tellers and a manager all witnessed the robbery.

One of the customers was being served at the time, while the second was waiting.

Crowe said there were other staff inside the bank, which is next to McDonald's, but they were unaware of the robbery until the bank went into lockdown.

"In addition to working on identifying the offender, a real priority for us was ensuring those members of the public and staff affected by this incident were referred to Victim Support.

"Any situation where an offender is threatening other people with a firearm is very serious and poses a real risk not just to the victims, but to any innocent member of the public who might have chanced by," Crowe said.

The robber is described as Maori or Polynesian, with a shaved head, of solid build, wearing a grey hooded sweatshirt with a white drawstring at the hood. He pulled the hood up over his head at the time of the robbery and used a scarf to obscure his lower face. However, the CCTV footage captures him with the hood down and no scarf.

"He was also wearing dark long pants, dark and light blue sand shoes and carrying a dark-coloured backpack-styled bag on his back."

Anyone who might recognise the offender is asked not to approach him but to ring 111 immediately.

Information can also be provided confidentially to Te Awamutu Police on 07 8720100 or through the independent Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
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Clayton Mitchell

New Zealand First MP

It is more than ironic that National have determined to sign the international trade agreement that strips away New Zealands sovereignty just before Waitangi Day.



The current Prime Minister clearly stated that the TPPA would come to Parliament before being signed. Yet he has now organised to sign it before bringing it to Parliament. This is disingenuous.

This PR signing exercise is also wholly unnecessary, because the TPPA is currently in a holding pattern until the United States and Japan pass the legislation. But the TPPA is really unpopular with both leading Democrat and Republican Presidential candidates and as a result, it is increasingly unlikely that this toxic multi-national trade agreement will be passed into US Law.

In the meantime, the Japanese government has just increased subsidies to its farmers, increasing the unsuitability of signing off on this bill.

New Zealand First List MP Fletcher Tabuteau introduced a Private Members Bill that would have given New Zealanders the chance to ban our government from signing any treaty, like the TPPA, giving foreign corporates the right to seek compensation if they believe our laws adversely impact their profits. Unfortunately, the Fighting Foreign Corporate Control Bill was shot down in the House last March.

Mr Tabuteau has since introduced a new bill giving either Parliament or select committee the right to examine and review the terms of any international treaty before or during negotiation. This would ensure a higher level of transparency and accountability in international agreements.

Unfortunately, efforts to fast track the Transparent Treaties Bill was shot down by Nationals senior whip Tim Macindoe and ACT leader David Seymour.

Despite this, New Zealand First will continue to challenge this Government to adopt the right common sense policies that are in the best interest of all New Zealanders.
Staff at Tauranga and Whakatane hospitals are saying goodbye to Phil Cammish and hello to their new chief executive officer today.

Phil is retiring next week after 10 years as the Bay of Plenty District Health Board CEO.
The Ministry for Primary Industries is investigating the find of a single Tau fly caught in a surveillance trap in the Auckland suburb of Manurewa.

The adult male fly was collected from a trap on Thursday afternoon and was formally identified later that day.

The Tau fly is not a direct threat to the kiwifruit industry but Horticulture New Zealand is closely monitoring the situation, says newly appointed chief executive Mike Chapman.

Mike, formerly of Tauranga, says the insect is not interested in kiwifruit and is not considered to be as economically threatening to the countrys horticulture industry as the Queensland Fruit Fly.

But despite this, he says any detection like this makes New Zealands fruit and vegetable exporters nervous and all efforts must now be focused on establishing the extent of any population, containing it and then eradicating it.

We are confident this localised detection will be swiftly and effectively eradicated, says Mike.

And once again we find ourselves calling on the general public in Auckland to assist with a fruit fly detection, but we know everyone helps where they can and we greatly appreciate it.

MPI Surveillance and Incursion Investigation manager Brendan Gould says only one fly has been found and it didnt mean there was an outbreak in New Zealand.

We have a significant number of traps in this area which were all checked yesterday. No other flies were found, explains Brendan.

This fly is a species normally found in South East and Southern Asia and is used to a more tropical climate. Its very unlikely to be able to establish in New Zealand.

The MPI has responded swiftly and teams are now in the field setting additional traps to determine if other flies are in the area.

If more are found they will take further actions to prevent the flies spread.

Unlike the Queensland fruit fly this insect has a much more limited range of host material and has a preference for cucumbers, pumpkins and zucchini. Though capsicum, beans, passionfruit and melons are minor hosts.

Were not treating this lightly. While the Tau fly is a threat, its not as widely damaging as the Queensland Fruit Fly.

MPI has placed controls on the movement of certain fruit and vegetables in a defined circular area extending 1.5km from where the fly was trapped in Manurewa.

Pumpkin, melon, cucumber, capsicum, zucchini, beans and passionfruit plants and fruit cannot be moved outside of the Controlled Area.

Detailed maps of the controlled area and a full description of the boundaries, and full information about the rules are on the MPIs website.

Brendan says it is likely the restrictions will be in place for at least two weeks.

HOW DID THE TAU FLY ARRIVE IN NEW ZEALAND?

The MPI says the most likely way these flies can arrive in New Zealand is in fresh fruit and vegetables.

The ministry has strict requirements on the importation of fruit and vegetables to minimise this risk. Air and sea passengers are prohibited from bringing fresh fruit and vegetables into the country.

MPI has to date been highly successful in keeping this particular insect threat out of New Zealand crops.

This latest find demonstrates the benefit and effectiveness of MPIs lure-based surveillance trapping network as an important part of our biosecurity system," says Brendan.

"The network involves some 7,600 traps set nationwide and checked on a regular basis. By setting traps for these pests, were able to detect their presence early, have assurance about exactly where the problem is located and respond faster and more effectively where finds are made."

If you have seen the Tau fly call the the Ministry for Primary industries on 0800 80 99 66. For more information visit: www.mpi.govt.nz/tau-fly
SOHA has voted in favour of using a team of Malaga-based lawyers to take their case to the international organisation

SOHA members at the AGM on Wednesday. :: A. P.

Save Our Homes Axarquia (SOHA) voted to take its case to the United Nations at its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Wednesday.

With the help of a team of Malaga-based lawyers the collective will approach the United Nations Committee on Economic Social and Cultural Rights, which it hopes will be in a position to evaluate the cause and provide a solution which would oblige the Junta de Andalucia to modify the existing land-use law and to legalise the homes.

The current law states that the houses are Asimilado a Fuera de Ordenacion, which means they are safe from demolition but not legal.

SOHA has been fighting for a decade to legalise the homes the members bought or built in good faith. They were unaware that the licences they had been granted by La Vinuela Town Hall were to be annulled by the Junta de Andalucia in 2006, for being illegally issued, since the properties had been built on rural land which was not zoned for development.
They use a video of a naked girl in front of a webcam to obtain intimate images of their victims so they can blackmail them

The fraudsters try to convince you to show your face. :: SUR

She says her name is Aurelie, she's 26, single, and has no children. A sociable and bubbly supermarket cashier who loves music and is looking for someone to accompany her on her adventures.

The friend request, which always comes via social networking sites such as Meetic, Tinder, Badoo or Lovoo, is tempting. Chat with me so I can see you! My Skype address is aurelie.lemoir55. Your imagination runs riot. What will she be like?

The video image looks good. On the other side is a very pretty girl in her underwear. Although you dont know it yet, you have just entered into a dangerous game that could make you a victim of sextorsion.

The National Police says this is like a variant of the famous sexting, which involves sending intimate photos via mobile phones or social networking sites . Sextorsion goes a step further, because on the other side of the webcam or telephone, instead of a person who is interested in your attributes there is a group of criminals who aim to film a sexual video which includes your face so they can blackmail you by threatening to release it.

This phenomenon, which has been reported all over Spain, was first detected last September. At first, there were isolated cases. In reality, though, this is massive fraud. On average, we are receiving three or four reports a week, warns the head of the Technological Crimes Group at the provincial police headquarters. The victims are always men, usually aged between 20 and 45, (although there are occasionally under-18s) and there have already been dozens of them in Malaga province.

To discover more about the dynamic of sextorsion, the police investigators pretended to be somebody who was interested in getting to know Aurelie, and filmed the process. The officer called himself Jose Garcia, a married man with children, who wanted to entertain himself a bit while he was at work.

Im in my room, nearly naked. Do you want to see ? she asks him in awkward Spanish after six minutes of chat. Id love to, but there are other people in the office, he answers.

I want to see your face

After she persuades him to take his mobile into the Gents, they start a Skype conversation but without audio. Aurelie turns out to be a brunette, in underwear. She starts to strip. We had to find a video of a man practising sex to show her, so she was convinced this was genuine says the head of the Group. And Aurelie falls into the trap, believing she has caught a victim. I want to see your face, she says at least 12 times during their chat.

When she succeeds in seeing the face of the person she thinks she is talking to, they start to talk and after 22 minutes Aurelie suddenly says: So, Mr Jose Garcia... Ill give you two seconds or I swear I am going to start publishing your video. (This is not a literal transcript, because her Spanish is not very good, but it is what she was trying to say). I have decided to ruin your life . Its going to be awful. A disaster. Hell on earth. Because Aurelie doesnt exist and the young woman who appears in the images is just a video made by people who strip off their clothes or have sex on screen in return for money, lifted from the Internet.

It has fooled a lot of people, because you really think they are interacting with you, says the head of the Technological Crime squad.

In reality, on the other side of the screen there is a group of criminals who hide the IP addresses of their computers to avoid being traced. They always want two things: to film the face of the other person and obtain their Facebook profile. After that, the blackmail begins. They say they will post a sexual video which shows the victims face and share it with all his contacts: friends, family, partner... they even send a Youtube link to the images so the victim can see that the threat is real, and that his life could be ruined with a simple click of the computer mouse.

Im the devil, you can never escape from me; if you try, youll regret it for the rest of your life, insists Aurelie, while threatening to share the video with all Joses contacts. No, please! Dont do that! he begs. So Aurelie names her price. It can be anything from 750 to 7,000 euros. Jose tries to convince her: I dont have much money. I can only pay 100 euros. Why are you doing this to me?

No compassion

The fraudster shows no compassion, although at first they are more aggressive, and later they try to make you sorry for them, explains the officer. Aurelie says her sister is very ill - Im not a bad person,Im only doing this for her, - and reduces her demand to 350 euros. Jose Garcia offers 150 and they agree. Aurelie gives him the address to send the money: its a call centre in Abidjan, the financial capital of the Ivory Coast. This is a common denominator in all the complaints made to the police, so the group probably operates from Africa.

Obviously, the officer didnt send the money but many victims do. There are certainly other cases which we dont know about because people are too ashamed to report it and have decided to pay, says the head of the Technological Crimes group. If people do go to the police, the administrators of the pages immediately remove the video, and Aurelie, in general, wont do anything more, although there have been cases where the criminals have carried out their threat and broadcast the video.

Although this is a very personal decision because it involves a victims private life, the police recommend that people dont pay because nobody can guarantee that the blackmail wont continue.

The first step is to block Aurelie or whatever name they are using - on Facebook. Then, report the Youtube video and inform the police. Finally, tell the fraudster that you have no money and are not going to pay. They will insist, probably several times, but normally they just move on to find another client, says the police officer. The key to massive fraud is to cheat a great many people. If they see that it is getting difficult, theyll just find another candidate and start again.
DiMarco, Abiusi & Pascarella, Certified Public Accountants, P.C. announces that following have been admitted as shareholders:

Thomas D. Jenkins, CPA, is a graduate of Le Moyne College. He specializes in both residential and commercial real estate including the construction, hotel and hospitality industries.

Maria H. Snyder, CPA, is a graduate of State University of New York at Oswego. She specializes in financial statement preparation, technical review, quality control, first year audits, agreed-upon procedures and tax return preparation for real estate professionals and entities.

David J. Turan, CPA, is a graduate of State University of New York Empire State College. He specializes in all areas of commercial real estate, business consulting, research, planning and tax controversies.


CAMILLUS, N.Y. -- Heroin addiction has spread to younger people in Central New York, and the means of getting a fix has become easier, one police investigator told a forum tonight.

Addicts are willing to prostitute themselves, or work in groups to conduct mass shoplifting operations, just so they can get their next fix from their dealers, another investigator said.

And it's happening all over.

"We see it every day," state police Investigator Todd Grant said. "We're now in a situation where our children, young people, can get on the phone, can get on Facebook, on the Internet, and they can order a bag of heroin delivered to their residence. It's scary."

Grant was one of eight speakers at the substance abuse forum that focused mostly on the heroin epidemic that has struck Central New York over the past five years.



He drew a correlation between heroin and a rise in prostitution arrests.

State police in Central New York used to make only five or six prostitution arrests a year, he said. Last summer, they arrested 30 women on prostitution charges in one week, and every one of them was doing it to get more heroin, he said. Many of them were in high school or had recently graduated, he said.

"They're like zombies," he said. "They're taken in by their pimps or their dealers, and they get forced out onto the street, into motels, forced into prostitution just to get their fix, and get that next bag of heroin."

The number of petit larceny arrests in Camillus jumped from 152 in 2010 to 376 last year, Camillus police Sgt. Jim Nightingale told the audience. About 90 percent of the thieves were heroin users working to get their next fix, he said.

"Drug dealers give them shopping lists -- 'Go steal these items and I'll give you this many bags,'" Nightingale said. The addicts look for dropped receipts in store parking lots so they can falsely claim a refund, he said.

"They're very good at what they're doing," he said. "They talk to each other. They're going to hustle because they need that next fix."

The forum came a day after Onondaga County held its own forum on the heroin and prescription painkiller epidemic. The county health commissioner called the increased use of the drugs a public health crisis. Twenty-six people died of heroin overdoses in the county in 2014 -- a higher rate than the state and national averages.

U.S. Rep. John Katko, one of a 14-person panel, told the audience he plans to initiate federal legislation that would allow police to target the top heroin dealers. One proposal is to start a heroin task force that could trace the heroin labels back to their original source, he said.

He praised the West Genesee School District for being the first in the area to "take the bull by the horns and recognize the problem" by starting a substance abuse coalition.

At the start of the forum, Camillus Police Chief Thomas Winn played a video, taken by a camera on one of his officers. It showed a man lying naked on a bathroom floor, not breathing as a relative performs chest compressions. The man had overdosed on heroin.

The officer gives the man a dose of Narcan, the antidote for heroin overdoses. Someone applies a defibrillator to his chest. The man begins to breathe and regains consciousness.

"What are you guys doing?" the man asks as rescue workers drag him out of the bathroom.

"Saving your life," a rescue worker says. "You weren't breathing."

Camillus police have used the antidote to save 26 heroin overdoses since November 2014.

A recovering heroin addict told the audience that someone once had to use Narcan to bring her back to life. She also talked about ending up in jail and emergency rooms because of heroin.

The 30-year-old woman, who gave her name only as Deb A, described how heroin made her feel when she first tried at age 18, at a party.

"I went from feeling alone and afraid and ashamed to feeling strong and powerful," she said. "I could be the center of attention and the life of the party and do everything I wanted to in my life because I was full of vigor."

Soon, she was using heroin so she wouldn't feel severely ill, the way she did when she was off of it, she said.

"I was using to not have to feel sick," she said. "I wanted to constantly be numb. I didn't ever want to go through withdrawal. You become enslaved by the disease,"

When she first went into rehab at age 18, she was by far the youngest in her group. she said. That changed in more recent years, she said.

"It seems to be running rampant in much younger kids now," she said. "Now there are kids who are 14 or 15, even younger."

The woman graduated with honors from Syracuse University after she got clean, she said. She finally got off the drug after her best friend overdosed, and Deb A used heroin at the friend's funeral, she said.

"It's the most shameful thing I've ever done," she said.

Contact John O'Brien anytime | email | Twitter | 315-470-2187
CONSTANTIA, N.Y. -- If George Scriba were alive today, he'd likely recognize the home he built more than 200 years ago.

Much of the Route 49 saltbox house, which Scriba built in 1794, is original, including the wide pinewood floors, thumb-latched doors and fireplaces.

A wooden board still used to barricade the side door has "G. Scriba" carved on one side and "F.W.S," or Frederick W. Scriba, carved on the other.

Barbara Edlund said the home's history was one of the many reasons she and her husband bought the home in 1979. The house remained in the Scriba family until 1972, she said.

The Edlunds were living in a rented townhouse in Liverpool at the time and decided to take a Sunday drive along Oneida Lake.

Edlund said they weren't planning on buying a house, but after passing by it on their drive and seeing the for-sale sign out front, she was drawn in. She called the number on the sign, look a tour and bought the house only a few days later.

Edlund is a retired emergency medicine physician who worked at Oneida Healthcare Center for 33 years. She is selling the house so she can move to New Jersey to live near family.

They put new aluminum siding over the original clapboard siding, the result of poor insulation and a high heating bill after a cold winter, but much of the home remains the same.

For more information on the history of the property, as well as more photos, check out the property's website.

A barn with eight stalls that sits along Frederick Creek behind the house. At one time, Edlund had 11 horses.

Frederick Creek can be also be dammed to make a pond. Though the current dam needs repairs, Edlund said when the dam is maintained, the pond is about 6 to 8 feet deep.

A small blue building just east of the main house was once used as the post office for Constantia. Before his passing, Edlund's husband used it as a workshop, but Edlund said it could also be used as a business, apartment or studio. The building is on its own tax deed and utilities.

The house sits on about 8.3 acres, a far cry from the 500,000 acres that made up Scriba's original patent. The original patent, which Scriba acquired from the Roosevelt family, included much of present-day Oswego and Oneida counties.

The property connects with an old rail trackbed to the north. The trackbed runs from Rome to Oswego, making it great for ATVs and snowmobiles.

An open house at the property is scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 24, from 2-3:30 p.m.

THE DETAILS:

Address: 1380 State Route 49, Constantia, N.Y. 13044

Price: $275,000

Size: 3,910 square feet

Lot size: 8.3 acres

Monthly Mortgage: $1,046.51 (based on this week's national average rate of 3.97 percent from Freddie Mac for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage with a 20 percent down payment. Fees and points are not included.)

Taxes: $7,336 (based on assessed value of $243,400 for both home and shop)

Built: 1794

School District: Central Square

Entryway: The side door is a historical replica, but all the metal, including the thumb latch and brackets for the wooden barricade, are original. The front door still uses the original door key.

Living room: Includes one of the five wood-burning fireplaces in the home. The chimney needs to be cleaned and lined before using the fireplaces, Edlund said. Two cherry sideboards and a set of cast iron cookware, both original to the home, are included in the sale.

Dining room: Parts of the kitchen and a storage room were combined to make the dining room. The room has been remodeled, but the baseboards and doors are original.

Music room: Home to four pianos and organs, including one once used at the Trinity Episcopal Church in Constantia. One of the pianos, made by William Beebe, of Vernon, in 1820, is included in the sale. Legend has it the piano was brought from Vernon to Constantia on a sled over frozen Oneida Lake.

Bedrooms: The two large bedrooms, both about 19-feet-by-19-feet, feature fireplaces. One of the two smaller bedrooms has a smaller room that could be used as a walk-in closet for another bedroom, bringing the total number of bedrooms to five.

Bathrooms: The home features two full bathrooms upstairs and a half-bathroom adjoined to the kitchen downstairs. The largest bathroom includes a whirlpool bath and a cherry cabinet made with wood cut from a tree on the property.

Kitchen: The centerpiece of the room is the large commercial stove, which includes six burners, two ovens, a griddle and a broiler. The kitchen also has access to the back patio and 20-foot-by-43-foot in-ground swimming pool.

Agent: Michael Franklin

Franklin Ruttan

1406 N. State St., Syracuse, N.Y., 13208

Phone: (315) 876-2262

Email: Mike.Franklin@FranklinRuttan.com

To nominate a listing for House of the Week send an email to home@syracuse.com. Contact Jacob Pucci at jpucci@syracuse.com or (315) 766-6747 and follow him on Twitter @jacobpucci.
LaGuardia rendering.jpg

A rendering of proposed modernization of LaGuardia Airport in New York City.

(Governor's Office)

David M. Rubin, former dean of the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, is a regular columnist for Syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Email him at dmrubin@syr.edu.

At least Gov. Andrew Cuomo was correct about one issue in his recent State of the State address. "The cold truth," he admitted, "is that this state government shortchanged Upstate New York for many years. And that was short-sighted."

He might have added, "So I intend to keep shortchanging them."

That is the only conclusion one can reach in poring over his typically self-congratulatory speech. Most of his attention and money were focused squarely on the New York City area to fund multi-billion dollar transportation and infrastructure projects, all aimed at making the area livable and economically competitive. The rest of the state will continue to play his favorite game -- "In Andrew's Shark Tank" -- as we compete for chum in the state budget.

For New York City, Cuomo proposed billions for the subway system; billions for a new LaGuardia Airport; billions for the Long Island Railroad and Metro North; billions for a new rail-tunnel link to New Jersey; billions to rebuild Penn Station; billions to modernize the Javits Convention Center. Get the picture?

Because Cuomo doesn't have his own Federal Reserve and cannot print money, these massive amounts will have to come from increased taxes, more borrowing, money already appropriated by the Legislature, or windfall settlements with Wall Street miscreants, hardly a predictable source. Typically, he hasn't made clear the source of these billions. Press releases announcing the plans are more fun.

For us, however, he is holding flat, at a mere $715 million, the total he gives to municipalities in state aid. This figure has been flat since 2008. Cuomo neglected to mention this.

Further, he insulted us by saying we are the cause of high property taxes in the state because of our many wasteful local governments. While we might cut property taxes a smidge if all the towns and villages were dissolved, they are not the major source of our tax problem, and Cuomo knows it. The costs mandated by the state to pay for Medicaid and state employee pensions are the reason property taxes are sky high. But to Cuomo these mandates are sacred. He won't touch them. Instead, he blames overlapping local governments.

What Cuomo did propose for us is a freeze on Thruway tolls through 2020 and complex cuts in tolls for some frequent users. He frames this as serious tax relief. This is a sad joke. An honest governor would have eliminated all the tolls entirely, for everyone. The tolls were supposed to disappear in 1996 when the Thruway bonds were paid off, so the state has been picking our pockets for 20 years.

Then the governor rolled out more shark tank competitions for Upstate. He finally understands the importance of infrastructure, having dissed Syracuse about its aging water pipes. Now, late to the party, he has proposed $22 billion over five years for crumbling roads and bridges, but with no integrated state plan for how to go about it. Does this mean we will have to prove our roads are worse than Oswego's, our bridges weaker than Ithaca's?

He proposed another $20 billion for Upstate in new economic development programs, but with no details and no money in the budget.

He proposed a $25 million anti-poverty competition for Upstate cities; a $200 million competition to upgrade airports; a $100 million competition to upgrade downtowns; and on and on.

Perhaps most egregious, he proposed hundreds of millions more to the Regional Economic Development Councils to create jobs by throwing money at selected businesses. So far, Cuomo has given away $3 billion in tax money to these REDCs. The one in Central New York has been a big winner, getting $344.6 million. Another $500 million, announced in December, is on the way.

This program, a signature Cuomo economic development initiative dating from 2011, has a track record, but just try getting an honest count of jobs created out of either the REDC or its enabler in Albany, Empire State Development. A report from The Citizens Budget Commission last November lamented a lack of standard metrics to measure performance. It labeled Central New York's reporting as "fair." Temporary jobs, new jobs, jobs retained that might have left -- all are lumped together. To be blunt, we have no idea how many full-time, decent-paying jobs the $344.6 million has created.

Cuomo claims the next $500 million will create 5,909 jobs. Not 6,000, but 5,909. His precision is the giveaway. It's fantasia, with our tax money.

Yet we forge ahead with this flawed process. The CNY REDC plans to spend much of the next $500 million on a center for veterans at Syracuse University, drone research, a cargo distribution center, agriculture and government modernization. They claim this is an integrated plan, and not just a giveaway of tax money to the well-connected. But not even the REDC's own slick report can explicate significant synergies among these projects. Go to page 55 of its report and you will see.

The State of the State speech makes clear, once again, that Cuomo has no innovative public policy ideas for Upstate. He throws money at his friends and claims success. For him, shark tank competitions are the policy.
Ron VanNorstrand, of Syracuse, served in the U.S. Air Force from 1965 to 1968. He is a civil rights attorney and a member of the Syracuse Peace Council and Veterans for Peace.

By Ron VanNorstrand

"Are you crazy?"

"Are you out of your mind?"

My friends' concerns were foremost in my mind as I boarded Turkish Air Flight 706 in December bound for Kabul, Afghanistan. Just a month earlier, the U.S. Department of State had warned citizens against travel to Afghanistan: "The security situation in Afghanistan is extremely unstable and the threat to all U.S. citizens in Afghanistan

remains critical."

Although apprehensive, I was honored to be invited to join a small delegation for a 10-day, person-to-person visit with the Afghan Peace Volunteers (APV).

I was greeted at the airport by two members of the volunteer group, and, as we taxied into the city, their warm and accepting smiles eased my anxiety.

Upon arrival at the APV center, I was welcomed with open arms and open hearts. By nightfall, I felt right at home.

During my short stay, I witnessed and participated in the various ways these brave souls seek to bridge tribal and ethnic barriers in pursuit of peace and social justice.

Among their many achievements, the APV has established a School for Street Kids. The street kids are not able to attend government schools because their families depend on them to work the streets shining shoes, selling bolonis (homemade pancakes), washing cars, etc. So the APV started a school for them. Since some of the kids are illiterate, they begin with reading and writing. The kids' joy to be learning is palpable.

Recently they started literacy classes for illiterate women as well.

The school budget is $50,000 a year, the cost of one Hellfire missile, and 92 percent is spent on providing the street kids and their families with a needed monthly gift of a sack

of rice and a bottle of oil.

The volunteer organization has also created a Winter Duvet Project, which consists of a cooperative of seamstresses who work for a decent wage producing duvets -- thick blankets stuffed with synthetic wool. The duvets are given away to those in need to survive the bitter winters. Sixty seamstresses are selected each year, 20 each from the three main populations, Pashtun, Tajik and Hazara. The project is in its third year and 3,000 duvets are distributed each year.

Although they readily acknowledge the uncertainties they face, especially given the continual war waged on their country, the APV members remain committed to building a nonviolent, sharing economy where the basic needs of all, especially the most vulnerable, are met. This inspirational commitment is not based on utopian or academic notions -- it arises from their life experiences. They have spent their entire lives within the turmoil and convulsions of war. They have experienced firsthand war's social and moral devastation and degradation.

When I explained that the war is often justified in the United States as necessary to protect Afghan women from the deprivations threatened by the resurgent Taliban, one volunteer, Zarghuna, a third-year college student studying journalism whose father was killed by the Taliban when she was 7 years old, seemed perplexed by the justification. She stated firmly that the 14 years of U.S. military operations had not improved the lives of Afghan women and children. To the contrary, women and children constantly face the lack of food, employment, good education and health care. Zarghuna declared, "We do not need soldiers," and asked the people of the United States to recognize that we are "human beings with human feelings" and that we "need food and education, not war."

When asked what message he would like me to take back to the American people, Hoor, an 18-year-old junior in high school, first referenced the warning of two of the world's greatest champions of peace: Bertrand Russell, the famed mathematician and philosopher, and Albert Einstein, the world's best-known scientist, who at the height of the Cold War declared: "Shall we put an end to the human race; or shall mankind renounce war?"

Hoor questioned why the American people could not see that "even if all the Taliban were killed, their sons and daughter would pick up the guns and seek revenge," and that "the millions spent on weapons, drones and bombs had only increased the terrorism" in his country.

He asked that we all take the time to analyze and understand the origins of groups like the Taliban and offered me a copy of "No Good Men Among the Living: America, the Taliban and the War Through Afghan Eyes," by Anand Gopal, as a primer in this regard, which I highly recommend.

Although my visit was only about 10 days, I benefited immensely from my time with the APV. The group's active pursuit of peace and social justice in extraordinarily difficult circumstances was inspiring.

Continuing to delude ourselves that military superiority or a military "solution" will provide security and stability -- well, that would truly be crazy and mindless.
Markets - Period charters increase

In the charter markets, brokers have reported a plethora of tanker period fixtures in nearly all classes.

It was noticeably how many more large vessels were taken for two to three years instead of the more traditional 12 months. For example, 24-month VLCC fixtures were being concluded recently at rates ranging from $38,000 to $44,000 per day. The higher figure reflected a newer ship. Elsewhere, a dAmico controlled Aframax was said to have attained $25,000 per day for a three year charter, while two LR2s commanded around $28,000 for two year timecharters and another two were reportedly fixed for $25,500 each for three years. LR1s attained an average of $22,500 per day for two years business, while MRs reached about $18,500 for 12 month charters in the past couple of weeks. With traders being the charterers of many of the vessels, it was thought that they could end up in storage duties, as the world appears awash with crude and certain products today. There was not much to report on the newbuilding front this week. Viken was said to have ordered one Ice Class Aframax and one Suezmax from Samsung for 2018 deliveries. The same owner was also reportedly the purchaser of the 2002-built Suezmax Silia T for $30 mill - a price which was said to have included an18 months timecharter attached. Guangzhou Hangtong was rumoured to have gained a contract for two LR1s from Chinese owners. No other details were available at the time of writing. In the S&P sector, Euronav confirmed the sale of the 2001-built VLCC Famenne for $38.4 mill. The buyer was said by broking sources to be Singapore-based Agritrade. The Belgian concern said that a capital gain of $13.8 mill will be recorded at her delivery expected during the first quarter of this year. Following her sale, the availability of the revolver under the $750 mill loan facility will be reduced by $23.7 mill, Euronav said. Other sales reported included the 1999-built Aframax Petrokrepost, which was believed sold to Bakri for $15 mill.




Panama Canal - deck cooling during transit

Effective immediately and until further notice, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) requires transiting crude oil tankers, product carriers and chemical tankers carrying cargoes with flashpoints of less than 18 deg C, to cool their main decks with water.

This can be achieved by means of the on-deck water sprinkler system or any other means available in order to prevent automatic activation of the pressure relief valves during transit. The cooling of the main deck shall be performed between 10.00 and 16.00 hours while the vessel is underway at Gatun Lake or Gaillard Cut, or at anchor in Canal waters, ACP said in a circular. However, this procedure should be stopped while the vessel is transiting through the locks or is in the vicinity of the locks and when Canal deckhands are on board. If this procedure fails to prevent automatic activation of pressure relief valves, it may be necessary to reduce the pressure by manually opening the valves. This shall be undertaken only after the Master has ascertained the following: *The situation has been reported to the ACPs Canal Port Captain on duty via the pilot on board or to the Canal signal stations at Flamenco or Cristobal when there is no pilot on board. *All necessary actions have been implemented to prevent exposing ACP personnel to vapours. *Shipboard and nearby ignition sources have been controlled. Compliance with the above will enhance the safety of Canal operations, as well as Canal customers and reduce or eliminate possible disruptions in transit scheduling, ACP said.




WSS agency to build stronger relationships

Wilhelmsen Ships Service (WSS) aims to consolidate its position within the ships agency sector by building stronger agent/customer relationships.

WSS director Ships Agency Americas, Frederic Fontarosa said that he believed the company can offer enhanced efficiency, understanding and value. WSS currently serves 581 regional ports and an average of 2,000 vessel calls per month. Its about the people, Fontarosa said. Our people getting closer to the customer, and the customers customers, to understand their trading patterns, requirements and how our service solutions can help them meet their individual objectives. Were a big company, but that doesnt mean we cant have close customer relationships  in fact our size actually makes it easier. Ships agency is one of the oldest divisions within the Wilh Wilhelmsen Group, and over its 40-year history has grown into a company boasting 1,250 employees, 182 dedicated offices (alongside 438 sub-agency offices), with the capacity to service ports in around 132 different countries. Fontarosa pointed out that the companys size brought obvious benefits for customers: With a trading environment of low earnings, tight credit and high costs, a ships agency with our global network can offer international shipowners compelling advantages. These include the standardisation of services, global reach, compliance, certified employees, quality assured processes, E&O insurance coverage, data availability and modern, integrated IT systems. The efficiencies associated with this breadth of offer are immense. Small agencies, which are normally represented in only one port, simply dont have the financial capability, geographical spread, or the desire to ensure those standards are embraced. That gives us, and our customers, a clear advantage, he stressed. Fontarosa described WSS relationship with its customers as peer-to-peer, implying that they view each other as partners, rather than service provider and client. To build the bonds within that partnership the firm has created the global agent desk. This means we appoint one person that is globally responsible for that shipping company, he explained. In essence this gives them the chance to build that mom and pop style relationship, but in a global sense rather than just at one port. That person becomes the customers single point of contact worldwide and, as a consequence, this drives huge efficiencies, as the firm no longer needs to deal with a myriad of mom and pops. If you look at the evolution of the industry over the past decade theres been a shift from traditional maritime to more business orientated values. Customers today expect ships agents to understand their entire business, not just the vessel. That means they want us to have an overview of their entire point-to-point trade, but also the needs of their customers  the person who theyre shipping the products or commodities for. WSS global reach and resources allow us to achieve this, he explained. When outlining the benefits of WSS, Fontarosa said that it was efficiency that comes with global reach and scale,standards that one unified international operation can deliver for shipowners and, finally - intelligence. Translating the vast amount of information from our ports across the world into relevant intelligence yields real competitive advantages for our customers, he said. He gave an example of WSS Trade Talk Desk.That encapsulates our added value/intelligence proposition, Fontarosa said. In 2013, WSS created the Trade Talk Desk in four strategic locations around the world  in Houston, Singapore, Geneva and Dubai. The desks, which work across their time zones to give our customers 24-hour coverage, deliver relevant, timely and accurate information to our customers. They structure this data and package it in a way that is easy to understand and access. This information is claimed to be broad-based and comprehensive, covering everything from port news and port facilities developments, through to cargo statistics, vessel line-ups and breaking news, such as a port closures, due to bad weather. By presenting this vital information in one package, from one source, customers get the intelligence they need, when they need it, Fontarosa stressed, rather than being swamped by a million different emails from a range of different companies all round the world. Its streamlined, intuitive and intelligent, setting a new standard for adding value to ships agency deliverables.




On 16th January, 2016, Zhuhai engine builder  Yuchai Marine Power (YCMP)  signed a licence agreement with MAN Diesel & Turbo (MDT) for the production of MAN B&W-branded, 2-stroke diesel engines.

Klaus Engberg, MDT senior vice president and head of 2-Stroke licensing, said; China is a vital market for MAN Diesel & Turbo and we are pleased to welcome Yuchai to the MAN B&W licence family. YCMP is a well-established engine builder with modern production facilities in southeast China and we look forward to our future co-operation.

A member of the Guangxi Machinery Group, YCMP is located in the Fushan Industrial Zone, Zhuhai City where its core business is the production and sale of 2-stroke marine diesel engines.

Last December, YCMP also hosted the successful type approval test (TAT) for the first dual-fuel 2-stroke engine designed and developed by Winterthur Gas & Diesel (WinGD) equipped with a low-pressure gas admission system.

The TAT, on a 5-cylinder, 500 mm bore Wartsila RT-flex50DF engine employing WinGDs dual-fuel (X-DF) technology, was witnessed by representatives from major class societies ABS, BV, CCS, DNV-GL, KR, LR, ClassNK and RINA.

This particular YCMP-built 5RT-flex50DF engine is due to be delivered this month to a shipyard building four 15,000 dwt tankers for Terntank Rederi of Skagen, Denmark. The tankers will operate mostly in northern European ECA waters.

As well as being the first engine with WinGDs 2-stroke low-pressure dual-fuel X-DF technology for a commercial application, this design represents a core element in the implementation of an EU-supported Joint Industry Project (JIP) aiming at improving the environmental compatibility of energy transportation in the Baltic.

Under the banner Into The Future  Baltic SO2lution, the project centres on co-operation between Terntank, Wartsila, WinGD, fuel and bio-products supplier North European Oil Trade (NEOT) and energy and environmental consultant Wega Enviro.
The David Bromberg Band has begun touring again and will stop Jan. 30 at Terra Fermata in Stuart.

The name probably rings a bell for many.

Bromberg, the Godfather of Americana, goes back to the 1960s Greenwich Village folk scene. Known for his funny lyrics, Bromberg doesn't just blur genre lines he cracks them wide open, playing bluegrass, blues, folk, jazz, country and western, and rock and roll equally well.

The very definition of a musician's musician, Bromberg has worked with Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Jerry Garcia, Willie Nelson, Keb Mo, Vince Gill, and Widespread Panic to name just a few.

The legendary guitarist stopped touring in 1980 and went to school to become a violin maker. He opened a shop for high quality retail and repair in Wilmington, Delaware and remained quite content until the early 2000s when local weekly jam sessions revived the performer in him.

The guitar and fiddle virtuoso, who also has become a renowned expert in rare violins, released a solo album, "Only Slightly Mad" in 2013.

He will be joined on the outdoor stage with Mark Cosgrove on guitar and mandolin; Robert 'Butch' Amoit on bass; Nate Grower on fiddle, mandolin and guitar; and Josh Kanusky on drums.

DAVID BROMBERG QUINTET
A Vero Beach Police officer at the scene of a shooting Thursday. (LAMAUR STANCIL/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS)

By Lamaur Stancil of TCPalm

VERO BEACH  The gunman in the first homicide of the year in Vero Beach remained at large as detectives continued to interview relatives and friends of the two brothers who were shot Thursday.

Alejandro Baldanado, 26, was shot and killed in the dirt driveway of his family home on Highland Avenue south of 16th Street, police said. His brother, Efrain Baldanado, who is in his early 20s, was critically wounded, an officer said.

Police said they're looking for a black or dark green pickup that was the getaway vehicle, but witnesses were not able to provide a detailed description of the gunman or the other person in the vehicle, police spokeswoman Officer Anna Carden said.

Alejandro Baldanado died from his injuries about an hour after the 3:40 p.m. shooting, Carden said. His younger brother remained at Lawnwood Regional Medical Center & Heart Institute in Fort Pierce in critical condition Friday.

Carden said the brothers had just returned home from work when they were shot. Hours after the shooting, the left turn signal on their vehicle was still blinking and the passenger door remained open.

The getaway vehicle was described as either a Dodge Ram or a Chevrolet, Carden said. Police and the Indian River County Sheriff's Office investigated leads about suspected vehicles Thursday but did not confirm any were connected with the shooting.

Crime scene analysts will determine how many shots were fired Thursday, Carden said.

On a rainy Friday afternoon, nearly two dozen family members and friends gathered under the carport at the home, sharing food and talking primarily in Spanish. Family members, including a woman identified as the mother of the brothers who were shot, would not comment.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

A gunman killed one person and wounded another on Highland Drive near 16th Street in Vero Beach on Thursday afternoon.

Anyone with any information about the incident can contact either the Vero Beach Police Department at 772-978-4600 or Treasure Coast Crime Stoppers at 800-273-TIPS (8477). Crime Stoppers also accepts tips on its website. www.tcwatch.org.
Gov. Rick Scott signs four bills into law Thursday, including a bill to improve water quality. (ISADORA RANGEL/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS)

By Isadora Rangel of TCPalm

TALLAHASSEE  After four years in the making, Republican Gov. Rick Scott signed a bill Thursday to overhaul how Florida regulates water pollution, including in Lake Okeechobee and the St. Lucie River.

Former Gov. Bob Graham and several environmental groups urged Scott to veto SB 552 over concerns that it puts agricultural interests ahead of preservation. Yet supporters say the bill was an improvement from last year's failed version. Scott said it will improve Florida's environment and the Everglades along with restoration projects, such as the raising of the Tamiami Trail in Miami-Dade County to allow more water to flow into the river of grass.

"I believe this is a good water bill," Scott said. "When I ran back in 2010 I heard time and time again projects were not getting finished... . That's not true today. You look around the state, projects are getting done."

The law takes effect July 1 and changes policy across Florida, from springs to water supply. It also changes Lake O pollution regulations, from a permitting program that sets standards farmers should follow for water running off their farms to a cleanup plan that requires them to follow so-called "best management practices," such as using less fertilizer or changing irrigation practices. Similar plans are in place for the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee rivers.

Some lawmakers and some environmentalists who opposed the bill last year now support it because sponsors added provisions that say the best management practices are enforceable and the Department of Environmental Protection can change them if they aren't reducing pollution.

The Sierra Club said the added enforcement could delay the implementation of the cleanup plans because state law requires the Legislature to ratify the new enforcement if it has an economic impact on small businesses. It's still unclear whether that would happen because the DEP has to draft the enforcement rules and estimate their impact.

A coalition of 106 environmental and civic groups, including the Sierra Club, urged lawmakers to change the bill over concerns that it exempts many farmers who use groundwater from monitoring how much they are withdrawing and puts water supply ahead of conservation, among other concerns.

Scott signed the new law during a ceremony in his office in the presence of the bill's sponsors, Republican Senate President Andy Gardiner and Republican House Speaker Steve Crisafulli, to whom the water bill is a legacy issue. Scott also signed Gardiner's priorities: two bills that expand a scholarship program and increase employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

Follow Isadora Rangel, Arek Sarkissian and Tampa news partner Jeff Schweers for updates on all the legislative action.

Tweets about from:IsadoraRangel2 OR from:ArekSarkissian OR from:jeffschweersTBO
Tim Zorc (left) along with his family, spent time over their Christmas break in Des Moines, Iowa to volunteer with the Ted Cruz for president task force. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO FROM TIM ZORC)

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By Melissa E. Holsman of TCPalm

VERO BEACH  Des Moines Republicans who vote for Ted Cruz on Feb. 1 might have been encouraged by Vero Beach residents Tim and Laura Zorc to back the Texas senator's presidential bid.

The Zorcs, a politically active family who spent a snowy December holiday break bunking with scores of campaign volunteers, can watch the Iowa caucus results knowing their canvassing in the bitter cold helped deliver votes that might win Cruz the state in a razor-sharp primary with GOP rival Donald Trump.

"I think we helped inspire and motivate other volunteers and also people who worked on the campaign," said Laura Zorc, 44, whose family  Tim, 55, and children Nicholas, 12; Abby, 10, and Chandler, 7  drove through rain, hail and a tornado to arrive in Iowa Dec. 20 for a two-week stay at Camp Cruz for President.

"It was definitely inspiring that we went up there and worked on this," Laura Zorc added. "And it was nice having the kids around because it kept the perspective; it wasn't all work."

The Zorcs decided last summer to travel to Iowa before the state's caucus to do some grass-roots campaigning as a family.

"We hadn't thought of the Christmas break," Tim Zorc said. "But as things got closer, it seemed like a great time to go up there and spend time out in the streets going door-to-door and phone-banking and sign-waving  all the traditional campaign things you get to do."

Tim Zorc, an Indian River County commissioner facing re-election this fall, has done volunteer campaign work on 40 races in a dozen states. Laura Zorc is running for school board this year.

NO MEETING

The Zorc family shared dorm space with about 120 dedicated volunteers who converged from around the country onto the campus of a shuttered business college rented by the Cruz campaign.

They said they didn't mind not seeing Cruz, who skipped Iowa during a year-end blitz through several states.

"We knew he wasn't going to be there," said Laura Zorc, a founder of Florida Parents Against Common Core, which opposes the state adhering to a set of national education standards.

Laura was the first in the Zorc family to back Cruz for president after meeting the first-term senator at an event in Wyoming in 2013. She connected with his presidential race last year during a gathering of top Republicans in Orlando. Cruz met privately with her, she said, and signed an anti-Common Core pledge presented to him.

Since then, Laura Zorc has served as a volunteer on Cruz's Florida leadership team.

"Ted Cruz is one of the most brilliant, smartest people that we've had run for president in many, many years," she said. "I think his background, his knowledge and his experience will stand for itself. And he's a very polite man."

Tim Zorc said he was sold on Cruz after their first meeting in Orlando.

"I'd heard all these great qualities about him," he said, "but until you meet somebody, get to shake their hand, look in their eye and talk to him for a few minutes, you can say 'he's the real deal.' "

LOCAL VISIT

Working for Cruz in Iowa was a family affair.

Abby and Chandler insisted on trudging through knee-deep snow to greet potential voters at their door, Tim Zorc said.

"Three questions they wanted to know was: will you be caucusing, can we count on your support for Ted Cruz, and are you interested in volunteering for the campaign?" he noted. "It was always exciting to see the kids come back to us with a thumbs-up, yes they're for Cruz."

The couple said they hope Cruz or his wife, Heidi, pay a local visit before Florida's primary March 15.

"We are trying to get him to our area," Laura Zorc said. "I'm working with several groups around the state to do that, and at the same time hold fundraisers for when he comes to the area."

Both are sure Cruz will win in Iowa.

"Once we take Iowa, you'll start seeing more support because a lot of people ... don't want to get behind a particular candidate until they really see they have the potential to be the nominee," Laura Zorc said. "Once they see he's the pick in Iowa, it's going to add more momentum here in Florida."
Old diesel power plant building in Vero Beach in 2009.

By Colleen Wixon of TCPalm

VERO BEACH  A distilling company, a Fort Lauderdale developer and a sea artist all want to buy the city's former diesel plant.

Proposals for the plant were opened Thursday, but specific details were kept confidential by the city. A committee will review them before recommending one to the City Council, possibly by mid-March, said Purchasing Manager John O'Brien.

Those submitting proposals were:

Ross Power, of Vero Beach: Power said wants to develop the property into a cultural arts center with sculptures and art galleries, and possibly a working film studio similar to the Power Studios he created in Miami.

Guy D'Amico, Treasure Coast Distilling Co., Coral Springs: In 2013, D'Amico proposed buying the plant and surrounding land for $595,000 to build a boutique liquor distillery, retail stores and an upscale restaurant.

Michael Rechter, Integra Corp., Fort Lauderdale: Rechter has spent millions to revamp Vero Bowl, three shopping plazas and other businesses in Vero Beach.

Selection will be based on price and the proposed use. City officials have said they want the old plant, appraised at $500,000, to be compatible with the arts-village concept being developed on 14th Avenue in downtown Vero Beach.

"We are excited about the opportunity for that eyesore to look different," O'Brien said after the proposal openings.

Over the years, speculation about potential uses for the diesel plant have included a distillery, car museum and craft brewery. The Cultural Council of Indian River County expressed interest last year in using it as a cultural arts center. The building has been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1999.

The diesel plant, built in phases between 1926 and 1959, once was the city's main source of electric power. In 2001, Phil Barth, of Barth Construction Co., and Charles Block, of C.E. Block  as B-B Redevelopment Team  leased it to develop the site, just west of the railroad tracks and south of eastbound State Road 60. They later joined with Charles Croom and David Croom of Croom Construction.

In 2014, the team sued the city, claiming the city never completed the environmental remediation it promised. In October, B-B Redevelopment Team agreed to vacate the historic building, giving ownership back to the city.

City Council on Tuesday declared the property surplus, clearing the way for it to be sold.
The Martin County Sheriffs Office used about $337,000 in forfeiture money last year to buy a Lenco BearCat G3, an armored vehicle for use in SWAT operations and high-risk searches. (WILL GREENLEE/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS)

By Editorial Board

Editor's note: This editorial has been updated from its original version.

The intent of the Florida Contraband Forfeiture Act was noble.

Passed in 1980, at a time when the drug trade seemed to have a stranglehold on Florida, the idea was to fight back by stripping drug dealers of their ill-gotten gains  money, cars, planes and boats  and use these assets to help fund law enforcement. And it worked: Law enforcement officials along the Treasure Coast say Florida's statute, coupled with federal forfeiture laws, have proved to be effective tools.

But in Florida and around the country, the tools have been misused.

The city of Sunrise found itself in the national spotlight in 2013 following reports police actually were luring criminals to the city and conducting "reverse sting" operations that allowed law enforcement to seize more than $5.8 million in proceeds in 2010 and 2011 alone.

In Middlesex, Virginia, a sheriff was found guilty of using forfeiture funds to bribe employees. A Georgia sheriff was the subject of a federal grand jury investigation following reports that he'd given $250,000 in forfeiture funds to his alma mater.

There is no evidence to suggest any such abuses have taken place on the Treasure Coast, and local law enforcement agencies generate comparably little revenue from asset forfeitures. Yet laws like Florida's Contraband Forfeiture Act remains an incentive for law enforcement to "police for profit."

In Florida, law enforcement gets to keep 85 percent of the funds generated from forfeitures. And current law does not even require that a property owner be arrested, let alone convicted of a crime, before law enforcement can seize, and ask the courts to let them keep, a defendant's property.

Efforts are underway nationwide to reform forfeitures laws, and here in Florida we're glad to see state Sen. Joe Negron helping to lead the charge.

Negron, a Republican who represents a large portion of the Treasure Coast, is co-sponsoring a bill that would change Florida forfeiture law by requiring conviction before law enforcement can keep a suspect's assets. A companion bill has been introduced in the state House.

We urge other Treasure Coast lawmakers to follow Negron's lead by backing these proposals.

While these bills would make the forfeiture process fairer, more reforms are needed, too.

In a November report titled "Civil Asset Forfeiture in Florida: Policies and Practices," the Florida Legislature's Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability noted that at least $68 million in assets were forfeited to local law enforcement agencies during the past five years under the Florida Contraband Forfeiture Act. But no one knows the exact figure, because law enforcement agencies aren't required to report forfeiture actions to the state.

For the sake of transparency and accountability, that needs to change.

The accountability office also suggested the Legislature might add more restrictions on the use of forfeiture funds by law enforcement, perhaps by reducing the percentage of funds agencies are allowed to keep, increasing the percentages given to substance abuse and crime prevention programs or designating funds for other purposes.

That's worth discussing, too.

None of these proposed reforms would hinder law enforcement's ability to strip drug dealers or other criminals of their ill-gotten gains. What they would do is shore up the rights of property owners, ensure greater transparency and diminish any temptation to "police for profit."

The Florida Contraband Forfeiture Act is indeed a valuable tool in the fight against crime. Now, it's time for the Legislature take steps that would make misuse of this tool less likely.
CONFIRMING CONCERNS: Jon Steverson, who drew criticism after discussing plans to allow hunting, logging and other moneymaking ventures at Florida's state parks, is one step closer to being confirmed as secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection.

After failing to win state Senate confirmation last year, Steverson on Wednesday got the blessing of chamber's Ethics & Elections Committee. The committee voted 7-2 in favor of his confirmation, with Sen. Joe Negron, R-Stuart, siding with the majority. Democrats Jeff Clemens and Geraldine Thompson voted no.

Steverson's confirmation will head to the full Senate, where approval is considered likely, the Tampa Bay Times reported.

That may not be a good thing for Florida's network of 174 state parks.
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By Editorial Board

SURPRISE, SURPRISE!: It's refreshing to see a federal agency push back against All Aboard Florida.

Whether it's the Federal Railroad Administration issuing innocuous environmental impact statements or the U.S. Department of Transportation granting All Aboard Florida two extensions to sell $1.75 billion in tax-exempt bonds, federal officials appeared to be doing their utmost to facilitate the Miami-to-Orlando passenger rail project.

So it was a pleasant surprise to learn the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, in a Jan. 7 letter to All Aboard Florida, expressed its reluctance to approve permits for the northern section of the project.

Corps officials said they need more information about potential damage to federal waters, including wetlands, before allowing All Aboard Florida to begin work in Indian River and Brevard counties.

"You are cautioned that commencement of the proposed work in waters of the United States subject to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' jurisdiction, prior to authorization, would constitute a violation of federal laws and subject you to possible enforcement action," the Corps stated in the letter.

It's reassuring to see the rail project get much-needed federal scrutiny.
Third grade teacher Alexis Rooney (right) works with her students at Warfield Elementary School in Indiantown. (MOLLY BARTELS/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS)

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By Paula Dockery

Here's my message to Florida's 180,000 public school teachers: Thank you.

Thank you for your dedication. Thank you for your professionalism. Thank you for your long days of teaching and your long nights of grading papers and preparing for the next day's lessons.

We don't appreciate our teachers as we once did. Over the past 20 years teachers have been demonized, demoralized and blamed for what some politicians want to brand a failing public education system. With a steady stream of mandates and micromanaging coming from the state capital, teachers had to constantly adjust to the policies pushed by the politically well-connected education-for-profit folks.

A sampling of those changes include standardized testing, grading schools, creating the FCAT, adopting the Common Core curriculum, switching to new unproven tests, tying teacher salaries and school grades to student performance on high-stakes tests, pushing expansion of for-profit charter schools and vouchers, converting public schools to charters and implementing controversial bonus schemes instead of increasing teachers' salaries.

Teachers have not been particularly engaged in the political process. They've been too busy jumping through bureaucratic hoops.

The devaluing of classroom teachers is taking a toll on them. Teachers are fed up, frustrated and many are leaving the profession.

One such example is Wendy Bradshaw, a special-education teacher in Polk County, who resigned and spoke out about her reasons for leaving public education. Her heartfelt resignation letter was posted on social media (see it below) and quickly spread nationally.

Wendy, an outstanding teacher with bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in education, was consistently rated highly effective in her evaluations. She's the kind of teacher we need to recruit and retain in our public schools. Unfortunately, she's also the type of teacher we are chasing away.

She said she had become more and more disturbed by the misguided reforms taking place, which are robbing her students of a developmentally appropriate education and that she cannot justify making students cry anymore.

This past week thousands of educators flocked to Tallahassee. The rally was part protest, part call to arms. Teachers from all over the state gathered to deliver a united message that "enough is enough."

What do they want?

They want politicians out of the classroom. They want policy decisions to be made on input from educational professionals. They want an end to high-stakes testing. They want the same accountability standards for voucher programs and for-profit charter schools that they are required to comply with. They want better wages for teachers and more autonomy in their classrooms.

Bradshaw spoke at the rally and lamented the fact that the whims of politicians were more important than the students.

Other fed-up teachers are also speaking out. Susan Bowles, a kindergarten teacher in Alachua County, turned to Facebook to detail the tests she is expected to give to 5-year-olds and why she will no longer give some of them to her students  even if it costs her job.

Joshua Katz, an Orange County algebra teacher, took to YouTube with a fiery 17-minute attack on high-stakes testing, calling it the "toxic culture of education." It's quite compelling.

It's great that teachers are speaking out, but will legislators listen?

The Legislature doesn't ignore farmers and ranchers when developing agriculture policy; doesn't ignore business on virtually any policy; doesn't ignore doctors when changing health care policy, and certainly doesn't ignore sheriffs when discussing criminal justice policy. Yet they turn a deaf ear to teachers  the education experts with hands-on experience. Why?

It's disingenuous for the Legislature to tie educators' hands and then blame them for not being innovative.

Perhaps the rally will entice more teachers to actively engage in the political arena. Imagine what would happen if 180,000 teachers started calling their legislators out on their actions. Better yet, what if they all registered to vote and actually voted?

Paula Dockery is a syndicated columnist who served in the Florida Legislature for 16 years as a Republican from Lakeland. She can be reached at PBDockery@gmail.com.
Before I was hired to be an editor of one of Knight-Ridder's newspapers, I had to fly down to the company's headquarters in Miami to be interviewed by the Ph.D. psychologist who headed up its human resources department and take a standardized test.

Later, at lunch with this psychologist, he informed me I flunked the standardized test. "Don't worry," he said, "I will approve your being hired. The best editors always flunk the test. Those who pass the test are generally programmed linear thinkers. The best editors think in all sorts of crazy unpredictable directions."

Readers of newspapers today get upset with many columnists because they seem to promote the same causes and issues. Many professional columnists who appear on the left and right side of the page tend to be highly predictable in how they write about issues and, therefore, less interesting unless readers want to reinforce their own point of view.

A relative of my wife graduated from Harvard University. We attended her graduation in Boston. I told my wife once we were on the Harvard grounds I could predict nearly all the answers by the Harvard students. I mentioned to her a couple of questions I would ask them about national politics and social issues and then predicted what they would say. Sure enough, they answered how I predicted they would expected. In other words, our best and brightest often have been programmed to think in a similar fashion.

When I was a reporter for McGraw-Hill and later an editor with Knight-Ridder, I generally interviewed managers and owners of major commercial companies. I had a masters in business from Columbia University, so I was chosen for this assignment. What surprised me is that when I interviewed the owners of companies, they nearly all responded to my question about where their children had been educated by saying, "We had tutors educate them at home through grade school." After hearing this response a few times, I asked "Why?" They all responded similarly. "We wanted our children to know they could fire the teacher." Owners teach their children that they own their own thoughts.

It did not surprise me when doing an article about Bill Gates, who founded Microsoft, that he chose to drop out of Harvard. Gates had an owner's mentality and did not want to be programmed to think like a manager. Our best educational institutions generally groom and development managers to do the bidding of owners.

I personally have always had the mentality of an owner. Most authors do because we are owners of our own writings. I also always have gotten along with owners. They relate to me and me with them.

Often those less educated than our best and our brightest have more common sense than their educated betters. Why? Because they are less programmed. Why is Donald Trump doing so well? Because much of what he is saying is inconvenient truth. It is common sense. I personally probably would not vote for Trump, but I agree with many of his positions on issues.

We need a wall along the border with Mexico, and we need to take care in bringing in refugees from Syria. I just don't want Trump to be the manager of our country.

By the way, Trump's father was an owner, and Donald Trump is an owner.

Stanford Erickson lives in Vero Beach and is author of "Mama's Boy Presidents: Why Do We Keep Electing Them?" His website is www.StanfordErickson.com.
Matthew Bush surveys the damage outside his home Sunday in Mark Landing Apartments II in Hobe Sound after a strong line of storms moved through the area. The live oak damaged Bushs brothers car (right). To see more photos, go to TCPalm.com (MOLLY BARTELS/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS)

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By Elliott Jones of TCPalm

Sunday's morning storms, including a tornado, caused an estimated $200,000 in damages along the Treasure Coast.

Around 6:15 a.m. strong, gusty winds blasted the Sebastian Fine Art and Music Festival, destroying art and 40 of the 131 art display tents at Riverview Park on the Indian River Lagoon. Estimated losses total $100,000, said festival director Lisanne Robinson.

An hour later and 56 miles to the south, the storm spawned a tree-toppling tornado that damaged four cars and eight homes in a three-block area of Hobe Sound in Martin County.

None of the houses were left uninhabitable. Except for two cars, all the damage is comparatively minor. All together, the damage is estimated at $100,000, according to Martin County Emergency Management officials and the county's Building Department.

Clearwater resident Mark Bush was visiting his brother, Matthew Bush, in Hobe Sound when they heard what sounded like an epic hurricane. Broken-off tree limbs landed on his car in the parking lot at Mark Landings II Apartments on Southeast Randall Court. The car's roof and hood were bashed in and windows broke.

"It just missed my apartment by inches. The wind came all at once and hit us so quick that we didn't have time to react. Within 30 seconds the tree was down and then it was over," said Matthew Bush.

On Thursday, Mark Bush was in a rental car driving back to the west coast while waiting to hear what his insurance company will do about his damaged car that is in a repair shop.

Meanwhile, cleanup crews are at work.

"The only problem now is the noise" from stump grinders and chain saws, said Matthew Bush.

"The damage does not come near to warrant a declaration of disaster," said Martin County Emergency Management Director Debra McCaughey. There needs to be 25 homes with 40 percent damage before they will be considered for disaster declarations that could make them eligible for Federal Emergency Management Agency assistance or a Small Business Administration loan.

She expect most home policies will include wind damage, depending on what a homeowner signed up for. Cars with comprehensive coverage also should be covered, she said.

Hobe Sound's tornado first touched down west of U.S. 1., ripping through some woodlands as it headed east. By the time it came to the area of homes it weakened and began lifting off, according to meteorologists with the National Weather Service, Melbourne.

The damage was the stormy front of a strong cold front that moved through around daybreak. Highest winds were clocked at 45 mph at the Vero Beach Municipal Airport, which is the National Weather Service's only official recording site.

Robinson unofficially estimated winds gusted to tropical force, around 60 mph, on Sebastian's waterfront. The night before she cautioned merchants to put extra weights on their tent anchor lines. Those didn't counter "the wall of wind that hit," she said.

Afterward, mangled tent frames, including some tent poles bent at right angles, were discharged into a dump trunk. One tent landed in the lagoon. Merchandise  art works and crafts  stored in the tent were severely damaged, she said.

"Some people were scared and left," she said.

Visitors on Sunday were below the 15,000 that crowded in on Saturday and backed up traffic on U.S. 1 for three miles. Part of the backup is blamed on Friday's rains that filled half the fair's parking lots.

According to Robinson, the damage goes on.

Many of the merchants now are short of merchandise as they continue traveling from fair to fair during what is now the height of the winter art fair season, she said.

Sunday's damage is the most she has seen in the 15 years of the Sebastian art fair.

"We're been through rain and cold and yucky weather, but nothing like this."
This week Netflix debuts one of this years Oscar-nominated animated short films, though its sure to have a life well beyond awards season. Meanwhile, Fandor offers up a classic short film from the 1940s. Who says long movies are better? Certainly Straight Outta Compton (now on Vudu) could have been shorter, although whats there is still very much worth seeing.

Then theres Red Riding Trilogy, available on Hulu, a film that runs more than six hours and doesnt seem to waste a moment. Steve Martins Dead Men Dont Wear Plaid (catch it on Crackle) is less than 90 minutes, while fun, feels stretched thin in places.

In the end, whether a movie is 14 minutes or six hours, the showbiz rule has always been always leave em wanting more! Happily, quite a few of this weeks other movies, ranging from comedies to horror films, from imports to domestic, feel just about right: neither too long nor too short.
Brave Software, helmed by Brendan Eich, who cofounded Mozilla and created the JavaScript programming language, on Tuesday released the 0.7 developer version of its Brave browser.

Brave is an open source project that promises to block Internet greed and ugliness, while improving speed and protecting privacy. Basically, it blocks ads containing pixels and cookies that track users and load stuff onto their devices without their knowledge.

Malvertising wont get onto users devices because the project has integrated the EFFs HTTPS Everywhere into the browser.

Brave allows clean ads  that is, ads that dont track users or upload anything onto their devices. It reportedly takes 15 percent of the ad revenue generated.

The browser appears specifically tuned for performance and privacy, and has behind it a unique advertiser component, observed Rob Enderle, principal analyst at the Enderle Group.

It effectively bypasses Google, so I expect if its successful, Google would most likely buy them and shut them down, he told TechNewsWorld.

Braves Technical Guts

There are separate GitHub repositories for Brave for iOS, Android, and OS X/Windows/Linux.

Brave browsers block initial signaling and analytics scripts that launch programmatic ads, impression-tracking pixels, and ad-click confirmation signals, according to Eich.

User data is kept out of the cloud-based Brave Vault by default.

The ad blocking is a core feature, not an overlay, so the result should be much faster performance, Enderle said. Users dont really care about the benefits of tracking, and they do care about speed.

However, one of the major challenges theyll face is applications, noted Michael Jude, a program manager at Frost & Sullivan.

Many browser-accessible business apps require cookies, he told TechNewsWorld, so there are online apps that wont work with Brave. That might be a major consumer consideration.

Consumers and Ad Blocking

Users in the United States, Germany and France consistently find pop-up ads, video ads, animated banner ads, and all-around banner ads the most annoying formats, according to a survey of 6,000 people Ipsos conducted for Adblock Plus last year.

Users of ad blockers are more likely to be high-value consumers  that is, young and well-off  according to a 2015 study conducted by Sourcepoint and comScore.

Ad blocking arises from audience frustration or dislike for very basic targeting or retargeting based on website visitation, search, or online purchase history, noted Joline McGoldrick, vice president of insights at Millward Brown Digital.

Irrelevant ads are the worst offender and reflects negatively on the brand, she told TechNewsWorld.

Ad blocking cost publishers nearly $22 billion last year, PageFair estimated.

Braves Advertising Plans

Brave will insert ads by default in a few standard-sized spaces discovered through a cloud robot  which itself might be considered programmatic advertising.

Ads will be targeted based on browser-side intent signals phrased in a standard vocabulary, without a persistent user ID or highly reidentifiable code.

That raises the question of whether advertisers whose ads are blocked will be willing to do business with Brave.

Ad blocking will have a marginal impact in the near term  but could become a much bigger issue in 12 months, said Greg Sterling, VP of strategy and insights at the Local Search Association.

A year should give us a much better trajectory of the issue, he told TechNewsWorld.

If consumer adoption of the browser takes off, it could impact online publications in the long term, Millward Browns McGoldrick said. Advertisers are interested in how their media performs among their target. Losing the inputs that let [them] define their target and optimize against it would be an unwelcome development.

Still, whether Brave can reach critical mass is doubtful.

I can see Google aggressively moving to block a browser like this, Enderle said. On the other hand, Eich has an experienced team, so this effort could get really interesting really quickly.
When Amazon launched Prime Day six months ago, skeptics came out in force to criticize what they considered Jeff Bezos desperate ploy to add members to a club that appeared to be peaking in a saturated domestic market.

Gimmick or not, Prime Day worked. Amazon sold more than 34.4 million items across eight countries where Prime was offered. The company topped 2014 Black Friday totals and forced Walmart and other retailers to respond. Amazon subsequently released a third-quarter earnings report that backed up its initial sales figures with profits that defied just about all prior estimates.

Prime Position

Our focus is to continue to add even more value to this membership for Prime members, said Amazon spokesperson Ana Rigby.

That includes our steady investment in building out our fulfillment center network in order to get items closer to customers, [and] get more items in-stock and delivered as quickly as possible, she told the E-Commerce Times.

Despite all the new members Prime Day reaped, the company still saw a strong growth potential for its Prime program, CFO Brian Olsavsky told analysts during the companys Q3 earnings call in October. It also saw a strong business case for Prime Now, which offers customers one-hour delivery on certain items.

Amazon was making serious efforts to ramp up its ability to fulfill that demand without spiking operating costs too high, he added.

We think its an interesting part of the selection offer for Prime, and its in many ways something that we can do that others cant, he said, because its a natural evolution of our 20-year effort to grow our fulfillment center network  and our scale, quite frankly, makes it possible to even offer this to customers.

Amazon took several bold steps last year to create some space between itself and a growing number of companies aiming to chip away at Amazon Primes mounting influence in the e-commerce space.

The company reported record-breaking sales and member enrollment during the holiday shopping season, with more than 3 million new members signing up for the US$99 per year Prime program during the third week of December. Amazon set a single-day record on Christmas Eve, with the most-ever deliveries. It shipped more than 200 million items for free during the holiday period.

Amazon has been selective about releasing figures related to Amazon Prime. However, the program had an estimated 47 million members who spent an average of $1,200 per person, compared to non-Prime shoppers roughly $600 average, Consumer Intelligence Research Partners reported in October.

Amazon uses Prime as a way of improving loyalty in an environment in which customers can easily switch among e-commerce retailers, said CIRP cofounder Michael Levin.

Prime overcomes a number of barriers that consumers have about e-commerce, including paying for shipping, waiting for goods, and processing returns, he told the E-Commerce Times.

Taking On the Giant

One challenge is that Amazon may be losing money on Prime. Its regarded as the biggest contributor to Amazons shipping costs, noted Nikki Baird, managing partner of RSR Research.

Even though Prime customers buy more  a lot more  it isnt enough at Amazons prices to offset the cost of two-day shipping, she told the E-Commerce Times.

Its understandable that other retailers want the same level of brand loyalty that Prime membership provides for Amazon, said Baird, but I would have to seriously question their sanity if they think that its a profitable way to compete, because all indicators are that its not.

For one select group of retailers, the most direct competition for Amazon Prime is Shoprunner, backed by Kynetic, Alibaba and American Express. The service, which is free for some American Express cardholders, costs US$8.95 per month, or $79 a year for other consumers. It provides two-day free shipping, free return shipping and exclusive member discounts. Like Amazon Prime, consumers can try out the service for 30 days for free.

Shoprunner serves as an e-commerce engine for brands including Cole Haan, Tommy Hilfiger and Rafaella.

Legacy Struggles

Sears and Kmart, which have struggled to fend off competition from rival department stores like Target and Kohls, have been working to reinvent their traditional retail model with the Shop Your Way program, designed to maximize sales among their most frequent customers. It offers free two-day shipping, rewards points, and exclusive discounts through Shop Your Way Max, which provides upgraded benefits for a $39 annual fee.

Sears continues to find new ways to integrate in-store and online shopping by enhancing mobile and online technologies to create new conveniences for Shop Your Way members, said Leena Munjal, SVP of customer experience and integrated retail at Sears Holdings.

The company has worked to integrate its existing department stores and outlets with mobile by offering a service that lets customers pick up, return and exchange purchases while remaining in their vehicles for no extra charge, with a guarantee that the process will take no more than five minutes to complete.

Target Takes Aim

Target, which is widely considered one of Amazons leading competitors, does not have a paid loyalty program like Amazon Prime or Shop Your Way. However, it does offer special benefits through its Red Card customer loyalty program.

Target is focused on providing guests the ability to shop on demand  anywhere, anytime  in stores, online and mobile, said company spokesperson Jamie Bastian.

The program offers 5 percent discounts to all cardholders, free shipping on Target.com purchases, and an extra 30 days for shipping returns. Currently, about 25 percent of Target stores ship Target.com orders, Bastian told the E-Commerce Times. Target also offers a number of programs to make mobile shopping easier for customers.

It has offered in-store order pickup since September 2014 in Minneapolis, and it later rolled out the service nationwide. About 80 percent of all pickup orders are available within an hour, Bastian said. Guests also can use the Ship to Store option to get an item on Target.com that is not sold in stores.

Target in 2013 began collaborating with Facebook to offer a program called Cartwheel, which is available via an app. Customers get personally targeted coupons and special discounts that can be shared with friends on Facebook. The app has 20 million authenticated users, according to Target.

The company is currently offering Instacart grocery service in San Francisco, Minneapolis and Chicago, Bastian said. The pilot program began in September in select Minneapolis area neighborhoods and western suburbs. Target delivers groceries ordered on Target.com within two hours.

Target in 2014 began partnering with a Bay area startup called Curbside.com to offer merchandise pickup in select stores in Chicago, the New York and Philadelphia metropolitan areas, and all San Francisco-area stores, Bastian said.

Nipping at Heels

Several e-commerce competitors and startups have attempted to disrupt Amazon Primes dominant position.

Jet.com originally launched with much fanfare as an e-commerce site that offered similar shipping perks to Amazon.com for a smaller membership fee. However, it later decided to change its model, replacing the $50 membership fee program with a more traditional site that reportedly will subsidize member discounts through sales commissions.

eBay in September launched a program called eBay Plus in Germany, where customers get free expedited shipping and free returns for an annual fee of about $22. The company plans to expand the service to provide exclusive discounts and promotions as well. The program also will allow consumers to sell on the site without fees.

eBay has indicated that it may expand to other countries, but it hasnt announced any specific plans.
While obnoxious advertising is something many people will have come across when browsing around the web, Google has been taking a concerted effort to fight bad ads across its widepsread ad network.

Throughout 2015, Google blocked a whopping 780 million ads from its ad network for violating the company's strict policies. All up, Google has over 1,000 people in a team dedicated to combatting crappy ads, which work alongside sophisticated technology to improve the ad experience for all.

Of the 780 million ads Google banned, most were for the sort of crap you don't want to see: counterfeit products; dodgy, misleading or unapproved pharmaceuticals; weight loss scams; phishing; malware and other unwanted software; and 'trick to click' ads that are designed to look like system errors or other prompts.

Google has also developed technology to improve the mobile ad experience. The company disabled ads on 25,000 mobile apps due to the developers ignoring Google's ad guidelines, and rejected over 1.4 million ad applications for the same reasons. Technology is also in place to prevent users on mobile devices from accidentally clicking on ads.

The fight against bad ads will continue in 2016, with Google looking into ways to further restrict "what can be advertised as effective for weight loss" and prevent even more malware and bots. User feedback does help Google improve the ad experience, as does changing your ad settings through this control panel.
While big tech companies such as Microsoft, Facebook, Google and Samsung continue to focus on virtual and augmented reality devices, we are yet to see Apple enter the VR/AR field. But it looks as if the Cupertino company is getting ready to make an official move; not only has it made several VR-related acquisitions over the last year, but it's just hired one of the leading experts in 3D interface design.

Doug Bowman, who was the Director of the Center for Human-Computer Interaction at Virginia Tech before recently taking a sabbatical, now works for Apple, according to a report from the Financial Times. During his five-year tenure, his work focused on "three-dimensional user interface design and the benefits of immersion in virtual environments." He's even written a book on the subject, which you can buy on Amazon.

Other companies have acknowledged Bowman's work in the VR/AR field. He was one of the first recipients to receive a $100,000 research grant from Microsoft, along with two HoloLens Development Edition devices, to carry out research into uses for the headset in a study called "Collaborative analysis of large-scale mixed reality data." Bowman has also spent time as a user experience consultant for Disney Imagineering, working on the company's various theme park rides.

Apple has made several acquisitions that could be related to a VR/AR project over the last few years, these include Swiss motion capture company Faceshift in November, German augmented reality firm Metaio last May, original Kinect developer Primesense in 2013, and San Diego-based startup Emotient earlier this month. The company also bought Perceptio - a startup specializing in AI image classification systems - last October.

With these acquisitions, Apple got its hands on some advanced technology that may find its way into a future VR/AR device from the company. It also meant that many experts in the field are now working for Apple.

The virtual and augmented reality market is said to be worth $80 billion by 2025, according to Goldman Sachs. Whether Apple ultimately plans to release a VR headset like the Oculus Rift or an AR device like the HoloLens, or if it intends to integrate the technology into one its future products such as the iPhone or the rumored Titan car project, we'll just have to wait and see.

You can learn more about Doug Bowman's work in the Virginia tech video below.

Image credit: ymgerman / shutterstock
Last week, it was reported that Netflix was taking steps to update its proxy detection techniques in an effort to stop users from watching content only available outside their own country. The announcement came after the firm said it was expanding to 130 new countries and would no longer tolerate customers using software to bypass geoblocks.

It now looks as if Netflix has made its first move in cracking down on this practice, and the first nation it's apparently targeted is Australia. Melbourne-based VPN service uFlix says that the video streaming site has started blocking some of its users, who are seeing the message: "You seem to be using an unblocker or proxy. Please turn off any of these services and try again," when attempting to access non-local content.

uFlix is trying to discover how its customers were identified, but it believes it has already discovered a workaround. Earlier today, the company tweeted: "We have found a fix, but are putting an additional measure in place before we release it. Fun times."

Netflix hasn't revealed exactly how it plans to stop people from using VPNs and proxies, but judging from what happened with uFlix it seems that the site is identifying and blocking IP addresses linked to these services.

TorGuard, one of the most popular VPN services available, has assured its customers that Netflix's crackdown won't affect them. "For those of you who rely on TorGuard VPN service to unblock Netflix content unrestricted, you don't have to worry," the company wrote in a blog post. "Netflix will be pushing this plan forward soon, and when that happens, TorGuard will immediately deploy new server IP addresses so users can still bypass blocks."

It's still unclear how much success Netflix will have in stopping these services in the long-term. The company has admitted that it was "trivial" for VPN providers to avoid blocks by switching IP addresses, so Netflix's recent announcement may be a case of it trying to appease copyright holders more than anything else. We'll find out over coming weeks if the company really has found a more effective blocking method.
More than 80 drug makers urged governments to form new economic models to help them battle drug-resistant superbugs. They called for joint efforts to stop inappropriate use of antibiotics and support for the development of new potent ones that may save tens of millions of lives in the next decades.

In a declaration at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, the companies called for the help of governments in their fight against antimicrobial resistance. Drug-resistant pathogens repel the effects of commonly-used antibiotics rendering them hard-to-treat and life-threatening.

"For the world to continue to have new antibiotics, we need investments in basic science and novel incentive models for industry R&D, and to protect our existing treatments, we need new frameworks for appropriate use," Paul Stoffels, chief scientific officer of Johnson & Johnson, said (PDF).

International pharmaceutical companies face the problem of disapproval of new antibiotics over the last two decades. These companies carry burdens of not only scientific challenges, but also financial problems. Some of those who signed the declaration admitted that they dropped developments of antibiotics for business reasons.

In a report by the World Economic Forum on issues of pharmaceutical companies, new drug development requires around $1 billion and between four and seven years of clinical trial. With the high cost and time needed for such drug developments, drug makers ask the assistance of governments around the globe.

According to former Goldman Sachs chief economist, Jim O'Neill, he was asked by Britain's prime minister to review the predicament and propose means to solve it. He estimated that by 2050, drug-resistant pathogens could kill around 10 million people a year. This chaotic scenario could cost up to $100 trillion if left uncontrolled.

The declaration includes the development of efficient and accurate diagnostic tests to detect infecting organisms properly. This helps make certain that antibacterial drugs are used properly. This will make sure that antibiotics will not be prescribed to patients suffering from viral infections, for which they would not work.

The problem of drug-resistant pathogens emerged since the development of the first antibiotic, penicillin, in 1928. With the development of more potent antibiotics for a wide range of diseases, the problem grew in the last decades as drug makers withdrew investment in antimicrobial development.

Photo: Iqbal Osman | Flickr

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A security researcher has warned iPhone and iPad users to upgrade to the recently rolled out iOS 9.2.1 if they don't want cybercriminals to steal their cookies and impersonate them.

Yair Amit of Skycure disclosed details regarding the flaw that he and Adi Sharabani uncovered, and which took Apple almost three years to fix. Amit says Skycure privately reported the bug in June 2013.

He says that this is the longest it has taken for Apple to fix a security flaw they reported.

The flaw, which Skycure calls the "shared cookie stores bug," is among the tons of bugs and security issues Apple has fixed with iOS version 9.2.1.

"When iOS users connect to a captive-enabled network (commonly used on most of the free and paid Wi-Fi networks at hotels, airports, cafes, etc.), a window is shown automatically on users' screens, allowing them to use an embedded browser to log into network via an HTTP interface," says Amit.

The user can then browse the Web normally, once accepted. However, the embedded browser shares the cookie store with Safari.

To put it simply, the hackers can steal the unencrypted cookies stored on a compromised iDevice. This can then result in impersonation attacks.

Based on an initial advisory of Apple, the flaw affected the iPhone 4s, the fifth-generation iPod Touch, the iPad 2 and later versions of those devices.

The security researcher underscores that downloading and installing the most recent iOS 9 update will fix this security flaw.

The iOS 9.2.1 update also fixes a particular issue that could halt the completion of app installation when the device owner uses a Mobile Device Management (MDM) server.

What the update doesn't fix, however, is the battery percentage indicator problem. Apple promises that it is already working on a solution to resolve this issue.

Even if iOS 9.2.1 is already released to the public, the company is already cooking up version 9.3. In fact, it already rolled out the iOS 9.3 beta version, which is packed with a slew of new features.

For one, we earlier reported that Apple now lets iPhone users hide default apps they never want to see and use. These home screen apps can be disabled by means of the bundle ID.

This latest iteration of iOS 9 will also bring in Night Shift Mode, which will make night-time reading easier on the eyes.

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ELKO  Nevada authors Terri Farley and Suzanne Morgan Williams will be signing copies of their books from 2-4 p.m. Tuesday at the Bookstore, 1372 Idaho St.

Farley, who resides in Verdi, is the best-selling author of the Phantom Stallion book series, which has sold over two million copies in 27 countries. Her first nonfiction book, Wild at Heart: Mustangs and the Young People Fighting to Save Them,has been named a Junior Library Guild selection, winner of the Sterling North Heritage Award for Excellence in Childrens Literature, and has been honored by the National Science Teachers Association and commended by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Even though its mine, I can say its a beautiful book. Readers just submerge themselves in the incredible images by Pulitzer Prize winning National Geographic photojournalist Melissa Farlow, says Farley, and then they read it.

Williams is excited to return to Elko to give hands-on writing workshops to Flag View Intermediate students. Her books Bull Rider and Nevada will be for sale during the signing. Bull Rider won a Western Heritage Award from the National Cowboy Museum in Oklahoma City, is a Junior Library Guild selection, and is on state library award lists in Nevada, Texas, Missouri, Wyoming and Indiana.

Her nonfiction titles include Pinatas and Smiling Skeleton, The Inuit, and her latest book, Chinas Daughters. She has presented to adult and childrens audiences and taught writing workshops at dozens of schools, professional conferences, and literary events across the U.S. and Canada.
The LG V10 is on T-Mobile's list of devices to get Android 6.0 Marshmallow after all, despite some earlier confusion that seemed to indicate otherwise.

The smartphone started shipping globally back in October 2015, and T-Mobile was the first operator in the United States to jump onboard. However, weeks before T-Mobile launched the LG V10, the Uncarrier published a list noting which devices in its portfolio would receive an update to the latest Android 6.0 Marshmallow. At that time, the LG V10 was not on that list.

While it's understandable why the LG V10 was not on that list because it had not hit T-Mobile yet, the matter later caused some confusion. More specifically, when the T-Mobile LG V10 did debut weeks after that list surfaced, some still thought that the handset's absence from the list meant that it would not get a taste of Marshmallow.

No definitive proof has been available to prove otherwise, but we now have confirmation straight from T-Mobile that the LG V10 is indeed set to get Android 6.0 Marshmallow.

T-Mobile hasn't started rolling out the update just yet, nor did it mention just when it will become available. Nevertheless, the carrier's update status page now lists the LG V10 Android 6.0 Marshmallow update as in the "Manufacturer Development" stage.

Manufacturer Development is the first stage of the update process, as it's virtually the starting point where both the OEM and the carrier agree to support the software update.

This means that the update is currently in the cards and will later go into carrier testing, before ultimately rolling out as an official OTA to the smartphone on T-Mobile.

Until Android 6.0 Marshmallow is ready to hit the device, the LG V10 runs Android 5.1.1 Lollipop out of the box.

Despite not launching with the latest version of Android on board, however, the LG V10 still stirred quite some interest among consumers and tech observers alike. The main attraction of the device is its secondary ticker display located above the main touch screen, but the LG V10 has plenty of other tricks up its sleeve. In fact, the LG V10 is considered one of the best feature-packed smartphones currently available on the market.

To get a better idea of what this intriguing smartphone brings to the table, check out our LG V10 review roundup.

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As the annual Mobile World Congress draws nearer to its schedule, several OEMs already revealed plans on launching their handsets at the event.

While some companies consistently show up every year, others prefer holding their own organized event instead.

This may be true for HTC this year. The company announced the HTC One M9 at the MWC 2015, but is now rumored to reveal the One M10 at a separate event.

Some speculations suggest that HTC is simply not prepared to release the One M10 just yet. The company has already proposed quite a few prototypes of the device and even assigned it with the codename "Perfume." However, the said prototypes were allegedly rejected, leading the company to decide on redesigning the device.

This will cause a delay in the handset's unveiling, which means that HTC will not be able to announce the One M10 at the MWC this year.

The new HTC One M10 is purported to feature a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chipset, a 23-megapixel rear camera, a fingerprint scanner and a massive 3,000 mAh battery. Rumors say it will be the first HTC handset to earn an IP68 certification for water and dust resistance capabilities. Other notable features include HTC Sense 8.0 and Android 6.1 Marshmallow on the software side.

Recently, HTC unveiled a pink version of its One A9 handset and made it initially available through its Taiwan-based site. However, the reason to release a pink One A9 should not in any way be compared with the release of a pink One M9 back in October.

HTC said the pink One M9 was the company's own contribution to the Breast Cancer Awareness month. Since it was meant to highlight the month-long campaign, the One M9 device was made available to U.S. customers only until the end of October.

With that said, it's safe to say HTC is again taking its own sweet time in adding the final touches to the One M10's new exterior. While this year's MWC is slated to occur in February, HTC is reportedly holding a dedicated event sometime in March for the launch of its next flagship. The One M10 device is scheduled to become available in April.

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When Black Sails returns to Starz this weekend for its third season, the series will welcome a new, and legendary, character to its cast: Edward Teach, most often referred to as Blackbeard.

The actor portraying Blackbeard is Ray Stevenson, known for his roles in Dexter, Rome and Divergent.

Tech Times spoke with Stevenson about his take on the infamous pirate in the series, as well as about how one takes on such an iconic role.

With Blackbeard being such a legendary historical character, as an actor, how do you approach taking on a role like that and making it your own?

I guess the simple answer would be you just turn up, and it's obviously yours and nobody else's. But there's so much research about this character: he was one of the most documented pirates of his day. And you make it your own, literally, just by playing the truth of it. You play this role within the framework of Black Sails, and with all the research and all the work: you're not doing a documentary based on some historian's view. But all that is fleshed out. But also, it's more about fleshing out the world in which he existed.

You basically, at one certain point, turn your head and put the books away and concentrate on the script at hand. And exist within the world that's being created for you.

How does Edward Teach differ from the other pirates on the series? What motivates him?

He was 6 feet 4 inches tall: he was a colossus. He was a larger-than-life character straight off the bat. He was also an extremely good navigator and captain. He could also be absolutely ruthless, when required. But he wasn't a psychopath. He was a leader of men, and he also was a great leader.

He understood the benefits of the surprise attack and the theatricality involved in presenting yourself to a ship that you wanted to take. He took a lot of ships without so much as a skirmish because of his reputation. Therefore, none of his crew died, they all got a share of the bounty. And he was an amazing sailor.

So you've got a man who was basically making his own legend in a time where, normally, you were condemned to the status of society you were born into.

Although it seems that Blackbeard and Captain Flint are at odds early on in season three, the two must face a greater enemy together: the British. What kind of alliance do they create to take on the British and can they really trust each other?

I think there's no better way to unify people than to find a common enemy. And yet, you've got two alpha males: it's like two lions in the same lion den. But it's great, so long as the enemy's there.

Vane is a former protege of Blackbeard. What is their relationship like now?

Well, this is also, potentially, one of the reasons why Teach has returned. He's been away in Virginia, trying to get land and gentry for eight or nine years. He's been married to eight or nine different wives, but had nothing but girls. Which, at its time, [meant] your name was not going to be carried on. You didn't have a son and heir to maintain your legends, as it were, to be your heir apparent. And the closest thing he ever had to a son was when he mentored the young Charles Vane.

So he's coming back to see if that possibility is still there, but he may reconnect, re-ally himself and regroup, re-establish his pirate credentials and have someone to carry on his legacy and his name.

One thing that's impressive about Black Sails is its production values. What was it like to work on something that looks and feels so epic?

It's amazing. It doesn't get better than this. It just gets better with whatever shoot you're on. They put their money where their mouth is, and you see it onscreen. And this particular coming season is going to knock people out. The stuff they've produced on here is better than some huge studio picture productions. It's epic, it really is, and yeah, they still maintain the ability to bring it right down and humanize it and involve you in the personal relationships between the main characters in among this huge epic. They just surpass themselves.

Why do you think stories about pirates intrigue TV and movie audiences so much?

I think it's probably got something to do with the same thing that attracted people in that age to it: when you feel that you are a victim of your circumstances, you're confined to family circumstances, or work circumstances, this idea of forging your own future and not bowing down to the whims and wiles of the boss man or whatever. It's a part of every human spirit, to go and forge their own destiny.

I also think, even though it's such a brief period in history, it certainly exposes that side of us.

Black Sails season three premieres on Starz on Jan. 23. For those needing to get caught up, Starz now has all episodes from the first two seasons available on its website for free.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
If California has its way, Apple will be prohibited from selling the current version of the iPhones and iPads in its own home state.

California Democratic Assemblyman Jim Cooper introduced a new bill on Jan. 20 that would ban the sale of encrypted smartphones that are manufactured on or after Jan. 1, 2017.

If passed, companies like Apple and Google would have to to make sure their devices are "capable of being decrypted and unlocked by its manufacturer or its operating system provider," so law enforcement can collect stored data from the phone (with a warrant). Cooper said in a press conference that the proposed bill, AB 1681, would help law enforcement crack down on human trafficking.

Apple previously stated in 2014 that it cannot access a user's iPhone passwords to unlock devices that run on iOS 8 and later, which would mean that the company would not be able to sell its current smartphones and other iOS products like the iPad in California. Certain Android devices from Google also have encrypted data. Manufacturers who do not comply would face a $2,500 fine.

Of course, the bill would first have to pass the Assembly and the state Senate, and then be signed by Gov. Jerry Brown in order to become a law.

The bill is similar to A08093, one that was proposed in New York last summer and referred to the Committee on Consumer Affairs and Protection by New York Assemblyman Matthew Titone (D-North Shore). That proposed bill would also slap a $2,500 fine per device sold for smartphones that that cannot be decrypted or unlocked.

That bill is still in committee, but New Yorkers can help decide if it makes it to the floor by voting "aye" or "nay" for the bill on the New York Senate's website.

Apple and Google have not yet commented on the proposed California bill.

Source: Ars Technica

Photo: Ervins Strauhmanis | Flickr

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Chipotle Mexican Grill is faced with yet another issue that may further damage its already stained image. This time, it is not about another E. coli outbreak but an accusation that one of its branches covered up something more than just burritos.

A class action lawsuit filed on Tuesday claims that the food chain tried to hide evidence of a norovirus outbreak back in August 2015. The restaurant's branch in Simi Valley, California allegedly delayed contact with health officials as it concealed proof related to the outbreak.

The lawsuit states that a kitchen manager who had already been exhibiting signs and symptoms of norovirus continued to work from Aug. 18 until he was diagnosed with the condition two days later.

The lawsuit also states that the restaurant attempted to hide evidence of the outbreak when it received at least two complaints. The restaurant chose to prioritize the cover-up instead of immediately notifying authorities.

More specifically, the complaint claims that the restaurant disposed all food items, bleached all food handling counters and cooking utensils and replaced all sick crew before finally alerting health officials on Aug. 22.

According to Doug Beach of the Ventura County Environmental Health Division, what Chipotle did prevented their office from performing particular investigative measures.

"It is unusual. Most corporate offices will call us pretty quickly when they think they have a problem," Beach says. "If we had known earlier we could've come in and taken food samples, we could have begun to take samples from employees and from customers."

Seventeen employees and 207 customers were said to have been affected by the outbreak in the Chipotle branch in question.

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of six Grace Brethren School students and one parent who got sick after eating at the restaurant.

"As a matter of policy, we do not discuss details surrounding pending legal actions," says Chipotle communications director, Chris Arnold. However, he adds that the company performed all the necessary interventions when the incident started, including reporting to Ventura County's health authorities.

Chipotle was at the center of other food safety issues during the Simi Valley outbreak. The lawsuit claims that the restaurant resorted to the alleged action in an attempt to save its stock price.

Photo: Jeramey Jannene | Flickr

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Microsoft has added another application to its roster of apps for Android devices: a free alarm clock app called Mimicker Alarm.

This Android app is no ordinary alarm as it is designed to showcase Microsoft's machine-learning abilities. Instead of simply waking its users up, it requires them to play a game first to turn the alarm off  it might require you to say a tongue twister, locate a thing with a particular color or take a selfie with a happy face. Users have to mimic the action given within 30 seconds or the alarm starts ringing again.

Here is a YouTube video Microsoft pushed out to introduce the Mimicker Alarm.



To date, Microsoft now has more than 40 apps in the Google Play Store, signifying that Microsoft is, without a doubt, contributing quite a lot to Googles renowned mobile operating system.

In fact, in December last year, the company built Microsoft Apps, which houses its own Android apps within the Google Play Store.

Perhaps the company is aware that it is tricky to search for its apps through tens of thousands of apps within the Play Store. With Microsoft Apps, locating for the precise apps is made a lot easier.

To guide you on the best Microsoft apps for Android, we have compiled a list of the apps that have been well-received by users.

Microsoft Office Mobile

With this app, it is now trouble-free to gain access to, view and edit your Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents anywhere you are. The app provides support for animations, charts, shapes and SmartArt Graphics so your documents will still look great on your smartphone. Furthermore, Word, Excel and PowerPoint have been optimized to fit in the screen of your phone.

Skype

One of the most popular communication apps around, Skype lets users make a voice call or send out an instant message to contacts in any part of the world, so long as there is an Internet connection.

Arrow Launcher

This Microsoft app is a simple launcher for Android. Simply put, it helps its users simplify their Android experience. With this app, users can easily launch and quickly get back to their much-loved apps, recent photos, file downloads and more. It will also help users easily find and keep in touch with the people they love to talk with. Plus, the app also has integrated reminders so you will not forget important events in your life.

OneDrive

Microsoft makes it easy for people to access their personal files either on their Android device, personal computer or other devices by introducing OneDrive, a free online storage app.

Next Lock Screen

Recommended for busy professionals, Next Lock Screen helps safeguard your phone from being accessed by other people, using a PIN or pattern code. You can even view important notifications and launch your well-loved apps.

You can view the compiled Android apps from Microsoft via this link.

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A report stated that Google paid Apple $1 billion last year to keep the company's search bar on the iPhone.

The information was acquired from a court proceedings transcript on the copyright lawsuit filed by Oracle against Google.

In a federal court hearing on Jan. 14, a lawyer for Oracle said that Google has an agreement in place that funnels a certain percentage of Google's revenue that it makes through the iPhone to Apple.

Since 2010, Oracle has been locked in a legal battle with Google about claims that it used Oracle's Java software without making any payments for it in the development of the Android mobile operating system.

The fight has been taken back to U.S. District Judge William Alsup in San Francisco, after previously being lodged at the U.S. Supreme Court, where Google was defeated in its attempt to derail the lawsuit. The amount of damages that Oracle is now seeking could be higher than $1 billion, as the company has increased its claims to also cover the new versions of Android.

The real news, however, is the information that the Oracle attorney revealed regarding the partnership between Apple and Google.

There have been rumors circulating over the previous years that Apple has been receiving payments from Google so the search engine could remain on the iPhone, but the two companies never publicly confirmed the amount. Apple spokeswoman Kristin Huguet and Google spokesman Aaron Stein both declined to issue a comment regarding the information about the Google-Apple partnership.

The agreement shows how far Google will go to keep mobile device owners using its search engine. It also reveals the financial benefits that Apple is gaining from the advertising-based business model of Google, despite Apple CEO Tim Cook previously criticizing the strategy as an intrusion to user privacy.

Annette Hurst, the lawyer for Oracle who disclosed the details of the agreement between Google and Apple, says that a Google witness who was questioned during the pretrial phase said that at a certain point in time, the revenue share was 34 percent. It was not made clear whether the percentage is referring to the revenue that was kept by Google or paid by Google to Apple.

A Google attorney objected to the disclosure of information, and then tried to have the presiding judge erase the mention of the 34 percent figure from records.

"That percentage just stated, that should be sealed," said Google attorney Robert Van Nest, according to the transcript. "We are talking hypotheticals here. That's not a publicly known number."

The judge later denied the request of Google to erase the mention of the percentage from the transcript, which has been made open for public review. Google then requested for Alsup to seal and then redact the transcript, stating that the disclosure of the information could greatly affect the company's ability for negotiating similar deals with other companies. In a separate filing, Apple joined Google in the request.

"The specific financial terms of Google's agreement with Apple are highly sensitive to both Google and Apple," write Google in a filing on Wednesday, adding that the two companies have been treating the information as extremely confidential.

The transcript is now gone from electronic court records, with no statement on whether the court accepted the request of Google to seal the transcript.

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The business squabble between Oracle and Google over Android continues after a lawyer for Oracle revealed in court that the operating system has already generated $31 billion in revenue and $22 billion in profit for its maker.

During a federal court hearing in Northern California on Jan. 14, Oracle's legal counsel Annette Hurst discussed the findings of their analysis of revenue and profit from the Android OS.

In its court filing, Google said that Hurst's statements were based on information taken from internal financial documents that were not supposed to be made public. The company has asked the court to place the disclosures under seal.

"Google does not publicly allocate revenues or profits to Android separate and apart from Google's general business," Google said in its filing. "That non-public financial data is highly sensitive, and public disclosure could have significant negative effects on Google's business."

Oracle has declined to provide any comment regarding the disclosures in court.

The transcript of the hearing was initially available electronically at a courthouse in San Francisco, but has since been removed from the court's computer system accessible to the public. There is also no indication that the court has granted Google's request to have it sealed.

Java Language Use

The legal battle between the two tech companies began when Oracle accused Google of using Java language for the development of the Android OS without paying for the software.

Use of the Android OS started in November 2007 with the debut of the Android alpha. Android 1.0, the first version of the mobile operating system to be used commercially, was introduced in September 2008.

Oracle is trying to utilize information on Google's finances to prove in court that the company used the Java software in its development of the Android OS so that it can quickly make profits from it.

Oracle wants to set the value of damages it is seeking from Google based on the search engine company's earnings from Android. This would mean that the larger the revenue Google made from the operating system, the more money Oracle could receive for the copyright infringement once the case is taken to trial.

In last week's hearing, Hurst argued that at the time of Android's development, it was crucial for Google to finish the operating system as soon as possible.

The company was competing with Apple regarding which of the two can release their respective technologies first. Consumers were becoming increasingly accustomed to the concept of mobile OS.

Hurst referenced a testimony given by an engineer from Google in which the individual stated that alternatives to the Java software "all suck."

Industry analyst James Cakmak of Monness Crespi Hardt & Co. explained that Oracle's data did not have enough granularity in terms of how much of the figures' percentage were derived from established and emerging markets, as well as how the numbers change with time in order to provide a concrete re-evaluation of Google's business.

He said that the margin in Oracle's figures was not much of a surprise, and that it helps provide a framework that can be used to interpret Google's monetization prospects regarding mobile.

Photo: Peter Kaminski | Flickr

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Zika virus has been causing major health problems in Brazil and other South American nations. Now, health officials are investigating whether the disease is also associated with a rare paralysis condition called Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS).

Brazil has witnessed a rise in GBS cases. During the entire 2014, cases in Rio Grande do Norte state totaled to 23. However, from January to August 2015, the state was able to report 33 cases already.

Brazilian hematologist Dr. Wellington Galvao says the average number of patients he treats for GBS is around 10 to 15 per year. In 2015, he treated a total of 43 patients.

The country's ministry of health said in December 2015 that it was looking at whether the changes in rates are caused by Zika [pdf].

The Pan American Health Organization has also acknowledged the increase in GBS cases in areas where Zika virus is present. The organization notes, however, that there has been no direct causal relationship established between the two. "Several studies are underway to better establish the relationship between Zika and GBS," the PAHO news release reads.

GBS is an autoimmune disorder characterized by attacks to the nervous system. The disorder may be caused by an infection with different bacteria or viruses. Patients with GBS experience muscular weakness that spreads to the arms and legs and even to the respiratory muscles, causing difficulty of breathing and severe complications.

Zika virus is a mosquito-borne virus transmitted mainly by Aedes aegypti, which also spreads dengue fever and chikungunya. Approximately 80 percent of people infected with the virus do not show signs and symptoms. For those who do have clinical manifestations, they usually experience fever, rash and joint pains that last for about a week. Deaths and severe cases that need hospital admissions are rare.

What's alarming with Zika virus is its significant effects on newborn babies. In the past year, about 4,000 cases of brain damage in babies have been documented in Brazil. The babies are said to have unusually small heads.

CDC has already developed guidelines for American health providers regarding appropriate care for pregnant women in the face of Zika virus outbreak. Authorities have also advised pregnant women to not travel to countries where the virus is spreading.

Photo: John Tann | Flickr

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Languages across South America to Africa and Australia are rapidly dying, according to the United Nations, with a spoken language disappearing every two weeks or less.

Even more surprisingly, 97 percent of the global population used a mere 4 percent of living languages.

This was the warning of the international organizations statement released after the three-day U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, which underlined that many out of the 6,000 currently existing oral languages have not been recorded yet and are on the brink of extinction as they are passed down by generations.

Canadian tribal chief Edward John then called for urgent action to revive indigenous languages, whose extinction, he believes will go unnoticed as the world concentrates on preserving cultural heritage sites.

"The priority focus that I hear from all of the experts is, create fluent speakers. That's what you need to do. How do you do it? That's the discussion taking place, John said, speaking Thursday at the end of the conference among indigenous language experts at the U.N. headquarters.

He emphasized that while there has been massive attention on literacy, and developments of books, dictionaries, and other materials in indigenous tongues, there isnt as much push toward fluency.

According to John, there is an urgent need for governments to commit to identifying their countries indigenous languages as well as the age and number of their speakers. A first-time global map can then be created, after which languages with fewer speakers will be revitalized and kept from turning extinct.

Smartphones and technology should be allies in teaching young people their native languages, John argued.

Ethnic Itelman Tatjana Degai, hailing from Kamchatka on the Pacific coast of Russia, echoed that the language of her people is severely endangered, with only five elderly speakers (all female and 70 years old) left.

"There are about 10 to 15 middle-aged speakers who grew up hearing the language but don't consider themselves speakers, she lamented, adding the Itelman is taught in just one school, only for 40 minutes every week.

And it doesnt stop there, Degai added, as most of the 40 out of the 47 recognized Russian indigenous peoples languages from the north, Siberia, and the Far East are on the verge of extinction as well.

Delegates specializing in indigenous languages are projected to gather at the New York headquarters to discuss the matter. Recommendations from the meeting will be presented to another meeting in May and the U.N. Economic and Social Council in July.

Accounting for around 80 percent of the worlds population are the 83 top spoken languages. A mere 0.2 percent of people around the globe, however, speak the 3,500 smallest languages.

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CRESCENT VALLEY  Snow-covered haul roads contributed to the death of an Elko miner in December at Barrick Gold Corp.s Cortez Hills Mine in Lander County.

On Dec. 28, Douglas P. Hicks, a 42-year-old miner with three years of experience, was killed, according to the Mine Safety and Health Administration.

The operator of a loaded haul truck was attempting to have his truck climb a snow covered access road when his truck slid backwards striking the cab of the victims loaded haul truck, which was also recovering from sliding backwards down the same access road, stated the MSHA Fatalgram. Several minutes later, a third loaded haul truck also slid down backwards while attempting to climb the access road, colliding with the other wrecked haul trucks.

MSHA stated best practices include examining roads for hazardous conditions prior to permitting equipment access and especially when conditions change due to snow, ice or water. MSHA also said people need to communicate hazardous conditions to others when using the haul roads.

Hicks was hired by Barrick in 2012 as an equipment operator at the Goldstrike Mine and transferred to Cortez in 2013. He leaves behind a 13-year-old daughter.

Barrick President Kelvin Dushnisky said in December, We will devote all available resources to determining the causes of this incident so that we can work to prevent such a tragedy from occurring again.

The mine is 24 miles south of Beowawe in Lander and Eureka counties. Cortez Hills has about 1,250 employees on the surface and underground, not including the ranches and exploration. The property also has more than 350 contractors.

This was the 17th fatality reported in 2015 in metal and nonmetal mining. It was the fourth fatality reported in Nevada last year.

Brian Lee Holmes, 53, was killed Jan. 11 while riding on a work platform on top of a skip in Newmont Mining Corp.s Leeville Mine No. 1 Vent Shaft. Holmes was working for Cementation USA Inc. at the time.

An Allied Nevada Gold Corp. employee, David D. Martinez, 61, was killed May 28 at the companys Hycroft Mine when a water truck ran into the structure he was occupying.

Jason Potter, 26, of Lava Hot Springs, Idaho, was killed Aug. 3 at the SSX Mine in Elko County when he was struck by mobile equipment. He was working for Small Mine Development in the underground mine owned by Jerritt Canyon Gold LLC.
A study has found that oral human papilloma virus (HPV) infection increases the risk for developing neck and head cancer. The increased risk of head and neck cancers is mainly linked to HPV-16, a specific type of HPV.

Past studies have revealed that HPV causes throat cancer among men and cervical cancer among women. The discovery led the medical community to increase the guidance of vaccines starting in early teens prior to the person's assumed timeline of exposure to the virus.

In the current study, the research team from Albert Einstein College of Medicine said mouthwash samples can help determine the person's risk of developing neck or head cancer. The team, headed by Robert D. Burk, M.D. and Ilir Agalliu, M.D. Sc., analyzed 96,650 mouthwash samples of participants who never had cancer. These people participated in the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial and the American Cancer Society Cancer Prevention Study II Nutrition Cohort. They were monitored for an average of almost four years.

The team found 132 participants who later developed either neck or head cancer within the follow-up period. Their data was compared to the 396 participants in the control group. The mouthwash samples were screened for various types of oral HPVs.

Findings showed that participants whose mouthwash samples had HPV-16 were 22 times more likely to develop oropharyngeal cancer. Additionally, the team found that gamma-HPVs and beta-HPVs were also linked to the increased risk of developing head and neck cancers. These types of HPVs are usually found on the skin.

The study found that looking for the presence of HPV-16 in mouthwash samples can help predict the development of head and neck cancers. The research was published in the journal JAMA Oncology on Jan. 21.

In 2010, actor Michael Douglas announced that he received a diagnosis for stage 4 throat cancer. Several specialists failed to identify Douglas' cause of oral distress. Finally, a doctor from Montreal discovered a walnut-sized tumor at the base of his tongue. Douglas said the cancer was caused by HPV.

There are currently two FDA-approved vaccines in the market for the prevention of HPV strains 16 and 18 infections - Gardasil and Cervarix.

Photo: Elvert Barnes | Flickr

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The number of babies in the United States born with the congenital defect known as gastroschisis has more than doubled over the past 18 years, according to a recent report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Infants suffering from gastroschisis are born with a hole in the wall of their stomach, leaving their internal organs such as liver and intestines to protrude from their abdomen.

Sufferers are often required to undergo immediate surgery to address the condition. CDC experts say babies that received surgery do well following the procedure.

Suzanne Gilboa, an epidemiologist and head of the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD), said they are still unsure why the number of gastroschisis cases in the country is increasing.

Prevalence of Gastroschisis

In its report, the CDC said that gastroschisis is still considered a rare type of birth defect, despite the noticeable increase in the number of sufferers. In the U.S., an estimated 2,000 infants are born with the condition every year.

While the exact cause of gastroschisis remain a mystery, experts believe some factors such as alcohol use, smoking, illegal drug use and being underweight prior to becoming pregnant can increase the risk of developing the condition.

However, Gilboa said they do not know if these factors are what caused the spike in gastroschisis occurrence that they have observed.

The CDC examined data collected from different 14 states, which include Arizona, California, Iowa, Georgia, New York, Oklahoma and Texas. The figures comprise approximately one third of infants born in the U.S. from 1995 to 2012.

The condition was mostly seen among mothers who were younger than 20 years old. The biggest rise in gastroschisis cases mostly involved infants born to mothers who were 20 years old or younger and non-Hispanic black.

Dr. Coleen Boyle, director of the NCBDDD, said that it is crucial for public health research to find out why certain mothers are more susceptible to having babies with the condition.

Surgery

Doctors can identify if an infant has gastroschisis by conducting an ultrasound of the mother's womb during pregnancy. After birth, the baby with the condition would have to undergo surgery immediately so that the organs can be put back into the abdomen and the hole in the abdominal wall can be repaired.

Neonatologist Dr. Leslie A Lusk of the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) explained that there is a big discussion among doctors regarding the best way to carry out the surgery and how invasive the procedure should be. The main objective, however, is to put the abdominal organs back in the body.

Doctors say once the hole in the abdominal wall has been closed, the baby can get a chance to live a normal and healthy life, provided that the organs are not injured.

Dr. Lusk said gastroschisis is generally a non-fatal condition and that it can be properly addressed. However, patients can suffer lasting complications related to their bowel, which could require another surgery in the future.

Photo: Gabi Menashe | Flickr

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
After reaching his 300th day aboard the International Space Station, NASA astronaut Scott Kelly is near the end of his special year-long mission in space. He now spends most of his remaining days on the orbital facility trying out fun activities in zero gravity.

On Thursday, the veteran engineer and retired U.S. naval captain played a game of ping pong on the ISS using a small drop of water, which formed into a ball thanks to the weightlessness of space.

Kelly then proceeded to bounce the water ball between two hydrophobic paddles, while also serving up a challenge to Mary Poppins, the eponymous lead character of Disney's 1964 musical film of the same name.

Try this, Mary Poppins! Super-hydrophobic polycarbonate ping pong paddles and a water ball in space! #YearInSpace https://t.co/BB0Z35jbVa  Scott Kelly (@StationCDRKelly) January 21, 2016

The solo ping pong game is just one of the many undertakings Kelly has tried throughout his stay in space.

In previous photographs and videos, he was shown growing flowers with his crewmates, eating space-cultivated vegetables and even haunting the hallways of ISS wearing an egg-like mask for Halloween. The images can be seen on his Instagram and Twitter accounts.

While Kelly may seem like he is just trying to fight off the effects of boredom, his activities have all been part of his day job for NASA. His Web videos are meant to show how life in space would be like for future interplanetary travelers.

He is also tasked with testing new technologies to find out how they would fare in zero gravity. It may have not been noticeable at first glance, but the hydrophobic paddles that Kelly used for his ping pong game featured laser-etched surfaces that were sprayed with Teflon. The combination of the Teflon and the etching allowed the paddles to repel water more effectively.

Kelly's video feed from the ISS is also meant to try out 4K technology. The RED Epic camera that NASA sent up to the orbital facility last year allows the crew to film their activities, which are then shown through the web as well as on the space agency's new 4K TV channel.

The RED Epic camera records high quality images that capture the sense of how large the ISS, and what it must be like to be in the orbital facility.

Aside from Kelly, Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Korniyenko has also spent his 300th day on the ISS as part of the year-long mission. The pair is set to wrap up their stay in space and land in Kazakhstan in the spring of 2016.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Since its original iPhone was released nearly 10 years ago in June 2007, Apple's flagship smartphones haven't posted an annual decline.

Well, that status could be in jeopardy now. That's because, Reuters is reporting that since Apple's main Asian suppliers are projecting revenues and orders to slide this quarter that iPhone sales are almost destined to dip and suffer its first annual sales decline since 2007.

Why? Well, the companies feel that Apple's innovation has slowed down with its past couple of iPhone models and that they're doing what everyone else in the smartphones space is doing.

The companies  Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), which makes some of the chips in the iPhones, and Largan Precision Co Ltd, a smartphone camera lens manufacturer  are projecting slumping sales numbers.

In particular, TSMC has predicted a drop of up to 11 percent for its year-on-year first-quarter revenues.

That should affect Apple, which is scheduled to report its December-quarter results Tuesday, according to Reuters.

"Visibility is only a month at a time and demand is quite weak," Largan Precision chief executive Adam Lin told Reuters about his company's overall state with the iPhones.

Another supplier told the news agency that Apple went from giving them three months advance notice on orders to only one month, creating more stress.

"We have to be very flexible in terms of capacity," said an exec dealing with Apple that chose to remain anonymous.

If this pans out and Apple reports an annual decline for its iPhones, how will it rebound with these key suppliers overseas?

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
A billionaire boss who cares about his employees.

That description fits Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, especially this week.

Bezos, who also owns the Washington Post, took a private jet to Germany to personally escort Post reporter Jason Rezaian back home to the United States on Friday after the journalist had been in an Iranian jail for nearly two years.

"I am overjoyed to be reconnecting with my family," Rezaian told CNN. "I am feeling well and plan to relax and enjoy home-cooked meals, sports, and movies with them over the next few days and weeks."

Rezaian was imprisoned in July 2014 and finally released last weekend due to a successful prisoner swap negotiation.

According to CNN, Rezaian was staying this week at a U.S. military hospital in Germany, where Bezos met him. And Bezos wasn't alone, as he was joined by Rezaian's wife and mother, as they boarded the Amazon CEO's private jet Friday morning and headed back to the U.S.

Before they took off, the Post snapped the picture (above) of Bezos, Rezaian and his wife on the tarmac.

"Jeff had dinner with the Rezaians Thursday evening at the Army base in Germany and then flew them back home," a spokesperson with the newspaper told CNN. "Like all of us, he is incredibly happy they are safe and sound."

This comes after a trying ordeal, which had Rezaian's Post colleagues working diligently to bring their co-worker home.

They caught the break they needed last weekend during the prisoner swap, which paved the way for Jason to take a flight out of Iran and into Germany.

Bezos tweeted about it Sunday.

Wheels up and out of Iranian airspace! Jason, Yegi, and Mary aboard. Doug Jehl and Ali Rezaian worked tirelessly on this. #JasonIsFree  Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) January 17, 2016

Believe me, if you're ever tossed in a foreign prison, you want Fred Ryan and Marty Baron on the team working to get you out. #JasonIsFree  Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) January 17, 2016

Rezaian met with two Post editors in Germany on Monday, before eventually meeting with Bezos and flying home.

Once he's well rested, he plans on writing about his experience being in an Iranian jail.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Lost iPhone and Android owners land up at Atlanta couples house due to Find My Phone bug

For the past one year, an Atlanta couple, Michael Saba and Christina Lee have been living a nightmare, as they are victims of bizarre bug that keeps sending angry iPhone and Android owners to their house in their efforts to retrieve a lost device.

As Fusion reports, it all started the first month Lee and Saba moved in together in Atlanta. The Atlanta couple has been fielding visits from angry strangers, sometimes accompanied by police officers, who believe their device as detected by Find My Phone app is located somewhere within Saba and Lees home.

The popular find my phone app (like Apples Find My iPhone or Androids Device Manager) keep directing people right to their front door to recover lost or stolen devices.

But the phones arent there, Lee and Saba always protest, baffled at being fingered by these apps more than a dozen times since February 2015. Im sorry you came all this way. This happens a lot, theyd explain. Most of the people believe them, but about a quarter of them remain suspicious, convinced that the technology is reliable and that Lee and Saba are lying.

My biggest fear is that someone dangerous or violent is going to visit our house because of this, said Saba by email. (Like this guy.) If or when that happens, I doubt our polite explanations are gonna go very far.

People, after all, can get pretty desperate when their tech appendages go missing. And sometimes, its not just a phone thats missing, but a person. In June, the police came looking for a teenage girl whose parents reported her missing. The couple once was made to sit outside their home for over an hour without being able to use their own restroom, as police wondered whether to get a warrant to further search the crime scene looking for the missing girl and her phone.

Your house is a crime scene and you two are persons of interest, the officer said, according to Saba.

The couple, who are in their 20s, she a journalist and he an engineer, worry the police will kick down their door one day, a scenario that has happened before based on faulty Find-My-iPhone tracking.

It really drives home how unsafe and fallible some of this technological evidence is, said Saba by phone.

So far it is unclear as to why this couples home is the center point of the Find My Phone feature. All the stolen phones are from different carriers, so that isnt it: AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint, Boost Mobile. Apple claims the issue has nothing to do with them. As near as anyone can figure, the problem may have to do with a strange triangulation issue between three cell towers around Saba and Lees home, but even then, its hard to understand why Find My Phone keeps directing people to the wrong house.

Jonathan Zdziarski, an iPhone forensics expert, thought Wi-Fi mapping could be to blame, telling Fusion that its possible that these find my phone apps all depend on the same Wi-Fi mapping data, and that this data is all licensed from the same company and that the company could have had bad data in the database, either someone using the same MAC address at a different location or just bad GPS data.

Saba says that after this started happening that he registered the correct address for their Wi-Fi network with Skyhook, but it didnt solve the problem.

There are probably a lot of things that could go wrong here but Id have to have the phones to actually figure it out, Zdziarski said via Twitter. But the phones, of course, are missing.

Currently, the couple is frustrated, as sadly there doesnt seem to be any immediate solution in sight for Saba and Lee. The two plan to file a complaint with the FCC and their senator hoping to finally resolve the problem.

Public pressure is how stuff like this changes, said Saba. It sucks that it happens to us, but I hope our experience will lead to it not happening to anyone else.

A similar case happened in Las Vegas reports Fusion, but a Sprint tower was found to be the culprit. The carrier said that a mans home happen[ed] to be in the center of a geometric circle denoting the coverage area of one sector of a Sprint cell site, and thats why his house came up when people started looking for lost device.
Google reportedly paid Apple $1 billion in 2014 to keep the default search bar on iPhones

An examination of the court transcripts by Bloomberg indicated that Google paid a hefty Apple $1 billion in 2014 to retain its position as the default search bar provider on iOS. The clarity on the figure was received as part of Oracles long-running copyright lawsuit against Google.

During a hearing last week in federal court, an attorney for Oracle said that the payout was part of a revenue-sharing agreement the two companies have that gives Apple a percentage of the revenue Google generates through Apple devices.

According to a witness questioned during the court proceedings, at one point in time the revenue share between Google and Apple was 34%. It was not immediately clear if the percentage reflects the share Google keeps or pays to Apple.

Google lawyers reportedly attempted to have the witness statement regarding the 34 percent share struck off the court transcript. This request was denied by the judge presiding over the trial.

Google filed another request to have the transcript sealed and redacted, which contains information said to be highly confidential. Apple too has reportedly requested the same in a separate filing. In Googles filing the company reportedly stated:

The specific financial terms of Googles agreement with Apple are highly sensitive to both Google and Apple. Both Apple and Google have always treated this information as extremely confidential.

Both the companys request was presumably granted later, as Bloomberg says the transcript is no longer available.

Besides throwing light on a very sensitive deal, the disclosure is interesting because it shows two things. The value that Google puts on its rivals platforms to increase its search business and, second, that Apple draws revenue from Googles advertising-based business model despite Apple CEO Tim Cook having made numerous public statements criticizing companies that make money from using personal data.

Speaking at EPICs Champions of Freedom event in Washington last summer, Cook said:

Im speaking to you from Silicon Valley, where some of the most prominent and successful companies have built their businesses by lulling their customers into complacency about their personal information. Theyre gobbling up everything they can learn about you and trying to monetize it. We think thats wrong. And its not the kind of company that Apple wants to be.

The contract between Apple and Googles search was reportedly set to end in 2015, raising speculation that Apple could end the agreement in favor of working with Yahoo or Microsoft. Yahoo and Microsoft were both interested in inking a deal with Apple to dethrone Google as the default search engine on iOS devices, but it looks like Google and Apple may have established a renewed agreement, as there are no signs of shifting to another search engine as of now.

In a May 2015 interview, Googles chief business officer Omid Kordestani said Google wanted to continue its partnership with Apple. Wed love to continue our partnership with them and doing our best to work with them, and thats all I can say for now, he said.

Another factoid thrown up by the case included a claim by Oracle that Android has generated $31 billion in annual revenue to date, of which $22 billion is profit. Oracle claims that the search engine company used its Java software without paying for it to develop Android.

While Oracle is seeking royalties from Google over its use of some of the Java language, Google argues it should be able to use Java without paying a fee.
California Joins New York In Wanting To Ban Encrypted Smartphones

Recently, New York had proposed an anti-encryption bill that allows the government backdoor access to your device. Joining the bandwagon is California who has come up with a similar bill, which could require manufacturers to make smartphones that can be decrypted and unlocked. In other words, Californias legislature is considering banning devices that come with unbreakable encryption.

This legislation was introduced by California assembly member Jim Cooper (D-9th)  Assembly Bill 1681. Basically the idea is similar to what New York has proposed, in which it requires all smartphones manufactured on or after January 1, 2017, and sold in California after that date to be capable of being decrypted and unlocked by its manufacturer or its operating system provider. If devices are found not to comply with these regulations, they could be fined $2,500 (presumably per device).

If the bill becomes law, the bill would affect all iPhones with iOS 8 and above, as well as many Android devices (especially the ones that come installed with Android 6.0).

The bill might force a pause in sales for Apple in its hometown. The iPhone maker added strong encryption to its devices last year, and Google followed suit shortly afterwards with similar encryption on Android. Even though many in the U.S. government believe that encryption hinders law enforcement investigations, Apple and Google argue that its a matter of user privacy.

Apple shows no signs of stopping its fight for encryption on smartphones, either. The companys CEO Tim Cook recently questioned President Obamas stance on privacy and surveillance, and he has commented on various pieces of anti-encryption legislation in the United Kingdom and United States in the past. It seems likely that Google and Apple will both fight against the bill, though neither have commented on the new anti-encryption legislation.

Despite Cooks strong support for encryption, a $2,500 charge each time an iPhone doesnt have a backdoor might force Apple to change its tune, unless Apple plans to boycott California and not sell iPhones in the state until the law is reversed.

The bill must pass the assembly and the state senate, and be signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown (D).

It does seem like a long shot for California, considering some of the biggest tech companies are based in Silicon Valley. At least in New Yorks case, its citizens can sign up on the states official website to express their approval or disapproval of the new legislation by clicking on the Aye on Nay buttons. The aim is when a senator comes to vote, they can see from their websites dashboards which way their constituents want their lawmaker to vote.

As of now, California doesnt have such a site, which means that if you disagree with the bill, you will still have to contact your local representatives in California directly.
Google makes how much through Android? Oracle reveals the exact figure

Tech giant Google possesses the worlds largest search engine, allowing it accumulate huge amounts of revenue in the form of advertising, but it looks like the company also has another source of income; one that delivers huge amounts of revenue as well. That happens to be the companys mobile operating system; Android. During a lawsuit hearing that was taking place in court, where Oracle and Googles lawyers were present, the representative from the former might have inadvertently spilled the beans on how much Google is able to rake through its Android licensing fees.

According to the lawyer, Google has generated a total of $31 billion in revenue ($22 billion USD in profit) through its Android licensing fees and now that we have gotten to know that figure, we do not believe that it is a surprising figure primarily because there are a large number of smartphone manufacturers who have started to sell their devices powered by the companys mobile operating system. Naturally, Google was not happy that the lawyer disclosed these figures as the companys lawyers stated the following:

Google does not publicly allocate revenues or profits to Android separate and apart from Googles general business. That non-public financial data is highly sensitive, and public disclosure could have significant negative effects on Googles business.

Samsung, one of the many manufacturers that uses Googles mobile OS, is the largest Android smartphone OEM right now, and it has been reported that Google is lending out a helping hand to the South Korean company in order to make its TouchWiz interface much more refined, and resource optimized. After all, the tech giant obviously does not want Samsung to shift its focus on Tizen, which is only now getting some levels of traction (Tizen is Samsungs own developed mobile OS).

Oracle had filed a lawsuit in 2010, and stated that Google was using a modified version of Java; one that belongs to Oracle, and the company was using it without compensating the latter. Now that the entire globe that has access to an internet connection knows that Google makes a ton of money off Android, Oracle will definitely be enjoying a nice pay day with the damages it will receive later on.
Fitbit captures exact moment of a mans heart break

Fitbit has been one of the most popular health band around the world that is used to track daily workout, eating habits and sleep cycles. But for Koby Soto, it had one extra feature. That is to measure the precise moment his heart broke.

Soto is a Israeli law student as well as CTO at Guesty, a Y Combinator-backed startup which he co-founded with his twin brother that helps customers manage their Airbnb properties.

One Saturday, when he was about to take a break from studying to chill out with his boyfriend when he received an unexpected call. Out of the blue, his boyfriend said he was calling it quits. This was a great shock for Soto who was under the impression that he and his boyfriend were going great and their relation was pretty intense. Apparently Sotos boyfriend had other ideas.

Anyways, coming back to Soto, he was is a state of shock. He tried to focus on other things and spent the rest of the day trying to forget the whole thing. It wasnt until he was tossing and turning in bed that night trying to sleep, his heart rate noticeably heightened in his emotional state, that he turned to his Fitbit app on a whim.

What he saw stunned him: There, in vivid color, was his breakup tracked through his heart-rate monitor.

The breakup call came in around 12.30 pm and the graph captured Sotos heartbreak moment perfectly. It showed that after he had received the call his heart beats per minute jumped up from 72 to 88. It then remained elevated for the rest of the day, peaking at 118. Soto immediately decided to share it among his friends at Hacker News, I put it up on Hacker News because I thought geeks would think it was interesting, he told CNN. I thought 20 people might like it. I definitely wasnt expecting to break the internet, I mean seriously, its everywhere. My post being viral is a little scary & embarrassing, yet funny. Thx for all the support and hugs. You are fabulous, and I am very much ok!  Koby (@iamkoby) January 21, 2016 The response that his tweet and his post got overwhelmed him. One user replied offering to date him instead. Another pointed out that at least he wouldnt have to go to the gym that day. Countless more sent messages of support, virtual hugs and positive tips for moving on. Even Fitbit joined the party! @iamkoby we are sorry. Would you like a hug? #fitbitfriends  Fitbit UnitedKingdom (@FitbitUK) January 20, 2016

Seeing Sotos tweet, many other who had faced similar situation came out in the open with their own heartbreak moment.

https://twitter.com/jedgar/status/689802460941139968

@iamkoby  I hope you find love again and your fitbit will capture it  Cassandra Jaramillo (@cassandrajar) January 21, 2016

Soto may be nursing his broken heart back but one thing is certain, Fitbit got a lot of free press due to his heartbreak!
ELKO  This winter has produced a consistent snowfall, which can be beneficial in a high desert climate, but it can create issues with fire hydrants.

Building maintenance personnel, public works departments, residents and snow removal crews frantically work to remove the snow from roads, parking lots, and walkways to allow safe passage after each snow, wrote Fire Marshal Josh Carson, explaining snow can become piled on top of fire hydrants.

Fire hydrants are often found in landscaped areas, parking islands or even in residential front yards. Unfortunately, these areas are often the preferred places to put unwanted snow, and the fire hydrants often become buried and frozen.

A minimum clear space of 3 feet in circumference is required by model codes around fire hydrants, even from snow, said Carson. These clearances are essential to a quick response by the fire department. Digging out a fire hydrant can take several minutes, taking valuable time away from fire suppression and rescue operations.

There are over 2,000 fire hydrants in the City of Elko, and clearing them after a snow can be a daunting task. Additionally, city fire hydrants may not be visible under snow as they are not equipped with identifications flags.

City utilities personnel and firefighters work to remove snow from public hydrants, which are painted red, as soon as possible after a storm. Private fire hydrants are painted yellow, and the responsibility of clearing them falls on the business owner.

The City of Elko Fire Department is asking for the communitys assistance in clearing fire hydrants during these cold, snowy months. When clearing snow from your sidewalk, driveway or parking lot, please be mindful of the fire hydrants and maintain the minimum required 3 feet clearance.

If it is not possible to keep the fire hydrant clear, or an obstructed fire hydrant is noticed, please contact the city fire department, so crews can provide assistance. If the residence is not within the City of Elko, please contact your local fire department.

A clear and accessible fire hydrant is vital tool used by firefighters to fight fire. A buried or obstructed fire hydrant is a huge safety hazard, concluded Carson.
The rapid adoption of cloud-native and containerized microservices, distributed data processing frameworks, and continuous delivery practices has led to a massive increase in application complexity. This rapid change has very quickly led to obsolescence of current monitoring solutions. Several monitoring tools have taken an approach to collect more metrics, and do so efficiently. However, they simply offer a means to plot these metrics in as several 100 graphs, sometimes allowing the user to manually group/tag some graphs, but still leaving the user to manually correlate and make sense of what is going on. Lets look into it in a little more detail:

Traditional monitoring approaches fall short.

Most traditional and current monitoring and troubleshooting products emphasize one standard way of visualizing an application and troubleshooting failures  dashboards. These dashboards are used to visualize metrics and employ simple static threshold-based rules to alert when metrics go beyond their normal operating range.

Troubleshooting workflow using dashboards and alerts.

A dashboards- and alerts-driven troubleshooting workflow in a traditional monitoring product is structured in the following way:

A user tags their hosts, containers and services with the appropriate tags. For example, the user may tag all their production MongoDB machines with the tags -{ environment = production, stack = mongodb } A user configures static threshold-based alerts on all the important microservices that they would like to monitor. These alerts could be configured on a single metric, or on a class of metrics, across a set of hosts, containers or services. For example, theres a rule that triggers an alert if memory-used percentage on any production MongoDB machine goes above 75 percent.

A user sets up various custom dashboards, potentially for each microservice, and for the overall application. The overall dashboard tracks the most critical metrics for the entire application. The per-service dashboard tracks the critical metrics for that specific service. For complex microservices architecture, this process ends up creating 10s or 100s of dashboards. When an alert triggers on a metric, the user logs into the product, and opens up the overall dashboard. From this point on, the user goes through a series of completely manual steps that include exploring various dashboards, browsing different metrics from each microservice over multiple time-ranges, and analyzing events that are overlaid on the metric graphs. Eventually, with enough past experience about the system's behavior in the presence of the specific failure, the user is able to hone in on the right microservice responsible for the root cause.

The above workflow is standard process for most monitoring solutions available today. However, there are several issues with is approach, especially when dealing with web-scale applications:

The above workflow can involve a single ops engineer spending a few minutes or entire teams investing several hours poring over complex dashboards. The efficiency of the workflow completely depends on the experience level of the ops team and their ability to: Start with a correct initial setup by defining the right dashboards and alerts.

Having the expertise to ignore noise being generated by false alerts, while knowing which alerts to focus on and troubleshoot.

Having the knowledge to examine the right dashboards and metrics (out of the 10s of dashboards and 1000s of metrics) during the troubleshooting process.

This workflow is further complicated by the hyper-change nature of the infrastructure. When hosts, containers, and services are ephemeral, browsing metrics on a service or container that is no longer active is a waste of time. Finally, the lack of a service or application topology means that the troubleshooting phase lacks a very critical element - knowledge and visual representation of the dependencies between microservices.

A data-science approach for complex and distributed applications.

The OpsClarity platform has several analytics constructs that are specifically designed to manage the hyper-scale, hyper-change microservices architecture of modern web-scale applications. The platform was built with the specific goal of significantly improving the troubleshooting workflow for these applications. It was designed from the ground up to handle the massive volume of data generated by modern web-scale applications by applying data science and advanced correlation and anomaly algorithms. However, since every application and metric is different, the same algorithms or anomaly detection techniques cannot be applied to all the metrics that are collected. Based on the context and history of the application and metrics, the platform constantly learns system behavior, understands the context, and chooses the appropriate combination of algorithms to apply. This intelligence is built into the platforms engine, called the Operational Knowledge Graph (OKG).

Powered by the intelligence and knowledge curated by the OKG, the OpsClarity approach to web-scale application monitoring and troubleshooting is summarized as follows:

OpsClarity maintains an always up-to-date Operational Knowledge Graph of the application infrastructure. This includes information about the set of hosts and containers, and the services that run on them. It also includes information about how these services communicate with each other. In short, this is the application or service topology. The OKG automatically configures agents with the right set of plugins to collect data from the right services. It also informs which metrics are the most critical metrics to collect for each service. The anomaly detection engine automatically baselines metrics, and identifies regions where a metric behaves in an anomalous manner. The OKG allows customization of baselining algorithms to each service, significantly improving accuracy. The platform automatically synthesizes various signals from hosts and containers to create an aggregated health model for each service. The signals include port and http level network checks, anomalies, and other information. An aggregated health view is critical for quick insight into which microservices are unhealthy. The events generated due to anomalies and health changes flow into an Event Log that is easy to browse in the context of the application topology. It has various filtering and ranking mechanisms to reduce alert noise, including selecting specific events of choice, ranking events by importance, and clustering related events together. The Event Log in combination with the OKG makes the troubleshooting process faster and more reliable than traditional monitoring solutions.

Amit is co-founder and CTO at OpsClarity. As a seasoned technologist, Amit is adept at finding innovative solutions to hard problems across a diverse set of domains like operational analytics, web search and advertising platforms, and drives the technology roadmap at OpsClarity. Prior to founding OpsClarity, he built-large scale crawling, indexing and web-graph analysis systems for web-search at Google and Yahoo. Amit holds multiple patents and has authored research papers in the areas of web-search and machine learning. He holds a MS in Computer Science from Stony Brook University.

Edited by Kyle Piscioniere
A 40 anos de Malvinas

"Revisar el pasado es pensar el futuro". La frase de la presidenta de Telam, Bernarda Llorente, resume el espiritu del documental coproducido entre la agencia de noticias y el canal publico de TV sobre la cobertura que los medios de comunicacion hicieron del conflicto, plagada de censura y mentiras. Una autocritica necesaria para mirar hacia adelante en un (ya viejo) contexto de fake news y negocio informativo.
Slashing capital expenditure and even cutting its dividend to zero are not sufficient for BHP Billiton to realistically retain a 'solid A' credit rating, if spot commodity prices and currencies persist, broker Liberum has warned. "Given the company continues to be married to the idea of a solid A rating throughout the cycle, a rights issue looks likely, " said Richard Knights, of Liberum. "The threat of a capital call will weigh on the shares, but its resolution, in conjunction with self-help measures of tighter capital spend and a reduced dividend, would close the value gap to Rio Tinto." The bearish note comes two days after the mining giant slashed its full-year guidance for iron ore production by 10m tonnes after suspension of its Samarco mine operations in Brazil., Separately, Moody's have placed dozens of mining companies around the world on review for a credit downgrade today, in response to the collapse in commodity prices and slowing growth in China. The credit rating agency said the ratings review would also incorporate companies that had been placed on review previously, which include Anglo American and BHP Billiton. Shares in the BHP eased back this afternoon- and are currently 3.2pc higher at 663.4p.
Can the Rational Right segment of the Republican Party stop Donald Trump and Ted Cruz from getting their partys nomination?

Given the feckless flailing of GOP leaders so far, the answer has to be somewhere between maybe and doubtful. But as the primaries are growing closer, the voices of alarm are growing louder.

Some of the most thoughtful conservatives writing today  George Will, Michael Gerson, Jennifer Rubin, David Brooks, Peter Wehner  all agree that nominating Trump would be a total disaster for the Republicans, a profound betrayal of what Brooks calls the partys proud heritage of governing conservatism.

If Mr. Trump heads the Republican Party, it will no longer be a conservative party, writes Wehner in The New York Times. It will be an angry, bigoted, populist one. Mr. Trump would represent a dramatic break with and a fundamental assault on the partys best traditions.

Wehner, who served in the last three Republican administrations, says he will not vote for Trump if he wins the nomination. The Donalds proposed plans are nativist pipe dreams and public relations stunts, he explains, and his temperament is erratic, inconsistent and unprincipled.

Many, though not all, of these Rational Republicans lump Cruz and Trump together. Alas, too many self-styled serious conservatives are treating Cruz with reverence, and as a more responsible alternative to Trump, writes Rubin in her Right Turn column for The Washington Post. Nah. Cruz is an echo, not a choice.

One of their concerns is practical: that Trump or Cruz would lead their party to a devastating defeat, dragging down countless Republican candidates with them.

Trumps negative numbers, argue the Rationalists, hit 58 percent in the latest Wall Street Journal/NBC poll, with only 29 percent viewing him favorably. A Gallup poll shows only 17 percent with a positive view of the tea party, the movement that fueled Cruz rise to power. And their virulent anti-immigrant stance is driving away nonwhite voters, the fastest-growing segment of the electorate.

The idea that the GOP can march into the 21st century alienating every person of color is borderline insane, writes Brooks, a New York Times columnist.

Thats why Will, a Post columnist and Fox News commentator, argues that Conservatives highest priority now must be to prevent Trump from winning the Republican nomination. Gerson, a top aide to Bush 41 who also writes for the Post, adds, For Republicans, the only good outcome of Trump v. Cruz is for both to lose.

To the Rational Right, the prospect of a Trump or Cruz nomination is scary enough. It would be even more frightening if one of them actually became president.

Wehner says Trump would be the most unqualified president in American history, adding: The prospect of Donald Trump as commander in chief should send a chill down the spine of every American.

Cruz would be just as bad, says Brooks: Hes always been good at tearing things down but incompetent when it comes to putting things together.

These are journalists and analysts, not organizers or activists. Like the pope, they have no armies; just the power of persuasion. But unlike party functionaries, they have nothing to lose by criticizing a candidate who might actually win.

Brooks calls for action. Maybe its time for governing Republicans to actually do something, he writes, suggesting they fashion a grass-roots movement that solidifies behind a single candidate to oppose Trump and Cruz by mid-February.

Thats easy to say, very hard to do. Trump and Cruz have their own campaign organizations, loyal contributors and direct channels of communication. That makes them immune to pressure from party poobahs.

So any grass-roots movement would have to happen voter by voter, official by official, precinct by precinct. South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley made a good start in her response to the State of the Union by counseling fellow Republicans to resist ... the siren call of the angriest voices.

But for every brave voice like Haleys, too many Republicans cower in fear or put self-interest ahead of their party and their country. Ed Rogers, a normally sensible GOP strategist, wrote in the Post that Republicans should ignore the voices of alarm: My advice to the party faithful is: Do nothing. Wait. And somehow hope that Trump and Cruz self-destruct?

That advice is, to use Brooks words, borderline insane. Hes right when he says that theres a silent majority of hopeful, practical, pragmatic Republicans who despise the direction their party is taking.

But if they want to stop that drive toward doom, they have to end their silence. Now.
Let's be clear on policy for Brexit and climate change By Nigel Lawson, Former Chancellor of the Exchequer, Conservative member of the House of Lords and Chairman of the Global Warming Policy Foundation

No crystal ball is needed to predict the dominant political stories of 2017. For the UK it will be about Brexit: the triggering of Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty at the end of March to enable the UK to leave the European Union, the response of the EU and the subsequent discussions. For the wider world it will be all about the first year of the Trump presidency in the US.

So far as Brexit is concerned, I would expect the British position to be clear. We will offer a free trade agreement with the EU with no strings attached. By no strings I mean, pre-eminently, the restoration of unfettered UK control of our own borders (although EU citizens already resident in the UK would have the equally unfettered right to remain), the cessation of UK contributions to the EU Budget, and the end of the supremacy of European law and the European Court of Justice over UK law and the UK courts.

Although this would be overwhelmingly in the interests of EU businesses, and thus the faltering EU economy, which sell far more to us than we do to them, I expect this proposal to be rejected. The European Union is a political, not an economic, project. Europes leaders  and above all the Eurocracy - are scared stiff that, were they to accept this proposal, other member states would demand the same, and the entire European project would start to unravel.

New players: US President-elect Donald Trump and UK Prime Minister Theresa May Credit : Kenneth Kawamoto

What will increasingly be clear during the course of 2017 is that we will have to fall back to the second best option: trading with the EU on WTO terms.

That is no disaster. Our trade with vast majority of the rest of the world is on WTO terms, and we do far more trade with the rest of the world than we do with the rest of the EU. And our trade with the rest of the world has for some time been growing faster than our trade with the EU. The question is not whether we will have access to the so-called single market: everybody does. The question is what the terms of access will be. WTO terms are perfectly acceptable.

As all this becomes apparent, I expect the debate over the course of 2017 to shift increasingly to the much more important Brexit issue of how we will conduct ourselves once we have regained our freedom of action. In particular, of the vast corpus of EU legislation and regulation which at present we are obliged to have as part of UK law, which do we wish to repeal or amend? Once we regain control of our borders, precisely what should our immigration policy be? And, free from the EU Common Agriculture Policy, what should our farming policy be?

As to this last, there is a read-across to trade policy. It is little short of a scandal that, in order to protect European farmers, EU tariffs on food imports from the developing world are three times as high as on manufactures. We should take the opportunity to slash these, which would mean both cheaper food and greater help to the developing world - unlike official development aid which, as Nobel-prize-winning economist Professor Angus Deaton has found, does more harm than good.

As to President-elect Trump, prediction is harder, since he revels in being unpredictable. But while there is much cause for concern, one positive change stands out. On climate policy, whether or not he goes ahead with his promise to withdraw the US from the Paris Agreement, it is clear  not least from the choice of Scott Pruitt to head the US Environmental Protection Agency  that he intends to ignore it, as indeed both China and India, while pretending to abide by it, are doing.

This is no disaster. Over the past century and a half of industrialisation, it is officially estimated that average global temperature has risen by a mere 1C, to which the use of fossil fuels has made a contribution, although how much of a contribution is uncertain. But this is trivial: there are plenty of countries thriving with a temperature well above the global average. But what is far from trivial is the cost of current climate policy (and the UK accounts for less than 2% of global CO2 emissions) to the British economy. A new report by Peter Lilley for the Global Warming Policy Foundation, based entirely on official figures (which probably understate the cost), finds this to be in excess of 300 billion, a burden that falls particularly severely on the poorest and the just about managing.

With Mr Trump (on this issue, at least) leading the world in a more rational direction, the UK might at last come to its senses on climate policy in 2017.

Will Theresa May invoke article 50 and call a general election in 2017? By James Kirkup, Telegraph executive editor, politics

After a year like 2016 (and there have been very few years like 2016), any sort of political prediction is probably brave and possibly foolhardy. But with the warning that everything that follows could well be entirely wrong, here goes.

Next year will be about something Theresa May does, and something she doesnt do. The thing shell do is formally invoke Article 50 of the European Unions basic treaty, notifying the other members of Britains intention to leave.

Leading lady: Theresa May will push ahead with Brexit strategies in 2017 Credit : Getty

Getting to that point wont be easy. Shell have a couple of nervous days in parliament as a few Labour MPs and the House of Lords demand more details of her plans, but they wont dare outright obstruction of a prime minister who can claim to be acting for the 17.4 million who voted leave.

Once this is done, what happens? Not much in the short term is the answer. For all the excitement Article 50 will generate in the UK, elsewhere in Europe leaders will have other fish to fry.

Most immediately, EU attention will focus on the French presidential election in May. Assuming that Marine Le Pen doesnt win  the odds are against her but if she does, Brexit may be academic because the EU may just collapse  the next major EU preoccupation is Angela Merkels bid for a fourth term as German chancellor in September.

Mrs Merkel is favourite to win again, but forging a coalition could take a month or two. So it will take until almost the end of 2017 for the EUs leading powers to have permanent leadership in place, which will leave Mrs May waiting for the EU to agree its position for the start of Brexit negotiations.

And the thing Mrs May will not do? Hold a general election. Tories will urge her to cash in on a huge poll lead over Jeremy Corbyn (who will be Labour leader at the end of 2017) to get a clear mandate for Brexit talks. She may even hint she is willing to go to the country.

But it wont happen. Triggering an election under the Fixed-term Parliaments Act is too complicated and unpredictable. More to the point, any election in these turbulent times is a gamble, and Mrs May is not a gambler.

What does Donald Trump's presidency mean for global security? By Con Coughlin, Telegraph defence editor

The key issue in 2017 regarding the global security landscape will be to see how the new Trump administration responds to the various threats facing the US and its allies.

During the presidential election campaign, Donald Trump declared that he would be pursuing an America First policy, prompting concerns on both sides of the Atlantic that America would become more isolationist.

These concerns were compounded when Mr Trump also suggested he might end Americas relationship with the Nato alliance, as well as forging a closer relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom many European leaders regard as posing a serious threat to long-term security.

Russian roulette: Trump's relationship with the Kremlin could be cause for concern Credit : Getty

Since winning the election, though, Mr Trump has been more emollient, and made reassuring noises about continuing to work with the Nato alliance. Moreover, the appointment of leading hawks, such as retired general Michael Flynn as the new national security adviser, suggests the US will provide the type of effective leadership in the western alliance that was lacking during Barack Obamas eight-year term as president.

Undoubtedly Mr Trumps first major foreign policy task will be to review the US-led military coalitions campaign to destroy the terrorist infrastructure that Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil) has established in Syria and Iraq.

The big question, though, is how closely he will be prepared to work with the Russians; particularly in Syria, where the military support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has received from both Russia and Iran has been crucial to ensuring his regimes survival.

Although Mr Trump expressed his admiration for Mr Putin during the election, John Brennan, the outgoing head of the CIA, has warned the new president about trying to work with the Kremlin, telling him to be wary of Russian promises that had proved to be empty in the past.

Another issue where Mr Trumps intervention could prove controversial is his promise to rip up Mr Obamas deal with Iran over its nuclear programme. Under the terms of the deal Mr Obama signed in the summer of 2015, Iran agreed to freeze work on its nuclear weapons programme.

But if Mr Trump does fulfil his pledge to ditch the deal, this could prompt a new nuclear arms race in the Middle East  one that not only has disastrous implications for the region, but for the security of the entire world.

Wondering what the New Year holds? Read more predictions for 2017 from Telegraph writers sharing what they think will happen in the worlds of science, money, style, sport, travel and culture.
Big game is big business in our corner of the state, where guides are well paid for their ability to track down the best bucks. Imagine if they could magically float into the air and peek over the treetops hundreds of yards into the distance ...

Nowadays they can  and so can the average hunter  thanks to advances in drone technology that makes aerial spying so cheap and easy a child can do it. But soon the use of drones to spot wildlife will be illegal in Nevada.

We think thats a good move, although it will be difficult to enforce and it is part of an expanding trend to prohibit photography of all kinds on selected public lands.

The Elko County Wildlife Advisory Board is scheduled to take action on the proposal when they meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday in the Nannini Building.

Nevada already prohibits the use of flying or hovering craft for scouting big game during hunting seasons and two days prior to their start. The revisions to Nevada Administrative Code R145-15 include adding the specific term unmanned aerial vehicles and removing the time period, thereby making the use of drones to track game illegal year-round.

Taking an aerial advantage is simply bad sportsmanship.

This whole question of using a drone to help you hunt is baffling to me, state outdoor educator Aaron Keller said in an article published by NDOW. It takes away from one of the best parts of hunting and thats actually getting out there and experiencing nature.

The code applies only to people who are scouting big game. Hobbyists will still be able to fly drones in the forest for non-commercial purposes  at least for now, provided they register the devices with the government and follow FAA regulations. But anyone who buys a drone should expect restrictions to get even more strict in the near future.

Wildlife watchers who spot a drone in the sky shouldnt assume it belongs to a scofflaw guide or poacher. The use of drones to observe wildlife will still be legal for government agencies and those they employ to do research.

In fact, drones have greatly enhanced wildlife research capabilities and helped game wardens catch poachers in the act. Agencies such as the U.S. Geological Survey have been using drones for the past few years to track birds and big game, identify invasive plant species, and conduct other surveys at a fraction of the cost of flying manned aircraft.

The consensus is that drones can be wildlifes best friend and worst enemy, depending on how they are used.

We hope the hunting experience remains free from such advanced technology. The contest should be between man and animal, not a scene out of Star Wars.
WEST WENDOVER  In the early morning hours Thursday, officers of the West Wendover Police Department were alerted to a possible kidnapping out of Taylorsville, Utah.

At about 2:50 a.m. Mountain Standard Time, police found there was a possibility the victim and suspects were in the area.

The victim in this case had contacted a family member via text messages stating that he had been beaten up and kidnapped, said Lt. Don Lininger.

Through these texts, the victim provided his location and vehicle description, which were given to law enforcement.

Police located the vehicle, with three people inside, and spoke to the occupants at 1200 Wendover Blvd.

Through interviews it was found that the trio had traveled from Bakersfield, California, to Taylorsville, Utah, to start work, said Lininger, explaining after they reached the work site the job fell through and they were stranded.

Nathan Ferguson, 26, and Andrew Ussery, 29, became frustrated and supposedly assaulted the victim before traveling back toward California.

The victim accused the others of assaulting him, but did not allege they kidnapped him from Taylorsville. He was transported to a hospital in the Salt Lake area for further evaluation, said Lininger.

The Unified Police Department was notified and requested to meet the victim at the hospital to gather more information. At the time, it was unclear if the victim had been taken against his will to constitute a kidnapping charge, versus an assault and battery.

Ferguson and Ussery were released from the scene while the investigation continued.

The department later provided West Wendover police with enough information to substantiate kidnapping charges.

Ferguson and Ussery were relocated in the West Wendover area and arrested. Both were transferred to the Elko County Jail.

As most of the incident occurred in Salt Lake City, the charges brought against the men in Elko County were limited to kidnapping. The bail was listed at $25,000 each.
Documentary Experimento Stuka examines why the Luftwaffe bombed the tiny village of Benassal.

On April 26, 1937, at the height of the Spanish Civil War, the German Luftwaffe bombed the Basque town of Gernika, killing 126 people. Gernika was not a military target and of no strategic use, but the attack allowed the Nazi regime to test the efficacy of its aircraft.

In response to the international outcry over Gernika, General Francisco Franco reportedly asked the German authorities to avoid bombing civilian targets. But a year later, in May 1938, German bombers once again attacked undefended civilians, killing 38 people in four tiny communities in the interior of Castellon province.

Few people know about the air raid, but a new documentary, called Experimento Stuka uncovers the mystery of why the Luftwaffe bombed the tiny village of Benassal in the arid Maestrat region.

Oscar Vives, a resident of Benassal, read about the attack in a history of the Spanish Civil War and decided to investigate. He traveled to Freiburg in Germany to research the countrys military archives.

When they heard the aircraft everybody came out to see them. Some people thought the first bombs were just hay bales

He found a 50-page report detailing the bombing of Benassal and three other villages  Albocasser, Ares del Maestrat and Vilar de Canes  that showed how the German air force had tested out its Junkers JU 87 dive bomber, better known as the Stuka, on an undefended civilian target.

We have interviewed around 20 survivors who witnessed the bombing, says Rafa Moles, the director of Experimento Stuka. They were children at the time, but saw how their families and neighbors died. When the war ended, the dictatorship buried the case and there was no investigation.

Those children had never seen an airplane and barely knew about the war. When they heard the aircraft everybody came out to see them. Some people thought the first bombs were just hay bales.

Moles says the events in the Maestrat can be compared to Gernika. In Gernika, Hitler showed how deadly his war planes could be. In Castellon, he used a secret weapon. Not even Franco knew about the plans, and the Germans never said what it had done there.

The documentary, which has been partially funded by the regional government of Valencia, will be screened at the upcoming DocsBarcelona international documentary film festival.
Bright ideas will inform the UKs new digital strategy, a five-year plan that will be unveiled early this year, which aims to cement the countrys position as a global digital leader. The UK has certainly built a great base when it comes to digital  its recognised globally as a technology hub and houses some of the best digital talent in the world  but more needs to be done to fully capitalise on the benefits that digital transformation has to offer the day-to-day lives of UK citizens and economic growth.



Growth and productivity have been the centre of intense government and media scrutiny over the past 12 months. The UKs flailing productivity levels have given rise to questions around why the very (digital) technologies that were supposed to save time and make citizens more productive have failed to deliver on their promise. According to new research from Accenture Strategy, business and policy leaders are not capitalising on digital investments as well as they could be.




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According to research conducted by Beefeater, 20 per cent of women said they would like to propose to their partner. Despite the fact that almost a third of women said they would be worried about their partner's reaction. However, more than half of men (59 per cent) would love their girlfriends to get down on one knee.
Website Porno Catala uses Catalan-speaking actors in its movies and clips.

Talking dirty in Catalan, even for native speakers, still has a way to go, at least in porn films. Literal translations of Spanish or English dialogue in dirty movies are more likely to raise a laugh than anything else, and as we all know, nothing deflates the libido quicker than a titter.

The first attempt to create what might be called a national sex industry in Catalonia began at the end of the last century with Les Exxcursionistes Calentes (The hot day trippers), by Conrad Son, now only available online. But it is clear that the film  which received a 15,000 subsidy from the Catalan regional government  was filmed using non-Catalan-speaking actors who were later dubbed into Catalan, complete with suggestive references to the mountains of Collserola (just outside Barcelona) and the Cadi tunnel, which passes through the Pyrenees on the way to Andorra. Despite its shortcomings, the film has earned a place in the collective imagination of many of Catalonias so-called millennial generation.

Porno Catalas logo features an anthropomorphic penis wearing a Catalan flag

Seemingly keen to see Catalan used at all levels of the arts, the pro-independence regional government two years ago decided to support Porno Catala, the first erotic website entirely in Catalan, which uses Catalan-speaking actors in the movies and clips featured on it.

The first movie on the site was called Jo Mai Mai (Never Again), a parody of Barcelona, nit d'estiu (Barcelona Summer Night), a hit 2013 Catalan-language romantic comedy. Its worth pointing out that the directors of both the original, Dani de la Orden, and the takeoff, Felix Colomer, studied at the prestigious Barcelona-based ESCAC film school.

Sadly, not all the content on Porno Catala meets the same high production standards: Jaume I Conyqueridor (James I Conqueror) is a low-cost romp that sees the first king of Aragon travel forward in time to pick up Catholic Monarch Isabel in 1458 and then on to the present day. He wears a digital watch and she has an iPhone. Among the first people they meet in the modern age is a Moroccan street vendor. I thought I had got rid of all them in Mallorca, he says in reference to the taking of the island from the Arabs in 1231. Soon after, the couple take their clothes off.

Continuing in a similarly erudite vein, Porno Catala is also responsible for Oh Deu Meu: El que no explica La Biblia (Oh my God: What the Bible doesnt explain). It may not be quite up to the standard of Martin Scorseses The Last Temptation of Christ, but we do get to see a scene with Jesus and Mary Magdalene on a beach that includes such memorable lines  delivered in Catalan  as: Do you want to see a miracle? or Now you can eat the body of Christ.

The site has now turned its attention to meeting the needs of Catalan-speaking gay porn users

But back to independence: Porno Catala has supported the project of creating a new European nation from the get-go: its logo features an anthropomorphic penis wearing a Catalan flag. The sites clear commitment to sovereignty for Catalonia is reflected in any number of scenes in other films, for example K-313 features a couple having sex in an apartment adorned with pro-independence and Barcelona FC flags.

The short stories page best exemplifies Porno Catalas political engagement. One tale concerns a young man heading by bus to Barcelona with other independence supporters to take part in a vast street gathering calling for secession on Catalan National Day, known as the Diada. In recent years, the event has involved an estimated million people joining hands to form a human chain, and the young man develops a crush on the woman with whom he has to hold hands. Later that night, as they return by bus, she performs oral sex on him while the other passengers sleep.

In recent months, Porno Catala seems to have been taking a breather, focusing on updating its presence on the social networks. That said, it has now turned its attention to meeting the needs of Catalan-speaking gay porn users. Projects such as Prejudicis (Prejudices) can be seen as blazing a trail that has subsequently been followed by platforms such as Gais I Lesbianes per la Independencia, part of the Catalan National Assembly, a pro-independence civic association that is playing an increasingly important role in the Catalan LGBT community.
On Wednesday, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) raised Venezuela's growth projection to 12 percent by 2022 and 5 percent next year. | Read More
A foreign tourist at an outdoor market in Mexico City. PEP COMPANYS

More information Estados Unidos advierte a sus ciudadanos sobre los viajes a Mexico

The United States has issued a new travel warning to its citizens about the growing risks of visiting certain parts of Mexico.

In a statement issued Tuesday by the US Embassy in Mexico City, officials reported that 203 US citizens were murdered in Mexico between 2014 and 2015.

US citizens have been the victims of violent crimes, such as homicide, kidnapping, carjacking, and robbery by organized criminal groups in various Mexican states, reads the statement, which is also posted on the US State Department website. It is an update to a prior travel alert issued on May 5, 2015.

The Mexican government responded quickly by asking that travel alerts should contain precise information that is put into context, but it didnt deny any of the information in the US governments warning.

Some of the hot spot states the authorities say US travelers should try to avoid are Aguascalientes, Michoacan, Nayarit, Oaxaca, Tamaulipas, Coahuila, Durango and Guerrero, with the exception of the Pacific resort city of Acapulco.

US diplomats and their families have been prohibited by Washington from traveling to certain Mexican states

US diplomats and officials, along with their families, are prohibited from traveling to these states, according to the embassy.

Still, the State Department said there is no clear evidence that organized criminal gangs have singled out US travelers or residents living in Mexico. At the same time it pointed out that millions of US citizens safely visit Mexico each year for study, tourism, and business, including more than 150,000 who cross the border every day.

Destinations that are not covered by this new travel warning issued on Tuesday include: Campeche, Chiapas, Guanajuato, Hidalgo, Mexico City, Puebla, Queretaro, Quintana Roo, Yucatan, Tabasco, Tlaxcala and Veracruz.

Washington also advises its citizens not to visit Sinaloa, the home of one of Mexico's most powerful criminal organizations, run by drug lord Joaquin El Chapo Guzman, who was recently captured by Mexican authorities. Officials suggested they remain within the tourist areas in Los Mochis, Mazatlan and Topolobampo.

The US Embassy also offers a similar warning about Guerrero, one of most dangerous states in Mexico and where 43 teaching students disappeared in September 2014.

Non-essential travel to Tamaulipas should also be avoided because of the violent conflicts that erupt between rival criminal gangs, who sometimes target private and public buses and have taken passengers hostage, according to the statement. US government officials in Mexico are restricted from traveling to certain areas in the state that borders the United States, and are subject to a midnight-to-6am curfew in Matamoros, Reynosa, Nuevo Laredo and Ciudad Victoria.

Mexicos Foreign Relations Secretary has tried to assure US citizens about traveling, saying that one million people and 370,000 vehicles cross the US-Mexican border each day. Commercial trade between both countries has reached more than $530 million annually, the secretary said.

English version by Martin Delfin.
A tapas bar in Granada. Nano Calvo

Arguably one of Spains most significant contributions to global gastronomy, the tapa comes in all shapes and sizes, from the humble olive or a few potato chips all the way through to miniature banquets. The pincho, the tapas larger and more elaborate cousin, is to be found in the Basque Country, and most notably San Sebastian. The price of a tapa or pincho varies: some are offered free with a cana of beer or a glass of wine, and others are charged for separately. Below, 10 Spanish cities where tapas are offered free with drinks.

Alcala de Henares

Fried egg with morcilla (blood sausage) at Indalo in Alcala de Henares.

A visit to the historic town of Alcala de Henares, birthplace of Cervantes and just half-an-hour from central Madrid, is not complete without taking in a tapa or two in the old quarter, where any number of bars will be happy to provide a free munch. There are Patatas bravas (fried potato with hot sauce), huevos estrellados (fried eggs on a bed of crispy French fries), a humble sandwich mixto (toasted cheese and ham), hamburgers, and a wide variety of bocadillos (filled bread rolls). Among the hot spots are Indalo, El Tapon, or Maimonides. The price of a beer in these places is around 2.80, which is at the pricier end of the scale, but the generous tapas more than make up for it. / Natalia Marcos

Avila

The tower of Babel tapa at Las Cancelas, Avila.

The tradition in Spains highest city  and one of its coldest  is for customers in bars to choose their own free pincho, making it important to know what to ask for, and where to ask for it. Which means patatas revolconas (mashed potato mixed with paprika and chunks of crispy pork belly) in Barbacana in the old market, or pigs ears, snouts and much more in El Rincon, next to the town hall. Nearby, stewed wild boar can be found in Gredos, or chorizo mincemeat in Don Camilo. For a divine (this is the birthplace of Saint Teresa) tortilla de patata (Spanish omelet) try El Rincon de Jabugo in San Segundo street, opposite the cathedral. The house specialty at Las Cancelas, in Cruz Vieja street, is the tapa de la alegria, skewered kidneys with potato. The price of a beer here is between 1.20 and 1.90. / Jordi Pastor

Almeria

Infernal chorizo at Bella Ciao in Almeria.

A wander through the old quarter of this Andalusian port city yields a plethora of bars offering abundant and free tapas with each drink, which typically costs around 2. El Bonillo, popular with locals since time immemorial, has delicious patatas a la brava, while the recently opened Bella Ciao has remojon, a broth made from dried tomatoes and hot peppers, typically with salt cod. Tio Tom, in the nearby Zapillo neighborhood, is popular for its generous tapas. / Javier Cid

Badajoz

Matured cheese and Iberico ham at La Corchuela, Badajoz.

Badajoz, on the Portuguese border, is one of Spains tapa capitals. Most bars provide something to munch on with the beer and wine they serve, but there are three neighborhoods particularly worth noting: Valdepasillas, San Roque, and Santa Maria de la Cabeza. The latter manages to bring together, in equal parts, low prices and large portions (fried potatoes, chicken wings, pasties) La Roca (Ricardo Carapeto street) the venerable La Corchuela (Melendez Valdes street), Bar Manolo (Munoz Torrero street), or Mehtura (Jacinta Garcia Hernandez street) are just a few of the bars where beer tastes better with higadillos (chopped liver), mashed tomatoes, prueba de matanza (chorizo mincemeat), panceta (fried belly pork), or fried eggs with chorizo. Beers cost around 1.20. / Jose Ramon Alvaro

Granada

The Alhambra tapas bar, next to Granadas cathedral. / Nano Calvo Nano Calvo

As if the Alhambra werent enough, Granada also offers the visitor a warm welcome, masses of culture, and perhaps most importantly, very generous tapas: three or four are usually enough for a meal. Just about every bar in the city competes to provide the best or the most abundant. One of the best areas is around the bullring and the Realejo neighborhood. You can get a taste of whats on offer at Antigualla II (Elvira street), El Pesaor (Pio Baroja street), Bodegas Castaneda (Almiceros street), or Los Pescadores (Dr. Pareja Yebenes street). Prices for a drink range from 1.80 and 2.20. / Javier Cid

Jaen

La Barra, one of Jaens best-known bars.

In Jaen, tapas means tascas, and the historic center of the city is filled with these revered bars, which seem to have been here since the dawn of time. The best places for a free feed with your beer or wine are to be found on Arco del Consuelo, a narrow street a stones throw from the cathedral. Try Casa Gorrion or La Manchega. Close by is La Barra, on Ceron street, where the house specialty is morcilla (black pudding) with migas (chunky bread crumbs lightly fried in olive oil and garlic). There are also free tapas to be had a couple of hundred meters away in the streets around the church of San Ildefonso in bars such as El perol de la abuela, as well as in the Gran Bulevar, near the railway station, such as Tito Nono (Cataluna street), which also serves reasonably priced larger portions, known as raciones. Typical price of a beer, between 1.30 and 1.50. / Miguel Angel Medina

Leon

Vinateria Monalisa, Leon.

The bars of this bustling northern city have a long tradition of serving free tapas with wine or beer, and going out for a drink usually means eating as well. The best place to head is the old quarter, with its Romantico and Humedo neighborhoods. Among the top tapas spots are Ribera, famous for its potatoes, Flandes for boiled ham, or the morcilla at La Bicha. Then there is el Miche, el Llar, and La Trebede, all of them classics. For something newer and trendier, try Camarote Madrid, Monalisa, Flechazo, Gaia, and El Patio. Beers tend to cost around 1.60, with wines a little pricier at around 2. / Jose Antonio Otero

Salamanca

Tapas on parade at El Bardo, Salamanca. Elorza Saravia

Perhaps because of its huge student population, the price of a beer and a generous pincho in Salamanca is still less than 2. Pork is the raw material here, in all its varieties: Guijuelo cured ham, jeta (cheek), pincho moruno (skewered pork chunks), or farinato sausage from nearby Ciudad Rodrigo. The best areas for tapas are the old quarter and Van Dyck. The morcilla with caramelized onions is a must at El Bardo, as are the pinchos morunos and patatas meneas (mashed, with paprika and crispy pork belly) at the Cafe Real, while the Meson Cervantes has a wide variety of different tortillas. Bambu is the place to try a local delicacy, chanfaina salamantina: stewed rice with lambs trotters, cumin, and paprika. / Carlos Ortega Segovia

Segovia

Duque, one of Segovias most popular bars.

A beer with an unstinting pincho is a must when going out for a beer with friends in Segovia. Just about every bar in this historic city, particularly around the main square next to the cathedral and the nearby Infanta Isabel street, which is lined with bars. Among the essential stop offs on the tapa trail are bars such as San Miguel, Los Tarines, or Duque. Beers come in at around 1.20. / Cristina Garcia Herranz

Vigo

A Mina, in Vigo.

This Galician port city is known for the abundance and quality of its tapas, and a couple of beers or locally produced albarino wines will usually yield enough nibbles that you wont need to eat afterwards. Try A Mina, a newish place that relies on favorites such as mussels. The Bouzas area is filled with old bars, along with newer establishments such as Patouro, which uses seasonal products such as mushrooms in autumn. Imperial, on Colombia street, has imported beers and generous tapas. Most bars charge around 1.70 for a beer or a glass of wine. / Belen Vallina
Ban Lifted On Rohit's Friends

Officials from University of Hyderabad has finally revoked the ban on the Dalit Scholars. The university administration which was facing severe criticism from all quarters met yesterday and revoked the suspension of four Dalit scholars who was suspended along with Vemula Rohit.



Ban was lifted on four students Prashant, P Vijay Kumar, Seshaiah and V Sunkanna. The Executive Council of university met and discussed the prevailing situation in the campus and decided to lift the ban.The executive council took the decision even as the campus continued to be rocked by protests over the suicide of Rohith Vemula.



Rohith committed suicide last week and he was among the five Dalit scholars who were expelled on December 21 by the university. All the suspended scholars mostly Dhalits are members of the Ambedkar Students Association .Total of five Dalit scholars had been expelled from the hostel campus for allegedly attacking ABVP leader Susheel Kumar.



Meanwhile 14 Dalit faculty members resigned from their administrative posts expressing support to the students who launched protests. More faculty members likely to follow them.









News Posted: 22 January, 2016








Will quit post if TRS wins 100 seats: Shabbir Ali

Hyderabad, Jan 22 (INN): Leader of Opposition in Telangana Legislative Council Mohammed Ali Shabbir on Friday said that he was ready to accept the challenge posed by Panchayat Raj Minister K. Tarakarama Rao on giving resignation from the post if TRS wins 100 seats in the GHMC elections.



Addressing a press conference at Congress Legislature Party office here, Shabbir Ali said KTR's challenge was not only pre-mature, but symbolised his arrogance and over-confidence. "He challenged opposition parties even before the announcement of reserved seats. Now the first phase of GHMC election process is over. All official candidates are in the fray and battle lines drawn. At this stage, I'm willing to accept KTR's challenge if he agrees to quit as minister if TRS does not win 100 seats," he said.



Stating the TRS Government's popularity was on the decline, Shabbir Ali alleged that Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao himself is trying to do some damage control by intimidating the candidates and leaders of opposition parties. He alleged that KCR himself spoke to nearly 200 opposition candidates on Thursday asking them to withdraw from elections. At other places, even local police was used to intimidate the candidates. "This is an open misuse of official machinery and abuse of power. I appeal to the DGP and Police Commissioner to look into the specific complaints which we have referred and direct the policemen not to interfere in political matters. They must do their duty and not act as agents of ruling party. Although we were in power for over 45 years, we never misused police or other official machinery for elections," he said.



Shabbir Ali said that the TRS leaders were violating all ethics and set norms just to win elections. They are trying to take credit for projects initiated during the Congress regime. Citing an instance, he said that the then Chief Minsiter Y.S.Rajasekhara Reddy declined to inaugurate Secretariat Flyover as it was constructed by the previous TDP Government. Instead, he asked him to attend the function as the Hyderabad Incharge Minister. However, instead of thanking the previous Congress Government, KTR has been trying to take credit for bringing Godavari River water to Hyderabad. "TRS Government constructed only 300 houses. But the ruling party leaders are misleading the people by promising 3 lakh 2BHK houses. Where is the land and funds for the same? People should do the reality check before believing them.



The Congress leader also described KCR as anti-Dalit and anti-Muslim. He slammed KCR for not visiting the family of Rohit Vemula, the Dalit research scholar of Hyderabad Central University, who committed suicide due to injustices and harassment. He said that the HCU is just 5-6 minutes drive from KCR's residence. But the Chief Minister is not interested in the issue of a Dalit student while several national leaders including Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi visited HCU from New Delhi.



Further, showing a pamphlet of TRS for GHMC elections, Shabbir Ali said that KCR has conveniently ignored the promise of 12% Muslim reservation. He also did not clarify whether, Fee Reimbursement benefit will be given to students hailing from Seemandhra. There is no mention of KG to PG free education or roadmap for development of Hyderabad.



Shabbir Ali also ridiculed MIM's slogan of "Shaher Hamara, Mayor Hamara". A party needs at least 106 votes to win the Mayor's seat. Besides 150 corporators, there are about 60 ex-officio members who can participate in the election. MIM is contesting on just about 61 seats. It has 10 ex-officio members including one MP, seven MLAs and two MLCs. Even if it wins all the seats, it will have only 71 votes, almost 35 short of magic figure. "MIM leaders must stop cheating the people with misleading slogans. They must openly admit about their alliance with the TRS for GHMC elections. There is match-fixing between the two parties," he said while appealing the voters to question MIM on the grounds on which it aligned with the TRS. "Has MIM compromised on the issue of 12% Muslim reservation, Alair encounter and other issues concerning Muslim community?" he asked.



He said that the Congress party was quite stronger in GHMC elections and it would emerge victorious on majority of seats. When asked for reaction on rebels and allegations being levelled by those who were denied tickets, he said those reactions clearly show the popularity of Congress party in the city. He said demonstrations at Gandhi Bhavan over ticket issue are an answer to allegations levelled by TRS leaders who alleged that the Congress party was not having candidates. We had more number of aspirants than any other party in the city, he said.









News Posted: 22 January, 2016








King Felipe and Rajoy, in a file photo from November. EFE

More information Radio show tricks PM into prank call with phony Catalan leader

Acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is resigned to the fact that he will lose the first bid to get himself reinstated, but is ready to go through the motions anyway.

The investiture session will likely be held in late January or early February, over a month after an inconclusive general election that yielded a hung parliament.

Rajoy, whose Popular Party (PP) won the most seats at the election (123), has been seeking to forge an unprecedented grand alliance with his traditional rivals, the Socialists (90), in order to form a stable government for the next four years. The emerging center-right party Ciudadanos (40) has also been asked to join.

But Socialist Party (PSOE) leader Pedro Sanchez refuses to enter into such a partnership, and is instead working on an alternative alliance with the anti-austerity group Podemos and regional parties that support greater self-rule in places such as Catalonia and the Basque Country.

If you dont show up at Congress, you might as well go home - Pedro Sanchez to Mariano Rajoy

In the meantime, Sanchez is urging Rajoy to try his luck at the first investiture session, in full knowledge that the conservative leader will fail and that Congress will be forced to hold a run-off vote.

You cannot give up on presenting your candidacy for the investiture, said Sanchez to Rajoy. If you dont show up at Congress, you might as well go home.

While nobody in PP circles will come out and say it, there are widespread fears that Rajoys doomed investiture bid will only serve to underscore the candidates isolation, and possibly boost his Socialist rivals own image.

But Rajoy himself is determined to look anything but resigned. On Thursday, he made it clear that he wishes to be there at the first vote to defend his plans for Spain as the representative of the most-voted party.

The natural order of things

There is someone else who wants him to be there as well. King Felipe VI, who has been meeting with political leaders as part of the pre-investiture protocol, wants the natural order of things to be respected, according to Compromis spokesman Joan Baldovi, who met with the monarch on Thursday.

While the Spanish Constitution establishes a merely symbolic role for the king at these meetings, the fragmented scenario that emerged from the December 20 election, with no clear candidate to the prime ministers office  an unprecedented situation in Spanish democratic history  means that he could play a bigger role as a mediator.

Support at what price?

But regional Socialist leaders are wary of the deals that Sanchez may be making with other parties, and have asked for the partys federal committee to greenlight them first.

Podemos has long defended Catalonias right to a legal referendum on self-rule, an issue that puts it at odds with the Socialist Party. Meanwhile, the Basque Nationalist Party (PNV) is ready to support Sanchez, but only in exchange for a new relationship with the central government that includes the right to decide on the regions future.

English version by Susana Urra.
WEF partners with GoAP to make agriculture profitable

Hyderabad, Jan 22 (INN): Recognizing Andhra Pradesh's efforts in achieving profitable and resilient agriculture, sustainable food, economic and environmental security, World Economic Forum will partner with the Government of Andhra Pradesh to implement an agenda to make agriculture profitable and commercially viable.



It has come forward to establish a Secretariat in Andhra Pradesh. Together, WEF and AP will work towards bringing in best practices from across the world, improve the value chain, increase the incomes of farmers and add value to allied activities



WEF has already created sub groups to study and implement best agricultural practices in South America, Africa, Asia and Pacific regions. The studies from these groups will be implemented in Andhra Pradesh to enhance productivity, protection and profitability in agriculture in Andhra Pradesh.



During a session on 'The New Vision for Agriculture: Advancing the Action Agenda', Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Sri N. Chandrababu Naidu explained the state government's vision to create a knowledgeable, technology-abled farmers' community in the state.



He explained that the government has launched Primary Sector Mission aiming towards inclusive agriculture that can assure a green, thriving and food secure AP. The mission focuses on making agriculture sustainable and profitable through ecologically sensible practices, he said.



Elaborating on the irrigation initiatives, he explained to the delegates how he has made the impossible possible by linking Godavari and Krishna rivers. 'Drought-proofing the state is my aim and in my efforts to irrigate lakhs of hectares of farmlands, I have taken up the gargantuan task of river-linking of the mighty Godavari and Krishna rivers. With perseverance and hard work of our officials on the field, we have made this rare feat possible,' he said. In efforts towards recharging the ground water levels, he said, Andhra Pradesh has taken the lead in digging farm ponds and disbursement of the Soil Health Cards to farmers.



He said that the government has assessed the impact of water management on agriculture and allied activities in the state. In addition, we are also earmarking clusters/hubs for crops identified as growth engines, he added.



The Chief Minister said that the government has taken a brave step with the debt redemption for farmers despite starting off with a revenue deficit. To protect farmers' interests, our government has constituted the Farmers' Empowerment Corporation to ensure welfare of all farmers in the state, he said.



Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn who was also a participant in the session appreciated the Chief Minister's vision to empower farmers and making farming sustainable and profitable. The Chief Minister has also praised Ethiopian PM's initiative of creating Agriculture Promotion Council that has boosted agricultural productivity in Ethiopia.



Delegates in the session were all praise for the Chief Minister and his vision towards making agriculture a profitable and sustainable vocation.



Inger Anderson, Director General, International Union for Conservation of Nature, Kofi Annan, Chairman, Kofi Annan Foundation, Mike Barry, Director, Sustainable Business, Marks & Spencer, David Cheesewright, President, CEO, Walmart, FlemmingBesenbacher, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Carlsberg A/S, Paul Bulcke, CEO Nestle, Winnie Byanmyima, CEO, Oxfam International were among the participants.









News Posted: 22 January, 2016








Four Hyderabadis among 14 ISIS 'sympathisers' held

Hyderabad, Jan 22 (INN): Four Hyderabadis are among 14 alleged ISIS sympathisers who were arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and State Police forces from across the country on Friday.



According to sources, NIA and Hyderabad City Police have taken four persons Mohammed Nafees Khan, Ubaidullah Khan and Mohammed Shareef Moinuddin Khan, all residents of Tolichowki while another software engineer Abu Amos of Madhapur. However, NIA, in its press release has confirmed the arrest of five persons including Shareef Moinuddin Khan, 54, and Nafees Khan, 24, from Hyderabad. The three others are Mudabbir Mushtaq Shaikh, 33, of Mumbai, Najmul Huda, 25, of Mangalore and Mohammed Afzal, 35, of Bengaluru.



"NIA received information that certain individuals from different cities in the country were in the process of organizing themselves to commit terrorist acts in different parts of the country. This information was worked upon along with various central agencies and concerned State Police forces. Certain leads emerged out of the investigation. Based on these leads, simultaneous searches/raids were conducted at 12 locations in 6 cities viz. Bangalore, Tumkur, Mangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Lucknow with the support of local police forces. ATS, Maharashtra also conducted raids/ reaches at two other locations," the NIA said.



During its operation, the NIA took 14 suspects into custody and certain incriminating articles, including but not limited to mobile phones, laptops, unaccounted cash, jihadi literature and videos and certain material for preparation of bombs were recovered from these places. "These individuals were planning and making efforts to establish a channel of procurement of explosive/weapons, identify locations to organize training camps including training of fire arms, motivate new recruits to target police officers, foreigners in India and to carry out terrorist activities in various parts of India. Details interrogation of suspects taken into custody and verification of their backgrounds are in progress," the NIA said.









News Posted: 22 January, 2016








Tax Agency demanding 24,000 from pensioner for giving painting classes Woman was called in by the mayor to replace the regular instructor, and made under 2,000

Tax authorities will withhold as much as 24,000 from this woman's pension for giving an arts class.

Spains Tax Agency is demanding 24,000 from a retired teacher for giving occasional painting lessons that earned her under 2,000.

The woman was called in by the mayor of the Albacete village of Ossa de Montiel (population 2,500) to replace the regular instructor, who was ill.

The two-hour weekly classes took place for two years at the local community center, known as Universidad Popular because of its continuing education workshops. The substitute teacher made between 50 and 91 a month from the activity.

Tax authorities say that she was not entitled to her pension payment during that time, as she was in employment, and have been withholding 636 from her monthly checks since November 2014. This penalty will be enforced for two more years.

Center director Francisco Alfaro says that he consulted with the Tax Agency before hiring the retired teacher, and was told that it wouldnt be a problem because of the low monthly wages.

Yet this woman has now had to turn to the courts in the hope that the decision against her will be revoked.

English version by Susana Urra.
Wearing the Order of Isabel the Catholic he received a decade ago, Avner Azulay (Tangiers 1936) swore allegiance to the Spanish King and to its Constitution this week, in a ceremony held on the outskirts of Tel Aviv, and after which he will soon be granted Spanish citizenship. Azulay is a former colonel in the Israeli army and a senior official in Mossad, and was also his countrys intelligence liaison in Spain during the 1970s and 1980s. He led a simple ceremony held in the residence of Spains ambassador to Israel, Fernando Carderera, at which another dozen or so Jews of Spanish origin  from North Africa, the former Ottoman empire, and Latin America  symbolized the reunion with the descendants of the Jews expelled from Spain in 1492, known as the Sephardic Diaspora.

Marco Macias swears before a picture of Spains King Felipe at the ceremony on Tuesday. A. S.

My friends have criticized me for having accepted a decoration that carries the name of a queen who forced our descendants to leave their home or convert to Christianity, joked Azulay after the ceremony was over. But I accepted because this symbolizes a new Spain, in the same way that this event symbolizes Sephardic Jews reunion with our origins.

Those who swore allegiance to King Felipe on Tuesday were among the 4,300 Sephardic Jews who have become nationalized Spaniards

He says he had always felt Spanish, and spoke the language with his mother at his childhood home in the Moroccan city of Tangiers. His time in Spain four decades ago, in the early stages of diplomatic relations with the government in Madrid, also marked a move toward his Sephardic origins, he said. At present, he is honorary Spanish consul in the Israeli city of Beersheba in the south of the country.

Standing next to Azulay was Abraham Haim, president of the Council of the Sephardic Community in Jerusalem, who has also recently applied for Spanish citizenship under new legislation approved in October. Those who swore allegiance to King Felipe on Tuesday were among the 4,300 Sephardic Jews who have become nationalized Spaniards, a process that has taken them around two years. The legislation does not require them to renounce their Israeli citizenship or to live in Spain. A 16-year-old boy was the youngest among the group on Tuesday, while the eldest was an 85-year-old man.

Avner Azulay speaks at Tuesdays ceremony. AMIT SHAAL

Also present at the ceremony in the Spanish ambassadors residence was Jose Benarroch, the director of Israeli NGO the World Sephardi Federation. He was brought up in Madrid and studied at the capitals Complutense University before immigrating to Israel in the early 1960s. His organization works to help Sephardic Jews apply for Spanish nationality. We have a database that includes thousands of surnames that could help establish the antecedents of a family in Sepharad, he explains. There are probably up to half-a-million people around the world who could be considered Sephardim, but it seems that less than 100,000 will end up asking for a Spanish passport.

The Spanish embassy in Israel has used the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Spain and Israel to symbolize with this ceremony the reunion with Sepharad with the descendants of Jews expelled from Spain. On a historical day like this, I recover the words of King Phillip VI to say, We have missed you very much. You now return to being Spaniards with a homeland, said Carderera. Before proposing a toast, he praised the ancestors of the Sephardic community for having maintained their culture, their language, and their nostalgia for Spain over the course of centuries.
Oscar nominee Charlotte Rampling is adding her views to the growing controversy about the Oscar nominations, claiming that the campaign to boycott the February 28 ceremony is, in fact, racist to white people.

The actress, 69, is one of the 20 acting Oscar nominees this year for her turn in 45 Years, and like the other 19 nominees, she is white. During an interview with French radio network Europe 1 she was asked about the current outcry over that fact, and the lack of diversity in the nominations and Hollywood in general. The Guardian translated her responses.

"It is racist to whites," she said. "One can never really know, but perhaps the black actors did not deserve to make the final list," she added. The interviewer then asked if the Academy should introduce quotas, to which she responded: "Why classify people? These days everyone is more or less accepted ... People will always say: 'Him, he's less handsome'; 'Him, he's too black'; 'He is too white' ... someone will always be saying 'You are too' (this or that) ... But do we have to take from this that there should be lots of minorities everywhere?"
The government has slammed an opposition proposal for tougher sentences for anyone found guilty of serious one-punch attacks in the ACT, describing draft legislation as a "con job on the community".

Opposition Leader Jeremy Hanson will seek feedback on an exposure draft with new types of offences and sentences related to unprovoked, serious criminal assaults known as "coward's punch" attacks. Releasing the plan on Friday, he said anyone found guilty of serious one-punch attacks causing death should face up to 25 years in jail.

ACT Attorney-General Simon Corbell says Jeremy Hanson's proposal is a 'con job on the community'. Credit:Rohan Thomson

The plan would see changes to the Crimes Act, including the creation of a new aggravated offence to deal with one-punch attacks and tougher penalties for grievous bodily harm, assault and affray. Mr Hanson said he'd take the issue to this year's election if the government or Greens Justice Minister Shane Rattenbury didn't support the plan.

Attorney-General Simon Corbell said the opposition's plan would in fact reduce the maximum penalty for instances where someone is killed, from a life sentence to 25 years. Mr Rattenbury, who has supported previous law and order plans from the opposition, also sounded a sceptical response on Friday.
It's probably unwise to let your friends choose your bucket list items.

That's exactly what Brad Hoff did at his 30th birthday party. His friends all got to choose something for Hoff to complete by his 40th birthday  with the caveat that whatever it was, they had to do it with him.

Laura Griffin, Brad Hoff and Michael Giacomin, who will be performing for 24 hours straight in a fundraiser for Lifeline.

One of his improv theatre friends chose for Hoff to devise and perform a 24-hour show, which they've now done twice for their family and friends.

And now they're opening the show up to the public, in a fundraiser for Lifeline.
Police say a Waramanga man who was found dead at a Kambah home this week was house-sitting with his partner, who was seriously injured in a disturbance on Wednesday.

Nearby residents reportedly heard a woman scream for help and one neighbour called police after hearing a loud argument at the Everard Place home about 2.20am on Wednesday.

ACT Policing investigate a suspicious death in Kambah which occurred during the early hours of Wednesday morning. Credit:Karleen Minney

When officers arrived they found the man, 47, dead and the woman, 41, injured inside the home.

She was taken to Canberra Hospital with serious injuries and was in a stable condition on Friday.
The head of ANZ Banking Group's international and institutional operations, Andrew Geczy, is leaving the bank in a move that ANZ insists is unrelated to the scandal that has engulfed its global markets division, which reports to Mr Geczy.

ANZ's top spokesman, Paul Edwards, said Mr Geczy's departure was "not related" to the recent allegations about misconduct by traders, now the subject of court proceedings.

Andrew Geczy will leave ANZ at the end of January.

Mr Geczy, 52, was in the running for the job of chief executive ultimately won by Shayne Elliott. Sources said Mr Geczy's departure stemmed from missing out on the top job and he maintained ambitions to become a chief executive of a financial services business in the region.

ANZ sources described Mr Geczy as a straight-shooter who has been playing a leading role in trying to clean up the global markets division, which has been stung by allegations made by former traders that tolerated a culture of alcohol, drugs and strip clubs.
Numerous large Australian coal mines have had their environmental regulations relaxed, in changes the federal government hopes will make life easier for the struggling industry.

Certain coal mines owned by Glencore, BHP Billiton and Whitehaven Coal have received favourable changes to their approval conditions within the past month, which in some cases reduce the environment minister's ability to demand changes and reduce public oversight of miners' compliance with approval conditions.

Concerns of activists heard: Coal miners will face less strict environmental management conditions. Credit:Anita Jones

The changes, many of which were initiated by the environment department rather than being requested by mining companies, come after a series of controversial coal approvals in recent years and after the federal government threatened to change environment laws in a bid to prevent green groups using the courts to challenge approvals.
Comfortable on the international stage: Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull with US President Barack Obama in Washington this week. Credit:Andrew Harrer Huge difference between perceptions and reality One hazard for Turnbull is the huge difference between perceptions and reality in Australian politics as the year begins. The perception is that Turnbull's ascension marks the return to what used to be the norm, with new prime ministers given at least a couple of terms to prove their worth. The reality is that the problems that bedevilled his predecessor in the first two years of this government have only intensified since Turnbull was sworn in on September 15. The ability to fund initiatives to boost growth or even sustain living standards is even more constrained, just as the will of his colleagues to be brave on tax or on even modest workplace reform is even more drained. Tony Abbott.

In one sense Turnbull is a casualty of his own rhetoric. His central proposition is that adversity, volatility and disruption can be transformed into opportunity, so long as they are approached with confidence, agility, imagination and enterprise. It invites high expectations that will be extremely hard to realise when one of the principal drivers of prosperity, the Chinese high-growth era, is running out of steam. The contradiction is reflected in qualitative research by Ipsos which shows that, on the one hand, Australians feel pessimistic about the future, believing that the country may have peaked and, on the other, that they have great faith in Turnbull to turn things around. Underpinning the high-road intention is the Prime Minister's belief in his power to persuade and his conviction that this is the approach the country needs and the people want. Laura Demasi, research director of the Ipsos Mind and Mood Report, says a constant theme of group discussion over the past four years has been that Turnbull's business background and wealth are strong positive attributes, prompting comments such as, "If he can do that for himself, what could he do for the country?" "There's a sense of confidence in him as an economic manager and a general belief that, if anyone can turn things around, it's him," Demasi says. "It's going to take a lot to erode all of that goodwill, expectation and hope."

The Abbott factor Another hazard on the high road is the propensity of some in the Coalition to seek out any opportunity to undermine the leader who is ideologically closer to the US Democrats contending to succeed Barack Obama than any of the Republican candidates, especially by painting him as weaker than Abbott on terrorism. Then there is Abbott himself, who is expected to announce his intention to re-contest his safe Sydney seat, but has a bigger decision to make. Does he take the high road back to a serious contribution? Or does he opt instead to be a lightning rod for conservative disaffection inside the Coalition partyroom? If Abbott wants to be considered for a return to the ministry, the onus is on him to tell Turnbull that he intends to be a team player and to contribute to the return of a Turnbull government. That would not mean forsaking his conservative views, or even the ambition of one day returning to the leadership (however fanciful that ambition might now seem), but it would mean submitting to the discipline Abbott demanded of others and generally was afforded when he was Liberal leader. The alternative path is the one Abbott appeared to be setting before the Christmas break: to position himself as the champion of conservatism at home and abroad, especially in the context of debates on asylum seekers, terrorism and Islamic extremism.
Evo Morales (center) and Vice President Alvaro Garcia Linera (left). AP

More information Evo Morales celebra 10 anos en el poder

Evo Morales is celebrating 10 years in power on Friday. The Bolivian president was elected in 2006 on the promise to relaunch the country after voters opted to turn their backs on the neoliberal party system. A decade later, Morales has firmly left his mark on Bolivia. In 2009, a new constitution changed the countrys official name from the Republic of Bolivia to the Plurinational State of Bolivia. Morales has also ushered in a new economic model based on exploiting natural gas resources, widespread prosperity, better relations between ethnic groups, and political stability, as well as an undisputed and indisputable central pillar: Morales himself.

Even if Morales were to step down now, he would still be remembered as the most successful president the country has known

Morales and his Movement for Socialism (MAS) party have now held power longer than any other administration in the countrys history.

His tenure has led to comparisons with Porfirio Diaz, the Mexican president who ruled before the Revolution, and Fidel Castro, the leader who radically changed Cuba. Former President Carlos Mesa says Morales is not only one of the three most important leaders the country has had, but that he has also become a legend.

Even after being in power for a period of time that seemed unimaginable to Bolivians, he still enjoys a 70% popularity rating. He will be remembered as the countrys first indigenous president in a country with a majority indigenous population, but where intense racism persists and to take part in politics you have to be white and have a university degree.

Even if Morales were to step down right now, he would still be remembered as the most successful president the country has known. The best president, as some of his supporters, who hail from all social classes, say.

Regulations that prohibited indigenous women from entering hotels and restaurants in traditional dress have been abolished

MAS speaks of Morales tenure as Bolivias golden age. According to Manuel Canelas, a young MAS deputy, his greatest achievement has been economic and political stability, which has turned Bolivia into a normal country, with certainties that it didnt have before and that are basic in other countries.

Canelas also highlights the social pact established in the new constitution, which combines MASs revolutionary nationalist and pro-indigenous ideology with the liberalism of the opposition and traditional elites. We achieved it without major outbreaks of violence and thats how we brought about social inclusion of indigenous people, he says. Canelas is not only talking about inclusion in politics, but also in everyday life.

Thanks to the Morales governments policies, regulations that prohibited indigenous women from entering hotels and restaurants in traditional dress (cholas) have been abolished. Any one of them might be a minister, says the owner of one establishment.

Senator Oscar Ortiz, a member of the opposition Democratic Movement, agrees: The good thing about this government was its call for indigenous inclusion and that it has made the fight against poverty a priority.

But, the brighter the lights, the darker the shadows. Ortiz says the president missed out on a huge opportunity for society, the economy and politics. Given the favorable conditions, especially with the raw materials boom, he could have integrated [different sectors of] society, but he has divided them and put them at odds with one another. He could have laid down the foundations for growth by productive development, but he favored populism and bet on growth based only on natural gas extraction and large public works instead of expanding and diversifying production. He could have consolidated a democratic state, but he continued with the chavista model and now we have a facade, a democracy devoid of the rule of law.

Canelas admits that MASs dominance creates tensions in this pluralist political system, but he attributes these to the weakness of the opposition and the strength of the party, which is now campaigning to win a referendum in February that would allow Morales to change the constitution and run for president for the fourth consecutive time in 2019.

Morales staying in power is a danger for the president himself, Ortiz says. In his opinion, if Morales had left the presidency after his first two terms, he would have had a stronger legacy than if he stays, especially in light of the economic crisis after oil prices fell.

English version by Dyane Jean Francois.
Poor market conditions are likely to force companies to scale back plans or sell assets. It is understood moves are afoot to impose tighter controls on coal mining in the so-called Special Area of the Sydney catchment. The tour, organised by environmental campaigners Lock the Gate, included Newcastle, Bulga, and the Liverpool Plains before ending in the Pilliga where coal seam gas is also a contested issue. "We gave them a great deal to think about," said Rosemary Nankivell, chairman of the SOS Liverpool Plains group, who met the officials at Breeza on Thursday. "It's very significant that it's someone from the Premier's office rather than the usual rabble."' 'Nothing unusual'?

The visit to anti-mining groups follows the creation by the Premier's office in November of a taskforce to reduce conflicts between communities and resource use. The trip was "nothing unusual" as officials regularly seek a range of views, a spokeswoman said. Others, though, take a different view, including John Krey, who heads the Bulga Milbrodale Progress Association and met the group in Bulga on Wednesday. "They were not visiting any mining facility, they were not meeting any mining companies  the Minerals Council will probably not be happy," Mr Krey said. The council, headed by Stephen Galilee, a former chief of staff for Mr Baird, was not given prior warning of the tour. "We would expect the same officials to want to visit mine sites and meet with mine workers and local suppliers as part of their duties in relation to these issues," Mr Galilee said.

NSW Greens mining spokesperson Jeremy Buckingham said it was urgent the government recognised "coal is in inexorable decline" and it drafts "a strategy for a managed transition, rather than allow a chaotic collapse". "The Baird government's approval of 1.8 billion tonnes of coal mining in less than two years is reckless in an age of climate change," he said. "With 1.2 billion extra tonnes of coal awaiting approval, including controversial mines on the Liverpool Plains, Bylong Valley and Southern Highlands, Premier Baird must recognise that enough is enough." Adam Searle, Shadow Minister for Industry, Resources and Energy, said Labor supported transparent planning process for all land use: "This is something the O'Farrell and Baird Governments abandoned for a number of years." Caroona question

When it comes to shelving mines, one candidate is understood to be BHP Billiton and its proposed 10 million tonne a year thermal coal mine at Caroona  one of the regions visited by the Draper team. BHP denied it is planning to hand back its licence. The company "continues to progress the approvals process" and is finalising work for the start of its environment impact statement, a spokeswoman said. Treasury, meanwhile, has once again had to slash its forecast for mining royalties, slashing the expected take by $129 million for the current fiscal year, according to its mid-year update. The reduction swells to $373 million by 2018-19. (See chart below of Treasury forecasts:) 'Profitless prosperity'

The industry's growth looks to be stalling. Coal exports volumes  about 80 per cent of which are bound for power plants and the rest used to make steel  rose every year in the last decade  doubling since 2000  but fell 1 per cent last year, according to energy analyst Tim Buckley. Mr Buckley, a former Citi analyst and now with the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, said NSW is not alone  joining Queensland and federal agencies among others  in reviewing mining's prospects. "The government in various areas is finding the historical way of doing things is not working," Mr Buckley said. The Minerals Council said the overall mining industry contributed about $21 billion to the state last year, including $1.27 billion in royalties, and employs 35,000 directly and indirectly. The council pointed to a report by the International Energy Agency last year that projected continued growth for the industry, with Australia set to overtake Indonesia as the world's biggest coal exporter.
The ailing state of the coal industry means taxpayers may end up being lumped with the bill for the rehabilitation of some mines, while safety and other standards are also at risk, says Martin Rush, mayor of Muswellbrook.

Muswellbrook Shire Council has been battling BHP Billiton to make good on its current obligations and Mr Rush said he is worried the Baird government will not insist the mining giant and others big companies deliver on their obligations.

Mount Arthur's coal mine  the biggest in NSW  looms over the Muswellbrook countryside. Credit:Wolter Peeters

"There is a growing fear in the community that cost cutting will result in the avoidance of industrial standards together with health, safety, and environmental standards," Mr Rush said.
Amid mounting criticism of the way he has reacted to the near-collapse of his wholly owned nickel refinery in Queensland, onetime billionaire Clive Palmer and federal MP insists his corporate empire is not crumbling, and that his financial position is no one else's business but his own.

"All my companies are 100 per cent owned by me, I haven't broken any laws.... I'm not raising any capital, no one is trading any of my shares. My business empire, whatever assets I own, are set up for only one purpose and that is to make me happy" he told Fairfax Media, in an extended interview, before heading off on an offshore fishing trip.

"I'm not a public company, I'm not Alan Bond, I'm not Christopher Skase."
A Fairfax-Ipsos poll conducted in November found that Mr Turnbull led Mr Shorten as preferred prime minister 69 per cent to 18 per cent.

Asked who they thought made a better prime minister, 80.8 per cent of voters nominated Mr Turnbull and just 19.2 per cent nominated Mr Shorten, whereas on November 26, 71.3 per cent of respondents had nominated Mr Turnbull and 28.7 per cent chose Mr Shorten.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's lead over Bill Shorten as voters' choice as better prime minister has grown a whopping 19 per cent over the Christmas and New Year break, with the Opposition Leader plunging to his lowest ever rating in a ReachTEL poll conducted for the Seven Network.

The Coalition's 10 percentage point lead over Labor in the two-party preferred vote has not changed, according to the poll of 3116 people conducted on January 21, with the same 55-45 result as the last ReachTEL poll conducted on November 26 last year.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has spent the first fortnight back at work for 2016 visiting marginal electorates. Credit:Graham Tidy

The primary votes of the ALP, the Liberal Party, the Greens and the Nationals have barely shifted in the last two months.

Mr Turnbull has largely remained out of the political spotlight over the last month - though he did emerge to deal with the resignations of junior ministers Jamie Briggs and Mal Brough - and he has been in Iraq and then the United States in the last week.

He is due to return to Canberra on Sunday, cabinet will meet next week and Parliament is due to resume in 11 days time in a year that promises a tax reform package, other major policy announcements from both sides and an election likely in the second half of the year.
The Kiwis have set the cat amongst the pigeons by arresting a man accused of defaulting on his student debt.

New Zealand authorities detained Ngatokotoru Puna, 40, at Auckland Airport on Monday over the unpaid debt, raising concerns that expat graduates could be arrested if they returned home.

Ngatokotoru Puna, the first person arrested in NZ for failing to repay a student loan. Credit:Chris Skelton

While the Australian government is working to recover mountains of outstanding student loans, local authorities are unlikely to resort to the extreme measures taken across the Tasman.

The failure of former students to repay their loans while living overseas has cost Australian taxpayers up to $800 million since the loan scheme was introduced in 1989. A loophole allowing graduates to leave their loans unpaid while based overseas has just been closed, potentially recouping $30 million a year.
The Inspector of the Independent Commission Against Corruption, David Levine, may ratchet up the pressure on the watchdog by auditing its high-profile inquiries into political donations and a company linked to senior Labor and Liberal figures. Mr Levine, QC, a former Supreme Court judge, released a damning report last year into the commission's failed inquiry into Crown Prosecutor Margaret Cunneen, SC. ICAC Inspector David Levine, QC, may conduct an audit into the watchdog's political donations and Australian Water inquiries. Credit:Daniel Munoz The report led to a deterioration in the already-frayed relationship between the inspector and the watchdog. It was criticised in some quarters for failing to give the commission a chance to respond to allegations of "oppressive maladministration" and unlawful behaviour. Mr Levine told Fairfax Media on Friday that he wrote to the commission on January 15 "requiring the provision to me of ... material" in Operations Credo and Spicer.

Those inquiries investigated the links between controversial company Australian Water Holdings and political figures, and the alleged flow of banned donations to some Liberal candidates before the 2011 state election. Mr Levine has also written to some targets of the inquiries about submissions and directions sent to them in late December about how those inquiries may be affected by a High Court ruling in the battle between the commission and Ms Cunneen. Targets of the inquiry have been disgruntled about the delay between public hearings in 2014 and the release of findings, which have been held up by a series of court challenges. Asked if he would consider that delay in a potential audit, Mr Levine said: "There has been delay and explanations for it given. Nonetheless delay which can exacerbate reputational damage is a factor I always bear in mind." But he added that "no decision to conduct an audit either alone or as a precursor to an investigation has been made" and "anything ... is possible".
The NSW Premier Mike Baird has used his Australia Day address to warn that Australia is at risk of losing its character to anti-immigration politics.

"I believe strongly we are now at a fork in the road," Mr Baird said in the address at Luna Park on Friday afternoon. "We are potentially at risk of losing what makes Australia the best place in the world to live because some want to shut our door and avert our eyes.

"To shut our doors to refugees as some here and around the world calling for [is] not our history, not our character."
NSW courts have been inundated with drug-driving cases as arrests more than doubled in 2015, triggering concerns that people are being penalised despite not being drug-affected at the time they were tested.

More than 3000 drug-driving charges were finalised in NSW courts in the nine months to September 2015, an increase of 109 per cent from the 1456 cases heard in 2014, according to data from the NSW Bureau of Crime Research.

A saliva swab used in drug tests. Credit:Ken Irwin

The spike in arrests precedes the NSW government's crackdown on drug-driving in December, when Deputy Premier Troy Grant announced plans to triple roadside drug testing to 97,000 tests each year by 2017.

At the time, Minister for Roads Duncan Gay said the government was "throwing millions" at the issue after one in 10 oral roadside drug tests came back positive in 2015, compared to around one in 300 positive breath tests for alcohol.
It was meant to be a routine meeting of an obscure Young Liberals branch held in November at the Sydney home of NSW upper house MP Lou Amato.

But its shockwaves are still being felt in the party amid claims Penny Fischer  Camden councillor and daughter of cabinet minister Pru Goward  is behind a plot to unseat the state MP for Camden, Chris Patterson.

Accused of branch stacking: Camden councillor Penny Fischer. Credit:Jeff de Pasquale

Supporters of Mr Patterson  a member of the left faction  accuse Ms Fischer, a member of the powerful state executive aligned with the centre right, of branch stacking to secure the Camden mayoralty in 2017 and the state seat in 2019.

In an echo of ongoing tensions over federal Liberal preselections, there are claims Ms Fischer is also trying to protect her factional ally, Hume MP Angus Taylor, from an attack by local powerbroker Jai Rowell.
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Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders

PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces

There is still 35% gender pay gap: Sona Ghazaryan

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Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia

Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans provided 136 million AMD support for the overhaul of the Myasnikyan statue, which was in unsafe state of disrepair

Believe me, as a representative of a country which uses the Schengen system very often, it is quite important. Vardanyan

I really look forward to having answers from the Azerbaijani side for these alleged gross human rights violations: Secretary General

I call on Armenian and Azerbaijani parliamentarians to use this Assembly as an agora of opportunities President Tiny Kox

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There is no place for the death penalty in a State that respects human rights: PACE General Rapporteur

EU and CoE call on two Member States that have not yet acceded to this Protocol  Armenia and Azerbaijan  to do so without delay

An urgent debate requested on "The military hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan".

UCOM AND PES-PES CONTINUE COOPERATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF EDUCATIONAL PROJECT

The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022

Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully

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The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces

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STATEMENT BY SECRETARY ANTONY J. BLINKEN

This criminal act is another proof that the Armenophobia policy. Tatoyan

Nikol Pashinyan, Nancy Pelosi discuss a number of issues related to the Armenian-American agenda and regional developments

Delegation by Nancy Pelosi Accompanied by Alen Simonyan Visits Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex

Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi Arrives in Yerevan

Armenian Revytech, global technology leader SAP and financial services software specialist SAP Fioneer sign a cooperation agreement

With 120 million drams donated by Mikael Vardanyan, the defenders of the homeland will be treated in a new building

OSCE Chairman-in-Office and OSCE Secretary General call for immediate cessation of hostilities along Armenia-Azerbaijan border

Statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh

USA Embassy Message for U.S. Citizens

ANCA Issues National Call to Action to Stop Taxpayer Funding of Aliyevs Aggression
Police have charged the driver of a dump truck that left a three-kilometre trail of dirt on the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Warringah Freeway on Friday, causing massive traffic delays.

The driver has been issued with a field court attendance notice for driving a heavy vehicle and not complying with loading requirements, as well as several vehicle defect notices on Friday afternoon, according to NSW Police Media.

The truck and trailer were travelling north past the southern toll booths on the Harbour Bridge just after 1pm when the rear door of the trailer became unlatched, police believe.

Twenty tonnes of landfill from a building site at Alexandria, destined for Windsor, began to spill onto lane three of the bridge.
A police spokeswoman confirmed there was only one person in the car, not two as originally reported.

Emergency crews worked desperately to pull her from the wreck but she was declared dead at the scene.

A 62-year-old woman has died after a car rolled over near Boonah, south of Ipswich.

Photos from a car rollover near Boonah Credit:Peter Truer

Police are at the scene of a car rollover in Hoya, south of Ipswich.

At about 11.30am police were called to a serious crash on Boonah-Fassifern Road where two people were trapped in a vehicle.

A Queensland Police spokesman confirmed that one person was freed from the vehicle but the condition of the other person was not known.

He confirmed the Forensic Crash Unit had been called to the scene.
Catholic school strike: Out-of-office message out of order

About 200 Catholic school teachers in Queensland have staged a rally once more over claims of inequitable wages and increasing workloads.

About 200 Catholic school teachers in Queensland have staged a rally once more over claims of inequitable wages and increasing workloads. Credit:Quentin Jones

Friday's rally, held outside the Brisbane Catholic Education Conference on the Gold Coast, was the seventh time union members have stopped work.

Independent Education Union of Australia's Terry Burke said the next step was for unionised staff to decide whether to escalate their protected industrial action.
A bunfight over a controversial T-shirt slogan has forced Brumby's Bakeries to can part of its advertising campaign.

Staff were due to wear T-shirts with the slogan "we've got the best buns in town" to advertise hot cross buns in the lead-up to Easter.

Brumby's T-shirt campaign was intended to promote its hot cross buns.

But Brumby's was forced to beat a hasty retreat after 16-year-old staff member Jess told 3AW radio that she felt "uncomfortable" about wearing the T-shirt.

Her angry father Colin told 3AW the wording was "totally inappropriate".
Students at Victoria's Catholic high schools who might be thinking of bringing a same-sex partner to their school formal have won support from an unlikely source.

Melbourne Archbishop Denis Hart has urged schools to be sensitive and respectful to students who wanted to invite a same-sex date to the biggest night of the year.

Archbishop Denis Hart has urged schools to be sensitive and respectful to students who wished to bring a same-sex date to the formal. Credit:Ken Irwin

"These are quite often emotional situations and it's very important that we always have respect for the dignity of the human being involved," he said.
After a dark and rainy Friday, Melbourne's skies have begun to clear, with light showers and a slight chance of a thunderstorm forecast for this evening.

"There's still some showers around. We've just had one go through the city a couple of moments ago," said Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Rod Dickson around 5pm.

"There's probably not as much thunderstorm activity around as initially anticipated."

However Mr Dickson said severe thunderstorms were expected over the Mallee in the next few hours, and areas northwest of Ballarat were also due to receive heavy rainfall.
Homeowners in the bushfire-devastated surf coast towns of Wye River and Separation Creek will have the right to rebuild on their land, free from third-party appeals, under a state government push to get the region back on its feet.

Environment Minister Lisa Neville said it could be weeks before the cost of the state government's rescue package is known, with the government offering to pay for homeowners' surveying, planning permit fees, fire services, land fill levies and sewerage planning.

Wye River and Separation Creek lost 116 homes in fierce bushfires that tore through 2500 hectares of land after starting on Christmas Day. Credit:Tom Jacobs

The style of homes that can be built in the devastated areas will still be subject to appeals, but the council's chief executive officer  rather than the full council  will be tasked with approving planning decisions, in an attempt to speed up rebuilding.

Under a deal struck with Colac Otway Shire, homeowners will also be able to rebuild with the bushfire ratings on their land unchanged.
The 82-year-old's body was found in the early hours of the morning in a small toilet room, extensively burnt and covered in debris.

Medical experts who assessed an elderly Melbourne hoarder before she died said she understood the dangers of her living conditions. But in the end it was still the clutter that killed her.

One investigator concluded the incident on October 16, 2012 began in the kitchen of the Blackburn North property when a hotplate came into contact with some sort of combustible material.

Because the sink was so cluttered, the woman was unable to use water from the kitchen tap to extinguish it.

Food and clutter in the kitchen of the deceased Blackburn North woman.

Since 2000 at least 17 Victorians have been killed in fires that occurred in conjunction with squalor and hoarding, while almost a quarter of the preventable fire fatalities in Melbourne between 2000 and 2009 were caused by people not being able to escape their cluttered homes.

Others have died in different hoarding-related tragedies, including a five-year-old boy who cut his foot on an open can left lying in his family's severely squalid home. That 2012 death is still being considered by the coroner.
Subiaco mayor Heather Henderson. Currently sitting in the Upper House, over 1300 properties will transfer to the City of Perth if the Act comes into effect on July 1. The Perth council has already been forced to accept amendments to the Act for it to pass in the Lower House, including one from the opposition that stipulated all mayors and councillors declare gifts or travel within 10 days and publish them online. That amendment came after Ms Scaffidi and the council were hit by various travel scandals last October. Another key amendment to the Act prevented the City of Perth swallowing up the lucrative Burswood Peninsula (including Crown Casino and the new Perth Stadium), which would have cost the Town of Victoria Park and City of South Perth tens of millions in lost revenue while increasing rates for respective local residents.

Ms Henderson said the forced boundary changes in Subiaco would result in a $44 million loss for the city over the next 10 years, potentially forcing rates up and cuts to key services and staff. Ms Scaffidi said she did not want to be drawn into a public debate with a colleague. "What is important and what we clearly agree on is that service levels to the 3000 residents who will transition to the City of Perth are maintained," she said. Scaffidi urged to explain CEO sacking Ms Scaffidi said on Wednesday that Mr Stevenson was not made a scapegoat for her council's annus horribilis in 2015 but refused to reveal why he was sacked, saying only "it was mutual consent to have a change of direction... it is what it is".

Premier Colin Barnett joined a chorus of discontent on Thursday, saying the council needed to explain why Mr Stevenson was shown the door, while opposition leader Mark McGowan said Ms Scaffidi's reasons for his exit were "cloudy". "I would have thought this continues to damage public confidence in the City of Perth, and I think after what happened last year, it should be open and accountable," Mr McGowan said. Local Government minister Tony Simpson also said the council should clarify why Mr Stevenson was sacked but wouldn't comment on the Subiaco issue. "I think it's reasonable to expect that, given the circumstances, the City of Perth would provide an explanation to its ratepayers for terminating the CEO's contract," he told WAtoday on Friday. Ms Scaffidi has resisted calls to resign after a series of blunders came to light late last year, including a Corruption and Crime Commission report that found she had acted improperly and failed in her duties by accepting a string of corporate gifts and travel in 2008-09.

Later that month, WAtoday obtained documents that showed Ms Scaffidi and her councillors were spending almost $1 million of ratepayers' money to host lavish dinners for guests and prospective voters in the plush top-floor Council House dining room. Then in November, Ms Scaffidi threatened to quit her job after the Department of Local Government said it would investigate her alleged travel rorts - a probe it is continuing. Mr Stevenson last year ordered an internal review of all travel by council and staff at the City of Perth for the past four years, with more potential cases of undeclared trips referred to the CCC. "A very small number of other potential instances involving elected members (other than the Lord Mayor) and officers were identified," Mr Stevenson said in October. "At this time, I am not in a position to disclose details as the results for the three previous years were referred by me to the CCC in August and I await formal direction of its initial assessment."

Apart from Ms Scaffidi's failure to disclose several trips, deputy mayor Rob Butler didn't declare thousands of dollars in an overseas trip to Malaysia. He was not re-elected in October's council election. After her travel rorts were exposed, Mr Simpson sacked Ms Scaffidi from the Local Government Standards Panel, which deliberates on misconduct complaints against councillors. "In light of the serious findings of the CCC, I've determined it's not appropriate for the Lord Mayor to continue on the standards panel," the Local Government minister told Parliament at the time. WA Local Government Association president Lynne Craigie couldn't comment on the ongoing issues at the City of Perth or the proposed boundary changes but said it expected the two councils to work together if necessary. "It is to everyone's benefit that if there is to be a boundary adjustment, there is a transition process applied between the respective local governments to minimise the disruption, cost and difficulty for all of those involved," she said.
Weekend track closures on the Midland train line are expected to cause delays to people heading into the city or Midland for the first weekend of Perth's Fringe World Festival.

The Public Transport Authority will close the line to facilitate Main Roads works from 9.30pm Friday to Monday morning.

Perth commuters will be unable to check their Smartrider balances online. Credit:Erin Jonasson

Replacement buses will be in place.

The track closure is expected to impact patrons heading to two shows being held at "Midlandia" in Midland on Friday and Saturday night.
Putin likely OK'd Alexander Litvinenko death, British inquiry says

British investigators say Russian President Vladimir Putin probably personally approved the assassination of Alexander Litvinenko, a Russian spy-turned-dissident who was exiled in Britain after criticizing Putin and describing him, among other things, as a pedophile. Retired High Court Judge Robert Owen, who conducted the inquiry, wrote that he was "sure" that two former Russian agents poisoned the 44-year-old at a London hotel with highly radioactive polonium-210. And Owen wrote that he was also sure that the two men who allegedly poisoned Litvinenko -- former KGB and FSB employee Andrei Lugovoi and former Russian army officer Dmitri Kovtun -- were acting on behalf of others, probably the Russian spy service, the FSB. Robert said that taken as a whole the open evidence that had been heard in court amounted to a strong circumstantial case that the Russian state was behind the assassination. Marina Litvinenko, Alexanders widow, welcomed the reports damning finding and called for the UK to impose sanctions on Russia, in a statement read outside the Royal Courts of Justice, where the inquiry took place. But she claimed she had been given indications that the UK would do nothing. Marina Litvinenko said outside the High Court on Thursday that she was "very pleased that the words my husband spoke on his deathbed when he accused Mr Putin have been proved by an English court." Marina also called on Prime Minister David Cameron to impose "targeted economic sanctions and travel bans" against individuals including Mr Putin. In a statement outside the High Court, Mrs Litvinenko said she wanted to see the immediate expulsion of all Russian intelligence operatives based at the London embassy. Litvinenko, who had become a vocal critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, died after he was poisoned with polonium-210, an isotope that is deadly even if ingested in tiny quantities. He had fled from Russian to Britain in 2000 after breaking with Putin and his inner circle. Russias Foreign Ministry was quick to dismiss the British inquirys conclusion that Russian President Vladimir Putin "probably" approved the 2006 assassination operation. We regret that a purely criminal case has been politicized and has darkened the general atmosphere of our bilateral relations," spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Thursday
The Heritage Council of WA is looking at the extraordinary move of listing the whole of Fremantle's historic West End.

If the West End  a collection of streets south of the port characterised by late Georgian and Victorian-style architecture - is listed, it will be the largest-ever addition to the state register.

The West End of Fremantle could be under water by 2100. Credit:City of Fremantle

The area, bound by Market Street to the east, Collie Street and Marine Terrace to the south, Little High Street to the west and Phillimore Street to the north, covers 200,000 square metres and includes 250 buildings.

State Heritage Office Executive Director Graeme Gammie said the West End was one of WA's most important historic areas.
Mogadishu: At least 14 civilians were killed and dozens were wounded after Islamist militants struck a popular beachside restaurant in Somalia's capital that had become a symbol of the city's struggling renaissance, officials said.

The militants attacked from several directions, and security forces killed at least six after battling them until nearly dawn on Friday.

Al-Shabab fighters perform outside of Mogadishu in 2011. Credit:AP

The al-Shabab, which have vowed to turn Somalia into a puritanical Islamic state, claimed responsibility for the attack. The group killed scores of Kenyan soldiers last week and seems to be trying to reassert itself.

Witnesses said that the attack started when al-Shabab fighters emerged from the beach and began firing at patrons of the Lido beachfront restaurant. People fled in the other direction, but they were killed and wounded by a bomb-laden car that exploded at the restaurant's gates.
Vatican City: Pope Francis, who has acknowledged being "a disaster" when it comes to technology, said on Friday that the internet, social networks and text messages were "a gift of God" if used wisely.

"Emails, text messages, social networks and chats can also be fully human forms of communication," the pope said in his message for the Roman Catholic Church's World Day of Communications.

'Our words and actions should be such as to help us all escape the vicious circles of condemnation and vengeance' ... Pope Francis. Credit:AP

"It is not technology which determines whether or not communication is authentic, but rather the human heart and our capacity to use wisely the means at our disposal," said.

The Pope spoke out against those who used the internet and social media to express hatred.
People try to shake hands with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, centre, during Christmas Eve Mass in Cairo. Credit:AP In the lead up to the fifth anniversary of the 2011 revolution, Cairo has witnessed a marked security presence with central security forces in SUVs patrolling the streets and plainclothes police officers stopping citizens randomly. Authorities raided more than 5000 apartments in the downtown area checking their owners' social media accounts for seditious activity. "We have witnessed major retrenchments in the gains made over the last five years, from access to public spaces to the ability to hold people in power accountable" said Dina Makram-Ebeid, an anthropologist at Humboldt University in Berlin who tracks Egypt's active labour movement. "The regime is becoming more violent by the day." A young man with the date 25 painted on his face, gives the victory sign in Tahir Square ahead of the first anniversary of the revolution in 2012 in Cairo. Egypt has become more repressive since then. Credit:Getty Images Since January 25 2011, when millions of Egyptians poured out onto the streets demanding the removal of Hosni Mubarak's autocratic regime, the military has taken over, Mohamed Morsi was elected president then ousted a year later by his own defence minister, and now the minister turned President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has firmly sought to quash any hints of another uprising with mixed results.

Since Sisi's ascent to power, Egypt's jails have been bursting at the seams with more than 41,000 political prisoners of Islamist and secular hues held, police brutality has vigorously returned with impunity and media freedoms have been thoroughly muzzled. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping, shake hands with children at the Presidential Palace in Cairo, Egypt on Thursday. Jinping is on a two-day visit to the country. Credit:Handout/AP Egypt is second only to China in the number of journalists jailed, notoriously imprisoning Australian journalist Peter Greste for a year on charges of aiding the Muslim Brotherhood. Newsrooms, art galleries, publishing houses have all been raided in the past month and a long list of academics, activists and journalists have been prevented from entering or leaving the country. Omar Hazek, 30, a poet from Alexandria who spent nearly two years in prison for protesting against an assembly law, was detained last week at Cairo airport. He was due to receive a freedom of expression award at The Hague from PEN International when authorities stopped him from boarding his flight. An Egyptian rides his horse cart in Cairo, Egypt, during a sandstorm last week. Credit:AP

"I had an inkling that something might happen but maybe on the way back from my speaking tour" Hazek said. He had been publishing regularly in major Egyptian newspapers about the atrocious conditions that he witnessed in jail, since his release in September 2015 through a presidential pardon. "One of the police officers asked me if I wrote poems that mock certain national figures. I said no, then they took my mobile, laptop, camera and I realised I am now being fully detained". Supporters of Egypt's ousted President Hosni Mubarak hold masks with Mubarak's face during a session at the Cairo High Court in Egypt on Thursday. Mubarak is being retried over the killing of hundreds of protesters during the 2011 uprising that ended his nearly three decades in power. Credit:AP Hazek was released after a few hours of questioning and one of the first people who called to check on him was Taher Mokhtar, who offered Hazek his downtown Cairo apartment before heading back to Alexandria. Hazek declined but he later found out that Mokhtar, a physician advocating for prisoners' health rights, was detained. Prosecutors accused him of being involved in violent clashes after the revolution.

"Participating in the January 25 revolution has become a crime" Hazek told Fairfax Media. . "Unfortunately events after 30 June 2013 protests  which I participated in against Morsi  have completely contradicted the values of 25 January revolution. It can be seen whether it's through the state repressing people on the streets, jails filling up with peaceful activists, the stifling of press freedoms and opinions on social media," he said. For Shady Sedky, 27, one of the creative founders and administrators behind Asa7be Sarcasm Society, one of the largest satirical pages on Facebook in the Arabic language boasting over 11 million fans, there are many editorial red lines that he takes into consideration along with a team of 50 whose job is to make fun of all things Egyptian. Asa7be creates viral memes that lampoon the political and social events of the day from rambunctious TV personalities to a raucous parliament that made a return to Egyptian political life after it was dissolved over three years ago. The page has also regularly made fun of Sisi. "During this latest period, when we first did the memes of him there was stringent opposition to any form of political satire. Now people have understood the political landscape a bit more  there's less sensitivity now" he explained.

However, Sedky is attuned to how fatigue for his young demographic has set in from all the talk of politics. The young entrepreneur, like many of Egypt's youth, has focused on building his career and is less focused on the initial aims of the revolution that was captured in the rallying cry as bread, freedom and social justice. "Sarcasm is now our bread and butter  we have never called for protests but what we are trying to do is to make fun of the events behind the news" he muses. "We had ambitions with the revolution and then gradually with the disappointment under the Supreme Council of Armed Forces rule we turned our energies towards political satire". Last week, the Egyptian interior ministry arrested two administrators who managed 47 Facebook pages which, they noted, were used to incite mass protests and were affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood  designated as a terrorist group in December 2013. Social media was seen as an important driver in the mobilisation of youth on the streets, with nearly 33 million Egyptians now online. According to Sedky, though, the regime is still uneasy in dealing with a frustrated youth segment venting its anger online. "You don't know if the regime accepts satire in such a way. The scene is unclear and we don't know what the truth is anymore", he said.

Yet, he is insistent that Asa7be will continue with its controversial brand of trenchant political critique wrapped up in shareable memes. "We are part of the people, just because your criticise actions doesn't mean you are automatically part of the opposition" he added. "You are trying to smash idols so you don't turn him [Sisi] into a new Mubarak". With a tanking economy, ailing tourism sector and rife corruption, Egypt's endemic problems that triggered the revolution back in 2011 are still at play according to Makram-Ebeid. "The current regime is in serious shortage of finances to maintain these politics. It does not have the same leverage over the economy as Mubarak did and the only alternative it proposes is an intensive militarisation of economic life," she said.. As Ahmed wraps up another late night shift at the cafe, he is not worried about the heavily securitised presence ahead of next week's anniversary. He is more concerned with his economic livelihood that is being hit hard.
Washington, DC: The leading edge of a monster snowstorm arrived on Friday afternoon in Washington, DC, threatening to dump as many as 76 centimetres of powder on parts of the Middle Atlantic region and bring record accumulations to the US capital.

After days of planning by emergency officials and a scramble by residents to stock up on supplies, the blizzard got underway in the nation's capital at about 1 pm. The storm, expected to end late on Saturday afternoon, could leave 61 to 76 cm on the ground and bring winds of 48 to 80 km/h, according to the National Weather Service.

The western suburbs of the capital were expecting up to 91 centimetres of snow. In Virginia, the National Guard planned to bring in up to 300 troops to deal with emergencies.

"I want to be very clear with everybody. This is a major storm," Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said as the nation's capital braced for what could turn out to be one of the worst storms in its history.
The Casting Society of America (CSA) hosted its annual Artios Awards at the Hard Rock Cafe on January 21.

Presented annually, the Artios Awards are given to CSA members using the criteria of originality, creativity, and contribution of casting to the overall quality of a project. Named for the Greek word meaning "perfectly fitted," the Artios Awards were first given in 1985 to honor excellence in casting and the ceremony was held at the Crystal Room of the Beverly Hills Hotel, with 500 industry leaders in attendance. The New York awards were first given in 1988.

Guests at the ceremony included Broadway vets including Zachary Levi (She Loves Me), Jeff Daniels (Blackbird), Annaleigh Ashford (Sylvia), Julianna Margulies (The Good Wife), Christian Slater (Mr. Robot), and more. Check out TheaterMania's photos in the gallery below.

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Ambassador of France to the UK Takes Delivery of a Top of the Range, Low CO2 Peugeot 508 RXH







Ambassador of France to the United Kingdom has taken delivery of a new PEUGEOT 508 RXH

French Embassy car is for all official duties with the Ambassador of France to the United Kingdom

The PEUGEOT 508 RXH is a range-topping, diesel-electric hybrid vehicle

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LONDON -- January 22, 2016: Her Excellency, Sylvie Bermann, the Ambassador of France to the United Kingdom and Stephane Le Guevel, Director General for Peugeot Citron Automobiles UK were re-acquainted today on the occasion of the arrival of the new official French Embassy car  a PEUGEOT 508 RXH. Both had met before when they had similar responsibilities working in China a couple of years ago.

The French Embassy car is a top-of-the-range 508 model, chosen from an extensive PEUGEOT line-up, and was selected to represent the Ambassador of France on official duties for its presence, comfort, versatility and efficiency, notably being a low emissions hybrid vehicle. Powered by HYbrid4 technology it has four-wheel drive capability, combined 200hp output and selectable drive modes; for zero emissions, sport, 4WD and fully Auto. The CO2 output however, is just 109g/km despite it being a large-proportioned 5-seater estate car with all the versatile capabilities.

Features that make the 508 RXH a perfect official car include; versatile drivetrain  powerful or silent on demand, Full LED headlamps for a clear view ahead, integrated Satellite Navigation to find the next appointment, Panoramic glass roof to see the wider picture from the comfortable rear seats and a host of highly-specified standard equipment features. Distinguished externally by its up-market PEUGEOT grille and forward-facing badging, the distinctive exterior style includes wheel arch and sill extensions, aluminium front and rear bumper scuff plates and a raised suspension setting  ideal for getting in and out of the car with grace and composure.

The 508 was launched to embody quality, purity, efficiency and be the marques expression in the segment of grand touring cars, providing occupants with comfort over long-distance, and the efficiency to go ever further. Other models in the range are available with CO2 from just 101g/km, in Saloon and SW (estate) body styles with the choice of petrol, diesel or HYbrid4 powertrains.
Car Question? Answers From Auto Lab, January 23, 2016







Auto Lab is a 25 year old interactive automotive-focused New York area radio call-in show hosted by Professor Harold Wolchok. Each week a cadre of experienced hands-on automotive experts are in-studio with advice for the New York area's 12 million people, providing listeners with honest, practical and street-smart car repair and buying advice.

Auto Lab is also about the automotive industry, its history, and its

culture, presenting the ideas and advice of leading college faculty, authors, and automotive practitioners in a relaxed, conversational interactive format.

8 to 9 am on WMCA Radio Listen Live on WMCA Radio

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After listening to the first hour on WMCA, you will need to close that window and click the link to listen to the second hour on WNYM.

Listeners can hear the past 18 years of archived Auto Lab shows as simulcast on www.theautochannel.com.

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January 23, 2016; - Car Question? Straight Answers From These In-Studio Auto Lab Experts

Harold Bendell- Major Auto

Fred Bordoff-Bronx Community College, CUNY

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Ivan Anderson-Brookdale Community College

Howard Lepzelter-Retired Bronx Community College, CUNY

Joanne Porcelli, Esq

Michael Porcelli - Central Avenue Auto Repairs & I-CAR

Nicholas Prague- MTA and Rockland Community College, SUNY

January 23, 2016 Correspondent Reports - Car Reviews, Opinion and Other Automotive News and Information

Robert Erskine, Senior European Correspondent, Suffolk England

WHAT 2 SECOND RULE?

Robert Sinclair-AAA Northeast

2015 YEAR-END REVIEW

Holly Reich, Automotive Journalist

2016 MINI, 2016 LAND ROVER, 2016 JAGUAR

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2016 GMC TERRAIN DENALI
Coalition governments in Armenia: Certain forces become opposition all of a sudden (video)

Never has an opposition force become part of a coalition government in the history of the Third Republic of Armenia. The first coalition government in the country was formed in 2003 during the years of tenure of Armenias second President Robert Kocharyan. Before his second term, Kocharyan cooperated with different political forces. The first official coalition, comprised of Republican Party of Armenia (HHK), Armenian Revolutionary Federation  Dashnaktsutyun and Country of Law Party (OEK), was formed during the 2003 parliamentary elections. As a rule, the OEK becomes an opposition force before each election. Dashnaks never opposed Robert Kocharyan. The first coalition collapsed in 2006 when the OEK quitted it and again became an opposition force before the next parliamentary election. The second coalition was formed after the 2007 parliamentary elections. The HHK and Gagik Tsarukyans Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK) were ready to work in the government headed by Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan. Dashnaktsutyun joined the coalition government after signing a memorandum of cooperation with the two coalition forces. In 2008, Serzh Sargsyan became President of the Republic of Armenia. Though the head of the Government changed, the composition of the coalition government remained the same. Moreover, the joined the three forces again. Serzh Sargsyan soon began to speak about the normalization of Armenian-Turkish relations. Dashnaks were waiting with patience. In April 2009, Armenia and Turkey signed the notorious Protocols in Zurich aimed at launching the process of normalization of the Armenian-Turkish relations without preconditions. The next day, Dahsnaktsutyun left the coalition government. The and BHK continued to second Serzh Sargsyan. In November 2011, the first President makes a political analysis drawing the BHK into the opposition camp. In May 2012, the BHK refuses to become a member of the newly formed coalition government. Republicans and OEK stay together but in 2014, the OEK quits the coalition together with Tigran Sargsyan. In 2014, the HHK became the first big force in Armenia to remain in power alone  something which had not happened in Armenia since 1995. After the constitutional referendum held in the country in December 2015, Dashnaktsutyun again expressed desire to form a coalition government with Republicans. The head of the Republican Party hurried to announce that the terms will be dictated by the HHK.
Grant advances CSUCI research Cal State Channel Islands assistant professor of computer science Scott Feister and assistant professor of mathematics Alona Kryshchenko recently received $112,480 from the National Science Foundation to continue a grant to support their research project, Enhancing Laser Based Ion Sources...

Healthcare agency recommends flu shots The Ventura County Health Care Agency offers options for the community to receive flu shots through its Ambulatory Care Clinic system, public health clinics and pop-up clinics. Although seasonal influenza viruses are detected year-round in the United States, they are...

Early detection is the best way to survive breast cancer Every October, we celebrate those men and women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. But what is breast cancer and how can it be diagnosed and managed? There are five basic warning signs that breast cancer may be present:...

Cal Lutheran University hosts Heart Walk The American Heart Association will host a Heart Walk Sat., Oct. 8 at Cal Lutheran University, Thousand Oaks. The event is expected to draw hundreds of people. Activities include a 2-mile walk, drum circle performances, Zumba demonstrations, live music and...
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Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders

PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces

There is still 35% gender pay gap: Sona Ghazaryan

Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia

Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans provided 136 million AMD support for the overhaul of the Myasnikyan statue, which was in unsafe state of disrepair

Believe me, as a representative of a country which uses the Schengen system very often, it is quite important. Vardanyan

I really look forward to having answers from the Azerbaijani side for these alleged gross human rights violations: Secretary General

I call on Armenian and Azerbaijani parliamentarians to use this Assembly as an agora of opportunities President Tiny Kox

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There is no place for the death penalty in a State that respects human rights: PACE General Rapporteur

EU and CoE call on two Member States that have not yet acceded to this Protocol  Armenia and Azerbaijan  to do so without delay

An urgent debate requested on "The military hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan".

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The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022

Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully

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The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces

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STATEMENT BY SECRETARY ANTONY J. BLINKEN

This criminal act is another proof that the Armenophobia policy. Tatoyan

Nikol Pashinyan, Nancy Pelosi discuss a number of issues related to the Armenian-American agenda and regional developments

Delegation by Nancy Pelosi Accompanied by Alen Simonyan Visits Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex

Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi Arrives in Yerevan

Armenian Revytech, global technology leader SAP and financial services software specialist SAP Fioneer sign a cooperation agreement

With 120 million drams donated by Mikael Vardanyan, the defenders of the homeland will be treated in a new building

OSCE Chairman-in-Office and OSCE Secretary General call for immediate cessation of hostilities along Armenia-Azerbaijan border

Statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh

USA Embassy Message for U.S. Citizens

ANCA Issues National Call to Action to Stop Taxpayer Funding of Aliyevs Aggression
ROME  Rudy Guede, the only person serving time for the 2007 Perugia murder of British Erasmus student Meredith Kercher, has spoken publicly outside a court of law for the first time, giving his version of the story.

In a pre-taped, multi-camera interview in the tailoring classroom of the Viterbo Prison in central Italy, Guede, 29, wearing a gray sweater and glasses, spoke about his life and the murder for which he is now serving 16 years. The Ivory Coast native was a far cry from the scruffy man the press described as a drug pusher and ex-con. In fact, he said he had never tried hard drugs, and his record shows that despite reports to the contrary, he had no previous convictions for any crimes.

He maintained his innocence, pointed the finger at Seattle native Amanda Knox, and refused to name her Italian boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito. Knox and Sollecito were convicted, acquitted, reconvicted, and definitively acquitted of Kerchers murder over the course of the last eight years.

The interview aired on Italys prime time Maledette Storie (Cursed Stories), which chronicles the countrys most controversial stories to a wide audience on Thursday nights. Guede, speaking polished Italian and presenting an extremely cultured, if not intellectual, image, spoke clearly and concisely about his life, including how, at the age of 5, he was taken from his mothers arms in the Ivory Coast after his father reclaimed him in Italy.

Images of his prison art projects and the crime scene were interspersed among the long takes of his candid interview. But it would take a true Kercher murder junkie to really separate the wheat from the chaff.

There are many inconsistencies in his story and what he said during the interrogations that led to his conviction. Guede, who was arrested more than a week after the murderafter he escaped to Germany and after Knox fingered her Congolese nightclub boss, Patrick Lumumbamaintains his innocence.

Guede described in blushing detail how he had met Kercher a few months before her murder and how, on Halloween, the two shared a kiss on the dance floor of a local nightclub, saying it isnt that difficult to get a kiss on the dance floor in a college scene. He brushed off reports that Kerchers friends denied such a kiss with what amounted to a wink and a nod, and talked about how dark a nightclub really is.

He stood by his original story that after that dance-floor kiss, Kercher had invited him over the next night, Nov. 1, 2007, and he happily obliged, arriving at her house after dark. He said she opened the door for him and that they sat in her living room, he drank a juice, and then they engaged in petting but stopped short of sex because neither of them had a condom. And, he added, because she had been in other relationships, he wouldnt go further unprotected.

When Franca Leosini, the shows interviewer, pressed him about why, if he had gone there to continue the romance from the night before, he hadnt taken a prophylactic just in case, he shrugged it off.

Guede then described how Kercher complained to him about her roommate Knox, saying she had stolen her money and how she was a slob. Then, feeling the effects of a spicy kebab he had eaten earlier, he had excused himself to one of the bathrooms in the apartment, where he spent around 10 or 11 minutes and listened to two and a half songs, before a scream louder than the music from my headphones startled him. That scream, he said, came after Knox, whose voice he recognizedsomehow despite his loud musichad come home to confront her roommate.

Then, he said, he hurried to finish his business and ran out of the bathroom, leaving the toilet famously un-flushed as he raced out to see what happened. There he saw a man, he said. A random man, it would seem, at that. Someone he didnt know. Someone foreign to him. Someone who, after all these years, he has come to know as part of his own theory, but who remained nameless. He then quoted the court documents that named that man as Raffaele Sollecito, though he refused to do so himself.

Sollecito, it might be noted, had spent the week prior to the airing of the highly anticipated interview threatening to sue Guede if he was named, in an attempt to stop the show from being broadcast. As it turns out, Sollecito neednt have worried, since Guede didnt name him.

But Knox, Guede said more than once, was there. I am 101 percent certain Amanda Knox was there, he said, before describing how the unnamed man warned Knox that they had been discovered and ran out of the building, but not before saying, black man found, guilty found. Guede said he knew Knox from flirting with her at the bar where she worked, and he described in detail how they found a connection when he told her he also had a friend from Seattle.

Then Guede said two things that even the most seasoned Kercher murder watchers may have found surprising. He admitted to going into Kerchers room after Knox and the unnamed man left with fluffy towels to try to stop the flow of blood from the stab wounds to Kerchers neck. Then he said he fled the scene out of a combination of fear and paranoia that he conveniently regrets. He went to Germany, he said, but only because that was where the next train was going, adding that he might have just as easily ended up in Russia.

Then he told Leosini that when he fled, Kercher was completely clothed in the same clothes she was wearing when she opened the door for me. But the facts beg an explanation, since Kercher was found semi-nude, with her jeans and underwear in a heap on the floor. Her brawhich was covered with blood splatters, implying she was wearing it when she was stabbedhad been cut from her body and lay in shreds on the floor.

Sollecitos DNA was originally found on the tiny metal hook of the clasp of that bra, but that evidence was largely discounted because the cut clasp had been collected some six weeks after the murder took place. She was dressed when I left, Guede said, undoubtedly knowing very well the accusation such a statement would imply.

Guede also said that when he ran out of the house, he left Kerchers bedroom door open, which, of course, is not how it was found. The morning after the murder, Knox and Sollecito were alone in the house and say Kerchers door was locked from the inside and had to be broken down. One of the few places where Guedes DNA and fingerprints were not present in the murder room was on the outside of the door, which was absent of any usable forensic evidence except the fingerprints of Sollecito, who said he tried in vain to open the door. Curious indeed.

Guede and his interviewer said no money was exchanged for his exclusive interview, and, indeed, it will have no impact whatsoever on the case, which is now officially closed after Knox and Sollecitos case was thrown out by Italys high court in 2015. Guede, who was convicted definitively as one of three assassins, chose not to pursue a retrial after his presumed co-conspirators were let go, as it could have resulted in a new conviction and a longer sentence.

But no matter, since Guede will be free soon, as well. He has been eligible for work release for almost two years but has chosen to work on his studies in prison instead. Considering he had no prior criminal convictions before his murder conviction and his apparent good behavior in prison, he will most certainly be eligible for parole by 2018.

The forgotten protagonist in the story, as Leonisi so poignantly pointed out in her interview with Guede, is Kercher, who would have turned 30 on Dec. 28 and whose version of the story, which would clearly be the definitive one, has sadly gone with her to her grave.
A Michigan cop faces life in prison for allegedly raping a 15-year-old relative by using Family Guy TV episodes as foreplay, violating her while on duty, and plying her with a secret cellphone and booze, before dumping her with a dose of his herpes.

The distraught girl, now 17, took the witness stand for five hours Wednesday on the second day of Troy Estrees trial in Calhoun County Circuit Court. Back in 2014, she testified, the 46-year-old Emmett Township policeman took a shine to her after 13 years of estrangement.

It was awesome to be reunited, the teen testified, according to The Battle Creek Enquirer.

Officer Estree has been charged with nine counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct.

The married officer, who has two kids, allegedly first put the moves on the girl inside his house while they were watching the television show Family Guy.

It started with him touching me up my leg and closer to my thighs, and then my private areas, the teen testified. I didnt know what to do. He started rubbing my thighs and up to my vagina.

The underage girl tried to please the alleged sex predator. I didnt know what to expect, and I didnt want to let him down, she said. If I said no, he might walk out again.

Estree, according to the trial coverage in The Battle Creek Enquirer, gave the girl a cellphone on which they traded messages.

Then the cop allegedly invited the girl over for sleepovers where she would get tipsy with whatever alcohol he offered. And, again while watching Family Guy, Estree and the girl were sitting on the couch when he allegedly proceeded to pull down her shorts and they began having anal sex. I dont remember what he said, but he was probably kissing my neck, the young girl recalled of the alleged fiends attempts to show affection.

The girl testified that she felt used and told him I didnt want to do it anymore.

I felt like trash, she recalled, and he responded, OK.

But the cop apparently wouldnt call it quits.

Secret rendezvous in the basement of his housewith family members present upstairsallegedly continued unabated. In another incident, Estree allegedly took advantage of the teenager while showing off his camper. He said he wanted oral sex, she testified.

Once inside, she told the jury, I blocked out what I was thinking.

The romps for the impressionable virgin werent sinister but appeared to be a kind of courtship, according to her testimony.

I enjoyed it, she said. It was like a relationship thing. Now I know I had sex with [him], and it destroyed a whole family. It felt good. I had not had sex before and it felt good. I saw him more as a friend.

Then the cop apparently became all the more brazen.

He brought the girl along while he was running on calls.

And in multiple instances, according to the paper, Estree assaulted her while wearing his police-issued duty belt: one time at a construction site; another when they were sitting on a bench in a park; and yet another time when Estree allegedly raped her on the trunk of his police cruiser.

There was no need for any more Family Guy episodes or alcohol to trigger the sex. Just a look, she testified.

We both gave each other a look, and then there was caressing and kissing and touching each other, she said. It felt more like a boyfriend.

On Aug. 12, 2014, the teen was quizzed by a Michigan State Police detective about her relationship with Estree.

Her first impulse was to lie. Protect the alleged rapist cop.

She invented a boy named Brockplaying off the nickname she gave Estree, Broand told the detective she and the boy had been engaged in a sexual relationship. She kept her story consistent during therapy sessions.

Eventually, when pressed on the matter, she caved. She told the state investigator the truth.

I guessed [the investigator] already knew, she said. I knew she knew I was having anal sex with [Estree].

The teen admitted she hadnt been forthcoming. I made it up because I didnt know what else to do to cover up for [Estree]. I made them up because I was still trying to protect [him]. I was trying to limit his years in prison, she testified in court Wednesday.

Officer Estrees attorney, Keeley Heath, attempted to debunk the girls rape claims by entering as evidence an episode of Family Guy to prove that the girl, an avid fan of the comedy show, had cooked up the illegal sex story after watching a particular episode. But the judge shot down the claim.

When reached by The Daily Beast, Heath refused to answer any questions.

Meanwhile, the traumatized teens Kalamazoo, Michigan-based pediatrician, Colette Gushurst, confirmed that an Aug. 19, 2014, exam revealed that Officer Estrees accuser had been infected with herpes.

The girl confided to the pediatrician that she had anal sex with the cop and volunteered that [Estree] gave her oral sex, too before telling the doctor, That is probably where I got the herpes.
The U.S. military will announce it killed or wounded civilians on at least 14 occasions in Iraq and Syria, The Daily Beast has learned. Thats a seven-fold increase in the number of cases of civilian casualties it has acknowledged since the airstrike campaign against the self-proclaimed Islamic State began 17 months ago.

The 14 new incidents of civilian casualties, which spanned most of 2015, led to at least 15 deaths and 14 injuries, a U.S. defense official told The Daily Beast. But with the American military launching more than 7,500 airstrikes over the course of the ISIS war, the toll could very well increase. In any war, particularly one in which the only consistent eyes on the battlefield are 30,000 feet in the air, it is impossible to say for sure that so many strikes could lead to so few innocent deaths. (A recent UN report said that nearly 19,000 civilians had been killed in the fighting in Iraq alonemost at the hands of the terror army, not the coalition fighting it.)

The military plans to release summaries of these new cases of civilian casualties in three batches. The first batch was released last week when the U.S. military admitted that it had killed eight civilians and wounded three others in five incidents between April 12 and July 4 of last year.

On Friday, the military will acknowledge five more incidents of killing or wounding innocents. The week after that, it plans to announce an additional four cases, The Daily Beast has learned.

None of the 14 cases led to the death of children the military concluded, according to defense official.

Up until last week, the U.S. military had only admitted to killing six civilians in two incidentsone in Iraq and one in Syria. In both of those cases, children were believed to be among the dead.

None of these 14 new cases led to the death of children, according to the defense official.

With those two additional cases, the U.S. has acknowledged killing 21 civilians in 16 instances. During that time, the U.S. has conducted 7,551 strikes in Iraq and Syria; the coalition has conducted 65,492 sorties, according Defense Department statistics. As of Aug. 28, the U.S. military had investigated 71 allegations of civilian casualties.

The 14 new cases of civilian casualties fall into two categories, generally speaking. In some instances, civilians appear at a strike site minutes beforehand; there is not enough time to waive off the attack. In other cases, the pilots conducting the strikes realized after the fact that the person killed was not a suspected jihadist fighter but a civilian.

A lot of these were self-reported by our fighters, one defense official explained to The Daily Beast.

The minimization of civilian casualties has been a keystone of the U.S. effort against ISISat times, to the frustration of both military commanders and Iraqi officials, who feel the U.S. is being too cautious.

The commands and others are trying to find out what they can do. They dont get any guidance. They are told what they cant do, one official familiar with the strike approval process at U.S. Central Command explained to The Daily Beast.

But despite all the claims of caution, there is no way to independently assess the U.S. militarys contention that only a handful of innocents have been killed by the American attacks. The war is too dangerous for most independent observers. And with so few U.S. troops on the ground in Syria, there are not enough to go to a strike site afterwards and assess the effects. During the last war in Iraq, for example, the U.S. could send ground troops to assess the damage from airstrikes.

Moreover, there is little pressure from Capitol Hill for the U.S. military to explain how it assesses civilian deaths by American airstrikes or what it is doing to prevent them. Rather, such determinations are left to the commanders and the military lawyers signing off on strikes.

U.S. and coalition forces work diligently to be precise in our airstrikes. We take great care, from analysis of available intelligence to selection of the appropriate weapon, to meet mission requirements to minimize the risk of collateral damage, particularly any potential harm to civilians, said Air Force Col. Patrick Ryder, a U.S. Central Command spokesman, in a statement to The Daily Beast. We take all allegations of civilian casualties seriously and assess all incidents as thoroughly as possible. In accordance with our commitment to transparency, we are working to release assessment findings of closed allegations as soon as possible.

But, at times, as soon as possible hasnt been all that soon. For months and months, the U.S. refused to admit that it had killed a single civilian in the ISIS war.

And the surge in announcements now happened only after an intense struggle within the national security establishment. In some cases, the U.S. military reached its conclusions about civilian casualties months ago but officials could not agree on when to release its findings. Outgoing U.S. Central Command chief Gen. Lloyd Austin was keen to release the findings as soon as possible, two defense officials said. But the command had to undergo a lengthy coordination process. And so deaths and injuries caused months ago are only being acknowledged now.
Michigans Governor Rick Snyder says if his grandchildren lived in Flint, he would let them bathe in the citys toxic water.

And if I were their pediatrician, I would do everything in my power to stop grandpa from even thinking about immersing a child in the toxic brew he let fester there for so long. The difference between Governor Snyder and the families trying to survive in Flint is that he actually has a choice.

Consider this: If the state of Michigan was a parent or legal guardian of the young children in Flint, the state itself would be guilty of second degree felony child abuse. Here is the language from the Michigan Penal Code, section 750.136b:

A person is guilty of child abuse in the second degree ifthe person knowingly or intentionally commits an act likely to cause serious physical or mental harm to a child, Michigan Penal Code, section 750.136b states. [This] is a felony punishable by imprisonment for a first offense of not more than 10 years[and] for a second or subsequent offense not more than 20 years.

Lets put aside the idea that officials should have been aware of potential problems when Flints water supply was first switched to contaminated river water some two years ago. What is not in doubt is the fact that almost a year ago, when state agencies were made aware of the contaminated water supply and high blood lead levels in many children, Michigan officials actively attempted to bury the data and refused to take appropriate action.

Though the state is finally taking action, its not nearly enough.

The first priority is to stop any ongoing exposure. Switching the Flint water supply source from the highly lead-contaminated Flint River back to the Detroit water system fed by Lake Huron was the right first step, but now there remains the daunting and expensive challenge of replacing every corroded, lead-leeching water pipe in Flint.

As for emergency measures, firefighters and a few National Guard troops handing out water bottles and filters are not the answer. Large-scale emergency water supply systems must be brought in, along with portable showers, much as would happen in the aftermath of a major natural disaster. Clearly, this is a job for the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Defense, who now have the legal authority to act after President Obamas declaration of emergency in Flint.

Second, state and federal agencies must establish systems to track affected children and support comprehensive services for any child potentially exposed to lead. Officials from the Department of Health and Human Services are headed to Flint this week and have been directed to come up with a game plan that addresses the needs of affected children.

Significant resources will be needed to ensure that lead poisoned children have access to ongoing medical and developmental monitoring. This means early, high quality pre-school and enriched Head Start programs followed by learning support services in elementary schools, along with parental guidance to help them understand their critical role in bolstering cognitive development in their children.

Hopefully these measures will help mitigate some of the damage done to developing brains affected by high levels of lead, a potent neurotoxin.

Third, as Snyder emphasized in Tuesdays State of the State message, there must be accountability. As a pediatrician, I couldnt agree more. What has happened to the children of Flint under his watch is devastating and unconscionable. We are talking about irreversible brain damage that may well affect the rest of their lives. This calamity was both avoidable and inexcusable.

There are countless examples of how Americas children are being exposed to adversities that undermine their health and well-being. And too many kids dont even have access to quality health care or a decent education, both of which are needed to overcome the long-term consequences of poverty and marginalization.

The scandal that is the public health disaster in Flint reminds us that while we say children are our future, we too often fail to acknowledge that what politicians and policy-makers do actually matters.

Irwin Redlener, M.D.is president and co-founder of the Childrens Health Fund, a national not for profit organization that supports health care for disadvantaged children across the U.S. He is a professor of pediatrics and health policy and management at Columbia Universitys Mailman School of Public Health. Follow him at @IrwinRedlenerMD.
Nobody wants to have dinner with Jeb Bush.

At least, thats the sense youd get from reading the comments on his posts encouraging Facebook users to sign up for a chance to dine with him. The Bush campaigns official page sponsors a post from time to time that encourages users to hand over their names and email addresses in exchange for a chance to eat dinner with the former Florida governor.

Campaign spokesman Tim Miller said the post does well for Bush, and outperforms most of their other Facebook outreach efforts. But based on the comments, you might not know it. The responses on the most recent available version of the post are overwhelmingly negativeand trollishly so.

The prize seems more like a booby-prize says the top comment, written by a user named MrNoam Zsnc, whose avatar features the weird kid from Deliverance. Winner gets to have dinner with Jeb! Loser gets to have 2 dinners with Jeb!

MrNoam Zsnc the Deliverance Kid wasnt the only person to express that uncharitable sentiment.

Does the loser get two dinners with Jeb!? wrote user Volodya Shevchenko, whose avatar features a cat wearing a bright red pigtail wig.

Of the 100+ comments appending that post, only 15 were even remotely positive. The rest were a hodgepodge of mean-spirited memes, poorly spelled comments, eye-rolling references to polls, and general crabbiness.

Nope. Drop out Mr. 3%, wrote a user called Jace Tobias, whose comment received at least 31 likesthe most of any comment on that particular posting of the ad.

One commenter, a Tennessee college student named Maxwell Bentley Lee, flagged to a group of Bernie Sanders supporters that his anti-Jeb comment was at one point the top response to the advertisement.

Nobody wants to eat dinner with Jeb, he wrote in that comment. The only people who would actually want Jeb as President are other millionaires in Congress who would benefit from going to White House parties if Jeb was elected.

That comment got 36 likes and appeared in directly under the promoted post.

Reached for comment via Facebook Messenger, Lee reiterated to The Daily Beast that he would not like to have dinner with Jeb.

I am not interested at allwould be a waste of both our time, he wrote.

A number of users made jokes about being expected to pick up the check if they dined with the former governor. One posted a weird photoshop of Bushs face over the Little Debbie logo, titled Little Jebbie. The poster did not respond to a Facebook message politely requesting explanation as to whether the pre-packaged bakery snack image was an allusion to any of Bushs particular policy goals. (Anonymous Facebook posters arent the only political observers with a penchant for unsettling photoshops; Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump recently tweeted a picture of Ted Cruzs mug photoshopped onto what appears to be a likeness of notorious Sen. Joseph McCarthy.)

hey can i throw tamatos at him, wrote another.

The Huffington Posts poll tracker shows that Bushs favorables have gone largely gone down and unfavorables have gone up since he entered the race. Currently, hes at 53.8 percent unfavorable and just 31.5 percent favorable. A Quinnipiac poll in November gave him the worst net favorability rating of any presidential candidate. And earlier this month, a Gallup poll indicated that his net favorability with Republicans is 10 percentage points lower than it was this summer.

And while there are a panoply of explanations for this, its unwise to write off the impact of Internet comments. A study published in The Journal of Advertising early last year indicated that people take Internet comments seriously if they perceive the authors as credible. And being perceived as credible, on the Internet, isnt too darn tough. So a constant drone of persistently negative commentary on every ad that Jeb promotes doesnt do him any favors.

It also wouldnt make for very pleasant dinner conversation.
Earlier this week, the Human Rights Campaign made a particularly on-brand presidential endorsement, throwing their support behind another HRC: the candidate formerly known as Hillary Rodham Clinton.

All the progress we have made as a nation on LGBT equalityand all the progress we have yet to makeis at stake in November, HRC President Chad Griffin said in a statement. While they fight to take us backwards, Hillary Clinton is fighting to advance LGBT equality across our nation and throughout the world. We are proud to endorse Hillary Clinton for president, and believe that she is the champion we can count on in Novemberand every day she occupies the Oval Office.

According to national poll number averages from Real Clear Politics, the endorsement was a safe bet. Although she appears to be losing momentum, Clinton is still beating her Democratic opponentsleading her closest rival, Sen. Bernie Sanders, by 13 points. She remains the frontrunner, buoyed by her status as the mainstream alternative to Sanderss far-left views.

And in a statement, Sanders argued that the Human Rights Campaign endorsement, while a frustrating choice given his record on LGBT rights, is an indicator of her status as the establishment pick. What we are doing in this campaign, it just blows my mind every day because I see it clearly, were taking on not only Wall Street and economic establishment, were taking on the political establishment, Sanders said. Some of these groups are, in fact, a part of the establishment.

The statement may have proven controversial on the Internet, but Bernie Sanders is both absolutely right and completely missing the point. The Human Rights Campaign has long been criticized by queer activists as the embodiment of Big Gay politics, marginalizing the interests of trans folks and people of color in favor of issues that favor rich, white gay men. But in distancing himself from the politics of Mrs. Clinton and the establishment that supports her, he fails to recognize that his own history on the issues is hardly radical.

While the Human Rights Campaign pushed the issues of marriage equality and gays serving openly in the military throughout the 1990s and 2000s, the organization persistently fought the inclusion of trans people in equal-rights legislation. The HRC famously opposed gender identity protections in the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. First introduced to Congress by Sen. Gerry Studds (D-MA) back in 1994, the bill sought to prohibit identity-based workplace discriminationmeaning that employers would no longer be able to fire someone (or prevent them from being hired) on the basis of their LGBT status.

But the Human Rights Campaigns then-executive director, Elizabeth Birch, opposed offering those protections to transgender workers, stating it would happen over her dead body. As TransGriots Monica Roberts explains, Birchs opposition was based on an old tactic of gay-rights leaders: By throwing trans people under the bus, they hoped to make bills like ENDA more palatable to the mainstreamin cutting out such extreme language. The Gay Liberation Fronts Jim Fouratt used the same exact argument to oppose trans inclusion in a 1971 anti-discrimination measure.

While Chad Griffin, the current president of the Human Rights Campaign, has publicly apologized to the community for the organizations historically bad record on trans rights, the HRC has still struggled to overcome its own legacy of discrimination. During a 2012 rally in support of same-sex marriage, the group asked attendees not to display a flag representing the trans community. According to Mics Maribel Hermosillo, HRC workers told them that marriage equality isnt a trans issue.

In addition to sidelining trans voices in favor of appealing to the mainstream, the Human Rights Campaigns Workplace Equality Index has long supported companies that work against queer interests. 2015 marked the 12th year in a row that the HRC awarded Goldman Sachsthe Wall Street firm whose subprime mortgage practices were instrumental in crashing the American economy in 2008with a perfect rating. As queer people (especially trans folks) are disproportionately likely to live under the poverty line, these marginalized groups are uniquely affected by economic crises.

Aside from similar acronyms, Hillary Clinton has much in common with the HRC. Known as Mrs. Wall Street, shes viewed by insiders as the candidate most favorable to corporate interests. This stands in stark contrast to Sanders, who has dedicated his career to taking on the excesses of unregulated capitalism. Let us wage a moral and political war against the billionaires and corporate leaders, on Wall Street and elsewhere, whose policies and greed are destroying the middle class of America, Sanders urged in a 2012 essay for the Huffington Post.

If those leanings put Clinton at odds with the economic interests of many LGBT people, her queer advocacy has also been the product of establishment thinking. During the 1990s, Hillary Clinton supported both Dont Ask, Dont Tell and the Defense of Marriage Act, a pair of bills that, respectively, barred gays from military service and restricted the legal definition of marriage to the union between a man and a woman. Both policieswhich were wildly popular at the timewere instituted during her husbands tenure as president.

During her successful New York Senate run in 2000, Clinton continued to back DOMAalthough she would distance herself from the bill during her 2008 campaign for the White House. This was a time when most Americans still opposed full legal recognition for same-sex couples, but as public opinion shifted, so did Hillary Clintons opinions on the subject. May 2012 marked the first time in history a majority of U.S. citizens (at 50 percent) supported marriage equality, and just 10 months later, Clinton would announce she, too, had evolved on the issue. She finally came out in support of marriage equality in 2013.

In contrast with Clintons wait and see approach, Sanders has touted himself as ahead of the curve on queer equality. Last May, Sanders explained to The New York Times that he didnt have to come around to the issue. Im not evolving when it comes to gay rights, he said. I was there! Leaning on his track record is a familiar argument for the Vermont senator, who also touts his history on civil rights as proof that he stands with the goals of the #BlackLivesMatter campaign.

But whether he likes it or not, hes been just as much a participant in establishment politics as the groups that hes criticizing. Sanders voiced support for gay rights in an early-1970s open letter and opposed DOMA, and while he was ahead of his time on both counts, neither of these stances showed an explicit concern for LGBT people. Instead, his appeals were based on government overreach and constitutional grounds.

[T]here are entirely too many laws that regulate human behavior, he wrote in the letter. Let us abolish all laws which attempt to impose a particular brand of morality or right on people.

In response to Sanderss No vote against the Defense of Marriage Act, his wife, Jane Sanders, specified that it was not an identity-based decision. Instead, her husband felt that it constituted a violation of the legal jurisdiction granted to individual states to decide marriage laws. Were not legislating values, Mrs. Sanders argued. We have to follow the Constitution.

According to the Huffington Post, [Bernie Sanders] spokesman Michael Briggs made the case that Sanders has been way ahead of Clintonand pretty much everyonein advocating same-sex marriage. But thats simply not true.

In an essay for Slate, Mark Joseph Stern writes, As mayor of Burlington in 1990, Sanders told an interviewer that LGBT rights were not a major priority for him. He opposed marriage equality throughout the 2000s, calling it a divisive issue and maintaining his support for civil unions, before eventually coming around in 2009.

And although Vermont would become the first state to pass civil unions in 2000, his support for that groundbreaking measure wasnt about making history for same-sex couples but based in the exact same mindset: protecting states rights. Sanders finally evolved on marriage four years before Hillary Clintonthe length of an entire presidential termbut its hardly the light-years-ahead-of-its-time stance his campaign is touting.

Whether or not he likes to admit it, that means the progressive senator has more in common with Clinton and the Human Rights Campaign than hed like to believe. And when LGBT voters go to help choose the Democratic nominee, theyll ultimately be faced with a choice between two imperfect champions for equality.
Gillian Anderson was just 25 years old when she walked into a Los Angeles office to audition for the role of Special Agent Dana Scully, a medical doctor and FBI agent tasked with using hard science to disprove the alien conspiracy mumbo-jumbo of her partner, Fox Mulder.

David Duchovnythen 33 and known mostly for hosting Showtimes cheesy erotic drama Red Shoe Diariescharmed producers first (he was so intelligent and wry, remembers Danielle Gelber, Foxs former director of drama development). Hed already landed the role of Mulder by the time he first read lines with Anderson in a hallway outside the offices of Fox network execs.

I have only a very vague memory of him. I remember the hallway quite well! Anderson says, phoning from Los Angeles the morning after the Golden Globes. But I dont know what I thought of him. He was very charming, I do remember that.

She pauses, then remembers something else: But I think hed just been charming to another girl right beforehand. How very Mulder, I say, as Anderson breaks into guffaws. Yeah. I think I went in a little bit wary of his charm.

Anderson and Duchovnys legendarily potent onscreen pairingrife with sexual tension yet ambiguous enough that a simple embrace could leave fans swooning for dayshas been the object of heated obsession for decades, ever since The X-Files, a show that transformed serialized TV and elevated the potential of genre storytelling, premiered in 1993.

Tales of alien abductions, malicious government conspiracies, shadowy figures, and a plot to take over Earth drove the series mythology arc, in which Mulder (a believer) and Scully (a skeptic) hunted down the truth about what really happened to Mulders missing little sister.

But it was the unexpected magnetism between Anderson and Duchovny that truly gave the show its rabid appeal.

The chemistry was there from the first day they ever appeared together in [Mulders] office, series creator Chris Carter tells me. It was not apparent until that first day that these two people were gonna click. The chemistry you cant manufacture. It was just total luck.

The success of Foxs six-episode X-Files event series, which premieres with an episode written and directed by Carter on Sunday, hinges in part on whether that chemistryand the excitement and anguish of watching the agents, clearly two halves of a whole, engage in the will they/wont they dancecan be reignited again, nine seasons, two movies, and 25 years of X-Files history later.

At the time of her audition for the pilot, Anderson had but a few screen credits to her namefew enough that she didnt know what a mark was, she says, or really, how filming worked. She cringes remembering her performance in the pilot.

I dont knoooow if I handled it gracefully, she says between self-deprecating laughter (her infectiously goofy laugh has its own special place in X-Files history as a notorious instigator of crew-wide giggle fits). I just remember yelling at people a few times, which I dont normally do. It was pretty stressful back then. The pressure was humongous for the show. It wasnt popular yet, it was costing a lot of money, we were shooting ridiculous hours. Twenty-four episodes [a season] and there was barely enough time to change clothes before having to get back to set to say another six paragraphs of medical jargon. It was a lot.

By the shows fourth season, however, Anderson had struck gold, taking home both an Emmy and a Golden Globe for her work as the breathtakingly brilliant scientist. Scully had become a shoulder-padded feminist icon at a time when few women like her were lead characters on TV. She was fearless, complex, and minced words for no one. Her story arcs carried weight equal to Mulders. And, despite her petite size, Scully was never intimidated by men.

But while Scully asserted her authority at every turn, Anderson found herself fighting just to stand on (literal) equal ground with her male co-star. The studio initially required Anderson to stand a few feet behind her male partner on camera, careful never to step side-by-side with him. And it took three years before Anderson finally closed the wage gap between her pay and Duchovnys, having become fed up with accepting less than equal pay for equal work.

I can only imagine that at the beginning, they wanted me to be the sidekick, Anderson says of Foxs curious no-equal-footing rule. Or that, somehow, maybe it was enough of a change just to see a woman having this kind of intellectual repartee with a man on camera, and surely the audience couldnt deal with actually seeing them walk side by side!

She laughs again, this time at the absurdity of the notion of Dana Scully as anyones mere sidekick. I have such a knee-jerk reaction to that stuff, a very short tolerance for that shit, she says acidly. I dont know how long it lasted or if it changed because I eventually said, Fuck no! No! I dont remember somebody saying, OK, now you get to walk alongside him. But I imagine it had more to do with my intolerance and spunk than it being an allowance that was made.

The work Anderson put into securing equal pay back in the 90s seemingly came undone when it came time to negotiate pay for this years event series. Once again, Anderson was being offered half of what they would pay Duchovny.

Im surprised that more [interviewers] havent brought that up because its the truth, Anderson says of the pay disparity, first disclosed in the Hollywood Reporter. Especially in this climate of women talking about the reality of [unequal pay] in this business, I think its important that it gets heard and voiced. It was shocking to me, given all the work that I had done in the past to get us to be paid fairly. I worked really hard toward that and finally got somewhere with it.

Even in interviews in the last few years, people have said to me, I cant believe that happened, how did you feel about it, that is insane. And my response always was, That was then, this is now. And then it happened again! I dont even know what to say about it.

She stammers for a moment, at a loss for words. It is sad, she finally says. It is sad. (Sources told the Hollywood Reporter Anderson and Duchovny ultimately took home equal pay for the event series.)

Despite the studio's attempt at lowballing her, Andersonwhos kept a steady stream of work in prestige dramas Hannibal, The Fall, and most recently, War and Peace, along with lauded turns on the British stagesays shes excited to experience fans reaction to the event series, whether or not its a critical success. If its meant to have a future life and if its something that is enough for people, then great, she says. And if its not, then its not. I am OK with both versions of things.

Anderson, like Carter, says a resurgence of distrust in the American government, induced by everything from the NSAs breaches of privacy to the lunacy of the current election cycle, have helped carve a place in 2016 for the opening of new X-Filesa marked shift from the end of the shows original run, shortly after the events of September 11th.

[The end of The X-Files] was during the Bush administration, and we learned very, very quickly after 9/11 that people couldnt speak up openly in public about what they thought we should do, or shouldnt be doing as the result, Anderson says. Most of our show up until that point wasand still isabout government conspiracies. There are conspiracies now about the government having known about or having caused [9/11], or about it being a ruse and an excuse for us to go into Iraqbut it became no longer OK for people to accuse government of being deceitful or untrustworthy. And that was the backbone of our show.

Asked what her thoughts are on Americas current presidential election, one now surely packed with moments as surreal as anything The X-Files ever came up with, Anderson responds, naturally, with a conspiracy theory.

I heard these comments from people about whether Trump is actually on the side of the Clintons, helping create the worst possible Republican candidate, and I love that, she says. I mean, if that were actually true, it is genius in order to get Hillary in office. I cannot imagineI cannot imaginethat if its real, if he really is as despicable a human being as he behaves, that enough Americans would allow and desire him to be in office.

As for whether Scully and Mulder can ever reunite as a couple, in the six episodes ahead or beyond (sorry, everyone, theyve broken up since we last saw the agents-turned-fugitives spooning in bed in 2008s I Want to Believe), Andersons lips are sealed.

When I tell her what Carter told me about the exact moment when Mulder first fell for Scully (the moment she walked in his door, he says) and vice versa (when she called him from her bed in that first episodeit was such an intimate moment), Anderson seems genuinely surprised. Oh, wow, Ive never heard that, she says. That is surprising.

While she stops short of approving Carters pinpoint moments, she allows that there is something that happens in their first meeting in [Mulders] office, where they were having an exciting and titillating conversation that maybe neither of them had quite experienced before, she says. There was something in that moment that sparked an appreciation, despite the frustration that ensued after that. That lit a fire that has never been put out.

But for now, Anderson is headed back to London, where she now lives with her three children. Her youngest, Felix, recently sat with her through one of her favorite X-Files episodes, Bad Blood, a tongue-in-cheek masterpiece in which one story is told separately through both Mulder and Scullys perspectives. I was trying to choose the least scary one, she explains.

These kids have seen everything. Theyve seen Harry Potter, theyve seen the Orcs, theyve seen the scariest things on the planet and for some reason, that fucking episode gives them nightmares every week. It was a disaster, she moans, quivering somewhere between laughter and tears. Its not funny! I showed it to him last fucking July! It bit me in the ass like you wouldnt believe.

But surely the nightmares wont last forever, right? I dont know what age theyre gonna be when theyre finally over it, but right now Im the mean mom that made them watch this chubby, green-eyed pizza delivery vampire dude, she says, exasperated affection leaking from her voice. Its really a sad case. Anyway, maybe one day when theyre 45.

They can rewatch it thenand maybe the event series, too.
Ask any comic and theyll tell you that the cardinal sin of comedy is stealing someones joke.

On Wednesday, a video surfaced accusing Amy Schumer of doing just that, comparing her stand-up sketches and bits from Comedy Centrals Inside Amy Schumer to similar jokes by other comics, including Wendy Liebman, Kathleen Madigan, Tammy Pescatelli, and the late Patrice ONeal.

The video was removed from Vimeo (which, like The Daily Beast, is owned by IAC) on Thursday after Viacom, which owns Comedy Central, claimed copyright infringement. (Viacom did not respond to requests for comment by the time this story was published.)

Schumer defended herself on comedian Jim Nortons Sirius XM radio show in a nearly hour-long special episode that aired Wednesday night.

I will take a polygraph test and put it on my show this season, she said, adding that she had never seen or heard any of the bits that were posted in the video, and that both Kathleen and Wendy know me and they dont believe I would do that. (Norton is a longtime friend of Schumer and previously came to her defense in October, when she was first accused of stealing ONeals jokes.)

Schumer said she didnt believe the accusations were personal, but that people build people up and then they like to rip them down because theyre experiencing some success.

Shed asked to go on Nortons show, she said, because she wanted to clear her namebecause more than anything I want credibility as a comic I dont think comedians can forgive joke-stealing Im not going to become one of those people who is known for taking other peoples jokes. Im the fattest, ugliest, monster with the stinkiest vaginakeep writing that. But dont call me a joke thief.

Indeed, comedians dont easily forgive joke thieves. Carlos Mencia was blacklisted from the comedy world after Joe Rogan, a fellow comic, confronted him about plagiarizing during a 2007 set at the Comedy Store in Los Angeles.

Rogan had previously called him out for lifting other comics material in a 2005 blog post, but after the 2007 video went viral, people began posting clips of Mencias bits next to those of other comics, much like the Schumer video.

Mencias joke theft was particularly egregious: He copied an infamous bit from Bill Cosby almost word-for-word, mimicking Cosbys delivery and using the exact same punchline.

Denis Learys career was never the same after he was accused of stealing jokes from Bill Hicks and Louis C.K.

Dane Cook suffered from similar accusations (and also alleged that Steve Byrne stole his essence), though not as mightily as Leary and Mencia. Robin Williams was also thought to have lifted other comics material.

People stopped doing their acts when he would come in [to the Comedy Cellar] because they were worried he might lift something, Pete Dominick, host of Sirius XMs Stand Up! With Pete Dominick, told The Daily Beast of Williams. Dominick, who knows Schumer from the Comedy Cellar when they performed there before she became famous, doesnt think she stole from anyone.

Comedians arent inclined to steal not because it will necessarily ruin their careers, but because they want the respect of other comedians, he said. [Amy] paid her dues. She got into all the clubs. Shes a comics comic. Shes fucked a lot of people, but she hasnt fucked anyone over.

Sam Morril, another comic who met Schumer at the Comedy Cellar, agreed: Amy is not a thief, he wrote in an email. She is a special comic who cares about comedy. Also, if theres a Trainwreck 2 and theyre looking for a swarthy looking Jew, I am available!

Dave Rubin, a comedian who hosts an online political talk show, doesnt know Schumer but saw video and didnt think the comparisons were particularly obvious.

The cadence of the Wendy joke is similar, but I dont think theres any evidence she necessarily stole it, Rubin said. If what Amy said is good enough for Wendy, then its certainly good enough for me, he added, referring to Liebmans latest tweet in defense of Schumer, attributing their similar bits to #greatminds #parallelthinking.

Around the time the video posted, Liebman commented in a now-deleted tweet: Amy Schumer doing 1 of my best jokes on her HBO special.

Pescatelli has also deleted a series a tweets regarding Schumer and the video: What has always been amazing to me is that she purports to be a feminist and yet only steals from other female comedians, she wrote. If we call her on it we are jealous or career-shamed. Be successful. WE want you to do well, just do it with your own material. BTW she blocked me. (Schumer claimed on Nortons show that shed blocked Pescatelli because she was unkind to Rachel Feinstein, a comedian and Schumers good friend).

On Thursday, Pescatelli apologized to Schumer, again via SiriusXMs Opie and Jim Norton program, for accusing her: It went too far, and for that Im super-apologetic. Schumer had every right to be mad, Pescatelli added.

A lot of jokes in comedy are derivative. Theyre mined from universal experiences like sex, love, parenting, familywhich is why comics have to work particularly hard to distinguish themselves.

The Schumer video raises questions whether we can ever be sure of the originality of a joke. Dominick said we can.

Theres an unwritten rule at the Comedy Cellar that any comic who becomes a father has to watch all of Ray Romanos material, because hes already done all the parenting jokes, Dominick said.

All stand-up comedy has a premise and a punchline, he added. The situation is whats specific, and your own vulnerability, your own honesty.

Or, as Rubin said, The one and only thing that every comic agrees on is that you do not steal jokes. Its a lot easier to steal now because comics just tweet jokes that are often the genesis of whats going to become a much longer bit. Im doing stand-up much more sparingly now, but when a funny one-liner comes to me Im hesitant to tweet it because I know someone could do it in a club.

I remember working with this guy who was lifting ideas from everyone. He justified it as parallel evolution. I thought, If you could only put that kind of creativity in your jokes.
The still poorly understood Zika virus outbreak across Brazil took a turn in the wrong direction this week. Local public health authorities announced that, in addition to severe birth defects, the infection may be linked to a paralytic condition called Guillain-Barre Syndrome, or GBS.

Unlike the birth defect microcephaly, which previously had not been associated with Zika virus, the connection between GBS and Zika already has been established. This condition, which most famously affected Catch-22 author Joseph Heller, is seen in a variety of situations. Many viral and bacterial infections may trigger the disease, as well as several vaccines.

With GBS, a person typically will lose strength in the legs at first; for some, the problem progresses in an ascending manner, meaning that the arms and the muscles of breathing may be next affected. Thankfully, for most patients, this severe form does not develop. If a patienteven one with paralyzed breathing musclescan be stabilized, including support with a ventilator if needed, most will survive.

The impact of Zika virus, therefore, will be even more catastrophic than first feared a few weeks ago when the possible connection between infection during pregnancy and severe birth defects caught the worlds attention. Since then, infection and microcephaly have been seen in many additional countries, including an American who had lived in Brazil. The CDC has issued an unprecedented warning about travel for women who are pregnant or considering becoming pregnant.

In the terse dispatch from Jan. 15, 2016, entitled CDC issues interim travel guidance related to Zika virus for 14 Countries and Territories in Central and South America and the Caribbean, the CDC counseled pregnant women to consider delaying travel to affected areas and those who are trying to become pregnant to consult their doctor.

To the untrained eye, this may sound like typical CDC speak with advice leaking out of both sides of the mouth. But to the trained eye, this is screaming news declaring, Oh, shit, this is bad! though suavely hidden in the boring syllables. The CDC does not issue travel guidance affecting the economy of a large important country without some pretty scary fears growing deep in their overly-rational hearts.

The odd part about the situation, though, remains the inability to confirm without doubt the association between Zika and microcephaly. As mentioned, the paralysis from Zika is not a surprise given a previous observation from other Zika outbreaks and the settled fact that this can happen after an array of viral infections, including some from close genetic cousins of Zika.

In contrast, the possible link with birth defects and specifically microcephaly is unprecedented. There surely are infections that cause severe birth defectsrubella (German measles) may cause deafness; toxoplasmosis may cause blindness and other neurologic problems; congenital syphilis has a hundred different manifestations. But a new virus causing a rare nightmarish birth defect simply has not been seen with any of the recent waves of comparably frightening and lethal new outbreaksnot HIV, not SARS, not Ebola, not chikungunya.

From what we have been told, the virus has been found in many, but not all, of the infants born with the condition and the number of mothers of babies with microcephaly is reportedly high. But the lack of real data is altogether puzzling. With Ebola, we had daily dispatches of case-rates and movement from here to there. A few cases of polio in Ukraine prompted appropriate warning. The first case of seasonal flu is trumpeted with fear and trembling.

Yet right now, we still are trying to establish terra firma for the scope and severity of the outbreak. The always financially strapped World Health Organization (WHO) and Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) have begun to provide solid no-nonsense information and surely will take the lead going forward.

The need to fully define the dimensions of the disaster is particularly pressing for Brazil. Mardi Gras, which is something of a Rapture-like event for the millions who attend, is weeks away. And more ominous yet, the Summer Olympics take place in Brazil starting in August. A mad scientist evil doer could concoct no more perfect scenario than gathering people from every country in the world to a country with an ongoing outbreak of a new virus, have them hang out for two or three weeks together, then return to their homes, infected. The only saving grace that thwarts the plan for world domination is that Zika is not transmitted person to person (though sexual transmission is a theoretical possibility).

Even as causation remains uncertain, what is increasingly clear is that the world, once again, is altogether unprepared for epidemic infection. Ebola was a tragic example of way too little way too late; SARS was an example of how difficult it can be to control an infection you dont understand. And Zika is showing us how difficult it is to stop an outbreak when we dont have the resources in place to even count cases reliably.

Hopefully, this tragedy will lead to better funding of public health programs in every country worldwide, but I wouldnt count on it.

The CDC just sent out two additional reports on the status of the Zika outbreak. In the first, Zika Virus Spreads to New AreasRegion of the Americas, May 2015January 2016, they detail the scope of the epidemic among all adults, stating that 440,000 to 1.3 million cases occurred in Brazil, a country of about 200 million people, last year. Globally, cases from the current outbreak in adults have been reported from 20 countries and territories. The CDC also notes that about 80 percent of all cases appear to occur without symptoms and that hospitalization and death from the infection are quite rare.

The second report, Possible Association Between Zika Virus Infection and MicrocephalyBrazil, 2015," updated information on the association between maternal infection and microcephaly. The CDC is conducting an in-depth examination of 35 infants with microcephaly. For 74 percent, mothers recalled a rash during first or second trimester and all resided in Zika-endemic areas. Most infants had severe microcephaly. Virologic studies for the infants, including analysis of spinal fluid, is pending. Importantly, the CDC continues to almost-but-not-quite declare a cause-and-effect relationship between infection and microcephaly. It is likely that the pending results from the spinal fluid is a crucial piece of information.
The quaint Arab village of Jaljuliya, just 15 miles outside of Tel Aviv, is dotted by lemon and olive trees and the occasional passing of a rickety horse-drawn wagon, but it is also home to some of the most robust underground crime networks in the country, dealing in drugs and illegal weapons and every few years bringing their inter-gang wars onto the streets.

Violent crime is endemic throughout the Arab sector in Israel, where police estimate that close to half a million illegal guns are in circulation. Since 2000, more than 1,000 people have been killed in Israels Arab sector, including women murdered in honor killings, a revenge act in exchange for women perceived to be behaving sexually improperly.

However, organized-crime networks make the Israeli headlines only in particularly grim cases, such as last years murder of a school principal during a staff meeting; or, more frequently, when that violence spills over into mainstream Jewish society, as in the case of the Jan. 1 terror attack at a Tel Aviv pub, in which Neshat Melhelm, an Arab Israeli, shot dead three Israelistwo Jews and an Arab.

If an Arab kills another Arab, the police dont care, its only when the weapons make their way out of our communities does anyone pay attention, said Renin Oudeh Shawana, the director of the Mustaqbal, or Future, a youth program in Jaljuliya. Her relative was one of the two victims in 2007 of killings in the village following a disagreement between two gangs. After the shootings, police came to look for evidence, but never returned to follow up.

As a result of this pattern of police impunity, gangs have become emboldened over the past 20 years, and have increasingly attracted members among the many teenagers in town who simply have nothing to do, and want to feel that they belong somewhere, said Oudeh Shawana.

Arab politicians and community leaders have for years pressed the government to rid the communities of their crime rings and illegal weapons inventories, and while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has acknowledged the lack of law enforcement, he recently shocked many Arab Israelis by blaming the problem on them and their alleged lack of loyalty to the state.

Melhelm, the Tel Aviv shooter, was killed by police in a gunfight in the village of Arara on Jan. 8. So far, it is unclear whether his killing spree was motivated by the ongoing Palestinian uprising, a connection to the so-called Islamic State, mental instability, or perhaps something else altogether. However, the attack spurred many Israelis to fiercely deliberate what punishments should be meted out to Arab Israelis whom they found responsible for his actions, and whom, they said, exhibited ingratitude for the high quality of life they are able to enjoy in Israel.

Whoever wants to be Israeli must be Israeli all the way I will not accept two states within Israel, said Netanyahu following the Tel Aviv attack, referring to division between Israel and its Arab communities, where there are enclaves without law enforcement, with Islamist propaganda, with plenty of weapons often fired during wedding celebrations, with constant crime.

The accusation was especially jarring, since it came only three days after Netanyahus Likud party announced that it would dedicate a record $4 billion to correct the sectors severe socioeconomic woes by developing infrastructure, employment, public transportation, and the educational system. Following the attack, Netanyahu promised to beef up police presence in the Arab communities, but said that both proposals would be conditioned on good behaviora phrase widely interpreted, certainly in the Arab community, to mean: It will never happen.

Nonetheless, local leaders continue to work toward reforming policing in a divided Israel, where security forces have tended to see Arabs, including the more than 1.5 million within its borders, as a security threat rather than citizens in need of protection.

Amnon Beeri-Sulitzeanu, co-director of the joint Jewish-Arab NGO the Abraham Fund Initiative that seeks to establish equality in Israel, said that over the past decade there has been incremental success in creating trust and cooperation between the police and the Arab populations. But, he added, theres still a lot to be done.

If you measure the number of Arab casualties, its less than it used to be, but still there are cases in which the fingers of the police are [quicker on the trigger] when confronting an Arab [assailant], in comparison with a Jewish citizen, he said.

Securing effective law enforcement is a major focus for Jaljuliya Mayor Fayek Oudeh, who says that over the past 15 years the community has seen thug youths fill the leadership void once occupied by the villages traditional hamula, or family clan, structures.

We are citizens of the country, we respect its laws, but at the same time are seeing a new generation that suffers from discrimination and wants more, Oudeh said. If Israel would provide us funds that would help our socioeconomic situation, we would be able to prevent the violence and the idea that the young people have no future.

Arab youths in Israel are coming of age in a tumultuous time, as the Islamic Movement is gaining in influence and popularity in many marginalized areas. And they are answering the call to resist the Israeli occupation alongside their brethren in the West Bank and Gaza. They are frustrated both by daily discrimination by Israeli authorities and by the dashed hopes of a Palestinian state. They are also swayed by arguments circulated by the highly influential Islamic Movement, that the Jews pose a threat to the sacred Temple Mount site in Jerusalem.

As a result, they have participated in the knife intifada now in its fourth month, in which mostly young people are repurposing knives, cleavers, and vehicles as non-conventional weapons against civilians and soldiers. More than 93 Arab assailants have been killed by Israeli fire, further incensing those who accuse the Israeli security forces of using excessive violence.

Israel has attempted to confront Arab incitement by banning the Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement, an offshoot of Egypts Muslim Brotherhood led by the firebrand Salah Raed, which has called upon the marginalized Arab communities of Israel to liberate Jerusalem from Israeli control.

But security experts fear that these latest Israel actions may have driven more radical Arab elements underground, including ISIS supporters, or potential ISIS supporters whose exposure to Islam may now be limited to social networks or individual connections. Israels security establishment, which since the war began in 2011 has warily watched from a distance, is now reportedly taking homegrown ISIS elements as a serious threat, in the fear that those who train in Syria or Iraq could return home to carry out attacks on Israeli soil.

In November, the Shin Bet, Israels security agency, discovered six residents were planning to join the Islamic State, only a month after a friend of theirs, 23-year-old Nidaal Salah, flew a paraglider over the border into Syria in order to join the fight there.

According to the Shin Bet, 50 Arab Israelis have traveled with their Israeli passports to join the ISIS ranks, many reportedly crossing through transit countries like Turkey.

And while the majority of Arab Israelis condemn ISIS, a 2015 poll conducted by Sammy Smooha, a sociology professor at Haifa University, found that 17 percent of that population believe that ISIS is not an extremist terror organization and that it does not tarnish the reputation of Muslims.

Smooha says that in many Arab communities of Israel, which are generally lacking in youth programs, there is little in the way of educating against ISIS.

As a result, there is a silent majority of the Arab communities with some sympathy for the organization, either because of genuine Islamic convictions, or as a little protest against Israel, which discriminates against them personally and which they see as too dominating in the region.
It happens with disturbing regularity. Police shoot someone who is unarmed, all too often a black male. And as the officer recounts their version of what happened, they frequently repeat the same phrase: I thought he was armed.

Its impossible to say exactly what the officer perceived and the visual information their brain used to determine a person was armed. Far from acting like reliable, high-definition cameras, our vision is actually rather imperfect, transmitting only bits and pieces of the whole picture and leaving the rest for our brain to fill in. And in high-stress situations, says a new study in the Journal of Experimental Psychology, our brains prioritize the processing of coarse features rather than the fine details that would enable someone to tell the difference between a real gun and a cellphone, can of soda, or even a toy gun.

How stressed we are affects how we perceive, said Karin Roelofs, a neuropsychologist at Radboud University in the Netherlands, and senior author of the new study.

All students in Introductory Psychology classes learn about the fight-or-flight response and how, when an animal perceives a threat, it prepares to take a stand or run away. Theres also a third option, in which the animal freezes in place. Its the deer-in-headlights phenomenon and serves to protect the animal from predators that often hunt by detecting movement. In dangerous situations, humans will freeze, too, our nervous systems governed by the same hundreds of millions of years of evolution. Animals use the time while frozen to take in information about their surroundings and make the decision whether to fight or run.

Scientists generally believed that freezing behavior heightened sensory perception, but no one had actually measured this in the lab. What Roelofs and her team wanted to know was how feeling threatened and the subsequent freezing behavior altered visual perception in humans. She recruited 34 healthy young adults to complete a task that asked them to judge whether a series of lines were horizontal or vertical. Some of the options contained a few, large lines, which simulated coarse information, whereas others contained many thinner lines to simulate fine detail.

But there was a catch. Roelofs also intermittently displayed a red or a green dot. Occasionally, the red dot was followed by a mild electric shock that was unpleasant but not painful or dangerous. The sight of the red dot elicited freezing behavior. When Roelofs and colleagues measured how well the subjects did, they found that the stressed and fearful conditions improved their abilities on the low-detail images but hampered their judgement on the high-detail images.

The brain is always making predictions about what we see. Its generally more important to know if somethings there than what it is, Roelofs said.

These and other studies help to underline the close links between emotion and perception.

The brain has certain templates that help us predict what to expect, says Aprajita Mohanty, a psychologist at Stony Brook University. If youre driving on snow, you instinctively look out for icy patches. If you see a black person, years of growing up in a prejudiced culture may make you assumed they are armed and dangerous. Your brain is never really walking into a situation blind, she said.

However, Roelofs cautions that her study took place under controlled lab conditions, which makes it difficult to say exactly how these results might apply to the real world, where tense situations often require split-second decisions. Other studies provide some detail that provides clues about how the brain makes rapid decisions while under stress, such as when a cop pulls a gun on a civilian.

Racial bias is everywhere in America, and police are no more immune than anyone else. Social neuroscientist Daniel Amodio of New York University has spent his career studying how thoughts and emotions, including stereotypes, affect perception and behavior.

One of his studies asked a racially diverse group of individuals from different countries around the world to play a computer game in which they were the police officer and had to decide whether the person on screen was armed and whether to shoot them. Regardless of the ethnicity of the participant, the Americans were far more likely to shoot African Americans, regardless of whether or not they were armed.

When Amodio and his team tracked the eye movements of the participants to see what they were looking at, he found that people always looked at the face of the person on the screen before they shifted their gaze to the object they were carrying. The problem was that they had made the decision about whether or not to shoot before they turned their attention to the object to determine whether it was a gun or something non-threatening. Other of his social neuroscience studies show that people often show decreased neural processing of faces from different racial or ethnic groups, meaning that people see them as being, in some ways, less human.

If youre under stress and need to act quickly, you tend to rely on mental shortcuts such as prejudice and stereotypes, Amodio said. If someone is amped up and afraid because there might be a shooter and they see a kid, like with what happened with Tamir Rice, they say that when I drove up, I saw a man who looked to be armed. In the split second it took for the officer to drive up and shoot, its quite possible that all of these instincts lead to that decision.

This isnt to say that the appropriate response to these shootings is a defense of my brain made me do it. Rather, the goal of his work, Amodio says, is to try to counter these prejudices and understand how people make these snap decisions to provide better training to police officers. Racial bias plays a key role because its the raw material from which the brain fills in our perceptual gaps.

We need to raise awareness of how bias might affect what police officers see, Amodio says.

To Mohanty, our perception is driven by our biases. There is no such thing as true perception, she said. Modifying our beliefs can change how we perceive.
Once upon a precious old time, socialism actually meant something, distinct from liberalism. A socialist was somebody who wanted the state to own the means of production. The British Labour Party, say, was genuinely socialist. Its socialism had a specific (and since abandoned) sourceClause IV of the 1918 party constitution, which described the new partys goal thus: To secure for the workers by hand or by brain the full fruits of their industry and the most equitable distribution thereof that may be possible upon the basis of the common ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange, and the best obtainable system of popular administration and control of each industry or service.

Back in those days, when by todays standards most people were poor or close to it, this was actually a pretty popular position. Even the ruling classes tolerated a bit of common ownership. For example, in London between the wars, as in New York, the underground/subway systems were taken public, because what had existed before was a mish-mash of privately owned lines that didnt coordinate schedules and so on.

After World War II, when Labour swept in with a clear mandate, the party really did set about nationalising-with-an-s all the major public services and industries. Can you imagine?! The coal industry was nationalized, just wrenched right out of the scheming hands of several hundred little (and big) Don Blankenships!

The United States never had a major socialist party. If you dont believe me, conservative readers, go back and read some of preacher and Socialist Party presidential candidate Norman Thomass criticisms of Franklin Roosevelt. Aspects of the New Deal were of course quasi-socialistic. But real socialists hated Roosevelt more than they hated the Republicans in a way: Roosevelt saved capitalism. And broadly speaking, socialists also tended to be pacifists (even as they were militant anti-fascists).

Well, to make a long story short, times changed. In America we had deindustrialization, deunionization, Reagan; in Britain, Thatcher won, and a fellow named Arthur Scargill whom you ought to Google if youre interested did some terrible damage.

Then in 1989, the Soviet Union collapsed. Through the 1990s, there were still a number of countries in the world that called themselves socialist. But that began to dwindle, and over these past 25 years, the memory of the distinction between liberalism and socialism has dwindled along with it. The evanescence of this memory has of course been accelerated by the roughly 89 kajillion hours of American talk radio in which any mildly left-of-center politician or proposal was reprehended as socialistic.

I say all this of course by way of talking about the popularity of Bernie Sanders, and especially the generational divide thereof. Some observers appear to be a little surprised that Sanders, the crotchety old guy, leads Clinton among young people. A Rock the Vote poll of millennials that came out this month shows Sanders leading Clinton by 11 points among voters under 35. Ive seen others where the spread is higher.

It all makes total sense. If youre my age, you remember a time when the distinction between liberal and socialist mattered. If you were one or the other and lived in a place populated by many of both, you got into lots of beer-spittled arguments about the merits and demerits of each. And incidentally, you also remember a time when Bernie Sanders was this interesting, basically admirable, but only-in-Vermont mayor, and then later, this interesting, basically admirable, but for the most part inconsequential back-benching member of the House of Representatives.

But say youre 28 and a liberal. All you know about socialists is that these eye-bulging racist vampires you see on TV keep calling Barack Obama a socialist. And you think, Hey, I like Obama, so socialist is OK by me! And remember that in his one big speech in which he defined what socialism means to him, Sandersprobably somewhat disingenuously, given that he chose to be a socialist rather than a liberal back when the differences were stark, but also wholly understandablybasically kinda said socialism to him means the stuff that Roosevelt did and free college and so on.

Besides all that, you have no memory of a time when Sanders was a marginal character on the national stage. For all of your adult lifetime, hes been a United States senator! There are important senators and unimportant ones, smart ones and dumb ones, sober ones and drunk ones, but all that doesnt really matter. Once people have to call you Senator, youre a respectable figure.

So differences in perspective on Sanders between young and old is Grand Canyon-ic in scale, and it is both ideological and personal. By the way, Clinton wallops Sanders in their own older cohort. In one recent poll, Clinton was leading Sanders among voters 50 and older by 40 points, 64-24.

Now of course young voters are responding to Sanderss positions and his rhetoric, and theyre responding to his thundering assertions that sweeping change is a matter of political will, which older voters (this one included) tend to disbelieve. My point is just that they arent put off from jump street by the S-word in the way that older voters who knew the original meaning of the word are more likely to be.

So we had this Des Moines Register poll last week showing that 43 percent of Iowa Democrats thought of themselves as socialists. No age breakdown was released, but Id bet the generational divide is clear. Oddly enough, liberal wasnt a listed option on the question; just socialist or capitalist.

Since no ones talking about the state seizing the means of production today, whats the remaining difference, you might ask? Fair question. These days, with socialists having dropped the core thing that made socialism socialism, its probably mostly a mindset, an emotional-psychological sense of how confrontational and disruptive and anti-establishment people want their leaders to be. The only distinctly socialist (as opposed to liberal) thing about Sanderss platform is his call for Medicare-for-all, which directly echoes what the socialist Labour Party did in the U.K. in 1946.

In an ideal world most Democratic voters would prefer that, surely; but how many will see it as preferable to the Clinton position of just slowly, and admittedly much more boringly, building on Obamacare? Art Goldhammer had a terrific column at The American Prospect this week in which he divided us into sausage people and egg peoplethe sausage people, after Bismarcks famous quote, know that making change is hard, slow, and messy. The egg people want to break eggs to make omelets, and they want to break them now.

Hillary is the sausage-maker, and Bernie is the eggman. Egg-breaking is a lot more fun, hence its attraction, especially to younger people. But then you have to make the omelet. Sometimes people forget that that part can be really hard.
OSCE Minsk Group issues statement before PACE key debate of anti-Armenian resolutions

The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group  Igor Popov of the Russian Federation, James Warlick of the United States of America, and Pierre Andrieu of France  welcome efforts to find a negotiated settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and are prepared to work cooperatively with those committed to a peaceful settlement. In a statement issued on January 22, the international mediators said, We understand that the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) may consider resolutions on the conflict in the near future and remind PACE, and other regional and international organizations, that the Minsk Group remains the only accepted format for negotiations. We appreciate the interest paid by PACE members, but urge that steps not be taken which could undermine the Minsk Groups mandate from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe or complicate ongoing negotiations. Two anti-Armenian reports are included in the agenda of the PACE winter session. One of the draft resolutions  Escalation of violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and the other occupied territories of Azerbaijan - is authored by British MP Robert Walter. The second draft resolution is entitled Inhabitants of frontier regions of Azerbaijan are deliberately deprived of water by MP Milica Markovic (Bosnia and Herzegovina). The resolutions will be put to the vote on January 26.
Ballantines Satellite City collection

This month sees the launch by Pernod Ricard Travel Retail of Ballantines Satellite City - Istanbul Edition. This is the first limited edition from the new Ballantines Satellite City collection to launch into travel retail.

Ballantines Satellite City is a collection of limited edition bottle designs for Ballantines Finest celebrating the individuality of great cities. The designs are inspired by photographs taken by satellite cameras, which capture the wondrous vibrancy of city nightlife below.

The launch of the Istanbul limited edition follows the initial release of a global edition into selected markets around the world, as well as specific city editions including Beirut and Hamburg. Available to purchase from Istanbul Ataturk Airport Duty Free from January 2016 (RRP US$21), this limited edition showcasing the satellite view of the citys celebrated nightlife is an ideal purchase for travellers wanting to capture the spirit of a city break.

Ballantines Satellite City - Istanbul limited edition bottle will be followed by further city editions during 2016.

22 January 2016 - Felicity Murray The Drinks Report, editor
BATESVILLE, Texas (AP)  It was a slow day selling oil field pipe  nothing new there  when Richard Collier had handed his son a select list of customers. Call them, he said.

But there were no buyers.

"That list of people I gave him is the ones that don't pay their bills," Collier said. "And they won't even buy anything."

To Collier, who owns a small pipe business based out of Concan and a ranch in Zavala County, it's starting to look a lot like 1984, when the last great Texas oil boom shuddered to an end.

"Anybody who played in this game and didn't take care of their finances really well? They're gone," Collier said. "You're looking at living out of your back pocket for three years. I do believe there are people out there who are broke and just don't know it yet."

The drumbeat of low crude oil prices has taken hold in the oil and gas industry, from Collier's South Texas business to Wall Street.

Companies are slashing capital budgets by the billions. Investment research firm Morningstar expects the downturn to last all of 2016, and said last week that near-term prices could be "ugly."

"It's just the cycle of things," said oil and gas attorney David Roth of Elder Bray. "It was bound to arrive."

The army of roughnecks, RVs and heavy trucks that washed across South Texas a few years ago is in retreat, battered by crude oil prices that have tumbled from above $100 to below $40.

Alongside oil, other things are crashing  the number of working drilling rigs, the "hiring" signs tacked up on the bulletin boards at South Texas restaurants, the number of people calling Collier, who has been in the pipe business for 40 years.

There were 840 active rigs in Texas last January, a number cut to 321 now. In the Eagle Ford Shale, the field that arcs across South Texas in a half smile, the number of active rigs has tumbled from 200 to 76.

Idle rigs are stacked, folded up like umbrellas, in a field east of San Antonio.

"Something was going to cause the Eagle Ford to go bust," Roth said. "One thing could have been a better shale formation somewhere with better economics. Someone could have discovered a shale in Michigan with better returns."

Instead, it was a combination of timing and prices. By late 2014, the Eagle Ford was already maturing as a field, with companies zeroing in on the best spots and moving away from the edges of the field. Then oil prices crashed.

"When everyone had cheap money and lots of it, they could drill sub-optimal wells," Roth said. "Some of that acreage isn't that fantastic. If the Eagle Ford was discovered today, how much would actually be leased? At $40, what would have happened? A lot less would have happened."

Roth was struck by the view when he flew over the field a few weeks ago. "There's plenty of activity, but nothing like the last five to six years," he said.

Accountant Raul Rios with Padgett Stratemann said many operators hedged oil at around $85 per barrel last year.

"They were paid that whether the price is $100 or $50. To some degree that kept these guys in business," Rios said.

But starting this month, those hedges expire. "If they don't roll off then, they will roll off by June 30," Rios said. "I think that's when you're going to see the effects of low oil prices. The first two quarters of 2016 will be very telling."

Rios expects more layoffs, layered on top of the layoffs that have already happened.

The view from Collier's ranch is a quiet one, of thorn scrub and white-tailed deer and the blue winter sky.

In November, a drilling rig had added a dash of excitement and hope to deer season. The well was for shallow oil instead of deeper shale  the kind of project Roth said he has seen picking up in the region because of its lower costs. But the well turned out to be dry.

It seemed like the way things had gone for everyone on site in 2015. Collier, who would at least get a new water well, and the crews who were rigging down, looked for bright spots.

"America is getting low gas prices," said Kelly Leininger of Nacogdoches, a third-generation mud-logger, as she packed away hoses, wrapped a microscope in bubble wrap and rinsed out the trays that organized samples of rock.

Chuck Shepherd of Galveston, the night mud-logger at the site, doesn't think the Texas economy will fare well. "We're not going out to the mall and out to the movies," he said. "We're not buying all of those big trucks. It ripples on and on."

Shepherd is a retired Navy submariner and a geologist, who used to work offshore. In the fall of 2014, at precisely the wrong time, he took a corporate office job in Houston just as oil prices tanked. Four months later, in February, he was laid off from his job geosteering, controlling the drill bit as it moves through rock to hit specific geologic targets.

"I hit the upper echelon office obviously at exactly the wrong time," he said.

Since June, he's worked on these onshore projects. "It's a huge step down in pay and stature," Shepherd said. "But it's pay for now."

The oil field is brimming with overqualified people.

Allen Gilmer of Drillinginfo said his research firm had a pool of 2,000 applicants to fill 70 positions last year. "Anyone hiring today has a very deep talent pool to choose from," Gilmer said.

Charlie Cavazos of Benavides, the driller at Collier's ranch, said he went about six months without work in 2015. "Paying one month my truck, one month my trailer," he said, since unemployment was not even half of what he was used to living on.

In the last few months of the year, work had picked up, though Cavazos said there's a noticeable uptick in the level of expertise and experience on rigs.

"Some sites, the whole crew is drillers," Cavazos said.

Joe Garcia, 24, has been alternating between the oil field and college, saving up and paying cash as he works on an associates degree in computer science at Coastal Bend College in Kingsville. But the slowdown in the oilfield has meant he's that not saving as much money to return to school.

He likes the work  being outside, the satisfaction of being tired at the end of the day, knowing that he earned his money. "It's a good feeling," he said. The crew listens to country music on the drive to work and laughs all the way home. "Hopefully I get out of here, though," Garcia said.

Garcia also worries about his hometown, Benavides, and others nearby, Alice, Agua Dulce and Freer.

"If it wasn't for the oil field, there would be nothing," Garcia said. "Everyone works in the oil field."

Thomas Tunstall, economic development research director at the University of Texas at San Antonio, published a paper recently that outlined things South Texas communities were doing to create an identity beyond oil  growing olives around Asherton in Dimmit County, or focusing on history and the "Come and Take It" motto of the Texas Revolution in Gonzales.

"It may be a thing that sort of buffers the community," Tunstall said. "It's just a buffer. You're not going to replace a $90,000 oil field job with a tourism job or something in the service industry, but at least they won't be losing population."

Tunstall said there's a level of anxiety even for workers who are still busy. "They might be the next group of people to get laid off. It's unfortunately the nature of that industry," Tunstall said.

His own dad, a petroleum engineer, had to drive a truck for a couple of years. "You've got to do what you've got to do," he said.

Attorney Marty Truss of Dykema Cox Smith said bankruptcy filings are on the uptick. "That's new, and it's something that's been anticipated for many months," Truss said.

Law firm Haynes and Boone LLP on Dec. 4 released its "Oil Patch Bankruptcy Monitor," which tracked 37 North American oil and gas bankruptcies in 2015, including 17 in Texas.

By mid-December, Irving-based Magnum Hunter, which operates on the far eastern edge of the Eagle Ford, had also filed for bankruptcy protection, saying it had $6.4 million in cash and $1.1 billion in total liabilities at the end of the third quarter.

"It's a time for condensing, consolidation, and frankly, survival of the fittest," Truss said. "There are folks who will not make it."

Legal disputes over royalty payments are on the increase in South Texas, with more mineral owners requesting audits to make sure they've been paid correctly. "As the checks get smaller, people look at them a lot closer," Truss said.

Gilmer said much of the idle equipment now sitting in fields is damaged from a lack of routine maintenance, and may never go back to work. Instead, it it's likely to be cannibalized for parts.

"This is exactly what happened in the 1980s. The longer equipment doesn't run, the more likely it will be used as spares or junked," Gilmer said.

But when oil prices turn around, the surviving service companies with good equipment will have a lock on the market. "This is also what happened in the 1980's," Gilmer said. "Fortunes are built in the busts."

Collier compared the oil business to coyotes, gorging on jackrabbits in the good times.

"When it comes to it, we'll be in the desert and flipping up a rock to try to eat scorpions," he said. We're survivors."

He got a call recently about three truckloads of pipe for sale in a yard near Dilley. He drove south to look at what should have been 600 to 700 pieces of pipe, each 30-feet in length.

"This yard is like 50 acres and there is pipe everywhere," Collier said.

He and his son asked about the pipe for sale.

The yard manager held his arms out wide. "This is it," he told them.

All of it was for sale, but the Colliers didn't buy anything.
Thanks to representative for showing sanity in Congress

Thanks to Bill Flores for courageously protecting our nation's interest. Shutting down the government "at all costs" so you can blame it on the president is about as smart as burning your house down to stay warm. The last time we shut down the government, it added $25 billion to our national debt.

We don't need to go to war to balance the budget. The only time in recent history that we balanced the budget and reduced the national debt was when we had a Republican Congress and a Democratic president.

What we need in government is more sanity and not this winner-take-all attitude that is crippling our nation and does not allow for any progress to be made.

DON MACHROWICZ

College Station

A&M Career Closet Program is a great idea for Aggies

The Texas A&M Career Closet Program (Eagle, Jan. 20) is a splendid idea, and I was touched as I read about its purpose.

Being the mother of two Aggie sons, I can remember the strain, and joy for our family, on purchasing Aggie boots, clothing for job interviews, and, if so blessed, an Aggie ring.

This idea of assisting all students to look and feel their very best, and aiding them in putting their best foot forward for job interviews and stepping out into the real world does reflect the Aggie spirit, dream and pride.

This is a fine effort in helping our students and caring for their future. I encourage people to donate to the Texas A&M Career Closet Program. That's just what Aggies do!

JO CAROL REDD

College Station

Those on the left who hate America can just leave

Upon reading a column (Eagle, Jan. 21) by Leonid Bershidsky endorsing European health care, I was struck by how popular foreign policies are with the left today. We are bombarded with articles and theories by liberal press (New York Times, L.A. Times, etc.) and their mouthpieces (President Barack Obama, Michael Bloomberg, Sen. Bernie Sanders, etc.). They pick certain aspects of other countries' procedures, the ones they perceive to be working (i.e. health care) and ignore other factors in those same countries that are a disaster (i.e. mass immigration of refugees) and thus inform us that we must have these policies here and how much better we would be for it.

The answer for those on the left is simple. If they desire to live in a socialistic society and if all of the principles that made the United States of America the most powerful and free country in the history of earth are not up to their standards, they should just move. As far as I know, there are no laws in this country that keeps citizens here who hate it so much.

GROVER G. HIXSON II

Bryan
The question, therefore, is not whether the emergent Chinese middle class can take up the reins of consumption left for them by the West. That model has already failed. We do not need to wait for China to repeat our mistakes to discover that the continual seeking after growth must eventually hit a wall.

And have bankers run out of ideas?

QE is arguably another chapter in the same tale. To the layperson, QE sounds almost unbelievable: central banks give away free money to institutions that don't really need it, in the hope that greater liquidity will allow them to take more risks, which ultimately boost growth.

So dependent are our lives on growth that it apparently makes more sense to bankroll stock market gambling than it does to help people make investments that could support their livelihood for years to come, and benefit their communities. Instead of financing small businesses, locally-owned renewable energy, and transport, monetary policy-makers chose to boost asset prices.

This helped bankers, who did not pass the gains on to their consumer arms, and fund managers, who did not use gains to boost pensions. The end of the Federal Reserve's programme of QE in October plunged us again into instability, having prioritised quick growth over building a stable base. In Europe, Mario Draghi's announcement on Thursday indicated the ECB was set for another round of QE, which reveals scale of the China problem.

The commodities market is also part of the story. It is true that the current problem is an over-supply of oil: the Pyrrhic attempt by the states of the Arabian peninsula to drown out their rivals the USA and Russia. The lifting of sanctions on Iran has fanned the flames still further.

Yet the situation lays bare our world's dependence on what are, when we take a slightly longer view, desperately scarce natural resources - and with it, dependence on a shady cadre of unaccountable oil producers capable of keeping the us in a choke hold.

Our economies depend for survival on the growth-generating potential of fossil fuel markets. Perturbations in those markets lead to crisis, whether they are the result of global politics, scarce supplies or decreasing consumption. Thus perversely, policy-makers are incentivised to support fossil fuels, while their science advisers tell them this is the one thing we cannot afford to do.

The 'fourth industrial revolution' - what's that?

It's ironic that as economic leaders woke up to the news that the Chinese industrial downturn was starting to wreak havoc across the world, they were gathered at the World Economic Forum in Davos, whose theme this year is "the fourth industrial revolution".

It's an article of faith that as we run out of markets to develop and resources to exploit, technological advancement will keep the wheels of growth turning. While leaders were worrying about how to manage a futuristic economy based around robotics and artificial intelligence, conventional industrial growth stalling presented a much more contemporary crisis.

At some point in their careers, the finance executives assembled in Davos will probably have heard the canard, beloved by motivational speakers, that "the Chinese word for crisis is the same as the word for opportunity." We shouldn't let truth stand in the way of a good line.

Yet the present market shock does indeed present us with an opportunity. Either we continue to rely on uncertain - and frankly dangerous - growth to support the very fabric of our society, both our vital needs - pensions, social security, healthcare - and those things which enrich our lives - education, culture and leisure.

Or we can put society first, and construct our economy in a way that promotes our flourishing. This means a post-growth future. Because we in the UK are living as if we have four planets at present, post-growth is unlikely even to be enough.

Attaining one-planet living will probably involve in due course achieving degrowth in countries such as ours: building down our economy to a safe level. Then we will have a society that is not reliant on expanding GDP, and that can remain in a steady state without putting society itself at risk.

Growth or happiness? Isn't it obvious?

Thus our argument is that the Chinese 'fairy-tale' was only ever make-believe. Endless growth is a fantasy; it doesn't make us happy; it demands rampant and frankly obscene levels of inequality; and it is destroying our common future, including the very air we breathe.

The Chinese crisis is thus indeed an opportunity. The time is ripe for turning from the failed narrow-minded outdated pursuit of 'growth' to a future that will prioritise survival and well-being.

How can this be done? It will require radical changes to global governance structures, so that democratic imperatives come to replace market imperatives. We simply cannot afford to leave global supplies of energy, not to mention things like food, to the discretion of a few clandestine entities.

It will require a revolution in domestic governance: the decentralisation of power and wealth, the creation of strong local economies and a re-evaluation of the relationship between politicians and the corporate world. And it will require each of us to look closely at our own values.

If happiness, rather than growth, is to be the measure of a healthy society, it is up to us to decide what kind of happiness we want to achieve.

Bennet Francis is an MPhil Research Student in Philosophy at University College London.

Rupert Read is a philosopher of ecology, of economics and of 'the social sciences'. He is Reader in Philosophy in the School of Politics, Philosophy and Languages at the University of East Anglia, and the Chair of Green House.
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By Bruce Schreiner

Icy roads didn't stop Steve Goodson from trying to round up enough workers to open a McDonald's restaurant as sleet pelted parts of Kentucky early Friday. It was the opening blast of a winter storm that forecasters said could dump up to two feet of snow in the Bluegrass state.

Goodson, who manages the restaurant in Glasgow, picked up enough co-workers to open the southern Kentucky store for drive-thru business only. But the usual breakfast rush was a mere trickle as a quarter-inch of ice coated the town, before the storm turned to snow.

It fell so fast that road crews struggled to keep the roads clear.

"I've seen two or three graders go by, and not even five minutes later it's white again," Goodson said.

Icy conditions caused power outages in portions of south-central Kentucky, said Buddy Rogers, a spokesman for Kentucky Emergency Management. Kentucky National Guard soldiers were on standby if needed to assist in storm-stricken areas, he said.

The National Weather Service predicts up to 7 inches in Louisville by midnight, up to a foot in Frankfort and more than 15 inches in Lexington, which will render roads impassable. The storm is expected to dump two feet on the mountainous counties of eastern Kentucky, marking the deepest snow accumulation there in some 20 years.

Six inches fell in some counties in just two hours Friday morning and the storm is expected to hover over the area for 24 to 36 hours. Officials implored people to stay inside and off the roads.

Michael Larimore of Horse Cave dropped off his mother before making the treacherous trek to work at a hardware store in Elizabethtown in his four-wheel-drive truck.

He said the roads were "slippery and awful," with several inches of snow on top of ice.

In Edmonton, police dispatcher Beth Wilson said her husband took her to work before dawn. They encountered a sheet of ice.

"When he first walked out the door this morning, he could hardly stand up," she said.

The weather service issued winter storm warning for the entire state.

In Frankfort, the General Assembly canceled its Friday session and state government offices were closed Friday because of the threat of winter weather.

Kentucky State Police said a man died in southeastern Kentucky on Thursday when his car collided with a state salt truck. Police said 59-year-old Billy R. Stevens of Williamsburg was pronounced dead at the scene in Whitley County.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet said road crews were mobilizing Thursday in an effort to maintain the state's roads.

Gov. Matt Bevin's office said in a statement that the National Guard is on high alert to provide assistance.

"With the sheer volume and rate of snowfall expected, it's unlikely that even main roads will be clear until after the storm subsides on Saturday," Bevin said in the statement Thursday. He advised restricting travel to a minimum.

The possibility of residents losing power prompted the Public Service Commission to advise caution in using portable generators or when clearing storm debris and to stay away from downed lines. Generators should be operated outside and away from windows and doors.

The University of Kentucky and Kentucky State University canceled classes for Friday.

The Department of Corrections said weekend visitation has been canceled at some prisons.
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While the partisan debate over GEs departure from Connecticut continues, a major Wall Street rating agency sees a correlation between the company's move and the states ongoing fiscal and economic woes.

Moodys Investors Service cited the impending move as it issued a credit negative  not a formal rating downgrade  but rather a public statement about a development that could harm Connecticuts financial standing in the long run.

The news is a credit negative for the state of Connecticut and it underscores the challenges the state faces as its revenues and economy continue to underperform, Moodys wrote Thursday in its weekly credit outlook.

GE announced on Jan. 13 that it would move its Fairfield headquarters to Boston over the next two years.

The legislatures Democratic majority has insisted GEs move was driven by Bostons cosmopolitan setting and the technologically advanced workforce produced by its cluster of superb colleges and universities.

Republicans counter that Connecticuts recent major tax hikes  and its huge debt that threatens to raise taxes even further over the next decade  pushed GE out the door.

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, also a Democrat, has been more nuanced in his assessment, stressing the advantages of Boston while acknowledging some of Connecticuts fiscal challenges.

But Moodys noted that Connecticut still grapples with under-performing tax revenues, budget deficits, low reserves, population loss and an economy that still hasnt recovered all jobs lost in the last recession.

Furthermore the state continues to face budgetary pressure from high fixed costs for debt, pension and retiree health care, Moodys wrote.

State government still has a strong credit rating with Moody's "which is a recognition that the underpinnings of Connecticut's economy and budget are solid," Gian-Carl Casa, spokesman for Malloy's budget office, said Friday.

"Connecticut had one of the largest drops in unemployment in the nation last year alone and we continue to attract dozens of new companies through economic development tool kits that our state has never had before," Casa added. "With that said, the business world is adapting and Connecticut no doubt needs to adapt with it. Even as we have worked with nearly 2,000 companies to create and retain tens o thousands of new jobs, we can, must and will do more to continue ensuring our economy remains vibrant."

But while the legislature's Democratic majority did not immediately respond Friday to Moody's assessment, GOP leaders said the message from the Wall Street agency was clear.

Moodys reaction to rate the GE move as credit negative for the State of Connecticut is further proof that our states tax policies and persistent budget deficits were the prime reasons behind this corporate exodus, House Minority Leader Themis Klarides, R-Derby, said. The market has spoken."

Klarides noted that if GE's departure does lead to a credit rating downgrade for Connecticut, that only would increase the state's debt because it would mean higher interest costs for financed capital projects.

The Democrats continue to try and spin this as a transportation issue or on GEs corporate makeover, but the people who rate our credit dont buy it, she added.

This crushing assessment is evidence that GEs move out of Connecticut speaks to the severity of Connecticuts financial mess," Senate Minority Leader Len Fasano, R-North Haven said. "It reflects poorly on Connecticuts economy, tax policies, and business environment. If we want to turn that negativity around, Democrat lawmakers need to stop misleading the public. They need to stop distracting people from the truth that their failed financial policies, high taxes, and unsustainable approach to state budgeting are why GE left."

Fasano said earlier this week that the Democratic majority must support long-term structural changes to the state budget when the regular 2016 session begins on Feb. 3. GOP leaders in particular have proposed a series of new restrictions on overtime and other labor costs.

According to nonpartisan analysts, a deficit of about $500 million is projected for the preliminary budget adopted for the next fiscal year. Thats about $100 million more than Connecticut has in its relatively modest emergency reserve.

And a much larger shortfall, topping $1.7 billion, is forecast for the first new budget legislators and the governor must begin to craft one year from now.

The credit outlook states that Connecticuts high fixed costs for debt and pension are major contributors to our state budget problems," Fasano added Friday. "Republicans had plans to address both these issues in the December special legislative session. But our proposals to make long-term structural changes were rejected by Democrat lawmakers who only wanted to fix the budget in the short term."

This story originally appeared at CTMirror.org, the website of The Connecticut Mirror, an independent, nonprofit news organization covering government, politics and public policy in the state.
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NORWALK -- Mecha Noodle Bar opened its doors in historic South Norwalk last month and flew under the radar while making steaming bowls of pho and ramen and many other foods familiar to Southeast Asian cuisine.

"We came to SoNo for the community and the crowd," co-founder and CEO Richard Reyes said. "(Mecha Noodle Bar) is a neighborhood place where locals want to go multiple times a week. The local scene in SoNo has a dedicated following."

Reyes, his brother Juan Reyes and Tony Pham, are all co-founders of Mecha Noodle Bar. They also have another Mecha Noodle Bar in Fairfield. They all have backgrounds or family history in the restaurant business -- with Juan Reyes being a trained chef himself. They hope to open another noodle shop in New Haven.

"When it comes to the dishes of your childhood, the standards are high. Every color, flavor, and aroma inspires us to connect diverse communities of people via Asian comfort food," said co-founder and Culinary Director Tony Pham, who added that his mother was always cooking him Vietnamese food.

The Reyes brothers' family owned a Latin deli in Danbury and they had been a part of that since they were eight-years old.

"Mecha Noodle Bar in SoNo has about 20 to 25 people on staff and almost all are locals -- even the chefs are locals, which can be hard to find for a Southeast Asian restaurant in Fairfield County," Richard Reyes said.

Mecha Noodle Bar first opened in Fairfield in 2013 and, after its success, looked for a chance to open in SoNo.

"When we got that moment of opportunity to open our own restaurants, we wanted to come back (to the restaurant business) in a heart beat," Richard Reyes said.

The SoNo location differs from the Fairfield location as their is a full bar and different menu items. About 70 percent of the menu is the same as Fairfield -- SoNo has fried shrimp banh mi and brussel sprouts with blood sausage (their play on a typical Vietnamese salad), while Fairfield has its own unique items.

"You build to your community, and SoNo is very bar driven. You have this downtown strip that is walking friendly ... SoNo is the perfect place to test it," Richard Reyes said. "People love a bowl of noodles and people love a stiff drink. There's nothing better than a bowl of noodles after a few drinks!"

Mecha Noodle Bar serves everything from authentic Vietnamese Pho to Japanese ramen and other Southeast Asian comfort food. The restaurant also has a bar that serves draft beers, non-alcohol and alcoholic bubble teas and various Asian spirits like schochu and sake.

"Pho is a vietnamese rice noodle that has either a beef or chicken base -- almost like a consomme -- and typically has bean sprouts, thai basil, cilantro, scallions and meat," Juan Reyes said. "While ramen is a Japanese wheat noodle which has a much more concentrated flavor in its broth."

Mecha Noodle Bar offers over five kinds of pho combinations plus a variety of things you can add. The restaurant also has six ramen combinations that covers all the bases.

"All our noodles are fresh. We get them freshly made from Sun Noodles in New Jersey every day," Juan Reyes said.

The restaurant features a long countertop bar, sit-down tables and a large communal table to promote a sense of community. It also features an open kitchen so customers can see the chef's in action and the steam coming off the bowls.

"Downtown South Norwalk has already been supporting us in a big way so it only seemed natural to bring guests in this area to a wholly new and refreshing concept," Richard Reyes said. "We want to introduce SoNo to a type of food that is not very well-known in these parts."

Mecha Noodle Bar is currently open seven days a week from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday. Late night menu is open from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m.

For more information, visit mechanoodlebar.com or call (203) 295-8718.
Babken Pipoyan: This is a national tragedy that we learn about a local problem from another country

Only one case of foot-and-mouth disease has been registered in Armenia, a spokesperson for the State Service for Food Safety (SSFS) told A1+ on January 22. Staring January 20, Russia banned the import of a number of agricultural and dairy products from Armenia. The import of wool, leather, fur, toothpaste is also banned connected with the instable situation in Armenia caused by foot-an-mouth disease. However, the SSFS representatives assured us that there nothing to worry about as they are taking preventive measures. This is a national tragedy that we learn about a local problem from another country, Babken Pipoyan, Chairman of the Informed and Protected Consumer NGO, told A1+. Even in Mozambique people would know about infections and diseases from inner sources and not from a second country. And this became known when the parties were negotiating in Moscow. The SSFS yesterday provided on its website information about the talks but there was no mention about foot-an-mouth disease which means they hide information from us in our own country. We need to have a complete picture, but it turns out that the agency which is supposed to provide is information, is hiding it from us. So, we are unreliable partners. I think the State Service for Food Safety should first apologize to public, then stop providing inaccurate information and employ people who will inspire hope in public. Why did they decide to cheat people? It was the Russian side that openly spoke about the problem, but this is an important issue for us as it concerns the entire country. The ban was put on the entire country and not on a spate region or marz. The Ministry of Agriculture has not given any explanation yet, Mr Pipoyan said.
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I'm Mike: triathlete, yogi, health enthusiast and food lover. I fill these pages with healthy recipes and ramblings about everything and nothing!

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Linkedin Anggi M. Lubis (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

State-run construction companies are setting much more optimistic targets this year after struggling to meet initial new contracts targets last year, with Adhi Karya being the latest among four publicly-listed companies to announce its full-year performance projection.



Adhi Karya is targeting to boost its new contracts by around 81 percent on an annual basis to Rp 25.1 trillion. The combined new contracts target for listed state-run builders is projected to hit about Rp 167.34 trillion this year, around 74 percent above last year's new contracts realization.



'Our optimism is in line with the infrastructure development plan in Indonesia, especially with the increase in the infrastructure budget this year,' Adhi corporate secretary Ki Syahgolang Permata said.



Adhi, according to a recently published statement, aims to see state and local government-funded projects and projects from fellow state-owned companies to contribute 37.3 percent and 25.7 percent to its new contracts, respectively, while private funded projects are estimated to make up the remainder.



As for construction type, the company is aiming for building projects to make up 45.3 percent of its new contracts, whereas road and bridge projects are expected to contribute 21.3 percent.



Adhi saw its 2015 new contracts go up by 15.2 percent from around Rp 9.2 trillion in the previous year, but the company fell short in securing its initial target last year to double its new contract achievement from the 2014 figure.



State-run builders struggled to meet their targets in the first half of last year, despite having set up high new contract estimation on expected infrastructure projects earlier in the year, amid a slowing economy, sluggish infrastructure spending and bureaucratic transition.



Adhi, Wijaya Karya (Wika), Waskita Karya and Pembangunan Perumahan (PP) targeted combined new contracts to reach Rp 100.4 trillion in 2015. However, they only managed to secure around Rp 96 trillion by the end of the year, with Adhi and Wika failing to meet their new contracts goals.



The projects, however, are expected to progress this year as the government has pledged to maintain its focus on infrastructure development, with the 2016 state budget draft allocating Rp 313.5 trillion or 14.8 percent of total state spending for infrastructure.



In the first week of this year, the government signed agreements on 644 infrastructure project packages worth Rp 8.81 trillion, spurring confidence for speedier budget spending and economic growth improvement this year. The Public Works and Public Housing Ministry also surpassed its budget spending target last year with 94.4 percent budget disbursement by the end of the year, more than the 93 percent target, despite slow progress throughout the year.



The four companies have all previously said that massive new infrastructure projects expected to be launched this year, as well as delayed projects from last year, were expected to bolster their new contract targets this year.



Wika and Waskita set the most ambitious targets for this year, both aiming to double their new contracts target.



Waskita, according to its president director M. Choliq, is looking to see its new contracts hit Rp 60 trillion this year, compared to Rp 30 trillion last year, on the back of its massive toll road projects.



Wika, on the other hand, is looking to pocket Rp 52.26 trillion, far above the Rp 25.33 trillion in new contracts it won last year. Wika corporate secretary Suradi said previously that the high-speed railway project connecting Jakarta and Bandung was expected to bring in Rp 17 trillion of new contracts alone to company.



PP is targeting a more modest growth of around 15 percent to Rp 31 trillion, from Rp 27.01 trillion last year.
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Linkedin Safrin La Batu (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

Hundreds of police and military personnel were deployed to raid Berlan in East Jakarta on Thursday, an area considered to be a drug-riddled part of the city, after a policeman was killed in a brawl with drug dealers on Monday.



East Jakarta Police spokeswoman Comr. Husaimah said that around 400 joint forces personnel had been involved in the raid and that they had arrested seven individuals and confiscated items such as samurai swords, machetes, small scales and a number of plastic wraps.



She could not specify the roles of each of the individuals arrested but said that urine tests had confirmed that they were all narcotics users.



'The operation was launched to look for drug dealers in the area,' she told The Jakarta Post.



Two police personnel and two informants were attacked by a group of people as they attempted to raid a suspected drug deal in Berlan on Monday. One policeman was killed in the attack.



Jakarta Police general crimes detective chief Sr. Comr. Krishna Murti previously said that the two policemen had been attempting to arrest several drug suspects inside a house in the area when the daughter of a suspect screamed suddenly, triggering a group of 15 thugs, armed with machetes, to rush into the house and attack the two policemen and the informants.



The four, still under attack, jumped into a river behind the house. One of the policemen, Brig. Patrik, was found alive with several gashes to his body, while the other, identified as Chief Brig. Taufik, died. His body was found floating in the river in the Gambir area of Central Jakarta on Tuesday.



Jakarta Police spokesman Mohammad Iqbal said Thursday that the attack was so sudden that the two policemen had been unable to think of anything other than escaping to the river.



'Standard operating procedure says that, in the case of an attack, police can take whatever action they can [to save their lives]. This attack [in Berlan] was so sudden,' he explained.



Separately, on Thursday, Jakarta Police narcotics division chief Sr. Comr. Eko Daniyanto said that, for a long time, Berlan had been known as a notoriously drug-ridden area in Jakarta, adding that the police would continue to raid the area.



'The police will ask for backup from the military if necessary,' he said.



For years, Jakartans have known Berlan as an area plagued by violence. Since the 1950s, brawls have been known to occur regularly between its residents and those from neighboring Pal Meriam. Such clashes often involve the hurling of stones, Molotov cocktails and arrows and the use of air rifles.



Eko said that the police would collaborate with banks to block the accounts of suspected drug dealers to cut off drug transactions in the area.



Meanwhile, University of Indonesia police observer Bambang Widodo Umar said that involving the military and deploying hundreds of police personnel to the raid showed that the police lacked power analysis in their operation.



'I think it [deploying hundreds of officers] is not right. The police should first deploy intelligence personnel to learn the identity of the attackers and how many of them there are. I don't think that all the people in the area were involved,' he told the Post.



He said that deploying so many personnel would only frighten the local residents and would not effectively clean the area of drug-related activities. He added that drug trafficking was 'triggered by a combination of a number of social and economic factors'.



He also said that instances of attack on police personnel, such as the attack on Monday in which one policeman was killed, should make the police reflect on their overall professionalism in every operation.



'These [attacks] should lead to a moment of introspection, for the police [to consider how to improve their professionalism],' he said.

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Linkedin Khoirul Amin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The Indonesian Oil Palm Estate Fund (BPDP) has voiced support for the government's mandatory biodiesel mix program to reduce the country's carbon footprint and spur growth in the palm oil industry, despite calls to review the plan due to potential funding problems.



BPDP president director Bayu Krisnamurthi said his agency would push for the implementation of blending 20 percent palm oil-biodiesel into public diesel, known as the B20 program.



'We won't scale it back to B15. We must not go backward for our renewable energy and to date, I've got commitments from all parties to continue with the B20 program,' he said Thursday.



Bayu explained that implementing B20 would significantly help the country stay on track with its commitment to reduce its greenhouse emissions by 29 percent by 2030, compared with business-as-usual projected emissions.



The implementation of B20 would reduce the emission of equivalent carbon dioxide (CO2) by 9 to 18 million tons per year, according to BPDP data.



In addition, widespread use of biofuel would help propel prices of crude palm oil (CPO), the main material for the fuel, amid concerns of a global glut of the commodity.



Local CPO prices increased from below Rp 5,500 (39 US cents) per kilogram prior to the use of the CPO fund to around Rp 7,000 per kg at present, according to BPDP data.



The Indonesian Palm Oil Producers Association (Gapki) previously called on the government to evaluate the B20 program due to funding issues deriving from the global slump in oil prices that would lead to higher biofuel subsidy costs for the government, as the gap between production costs and consumer prices widen.



While the mandatory biodiesel program in previous years was funded through the state budget, the government has used the CPO fund sourced from levies on CPO exports since July last year. The BPDP has been assigned to manage the fund.



BPDP estimates that Rp 9.5 trillion will be needed to fund the B20 program this year under the assumption that crude oil prices will hit US$40 per barrel and CPO prices $500 per ton.



Meanwhile, if crude oil prices stand at $20 per barrel and CPO prices remain at $500 per ton, the biodiesel program will require a total of Rp 16.5 trillion.



Bayu said that under the assumptions and a carryover of around Rp 6 trillion from last year, the CPO fund could support B20 implementation for the next eight to 10 months and other programs like replanting and plasma farmer training.



'We'll consult the funding gap with the government and there are actually a number of alternatives,' he said.



Biofuel Producers Association (Aprobi) chairman Paulus Tjakrawan voiced preference for the funding gap being financed by the government.



The government's mandatory B20 target hit 6.93 million kiloliters this year, with 107,000 Kl absorbed in the first two weeks of this year.



The government has ordered the blending of diesel fuel with a portion of biofuel in a move to reduce the country's growing dependency on fossil fuel and its carbon footprint. The mandatory biofuel blend into diesel fuel has increased from 10 percent in 2013 to 15 percent in 2015 and to 20 percent this year.
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Linkedin Indah Setiawati (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung once said that the meeting of two personalities was like contact between two chemical substances ' if there is any reaction, both are transformed.

Around two years ago, celebrated Indonesian contemporary artist Entang Wiharso met with Australian feminist contemporary artist Sally Smart while he was preparing for a group exhibition in Melbourne called 'Closing the Gap', as well as preparing for a pop-up show.



'It was the last day of my residency in Melbourne and my friend asked whether there was anyone I wanted to meet. Her [Smart's] artwork popped up in my mind,' Entang told The Jakarta Post.



When the two finally met, they connected easily.



'We clicked talking about many things. It was like meeting an old friend. I told her she should come to my studio in Yogyakarta. Later, I invited her to come to an art dinner I hosted. At that time, we were like, 'We have to work together,' Entang said.



They began to formulate ideas for a future collaboration. After a number of lengthy long-distance phone calls, Smart taking several trips back and forth between Australia and Yogyakarta and her doing a six-week residency at Entang's studio, the two artists eventually exhibited their individual works together in Jakarta.



Held from Jan. 14 to Feb. 1, the exhibition is titled 'Conversation: Endless Acts in Human History' and is held at Galeri Nasional Indonesia in collaboration with the Canna Gallery.



The exhibition is a dream come true for Entang and Smart, who had spent two years preparing for it.



Nothing could prevent them from celebrating their long-awaited achievement, not even the deadly attacks that shook the busy Sarinah mall intersection near the gallery on their opening day.



Curator Suwarno Wisetrotomo said the collaboration between Entang and Smart went beyond a pragmatic way of thinking, as the two did not work in the same medium.



'This is a collaboration of conversation, thought and ideas. The two artists share a critical perspective in terms of social, political and cultural problems,' he said.

The two artists said they shared common ground in the cutting out method. In their creative process, they were also keen to explore issues related to identity, living abroad, migration, politics and various aspects of borders, including economy, geography and religion.



They played with various kinds of media to express themselves.



Most of Entang's artwork in the exhibition was gigantic with his dominant materials being aluminum, copper, light bulbs and car paint. He used many bright and shiny colors in Promising Land (2015) and The Other Dream: I Love You Too Much (2011-2015), which displayed various symbols of migration, violence and foreign culture.



He also instilled satanic and animalistic visual elements, which seems to be one of his signatures.



In the artwork titled Chronic Satanic Fences (2010), he used five scary figures with long tongues that tried to break a house fence. It was intended, Entang said, to highlight issues surrounding tolerance.



'The fence represents a code of ethics. Breaking down morality is another thing, but we should not break the ethical code. When that border is breached, people will be like animals. Maybe worse, because animals use violence to survive, while humans use it for their pleasure,' Entang said.



He also engraved short dialogues containing strong questions or statements to ponder and worked in intricate detail on the aluminum.



This could be seen in the hand-cut aluminum artwork Being Guest: Double Happiness (2015).



Entang included in his work various elements, such as human figures, skulls, legs, a head with three eyes and tables of food ' all of them interconnected with many long thin objects such as bones, spider webs, hair and other body parts.



For Entang, the cutting method was not only aimed at creating beauty, but also a conceptual act attempting to describe the chaotic social conditions in Indonesia. The little details, he said, were meant as visual elements to uphold the bigger ones.



'The chaos has a structure. It may be difficult for us to see because we live in it,' he said, adding that he could see the structure clearly when he lived far away from the country.



For Smart, to cut means to change. She cut, pinned and reconstructed the materials into new artwork that represented her ideas.



'There were connections between our works, and differences as well. Art speaks across borders, boundaries and different generations. I think we share an interest in investigating systems and how they might function. For me, I often have to take them apart,' Smart said.

Smart played with various collage elements, including synthetic hair, pins, fabric and paper, and used a TV screen, mind mapping and a video installation to express her creative energy. She also explored shadows and puppets and combined them with her cutting method.



Entering the main building of the gallery, one will see Smart's two giant black pirate ships installation on the wall. One of them is titled The Exquisite Pirate (2015), a collage made of mixed media that has been cut out and put together to form a vivid construction. Further inside the Gallery, there are some pictures of female pirates in the artwork, The Exquisite Pirate Blue Collage #1.



It was interesting to imagine the ship exploring the ocean with women pirates onboard.



'As a feminist, I believe very strongly in women's part in the world and I show that. I show things about women in the way I use process or in the things that I represent, [such as] women pirates,' she said.



She said her first exploration of women pirates took her back to 2004 when she started to wonder whether women pirates existed, as pop culture only portrayed men pirates and their treasure islands. She later found that there were many women pirates in human history.



Smart used the pirates and the ships to talk about breaking down borders and humanity.



'I was thinking about Australia [...] and the indigenous people who were there long before colonialization. With colonialization, everyone came on ships. They settled in Australia, and yet we have always had issues around the ship and borders.'



Entang and Smart's collaboration resulted in artworks that encourage conversation, and which can hopefully ease tensions. As Entang put it, 'In human civilization, there is always terror and violence. That is why we need dialogues. This is an endless conversation'.





' Photos by JP/DMR
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Linkedin Dewanti A. Wardhani (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The Jakarta administration's food security measures may be hampered after a planned Rp 50 billion (US$3.59 million) capital injection for city-owned slaughterhouse PD Dharma Jaya was scrapped.



Governor Basuki 'Ahok' Tjahaja Purnama expressed his anger after the allocation for Dharma Jaya was completely scrapped, although he had requested that the firm be given extra capital due to its role in maintaining food security in the city.



Ahok said the allocation might have been scrapped by the administration's budgetary team, which consists of the city secretary, the city's financial and asset management board (BPKAD) and the Jakarta Development Planning Board.



'I've said time and again that Dharma Jaya must receive the capital injection. It plays an important role in maintaining beef supply, especially during Idul Fitri, when prices soar,' Ahok told reporters at City Hall recently.



'I don't understand why they scrapped the allocation. We will have to wait for the revised budget to give a capital injection to Dharma Jaya. Meanwhile, it will have to seek loans from a bank for beef supply for Idul Fitri,' Ahok said.



The revised budget is normally approved in August, while Idul Fitri this year is expected to fall in July.



Over the years, Dharma Jaya's performance has continued to decline due to corruption within the company under previous directors.



Ahok said the city administration had planned a total overhaul of PD Dharma Jaya's business and return it to its function of providing beef for Jakarta.



Ahok said that with Dharma Jaya's involvement in the business, meat could be sold at a lower price in Jakarta, especially at traditional markets where most customers are from lower-class households.



Separately, BPKAD head Heru Budi Hartono reprimanded Dharma Jaya for being late in submitting their investment analysis report to the Home Affairs Ministry. Without the report, the city administration may not give capital injections to city-owned firms.



However, according to Article 16 of Home Ministry Regulation No. 52/2012 on regional investment management, the BPKAD as regional treasurer is tasked with drafting and submitting an investment analysis report to the ministry.



Dharma Jaya president director Marina Ratna Dwi Kusumadjati said the company could not seek bank loans, as it was blacklisted by Bank Indonesia since 1996 as former directors failed to pay an initial debt of Rp 4 billion to city-owned lender Bank DKI. Over the years, the company's debt has increased to Rp 17 billion with interest.



Marina said she had done her part of the job by proposing a request for capital injection with the BPKAD and discussing her plan with city authorities. Dharma Jaya is the only city-owned firm to have its application for a 2016 capital injection rejected.



A bylaw to approve Jakarta's 2016 budget at Rp 67.1 trillion was approved last week. The budget includes more than Rp 7 trillion in government investment participation (PMP) in various city-owned firms.



Marina said the Rp 50 billion in capital injection had been intended to fund cattle-breeding in Banten, renovate cold storage facilities and slaughterhouses, among others. She said Dharma Jaya currently had about Rp 60 billion in capital, but those funds had already been allocated for other purposes.



'For the time being, we will use the funds we have efficiently. We will submit a new request for a capital injection in the revised budget,' Marina told The Jakarta Post.
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Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

State lender Bank Mandiri in partnership with Mandiri Sekuritas will hold the Mandiri Investment Forum 2016 to bring together local and overseas investors as part of a campaign to boost investment in Indonesia.



The forum, which will be held at Fairmont Hotel in Central Jakarta from Jan. 26-29, is expected to host 600 investors and business players.



'In order to accelerate investment, we need to build synergy among all stakeholders. We are committed to supporting the synergy to ensure Indonesia's sound and sustainable economic growth,' Bank Mandiri finance and strategy director Kartika Wirjoatmodjo said in a statement on Thursday.



The forum, titled Optimizing Private Sector and Local Government Contributions, also aims to encourage equal distribution of investment across the archipelago. Therefore, several local administrations, including Central Java's, will be presenting their untapped potential.



The forum will include site visits to several e-commerce companies, consumer goods organizations and industrial sites.



A panel discussion will be held on Jan. 27 featuring Coordinating Economic Minister Darmin Nasution, Bank Indonesia governor Agus Martowardojo, State-Owned Enterprises Minister Rini Soemarno, Trade Minister Thomas Lembong and former trade minister Mari Elka Pangestu. The forum will also host one-on-one meetings to allow participants to explore investment opportunities in Indonesia.
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Linkedin The Jakarta Post  Fri, January 22, 2016

Lawyer Handoko Wibowo was presented with the prestigious human rights Yap Thiam Hien Award late on Thursday for his work with local farmers in Central Java. His Omah Tani (house for farmers) in Batang has attracted farmers from far and wide seeking to learn how to deal with disputes affecting their livelihoods. With Handoko's consultation and training on their legal rights, farmers are able to maintain their dignity when negotiating with different parties, Handoko said.



However, the award also focuses the spotlight on various land conflicts, which the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) has stated, continuously rank among the top issues of rights violations reported.



Only a few hundred cases have been resolved among thousands that have come before the courts. Complications increase when police and military personnel are implicated, often where businesses are in conflict with local landowners.



Overlapping regulations and political interests contribute to many a tangled and protracted dispute, frequently leading to violence and fatalities. Komnas HAM says almost 75 percent of land conflicts 'are caused by the same businesspeople', reflecting the glaring gap in access to land. Ahead of local elections, land becomes a political commodity and elected leaders have been found issuing various land-use permits to campaign donors.



For indigenous people, hopes emerged following a 2013 Constitutional Court ruling that their customary forests should not be classed as state forest. Statistics in 2012 showed some 32,000 villages overlapping with what the government called state forest. Unsurprisingly, reports have surfaced of locals being persecuted for farming on land they claim as their own.



Following the court's ruling, last year the Environment and Forestry Ministry issued a regulation to reallocate up to 30 percent of industrial forests and forest concession areas to indigenous owners. Residents however still report difficulties in the regulation's implementation, some relating to the significant role of local authorities in 'reallocating' the land.



Conflicts get increasingly ugly when disputes involve local people against migrants, where contests over the precious resource of land are overshadowed and blown up into issues of race, ethnicity and differences in beliefs. Land issues then become increasingly hidden in communal conflicts that attract media attention.



Last December the government announced a one-map policy as part of its reforms, continuing on from efforts by the previous administration to make land ownership more transparent by harmonizing all maps of spatial planning and land use. This measure should result in clear references for land use concessions and reduce potential disputes.



Better coordination is still needed within the government bodies in charge of land and forests, who are also working with the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to prevent and track abuse of concessions.



No single local organization or lawyer can single-handedly resolve protracted land disputes. Regarding one such dispute, one man told a public hearing, 'I cannot sing 'Indonesia Raya' [the national anthem],' as the lyrics referred to 'the land where my blood is shed ['], where I stand' he said, 'for I have no land to stand on.'
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Linkedin Rizal Harahap (The Jakarta Post) Pekanbaru  Fri, January 22, 2016

The Pangkalan Kerinci District Court in Riau on Thursday sentenced four men to two years and six months in prison each for hunting and killing elephants in the Tesso Nilo National Park (TNTN) in Pelalawan regency.



The court also fined the defendants, Ari Kamil, Ishak Ibrahim, Herdani Serdavio Hasan Basri and Anwar Sanusi Poniran, Rp 20 million (US$1,428) each, or an additional three months behind bars.



Presiding judge Bangun Sagita Rambe said the defendants were proven guilty of violating Article 40 (2) of Law No 5/1990 on biodiversity and ecosystem and Article 55 (1) of the Criminal Code (KUHP).



'Based on the facts presented in the trial, the element of jointly and deliberately hunting protected animals was legally and convincingly proven,' Bangun said, reading out the verdict.



However, he added, the defendants were not proven guilty of trading in elephant parts.



'Three pairs of tusks of 42, 49 and 25 centimeters, respectively, were to be handed over to Fadli [who is still at large] in return for Rp 4 million per kilogram, but the money had not been received at the time the defendants were arrested,' Bangun said.



The trial, which began on Nov. 12 last year, heard that the defendants had killed two adult male elephants and a baby male elephant on Feb. 6 last year in the TNTN area in Segati subdistrict, Langgam district.

______________________________________



'Based on the facts presented in the trial, the element of jointly and deliberately hunting protected animals was legally and convincingly proven.'



The defendants, Bangun said, had been given their hunting equipment comprising a rifle and 66 bullets from Fadli.



Ari killed the elephants by shooting them twice in the head; Herdani and Ishak then skinned the heads and removed the tusks using a cleaver and an axe. Anwar acted as a driver and guided the other defendants to the hunting ground. He was found guilty for not reporting the crime to the police.



'All of the defendants were aware that hunting wild animals was not allowed. That's why there are no justifying reasons for their deliberate violation of the prevailing laws,' the presiding judge said.



Aggravating factors included the fact that the crime could lead to the extinction of Sumatran elephants in Riau and that the defendants had previous convictions for involvement in elephant poaching from the Bengkalis District Court.



'Mitigating factors include that they confessed to and showed contrition for their crimes. They also support their families,' Bangun said.



The four defendants said they would not appeal.



Prosecutor Sri Mulyani Anom of the Pangkalan Kerinci Prosecutor's Office also expressed no objection to the verdicts.



The four defendants were previously arrested for poaching along with three others, Fadli, Mursid and Ruslan.



The Bengkalis District Court sentenced the seven poachers to sentences ranging from 10 months to a year and a month. They were also ordered to pay Rp 3 million in fines or serve a further month in jail.



WWF Indonesia Riau program spokesman Syamsidar on Thursday expressed appreciation of the verdict, noting that the sentences were more stringent than those handed down by other Riau courts in similar wildlife-related cases.



However, Syamsidar also urged the authorities to look more closely at the possible involvement in the case of Fadli, whom she said appeared to have escaped justice.



In October last year, she said, Fadli was released on parole after serving two thirds of the sentence handed down by the Bengkalis court.



'In the TNTN case he should have been sentenced alongside the four defendants; instead, he is still free, despite having masterminded the poaching.'



She expressed fear that if investors behind the poaching of protected animals were left untouched, they would consider themselves untouchable and increase their criminal activities.
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Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The requirement for project developers to carry out an Environmental Impact Analysis (Amdal) hinders investment, because developers have to spend months to arrange required documents, according to Jakarta Governor Basuki 'Ahok' Tjahaja Purnama.

'How can we create an easy atmosphere of doing business if arranging Amdal document takes months to complete,' he said, adding that he had proposed to President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo to scrap the Amdal requirement for the development of certain projects.

The Jakarta's one-stop integrated service (PTSP) could not immediately issue project permits, because of the difficulty to arrange Amdal documents, the governor said on Friday.

He suggested that in areas for which Amdal documents already existed, new developers did not need to arrange for another Amdal document for certain projects. 'If a building already acquired the Amdal document, why should we need another Amdal document for the construction of other buildings in the nearby area?' Ahok asked.

According to a government regulation issued in 2014 on environment permits, regions that already had a Spatial Details Plan (RDTR) were exempted from the requirement to obtain Amdal documents, Ahok said.

But the regulation could not be enforced because the Forestry and Environment Minister had not issued a ministerial regulation to support the government regulation. 'That is what I reported to the president,' he said as reported by kompas.com.

He stressed that Jakarta already had the RDTR and zoning bylaws issued in 2014 that already regulated the use of space in the capital area.

Instead of an Amdal document, he proposed the issuance of an environmental monitoring and management efforts (UKL-UPL) document, the arrangement of which requires less time. (bbn)
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Linkedin Dylan Amirio (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The government's move to allow foreign investors to have 100 percent ownership in Indonesian e-commerce companies has drawn criticism with claims that the policy will threaten local players.



The controversial policy is part of an e-commerce roadmap which aims to improve and develop the country's e-commerce industry.



The policy proposal was originally leaked by Communications and Information Technology Minister Rudiantara before the official announcement of the roadmap. According to the minister the roadmap will allow foreign e-commerce players to have 100 percent ownership in a Indonesian companies.



Foreign companies will potentially have to pay higher tax rates and will be required to invest more than Rp 20 billion.



Indonesian Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Institute founder and IT expert Heru Sutadi said the policy had drawn concerns because it would put local players in a difficult position to compete in the market.



'The government lost its way when drafting the roadmap [...]. Even if allowances for foreign players are made, it should not be this open and liberal,' he said, referring to foreign consulting firm Ernst & Young, which was approached to draft the roadmap's preliminary guidelines.



'Indonesian SMEs [small and medium enterprises] should be the priority, but with 100 percent investment for foreign players, it will be hard for local SMEs to compete,' he added.



Heru suggested that because e-commerce was set to become the heart of the trade industry in the future, the government should reconsider or review this aspect of the roadmap in order to ensure that local SME's maintain their economic independence.



'There is time for the government to revise this point before the roadmap takes effect at the end of January, in order to ensure that this does not benefit foreign players more than locals,' Heru added.



Indonesia's e-commerce roadmap was supposed to be finished and announced at the end of 2015, but additional reviews such as that of the negative investment index (DNI) to exclude e-commerce firms caused delays.



Among the initiatives are measures to minimize job cuts in the transition to the internet economy and the addition of new jobs in the sector. It also tries to underline the priority of securing the development of local SMEs through law revisions among other measures.



Rudiantara previously explained that with a proper roadmap, Indonesia would be able to earn up to US$130 billion from the industry by the year 2020 if the policies were implemented as soon as January.



The drafting of the roadmap began in December 2014. After one year, the Office of the Coordinating Economic Minister, along with several other related government institutions, agreed on a formal roadmap that aims to benefit and develop the nation's e-commerce industry.



The plan, which is made up of 31 initiatives, aims to develop the country's burgeoning e-commerce industry via various measures, such as the encouragement and promotion of technological skills necessary for e-commerce access for all Indonesians.



It is set to legally come into effect by the end of January and also stipulates the formation of a program management unit that will coordinate all related ministries and institutions in monitoring the roadmap's progress.
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Linkedin Raras Cahyafitri (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry's mineral and coal office has insisted that PT Freeport Indonesia has failed to make required progress on its smelter development, despite the company's claim that the project is 30 percent complete.



The mineral director at the ministry, Mohammad Hidayat, said Freeport Indonesia's smelter project in Gresik, East Java, was lagging behind the 'S curve', a common measure for work progress.



'Six months ago, progress was [on schedule], therefore we granted the company a recommendation for export permit. Looking at the site, there is [no further progress] visible now,' Hidayat said on Thursday.



Freeport Indonesia, a subsidiary of US giant Freeport McMoRan Inc, is seeking a recommendation from the mineral and coal directorate general for an extension of its export permit for copper concentrate. The recommendation is necessary for applying for the permit from the Trade Ministry and, more importantly, to avoid halting its operations in Papua.



The existing permit, an extension from a previous one, is set to expire on Jan. 28.



Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said said on Wednesday the government would give Freeport a six-month extension, with 5 percent export tax and a mandatory deposit as a guarantee that it would continue its smelter project.



Mineral and coal directorate general Bambang Gatot Ariyono said on Thursday that the deposit was US$530 million. That is around 25 percent of the company's total planned investment of $2.1 billion for the new Gresik smelter.



Freeport Indonesia director Clementino Lamury said earlier the company's Gresik smelter development has progressed 30 percent. The percentage was calculated based on the company's spending on the smelter project, which mostly consisted of engineering and procurement contracts signed late last year worth around $700 million.



'We are expecting to hold a groundbreaking ceremony this July, followed by construction,' Clementino said.



Given the claimed progress, Freeport Indonesia was also seeking a lower export tax than the current 5 percent. Under a Finance Ministry regulation, a gradually increasing export tax, from 0 percent to 7.5 percent, will be applied to semi-finished minerals for companies that continue exporting.



'The company claimed the progress based on committed payments. It shouldn't be that way. A deal on engineering and procurement is nothing unless there is real spending disbursed, for example, the purchase of equipment or site preparation. We measure progress by real disbursement,' Hidayat said.



Smelter development is mandatory for all mining firms as a consequence of the 2009 Mining Law that requires all minerals to be processed and refined before export. The law allowed a five-year period for the completion of such facilities, ending in 2014, so that companies had time to prepare for the full ban on raw minerals exports.



However, most mining firms have been reluctant to work on processing facilities, citing the massive investment needed. The 2014 deadline passed with no significant smelter developments in sight. As consequence, the government relaxed its policy and allowed companies to continue exporting semi-finished minerals, such as copper concentrate, until 2017, as long as they were making progress on smelter development.
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Linkedin Ayomi Amindoni (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The government is targeting to create a holding company of state-owned mining firms by the end of 2016 and has created a committee to study options for the consolidation scheme in March.

Four state-owned enterprises (SOE) have sent representatives as member of the committee, namely PT Bukit Asam, PT Timah, PT Aneka Tambang and PT Indonesia Asahan Alumunium, according to Fajar Harry Sampurna, the State-Owned Enterprises Minister's assistant for mining, strategic industries and media.

"The establishment of the holding company will be decided within three months, including whether to create a new company or whether to make one of the four firms a parent company," he said in Jakarta on Friday.

Earlier, State-Owned Enterprises Minister Rini Soemarno said Indonesia should have holding companies for the SOEs operating in 16 sectors, including mining, banking and insurance.

With one giant holding company in each sector, she said, the capacity and the efficiency of Indonesian SOEs would increase. (ags)
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Linkedin Ina Parlina (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The government decided on Thursday to push for an amendment to the existing 2003 Terrorism Law to improve preventative measures, expecting that the House of Representatives could deliberate the revisions within two sitting sessions.



The government also made assurances that the new guidelines would not be oppressive saying that the National Intelligence Agency (BIN) was unlikely to be granted the power to make temporary preventive arrests.



The decision was made following a limited Cabinet meeting on Thursday, in which President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo also ordered related ministers to immediately finalize the draft as the government expected the House to deliberate the amendment bill during the two sitting sessions scheduled for the next six months.



The government has previously considered various possibilities, including amending existing legislation, introducing a new law or issuing a government regulation in lieu of law (Perppu).



'But [any changes must] prioritize the presumption of innocence principle and adopt a human rights approach,' Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung said after the meeting.



According to Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly, the President indeed instructed his ministers to seek ways to grant increased power to the police to anticipate possible terror attacks, but at the same time to ensure that only the police had the right to make temporary arrests for preventative and investigative purposes, following speculation that BIN would also be granted such powers.



'There was a debate [during the meeting] over the issue. However, in accordance with the President's instructions, law enforcement powers remain the prerogative of the police and not BIN,' Yasonna said.



Under existing antiterrorism laws, only law enforcement agencies such as the National Police are allowed to detain suspects for one week based on preliminary evidence. Preliminary evidence can be obtained using intelligence reports and must be first deemed legally admissible by the head of a district court.



National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) head Saud Usman Nasution proposed a month-long temporary preventive arrest period for potential terrorism suspects, instead of the current seven-day period. Similar provisions were also proposed by National Police chief Gen. Badrodin Haiti recently.



According to Yasonna, the expanded preventive detention powers would only require consent from a judge, instead of the head of a district court before arresting suspects.



'It is intended to make it easier [...] But at the same time to ensure the due process of law,' he added.



Badrodin reiterated his proposal that preventive legal measures should also cover those believed to have joined military-style terrorism training abroad, as well as Indonesian foreign fighters.



Saud also requested a longer detention period of 10 months from the current six-month period for terror suspects during the investigation or prosecution process.



Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan said he would ensure that the amendment would not be oppressive, but would grant authorities the power to carry out preemptive action.



During the meeting, Jokowi said that a stronger and more comprehensive legal framework was needed to root out terrorism in the country.



The President also called on all related institutions, including BIN, the police, the Indonesian Military and the BNPT to improve coordination in intelligence-gathering activities to anticipate terror attacks. 'Don't submit to egocentrism... I want all of the intelligence community to improve our counterterrorism abilities,' Jokowi said.



'Deradicalization must also be followed by monitoring and support programs for former terror convicts after they are released,' he added.



Pramono said the President had ordered the Communications and Information Ministry to ban radical websites and had told Yasonna to implement closer monitoring of penitentiaries that hold terrorism convicts to prevent them from spreading radical ideologies to other prisoners.
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Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

Thousands of books on radical Islamism still spread freely throughout Indonesia, rising concerns that they may hamper the government's efforts to combat terrorism in the wake of a recent attack in Jakarta, a researcher said on Friday.

There are about 5,000 books with radical teaching contents spread across the country, said Ali Asghar, secretary of the National Security Studies Center of Jakarta-based Bhayangkara University, urging the government to monitor the spread.

"They may trigger some readers to commit terrorist acts," he said.

Ali gave as an example a book containing extensive commentary about the Koran written by influential Egyptian author Sayyid Qutb: Fi Zilal Al-Quran (In the Shade of the Koran), which was a favorite among Indonesian readers.

The book, which has been translated into Indonesian, contained messages promoting sharia and claimed that any country that does not implement it is evil.

"Non-Muslim countries deserve to be attacked as they can be deemed infidels," he said about the book during a public discussion in Jakarta.

Moreover, readers of radical books are also those with educational backgrounds, Ali said.

"The buyers of radical books are not people who only graduated from Islamic boarding schools. On the contrary, they graduated from some reputable public universities in Indonesia," Ali said.

Radical Islamic messages are also dispersed through religious flyers distributed during Friday prayers.

"I find in the flyers the writers slam the government for its secular ideology," he said.

In the latest reports by local media, a textbook for kindergarten students in Depok, West Java reportedly contained radical messages such as "Sahid di medan jihad" [die as a jihadist], "Rela mati bela agama" [willingly die for religion], "Hati-hati zona bahaya" [warning, dangerous zone] and 'Bahaya sabotase" [danger of sabotage].

The government had announced plans to implement stronger programs to counter terrorism, including deradicalization of convicted terrorists.

Four terrorists launched an attack by suicide bombing and opened fire with handguns on Jl. MH Thamrin on Jan. 14, killing three civilians (a fourth was mistakenly shot dead by police) and injuring dozens of people. National Police chief Gen. Badrodin Haiti announced that the attackers, who apparently all died in the incident, were connected to the Islamic State terrorist group. (rin)(+)
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Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The Jakarta administration has increased security measures at City Hall after Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Tito Karnavian included Governor Basuki 'Ahok' Tjahaja Purnama, a Christian of Chinese descent, on a list of figures suspected to be targeted by terrorist groups linked to Islamic State (IS) recruit Bahrun Naim.



Jakarta General Affairs Bureau head Agustino Dharmawan said that the city administration had cooperated with the Jakarta Police and the Indonesian Military (TNI) since November to secure City Hall after IS threats to Jakarta were first made public; security had then been heightened in the wake of last week's attack on Jl. MH Thamrin, less than 2 kilometers from Ahok's office.



'We are working with the police and TNI [Indonesian Military] to increase security measures at City Hall,' Agustino said over the phone on Thursday.



At least a dozen police motorcycles were seen parked on the building's forecourt, while uniformed officers, additional to the existing guards, were scattered around the office complex. Metal detectors have been installed at all pedestrian entrances, where guards are also stationed.



Separately, Ahok, who is usually protected by five police bodyguards, said that he had always taken threats to his life lightly. 'I'm not scared. Life is in the hands of God. In any case, it's better if I die young, you won't have to watch me grow old,' the governor joked.
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Linkedin The Jakarta Post Tangerang  Fri, January 22, 2016

The Tangerang Police in Banten on Wednesday arrested a man in a rape case reported by the suspect's wife. Tangerang Police spokeswoman Comr. Triyani said the man, identified as JS, 30, was suspected of raping his 20-year-old cousin earlier this month, adding that the latter had notified JS' wife, who had then reported the case to the police.



On Jan. 7, the victim, originally from Garut in West Java and looking for a job in Tangerang, had come to stay at the suspect's house.



Triyani said the suspect had raped the victim when his wife was not at home, slipping her sedatives that he claimed were vitamin pills.



'JS raped the victim while she was unconscious,' Triyani said on Thursday as quoted by wartakotalive.com.



Upon regaining consciousness, the victim realized she had been raped, and informed JS' wife, who then reported her husband to a nearby police station, Triyani went on.



After several days of investigation, the police came to the conclusion that the victim had indeed been raped by JS, who was then arrested, she said.
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Linkedin The Jakarta Post Tangerang  Fri, January 22, 2016

The Police recently arrested two men, identified as A and R, for allegedly stealing property belonging to state-owned telecommunications firm Telkom Indonesia at Green Lake City in Cipondoh, Tangerang, Banten.



Cipondoh Police chief Comr. Paryanto said on Thursday that A and R had stolen 41 passive splitters and six optical distribution jackets from a relay station in the area.



'The company suffered losses reaching Rp 90 million,' Paryanto said as quoted by wartakotalive.com, adding that the police had arrested A and R after receiving a report from a Telkom employee named Sukiman.



According to Paryanto, Sukiman, inspecting the station in the wake of customer reports of internet shutdown, had discovered A and R dismantling it. The police chief added that the suspects had admitted to committing several similar crimes in Jakarta, Tangerang and Bekasi in West Java.
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Linkedin Tama Salim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The House of Representatives' Commission III overseeing legal affairs plans to set up a working committee with the objective of 'assisting' Attorney General Office (AGO) prosecutors in their investigation of the high-profile Freeport conspiracy case.



Commission III member Bambang Soesatyo said the formation of the working committee was to help House speaker Setya Novanto deal with the AGO probe into his alleged attempt to secure shares in a backroom deal with Freeport executives.



'It is a gesture of solidarity from lawmakers,' Bambang said at the House complex on Thursday.



The Golkar lawmaker also maintained that the working committee would be able to work objectively in helping the AGO resolve the case.



'Part of a working committee's job description is investigating, so we might also be able to provide the AGO with more material for their case,' he added.



Meanwhile, fellow lawmaker Ruhut Sitompul of the Democratic Party, rejected the proposal for the establishment of the working committee, saying that it was unnecessary.



'I'd say they are defending Novanto,' he told reporters on Thursday. 'We still have other work to do, such as working on legislation.'



When asked about the stance of fellow Democratic Party lawmaker deputy chairman of Commission III, Benny K. Harman, who backed the proposal, Ruhut replied: 'Benny can say whatever he likes.'



House Commission III announced its plan to set up the working committee following a meeting on Wednesday that Attorney General HM Prasetyo also attended.



Concluding the meeting, Commission III chairman Azis Syamsuddin decided to include the proposal for the working committee as a footnote, despite protest from National Mandate Party (PAN) lawmaker Taufiqulhadi.



Azis ignored the objections, arguing that the proposal did not require the approval of all commission members.



Earlier in the meeting, lawmakers lambasted the AGO for its slow work in handling the case.



Apart from members of the House ethics council, some of whom also hold positions in the legal affairs commission, many lawmakers have claimed that the AGO's involvement in the Freeport case was politically motivated.



Prasetyo defended how his prosecutors were handling the case, saying that the agency only acted on legal facts and evidence.



Responding to the working committee plan, Prasetyo expressed his concerns that the committee would only get in the way of legal proceedings.



'I am worried that by forming a working committee an honorable institution such as the House will be seen as intervening with the work of law enforcement agencies,' Prasetyo said after the meeting with lawmakers late on Wednesday.



Prasetyo said that the political process to deal with the involvement of the former House speaker in the alleged conspiracy should have ended with the conclusion of his hearing at the ethics council, and that it was up to his office to settle the case through legal means.



'Law enforcement doesn't require such [excessive] monitoring; that will naturally occur during the trial,' he told reporters.



Allegations of conspiracy emerged following a taped conversation between Setya, oil import kingpin Muhammad Reza Chalid and former Freeport Indonesia president director Maroef Sjamsoeddin. In a taped conversation Setya can allegedly be heard asking for shares from the firm in return for his help securing an extension of the company's contract of work.



Maroef provided the recording to Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said, who subsequently reported Setya to the ethics council, eventually forcing Setya to resign from his position as House speaker.
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Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

Relatives of Wayan Mirna Salihin, a young woman who died after drinking a cyanide-laced coffee, have expressed their hope that the police can immediately uncover the identity of the killer.



Mirna's family, namely her father, mother, husband and twin sister, on Thursday visited the Jakarta Police headquarters to fulfill a police summons.



"Imagine if a person who kills another with cyanide is not punished. All of you could be [easily] poisoned by cyanide," said Darmawan Salihin, Mirna's father, adding that the questioning had focused on Mirna's biodata.



He did not reveal any other details about the questioning, while Mirna's other relatives declined to make any comment.



Darmawan said he did not know Jessica Kumala Wongso and Hani, who were with Mirna at the Olivier cafA in Jakarta when she drank the coffee that was believed to have caused her death. The police have raided Jessica's house and questioned her several times about the incident.



Based on the investigation, Mirna, Hani and Jessica met at the cafA. Jessica arrived first and ordered cocktails and a Vietnamese iced coffee. Mirna and Hani then arrived and Mirna drank the coffee. She subsequently suffered from convulsions and foaming at the mouth. She was rushed to the hospital, but died shortly afterwards.



Darmawan said he met Jessica for the first time at the hospital when Mirna was rushed there soon after the incident.



He said Mirna had recently started managing a company owned by the family. "I handed over one of my companies to her. She had only just begun to manage it,' he added.



Apart from questioning Mirna's family members to collect details on her personal life, the police have also sought information from the Australian Federal Police about Mirna's time living in the country.



The Jakarta Police's general crimes chief Khrisna Murti said earlier that the police were not in a rush to reveal the murder suspect because they had to question more people first.



"We are being really careful in handling this case," Khrisna said, adding that the police particularly needed to find a pair of trousers that Jessica had worn during the incident.



Yudi Wibowo, Jessica's lawyer, said the trousers were thrown out by Jessica's maid because they were badly torn when Jessica helped to carry Mirna from the cafA.



"We have questioned Jessica's servant but we will not reveal the results right now," Khrisna said. (bbn)(+)
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Linkedin Novani Nugrahani (The Jakarta Post) Bali  Fri, January 22, 2016

It was a breezy afternoon when I stepped out of my villa at wellness resort COMO Shambhala Estate in Ubud, Bali, and walked past the lush green amphitheater to the top of the hill where Ojas, a spa center, is located.



As I went upstairs, several people had already gathered at Ojas' yoga pavilion, all ready to participate in the afternoon session of Qi Gong (chee-gong), a traditional breathing practice.



Situated on the second story of the spa center, the yoga pavilion's deck perched at the height of a well-manicured hill overlooking a green valley, serving as a memorable landmark among other buildings on the property.



Our Qi Gong teacher that day, David Melladew, is a resident expert at the resort with extensive experience in the oriental sciences. In addition to earning a Master's degree from the Pacific College of Oriental Medicine in California, he is said to also have formally trained in Qi Gong with more than 15 years spent studying martial arts such as Tai Chi Chuan, Tae Kwon Do and Hung Gar kung fu.



Melladew was in the middle of explaining the basic concept of Qi Gong to the participants when I entered the pavilion. Basically, he said, Qi Gong is about simple breathing, slow movements, postures and meditation exercises to effectively boost the Qi (the life force energy) to flow in your body.



The session started with Melladew instructing us to take a long and slow deep breaths, which aims to help oxygenate cells as well as to calm the mind and connect it with the body.



After the breathing practice, we moved on to learning poses. The first and an essential one is to figure out your own Qi Gong standing position.



'Move your feet shoulder-width apart in parallel; put your arms in a relax position by your sides and your head upright. Imagine that a string connected to your crown point is supporting you from above,' said Melladew.



'Keep breathing and slightly move back and forward to get a sense of the different feelings and then find your center where your weight should be neither too far forward or too far back. This is going to be your Qi Gong standing position,' he added.



Throughout the rest of the class, we learned several simple poses and movements that combined breathing techniques and slow mindful movements. Although they looked easy, I found myself sweating slightly just from my effort to mimic Melladew's movements.



Qi Gong, if practiced daily, is a powerful tool to help balance the Qi and allow it to flow freely throughout the body, hence keeping the mind and body in a balanced and healthy condition, said Melladew.



A Belgian ex-model, cookbook author and ceramic artist, Pascale Naessens was among the participants that day. Along with her TV producer husband, she took a 10-day wellness program at the COMO Shambhala Estate after discovering information about it in a magazine.



"The Qi Gong exercise is both energizing and relaxing at the same time," she said.



Having learned about pranic healing (claimed to be a no-touch healing technique that uses prana or energy) methods myself, I found the deep breathing methods to be quite similar. The activation of connecting two meridians known as Ren Mai (conception vessel) and Du Mai (governing vessel), which emerge and travel up the spine by placing my tongue onto the roof of my mouth, is one of the similar practices I found with both methods.



The Qi Gong class is one of the complimentary classes that guests can attend if they stay at the resort. Other interesting wellness classes available at COMO Shambhala Estate, which I also attended, include the aqua therapy class at the vitality pool and the restorative yoga class. (kes)(+)
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Linkedin Erika Anindita (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The inauguration of the new leaders of the House of Representatives' legislative body (Baleg) scheduled for Thursday has been postponed because two of its executive seats are still vacant, the body's chairman has said.

Baleg chairman Supratman Andi Agtas said on Friday that House leaders and the heads of political parties would hold a meeting to discuss who would be appointed to fill the vacant seats.

'On the inauguration day, we are still waiting for decisions from the meeting of the House leaders and all political party factions,' he said.

Supratman said Ruhut Sitompul of the Democratic Party was initially scheduled to be inaugurated as one of Baleg's deputy chairmen, but no agreement had been achieved on the latter's nomination.

The House legislative body is currently led by Supratman from the Gerindra Party, Firman Subagyo of the Golkar Party and Totok Daryanto of the National Mandate Party (PAN).

Trimedya Pandjaitan of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) said his party hoped that it could secure a seat on the body's chairmanship panel with a peace agreement between the Red and White Coalition (KMP) and the Great Indonesia Coalition (KIH).

'We have agreed on the seat allocations for each of those two sides,' he said. 'That's why the PDI-P still hopes that it could gain a seat on the House legislative body.'

In November 2014, the KIH and KMP ended their dispute, initially triggered by the victory of Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo in the 2014 presidential election, and signed a peace agreement that contained five points of agreement.

One point stipulates that the KIH, comprising the PDI-P, the National Awakening Party (PKB), the NasDem Party, the Hanura Party and the Indonesian Justice and Unity Party (PKPI), would obtain 21 posts on the House's supporting bodies.

Supratman hoped the body's vacant seats would soon be filled, so that the House could focus their attention on the discussions of draft bills.

The House has listed 40 prioritized draft bills included in this year's National Legislation Program. (ebf)
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Linkedin Nani Afrida (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The government has announced a new defense strategy focusing on three priorities, namely becoming a global maritime fulcrum (GMF), the national minimum essential forces (MEF) and the state defense program for the next 10 years.



On Thursday, the Defense Ministry elaborated plans included in a newly released white paper to foreign military attachAs. The event was attended by 50 military attachAs from 41 countries, including Malaysia, Thailand, the US, Timor Leste, Pakistan, India, Australia and a number of European countries.



The Defense Ministry's director general of strategic defense, Maj. Gen. Yoedhi Swastanto, said that the new document was a revised version after incorporating input from domestic and international sources.



'The new white paper consists of a new defense strategy that the government aims to accomplish, including a list of threats, defense development and the state defense program,' he said, adding that the document was available to the public and aimed to improve trust among Indonesia and other countries.



The previous version of the white paper was welcome with input from a range of parties.



Yoedhi added that the strengthening of defense and maritime diplomacy were also important issues and were included in the latest version of the white paper.



In the new strategy plan, the government has emphasized its commitment to meet MEF in its weaponry systems, but has no intention to prepare for war. The stronger weaponry system is aimed at protecting the country's integrity and sovereignty.



'[To build our weaponry system], we will prioritize the weapons from national industry in order to support the national economy. The strategic industry should be strong, independent and skillful to compete with other countries,' Yoedhi said.



The government also revealed its target of seeing 100 million of people receive quasi-military training through the state defense program over the next ten years.



'The program aims to raise awareness and reduce the influence of radicalization among citizens. We will disseminate the values of state defense in educational, workplace and neighborhood environments,' Yoedhi said.



He added that the state defense program aimed less to confront other nations than to deal with internal or non-traditional threats such as radicalism and terrorism.



Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu said that currently Indonesia was engaged in conflict with no other countries.



'We are destined to be friends and so be it. Indonesia doesn't have any conflict with other countries and we don't consider our neighbors as a threat. We are friends,' Ryamizard said in his speech during the event on Thursday.



Ryamizard cautioned, however, that the country had increasingly to deal with threats such as terrorism, cyber war, natural disasters, drugs and piracy.



He added his belief that these threats were not particular to Indonesia, but shared by all nations.



'Terrorism is a common ground on which we can work together. This is a common threat all over the world and we should address this issue,' the minister said.



Two previous governments published white papers, under then defense ministers Matori Abdul Djalil in 2003 and Juwono Sudarsono in 2008.



Law No. 3/2002 on national defense stipulates that white papers are a statement of comprehensive defense policy published by the Defense Ministry and distributed to the public, nationally and internationally, in order to generate mutual trust and eliminate conflict.

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Linkedin Anton Hermansyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The government will allow 100 percent foreign ownership of big e-commerce companies as Indonesians are already using their services even when they do not have a physical presence in the country, a minister said.



Chinese e-commerce company AliExpress, a unit of the internet giant Alibaba.com and JD.com or Jingdong Mall, is even providing payment facilities using Indonesian banks working with local payment service provider PT Nusa Satu Inti Artha (Doku).



"Rather than letting all the profits go abroad, we will allow them to operate here with 100 percent ownership," said Information and Communication Minister Rudiantara on Wednesday.



Previously, Trade Minister Thomas Lembong said the government would invite large foreign e-commerce companies from the United States and China and it planned to align e-commerce rules with offline trading.



"The goods traded must be scrutinized, such as the food and beverages that should be checked by the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) and comply with Indonesian National Standards (SNI)," said Lembong.



Separately, Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) chairman Franky Sibarani said small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) were not allowed to receive foreign investment.



"The minimum investment requirement is intended to protect the Indonesian small and medium-sized enterprises. If the investment is worth Rp 10 billion [US$722,300] or less, it will be classified as an SME investment, which is prohibited for foreign investors," said Franky on Thursday.



A medium-sized enterprise is categorized as a business with a maximum net worth of Rp 500 million to Rp 10 billion, or an annual turnover of between Rp 2.5 billion and Rp 50 billion, according to Law No. 20/2008.



Under Presidential Regulation No. 39/2014, the government included e-commerce among the industries that are closed to foreign investment, requiring e-commerce businesses to be wholly owned by local players.



The negative investment list is subject to review every two years, meaning that the 2014 rule will be reviewed in April 2016 under the administration of Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo. (ndy/kes)(+)
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Linkedin Ayomi Amindoni (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The country's first mini liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal, considered an ideal concept for a gas terminal an archipelago, is set to start operations in March, supplying 40 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) of gas to Bali's Pesanggaran power plant.



Pelindo Energi Logistik (PEL), a subsidiary of state-owned port operator Pelindo Indonesia III, has signed a contract with Jaya Samudra Karunia Group (JSK Group) to operate the Benoa LNG terminal, consisting of a floating regasification unit (FRU) and a floating storage unit (FSU).



"The first gas cargo will be delivered on March 1, but the plant will come on stream a week earlier for commissioning purposes," said PT Pelindo Energi Logistik (PEL) director Gembong Primajaya in Jakarta on Friday.



Shunning the conventional LNG terminal that unites regasification and storage facilities, JSK Group built separate FRU and FSU for the mini LNG terminal due to limited space. "Big ships are difficult to operate in Bali, thus we created a separated system," Gembong said.



This concept, he continued, is considered ideal for an archipelagic country like Indonesia. The time required to prepare the mini-scale floating LNG terminal is less than that for a land-based terminal.



JSK Group chief executive officer Dennis SK Jang voiced hope that the mini LNG terminal, as a pilot project in Indonesia, would be a turning point and the best solution for Indonesia in building more efficient LNG infrastructure.



"The energy shift at Benoa power plant, which previously used diesel, to LNG could save Rp 1 trillion per Rp 2 trillion a year," Dennis said, adding that the company had spent US$100 million to build the FRU and FSU in South Korea. (ags)(+)
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Linkedin Kornelius Purba (The Jakarta Post) Davos,Switzerland  Fri, January 22, 2016

Trade Minister Thomas Lembong cited the bravery and determination demonstrated by Indonesians in facing last week's terror attacks in Jakarta as evidence of the nation's high self-confidence in taking on any global challenge, including with regard to the economy.



In his speech at the Indonesia Lunch Dialogue during the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting here on Thursday, the minister said the international community was deeply impressed with the way the government had defeated the terrorists and with the maturity of the people in responding to the brutal terrorists' assaults.



The handling of the terror attack has even created a positive image for the nation, and it is crucial in boosting international market confidence in Indonesia, the world's most-populous Muslim nation.



'Our response [to the terrorists] was not military, we did not panic. We even booed the terrorists. The world sympathizes with Indonesia. We should build on that,' the minister told global business leaders, scholars and government officials.



'We are not just the most-populous Muslim nation in the world, but also moderate and tolerant. And what is also very important, Islam in Indonesia is very modern,' Thomas added.



The minister said Indonesia was ready to open itself to the international market, because that was the only way, no matter how painful it would be, to win global trade. In the past, Indonesia was protective and tended to close its door to the world market, because it was much dependent on resources-based industries.



The rapid growth of e-commerce is a new model of international trade. The government has no choice but to readjust itself to the new trend by changing obsolete regulations and laws to match current economic trends.



'We can no longer handle e-commerce with 20th-century regulations. We must use the 21st [century's] regime of regulations,' he said.



The background of President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla as businessmen and the presence of technocrats and professionals in the Cabinet played a crucial role in the decision to fully open Indonesia's economy.



'This is an era of competition, so we can no longer hide behind protection or waste money on subsidies. We should have the courage to compete,' the minister said.



Thomas pointed out, however, that the government would not be reckless in its economic policies and would always take into account domestic challenges.



Before addresing the audience, Thomas briefed a group of Indonesian journalists on the goals the government wanted to achieve in Davos.



Finance Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro joined his Cabinet colleague at the forum. Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan, however, cancelled his scheduled appearance in Davos.



When asked about the political risks of the liberalization program, the trade minister responded, 'Other countries will treat us like we treat them. If we are serious about [increasing] our exports and opening other markets, we should also open ourselves to them. If we close our market, they will do the same.'



'In the past we could do it, because the prices of commodities were high. We did not need to open markets for our shoes, garments and jewelry. Now we have to transform our exports, as we can no longer just rely on our coal and oil palms,' the minister noted.



To support his argument on the open market policy, Thomas pointed out the President's decision to significantly reduce fuel and electricity subsidies. The President chose to implement unpopular policies, because he firmly believed it was the only way to keep the economy healthy. The government has also achieved progress on infrastructure despite budget restrictions from the House of Representatives.



The minister mentioned agriculture, the creative economy and services as the country's promising sectors for the future. 'We are very strong in the service sector,' said Thomas.



On Thursday evening, the Trade Ministry was to host Indonesia Night with the support of several private companies and state-owned Bank Mandiri.
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Linkedin Anton Hermansyah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

Investment activities outside Java rose by a quarter to Rp 248.7 trillion (US$18 billion) last year, narrowing the investment gap with Java to 46:54, and helping the investment board to score a larger investment realization at 105 percent of the target.

The investment realization ratio between areas outside of Java and Java stood at 43:57 in 2014.

According to the latest data, investment realization in non-Java regions in 2015 rose at a faster pace compared to that realized in Java, by 24.5 percent year-on-year outside Java compared to 12.7 percent on Java.



"This is in line with the President's mission not to keep Java-centric orientation," Coordinating Investment Board (BKPM) chairman Franky Sibarani said in Jakarta on Thursday.



In total, Indonesia recorded investment realization of Rp 545.4 trillion, 5 percent above the Rp 519.5 trillion target. Domestic direct investment rose 15 percent to Rp 179.5 trillion, while foreign direct investment (FDI) grew 19 percent to Rp 365.9 trillion.



Java was still the center of investment with 54.4 percent of the investment realized, worth Rp 296.7 trillion. Sumatra followed with 15.5 percent of the investment share, while Kalimantan gained a 17.1 percent share and Sulawesi grabbed 6.1 percent.



Unfortunately, the eastern parts of Indonesia including Papua, Maluku, Bali and Nusa Tenggara in total snatched only 6.9 percent of realized investment in the country.



Based on the origin of investment, Singapore topped all other nations in 2015 with $5.9 billion or 20.2 percent investment realization in Indonesia. Malaysia followed with $3 billion (a 10.5 percent share), and Japan with $2.9 billion (a 9.8 percent share).



"Investors put their trust in Indonesia, such as Asahimas Flat Glass which is expanding its business and will be ready for exporting its products in February 2016. The automotive industry, specifically Japan, is expanding," BKPM director Azhar Lubis said.



Based on the information, 59.3 percent of realized domestic investment was new investment, while the remaining 40.7 percent was for expansion. Foreign investment recorded a similar pattern, scoring 62.7 percent new investment and 37.3 percent investment for expansion.



Chinese companies, Azhar said, had expanded their smelters in South Kalimantan, while South Korean and Taiwanese companies had enlarged their garment and footwear businesses in Central Java. (ags)(+)
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Linkedin Farida Susanty and Arya Dipa (The Jakarta Post) Walini, West Java  Fri, January 22, 2016

At least 600 hectares of privately owned and industrial land will be cleared to pave the way for the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway, excluding plots of land belonging to some state-owned enterprises (SOE).



Railway developer PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC) president director Hanggoro Budi Wiryawan said only 20 percent of the total land for the project belonged to SOEs.



He said most of the land acquisition would happen between Karawang and Purwakarta in West Java, as there were a lot of private and industrial areas on that stretch of the route of the high-speed railway.



The company will soon inform the public about the land clearance for the ambitious railway project, which will span more than 142 kilometers, serving four stations from Halim in East Jakarta via Karawang and Walini to Tegalluar in West Java.



'Well, from Halim to Karawang, we can use 40 km along the toll road, but from Karawang to Jatiluhur we have to procure privately-owned land. After that, we have to also procure some more land in Jatiluhur,' he told the press after the groundbreaking ceremony on Thursday.



He said the rest of the railway route through Padalarang, Cimahi and Tegalluar would again pass through 30 km of land along the toll road belong to state-owned toll road operator Jasa Marga, which is one of the SOEs in the KCIC joint venture.



The groundbreaking ceremony was attended by President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo, State-Owned Enterprises Minister Rini Soemarno, Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar as well as Chinese State Councillor Wang Yong and China Railway Corp. president Sheng Guangzu, among others.



Transportation Minister Ignasius Jonan was not present at the event as he was reportedly finalizing permits for the project.



The government allegedly bypassed existing regulations as it rushed to complete the permit procedures ahead of the groundbreaking, with the railway route permits issued last week and the Environmental Impact Analysis (Amdal) documents only approved on Wednesday.



Officials present at the event maintained that the Amdal procedure complied with the law. The Environment and Forestry Ministry has given KCIC a one-month deadline to strengthen the documents and gather public opinion.



'I got the report yesterday that it [the Amdal] is done,' Jokowi said briefly during the ceremony.



Previously, Widodo Sambodo, a member of the Environment and Forestry Ministry's Amdal assessment team, criticized the 'irregular' Amdal approval process, arguing that some necessary steps had been skipped, including data gathering, which was cut to one week from six months, and the impact of the construction on water catchment in the Saguling and Citarum areas.



He argued that an improper Amdal assessment could lead to accidents in the future.



So far, only two of the nine cities on the railway route made adjustments to their spatial planning (RTRW) documents, according to the ministry official.



Meanwhile, Indonesian Transportation Society (MTI) chairman Danang Parikesit said KCIC should inform the public about the project's impact on water and soil along the route.



He also suggested that the government improve existing train infrastructure rather than approve such big projects, which bore the risk of failure in case the passenger targets could not be met.



Hanggoro of KCIC estimated that the total area needed for stations and the railway tracks would reach up to 650 hectares, only 20 percent of which belongs to the SOEs.



He declined to reveal the estimated cost to procure the land but reiterated that it was still within the estimated overall project cost of US$5.5 billion.



A loan from China Development Bank that would cover three quarters of the investment would be disbursed gradually, with 20 percent of the loan to be disbursed this year, according to Hanggoro.



He also said that the procurement would be the next phase, as the firm had to process the procurement of 57 hectares managed by state-owned forestry firm Perhutani in Karawang and 45 hectares managed by the Indonesian Air Force in Halim.



The firm is still in the process of procuring the Perhutani-managed land, which would require the firm to provide replacement land of twice the size, according to Environment and Forestry Ministry regulations.



'We won't enter the forestry area before the replacement land is ready,' Hanggoro said.



Environment and Forestry Ministry planology director general San Afri Awang said the ministry would give the company a year to provide the replacement, with the 114 hectares of land predicted to be located near Karawang and Purwakarta.

_____________________________________

Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway



Route length: 142.3 kilometers

Max speed: 350 km/hour

Capacity: 583 passengers

Estimated ticket price: From Rp. 225.000

Project dates (approx.): 2016-2018. Set to commence early 2019

Stations: Four (Halim, Karawang, Walini, Tegalluar) *

Depot: One, in Tegalluar (incl. train workshop & rest area)

Esimated cost: US$5.5 billion **

Labor: 39,000 man hours

Developers: PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC) ***



* Each station will link with transit-oriented developments (TOD)



** Three quarters of financing will come from the China Development Bank (CDB)

*** KCIC is a joint venture between Indonesian state firms PT Wijaya Karya, PT KAI, PT Jasa Marga and PT Perkebunan Nusantara VIII and China Railway International Co. Ltd.



Source: Various sources compiled by The Jakarta Post

JP/Swi

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Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

The police have reportedly shot dead a man suspected of leading an attack against police officers in a drug raid after he resisted arrest.

Police officers reportedly shot dead Ade Friyoza Wijaya, aka Ade Badak, when he tried to escape during an arrest attempt in Cawang, East Jakarta, on Thursday evening, Jakarta Police narcotics unit chief Sr. Comr. Eko Daniyanto said.

Eko claimed that the police had first fired warning shots in an attempt to stop Adi from fleeing.

"However, he turned back and was wielding a sharp weapon. So we took firm action and shot him three times in the left side of the chest. He died on the spot," he said on Friday, adding that Ade's body was taken to Kramat Jati National Police Hospital for an autopsy.

Ade was allegedly involved in an attack on four police officers and two informants during a drug raid in the notorious drug area of Berlan in East Jakarta on Monday. A police officer named Chief Brig. Taufik Hidayat and an informant named Jefri were killed in the clash with drug dealers while officer First. Insp. Hariadi Prabowo was slashed with a machete but survived.

The police located Ade's whereabouts after tracking 12 people implicated in the attack during which five of them used sharp weapons and guns, Eko said.

During the three-day hunt for the perpetrators, the police were told Thursday evening that one of the attackers was Ade.

Investigators then followed Ade from Jatinegara to Cawang, where they tried to intercept him.

The police are still hunting down other perpetrators of the attack, Eko said.

Seven people were arrested on Thursday when hundreds of police officers and military personnel combed places in Berlan. (rin)
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Linkedin Elena Becatoros (The Jakarta Post) Chios, Greece  Fri, January 22, 2016

Half buried in the fine yellow sand of one of this Greek island's most popular beaches lies one of the few signs of the drama that has played out over the past year: The remains of two torn and deflated dinghies by the water's edge.



Far from the spotlight, local residents, aid groups and government officials have struggled to deal with an unprecedented wave of refugees and migrants reaching the shores of Chios from Turkey, which lies four miles away at its closest point. And with few signs of a let up, authorities are bracing for another potentially brutal year.



Even during the winter, overloaded dinghies continue to arrive in droves on Greece's eastern Aegean islands, halting only when the sea is too rough. The crossing is brief but perilous, and hundreds have died. Six bodies were recovered off the coast of nearby Samos island earlier this month.



Chios, an island of 50,000 residents, saw the second-largest number of arrivals in 2015, behind its northern neighbor Lesbos, where about half of all asylum-seekers landed. Although the islands of the eastern Aegean have been on the migrant-smuggling route for more than a decade, numbers were minimal until recently.



In 2014, about 6,500 people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and Africa reached Chios. Last year, the figure skyrocketed to nearly 120,000, with the flow increasing dramatically in the last few months of the year.



"It was something completely different from the previous years, and the previous years were something completely different to what would be normal," said Chios Mayor Manolis Vournous. "It is something extreme, it is something abnormal. And we mustn't get used to this abnormality."



Vournous doesn't hide his concern over what the coming year will bring.



October, November and December each brought about 20,000 people to the island, accounting for about half of the year's total, he said. "This doesn't allow me to think the flow will lessen in the next few months."



The mayor has welcomed plans for one of the European Union's "hotspots" to be set up on Chios to help in registering and fingerprinting new arrivals. Although such processing already takes place, the hotspots will have more EU involvement in identifying those who can be sent to other EU countries under the bloc's relocation scheme and those deemed economic migrants who will face deportation.



Last year's dramatic surge left authorities scrambling to house, feed and provide basic care for the thousands who had survived the dangerous sea journey and were anxious to move north through the Balkans to more prosperous European countries.



"In the last year the increase was incredible," said Commander Christos Fragias, deputy head of the coast guard on Chios.



"Nobody was prepared to deal with all these people who arrived in 2015," Fragias said. "When you have such large flows, some duties that we have as the coast guard couldn't be carried out because the priority was to deal with the migrants."



Still, Chios has weathered the storm remarkably well.



The island has largely managed to avoid the chaotic scenes of refugee protests and mad crushes outside registration centers that have scarred islands with far fewer new arrivals. On Chios, a system is now in place that aims to process new arrivals as quickly as possible, provide safe and clean temporary shelter and allow them to quickly move on.



This success is primarily due to the close cooperation among local government, police, coast guard, aid groups and volunteers. Weekly or even daily coordination meetings are held to iron out any difficulties before they become full-blown problems.



But getting to this point hasn't been easy.



Joe Cooper, head of the Chios field unit for the UN refugee agency, took up his post at the end of October, just as the influx of new arrivals surged.



"That was a kind of nightmare period. It rained as well ' slashing rain," Cooper said as several hundred people who had arrived that morning waited to be processed at the registration center, their wet clothes drying by space heaters dotting the cavernous former leather tanning factory.



"It was a mess, but what was clear even then was the political will, just the humanity of the authorities here and the desire to help people."



The municipality opened up stadiums for people to sleep in, while volunteers stepped up to help increase capacity in a tent camp hastily set up in the town's park to accommodate the overflow.



"Everyone really came together," Cooper said.



Local residents have also stepped up to help.



In the nearby village of Karfas, 62-year-old Despina Kalaitzidaki joined her neighbor, Giorgos Myrisis, a 72-year-old retired merchant marine captain, in setting up a volunteer center to hand out dry clothes to those arriving soaked from their sea journey.



"We saw their anxiety. We saw their longing when they arrived. We saw them kneeling and kissing the earth because they managed to arrive alive and didn't drown," said Kalaitzidaki. "They were suffering. They were hugging. All this cannot leave you indifferent."



With winter arriving and the tent camp in the park clearly inadequate, the municipality cast around for a solution. They came up with an ingenious idea ' build a camp in the dry moat of Chios town's medieval castle. The space was free, it was in the town center yet tucked away from the bustle of daily life and it allowed easy access to the nearby port for ferries.



The 800-person camp began operating in November, complete with prefabricated houses reserved for the most vulnerable such as unaccompanied children, the disabled, women traveling alone or with young children.



"It's not somewhere that would be acceptable to spend six months or a year living, but for what people use it for, which is to spend a night or two, it's safe, it's clean and it's warm and they can have a shower and volunteers bring food," Cooper said.



Among those staying at the camp one recent night was Issam Boukamer, a 22-year-old amateur boxer from Libya who made it to Chios after he and another 57 people were rescued by the coast guard when the dinghy they were crammed into began taking on water.



Boukamer, who speaks French and taught himself English by watching videos, dreams of reaching Germany, where he said he wants to work and study French literature.



"I want just to live in peace because in my country there are many terrorists and many problems," he said, describing aerial bombardments and attacks by the Islamic State group.



But other countries along the route have closed their doors to the flow. Macedonia, on Greece's northern border, now only allows those from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan to cross.



Boukamer is unfazed.



"We must try. There's nothing impossible, you know? We were living a hard life, and this is not hard for me," he said. "I have a goal, I must achieve it. I have a dream."(+)
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Linkedin Nurul Fitri Ramadhani and Ina Parlina (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

Indonesia remains a country that has a 'high risk' of corruption and its defense and military sector are the areas most prone to graft, according to a survey conducted by UK-based antigraft watchdog Transparency International (TI).



TI announced on Thursday that the country's defense and military sector scored a D, which indicates high risk, in 2015, slightly better than 2014's score of E, which indicates a very high risk.



Scores for the index, which assesses 135 countries across the globe, range from A, for very low risk, to F, for very critical risk.



In the Asia-Pacific region, Bangladesh, India, Malaysia and the Phillipines scored the same risk level as Indonesia, while Cambodia and Myanmar received an F.



The only country that received an A in the region was New Zealand. Japan, Singapore and South Korea were all given a B.



TI researcher Tehmina Abbas suggested that the high corruption risk in Indonesia's defense sector was due to the long-standing secrecy surrounding procurement in military projects, in which leaders are not transparent about spending and block any attempted scrutiny from the public.



'Corruption in the defense sector can diminish the public's trust in the government and armed forces, which in turn can lead to instability and insecurity in the country. Transparency and accountability in the sector, therefore, matters so much,' Abbas said, adding that in many parts of the world, defense was considered the most corrupt sector.



Abbas said that TI had looked at several indicators to determine countries' scores, including defense budgets and military operations.



Abbas said Indonesia also lacked laws that ensured effective monitoring, particularly of procurement. 'The government should publish all procurement contracts and conduct regular audits,' she said.



TI credited Indonesia's improved performance in 2015 to the Corruption Eradication Commission's (KPK) continued prosecution of graft cases and to the corruption-free zone declared by then Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Moeldoko in August 2014.



The zone, which was established in response to TI's 2013 index, regulates all military officials to regularly publish their wealth reports.



Human rights watchdog Imparsial executive director Al Araf said the defense sector's dismal score was due to a lack of transparency and oversight in trade and procurement of defense systems.



'We still have a big problem with transparency and accountability in weapons procurement because we still depend on brokers. Conducting these transactions using a third party has the potential to open the door to corruption,' Al Araf said.



Al Araf said that the KPK did in fact have the authority to investigate suspected corruption in military institutions as stipulated by Law No. 31/1999 in reference to Law No. 21/2001 on corruption eradication, but the agency continued to claim that prosecuting military officials was outside its jurisdiction.



KPK commissioner Saut Situmorang reiterated the antigraft body's previous stance.



'We are still trying to find solutions. I also think that we have to do more than only review their wealth reports,' Saut said.



He suggested that the House of Representatives amend the Corruption Law and the military tribunal laws, to allow the KPK to handle graft cases involving the military.



Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu said that he had taken steps to ensure that all weapons procurement went through the proper procedures.



'I said to those [third-party] brokers that they should not play around with me. So if people still hate me, I am alright with that,' Ryamizard told reporters.



Meanwhile, Defense Ministry spokesman Brig. Gen. Jundan Eko Bintoro said that the ministry had been trying to stamp out corruption and promised to do more in the future.



'We have already implemented the corruption-free zone and for our next initiative we will try to upgrade our official website so that the public can easily make complaints and access information about our budget,' Jundan said.

___________________________________

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Linkedin Marcel Thee (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

Music and art have always collided in all the best ways.

From Peter Saville's iconic art for England's Factory Records releases in the 1970s to Raymond Pettibon's eye-popping illustrations for America's legendary indie label SST Records' albums ' the combination of great music and great art often achieves legendary status.



Bandung artist Mufty 'Amenk' Priyanka is the kind of local artist who knows this.



Though not exclusively tied to the music underworld, Amenk ' the name he chooses to go by ' has found his calling through working with bands on their album sleeves and concert posters, forging a real identity for the sounds.



Amenk's work has graced covers of local bands, including AStoneA (an experimental act which he is also involved in), Neowax, Sarasvati, Seringai, Bottlesmoker and Komunal ' among many others.



Amenk's work is characterized by its minimalist, black-and-white coloring, and its penchant for subversive characters, such as the hijab-wearing rebel girl extending her middle finger, the bomber (graffiti) artists decorating a wall with less-than-praiseful words about the Indonesian government, or the group of hijab-wearing girls all puffing away together.



Often accompanied by handwritten text, there's no denying the visual influence of American artists, such as the above-mentioned Pettibon, but also Frank Kozik and Charles Burns, on Amenk's work.



But most of all, Amenk's work wants to entertain as well as make people think, all without sounding preachy.



Amenk also cites local artists, such as Andry Moch (a former bandmate and close friend), Jan Mintaraga and Tisna Sanjaya, as influences.





'I am mostly inspired by daily happenings, which revolve around criticism handed out by urban society and the ins-and-outs of its romantic dynamics,' explains Amenk, adding that 'in creating I am extremely flexible, however'.



In fact, Amenk says that he is able to work anywhere, regardless of whether he is out of his own studio.



'There are a couple of incidental conditions that happen when I suddenly decide to pick up the brush and graze the canvas,' the artist says.



'My ideal setting would be a mid-size studio that can house the needed equipment, mixed with a good dose of music.'



Amenk began drawing semiprofessionally (meaning he had begun taking on commissioned work) in 2004 and he quickly referenced underground comics from both home and abroad, as well as concert posters and magazine illustrations from the 1970s and 1980s.



When he discovered how some artists utilized minimal equipment to come up with their work (such as Pettibon), it inspired him.



'When I found out that you didn't need to spend much to draw well, that was a major motivator for me,' he says.



He focused on illustrating rather than painting, which would have forced him to reach deeper into his pocket.



'There was a dream then, that someday I would be able to grow with my own drawings and dedicate myself to a world of subculture and music.'



For Amenk, the reaction he has received from admirers of his work has been a major motivator to grow as an artist.



'They hold a mirror to my work; they respond and come up with a variety of responses, and that is a dynamic I study, in order to push my art. They truly are important and a lifeline to the progression of my art.'
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Linkedin John-Thor Dahlburg (The Jakarta Post) Brussels  Fri, January 22, 2016

Top NATO brass on Thursday agreed on changes to recommend in the alliance's force posture and decision-making procedures to better deal with a more aggressive Russia and other evolving security threats.



"We'll continue to work on those readiness and responsiveness issues that bring our force to a better position to be able to react to all challenges," from the Arctic to the Middle East and North Africa, said US Air Force Gen. Philip Breedlove, NATO's supreme commander in Europe.



Breedlove told a news conference that the 28-nation alliance is also considering fine-tuning how it takes military and political decisions so "these new capabilities that we are developing can be brought to bear at speed."



The closed-door meeting at alliance headquarters in Brussels brought Breedlove and other top NATO commanders together with the military chiefs of staff of NATO member countries. Marine Corps Gen. Joseph Dunford attended for the first time in his role as chairman of the US Joint Chiefs.



Czech Army Gen. Petr Pavel, chairman of NATO's Military Committee, said the session was designed to generate advice for member governments in the run-up to the NATO summit in July in Warsaw, and to help the alliance "steer a clear course through these rough seas." The military leaders' recommendations will be given to ambassadors from NATO countries to discuss before a meeting of defense ministers on Feb. 11, Pavel said.



"We must remain focused on our strategic goal: preserving our system of security in the face of those who would wish to overwhelm it, and those who wish to undermine it," Breedlove said.



In response to a reporter's question, Pavel said that since assuming leadership of NATO's Military Committee last June, he had tried several times to speak to top Russian generals, but found "a lack of will on the Russian side to have that communication." (+)
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Linkedin The Jakarta Post Washington  Fri, January 22, 2016

President Barack Obama is trying to round up support for his plans to host a high-level summit on refugees at the United Nations later this year.



The White House says Obama discussed his plans Thursday in a phone call with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.



The summit is slated to be held during the September meeting of the U.N. General Assembly.



The White House says Obama praised Merkel's leadership on the Syrian refugee crisis and discussed plans to ask more countries to step up their contributions.



The leaders will raise the issue at a donors conference slated for February 4 in London.



Obama also expressed his condolences for the January terrorist attack in Istanbul. Ten Germans were killed when a suicide bomber set off the explosion near a group of tourists.(+)
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Linkedin Raras Cahyafitri (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

State-owned electricity company PLN is planning to keep increasing the utilization of new renewable energy to generate power despite the challenges encountered so far.



Company director Nicke Widyawati said the use of new-renewable energy was part of the company's move to comply with government policy.



'It's a national policy that PLN has to follow. New-renewable energy is not about price, [it's about] the environment,' Nicke said.



According to PLN data, around 55.7 percent of electricity generation in 2015 was fueled by coal, 25.3 percent by gas, 8.2 percent by diesel fuel, 5.9 percent by hydropower plants and around 4 percent by geothermal energy.



The use of coal and gas for power generation in 2015 was higher than a year earlier. Diesel fuel usage was lower, as was the use of hydropower plants, while the use of geothermal energy was relatively stable.



In 2014, 52.6 percent of electricity generation was fueled by coal, 24 percent with gas and 11 percent with diesel fuel. Around 7 percent of power generation in 2014 was from hydropower plants and 4.4 percent from geothermal power plants.



'The trend for diesel fuel usage will continue declining and it will be zero under our target by 2025. The portion of gas utilization also increased slightly. Coal is now cheaper and there are a lot of resources available,' Nicke said.



The country is struggling to meet its target of 23 percent renewable energy utilization. PLN's target is slightly higher at 25 percent, according to Nicke.



Indonesia is thought to have abundant and various renewable energy resources, from hydro to geothermal power. However, development of renewable power plants is much costlier than coal-fired power plants. Environmental issues have also hampered development.



Earlier this month, PLN and fellow state-owned firm Pertamina disagreed over the price of steam used to generate Kamojang geothermal power plant, with PLN wanting a lower and Pertamina a higher price. The issue was settled after the State-Owned Enterprises Ministry stepped in.



'It's also an issue for us because we have to increase the portion of renewable energy at the same time as our subsidies [from the government] are falling,' Nicke said.



The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry earlier said that it planned to establish another entity like PLN to handle renewable energy.



Under the plan, the new entity will be a buffer in the purchasing of electricity from independent power producers, selling the power to PLN under a certain price that will not burden the state-owned firm.



Another issue is PLN's commitment to absorb alternative energy such as liquefied natural gas (LNG). Last year, the floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) Lampung operated by state gas firm PGN had to run far below its capacity as PLN's gas absorption was lower due to weakening growth in electricity demand.



'FSRU Lampung is expecting to receive five cargoes of LNG this year,' PGN spokesperson Irwan Andri Atmanto said.
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Linkedin Dimas Muhamad and Imanuel Lim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

There was a time when the imbroglio engulfing the Middle East was only capable of mustering a humming of sympathy among us. Whenever we came across harrowing images or staggering statistics of casualties from the region we could only shake our heads incredulously and go about our daily lives. Now terror has rattled our capital in an attack for which the Islamic State (IS) movement eventually claimed responsibility.



Domestically, despite our success in thwarting numerous terror plots, we should still invigorate our law enforcement and counterterrorist operations. On the international level we should foster intelligence cooperation with our partners to identify potential individuals implicated in the IS network. Second is to suppress the financing of IS which, according to an estimate, has grown 90 times since 2009 thanks to oil and antiquities sales. Third, we should resist the wave of IS propaganda through social and mass media.



Revamping counterterrorist operations is one thing, completely defeating IS is quite another. The perpetrators of the heinous attack were part of a menacing network of terror whose rise was spawned and propelled by the protracted turmoil in the Middle East. We cannot truly vanquish IS if the mayhem in the Middle East persists.



Unfortunately, just as we direly need stability in the region, a storm is brewing. The latest rift between Iran and Saudi Arabia could jeopardize efforts to promote peace in the Middle East. The two countries are regional powerhouses with paramount clout in the conflicts, including in Syria and Yemen. The row between the two would do nothing but derail the peace process.



More and more countries have launched military assaults against IS. A political solution seems to be increasingly remote. Indonesia should continue to strive for peace in the Middle East. We have done our part, including by participating in the Geneva Conference to help the conflicting parties in Syria clinch a peace deal, and Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi also recently left for Riyadh and Tehran to help mend the fence between our two friends.



We can do more. For example, Indonesia could set up its involvement in the International Syria Support Group as the core platform dealing with the peace process which includes the US, Russia, Saudi Arabia and Iran. As external parties have different interests such as on who should rule Syria, Indonesia should stress that this divergence can and should be settled at the negotiating table, not on the battlefield. Indonesia might also intensify shuttle diplomacy to help Saudi Arabia and Iran bury the hatchet. Rapprochement between the two key countries would galvanize the peace process throughout the region.



We should also engage groups like Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah, Indonesia's largest Islamic organizations, to help spread tolerance and peace to civil society peers in the Middle East. As the world's largest Muslim population and third largest democracy with a solid track record in peacemaking such as in the southern Philippines, Indonesia can definitely play a constructive role.



The Sarinah attack marked a new chapter in the Middle East saga. Peace in the Middle East would obliterate the illusion that taking up arms is the way to bring about change and would eventually dry up the support for extremists who wreak havoc throughout the globe, including in our homeland. Restoring peace to the Middle East and crushing IS are two sides of the same coin. That is why taking part to bring peace to the region is worth the sweat, not only for the sake of those in faraway lands but above all for our fellow citizens.

_________________________________



Both writers work at the Foreign Ministry. The views expressed are their own
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Linkedin Vladimir Isachenkov (The Jakarta Post) Onboard the Vice Admiral Kulakov  Fri, January 22, 2016

Russian warships equipped with an array of long-range missiles cruise off Syria's coast to back the air campaign in Syria and project Moscow's naval power worldwide.



The military demonstrated its might on Thursday by inviting a group of Moscow-based reporters on board the Vice Admiral Kulakov destroyer, which sailed alongside the flagship of the Russian naval group, the Varyag missile cruiser.



By establishing a long-term presence in the eastern Mediterranean, the Russian military has revived a Soviet-era capability to project naval power far from its borders.



The display of Russia's military operations came before planned peace talks between the Syrian government and opposition next week in Geneva, which are meant to pave the way for a political settlement for Syria. Since Russia launched its bombing campaign in Syria on Sept. 30, its warplanes have flown more than 5,700 missions in support of Syrian government troops.



The warships, accompanied by support vessels, have rotated on duty off Syria's shores, reviving a Soviet-era practice when Soviet warships maintained a permanent vigil in the Mediterranean.



The Varyag has sailed from its Pacific port, while the Vice Admiral Kulakov has come from the Russian base of Severomorsk on the Kola Peninsula.



The bigger cruiser carries long-range anti-ship missiles and powerful air defense systems used to help protect the Russia air base and the warplanes operating from it.



The destroyer is armed with an array of anti-ship cruise missiles, torpedoes and anti-aircraft weapons, but its main mission is hunting for enemy submarines.



"My ship is in eastern Mediterranean to protect and defend other ships and cargo vessels and to provide search and rescue at sea if necessary," said Capt. 1st Grade Stanislav Varik, the commander of the destroyer.



He emphasized that his ship is optimized for engaging submarines, and added that his crew had successfully tracked several foreign submarines during its stint in the eastern Mediterranean.



"There are submarines belonging to several nations here, and we have spotted, identified their class and tracked some of them," he said without offering further details.



The Russian naval facility in the Syrian port of Tartus has served as the key supply and support point since Soviet times. It is now the only such facility outside the former Soviet Union.



Russian warships come here for refueling and get other supplies, and some get minor maintenance there.



The Varyag, the flagship of the navy's Pacific Fleet, has replaced its sister ship, the missile cruiser Moskva on a stint near Syria. The cruisers are equipped with long-range Fort air defense missiles, the navy equivalent of the famous S-300 Russian air defense systems.



Like the Moskva earlier, the Varyag has kept close to the shore to help protect Russian warplanes after Turkey downed a Russian jet in November. (+)
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Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

Police on Friday shot dead a second man suspected of involvement in an attack on police officers conducting a raid of the house of an alleged drug dealer in East Jakarta on Monday. The day before, police had shot the alleged leader of the attack.

The suspect, identified only as R, was killed during a raid on Jl. Narada in Johar Baru, Central Jakarta, according to Central Jakarta Police chief Sr. Comr. Hendro Pandowo.

'The suspect is one of the attackers of First Brig. Taufik,' Hendro said, referring to a police officer found dead in a river after the raid on Monday as reported by kompas.com.

During the incident, Taufik and a police informant were forced to jump into the Ciliwung River after being cornered by a group of armed people.

Hendro said that the raid on Friday was jointly implemented by Central and East Jakarta Police officers as part of efforts to hunt down 12 suspected attackers.

On Thursday, the police shot dead a man suspected of having commanded the attack against police officers. Ade Friyoza Wijaya aka Ade Badak was shot dead as he tried to evade arrest in the Cawang area of East Jakarta on Thursday evening, according to a police officer.

Seven others were arrested on Thursday after hundreds of police officers and military personnel raided the area, known as Berlan. (bbn)
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Linkedin Ayomi Amindoni (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

State-Owned Enterprises (SOE) are on guard to raise funds to buy the 10.64 percent shares to be sold by PT Freeport Indonesia, while awaiting the results of a price assessment conducted by the government.

If the government decided not to accept Freeport's offering, state-owned firms were ready to do so, said Fajar Harry Sampurno, the State-Owned Enterprises Minister's assistant for mining, strategic industries and media.

"Once the result of the valuation comes, we will determine the takeover scheme. The funding could come from bank loans," he said in Jakarta on Friday.

Fajar added that four SOEs had shown interest in buying Freeport's shares, namely metal mining company PT Aneka Tambang, coal miner PT Bukit Asam, alumina miner PT Indonesia Asahan Alumunium (Inalum) and tin miner PT Timah.

He said the price of US$1.7 billion for the stake offered by the copper and gold mining giant in Papua was too high. Therefore, the SOEs would have to wait for the appraisal team on the fair price of Freeport's shares.

"We have to follow the regulations in accordance with the government's regulations on coal and mineral mining operations," Fajar explained.

Earlier, State-Owned Enterprises Minister Rini Soemarno sent a letter to Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said, stating SOEs inclination to buy the Freeport stake.

The subsidiary of US-based Freeport McMoran had submitted the offering to the government on Jan. 13. The government has 60 days to decide whether to purchase the shares, or hand the offer over to SOEs or local governments. (ags)
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Linkedin The Jakarta Post  Fri, January 22, 2016

Your comments on security authorities who have blamed the recent Jakarta bomb and gun attack on the Islamic State (IS) movement:

Probably the best way to approach the problem is the way the communist problem was handled.



Taco Huh De Vries



Do we need to reopen Buru Island?



Eddy Arjuna Zainy



Terrorists, like the corrupters in this country, are enjoying themselves and holidaying while rotten cops are often unmotivated, unorganized and turning a blind eye ' far from upholding honor and justice in society.



No amount of (mild) orders will make substantial progress; I think President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo needs to toughen up, be firm and lead like Jakarta Governor Basuki 'Ahok' Tjahaja Purnama with harsh discipline. If not, nothing will get done until pigs fly.



Oxymoron



Muhammadiyah said it condemned the terror attack, but then went on to say that we shouldn't blame a particular religion because the fault lies in history.



This is why extremists from a particular religion always find supporters because they are not condemned for what they are. They are murderers that are of a certain religious background, period.



That's the fact and don't sugarcoat it because then it would seem it is alright to do what they did, because it is not their fault but is history's fault.



Who is history?



Hing



Bomb attacks and arbitrary shootings in public places are clearly cowardly terrorist acts.



Whoever the imam is or whatever the movements are, in the interest of the safety of the people, our security forces must ensure that the threats will not return.



Don't worry if after 50 years the security agents are accused of being human right abusers. Safety first.



Soebagjo Soetadji



These people are criminally insane and dangerous. Targeting a gathering of the 'crusader alliance'? What the hell does that mean?



People with white skin? Also Sarinah seems a weird place to strike at the enemies of Islam.



Deedee S

__________________________________

Topic of the day



Antiterrorism measures



The recent bomb and gun attack on Jl. MH Thamrin in Central Jakarta points to a need to strengthen the country's antiterrorism measures, and President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo has called on all sides to support the proposed revision of the 2003 Terrorism Law. What do you think?



Send your thoughts by email, SMS, Twitter or Facebook.

Include your name and city.
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Linkedin Callistasia Anggun Wijaya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

Thousands more jobs may be lost in the Indonesian tobacco industry, with companies preferring cheaper machine methods to hiring laborers, an expert has said.



Widyastuti Soerojo of the Public Health Scholars Association (IAKMI) said around 15,000 tobacco workers had lost their jobs last year as cigarette companies increasingly preferred to use machines rather than manual labor to produce cigarettes. In many cases, however, cigarette companies claimed that they had to fire workers as an impact of the implementation of tobacco control rules.



'The companies have used tobacco control as an excuse to fire their workers. At the same, according to our record, the production of cigarettes in Indonesia has continued to increase every year. If cigarette production is high, why do they need to fire thousands of workers?' asked Widyastuti.



Indonesia is likely to see further significant increase in cigarette production; a roadmap of tobacco production issued by the Industry Ministry aims to see 524.2 billion cigarettes produced between now 2020, up from the previous roadmap, which had a total production target of 260 billion cigarettes from 2015 to 2020, she went on.



Widyastuti said Industry Minister Saleh Husin had stated that the government considered the cigarette industry a labor-intensive industry and wanted to ensure it could employ more people.



The problem was, she said, the country's cigarette industry now preferred to use machines, rendering it unable to employ large numbers of people.



Tobacco Control Support Center chairman Kartono Muhamad criticized the Industry Ministry's decision to issue the tobacco roadmap, which encourages cigarette companies to use machines rather than manual labor.



'Doesn't [Saleh] realize that the companies can produce 5 billion cigarettes by manual operation? Instead, companies consider it more profitable and efficient to use machines than manual labor,' he said.



With a shifting workforce, Kartono said, Indonesia's cigarette industry should no longer be considered a labor-intensive industry, negating the government's labor-related reasoning for pushing cigarette production.



Tobacco activists on Thursday called on Saleh to withdraw the tobacco roadmap, saying that it was aimed only at boosting tobacco production, consequently increasing the negative effects of tobacco use on public health. (ebf)(+)
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Linkedin Bambang Muryanto (The Jakarta Post) Yogyakarta  Fri, January 22, 2016

Academic freedom and freedom of expression are under threat in Yogyakarta as several universities have reportedly bowed to pressure from hard-line Islamic organizations.



The State Islamic University (UIN) Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta has canceled a lecture by scholar Muhsin Labib of the Shia-oriented Sadra Islamic Study College of Jakarta due to pressure from the Islamic Peoples Forum (FUI).



On its website, the university announced that the cancelation of the lecture, which had been scheduled for Thursday, was part of an agreement made in a meeting with the FUI last week.



UIN Sunan Kalijaga deputy rector Ruhaini said the university had accepted the FUI's objections to the planned lecture, because according to the FUI, Labib tended to be provocative. She said UIN was not a place of contest between Sunni and Shia teachings.



'We refused to ban Shia studies, which have been conducted at the university since the 1960s,' she said.



Separately, the chairman of the RausyanFikr Foundation, which is widely reported as a Shia study group, AM Safwan, said that for those opposed to Shia beliefs, Muhsin was indeed seen as provocative.



It is not the first time campus activities have been canceled due to pressure from hard-line groups. On Jan. 8, 2015, the Yogyakarta Muhammadiyah University's (UMY) School of Engineering failed to hold a planned screening of Joshua Oppenheimer's Senyap (the Look of Silence).



Taufiq Akbar of the organizing committee said the school had banned the screening of the film as it was seen to be defending the victims of the 1965 communist purge.



UMY's spokesperson Frizki Yulianti said the dean office of the school did not want students to be victims of Senyap, which still caused controversy in the community.



On Dec. 12, the director of a performing art piece entitled Cintaku di Kampus Biru (My Love on the Blue Campus) by Teater Gadjah Mada (TGM), Irfanuddin Ghozali, said he had been required to apologize and hand over the script of the play prior to the performance, following the distribution of the play's poster depicting two girls who were about to kiss each other.



'I felt oppressed, being required to hand over the script prior to the performance. This is reminiscent of what happened in the past,' Irfanuddin said.



On Dec. 4, Gadjah Mada University's center of cultural studies moved a transgender art performance to an off-campus venue because the university reportedly refused to grant permission for the performance.



The director of the center, Aprinus Salam, denied the allegations, saying no such pressure had been exerted by the university. 'We had received text messages threatening to obstruct the event. We just did not feel comfortable,' he said.



UGM's spokesperson Iva Ariani said the university fully protected academic freedom and freedom of expression as long as they complied with the values of the campus, ethics and politeness.



UGM lecturer and activist Arie Sujito said the power of universities had been continuously decreasing and had been undermined by a group of people. He expressed hope the government take guarantee and protect academic freedom.



'The universities should be united in fighting against this,' he said.
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Linkedin Alicia A. Caldwell and Bradley Klapper (The Jakarta Post) Washington  Fri, January 22, 2016

The Obama administration tightened restrictions on European and other travelers who have visited Iran, Iraq, Syria or Sudan in the last five years, even as it said the new rules may not apply to those in certain occupations who have traveled for business.



The move quickly angered Republican lawmakers who accused the administration of circumventing the will of Congress.



The administration said Thursday that people who traveled to those countries as journalists, for work with humanitarian agencies or on behalf of international organizations, regional organizations and provincial or local governments may still be eligible to visit the United States without first obtaining a visa. People who have traveled to Iran since July 14, 2015, or Iraq for "legitimate business-related purposes" can also apply to come to the United States under the visa waiver program.



The Homeland Security Department said waivers for some applicants to the Electronic System for Travel Authorization, or ESTA, will be granted on a "case-by-case" basis. Those travelers who are denied visa-free travel can still apply for visa through a US embassy in their home country.



Americans may also end up affected by the new rule, if Europe introduces reciprocal action against US citizens.



"The Obama administration is blatantly breaking the law, a law the president himself signed," said House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul. "This is not a difference of opinion over statutory interpretation, it is a clear contradiction of the law and the agreement we reached with the White House. President Obama is again putting his relationship with Iran's supreme leader over the security of Americans."



McCaul said the exemptions announced by the administration were already rejected by Congress. He added that he and his colleagues "will respond and are reviewing our options."



House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte said the move "needlessly compromises our national security and the safety of the American people."



Sen. Dick Durbin, a top Democrat, said Thursday that the visa waiver program should be reformed, but "singling people out because of their national origin is fundamentally at odds with American values and invites discrimination against American citizens who are dual nationals."



Citizens of 38 countries, mostly in Europe, are generally allowed to travel to the United States without applying for a visa. But they still have to submit biographical information to ESTA.



New rules governing who can use the program approved by Congress in December are intended to block Europeans who have fought for the Islamic State group and are likely to commit jihadi violence from entering the United States.



State Department spokesman Mark Toner said waivers and exemptions would be applied "on a case-by-case basis." But he had no answer for questions, such as who has Iranian citizenship. Iran's government claims many people of Iranian heritage as citizens even if they're unaware of the matter or don't consider themselves Iranian dual nationals. It's unclear how the US will approach the issue.



The administration is not yet making changes to limits on visa-free travel for dual nationals.



The new limits only affect a minority of Europeans, but it has prompted great concern in countries whose citizens generally enjoy visa-free travel to the United States. And it has drawn Iranian charges that the US is violating last summer's nuclear accord by penalizing legitimate business travel to the Islamic Republic.



Iraq and Syria were targeted specifically because the Islamic State group has seized significant territory in each country for its would-be caliphate. Iran and Sudan, like Syria, are designated by the US as state sponsors of terrorism.



The debate over tightening visa restrictions for Europeans even emerged as an issue in the administration's seemingly unrelated effort to ensure Iran cannot develop a nuclear weapon.



As part of last summer's nuclear deal, the US promised to introduce no new nuclear-related sanctions on Iran as long as it remains in compliance. After a complaint by Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, Secretary of State John Kerry responded in a letter last month that the US would live up to its part of the bargain and not "interfere with legitimate business interests of Iran." He cited the administration's waiver authority among possible options. (+)



___



Associated Press writer Eric Tucker contributed to this report.
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Linkedin Lolita C. Baldor (The Jakarta Post) Paris  Fri, January 22, 2016

US and coalition forces are battling Islamic State militants in the skies and on the ground across Iraq and Syria, but the allies are increasingly also targeting the airwaves, where they now are losing the propaganda war.



In Paris this week, Defense Secretary Ash Carter made clear the coalition must get better at projecting its own messages and touting its successes. He has spent much of his time giving speeches lately at doing just that ' painting an increasingly rosy picture of victories in Iraq and Syria and describing a constrained Islamic State that is losing momentum.



The multipronged effort includes not only talking up military victories in Iraq and Syria, but also countering jihadi messaging that can recruit or inspire followers around the world to join the group or launch their own solo attacks in western nations.



So far, efforts by the US and others to combat that propaganda campaign have been slow to form, with officials acknowledging that they are losing the communications war.



Speaking Thursday at Acole Militaire, a military war college in Paris, Carter said IS uses the Internet "to give encouragement or even instruction to people who have already been radicalized, or radicalizing some of these poor lost souls who sit in front of a screen and fantasize about a life as a jihadi."



And a senior defense official said that Islamic State "fanboys" are able to amplify the militant group's message, spreading it faster and more broadly than their number might suggest.



In recent weeks, Carter and his military leaders have been more outspoken and upbeat in their assessment of the battles against the Islamic State, particularly in Iraq. Last month, Iraqi forces buttressed by coalition airstrikes and bridging equipment were able to take back the city of Ramadi. And officials are now talking about a new campaign plan that maps out the fight in coming months to take back key IS power centers in Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria. Raqqa is the Islamic State's de facto capital.



"We're having some success, we're going to have more in the future, I would like to have even more, but democracies are slow, and they only tell the truth," said Carter. "And in a message-driven Internet world, that puts you at a structural disadvantage compared to people who are nimble, agile, and lie. But we ought to try to do better."



The senior defense official also said the US is considering what it might contribute for a new strategic communications center the British are setting up to convey its anti-IS message.



One option could be to assign someone from the Defense Department to be at the center, but the official said it was not clear if that would be a civilian or a military service member. The defense official said the five other mainly European coalition countries that Carter met with this week also support the effort.



The official was not authorized to talk about the discussions publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.



Responding to a question at the war college, Carter said that it will also be important to have other moderate religious leaders speaking out against the IS message. It takes mainstream religion, he said, to counter the arguments of religious extremists.



He said officials need to do more to encourage Internet providers to try to limit extremists' use of the Internet as a recruitment tool, without unduly impeding online freedom.



"We have to eliminate their ability to exploit the Internet," said Carter, "which is supposed to be a tool of civilization, of human communication, human understanding, human commerce, and not be used as an instrument for evil."



French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian also spoke briefly this week about the Islamic State group's grip on vulnerable youth in the West and elsewhere.



"We must also uproot Daesh in the minds," Le Drian said, using another name for IS. "We must refuse the discourse of a war of religion. This war takes place in Syria, Iraq, Libya. ... But it also takes place in our households, where minds that are the most easily influenced are seduced and enrolled by the propaganda of Daesh."



France is the European country with the greatest number of youths who have either gone to Syria, are planning to go or have returned. Some who took part in the Nov. 13 Paris attacks that killed 130 had traveled to Syria. That includes one considered a ringleader. (+)



___



Associated Press Writer Elaine Ganley contributed to this report.
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Here are some of the things happening on the Lower East Side this weekend:

At Bluestockings from 7-8 p.m. tonight, author Ed Hamilton reads from his new book, The Chintz Age: Tales of Love and Loss For a New York. 172 Allen St.

Songwriter Sonya Kitchell plays Mercury Lounge tonight at 8:30 p.m. $12.

From 6-8 p.m., tonight the James Cohan Gallery hosts an opening reception for, Things People Do, a solo exhibition by painter Mernet Larswn. The gallery is located at 291 Grand St.

At Cuchifritos in the Essex Street Market this evening, theres an opening from 5-7 p.m. for (a(version)s), which features original compositions from 10 sound artists who use sampling as an integral part of their practice. 120 Essex St.

The Morris-Warren Gallery presents Visible Histories, a group show featuring a selection of artists representing the American Abstract Artists Association, in celebration of the organizations 80th Anniversary. 7-9 p.m. tonight, 171 Chrystie St.

The gallery, onetwentyeight, hosts an opening reception for, Maxwell Stevens: Summer Table Paintings. tonight from 6-8 p.m. 128 Rivington St.

Tomorrow at 3 p.m. at the New Museum a panel of artists and curators take part in a conversation titled, Fold, Screen, Skin: Contemporary Space in Contemporary Art. It coincides with the Cheryl Donegans new exhibition, which opened just this week.

Swedish rock band, Graveyard, plays Bowery Ballroom Saturday at 9:30 p.m. $20.

Tomorrow at 7 p.m. at Spectrum, flutist Martha Cargo and violin/viola duo andPlay present a double bill of music. 121 Ludlow St., 7 p.m.

Sunday from 7-9 p.m., Participant opens, Peter Hendrick, Convocation, a 5-channel sound and video installation that presents the output of a computer program devised by the artist to translate prominent religious texts into Morse code. 253 East Houston St.

Sunday from 6-8 p.m., Envoy Enterprises opens a new exhibition, Metrocard Merry-go-round +3, we all fall down, by Richard Bloes. 87 Rivington St.
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Ace Condo case still in hands of Phuket public prosecutor

PHUKET: Despite stating back in November last year that the Ace Condo legal case would be passed to Phuket Provincial Court within a month, the papers are still in the hands of the public prosecutor tasked with dealing with it.

constructioncrimepolicepatong

By Saroj Kueprasertkij

Friday 22 January 2016, 12:06PM

Complainants against the Ace 1 Condo project in Patong pose for a photo during a protest at Phuket Provincial Hall last year. Photo: The Phuket News / file

Kathu Police handed over their case evidence and documents to the Phuket Provincial Public Prosecutors Office on October 26, confidently stating that the case should be brought to the court within two weeks.

However, Public Prosecutor Jessada Banditmongkolkul said that he needed at least one more month to bring an Ace Condo case to court. (See story here)

Despite making that statement, when The Phuket News contacted Mr Banditmongkolkul on Wednesday (Jan 20) he could not confirm when the case would be passed to court.

The prosecutors office need to be careful about all the evidence and laws involved in this case before we bring it to court, he said.

We do not want to specify when the case will go to court, but we will make it as fast as we can, he added.

He said the case contained a lot of information, involves many people and covers a number of laws.

The case aims to bring a a slew of charges against the developer, The Nine Property (Patong) Co, including fraud, developing land without the required permits, failure to obtain a building permit, and contravention of the Consumer Protection Act. (See story here)

However, Mr Jessada went on to say that he is dealing with a criminal case and that the victims can still bring civil charges against the developers of the Ace 1 Condominium project in Patong if they want to claim their money back.

The victims can bring their case to court as a civil case by themselves to get their money back, he told The Phuket News on Wednesday.

They do not have to wait for the prosecutors office, he said.

Mr Jessada also stated that he believed that the customers will get their money back, with interest, because the developer has clearly broken the agreement stated in the relevant documents.

The court will make their decision based on the evidence provided, and if found guilty the court can order the Ace Condo developer to pay back the money with interest, he said.

Meanwhile, Col Angkul Klaiklueng of the Royal Thai Police Consumer Protection Division in Bangkok who was overseeing the case, and who in November told The Phuket News that he was delighted that the case was finally heading toward trial, said that the police had completed their work and that it is all now in the prosecutors hands.

Kathu police have handed the case to the prosecutor so it is now up to them to pass the case to the court. We have done our job, Col Angkul said.
Phuket taxi driver charged with reckless driving

PHUKET: A Phuket taxi driver was charged with reckless driving yesterday (Jan 21) after falling asleep at the wheel and crashing into an electricity pylon while on his way to Phuket International Airport.

transportaccidentspolice

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Friday 22 January 2016, 09:21AM

Ong-arj Kamrueng crashed into the electricity pylon after falling asleep at the the wheel.

Thalang Police and Kusoldham officers were sent to the scene of an accident near the Suan Pa Bangkanoon U-turn at Moo 5 Thepkrasattri Rd to find Ong-arj Kamrueng, 32, sitting near his vehicle. He had suffered minor injuries to his face so was taken to Thalang Hospital for treatment.

Pol Lt Col Sanich Nukong of Thalang said, Ong-arj was on his way to the airport to start work. He fell asleep and lost control of his vehicle and crashed into the electricity pylon.

Luckily for him he had his seat belt on and his airbag was in working order, he said.

After receiving treatment at the hospital, Ong-arj went to the police station to be questioned. He was breathalysed but there was no alcohol in his system However he was charged with reckless driving causing damage to the public property.

He immediately paid an B18,000 fine for damage caused to the pylon, Col Sanich added.
Thaksins son to be questioned on alleged money-laundering

BANGKOK: The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) has called Thaksin Shinawatras son Panthongtae for questioning over alleged money-laundering in a B9.9-billion Krungthai Bank loan scandal.

crimepoliticspolice

By Bangkok Post

Friday 22 January 2016, 09:48AM

Former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his son Panthongtae arrive at Suvarnabhumi airport in 2008. Photo: Apichit Jinakul

DSI deputy director-general Somboon Sarasit said yesterday (Jan 21) that DSI interrogators have called in Mr Panthongthae, Kanchanapha Honghern and Manop Divari for questioning today (Jan 22).

However, the three requested more time to prepare documents, and the DSI put off the questioning. It will issue a new summons later. No date was set for the interviews.

Mrs Kanchanapha is secretary to Thaksins ex-wife Khunying Potjaman na Pombejra and Mr Manop is the father of former Pheu Thai MP Sita Divari who is also a former chairman of Airports of Thailand (AoT).

They were identified as recipients of cheques for money that Krungthai Bank lent to real estate developer Krisda Mahanakorn. They would be asked about the debts for which the cheques had been issued, Pol Lt Col Somboon said.

None of the three had contacted the DSI to say if they would show up for the questioning, he said.

Last August the Supreme Courts Criminal Division for Persons Holding Political Positions found 24 people guilty of wrongfully approving more than B9.9 billion in loans to affiliates of Krisda Mahanakorn between 2003 and 2004, even though the firm was listed with the state-run bank as a non-performing debtor. The lending happened under the Thaksin government.

Two former bank executives, bank president Viroj Nualkhair and board chairman Suchai Jaovisidha, were found guilty of granting the illegal loans. They were sentenced to 18 years in jail.

The money trail allegedly indicates that the Krisda Mahanakorn owner signed a cashiers cheque worth B26 million to go to Mr Panthongtae, but it was cancelled immediately afterwards.

The money trail also suggests that part of the loan was used to buy shares in AoT.

DSI investigators are suspicious about the cancelled cheque, suspecting money-laundering was involved.

Read original story here.
Tough rules launch for jet skis in Phuket

PHUKET: Authorities have begun to regulate the jet ski rental business in Phuket to boost the islands image and tourist confidence.

tourismaccidents

By Bangkok Post

Friday 22 January 2016, 09:25AM

Phuket Marine chief Phuriphat Theerakulpisut said yesterday (Jan 21) the local jet ski rental business will be overhauled to provide safety for tourists and prevent visitors from being exploited by operators.

Phuket Marine chief Phuriphat Theerakulpisut said yesterday (Jan 21) the local jet ski rental business will be overhauled to provide safety for tourists and prevent visitors from being exploited by operators.

He was speaking at a meeting with operators at Phuket Provincial Hall.

Mr Phuriphat said the Phuket Marine Office was asked to regulate the rental of jet skis while the Provincial Local Administration Office will be responsible for the zoning of beaches.

He said only registered jet skis will be allowed to operate in local waters. All are required to have insurance and renew their operating licences annually.

It is hardly the first time Phuket has promised to crack down on the scam.

The most recent concerned crackdown was in November-December, 2009. Then-Phuket governor Vichai Praisa-ngob introduced a regulation that made it compulsory for all commercial jet skis on the island to be insured.

The theory was that insurance would make confrontations unnecessary, since any damage to a jet ski could be passed to the insurance company.

Mr Vichai and his backers clearly did not understand the nature of the scam, which is to claim damage which either does not exist, or which the operators themselves cause, and point out to the customers after their rental period ends.

The proposed regulations touted yesterday did not explain how the new regulations will address the complaints for years that certain jet ski operators cheat their customers.

They claim riders caused damage  typically a scratch or dent  and demand the tourists immediately pay exorbitant amounts for repairs. The demands quickly escalate to threats of violence if the tourists refuse.

The officials did not address this specific complaint, which is known around the world. A Google search this morning (Jan 21) for Phuket jet ski scam turned up more than 110,000 hits.

Arguably the most-commented letter ever written to the Bangkok Post was a PostBag letter. It addressed an identical problem at Thailands other popular seaside resort, Pattaya, and explained in detail how the scams proceed.

Both Pattaya and Phuket authorities promised action after this letter (see image), printed Feb 3, 2012. Another crackdown came and went.

Currently, there are 286 registered jet skis in the province.

The office will not accept additional registrations, Mr Phuriphat said.

Every jet ski has to be anchored in the water. They are not allowed to park on the beach. Clients who rent a craft must be over 18 years old. If they are underage, they have to be accompanied by jet ski staff, said Mr Phuriphat.

He also insisted legal action will be taken against operators who break the law. Their right to possess a craft will also be revoked.

In response to authorities measures, jet ski operators said they were willing to comply with the law.

Meanwhile, deputy governor Chokdee Amornwat said local authorities have been working on a beach zoning plan which was expected to be completed by this month.

Only 10 per cent of a beach area will be allowed for vendors to offer umbrella and deckchair rentals, said Mr Chokdee.

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Pierre, Tea Area lives up to hype and more from HS football week nine
Swiss watchmakers are starting to mock Apple over its attempt to muscle into their industry. While its true the Apple Watch hasnt set the world alight since going on sale in April, the horologists shouldnt be complacent.

At Genevas watch fair this week, H Moser, a small Swiss brand, unveiled a 24,900 Swiss franc ($24,666 U.S.) mechanical spoof of the Apple Watchwith none of the functionality. It doesnt let you gossip, send beautiful sketches created on a two- inch screen or share your heart rate, the company said, but it is something you can pass to your children one day without having to upgrade it.

The priciest end of the market can afford to scoff a little (even a gold Apple Watch is never going to compete with a top- of-the-range Jaeger-LeCoultre), but bigger companies such as Swatch are much more exposed.

Bloomberg Intelligence estimates that exports of mid-priced Swiss watches (those costing between 200 francs and 500 francs) struggled the most in the first 11 months of 2015, falling 9 per cent. Thats the price point of the basic Apple Watch, and suggests that for all the Swiss mockery, the U.S. upstart is putting a dent in sales.

Two-thirds of Swatch sales are from products that cost less than 1,000 francs, according to Exane BNP Paribas.

So while the Apple Watch hasnt been an instant hit like the iPhone or iPod, it has to be taken seriously. Apple doesnt break out watch sales, but it does say that all of the last fiscal years 20 per cent growth in its other products lineincluding Apple TV, iPods, Beats headphones and accessorieswas from watches.

Plus its the market leader for smartwatches, with a projected 58.3 per cent share in 2015, according to researchers at IDC. The market is also expanding: IDC estimates 88.3 million smartwatches will be sold in 2019, up from 21.3 million in 2015.

In fairness, Swatchs range of cheaper products offers some protection from the turmoil in China and a sharp drop in demand in Hong Kong for luxury goods, with exports to the region falling 23 per cent in November. That explains why its shares have performed slightly better recently (down 6 per cent since the New Year, compared to an 11 per cent fall at Richemont), though a price to future earnings multiple of 13.3 times is still below peers.

But while the problems in Asia and the strong Swiss currency have been of more concern for watchmakers recently, competition from Apple will only intensify, with the tech giant now trying to create luxury watches with broad appeal.

Take the Apple Watch developed in partnership with French luxury group Hermes, which comes closer to blending a classic style with cutting-edge technology. Its not perfectits still pretty cumbersome  but it looks good. Prices range from 1,000 pounds ($1,427 U.S.) to 1,350 pounds. Thats about the same as an average luxury handbag. Not cheap, but not entirely out of reach, and again in a price range that will bother Swatch.

And its not just Apples timepieces that worry the industry. Fossil makes watches for brands such as Michael Kors, DKNY and Marc Jacobs, which also compete with the Apple Watch on price. But Michael Kors CEO says the iPhone 6s popularity is having as much of an impact on sales, as younger customers use its clock rather than own a watch at all. (Fossil shares fell 67 per cent in 2015, making it the worst performer in Bloomberg Intelligences luxury peer group.)

And despite the more relaxed tone in Geneva this week about Apples threat, the watchmakers are still taking steps to meet the challenge head on. Swatch is going on the offensive with the Bellamy, a watch that can make contactless payments. Then theres the $1,500 (U.S.) smartwatch from LVMHs TAG Heuer, modeled after the classic Carrera. If customers decide they dont like it, they can swap it for a mechanical model after two years.

Traditional watchmakers would no doubt like to make the whole smartwatch phenomenon disappear in similar fashion. Unfortunately for them, that isnt going to happen.

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Bigmouth

Written and directed by Valentijn Dhaenens. Until Feb. 7 at the Panasonic Theatre, 651 Yonge St. Mirvish.com or 416-872-1212.

Whos the most memorable speaker in politics right now? If we go by recent headlines, U.S. Republican candidate Donald Trump would win by a landslide, which says a lot about the current state of political discourse.

As people around the world denounce his racist, sexist, ableist, basically any kind of ist arguments  and Britain debates whether or not to even let him into the country  he has also become a joke; a caricature of himself and power-hungry, capitalist ideals. But Belgian theatre creator Valentijn Dhaenens reminds us that this is definitely not the first time a political figure has used xenophobia and fear to gain power. So why is it that Trumps speeches are so easy to dismiss? If you ask Dhaenens, its because he has no eloquence.

In his Edinburgh Fringe Festival hit solo show Bigmouth, in Toronto now as part of the Mirvish Productions Off-Mirvish series, Dhaenens traces a selected history of politics through famous speeches, beginning with The Grand Inquisitor in 1583 to Ann Coulter (the only female represented in the show) and George W. Bush in 2001 (perhaps marking the beginning of the end of the powerful political speaker in the United States). Dhaenens choices reflect his personal interests in European and American history, specifically speeches that either support war or offer comfort in the aftermath of war, with short interludes that touch on cultural topics like abortion, the civil rights movement and the Challenger disaster in 1986. Early excerpts are more personal pleas from Nicola Sacco and Socrates. But all demonstrate how powerful orators can turn their own individual ideals, ideas and beliefs into national movements.

Its an intriguing concept, even if the total effect isnt as clear as Dhaenens may intend  perhaps the translation of European and American contexts to a Canadian audience misses a few key targets. But Dhaenens himself is a compelling presence on stage, manipulating his voice, face and body language as he travels through oratory history, as well as the length of a large table holding 10 microphones and five glasses of water. In addition to creating spot-on replications of historical figures, including a chilling mashup of Joseph Goebbels and General Patton, Dhaenens uses his voice also as his own instrument by looping vocals into musical interludes of America from West Side Story, or Fly Me to the Moon.

At the end of Bigmouth, the trends in political speeches are clear  no matter what era, what part of the world or what end of the political spectrum, a good speech and a good speaker all involve similar tactics to sway their audience. That isnt a new discovery, but Bigmouth lays it all out in a new way by a mesmerizing performer. This audience, at least, was hooked.

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It is not a bad thing for us, that the route known as the Goldene Strae or the Golden Road as we will get to know it- has escaped the attention of so many. It has been spared being overrun by hordes of tourists and as you will discover the
An elephant walks into a bar.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, sipping his Cosmo, says: Hey look, its a camel.

Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan, lifting a draft ale to his lips, dares to demur: Uh-uh, its a bear.

The diplomat perched down-bar pipes up quite undiplomatically: No gorillas allowed in here.

And the scribe, sitting alone over by the gents, grumbles: I dont care what it is. Im not buying it a drink.

Liberals and their besotted acolytes  in the media, in the rejuvenated diplomatic corps, in the expert commentariat  have all been doing a gobsmacking job of not seeing or not agreeing on the presence whatsit of the elephant in the room. The elephant is the, er, stalking horse  to mix my metaphors  which hoof-kicked Canada out of the room in Wednesdays meeting of really really important defence majordomos from around the world.

Though why Italy would be included in that D-cabal is mystifying, as theyve no fighter jets deployed over either Iraq or Syria and this Paris parlay was called to order to discuss going-forward escalation strategy in the war (thats what it is) against ISIL, ISIS, Islamic State, Daesh, Lunatics. Nor does Germany  another of the Seven Giants  for that matter, but Germany is, well, Germany, the 21st century superpower of Europe (insert shudder here) and cant be left cooling its heels in the corridor.

Canada clearly can.

Or back down to the kids table for Justin.

The snub (thats what it is), after more than a decade of close military alliance with the U.S. in Afghanistan, has left Canada feeling chafed and diminished, with critics of Trudeaus whistle-back on CF-18s over the skies of Iraq in a fury over what the pupa PM has done to the countrys reputation, its global standing as a nation of substance in muscular counter-terrorism, counter-barbarism.

Critics are correct. That was one honking huge smack-down of the neophyte Trudeau regime by U.S. Defence Secretary Ash Carter and his French counterpart, as co-hosts of the palaver. Sajjan, a splendid career soldier with three tours of duty in Afghanistan, must be mortified, however he massages the sidelining dis, claiming no offence meant and none taken, delicately toeing the line as Liberal point-man on the Iraq file  a place he visited only last week for eyes-on as Ottawa struggles to find a coherent voice and its mission in the coalition effort.

Camille Carrier, mother of Maude Carrier  murdered by Islamist fundamentalists last Friday in Burkina Faso, along with five other humanitarian workers from Quebec  had no trouble finding her outraged voice in an interview with Quebec radio station FM 93: Id like for Justin Trudeau, instead of condemning with words from his mouth, that with his planes he fights too, she said, of the prime ministers foolish campaign pledge to withdraw Canadas six CF-18 Hornets from the bombing campaign. I am ashamed.

I have plenty of friends in France who are ashamed of us.

I strongly suspect those Hornets wont be bugging out of Iraq by March, as Trudeau had avowed, nor even April, as former Prime Minister Stephen Harper had intended. To adhere to his promise, under the circumstances  brutal Islamic attacks in Paris and elsewhere since the election  would make Trudeau look like a stubborn child incapable of conceding error. It takes a big man to admit wrongness, and Trudeau has every potential of being just such a wise statesman.

Much has been said and written about the dilemma Trudeau put Canada into with his rash rejection of military might, which has clearly had consequences. Allow me to focus on just two issues that have been crucial to the yin-and-yang of debate.

There are those whove argued that the electorate put its approval stamp on Trudeaus withdrawal of the jets because Canadians gave the Liberals a majority government. This is bollocks. If anything, with opinion polls during the campaign showing two-thirds of Canadians favoured the military campaign in Iraq, it would rather seem that many voters cast their ballots for the Liberals despite disagreement on the CF-18 deployment. Because, obviously, there were many other compelling reasons to toss out the Tories.

Fighter jets werent a wedge-issue, at least not three months ago. A forthright climb-down wouldnt cost the Liberals public support. Many advisers within Trudeaus trusted coterie of experienced policy makers were not keen on the pledge from the get-go, although the Liberal stance may have drawn some votes away from the NDP.

But its been primarily a small rump of intractable naysayers who have urged Trudeau to stay his resolute course  as in, lets not fight the election over again, everybody move along, nothing to see here.

The election was not fought over fighter jets, for goodness sake, and Trudeaus reputation will not suffer over a reversal of clumsy ideological dogma. The country didnt speak. To pretend otherwise is deceitful.

What Canadians should be asking themselves  demanding to know of Trudeau  is what exactly he means by possibly expanding this countrys training expedition in Iraq in lieu of CF-18 participation. The PM seems to have thrown this option into the mix as a more palatable alternative to the bombing component he palpably detests.

There are 69 Canadian trainers on the ground in Iraq and we know zip about what theyre doing. For months Ive been trying to secure reporting access to these troops through Canadian Forces officials. The response, again just a couple of days ago: No. Why? Because theyre all Special Forces personnel and the military has never allowed them to be interviewed, says the major rebuffing my advances. (Not true; in fact several of us interviewed Special Forces guys in Afghanistan without identifying them and nobody said boo.)

In Afghanistan, highly skilled special forces were not wasted on benign-sounding training assignments. That tells me those 69 troops in Iraq mentoring Kurdish forces are far more directly involved with operations, probably calling in air strikes. We know theyre on the front lines, taking and returning fire.

So, no to flying those nasty bomb-dropping jets, but yes to scoping out their targets.

I dont see the logic in this. I dont see the principle.

What I do see is the fog of mendacity and a government that doesnt think Canadians can handle the truth.

Pink elephants.

Rosie DiManno usually appears Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday.

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A U.K. inquiry into the 2006 killing of Alexander Litvinenko confirmed on Thursday what many had already suspected: the former Russian spy was likely deliberately poisoned with polonium 210. Heres how:

Toxicity

Polonium 210, the most common isotope of the radioactive element polonium, is one of the most toxic substances known. It is 10,000 times more toxic than hydrogen cyanide and 5,000 times more radioactive than radium. Marie Curie won the Nobel Prize in 1911 for discovering polonium (and radium), but her daughter died after accidentally being exposed to it in a laboratory explosion. A dose of just one microgram  one millionth of a gram  can kill a human. Experts at the inquiry into Litvinenkos death estimated his teapot was laced with at least 50 micrograms. Because it is so radioactive, polonium 210 generates a lot of heat, which would have been masked by the hot tea.

Radiation

Polonium 210 ejects alpha particles, a particularly high-energy form of radiation, but one which cannot penetrate surfaces as thin as a sheet of paper. Intact skin is enough to stop the damaging particles, so polonium 210 is only toxic if it is ingested or inhaled. Once it is inside the body, however, the alpha particles wreak havoc, depositing huge amounts of energy into living tissue and causing widespread cell death. The pathologists who conducted Litvinenkos autopsy skipped some tests for fear of contaminating themselves; one called the procedure one of the most dangerous post-mortem examinations ever undertaken in the Western world.

Related:

Putin implicated in fatal poisoning of former KGB spy in London hotel

Key findings from U.K. judges report into Alexander Litvinenko's killing

Effects

After a victim ingests polonium 210, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says half or more of the substance would travel to the gastrointestinal tract and be excreted. The rest would travel the bloodstream and concentrate in soft tissues  primarily the kidneys, spleen and liver  and in bone marrow. Vomiting, pain and severe internal bleeding would occur within hours, and death within weeks. Litvinenkos wife testified that her husband fell horribly ill the same night he drank tea with two Russian men at the Millennium Hotels Pine Bar. He died 22 days later of multiple organ failure, including heart and bone marrow failure.

Contamination

Polonium 210 is found naturally in the environment. We are continually exposed to trace amounts of it through air, water and even our food (smokers have higher concentrations in their bodies, because polonium 210 accumulates in tobacco plants.) But the isotope is only commercially available in minute quantities. To manufacture a large enough dose of polonium 210 to poison someone requires sophisticated equipment. Inquiry experts agreed that the quantity of polonium that Litvinenko ingested could only be created by bombarding bismuth, another element, with neutrons in a nuclear reactor. Though one expert disagreed, another testified that the only facilities with those capabilities are in Russia.

Publichealth

After Litvinenkos death, investigators found traces of polonium 210 all over the Pine Bar. They also found traces on a passport photo of one of the Russian men Litvinenko met, in hotel rooms they rented, at restaurants they visited and aboard British Airways aircraft flying the London-Moscow route. The news caused a minor panic as thousands of Brits jammed the U.K.s National Health Service hotline, wondering if they had been poisoned too. 787 people were offered urine tests. A fraction of them were found to have been exposed to the polonium 210, but the investigators concluded the public health risks from the Litvinenko incident were low.

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ATHENS, GREECEThe death toll in Europes migration crisis rose Friday when two overcrowded smuggling boats foundered off Greece and at least 46 people drowned  more than a third of them children  as European officials remained deeply divided on how to handle the influx.

More than 70 people survived, and a large air and sea search-and-rescue effort was underway off the eastern islet of Kalolimnos, the site of the worst accident. It was unclear how many people were aboard the wooden sailboat that sank there in deep water, leaving at least 35 dead.

Coast guard divers were due to descend to the sunken wreck early Saturday, amid fears that more people had been trapped below deck.

At least 800 people have died or vanished in the Aegean Sea since the start of 2015, as more than 1 million refugees and economic migrants entered Europe. About 85 per cent of them crossed to the Greek islands from nearby Turkey, paying large sums to smuggling gangs for berths in unseaworthy boats.

Rights groups said the deaths highlight the need for Europe to provide those desperate to reach the prosperous continents shores with a better alternative to smuggling boats.

European policy toward its worst immigration crisis since the Second World War has diverged wildly so far. Germany  where most are heading  has welcomed those it considers refugees. Other countries, led by Hungary, have blocked or restricted them from entering and resisted plans to share the burden of refugees.

These deaths highlight both the heartlessness and the futility of the growing chorus demanding greater restrictions on refugee access to Europe, said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty Internationals Europe and Central Asia program director.

A manageable crisis has become a moral test that Europe is in danger of failing dismally, he said.

The UN refugee agency said daily arrivals on the Greek islands have surged to more than 3,000 in the past two days, and it cited refugee testimony that smugglers have recently halved their rates amid deteriorating weather conditions.

It is tragic that refugees, including families with young children, feel compelled to entrust their lives to unscrupulous smugglers in view of lack of safe and legal ways for refugees to find protection, said Philippe Leclerc of UNHCR Greece.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel met Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Berlin and pledged to continue to work intensively together not only to stem the flow of people but to improve conditions in camps in Turkey and to try to bring about a peace deal in Syria.

The refugee crisis is not Germanys crisis, it is not Europes crisis, it is not Turkeys crisis, Davutoglu said in a news conference with Merkel. It is a crisis that was born out of the crisis in Syria. If we co-operate, we can bring this crisis under control. If we throw the issue at each other, solving this issue will become more difficult.

Germany saw an unprecedented 1.1 million asylum-seekers arrive last year, many of them fleeing conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Turkey hosts more than 2.2 million Syrian refugees from a nearly five-year civil war that has killed a quarter of a million people and displaced half the country. Peace talks are scheduled to begin Sunday in Geneva, although officials say they might be delayed by a few days.

Davutoglu praised Merkel for her open-door stance, saying the steps she took will go down in history. The people of Syria will never forget this humanitarian stance.

European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini warned that the 28-nation bloc faces big economic risks if its members start putting up walls that restrict borderless travel.

We are doing studies of that, and it is impressive, she said, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

But Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who last year built fences on his nations borders with Serbia and Croatia, praised Austria for setting a cap this week on the numbers of refugees it will take.

Common sense has prevailed, Orban said on state radio, calling the Austrian decision the most important news of the past months.

Europe cant take in huge masses of foreign people in an unlimited, uncontrolled manner, he said, adding that for Hungary, the best migrant is the migrant who does not come.

Greek authorities say neighbouring Macedonia has again stopped letting in refugees heading north from Greece, leaving about 750 people stranded on the border. There was no official explanation for the move late Friday, and Macedonian authorities were not immediately available for comment.

In the first sinking before dawn Friday in the eastern Aegean, a wooden boat carrying 49 people went down off Farmakonissi islet. Forty people managed to make it to shore, while authorities rescued one girl and recovered the bodies of six children and two women.

A few hours later, a sailboat sank off Kalolimnos, south of Farmakonissi. The coast guard rescued 22 men and four women, and recovered 35 bodies: 17 women, seven men and 11 children.

One survivor told The Associated Press that the vessels engine failed about 3 a.m., five hours after they left Izmir, Turkey. Speaking at a reception centre on the nearby island of Kalymnos, he said about 80 people on board had paid $2,500 each for a berth, with half that sum for children.

Later, Turkeys state-run Anadolu news agency said the Turkish coast guard rescued six survivors from the area of the two accidents and found another three bodies.

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American women attend Donald Trump rallies, many women. They like him. The fact that Trump does not appear to like them does not bother them. It may even attract them.

The female Republican voters backing Trumps candidacy are a puzzling phenomenon. From Rosie ODonnells weight to Fox host Megyn Kellys periods to Republican candidate Carly Fiorinas face to Hillary Clintons schlonging and in many more instances, Trumps references to women make it sound as if they were something hed stepped in on the sidewalk on the way to the rally. Youd think the fat remark alone would have doomed him, but no.

The Barbara Lee Foundation, a womens equality group, tells the Guardian that the party always matters more than gender issues. Its true for both parties but its particularly true for Republicans. But that doesnt explain why Republican women dont flock to the other candidates in their own party who dont casually insult women. Trumps support among Republican women in Iowa is running at 23.5 per cent, level with Ted Cruzs.

Nationally though, 62 per cent of female voters disliked Trump, the Guardian reports. So why are Republican women so amenable to their own degradation?

The Guardian interviewed 18 such women at four Trump events in Iowa this week, including the one where Sarah Palin endorsed Trump in a bizarre speech that one writer likened to a Walt Whitman poem that he retitled I Sing the Body Apoplectic.

What it discovered appeared to be a ladder of anger, in which general rage overcomes self-esteem. Hes sick and tired of things, and so am I, said one Judy Haines.

But heres my question: are these women sick and tired of themselves? I am absolutely not a feminist, Iowa State University student Olivia Otis told the Guardian. I dont advocate that women are better than men because I think, obviously, were equal. She then attributed the difference in U.S. male and female median wages (in 2014, it was $45,292 for men vs. $37,388 for women) to merit.

Another woman loved Trumps idea of making Mexico pay for a border wall. Like the Berlin Wall, she said.

So were not considering intellect here. Something deeper is at work. I suspect it may be the force of gender relations throughout human history; such women are going to continue to accept a Republican male valuation of themselves for many generations.

A womans dislike of her own femaleness is one thing. But what does she think of Trumps view of other women? Perhaps it coincides with her own.

It does seem that the heart of feminism is women being constantly told to value themselves but only rarely to value other women. I give you GOMI, or Get Off My Internets, an American site founded by Brooklyn blogger Alice Wright (she posts under the name PartyPants) that exists to evaluate mommy blogs and wreck the dignity of the women who write them. It has been called a mean girls site for adults, and it is punishingly cruel toward young mothers trying to start a blogging business or even play a part in the wider world while staying at home with their children.

GOMI is vicious. It crushes small hopes with a giant boot. The GOMI attackers are like the small select band of cyberbullies, many of them female, who torment Gerry and Kate McCann, the British doctors whose tiny daughter Madeleine was kidnapped in Portugal in 2007. The child has never been found.

But who would troll bereaved parents? When one of the McCanns tormenters, a Brenda Leyland using the handle @sweepyface on Twitter, was approached by a reporter about her years of cyberbullying, she killed herself. Wealthy but unemployed, she had been tweeting about the McCann case for years. Why? Class resentment, dislike of Kate McCanns apparent indomitability, a hobby.

Its easy to dismiss these case studies of burning resentment as being the dark heart of the Internet, but its more important to study them in bright sunlight. Feminism is succeeding. It is transforming womens lives, offering money, autonomy, choice and goodwill to all. But the transition is painful and will continue to be so for many decades to come.

When people hate, its often born of something they hate in themselves. If that makes an American woman vote for woman-despising Donald Trump, its something worth identifying and repairing.

My Jan. 20 column had Spanish-language media company Univision buying a controlling stake in my favourite publication, The Onion. Its a large stake but I am pleased to report not a controlling one. Subscribe and enjoy this fine area publication.

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Age isnt destiny. Ive been enduring much teenage sarcasm due to adult amazement that youth in the U.S. are enthusiastic about Bernie Sanders. Along the lines: Imagine that: young people dont react based solely on age! For a sense of the dynamic, glance at a recent Sanders Iowa ad using Simon and Garfunkels America. Survivors of the fabled 60s meet the young precariat of 2016  with shaggy Bernie as the bridge. Come to think of it, its the Internet generations who have unprecedented access to the cultural touchstones of every era; it makes crossing age divides empathically easier than its ever been.

Return of the rumpled Jewish leftist. Jews used to lean mostly to the left. Thats been eclipsed by a rightward shift led by billionaires with only one agenda: support for Netanyahus Israel. Its personified by U.S. casino owner Sheldon Adelson, whose money is cravenly courted by candidates. Bernies a reminder that some of that past persists. The pattern exists here too. At our last election, Jewish seats that had seemed firmly Tory, slipped away.

Propaganda model confirmed. Skepticism about news media wasnt always widespread in the U.S. Journalisms prestige ran high after the Watergate exposes. But Noam Chomsky built a frame for doubt with his propaganda model in the 1970s. It asserted that, though the U.S. had no actual ministry of propaganda comparable to official censors in the Soviet bloc, its free press behaved almost exactly as they would have under a Soviet regime. In Bernies case, the model would predict that a Sanders candidacy would be first ignored and marginalized  and indeed, says a study, out of 857 minutes of mainstream TV election news coverage till the end of November, Bernie got only 10. (Trump got 234, Hillary got 113). When, despite this, his candidacy survived and thrived, the next response was also predictable: demonization. Hence:

The Cold War is over. Can we come out now? Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill, a Hillary backer, says the Republicans cant wait to run an ad with a hammer and sickle if Bernie is the Democratic candidate. Intriguing thought. Bernies always said hes a socialist. It hasnt killed him yet. And a poll found 43 per cent of Iowa Democrats also call themselves socialists, including a third of Hillary voters. This surely wouldnt have been so during the 45 years of the Cold War. In those days, socialist got routinely elided with communist, which was the least of it.

It also meant Soviet agent, traitor, bent on imposing foreign tyranny. Im not kidding. Its impossible to recreate that era for anyone under 40 or so. Its easier to imagine yourself in Camelot. You could lose your career, your family, sometimes your life just for being called the S (equals C) word.

Recall the last Indiana Jones film, set in the 1950s, in which Soviet military units roam freely in the Nevada desert and KGB thugs infiltrate U.S. college pubs to murder students. It wasnt really so, but many Americans believed it was. In the 1950s the FBI had so many agents inside the depleted U.S. communist party that they considered running one of their own for party leader. Theyd have won easily. Back then the bite in those words came less from left-wing ideas than from their association with a hostile, nuclear-armed foreign power. Since it imploded, the words alone have had trouble sustaining the same degree of fear and menace.

Whats in a name? Short answer: whatever those with the naming power say. (This goes back to Genesis. But I digress.) Canadian communists in the 1940s gave up and changed their name to the Labour Progressive Party, lot of good that did them. But any ideology can play the name game. Some U.S. leftists say Bernie isnt a real socialist since he doesnt call for nationalization of the means of production. You can even do it with capitalism. It would be a good idea, Gandhi might quip, as he did when asked for his thoughts on Western civilization. Thats because theres no real capitalism any more, plutocracy rules everywhere  which is basically Bernies stump speech. At any rate, I hope they try that hammer and sickle ad. Assuming people recognize it, well find out if its still fast-acting poison or merely the basis for some hilarious Internet memes. Im dying to find out.

Rick Salutins column appears Friday. ricksalutin@ca.inter.net

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Editors' Pick: Originally published Jan. 22.

Eric Walker's comment has been updated to reflect that it was about the recently scheduled town hall. We have also added data about ratings for the Democratic debates. It's in the 12th paragraph.

CNNannounced this week that the Democratic Party's White House hopefuls will take part in a Des Moines town hall next Monday, just one week before the Iowa caucuses.

Amid a barrage of criticism for a light and curiously scheduled slate of primary debates, the question is: why? And why now?

The Democratic National Committee has taken heat this election cycle for its debate scheduling, with many -- including candidates, media and even late-night comedians -- criticizing the committee for keeping its presidential contenders out of the limelight in order to clear the field for Hillary Clinton. The committee schedule six sanctioned debates this election cycle, the same as in 2004 and in 2008, but barred unsanctioned debates, which as FiveThirtyEight recently pointed out have exploded in recent years. In 2004, it tracked a total of 15 Democratic primary debates, and in 2008, 25.

The DNC thinks this analysis is wrong. "This whole thing has been completely blown out of proportion," said Eric Walker, a spokesman for the Democratic Party, referring to attention paid to the recently scheduled town hall. Additional forums were always part of the plan, the Democrats say.

According to Josh Levitt, a spokesman for the Iowa Democratic Party, which will host the event alongside Drake University, the CNN town hall has been in the works for a while but just got the go-ahead now.

"CNN reached out to us back in late November about setting up a town hall close to the Iowa Caucuses, and since then CNN has kept us updated as they locked down logistics and secured the participation of all three candidates," he said in an email.

He added that the intention was always for the forum to be this close to primary voting.

According to R.T. Rybak, former Minneapolis mayor and vice chairman of the DNC who criticized the debate schedule last year, Wednesday's announcement of the town hall is the culmination of an ongoing effort by the DNC and state entities to get the candidates out there together over the past several weeks and over the holidays.

"The bottom line is, the DNC has been working for more than a month quietly on trying to get more forums, and this is, in my mind, a sign of progress," he said in a phone interview with TheStreet.

Walker emphasized that the DNC has no intentions of straying from its six-debate schedule but has encouraged other groups and media partners to host forums and town halls and to work with campaigns to make arrangements. MoveOn.org and MSNBC have hosted such events this election cycle.

"This is good news for those of us who have wanted the candidates out in public more often," said Rybak.

In defense of the light debate schedule, Democrats we spoke to have contended that the candidates are quite public right now, pointing out that the ratings for the events have set records on the Democratic side and that the most popular Democratic debate (the first one, held on October 13, on CNN) attracted nearly 16 million viewers, more than three of the six Republican debates (held on CNBC and two on Fox Business Network).

Ironically, this may be especially good news for Clinton. It was widely thought that the light debate schedule was put into place to make it easier for her to win the nomination over lesser-known candidates. But, Clinton has shined in all of the Democratic debates thus far, and the debate schedule has become part of a larger discussion of the DNC manipulating the primary process in Clinton's favor.

"I think for the party to have not opened up and allowed her to shine, they actually have created more of a frustration among Democrats in the base who then are more sympathetic to Sanders' appeal," said Lara Brown, associate professor and program director at the Graduate School of Political Management at George Washington University.

Once presumed the inevitable nominee, the former first lady has begun to show weakness in the polls recently as Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, once considered a non-factor, has gained ground.

According to a RealClearPolitics average of polls, Clinton leads Sanders 47% to 42.3% in Iowa. In New Hampshire, he's ahead. While nationally the former first lady still has a significant lead, with 51.2% support compared to Sanders' 38%, he has been closing the gap.
Although there are many competitors in the company's core market of producing microcontroller chips, Atmel (ATML) secured antitrust protections in agreeing to a $3.6 billion merger withMicrochip Technology (MCHP) .

According to the companies' merger agreement, announced Tuesday, Atmel would be entitled to a $250 million reverse termination fee if the transaction failed to receive regulatory approval by an outside date of Oct. 15.

There is some concern about antitrust approval in the overall market for semiconductors. In April, Applied Materials (AMAT) canceled plans to acquire Tokyo Electron for $9.4 billion after the Department of Justice voiced concern about threats to competition among makers of semiconductor fabrication equipment. Six months later, NXP Semiconductors (NXPI) agreed to sell its RF Power business to Jianguang Asset Management to resolve Federal Trade Commission worries about its $11.9 billion merger with Freescale Semiconductor. Another attempt at a deal in the semiconductor market, Cypress Semiconductor's (CY) offer for Integrated Silicon Solution (ISSI) , was scuttled in June after the companies couldn't agree on how to address antitrust risk.

Each of those previous transactions, though, presented very specific competition issues that can't be applied to other deals, and Atmel's is no different. Still, the parties appear to feel any competition issues can be addressed fairly painlessly despite the relatively high antitrust breakup fee, which represents 7% of the deal value. Microchip has said it plans to close the transaction in the second quarter of 2016.

Both companies are major players in the market for microcontrollers, or MCUs, which are self-contained computers-on-a-chip that combine processing, memory and interface capability. Microcontrollers are generally less expensive, consume less power and offer enhanced programming capabilities compared with traditional microprocessors. With the acquisition of Atmel, Microchip would move from fourth or fifth in the market (depending on which market analyst you believe) to third. The two top players will be Renesas Electronics and NXP, which completed the Freescale acquisition on Dec. 7.

"The combination of Microchip and Atmel will create an MCU powerhouse," boasted Steve Sanghi, Microchip CEO, when he unveiled the deal to analysts during a Tuesday conference call.

Microcontrollers are used in a huge array of products including industrial, consumer and automotive electronic products; mobile computing and communications devices, including smartphones, tablets and personal computers; toys; appliances; pacemakers; and other electronics products. Their purpose is to provide embedded processing functionality for system control and interface functions, touch and proximity sensing, sensor management, security, encryption and wireless connectivity and battery management.

They are also critical for the so-called "Internet of Things" to provide seamless and secure connection between devices and appliances that share data and information.

Both companies produce MCUs for 8-, 16- and 32-bit applications. Analyst Stephen Simpson, who maintains the Kratisto Investing blog, reported Microchip is the fourth-leading player in the 8-bit arena, fifth in 16-bit and in the top 10 among 32-bit companies. Acquiring Atmel will give it 40% of the overall MCU market and 30% of the 8-bit space and will place it fifth among 32-bit customers.

There is differentiation among the two companies' technologies, however. The two companies are strong in different types of MCU architecture. Simpson said Microchip uses mostly PIC- and MIPS-based architecture. Atmel uses ARM and some proprietary architecture. As a result, each company's MCUs can be more attractive than the other to different customers.

Tuesday's merger announcement ended a fight for Atmel between Microchip and Dialog Semiconductor, which on Jan. 14 declined to raise its existing offer to top Microchip's bid.

Atmel has been represented on the antitrust front by Jones Day's Craig Waldman. Since the deal's announcement, Atmel shares have traded at a spread of just greater than 2%.
June is do or die time for Ally Financial (ALLY) and it may be damned whether it does or doesn't make it through regulatory hoops that month.

The embattled auto lender formerly known as GMAC is under attack by newbie activist firm Lion Point Capital, which is seeking to install two dissident director candidates on the company's 11-person board as part of an effort to have it set up a strategic alternatives committee.

As the insurgency continues, all eyes will be on how Ally Financial performs on its annual Federal Reserve-run stress tests, designed to identify whether financial firms, including the embattled company, have enough capital in reserve to survive a severe economic downturn. The test results are expected to be released by June 30, most likely early in the month, and they will determine whether designated big banks are permitted by the central bank to issue dividends or make stock buybacks.

Most big banks have been given approval to do distributions. However, Ally hasn't made any capital distributions to common shareholders since its initial public offering in 2014. A key impediment was a Series G preferred stock issuance that included a "dividend blocker" that prohibited any capital distribution. Ally acquired the remainder of the issuance in December and will be seeking Fed approval to initiate a dividend and share-repurchase program in 2016.

"Based on Ally's capital metrics it appears well positioned for approval of some capital returns," said BTIG analyst Mark Palmer. "However, we don't know whether there are qualitative concerns the Fed might have."

A strong performance on the test and announcement of a dividend and buyback might help beat back the activist investor's push for a sale or other strategic move, even if the insurgents have succeeded at installing a minority slate of directors on the company's board.

The opposite scenario could push Ally into considering a sale.

"Short of selling or breaking up the company, if they can't do a distribution they are out of bullets," said one bank-focused investor. But Ally may be out of bullets even if it can do a distribution. That's because Lion Point is unlikely to be appeased even with a significant stock buyback and distribution, the investor added.

The insurgent fund, which has over $1 billion under management, was formed in 2014 by former Elliott Management portfolio manager Didric Cederholm and ex-Perry Capital senior analyst Jim Freeman. Cederholm, the activist investor said, had a long history of investing in Ally during his previous stint at Elliott.



"It's not a new situation for Elliott," he said. "They were actively involved in the bankruptcy and restructuring and know the company well."

A key reason for a sale would be to alleviate Ally of its status as one of the smaller banks designated as "Systemically Important Financial Institutions." That designation comes with tougher capital and liquidity requirements as well as an obligation to conduct stress tests and write living wills.

One question is whether a buyer would be willing to become even more systematically important. A SIFI-SIFI combination would eliminate a lot of Ally's regulatory burdens. However, if such a deal were announced it would be the first ever of its kind and evaluated closely by the Fed.

One activist said he thought a SIFI to SIFI merger is doable, noting the Fed has approved a number of regional bank deals of late. "Sellers can get away with being less compliant but at least the buyer has to be in the good graces of the Fed," he said.

Another option is for Ally to break up and eliminate its SIFI designation and the regulatory hurdles associated with them that way. In its Dec. 31, 2015, "living will," Ally said that in the event it was forced to dismantle itself, its non-brokered deposit business would be "particularly attractive" to a bank that has a high ratio of brokered to non-brokered deposits. It added that there are a number of potential purchasers for its auto finance assets, including "U.S. and global financial institutions...including those affiliated with auto manufacturers as well as private equity funds."

Nevertheless, Palmer said it would be a terrible time to consider a sale of Ally Financial because of its near-record low share price -- shares closed around $16 Thursday -- and the fact it is in the midst of diversifying its auto loan origination business away from General Motors (GM) and Chrysler and towards other dealers.

Palmer added that it didn't appear to make sense to break up the auto loan business from the deposit base, adding that the two sides are deeply interconnected. "The deposit base provides a better funding model for its auto lending business than its previous over-reliance on unsecured corporate debt," Palmer said.

Observers have a hard time identifying potential buyers for Ally. "It would be other banks that are interested in expanding their presence in auto lending," said Palmer.

One analyst suggested Capital One Financial (COF) , another SIFI, could be interested because it is the only major U.S. financial institution that has a similar business model, where auto financing is a significant part of the business.

A poor stress test result, along with Lion Point's efforts, could push Ally into auction mode.
Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush has not been an advocate of spending on higher ed. Bush, who went to Phillips Academy and the University of Texas, has questioned the value of core liberal arts majors such as philosophy in the past and has scorned the idea of debt free college.

But campaigning as an establishment Republican, Bush has watched mavericks like New Yorker Donald Trump and Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who represents the state where Bush was born, put him in their rearview mirrors. With the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primaries weeks away, Bush has thrown his hat into the higher ed policy ring.

Bush is not the only person who thinks the federal student loan system is broken. But he wants to fix it with a banking sector instrument: a line of credit of up to $50,000. The Bush campaign website says the plan would "provide all high school graduates access to a $50,000 line of credit through their Education Savings Account. Students would repay by contributing a percentage of their incomes proportional to the amount spent--1% for every $10,000 spent--through their income taxes for 25 years."

The plan, announced on January 18, calls for no student to pay more than 1.75 times the amount spent. If the maximum amount of the line of credit were drawn down, that would come to $87,500.

Borrowers would repay through their federal income taxes over 25 years. The payments would be set at 1% of their income for each $10,000 they borrow. If nothing else, the pay-off would be a long slog. This new financial aid system would eliminate the confusing financial aid application process and remove the menace of accumulating interest, default, damaged credit and collections agencies, Bushs website states.

It would ensure that repayment is predictable and affordable, protects students during periods of unemployment or underemployment, and eliminates defaults, the website continued.

Low-income Pell Grant students would continue to get those award on top of the line-of-credit.The Bush plan has earned kudos Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) who, as chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee, is in the process of re-writing the Higher Education Act, a federal law that governs all federal student aid.

"Jeb Bush has for 20 years led conservative thinking on education policy," Alexander said. "And no governor has done more to put into action conservative principles such as giving parents more choices of schools for their children.

Yet what Alexander, a former Governor of Tennessee, seems to ignore the fact Bushs plan is, on its face, pretty progressive. As Governor of Florida, he championed the Common Core and for-profit colleges, and ripped the Obama administration's treatment of for-profits. Bush is a former investor in Academic Partnerships, an online for-profit college.

Bush also wants to re-write the federal bankruptcy law and make it easier for private student loan borrowers write off debit in bankruptcy--not unlike a proposal made in October by the Obama administration. Student loans are the only kinds of consumer debt not dischargeable in a bankruptcy.

Perhaps most startling of all, Bush wants to smooth the way for students transitioning to the Obama administration's REPAYE program, a re-do of PAYE, its predecessor income-based repayment program.



"Governor Bush will help borrowers with existing debt by allowing them to transfer into the new income-base repayment system, Bushs website states, making federal debt collection more transparent, simple and fair, and allowing private student debt to be discharged in bankruptcy, extending the debt repayment period and easing transition into the existing REPAYE program," an unusual endorsement of a contentious policy. Many observers think that Obama initiative such as these, along with the Public Student Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF) would be unlikely to survive any Republican administration.

How the line of credit and how it would be implemented is a head-scratcher. If it was intended for undergrads only, it would represent a big increase over the current cap on federal loans for undergrads, which is $31,000. However, if it were intended to cover both undergraduate and graduate expenses, it would be a big reduction. The cap on federal grad school loans is $57,500 in addition to the $31,000 people can borrow as undergrads. The fallout from the Bush plan may be that, on the graduate level, it leads students to max out their federal loans and drives them to the private student loan market.
Editors' pick: Originally published Jan. 22.

National Review has decided to take a stand against Donald Trump. The think-magazine founded by revered conservative William F. Buckley has published an issue dedicated to bashing the Republican frontrunner.

Inside are 22 short essays by noted conservatives like Glenn Beck, Bill Kristol and John Podhoretz, explaining that he's like President Obama (Beck), conservatives should yell "stop" (Kristol), and that he's like a more political Howard Stern (Podhoretz). So far, the repercussions has been a strong Twitter rebuke from The Donald and the Republican National Committee disinviting the magazine from co-hosting a February 26 debate in Houston.

It was only last week in the most recent Republican debate that Trump invoked the magazine's founder, Buckley, in his celebrated defense of New York values against an attack by rival Ted Cruz, the senator from Texas.

"Not a lot of conservatives come out of Manhattan," Cruz said, to which Trump replied, "conservatives actually do come out of Manhattan, including William F. Buckley."

So, what's the substance behind the bluster? Here are quick summaries of what all 22 conservatives said about Trump in National Review.

Glenn Beck

According to Glenn Beck, the Tea Party was a backlash against the types of policies supported by Just Barack Obama -- policies backed by Trump, too. The conservative radio host points to the pair's support of the stimulus, the auto bailouts and the bank bailouts. "Barack Obama supported all three," he writes. "So did Donald Trump."

And in the risk of Trump's winning the GOP nomination, Beck worries not only about ensuring a path to the White House but, perhaps more importantly, "there will once again be no opposition to an ever-expanding governance."

David Boaz

"Alas, the only businessmen crazy enough to run for president seem to be, well, crazy," writes David Boaz, executive vice president of libertarian think tank the Cato Institute, warning that the billionaire's greatest offenses against America are his nativism and promise of one-man rule. He aligns his anti-immigrant rhetoric with segregationist George Wallace and contends Trump is vowing to be an "American Mussolini." The conclusion: Trump's campaign would have appalled Buckley, and Republican past leaders Barry Goldwater and the hallowed Ronald Reagan.

Brent Bozell III

Does he walk with us? L. Brent Bozell III thinks the answer is "no." The founder of the conservative content analysis organization Media Research Center draws parallels between Trump and other "calculating, cynical charlatans, running as one thing only to govern in a completely different direction" -- Senators Mitch McConnell, John McCain and Orrin Hatch and former Speaker of the House John Boehner.

Mona Charen

"Trump has made a career out of egotism, while conservatism implies a certain modesty about government. The two cannot mix," writes Mona Charen, senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. She also points to an issue Megyn Kelly noted in the first Republican presidential debate: Trump's problem with women.

Ben Domenech

The silver lining in Trump's popularity, writes The Federalist publisher Ben Domenech, is that it reveals President Obama's domestic-policy agenda, aimed at the working and middle-class, didn't work. The issue at hand -- the GOP needs Trump's supporters. And conservatives have far more to learn from his campaign than they want to admit.

Erick Erickson

The Resurgent editor Erick Erickson may be more comfortable with a Trump White House bid in 2020, when the billionaire real estate magnate has proven his loyalty to the conservative cause. Invoking Saint Paul and the Bible (allegedly Trump's favorite book), Erickson holds that a recent convert to conservatism must not be the carrier of the party flag.

But, if Trump wins the nomination, he'll vote for him over Hillary.

Steven Hayward

"After Obama -- after three generations of liberalism only slightly interrupted by the Reagan years -- the conservative president we desperately need requires a paradoxical combination of boldness and restraint," writes Steven F. Hayward, Ronald Reagan distinguished visiting professor at Pepperdine University. He holds that a new conservative president will have to challenge the power and reach of his branch and restore the executive restraint the Constitution calls for.

The issue at hand: Trump's not up to the task.

Mark Helprin

Mark Helprin might buy into that whole Trump-is-a-Democratic-sabotage-plot theory, suggesting that at Bill Clinton's council, the real estate magnate "has like a tapeworm invaded the schismatically weakened body of the Republican party." But even so, that's beyond the point. According to the novelist and conservative commentator, Trump rivals Mussolini, Evita and Obama as an "explosive, know-nothing demagogue," and his presidency might result in Britney Spears and Ozzy Osbourne charged with holding onto nuclear codes.

William Kristol

The Weekly Standard editor William Kristol has something in common with Trump: they both share respect for National Review founder Buckley. Trump invoked his name at the last presidential debate in defense of his "New York values," Kristol cited his founding statement for the publication as a reason Trump won't work for the GOP -- that conservatism "stands athwart history, yelling Stop, at a time when no one is inclined to do so, or to have much patience with those who so urge it."

Kristol hopes that soon conservatives will yell, "Stop."

Yuval Levin

Trump is like a doctor prescribing kittens to cure diabetes is essentially the takeaway from Yuval Levin's assessment of the billionaire's rise to prominence within the Republican Party. While his diagnoses of America's problems have garnered attention, his ideas reveal he doesn't quite get it.

"He poses a direct challenge to conservatism, because he embodies the empty promise of managerial leadership outside of politics," writes Yuval, editor of National Affairs and contributing editor of National Review.

Dana Loesch

"Popularity over principle -- is this the new Right?" asks Dana Loesch, radio host and commentator on Fox News. While she says she genuinely likes Trump (though he's not her presidential pick), she's not convinced he's actually a conservative. Pointing to Trump's previous positions on assault weapon bans and eminent-domain laws, she ponders why he apparently gets a pass on changing his mind while others don't. While Jeb Bush's super PAC is busy making flip-flopper videos about Marco Rubio, they haven't said the same about Trump.

Andrew C. McCarthy

Many Americans would be hard-pressed to identify Hassan Nasrallah, Ayman al-Zawahiri and Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in a line-up -- the problem is, so would Trump, says Andrew C. McCarthy, a National Review contributing editor and former chief assistant U.S. attorney who prosecuted terrorism cases.

The global jihad is complex, he writes, and while a president doesn't have to be good with names to oppose it effectively, he has to grasp the animating ideology, power relations and goals. Trump does not have a clue.

David McIntosh

"Trump beguiles us, defies the politically correct media, and bullies anyone who points out that the emperor has no clothes," writes David McIntosh, founder of conservative political advocacy group Club for Growth. "None of that makes him a conservative who cherishes liberty."

He pans the real estate magnate as a "liberal wannabe strongman" and invokes President Reagan, under whom he served as special assistant to attorney general and special assistant to the president for domestic affairs, who "fought for economic freedom, for reigning in government so the private sector could thrive." His conclusion: that's economic conservatism, not Donald Trump.

Michael Medved

If Trump becomes the nominee, the GOP has no chance of winning the 2016 election. But according to Michael Medved, radio talk show host, the problem is much worse: the Republican Party and the conservative movement might not survive. Trump embodies the damaging characteristics Democrats have been ascribing to Republicans for years: he is selfish, greedy, materialistic, bullying, misogynistic, angry and intolerant. By nominating him, the party would lose all chance of capturing the White House and lose congressional and gubernatorial majorities as well.

Edwin Meese III

At the start of the current election cycle, Edwin Meese III, who served in President Reagan's gubernatorial and presidential administrations, thought the party had "one of the strongest arrays of candidates in many years." Months later, the race has now been polluted by vicious personal attacks that are by no means reminiscent of Reagan's Eleventh Commandment -- the pledge to avoid speaking ill of any fellow Republican.

Trump's attacks on things like Cruz's eligibility and Bush's lack of energy, he writes, "are a poor substitute for addressing the real issues that should be the basis for a positive campaign."

Russell Moore 16

Russell Moore's beef with Trump is an ethical one. The president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention points to the billionaire's previous apparent pro-choice stance on abortion, also attacking his personal life -- his three wives and past sexual history -- and his business practices -- namely, his casinos.

Michael B. Mukasey

The problem with Trump's temporary ban on Muslims until "our leaders can figure out what the hell is going on" is that many people have already figured out "what the hell is going on." The former U.S. attorney general names this as one of a number of reasons he believes Trump would imperil America's national security.

"We will need a president who summons our strength with a reality-based strategic vision, not one who summons applause with tantrums and homicidal fantasies," he writes.

Kate Pavlich

Kate Pavlich, editor of Townhall, the conservative website owned by Salem Media, speaks for many traditional Republicans when she says that Trump is simply not a conservative. Rather, he's a "political con man" who has bullied and bought off politicians all to enrich himself. This race has forced Republicans to grapple with the difficult question: Do conservative principles still matter? If they do, Trump shouldn't be the GOP candidate.

John Podhoretz

John Podhoretz, the son of conservative writers Norman Podhoretz and Midge Decter, does his best Sigmund Freud impression to try to understand the rise of Trump. The editor of Commentary magazine, sees Trump as the American id, a more politicized version of Howard Stern and Andrew Dice Clay. But whereas the id is supposed to be balanced by ego and superego, Trump is an "unbalanced force." Podhoretz is mum on why today's Republican Party was so ripe for Trump to capture.

R.R. Reno

R.R. Reno can't hide his disgust as the notion that compared to Trump, "Hillary Clinton is a principled public figure."

Reno acknowledges that the party has nurtured and encouraged those who want little more than to burn down the system. Furthermore, he says GOP leaders have alienated these same voters by denouncing them as "takers" or backing Chamber of Commerce policies that cripple wages and move jobs overseas.

A former theology professor at Creighton University in Omaha, R.R. Reno laments that the Republicans' own actions opened political space for a "Strong Man who promises to knock heads and make things right again."

Thomas Sowell

Thomas Sowell sees some of Barack Obama in Donald Trump, and, like Cal Thomas he doesn't like it. Why elect a "glib egomaniac" when the White House already has one, he asks. Sowell is incredulous, exasperated by a public that is using election for the "purpose of venting emotions."

Sowell fears an apocalypse, asserting that Trump, a "bombastic showoff" is not the right leader when Iran could turn U.S. cities into "radioactive ruins."

Cal Thomas

A longtime conservative pundit, Cal Thomas admits that there's a lot that he likes about Trump. He favorably compares him to Spiro Agnew, vice-president to Richard Nixon, and applauds Trump's frustration with "uncontrolled immigration," and the "establishment's failure to 'make America great'." But Thomas says Trump's tone and temperament belie a "dark side" that makes him unfit to serve as president. Isn't a narcissist what we currently have in the White House?

-- Leon Lazaroff contributed to this post
A cadre of conservative intellectuals are all in to stop Donald Trump. In a vigorous media play aimed at halting the rise of the unlikely Republican frontrunner, a collection of the country's best known conservative commentators and activists joined together in an effort to dislodge Trump for both the sake of the party, and, they say, the country.

Only one problem: It could backfire.

National Review has thrown the weight of its special standing as the country's foremost magazine of conservative thought to decry the rise of Trump, pleading with GOP voters to choose anyone but the New York real estate mogul whose lead in Iowa, New Hampshire and even Florida continues to frustrate many of the party's intellectuals.

In a special issue with the words "AGAINST TRUMP" (written as shown) blazing across the magazine's cover, 22 high-profile conservatives explain why Trump isn't right for Republicans. But attacking Trump this election has so far proven futile. None of his rivals, senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, governors Chris Christie, Jeb Bush and John Kasich have had much luck despite their pulpits and millions of dollars in political advertising. The same goes for Fox News, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.

"For some people, this kind of criticism actually strengthens Trump," said Peter Wehner, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Ethics and Public Policy Center, said in an interview from Washington.

Trump's core constituency, white, non-college educated voters, have seemingly found in his personal appeal something that speaks to their own frustrations with everything from the economy and immigration to the role of the presidency. (It's possible that they're not readers of National Review.)

It wasn't, in fact, high-minded commentary that put Trump atop the polls. He uses a very simple way of speaking and sticks to broad statements about issues that animate his base: taxes and the economy, immigration, the weakness of U.S. foreign policy and the evil others (liberals, President Obama, the Republican establishment, Mexican immigrants) who may oppose him.

But here's how his conservative opponents talk, hoping to end his campaign (all from the National Review spread):

"After Obama -- after three generations of liberalism only slightly interrupted by the Reagan years -- the conservative president we desperately need requires a paradoxical combination of boldness and restraint." -- Steven F. Hayward, Ronald Reagan distinguished visiting professor at Pepperdine University

"...he has like a tapeworm invaded the schismatically weakened body of the Republican party..." -- Novelist and conservative commentator Mark Helprin

"We will need a president who summons our strength with a reality-based strategic vision, not one who summons applause with tantrums and homicidal fantasies." -- Former U.S. Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey

Trump's response wasn't to claim that he has the "paradoxical combination of boldness and restraint" called for, or to punch back with a rejoinder about the "schismatically weakened" party that seems to be lining up against him, or even to explain how his "strategic vision" is "reality-based." He did what he does best and kept it simple:

National Review editors probably found it ironic that there were two grammatical errors in Trump's first tweet responding to the magazine spread. Trump and his six million followers may not have minded at all. (National Review has about 150,000.)

Trump's candidacy, Wehner acknowledges, along with many in the National Review piece, has nonetheless forced many Republicans to grapple with a difficult question: Is the party partly to blame for providing the intellectual space for someone of Trump's background and character?

"The party is probably somewhat complicit in the rise of Trump," Wehner said. "But it's a combination of factors that includes everything from Barack Obama to globalization, to a sense of people being left behind by the modern economy, to demographic shifts which have paved the way for a strong man. Its many things."

Ben Domenech, publisher The Federalist, concedes in the National Review spread that "conservatives have far more to learn from his campaign than many might like to admit." His supporters, Domenech wrote, "feel disconnected from the GOP and other broken public institutions, left behind by a national political elite that no longer believes he matters."

One of the themes that runs through the National Review package is: Trump isn't one of us.

As Eric Erickson, editor of The Resurgent, wrote, "Trump donated to both the Clinton Foundation and Hillary Clinton's Senate campaign, as well to Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, Chuck Schumer, and other Democrats. In 2011, according to the website OpenSecrets.org, "the largest recipient [of Donald Trump's political spending] has been the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee."

Trump has often departed from conservative principles on defense, racial quotas, abortion, taxes, single-payer health care, and immigration, argued Mona Charen, Wehner's colleague at the Ethics and Public Policy Center.

They're right -- he isn't one of them, and it's probably a big part of why he's so popular right now and why this gambit will likely fail.

To be sure, there's a logical hope in all of this, according to Wehner.

"There are a lot of people who are undecided and are against him," he said.

He's right about that. According to a mix of polls gathered by Huffington Post, 54.4% of those asked have an unfavorable view of Trump, versus 39.5% who view him favorably -- a spread of about 15 points. (For comparison, Hillary Clinton, also a polarizing figure, has a spread of 11 points, with the unfavorables in the lead.)

Conservative thinkers like Wehner may be galvanized by the show of force, he added.

"It's impressive," he said. "It's not a shock that conservatives have been concerned about Trump but to get that editorial and those 22 people together is powerful. I was heartened by it."

And if anyone can lead the charge, it might be the National Review. Despite Trump's broadside against the magazine, it continues to hold a special place in the conservative movement, in large part because it was the first magazine of its kind, and because its founder and longtime editor William F. Buckley Jr., remains a revered icon eight years after his death at age 82. (Even Trump respects him.)

But magazine editorials don't win elections; voters do, and, at least for the time being, Trump has them on his side.
Montreal, CA (H4T1V6)

Today

Light rain early...then remaining cloudy with showers in the afternoon. High 47F. Winds SW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

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Cloudy skies early will become partly cloudy later at night. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low around 40F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph.


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In this March 25, 2015, file photo, a window sticker on a downtown Indianapolis florist shows its objection to the Religious Freedom bill passed by the Indiana legislature. Months after the Supreme Court effectively legalized same-sex marriage, some lawmakers across the U.S. are proposing laws that would give businesses and some public employees the right to refuse service for gay couples based on their religious beliefs. The bills, proposed mostly by Republicans, arent universally backed in the party and top employers, including Delta Air Lines, Home Depot, Porsche and UPS warn the proposals are unwelcoming and bad for business. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, File)
The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK), Marzuki Darusman, speaks during a press conference in Tokyo, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Mari Yamaguchi)
This Jan. 4, 2016, file photo sshows President Barack Obama speaking in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington. The Obama administration will announce as early as Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, its plan to introduce new visa requirements for European travelers who are dual nationals of Iran, Iraq, Sudan or Syria, or who have visited any of these countries in the last five years. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)
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Patnaik's close aides say that to understand him, one has to understand his empathy

By Pratul Sharma/Photos Sanjay Ahlawat
The Hyderabad university on Thursday revoked the suspension of four Dalit research scholars, but students continued to protest for the fifth day over the suicide of a Dalit student who too had been suspended.

Addressing the protesting students at the campus, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to sack his ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya over the suicide by Rohith Vemula.

And protesting against Human Resource Development Minister Irani's "misleading" statement, 10 Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe teachers quit their administrative roles.

Under attack, the university's executive council decided to revoke the suspension of four students who along with Rohith were suspended in November after an alleged clash with an Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) leader. The ABVP is the student wing of the RSS.

"After taking into account the extraordinary situation in the university, it resolved to terminate the punishment imposed on the students with immediate effect," a university statement said.

Vice Chancellor P. Appa Rao urged the university community to maintain harmony.

Slamming Irani's statement that a Dalit headed the committee which expelled the five Dalit students including Vemula, 10 teachers quit their administrative posts and joined the students on protest.

Kejriwal visited the campus and sought the dismissal of Irani and Minister of State for Labour Dattatreya whose letters to the HRD ministry on the alleged assault on the ABVP leader reportedly forced the university to suspend Vemula - son of a farm worker - and the others.

The Aam Aadmi Party leader also asked Irani to apologize for "playing dirty caste politics" over Vemula's suicide. Modi "should dismiss both the ministers", he said to applause.

He demanded that Irani's name should be included in the FIR filed against Dattetreya, the vice chancellor and two ABVP leaders.

In New Delhi, the AAP demanded the arrest of Dattatreya, the BJP MP from Secunderabad.

BJP ally and Lok Janshakti Party MP Chirag Paswan also demanded a probe into a letter written by Dattatreya to the HRD ministry ahead of the Dalit research scholar's suicide.

"The suicide should be probed by an independent agency, which should decide who it should be probing. Those found guilty must not be spared, no matter how influential they are," he said.

The Congress called for Irani's dismissal from the cabinet for misleading people about the suicide.

Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala said in New Delhi that the "anti-Dalit mindset of the BJP and the RSS" had manifested itself over the last 20 months in various forms across the country.

He said Dattatreya, "on whose letter the HRD ministry pressurised for the expulsion of the five PhD Dalit students", should also be booted out of the cabinet.

The BJP hit back, accusing the Congress of "giving a communal colour or caste angle" to every untoward incident in the country. "It is very unfortunate," BJP national secretary Srikant Sharma said.

Sharma also demanded to know why Kejriwal, who visited Hyderabad, did not "meet even one family of dengue victims in Delhi".

"They (AAP) are silent over law and order issues in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. But they blame the centre for issues it is not even responsible. It proves their dishonesty," he said.
Success usually has many fathers, but General Dalbir Singh has discovered that success can also generate controversies. He and the entire Army brass consider the counter-terror operations at Pathankot a success to the extent that all the terrorists were eliminated, none of the non-combatants in the Pathankot airbase or outside was harmed, and they could limit the casualties to security forces to the bare minimum.

As THE WEEK had reported the exclusive details of the operation last week in a detailed narrative account, the Army chief has now confirmed that the primary concern was to confine the terrorists to as small an area as possible so that they could not inflict any damage to the 10,000-odd Air Force personnel and their families living in the base and to the precious military assets there.

The chief had clearly directed that there should be no compromise on the safety of the officers and men who were conducting the operations. As THE WEEK had reported, he had directed that Casspir mine-protected vehicles and, where wheeled vehicles couldn't be used, tracked armoured personnel carriers be used to move the combatants within the operational area.

The controversies largely pertained to the advisability of employing the National Security Guard, and whether the Army had been put under the command of the NSG. He has since answered the questions, even hailing the employment of the NSG as a  wise move, and also given an exclusive interview to THE WEEK in which he has candidly explained the immediate and long-term needs of equipment, about the raising of a new strike corps on the China border, about the provisions in the 7th Pay Commission and also about women in combat. Excerpts:

There has been much confusion about the operation and the command and control in Pathankot. Can you clarify the position? Issues like whether the Army had been put under the NSG's command....

There are all kinds of reports coming out. I would like to clarify that the Army was not under anyone else's command, but under the command of the western army commander who was controlling and monitoring the situation constantly.... There were the other forces too  the NSG, the Garud commandos, the police and so on. He [the army commander] was in full control of the entire operations. We had to bear in mind that there were more than 10,000 people in the base. Our concern was to limit the operation to as small an area as possible so that none of them [the terrorists] escaped, and we could avoid casualty. The first day itself the operational area was sanitised. No single casualty was there after that.

There were reports in some sections of the media that only two columns of the Army were employed. There were not two, but eight columnseach about 70 troops. In addition were the para and special forces. The Army brigade commander was commanding the ground troops.

The controversy has been about deployment of NSG.

There could have been a hostage situation. The NSG is trained to tackle hostage situations. Rather than wait for it to happen [and then send the NSG] it was a wise move to deploy them [early].

What is the status of the much-talked about integration of the services? What is the Army's view on the proposal to have a chief of defence staff [CDS]? How close are we to a decision on the matter?

The appointment of a CDS or a permanent chairman of the chiefs of staff committee, though long overdue, is for the government to decide. Jointness and interoperability will be the key to success in any future war and the appointment of a CDS will provide a single-point professional military advice to the government. It is an operational imperative to synergise and optimise the capabilities of the three services in various operational contingencies, across the spectrum of conflict. The need for a CDS will further grow as we form new joint structures in future. Our views on this have been communicated to the government. At this stage it would not be in order for me to comment any further. However, in the meantime, we have a well-organised system of joint planning, training and operations in place to meet the security challenges.

The biggest revolutionary step in terms of tactical posturing that we have undertaken in the recent years has been to raise a new strike corps on the northern border. Is the strike corps fully in place? How prepared are we regarding the vigil on the northern border with China?

In consonance with our perspective planning with reference to capability development along northern borders, the Cabinet Committee on Security in July 2013 had sanctioned accretions for the Army which include the mountain strike corps. As far as operationalisation of the force is concerned, I can assure you that it is progressing as per schedule.... The sanctioned raisings will be completed in the desired time frame.

Immediate equipping and arming of these forces has been done from the existing stocks held with the Army and indents have been initiated to make up these depleted stocks. The government is committed to recuperate these stocks at the earliest. Resolute steps are being initiated to ensure that there is no depletion of stocks, and necessary financial support is provided for the sustenance, new raisings as well as modernisation plans of the Army.

Uniforms united: (From left) Gen. Dalbir Singh, Navy chief Robin K. Dhowan and Air Force chief Arup Raha | PTI

How about the western theatre? Constant firing on the Line of Control with Pakistan had been an irritant all these years. Now with the political leadership's reach-out to our western neighbour, do you foresee a more stable situation on the Line of Control?

We remain committed to peace on borders and remain dedicated to building confidence through established means like hotlines, flag meetings as well as weekly talks between DGMOs [directors-general military operations]. However, when there are compelling circumstances, troops are forced to carry out appropriate response.

My assessment is that in the light of recent peace initiatives by the two governments, there may be a thaw along the Line of Control. However, it is premature to expect transformational outcomes. We will need to maintain guard and monitor the situation as it develops.

In terms of critical equipment, what are your immediate needs? The artillery modernisation has been pending for several years. The delay in procurement of critical systems has been a major problem all these years.

The artillery is undertaking a major modernisation drive for induction of guns. The focus remains on 'mediumisation' with induction of a family of 155mm guns of different versions to meet our current and long-term needs. These include tracked self-propelled versions, wheeled self-propelled versions, and towed versions. The procurement process of tracked self-propelled version is already in CNC [commercial negotiation committee] stage....

We have identified 26 priority procurement proposals which are being pursued on fast track. Broadly, these projects include modernisation of the infantry, artillery, AAD [anti-aircraft defence] and mechanised forces; night enablement of the Army and replacement of the aviation assets.

The present government is endeavouring to have 'Make in India' in a big way in defence production, too. A few years ago we had set a target of 70 per cent indigenous sourcing of military equipment, but we are nowhere near the target. So how optimistic are you about 'Make in India' being able to meet the your critical high-technology requirements?

Most areas of modernisation are being benefited by the 'Make in India' initiative with a wide range of equipment being proposed to be manufactured in the country. A large number of foreign original equipment manufacturers [OEMs] of defence equipment have offered to form joint ventures with Indian companies to manufacture defence equipment in the country. These items range from specialist guns, night sights and helicopters to even missiles. Formation of these joint ventures will help bring in cutting edge technology through transfer of technology to the country. The same would also help research & design agencies.

Army HQ has also put in place an institutionalised mechanism for regular engagement with the indigenous industry so as to share with them our current and long-term requirements . This will enable them to commit and prioritise appropriate R&D efforts in time. The response from the indigenous industry has been encouraging.

The last five years show a significant emphasis on indigenisation with maximum acquisitions having been accorded in the 'buy-Indian' and the 'buy & make-Indian' category. In fact, 73 per cent of the contracts in the recent past have been signed with Indian companies. In terms of value, 55 per cent of the Army's modernisation budget has been spent on the indigenous industry. In the last two years 'buy Indian', 'buy & make Indian' and  make Indian' schemes have risen from 73 per cent to 87 per cent of the total capital procurement schemes.

There was a time when there were few takers among the educated middle class for a career in the military. Do you think the situation has changed? What are your expectations from the Pay Commission?

I definitely see the situation to have changed. The Army is becoming an attractive career. The recommendations of 7th Pay Commission towards short service commission, once approved by the government, would make it more attractive.

The 7th CPC had submitted the report to the government on November 19. There are a few recommendations like grant of training allowance, simplification in procedure for claiming allowances, grant of extra work allowance, removal of conditionality of authorised married establishment [AME] for claiming HRA, etc, which are undoubtedly beneficial, particularly for the junior commissioned officers and other ranks. The overall pay hike recommended is in the range of 15 per cent to 17 per cent.

However, there are a few recommendations which are not considered satisfactory by the services and have been taken up with the raksha mantri. Foremost is the non-resolution of core anomalies of the 6th CPC, which has further accentuated the disparity created during the 6th CPC. Besides this, faulty pay matrix for defence forces leading to salary stagnation in many ranks, disparity in risk and hardship allowances and non-conducive formula for calculation of pensions are a few other concerns. We are sanguine that their concerns shall be positively addressed by the government.

Troubleshooters: NSG commandos inside the Air Force camp in Pathankot | PTI

What is the Army doing to improve its tooth-to-tail ratio as has been asked by the government?

I must tell you, this aspect, increasing tooth-to-tail ratio, has been our objective for nearly two decades. We have made significant achievements by enhancing our operational capabilities in multiple domains by optimising on existing manpower; dual tasking; and outsourcing initiatives wherever feasible. A quick back-of-envelope calculation would indicate that while there have been induction of many military platforms, weapons, equipment and systems, most of these have been absorbed without corresponding manpower accretions.

One must, however, appreciate that the necessity of 'boots on ground' in our security context limits our options for any further major reduction of manpower.

The IAF has opened its combat wings for women. When will the Army see lady combatants fighting in counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations?

The Army believes in providing equal opportunities to all officers irrespective of their gender. However, enhancing scope of employment of women officers will have to be a phased and regulated process. At present permanent commission is being granted to women officers in AMC [Army Medical Corps] and MNS [Military Nursing Service] and the same has also been extended to AEC [Army Engineering Corps] and JAG [Judge Advocate-General]. As a next step, we are looking to grant permanent commission to women officers in eight other technical services and combat support arms with modified terms and conditions of service. A proposal to this effect is already under consideration of the government.

Induction of women officers in combat arms may be considered a subsequent step based on experiences gained during their absorption in combat support arms, operational requirements, state of infrastructure in forward areas and prevailing operational conditions along disputed borders and volatile insurgency-prone areas.
The rebels opposed to the regime of Bashar al Assad have come under immense pressure due to heavy Russian airstrikes in Syria as well as ground assaults by loyal forces and their allies.

Months of Russian airstrikes in Syria have considerably weakened the rebel forces and strengthened the ever-defiant Bashar al Assad. This has rendered it very difficult for the United Nations to start comprehensive peace dialogues between the warring parties.

Rebels in the west of the country are being hit much harder by the Russian airstrikes in Syria. On the other hand, the Islamic State is also under heavy pressure in the central and eastern parts of the country. The oil smuggling operations of the group are also hit hard by diving international prices which has made it very difficult for the group to pay salaries to its fighters.

Rebels groups are reporting continue Russian airstrikes in Syria. Moreover, ground assaults have also been reported in parts of western Syria. This is the most valuable piece of land from Bashar al Assads perspective.

Moreover, Russian airstrikes in Syria have enabled the regime forces to make the most important gain during the previous few weeks of fighting: it has recaptured the town of Salma situated in the Latakia province.

These recent gains, however, do not mean that there will be a reversal of fortune for Assad. Rebels are fighting back fiercely and there are several territories that have switched hands time and again. High level of attrition is reported on the front lines in Western Syria.

Military officers who are close to the heart of the regime in Damascus are saying that the first priority of the troops loyal to Bashar al Assad is to close the border with Turkey. A high placed military source added that Russian airstrikes in Syria had also brought Turkish supply lines to rebels under immense pressure.

Turkey is a staunch supporter of Syrian rebel groups and is allegedly backing the insurgency in its neighboring country. The intensity of the ongoing fighting had made it extremely difficult for the UN special envoy to Syria, Staffen de Mistura as he seeks to open peace talks between the warring parties.

Though the UN efforts have been vetted by the US and Russia, the situation in the ground suggests that the deadly civil war has still not reached a point where it would be open to peacemaking efforts.

The rebels in most of the areas have gone into a defensive mode due to a massive mobilization of regime troops and its supporters as well as Russian airstrikes in Syria that show no signs of abating.

Rebels groups are playing down the importance of regime gains, however, they are complaining that their foreign backers are not providing enough hardware to confront the combined onslaught of Russian, Iranians and Syrian forces.

These are among the difficulties facing the FSA on the ground especially since the aerial bombing is affecting some headquarters, equipment, cars and personnel and the aid given is little compared to the ferocious attack, an FSA commander recently told Reuters.

A western diplomat recently confided in a news reporter that he was surprised that the Rebel groups were still holding out in Syria despite Russian airstrikes in Syria, and assaults by Hezbollah as well as other foreign backers of the regime.
The following was via OnlySimchas.com:

It was purchased in Lawrence, NY  a heavily Orthodox Jewish area.

And according to the New York State Gaming Commission, a winning ticket for $50,000 was sold in Lawrence.

The ticket was purchased at Tobacco Road on Rockaway Turnpike in Lawrence before the drawing on Jan. 13, thats about a half block from Bogos the Kosher Pizza shop.

That Powerball jackpot was the largest in U.S. history. Players in Nassau and Suffolk counties won millions of dollars with 19 winning tickets ranging from $50,000 to $1 million.

said Gardner Gurney, director of the Division of the Lottery.

While no one hit the jackpot prize, New Yorkers are vastly richer thanks to [the] historic Powerball drawing, Gardner Gurny, director of the NYS Division of the Lottery said in a media release. From Montauk Point to Niagara Falls and from Plattsburgh to Jamestown, two million prizes totaling over $18.8 million dollars were won in New York.

Was the winner Jewish? Where does he daven?

It is all the buzz in the Five Towns.

(Source: OnlySimchas.com)
Anti-Semitic attacks remained at a high level in 2015,  French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said in an interview with daily newspaper La Croix. We note a drop of 5 percent in anti-Semitic attacks which nonetheless remained at high level with 806 recorded, he said.

Since 2005, anti-Semitic violence and threats were exceeded only twice the threshold of 800 acts in 2009 and 2014 (851 cases recorded that year) every time echoing a hardening of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

810 attacks occurred against places of worship and Christian cemeteries.

Cazeneuve said Islamophobic threats or assaults tripled to some 400 for the year 2015, noting that more than half occurred in the first quarter of the year after terrorist attacks against the offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and a kosher supermarket in January which claimed 17 lives.

I cannot accept such acts  they must be severely punished, the minister said. France is home to the largest Muslim population in Europe, estimated at between 4-5 million. The French Muslim community represents approximately 6 percent of the total population of the 58.5 million that live in France.

Cazeneuve has also held that the Christian roots of France are indisputable in terms of its history, but that we should not make a reason for exclusion of those who are not Christians or forget their contribution also to the history of our country.

A new survey indicates that most French people think Jews should continue to wear the kippah in spite of a rise in antis-Semitism.

According to the survey, conducted for French digital channel iTele and the weekly magazine Paris Match, 70 percent of the French population do not think Jews should refrain from wearing kippah, though 71% say anti-Semitism is increasing in France.

The poll comes on the heels of the January 11 attack against a Jewish teacher in Marseille which led to the leader of the citys Jewish community to call on Jews to remove their kippah during this difficult period, until better days.

Rabbi Zvi Amars positionaroused controversy among the Jews of France and spurred French Chief Rabbi Haim Korsia to take the opposite position, asserting that removing yarmulkes would be giving in to the terrorists.

Mentioning terrorist attacks in Israel along with attacks by the Islamic State, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said they showed we are in a world war, in a statement made at an event organised by CRIF, the umbrella representative group of French Jewish institutions. In explaining the reasons for the existence of a terrorist threat in France, he noted upheaval in the Arab world and the reality in certain neighborhoods in France, where young people are being radicalized. There are more and more terrorist attacks all over the world. In France, Burkina Faso, in Jakarta, in Israel, it keeps happening and it shows we need to learn to live with it, Valls said. Asked whether the government was doing enough to protect French Jews from attacks following the murder of four Jews in January 2015 at a kosher supermarket, Valls said: Yes, we are doing 100 percent, employing all measures, and we will continue to do so, but the risk is not negligible. Valls, a Socialist who became Prime Minister in 2014 after a two-year stint as Interior Minister, enjoys considerable popularity among French Jews for his outspokenness against anti-Semitism and his rejection of attempts to boycott or isolate Israel, including through the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.

(Source: EJP)
A Guantanamo Bay prisoner who protested his indefinite confinement with a lengthy hunger strike has taken the unusual step of turning down a chance to finally leave the U.S. base in Cuba, rejecting an offer to be resettled in an unfamiliar new country.

Muhammad Bawazir, a 35-year-old from Yemen, refused to board a plane as two other prisoners were being flown out for resettlement in the Balkans, his lawyer, John Chandler, said Thursday. Since returning to his homeland was not an option, he insisted on being sent to a country where he has family.

Chandler said he spent months trying to persuade Bawazir to accept the resettlement in another country he declined to name. But the prisoner, who was 21 when captured in Afghanistan, apparently decided at the last minute he couldnt do it.

Its a country Id go to in a heartbeat, the Atlanta-based attorney said. I cant help you with the logic of his position. Its just a very emotional reaction from a man who has been locked up for 14 years. 

Several prisoners over the years have resisted returning to their own country, fearing treatment at the hands of their own government. Some of the ethnic Uighurs held for years at the base once spurned a resettlement officer in the Pacific island nation of Palau because it seemed to close to China, the country they said they fled because of intense persecution.

Still, the decision by Bawazir is unusual. Yemeni prisoners at Guantanamo, who cant be sent to their homeland because of the civil war there, have been described by officials and lawyers as eager for any way out of the prison.

The rest of the guys there, if I had offered them the opportunity to go they would have said show me the plane, said Chandler, who has three clients at Guantanamo after two others went to the United Arab Emirates for resettlement.

The two prisoner releases announced Thursday brought to 16 the total to leave in January as President Barack Obama works to whittle down the number of low-level detainees as he seeks to close the detention center on the base and move the remainder of the men to the U.S.

The two who left included Tariq al-Sawah, an Egyptian who was a relatively well-known prisoner. He was sent to Bosnia.

El-Sawah had admitted being an explosives trainer for al-Qaida and at one point faced charges of conspiracy and providing material support for terrorism. The government withdrew the charges and decided not to pursue new ones for reasons that have not been made public. He was kept in a special housing unit away from other prisoners and had reportedly cooperated with authorities. Several former commanders wrote letters on his behalf urging his release.

While in captivity, the prisoners weight ballooned to more than 400 pounds (180 kilograms). At one point, his lawyers feared that he might not survive Guantanamo because of his multiple medical conditions, including his morbid obesity and diabetes.

The other was Abd al-Aziz al-Suwaydi, who went to Montenegro, which his lawyer, David Remes, described as an ideal country for the prisoner.

He has a Western sensibility. He is open and friendly and looks European. When people pass him in the street, they will not even notice him, Remes said.

Their release brings the total Guantanamo population to 91, the lowest its been since shortly after it opened in January 2002 to hold suspected enemy combatants with links to al-Qaida and the Taliban. They include about 35 who are cleared for transfer, most of whom are from Yemen.

Bawazir had been cleared for release in 2008 under President George W. Bush but he was caught up with the rest by the U.S. refusal to send prisoners to Yemen for fear that some might again pose a security risk to the U.S. For several years he protested his confinement with a hunger strike, dropping to 90 pounds (41 kilograms) at one point. He was force-fed to keep him alive.

The prisoner has family in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia but the U.S. was apparently unable to secure the diplomatic agreement to settle him in any of those places. Chandler said that the human rights group Reprieve had offered to help him start a new life in the new country and the State Department said it would help his family visit.

Hes very frightened of going to a place where he has no assured support, he said.

The lawyer said Bawazir may have become institutionalized in Guantanamo, comparing him to the character Brooks in the prison movie The Shawshank Redemption who commits suicide shortly after his release.

Hes always been very emotional, Chandler said. When he was a hunger striker he told me All I want to do is die. He just couldnt stand the place.

(AP)
North Korea announced Friday the arrest of a U.S. university student for what it called a hostile act orchestrated by the American government to undermine the authoritarian nation.

In language that mirrors past North Korean claims of outside conspiracies, Pyongyangs state media said the University of Virginia student entered the country under the guise of a tourist and plotted to destroy North Korean unity with the tacit connivance of the U.S. government and under its manipulation.

The Norths official Korean Central News Agency said in a short report that the student, whom it identified as Warmbier Otto Frederick, was arrested while perpetrating a hostile act, but didnt say when he was detained or explain the nature of the act. North Korea has sometimes listed English-language surnames first, in the Korean style. The University of Virginias online student directory lists someone named Otto Frederick Warmbier as an undergraduate commerce student.

A China-based tour company specializing in travel to North Korea, Young Pioneer Tours, confirmed that one of its customers, identified only as Otto, had been detained in Pyongyang, the Norths capital, but provided no other details. Social media accounts for Warmbier show interests in finance, travel and rap music; he was on the University of Virginias deans list and attended high school in the Cincinnati, Ohio, area.

North Koreas announcement comes amid a diplomatic push by Washington, Seoul and their allies to slap Pyongyang with tough sanctions for its recent nuclear test. In the past, North Korea has occasionally announced the arrests of foreign detainees in times of tension with the outside world in an apparent attempt to wrest concessions or diplomatic maneuvering room.

North Korea also regularly accuses Washington and Seoul of sending spies to overthrow its government to enable the U.S.-backed South Korean government to control the entire Korean Peninsula. Some foreigners previously arrested have read statements of guilt that they later said were coerced.

A few thousand Westerners are thought to visit North Korea each year, and Pyongyang is pushing for more tourists as a way to help its dismal economy. The U.S. State Department has warned against travel to the North, however, and visitors, especially those from America, who break the countrys sometimes murky rules risk detention, arrest and possible jail sentences, although most have eventually been released.

Earlier this month, CNN reported that North Korea had detained another U.S. citizen on suspicion of spying. It said a man identified as Kim Dong Chul was being held by the North and said authorities had accused him of spying and stealing state secrets. North Korea has yet to comment on the report.

The U.S. State Department has said it could not confirm the CNN report. It declined to discuss the issue further or confirm whether the U.S. was consulting with Sweden, which handles U.S. consular issues in North Korea because Washington and Pyongyang do not have diplomatic relations.

North Korea has previously released or deported U.S. detainees after high-profile Americans visited the country. In late 2014, for instance, North Korea released two Americans after a secret mission to the North by James Clapper, the top U.S. intelligence official. Critics say such trips have provided diplomatic credibility to the North.

The Korean Peninsula remains in a technical state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea.

North Korea is holding at least three South Koreans and one Canadian.

Last month, North Koreas Supreme Court sentenced a Canadian pastor to life in prison with hard labor for what it called crimes against the state. The offenses he was charged with included harming the dignity of the Norths leadership and trying to use religion to destroy the North Korean system, according to the Norths state media.

(AP)
[By: A. Melamud]

The world of corporate commerce is no stranger to high profile mergers, the object of which is clear as day  each party looking to salvage, solidify or advance their own fiscal position. In their quest for financial gain or stronghold, executives will constantly meet, confer and network, but always with the same self-centered goal in mind.

In stark contrast, the commercial world of Torah and tzedaka, represented by the multitudes of mosdos and organizations follows an extremely different set of directives. The mishna in Maseches Sanhedrin tells us, Kinus ltzadikim, hanaah lhem vhanaah lolam. The primary focus of such a conference is the furtherance of a particular cause  benefiting Klal Yisroel and ultimately, leading to greater kvod shamayim.

The many personalities that have shaped the landscape of American Jewry, both past and present, all have a common attribute  total selflessness and dedication to others. Across the spectrum of Yiddishkeit, this rule steadfastly holds true.

Few individuals can claim a larger role in the building of mosdos hachinuch, as Rabbi Shlomo Chaim Kanarek. Rabbi Kanarek has repeatedly risen to the challenge borne of Lakewoods explosive growth. As did Chizkiyahu Hamelech in his time, Rabbi Shlomo Chaim Kanarek has declared his lifes mission, Alai lhukim. Never one to watch idly as others act, Rabbi Kanarek has acted timely and decisively to provide the children of Lakewood with chinuch excellence  six times over: three chadorim for boys, two elementary schools and a high school for girls. (One might very well dub Rabbi Kanarek the modern day Rav Shraga Feivel Mendelovitz). His mission is as clear as his passion: achrayus- responsibility. Responsibility that does not allow for complacency or even adequacy. Enough is not enough as long as there still remains a need.

For so many of us who have traditionally expected leadership in Yiddishkeit to belong principally to the Eastern seaboard, the thrust of the city of Los Angeles into the limelight came as quite a surprise. In a few short years, LA-born and bred Shlomo Yehuda Rechnitz has become a household name for Yidden across the globe. Perhaps the greatest supporter of Torah and chesed internationally, Shlomo Yehuda has redefined the meaning of giving and, more importantly, has exemplified caring. Yeshivos, mosdos, organizations and individuals have come to rely on Shlomo Yehuda as more than just a supporter. Far more than merely sufficing with a generous check, Shlomo Yehuda is the quintessential friend, with his listening ear and enormous heart.

In addition to Shlomo Yehudas global activism on a myriad of causes, of particular interest to him is the chinuch of Lakewoods children  all of Lakewoods children, every last one. In fact, Shlomo Yehuda has been actively involved in many aspects of chinuch  especially school placement for individual boys and girls. While someone else might rightfully say, Enough, Shlomo Yehuda says, Lets go. Using every one of his many resources, Shlomo Yehuda figures out the nature of the need and, with his decisive leadership skills, spearheads the drive to resolution, time and again.

Shlomo Yehudas mission is as clear as his passion: achrayus- responsibility. Responsibility that does not allow for complacency or even adequacy. Enough is not enough as long as there still remains a need.

When East meets West, good things are in store. The keen friendship between Rabbi Shlomo Chaim Kanarek and Shlomo Yehuda Rechnitz is built upon their mutual goals and feelings of responsibility. Kinus ltzadikim, hanaah lhem vhanaah lolam.

This Sunday, January 24th, the parents, friends and supporters of the mosdos of Rabbi Shlomo Chaim Kanarek will reflect upon, appreciate and celebrate the unadulterated siyata dishmaya that resulted in three decades of chinuch excellence and superb leadership of superb mosdos. Noted mechanech, author and lecturer, Rabbi Yechiel Spero, will be the featured speaker. Shlomo Yehuda Rechnitz will be addressing some of the timely issues our community faces. Gedolei Roshei Yeshiva, from across the nation, many of whom have or previously had children and grandchildren in Rabbi Kanareks mosdos, will be in attendance. Rabbonim and the Lakewood community at large will join in what is sure to be an inspirational event. Come listen and be inspired by the giants of spirit and achrayus and hear what is in store as they continue to blaze the trail of responsibility for the future of Klal Yisroel and ultimately are marbeh kvod shamayim.

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
Many of us think we're the greatest driver on the planet, but where do you think the best motorists are in the UK as a whole?

Stand up Geordies, Mackems and Smoggies as, according to Direct Line, it's the North East. But how did it come to its conclusion?

The insurer said it checked the telematics data it collected from 10,000 DrivePlus 'black box' policyholders it has, judging regional performance on a number of safe-driving metrics.

Angels of the north: Drivers in the North East have been rated as the safest behind the wheel

DrivePlus is the insurance providers black box telematics policy, where the individual has his or her behaviour behind the wheel monitored and measured as a way of reducing premium costs, especially targeting young motorists who pay the most for their cover.

Direct Line used the information it collected from the drivers and analysed regional performance based on speed, smoothness of acceleration and harshness of braking.

This revealed that the North East had the safest car drivers in the UK, with Scottish drivers scoring second highest, and the East of England finishing third.

Less impressive was the driving standard at the opposite end of the country, with southern regions propping up the table based on the three performance measures.

Paul Felton, head of telematics at Direct Line, said: 'Its great to see that drivers in the North East are looking after their cars, other road users and themselves.

'Telematics packages such as DrivePlus can help improve a motorists driving by providing regular feedback on driving habits whilst also raising driver awareness while theyre at the wheel.

'This also ensures that the driver is given a premium based on their own driving record when its time to renew their policy. This will be music to the ears of many young drivers across Britain, particularly those in the North East.'

How they rated: As you can see from Direct Line's results, the North East has far and away the best motorists based on the rating criteria

Black box boost for fans of the black and white army: Motorists in Newcastle will be happy with the results of Direct Line's survey

By signing up for a black box policy, motorists are able to have their driving rated on an ongoing basis.

Consistently high or improving scores can lead to reductions in car insurance premiums, Direct Line promises, as 'better driving results in a lower risk of being in an accident', it said.

Though not everyone has been converted to black box insurance, as Admiral found when it polled 2,000 motorists on the new policy type.

It found that 30 per cent believed their data would be shared, while one in three were worried they'd be tracked in real time, allowing others to monitor where they are driving at that specific moment in time.

'The benefit of black box or telematics policies is that they help insurers price their premium based on how you drive as an individual, not how your peer group drives,' Jo Garcia, head of telematics at Admiral, said.
Supermarket giant Asda has cut the cost of diesel at its petrol stations to just 97.7p.

The retailer has fired a fresh blast in the supermarkets' battle to drag more shoppers into stores by tempting them to come to their sites and fill up.

George Osborne yesterday described the collapse in the oil price as a good thing for Britain as the boss of BP conceded crude could fall to $10 a barrel  albeit temporarily.

Time to fill up? Asda has cut diesel to 97.7p in the latest round of the supermarket fuel price war

On his arrival at the World Economic Forum in Davos, the Chancellor put the recent turmoil on financial markets down to developments in China and the drop in the oil price.

He added: Because of the very sharp falls in the oil price the markets are unstable. But fundamentally for most western economies the fall in the price of energy is a good thing.

Crude hovered close to a 12-year low of under $28 a barrel last night, from above $115 some 18 months ago.

The slump has wreaked havoc in the North Sea oil and gas industry, where thousands have lost their jobs, but it has slashed the price of petrol on British forecourts.

US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew argued the oil price fall, caused in part by the American shale revolution, was good for consumers.

For anyone consuming oil, lower oil is a tax cut, he said.

But the AA said British motorists are not benefiting as much as they should be because petrol prices have not fallen fast enough.

Our members have watched in dismay and complained bitterly as the price of oil has crashed but pump prices have moved very little since Christmas, said Edmund King, the AAs president.

The RAC said it expects more retailers to cut diesel prices to match Asda, which should lead to an average price of less than 1 a litre for the first time since March 2009.

Before midday on Friday, Tesco also announced that it has dropped the price of diesel to 97.7ppl at its filling stations.

Simon Williams, an RAC fuel spokesman, said: 'We would have liked to have seen a cut sooner, and one that goes further, to more closely reflect the price retailers have been buying diesel for. But this is nevertheless good news for motorists.

'Diesel has been sold on the wholesale market for less than unleaded petrol since early last month, yet drivers have had to wait more than six weeks for this to be only partially reflected at the pumps.'

Mr Williams claimed that analysis of wholesale prices shows a further cut of between 1p and 2p could be made within the next fortnight.

Disproportionate: Crude hovered close to a 12-year low of under $28 a barrel last night, from above $115 some 18 months ago but the AA said motorists are not benefiting as much as they should

Asda said the 2p per litre reduction has taken diesel to its lowest price in over six years. Unleaded remains at 99.7p per litre

The supermarket said these are the maximum prices motorists will pay at all of its 279 filling stations across the UK.

Petrol price campaigners claim drivers should be seeing even larger savings on diesel and that retailers are profiting more on the fuel than petrol.

FairFuelUK claims the diesel profit margin is 11p per litre, whereas it is 5.8p per litre for petrol.

BP chief executive Bob Dudley said it was not impossible oil would fall to $10 a barrel as some analysts have predicted.

Hopes: Chancellor George Osborne said the fall in the oil price was a 'good thing'

But he said that he expected the price to rise in the second half of the year as demand increases in the United States and China and supply eases as producers who have been hit by the recent collapse in prices shut down production.

It has been low in the last year but it is not lower forever, Dudley said. I think its going to be a year of two halves.

'We could see a price [of] $30 to $40 by the middle of the year and I think towards the end it could be into the $50s.

Dudleys upbeat assessment came despite the International Energy Agency this week warning that the oil market could drown in oversupply.

But he said oil would be unlikely to increase to $100 a barrel or more any time soon.

Dudley also insisted that extraction in the North Sea remained a viable business but added that its a particularly challenging area.

Khalid al-Falih, the chairman of Saudi Arabian oil company Saudi Aramco, said oil prices have fallen too far and will recover this year.

The outlook for oil has been a hot topic in the Swiss ski resort of Davos this week  along with the prospects for the global economy.

Painting a bleak picture, Lew said: I look around the world and there are a lot of headwinds.

Weve seen very slugging growth in demand for some years now, and thats led to a not-strong-enough global economy.

But he added that investors may be overreacting.
Jobs threat: Brantano has gone into administration

Budgetshoe retailer Brantano, which has 140 stores and 60 concessions in the UK, has gone into administration.

The store, which employs 2,000 staff, including 200 at its head office in Coalville, Leicestershire, had been acquired by retail investment fund Alteri Investors in October 2015.

However, it had struggled on the high street as shoppers changed their habits and moved online.

Administrators PwC said all staff would be paid while the stores traded as normal.

It added that the firm was assessing whether the whole or parts of the Brantano business could be sold.
Shares in Home Retail were flying yesterday amid market rumours that Sainsburys was closing in on its planned takeover of the Argos owner.

The stock gained 7.5p to 144.7p as talk circulated that advisers from the two companies were set to spend the weekend locked in talks to thrash out a deal.

Representatives of the two sides were said to be hoping to sign off an agreement in the early part of next week, ahead of the Takeover Panels put up or shut up deadline of February 2.

Talks are thought to have taken on added urgency amid market chatter that rival supermarket chain Asda, owned by US giant Walmart, was also eyeing Home Retail.

Takeover talks: Home Retail stock gained 7.5p to 144.7p as talk circulated that advisers from it and Sainsbury's were set to spend the weekend locked in talks to thrash out a deal

The speculation follows Home Retails rejection of Sainsburys initial approach in November. It also comes in the wake of Home Retails announcement on Monday that it had agreed to sell DIY chain Homebase, which Sainsburys formerly owned, to Australian conglomerate Wesfarmers for 340million.

Under the terms of the deal, Homebase would become part of Wesfarmers subsidiary Bunnings while Home Retail would return about 200m of the proceeds to shareholders.

Sainsburys, which already has Argos offshoots in some of its shops, is interested in buying the catalogue retailer to boost its presence in the online arena and fend off competition from pure internet players such as Amazon.

Sainsburys (up 2.5p to 233.6p) and Home Retail declined to comment.

Meanwhile, the FTSE 100 Index notched up its first weekly gain of 2016 as a bounce-back in oil prices lifted shares in energy groups.

The price of a barrel of Brent Crude increased 7.2 per cent to $31.5 while US light crude put on 6.8 per cent to $31.7.

The Footsie rose 126.22 points to 5900.01, also aided by hints from European Central Bank president Mario Draghi about another potential round of stimulus for the eurozone economy.

Back in the markets, National Grid sparked 16.5p to 941.9p after whispers on Thursday that the UKs largest listed utility was planning a swoop for US investor-owned utility Empire District Electric Company (EDEC).

Word was that National Grid was among three groups interested in buying EDEC, which supplies electricity, natural gas and water to 215,000 customers on the other side of the Pond.

Shire was among the biggest winners in the UK drug industry, up 102p at 4228p, as rumours persisted that the rare disease specialist was still eyeing acquisitions despite its mega-takeover of US blood disorder treatment developer Baxalta.

Chief executive Flemming Ornskov has said the company is focused on absorbing Baxalta into the group, although he did not rule out attractive smaller bolt-on deals.

Market conspiracy theorists reckon now is a good time for potential bidders to make their move because share prices of firms such as US osteoporosis specialist Radius Health  one of the firms talked about as a potential target  have fallen in the last month or so.

Elsewhere Tullow Oil topped the FTSE 250 Index with an 18.6p, or nearly 14.4 per cent, gain to 147.8p as the oil group with operations in Africa and elsewhere showed its confidence in the industrys long-term prospects by sending a huge floating oil production platform to Ghana.

Bigger oil companies were also doing well on the back of the recovery in the oil price, with Royal Dutch Shell advancing 69.5p to 1388p, BP gushing 10.45p to 352.7p and BG Group rising 47.5p to 980.2p.

Education publisher Pearson, however, reversed 14.5p to 757.5p as the former owner of the Financial Times dropped back after strong gains on Thursday on a reassuring trading statement. Investors took a breather from plumping up online retailer Ocado following rumours earlier in the week that US online giant Amazon was mulling a bid. Shares eased 6.1p to 275.8p.

Mexico and Africa-focused MX Oil retraced 0.02p, or 4 per cent, to 0.6p after saying on Thursday that it needed 2million to invest in a project in Nigeria and was completing a conditional placing at a targeted price range of between 0.5p and 1p per new ordinary share.

Aureus Mining also dimmed 1.5p, or 28 per cent, to 3.88p as the West African gold producer said operational issues at its mine in Liberia had resulted in reduced gold sales.

But another miner of the yellow metal, Condor Gold, gleamed 4.25p to 24.25p after a study showed a significant increase in the potential viability of its La India gold project in Nicaragua.

Emerging market-focused mobile internet services supplier Mobile Streams ticked up more than a quarter, or 1.38p, to 6.62p after winning contracts in India despite challenges in Argentina.

Falling commodity prices sparked fears of a possible fund-raising at BHP Billiton yesterday despite a boost to sentiment.
Accounting giant KPMG is to face a disciplinary probe over its handling of Halifax Bank of Scotland accounts.

In a victory for the Mail, industry watchdog the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is to begin a preliminary investigation into how KPMG gave HBOS a clean bill of health before the financial crisis.

HBOS was rescued in a Government-engineered takeover by Lloyds Bank at the peak of the financial crisis in 2008.

Enquiry: The Financial Reporting Council is launching a preliminary enquiry into whether KPMG committed misconduct when signing off HBOSs books for 2007

It is the role of the FRC to maintain stan-dards and ensure the quality of auditing in the UK. City & Finance has campaigned for KPMG to face scrutiny for its role in the scandal.

KPMG has already been probed for the collapse of HBOS by the FRC, but it had never faced a disciplinary procedure before.

Last year long-awaited Bank of England and Financial Conduct Authority reports were published. In them, barrister Andrew Green lambasted the decision by regulators to punish just one former executive  Peter Cummings.

The FRC was criticised by Andrew Tyrie, chairman of the Treasury Select Committee. He said it had made a serious mistake in refusing to open a formal investigation into KPMG.

Investigation: Andrew Tyrie has repeatedly called on the FRC to re-examine KPMGs auditing of HBOS

A great deal depends on the quality of audited accounts, he had said. They were found wanting during the financial crisis. It is essential that everybody fully understands why. That is why this investigation is so important.

The FRC has said it had been waiting for the publication of two explosive reports before deciding on what steps to take. It is reviewing the regulators final reports to see if there is new information.

Yesterday, it said it had asked its executive counsel to undertake preliminary enquiries under its disciplinary scheme into how KPMG and its staff audited the books of HBOS before its near- collapse.

The FRC said: Its not a U-turn. We have said consistently since 2013 that we would need to see the full report on HBOS failure to see if there was fresh information that would enable us to undertake disciplinary action.

We are doing what we said we would do all along. The HBOS report in November indicated concerns about HBOS going concern assumptions, which need to be looked into. We are doing that.

The FRC would not give a timetable for its second probe.The timescale will be affected by the degree of co-operation we receive, it said.

If it manages to build a case for misconduct it would be heard by an independent tribunal which could levy unlimited fines. In 2008 KPMG sounded some alarms, but the question will be whether they were followed through with sufficient vigour.

KPMG made it explicit that bad debt figures proposed by HBOS management were not acceptable, and insisted on a further 1.9bn being added. It also found 85 weaknesses in the lenders controls.

But by November 2008, the situation was so dire the auditors realised the processes for assessing bad debts could no longer be relied on  a way of saying the accounts were possibly not worth the paper they were printed on.
Hitting out: Former minister Steve Webb turned on George Osborne for his stealth tax raid on next eggs, which could snare up to 1.5million workers

The former minister who masterminded the pensions revolution last night turned on George Osborne for his stealth tax raid on nest eggs.

Steve Webb, the longest-serving pensions minister until he lost his seat, hit out at the Governments savings cap which could snare up to 1.5 million workers.

Mr Webb, the driving force behind freedoms which let savers cash in pensions, urged the Chancellor to stop raiding the pensions piggy bank.

The former MP, now a policy expert for a leading insurer, called on Mr Osborne to scrap absurd and complex Treasury plans to slash the amount workers can save in a pension in a lifetime as well as moves to curb the tax relief savers can receive on their retirement pots.

Mr Webb  who famously said savers could use freed cash to buy a Lamborghini  said Aprils tax grab would punish the most prudent.

He was pensions minister from 2010-2015 and is now Director of Policy at Royal London

Mr Webb told the Daily Mail: When the Chancellor and I worked on the pension freedoms, we were trying to promote and reward individual responsibility and choice. The constant reductions on limits to pensions tax relief go in the opposite direction  they actually punish people for saving too much.

Every time the Chancellor needs a bit of cash it seems like he dips in the pensions piggy bank. But every time he does this he adds many thousands to the people who have to worry they are saving too much.

The Chancellor must use his Budget to scrap these absurd and complex limits on pension saving which penalise rather than reward those who have worked and saved hard. Money Mail is fighting to keep tax breaks for middle-class pension savers.

From April the most that can be held in a pension falls from 1.25 million to 1million. Anyone breaching that faces a penalty charge of 55 per cent. As a minister Mr Webb oversaw cuts to the maximum; in 2012 it fell from 1.8 million to 1.5 million, then to 1.25 million in 2014.

The Treasury originally insisted only the wealthiest would be hit but experts warn even savers earning 45,000 could be caught if they save heavily over decades.

The Chancellor is also considering moves to slash the 34.3billion of pension tax relief, which could see it scrapped or limited to a basic level, hitting workers earning more than 42,385. Another option is ending the 25 per cent lump sum that can be taken tax-free from pots.

Last night Tories criticised the plan. Jacob Rees-Mogg, MP for North East Somerset, said: If things are constantly changing that is an enormous disincentive to long-term saving.

Plans: Chancellor George Osborne is also considering moves to slash the 34.3billion of pension tax relief, which could see it scrapped or limited to a basic level, hitting workers earning more than 42,385. Another option is ending the 25 per cent lump sum that can be taken tax-free from pots

Mark Garnier, of the Treasury select committee, said tax relief curbs, which could help basic rate tax payers but hit higher earners, would anger middle-class voters similar to when child benefit was cut for people earning more than 50,000. It feels like a war of attrition on higher earners, he said.

Workers also called on the Chancellor to reconsider.

IT project manager Trevor Osborne earns around 55,000 a year and has about 500,000 saved.

The 44-year-old married father of two, of Stratton Audley in Oxfordshire, said: All the changes make me not want to save into a pension any more. The cuts to the lifetime allowance, combined with the potential changes to tax relief for higher earners, seem to be a double whammy.

The Treasury said: The reduction of the lifetime allowance only affects 4 per cent of the very wealthiest pension savers approaching retirement, and was brought in to ensure that those with the broadest shoulders contribute the most towards reducing the deficit.
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By Bill Parry

Several hundred low-wage airport workers rallied with elected officials, religious and community leaders at LaGuardia Airport Monday demanding a $15 minimum wage and union rights. Coordinated actions took place at 10 other airports across the country in other cities, including Boston, Chicago and Philadelphia, with all marking Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Speakers including City Councilmen Jimmy Van Bramer (D-Sunnyside) and Donovan Richards (D-Laurelton), both sons of 32BJ SEUI members, who offered their support.

State Sen. Toby Ann Stavisky (D-Flushing) said, Theres a homeless shelter in my district where 48 percent of the adults have full-time jobs but they cant afford rent or put food on their table. We must raise the minimum wage.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo agreed, penning an op-ed piece published Monday calling for higher pay for the nearly 8,000 airport workers at LaGuardia and Kennedy Airport.

In 2015, New York led the fight for fair pay, Cuomo wrote. We raised the hourly wage for thousands of fast-food workers to $15 per hour and increased base pay for state workers to $15 an hour by 2021. Yet for all the progress weve made, we have not achieved important wage increases for airport worker, preventing thousands of hardworking people from taking home a fair and honest days pay.

Before leading a march across the 94th Street Bridge, where he was arrested with 24 others by Port Authority Police in front of Terminal B, 32BJ SEUI President Hector Figueroa thanked Cuomo for his support.

He called on the Port Authority to get us to $10.10 per hour and now he has to keep going, Figueroa said. Now we call on the Port Authority to just do it. We believe they have the legal right to do this by executive action. Other airports have done it in Philadelphia, Miami and San Francisco and now it is time to do it here in New York City.

The Port Authority of New Jersey and New York had no comment.
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By Madina Toure

Selfhelp Community Services, a nonprofit that works to secure independent living for seniors, has established a Chinese Advisory Council to assist older Chinese immigrants living in Queens.

The formation of the council, which has 10 founding members from the Chinese-American community, was announced at a Jan. 13 news conference at Selfhelps newest building at 137-39 45th Ave. in downtown Flushing. The council will advise and identify resources to address the crucial needs of Chinese elders.

The members are primarily from other places such as Manhattan and Long Island, but some work or live in Flushing and represent a variety of fields, including physicians, business leaders, communications professionals and young generation Chinese Americans.

We will work to facilitate access to services, including housing, entitlements, home care, classes and more for our Chinese elders who have done so much for so many over their lifetimes, Tai Wang, the councils chairwoman, said.

Selfhelp also announced a Chinese platform for its Virtual Senior Center and the formation of YoungGen, an intergenerational program that helps the younger Chinese generation learn about their elders and culture and give back to the community.

Founded in 1936 to help emigres fleeing from Nazi persecution, Selfhelp has affordable residential complexes, Nazi Victim Services programs, senior centers, Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities, case management programs and a legal guardianship program in Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island.

More than 25,000 European Jewish refugees were saved during the Holocaust because China allowed them to settle in Shanghai, according to Selfhelp.

Among the nonprofits clients are Holocaust survivors who lived in the Shanghai Ghetto as well as Chinese immigrants who lived in Shanghai during World War II.

About 25 percent of the 20,000 clients Selfhelp serves are Asian, primarily Chinese, and the majority of those are low-income seniors who emigrated from China.

Out of the more than 5,000 Asian clients Selfhelp serves, 704 live in Selfhelps affordable apartment buildings and more than 4,200 Asian clients attend one of Selfhelps state-of-the-art senior centers.

New York City has 350,200 Chinese residents, according to a 2013 Department of City Planning report.

The Chinese population could become the citys largest immigrant group in the next few years. It is currently in second place behind Dominican immigrants, the report said.

CEO Stuart Kaplan said Selfhelp has been in Flushing since the 1960s, noting that it serves the Asian populations in Flushing, Bayside and Queens in general.

The purpose of the council is to raise awareness of the growing number and needs of Chinese immigrants and to inform the community of the available services that Selfhelp has, Kaplan said. Borough President Melinda Katz, City Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing), U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-Flushing), state Sen. Toby Stavisky (D-Flushing), City Councilwoman Margaret Chin (D-Manhattan) and five other Queens elected officials also praised the newly formed council.
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GOP presidential candidate Ted Cruzs intended zinger at rival Donald Trump as the embodiment of New York values puzzled many residents of the borough, where The Donald was born and bred before moving across the river to Gotham.

The Texas senator defined New York values as being socially liberal, pro-abortion, pro-gay marriage and (focused) on money and the media.

Queens has evolved into a more culturally diverse place since the All in the Family sitcom introduced Archie Bunker, the lovable conservative bigot to TV audiences in 1979 from a fictional address in Astoria. Archie might have agreed with Cruz at first, but the moral of the series was for the blue collar worker to face the truth behind his prejudices.

Today 48 percent of Queens residents are foreign-born. These new New Yorkers speak 135 languages and come from 120 countries, making it next to impossible to definite socially liberal in the borough.

But not to Cruzs surprise, registered Democrats outnumber Republicans 5-1 in Queens, which has only one GOP lawmaker on the books. Still its a bigger Republican margin than in any other borough except Staten Island.

As for abortion, all the boroughs elected officials support free choice whatever their personal views.

Back in 1999 the St. Pats Parade for All kicked off in Sunnyside as an inclusive alternative to the March 17 extravaganza down Fifth Avenue in Manhattan which has banned gay groups from marching under its banners. Former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, with both a Dem and GOP pedigree, marched in the parade, as has Bill de Blasio, in what has become a huge family event attracting thousands of onlookers.

On the money and media front, we concede that territory to Trumps Manhattan. Were a middle-class borough filled with resilient newcomers whose mantra is hard work to achieve the American dream.

But even the head of Goldman Sachs, the investment banking empire where Cruzs wife worked and wangled a loan for $500,000 for his Senate campaign, has a connection to Queens from its Lower Manhattan lair. Under Goldman CEO Lloyd Blankfein, who grew up poor in East New York, the bank gave LaGuardia Community College in Long Island City $2 millionthe biggest gift in its historyas part of a long-term relationship.

He told graduates at the June 2013 commencement that he understood their sacrifices.

You built up muscles that others whove had an easier time dont have. Those muscles will serve you for the rest of your life.

These are Queens values.
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By Tom Momberg

Official proponents of a ban on the horse carriage industry in the city, the industrys advocates and workers union have reached a compromise to introduce new limits on one of Manhattans most widely recognized historic activities.

Many of the carriage drivers and other industry workers live in the Queens neighborhoods of Jackson Heights and Bayside .

Mayor Bill de Blasio, City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito (D-Manhattan) and the Teamsters Union representing the carriage drivers and horse caretakers jointly announced a new deal Sunday agreeing to allow the industry to continue to operate in Central Park only and to build permanent stables there.

Some preliminary details of the agreement have been released, but many facets of what will ultimately be included in a new City Council bill are still being worked out.

City Councilmen Daniel Dromm (D-Jackson Heights) and Ydanis Rodriguez (D-Manhattan), who have been avid supporters of a ban on the industry, said they were happy with the compromise, although more details are still supposed to be worked out.

We are pleased that at the end of an exhaustive process, all sides in this negotiation were able to come to an amicable agreement that both removes horses from the dangers of city traffic and saves the jobs of many in the horse carriage industry, Dromm and Rodriguez said in a joint statement. Working out the logistics of this agreement will be key in reaching an outcome that is suitable to all parties involved.

A ban is supposed to be put in place preventing carriage rides on city streets with the exception of the drivers going to and from Central Park and the current stables on Manhattans Upper West Side beginning June 1, the mayors office announced.

By the time a park stable is refurbished in October 2018, at which point officials said there would be space allotted for 68 carriages and 75 horses, the number of licensed horses would be limited to 95 or fewerabout half of the current 180 licenses.

Drivers of pedicabs, electronically assisted rickshaws, said they are concerned they would be banned from operating in Central Park south of 85th Street under the deal, handing horse carriages a monopoly on some of the parks major attractions.

Nonprofit advocacy group New Yorkers for Parks has threatened to file a lawsuit against the city if the plan goes through  whether the use of the Central Park stables is based on a rental agreement or a concession  the group contests that park space should not be used for a private business, especially if it is running a monopoly on tourism.

The mayor pledged in his 2013 campaign for office to work with City Council to ban the industry, picking up financial support from a handful of animal rights groups.

Everything will be contained in Central Park, de Blasio said during a Monday news conference. And it will obviously lead to many fewer horses being used in this industry. So, its a lot of progress. Its real progress. Look, its not everything I wanted, I think Ive been quite clear about that, but thats why we have a democratic process.

One of de Blasios strongest supporters was New Yorkers for Clean, Livable and Safe Streets, which was trying to sway council members to support the previous ban.

NYCLASS Spokesman Michael McKeon said it was too early to tell whether the deal would be strong enough to provide the animal protections it was seeking.

When we see the bill in print and understand all the details, we will have more to say, McKeon said in a statement.

Another animal rights group, The Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages, claims the deal, which calls for renovating an existing stable on the 85th Street Transverse through Central Park to house all licensed horses, is in the financial interest of all parties involved in the deal, as vested drivers would get a payout from selling their former stables, and not in the interest of the horses.

De Blasio does not give a hoot about the Animal Rights activists who put him in office. Remember this man never had a good record on animal issues when he was in the Council. But he does care about donor dollars and the animal rights group that put up a lot of money for his election, the Coalition said in a statement.

Proponents of the former plan to ban the industry claimed the horses were not well cared for, and do not belong in the congested central borough, breathing in car fumes. Industry advocates have long said the regulations over the industry insure the safety and health of all the horses, that a ban would eliminate jobs and that horse carriages are a historic staple and a part of the city experience for many visitors.
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By Sadef Ali Kully

Officers from the 103rd Precinct who were led on a literal wild goat and cow chase in Jamaica over the past week said the goat nicknamed Merrick and the cow nicknamed Freddie have found sanctuary.

Around 5 p.m. Tuesday members of the 103rd Precincts Anti-Crime Unit  Sgt. Mary Humburg and Officers Danny Gasperetti and Anthony Fernandez  were flagged down near 178th Street and 110th Avenue.

Police said the person said there was a goat running around and it was almost hit by a car.

All three NYPD members began the pursuit of a baby goat, police said.

The goat, which they named Merrick, was captured without injury and returned to its rightful owner.

The 103rd Precinct tweeted pictures of the baby goat on Twitter with its new NYPD friends.

Sometimes you get guns, sometimes you get goats, the precinct tweeted. Its not just a job, its an adventure.

Humberg eventually bought the goat for $40 and the youngster is on its way to a sanctuary in Suffolk County, according to police officials.

Just when the 103rd Precinct thought it had enough fun with farm animals, a cow found its way to the streets of downtown Jamaica Thursday afternoon after an escape from a slaughterhouse the day before it was to become somebodys dinner.

It ran through traffic lights on Merrick Boulevard and turned the corner onto Jamaica Avenue, trying to reach the major transit hub on Parsons Boulevard to escape its deadly destiny, police said.

A Archer Halal Poultry employee said Friday morning the cow escaped while they were trying to put it into its pen.

Police officers managed to corner the cow in a parking lot and put it in a animal trailer, police said.

The cow, which was named Freddie despite her gender, was initially sent back to the slaughterhouse, but Friday morning Skyland Animal Sanctuary in New Jersey posted a photo of Freddie the cow on its way to a vet in that state across the river.
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By Sadef Ali Kully

A mother was fighting for her life at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center Friday after gunman shot at her and her daughter Thursday night outside of Hampton Inn in South Ozone Park, according to police sources.

Around 8 p.m., police responded to a call of a woman who had been shot by an unidentified gunman outside the front entrance of the Hampton Inn hotel, off the North Conduit nearby John F. Kennedy International Airport, the police sources said.

The suspect fled the scene in a white sedan, according to the sources.

Emergency responders cleared a path to rush the mother to Jamaica Hospital who is currently critical condition, police said. A NYPD spokesman said the daughter was released from medical care.

The identities of the victims were not disclosed.

Police sources said there was a helicopter search for the suspect that turned up nothing but the investigation was continuing.

At the scene of the incident Friday morning, a Honda was parked outside of the entrance in front of blood stains, crime scene tape and latex gloves from the previous nights shooting.

On Friday Hampton Inn employees who were starting their morning shifts walked into a scene filled with TV cameras and reporters, but the workers were told not to speak with the media.
File- Sikes Senter visitors browse stores Tuesday afternoon. Several of the mall's 80 tenants are posting unusually strong numbers, mall officials said.

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By Staff Reports

Brookfield Asset Management Inc. has offered an unsolicited bid to purchase New York-based Rouse Properties Inc., the company that owns and manages Sikes Senter.

Rouse Properties announced earlier this week that it had received a written, non-biding proposal from Brookfield, which offered to pay $17 per share in cash, well above the $13.12 per share figure the company traded at the close of last week. According to Thursday's market, shares of Rouse were trading at about $17.50.

A news release from CoStar Group said the total market value of Rouse was about $783 million. The offer from Brookfield would increase Rouse's overall value to about $1 billion.

Rouse's managing board met earlier this week to establish a special committee to review the Brookfield offer. A time table for a decision has not been set.

"The special committee is committed to maximizing value for the Company's shareholders," a Rouse release said.

A spokesperson for Rouse said the offer will not affect Sikes Senter, and the company is still committed to providing the best possible shopping experience for customers.

Rouse Properties was created in 2012 when General Growth Properties turned 30 of its retail properties into a publicly traded company. The Rouse Co. was bought by GGP in 2004 for $11.3 billion. Rouse Properties consists of 35 malls and retail centers in 21 states.

According to Brookfield's website, the Toronto, Canada-based global property management firm has about $225 billion in management assets. The company has assets in renewable energy, infrastructure, private equity and property including office space, retail and multifamily, industrial and hospitality.
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This is a recommendation of a book that is different from what I usually consider a good read. It isn't cloak-and-dagger stuff, a mountain climbing adventure or a true story of the sea.

"Reclaiming Conversation" doesn't have the chill impact of Robert Crais' slick new tale, "The Promise," spy-guy Daniel Silva's "The English Spy," Joe Simpson's "Into the Void" or even a reread of Jon Krakauer's excellent "Into the Wild."

Thrills and chills aside, "Reclaiming Conversation" by Sherry Turkle should be required reading for anyone who yearns for eye contact and genuine conversation in the digital age.

No, I take it back. It should be mandatory reading in every junior high, high school and college in America. It should be read by moms and dads; corporate big and little shots, educators, evangelists, politicians and anyone else who thinks having the ability to utter a few incomplete sentences across the table while texting is the absolute living end.

Turkle's book is smooth as silk, important and abundantly perceptive, yet it is a sad reflection of what we've lost and how innocently it came to happen.

The book isn't an indictment of the cellphone and its many advantages in today's world. It is, however, an essential commentary of how this particular little instrument has become a 24/7 lifeline to our existence. With it, we use fingers and thumbs to communicate. Without it, we panic. It is a pacifier for the ages.

The cellular phone is with us in the bedroom and bathroom; at the kitchen table, car and the grocery store. It sits at our elbow on a linen tablecloth, right next to the heavy silverware at a son or daughter's graduation or engagement party. And it would be with us on an inner spiritual journey to Tibet.

On any given morning at McDonald's, three out of four breakfast chums have heads down, talking or texting on their phones. There are studies that show many text addicts can't be away from their phone for five minutes without hyperventilating.

Turkle writes that face-to-face conversation is the most human  and humanizing  thing we do. It is where we develop the capacity for empathy  the ability to put yourself in someone else's shoes and genuinely feel what they are feeling. It is where we experience the joy of listening and of being heard and understood. We can't accomplish this in a text.

Social media and all its technological charm, Turkle says, is implicated in an assault on empathy. A study at the University of Michigan shows 40 percent fewer people care about others than they did in the 1980s. This estimate is weighed heavily toward college students who don't give a flip about the person sitting across from them.

"Real people want vocal, face-to-face responses to what they are feeling," she explains. "Reclaiming conversation is a step toward rescuing our most fundamental human values, but we are being silenced by our technologies. In other words, we are being cured of talking."

We are so accustomed to being cellphone "connected" that time spent alone seems like a problem technology should solve. Tech enchants; it makes us forget what we know about life.

There was a time when unbroken conversation was a normal event at the dinner table. But today, Turkle says, we are a culture smitten by our technology. Like young lovers, we are afraid too much talking will spoil the romance.
Richard Carter/Special to the Times Record News Valerie Fitzers acrylic painting Las Plantas is included in MSUs High School Art Competition exhibit. Fitzer is a sophomore at Wichita Falls High School.

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By Richard Carter

Pablo Picasso, Sandro Botticelli, Salvador Dali and Dante Gabriel Rossetti were promising teen artists who were creating impressive art before turning 20.

For the past 24 years, the Midwestern State University High School Art Competition has shown off the work of budding high school artists by providing them with awards and introducing these students to art professors who might assist them in the next step in their development.

The university will do so again with its 25th annual MSU High School Art Competition, which opens Monday and runs through Feb. 6 in the Foyer Gallery of the Fain Fine Arts Building. The exhibit culminates with an awards reception from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Feb. 6.

The exhibit will feature approximately 200 pieces by artists from Wichita Falls, Iowa Park, Burkburnett, Henrietta and Vernon, ceramics professor Steve Hilton said. He coordinates the competition.

"We don't know what's coming until that Friday," he said. "Typically we have from 10 to 14 high schools."

Something that's interesting for Hilton is that this year a lot more applicants are coming from out of state.

"We've already had applicants from states such as California, Missouri and Illinois. If the artwork gets here in time to hang on the wall, it gets included. We've always been open to high school artists from across the country."

The artwork is in seven different categories: sculpture, ceramics, graphic design, painting, drawing, mixed media and photography. It's all the art forms they teach at MSU.

The art in each category is considered by the professor who specializes in that medium. Three awards are given in each category. First, second and third places receive $100, $50 and $25 awards, he said.

The professors also will provide interested students verbal feedback on their artwork.

"Typically, I will talk to students about their work, and some of them might end up attending MSU."

In the past, they've also awarded a scholarship to one of the students in the show, but that's not every year, he said.

"We get some remarkable student work, and it's usually an incredible show," Hilton said.

It's great for the young artists, he added, because they get to take their work from a studio space and hang it on a gallery wall.

"That is always something that's special. It's also a great way to showcase the talent pool."

Hilton, exhibition preparator Carlos Aleman and Foyer Gallery Director Gary Goldberg will hang the show.

This also will be the first year the art professors will hold a reception for art teachers.

"Kudos should go to the art teachers for all of the work they do getting students to the point where their work can be hung in a gallery," Hilton said. "We have some excellent art teachers in the area high schools."
SHARE Brittany Thompson Ferris stands at Ensign Peak, a landmark that overlooks the Salt Lake Valley. Britany, a former Midwestern State University student, and her husband, Garrett Ferris, a former pastor of First Baptist Church at Sheppard, now live in Salt Lake City. The couple leads a missional community there through a church plant called Ekklesia. Contributed photo People gather at the home of Brittany and Garrett Ferris in Salt Lake City for a missional community gathering. The group meets once a week to share a meal and fellowship with each other. Contributed photos College students who are a part of Generation Send: Salt Lake City pose at First Baptist Church Provo in Provo, Utah. GenSend, an initiative of the North American Mission Board, is a student missionary development process that immerses collegians in urban areas. Out of 1.8 million people in Salt Lake City, only 2 percent are Evangelical Christians.

By Sarah Johnson

Brittany Thompson Ferris was a 19-year-old college student attending First Baptist Church when she first heard about the desperate need for the gospel in Salt Lake City. The darkness described by a representative from the North American Mission Board, who came to speak at her college church group, was shocking. Out of a city of 1.8 million people, only 2 percent were Evangelical Christians.

With those demographics, he said, Salt Lake City is considered to be "an unreached people group."

"As I heard him share, I remember feeling the Holy Spirit move within me," Brittany, now 21 years old, said. "I had no idea what it meant at that point, but I knew my heart was burdened for the people of Salt Lake City."

It was the summer of 2013 and Brittany was entering her sophomore at Midwestern State University. As it happened, her college group was taking a mission trip to Salt Lake City during spring break of the next year, so she signed up. She told her parents her plans.

"They were supportive, but I don't think any of us thought it would mean moving my life there," she said. "A few months later I was reading my Bible in my room one night and I read Romans 15. The apostle Paul writes that his ambition is to spread the gospel in a place where it has not been spread before. I read that passage and immediately knew God was calling me to plant my life in Salt Lake City. He was calling me to make it my ambition to spread his gospel with people who did not know him."

Ignited by the fire in her heart, Brittany signed up with Generation Send as a GenSend Mobilizer. Generation Send, an initiative of the North American Missions Board, is a student missionary development process that immerses collegians in an urban area. She spent the next semester recruiting a team of nine people form MSU, Vernon College and local college ministries to spend six weeks of their summer working alongside church planters in the Salt Lake Valley. While in the recruiting process, she went on that mission trip with the group from First Baptist. It was there that she and her then-boyfriend, Garrett Ferris, decided where they wanted their lives to take root. Garrett was the worship pastor at the Church at Sheppard. They came back to Wichita Falls, got engaged and made plans to move to Salt Lake City, where Brittany would finish her junior year at the University of Utah.

"Everything was going great until I got a call on Oct. 5, 2014," she said. "My dad died of a massive heart attack that afternoon, and my world shattered. We decided to stay in Wichita Falls until the end of my brother's senior year, but our hearts longed to be in Salt Lake City. We got married Jan. 3 and spent the first six months of our marriage in Wichita Falls."

They made the move back to Salt Lake City in June 2015. Since then, Garrett has been one of the pastors of Ekklesia, a church plant in downtown Salt Lake City.

"After my dad died, Salt Lake City took an entirely new place in my heart," Brittany said. "God has given me a greater understanding and appreciation for the gospel since he called my dad home. You see, the only hope I have in my dad's death is that he knew Jesus. He followed Christ, and lived a life that honored God. And since talking through the death of my father, I understand even more the urgency of the gospel. There are people in Salt Lake City who desperately need to know Jesus. People who need to know that he died to save us because he loves us."

Together, the Ferrises lead a missional community, making Jesus known in every aspect of the world around them.

"Whether it is having our neighbors in our home for dinner, going to the dog park with friends or celebrating a birthday in downtown, we believe that Jesus is a part of it all."

Brittany believes Jesus shouldn't be relegated to Wednesday and Sunday mornings.

"We believe that he desires to be all encompassing in our lives," she said. "He desires an intimate relationship with every person, and he has the ability to redeem and make beautiful all of life."

Ekklesia began in 2015 and the Ferrises have already seen radical transformation.

"He is making himself known, and there truly is a movement for Christ beginning in the valley," Brittany said. "God loved Salt Lake City way before we ever did, and he loves Salt Lake City so much more than I ever could, but it is truly a joy to be a part of the journey."
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By John Ingle of the Times Record News

Wichita Falls made the decision in the late 1980s to reduce the risk of lead contaminating drinking water coming out of taps, making it highly unlikely an incident such as that in Flint, Michigan, would happen here.

Daniel Nix, utilities operations manager for the city, said pliable lead pipes were used to carry drinking water from water mains to water meters until about 1987-88, when they were replaced with copper lines. He said the city has been under the Environment Protection Agency's Lead and Copper Rules since the regulation was written in 1991, a rule meant to minimize the amount of lead and copper in water.

"We've gone through numerous rounds of testing and have qualified for a decreased level of testing because we've just simply not found any lead or copper being leached from plumbing into the water," he said. "Now, if you go back further, though, from the lead/copper rule in the early 90s, there was a complete ban of lead in plumbing solder. When that came out, the city of Wichita Falls took steps at that time to remove all lead service lines that it had in its system."

While some might believe that the Flint River is the water source that has resulted in elevated lead levels in children, Nix said it probably has more to do with an infrastructure that was built to support about 200,000 residents in the 1950s and 1960s. The population has dwindled dramatically over the past 50-plus years; the Census Bureau estimated the population to be about 99,000 in 2014.

Because the population is half of what the infrastructure was built to support, he said the water sits in the lines longer, creating a situation and increases the possibility of corrosion to take place in the lines.

He said the situation in Flint also has to do with the financial decision to stop purchasing treated water from Detroit and begin treating their own drinking water. He said leaders in Flint also decided not to use orthophosphate, as Detroit had done, in the water treatment process.

"When they switched from Detroit's water to the Flint River, the chemical characteristics of that water changed," he said. "In particular, the salt levels went up, and also Detroit was using a phosphate inhibitor to prevent corrosion. Flint stopped doing that. When they switched to the river, they didn't add an orthophosphate .

"It was kind of a perfect storm for that corrosion to happen."

Nix, who has been in the water treatment business for 30 years, said the city takes several steps to ensure drinking water coming of the taps of a specific age range of homes does not contain lead. Of about 500 homes built in Wichita Falls from 1970 to 1987, 50 are randomly selected for testing. The original sample size was 100, but because not instances of lead was found during the tests, the requirement was dropped to 50.

If lead is found at one of the test site, he said distribution workers will look for the source, whether it's a missed lead service line in the system or cross contamination of water inside the house.

Residents are also encouraged to call the lab at Cypress Water Treatment Plant if their water has an odor or is discolored. Nix said most of the time there isn't an issue, but it's that one out of 10 positive result that the city will follow up on.

A second level of protection for water customers is a layer of calcium carbonate inside distribution lines. Nix said if corrosion does occur in a water line, the calcium carbonate will be removed from the line instead of pipe material, stabilizing the water.

People who choose to put filters on their faucets or in their refrigerators should remember that they have a three or four month life span. He said if they aren't replaced when required, it could lead to a build up of bacteria in the filter, which, too, can result in corrosivity.
DAVOS, Switzerland  It's likely that some of the billions of dollars in sanctions relief granted to Iran under a landmark nuclear deal will go to groups deemed to be terrorists, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Thursday. But, he added, he doesn't believe Iran will be able to use the freed-up cash to boost funding of malign activities if it is serious about revamping its economy.

Kerry said on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum the U.S. or others can do little to prevent the now-unfrozen assets from getting into the hands of the Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps or "other entities" that Iran has supported in the past. But since nuclear-related sanctions were lifted on Iran last weekend, Kerry said, there is no evidence yet to suggest such transfers have occurred.
So, your sister sent you a gift card to AMC Theaters. Sweet gesture, the only problem is there isn't an AMC movie screen within a 100-mile radius. Or, maybe your Uncle Steve stuffed a voucher to Honey Baked Ham in an envelope. Unfortunately, he forgot you're vegan.

Gift cards were yet again the most requested holiday gift, according to the National Retail Federation, and more than $100 billion is spent annually on these tokens. Of that, however, some $1 billion will likely go unredeemed this year, according to financial advisory company CEB Tower Group.

If the plastic presents you received weren't what you had hoped for, they need not collect dust in a drawer. They still hold value  even if not for you  and there are several ways to unload those unwanted gift cards.

1. Sell them: Along with the perpetual growth in gift card giving has come a slew of exchange websites willing to give you cash for your cards. Sites like Raise.com, GiftCardGranny.com, CardCash.com and Cardpool.com offer consumers a secure marketplace to sell physical and digital cards.

More Information This week's top shopportunities: It's triple coupon week at ShopRite. Coupons valued at 99 cents and under will triple (rather than double) at all Capital Region stores. There is a limit of two "like" coupons per transaction and only the first 10 will triple. For a limited time, Red Robin Gourmet Burgers and Brews is offering a Double Tavern Double Plus Deal. For $15, you'll receive two Tavern Double Burgers, plus a select appetizer or dessert. Locally, you'll find Red Robin on Route 9 in Latham and Clifton Park. Purchase four select personal care products at Target this week and receive a $5 store gift card. Choose from products by Pantene, Crest, CoverGirl, Old Spice and more. Be sure to stack manufacturer and store coupons when available. See More Collapse

"You can sell your gift card for 50 to 90 percent of the total gift card value very quickly," according to Mike Flacy at BensBargains.com. Expect to receive more cash for gift cards from popular retailers. GiftCardGranny.com is a good place to not only sell your cards but compare the return to more than a dozen other reseller sites.

You can also sell gift cards on Facebook garage sale sites, Craigslist and Ebay. There is less security with these transactions, and you'll be responsible for applicable listing fees.

2. Re-gift: You may be pet-less  hence no use for a PetSmart gift card  but that doesn't mean someone else with a furry pal won't appreciate it. And it's OK. A 2014 American Express survey found that more than three quarters of Americans feel re-gifting holiday presents is socially acceptable. However, bestowing a gift card with a depleted balance is tacky. Make sure you pass on a full-value card.

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3. Donate: Nonprofit organizations throughout the Capital Region and beyond will gladly accept your expendable gift cards and put the funds toward food, clothing and general supplies. Websites like charitygiftcertificates.org, giftcardgiver.com and donorschoose.org will accept gift card donations electronically to support schools across the nation and hundreds of other charitable institutions. "Think of it as a more honorable form of re-gifting," says Flacy. Donations are also tax-deductible.

4. Trade-in at Target: The retailer quietly rolled out a gift card trade-in program in late December. You can swap  for a lesser amount  unwanted gift cards for dozens of restaurants and retailers for Target store credit. Visit the mobile phone counter (in electronics) at any participating store to receive an instant quote. The balance on the card will be verified and you'll receive the agreed-upon credit immediately.

sfromma@timesunion.com 518-454-5479http://blog.timesunion.com/saving
Hoosick Falls

Hoosick Falls village officials secretly hired a Glens Falls public relations firm last month to help develop "an overall communications program" as criticism mounted about their decision to not warn residents to stop drinking water contaminated with a toxic chemical.

The hiring of Behan Communications, which for many years has handled public relations for General Electric Co. related to that company's pollution of the Hudson River, was not documented at a village meeting or publicly disclosed before the Times Union asked about the arrangement on Thursday. Rather, the Village Board authorized a Glens Falls law firm, FitzGerald Morris Baker Firth, to hire Behan Communications on its behalf.

The disclosure comes as questions are being raised about the village's contractual arrangement with the Glens Falls law firm. The firm has been negotiating a settlement agreement for the village with Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics, which owns a manufacturing plant near the village's underground wells that is a focus of the source of water pollution. Thomas Ulasewicz, an attorney for the law firm handling the work, declined repeated requests to be interviewed for this story.

More for you Slide show of Hoosick Falls water crisis

Elevated levels of the toxic chemical, perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, were found in the village water system in 2014 by Michael Hickey, a former village trustee whose father died of cancer. Hickey sent water samples to a Canadian lab that reported levels of PFOA that the EPA later said are not safe for human consumption. PFOA is a man-made chemical used to make non-stick and other household and commercial products that are heat-resistant and repel grease and water. PFOA exposure has been linked to increased health effects, including testicular and kidney cancer and thyroid disease.

Hoosick Falls Mayor David B. Borge said he was too busy on Wednesday or Thursday for a telephone interview to respond to questions about the hiring of the public relations and law firms. Instead, Borge sent emails to the Times Union retracing the village's handling of the water pollution problem over the past year and its decision to hire outside attorneys and the public relations firm.

"We took this action in response to comments made by local residents that more outreach was needed," Borge wrote. "Joan Gerhardt, who heads Behan's environmental and risk communications practice, joined our team in mid-December. She has been particularly helpful with the timeline of events posted on our village website and with distributing information and updates to the members of our community."

The mayor said the law firm was hired in November at the recommendation of the village's attorney, John R. Patterson, Jr., and that the Village Board has "discussed components of the agreement" with a village citizens group, Healthy Hoosick Water, and received suggestions from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the state Department of Health. Patterson did not respond to a request for comment.

"We are close to finalization of the agreement and are confident it will ensure local residents do not bear the costs associated with PFOA in our drinking water," Borge said in an email. "The firm ... has been instrumental in negotiating an agreement with Saint-Gobain."

A person briefed on the negotiations, but not authorized to comment publicly on the matter, said the law firm has discussed having Saint-Gobain pay its fees directly to the firm once any agreement is finalized. In addition, Saint-Gobain has offered to pay more than $2 million for a carbon filtration system that is expected to be installed on the village water treatment system by October. In the interim, the company is paying for village residents to receive up to five gallons of water per day from a local supermarket.

The village has not said how much the law firm or the public relations firm would be paid for their work.

David Engel, an Albany attorney who represents Healthy Hoosick Water  the citizens group that formed, in part, to pressure the Village Board to be more active in warning the public about the water contamination  said the group has been unable to get details from village leaders about their negotiations with Saint-Gobain or the agreement with FitzGerald Morris Baker Firth. He said the group has expressed concern that any agreement with the company indemnify village taxpayers from liability for the pollution.

"We have not seen any resolution adopted by the village board that reflects the terms on which that law firm was retained," Engel said. "Healthy Hoosick Water also has not been informed that an agreement was close to finalization. We are concerned that there are important technical issues that remain to be resolved. These include the performance standards to which the treatment systems will be held, as well as the overall scope of the agreement and whether it will address such needs as possibly relocating the village wells to an area unaffected by the pollution."

Dina Silver Pokedoff, a spokeswoman for Saint-Gobain, declined to provide details about any arrangement the company has to directly pay the Glens Falls law firm for its work on behalf of the village.

"We continue to discuss with the village and the DOH the details of the agreement under which Saint-Gobain will fund the temporary and permanent water filtration systems, but we would suggest that any comment on those discussions should come from village officials and the DOH," she said.

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Robert J. Freeman, executive director for the state Committee on Open Government, said the village's retention of Behan Communications, even if it was done through a law firm, should have been documented in a public meeting or record.

"It seems that there would have to have been some sort of discussions or action taken by the governing body," Freeman said. "The only time that a village board can take action is at a meeting and any action it takes must be memorialized in minutes."

In its work for General Electric Co. through the years, the public relations firm owned by Mark Behan became entangled in a legal battle between GE and several river communities that filed federal lawsuits against the company when their water supplies were tainted by the PCBs dumped into the river from its plants in Fort Edward and Hudson Falls.

Attorneys for the river communities, including Engel, who represents the town of Halfmoon in the ongoing litigation, challenged the company's position to conceal thousands of internal records from public disclosure, including scores of documents related to GE's multimillion-dollar public relations campaign in opposition to dredging. GE argued in federal court that those records are privileged  that is, not subject to disclosure  including communications with Behan, a public-relations strategist and former newspaper editor. The company characterized Behan's work as being part of their legal strategy.

Freeman said he doesn't believe the public relations firm's work on behalf of the village can qualify as attorney-client privileged work product.

"Behan Communications is not a law firm, they are not lawyers, which means the advice they offer would not be privileged," Freeman said.

blyons@timesunion.com  518-454-5547  @brendan_lyonstu
In the midst of worrying how to get drinkable water to residents, officials in Halfmoon and Waterford said Thursday that they haven't stopped to figure out how much the safe, clean liquid will cost.

Sunday's water main break in Troy limited supplies to both towns, the hardest hit of Troy's water customers. The main concern has been getting water, supervisors said.

"I don't know how much we have spent so far on water, because we're getting so much of it so quickly," said Waterford Supervisor John Lawler. "But at the end of the day, it really is not an option not to have the water, because there's no alterative."

Private water distributors immediately came to the aid of both towns, supervisors said.

Halfmoon-based Vermont Pure provided water to the town, even as town officials temporarily shut the business and others down because the drain of commercial water use was too much to handle during the crisis, said Halfmoon Supervisor Kevin Tollisen.

"They offered to provide us with jugs of water, and we accepted that," Tollisen said, adding that he doesn't know what kind of bill the town will receive.

Stewart's Shops has used a tanker to pick up water from Troy and drop it into Halfmoon wells to keep up the town's water pressure, Tollisen said. The Saratoga Springs-based company will charge the town for costs only, Tollisen said. On Thursday, the town received one bill from Stewart's, for over $8,000.

Mechanicville-based DeCrescente Distributing Co. has delivered two tractor trailers filled with bottled water to the town each day.

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"We certainly expect them to charge us for the water; we've given away well over 3,000 cases of water," Lawler said. "I'm grateful that DeCrescente was able to accommodate us."

Both towns have also received tankers of water from the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services. Town supervisors said they are hopeful that when the crisis is over, the state will help cover their costs. Lawler said he has already talked to state Sen. Kathy Marchione for her support in getting reimbursed for emergency expenses.

Tollisen said the town is carefully tracking all costs to deal with the emergency, with the hope of eventual state reimbursement.

chughes@timesunion.com  518-454-5417  @hughesclaire
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Albany

Wal-Mart officials face several possible fines following the firing of employee Thomas Smith on Nov. 6 after he redeemed $2 in abandoned cans and bottles from the East Greenbush store, following the results of a preliminary investigation by the state Department of Labor.

The alleged violations of state labor standards include not providing Smith with a written employee policy on sick leave, days off and other workplace matters; not providing Smith with a final pay stub; improper record-keeping; and unpaid wages for the hourlong bus ride Smith made on a Sunday to repay the store for the cans and bottles he redeemed.

"This is a preliminary report. Wal-Mart has asked for a conference and they plan to dispute some of the findings," said Alice Green, founder of the Center for Law and Justice, who was briefed on the investigation. She has been working on behalf of Smith, 52, of Albany, who had been homeless for several months after he was released on parole last spring after serving more than 13 years of a 15-year sentence for robbing a KeyBank in Latham.

"Until the matter is completely closed, we can't comment on it," said Cullen Burnell, a state Department of Labor spokesman.

He declined to discuss any specifics in the preliminary investigation and he would not speculate on what the total amount of any potential penalties assessed against Wal-Mart might be.

"This is an active review process and we continue to work with the New York State Department of Labor to reach a positive outcome," said Aaron Mullins, a spokesman for Wal-Mart.

Smith insisted he was never told it was a violation of company policy to redeem the cans and bottles left abandoned for more than an hour in a shopping cart near redemption machines in the store's breezeway. He was fired from his $9-an-hour part-time job tending to shopping carts in the parking lot for what Wal-Mart characterized as "gross misconduct."

A conference on the matter, which is similar to mediation, is being scheduled for early February in Albany, when Wal-Mart is expected to provide additional information to state labor investigators and to dispute some or all of the allegations, according to Green.

"Wal-Mart has a history of fighting back against claims of unlawful firings, so this is not surprising," said Jess Levin, a spokeswoman for Making Change at Walmart UFCW, a national group backed by the 1.3 million-member United Food and Commercial Workers International, which has long battled the chain over a range of workplace grievances.

If no resolution is reached at the February conference, the process can include an administrative hearing if an employer disagrees with the findings and an employer is given 60 days to make payment or request an appeal to the Industrial Board of Appeals.

"The process is different on a case-by-case basis," Burnell said.

Smith intends to attend the conference, but has not yet had a chance to review the preliminary report of the investigation findings.

His attorney, Donald Boyajian, who also represented Smith in the 2002 bank robbery case, said in December he planned to file a lawsuit against Wal-Mart, but he could not be reached for comment.

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Smith has been trying to find steady employment. "That's my main goal now," he said. He was hired by a local property maintenance group, but the hours were sparse this winter without need for snow removal. He needs to show regular pay stubs to be able to move out of a Central Avenue boardinghouse assigned by the Homeless and Travelers Aid Society.

He has applied for housekeeping jobs at local hospitals and the Albany County Nursing Home, with the help of Green, who assists ex-convicts in the transition back to civilian life.

"He really wants to have a job," Green said. More than $22,150 donated from 995 people at a GoFundMe crowdfunding campaign started by a woman in Chicago is being transferred to an account for Smith, who intends to set up a trust fund for his two teenage children.

Times Union's coverage of Smith's firing and the firing also on Nov. 6 of Michael Walsh, 45, of Schenectady  an employee at the Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market in Niskayuna who was terminated after he waited 30 minutes to turn in $350 cash he found in the parking lot  touched off a national furor that included boycotts, demonstrations and an online petition.

Meanwhile, Wal-Mart announced on Wednesday it was raising pay for 1.2 million workers on Feb. 20 to at least $10 an hour for all employees hired before Jan. 1, 2016, who will start at $9 an hour and increase to $10 after completing a probationary period. The pay increase will make Wal-Mart's average full-time hourly wage $13.38 an hour and $10.58 per hour on average for part-time employees.

pgrondahl@timesunion.com  518-454-5623  @PaulGrondahl
The daughter of one of the key witnesses at the trial of Tipperary man Harry Gleeson, who has just been posthumously cleared of murder- the first such pardon in the history of the State - has placed copies of the petition signatures at The Source Library where they can be viewed.

The hanging of Harry Gleeson for the murder of Mary 'Moll' McCarthy at Marlhill, New Inn became a national news story as the Holycross man pleaded his innocence to the last.

At the time a petition was gathered to have him released and hundreds from Tipperary signed the petition. Now, these papers can be seen for the first time at The Source and throw a lot of light on who supported Harry in his cause for freedom.

Bernadette O'Gorman, originally from Rossmore, is the daughter of one of the key witnesses in the trial - incredibly however, he was not called to give evidence eventhough he was present in the court. And, Bernadette has now placed all of those documents in The Source for display.

Now the people of Tipperary can go in and see for themselves if their people signed or make whatever historical study they wish.

My late father Billy, who was in a harvesting partnership with Gleeson and who attended the trial as a witness, (and whom along with Harrys aunt and uncle was among the crucial witnesses for Gleeson who was suppressed) collected 2,000 signatures and his were among the first 4,500 that arrived in the Department of Justice on 15th April 1941, in time for the Cabinet meeting on 18th.

At least another 2,000 arrived in on 16th, 17th and 18th. Some signatures which had been collected didnt arrived until the 23rd after Harry was hanged but the Government was on notice that they were collected.

This is a most important historical document. Nearly every family in Marlhill and New Inn and surrounds signed and most of these and thousands of signatures from Holycross/Galbertstown were among the first batch to arrive. Several hundred signatures from the Dublin area were collected and from Limerick, Kilkenny and Waterford.

The signatures crossed all political divides and such persons as the Thompsons of Barnane Castle signed. What this petition shows is the vast gulf that existed between the Government of the day and the people of the country.

In the words of John Timoney, Gleesons solicitor, his case shocked the public conscience.

 The petition only got underway on 8th April and most of them collected in the rural areas were collected by bicycle as there was no petrol because of the war.

More tragically, there is no evidence that the petition was ever brought to the attention of the Cabinet when it met on Good Friday 18th April 1941 to consider clemency, she stated.

The incumbent Minister cannot clarify and the Cabinet minutes are either suppressed or destroyed, Bernadette O'Gorman told The Tipperary Star this week.
Governor Branstad, Lt. Governor Reynolds to Join School Choice Supporters at Des Moines Rally on 1/26

Students, parents, teachers, and community leaders will rally in Des Moines in support of school choice on Tuesday, January 26, organizers announced today.

The event, which will take place at 10 a.m. at the Iowa State Historical Museum, will feature student and parent speakers representing a wide array of educational options: public schools, private schools, homeschooling organizations, and virtual schools. Governor Terry Branstad and Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds will speak in support of educational options around the state.

The goal of the rally is to celebrate the school choices available to families in Iowa and to raise awareness among parents about the options available in their neighborhoods.

The rally is timed to coincide with National School Choice Week (January 24-30, 2016), which will be America's largest-ever celebration of opportunity in education, featuring more than 16,000 events nationwide.







"School choice means student success," said Tracy Bonday, superintendent of schools for the Diocese of Des Moines. "School choice is about finding the school that makes a positive difference in a child's life, and there's no better time to explore those options than National School Choice Week."

Event organizers include Iowa Alliance for Choice in Education, Iowa Advocates for Choice in Education, Catholic Schools of the Diocese of Des Moines, Connections Academy, Friedman Foundation, and Foundation for Excellence in Education.

National School Choice Week (January 24-30, 2016) will be America's largest-ever celebration of opportunity in education, featuring more than 16,000 independently organized events across all 50 states. A nonpartisan, nonpolitical public awareness effort, National School Choice Week shines a positive spotlight on effective education options for students, families, and communities around the country - from traditional public schools to public charter schools, magnet schools, online learning, private schools, and homeschooling.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160122005223/en/
[January 22, 2016] Hundreds of School Choice Supporters to Rally at Capitol on 1/28

Students, parents, teachers, and community leaders will participate in National School Choice Week by gathering in Santa Fe on Thursday, January 28. The event, which will begin at 1 p.m. on the Capitol steps, will include remarks from Secretary of Education Hanna Skandera, alongside representatives from all educational options: traditional public schools, public charter schools, magnet schools, online academies, private schools, and home schools. Student performances will follow, featuring Tierra Adentro: The New Mexico School of Academics, Art and Artesania, Albuquerque Sign Language Academy, and New Mexico School for the Arts. The goal of the event is twofold: to celebrate educational opportunity in the state and to raise awareness among families about the choices available to them. The celebration is timed to coincide with National School Choice Week (January 24-30, 2016), which will be America's largest-ever celebration of opportunity in education, with more than 16,000 events being planned nationwide. "The New exico Department of Education is excited for the opportunity to celebrate all forms of education currently serving students here in New Mexico," said Katie Poulos of the New Mexico Department of Education. "This event is an opportunity to join the nationwide movement for educational opportunity as a difference-maker in young people's lives."



"School choice is not about any one type of school," said Kelly Callahan of the New Mexico Coalition for Charter Schools. "That's why we're excited to come together as a broad coalition and show parents just what each option has to offer them." "School choice is about empowering parents and students, instead of bureaucrats and unions," said Crystal Rodriguez of The LIBRE Initiative. "It's about making sure that minorities and the economically disadvantaged have the opportunity to make choices when it comes to receiving a quality education essential to a lifetime of well-being and prosperity - just as the privileged, well-connected and elite do."

The event is being planned by groups including the Public Education Department, the Rio Grande Foundation, the New Mexico Coalition for Charter Schools, and The LIBRE Initiative. Held every January, National School Choice Week is an independent public awareness effort designed to shine a positive spotlight on effective education options for every child. Through thousands of independently planned events across the country, National School Choice Week raises public awareness of all types of educational choices available to children. These options include traditional public schools, public charter schools, public magnet schools, online learning, private schools, and homeschooling. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160122005219/en/

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[January 22, 2016] Local Parent Leaders Gather to Celebrate School Choice in Orange County

A panel of education experts will address choice in education with parents, teachers, and local community leaders at a community event on Wednesday, January 27. The Parents Advocate League is hosting the Orange (News - Alert) County School Choice Celebration on January 27 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Irvine Civic Center. The event will include a panel discussion on education options in California and national trends in school choice. The event is timed to coincide with National School Choice Week (January 24-30, 2016), which will be the largest series of education-related events in U.S. history. The program consists of nationally recognized education experts and activist, including Larry Sand, a former teacher of over 30 years who currently heads California Teacher Empowerment Network; Lance Izumi, Koret Senior Fellow and Senior Director of Education Studies at the Pacific Research Institute and co-author of Not As Good As You Think; Lisa Snell, Director of Education and Child Welfare at Reason Foundation; and Brian McGrath, Senior Vice President for the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice. The panel will discuss ways parents cansupport all choices in education locally, statewide, and nationally.



"We are so excited to participate in National School Choice Week by hosting this celebration. This event is targeted at parents who are trying to find the best educational environment for their child. We hope to empower parents and encourage them to participate in our local groups and organizations that promote school in Orange County," said Julie Collier, executive director of Parents Advocate League. Parents Advocate League is a nonprofit that focuses on educating parents to be advocates for their children's education. The league supports all choices in education and believes parents should be the final decision makers when it comes to school choice.

For more information, contact Julie Collier at [email protected]. This event is a private reservation and is not endorsed or sponsored by the City of Irvine. A nonpartisan, nonpolitical public awareness effort, National School Choice Week shines a positive spotlight on effective education options for students, families, and communities around the country. For more information, visit www.schoolchoiceweek.com or www.facebook.com/schoolchoiceweek. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160122005158/en/

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National Education Experts Release New Research on School Choice

The Heritage Foundation is hosting a panel of experts who have released new research in the areas of special education, program evaluations, homeschooling, and Education Savings Accounts on Wednesday, January 27.

The event, "New Research on School Choice: Considerations for Scholars and Policymakers," will feature a panel of education experts at The Heritage Foundation's Annex at 227 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE, in Washington on January 27 at 12 p.m. The event is timed to coincide with National School Choice Week (January 24-30, 2016), which will be the largest series of education-related events in U.S. history.

This event will feature forthcoming papers and research by scholars in the field of education choice. Featured papers and research will include a discussion of why empirical evaluations should be used to evaluate school choice programs and implications for policymakers in a world where that's not always possible; a forthcoming paper, "The Effect of Homeschooling and Private Schooling on Parental Satisfaction with Special Education Services"; and a forthcoming paper, "Avoiding the 'Inexorable Push toward Homogenization'in School Choice: Education Savings Accounts as Hedges against Institutional Isomorphism."







Speakers will include Anna Egalite, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Educational Leadership, Policy, and Human Development in the College of Education, North Carolina State University; Patrick Wolf, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor of Education Policy and 21st Century Endowed Chair in School Choice, Department of Education Reform, University of Arkansas College of Education and Health Professions; and Lindsey Burke, Will Skillman Fellow in Education Policy, the Institute for Family, Community, and Opportunity, The Heritage Foundation.

Organizers expect close to 40 scholars in the field of education policy, congressional staffers, and public policy foundation representatives to attend from across the country.

For more information, contact Mary Clare Reim at [email protected].

A nonpartisan, nonpolitical public awareness effort, National School Choice Week shines a positive spotlight on effective education options for students, families, and communities around the country.

For more information, visit www.schoolchoiceweek.com or www.facebook.com/schoolchoiceweek.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160122005148/en/
[January 22, 2016] Visible Assets, Inc. and Eagle Eye Innovations BV Launch Plate 20/20; the Industrial Internet of Things (IoT), for Steel Construction Plates.

STRATHAM, N.H., Jan. 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Visible Assets, Inc. (VISIBLE) Stratham, NH, announced today that it has signed an exclusive license agreement with Eagle Eye Innovation BV (EEI) to supply and support Plate 20/20 within the Netherlands. Plate 20/20 is a steel construction plate visibility system, manufactured by Visible Assets that uses RuBee wireless tags (www.rubee.com) embedded on the edge of these steel plates. Steel plates are widely used in the construction industry for temporary roads, soil erosion prevention, and as covers for excavated trenches. Plate rental companies typically rent the plates to construction sites. Because of the harsh conditions, including steel, mud, and water, RF-based technologies (RFID, WiFI Bluetooth, NFC, Zigbee) have proven unreliable. The RuBee tags are fully embedded in the steel plates and replace RF fields with a magnetic field (www.rubee.info/EEI-WWW). RuBee and Plate 20/20 provide 100% read accuracy in stacks of 30-60 high plates. The tags are expected to have a minimum ten-year battery life, and are in a MIL-STD-810G sealed rugged package. John Stevens, CEO of Visible Assets, Inc. said, "This agreement represents an important milestone for RuBee and our company. We have made a major investment in the defense industry where we meet the very high standards for harsh environment reliability, security, intrinsic safety near explosives and fused ordnance, and human safety. We have many customers with strong technical requirements, who make aircraft parts, integrated missile systems, and with Armory 20/20 and Store 20/20 we provide automated security for armories, and explosives stores, including nuclear weapons all over the world. RuBee is unique in that it offers a HERO ZERO, HERF ZERO and a secure wireless visibility solution. We have recently seen a growing demand in 4.0 Manufacturing applications and other industrial applications where the only requirement is 100% read reliability within harsh environments. The Plate 20/20 system with EEI as an important new RuBee application example, and diversifies RuBee into theconstruction industry, and Industrial IoT, with one of the leading Dutch steel plate suppliers as partners."



The Netherlands rents about 1,000,000 plates each year, through about half a dozen rental companies. The European market rents an additional 20,000,000 plates each year, through many additional rental companies. These plates are considered mission critical assets at thousands of construction sites across Europe and US. They must meet a number of safety standards, come in a variety of sizes (150 cm x 250 cm x 11mm to 250 cm x 600 cm x 15mm) and can weigh from 725 kg to 3,000 kg. Gjalt Loots, Spokesperson for Eagle Eye Innovation BV, said, "The Construction industry and Eagle Eye have tried many other RF base technologies, but the steel, mud and water make RF-based systems unreliable. Visible Assets designed a custom RuBee tag that is embedded on the edge of a 15mm thick plate, and works 100% of the time, even underwater. The plates are typically stacked 30 to 60 high in a yard or construction site and a single RuBee loop antenna around the base can do a fully-automated inventory of stacked plates many times a day. We can also do a human-assisted inventory in minutes with a handheld reader. The RuBee tags and Plate 20/20 represent a major step forward in automation within the construction industry, and represent an important new example of the Industrial Internet of Things."

About Visible Assets, Inc. Visible Assets, Inc. is a privately held US company, based in Stratham, New Hampshire. Visible Assets designs, manufactures, and supports RuBee wireless real-time asset visibility solutions and networks based on the IEEE 1902.1 standard. Visible Assets provides integrated visibility solutions for a variety of markets though RuBee application partners, including National Oilwell Varco, Lockheed Martin, US Department of Defense, and many others. RuBee Visibility Networks are installed and working in over 1,200 commercial and government sites. Visible Assets, Inc. has an active RuBee licensing program. About Eagle Eye Innovation Eagle Eye Innovation BV is a service provider that originates from a major steel plate rental company in the Netherlands, Schaap de with. EEI and Schaap de With cooperate with Lekkerkerker Rotterdam and Swanenberg (see links below). EEI has been created specifically to address the inventory management and visibility issues of these plates within Holland and has been supported by TNO, the Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research. EEI will provide an integrated command and control center for these plates based on the Plate 20/20 systems to the $6 billion EUR Dutch construction industry. For Press Images and Background Material go to - www.rubee.info/EEI-WWW Contacts: John Stevens, CEO

Visible Assets, Inc.

617-395-7601

[email protected]

www.rubee.com Gjalt G. Loots V.P. TNO

Eagle Eye Innovation BV

+31 65140 7343 Phone

[email protected]

www.schaapdewith.nl

www.lekkerkerker.com

www.swanenberg.com

www.tno.nl To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/visible-assets-inc-and-eagle-eye-innovations-bv-launch-plate-2020-the-industrial-internet-of-things-iot-for-steel-construction-plates-300207924.html SOURCE Visible Assets, Inc.

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[January 21, 2016] Technavio Expects the Global Smart Lock Market to Reach USD 6,217 Million by 2020

The global smart lock market is set to reach USD 6,217 million by 2020, growing at a tremendous CAGR of over 75%, according to Technavio's latest report. In this report Technavio covers the market outlook and growth prospects of the global smart lock market for 2016-2020. Based on product platforms, the market is further divided into two segments being Bluetooth-based smart locks and Wi-Fi-based smart locks. Technavio's research study segments the global smart lock market into the following regions: Americas

EMEA

APAC Americas: Largest smart lock market Technavio's report states that the Americas is the largest market for smart locks, with a market share of close to 54% and will continue to dominate the market over the next four years. The smart lock market in the Americas is booming primarily due to the high demand emerging from countries such as the US and Canada. North America is likely to experience demand from the non-residential customers such as the hospitality industry. "For countries in Latin America, the demand for smart locks is expected to increase with economic liberalization, greater operation of foreign corporations, growth in the real-estate sector, and increased spending on security equipment given a relatively high crime rate," says Technavio lead warehouse and storage research analyst Sharan Raj. Also, with advances in technology, commercial buildings are expected to prefer cost-efficient access control systems (including smart locks) to enhance physical security, ensuring easy accessibility for employees. August, Goji, Schage, UniKey, and Yale are the top five vendors of the global smart lock market and these companies are all headquartered in the US.



Ask for a sample of this report: http://goo.gl/7zuO1s EMEA: Demand for smart locks coming from highly developed industrialized nations in Western Europe

The Eurozone economic crisis strongly affected the growth of the smart lock market in recent years, forcing financial institutions to limit their operations and invest less in cash handling processes. However, the demand for smart locks is gradually emerging from the real-estate sector in Europe, thus smart lock vendors are increasingly focusing on catering to these demands. The majority of the demand is rising from highly developed industrialized nations in Western Europe. The smart lock market in Eastern Europe is expected to grow due to major changes in the economic system. Declining prices of devices are also responsible for driving the market growth. Many vendors are developing innovative and highly secure connected home devices that provide enhanced security for customer data and are also offering customized access and control systems to meet the specific needs of end-users. APAC to post a CAGR of over 82% by 2020 The APAC region is still unexplored, thus offering a substantial growth opportunity for the smart lock market. Many vendors are venturing in this region to expand their operations. Demand for smart locks is mostly seen from China, Australia, and South-East Asia, with China being the major contributor to the market in APAC, along with India, South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. Following the increased entry of tourists as well as the rise in start-ups that function as aggregators for rentals in APAC, the need for security has increased considerably. As the security provided by these monitoring solutions is strong and can prevent accidents at residences, the adoption rate of these smart locks in residences is high, especially in China and Japan. However, the market is still expected to pick up pace in India in due course. Browse Related Reports: Global Residential and Commercial Security Market 2015-2019

Interactive Residential Security Market in the US 2015-2019

Global Smart Security Market 2015-2019 Purchase these three reports for the price of one by becoming a Technavio subscriber. Subscribing to Technavio's reports allows you to download any three reports per month for the price of one. Contact [email protected] with your requirements and a link to our subscription platform. About Technavio Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. The company develops over 2000 pieces of research every year, covering more than 500 technologies across 80 countries. Technavio has about 300 analysts globally who specialize in customized consulting and business research assignments across the latest leading edge technologies. Technavio analysts employ primary as well as secondary research techniques to ascertain the size and vendor landscape in a range of markets. Analysts obtain information using a combination of bottom-up and top-down approaches, besides using in-house market modeling tools and proprietary databases. They corroborate this data with the data obtained from various market participants and stakeholders across the value chain, including vendors, service providers, distributors, re-sellers, and end-users. If you are interested in more information, please contact our media team at [email protected]. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160121005050/en/

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[January 21, 2016] Gold Reserve Provides Further Update to Legal Proceedings Related to Collection of Arbitration Award

Gold Reserve Inc. (TSX.V:GRZ) (OTCQB:GDRZF) ("Gold Reserve" or the "Company") is pleased to report on legal activities in France, the United States and United Kingdom relating to the collection of its ICSID (Additional Facilities) arbitral award currently approximating US $765 million, including accrued post award interest. France Today, the Paris Court of Appeal has rescheduled the arbitral award annulment hearing date for March 10, 2016. Both the Company and Venezuela have agreed to the new revised hearing date. Previously the hearing had been postponed from February 4, 2016 to October 13, 2016. United States The U.S. District Court in Washington, DC issued an order on January 20, 2016 confirming that a "reasonable period of time" has passed since the November 20, 2015 judgment confirming the ICSID arbitral award. As a result of the January 20, 2016 order the Company has filed a motion in the US District Court in Washington, DC requesting an additional order allowing the Company to register the judgment in other US District Courts to pursue the attachment of assets. United Kingdom In May 2015 the Company filed an application to have the ICSID award recognized and enforced in the United Kingdom. A three-day hearing regarding the application was held January 18th to 20th whereby Venezuela made similar arguments that it has made in other jurisdictions asserting among other things sovereign immunity and other merit issues. The Company is now awaiting the Court's ruling on these matters. Doug Belanger, President, stated, "The Company is vigorously pursuing the legal proceedings related to the collection of the arbitral award. We are very pleased the Paris Court of Appeal hearing will now be held March 10, 2016, as well as with the advancement of enforcement and collection efforts in both the United States and United Kingdom." Further information regarding the Company can be located at www.goldreserveinc.com, www.sec.gov and www.sedar.com.



CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS This release contains "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" as such terms are defined under applicable U.S. and Canadian securities laws (collectively referred to herein as "forward-looking statements") with respect to the ICSID Arbitral Award related to the wrongful actions of Venezuela that terminated the Brisas Project in violation of the terms of the Treaty between the Government of Canada and the Government of Venezuela for the Promotion and Protection of Investments (the "Canada-Venezuela BIT"). (Gold Reserve Inc. v. Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (ICSID Case No. ARB(AF)/09/1). Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by management at this time, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies such as, among other things, the Company's ability to collect such Arbitral Award.

We caution that such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other risks that may cause the actual outcomes, financial results, performance, or achievements of Gold Reserve to be materially different from our estimated outcomes, future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by those forward-looking statements. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of Gold Reserve's forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to Gold Reserve or persons acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by this notice. Gold Reserve disclaims any intent or obligation to update publicly or otherwise revise any forward-looking statements or the foregoing list of assumptions or factors, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, subject to its disclosure obligations under applicable rules promulgated by the SEC (News - Alert). In addition to being subject to a number of assumptions, forward-looking statements in this release involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results and developments to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including those factors outlined in the "Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" and "Risks Factors" contained in Gold Reserve's filings with the Canadian provincial securities regulatory authorities and the SEC, including Gold Reserve's Annual Information Form and Annual Report on Form 40-F for the year ended December 31, 2014, filed with the Canadian provincial securities regulatory authorities and the SEC, respectively. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160121006442/en/

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[January 22, 2016]

TOIN Awarded ISO 17100 Quality Certification for Language Services

TOKYO, Jan. 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Tokyo based TOIN Corporation, a provider of professional business translation and localization services, earns ISO 17100 certification. ISO 17100 is the new international quality standard for professional translation services, which provides assurances in terms of the personnel and processes used for translation projects.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160121/324546

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160121/324547

ISO 17100 sets quality requirements for translation core processes, resources, personnel and other factors to meet uniform international standards. Quality certifications can be especially important for industries that require strict translation accuracy and quality, such as medical devices and pharmaceuticals. ISO 17100 applies t human translation only, not to machine translation with post-editing or to interpreting services.







"TOIN formed a quality team to achieve this important certification," said Aki Ito, TOIN Director of International Operations. "We are seeing growth in industries that require the highest quality assurance, and this certification is a critical client need."

TOIN is also in the process of hiring a Quality Manager who will work with Ken Inoue, who recently joined TOIN as Director of Global Production for Translation and Localization.

TOIN Corporation is one of the longest established language services providers, with more than 50 years in the translation and localization industry. TOIN has operations in Japan, China, Korea, the United States, Brazil, Israel and the United Kingdom and provides translation, localization and consulting services to dozens of global clients in the computing, e-learning and training, consumer electronics, automotive, digital imaging, internet, software and other industries.

CONTACTS:

Aki Ito

Director of International Operations

TOIN Corporation

Email

Jeff Dalton

LocalizationGuy.com

Email

214-385-8691

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/toin-awarded-iso-17100-quality-certification-for-language-services-300207979.html

SOURCE TOIN Corporation
[January 22, 2016] Protrader Platform to Be Available With Top Brokers as the Standalone Front-End Application

GDANSK, Poland, Jan. 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- PFSOFT is proud to announce that they have just released a standalone front-end application branded as Protrader Multi-Connect (PTMC). The new version of this platform is addressed directly to traders, being their response to numerous requests coming from the traders' community, demanding the ability to use Protrader platform with world's most popular brokers. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160121/324748LOGO In the case of PTMC, they have decided to adopt different approaches in terms of connectivity. Unlike Protrader, which operates only with a native server, PTMC will be able to connect to the largest brokers through their client APIs, allowing traders to choose any of those brokers and kee on using PTMC platform.



Recently, Protrader has announced a new partnership with FXCM Ltd. integrating Protrader with their FIX API. Furthermore, they have finished integration of PTMC with FXCM's ForexConnect client API in order to enable a fully fledged trading with FXCM accounts using their front-end application. From now on, every trader having FXCM's account can start using PTMC without any additional actions. Their choice of FXCM was dictated by traders' votes, and PTMC team plans to add more integrations soon. Having over 13 years of experience in the development of trading platforms, PFSOFT has suited PTMC with intelligent tools for traders of different experience level and various trading styles. For the full list of features, please visit: http://protrader.org/features

Stay tuned for more details! Media Contact: Roman Nalivayko

Global Head of Business Development

+48 532 909 003 To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/protrader-platform-to-be-available-with-top-brokers-as-the-standalone-front-end-application-300208213.html SOURCE PFSOFT

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[January 22, 2016] EagleRider Simplifies Adventure for Brazilians Everywhere

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- As EagleRider becomes a household name across the world, all website versions are being reexamined for the highest standards of ease and convenience for citizens of all countries. The world's pioneer in motorcycle and travel experiences is proud to announce that the Brazilian website has been entirely revamped to maximize support for the millions of enthusiastic Brazilian men and women who make EagleRider their number one choice for a dream experience. EagleRider's Chief Technology and Product Officer Hal Oreif remarks, "It's no secret that Brazil has risen as a major player in the World and at this point in the nation's history more Brazilians than ever before have the ability and desire to explore and adventure. In the midst of these exciting moments, we're extremely happy that we did the work necessary to make their experience with our website easier than ever before. Now all the millions of citizens from one of the World's most beautiful countries can let their dreams run wild as we make them a reality." Check out the new Brazilian website and many of its hottest destinations below! Main Brazilian Website

http://www.eaglerider.com/aluguel-de-motos Popular Destinations

http://www.eaglerider.com/aluguel-de-motos/losangeles

http://www.eaglerider.com/aluguel-de-motos/lasvegas

http://www.eaglerider.com/aluguel-de-motos/chicago





http://www.eaglerider.com/aluguel-de-motos/sanfrancisco

http://www.eaglerider.com/aluguel-de-motos/denver Full List of Locations

http://www.eaglerider.com/aluguel-de-motos/localizacoes

Most Popular Guided Tours

http://www.eaglerider.com/aluguel-de-motos/passeios-de-moto/guiada-moto/rota-66-tour-guiado

http://www.eaglerider.com/aluguel-de-motos/passeios-de-moto/guiada-moto/wild-west-guiada-moto-tour Full List of Guided Tours

http://www.eaglerider.com/aluguel-de-motos/passeios-de-moto/moto-tours-guiados Most Popular Self-Drive Tours

http://www.eaglerider.com/aluguel-de-motos/passeios-de-moto/moto-self-drive/route-66-motorcycle-tour

http://www.eaglerider.com/aluguel-de-motos/passeios-de-moto/moto-self-drive/destaques-ocidentais-moto-tour-i Full List of Self Drive Tours

http://www.eaglerider.com/aluguel-de-motos/passeios-de-moto/moto-tours-self-drive ABOUT EAGLERIDER Pioneering the motorcycle rental concept in 1992, EagleRider has since extended its branches to become a motorcycle experience industry giant offering services of all kinds to assist and empower motorcyclists and travelers worldwide. Whether you simply would like to try out the motorcycle of your dreams or go on a great adventure in the self-drive and guided tours offered from any one of our beautifully located 100+ locations across the globe, EagleRider offers the world's favorite brands including Harley-Davidson, Indian, Honda and BMW in motorcycles as well as Scooters, Dirt Bikes, and ATV's. We also provide motorcycle service, parts, and accessories in addition to a vast array of solutions for individuals as well as dealers that are looking to buy and/or sell their bikes. For more information on rentals and tours, please visit www.EagleRider.com. If you are interested in buying and/or selling a bike, visit www.UsedMotorcycles.net. Our inventory of parts and accessories can be found at Store.EagleRider.com. Contact: [email protected] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160121/324757LOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/eaglerider-simplifies-adventure-for-brazilians-everywhere-300208294.html SOURCE EagleRider

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[January 22, 2016] IT Staffing Firm Optomi Expands to Charlotte and Promotes Market Leader From Within

ROSWELL, Ga., Jan. 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- As an organization dedicated to training, mentoring and promoting internal talent, Optomi is pleased to be expanding into the Charlotte, North Carolina market by promoting Matt Robinson (one of the firm's first employees) to lead the new branch as Managing Director. As Optomi continues to expand its national footprint, it remains committed to offering new opportunities to the internal team. Optomi CEO Michael Winwood remarked, "We could not be more thrilled to promote Matt Robinson into our Charlotte Managing Director role. Matt was one of our first hires in Atlanta and has been a consistent top performer. His passion for the industry and dedication has earned him this promotion. Optomi's 'promote from within' philosophy is foundational to our long-term success." This latest expansion continues Optomi's momentum as one of the fastest organically growing IT staffing firms in the US. Headquartered in Atlanta, Optomi also has offices in Chicago, Dallas, Baltimore/Washingon DC, Orange County, Detroit and now Charlotte. Charlotte has a wealth of experienced people across the IT field ,making it an excellent market for Optomi's niche skill-sets.



Optomi specializes in deploying project managers, business analysts and technologists in the ever- evolving spaces of mobile technology, information security, network engineering, business intelligence, cloud and application development. Optomi's niche approach and dedicated focus on higher-end IT skills enables the firm to better identify candidates with these in-demand skills. Expansion into the Charlotte area increases the capacity for the firm to supply IT jobs. By being well-positioned to serve Fortune 500 clients as well as mid-sized clients and start-ups through its skill-set focused strategy, the firm expects to be highly competitive in the region.

ABOUT OPTOMI, LLC

"DRIVING TOMORROW'S TECHNOLOGY WITH TODAY'S OPTIMUM TALENT."

Optomi is inspired by: optimumbeing the best...the ultimate. We are an IT staffing firm with a unique approach. Optomi has developed fresh philosophies as cutting-edge as the technology we represent. With a revolutionary consultant-focused approach, Optomi is completely dedicated to genuinely serving its consultants, clients and employees. By utilizing innovative technologies and developing industry leading recruitment processes, we are able to deploy the best project managers, business analysts and technologists in the ever-evolving spaces of mobile technology, information security, network engineering, business intelligence, cloud and application developmentmaking us a leader in the IT staffing world. Optomi was awarded one of the BEST PLACES TO WORK by Staffing Industry Analysts in 2014 & 2015 accomplishments never before achieved by a company in its first year of business let alone consecutive first years. Optomi's COO, Todd Black, was a 2015 Finalist for the prestigious EY Entrepreneur of the Year award. Optomi received three American Business Awards for the Fastest Growing Company of the Year, Best Management Team of the Year and Best Website Home/Welcome page. Optomi has recently been recognized as a 101 Best and Brightest Company to Work for. The privately held firm is trending to be one of the fastest growing companies in America. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160122/325054LOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/it-staffing-firm-optomi-expands-to-charlotte-and-promotes-market-leader-from-within-300208540.html SOURCE Optomi

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City Council discuss owner occupied home rehabilitation program

The $250,000 grant would be would be split between 15-20 city homeowners, who would be afforded up to $15,000 each for repairs to their homes.
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Extensive controls  particularly for app management, text monitoring, and location tracking  make this a great choice for parents who want some control over their childs mobile activity.

[Editor's Note: On March 5, 2018, the maker of PhoneSheriff and MobileSpy, Retina-X Studios, stopped taking new orders for either app. This followed a break-in into Retina-X's servers, the latest of several. The attacker is believed to be a hacker opposed to Retina-X's software, which some people consider spyware or an intrusion of privacy, because it can be used to monitor the activities of adults as well as children. In its announcement, Retina-X said it would be offering pro-rated refunds to customers of MobileSpy and PhoneSheriff.]

PhoneSheriff takes some patience to install, and its $89-per-year price tag (covering up to three devices) is steep compared with competitors'. (By contrast, the superior Norton Family Premier costs $50 and covers 10 devices.) But a robust feature set and easy-to-use service make it worth these headaches, especially for the tech savvy.

PhoneSheriff shines in the way it lets you restrict content and set time limits both via an admin panel and on the mobile device itself (which is often more accessible). It's good not only for monitoring the devices of preteen kids, but also for older parents who may be prone to falling for online scams.

If there's a downside to this highly robust app  which can log texts, location history, all the contacts on the phone and so much more  it's that there's almost too much to manage. It can be difficult to see what's been allowed, what's been blocked, who your child is texting and whjch sites the child is visiting.

The Good

PhoneSheriff lets you review every app on your child's phone, letting you block or approve them, though the admin panel can make it hard to see exactly which apps are installed on the phone. You can set filters that limit what your child can see when browsing, though the app doesn't include a special browser. And it's not foolproof; Hollywood gossip sites featuring inappropriate language made it through my filters.

MORE: Best Parental Control Software for Cell Phones

Where PhoneSheriff did successfully block content, the screen was blank. I would have preferred a warning message, such as the one Net Nanny provides telling the child why the site is blocked. On the plus side, PhoneSheriff logs each URL your child visits, and the admin panel makes it easy for you to view the content of those sites with a click. You can also establish daily browsing time limits and create a blacklist of sites the child can never access.

PhoneSheriff logs a number of different activities.

PhoneSheriff definitely stands out for monitoring texts. You can see every text your child sent or received, when it was sent and who the recipient or sender was. Reviewing texts and blocking people took a few too many steps for my taste, but I did like that you can set up both a blacklist and whitelist of phone numbers.

It's also possible to set a daily text limit, which ought to incite many an argument with your kids. There are some limited texting filters, which worked well in my tests. My profane texts were blocked outright.

PhoneSheriff can locate a phone, allowing you to lock and wipe it remotely if need be.

You can easily check your child's location history with PhoneSheriff, receiving updates in about 30 minutes. In my tests, the locations were never exact, but close enough to get a sense of where my child was. You can set up an alert when your child leaves a geofenced area, and you're able to lock and wipe the device remotely should it ever get lost.

And a new feature since our review of PhoneSheriff encourages children to check-in from their current location; parents will get an email, and that location appears on a map in the PhoneSheriff app. A text would seem to be more appropriate notification for check-ins, but the feature is a decent addition.

The Bad

Installing PhoneSheriff can be a pain. You can't buy it through Google Play  only through the company's site. Once you buy it, you must access an Android download file from the phone you're trying to monitor, installing the service on that device. You return to the Web-based admin panel to finish setup. It took me two tries to get everything working.

PhoneSheriff won't let you set time limits on a single app or website, but you can set limits by general activity.

As much detail as PhoneSheriff provides, I couldn't find a way to figure out how much time my kid was spending in any one app. I wanted to know if my child's 60 minutes on the phone was spent inside Chrome, Angry Birds, Facebook or somewhere else, and was disappointed when I couldn't get an answer.

PhoneSheriff lacks social-media-monitoring features. Avoid the service if that's your primary concern.

Bottom Line

The notion of being able to log just about every activity and track every site visited, every app and every text has its appeal, though be warned: It can turn into a deluge of data if you're not careful. A less-than-intuitive admin panel, complex installation process and firehose approach to data will frustrate some users. Still, PhoneSheriff gets so much right that it's a solid choice among parental-control apps.
In news thats sure to serve as a dream come true to rock fans around the world, Iggy Pop and Josh Homme are set to release a new, collaborative album this March, with a short tour to follow.

As the New York Times reports, the punk legend and the Queens of the Stone Age frontman began working on the album, titled Post Pop Depression, in secret and without a label, last January.

We paid for whatever ourselves, Pop told the New York Times. But it was made to be heard  not to be some quirky thing that we did with our own money.

Pop said Homme took me to a place Id never been, while the former Kyuss guitarist added, This was to go where neither of us had gone before. That was the agreement. And to go all the way.

Homme is fresh off of QOTSAs most acclaimed album to date, Like Clockwork, and a new Eagles of Death Metal album, while Pops last release came in 2013 with The Stooges Ready to Die.

The godfather of punk was reportedly living quietly in Miami when he reached out to Homme via text and asked if he would be interested in writing some songs, a chance Homme immediately jumped at.

After speaking on the phone, Pop sent Homme a package filled with potential lyrics, other writings, and notes about his Berlin days with David Bowie, as per Hommes request.

Three months later, Homme hit Pop with some work-in-progress poems and songs that hed been working on and the two finally decided it was time to hit the studio.

Today the sun will rise again, to bring a brand new dawn, A new world is coming, The old world is gone. So tightly kept in secret No longer now disguised Rising like the morning sun White light between the eyes #iggy pop #postpopdepression A photo posted by QOTSA (@queensofthestoneage) on Jan 21, 2016 at 4:53am PST

According to Pop, the pairs album will revolve around questions of legacy as one nears the end of their career. In American life, because its so hypercompetitive, what happens when youre finally useless to everyone except hopefully not yourself? he said.

What happens then? And can you continue to be of use to yourself? I had a kind of character in mind. It was sort of a cross between myself and a military veteran.

Post Pop Depression will feature nine tracks and was recorded at Hommes famous home studio in Joshua Tree, California, as well as his Burbank space, affectionally called Pink Duck.

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Musicians who appear on the album include QOTSA and Dead Weather guitarist/keyboardist Dean Fertita and Arctic Monkeys drummer Matt Helders, both of whom will join the tour, along with QOTSAs Troy Van Leeuwen on guitar and musician Matt Sweeney on bass.

He is the last one of the one-of-a-kinds, Homme said of Pop. This is a much deserved victory lap for a man whos not sure if he won. But he did. He may have tunneled underground for lots of that, but he still got to the destination.

Homme and Pop first worked together on the silent musical Gutterdammerung. Post Pop Depression will be released on 18th March. The duo will debut music this week on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.
Local garage pop heroes Gooch Palms have been AWOL recently. Having relocated to L.A early last year to play shows, record a new album (with Bill Skibbe) and drink heaps of watery beer, theyre now back home with a new single titled Tiny Insight and 12 other songs under their belt  all of which the band promise sound unlike anything theyve recorded previously.

Kat, one half of GP, says on making their new record titled Introverted Extroverts and set for release on their own label Summer Camp Records this June We had so much fun making it, it was awesome to work with Bill and be in a real studio for 2 weeks, something wed never done before. The songs are definitely more mid-fi this time around but are classic Gooch Palms, were really excited for our fans to hear it!

Their debut album Novos was released on cassette courtesy of tastemakers Burger Records on September 25 and European label Surfin Ki Records reissued the vinyl not too long ago, both releases come two years after the records initial Australian release back in 2013  better late than never.

Having lived stateside for a prominent potation of 2015 and having played over 70 shows across America, its clear the two piece know the US better than most, so to celebrate their visit back home and subsequent tour theyre taking us inside their favourite parts of their adopted city L.A. If youre planning a rock n roll holiday  take note.

Favourite Neighbourhood: Silver Lake

This one was easy cause its where we live. Our house is just off good old palm-tree-lined Sunset Boulevard and its a five second walk to some great places. Our bathroom has a view of the Hollywood Sign and were close to Echo Park, Downtown and well, everything really thanks to the millions of highways. Coming home to Silver Lake after a long tour really feels like coming home and we never thought wed feel that way in a foreign country, but we do! (Photo: thepeopleandthecity.tumblr)

Favourite Bar: Cha Cha Lounge

The night we arrived in Los Angeles at our new house, our (then) housemate Dan took us to Cha Cha and introduced us to everyone he knew. And lucky for us, hes a popular guy!!!

From that point on, its been our favourite place to go! Its a small, dimly lit and always crowded little Mexican themed bar in Silver Lake where our friends hang out and also DJ sometimes. Getting a booth is the goal and we like to drink the big blue margaritas! Whenever were not on tour, this is where youll find us. (Photo: @thegoochpalms Instagram)

Website: chachalounge.com/losangeles

Favourite Venue: The Echo

Whenever were looking for something to do and have nothing particular in mind we just look up The Echo website and see whos playing that night. There are a lot of great venues in Los Angeles but The Echo is our favourite.

Its close to our house and always has great bands playing for not a lot of money. Although one of the perks of playing with a lot of American bands is that we can often get door spots!!! Weve also played there a bunch of times and they treat bands really well and are able to have all ages shows where over 21s can still drink, so its always a good time for everyone! (Photos: @sehoops Instagram)

Website: theecho.com

Favourite Place to Eat: Toi on Sunset



This one was actually REALLY tough. We are definitely not foodies and arent searching all of Los Angeles for the best food but there are a lot of places we love to eat in Los Angeles for various reasons, and its not always the food.

The runners up are Canters Deli, Flore, Taco Delta, Vege Grill and the Glendale Galleria food court (haha, love that food court). But our go-to place to eat is the first place we ever ate a meal in LA back in 2008 when we stumbled across it on vacation and thats Toi Rockin Thai on Sunset. We were staying in West Hollywood and took a walk down Sunset to find a place for dinner.

We came upon this rock n roll looking Thai joint that had a bunch of Vegetarian options so we had dinner there. The walls are royal blue covered in a million cheesy old band and movie posters and wacky artworks. It may be because of the sentimental value this place has as our first American dining experience ever, but we just always come back to this place. Also, could be the purple wholegrain rice and Thai iced tea!!! (Photo: Toi Thai)

Website: toirockinthaifood.com

Favourite Store: Big Macs Liquor

This might make us seem like alcoholics but Big Macs is the store we visit the most and like to visit the most. Its about 100m from our front door and we are sometimes there multiple times a day. We love beer, what can we say!!?

But all the staff there are really friendly and always ask how were doing and how the band is going. We sometimes buy a scratchy or a candy bar but mostly Coors Light, Miller High Life, Budweiser or Pabst Blue Ribbon. We drink beer on tour every night so when we come home we like to keep the party going with the watery American lager we have grown to love!!! (Photo: @thegoochpalms Instagram)

Favourite place to spoil ourselves: Chateau Marmont

If we want to celebrate something exciting and drop a lot of money doing it, we go the The Chateau. Its ridiculously Old Hollywood and its fun ordering a bottle of wine for over $100. Theres ice in the toilet troughs and theres always an A-list celeb or two having a drink in the patio of the restaurant.

Its pretty much the opposite of anything else on this list but one thing you should know about The Gooch Palms is that we LOVE spoiling ourselves with the occasional extravagant experience! (Photo: @thegoochpalms Instagram)

Website: chateaumarmont.com

Favourite daytime activity: Parks

We like to hang out at parks in the sun now that we are a bit far away from the beach (its a big commitment to head to the beach from the city). Echo Park is sweet and we like walking around the lake or taking some beers down and sitting on a picnic rug with all the ducks.

We often go the the park under the Hollywood sign, Lake Hollywood Park, and look at all the dogs. La Brea Tar Pits are also cool and you can poke a stick in the tiny tar pits that they have all over the park and get some dinosaur tar on a stick and take it home!!! We also have a carpark out the back of our house that we like to drag out the banana lounges and make cocktails and sit around drinking in the sun with our housemates and friends. (Photo: Taylor Wong)

Favourite nighttime activity: Karaoke



Followed closely by rollerskating at Moonlight Rollerway, which we dont do as often as we should. But karaoke, whether its at a private room in Koreatown, public karaoke where everyone sings along with you at East LA institution Smog Cutter (which is worth visiting just to meet the infamous bartender, Joanne) or to our neighbours dismay, at home in our loungeroom with our housemates and friends, we just LOVE singing karaoke. Which is weird seeing as though all we do every night on tour is sing on stage but yep, karaoke is the best!

Upcoming Shows

29 Jan, 2016  Brisbane, QLD | The Foundry

30 Jan, 2016  Byron Bay, NSW | The Northern

04 Feb, 2016  Ballarat, VIC | The Eastern

05 Feb, 2016  Melbourne, VIC | The Curtin Hotel

06 Feb, 2016  Canberra, ACT | The Phoenix

19 Feb, 2016  Wollongong, NSW | Rad

20 Feb, 2016  Newcastle, NSW | The Cambridge

25 Feb, 2016  Sydney, NSW | Oxford Art Factory

Tickets and info at www.thegoochpalms.com
Bluesfest organisers have issued a response to recent controversial statements by Dr Steve Phillips, who claimed that the annual music festival has had a detrimental impact on the koala population inhabiting the festivals Byron Bay location.

Dr Philips recently claimed that of 20 surveyed koalas initially found close to the site of the northern NSW festival in 2010, none were alive today and that the noise from the festival, which stressed the animals and forced them to move, was the main cause of the deaths.

Dr Phillips further claimed that subsequent studies showed reports to council demonstrated the initial population had almost been wiped out and that of the seven koalas tracked with radio collars, three who were close to amplified music moved outside of their usual home range.

Bluesfest, who commissioned the study conducted by Dr Phillips group, Biolink, in late 2009/early 2010, have now rubbished Phillips claims, saying there is no scientific evidence to support his allegations  read their full statement below.

11 koalas were captured and collared, organisers write. Further koalas were sighted but not captured, and so details were not logged for future information of those koalas, and identification could not be determined.

We note that this was the first ever koala study done on the land of this nature and that a high number of the koalas were found at the time of capture to be diseased.

One previous study occurred a number of years prior to Bluesfests purchase of the site in 2007 but koala capture and collaring were not a part of this study.

Six of the eleven captured koalas died during the study (five from disease and one from stress as a result of being captured). Since that time, one more koala of the original eleven died.

Although Dr Phillips states that he thought there were 20 koalas potentially living around the site, no exact counts were made and there is no data available on any level that allows any scientist to make a statement as to those koalas survival (or otherwise).

Therefore we do not understand how Dr Phillips can make the statement that an additional 13 or more koalas died as a direct result of stress caused from the festival.

A scientist operating from data collected could not make such a statement, it simply does not exist. Furthermore Dr Phillips has not provided any data regarding the five koalas that died from disease, outlining what killed them from examinations done on the carcasses.

It is basic fundamental Science 101 that autopsies are performed, and cause of death determined.

Bluesfest responds to statements made by Dr Steve Phillips

We note with alarm that there have been claims by Dr. Phillips that of 20 surveyed koalas initially found close to the site of the northern NSW festival in 2010, none were alive today. He said the noise from the festival, which stressed the animals and forced them to move, was the main cause of the deaths.

Phillips also said subsequent studies showed reports to council demonstrated the initial population had almost been wiped out.

Dr Phillips further stated, of the seven koalas tracked with radio collars, that three who were close to where the amplified music occurred had moved outside of their usual home range.

Dr Phillips continued that two koalas died after the event. He says that their cause of death couldnt be established, but that he thought it was caused by the music.

Management of Bluesfest are concerned by these statements, and feel the public has a right to know all the details so that they may form their own opinion. We say that there is no data that Dr. Phillips can provide scientifically that backs up his statement. Artists who headlined Bluesfest 2010 and whos music reportedly stressed koalas include Jack Johnson, Crowded House, Jessica Mauboy, John Butler, Xavier Rudd, Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club & The Gipsy Kings.

Dr. Phillips group, Biolink did a study commissioned by Bluesfest in late 2009/early 2010 (the first full study done on the Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm site) and submitted a scientific report which states the following;

 11 koalas were captured and collared. Further koalas were sighted but not captured, and so details were not logged for future information of those koalas, and identification could not be determined.

 We note that this was the first ever koala study done on the land of this nature and that a high number of the koalas were found at the time of capture to be diseased. One previous study occurred a number of years prior to Bluesfests purchase of the site in 2007 but koala capture and collaring were not a part of this study.

 Six of the eleven captured koalas died during the study (five from disease and one from stress as a result of being captured). Since that time, one more koala of the original eleven died. Although Dr. Phillips states that he thought there were 20 koalas potentially living around the site, no exact counts were made and there is no data available on any level that allows any scientist to make a statement as to those koalas survival (or otherwise). Therefore we do not understand how Dr. Phillips can make the statement that an additional 13 or more koalas died as a direct result of stress caused from the festival. A scientist operating from data collected could not make such a statement, it simply does not exist. Furthermore Dr. Phillips has not provided any data regarding the five koalas that died from disease, outlining what killed them from examinations done on the carcasses. It is basic fundamental Science 101. that autopsies are performed, and cause of death determined.

Although he states that four koalas were found to be already compromised by disease prior to the 2010 festival and anothers carcass was found with puncture wounds, prior to the event, suggesting wild dog attack and another one in the report is listed as having died from stress of capture. All prior to Bluesfest 2010, yet Dr. Phillips states that they died due to stress from the music that occurred a number of months later. Please note that the capture methods since 2011 until now have not resulted in the loss of any koalas.

Although we acknowledge that the level of disease occurring on the site in the koala population in 2010 was disappointing it is not to be unexpected in a first time study involving capture. The next five years of study by the Koala Research Centre at the University of Queensland and the data provided, does not have the same outcomes as Dr. Phillips report in 2009/2010.

Dr. Phillips reports that three koalas went outside of their normal range exhibiting aversive behavior during the 2010 event, while another two went to the outer limits of their range which, although they were within their home ranges as defined by Dr. Phillips, he describes their movements as aversive. Please note that one of the three koalas was only captured one week prior to Bluesfest 2010 meaning that under accepted scientific standards a home range could not be determined as more sightings needed to occur over a period of time to determine the area the koala is utilising.

We also note that Dr. Phillips failed to report that a collared koala came closer to the area where amplified music was occurring during Bluesfest 2010 that is listed in his 2010 study.

There are an acknowledged scientific studies that determine the number of koala sightings that must be made in order to establish an individuals home range, which is not possible to establish within a one week period from initial capture. To state that the three collared koalas displayed aversive behavior is impossible under these recognised scientific guidelines that determine a koalas home range. Dr. Phillips knows this as he is a scientist.

We note that the movements of the two koalas reported to have moved out of their home range showing aversive behavior, were in both cases, located less than 100 metres outside of their estimated home range. Four subsequent year-round studies by the Koala Research Centre show through GPS tracking that the resident koalas use much larger areas than Dr. Phillips states in his study, which occurred over a 6 month period.

Dr. Phillips report also stated that koalas on the Bluesfest site exhibited smaller sized heads than is normal, showing potential inbreeding. We note that subsequent work by researchers from the University of QLD Koala Research Centre over a number of years failed to find one koala as described by Dr. Phillips. In addition, DNA testing of all koalas located on the site and captured shows that the koalas are normal and that there is no scientific basis for stating that inbreeding occurs.

We are concerned that Dr. Phillips is citing a six year old study, when a number of subsequent year-round studies have been done which do not support his assertions. However, of much more importance to the public interest is that Dr. Phillips recent media statements are not supported by the 2010 report undertaken by him.

The ongoing studies by the Koala Research Centre over a number of years at the site have found that the koala ranging is much larger than in Dr. Phillips 2010 report , where it states that ranges may be as small as 0.9 of a hectare. Note the ongoing studies by the Koala Research Centre are privately commissioned and are year-round studies using GPS tracking of koalas.

We also note the 2014 Draft Byron Coast Comprehensive Plan of Management (BCCPoM) prepared for Byron Shire Council by Dr. Phillips company, Biolink. It states that in a coastal area within which the Bluesfest site exists, that the average home range for each koala is 5 hectares. Obviously, this is a much larger area of ranging that Dr. Phillips states occurs on the Bluesfest site in his study. Dr. Phillips is using two very different ranging area sizes to support his statements. One for his report for BCCPoM and one altogether different for the Bluesfest study. We wonder why, unless each is designed to suit a different purpose by the proponent. Both cannot be correct.

We agree that the koala ranges in the Bluesfest site are much larger than what Dr. Phillips found in the one report he did in 2010. This has been established by GPS tracking of collared koalas from 2011 through until December 2015.

The study undertaken in conjunction with the Koala Research Centre from late 2011 and ongoing is NOT about counting koalas on the Bluesfest site. It is about improving the health of the koala population through capture and treatment. In 2013, motion sensor cameras were installed around our site which are regularly monitored. As a result 12 wild dogs have been trapped and humanely destroyed, and in the past two years not one koala has died as a result of wild dog attack. Other native wildlife on the site has also increased dramatically in numbers since that time.

The goal of our study is to have a healthy population of koalas, which breeds healthy young and increases in numbers of a healthy colony. We are advised that this study shows healthy koala populations can be created on fragmented bush land. What we would like to see is our governments invest into more koala programs of this type, as they are proven that they work in supporting local threatened koala populations.

Land owners should be encouraged to say I have koalas on my site and I am doing the right thing, as Bluesfest does. For in the end, negative attacks solve nothing except to make hysterical media reports that are not based on scientific fact and for motives easily disproved by data which must be called suspect.

The statements by Dr. Phillips are not supported by scientific data including that from his own report in his 2010 study.

The koala population on the Bluesfest site has stabilised and there are koalas with pouch young living in an area that Dr. Phillips previously stated that they will never reside in as a result of the volume occurring from Bluesfest stages. We also note that there are three to four other koalas living in that area that Dr. Phillips states no longer can live in that habitat. This is information from a study as recent as December 2015.

The Bluesfest site has an approved Koala Plan of Management issued by the NSW Department of Planning and Environment. We have met all of their requirements to cause this to occur, and as far as we know, we are the only event site in Australia to have achieved this.

It is also important to take into account the lifespans of Koalas  an 8 year old Koala is deemed old, a 10 year old koala very old, 12 year old koalas are fairly rare.

We are proud of our work to stabilise our koala population and of what we have done to improve the health of koalas on our site. We are disappointed by Dr. Phillips statement as they are disproved by his own 2010 study. We believe approximately 10 koalas live today on the Bluesfest site. The difference today is that they are healthy and if they contract disease it is soon discovered and they are treated.
JACKSON COUNTY EXEC MIKE SANDERS HIRING MARK SIETTMANN UNSETTLES KANSAS CITY DEMOCRATIC PARTY INSIDERS!!!

"Jackson County Executive Mike Sanders hired Mark Siettmann a Jeff Roe acolyte and Republican to be head of communications for the county. Why would a Democrat former state chair hire a Republican hack?"

To this, KICK-ASS KANSAS CITY INSIDERS respond: "Didn't he work for Funkhouser? Sanders is hooking up with Funkhouser rejects now?

Dead Tree Media is on this strange vendetta against Axiom but they're still good friends with Exec Mike Sanders and apparently more than willing to overlook this Axiom, GOP affiliation.

Kansas City Democratic Insiders are calling out County Exec Mike Sanders over a controversial staffing decision in the midst of GOP controversy and Axiom's ongoing Missouri political suicide drama.To wit . . .Here the word which explains the situation far better than TKC ever could:Now, our blog community remembers that Mr. Siettmann previously worked for ousted Mayor Mark Funkhouser and is always in and out of the office @ Axiom.To be fair, Mr. Siettmann was a calming influence in the office of former Mayor Funky and word is that cheerleader Cathy Jolly is now out of favor at the Courthouse, and that's why the Exec is bringing in the hired gun.But here's what's interesting . . .Thanks to our. . . The topic is now open for discussion rather than overlooked by reporters hoping for the next open 12th & Oak gig.Developing . . .
"Mike Shanin interviews Jackson County Executive Frank White about his priorities for the county after taking over the position following the resignation of Mike Sanders. Then Jon Stephens, Lisa Johnston, Steve Glorioso and Patrick Tuohey discuss the future of the earnings tax in Missouri, Governor Brownback's push for merit pay for teachers and Jeff Roe's influence on the 2016 presidential race."

Another stellar episode of Ruckus this evening as the Kansas City gold standard of political discourse earns a great interview and offers some key insights.Description . . .Take a look:You decide . . .
Craig Glazer: Oil Has Dropped Off The Map. Why Haven't Gas Prices?

A barrel of crude oil today is 28 dollars. Just over a year ago it was over 105 dollars. Remember gas rose in Kansas City to 4 dollars a gallon. There was talk daily of us 'running out of oil' in the years to come. We needed to drill in new areas to make sure we'd have oil and gas for cars. Some states talked about rationing gas like California where gas rose to 5 dollars a gallon.What happened? Now oil has dropped nearly 75% in cost. There is plenty of oil. Likely there always was. Over the last few years combat or unrest in the middle east or Russia would send gas prices and oil off the chart. We are still fighting and bombing. The area is still in turmoil. Yet oil has dropped to a ten year plus low.Isn't it odd that gas prices are still between 1.60 and 2.00 dollars. Pending on which type of gas you use for your automobile. Lets see is that a 75% drop in price? Uh, no. Gas should be closer to one dollar a gallon. Why don't we get the big break since the big boys aren't paying but 28 dollars a barrel for oil today?It seems gas prices are fixed based on what oil companies decide to charge. No kidding. Yes they have fallen more than a dollar a gallon this past year and we feel good about that, but its way more expensive than it should be today.Our government says little about price fixing on gas. They were sure loud about us running low on oil supplies not long ago. What can we do about it? Clearly not much but wonder. Why?################
More charges in Northeast KC area fire that killed two firefighters

Update on an ongoing case . . .A Kansas City woman who already was charged with setting a fire in her nail salon in Northeast Kansas City now faces additional charges in connection with the October 2015 fire that resulted in the deaths of two firefighters and the injuring of two others, Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker announced today.Thu Hong Nguyen, dob 6/20/1972, now faces the Class A felony of Causing Catastrophe and two counts of Assault in the 2nd Degree for the injured firefighters. She already faced two counts of Murder in the 2nd Degree for the deaths of two firefighters and an Arson in the 1st Degree. The additional charges were part of an indictment, released today and issued this week by a Jackson County grand jury.*According to court records, an ATF Special Agent with experience in investigating numerous fires states that two firefighters suffered serious physical injury in addition to the two firefighters who lost their lives. In addition, probable cause exists, the special agent stated, that the defendant set the fire and caused substantial damage to five or more inhabitable structures or buildings, including a 16-unit apartment building, placing persons in close proximity in danger of death or injury.Nguyen remains in custody on a $2 million cash bond.############
An important look at gun rights in Kansas City shows good progress. Then again,remind us thatwhich is fine but the tacit information release is often overlooked in the process. Concealed carry permit applications at Jackson County Sheriff no longer backlogged
AWESOME TKC TIPSTERS TELL US THAT LAST NIGHT KANSAS CITY'S POLITICAL ELITE GATHERED IN A SWANKY COUNTRY CLUB PLAZA HOTEL IN ORDER TO SHOW THEIR APPRECIATION TO RESIGNED EXEC MIKE SANDERS!!!

Thanks towe've want to share just a bit of Kansas City fun for Friday morning before we get a bit more serious . . .To wit . . .From what we hear it was a posh affair that played host to top Democratic party officials from around the state along with a few city council denizens.I'm not sure what they were celebrating given the current state of disarray for county government but that never stopped anybody from having a good time . . .Still, there are mixed messages in this send off . . . Mike Sanders says he isn't going anywhere and claims he's returning to private practice. Read betwixt the lines and a great many of these power players might have enjoyed this farewell party because they no longer have to pay the guy any mind.Either way, it's always important to realize that local power players can't conduct all of their celebrating in secret and this glimpse into the political good life should offer an idea that the cowtown ruling class doesn't really have much in common with the last remaining voters in Kansas City.You decide . . .
RE: Judge denies city's motion to dismiss downtown hotel lawsuit!

And it seems that Kansas City tax fighters finish the week on a triumphant note. Take a look . . .This is GREAT NEWS for the petitioners and indicates the Citys claim our petition is unconstitutional and illegal is not a valid position.At the same time, the Judge did allow the developers to partake in the suit. We elected not to fight this since all the facts have been stipulated to and no more evidence or arguments are admissible. There is really not anything the developers can add. Our suit was filed to get the City to honor the City Charter and allow the voters their right to vote on this matter. It really has nothing to do with the developers.It is important to get as many PATRIOTS as we can to attend the hearing to let the Judge ... and more importantly the City know how important it is for the taxpayers to have a say when we feel our tax dollars are being wasted. We hope to see you there.Citizens for Responsible Government##############
BUSTED PIPES IN MIDTOWN KANSAS CITY CAUSE OUTCRY IN WESTPORT GIVEN LOST BIZ, SLOW CITY RESPONSE TIMES AND A REMINDER ABOUT AGING INFRASTRUCTURE!!!

"Neighbors reported the break about noon on Thursday, but claim city crews didn't show up to shut off the line until more than three hours later.





"We weren't happy about it, about the response time," A Westport biz person said. "I wasn't happy about how most of the customer service handled our calls. We were, just if anything, we wanted to know when it is going to happen. If it's going to be three hours tell us it's going to be three hours. Don't make us wait and tell us to call back in an hour and a half, because nobody has shown up yet."

A few days before the Kansas City e-tax campaign kicks off, local biz people might be asking what they're getting in return for their money from city leaders.To wit . . .This kind of cold weather consequence could start a backlash that E-Tax advocates are looking to avoid.Here's the word:The money line . . .Meanwhile, Mayor Sly is taking a bow in D.C. with help from the Obama Administration, we're talking about a toy train streetcar extension and hoping that $18 million goes to good use in the 18th & Vine Jazz district on top of the $12 KCMO pays for the money losing P&L District every year.So, when KCMO residents suffer a crime spike,and poor services all around . . . Asking for more cash might be a tough proposition amid an overall global economic decline. You decide . . .
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Japan is a good place to travel because this is where you can eat real Japanese ramen, shop for hobby items, take a dip in public bathhouses and many other exciting activities.

Like in any other country, locals observe common courtesy that most have accepted to be true. These are but few of the many unspoken rules that everyone has come to follow in Japan.

In most places in Japan, it is customary to stand on the left side of the escalators to make way for people who are running late to use the right side. However in Osaka, this is practiced quite differently -- people stand on the right side of the escalator instead while people run on the left.

Leaving tips when you eat at Japanese restaurants is something they are not accustomed with. It is better to show them your gratitude through gesture instead.

In other countries, it is considered rude to loudly slurp your noodles when dining in restaurants or ramen houses. In Japan, however, people slurp their noodles because they believe it is the only way to savor the noodles entirely.

Despite the fact that English is the universal language, most of the people in Japan are unable to communicate using English. Only a minority are able to converse in English and most of them happen to be the young ones.

Almost all locations in Japan is highly populated, and this leads to a high tendency that people will have to wait in line for a few minutes. This is usually observed in restaurants, shopping malls and train stations. Some will even give up their post to find other options on where to eat, shop or get a ride.

Japanese people prefer nice and quiet, especially in public places. So it's best to keep the noise down or continue conversing elsewhere when you are in crowded places like trains.

Most of the locals do not take very well when seeing other people displaying their tattoos in crowded places like public bathhouses or hot springs. If you sport some permanent ink, try your best to hide them as much as you can.

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Ukrainian Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko and IFC Vice President Dimitris Tsitsiragos met at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday to discuss investment in the Ukrainian banking sector.

"Met Dimitris Tsitsiragos, IFC Vice President, Global Client Services. We discussed IFC's interest in supporting investment in the banking sector and new areas of private sector growth and investment as a result of EUDCFTA [the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area between the European Union and Ukraine] implementation," Jaresko wrote on Facebook.

While attending the World Economic Forum held January 20-23, Jaresko is scheduled to hold 15 working meetings with peers from other countries and the heads of international financial organizations, namely, the International Monetary Fund, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the European Investment Bank, and the International Finance Corporation.
Ukraine to continue buying all gas from Europe in near term

Lower prices of natural gas on the European market and its sufficient stocks in Ukraine's underground storage facilities let Ukraine do without Russian gas purchases, Naftogaz Ukrainy CEO Andriy Kobolev said.

"Now we're buying all gas on the European market. We don't need to change purchase tactics now. Especially when prices in Europe are better," he told reporters on the sidelines of the Victor Pinchuk Foundation's Ukrainian Breakfast 2016 in Davos, Switzerland, on Friday.

As of Friday morning, gas purchases in Europe were about 40 million cubic meters per day and the amount taken from the underground facilities was about 90 million cubic meters, Kobolev said.

He also admitted that theoretically there could be a situation when Ukraine would have to buy Russian gas if there were severe frosts.

"The end of February used to be the problematic period for the Ukrainian gas transport system," he added.

In his words, the Ukrainian gas pipelines are now working in usual mode.
Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is positive about the completion of the second review of the Extended Fund Facility program with Ukraine, which paves the way for disbursing a new tranche to the country.

"I think we had very good discussions that will help hopefully the conclusion of the negotiations on the memorandum which our teams are working on. And if they're successful in concluding that process  which I hope  we'll be able to have a board meeting in the near term to complete the second review," she told reporters after talks with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in Davos on Thursday.

"We had an excellent discussion, very productive. We discussed the latest economic development on the global basis and in Ukraine. We also discussed the reforms under way, and the latest development on the budget for 2016," she added.

"We're now discussing a future memorandum with the International Monetary Fund. We reach all the agreements," Poroshenko said in turn.

"And from my point of view, the ambitious program of reform is helping Ukraine in 2016. And I'd like to thank Ms.Christine Lagarde for that," he added.

The four-year Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program, which opened in March 2015 and totaled SDR 12.348 billion (around $17 billion according to the current exchange rate), with the first tranche of $5 billion, initially involved quarterly reviews of the program, disbursing three SDR 1.18 billion (around $1.63 billion) tranches in 2015, and reducing quarterly tranches in 2016-2018 to SDR 0.44 billion ($0.61 billion).

Ukraine was able to get only the first two tranches, the first one was partly ($2.7 billion) used to support its national budget; the rest of the funds went to the traditional recipient, the National Bank.

According to Ukraine's Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko, before making a decision on whether to grant Kyiv yet another tranche the IMF will be assessing compliance with all pre-conditions and structural 'beacons' that were to have been met before the end of December 2015. If these conditions were fulfilled successfully, IMF directors could meet to discuss disbursement of a third EFF tranche in late January-February.
IMF Board may decide on further cooperation with Ukraine under EFF soon

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) may soon decide on further cooperation with Ukraine under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF), the press service of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) reported with reference to NBU Governor Valeriya Gontareva.

"We've had a very constructive meeting with [IMF Managing Director] Christine Lagarde. Within the next few days we'll finalize technical issues with the IMF mission, and soon we could expect that our program will be submitted to the IMF Executive Board," the press service quoted Gontareva as saying.

At the same time, she stressed that further cooperation with the IMF was a strategic task both for ensuring financial stability in the country and conducting comprehensive structural reforms.
NJSC Naftogaz Ukrainy is justified in demanding double compensation from Russia's OAO Gazprom (for losses resulting from anti-monopoly violations in gas transit, the first deputy head of Anti-monopoly Committee of Ukraine, Maria Nizhnik, told journalists in Kyiv on Friday.

"If the Committee establishes facts of violations of anti-monopoly provisions, the organization whose rights are violated, in this case Naftogaz Ukrainy, can file in court for compensation that is equal to the sum twice the damage," she said.

The amount of the damage done to Naftogaz on this score is not subject to disclosure, she said, adding that Naftogaz would independently justify the figure and file for it.

The ongoing litigation between Naftogaz and Gazprom now in Stockholm arbitration is being conducted "on a similar, but not completely identical question," Nizhnik said. "There it concerns violations of provisions of the agreement [the transit contract]," she said.

The Anti-monopoly Committee earlier said it was fining Gazprom UAH 85.966 billion ($3.5 billion) for abusing its monopoly position on Ukraine's natural gas transit market.
Negotiations on Ukraine's debt to Russia may take place in Berlin in near future

Negotiations between Ukraine and Russia on restructuring of Ukraine's state debt may take place in Berlin in the near future, Ukrainian Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko said.

"We are always open [to negotiations with Russia on debt restructuring]. I am in the process of negotiations with our friends and partners in Germany," she told reporters at the Ukrainian Breakfast in Davos on Friday.

Jaresko recalled that German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble helped organize a meeting with Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov in Lima, Peru, in October at a meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank and participated in it.

Commenting on the negotiations with Schaeuble in Davos on January 21, Jaresko said he will help organize meetings with the Russian Finance Ministry in the future.

Jaresko also expressed regret that she could not meet with representatives of the Russian delegation in Davos. She said Kyiv is still open to negotiations on debt restructuring, but its conditions do not have to be better than the conditions on which debt was restructured for private creditors.

"We are open to possible restructuring, despite all our cases in various courts," Jaresko said. This is doable is the other side wants that, she added.

The $3 billion debt in eurobonds, which Russia acquired with National Welfare Fund funding in late 2013, was to be paid off by Ukraine by the end of December 2015. Ukraine declared a moratorium on the servicing of this debt. In response, Russia said it intended to defend its interests in court.

Ukraine failed to make a payment in the amount of $3.075 billion in eurobonds held by Russia by January 1, 2016. In that regard, the Russian Finance Ministry turned to the company Law Debenture Corporation, which is the creditor's guarantor, in accordance with the eurobond issue documentation, and initiated procedures needed to begin litigation. A lawsuit will be filed with a British court.

Siluanov earlier said Russia did not believe that dialogue with Ukraine was impossible, despite the start of the litigation.
Fitch Ratings on January 21 affirmed the Long-term foreign currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDR) of Bank Pivdennyi (PB) and Joint Stock Commercial Industrial & Investment Bank's (PJSC Prominvestbank, PIB) at 'CCC,' the rating agency said in a statement.

Simultaneously, Fitch withdrew PIB's ratings as the bank had chosen to stop participating in the rating process. Therefore, Fitch will no longer have sufficient information to maintain the ratings. Accordingly, Fitch will no longer provide ratings or analytical coverage for PIB.

Fitch says Pivdennyi's IDRs are driven by its standalone creditworthiness, as expressed by its 'ccc' Viability Rating (VR). The VR reflects weak asset quality, very limited additional loss absorption capacity and modest core profitability (net of one-offs), while Ukraine's operating environment remains difficult with resultant further pressures on asset quality, performance and capital. At the same time, the VR considers reduced liquidity pressures and the bank's access to additional liquidity sources through its Latvian subsidiary.

At end-3Q15, PB reported NPLs (loans more than 90 days overdue) at 11% of loans but restructured/rolled over exposures were a significant 39% of loans. Existing NPLs were reasonably provisioned and/or collateralized, although significant downside risks stem from restructured/rolled over loan categories, although the borrowers were reportedly performing under the revised schedules at end-3Q15. Fitch estimates that unreserved restructured/rolled over exposures equaled to a large 230% of Fitch Core Capital, while the bank's reliance on loan collaterals remains high. Lending in foreign currencies remains significant (58% of loans), while most of the borrowers are effectively unhedged.

Pre-impairment profitability (annualized, net of one-offs), at 1.7% of average gross loans in 1H15, provided only modest capacity to absorb new losses, while the origination of new NPLs (defined as increase in NPLs in the reporting period plus write-offs, divided by average gross loans) was around 5% in 9M15 (annualized). PB's equity cushion offered only low loss absorption (estimated at around 1% of loans at end-3Q15).

The recent asset quality review and capital stress test by the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) has revealed additional recapitalization needs of around UAH 600 million or 37% of end-3Q15 regulatory capital, although these could be executed up until end-2018. The bank is looking to achieve it through the prolongation of existing subordinated debt ($14 million due in October 2016) or new subordinated debt or other capital management measures. The regulatory forbearance allows sector banks to restore solvency only gradually with the new minimum requirement of 5% from September, 2016 (PB's regulatory capital adequacy ratio was 10.6% at end-3Q15).

Retail deposit outflow has been significant at PB, despite regulatory cash withdrawal restrictions in place from early 2014, although it moderated to 14% in 9M15 from 36% in 2014 (adjusted for FX effects). Liquidity pressures were off-set through increased shareholder deposits, term UAH-funding from the NBU, short-term FX placements by Latvian subsidiary and deposits from its few corporate clients (the latter at below market rates). Access to FX remains stretched in the country, so the stability of the highly dollarized deposit funding (57% of the total) is key to maintaining FX liquidity. PB's standalone FX liquidity cushion is moderate, although Fitch understands additional FX liquidity may flow directly or indirectly through the Latvian subsidiary, including from its clients placing their funds with PB.

The Support Rating Floor of 'No Floor' and Support Rating of '5' reflect Fitch's view that support cannot be relied upon due to the bank's limited systemic importance and the Ukrainian authorities' limited financial flexibility to provide extraordinary support to banks. Potential and support from the shareholders, while possible, is also not factored into the ratings, as it cannot be reliably assessed.

Fitch also says Prominvestbank's IDRs and National Rating factor in the likelihood of support the bank may receive from its foreign shareholder. PIB is almost fully owned by Russian state-owned Vnesheconombank (BBB-/Negative). The affirmation of the bank's 'CCC' Long-term foreign-currency IDR reflects the constraint of Ukraine's Country Ceiling (CCC), which captures the risk of transfer and convertibility restrictions and limits the extent to which support from the foreign shareholder of the bank can be factored into the ratings. PIB's Long-term local currency IDR also takes into account the country risks.

Fitch withdrew PIB's VR without affirmation due to insufficient information to assess the bank's current intrinsic creditworthiness.

Fitch says that Pivdennyi's ratings could be downgraded if further deterioration in asset quality results in capital erosion, without sufficient support being provided by the shareholders, or due to liquidity shortfall, in particular, in foreign currency, following deposit outflows.

Stabilization of the country's economic prospects, combined with strengthening of PB's loss absorption capacity, would reduce downward pressure on the ratings.

The rating actions are as follows:

Pivdennyi Bank:

- Long-term foreign currency IDR: affirmed at 'CCC;'

- Short-term foreign currency IDR: affirmed at 'C;'

- Support Rating: affirmed at '5;'

- Support Rating Floor: affirmed at 'No Floor;'

- Viability Rating: affirmed at 'ccc.'

PJSC Prominvestbank:

- Long-term foreign currency IDR: affirmed at 'CCC', withdrawn;

- Long-term local currency IDR: affirmed at 'B-', Outlook Negative, withdrawn;

- Short-term foreign currency IDR: affirmed at 'C', withdrawn;

- Support Rating: affirmed at '5', withdrawn;

- Viability Rating: 'ccc', withdrawn;

- National Long-term Rating: affirmed at 'AAA (ukr)'; Outlook Stable, withdrawn.
Gazprom said in response to a decision by the Ukrainian Antimonopoly Committee to fine it $3.4 billion that the regulator's powers did not extend to gas transit via Ukraine.

"This is a very surprising decision as Gazprom does not engage in entrepreneurial activity in Ukraine, it hands natural gas on the western border of the Russian Federation over to Naftogaz Ukrainy. The decision by the Ukrainian Antimonopoly Committee cannot be regarded as anything but an attempt to put pressure on Gazprom. Gazprom intends to defend its rights and lawful interests by all legally available means," Gazprom said.
The Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (AMC) has not considered an application of Swiss-based Glusco Energy S.A. regarding the purchase of the Rosneft fuel filling stations network in Ukraine because of incomplete information about control relations, first deputy head of the agency Mariya Nizhnik has told reporters in Kyiv.

"The application has not been considered because the submitted documents and information do not correspond to the requirements of the law... in particular the essence of the transaction and control relations have not been fully disclosed and a defective power of attorney for representing the interests of the buyer was provided," she said.

Nizhnik added that the company has the right to repeatedly appeal to the AMC.

As reported, the Rosneft network of fuel filling stations in Ukraine includes 141 objects in 12 regions, operating under the brands of Formula, TNK, Gold Cheetah (Zoloty Hepard), and Smile.

Glusco Energy S.A. is part of Proton Energy Group S.A. (Switzerland), an oil and petroleum products trader. In Ukraine the company's activity is based on diesel fuel supply via seaports. According to preliminary data, in 2015 Proton Energy supplied about 500,000 tonnes of diesel fuel to Ukraine. The global trade turnover of Proton Energy is about 3.5 million tonnes per year.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and EBRD President Suma Chakrabarti have discussed at a meeting in Davos the prospects for extending this bank's projects portfolio in Ukraine.

"We expect the expansion of EBRD projects' portfolio for the development of public transport, energy sector and utilities infrastructure," Poroshenko stressed, the Ukrainian president's press service reported.

Poroshenko noted that the EBRD is the biggest financial investor in Ukraine and thanked the bank for its consistent powerful support to our state.

For his part, Chakrabarti assured that the EBRD will remain a reliable partner of Ukraine in the implementation of reforms, particularly in the energy, banking sectors and the fight against corruption.

The interlocutors noted the importance of privatization of state enterprises in Ukraine.

Poroshenko and Chakrabarti stressed the key role of the EBRD in the projects for the cleanup after the Chornobyl accident. The Ukrainian head of state invited the EBRD president to visit Ukraine during the events to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Chornobyl disaster.
President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte had a talk ahead of forthcoming consultative referendum on the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU that will be held in the Netherlands on April 6, 2016.

The president has said he counts on further solidarity and unity of the EU in the issue of support for Ukraine's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, reported on the president's website.

"The parties emphasized the importance of maintaining sanctions against Russia for the non-implementation of the Minsk agreements. The interlocutors also discussed a series of issues of bilateral cooperation, particularly in economic and investment spheres, as well as in the area of technical assistance," reads the report.

Poroshenko congratulated Rutte with Dutch assuming of the presidency in the Council of the European Union.

In president's opinion, the DCFTA functioning, the decision by the Council of the European Union on the introduction of the visa-free regime for Ukrainian citizens in 2016 and the entry into full force by the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU are the key issues of the Ukraine-EU agenda in the first half of 2016.

The head of state confirmed the interest of the Ukrainian side in the forthcoming visit of the Dutch business mission headed by the foreign trade minister, as well as in the holding of a large-scale Ukrainian-Dutch business forum in the Netherlands.
News Oct 19th, 2022 at 15:35

The cloud-native IT will continue to be offered as a stand-alone product as well as integrated with the Guestline platform
Over the past few years, Mustang, as a tourist destination in Nepal, has transitioned from where is it? to wow, I just cant wait to be there.



(TRAVPR.COM) NEPAL - January 22nd, 2016 - Over the past few years, Mustang, as a tourist destination in Nepal, has transitioned from where is it? to wow, I just cant wait to be there. Only a few years ago it was nobodys been there, now its heading towards last chance to see!

Despite being a far-western chunk of Nepal, the Lo Manthang or Mustang as you may call it is often referred to as little Tibet or the last forbidden kingdom; one of the reason of this nomenclature could possibly be Mustangs proximity to Tibet. This secluded region of Nepal lies to the north of the Himalayan watershed and on the Tibetan plateau, just south of the border with big Tibet, the Chinese one.

Life in Mustang revolves around tourism, animal husbandry and trade. Apart from nine kilometers between Chhusang and Syangboche (just south of Ghiling (Geling)), it is bisected, as of August 2010, by a new road linking it to the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) to the north and to the rest of Nepal to the south. The highest point would be 4660 m at Kora La Pass on the Mustang-TAR border. Currently, the easiest and only widely used road corridor, from Kathmandu to Lhasa via the Arniko Rajmarg (Arniko Highway), traverses a 5125 m pass.

Mustang is an abode to one of the worlds greatest archaeological mysteries. This dusty, wind-savaged place and arid landscape, hides within the Himalaya deeply cleaved by the Kali Gandaki River and is dotted with an extraordinary number of human-built caves enticingly tucked on the giant rocky walls. Some sit by themselves, a single open mouth on a vast corrugated face of weathered rock. Others are in groups, a grand chorus of holes, occasionally stacked eight or nine stories high, an entire vertical neighborhood. Some were dug into cliff sides, others tunneled from above. Many are thousands of years old.

The history of these enigmatic caves is pretty hazy. Some believe these caves and cavities on the rocks served as the battlements in the then kingdom of Mustang. Seven hundred years ago, Mustang was a bustling place: a center of Buddhist scholarship and art, and possibly the easiest connection between the salt deposits of Tibet and the cities of the Indian subcontinent. Salt was then one of the worlds most valuable commodities. According to Charles Ramble, an anthropologist at the Sorbonne in Paris, Mustang during its heydays, was characterized by the caravans moving across the regions rugged trails, carting loads of salt.

Mustang has an average elevation of 13,000ft and is located to the north of the mountain giants of Dhaulagiri and Annapurna. It is therefore north of the main Himalayan range and geographically is part of the highlands of Tibet. It is a vast high valley, arid and dry, characterized by eroded canyons, colorful stratified rock formations and has a barren, desert like appearance.

Naturally, most of the history is now a matter of legend rather than recorded fact, but it seems clear that Lo was once part of Ngari, part of Tibet and a rather loose collection of feudal domains. It was incorporated into the Tibetan Empire under one of the most famous of the Tibetan kings Songtsengampo. It was an important means of crossing the Himalaya from Tibet to Nepal, and many of the old salt caravans passed through Mustang. Over time, much of Ngari became part of the Malla Empire, whose capital was Sinja in western Nepal. It became an independent kingdom in its own right, under the rule of Ame Pal, the founder king of Lo in 1380. The present royal family can trace its history some 25 generations back to Ame Pal, and the city of Lo Manthang, was the centre of their power.

http://marrontreks.com/itineraries/178-25/annapurna-round-mustang-trek-23-days.html

http://marrontreks.com/itineraries/118-25/upper-mustang-trek-16-days.html

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EcoDomum is turning an environmental problem into a housing solution.

When Mr McGuire dropped his epic 'one word' on Benjamin in The Graduate, little did we know that the 'great future' in plastics would also include an epic environmental boondoggle. Once lauded as a dream material, plastics is now one of our technological advances that is contributing to massive global pollution. That great future from plastics has come, boosted the mass production of both the useful and the wasteful, and is leaving a toxic legacy all over the world. The ease with which plastics can be molded into a bazillion different complex yet lightweight shapes, and then pumped out by the thousands millions has enabled an entirely new sort of industrial revolution, which perhaps could best be described as the disposable revolution.

One-offs and single-use items are easily and cheaply made from plastic, and although they're only meant to last for one task, the material itself lasts for an incredibly long time. There are all kinds of questions about the impact of plastics on the environment, and estimates for how long it takes for the materials to break down into something relatively inert, but we don't really know how long plastic objects and their components last in the environment. It's only been less than a hundred years since the introduction of most plastics to the world, with some of the most common, polypropylene and expanded polystyrene (styrofoam) not being invented until the mid-1950s. Some of this stuff could last forever, for all we know.

And maybe, just maybe, that longevity could be one key element of building affordable housing, at least in some parts of the world, where poverty and plastic waste seem to go together. A startup in Mexico, EcoDomum, is using plastic waste as a raw material for creating low-cost wall and roof panels, and a subsidized housing program underwrites some of the cost, with families only paying some 5,000 pesos (~$280 US) for a 430 ft2 dwelling.

The panels, which measure about eight feet long, four feet wide, and one inch thick, are said to be not only durable and impermeable, but affordable as well, and are produced by EcoDomum's plant at the rate of 120 per day. That works out to some 5.5 tons of plastic waste being converted from trash to building materials every day, just from one small plant. A simple house uses about 80 of these panels, and according to founder Carlos Daniel Gonzalez, includes about two tons of plastic, and can be built in about a week.

According a post on Unreasonable.is, the process is rather simple:

"First, the company collects all kinds of used plasticfrom soda bottles to old toysand separates it to find the types that melt without emitting harmful fumes. Then, they put the plastic into a machine to chop it up. Next, the pieces are placed in an oven that heats up to 350 degrees Celsius (over 600 degrees Fahrenheit), taking approximately half an hour to melt all of the material. Finally, the liquid goes through a hydraulic press, which simultaneously compresses and crystallizes the plastic into the shape of the panels."

Not only does this project have a lot of potential for creating more affordable housing for people living in poverty, but it also may help stimulate the local economy (and clean up the environment) by working directly with trash collectors to pay higher wages in exchange for a constant supply of the raw materials for the EcoDomum plant.

 EcoDomum

EcoDomum has already built more than five hundred of these plastic panel houses in several cities in Mexico, and is working on contracts for several hundred more, with the company's goal being to move into a larger working space and to expand throughout the country in 2016.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko held a meeting with Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Norway Erna Solberg in Davos, where the parties discussed the situation in Donbas and Russia-occupied Crimea, along with the reform process in Ukraine.

"The head of state informed the prime minister on the situation in Donbas, in particular, Russian attempts and those of Moscow-controlled militants to escalate the security situation in the region, and also on the human rights violations in the Russia-occupied Crimea. Interlocutors emphasized the importance of retaining sanctions against Russia as an efficient mechanism to prompt it to fulfill Minsk agreements," reads the statement released by the press service of Ukraine's head of state on Thursday.

Ukrainian president reported on large-scale reforms in the country. The Norwegian prime minister noted efforts of the Ukrainian authorities and assured that Norway would continue to support Ukraine on its way of profound changes.

Poroshenko also accepted Solberg's invitation to visit the Kingdom of Norway in 2016.
Ukraine's president's envoy for peace urges ICRC to do its best to liberate captives in Donbas

Ukrainian president's envoy for peaceful settlement of the situation in Donbas Iryna Heraschenko has said that Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko bears a personal responsibility for the liberation of captives in Donbas.

"An issue of the liberation of captives [both kept by militants, political prisoners] is under the personal control of Ukrainian president. There is no such international meeting, which wouldn't cover this issue as a key non-implemented humanitarian clause of the Minsk Agreements," Heraschenko wrote on her page in Facebook as the press service of the Bloc of Petro Poroshenko said on Thursday.

She also said that Ukraine from the first days of the work of the Minsk subgroups insisted on involvement of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to search of people missed and release of the hostages.

"Unfortunately, the militants by now block an access of the mission to the prisons. This is also a bright fact what their words worthToday the president discussed with ICRC President Peter Maurer cooperation with ICRC over search and liberation of [Ukrainians]," Heraschenko said.
Simran Sodhi

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 21

French architect Le Corbusier connects France to India through Chandigarh. The French want to take this old connection forward and re-engage with the City Beautiful to make it the best Smart City of the 21st century that will attract foreign investment and help the city retain its title of being the best city in the country.

Speaking to The Tribune, Frances Ambassador to India Francois Richier today emphasised the need for taking forward the old French connection with the city. The Ambassador said: Given its beauty and lively culture, Chandigarhs reputation is enough to justify the French Presidents visit to the city.

President Francois Hollande, who is the chief guest at the Republic Day parade this year, arrives in Chandigarh on January 24. He will spend a few hours in the city before leaving for Delhi.

Richier pointed out that Le Corbusier was born in Switzerland but became French after marriage. Le Corbusier was French when he came to Chandigarh and this double culture is very important.

It was this old connection that drew a large number of French tourists to the city every year. We had an exhibition on Chandigarh in Paris last year highlighting not just the Corbusier connection but also other aspects of the city.

France, which has committed to developing Chandigarh along with Nagpur and Puducherry under the Smart City project, looks to lay special focus on City Beautiful.

Richier said Chandigarh with its culture and skilled people would attract more foreign investment once it got the Smart City tag. To this effect, the French President will meet CEOs from several Indian and French companies in the city and a number of agreements are expected to be signed.

On whether high-rise buildings should be allowed in the city, he said: It is an Indian city and a Union Territory. It is neither our responsibility nor our right to get into a discussion on this. But he emphasised that France was ready to partner in the development of Chandigarh. He hoped the application to grant world heritage status to Chandigarh would go through at UNESCO this year.

On the turban controversy, the Ambassador said there was no ban as such on the wearing of turbans by Sikhs in France. He pointed out that there was a strong consensus among the French people in this regard and the law was against any ostensible religious signs, which included the Christian cross and the Islamic scarf. But the rule was applicable only in French government schools.

If you ask the French about the role of the Indians in World War-I, everyone remembers the sacrifice of the Sikhs, the envoy added.

French Presidents India visit

Day 1 Jan 24 in Chandigarh

French President Francois Hollande will stay in Chandigarh for almost five hours and PM Narendra Modi will accompany him throughout the visit

1 pm Will land at the Chandigarh airport

3 pm To visit Rock Garden, Sector 1

3.30 pm To visit Government Museum and Art Gallery, Sector 10

4.50 pm Will address the Indo-French Business Summit to be attended by business tycoons at Hotel Taj

In evening, will fly to New Delhi

Day 2 Jan 25 in Delhi

10 am Will attend formal reception at Rashtrapati Bhavan

11.15 am To meet External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj

12 noon To meet the PM and sign MoUs at Hyderabad House

3.30 pm Will inaugurate Solar Energy Secretariat in Gurgaon

8 pm To attend banquet hosted by President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan

Day 3 Jan 26 in Delhi

To attend Republic Day parade

Will meet the French community and attend French Embassy programmes

5.20 pm Will receive formal farewell at Rashtrapati Bhavan before leaving for France

 Nitin Jain
PK Jaiswar

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, January 22

Following intelligence inputs regarding the suspected terror attacks in Punjab on Republic Day, the Punjab police have been on a high alert.

The police are on their toes as the state-level function of Republic Day celebrations is being held in the holy city. A company of the Border Security Force (BSF) has already been provided to the city police while more companies of paramilitary forces are expected to arrive in the next couple of days. The police from other districts have been summoned to the city for security reasons.

The security has been tightened after a taxi which was hired by three suspects in Kangra district in Himachal Pradesh went missing while the body of the driver was found from Kalta Bridge in Kangra. Three unidentified persons had hired the taxi from Pathankot. The Delhi police have issued an alert and posted the pictures of the three suspects on its social networking sites to find clues.

According to the intelligence inputs, the Pakistan-based terrorists could strike at vital installations including railway stations and military installations on Republic Day.

Following intelligence inputs, top-most cops have held a meeting with the Army authorities and officers of the IAF of the local air force

Police Commissioner Jatinder Singh Aulakh confirmed the intelligence inputs regarding the terror threats which are doing the rounds. He said tight security had been maintained by the city police by holding regular nakas, carrying out checking drives and patrolling in and around the city. He said police officials of the neighbouring districts were also in close contact with the city police and all information pertaining to the security measures and alleged threats was being shared.

He also confirmed the meeting with Army and Air Force officials, but did not divulge the details due to security concerns. It is learnt that security around the Army cantonments and the Air Force station and other vital institutions has been beefed up.

The district administration and police officials today visited Guru Nanak Stadium where the state-level function would be held to overview the security arrangements. Besides Aulakh, among those visited the stadium included Deputy Commissioner Ravi Bhagat, ADC TPS Sandhu and ADCP Dhruman Nimbale.
S Nihal Singh

THERE is delicious irony in the sweeping victory of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in Taiwans presidential election in the shape of the first female candidate Tsai Ing-wen to win the top political post in a Chinese national entity in modern times. Ms Tsai, a 59-year-old legal expert schooled in London and the United States, is a practical person in her independence-leaning party and has promised to work for stable cross-Strait relations without being provocative.

The irony is in mainland Chinas response warning of consequences if Taiwan did not adhere to the one China policy. Indeed, a 1992 consensus was arrived at between the two sides, with widely differing interpretations because Beijing considers the island nation of 23 million people as part of China. The Nationalists retreated to Taiwan following their defeat at the hands of Communists in the bloody civil war. Despite her measured victory speech, Ms Tsai emphasises Taiwans separate identity even as KMT, the once mortal foe, has become Beijings friend.

Indeed, the worlds consensus is that the next move is Chinas, given its disappointment with the defeat of KMT president Ma Young-jeou, who opened up Taiwan to Chinese investment, tourism and direct transport links. Indeed, his economic policies led to a major students protest last year over fears that the island nations trade was being tied too closely with Chinas.

Much depends upon President Xi Jinping. He has been following an assertive foreign policy towards his goal of measuring up to be the worlds No. 2 power. He once governed a Chinese province across the Strait and is familiar with the territory. The first shot Beijing fired was to warn Taiwan to give up its independence hallucinations. The word from Beijing is that no one dares give the President advice on future policy because they do not know which way he will jump.

There is little doubt that the impressive victory of the DPP  it also won a majority in the legislature for the first time  was powered by the young who cherish their Taiwanese identity, which Ms Tsai has emphasised. And the greatest threat to Chinese leaders is the contagion of democracy so impressively demonstrated by a Chinese society next door. Given modern technology, censorship is no longer foolproof and a comment tweeted in China raised the question, why isnt Chinas leader popularly elected?

China is Taiwans largest trading partner even while thousands of missiles are directed at the island. Ms Tsai has made clear that everyone must respect Taiwans identity even though she knows that Beijings consistent policy is to restrict Taiwans international space. Ms Tsai has already pledged to defend Taiwans sovereignty and separate identity. In a sense, Beijings dilemmas are greater because it has to balance its desire eventually to absorb the island with its stature as the worlds No. 2 power. The mood on the island is definitely more nationalistic because unlike their parents, the young have no memories of life on the mainland and cherish their freedom.

If the obvious answer is for the Chinese leadership to let tempers cool down and rely on the two peoples interdependence eventually to undertake what Beijing believes is an inevitable union, disturbing developments in Hong Kong pose problems. Under the treaty signed between Britain and China, Beijing promised a regime of one country, two systems by continuing the ex-colonys freedoms and rule of law for 50 years. Yet Beijings interference in the former British colony grows by the day. To the worlds discomfiture, at least five publishers have disappeared, apparently spirited away by the mainland authorities for belonging to a publishing house that specialises in books on the private lives of mainland leaders.

The Hong Kong protests and the Taiwan landscape are reminders of the pitfalls that lie ahead for the Beijing leadership. President Xis motto is to preserve and strengthen the supremacy of the Communist Party of China at the cost of freedom and rule of law. Yet for an increasingly literate and educated Chinese population, going against the 21st century trend of proliferating democratic societies, keeping millions boxed in is an uphill task.

Taiwans dilemma is not limited to China. The United States is also dancing on pinheads. Its immediate response of seeking cross-Strait peace is the easier part. But it is also committed to defending Taiwan in the eventuality of an attempted forced takeover and continues to supply the island with defensive arms, a recent supply inviting Beijings protests.

In realpolitik terms, Washingtons relations with Beijing are too important to be sacrificed for Taiwan. On the other hand, the awkward formula that led to full diplomatic relations with Communist China had to be balanced by Washington with the fig leaf of support for the island.

The clout that China exercises is plain from the fact that world leaders are refraining from meeting with the exiled Dalai Lama for fear of offending Beijing. Although the Chinese economy, which was growing at breakneck speed for decades, has slowed down, its ambitions have not been trimmed. Witness the revival of the ancient Silk Road underpinned by Beijings promise of throwing billions of dollars at the project. And despite neighbours objections underpinned by American support, China is accelerating, rather than stopping, its conversion of submerged islands in the South China Sea into bases.

However, in some ways Beijing has met its match in deciding on the future of tiny Taiwan. One reason is the success of a Chinese nation in demonstrating its ability to follow a democratic path after initial years of dictatorship, despite being hemmed in by its giant neighbour which proclaims one China policy from the housetops.

Much will depend upon how the Chinese and Taiwan leaders negotiate their differing and conflicting interests by avoiding the pitfalls. In the ultimate analysis, the question boils down to President Xis patience to bide his time till a new situation arises, as and when it does, to make one China a reality.
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 21

The CBI today moved the Delhi High Court challenging a Special Judge's order of Wednesday asking it to return the documents seized during its raid at the office of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's Principal Secretary Rajendra Kumar at Delhi Secretariat.

CBI counsel Sonia Mathur mentioned the matter before a Division Bench comprising Justice B.D. Ahmed and Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva, seeking a stay on the lower court's order in view of the investigation being in progress. "We really need the documents. Witnesses are yet to be examined," she said.

Mathur submitted that the premier investigating agency could not give documents to someone who was not related to the case.

The Bench allowed the CBI's petition to be heard and listed it for hearing later.

The court of CBI Special Judge Ajay Kumar Jain had on Wednesday directed the investigating agency to return some documents seized by it during the controversial raid, while disposing of an application of the Delhi Government. The court had made some strict remarks on the manner in which the search was carried out and the documents were seized.

Posting the matter for further hearing on January 25, the court has sought a response from the Delhi Government on the agency's plea seeking quashing of the Special Court's order.
Tribune News Service

Jammu, January 22

The Islamic State (IS) has threatened to expand its war against India and reconquer Kashmir for Muslims from the cow-worshipping Hindus.

In an interview published in the 13th issue of Dabiq allegedly given by Hafiz Saeed Khan, the emir of Khorasan (Pak-Afghan area), the IS propaganda magazine has labelled the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) as an apostate and claimed that specific arrangements have been made to expand the caliphate in the region.

The Khorasan region historically extends from the present day Iran to Afghanistan, Pakistan, Turkmenistan and China.

It (Kashmir) had once been under the authority of Muslims along with the regions surrounding it. Afterwards, the secularistthe cow-worshiping Hindus and atheist Chinese conquered other nearby regions, as is the case in parts of Kashmir and Turkistan, Saeed has reportedly said in the interview to the magazine.

The news item referring to the interview has been carried out by several media outlets in India. This is the second time that the IS faction in the Af-Pak region has threatened to expand war in Kashmir and India.

A few months ago, the group targeted the Pakistan army over exploiting various Islamic organisations on the issue of Kashmir for their personal interests.

Though security agencies have so far ruled out any serious threat in Kashmir from the Islamic State, youths have been seen displaying the IS flags during protests in the Kashmir valley, worrying the security agencies and the state police.

Security agencies also see this as an open threat and a challenge to the LeT and the Hizbul Mujahideen, operating in Kashmir and carrying out attacks against civilian and military targets since the eruption of insurgency in 1990.

It could also fuel a sectarian conflict in Jammu and Kashmir as the IS follows an anti-Shia, Salafist ideology and has killed Shias and other ethnic groups in Syria and Iraq.
Introduces brother Tassaduq to young entrepreneurs from Valley

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, January 22

In her first public interaction since the death of her father, Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti today met young start-up entrepreneurs of Kashmir.

While the PDP maintains that it was an apolitical meeting and was fulfilment of one of the last wishes of former Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, the meeting gains significance as it was held at a time when there is suspense over government formation in J&K and Mehbooba is keeping everyone, including its alliance partner BJP, guessing.

During the three-hour meeting, nearly 50 start-ups shared their success stories and the difficulties that were being faced by them. Mehbooba listened to them keenly and assured them that she would address their issues as a Member of Parliament.

Mehboobas brother Tassaduq Mufti also attended the meeting and interacted with the young entrepreneurs.

Tassaduq has some ideas and he too wants to listen to young people, Mehbooba told the young entrepreneurs while introducing her brother to them.

There has been widespread speculation that that the 45-year-old cinematographer son of the late Chief Minister may join politics. This is Tassaduqs second meeting in the last few days. He also attended the PDP core group meet on January 17.

It is not an official function and this meeting is not between the government and entrepreneurs. It is a meeting between an MP and entrepreneurs of Kashmir. We will help you in whatever way we can, Mehbooba said. When Mufti Saheb was in ICU at AIIMS, he had reminded me about meeting you all. I am fulfilling his wish.

An organiser of the event said the former Chief Minister had planned to constitute awards for these start-ups. As Mufti Saheb is no more, the idea behind this meeting today was to appreciate the efforts of these young entrepreneurs, he said.

The entrepreneurs who were part of the meeting said such interactions should be frequent so that the government could be in direct touch with young people of the Valley who otherwise feel alienated.

A budding entrepreneur who was part of the meeting said Mehbooba Mufti was keen to listen to new ideas and seek suggestions from the participants.

I told them that I am organizing a young Kashmiri leaders summit in New Delhi. They welcomed the idea and said they would provide support, said Ahmer Khan, who runs an event management company.

Box

Farooq visits Muftis residence

National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Friday visited the residence of former Chief Minister Mufti Mohamamd Sayeed and extended his heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family, including PDP president Mehbooba Mufti. Farooq visited Mufti's residence as soon as he returned to Kashmir on Friday, an NC spokesman said.
Mukesh Ranjan

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 22

Ahead of the Republic Day and also in view of the impending threat from the Pakistan-based terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad, security agencies, including the National Investigation Agency (NIA), in a coordinated operation on Friday picked up 14 suspected terrorists from different locations in the country.

Official sources in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) confirmed that of the total 14, five have been arrested, including their leader Muttabir Mushtaq Sheikh, who has been picked up from Mumbra in Mumbai.

Those who have been picked up include three from Mumbai, four each from Hyderabad and Bangaluru, one each from Mangalore, Lucknow and Tunkur.

An MHA official said these persons have been apprehended as they were under security agencies' radar for quite some time.

Those five arrested include two from Hyderabad, and one each from Mumbai, Bangaluru and Mangalore.

The NIA gave the names of those arrested as Muttabir Mustaq Sheikh from Thane district near Mumbai, Mohammad Nafees Khan of Hyderabad, Mohammad Shareef Mounuddin Khan of Hyderabad, Najmul Huda of Mangalore and Mohammad Afzal of Bangalore.

Though the MHA official denied that these suspected terrorists have any link with the ISIS, he said they were found collecting materials for IED, trying to hold a terror camp and had arranged Rs 5 lakh from unkown sources.

MHA sources also revealed that former IM terrorist Safi Armer is believed to be the 'leader' of the suspected terrorists. Agencies have no clue about his whereabouts.

So far, following the detention of the terrorists, there is no indication that they were planning to do anything in Delhi.

They all have been picked up under prevention of the Unlawful Activities Act.
Praful Chander Nagpal

Our Correspondent

Fazilka, January 22

After his anticipatory bail was rejected by the Punjab and Haryana High Court yesterday, Shiv Lal Doda, Akali leader, who is a prime accused in the murder of a Dalit youth, surrendered before the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Fazilka, this afternoon.

Accompanied by a group of supporters, including SAD Abohar circle president Ashok Ahuja, he entered the office of SSP Inder Mohan Singh Bhatti and surrendered at 3 pm.

Doda looked tense as he came out of the SSPs room and proceeded towards the office of the SP (D). His supporters were asked to leave the SSP's office.

The SSP said that Doda had been arrested after the surrender and sent to the CIA staff in Fazilka for interrogation in the Bhim Sen Tank murder case. He will be produced before the Judicial Magistrate, Abohar, tomorrow, he said.

Doda is booked as conspirator in the brutal murder of the Abohar youth at his (Dodas) farmhouse in Ramsara village in Abohar on December 11 last year. The Abohar Police had initially booked 10 persons under Section 302 but later added 16 names, including that of Doda and his nephew Amit Doda.

The Fazilka court had rejected Doda's anticipatory bail application on January 4. Thereafter, the Akali leader approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court which dismissed his bail plea yesterday.
Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko said that the Russian ruble had recently significantly weakened against foreign currencies, as a result of lower oil prices and international sanctions against Russia, which remain in force, as Moscow failed to comply with its commitments.

"This is the price the aggressor paid for the absolutely irresponsible action [failure to fulfill Minsk agreements]," Poroshenko said in an interview with Bloomberg news agency in Davos on Thursday, as reported by the press service of Ukrainian head of state.

Poroshenko said that the less money Russia could spend on the military expenditure, the better it was for Russia itself, for its neighbors, and the whole world.

Ukrainian president claimed that there was no positive delivery from Russia on the Minsk deal. He noted that terrorists carried on violations of the ceasefire regime, while Ukraine continued to lose its solders. At the same time, the decrease of firing directly depended on Russia. Meantime, the monitoring mission of the OSCE was denied access to both uncontrolled part of the Ukrainian-Russian border and the occupied territory during the past week.

The head of the Ukrainian state said that "Russia should be a predictable country." "Until now, nobody can predict what will be the development of the situation in Syria; nobody can predict what will be the development of the situation in Ukraine. That is why we should spend 5% of our GDP on security and defense program just to build up effective armed forces and stop Russian aggression," the president said.

According to Poroshenko, his four-hour meeting with U.S. Vice-President Joseph Biden confirmed that the Ukrainian side demonstrated progress in fulfilling Minsk agreements. The head of state noted the key role in this process of the European Union partners, in particular Germany and France, which participated in the Normandy format, and also emphasized the importance of the transatlantic solidarity with Ukraine.

Poroshenko noted that Ukraine was one of the top-priority topics on the agenda of this year's World Economic Forum in Davos, as confirmed by the president's numerous bilateral meeting with leaders of many countries. "The security situation in Ukraine is closely connected to the security situation in the whole Europe and the global security. And when we talk about the de-escalation in Ukraine, we talk about the defense of the interest of the people who live in all the member states. That's why it is so important to stop Russia, that's why it is so important to de-escalate the conflict, that's why it is so important to withdraw the troops and keep the situation under control," Poroshenko said.
Chandigarh

The state government has declared holiday on Saturday and Monday in all government and aided primary schools across the state due to severe cold prevailing in the state, said state Education Minister Daljit Singh Cheema. He clarified that the order would be applicable only to primary schools whereas others schools would remain open.

Ferozepur

Cong MLA meets farmers kin

Two days after a debt-ridden farmer of Karma village of Ferozepur allegedly committed suicide, Congress MLA from Guruhar Sahai Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi on Friday visited the deceased farmer's family. Demanding aid of Rs 10 lakh for the family, he said farmer Harbans Singh was under huge financial deficit as he had taken loan from banks and was unable to pay monthly installments.

Amritsar

SGPC seeks to meet French Prez

The SGPC has urged PM Narendra Modi to facilitate a brief meeting with French President Francois Hollande, who will arrive in India for the Republic Day celebrations, to discuss racial discrimination against Sikhs in France. In a letter addressed to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, the SGPC also sought immediate intervention of the External Affairs Ministry to offer assistance to the victims of a boat tragedy in Panama.

Faridkot

Medical conference ends

The American Medical Residency Certification Board Conference concluded in the Baba Faridkot University of Health Sciences (BFUHS) here on Friday. Over 100 delegates from different parts of the country attended the three-day conference. The aim of the conference was to help the medical graduates, seeking to pass the United States Medical Licensing Examination.

Ludhiana

Party disbands wings

In view of the forthcoming elections of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, the National Executive Council of the Sehajdhari Sikh Party has disbanded the partys wings. National president Dr Paramjeet Ranu will finalise the new organisational structure soon.

Hoshiarpur

Dal Khalsa plans protest

The Dal Khalsa plans to hold a protest at Amritsar on January 25 against alleged denial of rights to minorities under the Constitution. Dal Khalsa leaders Dr Manjinder Singh and Kanwar Pal Singh and alliance partner Akali Dal (Panch Pardani) leader Harpal Singh Cheema said there was no let up in states repressive approach towards minorities.

Fatehgarh Sahib

Voters Day function

A state-level Voters Day function will be organised at Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Engineering College Auditorium Fatehgarh Sahib on January 25. Chief Election Commissioner VK Singh will be the chief guest on the occasion.
Saibal Chatterjee

She is so my alter ego. Shes an amazing character. Shes cool and she totally has it together when shes unravelling. Shes badass and flawed, yet extremely confident.

This is how Priyanka Chopra has described FBI recruit Alex Parrish, her well-received character in the ABC series Quantico. The first season of the show premiered in the last week of September and instantly turned her into a household name in the US.

Indeed, the Bollywood diva stamped herself so efficiently on the role that she went on to win the Peoples Choice Award for favourite actress in a new television show. The fact that she was competing with the likes of Jamie Lee Curtis and Emma Roberts made the win doubly sweet. Fans are now looking forward to the second season of Quantico.

The leap from Bollywood to Montreal, where Quantico was shot, was no sweat for Priyanka. The series has her in the role of a rookie FBI agent (the character is of Latin American origin), who is suspected of involvement in a terrorist plot. Alex goes into hiding in order to clear her name by exposing those that are out to smear her reputation.

Quantico isnt Priyankas first action role  apart from the two instalments of Farhan Akhtars Don, she is in the upcoming cop drama Jai Gangaajal  but it certainly gives her the opportunity to woo a new global constituency. Transitions come easy to the Jamshedpur-born Bareilly girl, who grew up in numerous cantonment towns that her Army doctor-dad was stationed in.

The nomadic existence, which included a four-year stint in an American high school, seems to have not only trained her to take every new move in her stride, but has endowed her with incredible high energy levels.

Thirteen years into her Bollywood career, Priyanka has established herself as a versatile performer. She has been just about everything on the big screen: a supermodel in Fashion, a boxer in Mary Kom, a pushy businesswoman in Aitraaz, a feisty seductress in Gunday, and even an autistic girl in Barfi! and a Maratha warriors wife in Bajirao Mastani.

I go wherever my work takes me, the 33-year-old has been quoted as saying in an interview, To me, its an extension of me as an artiste. Im an entertainer. You can take me anywhere and Ill entertain.

American showbiz is just another stop for the busy actress, who now also has a thriving musical career.

In a span of a year and bit, Priyanka has gone from playing a real-life pugilist in Mary Kom to getting into the garb of Kashibai, Peshwa Bajiraos first wife, in Sanjay Leela Bhansalis grandiose Bajirao Mastani. And coming up ahead is Prakash Jhas Jai Gangaajal, in which she gets into action mode as an upright cop who takes on the underworld. This follow-up to the 2003 Ajay Devgn-starrer will see the actress kick ass in a way that Bollywood heroines rarely do. The industry grapevine also has it that Priyanka is slated to play a superwoman in Abhinay Deos next production once the director is done with the sequel to Force.

Is Priyanka consciously working towards becoming a full-fledged female action star? Quantico has catapulted her into a league of one  she is the only Asian actress to ever topline an American television series. The Peoples Choice Award  here too, she is the first Indian to get her hands around the trophy  is only the icing on the cake, and a shot in the arm.

Priyanka was only a teenager when she won the Miss World title in 2000. The international exposure that the win gave her prepared her for the challenges ahead, besides helping her land a lead role in the Tamil film, Tamizhan (2002).

Her first Hindi film The Hero  Love Story of a Spy starring Sunny Deol as an Army man fighting terrorism  had her playing second fiddle to Preity Zinta. But soon enough, she began making her presence felt in the Hindi cinema. It was 2004s Aitraaz, produced by Subhash Ghai and directed by Abbas-Mustan, which demonstrated Priyankas potential as an actress for the first time. By 2006, she found herself among Bollywoods top actresses, having done films like Krrish with Hrithik Roshan and Don with Shah Rukh Khan. However, she ran into a rough patch, delivering six flops in a row, including embarrassing bombs like Love Story 2050 and Drona.

But just when detractors began to write her off, Priyanka bounced back in 2008 with Madhur Bhandarkars Fashion. Essaying the role of a small-town girl, who takes a plunge into the world of glitz and glamour in Mumbai and emerges as a supermodel despite many hindrances in her way, she won a Best Actress National Award.

Since that dramatic turning point, Priyanka hasnt looked back. Films like Kaminey (2009), 7 Khoon Maaf (2011), Barfi (2012) and Mary Kom (2014) have placed her career on a firm footing.

Quantico has enabled her to pull ahead of her rivals. Having made a strong impression in the series, she is now on the verge of more such breakthroughs, not just for herself but also for other Indian movie actresses of her generation.
Mogadishu, January 22

At least 17 persons were killed in the Somali capital of Mogadishu when five Islamist gunmen set off bombs and stormed a popular beach-front restaurant late on Thursday, Somali police said.

Al Shabaab, a militant group aligned with Al-Qaida, said its fighters set off two car bombs at the Beach View Cafe on Mogadishu's popular Lido beach, and engaged in a gun battle for hours with government troops trying to flush them out.

"The operation ended at 3 am last night and at least 17 civilians were killed," police officer Osman Nur told Reuters on Friday.

Somalia's security minister, Abdirizak Omar Mohamed, said four of the gunmen were killed and one was captured alive. "The government forces rescued hundreds of civilians who were dining there," he said.

Police said al Shabaab fighters set off the first car bomb at dusk. A huge second blast, which witnesses said echoed around the city centre, struck about an hour later as government soldiers laid siege to the restaurant.

Al Shabaab, which regularly targets hotels and restaurants in the capital, seeks to topple the Western-backed government and impose a strict version of Islamic law across Somalia, a nation racked by conflict since the outbreak of civil war in 1991.  Reuters

10 die in blast near Egypts Giza pyramids

At least 10 persons, including seven policemen, were killed and 20 others injured in Egypt when militants linked with Islamic State group exploded bombs in a booby-trapped apartment near the iconic pyramids of Giza during a raid by security forces. The bomb blast in the capital's Al-Haram district, near the pyramids, took place when police raided a flat suspected to be a militant hideout.
Cairo, January 22

At least nine persons, including four policemen, have been killed and 20 others injured in a powerful blast near the ancient pyramids of Giza in Egypt.

The explosion took place when a police team raided a militants' hideout near a road leading to the pyramids in the Cairo suburb of Giza ahead of Monday's anniversary of the 2011 revolution that ousted former strongman Hosni Mubarak.

Nine persons were killed in the blast that occurred after a team of security personnel attacked the militants' hideout in Giza area, police said.

The area was cordoned off by the security forces soon after the explosion.

The militants exchanged gunfire with security forces which resulted in the bombs, belonging to the militants in the apartment, getting exploded, police said, adding that some of the injured people are said to be in critical condition.

Yesterday, at least five Egyptian policemen were killed when militants stormed a police checkpoint in the country's restive North Sinai and opened fire on them.

The country has witnessed several violent militant attacks since the January 2011 revolution that toppled Mubarak, killing over 700 policemen and injuring over 18,000 others.

Attacks targeting police and military further increased after the ouster of Islamist ex-president Mohammed Morsi in 2013 following massive protests. PTI
Kathmandu, January 22

Nepal on Friday formed a panel to probe the death of three Madhesi protesters in police firing in a town bordering India amid continued protests over the new Constitution that has claimed 55 lives.

An all-party meeting decided to form the 10-member committee under the CPN-UML lawmaker Shiva Kumar Mandal to probe the violence in Rangeli Municipality of southern Morang district.

Those killed in yesterdays firing were identified as Draupadi Devi Chaudhary, 60, Mahadev Rishidev, 40, and Shibu Majhi, 25, taking the death toll to 55 in the five-month-long agitation.

According to Chief District Officer of Morang District Toyam Raya, the committee will find out the reasons behind the incident.

The committee will make a field-based study and come up with solution to the problem, Republica quoted him as saying.

Violence erupted in Rangeli after hundreds of activists of the Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha (SLMM) armed with batons, knives and petrol bombs tried to disrupt an event hosted by the Youth Association of Nepal (YAN) to honour the Prime Minister.

Madhesi Morcha leaders dubbed the probe committee as pretentious one. Morcha leaders refused to recognise the committee formed under the leaders of the ruling parties excluding the Morcha.

Meanwhile, the situation remained tense in Rangeli. The markets in Morang remained shut to protest against the incident. As a result, transportation on the Rangeli-Biratnagar road has come to a halt. Security forces have been deployed in the area.

Protest rallies were also organised today in neighbouring Sarlahi, Rautahat and Dhanusha districts.

The irate cadres of the United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) vandalised under-construction Armed Police Base Camp at Rangelli Chokraha.

Sadbhawana Party Chairman Rajendra Mahato during a rally said that the government is provoking the agitating Madhesi Morcha to turn their peaceful protest into a violent one.

Mahato hinted at yesterdays Rangeli incident and said, The government is bent on harassing the protesters. Madhesis, largely of Indian-origin, are opposed to the new Constitution that divides the country into six federal provinces, claiming the federal structure incorporated in the new charter does not satisfy their demands.

The talks between the protesting Madhesi groups and the government have not yielded any results.

Madhesis, who share strong cultural and family bonds with Indians, demand demarcation of provinces, fixing of electoral constituencies on the basis of population and proportional representation.  PTI
Ukraine and Turkey have a unique opportunity to combine political, diplomatic, military, technological, and economic resources to oppose the destruction of the balance of forces in the Black Sea region, efficiently and coordinately, Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) Secretary Oleksandr Turchynov said, while meeting with Turkish National Security Council Secretary General Seyfullah Hacimuftuoglu in Ankara, on Thursday.

"The development of bilateral relations and cooperation between our countries should assume a new quality," Turchynov said, adding that deeper cooperation in the military-technological field was a key factor for the development of Ukrainian-Turkish strategic partnership.

Hacimuftuoglu suggested in response, that Turkey and Ukraine "should play a leading role in creating an efficient regional security system."

"The consolidation of our countries' potentials is important to us, which in turn could produce very efficient synergy," the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council press service quoted Hacimuftuoglu as saying.

The parties discussed security and defense cooperation between Turkey and Ukraine in light of the challenges facing Ankara and Kyiv at the moment, the press service said.

The two officials also talked about "coordination between the security agencies' work and the consolidation of efforts in combating international terrorism, organized crime, and illegal migration," the source said.
Photo: Daimler

Daimler Trucks is setting the course for its return to the Iranian market, having signed letters of intent with its local cooperation partners Iran Khodro Diesel (IKD) and the Mammut Group. Prior to the sanctions, Daimler said it sold up to 10,000 vehicles per year in Iran, most of them commercial vehicles.

Daimler AG has already had successful business relations with IKD for the past 50 years. IKD is a subsidiary of Iran Khodro Industrial Group, which has more than a 50-percent market share in Iran and has been cooperating with Daimler for over half a century. The areas of cooperation include a joint venture for local production of Mercedes-Benz trucks and powertrain components plus the establishment of a sales company for Mercedes-Benz trucks and components, according to the company.

Furthermore, there are plans for Daimler to return as a shareholder in the former engine joint venture Iranian Diesel Engine Manufacturing Co. (IDEM). In addition to this, both partners are looking at establishing a joint venture for local sales of Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicles. Daimler and IKD are about to benefit from each others competitive advantages to satisfy the large demand for trucks, according to the company.

With its growth potential following many years of sanctions and the pent-up demand in the transport sector, Iran offers promising opportunities for Daimler Trucks. Despite the sanctions, Iran was one of the largest national economies in the Middle East, with a nominal gross domestic product (GDP) of 415 billion U.S. dollars in 2014. Industry accounts for almost half of the Iranian national economy. The Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade estimates that about 200,000 commercial vehicles will be replaced in the coming years  some 56,000 of them in the next three to five years alone, according to the automaker.

By signing the letter of intent, Daimler Trucks has started the process for a comprehensive re-entry into the Iranian market considering the persistent sanctions regime and further export control regulations. The first Mercedes-Benz Actros and Axor trucks could be supplied to the country in the form of CKD (completely knocked down) kits before the end of the year. In addition to this, Daimler Trucks is pursuing the aim of establishing an even firmer foothold in the local market by revitalizing the engine cooperation with IDEM and establishing a sales joint venture. Furthermore, Daimler Trucks is aiming to establish a sales joint venture to professionalize all sales and after-sales activities in Iran. Daimler Trucks likewise intends to open a representative office in Tehran during the first quarter of 2016. With these commitments, Daimler Trucks is therefore committed to assist with the countrys economic and social development.

In addition to the plans for Mercedes-Benz trucks, Daimler Trucks said it also sees great opportunities for Mitsubishi FUSO  especially in the light-duty-truck segment. To open up this market, Daimler and Mayan have signed a distribution agreement for the FUSO brand. Mayan is part of the Mammut Group. The Dubai-based Mammut Group is a truck bodybuilder and distributor. Mayan will be responsible for opening up the Iranian market in close cooperation with FUSO.

Daimler said its commercial vehicle business in in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is organized through a regional center. From its base in Dubai, Daimler Commercial Vehicles Middle East & North Africa (DCV MENA) is supporting 19 countries  from Morocco to Pakistan. The new company is responsible for business in the region with the groups entire commercial vehicle portfolio  from the Mercedes-Benz Citan city van to the Mercedes-Benz Actros heavy-duty truck.

Originally posted on Automotive Fleet
NATO Commander in Europe says breach of ceasefire in east of Ukraine occurring more frequent

NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe General Philip Breedlove said ceasefire still was noticed breaching in the east of Ukraine, though it doesn't mean a large-scale use of heavy weapons.

At the joint press point following the 174th Military Committee in Chiefs of Defence Session, he said that according to NATO observations, through last two weeks clashes along the contact line were occurring more often, a number of military men killed and injured still growing.

Though, the NATO Commander in Europe said that a good piece of news is that there was no large-scale exchange of fire of big caliber arms, just shell attacks with a use of small arms.
Scientific and non-scientific methods are used to detect signal pirating.

Those methods can vary from the use of high-tech devices to a simple visit by a person walking into a club, restaurant or business establishment presenting sporting events such as a martial arts fight, a top-ranked golden glove fight or other sporting event without paying for the service.

When detected, the errant business gets a call from Adam Scott Weintraub on behalf of his client to work out a payment solution.

Weintraub, an attorney with the Savage ODonnell Afield Wintraub and Johnson Law Firm, said penalties are severe, starting at $110,000 with attorney fees added to the cost.

Signal pirating is common, he said. Generally the smaller commercial bars and mom-and-pop operations are the most common violators. These people often dont realize they need these licenses, but that isnt an excuse.

Part of Weintraubs contract with his client is to go after violators because their business survival depends upon the licenses being paid.

Sometimes I will go into a business for an evening to enjoy myself, he said. If a sporting event licensed by my client is being broadcast, it is an easy matter to see if the appropriate license has been purchased. If not, they get a call. Its that simple. Thats low tech discovery.

One of Weintraubs relatives visited a club in Dallas and observed a sporting event being shown in the establishment.

A comment was made later to the Tulsa attorney who checked the client list.

Nope, the business wasnt listed.

The incident went through the clients legal channels and was referred back to Weintraub.

Some clients are repentant and seek to mitigate damages rather than facing the stiff penalties.

Weintraub, who completed mediation training at Pepperdine University in Feb. 2015, has mediated signal pirating cases, coming to agreement with some outside the courtroom door just before going to trial.

Mediation is one way people can retain control over their lives instead of having their case go to a jury, he said.

Weintraub also served as general counsel for businesses who do not need a full-time attorney on staff.

He attended the University of Oklahoma College of Law where he met his wife, Leisa. He graduated from law school in 1989. Leisa Weintraub is general counsel for Tulsa County Assessor Ken Yazel.

Adam Weintraub was drawn to a legal career because of his parents divorce.

At first he thought he wanted to go into family law, but that changed when he was attracted to criminal law.

He served as an assistant district attorney under the late David L. Moss and worked with now Tulsa District Judge Bill LaFortune at the Tulsa County Juvenile Center.

We handled 1,700 cases in one year, a staggering amount of work for two attorneys, he said. The heavy workload limited any amount of research on individual cases and it was necessary to take the available facts and proceed accordingly.

We had to proceed with imperfect facts and try to help people as juveniles who made bad decisions, Weintraub said.

That same philosophy applies today in cases involving signal piracy.
The Rose District is going from a mere downtown bud to a long-stem, business project.

That was the news that from the Rose District expansion press conference Friday at the Chamber as Broken Arrow's trademark area continues to flourish.

"The Rose District will continue to bloom," said Wes Smithwick, BA Chamber CEO.

The expansion includes more street scape work. That's a continuation of landscaping, wider sidewalks and mid-block crossings.

The expansion will travel from Dallas south to Fort Worth street and from Detroit south to College.

One of the major changes will be an interactive fountain located in the Rose District Pavilion just south of The Museum Broken Arrow at 400 S. Main.

Officials said the fountain will have outdoor bench seating for folks needing a break or to eat lunch. The fountain could be programmed to offer different visual water displays.

While it should be relaxing to watch, BA City Manager Michael Spurgeon made one thing clear.

"This is not a splash pad," he said. "It is a zero grade fountain that will rival anything in this area."

The fountain will be 1,200-square foot and when seating is included should cost around $1.1 million. Designs are still being drawn up with hopes to open by this summer.

However, this was a day to celebrate the success of the Rose District. Smithwick told of what it was like to be part of the early discussion during a rolling brainstorming session.

"Four years ago, we planned this on a bus trip to Dallas," Smithwick said of the Rose District's beginnings. "The Rose District is working as planned and exceeding our expectations. It's the heart beat of our community."

Spurgeon agreed and added, "This (Rose District growth) is still in its infancy."

The Rose District's return on investment has been impressive.

There has been a 5-fold return on the original $5 million street scape cost. There has been a 35 times return on TIF incentives, too. Sales tax collections are also up.

Thirty new businesses have joined the Rose District since 2012. Five new buildings have been constructed and three renovated. There are 11 new apartment/lofts, numerous new homes and makeovers being completed around Main Street.

Smithwick added that an 8-foot bronze of a rooster will be gracing the Dallas and Main street area soon.

New businesses continue to land in the Rose District like American Hatfield, Cheri Ann's Trattoria, Hillary's Boutique and Hops & Hangers. They are expected to open in the first quarter of 2016.
A crowd filled the Charles Page High School cafeteria Thursday evening to discuss how the inevitable budget cuts will affect the district in the wake of a $46.7 million funding cut to public education statewide as a result of the state revenue failure for fiscal year 2016.

Sand Springs Assistant Superintendent Rob Miller said the reduced funding to public education amounts to $350,000 in cuts to Sand Springs schools so far.

We cant sustain the current level of funding in Sand Springs schools for more than a year moving forward, Miller said.

He said theyll look at the potential of reducing staff, possibly by means of not filling positions of those who retire or resign, throughout the year in preparation for further cuts next year. Personnel costs take up most of the school districts budget.

We need to know what you value. We want to how to impact students the least despite the fact that were going to have less money, Miller said.

Parents can take a survey to let school administrators know which methods of reducing spending would be least and most harmful to students at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/32JFM8K.

Oklahoma Policy Institute Policy Director Gene Perry said state formula funding per student dropped 23.6 percent between fiscal year 2008 and 2015, which makes the states spending per pupil among the lowest in the nation.

Perry said gross production taxes to the general revenue fund dropped from $486 million in fiscal year 2001 to $213 million in fiscal year 2015 partly as a result of the energy bust.

The energy industry and the state of the energy industry has been a big part of that, he said. Its true that [education] is the biggest slice of the pie, but the overall size of the pie is reducing.

Perry said income tax cuts since the mid-2000s have resulted in a loss of $356 million in revenue to public education and $1 billion to all state agencies, twice as much as the revenue gained from the lottery and tribal casinos.

The cost of a tax credit for horizontal drilling also jumped from below $50 million in fiscal year 2010 to just over $350 million in fiscal year 2014, he said.

The lottery grows state revenue by inches, while lawmakers have been pruning off yards, Miller said.

Sand Springs Superintendent Lloyd Snow encouraged concerned parents and citizens to call or write their legislators to encourage them to implement policies proposed to mitigate the problem, such as repealing the income tax cuts, eliminate the double deduction of state income taxes, modernizing the sales tax, accepting federal funds for expanded health insurance and reducing off-the-top allocations.
With their protest sign  a sheet carrying the words Trump Makes America Hate Again  tucked away deep in one of their shoes, a group of high school students nervously made their way into the center pit at the Mabee Center for Donald Trumps rally on Wednesday.

More than a dozen students from Booker T. Washington, Edison and Bishop Kelley high schools were among the protestors who showed up at the rally.

Noah Miracle, a Booker T. junior, said the group went because they think it is important to stand up for what they believe in.

Weve really had the idea of freedom of speech drilled into our heads in school since a young age, so this was really an opportunity to apply these things to the real world, he said.

It was important to remind Trump and his supporters that while different political ideologies are completely acceptable, hateful and divisive rhetoric is not.

Miracle said Trump is openly corrosive to civic life and American values.

Kieran King-Sellars, a Booker T. sophomore, was one of two students who came up with the idea to protest.

King-Sellars said he was upset when he heard Trump was coming to town because he considers Trump a racist.

Our only course of action was to protest, said King-Sellars, whose sister, an activist in Virginia, was also kicked out of a Trump rally for protesting.

King-Sellars parents told him he was not allowed to miss school and go protest at the rally, but he decided to do it anyway.

I didnt feel like two weeks of being grounded and losing my car was worth not going with my group of supporters to go against someone or something that I believed in, he said.

King-Sellars said his parents are not Trump supporters and that they arent grounding him for protesting. Rather, the punishment is for disobeying them after they told him not to go.

King-Sellars and a fellow protestor were also wearing shirts that said We are all immigrants.

King-Sellars said he thinks the protest went well and that the group accomplished its goal  having its message seen by both Trump and the cameras before being kicked out.

We didnt get beat up, so that was great, he said.

The banner was ripped out of the students hands eventually, and Trump supporters then stomped on it, Miracle said.

When they were on their way out, Miracle said, a man pointed at one member of the group and said, You can go to prison with Hillary, a reference to Hillary Clinton. Many Trump supporters were wearing Hillary for Prison 2016 on Wednesday.

The group of students who protested together knew each other from school and through mutual friends. Though they didnt all personally know each of the other members of the group, Miracle said it didnt matter.

We all had one goal in mind, and that was to stand up for what we believe in and stand up to the awful sentiment the Trump campaign has been spreading, he said.
A member of the Tulsa City-County Library oversight commission made an emotional apology and plea Thursday to families who were upset over the failings of last years summer reading program.

The program hit a 30-year low in signups and completion. Participation sank by 51 percent in one year.

The reason has been attributed to a decision by Chief Executive Officer Gary Shaffer to require that all children have individual library cards for checking out materials. This rule became burdensome for large childrens groups and families with multiple and preschool-aged children.

Officials have reversed that change.

Library Commissioner Rebecca Marks-Jimerson spoke during the new business portion of the groups regular meeting Thursday.

We have just celebrated the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.; his talk and walk was eradicating social injustices, Marks-Jimerson said. With that being said, I believe a social injustice, a bad check with insufficient funds, was handed to our children in the summer reading program this past summer. Reading eradicates illiteracy. Our jails are filled with adults who are illiterate; we have an opportunity to do our part and stop the exodus.

To the children in Collinsville, north Tulsa, east Tulsa, to the children in all under-resourced Tulsa communities, whose dream was to check out a book; however, that dream became a nightmare because the leadership of the Tulsa City-County Library took away their right to dream.

Children who we had a one-time opportunity to touch those books, whose family may never be back and left with the thought the library is no longer for our kind, I have an obligation to you. So, I say, Im sorry and please come back. Please bring your children back. In spite of what you have heard, the Tulsa City-County Library is here for you.

Commissioner Sally Frasier said the results of the summer reading program were a one-time thing.

Do you know what one time can do to a child or family? They may never return, Marks-Jimerson said.

I disagree, Frasier said. I think we have a good chance of reaching them again.

I am there in the trenches. I am in those under-served communities, Marks-Jimerson said.

We will be out in the trenches with you, Rebecca, said library commission chairwoman Judy Randle.

The meeting marked the return of Shaffer, who was given a sabbatical to complete his doctorate degree. In August, the commission approved the time off along with a 2 percent salary increase, which brings his annual pay to $171,966. During his sabbatical, Shaffer was paid the equivalent of two months salary plus $1,000 for payroll deductions, including health and life insurance for the period of July 1 to Dec. 31.

Shaffer returned on Jan. 12. He addressed the commission with a general report that included a commendation for employee Fidelia Gonzales, a library associate at the Schusterman-Benson branch.

It is good to be back in Tulsa and good to be back with you, he said.

Two former library employees addressed the commission, questioning the status of a report examining library hours of operation and a mandated ethics course for staff.

Susan Babbitt, former manager of the Collinsville branch and administrator at Tulsa Public Schools, asked when an evaluation would be made public about changes made last year at six branches. A pilot program at the suburban branches switched the operating hours to earlier, which meant closing has been at 6 p.m.

A printout of a Facebook thread on this topic showed people replying with requests to keep the libraries open longer. Most cited the drive time from work and after-school responsibilities among students for reasons to be open later. Also, some community groups would use the libraries for evening meetings.

The feedback I am receiving from customers is for a return to original hours during the week, said Babbitt, who retired in 2013. What type of information do you need to evaluate this program? Do we need to circulate a petition to measure the service preferences of your customers?

Babbitt also asked for an extension of the time given for citizen comments, from the current three minutes to six minutes.

Libraries change lives because librarians make it happen, she said.

Ron Cook, former manager of the Glenpool branch, said a mandatory ethics course put into place two years ago has added to low morale among staff. He said employees received certificates of completion, which were then framed and hung in the branch workrooms. He said this was perceived as a waste of funds and distrust of employees.

I think it is an insult to the library staff, he said. I am hearing from different people in the system they are not happy with the way things are going right now.

To both speakers, Randle said the commission would take it under advisement.

After the meeting, Shaffer told the Tulsa World that a report about the operating hours at the branches is expected next month. He defended the ethics course as standard business practice. It is now a video and part of the hiring process.

Shaffer said the ethics training also played a role in the system receiving the Oklahoma Quality Award for Pursuit of Excellence in 2014 from the Oklahoma Quality Foundation, which recognizes Oklahoma businesses and organizations for achievement in quality, business performance and best practices.
After a shooting at Bank of Eufaula left the banks president dead and another employee wounded, Oklahoma and national banking officials said bank employees are trained to be primarily concerned with safety of employees and customers in a dangerous situation, robberies in particular.

We can replace money. We cant replace a life, said Roger Beverage, president of the Oklahoma Bankers Association.

Certainly, our hearts and prayers go out to the whole community ... and the family of the officer who was shot and killed, Beverage said. Going forward we will continue to encourage our banks and employees in Oklahoma to get some sort of training.

The death of a bank employee is an anomaly among bank robberies. According to FBI data, there were 13 fatalities during almost 4,000 robberies nationwide in 2014. Only three of those killed werent suspects  two bank employees and one customer.

John Hall, spokesman for the American Bankers Association, said, It may appear that theyre (bank employees) somewhat compliant in these situations ... The bank can recover the money one way or another.

Elaine Dodd, head of the fraud division at the Oklahoma Bankers Association, said banks are typically a safe place because of the security measures they house and shootings can happen anywhere.

Well, the fact is, shootings happen and theyre a sad part of our world, Dodd said ... We are just heartbroken as to what happened today.

She said bank training for robberies may not apply Thursday and that you cant train for every eventuality.

Hall said banks are inspected for soundness, including physical safety, every 18 months by the federal agency that oversees them  the Office of the Comptroller of Currency, the Federal Reserve or Federal Deposit Insurance Commission depending on which the bank belongs to.

There have been three bank robberies in Oklahoma in 2016, including one Wednesday in downtown Tulsa.

Bank robberies are cyclical overall and have been trending downward in Oklahoma for years, Dodd said. There were 17 bank robberies in Oklahoma in 2015, down from 47 the year before, according to the bankers association.

The December shooting in San Bernardino, California, was also on Dodds and Beverages minds.

Beverage said hes had thoughts of getting active shooter training for his entire staff. Dodd, who serves with other business leaders on an FBI task-force, said theres demand statewide for that sort of training because of the rash of mass shootings.

No type of business is immune, she said.

Thursdays shooting put safety top of mind for Eufaula business owners.

Carolyn Todd, owner of Lydias Bed Bath and Baby, located across the street from the Bank of Eufaula, said she believed Thursdays events will cause business owners in Eufaula to be more vigilant to watch out for each other.
About 20 people toured Will Rogers College Junior High and High School on Thursday morning for a chance to see several intervention programs at work.

The community leaders, business representatives and donors were invited by Growing Together, the collaborative nonprofit organization that brought the intervention programs to Rogers as well as several other Tulsa Public Schools sites.

Growing Together works to bring organizations, district residents and educators together to tackle educational and social challenges, focusing its work on the six schools serving the Kendall-Whittier and Eugene Field neighborhoods. Among the partner programs it has brought into the schools are City Year and Reading Partners.

Rogers is at the forefront of this work, Growing Together Executive Director Kirk Wester told the group touring the school on Thursday.

Three of the organizations five partner programs work out of Rogers  City Year, College Summit and Communities in Schools. The tour was aimed to showcase their work.

The goal is to show you what makes Rogers especially special, said Matt Suprunowicz, a teacher at Rogers as well as a representative of College Summit.

College Summit is a national nonprofit that works to equip students to make sure they are college- and career-bound, Suprunowicz said.

The group offers a for-credit class at the high school and works with teachers and student peer leaders to reach students who need support.

Rebba Chavez, a Rogers senior and College Summit peer leader, told one of the touring groups about the concurrent enrollment opportunities available to students at Rogers.

When we get up to the second floor, were technically college students, so were treated like college students, Chavez said as the group toured the college-dedicated space of the building.

Chavez, who will be the first generation in her family to attend college, said she has learned responsibility through College Summit and through her experience with college classes at Rogers.

The tour group also went to a junior high classroom where a City Year corps member was helping as a teacher aide. City Year is an AmeriCorps program whose members dedicate a year to helping change the educational outcomes of public school students in urban centers who are most at risk for dropping out.

Wester said City Year and the other programs that work with schools through Growing Together are focused on attendance, behavior and course work.

Our organizations are coalesced around a common set of outcomes, he said.

Leslie Briggs, a City Year corps member, talked about some of the interventions the program provides. She also said that by having a corps member in the classroom to help with students who are falling behind, the teacher is freed up to be able to offer more individualized instruction to the remaining students.

The tour group also visited with coordinators of the Communities in Schools program, a national dropout-prevention organization. It helps students overcome any barrier to graduating, whether its providing them with an alarm clock so they are not late to school or helping them get glasses so they can see in class.

The organization also provides mentors to students who need them.

Wester said all the interventions are based on data and early-warning indicators.

None of these organizations target kids haphazardly, he said.

Rocky Bright, coordinator of outreach and diversity at Tulsa Tech, was one of those attending the tour. He had heard of Growing Togethers work but said the tour helped him see how the programs interact to help students.

Bright said he was glad to see that the programs individualized their interventions and did not use a cookie cutter approach.

He said the work the organizations do with students is also good for economic development in the city.

These programs are a catalyst to feed the economic engine in Tulsa, he said.

Sara Martinez, a branch manager with the Tulsa City-County Library and chair of the education committee at the Hispanic Affairs Commission, was also on the tour.

She said the work the organizations do is impressive, adding, I hope we can see it replicated in all the high schools in Tulsa.
Ukraine's delegation to the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) left a BSEC session as Russia took over the chair of this organization, Ukrainian Consul General to Istanbul Vasyl Bodnar has said.

"The delegation of Ukraine staged a diplomatic demarche in light of the start of Russia's chairmanship of the BSEC," Bodnar wrote on his Twitter page on Friday.

The BSEC meeting was held in Istanbul.

Among other matters, it was noted that, by reconnecting with Crimea, "Russia violated both international law, the territorial integrity of Ukraine and the BSEC fundamental principle on 'turning the Black Sea region into a region of peace, stability and prosperity'," the consul general said.

"A number of BSEC member states supported Ukraine's position," he added.
EUFAULA  The Bank of Eufaulas president was fatally shot and the gunman was killed after a subsequent police pursuit Thursday morning in McIntosh County, authorities said.

Two other people were wounded in a series of events that began at the bank and ended in a shootout off a highway north of Eufaula.

Authorities did not identify the bank employee who was killed, but state Rep. Dan Kirby, R-Tulsa, said Randy Peterson, president of the Bank of Eufaula, was fatally shot.

This is a senseless tragedy that hits way too close to home. Randy was a good man and a good friend, and my heart aches for his family and friends, Kirby said in a Facebook post.

Kirby, who represents House District 75 in Tulsa, was raised in Eufaula and said he was a childhood friend of Petersons.

Cedric Lamont Norris, 39, of Texas was identified by the FBI as the assailant. Norris served prison time from 1994 to 2000 for Creek County weapons convictions. He was then convicted in Tulsa County in 2006 of second-degree robbery and in Creek County in 2007 of malicious injury to property, records show.

During a news conference Thursday, FBI Special Agent Terry Weber said a man walked into the bank about 9:20 a.m. and shot a bank employee, who died at the scene.

The assailant then approached a teller, from whom he took an undisclosed amount of money. The man then tried to take another employee hostage. When she resisted, the man shot her, Weber said.

Investigators are unsure whether the man had gone into the bank with the intention of robbing it, Weber said.

The intent seems to be a bank robbery, in an odd way, he said.

At that point, the assailant took a customer hostage, put her in a vehicle and then led authorities on a pursuit north on U.S. 69, Weber said.

Robert Simpson, the banks owner, told The Oklahoman that the events at the bank were unconventional.

Simpson said that about 9:30 a.m. a man, wearing a woman's hat and speaking in a woman's voice, walked into the bank, pulled out a gun, walked into Petersons office and shot him in the stomach before heading toward the bank tellers.

Ive seen people die, but Ive never seen a more horrific way to die than what I saw today, Simpson told The Oklahoman.

Eventually, authorities caught up to Norris fleeing vehicle east of U.S. 69 near the small community of Onapa and exchanged gunfire with him. Norris was shot and died, Weber said.

Oklahoma Highway Patrol spokesman Lt. John Vincent said OHP troopers, McIntosh County Sheriffs Office deputies and Eufaula police responded during the pursuit, and he was unable to confirm who shot Norris.

The woman in the vehicle was severely injured. It was unclear whether she had been shot by Norris or injured by gunfire from law enforcement, Weber said. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation is handling that aspect of the investigation, he said.

Weber said both women who were shot have undergone surgery and likely will survive.

Allison Harris, an employee at Sharpes, a department store across the street from the bank, said a frantic man came into the store and said the bank was getting robbed and that shots had been fired. Store employees then called the police, she said.

They were there real fast. This is a small town.  They are just right down the road, so thats a good thing, Harris said.

She said law enforcement officers swarmed the building.

Streets in the area were blocked for most of the day Thursday.

Carey Diehl, owner of CDs Boat House, located near the bank, said he was in total shock when he heard what happened.

I sat here thinking theres no way this could happen. It took me probably an hour of talking to different people to learn my friends were shot, he said.

Harris said she moved to Eufaula three years ago from Muskogee to get away from all the craziness that happens in bigger cities.

Eufaula is about 80 miles south of Tulsa.

I live here in Eufaula for a reason, and thats scary that something like that would happen here in this small town we call home, Harris said.
ATLANTA (AP)  Months after the Supreme Court effectively legalized same-sex marriage, lawmakers across the U.S. are pushing bills that would give businesses and some public employees the right to refuse serving gay couples because of their religious beliefs.

The American Civil Liberties Union opposes such bills and says variations have been proposed in 22 states  mostly by Republicans, though they aren't universally backed in the GOP. Top employers, including Delta Air Lines, Home Depot, Porsche and UPS in Georgia, warn the proposals are unwelcoming and bad for business.

Even so, Georgia lawmakers have pressed on with a bill that would allow business owners to refuse products or services for same-sex couples planning a wedding, and another that protects state employees who have religious objections to the marriages.

Republican state Rep. Kevin Tanner, sponsor of a bill allowing bakers or other business owners to deny wedding-related services for gay couples, said he's not sure the measure has enough support to pass this year but called for a "non-emotional argument."

"I don't think anyone really fundamentally wants to prohibit the free exercise of religion and the ability of people to raise their children and still be able to make a living just because they have a different belief system than someone who is their customer," he said.

The odds of passage nationwide vary dramatically. Several bills are filed in states with legislatures dominated by Democrats or with a Democratic governor's veto standing in the way, such as Virginia. In Tennessee, lawmakers swiftly rejected a measure barring the state from abiding by the Supreme Court's gay marriage decision after legislative analysts projected it could jeopardize $8.5 billion in federal funding.

Elsewhere, the measures have backing from top officials supported by conservative voters demanding a response to the Supreme Court ruling. In Kentucky  home to Kim Davis, the county clerk jailed when she refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples because of her religious beliefs  lawmakers have proposed a bill allowing clerks to remove their name from licenses. The bill matches an executive order issued by Republican Gov. Matt Bevin.

Legal experts said any bills that become law are bound to be challenged in court. But how judges may rule depends on the specific issue.

Alexander Volokh, an Emory University law professor, said courts may rule against exemptions for public employees. But laws covering private businesses in states without specific civil rights protections for gay residents could stand, he said.

"Private individuals don't have any constitutional duty to participate in gay marriage," Volokh said.

Charles Haynes, founding director of the Religious Freedom Center of the Newseum Institute, said states should be looking for ways to protect gay rights and religious belief, citing Utah's 2015 anti-discrimination law backed by the Mormon church and LGBT activists. The law protects LGBT residents from discrimination in housing and employment but makes exemptions for religious organizations and religious speech at work unless it harasses someone.

"This should not be a zero-sum game where everybody wins on one side and everybody loses on the other," Haynes said.

The divide isn't new in Georgia. The last two years included discussion of a bill forbidding government from infringing on religious beliefs without a compelling interest. The "Religious Freedom Restoration Act" from Republican state Sen. Josh McKoon remains in a House committee, where supporters tabled it last year following the addition of anti-discrimination language they said would gut the bill's purpose.

McKoon frequently cites a student group accused of violating hazing policies with a foot-washing ceremony on a public college campus and a middle school student denied space at his public school to hold a religious student club. McKoon and other supporters say similar laws in other states have never been used to successfully defend discrimination, such as a baker or florist refusing to provide services for a same-sex wedding.

Gay rights advocates remain concerned the religious freedom bill could act as a shield for such discrimination without a statewide civil rights law. More than 200 Georgia religious leaders opposed to McKoon's bill bought full-page ads in four newspapers this month that said: "Dangerous. Divisive. Bad for Georgia."

Georgia's business community has forcefully opposed the measures. The Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce has warned that the state could lose $600 million or more in tourism dollars.

In Indiana, opponents called for boycotts and protests after a religious freedom law passed last year. That provided a real-world example of the risk to Georgia, said Marshall Guest, vice president of business climate at the Atlanta chamber.

"Indiana was the last state to really take up this issue in a meaningful way," Guest said. "It's hard to think we wouldn't face something similar here in Georgia."

That hasn't stopped lawmakers from trying. Georgia Sen. Greg Kirk, a Republican former Southern Baptist Minister, said his bill would allow religious adoption agencies, schools and nonprofits to refuse same-sex couples. Government employees would not be exempt from performing duties requires of their jobs, including clerks issuing marriage license, but could not be punished for only believing in marriage between a man and a woman.

And the state's top House Republican has said his priority is passing a bill to ensure religious leaders aren't required to perform same-sex marriage ceremonies.

"I think it's important that we find a measure that addresses the concerns of Georgians but also may give us an opportunity to come together and reach some broad agreement on a measure," House Speaker David Ralston said this month.

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Associated Press writers Adam Beam in Frankfort, Kentucky; David Lieb in Jefferson City, Missouri; Alan Suderman in Richmond, Virginia; Erik Schelzig in Nashville, Tenn. contributed to this report.

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Follow Kathleen Foody at http://twitter.com/katiefoody. Her work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/journalist/kathleen-foody.

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This story has been corrected to show that the Metro Atlanta Chamber study focused on the loss to state tourism dollars, not only the city.
WEST DES MOINES, Iowa (AP)  Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is out with his first political attack ad aimed squarely at rival Ted Cruz.

The ad, entitled "Clear Difference," paints the Texas senator as a "flip-flopping" politician who once supported allowing the millions of people living in the country illegally to remain. It features footage of Cruz stumbling on his words when asked about the issue in December on Fox News while the phrases "Pro immigration" and "Pro Amnesty" flashed across the screen.

As part of the immigration reform debate in 2013, Cruz introduced an amendment that proposed stripping the option of citizenship but granting eventual legal status for millions. He has since changed his tune.

Trump and Cruz have been engaged in an increasingly hostile war of words as they battle for a win in first-to-vote Iowa, where polls show an increasingly narrow race. The kick-off caucuses will be held on Feb. 1.

The ad includes Trump discussing his own plan for mass deportations, which he described as being the more humane approach.

"Donald trump is simply trying to distract voters from his own support of amnesty," Cruz spokeswoman Catherine Frazier said in a statement.

Cruz's team also released its own attack ad Friday targeting Trump's support for eminent domain laws, which allow the government to seize private property. Trump has voiced support for using the law to build infrastructure like roads and pipelines, as well as expand companies.

The ad describes the process as "a fancy term for politicians seizing private property to enrich the fat cats who bankroll them."

It concludes declaring, "Trump won't change the system. He's what's wrong with it."

Trump has also come under attack by The National Review. The conservative magazine's latest issue features a compilation of essays from prominent conservative thinkers denouncing the billionaire businessman. Trump responded Thursday night by calling the magazine a dying publication in search of publicity.

The magazine also announced in a blog post that the Republican National Committee had disinvited it from participating in an upcoming Republican presidential primary debate next month. It's the latest instance of a media partner being dismissed from a Republican debate because of its editorial content.

New Hampshire's largest newspaper, the Union Leader, was dropped as a co-sponsor of another debate after it published a series of front-page editorials criticizing Trump and endorsed New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

"We expected this was coming. Small price to pay for speaking the truth about The Donald," the magazine's publisher, Jack Fowler, wrote in the post.
1930

Tulsa cold record still stands today

After blizzard-like weather with heavy snow hit Oklahoma early in the month, much of the snow had turned to slush and day-time temperatures had warmed to 35 degrees but a new onslaught included bitter temperatures and heavy snow. Tulsa recorded its official low of minus-16 and about eight inches of snow. Motorists were trapped on highways throughout the state with some taking refuge in stores and private residences. The Capitol was opened overnight to provide warmth for the homeless in Oklahoma City. Fourteen passengers on a bus headed to Tulsa from Missouri were trapped in a snowdrift on U.S. 66 for 16 hours until farmers rescued them and took them in horse-drawn wagons into Vinita.

1959

Gov. Edmondson orders that dry laws be enforced

State Safety Commissioner Joe Cannon fired the opening gun in new Gov. J. Howard Edmondsons battle to enforce Oklahomas dry laws when he sent about 50 officers to stop vehicles entering Oklahoma from Missouri, Kansas and Arkansas. Cannon called it a safety check, but officers also looked for booze. The enforcement continued with Cannon leading some raids on private clubs. His tactic worked. Oklahomans voted to repeal prohibition in April when more than 700,000 voters, a record, turned out to cast ballots with the repeal issue carrying by a 3-1 vote. Tulsa County provided the largest margin for victory: 86,600 to 23,700.

1973

Supreme Court legalizes abortion in Roe v. Wade

The Supreme Court ruled in a lawsuit known as Roe v. Wade that the decision to end a pregnancy during its first three months must be left to a woman and her doctor  a ruling that legalized abortion. The controversial landmark decision stated that a persons right to privacy is guaranteed by the Constitution and this right includes a womans decision to terminate her pregnancy. The Court ruled that the states were forbidden from outlawing or regulating any aspect of abortion performed during the first trimester of pregnancy, and could only enact abortion regulations reasonably related to maternal health in the second and third trimesters. Last year, about 800 people participated in the March of Life in Tulsa to voice their opposition to abortion.

2013

Prosecutions wrap up Sweeney murder case

The man who instigated the plot to kill Tulsa businessman Neal Sweeney was sentenced to 32 years in prison plus 2 years of probation for soliciting the 2008 murder of Sweeney. Former convenience store operator Mohammed Aziz was accused of starting the murder scheme. Terrico Bethel, the triggerman according to testimony, was convicted and sentenced to life without parole for murder and for conspiracy to commit murder. Two other men were sentenced on murder charges and one on a conspiracy charge. One jury found Alonzo Jack Johnson guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder. He was sentenced to two life prison terms. Fred Shields Jr. was sentenced to two consecutive life prison terms  one of them without parole  upon being found guilty at his trial of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder. Allen Shields pleaded guilty to a conspiracy count and testified for the prosecution at a preliminary hearing after being offered a deal calling for a 10-year probation and no prison time. He died in 2011 of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
I would have thought until recently that every American would agree with the original constitutional premise that everyone charged with a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Unfortunately, in recent years that premise has been attacked in favor of the European Napoleonic Code that an accused is guilty until proven innocent.

It began with the Duke University lacrosse team whose reputations were destroyed by a knee-jerk university faculty and a media that thought it smelled blood in the water. But it was proven they were victimized by a liar. Where do they go to retrieve their ruined reputations?

It continued with the destruction of a Ferguson, Missouri, police officer who was crucified, yet he was so innocent he was not even indicted. Where does he go to regain his life and profession?

Now we have a black comedian who has been vilified by accusers who conveniently failed to charge him at the time the alleged incidents occurred, but suddenly have fresh memories after decades have passed. Without forensic evidence, his trial will be more emotion than substance. But this occurred only after he lectured members of his own race about personal responsibility.

We now have 12 Republican senators supporting a Democrat proposal in Senate Bill 590 that would empower colleges to veto that principle of law. Since Marco Rubio is one of them, I doubt if any of the former Duke players will be among his most enthusiastic supporters.

Letters to the editor are encouraged. Send letters to letters@tulsaworld.com.
TAHLEQUAH  The Cherokee Nation will begin dispersing a limited supply of heirloom seeds to tribal citizens starting Monday.

Cherokee Nation citizens interested in growing traditional Cherokee crops and plants will have a chance to request seeds from its inventory of rare breeds not available in stores, including corn, beans, squash, gourds, Trail of Tears beads, tobacco and several plants traditionally used for Cherokee customs, according to a news release.

The seed bank continues to expand and get more popular every year with our citizens. Its also an important way the Cherokee Nation can keep our link to the land strong and preserve our history and heritage, Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Bill John Baker said. For Cherokee people, the process of harvesting seeds and passing them down has gone on for generations. It is an essential part of who we are today, and because of the seed bank program, we have created a growing interest with a new generation of Cherokees.

Last year, the tribe distributed 3,463 packages of seeds to Cherokee Nation citizens.

Eugene Wilmeth, a Cherokee Nation citizen of Midwest City, planted Cherokee White Eagle Corn and Native tobacco seeds.

I am very grateful for the Cherokee Nation seed bank, which gives me the opportunity to grow traditional and sacred plants that connect us to our culture and to our Creator. The program allows each of us to play an important role in the preservation of our heritage, Wilmeth said.

Citizens are limited to two varieties. To get the seeds, citizens can either make an appointment to pick them up or email their request to seedbank@cherokee.org to have them sent by mail. Individuals must include a copy of his or her Cherokee Nation tribal citizenship card, proof of age and address.

For more information, contact Pat Gwin at 918-453-5704.
NEW YORK  Will Smith says he will not attend the Academy Awards next month, joining his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, and others in protest against two straight years of all-white acting nominees. Best supporting actor nominee Mark Ruffalo also says hes considering skipping the ceremony.

My wifes not going. It would be awkward for me to show up with Charlize (Theron), said Smith on ABCs Good Morning America on Thursday. Weve discussed it, but at this current time, were uncomfortable to stand there and say this is OK.

Smith, who some thought might be nominated for his performance in the football drama Concussion, said his decision was deeply not about me.

This is about children that are going to sit down and theyre going to watch the show and theyre not going to see themselves represented, Smith said.

Smith, who would likely have been a sought-after presenter at the Feb. 28 ceremony, becomes the biggest name to join a boycott of the Academy Awards following announcements by Spike Lee (an honorary Oscar recipient this year) and Pinkett Smith.

Ruffalo, nominated for his performance in the newspaper drama Spotlight, said Thursday that hes mulling joining the protest.

Im weighing it, thats where Im at right now, Ruffalo told BBC News. I woke up in the morning thinking, What is the right way to do this? Because if you look at Martin Luther Kings legacy, what he was saying was that the good people who dont act are much worse than the wrongdoers who are purposefully not acting and dont know the right way.

One of the acting nominees joining the boycott would add a new chapter in the backlash that has roiled the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. Following the announcements by Lee and Pinkett Smith, academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs has pledged dramatic changes to diversity in the academys membership.

Smith, who has been nominated twice before, for 2001s Ali and 2006s The Pursuit of Happyness, said he believes the industry can do better.

Diversity is the American superpower. Thats why were great, Smith said. When I look at the series of nominations of the academy, its not reflecting that beauty.
One Ukrainian serviceman has been wounded and another has been hurt in an explosion in the anti-terrorist operation area in eastern Ukraine over the past 24 hours, Ukrainian presidential administration spokesman for the operation Andriy Lysenko told a press briefing in Kyiv on Friday.

No Ukrainian soldiers have been killed in the past 24 hours, he added.

One Ukrainian soldier was wounded in Maryinka, and another one was hurt as a result of an explosion in the village of Syze, in the Stanytsia Luhanska district of Luhansk region, he said.

Tensions have further escalated in the conflict area over the past 24 hours, including more intense shelling in the Donetsk region and near the city of Mariupol, he said.

"The adversary has occasionally used heavy weapons, including mortars and infantry fighting vehicles," Lysenko said.

The ceasefire has been observed in Luhansk region, he added.
9:44 a.m., Jan. 22, 2016--For the Record provides information about recent professional activities of University of Delaware faculty, staff, students and alumni.

Recent books, honors, media recognition and presentations include the following:

Books

Alumna Cynthia Fowler, who earned her doctorate in art history in 2002, is the editor of Locating American Art: Finding Arts Meaning in Museums, Colonial Period to the Present. The book, published by Ashgate, includes a dedication to the late UD Prof. William Innes Homer and an acknowledgement to Wayne Craven, Henry Francis du Pont Professor Emeritus of Art History. Fowler is professor of art and chair of the Department of Art at Emmanuel College in Boston.

Honors

The National Retail Federations NRF Foundation selected UD student Megan Dawson-Elli of Dundee, New York, a senior in the Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies, as a semifinalist in its 2016 Next Generation Scholarship program. Dawson-Elli was among 25 outstanding students selected as finalists or semifinalists in the national competition. The hard work and passion that we see from students each and every day is a clear indicator that these motivated young leaders are already well on their way to shaping retails future, said Ellen Davis, senior vice president of NRF and executive director of the foundation. Dawson-Elli was awarded a $1,5000 travel scholarship to attend the NRF Big Show, which was held Jan. 15-16 in New York City.

The American Philosophical Association (APA), which is based at the University of Delaware, and the Philosophy Documentation Center (PDC) have announced that the 2015 APA/PDC Prize for Excellence and Innovation in Philosophy Programs has been awarded to Rethink: A Philosophy Community Outreach Program at Columbia University. Rethink promotes engagement with philosophical subject matter outside a traditional academic context. Partnering with organizations based in Harlem and the Financial District, volunteers lead discussion workshops on topics such as power, authority, epistemic justification, testimony, decision-making, responsibility, authenticity, punishment, racism, and equality. The program is supported by the New York Council for the Humanities and the Heyman Center for the Humanities at Columbia University. The Prize for Excellence and Innovation in Philosophy Programs has been jointly sponsored by the APA and the PDC since 1999. It recognizes philosophy departments, research centers, institutes, societies, publishers, or other organizations for creating programs that risk undertaking new initiatives in philosophy and do so with excellence and success.

Media

Marriotts Courtyard Newark at the University of Delaware and the Department of Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management (HRIM) were featured in a Jan. 20 Newark Post article about how the hotel swimming pool has become a safe haven and an oasis for children with autism and their families. William Sullivan, hotel managing director, said it has been a longstanding goal of the facility to be an integral part of the community. He called the partnership, which involves HRIM students, beneficial to all concerned.

Presentations

Alice Ba, associate professor of political science and international relations and in the Asian Studies Program, delivered an invited talk "Between States and Industry: The Nippon Foundation and the Safety of the Malacca Strait" on Dec. 11, 2015, at the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at the University of Michigan.

To submit information to be included in For the Record, write to publicaffairs@udel.edu.
Lower prices for natural gas on the European market and its sufficient stocks in Ukraine's underground storages enable Ukraine to manage without Russian gas purchases.

Naftogaz Chairman and CEO Andriy Kobolev told reporters on Friday following the Victor Pinchuk Foundation's Ukrainian Breakfast 2016 in Davos.

"Now we're buying all gas on the European market. There is no need for us to change the purchase tactics now. Especially, taking into accounting the better prices in Europe," he told reporters.

According to Kobolev, as of Friday morning, gas purchases in Europe totaled about 40 million cubic meters per day and the amount of gas in the underground storages totaled about 90 million cubic meters.

The Naftogaz head also admitted that theoretically it could happen that Ukraine would be forced to buy Russian gas if there were severe cold.

The end of February always used to be the difficult period for the Ukrainian gas transport system," he said.

But at the same time he noted the Ukrainian gas transport system is currently operating in its usual mode.

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The European Parliament supports the initiative of the Ukrainian leadership for deployment of peacekeeping force and security EU mission in eastern Ukraine.

This is stated in the European Parliaments Resolution on Association Agreements / Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Areas with Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, adopted on Thursday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"The European Parliament notes the calls by the Ukrainian Government for an extended international peacekeeping force along the Ukraine-Russia border and in the Luhansk and Donetsk districts," reads the document.

The MEPs agree that, once the situation permits and as part of the full implementation of the Minsk Agreement, an EU-led CSDP mission should be offered for deployment to the parties in the conflict.

The MEPs have expressed serious concern about the implementation of the Minsk Agreements. The European Parliament stresses that the Russian authorities bear a particular responsibility in this connection. It is noted that ceasefire violations have been increasing since mid-October 2015, that monitors from the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) continue to experience restrictions on their freedom of movement, that the restoration of Ukrainian control over the full length of its border with Russia has not materialised, that no agreement was reached on the modalities for the local elections in the temporarily occupied territories of Luhansk and Donetsk, and that not all prisoners and illegally detained persons, such as Nadiya Savchenko and Oleg Sentsov, have been released.

The document also expresses the firm support for the territorial integrity of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova. The European Parliament calls on the Russian Federation to end its occupation of Crimea and to put an immediate end to all direct or indirect involvement in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

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Locals view a model of a China-built high-speed train during Fast Track exhibition in Jakarta, Indonesia on August 13, 2015. [Photo: Xinhua]

The 150-kilometer railway, linking the capital Jakarta with Bandung in West Java, is being built by a joint venture between an Indonesia consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway.

Chinese State Councilor Wang Yong, who attended a ground-breaking ceremony for the construction, says the railway will further promote cooperation between China and Indonesia:

"The successful launch of Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway set a new record in pragmatic cooperation between the two countries. It will also serve as a new model for bilateral cooperation in various fields, particularly in infrastructure and production capacity."

Indonesian President Joko Widodo, also at the ceremony, says the railway will help boost his country's development:

"A country that is most efficient and quick in its development will emerge victorious in the competition between countries."

Last October, the Indonesian government has selected the Chinese company over a competitor from Japan to build the nation's first bullet rail link.

The estimated cost of the project is $5 billion US dollars, with 75 percent of the financing from the Chinese side.

Ma Yunshuang, who is responsible for the construction of the railway, explains why Indonesia chose China Railway as its partner:

"The Jakarta-Bandung High-speed Railway is China's first case of international cooperation in the whole industry chain. It is of significance. The project marks an important step for Chinese railway to go aboard. Through it, China exports its technology, equipment, and experience of operation, construction and capital operation. So it is a good example of showing the competitiveness of China's railways."

The project, with has a distance of approximately 150 km, will cut the travel time between the two cities from more than three hours at present to less than 40 minutes once the project is finished.

He Huawu is the chief engineer at China Railway International Co Ltd., and says the railway will benefit local economic development:

"The high-speed railway project will help improve transportation and benefit commuters. Most importantly, it will help attract investors and bring business opportunities along the line."

The high-speed railway is expected to be completed by 2018 and will be operational in early 2019.
President of France Francois Hollande has outlined the final purpose of the Minsk 2 peace deal: the European Union will lift sanctions against Russia only after Ukraine resumes control over its eastern borders.

France is calling for the full implementation of the Minsk agreements by all parties. And then we must move towards the final goal  resuming control by Ukraine over the Ukrainian-Russian border and lifting European sanctions against Russia, Hollande said at a meeting at the Elysee Palace, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

The French President also added that it is expected that Russia will exert pressure on separatists to hold undeniable elections in eastern Ukraine.

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The United States expressed their willingness to hold a training session for investigators of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and prosecutors of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office already next month.

This was announced by Head of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office Nazar Kholodnitsky in Washington on Thursday night, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"Our American colleagues has a sincere desire to help us, provide technical support, including to conduct training for the National Anti-Corruption Bureau detectives and prosecutors of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office," Kholodnitsky said following the meetings at the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of State and FBI representatives.

"The first such study visit for the anti-corruption prosecutors will take place in February," he said.

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Hans Park leads UNHCR's Winter Cell maps difficulties facing refugees transiting through Europe. 566848526  UNHCR/S.Hopper

GENEVA, Jan 22 (UNHCR) - They call it the 'Winter Cell'. A small conference room in the bowels of the UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR, headquarters in Geneva. It has no windows, but computers and walls draped in screens and maps with handwritten and ever-changing numbers.

Formally known as the 'Winter Operations Cell', a small team of six are engaged in that hardest of tasks: forecasting.

Here trends are identified, problems flagged and hurdles foreseen as a potentially killer winter chill descends over Europe and the Middle East.

"We are set up to mitigate the effects of winter," said Winter Cell chief Chris Earney. "We are looking at situations caused by winter events, and we are looking at situations that are already there that would be compounded by the effects of winter."

The unit works in close cooperation with experts from the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), the Met Office in the UK and the Met Service of South Eastern Europe to evaluate the impact of weather across a wide portfolio of both immediate response operations and longer planning and mitigation actions.

There are a lot of variables at play, not least since the unit covers a swathe of territory that stretches from the Polar Circle to the Aegean Sea. This presents strategic decision makers and those directly providing humanitarian assistance with some very unique strategic, operational and tactical challenges.

Just as the weather affects everything we do in our personal lives then by default the weather must also play a part in every aspect of Humanitarian Operations. The challenge set to the Winter Operations Cell is to harness a vast array of meteorological information to determine what benefits that can be realised across the full sphere of UNHCR operations in south-eastern Europe.

"This is a significant challenge, but one which is can now be met through the many meteorological agencies that, with the support of the WMO, are now moving towards what is called Impact Based Forecasting. This sees a move away from the traditional 'here's the weather today' approach, towards a much more user based service which looks at the impacts of the weather across the operations of a particular user to produce a much more tailored and therefore more beneficial service," the Met office explained in a statement.

In late January that approach is likely to face some tough tests. Below-normal temperatures plunging to lows of -5 to -15 C, accompanied by heavy snowfall, are forecast for the southern and eastern Balkan Peninsula, Turkey, the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East.

Across this vast area millions of refugees - most from Syria and Iraq - live in camps and settlements. Thousands of other people are on the move, many on foot or in flimsy, open boats.

"The Met Office has been an incredible partner to work with, both in terms of quality of staff and output but also just the speed at which they could respond," added Earney.

The team also monitors social media and coordinates with a point person in the intelligence unit inside Sweden's Migration Agency to keep abreast of the latest refugee movements. Knowing where refugees are at any given point is crucial to preparedness. A sudden snowstorm at a congested border without sufficient material support could have disastrous results.

Untangling the interplay between all these variables is a potentially life-saving exercise as weather conditions worsen and UNHCR determines where to best deploy its resources.

"We're building out a range of scenarios and situations, and we run each one with the refugee at the centre," said Earney. Depending on the assessment of risk - calculated as implication against likelihood - the team aims to send out specific recommendations or intelligence either directly to country offices or generally in its daily situation reports, which can be found on UNHCR's data portal.

Much of the work is done in real time. Information streams in from the Met Office, UNHCR field officers and the Swedish migration intelligence, and the numbers on those maps on the windowless walls inside the winter cell change, reflecting the situation on the ground. Some of the maps are stylized, like the one showing refugee routes north hanging on the inside of the door, which Earney calls the team's equivalent of the London tube map.

The job of making all this data accessible to outsiders falls to James Leon-Dufour, the team's information management officer.

An architect by background, Leon-Dufour tries to take all this data and "deliver it in an intelligible manner". He helps design how the information is presented, creating online visualisation of the routes population concentrations and the situation at borders.

A veteran of camp design, he is one of two architects on a team composed of people with different specialties. Ruxandra Bujor has five years experience of managing camps in the field. She is the one who keeps track of the 70 sites across Europe where refugees are concentrated and the aid that is available and delivered there.

Winter tends to make movement across borders, as well as within countries, difficult and sometimes impossible, Bujor said. Being able to provide materially for obstacles to movement runs alongside advocacy efforts, helping to ensure that all countries are ready to look after those who end up stranded.

Like the rest, Bujor is excited at the work the team is doing. The unit has only been up and running since the end of last October, but already its work has had an impact.

"At times, it does seem overwhelming, and it was in the beginning. But we've narrowed down our analysis and identified some of the key factors contributing to changes," said Bujor.

UNHCR wishes to thank the WMO, Met Office in the UK, SE European Met Services for their help and support in supporting the operations of the UNHCR Winter Operations Cell

By Omar Karmi,Geneva
UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi talks with Syrian refugees at an informal settlement near Zahle in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.  UNHCR/S.Tarling

BEIRUT, Lebanon, Jan 22 (UNHCR) - The fate of millions of Syrian refugees and internally displaced people is in the hands of regional and world powers and they must now act, particularly after devastating images of starving children in Syria shocked the world.

That was the message of Filippo Grandi, the new UN High Commissioner for Refugees, as he wrapped up his first official trip, an eight-day itinerary through Turkey, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon.

"All the countries that have an influence in this complicated peace process, none of them should be looking at those pictures of starving children without realizing that unless peace comes we will see more of those pictures," he told reporters at a news conference in Beirut today (January 22).

"So if we want those pictures to stop coming up on our screens, they have to be serious about peace talks and about concretely making all the necessary compromises that are needed to achieve peace."

Grandi said regular and unimpeded humanitarian access was urgently needed to all areas in Syria, especially to reach the over 400,000 people in places that are besieged across the country.

After five years of war, he stressed the growing vulnerability and fragility of refugees in the host countries he visited. There are more than 4 million Syrian refugees. Turkey hosts 2.5 million of them, Lebanon has taken in just over 1 million, and there are a further 635,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan.

Grandi described the huge inflow of Syrians and others into Europe as "a wake-up call." For the first time, he said, European leaders have realized that they are not providing enough funding to refugee hosting countries and humanitarian organizations in the Middle East. Without extra money these countries' infrastructures are creaking and aid is falling short. The result is that refugees are flowing north.

The UNHCR head underlined the importance of an upcoming international conference in London on how to support Syria and the region on February 4.

He said his hope was that the conference would reinforce the response to the crisis by organizations like UNHCR. He hoped it would also create the foundations for a global response to what has become a global crisis. Syrian refugees are spreading across continents.

"We want more countries to share in taking them in legally," he said.

The objectives of the conference are:

1. To significantly increase funding for immediate refugee needs and for longer-term humanitarian and development assistance;

2. To examine how to create economic and job opportunities and education opportunities, not only for Syrians inside Syria but for those who have fled to other countries; and

3. To maintain pressure on parties to the conflict to protect civilians, and to prepare a coordinated stabilisation effort by the international community when conditions improve.

Earlier in the day, Grandi returned from the Syrian capital, Damascus, and stopped in the Saadnayel region of the Bekaa Valley, where more than 370,000 Syrian refugees now live.

In these informal settlements, refugees have built their own tents with help and materials from UNHCR.

Grandi met with refugee families from eastern Syria.

Mohammad and Iman told him that they and five of their six children fled after their house was bombed and destroyed. They became internally displaced. Their eldest daughter remains trapped in eastern Syria.

"We moved around 11 times," Iman told him. "Every time we went to a place it got bombed and we had to move to another."

Sixteen months ago they left Syria and found shelter in the Bekaa Valley. Two of their children, Rahma and Ahmed, are blind and need cornea transplants. The success rate is almost 95 per cent, Mohammad said, but the family is now deeply in debt and can't afford the operations.

In addition, Mohammad's residence permit has expired and he can't find the money to renew it. He told the High Commissioner his family fears being evicted from the settlement as a result.

It's a problem across the country. Without permits refugees have trouble moving around or finding temporary work.

"I have spoken to the Government [about residence permits]," Grandi told them. "And I hope that there will be some improvement next month."

By Don Murray in Lebanon

Watch the video Lebanon: A Message of Hope for Syrian Refugees in the Bekaa Valley
BEIJING, Jan. 22 -- About half of China's population are now active users of mobile messaging app WeChat, which celebrates its sixth anniversary Friday.

WeChat, developed by Internet giant Tencent, swiftly gained 650 million active users living in or outside China within five years.

In comparison, the online social networking service Twitter gained 320 million active users within 10 years, microblog Sina Weibo got 210 million within seven years.

"My daughter taught me how to use WeChat to have video chats with my granddaughter," said Li Fayang, a 59-year-old retiree from north China's Shenyang city. "Unlike traditional phone calls, all WeChat services are free."

Like Li, many Chinese rely heavily on WeChat to communicate with family, friends and colleagues on a daily basis, via its text messaging, hold-to-talk voice messaging, six-second-video messaging and video conference services.

In addition, WeChat has a social-networking function called "Friend's Circle," similar to Facebook's "Timeline," encouraging users to share their moments with texts, photos and mini-videos. Users may also subscribe to public media accounts, organizations and companies for newsletters.

User dependency cultivated through such well-received free services makes WeChat a golden platform to deliver news and ads, as well as to conduct e-commerce business.

WeChat launched its mini-store service in 2014, offering platforms to big and small business operators. Major online commerce companies including JD.com as well as millions of individual start-ups now all take advantage of WeChat platforms to do promotions and direct sales.

Shen Yue, for example, a 23-year-old Chinese student who lives in the United States, manages to sell homemade cakes on WeChat, mostly to her Chinese friends and friends of friends living nearby.

While WeChat is bringing fundamental changes to people's lives and business modes, there are concerns about the "WeChat addiction" that is distracting people from their daily lives.
Policemen from Yangma Island Frontier Police Station help sea cucumber farmers to break ice in Yantai, east China's Shandong Province, on Jan. 20, 2016.Continuous temperature-dropping and snowing weather accelerated the expansion of sea ice in the Yellow Sea and the Bohai Sea. Part of inshore cultivation area was frozen. [Photo: xinhua]

People in China are experiencing the coldest week of the winter of 2016 so far, as a blast of icy air sweeps in from the north and west.

Meteorological authorities have forecast temperatures to get even colder.

China's National Meteorological Center has announced a blue alert for snow storms that will sweep southern China in the coming days.

Temperatures could drop by 14 degrees Celsius, with some cities in the south to see record low temperatures.

Snow and rain has hit southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

A lot of residents were attracted by the rarely seen snow-covered scenery, as temperatures cross most of the city dipped below freezing. They climbed the mountains, made snowman, or waged snowball fights with their friends and families.

"Today I came here with my mom to make snowman and have snowball fights, it is fun!"

It is expected that the city may experience its coldest day of this winter on Sunday.

Schools in Hunan Province's capital Changsha have been told to start winter holiday three days early.

Education authorities in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, have also allowed students to stay home from school.

Agricultural authorities in Hunan have warned farmers to add organic fertilizers to keep crops and vegetables from being damaged.

Experts warned that the low temperature caused by the heavy snow will influence the traffic and electric systems in some regions.

Northern China has already experienced record low temperatures in some areas.

In Jilin province the temperatures have dipped below minus 20 degree Celsius.

Taxi drivers working in Hunchun city have been dealing with difficult conditions.

"I have to stop and wipe the windows of my car every now and then after driving for a while, or I can see things nothing . "

"I can't see the road at all . And the wind is just too strong. "

In Beijing, daytime highs are expected to be below zero on Thursday.

An unnamed local says she has been confused by previous forecast of a warm winter, while in effect it's been extremely cold.

"It's been so cold this week, I'm really frozen. It's been reported that the El Nino effect is strong, should be warm this winter. So why does if feel even colder than last year?"

On Friday the temperature in Beijing is forecast to dip to a 10 year low, dropping to minus sixteen degree Celsius.

Zhu Dingzhen with China Meteorological Administration says the cold snap doesn't change the overall trend toward warmer winters.

"Climate is the average condition of the weather. The change in temperatures following a cold front can not represent the whole year. From a wholesale point of view, and looking at the weather from last year, China saw an average temperature in 2015 that was nearly 1 degree Celsius higher than the average. This means the trend of global warming and warmer winter weather will continue in China."

Experts have warned people of dangerous driving conditions and have also told people to take measures to protect their health during the cold snap.
Dong people dance in the front of their drum tower in a village at the foot of Mount Fanjing in Jiangkou county, Southwest China's Guizhou province.(File photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn)

On the afternoon of the last day of Chinese New Year, which this year falls on Feb 7, Yang Yuanju and her family make offerings to their ancestors at the 19-storey pagoda-shaped drum tower in the center of their village.

As a symbol of ethnic Dong nationality culture, drum towers, or gulou, can be found in every Dong village, be it home to dozens or hundreds of households, and are often the most magnificent landmarks, overlooking all other houses even though people don't live in them

Nobody can tell when the first gulou was built because the Dong don't have written records, but legend says wherever there is Dong village there is a gulou, originally a building to place drums that were struck by the village chief to call together people when there were threats of invasion or important issues to discuss.
A student at the University of Virginia was detained in North Korea for undisclosed reasons, but the vague details available make his charges seem serious.

According to Reuters, Otto Frederick Warmbier was detained on Jan. 2 at Pyongyang Airport as he was boarding his flight back to China. Warmbier was on a five-day trip organized by Young Pioneer Tours, but it is unclear what the purpose of the trip was.

News of Warmbier's detainment did not break until Friday, nearly three weeks later, but statements from the U.S. State Department and the YPT organization indicate both parties have been working on the case all along.

"We can confirm that the reports that one of our clients is being detained in Pyongyang are true. Their family have been informed and we are in contact with the Swedish Embassy, (who act as the protecting interest for U.S citizens), who are working with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to address the case," read a statement from YPT. "We are also assisting the U.S Department of State closely with regards to the situation. In the meantime we would appreciate Otto's and his family's privacy being respected and we hope his release can be secured as soon as possible."

North Korea's state-run Central News Agency provided little detail on Warmbier's arrest, but outline serious allegations nonetheless. Per Esquire, the UVA student is being held for "perpetrating a hostile act against the DPRK after entering it under the guise of tourist for the purpose of bringing down the foundation of its single-minded unity at the tacit connivance of the U.S. government and under its manipulation."

The Cavalier Daily, a campus newspaper at UVA, noted Warmbier is a third-year commerce student who is a member of the Theta Chi fraternity and an Echols scholar. Reuters pointed out he is also minoring in global sustainability and has visited Cuba and Israel, based on posts from his social media accounts.

In a statement to The Cavalier Daily, UVA stated it had nothing to do with the YPT trip to North Korea but confirmed administrators have "been in touch with Otto Warmbier's family."
Aug. 19, 2022

Fitness. When the average citizen thinks of being fit, it is easy for cardio and strength training to come to mind. That is not the case for those serving in the Air Force and Space Force. Comprehensive Airman Fitness teaches that to have overarching fitness and resilience, one must work on his or
CAIRO, Jan. 21 -- China and Egypt agreed on Thursday to expand cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative during Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to the North African country.

During their talks at the Quba Palace in the morning, Xi, who first proposed the initiative in 2013, and his Egyptian counterpart, Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, reached extensive consensus on jointly carrying out the Belt and Road Initiative.

Xi proposed that the two countries work together to build the Arab nation into a pivot of the Belt and Road, which comprises the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.

To that end, Xi suggested, China and Egypt should conjoin their development strategies and visions and focus on cooperation on infrastructure construction and production capacity.

Meanwhile, China is willing to participate in Egypt's key projects including the development of the Suez Canal Corridor and the construction of a new administrative capital, said Xi.

He added that Beijing is also ready to expand bilateral cooperation in trade, finance, space technology, energy, human resources development and security.

According to a five-year outline document signed on Thursday, the two sides will "double their efforts" to develop the China-Egypt Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone. The document is aimed to cement the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two nations.

The two sides will continue to encourage Chinese companies to invest in the zone and other places, especially those from China's competitive sectors such as textile and steel, said the document.

Xi attended an inauguration ceremony of the second phase of the zone on Thursday. He said the project will bring to Egypt over 100 companies in such sectors as textile, garment, oil equipment, motorcycle and solar energy, and create more than 10,000 jobs for Egypt.

In the energy sector, the two sides agreed to support companies to set up joint ventures and carry out projects in Egypt, the Middle East and Africa, according to the outline document.

Meanwhile, China will help train 2,000 Egyptians in the five years from 2016 to 2020.

The document said that China will, within its capacity, conduct financing cooperation with Egypt regarding Belt and Road projects.

Following their talks, the two presidents witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding on jointly implementing the Belt and Road Initiative.

Also at the signing ceremony, the two sides inked a number of other cooperation agreements covering such areas as electricity, space, infrastructure, trade, energy, fiance, culture, media, technology and climate change.

The deals are worth 15 billion U.S. dollars, said Egyptian local media Ahram online, quoting Minister of International Cooperation Sahar Nasr.

China, Xi said, attaches great importance to its ties with Egypt, and supports the Arab country's efforts to restore stability and choose a development path that fits its own conditions.

The Chinese president urged the two countries to firmly support each other's core interests, step up coordination within the United Nations, and maintain communication on both regional and global affairs, such as the Middle East situation and climate change.

In the meeting, Xi also invited al-Sisi to attend the Group of 20 (G20) summit in the Chinese city of Hangzhou in September.

For his part, al-Sisi said Xi's visit, which comes upon the 60th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties, will greatly boost the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

Egypt is willing to connect its own development plans with the Belt and Road Initiative and expand infrastructure cooperation with China under the framework of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, he said, while calling for more Chinese investment in his country.

The Egyptian president thanked Xi for the invitation to the G20 Hangzhou summit as a guest of honor, and expressed his country's appreciation of China always being fair and just on Middle East issues.

Describing China as a traditional partner of the Arab and African nations, he said his country will help deepen the friendship between the Arab world and China, and work more closely with China within the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

The two countries established the partnership in December 2014 when al-Sisi visited China.

Xi also visited Egypt's newly-elected parliament and addressed the Cairo-based Arab League on Thursday afternoon.

The Chinese president arrived in Cairo on Wednesday, 16 years after his last trip to the Arab country, which now looks forward to taking a ride on the train of development powered by the world's second largest economy.

Before traveling to Egypt, the Chinese leader visited Saudi Arabia, the first leg of his three-nation Middle East tour, which will also take him to Iran.

>>>Related:

Xi outlines Middle East vision

China and Arab states should build peace, promote development, boost industrialization, support stability and partner people-to-people exchanges in the Middle East, President Xi Jinping said on Thursday.
Wyoming Business Tips for Jan. 31-Feb. 6

A weekly look at Wyoming business questions from the Wyoming Small Business Development Center (WSBDC), part of WyomingEntrepreneur.Biz, a collection of business assistance programs at the University of Wyoming.

By Sarah Lancaster Hamlin, WSBDC Fremont County business adviser

I own a tourism-based business. Does it matter if my business has an online presence? Sheryl, Cody

These days, having an online presence -- a basic, well-maintained website and listings in online directories and peer review sites -- should be an important part of your business marketing plan.

The Pew Research Center estimates that 84 percent of American adults (over the age of 18) are online. This continues a 15-year trend of growth in the number of American adults who are online.

Wyoming is no different. Pew Center research suggests that residents of rural communities have been slow adaptors to using the Internet. By the end of 2014, 78 percent of people living in rural communities also reported being online. Though 18-29-year-olds were still the most likely adult Internet users in a community, it is the 65-plus demographic that is growing at the fastest rate.

Like it or not, most customers go online to find basic business information (contact information, location, etc.) and to read reviews before making a purchase of a product or service, especially when it comes to making reservations for an upcoming vacation. With the growing adoption of smartphones, this becomes even more common in the tourism markets. If your customers and potential customers cannot find you, how will they be able to make the decision to visit while on vacation?

It is estimated that in 2014, $122 billion was spent online booking for travel. This represents about 40 percent of all tourism and booking -- and we have seen this activity grow by about 73 percent the last five years. Between 2013-14, we saw an 11 percent increase in the amount of money that was spent booking travel online. It is estimated that this trend continued in 2015.

In this market, how can you afford not to have an online presence?

A blog version of this article and an opportunity to post comments are available at http://wyen.biz/blog1/.

The WSBDC is a partnership of the U.S. Small Business Administration, the Wyoming Business Council and the University of Wyoming. To ask a question, call 1-800-348-5194, email wsbdc@uwyo.edu, or write 1000 E. University Ave., Dept. 3922, Laramie, WY, 82071-3922.
Editor's notes: In recent days, a group of photos of an old gentleman has been circulated widely on China's social media, phone apps and Wechat. The old man from southeastern China's Fujian province looks stylish. People thought he is well received due to his taste and gentleman-like manner; but out of expectation, he is a farmer. His grandson, a photographer, who runs a photo studio in Xiamen, southeastern China's Fujian province, took these photos to express his love to her grandpa. He says, "To love them, you should not let them just wait. From today, don't leave them alone and don't love too late." We begin to reflect: it seems too late, but how about you?

This is the old gentleman, leisurely, happy and elegant.

From shoes to bow ties, he looks a gentleman to his fingertips.
Po and Mei Mei. (Wccdaily.com.cn/Chen Yuxiao)

Kung Fu Panda 3 press tour in Chengdu. (Wccdaily.com.cn/Chen Yuxiao)

From Mulan to Mission: Impossible III, along with X-Men, Iron Man 3, and The Martian, Chinese elements have been penetrating Hollywood more and more in recent years. The Kung Fu Panda series has even been considered a love letter from Hollywood to China.

On Jan. 20, the Kung Fu Panda 3 press tour arrived in Chengdu, Chinas southwestern Sichuan province. Despite a strong cold current, Po, Mei Mei, Hollywood star Kate Hudson (who lends her voice to female giant panda Mei Mei) and thousands of fans showed up to welcome this American-Chinese animated comedy.

Compared to the previous two Kung Fu Panda movies, the third movie has more Chinese elements: Po has a Chinese name, Li Lianhua; Mei Mei is in traditional Sichuan costumes; the panda village is located in Qingcheng Mountain, a scenic spot in Sichuan province.

Kate Hudson explained that, apart from market demand for the movie, Chinese culture was also a big attraction for her when she accepted the dubbing role for Kung Fu Panda 3. My kids were so excited once they knew about the job. They think I am a really cool mom and they say they want to learn Chinese kung fu, too, Hudson laughed.

In an interview with one of Kung Fu Panda 3s directors, Jennifer Yuh Nelson, Nelson revealed that the crew visited the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding and Qingcheng Mountain to get inspiration for the movie. She also noted that there is a lot of space for the development of a potential Kung Fu Panda 4. Since Po is actually from Sichuan, Nelson is also considering making Kung Fu Panda 3 in Sichuan dialect.
BEIJING, Jan. 21 -- Endless beaches, historical sites, friendly people, oodles of elephants and famous tea.all these things remind us of a unique countrySri Lanka.

Set in the Indian Ocean in South Asia, the tropical island nation of Sri Lanka has a recorded history of more than 2,500 years. It is a place where the original soul of Buddhism still flourishes and where natures beauty remains abundant and unspoilt.

Peoples Daily Online had an interview with Dr. Karunasena Kodituwakku, the Sri Lankan Ambassador to China to further explore the beauty and charm of this country.

Few places in the world can offer the travelers such a remarkable combination of stunning landscapes, pristine beaches, captivating cultural heritage and unique experiences within such a compact location. Nowadays more and more Chinese people consider Sri Lanka as their ideal tourist destination. In fact, not only China, tourists from all over the world, including Japan, Korea, and Europe who have visited Sri Lanka are willing to come here again, said the ambassador. With the improvement of the aviation, there are direct flights from several Chinese cities to Sri Lanka, making the trip more pleasant and convenient. Its really a pity for travelers to fly over Sri Lanka on their way to other destinations.

Besides, the Sri Lankans all love their tea. Introduced to the country in the 19th century by colonial British Ceylon, Sri Lankan tea is one of the best in the world. Now the tea has come to China with the promotion program of the Sri Lankan embassy.

Ceylon tea has a special taste. China and Sri Lanka have shared tea culture. We know that new generation in China is like to try on new things. So its good time to introduce our tea to a country with such a large population. Sri Lanka decides to have a special tea campaign in China. We are doing our best to make it more and more popular, said Dr. Karunasena Kodituwakku.

In terms of the economic development, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has just announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos that his government will go ahead with a multi billion U.S. dollar port city project in the capital funded by China after it was suspended earlier last year.

The ambassador values its economic ties with China, emphasizing the role that Chinese government plays in investing and developing the infrastructure in Sri Lanka. At the same time the ambassador also encourages affluent Chinese to invest in Sri Lanka especially in the stock market. As a country along the Maritime Silk Road, the ambassador welcomes One Belt One Road initiative proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping and hopes this initiative will create more economic opportunities to all the countries along the route.

In the future, the ambassador hopes that more Chinese students will choose to receive higher education in Sri Lanka. Now many Chinese students study abroad in the U.S. or Europe. Sri Lanka is also competent in higher education. Studying here will provide students with a comprehensive global view, which has nurtured many leaders in world economy and politics, said the ambassador.
China will seek breakthrough in overseas expansion of its high-speed rail and enhance the international competitiveness in 2016, said Sheng Guangzu, general manager of China Railway (CR), the national railway operator, at a recent conference.

China will strive to win several overseas projects, including the high-speed rails from Moscow to Kazan, the US Xpress West high-speed railway project connecting Las Vegas and Los Angeles, Malaysia-Singapore high-speed rail and a railway across South America and Tanzania-Zambia railway.

Improving core technology is also the key task of the CR this year, said Sheng.

China's railway equipment has become the main contributor to promote the capacity cooperation between China and overseas countries. Chinese President Xi Jinping will propose the high-speed rail agreement with Iran during his ongoing visit in the Middle East.

In 2014, the value of deals on railway cooperation exceeded 130 billion yuan, involving six continents.

Currently, the overseas large projects under construction include railways linking China and Laos, China and Thailand, and the rail between Hungary and Serbia.

The 140-kilometer high-speed rail linking Indonesia's capital city of Jakarta and Bandung, which began construction on Jan. 21, 2016, is a milestone in the export of Chinas high speed rail. The two sides signed the agreement on Oct. 16, 2015 and it is Chinas first overseas high-speed rail project.

Experts believe with China gradually becoming a capital exporter, the CR is expected to explore overseas market in more countries and region. In addition, the further internationalization of the yuan and the establishment of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank will also provide strong support for China Railways efforts in expanding the overseas market.
The first two episodes of season eleven often felt like there was a little too much of mining old material. Luckily in this episode the gang branch out into rarely visited territory: outside of Philadelphia.

In The Gang Hits the Slopes, we see the gang visit a ski resort and almost immediately they become divided. Frank and Dennis unite with the hope of taking over the resort and making it an expensive private retreat. Mac and Dee on the other hand yearn for the party atmosphere from decades ago and try and reclaim it by befriending a relic from the resort's past called Dave Drisco. In the middle of this is an indifferent Charlie, moving between the sides and experiencing all the trip has to offer.

From the retro title card to the eighties soundtrack, its evident from the start that this is essentially a parody episode. Always Sunny has always felt at heart influenced by the kind of crude eighties movies where the underdog heroes take on the corporate machine and things play out in an episodic, sketch-like fashion, packed full of pranks. Thats all here with a homage that feels as loose as the sex comedies like Meatballs that inspired it. Some specific story beats may be telegraphed a mile away yet are immensely enjoyable because of it. Charlies sex scene, accompanied by Jessies Girl, is ridiculously over the top and adds to the idea that this is an escapist break from Always Sunny traditions.

Much like the first episode of this season, by the end of the story the entire thing is revealed to be another set-up by Frank; this time to frack the area on the sly and the climactic ski-race is all for nothing (at the expense of Dennis broken ankles). At this point in the series this sort of reveal isnt exactly shocking to any long-time Always Sunny viewers but it reinforces the idea that its a self-conscious parody from the writers who arent going to be bound too much by sticking to the formula of the original genre and will instead maintain the shows tone. The fact that even most of the people at the resort were hookers hired by Frank and that Dave Drsico, the one man the gang wanted to befriend, gets arrested for sexual assault brings the gang back down to reality and confirms that there are rarely any happy endings for these characters.

7/10  A change of location livens up an otherwise familiar series so far, while making this episode more of an outright parody was a nice change of pace.
Sami Zayn def. Adam Rose

NXT kicked off with a bang as Sami Zayn was in action for the first time at Full Sail since his injury, and he took on the Social Outcast member, Adam Rose who returned to his old stomping grounds once more.

It was a nicely paced match, with Zayn taking control in the early goings, working on Rose's arm with several different maneuvers, until the main roster superstar got the advantage following a straight right hand.

Rose would then display a more aggressive side to himself as he beat down on Zayn, attempting to ruin his return, hitting a flying head butt from the top rope, but the NXT favorite would kick out, and quickly change the momentum, as he locked in Koji Clutch for the victory.

Analysis: This was a short match, and because of that the ending seemed very abrupt and out of nowhere, but it's good to see Zayn back in action and the victory established him as a serious contender for next weeks match, it was also good to see him use a submission maneuver for the victory, it's something different that he doesn't do too often.

Backstage promo with Jordan & Gable

We were then taken outside, where NXT's hottest tag team; Jason Jordan and Chad Gable were stood, and they talked about the recent NXT awards, and how they were not even nominated for best tag team.

But they did mention, that in London they beat a team that was nominated, and former champions, Blake and Murphy, and they challenged them to match between just them, unlike in London.

The duo then talked about how they have each dominated in the sport, outside of WWE, and that they were alpha's, which led to them creating their brand new tag team name.... American Alpha.

Analysis: That was a very fun promo from a pair that are only growing in charisma and personality each week, the way they interact with each other is so fun to watch, and the new name is fits well. On a side note, how were they not nominated for tag team of the year? They might be relatively new, but they made a big impact in a short space of time, and probably deserved at least a nomination.

Apollo Crews def. Tye Dillinger

A perfect 10! Photo: WWE

Next up we have two of NXT's best in-ring talents in action, but the match started off at a rather slow pace with neither man getting the upper hand, that was until Apollo Crews put on an amazing feat of strength.

Crews hoisted up the perfect 10 into a delayed suplex, which Dillinger began to fight out of, instead of allowing him to escape, Crews simply squatted then lifted him back up to his the move, it was quite incredible and the fans reacted accordingly.

Dillinger then escapes to the outside and plays possum as he attacks Crews before hitting a suicide dive, followed up by a vicious knee to the temple which led to a near fall, but Crews would regain control and hit his powerbomb finisher for the victory.

Analysis: It was another short match but it certainly was fun whilst it lasted, both men looked to hit impressive spots to get the crowd invested and it paid off, the squatted suplex was fantastic.

No real surprise with the finish, but it would good to see Tye Dillinger be given a storyline in the near future as he has tons of talent, and the crowd love him, he's just waiting for an opportunity to prove himself now.

Post match Crews got on the microphone and challenged Finn Balor to a non-title match, as a way of proving himself and climbing the ladder back to the top, a match that the champion would later accept in a short backstage segment.

Analysis: That should be a fun match, it was great last time until the interference's so seeing them go at it again will be perfectly fine, and with the title not being on the line there is a chance Crews could pick up a pinfall victory over Balor.

Backstage interview with Blake, Murphy and Alexa Bliss

The trio were being interview for a response to the challenge from the American Alpha's, whose new name the tag team were mimicking, but the joking quickly stopped when Alexa Bliss told them she was embarrassed in London when they were defeated.

However, she said she would stick with them as it took half of the roster to take away their tag title's when they were champions, and she claimed to she would set an example in her match later on.

Analysis: Good segment which continues to show that Bliss is firmly in charge of the group and what they do, her heel persona is much better than when she was face and she is continuing to be the shining star in the group.

The Vaudevillians Vignette

We are shown a video package of the tag team as their theme song plays, the duo are smiling and posing, shaking hands, until the music started to fade and the pair's facial expressions took a much angrier turn, bringing it to an end.

Analysis: It looks like the tag team are getting a gimmick change and appear to be turning heel, I think it's a wise move to give them a new direction as what they were doing had become a little stale.

Baron Corbin def. Rich Swann

Swann made a big impact on his debut. Photo: WWE

Rich Swann made his debut in NXT on this episode, an experienced and well known independent talent who many fans may recognize, and be pleased to see at Full Sail, and he worked hard with Baron Corbin to create the best singles match of the night.

It was the battle of speed and agility against sheer power, a contrast that can often create fun match ups like this, the first major talking point was a fantastic spot of Corbin flipping Swann over his head, to land face first on the mat after several spins mid air, awesome spot.

Corbin then looked to bully Swann around the ring, but that wasn't something that would happen, with Swann hitting a flurry of drop kicks and one fantastic spinning roundhouse that had Corbin on the ropes.

Swann, with the crowd firmly behind him dived off the ropes in an attempt to finish things, but he was caught by Corbin who hit the End of Days for the victory after a solid match.

Analysis: Really fun match, with both men working very hard to put on a story, which allowed Swann to get over with the fans despite it being his debut on the show. Corbin continued to look impressive as he got the job done, but it was Swann who stole the show, and hopefully it's not the last we've seen of him in NXT.

Baymella def. Alexa Bliss & Emma with Dana Brooke

The Women's Champion, Bayley and best friend/number one contender,Carmella formed their famous, Baymella in the ring for the first time ever, as they took on Emma and Alexa Bliss in tag team action.

It was clear from the get-go that the heels were not friends, with Bliss flicking her hair into Emma's face forcing Brooke to separate them before the match began, but once the faces hit the ring, they were on the same page as they ambushed them, sending Carmella out of the ring as they beat down and injured the champ.

Despite the rib injury, Bayley opted to start the match, showing her fighting champion spirit, but she wasn't 100% and struggled as the heels had complete control with frequent tags and double team moves.

However, the hug loving champion staged a comeback, and even had time to verbally insult Brooke who had been a loud annoyance at ringside throughout, despite a small attempt from the heels to stop the tag, Bayley gets to her partner, and Carmella cleaned house, locking in a leg submission on Bliss for the win.

Analysis: This was an excellent match between four of the best women in the division, all of them had their time to shine, with the heels looking particularly strong, which is always good to see, since the main roster never do it.

The victory for the faces had to happen with both of them having a title match next week, and it will be intriguing to see what happens between them, as there is several options they can play up, but I think a Nia Jax run in is the most likely.

Carmella picked up the win for her team. Photo:WWE

Samoa Joe def. Johnny Gargano

Gargano started the match on fire, taking it right to the beast, hitting him with rights and lefts to the point where Samoa Joe got out of the ring for a breather. But Johnny Wrestling would only follow, which proved to be a poor decision as a clever kick would see Gargano land hand on the ring apron.

After a beat down, Joe kicked Gargano out of the ring, which resulted in a nine count, but a Hulk Hogan like comeback didn't work for Gargano, as Joe simply slapped him around, literally.

After avoiding several clothesline's, Gargano would hit two enziguris, before being thrown out of the ring again, however this time his return back to the squared circle would have a huge impact, hitting a DDT from the ropes.

Another attempt to fly through the ropes didn't work out though, as Joe caught his opponent and locked in the Coquina Clutch, resulting in a submission victory after an impressive match.

Analysis: A solid match to continue setting up next weeks triple threat, it made Joe look like a monster, which is what he needs after being beaten by Balor in his title shot, for Gargano it was an impressive showing, and hopefully we get more of him in the future.

Score: 8/10

Last week: 5.5/10

A very entertaining show, that was NXT at it's very best; simple storytelling with good wrestling put together, the way that all shows should be, the time simply flies by and is so easy to watch you don't notice that it's finishing because it never drags, unlike RAW.

Having all three guys in the number one contenders match showcase their abilities and get good wins against strong opponents was good to see, and makes it tough to predict next week, in what should be an excellent match.

But this episode also developed other stories,including the Women's title match and the tag team division, whilst teasing a possible heel turn for The Vaudevillians, and all in all it was an excellent show.

Moment of the show: This week goes to the women's tag team match, it was a superb T.V. match that showcased the abilities of all four women perfectly, it told a story within the match and the fans were invested.

Star of the show: Rich Swann, this might be a surprising choice to some people as there was a lot of strong performances making several candidates, but Swann on his debut go the fans invested in his match, (which was also excellent) but he also put on a great performance in the ring, and I really hope we see him back at Full Sail.

What did you think of this weeks NXT? Let us know via our twitter - @Vavel_Wrestling, or in the comments below.
SEOUL, Jan. 22 -- South Koreavowed on Friday to respond to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's (DPRK) nuclear program sternly in 2016 after Pyongyang's nuclear test earlier this month.

President Park Geun-hye was briefed by foreign, defense and unification ministers about their respective policy directions in 2016, which focused on resolving Pyongyang's nuclear issue through stronger sanctions and pressure rather than dialogue and consultations.

It was a sharp turn from last year's policy reports to Park, which were centered on ending the era of the divided Korean Peninsula and preparing for a new era of a reunified Korea.

The turn into a tougher stance came as the DPRK claimed on Jan. 6 that it had tested its first hydrogen bomb. It marked the fourth nuclear test in the DPRK and the second since top DPRK leader Kim Jong Untook power in 2011.

The South Korean foreign ministry submitted its plan to Park that will place its top priority on resolving the DPRK's nuclear issue by diplomatically pressuring Pyongyang to give up its nuclear weapons program.

Seoul will pursue the strongest ever resolution at the UN Security Council, while increasing the trilateral dialogue channels with Washington, Beijing and Tokyo. The country will also call on China and Russiato play constructive roles in resolving the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula.
The Asian trade on Wednesday saw US crude futures fall below an already low price of $28 a barrel, recording an all-time low since September 2003. The news hit the market after a warning sent by the International Energy Agency (IEA) the day before - "oil markets could drown in oversupply".

According to CNBC, the US crude futures dropped to $27.92, from its $28 a barrel at 0136 GMT, before recovering slightly. Brent Crude itself was close to the 12-year-low mark when it fell below its $28.57 and dropped to $27.92.

The situation looks rather bleak at the moment. "Oil prices are at a level where OPEC countries are all struggling. They are selling oil for cashflow not for profit," said Jonathan Barratt, chief investment financial officer. He feels that the US oil producers are holding out for now, but at a cost. Barratt is hopeful that, given the current condition, the oil makers would soon come up with a plan to push the prices up.

As The Citizen reveals, the IEA reports seem to have had an impact on the prices. Also, with the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) February contract coming to an end, the traders may have gravitated towards the March one. In its Tuesday statement, IEA mentioned Iran's return to the market has created an unwanted situation of supply exceeding demand by a great extent. So unless there is a dramatic turn of events, prices could dip even lower.

The market is keenly awaiting the reports that are due to be released by industry group, the American Petroleum Institute (API) on Wednesday, along with the EIA numbers that are due for Thursday. While some dismiss the facts by saying the financial markets are overreacting to the scene, the industry experts are keeping a sharp watch on the graph, as reported by Daily News & Analysis. They say the oil prices can see better days provided the storage space for crude is sufficient to hold the world stock. Around 230 million barrels of new storage are expected to be completed this year.

There's no doubt that the oil market has taken a hard hit, and the situation is highly likely to go from bad to worse. At this time, Maurice Obstfeld, the International Monetary Fund's chief economist breathed a little hope by saying, "The oil price puts stresses on oil exporters ... but there is a silver lining for consumers worldwide, so it's not an unmitigated negative."
Vietnam officials have warned China against drilling an oil rig in borderline waters in the South China Sea. Vietnam warning came following as Beijing steered a huge oil rig at the middle of a standoff between the two countries.

China has steered the HY-981 rig into an overlying area of inland shelves between Hainan Island in China and the central coast of Vietnam, Le Hai Binh, foreign ministry spokesperson of Hanoi said to GMA NEWS ONLINE. Vietnam has asked China to stop the drilling activities and to remove the rig out of the water, Binh added.

Hanoi closely observes the movement of the HY-981 oil rig, which caused the most horrible political breakdown in the middle of 2014 when China anchored the $1 billion rig for nearly ten weeks in Vietnam waters. Reuters said that Vietnam and China share over $60 billion in yearly trade but anti-China sentiments remain strong among the Vietnam people over the territorial breaches in the South China Sea.

Vietnam's anxiety over the rig develops subsequent to a recent flight testing carried out by China on a fake island in Spratly archipelago. According to China, most part of South China Sea is under its rule, while its neighbours like Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei have competing rights.

On Tuesday, demonstrators in Hanoi held an anti-China protest to spot the 42nd centenary of China taking full dominance over the Paracel Islands, Reuters said. According to the sources, Vietnam's report over the oil rig comes at a subtle time as Vietnam's communist heads prepare to elect their fresh leader to direct the nation for the following five years.

Vietnam's Politburo has suggested Mr.Trong continue his post as head of the nation's Communist Party while pro-West Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung to quit office, Wall Street Journal said citing people with knowledge of the situation.

According to reports, Dung has received domestic popularity for his condemnation of China's territorial infringement in the South China Sea. Prime Minister Dung is considered to be a modern politician who is ready to liberalize Vietnam economy.

TIME quoted London, a professor at the University of Hong Kong, as saying, "To his supporters, Dung, is Vietnam's most eloquent statesman, a reform champion, and a patriot keen to end Hanoi's deference to Beijing. Indeed, Dung projects a public commitment to market-liberalizing reforms and a willingness to expand freedoms 'in accordance with the law.'"

The reports said that the South China Ocean remains a tense topic for Vietnam leaders. Controversial frontiers in the Gulf of Tonkin and frequent flight testing by China over the disputed areas boost the tension between Vietnam and China.
The Portable Ultra Short Throw Projector, introduced by Sony, is going to hit the Japan market on February 13. The Japanese manufacturer has demonstrated the projector at International Franchise Association (IFA) Show, 2015 back in September.

The tiny projector is capable of beaming an image onto a wall from a very short distance. The product is going to be available first in the Japan market for around 93,000 ($798).

Sony has reportedly also built a much larger projector with the same ultra short throw technique. But the recently introduced one will be a lot easier to integrate in to the home, reports The Verge.

'Portable Ultra Short Throw Projector' appears to be a clumsy name, but the device seems to be highly descriptive. The small, highly portable, 8 cm wide projector transmits a 1366 x 768 TV image at 100 lumens onto a surface from just couple of centimeters away, reports Trusted Reviews.

Sony's little white box defies the notions of typically large conventional projectors and requires to get plugged in. The LSPX-P1 is small enough to hold in one hand and may be severed from both power and input connections. It may be operated completely wirelessly and can project an image from 20 to 80 inches onto just about any flat surface, reports CNET.

The battery-powered device measures 3.19"x5.16"x5.16"(81mm x 131mm x 131mm). The battery power lasts two hours on a charge and can project an auto focused 1366 x 768 image of 100 lumens and between 22 and 80 inches.

There's an HDMI input, but can also be accessed to content via a wireless hub connected to PC or TV. The projector works with Bluetooth Low Energy to automatically play media from a smart phone when the two devices are closed.

There's also a speaker on the device, with Sony's xLOUD technology helping to boost its power. HDMI port or a wireless hub hooked up to a PC or media player handles connections.

Its UXGA resolution (1,600x1,200) appears to be sufficient to avoid the screen-door effect of visible pixels. Since it uses ultra short-throw technology, so may be placed next to the projection surface like white wall or a piece of paper on a desk.

A smart phone app can be used to control, device and even queue up videos. The short throw projector also includes a built-in speaker.

Sony's portable ultra short throw projector, LSPX-P1 is going to be available first in the Japan market in February 13. The projector has been reported to draw huge attention due to its special features. Sony has unveiled 4K projectors, but its larger size appears as barrier for easy movement. The product will be available in the US market by this summer.
American companies revealed that they have tough times doing business in China recently. On top of the slowing economy growth in China, American companies also attributed their tough times on unclear laws by the Chinese authorities, industrial overcapacity, also on how they feel unwelcome in China.



American Chamber of Commerce in China conducted a survey called China Business Climate Survey Report in which they discovered that in addition to the economic environment, U.S companies are also concerned about inconsistent and unclear applications of regulations and laws, also rising labor costs.



According to The Washington Post, the survey also revealed that only 6 percent U.S companies characterize their financial performance in China as very profitable, compared to the 9 percent in 2013. Only 58 percent characterized it as profitable, compared to the 2014 number of 67 percent. The companies that reported their performance characterized as a loss and large loss rose 1 percent in 2015 compared to 2014.



When the companies were asked about whether they feel more or less welcome in China, the results are quite one-sided. 77 percent stated that they feel less welcome in China than before.



Other complaints from foreign companies, especially American companies also included rising labor costs, internet censorship, online controls, risks of data breaches, industrial overcapacity, also air pollution.



The economic slowdown in China, while not the top concern, is still something significant that foreign companies are taking into account. Reuters reported that data from China's statistics bureau showed that economy growth for 2015 was at its weakest pace in a quarter of a century at 6.9 percent. 2015 was also the year where China economy saw a slide in the currency, summer stocks crash, and huge outflow of capital.



The People's Bank of China forecast that the country's economic growth will slow to 6.8 percent in 2016. However, more companies seem to expect that the number will fall worse than the central bank's estimation. Almost half of the survey respondents believe that the GDP growth will grow even worse in 2016 at 6.25 percent.



Wall Street Journal reported that Chinese top officials said that they would protect the rights of foreign companies in the country. However, American companies revealed that they have regulatory and protectionist concerns while doing business in China. It's even cited as the top business challenge last year, according to the report by American Chamber of Conference in China.

The survey concluded that U.S companies are not feeling so comfortable doing business in China. The factors sum up to unwelcoming regulations, rising labor costs, industrial overcapacity, censorship, also air pollution. However, China remains a top investment priority for most foreign companies, compared to other markets. Still, the companies are taking into accounts the challenges as well as the slow economic growth they know they would face.
It seems like Russia might be on the verge of legalizing online poker in the country. Russia is estimated to have approximately 20 million poker players, roughly 16 percent of the nation's adult population. Further regulations will be established, including the requirement of online poker operators to be licensed under Russian law. The operators would also be required to pay taxes.



Business Insider elaborated this possible move by Russia and why it should be considered as a good news. One member of Russia's Civic Chamber, Pavel Sychyov, stated that Russia's current ban on poker has instead driven the activity underground. Instead of stopping its people from gambling, the ban has created a market of illegal online gambling; uncontrolled and unregulated.



Sychyov also stated, as quoted by Russian local media MGER, that the authorities are trying to deal with illegal gambling online, but they are aware of the difficulties to control the internet. He even added, "Controlling the activities of illegal gambling on the internet is virtually impossible. All of them are registered in foreign domains and the closure is reduced to zero."



Maxim Katz, Moscow municipal councilor which is also an internationally known professional poker player also shows his agreement with the move. He suggested that the Russian authorities create conditions that would allow operators to make a profit and also secure tax revenue for the state.



There is also another reason to believe that Moscow is leaning toward legalizing online poker. They turn to believe that poker is a game of skill, and not a game of chance, which makes poker a legitimate competition to be authorized.



Pokerfuse announced that Global Poker League (GPL) that will begin in April this year would be joined by a team from Russia. The GPL is also seeking to endorse the approach that poker a professional activity which requires skill.



The process of regulating online poker in Russia around six months ago, initiated by Igor Shuvalov, Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister. He helped organized a meeting between Russian Finance Ministry officials and president of the public council of the Poker Enthusiasts League, Marina Bludyan, on August last year. In the meeting, they already discussed the terms and requirements if ever online poker becomes legal in Russia.



The process of legalizing poker will still take a lot of time and effort, and the timeline to this remain uncertain. But Russians poker players are excited and show optimism to see this change. The move could also inspire other countries such as the US who also ban online poker and online gambling in general.
Las Vegas taxis have been overcharging the people for millions of dollars, the state auditors announced, after an audit of Nevada Taxicab Authority revealed an outrageous $47 million. Not only the tourists had fallen into the trap, the citizens have been victims of this extortion as well.

So why didn't this fact come to light before? Yahoo News discovered that after e-hailing services like Uber and Lyft hit the streets, the stark difference in their fares and that of the city cabs became even more pronounced. The city cab drivers had set up a big protest over the e-hailing cabs cutting into their business, but eventually lost their fight in last year's Legislature.

Following the audit findings, the auditors of the governor's finance division zeroed in on the $3 credit card processing fee the customers have to dole out every time. They also frowned upon the authority for increasing the fuel surcharge in the face of falling gas prices, saying that while it's a big profit for the cab companies, the economy gets adversely affected consequently.

The abnormally high cab fares have particularly angered the tourists. Dominick Lovely who was visiting from Denver said a $9 fare for a 5-minute cab ride was ridiculous. "Three dollars doesn't sound like a lot, but aggregated over an entire population of people in Las Vegas taking cabs, it's not a fair deal," he said, indicating the processing fee.

Another irate customer, a Raliegh resident, Cynthia Kulak ended up paying $21 for a ride to the Bellagio from the airport. "Once you're in there and you're driving, what else are you going to do but pay it?" was her angry remark, saying she would be switching to Uber services the next time.

Long-hauling or taking a longer route to run a higher bill is yet another problem, which is not uncommon in popular tourist destinations. But when done in the sin city, the meter throws up a frightful amount including the dreaded processing fee. The taxi industry has designed the fee structure cleverly which extracts 12 cents more per mile once gas prices hit $3.25 a gallon, instead of a gradual increase depending on gas price fluctuations.

All these findings have led the auditors to make some serious recommendations. According to CBS News, for one, they feel the Nevada Taxicab Authority should not be allowed to regulate Clark County cabs anymore, and the contract should be given to a more reliable agency. Secondly, the $3 credit card processing fee should be brought down to 90 cents or less, if not stopped altogether. This recommendation was backed by the facts that taxicab agencies in other cities allow a 3.8-5% fee of the total fare. In this case, $3 makes up almost 17% of the total fare, which is preposterous.

When faced with these charges, the taxi representatives were quick to pass the blame on to the company, saying that the drivers are totally against the fee. NewsOK reveals their sentiments in the words of Sam Moffitt, representative of Yellow-Checker-Star drivers. "It is absolutely, utterly ridiculous to have a credit card fee of $3. That's absurd. The drivers do not get any portion of that money."

However, the Nevada Taxicab Authority chief, Ron Grogan announced that the taxi board will soon hold a discussion regarding implementing the recommended changes while acknowledging that the authority will probably accept all charges and bow out gracefully.
The United States have planned to introduce new visa requirements for European travelers with dual nationalities of Iran, Iraq, Sudan or Syria, or those who have visited any of these countries in the last five years. The purpose of this new immigration regulation is to prevent Europeans who have fought for the Islamic State to enter the U.S.



The nationalities to be affected with this change includes Iran, Iraq, Sudan, and Syria. These are selected by the countries' connection to the Islamic State or other terrorist groups. It's known that parts of Iraq and Syria have been territories of the Islamic Stated. The U.S also regarded Iran and Sudan as state sponsors of terrorism.



The law was passed by Congress in December in the wake of the Paris attack and San Bernardino terror mass shooting, where 14 people were shot to death and 22 wounded. The San Bernardino attack was carried out by a couple, which is believed to be supporters of Islamic State. One of the attackers, Tashfeen Malik, was granted the K-1 visa, also known as a fiance visa because her husband was an American-born citizen. She entered the US in 2014 from Pakistan.



According to The New York Times, the review process for a K-1 visa is relatively not as strict as other kinds of visa. The attack led U.S. lawmakers to fear that terrorists could use the weaknesses in the visa program to carry out terror attacks in the U.S. One of the visa program weakness is the inability to accurately track people who overstay. It should also be noted that two of the 9/11 hijackers overstayed their visas.



The new visa requirements plan will be officially introduced on Thursday, and the U.S. News wrote that the law would only affect a minority of Europeans. However, it imposed great concern in European countries that have been enjoying visa-free travel to the U.S. The visa-waiver program is joined by 38 countries around the world, but mostly in Europe, where citizens are allowed to visit the U.S without a visa for 90 days or less.



The Guardian also reported that under reciprocity agreements, the 38 countries that apply the visa-waiver program are also entitled to impose the same travel restrictions on Americans with the same dual nationalities. If Europe did reciprocate, that would make things a lot harder for Europeans with the dual nationalities as stated.



Many expressed their dismay with the U.S government's plan to impose new visa requirements to the groups in question. Some see it as an illogical discrimination. However, President Obama has already signed the bill into law in December and we should expect to see some further changes in the near future.
Greatist Inc., New York-based online publication focused on fitness and health content, has raised 4.5 million US dollar in Series A round. This recent financing increases the start-up's total funding amount to 8 million US dollar. According to the reports, the Series A funding was headed by California-based Floodgate and included investors like Strauss Zelnick, Andy Rusell, John Gardner, David Pecker, Jonathan Miller, Ramit Sethi and Chris Hughes.

The four-year old online publisher that turned to be profitable last year is seeking to raise more finance to create high-touch, custom programs with advertisers like FitBit and Kind, the Ad exchanger said. Derek Flanzraich, CEO of Greatist, wants the company to grow in the fitness and health space. The company's editorial screw is high-quality, like quoting medical publications in its health related articles, and low-output.

According to Flanzraich, with less than 25 percent traffic coming from social media and over half from search, the company has grown 250 percent from last year. Flanzraich added that the company will utilize the funds to add more staffs, on the advertising department, to create additional custom programs like events and original content.

The conventional content tactic has become popular among the growing online publishing startups. Other comparable startups like LittleThings and PureWow have also concentrated on conventional content as they begin the direct sales trades, Flanzraich said.

The company receives ten million distinctive page views per month and have newsletter subscribers of about 2 million. In addition, Greatist is looking forward to turn the brand power to paid customer health venture, MobiHealthNews said citing Derek Flanzraich.

In April 2013, the company acquired Sportaneous, an app for locating nearby wellness classes, as an effort to widen a fresh product that tracks people's fitness activities. However, Greatist has not gone great with the purchase of Sportaneous.

"Everything we do is mobile-first. It would be silly not to -- 70 percent of our audience is mobile or tablet. We imagine that will continue to move in that direction. We spend very little time focusing on our desktop experience, and most of the time talking about the mobile experience. But we're a little wary of the app-first approach." Flanzraich said MobiHealthNews.

Fortune said that the site prints two to three evergreen health articles that are supported by proper scientific research and scrutinized by two experts. Flanzraich said that the company is not undertaking any shortcuts in order to breed page views.

The success of the site, which has high social media shares, is not measured by page views but by engagement and return rates, according to Flanzraich.
Foxconn has made an astounding offer of 625 billion ($5.3 billion) to take over the already-struggling Sharp Corp. The Taiwanese company assembles most of the world's iPhones and is extremely keen to absorb Sharp for its unparalleled expertise in display technology.

The offer from Foxconn came at a time when a Japanese, government-backed entity, Innovation Network Corp. (INCJ) had already secured its position as the buyer with its 300 billion ($2.5 billion) bid. Even though INCJ's bid amount is nowhere close to FoxConn's offer price, it still has an edge over the latter, as Sharp's top management tilts towards the Japanese bidder so that Sharp does not end up under foreign control and can remain within its country to do business with more Japanese companies.

INCJ also holds a 10% stake in Japan Display Inc., another leading display maker. If it manages to buy out Sharp, then the two Japanese display experts can join forces and together take on the next-generation mass production and panel technology with their billion-dollar know-how. "Japan's technology is leading the rest of the world and we would like to help make it even more competitive," said the industry minister Motoo Hayashi, as per The Wall Street Journal.

Despite the political reasons, Sharp cannot completely ignore Foxconn's generous offer this time. The world's leading electronics contract firm had offered to invest in Sharp in 2012 but the deal fell out due to disagreements over changes in top management. However, this time, Foxconn has rounded off their offer with an understanding to take care of all company debts and to not make any changes in management.

Sharp has been in troubled waters for quite some time now. Standard and Poor's reports show that the company is currently looking at a total repayment of 510 billion in borrowings, mainly to its creditors, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. and Mizuho Financial Group Inc. According to International Business Times, following Sharp's dismal credit status, its shares, quite expectedly, plunged by over 50% in 2015 after a 20% drop in 2014. With a mere 6% improvement very recently, the company's valuation stands at 218 billion ($1.8 billion), which is well below its bid offers.

Bloomberg revealed that Sharp is under great pressure to make a decision before the end of January. The company has already posted an operating loss of 25.2 billion in its most recent half-year results, which has eaten away at most of the Chinese demand for smartphone display. And now, it is almost on the verge of losing its most important customer Apple, who is looking to move to competition like LG, Samsung, and Japan Display by 2018 for the organic light emitting diode (OLED) display technology. This is certainly not good news.

The decision needs to be made based on deal economics and not on political grounds. Meanwhile, market speculation remains along the lines of "There need to be core products around which Sharp can build a market position. What those will be isn't clear, regardless of which side they join. Outside of short-term speculators, most investors will stay away from Sharp's shares until the final details are settled," as summed up by Mitsushige Akino, chief fund manager at Ichiyoshi Investment Management Co. in Tokyo.
Microchip Technology Inc. acquired Atmel Corp. for $3.56 billion. According to Atmel, Microchip's offer outbid its agreement with Dialog Semiconductor PLC.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Microchip's deal is $8.15-a-share in cash and stock. Microchip would also include a $7 per share cash component in the deal. Meanwhile, Dialog's initial offer for Atmel during the September announcement was $4.6 billion worth of cash-and-stock. However, Dialog's share price dropped after that. Dialog's cash component is only at $4.65 per share.

"As the semiconductor industry consolidates, Microchip continues to execute a highly successful consolidation strategy with a string of acquisitions that have helped to double our revenue growth rate compared to our organic revenue growth rate over the last few years," said Microchip President and CEO Steve Sanghi in a report by Street Insider. "The Atmel acquisition is the latest chapter of our growth strategy and will add further operational and customer scale to Microchip," said Steve Sanghi, President and CEO of Microchip."

Microchip expects a sale of about $552 million, which is higher than its initial $539.7 million to $563.5 million expectation.

Bloomberg News wrote that the announcement of the merger is the last stage of the bidding for Atmel, which is based in San Jose, California. 2015 has been a year of semiconductor acquisitions and mergers. The mergers among chipmakers are driven by the increasing costs of producing chips and the declining number of customers for this product.

Margin pressure has led to a series of consolidation in the semiconductor business. On 2015, NXP Semiconductors NV acquired Freescale Semiconductor Ltd. for a value of $11.8 billion. Intel Corp bought Altera Corp for a price of $16.7 billion. Meanwhile Avago technologies Ltd's $37 billion acquisition deal for Broadcom Corp. is expected to be finished February 1.

Atmel also got an offer from Cypress Semiconductor Corp., which is also a chipmaker from California. Atmel is valuable for its microcontrollers that have powerful computing capabilities that are useful for consumer and business hardware.
The most dangerous road in the world - a true highway to hell that has taken a toll of numerous lives in recent years - is in Turkey.

A website - which searches for the world's most dangerous routes - chose the D915 Bayburt Road as their number one.

The winding driving route even beat out the infamous 'Death Road' in Bolivia for riskiness.

The most dangerous road in the world - a true highway to hell that has taken a toll of numerous lives in recent years - is in Turkey.

Nail-biting hairpin bends: Website dangerousroads.org - which searches for the world's most dangerous routes - chose the D915 Bayburt Road as their number one.

The Bayburt D915 Road is 66 miles long with 29 hairpin bends.

Located in the foothills of the 6,000-foot-high Soganli Mountain, it is described as a difficult route where 'you cannot turn at some of the bends in a single manoeuvre; this road was built by Russian soldiers in 1916'.

There are no railings at the road's edge to prevent vehicles from plunging to their doom in an accident.

Parts of the road are routinely closed in wintertime due to snow blizzards and ice.

While the Death Road in Bolivia is mostly used by tourists rubbernecking for splendid views, the Bayburt highway is a working road used by locals driving every form of transport - from lorries to motorbikes.

The Bayburt D915 Road is 66 miles long with 29 hairpin bends. Located in the foothills of the 6,000-foot-high Soganli Mountain, it is described as a difficult route where 'you cannot turn at some of the bends in a single manoeuvre; this road was built by Russian soldiers in 1916'.
Investors sue Viacom, CBS, and some of their executives for prioritizing its 92-year-old executive chairman, Sumner Redstone, over its shareholders. The plaintiff, E.F. Greenberg, sued the companies on behalf of other shareholders Tuesday in Delaware Chancery Court.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the lawsuit against the companies states that Viacom CEO Philippe Dauman, CBS CEO Leslie Moonves, along with other board members since October 1, 2013 has "put their personal loyalty to Mr. Redstone well ahead of their loyalty and respective fiduciary duties they owe and owed to Viacom and/or CBS and their respective shareholders."

CNN reported that the lawsuit follows the complicated legal battle regarding the health of the ageing executive chairman and controlling stockholder. It started in October when Redstone decided to leave Manuela Herzer, who used to be his companion and caregiver. He then deprived Herzer the deciding control on his health. Redstone gave this responsibility to Dauman, but Herzer filed a lawsuit arguing that the ailing tycoon "lacked the mental capacity" to push through with the decision. Herzer failed to win deposition from the two executives.

This lawsuit raised concern about his ability to lead his company. However, Viacom insisted that Redstone is still in full mental control.

Reuters wrote that the lawsuit accuses both companies of improperly paying millions of dollars for Redstone who "was physically and mentally incapacitated" while serving as the executive chairman. The lawsuit claimed that the payments to the elderly chairman were "for services not rendered" and it led to the bad faith between the two boards.

Derivative lawsuits such as this are difficult to win, but this would pave way to a new public forum that would let outsiders question Redstone's abilities to lead the company.

New York-based Viacom owns MTV, Comedy Central, and Nickelodeon. The cable network company has suffered weak ratings and is heavily criticized for the mental condition of its 92-year-old leader. Redstone's holding company, National Amusement, holds 80 percent of Viacom and CBS' voting stock.
Leaked data shows Uber generated more revenue in 2015 than it had made in the previous year. However, its operational cost grew rapidly following its pursuit for growth.

Business Insider reportet that Uber's losses are mounting, but its revenues are growing too. In the third quarter of 2015, Uber generated $498 million, more than the $495.3 million it generated in the entire 2014. However, in the same quarter, it lost lost $697 million.

Meanwhile, according to Bloomberg, Uber discounted its fares, and it is becoming like a holiday tradition for the company to lower fares. Travis Kalanick and his management team decide to reduce its rates by 10% in 100 cities across North America starting January. This year's fare cut is its third in a row for three consecutive years, and some drivers have expressed dissatisfaction about their decreasing revenue.

Recent price cut made Uber per mile rates less than cost of gas and cars depreciation, based on IRS figures. An Uber driver in Indianapolis, Bill Scroggins articulated his discontent, "I'm not even sure I want to drive anymore. It feels like I'm doing it for free."

Uber regional manager, Andrew MacDonalds explained the price cut was meant to help driver, He said, "We care deeply about driver earnings. We believe in price cuts when demand slows."

"Uber has to sacrifice profits for growth," said Evan Rawley, a professor at Columbia Business School regarding the recent policy.

In pursuit of growth, Uber has finally made one breakthrough to follow its rival Lyft. Yesterday, Uber has been granted permission to join Lyft providing its ride-hailing service in LAX airport, the second-busiest airport in the U.S.. Lyft and its signature pink mustaches have been servicing passenger in LAX since last month, and according to Airport authorities, there have been 50,000 pickups and drop-offs in the first two weeks of its service.

Uber general manager of Southern California, Christopher Ballard told Los Angeles Times, "We're very excited to play a part in simplifying and modernizing the LAX experience."

While Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti said the Uber and Lyft operation in LAX will provide travelers more options for airport's ground transportation. Uber and Lyft give a very competitive price to regular taxi and more convenient way to travel. Trip from LAX to downtown LA normally cost more than $50, while a ride-hailing service is only $30, and from the city of Santa Monica to LAX, taxis fare is around $29 while Uber X service is only at around $19.

Uber generated more revenue, but the company still suffer losses. With its cut fares, the Sand Fransisco-based ride hailing service aim to increase the volume of its sales. Its new service expansion in LAX airport shows that Uber is pursuing growth more than profits.
In an attempt to restrict geo-blocking aids, Netflix has blocked the Australian audience from getting their legal dose of favorite American movies and shows. It has certainly affected the makers of uFlix and ExpressVPN who are of the opinion that this little stunt by Netflix might just backfire on them.

uFlix, a Melbourne-based company which provides smart DNS services and virtual private networks (VPNs) to access overseas content, said that some of its users are getting an error message while trying to get to the American library. As reported by The Sydney Morning Herald, the message goes like this, "You seem to be using an unblocker or proxy. Please turn off any of these services and try again." For now, the content streaming giant has been less aggressive, starting with only a small number of users, but uFilx expects this number to grow very soon.

Dismissing this crackdown fix by Netflix as 'a last ditch effort to keep an archaic business model alive,' uFlix managing director Peter Dujan said they are working on a solution and has asked its users to follow certain instructions. "At the end of the day it's simply a game of cat and mouse, and this is our job, so let's play," he said, as per Daily Mail, having found out that uFlix is among the very few VPN providers whose subscribers have been blocked. ExpressVPN is yet another VPN provider who's received the same complaints from its users.

Dujan suspects that "they [Netflix] are blocking known IP ranges and gaining additional information from the user's browser or mobile device and comparing it to the proxy and user IP addresses," as per an International Business Times representation, adding that they would ultimately beat Netflix in their own game.

Meanwhile, these restrictions on the so-called "geo-dodgers" by Netflix have invited a lot of criticisms, especially from the consumer advocacy groups. One such group, Choice points out that it is bad news for the Australian subscribers who have lost access to almost 8500 US library items and are now restricted to a dismal 1300 local items.

Some of the disparaging remarks that came Netflix's way are, "Rather than putting barriers up, it's time to recognize Internet as global. Regional copyright deals are as outdated as video cassettes. Ultimately, Australians should be able to pay for international services directly rather than be locked into sub-standard versions."

"As our Prime Minister has noted, it is not illegal for Australians to circumvent geo-blocks. People are going out of their way, often paying for a VPN service and a Netflix account, to legitimately watch the content they love."

The much hue and cry are mainly over no access for the subscribers to their favorite American dailies and movies. The top shows that the Australian users are currently blocked from include: The Walking Dead, Louie, Doctor Who, Sherlock, and Breaking Bad. Capitalizing on this issue, the irate "geo-blockers" have slammed Netflix's decision.

However,Netflix still stands by its intent to lock out the users who circumvent its geographical blocks to access overseas content. "We look forward to offering all of our content everywhere to consumers being able to enjoy all of Netflix without using a proxy," said its VP of content delivery architecture, David Fullagar, a few days ago.
BBC journalist Rana Rahimpour who has a dual British-Iranian nationality has been barred from flying to the US by the authorities saying she could not travel using a visa waiver scheme. The new laws required dual citizens to apply for visa at the US embassy, but the journalist said it was unclear whether the rules had already been implemented.

BBC reported that the UK foreign office website posted that the changes in visa rules will start April 1, but the US State Department's official website posted that they have started "the process of implementing changes" to the visa waiver scheme. Rahimpour only learned that she wasn't allowed to travel to the US due to her nationality after she contacted the agency in charge of the waiver.

The journalist for BBC's Persian service said the new rules are "very unfair." She said the new rules prohibit travel for Iranians who gained their nationality from parentage of marriage. These rules will also prohibit dual citizens with Syrian, Sudanese, and Iraqu nationalities. It has sparked anger against these minorities.

According to The New York Times, these new travel restrictions on people with dual citizenship were passed into law December after the terror attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California. These new rules were directed to suspected members of ISIS. Iran may consist of Shiite Muslims, but it is an enemy of ISIS and is supporting the fight against the extremist Muslims. The country has protested against these restrictions.

Just this Tuesday, Politico wrote that a senior administration official said, "The US government has not yet begun denying any of these applications. This means Rahimpour should not have been restricted from flying to the US.

"The US government is conducting a phased implementation of the new Visa Waiver Program legislation," said the official. "Certain applications have been referred to a review process based on the enactment of the law."

This only means that the there is confusion within the administration on the status f the law, whether it has been implemented or not. This dual nationality rule is very tricky since there is international agreement on how to handle people with multiple nationalities.
Because of a bird flu virus outbreak, French poultry producers will stop making new duck and goose products until at least late May, including the much debated, but culturally loved, foie gras. The outbreak has occurred in the southwest of the country, where the delicacy is mainly produced.

The pause on poultry production was settled at a meeting between farm ministry officials and sector representatives on January 14 and submitted for approval t o the European Commission this week. Production will cease new rearing from January 18.

Starting from that date, those in the poultry industry in the region will be cleaned and disinfected before being allowed to resume. Those who have already started rearing will be allowed to continue until the animals have gone through processing.

Christophe Barrailh, head of the CIFOP group that represents the foie gras industry, told AFP his outlook on the effect of the disease. "In the most optimistic scenario... a third of this region's (usual) output will not be produced."

Isabelle Daugreilh, a producer in southwestern France, told The Telegraph about the negative effect of the production measures on small farmers.

"It's catastrophic for many small producers who had run out of stocks over the New Year and hoped to build them back up again in time for the (summer) tourist influx. Now we can't start fattening geese until June so won't have anything to sell."

The outbreak occurred during the end of the year peak demand for poultry specialties such as foie gras, made from duck or goose liver. Such delay in production would cost the foie gras industry around 250-300 million euros.

Already aware of the threat to the French poultry production, the government had set up a broad restriction zone in an attempt to stop the disease from spreading. The highly virulent H5N1 strain of the disease was found at a farm that was located outside of the zone in Dordogne in November.

Reuters reported the ministry's statement about the pause in production. "This plan will allow the re-establishment of healthy ducklings, in sanitized farms, by the end of the first half. Production will then be able to resume to ensure production for the year-end celebrations in good conditions."

Countries around the world, including Japan, the world's largest importer of foie gras, have imposed restrictions on French poultry products because of the disease. Dominique Duprat of Delpeyrat, producer of 13 percent of the foie gras market estimated that the existing stocks of foie gras could last through Easter, but was unsure of the availability by Christmas and New Year this year.

H5N1 is highly lethal to bird and does not infect humans easily, but if transmission does successfully occur, about 60 percent of cases are fatal, according to the World Health Organization. Transmission can occur when a human comes in contact with a live bird that is already sick with the virus.
Contributed photo/Mackenzie Goodman Tam Van Trans installation of Aikido Dream at Museum of Contemporary Art Santa Barbara.

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GALLERIES

Ventura County

Buenaventura Gallery: Through Feb. 6: 30th Annual Open Competition, selected entries and competition winners. Through Feb. 13: California Climates: Fire and Ice, landscapes newly added to Buenaventura Art Association's California Heritage Collection. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 700 E. Santa Clara St., Ventura. 648-1235; buenaventuragallery.org.

California Lutheran University: In the Kwan Fong Gallery, through Feb. 26: Pretty People, works by painter Zhenya Gershman and sculptor Lynn Christopher, with a reception at 7 p.m. Jan. 30. 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, CLU, Soiland Humanities Center, 60 W. Olsen Road, Thousand Oaks. Free. 493-3241; callutheran.edu/kwan_fong.

CSU Channel Islands: In the John Spoor Broome Library, through Feb. 12: Photographs by Santi Visalli. University Drive, Camarillo. 437-2772; art.csuci.edu/gallery.

Fox Fine Jewelry: Through March 6: Works by Wendy Winet and Lynn Fogel, with a reception from 6-8 p.m. Jan. 23. 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, noon to 6 p.m. Sundays, 560 E. Main St., Ventura. 652-1800; foxfinejewelry.com.

Harbor Village Gallery: Through Feb. 7: Works by the winners of Buenaventura Art Association's 2015 Collegiate Student Art Competition. 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays, 1591 Spinnaker Drive, Ventura. 648-1235; buenaventuragallery.org.

John Nichols Gallery: Ongoing: Vintage photographs, archival framing and works by Ventura County artists. By appointment, 117 North 10th St., Santa Paula. 525-7804; facebook.com/johnnicholsgallery.

Ova Arts Gallery: Ongoing: A selection of fine arts, jewelry and contemporary crafts by local artists. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, 108 N. Signal St., Ojai. 646-5682; ojaivalleyartists.com.

Porch Gallery Ojai: Through Feb. 14: Hubris, selected works by Hudson River Valley artist Claudia McNulty. Noon to 5 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays, 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sundays and by appointment, 310 E. Matilija Ave., Ojai. 620-7589; porchgalleryojai.com.

Santa Paula Art Museum: Through Jan. 31: Ag Art Alliance eighth annual exhibit "Art About Agriculture." Through Feb. 28: 22nd De Colores Art Show. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays, noon to 4 p.m. Sundays, 117 North 10th St., Santa Paula. $4 general admission, $3 seniors, free for museum members and students. 525-5554; santapaulaartmuseum.org.

Thousand Oaks Community Gallery: Through Jan. 30: Westlake Village Art Guild Members' Show. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, 2331 Borchard Road, Newbury Park. 379-5655; wvartguild.org.

UBS: Through Feb. 9: H2O at UBS, work by six artists, presented by the Arts Council of the Conejo Valley. 3011 Townsgate Road, Westlake Village. 381-1244; conejoarts.org.

VC Arts Collective: Ongoing: Work by various artists, an initiative of the Ventura County Arts Council. 1-9 p.m. Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 1-7 p.m. Sundays, Pacific View Mall, 3301 E. Main St., Suite 2167, Ventura. 676-1540.

EVENTS

Ventura County

Road Trip to the Broad Museum: The California Museum of Art Thousand Oaks is sponsoring a field trip to the new Broad Museum in Los Angeles. Snacks and wine will be served on the bus, which loads at 10:30 a.m. Jan. 24 at CMATO Ops Center, 1948 Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks. 405-5240; cmato.org.

Ceramic Presentation: Ventura County Potters' Guild welcomes Christy Johnson, founding director of the American Museum of Ceramic Art in Pomona, presenting "Ralph Becerra and His Students." 7:45 p.m. Jan. 25, Ventura Avenue Adult Center, 550 N. Ventura Ave., Ventura. 644-6800; vcpottersguild.com.

ATTRACTIONS

Ventura County

Aviation Museum at Camarillo Airport: Ongoing: Commemorative Air Force SoCal Wing focuses on maintaining World War II aircraft for displays, rides and performing at air shows. Gift shop and museum open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays. Flight demonstrations and cockpit viewings given at 11 a.m. Saturdays. Donation requested. 455 Aviation Drive, Camarillo. 482-0064; cafsocal.com.

California Oil Museum: Through Jan. 24: "Digging up the Past: An Extraordinary Collection of Dinosaur Fossils." 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Jan. 21-24, 1001 E. Main St., Santa Paula. 933-0076; oilmuseum.net.

Camarillo Ranch House: Docents lead tours of Adolfo Camarillo's 1892 Queen Anne Victorian mansion, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays. 201 Camarillo Ranch Road, Camarillo. $5 donation. 389-8182; camarilloranch.org.

Channel Islands Maritime Museum: Through March 27: Floating Stories, Ancient Waves: The Moche Maritime Heritage, ceramic materials and fine line painting replicas of ancient coastal Peruvian culture, with a reception from 5-7 p.m. Feb. 4. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, 3900 Bluefin Circle, Oxnard. $5 general admission, $4 seniors, $2 children. 984-6260; cimmvc.org.

Channel Islands National Park Visitor Center: Marine life displays and exhibits about each island. 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, 901 Spinnaker Drive, Ventura. 658-5730; nps.gov/chis.

Chumash Indian Museum: A cultural display, in a natural setting, exploring the history of the Chumash Indians. Guided hikes are offered. Noon to 5 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays, 3290 Lang Ranch Parkway, Thousand Oaks. $10 families, $5 adults, $3 seniors and children. 492-8076; chumashindianmuseum.com.

Dudley House Museum: This fully furnished 1892 Victorian farmhouse reflects the life of the Dudleys and other pioneering farming families. Guided tours given 1-4 p.m. every first Sunday. 197 N. Ashwood Ave., Ventura. Free. 642-3345; dudleyhouse.org.

Fillmore Historical Museum: The museum park includes the Craftsman-style 1905 Hinckley House, 1887 restored Southern Pacific depot and 1919 Rancho Sespe bunkhouse. 9 a.m. to noon and 1-4 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays. Group tours by appointment. 340 Main St., Fillmore. $4 general, $2 students, free for children 12 and younger. 524-0948; fillmorehistoricalmuseum.com.

Heritage Square: Docents lead weekend tours of homes built from 1887 through 1912. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays, 1-4 p.m. Sundays, 715 South A St., Oxnard. $5 per adult, $10 per family. 483-7960; heritagesquareoxnard.com.

Mullin Automotive Museum: The museum is devoted to the preservation of art deco-era art, automobiles and design. On display are vintage French art deco cars, including Bugattis, Delages and Voisins, plus a rotating selection of original paintings by art deco artist Gustave Kaitz (1913-1992). Open by appointment. 1421 Emerson Ave., Oxnard. 385-5400; mullinautomotivemuseum.com.

Museum of Military History: Ongoing: Military posters and memorabilia from World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan. Noon to 3 p.m. Wednesdays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays, Simi Town Center, 1555 Simi Town Center Way, Suite 220, Simi Valley. Free. 310-768-2847.
Tom Ashbrook, journalist and host of NPRs On Point, will speak at CLU on Saturday. The event is a fundraiser for KCLU.

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KCLU MEETS NPR

Tom Ashbrook, the award-winning journalist and host of NPR's "On Point," will discuss highlights from his career at a fundraiser Saturday. "Coffee and Conversation with Tom Ashbrook" will benefit KCLU at California Lutheran University, and attendees will hear the radio personality talk about the stories he's helped tell. Ashbrook joined NPR in 2001 with special coverage of the aftermath of Sept. 11. He had previously worked as a foreign correspondent, newspaper editor and author. "On Point" is a daily news show that features a discussion format of current events and breaking news. The event is at 10 a.m. Jan. 23 in Samuelson Chapel on the campus of California Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks. Tickets are $30. To purchase tickets or for more information, call 493-3900.
California Gov. Jerry Brown talks to reporters after speaking at the Association of California Water Agencies conference, Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016, in Sacramento, Calif. Brown continued his call to build a $15 billion twin tunnel system to move water through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

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By Juliet Williams, The Associated Press

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - Gov. Jerry Brown urged fiscal caution Thursday in his State of the State address, calling for lawmakers to beef up California's rainy day fund and pay for long-delayed infrastructure repairs instead of pursuing expensive new programs.

As he did in his budget proposal last week, Brown sought funding for health care and transportation initiatives he previously proposed rather than push for new social programs supported by many of his fellow Democrats. Republicans have opposed his funding plans for those initiatives.

"You are not going to hear me talk today about any new programs. Rather I am going to focus on how we pay for the commitments we have already made," the governor said.

The 77-year-old governor also used his 14th State of the State address to outline the state's "very progressive but volatile tax structure" that tracks a world economy he called profoundly uncertain.

"A slowdown in China or turmoil in Iraq or Syria, or virtually anywhere can send the stock market reeling and put California jobs and state revenues in jeopardy," he said. "The challenge is to solve today's problems without making those of tomorrow even worse."

The Democratic governor also decried wage stagnation he said has plagued many Americans and outlined the state's response that has included an increased minimum wage, stronger wage laws protecting unionized workers and an earned income tax credit.

"We also know that inequality has risen sharply in recent decades," he said. "We've seen the disappearance of many middle class jobs and the growing share of income taken by the top 1 percent and even more so by the top .01 percent."

California has "wholeheartedly embraced the Affordable Care Act," enrolling 13.5 million Californians in Medi-Cal and another 1.5 million in Covered California, he said, calling it an historic achievement that will provide health security to those who could not otherwise afford it.

But those benefits come at a price, he said, noting that total Medi-Cal costs have grown by $23 billion in four years. As a result, he urged lawmakers to build up the state's rainy day fund.

Republican lawmakers responded by suggesting the state can use rebounding revenues to fund programs.

"There was much focus on balanced budgets, but no mention that economic growth is the best way to ensure them in the future," Assemblyman Tom Lackey, R-Palmdale, said in a statement.

Brown is entering his sixth year as governor after previously holding the post from 1975 to 1983. He will leave office after this term, though he joked about using his campaign funds to try to change the state constitution to allow a fifth term.

Brown retains immense political clout, along with at least $24 million in his campaign bank account, which he can use to support or oppose any of a slew of initiatives making their way to the ballot this year.

His priorities include fixing what he called "serious deficiencies" in infrastructure, including state office buildings, levees, parks, universities, prisons and state hospitals. The budget he proposed last week includes using $2 billion of an expected temporary surplus for repairing and replacing aging structures.

He once again urged lawmakers to find a permanent revenue source to maintain roads and bridges that he said now need $77 billion in repairs.

"Sooner or later we have to bite the bullet," he said. "One way or another, the roads must be fixed."

Sen. Jim Nielsen of Gerber, the top Republican on the Senate budget committee, said the state can fund the fixes from existing revenues.

"It does appear that there's going to be additional revenues, particularly for transportation," Nielsen said. "He focused on having to raise taxes for transportation ... We're not going to go along with that part of the program."
SHARE Guillermo Rodriguez

This week, as we commemorated the life of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., I think it is important to ask ourselves: Do we still have a dream? And if so, what is it about? What does it look like?

I do have a dream: a dream of peace.

It is a peace founded on justice, right relations, mutual respect and the pursuit of the common good.

It is a peace in which we do not set out to impose our truths on others. Rather, we recognize our universal quest for ultimate truth, beauty and goodness and we cordially share with each other the insights we have received along the way.

In this peace, nobody is discriminated because of our gender, our age, the place where we were born, our race, the color of our skin color, the beliefs that we profess, our physical features, the language that we speak, our marital status, our sexual orientation or any other of our God-given gifts, just because they happen to be different to someone else's. On the contrary, in this peace we all respect, cherish and love one another, just the way we are.

Our peace is courageous and strong as we oppose violence in all forms. The violent are victims of their own ignorance and fear, which develop into anger and anger spark violence.

There are many excuses for violence, such as race, national origin, gender or sexual orientation, but perhaps the saddest one of all is the violence because of religion.

A religion that enslaves, tortures and kills is no religion at all. It is a travesty, a monstrosity in the guise of a spiritual path. In our times, we have observed this phenomenon in the way in which a violent few have perverted and deformed the beautiful and venerable religion of Islam, but we have seen it happening before with other faith traditions.

Our dream of peace fuels an ardent desire for dialogue about the issues around this violent conflict. A nonnegotiable condition for this dialogue, however, is that violence needs to stop.

Those who subscribe to violence as a method to achieve their goals need to stop or be stopped. The innocent need to be protected and safeguarded, the displaced need to return safely to their homes, and then in a spirit of forgiveness and reconciliation, we can find a way to move forward to our dream of peace.

Our dream of peace requires action. Immediately. Today we look back with horror to contemplate tragedies like the Armenian genocide or the Jewish holocaust and wonder "How could this happen?" "Why didn't anyone do anything to prevent it?"

We cannot afford to repeat the same story yet again. We cannot have our own children and grandchildren look back to wonder about our own inaction or worse, about our support to the rhetoric of fear and hatred that is becoming alarmingly frequent in our religious and political arenas.

I have a dream, but if I don't do anything about it, it will soon turn into a nightmare.

I have a dream that will only become a reality when we tear down the barriers that separate us and we renounce the idea of referring to anyone as "the other." There is no them; we are all us.

Dare I ask, then: Do we have a dream?

I am encouraged by the famous quote from Cesar Chavez, whose memory we also honor this month: Si, se puede. Yes, we can!

Deacon Guillermo "Memo" Rodriguez is assigned to St. Paschal Baylon Catholic Church in Thousand Oaks. He is a member of the Conejo Valley Interfaith Association, which meets monthly and welcomes clergy and representatives of all religious faiths. He can be reached at 405-5021 or deaconmemo@stpaschal.org.
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By Jean Moore of the Ventura County Star

Pinecrest is closing its campuses in Moorpark, Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks, as well as two in Los Angeles County, at the end of this school year.

The company announced the closing of its last five schools in a letter to parents, citing "escalating costs" and the new options available to parents, including charter schools. The letter was signed by Jeri Dye Lynch, Pinecrest's president and CEO.

"We have exhausted both our emotional and financial reserves trying to maintain our school business," the letter says. "Thus, it is with a heavy heart that I must now inform you that all Pinecrest Schools will be permanently closed at the end of the 2015/2016 school year."

Officials at Pinecrest refused to comment on the closures, other than issuing a public statement. The statement says, in part, that "changes in education and escalating costs have exceeded our ability to continue to operate Pinecrest without significant increases in tuition."

Directors at the local schools did not return phone calls.

Pinecrest Schools, which serve students in preschool through eighth grade, started with one campus in Van Nuys in 1951  a boarding school that was the first private campus in the area. Over the next 50 years, the company opened campuses from Tarzana to Valencia, although all but five have since closed. The other remaining two are in Canyon Country and Woodland Hills.

The company would not say how many students and teachers will be affected by the closings.

The Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley campuses opened in the mid-1970s, and the Moorpark school opened in 2000.

The letter announcing the school closings also said the company hopes someone else will use the campuses as schools, and that it is negotiating with several educational organizations.
Big chill expected to spread across the country today

A student at a primary school in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, displays a plastic snowflake. Schools in the provincial capital have closed for a week. HU GUOLIN/LONG WEI/CHINA DAILY

Many parts of China are forecast to experience their lowest temperatures in decades over the weekend, with heavy snowstorms expected to persist in eastern and central areas.

Blizzards are expected to affect parts of Shanghai and Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Hubei and Hunan provinces.

Snowfalls will be as deep as 20 to 25 centimeters in some areas, the National Meteorological Center said on Thursday. Chilly weather is also expected in many other areas.

Parts of Anhui, Zhejiang and Fujian provinces and Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong, are expected to experience record-low temperatures, the center said.

Zhang Tao, the center's chief forecaster, said, "The last time the country experienced a similar cold snap was in 1991, but the temperature drop will not be so sharp this time as we are already in midwinter."

In Beijing, the temperature is expected to plunge to-17 C on Saturday morning, close to the lowest recorded for 30 years, according to the municipal meteorological service.

Shanghai is also expected to experience its lowest temperatures for 30 years on Sunday and Monday morning, with-5 C to-7 C forecast in urban areas.

The warning of blizzards by forecasters has forced local authorities to close schools temporarily.

Schools in Hefei, Changsha and Changzhou have been told to start the winter holiday a few days early, while education authorities in Hangzhou had already halted lessons, local media reported.

The blizzard warning also triggered a run on supermarkets in parts of Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces as people rushed to buy daily necessities.

Some vegetable and meat vendors in Hangzhou sold all their stock for a single day within hours, news portal cztv.com reported.

Zhang Xiaolan, a 34-year-old worker at an Internet company in Hangzhou, said she started to store daily supplies on Monday.

She bought enough vegetables, fruit and pastries to last her family for four days.
FILE PHOTO

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By Staff Reports

Oxnard police said Thursday they arrested a member of the host family of a foreign exchange student who reported being touched inappropriately.

The man worked for a foreign exchange program at the time the incidents were alleged to have taken place, police said.

Police said they were called to a high school on Oct. 23 after the foreign exchange student said she had been touched inappropriately by a parent in the host family with which she had been living for a few weeks.

After several months of investigation, the suspect was arrested at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday at his workplace on the 1500 block of Helm Drive in Oxnard, police said. He was accused of child annoying, sexual battery and sending harmful matter to a minor, police said.

He was booked into city jail and he later posted bail, police said. His bail was set at $20,000.

Police asked anyone with information or who may be a victim of a similar incident to contact authorities.
TED BENSON JR./SPECIAL TO THE STAR

A bicycle can be seen Thursday night in the center of the street in Port Hueneme near where a male was found dead of gunshot wounds in the 800 block of Jane Drive.

SHARE JOHN SCHEIBE/THE STAR This was the scene Thursday night in Port Hueneme where police were investigating a fatal shooting.

By Staff Reports

Port Hueneme police on Thursday night were investigating a fatal shooting, Ventura County's second homicide of the year.

Sgt. Chris Graham said authorities received a report at 7:03 p.m. Thursday of multiple gunshots in the 800 block of Jane Drive.

Police arrived in minutes and found a dead male on the street next to a vehicle, Graham said.

The victim had been shot multiple times.

The assailant was gone and police had no indication of how he or she fled.

At the scene, a bicycle could be seen on its side in the center of the street, with evidence markers around it.

A man who lives in the area and would only identify himself as Robert said he heard the gunshots from his home. He said he heard three shots, followed by a 20-second pause, and then four shots.

"There were seven shots in all," he said as he stood outside Thursday night amid a crowd that had gathered near the shooting site.

He said he went out immediately after hearing the shots and found the victim face-up and dead on the street between two cars with his eyes open.

In the densely populated area on the east side of Port Hueneme and near the edge of south Oxnard, about half the buildings appeared to be two-story apartment buildings, with the other residences consisting of homes.

Just before the shooting, police were alerted a few miles north in Oxnard to a report of gunshots on Devonshire Drive. Police said they went to the scene but found no evidence of a shooting at the Oxnard location.

Thursday's slaying came just a few days after the county's first homicide of the year. Emeterio Cabrera, 24, of Oxnard, was found with a stab wound to the neck just after 11 p.m. near a residence in the 1400 block of Gina Drive in Oxnard, authorities said. Cabrera was taken to Ventura County Medical Center, where he later died, police said.
Thinkstock

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By Claudia Boyd-Barrett

Faced with a looming state deadline for cities to enact medical marijuana regulations, Santa Paula has strengthened an existing ban but left the door open for future changes.

On Tuesday, the City Council voted 4-0 to enact an ordinance adding language to Santa Paula's municipal code to explicitly ban all commercial cannabis activity, mobile marijuana dispensaries, and cultivation and delivery of marijuana within the city. Councilwoman Ginger Gherardi abstained.

The code already prohibited using buildings for purposes prohibited by federal law, which includes marijuana. However, marijuana had not previously been spelled out in the code.

Santa Paula and cities across California are rushing to enact regulations prohibiting or restricting marijuana dispensaries and cultivation before March 1. If they do not adopt regulations, they will be subject to a state licensing program for medical marijuana dispensaries and cultivators enacted by Gov. Jerry Brown last year.

Some council members expressed concern that the ordinance would make it difficult for people with legitimate medical needs to obtain marijuana. However, most agreed they needed to pass something before the deadline so Santa Paula would not have to relinquish regulatory powers to the state.

In a separate motion, the council voted 5-0 to instruct staff to bring back another ordinance that could potentially allow some use and access to medical marijuana in the city for people with health problems.

"I understand medicinal uses and I understand that sometimes the man-made medications can be much harder on our systems than the ones provided by nature," said Mayor Martin Hernandez in enacting the ban. "I really don't see this personally as throwing the baby out with the bath water. This is the first step in what must continue to be a fully vetted conversation."

In other business, the council narrowly approved the introduction of a revised ordinance in a 3-2 vote requiring mandatory spay or neutering of dogs and cats and implanting the animals with identification microchips once they reach 4 months of age.

The council had returned the ordinance to staff for further study in December, following complaints from the public that 4 months is too young for such procedures. However, on Tuesday City Attorney John Cotti said further research supported imposing either a 4-month or 6-month age requirement. The council will take a final vote on the ordinance at its next meeting.

Councilwomen Ginger Gherardi and Jenny Crosswhite voted against introducing the ordinance. Gherardi pointed out that the city does not currently have a cat licensing program, and said the city needs to have better online information and a license mechanism in place before moving ahead with the spay and neuter requirement. Crosswhite expressed concern that the ordinance would overburden the city's animal control officer.

However, Mayor Hernandez and Councilman John Procter said the city has a year to implement the ordinance and figure out details of how to implement it.

"I think we're kind of overthinking this. To me I see it just as a way to get the ball rolling for a work in progress," Procter said. "It could well be that we decide that we don't want to do the cat program, I don't know. But I think it's kind of silly to stall this out."

Also on Tuesday, the council voted 5-0 to hire Matrix Consulting Group for $50,000 to study ways to improve the fiscal sustainability of the city's fire department.
ROB VARELA/THE STAR The crew on a Coast Guard boat prepares to deploy a buoy to mark a sandbar at the entrance of Ventura Harbor on Thursday.

SHARE ROB VARELA/THE STAR Ventura Harbor Patrol officer George Kabris patrols the entrance to the harbor where a buildup of sand has narrowed and decreased the depth of the channel for boats to enter and leave the harbor. The patrol has been escorting vessels in and out due to the treacherous situation. ROB VARELA/THE STAR A pontoon boat heads out to sea as a fishing boat comes into Ventura Harbor on Thursday afternoon. ROB VARELA/THE STAR The crew on a Coast Guard boat prepares to deploy a buoy to mark a sandbar at the entrance of Ventura Harbor on Thursday. ROB VARELA/THE STAR A small fishing boat, the Sea Hawk, enters Ventura Harbor at low tide Thursday afternoon.

By John Scheibe of the Ventura County Star

A more active winter storm season has brought needed rain to California and headaches to Ventura Harbor, where officials have been forced to all but close the harbor entrance after a mountain of underwater sand accumulated there.

"We've had an additional 240,000 cubic yards of sand accumulate here just since Dec. 28," Richard Parsons, dredging manager for the Ventura Port District, said Thursday. The district is charged with managing the harbor, which was built in the early 1960s.

To put this in perspective, about 465,000 cubic yards of sand might accumulate during a normal year in the sand trap area just north of the harbor's entrance. The district contracts with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to dredge the sand every year for about $4.25 million. The dredged sand is deposited along beaches south of the harbor.

But district officials estimate about 900,000 cubic yards of sand has drifted into the area over the past 12 months, carried south by unusually strong ocean currents. It first accumulated in the sand trap. But after the trap became full, the sand overflowed into the channel that boats use to enter and exit the harbor.

Officials are lobbying the federal government for an additional $2 million, which should be enough to remove about 800,000 cubic yards of sand.

All of that sand has made it a lot more perilous for boats going into and out of the harbor, said Stan Whisenhunt, an avid sailor who keeps a boat docked at the harbor.

In a normal year, "the harbor entrance would have a depth of about 40 feet," Whisenhunt said. But now "it's down to just about 14 feet," he said, greatly increasing the likelihood that a boat could run aground there.

As a result, port district officials have mandated that any boat coming into or out of the harbor be escorted to lessen the chance of a mishap, Harbormaster John Higgins said Thursday.

"Safety is our main priority," Higgins said. "We are discouraging any nonessential boating at this time because of the hazards."

Some boats and ships already have left the harbor because of the sand, including the tall ships Hawaiian Chieftain and Lady Washington, which are in the area as part of their annual educational visit. The ships, replicas of merchant boats that sailed hundreds of years ago, left for Channel Islands Harbor in Oxnard on Thursday morning, said Oscar Pena, Ventura Port District general manager.

Thursday's move comes just days before increased ocean swells are expected in the area, making boating around Ventura Harbor's entrance even more dangerous, Higgins said.

The harbor's entrance is also buffeted by a strong current coming out of the north at about 10 knots an hour, "which is more than most boats can handle," Higgins said. The current can easily push a vessel into underwater sandbars along the harbor's mouth, he said.

So far, two boats have run aground in the area, he said. No one was injured in either incident.

Boats belonging to Island Packers, a business based at Ventura Harbor that offers trips to Channel Islands National Park, left the area Thursday for Channel Islands Harbor, Pena said.

The Ventura Yacht Club was forced to cancel a regatta scheduled for this weekend, Whisenhunt said.

The buildup of sand also has affected the harbor's commercial fishing boats. Many of the 35 to 40 fishing boats docked at the harbor normally would be going out in search of squid now, Higgins said. The effect has been lessened because there don't seem to be many squid to be found in the area, in part because of warmer El Nino waters.

The added sand will inevitably affect the harbor economically, although Pena said "it's still too early to say exactly how much."

"What we do know is that conditions are going to get worse before they get better," he said.

A firm that contracts with the Corps of Engineers is scheduled to start dredging the entrance to the harbor around the second week of February. But Pena and others are pushing to get the dredging started earlier.

Pena and others expect the dredging project will take about 30 days, although sailing through the harbor's entrance should start getting easier about a week after dredging begins. One reason is that workers will start with dredging the harbor's entrance and then dredge the sand trap.

The entrance normally has a navigable area that's about 300 feet wide, Higgins said.

"But right now, it's down to about 40 or so feet," he said.

For now, port officials are advising boaters "not to go out for the next three or so weeks," Pena said.

Boaters who do venture out to sea run numerous risks, including one of possibly being unable to sail back into the harbor if conditions deteriorate, Higgins said.

The Coast Guard is adding buoys around the entrance to help with navigation.

The stronger storm season also has affected other harbors up and down the California coast, Pena said, including one in Morro Bay and another in Santa Cruz.
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO/SIMI VALLEY POLICE DEPARTMENT

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The Simi Valley Police Department will offer a Citizens Police Academy to members of the community, officials said.

The Citizens Police Academy program is designed to increase understanding of the operational policies and procedures of the police department and the Ventura County Criminal Justice System.

Students will receive instruction from representatives of the Simi Valley Police Department, the Ventura County District Attorney's Office and other agencies that work in partnership with the Simi Valley Police Department. The classes will include such topics as narcotics, K-9, dispatch, patrol, investigations, gangs, S.W.A.T., traffic enforcement and the criminal justice system. Students will also be required to participate in a ride-along with a Simi Valley Police Department officer.

The Citizens Police Academy is open to any adult who lives or works in Simi Valley, provided that they do not have any felony convictions or pending criminal actions at the time of application. Prior to acceptance into the program, applicants will be required to undergo a short criminal history check to participate in the ride-along.

Classes will be held once a week for 10 weeks, beginning March 16 and ending May 18. Sessions will be from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at the Simi Valley Police Department, 3901 Alamo St., Simi Valley, along with two or more field trips held off campus where carpooling will be necessary.

Class size is limited to 24 students and there is no cost.

To request an application and required paper work, call no later than Feb. 2. Leave a message providing the spelling of your name, address and call back telephone number at 583-6287.


Saturday night, Aug 16, was a very special evening for two men who first worked together in the historic movie, Scarface, in 1983, and 10 years later (1993) appeared in the Golden Globe nominated film, Carlitos Way, as Hollywood legend Al Pacino (The Godfather), and comedian Angel Salazar, came together in Las Vegas.

Pacino was in the middle of his one man show at The Mirage, in the packed Terry Fator Theater, and Salazar, who portrayed, Walberto in Carlitos Way, was sitting in the audience with some friends. During the Q & A from the audience, Comedian/Actor Salazar took to the microphone and said, Mr. Pacino, Sheck it out!. Its Chi-Chi, your little side kick from Scarface!

A big smile came across Pacinos face as he peered out into the audience. Who is that? Chi Chi?! The audience immediately recognized Salazar as one of the co-stars from the cult movie, Scarface, and erupted into applause. Angel responded, I just wanted to tell you man, I GOT THE YEYO! Then Angel pulled out a huge plastic bag filled with white powder. The crowd went nuts when he said that quotable famous line from the hit movie!

Angel jumped up onstage with Al and moderator John Katsilometes. Al immediately gave Angel a big hug while the audience applauded, and called out his characters name, Chi Chi get the Yeyo! Angel took this moment to plug his upcoming Vegas engagement. Hey everybody, sheck it out! On Monday I open at the Laugh Factory at the Tropicana hotel! The audience applauded as he jumped back down into the crowd.

After the show Angel posed for at least 50 photos with Scarface fans before going backstage to see Al. Al & Angel posed for some photos back in the green room.

Angel not only appeared in the cult classic Scarface, he also appeared opposite Pacino in his other hit gangster classic, Carlitos Way.


Tacos & Tequila (T&T), located at Luxor Hotel and Casino, will bring the green this St. Patricks Day with the Mean Green Quesadilla, available exclusively on Thursday, March 17 (Pictured: Mean Green Quesadilla  Photo credit: Peter Harasty).

Corporate Executive Chef Saul Ortiz will honor the Irish with a green 12-inch quesadilla made with spinach tortillas and loaded with the choice of protein including chicken, carne asada or shrimp. Each quesadilla will be served alambre-style, with bacon, Oaxaca cheese, chile poblano and onion, and topped with cilantro, avocado cream sauce and green pico de gallo, priced at $14.
Three missing after boat capsizes off Hainan

HAIKOU, Jan. 22 -- Rescuers are searching for three people who remain missing more than a day after a fishing boat overturned off the coast of south China's island province of Hainan on Thursday morning.

The boat, coded "Qionglinyu 11198," hit a reef near Wenchang City at 2:30 a.m. Eleven people fell into the water, with six managing to swim ashore.

At 5:20 p.m., a rescue vessel pulled two of the missing from water near the shipwreck.

The provincial maritime search and rescue center has dispatched more than 60 vessels, and local residents are also helping with the operation.
A corner of terminal T2 in Noi Bai International Airport. It's one of many airports being under management of ACV. - Photo Huy Hung

If the ministry agrees, the negotiation will begin this month.

ACV, a state owned company of the Ministry of Transport (MoT), has VND22.43 trillion ($998.8 million) in charter capital, is the largest enterprise in Viet Nam's transport sector and manages 22 of the country's international and domestic airports.

Chairman of AVC Nguyen Nguyen Hung said to baodautu.vn that ADP was the only investor meeting the ministry's requirements to conduct negotiations in the role of strategic partner.

ADP is one of three investors proposing to be a strategic investor in ACV. It has been operating 37 airports in the world through its subsidiary Airports de Paris Management (ADPM), including Paris  Charles de Gaulle and Paris  Orly.

Two others include Changi Airport International, a subsidiary of Singapore's Changi Airport Group, and Bank for Investment and Development of Viet Nam (BIDV).

BIDV was very interested in investing in ACV as a strategic investor when it was willing to buy 5 per cent of ACV shares, but its financial capacity did not meet the ministry's demand, which required the non-aviation organisation's ownership capital to be $5 billion. By the end of 2014, the bank's ownership capital was $1.56 billion.

ACV off-loaded 77.8 million shares at VND14,300 (US$0.63) each, or 3.47 per cent of the company, in its initial public offering on the HCM Stock Exchange on December 10.

Apart from the IPO, five per cent of company's shares amounting to 9.2 million were sold to company employees. The State retains a capital ratio of 75 per cent of the company's equity and announced that a 20 per cent stake would be available to strategic investors after the IPO.
Circular 20 took effect on January 15, 2016, replacing Circular 01/2013/TT-BKHDT on business registration regulations required by Decree 78/2015/ND-CP.

Accordingly, enterprises will need the following when filing an application: Investment Certificate separation; meeting minutes in the form of collected written opinions; a change of shareholders in joint-stock companies; and operation registration of branches and representative offices.

1. Separation of business registration content in the Investment Certificate

This regulation applies exclusively to investors who are granted an Investment Certificate that is also a Business Registration Certificate under former provisions, without having yet carried out the procedure of license separation.

In particular, Circular 20 addresses the following issues:

a. Investment Certificate separation without modification of business registration content

In this case, enterprises are advised to submit a dossier to the Business Registration Office located wherever they are headquartered. The dossier must contain

 A valid copy of the Investment Certificate,

 A valid copy of the Tax Registration Certificate

 A written request for supplementing and updating business registration information specified in Annex II-18, added as an attachment to Circular 20.

For branches, representative offices and business locations, enterprises shall submit their dossier to the Business Registration Office located wherever their branches, representative offices and business locations are based. The dossier must include

 A valid copy of the Investment Certificate or Operation Registration Certificate for a branch/representative office, issued by the investment registration authority,

 A valid copy of the Tax Registration Certificate

 A written request for supplementing and updating operation registration information specified in Annex II-19, added as an attachment to Circular 20.

b. Amendment of business registration content

In the event where enterprises, without executing the procedure of license separation, wish to adjust the business registration content or the operation registration content for a branch, representative office or business location on the Investment Certificate, they must file a dossier requesting the modification of the business registration content, corresponding to each case specified in Decree 78. In addition, the documents required by Circular 20, as mentioned above, must be attached to the dossier.

Depending on whether the business location operates directly under an enterprise or its branch, the dossier must be submitted to the Department of Planning and Investment located wherever the enterprise or branch is based.

2. Enterprises approving decisions through collected written opinions

Based on the provisions of Circular 20, from January 15, 2016, the Meeting Minutes in the dossier submitted for the amendment of business registration content may be replaced with the following:

 A report on the results of the vote count of the Member Council (for limited liability companies) or

 A written record of the vote count of the General Meeting of Shareholders (for joint-stock companies).

This regulation is the solution to time-related issues faced by enterprises. In lieu of gathering signatures on a Meeting's Minutes to complete the business registration procedure under current provisions, members/shareholders can remotely deliver their opinions to rapidly initiate these procedures.

3. Notice of change of founding shareholders and shareholders being foreign investors

When altering the above-mentioned content, enterprises must notify the Business Registration Office where they are headquartered. This regulation only applies to joint-stock companies that have yet to proceed with the listing.

In cases where foreign investors as founding shareholders wish to transfer their ordinary shares to persons who are not founding shareholders within 3 years of the operation licence's issue date, Circular 20 dictates that the dossier submitted while requesting a change of founding shareholders must include a decision and a valid copy of the Meeting Minutes of the General Meeting of Shareholders.

4. Operation registration for branches, representative offices and business locations

Enterprises are obliged to register for the amendment of operation registration content for branches, representative offices and business locations after having completed the process of business type conversion in the following cases:

 State-owned company converted to limited liability company or joint-stock company;

 Limited liability company converted to joint-stock company and vice versa;

 Privately-owned enterprise converted to limited liability company.

As also stated in Circular 20, in the event a business location operates directly under a branch, the individual who signs the dossier for establishing or amending the operation registration content related to the business location must be either the legal representative of the enterprise or the head of the branch.

The procedure for re-granting an Operation Registration Certificate for a branch/representative office or a Registration Certificate for a business location is similar to that of re-granting a Business Registration Certificate, as prescribed in Circular 20, which took effect on January 15, 2016, replacing Circular 01/2013/TT-BKHDT on business registration regulations required by Decree 78/2015/ND-CP.


photo source Lao Dong

According to Nguyen Van Bien, deputy general director of Vietnam National Coal-Mineral Industries Group (Vinacomin), Vinacomin will increase supply volumes to meet the power industrys increasing demand for raw materials. Furthermore, Vinacomin commits to provide a long-term supply with stable prices, as requested by the Ministry of Finance.

Vinacomin plans to produce 27.5 million tonnes of coal in 2016, five tonnes more than in 2015, to supply raw material for the power sector. The figure will increase to 32.2 million once Dong Bac Coal Mineral Investment Corporation comes into operation.

As locally produced coal appears to be more expensive than imported products, some local power plants lean towards greater reliance on imports to feed production.

Nguyen Khac Son, general director of Power Generation Corporation 1 (Genco 1), said that Genco 1 is negotiating with Indonesian coal producers on the possibility of supplying coal for Duyen Hai 3 Thermal Power Plant in the southern province of Tra Vinh. Besides, Genco 1 plans to import 200,000 tonnes of coal from March 2016 as a test run, before signing for long-term with foreign partners.

Upon power enterprises proposal to buy cheap coal from foreign sources, the leader of Electricity of Vietnam Group (EVN), many power plant members of which have signed contracts to buy coal from Vinacomin, reminds that power producers need a stable coal supply with long-term contracts, instead of focusing on short-term benefits.

Bien added that buying cheap coal without signing long-term contracts is risky because it will not ensure a stable source of raw material for production. Besides, prices can be volatile in the face of weather and transport conditions.

High tax rates and production expenditure put pressure on the price of domestic coal. Notably, coal production costs increased by an average of five per cent annually in the 2012-2014 period. Besides, associated fees and charges also rose sharply, such as the royalty rate, which skyrocketed from an average VND7,000 per tonne in 2007 to VND186,000 ($8.5) per tonne in 2015, Bien shared.

According to Vinacomin former chairman Doan Van Kien thorough preparation for the long-term importing of large volumes of coal is important because coal importers will commit to supporting and investing in coal mines aboard.

Licensed to import two million tonnes of coal from Vietnam since 1998, Japan has supported the Vietnamese coal industry in many aspects, one of which is human resources training in the coal industry, with a 100 people annually. Thus, the demand for importing between 50 and 70 tonnes of coal per year requires a specific commitment from the Vietnamese industry to avoid turning the coal importing ideal into sheer illusion, Bien added.
French special police forces prepare to raid an appartment in Saint-Denis on Nov 18, 2015, hunting those behind the Paris attacks that claimed 129 lives. (Photo: AFP/Jerome Groisard)

PARIS: The family of Hasna Aitboulahcen, a cousin of alleged Paris attacks ringleader Abdelhamid Abaaoud who helped him on the run and died with him in a police raid, have filed a murder complaint, their lawyer said.

The young woman was killed on November 18, five days after the attacks, in a raid on an apartment in Saint-Denis, north of Paris, where they found Abaaoud and fellow Belgian-Moroccan Chakib Akrouh, who blew himself up.

Aitboulahcen, 26, had found and negotiated rental of the safe house for the two militants.

Her mother, sister and brother filed a complaint against persons unknown for terrorism and murder on January 13 with Paris anti-terrorist judge Christophe Teissier, according to a copy of the complaint seen by AFP.

"I consider that Hasna Aitboulahcen is a victim," the family's lawyer Fabien Ndoumou said Wednesday.

"She was under pressure from her cousin who threatened her family and the families of her friends," he said.

Investigators initially mistakenly believed there had been a woman suicide bomber at the Saint-Denis apartment but Aitboulahcen's body was found almost intact in the rubble a day-and-a-half after the police assault, according to a source close to the case.

The lawyer also called for a burial permit for Aitboulahcen, whose body, according to him, is still at the forensic institute in Paris.

"This goes against Muslim rites," he said.

Aitboulahcen played a central role after the Paris attacks that killed 130 people, finding and paying for the hideout in Saint-Denis and leading her cousin to it.
On November 1, 2015, Prevoir Vietnam stopped selling its An Tam Toan Dien policy, which provides payments to women after giving birth. Since then, the company has not allowed previous owners to renew the policy package. When customers cannot renew the policy, they are ineligible for payment after the insured incident.

We get it. Prevoir stopped providing the policy because it is making losses for them or is not making as much profit as expected. But when we bought the policy from Prevoir Vietnam, the company promised that renewal would be possible, a representative of a group of customers told VIR.

The representative said the company stopped selling the policy but only notified agents of the change, not customers. It only issued a public notice to customers after receiving the complaints.

The customers said they requested Prevoir Vietnam to allow for a one year renewal, in accordance with the companys promises, so they can switch to another company, but Prevoir Vietnam refused on the grounds of company policy.

A representative of Prevoir said the company was negotiating with customers to resolve the problem. On January 19, in a meeting with a representative of 30 customers from all over the country, Prevoir was given the choice of either letting customers renew the policies or paying back the premium plus a penalty of VND50,000 ($2.3) per each day of the waiting period of the policy. Nguyen Huong Thu, deputy general director of Prevoir Vietnam, refused both.

French life insurer Prevoir has received multiple complaints from customers in France too. The companys website is not functional as of January 21.

Prevoir Vietnam was established in 2005.According to its website, Prevoir Vietnam currently has two policies, namely Phuc Gia Dang Khoa, which helps families pay for their childrens education, and Phuc Gia Binh An, which pays the family in case of the breadwinner passing away. The company sells bancassurance at ACB, Sacombank, ABBank, GPBank, Eximbank, Tien Phong Bank, VIB, and SH Bank.
Refugees wait to register in Passau, southern Germany, on Jan 16, 2016. (Photo: AFP/Armin Weigel)

BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel has vowed to stay the course with her welcome to refugees but faces stormy waters, with some conservatives rebelling and key state elections on the horizon.

With about 3,000 new asylum-seekers still braving the winter cold to cross the border from Austria every day, Germany is headed for a repeat of last year when it took in a record 1.1 million migrants, straining resources and fraying nerves.

Merkel has stoically insisted "we can do it", even as polls show that over half of Germans now have doubts.

The leader long seen as a guarantor of stability in Europe's biggest economy is now being derided by a growing band of critics as a captain steering the country into chaos.

"Is Merkel still the right one?" asked the mass-circulation Bild am Sonntag newspaper this week as some 40 of her CDU party's 256 lawmakers signed an open letter demanding an about-face on her liberal refugee policy.

Anger has flared especially among Merkel's conservative CSU allies in Bavaria, the Alpine state in Germany's deep south where migrants from the Middle East and Africa have arrived via the Balkans.

Its state premier Horst Seehofer on Wednesday declared their latest crisis talks with Merkel failed, saying "there was no trace of compromise" and predicting "politically difficult weeks and months" ahead.

Merkel doesn't face national elections until 2017, but polls will be held in March in three states where the right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) will seek to poach disaffected conservative voters.

Seehofer's party has demanded that Germany, like Austria, set an upper limit on arrivals and seal its borders if necessary, even threatening to challenge Merkel in the country's constitutional court.

Merkel has rejected those demands, fearing that backsliding on the right to political asylum for people fleeing war and persecution, and shuttering internal EU borders, will spell the end of the European dream.

'TANGIBLE REDUCTION'

Merkel has promised Germany a "tangible reduction" in arrivals this year and has vowed to tackle the crisis at the national, EU and international level.

But other EU states have so far shown little enthusiasm for sharing the refugee burden amid economic uncertainty, the rise of populist parties and a climate of fear sparked by the Paris and other jihadist attacks.

Many accuse the chancellor, celebrated as "Mama Merkel" by grateful refugees, of accelerating the influx by laying out the welcome mat to migrants, as several eastern European countries have shuttered their borders.

Looking at the crisis ahead at a key EU summit next month, Merkel insisted Wednesday that "I'm not going to talk about a Plan B because I want to see Plan A through successfully".

A key plank of her plan is for the EU to pay Turkey billions for housing even more Syrian refugees and tightening its land and sea borders -- a proposal she will again discuss with Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Berlin on Friday.

Even more ambitiously, Merkel has said Western countries must address the root causes of Europe's worst refugee crisis since World War II -- chiefly the war in Syria -- which will be subject of a London conference on February 4.

All the while, Merkel's troubles abroad are blowing back at her domestically.

Outspoken CDU lawmaker Wolfgang Bosbach urged her to give up hope of a unified European solution.

"After Sweden and Denmark it is now the Austrians who are implementing more restrictive policies," he said. "If refugee numbers keep rising ... Germany will have to change its course."

The political acid test will be the March polls in Baden-Wuerttemberg, Rheinland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt states.

The AfD, now polling at around 10 percent, will seek to capitalise on spreading fears of criminal migrants after a spate of sexual attacks blamed mostly on North African men at chaotic New Year's Eve festivities in Cologne.

The CDU has seen its long-stellar ratings slide to around 37 percent, although no obvious challenger for Merkel's job has emerged on the scene.

Business daily Handelsblatt said that "if the mood tips" and the CDU loses sate polls, Merkel may be in deeper trouble.

"Obama won his first election with 'yes we can'," it said. "Merkel could find that her 'we can do it' will cost her her job."
Property stocks still remain stellar choices for forward thinking investors

Vietnam Construction No 2 (VC2) said it earned a VND10.4 billion pre-tax profit in the second quarter, down from VND11.9 billion in the first quarter. VC2s first half pre-tax profit was VND22.3 billion, meeting only 48.6 per cent of its 2010 plan of VND46 billion.



Saigon General Service Companys (SVC) first half pre-tax profit was VND40.6 billion, completing 41 per cent of this years plan, while Vinasun Corporation (VNS) earned VND52 billion pre-tax profit, fulfilling only 30 per cent of the yearly plan.



However, these few corporate earnings are not representative of the whole markets earnings. Nguyen Viet Hung, chief analyst with SME Securities, said second quarter results might not be positive as it was normally a bottom period for corporate earnings. The domestic macro economic fundamentals remained strong, but credit growth was low as lending rates remained high.



Hung said the global economy was not supportive to exports, Vietnams key contributor to its gross domestic growth (GDP). A director with Viet Dragon Securities (VDS) added that as economy was improving, corporate earnings would also be better, but the announced results might not be good as expected.



Firms might not report their true second quarter earnings but wait to release them late in the fiscal year, said the VDS director. Only firms with positive earnings will quickly announce, while others try to postpone as long as possible, said Nguyen Quang Thuan, StoxPlus financial media companys CEO.



Hung, however, said that the property sector might report better-than-expected earnings results with firms having huge land funds, especially property developers in Hanoi as the land prices soared sharply in May and June.



We favour Kinh Bac City Development Corporation (KBC), Song Da Urban and Industrial Zone Investment and Development (SJS), Vincom (VIC), Tu Liem Housing and Urban Development (NTL), said Hung, adding that food and drinks, construction and construction materials, excluding steel, also reported second quarters positive earnings.



Ho Chi Minh City Securities Corporation (HSC) analysts added that they saw some early number fragments from Tay Ninh Rubber (TRC) with first halfs sales having risen 48 per cent to VND186 billion with net profit coming at VND87 billion.



We think this performance is impressive as first half is the low season. We recommend TRC as a buy and forecast it can exceed its target by 20 per cent or so in 2010, said HSC analysts.



A recent BIDV Securities (BSC) report found that listed firms were to release better-than-expected earnings in the second quarter and investors would look to invest in stocks with good earning results.

Sectors of sea transport services, property, and seafood will be among choices, said Tong Minh Tuan, BSC deputy chief analyst.

By Nguyen Hung
These Vietnamese nationals, now considered illegal workers, must flee and hide to avoid being caught over their illicit stay in the East Asian country, according to Tong Hai Nam, head of the ministrys overseas labor agency.

The north-central province of Nghe An topped the list of provinces having unpermitted Vietnamese workers in South Korea, with as many as 1,454 workers not returning to Vietnam upon the expiration of their contracts.



Hanoi came in second with 948 people now hiding in the East Asian country.

Hai Duong (853), Thanh Hoa (823), and Nam Dinh (733), all of which are northern provinces, complete the top five Vietnamese localities with the most people illegitimately staying in South Korea, Nam said.

The official added that South Korean authorities have policies to encourage foreign workers illegally staying in the country to return home.

In Vietnam, the government also exempted civil fines for those who voluntarily returned home from South Korea between September and December last year, he said.

However, the policy did not seem to work, with only 2,000 such Vietnamese workers going home as of the end of November 2015, according to the official.

Nam also denied reports that Vietnamese people sometimes enter South Korea as tourists and stay illegally to find jobs, referring to the case of 59 Vietnamese visitors reported missing during a trip to the tourism island of Jeju last week.

The official said South Korean authorities have caught 28 of them, with three found at a manufacturing facility.

But the South Korean side did not say that the three Vietnamese are workers at the facility, he added.

This is merely an issue of tourism, not illegal labor.
Households and businesses still prefer to hold dollars rather than dong, despite the fact that interest rates in dollars are extremely low.

At 5.3 per cent for the year as a whole, economic growth in Vietnam was stronger than in most other countries and certainly stronger than many anticipated a year ago. But exports fell by 8.9 per cent in 2009, making it the first year to see a decline since the beginning of economic reforms.

Inflation in 2009 was much lower than in 2008, at 6.5 per cent for the year. But since the last quarter of 2009 it has started to accelerate and was close to 2 percentage points per month in January and February. Combined with an announced increase in the prices of gasoline and energy, some fear that a new price storm may be falling upon Vietnam. Inflows of foreign direct investment and overseas remittances were surprisingly resilient, falling by only 13 and 12 per cent respectively, whereas a sharper drop could have been feared. But there has been a clear shortage of dollars, especially at several points during 2009. The price storm had not spared the dollar.

Confronted with this mixture of bad and good news, analysts and commentators have reacted in different ways. On the one hand there is much praise for the decisiveness of the Vietnamese Government in responding to the global downturn, for the boldness of its stimulus measures, and for its ability to sustain relatively strong growth in a very difficult international context. On the other hand, concern is frequently expressed about the acceleration of inflation, the balance of payments situation and the risk of (or need for) a faster devaluation of the Vietnam dong.

The recent move by Fitch Ratings to place Vietnam in the negative watch list reflects this second, more negative perception. The longer the current difficulties last the more likely it is that analysts and commentators will forget about the success of the stimulus policies of 2009 and will emphasise the weaknesses of the current macroeconomic situation.

There is some irony in seeing Vietnam confronted with fears about currency devaluation at a time when other countries that were less successful in terms of economic growth are already confronting sizeable capital inflows and taking measures to contain an excessive appreciation of their currencies. The attractiveness of those countries suggests that Vietnam would have much to gain from rapidly stabilising its macroeconomic situation, containing the inflation rate, and removing market uncertainties regarding the balance of payments and the exchange rate.

Since October 2009 the government has actually taken important steps towards rebalancing its overall policy stance, from only stimulus to a greater focus on macroeconomic stability.

The budget plan for 2010 foresees a reduction in the budget deficit. Estimating how large the reduction could be is difficult, because uncertainties remain on budget execution. But a decline by 2 to 3 percentage points of GDP seems plausible. The monetary plan for 2010 foresees banking credit growing by 25 per cent, which may be high by international standards but would be among the lowest rates in a decade for Vietnam and certainly less than the 37.7 per cent growth observed in 2009. The prime rate was increased by one percentage point in December 2009 and in February 2010 the government took the important step of allowing lenders and borrowers to negotiate most interest rates. A slowdown in the growth of credit has been noticeable over the last few months.

The combination of a more restrained fiscal policy and a less expansionary monetary policy should help contain aggregate demand and slow down inflation and reduce the pressure on the balance of payments.

The dong was also devalued, in November 2009 and February 2010. Taking into account the changes in the width of the flotation band, the combined effect of these two devaluations was to increase the domestic price of the dollar by 8.9 per cent. By now, the exchange rate in the parallel market is only 1 to 2 per cent above the upper limit of the band, compared to more than 10 per cent in late 2009.

In addition, the government is adopting important measures to minimise the risk of a crisis. It has taken stock of the foreign currency holdings of economic groups and large State corporations, and could mobilise them if needed. It also continues to steadily raise the minimum capital requirements for commercial banks, and it is ready to support an orderly process of mergers and consolidations to absorb the smaller banks which could fail to raise the necessary capital into bigger institutions. As for increases in the price of gasoline and energy, they certainly increase inflation in the short term. But the removal of subsidies and market distortions is important to ensure price stability in the medium term.

While most analysts and observers recognise the importance of these moves, and very few actually anticipate a macroeconomic crisis, it is not clear that confidence has been fully restored. Households and businesses (including state owned enterprises) still prefer to hold dollars rather than dong, despite the fact that interest rates in dollars are extremely low. During 2009, this shift in the composition of portfolios towards foreign currency may have reached an astonishing $9 billion. Total foreign currency holdings by economic groups and large state corporations could be only marginally lower. And there are no obvious signs of a massive return to the dong for now.

This lack of confidence in the dong confronts the government with a dilemma.

One possibility is to stick to the set of measures announced so far and wait for the (relative) tightness of banking credit to gradually force households and businesses to sell some of their foreign currency holdings in order to address their liquidity needs. Dollar sales should bring the parallel exchange rate down into the official flotation band. After some time it would become clear that macroeconomic instability is receding. A stable exchange rate should help contain inflationary pressures.

However, even if this approach was to work smoothly it would entail a period of muddling through. Given the prevailing confusion on where the economy is headed to, there could be more negative assessments of the macroeconomic situation by analysts and commentators for quite some time. And adverse market sentiment could make it difficult to get out of the muddling through.

Another possibility is to send clearer signals to the market, in particular by making placements in dong more attractive. There is understandable concern that higher interest rates could undermine economic growth, at a time when the recovery of the global economy is still fragile. But at present, the prime rate is 8 per cent, whereas inflation has already reached 9.5 per cent in the year to March 2010. This means that in real terms the prime rate is negative. And the alternative to raising policy rates is to continue muddling through, getting negative assessments of the macroeconomic situation, and failing to capitalise on the growing interest by investors from rich countries to acquire assets in emerging economies.

Making the dong more attractive could actually trigger a virtuous circle. If households and businesses shift even just a fraction of their current foreign currency holdings to dollars, that will put downward pressure on the parallel exchange rate. A decline in the parallel exchange rate, in turn, would make dollars an even less attractive investment alternative. Not only is the interest rate in dollars very low, dollars could also be worth substantially less by the time placements reach maturity. This dynamic could be amplified if investors in rich countries decide that the situation has stabilised and acquiring assets in Vietnam is a safe bet.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) holds talks with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi at Quba Palace in Cairo, Egypt, Jan. 21, 2016. (Xinhua/Ju Peng)

CAIRO, Jan. 21 -- China and Egypt reaffirmed Thursday that they both oppose linking terrorism with specific nations, ethnic groups or religions.

In a joint document signed by their foreign ministers, the two nations stressed that they firmly oppose double standards in the fight against terrorism.

They added that they resolutely condemn and oppose terrorism no matter what form it takes and where it happens, and will jointly combat terrorism and extremism with maximum cooperation in information exchange, evidence collection, and arrest and repatriation of suspects.

China and Egypt also vowed to strengthen cooperation in capturing and punishing members of terrorist organizations in the two countries and stem the financial sources of terrorism.

Visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping and his counterpart, Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, witnessed the signing of the document, a five-year outline on cementing the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.
Union activists and workers today mark the 12th anniversary of the assassination of Chea Vichea, a well loved labor leader whose murder has never been prosecuted.

Chea Vichea had the power to connect tens of thousands of workers in protest, during a turbulent time in the restive garment sector. Despite the formation of a joint government committee to investigate his killing, the case has never been solved.

Two men, Born Samnang and Sok Sam Oeun, who were wrongfully accused of the killing, served five years in prison each, before they were finally released.

A march to commemorate Chea Vicheas death was banned by authorities Friday.

Chea Mony, brother of the slain activist and head of the Free Trade Union, urged the authorities to finally investigate and prosecute the case. Those officers who were responsible for the case are getting older, he said. Some have diabetes, or hypertension, and their health is not strong, so they could die soon.

Chea Mony also urged investigations into the cases of two other killed activists, Ros Sovannareth and Hy Vuthy, who were murdered in 2004 and 2007.

For his brothers case to go unsolved for 12 years means theres something behind it, Chea Mony said. A solved case is a matter of political will, he said. If they wanted to do it, it would be fast, it may take a few days, because our government is very talented, he said. However, if they do not do it, it is up to them, but we will keep criticizing them so that the people will not vote for them.

Prime Minister Hun Sen in June 2015 ordered the formation of a special committee to investigate the cases of several labor leaders, including Chea Vichea. The committee has not announced a result of its investigation. Em Sam An, an official at the Ministry of Interior, who chairs the committee, could not be reached for comment Friday.

Am Sam Ath, technical supervisor at the rights group Adhoc, said these and other unsolved murders demonstrate impunity, making justice in Cambodia seem impossible. Until now we have not seen any investigations take place, and the suspects are still at large, he said.
BEIJING, Jan. 22 -- China on Friday reaffirmed that any activity by the Philippines in China's territory the Philippines has occupied is illegal and invalid.

It is reported that a Philippine youth group called "Kalayaan Atin Ito" said on Thursday that they plan a second trip to the disputed islands in the South China Sea in April. About 50 group members made a trip to disputed islands in December last year.

"China has indisputable sovereignty over the Nansha Islands and their adjacent waters," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei told a regular press briefing. "Any activity by the Philippines on some of the islands and reefs of China's Nansha Islands the Phillippines occupies is illegal and invalid."

The Philippines has the responsibility to keep relevant groups or members under control to avoid a more complicated situation, Hong said.
Afghan government and Taliban representatives are expected to meet in the gulf state of Qatar Saturday for an unofficial two-day discussion on ways to end the conflict in Afghanistan.

Pugwash Conferences, a Nobel Prize-winning science group promoting solutions to armed conflicts, is hosting the meeting. Afghan civil society and peace activists, as well as foreign observers have also been invited.

Organizers, Taliban and other delegates insist participants are attending the informal discussions in their personal capacity, not representing their respective parties or institutions, to share views on the issues.

Track Two peace talks

This will not be the first time the warring Afghan sides are being brought to the table for indirect, non-negotiation meetings, or Track Two peace talks, under the auspices of Pugwash Conferences.

The Kabul government has not announced whether it will send a delegation for the meeting in Qatar. The Taliban has confirmed its participation.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Muhajid, in a statement sent to VOA Friday, said representatives of its political office in Doha, the capital of Qatar, will attend the meeting.

Muhajid insisted the informal discussions should not be construed as peace negotiations.

It must be reminded that this conference is purely for research purposes with academic debates held on finding solutions to problems, he said.

The Track Two discussions come as senior officials from the United States, China, Afghanistan and Pakistan are engaged in regular four-way discussions aimed at clearing the way for direct peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban.

Preparing roadmap to peace

The four-nation contact group has been tasked to prepare a roadmap and set conditions for starting productive peace negotiations.

It has already held meetings in Islamabad and Kabul this month while a third meeting is due in the Pakistani capital on February 6.

The Taliban has not yet indicated whether it supports or intends to join the four-way process to promote peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan.

Independent assessments suggest the Islamist insurgency has expanded its influence to nearly one-third of the Afghan territory in the past year and inflicted heavy casualties on Afghan security forces, taking advantage of the withdrawal of NATO combat troops from the country.
U.S.-based digital streaming giant Netflix is expanding its international presence, launching service to 130 countries in January, but Kenyan officials, one of these new markets, are questioning if the new Internet content is suitable, at least with its current ratings system.

Earlier this week, Kenyas Film Classification Board, the organization tasked with regulating film and broadcast content in the country, said Netflix had not been granted a license before it began operating and that they would like to have discussions with the company about how better to rate its content for the Kenyan audience.

Ezekiel Mutua, chief operating officer of the KFCB, said that it would be irresponsible of Kenyan authorities to not concern themselves with this issue.

Starting to stream movies

"Here, we have not gotten very far because they have just started streaming on this side of the world, and we have just started this conversation, Mutua said. How would it look like if we just kept quiet and said, 'anything goes, Internet you cant regulate. Why not have the conversation?

Mutua said the primary focus of a conversation is whether the current Netflix ratings system is appropriate for Kenyans; specifically, children.

The KFCB released a statement saying, It will be against our mandate to allow our children to get ruined by inappropriate content in the name of profit and that Kenya could not afford to be a passive recipient of foreign content that could corrupt the moral values of our children.

Mutua said the KFCB does not want to infringe upon privacy and adults can make their own choices, but that his organizations primary concern is protecting minors.

Theres a possibility that a parent would base his decision on the wrong ratings, the ratings are American, they are not Kenyan, they are not African, and therefore there is that possibility, Mutua said. And to the extent that theres a possibility, we as a regulator believe we have the right to raise these concerns.

Security component

He added that there is also a security component for unregulated online streaming access, which terror groups and criminal organizations are also able to utilize.

We are only calling for measures to ensure that our cyberspace is safe, that if people are streaming both the good and the bad, that there is some regulations that can hold them to account, thats all, he said.



Mark Radin, 28, an American working in Kenya, said he watches Netflix both at home in New York and in Nairobi and can see both sides of the issue.

In general, I dont think clamping down on content is good; however, I do think that countries have the right to decide what they deem appropriate, Radin said.

Europe does it, the U.S. does it and every other country does it. So it doesnt make any sense to be saying that Kenya shouldnt be allowed to do it," he added. "And I think they definitely have the right and the authority to review and decide what they deem appropriate for Kenyan society, per Kenyan laws and Kenyan policy.

'What is good for Kenya'

Joe Mucheru, secretary of Kenya's Ministry of Information Communications and Technology, said through his spokesperson Thursday that "there is a need for stakeholders to engage with Internet content providers to leverage on what is good for Kenya."

However, Mucheru has also advised the KFCB that it may not be "easy to regulate content from Netflix because Netflix releases thousands of films to the net per minute."

Netflix declined requests for a statement.
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden rebuked Turkey on Friday for its crackdown on freedom of expression.

Biden told civil society representatives in Istanbul that the Turkish government is not setting the right "example" with its imprisonment of journalists and investigation of academics who have criticized the government's military campaign against Turkey's Kurdish-dominated southeastern sector.

In an unusually strong criticism of Washington's NATO ally, Biden said, "When the media are intimidated or imprisoned for critical reporting, when Internet freedom is curtailed and social media sites like YouTube or Twitter are shut down, and more than 1,000 academics are accused of treason simply by signing a petition, that's not the kind of example that needs to be set."

Before the meeting, Biden told reporters, "The more Turkey succeeds, the stronger the message sent to the entire Middle East and parts of the world who are only beginning to grapple with the notion of freedom."

He said Washington wants Turkey to set a "strong example" for the Middle East of what a "vibrant democracy" means.

Biden criticized the November jailing of Cumhuriyet daily editor-in-chief Can Dundar and its Ankara bureau chief, Erdem Gul, on charges of revealing classified information.

The U.S. vice president also lamented Turkey's widespread investigation of more than 1,200 academics who signed a petition attacking Turkey's military campaign against Kurdish strongholds in the country. About two dozen academics were detained for questioning. They all were released but remain under investigation.

Turkey also has blocked feeds in the country from YouTube, Twitter and other social networks.

Biden, on a two-day visit to Istanbul, is set to meet Saturday with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.

Biden has several issues on his agenda for the bilateral talks, including pushing Turkey to do more to prevent jihadist infiltration through its border with Syria.

Syrian Kurdish militia

The visit comes as Ankara demands Washington rein in recent gains by the Syrian Kurdish militia, the PYG, against Islamic State militants.

Turkey accuses the Syrian Kurdish militia of being linked to PKK rebels, which Turkish forces are fighting.

On Thursday, the White House said Biden and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi met in Davos, Switzerland at the World Economic Forum.

Washington said Biden urged the Iraqi leader to continue discussions with Turkey over the presence of its troops in northern Iraq. Late last year, Turkey deployed about 150 troops to the Bashiqa area, saying the soldiers would be used to train an Iraqi militia to fight Islamic State militants.



Reunification plans

Discussions on the reunification of Cyprus will be part of Biden's agenda as well.

"The reunification talks are going very well; the president of the Republic of Cyprus has just announced a deal can be secured in the course of this year, and the Americans are very active behind the scenes in these talks, together with the United Nations," said political scientist Cengiz Aktar of Istanbuls Suleyman Sah University.

Turkey, Greece and Britain are guarantor countries of Cyprus. Ankara has committed itself to ongoing unification efforts, which observers say Biden has been involved in for decades.

Cyprus was split into a breakaway Turkish Cypriot north and an internationally recognized Greek Cypriot south in 1974 when Turkey invaded in response to a short-lived coup by supporters of union with Greece.

Turkey does not recognize the south.
The Safe Abortion Act that Sierra Leones parliament passed December 8 is on hold. Religious figures have raised concerns and want it reviewed, but activists say legalizing abortion in the West African country is long overdue.

The act would allow women to have an abortion during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, after which it would be permitted only in cases of rape, incest or risk to the health of fetus or mother.

Also under the act, girls under 18 could have an abortion only with the consent of a parent or guardian, and the law specifies a minimum four-year jail sentence for unqualified abortionists.

Religious leaders like the Reverend Christiana Sutton Koroma say the bill is immoral. The mandate we have is to secure life," she said. "The mandate is to save lives and not to destroy life.

Additionally, Koroma said she didn't think Sierra Leone has enough trained doctors to perform abortions, nor does it have the proper medical facilities.

Dr. Aisha Fofana Ibrahim, president of 50/50, a women's rights group, said that having abortion legalized would make the practice safer.

Sierra Leone has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, and that is partly due to unsafe abortions, she said.

According to a report from the country's Ministry of Health and the nongovernmental organization Ipas, one in every 1,000 women giving birth in Sierra Leone dies from pregnancy-related causes.

The World Health Organization estimates that over 6 million unsafe abortions occur annually in Africa.

Sexual violence

Ibrahim said there is also a lot of sexual violence toward women and girls, including by their own guardians, and it needs to be addressed.

These are the same guardians who take kids to the back door to have abortions done. At least if you have it done legally, you will save someones life ... ," she said. "People should look at whats happening in the country, in terms of rape, in terms of incest, in terms of violence against women, and how this could solve a health problem in terms of high maternal mortality rates.

The African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights has also recently raised concern. The organization has launched a campaign to decriminalize abortion across the continent.

A former nurse in Sierra Leone, speaking on condition of anonymity for safety reasons, said she was accused of performing an unsafe abortion in which the woman died. The nurse was sent to jail for five years.

Had the Safe Abortion Act been enacted, "I would not have been in prison all that time, she said in her native Krio dialect.

For now, its not clear whether President Ernest Bai Koroma will sign the bill into law. Members of parliament are set to meet with religious leaders before the end of the month to further discuss their concerns.

The current abortion act dates from 1861, a full century before Sierra Leone became independent. The old law banned abortion except when it was necessary to save the mother's life.
Calls grew Friday for the government of British Prime Minister David Cameron to penalize Russia following the release Thursday of the results of a public inquiry on the 2006 murder of dissident Alexander Litvinenko.

The exiled former Russian spy died after meeting two Russian agents at a London hotel and drinking green tea they had laced with radioactive Polonium-210.

Britains inquiry concluded the murder was probably approved by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Cameron, who received the inquiry report earlier in the week, reacted after its release, calling the murder a state-sponsored action that was appalling. The British leader said his government has added further asset freezes against individuals involved and is toughening its action against Russia.

The British government also said it would summon the Russian ambassador as part of an effort to quell the anger of critics who call the response weak.

Stepping lightly with Putin

Analysts say Britains strategic and economic interests will prevent it from doing anything that would further alienate the Putin government.

Strategically, Britain needs Russias cooperation in efforts to end the Syria conflict.

Because of Russias role as a key backer of [President Bashar al-] Assad, it has lines open to Damascus that the Brits simply cannot match, so that in a way Russia is almost a necessary evil for Britain in dealing with the Syria crisis, said Nicholas Redman, a Russia analyst at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London.

With British warplanes now carrying out bombing campaigns against militants in Syria at the same time as Russian forces, it is also important for London to keep the lines of communication open with Moscow at a military-to-military level.

Calls for punitive action

Activists, politicians and members of Litvinenkos family are calling for tougher penalties.

Marina Litvinenko, the slain dissidents widow, called on the Cameron government to expel all Russian intelligence operatives from Britain, impose targeted sanctions against individuals involved in the murder, and even put into place a travel ban on Putin.

Bill Browder, a London-based financier and human rights activist who has frequently criticized Russia over the Litvinenko affair, called for a stronger response by Britain; but, he says he believes economic and financial interests are in the way, with Russian investors pouring billions into Britains banking and real estate sectors.

Theres a lot of Russian money sloshing around London and I believe that theres a concern among certain members of the government that that money would be less available if Britain took a moral stand on some of these issues, Browder told VOA.

Even if the British government did decide to extend sanctions, there would be a few more penalties left to impose on Putin, said Redman. Britain was among those leading efforts to impose sanctions on Russia for its involvement in Ukraine. A large proportion of the arsenal in terms of sanctions and other measures has already been expended, he said.
Willy Nyamitwe, senior adviser to Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza, tells VOA that images being broadcast around the world of crisis and violence in the capital, Bujumbura, are not current.

Those who have been firing shots at night and killing innocent people in the capital have been defeated, Nyamitwe said, and the situation is back to normal.

"We are still coping with [keeping an eye on] people who continue to kill innocent people and  they are from the opposition, he said. Those who are being arrested and disarmed are from the opposition."

The recent killing of three government officials were acts of terrorism and were designed to stir things up before a U.N. Security Council delegation's visit to the country Thursday, Nyamitwe said.

But Carine Kaneza, a member of the Burundian Diaspora who sat next to Nyamitwe during VOA's Straight Talk Africa program on Burundi, argued that facts on the ground contradict what the senior adviser expressed.

Kaneza, a member of Burundian Women and Girls for Peace and Security, an organization not recognized by her country, says many women continue to be victims of rape and thousands have fled and continue to flee to neighboring countries  a telling sign that the country is not at peace.

Alarm signals flashing red

Numerous reports of gang rapes of women by security forces, torture, extrajudicial killings and reports of mass graves prompted U.N. human rights chief Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein to recently warn that "all the alarm signals, including the increasing ethnic dimension of the crisis, are flashing red."

On Tuesday, U.S. State Department Spokesman Mark Toner called on the Burundian government to "permit an immediate, impartial investigation into these recent allegations."

But Nyamitwe insists there is a slander campaign underway that is being run by people who want to tarnish Burundi's reputation.

Kaneza says she finds it "a bit offensive to compare Burundi to other countries. The Burundian crisis is very distinct and has its own characteristics embedded within a Burundian problem."

She also says she doesn't understand the refusal by the Burundian government to welcome the 5,000 African Union troops in the country to help solve the current crisis.

"We have become what we didn't want to be 15 years ago. It's utterly unacceptable," Kaneza said.

But Nyamitwe insists there is no reason to send troops to a peaceful nation. He points out that the opposition has never wanted to vote in elections and, even after the people spoke with their vote for Nkurunziza, the opposition continues to make noise.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power told VOA before leaving for Burundi on Wednesday that "this is a crossroad for Burundi, they cannot let it be business as usual when you wake up in the morning and there is a corpse on the street as you try to get to work."

Power said the U.S. will push for accelerated mediation that should have taken place over months ago. She said an international force could be a force for stability rather than, as Nkurunziza sees it, a threat to the country's sovereignty.
For the third time in 15 months, a Colombian drug kingpin pleaded guilty Thursday to U.S. charges that he conspired to manufacture and distribute hundreds of tons of cocaine annually that he trafficked throughout the world.

The plea in Manhattan federal court cleared the way for sentencing Daniel Barrera, who authorities said was one of the most prolific drug traffickers of the last two decades before his capture in Venezuela in 2012 following years in hiding.

Barrera, also known as "Loco" ("Crazy"), was extradited from Colombia in July 2013 to face three indictments filed in federal courts in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Miami, and pleaded guilty in 2014 in the New York cases.

The Miami indictment, along with the Brooklyn one, was later transferred to a federal judge in Manhattan in order to consolidate the cases for sentencing once his final plea was entered.

In court, Barrera pleaded guilty to two counts, admitting that from 1992 to 2010 he agreed with others "to manufacture several tons of cocaine to import into the United States."

Prosecutors and Barrera's lawyer, Ruben Oliva, had been seeking to negotiate a plea agreement to simplify his eventual sentencing on all three indictments.

But Oliva told U.S. District Judge Gregory Woods that no agreement could be reached and that there were "mitigating factors" he wanted to cite at sentencing, set for May 25. Barrera faces a sentence of 10 years to life in prison.

Massive operation

According to U.S. authorities, Barrera, 47, ran a cocaine manufacturing and trafficking syndicate that since 1998 processed about 400 tons of the drug annually.

Prosecutors said Barrera bought raw cocaine paste from the leftist rebel group FARC and processed it in laboratories in areas controlled by a now-demobilized paramilitary group, the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, or AUC.

Barrera was arrested in Venezuela in September 2012 with the help of authorities there as well as British and U.S. intelligence agencies.

Colombian authorities had been closing in on his organization in the weeks prior, detaining 36 suspected members and seizing five tons of cocaine.
With voters about to start weighing in on the 2016 presidential race, Democratic pollsters say they are confident with whichever of their candidates runs in Novembers general election.

They point to demographic statistics showing that American society is becoming more ethnically and racially diverse, more secular, more unmarried and more urban. These trends come at a time when polls show the Republican Party increasingly appeals to rural, white, married, religious voters.

But Republican pollsters say they also feel confident about whomever emerges as their nominee.

They say a Republican candidate will be better able to tap into deep-seated anger and frustration across the country and a powerful desire for change. Members of both major political parties have reasons to hope  and reasons to worry.

Hispanics favor Democrats

One thing is indisputable: Hispanic voters, and how they turn out to the polls in November, will have a major impact on the outcome of the 2016 presidential election.

Latinos now make up 11.9 percent of eligible U.S. voters, almost equal to the percentage of black voters, and both groups heavily favor Democrats.

Hispanics are the largest minority group in the United States, comprising 17 percent of the total population, and that number is projected to grow.

Every year, some 800,000 Latino youths turn 18 in the United States and are eligible to vote.

In 2012, 75 percent of Hispanics voted to re-elect Democratic President Barack Obama, while only 23 percent voted for his Republican opponent, Mitt Romney.

In 2016, the numbers could be even worse for Republicans.

None of the Republican presidential candidates is advocating for comprehensive immigration reform legislation with a pathway to citizenship.

But Republican frontrunner Donald Trump has made illegal immigration the centerpiece of his campaign, vowing he would build a massive wall along the southern U.S. border and make Mexico pay for it. He says if he is elected, he would have the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States rounded up and deported.

These and other comments have been strongly condemned by immigrants' rights groups, and all three Democratic presidential candidates  former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Senator Bernie Sanders and former Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley.

All of the Democrats support immigration reform legislation that includes a pathway to citizenship, and they support executive action by Obama to give the undocumented parents of underage American citizens legal status and work permits.

Republicans strongly oppose the president's executive actions on immigration, and the Supreme Court will weigh in on the issue in June.

A shattering election

Democratic pollster Stanley Greenberg wrote a book called Ascendant America, in which he outlines what he calls "revolutionary" demographic, technological and cultural shifts.

He says most American millennials see immigration as a positive force, and also accept gay marriage and a woman's right to choose an abortion, issues that favor Democrats.

Greenberg told VOA he believes the Republican Party is in for a very rough election in November.

"I've said this will be a shattering election, because I think it will be very disruptive; the trends in the country just will be inescapable, he said. You can't be an anti-immigration party in America. You can in Europe, you have proportional representation, you have anti-immigration parties or some center-right parties that have taken up these issues.

"But in the United states, when you have a two-party system and you're just not going to get elected," he said. "You can't have one party be an anti-immigration party in so diverse a country."

Greenberg says he believes that if Republicans lose their third presidential election in a row, some new Republican leaders will emerge who embrace diversity, immigration, and what he terms "the modern American family," as opposed to a more traditional concept of family.

But Greenberg and other Democratic consultants concede that although Hispanic millennials are the fastest-growing new group of voters, they are also the least politically engaged. The Pew Research Center says only 48 percent of Latinos turned out to vote in 2012.

Whoever becomes the Democratic nominee would need a massive grass-roots operation to motivate Latinos to register and go to the polls.

Deep-seated anger

On the Republican side, pollsters and consultants say they are concerned about Hispanic voters, though they say the impact may not be as strongly felt because of that group's low turnout.

Republican pollster David Merritt told VOA that he does not believe that Republican frontrunners Donald Trump and Senator Ted Cruz are hurting the party with their comments about immigration.

"I mean they have tapped into an anger that really actually expands beyond the Republican Party, Merritt said. In all of our research going back the last 18 months to the midterm elections of 2014, the level of frustration, the level of rage, the level of anger out there among the American people is incredibly deep-seated.

And as I said, it is mostly on the Republican side, but there is a frustration on the Democratic side that you can see reflected in Bernie Sanders' success. And certainly Independents feel that frustration with Washington."

The mood of frustration with Washington will give a significant advantage to whomever is the Republican nominee, Merritt said, because the American people are demanding change and rejecting the status quo.

So demographic changes, voter turnout and deep-seated anger among many voters will likely make for a suspenseful election night Nov. 8, 2016.
With the approaching fifth anniversary of the January 25 uprising against Egypts then-president, Hosni Mubarak, security is being tightened here as authorities warn the public against staging protests.

While large-scale rallies are unlikely for Monday, even small opposition gatherings could lead to arrests and civil unrest, says Ziad Akl, a senior researcher at the Al Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies here.

"The revolutionary forces or political forces or social movements  they are not really interested in taking to the street on that day, he said. And there are a lot of reasons behind that."

Among these reasons are "preemptive measures" taken by the government, such as imprisoning political dissidents, banning public protests and cracking down on opposition speech. In recent weeks, thousands of homes and two cultural institutions reportedly have been raided and Internet activists jailed.

Before it was taken down, one Facebook page called "well bring down autocracy on Jan. 25" reportedly had 50,000 people signed up for updates.

Demonstrations anticipated

While most former activists are expected to stay home, some supporters of the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood and the families of political prisoners are expected to take to the streets, despite the obvious danger, said Akl.

Small rallies may pass peacefully, but any large marches or protests are likely to attract police or anger from the public. Many Egyptians blame the protesters in 2011 for unleashing the chaos of the past five years, saying they ruined the countrys economy and threatened its security.

Supporters of Egyptian President Abdel-Fatah el-Sissi praise the current government for the relative calm in the past two years. They say it hasnt had enough time to fix the economy, which nearly flat-lined in 2011.

The people behind social movements  like some of the pro-democracy groups that participated in the uprising  have not entirely given up but are wary of acting publicly, Akl added. "Because of the political changes over the past couple of years, the tactics of social movements and political revolutionary forces have changed a lot and those new tactics are more cautious and covert."

Authorities on edge

In recent weeks, Egypt's politicians and religious leaders have in near unison warned the public not to take part in demonstrations. "Why do some people call for a new revolution on the 25th of January?" Sissi asked in a speech last month. "Do they want to destroy this country?"

In Egyptian mosques last week, imams preached individualized versions of a sermon designed by Islamic leaders in Cairo.

"The idea was to just be patient and not to provoke," said Hamada Elrasam, a VOA reporter who attended one of the services, describing the speech. "And being safe is better than any other thing."

In 2011 and then again in 2013, when President Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood was ousted, massive public protests were the catalyst for the toppling of public leaders. The 2011 uprising followed more than three decades of dictatorship and exploded on January 25, a national holiday celebrated under Mubarak that honors the Egyptian police force.

Protests took place across the country but were centered in Cairos Tahrir Square, where hundreds of thousands of people shouted for the fall of the regime along with "freedom, bread and social justice."

Aside from Mubaraks departure from office, that call was never answered. Egypt is poorer and more insecure, and its government continues to punish political dissidents, especially ahead of the anniversary, according to Akl.

Current protesters in Tunisia have expressed similar complaints and Egyptian authorities are eyeing the unrest in Tunis with caution. The 2011 uprising in Egypt was inspired in part by Tunisian protesters, forcing then-President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to step down.

Waning enthusiasm

Over the past five years, many youth activists in Egypt have also become disenchanted with politics, after participating in two uprisings and ending up with a government that is notably similar to the pre-2011 regime.

"Democracy will never be available in our Arab world," said Nubian Mohamed, a 34-year-old former activist who protested against both Mubarak and Morsi. Like many young Egyptians, he now believes that while many of the protesters intended to install a democracy, the success of the protests was due to military support. Another revolution, he said, would therefore be pointless, he said.

Egypts current government, led by a former defense minister, is often viewed as de facto military leadership.

"So this time for sure they will not [lend] support," he added.
Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has expressed condolences to victims of the recent attack by al-Shabab militants on a Kenyan military installation in Somalia. A number of soldiers remain unaccounted for.

During a ceremony at Nairobis Armed Forces Memorial Hospital Friday, Kenyatta expressed condolences and gratitude to the soldiers and families of soldiers who were killed, injured, and missing as a result of the attack on Kenyas base in El Adde, Somalia.

We owe our young soldiers a debt of gratitude, one we can scarcely begin to repay; but, we shall honor them and honor them we will, Kenyatta said.



Many of the families are still awaiting word about their loved ones, since the government has not released official numbers and many of the troops' whereabouts continues to remain unknown.



Kosgei Lelmokwo is among those waiting to find out what happened to his brother Abraham, whom he says has been in the army for 25 years; but, Lelmokwo is urging patience for others in his situation.

He says the families who are affected by this crisis just have to wait and be patient for the government to finish its verification process. The government hasnt yet released the final list of the dead, missing, and those who were rescued, he says.

Ephraim Madula Anjeres son, Stephen, joined the Kenya Defense Forces in 2010. After previous deployments to Somalia and northeastern Kenya, he was sent to El Adde just two weeks ago.



Anjere disagrees with Lelmokwo, saying the government needs to provide the families with timely information.

At least, what the government should tell us, first, they could have visited the affected families, talk to the affected families, do counseling and guiding, and then tell us to be patient as they do the search, instead of leaving us in darkness; because this is the thing that has traumatized many families, they need counseling and guiding," Anjere said.



During Fridays ceremony, President Kenyatta said Kenyas Defense Forces will remain in Somalia.

We are [at] war with extremists, we are at war with terrorists, we are [at] war with fanatics, and this has to be a war that we must win," Kenyatta said. "Despite the adversity, we remain unbowed and resolved to build a strong, prosperous and secure nation.



Kenyan troops working with the African Union have battled al-Shabab militants inside Somalia since October 2011.
According to data released by China's National Bureau of Statistics, China's newborn population in 2015 is 16.55 million, 320,000 less than the year of 2014. The National Health and Family Planning Commission responded that the decline is mainly due to the influence of zodiac preference and a decrease in the number of women of childbearing age.

The "selective two-child policy" has been gradually implemented in China since 2014. 2015 is the second year after the policy was fully implemented. Thus, the decline of the newborn population has attracted a great deal of attention. Some critics said it proved that the effect of the policy is far lower than previous estimations.

In response to that concern, a representative from China's National Health and Family Planning Commission said that two factors are largely responsible for the decline of births in 2015.

Firstly, there is the influence of zodiac preference. As 2015 is the year of the goat, some Chinese believe this year will bring bad luck. Some families have therefore postponed their childbearing plans, especially those in northern regions of China. After July 2015, there was an increase in pregnant women registering in hospitals to give birth in the year of the monkey. For example, the number of pregnant women in Beijing in July 2015 increased by 21 percent compared with the same period the previous year.

The decrease in the number of women of childbearing age is another factor that influences birth rate, according to the representative. Since 2011, that number has been on the decline. The number of women aged between 15 and 49 decreased by about 5 million over the previous year, while the number of women aged between 20 and 29 decreased by about 1.5 million.

The representative also said that births of second children increased significantly in 2014 and 2015, while births of first children decreased. The numbers of newborn first children and second children were respectively 10.56 million and 5.11 million in 2013, 9.72 million and 6.06 million in 2014, and 8.86 million and 6.52 million in 2015. The number of newborn second children has increased by 1.41 million since 2013, thanks to the selective two-child policy.

The representative concluded that the newborn population in 2015 was within the expected range. He also forecasted that the total newborn population will range from 17.5 million to 21 million from 2016 to 2020.

China's family planning policy was first introduced in the late 1970s to rein in the surging population by limiting most urban couples to one child and most rural couples to two children, if the first child born was a girl. The policy was later relaxed to say that any parents could have a second child if they were both only children.

The one-child policy was further loosened in November 2013 after the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, with its current form stipulating that couples are allowed to have two children if one of them is an only child.

According to the new family planning law, which was amended by the national legislature in late December, couples are allowed to have two children starting Jan. 1, 2016, ending the one-child policy that had existed for decades.
Greek maritime officials said at least 15 bodies have been recovered in two separate sinkings of boats off of Greek islands Friday, as a seemingly unending wave of migrants continues to travel over treacherous winter waters to seek refuge in Europe.

A search is under way for other migrants still missing.

The Coast Guard said 41 people made it to shore after their boat sank off the small island of Farmakonissi in the eastern Aegean. Seven bodies were recovered.

In a separate incident, 26 people survived after their boat capsized off the island of Kalolimnos. Authorities say eight bodies were recovered.

The International Organization for Migration said earlier this week that since the beginning of 2016, an estimated 31,244 migrants and refugees have arrived in Greece by sea.

The organization said that figure is many times greater than the 1,472 recorded by the Greek Coast Guard for the whole of January 2015.

IOM said the the number of maritime arrivals in Greece may "significantly exceed" the record 853,650 migrants who arrived in Greece by sea last year.

The migration agency says 48 percent of the migrant arrivals in Greece have been Syrians, 29 percent Afghans, 12 percent Iraqis, 3 percent Pakistanis and 2 percent Iranians.

Other nationalities include Algerians, Bangladeshis, Egyptians, Eritreans, Lebanese and Moroccans.
Former U.S. Marine Amir Hekmati, released by Iran in a prisoner swap last weekend, arrived home Thursday after more than four years in jail in the Islamic Republic where he faced the death sentence at one point.

Hekmati 32, touched down in a private jet at the airport in his hometown of Flint, Michigan and stepped on to a small red carpet on the tarmac.

"I am happy to finally be home. It's been a very long road, a very long journey. Unfortunately, many people have traveled this road with me," he told reporters.

Hekmati was arrested while visiting family in Iran in 2011 and was accused of being a U.S. spy, a charge his relatives and the United States deny. He was sentenced to death the following year, but that was commuted to a 10-year prison term.

He was one of five Americans released to coincide with the lifting last weekend of economic sanctions against Iran in return for curbs on Tehran's atomic program. The White House offered clemency to seven Iranians who were convicted or facing trial in the United States.

Hekmati said Thursday that he was "healthy, tall and with my head held high."

The son of Iranian immigrants, Hekmati went to high school in Flint, a rust belt town now struggling with a water contamination crisis.

"It's great to be back in Flint, my hometown. I love this city. I love its people. They have been so good to me and my family and we are very grateful," Hekmati said.

Another former prisoner in Iran, Christian pastor Saeed Abedini, 35, was set to arrive in Atlanta and then fly to Asheville, North Carolina, Thursday to be reunited with members of his family over the next several days, his wife told Reuters.

Abedini, a naturalized U.S. citizen of Iranian origin, will now spend time at a religious retreat in North Carolina associated with evangelist Billy Graham.

Abedini was sentenced to eight years in prison in 2013 after being accused of harming Iran's national security by setting up home-based churches in Iran.
An arms depot was attacked on the outskirts of Burkina Faso's capital city early Friday. Burkinabe authorities blame members of the country's disbanded presidential guard, the elite unit that was behind a failed coup last September.

The attack happened at 3 a.m. Friday. A Burkinabe army spokesman says a group of men raided the arms depot located just outside the capital, Ouagadougou.

"There have been no casualties, said Lieutenant Colonel William Yameogo. "The authors of this attack have been identified, among them are members of the former presidential guard."

The guard, or RSP, was a 1500-man elite unit loyal to former president Blaise Compaore, who was ousted in 2014 following massive popular protests after 27 years in power.

That same group was behind a short-lived coup against the transitional government last September, just weeks before milestone elections meant to restore democratic rule to Burkina Faso. The unit was disbanded soon after and the election took place in November, bringing Roch Marc Christian Kabore to power.

The army could not say if the group was able to get away with any weapons but said that an investigation was still underway and security has been reinforced.

This raid comes one week after an al Qaida-linked terrorist attack in Ouagadougou left 30 people dead.
Frances prime minister has joined growing voices in warning that Europe's ongoing migrant crisis threatens the very foundations of the 28-member European Union.

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls says the tens of thousands of migrants who continue pouring into Europe threaten the idea of a unified continent, especially when it comes to the passport-free Schengen zone.

Speaking to the BBC at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Valls said that if Europe is not capable of protecting its borders, the so-called "European project" or European Union, is in danger of disappearing.

Roughly one million migrants arrived in Europe last year, many of them fleeing conflict in the Middle East, Asia and Africa; but, tens of thousands of others arrived, hoping for better economic opportunities.

Today, a growing number of European countries are introducing border controls to curb the influx and Hungary has built a fence on its border with Croatia. German Chancellor Angela Merkel is facing growing pressure after welcoming in hundreds of thousands of migrants last year.

"External border controls are essential. EU members also need to be more active in weeding out economic migrants, who should be sent home," said Valls.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte also warned this week that Europe was close to the breaking point. The chief of Eurogroup finance ministers Jeroen Dijsselbloem said in Davos that Europe needs to spend much more to deal with the crisis where refugees are located, in the Middle East.

Separately, Valls said Frances state of emergency, announced after Novembers terrorist attacks in Paris, would remain in place until the so-called total battle against the Islamic State group is over.
Note: Names in this article have been changed.

Eight-year-old Maria wears her hair braided and has bright pink shoelaces on her sneakers. But what she did Wednesday was quite grown-up.

It was 6:30 a.m. when Maria heard knocking at the door of her suburban American home as she was getting ready for school. The second-grader yanked the door wide open and came face-to-face with eight police officers.

"I said, 'Who are you?'" Maria later recounted. "And they said, 'We can't tell you our names. Is there an adult here?'"

Immigration Control Enforcement (ICE) agents were looking for undocumented immigrants living in the house.

Deporting surge

The Obama administration earlier this month began a series of raids to deport illegal immigrants.

Agents from ICE conducted several days of what they call "enforcement actions," or intensive raids, concentrated in the southern states of Georgia, Texas and North Carolina.

They detained 121 Mexican and Central American immigrants who crossed the U.S. border illegally with children, then stayed beyond their deportation orders and exhausted all legal recourse.

The U.S. government flew 77 of them back to their homeland on repatriation flights to Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. The operation lasted three days.

Fewer illegal immigrants

A new study by the Center for Migration Studies of New York shows the number of illegal immigrants declining in the U.S. since 2008 to fewer than 11 million in 2014. The center says its survey shows that fewer immigrants arriving from Mexico offset the greater numbers coming from Central America.

Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, who led the most recent raids, released a statement detailing the Southwest Border Security effort: "As I have said repeatedly, our borders are not open to illegal migration; if you come here illegally, we will send you back consistent with our laws and values."

White House Spokesman Josh Earnest says the administration's priority has been removing criminals. But another focus is maintaining security along the Southwest border, which meant removing recent immigrants who crossed illegally. Earnest said that doesn't mean ignoring due process.

"Each of these individuals is considered on a case-by-case basis for any sort of humanitarian or asylum claims they may have to make, he said. And their legal remedies are exhausted before they are deported."

Video of the surge released by ICE shows mainly women holding the hands of children, boarding jet airplanes, with boxed meals to eat during the flight.

Hiding from agents

Maria knew exactly why the agents were at her door.

"I was trying to be brave," she said, "because I know that they will never get my family because they hasn't done anything bad."

But Maria's Aunt Sofia is in the U.S. illegally.

In an exclusive interview with VOA only hours after the raid, Sofia said she worried about getting separated from her sons.

"I thought they were going to enter the room with my children there and take me," she said.

Agents went room to room, but never checked the basement where Sofia huddled on her bed with her three babies  ages 5, 3, and 6 months.

The raid  not part of the recent surge, but a regular enforcement action  left her fearful to walk out of her house.

"I'm not even going to the grocery store anymore, she said. I'm scared to go. I would always take my children to the park nearby, but I am afraid to go there now. "

Sofia and her sister arrived in the United States from Guatemala 10 years ago, intending to build a better life for their parents back home.

Sofia still sends money back to her mom and dad. She takes care of the children and doesn't work anymore, but her husband does. Their children are U.S. citizens because they were born here. But Sofia is illegal and can be deported back to Guatemala at any time.

'Know Your Rights' cards

Several immigration advocate organizations like CARECEN, a Central American Resource Center for low- to moderate-income Latinos, have started holding legal seminars.

The organizers hand out "Know Your Rights" cards. Printed on business cardstock, the cards are written in Spanish on one side and English on the other.

In part they read, "I do not wish to speak with you, answer your questions, or sign or hand you any documents based on my 5th Amendment rights. ... I do not give you permission to enter my home based on my 4th amendment rights under the United States Constitution, unless you have a warrant."

Maria does not plan to let things get to the point of handing out cards.

"I have learned to never open the door and to look out the window," she said.

When representatives of the immigration advocacy group, CASA, came to Maria's house after the raid to provide assistance, they knocked repeatedly, but no one answered.

The family would not open the door, for fear ICE had returned.
The January 14 terrorist attack in Indonesia has again raised the issues of how to combat extremist Islamist ideology and rehabilitate or de-radicalize militants in the worlds biggest Muslim country.

Indonesian police named Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian militant based in Syria with Islamic State militant group (IS), as the principal organizer of the Jakarta attack where eight people died, including four assailants, in multiple bomb blasts and gunfire.



Prior to joining IS, Bahrun Naim studied with Hizbut Tahrir, a conservative Muslim organization that, like Islamic State, opposes the diverse, secular democracy of Indonesia and advocates for the establishment of an Islamic caliphate. Hizbut Tahrir, however, does not support the use of violence to achieve this goal.



Hizbut Tahrir has been banned in a number of countries, but spokesman Muhammad Ismail Yusanto says the same democratic rights that his organization opposes permit them to speak out against the state of Indonesia.



So Hizbut Tahrir used this loophole and I think as far as we work according to the law, I mean we do not pick [break] the law, we have [the] right to express ideals, he said.



Yusanto says Bahrun was expelled from Hizbut Tahrir when it was found out he was secretly hiding a weapon.



He told us that the weapon had been thrown out, Yusanto said.



Hizbut Tahrir has been called a conveyor belt to terrorism by its critics and a peaceful alternative to militant Islam by its defenders.



De-radicalization



The dilemma Indonesia faces in dealing with Hizbut Tahrir illustrates some of the difficulties involved in trying to combat extremist ideologies.



This week, President Joko Widodo called for increased programs to de-radicalize Muslims who have embraced violent extremist beliefs; but, security analyst Evan Laksmana, with the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Jakarta, asks if intolerant ideology is the main driver for terrorism, then should the government target all groups that oppose Indonesias democracy?



Technically the de-radicalization campaign should also target groups like Hizbut Tahrir, right? he said.



He says Indonesia cannot effectively control what is said in every mosque in the country, but, that the government lacks sufficient data to explain why some Indonesian Muslims join violent Islamist groups.



The main method for rehabilitating Islamist militants in Indonesia is through prison workshops that promote a counter-Islamic ideology and favor tolerance.



These programs, Laksmana says, have often been ineffective.



Prisoners will go along with the counseling and pledge loyalty to the state just to get a reduced sentence.



Many reports have suggested (they) are simply being used as a transactional method by these terrorists to simply get off easy from prison, said Laksmana.



At the same time, prisoners can be exposed to violent extremist ideologies and recruited into terrorist groups while incarcerated.



Bahrun Naim served nearly two-and-a-half years in prison for illegal possession of firearms and explosives before he joined IS in Syria in 2014.



Police reportedly believe Bahrun is a supporter of jailed cleric Aman Abdurrahman, who is an influential Indonesian militant. There are also reports that one of the assailants in the Jakarta attack shared a cell with Abdurrahman.



Critics of Indonesias de-radicalization efforts say more research is needed to develop an effective program to change hearts and minds. They say the immediate focus of the government should be to isolate possible militant recruiters in prison, prevent Indonesians from joining IS and disrupt and dismantle terror networks before they strike.

Ade Irma contributed to this report.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi appealed to Turkey Friday to pull its troops out of Iraq that it has stationed near the embattled Islamic State stronghold of Mosul.

"We have to have an answer," the Iraqi leader said on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he outlined his views on stabilizing the volatile Middle East.

Abadi said Baghdad wants "very good neighborly relations" with Ankara and wants it to join efforts to fight Islamic State militants, but also wants Turkey's troops out of Iraq.

Using another name for Islamic State fighters, Abadi said, "Daesh is killing our own citizens, occupying our own cities. We have 4 million internal refugees because of that, and Turkey should help us with that. And I appeal to the Turkish government to help us, and withdraw their forces."

Turkey has stationed troops inside Iraq since 2014, but in early December deployed another 100 or more equipped with tanks and artillery for what it said were training exercises.

Baghdad protested Turkey's troop movement, calling it a breach of its sovereignty. Abadi said Turkey has yet to explain why it has additional troops inside Iraq. After the Iraqi protest, Turkey ended more deployments.

International mission



At the time of the Turkish troop movement, Ankara said its fighters were in Iraq as part of an international mission to train and equip Iraqi forces to fight Islamic State insurgents. But Baghdad said there was no invitation for the Turkish troops.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden met Thursday with Abadi in Davos. The White House said Biden "encouraged continued dialog between Iraq and Turkey to resolve concerns about Turkish troop deployments in northern Iraq and reiterated U.S. respect for Iraq's sovereignty and territorial integrity."

Biden is expected to discuss the issue further in Istanbul on Saturday when he meets with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.
Over the waning weeks of 2015, about 500 key Islamic State (IS) officials and commanders packed up and slipped away, leaving their posts in Syria and Iraq.

The move, according to a U.S. official familiar with the intelligence, was not part of any sort of retreat. Rather, it appeared to be a calculated move to bolster the self-declared caliphates growing provinces in Libya, already benefiting from a steady bleed-back of rank-and-file Tunisians and Libyans who honed their fighting skills in the terror groups heartland.

While some U.S. officials see the militant group's Libya expansion as part of an effort to buy time and space in order to shift the worlds focus from losses in Iraq and Syria, the threat is being taken seriously.

A U.S. airstrike this past November targeted and killed Abu Nabil, believed to have been the top IS leader in Libya at the time.

And in remarks earlier this week during a visit to Paris to meet with coalition partners, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter admitted, Libya will continue to be a challenge in the year to come.

Other current and former officials are even more wary, watching what they see as a force growing in size and in capability in a state already mired in chaos.

Its gas on the fire, said Patrick Skinner, a former CIA case officer now with The Soufan Group, a strategic security intelligence consultancy. Now you have the real nightmare because Libyas not going to get any better any time soon.

And it is a nightmare could look eerily familiar.

Growing force in Libya

I would not be surprised if we woke up one morning, and ISIS in Libya had grabbed a large part of Libyan territory-the same kind of blitzkrieg on a smaller scale that we saw in Iraq, former CIA deputy Director Michael Morell told lawmakers on the House Armed Services Committee earlier this month, using acronym to describe the terrorist organization, which also goes by ISIL and Daesh.

Part of the reason for that is how much IS's Libyan forces have grown, described by some as exponential.

A U.S. intelligence official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, put the number of IS fighters at a few thousand, though other Western and North African officials say the actual figure could be much higher, perhaps 5,000 or more.

These assessments are still very fluid as numbers are likely to increase, especially in terms of foreigners, said Jason Pack, a researcher of Middle Eastern History at Cambridge University and president of Libya-Analysis.com.

Already, evidence suggests IS in Libya has supplemented its veteran fighters from Syria and Iraq with new recruits from Tunisia, Mauritania, Sudan and Somalia.

And Pack believes the terror group is just starting to benefit from local support, something it has not yet enjoyed.

In the last few months and weeks native Libyan participation in ISIS has increased notably, especially in sleeper cells in Tripoli, he said. Most of these Libyans are young under 30's and many under 20's, some of whom were suicide bombers in Benghazi and, most recently, in Sidra.

Analysts believe that trend is only likely to accelerate if international efforts to broker a political settlement between the countrys warring factions falter or if some of those groups begin to succumb to internal differences.

The Soufan Group's Patrick Skinner calls it a remarkable turnaround for a group that, despite its brazen propaganda, had been straining to make a real impact on the ground.

Last year ISIS was struggling, he said. They were just one of a thousand tiny militias in Libya.

But despite a lack of the type of sectarian tensions that IS used to its advantage time and again in Iraq and Syria, the group has managed to take what was once just a training base and managed to turn it into something more substantial.

Sirte, ISIS's stronghold in Libya, looks more and more like Raqqa, its Syrian equivalent: A city under foreign occupation, according to Levantine Group security analyst Michael Horowitz.

The local branches of ISIS have spared no efforts to promote Libya as a land for jihad, he added.

Expanding reach

And as more and more jihadists land in Libya, the IS militants' reach expands.

They have an increasing ability to project military power out of their base in Sirte and they have a safe haven space to organize, plan and recruit, former U.S. Ambassador to Libya Robert Ford recently told U.S. lawmakers.

And Skinner, the former CIA case officer, worries that it will not take much for the growing Islamic State base in Libya to make its presence felt via familiar smuggling routes across the Mediterranean Sea.

Instead of people having to go through Turkey and then cut across to Greece, they can now literally just hop on a boat and go 160 miles to Italy, he said.

People are going to get across that we dont want to get across, Skinner warned. And if anybody thinks were monitoring that on a individual level, that is crazy.
Israel has thwarted a new Jewish settlement attempt in a historic town in the occupied West Bank. But settlement activity is continuing elsewhere.

Israeli security forces evicted 80 Jewish settlers who moved into two buildings in the West Bank town of Hebron. The properties are located near the site known to Jews as the Tomb of the Patriarchs and to Muslims as the Ibrahimi Mosque.

The settlers, who moved in on Thursday, say they purchased the buildings legally from their Palestinian owner.

About 850 Jews live among 170,000 Palestinians in Hebron, which has been a flash point during four months of violence.

Malachi Levinger is a local settlement leader.

"When Jews are the victims of terrorist attacks, their response is to build," said Levinger.

Israels defense minister said the settlers were evicted because they did not comply with the law: They failed to obtain the required permits and did not coordinate the move with the army.

The eviction came a day after Israel angered the Palestinians and the United States by approving the expropriation of 154 hectares of land near the West Bank town of Jericho.

Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat called for United Nations intervention.

"We are contacting the Americans, the Europeans, others in the international community. We are consulting with them because I think we should go to the Security Council with a resolution only and solely for the colonial settlement enterprise. That's what we need to do," said Erekat.



The U.S. State Department said the land expropriation "calls into question Israel's commitment to a two-state solution."
The leader of the opposition Ivorian Popular Front said he saw "real progress" in his meeting of more than three hours Thursday with Ivory Coast's president.

Pascal Affi Nguessan, who spoke to reporters after his delegation's session with Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara, said he saw "a political will to settle all problems related to the post-electoral crisis" in Ivory Coast.

In 2010 and 2011, the results of the presidential elections were disputed and supporters of Ouattara clashed with those of the Ivorian Popular Front, or FPI, which was then led by the president at the time, Laurent Gbagbo. At least 3,000 people died in five months of violence, which ended when Gbagbo was arrested and put in jail. He is currently awaiting trial at the International Criminal Court.

Thursdays meeting was requested by the FPI, mainly to discuss the release of the remaining political prisoners taken during that post-electoral crisis.

On that, too, Affi Nguessan said progress was made. "The principle of their release was agreed on," he said.

FPI spokeswoman Agnes Monnet said such issues were key to establishing a sustainable peace in Ivory Coast.

"When it comes to national reconciliation, it has always been linked to the problems of the post-electoral crisis," she said.

Other subjects discussed included the return of the remaining refugees and the unfreezing of the assets of some of FPI's executives.

But not all FPI views were represented at this meeting. Since last year, the party has been experiencing a deep internal crisis, which led a section of Gbagbo supporters to break away from the party and boycott the elections. To them, no talks are possible prior to the release of Gbagbo, whereas the section of the FPI led by Affi Nguessan has been willing to enter political discussions.

Monnet said another meeting between government and opposition officials might happen in the next few weeks.
LONDON Jan. 21  More than 5.2 million international tourists visits to London last July to September, according to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics International Passenger Survey ('IPS'). Between July and September last year the UK welcomed 10.5 million international visits, an increase of 4.7% year-on-year.

The rise in the number of visits represents an increase of 5.9% measured against the same period in 2014. London has seen a 22.5% increase in the number of international trips to the city from 2009-14.

The Mayor of London Boris Johnson MP said: "London is the best big city on the planet. We really know how to roll out the red carpet and put on a show for the millions of visitors who flock here year after year. Only last week, Lumiere London, the city's biggest-ever light festival, gave over a million people an unforgettable experience in the West End and King's Cross. With another exciting programme of events planned this year, as well as our unbeatable cultural and other attractions, we are looking forward to welcoming even more tourists in the months ahead."

London has also recorded a rise in the number of domestic visits to the city, with 9.3 million trips to London during the first nine months of 2015 - a 10% increase compared to the same period in 2010. Such growth has contributed 2.25 billion to London's economy, 29.9% more compared to the same period in 2010.

The tourism industry is a major contributor to the London economy. Overall the sector contributes more than 36 billion to the capital and supports around 700,000 thousand jobs.

Gordon Innes, CEO of London & Partners, the Mayor's official promotional company for the city said: "Today's visitor numbers show that London is more attractive than ever. The tourism industry is a key pillar of the capital's economy providing great employment opportunities, including many entry level jobs, for Londoners and investment right across the city. That's why we work tirelessly with our partners, museums, attractions, hotels, restaurants and many more to ensure that London remains the destination city of choice for overseas visitors."

The number of international visits to London has risen steadily over the last five years, with 2014 seeing a record-breaking 17.4 million trips to the capital, a trend which has been matched across the UK as a whole. VisitBritain, has forecast that the number of overseas visitors travelling to the UK in 2016 will increase again by 3.8 per cent to 36.7 million with those tourists spending almost 23 billion.

2016 is another year for the city, with a rich cultural calendar and numerous major festivities taking place across the capital. Highlights include the 40th anniversary of Punk, the Rolling Stones' EXHIBITIONISM exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery, a year-long programme celebrating the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare's death, and a wealth of city-wide celebrations for HRH Queen Elizabeth's 90th birthday.
A British public inquiry's finding that Russian President Vladimir Putin likely approved the assassination of a former Russian spy turned Kremlin critic in London has renewed attention on the number of Putin's opponents jailed or killed since he came to power.

Russian authorities quickly dismissed the inquirys assessment  that their security service in 2006 poisoned Alexander Litvinenko with radioactive polonium in a London hotel  as politically motivated.

Even before inquirys results were released, Putins press secretary declared the Kremlin was not interested in the case.

The inquirys conclusion that Russia had Litvinenko murdered for betrayal has raised some tension between London and Moscow.

While politicians and pundits debate whether Putin was involved in Litvinenkos death, rights groups and independent analysts agree the pressure on Kremlin critics has been growing.

What the Kremlin is responsible for, in my view, is not assassinations per se, is the atmosphere of lawlessness in which people settle scores with their rivals, their enemies, maybe their business competitors, by contracting assassins, said Moscow-based political analyst and author on Putin, Maria Lipman. This is the environment. And, certainly the Kremlin bears responsibility if people expect to get away with it and many do.



Nemtsov's murder

Prominent opposition politician and Putin critic, Boris Nemtsov, was gunned down a year ago, on February 27, 2015, just meters from the Kremlin. Even though the area in which he was killed has high security and numerous CCTV cameras, no video evidence of the murder has emerged. A week later both suspects were arrested, both Chechen.

The leader of Russias Republic of Chechnya, and die-hard Putin supporter, Ramzan Kadyrov called one of the suspects, Zaur Dadayev, a "patriot of Russia."

No attempt was made to investigate Kadyrov, even after he voiced support for the main suspect. Putin later honored Kadyrov for his service to the nation.

Kadyrov this month said Russias opposition politicians should be treated as enemies of the people and traitors who should be put on trial with maximum severity, for sabotage.

Contrary to an official rebuke, Putins press secretary Dmitry Peskov this week seemed to support Kadyrovs comments.



If [you] read carefully, [you can see that] non-systemic opposition is described there," Peskov told Russia's Interfax news agency, "those whose activities are not within the law and those who are ready to violate the law and harm their country, he said.



Politkovskaya's shooting

The same year Litvinenko was killed in London, Novaya Gazeta journalist Anna Politkovskaya was shot to death in her Moscow apartment building.

The independent newspaper is one of the few that is willing to print criticism of Russian authorities, including the Kremlin.



Five of their journalists and one lawyer have been murdered for their work, most of them victims of contract killers.

Although suspects have been jailed, in only one case has the person who allegedly ordered the murder been identified.

The deputy chief-editor and head of the department of investigations at the newspaper, Sergei Sokolov, last year told VOA that by a strange coincidence all the killings had occurred since Putin had come to power. Sokolov said the attitude of intolerance to any independent critics of the regime, has grown exponentially and that no one could be sure of his security today.



'Undesirable' organizations

Putin last year endorsed a law against undesirable organizations that rights groups say intensifies a crackdown against dissenting voices by targeting foreign and international groups in Russia.



A 2012 law supported by the Kremlin labels Russian organizations as foreign agents if they accept donations from outside Russia and engage in activity deemed political.

Rights activists say the atmosphere has encouraged authorities to behave more Catholic than the Pope in moving against critics of the Kremlin.

In December, a Russian court for the first time sentenced a blogger to three years in prison for repeatedly protesting without permission. A 2014 law allows Russian authorities to sentence anyone up to five years in prison after four unsanctioned demonstrations within a six-month period.

In the last few years the Kremlin has been demonstrating zero tolerance toward any expression of disloyalty or public criticism in the form of street action, said Lipman. Even if its a one person picket. Even if its just a small group.



Growing repression



The intolerance of public criticism has increased alongside Putins popularity for annexing Ukraines Crimean peninsula and support for pro-Russia rebels in Ukraines east.

Now that the Kremlin reached the popularity of over 80%, it is highly concerned to keep it, said Lipman.



And, how do you keep this amazing degree of approval? You nip in the bud any sign of disloyalty. You use intimidation and sometimes jailing, and sometimes people get beaten, so nobody would be encouraged to speak publicly against the government and especially to take public action, she said.

Lipman said for the time being, however, it is not accurate to talk about there being a broad repression in Russia. We are talking about a policy of selected repression and across-the-board intimidation, she concluded.

Mark Grinberg contributed to this report.
Russian officials have angrily rejected the findings of a British public inquiry into the 2006 murder of former Russian intelligence officer Alexander Litvinenko in London. The investigation concluded that President Vladimir Putin "probably" approved the dissident former agent's poisoning with radioactive polonium-210.

Some Kremlin opponents, however, welcome the probe's conclusions and say Litvinenko's murder was just one in a series of hits targeting Kremlin opponents.

The investigation, whose results were released Thursday, found that the Federal Security Service (FSB), Russia's main security agency, was directly responsible for killing Litvinenko. The man who headed the inquiry, British judge Robert Owen, said he had also concluded that "the FSB operation to eliminate Mr. Litvinenko" was probably approved by then FSB director Nikolai Patrushev, as well as President Vladimir Putin.

On Monday, shortly before the results of the probe were released, Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov told journalists in Moscow that the Kremlin was not interested in what the British investigators had found.

"It is not now in the sphere of ... topics that are of interest to us," Peskov said.

'Pseudo process'

But after international media quoted British investigators referring to Vladimir Putin's possible involvement in Litvinenko's murder, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told journalists in Moscow that the probe was "poetically motivated."

"We didn't see anything new in the results [of the investigation]," she said. "It is all the logical result of a pseudo-judicial process played out by the British tribunal and authorities that is ... putting it mildly, contradictory, and in fact can be called criminal."

Russia's investigative committee - an investigative body like the FBI - similarly called the British probe a "pseudo process," saying it was "devoid of an adversarial process from the start" and accusing the British investigators of "assigning" the role of the guilty party in advance and then using "certain so-called secret 'evidence'" to reach their conclusion.

Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun, the two Russians accused of spiking Litvinenko's tea with polonium-210 when they met with him at a London hotel, also reacted Thursday to the announcement of the probe's results.

Lugovoi, who was elected to the State Duma, the lower house of Russia's parliament, in 2007, called the investigation biased.

"The charges against me are absurd," he told the Interfax news agency. "As we expected, nothing sensational has happened! The results of the investigation announced today once again confirm the anti-Russian position of London, the narrow-mindedness and unwillingness of the British to establish the true cause of Litvinenko's death."

Kovtun, a businessman, also once again denied involvement in Litvinenko's death, and said the British probe used "forged, fabricated evidence."

String of deaths

Opposition activist Vladimir Kara-Murza, Jr. told VOA he welcomed the conclusions of the British probe.

"We have, for the first time, not a statement by a non-governmental organization, or someone's opinion, but the official verdict of a British judge, which states in black and white that the [Russian] head of state and head of the state security services probably personally approved a political assassination - and, in a terrifying way, with the use of radioactive substances - in the capital of another nation," Kara-Murza said, noting that Litvinenko was a British citizen at the time of his death.



"For the first time, we have a legal opinion indicating the likely involvement of Mr. Putin and Mr. Patrushev, representatives of the top leadership of today's Russian state, in political assassinations," he said.

Kara-Murza is a coordinator for the Open Russia movement established by Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the Russian former oil tycoon who became a Putin opponent and spent more than a decade in prison in Russia.

He suffered a sudden, near-fatal illness last May, and while the exact nature of his illness has not been established, Kara-Murza believes he was the target of a deliberate poisoning attempt because of his opposition activities. He said there is an obvious trend, citing the murder of opposition leader Boris Nemtsov in Moscow last February, and the case of Yuri Shchekochikhin, the veteran investigative journalist and liberal lawmaker who died of a mysterious disease in 2003.

"It can be said without a doubt that over the last several years there has been a very high mortality rate among opponents of Vladimir Putin," he said. "It is obvious in what happened to Boris Nemtsov, shot four times in the back on the Bolshoi Moskvoretsky Bridge, and in those cases that are not fully understood - for example, the story of Yuri Shchekochikhin: as far as I know, his friends and colleagues at Novaya Gazeta [newspaper] do not doubt for a minute that it was a deliberate poisoning. And what happened to me: I am absolutely convinced that it was a deliberate poisoning, that it was attempted murder."

Kara-Murza recently asked Russia's Investigative Committee to look into his case.
Christine Lagarde said Friday she wants a second term as managing director of the International Monetary Fund.

"Yes, I am running for a second mandate," Lagarde told France 2 television.

The former French finance minister has already won endorsements for another five-year term from France, Britain, Germany, China, South Korea and Mexico.

British Finance Minister George Osborne said Thursday that he was "delighted to nominate" her for a new term. He described the 60-year-old Lagarde as "an outstanding leader with [the] vision and acumen to steer [the] global economy in years ahead."

U.S. Treasury chief Jack Lew refrained from a formal endorsement, but expressed strong approval of her performance.

"I think she has done a great job," he said at the World Economic Forum at the Swiss ski resort of Davos.

Lagarde's first term ends in July, with the Washington-based international lender formally starting to accept nominations to fill the position on Thursday. The IMF has paid Lagarde more than $550,000 annually in salary and expense money tax free.

Her candidacy for a new term could again raise the question among countries with emerging economies, as it did when she was appointed to the job in 2011, of whether a European should continue to lead the IMF. By tradition, but not legally, a European had led the IMF since the agency was created after World War II, while an American has always headed the World Bank.

Lagarde has won the respect of global financial leaders for her role in helping keep Europe's 19-nation euro currency bloc from disintegrating as it dealt with the Greek debt crisis during her IMF tenure.

She also played a key role in adding the Chinese yuan to the IMF's basket of reserve currencies, a highly symbolic move Beijing sought as the world's second-largest economy seeks to play a more prominent role in world financial markets. She also lobbied successfully for U.S. passage of a package of IMF reforms that will double the agency's funding.

There could, however, be a cloud over a second Lagarde term at the IMF. A French judge last month ordered her to stand trial in the long-running investigation of her role in the approval of a $430 million government payout in 2008 to Bernard Tapie, one-time head of the sports apparel company Adidas, in his dispute with a state bank.

The IMF board has reiterated its confidence in Lagarde and she has denied any wrongdoing in the case.
Many Facebook users in China and Iran may be able to access the world's largest social network on their smartphones without fear of surveillance, thanks to a software adjustment that links them to an "anonymizer" that hides their location and identity.



Facebook's app for smartphones that use the Android system has the new feature. It links Facebook to the Tor Project, which allows users to circumvent censorship and effectively shield their privacy.



Tor software is free, maintained by volunteer privacy advocates. Facebook users with Android phones can install a mobile Tor app called Orbot, tap a button in the Facebook app and be automatically connected to Facebook through the Tor network.



Apple's iPhones, which use a different operating system, cannot link to Tor, and no counterpart to the Android app is expected.



Facebook says the "tweak" to its app was not designed with China and Iran in mind. Since much of Facebook's growth - there are currently 1.4 billion users worldwide - is occurring outside the United States, industry analysts see the "anonymizer" feature as a tool to expand the social network's audience even further, especially among cellphone users.



"It's really about making the experience better for people who are already connecting to Facebook over Tor," Facebook spokeswoman Melanie Ensign told CNN television.

A spokeswoman for the Tor Project echoed those sentiments, emphasizing the importance of privacy.

"Everybody in the world needs more privacy online and almost everybody is on Facebook, Tor's Kate Krauss said in an interview with Reuters. "This will allow people to choose whether to share their location or not. For some people, this is convenience. For others it is lifesaving."



Tor originally was created by United States Naval Research Laboratory employees as a way to protect secret data sent over the Internet. As the service has grown it has been criticized by some for complicating the work of U.S. intelligence agencies that extensively monitor Internet traffic.



Using Tor is no guarantee of free access for Facebook users in China, Iran or other relatively closed societies. The Chinese government, for example, has long been engaged in a cat-and-mouse game with Tor and other privacy advocates looking for new ways to get past the so-called Great Firewall of China.

A technology industry analyst at the Center for Democracy and Technology, Joseph Lorenzo Hall, sees the latest development primarily as a way to increase Facebook's "share" of cellphone users worldwide.



"They want to make sure they get everyone in the world connected to Facebook, and this is the only way they'll get people to do it," Hall told CNN.
Bells ring out across the snowbound, forested hills surrounding the 14th century church in picturesque Schwabisch Gmund.

Perhaps an unlikely setting for an experiment in international migrant integration, this prosperous town is hosting more than half of its 800 government-assigned migrants in private homes or apartments, rather than large shelters.

Germany has been debating how to integrate the more than 1.1 million refugees who arrived in the country over the past 12 months. The hundreds of attacks on women and girls on New Years Eve in Cologne, apparently by groups of migrants, have intensified the debate.

The actions of this one tow, however, has given rise to a new phrase: the "Gmund" way of integration, an approach pioneered by Mayor Richard Arnold.

Integration goes faster if the refugees move outside the central buildings in little groups, even into the villages surrounding Schwabisch Gmund," he said. "So decentralized housing has become one of the essential aspects of the Gmunder way.

For Samuel Teklezghi, who is being hosted by a local family in one of those hilltop villages deep in the countryside, it is a long way from where he grew up in the Eritrean capital, Asmara. He was at first very reluctant, but soon changed his mind.

Our neighboring families, so sweet; I cannot explain, because it is not enough words to explain about them," he said. "Almost I get a family. I lost a family in Eritrea, in my land, and I get a family in Deutschland [Germany]. They are my family now. If you would give me a big house in the city, I do not need it.

Schwabisch Gmund has initiated its own German language degree for migrants. They are also encouraged to take on volunteer work.

Arnold says integration is an emotional response, not just a function of local government.

But it asks for quite an input, not only of the city administration, of the town hall, and the mayor," Arnold said. "And it of course asks the people, the citizens, to also bring an input and to also be open.

Schwabisch Gmund is preparing to double its intake of refugees. But Mayor Arnold says there is a limit to the numbers his town can take in, and Europe should share both the burden and the opportunities the refugees can offer.
The number of tourists visiting New York City rose to a record high in 2015 for the sixth consecutive year, with nearly 60 million people traveling to the biggest city in the United States, officials said Thursday.

The tourism boom continued apace even though last year brought a spike in security threats, fueling concern that domestic attacks carried out by sympathizers of the militant group Islamic State were possible in New York.

Following the Paris attacks in November that killed 130, as well as the December shooting in San Bernardino that killed 14, New York City officials repeatedly sought to reassure the public that the city was equipped to handle any threat.

The New York City Police Department's enormous counter-terrorism apparatus was out in full force for signature events like the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and the annual New Year's Eve celebration in Times Square, which drew more than 1 million people to the center of Manhattan to ring in 2016.

"As the safest and most exciting big city in America, we have so many rich offerings that continue to make the five boroughs a global draw," Mayor Bill de Blasio said in a statement.

The city's more than 100,000 hotel rooms saw a record number of bookings in 2015, according to the city's official tourism and marketing arm, NYC & Company.

About one-fifth, or 12 million, of the out-of-town visitors were from abroad, with the highest numbers from the United Kingdom, Canada, Brazil and China.

New York is the most popular destination in the United States for international travel, officials said.
A federal court is scheduled to hear a legal challenge to North Carolinas Voter ID law on Monday. The law, H.B. 589, enacted in August 2013 shortens the early voting period by one week, eliminates same day registration, requires specific forms of identification to vote, and cancels a pre-registration program for 16 and 17-year-olds.

One must be 18 years old to vote in the United States.

Restrictive voter laws have been a controversial issue for the last two presidential elections. More than 32 states have voter ID laws or restrictive measures of some form. North Carolina is scheduled to join them in 2016.

All of the new measures have been introduced and implemented by Republican-led state legislatures and governors. Supporters say the laws are necessary to battle fraud and build confidence in the electoral process.

Critics argue the laws disproportionately discourage minorities, the poor, senior citizens and young people  those who are more likely to vote Democratic  from voting.

The right to vote is supposed to be constitutional, not confusing, said the Rev. Dr. William Barber, president of the North Carolina chapter of the National Association For the Advancement of Colored People. North Carolinas restrictive Voter ID law remains an immoral and unconstitutional burden on voters and creates two unequal tiers of voters.

The North Carolina law faced its first legal challenge in July of 2015. Fearing the law would not hold up in court, the legislature quickly passed a modification watering down the voter ID provision several weeks before the trial. The court postponed a ruling on the voter ID portion of the law to allow further review, but proceeded regarding the other provisions, which were upheld. The court will hear arguments on the voter ID requirement next week.

Voter ID laws have sparked legal battles in states across the country. A similar law in Wisconsin - one of the most restrictive measures in the country - was championed by Republican Governor Scott Walker. A four-year legal battle that ensued ended when the Supreme Court refused to hear the case last year. The law will be implemented for the 2016 election.

Walker often referred to the law during his failed 2016 presidential campaign and it became one of his biggest applause lines. He called it a common sense reform that protects the integrity of our voting process.

Critics like University of Wisconsin political science professor David Canon say the laws will not achieve their intended goal.

You look at places where fraud is most likely to happen; it would be in areas like former felons voting when they shouldnt be able to or non-citizens voting when they shouldnt be able to," he said. "And a voter ID doesnt prevent that type of fraud.

Despite the criticism, Republicans in Wisconsin and other states have stood firm. Republican Milwaukee County Election Commissioner Rick Baas told VOA, There is the narrative out there that Republicans are trying to suppress [the vote]. I guarantee you that all of the Republicans I know in leadership, all the Republicans I know in the rank-and-file in my caucus, as long as you are American, they want you to vote.

No one knows what the impact will be of restrictive voter laws. Activists and grassroots organizations in affected states are scrambling to ensure that everyone who has the legal right to do so can vote. The 2016 election will be the big test case.

Mondays court case in Winston-Salem, North Carolina is expected to last four to seven days and feature testimony from a range of experts and impacted voters.
An American student arrested in North Korea is the latest in a string of U.S. citizens analysts say the reclusive state has detained in recent years to use as geo-political bargaining chips.

Otto Frederick Warmbier, 21, of Cincinnati, Ohio, a student majoring in economics at the University of Virginia, was caught committing a hostile act against the state, the official North Korean news agency, KCNA, reported on Friday.

Warmbiers actions were tolerated and manipulated by the U.S. government, according to the dispatch.

We can only speculate why he has been detained. But it is quite risky to visit (North Korea) as a tourist given the sensitivities regarding anything about the state, the leadership, government and political system, or geo-politics in general, Daniel Pinkston, a professor at Troy University in Seoul, told VOA.

Arrested January 2



Warmbier was a member of group trip organized by China-based Young Pioneer Tours and was detained Jan. 2, four days before North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in defiance of United Nations sanctions.

The underground nuclear blast prompted strong criticism of Pyongyang from neighboring countries, as well as the United States, and the threat of additional tough sanctions.

State Department spokesman John Kirby says officials are aware of the media reports and that "the welfare of U.S. citizens is one of the department's highest priorities."

"In cases where U.S. citizens are reported detained in North Korea, we work closely with the Swedish Embassy, which serves as the United States' Protecting Power in North Korea." Kirby said the State Department had no further information to share due to privacy considerations.

North Korea strictly regulates tourism and nearly all visitors arrange their travels through officially recognized foreign tour agencies.

The United States and North Korea have no diplomatic relations. The U.S. State Department has for years issued strong recommendations in travel warnings against visiting North Korea (officially known as the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea), due to the risk of arrest and long-term detention due to the DPRKs inconsistent application of its criminal laws.

Private tour operators have been unable to prevent or resolve past detentions of U.S. citizens there and have not succeeded in gaining their release, according to the State Departments current travel warning on North Korea.

The KCNA report, without elaboration, said Warmbier entered North Korea with an aim to destroy the countrys unity.

Many of the North Americans arrested by North Korea in recent years have had links to Christian evangelical groups.

North Korea is an atheist state and for more than a decade has been considered the worlds most dangerous country for Christians, according to the non-governmental Open Doors organization, which categorizes the source of persecution as dictatorial paranoia."

No religious connections



Warmbiers social media accounts show no religious connections.

Anyone who is detained by the DPRK authorities should not expect the type of investigation and judicial review they would experience in a democracy, said Pinkston.

Americans detained in North Korea are frequently put on trial and quickly convicted after show trials. They are often released only after famous American politicians, such as former U.S. presidents, or other prominent figures have flown to Pyongyang.

U.S. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper went to the North Korean capital in November, 2014 for the release of an American who had ripped up his visa on arriving there six months previously.

A Defense Department plane the previous month also had been sent to North Korea to pick up an Ohio road maintenance worker arrested in May, 2014 for leaving behind a Bible during a group tour.

Other foreigners known to be currently held by the North include a Canadian Christian minister arrested last year and serving a life sentence with hard labor for alleged anti-state activities, and an ethnic Korean man interviewed by CNN this month and described as a U.S. citizen.

Approximately 200,000 North Koreans are believed to be imprisoned for their political views or religious beliefs, according to human rights groups.
From raising the American flag at the U.S. Embassy in Havana for the first time in half a century to leading efforts to negotiate a landmark nuclear agreement with Iran, 2015 was a year of diplomacy for President Barack Obama.

This deal demonstrates that American diplomacy can bring about real and meaningful change, change that makes our country, and the world, safer and more secure, the U.S. leader noted as he announced the Iran deal in the early morning hours of July 14.

For an American president wrapping up his time in office, Obama spent the last year focused on foreign policy initiatives aimed at re-shaping the U.S. role in key regions of the world, whether it be Latin America, Asia or the Middle East.

If in the next year we see things moving in a positive direction on Iran, on Cuba, on Ukraine, then I think we will look back and say that Obama proved his point: that American political moves and diplomacy can really make a difference, said Bruce Jones, director of the foreign policy program at Brookings Institution.

Global engagement

It will be months, if not years, before the success of the Cuba, Iran, and Trans-Pacific Partnership can be gauged.

Yet Jones says Obamas efforts to mobilize the world in confronting climate change, including negotiating a deal with Beijing to curb emissions, has had a more immediate effect, with nearly 200 nations approving a landmark climate agreement in Paris.

To get the United States and China, the two biggest emitters in the world to agree on a bilateral approach to begin reductions, transformed the global negotiations and showed what it means when the two biggest players can lead together, the Brookings policy analyst said



Obama scored a major foreign policy victory when 12 nations signed the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, a massive trade deal that is the economic centerpiece of the U.S. strategic rebalance to the Asia Pacific. Each nation must still ratify the agreement.



The president must walk a fine line in 2016 as he seeks to deepen ties in the region without increasing tensions with China, over issues like the territorial disputes in the South China Sea.



Obama is scheduled host Asia-Pacific leaders this year in a bid to solidify the U.S. as an economic and security leader there.



Terrorism challenge

But as Obama marked a year focused on diplomacy, the Middle East continues to pose the most serious challenge to his foreign policy legacy as Obama begins the final year of his presidency.

From turmoil in Libya and Yemen to the rise of the Islamic State militant group in Iraq and Syria, a president who came to power with the goal of ending wars in the Middle East now finds himself deeply embroiled in regional conflicts that will still be simmering when a new president enters the Oval Office in January of 2017.

The challenge of terrorism and what is happening in the Middle East, which is not just an al-Qaida problem, but really the disintegration of countries across that strategically vital region and how the United States and the world respond to that, is something that is in flux and something where I do not think anyone has figured out the magic formula, said Vikram Singh with the Center for American Progress.

The Syrian war that seemed distant to most Americans - despite images of beheadings by Islamic State militants and refugees desperately trying to cross into Europe  hit home with the December 2 terrorist attack in San Bernardino, California, that killed 14 people.

Amid low approval ratings, President Obama spent the weeks since the shooting, trying to reassure Americans they are safe, despite a threat he says is real but will be overcome.

The terrorist threat has evolved into a new phase. As weve become better at preventing complex, multifaceted attacks like 9/11, terrorists turned to less complicated acts of violence like the mass shootings that are all too common in our society, Obama said during a December 6 Oval Office address to Americans.

Some say Obamas use of drone and airstrikes, special forces, and increased vigilance at home to counter the threat has not been enough.

Brookings Institutions Bruce Jones says, in contrast to former President Bushs counterterrorism strategy, the Obama administration's is an exercise in the overuse of diplomacy and underuse of force.

The notion that we confront ISIS without a more serious military strategy, and we can deal with Syria without a more serious military strategy, again, is fanciful. If you say to yourself, 'I dont want to use military force and therefore I am doing everything I can without it', you have already removed one of your more important tools.

Jones says he is not calling for a ground invasion of Syria or Iraq, an option repeatedly rejected by Obama, but a more forward-leaning posture from day one.

Even with a more forceful intervention early on, the Center for American Progress Vikram Singh says it is difficult to assess whether the face of the Middle East crisis would look any different today.

There are obviously things that you could say, 'oh, if we had only done this, if we had only done that, if we had bombed Assad earlier, if we had stayed in Iraq longer', but I dont know that we would not be still facing a very difficult, and very long-term challenge, said the former senior State Department and Pentagon official.

Inheriting challenges and diplomatic dealings

Singh notes U.S. foreign policy tends to build from administration to administration, and despite all the campaign bluster, Obamas major global efforts will likely not be undone by the next president  whether a Democrat or Republican.

What you are going to find in 2017 that any president discovers very quickly the limits of their power and the fact that the big problems of the world can not be solved by any unilateral action by any one nation. And they have to figure out how do you practically start to figure out how to get things done.

Mary Alice Salinas contributed to this report from the White House
Defense Secretary Ash Carter has called for continued U.S. "boots on the ground" in Iraq and Syria to defeat the Islamic State (IS) group.

Speaking in an interview with CNBC television at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Carter said U.S. forces on the ground will "enable" local forces and remain focused on an advise and assist mission.

"We're looking for opportunities to do more, and there will be boots on the ground. I want to be clear about that," Carter said. "But it's a strategic question, whether you are enabling local forces to take and hold, rather than trying to substitute for them."

The secretary will be meeting with several defense ministers in two weeks. He says many countries are not doing enough in the war against IS, saying that they are in the fight "on paper."

"The United States does not ask people for favors...," he said. "We're looking for other people to play their part."

The United States currently has about 3,550 service members in Iraq, with about 2,750 of those supporting Iraqi security forces as trainers, advisers or support staff, according to Central Command data released to VOA.

There are less than 50 U.S. special forces in Syria.
A woman who lost her son, a fireman, during the deadly explosions in Tianjin last year has conceived another child after undergoing in-vitro fertilization (IVF).

Liu Yun'ai said she often felt depressed after her son, Cai Jiayuan, was killed in the blasts.

5% of the chance

On Sept. 12, Liu Yun'ai went to Changsha city by herself to undergo IVF treatments at a hospital in Hunan province, central China. Her husband, Cai Laiyuan, stayed at home, making arrangements for their son's funeral.

Doctors at the hospital told her the success rate was barely 5 percent for women at her age. She was also informed that even many younger women, who have a success rate of 70 percent, can still fail to remain pregnant after spending more than 200,000 yuan ($30,400).

Liu asked for her husbands opinion. He said: "If there's even a shred of hope, we will give it a try."

Baby named "success"

To get prepared for the baby, Liu stayed in Changsha for two months. She got up at 6 oclock in the morning to go jogging. She also ate mud fish to obtain extra protein.

Finally, Liu became pregnant. On the 27th day of her pregnancy, she experienced bleeding, and the doctor could not detect the fetal heartbeat. Fortunately, this turned out to be a false alarm. She is now expecting to give birth at the end of June.

"He will be named Cai Jiacheng [cheng means success in Chinese], because finally we made it," she explained.

A series of explosions killed more than 100 people and injured hundreds of others at a warehouse in Tianjin on Aug. 12 last year. (Photo/Qianjiang Evening News)
Philippine women who said they were detained and used as sex slaves by the Japanese military during World War Two are demanding that President Benigno Aquino raise their plight during the state visit next week of Japans imperial couple.

For more than two decades the lolas, or grandmothers in Filipino, have been asking for three things from the Japanese government: a public apology, compensation from Japans government, and inclusion in Philippine history books.

At a news forum with several lolas in Manila, Lola Narcisa Claveria, 85, said it has been a long wait.

Seeking 'true justice'

We still have not been given true justice because we women, we were innocent children. We lost so much. We lost our dignity. We were not able to study. And trauma is all we received at the hands of the Japanese soldiers," Claveria said.

Claveria was taken from her home and made a sex slave when she was about 13, said Richilda Extremadura, the head of Lila Pilipina, a womens advocacy group representing the lolas.

Extremadura said Claverias father, a village leader in a northern province town, was skinned alive while her mother and sisters were raped and two other siblings were killed with bayonets.

Lila Pilipina estimates at least 1,000 Philippine nationals were victims of the Japanese militarys comfort women system.

In recent years, many of the remaining 200 lolas have died, leaving just 70.

Extremadura said only about eight are active in fighting for their cause.

In 1993, the Japanese government acknowledged the military carried out a system of prostitution. But it did not admit complicity in the system.

International estimates indicate the system used approximately 200,000 sex slaves.

Compensation fund

Japans government created a womens compensation fund financed through private donations that some in the government felt was unnecessary.

The Philippines accepted the compensation.

Extremadura said while Japan and South Korea reached an agreement in December on more than $8 million in compensation through a non-government entity for the scores of thousands of South Korean victims, the women are not to speak of what happened to them.

She said if the Philippines and Japan were to ever reach this stage over the comfort woman issue, she hoped Aquino would speak to each survivor.

"Hopefully, Aquino will remember that he has a mother, he has grandmothers, and he must represent the cause of the Filipino comfort women to Emperor Akihito because Emperor Akihito, although he is not involved in the policies of his country  he is a very influential man.

Last week, Aquino said at a news briefing reparations had already been made by Japan decades ago. But he said he would likely bring up the subject of trying to get additional help for the women during the imperial visit next week.

Philippine Congresswoman Emmi de Jesus said she introduced a resolution this week ahead of the visit, seeking the Philippine governments position on this comfort women issue.

Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko will be in the Philippines January 26-30.
The attack last week on a major pipeline in Nigerias Niger Delta region is raising fears that a long-dormant insurgency could reignite and put the countrys oil industry in its crosshairs.

There was no claim of responsibility for the attack, but it came days after a court in Lagos ordered the arrest of former insurgent leader Government Ekpemupolo, better known as Tompolo.

Tompolo was once a major player among the insurgents who demanded that ordinary Nigerians get a greater share of the wealth in the oil-producing region. The rebellion was more or less quelled in 2009 when the government started an amnesty program that paid off the militants and offered them training programs in exchange for peace.

Tompolo and nine others have been charged with money laundering and conspiracy related to a public-private partnership with the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, according to Nigeria's anti-corruption agency.

The announcement of the charges against Tompolo comes amid a wave of arrests and indictments of politicians and businessmen on corruption-related charges.

Former military ruler Muhamadu Buhari was elected president last year on promises to reduce corruption. Graft is widely seen as one of the reasons that two-thirds of Nigeria's 177 million people live in poverty.

Pipeline Feeds Refineries

The attack in the Niger Delta targeted a gas pipeline that feeds into the critical Escravos Lagos Pipeline System. A crude oil pipeline was also damaged in the attack, forcing the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation to shut down two refineries.

The attack jeopardizes another priority of the Buhari administration: getting the people of Africas largest producer of crude oil to start filling up their gas tanks with locally refined gasoline and diesel.

While Nigeria has four refineries, the country mainly relies on imports of refined products to keep gas stations stocked.

Since taking office, the Buhari administration has announced progress at getting the refineries running properly. But Dolapo Oni, head of energy research for Ecobank, says the importation of refined products wont stop if the pipelines arent protected.

We havent resolved a major issue with the refinery segment in Nigeria which is  protecting the network of pipelines that supply them crude oil, Oni said.

The attack comes at a bad time for Nigerias economy. The government is heavily dependent on crude oil for its revenues, but the price for a barrel of oil has dipped below $30.

A return to conflict in the Niger Delta could harm Nigerias economy further. The insurgency reduced Nigeria's oil production significantly.

In the Niger Delta town of Ughelli, journalist Atuyebe Oyebe says the new government has no choice but to go forward with its prosecution of Tompolo.

If the government does not take Tompolo in time, Tompolo will become the law. And when a man is the law, the state is in trouble, he said.
Portugal's stormy political backdrop could shift into calmer waters Sunday when the country votes for a new president, if the man expected to win outright makes good on promises to build consensus rather than foment divisions.

Since November, Portugal has been governed by a shaky alliance of moderate center-left Socialists backed in parliament by the far-left Communists and Left Bloc.

Many analysts do not expect the government to last through its four-year term, and whoever wins Sunday will have the power to dissolve the legislature.

According to opinion polls, that is almost certain to be Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, a Social Democrat whose center-right party was ousted from power by the Socialists.

A Jan. 17 survey by Eurosondagem gave Rebelo de Sousa almost 55 percent of the vote, enough to win without a second-round ballot and way ahead of his closest rival, Socialist Sampaio da Novoa, at 16.8 percent.

Portugal's first Socialist-led administration to rely on far-left lawmakers to survive is struggling to reconcile pledges to end austerity with budget deficit cuts promised to the European Union.

That suggests the new president is likely to play an increasingly important role, be it as mediator between parties or a bolder player who can use his power to disband parliament.

Rebelo de Sousa would succeed conservative President Anibal Cavaco Silva, also a Social Democrat, who said he only swore in the Socialist government because he was barred by the constitution from calling a new parliamentary election in his last six months in office.

That option will again be available from April 4, six months after the general election. The president can also dismiss the prime minister.

The leftist parties have warned that Rebelo de Sousa could bring back unpopular rightist economic policies.

But so far, his statements have been in the spirit of rapprochement. The former journalist, one-time leader of his party and until recently a TV commentator has positioned himself as hailing "from the left wing of the right."

"Everything that helps to build political stability, common ground that safeguards governability is a priority. ... Now is not the time for divisions," he said recently.

His campaign stance that Portugal needs "more social justice along with minimum financial equilibrium" is similar to the Socialists.
Slovenia will keep out all migrants apart from those planning to seek asylum in Austria and Germany, Interior Minister Vesna Gyorkos Znidar said Thursday at a news conference, adding that the country would also strengthen border controls.

The announcement came a day after Slovenia's neighbor Austria said it would restrict the entry of migrants.

"We will act in all directions so as to prevent Slovenia becoming a pocket for stranded migrants," Gyorkos Znidar said after a regular government meeting.

Slovenia is the smallest country on the Balkan migration route. About 409,000 migrants have entered since October, when Hungary closed its borders and pushed the migrant route west through Slovenia.

So far almost all migrants have continued on their way to Austria and further on to northern Europe, but Austria said Thursday that it would restrict the number it would take in.

Slovenia has said it will have to follow Austria's example because the small Alpine state of 2 million people does not have the capacity to accommodate a large number of migrants.

Gyorkos Znidar urged the EU to reach agreement on stopping migrants on the border between Macedonia and Greece to prevent them from continuing north through the Balkans.
As voting nears in the U.S. Republican presidential nominating contests, some influential conservative voices are saying they adamantly do not want either of the current frontrunners, billionaire real estate mogul Donald Trump or Texas Senator Ted Cruz, to be the party's nominee in November's national election.

One of the country's preeminent conservative publications, National Review, devoted an entire issue Friday to its opposition to Trump's candidacy, labeling it, "Against Trump." The magazine compiled a collection of 22 essays from right-wing thinkers on why they oppose the flamboyant Trump as the Republican standard bearer in the race to succeed Democratic President Barack Obama.

National Review editors said that Trump, a political novice, had long held positions that are anathema to most U.S. conservatives, such as favoring abortion rights and a bigger role for the national government, before saying in the current campaign that he has changed his views.

"There are understandable reasons for his eminence, and he has shown impressive gut-level skill as a campaigner," the editors said of Trump in an overview of the essays. "But he is not deserving of conservative support in the caucuses and primaries. Trump is a philosophically unmoored political opportunist who would trash the broad conservative ideological consensus within the GOP in favor of a free-floating populism with strong-man overtones."

Trump, who is drawing support from less educated, lower-income Republican voters angered at political gridlock in Washington, has been leading for months in national and many state-by-state surveys of Republican voters.

He has taunted his Republicans with barbed comments and immediately disparaged National Review's contempt for his candidacy, saying its founder, William F. Buckley, would be appalled at Friday's issue.

"The late, great William F. Buckley would be ashamed of what had happened to his prize, the dying National Review!" Trump tweeted.

If some conservative thinkers are opposed to Trump, other Republican establishment figures seem equally opposed to Cruz, who is currently running second to Trump in national surveys. They say Cruz's brand of rigid conservatism would make him unelectable in the national election, with one-time Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole saying this week that a Cruz candidacy would doom numerous other Republican candidates as well.

Cruz delights in tweaking Washington political conventions, aiming his pointed comments at Democrats and Republicans alike. He led the 16-day partial shutdown of the national government in 2013, a futile effort to overturn Obama's national health care reforms.

One erstwhile 2016 Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina who dropped out of the race after failing to win much support, announced that he now favors another lagging candidate, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, the son and brother of two former U.S. presidents.

But Graham voiced his dismay at the prospect of either Trump or Cruz winning the Republican nomination.

"It's like being shot or poisoned," Graham said. "What does it really matter?"

The first Republican nominating contest is set for Feb. 1 in the farm state of Iowa, with numerous contests in other states in the coming weeks.
South Korean President Park Geun-hye said world powers should find a way to restart long-stalled talks on North Korea's nuclear program, even if it means Pyongyang negotiators are not present.

"Although it is not an easy matter, relevant parties should find various and creative approaches, such as trying five-party talks excluding North Korea," Park said Friday during a meeting with top government officials in Seoul.

Park also expressed frustration with the current mechanism of six-party talks, which have had the aim of getting North Korea to give up its nuclear program, but which have not been held in seven years.

"In the past, six-party talks had some usefulness as a framework to resolve North Korean nuclear issues via dialogue," she said. "However, the talks have not been held for a while. Even if the talks open up, but don't help denuclearize North Korea, the question of effectiveness will be brought up."

The six-party talks  involving North Korea, South Korea, the United States, China, Japan and Russia  started in 2003. North Korea walked out of the talks in 2009, frustrated at world powers who had imposed sanctions following Pyongyang's long-range rocket test.

Nuclear test

Shortly afterwards, the North conducted its second nuclear test. It has since conducted two more nuclear tests, including one earlier this month that prompted fresh concerns about its nuclear advances.

North Korea has repeatedly said it is open to restarting the talks, but the U.S. has insisted Pyongyang must first agree to abandon its nuclear program before the talks can proceed.

After each nuclear test, Western powers have imposed punishing sanctions on North Korea. China, North Korea's main ally, will play a huge role in determining whether the Security Council can pass a new round of tough sanctions on the North, Park said.

"I expect China to take an effective measure that can make North Korea realize the development of nuclear weapons is futile and that it should join the international community like Iran has," she said.

Reacting to Park's proposal, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei called for the resumption of "six-party talks at an early date" in order to help denuclearize the Korean peninsula as soon as possible.

Washington officials yet to comment on the proposal.
Recent public opinion polls show a sea-change as to what issues Americans are most concerned about just weeks before the first votes are cast in Iowa and New Hampshire.

Terrorism and national security issues now hold sway, supplanting the economy as the top concern. This shift in emphasis is playing out on the presidential campaign trail and in recent candidate debates. There has been a particular focus on how the United States should counter the self-proclaimed Islamic State and what U.S. policy should be with regard to the civil chaos in Syria.

The Republican White House contenders have focused on these issues as part of a broader critique of President Barack Obama's foreign policy.

In a recent Republican debate aired on CNN, frontrunner Donald Trump vowed to destroy Islamic State jihadists as a key step in keeping the country safe from terrorist attack.

"We need toughness and we need strength, he said. We are not respected as a nation anymore and we don't have that level of respect that we need. And if we don't get it back fast, we are just going to go weaker and weaker and disintegrate. We can't allow that to happen."

In the same debate, Trump's main rival, Texas Senator Ted Cruz, favored an increase in airstrikes.

"Right now Obama is launching between 15 and 30 air attacks a day, he said. It is photo-op foreign policy. We need to use overwhelming air power, we need to be arming the Kurds and we need to be fighting and killing ISIS where they are."

ISIS is an acronym for the Islamic State.

Air power vs. ground forces

But Florida Senator Marco Rubio argued the key is putting together an international coalition of ground troops to take on Islamic State fighters.

"Airstrikes are a key component of defeating them, he said, but they must be defeated on the ground by a ground force, and that ground force must be primarily made up of Sunni Arabs themselves."

Rubio also spoke in favor of regime change in Syria, while Cruz and fellow Republican contender Rand Paul did not.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who is rising in the polls in the early voting state of New Hampshire, suggested the United States also needs to be tougher in dealing with Russian involvement in the Syrian conflict. He said he supports a no-fly zone in Syria and included a warning to Moscow.

"And yes, we would shoot down the planes of Russian pilots if they were stupid enough to think that this president was the same feckless weakling that the president we have in the Oval Office is right now," Christie said in the recent Republican debate held in Las Vegas.

Democrats split on regime change

The debate over Syria and how to counter the Islamic State has also raged in the Democratic race.

In the recent Democratic debate in New Hampshire aired on ABC, frontrunner Hillary Clinton said she favored an aggressive military campaign against Islamic State fighters, but one that avoids using large numbers of U.S. troops.

"[Islamic State militants] want American troops back in the Middle East, she said. They want American soldiers on the ground fighting them, giving them many more targets and giving them a great recruiting opportunity."

Clinton supports regime change in Syria, but her two challengers, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and former Maryland governor Martin O'Malley, do not.

Sanders warned in the recent debate that the United States could get sidetracked with a focus to remove Syrian President Bashar al-Assad from power.

"It is not Assad who is attacking the United States. It is ISIS. And ISIS is attacking France and attacking Russian airliners," he said. "The major priority right now in terms of our foreign and military policy should be the destruction of ISIS."

Americans differ on deploying troops

Sanders also warned of the dangers of deploying U.S. ground troops into another lengthy war in the Middle East, a view that Republicans Trump, Cruz and Paul share.

This nonpartisan split over how and when to deploy large numbers of U.S. ground troops reflects an unresolved debate over the legacy of former President George W. Bush and his decision to invade Iraq back in 2003.

A recent CNN/ORC poll found the country divided over whether to deploy U.S. ground forces to fight the Islamic State in either Syria or Iraq. Forty-nine percent supported the idea while 49 percent opposed it, with two percent saying they were unsure.

A Quinnipiac Poll in December found 52 percent of those surveyed would support sending in U.S. ground troops, while 40 percent opposed it. In that same poll, Republicans supported using ground troops by a margin of 75 percent to 17 percent, while Democrats and Independents opposed the idea by narrow margins.

With the first votes in Iowa and New Hampshire fast approaching, analysts said concerns over terrorism in particular will play a dominant role in the 2016 campaign for many voters, especially on the Republican side.

"When it comes to terrorism where they think it could come to America, when they see ISIS beheading Americans or the attacks in Paris or San Bernardino, then it becomes a more real issue, and I think that is what Republicans are seizing on," said John Fortier, with the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington.
The Taliban faction that has claimed responsibility for the massacre at a Pakistani university that killed 21 people earlier this week says that assault was just the beginning of more attacks to come.

In a video message released on social media Friday, Khalifa Umar Mansoor, the leader of the breakaway Taliban group, promised more attacks on schools and universities across the country, like the deadly one Wednesday at Bacha Khan University in Charsadda.

Mansoor described Pakistan's educational institutions as "nurseries" for those who challenge Allah's law.

'Will of God'

He said Pakistan's educational institutions provide the future workforce for the military and the government who work against the "will of God."

The spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban, Mohammad Khorasani, said earlier this week that his group had nothing to do with the university attack, adding that non-military institutions are not on its list of targets.

Army spokesman Asim Bajwa released details of Pakistan's investigation into the attack Thursday.

Bajwa said Pakistans military chief, General Raheel Sharif, telephoned the Afghan leadership and the commander of NATOs Afghan mission and asked for their cooperation in locating and targeting those responsible for this heinous act and bring them to justice.

Pakistan alleges that leaders and commanders of the anti-state Taliban militants have taken refuge on the Afghan side of the border after fleeing army-led counterinsurgency operations.

Officials have previously also blamed these fugitives for planning cross-border attacks in Pakistan.

Dismisses allegations

But Afghan Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Seddiqi on Thursday dismissed allegations that there are terrorist bases in Afghanistan being used against Pakistan.

Seddiqi strongly condemned the Bacha Khan University attack and reiterated Kabuls allegations that terrorist sanctuaries are located in Pakistan and are causing instability in the region.

Pakistan observed a day of mourning Thursday following the gun and bomb attack on Bacha Khan.
Thousands of people took to the streets of Russia's Chechen capital of Grozny Friday to show their support for the region's pro-Kremlin leader, Ramzan Kadyrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Kadyrov has been a strong supporter of Putin. The Chechen leader has said in recent weeks that opposition activists and independent journalists should be sent to top psychiatric hospitals or prosecuted as traitors.

The Kremlin has given Kadyrov broad support.

Critics say the large turnout in Grozny was boosted by state workers and students who were ordered to attend by state-run institutions. State authorities, however, deny the accusation.

Kadyrov who has held the post of president of Russia's Chechen Republic for nine years, rang in the new year by lashing out at Chechen immigrants who took to the streets in Vienna, Austria, on Christmas Eve to protest against his rule.

Declaring in a New Year's Eve address that "it is our custom that a brother answers for a brother," Kadyrov said he had given the order to find out whether the protesters "have brothers and fathers, which clan they belong to, where they were born, and who they are."

The Chechen ruler added, every available resource would be used to ensure that the relatives of the protesters "sort them out."

Kadyrov is known for publicly reprimanding fellow citizens who criticize the status quo in the republic. Last December, Chechen resident Aishat Inaeva complained in an Internet posting that officials were using violence to collect housing and utilities payments. Kadyrov forced her to appear on TV and recant.

Human rights organizations say Kadyrov has established a regime of personal power in the republic. The work of human rights activists in Chechnya is extremely complicated. They are threatened with physical violence, threats which are sometimes acted on. In December 2014, the office of the Joint Mobile Group of Russian human rights defenders in the Chechen capital Grozny was destroyed in an arson attack.
These are the five most popular songs in the Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles chart, for the week ending January 23, 2016.

What a week! Where do we start: with the new number one song or the brand-new addition at number five?



Number 5: Twenty One Pilots "Stressed Out"



Lets begin at the beginning: twenty one pilots is your new addition to the lineup as Stressed Out jumps four slots to fifth place.

Twenty one pilots is the duo of Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun from Columbus, Ohio. The band formed in 2009  it went through a lineup change before becoming a two-piece in 2011. The guys signed a major-label record deal in 2012, and their second studio album "Blurryface" hit number one last year. Twenty one pilots kicks off a European tour on February 3 in Hamburg, Germany.

Number 4: Drake "Hotline Bling"



Drake holds in fourth place with Hotline Bling, and the gift you never knew you wanted is now availableDo you want a Drake coloring book? Well of course you do, who wouldnt? Now you can get one: the 32-page book costs $10 and features black and white illustrations from 15 different artists.

Number 3: Justin Bieber "Love Yourself"



Justin Bieber treads water in third place with Love Yourself. Justin kicks off his world tour on March 9 in Seattle, Washington, and TMZ reports it should be quite a show. The working concept opens with a visual display of clouds and storms, symbolizing the trials and problems Justin has endured for the past couple years. The clouds breakand Justin descends from the ceiling. Thats the plan anyway.

Number 2: Adele "Hello"



Storm clouds are gathering for Adele, as Hello drops to number two after leading the list for 10 weeks. Shes still breaking all kinds of records, thoughThe video has just reached one billion YouTube views in a record time of 88 days. In addition, her Carpool Karaoke video with talk show host James Corden has become the most-watched video of any late-night show since 2013. If you havent seen it, go to my Twitter page, @rayonthehits. Its spectacular!

Number 1: Justin Bieber "Sorry"

Speaking of spectacular, meet your new Hot 100 champ. Justin Bieber takes the crown with Sorry. This is his second U.S. champion single, following What Do You Mean?

By the way, Justin has purple hair nowI just thought you might want to know.

What color will it be next week? Lets find out together! Join me us seven days for an all-new edition.
The moving story of Liu Shenglan, a philanthropist, has been drawing attention since Liu passed away recently at the age of 93.

Though he lived a difficult life, the warm-hearted man from Chinas eastern Shandong province donated hundreds of thousands of yuan to over 100 poverty-stricken students over the past 20 years. He funded the first student in 1996.

Having lived in a village since 2002, Liu continued his charity by collecting and selling garbage. In order to offer more help to needy students, he saved every penny.

He did not ever buy himself new clothes or meat over the 20 years. Liu received a 4000-yuan (about $600) government allowance every year since he did not live in a nursing home, but this money he also donated to students.

After his story was reported, he received some donations from other warm-hearted people, but the old man once again passed those donations on to students. He sometimes funded more than 50 students at one time.

Instructing his nephew to simplify his funeral, Liu didn't want his death to be a bother. Just like Liu's life, his funeral was simple but touching.
Tunisia has declared a nationwide curfew following four days of protests and clashes, the worst unrest since the 2011 revolution that led to the toppling of longtime dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

The Interior Ministry said the curfew, which lasts from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m., is necessary to prevent damage to public and private property.

Earlier Friday clashes were reported in several areas including the central town of Sidi Bouzid and Kasserine. At least 16 people were arrested in the capital, Tunis, following clashes there.

At least three police stations have come under attack within 24 hours with dozens of officers injured. Police have used tear gas and water cannons to disperse demonstrators.

The unrest erupted last week after a young man who lost out on a government job climbed a transmission tower in protest and was electrocuted.

Five years ago the suicide of another unemployed youth set off a popular uprising that overthrew Tunisia's ruler and eventually gave rise to the "Arab Spring'' uprisings across North Africa.

Tunisia's prime minister, Habib Essid, cut short a visit to Europe to deal with the protests.

As many as one-third of Tunisia's young people are unemployed. Nationwide the unemployment rate stands at around 15 percent.
Police in Somalia's capital said at least 20 people have been killed by gunmen who stormed into a popular seaside restaurant and took siege of the eatery.

The militant group Al-Shabab has claimed responsibility for the attack at the Lido Beach View Hotel in Mogadishu.

Somali police officer Mohamed Abdirahman said Friday the assault was a "barbaric and brutal attack against innocent civilians."

The assailants attacked the restaurant Thursday evening, setting off explosions and firing on guests.

A top Somali intelligence official told VOA's Somali service that security forces flushed the militants from the building and captured the leader of the gunmen.

A journalist inside the restaurant during the siege Thursday told VOA by phone that he and more than 20 other people were trapped.

Al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack through a pro-militant radio station in the capital. A spokesman for the group said, "We are inside and control the hotel. Our operation was successful."

Mohamud Hared, the owner of the nearby Indian Ocean Restaurant, told VOA's Somali service that he heard gunfire and two separate explosions.

We heard a heavy gunfire and then explosion followed, gunfire ensued again for 15 minutes and then explosions," Hared said.

Abdulkadir Mohamed Somow, who survived the attack, said, "I was intending to go out, but suddenly we heard a heavy explosion, followed by gunfire. When I look back, I saw a militant fighter shooting indiscriminately at everybody. Then I locked myself inside a room until we were evacuated peacefully by the security forces."
The Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said it is concerned by developments in Malawi that could stoke anti-gay sentiment, including incitement to murder. It expressed fears the decision by Malawis chief prosecutor to drop charges against an individual accused of inflammatory statements against gays and lesbians could have serious consequences.

Earlier this month, the spokesman of one of the countrys main political parties publicly, and on several occasions, described gay and lesbian people as worse than dogs and called for them to be killed.

A criminal case was subsequently lodged against Peoples Party spokesman Kenneth Msonda by two civil society organizations, charging him with inciting others to break the law.

But, U.N. Human Rights spokesman Rupert Colville says the director of public prosecutions decided to discontinue the case on Thursday, one day before Msonda was due to appear before the Blantyre Magistrate Court.

We are concerned that the failure to prosecute this case sends a dangerous message that inciting others to kill gay people is legitimate and will be tolerated by the authoritiesin effect encouraging violent threats and attacks on the gay and lesbian community in Malawi," said Colville.

Malawi has laws criminalizing consensual same-sex activity by adults. But Colville tells VOA the government has been effectively observing a moratorium on the arrest and prosecution of individuals on charges related to homosexuality since 2012.

It is still on the books, but they have not been practicing it," said Colville. "But, in a sense, this case is completely different. This is incitement to kill and irrespective of for what reason, that is against the law in Malawi. Killing is against the law.

Human Rights organizations report 79 countries criminalize homosexual activities  34 are in Africa. They say 10 nations with large Muslim populations, among them four in Africa, have laws providing for the death penalty for same-sex intimacy.
The U.S. military said Friday that its airstrikes against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria killed two civilians and wounded four others last July.

The report from the U.S. Central Command updated an announcement two weeks ago that U.S. airstrikes during two earlier months in 2015 had killed eight civilians and wounded three other released Friday. It brings the total to 10 deaths reported by the military within the last month.

The report, released at the commands headquarters in Tampa, Florida, included brief details of the five strikes, recounted in military jargon.

Referring to a bombing run on July 11 near Raqqa, Syria, a city controlled by IS extremists, U.S. military officials said: "A post-strike review revealed a secondary explosion from a vehicle crossing a bridge nearby the intended target; this explosion resulted in one civilian likely killed."

An independent organization that monitors civilian casualties, Airwars.org, said "the actual toll from these five events is between 14 and 21 casualties."

The not-for-profit group, funded by charitable organizations and human rights activists, estimates coalition airstrikes have killed between 803 and 1,127 civilians since August 2014  far more than military authorities have reported.

The Pentagon investigates all U.S. airstrikes and issues its assessment of incidents where civilians died, although such studies are often released long after the raids took place.

Recent U.S. news reports have suggested the military's "zero tolerance" policy for civilian casualties recently was relaxed to allow more intensive action against Islamist fighters in Syria and Iraq. Since IS and other groups frequently locate their forces in the midst of civilian populations, a stepped-up U.S. offensive likely would result in more civilian casualties.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has arrived in Iran for an official state visit expected to see the two countries expand diplomatic relations and economic ties.



After arriving late Friday in Tehran, President Xi said Beijing was looking forward to a new season in China-Iran relations, according to Irans IRNA news agency.



China is seeking to improve bilateral ties with Iran to start a new season of comprehensive, long-term and sustainable relations with the Islamic Republic, Xi was quoted as saying.



China was a top consumer of Iranian oil even during the three years of international sanctions that targeted Irans nuclear program. Now that the sanctions are lifted and Iran is ramping up oil production, that relationship could grow further.



During the visit, Iran and China will sign 17 agreements to further cooperation in economic, industrial, cultural and judicial fields, according to IRNA.



President Xi, who is making the first trip to Iran by a Chinese president in 14 years, met Saturday with Iranian President Hasan Rouhani. Later, he will meet with Irans top leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.



China played a key role in international efforts to roll back sanctions against Iran in exchange for Tehran scaling back its nuclear program.



In Washington, the Obama administration says it hopes Beijing continues to work with Washington to ensure Iran does not reconstitute its nuclear capabilities.

"Were certainly not trying to stop [Chinas] economic or diplomatic engagement with Iran. We would just hope that, just as China has played a very constructive role throughout this process, that China will continue to play that role in all of its engagement with the Iranian Government, says Ambassador Stephan Mull, Lead Coordinator for Iran Nuclear Implementation at the State Department.

The U.S. and China are co-chairing a working group to oversee the new design of Irans heavy-water reactor at Arak so that it will not produce weapons-grade plutonium.

We expect strong cooperation to continue as we all work together to ensure Irans continued compliance with the [nuclear agreement], said Anna Richey-Allen, a spokesperson from State Departments East Asia and Pacific Bureau, on Friday.

China is among the world powers that reached the agreement, the so-called Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), with Iran last July. In that nuclear pact, Tehran pledged to scale back its uranium-enriching activities and submit to inspection, in exchange for lifting sanctions.

In a op-ed article appearing in an Iranian newspaper Iran, and quoted by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Xi said: China appreciates Iran's assurance of not intending to develop nuclear weapons, supports Iran in upholding its legitimate rights and interests, and fully recognizes Iran's contribution to the conclusion of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

A key analyst says ties between the two counties go beyond economic benefits. Michael Singh of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy said both countries share the same goal of reshaping the international order in a way that excludes us more.

Singh, who served as the National Security Council for Middle Eastern affairs from 2005 to 2008, testified before the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday. He said that China, really sees Iran as its main strategic partner by virtue of its geographic location, by virtue of the fact that it's really the only major power in the region which isn't allied with the United States.

Chinese President Xis visit to Iran came after a stop in Saudi Arabia earlier in the week, during that country's heightened tensions with Iran.

A State Department official told VOA the U.S. anticipates that China will join us and others in encouraging all parties to avoid actions that escalate sectarian tensions in the region.

A Chinese regional expert said Beijings aim is to defuse conflicts in the region.

Pan Guang, Vice Chairman of the Chinese Society of Middle East Studies, told VOA Mandarin on Friday that China is seeking to play a more influential role in the Middle East. He said China designated a special envoy on Middle East Affairs in 2002, and one of the top goals since then is to promote peace talks and avoid regional conflicts.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry called on the world's nations Friday to redouble their efforts to solve the crisis posed by unprecedented numbers of war refugees, help victims of other global crises and combat the rising threat of terrorism at a fundamental level.

Addressing the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Kerry announced President Barack Obama will host a summit at the United Nations in New York later this year in response to the global refugee crisis. The goals include big increases in the number of nations answering U.N. humanitarian appeals and in those willing to help resettle families safely.

The private sector, civil society, and religious organizations will also be called on to help integrate refugees into host communities socially, academically, and through access to employment, Kerry said.



I know we know how to do this in a way that protects the security of our countries."



The United States has announced plans to admit 85,000 refugees by November and 100,000 next year.

Corruption



Kerry also focused on the problem of corruption in his address to government and corporate leaders from around the world. Corrupt practices, he said, have grown at an alarming pace and threaten global growth.



In Nigeria, for example, Kerry said that, on taking office last year, President Muhammadu Buhari inherited a military that was underpaid, underfed and unable to protect the Nigerian people from Boko Haram. Much of Nigerias military budget had been finding its way into the pockets of generals, the top U.S. diplomat said.



Corruption in government is "a radicalizer," "a social danger" and "an opportunity destroyer," Kerry said. "It destroys faith in legitimate authority. And no one knows that better than violent extremist groups, who regularly use corruption as a recruitment tool."

Next stop: Saudi Arabia



Friday's speech wrapped up two days of meetings for Kerry in Davis. Saudi Arabia is the next stop on his five-nation tour, then Laops, Cambodia and China.

Before departing for Riyadh, the U.S. secretary is to meet with Omani Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, to sign an agreement on science and technology cooperation.
The Ministry of Local Government is planning to increase the number of chiefs in some provinces in a move that has been linked to the ruling party's succession battles.

The main opposition Movement for Democratic Change charges that this is meant to purge its supporters ahead of the 2018 polls.

Traditional leaders are generally regarded as custodians of the countrys customary law and culture but in recent years they have been linked to national politics.

The Local Government Ministry, headed by Saviour Kasukuwere, who is also Zanu PFs secretary of the commissariat, has reportedly been creating new chieftainships in most parts of the country.

Wilson Mugari of Nharira village in the Chikomba district, Mashonaland East province, claimed that two new chieftainships have been created on top of the five traditional posts.

Its quite surprising and alarming because the chieftainships are being increased. We do not know for what purpose, and for example, last week when we were at the funeral of our colleagues who died the chief of the area who was supposed to give a speech was not there and the guy who came and we know him as the subchief and we were surprised he was given the onus as the chief.

  and we hear that his chieftainship was celebrated recently meaning its one of these increases and it was not in his jurisdiction for him to come and officiate at that funeral, his name is Maromo and we hear they is another one called Kareya in the same and we dont know what is going to happen next but chieftainships are being increased and we dont even understand whats happening.

Mugari said celebrations to mark the official installation of the new traditional leaders, Chief Kareya and Chief Maromo, are set to be held next month, adding that villagers are now being asked to contribute towards the ceremonies.

VILLAGERS/MDC WORRIED

Another Chikomba resident, who only wanted to be identified as Kenneth Musarurwa, who lives in the Hokonya area, said he is also worried by this development.

What I can tell you is that this is an issue that has been going on in this community and people are very surprised with such kind of moves but we do not whats the reason because we are being told that there more chiefs here. What we know is that whenever we are going for elections, Zanu PF coerces people to vote for them but we dont know what really happening here.

Both Chief Maromo and Chief Kareya refused to discuss their new status referring questions to Kasukuwere.

Meanwhile, the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change led by former prime minister Morgan Tsvangirai says it fears that the creation of new chieftainships in most provinces countrywide was a well-calculated move by the ruling Zanu PF party to target its supporters ahead of the 2018 polls.

According to Piniel Denga, the opposition partys chairperson for Mashonaland East province, people are now fearing that they will be victimized as voting will be conducted at ward level.

Mostly if you look at it, they are people who are related to top Zanu PF officials, So we are seeing Zanu PF mobilizing people to vote for Zanu PF through village heads and chiefs in most rural communities so people are going to be forced through their village heads to vote for Zanu PF.

Chiefs and headmen have been accused by the opposition of allegedly working with Zanu PF to manipulate the peoples will in previous elections although the ruling party says the polls were free, fair and credible.

ZANU PF FOLLOWERS ALSO SURPRISED

Musarurwa, who is also a Zanu PF supporter, said President Robert Mugabes succession battles are increasing within his party, adding that the move to create new chieftainships was mooted by a Zanu PF group loyal to First Lady Grace Mugabe calling itself Generation 40 in order to weaken a faction reportedly led by Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa.

Musarurwa said mistrust is now the buzzword within the ruling partys top hierarchy hence the move by G40 to seek to control of traditional leaders.

They no-longer trust anybody including those current chiefs so what they are trying to do is to create other chieftainships so that they put new people whom they trust because those at the helm are no longer trustworthy or they are no longer loyal to them.

Denga said this would further strain the countrys fiscus. We are struggling as a government to pay civil  We are going to increase their allowances including new vehicles for them and if you look at village heads they are being paid more than $30 per village head and we have got hundreds and thousands of these village heads meaning that we are suffocating our budget and using that money paying people who are supposed to be in their communities surviving in their communities.

Kasukuwere was not reachable for comment as he was not responding to calls on his mobile phone.

His personal assistant repeatedly said her boss was in meetings. But some officials in his ministry, who refused to speak on tape, told Studio 7 that the new chiefs were being introduced to cater for some settlements created countrywide following the land reform program.
Teachers recalled from vacation by the government say they are planning to stage peaceful protests, saying this move is illegal.

They say the disruption of their vacation is forcing them to fork out money from their pockets, something they cannot afford due to non-payment of 2015 bonuses.

Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe Mashonaland West Provincial Chairperson Rosten Mutapwa told Studio 7 teachers believe that they are being abused by the government and as a result most of them want to go on strike or engage in a go slow to express their dismay over what is going on in the Ministry of Education.

Mutapwa, says the recalling of the teachers is an indication that there is confusion in the ministry as teachers applied and were granted leave last year.

Local teacher, Temba Vuso, who was on vacation, said the government violated labour regulations when it recalled him. Vuso noted that he now needs to spend money in order to go to work.

Vuso said there is confusion in the Education Ministry with Public Service Commission inspectors taking a leading role in enforcing what her termed improper regulations.

He said these inspectors are trying to justify their relevance in an education system that is almost collapsing due to lack of funds and related issues.

Government issued a circular forcing all those on vacation to report for duty on Monday but most teachers failed to turn up for various reasons.

The state has not given reasons of recalling teachers from leave but indications are that there is a serious shortage of staff in some schools.

Director of Education in Mashonaland West province, Sylvester Mashayamomba, said the ministry has instructed school heads to get written reports from teachers on vacation, who failed to report for duty as instructed by the government.

Tensions have been rising between state workers and the government over non-payment of bonuses. The government struggled to pay workers salaries last December due to financial constraints.
President Robert Mugabe was last night expected to return home after a month-long vacation in the Far East.

According to our correspondents in Harare, the president, who normally goes to Asia for his annual vacation, was set to arrive before midnight but at the time of going on air he had not yet arrived in the country.

One of the correspondents said state officials indicated that the return was supposed to be a private affair, unlike in the past in which thousands of supporters normally throng the Harare Airport to sing and dance for the 91-year old Zimbabwean leader whenever he returns home.

 Here at the airport there are no supporters. Its usually busy. There are thousands and thousands of supporters that throng the airport but the airport today is empty. There is just a dance group, a few government officials and ministers. Maybe its because he will be arriving late at night that is why there are few people here.

State officials declined to comment about the few number of people that were said to be welcoming the president.

Mr. Mugabe was said to have had some health complications while on leave, a report that was dismissed as nonsensical by the government.

The president has ruled Zimbabwe for almost 36 years.

Meanwhile, Acting Zimbabwe President, Emmerson Mnangagwa welcomed President of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Basongo, at the Harare International Airport, Friday.

President Nguema is on a three-day official visit to Zimbabwe where he is expected to hold bilateral talks with Zimbabwean officials.
Advanced Level results for candidates who sat last November are out and ready for collection, with an average pass rate of 76 percent.

The Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (ZIMSEC) said Thursday that so-called school candidates who passed two or more subjects with a Grade E or better totaled 87.6 percent while private candidates were 63.7 percent.

Last year the pass rate among school candidates was 82,61 percent while that of private candidates was 57,58 percent.

The number of school candidates was 32,764 and for private candidates it was 8,889, ZIMSEC said.

It further said, 32,550 school candidates wrote 2 or more subjects and 28,510 (87, 6%) candidates passed two or more subjects with Grade E or better. 7,962 private candidates wrote 2 or more subjects and 5,069 (63, 7%) candidates passed two or more subjects with Grade E or better.

ZIMSEC hereby takes this opportunity to wish all the candidates the best of luck in their future studies and endeavors, the examining body added.

Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) official, Vusumuzi Mahlangu, told VOA they are pleased by the results, but added, it could have been better.
Four Chinese universities, together with two archives and one institution, set up a research center specializing in the study of Chinese Peoples War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression Thursday.

The four universities include Nanjing University, Peking University, Nankai University and Wuhan University.

Zhang Xianwen, a professor of Nanjing University explained that the studies on the war will not be confined to the Asian battlefield; it will cover the entire Asia-Pacific battlefield.

Historian Jin Chongji said that since previous studies were not quite fruitful because they were not systematic and in-depth enough, the new center will conduct better research by pooling wisdom from all circles.

The study will cover areas of military, politics, economy, culture, diplomacy and so on.
The opposition MDC formation led by Professor Welshman Ncube on Friday condemned the partisan distribution of food aid by Zanu PF elements, calling it "criminal" and "satanic."

The party said politicizing aid in this drought period on the basis of which party they belong to is criminal and should be attended to with the greatest urgency.

Punishing opposition members through denying them food at a time when some people are now living on wild fruits and water just to keep body and soul together is disgraceful and satanic, party spokesman Kurauwone Chihwayi said.

Local Government Minister Savior Kasukuwere, of the ruling Zanu PF appeared to confirm the alleged bias.

We are saying the distribution of food relief or anything that comes from government should be done in a transparent way and deserving people should get what is due to them, Kasukuwere was quoted in the Herald as saying.

This means we have to look at the disadvantaged in the communities, child-headed families and so forth. Lets not allow those in leadership to take advantage of those who cannot stand for themselves.

Zimbabwe is facing a crippling drought and humanitarian aid agencies say more than 1, 5 million people will require assistance this year.
In a move to avert a severe food crisis, Zimbabwe said it has secured a $200 million loan from the African Export-Import Bank to buy grain from outside the country.

According to NewsDay newspaper, the money will be used for purchasing the much-needed maize for the country currently gripped by a crippling dry spell that has left more than 5,000 cattle dead in some provinces.

The country needs more than two million tonnes of grain annually to feed its population.

At least 250,000 tonnes are left in the nations strategic grain reserves.

Food expert Reverend Forbes Matonga told Studio 7 the development was welcome but the $200 million loan wont go far considering that this years crop is another failure due to poor rains.

I think it is a very significant step in that it shows that at least there is acceptance that there is shortage, however, I think their efforts alone will not be sufficient to deter the looming hunger, Reverend Matonga.

Matonga said the only place where the government could buy maize is from Brazil because neighbors Zambia and South Africa who used to sell to Zimbabwe have since stopped for fear of the extreme El Nino effects.

Zimbabwe has since 2006 maintained that it will not allow the importation of genetically modified organisms despite the country facing imminent hunger threats.

The product can only be allowed into the country in the form of mealie-meal.
According to the official version, the attacks of January and November 2015 in Paris were sponsored by Al-Qaida in the Arab Peninsula (AQAP) for the execution of the editors of Charlie-Hebdo and by Daesh for all the others. The authorities have admitted that the Charlie-Hebdo attack was coordinated with the attack against the supermarket at the Porte de Vincennes, although, according to them, AQAP and Daesh are enemies. They also admitted that doubt persists concerning the claim that Amedy Coulibaly was a member of Daesh.

Reuters revealed that the weapons used in the attacks came from the factory of Crvena Zastava, situated in Kragujevac (Serbia) [1]. Both Associated Press and the Palm Beach Post believed that one of the Serbian pistols had been transported by Century International Arms, a Florida firm linked to the CIA [2], although the Press Agency  but not the Post  has since retracted the claim [3].

According to the Croatian daily Slobodna Dalmacija, the weapons used in the January attack against the supermarket, and others used during the attack in November, came from the Serbian manufacturer Crvena Zastava, and were moved to France by the same dealer, Claude Hermant [4].

Our readers will remember that in 1998, the Reseau Voltaire uncovered the surprising activities of the security contingent of the Front National, the Departement Protection Securite (DPS). This unit had been compiling a list of personalities and had scouted their homes  apparently a small group of individuals within the DPS were preparing certain illicit activities. After a long period of complicated negotiations, we managed to obtain the creation of a Parliamentary Commission of Enquiry to investigate these facts [5]. The elements that we provided for the Assemblee Nationale, specifically concerning the double mission of members of the DPS - for the Front National in France and for the organisation of coups detat in Africa - were quickly blocked by the Secret-Defense [6]. However, this information provoked a crisis and division within the Front National, so that finally, no-one was available to answer the allegations. Two years later, in 2001, one of the ex-members of the DPS, Claude Hermant, (mentioned above), admitted to the French daily Liberation the existence of the  Action  structure within the DPS [7].

Heres a reminder of our work between 1998 and 1999. We had established that in 1972, the  Front National pour lUnite Francaise  had been created in secret by Jacques Foccart, then responsible for Affaires Africaines et Malgaches at the Elysee, by request of President Georges Pompidou. The FN was led from the beginning by Jean-Marie Le Pen, who had played an important role in Charles de Gaulles ascension to power in 1958, before turning against him [8], and by Francois Duprat, who had engaged with Bob Denard in the support of Moise Tchombe in Katanga. Also, we had shown that in 1984, Francois Mitterrand and Guy Penne, Jacques Foccarts successor at the Elysee, had used secret Republican funds to finance the electoral campaign of the Front National in the European elections. We thus arrived at the conclusion that the FN was, and had always been, not so much a political party with the desire to exercise power, but a structure necessary to the Elysee, which it used first of all to control personalities of the extreme right wing, then to introduce them into the national political landscape.

Concerning the DPS, we have shown that it was directed at the time by Bernard Courcelles, also the bodyguard for Anne Pingeot, Francois Mitterrands mistress, and by Gerard Le Vert. The DPS included a secret group of about 60 men, all of whom were linked to the secret services, and were mobilised whenever necessary to carry out secret missions, mainly in Africa. This is the group to which Claude Hermant belonged. The true directorate of the DPS was not the Front National, but the Ministry for Defence, with the DPSD, a secret service with almost the same name, whose mission was the protection of the armed forces.

Now the revelations of the Slobodna Dalmacija make sense. In January 2015, when he was jailed for  arms trafficking , Claude Hermant described himself to the committing magistrate as an  informer  for the Customs and the Gendarmerie. When asked by the magistrate for details of the weapons he had sold, he played the Secret-Defense card. The Advisory Committee for Secret-Defense, and then the Minister for the Interior, Bernard Cazeneuve, opted in his favour [9].

In summary, Mr. Hermant belonged to a structure which, under cover of the security unit for the Front National, was unofficially charged by the Elysee with secret missions overseas. Today he is paid for freelance work by the Customs and the Gendarmerie, still without any official status. According to Slobodna Dalmacija, he bought decommissioned weapons in Serbia and recommissioned them himself, and that these were the weapons used in the attacks of January and November. The Croatian daily also spoke of the results of a microscope analysis of a firearm which no-one has so far mentioned. Mr. Hermant also allegedly sold weapons to Islamists in Brussels. His trafic, despite being illegal, is covered by the Secret-Defense.

Let us mention that according to the US Press agency McClatchy, the Kouachi brothers, the killers of Charlie-Hebdo, were linked to the French secret services [10]. Finally, let us also note that Claude Hermant was imprisoned on the decision of judges from Lille, Stanislas Sandraps and Richard Foltzer, who were investigating his arms trafficking, and not by the Parisian judges who were investigating the attacks, Christophe Tessier, Nathalie Poux et Laurence Le Vert. Madame Le Vert is incidentally the cousin of Gerard Le Vert, mentioned above, Claude Hermants ex-boss in the DPS.

In conclusion, either Mr. Hermant was working on infiltrating the terrorist cells who perpetrated the attacks, without their action having been prevented, or else  and this is less probable  his current superiors, probably in the Elysee, themselves participated in the organisation of the attacks. But it still has to be determined why, and in whose name, Claude Hernants superiors acted as they did.
The 100 Wanheda: Part One Season 3 Episode 1 Editors Rating 3 stars * * * Previous Next   Previous Episode Next Episode  Paige Turco as Abby. Photo: Diyah Pera/CW

Welcome to Vultures first recap of The 100. If youre not familiar with the show, I encourage you to check out the first two seasons. (Theyre currently available on Netflix.) The 100 is basically CWs response to The Hunger Games, and like every other CW show, its packed with some of the most beautiful people on Earth. Unlike some other shows on the CW, though, The 100 is effortlessly feminist. The female characters take on leadership roles, excel at combat, and dont shy away from violence  all while eschewing petty relationship drama.

The 100 is set in a post-apocalyptic future, 97 years after nuclear war has destroyed life on Earth. The few remaining survivors live in the Ark, a large international space station. When the station begins to run out of resources, 100 youth criminals are sent down to Earth to see if the planet can sustain life. Of course, theyre not alone  despite the radiation, some people are still alive on the ground. The show is centered around the conflicts between each group as they all fight to survive.

At the end of the second season, the 100 had finally reunited with the others who came down from the Ark. Clarke (Eliza Taylor), still shaken by the Mount Weather massacre, decides not to follow the rest of the Delinquents back to camp. Jaha (Isaiah Washington) stumbles upon a beautiful AI hologram (Erica Cerra), who thanks him for bringing a nuclear warhead from space, and Murphy (Richard Harmon) ends up trapped in a containment bunker.

Wanheda: Part One picks up three months after the second seasons finale. The time lapse, established in the first few minutes of the episode, takes place through Murphys eyes  hes still inside the containment bunker, stuck on his insane journey to the City of Light with Jaha. Ive never understood or really believed in Jahas manic faith, but I love Murphy as a character, so Im happy to follow the two of them on their journey.

Minutes after deciding that he wont shoot himself, Murphy finally crawls out of the bunker. Hes weak and dehydrated, but still takes a swing at Jaha after he sees him, snarling before he loses consciousness. This is what makes Murphy such a conflicted, complex character: Hes made some vile decisions, but he holds real integrity. He refuses to believe Jaha when he says that the City of Light is real. Eventually, Murphy decides to continue on with Jaha, but not because he has faith in the quest. He wants to find the girl who cleverly robbed everyone in the desert last season.

Meanwhile, the remaining members of the original 100 are living in a heavily militarized settlement, known as Arkadia, with outside areas divided into numbered sectors. Their lives seems very similar to what they were like on the Ark, with a notable exception: Many of the core members are fully reintegrated with jobs. Even Lincoln (Ricky Whittle) has found a home with the Sky People, training others in hand-to-hand combat.

Theres a ton of exposition in this part of the episode, and that worried me. Bellamy (Bob Morley) has a girlfriend, who is quickly introduced and dismissed. Raven (Lindsey Morgan) is bothered by a leg injury, which isnt much of a surprise after her walloping at the dam. Octavia (Marie Avgeropoulos) and Lincoln seem to be on the outs, stemming from the fact that Octavia wants to be back with the Grounders. Abby (Paige Turco) is spread incredibly thin, grabbing quick naps between her duties as both doctor and chancellor. Jasper (Devon Bostick) can barely cope after losing Maya (Eve Harlow) at Mount Weather, and drinks copiously every night.

Thankfully, Wanheda: Part One moves forward after establishing these story details. Bellamy leads a group of the 100 outside the settlement to look for other people from the Ark. They locate a tracker beacon from the farm station, then continue their search. Instead of finding more Sky People, though, the team runs into members of the Ice Nation.

The ensuing confrontation scene relies heavily on Octavia, who stands in front of the others to translate. The Ice Nation is looking for someone named Wanheda, and Octavia quickly conveys that theyre not looking for a fight. Then Jasper, still drunk, marches up to the Grounders to grab the tracking beacon. They snatch him, and thats when the episode really starts to come together. Raven and Monty lower their weapons, watching with almost-stunned horror as Jasper smiles with a knife to his throat. Seconds later, a Grounder begins slicing Jaspers neck, and all hell breaks loose.

The episode spends a lot of time working up to this moment, and the payoff is excellent. Theres a beautiful choreography of movement: As shots are fired, Octavia screams for Jasper to duck and lobs her knife into a Grounders chest. Until I saw this scene, I was concerned that The 100 lost some of its fire and audacity after the events at Mount Weather. I shouldnt have worried, though; the episode never loses steam after this action sequence.

Once theyve killed the Grounders, Kane radios in, asking Bellamy to meet him in Sector 4. The team splits up: Miller, Raven, Jasper, and Octavia head back to the settlement, while Monty and Bellamy continue on to meet with Kane and Indra. Its there that they realize Wanheda is actually Clarke, and shes being hunted by almost everyone. They set off in search for her, but as the episode ends, Kane, Indra, Monty, and Bellamy are trapped between two fallen trees, their fate unknown.

In the months since Clarke set off on her own, shes had a bit of a misadventure. She dyed her hair red, and has survived by bartering fresh kills for salted meat at a small trading post. Shes still wary of others, and tortured by the memories of the people she killed at Mount Weather. Defeating Cage made her seem more powerful than the Commander, so everyones fighting to capture her alive. (According to Indra, her people believe they can gain Clarkes power by killing her  thats why theyve placed a bounty on her head.)

Clarke escapes a close call at the trading post, thanks to the generosity of the girl there. The two of them sleep together, and after Clarke wakes from a nightmare, she tries to slip out into the night. Instead, shes captured by the men who were searching for her at the trading post. They were waiting for her, biding their time until she appeared. Who are they? Where will they take her? And if she manages to escape, where will she go next?

Other Thoughts:



I might be alone here, but Ive never really believed in Clarke as a bisexual character. This might be because Im a steadfast Bellamy-Clarke shipper  I was really hoping Clarke would make her way back to him, but her story appears to be heading elsewhere.

Toward the end of the episode, Lincoln chooses to give up his bedroom so he can sleep with Octavia in the woods. Their relationship is truly star-crossed; both of them feel betrayed by their people. Im just happy to see theyve found ways to be together.

Did anyone else notice how similar the current Sky People settlement seems to District 13? The numbered sectors outside the camp certainly dont help.

When Bellamy and Lincoln fight, shirtless and sweaty, I actually pumped my fist in the air. I love many things about The 100  the way female characters are portrayed as independent, the lack of bitchy girl fighting, how the characters often look disgusting as their bodies heal  but its still lovely to see these very, very attractive men without their shirts on.

Ill see you next week, but until then, Im around for any Delinquent-related chats at @m_karimjee.
Rule No. 1 of getting by in a new world order: Never assume anything. Katie takes for granted that her son Charlie is alone on the other side of that wall. But for all she knows, hes been brainwashed to believe his parents abandoned him for a futile Resistance.

Only a couple days on the job as Proxy Snyders inside man, and Wills already wised up to the Occupations duplicitous ways. Rather than run a counter-Resistance team, hes been relegated to a post as head driver for sanitation and introduced to his real boss, Phyllis (Kathy Baker, she of the orgasmic Edward Scissorhands haircut), who he deduces was once a CIA big shot. Phyllis, in turn, fails to make good on her promise that Wills neighbor Carlos (Jacob Vargas) would be released from lockup and put in his charge as an informant. The only thing more dangerous in occupied L.A. than making assumptions is assuming theres anyone you can trust.

Actually, Phyllis isnt all bad. Shes just operating out of fear, a fear that motivated her toward compliance. She even tips Will off to the fact that he can snag a quick chat with Carlos on his bus before it heads to the Factory. During their chat, she also urges Will to reconcile his humane impulses with the reality that going against the status quo is a pointless and deadly endeavor. Hes stunned and disappointed, but is still willing to play the long game if it means reuniting with Charlie.

Katie, as has already proven to be her way, isnt liable to exercise such patience. I will not be one of those mothers who has to look her children in the eye and tell them that she did nothing, she tells Resistance middle-manager (or more?) Quayle (Paul Guilfoyle) during the kind of clandestine meeting youd normally see on shows like Homeland or The Americans. Quayle merely echoes Broussards cagey sentiments that they need concrete intel from her or nothing at all. Problem is, her husband  being an ex-FBI man and all  oughta sniff out how Katies undermining his efforts to slowly infiltrate the Occupation by tipping Quayle off about his missions. Like, for example, the pursuit of Andrew Hynes (former Broadway Spider-Man Craig Henningsen), a low-level criminal hired by a rogue Resistance cell to plant the IED that nearly blew Will to pieces. Will had Haynes booked and cooked only hours earlier, but the wily bastard escaped imprisonment and made haste to rendezvous with his mysterious contractors at the original dead-drop site. Too bad Katie already spilled the goods to her new covert BFFs, and they summarily dispatched a team to execute the reckless usurpers. Better that, per Quayles reasoning, then have them yap to Proxy Snyder about the Resistances plans, particularly as they (allegedly) inch toward a coup detat.

Still, the most provocative moments in A Brave New World arrive as we peer in on a ritzy Green Zone soiree, where Katies sister Madeline (The Mentalists Amanda No Relation to Dave Righetti) is serving appetizers to the one percent. She bumps into George (Brian White)  to Colonys credit, its portrait of status-keepers is colorless  an old flame who invites her up to his palatial Laurel Canyon digs for a little sexual reminiscence. How could a girl still slumming it in Echo Park resist? But when she suggests they go for part deux sometime soon, George balks, invoking Phyllis as he advises Madeline not to rock the boat.

Though Maddy might not gain entry into high society, she does get to eavesdrop on the newest class of robber barons: employees of the Occupations water-distribution department. George is third in command, and implores Maddy to wait for his rise rather than throw away their potential on a silly thing like love. A la her sister, she rejects the notion of passive deference to tyrants who may or may not reward her early obedience. (Smart lady.) Although, as any of us would, she happily grabs his care package of booze and baked goods on her way out.

When Colony summons scenarios of how, say, Californias current drought might play out if we dont enact an appropriate eco-conscious response, it feels current and brash. And those aerial shots of the monolith wall separating the now-haves from the used-to-haves and the never-hads cant help but stir up agita over what our nation might look like with Donald Trump at its helm, manning the machines.

It most definitely doesnt bode well for Carlos. Along with several other poor souls deemed agitators, he enters the Factory, is forced to strip nude, and then enters a modified gas chamber (demerit for gratuitous SS-esque imagery) that ostensibly zombifies them. They emerge in surgical attire, walking in a neat file toward some awful designation thats yet to be seen. After all, the only ones who observe everything in Colony appear to be these hypnotic drones, who randomly descend to beguile and terrify witnesses. Maybe thats their coping mechanism. Maybe picturing whatever otherworldly Host keeps watch through its proxy robot incites unspeakable dread, and all they can do is watch transfixed, not unlike Heathers preoccupation with her camera equipment in The Blair Witch. Maybe what scares them the most is that behind this war on civilization, this effort to experiment with a twisted Darwinism, is something much closer to Donald Trump than anything from another planet.

Its enough to make you wonder why Katie would be in such a hurry to get closer, or how Will could resist. Or what Geronimo knows that fuels his/her quest to unmask and unseat the threat. Or when the Yonk will finally open, so we can all do a shot and passively relent.

Apart From All That:
Excerpt from Cry Havoc. Art by Ryan Kelly. Photo: Courtesy of Image Comics

Its not about a lesbian werewolf going to war, comics writer Si Spurrier told me when describing his latest project. Except it kind of is.

That eye-grabbing pitch for Spurriers new series Cry Havoc is accurate, in a sense, but its definitely not the whole story. Spurrier is a rising star in the comics world, having worked on a number of beloved series, like X-Men: Legacy (with Tan Eng Huat) for Marvel, along with Six-Gun Gorilla and The Spire (both with Jeff Stokely) for Boom! Studios. The guy just doesnt give a crap about genre, and seems constitutionally incapable of coming up with an elevator pitch without cringeing a bit at the oversimplification involved.

My curse is that Im not good at writing things that are easily defined, he said. I dont feel the need to say, This is a fantasy story, or This is a postapocalyptic story, because those two things dont really mean the same thing. If you look at the terms we use for genre descriptors, they describe different stuff. Horror is an emotion, comedy is a result, Western is a period and a place. You describe something as a Western, but it could also be a comedy, or horror, or sci-fi. Everything Ive ever written, if Im going to be honest about genre, its always been like ten of them.

Sure enough, Cry Havoc  co-created by artist Ryan Kelly, and featuring an innovative approach to coloring done by three colorists, Lee Loughridge, Matt Wilson, and Nick Filardi  delivers the weird, boundary-defying goods. You can see for yourself in the exclusive preview pages youll find below, courtesy of the books publisher, Image Comics. The series debuts on January 27, and I caught up with Spurrier to talk about strange coloring, strange warfare, and strange mythology.

Cry Havoc has a nonlinear structure, with each colorist rendering a different period of time in the story. Whyd you decide to play with the timeline that way?

Things I write are always at risk of becoming overly dense and complicated. And because Im me, I will always lean in to that because I think comics should be challenging. But when we were first putting the book together, Ryan and I were aware of the need to help the readers out, to differentiate between the three different threads. We thought, Well, fuck it, lets get three colorists, and define these different time zones by a different style of rendering, rather than a different style of inking or penciling.

Exclusive excerpt from Cry Havoc. Art by Ryan Kelly. Photo: Courtesy of Image Comics

Cry Havoc is, on its face, about a woman who becomes a werewolf. But the context grounds the book in an interesting way  part of this story, for example, has a spec-ops monster squad in Afghanistan! How do you take the abstractions these creatures represent and attach them to things that matter in 2016?

Thats sort of at the core of Cry Havoc: The idea that if you found yourself in the position of being that myth, if you found yourself in the position of watching your own relevance, your own passion being taken less and less seriously, how would you try to make yourself relevant again? How would you try to bring you and your people back into the spotlight? How quickly would you be called a terrorist, and who would try to stop you?

Its about a woman trying to live a normal life, but shes not. Shes infected by a sliver of chaos, an idea, something which kicks her out of her nice, neat, domestic little life. Over time it digs up all this stuff that, if she would admit it to herself, has been bubbling away under there all along. And then, of course, we take this absolute batshit twist and send her off to Afghanistan.

Exclusive excerpt from Cry Havoc. Art by Ryan Kelly. Photo: Courtesy of Image Comics

Why Afghanistan?

Because in the quest to make the idea of wonder relevant again, you have to confront what is relevant, which is the conflict of two groups taking everything literally. The self-appointed arbiters of Western civilization, with their databases and numbers and ridiculous amounts of money spent on weapons and soldiers who have their identities stripped away from them because it makes them better at what they do, versus the radicalized, fundamentalized religious leftovers of once-peaceful religions that are no longer useful to the world. I wanted to tell a story where we were introducing a little bit of that old madness to something that is so stripped-down and so fucking loveless. That meant taking somebody into the heart of Afghanistan.

Thats just one of Cry Havocs three distinct time periods. There are also flashbacks to the protagonist in London, and flash-forwards to her at the end, where she finds herself in a mysterious predicament. What ties all this together?

Im not going to spell out exactly what it is, but it has a lot to do with chaos and control. In the case of Cry Havoc, that continuum  and it is a continuum, it is not a binary setup  defines all of the different ideas and conflicts and struggles and metaphors and allegories. It manifests in my understanding of myth and folklore  stories that cross the divide between fact and fiction. They are fictions that have accrued, at some point in their lifetimes, some semblance of legitimacy.

Exclusive early sketch for Cry Havoc. Art by Ryan Kelly. Photo: Courtesy of Image Comics

There are periods in the life of every myth where they were regarded as almost a fact by people. And yet, these things are dying out of our world. I suspect that the world is lurching in two opposite directions, though the destinations end up being almost exactly the same. I would say, culturally, were drifting towards this anodyne empiricism. At the other end of the scale is a very radical, fundamentalist religious view. What happens when you go down either of those routes is that you end up taking everything very, very literally.

And thats fine  thats how an awful lot of people live, and I get it, but I think its a great shame, because we are slowly forgetting the skill of responding to that which is not real as if it were. We are forgetting the importance of fiction, and the importance of passion and whimsy and chaos, and all the things that are manifest in myth and story and idea. All these things which become very nice metaphors in a story like Cry Havoc for a whole bunch of other stuff.
Photo: Joe Scarnici/FilmMagic

As any fan of Arrow or Flash knows, one lone superhero is not enough to protect a single city. For every Barry Allen, theres a Cisco or Caitlin in the wings. So its not surprising that a superhero show centered on saving the world is going to require a major group effort. In DCs Legends of Tomorrow, the ambitious time-traveling superhero CW series that premiered Thursday night, time-master Rip Hunter (Doctor Whos Arthur Darvill) is trying to stop a psychotic madman named Vandal Savage from destroying the world in 2166. To do so, Rip gathers a very loose collective of superheroes, each with his or her own skills and baggage, to track Savage through time  all the while trying not to cause too much damage to the timeline.

One of the superheroes Rip recruits is Sara Lance, a.k.a. White Canary. DC Comics fans unfamiliar with Saras character shouldnt start thumbing through their collection for more info just yet: Sara is an original creation from the team behind the Arrow television series. Sara Lance  played by Caity Lotz (Mad Men)  is the sister to Laurel Lance and a former assassin who went by the moniker Canary. Shes also formerly dead, as she was killed off in the premiere of Arrows third season in 2014, before the Legends pilot was picked up. Lotzs Sara was such a fan favorite that Legends creators  the same team behind Arrow and Flash  resurrected her for the new show via the mystical Lazarus Pit, which has left Sara with a taste for blood.

Unlike Sara, White Canary originates in the DC Comics world, but the similarity ends with the name. Everything were doing  the origin story  is completely different, Lotz says. Vulture spoke with Lotz in between filming scenes for the series tenth episode in Vancouver to find out more about Sara 2.0.

On Arrow, you play Canary. On last nights Legends, you became White Canary. In your mind, whats the distinction between these two personae?

I think White Canary has a different goal. Before, as Canary, she really didnt have a specific purpose, she didnt know what she was doing. She was trying to do something with her life and her skills. And now, as the White Canary, yes, shes trying to be a hero, but she also has a very specific purpose [in hunting down Savage]. Thats the main difference. Shes also a bit more fun. I mean, shes died. Imagine that everything that could go wrong goes wrong. At some point you just gotta go, Fuck it. So I think thats where Sara is.

Sara definitely doesnt seem as hard on herself as she was on Arrow, at least in the first two episodes.

That comes back a little bit. We definitely see that complicated, weighted Sara, because shes still dealing with the bloodlust [from the Lazarus Pit resurrection]. So well see a bit more of the old Sara after the first two episodes.

The old Sara was also bisexual. In the premiere, a cute girl in a bar briefly catches your eye. What kind of discussions did you have with the writers or producers about Saras sexuality on Legends?

That was a big, important thing for me, that she stays bisexual, and they were 100 percent game for that. I go to [fan] conventions, and Ive had a lot of girls come up to me and say how much its meant to them to have a character representing them on TV, and I think the show does a really good job on that with Sara, where its not like, Oh yeah  hot girls, making out. Theres an actual relationship and love there [with Nyssa al Ghul on Arrow]. And Sara is bisexual, so she loves men, too. I think Sara just loves a person for who they are.

Theres quite a range of personalities on Rips team. There are criminals, scientists, a former Egyptian priestess. Who does Sara get along with the most?

She gets along with the more villainous type, like [Flashs Leonard] Snart. Theyre both kind of reluctant heroes. Im hoping to get more stuff with Kendra and Sara. They havent had too much yet, but we still have a ways to go, so hopefully therell be more there. Theres friction with Rip [Hunter]. Hes the leader of the group, and Sara doesnt do too well with authority.

Youve also had your share of friction with your sister, Laurel, on Arrow, but youve seemed to make peace with her. In last nights episode, she even encourages you to join Rips group. How active of a role will Laurel, or even Saras father, Quentin, play in Saras life on Legends?

The logistics of crossing over is extremely difficult because were all just pretty much working every day on our own shows. There are some fun crossovers, but we havent seen Laurel or her father come back. Hopefully we will. Its so hard to do, availability-wise, for any of us to go on other shows.

Not to mention that youre traveling through time.

Yeah, were traveling through space and time. Its not like Im in Star City.

Are there any time periods that youre hoping Sara gets to visit?

Ooh, the next one were going to Im really excited for, but I dont think I can say what it is yet. But one that Im not sure were going to but I would love to go to is 1920s Berlin. I think that would be a rad, eclectic place.

Arrow is a pretty dark show. The Flash is brighter, more colorful. What kind of tone can viewers expect from Legends?

There is really nothing like this on TV. It has the darkness of Arrow. There are some dark things happening, but the tone is so much lighter. It doesnt take itself seriously. Somehow, it manages to mix it all in and create its own kind of vibe. Its very unpretentious fun.
I keep thinking to myself after each new episode of Serial that next week will be the week they decide to zoom out completely (a la Koenigs first-episode metaphor) and give us something resembling a birds-eye view of the entire story. Episode five is as close as weve yet gotten to that actually happening. Sure, there are still granular details, like the size of a Portland, Oregon, police station and the drab cubicles of a military office in Tampa; but if anything can be gleaned from Serial about how to construct a compelling narrative, its that the shift between particulars and context propels the story forward. And thats especially true in an episode like this, where the story itself is stasis, bureaucratic lethargy, and, ultimately, non-action.

The episode begins with Kim Harrison, a family friend of Bergdahls who he put down on Army paperwork as his emergency contact in case he went missing or anything happened to him. Kim is in a Portland, Oregon, police station, trying to file a missing persons report on Bergdahl in a desperate bid to do something, anything, to find his whereabouts. Its all part of a Rube Goldberg plot to get Interpol involved in the search for Bergdahl, which would require a yellow notice establishing his case as official police business somewhere in the world. But they would need permission from the Department of Defense to begin their investigation, and that permission was denied 12 hours after the request was made. Koenig insinuates that the denial was most likely predicated upon our particularly strained relationship with Pakistan at the time: NATO air strikes on the border had killed Pakistani soldiers, the contractor Raymond Davis had recently killed two Pakistani men, and our raid on Abbottabad had just happened.

Jump cut to Tampa, Florida, the headquarters of CENTCOM, or Central Command. Koenig speaks to two women using pseudonyms who work for CENTCOM in Tampa doing personnel recovery for the Afghanistan theatre. Thats right, just two people. For the entirety of Afghanistan. Sure, soldiers didnt disappear as often in Afghanistan as they did in Iraq, where an entire personnel-recovery division (I dont think she literally meant an entire division here  roughly 15,000 troops  but probably something more like the corporate use of the term: a full team of people dedicated to a single purpose) was based, but still, two people isnt enough, as became obvious with the Bergdahl case. The women bemoan lack of experts on the ground. They complain about Bergdahl being held in Pakistan, where the CIA, not the Department of Defense, controls the battle space. But later on in the episode, they talk about the biggest source of frustration about getting Bergdahl back: No one with any real political or military clout cared.

Combine the accounts of Kim Harrison and the women at CENTCOM, and it becomes pretty easy to formulate a general thesis for the episode: American military bureaucracy, inseparable from, and often times synonymous with, American military professionalism and technical prowess, didnt help get Bergdahl home any faster. The failure of the military bureaucracy was that it operated just as capriciously as the personalities involved, undermining the animating purpose of having a technocratic bureaucracy in the first place. The purpose of a bureaucracy is to achieve efficiency by transcending the personal whims of the individuals that comprise an organization.

The CENTCOM employees were bribing generals with whiskey and beef jerky just to get meetings with them. One of them said she didnt realize that she would have to convince them that supporting my issue was something they should do. Kim Harrison somehow got her name and phone number to a guy associated with the Taliban who, with a little assistance from the FBI, turned out to be the real deal. He had information about Bergdahls whereabouts that he was willing to give in exchange for relocating him and eight family members to America. He might have been the best lead they had in the case for years, but nothing ever came of it because no agency wanted to be responsible for taking care of nine people, possibly for the rest of their lives. Nathan, a fairly low-level analyst, assisted Bergdahls father behind the scenes in a successful attempt to build attention for his sons case among high-level, powerful people in the Pentagon and White House, which included making a video where he directly appeals to Pakistani generals by name to release his son. In a smoothly functioning bureaucracy, one where the delineation of tasks was absolutely clear and not dependent upon the moods of powerful people, none of this should have happened. People either entirely outside of or very low-ranking within the system shouldnt have had to clandestinely advocate for the functioning of the system.

Jason Amerine, Special Forces legend who had an action figure made in his image, led a team that audited the effort to get Bergdahl back. What he describes to Koenig is a mess of shifting responsibilities and neglected obligations. Amerine thought, Wait, there are these Americans that nobody gives a fuck about. Nobody is doing anything to get them home. Our greater bureaucracy is treating their families horribly while telling them to just shut up and wait. To me it was bordering on criminal, the way we were treating our common citizens. Amerine found that the responsibility for finding and bringing home American imprisoned by the Taliban was lost in a bureaucratic shell game. No one knew who was taking lead. More important, no one cared. CENTCOM thought Special Operations Command (SOCOM) was handling it, who then passed it along to the State Department, who assumed the Department of Defense was taking point 

You might be tempted to assume that this was all a failure to properly organize, but the fault, dear Brutus, is not in our flow charts. Almost all of Koenigs subjects who appear in this episode complain of the thick miasma of vitriol that surrounded the Bergdahl case. The word traitor is used a lot. But as Nate Bethea pointed out in a podcast for Task & Purpose, theres a huge difference between a traitor and a deserter. A traitor actively works hand in hand with the enemy against Americas interests. A deserter flees his obligations. Of course, this is an overly simplistic dichotomy that doesnt take mental health into account (still not sure why were not talking about that), but its indicative of the dramatic emotions involved with the Bergdahl case. If you think American soldiers are stoic automatons who never cloud their judgment with flamboyant emotions, I hate to break it to you, but it just aint so. Speaking from personal experience, I can say that I havent met a demographic so emotionally involved with their work than American soldiers. Whether thats a good thing or a bad thing is just another complicated question that this episode raises. What is obvious, though, is that these deep sentiments can undermine the cool and calculated functioning of bureaucratic machinations.

Koenig takes another opportunity to editorialize this episode when she talks about the rancor from people commenting on the Canadian Colin Rutherfords release from the Taliban last week. People dont just blame hostages for being captured; people are actually wishing ill on them. As the CENTCOM women say, Circumstances of capture are not supposed to come into play, but they do, of course. Koenig admits to feeling frustrated at people who make stupid decisions, like hikers who decide to take a vacation in Taliban-controlled areas, but ends by trying to see the logic in the tangle of competing interests that kept the Bergdahl case on ice for so many years. The logic she ascribes to the Pentagon is this: Bergdahl wasnt worth the effort. In the end, he was just one human being, and any self-respecting cost/benefit analysis would indicate that Bergdahl wasnt worth the effort, at least not until circumstances changed and he could be used to some larger end. Its an analysis of bureaucratic motivations that Koenig has spent the entire episode repudiating. Its also chilling. What good is the ethos of no soldier left behind if its saddled with the caveat of so long as its in our interests? Are these our options, then: a coldly functioning analytical bureaucracy that undermines martial values, or martial values embraced erratically and at the cost of bureaucratic consistency? The result seems to be the same either way.
13 Hours. Photo: Paramount Pictures

Washington State police have arrested a 29-year-old man who shot a 40-year-old woman in the shoulder at the Regal Cinemas in Renton during a screening of Michael Bays 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi Thursday night. KIRO 7 reports that the man left before the police arrived and went home, where he told his father that he had dropped the gun, causing it to go off. The father then called the police, who came to their house and arrested the man. The man was apparently drunk and said the shooting was an accident. The authorities dont believe the shooter and the victim knew each other. A spokeswoman at the Harborview Medical Center said that the womans condition was upgraded from critical to serious, and that she is expected to recover.



Well update this post as soon as we have more information.
Heavy machinery is kicking up dirt behind Wacos new In-N-Out Burger at South Fifth Street and Interstate 35, where Dallas-based DuWest Realty will place two retail centers and already has signed leases with several restaurants new to Waco, a spokesman for the development confirmed Thursday.

To be called Bear Grounds Plaza, the retail-and-restaurant center will consist of a pair of 8,000-square-foot strips that crews should complete and have ready for occupancy by June, said Robert Hale, project manager for Bredow Constructors, which is serving as general contractor for the $2 million venture.

For the past two weeks weve been securing the permits we need to proceed, Hale said.

The development will take shape between South Fourth and South Fifth streets and complement the In-N-Out Burger and CVS Pharmacy built where DuWest demolished the Clarion Hotel.

DuWests Scott Rodgers confirmed Thursday that he has commitments from Chipotle Mexican Grill, which will be opening its second Waco-area location, the other operating at 1115 N. Valley Mills Drive; a build-your-own pizza place called Pie Five Pizza; and a gourmet popsicle establishment called Steel City Pops.

Others that have confirmed their intention to lease space in either of the two buildings are Smoothie King, which sells blended drinks and nutritional snacks; Wok Box Fresh Asian Kitchen, which Rodgers compared to Pei Wei; and a nail salon called Le Nails.

Rodgers said he also has struck a deal with Jersey Mikes to place a second Waco-area sandwich shop in the center, the first having recently opened on Hewitt Drive.

Hale, with Bredow Constructors, said it is his understanding that some of the restaurants have planned their opening to coincide with the centers completion.

Were working to finalize a couple of other would-be occupants, said Rodgers, who declined to identify the prospects.

He said that he and representatives of the tenants are collaborating on which spaces they will fill in Bear Grounds Plaza.

The plaza is located right across Fifth Street from another popular eatery in South Waco, Torchys Tacos at 801 S. Fifth St.

Nearby, at Eighth Street and Interstate 35, next to Freddys Frozen Custard and Steakburgers, Raising Canes is about to acquire land for its third location in Greater Waco, local real estate agent Bland Cromwell said. Raising Canes also operates on Franklin Avenue and on Hewitt Drive.

A broker friend of mine is working that deal, and he said it is going to happen, Cromwell said.

Meanwhile, Panera Bread reportedly will place a second area location on a lot next to the Chick-fil-A at South Seventh Street and Interstate 35.

Austin-based SCC Development, which lured a Whataburger restaurant and a Sprint store to Lake Air and Valley Mills drives, reportedly wants to place an interstate-fronting retail center between 10th and 11th streets that would have space for two fast-food restaurants.

Behind the center, Cromwell said, SCC wants to place two sit-down restaurants that would back up to two hotels still in the planning stage.

That whole quadrant, from Interstate 35 to Franklin Avenue, has seen a tremendously successful redevelopment, said Cromwell, referring to the demolition of older homes and buildings to make room for townhomes, retail establishments and restaurants. If you look at it from the air, the change is amazing.
The Extraco Events Center was named one of three Texas entities to receive the 2016 Extension Partnership Award.

The awards were announced at the AgriLife Extension Conference on Jan. 13 in College Station. The other two recipients were the Texas Sorghum Producers and Texas Beef Council.

Established in 1999, the Extension Partnership Awards recognize vital alliances with agencies, organizations and others beyond the Texas A&M University System.

The Extraco Events Center, which has a 6,000-seat arena and is the home of the Heart O Texas Fair and Rodeo, has given more than $2 million to Texas youth for livestock and college scholarships.

The center was cited for being the the go-to place for meetings of agriculture science teachers, county AgriLife Extension agents and major show officials, according to the award documentation.

Extraco Events Center staff coordinated the 4-H Youth Livestock Project Conference in 2014; does fair tours; and supports ongoing programs such as Ag Safety Day and Kids, Kows and More.

This is a very exciting and humbling award to accept on behalf of the Extraco Events Center and its staff, Extraco Events Center President/CEO Wes Allison said. I was honored to receive the award with executive board members John Embry, Brent Neuhaus, Mike Lewis and Wayne Gartman, as well as staff members J.D. Ewing and Dustin Coufal.

The Extraco Events Center each year hosts more than 225 events with an attendance of 420,000 and an economic impact of more than $47 million annually in McLennan County.

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Extraco Events Center photo

Dr. Doug Steele (from left), AgriLife Extension director, poses with Extraco Events Center representatives Wayne Gartman, Mike Lewis, Wes Allison, John Embry, J.D. Ewing, Dustin Coufal and Brent Neuhaus.
Class acts

Redmond Ritter, of Waco, graduated with honors from Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, New Mexico, with a bachelors degree in applied arts and sciences.

Sarah Derrick and Lindsey Derrick, of Lorena, were named to the deans list for the fall semester at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama.

McGregor ISD students contributed more than 7,000 pounds of food to the McGregor Food For Families event.

Students from every campus delivered their collections to the McGregor Food Pantry.

The McGregor High PALS spent a day at the pantry helping move all donations into the building and sorting them for future distribution.

Pitching in

The H-E-B Celebrity Cook Off, which benefits the Waco ISD Education Foundation, will be at 7 p.m. Feb. 19 at the Waco Convention Center.

The evening will feature food, from appetizers to soups to meats to desserts, prepared by celebrity chefs, as well as auctions and a variety of games.

Funds raised go into Waco ISD classrooms for innovative learning projects.

Tables can be purchased $1,500 for eight people, which includes food and drink, and a gift to take home.

For more information, visit wacoisdfoundation.org or call 755-9517.

Send submissions to neighborplus@wacotrib.com.
In the summer of 2003, Pete Lohmer was minding his own business while driving to his Lake Whitney home.

But law enforcement officials stopped him at least 10 times, he said, though no law was being broken on his three-day trip from Montana.

The authorities just wanted a photo of what Lohmer was driving: a 1956 American LaFrance firetruck that now belongs to the Waco Fire Department.

Lohmer recently donated the open-top truck to be used in parades and funerals for firefighters either killed in the line of duty or after theyve retired. The Waco Fire Department Honor Guard/Pipes & Drum nonprofit organization is thrilled with the vehicle, which began its history not far from where Lohmers 2003 adventure began.

The city of Dillon, Montana, a town of about 4,000 residents, bought the truck new in 1956 from an American LaFrance dealership in New York. It still has Dillons name on it, along with the No. 3 engine number.

Former Dillon Volunteer Fire Chief Roy Cornell remembers the truck well. Cornell spent 32 years with the Dillon

Volunteer Fire Department and was fire chief from 1988 until his retirement in 2000. He now drives school buses in Dillon.

Im surprised its in Texas now, Cornell, 76, said. I suppose the weathers better for it.

He remembers driving the open-top vehicle around Dillon in temperatures well below zero degrees.

This is better than finding out its in a junkyard, he said. I kind of grew up with that truck. That was a new truck when I was a kid in school.

Current Dillon Fire Marshal Rick Later said Dillon is known for its fly fishing and hunting, especially during the summer. The fire department, formed in 1905, has a large jurisdiction in southwestern Montana, probably bigger than some states back east, Later said.

Its a pretty neat place, Later said. We draw a lot of people moving here from other places for retirement purposes.

Cornell found documents showing the department sold the truck for $1,500 in 1996 to the Dillon Jaycees, a young mens nonprofit organization that hosts annual events, most notably a rodeo, which is Montanas Biggest Weekend, according to the website.

Mike Ferris, a former member of the Dillon Jaycees, said it wasnt used for the rodeo that year because the group had a better option. He said the truck wasnt around much longer, and he wasnt sure what happened to it next.

Enter Pete Lohmer, the former Waco post office employee, Tarrant County deputy sheriff, Fort Worth Independent School District teacher, instructor of deaf children and scout leader.

He bought the truck on eBay for $3,000 in 2003 from a Montana seller, not an unusual purchase for him.

Lohmer, 62, developed his interest in firetrucks through his wifes grandfather, a former Fort Worth fire lieutenant.

He was as much of a grandpa to me as anyone, he said. I loved him dearly.

Well before his 2003 journey, Lohmer paid $1,500 for three antique firetrucks from the Walnut Springs Volunteer Fire Department in 1994. Why did he buy them?

I just wanted to help them out.

3,000-mile round trip

After buying the American LaFrance in Montana, it was time for the 3,000-mile round trip: fly to Billings, get the firetruck, drive home.

He said a former member of the Dillon Jaycees sold it to him. The trucks purpose between 1996 and 2003 remains a mystery, but the amount of rust might indicate it wasnt covered.

It was a wonderful adventure, Lohmer said. Id stop at a Wal-Mart, walk back out and there would be a crowd of people around it.

Stops were frequent on the trip, as the gas-guzzling truck averaged about 5 miles to the gallon.

It was an appropriate addition to Lohmers other collectibles, which include player pianos and kerosene lamps that he says look straight out of Gone With the Wind.  When Lohmer finally got home, the spectacle didnt end.

My kids were in college and they had sleepovers on our property, and they liked riding around with the firetruck, he said. They fixed it up.

But they didnt refurbish it as much as the Waco Fire Department now plans to. The Honor Guard created a GoFundMe page for the trucks improvements. The site accepts online donations, and the goal is set at $25,000.

Waco firefighter Larry Denman said the money will fund new paint, brakes and other basic tune-ups. But half of the battle is already won, because the engine still works. Denman, Lohmers neighbor, currently has the truck at his home.

Its a nostalgic truck, Denman said. It sits low to the ground. Once we remove the water tank, its a good height for a casket vehicle. It would also be a good parade vehicle because its not 10 feet tall.

For those hip to automotive terminology, the 1956 truck has a 12-volt generator system, downdraft carburetor and electric fuel pumps.

It fits the era of what most people would think, Denman said.

He approached Lohmer about a year ago and asked if he would consider donating it to the Honor Guard, and Lohmer gladly agreed.

I support the fire department, Lohmer said. They better take care of it. Its going to be a pretty vehicle.

John Linda, a Waco Fire Department lieutenant, is especially excited for future parade use, which includes the Baylor University Homecoming Parade, Veterans Day Parade and Christmas Parade.

He said the Dallas and Houston fire departments also have trucks designated for parades and funerals.

The Honor Guard is going to start this. Waco has never had anything like this in modern history, Linda said. It sort of gets Waco out there because other departments have one. It makes Waco look even better.

Waco firefighter Tracy Blackshear is the only bagpiper in the organization and expects the truck to bolster the Honor Guards reputation.

We try to run like the military does through the top to bottom chain of command, Blackshear said. The presence of the Honor Guard is important when we post the colors of the American flag. Its one thing to do it, and another thing to do it respectfully.

Regardless of the how the 60-year-old truck is used, Wacos 3-year-old Honor Guard now holds responsibility.

Lohmer, who returned home Friday after undergoing rehabilitation following back surgery, knows his 2003 adventure served a purpose.

I definitely feel its important to preserve that, he said. If they didnt, I would myself. Its the same with so many more people. Its very much a reward in itself.
Attorneys for Baylor University argued Thursday that a portion of the Baylor Alumni Association lawsuit against the school should be dismissed because the contract with the group was not valid and was subject to termination at any time.

Both sides have pending motions seeking to prevail in the extended dispute, but only Baylor urged its summary judgment motion during a three-hour hearing Thursday in Wacos 74th State District Court.

Judge Gary Coley Jr. did not rule on the motion after hearing arguments from attorneys on both sides and said after the hearing that he will rule in coming weeks.

The judge will hear Baylors second motion for summary judgment at a hearing Feb. 11.

Thursdays hearing focused on a 1994 recognition and license agreement between Baylor and the BAA.

The BAA countersued, contending that Baylor breached its contract with the association, conspired to silence the BAAs independent voice by trying to put it out of business and improperly tore down its campus headquarters under false pretenses that the area was needed to build a walkway over the Brazos River to the new McLane Stadium.

The university is seeking a judgment that the BAA be terminated or re-formed and limited to helping students with financial aid.

As the dispute drags on, the acrimony between the parties has spilled over at times into the courtroom. Attorneys made it clear Thursday that they even disagree about matters on which they previously told the court they had reached an accord.

Baylor has had an association with the Baylor Alumni Association for over 150 years, said Steve McConnico, who represents Baylor with Andy McSwain. Most of the time it has been good for Baylor and good for the Baylor Alumni Association, and the university is very appreciative of what it has done. But recently, the BAA has not served Baylors best interest and that is why we are here.

McConnico argued that agreements in perpetuity, such as the one with the BAA, are not valid and can be terminated at will. He also told the judge that the terms of the agreement between Baylor and the BAA are too vague to be enforced. McConnico argued that so much has changed at Baylor since the 1994 agreement was signed and that it would handicap Baylors progress for the vague agreement to be upheld.

Baylor has a fiduciary duty and they cant be bound by agreements made decades ago that tie their hands to where they cant do whats best for the university, McConnico said.

Austin attorney Shannon Ratliff, one of several attorneys who represent the BAA, countered that it is hard to imagine that when former Baylor President Herbert Reynolds signed the agreements with the BAA that he didnt intend them to be enforceable.

The courts are here to enforce agreements between parties and are not here to nullify solvent agreements between people, Ratliff said. Baylor says the agreements are not enforceable because it improperly binds future administrations and board of regents. I suspect Baylor has numerous contracts that extend beyond the life of the current regents and President Ken Starr. Are they going to argue that those are not valid?

In the 1994 recognition and license agreement between Baylor and the BAA, Baylor recognized the BAA as the official alumni organization of Baylor University.

In exchange, the BAA agreed to support the purpose and goals of Baylor University as expressed in its original charter.

Also, the BAA agreed to serve as the general alumni organization for all of Baylors schools and colleges, maintain an office on Baylors campus, carry out all of the objectives set out in the BAA bylaws and constitution, publish an alumni magazine, and organize and sponsor homecoming activities.

McSwain argued that the agreements are not enforceable because the terms are too vague. He also said the BAA has the authority to amend its bylaws without Baylors permission, which could change the terms of the agreements.

Ratliff argued that as long as the BAA was performing in accordance with the agreement, the agreement is enforceable, and Baylor breached that agreement.
As members of the Baylor University faculty, we write in response to Dr. W. Richard Turners continued attacks on Baylor and its policies, most recently in his column Thursday. Clearly, he wants Baylor to redefine itself as a formerly Christian university by imitating Emory, Duke, Vanderbilt and other formerly church-related schools.

Because we are not like them, Dr. Turner mistakenly calls Baylor a sectarian school. A quick trip to the dictionary would have taught him sectarian means narrowly confined to a single religious group.

Since its founding in 1845, Baylor has embraced Pro Ecclesia, Pro Texana as its motto: For the Church, For Texas. Though some still regard Texas as a sovereign nation, the Baylor motto grounds our life in scholarly Christian witness to the whole world. This is an encompassing ecumenical vision, not a narrowly denominational outlook, as Dr. Turner suggests.

Far from being a cramped sectarian school, we regard Baylor as an ecumenically Christian university in the Baptist tradition. Why else would Baylor welcome Jews to our faculty? Why do more than 2,500 Catholics study at Baylor? Why are more than 25 percent of our faculty also Catholic? Hardly evidence of sectarianism. Neither is there any religious test for students, much less any required religious practice, as Dr. Turner alleges. It is ridiculous to claim, as he does, that Baylor seeks a monopoly on intellectual achievement or moral behavior.

Rather than providing intellectual diversity by turning Baylor into a secular school, as Dr. Turner desires, this would in fact lessen diversity in American education. Such a reversal would make us ever more like other second-rate private universities that have surrendered their distinctive religious character. Against Dr. Turners charge that Baylor has failed to attract a world-class faculty, the opposite is actually the case. In refusing to take the road of secularization, Baylor is attracting first-rate scholars and teachers from all over the globe. They come to Baylor to gain the freedom that they are denied elsewhere  i.e., to teach and work in an unapologetically and ecumenically Christian setting.

We gladly assure Dr. Turner that we do not count ourselves among these world-class academics. Yet we work closely with such top-notch faculty as well as with top-notch students from many religious traditions. They choose Baylor because of its Judeo-Christian vision, not in spite of it. This perspective does not exclude or marginalize anyone. Students of any (and no) religious faith are welcomed at Baylor. It is wildly inaccurate to charge, as Dr. Turner does, that our welcoming and open stance toward all students constitutes a form of racial discrimination.

Dr. Turner also asserts that Baylor is not preparing its students to live in a diverse world. On the contrary, Baylor seeks to give them the moral and religious bearings by which they might navigate their lives and work amid such bewildering diversity. Rather than leaving our graduates floundering in a sea of subjective preferences, we hope to provide them a compass. Its true North is academic excellence and religious conviction. When rightly joined, these two virtues enable Baylor graduates to make life-giving contributions to their diverse communities. Though Baylor has often failed in this mission, we are honored to participate in a more faithful realization of it.

If Dr. Turner would venture over to Baylors campus, hed soon learn that Baylor has a much healthier social and intellectual environment than he imagines. We welcome him to our offices and our classes.

Ralph C. Wood is professor of theology and literature at Baylor University. A. Christian van Gorder is an associate professor of religion at Baylor University and a member of the Trib Board of Contributors.
Given the fanfare and excitement greeting new Baylor University Provost Edwin Trevathan on campus and in our community, his decision to step down last week after eight months justifies some concern. But the on-campus friction and intrigue over the proposed creation of a chief diversity officer under his watch is even more troubling, given Baylors growing national prominence and Wacos ties to it.

Whether Trevathans stepping down to a faculty post is indicative of at least some faculty and staff resistance to his ideas, the incident casts a shadow over what we have long believed (and continue to believe) is Baylor President Ken Starrs desire to make Baylor more tolerant of diversity. That shadow should not be allowed to tarry.

Documents obtained by the Trib suggest what began as a welcome idea  an administrative post to better steer Baylor toward an atmosphere of accepting, recognizing and championing differences in race and gender  has given way to fears this might create a slippery slope leading to directions inappropriate for a Christian university. One concern seems to be this could be taken to levels that clash with Christian values.

One campus memo raises concern about the boundless range of diversity that could be invoked such as (in no particular order) religion, color of hair, scholarly views, personal views, race, gender, language, educational background, socio-economic background, sexual orientation, appearance, age, ethnicity, degree of qualification, moral uprightness/depravity, area of research, physical abilities, mental abilities, physical health, mental health, genetic status, etc.

This memo also asks: What means to the pursuit of diversity are just? Quotas? Tie-breaking? Targeting via funding? Yet another memo dated Oct. 23, 2015, raises the fear that better-qualified faculty prospects might falter because of not hailing from one of the preferred groups. And Elizabeth Corey, associate professor of political science, who authored a blog post titled Diversity in a Christian University on Oct. 28, stresses that Christian universities should think long and hard ... before they sign their souls over to the secular rule of diversity officers.

Yet Lynne Hinojosa, associate professor of literature, makes clear in a document of her own that diversity at Baylor is well worth any heady challenges, including those that face a university distinct from others by its Christian mission and identity.

Such conflict suggests a microcosm of what we see in American society today. Some of these issues are at the heart of a case that U.S. Supreme Court justices debated last month  and hotly  over the future of a program at the University of Texas that counts race as at least one factor for admissions. The question of diversity is certainly relevant amidst a presidential campaign that seems increasingly focused on stressing our differences, cultivating fear of outsiders, whipping up passion to protect the moral makeup of Judeo-Christian society and discussing whether Christians can even co-exist with others when the differences involve, say, an Islamic background, an unpopular academic perspective or a controversial sexual orientation. All of these concerns rate fair, frank and respectful debate.

The Baylor community has already had some public discussions regarding all this, though judging from the memos now circulating, battle lines have only deepened. However Baylor leadership addresses this thorny subject, the students  themselves increasingly diverse  should be the priority. They should not be cheated of intellectual enlightenment in its broadest reaches and better understanding of a world brimming with differences  a world they will all too soon be engaging.
Islam is evil

President Obama lied in his recent State of the Union address. He promotes terrorism when he says we should accept the Islamic faith as a peaceful religion. Islam is anything but peaceful. It has no love and is full of hate. Wanting to kill people means you hate them and consider them worthless.

Islam is the only religion that preaches killing and maiming people. There are 137 passages in the Quran telling you to kill. Muslims try and tell you it is a peaceful religion. Yet all Jews, Christians and any non-Muslims who do not convert to Islam are to be killed or enslaved.

Obama was raised as a Muslim and is a Muslim sympathizer. He refers to radical Islamic people but, if you read and follow the Quran, all Muslims are potential killers. If you are a pseudo-Muslim and do not follow the Quran, you might be a decent person, but a pseudo-Muslim cant give up Islam because the Quran says he must be killed if he does.

The Shiites and Sunnis hate each other and want to kill each other. Where is the love? When a Muslim goes out to kill, he says, God is great. What is great about killing, any killing? His god sounds evil and is more like a devil, not a peaceful and loving god.

Look at what is going on in the Muslim countries: Christians being systematically wiped out. Bibles, crosses and rosaries are not allowed in Muslim countries. You will see no tolerance and no love.

Victor L. Du Part, Waco

Repent now!

Regarding Brent Dotys Jan. 15 column titled, Forgiving, but not tolerant: Mr. Doty expresses a truth not often given from the biblical perspective as well as the prejudiced response by most media toward Christianity. The response of Jesus to the woman accused of adultery is this: Neither do I condemn thee; go and sin no more. And John 8:11 is unknown to those who have never read the rest of the story. Nor is the fact that the whole setting of this story was an attempt by dishonest persons to put Jesus in a trap (John 8:1-6).

Jesus loves with an undying love and longs to forgive each of us when we have sinned but says: As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten; be zealous therefore and repent. (Revelation 3:19) The Apostle Paul puts it this way: The Lord is long-suffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9) God is all-forgiving but not tolerant of willful disobedience.

David Trayler, Lorena

And, oh, be polite

Every day I keep seeing and hearing the same old song and dance. All races are guilty of this to a certain extent. So heres the truth: When stopped for traffic violations by law enforcement, if you are courteous and respectful to the officer, chances of getting a mere warning are good. But when you challenge and do not cooperate, you put yourself in a serious predicament along with putting the officer on the defense. Its not rocket science. Cooperate and your outcome could be very good.

J.J. Woychesin, Bremond
Chief Minister Andrew Barr's pre-election reshuffle will see the traditional Labor portfolio of education go to Green Shane Rattenbury and a mid-year handover of responsibility for the light rail project take place.

Sparked by the resignation of embattled former minister Joy Burch, the reshuffle brings to seven the number of cabinet members, as newcomer Meegan Fitzharris takes over municipal services from Mr Rattenbury and gains the newly-established transport portfolio. Minister Mick Gentleman will take responsibility for the Mr Fluffy asbestos buyback program.

Chief Minister Andrew Barr with ministers Yvette Berry, Meegan Fitzharris and Chris Bourke. Credit:Graham Tidy

Deputy Chief Minister Simon Corbell will retain his existing responsibilities, of Attorney-General, environment, police and health until his retirement at the October election, but he will hand the Capital Metro project over to Ms Fitzharris on June 30 when a new single transport agency becomes operational. A single environmental conservation agency will also be created.
Organised crime groups have become so successful at importing drugs into Australia that the wholesale price being paid for ice, cocaine and ecstasy has dramatically fallen in the past 18 months.

The NSW Crime Commission says the illegal drug trade remains the main source of income for organised crime in Australia and at present illicit substances are in "plentiful supply".

Fairfax Media has learned that the wholesale price paid by Australian criminal groups to import cocaine from overseas was as high as $280,000 a kilogram three years ago. Eighteen months ago it had dropped to $240,000 a kilogram and now sells below $200,000 and as low as $180,000.

The cost for a kilogram of ice has fallen in the last 18 months from $220,000 to as low as $95,000 and ecstasy had dropped from $65,000 to $37,000.
Royal Life Saving Australia has warned people not to swim after drinking alcohol over the Australia Day weekend, as new figures reveal a dramatic increase in drownings this summer.

Since the start of December, Royal Life Saving Australia has recorded a total of 59 drownings, a 16 per cent increase in deaths from the same period last year.

Royal Life Saving Australia is asking people to be careful to swim first before drinking. Credit:Dallas Kilponen

Young men were the most at risk, with males aged 25-44 making up more than one-quarter of all drownings.

In fact, males accounted for 80 per cent of all summer drownings - a statistic that is "unfortunately bang on trend" with annual averages, where men drown at four times the rate of women, according to Royal Life Saving National Manager of Research and Policy, Amy Peden.
The state government will conduct a security audit of every NSW hospital following the near-fatal shooting of a police officer and security guard at Nepean Hospital.

Health Minister Jillian Skinner met with Health Services Union delegates on Thursday, more than a week after an ice-affected patient allegedly pulled the police officer's gun from its holster during a violent struggle in the hospital's emergency ward.

Doctors, nurses and hospital security guards have spoken out about a crisis in NSW hospitals after a near-fatal shooting at Nepean Hospital. Credit:Daniel Munoz

Investigations by Fairfax Media have uncovered a litany of near-misses in NSW hospitals, including a similar incident in Manly Hospital in August, in which a patient assaulted a police officer and attempted to grab his gun from its holster.

Doctors, nurses and hospital security guards have since spoken out about a crisis in NSW hospitals, with violence increasing alongside skyrocketing use of crystal methamphetamine, or ice.
Dangerous surf conditions, storm activity and temperatures as high as 45 degrees are forecast for parts of Queensland in the lead up to Australia Day.

Meteorologists are tipping an almost even chance of rain in south-east Queensland for the day itself.

Residual effects of a tropical cyclone over the Fijian islands are causing instability along the southern Queensland coast, expected to persist over the weekend.
A 24-year-old Brisbane man is under investigation following his release of a video on Facebook in which he appears to bite the head off a live rat and swallow it.

The RSPCA seized 17 rats and a python from a home in Albion after a video was posted to Facebook seemingly depicting Matt Maloney biting the head off the animal.

Matt Maloney allegedly bit the head off a live rat in a Facebook video posted on Tuesday. Credit:Mad Matts vids

The video, since shared more than 200,000 times on Facebook, showed Mr Maloney storm into a room, get hit by a fluorescent tube, allegedly bite a rat's head off and wash it down with three shots of vodka, get punched in the face, and have a chair broken over his back.

RSPCA Queensland spokesman Michael Beatty said the seized rats and python would stay at the RSPCA pending possible charges under the animal care and protection act.
The Queensland government insists it was right not to help Clive Palmer's refinery trade out of trouble, despite an expected turnaround in the nickel price.

The federal MP has attacked the government for refusing to guarantee a $35 million loan to help his company, Queensland Nickel, stay afloat until commodity prices rebound.

Treasurer Curtis Pitt says guaranteeing a loan for Queensland Nickel was too big a risk. Credit:Chris Hyde

The company has since sacked 237 workers at its refinery near Townsville, and on Monday entered voluntary administration.

State Development and Mines Minister Anthony Lynham on Friday revealed his own department was expecting an upturn in nickel prices by the middle of the year.
Federal Fremantle Labor MP Melissa Parke has decided to retire from politics and will not contest the next federal election.

The former human rights lawyer was elected to the seat of Fremantle in 2007 after the retirement of former WA Premier Carmen Lawrence, who held the seat between from 1994-07.

Fremantle Labor MP Melissa Parke is planning to retire from politics. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

The 49-year-old said it was an honour to have been in parliament for nine years, representing the community of Fremantle.

"I deeply respect the passion and values demonstrated daily by my constituents and the support they offer me," she said in a release.
The state government will appeal a Supreme Court ruling declaring the environmental approval for the most controversial part of the Perth Freight Link invalid.

Premier Colin Barnett said on Friday the Environmental Protection Authority would be requested to reassess the Roe 8 project, saying it remained a major priority for the state government.

Roe 8 protesters had a short-lived win last month. Credit:ReThink The Link

He said an appeal of Chief Justice Wayne Martin's ruling in December was necessary given the broader implications of the decision on future development in WA.

"The State Government will request a reassessment of the Roe 8 project to ensure that this critical project proceeds with all necessary environmental approvals in place," Mr Barnett said.
Mr Anderson said coastal trade vessels carrying passengers, cargo and mail had been important in linking WA settlements before road transport. The hull of the Batavia. Credit:WA Museum "Vessels followed the coast using it as a 'handrail' as they visually navigated their way between coastal ports," he said. "Many ships were smaller fishing vessels such as pearling luggers and they were often caught in cyclones while fishing, or travelling between ports and fishing grounds." Silver coins recovered from a Dutch wreck off the WA coast. Credit:WA Museum

But booty ranging from pieces of eight, gold sovereigns and diamonds has also been found along WA's "treasure coast". There is also said to be rare pottery, pearls and rich cargoes of lead and copper among the more than 300 significant wrecks as catalogued on the WA Museum's shipwreck database. Mr Anderson said historic shipwrecks had archaeological, scientific, social, educational and economic importance. "They are archaeologically important as each wreck is like a mini-Pompeii frozen in time," he said. "The wrecks and their associated artefacts show us things used by people at that precise moment. They can answer broad-scale questions about trade, economy and society, and we can also learn about the daily lives of people who are not written about in history books."

The assistant curator said some spectacular wrecks, including wrecks and artefacts displayed in maritime museums, had educational value and also contributed to the tourism economy. The oldest known shipwreck off the WA coat is of an English vessel called the "Trial". This English East Indies Company vessel held a cargo including Spanish reales (a unit of currency) and gold bars and was en route from Plymouth to Batavia when it was wrecked on Ritchies Reef (later renamed Tryal Rocks) near the Montebello Islands in 1622. Nearly 100 sailors lost their lives. A number of relics have been recovered from the site including several cannons .Many of the early wrecks that dot the coastline were vessels that passed up and down the WA coastline during the 17th and early 18th centuries as part of the thriving trade between Holland and the Dutch East Indies [now Indonesia].

Many were wrecked, mainly along the mid-west coast, and some of the more significant wrecks were found in between the 1950s-1970s. Recovered artefacts were originally shared between Australian and Dutch museum collections. The two countries later forged the ANCODS [Agreement between Australia and the Netherlands Concerning Old Dutch Shipwrecks]. This covered artefacts recovered from the four Dutch East India Company ships that sank along the Western Australian coast in the 17th and 18th centuries and led to all the artefacts being consolidated into one collection at the WA Museum in 2011. The four Dutch ships were: the Batavia, the Vergulde Draeck [Gilt Dragon], the Zuytdorp, and the Zeewijk. The collection of 27,500 artefacts includes bullion, cargo and building materials, navigational equipment, arms and armament, medical supplies, personal possessions of the crew and passengers, human and animal remains, and artefacts relating to the ships, their sails and rigging.

Batavia: The famous "Batavia" was wrecked on a reef at the Abrolhos Islands in 1629 while on a voyage to its namesake in the Dutch East Indies. Its cargo also included a veritable king's ransom in silver coins. Under commander Francisco Pelsaert and skipper Ariaen Jacobsz, the newly-built Batavia sailed for the Dutch East Indies on October 27, 1628 It struck a reef near Beacon Island in the Houtman Abrolhos on June 4, 1629. About 40 people drowned and some 280 made it ashore. The commander, the skipper and others left in a 30-foot boat and sailed for Batavia, now known as Jakarta. Pelsaert returned to recover the bullion and to rescue the survivors only to discover a murderous mutiny had occurred in his absence.

The Batavia was discovered in 1963 and the first successful excavations were conducted on Beacon Island, where 17th century Dutch artefacts were found along with with human skeletons. Between 1970-1974, the WA Museum recovered cannons from the Batavia wreck, an anchor and many other artifacts were salvaged. A replica of the Batavia was later built and launched in the Netherlands. A replica of the longboat was also constructed and is presently on exhibition at the WA Museum in Geraldton. Vergulde Draeck: The Vergulde Draeck [Gilt Dragon] carrying trade goods and eight chests of silver to the value of 78,6000 guilders was wrecked just south of Ledge Point in 1656. Some 75 people from the 193 on board made it ashore. A small boat was sent to Batavia [now Jakarta] and arrived 40 days later.

The wreck, the first of the Dutch and English East India ships found on the WA coast, was discovered by five spear-fishermen in April 1963. After a period in which both it and the Batavia, [which was found later in the same year] were heavily looted, shipwreck legislation was enacted, vesting the sites in the WA Museum. . Zuytdorp: On 1 August 1711 Zuytdorp, also Zuiddorp [meaning 'South village'], was dispatched from the Netherlands to Batavia. It never arrived at its destination. No search was undertaken, since there was no idea where the ship was lost. The crew were never heard from again.. In 1964 a team conducted the first dive on the wreck, and on a subsequent dive found a veritable "carpet of silver'. Five years later, the WA Museum became responsible for the site and began the recovery of the silver.

In 1976, the wreck was protected and a restricted zone was declared. Zeewijk: The Zeewijk was wrecked on the Houtman Abrolhos, on June 9, 1727. The Zeewijk did not break up immediately and goods, including the treasure chests, were transferred to Gun Island, it was obvious to the crew that the ship could never be floated from its position locked into the reef. A rescue group of 11 of the fittest survivors and first mate set off for Batavia in the longboat on July 10, but were never heard from again. Materials from the wreck and local mangrove timber was then used by the crew to construct the 20-metre long Sloepie. On March 26, 88 men set off on the one-month journey to Batavia with all but six surviving the voyage.

Skipper Jan Steyns was prosecuted for losing the Zeewijk and falsifying the ship's records. He lost his position, salary and property. After some earlier promising finds, journalist and diver Hugh Edwards led divers and WA Museum staff to the main wreck site in March 1968. The WA Museum subsequently conducted several expeditions to survey the site and to recover artefacts. Mr Edwards has also been involved in the unsolved mystery of another Dutch ship that may have sunk off the WA coast with 212 hands on board. The Aagtekerke is believed to have gone down in 1726 after leaving the Cape of Good Hope bound for Batavia. Theories abound on its final resting place with the Abrolhos Islands emerging as a leading contender.
It's hard not to see it as a response to Taiwan's elections.

Days after Taiwanese voters elected the leader of a pro-independence party to the president's office, China's military announced that a unit based opposite Taiwan had carried out live firing drills and mock landing exercises.

Separately, thousands of trolls from China jumped over the Great Firewall to flood the Facebook page of Taiwan's President-elect, Tsai Ing-wen, with hostile comments.

The Chinese government has responded warily to Ms Tsai's election, saying it wants good relations with an island it considers part of its sovereign territory. But it also demands Ms Tsai embrace the idea that there is only "one China" and renounce any notion that Taiwan could one day declare formal independence.
"After he shot his two brothers, he walked back to school and he shot ... a teacher and a girl. They're both dead. Four of them died," said Joe Lemaigre, a family friend who lives on the outskirts of La Loche. "I know the family. Their mother worked in Fort McMurray and his grandfather went to Meadow Lake to do some shopping. That's when he shot them." Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has described the school shooting as "every parent's worst nightmare". Credit:Michel Euler The shooting occurred in a high school building, and another location in Saskatchewan, Canadian police said. Police took the suspect into custody outside the school and seized a gun. Chief Bobby Cameron of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations, which represents more than 70 of the province's Indian bands, said a few students were in surgery on Friday evening in Saskatoon.

"Everyone is still in shock and disbelief," Chief Cameron said. "It's a very, very horribly tragic event." La Loche student Noel Desjarlais told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation that he heard multiple shots fired at the school, which has about 900 students. "I ran outside the school," Desjarlais said. "There was lots of screaming, there was about six, seven shots before I got outside. I believe there was more shots by the time I did get out." A mobile phone video taken by one resident and broadcast by the CBC showed students walking away from the school across the snow-covered ground and emergency personnel moving in. Among Canada's provinces, Saskatchewan had the highest rate of police-reported family violence in 2014, double the national rate of 243 incidents per 100,000 people, according to a Statistics Canada report on Thursday.

Extra doctors and nurses were sent to treat patients in Keewatin Yatthe Regional Health Authority's 16-bed hospital, said spokesman Dale West. He declined to say how many people had been injured. "It's really sad in La Loche today, very depressing," said Tenisha Lemaigre, who lives in the town of less than 3,000 people and said she knew many students. Unemployment runs above 20 percent in the area but three-quarters of working-age people are classified as retired or not looking for work, according to 2011 government figures. Residents say the real unemployment rate is above 50 percent. In 2014, a teacher expressed concern about violence at the La Loche school, noting that a student who had tried to stab her was put back in her classroom after serving his sentence, and another attacked her at her home. "That student got 10 months," Janice Wilson told the CBC of the student who tried to stab her in class. "And when he was released he was returned to the school and was put in my classroom."

Initial reports said five people were killed, but that was revised down to four. Teddy Clark, chief of the Clearwater River Dene Nation, said that his daughter told him about the shooting, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported. "I know there are some casualties and there are some people that are in critical condition that are being medivaced to the nearest cities, I would imagine Fort McMurray or Saskatoon." La Loche Grade 10 student Noel Desjarlais told the CBC that he heard multiple shots fired at the school. "I ran outside the school," Desjarlais said. "There was lots of screaming, there was about six, seven shots before I got outside. I believe there was more shots by the time I did get out."

A mobile phone video taken by one resident and broadcast by the CBC showed students walking away from the school through the snow-covered ground and emergency personnel moving in. La Loche Community School is a pre-kindergarten to grade 12 school, which houses about 900 students in two buildings. There was an emergency at the building that houses grades 7 to 12, the school district's Facebook page said. Both that building and the elementary school were put on lockdown. In 2014, a teacher expressed concern about violence at the La Loche school, citing an incident where a student who had tried to stab her was put back in her classroom after serving his sentence, and another attacked her at her home. "That student got 10 months," Janice Wilson told the CBC of the student who tried to stab her in class. "And when he was released he was returned to the school and was put in my classroom."
Kentucky State Police are looking for a missing Monticello woman last seen in Hopkinsville
By Rosemarie Steele, Paducah Arts Alliance Jan. 21, 2016 | 08:47 PM | PADUCAH, KY

Paducah artist Randy Simmons creates strong statement in black and white at prestigious international drawing exhibition.Paducah Arts Alliance is proud to announce that board member Randy Simmons workhas been accepted into the international juried exhibition Drawing Discourse 2016 at the University of North Carolina (UNC) Asheville. The exhibit will be on display through February 12 at S. Tucker Cooke Gallery located in Owen Hall, One University Heights, in Asheville, North Carolina.As part of an ongoing commitment to promote drawing practices in the visual arts, UNC Asheville invited artists to examine drawing as it is practiced and defined by todays artists. The exhibition demonstrates the continued significance of drawing through both conventional and innovative methods. Juror Edgar Jerins, an adjunct faculty member at the New York Academy of Art, selected 43 pieces from 908 entries that were submitted by 307 artists from 7 countries.Its an incredible honor to be a part of such a fiercely competitive international drawing exhibition, notes Simmons, an Associate Professor of Drawing at the Paducah School of Art and Design. Now in its 7th year, Simmons work has been accepted into four other shows, winning the first place award in 2010. Simmons was one of four equal award winners in the drawing exhibit in 2014 and was invited to be a guest lecturer at the college. Organizer Tami Beldue, drawing professor at UNC, confirmed that Simmons holds the highest record for inclusion in this distinguished exhibit.Simmons recently presented a solo exhibition showcasing a collection of recent large charcoal drawings mostly based on iPhone portraits of friends, narrative portraits, and street people in Italy., premiered in November 2015 at BiLan Liao Studio & Gallery in Paducahs LowerTown Arts District.Drawing shows are a rarity on their own, notes Simmons. Drawing has been and continues to be an overlooked medium, losing favor to the likes of painting, often viewed as a preparatory stage to other mediums. Its my opinion that black and white drawing is fine art stripped to its technical bones. Theres no color to overwhelm, the composition, the subject, the meat of whats communicated, is put down on paper. Anyone that can correctly draw the figure from observation is the most gifted of artists.In addition to his work at the Paducah School of Art & Design, Simmons teaches for the Kentucky Institute for International Studies with the Italy program. He travels abroad with students each summer, preparing them to be globally competent by exposing them to international culture, art and historyan effort that enhances Paducahs efforts as an UNESCO Creative City.In addition to Simmons Drawing Discourse recognition, he has been a merit award winner in the 57th Mid-States Art Exhibition, Evansville Museum of Arts and Science in Evansville, Indiana; and a First Place award winner at the Cedarhurst Biennial, Cedarhurst Center for the Arts, Mt. Vernon, Illinois.Simmons can be reached for interviews at randysimmons@me.com or by calling 270.994.6213 . To see more of his work, visit Randy Simmons website at www.randysimmonsdrawings.com
By Joe Jackson Jan. 21, 2016 | 04:54 PM | DRAFFENVILLE, KY

A Calvert City man was arrested on felony wanton endangerment, DUI and drug charges Thursday.

According to the Marshall County Sheriff's Office, deputies responded to the area of Scale Road in reference to a possible intoxicated driver. A caller told deputies that a truck had almost hit another vehicle head on.

A deputy met the truck on Scale Road, and the truck was reportedly well over the center line. The deputy swerved to miss the vehicle, but it struck the side mirror on the deputys patrol car.

Upon contact with the driver, 39-year-old Michael Hoffman, the deputy reportedly smelled alcohol and Hoffman was very unsteady on his feet. Deputies said a small bag of marijuana and a pipe were found in his pants pocket.

Hoffman was arrested and charged with operating a motor vehicle under the influence, 1st degree wanton endangerment, operating on a suspended or revoked operator's license, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.
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By Joe Jackson Jan. 22, 2016 | 10:03 AM | MAYFIELD, KY

Two Graves County officials are being hailed as heroes after their quick actions helped save a man's life Thursday.

A man reportedly started experiencing a cardiac episode while in the front foyer area of the Graves County Courthouse Thursday. Court Security Officer Wade Heatherly was made aware of the situation and immediately called for assistance and requested Mayfield/Graves County EMS to respond to his location.

Sheriff Dewayne Redmon was at the sheriffs office when the call for help was received. He made his way to the front foyer area of the courthouse after retrieving an Automated External Defibrillator or AED. Redmon and Heatherly attached the AED electrodes to the man, at which time a shock was delivered.

After the shock was delivered, the man regained consciousness and was treated further at the scene by Mayfield/Graves County EMS personnel. He was then transported to Baptist Health Paducah by EMS for further treatment and testing.
Rita Redmond was a true lady who felt that every pupil had something to gift to the world
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The hit production of Guys and Dolls which opened at the Savoy Theatre in January this year will transfer to the Phoenix Theatre, it has been confirmed.

The show will replace Bend It Like Beckham which shutters on 5 March 2016. Guys and Dolls opens on 19 March.

The production was originally a Chichester Festival Theatre production directed by Gordon Greenberg. The show tours from 16 March across the UK at the same time as the extended West End run. The show is currently booking at the Phoenix Theatre until October 2016.

Guys and Dolls is Frank Loesser, Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows' musical based on the stories and characters of Damon Runyon. It follows the tales of gangsters in New York and the love story between a gambling man and a Salvation Army woman and features songs such as "Luck Be a Lady" and "Sit Down You're Rockin' The Boat".

The UK tour will visit Liverpool Empire,Theatre Royal, Newcastle, His Majesty's Theatre, Aberdeen, The Edinburgh Playhouse, Edinburgh, Lyceum Theatre, Sheffield, Bord Gais Energy Theatre, Dublin, Theatre Royal, Norwich, Mayflower Theatre, Southampton, Grand Theatre, Leeds, Theatre Royal, Plymouth, King's Theatre, Glasgow, Milton Keynes Theatre, Milton Keynes, Theatre Royal, Nottingham, The Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury, New Theatre, Cardiff, Bristol Hippodrome, Bristol, Grand Theatre, Wolverhampton, New Victoria Theatre, Woking.

Full casting details are TBC.

Guys and Dolls runs at the Savoy Theatre until March 12.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory have launched The Imagination Awards, a competition split into two awards for young inventors and designers.

The awards offer two opportunities: Charlie's Challenge, which asks students aged five to 15 to take inspiration from the show's title character to come up with new solutions to problems facing the world, and the Young Theatre Design Award, which aims to seek out emerging artistic talent.

Today, the judges for the inaugural awards have been announced with a panel including Charlie director Sam Mendes and set and costume designer Mark Thompson.

For Charlie's Challenge, the judges will be Roma Agrawal, structural engineer, WSP Group, 18 year-old entrepreneur and founder of Thinkspace James Anderson, Inventor in Residence, Science Museum Mark Champkins and animator Emily Mulhall.

For the Young Designers Award, the judges will be members of the Charlie creative team including director Sam Mendes, producer Caro Newling, set and costume designer Mark Thompson and director of corporate responsibility at Warner Bros, Jess Moore.

Mendes explained the importance of the imagination when creating Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: "At the start of the show, Charlie Bucket's world is grey and cold, but he uses his imagination to transform the world into something wonderful. And Willy Wonka and his factory are the embodiment of the power of imagination.

"Creating something out of nothing is miraculous  that's what Roald Dahl did, it's what Charlie Bucket and Willy Wonka do, and it's what we're celebrating with this prize."

The Patron for the awards will be Ken Robinson.

Entries for the awards close on Monday 6 June with a shortlist announced on 20 June and winners announced on 8 July. For more information, click here.
The hit play Land of Our Fathers will be retuning to London, it has been announced. Chris Urch's debut play originally ran at Theatre 503 in 2013, then transferred to Trafalgar Studios.

The production will be brought back to London this year, following a UK tour, opening at the new Charing Cross venue FOUND111, where The Dazzle recently played.

Opening on 8 March and running to 19 March, the run offers more people a chance to catch Urch's play, which follows Welsh coal miners trapped underground. Directed by Theatre 503 boss Paul Robinson, the play is set in 1979 as Thatcher is coming to power.

Co-producer Tara Finney said: "Two and a half years [after it opened], the production has had a West End run, visited 15 venues around the UK and we're delighted to conclude its wonderful journey by bringing the production back to London one final time."

Urch won the Bruntwood award for his second play The Rolling Stone, which is currently running at the Orange Tree Theatre.

Land of Our Fathers runs at Found 111 from 8 to 19 March.
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The Kindertransport offered a glimmer of hope for desperate parents in the dark days following Kristallnacht in November 1938. This initiative funded the removal of almost 10,000 children, most of them Jewish, from Nazi Europe to the safety of British foster homes.

Among them was a 15-year-old girl, Lisa Jura, a gifted pianist from Vienna who was sent away for her own safety with a loving exhortation from her mother to 'hold on to her music', so that she would always have her family in her heart. She arrived at Liverpool Street station and was lodged in Willesden Lane, and eventually became a concert pianist. Her daughter, Mona Golabek, here tells her mother's story, accompanied by a selection of some of the world's most famous music, playing live on stage herself on a Steinway grand piano.

Golabek plays Lisa, and her frank, heartfelt tale carries a huge emotional weight - she clearly feels a responsibility to pass on her family's history, and to demonstrate how music will always have the power to cross any number of barriers, whether geographical or emotional.

This is an extraordinary story on every level. Golabek is very engaging and her 90-minute non-stop narrative is a tour de force. She is a performer, perhaps, rather than an actor, but the sweetness, sincerity and utter commitment of her delivery carries us along with the teenager's story of how she ended up living in a London house of 17 refugee children, and managed to hold on to her music.

Director Hershey Felder adapted the book, The Children of Willesden Lane, written by Golabek and Lee Cohen, to create this play, which has already been a success in the US.

Andrew Wilder and Greg Sowizdrzal's projection design, and Ross Glane's video direction serves to flesh out the individual story with a visual reminder of the world-shattering events that led Lisa to London without her family.

The design is simple but Hershey Felder and Trevor Hay have created a set that echoes the elegance of Vienna in the 1930s, as well as a poignant series of huge picture frames that serve to show us family portraits as well as other key images and contemporary film footage.

And of course, there is the music. Mona Golabek is a gifted concert pianist herself, and brings a simply beautiful selection of music to illustrate each stage of her mother's journey, where her piano was her lifeline. The show culminates with her passionate debut at the Wigmore Hall, playing Grieg's Piano Concerto in A Minor.

The Pianist of Willesden Lane is a fitting tribute to Golabek's own grandparents, and to the countless others who had the courage to save their children's lives, knowing their own were forfeit, by saying goodbye.

The Pianist of Willesden Lane runs at St James Theatre until 27 February.
Wilkes University is once again ranked among top national universities in U.S. News and World Reports Best Colleges ranking of American colleges and universities. Wilkes is ranked 234 among 440 national universities in the 2023 edition. This is the 19th consecutive year that Wilkes has been ranked and its fourth
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A former Winnipeg high school gym teacher has been sentenced to four years in prison for sexually exploiting a female student.

Shane Vanveen, 34, appeared in court Thursday after pleading guilty to crimes involving a 17-year-old girl at a Winnipeg school in 2013. He was sentenced under a joint-recommendation from Crown and defence lawyers.

The community needs to know (the victim) did nothing wrong. This was not an affair. This was not a consensual relationship. By law, she could not consent to this relationship, prosecutor Debbie Buors told court.

Over the course of several months, Vanveen sent explicit photos, videos and text messages to the teen while also having sex with her. The obvious breach of trust in a teacher-student relationship made this illegal. The Free Press is not naming the specific school to avoid potentially identifying the victim, whose name is covered by a publication ban.

Its the Crowns position this was clearly grooming behaviour, said Buors. He got close to her family to gain access to her. There were multiple occasions of sexual interaction and sexual assaults.

School officials were concerned about Vanveens conduct with the student and had warned him on at least six prior occasions not to be alone with the girl, court was told. Rumours began circulating within the school and church community about what was happening, and it was community members who ultimately exposed the relationship and contacted police. Vanveen was immediately fired.

These crimes have torn my heart apart and made me feel like the worst father in the world, the victims father said in an impact statement read aloud b the Crown on Thursday. I was not able to protect my little girl.

The victim sat in the front row of the courtroom, beside her parents, but did not provide an impact statement.

I blamed myself for not being a good enough mother. How could I have missed seeing this? her mother wrote.

Defence lawyer Richard Wolson said this was completely out-of-character for his client, who is a married father of four young children. Vanveens wife continues to stick by his side and was in court Thursday. The Crown said the woman has actually tried to blame the teen victim for what happened.

I am sorry for everything Ive done to the victim and her family. I am sorry for everything Ive brought on my family, the school, the church, the community, Vanveen said Thursday when given a chance to address the court.

He has been free on bail since his arrest, but was taken away by sheriffs officers to begin serving his sentence. Crown and defence lawyers said a four-year prison term is the typical range for a major sexual assault and breach of trust situation.

www.mikeoncrime.com
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RBC sells insurance unit

TORONTO  Royal Bank of Canada is selling RBC General Insurance and moving some of its employees to Aviva Canada.

The bank (TSX:RY) will receive about $582 million from the sale of the home and auto insurance business, and RBC estimates it will realize a $200-million after-tax net gain from the deal, which will close in the summer.

Aviva Canada will provide property and casualty insurance to RBC customers, including home and auto, under a 15-year strategic agreement with the bank. Policyholders wont be affected at this time, RBC said.

About 575 RBC employees will move to Aviva and others supporting the sales process will remain with the bank.

Those who are moving to Aviva are responsible for claims, underwriting, product development, information technology and related functions.

The head of RBC Insurance said the deal will allow the bank to focus on and invest in areas with the greatest potential for growth, including life, health and wealth insurance.

Clooney ad sparks suit

JERUSALEM  A George Clooney doppelganger is brewing up tensions between two coffee companies in Israel.

Nespresso is suing the Israeli Espresso Club for using an actor with a striking resemblance to the star in one of its ads. Clooney is the face of Nespresso. The ad shows the Clooney look-alike being schooled on the benefits of Espresso Club. A disclaimer warns the actor, silver-haired and carrying what appears to be a Nespresso bag, is not George Clooney.

Nespresso Israel said Thursday the legal step was taken to prevent customers from being misled. It is demanding $50,000 in damages and for the ad to be removed.

Espresso Club says the tongue-in-cheek ad and the Clooney character target customers looking for an informal coffee experience.

Auto recalls set record

DETROIT  Automobile recalls hit a record last year as stronger government enforcement and widening recalls of exploding airbags pushed the total above 51 million vehicles.

The 2015 number barely beat the record set in 2014, after that total was adjusted downward from nearly 64 million to eliminate double counting in the massive recalls of airbag inflators made by Takata Corp., according to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The agency recorded almost 900 recalls last year, beating the 2014 record of 803, the agency said.

Many of the recalls involved small numbers of vehicles as manufacturers moved faster to correct problems.

The 2014 total was adjusted to just under 51 million due to double counting and moving some Takata recalls from 2014 into 2015, NHTSA said.

Takata makes airbag inflators that can explode with too much force and hurl shrapnel into drivers and passengers. In the U.S., about 23 million of its inflators have been recalled on 19 million vehicles. Eight people worldwide have died and more than 100 more have been hurt.

 from the news services
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Canadas new minister of fisheries and oceans says he brings a fresh perspective to a job that has traditionally been filled by a politician from either the west or east coasts.

Hunter Tootoo is in Winnipeg today to meet with local fishers and industry and conservation officials. This morning he met with Premier Greg Selinger and Conservation and Water Stewardship Minister Tom Nevakshonoff.

The Nunavut MP is the second Inuk to be appointed as a senior federal cabinet minister and the first to hold the fisheries and oceans portfolio. Hes currently on a cross-country tour.

Darryl Dyck / The Canadian Press Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, Hunter Tootoo.

The perspective I bring is I look at both coasts from the third coast, Tootoo told reporters at the Manitoba Legislative Building.

Sporting a seal skin necktie, the federal minister said his personal background as an indigenous Canadian also allows him to bring a different set of eyes to the job.

Weve depended on the water and the land that has sustained us for thousands of years and we have a much more intimate understanding and (way of) looking at that, he said.

Tootoo has a Manitoba connection, having lived in Churchill. His uncle, George Hickes, is a former longtime Manitoba MLA and former speaker of the legislative assembly.

Tootoo said he will be discussing the issue of fish stocks and fish habitat in his meetings Friday. He said his department would be happy to assist the province in any way in developing a fish certification program for Manitoba lakes.
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Three of Canadas largest cities overwhelmed by the influx of Syrian refugees have taken a break from receiving more, but Winnipeg still has the welcome mat out even though it may be getting a bit scuffed.

Theres stuff falling through the cracks, said volunteer Melanie McGarry. Last Friday, she delivered bedding to a Syrian refugee family that was moved to a permanent home in a south Winnipeg suburb.

There were some beds and nothing else  no kitchen stuff, no groceries, no bedding. The government-assisted refugees had just been moved from temporary housing to their permanent home, she said. A settlement worker travelling by bus went to their home and took them by bus to get groceries, she said. Their immediate needs were eventually met but there seemed to be little planning and not enough communication or services provided to the family, McGarry said.

Ruth Bonneville / Winnipeg Free Press files The Daas family from Syria, one of the first Syrian families to come to Manitoba, arrives at Winnipeg's airport Dec. 19.

Since Dec. 10, Manitoba has received 368 Syrian refugees  311 of whom are government-assisted and rely totally on the federally funded refugee settlement agencies Welcome Place and Accueil francophone Manitoba. A total of 15 are privately sponsored, and 42 are blended visa-office referrals.

It makes me wonder how many other families are having difficulties in the transition to new housing from temporary accommodation, said McGarry.

There are plenty of Winnipeggers who wouldve helped ready the home for the family if they were asked, said McGarry.

People here want to help, she said.

The Canadian Red Cross in Manitoba says it has received 279 offers of help from the 1,207 people who called its Syrian refugee hotline as of Jan. 20. They were referred to resettlement agencies looking for volunteers, said Red Cross spokesman Jason Small. He said he couldnt comment on whether or not the agencies followed up with the volunteers offers to help make the Syrian refugees at home.

Resettlement agencies need to let community organizations know when they need help, said Shahina Siddiqui of the Islamic Social Services Association.

There needs to be better communication and trust-building, she said. If an agency needs help, thats when they need to call us. The association has helped Welcome Place by making sure Syrian families moving into temporary housing had food and toiletries. If asked, they would help by making sure the refugees permanent homes were ready, too, she said. And if were not able to, we can find someone, said Siddiqui. With all the goodwill in Winnipeg, theres no reason a family should move into a home with an empty fridge and no blankets for the beds, Siddiqui said. I dont want anyone to have this experience, she said.

Welcome Place executive director Rita Chahal didnt respond to Free Press questions Thursday.

The association that represents resettlement agencies says theyre still gearing up to handle the influx of refugees but are good to go.

The service providers are working really hard to respond to the needs and increase capacity (and staff) at the same time, said Bequie Lake, director of the Manitoba Immigrant and Refugee Resettlement Sector Association.

Things are better every day than they were the day before, said Lake. Theyre getting more prepared to deploy volunteers as more Syrian refugees arrive and more help is needed, she said. Its fantastic that theres been so much interest from the community in helping, said Lake. It is taking a bit of time to build a strategy around engaging everyone.

carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca
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The RCMP have reportedly been called in after two First Nation chiefs said they were offered finders fees to sign up their communities for Bank of Montreal loans in deals set up by a Winnipeg financial firm.

In an internal company document, the Usand Group listed favours as part of a business strategy identified as a risk to be managed if word of them ever leaked.

That document circulated widely Thursday around the Winnipeg financial brokerage and its business dealings with First Nations.

One of the chiefs, Saskatchewan Carry the Kettle First Nation leader Barry Kennedy, confirmed to the Free Press Thursday he called the RCMP and the federal Indigenous and Northern Affairs Department to investigate what he called a bribe made to him by a Usand official trying to sign the band onto a $12.6-million loan.

Ive spoken to them (RCMP). I told them I was offered some bribes, Kennedy said by phone. (The RCMP) are setting up an appointment with me, in conjunction with Indigenous Affairs, so I can sit down with all the evidence I have. Well proceed forward from there.

In both cases, the chiefs claim senior officials with Usand offered to sign up their communities for loans in exchange for finders fees. Usand is a Winnipeg brokerage reported to hold more than $100 million in loans and business deals exclusively with First Nations.

Kennedy said he was offered $25,000 plus one per cent of the $12.6-million loan. A one per cent finders fee, he said.

Usand was started by Manitoba lawyer Sean McCoshen, described as a commercial lawyer and merchant banker in a glowing Canadian Business Journal feature that said he launched the brokerage in 2012 to fill a gap for proper financing and investment solutions within Canadas First Nations. The company was born after extensive discussions with former national chief Ovide Mercredi, who remains listed on the companys website as a senior adviser. Mercredi did not return a call Thursday.

The internal document, titled the Usand Group Risk-management Plan 2014, identified kickbacks as any favour that might become publicized, and advised there be no written record of dealings, and to refer to them verbally in vague language, i.e. offer to give money back to the community to be used at their discretion.  The plan called for discussions prior to approval for any kickbacks. Try to utilize as a last resort, it stated.

And if word of kickbacks leaked out? Use a positive PR strategy. Head office may choose to put a moratorium on this technique.

The company issued a statement Thursday evening that appeared to follow that strategy.

The practices outlined in this APTN article are not condoned by Usand. This is simply not the way we do business, the statement read.

The Aboriginal Peoples Television Network broke the story early Thursday, posting interviews with the Carry the Kettle chief and a Manitoba chief.

It also posted an audio recording between the Carry the Kettle chief and former senior Usand official John Miswagon, where finders fees were discussed.

In the audio, a mans voice is heard describing a finders fee, to Kennedy. Its the same $25,000 fee Kennedy told the Free Press he reported to the RCMP he was offered. Kennedy said he was the one who released the recording.

Kennedy said the voice on the audio is Miswagon, a former chief of the Pimicikamack Cree in Cross Lake.

The Usand statement Thursday evening said Miswagon did make the call as a contractor with Usand. Mr. Miswagon has voluntarily withdrawn as a contractor with our company while this matter is under review, Usand said.

Usand said the use of the word kickbacks in the risk-management document was a mistake.

Unfortunately, an early draft of an internal risk-planning Usand document mistakenly uses the word kickback,  the statement said. (It) refers to a common business practice of providing community support through donations or sponsorships, Usand said.

Usands chief operating officer, Erinn Mah, offered to organize followup calls with McCoshen, Usands president. McCoshen did not return a call to his direct line earlier Thursday.

A second chief also came forward with similar claims of being offered a $100,000 finders fee to sign up his community for a multimillion-dollar loan, and after consulting elders and other band members, turned down the deal because we dont do deals that way.

Meanwhile, the bank at the centre of it, Bank of Montreal, was also distancing itself from the brokerage Thursday.

Our aboriginal banking group does not pay referral fees to these companies, said an email statement from corporate BMO spokesman Ralph Marranca in Toronto.

From time to time, our aboriginal banking group may receive referrals from companies such as Usand who act as representatives for their clients; however, our banking relationships are directly with our customers.

We hold ourselves to high standards of ethics and integrity and are committed to following fair business practices.

BMO is proud of its long-standing relationship with the aboriginal community, the banks statement said.

alexandra.paul@freepress.mb.ca
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Amid emotional interruptions and one high-profile walk-out, Mayor Brian Bowman marked the one-year anniversary of Winnipegs designation as Canadas most racist city by declaring 2016 the year of reconciliation.

And, at a two-hour event at city hall Friday, Bowman pledged an aboriginal accord like the one in place in Thompson, better training for city employees that will include the history of Indian residential schools, and more public recognition of residential schools. And, Bowman began handing out 500 blue plastic bracelets promoting Winnipegs diversity.

Bowman said, while critics may charge little has changed in the last year, the tone has shifted and the debate over racism has been reignited.

BORIS MINKEVICH / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Mayor Brian Bowman said he has reflected on the year following Winnipeg being labelled the most racist city in Winnipeg by Maclean's magazine.

Weve been able to drive this conversation down to the individual level, where it really needs to occur, said Bowman, who promised in vain he wouldnt get as emotional as he did during a press conference last year. I am incredibly proud of how we responded last year. Im proud of Winnipeg.

Bowman challenged Winnipeggers to find ways over the next year to respond individually to the recommendations in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Fridays event marked a year since Macleans magazine named Winnipeg the most racist city in Canada, which prompted the mayor to host a summit last year and set up his own indigenous advisory council.

The event was briefly interrupted by a tearful Somali mother who told those gathered outside the mayors office that she hadnt seen her three children for six years since child welfare apprehended them. At one point, Winnipeg Centre Liberal MP Robert-Falcon Ouellette shouted from the back, Who took her children?

After several moments, after city staff and Ojibway elder Randi Gage tried to calm her and Bowman agreed to meet with her, Winnipeg Police Service Chief Devon Clunis stepped in to lead the woman and her husband, both refugees, away to a nearby room.

Later, another woman asked to speak, and said from the podium that Manitoba is not friendly to newcomers, though she praised Bowman and encouraged him to run for Prime Minister.

Most speakers seemed unfazed by the interruptions, saying they were evidence many have problems that go unheard.

Justice Murray Sinclair, head of the Indian residential school Truth and Reconciliation Commission, said the womans emotional speech represented the sense of injustice many people, especially indigenous people, feel about Indian residential schools of the past and child and family services today.

That sense of injustice and that sense of loss and that sense of not being able to achieve ones objectives, being able to achieve ones sense our family, ones sense of community is often also reflected in the feelings of our friends from other parts of the world, said Sinclair.

Northern Grand Chief Sheila North Wilson walked out of the event early on, saying she was angry no leaders from Treaty One first nations were given places of honour or a chance to speak.

To me that is the ultimate representation of inclusion and respect for a nation in their own territory, said North Wilson. It just shows were not there yet.

An impromptu change in the program did see Brokenhead Ojibway Nation chief Jim Bear invited up to speak shortly after North Wilson left.

The Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak grand chief also objected to the presence of a small number of Winnipeg police officers, including Clunis. North Wilson said Clunis has refused to meet with her to discuss racism in the police force.

Randi Gage, vice-president of the Council of Women of Winnipeg, told the audience that she was grateful her hair had turned from black to gray because, as a young women, she was often the victim of subtle and not-so-subtle racism, including being shadowed by security while shopping. She said Winnipeg has a one per cent  not of wealthy people but of hard-core racists that she hoped Fridays initiatives would reach.

Everyone has a little file drawer of racism, she said. Its there. We have to make sure we shut that drawer and lock that sucker up.

Sylas Parenteau, a Grade 10 student at St. Johns High School, said just last summer a motorist in the North End shouted stupid Indian at him as he tried to cross the road. Asked whether the mayors initiatives will alter the views of that motorist, Parenteau said it might be more effective to concentrate on the next generation.

But everyone can change, said Parenteau, who is Metis. I hope it will change them, and the way they see aboriginal people.
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A friend says an injured Boissevain woman who crawled up a snowbank to seek help after spending overnight in a frigid ditch trying to keep her young daughter warm may never walk again.

Kristen Hiebert and four-year-old Avery were going home Sunday night when their car slid off Highway 23 near a bridge approximately one kilometre east of Dunrea and rolled down a steep slope to the frozen Souris River.

The problem was they were hidden from the road.

THE CANADIAN PRESS handout Kristen Hiebert and her daughter, Avery, in an undated photo.

Thrown from the car into the snow, the pair huddled together for 10 hours as temperatures dipped to -23 C. At dawn, Hiebert dragged herself up the snowbank, despite multiple fractures and severe frostbite to her bare feet.

Hiebert was found at 6:50 a.m. by Tina Dubyts, who happened to see her hand as she clung to the guardrail. Hiebert and her daughter were airlifted to a Winnipeg hospital.

Her daughter is in stable condition, but a close friend said Hiebert has a long recovery.

She has lots of broken bones, which can be healed, but its the frostbite thats on both of her feet, as well as her inner leg, Morgan Campbell said Thursday. Those are very touch and go. Were not sure if theyre going to come back or not.

If shes not going to walk again, were looking at years.

Campbell set up a GoFundMe page for Hiebert  a single mom who worked two jobs cleaning homes and a hotel  hoping to offset some of the costs Hieberts family faces staying by her side in Winnipeg.

Within 24 hours, donations reached $29,000. The generosity of strangers will help Hiebert focus on healing without worrying about supporting her daughter, Campbell said.

Shes in tearful disbelief, she said. I cant heal her bones, and I cant bring her feet back. This is what we can do. Im so shocked and amazed, honoured and humbled that people have stepped up.

Its not clear what caused the crash. Campbell said Hiebert doesnt remember anything, but Campbell said the roads were icy at the time.

RCMP spokeswoman Holly Plato said alcohol isnt considered a factor in the crash, and police continue to investigate.

First responders from the nearby town of Ninette say other motorists had pulled over to help by the time volunteer firefighters arrived. The drivers were trying to warm Hiebert and Avery in the back of an SUV.

The car was totally mangled, said Deputy Fire Chief Craig Kozak.

It was in rough shape.

The story is also a cautionary tale for motorists venturing out on highways when temperatures are well below freezing.

Accidents are more likely to happen in the winter, so people need to be prepared for anything at any time, CAA spokeswoman Liz Kulyk said.

Practical items, such as pliers and tape, should be in any survival kit, along with items such as candles, blankets and flares.

Rural Manitoba can be especially dangerous due to spotty cellular service.

We advise people to tell people where you are going, when you are leaving and when you plan to arrive at your destination,aKulyk said.

While motorists are often advised to stay in the vehicle until help arrives, Kulyk said every situation is different and judgment has to be used.

The strength it took for Hiebert to make it through the night, hearing cars pass overhead while she tried to keep her daughter warm, is hard to imagine, Campbell said. To make the excruciating decision to leave Avery and claw her way up the ditch, through incredible pain, took extraordinary strength and courage, she said.

Im sure Avery cried for her and called for her, and she had to keep going, Campbell said.

She said, Well, Morgan, everybody would have done the same thing. And I said, No, Kristen, not everybody would have done the same thing. You overcame your own pain and your own struggle to save your daughter. You are amazing. You are a hero. 

 The Canadian Press, with files from the Brandon Sun
Opinion

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The newspaper-industry news was not great this week, with Postmedia combining newsrooms in cities where it has two papers, laying off scores of journalists, including Margo Goodhand who was editor of the Edmonton Journal, but better known here as the former editor of the Free Press.

Most of the news stories took an angle that went something like this: Beleaguered newspapers hit again.

But I would argue the headlines should have read: Local news coverage hit again.

JONATHAN HAYWARD / THE CANADIAN PRESS Newspaper boxes containing the Vancouver Sun and the Province are seen in downtown Vancouver, Tuesday. Postmedia announced that they will combine the two newspapers' newsrooms but to continue to operate as separate brands along with further announcements of more layoffs for the company nation wide.

The real crisis arising out of the massive media disruption of the past decade is communities are losing the journalists who tell people whats really going on where they live.

We are all drowning in media; so much information everywhere, shared by our friends, aggregated in news feeds and always at our fingertips. What we dont notice is fewer reporters are covering court cases or digging behind the scenes at city hall. Its easy to find out about Prince Harrys latest love and hard to find anything about local school trustees or the latest local theatre production.

Newspapers still do a pretty good job of this. Its not well-known that local TV broadcasting is in far bigger trouble.

The CRTC begins public hearings next week on local programming and, in a background document, notes that Canadians sense that there is a weakening of the ecosystem for local news gathering, production and dissemination across all Canadian media.

The current situation is precarious, which is why there should be more public discussion of how local news coverage is supported.

Broadcasters say they lost $73 million providing local news across the country in the fiscal year 2013-14, according to the CRTC. They lost another $41 million in the six months ending in February 2015.

Most newspapers, including the Free Press, continue to make money providing local news. Were actually better off for now.

Thats a good thing, because newspapers also continue to be at the base of the local news ecosystem.

The Free Press has the largest reporting staff in the city and covers a wider variety of news and current events with greater depth and consistency than any other media outlet.

Weve had our cutbacks, but weve stubbornly kept reporters in core institutions.

We have a reporter covering the law courts full time and the only reporter covering education full time. Other media show up at the legislature for announcements and events; we keep reporters there to find out what is not being put in press releases.

A lot of this material ends up getting copied and followed in other media  to the chagrin of Free Press reporters  and also forms the basis for endless comment, criticism and sharing in the digital world.

So what happens if the Free Press follows what every other media outlet has done and pulls reporters from this coverage? You might as well ask what happens to a supermarket if there are no farmers.

The current situation is precarious, which is why there should be more public discussion of how local news coverage is supported.

Local merchants used to spend almost all of their marketing money in local media, thus supporting local journalism. Now a lot of those dollars leave communities digitally for American companies such as Google and Facebook.

I believe its time to talk about whether there should be public support for basic local news coverage, be it in the form of subsidies or tax credits or something else.

Many other countries do this. France subsidizes newspapers. In Great Britain, the taxpayer-funded BBC recently set up a program to hire local journalists who provide content to local papers as well as the BBC.

In Canada, the CBC provides local programming, but its not funded to do comprehensive, community-by-community local coverage, and it shouldnt be the only voice providing local news  a robust democracy requires a variety of sources of information.

Public support would also help develop new media that do local reporting. New models are popping up, developed by traditional media and many others. But the business models are shaky at best. Giants such as the Huffington Post dont turn a profit even with hundreds of millions of users. Many local outlets depend on donations.

So lets change the headline and move the discussion away from the economic health of some newspaper companies to the democratic health of our communities and talk seriously about how we continue to get local news coverage.

Bob Cox is the publisher of the Winnipeg Free Press and the chairman of the Canadian Newspaper Association.
Aiming for a new and improved you in 2016? Thats tough. Improving your wine experience? Thats not hard at all.

Because if you want to drink better wine, the first step is drinking wine better. To help you get the job done, we asked the pros for their best wine drinking hacks that will make you a better person (or at least a better drinker).

LEARN BY DEGREES

Aim for a middle ground when it comes to temperature. Good reds taste better with a little chill on them and good whites taste better when theyre not ice cold, says Joe Campanale, co-owner and beverage director for Epicurean Group, which includes the NYC neighborhood restaurants dellanima, Anfora and LArtusi. So if a red wine isnt being pulled from a temperature controlled cellar or wine refrigerator, put the bottle in a refrigerator for 15 to 20 minutes (or until slightly cool to the touch) before serving, says Jessica Pinzon, wine director of the Napa Valleys Miminashi restaurant. Wine shows more acidity and minerality at a cooler temperature, and more fruit and alcohol at a warmer temperature. Experiencing the transition of (wine) warming up in the glass will enhance your understanding and enjoyment of the wine, she says.

ADD A TOUCH OF GLASS

Use clean, clear glasses with a good stem, says Campanale, who hosts the weekly In the Drink program on Heritage Radio Network. He uses Bordeaux-shaped glasses (your basic red wine glass) for pretty much all wine, including Champagne. The stem plays an important role  keeping your fingers from warming the warm.

AGE WISELY

Drink most white wines young, says Gordana Kostovski, general manager and sommelier/beverage director of the Volver restaurant in Philadelphia. And these days many red wines are made ready to drink on purchase, too. Big red wines, on the other hand  think French Bordeaux  may need a little more time. Wondering how long? Thats a hard question to answer since wines vary. You can ask for clues at the wine shop or sometimes the label or wine website will offer suggestions.

DEVELOP A BUBBLY PERSONALITY

Drink more bubbles, is the advice of Andy Myers, master sommelier and wine director for Washington, D.C.-based chef Jose Andres ThinkFoodGroup. His pick, Raventos I Blanc De Nit rose from Spain. And skip the flute, says Kosovski. Serve bubbles in a coup or regular wine glass.

DARE TO DECANT

Decanting a wine is good all around. Whether young or old, a wine improves when exposed to a little air (which occurs naturally when pouring the wine from the bottle into a decanter). And careful pouring also means you leave any sediment in the bottle. Decanters arent just for somber, candle-lit ceremonies to separate the sediment out of venerable, old bottles, says David Kravitz, certified master sommelier and beverage director of The Smith Restaurants in New York. Young, inexpensive wines are often improved with a good, hard splash decanting. Oxygen will open up the fruit and ease the tannins.

Note: If youve got a decanter gathering dust at the back of the cupboard, nows the time to use it. If not, simply pour the wine into a clean pitcher or vase, says Pinzon. And dont limit this to reds, she says. Champagne, white wine or rose can benefit from decanting, too.

PICK SAVVY STORAGE

Store wine on its side and in contact with its cork, says Kostovski. And if youve got a wine refrigerator, keep it in there at 55 F. If not, look for a spot in a basement or closet thats shaded from heat and light. Organize your wine and know what you have so you dont forget it and leave it too long. And, says Kostovski, think about investing in a Coravin, the device that allows you to sample wine repeatedly without pulling the cork.

Having friends over for dinner and plan to open a nice, older bottle of wine? Stand the bottle upright (ideally at cellar temperature, or somewhere between 50 F to 64 F) for a couple days before the dinner party, advises Pinzon. This allows any sediment that may have settled in the shoulder of the bottle to settle at the bottom instead, making serving or decanting cleaner and more ideal.

PRIME THAT WINE

Drinking two wines at dinner out of one glass? Dont rinse the glass with water to make the change, says Chloe Helfland, sommelier at Bazaar Meat in the SLS Hotel Las Vegas. Once the glass is empty, pour in a little of the second wine, swirl it, dump the rinse and youre ready for a proper pour.

SHOP SMARTER

Theres no hacking a really bad wine. Campanale recommends going to a good wine shop to get a head start. If you find a wine you like, make a note of the producer; youll probably like some of their other wines, too.

RELAX

Learning about and developing an appreciation for wine is interesting, but dont make it a chore. Have fun and enjoy the wine; pair it with food and friends, recommends Kostovski. And while youre swirling and sipping  but not while pouring  try closing your eyes. Feel the wine through your senses, she says, Wine is romantic!
Ron Dempsey is Winona State Universitys new vice president for advancement, a wide-ranging position that includes building donor relationships, as well as community engagement and economic development.

Dempsey previously served as the vice president for advancement and university development at Southern Polytechnic State University in Marietta, Georgia.

Dempsey will replace Gary Evans, who has served as Interim Vice President for Advancement since January 2015. His role also makes him the executive director of the WSU Foundation. He was one of three finalists for the position.

Dr. Dempsey brings with him with nearly 30 years of experience in higher education and a strong track record of reimagining and strengthening development programs, said WSU President Scott R. Olson in a statement.

As vice president for university advancement, one of my main roles is to make connections, Dempsey said. I look forward to working with our students, faculty, staff, alumni, donors, community members, legislators and friends of Winona State.

Those connections and the understanding that accompanies them play a vital role in working with donors to help move the universitys mission forward. To be successful, we have to match the passions and values of our donors with what is happening at the university, he said in an interview Friday.

To begin that process, Dempsey said he plans to focus his first 90 days to learning what this place thinks and feels, what this place is about.

Already, he said, he is well-aware that Winona State enjoys a national reputation as a well-rounded institution with a number of points of excellence.

I like an institution like Winona State, he said.

Born and raised in Rome, Georgia, Dempsey has held administrative positions at Shorter University in Rome, Georgia; Presbyterian College in Clinton, South Carolina; Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky; and Jefferson Community College in Lousiville. He has also served on the faculties of Southern Polytechnic State University, Georgia Highlands College, Shorter University, Presbyterian College and Southern Theological Seminary.

Dempsey holds a PhD in the sociology of religion from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and is completing a doctorate in the sociology of science and technology from Georgia Institute of Technology.

This will be his first career move out of the south, he said. With his children grown, he described the foray north of the Mason-Dixon as an opportunity for my wife and I to have an adventure.

Its very different ... the location ... the climate ... its extremely exciting for us, he said.

Dempseys appointment will be effective Jan. 25.

The position has been unfilled for a little less than a year, after Ernie Hughes left, with retired HBC CEO and former WSU administrator Evans serving as an interim appointment. The position had been in flux since Jim Schmidt left to become chancellor at the University of Eau Claire in 2013.
How can we know if the lawmakers we elected are representing us or even care what we think? Merely tracking how they vote doesnt tell us how many of their constituents were for or against those bills. But there are other ways to find out.

One way is to pay attention to testimony during public hearings. The mining bill was one example that illustrated how Republicans totally ignored the will of the people and voted for the special interests that pushed it. In that case, the vast majority of citizens and experts testified against it. Yet only one Republican senator, Dale Schultz, now retired, listened to the people and voted against it.

But theres another way to find out. Sheila Plotkin, a former educator of the deaf and hard-of-hearing, and several volunteers she recruited, discovered solid evidence that state Republican lawmakers are ignoring their constituents wishes. This recently came to light as a result of the open records requests they submitted.

Plotkin saw how quickly two highly controversial Republican bills were passed with no evidence of public support. One of them disbanded the states Government Accountability Board, a non-partisan, reliable, highly renowned agency made up of retired judges. The GAB oversees campaigns and elections and also provides valuable and consistent guidance to Wisconsins county clerks and other election personnel.

The other bill changed Wisconsins campaign finance laws by allowing yet more money to influence campaigns while taking away the publics right to know who donated it and why. Plotkin couldnt believe that most voters supported these pieces of legislation, so using official procedures for requesting public records, she asked the lawmakers for all correspondence they received from citizens regarding these bills.

I wanted to know whether constituent demands were driving this game-changing, rapid-fire legislation, she said. I asked myself, Who wants this? Are voters pushing their legislators to make these changes? Once I realized that the open records request was the means of discovery, I had to proceed.

At first, she tried by herself to query the lawmakers whod voted for these bills and to request records of the correspondence they received relating to the bills. Most of the records had to be viewed in the Chief Clerks office since the cost of having them copied and mailed was more than she could afford. She soon realized that the number of GOP lawmakers, plus the time required to accurately document all the information, was overwhelming. Thats when she solicited the help of her friends.

And help they did. The results are evidence our GOP legislators are doing what theyre told by those with agendas in direct opposition to what the people want.

After they were proposed, the two above-mentioned bills spurred many more voters than usual to contact their legislators. While the raw numbers of citizens who contacted legislators is small when compared to the number of registered voters, Plotkin said, it is not small when compared to how many people routinely contact their legislators. I remember when legislators claimed that if they received 10 comments on impending legislation, they paid attention. The percentages in opposition to what was game-changing legislation are striking. In every case, more than 90 percent of correspondents were opposed.

So far, these are the results of those open records requests concerning the GAB and campaign finance reform bills: The number against dismantling the GAB equals 2,655 with only 210 in favor. In other words, 92 percent opposed it. Those against the bill that loosened regulations and limits on campaign finance number 1,012 and those for it number 10, which means 99 percent of those who contacted their legislators opposed more dark money in campaigns.

These numbers resemble the results of the November 2015 Marquette University Law School poll. When asked if they believed government was run by a few big interests, 84 percent of those polled, including 72 percent of Republicans, agreed. Even without the open records request results, its obvious that the majority of Wisconsinites are against big money influencing campaigns. Apparently that doesnt matter to certain lawmakers.

To their credit, most of the legislators provided the requested records. Some, however, are delinquent. The most delinquent is Sen. Frank Lasee, R-DePere, who still hasnt complied, although his records were requested back in October.

What does all of this tell us? I want people to know that contacting their legislators is critical, says Plotkin. The way to hold elected officials accountable is to document their responses to our concerns. The essential question is, Whom do they represent? I want the answer to that question.

So, I may add, should we.

For current results of the ongoing open records requests, visit www.we-the-irrelevant.org online.
State Representative Ed Brooks (R-Reedsburg) is hoping a series of bills introduced last week in the state legislature will offer more opportunities in rural areas, including Juneau County.

Brooks, who represents the 50th Assembly District, introduced the legislative package, called the Rural Wisconsin Initiative, with fellow Republican representatives Romaine Quinn of Rice Lake and Travis Tranel from Cuba City. The Rural Wisconsin Initiative promises to bridge the gap between education, health care, technology and the workforce in rural areas.

The Rural Wisconsin Initiative features seven bills that call for more funding for broadband expansion grants, an increase in available resources for youth apprenticeship grants, along with tuition reimbursement grants for apprenticeships. The ambitious legislation also calls for the creation of rural opportunity zones, an expansion of a student loan repayment program for rural teachers, a plan to expand STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education programs, along with a boost in funding for the Wisconsin Rural Physician Residency Assistance Program.

According to a press release, Brooks was a key force behind the Rural Wisconsin Initiative, authoring several pieces of the package.

Rural Wisconsin has a lot to offer, Brooks said. Unfortunately, we havent been immune to national demographic trends. Rural populations have been shrinking, but we can bridge the gap by offering incentives that will both encourage people to stay in rural Wisconsin, and also attract young professionals, educators, and doctors to our communities.

Several legislators from across the states rural areas have joined Brooks, Tranel and Quinn to support the legislation, and its also gained the support of Gov. Scott Walker. Walker told the Green Bay Press-Gazette last week that he believes the Rural Wisconsin Initiative is a good thing overall. The governor supports the increase in broadband access to rural areas, along with more funding to rural school districts.

As the initial plan continues to move forward, Brooks is looking for citizen feedback. A new website, www.ruralwisconsininitiative.com, was launched for Wisconsin residents to view the plan and offer suggestions. More information on the initiative is also on Facebook at Facebook.com/RuralWisconsinInitiative.

The most important part of the Rural Wisconsin Initiative is public involvement, Brooks said. We want to work with people to develop legislation to build our future in rural Wisconsin.

To contact Brooks, call 1-888-534-0050 or email him at Rep.Brooks@legis.wi.gov.
With a little inspiration from rock star Jon Bon Jovi, the Bridgepoint Mission got off to a good start Wednesday night opening a new mobile food pantry at its Stand Rock Road sanctuary.

Mission member Shannon Howley always had a desire to help feed the community, but was especially inspired when she visited Bon Jovis Soul Kitchen  a unique food bank and restaurant in New Jersey. Soul Kitchen provides meals to the local community free of charge in exchange for patrons volunteering at the restaurant.

Howleys dream is to start a similar restaurant, but for now is thrilled to head the new mobile food bank at Bridgepoint that will be available to the community the third Wednesday of each month from 5 to 7 p.m.

Bridgepoint Mission has teamed with Second Harvest for the project. The food bank is open to anyone in the community regardless of income. Only a yes or no answer is asked of patrons to the question if theyre above or below the poverty line. At Wednesday evenings pantry a generous supply of vegetables, meat and other items were available to a steady flow of customers that started arriving promptly at 5 p.m.

Bridgepoint Mission member Jon Torgerson was manning a table stocked with various canned food items and wasnt sure what to expect on the food banks first night. We had a nice initial surge, but were not sure whats going to happen.

Howley said Bridgepoint had to estimate how many families would be in need for its first session and asked Second Harvest to supply enough food for 100 families. The mission will adjust its request from Second Harvest from week to week depending on the need from the community.

The next pantry at Bridgepoint Mission is scheduled for Feb. 17.
You do not have to be a member of the Catholic Church  nor have attended Catholic grade school  to enjoy and appreciate the comedy of Late Nite Catechism, a one-woman play that runs Wednesday through Saturday at the Palace Theater in Wisconsin Dells.

Lutherans come to the show  they like it. I had a Lutheran minister (attend), he loved it, said actress Diana Alioto, who will perform in the lone role of The Sister for the plays four-day run in the Dells. Ive had young people come who didnt know the stories (of growing up attending Catholic grade school) and they got it. Ive had Jewish people (attend) who liked the show.

More than anything, Late Nite Catechism is fun, said Alioto  a Milwaukee-based actor and director who has performed the play for 13 years and at the moment also happens to be the program director of Christian Development for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee.

Its not a show that slams the Catholic Church, she said. Its very funny, but everything is based on stuff that happened.

The stuff that happened refers to the life of the plays co-author Maripat Donovan, who attended Catholic school while growing up on the south side of Chicago. Since the play that she co-wrote with Vicki Quade opened in 1993 in the Windy City, Late Nite Catechism has been performed all over the U.S. and the world.

The two-hour play is part interactive, part improvisational and even part instructive, Alioto said.

Its basically like being in the class, Alioto said. Im not really teaching and making them (the audience) learn stuff  although people do come out of the show saying, wow, I never knew that.

As The Sister, Alioto leads the audience through various lessons about saints, awarding of rosaries, holy cards and other religious items and such grade school reminiscences as being whacked by a ruler by ones instructor for misbehavior  a fate that Alioto promises will not befall any audience members.

I dont hit people with a ruler  Im not allowed to do that, she said.

At least some of the plays most entertaining moments, Alioto said, comes from audience participation, as many of them seem to return to their respective childhoods as they interact with the authoritative Sister.

The audiences come up with stuff that no writer could ever come up with, theyre hilarious, she said. Some people show up all dressed in (grade school) uniforms, some you could tell they were smoking in the girls room  they revert back to high school. Some people are 6 or 7 years old again.

Perhaps part of the reason is the realism the actress brings to the role. She grew up Catholic, she now actually works for the church and she looks the part.

Some people say I remind them of a nun they had in school, because Im 5-foot tall and Im wearing the whole habit, she said.

Alioto promises that she keeps it all in fun and pays close attention to audience reactions, making sure she doesnt put anyone on the spot.

I hone in on people who I can tell want to play along, she said. Im stern at times, but Im not too mean. I realize its a show, and people dont want to be humiliated.

She does enforce one school-house rule, though.

I take their gum away if they are chewing gum, she said.
Planning nutrient management prior to harvest

Harvest is always a fast-paced season for growers, that's why it is important to meet nutrient management goals prior to harvest.
Gender, love, sex in Muslim world at heart of Ozyegins latest books

Constructing identities Love and sex are important elements of how we develop our identities, says Gul Ozyegin, sociology and gender, sexuality and women's studies professor, who published two books in 2015. Photo by Stephen Salpukas Photo - of - Hide Caption

2015 was a good year for William & Mary Sociology Associate Professor Gul Ozyegin, who had the distinction of publishing two books over the summer  both dealing with sex, love and gender in the Muslim world.

In August, NYU Press published the book Ozyegin had worked on for more than a decade, New Desires, New Selves: Sex, Love and Piety Among Turkish Youth.

But while that book was in production, Ozyegin had the opportunity to edit a new volume, Gender and Sexuality in Muslim Cultures, published in July by Ashgate.

Its pure coincidence, said Ozyegin, who teaches in Sociology and the Gender, Sexuality and Womens Studies program and is affiliated with the Asian and Middle Eastern Studies program. I couldnt resist; I took on the challenge [of the new book]. It was kind of an urgent project for me because it was informed significantly by my teaching.

New desires, new selves

Over the course of four years, between 2002 and 2006, Ozyegin interviewed 87 young Turkish students attending Istanbuls prestigious Bogazici University about their experiences and views on relationships, sex, love and gender.

When you study young people  sex and love, intimacy and desire  these are very important issues for self-construction, the self-making, Ozyegin said. Thats why I consider the realm of love and sex as an important site for understanding self-making, gender and sexuality. Through those experiences and narratives, I explore how young Turks reconfigure gender and sexuality.

In Ozyegins book, the students explorations are tightly bound to the conditions in Turkey over the course of their lifetimes and to their hopes for the future. They experience tension between the neoliberal globalization that has characterized their youth and the current Islamization of public, political and private life.

On the one hand, there is the desire to surrender to the seduction of sexual modernity, to renounce the normative model of selfless femininity and protective masculinity, and to reject power and authority located external to the individual, Ozyegin writes. On the other hand, there is the longing to remain loyal and organically connected to social relations, identities and histories that underwrite the construction of identity through connectivity.

Four student identities are discussed in the book: straight men, straight women, gay men and those she calls pious females, students following a stricter Islamic religious tradition.

She had originally hoped to include two more groups: lesbians and pious males. But the majority of her taped interviews with lesbian students were destroyed in travel, while pious men refused to speak with her about sex and love, even though she enlisted respected Islamic scholars whom the students admired to intercede.

Part of the reason was that I was inviting them to talk about gender and sexuality, she said. Mixing of sexes is an issue in Islam. Im a stranger, and I tried to engage them to talk about intimate issues  I couldnt get any interviews with them.

She noted that she isnt the only scholar trying, and failing, to study pious Muslim men in Turkey. As they continue to gain political power under Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, scholars have become increasingly concerned that pious men are effectually inscrutable.

Theres a huge empowered Muslim upper-middle class, she said. They are invisible in the sense that there is nothing about their look  they dont have beards, they dont have Islamic outfits or anything else that would identify them as Muslim. Muslim women who are feminists, they have been complaining that [Muslim men] are not subject to scrutiny because they can easily pass. They dont have to carry their religiosity.

But what the book lacks from young pious men, it makes up for in the intimate stories and thoughts of the other young adults with whom Ozyegin spoke.

"Through sensitive interviews and rich storytelling, Gul Ozyegin shows that we cannot understand young peoples intimate lives in universal ways  either as conforming to traditionally religious sex/gender scripts, or as morphing into modern global neoliberal selves, wrote Michael A. Messner, University of Southern California sociology professor, who reviewed the book. Instead, Ozyegin paints a picture of young Turkish people today grappling with fractured desire in a rapidly changing and contradictory social context.

Ozyegin said that the students she interviewed opened up to her partly because of her position as a university professor, partly because of her commitment to professional ethics and partly due to how she engaged them.

This is not market research; you are not asking what type of soap or detergent they use, she said. So theres this special connection between researcher and the researched. They might say something and I might, not in a fake manner, I would say, Oh, when I was growing up, we were calling those one-night stands. So I would engage with them. It was mostly like conversation in that sense. People do not respond if they feel like they are being questioned in a one-sided way. I wasnt faking it.

Gender and Sexuality in Muslim Cultures

Ozyegin took on the second project, editing Gender and Sexuality in Muslim Cultures, believing classes suffered from the lack of quality texts.

I was always looking for good teaching materials on Muslim identities and cultures, she said. What you usually find is either good theoretical work, but with heavy jargon, or some very simplistic, essentialist, Orientalist treatments.

In the project she saw an opportunity to mix theory with empirically rich ethnographies and new studies on global and local Muslim identities and how theyve been transformed. She also saw a chance to pay critical attention to masculinity in Muslim-majority countries, an area thats been largely neglected, she said.

Ozyegin also organized the book by theme, rather than by country. Most textbooks, she said, devote one chapter per Muslim-majority country  Yemen, Pakistan, Morocco, etc.  and focus on a unique aspect of that country. But the effect, she said, reinforces stereotypes rather than countering them.

If you teach only one article on Pakistan and it happens to deal with honor killings, students leave your class closely associating honor killings with Pakistan, she said. Whenever they think of Pakistan, thats the mark: honor killings.

By organizing the book around broad themes, Ozyegin invited multi-disciplinary, scholarly works that cut across the Muslim world. So the section devoted to challenged masculinities includes an essay from Pakistan, another from Egypt, plus three works from present-day Turkey and one from an Ottoman perspective.

Students would then understand that we are talking about multiplicities of identities and subjectivities, complicated questions about social transformations, she said. With these examples, they can imagine that there might be others.

Ozyegin is not the sole William & Mary voice in the volume. Included is an interview on female genital cutting in Egypt and Kurdistan conducted by undergraduate Faith Barton 14, who spoke with anthropologist Maria Frederika Malmstrom and Goran A. Sabir Zangana, founder of Doctors against Female Genital Mutilation.

Victoria Castillo, visiting assistant professor of gender, sexuality and womens studies at W&M, wrote the interviews introduction from a pedagogical perspective, discussing when and how she teaches students about female genital cutting.

Ozyegins volume has been well-received by scholars who recognized its value to students.

This is a welcome collection on sexualities and gender ideologies in Muslim-majority contexts by established and emerging scholars, wrote reviewer Frances S. Hasso, associate womens studies professor at Duke University. It fills a scholarly gap on body-focused regulations, intimacies, masculinities and queerness  This is a fresh and teachable text.

Hassos review is high praise for Ozyegin, who set out to keep students at the heart of Gender and Sexuality in Muslim Cultures.

Our students, when they learn these things, they get excited, she said. They are learning something so that they can go out and when they encounter these stereotypical images, they can say, Do you know that in Islamic cultures  They feel they are empowered, equipped intellectually to be able to engage with others.
Ida Hall '72 fishes Virginia

Co-Captains: Since Ida Hall '72 began working on the water, dogs have played a big part in sharing the watermans experience on her boat. Photo by Skip Rowland '83 Photo - of - Hide Caption

The following story originally appeared in the fall 2015 issue of the W&M Alumni Magazine - Ed.

Ida Hall 72 grew up in Danville, Virginia, but spent most summers and many vacations at her familys farm on the Chesapeake Bay near Kilmarnock, Virginia. Her childhood was full of adventures on the water, and it was through them that she discovered her calling.

Uncle Ben instilled in me his deep love and respect for the land and water, taught me how to operate a boat, and respect for other boaters, says Hall.

Ida first experienced a watermans routine in the summer of 1964 when she went out with her cousin Hal to watch him fish pound nets. From that first sunrise trip, I was awestruck by the seemingly infinite, untainted, wild beauty of the Bay and surrounding undeveloped land, and amazed that people made a living working so close to nature, says Hall. I marveled at the bounty, diversity and constantly changing life that Hal and his two-man crew brought up in the nets.

I knew it was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life, says Hall. But even as I thought that, I knew it was a foolish dream. The only other women on the water were watermans wives and even if it was an acceptable occupation for a girl, I simply did not have the size or strength to put out or fish a pound net. That was that. I would enjoy myself and get on with my life.

But by the late 1960s, monofilament gillnets would make gillnetting commercially competitive with and easier than pound net fishing.

I did not like seeing fish captured by their gills, struggling to escape, says Hall. It wasnt the same as seeing the fish caught and kept alive in the pound net. I swore I would never fish a gillnet!

When Ida became a member of the Tribe, she followed another family tradition. Her uncle Ben and many cousins had graduated from William & Mary. Her father, one or two great-uncles, and several cousins also graduated Phi Beta Kappa.

Although Hall excelled in and loved biology in high school, and considered marine science as a profession, she never took a college biology class. Instead, she followed her academic advisors advice to major in psychology.

When she attended the first Earth Day celebration at Lake Matoaka on April 22, 1970, she found herself gravitating towards other interests such as protecting the environment. During her senior year, she signed up for a Biology Club camping trip to Shenandoah National Park.

It turned out to be one of the best things I did at William & Mary, says Hall. The friendships and experiences on the initial and subsequent trips have endured for a lifetime.

After graduation, Hall returned to the family farm on the Chesapeake Bay for two weeks before looking for a job. With friends still nearby at William & Mary and her brother James giving her his slightly used gillnet, the weeks quickly melted into months.

The first time I successfully set a gillnet, I caught $54 worth of striped bass! says Hall. I was hooked! Making money gillnetting put it into a different perspective by providing necessary income for me to remain on the farm longer.

Ida rekindled her connection to William & Mary in 1986 when she enrolled in the archaeological field school conducted at VIMS and took additional archaeology classes in 1987 and 1988. She was eager to learn more about the Native American and English artifacts that she, her brothers and cousins found on the farm. She learned much from the professors and younger students, and shared with them about her life working on the water, even showing them how to fish a gillnet, catch crabs and tong oysters.

Educating others about what she does is something that Hall has become well-versed in. In 2013, she participated in Virginias first Watermans Heritage Ecotourism program which provides additional opportunities for working watermen to earn a living by taking others out to experience first-hand what watermen do. Last year, Gov. Terry McAuliffe HON 14 reappointed Ida to her fourth consecutive term on the Potomac River Fisheries Commission, a bi-state (Maryland and Virginia) governmental organization that works to conserve and improve the fishery resources in the main stem of the Potomac River. In 2014, National Fisherman magazine, the countrys largest publication for commercial fishing, named Ida a Highliner, an award that recognizes commercial watermen who display a passion for fishing and advocate for the sustainability of fish and fishermen.

Hall serves as secretary for the Virginia Watermans Association and for the Northumberland Association for Progressive Stewardship, an environmental organization focused on preserving the local environmental heritage through education of sound land-use practices and water-quality initiatives. She is also a member of the Virginia Blue Crab Industry Panel, an organization that works to sustain the population and harvesting of the species, and has served on Congressman Rob Wittmans Environmental Advisory Panel since 2008. She also works part time at Rappahannock Hang-Ups and Gallery in Kilmarnock.

Since 1973, seven dogs have accompanied Ida on the water. Currently, beagle Ruby and yellow lab Toby Grace are often seen in her boat as she continues to follow her passion and preserve a family heritage and culture of working on the water. In 2005, Ida and her two brothers placed a conservation easement on the family farm to preserve in perpetuity their family and environmental heritage.

William & Marys curricula, professors and students motivated within me a desire for lifelong learning and provided the incentive to further my education in and out of the classroom, she says.




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New York includes nuclear in clean energy portfolio

22 January 2016

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The State of New York Public Service Commission yesterday ruled that non-carbon-emitting generation resources including nuclear power plants must be included in the state's Clean Energy Standard (CES) portfolio. The CES is to include a support mechanism for upstate nuclear power plants at risk of closure for economic reasons.

Ginna: One of New York's "upstate" plants (Image: Exelon)

State governor Andrew Cuomo in December directed the public service commission to develop the CES to ensure that the state achieves its goal of 50% renewable energy by 2030. The public service commission has now formally stated that it will expand the scope of the CES to include the contributions of the nuclear plants. The commission's decision was announced by Cuomo's office alongside the approval of a 10-year, $5 billion Clean Energy Fund to accelerate the growth of the state's clean energy economy.

In December, the governor mandated the commission to evaluate ways in which zero emission resources may be retained as a short-term "bridge" while the state is undergoing its transition. He specifically directed it to include a process to prevent the premature retirement of "upstate" nuclear power plants, stating that the "elimination" of such facilities would "eviscerate the emission reductions achieved" through renewable energy programs, while diminishing fuel diversity, increasing price volatility and financially harming host communities.

New York State is home to a total of six nuclear reactors operating at four sites. These include the so-called upstate plants - two units at Nine Mile Point and single units at RE Ginna and James A Fitzpatrick - and the two Indian Point reactors, which are located in the south-east of the state, 24 miles (39 kilometres) from New York City. The Indian Point reactors, currently the subject of a licence application renewal which has been challenged by the New York State Department of State, would therefore not appear to be included in the CES.

US nuclear plants operating in deregulated markets, like those in New York State, have found themselves facing economic challenges from the short-term nature of the competitive market, coupled with competition from low-cost gas and federally subsidized wind power. Entergy announced in November 2015 that it intends to close the Fitzpatrick plant in late 2016 or early 2017 for economic reasons.

Exelon, operator of Ginna and Nine Mile Point, commended the New York Public Service Commission decision. Exelon's executive vice president of governmental and regulatory affairs and public policy Joe Dominguez said: "Progressive energy policies will help ensure that Exelon's upstate nuclear stations can continue delivering zero-carbon electricity and driving local economies for many years to come. We look forward to working with the governor, the PSC and other stakeholders to learn more about this ambitious plan."

The public service commission will now work on drawing up the CES which it expects to have ready for "consideration" by June.

Researched and written

by World Nuclear News

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Commissioning of interim storage facility starts at Ignalina

22 January 2016

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Cold testing - one of the first stages of the commissioning process - has started at the new Interim Spent Fuel Storage Facility (ISFSF) for units 1 and 2 of the shut-down Ignalina nuclear power plant in Lithuania. In a separate statement, the state enterprise responsible for decommissioning the plant (SE INPP) said over 30,000 tonnes of nuclear-related equipment had been dismantled since the process started in 2010.

Workers test machinery at the storage facility (Image: Ignalina NPP)

The ISFSF  located about one kilometre from the plant - is to store most of the used fuel that has accumulated over the course of the plant's operation. Some 18,000 RBMK-1500 fuel assemblies from Ignalina units 1 and 2 will be stored in a total of 202 metal and concrete Constor containers at the facility for 50 years.

Known as the B1 Project, the ISFSF is financially supported by the Ignalina International Decommissioning Support Fund (IIDSF) administrated by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The IIDSF is funded by the European Commission as well as by Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.

The cold tests aim to trial the equipment and operational systems, without the use of radioactive waste, to demonstrate their safety and that they meet the design and operation requirements. In a statement on 19 January, SE INPP said completion of cold testing is planned for the end of June.

Successful completion of cold testing is one of the conditions to obtain an operating licence for the ISFSF from the country's State Nuclear Power Safety Inspectorate, Vatesi. Receipt of this licence will permit the start of preparations for the final stage of the project - hot testing, which will employ used nuclear fuel. This is planned for the summer of 2017, with completion in September, and the ISFSF is to start industrial operations in October of that year.

The ISFSF was licensed in September 2009 and was to start operations from 2011. However, the B1 Project is behind schedule by 78 months. According to company data, this delay has caused losses to SE INPP of about 987,000 ($1 million) per month.

The contract to build the ISFSF was signed with the NUKEM echnologies GmbH and GNS Gesellschaft fur Nuklear-Service mbH (NUKEM-GNS) consortium, from Germany, in January 2005. According to an amendment to this contract of May 2009, the facility was to be completed by March 2011. On 24 November last year, another contract amendment was signed, with a new planned date for the completion of hot testing stated as August 2017. The initial total contract value was nearly 194 million, which included all 190 of the Constor RBMK-1500/M2 casks. After the contract was amended in 2009, the cost of the B1 Project rose to about 202 million.

Meanwhile, cold testing started at the new Solid Waste Management and Storage Facilities (SWMSF) at the plant in August last year. Some 120,000 cubic meters of short- and long-lived radioactive waste currently stored at Ignalina will be processed by these facilities.

SE INPP said on 15 January that 30,000 tonnes of nuclear-related equipment had been dismantled at the plant since decommissioning began. This is equivalent to 23.4% of the total amount planned for dismantling by 2038, estimated at about 129,700 tonnes. The volume of dismantled equipment and related structures has increased each year since the shutdown of the plant - 2844 tonnes in 2010, 3125 tonnes in 2011, 3557 tonnes in 2012, 5118 tonnes in 2013, 7188 tonnes in 2014, and 8686 tonnes in 2015.

Most of the dismantled material will be sold as scrap metal after being tested to ensure there is no radioactive contamination. The rest will be stored in a temporary storage facility until transferred to facilities for final disposal, SE INPP said.

Lithuania agreed to shut down Ignalina I and 2  both Soviet-design RBMK reactors - as a condition of its accession to the European Union. Unit 1 was shut down in 2004 and unit 2 in 2009. The two light-water, graphite-moderated reactors came on line in 1983 and 1987, respectively.

Researched and written

by World Nuclear News

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Health officials say the spread of the Zika virus to the US is inevitable.

The mosquito-borne Zika virus is spreading across Latin America and the Caribbean, and medical experts are saying its just a matter of time before the virus reaches the southern part of the United States.

Mustapha Debboun, director of the mosquito control division at Harris County Public Health and Environmental Services in Houston said on cbsnews.com, travelers to the countries where there are a number of cases will eventually bring the virus back to the States, and the mosquitoes in the US will pick it up.

A recent report said that nearly 3,900 babies have been born in Brazil last year alone with microcephaly, a birth defect that results in an abnormally small head, and can lead to developmental issues and possibly death. How the Zika virus has an impact on unborn children remains a mystery, and a number of studies are underway to asses its association with microcephaly.

The virus is passed when a mosquito bites a person infected with the virus, and then passes it along to the mosquitos next victim. Currently there is no vaccine to prevent the virus and it may take years to develop one, according to Dr.Edward McCabe, senior vice president and chief medical officer of the March of Dimes.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a warning to pregnant women about traveling to the 14 countries where the virus is prevalent. The list of countries includes Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname, Venezuela, and Puerto Rico.

Also this week, the CDC issued guidance to doctors treating pregnant women who had traveled to the region and returned to the US, advising them to test for Zika in any of their patients that may be experiencing fever, rashes, muscle aches or pink eye after recent travel.

Reports of the infections in recent days have all involved persons who had traveled to the countries where the virus is endemic, but the CDC and other health officials say the spread of the virus to the US is inevitable. How quickly the virus will spread is only a matter of speculation.

Officials say we can help prevent the spread by removing any standing water areas where the mosquitoes breed, and by using insect repellent and wearing long-sleeved shirts and long pants when outside.
Leading Canadian politicians and the corporate media have reacted to last Fridays terrorist attack in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, by stepping up calls for Canada to expand its participation in US- and French-led military interventions in the Middle East and Africa.

The attack on the Splendid Hotel and the nearby Cappuccino Cafe has been claimed by Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). It cost the lives of 28 people from 18 countries, including six Canadians. The previous day a terrorist an attack in Jakarta, Indonesia killed six people, including a Canadian.

French forces were flown in from neighboring Mali to help regain control of the situation in Ouagadougou, as gunmen held up to 126 hostages for 23 hours. Ultimately four attackers were killed by a combination of Burkina Faso and French security forces.

In response to the attacks, the governments of Burkina Faso and Mali have announced stepped up intelligence collaboration. AQIM was also behind the attack on a hotel in Bamako, Mali, last November, which killed 20.

With the assistance of France, the former colonial power, the Malian government has been engaged in fighting with Islamist rebels in the countrys north since 2012.

A Canadian government official said Tuesday that Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers have been deployed to Ouagadougou to help in any way they can with investigations into the attack.

The Liberal government has seized on the incident to promote an expansion of Canadas role in the so-called war on terror beyond the current Canadian Armed Forces deployment to Iraq and Syria.

Speaking at a cabinet meeting in New Brunswick, Foreign Minister Stephane Dion declared the attacks in Burkina Faso and Indonesia proved the need for Canada to increase its military interventions around the globe. You have seen it in Burkina Faso, Turkey, Paris and we are affected by that and we need to fight with our allies, stated Dion. This means Canada has to develop strong co-operation with our allies, continued Dion, their military, police and intelligence services.

Dions remarks were in part aimed at allaying mounting concern within the bourgeoisie over the new governments election pledge to withdraw Canadian fighter jets from the bombing of Islamic State targets in Iraq and Syria.

The Liberals have repeatedly vowed that they intend for Canada to remain a major contributor to the US-led Mideast war coalition. While they have yet to detail their plans, Trudeau and Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan have indicated that Canada will send additional Special Forces to advise and assist Kurdish Peshmerga fighters in Iraq, keep two surveillance planes and a refueling aircraft in Kuwait to help the bombing of Iraq and Syria, and possibly deploy regular troops to Jordan to train Iraqi army forces.

However, the media and Conservative opposition are clamoring that this is not enough. Their concern is that the withdrawal of the six CF-18 fighter jets will weaken Canadas position in what is rapidly emerging as a new, US-led imperialist partition of the Middle East, as well as undermine Canadas leverage with Washington.

A slew of newspaper op-ed comments took Trudeau to task for his purported tepid response to the events in Ouagadougou. Where is the fury and resolve to fight back? Trudeaus silence on terrorism is deafening, screamed the headline of a comment by the National Posts Michael Den Tandt. In the Globe and Mail, Lysiane Gagnon complained that Trudeau had visited a mosque in Ontario which was firebombed as part of a wave of Islamophobic attacks, but failed to make an appearance at the memorial service in Quebec City for the six Canadians who lost their lives in Burkina Faso.

Media outlets also prominently featured the comments of the mother of one of the Canadian victims in the Burkina Faso attacks, who denounced the Liberal government for its intention to withdraw the six CF-18s from the bombing campaign against Iraq and Syria.

Conservative politicians launched their own tirades against Trudeau and his Liberals after it was revealed late Monday that Sajjan had not been invited to a meeting of western defence ministers in Paris to discuss intensifying the war in Iraq and Syria. The media quickly joined in, proclaiming that Canadas absence from the Paris discussions showed that the country is being sidelined in global affairs because the new government is not pulling its weight.

If the perception of being a freeloader somehow gains traction in Washington, it inevitably has policy spillovers, said Geroge Petrolekas, a retired CAF colonel and frequent op-ed contributor to the Globe and other dailies. Thats deeply inimical to our interests.

Sajjan, for his part, sought to downplay what was clearly a US-engineered snub aimed at pressing Ottawa to back down on its plan to withdraw the fighter jets.

The ruling elite is determined that Canada continue to expand its role in military interventions around the globe, so as to strengthen ties with the US, its principal military-security partner, and aggressively assert its own increasingly global imperialist interests.

Under the previous government, Canada established itself as a key partner of US imperialism in its three major geostrategic offensives: in Eastern Europe and the Baltic to encircle European Russia; in the Middle East to extend Washingtons hegemony over the worlds most important oil-producing region; and in the Asia-Pacific, as part of the Obama administrations pivot, aimed at isolating China economically and confronting it militarily.

Almost since the day the Liberals took office, most of the media has been urging the government to renege on its election fighter-jet promise, and nearly three months since they took the reins of power the new government has yet to spell out when the jets will be recalled.

Whatever the ultimate decisions on the CF-18s, the Liberals have gotten the message and are determined to reassure the ruling elite that they have no qualms about using Canadian military power and will not allow Canada to cede ground to its geo-political rivals.

Toward this end, the government is carrying out discussions with Canadas military allies about deploying Canadian military forces in north and west Africa. Canada has already provided transportation aircraft to assist with the moving of troops and military equipment involved in Frances Operation Barkhane, a mission launched in 2014 covering its former colonial possessions stretching from Mali in the west to Chad in Central Africa.

David Pratt, a former Liberal Defence Minister and member of the Global Affairs Institute, wrote in a Globe comment that the Burkina Faso attack demonstrated that the fight against Islamic State and its confederates ranges well beyond Syria and Iraq. Pratt urged Canada to join France in promoting security cooperation between Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Mali, Chad and Niger. Canada, he argued, is uniquely positioned to make a very valuable contribution in the region with logistical and engineering support, strategic airlift and perhaps some more trainers and Special Forces.

Behind the rhetoric about peacekeeping and combatting terrorism, any Canadian intervention on the African continent will be aimed principally at advancing the interests of Canadian imperialism in the region. Canadian companies, particularly in the areas of mining and infrastructure, have large investments across the continent. In Burkina Faso alone, Canadian companies control a majority stake in three of the countrys five biggest mines. Total mining assets amount to $1.6 billion. Across the continent, over $25 billion has been invested by Canadian companies in mining operations.

In 2014, the previous Conservative government placed Burkina Faso on Ottawas priority list, meaning that the country was seen as vital to foreign policy interests and should be targeted for additional development aid. Other countries in the region receiving similar focus include Mali and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Canadas military has extensive experience operating on the continent. Over recent years, Canadian Special Forces have been deployed to Niger as part of Operation Flintlock, a US-led operation which seeks to improve the capacities of the special forces of Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Senegal.

Canada also has a small contingent of peacekeeping troops deployed to the Sinai region of Egypt to police the peace agreement between Cairo and Israel. The possibility that their presence could be exploited to justify a larger CAF deployment in the event that groups aligned to ISIS gain in strength in the Sinai was made clear when Sajjan visited Egypt on his Middle East tour last month.

Canadas military played an important role in neighboring Libya during the 2011 NATO-led war to topple the Gaddafi regime, supplying a fleet of CF-18s to conduct air strikes and also the general who commanded NATOs air operations. On a visit to London in December, Sajjan discussed steps to pacify Libya with his British counterpart Michael Fallon. Under conditions where the German government has made clear it will send troops to Libya as soon as a so-called unity government has been established under the auspices of the UN, and Britain has pledged troops to train Libyan government forces, Canadas Liberal government is undoubtedly deliberating on whether to follow suit.
The World Socialist Web Site and Mehring Books are announcing a special offer for the sale of Desert Slaughter: The Imperialist War Against Iraq, which can be purchased here for $9.95.

On January 17, 1991, American bombers backed by one million ground troops began combat operations in Kuwait and Iraq. This was the beginning of an international US war campaign that has lasted 25 years, enveloping not only Iraq but also Afghanistan, Libya, Pakistan, Yemen, Syria and Somalia. Years of sanctions, bombings, a second invasion in 2003, an occupation, and a third and continuing war have resulted in the deaths of over 1 million Iraqis and thousands of American soldiers in Iraq alone.

The Gulf War was launched by the George H. W. Bush administration on the pretense of defending democracy and Kuwaiti sovereignty from Saddam Hussein, who had invaded the sheikdom on August 2, 1990. With the help of the corporate media, the war was presented to the population as a fait accompli. The bombs that fell from January to February 1991 totaled over 88,500 tons.

Desert Slaughter is the political record of the response of the International Committee of the Fourth International to this critical event. The documents of this volume are not only a valuable examination of the events of 1990-91. Twenty-five years after the Gulf War and in the midst of the ever-expanding war on terror, the book remains a seminal contribution to an understanding of American foreign policy and contemporary imperialism.

Desert Slaughter explains the objective causes of the war and roots it in the broader historical context. It includes a Resolution passed at a Special National Congress in September 1990, which reads:

The indisputable fact is that the US government is preparing to wage a war for the profits of the banks and oil companies The invasion of the Middle East by more than 100,000 US troops, backed by tanks, naval warships and hundreds of planes has historical implications that go far beyond the Persian Gulf. It is a watershed in world politics. It marks the beginning of a new imperialist redivision of the world, aimed at imposing a new form of direct colonial rule in those former colonial (and semi colonial) countries which won nominal independence after World War II.

Based on this analysis, Desert Slaughter identified with striking accuracy the consequences of the Gulf War, which have now come to dominate world politics. The titles of many of the volumes articles testify to the fact that Desert Slaughter has stood the test of time: Media LiesA Weapon of Imperialist War, The Gulf War and the Petty-Bourgeois Left, Prowar Union Bureaucracy Polices the Working Class, and The Persian Gulf War and the Attack on Democratic Rights.

Twenty-five years have passed since images of US bombers flying sorties over Baghdad first appeared on television. Since then, four US presidents have spent trillions of dollars pillaging a once-modern nation and reducing it to rubble. It is fitting to commemorate the anniversary of this imperialist crime by building a movement to ensure that such crimes are halted forever. A study of Desert Slaughter: The Imperialist War Against Iraq is a necessary step.

To purchase Desert Slaughter: The Imperialist War Against Iraq from Mehring books, click here.
Crisis, by Amir ElSaffar and his Two Rivers ensemble, is a memorable, distinct and timely album. It combines technical prowess, unique musical forms and political subject matter in a way that is certainly rare.

Amir ElSaffar was born in the Chicago area in 1977 to an American mother and Iraqi father, and initially studied and performed trumpet in a jazz and classical context.

In 2001, he won the Carmine Caruso Jazz Trumpet Competition and used the proceeds to fund a trip to Iraq. He focused there on a study of Iraqi maqam, a variation of an Arab musical form based on patterns of scales used as a guide for melodic improvisation. Each pattern is said to evoke a different emotional state. Iraqi maqam also incorporates classic poetic texts into performances.

Many features of maqam music are passed on through oral tradition, and when ElSaffar arrived in Iraq, many musicians had already left the country, in part because of the US invasion. He subsequently sought out the masters of the genre and learned to speak Arabic. He began playing a type of hammered dulcimer known as the santur and learned vocal techniques unique to maqam. In Europe and America, he began to synthesize these forms with jazz. Crisis is the most recent product of his artistic progress.

The music for Crisis was composed in 2013, after ElSaffar spent a year living in Egypt, where he witnessed revolution first-hand, and Lebanon, where he worked with Syrian musicians affected by war. Each of the nine tracks is distinct, yet they string together like an unfolding story that winds its way through the war in Iraq and the Arab Spring revolutions across the Middle East.

Bringing the music to life is ElSaffars Two Rivers Ensemble, an international group of musicians. In addition to ElSaffar himself, who provides trumpet, vocals and santur, there are Palestinian-Americans Tareq Abboushi on buzuq (a type of lute popular in the Middle East and in the Caucasus region) and Zafer Tawil on oud (a distant relative of the guitar) and percussion. Norwegian Ole Mathisen plays tenor and soprano saxophone, American Carlo Derosa plays upright bass and fellow American Nasheet Waits plays drums.

The song titlesThe Great Dictator, Flyover Iraq, El-Shaab (The People), and Tipping Pointindicate what the groups mostly instrumental compositions are intended to evoke.

In The Great Dictator, which received thunderous applause when it was premiered at the Newport Jazz Festival in 2013, there are memorable santur, trumpet and saxophone melodies. Waitss drumming meanwhile is both nimble and surprising as he rapidly shifts from militaristic drumrolls to supporting textures, depending on the passage. A beautiful buzuq solo contrasts with a saxophone solo that begins with swagger and ends in frenetic desperation. The instruments seem to suggest contending social forces. The tune rewards repeated listening.

El-Shaab (the People) with its persistent, undulating bass line, is a lively number. The seventh track, Tipping Point drives toward a point of breakdown, seemingly in reference to the popular uprisings that swept dictators like Hosni Mubarak out of power. Employing some of the more avant-garde sounds on the album, this track appears to suggest the unresolved nature of the situation.

Elsewhere on the album, there are more traditional maqam pieces that offer more-subdued, yet moving passages. Love poem features ElSaffar singing a poem by Sufi mystic Ibn Arabi (11651240), which asks, The loved ones of my heart, where are they?, and endsjust prior to Flyover Iraqwith:

How long, how long was I seeking them?

And how often did I beg to be united with them?

These verses, written some 800 years ago, make for a haunting comment on the present, and bring to mind the suffering of refugees fleeing the misery caused by decades of imperialist war and aggression.

ElSaffars Crisis is in part an effort to maintain, preserve and popularize an endangered musical art form. UNESCO includes Iraqi maqam on its list of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity, but the musical formalong with Iraqi culture as a wholehas been gravely threatened by bloody conflict and the political instability of the last 20 years or more.

Funding and performances were limited under Saddam Hussein, and some artists left the country in search of better opportunities. The American invasion in 2003 prompted many more to flee, and the violence that followed nearly wiped out the countrys musical culture.

US-stoked sectarian conflict between Sunni and Shiites has made it even more perilous for musicians to perform. The state-funded Baghdad Institute of Musical Studies, which focuses on Iraqi musical heritage, including Iraqi maqam, has not experienced a recovery in enrollment numbers since the neo-colonial US invasion. At times, students have had to hide instruments on their way to school. As a secular form of music, maqam has been banned outright by extremist Islamic forces when they have come to power.

ElSaffar has said that [practicing the Iraqi maqam ] is potentially very powerful as a way of accessing the collective memory of Iraqi society, which is not only being eroded, but brutally destroyed.

The blending of maqam and jazz on Crisis is largely a success. The combination of Arab stringed instruments with jazz instruments never feels forced. Part of what makes the sound of Crisis so alluring is that the saxophone, trumpet and bass have themselves adopted the techniques of maqam, including the extensive use of microtonesthe notes between the notes, as they are sometimes calledto blend seamlessly with the santur, buzuq and oud .

Indeed, the fusion of American jazz with Arab and Middle Eastern musical traditions in the work of not only ElSaffar but also bassist Omer Avital and trumpeter Avishai Cohen, among others, has provided one of the more serious and meaningful musical trends in recent years.

With Crisis, ElSaffar and Two Rivers have created a powerful work that pays tribute to this endangered art form and that speaks directly and organically to the tumultuous events of our time.
Earlier this month, California governor Jerry Brown belatedly declared a state of emergency in the Porter Ranch neighborhood of Los Angeles, in response to the ongoing natural gas leak from a well at the nearby Aliso Canyon underground storage facility, which is owned and operated by Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas). At present, more than 4,500 Porter Ranch families in the relatively affluent suburban enclave, roughly a third of the local population, have fled.

An average of 1.6 million pounds of methane have been released by the well daily, according to recent estimates. This rate has begun to slow slightly as pressure in the well decreases. Since methane is roughly 84 times more potent at trapping energy than carbon dioxide, this amount is equivalent to the daily emissions of 4.5 million cars or six coal-fired power plants.

The leak, likely the largest methane gas leak in US history, is attributable to the dilapidated character of infrastructure in America and the subservience of social needs to private profit. A substantial cause of the leak was the absence of a subsurface safety valve, which was removed by SoCalGas in 1979 and never replaced. At that time, the existing safety valve was old and leaking, and because the company was not legally obligated to replace it, the company apparently chose to save money instead.

The well was drilled in 1953, before wells were designed to have two cement casings line the entire length of the well to prevent leakage. On October 23, a breach occurred in the single casing of the well at 470 feet deep, causing natural gas to seep through the surrounding environment to the surface. The absence of a safety valve at the base of the well, which would have cut off access to the underground aquifer, the largest west of the Mississippi, has led to the continual outpouring of natural gas.

After first reporting the leak to state authorities, but concealing its existence from the public, SoCalGas made seven kill attempts in which they injected slurry into the well to try to stop the flow of gas. It is believed that one of the initial slurry injections, performed on November 13, substantially widened the area through which gas is leaking.

Each kill attempt failed to stop the flow of gas, and the attempts have cumulatively created a gaping hole 25 feet deep, 80 feet long and 30 feet wide, upon which the well head is now dangerously suspended by wires, according to California Department of Conservation officials who spoke with the Los Angeles Times .

The state regulators told the Times that a well-head blowout is now a significant concern. In the event of a blowout, highly flammable gas would vent directly up through the wellrather than dissipating as it does now via the subsurface leak and underground channels, according to the Times .

Gene Nelson, a physical sciences professor at Cuesta College, told the Times, If the wellhead fails, the thing is just going to be full blast. It will be a horrible, horrible problem. The leak rates would go way up.

SoCalGas has declined to speak with media about the current state of the well, and has not made available any pictures of the well site.

The company did not begin drilling a relief well until December 4, six weeks after the leak began. Greg McCormack, an expert in petroleum engineering, told LA Weekly, They really should have started drilling that well as soon as they found out it was leaking. They would be well on their way to being able to control the well.

Barring the event of a blowout, the relief well is expected to halt the methane leakage by late February or early March. Speedup of the drilling process for the relief well, which also poses the risk of explosion, is likely as the company seeks to mitigate public outrage. Since news coverage of the leak first began, stock for Sempra Energythe holding company responsible for SoCalGashas fallen by nearly 15 percent.

Beginning in October, nearby residents immediately reported smelling a foul odor, stemming from methyl mercaptan, a chemical added to odorless gas to make it detectable. By December, hundreds of residents were reporting headaches, nosebleeds, nausea and other symptoms, attributable to the methane, methyl mercaptan and other volatile organic compounds, including the carcinogen benzene.

Last week, the Associated Press revealed that SoCalGas has been misrepresenting the levels of benzene observed since monitoring began in November. While SoCalGas had been claiming that only two air samples over the past three months showed elevated concentrations of the compound, AP discovered 14 such instances in the companys data, which SoCalGas spokeswoman Kristine Lloyd attributed to an oversight. Benzene has long been known to cause leukemia and other cancers, with the World Health Organization cautioning, No safe level of exposure can be recommended.

Children, the elderly and those with preexisting conditions are most vulnerable to these pollutants, whose long-term consequences remain unknown. For a time, an average of roughly 50 children per day saw Porter Ranch school nurses for severe nose-bleeding, while some babies have been rushed to the emergency room with shortness of breath. Two schools in the city are scheduled for relocation this month.

Nearby residents have borne the immediate brunt of the disaster. Brandon Ly told LA Weekly, I feel like Im trapped. Im stuck in a poisonous house.

Neighbor Arlene Stein said, You can smell it really bad on our cul de sac. When its bad, its nauseating. Ive had headaches almost continuously for the last couple of months.

The full scale of the crisis was not made public until an aerial survey was conducted by the state Air Resources Board. The survey found that over the first three weeks of November, when SoCalGas conducted its slurry injections, the amount of methane released increased from 44,000 kilograms per hour to 58,000.

In late December, the Environmental Defense Fund released aerial footage showing a birds-eye, infrared view of the gas leak. Others have uploaded similar infrared videos from the ground, demonstrating the pervasive flooding of methane into Porter Ranch.

Nearly three months after the leak began, Brown finally declared a state of emergency on January 6. Browns reputation as a supposed progressive on environmental issues, dating back to his first term as governor in the 1970s, is increasingly recognized as fraudulent by many Californians.

Browns sister and fellow Democrat, Kathleen Brown, is a paid board member of Sempra Energy. Since 2010, Brown himself has received over $100,000 in campaign contributions from Sempra Energy.

Browns emergency measures are cosmetic only, designed for the newspapers and not to address the problem. The emergency regulations only apply to a dozen natural gas storage fields located in nine counties, and commit no public funds to address the leak or recompense local residents suffering health problems. They also do nothing to address the root cause of the crisisthe continued reliance upon dilapidated infrastructure across the oil and gas industry, which would rather pocket profits in the short term.

The absence of a safety valve is not at all uncommon for natural gas wells, many of which are as old or older than the Aliso Canyon well. SoCalGas itself reported to the Public Utilities Commission in 2014 that 229 of its wells were at least 57 years old, while 52 of them were at least 70 years old. They have admitted that many of their wells are similarly ill-prepared for a breach, posing the risk that the ongoing environmental disaster could become a commonplace event in the near future.

The Aliso Canyon gas leak recalls the 2010 BP oil spill, with many labeling it the worst environmental catastrophe since that event. A more recent environmental crisis involving a comparable amount of corporate criminality and government collusion is the ongoing water crisis in Flint, Michigan. Each of these environmental and social catastrophes lays bare the essential relations of capitalism, in which the needs of society are trampled to serve the interests of the financial aristocracy.
Voting concluded Thursday in the student parliament elections at Humboldt University in Berlin. The International Youth and Students for Social Equality (IYSSE), which ran in opposition to militarism, xenophobia, and right-wing historical revisionism, won six percent of the vote and four seats in the student parliament. Below is the groups official statement in response to the vote.

We wish to express our thanks to all those who voted for the IYSSE at the Humboldt University in this weeks student parliament election and powerfully affirmed the significance of our work. The result represents a clear mandate to continue and intensify our struggle against militarism.

During the past weeks and months the Humboldt University IYSSE has placed the struggle against the revival of German militarism at the centre of its work. At a series of meetings and in numerous articles we have shown that Humboldt University professors, such as Jorg Baberowski and Herfried Munkler, have systematically sought to play down the crimes of German imperialism in preparation for new wars. We have determinedly opposed the transformation of Humboldt into an ideological centre for war and racist agitation against refugees.

This work has become even more important in the last few weeks. With its intervention in Syria the German ruling elite has abandoned any military restraint, and agitates on a daily basis for the massive rearmament of the Bundeswehr and further military interventions. Bundeswehr soldiers are to be dispatched all over the world in order to further Germanys economic interests. At the same time, racism, chauvinism and hysterical attacks on refugees have become an integral element of bourgeois politics.

It is highly significant that so many students did not allow themselves to be intimidated by the threats against the IYSSE by university officials. The tripling of our vote and the large-scale and lively participation at our meetings shows that broad layers of students and workers are fiercely opposed to the move towards war and growing racism.

The task now is to translate these votes into active support. We appeal to students and young people to help us build the IYSSE at Humboldt University and at other universities in Germany and throughout the world. Stop the universities from becoming ideological think tanks for war and militarism and take part in the building of an international and socialist anti-war movement!
The Stalinist Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM) and Communist Party of India (CPI) are preparing another trap for the working class in Tamil Nadu, amid the campaign for the Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry regional legislative elections of May 2016. They have formed a Third Front, or Peoples Welfare Front (PWF), with right-wing regionalist and caste-ist parties like the Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK).

The CPM and CPI are abandoning their longstanding alliance with the two major bourgeois parties in Tamil Nadu, the ruling AIADMK (All-India Anna Dravida Munnethra Kazhagam) and DMK (Dravida Munnethra Kazhagam), amid rising disillusionment and anger with these parties. Their program and the character of their leading personnel make clear, however, that the PWF speaks not for the working class, but for bourgeois and affluent middle class elements closely tied to imperialism and transnational capital.

The central feature of the PWFs program is its alignment with the interests of the imperialist powers, above all, the US government and its pivot to Asia aimed against China. The PWF was formed amid a broad re-orientation of Indian foreign policy, more closely aligning New Delhi with Washingtons strategic needs. This week, the Indian government entered into talks to open the countrys ports and air force bases to the US military.

The PWF has chosen MDMK leader V. Gopalasamy, a pro-US politician and admirer of Obama, as the leader coordinating the activities of the different PWF parties. In July 2008, Gopalasamy met Obama in Chicago and showed him a copy of Gopalasamys book Yes We Can, named after Obamas campaign slogan. Gopalasamy said that Obamas dynamism and charisma have touched the hearts of people in the remote corners of the world, crossing the barriers of the continents.

Gopalasamy released his book in Delhi in 2010, declaring, Mr. Obama had achieved what nobody else could do.

A November 25 PWF statement declares, we will face the election on the basis of our minimum program. We have published a minimum program that is agreeable to all the parties in the coalition. Therefore we avoided some issues including separate Tamil Eelam [in Sri Lanka], and opposition to Koodankulam nuclear power plant.

The Stalinists are hostile to popular opposition to the Koodankulam nuclear plant, and silent on the position of the Tamil minority in Sri Lanka, because these might cut across the Indian bourgeoisies maneuvers with imperialism.

The Koodankulam nuclear power plant is located in Tamil Nadus Tirunelveli district. Construction began in 2002 and continued after the 2004 Indian general election, which brought to power the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, which the CPI and CPM supported.

Thousands of people from hundreds of villages protested against the project, fearing pollution and fallout from the nuclear plant. This reflected deep and legitimate distrust of such projects among the Indian people, after the deadly 1984 industrial disaster at the Union Carbide chemical plant in Bhopal. The UPA government suppressed these protests, however, as it viewed the plant as the only way to promise transnational corporations reliable electricity and thus to bring foreign investors to India.

On the question of Sri Lankas Tamil minority, the Stalinists again defend the Indian bourgeoisies alignment with Washington. The Indian ruling class and Stalinist parties had long exploited popular sympathy in Tamil Nadu for the oppressed Tamils in Sri Lanka, arming Tamil nationalist groups in Sri Lanka whenever the Indian government wanted to pressure the Sri Lankan regime in Colombo.

Amid rising strategic competition with China in Sri Lanka, however, both Washington and the UPA backed the Sri Lankan military offensive against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the final years of the war, providing the Colombo regime with military assistance and logistical support. The LTTE were massacred by the Sri Lankan government with the support of the Obama administration in 2009. In the final stage of the war, more than 40,000 Tamils were killed, and tens of thousands of people displaced and interned.

Any serious investigation of the Sri Lankan governments war crimes against Tamils in Sri Lanka would cut across the alliance Washington and New Delhi have established with Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisenas government. Sirisena was installed in a US-backed regime change operation in January 2015, designed to shift Sri Lankas economic and strategic orientation away from China and towards India and the United States. The government in Colombo is staffed by military and political officials who played leading roles in the bloody final offensive against the LTTE.

Moreover, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and the Tamil National Peoples Front (TNPF), the key Tamil ally of the Indian Stalinists, have both oriented themselves to the Sirisena government and taken up positions in the Sri Lankan state.

For these reasons, the PWF and the Indian Stalinists have abandoned even their cynical, tactically-motivated criticisms of the Sri Lankan governments oppression of the Tamil masses.

Gopalasamy, now the PWFs leader, used to boast that in 1989, he illegally took a boat ride from India to Sri Lanka to visit LTTE leader Velupillai Prabakharan. Now, however, he is promoting the Obama administration, which sanctioned Colombos massacre of the LTTE.

The formation of the PWF testifies to the political bankruptcy of Indian Stalinism, a quarter century after its allies in the Kremlin bureaucracy dissolved the USSR and restored capitalism. Its orientation to the Indian Congress and its rejection of the struggle for world socialist revolution, including socialist revolution in India, ultimately transformed it into a reactionary bourgeois party allied to imperialism.

The CPI and CPM played a key role in the opening of India to foreign capital by the Congress starting in 1991. Having supervised this process in certain states of India that they governed, such as West Bengal, and blocked working class opposition to pro-business measures elsewhere, they have emerged as representatives of a constituency of bourgeois and affluent middle class elements hostile to the working class.

Tamil Nadu was one of the regions of India where the reactionary implications of Stalinisms counterrevolutionary orientation emerged the earliest and in the sharpest form.

Ever since the defeat of the Congress party in the 1967 state elections in Tamil Nadu, amid a wave of strikes and protests in the working class, the Indian Stalinists supported Dravidian nationalist partiesthe DMK and later the AIADMK, a DMK split-offin power in Tamil Nadu. Prior to independence from Britain in 1947, these parties had opposed the Congress and the struggle for independence, supporting British colonial rule. Afterwards, they were always on the right of Indian bourgeois politics.

For decades, the CPI and CPM worked to subordinate the working class to the DMK and then the AIADMK, hailing the one and then the other as secular parties with a pro-people agenda.

Since 1991, however, both parties have implemented free-market policies and opened cheap-labor special economic zones for transnational corporations. In 2003, a Stalinist-backed AIADMK government in Tamil Nadu sacked nearly 200,000 striking public sector workers with the support of a BJP-led government in New Delhi, and implemented a draconian anti-worker essential services law in 2003, using mass firings and mass arrests.

Amid the collapse of the Congress party at the national level, the Indian Stalinists suffered a debacle in the 2014 parliamentary election, losing support in Kerala, Tripura, West Bengal and across India. They face escalating unrest among workers in Tamil Nadu, with struggles amid sharp increases of prices for basic food items. Neyveli lignite mine workers, sanitary workers, and employees of transnational companies in the special economic zones, such as Foxconn, Hyundai and BYD, have all mounted strikes and protests.

The PWFs formation is a desperate attempt under these explosive conditions to demoralize workers struggles and tie them to bankrupt bourgeois parties.
In an interview last Sunday with the Financial Times and Nikkei Weekly, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe intervened directly into the territorial disputes in the South China Sea between China and its neighbours.

Asked about Chinas land reclamation activities, Abe declared Japan had very strong concerns over Chinas unilateral attempt to change the status quo in the South China Sea ... Such a unilateral challenge against the international order cannot be tolerated, and the international community should raise its voice against this.

Unlike the East China Sea, where Japan and China are in dispute over the Senkaku/Diaoyu islands, Japan has no territorial claims in the South China Sea. Nevertheless, Japan, like the United States, is both fuelling and exploiting the tensions in the disputed waters to advance its own economic and strategic interests in South East Asia.

Abes comments provoked a sharp response from Beijing. Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told reporters that China had every right to build on territory in the Spratly Islands. After referring to the Japanese takeover of the islands during World War II, Hong declared Japan should make more efforts to increase mutual trust ... instead of sowing discord and warned that China was on high alert against any Japanese interference.

Abes remarks are part of the mounting campaign by the US and its allies against Chinas land reclamation in the South China Sea. Last October, the Pentagon directly challenged Chinas maritime claims by sailing the USS Lassen, a guided missile destroyer, within the 12-nautical mile territorial limit around a Chinese-administered islet.

The Japanese government has ruled out, for the time being, conducting a similar freedom of navigation operationa move that would antagonise China and could raise concerns among South East Asian nations that were occupied by Japan during World War II.

On January 10, however, the Japanese Defence Ministry announced that it would re-route military aircraft returning from anti-piracy operations in the Horn of Africa. Instead of refuelling in their traditional stops like Singapore and Thailand, the two P-3 Orion maritime patrol and anti-submarine aircraft would land in places such as Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines. The aircraft carry highly sophisticated equipment designed to monitor and track vessels, including submarines.

The first planned stopover will be at Vietnams Cam Ranh Bay, which is directly adjacent to the South China Sea. Vietnam, together with the Philippines and Malaysia, is in dispute with China over islets and reefs in the South China Sea. Japan has concluded a series of deals with Vietnam to enhance its maritime security, including the provision of coast guard vessels, and the two governments have agreed to hold their first-ever joint naval exercise in the near future.

Tokyo is likewise establishing close relations with Manila. Abe and Philippine President Benigno Aquino signed a strategic partnership last June and agreed to hold talks on the sale of Japanese military hardware to the Philippines, including radar technology and Orion P-3 aircraft. Japan has already agreed to supply 10 patrol vessels to boost the Philippine Coast Guard.

While the refuelling stopovers are low key, they are clearly part of a broader plan to establish a more permanent Japanese presence in South East Asia. The US think tank Stratfor commented: Japan wants to play a more active military role in the Pacificindeed, it may have no other choicebut to do this Tokyo needs countries willing to host its forces. It is safe to say that Japan is not going to the trouble of altering its flight plans just so its aircraft will have a small number of additional refuelling options over the next decade. Starting with these modest visits, Tokyo hopes to lay the foundation for a greater, more sustainable presence.

Since coming to power in 2012, Abe has sought to reorganise and expand the Japanese military and free it from legal and constitutional constraints. Last month the cabinet foreshadowed another increase in military spendingthe fourth in a rowfor the year beginning April 2016, to 5.05 trillion yen or $US41.8 billion. Major purchases include an Aegis-equipped anti-ballistic missile ship, six F-35A fighter aircraft and 17 SH-60K patrol helicopters.

The budget will also fund the reorientation of the Japanese military to island defence in the south of the country, directly adjacent to China. Japan is boosting its military presence on some of its southern islands and is establishing an amphibious force, along the lines of the US Marines.

Last week, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga intensified the pressure on China over the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu islands in the East China Sea. He announced that the Japanese navy or Maritime Self-Defence Forces would engage in a maritime policing operation when a foreign warship entered Japans territorial waters and was not practicing innocent passage. The declaration is particularly targetted against China, which is not going to claim innocent passage through waters it regards as its own.

While a policing operation is not the same as a defence operation and limits the use of weapons, the Japanese navys involvement in activities directed against Chinese naval vessels heightens the danger of a confrontation. Any attempt by Japanese warships to ward off their Chinese counterparts with warning shots would risk escalation.

At present, the Japanese government is adopting a more aggressive stance toward China, both in the East China and South China Seas, within the framework of the US pivot to Asia. In remilitarising, however, Abe is preparing to prosecute Japans economic and strategic interests. In his interview last week with the Nikkei Weekly, he pointedly dismissed the notion of a G-2that is, the US and Chinamanaging Asia as an outdated way of thinking. In other words, Japanese imperialism has no intention of being eclipsed by other powers, whoever they be.
Major corporations around the world announced sharp cuts in their labor forces this past week. The job reductions come amidst growing signs of a general economic crisis, as commodity prices and share values plummet.

Leading the way in job cuts are energy companies, particularly in the oil and gas industries, which have been hit hard by the collapse in oil prices.

Schlumberger, the largest oil technology and drilling company, announced Thursday that it would eliminate 10,000 positions, roughly ten percent of the firms workforce. The companys stock has been trading at near four-year lows this past week. In order to please investors, the company announced the mass layoffs alongside a $10 billion stock buyback program to boost its stock price.

Royal Dutch Shell reported that it would increase its planned 7,500 job cuts this year to 10,300. The downsizing is bound up with Shells acquisition of the BG group, a smaller British oil company. The cut totals ten percent of the workforce of the merged companies. Other energy company cuts include Southwestern Energy Corporation (1,100), Noble Corporation (100), and Potash (430).

While job cuts have been sharpest in the oil and gas sectors, the general downturn in primary resources has soured profit forecasts and spurred layoffs throughout the economy.

The German Manager Magazin reports that Volkswagen is considering slashing up to 10,000 jobs as part of a new cost-cutting drive. In addition to the impact of the general tumult in the world economy, Volkswagen is reeling from the exposure of its rigging of car emissions. Volkswagen intends to place the burden of the scandal squarely on the backs of the workers, in part by increasing productivity by ten percent this year.

On Tuesday, health industry giant Johnson & Johnson announced 3,000 job cuts at its medical device division. That is about five percent of the firms global workforce. The company hopes to save $1 billion annually from the cut, which will be imposed over the next two years.

Pearson, the worlds largest education publisher, announced Thursday that it would shed 4,000 jobs, roughly 10 percent of its workforce. Many of these job cuts will fall in the companys operations in the United States. The firms shares declined substantially after it announced three months ago that it would not make a profit in 2015. The firm is the co-owner of Penguin Random House.

Barclays, the British investment bank, announced that it would cut 1,200 jobs and close offices around the world, particularly in Asia. Virgin Media, another British company, will cut 900 jobs, primarily in London and Birmingham.

These job cuts follow other mass job reductions in Europe, including 6,500 at General Electrics European operations, 6,000 by the French nuclear group Areva, 5,800 at British Airways, and 1,000 at Tata Steel in Britain.

Job losses are mounting as well in China. While growth continues in some sectors, unemployment is increasing amongst workers in the steel industry and other sectors that have been sharply hit by the collapse of commodity prices. China International Capital Corporation estimated that 3 million workers would be laid off in the next few years in the coal, steel, electrolytic aluminum, cement and glass industries due to overcapacity. Professor Liu Erduo, a labor economist at Renmin University, predicts that the unemployment rate in China will rise from 5.1 to at least 6.1 percent this year.

The cascade of job cuts comes as prominent figures attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland predict a grim future for the world economy. William White, chairman of the review committee of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and former chief economist at the Bank for International Settlements, stated, The situation is worse than it was in 2007. White warned that this time around, the worlds central banks will not be in a position to bail out the financial markets. Our macroeconomic ammunition to fight downturns is essentially all used up, he said.
The Socialist Equality Party and International Youth and Students for Social Equality are calling a public meeting in Detroit, Michigan on January 27. Meeting details below.

The working class of Michigan is under attack. Flint residents have been poisoned by lead from the citys water supply, with permanent and devastating consequences for thousands of children. In Detroit, thousands of teachers are holding sickouts to protest deplorable conditions in the citys public schools.

In both Flint and Detroit, workers confront the consequences of policies that have laid waste to social infrastructure. Both Democrats and Republicans, aided and abetted by the trade unions, are responsible. For four decades, deindustrialization and massive cuts to social programs have boosted corporate profits and the wealth of the financial elite, while trillions of dollars have been wasted in wars. The bankruptcy of Detroit, completed last year, has been utilized to restructure the city in the interests of the rich.

Workers must respond with their own strategy to unite all sections of the working class in a common struggle. Teachers, autoworkers, city workers and residents hit by utility shutoffs and decaying public services: All face the same crisis. It is not a white question or a black question, or a question of the suburbs vs. the city. It is a class question.

The Socialist Equality Party and the International Youth and Students for Social Equality urge all workers to attend this meeting to discuss the necessary response to the ongoing emergency.

Meeting details:

Wednesday, January 27, 7:00 p.m.

Wayne State University

Student Center, Hilberry Room C

5221 Gullen Mall, Detroit, Michigan

Map
Three US coal miners have died in separate accidents 19 days into the new year, the highest number to occur in such a period since 2006. The deaths come amidst mass layoffs across the mining sector, leading to corner-cutting on the part of operators and pressure on remaining miners to work under dangerous conditions without raising concerns.

On January 19, 36-year-old Nathan Phillips was killed as he operated a continuous mining machine in the western Kentucky Dotiki Mine.

A preliminary report from the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) states that Phillips received fatal crushing injuries when he was pinned between the tail of the continuous mining machine and the inby coal rib in the last open crosscut between two entryways. He was pinned to the wall by the machine; Phillips was freed by co-workers, then taken to a Louisville hospital where he was declared dead.

The Dotiki Mine is a massive operation owned by Alliance Resource Partners and operated by Webster County Coal LLC. It is a nonunion underground mine employing 391 miners.

In 2010, two continuous mine operators were killed in the mine when a 70-foot slab of the roof fell on them. As the World Socialist Web Site noted at the time, the Dotiki Mine was cited hundreds of times a year for safety violations, with one in three of them being significant and substantial (S&S) hazards, so called because they pose an imminent threat to the lives of miners on the job.

In the years since, the mines safety record is unchanged, and the federal safety agency does not classify it as having a pattern of violations that would enable inspectors to halt production until problems have been corrected. In 2015, the Dotiki Mine was cited 348 times, of which 91 were classified S&S violations. Seven workers were injured on the job last year, several from falls of the roof or wall.

Alliance Resource Partners is a billion-dollar company long lauded as a standout performer in the face of declining coal profits. As other large companies declined, Alliance saw growth in its profits and dividends every year since 2005.

This changed in March 2015, as commodities markets declined worldwide. The companys coal sales continued to increase, but not enough to compensate for falling coal prices. Like other operators in the energy market, Alliance has sought to offload the impact of the global economic crisis onto its workforce by cutting employees, benefits and working conditions.

On Saturday evening, January 16, 31-year-old Jeremy R. Neice of Boone County was killed in an accident at the Mepco 4 West Mine in Greene County, Pennsylvania. Neice, who had 12 years mining experience, was also a continuous mine operator.

MSHA reported that Neice was operating a continuous mining machine when a large chunk of coal rib (wall) fell and pinned him to the mine floor. First responders freed him from the rubble, transported him to the surface and took him by ambulance to the nearest hospital in Morgantown, where he was declared dead.

The 4 West Mine is listed as a nonunion mine employing 405 workers, 369 of them underground. At the time of the accident, 72 miners were on shift.

Located some 50 miles south of Pittsburgh, the mine is operated by limited liability companies Dana Mining and Mepco Intermediate Holdings with mailing addresses in Morgantown, West Virginia.

MSHA lists the parent company as GenPower Holdings LP, and the owner as James L. Laurita, Jr. Laurita is the former chairman of the West Virginia Coal Association, the powerful industry lobby in the state.

Few other details about the accident have been released as of this writing. Brian M. Osborn, Mepco senior vice president, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the company was deeply saddened by the loss and extended heartfelt thoughts and prayers to Jeremys family, to all our employees, and to all who knew Jeremy. Osborn reportedly declined to provide the newspaper any further information about the accident.

The Dana/Mepco 4 West Mine was the site of another fatal accident last summer. Fifty-five-year-old John W. Kelly of Albright, West Virginia, was crushed on June 28 when a set of airlock doors and frames fell on him. Kelly had worked at the mine for 10 years at the time of his death.

The MSHA database lists 17 accidents at the mine last year, most of them involving collapses of the roof or walls. MSHA inspectors cited the 4 West Mine 284 times for safety violations in 2015. Of those, 87 citations were for S&S hazards.

One employee expressed the opinion on Facebook that Dana mining is one of the most dangerous mines in Pennsylvania to work at. Another commented, following a gas well explosion above the mine in February 2014, that the company was rash to allow work to continue down below: as long as coal is on the belt, its all good to them  thats all they care about.

Nieces death follows a January 4 fatality in southern West Virginia, the first of 2016. Peter Dale Sprouse of Clear Fork was killed in a belt roller accident at Greenbrier Minerals LLCs Lower War Eagle Mine in Wyoming County. Sprouse, a 53-year-old section foreman in the mine, had nearly 35 years of mining experience. According to the MSHA accident report, Sprouse became entangled in a moving underground belt conveyer while attempting to change out a roller. His body was found by co-workers at about 1 a.m.

The MSHA database records 11 injuries at the Lower War Eagle Mine in 2015, and lists 262 citations for safety violations. Sixty-two of the violations are classified as S&S. In the past month, MSHA cited 11 violations, including for inadequate protections against roof, face and rib falls, problems with electrical and firefighting equipment.

The mine is owned by another limited liability company, Coronado Coal LLC of Connecticut. Coronado was formed in 2011 to acquire coal assets for the private investment firm Energy and Minerals Group (EMG).

Like so many LLCs in the mining industry, Coronado operates as a legal shield for its owners. Many LLCs are incorporated at the local level but are ultimately owned and controlled by global hedge funds and financial asset strippers. On its corporate web site, EMG boasts of assets totaling $16.8 billion and a long list of acquisitions and partnerships across the crisis-wracked US and world coal industry.

The company bought Greenbrier Minerals in 2013 from Cliffs Natural Resources, one of many coal companies weighing bankruptcy in the past few years.
This week, Germanys second largest bank, Commerzbank, declared that Portugal had once again become a problem child in the euro zone, and that the situation in the country could quickly evolve into something very similar to what Greece lived through last summer.

Access to the bond-buying programme of the European Central Bank (ECB) could be cut off, leading to the government having to seek a new rescue package, it warned. The report declared it had little faith in the claims made by Finance Minister Mario Centeno that much stronger growth, coupled with tax revenues would occur and therefore allow for more public spending.

Commerzbank bitterly criticised the minimal measures the new Socialist Party (PS) government has taken to partially undo measures imposed by the previous right-wing Social Democratic Party (PSD)/Peoples Party (CSD-PP) government. The changes, part of the left agreement made with the Left Bloc (BE) and the Communist Party (PCP), include an increase in the monthly minimum wage to 589, the reinstatement of four public holidays, and a cut to an extraordinary income tax introduced during the debt crisis to boost revenues.

The Commerzbank salvo was the latest in a series of attacks made by the financial markets and the troika (ECB, European Commission and International Monetary Fund) since the PS came to power last month with the support of the BE and PCP. They are piling pressure on the PS and its pseudo-left allies to deepen austerity. Portugals debt stands at about 130 percent of GDP, one of the highest in the euro zone, well above pre-2008 levels of 84 percent.

The budget deficit in 2014 ended up at 7.2 percent of GDP, compared to the forecast 2.3 percent. The latest data shows it reached 4.2 percent in 2015 instead of the 2.7 percent agreed with the troika. Troika officials are in Lisbon next week to push for the shortfall to be rectified this year, and are reportedly demanding 18 measures to achieve a 2.8 percent target in 2016.

The PS has already made clear that it is committed to the troikas demands, offering to cut the budget deficit by more than it suggested and present its proposals in a long overdue 2016 State Budget to congress next month.

The BE has shown itself a party similar in all essentials to Syriza in Greece, which also struck a pose of defiance towards the European Union (EU), passing a few symbolic measures to alleviate the plight of the population in its early days in office. Within a few months, however, this pose was ditched entirely, as Syriza agreed to impose worse austerity measures than its predecessors.

When the BE signed the left agreement with the PS last November, it was clear that Portugals continued access to the ECBs lifeline bond-buying programme was on a knife edge. The cash provided by the ECB allowed Portugal to raise at least 9 billion in loans it has been unable to raise from international banks. Ratings agencies Moodys, Standard & Poors and Fitch had given Portuguese bonds junk status.

Only the BBBL rating (one above junk) by the little-known Canadian-based DBRS Ltd credit rating agency saved the day. DBRS is due to review its assessment in March, and analysts are speculating it too will downgrade Portugal to junk status.

One of the PS governments first acts in office was to bail out the failed bank, Banco Internacional de Funchal (Banif), with state funds. Finance Minister Centeno initially said the bailout, which could amount to 3 billion, was an exceptional expense and would not appear on the books.

On Thursday, however, he told reporters that unfortunately the situation that began with Banif and the need for intervention poses difficulties for exiting the countrys Excessive Deficit Procedure (less control by the troika and more room to make its own decisions over public spending). It was the injection of capital into Banif that caused the budget deficit for 2015 to be revised to 4.2 percent last month, shattering the 2.7 percent posted by the PSD/CDS-PP.

The PS government also faces legal action by international investors after the Bank of Portugal took emergency action at the end of December to plug a 1.4 billion shortfall at Novo Banco, a supposed good bank created out of the collapse of Portugals largest bank, Banco Espirito Santo (BES), in 2014. The Portuguese central bank moved 5 out of 52 senior (highest-rated) Novo Banco bond issues worth 2 billion back to BES, now a bad bank housing all its toxic debt, effectively wiping out most of the bonds value. Investors are complaining that the action discriminated against foreign bondholders in order to protect the interests of Portuguese bondholders and contravenes the principle of equal treatment.

This week, the economic pressure on the government increased. Planning and Infrastructure Minister Pedro Marques revealed that savings the previous government said it had made in the renegotiations of 7.35 billion public-private partnership (PPP) contracts do not correspond to reality and had nothing to do with what was advertised.

Portugals vulnerability has been particularly evident in this weeks global financial turmoil. The interest (yield) on 10-year government bonds rose to 2.4 percent more than those in Germany, confirming Portugal as the euro zones worst-performing debt market after Greece. The PSI 20 Share Index slumped 3.7 percent on Mondaythe biggest fall of any developed nation.

In response to these ominous developments, the PS government perpetuates the fiction that it will be able to cut the deficit and increase public spending. Prime Minister Antonio Costa declared this week, We are facing a demanding and difficult financial year, but we will achieve a reduction of the structural deficit and the nominal deficit without sacrificing the commitments made to the Portuguese people and commitments with our partners. This is a fundamental guarantee for the credibility of political life.

Economy Minister Manuel Caldeira Cabral insisted that though the 2016 budget would involve containment and restraint, there would still be space for the PSs election promises.

BE spokeswoman Catarina Martins tried to sow illusions in the PS, insisting that it would respect the agreement signed by the PS, the BE, and the PCP. She said, There is no message coming from anywhere that could jeopardise the agreement that was signed to stop the impoverishment in Portugal and that the 2016 budget will of course mirror this agreement.

Martins insisted the BE talked often with the government, with the parties that have made the agreement and I am sure we all have the strength to know that the political commitments, they are for real.  On the part of BE, the agreement we made we take very seriously.

In fact, there is every indication that the PSwhich led the implementation of EU austerity measures in the initial years of the euro crisisis preparing another deal with the banks to further attack the working class, under political cover provided by the BE.
The average period of time for those imprisoned in Australias internal Immigration Detention Centres reached 445 days last month, highlighting the inhuman nature of the incarceration of refugees and others stripped of visas or residency rights.

According to a monthly report published by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, entitled Immigration Detention and Community Statistics Summary, detention periods have risen sixfold since July 2013, when the average length was 72 days.

Almost a quarter, or 23.2 percent, of the 1,792 people detained in the centres on the Australian mainland and the countrys Indian Ocean territory of Christmas Island have been there for two or more years. About half, or nearly 800 detainees, have been imprisoned for more than a year. Among the detainees are 91 children aged under 18.

These statistics did not include the 1,459 asylum seekers, including 68 children, held in Australian-controlled offshore processing camps on the Pacific island of Nauru (537 detainees) or Papua New Guineas Manus Island (922), many of whom have been detained for more than two years.

A further 29,522 people were living within Australia, under restrictions and on insecure temporary visas. They were seeking residency, still living under the constant fear of being re-consigned to detention.

There is mounting evidence that the poor and dehumanising conditions in the detention centres, coupled with lengthening and indefinite detention times, are having a severe impact on the psychological wellbeing and mental health of those detained.

This impact was highlighted in International Health and Medical Service (IHMS) reports. These reports are prepared for and released privately to the Australian government, but two were released this month under Freedom of Information application orders.

In the July-September 2014 quarter, the IHMS found that rates of severe mental distress were as high as 14.9 percent in the mainland and Christmas Island centres, nearly four times the general population in Australia.

Moreover, the report pointed to a direct correlation between mental distress and the length of stay in detention. It used the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10), in which participants have their mental distress rated low, mild, moderate or severe.

On average, the longer a participant was detained, the higher the distress rating. During the first three months of imprisonment, 7 percent of participants reported severe or moderate mental distress. This ratio jumped to 26 percent after 13-18 months and 33 percent after 19 months or more.

There were more acute levels in the facilities on Manus Island and Nauru. The report noted that the levels of distress among those detainees would be seen in Australia only among patients receiving specialist mental health case management care.

Children locked up in detention were worst affected. The report noted that children experienced a variety of triggers, including previous trauma and torture, enuresis (bed-wetting), nightmares, family conflict and situational crisis.

In the April to June 2015 quarter, 21.8 percent of children aged from 5 to 17 in offshore detention were taken to a doctor and diagnosed with a mental health condition. Significantly, even infants were affected15.6 percent of children under the age of 4 were taken to a doctor due to a mental health illness.

These results are likely to underestimate the levels of mental distress because participation in the surveys is voluntary. As the reports noted, the higher the levels of anxiety, the less likely detainees were to participate in the surveys.

The number of people held in detention decreased to 3,251 in December 2015, from 10,201 in January 2013. According to the official detention statistics report, this was because of releases into the community. Yet only 603 people were reported to be living in the community after being approved for a residency determination.

Numbers of asylum seekers are known to have been forcibly deported to face possible persecution during this period, including to Sri Lanka, by both the previous Labor government and the current Liberal-National Coalition government.

After taking office in September 2013, the Coalition government ratcheted-up the efforts of Labor to block or deter asylum seekers through the bipartisan policy of stop the boats. The Coalitions militarised and highly secretive Operation Sovereign Borders has blocked or turned back all refugee boats, directly violating the basic democratic right to seek asylum.

Under this regime, the Australian navy has paid the crews of boats, so-called people smugglers, to take refugees back to Indonesian waters.

This policy has seen a population shift in the detention facilities. In July 2013, 95 percent of detainees were asylum seekers captured in Australian waters. However, people whose residency rights have been revoked or who have over-stayed their visas made up 50 percent of those in domestic detention centres last December.

Reactionary amendments to the Migration Act in 2014 expanded the power of the Australian government to deport long-term foreign residents who were sentenced to periods of imprisonment totalling 12 months. After Iranians, about 200 New Zealanders now make up the second largest number of detainees by nationality, accounting for 10.2 percent of all domestic detainees. Another 80 people already have been deported to New Zealand.

These developments underline the wider implications of the anti-refugee policies pursued by successive Liberal-National and Labor governments. While scapegoating immigrants and refugees, Australian governments have vastly expanded their anti-democratic state powers, including those of detention and deportation, and these will be turned more broadly against the working class as social conditions worsen.

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The Syrian government has formally appealed to the United Nations over incursions into its territory by Turkish troops. The protest at the UN came amid reports that Turkish soldiers have crossed the border and entered the Syrian town of Jarablus on the western bank of the Euphrates River.

Turkish military action inside Syria threatens to escalate the internal conflict in that country and increase the threat of a confrontation between Turkey and Russia. Relations between Ankara and Moscow have remained tense since the November 24 Turkish shoot-down of a Russian warplane over Syrian territory.

Jarablus is under the control of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), but has come under increasing pressure from forces of the Syrian Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG), which have received backing from Washington in its so-called war on ISIS.

Turkey, a NATO ally of the US, is supposedly part of the anti-ISIS coalition. But there is extensive evidence that the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has facilitated the flow of fighters, arms and money to the Islamist militia and tacitly sanctioned the smuggling into Turkey of oil produced by ISIS-controlled installations in Syria.

The primary Turkish interest in Syria has been to block the consolidation of an autonomous Kurdish region on Turkeys southern border. The government in Ankara has declared that any attempt by the YPG to cross to the western bank of the Euphrates and link up the two Kurdish cantons of Kobane and Afrin would be a red line that would trigger Turkish military intervention.

ISIS fighters have reportedly offered no resistance to the Turkish incursion, underscoring the barely concealed collaboration between the Islamists and the Turkish state.

The Syrian Kurdish ARA News service reported that the Turkish army carried out an artillery attack on Tuesday against the YPG headquarters in the Syrian border town of Tel Abyad, wounding at least two Kurdish fighters and destroying three armored vehicles.

The city, which is north of the de facto ISIS capital of Raqqa, was retaken by YPG units in fighting with the Salafist jihadi militia last June.

Turkeys warmongering in Syria is bound up with its bloody campaign of repression against the Kurdish population within Turkey itself. Amnesty International on Wednesday condemned the Turkish government for carrying out collective punishment against its Kurdish population through round-the-clock curfews and other arbitrary measures which have left residents without access to emergency health care, food, water and electricity for extended periods.

The repression has escalated steadily since the collapse last July of a two-year peace process between the government and the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). More than 300 civilians have been killed in the Turkish campaign, including at least 61 children. Just in the period of December 11, 2015 to January 8, 2016, 162 civilians lost their lives.

US Vice President Joe Biden arrived in Istanbul Thursday night for talks with Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu that will likely center on the twisted and multisided relationship between the Kurdish question, the campaign against ISIS and the Western-orchestrated war for regime-change in Syria.

Washington and Ankara both seek the toppling of the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and both are hostile to Russian interests in the region. There are, however, major tactical differences between them.

While the US has voiced support for Erdogans crackdown against the PKK and the Kurdish population inside Turkey, the Pentagon has dispatched advisors to aid the Kurdish fighters of the YPG on the Syrian side of the border, using them as ground troops to seize territory in the US-led bombing campaign against ISIS.

Erdogan has allowed the US to use the Incirlik air base in Turkey to carry out airstrikes against ISIS positions in Syria, but his military has centered its own strikes on Kurdish forces there as well as in Iraq, where the government in Baghdad has denounced Turkish intervention as a violation of the countrys sovereignty.

Biden is expected to press for Turkey to seal off a 60-mile unsecured stretch of its border with Syria that serves as the principal supply line for ISIS. The Turkish government, however, far prefers ISIS control of the border zone over control by the Kurdish YPG.

Any move to secure the border will inevitably be accompanied by a Turkish intervention to halt a Kurdish advance, either through direct Turkish military occupation or through control over the area by other Al Qaeda-linked militias such as the al-Nusra Front, Ahrar al-Sham or Jaish al-Islam, all of which have enjoyed Turkish support.

The mounting conflicts threaten to upend talks scheduled in Geneva next Monday for the ostensible purpose of achieving a negotiated end to the nearly five-year-old civil war that has claimed the lives of roughly a quarter of a million Syrians and turned millions more into refugees.

US Secretary of State John Kerry allowed on Thursday that the talks could be put off for a day or two. Asked by reporters at the World Economic Forum in Davos whether there would be a delay, Kerry responded, When you say a delay, it may be a day or two for invitations, but there is not going to be a fundamental delay.

The delay, however, concerns precisely the issue of which parties are to receive invitations to attend. Washington and Moscow have agreed that both ISIS and the al-Nusra Front will not be included in any peace talks. However, the Obama administration is insisting that Salafist jihadi outfits such as Ahrar al-Sham and Jaish al-Islam, which share Al Qaedas essential outlook and methods, should be included as moderate rebels. The Russian government has insisted that they be excluded as terrorists.

Moscow, in turn, has called for the Syrian Kurdish YPG to be included in the talks, while Turkey has declared that it sees both it and ISIS as equally terrorist.

According to a report on the Foreign Policy web site, the United Nations special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, reported to the UN Security Council that Saudi Arabia was sabotaging his attempt to bring a broad range of Syrian opposition groups to the Geneva talks.

He said that the so-called High Negotiations Committee (HNC), cobbled together in Riyadh by the Saudi monarchy and dominated by Islamist militias, had rejected the participation of any other groups in the talks. He told the Security Council that the HNC and its sponsors insist on the primacy and exclusivity of their role as THE opposition delegation.

These sponsors include not only the Saudi regime, but also Qatar, Turkey and the US itself. In a briefing Tuesday, State Department spokesman John Kirby said, As we said after Riyadh, the opposition will be represented at that meeting by delegates chosen from the High Negotiating Committee and only from the High Negotiating Committee.

Washingtons aim remains to secure through a combination of negotiations and continuing support for Islamist sectarian militias in Syria what it has so far been unable to achieve: the toppling of Assad and the imposition of a more pliant puppet regime. In continuing to press for this end, it has unleashed a series of bitter regional and international conflicts that threaten to escalate into a far wider war with devastating consequences for the region and the entire world.
Twenty-three teachers, defendants in a case filed by the emergency manager of the Detroit Public Schools (DPS), have been ordered to appear before a judge Monday morning to answer accusations that they engaged in and/or encouraged others to engage in an illegal strike.

Hundreds of teachers have participated in sickouts over the last several months to protest deplorable conditions in the schools and escalating attacks on their jobs and living standards by DPS Emergency Manager Darnell Earley. These culminated in the largest protests to date on Wednesday, when 865 teachers called in sick, closing 88 of the districts 97 schools the same day President Obama visited Detroit.

On Thursday, Michigan Court of Appeals Judge Cynthia Diane Stephens, citing technical grounds, denied an initial request from Earley for a temporary restraining order to halt further protests. Judge Stephens scheduled a show cause hearing on Monday where school authorities will make the case for her to grant a preliminary injunction barring further protests.

A spokeswoman for the court told the World Socialist Web Site that a notice to appear had been mailed to all defendants for the hearing, which will be held at the Detroit Court of Appeals. The outcome of the hearing will determine if the case proceeds, she said, and if the injunction is granted, it is entirely up to Judge Stephens to determine what the appropriate penalties would be for its violation.

In addition to a temporary restraining order, a preliminary injunction and a permanent injunction enjoining defendants from continuing strikes and inducing others to strike, the DPS complaint requests that the court assess damages in an amount over $25,000, and any other relief the Court deems appropriate.

With the teachers enjoying popular support and the state already enmeshed in a political crisis over the Flint water crisis, which involves the same emergency manager who now runs the DPS schools, the judge decided to delay a direct confrontation with teachers. Instead she has given more time to the Detroit Federation of Teachers and the American Federation of Teachers to contain and strangle the protests.

Before Obamas visit, the AFT was in close contact with the administration about the protests. In recent days, various Democratic Party politicians, from Detroit Mayor Duggan to presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, have feigned support for the teachers. This has prompted union officials to tell teachers that their voices have finally been heard and it is time to stop the job actions.

The lawsuit contains an extra incentive to the unions by naming the Detroit Federation of Teachers and both its current and former local president, Ivy Bailey and Steve Connas defendants.

If the unions are unable to suppress the protests, the courts and the entire political establishment are prepared to use fines and even more punitive measures to make an example of the teachers and try to silence working-class opposition.

The nearly two-dozen defendants include veteran teachers who have been outspoken in exposing rodent- and roach-infested classrooms without heat, decaying school buildings, the severe teacher shortage and high class sizes. They have used social media to expose the precarious situation facing educators who have suffered a decade-long wage freeze while seeing a 124 percent increase in out-of-pocket health care expenses.

After years in which the DFT collaborated with successive emergency managers to impose these conditions, rank-and-file teachers decided to take matters in their own hands and launch the protests independently of the DFT. Some were organized in the group DPS Teachers Fight Back, which is listed as a defendant in the legal complaint.

Former DFT President Conn and his group, Detroit Strike to Win, are also targeted for legal action. While Conn has sought to take credit for the protests, in a bid to regain the presidency of the union, he has little credibility among teachers after years of promoting racial politics and carrying out unprincipled maneuvers with the Democratic Party. A call by Conn for further sickouts Thursday received no support.

Under Michigans reactionary laws, strikes by public employees are illegal. If the bipartisan Michigan Employment Relations Commission (MERC) determines that individual teachers violated the states law, it can impose fines on a teacher equal to one days pay, plus $5,000 for each full or partial day of school missed.

On Thursday, Michigan Republicans in the state legislature proposed and promised to quickly pass legislation that would make it easier to define sickouts as illegal strikes. The legislation would reduce the 60-day deadline for the employment commission to conduct a hearing on complaints to two days.

If our current state law isnt sufficient to prevent activists from hurting kids, its time we strengthen it, said Republican Sen. Phil Pavlov said.

While scrambling to hold on to his job and stay out of jail, Governor Rick Snyder took time to denounce teachers. Asked by CBS News what his message to teachers was, Snyder said, I would hope you would stop harming the children. I appreciate the fact that people have strong feelings on different issues. But to do it at the expense of affecting the school day for the children, I dont think thats appropriate.

Former Flint emergency manager and now the EM over the Detroit schools, Darnell Earley added to the hypocrisy, denouncing teachers for taking away another day of instruction for Detroit students.

In reality, teachers are championing the rights of students for a high quality public education. In this, teachers are fighting not only Snyder, Earley, Duggan & Co. but the Obama administration, which has overseen the destruction of 300,000 teacher jobs, the mass closing of public schools and the near doubling of charter school enrollment. They are also fighting the DFT and AFT, which function as full partners in imposing corporate school reform.

Responding to the threats of injunctions and fines, a Detroit teacher said, Teachers have the right to speak out. Thats our First Amendment. We have the right to say what we want and to post on social media what we want. They were getting away with so much evil that they became overconfident.

I am proud that no entity will control us. The AFT/DFT thought we were stupid. They have their marching orders and their political connections. What I like is that the teachers only trusted each other. We have a long history of fighting.

Workers must defend the Detroit teachers and oppose any legal witch-hunt against them.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - Blue Bell Ice Cream is beginning to to distribute its products in the southeast, following a listeria outbreak that caused the company to voluntarily suspend all operations at its Broken Arrow, Okla. plant and recall all of its products last year.

Three people died as a result of the contamination.

The company's market re-entry plan is taking place over two weeks.

On Jan. 25, the company will bring their products back to all major cities and surrounding areas in Florida. The products will also be available in Bainbridge, Moultrie, Thomasville, Tifton, and Valdosta starting next Monday.

The company says Butter Crunch, Buttered Pecan, Coffee, Cookies n Cream, Dutch Chocolate, Homemade Vanilla, Natural Vanilla Bean, Pistachio Almond and The Great Divide will all be in stock along with 12-pak Homemade Vanilla Cups and 12-pak Homemade Vanilla and Dutch Chocolate Cups.

The company's Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Ricky Dickson, says they are excited to be back in stores. "Our customers in these areas have been patiently waiting and we are very grateful for their support during this time," said Dickson.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL)-- This emerging artist is looking for a "Sorority Girl."

Talking about none other than musician Brady.

The Tallahassee native is a student at Florida State University has toured with the likes of Tobaccoo Road Band and have also played with Sway-Ja-Vu.

Brady performed several songs for us this morning on Sunrise Rocks, including "Sorority Girl."

Brady has also released a debut single, "Break Though."

There's a celebration for that on Friday, January 22 BrassTap Downtown.

You can also catch Brady live on Saturday, January 23 at the Ad Litem Pets Battle of the Band competition at The Moon.

For more information on Brady and his music, click here.
TALLAHASSEE, FL (WTXL) -- The parents of a 4-year-old student at Sabal Palm Elementary School say teachers held down their daughter and forced her to eat.

Ashley Yanez and Kristopher Cabot say they worry about their daughter Kimberly White.

"She'll come home scared and telling me, 'Mama, the teacher's mean to me,'" Yanez said. "She didn't want to go to school this morning, and I can't blame her."

Kimberly's parents got a call Wednesday night from the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF), shedding list on their daughter's complaints.

"They have told me that the teacher was holding her down and making her eat -- forcing her," Yanez said.

Kimberly started pre-kindergarten at Sabal Palm in August. Her parents say she's been doing well, earning "smiley faces" on her daily behavior reports -- until lately.

"And then I see it was all bad faces, so I was wondering what was going on," Cabot said. "Even Ashley tried to call up there, no answer."

Kimberly's parents say they were shocked to find out what happened to their daughter, but after talking to other classmates' parents, they say the teachers have mistreated other students before.

"A kid [coming] from school had a scratch on the forehead, because she slapped the kid, because he wasn't paying attention to reading," Yanez said, after talking to the boy's mother.

Leon County Schools confirmed there was a complaint filed against an employee, but would not say if it's regarding this incident. The district did say an instructional aide at the school has been put on leave, as it conducts an internal investigation.

But that's not stopping Kimberly's parents from taking further action. They plan to sue the school.

"They should be locked up for it -- for abusing a kid like that," Cabot said, "and it's been going on for probably about a month."

The parents say if problems continue, they may move Kimberly to a new school.

They also filed a complaint to the Leon County Sheriff's Office Thursday morning. The Sheriff's Office says an investigation is underway.
In this Dec. 14, 2015 photo, Nakesha Edwards, a La Conner High School junior shows some of her Native American-inspired carvings in La Conner High Schools the cultural collaboration between the district and the Swinomish Tribe tribe is a way of life in La Conner, Wash. (Scott Terrell/Skagit Valley Herald via AP)
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A lack of water on the battlefield is not something that soldiers can afford to worry about in the heat of combat. Supplying clean water however, is not always an easy task given the dangers of any battle.

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Aware of this fact, Arye Kohavi, a former company commander in the IDF Special Forces, set about creating technology which would ensure that soldiers are never short of clean water and that the water supply is never delayed.

Water-Gen, a company founded by Kohavi in 2009, developed revolutionary technology designed for the military which can produce clean water out of thin air by extracting water from the ambient air humidity. The technology is now being supplied to the Israeli, British, French and American armies.

IDF soldiers

Kohavi told Tazpit Press Service (TPS) that Israeli soldiers are often forbidden from drinking water on foreign soil for a variety of reasons including the fact that it can be unclean or even poisonous.

This innovation was intended for when soldiers go into places like Lebanon or Gaza. The logistics of supplying water in convoys or helicopters is something that needed to be resolved so we wanted to produce water immediately when needed, Kohavi said.

Following the successes of the technology, Kohavi set about bringing the appliance to the civilians in third world countries two years ago. The GENNY, as the civilian version of the appliance is called, is now used in India, Africa, Central America and China.

Kohavi said that since water in these countries is too impure for consumption, many people have to buy bottles of water which are not always affordable.

The GENNY can produce 20 litres per day for people who simply cannot drink from the pipes because the water is impure. But because of the efficiency of our technology we can produce water that is much cheaper, he told TPS.

Kohavis innovation earned him a place among the worlds 100 Leading Global Thinkers of 2014 and one of the worlds top innovators in Foreign Policy magazine. Moreover, during the same year, Water-Gen was ranked 21st in the Worlds 50 Most Innovative Companies in Fast Company magazine, with Google receiving the top spot.
Mahmoud Abbas is frustrated and disappointed. He has no good news for his people. But despite the disappointment, despite the fact that for over 10 years his tenure has been idling in neutral and despite his advanced age, 81, Abbas is not ready to shut up shop and give up on his rule.

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He continues to following his policy towards a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza, alongside the State of Israel, on 22 percent of the territory of Mandatory Palestine. This, he argues, is a huge concession on the part of the Palestinians.

Mahmoud Abbas in Greece (Photo: AFP)

Last week, Abbas made what was from his perspective another small step towards his goal: He ordered the registration of the Palestinian passport, with the first page of each document featuring the words "State of Palestine."

There are those who will scorn the move as another detail, but these symbols have a power of their own. Abbas is continuing on his path despite most of his people feeling that they are in a deadlock, with no hope for a better future. The establishment of a Palestinian state is to them a dream rather than a realistic prospect.

This despair, which gave rise to the stabbing attacks, has not succeeded in dragging the Palestinians into an armed struggle from the school of Arafat or producing the suicide bomber model of the second intifada.

The brakes attached to Abbas' policy, which has successfully diverted the ethos of armed struggle to that of popular resistance, which sanctifies the stone and the knife. Over the past few weeks he has been trying to stem the tide of violence, succeeding in Ramallah but failing in Hebron and Jerusalem.

In the reality of 2016, being the Palestinian president is a near-impossible task. There are more than 420,000 settlers in the West Bank; the conflict is taking on increasingly religious dimensions, moving away from its national and territorial roots; the political process has been in deep freeze since 2009; the disappearing Israeli left no longer helps and the discourse of peace in Israeli society has evaporated; the prime minister ignores him and even dismissed their handshake in Paris as "protocol."

Netanyahu and Abbas shaking hands at the climate conference in Paris. Netanyahu dismissed the handshake as 'protocol.' (Phto: AFP)

The international stage is almost the sole source of legitimacy for Abbas, but he is not getting much satisfaction there either. The Obama administration despairs of the conflict, Europe is preoccupied with refugees and terrorism, the complex Arab world has stopped being interested in the Palestinians. Even worse, for most Palestinians Abbas is no longer relevant. They are waiting for him to go, waiting for a leader who will imbue the struggle with a new spirit.

Abbas is not afraid to clash with senior PLO officials in order to maintain his position. Mohammed Dahlan, who was breathing down Abbas's neck, was expelled from the territories. Yasser Abed Rabbo, former secretary-general of the PLO, was fired. Salam Fayyad, former prime minister of the Palestinian Authority, was pushed out of the Muqata'a. He prevented a Fatah conference from taking place and also repeatedly delayed a Palestinian National Council conference. He prevented a new leader from springing up who might be liable to threaten his position.

Yet it's still too early to write off his rule. Abbas, the last leader from founding generation of the PLO and Fatah, is not ready to give up on Palestinian national accomplishments. In his view, the establishment of a Palestinian state is a question of time, meaning he therefore needs to hold on to his position and strengthen what is already in place.

Abbas doesn't believe that there will be even small steps in the political process under a Netanyahu government. He believes that even though their situation is desperate, in the long-term things will play out well for the Palestinians. "Patience," he tells his people. "We've been under occupation for 49 years, we can stay in this situation for many more years. The occupation is creating a bi-national state, Israel won't exist for much longer."
China supports the creation of a Palestinian state along the 1967 borders, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Thursday during an Arab League convention in Cairo

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The Palestinian issue "should not be marginalized," Xi said, according to Xinhua, China's official news agency. "We are in favor of putting in place a new mechanism to promote peace as to the Middle East question, and support efforts made by the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation toward this end," said the leader of the world's most populous country and its second-largest economy.

Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Arab League conference in Cairo this week (Photo: EPA)

Xi declared that that Beijing "firmly supports the Middle East peace process, the establishment of a state of Palestine with full sovereignty on the basis of the 1967 borders and East Jerusalem as its capital," Xinhua reported.

Xi also announced grants worth about $7.6 million for the Palestinians and support the solar power project in the Palestinian territories.

Also Thursday, China signed investment and aid deals worth billions of dollars with Egypt during Xi's visit and expressed support for Cairo's efforts to maintain stability, which have included a crackdown on dissent.

Xi arrived in Egypt on Wednesday on the second leg of a Middle East tour that signals China's push for greater influence in a region that provides vital oil supplies.

The visit, just before the Jan. 25 anniversary of the 2011 uprising that ousted Hosni Mubarak, is seen in Egypt as a vote of confidence in President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi's administration, whose human rights record has attracted criticism elsewhere.

Xi praised Egypt's efforts to strengthen its economy during talks with Sisi, who has warned his critics not to hold protests on Monday.

"China supports Egypt's efforts to maintain stability, develop the economy and improve livelihoods, and ... play an even greater role in international and regional affairs," Xi said, according to China's foreign ministry.
Security forces on Friday morning began evicting dozens of Israeli settlers who broke into Palestinian homes less than 24 hours earlier near the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron, claiming that they purchased the properties in secret several days earlier.

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Politicians on the right quickly condemned the move. "I call on the defense minister to immediately halt the evacuation of settlers from the houses in Hebron that were purchased in accordance with the law," said Immigration and Absorption Minister Ze'ev Elkin (Likud). "This is the time to fight terror and support strengthening the settlement enterprise, not to fight the settlers. Those who speak in the name of law and order are welcome to first of all deal with Palestinian Authority employees and radical leftist activists who execute Palestinians who dared to sell land or homes to Jews."

Evacuation of settlers on Friday

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MK Bezalel Smotrich (Bayit Yehudi) wrote on Twitter that he had told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu he would not vote with the ruling coalition until the settlers are allowed to return to the houses. Smotrich made a similar threat in the past, but ultimately did vote with the coalition. MKs Oren Hazan (Likud) and Ayoob Kara (Likud) declared that they would also refrain from being present at votes. Photo: Amichai Ben-David Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon (Likud) responded to the criticism in a press statement, saying that "Israel has rule of law, and I have no intention of compromising when the law is violated. In the case of the houses in Hebron, the law was flagrantly violated. In order to enter the home, there are several legal actions that must be taken, none of which were taken. Thus, the intruders were evicted." He called on ministers, MKs, and elected officials to discourage people from taking the law into their own hands.

Knesset Chairman Yuli Edelstein joined in the criticism."When settlers act in accordance with the law," he said, "the right thing to do is delay the evacuation and examine the legal options for supporting the settlement enterprise, out of concern of the rule of law. I call on the political echelon that oversees the security forces to hurry up and examine the legality of the purchases, and not to inflame the situation by evacuating settlers."

On Thursday, clashes between Palestinians and the settlers broke out, with the Palestinians throwing stones at settlers. IDF troops were using crowd dispersal measures and closed all entrances to the houses in an effort to calm the rioting.
Hamas in Gaza is once again prepared for a military campaign against Israel, a senior member of the IDF's Gaza Division told officials from a Gaza border community this week. The group "has rebuilt the tunnels, its rocket systems, intelligence collection, reconnaissance, and it is essentially prepared for war," said the source.

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The source added, however, that Hamas is not currently believed to desire a conflict with Israel and is in fact a moderating influence in the Gaza Strip.

Officials are concerned that Hamas may have rebuilt its tunnels

The military source, who frequently meets with residents of Gaza border communities and Sderot, spoke at a meeting to brief local authorities about the security situation some 18 months after Operation Protective Edge.

"Such important things coming from the mouth of a senior IDF official certainly don't always give us new information that we don't already know," said a participant in the meeting, "but they certainly pose a view of the future that is definitely troubling and concerning, and they confirm the belief that the next round of fighting is only a matter of time, as if often said."

Military exercise in Sderot simulating infiltration

As noted earlier, the IDF official said the organization is not interested in a showdown with Israel and is actually busy dealing with small Salafist groups attempting to exacerbate tensions between Israel and Hamas, for example in an incident last week in which a terrorist cell placed an explosive device at the border fence in the northern Gaza Strip. The official also discussed measures to protect the population, including evacuating it in the event of an emergency.

Different security scenarios were examined at the meeting, including firefights between a terror cell infiltrating through a tunnel and IDF troops inside an urban area.

"This was the second exercise we've had in the past six months," said another security source who participated in the drill simulating such an event. "Operation Protective Edge showed up that Sderot is not only exposed to rockets, like it was in recent years, but also to the possibility of infiltration from underground. We are therefore responding and drilling such a possibility. Now we have a civilian armed emergency squad capable of an initial response until military forces arrive at the scene."
Iraq's prime minister has expressed doubts that the three Americans who went missing from a Baghdad neighborhood last week have been kidnapped.

Haider al-Abadi says no demands have been made for the three and that they were most likely taken by "criminal gangs." Al-Abadi spoke on Friday from Davos, Switzerland, where he is attending the World Economic Forum. He says the Iraqi government doesn't "know that they (Americans) have been kidnapped. They are missing" and Iraqi security forces are searching for them.
The Bayit Yehudi party made grave accusations against Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon on Friday, as part of their criticism over the eviction of settlers from disputed homes in Hebron . "During a terror wave, the defense minister is diligently, uncompromisingly and closed-mindedly working to throw Jews out of their homes, of all things," said an official party statement.

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In response, Ya'alon said: "The State of Israel is a lawful nation, and I have no intention of compromising when the law is broken. In the case of the homes in Hebron the law was broken blatantly. Several legal actions are required in order to enter a new home, none of which took place. That's why the invaders were evicted."

Israeli security forces evict settlers from houses in Hebron (Photo: Reuters)

He called for ministers, MKs, and other elected officials to "act responsibly, to temper their statements, and to respect the rule of law  and not encourage taking the law into one's own hands and breaking it. That's a sure recipe for anarchy. Some politicians' behavior and statements on the subject border on complacency and harm the strength of our nation.

"Settlements are important to me and I work to aid them, but I will not compromise on legal matters," Ya'alon continued. "The claims regarding purchased homes will be examined, as will security and stately aspects of the matter, before their occupancy is approved. Those who work by breaking the law are not aiding the settlements, but severely harming them."

MK Bezalel Smotrich. Not attending government votes until the settlers are allowed to return. (Photo: Gil Yohanan)

MK Bezalel Smotrich of the Bayit Yehudi party wrote on Twitter that "I have notified the prime minister that I will not be voting with the coalition until the Hebron settlers can return to the homes they bought legally and properly." Smotrich made a similar statement several months ago after a settlement home was evicted, but eventually capitulated.

Smotrich later added in another tweet: "Accuracy is important. We're not dismantling the government at all. We're absenting votes and preventing it from functioning until the homes are re-occupied. That's a big difference."

Smotrich and MK Yoav Kish (Likud), who are co-heads of the Knesset Land of Israel Lobby, stated: "There was and is no justification for evacuating the new homes purchased by Jews in Hebron. It would have been more proper to investigate the matter while they were living in the homes and not after evictions, while respecting the rule of law."

MK Smotrich was joined in his threats of not attending government votes by MKs Ayoob Kara and Oren Hazan of the Likud party. MK Hazan warned: "The coalition should not bring anything up for a vote next Monday.

"I informed the chairpersons of the branches in the Likud and Kiryat Arba that we've had our fill," Hazan added. "It is unacceptable for the defense minister to have his own private policy, especially during this wave of terrorism we're going through."

MK Oren Hazan. "We've had our fill." (Photo: Motti Kimchi)

MK Hazan said that "what's happening now is a continuation of what I decried for a long time regarding the and security policies of the defense minister. It's clear that those who purchased a home with their money, can enter it whether it be in Tel Aviv or Hebron."

Minister of Culture and Sport Miri Regev (Likud) said: "Redeeming land in Israel is a blessed act, especially in the city of Hebron. The purchasers claim they bought the apartments in accordance with the law and if that is so they have the full right to move into those apartments. Settlement is an important Zionist act and we must continue and persist with it."
An El Al flight that flew from Israel to Larnaca, Cyprus on Thursday under the UP brand seemed like any other. Only this flight was a small-but-significant historical moment for the Israeli airline: its cockpit was comprised entirely of women.

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The controls were in the hands of Captain Smadar Shechter and First Officer Meirav Schwartz, who were booked on the flight together by total happenstance. Speaking with Ynet, Shechter, 44, recalled the events. "I had to switch flights, and when I arrived at the airport I suddenly saw I was booked with Meirav. That's how we found ourselves suddenly together before takeoff. Of course, we were both very excited."

Shechter and Schwartz in the cockpit.

Shechter added, "It's fun to see all the departments in El Al supporting us, that they were excited for us about this flight. They made me feel like 'there's no home like El Al (a reference to El Al's commercial slogan in Hebrew. -Ed).' People's responses speak for themselves and it's amazing to get such treatment, especially behind the scenes.

"Our work friends wouldn't stop taking our photos at the control center, because it's definitely a rare and very exciting event." Shechter said that before takeoff, the passengers were informed of the historical flight in which they were taking part, and they happily applauded.

El Al chief pilot, Captain Ido Sharon, said that regardless of the precedent, the airline treats all pilots according to professional criteria alone. "We did not plan this flight, it just happened to come up this way. We treat female pilots just like male ones.

"Everyone here is measured only on the basis of requirement and their professional level," he added.

El Al currently employs three female pilots, as well as a female cadet who is expected to finish her training course in the coming months.
The Prime Minister's Office on Friday released a response to the eviction of settlers from two Palestinian homes in Hebron they broke into on Thursday, with the claim that they had purchased them legitimately.

"The prime minister supports the settlements and respects the settlers who are standing firmly and courageously in the face of terror every day," the statement said.

"We must all respect the law and in this case not all the permits have been arranged. The moment this happens they will be able to return to the houses, as has happened in similar instances in the past."
One of the most striking aspects of the current wave of terror has been the significant number of youngsters among the many lone attackers who have emerged over the last few months.

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The most recent of them were Othman Shaalan, 19, who carried out the stabbing attack in Tekoa that wounded Michal Froman, and Morad Adais, 16, who murdered Dafna Meir in Otniel. The statistics show that a third of the terrorists who have carried out attacks in the current round have been under the age of 20.

A third of the terrorists who have carried out attacks in the current escalation have been under the age of 20

The fact that these are young people who have undertaken a momentary decision that no one can predict is creating real problems for Israel's security establishment. But over the last few weeks the Palestinians have gradually started to understand that these children and teenagers are not serving any interest, except for their own.

As such the Palestinian Authority has started, on orders from above, to try and fight this phenomenon however possible, including arresting young people who have expressed a desire to die or who are behaving suspiciously.

These stories of foiled attacks aren't usually heard. But various Palestinian officials have, over the past few days, managed to give Ynet a rare glimpse into how the PA is attempting to tackle the phenomenon, as well as into the internal criticism against the glorification of martyrs that has sprouted in Palestinian society.

'Better to die in a terror attack than commit suicide from unrequited love'

The attackers' background stories reveal that most of them had severe personal problems that were not connected in the least to the Palestinian national issue. Some of them were abused children or teenagers, others were socially alienated, still others were experiencing unrequited love.

"A few days ago, Palestinian security operatives managed to get hold of a Palestinian youngster who they'd heard was preparing to carry out a terror attack," a source familiar with the details told Ynet.

"They caught the kid in Hebron's old city when he'd already armed himself with a knife and was on his way to carry out the attack. During his interrogation he was asked why he wanted to do it and he responded that was in love with a girl from Hebron, but her father didn't agree to their getting married."

According to the official, the youngster had decided that dying would be better than being alive, and if he was going to die better to do so as a national hero and not by committing suicide, which would bring shame on his family.

But that is not where the story ends. Hebron Governor Kamal Hamid had been made aware of the events and wanted to be sure that the same youngster wouldn't try to carry out another attack.

"The governor met with the father of the youngster and the father of the young woman the boy was in love with, and managed to convince them that the two should be married.

"The fathers agreed, the young couple was happy, and the governor of Hebron succeeded in preventing the same young man from dying and trying to kill others."

Ahmed Manasra, 13, who stabbed and critically wounded an Israeli teenage in East Jerusalem (Photo: Gil Yohanan)

In another episode, Palestinian security officers were informed by a relative of a youth from Qalqilya that he had spoken about carrying out an attack. The boy's father is serving a life sentence in an Israeli jail. After extensive searching they managed to catch him, and during his interrogation it came out that he had asked his mother for money in order to buy a winter coat.

His mother replied that their financial situation was tough due to his father's imprisonment, and that she couldn't give him the money. The youngster told his interrogators that he suddenly realized that if this is how his life was going to be, then there was no reason for living. He therefore decided to carry out a terror attack in the knowledge that he would likely die.

Early detection: Schools raise alert about no-show pupils

These teenagers have not been sent by any terrorist organization, forcing the Palestinian authorities to try and find a method for detecting would-be attackers in time.

In some West Bank districts, schools to notify the district governor's officer by 8.30 every morning of any students that have not turned up for class. The governors' offices call the students' parents in order to check why their children are not at school and if the parents know nothing about it, the Palestinian authorities will search for and try to catch the youngster.

During a recent security coordination meeting, Palestinian officials expressed to their IDF counterparts their displeasure at soldiers seemingly shooting at terrorists to kill rather than to neutralize them, by firing at their lower body as directed. "The ones going out to commit attacks are children, after all," said one of the Palestinians.

A Palestinian official who is familiar with the topic said: "Organizational staff say to the youth, 'better that you go and throw stones during clashes  at Bab al-Zawiya (in Hebron  E.L.), next to Rachel's Tomb in Bethlehem, in Beit El.'

"How many children have been killed at these clashes? Two? Three? Is that not preferable to their taking a knife and going to their certain death?" the official continued.

Palestinian youth taking part in clashes in Bethlehem. Palestinian authorities have been telling children to go and throw stones in demonstrations rather than going out and getting killed after committing a terror attack (Photo: AFP)

The domino effect in the 'suicide capital'

While the Palestinians authorities' creative attempts to stop the next attacker have been ongoing, a related issue has emerged in Palestinian civil society. Over the past few weeks, more and more criticism has been heard of the phenomenon of suicidal young people and their lionization after their deaths. This glorification is creating a domino effect in which friends and family members of young terrorists are inspired to go out and commit revenge attacks.

The focal point of this phenomenon is the village of Sair, north of Hebron. Since the start of the current escalation, the village has created this same domino effect: 13 attackers have emerged from Sair, a number far out of proportion with its population size. Most of those attackers were members of the same family, and the village has come to be unofficially known as "the suicide capital."

A Sair resident who is firmly against the phenomenon told Ynet that a group in the village is trying different ways to stop it from snowballing further.

"Thousands of people came to the last funeral here, which took place a few days ago," he said. "Television crews were ready to film the funeral procession, which always features calls for vengeance and incitement.

"I approached the television crews and simply asked them not to film and broadcast these images, because they make an impression on the youngsters," he said. Nonetheless, he acknowledged, the next terror attack to come out of Sair is only a matter of time.

"I don't accept this version of events," said one Palestinian official after taking part in the same funeral. "When a young Palestinian is killed in a terror attack, they set up a mourning tent. Next to the tent they put a loudspeaker, which cries out non-stop: 'The heroic martyr, the heroic martyr!' They put up heroic pictures of the killed teenager with the Al-Aqsa mosque behind him.

"All the kids see and hear everything. What do you think it does to them? They're children who suddenly grasp how much respect their friend or cousin is getting, so they go out and commit the next attack," the official continued.

The fact that many parents know nothing of their children's intention to go and carry out a terror attack has made some of them realize that they have no real control over their offspring.

"When the two young terrorists (from the Manasra and Alqam families  E.L.) went to carry out stabbing attacks in East Jerusalem I decided I'm not taking any more risks," said a Palestinian laborer in East Jerusalem.

"I said to myself that it's better for my son, who is 14, to miss a few days of school and stay alive. So for a few days in a row I took him with me everywhere, from the moment he woke up in the morning until the moment he went to sleep at night.

"Yes, he sat at a building site with me and did nothing. The point is that the whole time he was in my line of sight. And that continued until things calmed down a little in East Jerusalem, and he went back to school."
An ambulance driver working with Doctors Without Borders has been killed in an air strike in Yemen, the medical charity said on Friday, the latest attack on the group's workers and facilities.

The ambulance was hit by an air strike on Thursday in Dhayan, in Saada province in north Yemen, the group said.

The driver was described as a Yemeni Ministry of Health employee, it said.

The attack was the fourth to hit the group's medical operations in the war-torn Arabian Peninsula country, a spokesman told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
On February 18, 1969, four Palestinian terrorists armed with hand grenades and AK-47 rifles assaulted an El Al plane in Zurich. The terrorists opened fire at the aircraft as it prepared to take off for Israel, seriously wounding pilot Yoram Peres, who died of his injuries about a week later.

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One thing the terrorists of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) did not take into account was security on El Al flights. The flight's security officer, Mordechai Rahamim, sprinted to the cockpit, from where he engaged in a firefight with the attackers. Rahamim killed one of the terrorists. Swiss police arrested the other three. It was the first case of Palestinian terrorism on Swiss soil, and it paved the way for further attacks over the next two years.

A poster marking 10 years since the death of former PLO leader Yasser Arafat (Photo: AP)

In February, 1970, the PFLP destroyed a Swissair plane by detonating an explosive device that had been smuggled on board. The 47 passengers, including 15 Israelis, died. On September 6 of that same year, Palestinian terrorists hijacked a Swissair flight en route to the United States and landed it in Jordan alongside three other international airlines' crafts  from the US, the UK, and Germany  that had also been hijacked, with hundreds of passengers.

It was then that Swiss government officials decided to take action and began top-secret negotiations with the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), which was then still considered an international terrorist group. The Swiss goal was to reach an understanding with the terrorists in order to prevent further attacks on Swiss soil and against Swiss targets.

A new Swiss book by journalist Marcel Gyr of Neue Zurcher Zeitung examines this part of Switzerland's history.

Since the book's publication last Sunday and accompanying publicity, a public controversy has erupted in the country, which is famous for its strict neutrality in international politics.

According to the book, a small high-ranking Swiss delegation led by then-foreign minister Pierre Graber secretly met with senior PLO officials at a Geneva hotel. Among these PLO officials was Farouk Kaddoumi, then Yasser Arafat's right-hand man and secretary-general of Fatah's central committee. The Swiss allegedly suggested a proposal to the Palestinians in the meeting: Stop committing terrorism in our country, and we will support you in political and diplomatic matters.

Contact was made between the two sides with the help of Jean Ziegler, a left-wing Swiss politician who is still a member of the Advisory Committee of the UN Human Rights Council. Ziegler was married to an Egyptian and was closely connected to Arab diplomatic circles in Switzerland, including Palestinians. Graber and Ziegler thus effectively violated a clear Swiss commitment to the US, UK, Germany and Israel to avoid dealing with the airplane crisis on its own. These countries had agreed to only handle the issue with complete coordination between all of them.

It now seems clear that the Swiss acted on their own initiative with the goal of ending Palestinian terrorism targeting Swiss interests. The details of the "surrender to terrorism agreement," as Swiss media outlets have dubbed the revelations, are still mostly classified. What is clear is that the Swiss agreed to Palestinian demands and vowed to free Palestinian terrorists who had only been arrested a year earlier after the El Al attempted hijacking.

The El Al plane attacked by Palestinian terrorists in 1969

They also vowed to support the PLO in diplomatic circles, and promised to grant it observer status in UN institutions in Geneva. Most important of all, say Swiss commentators, is that their country became hostage to Arafat and his terror group. The Palestinians, according to the book, exploited this agreement over a number of years, threatening the Swiss that if they didn't accede to their political demands, they would go public with the sides' secret agreement. Moreover, they warned the Swiss that they "could not guarantee against the return of terror activity against Swiss targets."

With the full scope and depth of the "surrender" agreement yet to be discovered, its ramifications over the years also remain unclear. An interesting side-note that did emerge is that Sufian Kaddoumi, a relative of Farouk Kaddoumi, was charged with planning and carrying out the blowing up of a Swiss plane in February 1970. Farouk Kaddoumi today lives in Tunisia. He confirmed the details of the agreement to the Swiss journalists who uncovered the story, as did Zilger, the Swiss politician.

The 1970s and '80s were characterized by the wave of Palestinian terror that swept across the globe in an attempt to bring the "Palestinian problem" to the world's attention. The period was marked by murders, aircraft-hijackings and the massacre of Israeli athletes at the Olympic Games in Munich.

The PLO's primary demands were the release of Palestinian terrorists held in Israeli jails and international recognition of their struggle. Menachem Gantz, Ynet's Rome correspondent, revealed a few years ago that Italy had also reached a similar surrender agreement with the Palestinians. In an interview with the paper in 2008, former Italian President Francesco Cossiga acknowledged that his country "allowed Palestinian terrorists to carry out terror attacks against Jews and Israelis in its territory, in return for refraining from attacking Italian targets."

"In return for a free hand in Italy," Cossiga revealed, "the Palestinians promised that Italy and Italian targets outside the country's borders would be safe from terror attacks  as long as those targets didn't cooperate with Zionists and the State of Israel."
The Military Personnel Section (MPS) provides information on everything from completing an official Enlisted Performance Report (EPR), to where to find official electronic records for individual service members. MPS sponsored its 2nd annual open house during the unit training assembly here Jan. 10, 2016.

Chief Master Sgt. Jennifer McKendree, MPS superintendent, explained that office downsizing is one of the reasons MPS hosted an open house.

So many actions are now self-service that we want to make people aware of this, and what they need to do to independently, said McKendree. We are just providing some hands-on practice.

Split into two sessions, the event covered information on a number of topics from preparing and processing awards and decorations to navigating a military career. MPS speakers answered questions about promotions, retirement points and opportunities like the Deserving Airman Program that gives enlisted members the opportunity to become commissioned officers.

Staff Sgt. Brian Gilbert of Logistical Readiness Squadron attended the Open House.

Im prior Navy, so things work differently, said Gilbert. Its good to get to know how things work as I intend on retiring in nine years.

Fear of the unknown often keeps people away from doing things, especially on the computer, said McKendree. When its dealing with your personal records you dont want to mess up something, so were here to help.

McKendree said that the Military Personnel Section plans to host the event annually. Service members with MPS related questions should call 609 -1095 for assistance.
Hurricane Hunters close out 2015 season

The Air Force Reserve's 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron "Hurricane Hunters" closed out the year with a week of packing, loading and shipping equipment back to Keesler Air Force Base from their forward operating base at the Henry Rohlsen Airport in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands.



According to Lt. Col. Erik Olson, the mission commander for the "Roll Up" mission, everything went smooth and he expects no major issues when the Hurricane Hunters return in May.



During the rollup, 41st Aerial Port Squadron and 403rd Maintenance Group personnel packed up everything from generators to tools. The Citizen Airmen worked to clean out the forward operating base hangar.



"A lot of this equipment has to go back to be serviced and swapped out in May," said Chief Master Sgt. Vincent Armada, 403rd Maintenance Group superintendent.

The equipment was brought out in May for the "Roll Out" in preparation for the hurricane season, which began June 1, allowing for 53rd WRS crews to quickly respond to storms in the Atlantic Ocean.



Even though the Atlantic basin storm activity was very light for storm missions due to the El Nino weather patterns in the Pacific Ocean, the Hurricane Hunters had a busy year. Two records were broken this year.



"We flew Hurricane Patricia, the most powerful storm ever recorded," said 1st Lt. Leesa Froelich, the aerial reconnaissance weather officer on the flight.



The hunters also flew a record-breaking six named storms in support of the Central Pacific Hurricane Center, according to John Pavone, a supervisory meteorologist and aircraft coordinator with the Chief, Aerial Reconnaissance Coordination All Hurricanes at the National Hurricane Center in Miami.



As the planes began flying away to wrap up the 2015 season, the winter-storm season was already revving up with a taskings flown by the squadron Jan. 13, 21, 22 and 23. The squadron gathers weather data that is sent to the NHC that's used in forecast models produced by the National Center for Environmental Prediction.
This has been a long time in the making, but in our continuing pursuit to bring only the best of firearms, 2nd Amendment and defence related news to our readers, we are very excited to announce the next step in our evolution as a company.

As of 2020, Minuteman Review is now the proud owner and operator of Your Defence News, a website with a long history of breaking huge news stories and investigative journalism.

We hope you are equally as excited as us.

This means that now the teams of Minuteman can combine with the firepower of Your Defence News to stay at the absolute forefront for our readers.

Keep an eye. Big things are coming soon. We couldn't be more excited.

In the meanwhile, here are some of our most popular posts and categories to keep you busy.

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The Global and United States Hydrobike Market Report has been published by QY Research recently. Hydrobike Market Analysis and Insights This report focuses on...
Recently, a neurosurgeon named Sergio Canavero claimed that head transplant has been successfully done to a monkey. According to Canavero, since up until his procedure no cure for paralysis has yet to be discovered.

"Gene therapy has failed. Stem cells, we're still waiting. Even if they come now, for these patients there is no hope. Tetraplegia can only be cured with this. Long term, the body decays, organs decay. You have to give them a new body because even if you take care of the cord, you're going nowhere" explained Canavero.

For the doctor the only possible cure for paralysis is the head transplant. Canavero however was quick to admit that his research still has a long way. According to him, more studies are needed however his aim is to have human head transplant ready before 2017 ends.

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The head transplant's process starts off with the removal of the patient's head which would be placed on the donor's body with a glue like material called polyethylene glycol in order to reconnect the ends of the spinal cord. The muscle and blood supply will be stitched in order to avoid blood loss, the patient would have to be in coma for 4 weeks in order for the spinal cord to reach its healing point.

Canavero already found his first patient - a Russian named Valery Spriridonov who suffers from genetic muscle-wasting disease. In one of the reports Canavero pleaded to Russian billionaires and even Mark Zuckerberg to fund his study saying:

'I'm asking today Russian billionaires and also foreign billionaires like Mark Zuckerberg, who is already sponsoring much of this life extension research, and this is certainly about extending life, to finance, to bankroll the first head transplant in Russia on Valery Spiridonov.'

Despite Canavero's enthusiasm, not everyone is a fan of his recent claims. Some critics are apprehensive about the procedure thinking that it kind of gruesome to do such thing.
The fact is, for all the problems we may have with Wall Street or Washington, our biggest problems are systemic  the disruptions caused by technological progress and globalization, mass migration, family breakdown and so on. Theres no all-controlling Wizard of Oz to slay.

Some members of the establishment, most notably David Frum, a former speechwriter for President George W. Bush, have recently sought to explain the new dynamic to their colleagues by arguing that the power, this time around, belongs to the grass roots, not Washington insiders and their donor patrons.

In the Palestinian territories, for example, young people dont organize or work with their government to improve their prospects. They wander into Israel, try to stab a soldier or a pregnant woman and get shot or arrested  every single time. They throw away their lives for a pointless and usually botched moment of terrorism.

The violence of Jews against Arabs this time has reached a scale the likes of which we cannot remember," one unnamed officer told the Israeli columnist Nahum Barnea in Yedioth Ahronoth last week. "Israelis uprooted hundreds of the Arabs' olive trees, demolished houses, vandalised cars. Violence spurs counter-violence." [187] OCHA reported that over the week 29 September-5 October, 794 Palestinians had been injured in the West Bank and east Jerusalem:10% from live fire, 25% from rubber bullets. The Palestinian red Crescent Society treated 1,298 people injured by Israeli forces over the period 2-7 October75 had been shot by live ammunition, 344 by rubber-coated steel bullets. 20 suffered from severe beatings.20 Red Crescent ambulances had been attacked by settlers or soldiers or subject to checkpoint delays over the same period. The Palestinian Ministry of Health calculated from its hospital registries that, from October 1, 165 had been hit by live fire, and 375 had been injured by rubber-coated metal bullets. A further 150 had received treatment in Jerusalem's Al-Maqassad hospital for wounds from one or the other type of ammunition. [188] .... The Palestinian NGO Al-Haq documented 28 instances from 28 September to 4 October, ranging from stone throwing, beatings, burning crops, to gunfire. On several occasions Israeli forces present had refrained from intervening, according to Yesh Din . [188]

Happily, no. Most young people do not wander into Israel to stab somebody; thanks for publicly acknowledging for once that the Occupied Territories are occupied, credit where credit is due, but in the first place the vast majority of these attacks take place in the West Bank or East Jerusalem, not in Israel, in an atmosphere of extraordinary terror since last October when the attacks started:And of the 600,000 or so Palestinians between 15 and 24, certainly less than 0.05% have engaged in such horrible attacks in spite of the desperation of their situation (it's really hard to get trustworthy numbers, but that much is clear), while there must be many thousands involved in youth organizations, because there are many dozens of such groups , although these numbers continue to decline as the situation fails to improve, with the intransigence of the Netanyahu government and the settler movement, and the organizations themselves inevitably take a more and more militant tone.
"We should always remember that the danger to societies from security services is not that they will spontaneously decide to embrace [Stasi style] mustache twirling and jackboots to bear us bodily into dark places, but that the slowly shifting foundation of policy will make it such that mustaches and jackboots are discovered to prove an operational advantage toward a necessary purpose. ~ Edward Snowden





"America: just a nation of two hundred million used car salesmen with all the money we need to buy guns and no qualms about killing anybody else in the world who tries to make us uncomfortable." ~ Hunter S. Thompson



"Let me issue and control a nation's money and I care not who writes the laws." ~ Mayer Rothschild



"News is what somebody does not want you to print. All the rest is advertising." ~ LACUNA



"What matters in journalism isn't politics, which are as universal and inescapable as breathing. What matters -- along with a fundamentally adversarial attitude toward government, without which "journalism" is simply public relations -- is integrity, transparency, evidence, coherence, and principle. These are the principles on which we should evaluate the quality of journalism, and their absence is why some journalists are so desperate to get you to focus on something else." ~ Barry Eisler



"There is no inverse relationship between freedom and security. Less of one does not lead to more of the other. People with no rights are not safe from terrorist attack." ~ Molly Ivins



"The brain of our species is, as we know, made up largely of potassium, phosphorus, propaganda, and politics, with the result that how not to understand what should be clearer is becoming easier and easier for all of us." ~ James Thurber



"The highest patriotism is not a blind acceptance of official policy, but a love of one's country deep enough to call her to a higher plane....When you hold up your arm and swear to uphold the Constitution, you dont say, 'Except in wartime.'" -- George McGovern



"Ill believe that corporations are people when Texas executes one." ~ Bill Moyers






Hyderabad: The Union Human Resource Development Ministry (HRD) on Friday announced to set up a judicial commission to review the entire sequence of events at Hyderabad University following the suicide of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula.

The development comes after a HRD committee submitted its report on the suicide case to the ministry, ANI reported.

Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani on Monday spoke to the mother of Rohith and assured her justice on the basis of judicial commission report.

The commission is expected to submit its report within three months.

In a statement, the HRD ministry said that in order to prevent such incidents in the future, all VCs and senior administrators would be sensitised to reach out to students and there will be "zero tolerance" for any acts of discrimination on campus.

Vemula hanged himself to death in the campus last Sunday after he and five other Dalit students were suspended by the university on charges of assaulting an ABVP leader.

The ABVP leader later approached Dattatreya, the BJP MP from Secunderabad who wrote to the university calling the group to which Vemula and his friends belonged as casteist, anti-national and extremist.

Meanwhile, fresh protests rocked the varsity on Friday with students seeking "unconditional" revocation of suspension of the dalit students and action against those responsible for the alleged suicide of the research scholar.

On Thursday, the Hyderabad Central University had revoked the suspension of the students but protesters said the revocation was not "unconditional".
Patna: When Nitish Kumar-Lalu Prasad Yadav pulled off a stunning victory in Bihar assembly elections last year, they had to share the credit with 37-year-old Prashant Kishor, the man with the Midas touch.

The Bihar government, Friday, announced that Kishor has been appointed as advisor to CM Nitish Kumar with cabinet minister rank.

Kishor, a master strategist, was the brain behind the strategy to project Narendtra Modi as the face of good governance in the 2012 Gujarat polls and last year's general elections, had switched over to Nitish Kumar's side in the run up to Bihar assembly elections and successfully managed his poll campaign.

Kishor, is a native of Buxar in Bihar. He had quit a UN health expert's job in Africa in 2011 and returned to India to form a group of young professionals.

Kishor had brought together a group of graduates from India's premier institutes and multinational companies under the name 'Citizens for Accountable Governance'. He dissolved CAG a few months after the elections.
New Delhi: Delhi government has recommended sanction of prosecution against BJP leader Subramanian Swamy in connection with a case of writing an allegedly "inflammatory" article in a Mumbai daily in 2011.

Sources said the file on the issue has been sent to Lt Governor Najeeb Jung for his approval.

They said that the matter was examined in the Home Department and it has found that Swamy, by publishing the alleged article, had committed an act of "gross impropriety" and have tried to "break the secular fabric of India culture".

Sanction was also given against four others in connection with the case which was filed against Swamy in October 2011 by the Crime Branch of Delhi Police on a complaint from the National Commission for Minorities, for writing in July that year that alleged inflammatory article, which a complaint said was "intended to spread communal enmity".

"The matter was further referred to Law Department who after examining the matter has opined that by publishing the article....an attempt had been made out to promote disharmony, ill-will and enmity between different religious groups." a source said.
New Delhi: A local court here on Friday granted bail to Bhawna Arora, accused of throwing ink at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

Acting tough against Arora, the apex court had earlier rejected her bail plea and sent her to 14-day judicial remand.

Bhavna, the Aam Aadmi Sena in-charge of Punjab, had claimed that she has got proof that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Government is involved in a CNG scam.

She also told reporters that she possesses a CD pertaining to the alleged CNG scam.

The incident took place when Kejriwal was expressing his gratitude to the people of Delhi for making the odd-even formula a success last week.

The woman rushed close to the dais and threw ink at Kejriwal. She was immediately apprehended by the police. However, the Chief Minister told the cops to leave her.

The event was organised by the AAP Government to thank the people of Delhi for making the odd-even experiment, which ended on January 15, a success.
Lucknow: Narendra Modi will be in Lucknow on Friday, becoming the first prime minister to visit this Uttar Pradesh capital in 11 years and help revive memories of the time when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the prime minister.

When Modi`s special Indian Air Force (IAF) plane lands at the tarmac on the Chaudhary Charan Singh airport at Amausi in the state capital, it would be after 11 long years that a prime minister will set foot on the soil of Lucknow.

For a city that was once the parliamentary constituency of then prime minister and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) stalwart Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the four-hour-long trip of Modi has many firsts.

This would be for the first time that Modi will be visiting the state capital as prime minister, and it is also for the first time after Vajpayee`s famous 2004 drive through Hazratganj for his nomination, that a prime minister`s cavalcade would drive through the busy and famous thoroughfare.

Old timers are looking forward to Modi`s visit and say that it gives a feeling of deja vu.

"After the sun set on Vajpayee`s political career, Lucknow seemed to have lost its political prominence but today it seems that it will be salvaged some bit," said Sharad Mishra, a resident of Hazratganj.

Modi has earlier been to Lucknow on March 2, 2014 for an election rally at the outskirts of the state capital.

Manmohan Singh visited the city as prime minister on September 1, 2005 for the inauguration of an insurance scheme.

Vajpayee last visited Lucknow on April 27, 2007 when he came to canvas for the party in the state assembly polls. He had then predicted that his age might bar him from any future trips to the city he loved so much.

But while every visit of Vajpayee drew smiles on the faces of food lovers, Modi`s trip won`t be so.

For Vajpayee loved his food and special thandai from Raja Thandai outlet would be taken for him in a thermos flask and the chaat - tikki, dahi bhalla - and some of the non-vegetarian fare was picked up for the octagenarian every time he landed in Lucknow, says an old associate.

In contrast, for Modi, the food is simple - Gujarati thepla, Khandvi and some south-Indian dishes like Uttapam, Idli and paper dosa, washed down with butter milk, after he attends the convocation of Bhim Rao Ambedkar university.
Ahmedabad: An 8-year-old boy from Uttar Pradesh who had gone missing from Asaram ashram here was found at a children's home in Sola area this morning, police said.

Ganeshchandra Agrahari, resident of Dindoi village in Siddharthnagar district of Uttar Pradesh, filed a complaint with Sabarmati police station early this morning claiming that his son, Amit, had gone missing from Asaram ashram premises in Motera area yesterday afternoon.

The police lodged a complaint of kidnapping and started the search, Inspector G S Bariya said. Agrahari's wife, Deepmala, and two sons had been staying at the ashram since the last few weeks.

Deepmala's brother is a disciple at the ashram. "Agrahari came here three days ago to meet them and had planned to return yesterday afternoon. When he reached the railway station his wife called and informed that Amit had gone missing," said Bariya.

"When he was not found till late night, Agrahari lodged a complaint early in the morning. A sub-inspector of Railway police contacted us this afternoon saying that a boy with similar features had been found at Sabarmati railway station yesterday and the railway police sent him to children's home in Sola," inspector Bariya said. That boy was found to be Amit, to a great relief of his parents.

"For some unknown reason, Amit went to the railway station without informing his mother after his father left," the police officer said.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22



By Vagif Sharifov - Trend:

The positive signals about a possible recovery in oil prices in 2016 began appearing on the global oil market this week for the first time over a long period of time.

The prices dropped to record levels over the last 13 years. The two heads of the major world oil companies, namely, BP and LUKOIL, have made the same statement with a difference of one day. They stated that the prices can increase by late 2016.

Robert Dudley, the head of UK's BP, which is producing 3.2 million barrels of oil equivalent a day, said in an interview with BBC that the prices may reach $40 per barrel in the middle of 2016 and $50 by late 2016.

Vagit Alekperov, the head of the Russian LUKOIL company, controlling one percent of the world proven oil reserves, said that the prices will start increasing in July-December 2016, RIA Novosti reported.



The statement made by Khalid al-Falih, the head of the world largest oil producer - Saudi Aramco, can be also considered as a positive signal.

Khalid al-Falih has made a statement at the Davos economic forum this week, saying that the oil market prices have greatly dropped and will be inevitably increasing, Financial Times reported.

But the head of Saudi Aramco, controlling more than ten percent of the world oil market, added one important remark. He said that Saudi Arabia does not consider it right to cut oil production by OPEC members unilaterally.

Thus, Khalid al-Falih openly called the non-OPEC countries for the reduction of production. Nearly 60 percent of oil production - 56.77 million barrels per day will account for these countries in 2016. However, OPEC will produce 39.16 mbd. Nigerian oil minister Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu supported the idea.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Kachikwu called OPEC members this week in Davos to hold a meeting to stabilize the global oil market and to exert maximum efforts for negotiation with independent producers, including Russia. Currently, the country mines an average of 10-11 million barrels of oil per day.

Nigerian oil minister, who is also OPEC's president, already said in early January about a possible meeting of the OPEC oil cartel in March. How OPEC intends to take unanimous decisions that affect the world economy, and actually everyone on the planet, when two of its largest members - Iran and Saudi Arabia - are at the level of open conflict over Riyadh's early January execution of a prominent Shia cleric Nimr al-Nimr?

His execution caused indignation of the Shia political and religious leaders and resulted in massive protests and attacks on Saudi Arabia's representations in Tehran and Mashhad. After that Riyadh announced the severance of diplomatic relations with Tehran. Bahrain, Sudan and Djibouti also ceased diplomatic relations with Iran because of solidarity with Riyadh - one of the leaders of the Arab Sunni world.

OPEC, by the way, with the beginning of a low prices' period - since September 2014 - held meetings much more frequently than when oil prices were much higher.

Any important decisions to stabilize the market were not made during these meetings. It has led to the fact that today Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador, are forced to sell their oil for a price that is less than its production cost.

These South American countries, in total provide up to seven percent of the world oil supply. Venezuela, in particular, sells oil for $15 per barrel, and Colombia for $20-21 per barrel.

The desire of OPEC to hold negotiations with countries outside the cartel on ways to reduce production in order to restore oil prices is probably due to the fact that the cost of OPEC Reference Basket (ORB) has recently amounted to an average of $23 per barrel, which may not trouble Saudi Arabia but makes other members of the organization very concerned. It is obvious that all oil-producing countries that didn't cut production even by one barrel since the beginning of the prices' fall, are very worried about the current situation.

But no one wants to be the first one to increase prices, as its place will be immediately taken by a competitor for sure. With some degree of probability, one can assume that for a significant increase in oil prices, OPEC will unilaterally be able to reduce production only after the cartel waits until many US shale companies, the break-even level of which is significantly higher than this range, go bankrupt by keeping prices in the range of $25-$30. There are many such companies.

Namely this could potentially lead to reduce in exports of raw materials from the US during 2016. Last year, for example, because of low oil prices, more than 40 companies producing shale oil have stopped work in the US, despite the fact that the average spot price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil in 2015 amounted to $48 per barrel on the terms of FOB (Free On Board).

In January 2016, the price of WTI fell by a third - to $32 per barrel. The US will increase imports with the reduction of exports, and expects a similar move from other major economy of China, which, according to various estimates, will begin to recover significantly since the end of the first half of 2016.

As of Jan. 22 morning, the March futures price for Brent reached $30.21 per barrel, WTI - $30.41 per barrel. The average spot price for Brent on FOB since early January was $30.36 per barrel, according to the EIA (US Energy Information Administration).

The maximum price for Brent this year - $36.28 per barrel - was observed on January 4, and the lowest - $25.99 per barrel - on January 20. Over the past 30 years, the maximum price of Brent reached $143.95 per barrel, which was observed in July 2008.

Vagif Sharifov is an analyst and expert in oil and energy markets. Follow him on Twitter: @VagifSharifov
Srinagar: In what can keep the Indian security forces on toes, militants causing disturbance in Kashmir for ages have now extended their support to savages of Islamic State.

According to a Hindustan Times report, Hafiz Saeed Khan  the IS chief for Khurasan, the historic name for the area encompassing Afghanistan, Pakistan and parts of India, almost a year ago  revealed it during an interview to the groups online magazine Dabiq.

While accusing Pakistan of deceiving several 'Islamic' organisations on Kashmir for its own vested interests, Khan said that there is no saviour of Kashmiris.

Because of this, many of the people of Kashmir and the soldiers of the factions left and made hijrah to Wilayat Khurasan...Thus, theres a big opportunity, with Allahs permission, to establish the religion of Allah there and for the Islamic State to expand to it, Excerpts from Khan's interview were quoted by HT.

He further added that IS has made specific arrangements in Kashmir.

Lashing out at terror outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba, Khan said that LeT has lost control over Kashmir as it operates on instructions from Pakistani intelligence.

He also slammed Afghan Taliban chief Akhtar Mansoor for secretly working for Pakistan's intelligence agencies.

Taking action on intelligence inputs, six suspected terrorists were today detained in a joint operation by NIA and police in Karnataka.

Suspect Nazmul Huda, arrested from Bajpe suburb in Mangalore, is also accused of encouraging youths to join the Islamic State terrorist outfit. He is a dropout from a private engineering college in Bengaluru.
New Delhi: Even as the case of the missing SUV of an ITBP officer remains unsolved, another car, this time a Maruti Alto, has gone missing after it was hired from Pathankot in Punjab, adding to the security fears ahead of the Republic Day on January 26.

The white colour Alto taxi HP01 D 2440 was hired by three unknown persons from Pathankot. The driver of the taxi, Vijay Kumar's body was found in Kangra district on January 20. The car remains untraced.

While it is yet not clear that the murder is the handiwork of a criminal gang or suspected terrorists, the security agencies are taking no chances and have issued an alert across north India.

In view of the threat perception, the Delhi Police is on the highest level of alert to secure the national capital.

ALERT Pathankot Alto Carjacked... Here are the images of the suspects. #SayNoToTerror #SafeTogether pic.twitter.com/VfBC1b5qDY  Delhi Police (@DelhiPolice) January 22, 2016

The police is working on multiple leads provided by more than a dozen terror suspects arrested from different parts of the country in the last few days.

When asked about the threat perception in the run-up to January 26, Delhi Police Commissioner BS Bassi said, Won't discuss security issues, but would ask people to stay alert.
New Delhi: Months after returning her Sahitya Akademi award after Dadri lynching incident last year and the killing of rationalists MM Kalburgi, Narendra Dabholkar and Govind Pansare, noted writer Nayantara Sahgal has agreed to take it back.

Sahgal, niece of India' s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru and one of the first to join the award waapsi campaign, agreed to take back her award in view of the contention that there is no provision to return it.

Nayantara Sahgal, told the Hindustan Times that, The Akademi wrote a letter to me saying it is against their policy to receive returned award and therefore they are sending back the award. I will use the money for a worthwhile cause and welfare schemes.

As a protest over the 'growing' intolerance in the country, Sahgal, has returned Sahitya Akademi award following the Dadri incident in October last year.

The 88-year-old authors has also questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi's silence over the the issue.

"The silence of the prime minister is upsetting. We must assume he dare not alienate evil-doers who support his ideology," she had said in an statement after returning her award.

Sahgal has also expressed concerns over the silence and inaction of the Sahitya Akademi in the matter.

"It is a matter of sorrow that the Sahitya Akademi remains silent. I wish they have spoken about it. The Akademis were set up as guardians of the creative imagination, and promoters of its finest products in art and literature, music and theatre," she felt.

Following Sahgal's decision to take back her award, some other writers, who returned their award, are also likely to accept their awards in near future.
New Delhi: Ahead of the Republic Day celebrations, the National Investigating Agency (NIA) on Friday held a number of terror suspects from across the country.

The NIA is on its toes to ensure foolproof security during the event.

Taking action on intelligence inputs, six suspected terrorists were today detained in a joint operation by NIA and police in Karnataka.

"Four people were arrested in Bengaluru and one each in Mangaluru and Tumakuru," Home Minister G Parameshwara told the media on the margins of an event here. Those nabbed in Bengaluru are Asif, Afzal, Sayed and Ahad.

Suspect Nazmul Huda, arrested from Bajpe suburb in Mangalore, is also accused of encouraging youths to join the Islamic State terrorist outfit. He is a dropout from a private engineering college in Bengaluru.

Meanwhile, the premier terror agency also picked up four terror suspects from Telangana capital Hyderabad. Reports say the state police was working on the leads provided by the intelligence officials.

Earlier today, a suspected operative of the Islamic State (ISIS) was arrested from Mumbra, near Mumbai.

The yet unnamed person, said to be in his 30s, was nabbed in an early morning joint operation by sleuths of the Maharashtra ATS and the NIA, reports claimed. Mumbra, in Thane district, is around 30 kms from Mumbai.

Earlier this month, the Delhi Police arrested a suspected member of the terrorist outfit al Qaeda in Bengaluru, who was working as a madrasa teacher.

The alleged member of the terror group was identified as Maulana Anzar Shah.

The security officials recently busted a terror plot to target Ardh Kumbh Mela in Haridwar and malls in Delhi-NCR.

Meanwhile, Delhi has been put on high alert after Intelligence Bureau warned of a possible terror attack by dreaded terror outfit ISIS on the occasion of Republic Day, a report said.

According to a 'CNN-IBN' report, the Islamic State may try to target the national capital on January 26.

The security agency has warned that the terror group, which has spread mayhem in many parts of the world, is most likely to make an attempt to target Prime Minister Narendra Modi and France President Francois Hollande, who is scheduled to attend the Republic Day celebrations at the majestic Rajpath as the 'chief guest'.
New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee on Friday hosted a lunch for 100 women achievers for their contribution to nation building and community development on the first anniversary of 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' scheme at Rashtrapati Bhawan.

"These women have now emerged as achievers through public support. These are women who have pushed boundaries to prove their mettle over 20 categories," senior Women and Child Development Ministry official said.

The 100 women achievers were selected by the ministry through a nationwide contest and public nominations.

The ministry, in collaboration with Facebook, had conducted the '100 Women Initiative' to recognize women who are making a difference in their communities across the country and their achievements may have gone unsung.

The contest was beamed live on ministry's Facebook page on July 15 last year through which nominations were invited in 20 categories.

"The ministry received an encouraging response from the public, with nominations flowing in from the public. A panel of jury members shortlisted the top 200 women nominees across 20 categories," ministry official said.

Public voting was held through Facebook from 3-20 December, 2015.

Rashida Bi from Madhya Pradesh has been selected in the Environment and Forests and Wildlife category for working towards the welfare of Bhopal Gas Tragedy victims for the last 30 years.

The list of nominees also includes Patiala-based Harshinder Kaur, a paediatric doctor who has been awarded by numerous governments across the globe for her work in eradicating discrimination against female child, and Lalita Nijhawan from Delhi for her commendable work in the field of education for women and children, especially the girl child.

The categories include Access to Justice Protecting Women & their Rights, Agriculture and Animal husbandry, Animal Welfare, Arts and Culture, Commerce Industry and Entrepreneurship, Community Mobilization, Disability and Disadvantage, Education, among others.
New Delhi: In a fresh development which can further add fuel to the fire, BJP leader Subramanian Swamy on Friday, in a controversial tweet, termed the protesters who are agitating against the suicide of the dalit scholar Rohith Vemula as 'dogs'.

The development comes on the very same day when PM Narendra Modi broke his silence and made all the right noises on Vemula's death and on Babasaheb Ambedkar during a tour of Uttar Pradesh today.

According to Aaj Tak, Swamy's controversial 'dog remark' was made four hours prior to PM Modi's address at a convocation ceremony at Ambedkar University in Lucknow. However, on Twitter the timing of the BJP leader's message was same as of PM's address.

In his tweet, Swamy wrote:

The Hyd U drama is fast becoming the biggest con job of Communists and their running dogs  Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) January 22, 2016

PM today said that he was deeply saddened by the tragedy, suicide of Dalit scholar from University of Hyderabad, Rohith Vemula.

In his speech at the 6th convocation of the Bhimrao Ambedkar university in Lucknow, he choked and paused while referring to the scholar's death on last Sunday, triggering protests across the country.

"I am not going into the reasons, politics of the issue, but I empathise with the family who has lost so much," he said as tears welled up in his eyes.

He further said that at a time when the entire nation looks up to the youth for inspiration and strength, a news like this brings sadness.

PM Modi also told youngsters not to take such drastic steps.

Earlier at the event, two students raised slogans against the prime minister as union Home Minister Rajnath Singh concluded his speech and Modi rose to address the gathering.

As they shouted that the killers of Rohith Vemula were still alive and raised slogans like "go back Modi", police officials whisked them away and the Prime Minister began his speech.
New Delhi: As the Modi government is set to declassify files related to Subhas Chandra Bose from Saturday, the great freedom fighter's daughter Anita Bose Pfaff believes that her father died in the air crash in Formosa (now Taiwan) on August 18, 1945, en route to Japan.

While speaking to 'Hindustan Times', Anita expressed her displeasure over the theories floated over Netaji's death an termed them 'asinine'. She said she was annoyed with the theories which say that her father survived the plane crash and and lived as Gumnami Baba in the post independence era.

Anita is convinced that the great freedom fighter died in the plane crash and demanded a DNA test to be done on his remains kept at Renkoji Temple in Japan.

The 73-year-old daughter of Bose and Emily Schenkl said her father must have been a disaster as a husband.

The secret files related to Subhas Chandra Bose will be declassified by the central government beginning 23 January, the birth anniversary of Netaji.

There have been demands by Netaji's family and several others for declassification of secret files as they hope that it will help answer questions regarding his mysterious disappearance in 1945.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has maintained that she didn't believe that the freedom fighter died in air crash and demanded that the 'Russian angle' in Netaji's disappearance needs to be probed.
New Delhi: It was a proud moment for India as the indigenously built Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas flew at Bahrain International Air Show 2016 on Thursday.

In a brief flight, the Tejas displayed its maneuverability and supersonic capability.

"Two Tejas fighters are participating in the three-day Bahrain air show to display its air prowess through aerobatic manoeuvres like 8-G (gravity) pull, vertical loop, slow fly past and barrel roll," HAL chairman and managing director T. Suvarna Raju said in a statement from the island country in the Persian Gulf.

Designed and developed by the Bengaluru-based aeronautical agencies of state-run Defence Research and Development Organsiation (DRDO), Tejas is a single engine, light weight, agile, multi-role supersonic fighter.

India is also displaying the HAL-made four advanced light helicopters (ALH) Dhruv of the IAF as aerobatic team Sarang to enthrall visitors at the air show.

Developed for the Indian armed services, Dhruv is suitable for increased payload at higher altitudes.

HAL delivered about 200 Dhruv in variants for military and civilian use over a decade.

The company is also displaying its light combat helicopter (LCH), which completed trials recently as an attack chopper at 10,000-12,000 feet altitude with weapons.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

By Maksim Tsurkov - Trend:

The first test container train, moving along the Trans-Caspian international transport route from Ukraine to China, has arrived at the International Sea Trade Port in Baku, the port said in message Jan. 22.

"The test train has arrived at the ferry terminal of Baku port in Alat," said the message. "From here, the train will travel across the Caspian Sea to Kazakhstan on a ferry, and from there further to China."

The container train was launched from Illichivsk, Ukraine on Jan. 15 for a test journey through Georgia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan to China, across the Caspian and Black seas, and arrived at Georgian port of Poti Jan. 20.

The test train was launched after Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Georgia and Ukraine signed a protocol on Jan. 14 on setting competitive preferential tariffs for cargo traffic via the Trans-Caspian international transport route.

The Trans-Caspian international transport route runs through China, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, and then to Europe.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @MaksimTsurkov
Pune: Days after a 17-year-old ragpicker was allegedly murdered by three persons here after setting him afire, his father and some right-wing activists on Thursday claimed he was killed because he was a 'Hindu' and the brutality meted out to him was like an act of ISIS.

However, police have denied any communal angle behind the murder of Sawan Rathod in Kasba Peth area of the city last week.

Sawan, a pavement dweller, was hospitalised last Wednesday after he sustained severe burns when the accused trio, suspecting his involvement in stealing vehicle batteries, poured petrol on him and set him ablaze on January 13. He died in hospital on January 15.

"When my son was admitted to hospital, he told me that he was set on fire by three suspects after they came to know that he was Hindu," Sawan's father Dharma claimed.

Milind Ekbote, the president of 'Samast Hindu Aghadi', alleged that the amount of cruelty exerted by three suspects was "inhuman" and the act resembles the "modus operandi" of Islamic State (IS). He demanded a probe by ATS into the incident.

Ekbote said they will organise a protest at the Police Commissioner's office here on January 27.

Activists of various right-wing bodies said the police had botched up the investigation in the case.

"We had given a video clip to the cops in which the deceased was seen telling that he was set on fire by three suspects, after they came to know that he was 'Hindu'.

"It is as good as the dying declaration and police should investigate the communal angle. They failed to take his dying statement when he was being treated at state-run Sassoon Hospital," said Ramesh Rathod, city unit president of 'Banjara Kranti Dal', the community to which the deceased belonged.

Police had arrested Ibrahim Shaikh, Juber Tamboli and Imran Tamboli in connection with the murder. When contacted, DCP (Zone I) Tushar Doshi dismissed the claim of the activists and the boy's father as an "afterthought".

"Nothing of this sort (communal) surfaced in our investigation so far," he added.
Zee Media Bureau/Udita Madan

New Delhi: Love spicy food? Then you have Wilbur Scoville to thank!

January 22nd marks the 151st birth anniversary of Wilbur Scoville, who became the first person to measure the heat of chili peppers.

Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, Scoville was an American pharmacist, best known for his 1912 creation of the "Scoville Organoleptic Test", now called the Scoville scale, which is used to measure the pungency of various chili peppers.

Internet search giant Google, has paid a tribute to Scoville in its trademark doodle style in an interactive representation. The doodle shows Scoville against a backdrop of red chili peppers forming the word 'Google' and also holding one in his hand, as if about to eat it.

Upon clicking the play button on the doodle, Scoville is shown eating various chili peppers to figure out the heat content, which makes way for a small game, every time he pops a pepper into his mouth.

Scoville's book, The Art of Compounding, makes one of the earliest mentions of milk as an antidote for pepper heat.

According to Wikipedia, the Carolina Reaper, which measures at 1.6m Scoville units, which is 1,600 times hotter than a jalapeno, is the hottest pepper in the world.
Kathmandu: With Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and his party CPN-UML hardening their stance against the more than five-month-old Madhesi agitation in the Himalyan nation`s southern Terai region for a more representative constitution, a resolution receded even farther as three protestors died in police firing on Thursday in the south-eastern Morang district.

Since early morning on Friday, incensed Madhesi protestors forced markets to shut down and indulged in arson besides clashing with the police in several parts of the Terai as the protests assumed a more violent form than earlier.

The Madhesi protestors are demanding, among other things, a redrawing of the boundaries of the provinces in Nepal as proposed in the new Constitution -- promulgated on September 20 last year; and representation in Parliament on the basis of population. Significantly, the Nepal Terai has almost 51 percent of the country`s population and yet gets only one-third of seats in Parliament.

The Madhesis also seek proportional representation in government jobs and restoration of rights granted to them in the interim constitution of 2007 which the new charter has snatched away.

With Thursday`s three deaths in police firing, the toll in the agitation has risen to 59, including 11 police personnel, and the chances of an immediate political solution receded farther.

Several parts of the Terai saw protests and demonstrations by the protestors with reports coming in of clashes with the police at places. There were no immediate reports of casualty, if any.

The Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha (SLMM) -- or the Madhesi Morcha, as it is more commonly known -- has been spearheading the Agitation in the country`s terai region. It comprises four Madhes-based parties -- Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party led by Mahanta Thakur; Sadbhawana Party, headed by Rajendra Mahto; Sanghiya Samajwadi Forum-Nepal, led by Upendra Yadav; and the Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party-Nepal headed by Mahendra Yadav.

The Madhesi Morcha, condemning the three deaths in Thursday`s police firing, has called for an immediate stop to "the state-sponsored terrorism" let loose in the Terai.

A concerned southern neighbour India has expressed concern over the repeated violent incidents in the Nepal Terai and urged the political parties in the Himalayan nation to seek a political solution to the ongoing unrest and the political standoff.

Vikas Swarup, spokesperson of India`s External Affairs Ministry said India was deeply concerned at the loss of three lives in police firing in Morang district in the Nepal Terai. "Political problems require political solutions," he tweeted on Thursday.

The escalation in the agitation intensity follows an attempt by Prime Minister Oli`s CPN-UML to try to take head-on the Madhesi protestors.

Tension flared up in the southern Nepali town of Biratnagar, bordering India, after Morcha cadres attempted to disturb a programme organised by the Youth Association of Nepal (YAN), the militant youth wing of Oli`s CPN-UML [Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist)].

Oli, who is also CPN-UML chairman, was scheduled to address the programme but cancelled it later, sensing the mood of the protestors.

The government and the Madhesi Morcha leaders have so far held more than a score of meetings in Kathmandu aimed at finding a solution to the prolonged agitation -- but without success

A government-sponsored amendment to the less-than-four-month-old statute is slated to come up for discussion and voting on Saturday -- but observers see little chance of it finding approval among the aggrieved Madhesis.

Morcha leaders have affirmed that they were not ready to accept the amending bill unless their rightful concerns were addressed.

"This government cannot address the demands of indigenous Janajati and Madhesi people," said Upendra Yadav, chairman of Sanghiya Samajbadi Forum-Nepal. "The major parties need to show flexibility and seriousness."

"The major three parties are just doing drama in the name of negotiations... the government is ignoring the demands raised by Madhesis despite our having presented the demands to the government in written and oral forms time and again," said Mahanta Thakur, who leads the Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party.

"I don`t know how many times we will have to say that the bottom-line demand of the Madhesi Morcha is demarcation of states... we need two federal states in the Terai region from Jhapa till Kanchapur, but this government acts like it knows nothing about it," Thakur said.
Washington: Pakistan and Afghanistan need to work together to effectively overcome the Taliban challenge, the White House said, a day after the militant group massacred 21 people, mostly students, at a popular Pakistani university.

"The conclusion that we've drawn here is...that the Taliban poses a security threat to both countries, and that the nations of Afghanistan and Pakistan are going to be able to more effectively confront that threat if they're able to more effectively cooperate," White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest told reporters yesterday.

Earnest said the US has long been supportive of the reconciliation process between the Afghan government and the Taliban. He said the US is hoping to facilitate better co-operation between the two South Asian neighbours.

As part of that role, US Vice President Joe Biden held a tri-lateral meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Davos yesterday to discuss the recent reconciliation efforts.

During the meeting, Biden reaffirmed US support for reconciliation and improved bilateral ties between Afghanistan and Pakistan. "Any sort of decisions about how the continuation of those talks and any sort of agreement that could be produced by those talks about whether or not that's in the interest of those countries to pursue -- those are decisions that will be made by the leaders in those two countries, as it should be," he said.

But the US will continue to play the role that it has played for some time now in supporting reconciliation talks that are led by those individual countries, he added.

Pakistan, Afghanistan, China and the US have called on all Afghan Taliban groups to start talks with Kabul to find a political solution to the long-running conflict in the war-torn country.

On Wednesday, heavily-armed Taliban militants stormed the Bacha Khan University, named after the iconic Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, in Pakistan's Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province and opened fire on students and teachers, killing 21 people.
Washington: As long as Pakistan fails to "kill" the extremist ideology that presents Islam under siege and India and the US being responsible for its afflictions, Islamabad can not defeat terrorism, a top US scholar has said.

Michael Kugelman, of Woodrow Wilson International Centre for Scholars, said that until Pakistan is willing to make life more difficult for all extremists operating within the country, ordinary Pakistanis will continue to suffer tragedies like the one that recently struck a university in the country.

On Wednesday, heavily-armed Taliban militants stormed the Bacha Khan University, named after the iconic Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, in Pakistan's Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province and opened fire on students and teachers, killing 21 people.

Kugelman said that as long as there is extremism, the likelihood of radicalisation - and its violent byproducts of militancy and terrorism - is strong.

"It's as simple as that, and it means that no matter how many militants are killed on the battlefield, more will materialise in rapid succession," the Woodrow Wilson scholar said in an op-ed on CNN yesterday.

"Pakistan may be killing off terrorists on the battlefield, but it has not killed off the ideology that fuels them," he said adding that the country has failed to craft a counter-narrative to combat the hardline rhetoric deeply entrenched in its society.

"This ideology emphasizes themes of Islam being under siege, and of India and the US as being responsible for Pakistan's afflictions. It is propagated by religious leaders, parroted by wildly popular television news anchors, and published in school textbooks," he said.

Referring to the Bacha Khan university carnage, he wrote that the attack should not have come as surprise. "Pakistan offers a highly enabling environment for extremism."

In addition, hardline ideology is deeply conspiratorial.

"So it's little wonder that in the immediate aftermath of the attack on Bacha Khan University, some prominent Pakistani media personalities and even former government officials suggested that India and a broader 'international conspiracy' were responsible for the tragedy," he said.
Islamabad: Great-granddaughter of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan aka Bacha Khan has accused Pakistan's homegrown terror groups of carrying out dastardly attacks on the university, killing 21 innocent people.

Yasmin Nigar Khan  head of All India Pakhtoon Jirga-e-Hind  opines that since Frontier Gandhi (as Bacha Khan was popularly known as) was a respectable figure in Afghanistan also, so terrorists from there would not assault anything named after him.

Its unbelievable that any Afghan would attack a university that is named after Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan. So the popular notion that Tehrik-e-Taliban is responsible for the attack on the Bacha Khan University is a cooked up story, Yasmin told Hindustan Times.

She further told HT that Taliban also did not carry out Peshawar school attack which claimed the lives of 150 people dead.

The Pakistani government and terrorist outfits supported by Pakistan are responsible for both the attacks. They have a dual mission: first to vitiate the minds of the Pakhtoons from the North West Frontier Province of Pakistan against the Afghans because Afghanistan is supporting the cause of an independent Pakhtoonistan, she said.

Second, Pakistan wants public sentiments to be (once again) in its favour after the recent attack on the Pathankot airbase by terrorist outfits from Pakistan, she added.

42-year-old Yasmin has never been to Pakistan as she fears she would be arrested for her open support to independent Pakhtoonistan.
Kolkata: Sambia Sohrab, the main accused in a hit-and-run case, on Friday confessed that he was driving the Audi that killed an IAF officer during a Republic Day parade rehearsal here, as per PTI.

Sambia, son of former Rashtriya Janata Dal legislator Mohammad Sohrab, driving his Audi car is alleged to have broken through police barricades before fatally knocking down Indian Air Force corporal Abhimanyu Gaud as he was supervising the rehearsals on the Indira Gandhi Sarani.

Earlier in the week, in a video posted on YouTube, Johnny, the third person to be arrested in the case, claimed that Sambia was heavily drunk and that he had a brawl with friends before he took the wheel of the car and allegedly knocked down Gaud.

Shanu alias Sahanawaz was held from New Delhi on Sunday night, a day after prime accused Sambia Sohrab was nabbed here.

Both Shanu and Johnny were said have been with him on the night before Sambia allegedly mowed down Gaud.

Accused of several offences, including murder, Sambia who was arrested four days after the accident, is now under police custody. The prosecution has also accused him of hitting another soldier before ramming his car into Gaud.

The case has created a political storm with the opposition parties claiming that police delayed Sambia's arrest as his father was a leader of West Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress.

However, the Trinamool has denied its links with Sohrab and pointed out that he had become a state legislator in 2006 with support from the Communist Party of India-Marxist led Left Front.

The Indian Air Force, which is also probing the matter, too earlier claimed "vested interests" were thwarting the probe.

(With Agency inputs)
Cairo: At least six people, including two policemen, were killed and 26 others injured today in an explosion that took place when a police team raided a militant hideout in the Egyptian capital near the pyramids.

The blast took place in Cairo's Al-Haram district ahead of Monday's anniversary of the 2011 revolution that ousted former strongman Hosni Mubarak.

Six people were killed when a blast took place after a team of security personnel attacked a militant hideout in Giza area here. The area was cordoned off by the security forces after the explosion.

Earlier today, at least five Egyptian policemen were killed when militants stormed a police checkpoint in the country's restive North Sinai and opened fire on them.

The country has witnessed several violent militant attacks since the January 2011 revolution which toppled Mubarak, killing over 700 policemen and injuring over 18,000.

The attacks targeting police and military further increased after the ouster of Islamist ex-president Mohammed Morsi in 2013 following massive protests.
Athens: Her holiday to Greece turned into a dreaded nightmare. At the age of 14, Megan Stephens (not her real name) had gone to a seaside town in Greece with her mother on a holiday; hardly she knew how horrifying the trip would turn out to be.

The Briton was sold as a sex slave and continued to work as a prostitute for six years before her escape in 2009.

In a memoir of her heart-stopping experiences - Bought & Sold - Stephens, 25, recalled how she was regularly made to sleep with up to 50 men a day. Once, she was forced to have sex with 110 men in 22 hours.

Bought and sold by many traffickers, Stephens was forced to work on the street and in brothels.

Recalling that during her holiday, Stephens met an Albanian man called Jak, 22, in a Greek bar. At that time, she was 'desperate to be loved'. Her mother did not like Jak much, but still permitted her daughter to spend time with him, as she was busy enjoying with a bar owner called Nikos.

When the duration of their holiday ended, Stephens convinced her mother to let her stay with Jak, reports The Daily Mail.

Jak told Stephens that his mother had thyroid cancer and that he did not have enough money to pay her medical bills.

He then convinced her to take a job dancing in a topless bar, so that he could raise money for his mother's surgery.

Later, the man sold Stephens to a pimp named Leon. When resisted, she was beaten by Jak and was not allowed to talk to her family.

The British girl was pushed into working in a brothel where men paid GBP 20 for five minutes with her. On one occasion, she had sex with 110 men in a single 22-hour shift, reports The Daily Mail.

She later contracted syphilis.

She managed to escape the sex traffickers after she attempted to commit suicide at the age of 20. The hospital staff then reunited her with her mother.

Stephens returned to the UK and is now pregnant with her partner's baby.

Stephens is, however, still afraid and cautious. Jak has tried to contact me and my family through social media, trying to ask people where I am. He still frightens me.

She now looks forward to setting up a charity to help other sex trafficking victims.
Pyongyang: A hangover-free booze in North Korea seems to be much talked-about-subject these days in the Communist state and critics have wondered wondered if it's Kim Jong-Un's favourite alcoholic drink.

Citing state-owned Pyongyang Times, the Sky News said that the Koryo Liquor, made with ginseng and organic rice, leaves drinkers free of a hangover.

This special booze is made with "boiled and scorched glutinous rice" and has an alcohol content of 30%-40%, the report said.

The drink's "subtle blend... of the scorched starch with the sweetness of glucose can not be produced with any spices" and the "scorched glutinous rice" contain amino acids and vitamins which help the body break down fats, it said.

The Koryo Liquor has won a series of accolades in the North Korean food and drink industry, the report added.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

Trend:

The OSCE Minsk Group has said it appreciates the interest of PACE in the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

"The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Igor Popov of the Russian Federation, James Warlick of the United States of America, and Pierre Andrieu of France - welcome efforts to find a negotiated settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and are prepared to work cooperatively with those committed to a peaceful settlement," read a statement posted on the OSCE website Jan. 22.

"We understand that the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) may consider resolutions on the conflict in the near future and remind PACE, and other regional and international organizations, that the Minsk Group remains the only accepted format for negotiations," said the OSCE Minsk Group.

"We appreciate the interest paid by PACE members, but urge that steps not be taken which could undermine the Minsk Group's mandate from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe or complicate ongoing negotiations," according to the statement.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
Seoul: North Korea said Friday it had arrested a US student who, under orders from Washington, had engaged in unspecified "hostile activities" after entering the country on a tourist visa.

The detention comes at a sensitive time, with the United States taking a leading role in international efforts to secure tough sanctions on North Korea over its latest nuclear test.

The student, identified as Frederick Otto Warmbier from the University of Virginia, had entered North Korea as a tourist "in order to shake the foundation of the DPRK`s unity under the direction of the US government", the North`s official KCNA news agency said, using the official acronym for North Korea.

"He was arrested while carrying out anti-DPRK hostile activities and is now under investigation," it added.

The term "hostile activities" is a catch-all accusation that has been levelled at numerous detained foreigners in the past -- covering a range of possible charges from spying to illicit missionary work.

The latest arrest comes months after the North released a South Korean man studying at New York University.

Arrested in April for illegal entry, Joo Won-Moon, a 21-year-old with permanent US residency, was freed in October through the border truce village of Panmunjom on the inter-Korean frontier.

Unlike some other foreign citizens detained in the North, Joo was never put on trial.

The United States has no diplomatic or consular relations with the North, and the Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang provides limited consular services to US citizens detained there.

Several Americans have been held in North Korea in recent years, including the South Korean-born missionary Kenneth Bae, who was similarly charged with hostile activities and sentenced in 2013 to 15 years in prison.

Bae was released in November, 2014, along with fellow American Matthew Miller, after a secret mission to Pyongyang led by US intelligence chief James Clapper.

North Korea is currently holding a 60-year-old Canadian pastor, who was last month sentenced to life imprisonment with hard labour on sedition charges.

During a recent interview the pastor gave to CNN in Pyongyang, the North presented another ethnic Korean prisoner, whom they said was a US citizen arrested for spying in October.
Seoul: North Korea said Friday it had arrested a US student who, under orders from Washington, had engaged in an unspecified "hostile act" after entering the country on a tourist visa.

The detention comes at a sensitive time, with the United States taking a leading role in efforts to secure tough international sanctions on North Korea over its latest nuclear test.

Pyongyang has a history of using foreign detainees as bargaining chips to extract concessions and high-profile visits to secure their release.

The student, identified as Otto Frederick Warmbier from the University of Virginia, had entered North Korea as a tourist "for the purpose of bringing down the foundation of its single-minded unity at the tacit connivance of the US government and under its manipulation," the North`s official KCNA news agency said.

He was detained "while perpetrating a hostile act against the DPRK", it added, using the official acronym for North Korea.

China-based Young Pioneer Tours, which organises regular trips to North Korea, said Warmbier had been a member of a New Year tour and was arrested when the group was set to return to Beijing on January 2.

"We hope his release can be secured as soon as possible," the tour group said, adding that it was assisting the US State Department in the affair.State Department spokesman John Kirby, citing "privacy considerations," declined to comment beyond acknowledging the reports of Warmbier`s arrest and stressing that the welfare of US citizens was always a top priority.

The United States has no diplomatic or consular relations with the North, and the Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang provides limited consular services to US citizens detained there.

Warmbier becomes the third North American detained in North Korea, which last month sentenced a 60-year-old Canadian pastor to life imprisonment with hard labour on sedition charges.

During a recent interview that the pastor, Hyeon Soo Lim, gave to CNN in Pyongyang, the North presented another ethnic Korean prisoner, whom they said was a US citizen arrested for spying in October

The term "hostile act" is a catch-all accusation that has been levelled at numerous detained foreigners in the past -- covering a range of possible charges from espionage to illicit missionary work.

The fact that Warmbier is accused of acting under US direction, would suggest he faces a spying charge.

The latest arrest comes months after the North released another male student -- a South Korean studying at New York University.

Arrested in April for illegal entry, Joo Won-Moon, who had permanent US residency, was freed in October through the border truce village of Panmunjom on the inter-Korean frontier.

Unlike some other foreign citizens detained in the North, Joo was never put on trial.

Several Americans have been held in North Korea in recent years, including the South Korean-born missionary Kenneth Bae, who was similarly charged with hostile acts and sentenced in 2013 to 15 years in prison.

Bae was released in November, 2014, along with fellow American Matthew Miller, after a secret mission to Pyongyang led by US intelligence chief James Clapper.Tensions are currently running high on the Korean peninsula, as North Korea braces for fresh sanctions in the wake of the fourth nuclear test it carried out January 6.

The United States, along with allies Japan and South Korea, has led calls for a tough UN Security Council resolution that would impose economic penalties that go well beyond existing sanctions.

In a show of strength earlier this month, a nuclear-capable US B-52 bomber -- flanked by South Korean F-15 fighter jets and US F-16 planes -- flew a mission just south of the inter-Korea border.
Geneva: North Korea`s leaders should face trial for crimes against humanity as there has been no improvement in human rights since a U.N. report detailed Nazi-style atrocities there two years ago, a United Nations investigator said on Friday.

The 2014 U.N. report concluded that North Korean security chiefs and possibly leader Kim Jong Un should face international justice for ordering systematic torture, starvation and killings.

"In addition to continuing political pressure to exhort the DPRK (Democratic People`s Republic of Korea) to improve human rights, it is also now imperative to pursue criminal responsibility of the DPRK leadership," said Marzuki Darusman, the U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in North Korea, in a statement on Friday.

His comments came as the isolated state said it had detained a U.S. university student for committing a "hostile act" and wanting to "destroy the country`s unity".

The 2014 report prompted the U.N. General Assembly to urge the U.N. Security Council to consider referring North Korea to the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity.

Only the 15-member Security Council can refer the situation in North Korea to the ICC, but diplomats say China, North Korea`s main benefactor, would likely veto such a move.

In February last year, North Korea`s ambassador to the U.N. said his country was not concerned about the threat because it was not guilty of any crime.

Darusman, a co-author of the 2014 report, was speaking at the end of a trip to Tokyo, having been repeatedly refused access to North Korea. During his five days in Japan, he met family members of people allegedly abducted by North Korea.

Pyongyang admitted in 2002 to kidnapping 13 Japanese citizens to help train spies. Five abductees and their families later returned to Japan.

But Darusman has said North Korean agents abducted hundreds more foreign nationals between the 1960s and 1990s and Japan`s national police agency is looking into 881 possible abduction cases blamed on North Korea over the years.

"I am disappointed that there has been no concrete progress since Japan and the DPRK signed a bilateral agreement almost two years ago to work towards a resolution of this issue," Darusman said, adding progress would help to build trust and goodwill.

"Resolving the abduction issue is a matter of urgency. The families of victims are advancing in age."
Seoul: South Korean President Park Geun-hye called on Friday for a meeting of five countries, excluding North Korea, to discuss the North`s nuclear programme alongside long-stalled "six-party talks" that include Pyongyang.

Park`s comments came amid a flurry of diplomatic exchanges involving Washington and Beijing as the international community seeks to impose fresh sanctions on North Korea for its fourth nuclear test, on January 06.

"In the past, six-party talks had usefulness as a framework to resolve North Korean nuclear issues via dialogue," Park said in remarks at the presidential Blue House.

"But even if the talks open but don`t help denuclearise North Korea, the question of being effective will be brought up," she said.

China, Pyongyang`s main ally, has been calling for a resumption of so-called six-party talks among the two Koreas, China, the United States, Japan and Russia aimed at curbing North Korea`s nuclear ambitions.

Numerous efforts to restart the six-party talks have failed since negotiations collapsed following the last round in 2008.

"Relevant parties, although it is not an easy matter, should find out various and creative approaches such as trying five-party talks excluding North Korea," Park said.

Park also said China`s role was essential in adopting strong sanctions at the United Nations Security Council, repeating her calls for Beijing to act.

"I expect China to take an effective measure that can make North Korea realise development of nuclear weapons is futile and come into the international community like Iran," she said.
Beirut: A senior Syrian opposition official on Friday ruled out even indirect peace talks with the government before a halt to Russian air strikes and the lifting of government blockades on populated areas.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday insisted peace talks would go ahead in Geneva next week but they would not be face-to-face. The Syrian government, which is backed by Russia, has said it is ready to attend.

But George Sabra, deputy head of the opposition delegation, said obstacles which the opposition say are obstructing the talks had not been removed. "There must be a halt to the bombardment of civilians by Russian planes, and sieges of blockaded areas must be lifted," Sabra said by telephone.

"The form of the talks does not concern us, but the conditions must be appropriate for the negotiations," Sabra told Reuters. Asked if that meant the opposition would not attend the kind of indirect talks mentioned by Kerry, he said "yes".

Riad Hijab, who chairs the opposition council, was due to discuss diplomatic efforts with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Saturday and "all the matters will be tabled clearly", Sabra said.

The talks have also been thrown into doubt by a disagreement over who should represent the opposition. Russia wants the opposition delegation expanded to include groups such a Kurdish faction that controls wide areas of the northeast.

Sabra`s opposition council, the High Negotiations Committee (HNC), was formed in Saudi Arabia last month and groups political and armed opponents of President Bashar al-Assad, including major rebel factions fighting Damascus in western Syria.
Washington: In a bid to keep ISIS supporters out, the US has tightened its visa waiver programme for nationals of certain countries, making it harder for them to enter America if they had dual citizenship of Iran, Iraq, Sudan or Syria or visited one of them in the last five years.

Citizens of the 38 countries, which are part of the visa waiver programme, would no longer be able to get an automatic entry into the United States if they have visited these four countries - Iran, Iraq, Sudan and Syria - after March 2011, the State Department said.

The State Department said any traveller who receives notification that they are no longer eligible to travel under the Visa Waiver Programme (VWP) are still eligible to travel to the US with a valid nonimmigrant visa issued by a US embassy or consulate.

"Such travellers will be required to appear for an interview and obtain a visa in their passports at a US embassy or consulate before travelling to the United States," the State Department said.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the goal here is to improve and tighten the screening measures that were in place for those individuals that had recently travelled to countries that were the state sponsor of terrorism.

"We want to make sure that we are doing everything that is necessary to keep the country safe. That is the top priority. But we also don't want to unnecessarily disadvantage American businesses that are trying to do business overseas, because ultimately that's good for our economy, it's good for creating jobs here in the United States," he said in response to a question.

"The goal here is to, number one, make sure that the country is safe and that we have in place appropriate screening for those individuals that have recently travelled to the nations of Iran, Iraq, Sudan and Syria," Earnest said.

The restrictions that have been put in place do not prevent individuals from travelling to the United States.

"What they do is they subject individuals that have recently travelled to these countries to more screening. And that's an important thing for people to understand," he said.

Currently, the Visa Waiver Programme allows citizens of participating countries to travel to the US without obtaining a visa. Thirty-one of the 38 countries in the programme are European nations, with some Asian countries included as well, according to the State Department.

The adjustment was mandated by legislation passed in the wake of November's deadly ISIS-linked terrorist attacks in Paris and a deadly shooting in California in December.

The vast majority of foreign fighters who have joined ISIS or other terrorist groups and then returned to the West have gone to Iraq and Syria. Syria, Iran and Sudan are also designated as state sponsors of terrorism, according to the State Department.
London: A British Muslim mother on trial for taking her 14-month-old baby to Syria to join the Islamic State (ISIS) claims she was unaware of the terrorist group's true nature and had travelled to the war-torn country only to live under Sharia law.

Tareena Shakil, 26, has told the Birmingham Crown Court jury that she only wanted to live under Sharia law and feared she would go to hell if she lived in England.

The court was told before she left the UK she had talked on Facebook to a man named Fabio Pocas, whose online profile showed an armed man posing with the black flag of ISIS.

He warned her of the perils of "living in the land of non-believers", telling her she could not live in a country not ruled by Sharia because it was forbidden.

She said: "He told me 'You cannot live in a state that is not under Sharia'.

He said 'Look sister, by staying in England, you're hanging over the gates of hell. If you die that's where you're going'.

"The impact on me was fear any Muslim would want to save themselves from hell, it's just how you go about it."

She flew out of the UK in October 2014 with her child, telling her family she was going on a package holiday to Turkey.

Instead she travelled to Syria, where she remained for several months before returning to Britain in February 2015.

Shakil, who claims she escaped from Syria, was repeatedly asked about tweets she had sent in the weeks before setting off.

In September, she tweeted Sally Ann Jones, who travelled to Syria and is thought to have married British extremist Junaid Hussain, who was killed in a US drone strike last year.

Shakil claims she thought Jones was just "an ordinary woman".

"I didn't know who this woman was nor had I read any of the disgusting things she said online. It was only after, when interviewed by police, that I found out who she was and what she had said," she said.

The former University of Wolverhampton student denies charges encouraging terrorism on social media and travelling to the northern Syrian city of Raqqa to join ISIS.

The trial is ongoing and expected to last a few weeks.
Beirut: European and other nations must provide more safe, legal opportunities for refugees to be resettled, the head of the United Nations refugee agency said on Friday.

UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi also urged humanitarian access throughout Syria, describing images of starving children in the war-torn country as "unacceptable".

Grandi renewed a longstanding UN call for more aid for the countries neighbouring Syria that are hosting most of the more than four million people who have fled the conflict since it began in March 2011.

But he also urged wealthy nations to provide alternatives to the illegal smuggling routes that waves of refugees have used to flee in the past year.

"We need to increase the number of places available to refugees... that want to go to other countries not through boats and criminal networks but through legal ways: resettlement, scholarships, medical leave, family reunification, humanitarian visas," he said at a news conference in Beirut.

"It's cheaper for everybody, more orderly for those countries and it's so much better and safe for the refugees themselves," he added.

Since last year Europe has been rocked by its biggest migration crisis since World War II, with hundreds of thousands of people fleeing war and poverty arriving on its shores.

Many of those coming are fleeing Syria's conflict, which has killed more than 260,000 people.

The journey has proved deadly for many migrants, including 44 people who drowned today when three boats sank off the coast of Greece.

"We need to multiply legal opportunities for people to travel safely," Grandi said.

The Italian diplomat, who took the helm of the UNCHR on January 1, also said he had urged Syria's government to provide greater humanitarian access, during a visit to Damascus this week.

"I told them that it was unacceptable that images of starving children in besieged areas would be all over the media, that this was a shame on Syria," he said.

Grandi said the Syrian government had told him to appeal to "other parties" to ensure access, and he urged "all those who have influence" to push for greater aid access as well as a peace process.

His comments come after international condemnation of the situation in the Syrian town of Madaya, which is under government siege.
Bujumbura: The United Nations Security Council met with Burundi`s president on Friday to push for peace talks and an international force to quell worsening political violence, but U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power said little was achieved.

The meeting came a day after rebels in the tiny African state raised the stakes in the crisis by declaring a general who led a failed coup in May as their leader, deepening concerns that Burundi is sliding back into conflict after its ethnically charged civil war ended in 2005.

The 15-member council, which arrived in Burundi`s lakeside capital Bujumbura on Thursday, met with President Pierre Nkurunziza in Gitega for more than two hours. It is the council`s second visit to Burundi in less than a year.

"None of us want the situation in Burundi to deteriorate, we`re here because we want to support efforts at dialogue, because we believe as a council that a more substantial international presence here can help, we conveyed those points to the president," Power told reporters after the meeting.

"In this meeting we did not achieve as much, frankly, as I think we would have liked. But we never give up, the cause of peace in Burundi is too important to give up," she said.

Nkurunziza`s re-election for a third term sparked the crisis, which has raised fears of an ethnic conflict in a region where memories of Rwanda`s 1994 genocide remain fresh.

The government insists there is no ethnic bias, but opponents say districts of Bujumbura where many Tutsis live - and which were also hotbeds of protest against Nkurunziza last year - have been targeted with some Tutsis singled out.

The United Nations estimates the death toll at 439 people but says it could be higher. More than 240,000 people have fled abroad.

The rebel group, FOREBU, announced on Thursday that it was now commanded by the former intelligence chief, General Godefroid Niyombare. The group said it welcomed international mediation but also called for Burundians to support their fight against Nkurunziza.

"This development shows why the U.N. Security Council is concerned about the risk of a downward cycle of violence," British U.N. Ambassador Matthew Rycroft told Reuters.

Burundi`s government has accused neighbouring Rwanda of supporting a rebel group by training and arming Burundian refugees recruited on Rwandan soil. Nkurunziza raised those accusations again on Friday with the Security Council, said diplomats who were in the closed-door meeting.

Rwanda has previously dismissed the allegations.

"We`ve expressed concern about the allegations of external interference ... and it`s very important that nobody support armed opposition groups no matter what they assess the history," Power said.

The president has rejected the deployment of an African peacekeeping force, saying the troops would constitute "an invading force". The issue is expected to be a focus for an African Union summit at the end of January.

"It`s not peacekeepers that the Burundians need. What they need is to increase their own capacity, especially their police capacity," Russia`s Deputy U.N. Ambassador Petr Iliichev told Reuters.

"Maybe what we need is some kind of policing mission, either advisors, either trainers or maybe formed police units that will be deployed in Bujumbura ... from the African Union or the U.N.," he said.

Months of talks between the government and the opposition last year failed to make progress. New negotiations begun at the end of December in Uganda have already stalled.

Nkurunziza backed Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni`s mediation efforts.

"We told (the Security Council) that he is somebody who knows very well the problems of Burundi," Nkurunziza told reporters after the meeting.

Regional Western diplomats say the government has set too many conditions about who can attend talks to make them meaningful. They also say rebels may believe they can make more gains through force of arms than at the negotiating table.
Paris: Decisive military action is needed to halt the spread of Islamic State in Libya, the top U.S. military officer said on Friday, warning the group wanted to use the country as a platform to coordinate activity across Africa.

General Joseph Dunford said he believed the U.S. military leadership owed President Barack Obama and the U.S. defence secretary ideas about the "way ahead" for dealing with the militant group`s expansion in Libya.

He described it as an "immediate imperative".

"Unchecked, I am concerned about the spread of ISIL in Libya," Dunford, using an acronym for Islamic State, told a small group of reporters travelling with him in Paris.

"You want to take decisive military action to check ISILs expansion and at the same time you want to do it in such a way that`s supportive of a long-term political process."

Islamic State militants have exploited a prolonged power vacuum in Libya, nearly five years after the overthrow of veteran leader Muammar Gaddafi, and have managed to establish a foothold in the city of Sirte.

Islamic State militants set fire on Thursday to oil storage tanks in a fresh assault on Ras Lanuf terminal in northern Libya.

The United States says it killed Islamic State`s senior leader in Libya, known as Abu Nabil, in a November air strike by F-15 aircraft.

It believes he was operating in Libya with the support of Islamic State`s core leadership in Iraq and Syria, in a likely sign of the country`s strategic importance to the group.

"So as I look at Libya, I look at Libya as an ISIL platform from which they can conduct malign activity across Africa," Dunford said.

The chairman of the U.S. military`s Joint Chiefs of Staff declined to say what measures he was considering but stressed that it would need to be "more than we`re seeing now".

"My perspective is we need to do more," Dunford said, saying he would examine a range of factors, including the ability to identify the right forces on the ground to support.

Western powers hope a new government announced on Tuesday will deliver stability to Libya, deeply fractured since Gaddafi`s fall in 2011, and tackle the growing threat from Islamic State militants. Still, divisions over the U.N.-backed plan for a political transition remain.

"Anything we do has got to be supportive of a political end state," Dunford said.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

Trend:

Mubariz Ahmadoglu, Chairman of the Centre for Political Innovation and Technologies of Azerbaijan



Yerevan tries to orchestrate the Cooperation Council between the European Union and the Republic of Armenia against anticipated adoption of two resolutions on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict by the Parliament Assembly Council of Europe (PACE). The information disseminated on the sixteenth meeting of the Cooperation Council needs further clarifications.



Expecting the discussions at the PACE, we would like to recall several consonant statements:



First, the term "occupied territories" was officially used in the statement by the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group on the twentieth anniversary of the ceasefire agreement, on 11 May 2014 (third paragraph). There are several other documents by the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group which employed the term 'occupied territories' (http://www.osce.org/mg/118419 ).



Second, the final document on the sixteenth meeting of the EU-Armenia Cooperation Council also employs the term "international border between Armenia and Azerbaijan" (http://www.consilium.europa. eu/press-releases-pdf/2016/1/ 40802208032_en_ 635887490400000000.pdf)



Moreover, in the document on the sixteenth meeting of the EU-Armenia Cooperation Council, the phrase "the EU re-affirmed that the status-quo is unsustainable" was also used (http://www.consilium.europa. eu/press-releases-pdf/2016/1/ 40802208032_en_ 635887490400000000.pdf).



The argument on the OSCE Minsk Group being the only institution dealing with the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is also inaccurate. The OSCE Minsk Group is an institution, recognised by the international community, dealing with the resolution of the conflict, but not the only one. It cannot be the only one, because OSCE Minsk Group is held accountable by the UN and OSCE. The UN and OSCE are in position to adopt the decisions on the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Washington: Washington has stripped five Russian honorary consuls of their accreditation in response to the harassment of its own staff in Russia, the State Department said Friday.

"We are prepared to take further appropriate measures if there are additional efforts to impede our diplomatic and consular activities in Russia," spokesman Mark Toner warned.

Russia`s foreign ministry expressed outrage at the move against the consuls -- US nationals who represent Moscow in California, Florida, Minnesota, Puerto Rico and Utah.

Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused US "security services" of carrying out "provocations against employees of Russian diplomatic missions, and not only in the United States."

"The decision on the honorary consuls continues the Barack Obama administration`s policy aimed at curbing ties with our country," she alleged, in a statement.

The State Department said formal diplomatic relations would not be hurt by Washington's tit-for-tat move, which it said followed similar action by Moscow against US interests.

"This action is being taken in response to continued Russian interference with our diplomatic and consular operations in Russia, including, but not limited to, widespread harassment of our personnel, as well as the forced closure of the American Center in Moscow and 28 American Spaces throughout Russia," Toner said.

"This does not affect Russia`s formal diplomatic operations, including its embassy, consulates general or its cultural center in Washington."

The American Center in Moscow was closed in September last year after acting for 22 years as a library and a cultural and meeting space for Russians and US expats.

US officials saw the Russian move as part of a broader crackdown by President Vladimir Putin`s government on official foreign missions and western-backed NGOs.

Russia commentators have often accused US missions of stirring opposition sentiment and even so-called "color revolutions" in former Soviet republics.

Ties between the Cold War rivals are at a low ebb following Russia`s annexation of Crimea and interventions in the conflicts in Syria and eastern Ukraine.

But Secretary of State John Kerry and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov maintain regular contact and are working together to push for a negotiated settlement in Syria.

Honorary consuls are not diplomats and do not typically enjoy immunity from prosecution, but are accredited to represent a government and its citizens abroad.

The State Department said five of the six Russian honorary consuls present in the United States had lost their status.

In Moscow, Zakharova expressed Russia`s "sincere gratitude to the US nationals who have served worthily as Russian honorary consuls for many years."

"We expect that sooner or later common sense will prevail in Washington and honorary consuls will be able to resume their useful and highly sought-after work," she added.
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Golden Leaf Holdings Ltd. ("GLH" or the "Company") (CSE:GLH) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a letter of engagement with Dundee Securities Ltd. (the "Lead Agent") on behalf of a syndicate of agents including Liberty North Capital Corp. (together, the "Agents") pursuant to which the Agents have agreed to offer for sale convertible senior unsecured debentures of the Company (the "Debentures"), on a private placement basis, subject to all required regulatory approvals, at a price per Debenture of C$1,000 (the "Offering Price"), for minimum gross proceeds of C$4,500,000 and maximum gross proceeds of C$10,000,000 (the "Offering").

The Debentures will mature on the date that is 18 months from closing of the Offering (the "Maturity Date") and will bear interest accruing at a rate of 10.0% per annum from the closing of the Offering (the "Closing Date"), payable semi-annually on the last day of June and December of each year. The first interest payment will be made on June 30, 2016 and will consist of interest accrued from and including the Closing Date to June 30, 2016. Subject to certain conditions, the Company may elect, from time to time, subject to applicable regulatory approval, to satisfy its obligation to pay interest on the Debentures, on the date it is payable (i) in cash; or (ii) the equivalent value in common shares of the Company ("Common Shares") at a price per Common Share equal to the 20 trading day weighted average closing price of the Common Shares on the Canadian Securities Exchange (the "CSE") (or such other Canadian stock exchange on which the Common Shares may trade) ending five trading days preceding the interest due date.

Subject to CSE approval the Debentures will be convertible at the holder's option into Common Shares at any time prior to the close of business on the Maturity Date at a conversion price equal to C$0.67 per Common Share. Holders converting their Debentures will receive accrued and unpaid interest thereon, up to, but excluding, the date of conversion. The lead subscriber in the Offering has been granted certain rights with respect to anti-dilution and future equity issuances.

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The Debentures will rank pari passu in right of payment of principal and interest with all previously existing debentures of the Company.

The Company intends to use the net proceeds of the Offering for funding of the Strategic Partnership and for working capital purposes.

The Debentures will be offered by way of private placement to accredited investors in all provinces of Canada and in the United States to "Accredited Investors" within the meaning of Regulation D in transactions that are exempt from registration pursuant to Rule 506 of Regulation D under the United States Securities Act of 1933, and such other jurisdictions as may be agreed upon by the Company and the Agents.

Closing of the Offering is scheduled to be on or about February 11, 2016 and is subject to certain conditions including, but not limited to, the receipt of all necessary approvals, including the approval of the Canadian Securities Exchange and the applicable securities regulatory authorities.

In consideration for their services, the Agents will receive a cash commission in an amount equal to 8.0% of the gross proceeds of the Offering (excluding sales to insiders of the Corporation resident in the United States) and such number of compensation options ("Compensation Options") equal to 8.0% of the aggregate number of Debentures issued and sold pursuant to the Offering (excluding sales to insiders of the Corporation resident in the United States) divided by C$0.67. Each Compensation Option shall be exercisable for one unit of the Corporation (a "Unit") at an exercise price of C$0.67 for a period of 24 months following the Closing Date. Each Unit shall consist of one Common Share and one-half of one Common Share purchase warrant (each whole Common Share purchase warrant, a "Compensation Warrant"). Each Compensation Warrant shall entitle the holder thereof to acquire one Common Share at an exercise price of C$0.85 for a period of 24 months following the Closing Date.

The Debentures and underlying Common Shares will be subject to a statutory hold period in Canada of four months plus one day from the Closing Date pursuant to Canadian securities laws. The securities mentioned herein have not been and will not be qualified by prospectus for sale to the public under applicable Canadian securities laws and will be subject to transfer and selling restrictions in certain jurisdictions, including the United States and Canada.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any State in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. The securities being offered have not been, nor will they be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and applicable state securities laws.

About Golden Leaf Holdings:

Golden Leaf Holdings is one of the largest cannabis oil and solution providers in North America. It is a leading cannabis products company built around recognized brands providing medical users with a superior value and experience. GLH leverages a strong management team and advanced research techniques, including R&D with its Israeli subsidiary Green Point Science Ltd. to complement its expertise in growing, extracting, refining and selling cannabis oil. As an industry leader committed to transparency and controls, GLH is dedicated to partnering with industries, communities and regulators.

Disclaimer: This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the Corporation's future business operations and reflects current expectations or beliefs regarding such matters including, but not limited to, information or statements with respect to the completion of the Offering, the receipt of requisite regulatory approvals, including the approval of the CSE and the use of proceeds. Generally, forward looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved". Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of the Corporation to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including but not limited to general business, economic and competitive uncertainties, regulatory risks, market risks, risks inherent in manufacturing operations, risks relating to the receipt of additional extraction machines, and other risks of the cannabis industry. Although the Corporation has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is provided herein for the purpose of presenting information about management's current expectations relating to the future and readers are cautioned that such information may not be appropriate for other purpose. The Corporation does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
A baby girl in Cuba is scheduled to receive a life-changing medical device thanks, in part, to volunteers in Watson Lake, Yukon.

In October, the Yukon Hospital Corporation donated about 60 items of medical equipment from the old Watson Lake hospital to MEMO, a Christian organization that sends medical equipment and supplies to Cuba and El Salvador.

One of the items donated, a ventilator, will go to the family of a one-year-old baby in Cuba. The baby girl was born with a condition that required her to get a tracheotomy and forced her to remain at the hospital where there is access to a ventilator to assist with breathing.

Other items sent to MEMO from the Yukon include stretchers, X-ray equipment and a maternity bed.

John Hall of Watson Lake is a MEMO volunteer who, along with his wife Naomi, helped organize the equipment transfer.

"That's just one of those miracles," he says about the ventilator going to someone with an acute need. The device should allow the baby to leave the hospital with her parents.

Once MEMO identified the ventilator in Watson Lake, the next challenge was transportation. Fortunately, another Watson Laker volunteered to drive the equipment to Thunder Bay, Ont., where MEMO is based.

"Sometimes its just a matter of being in the right place at the right time and it's happened over and over again," says Hall.

The organization says a tourist has been found to take the ventilator to Cuba at the end of January.

The Yukon Hospital Corporation says Carol Chiasson, facility administrator at Watson Lake Community Hospital, was also instrumental in helping get the permission to donate the equipment rather than throw it away.
Rumble

Introducing the recipe for seafood Chijimi (Korean pan cake) made with Nira (garlic chives) and squid. Adding carrots adds a gentle sweetness and the indescribably enchanting texture of fluffy, chewy pancake is almost addictive. Thinly cooked with the flavor of sesame oil and dipped in the authentic homemade sauce, this dish is a delicious dinner or finger food. The recipe can easily be modified for restricted diets, substituting the squid for thinly sliced pork, or even subbing all animal based products with vegetarian ones (roasted vegetables instead of meat - vegetable broth instead of chicken, etc). =============================================================  YouTube : https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDvC...  Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/hungrycooki... ============================================================= 00:38 Prepping Ingredients 01:25 How to Gut a Squid 03:43 How To Make Chijimi Dipping Sauce 05:28 Putting Together the Chijimi 06:43 How to Cook Chijimi  Ingredients (for one chijimi) Weak (Cake) flour... 1/3 cup Potato starch ... 2 tbsp Water... 1/3 cup Garlic chives ... 1/3 bunch Carrots ... 1/8 (about 5cm) Squid ... 1/2~1 Salt Torigara (chicken bone) soup stock base (or Hondashi)  1 tsp  Olive oil  Sesame oil Sauce Soy sauce... 2 tablespoons Vinegar... 2 tablespoons Kochijang... 2 tsp Ichimi chili pepper Sesame oil... 1 tablespoon La-Yu (chili oil) Sesame  Cooking Recipe  Slice the Garlic Chives into 3~5cm pieces and julienne the carrots.  Gut, wash, and prep the squid into about 3-5cm strips.  This is a good time to prepare the sauce, so mix the sauce ingredients together to create the dipping sauce for the pancakes.  Add cake flour and potato starch, mixing loosely. Add water, salt, and torigara (chicken bone broth concentrate) or a different stock base like Hondashi, and stir until smooth. Lastly, add prepped vegetables and squid into the bowl and mix to incorporate.  Place the a pan over high heat and when hot, pour in sesame oil and olive oil. Add the batter made in step 4 into the pan, shape, and cook for 1~1.5 minutes on one side. When solid and lightly browned, flip the pancake and cook the other side through, pressing down with a spatula as needed.  Before completely cooked through, pour sesame oil along the rim of the pan and cook for 1~1.5 minutes more until browned. Reduce heat to medium and cook until both sides are both sides are fragrant and of good color.  After removing from the pan when fully cooked, cut into bite sized pieces and serve with prepared dipping sauce.  Cooking tips Thinly sliced pork is a delicious alternative to squid. This recipe can also be made vegetarian by subbing meats with roasted eggplant or other hearty vegetables, and broth subbed with vegetable broth concentrate. If you like a sweeter dipping sauce, add a pinch sugar when putting the sauce together. If you add an egg the taste will be much richer. However, add more flour to the batter as too small of an amount will result in a heavier, less crispy pancake. A recommended ratio will be about 1 cup of flour to 1 egg. When cutting pancakes, the chives are a little hard to cut and tend to lose their shape so cut them carefully. The pancake is easier to cut if you have a pizza cutter on hand.
Baku, Azerbaijan, January 23

Trend:

The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - Igor Popov of the Russian Federation, James Warlick of the United States of America, and Pierre Andrieu of France by their today's statement once again showed their true essence, the deputy chairman of the Committee on Political Affairs and Security of the OSCE PA, MP of the Milli Majlis (Parliament) of Azerbaijan Azay Guliyev told reporters January 22.

His said that the co-chairs expressed concern about the discussions of "The increase in violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and other occupied territories of Azerbaijan" and "Intentional deprivation of the residents of the Azerbaijani border regions of water" reports next week during a session of the PACE.

"Armenia is concerned by both reports, as they clearly support the just position of Azerbaijan. The co-chairs of the Minsk Group are mobilized to take Armenia out of a difficult situation. The "trinity" believes that the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict can not be discussed without their will. By this the co-chairs confirmed that they are more interested in monopolizing the conflict than in its resolution", Guliyev added.

In his opinion, the protection of Armenia from the United States, France and Russia, as well as the absence of practical steps to change the status quo is not news, but the demonstration of this in an open manner is the last stage of political hypocrisy.
By Julia Fioretti BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union privacy regulators aim to agree next month on whether and how data transfers to the United States should continue as the European Commission weighs Washington's latest proposals on a new EU-U.S. data-transfer pact. European data protection authorities will gather in Brussels on Feb. 2 to find a common position on which legal channels companies can use to shuffle personal data across the Atlantic after the simplest system, known as Safe Harbour, was quashed by the top EU court due to concerns about U.S. snooping. The 15-year-old Safe Harbour framework used by over 4,000 firms to transfer Europeans' data to the United States was declared invalid by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) on Oct. 6 because the court found U.S. national security requirements trumped privacy safeguards. This meant that the data were not adequately protected. Under EU data protection law, companies cannot transfer EU citizens' personal data to countries outside the EU deemed to have insufficient privacy safeguards, of which the United States is one. Revelations of mass U.S. surveillance programs where American authorities collected private information directly from big tech firms like Apple, Facebook and Google riled Europe two years ago, and set the stage for the ECJ ruling. As Washington and Brussels stepped up discussions on a new pact, EU data protection authorities gave businesses a three-month grace period in which they could set up alternative legal systems to transfer data across the Atlantic. These would cover binding corporate rules within multinationals, model clauses between companies or requests to people for their consent. EU data protection authorities also urged the United States and EU to agree a new data transfer framework in the same period, failing which they could start taking enforcement action against companies if they decided that alternatives such as model clauses offered no greater protection against U.S. snooping than the old Safe Harbour did. The United States submitted a package of proposals on a new Safe Harbour deal this week. These included a letter from U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker explaining U.S. commitments on the oversight of a possible new framework by both the Department of Commerce and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, according to a person familiar with the discussions. If acceptable to the EU, a new framework could be submitted for approval by all 28 EU commissioners on Feb. 2 to coincide with the regulators' meeting, the person said. However, further details may need to be ironed out after that. EU regulators have been analyzing the legality of transfer mechanisms such as binding corporate rules and should reach a common position on Feb. 2, said a spokeswoman for the French data protection authority, which will chair the meeting. "It is evident that we will sanction any transfers of personal data which are solely based on the old Safe Harbour decision," said Johannes Caspar, head of the Hamburg data protection authority in Germany which polices Google and Facebook. He said a new Safe Harbour framework would have to include a number of legal safeguards such as an effective judicial review and independent oversight. (Reporting by Julia Fioretti; Editing by Mark Heinrich)
By Jonathan Saul LONDON (Reuters) - United Arab Shipping Company is resuming business with Iran following the lifting of Western sanctions, despite the deep-seated political rivalry between the Islamic Republic and Saudi Arabia, one of the shipping line's main shareholders. A nuclear deal between world powers and Iran led to the removal on Saturday of international oil export prohibitions as well as restrictions on banking, insurance and shipping. Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia has grave reservations about the lifting of sanctions on its main regional rival, with which it cut ties earlier this month after its Tehran embassy was attacked following Riyadh's execution of a Shi'ite cleric. Other Gulf nations which hold stakes in UASC also have difficult relations with Iran. But a source close to the shipping line made clear that for UASC, commercial considerations were more important than political difficulties. Kuwait-headquartered UASC told Reuters on Wednesday it had "started accepting shipments to and from Iran". "It is important to note that a number of sanctions are still in place, therefore, the ability to accept cargo volumes to/from Iran will continue to be based on UASC's strict internal compliance check, which is in line with the international laws and applicable sanctions," it said in a statement. With U.S. sanctions still in place, which exclude U.S. individuals, banks and insurers from trading with Iran including business denominated in dollars, shipping and marine insurance sources say many foreign companies are likely to tread carefully. UASC, founded in 1976 and with corporate offices in Dubai, is owned by the governments of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and Iraq. Qatar holds a 51 percent stake in the group, Saudi Arabia has 35 percent and the remaining nations have smaller holdings. Sunni Muslim power Saudi Arabia cut relations with Shi'ite Iran earlier this month. The crisis erupted when Saudi Arabia executed a Shi'ite cleric on Jan. 2 and Iranian protesters retaliated by storming and setting fire to the Saudi embassy in Tehran. In solidarity with Riyadh, Kuwait and Qatar subsequently pulled out their ambassadors from Tehran, and the United Arab Emirates downgraded its ties. Bahrain and two non-Gulf states, Djibouti and Sudan, severed relations completely. The source close to UASC told Reuters it was business as usual despite the tensions. "Whatever makes sense commercially and whatever benefits customers are a priority. That is how UASC looks at this matter," the source said. "Qatar and Saudi being the largest shareholders in UASC clearly do not impact its commercial activities." "Historically, since the company's foundation, politics normally stayed away from the board room," the source said. "UASC is commercially managed." The source said UASC weathered Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, even with staff relocating for a while. "If you look at the shareholding nations' relationships ... they were not always at the best levels," the source said. "Meetings continued and services were normal," the source said, referring to the 1991 Gulf War in which a U.S -led coalition forced Iraq out of Kuwait. UASC said prior to cutting ties, the Iranian market represented around 2 to 3 percent of the groups overall business. The container market has been hit by a slowdown in demand from Asia, especially China. The sector is also suffering one of its worst recessions due to worries over the world economy and a surplus of vessels available for hire, leading shipping lines to seek what opportunities they can. NEW OPPORTUNITIES UASC, which suspended all Iran business in April 2013, said it would initially service the Islamic Republic using smaller feeder ships via third parties that shipped containers to Iran from the United Arab Emirates. It aimed to resume direct calls as soon as possible. "For the shipping industry, the relaxation of sanctions is likely to create opportunities resulting in additional volumes due to the expected increase in infrastructure projects as well as the ability of Iranian consumers to access a wider range of foreign goods," the UASC statement said. Iran had depended on foreign ships for much of its imports, but has relied more on land routes and its own commercial fleet, particularly since 2012, as layers of sanctions led to an exodus of Western shipping firms, causing supply disruptions. In August last year the world's number three line, France's CMA CGM, and number four, Evergreen of Taiwan, were the first to resume direct services to Iran. In late December MSC of Switzerland, the world's second biggest container shipping line, resumed direct calls. The world's biggest line Maersk said this week it was "looking into how and when we can resume container transportation services to/from Iran", without providing further details. German container line Hapag Lloyd said this week it would continue to offer only feeder services, which started in November, adding it would handle "all Iran cargo with utmost care in terms of compliance". According to consultancy Alphaliner, UASC's market share, based on fleet capacity, is estimated at 2.6 percent versus nearly 15 percent for Maersk. (Editing by David Evans and Giles Elgood)
By Michelle Nichols BUJUMBURA (Reuters) - Two former Burundi presidents pleaded for the United Nations Security Council on Thursday to back the deployment of international troops to the African state gripped by political violence because it "runs the risk of becoming another Rwanda" Diplomats of the 15-member council arrived in Burundi's capital Bujumbura on Thursday evening for its second visit to the tiny landlocked state in less than a year, where fears of an ethnic war have also led to an economic crisis. The Security Council is due to meet President Pierre Nkurunziza on Friday. Violence broke out after Nkurunziza's decision in April to seek a third term. His opponents said the move was unconstitutional but he went on to win a disputed election in July. Hundreds of pro-government protesters lined the road from the airport to the U.N. envoys' hotel, welcoming them with drumming and dancing and signs with messages such as: "Burundi is sovereign, stop interfering in Burundi home affairs." There were several grenade explosions on Thursday in Bujumbura, but no further details were known, diplomats and police said. Since April, at least 439 people have been killed and the number might be "considerably higher," the United Nations said. Some 232,000 people have fled the country. The envoys, led by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power and senior Angolan and French diplomats, met Jean-Baptiste Bagaza, Burundi's president from 1976-87 and Domitien Ndayizeye, president from 2003-05. Bagaza said armed outside support was necessary to reassure Burundians. Both former presidents called on the Security Council to back such a move. "Otherwise we run the risk of becoming another Rwanda," Bagaza said. "We already have a heavy death toll, a great deal of destruction to the economy." The African Union said in December it was ready to send 5,000 peacekeepers to protect civilians in Burundi, but Nkurunziza has rejected the mission and said that Burundians would fight against any peacekeepers. The violence is being closely watched in a region scarred by the 1994 genocide in neighbouring Rwanda, which killed more than 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus. Burundi and Rwanda have the same ethnic mix, about 85 percent Hutus and 15 percent Tutsis. A 12-year civil war in Burundi, which ended in 2005, pitted a Tutsi-led army against Hutu rebel groups. The Burundi government has said there is no risk of a return to the ethnic bloodletting of the past. Ndayizeye told the Security Council that Nkurunziza's government was "a dictatorial regime which is imposed only through force" and that the crisis "is leading us over the abyss economically speaking." Burundi's cabinet passed a 2016 budget that slashes public spending by 16 percent and expects foreign aid to almost halve as relations with donors have soured during the turmoil. Burundi relies on the European Union for about half its budget and Brussels has partially suspended new aid over the crisis. Before the U.N. envoys arrived, a group of soldiers and police who defected from the government announced they had formed an official rebel movement, The Republican Force of Burundi. Godefroid Niyombare, a former major general who lead a failed coup attempt in May, has been appointed its leader. The rebels welcomed international mediation but also called for Burundians to support their fight against Nkurunziza. (Editing by Drazen Jorgic and Raissa Kasolowsky; editing by Larry King and Grant McCool)
A Manitoba grandfather who fell ill in Bolivia, and was flown home by air ambulance in time for the holidays, has died.

Tracy Man said her father, Neil Nickel, passed away on Thursday.

"Early this morning our dad lost his fight with the horrible infection that had taken over his body. He passed very peacefully and is no longer in pain," she posted on Facebook that afternoon.

Nickel had travelled to the South American country in early November to visit family, but he was soon hospitalized with flu-like symptoms. He did not have travel health insurance.

His family has said it turned out Nickel had a ruptured intestine caused by scar tissue from gall bladder surgery 33 years earlier. He had an infection and needed surgery.

The father of three and grandfather of six also had a stroke.

Man and other family members travelled to Bolivia to make arrangements to bring Nickel back to Manitoba.

They found a private air ambulance company to transport him to Manitoba, but the trip came with an $86,800 price tag. He was flown to Winnipeg in mid-December and taken to Health Sciences Centre.

Last month, Man estimated that hospital and medication bills would total up to $25,000 by the time her father came home.

A GoFundMe campaign launched by the family has raised over $22,000 of their $86,800 goal. Man is also organizing a fundraising social scheduled for Feb. 13 in Winnipeg.
By Jibran Ahmed and Tommy Wilkes CHARSADDA, Pakistan/ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Stuck with 15 of his students on a third floor balcony of a campus building as gunmen came up the stairs, university director Mohammad Shakil urged Pakistani police arriving at the scene to toss him up a gun so he could shoot back. "We were hiding ... but were unarmed," Shakil told Reuters, speaking after four Islamist militants attacked Bacha Khan University in Pakistan's troubled northwest on Wednesday, killing more than 20 people. "I was worried about the students, and then one of the militants came after us," Shakil added. "After repeated requests, the police threw me a pistol and I fired some shots at the terrorists." As more details of Wednesday's assault emerged, attention focused on at least two members of staff who took up arms to resist attackers bent on killing them and their students. Some hailed them as heroes, as the country digested an attack which bore similarities to the massacre, in late 2014, of 134 pupils at an army-run school in Peshawar, about 30 km (19 miles) from where this week's violence occurred. Others questioned whether teachers should be armed, as many are, because it goes against the ideals of the profession. Such a dilemma may have been far from the mind of chemistry professor Hamid Hussain, as he locked himself inside a room with colleagues after gunmen stormed an accommodation block on the university campus. When the assailants broke down the door, Hussain fired several rounds from his pistol, according to Shabir Ahmad Khan, an English department lecturer taking cover in an adjacent washroom. "They carried on heavy shooting and I was preparing myself for death, but then they did not enter the washroom and left," Khan recalled. Later on in the same building, Hussain fired again at the militants to allow some of his students to get away, surviving pupils told local media. Hussain was subsequently shot and later died from his wounds. "Kudos to professor Dr Hamid Hussain. Our hero fought bravely n saved many," Asma Shirazi, a popular talk show host, said on Twitter. TEACHERS' DILEMMA Others, too, have credited the actions of Hussain and Shakil with helping to prevent the gunmen, armed with assault rifles and hand grenades, from spilling more blood. Bacha Khan University also employed around 50 of its own guards who, witnesses said, fought for close to an hour to keep the gunmen isolated and prevent them from entering the girl's hostel as the police and army arrived. Pakistan army spokesman General Asim Bajwa said the security guards responded "very well" to the attack before reinforcements reached them. In the wake of the 2014 school massacre, teachers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where Peshawar is located, were offered weapons training. Yet some are wary of arming teachers and encouraging them to engage in battle. Gun ownership is common in Pakistan, owing to liberal licensing laws, and particularly so in the semi-autonomous tribal belt near the Afghan border where the threat of militant violence is high. Jamil Chitrali, president of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa University Teaching Staff Association, said more teachers were now carrying personal weapons, as security had worsened. "Arms are against the norms of my profession," he said. "I am teaching principles and morality in the class. How I can carry a gun?" WHO IS TO BLAME? Four gunmen, all since killed, were involved in Wednesday's attack, officials said. They used the cover of thick fog to scale the campus' rear walls, before storming student dormitories and classrooms and executing people at will. Some 3,000 students were enrolled at the university, many living on campus, while hundreds of visitors had arrived to hear a poetry recital to commemorate the life of local Pashtun nationalist hero and pacifist Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, after whom the university is named. The provincial government declared a day of mourning on Thursday as grieving families buried their dead and survivors recalled their ordeal. Who was to blame remains a mystery. A senior commander of the Pakistan Taliban, Umar Mansoor, on Wednesday claimed responsibility, but an official spokesman for the group later denied involvement, calling the attack "un-Islamic". The hardline Islamist movement was believed to be behind the school massacre just over a year ago, and educational institutions are an increasingly common target for militants wanting to frighten the public. Pakistan has killed and arrested hundreds of suspected Taliban militants in the last year under a major crackdown against a group fighting to overthrow the government and install a strict interpretation of Islamic law. The army said on Thursday the attack in Charsadda, near Peshawar, was coordinated from across the border inside Afghanistan, according to its investigations. Army chief General Raheel Sharif has called Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and the U.S. commander of international forces in Afghanistan to ask their help in locating those it holds responsible for the assault, army spokesman Bajwa said on Twitter. (Editing by Mike Collett-White)
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

By Anakhanum Khidayatova - Trend:

Trend Agency's exclusive interview with the new OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Foreign Minister of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier

How do you assess the current state of bilateral political relations between Germany and Azerbaijan? What will be the main priorities of Germany in its relations with Azerbaijan in the future?

For us, Azerbaijan is an important partner in the region of the Southern Caucasus, strategically located at the Caspian Sea and blessed with enormous energy resources. Our economic exchange increased in 2015, and this was not only due to the fact that Germany buys significant quantities of oil from Azerbaijan. The German-Azerbaijani Chamber of Commerce is very active.

Other than that, we are also interested in increasing our cultural and humanitarian exchange. Our Embassy and the German Cultural Centre "Kapellhaus" run many cultural activities like concerts and exhibitions. There are nine schools in Azerbaijan that teach German as the first foreign language and we have a number of scholarships for Azerbaijani students. All of these are important vectors of our bilateral relationship and we intend to develop them further. We want Azerbaijan to be an important element of stability in the region.

Germany will be chairing the OSCE this year. Considering the protracted conflicts in the OSCE area, what can Germany do to bring Azerbaijan and Armenia closer to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and start working on the peace agreement?

The theme of our chairmanship in the OSCE is to renew dialogue, rebuild trust and re-establish security. We will put an active focus on trying to find solutions to regional conflicts within the OSCE framework. But we also want to develop the OSCE further as a platform for an open and constructive dialogue.

Concerning Nagorno-Karabakh, we think that the recent escalation we have witnessed is in nobody's interest. Therefore, as OSCE chair we will support the efforts by the Minsk Group to work towards a resolution of this conflict. It would be very important for the overall stability of the region and we count on a constructive approach by all sides.

How can Germany as OSCE chair contribute to reducing the tension between Russia and Turkey?

Russia and Turkey are important members of the international community and of the OSCE. They both have an enormous responsibility for peace and stability in the region. They also have a crucial role to play in the current international efforts to stop the civil war in Syria and in the fight against ISIL. We therefore encourage them to find constructive ways out of their bilateral crisis.

Europe is experiencing the worst refugee crisis since World War II. What are the keys to resolve this crisis?

The immense number of refugees is a big test and a challenge for our countries and societies which we urgently need to solve. Of course, we must work on securing our external borders. We cooperate with Turkey on this question. And we do what we can to find solutions to the conflicts that cause people to leave their home country, such as the civil war in Syria. This means that we have to tackle the root causes of the refugee problem. No single country can solve this crisis alone and there is no single solution. Therefore, we need to act in unison and solidarity within Europe, but also with our partners beyond Europe.
The sea star wasting disease that's causing mysterious and dramatic die-offs on the Pacific coast is still killing the animals  and hitting a bigger range of species over a larger area than originally thought.

Scientists investigating the disease in the U.S. and Canada met in Seattle, Wash. last week to share the latest findings on the phenomenon.

Even if the exact cause of the die-off is still being debated, the scientists agreed on the scale of the problem, said Dr. Martin Haulena, the veterinarian for the Vancouver Aquarium who attended the workshop.

"This is, if not the, certainly one of the biggest wildlife die-offs that have ever been recorded, and we're not just talking marine die-offs."

Haulena says his observation is based on the number and variety of sea stars being killed as well as the range of the die-off which stretches from Mexico to Alaska.

Slow recovery

The wasting disease first appeared in 2013, with scuba divers and others reporting sea stars showing lesions, losing their limbs and turning to mush.

It's now spread from Mexico to Alaska, said Haulena, causing 90 to 95 per cent mortality in some areas.

"Recovery is not happening the way it should be, so I think it is still really bad."

Chris Harley, a marine ecologist at the University of B.C., has been monitoring sea star populations, including ones along a Vancouver beach in Kitsilano.

That site used to have 200 to 400 purple Pisaster sea stars  which all but disappeared in 2014 due to the wasting disease. Last year, he found about 10.

Last night, he checked again and found 50, "but of those 50, about a quarter of them were sick," said Harley.

"As it warms up I think we'll be seeing a lot more mortality."

Virus to blame?

The most likely culprit for the disease is some sort of virus, said Harley.

In 2014, researchers at Cornell University found a virus that's more prevalent in sick sea stars than healthy ones, and when they injected healthy ones with the virus it made them sick.

Story continues

But that particular virus can be found in preserved sea stars from decades ago, said Harley, so there's likely something else at play.

"It could be a disease that's been in the system a long time, and something sparked an outbreak recently."

Whether warmer waters from climate change triggered the die-off  or some other factor  is still unclear, said Harley.

Keystone species

Any die-off of this magnitude is a major concern, said Harley and Haulena, not just for people who might miss seeing sea stars along the beach but for the ecology itself.

The purple Pisaster is the textbook example of something ecologists call a "keystone species." In the case of that sea star, it eats mussels  which exert a certain control over the entire rocky intertidal, said Harley.

"By having the sea stars around you're keeping the mussels in check, and that allows a lot of other plants and animals that would otherwise get covered and smothered by mussels to survive," he said.

"When a single species gets wiped out or experiences a drastic change in population, that has ramifications up and down the food chain," said Haulena.

And there are many more species  including the many-armed sun star  that are getting sick, said Haulena, as well as possible signs of disease in sea urchins and sea cucumbers.

"We knew it was a big deal around here, but to put it in context  yeah, it's a really big deal."
DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - South African President Jacob Zuma missed a Davos panel talk on Africa on Thursday, the continent's top showcase at the alpine gathering, prompting questions about his commitment to drumming up interest in his country's struggling economy. Zuma's office denied he was a 'no-show' at the discussion, which featured Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn and Rwandan President Paul Kagame, saying it had told Davos organisers last week of a "scheduling change". It also dismissed as "inaccurate and mischievous" a domestic media report that Zuma had only pulled out of the event late on Wednesday, and said South Africa's delegation was being well-received at the event. "The message that South Africa is open for business is being communicated by the President, Ministers and business leaders in all sessions in Davos," it said in a statement. In Zuma's absence, South Africa had no representation on the CNBC-sponsored Africa panel. Instead, he attended a bilateral meeting with Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven to discuss "warm and strong bilateral relations". When contacted by Reuters to ask why Zuma was not on the Africa panel as scheduled, spokesman Bongani Majola reacted by saying: "Are you sure about that?" Davos organisers were yet to respond to Reuters' questions on the timing of the president's withdrawal from the event. Zuma, a 73-year-old Zulu traditionalist with no formal education, has long been criticised for his leadership, with opponents saying he lacks the skills and understanding to run a sophisticated emerging market economy. The concerns have deepened over the last year as Pretoria has struggled to deal with a slump in the price of commodities such as platinum, coal and iron ore that has hit growth and the currency, the rand. Last month he sent domestic markets and the rand into a tailspin after firing respected finance minister Nhlanhla Nene and replacing him with David van Rooyen, a political unknown whose only budgetary experience was as a small-town mayor. Four days later, he sacked van Rooyen to bring Pravin Gordhan back to a position he occupied from 2009 to 2014, restoring some calm to markets but refusing to admit he had done long-term damage to South Africa's reputation. The opposition Democratic Alliance said Zuma's failure to attend the panel was typical of his indifference to the plight of an economy forecast to grow at less than 1 percent this year. "The president is behaving as somebody who is not aware of the fact our economy is in crisis," party leader Mmusi Maimane told Reuters. "The whole purpose of his being in Davos is to try to generate confidence in the South African economy." (Reporting by Ed Cropley in Johannesburg; Editing by Toby Chopra)
By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United Nations Security Council travels to Burundi on Thursday in a bid to quell political violence in the tiny African state amid fears it may slide back into ethnic conflict. Some council members hope to persuade President Pierre Nkurunziza to accept a 5,000-strong African Union peacekeeping force to end violence that has rattled a region where memories of the 1994 genocide in neighbouring Rwanda are still raw. "There needs to be some kind of international force with a protection of civilians mandate present on the ground in Burundi," said United States Ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power, who is leading the trip with France and Angola. But diplomats say its members are divided on how to deal with Burundi and how much pressure to bring to bear. Angola's U.N. Ambassador Ismael Gaspar Martins said it was the state's responsibility to protect citizens and "we're not necessarily going to say (AU) troops have to be there." But he said there needed to be a stronger presence of AU observers on the ground to "convey to the international community what is objectively the situation in Burundi." Violence erupted when Nkurunziza announced his bid for a third term, which he secured in a vote in July boycotted by most opponents. The opposition says the move was illegal. Loyalists cite a court ruling that found he could run. U.N. estimates put the death toll at 439 people but says it could be higher. More than 240,000 people have fled abroad. French U.N. Ambassador Francois Delattre said a top priority was to "to break the cycle of violence and to prevent the genie of ethnic violence from getting out of the bottle." Burundi's civil war that ended in 2005 had pitted the army, at the time led by minority ethnic Tutsis, against rebel groups of the majority Hutus, including one led by Nkurunziza. "It's a very sensitive region ... everybody's suspicious," said Russia's Deputy U.N. Ambassador Petr Iliichev. The Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights urged the council to press Burundi to accept peacekeepers and cited "indications of 'ethnicization' of the crisis". "The longer the delay, more forces and a more robust mandate will be needed," it said in an informal note seen by Reuters. The African Union announced plans for a 5,000-strong force in December, but Nkurunziza has rejected the plan. Burundi's government dismisses charges of ethnic violence, and says it adheres to ethnic quotas in government that were established by the peace deal that ended the 12-year civil war. U.N. special adviser on Burundi Jamal Benomar hopes to deploy a team there this month, after the U.N. political mission was closed at the government's request in 2014. "The United Nations is trying to build trust to get a political process off the ground," Benomar said. (Reporting by Michelle Nichols; editing by Edmund Blair and Dominic Evans)
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

Trend:

Slovenia's National Council has adopted a decision urging Armenia to withdraw from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, said the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry.

The ministry issued this information Jan. 22 citing Azerbaijani embassy in Slovenia, which operates with a residence in Austria.

The decision on the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was adopted on an initiative by Rudi Matjasic, a member of the Council.

In the document, Slovenia's government urged to support the UN Security Council's resolutions on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, aimed at its peaceful settlement, as well as the return of refugees and internally displaced people to their native lands.

The conflict began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia hasn't yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on its withdrawal from Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.

Slovenian National Council's document also condemned the ethnic cleansing and mass extermination of the civilian Azerbaijani population by Armenia. It was also underscored that the genocide committed by the Armenian armed forces in the Azerbaijani town of Khojaly on February 26, 1992, is a crime against humanity.

Armenian military, together with the 366th infantry regiment of Soviet troops stationed in Khankendi, committed genocide on Feb. 25-26, 1992 against the population of the town of Khojaly.

Legislative bodies of some countries, as well as international organizations have recently adopted documents condemning the Khojaly genocide. Among them are Mexico, Pakistan, Honduras, Guatemala, Colombia, Panama, Peru, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sudan, the Czech Republic, Romania, 16 US states, as well as the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and its Parliamentary Union.

The document, issued by Slovenia's National Council, recalled that 24 years will pass on Feb. 26 from the murder of 613 people, including 63 children, 106 women, 70 elderly people, as well as the disappearance of numerous civilians in Khojaly.

"This crime against humanity was condemned by many world countries," read the document.

In the decision, Slovenia's National Council also stressed its support for sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, and the need to settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict under these principles.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

Trend:

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev met with Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum Klaus Schwab in Davos.

The sides stressed the importance of the World Economic Forum. Azerbaijan's active and continuous participation in this prestigious event was hailed. They also discussed the Silk Road Project, and the current regional and global oil-related processes.

Schwab presented a badge of Davos club of honorary members to President Aliyev, marking his tenth participation in the World Economic Forum.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

Trend:

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev met with President of the Swiss Confederation Johann Schneider-Ammann in Davos Jan. 22.

The presidents expressed their satisfaction with the high-level of relations between the two countries, and noted that there were ample opportunities for the further expansion of the ties.

The sides stressed that the two countries enjoyed fruitful cooperation in political, economic, energy, investment making and transport spheres. They also highlighted the role of Azerbaijan in ensuring European energy security.

The parties exchanged views over the current international situation, the economic processes amid falling oil prices, the financial and economic crisis, and the steps taken on this front both in Azerbaijan and Switzerland.

The sides also discussed the current state of talks to settle the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Following reports on the increase of minimum wage for Filipino maids from $500 to $550 per month, migrant worker advocate say a maid employment agency in Singapore can still refuse to recommend the revised amount to individual employers in the country.



Co-founder of the Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics (HOME), Jolovan Wham said this on Friday during a symposium about migrant domestic workers in Singapore.

He was one of the speakers at the panel, joining Mohan J Dhutta, the head director for NUS CARE (Centre for Culture-Centered Approach to Research and Evaluation) as well as Robina Navato, who is a domestic worker in Singapore and HOME volunteer.

On Thursday, media reports said that employers in Singapore will have to pay Filipino maids at least $550 per month, and that maid agencies who submitted employment contracts to the Philippine embassy last week have had their contracts rejected as the salaries were too low.

While the increase in minimum wage might help agencies in getting employment contract approvals from the Philippine embassy, the chances of Filipino maids receiving less than the said amount still remain. This is because the minimum wage is still not a part of Singapores legal requirement for foreign domestic workers, said Wham.

These are just recommendations, at the end of the day. Its not law. So if an agency doesnt want to recommend that amount to Singaporean (employers), it still can, he said.

Theres no law that says that you have to follow these recommendations. We still get cases of Filipino maids who are getting paid less than $400, he added.

Issue of contract substitutions not addressed

Mohan also spoke about the issue of contract substitutions that have led to domestic workers being deceived about the salary promised to them.

For example in the Philippines, when they are signing up with an agency, they were told they would earn US$500, by the time you come to Singapore that (contract) changes to S$500, and by the time you get to the employer, its S$400. So this is an example of deception in terms of what is promised he said.

Story continues

Contract substitution will remain an issue especially in the Philippine context because Singapore has not signed on to the MOU with the Philippines to respect their POA (power of attorney) system, said Wham.

Philippine labour officials contacted by Yahoo Singapore have yet to confirm the wage increase.

The reported increase comes after an announcement from the Indonesian Embassy in November last year that the minimum salary for Indonesian maids would rise from $500 to $550 a month.

In December last year, the Philippine Embassy reportedly tightened restrictions on Filipinos coming to Singapore to work as domestic workers by processing only five employment contracts per employment agency each week.

The last increase for Filipino maids occurred in 2012, when their monthly pay in Singapore went up to $500.
TipRanks

You dont get to head one of the worlds largest banks if you dont know a few things about economics  and so when J.P. Morgans CEO Jamie Dimon speaks, investors listen. And lately, what Dimon has to say isnt nice to hear. "We're just getting closer to what you and I might consider bad events," was the warning Dimon issued on J.P. Morgans earnings call last week. So, what are these bad events, then? The CEO thinks another 20% decline for the S&P 500 is not out of the question, a drop which w
Baku, Azerbaijan, January 22

Trend:

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has met with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in Davos.



The presidents hailed the current level of Azerbaijani-Ukrainian relations in political, economic and other areas. They discussed prospects for cooperation between the two countries in economic, transport, energy, investment making and other fields. Mutual support and cooperation within international organizations was emphasized during the meeting.



They also discussed other issues of mutual interest.
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Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22



Trend:



The Azerbaijani government is working on the necessary economic programs to resolve the economic difficulties, Bahar Muradova, the Azerbaijani Deputy Speaker, told Trend Jan. 22.



Muradova said that the necessary measures are being conducted for the development of the non-oil sector.



"The Azerbaijani parliament has passed a number of important bills this week aimed at economic development, improvement of the social welfare of citizens," Muradova said.



Muradova said that these measures will help Azerbaijan to overcome the economic difficulties with less significant losses.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

By Anvar Mammadov - Trend:

Moody's Investors Service has taken rating actions on six Azerbaijani banks.

Moody's affirmed OJSC XALQ BANK's current BCA at b3, Bank Respublika's B2, Kapital Bank's current BCA at b1.

The outlook was changed to negative from stable.

Moody's downgraded VTB Bank's (Azerbaijan) (VTBAZ) BCA to caa1 from b2 and long-term deposit ratings to B2 from B1 with a negative outlook.

Moody's downgraded OJSC Bank of Baku's BCA to b3 from b1 and the long-term deposit ratings to B3 from B1 with a negative outlook.

The agency also downgraded Unibank's BCA to b3 from b2 and the long-term deposit ratings to B3 from B2 with a negative outlook.

The rating actions reflect the negative impact of the depreciation of the Azerbaijani manat on the banks' asset quality, profitability and funding after the introduction in December 2015 of a free-floating exchange rate regime, as well as heightened dollarization of the banks' funding profiles.

Conversely, improvements in the Azerbaijan operating environment and/or banks' demonstrated resilience could enable a return to stable outlooks on the ratings, Moody's said.

LIST OF AFFECTED RATINGS

The following rating actions were taken:

VTB Bank (Azerbaijan)

- Baseline Credit Assessment (BCA) and Adjusted BCA were downgraded to caa1/b2 from b2/b1

- Long-term LC and FC Deposit ratings were downgraded to B2 from B1, outlook remains Negative

- Short-term LC and FC Deposit ratings were affirmed at NP

- Long-term Counterparty Risk Assessment was downgraded to B1(cr) from Ba3(cr)

- Short-term Counterparty Risk Assessment was affirmed at NP(cr)

- Outlook, Remains Negative

OJSC Bank of Baku

- Baseline Credit Assessment (BCA) and Adjusted BCA were downgraded to b3 from b1

- Long-term LC and FC Deposit ratings were downgraded to B3 from B1, outlook remains Negative

- Short-term LC and FC Deposit ratings were affirmed at NP

- Long-term Counterparty Risk Assessment was downgraded to B2(cr) from Ba3(cr)

- Short-term Counterparty Risk Assessment was affirmed at NP(cr)

- Outlook, Remains Negative

UniBank Commercial Bank

- Baseline Credit Assessment (BCA) and Adjusted BCA were downgraded to b3 from b2

- Long-term LC and FC Deposit ratings were downgraded to B3 from B2, outlook changed to Negative from Stable

- Short-term LC and FC Deposit ratings were affirmed at NP

- Long-term Counterparty Risk Assessment was downgraded to B2(cr) from B1(cr)

- Short-term Counterparty Risk Assessment was affirmed at NP(cr)

- Outlook, Changed To Negative From Stable

OJSC XALQ BANK

- Baseline Credit Assessment (BCA) and Adjusted BCA were affirmed at b3

- Long-term LC and FC Deposit were affirmed at B2, outlook changed to Negative from Stable

- Short-term LC and FC Deposit ratings were affirmed at NP

- Long-term Counterparty Risk Assessment was affirmed at B1(cr)

- Short-term Counterparty Risk Assessment was affirmed at NP(cr)

- Outlook, Changed To Negative From Stable

Joint Stock Commercal Bank Respublika

- Baseline Credit Assessment (BCA) and Adjusted BCA were affirmed at b2

- Long-term LC and FC Deposit ratings were affirmed at B2, outlook changed to Negative from Stable

- Short-term LC and FC Deposit ratings were affirmed at NP

- Long-term Counterparty Risk Assessment was affirmed at B1(cr)

- Short-term Counterparty Risk Assessment was affirmed at NP(cr)

- Outlook, Changed To Negative From Stable

Kapital Bank OJSC

- Baseline Credit Assessment (BCA) and Adjusted BCA were affirmed at b1

- Long-term LC and FC Deposit ratings were affirmed at Ba3, outlook changed to Negative from Stable

- Short-term LC and FC Deposit ratings were affirmed at NP

- Long-term Counterparty Risk Assessment was affirmed at Ba2(cr)

- Short-term Counterparty Risk Assessment was affirmed at NP(cr)

- Outlook, Changed To Negative From Stable
Petroleum Minister Bijan Zangeneh said on Thursday that Iran will start within the next ten days negotiations on how to use Oman's unused LNG capacity.

Having returned from a short visit to Muscat, he told Shana that during the meeting with Omani Oil and Gas Minister Mohammed bin Hamad Al Rumhi, both sides also exchanged views on the international crude oil market, IRNA reported on Jan.21.

'The visit which lasted few hours was made upon the invitation of the Omani minister of oil and gas. Gas export, using vacant LNG capacity, and oil market were the main issues discussed during the meeting.'

On exporting Iran's gas to Oman via pipeline, he said, 'It was agreed that a pipeline to carry 1 billion cubic feet or 28 million cubic meters a day at the annual volume of 10 billion cubic meters be constructed jointly between the two countries.'

'The value of the contract depends on the oil price. Nevertheless, with the current oil prices, the value of exporting 10 billion cubic meters a year will be around 1.5 to 2 billion dollars annually.'

Saying that technical aspects of the pipeline were finalized during meeting, Zangeneh added that Oman unused LNG capacity which Iran could not use to export the product due to sanctions, will be utilized.

'Today it was decided that in the first possible time, which I think will be the next 10 days, National Iranian Gas Export Company and the Oman side will start negotiating with the foreign firms to use the unused capacity.'

'We also discussed financing the project,' said the Iranian minister.

Regarding the talks on oil markets in Muscat, Zangeneh said Oman has always been ready to cooperate with OPEC.

'However, and unfortunately, OPEC lacked any clear stand in this regard and there is difference among the members on how to manage the market,' he said.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

By Aygun Badalova - Trend:

The longer oil prices remain low, the greater the pressure on OPEC members to resolve their differences, analysts of the US JP Morgan bank said in a report, obtained by Trend.

Analysts retain their view that OPEC is unlikely to reach any agreement in the short-term.

"The first two objectives of either getting all the OPEC countries to collectively make production cuts or introduce participation of additional major non-OPEC countries, albeit not necessarily with a membership of OPEC, were to ensure that the burden of adjusting to market balances does not entirely fall on the Gulf Trio and Saudi Arabia in particular," analysts said.

They also believe that the key issue to making a production cut at this time is the re-introduction of Iran crude to international markets.

"While the expected increase in supply is only 400,000 barrels per day year over year, any move to reduce supply by other OPEC members only creates additional room for these barrels and possibly creates a false image of a functioning cartel," said the analysts.

OPEC 2016 crude supply growth is expected at 0.8 million barrels per day (at 32.2 million barrels per day), driven by Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

OPEC oil supply in 2017 is expected at 32.3 million barrels per day. Next year's crude supply growth is driven almost exclusively by the analysts assumption that Iran can lift production by a further 300,000 barrels per day.

OPEC has decreased oil production by 210,000 barrels per day in December, month-to-month, according to the OPEC latest report.

OPEC members produced 32.182 million barrels per day in December, including some 693,000 barrels per day, produced by new member, Indonesia.

Demand for OPEC crude in 2015 is estimated at 29.9 million barrels per day, an increase of 0.2 million barrels per day over the 2014 level. In 2016, demand for OPEC crude is forecast at 31.6 million barrels per day, some 1.7 million barrels per day higher than the previous year.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

Trend:

The Tajik parliament has passed amendments to the Constitution allowing the incumbent Tajik President Emomali Rahmon to be elected unlimited number of times, RIA Novosti reported.

The amendments to the Constitution envisage a decrease in the age limit of the presidential candidates from 35 to 30 years old.

According to the amendments, the Council of Justice will be also abolished. The changes also envisage a ban on the establishment of political parties of a religious nature. The lower house of the parliament submitted the adopted bill to the Constitutional Court. Afterwards, the date of the national referendum will be scheduled to adopt these changes.
Tehran is interested in investing in the Russian economy, particularly in the area of research and development, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's chief of staff Mohammad Nahavandian told Sputnik on the sidelines of World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Friday.



'There have been discussions about working together in research and development projects, and our joint commission has been very active to work on the details of our cooperation plan, and they are mapping forward how to expand the ties. There were two persons appointed by the two presidents to look after the matter and come up with the map of future cooperation.'

He said that since sanctions have been lifted against Tehran many economic opportunities have opened up.

'And now that the sanctions are lifted we have many opportunities to expand economic ties with Russia,' the Iranian official said.

Nahavandian listed several projects with Russia in the past and expressed hope that they would expand to other areas in the future.

'Our cooperation with Russia has been multifaceted - from oil and gas to the export of some food, agriculture products, and petrochemicals, and now there has been very advanced talks on new nuclear reactors, as well as cooperation on trade and investments,' he said.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

Trend:

NATO will continue cooperation with Georgia, Alliance's Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on the results of the meeting with the Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili told reporters in Davos, TASS reported.

Stoltenberg noted that it was the first meeting with Giorgi Kvirikashvili after his approval to the Prime Minister post (December 29, 2015).

"Although we were acquainted with him when he was the Minister of Foreign Affairs," he added.

He said that issues related to the upcoming NATO summit in Warsaw (June 2016), as well as scheduled for February (in Brussels) ministerial meeting of the defense ministers and the meetings of the NATO-Georgia Commission were discussed at the meeting with Kvirikashvili.

During the meeting with Stoltenberg, issues on the country's integration into NATO and the continuation of reforms were discussed, according to the Georgia's delegation members in Davos.

Georgia actively cooperates with NATO since the late 1990s. In November 2002, President Eduard Shevardnadze has officially declared at the NATO summit in Prague that Georgia wants to become a member of the Alliance.

The new government that came to power after the victory of the "Georgian Dream" coalition in the parliamentary elections in Oct. 2012, stated that Tbilisi will continue the course of integration into NATO.
Over a dozen people have been killed and more than three dozen others injured when a series of bomb explosions and a shooting incident struck residential neighborhoods in and around the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, Press TV reported.

Iraqi security and medical officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said two people lost their lives and six others sustained injuries on Thursday afternoon when an improvised explosive device went off close to a popular restaurant in the northern al-Shu'ala neighborhood of Baghdad, Arabic-language al-Baghdadia satellite television network reported.

Separately, a roadside bomb detonated close to a commercial district in the al-Amin neighborhood of eastern Baghdad, leaving two civilians dead and five others injured.

One civilian also lost his life and seven others sustained injuries when an explosion struck near a medical facility in the capital's southern neighborhood of al-Saheroun.

Moreover, a bomb attack in the Sha'ab neighborhood of northern Baghdad left one civilian dead and four others injured.

Elsewhere in the capital's western neighborhood of al-Eskan, one civilian was killed and six others injured when a bomb blast ripped through a commercial district.

Unidentified armed men also sprayed a civilian car with bullets in Sadr City on the outskirts of Baghdad, killing an employee of the Iraqi Ministry of Trade and injuring two others.

Earlier on Thursday, a person was killed and five others wounded in a bomb attack in Sabaa al-Bour, located approximately 28 kilometers (18 miles) northwest of Baghdad,

Additionally, an explosion in Hamamiyat village, located 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of Baghdad, left three civilians dead and seven others injured.

In Baghdad's southeastern neighborhood of Arab Jabour, a civilian was killed and three others injured when a roadside bomb exploded early on Thursday.

The United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq says a total of 980 Iraqis were killed and 1,244 wounded in acts of terrorism, violence and armed conflict in December last year.

According to the UN mission, the number of civilian fatalities stood at 506. Violence also claimed the lives of 474 members of the Iraqi security forces. A great portion of the fatalities was recorded in Baghdad, where 261 civilians were killed.

The northern and western parts of Iraq have been plagued by violence ever since Daesh Takfiri militants began their march through the Iraqi territory in June 2014. Army soldiers and Popular Mobilization are seeking to take back militant-held regions in joint operations.
The Pakistani police say that a powerful explosion next to a KFC franchise, which left four people killed, has been merely an accident, Press TV reported.



Officials initially said a car bomb had caused the incident in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar. However, investigators say they have found no trace of explosives at the scene.



They believe that an accident in a store full of paint, had resulted in the explosion.



Initial media reports had put the number of casualties at three dead and nine injured, but later reports put the death toll at four.



At least a dozen people were also injured, while a number of others are believed to be still trapped inside nearby buildings.



IN Pakistan, Hundreds of people have lost their lives in terrorist attacks since October when the Pakistani army launched an offensive against militants in the northwest.



On Friday, an attack on a mosque in Rawalpindi killed at least 40 people, including 17 children.


A former Oklahoma City police officer convicted of raping four women and sexually assaulting several others while he was on duty was sentenced on Thursday to 263 consecutive years in prison, the maximum allowable sentence, Reuters reported.

In December, an Oklahoma City jury found Daniel Holtzclaw, 29, guilty on 18 of 36 charges of sexual assault, including rape. The sentence was given by District Judge Timothy Henderson and came after victims told the court on Thursday that the former officer had destroyed their lives.

Prosecutors said Holtzclaw preyed on women who had trouble with the law and forced them into sex, hoping their word would not hold up against his in court.

"I so desperately want my life back - the life I had before he took it away," Jannie Ligons, one of the victims of Holtzclaw, told the court in an impact statement.

Holtzclaw, wearing an orange prison jumpsuit, did not speak on his own behalf. His lawyers said after the sentence was handed down that they planned to appeal.

Another victim, Sherry Ellis, told the court she never thought a police officer would do what Holtzclaw did.

"He deserves what he gets. There will never be a day where I don't think of how I was violated," Ellis said.

Ahead of the sentencing, the judge denied a defense motion filed a day earlier seeking a new trial.

Thirteen women testified against the former officer at his trial last year, describing encounters in which Holtzclaw forced his victims to perform sexual acts on him.

Holtzclaw sexually abused multiple women between December 2013 and June 2014, targeting victims from a poorer, mostly African-American area of Oklahoma City, prosecutors said.

Holtzclaw, who did not testify at his trial, was fired over the accusations in January 2015 after approximately three years on the job.

He broke down in tears when he was found guilty, telling jurors "I didn't do it," as he was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs.
Nine police officers and one civilian were injured when explosives planted by members of the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) were detonated during the passage of a police bus in the Nusaybin district of Mardin in Turkey, Milliyet reported.



The attack was carried out along the Ipke Yolu street in the district on Thursday night. Those injured in the attack were taken to the Nusaybin State Hospital immediately after the attack. None of them is in critical condition, reports say.
US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said that the US-led coalition will put boots on the ground to fight against Daesh terrorists in Syria and Iraq.

Carter said in an interview with CNBC that there would be boots on the ground as part of the strategy to fight Daesh in Iraq and Syria.

"We're doing more, because we need to do more because we need to defeat ISIL [Daesh]," Carter told CNBC. "I'm confident we will, but I want to accelerate that process."

He also said that the US' allies in the fight against Daesh "can do more," adding that the terrorist group needs to be defeated in the Iraqi Mosul and it's de facto capital in Syria's Raqqa.
London (AFP) - Moscow dismissed as a "joke" a British inquiry's findings that Russian President Vladimir Putin "probably approved" the killing of ex-spy Alexander Litvinenko a decade ago in London.

Litvinenko, a prominent Kremlin critic, died of radiation poisoning in 2006 aged 43, three weeks after drinking tea laced with radioactive polonium at an upmarket London hotel.

The inquiry said that Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun, two Russians identified as prime suspects by British police, were likely to have carried out the poisoning on the instructions of the Russian security services, but Lugovoi quickly dismissed the allegations as "nonsense".

Although Prime Minister David Cameron called it a "state-sponsored action", his government did not announce sanctions in response, instead summoning Moscow's ambassador to London for talks lasting less than an hour.

Russia was sharply dismissive of the conclusions.

"Maybe this is a joke," Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. "More likely it can be attributed to fine British humour -- the fact that an open public inquiry is based on the classified data of special services, unnamed special services."

Lugovoi, meanwhile, told the BBC that the inquiry had reached "nonsense conclusions" and said the judge leading it "has clearly gone mad".

"I saw nothing new there," he said. "I am very sorry that 10 years on nothing new has been presented, only invention, supposition, rumours."

- 'Acting for state body' -

At the High Court in London on Thursday, there were cries of "Yes!" as the main findings were read out.

Litvinenko's wife Marina, dressed in black and accompanied by her 21-year-old son Anatoly, embraced supporters afterwards.

She has spent years pushing for a public inquiry and had urged sanctions and a travel ban on Putin.

"I'm very pleased that the words my husband spoke on his deathbed when he accused Mr Putin of his murder have been proved true in an English court," she said.

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Judge Robert Owen, the inquiry's chairman, said he was "sure" Lugovoi and Kovtun placed polonium-210 in a teapot at the Millennium Hotel's Pine Bar, where they met Litvinenko on November 1, 2006.

"The FSB operation to kill Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr (Nikolai) Patrushev and also by President Putin," the report said.

Patrushev was the director of the FSB, the successor organisation to the Soviet-era KGB spy agency, at the time of the incident and has been a key security official since 2008.

Polonium-210 is a rare radioactive isotope only available in closed nuclear facilities.

The report, which contained classified evidence redacted from the version made public, said this suggested that Lugovoi and Kovtun "were acting for a state body rather than, say, a criminal organisation".

There was "no evidence" to suggest that either Lugovoi or Kovtun had any personal reason to kill Litvinenko and they were likely to be acting under FSB direction, Owen added.

- 'Deeply troubled' -

Shortly after the report was published, London's Metropolitan Police issued a statement stressing they still wanted the pair to be extradited.

Owen said there were "powerful motives" for the killing. Litvinenko was seen as "having betrayed the FSB" and had regularly targeted Putin with "highly personal public criticism", including an accusation of paedophilia.

Litvinenko, an ex-KGB agent turned freelance investigator who also worked for British intelligence, accused Putin of ordering his killing in a statement before he died on November 23, 2006.

In a statement to the House of Commons, Home Secretary Theresa May said Cameron would raise the findings with Putin.

She added that Britain would impose asset freezes on Kovtun and Lugovoi, but stressed the importance of Russia and Putin in efforts to resolve the conflict in Syria, a nod to the delicate timing of the issue for relations with Russia.

But Britain's response to its conclusions fell short of the sanctions that some had called for.

A US State Department spokesman said Washington was "deeply troubled" by the report's findings and that the perpetrators should be brought to justice.

Jonathan Eyal, an analyst at the Royal United Services Institute think-tank, said the finding would make it difficult for Britain to "return to business as normal with Moscow".

"London also has to calculate whether this particular juncture when we need Russian support for a variety of operations in the Middle East for instance is the right moment to corner Moscow over this," Eyal said.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian headed home to the United States on Friday, days after being freed from 18 months in prison in Iran as part of a historic prisoner exchange between Tehran and the United States.

The Post's owner and Amazon.com Inc founder Jeff Bezos accompanied the Iranian-American journalist and his family on the flight to the United States on a private jet, the Post reported.

The newspaper printed a picture of Bezos with his arm around Rezaian's shoulder and both men smiling aboard an aircraft. The caption said it showed the two men before taking off for the United States from Saarbruecken, Germany, on Friday.

Rezaian, who had been staying in Germany after leaving Iran on Sunday, said he was grateful for his newfound freedom but was not yet ready to talk about his imprisonment.

"At some point, I will be ready to discuss my ordeal but for now, I just want to express my profound appreciation for the tremendous support I have received," he said in a statement.

"Today, I am incredibly thankful for my family, my fellow journalists, my colleagues at the Washington Post, and everyone else who fought for my freedom," he said.

The prisoner swap was announced as world powers, including the United States, implemented a landmark nuclear deal with Iran that eased tensions between Tehran and the West. In exchange for the release of five Americans from Iran, the White House offered clemency to seven Iranians who were convicted or facing trial in the United States.

Two other Americans freed by Iran, a Christian minister and a former U.S. Marine, returned to the United States on Thursday.

Rezaian, who was born in California and holds dual U.S. and Iranian citizenship, was accused of espionage by Iran. He and his wife Yeganeh Salehi, who is Iranian, were arrested in July 2014, although she was later freed.

Rezaian's brother Ali along with executives at the Post had led the effort to seek their release, urging the Obama administration to press the issue with Iran.

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After his release, Rezaian spent several days at the U.S. military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany. Rezaian and his family had dinner with Bezos on the base on Thursday, the Post said.

"Like all of us, he is incredibly happy they are safe and sound," Post spokeswoman Kristine Coratti Kelly was quoted by the newspaper as saying of Bezos.

(Reporting by Susan Heavey and Mohammad Zargham; Editing by James Dalgleish and Alistair Bell)
Pope Francis has written his first book for children, replying to 30 probing letters from children around the world and due for release by a US publishing house in March.

Chicago-based Loyola Press, a Jesuit imprint, came up with the idea and got the go-ahead from the pontiff. "Dear Pope Francis" will be published on March 1 in English. An edition will also be available in Spanish.

In compiling the book, the publishing house said it received 259 letters from 26 countries, written in 14 languages.

Thirty of them, written by children aged six to 13, were chosen for the pope to answer from countries as diverse as Albania, China, Syria and the pontiff's native Argentina.

"What did God do before the world was made?" asks eight-year-old Ryan from Canada.

"If I told you that God was doing nothing before he created the world, I would be wrong," reads part of the answer from Francis.

"Before creating anything, God loved."

Alexandra, 10, from the Philippines asks if the pope knows why some parents argue with each other.

"We all argue. We are all human. Even I have argued," he replied, advising her to help her parents by not talking badly of them.

"Stay close to your mom and dad and speak well of them. That will be good for everyone."

A group of children whose letters were selected for the book will meet the pope at the Vatican on February 22, Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi told AFP.

"The meeting with the children will be very simple and private," he said.
Athens (AFP) - Forty-five people drowned when three refugee boats sank Friday off Greece, as Turkey pledged to "do everything" to stop record numbers of migrants heading to Europe.

Despite wintry conditions, thousands of people fleeing war and misery are still embarking on the dangerous sea journey to seek a better life in Europe.

In a stark illustration of the high cost of the voyage, Greek and Turkish coastguards recovered the bodies of 45 migrants -- including 20 children -- whose boats capsized on their way to Greece, officials said Friday.

Greek rescuers pulled 74 people to safety after two boats ran into trouble off the Aegean islands of Farmakonisi and Kalolimnos in the early hours.

But the toll could rise as rescuers were still scouring the waters for people missing from the boat that capsized off Kalolimnos.

Of the survivors, "most are in a state of shock. There were families on board and in some cases only the father survived," UNCHR official Marco Procaccini told AFP.

Charity Doctors without Borders (MSF in its French acronym), which is providing psychological care to survivors of the Kalolimnos shipwreck, described the horror on its Twitter account, saying "one man lost his pregnant wife and two kids, a 17-year-old lost his brother, an entire family was swallowed by the sea."

Separately, the Turkish coastguard found the bodies of three children on Friday after a third boat sank near the seaside resort of Didim, the Dogan news agency reported.

The UN refugee agency said smugglers were offering desperate migrants discounts to lure them out.

"Newly arriving refugees told UNHCR that the smuggling rates had halved in recent days. This discount acts as a grim enticement to take extraordinary risks given worsening weather," the agency said.

Despite deteriorating weather, the Greek islands were witnessing a surge with more than 3,000 people arriving daily in the last 48 hours, it said.

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Europe has been battling to resolve its biggest migration crisis since World War II, but member states are split on what action needs to be taken.

Meanwhile UN figures showed 149 people perished or are feared dead in their sea journey to Europe in January alone.

"These deaths highlight both the heartlessness and the futility of the growing chorus demanding greater restrictions on refugee access to Europe," said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International's Europe and Central Asia Programme Director.

- 'Not asking for money' -

Germany and Turkey have emerged as crucial players in the crisis, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who hosted Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu for talks, said both sides signed an agreement to "do everything to reduce the number of refugees" crossing into the EU.

In exchange, Ankara can count on German support in easing by October EU visa requirements for Turkish citizens.

Merkel also won praise from Davutoglu for her leadership in the refugee crisis, who said: "Mrs Merkel has taken a historic step in the conscience of humanity."

Merkel has so far resisted demands for a refugee quota, after nearly 1.1 million asylum seekers arrived in Germany in 2015.

She has instead promised a "tangible reduction" in new arrivals, and is counting on international efforts to deliver.

The German leader secured some backing from US President Barack Obama, who in a phone call late Thursday pledged to contribute "substantially" at a Syria donors' conference in February.

At the Davos summit of business and political elite, US Secretary of State John Kerry also made a call for a 30-percent hike in international aid for refugees.

But Merkel is well aware of the pivotal role played by Turkey, which shares a border with war-torn Syria and is also the main launchpad to Europe for migrants.

Under a November deal with the EU, Ankara had already agreed to reduce the number of migrants coming through, but between 2,000 and 3,000 people are still arriving daily in Greece from Turkey.

EU member states are meanwhile still squabbling over the financing for aid towards the 2.2 million Syrian refugees that Turkey is hosting.

- Press freedom, Kurds -

Turkey has a special relationship with Germany as the EU's biggest economy is not only home to around three million people with Turkish roots, but is also its biggest trading partner.

Merkel said she raised thorny topics with Davutoglu such as media independence and the situation of the Kurds, but she said these issues were "very strongly outweighed" by common concerns including the refugee crisis and the battle against the Islamic State group.

Worries over press freedom are rising in Turkey, after an increasing number of journalists were arrested for insulting or criticising top officials.

US Vice President Joe Biden, on a visit to Istanbul, strongly criticised Turkey for failing to set the right "example" on freedom of expression.

Turkey is also waging an all-out offensive against the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), with military operations backed by curfews aimed at flushing out rebels from several southeastern urban centres.

But Kurdish activists say dozens of civilians have died as a result of excessive force.
OSHA Cites Plastics Manufacturer After Severe Worker Injuries

Two employees suffered debilitating hand injuries, according to the agency.

OSHA announced it has cited Mississippi Polymers for exposing workers at a Corinth, Miss., site to unguarded rollers, rotating shafts, and gears; failing to train workers on the specific procedures to prevent machinery from starting up during maintenance and servicing and not providing safety rails on stairs.

The citations come after two serious injuries occurred in fall 2015. A print tender suffered severe injury when his hand entangled in a print roller and was crushed. Six days later, a mill operator caught her hand in a print roller, causing the machine to crush her pinky finger, according to the agency.

"This employer cannot continue to expose its employees to unguarded machinery and other serious safety hazards," said Eugene Stewart, OSHA's area director in Jackson. "Two workers were severely injured when protective guarding was available and could have prevented such incidents."
US Secretary of State John Kerry on Friday held out the prospect of lifting Western sanctions against Russia within months if the Minsk peace accord to end the conflict in Ukraine is fully implemented.

"With effort and with bona-fide legitimate intent to solve the problem on both sides, it is possible in these next months to find those Minsk agreements implemented," Kerry said in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

This would allow Russia "to get to a place where sanctions can be appropriately -- because of the full implementation -- removed," he said.

The Minsk peace deal is a package of measures agreed by the leaders of France, Germany, Ukraine and Russia in the Belarusian capital.

The accords were finalised in early 2015 and effectively brought hostilities in Ukraine to an end after more than 9,000 people were killed in a civil war that broke out the previous April. However, a ceasefire agreed in September remains fragile.

Moscow has been hit by US and European sanctions over the conflict.

The West and Kiev have accused Russia of fuelling the separatist insurgency in the east and sending regular troops across the border, claims that Moscow has repeatedly denied.

In late December, the EU extended its sanctions by six months, arguing that the Minsk peace agreement has not been fully implemented.

Last week senior US and Russian officials met to discuss the Ukraine crisis amid a fresh international drive to bolster the truce.

The meeting came days after Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Barack Obama discussed the Ukraine crisis by phone.
Ukraine on Friday stepped up its economic warfare with Russia by demanding a mult-billion-dollar payment from the Gazprom gas giant for allegedly underpaying Kiev for its fuel transits to European states. The gesture is largely symbolic because Russia has dismissed similar Ukrainian claims. But it underscores the severe tensions between the two neighbours and potentially complicates the solution of a litany of existing trade disputes. The westward-leaning former Soviet country's Anti-Monopoly Committee said Gazprom had two months to pay 86 billion hryvnias ($3.5 billion / 3.2 billion euros) for abusing the "monopoly status" it enjoys on gas transits through Ukraine. The committee's deputy chief Mariya Nyzhnyk said the sum represented 30 percent of the price for natural gas that passed through the country over the past five years. The Russian firm expressed "extreme surprise" at the announcement and stressed that it would have no impact on its future operations in Ukraine. "Gazprom intends to defends its rights and legitimate interests by all legal means at its disposal," it said in a statement. Ukraine's decades-old pipelines account for about 15 percent of all gas imported by the European Union -- its members rely on Russia for about a third if their outside supplies. Some of Gazprom's EU clients saw their deliveries limited in 2006 and 2010 when the state-run behemoth  long accused of raising the rates of neighbours who want to ease their dependence on Moscow  halted supplies to Ukraine over price disputes. Kiev's announcement came just three days after Gazprom itself demanded the payment of a previously-undisclosed $2.55 billion bill for the July to September period of 2015. Ukraine has been weening itself off Russian energy imports and purchased almost no gas from its eastern neighbour in the period mentioned by Gazprom. But the Russian firm said the amount it was after fell under the take-or-pay scheme that requires clients to reimburse Gazprom for any contracted gas they failed to purchase in a specific timeframe. Russia's latest charge brings to nearly $32 billion the bill it claims is due by Kiev. Ukraine's Naftogaz state energy company is itself seeking nearly $26 billion from Gazprom in a Stockholm arbitration court. - 50% transit rate hike - Kiev authorities have vowed repeatedly not to halt shipments to Europe despite its multiplying disputes with Gazprom. Ukraine is reliant on EU backing in its struggle with pro-Moscow insurgents in its industrial east -- a 21-month conflict Russia denies either plotting or backing in retaliation for Kiev's decision to anchor its future with the West. But its cash-starved economy also needs proceeds from Russian gas shipments that Moscow intends to limit by expanding pipelines that already bypass Ukraine. Kiev this month raised the price it wants Gazprom to pay for its transits by about 50 percent. Ukrainian Energy Minister Volodymyr Demchyshyn said on Wednesday that Russia had simply ignored Kiev's move. "So now we will meet in Stockholm," he said in reference to the arbitration court. The Swedish tribunal has not yet examined the issue and it remains unclear when -- or if -- a ruling will be issued on the counter-suits.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

Trend:

The media reports, which said that Russian President Vladimir Putin offered Syrian President Bashar Assad to resign, have been dismissed by Putin's spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.

"No, that is not the case," said Peskov Jan. 22, speaking on the matter with the TASS news agency.

Earlier, Financial Times reported that just weeks before his death on Jan. 3, Colonel-General Igor Sergun, director of Russia's Main Intelligence Directorate, was sent to Damascus upon Putin's request to offer Assad to leave his office.

Assad refused to step down, according to the newspaper report.
By Joe Brock KAPISE, Malawi (Reuters) - When Mozambican troops hunting opposition fighters attacked his village this week, 10-year-old Wit Messenger turned and ran, leaving behind parents he may never see again. Messenger is among thousands of Mozambicans who have fled across the border to refugee camps in Malawi in the last month, saying Frelimo government forces are burning homes and killing civilians in a campaign against Renamo guerrillas in an escalation of a simmering conflict between old civil war foes. Spokesmen for both Frelimo and Renamo each told Reuters that the other side was responsible for attacks on their members in various parts of the country but would not give details about the violence that prompted the refugee exodus. The first Mozambicans arrived in the Malawian village of Kapise in June last year but the U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR) says the flow of migrants has rapidly increased this month and predicts the number could rise from 3,500 now to 5,000 in coming days, more than it can currently handle. More than half the refugees are children who walked for days from villages in Mozambique's western Tete province with just the clothes they were wearing. "I could see the houses burning up ahead, then I heard the gunshots and I ran," said Wit, waiting with hundreds of other children to be given food in a sprawling hilltop camp of makeshift tarpaulin tents. "I don't know if my parents are alive or dead. I'm scared I will never see them again," said Wit -- tearful, barefoot and wearing only a torn vest and ragged shorts. Security sources say Renamo fighters have been attacking police outposts in recent weeks near the Malawi border, where they have public support, while Frelimo forces retaliate by torching villages where they believe rebels are hiding. MEMORIES OF WAR Renamo started out as a guerrilla force backed by neighbouring powers -- the white-minority government in what was then Rhodesia and later by apartheid South Africa -- to counter the communist Frelimo movement. The latest violence has stirred memories of a civil war fought between Renamo and Frelimo from 1976 to 1992 in which a million people died and a further million fled to Malawi. Some of the Mozambicans in Kapise told Reuters that they had hidden Renamo fighters because they felt they had no choice. "Government were asking where we were hiding Renamo," said Agness Chifundo, who walked for two days with her seven children to reach Kapise. "When they couldn't find them they were burning houses and shooting. I saw five dead bodies and a woman was raped in front of me." Tete province has large coal reserves but projects by companies such as Brazil's Vale and mining giant Rio Tinto have failed in recent years due to low prices, poor infrastructure and outbreaks of unrest. Although the latest violence is far from the vast offshore gas reserves being developed off northern Mozambique by Eni and Anadarko , the violence is likely to worry investors already spooked by a global slowdown. Though the full details of the clashes in Tete remain unclear and are likely to be disputed, there have been clear signs of growing unrest between Frelimo and Renamo. Renamo's leader, Afonso Dhlakama, 63, has said he will in March seize control of six northern provinces, declaring autonomy in areas where his party won majorities in 2014's national election. He has not explained how this would be done but experts believe it would be unconstitutional. Frelimo won 57 percent of the 2014 vote against 37 percent for Renamo. Renamo disputes the result and says Frelimo is to blame for the violence. Both sides say they are democrats but also resort to violence which they are unwilling to acknowledge. ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT Dhlakama has been in hiding since October last year following an assassination attempt he says was ordered by Frelimo, although the ruling party denies this. Renamo's secretary general Manuel Bissopo was shot and wounded on Wednesday, hours after he accused security forces of killing members of his party. Frelimo says it was not behind the attack, in which Bissopo's bodyguard was killed. The police presence in the capital Maputo has increased in recent days with officers occasionally stationed outside Renamo's office there. President Filipe Nyusi, 56, says he wants to engage in peaceful negotiations with Renamo but Dhlakama has said this is disingenuous considering attacks on his members. Few think Renamo has the capacity or desire to begin another all-out conflict but there is a high risk of more violence, security experts say. "We've got a security problem brewing," one Maputo-based Western diplomat told Reuters. "We're seeing hits on senior officials and from what we're hearing the situation in Tete is bad. These refugees didn't up and leave for no reason." The refugee influx is putting strain on Malawi's stretched resources at a time when one of the worst droughts in its history means 2.8 million people are expected to go hungry. Malawi has allocated Mozambicans some land in Kapise but it will not be enough. The UNHCR say the camps are already facing sanitation problems and there are fears of a possible cholera outbreak. "We don't want to live like this but we cannot go back," Mozambican maize farmer Robert Keness told Reuters, pointing to pit latrines near tents packed with small children. "We fear war at home." (Additional reporting by Manuel Mucari in Maputo and Mabvuto Banda in Lilongwe; editing by Giles Elgood)
By Julia Fioretti BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union privacy regulators are leaning toward the restriction of personal data transfers to the United States because of the risk of U.S. surveillance, two sources familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. EU data protection authorities are finalizing their position on data transfers to the United States after a top EU court last year struck down the Safe Harbour system, used by thousands of businesses to easily transfer data across the Atlantic, because the data were not protected enough from any U.S. snooping. A plenary meeting on Feb. 2 of the Article 29 Working Party, which brings together the EU's 28 privacy regulators, will decide to what extent companies should be allowed to continue transferring Europeans' data to the United States in light of the ruling from the European Court of Justice (ECJ). In a preparatory meeting on Wednesday the authorities discussed a range of possible outcomes, including "freezing" all new authorizations for U.S. data transfers on the basis of binding corporate rules within multinationals or standard contractual clauses between companies, the sources said. Under EU data protection law, companies cannot shift Europeans' data to countries outside the EU deemed to have insufficient privacy safeguards, which applies to the United States according to the authorities' assessment of the U.S. legal system. However, data transfers are allowed if firms set up complex legal structures such as binding corporate rules or standard contractual clauses. The 15-year-old Safe Harbour framework allowed firms to transfer personal data to the United States without doing that. A final decision will only be taken at the plenary meeting and not all regulators were in favor of the restrictive approach, the sources said. If the European Commission, which is negotiating a replacement for Safe Harbour with Washington, presents the regulators with a strengthened system their position may change. "That will change the whole game," one of the sources said, "and could stop the data protection authorities from taking action." A spokeswoman for the French data protection authority, which heads the group of regulators, said negotiations were still ongoing and a final decision would only be taken on Feb. 2. Freezing all new authorizations for U.S. data transfers using binding corporate rules or standard contractual clauses is likely to put a dampener on transatlantic data flows which are the highest in the world, stoking claims from businesses that the borderless nature of the Internet is being jeopardized. Companies that have already set up the legal mechanisms and got them approved by regulators could also be affected if there are complaints, one of the sources said. Revelations two years ago from former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden about mass U.S. surveillance programs caused a political backlash in Europe and set the stage for the sinking of Safe Harbour in court.
SWNS

<p>Police have launched an investigation after the body of a man was discovered near to a cathedral in a busy city centre park this morning (Wed).</p><p>Emergency services rushed to Cathedral Square, on Colmore Row, in Birmingham, after the victim was discovered unconscious at around 8am.</p><p>Paramedics attempted to resuscitate the man, but nothing could be done to save him and he was pronounced dead at the scene. </p><p>Officers cordoned off the popular park, affectionally known by Brummies as Pigeon Park, which sees thousands of commuters pass through it each day. </p><p>The nearby Grade I-listed St. Philip's Cathedral, which was built in 1715, was forced to cancel all services and other events scheduled for today while police investigate. </p><p>A spokesperson for West Midlands Police said: "We were called to St Philips Cathedral, Cathedral Square, Colmore Row, shortly after 7.50am following reports a man had been found unconscious.</p><p>"Despite the best efforts from our ourselves and ambulance colleagues who attempted to resuscitate the man, he sadly died.</p><p>"An investigation is underway to determine what happened."</p><p>A spokeswoman for West Midlands Ambulance Service added: "We were called by the police to a medical emergency on Colmore Row at 7.58am. </p><p>"Two ambulances, a paramedic officer and MERIT trauma doctors attended the scene to provide treatment to a man in a critical condition."</p><p>In a Facebook statement, St. Philip's Cathedral said: "Cathedral Square is currently closed due to an ongoing police incident.</p><p>"This means we are closed today and have cancelled all services and events. </p><p>"This includes our Divine Beauty guided tour, Holy Communion in traditional language and Choral evensong. </p><p>"We apologise for any inconvenience caused."</p>
By Tom Perry and Suleiman Al-Khalidi BEIRUT (Reuters) - Four months of Russian air strikes in Syria are taking their toll on rebel forces, strengthening the hand of a defiant President Bashar al-Assad as the United Nations struggles to get peace talks off the ground. Insurgents in the west are being hit harder, while in eastern and central parts of the country, Islamic State is also under military pressure and is cutting fighters' pay as its oil-smuggling operations are hit by plunging prices. Rebel groups are reporting intensified air strikes and ground assaults in areas of western Syria that are of greatest importance to Assad. The government last week made one of its most significant gains since the start of the Russian intervention, capturing the town of Salma in Latakia province. While recent gains do not appear to mark a tipping point in the conflict, with rebels fighting back and regaining positions in some places, insurgents describe high levels of attrition on the front lines of western Syria. Officials close to Damascus say sealing the northwestern border with Turkey is the priority. A Syrian military source said rebel supply lines from Turkey, which backs the insurgents, were under pressure from Russian and Syrian air strikes. The course of battle underlines the uphill struggle facing U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura as he seeks to launch peace talks. Even with U.S. and Russian endorsement, a new peace process seems detached from the realities of a five-year-old war that may not yet be ready for peacemaking. "Most opposition-held areas turned to defence because of the huge mobilisation by Russians troops and the use of a large number of planes with unlimited munitions," said Jamil al-Saleh, commander of a rebel Free Syrian Army (FSA) group. While playing down the importance of government gains, Saleh said military aid from the rebels' foreign backers - including Saudi Arabia and Turkey - was not enough to confront offensives that are also backed on the ground by Iran. "These are among the difficulties facing the FSA on the ground especially since the aerial bombing is affecting some headquarters, equipment, cars and personnel and the aid given is little compared to the ferocious attack," he told Reuters. Saudi Arabia's support for the opposition has yet to be translated into the kind of heavier weapons the rebels are seeking, notably anti-aircraft missiles. The military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said rebels were suffering from the destruction of their weapons depots, made possible by good intelligence. Their appeals for more support showed they had "lost a lot of field capacities", the source said. MOMENTUM Noah Bonsey, senior analyst with the International Crisis Group, said levels of attrition remained high on both sides. "But it seems to be the rebel side that is more concerned about the trajectory at this moment, while the regime camp enjoys momentum," he said. "The regime itself never showed much openness for compromise even in its most vulnerable moments, so we can expect its current sense of momentum to further reinforce maximalism as Damascus pushes for a decisive military upper hand." Damascus and its allies are also doing better in their war with Islamic State, which is also being fought separately by a U.S.-led coalition from the sky and on the ground by Kurdish forces. The government has advanced to within a few kilometres (miles) of the IS-held town of al-Bab in Aleppo province. Slumping oil prices have added to the pressures facing the jihadists whose flow of foreign recruits has been choked by tighter controls at the Turkish-Syrian frontier, once a major transit route. Islamic State has also faced setbacks in Iraq, losing control of the city of Ramadi in recent weeks. Of the 3,000 people killed by Russian air strikes in Syria since they began in September, nearly 900 were members of Islamic State, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a group that monitors the war. But the group still controls swathes of eastern and central Syria where it is battling to safeguard its "caliphate" rather than reform Syria, which is the aim of the rebels in the west. The Observatory says IS has recently cut the pay of its Syrian fighters. As in the past, IS has responded to the pressure by opening new fronts. Its fighters reportedly killed scores of government loyalists in an attack on state-held areas of Deir al-Zor city this week, one of Assad's few remaining outposts in the east. The groups fighting Assad in the west include FSA factions, Islamists with a Syrian nationalist agenda, and jihadists including the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front that have been declared terrorists by the United States. The main non-jihadist groups are part of a newly formed opposition council backed by Saudi Arabia that is tasked with overseeing the hoped-for negotiations. The rebels say they will not negotiate until the other side shows good will by halting the bombardment of civilian areas, lifting blockades of population centres, and freeing detainees. The government meanwhile says it is ready to attend Jan. 25 talks in Geneva, though it wants to know which groups will be deemed terrorists as part of the process, another stumbling block given its view that all rebels fall into that category. "BACK AND FORTH" Rebels interviewed by Reuters acknowledged recent government advances, but insist its manpower problems and dependence on foreign militias including Iranians still give the insurgents an important advantage and the capacity to fight back. The insurgency suffered a major blow on Dec. 25 when Zahran Alloush, one of the most prominent rebel leaders, was killed in an air strike near Damascus. The spokesman for one of the rebel groups fighting in northwestern Syria, the First Coastal Division, said the government side had captured Salma using overwhelming force. "Weapons do not concern it, and ammunition does not concern it, or the death of its troops, or anything else. The only thing that concerns it is that they progress using all weapons, all planes," spokesman Fadi Ahmad told Reuters. A commander in the Ahrar al-Sham rebel group said the government and its allies were trying to advance towards the Turkish border. "They are trying to isolate the Syrians inside from the Turkish border. They are not as concerned about areas deeper in Syria, Hama and so on," he told Reuters. The government and its allies have also turned their focus to the south for the first time since Russia began its air strikes on Sept. 30, launching an attack on the town of Sheikh Maskin near the border with Jordan in late December. Rebels fighting under the umbrella of the Southern Front alliance - a major component of the newly formed opposition council - say the government attack that got underway in late December has been accompanied by Russian air strikes. Abu Ghiath al-Shami, the spokesman for one of the Southern Front insurgent groups, said that despite the onslaught the fighting was still "back and forth". "I promise you in the coming period you will see something different that will surprise everyone in terms of military action," he said. A Western diplomat said the government appeared intent on weakening the Southern Front before any negotiations. "I am surprised by the number of strikes and the number of forces from the regime side, including Hezbollah, and the Russian aerial bombing on behalf of the regime and the fact the town has still not fallen," the diplomat said. (Writing by Tom Perry; editing by Giles Elgood)
Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 22

By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:

The explosion occurred at one of the lycees of the Turkish province of Diyarbakir, south-east of the country, the Turkish Hurriyet newspaper reported Jan. 22.

Three students were injured in the explosion. All of them were hospitalized.

According to the witnesses, an improvised explosive device caused the explosion, the newspaper wrote.

The official information has not been made yet.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Sports and wellness-focused venture capital firm Will Ventures has picked up $150m for its sophomore fund, almost triple the total it collected for its debut vehicle in 2020.
The Turkish and German governments have agreed to intensify cooperation against irregular migration while stressing that they will keep their doors open to asylum seekers fleeing conflicts in Syria and Iraq, Anadolu agency reported.



Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu assured Chancellor Angela Merkel at a joint-Cabinet meeting in Berlin on Friday that Turkey would continue to take measures to decrease the refugee influx towards Western Europe.



"Turkey has already started taking measures in line with the EU-Turkey joint action plan agreed on Nov. 29," Davutoglu told a joint press conference with Merkel.



"A few days ago, we adopted a decision that allows Syrian refugees to work in Turkey. We have also started implementing visa requirements for Syrian nationals who are travelling from third countries," he said.



"We have increased our cooperation with [EU border agency] Frontex in the Aegean. We are planning to take additional measures in the near future together with working groups between Turkey and Germany," he added.



Davutoglu called on all EU member states to take responsibility, and underlined that a solution to the refugee crisis could only be achieved through genuine cooperation, by sharing the burden.



"The refugee crisis is not a crisis of Germany. It is not a crisis of Turkey. These are not crises we are exporting. On the contrary they are the reflections of conflicts in Syria and Iraq," he said.



Davutoglu's Berlin visit came amid growing divisions within the EU on ways to address the refugee crisis, as several member states, including Poland and Hungary, openly challenged Merkel's open-door policy for asylum seekers, and closed their frontiers to refugees.



'Merkel is not alone'



Davutoglu praised Chancellor Merkel for approaching the refugee crisis as a "humanitarian issue", rather than a "strategic risk". He dismissed criticisms in the media that claimed Merkel is increasingly becoming isolated in Europe.



"Neither Ms. Merkel, nor Germany, is alone on this issue. Turkey is determined to go hand-in-hand with Germany throughout this critical process," he said.



Davutoglu commended Merkel for showing leadership that would go down in history.



"At a time when in many parts of the world people have forgotten the humanitarian aspect of the Syrian refugee crisis, and when some have started to argue that there is no place for Muslims in Europe, Ms. Merkel has taken a step on behalf of the conscience of humanity, a step which will go down in history," Davutoglu said.



"Syrian refugees will never forget Germany's humanitarian stance, the history of international relations with record this humanitarian decision," he stressed.



Turkey and Germany are among the countries most affected by the refugee crisis triggered by the conflicts in Syria and Iraq.



Germany received 1.1 million refugees in 2015; at 428,000 Syrians were the largest group.



Turkey is currently hosting 2.5 million Syrian and 300,000 Iraqi refugees.



Davutoglu expressed hope that progress in Syria peace talks would help reduce the refugee influx from the war-torn country.



He underlined that only real political change in Syria would convince refugees to return to their country.



"If Assad will still remain in power, no Syrian refugee would want to return to Syria, because they would not believe that the conditions have really changed," he said.



Davutoglu underlined that Turkey and Germany will be in close coordination to achieve progress in Syria peace talks.



Turkish and German governments held their first ever joint-Cabinet meeting on Friday, for discussions that focused on the refugee crisis, the fight against terrorism and the conflict in Syria.



The Turkish delegation included Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz, Interior Minister Efkan Ala, Economy Minister Mustafa Elitas and EU Minister Volkan Bozkir.
HARRISBURG, Pa.  Pennsylvania officials say that the state is failing in its efforts to stop pollutants from reaching the states waterways and the Chesapeake Bay so a new strategy is being implemented to stop the pollution.

The Pennsylvania department of agriculture, department of conservation and natural resources and department of environmental protection gathered Jan. 21 to discuss a new plan to meet the obligations being enforced by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

The new plan is in response to the court orders finalized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in December 2010 that impose a total maximum daily load, or TMDL, that require Pennsylvania to reduce annual discharges of nitrogen, phosphorous and sediment entering the bay watershed in order to meet water quality standards by 2025.

Between 1985 and 2013, Pennsylvania has reduced the yearly nitrogen loads by more than 11.5 million pounds, phosphorous by 1.46 million pounds, and sediment by nearly 434 million pounds.

Failure

Officials say the state has been working and has prevented million of pounds of pollutants from reaching the states waterways and the Chesapeake Bay but the federal EPA says its not enough. Last month, the EPA advised DEP that it was withholding $2.9 million in funding, and will consider taking additional actions that increase the federal agencys role in inspections, permitting and compliance, if progress isnt made.

They blamed the failures on a few things but the majority was a lack of resources and a lack of man power.

Cost issues

According to the Penn State University Environmental and Natural Resources Institute, it estimated the requirements to implement non-point source best management practices in Pennsylvanias watershed implementation plan would cost $378.3 million per year through 2025. That estimate was made in 2013.

In addition, another way Pennsylvania is falling short on the its goals is with data. Officials have found that the data to measure pollution reduction efforts for agriculture and urban storm water pollution is inadequate. The data collected has been based on the installation of best management practices where a portion of the cost was shared by the federal or state government. And practices implemented that did not include cost shares from the government was not included at all.

Officials agreed that there needs to be more inspection and verification of activities related to agriculture and urban stormwater sources so that there is documentation that the pollutant reductions are being done to meet the states targets.

The agriculture industry is responsible for contributing three-quarters of the total nutrient reductions expected of states by 2025. Thats a sizeable sum, and no small task, but we know there are countless farmers who are doing their part. Part of the problem is that Pennsylvania is not getting full credit for the work we are doing. This plan sets out to rectify that, plus give those farmers who need help or encouragement the incentives to assist them. We all have a role here and agriculture stands ready to be part of the solution, said Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding.

Manpower

Another example where the state is falling short is in inspection of farms in the Chesapeake Bay. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, the Chesapeake Bay watershed is home to more than 33,600 farms. The federal EPA recommends that the DEP inspect 10 percent of the farms annual. In 2014, the DEP conducted a total of 592 inspections which equates to a 1.8 percent inspection rate. It was pointed out that the DEP does not have has many inspectors as it did just a few years ago which means more money is needed to hire more inspectors.

New plan

The new plan brings a focus to the states efforts to help protect the Chesapeake Bay while emphasizing the need for balance and resilience.

The reboot means that Pennsylvania must change its approach for the Chesapeake Bay.

One area that the state departments agreed on is that the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection can not do it by themselves.

The department of Environmental Protection, department of agriculture and the department of conservation and natural resources will now be working together to coordinate plans, policies and resources.

The strategy relies on a mix of technical and financial assistance for farmers, technology, expanded data gathering, improved program coordination and capacity and  only when necessary  stronger enforcement and compliance measures.

The administrations comprehensive strategy centers around six parts including these:

 Put high-impact, low-cost Best Management Practices (BMPs) on the ground, and quantify undocumented BMPs in watersheds impaired by agriculture or stormwater.

This means the state will work on improving reporting, record keeping and data systems to provide better and more accessible documentation.

The plan will shift an additional 15 percent of available statewide water quality funding equalling $1.25 million dollars to work in the Chesapeake Bay.

 Address nutrient reduction by meeting EPAs goal of inspecting 10 percent of farms in the watershed, ensuring development and use of manure management and agricultural erosion and sediment control plans, and enforcement for non-compliance.

Identify legislative, programmatic or regulatory changes to provide the additional tools and resources necessary to meet federal pollution reduction goals by 2025.

 Obtain additional funding resources for water quality improvement.

 Establish a Chesapeake Bay Office to coordinate the development, implementation and funding of the commonwealths Chesapeake Bay efforts.

Forest buffers

One area the plan is going to emphasize is the riparian forest buffers. Forest buffers are one of the most effective methods of improving local water quality. So the DCNR will be working with landowners to create buffers and maintain them. The hope is that 95,000 additional riparian forest buffer acres will be created by 2025.

Of the many best management practices that improve the quality of waters and habitats in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, the single best may be the restoration of riparian forest buffers along stream banks to provide critical barriers between polluting landscapes and receiving waterways, DCNR Secretary Cindy Dunn said.

More than half of Pennsylvanias land area drains into the Chesapeake Bay, with the Susquehanna River being the largest tributary in the watershed.
100 Years Anniversary Of The Invention of Bakelite (Photo : Getty Images)

What is the true measure of a real woman? For young and tech savvy Chinese women, it is the ability to tuck in a pen or similar object under their breast without it falling down. Nothing should be used to keep the pen from falling.



The trend actually started in Japan, but Chinese women soon followed that it has become a trending topic in Chinese social media with thousands of women participating and the topic getting more than 1.24 million views, reported Huanqui. According to the affiliate of Peoples Daily Online, the posters of such photos use the hashtag #Carrypenunderbreast.



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The challenge aims to prove that those who post such photos are real women as opposed to transgender women whose surgically enhanced breasts may not be able to perform such feat. Besides pens, the Chinese women also use bigger items such as water bottles and makeup brushes.







The first post on Weibo, Chinas most popular microblogging site, was on Jan. 6. Other hashtags used include onlyarealwomancandothis and newstandardforagoddess to indicate that body image is important to Chinese women.

The challenge proved to be frustrating for some women not so blessed with large baby-feeders, such as Weibo user Ai Tian Yi Sheng, who asked, I cant do it, does it mean Im not a woman?



To escape censure from Chinas strict censor, only the lower part of the breast is shown, not the entire chest area. Also, the women are not topless but have an upper garment which they just lift up a bit to do the challenge.

The selfie is often accompanied by the caption, Pass the challenge to prove youre a true woman which explains why the topic keeps on spreading further, reported Mirror.



Other online trends to hit Chinas social media, still related to body image issues, include placing a coin on their collarbones as proof they have a sexy figure and reaching their belly buttons and breasts with their hands from behind their backs.



For Bin Chun Hu Die Fei, who failed the previous sexiness challenge, the pen challenge was a big relief. She wrote, I cant touch my belly button from my back, nor can I hold an egg on my collarbone, that means Im a fat person. Luckily, this trend saved me.


Greenpeace turns to darkside, supports seal hunting by Semp

The myth that killing animals for their fur for the commercial market is outright greenwashing. The multi-million dollar green washing machine's come out in support of the fur industry.

Greenpeace has turned over to the darkside and stated public support for killing seals to generate revenues for seal killers. Let's get one thing straight, sustainable killings of seals is a greenwashing public relations gimmick. It's similar to the cow industry pushing humane raised beef. What's humane about driving a bullet into a seals head or a nail into a cows head? Public relations gimmick to raise funds for their artic campaigner to continue to have a job, not to mention the ecological impact on the oceans; which are in atrocious shape. Jon Burgwald speaking for Greenpeace has announced that Greenpeace supports "sustainable" sealing. Sustainable killing of seals? There's really nothing sustainable about it.



From Captain Paul Watson, one of the founders of Greenpeace, who left to form Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. "There is no such thing. Seals are threatened by rapidly diminishing fish populations and pollution. Our Oceans are dying and Greenpeace seems to be in abject denial of this reality. We need seals to help maintain a healthy marine eco-system.



Greenpeace is now playing into the hands of the fur industry and the Canadian interest in marketing seal fur to China. The organization is now giving comfort to the seal butchers in supporting one of the most brutal and bloody mass massacres of wildlife on the planet."



Part of Paul's response after hearing Greenpeace is a bit frustrated they're being called to task on greenwashing for the fur industry: "The fur industry is big business and the seals are killed for profit. That was what this entire MSNBC report was all about. It was not about indigenous people living off the land, it was about selling expensive sealskin coats to Europeans and Asians.



Listen to Nauja Bianco as she describes how her sealskin vest is a sustainable product from Greenland which by the way is not an indigenous community but a Danish Colony. She states that compassion for seals is old fashioned going back to the Seventies. She tried to make the point that baby seals are not slaughtered anymore but neglects to mention that 90% of the seals killed are less than three months old. The new definition of an adult seal is over three weeks. She says there are lots of seals, yet seals, in the North Atlantic are having to fight pollution, climate change and the loss of fish from over-fishing. There are not lots of seals, in fact the number of seals in the North Atlantic is under 10% of what the numbers were in 1500. The reality is that humans feed more tonnage of fish to domestic house cats around the world than are consumed by harp seals thus if the worry (a bogus worry) is that the seals are eating all of our fish and fish are being depleted, the solution would be to stop feeding fish to cats. The truth however is that fish are being depleted by over-fishing and not by seals."



Public relations spins are nothing new, it exists within many industries, but what's so atrocious about this, it's a so-called environmental group with fairly decent name recognition. For those not familiar, wikipedia's definition of greenwashing fits this fur industry support perfectly. "Greenwashing (a compound word modelled on "whitewash"), or "green sheen," is a form of spin in which green PR or green marketing is deceptively used to promote the perception that an organization's products, aims or policies are environmentally friendly."



Time for Jon Burgwald to re-think supporting the industrial fur industry.
People throughout the Bay Area and the North Bay are invited to contact the Santa Rosa City Council before Jan. 26, to demand strong renter protections, including rent control and just cause eviction protections!

Activists push for renter protections on Jan. 26 in Santa RosaBy Lynda Carson - January 22, 2016On Tuesday January 26, at 2:00pm, the Santa Rosa City Council will discuss renter protections, including rent control and just cause eviction protections, at Santa Rosa City Hall, 100 Santa Rosa Avenue. Everyone is invited to attend the meeting, make phone calls, or send emails to the council members, in the effort to stop the economic cleansing taking place in Santa Rosa.Community activists with the North Bay Organizing Project (NBOP - http://northbayop.org/ ) and other organizations, including the renters of Santa Rosa, have been struggling to gain renter protections during the past year, or more. They want to stop their community members from being displaced by out of control rent hikes, and no-cause eviction notices, http://tinyurl.com/zv8zyzn People throughout the Bay Area and the North Bay are invited to contact the Santa Rosa City Council before Jan. 26, to demand strong renter protections, including rent control and just cause eviction protections.The City Council is considering three different options. Option 1: Mediation/Just Cause for Eviction (JCE): Option 2: Soft Rent Stabilization: Option 3: Rent Stabilization:Strong renter protections, including rent control is needed to protect families, school teachers, construction workers, union members, the working class poor, and many other fair members of the community from unethical no-cause evictions, and uncontrollable rent increases.During several occasions in 2015, the City Council has been targeted and pressured by the multi-billion dollar housing and real estate empire, to allow the economic cleansing to continue when they discussed renter protections.According to reports, the rents have increased by around 30% or more during the past three years in Sonoma County, where Santa Rosa exists. Rent hikes in California have also outpaced the national average during every month of 2015, according to AppartmentList.com - http://www.apartmentlist.com/rentonomics/california-rent-data/ . Of the ten most expensive cities in California, San Francisco is at the top of the list followed by Santa Monica, Marina Del Rey, Palo Alto, West Hollywood, Berkeley, Pacifica, San Mateo, San Rafael, and Foster City.The uncontrolled, and unreasonable rent increases in the area are displacing families, school teachers, construction workers, union members, the working class poor, and many others.If people cannot make it to the Jan. 26, meeting at 2:pm, they can send an email to the City Council in Santa Rosa. It is important that the council should hear from as many people as possible before the Jan. 26 meeting takes place to discuss renter protections.Renters who can make it to the meeting, should get there before 2:00pm, in order to fill out speaker cards, and get a good seat before the seats are all taken by wealthy housing and real estate industry members, who are opposed to renter protections.The multi-billion dollar housing industry that is affiliated with the California Apartment Association (CAA), are presently involved in the effort to have their members pressure the City Council into allowing unjust evictions, and uncontrollable rent increases to continue. This is known as economic cleansing. They are willing to say anything to protect their multi-billion dollar industry, in the effort to continue exploiting the renters to the maximum. Click here for full details: http://tinyurl.com/jkeyyuw Why Rent Control & Just Cause Eviction Protections Are ReasonableRent control is a reasonable option used by many cities in California, including New York City, to stabilize communities, and protect renters from uncontrollable rents, and a greedy housing and real estate industry.Evidence reveals that rent control and just cause eviction protections together, offer stability to renters facing displacement from their communities. Families, school teachers, construction workers, union members, and the working class poor have invested in Santa Rosa with their blood, sweat and tears, and are a vibrant part of the community.Being full members of the community they reside in, the renters have earned the trust of the city they call home. It is not unreasonable of them to struggle for protections from a brutal housing and real estate industry involved in economic cleansing, and maximum exploitation.The renters of Santa Rosa have a right to live without fear of being harassed, or displaced. Landlords demonize renters as a way to fight back against renter protections, to further enrich their multi-billion dollar empire.Rent control and just cause evictions, provide a fair return on the investment of landlords in city after city, and is a reasonable, fair, and balanced approach to accommodate renters, and landlords alike.Additionally, rent control and just cause eviction protection should remain in place even if the housing industry can provide enough of housing for everyone.The City Council should not punish the renters of Santa Rosa any longer, by ignoring the fact that rent hikes in California have outpaced the national average during every month of 2015, according to AppartmentList.com - http://www.apartmentlist.com/rentonomics/california-rent-data/ People throughout the Bay Area and North Bay are free to make phone calls, or send an email to the City Council of Santa Rosa before Jan. 26, to tell them why they support renter protections, including strong rent control and just cause eviction protections.City Council Contacts:Tom Schwedhelm, Council Member: 707-326-4495, tschwedhelm [at] srcity.org Ernesto Olivares, Council Member: 707-975-0023, eolivares [at] srcity.org Julie Combs, Council Member: 707-542-1906, jcombs [at] srcity.org Erin Carlstrom, Council Member: 707-321-0278, ecarlstrom [at] srcity.org Gary Wysocky, Council Member: 707-575-3820, gwysocky [at] srcity.org Chris Coursey, Vice Mayor: 707-527-6588, ccoursey [at] srcity.org John Sawyer, Mayor: 707-578-6006, jsawyer [at] srcity.org Lynda Carson may be reached at tenantsrule [at] yahoo.com >>>>>>
Puerto Rico's government continues to cut public services as the economic crisis worsens. The Government Development Bank announced this week that the island's budget gap is $2 billion higher than expected. The prison system in Puerto Rico can no longer pay a vendor that feeds inmates. Some special education teachers are no longer being paid.

Washington DC - Puerto Rico's government continues to cut public services as the economic crisis worsens. The Government Development Bank announced this week that the island's budget gap is $2 billion higher than expected. The prison system in Puerto Rico can no longer pay a vendor that feeds inmates. Some special education teachers are no longer being paid.In recent years, 200 schools have closed. The island's only children's hospital, which doesn't own an MRI machine, cut its budget by 14% in last two years. Pension funds that the government used to pay the debt are expected to run out of money by 2020."The situation is getting worse in Puerto Rico," stated Eric LeCompte, Executive Director of the religious development group Jubilee USA. LeCompte advises Puerto Rico's religious leaders and just returned from San Juan meetings with the island's Governor and US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew to discuss solutions to the crisis. "Puerto Rico's debt crisis has real immediate human costs."On an island where nearly 1 out of 2 people lives in poverty, Secretary Lew called again on Congress to grant Puerto Rico access to bankruptcy protection. The island has $72 billion in total debt but is excluded from Chapter 9 of the US bankruptcy code that would allow its municipalities and public utilities to file for bankruptcy. The Government Development Bank projects Puerto Rico's budget gap at nearly $24 billion over the next decade.The US House of Representatives is considering two bills to grant Puerto Rico bankruptcy access. The House Committee on Natural Resources will hold its second hearing on Puerto Rico on January 26 to debate aspects of those bills. Speaker Paul Ryan promises the House will act by March 31."There won't be economic growth in Puerto Rico until the debt crisis is resolved," noted LeCompte.Jubilee USA Network is an alliance of more than 75 US organizations and 550 faith communities working with 50 Jubilee global partners. Jubilee's mission is to build an economy that serves, protects and promotes the participation of the most vulnerable. Jubilee USA has won critical global financial reforms and more than $130 billion in debt relief to benefit the world's poorest people. http://www.jubileeusa.org
Few Wrong Paths to Kentucky Derby 142: Recent history shows the Kentucky Derby (GI), scheduled this year for May 7 at Churchill Downs, does not favor horses who go through one specific path during winter and spring. Since 2009, the eventual winner has come from nearly all regions, except for New York (sorry Aqueduct) and Dubai.

Nothing seems wrong with the prep races in New York, but for the most part, the quality horses up north and in Kentucky go down to Gulfstream Park in Florida for the winter. In other instances, Derby winners were based in California or somewhere else south, such as when Mine That Bird ran twice at Sunland Park in 2009.

Mine That Bird ran second in the Borderland Derby and fourth in the Sunland Derby, before traveling to Kentucky in a trailer and capturing the Kentucky Derby. With Mine That Birds help, the Sunland Derby earned a graded status.

  when Mine That Bird accomplished what he did, it helped us get the race graded and put us in a place where we can have an impact on the Kentucky Derby, said Eric Alwan, the 2010 publicity director at Sunland Park, in an article seen on LA.com.

To back up his statement, last years Sunland Derby winner Firing Line finished runner-up in the Kentucky Derby.

In 2010, Super Saver took a more conventional path by running in the Tampa Bay Derby (GIII) in Florida and Arkansas Derby (GI) at Oaklawn Park. As the only major prep race currently three weeks away from the Kentucky Derby and worth 100 qualifying points, the Arkansas Derby sits in a unique spot on the calendar.

Does the Arkansas Derby compromise horses because of the short time before the Kentucky Derby? Award-winning turf writer Steve Haskin discouraged this logic in his Blood-Horse blog.

The bottom line is that horses can win the Kentucky Derby regardless if they prep three weeks, four weeks or five weeks out, wrote Haskin, after Keeneland moved their Blue Grass Stakes (GI) to an earlier date.

The following year, Animal Kingdom competed in a March turf race at Gulfstream Park before capturing the Spiral Stakes (GIII) later in the month, run on Turfway Parks synthetic surface. His eventual Derby win put away the notion of horses needing to prepare on dirt, although it must be noted he had no previous dirt form to evaluate.

Good horses, well trained, will take their winning form from Polytrack to dirt, said Bob Elliston, president of Turfway Park, in a Daily Racing Form article. This win serves as a reminder that the Spiral remains a major Derby prep.

The 2012 Spiral champion Went the Day Well finished a closing fourth in the Kentucky Derby. Went the Day Well ran into a tough customer in Ill Have Another, who turned into a monster in his 3-year-old season for a few months and had a chance at the Triple Crown. An injury ended his career after the Preakness (GI).

By taking the 2012 Derby though, Ill Have Another became the first California-based horse since Giacomo in 2005 to win the Run for the Roses. His connections, trainer Doug ONeil and owner Paul Reddam, are the same as this years early favorite Nyquist. Interestingly, they hope to tackle the Florida Derby (GI) this year rather than stay at Santa Anita.

  our main concern is to think about May 7 and the best way to get there and to give his maximum performance, Reddam said in a L.A. Times piece. If the Florida Derby coincides with that, well be there.

In 2013, Orb used the Florida Derby, as well as the Fountain of Youth (GII) on the same track, to springboard himself to a Kentucky Derby victory. Yet, some handicappers tend to downgrade Gulfstream prep races.

Two years ago, the Derby hero came from Santa Anita again, when California Chrome won the Kentucky Derby after taking the Santa Anita Derby (GI), San Felipe Stakes (GII) and California Cup Derby.

Last year, American Pharoah shipped California to Oaklawn twice and won the Rebel (GII) and Arkansas Derby in the process. He captured the Triple Crown to become a legend.

Certain races, such as the Spiral, offer a clear pattern to bettors (a Gulfstream turf horse ships to Turfway and wins). The Derby displays no clear pattern, besides New York-based horses and Dubai shippers struggling. Find a talented horse to choose and hope for the best.

Related Links:

Celebrities Give 2015 Kentucky Derby Picks
Washington, DC The US Supreme Court will not hear Johnson & Johnsons appeal of the $140 million verdict in a The US Supreme Court will not hear Johnson & Johnsons appeal of the $140 million verdict in a Stevens Johnson syndrome (SJS) lawsuit related to its Childrens Motrin medication. Johnson & Johnson was found by a lower court to have failed to adequately warn patients about the risk of SJS, a potentially fatal and life-altering allergy to medication. The $140 million award was issued by a Massachusetts jury in a lawsuit filed by Samantha Reckis in 2007.

Reckis was only seven years old when she was given repeated doses of Childrens Motrin to treat a fever and congestion. The active ingredient in Childrens Motrin is ibuprofen, which has been linked to SJS and toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN), the more severe form of SJS. The morning after her doses, Reckis woke up with a sore throat and rash, and was given a third dose of Childrens Motrin.Reckis was then incorrectly diagnosed with measles and given additional doses of Childrens Motrin, until she was rushed to the hospital and diagnosed with TEN. She was put into a month-long coma, suffered heart and liver failure and experienced a stroke. She is now legally blind, despite undergoing 12 eye surgeries.Reckis and her family filed a lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson alleging among other things that the drug company was negligent in failing to adequately warn about the risks associated with its medication. A jury ruled in the Reckis favor, awarding $50 million to Samantha and $6.5 million separately to each parent.The award was appealed, with Johnson & Johnson arguing that the FDA would not have approved additional warnings about the risk of Stevens Johnson syndrome. The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court upheld the lower courts ruling, finding that just because the FDA overruled such a warning in the past did not mean it would reject specific warning changes from Johnson & Johnson. The defendants then appealed the ruling to the Supreme Court.According tohowever, the Supreme Court has denied Johnson & Johnsons application to have its argument heard.Although the initial award was for around $63 million, with interest Johnson & Johnson could owe around $140 million.Other lawsuits filed against drug companies whose medications were linked to SJS and TEN have also resulted in awards for the plaintiffs. Those lawsuits also alleged the drug companies failed to adequately warn about the risks of the conditions, delaying patients from receiving proper medical treatment for the potentially fatal allergic reactions.
China comes to the era ushering driverless cars, with Baidu entering the crowded arena wherein Google Inc. is already a player. (Photo : Facebook/ Official Baidu USA )

Baidu, one of the leading brand names in China, cooperated with a number of NGO's and healthcare providers amidst scandal on Baidu's online practice.



According to reliable sources, the company is tied up with some non-governmental organization while others are just looking forward to tying up with companies. There are 23 NGO's that are still in queue, while another 36 non-governmental organizations came with complaints about the company. The organizations filed complaint with the authorities by asking them to check Baidu's false advertisement practice on their online search engine.



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The healthcare organizations are bonded all together and allegedly filed a complaint against the company on Thursday. The big internet company is accused that they are advertising false medical related topics and posting it online.



Baidu refuses all the allegations on Tuesday, and sources of Technology News China told that the internet company comes out with their strong reason of refusing the said allegation. According to Baidu, all the institution is genuine, and all the information they present are absolutely reasonable. Every organization should be equipped with a valid licence to promote themselves on the company's online platform, said Baidu representative.



According to Eng.tibet.cn, the company is promoting some misleading articles or information on their online forum. The allegation of posting some invalid medical agency reports on their website is hampering the reputation of the leading Chinese company.



All the complaints against Baidu will reportedly be a huge negative publicity for the company as it creates a negative impact on their followers. On Tuesday, the giant search engine company of China said the uncooperative commercial activities will hamper the companies brand value. The company will go through and work with massive non-profit organizations to improve the quality of medical information that they provide to readers, China Technology News reports.


Privately-owned Chinese Electronics company Xiaomi Inc. is looking to offer new range of innovation to its consumers (Photo : Reuters)

Privately-owned Chinese Electronics company Xiaomi Inc. is looking to offer new range of innovation to its consumers. According to reports, the Chinese smartphone makers are just trying to get into the field of virtual reality and robotics.



According to reliable sources, the company is not satisfied enough with its limited fields of electronics. It is said that the running year is the company's new age to perfectly get into the field of Robotics as well as VR.



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It can be noted that some leading non-chinese smartphone brand like Samsung has its own VR products, while other Chinese companies like HTC, OnePlus and LetV has their own VR products as well.



This year, according to reports, Xiaomi must be added to the list of companies producing VR and robotics. It is said that Xiaomi's future VR headset may be full-fledged one or just a clone of Google's Cardboard.



If above mentioned information is to be believed, the chance of Xiaomi getting the top position when it comes to producing virtual reality is high enough. It is said that Xiaomi has enough reason to innovate something in the space of VR - specifically just like VirtuSphere. Although, some states that the market will be disrupted by the company's ultra virtual reality products in a higher price tag.



The company will be profitable enough if they foray into the market of VR and robotics, as per Giz China. The VR and the robotics gadgets can help the company to churn up again and grab the market by competing with leading brands. As per reliable sources, the company does not see any growth curves for a long while.



Reports are saying that the company will definitely hit back the market, while the performance result of Xiaomi's Mi 5 will be seen after the devices' February release. Since not much information was given about other Xiaomi's move, it is safe to suggest that their soon-to-be robotics and VR products may help them get back their position in the market again.


Xiaomi and Huawei are in to the battlefield of technology by presenting their latest devices to grab the entire Chinese market. (Photo : Reuters)

Xiaomi and Huawei are in to the battlefield of technology by presenting their latest devices to grab the entire Chinese market.



To compete with Huawei, Xiaomi introduced its fresh and new model of RedMi series - the Xiaomi RedMi Note 3. According to CBN, the smartphone has a metallic body with upgraded battery power plus fingerprint sensor. The smartphone was launched in the market in November 2015 with a very affordable price tag of $140. The 5.5inch screen smartphone comes with 1080p x 1920 display resolution at 403 PPI. Other features that Xiaomi RedMi Note 3 boasts includes 13MP rear shooter, 5MP selfie snapper, 2GB and 3GB RAM variants and Mediatek MT6795 Helio X10 chipset that runs on Octa-core 2.0 GHz Cortex-A53 CPU.



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According to WSJ, Xiaomi seriously plans to grab the retail market instead of online market and ecommerce business. With its latest RedMi Note 3, the company tries to compete aggressively with the other giant companies like Huawei.



Meanwhile, according to The Wall Street Journal, Huawei catches almost 80 percent of the Chinese smartphone market. It can be noted that Huawei Technology has revealed back in November that they are working to launch a "superphone" by 2020. The Chinese technology giant will introduce a next generation mobile phone that will support 5G network or even 6G networks. It is said that Huawei will make the superphone completely integrated with the digital world, which means anything that can be connected will be connected.



On other news, it is said that all major Chinese companies are ready to show their inclination and vision to the world with their latest digital technology. Companies like Huawei and Xiaomi will reportedly take part in an aggressive competition to create next generation smartphones, and get massive popularity like Apple Inc. and Samsung Elect LTD.



China is a very strong competitor when it comes to smartphone world, as out of 12 top world's smartphone companies, 9 companies came from China.



(Disclaimer: Views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of Yibada.)


A community in southern Nigeria is in shock and mourning today after its monarch was found dead, apparently murdered.

Local residents of Ubulu-Uku in the Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta state are continuing to grieve the loss of their king, HRM Obi Akaeze Edward Ofulue III, after he was murdered by kidnappers.

The deceased monarch was reportedly kidnapped by suspected Fulani herdsmen on January 5 2016 at a spot along Obior to Igbodo Road notorious among locals for banditry.

The deceased monarch, HRM Obi Akaeze Edward Ofulue III

The news of the tragic death of the 52-years-old monarch, who was crowned in December 2006, has crippled economic activity in Ubulu-Uku as all shops in the area have been closed.

A local vigilante group discovered the body of HRM Obi Akaeze Edward Ofulue III, who had been abandoned along with the body of an unidentified man.

One of the vigilantes, who spoke anonymously, said his group discovered two decomposing corpses in the bush but was able to identify the monarch because of his beads and clothing.

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The kings corpse was found resting on the stump of a palm tree.

We could not identify the second body but the fellow had Hausa shoes on, the vigilante said.

READ ALSO: "I Needed Human Head To End Suffering" - Ritualist

This is very challenging period for us in this kingdom.

Armed soldiers have been stationed at the Ogwash-Uku Road end of the town to prevent any outbreaks of disorder after local youths barricaded the Issele-Uku Road end with wooden stockades and subsequently light bonfires.

READ ALSO: "Five Children Die Of Suffocation After Freezer Traps Them Inside

The youths took advantage of the situation to indulge in criminality by extorting money from motorists and Okada riders before they were allowed access to the community.

Local residents appear to be frightened of the current situation and have refused to speak with reporters.

Source: Legit.ng
The Federal government has revealed how many people benefited from the funds meant for the purchase of the arms against the Boko Haram that were allegedly stolen and shared by Sambo Dasuki, former national security adviser.

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Lai Mohammed, minister of information and culture, has disclosed this while speaking to the online media publishers in Lagos on January 22, Friday.

The minister gave the assurance that the government would not control their activities in Nigeria, but advised them to self-regulate.

READ ALSO: Fayose Challenges Lai Mohammed Over Corruption Allegation

Former APCs spokesman also gave the analysis of the number of those who profited from the funds supposedly collected from Dasukis office during Goodluck Jonathans government and funds allocated for the 2015 zonal intervention projects.

Minister Mohammed said: The amount received by 21 individuals and companies from ONSA is more than the 2015 zonal intervention project budget by N2.829bn.

Whereas the sum of N51.829bn was appropriated for 1,278 projects in the zonal intervention projects for 2015, a total of 21 individuals and companies benefited from the Dasukigate to the tune of N54.659bn as we know so far. The implication, therefore, is that the amount received by 21 individuals and companies is more than the 2015 zonal intervention project budget by N2.829bn.

Furthermore, the value of what beneficiaries of Dasukigate contributed to development is zero, compared to how the lives of Nigerians would have been transformed, poverty reduced and livelihoods improved by the zonal intervention projects which would have cost N2.829bn less than Dasukigate.

READ ALSO: Naira Depreciation: Lai Mohammed Defends FG

The minster recently disclosed that 55 people stole N1.34trn from the public till in seven years of the reign of the Peoples Democratic Party.

He, however, didnt mention any names.

Many significant Nigerian politician and leaders are being accused of the involvement into the $2 billion arms procurement deal and many prominent politicians have been arrested.

Source: Legit.ng
The army has reported that about seventy Boko Haram terrorists have been killed in several clashes with Nigerian troops in the northeastern region of the country.

Army continues to record successes against Boko Haram

According to a report by Major General Lucky Irabor, the deputy theatre commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, the army says 70 insurgents and four officers have been killed in different encounters.

READ ALSO: SHOCKING: Government Reveals How Many Politicians Benefited From Dasukigate

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In the military's update on successes recorded in operation Lafiya Dole, the army said on Sunday, January 17, the troops conducted a clearance operation at Shentimari general area and cleared Boko Haram enclaves and recovered 78 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition.

Similarly, on Monday, January 18, at Chukun Gudu, troops encountered and destroyed terrorist camps in Jillam, Bula Butube general areas. During an exchange of fire, 10 terrorists were killed, 2 AK47 Rifles, 2 AK47 magazines, 2 solar panels and 2 GSM handsets were recovered, while 1 Isuzu vehicle was destroyed.

The statement further reveals that on Wednesday, January 20, troops cleared terrorist camps/enclaves at Ngwalimiri and Gazama in Damboa local government area. While conducting operations in Mufurundi village along Damboa-Bale road, the army intercepted 10 Boko Haram suspects from Bego, Mesemarri and Bale villages carrying bags containing food condiments, soaps, and other items. The suspects are reportedly undergoing interrogation.

The troops also had an encounter with terrorists during an advance from Wajirok to Ajigin. During the encounter, three of the terrorists were killed.

READ ALSO: Ministers Charge Nigerians To Join A New War

The statement further said: "In another development, one of our units located in old Marte repelled an attacked by BHT and in the process, killed 21 terrorists, while 3 soldiers were wounded during the encounter. One Anti Air Gun, 10 AK47 rifles,1 FN rifle,7 x 60mm MOR bombs, qty 342 rounds of 12.7mm, Qty 507 rounds of 7.62mm ammunitions, 1 Toyota Hilux, 1 Land Cruiser vehicle, 1 IED with charger were captured from the terrorists.

"In a related development, troops took custody of 3 suspected BHT who voluntarily surrendered themselves to Damboa Vigilante Group at Kaya village. During interrogation, they claimed to have been forced to join the BHT Group and also participated in the Groups previous attacks at Askira and other locations. As about 1719hrs yesterday, 21 January 2016, ahead of Cashew plantation near Maiduguri, an unknown civilian tried to gain access into the village but was confronted by a civilian JTF. In the process of the ensuing interrogation, he stabbed a member of civilian JTF to death but was shot by another Civilian JTF.

READ ALSO: Boko Haram: Read What Army Did To Terrorists Making Desperate Attempt

"In continuation of the ongoing operation, troops advancing to clear Dure village, came under BHT ambush at Rugga Fulani but were cleared. During the encounter, 8 BHTs were killed, 2 AK47 rifles,2 locally made Dane Guns, 3 AK47 Magazined with 38 rounds of ammunition were recovered. Similarly, a unit of troops cleared BHT hideouts in Wala, Tirkopytir, and Durubajuwe villages. During the operation, troops recovered 1 rusty GPMG barrel, 1 grinding machine and 1 locally made Dane gun.

"Equally, troops conducted a fighting patrol in Afe, Kudiye, Souma, Dika, Mijigeta and Mida. During the operation, the team made contact with BHT at Kudiye, Mijigete and 20 BHT were killed, while 3 rifles, 41 motorcycles were destroyed, and 370 hostages rescued and brought to IDP camp at Dikwa. Also, around Huyum, Jeje and Diba villages. The terrorists sighting own troops, abandoned their families behind which include 5 women, 12 children. However, own troops killed 4 of the BHTs. The women are currently undergoing interrogation."

The army report further stated that on Friday, January 22, three suicide bombers attempted to infiltrate into Maiduguri a kilometre ahead of Mafa roadblock. The troops in the area shot one dead, while the other detonated a bomb and in the process killed the third suicide bomber.

In his communique, Major General Hassan Umaru commended the efforts of the troops and renewed calls for the troops and the public to be more vigilant and security conscious at all times, particularly at check points, markets, worship centres, motor parks and schools.

He equally appreciated the support from the public in rendering useful information on the activities of the terrorists. He said the public would be kept informed of the situation as the need arises.

Source: Legit.ng
President Muhammadu Buhari will be in Ogun state from February 1 to celebrate 40 years of the state's existence.

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This was disclosed by Taiwo Adeoluwa, the secretary to the state government, in a press conference on Friday, January 22, at the press centre, Oke Mosan.

However, Adeoluwa disclosed that the celebration is not for the birthday of the state, but to commission some completed projects across the three senatorial districts of the state, PM News reports.

READ ALSO: "Techincally Defeated? How Boko Haram Fared This Week

He said: Our desire to celebrate the creation of the state is not for birthday. We want to speak less on the birthday, forty is a milestone, but for us in Ogun state the issue goes beyond 40 years.

We have a huge harvest of completed projects which have been completed for over a year, but we dont like show off, but to do our thing the way we should be.

But some elders called our attention to the state creation date which is February 3rd and said we should make it a huge celebration. We have over 100 projects across the state and about 60 have been fully completed. We have selected 40 legacy projects to be commissioned by the President to commemorate the anniversary.

Buhari has most kindly agreed to visit and commission some of the projects. He will be in the state between Monday, 1 & Tuesday 2 February, 2016 to commission some of the projects. Though we are working to see if he can commission all, they are scattered all over the state. All other projects will be commissioned by our past Governors and administrators.

President Buhari to commission 40 projects in Ogun state to mark the state 40th anniversary

Adeoluwa also disclosed that Ogun Central leads the pack with between 14-16 projects followed by Ogun East with 12-14 projects and Ogun West with 12 projects.

The projects to be commissioned in Ogun Central include Alagbaagba Cocoa Plantation, Odeda, Owowo Farm Settlement; Tomato Plantation, Kotopo; Model School, Kobape, Onijaganjagan, Ewekoro, A.A.K. Degun Workers Estate, Laderin,Abeokuta; Three Hills Estate, Kobape; Itoku Flyover, Salon Flyover, Iyana Mortuary Flyover, Ojere-Adatan road, OGTV-Ajebo road, Omida road and Isale Igbein road.

The projects to be commissioned in Ogun East include Model School, Sagamu; New Makun City, formerly Estate of Paradise City. The project was on a 50 hectares site and was abandoned by the last administration, but was expanded to 750 hectares.

Other projects are: Oba Akarigbo bridge, Sabo Flyover, both in Sagamu. Model school, Ikenne, now HID Awolowo Model school; Model school, Ago Iwoye; Mobalufon bridge, Ijebu Ode; Lagos garage flyover, Ijebu Ode; Emuren Chicks Farms, which produces about 2,000 chicks daily; and Ijebu Ode township road.

In Ogun West, the longest road constructed by the Senator Ibikunle Amosun administration will be commissioned. The road cuts across four LGAs out of five in the district and it is 110km long. It begins from Ilara and runs through Ijoun, Tombolo, and Oja Odan.

Other projects are: Ilo-Awela road, Model School,Ado Odo; Sango-Ijoko road; OPIC New Dawn Estate, Agbara; Oil Plantation, Ipokia (50 hectares); Cashew Plantation and Rice Plantation, Egua.

READ ALSO: Why Buhari Is Fighting Corruption  Lai Mohammed Speaks

Source: Legit.ng
Chinese New 100 Yuan Notes Wheeled Out (Photo : Getty Images)

Even if Bitcoin has failed as a cryptocurrency, the Peoples Bank of China is still determined to have its own digital currency. Chinas central bank said it has been studying cryptocurrencies for the past two years.



In favoring digital currency, the bank said on its website that a cryptocurrency would help it cut expenses of putting in circulation paper bill versions of the yuan. At the same time, it would curb money laundering, improve convenience and transparency of transactions, lower rate of tax evasion and stop other forms of illegal activities related to the Chinese currency, reported CNN.



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The Bitcoin was created in 2009 by an anonymous person. It facilitated transactions minus an intermediary. By using computers, it bypassed banks. But due to the lack of need for those involved in Bitcoin transactions to identify themselves, critics said it opened a window for illegal transactions. However, because the trade was recorded digitally, those who were in favor of it said cryptocurrencies boost transparency.







BTCChina, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, is based in China. Beijing was against Bitcoin in 2013 and banned payment companies from transacting using the cryptocurrency. But the central bank eventually changed its policy so long as it was given a wide berth.



Hao Hong, Bank of Communications chief of China strategist, thinks the change in Beijings outlook has something to do with capital outflow pressure that China is going through. By being a state-backed digital currency, it would allow the yuan to challenge the hegemony of the greenback, although that would not be instant, Hao explained, reported The South China Morning Post.



If the central banks plan pushes through, it would join the ranks of Ecuador, which in 2015, recognized digital currency.


Allianz has acquired a 49.5 percent share in the Fischapark shopping center in in Wiener Neustadt from SES Spar European Shopping Centers GmbH. It holds the remaining 50.5 percent share in this retail property and is responsible for managing the shopping center. In concluding this agreement, SES and Allianz are

Photos: Michael Mazohl; Melbinger



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Catalyst Capital has acquired three high-quality office buildings in established business districts of Paris Ile de France for a total of 155 million.

Catalysts new European real estate fund, Catalyst European Property Fund II (CEPF II), has purchased Perspective Seine in the Pleyel district o...

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Around 1 million sq ft of industrial stock across Scotland could be demolished as a result of the new vacancy relief rates proposed by the Scottish Government, according to JLL. Proposals to reform levels of empty property relief on vacant industrial property from 1 April 2016 were introduced during the

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According to DTZ Research, total office take-up in Kyiv in 2015 amounted to around 174,000 sq m (GLA), twice as high as the figure registered during 2014. In 2015 DTZ Ukraine transacted around 40,000 sq m of standard office space in Kyiv (which

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Rime Scenery Attracts Visitors In Jilin (Photo : Getty Images)

Because some homeless Chinese do not want to live in formal facilities, Zhejiang Province opened more than 8,900 temporary shelters for these people. The move is timely because heavy snow started to fall in the province on Thursday.



Besides a roof over their head and protection from the winter chill, in one shelter, the Xingchen Hotel in Hangzhou, Zhejiangs capital city, the temporary residents were given food, rooms and medical assistance.



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The Civil Affairs Department of the province deployed personnel to go on street patrol and search for homeless people. Those who still refuse to go into the temporary shelter are not forced to leave the streets but are instead provided quilts and meals.



Zhejiang provincial staff also visited families in a door-to-door campaign to ensure all residents are warm for this winter. The province has so far given away about 300,000 quilts and 5,000 overcoats to needy families, reported Xinhua News Agency.



Meanwhile, even animals were also taken care of by the installation of additional heating at the birds bathroom. For monkeys, authorities gave the animal shelter oil lamps and large fan heater for the elephants.



Farmers have been advised to add organic fertilizers to their trees and other plants to protect further their vegetable and fruit harvest. A local farmer predicted that if the below zero temperature prevails for days, only 10 percent of veggies are expected to survive.







With wintry conditions, in some regions, the temperature plummeted to below zero by as much as 14 degrees Celsius. The provinces of Zhejiang, Guangdong, Fujian and Anhui logged record lows, while Beijing froze at -17, the capital citys lowest in almost 30 years, said the National Meteorological Center.



It is worst in Inner Mongolia where temperature is expected to drop as low as negative 47.8 degrees Celsius. According to Daily Mail, the 2015/2016 winter is so cold that even eyebrows of Chinese could freeze.


Renault Kwid based electric small car has made its debut at the Auto Expo 2020.

Already launched in China, the new Renault Kwid electric hatchback is expected to be launched in India later this year. It has now been showcased at the 2020 Auto Expo to gauge customer interest. Once launched, Kwid electric will be the perfect rival to the upcoming Maruti WagonR electric.

Compared to the regular Kwid, the electric Kwid gets a new bumper design and full LED headlamps. It also receives a new grille, new LED tail lamps and redesigned rear bumper while front air intake and rear air outlets are just for design with no real function since it gets an EV powertrain.

In terms of charging, Renault is expected to offer the Kwid EV with multiple charging options, making charging possible via both domestic and public chargers. Charging updates will be seen on the instrument clustering indicating remaining battery charge, distance to empty and the nearest charging station.

The electric motor is developed in association with DongFeng of China and will have a driving range of 250 kms in the NEDC cycle. In compliance with new safety regulations, the Renault Kwid EV will also get more airbags, 4 disc brakes, a sun roof and rear parking sensors.

Renault India also awaits the Government policy on electric vehicle charging in India ahead of official launch of the Kwid EV in the country. The launch of this new electric vehicle in India follows electric vehicles being tested by other automakers.

The Maruti Suzuki WagonR EV is currently under test along with the electric version of the Mahindra KUV100. Tata is also expected to launch Tiago electric in the future, which is a potential rival to the Kwid EV.

At the moment, there is no word from Renault about a potential launch date for the EV in India. However, considering the recent developments and the increasing push from government to move towards EVs, it is safe to presume that the car will be in launched sooner than expected.
TVS Motor Company has started the year 2016 in the grandest way possible. The Chennai headquartered company has launched two new bikes  which they are expecting will increase their monthly tally of sales in a huge way. The two new bikes are TVC Apache 200 and TVS Victor.

At the launch event in Chennai, TVS Motor officials revealed that the two new bikes are developed at an investment of INR 300 crore. By Diwali 2016, TVS aims to sell 25,000 units of Victor every month, and 7,000 units of Apache 200 every month, thereby adding 32,000 units every month to their total sales. The company also says that if these figures are achieved, their market share in the motorcycle segment will increase from existing 15.5% to 18% by March 2017.

Speaking about the new bikes, TVS Apache RTR 200 4V is launched at prices ranging from INR 88,990 for the base model to INR 1.15 lakh for the top end variant with optional Pirelli tyres. Based on the X-21 Draken concept, new TVS Apache RTR 200 4V is powered by a single cylinder, 197.7 cc air and oil cooled engine capable of 21 PS power and 18.1 Nm torque mated to a 5 speed gearbox. Acceleration from 0 to 100 kmph is possible in 3.9 seconds.

Boasting of a kerb weight of just 140 kgs, the new Apache gets an aggressive stance with split seats, clip on handle bars and LED tail lamps. It is also seen with 270mm roto petal disc brakes in front and 240 mm disc brakes at the rear while it receives telescopic front suspension and mono suspension with gas filled shocks at the rear. Sitting on new Remora tyres clad in 90/90 R 17 tyres in front and 130/70 R17 tyres at the rear. Pirelli tyres are optional, and come at a price of approximately INR 8,000.

TVS Victor is launched at INR 49,990 and will be positioned above the StarCity+. Set to compete against Hero Passion Xpro and Honda Livo, the new TVS Victor in the commuter segment gets a new instrument console with semi digital analogue tachometer along with speedometer, odometer, service indicator and trip meter. Powered by a 110cc air cooled, 3 valve engine offering 9.46 bhp power at 7,500 rpm and 9.4 Nm torque at 6,000 rpm, the engine is mated to a 4 speed gearbox as seen on the StarCity+. TVS Motors claims that with this engine, the new Victor will offer an overall fuel efficiency of 76 kmpl.

TVS Apache 200  Specs

TVS Apache 200  Photos

Exhaust Note of TVS Apache 200

TVS Victor  Photos

Exhaust Note of TVS Victor
Elephants have been suffering from plummeting numbers due to habitat loss and poaching for ivory , so people are trying to figure out how to conserve these beautiful animals - but it seems no one can agree on how to do it.

Tearing African elephants from their home in the wild and sticking them in U.S. zoos is one plan that was recently proposed, and now it's going to happen.

A decree approved on Thursday will allow people to ship 18 elephants from Africa to live in the Dallas Zoo, Sedgwick County Zoo or the Henry Doorly Zoo.

"We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, are making available the final environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact under the National Environmental Policy Act regarding a permit application submitted by Dallas Zoo Management, on behalf of the Dallas Zoo, Sedgwick County Zoo, and Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo. The three zoos have requested authorization under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora to import up to 18 live African elephants from Swaziland."

There is no question that conservation efforts are crucial to the survival of endangered species. Some argue that this latest move is crucial to diversify the gene pools of captive bred elephants. But others say that this latest move is all about making money - both for the zoos and for the African governments profiting from the sale.

"This despicable move puts cash before conservation," said Dr. Marilyn Kroplick, president of In Defense of Animals (IDA). "It is deeply irresponsible of the USFWS to allow this precedent-setting removal of African elephants from Africa for a lifetime of captivity."

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Another dolphin has died at SeaWorld - and her death shines light on the sad plight of one of SeaWorld's least-known animals. Betsy, a 33-year-old Commerson's dolphin, passed away just days after being transferred from SeaWorld San Diego to SeaWorld's Aquatica park in Orlando, the company announced on Monday. She was the fourth marine mammal to die at SeaWorld since June. She stopped eating after arriving and appeared to have a "gastrointestinal issue" before her death, SeaWorld said. Betsy, who had lived in San Diego since being captured from the wild as an infant, had made the move with two other Commerson's. And though she passed away at a mature age - an exception among the many premature deaths at SeaWorld - people are questioning whether the recent relocation contributed to her death. A Commerson's dolphin on display at SeaWorld San Diego several years ago. Flickr/lori05871

A Commerson's dolphin on display at SeaWorld San Diego several years ago. | Flickr/lori05871

"That was a poor husbandry decision," Naomi Rose, Ph.D., a marine mammal scientist with the Animal Welfare Institute, told The Dodo. She added that, while SeaWorld frequently refuses to move its orcas to sea pens on the basis that they're too old and couldn't handle the move, they had no problem shipping the geriatric Commerson's across the country. "Why did they move her?" Rose said. "Unless it was imperative for her welfare, it was a bad idea." But Betsy's death is just the latest in the long string of deaths that defines SeaWorld's experience with the small, black and white Commerson's dolphins. Back in November, The Dodo spoke to Sarah Fischbeck, a former SeaWorld diver, who said of all the animals she saw during her time at the company the fate of the little-known Commerson's dolphins was the saddest. "The reason you don't know about it is why they're suffering the most," she said. Betsy was one of 12 Commerson's dolphins captured from the wild in 1983, when she was just a few months old. While SeaWorld originally hoped to make the playful dolphins their new stars, it was a disaster from the beginning. "It was like the standard of what not to do with Commerson's dolphins," Fischbeck said. "It's heartbreaking." A Commerson's dolphin on display at SeaWorld San Diego several years ago. Flickr/bfurlong

Dodo Shows Cat Crazy Fluffy Cat Wants To Sit On His Dad At All Times

A Commerson's dolphin on display at SeaWorld San Diego several years ago. | Flickr/bfurlong

Half of Betsy's group was dead within a year, some of them within days. Around 2000, SeaWorld San Diego sent a group of four young Commerson's who had been born at the park to a now-closed SeaWorld Ohio location. All four were dead within a year. In 2004 SeaWorld brought in another wild-caught Commerson's from Germany. At 30 years old, Jogi was the only survivor of a group of 10 Commerson's taken from the wild, and had survived decades in captivity. Once at SeaWorld, he died within months. The company tried to breed the dwindling wild-caught population, but artificial insemination didn't work well "because when they'd go to jack them off they'd get urine and semen samples, and the urine would cancel out the semen," Fischbeck said. The natural births were equally disastrous. Some were stillborn; others lived just a few years. By 2008, they had seven left, Fischbeck said. SeaWorld sent four males to their Aquatica park in Florida; in 2014, two of them died within weeks of each other. "In less than 30 years they've killed off 20 Commerson's dolphins," Fischbeck said. "The average lifespan at SeaWorld is 8 years." By the end of Fischbeck's time at SeaWorld San Diego, Betsy had only two companions left: Juan, the only other survivor of the 12 wild-caught Commerson's, and Ringer, Juan's daughter. Since the park had sent the viable mates for Ringer to Orlando, she began to mate with Juan. "While working there I saw two of her births," Fischbeck said. "One died shortly, like in two to three days. The other was stillborn. It was her father's daughter." A pod of Commerson's dolphins in the wild. Flickr/ravas51

A pod of Commerson's dolphins in the wild. | Flickr/ravas51

But SeaWorld's only concern was money - and the Commerson's weren't bringing it in. "They can't really train them [because they're so high-energy]," Fischbeck said. "They can't make money off them ... The three remaining weren't popular. People weren't familiar with them, people didn't care." At one point, Fischbeck said, SeaWorld tried to mix the Commerson's in with the belugas - despite the fact that they're from different hemispheres. But the belugas quickly began to take out their frustration at captivity on the smaller Commerson's. "The belugas were super aggressive towards them," Fischbeck said in November. "So they threw them in the back pool and that's where they are now." As of the end of last year, Betsy and the other Commerson's were living in a tiny 15-foot-deep tank at the back of the park, hidden from the public's sight "because they don't make any money," Fischbeck said. She added that, after the long string of misadventures SeaWorld's had with its Commerson's, most people didn't even know the animals existed. "[They're] literally swimming in a concrete box. That's their life," Fischbeck said. "They're just so hush-hush about it because these three dolphins are shoved in the back and that's where they'll spend the rest of their days." A Commerson's dolphin on display at SeaWorld San Diego several years ago. Flickr/bfurlong

A Commerson's dolphin on display at SeaWorld San Diego several years ago. | Flickr/bfurlong
Yet another horse has fallen under the unreasonable pressures of hauling a carriage alongside city traffic. This time, a photographer was there to capture the horrific scene.

Tere Nolasco Rios posted the photo on Monday shortly after the incident took place in his hometown of Cozumel, a popular tourist destination in Mexico.

He wrote an impassioned note calling upon government leaders to take a stand against the carriage drivers.

His caption reads:

It is a shame that to this day, and after all the incidents and accidents that have occurred, and through the years, no level of government has had the pants and brains to force, suggest or propose a change ...

There are no updates on the condition of John, the horse in the photo, but Rios noted in the caption that the horse "ended his career."

Rios' photo hit the internet the same week that major horse carriage news came out of New York City, where the mayor's office and industry representatives reached an agreementregarding the carriage horses. If approved by the city council, the pact will lower the number of licensed horses from 220 to 95, and will relegate the horses within Central Park, both by 2018.
For the slenderest moment yesterday, he trotted triumphantly through the sunny streets of Queens. Running, braying, even enchanting onlookers who soaked up the surreality of it all.

For this cow, it must have seemed like a fairy tale of New York.

Police arrived on scene - although they weren't immune to this cow's unbridled enthusiasm for life, tweeting , "How cow! It seems the @NYPD103Pct will stop at nothing to keep traffic moooving."

It was, in all likelihood, nice to be a cow running through the streets.

"It was very nice to see a cow running through the streets," Claudia Escobar told the New York Post .

Fluffy Cat Wants To Sit On His Dad At All Times

The cow wasn't hard to corral. In moments, police had loaded him into the back of a truck.

"The cow will be killed tomorrow," a worker at Jamaica Archer Live Poultry and Meat Market told the Post after the cow disappeared into the building.

And that briefest fairy tale of New York seemed to arrive at the most abrupt of endings.

Then a man who really, really loves animals (especially cows) called.

Because, apparently, the slaughtering goes down every Friday.

As founder of Skylands Animal Sanctuary and Rescue, Mike Stura has been hauling animals in need to his 200-acre stretch of paradise since April 2015. In fact, the first of the 60 or so animals to set hoof on the New Jersey farm was a cow named Jimmy.

Stura immediately hooked up his trailer and started driving towards Queens.

The man at the other end of the phone, however, wasn't inclined to hand over the errant cow. In fact, the cow had been reserved by another family, for meat.

But Stura was already behind the wheel, trailer in tow, hell bent on bringing that cow home.

The man at the slaughterhouse told him he would ask the buyers if they might give up the cow. He called 15 minutes later to tell Stura they refused.

Did we mention Stura was already on his way?

"We spoke a couple more times," he tells The Dodo. "It went good. Then it didn't go so good."

He arrived at the slaughterhouse in Queens at around 7 p.m. yesterday. No one was there.

"So I stayed there in my truck for the night."

When the workers filed into the slaughterhouse this morning, Stura was waiting for them.

Time and time again, Stura has managed to get slaughterhouse operators to see things his way. Maybe it's the warmth and genuine compassion this man exudes. Or maybe it's his imposing figure - a big man with some serious ink makes a serious statement, even if it's belied by his otherworldly sense of calm.

He managed to persuade the slaughterhouse owner. This morning, Stura got his cow.

"He's in the back of my truck right now and I'm on my way to the veterinarian to get him checked out," he says.

Skylands Animal Sanctuary and Rescue
Wendell Joyner just wanted to help his dogs, but police say he ended up breaking the law. The 58-year-old Florida man was arrested on Wednesday after allegedly ignoring firefighters' commands by repeatedly running into his burning home trying to find his pets. All three dogs were later rescued, WKMG-TV reports.

Dodo Shows Odd Couples Dog Is So Gentle And Patient With Her Foster Kittens

After the blaze erupted early Wednesday morning, Joyner says he escaped the house and realized his dogs were still inside. He then ran back into the home several times, but was overcome with smoke again and again. Eventually, Joyner found a firefighter's ax on the ground and threw it through the window he believed his dogs were trapped behind. That's when Joyner says sheriff's deputies threw him to the ground and arrested him, bloodying his face. Thankfully, firefighters saved all three of the dogs, but Joyner now faces one count each of disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.
Marilyn was found at a construction site, nursing her four puppies. Sochi Dogs

Libby was stashed near a dumpster, a popular spot for dumping unwanted dogs. Sochi Dogs

Dodo Shows Adopt Me! Scared Little Dog Is So Full Of Joy Now  And Looking For A Family

"We get a lot of our dogs from dumpsters," Anna Umansky, founder and director of Sochi Dogs: Extraordinary Strays, tells The Dodo. "People just leave them there." Marilyn and Libby met at the Sochi Dogs shelter in Russia. It was love at first sight. Sochi Dogs

Around 4,700 miles away, Lauren Cohen was at home sifting through dog adoption pictures. She saw Marilyn. Again, love at first sight. "My mother's name is also Marilyn, so it was just too coincidental," she tells The Dodo. "Then I saw all the pictures of her and Libby." There had been a dog-shaped hole in the lives of Lauren and her husband, Dan, since their own pet passed away a year ago. "She was a special dog, so it took me a long time," Lauren says. Just one dog-shaped hole. But how do you separate dogs who have suffered so much - and found so much comfort in each other? Sochi Dogs

Anna Umansky, who had been coordinating Marilyn's adoption, remembers the next call she got from the Cohens. "Lauren said, 'We're going to take the other one. Has she been adopted yet? We can't split them up. They've been through so much already.'" "And I was like, OKAY!'" Sochi Dogs

So the Cohens began counting down the minutes. "The plane lands around 1 o'clock," she says. "Of course, with traffic it could be at least an hour to my house. I bet they're going to come in around rush hour. On a Friday night, it could take a little while." "So I think maybe 4, maybe 5. Hopefully, they'll leave before traffic." The night before, the Cohens were out shopping for everything dog - beds, blankets, toys. Sochi Dogs

Lauren remembers the news reports out of Sochi. Not so much about the Winter Games that alit on the city in 2014. She remembers details of street dogs. Umansky remembers them too. In fact, that's why she founded Sochi Dogs. Based in New Jersey, she runs a lifeline from a shelter in the Russian city to homes in Europe and North America. Since the Olympics, the group has found homes for 88 of these downtrodden dogs. It has also sterilized 150 dogs, which results in thousands more not being left to the mercy of the streets. Also, the group's shelter in Sochi is like no other. Sochi Dogs
Take a look at the key moments that led up to Flint, a city of 90,000, getting stuck with contaminated water. (Claritza Jimenez/The Washington Post)

Take a look at the key moments that led up to Flint, a city of 90,000, getting stuck with contaminated water. (Claritza Jimenez/The Washington Post)

Its the kind of free publicity that money cant buy.

With the worlds attention riveted on the spectacle of this beleaguered city in Americas heartland coping with the discovery that its drinking water has contained poison for almost two years, Cher surfaced with a donation of 181,440 17-ounce bottles of Icelandic Glacial water.

On Wednesday, the pop star was on MSNBC extolling the companys generosity as the first trucks of the largely obscure brand began off-loading at the unmarked warehouse commandeered by the Michigan State Police to manage supplies. Their alliance ensured blurbs on thousands of news and celebrity gossip sites and countless mentions and images of the product posted on social media.

I think with the amount of press weve received just getting the brand out there, people will become more aware and familiar with the brand, said Martine DePreez, an Icelandic Glacial spokeswoman who said the company covered the shipping expenses and split the $287,000 cost of the water with Cher. We just wanted to do everything possible to get clean, fresh water over there.

The next day, the water filtration company PUR told The Washington Post that it would be shipping 10,000 faucet-mounted water purifiers and 40,000 replacement cartridges to Flint, a donation the company said is worth $1 million. Another filtration company, ZeroWater, began a campaign in which it vowed to match donations of its products bought by the public through a special section for Flint on the companys website.

1 of 37 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  The controversial case over dangerous lead in water in a Michigan city View Photos Anger over the levels of lead in the water in Flint has led the mayor to declare a state of emergency. Caption Anger over high levels of lead in the water in Flint has led the mayor to declare a state of emergency. Jan. 25, 2016 Flint resident Angela Hickmon, 56, chants during a protest outside City Hall in downtown Flint. Jake May/The Flint Journal-MLive.com via AP Wait 1 second to continue.

Indeed, every crisis has its silver lining for someone. For all of the entities taking a reputational drubbing  Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R), the Environmental Protection Agency, the already depopulating and perpetually depressed city of Flint  others are riding a wave of goodwill that could linger in the marketplace long afterward.

If its a strong, credible brand and theyre doing something thats responsible and theyre not overmarketing or overhyping it, it will help them from the social responsibility angle that youre helping people out, said Rajeev Batra, a marketing professor at the University of Michigan. Its no different, he said, than Walmarts donations of household goods or the mobile laundry facility that Tide deploys after natural disasters.

PUR, ZeroWater and their rival Brita all popped up first in October with donations of their products to Flint that were touted in news releases. At that time, the state was waking up to the realization that a switch in Flints water source from Lake Huron to the polluted Flint River had corroded pipes and since April 2014 had allowed lead contamination in the citys drinking water. It was believed that a switch back to the lake water would resolve the problem, but the pipes had been so damaged that they continued to leech lead that might have exposed the citys 100,000 residents to irreversible physical damage.

As it became clear over the past two weeks that the city and state would lack the ability to provide lead-free water  possibly for months  the state spent millions of dollars buying and taking donations of mostly generic bottled water as well as water filters. The Michigan State Police have overseen the distribution, which in this low-income city where many residents cant afford cars has meant sending volunteers as well as deployees from the Michigan National Guard to visit all 30,000 residences  twice  to bring purifiers, replacement cartridges and cases of bottled water.

While the primary aim, the companies say, is to provide immediate relief for Flint, another motive is to show the broader public why using water filtration systems or bottled water is smart. Even if municipal water anywhere is safe when it leaves the treatment plants, they say, the Flint disaster has shown that it can be contaminated in transit and even through the pipes in ones home.

Whats happening in Flint, a lot of people think that it can never happen in their own community, but theres no way for people to know whats in their water, said Deb Mudway, vice president of marketing for Kaz, the division of Marlborough, Mass.-based Helen of Troy that owns the PUR brand. Theres a peace of mind element to this, too. The key is, we all can benefit as consumers by taking control of what comes into our homes. The journey of the water can affect the quality of the water.

Jumping into the spotlight in these moments can also tarnish a brand.

Maurice Rice organizes cases of water at the Joy Tabernacle Church on Jan. 11 in Flint, Mich. The citys drinking water is contaminated. (Conor Ralph/Flint Journal-MLive.com via AP)

Brita, whose spokesman did not reply to requests for comment, has not publicized any donations this month. That may be because the Clorox subsidiary was burned by negative media coverage the last time around when it emerged that only the companys faucet-mounted filtration system removed lead from water. The more commonly used Brita product, the white pitchers, dont, but that distinction was lost on some in Flint who bought the pitchers. A video of a Flint resident being told by Brita customer service via phone that the product does not remove lead racked up nearly 40,000 views on Facebook and aired on local TV newscasts.

If it is perceived as not being an effective solution to that problem and people come to associate it in their minds that way, thats a dangerous way getting involved in this situation can backfire for a brand, said Jeff Stoltman, a marketing professor at Wayne State University in Detroit. The accelerated way in which that can veer off course and come back to bite you is unique to where we find ourselves right now in this world of social media that we live in.

Stoltman and Batra both said that although Brita is an established brand with an obvious and logical role in a situation such as this, a company such as ZeroWater comes across as over-eager. The less-known Bensalem, Pa.-based company bought promoted tweets on Twitter urging people to Stand With Flint, MI Today, with an image of the hand of a white woman giving a glass of water to a pair of small black hands. That felt to him to be far too exploitative of the fact that medical experts have said that Flints children, who are predominantly African American, are at the greatest risk of brain damage from possible lead exposure.

ZeroWater chief executive Doug Kellam disagrees. His product is different from the others  it is a pitcher filtration system certified to remove lead  and he sees the Flint crisis as a way to help both those who are affected and his company.

Its not like were going to make money on this right now, Kellam said, but in most cases if you do the right thing, in the end itll probably do you some good.

Friess is a freelance writer in Michigan.
Trader Jarret Johnson follows stock prices at the New York Stock Exchange on Friday. Stocks powered through a tulmultous week to finish with gains. (Mark Lennihan/AP)

U.S. stocks recovered ground Friday following a tumultuous week that ended with a bounceback in oil prices and hopes for further global economic stimulus.

All three major indexes ended the week higher than they began, marking the first week of gains so far this year. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite climbed 2.66 percent Friday, while the Standard & Poors 500-stock index rose 2.03 percent and the Dow Jones industrial average was up 210.83 points, or 1.33 percent.

Oil prices, meanwhile, climbed back above $32 per barrel after a bruising rout that had pushed them to the lowest levels since the start of the Iraq War. The price of benchmark crude rose 8.43 percent, helping to lift the overall stock market.

For several months now, its all been about oil prices, said Torsten Slok, chief international economist at Deutsche Bank. Thats driving everything.

Indeed, energy companies dominated the gains, with shares of pipeline company Williams Cos. up more than 23 percent. Natural gas company ONEOK and pipeline operator Kinder Morgan both posted gains of nearly 11 percent.

Markets in Asia and Europe also staged a comeback. Japans Nikkei led the way overnight with a 5.9 percent jump, while European shares registered their largest two-day rise since 2011. The rally built momentum on indications from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi that further support for the economy might be in store at the ECBs March meeting. There was also speculation that China and Japan may be pushed into further stimulus as signs of global economic weakness mount.

Some wonder whether the momentum will hold.

Its a classic oversold bounce after Draghis comments yesterday and the noise on Japanese stimulus overnight. The question is where do we go from here, Veronika Pechlaner told Bloomberg News. She helps oversee $10 billion at Ashburton Investments, part of FirstRand Group. Its become harder and harder for stimulus to really support the economic fundamentals, so it doesnt mean a medium- and long-term change, but at least we have a bit more stable trading environment for a couple of days.

[Feeling a little jumpy about the markets? Heres whats going on.]

The stronger tone caps a holiday-shortened but volatile week on Wall Street as investors awaited gross domestic product data out of China and were taken aback by sharp cuts in the International Monetary Funds international growth forecasts. Combined with the rapid decline in energy markets that has sparked concerns about corporate bankruptcies in the sector, it all culminated in an especially rocky trading session Wednesday.

Despite oils price bump, it may be rough sledding ahead for energy companies. Moodys Investors Service is reviewing ratings of energy firms hit hard by low prices. Standard & Poors also forecast lower crude prices and has downgraded firms in the sector, according to Bloomberg News.

Schlumberger, the worlds largest oil field service provider, announced it would cut 10,000 jobs as the oil rout left it with a $1 billion quarterly loss.

[The dos and donts of a market crash]

Globally, stocks have lost $7.8 trillion in value so far this year, according to Bloomberg calculations, making it one of the worst yearly starts in history.

But analysts said they were hopeful that the tough start to the year was not an omen of things to come.

It does look like the worst might be behind us, said Scott Brown, chief economist at Raymond James. A lot of the fears have softened, even though I dont think theyve gone away entirely.

Investors focus will again turn to the domestic economy next week as the United States releases fourth GDP figures expected to show a meager annual rise of 0.7 percent, according to forecasts from the Atlanta Federal Reserve.

Wall Street also will be looking to the Federal Reserves policy meeting Wednesday for clues on where the domestic economy may be headed. The Fed raised interest rates last month for the first time in nearly a decade, but the recent round of weak overseas economic figures and rickety global markets have fueled speculation it may not adjust rates again until at least this summer.
To share with friends and brethren The Gospel of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (the Everlasting Gospel), and to prepare a people to stand when He returns to redeem His remnant. Also, to share relevant information of current events, and to show how they relate to prophecy; By means of articles, editorials, opinions, scripture readings, and poetry.

Disclaimer

Endrtimes does not necessarily endorse or agree with every opinion expressed in every article/video posted on this site. The information provided here is done so for personal edification; It's up to the reader to separate truth from error, and to examine everything (like the Bereans) from a Biblical perspective. Let the Holy Scriptures be you guide! - - - FAIR USE NOTICE: These pages/videos may contain copyrighted () material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Such material is made available to advance understanding of ecological, POLITICAL, HUMAN RIGHTS, economic, DEMOCRACY, scientific, MORAL, ETHICAL, and SOCIAL JUSTICE ISSUES, etc. It is believed that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior general interest in receiving similar information for research and educational purposes.
Images are the easiest way to lie. Images enter our minds as infallible: Few of us wonder whether the carpet on the floor is true or false, whether the person who smiles at us on the subway is real or unreal. Daily life would be impossible without this visual credulity. But the same instinct that tells us everything we see is true makes us intriguingly vulnerable to distortion and suggestion in art.

It is this visual vulnerability that prompts most schools of Islamic thought to prohibit images of sacred figures  prophets, angels, Allah  and in a few extreme cases, images of any living being whatsoever. In a religious context, images tempt us to worship the concrete rather than contemplate the abstract. Its far better  or so the bulk of Islamic thinking goes  to leave the unseen, unseen.

That being the case, artist Sandow Birks massive, richly illustrated American Quran would seem, at the outset, to represent a contradiction. Birk prepared for this project  a full-size Koran, transcribed entirely by hand according to the exacting medieval tradition, but in English instead of Arabic  by carefully studying the rules of the art form. The margins must be a certain width; the medallions that mark ones progress through the holy book placed at specific intervals.

But rather than leave the margins empty or decorate them with abstract geometric patterns, as is customary, Birk frames each page with lush, mural-like depictions of American life: farmers in their fields, clerks at their checkout counters, congregants at Sunday church; migrant workers, homeless people, hunters, surfers, men, women, children, along with cars, garbage, floods. An undertaking that could veer easily into sentimentality or cynicism does neither. Birk depicts the beauty and mess of Americana with the detachment of a photographer. And he marries the result  in a way that is at once baffling and oddly intuitive  to an English interpretation of the holy book of Islam. It is a masterpiece, and its flaws only serve its virtuosity.

Birk states that he cobbled his Koran together from several different English translations available in the public domain. This is perhaps the most American component of the project: taking bits and pieces of things you like and remixing them to arrive at something you like better. But translating the Koran is a notoriously difficult task. Classical Arabic, based on a root system of complex, interrelated meanings, is a language that implies rather than dictates, leaving much of the key terminology in the Koran open to different interpretations. It is unsurprising, then, that English translations of the Koran are so fraught. Each translator has a specific pedagogy; each translation is a complete thought. Subtle contradictions emerge depending on the interpreters background and motive. By mixing and matching translations to arrive at his version, Birk has inadvertently created one of the most accessible interpretations of the Koran in English, but also one of the most ideologically opaque. This is neither the literalist translation propagated by the Saudis nor the rationalist one composed by Jewish convert Muhammad Asad, nor the stilted interpretation popularized by the Victorians. It is something else, something more comforting but less instructive. This, too, is profoundly American. We like our religion, but we like our religion anodyne.

"American Qur'an" by Reza Aslan and Sandow Birk (Liveright)

Regardless, it would be foolish to assume that the text itself is the point of Birks artwork. The text is there to provide allegorical reference for Birks marginalia. The story of the birth of Jesus is illustrated with images of

a pregnant woman getting an ultrasound; Surat al-Baqarah, the Chapter of the Cow, features ranch hands and livestock. Yet Birk is capable of subversive subtlety. Surat al-Fatihah, the Chapter of Opening, often invoked as a prayer of guidance and mercy, is superimposed over a birds-eye view of downtown Manhattan. Chapter fifteen, al-Hijr, here translated as Rock City, is illustrated by off-road trucks roaring through a muddy hinterland. Though seemingly impudent, this pairing is not only apt but precise: Rock City is indeed a story about a city called Rock, whose worldly inhabitants reject the prophet Salih. Al-Hijr also repeats the story of Iblis, the devil, who refuses to bow to human beings, and since they are made of mud, tempts them with the material distractions of a muddy world. As an allegorist, Birk is at once simplistic and uncannily insightful.

American Quran is not a Koran in the sacred sense. As an English interpretation, and a non-academic one at that, it is not subject to the same rules of ritual purity that practicing Muslims would extend to an Arabic iteration. Instead, its a masterful reminder that America and Islam are, as ideas and as histories, deeply, painfully interlinked.

G. Willow Wilson is co-creator of the Ms. Marvel comic book series and author of the novel Alif the Unseen.
On My Own is the deeply felt and thoughtfully written account of the illness and death of U.S. State Department attorney John Rehm, and of the first year of widowhood for his wife, Diane Rehm. The author, host of the nationally syndicated Diane Rehm Show, writes candidly about her husbands decision to die when Parkinsons disease had deprived him of the ability to in any way care for himself on his own, and his frustration at the discovery that in the state of Maryland his doctor could not assist him in dying.

The only option that John, 83, had was to refuse food, water and all medication except morphine until he caused his own death. This was the course he followed for the 10days it took to end his life. His wife supported his decision. I sat by his side, never forgetting that he had chosen to die. . . . It was excruciating to witness.

[NPR host Diane Rehm emerges as key force in the right-to-die debate]

It is not easy for a terminally ill person to die deliberately, even in a profoundly weakened condition. In most parts of the country, it is still against the law for medical personnel to give any assistance whatsoever to anyone, at any point of illness or incapacity, who is intent on suicide. The result of this legal prohibition is that individuals like John who no longer wish to exist in a painful and hopeless state must literally starve themselves to death. Though his doctor tried to keep her husband as comfortable as possible during the process, Rehm nonetheless writes, I rage at a system that would not allow John to be helped toward his own death.

Following her husbands passing, after the family gatherings and the public memorial service and testimonials were over, Rehm began to reflect on his last, difficult days, on their marriage of 54 years and on the complex process of her own grief. One of the first feelings that strikes me is Guilt with a capital G, she admits, along with the conviction, shared by many surviving spouses, that she should have cared for her husband herself during his last months of life, rather than moving him into the facility where he eventually died. But like most people in her situation, she really had no choice: At a certain point in her husbands illness, she was unable to care for him at home, something he and their children fully understood. Still, and inevitably, there was guilt.

At the time of her husbands departure from their shared apartment, there was also a curious mixture of apprehension and relief. The relief will be familiar to all those who have finally made the decision to place a loved partner or parent in a setting that is better equipped than the home to provide appropriate care. The apprehension, for the author, had to do with living alone after half a century of marriage.

[NPR talk-show legend Diane Rehm will retire from broadcasting next year]

Rehm writes eloquently about the changing landscape of grief, not only her own sorrow but that of friends such as retired television news anchor Roger Mudd, who lost his wife, E.J., after only a few weeks of illness, or another close friend, Jeff Stann, who went through a long dying process with his wife, Patsy, just as Diane had done with John. In looking toward the future, Diane realizes that there is no spouse to take care of her someday, as she cared for John during his final illness and as he supported her in her struggles with spasmodic dysphonia, the neurological disorder that affects her voice.

The Team of Rehm is no longer, she writes. She must make her own preparations for the future.

Rehm vividly describes the roller coaster of emotions she has felt following her husbands death: the inability to concentrate, the grief coming in waves while she was in the midst of an on-air conversation, the overwhelming need to be alone. I dont want to be in the company of others, even close friends, who are laughing and sharing ideas and stories.

As she reflects on the many decades of her marriage, both good times and bad, the author also recognizes that she is in a new phase of her life, with a new purpose inspired by the manner of her husbands death. She promises that once she has retired from her radio show, I shall do all I can to promote the right of aid in dying.

I dont believe in closure, she writes. Some part of me will grieve forever. But she chooses to live fully the richness of her own experience and to share it with others in this clear, moving and completely honest account. Diane Rehm has again found her voice, and, as she has always done, she speaks passionately and courageously about issues that concern us all.

Diane Rehm will talk about her book March 2 at Sixth & I, tickets and $20 minimum registration. sixthandi.org.

Reeve Lindbergh has written a number of books for children and adults, including Forward From Here: Leaving Middle Age  and Other Unexpected Adventures.
There are several doors into the gallery of the Mexican Cultural Institute, which is hosting Anamario Hernandezs The Force of Fragility, but most visitors will probably first encounter Meditation. The large painting is an apt beginning, for it exemplifies the Mexico-bred local artists outlook. The picture is both landscape and still life, and contrasts the view outside a window with a chair inside. The vista appears ancient while the chair is modern, but they are linked by vivid blue and precise depiction.

In addition to paintings, the show includes drypoint prints, terra cotta sculpture, silver jewelry and a video-based installation.

Hernandez is not a traditionalist, even in her approach to still lifes, which she paints from memory rather than models. Yet a classical sensibility tempers even her more experimental works, such as the video of surf and shore projected through two dangling, transparent humanoids that produce multiple shadows and reflections.

The artists recent work includes two-tiered pictures in which painted linen panels are partially pulled back to reveal whats rendered beneath: sets of male and female figures, or just a pair of eyes.

There also are small pictures inside boxes, which integrate painting into the sort of everyday objects that might be subjects of still lifes.

Dos Hermanos by Duly Noted Painters, a Washington duo consisting of Matthew Malone and Kurtis Ceppetelli, is part of the Cuba exhibit at Hillyer Art Space. (Duly Noted Painters/Hillyer Art Space)

These painting-sculpture hybrids highlight not only the artists craft, but also the limits of our perception. One of the most modern things about Hernandez is that she, although painting in a realist style, forgoes the omniscience of the Old Masters. Whether partially hiding an image behind a linen flap or dividing a landscape across three windows, Hernandez emphasizes a finite individual perspective.

Anamario Hernandez: The Force of Fragility On view through Jan. 30 at the Mexican Cultural Institute, 2829 16th St. NW. 202-728-1628. instituteofmexicodc.org.

Elizabeth Peak

The title of Elizabeth Peaks show at the Washington Printmakers Gallery, Landscape Through Multiple Lenses, underplays the Charlottesville, Va., artists abilities. She doesnt simply detach one lens and affix another. Her work demonstrates mastery of three different modes: collage, line etching and three-plate color printing.

Peak spent much of her childhood in the Great Plains, which she recalls in such detail-rich monochromatic etchings as Approaching the Rockies, a widescreen vista that stretches a cloud-stuffed sky across four sheets of paper. Peak also uses this process for vivid portraits of animals, notably a slumbering giraffe.

The three-color works, which meld pigments with the subtlety of watercolor, include an expressionist vision of a rainforest in Washington state. (Its similar in tone to an exuberant collage, Large Pond, in which slivers of paper become reeds, ripples and leaves.) More often, Peak employs the tricolor print for small-town scenes, such as a view of Charleston, S.C., at what may be dawn or twilight. In mood, these unpopulated cityscapes are akin to the depictions of lonely prairie vignettes. Yet they were crafted with techniques that are, impressively, worlds apart.

Elizabeth Peak: Landscape Through Multiple Lenses On view through Jan. 31 at Washington Printmakers Gallery, 1641 Wisconsin Ave. NW. 202-669-1497. washingtonprintmakers.com.

Duly Noted Painters and Jack Warner

Duly Noted Painters Matthew Malone and Kurtis Ceppetelli work together, and sometimes even simultaneously, on large scenes of everyday life. They recently took their collaboration to Cuba, where they stayed in a small fishing village. The result is Cuba, at Hillyer Art Space, whose pictures are as rough-edged as the canvas beneath them.

Charcoal sketches underlie the D.C. duos neo-expressionist style, whose looseness always appears open to one more brushstroke or paint splash. The sparest of these pictures is little more than a drawing, accented by some fluid blue that suggests water. A darker shade of the same color dominates the shows magnum opus, a landscape in which a storm seems to be massing in the right-hand corner. The potential violence of tropical weather is an ideal subject for the pairs tumultuous style.

In the adjacent gallery, a large painting titled Denial has a similarly agitated character: thick black drips dominate one side, and a warhead-like shape bristles at the center. The canvas is part of Heuristic Defenses, a show by Jack Warner, who is not primarily a painter. A former Marine, the local artist uses military-like elements in assemblages that represent both physical and psychological bulwarks.

A helmet and a pentagon carved from wood, as well as a crutch, feature in these brawny pieces, which also incorporate chains, sand bags and metal cables. Warners pieces arent overwhelming in scale, and bar access to only small areas of the space. Metaphorically, though, the barricades are formidable.

Duly Noted Painters: Cuba and Jack Warner: Heuristic Defenses On view through Jan. 30 at Hillyer Art Space, 9 Hillyer Ct. NW. 202-338-0680. hillyerartspace.org.

Fred Zafran

The cult of the selfie makes a snapshots human subject the measure of all things. More subtly, and artfully, Fred Zafrans photographs demonstrate that the world exists even when no ones eying the camera.

The exemplary image in Zafrans Memories of the Present depicts a street occupied only by shadows, including the heads and elongated forms of two out-of-frame persons. In other pictures in the Multiple Exposures Gallery show, faces are obscured or turned away, even when in the foreground. Only the photographer is looking.

The settings of these large-format photos are mostly urban, and occasionally include recognizable places or things: a D6 bus, the C&O Canal, the corner of 14th and G streets NW. But Zafran is not concerned with documentary value. The gallery calls the series an allegory of being, time and memory. It chronicles moments that happened, yet werent seen.

Although that may sound more philosophical than visual, Zafran is attuned to color, composition and juxtaposition. The heavily gray and tan pictures are punctuated by hot colors and flashy gear, including a red coat and orange sneakers. Even when no one seems to be paying attention, people still want to be noticed.

Memories of the Present: New Photography by Fred Zafran On view through Feb. 14 at Multiple Exposures Gallery, Torpedo Factory, 105 N. Union St., Alexandria. 703-683-2205. multipleexposuresgallery.com.

Jenkins is a freelance writer.
From left: Ben Chaplin, Michael Imperioli, Steve Zahn and Romany Malco in the Amazon series Mad Dogs. (Amazon Studios)

(All times Eastern).

SERIES PREMIERE: The drama series Mad Dogs (Amazon streaming) follows a group of 40-year-old college friends  Steve Zahn, Michael Imperioli, Billy Zane, Romany Malco and Ben Chaplin  who reunite in Belize for a wild celebration of one friends early retirement. Friendships are tested when the weekend goes south, revealing dark secrets and lies.

On Undercover Boss (CBS at 8 p.m.) Gerber Group chief executive Scott Gerber goes incognito at several of the companys hotel bar and restaurant venues.

Actor-comedian Michael Ian Black hosts Easiest Game Show Ever (Pop at 9), which asks contestants to answer true or false to such questions as Is Betty White older than sliced bread? The opener features a pair of former Big Brother contestants.

SERIES PREMIERE: Narrated by actress Maggie Gyllenhaal, the 10-episode docuseries Truth and Power (Pivot at 10) highlights people and social movements who stood up to corporations and institutions in an effort to expose corruption and infringement of civil liberties.

The four remaining cooks on MasterChef Junior (Fox at 8) are tasked with making a souffle, and the winner gets a major advantage in the elimination challenge.

On Reign (CW at 8), Mary fights feelings for Gideon as she seeks political allies. Meanwhile, Catherine and Narcisse continue to fight over the Regency, and Claude faces danger on her wedding night.

RETURNING SHOW: Season 10 of Great Performances at the Met (PBS at 9) opens with Giuseppe Verdis Il Trovatore.

On Blue Bloods (CBS at 10), a respected, recently retired New York Police Department lieutenant is accused of shooting a group of muggers on the subway, and Frank is forced to deal with the fallout.

Aerosmith rocker Steven Tyler and actress Gaby Hoffmann will be on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert (CBS at 11:35). Lapsley will perform.

A re-airing of Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC at 11:35) features The X-Files duo David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson, Room actor Jacob Tremblay and musical guest Leon Bridges.

Actor Jeff Daniels and YouTube personality Lilly Singh will visit The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (NBC at 11:35). St. Lucia is the musical guest.
6 and older



Norm (voice of Rob Schneider, left) and the Lemmings in Norm of the North. (Lionsgate)

Norm of the North (PG)

The animation has an unlovely plastic look and the dialogue has no between-the-lines nuance, but Norm of the North has its share of easy laughs amid messages about climate change and exploitation of wilderness. Kids 6 and older will like the hero, a talking polar bear named Norm (voiced by Rob Schneider), his furry lemming pals and their slapstick hijinks. Norm has learned language from human visitors and lost his taste for killing and eating seals. But his easygoing view of humans changes when he sees that an unscrupulous New York developer, Mr. Greene (Ken Jeong), intends to airlift prefab homes into Norms wilderness and sell them. Norm confers with a wise seagull and hitches a boat ride to New York, hoping that a talking polar bear can persuade the humans to stop. He auditions to play the bear in Mr. Greenes commercial (they think hes an actor in a bear suit), which gets him into the guys headquarters. Norm finds allies, including Mr. Greenes marketing executive and her daughter, but Mr. Greene fights back. (93 minutes)

THE BOTTOM LINE: Everythings played for laughs, but there are gags about big animals eating smaller ones. And the cute lemmings get repeatedly squished, then pop back into shape. The frequent toilet humor mostly involves said lemmings, too. The script includes a few crass words and a coming out gag designed to amuse parents. There is sadness over a presumed death, but all is well.

PG-13

In the sequel to the 2014 film "Ride Along," Ben Barber (Kevin Hart) graduates from the police academy and tries to make it as a detective. ( / Universal Pictures)

Ride Along 2

Not nearly as big a hoot as the first film  which was no masterpiece, just knock-down, drag-out silly  this sequel offers the same buddy-movie shtick. Its just that the distance between laughs can seem, well, distant. Some parents may view Ride Along 2 as too profane and full of sexual innuendo, even within its PG-13 limits, for middle-schoolers. The violence is loud and sometimes lethal but largely bloodless. A year has passed, and Ben (Kevin Hart) has become a rookie police officer. Still the same manic, motor-mouth klutz, he tags along with James (Ice Cube), a homicide detective and the brother of his fiancee, Angela (Tika Sumpter). Ben ruins stakeouts, foments chaos and drives his soon-to-be brother-in-law nuts. With Bens wedding days away, he and James travel to Miami on a case. A criminal hacker (Ken Jeong) leads them to a murderous drug kingpin (Benjamin Bratt).

(102 minutes)

THE BOTTOM LINE: The PG-13 rating gets pushed to its limits: lethal but bloodless gunplay; wildly destructive car chases; and mid-range profanity including the S-word and mild sexual slang, plus a partially muffled F-word. The sexual innuendo is strong but comic, with Jeongs character interrupted as hes about to engage in sex play online, and with Bens fiancee clad seductively in his uniform. Many women appear wearing scant clothing.

Four waves of increasingly deadly alien attacks have left most of Earth devastated. Cassie Sullivan (Chloe Grace Moretz) is desperately trying to save her younger brother as the world prepares for the fifth wave of attacks. ( / Columbia Pictures)

The 5th Wave

About halfway through, this potentially intriguing teen-centric sci-fi thriller goes south. It might still give high-schoolers a decent chill early on, with its grim depiction of Earth taken over by a mysterious alien invasion that causes humans to start turning on one another. But theyll get the giggles later on, when it melts into a mushy, wholly predictable teen romance. Meanwhile, the level of violence and nightmarish situations  child and teen characters brainwashed and forced into battle with the aliens  make the movie an iffy choice for middle-schoolers. Its clear that The 5th Wave (based on the first novel in a trilogy by Rick Yancey) aims to tap into the audiences for The Hunger Games and Divergent. But its just Hunger Games or Divergent-lite. Chloe Grace Moretz plays the pouty heroine, Cassie, who recounts how an alien spacecraft appeared above her Ohio town and initiated worldwide destruction  earthquakes, floods, avian flu  that devastated humanity. With her parents dead and her little brother, Sam, bused off by the Army, Cassie sets out to find Sam, armed and on her own. But she gets shot and her mysterious rescuer, handsome Evan (Alex Roe), seems to have inside information. Meanwhile, her secret high-school crush, Ben (Nick Robinson) has been conscripted to fight aliens and nicknamed Zombie. Yeah, I know. (107 minutes)

THE BOTTOM LINE: The level of violence is startlingly intense, with point-blank shootings and scenes depicting many dead bodies  hundreds, in one case  mowed down in an indoor gun battle (heard but not seen), or by flying drones. Blood and graphic wounds are rare, hence the PG-13, but theres blood when Cassie kills someone who turns out to be unarmed and later when she gets shot and stitched up. There is an implied, nongraphic teen sexual situation. The script includes rare use of the F-word and several S-words.

The Forest

A respectably creepy psychological thriller, The Forest may delve too deeply into the topics of suicide, delusion and paranoia for middle-schoolers to handle. But high-schoolers may like its moodiness and its subtle, believably shivery visual style. Sara (Natalie Dormer) fears that her twin sister, Jess, who has been teaching school in Japan, may have gone hiking in the Aokigahara forest at the foot of Mount Fuji with the intention of committing suicide, something of a sad tradition there. With a freelance journalist and a local guide, Sara enters the dense woods. The guide warns her that the forest can cause people to become paranoid, to hallucinate and to do bad things. But Sara finds her sisters tent and insists on staying after dark to wait for Jess. The reporter stays with her. The guides warnings prove right. (94 minutes)

THE BOTTOM LINE: Moments of violence show a good bit of blood and death for a PG-13, including a stabbing and repeated flashback images of a child seeing her dead parents in pools of blood  perhaps a double murder or a murder-suicide. The spooky imagery includes lurking figures with decomposing faces; ancient crones grabbing at Sara; a body hanging from a tree; and weird noises. The script includes occasional mild profanity.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

This most excellent new Star Wars episode glows with excitement and nostalgia in equal measure and has more than enough action, humor and richly drawn characters to charm teens and most tweens. Director J.J. Abrams keeps things moving, whooshing from place to place like an old Saturday morning serial. The Force Awakens picks up 30 years after Return of the Jedi ended. The old Empire has evolved into the First Order, an even worse planet-vaporizing reich ruled by Supreme Leader Snoke, General Hux and the Vader-esque Kylo Ren. Luke Skywalker and Han Solo are barely remembered rebel heroes; Princess Leia is a general in the struggling resistance. The promising newbies include Rey, a tough loner who lost her family; a stormtrooper, Finn, who deserts the First Order; and a pilot for the resistance, Poe Dameron, and his roly-poly droid, BB-8. Han Solo and Chewbacca rejoin the fight. There are big revelations. The war between the Force and the Dark Side rages on. (135 minutes)

THE BOTTOM LINE: Most of the aerial dogfights and hand-held gun battles show zero gore, but there are at least two bloodless but lethal runnings-through with lightsabers. The script contains rare mild profanity. Themes of loss weave throughout.

Horwitz is a freelance writer.


Fire pits blaze near the entrance to Earls Kitchen + Bar in Tysons Corner. (Dayna Smith/For The Washington Post)

For urban dwellers, merely getting to Earls Kitchen +Bar in Tysons Corner may feel like traveling to another world, one of gridlocked roads, towering parking garages and dizzying retail.

Inside, the menu is no less of a trip, equally disorienting and unpredictable at times.

Earls, a Canadian import, takes a Cheesecake Factory-like approach to its cuisine, with global influences from Mexico (tacos) and England (sticky toffee pudding) to Korea (bibimbap) and the good ol U.S.ofA. (Santa Fe chicken salad).

The intention is to bring flavors from around the world, said Dylan Todd, the general manager at the Tysons location, who has been with the company since 1996.

Added executive chef Ryan Spicknell, We dont like to pigeonhole ourselves as one type of restaurant, though the 64-location chain did start as a burger joint in 1982 in Edmonton, Alberta.

Eighty to 90 percent of the Earls menu is standard across its locations, Todd said. At least two dishes from the remaining percentage did well enough at the Tysons restaurant, which opened in October, that they are primed for a wider rollout. To the rest of the world, we say sorry and youre welcome.



Servers hold plates of chocolate sticky toffee pudding (left) and roasted corn and poblano cheese dip at Earls Kitchen + Bar. (Dayna Smith/For The Washington Post)

Sorry would be for the chimichurri skirt steak, which emerged from the kitchen barely tepid, unpleasantly oily and utterly lacking the zip youd expect from a poblano puree. On the other hand, diners everywhere should be happy to receive the roasted corn and poblano cheese dip, a gooey starter with a leg up on ordinary queso thanks to the accompanying ancho-salt-dusted Navajo fry bread.

That same dough suffers a sadder fate when served as greasy, dense naan next to the otherwise satisfying jeera chicken curry, rich with the warming spice of cumin in a richly colored gravy. Its a far cry from the bread you would find at your neighborhood Indian joint.

A few other dishes dont necessarily ring true. Served on a bed of chewy egg noodles, the Hunan kung pao is more like lo mein but mostly passable nonetheless, helped in part by a smoky wok flavor.

In the case of the chocolate sticky toffee pudding, well, lets just say it might send those stiff British upper lips into a slight quiver. Nevertheless, we couldnt help but attack the pile of warm, saucy chocolate cake accompanied by vanilla gelato.



The pleasantly gooey roasted corn and poblano cheese dip is served with Navajo-style fried bread. (Dayna Smith/For The Washington Post)

On especially busy nights, the wood-and-concrete-heavy restaurant, split into lounge and dining room areas, downright pulses with music and ambient chatter. The clublike atmosphere is heightened by the company dress code: sleek black dresses and skirts donned by the female servers and gingham worn by the men.

Earls even has its own style guide for employees; when one of them goes AWOL as youre in need of a steak knife or the check, however, you wonder if as much effort went into the training manual.

We asked one server for help in parsing the diverse menu. Everything is popular, she answered. Both, perhaps, could use a little more focus.

Earls Kitchen + Bar, 7902 Tysons One Pl., Tysons Corner. 703-847-1870. earls.ca. Entrees, $15-$35.

Correction: A previous version of this story misreported the current number of Earls Kitchen + Bar locations. There are 64, with three more pending.
Even if you cant make it to the store to buy cable organizers, you can still shorten lengthy cables and secure them with a cable tie, twist tie or rubber band. Its a good idea to label the cords. (Container Store )

By the looks of it, we may all be trapped in our apartments, condos and houses for days with little hope of getting outside. So why not go on a blizzard organizing binge?

Now is the time to check off items on your to-do list, or even make a to-do list. Maybe you still have to write your holiday thank-you notes. Between monitoring your sidewalks and roof or watching endless episodes of Homeland, why not do something that youll feel good about when the snow finally melts?

[D.C. area hunkers down for blizzard]

Some Washingtonians began planning for an organizing party early in the week. Anita Ponchione went to the Container Store to get under-sink bathroom bins and baskets to corral the Costco stockpiles in her linen closet. I figured I was going to be hunkered down for possibly three days, and what better time to try and organize a little section of my house? says Ponchione, who recently moved to a new home in the Chevy Chase neighborhood of Northwest Washington. I have three little girls, so I have to be realistic. But if I can get even my linen closet in order, it will make me feel so much more organized and in control.

Not being able to go out for organizing supplies now is one of the challenges of taking on a tidying task in a blizzard, says Pierrette Ashcroft, a professional organizer with Smart Productivity Solutions in the District.

You have to be creative, she says. But there are so many things you can do that you have been putting off to do someday. Someday is here.

Here are six blizzard-friendly organizing ideas from Ashcroft that will make you feel good when youre done.

[6 ways simplifying your home can simplify your life]

Junk drawer : Tackle that little bit of everything drawer in your kitchen. Empty the drawer and group like items together. Toss out any broken parts or loose screws. Use resealable bags or small boxes to keep things together in the drawer.

Tax records : Start a 2015 tax file or envelope if you havent already. Find last years return so you can see what you still need. Gather up all the records and receipts you can and file them. Comb through your checkbook, bank or credit card statements for deductible items. Make a list of documents you still need.

Photo archive: Take out any shoe boxes or manila envelopes of old photos you have stashed throughout the house. Gather the family to go through them and do a serious edit of what you want to keep and what isnt really worth it. Start a box of photos you want to have scanned. Go through your recent holiday digital photos, delete the duplicates or duds, and put the restin online albums.

Cord management: Resolve to figure out a way to tame the tangle of cords under your desk. Ashcroft unplugs everything carefully and straightens out all the cords. Shorten lengthy cables and secure them with a cable tie, twist tie or rubber band. Its a good idea to label the cords. You might find plugs with nothing attached to them. Ashcroft likes the Ikea Kvissle cork-topped cable management box.

Food pantry: Now that youve brought in even more food for the blizzard, you might want to take stock of what you have and organize it. Whether you have one cabinet or an entire closet full of canned goods, pasta, spices and cereal, take the time to remove everything off shelves, check the expiration date and then wipe down the shelf and put the items back in an orderly manner. Unexpired non-perishables that you are not going to use can be put in a shopping bag for later donation to a food bank.

Email management: Work through your in-box and get it down to zero. If that isnt possible, do you what you can. If you sort by sender or date, you can delete many at once. Use this time to unsubscribe from all the lists you no longer wish to be on.
Traveler Kristin Springfield poses in front of the Grand Canyon. "The sun just started to peak through the clouds after a rain. This spectacular rainbow was the perfect companion for the day," she writes. (Kristin Springfield)

Our readers share tales of their rambles around the world.

Who: Kristin Springfield of Danville, Va.

Where, when, why: I traveled across the country on a solo road trip from Sept. 6 to Nov. 10. The goal: visit national parks and hug a tree a day. An opportunity to take an extended break from my career showed up, and I took it to go on what I called my Womanly Journey Tree Hugging Tour 2015. I wanted to challenge myself with something that would scare me in order to push through my comfort barrier. Traveling alone for pleasure was certainly new and made me nervous. Therefore, off I went on an 11,324-mile road trip to meet new people, visit places I have never been, be immersed in nature and hug trees all over the country. The trip started and ended in Virginia. Along the way, I visited 15 states (Kentucky, Illinois, South Dakota, Wyoming, Idaho, Montana, Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Tennessee and North Carolina) and 14 national parks. I found trees to hug every day!

Springfield snapped this photo on top of Sequoia National Parks Moro Rock. The view took her by surprise. "The scenery up there is breathtaking from every direction," she writes. (Kristin Springfield)

Highlights and high points: The changing landscape along the trip astounded me. Every state and national park has unique features that stand out. The Midwest offers open fields and a never-ending landscape. Sunflower fields are spectacular in the breeze as the bright colors wave as you pass by. Wyoming was the first sight of mountains that seemed to touch heaven. Montana, Idaho and Colorado revealed mountains even more spectacular. Then I arrived in Sedona, Ariz.: The red rocks were enchanting. All of the colors and landscapes across this incredible country made my eyes almost bleed trying to take it all in. I shed tears of gratitude and awe at almost every turn.

[Interested in sharing your own What a Trip story? Apply here.]

Cultural connection or disconnect: I have never felt more connected to humanity than I did on this trip. My friends and family were concerned for my safety because I was traveling alone. This experience reminded me of the beauty in this country. People were kind, loving and helpful. I had a rough schedule of what I planned to do in each area, yet those plans were abandoned because of the ideas and recommendations of the locals. These spontaneous adventures led me to incredible galleries and museums, spectacular hikes, and delicious meals. The only disappointment on the trip was that it came to an end.

Biggest laugh or cry: Early on in my trip, I was feeling a bit lonely and offhandedly said aloud while in the car that I wanted to be kissed by a male. The universe quickly aligned to provide just that within hours. Notice that I said male, not man. It just so happened that the place I was staying at in South Dakota had donkeys. Yep, you guessed it: The male donkey took a liking to me and kissed me on the mouth while I was scratching his ears. The next place in Idaho had a male Great Dane. That male also took a liking to me and did not even say hello before planting a kiss. Montana offered the most male kisses in one place; there were three male horses and huge Great Pyrenees. I laughed as this seemed to happen repeatedly. Finally, I said, Thank you, but no more kisses, please! The universe complied, and the kisses stopped.

How unexpected: Moro Rock in Californias Sequoia National Park took me by surprise. I had walked several miles through the giant trees. The reality of how old these trees are is difficult to wrap my brain around. Its a short, steep hike, with 400 steps to get to the top of this giant rock. The day was beautiful, the sun was shining, and it was in the 70s. As I continued to ascend, more mountain ranges came into focus. I walked to the highest point of the rock, and then to the edge, to get the best view. It felt as if I were physically close to heaven; the scenery up there is breathtaking from every direction. Tears flooded my eyes as I wept in the presence of Mother Natures creation. People have created spectacular beauty, but it is nothing in comparison to nature. I went on to see more spectacular sites, yet this place touched my soul in a surprising way.

Fondest memento or memory: I collected heart-shaped rocks along my trip. I have a bowl full of them on my coffee table in my home. You can find me holding a piece of Montana while driving. This way, I can hold on to a piece of my trip every day.

To tell us about your own trip, go to washingtonpost.com/travel and fill out the What a Trip form with your fondest memories, finest moments and favorite photos.
Many passengers had all but given up on United after a painful merger with Continental Airlines in 2010. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Like a 747 loaded to capacity, United Airlines is rising  slowly, steadily and improbably.

I thought I was imagining it, says Anne Klein, who works for a marketing agency in Durango, Colo. But United is listening. Its trying to improve.

Klein had two recent customer-service experiences that gave her hope. The first, a handwritten thank-you card for her business, slipped to her by a flight attendant. And the second, a response to her request for a $68 refund after one of her flights had been canceled for mechanical reasons. Instead, United sent her more than she asked for: a $100 gift certificate.

Many passengers had all but given up on the airline after a painful merger with Continental Airlines in 2010. United had managed to alienate customers ranging from frequent fliers like Klein to ordinary vacationers thanks to significant cuts in its loyalty program and new policies that seemingly demanded fees for everything. Not surprisingly, its customer-service scores were among the lowest in the industry.

[Dont mind the wet nose: TSA enlists more dogs to screen passengers for explosives]

But in September, Uniteds new chief executive, Oscar Munoz, said enough was enough.

Lets be honest, he declared in a videotaped message to customers. The implementation of the United and Continental merger has been rocky for customers and employees. While its been improving recently, we still havent lived up to our promise or our potential.

The changes have been small, but theyve added up. In November, the airline eliminated an unpopular $50 processing fee for tickets refunded to passengers after unplanned events such as jury duty, illness or death. In December, it announced that, starting this month, it would serve a choice of snacks to economy-class passengers at no additional charge. It also plans to eliminate another charge this month: a $25 fee for ticket receipts.

All the while, Uniteds management has been asking its customer-facing employees to redouble their efforts to win back customers. And its focusing on its core performance, specifically its flight-completion numbers, or the number of scheduled flights actually flown.

Our customers want reliability from us, says Sandra Pineau-Boddison, Uniteds vice president for customers. Its on-time performance. Its a high completion factor.

During the busy Thanksgiving holiday week, United delivered an on-time performance in the 70th percentile, its highest level in three years, and a 100 percent completion rate. It was no fluke. Uniteds internal customer-service numbers have been climbing steadily since Munoz made his promise: In November, it beat its 30.6-point customer-satisfaction goal by two points; in October, it scored a 30.8, exceeding its goal by 1.3 points; and for September, it exceeded its 27.4-point goal by 4.3 points.

[Steaks on a plane: Following your United Airlines meal from the kitchen to the clouds]

United stresses that this is just the first stage of rehabilitating its image, a process that became more challenging after Munoz suffered a heart attack in the fall and temporarily stepped aside as chief executive. But it hopes its on the right track.

Oscar has given us a renewed focus, says Pineau-Boddison.

So how is Uniteds initiative going over with its customers? Elizabeth Helsley, a frequent international traveler who works as a business consultant in San Diego, was stunned when one of her bags went missing on a recent flight from Paris to San Francisco by way of Newark. She wasnt stunned because her bag had gone missing, but by what happened next.

After I arrived, I received a text message alert that one of my two bags did not make it and would be delivered to my address within 24 hours, she says. I also received an email where I could track my bag, see who was delivering it and at what time. At no time did I have to wait in line or on hold for them to rectify their mistake. They simply took care of it and kept me informed every step of the way. To me, that was amazing customer service.

The technology used to track and deliver those bags, part of Uniteds effort to upgrade its internal systems, is a key part of the airlines new customer initiative. Last year, the airline introduced a service that allows customers to follow their luggage on the United smartphone app.

[Write a negative online review and get sued? It can happen, but maybe not for long.]

Before we had this, only our airport employees could see the luggage in the system, says Pineau-Boddison.

More improvements are planned. In early 2016, United expects to fine-tune its system to allow people with delayed luggage to specify their delivery preferences.

To be sure, United still has a long odyssey ahead. It scored 60 out of a possible 100 points on last years authoritative American Customer Satisfaction Index, the lowest of any legacy airline and just a few points above discount carriers such as Frontier and Spirit. And it still has plenty of critics, including some of its own employees who remain quietly skeptical.

And the airline has a long way to go before some air travelers will come back. Theyre passengers like Lex Page, an attorney from Portland, Ore., who endured years of Uniteds indifferent attitude and mediocre service before he finally gave up on the airline.

Lets just say that if United Airlines were to give me a free first-class ticket to anywhere they flew, I wouldnt take it, he says.

Elliott is a consumer advocate, journalist and co-founder of the advocacy group Travelers United. Email him at chris@elliott.org.
Animal Welfare League of Alexandria seeks an animal control officer. For information, go to alexandriaanimals.org. Send applications to careers@alexandriaanimals.org.

Arlington County Invasive Plant program needs volunteers to remove invasive plants: 9-11 a.m. first Saturdays, Haley Park; 2-4:30 p.m. second Sundays, Gulf Branch Nature Center; 10 a.m.-noon third Saturdays, Tuckahoe Park; 2-5 p.m. third Sundays, Long Branch Nature Center; 10 a.m.-noon fourth Saturdays, Benjamin Banneker Park; 10 a.m.-noon fourth Sundays, Fort Bennett Park. Information: environment.arlingtonva.us. To register, call 703-228-1862.

Arlington Neighborhood Village needs volunteers to help senior citizens with various tasks. Must pass a background check. arlnvil.org.

Travelers Aid needs volunteers to help travelers at Reagan National Airport. Must be able to work evenings and weekends, and commit to six months. Parking provided. 703-417-3975, travelersaiddca@mwaa.com or travelersaiddca.com.

Virginia Hospital Center Auxiliary in Arlington County offers opportunities to help on information desks, the surgical center and in gift shops. 703-558-6401.

Wildlife Rescue League needs hotline volunteers, transporters and wildlife rehabilitators. 703-391-8625 or volcoord@wildliferescueleague.org.

Volunteer Alexandria: Call the numbers below or contact Volunteer Alexandria at 703-836-2176, mail@volunteeralexandria.org or volunteeralexandria.org for information on the following opportunities:

Arts on the Horizon is recruiting members for the Board of Directors. handsonconnect.volunteeralexandria.org.

Capital Caring needs volunteers for We Honor Veterans program. handsonconnect.volunteeralexandria.org.

DC Paws Rescue needs volunteers to handle animals during the adoption event at the Dog Park in Alexandria, 1-3 p.m. every fourth Saturday. handsonconnect.volunteeralexandria.org.

Empowered Women International needs a grant writer. handsonconnect.volunteeralexandria.org.

Hammond Middle School needs a math tutor and mentor for the Reach and Rise for Excellence after-school program. handsonconnect.volunteeralexandria.org.

United Community Ministries needs an assistant community center supervisor, handsonconnect.volunteeralexandria.org; a back porch cashier/sales associate, handsonconnect.volunteeralexandria.org; a basic-needs counselor, handsonconnect.volunteeralexandria.org; and a food pantry assistant, handsonconnect.volunteeralexandria.org.

Volunteer Arlington: Call the numbers listed below or contact Volunteer Arlington at 703-228-1760 or volunteer.truist.com for information about the following:

Arlington County CostumeLab offers volunteer opportunities. 703-228-6974 or volunteer.truist.com.

Virginia Cooperative Extension Service, Arlington County seeks volunteers for the master financial education program. Must attend training sessions scheduled May 7, 14, 21 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. at Fairlington Community Center, 3308 S. Stafford St., Arlington. Application deadline is April 1. volunteer.truist.com; and applicants for master food program. Training dates are March 1, 8, 15, 22 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Applications are due Feb. 15. volunteer.truist.com. 703-228-6417.

Doorways For Women and Families needs a homeless shelter coverage volunteer, volunteer.truist.com; an administrative office volunteer, volunteer.truist.com; a volunteer with children, volunteer.truist.com; and a domestic violence safehouse volunteer, volunteer.truist.com. 703-504-9284.

 Compiled by Ria Manglapus

TO SUBMIT AN ITEM

Email: axliving@washpost.com

Fax: 703-518-3001

Mail: Volunteer Opportunities, The Washington Post, Alexandria-Arlington Local Living, 526 King St., Suite 515, Alexandria, Va. 22314.

Details: Announcements are accepted on a space-available basis from public and nonprofit organizations only and must be received at least 14 days before the Thursday publication date. Include event name, dates, times, exact address, prices and a publishable contact phone number.
People huddle over a steam grate for warmth prior to the start of the snowfall. (Evelyn Hockstein/For The Washington Post)

As snow began to fall Friday, one of the urgent preparations that District officials made was to send city workers out of the nations capital in vans, armed with bags of groceries and store gift cards.

Their mission: Find the hundreds of homeless families that the city has placed in roadside motels in Maryland.

D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowsers effort to shelter more homeless families this winter has turned out to have dire consequences: The city has more than 1,000 families in its care but has run out of shelter space and maxed out the number of second-rate motel rooms in the city where it can place homeless families, according to documents and interviews.

With nowhere to turn and more families seeking help each day, Bowsers administration this month began gobbling up vacant rooms across the border in Maryland. It is not the first time that the D.C. government has been forced to relocate families, but the numbers sent outside the District limits were close to a record, city officials said. There were 211 families, including almost 700 parents and children, in Maryland motels on the eve of the storm and could be inaccessible for days.

Many of the families, often young single mothers with multiple children, will be on their own to ride out the storm, city officials acknowledged, most with no way to reach grocery stores.

D.C. Department of Human Services Director Laura Zeilinger says the city wont measure success by numbers, but by meeting the needs of its homeless residents. (Astrid Riecken/For The Washington Post)

Laura Green Zeilinger, Bowserss head of homeless services, said the District was working to reach every one of the families before the snowfall began.

Our staff is doing a whole host of things, making sure they have food, and a plan, meal cards and if need, making sure they have bags of groceries, Zeilinger said of the homeless families. But she added that each family will ultimately have to take responsibility for themselves. Yes, they will be marooned, just like everybody in the city will be marooned. Thats why were getting out to them in advance.

But the families placed in Maryland were not the citys only concern regarding its homeless population.

Teams were out Friday afternoon scouring the city for single men and women, some suffering from mental illnesses, who had not yet agreed to come into shelters during the storm.

Early in the week, the District took the step of declaring a cold-weather emergency, meaning that shelters would remain open and meals would be served at them throughout the day in hopes that homeless individuals would hunker down where they could remain fed. Typically, about 1,500 homeless men and women in the District must leave shelters each morning and return at night to claim a bed.

By Friday, however, dozens of people had not taken the city up on its offer for continuous shelter and were still camped out in tents and under blankets in plain view on downtown streets.

Bowser (D) warned that by Friday evening, caseworkers for the homeless would begin traversing the city with police and representatives from the citys Department of Behavioral Health to determine if they could make rationale decisions about their care. The city can commit individuals against their will, forcing them to be evaluated by doctors on freezing nights.

We are most concerned about people who want to stay outside and will be exposed to the elements for any considerable period of time, Bowser said at a Friday morning news conference. We do have authority to make sure they are safe and inside.

Zeilinger said the District had also opened recreation centers as temporary homeless shelters for singles, allowing, in some cases, men and women to come in together who may be couples and who might otherwise refuse assistance because they would have to be separated in shelters for men and women.

Zeilinger said the citys goal is to prevent anyone from weathering the storm outside, and if anyone sees someone outside, they should report it.

I hope people understand that if they see somebody that they think needs help, they can call the shelter hotline, we will be out there to provide that help, she said.

But as the city comes through the storm, the surging number in shelters and motels portends continued problems long after the cleanup, said legal advocates for the homeless.

The number of families seeking emergency housing assistance is far ahead of the pace that the Bowser administration and homeless experts expected, meaning the number of families in motels could soon eclipse records set last year, with many weeks of winter and peak demand remaining.

The Bowser administration got to this point in part by trying to tamp down on a perennial surge in families that seek rooms during the winter, when a city law requires the District to provide emergency housing to any resident who does not have it.

Promising to be more welcoming to homeless families, Bowsers administration went on the offensive last summer, placing more than 430 families in motel rooms before cold weather triggered the law requiring it to do so. Zeilinger said spreading out the window of when families could enter shelter would be better for both the families in need, and for caseworkers charged with assisting them.

[D.C. mayor opens year-round access to family homeless shelters ]

That move pushed the number of families at the citys dilapidated homeless shelter for families at the site of the former D.C. General Hospital campus, and in overflow motel rooms, to a combined 700 families at the start of winter  250 percent higher than at the outset of any previous winter.

Despite the effort to preload families into shelters and motels, demand continued, even during a mild start to winter. An additional 450 families have streamed into the citys service center since November and been placed in motels.

With a combined 1,000 families now in shelter, the city is grappling with another familiar problem of trying to exit those families into subsidized apartments fast enough to make room for more incoming families.

Under Bowser, the District increased the pace of exits to its rapid rehousing program to a peak of 146 in March, but over the second half of last year, that rate fell to an average fo 68 per month.

Zeilinger said the city has encountered increasing difficulty in convincing landlords to allow homeless families with poor credit to sign leases, even though they are subsidized heavily for at least a year by the city.

In addition to the 1,000 in shelter and motels, the District now has over 1,000 former homeless families in housing subsidized at a rate of about 90 percent.

Amber Harding, a lawyer with the Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless, said the large numbers represent a deeper problem with a lack of affordable housing in the city. These families werent homeless before they lost housing, she said.

But Harding sees a more immediate need with how the city is moving families into Maryland. Even before grappling with the snowstorm, she said some parents have been unable to figure out how to manage getting their kids back into D.C. to attend school -- let alone to begin looking for work.

And theres an even bigger problem looming of potentially running out of motel space in Maryland too, she said.

This year we are probably going to reach historic levels of need and that means we are really nearing a crisis, Harding said. Im concerned about the number of motels left in D.C. or Maryland that will rent to us.

Zeilinger said the city will not put a cap on the need and will continue finding rooms for families  even if it is more than the city has ever rented.

We continue to plan and revise our plan so we can meet that need. People are very concerned because the numbers are high, were very concerned because the numbers are high, Zeilinger said. But we do not judge success by whether we projected the right need, but if were meeting the immediate need. . . . There s a lot of need out there and we are serving a lot of people.
In this file photo from 2015, residents of the Crofton area in Anne Arundel County pack the sledding hill at the intersection of Reidel and Johns Hopkins roads while schools were closed for the day. (Jonathan Newton/The Washington Post)

There was a time when snow days were celebrated as a respite from school, fun-filled romps that included sledding, snowball fights and binge television-watching.

But in an era of increased academic testing, stacked curricula and virtual learning, many educators and school officials are urging students to continue their schoolwork during snow days to avoid the dreaded amnesia that can set in after a few missed days of class.

Schools have closed Friday ahead of the likely-historic winter storm expected to pummel the region, and teachers have sent students home with packets full of work to do, gently prodding them on Twitter to keep up with their studies and offering parents a slew of resources to keep childrens brains active outside the classroom.

With the possibility of as much as two feet of snow and extended school cancelations, educators have real concerns about the academic impact of the closures, which can slow progress and leave struggling students even further behind.

[From 2014: Snow and severe winter take a toll on classroom learning]

The Arlington Public Schools system, which has equipped many of its students with iPads and laptops, keeps students connected to school through their devices.Even a third-grader can get a message directly from their teacher on a snow day and can complete work on assignments.

In Arlington, we really are moving towards 24/7 learning, said Connie Skelton, assistant superintendent of instruction. Year-round, some teachers already use a flipped classroom model, in which they deliver lessons through videos and then use class time for assignments and activities.

After the regions infamous Snowmageddon storms shut schools for days in 2009 and 2010, the school system also created a Snow Learning Page on the Web, complete with snow-related learning activities for parents to do with their children. Some suggestions: writing poems about the weather, inventing names for piles of snow in the neighborhood and examining snowflakes under a microscope.

Charles Ronco, who teaches math at Stonewall Jackson High School in Prince William County, said he cant count on his students to have the technology to be connected at home and estimated that about 15 percent of students at his school do not have a device that would allow them to live-stream or do virtual assignments.

So instead, he sent home a lengthy review sheet with math problems on Wednesday, predicting  accurately  that schools would be closed on Thursday because of icy roads and on Friday for the impending snow. He does not exactly expect that his students will be hunkering down over math homework during the four days theyre out of class, but he hopes that they will do enough to not lose ground.

Thats about all you can really do: put something in their hand for when the boredom sets in, said Ronco, who teaches geometry and calculus.

Ronco said that a long stretch of school days off can be compounded because teachers often have to reteach lessons when students return.

The problem is theres amnesia that sets in when these kids are out four or five days, Ronco said.

Even parents of preschoolers are urged to continue classroom lessons at home. To accommodate working parents, Sunshine Early Learning Center in Southeast Washington attempts to stay open even when D.C. Public Schools close, said operations manager Tanetta Merritt. But when it closes its doors, the pre-kindergarten teachers email parents to let them know what their children have been learning and how they can build on the lessons with activities at home. If young students are learning about the color red, for example, a parent can have them point out red objects at home.

Evan Glazer, principal of Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Fairfax County, said teachers at the elite magnet school do not give assignments on new material during snow days. While that can create stress for teachers, who worry about how they will cram a years worth of advanced curriculum into one shortened by snow days, it is also a bit of a respite for students who will likely be studying and working on long-term projects anyhow, Glazer said.

We want them to go out and play and make snowmen and snow angels, because it doesnt happen all that often, Glazer said. You might as well take a break when Mother Nature gives you the opportunity.

Ana Bonilla-Galdamez, a social worker who sees many Spanish-speaking parents at Charles Barrett Elementary in Alexandria, said she always encourages parents to read with their children at home and hopes they will continue that during snow days. But her concerns stretch far beyond the possibility of brain drain: Many of her students rely on the school for warm meals and might not get enough to eat when school is canceled.

A lot of our kids depend on the school system to have warm breakfasts and lunches, Bonilla-Galdamez said. She often sends families home with bags of groceries to help them feed their children during school breaks. When its unscheduled like this . . . thats when I worry.

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Stephen Skippen went to the campaign rallies that Change Maryland held for Republican Larry Hogan two years ago and partied at Hogans inaugural ball last January.

I guess Im still celebrating, the 37-year-old Crofton resident said Thursday night as he stood in a long, winding line to get a free drink at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis.

Skippen was one of about 1,200 people who crammed into a large room at the stadium to mark the one-year anniversary of Hogans inauguration as Marylands 62nd governor.

And by the sound of Hogans speech, Skippen may be in party mode for quite a while.

Were moving Maryland forward, said Hogan, sounding like a politician on the campaign trail. We are making progress. We are just getting started. You aint seen nothing yet.

After reviewing his first year in office, talking about toll reductions and cuts in taxes and fees, Hogan said, If we can get all these things done in just one year while dealing with the riots and battling cancer, just imagine what we can accomplish together over the next seven years.

Hogan, who is widely popular in heavily Democratic Maryland, placed an emphasis on the word seven.

It was the first time the former real estate executive has made a definitive statement about seeking a second term, a feat not achieved by a Republican governor in Maryland in nearly 60 years.

[Hogan sworn in as Marylands governor]

The crowd, which included House Minority Leader Nicholaus R. Kipke (R-Anne Arundel), Sen. Stephen S. Hershey Jr. (R-Kent) and lobbyist Bruce Berano, erupted.

Hogans speech capped off a three-hour free event, hosted by Change Maryland, the grass-roots organization Hogan started during the tenure of his predecessor, Democrat Martin OMalley, to protest tax and fee increases and promote a different vision for the state.

Recent polls show that Marylanders overwhelmingly approve of the job Hogan has done over the past year. He received a 61 percent approval rating in a Washington Post-University of Maryland poll in October.

Patrick Murray, executive director of the state Democratic Party, said Hogan may be popular now, but he has three more years as governor.

Pride goeth before the fall, Murray said. Three years is an eternity in politics. . . . Preparing a second term before showing the people he can govern is premature.

Murray said Democrats are building a strong statewide grass-roots campaign for 2016, which should set the stage for a strong challenge to Hogan in 2018.

Projection screens at Thursdays party alternated between video clips of election night and Hogans inauguration day. Large posters showed photos of Hogan, his wife and family and Lt. Gov. Boyd Rutherford taken on the day of the swearing-in.

Im watching history, said Steve Donovan, 58, a businessman from Queen Annes County who started sending $25 and $50 checks to Change Maryland about three years ago.

Ive been a Maryland resident my whole life, and it just wasnt working, Donovan said, explaining his frustration with Annapolis before Hogan was elected. We needed change.
William A. Richardson, a retired Army major who died Nov. 29 at 94, began his military career as a mounted soldier in one of the Armys last horse cavalry units. He ended his service as a civilian officer in the Army Intelligence and Security Command, an agency that gathers and processes vital information and intelligence for military and civilian leaders.

As a teenager he built roads in Colorado with the Civilian Conservation Corps, a Depression-era agency of President Franklin D. Roosevelts New Deal.

In his early 20s he rode and groomed horses with the 7th Regiment of the Armys 1st Cavalry Division. He patrolled the U.S.-Mexico border and guarded bridges.

He was a true horse cavalryman, replete with Stetson, spurs, saber, and his trusty mount, a friend wrote of him more than 70 years later in a newsletter of the 7th Cavalry Association.

In retirement he made guitars.

There yet remained an element of romance and mystique in the horse cavalry when the future major was a raw recruit. World War II was already raging in Europe. There would be no place in the mechanized warfare of the 20th century for soldiers on horseback.

William Archie Richardson was born into a ranching family in Salida, Colo., on Jan 28, 1921. He joined the Army in 1940 at the age of 19, with two years in Civilian Conservation Corps behind him, mostly in Rocky Mountain National Park and Colorado National Monument.

An Army officer at the induction depot learned hed grown up on a ranch and suggested he ask for an assignment in the horse cavalry, which he did. He was sent to join the 7th Cavalry at Fort Bliss, Tex.

Included in the training exercises was target pistol practice while riding at a full gallop, Maj. Richardson later told his family. Many of the recruits were experienced riders, but not all. One man was so inept that he shot his own horse in the head while trying to practice marksmanship with his pistol.

The officers never groomed their horse and the senior non-commissioned officers exercised the same privilege, Maj. Richardson wrote in a family memoir.  The younger soldiers had to groom their own horse; probably one ridden by an officer or NCO, and then the packhorses . . . had to be groomed, too. . . . We had a saying in the cavalry  You ride one, lead two, and groom five. It wasnt too far from the truth.

In early 1943 the 1st Cavalry Division was deployed to Australia, but without its horses. The riders of that division became foot soldiers and trained as infantrymen.

He would serve in New Guinea, the Admiralty Islands and the Philippines, and was in Tokyo Bay when the Japanese signed the documents of surrender on Sept. 2, 1945, bringing the war to an end.

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He later was commissioned as an officer. In 1956 he was assigned to the Army Security Agency in Arlington, Va. He retired in 1961, then worked an additional 23 years as a civilian, retiring from the Intelligence and Security Command in 1984.

Survivors include his wife of 73 years, Eva Ulias Richardson of Warrenton, Va.; two daughters, Sherry Hume of Marshall, Va., and Carol Dandy of Annandale; four grandsons; and six great-grandchildren.

Maj. Richardson died at an assisted-living center in Warrenton. The cause was cancer, Carol Dandy said.

Maj. Richardson was a former president of the 7th Cavalry Association and the 1st Cavalry Division Association. In retirement, he attended a lutherie school and set up shop as a guitarmaker in the back yard of his home in Warrenton.
A Charles County government employee was charged with theft for selling off cleaning supplies at a reduced rate out of his home, investigators said Thursday.

The official, 51-year-old Eric Bernard Riley, headed the custodial department. Authorities said he would buy more cleaning products for facilities than needed and later sell them at a discount.

During an Aug. 5 search of Rileys Hughesville home, investigators found cases of cleaning supplies, toilet paper, dish soap and laundry detergent.

On Jan. 13, authorities issued a criminal summons charging the 51-year-old with theft over $10,000, according to a Charles County Sheriffs Office press release.

The investigation began in June 2015, after county government officials reached out to authorities about a possible theft scheme involving Riley, investigators said. Detectives said he would steal cleaning products by alerting purchase orders that slightly increased the number of items needed at each county facility or by switching out the products listed on purchase orders, according to the release.

Authorities said detectives set up surveillance during the investigation, and Riley was the only county employee involved in the scheme.
Claims that forensic experts can match a bullet or shell casing found at a crime scene to a specific weapon lack a scientific basis and should be barred from criminal trials as misleading, a D.C. Court of Appeals judge wrote this week.

The opinion, by Associate Judge Catharine Easterly, is not binding on criminal prosecutions in D.C. Superior Court, where firearms and ballistics evidence have been introduced in scores of violent felony cases in recent years. But it continues a nationwide push for heightened scrutiny of forensic techniques and testimony relied upon in thousands of criminal convictions.

[Forensic techniques are subject to human bias, lack standards, panel found]

Easterlys opinion came in response to an appeal brought by Marlon Williams, 36, of Southeast Washington. He argued that his murder conviction in the 2010 fatal shooting of Min Soo Kang, 37, of Fairfax County should be overturned because, among other things, a D.C. police forensics expert improperly declared a unique match between bullet slugs recovered from the victims car and a handgun found in Williamss bedroom.

Those markings are unique to that gun and that gun only, Luciano Morales testified, according to court filings. Item Number 58 fired these three bullets, he told the jury, referring to the handgun by its trial exhibit number.

Prosecutors with the U.S. attorneys office for the District called the error regrettable, acknowledging in 2011 court filings that forensic practitioners should not state conclusions to an absolute or 100% scientific certainty. Prosecutors also told the Court of Appeals that the policy barring those 100 percent conclusions in firearms examination cases had been in place since about 2009, predating the testimony delivered at Williamss trial.

The error is more than regrettable. It is alarming, Easterly wrote in a concurring opinion to the decision of the three-judge panel published Thursday.

Easterly likened claims of a one-to-one match of bullet to gun to the vision of a psychic, a statement of foundationless faith in what he believes to be true.

To uphold the publics trust, the District of Columbia courts must bar the admission of these certainty statements, Easterly wrote. We cannot be complicit in their use.

Because Easterlys statement was delivered in a concurring opinion, it does not carry the force of law. Easterly noted that only one state supreme court, in Massachusetts, and no U.S. Court of Appeals expressly limits testimony by firearms examiners, despite extraordinary criticism of its validity from legal scholars.

At trial, Williamss defense lawyer at the time, failed to object to the testimony from Morales.

Absent that objection, Easterly  a former public defender appointed by President Obama to the D.C. Court of Appeals in 2011  wrote, We could only reverse if the law were clear that the expert could not make these statements. District law does not have that clear prohibition, she said, but it should.

Williams failed in his bid to have his conviction overturned, with Easterly writing a majority opinion joined by Associate Judge Phyllis D. Thompson and Senior Judge Frank Q. Nebeker.

Easterlys opinion comes as a national commission appointed by Obama to improve forensic science in the criminal-justice system weighs whether to recommend far-reaching changes to some forensics.

[U.S. to commit scientists and new commission to fix forensic science]

In her concurring opinion, Easterly noted that the policy shift that prosecutors tracked to about 2009 came after two National Research Council panels reported in 2008 and 2009 that there is no statistical basis to determine how often bullets fired by different weapons might look alike, or even whether a firearm makes a unique, reproducible mark.

Many scientists also have questioned the reliability of other identification claims made based on subjective analysis of hair samples, bite marks, burn patterns or firearms. Such pattern-based forensic analysis and testimony have long been admitted by courts and championed by law enforcement officials, who say when performed and described correctly, they can yield valuable evidence.

[FBI admits flaws in hair analysis over decades]

In an interview, Williamss attorney for the appeal, Enid Hinkes, said, Judge Easterlys concurring opinion is an accurate statement of the science  or the lack of it. But, unfortunately, it was not translated into action.

Hinkes said she intends to seek a hearing before the full appeals court for Williams, who is at the U.S. Penitentiary Hazelton in Bruceton Mills, W.Va.

Bill Miller, a spokesman for the U.S. attorneys office, said it is reviewing the ruling and had no comment beyond what the office stated in its court filings.

In court papers, prosecutors said pattern-matching remains widely accepted by scientific practitioners and courts.

Current policy calls for testifying to matches on bullet-gun markings to a reasonable degree of scientific certainty, not to an absolute certainty. Moraless testimony violated that policy, prosecutors said in their appeals court files, but said the error was harmless given the evidence in the case.

The office declined to provide information about often such errors in testimony occur or about how it enforces the policy.
D.C. police are investigating a fatal shooting that occurred Friday morning near Mount Vernon Square in Northwest Washington, according to a department spokesman.

The shooting occurred about 10 a.m. in the 400 block of M Street NW. Police said the case is being investigated as a homicide. Police would only say the victim is an adult male. The incident was in an area a few blocks east of the convention center and near New York and New Jersey avenues.

D.C. Police Cmdr. Stuart Emerman, who heads the Third District, wrote on the departments Internet bulletin board that at this time, we do not believe this to be a random incident.

Rachelle P. Nigro, an advisory neighborhood commissioner for the area, said police told her the shooting occurred inside an apartment building.

Police released no other details but said more information would be available later Friday afternoon. It is the Districts fifth homicide of this year. There were seven at this time in 2015.
Laurabeth Womack died from a Fentanyl overdose in 2013. The drug was provided in a roundabout way by Robert Everett Bonner Jr. (U.S. District Court)

The way federal prosecutors tell it, Robert Everett Bonner Jr. was a prolific sex trafficker, prostituting more than 55 women and girls as part of one of the largest such ventures law enforcement has ever discovered in Virginia.

Bonner, 34, ruled with deceit, coercion and intimidation, prosecutors said. He recruited women with the promise of a better life, then got them hooked on drugs so he could more easily control them, they said. He used sodomy as a form of punishment, took away the womens cellphones and IDs so they could not escape, and, in one case, had someone deliver a Fentanyl patch on which a prostitute overdosed, they said.

Authorities in Stafford County encountered Bonner during a prostitution sting at the Days Inn hotel in Fredericksburg in 2013, and, after a lengthy investigation, he was charged federally the next year.

On Friday, a federal judge in Alexandria sentenced him to 30 years in prison for his role in a prostitution ring that operated along the East Coast, authorities said. Prosecutors had asked for the stiff term and noted that had he not agreed to plead guilty in the case, they would have argued for a life sentence.

The venture was not simply a small-time, neighborhood operation by a part-time pimp, prosecutors wrote. It was a well-managed, financially-lucrative, interstate enterprise designed to maximize profits and evade detection by the police.

[Gangs in Northern Virginia increasingly selling children for sex]

Sex-trafficking cases are startlingly prevalent in Northern Virginia. In another recent example, a 20-year-old Annandale member of the 18th Street gang admitted as part of an agreement with prosecutors that he had prostituted a teenager  with whom he had a sporadic sexual relationship  to pay back a drug debt.

Andrew M. Stewart, Bonners defense attorney, argued in a court filing that his client deserved a sentence of 22 years. He wrote that Bonner was not as violent as some of his counterparts in the prostitution ring and that he had accepted responsibility for his actions and acknowledged that it is a terrible life for everyone involved.

Bonner, Stewart wrote, has two children, and his friends and family members describe him as a wonderful and caring father and friend who regularly takes the time to help those in need. He wrote that Bonner had used drugs from an early age and turned to prostitution to make money after he was laid off in 2011. The Fredericksburg man worked before that in restaurants, operating a laser printer and sealing driveways, his attorney wrote.

Prosecutors took a different view of the case. Bonner, they said, was one of the leaders of a sex-trafficking enterprise that operated from New York City to Alexandria to Louisiana and many other spots in between. The umbrella venture, prosecutors said, was called, Horse Block Pimpin, although Bonner dubbed his particular part Ace Block Pimpin. Bonner and others, they said, recruited women whose phone numbers appeared on backpage.com, then kept them in the enterprise with violence, threats and coercion.

Prosecutors said Bonner specialized in sex trafficking women who had substance abuse issues, often getting them addicted to drugs and cutting off their supply if they balked at his demands. In one instance, prosecutors said, Bonner told his girlfriend to deliver a Fentanyl patch to a woman he was prostituting at a hotel in Spotsylvania County in 2013. That woman, 21-year-old Laurabeth Womack, died of an overdose.

Womacks father, Greg Womack, wrote in materials quoted by prosecutors that every day he relives the phone call by which he found out his daughter was dead.

I hoped I would see Lolo running up to me, telling me one of her funny stories that made me grin, Womack wrote. But my beautiful, happy little girl is dead. She will never do any of those things again.
Dwellie Shanks, 98, a retired painter, pooh-poohed the whole storm thing. "There's always something," he said. His daughter, Clara Shanks, 62, who lives in College Park, was staying for the weekend to help him because his aide could not make it. (Tara Bahrampour/The Washington Post)

In all her 96 years, Evlyn Bradley couldnt remember a storm causing so much worry. She had figured shed be fine on her own for the weekend, though the aide who usually comes to care for her wouldnt be able to make it.

But this storm, everyone told her, was different.

I was just talking to my cousin; she wants me to leave and come to their house, the retired schoolteacher said, nestled in front of her television in a bright red fleece robe late Friday morning. They want to send a car for me, but I want to stay here. Im just more comfortable at home.

Crystal Randolph, assistant manager coordinator for Seabury Resource for Agings home-delivered meals, shook her head. She had just delivered two meals to Bradley, but there was more at stake than just food.

I dont think you should be here by yourself, Randolph said. What if the power went out? What if there was no heat? If nobody can get to you then nobody can know if anything is wrong.

Bradley was one of 407 District customers who received their Saturday meal deliveries on Friday, with 7 drivers starting an hour early to get done before the snow began to fall. Seabury customers, who are 60 and older and often low-income, usually receive meals four days a week. With Fridays delivery, and five additional emergency meals they are given in advance, they would be set for a few days even if roads were blocked.

The nonprofit, which also provides affordable housing, transportation, and other services to over 15,000 older adults and family caregivers around the metropolitan area, is funded in part by the District of Columbia through its Office on Aging. But on Friday and Saturday, its transportation service to bring people to medical appointments, including kidney dialysis and cancer treatments, was suspended.

This is the first time in recent memory that the service has been closed, and this is because of the dire conditions predicted, said Deborah Royster, chief executive officer. The safety of our customers is paramount. She said service would be resumed as soon as the streets were safe.

Driving around Ward 4, where hardly any vehicles were out other than a salt truck, Randolph was not only delivering meals. She also offered an extra eye, to see that people were okay, an extra ear to hear if anything was wrong.

Dwellie Shanks, 98, a retired painter, pooh-poohed the whole storm thing. Theres always something, he said, wrapped in a blanket next to the radiator as he watched an old black-and-white movie in the house hes lived in 60 years. Ive seen just about everything. Im trying to get a 5-cent nap. At 100 years old you dont pay nothing no mind.

He didnt need to, because his daughter, Clara Shanks, 62, who lives in College Park, was staying for the weekend. He has home health aides, but theyre not going to be able to make it, she explained. I just hope we dont lose power.

Barbara Rowe was less sanguine. At 83, she has a raft of illnesses that make it hard for her to get out of her chair, let alone down the stairs, and she was not sure her aide would be able to get there. If she couldnt, Rowe said, Theres nothing I can do. Just wait. Because I cant walk.

She had never been in this situation before, because it hasnt snowed like this. Sitting in her upstairs bedroom with an oxygen tube in her nose, she had counted her medications. She had enough to last five or six days. The aide Friday aide was leaving early to make it home before the storm. Before she leaves, Ill get her to bring me something up here.

Returning to the central office in the early afternoon, Randolph called Ward 4 to report on Rowes situation. Normally, they would get in touch with the aides agency and see what was going on. In all her seven years on the job, Randolph had never known them to close because of the weather. But today was different.

They were gone by the time I got back, Randolph said. Now, Rowe would have to wait until Monday, possibly with no aide to help her over the weekend.

Evlyn Bradley, however, wouldnt be alone. I called her and she called me back and to tell me she was going to her cousins, Randolph said. They were on their way to pick her up.

Outside, the snow began to fall lightly.
Thousands of people participated in the 2014 March for Life, commemorating the Roe v. Wade ruling. This year, evangelicals are joining in the march. (Nikki Kahn/The Washington Post)

Jim Daly is president of Focus on the Family, one of the countrys biggest and best-known evangelical organizations, a group that considers opposing abortion one of its very top values. Yet Friday will be the first time Daly has come to Washington for the huge March for Life, the countrys biggest antiabortion event each year. March attendees are always overwhelmingly Catholic, but this year an influx of evangelicals will be joining them on the Mall.

Daly co-sponsored the brand-new Evangelicals for Life event, held Thursday and Friday, part of an effort to refocus a generation of young Christian conservatives who have been brought up to prioritize opposition to same-sex marriage, terrorism and, more recently, immigration.

Evangelical leaders say the time is right because the antiabortion cause was given a huge boost by the release last summer of undercover Planned Parenthood videos aimed at showing the group selling what filmmakers called baby body parts. The new effort also comes during a divisive political season for conservatives during which concepts of pro-life are under debate, and aims to steer the focus back to abortion.

[Meet the millennial who infiltrated the guarded world of abortion providers]

The evangelical community needs to recognize what the Catholic community has been doing for four decades. . . . Its critical for evangelicals to wake up to that commitment, Daly said Thursday at the two-day conference at the Hyatt Regency on Capitol Hill. Its unfortunate its taken 40 years for us to do that.

Southern Baptist leader Russell Moore  who also co-sponsored the new effort  said the reaction to the videos was a sobering moment for the antiabortion movement.

The moment of the videos demonstrated that there were many Americans willing to turn their eyes away from what they revealed. They showed the pro-life movement what were up against in terms of the conscience of the nation, he said.

[Who is Russell Moore?]

Evangelicals have long been opposed to abortion. Just 33 percent say abortion should be legal in all or most cases  one of the very lowest rates among U.S. faith groups and far lower than the 48 percent of Catholics who say the same. Twenty-five percent of Americans are evangelical Protestants, the countrys largest faith affiliation.

But some leaders fear that evangelical support for antiabortion activism may be shallow. They note that most of the rock stars of the antiabortion movement are Catholic, such as Lila Rose, James OKeefe and David Daleiden, who have made undercover videos aimed at discrediting abortion providers.

The videos show Planned Parenthood employees casually discussing financial compensation for fetal tissue donations. While activists claimed that the footage proved Planned Parenthood was illegally selling fetal parts for profit, no congressional and state investigations have corroborated the claim.

The reasons evangelicals havent been joining Catholics in public activism recently are theological, cultural and political.

Evangelical Protestants were deeply anti-Catholic, Moore said.

Some thought, whatever Roman Catholics were for, we should be against, he said. Evangelicals were also divided among themselves on abortion into the 1980s; Catholic teaching has always been opposed. And evangelicals are more politically conservative and come at abortion opposition with a different language. Catholics have long spoken of abortion as a social justice cause not unlike fighting poverty, while evangelicals saw the issue through an individual morality lens and were wary of Catholic language that to them sounded liberal, said Karen Swallow Prior, a professor at Liberty University who spoke at the new evangelical event.

Prior has been a movement activist since the late 1980s and said that the present feels as if its a key moment for evangelicals. When antiabortion figures such as Religious Right leader Jerry Falwell and clinic-protester Randall Terry of Operation Rescue faded and laws about protesting at clinics became more restrictive, evangelical public efforts went behind the scenes and into churches, she said. Other issues got more attention among evangelicals, she said, such as religious liberty and same-sex marriage.

The Evangelicals for Life event, the leadership of someone as prominent as Moore and the interest in the Planned Parenthood videos reveal a new era, she said. Many abortion opponents think the videos were the most important thing to happen to the movement in decades.

I see this as a symbolic reemergence of the pro-life philosophy as a public touchstone within evangelicalism, Prior said.

There is also a pragmatic political reason to organize around abortion: Its something that unites most religious conservatives at a time of intense infighting.

Matt Lewis, an evangelical political commentator who has written Too Dumb to Fail about schisms in American conservativism, said the push to refocus evangelicals on abortion is telling. The Republican Party, he said, is becoming divided between people who focus on issues such as opposition to immigration and refugees and who use what Lewis calls culture war language, and those who are compassionate conservatives talking about human dignity. Focus on abortion now falls into the latter camp, he said.

Theres a lot of soul-searching of what the conservative brand will be, and a re-ordering. Evangelicals are a huge part of that, Lewis said.

Polls show, however, that the issue of abortion is not a top priority for voters  even those who strongly oppose the practice. Fears of terrorism and economic inequity have pushed it down the list.

What impact the Evangelicals for Life campaign will have isnt clear. The conference, which organizers plan to hold annually, had about 500 people registered. There are many thousands who attend the march, which is identifiably Catholic, with nuns and priests in their garb, people praying the rosary and Catholic schoolchildren in matching T-shirts.

Theres no evidence evangelicals get abortions at a lesser rate than other women. According to the Guttmacher Institute, which gathers information on abortion, seven in 10 women who get abortions identify as Christian, and a quarter go to church at least monthly.

Asked what the general mood is among abortion opponents in 2016, Moore said: As they say on Facebook: Its complicated. 

The March for Life, he said, gives attendees a huge infusion of energy because its so large and so young. There have been recent legal victories in various states, and abortions are becoming increasingly rare in the United States. But Moore thinks that much of the country overall responded to the Planned Parenthood videos with a shrug.

Younger evangelicals  like younger Catholics  have been pushing to expand the pro-life label to include causes such as combating sex trafficking, promoting racial justice, and caring for orphans and foster children. This attracts more people but can be divisive.

The challenge was on display at a major conference of young evangelicals last month, when an African American keynote speaker called the antiabortion movement a big spectacle for not focusing more on racial justice.

The broadening of pro-life to include opposition to the death penalty is a particularly tough issue for politically conservative evangelicals. And some evangelicals are also pushing for mandatory coverage of fertility treatment, while others disagree with that effort.

The Evangelicals for Life event embodied that growing diversity of issues with speakers whose expertise includes disability advocacy, fatherhood and hunger.

Dean Inserra, lead pastor of City Church in Tallahassee and a speaker at Evangelicals for Life, said this year is his first March for Life. The tone among evangelicals around abortion has changed, he said.

In the past I feel it was seen more as a war, a battle. Today instead its a mission field, a ministry. We have to be pro-life also for the woman who just walked out of the abortion clinic, pro-adoption, pro-K-12 education, pro all these things. But unless were first pro-life in the womb, we have no credibility to be pro-life in other ways.
Marylands highest court ruled Friday that homeowners along a wooded trail planned for a light-rail Purple Line cant claim ownership to part of the trail theyd long considered part of their yards, saying the land has always been intended for public use.

The ruling against a Chevy Chase resident who argued that he owned a 14-foot strip of trail land because it had been fenced into his back yard for decades marks a victory for Montgomery County. The decision means the county wont have to re-purchase land from property owners who have argued that they took adverse posession of land along the trail shoulders by building there when it was owned by a freight railroad company.

The county bought the trail land from a freight railroad in 1988 for $10 million to preserve it for a transitway. Its now planned for use as the western three-mile segment of a 16-mile light-rail Purple Line. The decision comes as the county recently ordered about 80 property owners to remove their fences, sheds and other structures from the trails shoulders by April 30, as the states Purple Line project moves closer to construction.

[The legal arguments in the Purple Line fence case]

Patrick Lacefield, spokesman for Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett (D), said of the ruling, We are pleased that the court agreed with our perspective.

The county fined the Chevy Chase resident, Ajay Bhatt, $500 in 2013 after citing him for building his six-foot-high wooden fence in the public right of way. Bhatt fought the citation, arguing that previous owners of his home had taken adverse possession of the 14-foot strip by having a fence in the same location since at least 1960.

A District Court judge upheld the citation before a Circuit Court judge overturned it in December 2014, ruling that Bhatt could prove an adverse possession claim. The county appealed the Circuit Court ruling to the high court.

Bhatt said Friday that he was disappointed and believes his fence was the countys first target because of his activism against the Purple Line route. Bhatt is president of Friends of the Capital Crescent Trail, a citizens group that has filed a federal lawsuit opposing the light-rail alignment along the trail between downtown Bethesda and Silver Spring.

The most regrettable fact about this entire dispute is the appearance that I was selected because of my activism to save the trail, as it has been a de facto park for over 20 years, Bhatt said.

The Maryland Transit Administration plans to build the Purple Line between Bethesda and New Carrollton to connect neighborhoods in Montgomery and Prince Georges counties with Metrorail lines and Amtrak and MARC commuter rail stations. The county plans to rebuild the recreational trail, known as the Georgetown Branch Trail, alongside the train tracks, but thousands of mature trees will be cut. If the state secures $900 million in federal funding, it plans to begin Purple Line construction later this year or in early 2017 and open the line to service in 2021.

[How the fence fight started]

In the 22-page opinion written by Judge Glenn T. Harrell Jr., the Court of Appeals said Bhatts fence case hints at plenty of potential trouble for the Purple Line and the recreational trail. The court described both as a pair of public works projects . . . cherished by the government and some citizens of Montgomery County. The Court of Appeals found that railroad lines, even ones that are privately owned, legally have been considered devoted to public use, akin to highways. Because no one may claim adverse possession to such public land, the court said, the previous owners of Bhatts home could not have assumed ownership of the trail land from the freight rail company.
A man dressed as Continental Army officer walks through the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, near Burns, Ore., on Jan. 10. (Rick Bowmer/AP)

ENVIRONMENT

Challenge to Clean Power Plan rejected

In a big victory for the Obama administration, a federal court on Thursday rejected a bid by 27 states to block its Clean Power Plan, the centerpiece of its strategy to combat climate change by reducing carbon emissions from power plants.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued a brief order denying an application seeking to stay the rule while litigation continues.

In October, the states, led by West Virginia, and several major business groups launched the legal challenges seeking to block the administrations proposal to curb emissions of carbon dioxide from power plants.

More than a dozen other states and the National League of Cities, which represents more than 19,000 U.S. cities, filed court papers backing the Environmental Protection Agencys rule.

The rule aims to lower carbon emissions from the countrys power plants by 2030 to 32 percent below 2005 levels. It is the main tool for the United States to meet the emissions reduction target it pledged at U.N. climate talks in Paris last month.

1 of 34 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  What it looks like at the armed occupation at a wildlife refuge in Oregon View Photos Activists protesting federal land use in the West and the arson convictions of two local ranchers are occupying part of a national refuge in southeastern Oregon. Caption The armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge ended after 41 tumultuous days, as the final occupants surrendered. Cliven Bundy, father of the groups leader and himself a veteran of armed standoffs, was arrested as he arrived in Portland. Feb. 11, 2016 Ammon Bundy's attorney Mike Arnold, second from left, walks at the Narrows roadblock near Burns. Ore. The last four occupiers of a Malheur National Wildlife Refuge surrendered to authorities. The holdouts were the last remnants of a larger group that seized the wildlife refuge nearly six weeks ago, demanding that the government turn over the land to locals and release two ranchers imprisoned for setting fires. Thomas Boyd, The Oregonian/AP Wait 1 second to continue.

The court action means the regulation remains in place, but it is not the final word in the legal fight. The appellate court has to hear oral arguments June 2 and decide whether the regulation is lawful.

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick J. Morrisey (R) said the states will consider asking the Supreme Court to take a second look at whether to freeze the regulation.

 Reuters

GEORGIA

Officer indicted in unarmed mans death

An Atlanta area grand jury on Thursday indicted a police officer who fatally shot an unarmed naked man on charges including felony murder, aggravated assault and violating oath of office.

The decision came after DeKalb County prosecutors presented their case against Officer Robert Olsen, who fatally shot Anthony Hill on March 9 while responding to a call of a naked man behaving erratically outside a suburban Atlanta apartment complex.

The family of the 27-year-old Hill says he was a U.S. Air Force veteran who struggled with mental health problems.

DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James said a warrant had been issued for Olsens arrest and he expected the officer to be taken into custody Thursday evening.

Daniel Holtzclaw, center, a former Oklahoma City police officer who was convicted of raping and sexually victimizing eight women on his beat, is escorted from the courthouse after his sentencing. (Steve Gooch/AP)

Olsen was indicted on two counts each of felony murder and violating oath of office and one count each of aggravated assault and making a false statement.

Olsens attorney, Don Samuel, said they are disappointed in the grand jurys decision, but he noted that the defense was not allowed to present any of its witnesses, experts or evidence and also was not allowed to challenge any of the prosecutions evidence.

 Associated Press

OKLAHOMA

Ex-officer gets 263 years for sex assaults

A former Oklahoma City police officer convicted of raping four women and sexually assaulting several others while on duty was sentenced Thursday to 263 consecutive years in prison, the maximum allowable sentence.

In December, an Oklahoma City jury found Daniel Holtzclaw, 29, guilty on 18 of 36 charges of sexual assault, including rape. The sentence was handed down by District Judge Timothy Henderson and came after victims told the court on Thursday that the former officer had destroyed their lives.

Prosecutors said that Holtzclaw preyed on women who had trouble with the law and forced them into sex, hoping their word would not hold up against his in court.

Holtzclaw, who did not testify at his trial, was fired in January 2015 after approximately three years on the job.

 Reuters

F-16 crashes in Arizona: An F-16 fighter jet from Luke Air Force Base near Phoenix crashed Thursday in a remote area of northwestern Arizona, and officials said there was no immediate word on the fate of the pilot. The crash happened about 8:45 a.m. in rugged terrain near Bagdad in Yavapai County, Luke officials said. Luke is a major pilot-training base for the Air Force and foreign military services.

 From news services
The interior ministry said officers, who were seeking to apprehend 'Muslim Brotherhood terrorists', attempted to defuse a bomb but were unsuccessful

Ten people, including seven policemen and three civilians, were killed in an explosion Thursday evening as security forces attempted to raid a suspected militant hideout in Giza, prosecutor Ahmed El-Tamawy told Aswat Masriya.

Earlier in the everning the Ministry of Interior had said that the policemen and other victims were killed or injured as officers attempted to defuse a time-bomb during the raid on an apartment in Marioutiya where suspected Islamist militants were believed to be staying.

The explosion left 13 injured, two of whom are in critical condition.

A civilian who lived in the building was killed in the explosion, and two charred bodies were found inside the apartment, according to the ministry's statement.

It is yet unclear whether any of the those reportedly hiding in the apartment were injured, killed or captured.

The killed policemen include Lieutenant Mahmoud Abu El-Maged of the Central Security Forces and low-ranking policeman Sherif Ibrahim.

Lieutenant Colonel Mohamed Amin, the head of investigations department at Haram police station, was among those reported injured.

In recent months, Egyptian security forces have carried out several raids on apartments where suspected or fugitive Islamists militants were reportedly either hiding or preparing for terrorist operations. These raids have often ended with suspects killed by police, who say they were met with gunfire upon arrival at the hideouts.

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EGYPT

As revolt anniversary looms, dissent targeted

Authorities in Egypt have intensified a crackdown on dissent ahead of the anniversary of the countrys 2011 Arab Spring uprising on Monday, with police raiding apartments to unearth any signs of plans for protests and checking social media accounts.

Security forces have questioned residents and searched more than 5,000 homes in central Cairo as a precautionary measure in the past 10 days, seeking to ensure that Egyptians do not take to the streets, as they have so many times in recent years, senior security officials said Thursday.

Surveillance and intelligence was gathered over months, focusing on young, pro-democracy activists inside and outside the country, including foreigners, one of the officials said. He added that some people have been detained.

Earlier Thursday, an Egyptian affiliate of the Islamic State militant group asserted responsibility for an attack on a checkpoint in the Sinai Peninsula that killed five police officers. The claim was made in a statement circulated by the groups sympathizers on social media.

The attack occurred in the city of el-Arish and also wounded three officers, authorities said.

An Aymara man holding a Wiphala flag is silhouetted against an early morning sky as he waits for the arrival of Bolivia's President Evo Morales to take part in an Andean ritual honoring the 10 years Morales has served as leader of the South American country, at the archeological site Tiwanaku, Bolivia. (Juan Karita/AP)

 Associated Press

MIDDLE EAST

Settlers take over buildings in West Bank

Dozens of Jewish settlers took over a number of Palestinian buildings in the heart of the West Bank city of Hebron on Thursday, Israeli officials said, a day after Israel approved the expropriation of about 370 acres of land in another part of the territory.

Police said about 100 settlers entered three empty stores. Israeli media said settlers entered two buildings near a shrine holy to both Jews and Muslims.

Zeev Elkin, a pro-settler lawmaker from the ruling Likud party, said the settlers entered houses that were bought legally, a claim that could not be independently verified.

Hebron, where 850 Israeli settlers live in heavily guarded enclaves surrounded by tens of thousands of Palestinians, is a frequent flash point for violence.

Earlier Thursday, Israel said it revoked the residency rights of four Palestinians living in Jerusalem and said to have carried out deadly attacks against Israelis.

Jerusalems Palestinians largely have not sought Israeli citizenship and instead hold residency status. This is the first time Israel has revoked residency rights since the start of a four-month-long outburst of violence.

 Associated Press

2nd Ebola case emerges after outbreaks declared end: A second case of Ebola has emerged in Sierra Leone after health officials thought the epidemic was over, with a close relative of the first victim testing positive for the virus, which has killed more than 11,000 people. A Health Ministry spokesman said the new patient was one of the people who had prepared the initial victims body for burial. The 22-year-old died in mid-January. The virus transmission had previously appeared to have stopped.

12 migrants drown off Turkey in rough weather: Turkeys coast guard said 12 migrants drowned after a boat taking them to the Greek islands capsized in rough weather. The coast guard said 26 others were rescued off the Turkish Aegean resort of Foca. The state-run Anadolu Agency said security forces detained two alleged human smugglers. About 40 migrants have died this year off Turkeys coast while trying to cross into Greece, the coast guard says.

2 held in Belgium over possible links to Paris suspects: Belgian authorities said two men with possible links to suspects in the November attacks in Paris that killed 130 people have been detained. The federal prosecutors office identified the two as a Belgian national named Zakaria J. and a Moroccan national named Mustafa E. They were picked up in police raids in the Molenbeek area of Brussels.

At least 3 killed in Somalia attack: A suicide car bomber rammed the gates of a restaurant near a beach in Somalias capital before gunmen fought their way into the building in an attack claimed by an Islamist extremist group that killed at least three people, a police official said. The assailants may have taken some hostages inside the restaurant, popular with Mogadishus elite and with government officials, Capt. Mohamed Hussein said. The group al-Shabab asserted responsibility for the attack.

9 reported killed in strikes on Yemeni oil facilities: Airstrikes by Saudi-led forces allied with the government hit oil facilities in Yemen, killing at least nine people, according to workers and medics. Four soldiers died in a suspected militant attack in eastern Yemen. Meanwhile, the Qatar-based Al Jazeera network said it has lost contact with one of its correspondents, Hamdi al-Bukari, who it suspects has been kidnapped in the city of Taiz in central Yemen. Several journalists have been killed, detained or expelled amid Yemens civil war.

 From news services
A member of the National Students Union of India is detained by police during a protest against the death of Rohith Vemula in New Delhi, India, Friday. (Altaf Qadri/AP)

YEMEN

Saudi-led airstrikes reported to kill dozens

The Saudi-led military coalition carried out a series of airstrikes across Yemen on Friday, killing dozens and striking an ambulance for a hospital supported by the international medical charity Doctors Without Borders, according to Yemeni officials, rebel media and a statement by the charity.

The intense wave of airstrikes came as the Qatari-based Al Jazeera network said three of its journalists had been kidnapped in southern Yemen.

Doctors Without Borders said the ambulance driver was killed Thursday in an airstrike on the northern town of Dahyan. The town is part of Saada province, the stronghold of Shiite rebels who control much of the country, including the capital, Sanaa. The rebels, known as Houthis, said that airstrikes in Dahyan killed 26.

In Sanaa, officials said that 22 people were killed in strikes that targeted the mountain of Nahdeen, believed to house weapon caches. In Dhamar, Taiz, and Jawf, similar airstrikes targeted gatherings of Houthis and allied army units. In the port city of Hodeida, at least 10 civilians were killed when airstrikes targeted trucks carrying smuggled oil from the port, according to officials.

 Associated Press

The 1st Battalion of The Royal Welsh's newest recruit before a passing out ceremony at the Officer's Mess at Lucknow Barracks, on January 22, 2016 in Wiltshire, England. (Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

TUNISIA

President warns of Islamic State inroads

Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi warned that Islamic State militants in neighboring Libya could use the unrest that has spread to cities and towns around Tunisia to sneak into the country.

But he also sent citizens an upbeat message, vowing that we will get out of this ordeal.

Caid Essebsi spoke on national television Friday night for the first time since the unrest began nearly a week ago.

He said the government would put in place a program to try to ease the jobless rate, which has spurred the crisis. He also told foreign partners that Tunisia will move forward with the democratic process it has engaged. But he told citizens that the Islamic State group in Libya at our border finds that the moment is opportune to infiltrate into Tunisia.

 Associated Press

HAITI

Presidential election on hold indefinitely

A looming presidential election in Haiti that had already been postponed once and faced deep public skepticism was put on hold indefinitely Friday as the countrys leaders sought to negotiate a resolution to what could soon become a constitutional crisis in the impoverished country.

The Provisional Electoral Council decided to postpone Sundays election because there is too much violence throughout the country, Pierre-Louis Opont, president of the body that oversees elections, said at a news conference in Port-au-Prince, which had been rocked in recent days by opposition protests calling for a halt to the vote.

In announcing its decision, the council did not set a new date for the election. It also did not say whether an interim government would take power after Feb. 7, when President Michel Martelly is required to leave office.

 Associated Press

Investigate mass graves, former Burundi leader tells U.N.: Members of the U.N. Security Council should help investigate allegations of mass graves amid a wave of extrajudicial killings in Burundi, a former president said Friday as council members visited the turbulent African country and met with its current president. Council members must not listen to any more excuses from the Burundi government, because President Pierre Nkurunziza has failed to protect Burundians. With the formation of armed rebellion, Burundi is headed for destruction, Jean-Baptiste Bagaza told the Associated Press.

 From news services
On Oct. 28, 2009, President Barack Obama, reacts with the mother of Matthew Shepard, Judy Shepard, second from left, and James Byrd Jr.'s sisters, Louvon Harris, left, and Betty Byrd Boatner, second from right, during a reception commemorating the enactment of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/Associated Press)

The writers are founders of the Matthew Shepard Foundation. Judy Shepard is the foundations president; Dennis Shepard is a board member emeritus.

Despite recent advances in many areas of federal law, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning  known collectively as LGBTQ+  Virginians still lack essential protections under state-level hate-crimes laws. Fortunately, the General Assembly will soon have an opportunity to correct this long-standing oversight, in the form of bills introduced by Del. Richard Rip Sullivan (D-McLean) and Sen. Barbara A. Favola (D-Arlington) . The legislature should pass these bills without delay.

To some, this might seem like insignificant legislation. But after spending nearly a decade to accomplish the same efforts at the federal level through the law that bears the name of our son Matthew, who was killed for being gay, we plead for others to embrace the opportunity this offers to improve public safety for the LGBTQ+ community and those perceived to be members of the community.

Despite the gap in the law, some local and state law enforcement agencies in Virginia voluntarily document, report and investigate hate crimes committed because of sexual orientation or gender identity bias, even though Virginia law does not require them to do so. Passing these bills would ensure that these voluntary practices become mandatory. The updated, inclusive language would serve as a reminder to those entering the police force that LGBTQ+ people continue to be singled out and targeted because of whom they love and how they identify.

Unfortunately, we cannot rely solely on voluntary compliance if we want to combat hate crimes. A proper, all-inclusive hate-crime reporting statute is necessary to achieve equality, acceptance and preventative measures against these crimes.

In 2009, we joined President Obama as he signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act into law. It took more than a decade after Matt was killed in a brutal anti-gay hate crime for federal laws  put in place to properly document the specificities of these crimes  to recognize that those of a certain sexual orientation, gender, gender identity and/or disability were frequent targets of hate crimes.

The importance of this level of visibility cannot be overstated. These crimes, violent or otherwise, are not happening to others but to our friends, family members, neighbors and co-workers. They are happening in the shared spaces of our schools, workplaces and neighborhoods. To deny the inclusion of LGBTQ+ people in the language of a law put in place to better document and prevent these types of hate crimes is to allow for hate to continue. It also allows those in power to consider the people who make up this community second-class citizens and treat them as such.

Theres a pattern of reluctance when Virginias General Assembly seriously considers any piece of legislation involving sexual orientation or gender identity, both for and against the community. Sadly, weve seen the same pattern in our home state of Wyoming. But there simply shouldnt be political controversy about acknowledging that violence is happening against certain people, and that Virginia should be working to uniformly document those cases. Inclusive language is not promoting a lifestyle; its treating all citizens, no matter who they are, equally under the law. Its discouraging hate and violence in all forms.

Everyone has a sexual orientation, a religious identity, an ethnicity, a race and a gender identity. No one should fear being attacked for such personal qualities. People should not fear reporting hate crimes because the law doesnt recognize them as victims. Its time that all people are included in Virginias hate-crimes statute.
James W. Loewen, emeritus professor of sociology at the University of Vermont, is the author of Lies My Teacher Told Me and The Confederate and Neo-Confederate Reader.

The United States is entering the sesquicentennial of Reconstruction, that period after the Civil War when African Americans briefly enjoyed full civil and political rights. African Americans  200,000 of them  had fought in that war, which made it hard to deny them equal rights. Unlike with the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, however, few historic places tell us what happened during Reconstruction. They could: Every plantation home had a Reconstruction history, often fascinating, but these manors remain frozen in time around 1859. They tell a tale of elegance and power, and Reconstruction was the era when that power was challenged. Moreover, it is still true, as W.E.B. Du Bois put it in Black Reconstruction 80 years ago, that one cannot study Reconstruction without first frankly facing the facts of universal lying. Here are five common fallacies that Americans still tell themselves about this formative period.

1. Reconstruction was a failure.

This view came to dominate public thinking from 1890 until about 1940, when world events and the Great Migration began to reshape the countrys perception of race and racism. During this period, known by historians as the nadir of race relations, white Americans became incredibly racist. Communities across the North became sundown towns that banned African Americans (and sometimes Jews and others) after dark. Beginning with Mississippi in 1890, every Southern state instituted literacy tests and poll taxes to effectively remove African Americans from the citizenship they were supposed to have been guaranteed by the 14th Amendment . Reconstruction was portrayed during this era as a terrible time, especially for whites but really for everyone, a failure of a government propped up only by federal bayonets. No people were ever so cruelly subjected to the rule of ignorant, vicious and criminal classes as were the southern people in the awful days of reconstruction, the New Orleans Times-Picayune proclaimed in 1901.

Some people today even think that Reconstruction was an effort to physically rebuild the South, rather than to aid its political reentry into the Union. In 2013, for example, the Smithsonian American Art Museum mounted a huge exhibit, The Civil War and American Art. Reconstruction, the museum claimed, began as a well-intended effort to repair the obvious damage across the South as each state reentered the Union. The curator said that the rebuilding soon faltered, beset by corrupt politicians, well-meaning but inept administrations, speculators, and very little centralized management.

On the contrary, former Confederates saw Reconstruction as a problem precisely because it was succeeding. New Republican state administrations passed popular measures such as homestead exemption laws that abated taxes on residences, making it harder for people to lose their homes. They also repaired roads and bridges and built new schools and hospitals. Soon, Republicans were drawing 20 percent and even 40 percent of the white vote and almost all the black vote. Democrats grew desperate. After abortive attempts to win black votes, they resorted to intimidation and violence. These tactics were central to the restoration of white Democratic rule across the South by 1877. And thus Reconstruction ended, but not because it failed.

2. African Americans took over the South during Reconstruction.

The official Mississippi history textbook used in the ninth grade across the state in the 1960s flatly declared Reconstruction a period of Carpetbag and Negro Rule. This propaganda was effective: When I asked a seminar of black freshmen at Tougaloo College near Jackson, Miss., in 1969 what happened during Reconstruction, 16 of the 17 students said blacks took over the governments of the Southern states, but because they were too soon out of slavery, they messed up, and whites had to take control again. In 1979, after I moved to Vermont, I was stunned to hear the minister of the largest Unitarian Church there repeat the same summary in a sermon.

This alleged black dominance supposedly made Reconstruction a time of terror and travail for white Southerners. The Mississippi history textbook put it baldly: Reconstruction was a worse battle than the war ever was. Slavery was gone, but the Negro problem was not gone. Fear of black domination is still pervasive among white supremacists ; note Dylann Roofs statement to black churchgoers in Charleston, S.C., as he shot them: You are taking over our country.

But in fact, the terror and travail during Reconstruction happened mostly to African Americans and their white Republican allies. In Louisiana in the summer and fall of 1868, white Democrats killed 1,081 people, mostly African Americans and white Republicans. Around the same time in Hinds County, Miss., whites killed an average of one African American a day, especially targeting servicemen. Whites mounted similar attacks across the South.

Far from suffering under black dominance, all of the Southern states had white governors throughout Reconstruction. All but one (South Carolina) had white legislative majorities. Mississippis Constitutional Convention of 1868 is still called the Black and Tan Convention, but only 16 of its 94 delegates were black. Of course, a government that is 17 percent black looks black to people used to the all-white governments before and after.

3. Northerners used Reconstruction to take advantage of the South and get rich.

Many Americans still learn this canard, epitomized by the term carpetbaggers.

The story  as exemplified in the 2011 edition of the textbook The American Journey  is that fortune-hunters from the North arrived with all their belongings in cheap suitcases made of carpet fabric. Penniless, they would then make it rich off the prostrate South. John F. Kennedy said in his Pulitzer Prize-winning book Profiles in Courage, No state suffered more from carpetbag rule than Mississippi.

The first clue that this view might be far-fetched comes from the fact that the economies of most Southern states were in ruins. Fortune-seekers will go where the money is, and it was not in the postwar South. Instead, immigrants from the North were mostly of four types: missionaries bringing Christianity (and often literacy) to newly freed people; teachers eager to help black children and adults learn to read, write and cipher; Union soldiers and seamen who were stationed in Mississippi and liked the place or fell in love; and would-be political leaders, black and white, determined to make interracial government work.

4. Republicans waved the bloody shirt to hide their lack of substantive policies.

Waving the bloody shirt has come to mean trying to win votes through demagoguery  blaming opponents for things they didnt do or did long ago. Its first use of this sort refers to Republicans blaming Democrats for the carnage of the Civil War years after it ended. Kennedy made this claim in Profiles in Courage, writing that Republican leaders . . . believed that only by waving the bloody shirt could they maintain their support in the North and East, particularly among the Grand Army of the Republic. In his 2005 biography of Republican politician John A. Logan, Gary Ecelbarger accuses Logan of waving the bloody shirt beginning in 1866 and for decades to come.

Actually, the bloody shirt was a real shirt, owned by a white Republican, A.P. Huggins. He was superintendent of the Monroe County Public Schools, a majority-black school system in Aberdeen, Miss., and took his job seriously. White supremacist Democrats warned him to leave the state, but he refused. On a March evening in 1870, they went to his home, rousted him from bed in his nightshirt and whipped him nearly to death. His bloody shirt was taken to Washington as proof of Democratic terrorism against Republicans in the South.

The violence decried happened during Reconstruction, not the Civil War, so it was not anachronistic. Nor was it demagogic to use the phrase (or wave the shirt); violence at Southern polls posed a real issue  indeed, the most important issue in the United States at the time.

5. Republicans gave up on black rights in 1877.

Every textbook says the Compromise of 1877 meant that the federal government would no longer attempt to . . . help Southern African Americans, to quote The American Journey. Violence was averted by sacrificing the black freedmen in the South, according to another textbook, The American Pageant.

Republicans did eventually abandon civil rights, but not right after the Compromise of 1877 effectively ended Reconstruction. Until 1890, African Americans still voted across Dixie. In his inaugural address in 1881, Republican President James A. Garfield said: The elevation of the Negro race from slavery to the full rights of citizenship is the most important political change we have known since the adoption of the Constitution of 1787. No thoughtful man can fail to appreciate its beneficent effect upon our institutions and people. . . . So far as my authority can lawfully extend they shall enjoy the full and equal protection of the Constitution and the laws.

As late as 1890, Republicans in Congress almost passed the Federal Elections Act, which might have given some force to the 15th Amendments voting rights provisions. President Benjamin Harrison had argued for such a measure the previous year . After the act failed to pass, Democrats, as was their custom, tarred Republicans as a bunch of n----- lovers. In the past, Republicans replied that what white supremacists did to black voters in the South was an outrage, but now they were silent, choosing to move on to other issues.

After that, each succeeding Republican president was worse on civil rights than his predecessor. With the nomination of Barry Goldwater for president in 1964, the GOP switched sides entirely, appealing now to conservative white Southerners. They have been its core constituency ever since.

Today, we have a black president, but in some ways, we still have not surpassed the level of interracial cooperation we attained during Reconstruction. On Aug. 3, 1870, for example, A.T. Morgan, a white state senator from Yazoo City, Miss., married Carrie V. Highgate, a black teacher from New York, in Mississippi, and continued winning elections. In the North, not a single suburb of Chicago kept out African Americans in 1870. Today, Kenilworth, Ill., its richest and most prestigious, has not a single black household, in keeping with its founders decree back in 1889. Today, Republicans make it harder for African Americans (and students and poor people) to vote, just as Democrats did after 1890, albeit on a smaller scale.

The tragedy of Reconstruction is not that it failed but that its successes were curtailed and then later reversed. Correcting the myths about this era will help us as we try to build better race relations today.

Twitter: @JamesWLoewen

Five myths is a weekly feature challenging everything you think you know. You can check out previous myths, read more from Outlook or follow our updates on Facebook and Twitter.
Both an ISIS-affiliated group and another militant group in Egypt have claimed responsibility for the bombing that took place in Giza governorate's Haram district on Thursday, killing at least 10 people.

In a statement issued on Friday and published on its alleged Twitter accounts, Sinai-based Ansar Beit Al-Maqdis "ABM" claims that 10 Egyptian police personnel were killed when they entered a "booby-trapped" house in Marioutiya Thursday night.

An hour after the announcement by ABM another militant group called "Revolutionary Punishment" claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement released on Facebook.

The group claimed that it lured police to the apartment at which point two of its members carried out a suicide bombing which killed a former state security police officer, among others.

According to the official statement of Egypt's prosecution, ten people, including seven policemen and three civilians, were killed in the explosion.

The ministry of interior also stated that policemen and other victims were killed or injured as officers attempted to defuse a time-bomb during the raid on an apartment in Marioutiya where suspected Islamist militants were believed to be staying.

The explosion left 13 injured, two of whom are in critical condition.

According to the ministry's statement, a civilian who lived in the building was killed in the explosion, and two charred bodies were found inside the apartment.

"Revolutionary Punishment" apologised in its statement that civilians were killed in the attack, vowing to compensate them as well as vowing for more operations against security forces in the future.

The militant group emerged earlier this year, claiming responsibility for attacks on mobile phone shops and banks across the country, as well as attacks against police officers.

Ansar Beit Al-Maqdis, a Sinai-based militant group has already claimed responsibility for most of the attacks against security forces in North Sinai. It also claimed responsibility for the bombings of security directorates in Cairo and Dakahlia.

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Steve Vladeck is a professor at American Universitys Washington College of Law and editor of the Just Security website. Benjamin Wittes is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and editor of the Lawfare website.

This month marks both the 14th anniversary of the opening of the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and the seventh anniversary of President Obamas commitment to close it within a year.

More than 90 men remain in military detention at the remote naval base, with no sign that Congress and the president are anywhere close to agreement on what to do about them  or, at least, those whom the government wont transfer to other countries.

We have a simple proposal to square the circle of reasonable, if conflicting, congressional and presidential concerns.

The principal legal obstacle to closing Guantanamo is a series of statutory prohibitions on moving detainees into the United States, which the Obama administration does not seem likely to violate. The debate over whether the president can or should close Guantanamo by executive action is an interesting one, but he wont actually do it. The main political obstacle to closing Guantanamo is a fundamental disagreement over whether military detention should be a legally available option  not just for those already in custody, but for future terrorism suspects. No, this isnt really about whether the United States can securely detain terrorists on U.S. soil without a mass breakout.

Obama has refused to send new detainees to Guantanamo, and because the United States has no other facility that can be used for such long-term detention, closing Guantanamo would mean that the United States would effectively make future detention impossible. Meanwhile, many Republicans in Congress wont agree to relax the transfer restrictions without some commitment to forward-looking detention authority. Since many Democrats equate closing Guantanamo with ending military detention, they wont agree to a deal that allows the former without accomplishing the latter. With closing Guantanamo meaning such different things to these different constituencies, compromise has proved impossible.

We, too, differ on the need for (and wisdom of) future detention authority. But we agree that there is a formula for closing Guantanamo without settling the question one way or the other  and, thus, a way for bipartisan majorities in both houses of Congress to pass a bill that would cut Guantanamos Gordian knot. The compromise we envision has five relatively straightforward components:

First, it would authorize the executive branch to transfer all remaining detainees to a specific civilian or military federal prison facility within the United States, with a ban on release from that facility except (1) pursuant to a judicial order or (2) for the purpose of transferring them to the custody of a U.S. court or a foreign sovereign.

Second, it would provide that any person convicted by a military commission would serve his sentence at the same facility.

Third, regardless of where the facility were located, the bill would provide that the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia would continue to exercise jurisdiction over all civil actions, including habeas petitions, filed by detainees transferred to that facility from Guantanamo.

Fourth, the bill would provide that it had no effect whatsoever on substantive law, including the legal authority to subject terrorism suspects to military detention under other statutes, such as the September 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force and the fiscal 2012 National Defense Authorization Act.

Fifth, it would declare that this same facility would be the permanent site for any future detentions under those statutes.

Such a bill would thus do nothing to limit the military detention either of the remaining Guantanamo detainees or future terrorism suspects properly subjected to such confinement. It would expressly preserve existing detention authorities and even streamline judicial review of such detention by channeling all claims into the D.C. federal courts  where all of the Guantanamo litigation has been taken, and where there are already numerous precedents concerning the scope of the governments detention authority and the procedural and evidentiary rules that apply in such cases.

No matter what happens with most of the Guantanamo detainees, the government will need somewhere to detain at least those who are properly convicted by military commissions, so merely providing a facility for such detention would not in any way ratify some broader authority to detain other terrorism suspects.

Such a law would give both sides big wins. It would allow the president to finally close Guantanamo and distance the United States from the historical and political baggage associated with it. But it would also allow Republicans to claim that they had established a permanent site for future detentions. Obama is not going to engage in any of those future detentions, but such an approach would mean that future presidents and Congresses would have a site available if they went in a different direction on that question.

Its a compromise that wouldnt make anyone happy, which is exactly why Congress and the president should pursue it.
Klaus Schwab, the founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, speaks during the 46th annual meeting of the group in Davos, Switzerland. (Jean-Christophe Bott/EUROPEAN PRESSPHOTO AGENCY)

For the past 15 years, the mere mention of the word China has brought smiles to the faces of the global business executives who gather here annually for the World Economic Forum. This year, with Chinese stock and currency markets in turmoil, it brings a chill.

China, long described as an economic miracle, has become a contagion, setting off negative shocks in markets around the world. A correction in perceptions of China was overdue, but financial markets this month have probably been overreacting on the downside, just as they did on the way up. Chinas fundamentals arent really any different than they were a month ago.

The issue is not whether markets bounce up and down  of course they do, for China and everyone else  but whether Chinese officials are willing to let the numbers bounce, said one top financial official attending the conference. This official said that if Chinese leaders are wise, they will stick to the free-market reform agenda  and let the markets do the work of pruning excess industrial capacity and overborrowing among state-owned enterprises.

Every time the Chinese seem to be intervening to prop up their currency or cover over bad loans, investors get the jitters. Theyve gone from irrational exuberance about China to a suspicion that Beijing is cooking the books.

A surprise this year has been how much the perception of a slowdown in China has rocked U.S. financial markets. Only about 25 percent of the U.S. economy is tied to trade, which makes the country much less vulnerable than most other nations to a softening in Chinas demand for imports. The fundamentals of the U.S. economy seem relatively strong, too, but that hasnt prevented psychological contagion from infecting Wall Street.

Given the worries about the debt bubble in China, its reassuring that U.S. and most European banks have cleaned up their balance sheets after the financial panic of 2008. U.S. banks have more capital, less leverage and less risk than they did before our bubble economy burst  thanks in part to reforms enacted by Congress. China will probably have to go through a similar, wrenching process of deleveraging, but the end result will be beneficial.

One boost for healthier capital markets in China is the Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) that Beijing and Washington are negotiating. Talks have continued this month even amid the economic turmoil  a sign that Chinas leaders are serious about fully joining the global financial system, bumps and all. The whole structure of the BIT is about moving government out of the management of the economy, and were making progress, Michael Froman, the top U.S. trade negotiator, said in an interview here.

If China were a consumer brand, it might be comparable to Chipotle restaurants, which overnight went from having a reputation for healthy, wholesome food to coping with customer complaints about getting sick. Rebuilding a brand takes time  but most of all, it takes transparency that can reestablish trust.

You cant paper over the issues, said David Sable, the global chief executive officer of the advertising firm Young & Rubicam. For the past 25 years, his company has conducted an annual survey that measures the brand reputations of countries, as well as consumer products.

Brand China scores high in power and influence, Sable said, and its rated by millennials as the best country in the world in which to start a career. But it ranks below average among the 60 countries surveyed in terms of its business and political transparency, legal system, corruption and government bureaucracy. Those negatives hurt, now that the China bubble has burst.

Economists are sometimes slow to recognize what advertisers know instinctively, which is that perceptions matter. The great insight of John Maynard Keynes was that while financial markets are shaped by the fundamentals of real economic activity, they are ultimately driven by psychology. When investors feel buoyant, they ignore negative signals. When they get scared, they overlook the positive.

This was a week when the usual upbeat Davos assessments of the global economy were tempered by fears  about China, the Islamic State and the future of Europe. We are living in a world that in many ways is falling apart, said Klaus Schwab, the impresario of the World Economic Forum and normally an implacable optimist. But in the next breath, he hailed a ray of hope in the movement toward an accord in the intractable, and obscure, negotiations between Greek and Turkish Cyprus.

Hope springs eternal in the mind of Davos Man. But so, too, does fear.

Read more from David Ignatiuss archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
Aditi Sriram teaches at the State University of New York at Purchase and lives in New York City. She is writing a biography of Pondicherry, a South Indian city that was colonized by the French.

In Bad News, Anjan Sundaram writes that a storys first paragraph should contain the essential information and grab the reader, yet be brief. His own first sentence does just that: I felt swallowed by the wide road, the odd car hurtling uphill, the people hissing on the sidewalk bathed in sodium-vapor orange  a tick-tock had gone off in my mind since the bomb.

Its succinct eloquence shows more than it tells. Writing of his experience running a journalists training program in Kigali, Rwanda, Sundaram captures the quiet menace of his surroundings: The wide roads indicate progress but are in fact devoid of any life. The people scurry out of the perfectly sculpted streetlights sodium-vapor glare, afraid of attracting attention. And the bombs are immediately hushed up by the government, too quickly for anyone to notice, let alone write about in a newspaper.

Sundaram, an award-winning reporter focused on Africa, is ideally placed to refute a narrative of harmony in the years since Rwandas genocide. He begins his book by following the journalists in his classroom who are, in turn, following various stories in Rwanda: genocide memorials, presidential campaigns. About halfway through the book, the sequence eerily reverses; the stories are now following the journalists  and silencing them. The effect is haunting. As one journalist, named Gibson, laments, You need to look differently in a dictatorship, you need to think about how to listen to people who live in fear.

[Why do all these books abouy Africa look the same?]

Gibsons journey demonstrates the tragic arc of free speech in a country where expression is stifled. In a span of 180 pages, the talented journalist starts a magazine, irritates the government, loses his home, is betrayed by his best friend, goes into hiding and, by the final pages of the book, is a destroyed man. The government had not needed to kill him, Sundaram writes. They had just made him useless, ruined his mind, with the paranoia, by turning on him those he loved and trusted most, so that he had become a victim of that double world he had showed me, in the lights.

Sundaram is no longer the naive Yale graduate who landed in Congo nearly a decade ago to give a voice to the voiceless. His first book, Stringer: A Reporters Journey in the Congo (2014), was visceral, emotional reportage; Bad News feels measured, even mildly resigned, in comparison, the work of a journalist more inured to life under a corrupt regime. The title sets the tone, and the last line of the book, It was the end of freedom, is its echo.

Sundarams expose is courageous and heartfelt. When he stumbles upon a village where all the grass roofs have been torn off the huts, he looks for signs of violence but finds none. It turns out that the people destroyed their own homes because of a presidential order to modernize. Many elderly Rwandans and children have since contracted malaria, but the villagers are so filled with fear that they praise the government nonetheless  the president was a visionary for destroying these roofs, one woman says. It must have required a humiliation of some sort to say those words, Sundaram observes sympathetically.

Sundaram is thorough, even when the news is bad, and includes a 13-page appendix documenting journalists who have faced difficulties after criticizing the government of Rwanda. But he leaves little space for self-reflection, and readers may wonder if Sundaram himself fears for his life, as his students stop attending his class, go into hiding or are arrested. In writing this book Sundaram surely put himself at risk, and it is a testament to his bravery that he did so without drawing undue attention to its personal cost.

Read more: Best books of 2015
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan and his wife Yumi sit on board the L0 series magnetic-levitation (maglev) train at the Yamanashi Maglev Test Track in Japan. (Ko Sasaki/Ko Sasaki for The Washington Post)

When you think about commuting between the District and Baltimore, what comes to mind? For most people, the answer is congestion, delays and headaches. Now imagine riding on a futuristic train that floats on a cushion of electrons and can reach speeds of more than 300 miles per hour.

In recent months, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) has pushed the idea of building such a train, known as a magnetic levitation train, or maglev. Hogan rode a demonstration model on a trip to Japan.

The idea of super-fast commuting is enticing, but this proposal deserves a great deal of skepticism. Lets begin with cost. Initial back-of-the-envelope estimates place the construction cost of the maglev train at $10 billion, and the history of mega-projects strongly suggests that the final cost will be much higher.

While innovation is important, the expense of maglev raises serious questions about whether the benefits could ever outweigh the costs, especially if improvements to the Northeast Corridor would deliver similar mobility and economic development gains far more cost-effectively.

One of the most difficult aspects of any major transportation project is the acquisition of land on which to build. Unlike MARC and Amtrak trains, which operate on the existing Northeast Corridor, a maglev train would require new rights-of-way. And because maglev trains travel at such high speeds, they require routes that are straight and level, making passage along existing rail or highway corridors largely infeasible. As a result, the Maryland Transit Administration would have to acquire as much as 40 miles of land, relying on the contentious process of condemning private property through eminent domain.

Next is the issue of ticket cost. A one-way trip on MARC from Union Station in the District to Baltimores Penn Station costs $8, or about 20 cents a mile. Traditional high-speed rail service in Japan, an admittedly imperfect comparison, costs 40 cents a mile, twice as much. The cost of maglev tickets would likely be even higher in order to repay large project debts. That higher cost could put the service out of the reach of many commuters.

Hogan has tried to brush aside concerns over construction costs by claiming that private investors or possibly the Japanese government would provide a large share of the financing. This claim is highly problematic. For starters, private equity investors target returns of between 10 and 15 percent in transportation projects. And even if the U.S. or Japanese government extended lower-cost debt financing, repayment would still have to come from somewhere  from riders through high fares or subsidies from the state, or both. There is no free money.

All this raises an important question: Isnt there a more cost-effective way to improve rail service between Baltimore and the District? Unequivocally, yes. Two projects on the Northeast Corridor would allow for a significant expansion of MARC service, including more nonstop trips.

First, the Northeast Corridor between Baltimore and the District has only three tracks for the majority of the route. This limits the number of trains that can travel in each direction during the morning and evening peak commuting hours. Adding a fourth track would require some use of eminent domain, though nothing compared with a maglev line. Second, the two passenger rail tunnels in Baltimore are more than 140 years old and in need of replacement. A new four-tunnel system would double capacity and increase train speeds.

Completing these two projects would significantly expand commuter rail service and benefit millions of Amtrak riders along the Northeast Corridor, all for a fraction of the cost of a maglev line.

The Northeast Corridor is an incredibly valuable asset and a workhorse of Marylands transportation system. With meaningful investment, the corridor can produce even greater economic, social and mobility benefits for decades to come.

Instead, Hogan has used his first year in office to kill the Red Line in Baltimore and slash state support for the Purple Line in Montgomery and Prince Georges counties under the convenient banner of fiscal belt-tightening, only to pivot to an exorbitantly expensive, white-elephant, hovering train.

Hogan should prioritize cost-beneficial investments in feasible projects that will bring real benefits to the state.

The writer is director of infrastructure policy at the Center for American Progress.
WHILE IT has not gained much attention in the United States, Brazil has been struck in recent months with an outbreak of Zika virus that has infected hundreds of thousands of people. Most of the time the symptoms are mild and flu-like, but in some cases health officials say the virus has led to birth defects in babies born to women who were infected in pregnancy. The virus is spread by small insects such as mosquitoes or fleas, and there is no known vaccine to prevent infection.

The Zika story might seem easy to dismiss if one is not living in Brazil. Is this just another unpleasant headline about misery far away?

Not quite. In the aftermath of the mishandled and tardy reaction to the Ebola epidemic in West Africa in which more than 11,000 people died, an independent and authoritative commission was set up in the United States to look ahead and draw lessons from this and other recent waves of infectious disease. The 17-member Commission on a Global Health Risk Framework for the Future issued its final report on Jan. 13, and the panels conclusions are a wake-up call about the threat of pandemic disease that could originate almost anywhere and spread everywhere. Despite all the advances of science, the global community has massively underestimated the risks that pandemics present to human life and livelihoods, the group declared. There are very few risks facing humankind that threaten loss of life on the scale of pandemics.

The 1918 influenza pandemic killed anywhere from 50 million to 100 million people; in catastrophic mortality events since 1900, only World War II caused more deaths. Since it first appeared, HIV/AIDS has killed more than 35 million. Although the tolls have been far lower, five outbreaks in the past 15 years have been worrying: severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS; two influenza waves, H5N1 and H1N1; Ebola; and Middle East respiratory syndrome, or MERS.

As the world becomes more globalized with the movement of goods and people, as climate change disrupts the environment, and as pathogens move between humans and animals, cocktails of infectious disease will form, spread and sicken. Already a dozen cases of Zika virus have been reported in the United States, so far only among people who had traveled outside the country. The threat from infectious diseases is growing, the panel warns, adding that the conditions for infectious disease emergence and contagion are more dangerous than ever. Moreover, further outbreaks of new, dormant, or even well-known diseases are a certainty.

The commission insists that pandemic risks must be treated not as distant, unavoidable possibilities but as real national security threats. Just as nations invest in military preparedness, the panel says, so should they confront disease. In fact, this has been long neglected in many places. The panel calls for measures to bolster public health systems in individual countries; creating a rapid-response capability; strengthening the World Health Organization; and funding research and development of new therapies, all for about $4.5 billion a year. Thats the equivalent of three Powerball drawings like the one on the day of the panels report.
White House Chief Technology Officer Megan Smith (L) and Xerox Chairman and Chief Executive Ursula Burns onstage during Fortune's Most Powerful Women Summit in October. (Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Fortune/Time Inc)

In corporate and political America, women just cant win.

If youre tough and take charge, youre pushy, bossy, maybe even a bitch. If you stand aside and let others give direction, youre meek, weak, probably not leadership material.

Sometimes youre accused of being all these at once.

In a new survey of women in technology, 84 percent of respondents said theyve gotten feedback that they were too aggressive. Yet 53 percent also said theyve been told they were too quiet. A full 44 percent said theyve heard both that they were too aggressive and too quiet.

This is hardly the only double bind that women face in the workplace.

If youre a woman and you show emotion, youre fragile, dramatic, crazy. But if youre emotionally restrained, youre cold, heartless, maybe even stupid .

If you take generous maternity leave and carve out time for family responsibilities, youre insufficiently serious about your career. If, post-baby, youre back at the office too soon, youre a poor role model for colleagues yearning for a healthy work-life balance.

If you dont ask for a raise for fear of being disliked, your priorities are misplaced. If you promote yourself and demand that your work be recognized, youre punished for being unlikable and denied opportunities to advance.

If youre not sufficiently well-dressed, youre frumpy. But if youre too dolled up, youre vain and superficial. Witness one infamous tweet-shaming incident, in which a tech chief executive posted a snapshot of a conference attendees stilettos alongside the hashtag #brainsnotrequired.

If youre unattractive or overweight, youll be ignored. But if youre babealicious, youre suspected of getting by on your looks. At a professional event a few years ago, a male journalist Id just met told me I was lucky to be pretty, but not too beautiful. This meant Id go far, he explained, but only because, you know, the rest of the journalism industry is so sexist.

Its not hard to find anecdotes of similarly unattainable standards imposed on American women (and that men, more often than not, are exempted from; can you imagine 84 percent of men in any industry being told they were too aggressive?). Ask your female colleagues if you dont believe me.

Or look to the past few election cycles.

Few women find themselves more tormented by impossible, Goldilocks-like expectations than female politicians, given their very public roles and the huge numbers of people judging them against wildly different benchmarks.

Research has shown that the public expects politicians and other leaders to be tough and strong, while women are generally associated with traits such as compassion and warmth, notes Kelly Dittmar, a political scientist at Rutgers University and a scholar at the Center for American Women and Politics. These conflicting stereotypes mean that virtually any female politician, exhibiting virtually any behavior, may be seen as either not woman enough or not politician enough. Or both.

Some manage this delicate balance better than others. Sarah Palin, Dittmar observed, effectively portrayed herself as a pit bull [in] lipstick. Just feminine enough, just macho enough.

Others, notably the always-too-cold-yet-also-somehow-too-emotional Hillary Clinton, have struggled. In a rare moment, Clinton even acknowledged this  during, of all things, a recent interview on Lifetime, the ultimate forum for showcasing ones softer side.

Here is my dilemma, Clinton said. Its really important not to wall yourself off from how you are actually feeling about what people say or how they treat you or how they treat somebody else that offends you or upsets you. But youre also as a woman in a high public position or seeking the presidency, as I am, you have to be aware of how people will judge you for being, quote, emotional. And so its a really delicate balancing act.

She noted that other female politicians also fret over how to thread the needle: We all talk about the same challenges, which is how you navigate what is still a relatively narrow path, to be yourself, to express yourself, to let your feelings show, but not in a way that triggers all of the negative stereotypes.

Its easy to tell Clinton to stop trying to calibrate her image so carefully. And its easy to tell professional women to stop obsessing over how theyre being judged; to cease whining and worrying; to stop expending so much energy fine-tuning every outfit or meeting comment; to stop getting distracted by things that dont matter and just deliver the goods.

Then we look around or watch cable news or hear what a boss or a colleague or a random stranger at a professional event tells us  and we learn something entirely different.
Sarah Palin joined Donald Trump on the campaign trail in Iowa to endorse his run for president on Tuesday, Jan. 19. (Whitney Leaming/The Washington Post)

Sarah Palin joined Donald Trump on the campaign trail in Iowa to endorse his run for president on Tuesday, Jan. 19. (Whitney Leaming/The Washington Post)

I love poetic justice. This wild and wacky Republican presidential campaign deserved Sarah Palin, and now its got her.

Palins endorsement of front-runner Donald Trump at an Iowa rally this week was a master class in surrealist poetry. Geniuses of the Dada movement would have been humbled by her deconstruction of the language and her obliteration of the bourgeois concept we call logic.

The GOP candidates have been competing to see who can spew the most nonsense, but theyll never top Palin. Not when she offers gems such as this: Believe me on this. And the proof of this? Look whats happening today. Our own GOP machine, the establishment, they who would assemble the political landscape, theyre attacking their own front-runner. . . . They are so busted, the way that this thing works.

Or this further excoriation of the party leadership: And now, some of them even whispering, theyre ready to throw in for Hillary [Clinton] over Trump because they cant afford to see the status quo go. Otherwise, they wont be able to be slurping off the gravy train thats been feeding them all these years.

[Opinion: For the sake of the GOP, both Trump and Cruz must lose]

Sarah Palin endorsed the Republican presidential front-runner on Jan. 19, but their friendship was built over years. (Peter Stevenson/The Washington Post)

Or this elaboration of the same theme: How bout the rest of us? Right-wingin, bitter clingin, proud clingers of our guns, our God, and our religions, and our Constitution. Tell us that were not red enough? Yeah, coming from the establishment. Right.

Or this exercise in random word choice: Well, and then, funny, ha ha, not funny, but now, what theyre doing is wailing, Well, Trump and his, uh, uh, uh, Trumpeters, theyre not conservative enough. 

Actually, I think the wailing from Republican grandees is more of a wordless primal scream. Palin claimed that media heads are spinning at her decision to campaign for Trump, but it would be more accurate to say that media feet are dancing at having such a rich source of new material.

I could quote Palin all day, but there are two substantive points about her dazzling intervention that I feel duty-bound to make. The first is political: Someday we might look back and say she was the one who pushed Trump over the top to win the nomination.

Thats not a promise, just a possibility. But Trumps campaign draws strength from its own momentum. If he can somehow manage to sweep the early primary states, outsider support may coalesce behind him  and the establishment candidates may be too shellshocked to effectively respond.

Polls show Trump holding big leads in New Hampshire and South Carolina. But first comes Iowa, where hes running neck and neck with Sen. Ted Cruz (Tex.). Given his overall strength, Trump could finish second in the Iowa caucuses and still capture the nomination. A win there, however, could boost his support in the subsequent contests and make it much harder for anyone to stop him.

[Opinion: The monumental fall of the GOP]

1 of 45 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  Trump captures the nations attention on the campaign trail View Photos The Republican presidential candidate and billionaire businessman promotes his recent endorsements. Caption Businessman Donald Trump officially became the Republican nominee at the partys convention in Cleveland. Donald Trump speaks at a campaign event at Trump Doral golf course in Miami. Carlo Allegri/Reuters Wait 1 second to continue.

Enter Palin. Republicans whom she appalls or embarrasses are not likely to vote for Trump anyway. But some tea party supporters who are leaning toward Cruz might be swayed by a clarion call from their movements Evita. All Trump needs to do is shave a few points off Cruzs vote to win a narrow victory, which could be enough to propel the populist billionaire to triumph in New Hampshire and beyond.

Here I must insert my standard disclaimer: Do not take as gospel anyones predictions this year, including mine.

The other substantive point I have to make about Palin has to do with a campaign speech she gave in Oklahoma for Trump the day after her endorsement. She was talking about the arrest of her son, Track, on domestic abuse charges after he allegedly fought with his girlfriend and threatened suicide by holding an assault rifle to his head.

My son, a combat veteran . . . was fighting for you all, America, in the war zone, Palin said. My son, like so many others, came back a bit different, they come back hardened.

Palin said not enough was done to treat the woundedness of returning veterans and charged that this failing comes from our own President [Obama].

Never mind that Track Palin served in Iraq and came home while George W. Bush was president. His mother was speaking for the large segment of the GOP base that brays against high taxes and big government, yet demands more services and opposes cuts in entitlements  which doesnt add up.

Ive said it before: With years of foolish rhetoric, the Republican establishment got itself into this mess. There may be no way out.

Read more from Eugene Robinsons archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook. You can also join him Tuesdays at 1 p.m. for a live Q&A.
Late Thursday night, National Review, the storied conservative magazine founded by William F. Buckley, published an issue denouncing Donald Trump.

Trump is a philosophically unmoored political opportunist who would trash the broad conservative ideological consensus within the GOP in favor of a free-floating populism with strong-man overtones, the editors wrote. Donald Trump is a menace to American conservatism who would take the work of generations and trample it underfoot in behalf of a populism as heedless and crude as the Donald himself.

The Republican National Committee reacted swiftly  immediately revoking the permission it had given National Review to host a Republican presidential debate next month. Tonight, a top official with the RNC called me to say that National Review was being disinvited, the magazines publisher wrote online. The reason: Our Against Trump editorial.

That soft flapping sound you hear is the Grand Old Party waving the flag of surrender to Trump. Party elites  whats left of the now-derided establishment  are acquiescing to the once inconceivable: that a xenophobic and bigoted showman is now the face of the Republican Party and of American conservatism.

[Lets not mince words: Donald Trump is a bigot and a racist]

1 of 12 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  Cutting ties with Trump: Who has dumped him and why View Photos The Republican presidential hopeful has faced an avalanche of criticism over his characterization of illegal immigrants as rapists, drug dealers and other criminals. Caption The GOP presidential hopeful has faced an avalanche of criticism over his characterization of illegal immigrants. Randal Pinkett, Tara Dowdell and Kwame Jackso Former "Apprentice" contestants Randal Pinkett, right, Tara Dowdell, center, and Kwame Jackson speak at a news conference in New York. The contestants claim that a great deal of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's conversation has been divisive and extremely dangerous for America. Pinkett, a business consultant who won the shows fourth season, said he is grateful for the opportunities that have come his way as a result of The Apprentice but added, because our allegiance to our country supersedes our relationship with Donald, we see today as an act of patriotism, not disloyalty. Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images Wait 1 second to continue.

In recent days, influential Republicans including Bob Dole, Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, RNC Chairman Reince Priebus, Rupert Murdoch and, as my Post colleagues reported, Rudy Giuliani and Rep. Peter King (N.Y.) have made noises about being able to stomach Trump. Republican donors are trying to insinuate themselves in the billionaires orbit. Trump himself said Thursday: I have received so many phone calls from people that you would call establishment, from people  generally speaking, conservatives, Republicans  that want to come onto our team.

The Wall Street Journal editorial page had long criticized Trumps candidacy, publishing an editorial in July arguing that the conservative media who applaud Trump are hurting the cause. The editors opined: If Donald Trump becomes the voice of conservatives, conservatism will implode along with him.

A week ago, the Journal reversed course. Mr. Trump is a better politician than we ever imagined, and he is becoming a better candidate, the editorialists wrote, speculating that he might possibly be able to appeal to a larger set of voters than he has so far.

I had been confident that Republican primary voters would reject Trump. I still think they would, if given the chance. But they havent been given a clear alternative. Because of Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, Chris Christie, John Kasich and the others selfishly refusing to unite behind any one of them, the anti-Trump vote has been scattered.

Instead, theyve let the GOP primary battle turn into a fight between Trump and Ted Cruz, and the partys old guard has decided Trump is marginally better because hes more malleable. That may be so; though both men are opportunists, Trump has reinvented himself utterly in this campaign and could attempt another transformation.

But how do you un-ring all these bells? Trump has in word and deed built his candidacy by antagonizing Latinos and Muslims, immigrants and women, Jews and African Americans, Asian Americans and the disabled. And if he walked away from his vows to deport 11 million illegal immigrants and to block Muslims from coming into the United States, hed abandon the source of his power: the rage of angry, less-educated white men.

[Editorial: For Republicans, bigotry is the new normal]

My colleague Michael Gerson, the former George W. Bush speechwriter, wrote that the nomination of Trump would reduce Republican politics  at the presidential level  to an enterprise of squalid prejudice. And many Republicans could not follow, precisely because they are Republicans. By seizing the GOP, Trump would break it to pieces.

But how many Republicans could not follow? Partisanship is now more important than any other factor in predicting Americans votes, which means there is little possibility of a Goldwater-style landslide against Trump. Republicans could nominate a ham sandwich and still get 45 percent of the vote.

Heck, Trump could even win  particularly if Democrats nominate a socialist to oppose him  but the only thing more likely to devastate the Republican Party and the conservative movement than a Trump wipeout in November would be a Trump victory. Either way, hed cement the Republican Partys long-term demographic problems and bind conservatism to bigotry and nativism.

This is why I wonder about the self-deception of those GOP elites now cozying up to Trump.

The Hill newspaper last week interviewed major donor Robert Bazyk, who decamped to Trump from Bush. The big spender objects to Trumps positions on refugees and Muslims, and his insults and name-calling. And yet he is funding the man.

If, in future years, Republicans and conservatives are called to explain how Trump happened, they might recall this: Good people could have stopped him, but they didnt.

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The claim in the Jan. 19 editorial Breaking up a liquor monopoly that privatizing alcoholic beverage distribution in Montgomery County would be a boon does not stand up to scrutiny. The editorial said that losing the $25 million that the system generates is not an insurmountable challenge because the county has managed bigger jolts to its revenue. Thats true, but those jolts were handled while the county was receiving that $25 million from liquor distribution. County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) had done an exemplary job of reducing expenditures and eliminating positions. To repeat the need for those drastic cuts is undesirable.

Virginia and Pennsylvania control alcoholic beverage distribution on a state level. Any complaints there?

About 18 months ago, I attended a program on privatization sponsored by the Montgomery County Taxpayers League. The speakers included a representative of a large retailer and the director of the county Department of Liquor Control. The room was packed, and a majority agreed that the current system should be continued.

I couldnt help but chuckle when the editorial said that the state could help with the revenue loss from ending the liquor monopoly by sharing money with the county. Thats because for every dollar in taxes Montgomery County sends to the state, the county gets 19 cents back.

Max Bronstein, Silver Spring

I know how to get Montgomery County out of the alcohol business and still return $25 million or more to the county. I owned and operated a Maryland liquor wholesale house (Wines Ltd.) for 25 years. I have been retired for 10 years.

At the end of each month, every Maryland wholesaler submits a report to the state showing the number of gallons sold into each Maryland county. At the end of the year, you know the total number of gallons that have been sold to Montgomery County. So, simply divide the amount of revenue you want in the coming year  in this case $25 million  by the total gallons and you know how much each gallon represents in dollars. Instead of Montgomery County making its $25 million from profits from the sale of alcohol, the county could apply a tax per gallon of liquor sold by each wholesaler on its sales into Montgomery County. It is a very simple solution.

If all the overhead costs were eliminated, imagine how much money could be raised, making the residents of Montgomery County much happier.

Believe me, every wholesaler in Maryland would welcome this if given the chance to sell directly to every licensee in Montgomery County.

Marvin Stirman, Silver Spring

As a consumer, I strongly disagree with the editorial Breaking up a liquor monopoly. Im not against competition on the wholesale side (and I do not have firsthand knowledge from the bar and restaurant business), but the Montgomery County liquor stores Ive visited have helpful, courteous and knowledgeable staffs. Ive received excellent service on numerous occasions. But even that is not the reason for my frequent and continued patronage. Its the prices!

As a comparison shopper who has bought in volume for many a church social, I find it hard to beat Montgomery County liquor stores sales. I also disagree with the conclusion that there are cross-border sales lost to the District and Virginia. The savvy, smart shopper would do the opposite and head to the nearest Montgomery County liquor store. Even my favorite big-box store, famous for its value and prices, has slightly higher prices than the county store.

So please dont use the words reviled and state that breaking up this monopoly would be a boon without qualifying for whom and adding that such a move would also mean higher prices for our favorite beverages.

Bob Klosowski, Cheverly

In describing the shabby service Montgomery Countys Department of Liquor Control provides, the editorial cited a Christmas disaster in which delivery problems left bars and restaurants high and dry for the holiday season. Dry, yes. High, not so much.

Greg Versen, Harrisonburg, Va.
Elaine Showalter is professor emerita and Avalon Professor of the Humanities at Princeton University.

On Dec. 15, 2015, after the Victoria and Albert Museum refused to accept the collection for its fashion archives, Margaret Thatchers clothes and memorabilia were auctioned by Christies. While the left-wing British press mocked the auction as a garage sale of tasteless old tat, it brought in nearly $5 million. Thatchers iconic handbags and her power suits were sold for prices up to 30 times their estimates. Political association pieces were in high demand. The ceramic bald eagle Ronald Reagan gave her sold for $390,000. Her red prime ministers dispatch case went for $355,000.

The auction was a telling microcosm of Thatchers heritage of international fame and British notoriety. Winning three consecutive elections for the Conservative Party between 1979 and 1987, and transforming a declining, economically troubled Britain with her energy and resolve, Thatcher is viewed by many as the greatest peacetime prime minister of the 20th century. As Charles Moore declares in the second volume of his monumental biography, she also was the first woman, in the whole of Western democratic history, who truly came to dominate her country in her time.

Yet she is still the most detested political figure of modern British history, always tagged (among the more printable terms) as the Iron Lady or TBW  That Bloody Woman. She was despised by British writers and intellectuals, from Alan Bennett to Hilary Mantel, whose 2014 story The Assassination of Margaret Thatcher zestfully imagines her killed by an Irish Republican Army gunman. As the novelist Ian MacEwan writes, We liked disliking her.

Moore is certainly on Thatchers side. Educated at Eton and Cambridge, he had a distinguished career in the Conservative media as the editor of the Spectator and the Sunday Telegraph. But he is both sympathetic and balanced, never a sycophant. The first volume of his authorized biography was hailed as masterly. In this volume, too, covering the period of her greatest power, 1982 to 1987, Moore combines massive research, prodigious depth of analysis and fascinating narrative detail. He gives us more than 700 pages of text but promises that the book will not be too heavy to read in bed. As a passionate Anglophile, I found it riveting, but I wouldnt advise anyone to risk concussion by reading it lying down.

Margaret Thatcher: At Her Zenith: In London, Washington and Moscow by Charles Moore (Knopf)

The most divisive event of Thatchers premiership was the miners strike of 1984-85. The National Union of Mineworkers, led by the belligerent Arthur Scargill, was prepared to threaten the nations energy supply to get higher wages, even if the miners had to endure the hardship of a long strike. Thatcher believed that the trade unions, which had staged recurrent strikes in the 1970s, could not be allowed to create chaos over every wage negotiation and that the coal-mining industry had to compete with other sources of power, including gas, oil and atomic energy. As the strike dragged on, there were violent clashes between the striking miners, the working miners and the police; Scargill sought money from Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi and the Soviet Union to keep the strike going. But finally the union gave in, and the Tory victory ended the long history of disruptive strikes in Britain.

The miners loss, Moore observes, allowed for the mythologizing of the strike by the left in movies like Billy Elliot. The Labour Party blamed Thatcher for what it saw as her ruthless destruction of the mining industry, her plot to crush the trade unions and her heartless indifference to the miners and their families. Moore shows that these accusations were untrue, but the strike was tragic whichever side you were on. The awful job of coal mining, the subject of British myth, ballad and literature, tugged at the heart. The miners emerged as martyrs, and Thatcher bore the brunt of public emotion over their defeat.

She continued the Tory policy of privatizing British industry, selling British Telecom, British Airways and British Gas, and enabling citizens to become shareholders and then property owners who could buy their government-owned housing. Harold Macmillan lamented that Thatcher was symbolically selling off the treasures of the great country houses of the nation: First of all the Georgian silver goes, and then all that nice furniture that used to be in the saloon. Then the Canalettos go. But privatization was mainly a successful policy that restored the British economy. Thatcher was a staunch believer in free enterprise and capitalist competition. She established working relationships with the Soviet Union, but she argued forcefully with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev about capitalisms superiority to Communism. (He retorted that Marx wrote Das Kapital in London, not Moscow.) She attempted to mediate between the Israelis and the Palestinians, but she also sold arms to the Saudis. Thatcher made decisions that would transform London: She presided over the Docklands development, launched the construction of the Channel Tunnel and supported the European Union. Her government permitted shopping on Sunday and abolished the left-wing Greater London Council, opening the way to mayoral elections. While academics and writers sneered at her intellectual credibility, she decided to build the splendid new British Library rather than try to patch up the old one in the British Museum.

Her stamina and courage were extraordinary. At 2:54 a.m. on Oct. 12, 1984, in the middle of the miners strike, the IRA bombed the Brighton hotel where Tory party leaders were gathered for their annual conference. Thatcher narrowly escaped death, while five people were killed and 31 injured. The next day she insisted on giving her speech. The IRA sent her a chilling message: Today we were unlucky, but remember, we only have to be lucky once. You will have to be lucky always. She never showed fear or changed her personal plans. And in 1986, she signed the first treaty of the Anglo-Northern Ireland Agreement, a forerunner of the peace process. 

And yet, with all her nerve and assurance, as a woman, Thatcher could not be forgiven for her successes. At the beginning of the book, Moore suggests that the pronoun she is where it all starts, and perhaps where it will finish. Thatcher became a mythological figure, the archetype of the strong woman,  and responses to her career and her policies were dismayingly linked to her sex. Her detractors caricatured her as prissy, bossy, a headmistress, everyones mother in a bad temper. One of her colleagues described her as actually repellent with her poisoned smile and didactic way.

Female detractors often accused her of being unfeminine, i.e., assertive, unemotional and tough. In January 1985, the Oxford faculty voted 738 to 319 to refuse giving her an honorary degree. Its distressing to read that no women spoke in the debate. Male politicians speculated that in meetings with male heads of state, she had a schoolgirl crush on the man or stars in her eyes. Even Moore suggests that she may have been intoxicated by Mitterands Gallic charm. When she is angry about a colleagues political betrayal, he calls her a woman scorned.

But the other side of the misogyny and sexism Thatcher had to endure is the exhilaration of her determination to persevere. Some still underestimate her importance and belittle her achievements. Moores superb biography sets the record straight.
ONE WAY to think about Russia today is not to focus solely on President Vladimir Putin but rather on his system. In the absence of democracy and rule of law, Mr. Putins realm is held together by powerful clans that depend on him and deliver what he needs. Some loyal businessmen and industrialists make up one part; the military and security services another; there are also bands of loyal politicians and bureaucrats. Among them all, hardly anyone holds a candle to Ramzan Kadyrov, the leader of Chechnya and Mr. Putins most aggressive attack dog.

After Russian forces quelled a rebellion in Chechnya with excessive force and extensive abuse of human rights, Mr. Kadyrov was installed as the Kremlins overlord of the internal republic, and he has performed with a special devotion to brutality. Torture and illegal detention have been rampant. Mr. Kadyrov assembled his own formidable security forces. He calls himself a patriot, a foot soldier of the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin. Russian authorities have prosecuted Chechens with links to Mr. Kadyrov for the murder of opposition leader Boris Nemtsov last year, although they have not traced the crime to Mr. Kadyrov personally.

Now, the attack dog seems to be unleashed. Mr. Kadyrov has written an article published in the daily Izvestia that pours scorn on the nonsystemic opposition to Mr. Putin and suggests it be punished. The term systemic opposition in Russia usually refers to the toadies and sycophants who support Mr. Putin. Mr. Kadyrovs sights are on everyone else who criticizes the president  and he named names, including prominent opposition figure Alexei Navalny and journalists for Echo of Moscow radio and Dozhd television, both progressive outlets. In the article, Mr. Kadyrov declares that there is a very good psychiatric hospital in Chechnya where we will not be stingy with injections to these critics. When they are prescribed one injection, we can give two. He says the opposition is a pack of jackals, bunch of traitors, Western lackeys, enemies of the people, haters of Russia, people who are trying to destroy our country and undermine its constitutional order. Stalin would recognize the language. Mr. Kadyrovs chief of staff drove the point home with a photo posted on social media of the Chechen leader holding back a massive Caucasian Shepherd dog named Tarzan, saying the beasts teeth itch.

This rhetoric is dangerous because it can arouse action. When Mr. Kadyrov says that critics of the Kremlin are engaging in a punishable criminal offense, what does he mean  and more seriously, what does he incite? Clearly, Mr. Kadyrov is jockeying for power, and the struggle is murky. But his words and deeds speak volumes about Mr. Putins rule. The Russian president seems to be unwilling or unable to restrain his attack dog, perhaps with the expectation that the threats will intimidate and frighten the opposition, just as Nemtsovs murder did. Mr. Putin has created a state based on the rule of the wolves, and they are running ever-more wild.
The Republican establishment  once seen as the force that would destroy Donald Trumps outsider candidacy  is now learning to live with it, with some elected and unelected leaders saying they see an upside to Trump as the nominee.

In the past few days, Trump has received unlikely public praise from GOP luminaries who said they would prefer him to his main rival, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas.

In private, some veteran conservative Republicans have been reaching out to Trump. And Trump himself called the ultimate establishment figure in Washington, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, for a talk late last year.

If it came down to Trump or Cruz, there is no question Id vote for Trump, said former New York mayor and 2008 presidential candidate Rudolph W. Giuliani, who has not endorsed a candidate. As a party, wed have a better chance of winning with him, and I think a lot of Republicans look at it that way.

This warming toward Trump comes after establishment favorites such as Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former Florida governor Jeb Bush have failed to reach the top tier. It signals that, among the partys entrenched elites, there is a growing fear that none of those candidates may be able to beat both Trump and Cruz.

Ted Cruz has been at odds with the Republican party establishment for most of his time as a senator  and that doesn't look likely to change soon. (Peter Stevenson/The Washington Post)

Many have decided that Trump  for all his faults  is better. For one thing, many Republicans in Congress especially despise Cruz, who has a history of picking long-shot fights and blaming other Republicans when he is unsuccessful.

Beyond that personal hostility, theres a political calculation. If Cruz is nominated, they say, he could alienate swing voters with his brand of scorched-earth conservatism. If hes elected, they fear, Cruz would shut Republican moderates out of power.

[Republicans now see a Trump-Cruz race]

Perhaps most notably, parts of the establishment are starting to think Trump can win.

Between Trump and Cruz, its not even close, said Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.), a longtime House moderate who has not endorsed a candidate. Cruz isnt a good guy, and hed be impossible as president. People dont trust him. And regardless of what your concern is with Trump, hes pragmatic enough to get something done. I also dont see malice in Trump like I see with Cruz.

This week, the New York Times quoted another major Republican figure  former Senate majority leader and presidential nominee Robert J. Dole  as saying he would prefer Trump to Cruz. Nobody likes him, Dole said of Cruz, adding that the senator would bring on a cataclysmic loss as the GOPs nominee.

But other Republicans still believe it is impossible to choose between the two, because they believe that either would be a disaster as the nominee  and that others can eventually rise.

1 of 53 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  Presidential hopeful Ted Cruz on the campaign trail View Photos The Texas Republican was the first major presidential candidate to formally declare a bid. Caption Looking back at the Texas senators presidential bid. May 3, 2016 Sen. Ted Cruz speaks with his wife, Heidi, by his side during a primary night campaign event in Indianapolis. Cruz ended his presidential campaign, eliminating the biggest impediment to Donald Trumps march to the Republican nomination. Darron Cummings/AP Wait 1 second to continue.

Whether you jump off a cliff or drive off a cliff, youre still off a cliff, said Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), who recently dropped out of the race and endorsed Bush.

In theory, that feeling  and the way that Trump and Cruz have torn each other down lately  could still provide an opening for a more centrist candidate. The problem is that there are at least four such contenders, and most of their advertising attacks have been concentrated on each other rather than Trump.

Cruz has tried to turn the situation to his advantage, alleging while campaigning in New Hampshire this week that the establishment was shorting Rubios stock and buying into Trump, who would deliver whatever the party elites desired.

Youre seeing the Washington establishment dumping their candidates, Cruz told Sean Hannity on his radio show. For example, a lot of the establishment had been behind Marco Rubio. Theyve decided now that he doesnt have a path to victory. Theyre moving to Donald Trump. Were seeing that more and more, and you know, its kind of curious. Donald is publicly boasting about how all the big establishment players are getting behind him.

Trump fired back Thursday at a campaign rally in Las Vegas, saying that Cruz was slimy and unpopular in the Senate, whereas he would be able to get things done.

I can tell you, they like me, those guys, Trump said. And theres nothing wrong with that, folks. Weve got to make deals. We dont want to sign executive orders. We want to make good deals.

Within much of the conservative movement, however, Cruz remains well liked and Trump is viewed warily. On Friday, two leading magazines of the conservative establishment will issue strongly worded articles denouncing Trump.

William Kristol, editor of the Weekly Standard, said in an interview that his publications anti-Trump editorial will call the front-

runner a confidence man. He urged conservatives who are talking themselves into supporting Trump to stop and think again.

Our presidents have been a mixed lot, but no true tin-pot Caesars have yet occupied the Oval Office. . . . Until now? Kristol writes in the editorial. Is the task of todays American conservatism to normalize Trump and Trumpism? Surely not.

At National Review, writer Yuval Levin said an anti-Trump manifesto in the magazine will argue that the billionaire is not a small-government conservative. Instead, Trump has called for huge new government projects, including a wall on the Mexican border and the mass deportation of millions of undocumented immigrants.

Trump is making the case [that] the answer for everything is good management, which ought to be a warning for conservatives, Levin said.

[Why the Republican establishment prefers President Trump to President Cruz]

But Tim Pawlenty, a former Minnesota governor and a 2012 presidential candidate, said that the light bulb has gone on for a lot of people, and it wasnt on a couple of months ago, that Trump might be the nominee.

Even though hes a billionaire from New York, he sounds and looks like somebody youd meet in the heartland whos ticked off about the economy and government, and he projects the strength that hed actually do something about it, Pawlenty said. He doesnt look and sound like all the other politicians who yap and yap and dont get anything done.

Some in the party have gone to talk to Trump, hoping that he will remember them and their ideas if he wins.

Its our job to nurture the candidates, to bring them into the fold, including Trump, said Arthur Laffer, a famed conservative economist who met with Trump in the fall. Laffer said he has met with Cruz, too.

Asked whether he would be willing to serve in a Trump administration, Laffer said, Im 75. If a Republican were to win, Id love to have the role I had with President Reagan, advising when I can on economics.

Trump himself has not changed much. He remains a living, breathing, shouting contradiction to many of the things the GOP elite believes in. He is opposed to the partys signature proposals to reduce Medicare and Social Security spending. His incendiary comments about undocumented immigrants from Mexico has upended the partys plan to attract Hispanic voters.

Yet among some in the GOP, theres a sense that the extreme rhetoric that has fueled Trumps campaign  including the comments about immigrants and his call to temporarily bar Muslim foreigners from entering the United States  is just talk. In a general election, they believe, he could say something different.

With Trump, hey, its just a deal, said Alex Castellanos, a longtime Republican strategist. The primarys one deal, thats done. If he were to be the nominee, the next deals a general [election]. You can see him saying, We had to do what we had to do to win the primary, but nows the general, and weve got to beat Hillary. You can see him pivot on a dime.

But with Cruz, oof, youre looking at a Republican Party that wouldnt win the vote of a young person, a young woman or a minority for a generation, Castellanos said.

[Cruz says the establishment has bailed on Rubio to get behind Trump]

Cruz is seen as inflexible  and inflexibly antagonistic toward most of his own party.

Trump does not have any particular enmities down here. I dont think anyone gets up in the morning and is irritated with him, former House speaker Newt Gingrich said in an interview. Thats not how it is with Cruz.

The animus toward Cruz in Republican circles can be traced back to 2013, his first year in the Senate. While Cruz had run a contentious primary campaign in 2012 against an establishment foe, it did not mark him as someone who would alienate party elders and he began as a star encouraged by the leadership.

That goodwill quickly evaporated as Cruz began to ignore his Republican leaders and stoke the GOP base about what he saw as the partys inaction and failure. Rather than building friendships on the inside, he built them in the outer but influential corners of the conservative movement.

The urgency of his ambition startled party brass. By April 2013, friends of Cruz had begun to whisper with reporters about private conversations they had with him about the possibility of a 2016 bid for the White House. By that August, he was appearing in Iowa.

Then came the federal government shutdown, where he huddled with House conservatives and urged them to oppose their own leadership. Cruz clashed with McConnell in the Senate. He called the brokered compromise lousy and warned of consequences.

Conservative talk radio hailed him as a lonely hero. But other Republicans felt he had raised the publics expectations by promising the impossible  and then demonized Capitol colleagues when it didnt come true.

Trump has made efforts to build relationships where Cruz has few. According to a McConnell spokesman, he called the GOP leader late last year to catch up.

Cruz also broke one of the few true taboos in politics when he implied McConnell was a liar in a speech on the floor of the Senate last July. Other Republicans were so infuriated by this that they began showing their anger openly, once denying Cruz the routine courtesy of a second when Cruz asked for more time to speak.

They think hes fundamentally dishonest at times in the way he operates  doing things for his own benefit and calling the Senate Republican leader a liar, said Vin Weber, a former congressman. That has forced some people to look past all of Trumps issues and think about what he could offer.

Jose A. DelReal in Las Vegas, David Weigel in New Hampshire and Anu Narayanswamy in Washington contributed to this report.
Ohio Gov. John Kasich answers a question during an interview on his campaign bus in Bow, N.H., on Wednesday. (Charles Krupa/AP)

It was a very good week for John Kasich in New Hampshire.

Largely forgotten in the nationwide presidential race, the Ohio governor almost got kicked off the main stage at the most recent GOP debate. But a series of recent polls now rank Kasich second or third behind Republican front-runner Donald Trump in the Granite State, a feat he achieved after months of methodical campaigning here.

The sudden uptick drew the attention of a multimillion-dollar super PAC supporting Jeb Bushs presidential campaign, which unloaded a new attack ad on Thursday that faults Kasich for expanding Medicaid in Ohio and for voting as a congressman to cut military spending that forced the closure of a New Hampshire military base.

In response, a super PAC backing Kasich produced an ad that literally slings mud onto a likeness of Bush and calls the former Florida governor unpresidential. The Kasich campaign also released a Web video Friday mocking Bushs record as Florida governor, claiming he raised fees on doctors visits for poor children, increased college tuition and hiked the cost of owning a pet snake.

Amid the sniping, though, Kasich has mostly been striving to keep it clean and nonpartisan in a state that demands intimate retail campaigning  and where voters like to hear lines such as the ones he delivered this week.

People wait outside the campaign bus of Ohio Gov. John Kasich during a stop at Bektash Shriners Wednesday in Concord, N.H. Polls have Kasich in second place behind Donald Trump in the state. (Darren Mccollester/Getty Images)

I happen to be a Republican, but so what? he said during an appearance at a logistics company here in Bow. The Republican Party is my vehicle, not my master.

Earlier, at a town hall in Concord, N.H., he told a crowd of about 80 people: We dont get energy by being negative. I am so tired of my colleagues out here on the stage spending all their time talking about Barack Obama. His term is over!

That message stands in stark contrast with his GOP establishment-friendly rivals  Bush, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Sen. Marco Rubio (Fla.)  all of whom are statistically tied with Kasich in recent surveys here but deliver a more partisan message overall on the trail. Taking note of that contrast, four New Hampshire newspapers bucked the better-known candidates and endorsed Kasich this week.

As he builds support here, Kasich (pronounced kay-sick, but voters here often say kay-sitch) is airing a television ad that resembles a sales pitch for pickup trucks or beer a biographical message that tells Americans to never give up and stands out on airwaves flooded with attack ads. His team claims that theyve had more direct contact with voters than anyone else  a statement that almost every campaign makes at some point. But the governor has hosted more than 60 town-hall-style events across the state, which is more than his opponents.

[John Kasich has a novel pitch to voters: Hes a politician]

At the logistics company in Bow, he hung out with mostly working-class, middle-aged employees, making fun of their bosses and fielding questions about veterans and corporate taxes. Dressed in a blue pullover sweater, white button-down shirt and gray slacks, the governor detailed a rundown of his biography, including winning a seat in Congress, two terms as Ohio governor and hosting a Fox News talk show.

And you know what? I aint that good, he said. You know what happened? The Lord has put His hand on me for some reason. Hes got His hand on everybody in this room, if you let them. And everybody in this room was made special. . . . This isnt a political speech  its a life talk.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich speaks during a campaign stop at Bektash Shriners Wednesday in Concord, N.H. (Darren Mccollester/Getty Images)

Kasich reminds me a little bit of Ronald Reagan, said Bill Meisel, 50, who sat in the front row listening to the governor. Hes focused on changing Americans feelings of America. For now, Meisel said Kasich is one of two candidates hes considering. The other is Bush, whom he hasnt seen yet.

Fergus Cullen, a former state GOP chairman who attended more than 20 public events hosted by candidates before making an endorsement, gave his support to Kasich on Thursday.

Im sensitive to the fact that hes from a swing state, Cullen said. Weve got a bunch of candidates who are only talking to base Republican voters and are used to in their careers only talking to base Republican voters. Thats not Kasichs background.

Ultimately, Kasich will need to rely on a mix of establishment Republicans such as Cullen and independent voters who can vote in New Hampshire party primaries. Roughly 44 percent of the New Hampshire electorate, independents are increasingly being wooed by Kasich, Trump and Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, the senator from neighboring Vermont.

A New Hampshire poll released Thursday by Boston radio station WBUR found that Kasich is the Republican presidential candidate that independent voters prefer. And hes the only candidate besides Sanders that independents view favorably overall. The survey also found that Kasich is statistically tied with Trump among independents, 19 percent to 20 percent.

Former Republican senator John Sununu, who served with Kasich in the House in the 1990s, said that the governors pitch should seem familiar to many New Hampshire voters.

His presence and approach to town hall meetings is probably a bit more like that of John McCain, he said. His chief executive experience and the confidence that inspires is probably a little bit more like a Mitt Romney. His optimistic vision is probably a little bit more like Ronald Reagan.

McCain, Romney and Reagan all won the New Hampshire Republican primary.

How Kasich could capitalize on a win in New Hampshire is less certain, and he is still polling in the low single digits in Iowa, South Carolina and national surveys of Republicans. Unlike Trump, Rubio, Bush and Sen. Ted Cruz (Tex.), who have hefty operations already running in states with later contests, Kasich has little presence anywhere else.

Thats where friends like Trent Lott come into play. The former Senate majority leader has reactivated his political operation in Mississippi to help Kasich prepare for the Magnolia States GOP primary on March 8. Kasichs team hopes to do well in New Hampshire and survive until the winner-take-all primary in Ohio on March 15. At the least, they figure that winning his home states 66 Republican delegates could make him a kingmaker at a brokered convention.

Then theres the Kasich super PAC, New Day America, which has spent roughly $5.53 million to date and has been reaching out to New Hampshire voters since October, according to a spokeswoman. The PAC has six offices across New Hampshire and employs 17 full-time staffers in the state. Thats far fewer than Bushs team but more than other rivals.

In Concord, Kasich marveled at all the media attention and how his campaign has risen from obscurity now to second place.

If I win, great, he said. If I dont win, I got another crusade somewhere else.

Scott Clement and Anu Narayanswamy in Washington contributed to this report.
At least 45 people, including 17 children, drowned Friday in the Aegean Sea as two boats sank off different Greek islands. A search-and-rescue operation was underway for others feared trapped in the wreckage.

The Greek coast guard and other boats saved more than 70 people from the sunken vessels.

The drownings follow hundreds over the past year as Europe faces its worst immigration crisis since the end of World War II. More than 1 million people have entered the continent in 2015  most through Greece, coming across the sea in small smugglers boats from Turkey.

The European Union is deeply divided on addressing the influx, with several countries blocking or restricting migrants, and resisting plans to share the burden of refugees. Meanwhile, Germany  where most immigrants are heading  has welcomed those it considers refugees.

E.U. foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said Friday that the 28-nation bloc faces big economic risks if its member countries start putting up walls between each other because of the refugee crisis.

But Hungarys prime minister, who last year built fences on his nations borders with Serbia and Croatia to stop migrants from coming in, praised Austria for setting a cap this week on the numbers of refugees it will take.

Common sense has prevailed, Viktor Orban said Friday on state radio, calling the Austrian decision the most important news of the past months.

Europe cant take in huge masses of foreign people in an unlimited, uncontrolled manner, he said, adding that, for Hungary, the best migrant is the migrant who does not come.

In the first sinking Friday in the eastern Aegean Sea, a wooden boat carrying 49 people foundered off the small Greek islet of Farmakonissi. Forty people managed to make it to shore, while authorities rescued one girl and recovered eight bodies from the sea  six children and two women, the coast guard said.

A few hours later, a wooden sailboat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the islet of Kalolimnos, south of Farmakonissi. The coast guard rescued 22 men and four women, and recovered 34 bodies  those of 16 women, seven men and 11 children.

One survivor told APTN that the vessels engine failed about 3 a.m., five hours after they departed from Izmir in Turkey. Speaking at a reception center on the island of Kalymnos, he said about 80 people on board had paid $2,500 each for a berth, with half that sum for children.

Later, Turkeys state-run Anadolu news agency said the Turkish coast guard rescued six survivors of the two accidents and found three bodies.
Migrants and refugees stand in line in freezing temperatures to receive food as they wait to cross the border from Greece to Macedonia near Idomeni on Jan. 21. (Sakis Mitrolidis/AFP/Getty Images)

The back door to Europe may be closing.

A historic wave of migrants fleeing war and poverty crossed into Western Europe last year from the Middle East and beyond, with most taking a precarious route via Greece then onward through the Balkans. While the onset of winter has slowed the tide of newcomers, more than 2,000 a day are still arriving.

Yet from the Greece-Macedonia border to Austria and Germany and northward to Denmark and Sweden, a domino effect is taking shape as nations in Europe suddenly move to keep more migrants out. It happens as Europes plan to manage a humanitarian crisis remains in disarray and a surge of new migrants is expected as soon as March.

Increasingly, nations are taking matters into their own hands, putting up policies aimed at cutting the migrant flow and weeding out all but those most at risk from war. This is taking place amid rising security fears in Europe after the terrorist attacks in Paris by assailants that included militants who disguised themselves as migrants, as well as hundreds of sexual assaults in Cologne, Germany, on New Years Eve in which asylum seekers are among the suspects.

We are in a period of unprecedented anti-migrant, anti-foreign sentiment, in which everybody sort of retreats in their own circle and says, No one can come in,  said William Lacy Swing, director general of the International Organization for Migration.

Advocates of stricter controls insist national steps are the only way to curb new arrivals in the face of Europes failure to manage the crisis. Countries across the region have said that many of the migrants who arrived last year  as well as many of those coming now  are not genuine asylum seekers and have no legal right to stay.

[Along the migrant trail, pressure grows to close Europes open borders]

Now, countries are taking steps unilaterally to prevent migrants from arriving. Alarmed by the vast numbers of arrivals, Sweden and Denmark imposed fresh controls this month on what were once open borders. In an effort to reduce the number of arriving migrants, Sweden  the nation that last year received more asylum seekers per capita than any other in Europe  is barring entry to travelers entering without proper documents.

On Tuesday, Macedonia  the key entry point for migrants leaving Greece and traveling to the rest of the European Union  shut down its southern border. That move came after a decision in November to grant transit only to Syrians, Afghans and Iraqis. Macedonia briefly reopened its border Thursday, but it limited passage to a few hundred nationals from those three war-torn nations who also pledged to seek asylum only in Austria or Germany.

The border was quickly closed again, however, amid fears that Macedonia might soon begin allowing only families and women to pass. Mersiha Smailovic, spokeswoman for the pro-refugee group Legis, based in Skopje, said Macedonian authorities told her organization Thursday that single men would not be allowed in  a policy she said would force thousands of male asylum seekers to hire smugglers or would leave them stranded in Greece.

This is against the Geneva [Conventions] and Macedonian law, she said. We might see concentration camps [in Greece] with only single young men, like in the Bosnian War or World War II.

On Thursday, aid workers said that Greek officials on the Macedonian border were canvassing thousands of waiting migrants about their destinations and nationalities. Officials from Doctors Without Borders warned that the new restrictive policies could lead to a repeat of last springs humanitarian crisis, before Macedonia began granting migrants temporary transit visas.

A record number of migrants and refugees are attempting perilous journeys to find a safer, better life in Europe. Here's why they're leaving and how they're being received. (Jason Aldag and Gillian Brockell/The Washington Post)

People are confused, said Gemma Gillie, who is working with Doctors Without Borders on the Greece-Macedonia border. There is definitely a tense atmosphere because some people, including many children, have now been waiting for days. . . . It is a strange mix of fear and exhaustion. It is very cold.

[German chancellor pledges crackdown on criminal asylum seekers]

Still, migrants continue to attempt the crossing from Turkey  a journey made more perilous in the winter by frigid Aegean waters. On Friday, at least 45 people, including 17 children, drowned after two boats capsized near Greek islands, rescue officials said.

Indefinite controls

Stricter guidelines have also been instituted in Germany, the nation whose open-door policy made it by far the single largest destination for migrants last year. German authorities are still letting in thousands of migrants each week, but they have begun blocking a number in the low three figures each day. They are refusing entry, for instance, to anyone who wants to claim asylum in European countries farther north or those who admit to fleeing their homelands for economic reasons.

At the same time, Chancellor Angela Merkel, the architect of Germanys open-door policy, is under increasing pressure to do an about-face. On Tuesday, 44 lawmakers from her center-right coalition demanded she take further steps to curb new entries. It happened as critics said that any country that did not take such steps would be the one left with unwanted migrants on its doorstep.

One country after the other is turning away from the open-border policy, said Stephan Mayer, a national lawmaker from the Christian Social Union, Merkels coalition partner. Germany also needs to change directions as quickly as possible when it comes to its refugee policy.

On Thursday, German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said special controls on the Austrian border  initially meant to be temporary  would remain in place indefinitely.

We will send back people who do not have valid entry documents and do not apply for asylum in Germany, de Maiziere told German radio.

Neighboring Austria, meanwhile, is in the midst of an even tougher crackdown. Starting Friday, Vienna says it will block migrants who are not seeking to make immediate asylum claims in either Austria or Germany.

Interior Ministry spokesman Karl-Heinz Grundbock said that Austria would not base its decisions on migrants nationalities. But Austrian police officials said they have standing orders to allow only Syrians, Afghans and Iraqis to travel through Austrian territory. Migrants from other nations would need to apply for immediate asylum in Austria or they will be forced to go back to Slovenia.

This week, Austria is set to complete a 2.3-mile fence at a key migrant entry point on its border with Slovenia. Austrian officials on Wednesday also announced new caps on asylum seekers, but they characterized these more as guidelines than as firm figures.

[The big thing missing from Europes solution to the refugee crisis? Refugees.]

Failing scheme

The measures come at a time when Europe is trying, and failing, to create a working system to manage the migrant crisis, with leaders scrambling for a solution ahead of a planned summit in February and before an expected surge in arrivals this spring.

Facing opposition from a bevy of nations, Europes scheme to legally bring in migrants thus far has failed. Out of an intended total of 160,000 asylum seekers, the European Union has legally relocated 331. E.U. officials are still pressing for a system that compels even nations highly resistant to migrants  including Hungary and Poland  to accept them.

At the same time, a plan to create new hot spot zones, or large processing centers, in entry nations Greece and Italy is behind schedule and plagued by political infighting. Greece and Italy have balked at the notion that asylum seekers might need to wait out application processing within their territories.

We have six to eight weeks to solve the problem, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte told a panel in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday.

Stephanie Kirchner in Berlin and Elinda Labropoulou in Athens contributed to this report.

Read more

After New Years Eve assaults, Muslim migrants targeted in Cologne

Germany springs to action over hate speech against migrants

Even Europes humanitarian superpower is turning its back on refugees

Today's coverage from Post correspondents around the world
Jason Rezaian spent time with his family and Washington Post colleagues five days after his release from prison in Iran. (Jabin Botsford,Monica Akhtar/The Washington Post)

Jason Rezaian spent time with his family and Washington Post colleagues five days after his release from prison in Iran. (Jabin Botsford,Monica Akhtar/The Washington Post)

It was the call that Yeganeh Salehi had been awaiting for more than a year. At 2 p.m. Saturday, she picked up the phone at her home in Iran and heard the voice of her husband, jailed American reporter Jason Rezaian.

I have been told I am leaving for the airport right now, he said.

Rezaian, the Washington Post correspondent in Tehran, had been detained for 18 months in the citys notorious Evin prison, held on vague espionage-related charges that he denied. His wife, an Iranian, had visited him nearly every week, watching him lose weight and suffer from periodic infections.

Now, Rezaian told his wife, they could meet quickly to say goodbye  until they could get her out of Iran, too.

Id never had such hope, Salehi, 31, said this week.

1 of 26 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  Scenes of three Americans after their release by Iran View Photos A historic deal between Iran and the United States led to the release of long-imprisoned Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian, Christian pastor Saeed Abedini and Marine veteran Amir Hekmati. Caption A historic deal between Iran and the United States led to the release of long-imprisoned Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian, Christian pastor Saeed Abedini and Marine veteran Amir Mirza Hekmati. In exchange, seven Iranians charged or imprisoned for sanctions violations were granted clemency. Jan. 19, 2016 Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian sits at the Fisher House at the U.S. military medical center in Landstuhl, Germany, after his release from an Iranian prison. He and two other released Americans were flown to Landstuhl for medical evaluations. Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post Wait 1 second to continue.

What she did not know was that the phone call Saturday would be the beginning of a 25-hour ordeal during which Rezaians fate would seem to hang in the balance  as would her own.

[Post owner Jeff Bezos makes U.S. return with reporter Rezaian after Iran release]

In their first interview since Rezaian left Iran, his wife and his mother, Mary, described the tortuous end to a saga that began with the journalists arrest on July 22, 2014, and eventually involved top-level negotiations between Tehran and Washington that produced a deal to free him and three other jailed Iranian Americans.

For hours this past weekend, though, it was not clear that the deal would actually work out. As a Swiss air force jet waited on the tarmac at Tehrans airport to take Rezaian and other former prisoners to freedom, Salehi and her mother-in-law, Mary Rezaian, mysteriously vanished as diplomats, friends and Jasons brother, Ali, frantically tried to find them. The women later said they had been in the hands of Irans hard-line Revolutionary Guard Corps. It was unclear whether the incident was due to miscommunication or whether someone was trying to destroy the deal.

[Freeing a reporter: Secret diplomatic talks and private back channels]

Salehi swung between concern and jubilation over her husbands potential release as she and her husbands mother were shuttled for hours between ornate reception halls and conference rooms at the airport.

At some point I told her, Mary, somebody wants us out of the picture and there is a reason for it,  Salehi said.  Something is wrong. 

Rezaian kisses the hand of his wife, Yeganeh Salehi, on Tuesday in Landstuhl, Germany, as they talk about their future plans. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

Waiting

Shortly after Jason Rezaian called on Saturday afternoon, his wife  who was with Mary Rezaian  received a phone call from a man who did not give his name. He told the women to go to the domestic terminal of the Tehran airport and wait for instructions. They knew the message was from the Iranian security services and hailed a taxi to the airport.

Hours passed. Calls began pouring in from friends and relatives as Iranian news outlets announced the release of four Iranian American prisoners but did not give names.

On a television set at the airport, Salehi suddenly saw a news ticker confirming the deal. Her husbands was the first name on the list.

Salehi began jumping, shouting, crying, she later recalled.

The deal freed the four Iranian Americans in exchange for U.S. clemency offered to seven Iranians charged or imprisoned for sanctions violations and the dismissal of charges against 14 Iranians outside the United States.

[Plane leaves Iran with Post reporter, other Americans in swap]

Jason Rezaian, 39, born in Marin County, Calif., to an Iranian father and an American mother, had lived in Iran since 2008 and joined The Post in 2012. He and his wife were arrested together in 2014, but Salehi was freed on bail after three months. Rezaian was convicted following an espionage trial that ended last August, according to Iranian media. Iranian officials never made clear what charges were involved or whether a sentence had been imposed. No evidence of wrongdoing by Rezaian was ever released, The Post said.

As Salehi and her mother-in-law waited at the airport Saturday, a man wearing a surgical mask approached about 9 p.m. Mrs. Salehi, come, she later recalled him saying. He began leading her out of the terminal, with Mary Rezaian racing after them. Salehi knew immediately the man was from the security services. Apparently he wore the mask to hide his face.

Salehi had no idea what to expect. I just knew that I had to put myself in their hands, she recalled.

The masked man sat them in a silver Peugeot and drove them to the airports diplomatic terminal. The womens phones were taken away, and they were brought into a massive entrance hall.

They were told they would see Rezaian. But first Salehi, then Mary Rezaian, were told they would have to speak on camera. State-television journalists began to ask questions. Who was responsible for Jasons release? Were they happy?

I will be happy when I know my son has left here and has landed safely in another place, Rezaians mother told them.

Rezaian was in the next room. When his wife walked in, he stood, wearing his wedding suit, she recalled. Salehi had brought him the outfit a day earlier when prison officials requested clean clothing. It was the smallest suit he had, Salehi said, but he had lost so much weight that it looked several sizes too large.

Salehi thought this would be their last meeting for a while  maybe a week, maybe a month, maybe longer. Her husband was a U.S. citizen, but she was not. And who knew when Iranian authorities would permit her to leave?

But Rezaian was hesitant to show emotion; there were journalists and guards with video cameras in the room.

I choked up, and he said, Dont cry,  she said.

Salehis joy was mixed with anxiety for her husband and frustration that she was about to be separated from him  again. She told Rezaian to call her as soon as he landed and not to put me in a situation where its six or seven hours and I dont hear from you.

The guards asked whether she was happy her husband would finally be released.

He was getting the chance to leave, and I was still stuck, she said. So I was angry, and I told them.

Mary Rezaian, who had moved to Iran seven months ago to be closer to her son, could leave the country any time she wanted on her American passport. But I promised him I would stay behind until things got resolved with Yegi, his wife, she said.

Kept unawares

It was around 10 p.m. Saturday when Salehi and Mary Rezaian were brought into a vast, unheated reception hall with marble floors and portraits of Iranian leaders on the walls.

It was colder than a meat locker, Mary Rezaian recalled. The women were served kebabs, rice, seared tomatoes and colas and allowed a brief telephone call to Salehis parents, only to tell them that she would be home soon.

The women were told they could not leave, even as Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told CNN that the plane carrying the prisoners would soon depart.

Salehi and Mary Rezaian knew their disappearance would alarm friends and relatives, but they could not know how much.

Throughout Jason Rezaians incarceration, neither of the women had contact with U.S. officials. Ali, Jasons brother, who was working to win his release, had kept them in the dark about efforts to free Jason, in order to protect them from Iranian officials seeking information.

Among the things that Salehi didnt know: Her freedom was part of the deal. She was supposed to be joining him on the plane.

Switzerland, which represents U.S. interests in Iran, played a key role in Rezaians release. On Saturday night, the Swiss ambassador went to the airport to meet with Rezaian and two other Iranian Americans, Amir Hekmati and Saeed Abedini, who were supposed to be flown home with him. Rezaian informed the ambassador that his wife and mother were in the airport. But the Iranians told the diplomat that the women had already left.

Around 1 a.m., the women were transferred to a warmer room with an antique carpet, accompanied now by a female official in a black chador and about 15 men from the Revolutionary Guard, wearing surgical masks.

The guards were polite but ignored their requests to leave, the women said.

I didnt feel afraid, Rezaians mother said. I just felt inconvenienced.

At 5 a.m., as Rezaian was being handed over from the Revolutionary Guard to the Intelligence Ministry, a guard told the women that Rezaians plane had taken off and that they were free to go.

As she was led out of the building, Salehi heard a startling comment from one guard to another.

The plane may take the wife, too, he whispered.

Salehi and her mother-in-law caught a taxi toward the city and clicked on their phones, which were swamped with messages. One of them was from Ali Rezaian. Where are you? he wrote.

They called him. He told them that the plane had not left, that they were meant to be aboard, too. A Swiss diplomat would get in touch, Ali said.

Salehi went to her parents home. She already had a bag packed. Salehi exchanged very short and quick but very emotional goodbyes with her parents.

Unbeknownst to the women, the U.S. government had learned early Sunday that the Iranians wanted to let Rezaian and the other former prisoners leave but delay Salehis departure. Only after Secretary of State John F. Kerry called Zarif did the Iranian prosecutor general issue an order allowing Salehi and Mary Rezaian to board the Swiss jet.

On Sunday, an SUV with Swiss diplomatic plates raced through the city, carrying the ambassador, Salehi and Mary Rezaian to the airport. Swiss diplomats had orders not to let the women out of their sight. But when the group reached the airport, the two women were detained again. Salehi did not have a passport, and, according to U.S. diplomats, there was a hiccup over the flight manifest.

The Iranians were playing games to the end, a senior U.S. official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the deal.

It was not clear whether some Iranian officials wanted to spoil the deal or were hoping to use the women as a bargaining chip.

Hours later, the women were put in a van with the other released prisoners and driven to the plane, where they were turned over to the Swiss.

About 3 p.m. Sunday, the flight took off for Geneva as the former captives applauded. Jason Rezaian and his family would later head to Germany, where he would receive medical treatment at a U.S. military base.

When they touched down in Switzerland, someone introduced Salehi to Brett McGurk, the lead U.S. negotiator in the prisoner release.

We got you out! One day Ill tell you the whole story of the past 20 hours, Salehi recalled him saying.

It was at that moment, she said, that she realized it was a real war to get me out.

Carol Morello in Davos, Switzerland, contributed to this report.

Read more

Post reporter seeks to catch up with world after release from Iran

Photos: After 18 months in Iranian prison, Rezaian reunites with family

After 13 months in Iranian jail, Post reporter steeling himself for verdict
Secretary of State John F. Kerry said Friday that progress has been made in combating the Islamic State and violent extremism, and called fighting government corruption an integral part of the battle.

Corruption is a radicalizer because it destroys faith in legitimate authority, he said in a wide-ranging speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos. It allows the predators to move in. And no one knows that better than violent extremist groups, who regularly use corruption as a recruitment tool.

Though much of his speech focused on the destabilizing influence of government malfeasance, Kerry also used the annual forum before corporate executives and world leaders to announce that the United States will push for a 30 percent increase in international humanitarian aid to refugees and the displaced, up to $13 billion this year. Washington hopes to get at least 10 new nations to commit to regular contributions to refugee aid.

But the bulk of his remarks were devoted to the national security implications of government corruption, a phenomenon he said robs the global economy of $2.6 trillion a year. He cited corruption in countries as diverse as Ukraine, Syria, Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq and Nigeria as causing civil unrest that ballooned into international crises.

[Russian airstrikes are working in Syria  enough to put peace talks in doubt]

It complicates every security, diplomatic and social initiative we undertake, he said. And this in and of itself creates tension, instability and a perfect playing field for predators.

The fact is, there is absolutely nothing more demoralizing and disempowering to any citizen of any nation than the belief the system is rigged against them and that people in positions of power are  to use a diplomatic term of art  crooks who are stealing the future of their own people, he said.

Kerrys remarks were an expansion of his speech at the same forum last year, when he called the fight against violent extremism the defining challenge of our times. This year, Kerry argued that significant and consistent progress has been made in Syria and Iraq against the caliphate formed by the Islamic State, a group Kerry usually refers to by its Arab acronym, Daesh.

Weve known from the moment we formed our international coalition that success would take years, he said. But in the end, mark my words, Daesh will be defeated  and the progress we have already made toward that end is undeniable. Our operational tempo is accelerating, the support of our allies is broadening, our partners on the ground are becoming stronger, and the terrorists never know what might hit them or from where.

He said nothing would do more to terminate the threat the group poses than to end the civil war in Syria. United Nations-sponsored peace talks between the Syrian government and opposition groups are due to start next week in Geneva.

Every country in the region opposes Daesh, and even governments that disagree on other issues acknowledge the war must end and a diplomatic solution must be found, he said. No one has more incentive than the Syrians themselves to write a new chapter in their countrys history.

Refugees flooding Europe to escape the Syrian war have been a large factor contributing to the highest number of refugees since World War II. The United Nations estimates that there are now 20 million refugees and 40 million displaced persons around the world.

[The big thing missing from Europes solution to the refugee crisis? Refugees.]

The Obama administration will host a summit on refugees at the fall session of the United Nations General Assembly. Kerry said participants will be asked to increase not only their donations by $3 billion but to double the number of refugees they are willing to resettle.

A State Department fact sheet related to Kerrys announcement said Washington will announce significant new commitments over the coming months, and will strongly encourage other nations to do the same.

William Lacy Swing, director general of the Geneva-based International Organization for Migration, welcomed Washington's efforts to raise more money. Beleaguered humanitarian groups have had trouble meeting even half the refugee needs that have grown exponentially in the past year.

It will certainly be a great help, he said in an interview. It should encourage others to join in the effort.
A member of the Syrian pro-government forces stands at the entrance of the besieged rebel-held Syrian town of Madaya as residents wait for a convoy of aid on January 14, 2016. (Louai Beshara/AFP/Getty Images)

Hundreds of thousands of people across Syria in areas besieged by government forces and opposition fighters are at risk of starvation and worsening malnutrition, U.N. officials, aid workers and activists warn.

The warring parties are cutting off food and medicine to more than a dozen areas, causing civilians to die and complicating renewed peace efforts to end the countrys civil war. Disturbing images on social media purporting to show emaciated men, women and children in the town of Madaya, which has been blockaded by government forces, have in recent weeks added urgency to the issue.

As the conflict goes on and on, the situation on the ground is collapsing, especially in areas that are under siege, said Pawel Krzysiek, a spokesman for the International Committee of the Red Cross who is based in the Syrian capital, Damascus.

Even before Madaya, sieges were common in the Syrian war, which has led to more than 250,000 deaths, displaced millions and generated a humanitarian catastrophe. But the tactic appears to be increasingly applied as President Bashar al-Assads forces, backed by Russian airstrikes, wage a new offensive against rebel groups.

[Surrounded by suffering, death in a besieged Syrian town]

The grim consequences are manifested in the vitamin-deficient mothers in blockaded areas who increasingly struggle to breast-feed, U.N. officials and aid workers warn. They say a growing number of the sick, elderly and young appear to be succumbing to otherwise preventable illnesses.

In some places, such as Madaya, people have starved to death, aid agencies say.

Were starving to death, women and children. We have no food, said Dani Qappani, an activist in Moadamiyeh, an opposition-held town just a few miles southwest of Damascus that is under siege by government forces. In recent weeks, as many as seven people in the community of 44,000 have died because food and medicine have been cut off, said Qappani, a nom de guerre.

The tempo of the war has increased since Russia intervened with airstrikes against rebel forces in Syria late last year. Moscows air raids have exacerbated already dire humanitarian conditions in the country, with pro-government forces on the ground in turn tightening sieges on opposition strongholds, analysts and activists say.

Russia, a key ally of Assad, says its intervention is aimed at the Islamic State militant group, but Syrian opposition groups say the air raids have mostly targeted other rebel groups.

The sieges appear to be threatening U.N.-backed peace talks that are supposed to start in Geneva next week. Several rebel groups recently announced they would not participate in the negotiations unless the government allows humanitarian aid into areas that its forces are blockading.

Emile Hokayem, a Middle East analyst at the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies, said Assads forces are pressing sieges on rebel-held areas as part of an attempt to seize as much key territory as possible ahead of the Geneva talks. Sieges are part of the governments long-running strategy to break and expel populations that are not loyal, he said.





[Russian airstrikes are working in Syria  enough to put peace talks in doubt]

In general, U.N. officials and aid workers have increasingly expressed alarm about residents who are cut off from food and medicine by belligerents on both sides of the conflict, an age-old war tactic that is a violation of international law.

According to the United Nations, about 400,000 people are besieged in 15 locations in Syria. The world body defines an area as under siege if it is surrounded by armed actors with the sustained effect that humanitarian assistance cannot regularly enter and civilians, the sick and wounded, cannot regularly exit the area.

Opposition activists in Syria accuse the United Nations of playing down the number of people living under siege, excluding in its figures some areas that are cut off by government forces. Senior U.N. officials have denied the accusation.

Hassan Hassan, a Syria analyst based in Washington, said government sieges tend to be harsher and affect a far larger number of people than rebel-imposed ones. Furthermore, he said, Assads forces have aircraft, which rebels lack, to bomb areas it is besieging and airlift aid to loyal populations that are surrounded by opposition fighters.

Madaya, a town of more than 20,000 people, has been blockaded by government forces and allied fighters from Lebanons Hezbollah militia since the summer, causing more than two dozen people to die of starvation, aid workers say. A U.N.-backed agreement recently allowed humanitarian aid into the town.

In Moadamiyeh, which is not classified by the United Nations as besieged, residents and activists say government forces have completely halted the flow of food, medicine and people for the past month. A shaky truce with local rebels broke down as government forces increased attacks to capture nearby opposition-held areas.

Activists say five children, a woman and an elderly man have died of starvation-related causes since the siege was tightened in December. Like in Madaya, the activists said, Moadamiyeh residents face soaring food prices  two pounds of rice now costs about $20 or more.

My family is living on making soup with some grass and pepper to survive, said Majed, 22, an activist in Moadamiyeh who gave only his first name because of concerns for his safety.

Elizabeth Hoff, a World Health Organization (WHO) representative in Syria, said doctors in Moadamiyeh are warning that women are increasingly struggling to breastfeed because of a lack of nutrients. This is a sign that you might find severe malnutrition cases, like in Madaya, Hoff said.

WHO has been unable to verify claims of starvation deaths because the government has denied the organizations requests since June to enter Moadamiyeh, she said.

Conditions are also difficult in areas besieged by opposition forces, such as the areas of Deir al-Zour that are surrounded by the Islamic State, which controls vast territory in Syria and Iraq. But activists from the city also accuse the Assad government of exploiting the misery of residents who face brutal attacks by the militant group, highlighting perhaps the unexpected difficulties of those who live under blockade.

Government air drops of food aid are insufficient and confiscated by officials, who then sell the food to desperate residents for exorbitant prices, said Jalal al-Hamad, director of Justice for Life in Deir al-Zour, a monitoring group that has activists in the city. To flee the area, government officials charge hefty fees that most residents are unable to pay, he said.

People in government neighborhoods are in reality under siege by two groups: ISIS and the Assad regime, said Hamad, a native of the city who spoke by Skype from Turkey.

Its a disaster.

Suzan Haidamous contributed to this report.

Read more:

Today's coverage from Post correspondents around the world
The aftermath of clashes between the Libyan military and Islamist militias in Benghazi is seen in October 2014. (Mohammed El-Sheikhy/AP)

The United States and allied nations are making plans for military support to Libya once a new government is established, officials say, as Western countries seek to halt the growth of the Islamic States satellite there and contain worsening instability on Europes doorstep.

Defense officials from the United States, Britain, France, Italy and other nations met in Rome this week to advance proposals that, if approved, would help secure a new government, stand up a credible national army, and lay the groundwork for an eventual Libyan assault on the Islamic State.

[In Libya, the Islamic States black flag rises by the Mediterranean]

While officials caution that no decisions will be made until a proposed unity government is in place and requests outside assistance, the steps being discussed would resume largely unsuccessful Western attempts to build security that followed Libyas 2011 revolution. This time, the effort takes on greater urgency as an expanding Islamic State presence increasingly makes Libya an alternate destination for aspiring jihadists.

We want to help make sure the government succeeds, so were going to try to be as nimble as we can, said a senior U.S. official who, like others, spoke on condition of anonymity to describe planning discussions. There is a lot of preparation, but there are limits to what can be done without additional dialogue with the new leaders.

Blazes erupts at oil tank in Libya after attacks by Islamic State militants in January, a Petroleum Facilities Guards spokesman said. (Stringer/Reuters)

Options being discussed include sending Italian and other European forces to Libya to help stand up a local stabilization force and reviving a Pentagon program to train Libyan counter-terrorism troops.

But Libya, now a far more fractured, dangerous place than it was following former dictator Moammar Gaddafis ouster in 2011, presents the Obama administration and its allies with a dilemma.

While officials are eager to prevent a failed state from incubating militant threats on Europes southern flank, Western militaries are already stretched by operations in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan and elsewhere. Western countries see the establishment of a respected military force as key to Libyas stability, but there are no nationally recognized institutions they can work with.

[In Libya, trying to make one government out of two]

And, in a country made radioactive by the 2012 Benghazi attacks, the appetite for risking Western lives is low.

At the same time, officials acknowledge that a United Nations-led effort to secure support for the fledgling unity government may not succeed  and that any new Libyan administration might not survive the deep divisions that have paralyzed the country in recent years.

The task today will be much more difficult than it would have been a year ago, said Karim Mezran, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, a Washington think tank. For the new government to be located in Tripoli, it will be absolutely necessary for Western governments to help provide security. This will certainly involve training for Libyan forces, but it will also require European and other nations troops on the ground.

[In Libya, Islamic State raises its black banner by the Mediterranean]

Once seen as an Arab Spring success, Libya has been consumed by chaos since mid-2014 as two rival governments have competed for legitimacy and resources. The rift has hastened an economic decline, provided a foothold for an array of extremist groups and allowed Libya to become a deadly waystation for migrants seeking access to Europe.

Western officials are hoping that Libyans, their oil-rich country isolated and going broke, will set aside their differences, if only out of fear of the Islamic State. The groups Libya operation, while smaller and less experienced than the parent group that now controls much of Iraq and Syria, has already laid claim to the coastal city of Sirte, using the same brand of severity.

In recent weeks, the militants have shown new potency beyond their Libyan base, launching sustained assaults on oil facilities and killing at least 47 people at a police training center in what Western officials fear is a campaign to further undermine Libyas economy and security.

American officials say they have indications that Islamic State leaders are now instructing foreign recruits to defer plans to travel to Iraq and Syria, where U.S. and allied military actions have made their operations more difficult, and travel instead to Libya.

They are looking for a place that has less risk for them, one senior U.S. military official said.

While Western officials believe the Islamic State threat in Libya is for now internal, they fear that may change given the countrys proximity to Europe.

The United States has already taken unilateral action against the Islamic State in Libya. In November, the Pentagon announced an airstrike targeting Abu Nabil al-Anbari, whom officials had identified as the groups leader there.

But Western nations, wary of upsetting fragile peace talks, have held off on more sustained action against the group and insist that Libyans must take the lead in fighting the Islamic State.

Speaking this week as officials from 18 nations gathered in Rome to discuss Libyas future, Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni promised a coordinated front to support Libyas unity government.

We have before us a real opportunity to stabilize the country, which must be grasped by everyone, Gentiloni said.

[In Libya, trying to make one government out of two ]

Officials said they do not plan to resurrect a failed 2013-14 training plan, which sought to build a force by pulling Libyans out of the country for training. That effort was marred by a host of problems including a spree of sexual assaults by Libyan recruits in Britain.

They do hope to launch efforts to build up a national military force that is stronger than a host of militias and expect to conduct training efforts in Libya, which will require substantial force protection measures and could put foreign troops at risk.

American officials say they are considering the resumption of training for Libyan counterterrorism forces. In 2013, the U.S. military halted a special operations training program after gunmen looted a training base and made off with U.S. equipment.

A senior U.S. defense official said additional American support could include embedding advisers at senior levels of security ministries and providing support to law enforcement agencies. The focus, they say, will be to help Libyans negotiate what are expected to be fraught interactions between civilian and military authorities.

Foreign officials will also seek to help Libya improve controls of its porous borders along with providing other, non-military assistance.

Western nations attempted such assistance in the more hopeful period after 2011. Time and again, those programs floundered in the face of local power struggles and scant government know-how.

[Plan to build Libyan force was a lesson in failure]

In parallel with plans to support the new government, U.S. officials are also considering intensifying their own actions against the Islamic State.

The recent surge in Islamic State activity is informing some of our decision-making ... and it is helping us sort of craft potential options for the way forward, the senior U.S. military official said.

One problem they face is a limited understanding of dynamics on the ground. Libya has long been a relative black hole for intelligence agencies, making for a shortage of reliable militant targets.

In December, a Special Operations team was photographed during a brief visit to western Libya, part of an effort to identify armed groups that might act as U.S. partners in the future.
Last week, Nader Modanlo was contemplating whether he might have to endure another five years in prison. This week, he has been shopping for clothes, getting a drivers license and talking for hours on the phone with his sister in Iran.

The 55-year-old businessman from Bethesda  one of seven people who received pardons or sentence commutations as part of a deal with Iran to free four American prisoners  said in an interview this week that he is ecstatic to be reunited with his family. But Modanlo said he still feels he was unfairly imprisoned  not unlike Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian, who was freed in part for Modanlos release  and he nearly rejected the Justice Departments offer because it forced him to abandon his bid to appeal his conviction.

If Im not considered a political prisoner, he said, what is it?

[What we know about the seven Iranians offered clemency]

Modanlo, a former NASA scientist who came to the United States in 1979 to study at George Washington University, said he was, at one time, living the American dream. He was married with two kids and said he ran a company worth hundreds of millions of dollars. But in the early 2000s, according to federal prosecutors, the Montgomery County businessman brokered a deal between Iran and Russia to help Iran successfully launch a satellite. He was convicted of running afoul of U.S. sanctions on Iran and sentenced to eight years in prison.

Nader Modanlo in the control room at his former business, Lanham-based Final Analysis. (Larry Morris/The Washington Post)

In many ways, Modanlo is emblematic of all those freed in the deal with Iran. He is a man who was found to have broken trade laws and faced serious consequences from the U.S. justice system. Despite that, he  like at least five of the others receiving pardons or sentence commutations  intends to stay in the United States, where hell be with his wife, 24-year-old son and 21-year-old daughter.

There are a few rotten apples here, no question, he said. But the good prevails.

[Nader Modanlo is convicted of helping Iran on a satellite project]

After a lengthy investigation, Modanlo was charged in the case in 2010 and found guilty at a trial in 2013. He said he had served about two years of his sentence and expected another year would be knocked off because of good behavior.

In a statement, Maryland U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein said: Anyone who compares Nader Modanlo to a political prisoner is trying to pull the wool over your eyes.

All of the evidence used against Mr. Modanlo was publicly disclosed in an open courtroom during a six-week jury trial attended by reporters and spectators. He was found guilty by a jury of 12 citizens, not a prosecutor, and the evidence remains available to the public, Rosenstein said, noting the case first came to prosecutors attention after they received information that Modanlo had deceived creditors in a bankruptcy case. The public evidence proved that Mr. Modanlo secretly brokered a deal with Iran to launch a satellite for $10 million when he knew that it was illegal, and that he defrauded creditors when he knowingly made false statements in a federal bankruptcy court.

Modanlo, who maintains he did nothing wrong, was appealing his case when his sentence was commuted, alleging that prosecutors had secret correspondence with the judge and skirted rules about turning over materials to his defense attorneys. While the appeals court had yet to decide the matter, some judges were critical of the prosecutors handling of aspects of the case. In an October 2015 hearing, Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Robert B. King said flatly that prosecutors did not act correctly in not keeping defense attorneys informed of contacts with the judge and mused aloud, I hope the Justice Department is not doing this thing pervasively around the country or that youre all not doing it this way generally in the district of Maryland.

Four Americans and seven Iranians were set to be exchanged in a deal linked to the imminent implementation of a landmark nuclear deal between Tehran and six world powers. Here's what we know about who they are. (Jason Aldag/The Washington Post)

Prosecutors contended that even if they should have disclosed more of their activities and materials to defense attorneys, the errors did not affect the outcome of Modanlos public trial.

Modanlo said he dropped his appeal in order to be released  meaning the appeals court wont issue an opinion. Modanlo said his first reaction was to reject the deal, though he changed his mind after emotional conversations with his wife and sister. I would have taken a chance, he said, but the impact that it would have put on my wife and my sister and my kids, I couldnt deal with that anymore.

He said prosecutors conduct was as egregious as it could possibly be and compared his case to that of Rezaian, who was convicted in secret proceedings.

His trial was closed to the public. It was only him and his attorney, and who knows what else was going on, Modanlo said. And here we have a prosecutor and a judge whos faking a public trial.

Marc Raimondi, a Justice Department spokesman, noted that Modanlo accepted the offer for a sentence commutation.

It was presented to his attorney, his attorney presented it to him, it was accepted, and he was released, Raimondi said. It was completely voluntary, and I think it speaks for itself.

Modanlo said his satellite company is long defunct, and he is unsure what he will do for work. He said in recent days, he has had dinner at Redwood Restaurant and Bar and, having shed 45 pounds in prison, shopped for clothes that would fit him.

Attorneys representing others who received clemency last week reported similar experiences for their clients. David Berger, the attorney for Khosrow Afghahi, said his client was having his first good night of sleep and hot cup of coffee in nine months after his pardon, and he planned to spend time with family in the United States.

Joel Androphy, the attorney for Bahram Mechanic, said his client intended to go back to work for his Houston-based company, Smart Power Systems, after his pardon, and he thought Tooraj Faridi, who was also pardoned, also intended to stay in the United States.

Ellis M. Johnston III, the attorney for Arash Ghahreman, said his client was contemplating a 180-degree change of circumstance now that his sentence was commuted, and the future was far from certain. But he said Ghahreman, a U.S. citizen, had recently obtained a masters degree from SUNY Maritime College, had worked as a project manager in shipyards and hoped to be able to find job opportunities in this country.

Liz Oyer, the attorney for Ali Saboonchi, said her client would likely work to complete a PhD program at Morgan State University, where he was studying to be an electrical engineer when he was arrested. Oyer said Saboonchis case really illustrated that the sanctions are really widely misunderstood by Iranian Americans living in the U.S., and they pose really significant challenges for people carrying out their daily lives. Saboonchis sentence was commuted.

Attorneys for Nima Golestaneh, who was convicted in a hacking case and who was pardoned, could not immediately be reached for comment.

Modanlo said while he was disappointed he had to give up his appeal, he was grateful to anyone who pushed for his release, including Iranian officials. He said, though, he could not help but worry about the future  even if he could not articulate why.

My feeling, he said of his ordeal, is it might not be through.
A University of Virginia student honored as an intellectual risk-taker has been arrested in North Korea, its state-run media said Friday, accusing the American of an unspecified hostile act against the state.

Otto Frederick Warmbier, 21, was detained Jan. 2 at Pyongyang airport as he prepared to leave after a five-day trip over the New Years holiday, said Gareth Johnson of Young Pioneer Tours, the agency that organized the trip.

This was four days before North Korea conducted its latest nuclear test, and makes Warmbier the third Westerner known to be held in North Korea  a move that is certain to elevate already-high tensions with Washington.

But Warmbiers detention was not made public until Friday, when the official Korean Central News Agency said it was questioning him about taking part in anti-state activity.

The brief statement gave no further information about the accusations or the current status of the student.

1 of 50 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  What life looks like inside North Korea View Photos Scenes from inside the hermit kingdom. Caption Scenes from the hermit kingdom. April 14, 2016 A girl dances ballet at the Mangyongdae Childrens Palace in the Pyongyang suburbs. The large facility, opened in 1989, has hundreds of rooms for various activities, including mathematics, chemistry, computer science, sports, music and dance practice. Franck Robichon/European Pressphoto Agency Wait 1 second to continue.

Warmbier, it added, was arrested while perpetrating a hostile act against the DPRK after entering it under the guise of tourist for the purpose of bringing down the foundation of its single-minded unity at the tacit connivance of the U.S. government and under its manipulation.

[U-Va. student detained in N. Korea described as buoyant, inspiring and driven]

Details of Warmbiers trip to North Korea were not immediately clear. But the Cincinnati area native loved to travel.

At the university  where he majors in economics  Warmbier was selected as an Echols scholar, a special four-year academic program for fewer than 250 students in each class. Those chosen are described as intellectual risk-takers who have shown academic excellence, intellectual leadership, and evidence of the ability to grapple with complex topics, according to the universitys website.

We are certainly eager to have him return to the university, Abraham Axler, president of the universitys student council, said of Warmbier, who also serves on the council. Warbier is a much-admired junior, he said. Hes a vivacious, kind and involved member of our community.

[Meet the tour groups helping to open North Korea]

Hes buoyant, a longtime friend said immediately when asked about him. Warmbier wasnt the class clown  he was way too earnest about academics for that  but he had a goofy, funny side. He seemed infused with happiness, one of those people who never let it show if he had a bad day.

Small American flags have been placed in the trees in front of the Warmbier family home in Wyoming, Ohio. (Gary Landers/AP)

Always bright and energetic and positive, very passionate about school and very hard-working, a friend said. He felt unstoppable.

A big guy, tall, a runner, a high-school soccer player and swimmer, friends said he is loud  a big presence, but never an intimidating one. Hes just happy, a friend said, very popular in a welcoming way, always ready with a grin and kind words.

Friends interviewed Friday agreed to speak on condition of anonymity because Warmbiers family has told them they have security concerns related to his detention.

A longtime friend of the family described Warmbier in an email as exceptionally smart and atypically mature, sane, polite, and reasonable. Hes a top notch person.  I have known Otto all of his life, and have never known him to make an unwise decision.

He always has been a driven student; he used to do all of his homework as soon as he got home from school on Fridays, a friend said.

He was a top student at Wyoming High School, a small well-regarded public school in an affluent part of Cincinnati. He was chosen to be Homecoming King by his classmates in 2012, and was one of three commencement speakers when he graduated in 2013, an honor given based on academic performance and character.

Warmbier advocated for environmental changes on campus, such as hand dryers in bathrooms, and helped manage the $20,000 portfolio for the Alternative Investment Fund, a finance group, according to his profile on Linkedin; rap music, vintage clothes and travel were listed as interests.

Warmbier's Facebook page shows him driving a vintage car in Havana last May. His most recent profile photo  posing with a cow  was captioned: One picture that captures my compassion for animals, worldly travels, and designer sunglasses... ? Woah.

Hes inspiring, a longtime friend of the family said. I just dont think he would ever consider that anything bad would ever happen to him. I dont think it would enter his consciousness.

Young Pioneers, one of the handful of tour companies that operate in North Korea, acknowledged that Warmbier was on one of its tours. Photos posted by the group showed New Years fireworks  presumably attended by Warmbier and fellow tour members  at the main square in North Koreas capital, Pyongyang.

We can confirm that the reports that one of our clients is being detained in Pyongyang are true, said a statement from the company, which specializes in budget travel.

In Washington, State Department deputy spokesman Mark Toner said officials are aware of media reports that a U.S. citizen was detained in North Korea.

The welfare of U.S. citizens is one of the Departments highest priorities, he said, adding that the Swedish Embassy was helping. We have no further information to share due to privacy considerations.

Sweden represents American diplomatic interests in North Korea in the absence of direct ties with the United States.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a Republican presidential candidate, called the arrest inexcusable and called for Warmbiers immediate release.

[North Korea often turns camera on detainees]

Johnson, the tour group spokesman, declined to comment on the possible reasons for Warmbier's detention. A spokesman for the University of Virginia said representatives had been in touch with Warmbier's family and had no additional comment.

The detention coincides with a period of heightened tensions between Washington and Pyongyang.

Earlier this month, North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test, sparking international condemnation and leading to efforts to impose new sanctions on the regime. The latest arrest will stoke speculation that Pyongyang wants to use the detainees as bargaining chips to water down the punishment for that test.

The Korean Peninsula has been in a technical state of war since the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty, and some 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea.

[The unraveling of the nuclear talks with the North]

In recent years, North Korea has taken a number of Americans into custody, often for activities related to spreading Christianity and often only releasing them when a high-profile dignitary visits Pyongyang.

"We don't have enough information about this case, but it's always a risk for any U.S. citizen to go to North Korea," said John Delury, an American international relations expert who teaches at Yonsei University in Seoul. "You have to be careful in a way that we wouldn't think of as normal."

In earlier messages, the U.S. State Department has warned that U.S. citizens have been subject to arrest and long-term detention for actions that would not be cause for arrest in the United States or other countries." Being on a tour does not make visiting safer, the advisory says.

But in the frequently asked questions on its website, Young Pioneers answers a question about safety in North Korea by saying: Extremely safe!

Despite what you may hear, North Korea is probably one of the safest places on Earth to visit. Tourism is very welcomed in North Korea, thus tourists are cherished and well taken care of, the travel agency says.

We have never felt suspicious or threatened at any time. In fact, North Koreans are super friendly and accommodating, if you let them into your world. Even during tense political moments tourism to the DPRK is never affected, the site said.

North Korea, which is trying to promote tourism partly as a way to earn foreign currency, dramatically eased restrictions on American tourists in 2008, allowing for more Americans to visit at more times of the year.

[North Koreas leader marks birthday with a bang]

But as the number of tourists into the isolated state has increased, so too have the number of problems.

Merrill Newman, an 85-year-old Korean War veteran, was detained at the end of a tour in 2014 and held for more than a month on charges of committing war crimes. It transpired that Newman had talked about his service and expressed a desire to meet relatives of the anti-Communist soldiers he had helped train.

Also that year, North Korea held Jeffrey Fowle, a 56-year-old public worker from Ohio, for five months after he left a Bible in a restroom at a seamens club in the northeastern city of Chongjin. He was released in October 2014 under special dispensation of Kim Jong Un, after negotiations involving Bill Richardson, a former American ambassador to the United Nations with a history of dealing with North Korea.

The following month, two other Americans were released when James Clapper, the Director of National Intelligence, went to Pyongyang. Matthew Miller, a tourist who ripped up his visa upon arrival in Pyongyang, and Kenneth Bae, a Korean-American missionary, had both been serving multi-year sentences in North Korean labor camps.

North Korea is currently thought to be holding two western citizens.

One is a man who identified himself as Kim Dong Chul and said he was a naturalized American citizen who used to live in Fairfax, Va., when he was presented to CNN earlier this month. "I'm asking the U.S. or South Korean government to rescue me," Kim, 62, told the network.

The other is Lim Hyeon-soo, a 60-year-old South Korea-born pastor from Toronto, who has been convicted of committing activities against North Korea and sentenced to life serving hard labor.

Nick Anderson, Anne Gearan, Justin Moyer, Brian Murphy and T. Rees Shapiro in Washington, and Carol Morello in Davos, Switzerland, contributed to this report.
The Egyptian foreign affairs spokesperson says that Ankara must change its views concerning the situation in Egypt before relations improve

Egypt's foreign affairs ministry denied on Thursday that there was any kind of meditation in place to improve strained relations between Egypt and Turkey.

In a meeting with diplomatic correspondents in Cairo on Thursday, spokesperson Ahmed Abu Zeid said that ties with Turkey are "going through a crisis" due to interference by Turkey in Egypt's internal affairs.

Abu Zeid and there would be no improvement in relations between Cairo and Ankara unless there was a "fundamental change regarding the latter's policies and views concerning the situation in Egypt.

Relations between Egypt and Turkey have been tense since the ouster of Egypt's Islamist president Mohamed Morsi, an ally of Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in July 2013.

The Turkish president has repeatedly called for Morsi's release from detention; Morsi is currently standing trial in four separate cases.

Earlier this month, the Turkish press cited reports of Saudi meditation to restore the relations between Egypt and Turkey.

Egypt has also been invited to attend the 13th summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) which will be held in Istanbul in April, according to the Turkish press.

As current OIC president, Egypt will be attending the summit to hand over the presidency to Turkey The conference could witness the first meeting of its kind between Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and his Turkish counterpart.

According to Turkish foreign ministry spokesperson Tanju Bilgic, Egypt as the current term president of the OIC will be automatically invited to the summit, but the decision regarding the level of its representation at the summit should be taken by Cairo.



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On January 13, General Electric Company (GE) announced that its corporate headquarters will move from Fairfield, Connecticut, its location for the last 42 years, to the Seaport District of Boston. Government incentives are to be funded by the City of Boston, the state of Massachusetts, and the Federal Highway Administration.

These incentives include property tax breaks, a gift of public property for siting the new headquarters, a private airplane hangar at Hanscom Air Force Base, money for two ferry boats to shuttle GE staff across Boston Harbor and real estate tours of local neighborhoods. Trucks will visit the new headquarters so that GE bigwigs can apply for drivers licenses, register their automobiles, register to vote, and pre-register their children for school, all with no hassles, no fuss, just service.

The total cost of these incentives is estimated at $145 million, and the property tax breaks will last for 20 years. GE has promised to bring 800 jobs to the new location; government subsidies for the move will therefore amount to more than $180,000 per job.

The company, which is worth some $290 billion and has a history of avoiding federal income taxes, will also pay no more than eight percent state tax on its net taxable income. Because of this low statutory rate, Massachusetts realizes more revenue from personal income tax and the regressive sales tax than from all income taxes on corporations, which include companies like Raytheon, Fidelity Investments, and State Street Bank.

Of the 800 jobs being brought to Boston, 200 will be executive. The remainder will be digital industrial product managers, specializing in marketing, software development and engineering as GE seeks profits in energy and physical infrastructure after having shed its financial services subsidiaries.

Boston and Massachusetts politicians, echoed in the news media, are loudly congratulating themselves for General Electrics decision. In his annual State of the City address, Mayor Marty Walsh, a Democrat, called the decision another step forward for Boston on the world stage. Columnist Shirley Leung of the Boston Globe called the decision all glory and a chance for GE to be a good corporate citizen.

Outside of Walshs speech, however, parents and students protested his plans to cut an additional $50 million from the Boston Public Schools budget in the fiscal year beginning July 1. Cuts in recent years have already led to layoffs, school closures, and last years decision to cut the school bus budget by making children as young as 7th grade ride public transportation to school. In one example of the deepening austerity, a parent told boston.com this week that at my daughters school, we agreed to cut the supply budget to zero to keep as many teachers in the building as possible. At least 2,700 people have signed a petition opposing the new cuts.

School Superintendent Tommy Chang has announced that $20 million of the new cuts will hit central offices. An additional $10 to $12 million will be cut from the education budgets of the schools. A significant portion of the deficit being addressed with these cuts comes from charter school costs that are higher than the states tuition reimbursement to the city. In the current fiscal year, ending June 30, that amount is $18.6 million.

As for the glory of GEs move, the reality is that it will exacerbate income inequality in the most divided city in the country. One of the perks promised the company by Boston is a trolley tour of neighborhoods with staff of the Boston Home Center to showcase different housing stock for the pampered executives and product managers. Working people in the city, however, have to contend with rents that are not just among the highest in the nation but also increasing much more quickly than the national average.

Tens of thousands of workers face these costs while being paid wholly inadequate wages. The Brookings Institution, analyzing data from the 2014 American Community Survey, has calculated that the household income at the 20th percentile in Boston proper is only $14,492; for the greater Boston area, the figure is $27,883. Household income at the 95th percentilea more likely level for those receiving trolley tours of trendy neighborhoodsis $266,224 in the city of Boston and $293,653 in greater Boston.

Brookings used these numbers to calculate that the city of Boston has the highest income inequality in the US. The greater Boston area is the sixth most unequal region. The Bridgeport Connecticut region, next to Fairfield, is the most unequal.

In Massachusetts, the two big business parties have no differences on the move. Governor Charlie Baker, a Republican, and Mayor Walsh have been praised by the Boston Herald for their united front. Baker told the paper that there was no daylight between the administration at the state level and the administration at the city level, and Walsh agreed that this opportunity would not have happened if we did not have a collaboration between the Republican governor of Massachusetts and the Democratic mayor of Boston.

Edward Markey, a Democrat and the states junior senator, has said that GEs new slogan should be we bring good things to Mass. Senator Elizabeth Warren is a bit less glib, having built her reputation on posturing against corporate greed. However, despite her past criticisms of Boeing, GE and Verizon for their avoidance of federal taxes, Warren is, by the very nature of her job, now forced to represent GEs interests. After the announcement of the move, she issued a written statement to Politico saying, Im glad that the company will be able to draw on the tremendous resources in the Greater Boston area as it continues to grow.

GEs move to Boston coincides with a reorienting of its business from credit cards and other financial services to productive industries. After the 2008 crash, its GE Capital division was deemed too big to fail by federal regulators. According to the Motley Fool web site, this designation meant more regulation, which GE didnt want to face.

It therefore transformed its multibillion-dollar credit card business into a new company called Synchrony Financial, of which the parent company owned 85 percent at first. GE then swapped shares in the new company for GE stock held by shareholders, and the incoming GE shares were then retired. According to Motley Fool, GE has reported that net dividends of $35 billion were returned to the parent company through this secretive swap. GE is planning $8 billion in dividend payouts in 2016, and $18 billion of stock buybacks.
Jason Rezaian will get to see the new Star Wars soon: The Washington Post reporter, held prisoner in Iran for more than 500 days, announced Friday he is flying home.

The announcement came two days after another statement in which the 39-year-old said he wants to catch up with whats been going on in the world, watch a Warriors game or two, and see the Star Wars movie.

Rezaian and his family stayed at a guest house on a U.S. base in Landstuhl, Germany, after he flew there from Iran on Sunday. He was set free in a negotiation that also led to the release of three other Iranian American detainees, clemency for seven Iranians in the U.S., and charges being dropped against other Iranians, the Post reported.

Also Read: Iran Releases Jason Rezaian, Jailed Washington Post Reporter

Today my family and I left Landstuhl to return home to the United States, Rezaian said in a statement. I appreciate the exceptional care I received from the doctors and medical staff, as well as the hospitality we were shown during our stay on the base.

Rezaian said he felt well despite 49 days in solitary confinement, infections and weight loss, the Post said.

Also Read: Washington Post Reporter Jason Rezaian Sentenced to Jail in Iran

In his statement earlier this week, Rezaian said he planned to write about U.S.-Iranian relations again, but wanted to take time now to enjoy life and be with his family. The Post said he was convicted in a secret trial in October on vague charges of espionage and other alleged offenses.

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By Alex Bregman

Consumer advocate and environmental activist Erin Brockovich joined Yahoo News and Finance Anchor Bianna Golodryga on Yahoo News Live to discuss the ongoing water crisis in Flint, Mich. She discussed the causes of the crisis, the accountability of state officials and how this is a national problem.

Brockovich explained the cause of Flints crisis and why the city switched from Lake Huron to the Flint River. She told Golodryga, Because the city was in bankruptcy, there was an appointed emergency city water manager who decided to save a buck and the governor agreed. They made the switch, added the chloramines that caused all this lead to leach out, and nobody disclosed anything to the residents.

She said that state officials did not know how to properly get water to Flint. I dont think they necessarily knew what they were doing, which can be very scary. You know water quality is chemistry. You need to know what youre doing and you need be able to say, you know, this is not in my sphere or scope of understanding and rely on somebody to do that. Thats why I really have to look at this emergency water manager that was in place, because we actually provided them a report and a protocol on what to do to avoid this and how to treat the water. She continued, Its frightening to think that we step in as an agency and we dont know what were doing with water quality, and the outcome would be the risk and to jeopardize so many people.

Brockovich had already called on Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder to resign. On Yahoo News Live she went further to suggest criminal charges should be considered: They created this mess and they cant continue to hide behind it. This is where the residents have every right, and I stand with the residents, to be absolutely furious. This lack of transparency, this deception that cost them their health, their childrens health, potentially for life, is inexcusable. We should be looking at criminal charges. This is why they want [Snyder] to step down. As long as hes going to continue to be in office, youve got to stop hiding behind the story. She continued, You cant change what hes done, but begin to correct it moving forward so they have a safer, broader solution. This isnt going to go away overnight.

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On her reasoning behind removing the governor now, Brockovich told Golodryga, It has some form of justice for them. Its very hard. Theres such a breach of trust now with their leader to leave him in place to make any further decisions for them would be very difficult. It feels very difficult for them to accept. I think at some level its just the honorable thing to do.

On the health risks of the lead levels in Flint water, Its very hard to rid it from the body, so this is something that could affect these children for the rest of their lives.

Brockovich said that this problem goes well beyond Flint. Its a national problem, and Flint is a model city for us to look at. I couldnt be more proud of this community for how theyve come forward and used their voice, but its the tip of the iceberg to something that is going to be a national problem.

Brockovich also discussed 2016 presidential politics. She has endorsed Democratic candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders position on calling for Governor Snyders resignation, but she said that this issue should not be political: Bernie is certainly willing to have the conversation and that I appreciate. Its hard for me to make a position on any of the candidates on the environment because I dont know if Im overly thrilled with any of them. I need to work with everyone. We cant politicize water. She continued, It shouldnt be independent, Republican or Democrat. This is everybodys issue. This is what sustains our life.

Finally, Brockovich told Golodryga three things people need to know about the water crisis in Flint and beyond.


By Kaye Foley



For almost two years, there has been a water crisis in Flint, Mich. The problem has been gaining more and more attention over the past few months, and on Jan. 16, President Obama declared a state of emergency for the city.

Many people in this Rust Belt city have been consuming tap water contaminated with lead, which is a powerful neurotoxin. Lead poisoning can produce lifelong health effects, and developing children who are exposed to lead even at low levels are at risk of brain damage, behavioral problems and learning disabilities.

The issue stems from a money-saving measure for the impoverished city, where 41 percent of the 100,000 residents live at or below the poverty line. A state-appointed emergency manager was put in place in 2011 to help save money, and one solution was to find a cheaper water source. Flint had been purchasing Lake Huron water through Detroit. Plans were made to join a new regional water system that would supply tap water from Lake Huron at a better price, however, that project wouldnt be completed until 2016. So, in April 2014, the city was switched to the local Flint River as a temporary water source until the regional water system was finished.

There were complaints right away: The water smelled, tasted and looked funny. Soon, some Flint residents developed rashes, hair loss and other health ailments. Officials consistently assured residents that the water was safe to drink.

Evidence of a problem kept building, including the discovery of contaminants like E. Coli, a leaked Environmental Protection Agency memo, independent studies that found high levels of lead in the water and research by a pediatrician showing that the percentage of the citys children with elevated lead levels had doubled since water sources were switched.

Local and state officials acknowledged the crisis in October 2015, and Flint returned to using water from Detroit. The Michigan National Guard arrived to help distribute bottled water, filters and testing kits, but the damage had already been done to the people and the pipes.

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The Flint River water is extremely corrosive, and the older water service lines in Flint contain lead. As a result, the caustic water leached lead off of the pipes and into Flint households. According to federal regulations, the water should have been properly treated with an anticorrosion agent, but it wasnt.

Many activists believe the situation was mishandled and the fault lies at local, state and federal levels of government. Some are even calling for Gov. Rick Snyders resignation.

At his State of the State address on Tuesday, Snyder said, To you, the people of Flint, I say tonight as I have before, I am sorry and I will fix it. He recently released emails related to the water issue.

But many Flint residents want those in the wrong held accountable. There are multiple class-action lawsuits and investigations in place to figure out how this problem was neglected for so long.

So, as the city tries to resolve the situation, when it comes to the Flint water crisis, at least after watching this video you can say, Now I get it.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vt., released a new ad for his presidential campaign on Thursday that features Simon & Garfunkels 1968 song America.

One political ad maker who has worked on Democratic presidential campaigns and asked to remain anonymous because he did not want to be seen as taking sides in the primary told Yahoo he thought Sanders commercial was beautiful and stirring.

The Sanders campaign announced the ad, which you can see above, in a press release on Thursday. It features images of voters at Sanders rallies, scenes of life on farms, young people working, and the skyline in Des Moines, Iowa. It will begin airing on Friday in Iowa and New Hampshire.

Theyve all come to look for America, sing Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel in their classic folk rock anthem as faces flash on the screen of people backing Bernies insurgent campaign for president, the campaigns announcement said. In Iowa alone, Sanders has spoken to more than 40,000 people at rallies and town halls since his campaign began last spring.

Tad Devine, a senior advisor on the Sanders campaign, told Yahoo that his firm, Devine Mulvey Longabaugh, crafted the ad.

The Democratic ad maker, who talked to Yahoo, gave the commercial rave reviews.

I think its beautiful. Im a sucker for a well-scored spot, and when youve got permission to use a stirring track like America, youre off on the right foot, he said.

Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon are not listed among the celebrities who have endorsed Sanders. Spokespeople for the Sanders campaign told CNN that the song was properly licensed. Garfunkel and representatives for Simon did not respond to requests from Yahoo about whether they personally approved the use of their song and would be backing Sanders.

This new commercial comes as Sanders has gained ground in polls of voters in Iowa, which is the first state to vote in the primary, against frontrunner Hillary Clinton. Sanders has maintained a lead over Clinton in polls of New Hampshire, the second state on the primary calendar, for months.

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The ad maker who did not wish to be named told Yahoo the commercial strikes the right tone for Sanders in the final weeks leading up to voting in Iowa and New Hampshire.

Its smart of the Sanders campaign to provide a little inspiration at the end of the campaigns first rounds, the ad maker said. It reminds me of John Edwards final Iowa ad from 2004, where there was no voiceover, just text on the screen intercut with inspiring music.

He also predicted the ad could help Sanders confront critics who attempt to paint his self-described democratic socialist politics as too unconventional for voters.

By using iconic American imagery, it also inoculates Sanders against attacks of him being too different to be president, the ad maker said. Some will say that its a mistake to close the Iowa campaign with a spot that lacks substance, but Sanders isnt viewed as a policy lightweight  so its not as risky for him.



Sanders has a personal connection to folk music. He recorded a short folk album in 1987 when he was mayor of Burlington, Vt.
The magazine that helped to start the modern conservative movement in the 1950s, National Review, planted itself firmly in opposition to Donald Trumps presidential candidacy Thursday.

Against Trump, the magazine placed on its cover in large gold letters designed to mockingly imitate Trumps own personal branding of his business empire. Inside, the publications editors condemned the real estate mogul and reality TV star as a philosophically unmoored political opportunist who would trash the broad conservative ideological consensus within the GOP in favor of a free-floating populism with strong-man overtones.



Trump is a menace to American conservatism who would take the work of generations and trample it underfoot in behalf of a populism as heedless and crude as the Donald himself, the magazine declared.



National Review also collected essays from 22 conservative leaders who offered their own reasons for opposing Trumps candidacy. The names ranged from former Fox News star Glenn Beck to former Attorneys General Edwin Meese and Michael Mukasey to prominent Southern Baptist leader Russell Moore to online provocateur Erick Erickson, the founder of the conservative blog RedState.



The magazines dramatic move comes as Trump has regained the lead in polling in Iowa, which carries enormous influence as the first state to vote in the primary process.



National Reviews complaints against Trump ranged from his liberal positions in the past on abortion, gun control, health care and taxes to what it deemed to be his lack of knowledge of the details of his own immigration plan.



In one Republican debate he clearly had no idea whats in that plan and advocated increased legal immigration, which is completely at odds with it, the magazines editors wrote.



National Review is very hawkish on the immigration issue itself, generally favoring reducing legal immigration in addition to illegal immigration. It stated in its editorial that Mitt Romneys support for self-deportation as the Republican nominee in 2012 was entirely reasonable, and noted that at the time, Trump criticized Romney over it.

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The magazines outburst quickly drew the ire of the Republic National Committee, which revoked National Reviews partner status in a Feb. 25 debate of GOP presidential candidates.

The Review stood by its stance after the RNCs move.

We expected this was coming. Small price to pay for speaking the truth about The Donald, the Review publisher wrote Friday in a blog post.

A theme throughout the magazines editorial and many of the essays is that Trump presents himself as a strong man to fix the nations problems, whereas conservatives believe that power should be as decentralized as possible. No one can be fully trusted with public power, and self-government in a free society demands that we reject the siren song of politics-as-management, wrote Yuval Levin, editor of the conservative journal National Affairs.



Trump has a lot more in common with South American populist demagogues than with our tradition of political leaders, wrote R.R. Reno, editor of the conservative religious journal First Things.



If he becomes the Republican nominee, he would be, unquestionably, the worst thing to happen to the American common culture in my lifetime, wrote John Podhoretz, editor of Commentary magazine.



Moore wrote that Trump would undermine religious conservatives positions on three of their most important issues: abortion, marriage and religious liberty.



And Bill Kristol, editor of the Weekly Standard, the conservative movements most well-known magazine besides National Review, summoned the trademark saying of National Reviews founder, William F. Buckley. Buckley wrote in his 1955 mission statement for the magazine that it stands athwart history, yelling Stop, at a time when no one is inclined to do so, or to have much patience with those who so urge it.



Kristol quoted a letter from philosopher Leo Strauss to National Review, in which Strauss said that a conservative, I take it, is a man who despises vulgarity.



But the argument which is concerned exclusively with calculations of success, and is based on blindness to the nobility of the effort, is vulgar, Strauss wrote.



Kristol continued: Isnt Donald Trump the very epitome of vulgarity? In sum: Isnt Trumpism a two-bit Caesarism of a kind that American conservatives have always disdained? Isnt the task of conservatives today to stand athwart Trumpism, yelling Stop?



Trump responded quickly in his usual fashion: on Twitter, with insults that ignored the substance of the criticism against him.


Colorados hot springs are even better in the cold. Hot Sulfur Springs Resort & Spa has 24 pools to choose from. (Photo: Jessica Festa)

By Jessica Festa / Jessie on a Journey



While Denvers restaurants, arcade bars, burlesque-fused comedy shows, expansive parks and outdoor activities (not to mention the pot) will keep anyone entertained for days, I still found myself craving a few day trips when I was there on a recent trip. Along with hiking Mount Falcon (great views and only a 20-minute drive from Denver), I grabbed a friend and headed up to Grand County, a place Id explored on previous travels but never through its hot springs.

Yes, Colorado is full of hot springs!

There are 30-plus hot springs to choose from in the state, some wild (and free to enter) and others more built up to act as tourist attractions. My Google search showed me a couple within an hour of Denver; however, the TripAdvisor reviews were questionable. When I expanded my search to two hours I came across Hot Sulphur Springs Resort & Spa, and the photos of an idyllic complex of steamy, curative pools nestled by mountains won me over in an instant. The venue also offered deals, like free access to the pools (an $18.50 value) if you book a 60- or 90-minute massage (prices start at $75) and a $10 pool pass if you booked a 30-minute massage (prices start at $45) in the 12-room spa. Salt scrubs, facials, body wraps and other treatments are also offered.

A Snowy Hot Springs Day

It snowed a ton on the day we went up to the hot springs as in there was almost a white out. While my New York City heritage didnt quite equip me to handle driving in the snow, a slow and steady mindset got us to our destination safely, and being in the snowy mountains  dressed in warm boots and oversized sweaters as the crisp air nipped our cheeks  made city life feel miles away.

Related: Quirky Colorado: A Weekend Getaway Guide to Offbeat Denver



It also gave the hot springs an interesting twist. Not all of the 24 pools  which vary in temperature from 98 to 112 degrees Fahrenheit are outside. In fact, a few are accessible via an indoor room jutting right off the locker rooms, meaning you never have to trek into the snow in your bikini. That said, there was something serene about being submerged in 102-degree water while icicles dripped above our heads and the sun shimmered off fresh powder (though the sun decks, swimming pool, and loungers spread about also told me this is a worthwhile place in the summer). Plus, Ive heard switching your body temperature from hot to cold repeatedly is good for you, similar to a Nordic Thermal Circuit. Even so, I highly recommend bringing sandals, water and a warm towel (or preferably a robe) for switching pools without turning into a human popsicle.

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A Curative Experience

So whats so great about hot springs aside from the fact that theyre uber relaxing? The waters are naturally filled with minerals  as in the resort doesnt add a single chemical, nor do they filter or re-circulate the waters. Colorados Hot Sulfur Springs area is lucky enough to have seven natural springs flowing above a large fissure 35,00 feet below the Earths surface, which releases heat from volcanic rock. These springs have been flowing non-stop for hundreds of years (the Ute Indians and their horses and dogs once bathed here) and stay at a temperature of 104 to 126 degrees when they reach the surface (the resort then controls them to more comfortable range of 95 to 112 degrees).

So soothing. (Photo: Jessica Festa)

Some minerals my companion and I had the fortune of introducing our bodies to, and their benefits, according to the resort:

Sodium: improves messaging functions to and from the brain, regulates heartbeat and blood pressure, and keeps you hydrated by helping the body retain water.

Sulfate: great for hair, nails and skin and also flushes toxins from the body.

Chloride: balances the bodys PH levels.

Silica: reduces aches and pains and helps the body maintain flexibility.

Potassium: assists organ and muscle function.

Calcium: strengthens bones and teeth.

Fluoride: strengthens teeth.

Magnesium: relaxes the muscles, increases energy and helps the body absorb minerals.

There are also trace elements of iron, manganese and zinc for added health.

Peering out from an indoor hot spring. (Photo: Jessica Festa)



The water is also apparently drinkable, although the little white floaty pieces of concentrated mineral and the rotten egg sulfur smell will likely make this option unappetizing.



So serene. (Photo: Jessica Festa)

Eating and Drinking Around Grand County

Speaking of appetizing, in addition to enjoying board games and fires in the condo and curative tubs, we ate our way around the stretch of road from Winter to Hot Sulfur Springs, about a 30-40-minute drive. Some recommendations:

For breakfast, we ate at The Mountain Rose Cafe in Winter Park, a cozy and welcoming venue with typical breakfast ingredients prepared in creative ways, such as cinnamon roll french toast and a whole avocado stuffed with poached eggs and beans. Walls are adorned with inspirational quotes, including this one from Oprah: Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down, and The wisest mind has something yet to learn, by George Santayana.

Related: Is the Pot Tourism Scene in Denver Half Baked?



A delicious Mountain Rose Cafe breakfast. (Photo: Jessica Festa)

We had lunch at Mid Town Cafe in Granby: I highly recommend either breakfast or lunch in this space, which feels like a fusion between a cafe, a living room and a co-working space, with stocked book shelves for sale (all proceeds benefit local libraries), lots of plush chairs and couches as well as booths, and a decadent pastry case enticing guests with blondie bars, gooey brownies and iced cinnamon rolls. I thoroughly enjoyed my turkey, brie and cranberry wrap with vegetarian chili, while my companion raved about his ham and cheese, the cheese gooey and melty on both. They also have a ton of different drinks, including Mayan hot chocolate with chili and cinnamon, fresh-squeezed orange juice, and steamed milk topped with hazelnut syrup and whipped cream.

Sip a spicy Mayan hot chocolate at the Mid Town Cafe. (Photos: Jessica Festa)

Rocky Mountain Roasting Company in Fraser was our coffee break. We happened upon this place after an epic search for any coffee shop that was open past 2 p.m. To be fair, we did go in the off-season, which made it a bit trickier. Luckily, we found this spot, which roasts its fair trade, organice beans in-house. We learned that roasting at high altitudes  like they do here, as Fraser sits at about 9,100 feet elevation in town  allows for a more pronounced flavor profile.



Related: 10 hidden hot springs you can have all to yourself



After a long day of soaking in hot springs, you deserve a locally crafted beer. Get a pint at Byers Peak Bistro & Brewery. (Photo: Jessica Festa)



For dinner (with a view), pull into Byers Peak Bistro & Brewery in Winter Park. This brew pub was right next to our condo, and was a fun stop because you can view the beer production inside, and then head upstairs to view the mountains outside  particularly beautiful at at sunset. The food was standard pub fare (wraps, sandwiches, burgers, wings and wood-fire oven pizza), although the highlight is the homemade beer.



Our cozy condo came complete with board games, movies, and a fireplace. (Photo: Jessica Festa)

Where to Stay



If you prefer to stay overnight rather than make this a day trip, you can book a room onsite at the hot springs; but my companion and I opted to book a condo in nearby Winter Park through Vacations Inc. For a huge two-bedroom, two-bathroom condo with full kitchen, dining room, living room and two balconies  not to mention amenities like free coffee, a slew of board games, a DVD player with DVDs, tons of books, a fireplace and cable television on a big flat-screen  the cost was $172 total (although rates range from $115 to $397 throughout the year). Snuggling up with some spiked hot cocoa near the fire and playing Scrabble was the perfect way to end our day in Grand County.

More from Jessie on a Journey:

WATCH: Is This the Worlds Coldest Swimming Hole?

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Unstable weather should see rain, wind and colder temperatures across parts of Egypt

Egypt will witness a bout of unstable weather on Saturday, with rain falling in Cairo and across the country and a decrease in temperatures, Egypts Meteorological Authority told state news agency MENA on Friday.

Rain will fall across the countrys northern coast; medium levels of rain are expected in the Nile Delta, while light rain is expected in Cairo.

The whole country will see high winds, which will increase the feeling of cold temperatures and might disrupt navigation in the Mediterranean and Red Sea.

Waves in the Mediterranean will reach possible highs of 3 to 3.5 metres, and the Red Sea waves will reach highs of 2.5 to 3 metres, the weather agency said.

Temperatures will drop at night, causing frost in central Sinai as well as the northern parts of Upper Egypt.

Cairo will witness highs of 17 degrees Celsius and lows of 9, while the coastal city of Alexandria will see highs of 16 and lows of 7.

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President Xi Jinping will head to Iran for the next step in his Middle East tour

Chinese President Xi Jinping left Luxor Airport on Friday on his way to Iran, after a two-day visit to Egypt that included the signing of economic deals, a speech at the parliament in Cairo and a tour of ancient Egyptian sites in Luxor.

On Wednesday, Xi arrived in Cairo and witnessed the signing of 21 technical and economic deals with Egypts President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, including one to build a new capital city, and another to develop an industrial and commercial hub around Egypt's Suez Canal.

The deals-- in the transportation, power generation, and civil aviation sectors - are worth $15 billion, according to previous statements by Minister of International Cooperation Sahar Nasr.

They also include a $1 billion financing agreement for the Egyptian central bank and a $700 million loan to the state-owned National Bank of Egypt.

On Thursday, the Chinese president gave a speech to the parliament, congratulating it for its recent inauguration.

Xi flew to Luxor on Thursday night and was given a tour of various ancient sites in the area.

This is the first visit by the Chinese president to the Middle East in ten years.

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The conference has already been delayed for a day or two, with reports that there is still debate about who to invite

Egypt has called for the Geneva II conference on Syria to be held on schedule and to include adequate representation of all the Syrian opposition factions and the national forces influencing the situation on the ground, a foreign ministry statement read on Friday.

The statement said that the continuation of the Syrian crisis is a dangerous threat to the stability of the entire region.

The conference is scheduled to take place later this month. Backed by the United Nations and many key international players, Geneva II will continue the work of the first conference, which took place last October.

The conference has already been delayed for a day or two, according to statements by US Secretary of State John Kerry, with press reports that there is still debate about who to invite to the talks as well as the agenda of the conference.

The UN envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, has yet to invite the participating factions of the conference.

The Egyptian foreign ministrys statement asked Mistura to take advantage of the coming days to come up with the optimal format for Syrian representation.

Settling the Syrian crisis cannot tolerate further delays, as the suffering of the Syrian people has reached unprecedented levels, the statement added.

Egypt has repeatedly said that a political solution is the only way to end the five-year Syrian struggle.

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Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad and his inner circle" should leave office by March 2017, according to a US government document recently obtained by the Associated Press.

Although it is not clear yet whether the document represents a set of policy recommendations on Syria or an actual decision by Washington awaiting implementation, it sets a timeline for political transition in Syria.

However, President Barack Obama himself will be leaving office in January 2017, two months before Assad's departure in accordance with the Obama's administration's timeline.

Some analysts believe that this situation raises uncertainty about the future of the transition plan.

Radwan Ziadeh, head of the Syrian Center for Political and Strategic Studies in Washington, told Ahram Online that the document offers only expectations for what should happen. He is not optimistic about it, arguing that the plan "will not take place because Assad won't be committed to it."

"The opposition will not stop such solutions, but Assad will. He is still the strongest party here, using his airforce to kill civilians, and he believes that Russia's military support for him is the key," said Ziadeh.

"The only way to get out of that long crisis is using power against Assad and forcing him out, through imposing a no-fly zone which will prevent him from using his military airforce and his barrel bombs," he added.

According to the US document, a new president and parliament for Syria should be elected by August 2017 to end the ongoing civil war, with the UN Security Council providing a "framework for negotiations between Assad's representatives and the oppositions."

A security committee will also be formed in advance in April 2016, which "would be accompanied by an amnesty for some government and military members, and moderate opposition leaders and fighters."

From May until November 2016, the Syrian parliament will be dissolved and the UNSC will supervise the establishment of a transitional authority and legislature, though no details were provided on the mechanisms and means of achieving such process.

International donors will fund Syria's processes of transition and reconstruction and a new constitution will be drafted, the document stipulated.

It also involves "setting a schedule for drafting a new constitution, with free and fair elections to be held within 18 months under UN supervision with all Syrians."

The plan seems close to a UN resolution that was unanimously approved in December 2015, which called for a ceasefire and negotiations between the Syrian regime and opposition figures.

US State Department spokesman John Kirby described the document as a "working-level" document which of "laid out a potential way forward for the political process."

The US administration wants a "government in Syria that Syrians have had a hand in making and in preserving," Kirby said.

Kirby stressed that the war-torn state should be unified, non-sectarian and free of terrorism, accentuating that "we continue to believe Assad can't be part of the future of Syria."

Since the Syrian civil war erupted, more than 250,000 people have lost their lives, in addition to the displacement of 12 million people, the UN said in August 2015.

For Syrian journalist and activist Bassel Oudat, who spoke to Ahram Online via email, the formation of a security committee which will combine military members of the regime and the opposition is "one of the most important points in the leaked timeline."

"This is the best way out for Syria to begin the reconstruction of the country, especially in light of the divergences between the Syrian political opposition and the large numbers of the armed groups in Syria. Each side has its own ideology and supporters," said Oudat.

"Without such a plan, there is no realistic solution on the short or the medium term", said Oudat, stressing that a solution can only take place if Assad and his advisors have no influence on the to-be-established security committee.

But he drew attention to the need for international consensus and the prevention of funds directed to the armed opposition factions in order to make them accept the plan and join it.

For Majid Rafizadeh, a US-Iranian scholar and President of the International American Council, pro-Assad Iran could be a regional obstacle against the implementation of the plan, and making a compromise with the Shia state on this issue a necessary step.

"If the Alawite state remains in power, Tehran will be willing to abandon Assad," Rafizadeh argued. He mentioned that the plan is likely to happen, but believed that the departure of Assad will not resolve the Syrian conflict.

"Syria has turned into one of the largest regional and international proxy battlegrounds of our generation," he concluded.



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Islamist Shebab gunmen killed around 20 people in a popular beachside restaurant in Somalia, police said Friday, as neighbouring Kenya mourned soldiers killed by the Al Qaeda-linked group last week.

In the attack in Mogadishu, five gunmen detonated a bomb before storming the busy restaurant and spraying gunfire at terrified customers late on Thursday.

"They killed nearly 20 people, including women and children," Somali police officer Mohamed Abdirahman said, describing it as a "barbaric and brutal attack against innocent civilians".

The Shebab, which is fighting to overthrow the internationally-backed government in Mogadishu, carries out regular attacks in the capital, as well as against African Union troops in the countryside.

Somali Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke condemned the "savage" attack.

Last week the insurgents stormed a Kenyan army base at El-Adde in southwest Somalia, in the latest incident of an AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) base being overrun by the group.

A Shebab statement said that more than 100 Kenyan soldiers based at the mission were killed and others captured.

Kenya has so far refused to say how many of its soldiers were killed, injured or remain missing.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on Friday visited wounded soldiers recovering in hospital in the capital Nairobi and praised the "bravery and dedication" of the "fallen heroes" in an address to dignitaries and relatives of the dead and injured.

The Lido beach area in Mogadishu is full of restaurants, including upmarket establishments popular with business people and diaspora Somalis who have returned home to the city.

After a huge explosion, gunmen burst into the restaurant on Thursday evening as diners were sitting down for their evening meal at the start of Somalia's weekend.

"The fact that they have chosen this location during a weekend night shows how merciless the Shebab militants are," Abdirahman added.

"They wanted to kill more civilians -- but the security forces rescued most of the people."

The Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab claimed responsibility for the attack, in which four of their gunmen were also killed, and one captured.

"The mujahedeen fighters targeted the Lido Beach," the militants said on the group's Radio Andalus, calling it a "major operation against the enemy of Allah".

Security minister Abdirazak Omar Mohamed told reporters that four of the attackers were shot dead by security forces.

The minister added that one gunman was captured when security forces entered the building to end the attack.

Survivors described the gunmen spraying those in the restaurant with automatic weapons.

Abdirahman Halane was close to the restaurant when the gunmen attacked, and said some of those killed were hit by an explosion as they tried to flee.

"The gunmen entered the popular Lido Sea Food Restaurant from the back door and started shooting... a few minutes later there was a heavy explosion at the front gate while people were trying to escape," Halane said.

"There was confusion, everybody started panicking, and some of them ran towards the gunmen and they were shot dead, I was lucky to escape," he said.

Another witness described how some of those killed had died in the large blast, while others were shot dead at point blank range.

"There is a big mess here and many people died, I saw the dead bodies of 19 people who were killed during the attack," said Hussein Ali, who saw the bodies being carried out of the damaged building.

"Some of the people died in the explosion while fleeing and others were shot dead up close."

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Syrian Kurds must be represented at peace talks in Geneva or they will fail, a Syrian Kurdish leader said on Friday, adding that one of the opposition groups involved, Jaysh al-Islam, had the "same mentality" as al Qaeda and Islamic State (ISIS).

"If there are some parties that are effective in this Syria issue who are not at the table, it will be the same as what happened in Geneva 2," Saleh Muslim, co-chair of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) told Reuters, referring to failed negotiations in 2014.

"The negotiations and political solution will fail so we are keen to have everyone at the table."

He also accused Jaysh al-Islam (Islam Army), one of the groups within the Saudi-backed opposition council, of being no different to other radical Islamist groups. "Their mentality is the same as the Nusra Front and Daesh. They clearly want to establish an ISIS," he said.

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Decisive military action is needed to halt the spread of ISIS in Libya, the top U.S. military officer said on Friday, saying the group wanted to use the north African nation as a platform to coordinate activity across the continent.

"Unchecked, I am concerned about the spread of ISIL in Libya ... So I believe that military leaders owe the secretary of defense and the president a way ahead for dealing with the expansion of ISIL in Libya," said chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Joseph Dunford, using an acronym for ISIS.

Speaking to a small group of reporters during a trip to Paris, he added: "You want to take decisive military action to check ISIL's expansion and at the same time you want to do it such a way that's supportive of a long-term political process."

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South Korean President Park Geun-Hye on Friday offered a "creative" solution to stalled six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear programme -- cut Pyongyang from the equation and make them five-party negotiations instead.

"We should find various and creative approaches, including attempting to hold five-way talks excluding North Korea," Park said during a policy briefing with top ministers.

The six-party talks, involving the two Koreas, the United States, Japan, Russia and China, began in 2003 as an effort to dismantle North Korea's nuclear programme in exchange for aid.

The North quit the dialogue process in 2009, ostensibly to protest sanctions imposed after a long-range rocket test. The following month it conducted its second nuclear test.

North Korea's main ally, China, has repeatedly pushed for the talks' resumption, but Park said the North's fourth nuclear test on January 6 underlined Pyongyang's rejection of denuclearisation as a bargaining chip.

"Even if the talks are resumed, their effectiveness would certainly be called into question," she said.

South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-Se said excluding North Korea from the dialogue process would serve as a powerful signal of the international community's anger and frustration.

"If this takes place, it will send a very strong message to North Korea both substantially and symbolically," Yun said.

On top of the five-way talks, South Korea's top diplomat said his government was also considering a "diverse dialogue framework" that could kick-off with a "three-way cooperation body" involving South Korea, the US and China.

But when asked about Park's proposal, China's foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei insisted that bringing all parties together, including North Korea, was the only way forward.

"Six-party talks are the key to solving the root of the issues," Hong said.

Pyongyang's latest test triggered a flurry of diplomatic activity between the five non-North Korean members of the defunct talks process, with the US, Japan and South Korea urging China to take the lead in imposing stronger sanctions on its maverick neighbour.

"I expect China to take effective measures to make sure North Korea can recognise that the development of its nuclear programmes serves no purpose, and that it should re-join the international community as Iran did," Park said.

Beijing will have a crucial role to play in the wording of the resolution currently under discussion within the UN Security Council to punish Pyongyang for its latest test.

China is North Korea's chief diplomatic protector and economic benefactor, but Beijing's patience has worn thin with Pyongyang's behaviour and unwillingness to rein in its nuclear weapons ambitions.

However, Beijing's leverage over Pyongyang is mitigated by its overriding fear of a North Korean collapse and the prospect of a reunified, US-allied Korea directly on its border.

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Egypt signed conditional contracts with Chinese electrical engineering companies to build two coal-fired power plants and develop a transmission grid, electricity ministry spokesman Mohamed El-Yammany told Ahram Online on Friday.

Dongfang Electric Corporation plans to build six units producing 660 megawatts each. The first phase of the power plant will begin with three units at a combined capacity of 1,980 megawatts, for a cost of almost $2 billion.

Shanghai Electric will construct four units at a combined capacity of 2,640 megawatts for a cost of $2.24 billion for the foreign components and LE3.1 billion ($396 million) for the domestic components.

State-Grid Corporation of China signed a $650 million deal to develop the transmission grid to link three under-construction Siemens power plants.

The German industrial company signed an 8 billion euro (approximately $9 billion) deal in June with the Egyptian government to establish three high-efficiency natural gas power plants and wind power installations at a capacity of 16.4 gigawatts.

The Chinese agreements, which are conditioned upon the completion of the technical studies, will be financed by the Export and Import Bank of China (EXIM) and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), said El-Yammany.

During his two days visit to Egypt, Chinese President Xi Jinping signed a number of cooperation deals aimed to foster over 60 years of ties between the two countries, Egypt's state TV reported.

The deals-- in the transportation, power generation, and civil aviation sectors -- are worth $15 billion, according to Egyptian Minister of International Cooperation Sahar Nasr.

The planned power plants will be built in the Hamrawein area in the Red Sea governorate east of the country, El-Yammany said.

The government signed a memorandum of understanding with the two companies for the projects in March last year during the Sharm El-Sheikh Economic Development Conference.

The use of coal for power generation was approved by Egypt in 2014 due to the shortage of natural gas, despite controversy about its environmental impacts.

Egypt has turned into a net importer of natural gas from a net exporter in the past few years on the back of rising consumption and falling production.

The country has been experiencing an energy crunch since the summer of 2008, taking a further blow following the 2011 uprising.

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Egypt's state-owned EGAS said on Friday it had postponed a liquefied natural gas (LNG) delivery from BP last month until later this year, rejecting suggestions there were any payment difficulties.

LNG tanker British Sapphire was diverted to Brazil rather than discharging in Egypt. Traders said the delay was related to payment problems.

"This is completely untrue," EGAS Chairman Khaled Abdel Badie told Reuters, adding that deliveries had been postponed until Egypt's peak energy consumption period in August.

Egypt became a major market for LNG shippers after the launch of two floating import terminals last year.

Badie said Egypt is looking to rent a third floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) in the first quarter on 2016.

Egypt has struggled to pay for oil products and LNG due to an acute foreign currency crisis worsened by a fall in tourism following the crash of a Russian airliner in Egypt in October.

According to financial and trade sources, last month Egypt asked for 90 days to pay for LNG deliveries, up from the traditional 15, creating arrears currently estimated at $400-$500 million.

Egypt's suppliers include Shell, Gas Natural , Trafigura, Vitol, EDF Trading , PetroChina and Noble Group.

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Award-winning Egyptian artist Marwa Adel is participation in an international exhibition hosted by David Owsley Museum of Art, Muncie, Indiana, USA entitled "1 in 3: What Does It Take for You To Be Outraged?"

The global art exhibition's title is derived from the disturbing statistic that more than one in three women around the world are beaten and sexually abused during their lifetimes.

The exhibition will run through May 8, and will display nearly 80 photographs, paintings, sculptures, and videos created by 20 emerging artists who confront the ongoing issue of gender-based violence.

Marwa Adel will also visit Ball State from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia to explain her work, discuss her background, and meet campus and community members on 22 March 2016.

Born in 1984 in Cairo, Adel uses photography and graphic design to tackle controversial issues in contemporary Egyptian society, such as gender issues, questions of identity, and the taboo of the female figure. Her work has a strong autobiographical subtext; she uses art as an outlet for her frustrations at living in a society that suppresses womens freedom.

Adel's photographs of nude women, adorned with computer graphics images, reflect the universal struggle of women faced with gender stereotypes everyday across the globe. Her conceptual photographs possess both aesthetic and conceptual value, urging women to break free from the path laid down for them by a rigid society.

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The newly established International Festival for Youth Theatre run in Sharm El-Sheikh between 7 and 15 January brought 20 theatre troupes from around the world

Located in the south of the Sinai Peninsula, Sharm El-Sheikh is almost empty at present. In the evening, despite the dazzling lights and decorations marking the end of the New Year celebrations, the atmosphere is dull. Faced by the lack of tourists, is the once-popular touristic resort losing its charm?

The main reason behind the launch of the International Festival for Youth Theatre -- which runs between 7 and 15 January -- was to revive the resort, but time will show whether it did indeed manage to restore the city's radiance in a few days.

"The idea of the festival has been on my mind for three years now. I wanted it to be a youth event, welcoming talented students from the art academies as well as professionals. When choosing I pay attention to presenting works of value, and also I put in mind the need to attract a wide audience and achieve some palpable gain. At this stage, the festival allowed us to make things happen, to animate the ghost town, to infuse some life to the places. On the other hand, theatre has never played any role in this touristic city," said Mazen El-Gharabawy, president of the festival.

Each day during the festival week the spaces around Naama Bay resort -- Sharm El-Sheih's main tourist hub -- saw an increased artistic commotion, particularly after 6pm. Small buses transported the festival audience to the luxury area, where a total of over 20 plays were staged.

The original plan was to spread the performances across the city; however, on 8 January three men attacked and injured tourists at a hotel in Hurghada, another touristic spot, leading to a decision to hold all the shows within one area.

"The jury and spectators could attend three or four shows a day, each on one of the three stages erected around the same area. This was very convenient from the security point of view," El-Gharabawy explains, adding that only the opening and closing ceremonies spread from the Merkato Hotel area towards the Roman Theatre.

"The festival was to be held in April, but following the crash of the Russian plane [in October] and the tourist vacuum, the minister of culture decided to hold the event earlier. Timing was definitely very tight, which created some organisational challenges. However, we will make sure to avoid all such flaws in the festival's upcoming editions. It will get better, step by step," El-Gharabawy explained.

Despite the cold weather, the festival guests and inhabitants of Sharm El-Sheikh showed interest in the events.

"Is the Syrian show tonight?" wondered one Egyptian who had just arrived at the hotel and noticed the festival posters in the streets and at the reception.

Reflections of war and violence

The tension was felt on the streets, as well as on the stage where several shows echoed the region's political turmoil.

Some performances denounced war and violence in all its forms, as was the case with the Serbian play Karakonduule 99, staged by Marina Dimitrijevic and Aleksandra Manasijevic.

In the play, the actors appeal for peace. It is a classical story of an evil that kills the people, with evil symbolising men of power who do not hesitate to wage wars for their own interests.

On another stage, the troupe from the Academy of Moscow was preparing the play The Diary of a Madman, based on a farcical short story by Nikolai Gogol.

The text presents a man who is slave to routine; he goes mad when disarray takes over his life. The Russian performance was very well-received by the audience, who expressed their solidarity with the victims of the Russian airliner that crashed in Sinai in 2015.

The sensation of confusion was felt in the Syrian play Hysteria, written and directed by Gehad Saad, with actors taken from the students of the Higher Institute of Theatre in Damascus. On stage, the protagonists try to flee the shelling and violence that prevails throughout their country.

The play touches on topics such as love lost in the war, which one of the characters finds completely absurd. With a hint of humour, the play aimed to portray an image of the atrocious reality of Syria today.

The same tone was found in the Iranian performance Admasez, which denounced war since the dawn of time. The play pointed the finger at television which, in the countries trapped in conflicts, only adds fuel to the fire.

The Jordanian play Adam's Silk was set against the backdrop of the Arab Spring and focused on problems of sexual harassment as a tool of repression against women.

The Scaffold was a performance from Libya in which a group of workers representing different segments of society discussed the lack of freedom in the Arab world. The scaffold on stage became the workers-protagonists' virtual prison, a place where they are all sentenced to death.

For their turn, a Tunisian troupe, the Medina Theatre Association from Jemna, found inspiration in the vernacular poet Ahmed Fouad Negm and composer Sheikh Imam, the famed duo closely linked to protest songs and the student movement in Egypt in the 1970s.

In their play titled Light Deprived Cells, written by Ben Omar, the characters wore black masks while discussing or mocking the current events, triggering the audience's laughter.

"We wanted to pay homage to these two leftist militants who inspired the Arab world and continue to do so," said director Hafez Khalifa.

The performance borrowed a lot from comedia dell'arte, bringing a seemingly light comic element to the play, which created close links between the duo and the current political events in the Arab world.

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(Beijing)  Johanna Wanka, Germany's minister for education and research, is often compared to Angela Merkel, the country's chancellor.

The two female leaders both attended the University of Leipzig, one of the world's oldest institutions of higher learning. They are also among the 10 of 16 German cabinet members with a doctoral degree in the sciences.

Wanka rose to the top education job in 2013 after a plagiarism scandal led to the downfall of her predecessor, Annette Schavan. In her ministerial capacity, she is committed to developing innovation, as well as "high-tech strategy" for equal opportunities in education.

In Germany she is seen as a pragmatic politician, with plenty of experience in education. Having been a professor of mathematics at the Brandenberg University of Applied Research and Technology, she knows one or two things about academia.

Her advice for a flourishing science ecosystem, something China wants to develop, is "innovation can only develop in a system that thrives on the interaction between science, academia, industry and civil society."

"The state's role above all is to be an enabler and driver of this interaction," she said in response to questions Caixin sent to her via email, before her first official visit to China on January 19.

In October, Wanka has announced a "China strategy" for cooperation in science and research. "Germany and China are equal and strategic partners in driving research and innovation for the benefit of both countries," she said.

One aim of that cooperation is to build on existing joint projects on issues related to the environment. "Opening up the Chinese market for German companies and to tap into new markets" is another, she said.

The following are excerpts from her replies.

Caixin: What are you hoping to achieve in your visit to China?

Johanna Wanka: Sino-German research cooperation is almost as old as our diplomatic relations. In 1974, the Max-Planck Society, an association of research institutes, established a permanent partnership. In 1978, our governments signed an agreement on bilateral scientific technical cooperation. Today, in a globalized and knowledge-driven world, cooperation with a rising China is more important than ever.

I will be signing two joint declarations together with the science minister, Wan Gang. One in the field of intelligent manufacturing and smart services, the other on joint procedures for research and innovation funding. I will also have the honor of awarding an Order of Merit to minister Wan for his services to academic and industrial research cooperation with Germany.

Then, I will visit the Zhongguancun High-Tech Park, which is widely known as China's Silicon Valley. I will also be speaking with the minister of education Yuan Guiren in Beijing on higher education, student exchanges and vocational education, as well as opening the second Sino-German conference on vocational education and training in Shanghai.

In October, you announced a strategy for cooperating with China in science and research. For Germany it is the first state-level strategy in this field that involves another country. Why did you pick China?

China is indeed the first detailed country strategy drawn up by my ministry. Germany and China are equal and strategic partners in driving research and innovation for the benefit of both countries, with joint projects in important fields such as water, climate, environment, sustainability, innovation research, life sciences and electric mobility. The China strategy is meant to build on and expand this trend. We also want to use our cooperation with China to strengthen Germany as a location for research and innovation, to open up the Chinese market for German companies and to tap into new markets together with China.

What can we expect from the China strategy in 2016?

There already exist 35 measures and nine activity fields in the Strategy, and we will intensify core elements such as cooperation in higher education. Measures to create a broader China expertise in Germany will include the funding of longer study and research stays in China and lasting alumni work.

We will continue cooperation on research addressing global ecological challenges in key areas such as clean water and urbanization. We want to establish more of the so-called 2+2 schemes, meaning joint research projects involving at least one German and one Chinese research institution or university, as well as at least one German and one Chinese company from the private sector.

If companies participate, joint research can be more applicable and innovative. It will help to put into practice the aims of Industry 4.0 (a strategy of the German government to, in part, develop smart factories) and Made in China 2025 (a plan by the State Council to upgrade manufacturers in China).

Are there any lessons China can draw from Germany in attracting talented scholars to research institutes and universities?

The question of whether talented people decide to work in science or research also depends on how attractive the science system is overall. This depends on how well funded it is, as well as on whether there are the legal framework and the possibilities for dynamic development and attractive career opportunities. There has been a significant increase in funding for the science system in Germany over the past 10 years in order to improve the capacity for innovation, allow for better targeted academic teaching and push for excellence in academic performance. This has created a momentum that has made the German science system increasingly attractive for top scientists and researchers from Germany and abroad. We are also working on expanding tenure track professorships in order to make academic career paths more attractive.

Germany is one of the most popular destinations for Chinese students to acquire advanced degrees. What's the German government's position on foreign students seeking employment after graduation?

International students do have good job prospects in Germany, and especially those who have gained their degree here. This has been confirmed by the OECD. The German government is working on how we can improve conditions further because it is important that the German science system has a stable network of graduate contacts around the world. German industry also benefits in its activities abroad from people who have previously studied in Germany. Our demographic trend is causing a skills shortage to increase while the German export industry depends on graduates with international experience and intercultural skills.

What can Germany share with China in terms of Industry 4.0?

For linking Industry 4.0 and Made in China 2025, our cooperation requires right from the beginning the creation of joint framework conditions such as the necessary standardization requirements. The aim of all the participating partners from industry and research is to create collaborations based on trust with a high level of transparency. I am delighted that during my visit I will be signing a declaration together with minister Wan to enable joint research and development activities on concrete topics such as logistics, systems integration and networking as well as energy and resource efficiency. Smart services and cyber-physical systems are also areas in which China and Germany can cooperate.

What do you think is the government's role in innovation?

It is the German government's conviction that innovation can only develop in a system that thrives on the interaction between science, academia, industry and civil society. The state's role above all is to be an enabler and driver of this interaction. We also pay attention to the whole innovation chain, from the creative idea to its implementation in new products and services. The state makes a clear commitment to public basic research across the board as well as to targeted project funding in applied research. We fund effective instruments to promote lively exchange between science, academia, industry and civil society  commercial companies must be driven by knowledge and innovation while universities should also regard the principle of commercial exploitation as a relevant part of their mission; we create innovation-friendly conditions for all stakeholders, whether for skilled labor, providers of venture capital or for the interested general public. In this way we can develop a fully coordinated policy that enables smart growth, good jobs and social prosperity.

Are there any measures to provide education and language training for the children and younger members of refugees who are seeking asylum in Germany?

The federal government is providing considerable amounts of funding to help the education of young refugees. Top priority is given to learning the German language, as well as German social values and norms. We are making integration classes available for asylum seekers and people with good prospects of being allowed to remain in Germany, We are also expanding vocational language courses and launching programs to support training for recognized refugees and people with tolerated residence status after a waiting period of 15 months. The government is also helping the federal states, which in the German federal system have responsibility for most areas of education. We will be investing at least 230 million euros towards this over the coming years.

You called for classrooms nationwide to use Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf, with the first critically annotated edition of the book out already, which has sparked a fierce debate. What is your thinking behind this?

I want to support critical appraisal. The copyright on this miserable tome expired at the end of 2015, is now available to be read. School students will therefore have questions about it and it is right that they ask them and are able to talk about it at school. This makes the critically annotated edition published by the German Institute of Contemporary History absolutely appropriate. It can make a contribution to political education and in view of this has been written in a way that is accessible to all readers. I very much welcome the fact that a broad public now has an excellent contextualized version it can consult and that Hitler's statements are not left unchallenged.
(Beijing) - China Food and Drug Administration (China FDA) says it has found 35 restaurants nationwide, including a popular crayfish chain in Beijing, have been using banned chemical additives extracted from poppy shells as seasoning.

The administration has referred 25 cases to local prosecutors' offices for criminal further investigation and they have pressed charges against owners of five restaurants for producing and selling poisonous and harmful foodstuff, China FDA said in a statement on January 20. The regulator said that it is investigating 10 other companies.

The ood safety regulator has banned the use of powdered poppy seedpods, because if food laced with it is ingested over a long-period, it may lead to addiction.

Two food shops in Suzhou in the eastern province of Anhui, with links to food giant Hubei Zhouheiya Co., Ltd, that is known for its cooked and marinated duck meat products are among the companies that have been charged. Hubei Zhouheiya Co., Ltd was not available for comment. Prosecutors have not revealed the trial dates, but the maximum punishment for the charges is a death sentence under Chinese law.

The companies that have come under the direct scrutiny of the China FDA include Beijing Huda Restaurant, a popular crayfish restaurant, with outlets across the capital. But the restaurants manager said he was not aware of any inspections by the regulator.

The China FDA said that the violations linked to poppy shell abuse were uncovered during a field inspection last year, but it did not say how many restaurants or food shops it has inspected.

Seasoning that use extracts from poppy shells are widely used in restaurants serving barbecued fish and hotpot, the inspection found.

The use of poppy shells is part of the traditional cooking style in some areas because people believe it can improve the flavor, Dr. Zhong Kai, a food safety expert in Beijing, said. But Zhong said restaurants and food shops use poppy shell to keep dinners coming back for more.

A nationwide crackdown on the illicit practice might prove to be difficult as the raw materials and seasonings are widely available, he said. There are three to four million, mostly small restaurants and food shops around the country that would make it even harder to stop this practice, he said.

China has been rattled by several food scares resulting from the use of substandard ingredients and abuse of banned additives over the past decade. A scandal involving melamine-tainted baby formula in 2008 prompted authorities to tighten food safety laws.

(Rewritten by Li Rongde)
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's sudden death has further dampened hopes by South Korea's Hyundai Asan that its package tours to North Korea will ever resume. The regime unilaterally canceled Hyundai Asan's exclusive rights to package tours to the scenic Mt. Kumgang project in April, and in August seized all South Korean assets there.

It has since tried to interest Chinese and other firms in the tours.

Seoul halted the tours after a South Korean tourist was shot dead by a North Korean soldier in 2008, demanding an apology, joint investigation and safety guarantees, but the North declined.

With Kim dead, there is now an even greater likelihood that the North will regard all its obligations to Hyundai Asan, which pioneered business deals with the North based on friendly relations with the Kim dynasty and massive aid programs, as null and void. The contract was signed by late Hyundai Group chairman Chung Mong-hun and Kim Yong-sun, the chairman of the North's Asia Pacific Peace Committee, in October 1998. It was approved later by Kim Jong-il.

Whenever difficulties arose in the Mt. Kumgang project, the Hyundai Group chairperson -- first, group founder Chung Ju-yung, then his son Mong-hun, and then Mong-hun's wife Hyun Jeong-eun -- solved them by going directly to Kim. Now he is gone, that fragile bond has ended.

Hyundai Asan has lost more than W500 billion until this year due to the suspension of the tours (US$1=W1,173). It had a staff of about 1,000 before the tour was suspended but cut it down by about 70 percent.

It remains to be seen whether Hyundai Asan can retrieve even a fraction of its W777 billion investment. "We're not in a position to express our view as long as the situation in the North is uncertain," a Hyundai Asan executive said. "We'll respect whatever decision the government makes."
Some smartphones lost or stolen in South Korea are reportedly being smuggled into North Korea via China.

A source on Friday said someone who lost his smartphone in Seoul tracked down the location on Google and found it in Pyongyang.

North Korean authorities intentionally collect South Korean electronic gadgets to disassemble and copy, the source claimed.

"Many of the smartphones lost in the South are being used in the North clandestinely, but some are used for research purposes, he added.

North Korea is reportedly developing its own smartphones by copying South Korean and Chinese products. The source said, "Smartphones lost in the South are sent to China, where only the SIM cards are changed, and then smuggled into the North. There is growing demand for South Korean goods there, and people prefer high-performing South Korean smartphones."

The instant messaging app KakaoTalk is useful in a country where access to the Internet is heavily restricted and international calls are difficult.

The instant messaging app KakaoTalk is useful in a country where access to the Internet is heavily restricted and international calls are difficult. North Korean authorities are reportedly accusing anyone caught with the app on their phone of being a spy.

North Korean police inspect mobile phones of people living in towns along the border with China to check if they have a KakaoTalk app on their phones, according to Radio Free Asia.
Nearly four million Chinese tourists visited Korea last year -- that's almost one-third of all tourists. The figure has risen steadily in recent years, up 34 percent on average over the past five years.

Once the bilateral free trade agreement is signed at the end of this year, the influx of Chinese tourists is expected to grow even more. Nearly 10 million people from both countries go back and forth each year.

To meet the demand, Korea's tourism infrastructure will need to adjust with regard to its accommodations in particular.

There were nearly 28,000 rooms available in Seoul last year. That's just one-fifth the number of hotel rooms that Beijing or Tokyo offers.

The Korea Tourism Organization estimates that at least 40,000 more hotel rooms will be needed to meet the increase in demand of Chinese tourists.
The United States Thursday tightened its Visa Waiver Program, ending easy access to the U.S. for travelers who have been in Iran, Iraq, Sudan or Syria in the last five years, as well as for citizens of those four countries.

The changes in the Visa Waiver Program were enacted by Congress late last year and signed into law by President Barack Obama.

The implementation of the new regulations Thursday comes as the U.S. ramps up its border security in the wake of the Paris terrorist attacks that killed 130 people in November and a December assault in San Bernardino, California, that left 14 dead. The U.S. attack was carried out by an Islamist American and his Pakistani wife, who was cleared to enter the U.S. on a fiancee visa with the promise that she would soon get married.
As a crowded rubber boat approached the Greek island of Lesbos on Tuesday, aid workers waved and gave the roughly 30 passengers a 'thumbs up.' Close to shore, they climbed out of the boat, appearing stunned and passing babies to aid workers to carry them to the beach. The day before, it had snowed in Lesbos for the first time in four years. The group was among the roughly 1,600 people who have been arriving in rubber boats on the shores of Greece every day since the beginning of this year. That is more than 20 times the amount of people arriving in all of January of 2015, a year in which more than a million people made the dangerous journey from the Middle East or Africa to Europe to seek asylum, according to the International Organization for Migration. "The number suggests that the number of maritime arrivals in Greece in 2016 may significantly exceed the record 853,650 migrants who arrived in Greece by sea in 2015," reads a statement on the IOM website. On the shores of Lesbos, refugees say the people will keep coming. "I had to expose myself and my family to this danger on this boat," said Ahmed Alhomsy, a Syrian man holding his infant son. "The boat is like a rubber balloon and we are traveling in the winter when it is most dangerous."

After surviving the sea, there are also dangers on shore, said Amy Pappajohn, an aid worker. For example, when they land, the refugees' clothes are usually wet,



"In the summer of course it was no problem when the clothes were wet," she said. "But it's now a health risk, health and safety problems, with them becoming frozen solid the second they come off the boats."

The cold weather has also made traveling by sea more deadly, according to the IOM. In the past week 19 people are believed to have drowned at sea enroute to Greece, including three children and an infant.



On land, travelers echo the refrain of earlier refugees fleeing to Europe. They didn't come because they wanted to, they came because they had to, said Alhomsy.



"Syria is being bombed from the air," he added. "We are terrified for our women and our children. We were forced to leave. If you ask me or any Syrian here in Greece, nobody wanted to leave by his own choice."



Cold weather is expected to continue here in the coming weeks and, as a result, fewer people are arriving than last month, according to aid workers.

"It's very dependent on the weather and the storms and the wind," said Pappajohn. "In the month of December the numbers were quite high because we didnt have, I think, a single day of rain."
A top British government investigator says Russian President Vladimir Putin probably personally approved the assassination of Alexander Litvinenko, a Russian spy-turned-dissident who was exiled in Britain after criticizing Putin and accusing him -- among other things -- of being a pedophile.

Robert Owen, a retired judge serving as the inquiry's chairman, on Thursday announced his yearlong inquiry had confirmed the Russian state was responsible for the November 2006 poisoning of Livinenko, carried out by two Russian agents at the Millennium hotel in central London just a few meters from the U.S. Embassy.

For nearly nine years since her husband's death, Marina Litvinenko has been demanding answers. Thursday brought some vindication for her. Speaking to reporters outside the Royal Courts in London, she said she was "of course very pleased" by the outcome. "The words my husband spoke on his death bed when he accused Mr. Putin of his murder have been proved true in an English court with a high standard of independence and fairness,she said.

In Moscow, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zhakarova said, "We regret that a purely criminal case has been politicized and has darkened the general atmosphere of bilateral relations."

The White House said it wouldn't rule out "relevent future steps" following the British inquiry's conclusion on the death of Livinenko.

 Back Story

Litvinenko was an agent of the Russian Federal Security Service, the Russian spy agency that came after the Soviet-area KGB. But after becoming an outspoken critic of Putin in 1998, he fled Russia and sought asylum in Britain.

He continued to anger the Kremlin with criticism of Putin that included personal attacks, such as an article in which he accused the Russian leader of being a pedophile. The Kremlin rejected the accusation.
Art exhibitions in 2016 worth seeing

From:chinadaily.com.cn | 2016-01-22 11:32

Year 2015 witnessed many fabulous exhibitions and art events. In 2016, what art enjoyments can we expect? The Paper selected a batch of most representative exhibitions worldwide that are going to feast our eyes in 2016, which covers fields of photography, archaeology, fashion and others.

1. A genius' visions

Triptych altar art The Haywain, will be on display in Bosch's hometown for the first time. [Photo/Het Noordbrabants Museum]

Address: Stedelijk Museum, Den Bosch, Holland

Time: Feb 13 - May 8

Bosch - The centenary exhibition

Address: Prado Museum, Madrid, Spain

Time: May 31 - Sep 11, 2016

On the occasion of the 500th anniversary of the Dutch artist Hieronymus Bosch's (1450  1516) death, his born city - Den Bosch, Holland - is putting on the largest retrospective works from the artist ever.

The Prado Museum in Spain is also preparing to welcome the largest monographic exhibition on the Dutch artist in the new year.

Considered to be one of the pioneers of 20th century surrealism, Hieronymus Bosch has a unique style of painting. Bosch's works mostly depicted diabolical figures which reflect the moral perversity and evil sides of humans.

2. Sunken cities: Egypt's lost worlds

A statue of god Hapi unearthed at the Thonis-Heracleion. [Photo/britishmuseum.org]

Address: The British Museum, London, UK

Time: May 19 - Nov 27, 2016

The British Museum is to stage a major exhibition on two lost Egyptian cities Thonis-Heracleion and Canopus, which sunk more than 1,000 years ago.

The exhibition will display nearly 200 pieces of relics unearthed beneath the seabed of the coastal port of Alexandria in Egypt by archaeologists between 1966 and 2012. Collections from the Egyptian Museum are also on display telling the stories of the ancient civilization.

3. Emperors' treasures

The meat-shaped stone from Taipei's Palace Museum. [Photo/npm.gov.tw]

Address: Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, US

Time: June 17 - Sept 18, 2016

Nearly 150 artworks from Taipei's Palace Museum which include paintings, calligraphy, bronze vessels, ceramics, lacquer ware, jades, textiles and documents will travel to the US as part of activities to celebrating the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Asian Art Museum.

The exhibited items, spanning from Song Dynasty (960-1279) to Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), are making their debut on US soil. The popular meat-shaped stone has been confirmed to make its appearance in Los Angeles.

4. Tribal art in the context of modernism

Still Life with Negro Statues, 1918by Max Pechstein. [Photo/leopoldmuseum.org]

Address: Leopold Museum, Vienna, Austria

Time: Sept 23, 2016 - Sept 1, 2017

The tribal art plays a great role in Western art. It is said that when Pablo Picasso was faced with a room full of African masks at Paris Musee d'Ethnographie, he blurted out, "This is what painting is really about".

The exhibition will show a series of works from representative European modernism artists such as Pablo Picasso, Amedeo Modigliani, Emil Nolde, Max Ernst, and Max Pechstein, as well as over 200 pieces of tribal art pieces collected by the museum's founder Rudolf Leopold.

5. Diane Arbus: In the beginning

The Backwards Man in His Hotel Room, a photograph by Diane Arbus. [Photo/Christie's]

Address: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Breuer branch, New York, US

Time: July 12 - Nov 27, 2016

Diane Arbus (19231971) is an influential figure in the world of photography. She focused her camera on non-mainstream groups in society like transexuals, homeless people, and the mentally disabled. Her works inspired the public's re-examining of "normal" and "abnormal", and "moral" and "immoral".

The exhibition will exhibit the photographer's early works between the years 1956 and 1962, among which two-thirds that have never been published before.

6. #techstyle

Designed by Iris van Herpen and Neri Oxman, printed by Stratasys, Anthozoa Cape and Skirt, Voltage, Haute Couture Collection, 2013. [Photo/mfa.org]

Address: Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, US

Time: March 6  July 10, 2016

The future fashion largely depends on technological innovation as top designers in the world like Issey Miyake, Rei Kawakubo, Hussein Chalayan, and Alexander McQueen already tried introducing the newest technology of laser, electronic technology and 3D printing into their works.

The exhibition in 2016 will showcase some works from these designers along with other exhibits. The highlight of the exhibition is a laser printed skirt from Alexander McQueen's last show in 2010. The exhibition will explore collaborations among designers, mathematicians and scientists, and show how clothing can present different visual effects brought by the technology.

7. Marcel Broodthaers: A retrospective

White Cabinet and White Table, 1965, by Marcel Broodthaers. [Photo/moma.org]

Address: Museum of Modern Art, New York, US

Time: Feb 14 - May 15, 2016

Belgian artist Marcel Broodthaers (19241976) is also a filmmaker, and a poet. Critic Michael Rush, who was once the curator of MOMA, said Marcel is probably "the most well-known artist you have not seen before", as he exerted much influence on a large batch of contemporary artists.

8. Marc Gabriel Charles Gleyre1806-1874): Romance of confession

Dance of the Bacchantes, 1849, Oil on canvas, by Charles Gleyr. [Photo/musee-orsay.fr]

Address: Musee d'Orsay in Paris, France

Time: May 10 - Sept 11, 2016

In the 19th century, Gleyre was honored as one of the major leaders in academy painting. His art studio in Paris was the most open and creative art space among others, which had lodged great art masters like Auguste Renoir, Claude Monet, and Alfred Sisley.

Some critics hold the view that Gleyre's simple and clear drawing style, and his favor of mythical themes showed his resistance to the outside new world. This exhibition intends to emphasize and reevaluate the passion, violence and oriental elements in Gleyre's paintings. He portrayed females as an image of seduction and danger, which was an experimental pioneer of symbolism at the end of 19th century.

9. Painters' paintings: From Freud to Van Dyck

Italian Woman, about 1870, by Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot. [Photo/nationalgallery.org.uk]

Address: The National Gallery, London, UK

Time: June 22 - September 4, 2016

We tend to care more about artists' own creations and seem pay little attention to the pieces collected by artists. The exhibition in London's National Gallery this year has selected 60 paintings acquired by art masters including Lucian Freud and Van Dyck, and put these collections along with the artists' works to showcase the connection between artists' aesthetic appreciation and their own creations.

10. The 11th Shanghai Biennale

Raqs Media Collective, curator group for the 11th Shanghai Biennale [Photo/powerstationofart.com]

Address: Power Station of Art, Shanghai, China

Time: Nov 11, 2016 - Mar 12, 2017

Titled "Why Not Ask Again? Maneuvers, Disputations & Stories", the exhibition was curated by Raqs Media Collective, an Indian artist group founded in 1992. The biennale will mainly explore the possibilities of "South-South cooperation", and intends to present an open art world transcending the disparities between the East and West.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a yellow alert across the state for the next three days.
#S Korea-households Number of households in Seoul set to decline from 2030: Statistics Korea The number of households in the capital city of Seoul is expected to gradually decrease starting in 2030, data showed Thursday, as more people move to other areas in search of affo...
This year's Dublin International Film Festival, running from the 18th to the 28th of February, is gearing up to be one of the best in years.

However, the festival also falls quite close to the 100-year anniversary of the 1916 Rising and, sure enough, there's a little something planned. Director Neil Jordan will host a special screening of Michael Collins at the Savoy Cinema on February 20th, with cinematographer Chris Menges in attendance. The film will be followed by an onstage-Q&A hosted by Harry McGee

Festival director Grainne Humphreys said that she's "thrilled to be able to programme Michael Collins in the Audi Dublin International Film Festival. Everyone remembers the excitement in Dublin when it was being filmed and so many people were part of it as extras. The resulting film was and is the great film of the period from Neil Jordan at the height of his filmmaking powers."

The 20th Anniversary Edition of Michael Collins will be available on Blu-Ray from March 4th, with a specially-recorded introduction and director's commentary by Neil Jordan as well.

Season tickets for ADIFF '16 are now available at adiff.ie.
This year's Australia Day - which, according to Google, is held on the 26th of January every year - will have an extra special celebrant, thanks to this little video.

We're not entirely sure if it's Ryan Reynolds' himself or if it's a highly-trained team of comedy writers, but whoever's coming up with their marketing material needs to take a bow. The press tour for Deadpool has been nothing short of spectacular, especially the romantic-drama poster that legitimately fooled a few people, also.

This message, delivered straight to Australia and concerning their national treasure, Hugh Jackman, is pretty on-point. Hugh Jackman is a lovely man, but X-Men: Origins - Wolverine was a pile of dogsh**.

Glad that's all out in the open. Deadpool's slated for Irish release on February 12th, 2016.
Toltek/iStock/ThinkStock(NEW YORK) -- Fifty-one million vehicles were recalled in 2015, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said in a press release on Thursday.

The 51 million recalled vehicles were part of 900 separate recalls and the Takata airbag recall, "which affected 19 million vehicles, was the largest in U.S. history," said the release.

NHTSA says "each year, on average, 25 percent of recalled vehicles are left unrepaired."

Consumers are encouraged to check their vehicles at least twice a year and can use NHTSA's Vin lookup tool.

Copyright  2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Eddie, one of the dogs that participated in the study, poses in the fMRI scanner with two of the toys used in the experiments, "Monke...
London subway buys Chinese train parts Updated: 2016-01-22 08:40 By Zheng Xin(China Daily Europe)



The CRRC Corp stand at the Metro China 2015 expo in Beijing. Lei Kesi / China Daily

China Railway Rolling Stock unit bags $10 million long-term supply contract from Underground to provide equipment

China Railway Rolling Stock Corp said on Jan 15 that its overseas subsidiary has won a $10 million order from London Underground.

Delkor Rail, an overseas subsidiary of its unit CRRC Zhuzhou Electric Locomotive Co, has signed a long-term supply contract with Transport for London for the supply of underground-train parts.

Industry experts say the deal is testimony to China's growing presence in the global high-speed railway market.

"Chinese high-speed rail companies' presence in the global market will expand in the next three to five years," says Cao Gangcai, vice-chief economist at CRRC Corp.

The rail firm's technical strength, research and development capability and equipment have been used in more than 100 countries and regions. The growing global infrastructure sector will spur demand for more rail products, he says.

That said, it will still take some time before other countries fully accept Chinese technologies and China's high-speed rail products, Cao says.

Delkor Rail, a leading supplier of quality noise- and vibration-attenuation products and services, is fully owned by CRRC Zhuzhou Electric Locomotive.

Its technical expertise and quality components have been utilized in construction projects in countries and regions including Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Singapore and Hong Kong.

The company has been exploring the European and American markets in recent years, CRRC officials say.

The order from Transport for London will help expand the company's presence in the United Kingdom and open doors to other European markets, it says.

Generically referred to as "the Tube", the London Underground, which opened in 1863, is the world's oldest underground railway system and carries more than 1 billion passengers a year.

The London transport department has come out with several renovation plans for its subway lines. Most of the railway tracks and facilities are aging and need upgrades.

zhengxin@chinadaily.com.cn


China wins fastener tiff with EU Updated: 2016-01-22 08:40 By Zhong Nan(China Daily Europe)



The fastener product section at an industry expo in Yiwu, Zhejiang province. Lyu Bin / For China Daily

World trade body rules tariffs illegal, more steps pledged to protect domestic industry after spate of trade disputes

China scored a major victory in its seven-year trade dispute with the European Union on Jan 18 after the World Trade Organization ruled in favor of Chinese fastener makers.

The EU decision to impose hefty tariffs on fastener imports from China during the past seven years is illegal, the WTO said in its ruling. China, for its part, will take more concrete steps to protect the rights of its domestic exporters, the Ministry of Commerce said.

Chen Fuli, deputy director-general of the department of treaty and law at the ministry, said China would forward a trade retaliation request to the WTO to force the EU to remove the anti-dumping duties on Chinese fasteners if the EU does not negotiate terms or remove such an unfair duty after the ruling.

Normally, it takes up to 15 months for countries to amend rules and withdraw anti-dumping duties after a WTO ruling on trade disputes.

China is the world's biggest producer of screws, nuts, bolts and washers, and the EU is a major destination for its fasteners, which are used for a wide range of products from aircraft, high-speed trains and automotive parts to furniture.

China shipped $1 billion worth of fastener products to the EU in 2008, but that had fallen to $80 million by 2014 after the EU decided to impose anti-dumping duties of up to 85 percent on China's fasteners for five years in January 2009. On July 31, 2009, China took the case to the WTO's dispute settlement mechanism, the country's first such case against the EU.

China currently has more than 8,000 fastener enterprises, including more than 6,000 private businesses. The industry employs 200,000 people and exported products worth $5.24 billion to global markets such as the United States, Russia, Japan, Germany and Brazil in 2014, according to the National Development and Reform Commission, the top economic planner.

Gu Weiping, general manager of Jiaxing Xiongdi Fastener Co, says the WTO ruling is definitely a major victory for China. "We will be closely watching how it is implemented by the EU."

Since the Netherlands, Spain, the Czech Republic and Italy are still major fastener exporters and are backed by their respective industry associations, trade unions and local governments, Gu says the EU is "may delay the implementation or only partially implement the WTO ruling".

zhongnan@chinadaily.com.cn


Russia's Rusal eager to enter China's aluminum sector Updated: 2016-01-22 19:32 By Cecily Liu(China Daily Europe)

Russia's leading aluminum maker Rusal wants to enter China's aluminum downstream production industry through joint ventures, Rusal CEO Vladislav Soloviev told China Daily at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Friday.

Soloviev said he sees the downstream aluminum production industry, which makes aluminum products such as wires and alloys, has big potential to develop in China as the country has the benefit of economies of scale and market demand.

Currently Rusal has a partnership with China North Industries Corporation established in 2011, under which Rusal bought a 33 percent stake in Shenzhen North Investments Corporation Limited, a trading affiliate of China North Industries Corporation specializing in aluminum, alloys and non-ferrous metals.

The share purchase led to the establishment of the joint venture company North United Aluminium, which started production in 2012. But Soloviev said this joint venture is a very small part of Rusal's global business.

Soloviev said Rusal now hopes to strategically expand into China by exporting Russian-produced aluminum, believing that the hydro-power generated aluminum produced by Russia is more environmentally friendly than the coal-produced aluminum of China, which he sees will face a reduction as China increases its environmental protection measures.

He said if China's own aluminum production reduces volume in the future, Rusal is keen to export more to China as well as set up joint ventures with Chinese firms in downstream aluminum production.

Soloviev said he sees many opportunities for further China-Russia business cooperation, especially because Russia has great infrastructure demand which can benefit from Chinese technology, equipment and capital.

One example of this type of cooperation is the potential partnership between Rusal's major shareholder, En+ Group and China's largest hydropower developer China Three Gorges Corp, to develop hydropower projects in Russia.

Oleg Deripaska, En+ Group owner, who is also president of Rusal, told China Daily in a previous interview that his group is looking for more cooperation with China Three Gorges.

Russian hydropower company RusHydro and China Three Gorges signed a deal in 2015 to cooperate on a 320 megawatt hydroelectric power project on the Bureya River in Russia's Far East.

To contact the reporter: cecily.liu@mail.chinadailyuk.com
China, Gulf resume free trade talks Updated: 2016-01-22 08:37 By Xing Zhigang in Riyadh and Li Xiaokun in Beijing(China Daily Europe)

Decision reflects importance regional bloc attaches to Beijing, commerce minister says

China and the Gulf Cooperation Council have resumed negotiations on a free trade agreement and will conclude the pact this year, both sides said on Jan 20.

Observers hailed the move, which will open an extremely rich market for China, as a "breakthrough" during the visit by President Xi Jinping to the Middle East.

President Xi jinping meets with Gulf Cooperation Council Secretary-General Abdul Latif bin Rashid Al Zayani, in Riyadh on Jan 19. Wang Ye / Xinhua

Xi arrived in Riyadh, the Saudi capital, on Jan 19 to start the first visit to the country by a Chinese head of state in seven years. He will also visit Egypt and Iran.

News of the breakthrough came after the president met with the council's secretary-general, Abdul Latif bin Rashid Al Zayani, in Riyadh.

Xi told Zayani that China is willing to be a long-term, stable and reliable energy market for the bloc. Zayani said all council members expect to raise the bloc's ties with China to the level of "special strategic partnership".

Chinese Commerce Minister Gao Hucheng said on Jan 20 that the FTA talks had restarted while the council's talks with another 16 countries remain frozen, reflecting the importance the regional bloc attaches to Beijing. "We believe this is an important move for the council to further strengthen its strategic partnership with China, and also a key decision to further improve China's comprehensive cooperation with the council," he said.

Li Guofu, head of the China Institute of International Studies' Middle East department, says the agreement, once signed, will open up to China a market of six rich countries that mainly rely on imports.

The Gulf Cooperation Council is a political and economic union of six Gulf Arab states - Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. "Chinese goods will be very competitive there, and will be transferred to neighboring regions through the bloc," Li says.

Li Shaoxian, a senior expert in Middle East studies at Ningxia University in northwestern China, said, "I expected President Xi's visit to push forward the FTA talks, but I didn't dare to hope they would restart immediately ... It's a big surprise."

A news release issued by the Ministry of Commerce and the council secretariat on Jan 20 said the Chinese government and the council had "resumed negotiations on Jan 16 and substantively concluded in principle the negotiations on trade in goods on Jan 19".

China and the council have decided to "accelerate the pace of negotiations" and hold the next round in the second half of February. They will also "conclude a comprehensive FTA within 2016", the release added.

Contact the writers through xingzhigang@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 01/22/2016 page2)
Cosco buys controlling share in Greek port Updated: 2016-01-22 08:40 By Maria Petrakis(China Daily Europe)

Chinese shipping giant seals deal after upping bid as rivals drop out

Shipping giant Cosco consolidated its hold over the Greek port of Piraeus on Jan 20, agreeing to pay 368.5 million euros ($402 million) for a 67 percent stake after increasing its offer to clinch control of a key thoroughfare into Europe.

The deal will see the Chinese company pay 22 euros a share, according to the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund in Athens.

Piraeus port is seen as a key entry way for Chinese goods. Angelos Tzortzinis / AFP

Cosco had been asked to submit a better offer last week after it emerged as the sole bidder for the stake in the port, an outcome that Greek officials called disappointing.

The offer accepted was a 70 percent premium to the closing share price of Piraeus Port Authority on Jan 20 - 12.95 euros - and values the entire business at 550 million euros.

The Hellenic fund says the whole value of the Cosco agreement will come to 1.5 billion euros, taking into account purchase price, investments, dividends and income from the concession agreement.

The result could provide Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras with some breathing space as he battles domestic opposition to state asset sales and tries to push through changes to pensions that have prompted strikes, including from seamen. Officials said last week that the government would do its utmost to ensure Greece got the best possible price for a majority stake in Piraeus, the country's largest port and a key part of China's plans to create a modern commercial empire pumping Chinese goods throughout the continent.

State-owned Cosco, which is listed in Hong Kong, was the only confirmed bidder for the 67 percent stake in Piraeus, where Cosco already runs container operations at two piers.

APM Terminals, owned by Danish shipping conglomerate Maersk, and Philippines-based port operator International Container Terminal Services were also short-listed but didn't put in a binding bid. Both dropped out at the last minute in the long-delayed sale.

Analysts see Chinese investment in Piraeus as a key part of China's Belt and Road Initiative, which aims to create 21st century land and maritime equivalents of the Silk Road. Since Cosco started its container operation in 2009, traffic has surged at Piraeus, making the harbor one of the fastest-growing ports in the world. During his visit in June, Premier Li Keqiang called the port China's gateway to Europe.

The Piraeus sale is also seen as a yardstick for Greece's lackluster state asset sales program, a key revenue-raiser tied to the country qualifying for billions in rescue funds from its European partners and the International Monetary Fund.

The Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund says Cosco has agreed to mandatory investments of 350 million euros in the next 10 years and the income accruing to the Greek state from the concession agreement of some 410 million euros. The amount includes expected revenue from dividends and additional investments up to the end of the concession agreement in 2052.

Of the mandatory investments, 300 million euros will be spent in the first five years, mainly in relation to cruise and ship-repairing operations. Officials expect Cosco could spend another 270 million euros in investments up to 2052. They say Cosco had originally bid 17.5 euros a share for the stake.

The transaction will be a two-step deal: Cosco will buy a 51 percent stake in Piraeus for 280.5 million euros and will acquire the additional stake in the next five years for 88 million euros on completion of the terms in the shareholder agreement, including investments. Greece will initially retain a 23 percent stake, with that dropping to 7 percent on conclusion of the two-step process.

Cosco's supremacy at Piraeus is thought to be a prerequisite to unleashing more Chinese investment in Greece, where unemployment has soared and foreign investment has dried to a trickle amid six years of political turmoil and concerns of financial collapse.

Xinhua, the official Chinese news agency, reported that Li called Tsipras this week to underline China's interest in bolstering ties with Greece.

Greek officials expect Chinese investment in projects such as a major freight and logistics center on the outskirts of Athens, and a new airport planned for the island of Crete.

The Piraeus sale will be the first state asset sale the Tsipras government can claim since the leftist prime minister came to power a year ago, vowing to halt privatizations and tear up the two bailout agreements that forced higher taxes and cuts in wages and pensions on Greeks. He has tempered his tone since July, when he was forced to accept a new 86 billion euro bailout to keep Greece in the eurozone.

In December, the government wound up previously agreed deals for the privatization of 14 regional airports and the sale of seaside resort in Athens. Both deals were halted when Tsipras came to power.

For China Daily

(China Daily European Weekly 01/22/2016 page30)
Russia seeking its place on the Belt and Road map Updated: 2016-01-22 08:40 By Cecily Liu(China Daily Europe)

Russia is looking for closer participation in China's Belt and Road Initiative through government-backed investment in projects that put the country on the map, according to a top sovereign wealth fund manager.

Kirill Dmitriev, chief executive of the Russia Direct Investment Fund and co-chief executive of the Russia-China Investment Fund, says his team is eyeing more opportunities related to the initiative after having already made several successful investments.

"The Belt and Road Initiative is very important for Russia, as it can provide sources of additional growth," he says. "Russia is strategically placed between China and Europe, and we can participate to provide more connectivity in the initiative."

The $2 billion Russia-China Investment Fund was launched in 2012 as a joint venture between China Investment Corp and the Russia Direct Investment Fund, with each side committing $1 billion.

The Russian fund and joint China-Russia fund have both invested in projects, many of which facilitate connectivity between China and Europe through Russia. Projects include an airport project in Vladivostok that helps Chinese tourists travel and do more business in Russia's Far East, a railroad bridge over the Heilongjiang River - also known as Amur River - that connects China with Russia and cuts transportation costs, and a telecommunications network that potentially could connect China and Europe through Russia.

Dmitriev's comments come after presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin signed a joint statement in May on integrating the Belt and Road Initiative with Russia's aspirations under the Eurasian Economic Union framework.

The Chinese initiative is aimed at further strengthening trade and investment integration between Asia and Europe through infrastructure development. The Eurasian Economic Union is targeted at integration of states located primarily in northern Eurasia, and was originally set up by Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan.

The closer cooperation between China and Russia on regional integration has resulted in many government-backed business deals, one being oil company Sinopec's purchase of a 10 percent share in Russia's largest gas processing and petrochemicals company, Sibur, in December, a deal that aims to strengthen both countries' petrochemicals industry efficiency.

Dmitriev says the Russia-China Investment Fund is focused on committing to projects that would help the common interests of China and Russia, with a focus on sectors like technology, production of natural resources with added value, and agriculture.

He says the fund is keen to get involved in more projects that include Russia's contribution to the Belt and Road map, and its current investment pipeline is about $3 billion. He says support from the Chinese and Russian governments for the joint fund is key to its advantages, as it cuts out geopolitical risks that individual Chinese and Russian investors may face.

Dmitriev says the fund's strategy is to invest in projects that would provide a good financial return, rather than invest in sectors or companies for political reasons. From an investment decision-making perspective, it functions like any other private sector fund.

"We believe real returns are key to investment. In the process of creating good returns, you create jobs and economic growth."

In 2015, the Russia-China Investment Fund invested in Didi Kuaidi, a Chinese taxi-hailing app, and online education platform Tutor Group. The latter launched an English-learning platform for the Chinese mainland, Asia and other countries in 2004, but now offers more languages and has attracted funding from the likes of Alibaba and Qiming Venture Partners.

Dmitriev says companies like Didi, Kuaidi and Tutor Group are already leaders in China, but the same business models can be applied equally to Russia, and he hopes by investing in those countries the fund can help to develop synergies.

He says the fund has approved about 15 transactions and that, so far, the projects have been profitable.

Although China's growth has slowed, Dmitriev says he is not worried. "We believe it is good growth, although we do expect there will be fluctuations in the market, and we believe China will continue to be a key driver of the world economy."

He also has high expectations for China's leadership of the G20 this year, and he hopes the country will work toward tackling unnecessary global trade and investment barriers that hamper Chinese and Russian outward investment.

cecily.liu@mail.chinadailyuk.com

(China Daily European Weekly 01/22/2016 page30)
Holding up half the African sky Updated: 2016-01-22 08:41 By Lucie Morangi(China Daily Europe)

China joins with Geneva-based group to link continent's SMEs, including women's enterprises, to global trade

China is working with the International Trade Centre, a 50-year-old, Geneva-based organization, to build the competitiveness of smaller African businesses and link them to the global value chain.

This move, including a focus on female-owned enterprises, is lifting millions of families from poverty, as jobs are created and higher wages earned, officials say.

Arancha Gonzalez, International Trade Centre executive director, says China's support has boosted ITC's programs in sub-Saharan Africa, where pockets of poverty remain. Lucie Morangi / China Daily

ITC, a joint mandate of the World Trade Organization and the United Nations, bills itself as "the only multilateral agency fully dedicated to supporting the internationalization" of small and medium-sized enterprises.

"We implement the benefits found in multilateral agreements made possible by WTO and employ it in fighting poverty, a mandate of the UN," explains ITC Executive Director Arancha Gonzalez.

Gonzalez, speaking to China Daily on the sidelines of the 10th WTO Ministerial Meeting in Nairobi in December, said China's support has boosted ITC's programs in sub-Saharan Africa, where pockets of poverty remain. The agency aims to enable a million more women entrepreneurs to enter global markets by 2020.

"We believe that trade is the solution to fighting poverty, and by supporting businesses in these countries a greater impact is achieved," says Gonzalez, who previously served as chief of staff to former WTO director-general Pascal Lamy, who served from 2005 to 2013.

In November, ITC launched a program linking Chinese businesses to Africa, and African businesses to China, with the support of the China-Africa Development Fund, a Chinese government-controlled equity fund, and the Department for International Development, the British government's development arm. The program covers Kenya, Ethiopia, Zambia and Mozambique.

"We are trying to build value-chain growth in enterprises found along the northern corridor. Essentially at this stage we are identifying value chains before creating linkages between businesses found along the corridor," Gonzalez says.

The corridor is a transport route that connects the port of Mombasa in Kenya to countries in the interior of East and Central Africa. These include Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The route also includes Ethiopia, where efforts are being made to support the leather industry, a sector in which Chinese companies have a huge stake.

The program's target is micro, small and medium enterprises. Gonzalez says she is encouraged by the planned relocation of some Chinese industries into the region. She says they offer opportunities for Africa to increase its participation in global trade.

The firms are subsidiaries of Chinese parent companies that have experience engaging in existing sophisticated production processes and already have a hold in global trade chains. They are well-prepared to help Africa increase its exports of finished goods.

Although industrialization is Africa's strongest ambition, Gonzalez says focus should be broadened to economic transformation. That means broader and deeper participation by a variety of enterprises, and the inclusion of groups such as women and youths.

"This concept means improving the productivity of all factors of production. Improving agriculture processing, packaging, branding and marketing services, which encompasses two-thirds of some African countries' economies, such as in Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya," Gonzalez says.

China's ongoing engagement with Africa has broken the yoke of aid dependency, which was neither sustainable nor practical, she says. "What we are working on at the moment, together with China, is converging development aid, the private sector and trading. This is a powerful recipe."

ITC has been able to convince Chinese investors to invest in Africa by providing market intelligence. It also is helping African businesses navigate the Chinese market.

"We are a bridge between the knowledge gap existing between Chinese and African businesses. Businesses in Africa and Europe have known each other for centuries. But China-Africa businesses are new, so it is about getting to know each other a little bit better."

Trade is breaking down barriers between the two partners, she says, and the relocation of Chinese businesses to Africa is a strong indication of that.

"This is happening. In the long run, it buoys efforts to reduce poverty by using market mechanisms so that enterprises become sustainable and eventually makes aid redundant," she says.

Ongoing programs are in honey production in Zambia, the leather industry in Ethiopia, the spices value chain in Tanzania and Zanzibar, fruit and tea processing in Kenya and cotton production in Malawi.

Gonzalez believes that a bigger market, stable political environment and attractive laws and regulations will make Africa an attractive investment destination for Chinese firms. "They also need funds to sustain them through the difficult infancy period," she says.

Africa also needs modern infrastructure and reliable energy sources to operate seamlessly and competitively, a common challenge for African governments.

Recently, China has become more involved in narrowing the gap. Some infrastructure projects are cross-border and help fulfill Africa's ambition to integrate, creating a bigger market of consumers. That not only means improvements in skills and employment for the bulging, youthful populations of sub-Saharan Africa, but also a rise in foreign direct investment.

Still, Gonzalez says she thinks there should be deliberate development of policies supporting the participation of women and youths.

"It should start from socially and culturally promoting women-led entrepreneurship. Second is providing equal opportunities for women to participate in trading such as access to finance since they have no collateral."

In 2013, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta set in motion the amendment of government procurement rules to allow 30 percent of contracts to be given to youth, women and persons with disability without competition from established firms.

"Annual global procurement is worth $15 trillion a year," Gonzalez says. "Only 1 percent is serviced by women-led enterprises. We need to address this market failure, and that is why we hosted a women's business forum here in Nairobi to highlight this issue."

She says the impact of the fourth World Conference on Women, held in 1995 in Beijing, is still being felt today.

"It was about setting the agenda to highlight the glaring gender gap. Twenty years later, it is not a question of whether or not we need to tackle the gender gap, because the Beijing conference highlighted the usefulness of including women in economies, political systems, governments and businesses. The next 20 years will be about accelerating the closure of the gender gap."

She says Africa is already benefiting from such moves and points to Rwanda, where women occupy 65 percent of parliamentary seats, the highest proportion in the world. "Beijing created the space and expectations of what women bring to the table. The event was a game-changer."

Such preferential policies, however, are in force in few of the WTO'S 164 member states, which makes the organization less relevant for market integration. But Gonzalez says its usefulness would become more evident with a strengthening of the organization's negotiating arm.

"WTO has been extremely useful in settling disputes and expanding member partners. Countries are turning more and more to it to settle disputes and, in my opinion, this is an indication that it is a good litigator. But we also have to ensure that WTO is effective in negotiations.

"The public perception is that the trade agency is for big business, and this is not true. WTO is mostly about SMEs. Big multinationals can find their way around. SMEs are the ones in need of a level playing field because they cannot navigate the myriad trade agreements and trade rules. For them, every cost counts," she says.

lucymorangi@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 01/22/2016 page32)
Genetic link to cancer a breakthrough Updated: 2016-01-22 08:40 By Liu Zhihua(China Daily Europe)

At 33, Wu Chen is the youngest recipient of award honoring women

Wu Chen has spent years studying how cancer may be linked to genes.

And now, her research on genetic mechanisms of cancer is being recognized by the country's scientific community.

In December, Wu, 33, became the youngest recipient of the China Young Women in Science Fellowships Award, an annual honor jointly sponsored by government agencies - the All-China Women's Federation, the China Association for Science and Technology, and the Chinese National Commission for UNESCO - and the Chinese arm of French cosmetics company L'Oreal.

The award, which was also given to eight others, seeks to highlight the contributions made to society by the country's young women scientists.

Wu is a researcher with Cancer Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, where she earned a doctorate in oncology in 2011.

Her studies mostly center on genetics that make people susceptible to the risks of cancer.

Esophageal cancer is her area of specialization. The cancer related to the esophagus is among the deadliest cancers in China, with half of the world's 300,000 deaths caused by it being reported from the country every year, Wu says.

The National Central Cancer Registry says that the incidence rate of esophageal cancer is 21.62 people per 100,000 nationwide, and the death rate is more than 16 people using the same base figure.

Shen Yan, academic director with the award's panel of judges and vice-president of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, says Wu was unanimously selected for the award owing to her significant research on genetics related to cancer.

By comparing genetic samples of more than 20,000 patients of esophageal cancer with those without cancer, Wu and her team found 14 gene fragments that increase the risks of this particular type of cancer.

When researchers understand more about the mechanisms involving cancer and genes, they will know how to lower the risks of cancer, Wu says.

Wu spent two years as a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University, before joining Cancer Hospital in 2013.

Widely considered the best Chinese institute for cancer research and treatment, the hospital has been studying esophageal cancer since the 1960s, especially after scientists found the cancer's incidence rate to be significantly higher in areas south of the Taihang Mountains along the borders of Henan, Shanxi and Hebei provinces than in the rest of the country.

Over the past two decades, the hospital's researchers have delved into etiology, the branch of medicine that studies causes and origins of diseases, and traced environmental factors that cause esophageal cancer. The hospital also enhanced its study of cancer genetics from 2000 due to progress in technology, Wu says.

Developing a bank with genetic samples of more than 20,000 cases is a big achievement of the hospital, she adds.

While strongly committed to research, Wu says she believes women in science are just like those in any other field and should not be treated differently - either through discrimination or praise.

The stereotypical image of a female scientist is someone in a white lab coat with little care for her appearance.

Although Wu wears little makeup, she says it is up to a woman to decide how she wants to look. Besides, "a woman's confidence is her best makeup", she adds.

liuzhihua@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 01/22/2016 page19)
Fear and faith in San Francisco Updated: 2016-01-22 08:40 By David Dawson(China Daily Europe)



The Chinatown of San Francisco. Photos Provided to China Daily

San Francisco's Chinatown may well be the largest outside of Asia, its success fueled in part by a particularly active community of Chinese diaspora.

Since the first Chinese arrived there in 1848, its story has been one weaving between gold rush fever, vibrant church communities, and tales of sex and vice, all set against periods of xenophobia, embodied by the 61-year-long Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882.



It is possible to pick and choose historical narratives that surround the city. For a more uplifting tale, one might focus on how in 1885 a San Francisco legal case managed to overturn the exclusion of two Chinese students.

Alternatively, one could look at how the San Francisco city government, that same year and in a climate of anti-Chinese sentiment and fear, formed a committee to quite literally map (and probably exaggerate) the extent of vice throughout Chinatown. The map came complete with a color key and delicate handwriting laying bare the spread of "gambling houses" and "opium resorts" as well as "Chinese prostitution" and "white prostitution" (which was also blamed on increased demand from Chinese immigrants).

But although the map may have been formed with anti-Chinese sentiments in mind, it was not as if it was entirely fabricated - far from it. San Francisco's reputation for vice had long been solidified as the backdrop for the exploits of Ah Toy, arguably the most famous femme fatale of the Wild West - a gorgeous Chinese prostitute and widow who worked her way up to owning a string of brothels, resisting the overtures of the ruthless Tong gangs, only to be laid low by racist laws.

In 1852, she boldly challenged in court a Chinese gang leader who was attempting to extort her. By 1854, however, the federal government introduced a law that prevented Chinese from testifying in court, removing any legal protections she may have had in an era when Chinese women were often trafficked in the sex trade (with Ah Toy a perpetrator as well, allegedly involved in trafficking girls as young as 11). Her tale later became the focus of a semi-fictional book entitled Daughter of Joy.

Given this narrative of vice, it is perhaps also wise to keep in mind that San Francisco was also the site of the first church catering to an Asian community in North America, now known as the Old St. Mary's Church. (Its proximity to streets of vice led the church to be moved, with a new St. Mary's opening in 1891). The very stones that made the foundation of the Old St. Mary's were cut and shaped in China before being shipped to the US, where it was built through the sweat and toil of Chinese laborers, despite the fact that it wasn't originally intended to cater to Chinese immigrants.

The first Chinese in the US tended to go to Baltimore, but gold rush fever drew them to California and toward San Francisco. In 1906 the Chinatown community burned to the ground and attempts were made to move it to a less desirable location; however, a spirited campaign allowed it to remain near the heart of the city.

Today's narrative of the Chinese community in San Francisco is no less nuanced and generally much less xenophobic, and the headlines tend to belong to its success stories.

Courtesy of The World of Chinese, www.theworldofchinese.com
Swiss offer lessons in soft power Updated: 2016-01-22 08:38 By Fu Jing(China Daily Europe)

China must invest energy, time and patience to build platforms for new ideas

Once a year, politicians, business gurus, journalists and celebrities from across the world gather at the annual "thought fair" in Davos, Switzerland. This year's annual winter meeting of the World Economic Forum was being held in Davos from Jan 20 to 23.

Because of the importance of the forum and the huge number of representatives, even some beds in Davos hospitals are said to be "rented out" to delegates during the annual forum. Given the mad rush, I've not been able to book a hotel room in Davos during any of the past six forums, and instead I have had to check into a hotel in a nearby town and commute for an hour by train to and from the forum venue every day. Nevertheless, the forum, thanks to the new ideas, trends, debates and conversations it generates, has been a regular feature on my calendar.

Despite being a small country with a population of only about 8 million, Switzerland occupies a prominent place in the world of economics and business. Now Davos has a sister gathering - Summer Davos held in Tianjin and Dalian in rotation - in addition to other important regional meetings in Africa, the Middle East and other parts of the world.

Apart from that, Geneva is the second headquarters of the United Nations and home to dozens of international organizations, including the World Trade Organization and World Health Organization. And all these have increased the soft power of Switzerland.

By learning from Switzerland, China can shape its own soft power. In his new year message, President Xi Jinping said the world is too big and the challenges too many, and China will adopt proactive approaches to embrace and tackle all of them. On these vows, Xi embarks on his first overseas tour of 2016, which takes him to Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Iran, and coincides with the Davos forum. Xi's Middle East visit comes soon after the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank started operation on Jan 16.

Apart from Chinese politicians' continuous efforts to provide solutions for global problems, China is also trying to improve the capacity-building of its think tanks. And a group of 25 academic organizations were recently encouraged to come up with quality intellectual results.

All these developments indicate China is keen on playing a proactive role to help provide solutions to global problems and make the world a better place. In this context, Switzerland offers at least two sets of references for China.

First, China has to invest energy, time, patience and inputs to build platforms to come up with influential thoughts and ideas. And to make debates interesting and fruitful, the government, businesses, the media and academia should play their respective roles. Businesses, for example, should fulfill their social responsibilities of offering financial support to build such platforms.

The World Economic Forum reached its influential position because it has developed over more than four decades. The China Development Forum, the Bo'ao Forum and the Summer Davos are held every March, April and September, but they only focus on China or regional agendas. But since the Chinese leadership aims to offer more global solutions to maintain peace and development across the world, China has to offer more platforms to produce thoughts that will have a global impact.

Moreover, China should host more global and regional conferences. Geneva, apart from New York, is an excellent example for Beijing, Shanghai and other Chinese cities to follow. In this regard, the establishment of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization's secretariat, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank's headquarters in Beijing and the BRICS New Development Bank's headquarters in Shanghai are welcome developments, because they will help strengthen China's soft power. Still, China has to make more effort to play the global role that matches its economic power.

The author is China Daily's chief correspondent in Brussels. Contact the writer at fujing@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily European Weekly 01/22/2016 page11)
Govt needs to give the market policy incentives Updated: 2016-01-22 08:38 By Chen Gong(China Daily Europe)

Under the economic new normal, China's government is under bigger financial pressure. The limited financial capacity of the government can be used to cover only essential costs such as salaries, education, municipal operations, water, electricity and heating systems.

It has to rely on the market to help develop new projects that the government wants but is unable to afford by itself. That said, I think government should inspire the market through incentives.

An example is the haze of pollution that has enveloped Beijing at the end of 2015, so thick that it has astonished the world and made people feel it difficult to live there. But up till now, the government hasn't had a sufficiently powerful or constructive reply to this problem. But Beijing just needs policies to open up the market and to improve financial incentives, and pollution problems will be solved through the private sector.

Beijing has a large number of office buildings and shopping malls, and with pollution being so serious, the city could launch a new indoor air quality standard. This would mean buildings would need to be equipped with new air-conditioning units with air filtration capable of bringing indoor air quality to a certain standard value. Owners and developers of these buildings have the ability to reach these standards, allowing Beijing residents peace of mind at least about air they breathe indoors.

This mandatory measure should also cover facilities such as schools and hospitals. In many schools in Beijing, including kindergartens, parents spontaneously raise money to buy air purifiers for classrooms. But under a new policy for schools and hospitals, installation of air purifiers would become standard.

People spend, on average, more than 90 percent of their time indoors. Almost all indoor space has harmful fiber and dust. The requirement to improve air quality in offices also would address the extensive use of office equipment. Computers and fax machines produce ozone and volatile organic compounds, inkjet printers emit hydrocarbons and ozone, and laser printers produce hydrocarbons, ozone and inhalable particles. All of these pollute the indoor environment.

The market demand for the purification of indoor air quality is quite big overseas. There's information shows that in the US, about 30 percent of the office buildings and public buildings have indoor air pollution, and especially in public buildings such as airports, railway stations, the air pollution challenge is bigger than that of the office building.

The global market demand was about 13 million air purifiers in 2011. In 2012, it was about 15 million air purifiers, which sees a growth of about 17 percent from the previous year. The US is the world's biggest market for the air purifier, of about 5 million air purifiers, and it is growing about 10 percent a year. Japan is the second largest market, with 3.5 million air purifiers, and China is only about 1.5 million air purifiers.

In China, as the days with heavy pollution become more frequent and people have higher requirements for air quality, the demand for air purifier also grow rapidly.

For the government, how to connect the market demand and local economic development is a difficult issue. Under the new normal, the government should grasp the trends of the market and carefully design policies, otherwise it will cause complaints among the public and cause harm to market. But if the policies are well designed, and also go with the market demand, it will be easier for the government to use market capital to help develop the economy.

The author is chief researcher of Anbound Consulting. The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.

(China Daily European Weekly 01/22/2016 page12)
More than doctors' visits Updated: 2016-01-22 08:40 By Yang Feiyue(China Daily Europe)





More outbound Chinese are melding medical care with traditional tourism

Chen is sick.

That he knew. What he didn't know was what to do about it.

So the 72-year-old Beijinger, who prefers to give only his surname, visited two top Beijing hospitals.

He got two different responses about treating - or not treating - the chronic lymphatic leukemia he was diagnosed with in October 2013.

So, he traveled to Japan the next February. He needed a definite diagnosis.

And wanted to enjoy himself a bit.

"One (Chinese hospital) told me to wait since there were no symptoms. Another gave me pills."

The Japanese hospital also told him to wait until he was symptomatic. The doctor extensively explained the disease's development - something he appreciated since he'd only had brief sessions with Chinese doctors.

"The (Japanese) doctor was patient and reasonable," he says.

The process lasted over an hour.

It only cost about $85 (78 euros) for everything, including bone-marrow tests. Chen and his wife also shopped in Tokyo's Ginza district, which he says helped take his mind off his anxieties about his illness.

More Chinese mainlanders are heading overseas to meld medical purposes with fun.

While Chen has a terminal disease, most are generally healthy yet get advanced checkups while spending most of their time exploring the countries the hospitals are in.

For example, they go to Japan for diagnoses and the United States for cancer treatments - visiting landmarks, shopping and participating in luxury-leisure activities along the way, explains Robin Wang, a marketing officer with Beijing-based outbound-medical-tourism operator Hope Noah.

Japan's proximity and advanced healthcare has made it a popular destination for Chinese medical tourists. The country began offering medical visas in 2010 and local travel agencies began developing routes integrating hospital visits with attractions and shopping three years later.

The number of Chinese who visit the country for medical checks annually is expected to surpass 310,000 by 2020, and market value may reach $4.6 billion, a Development Bank of Japan report says.

Beijing Huihong International Travel Service took about 300 Chinese to Japan in 2015, a 30 percent year-on-year increase.

Most didn't have health problems but wanted checkups because of concerns about stress, pollution and food safety, general manager Huang Xujie says.

Many get genetic tests to determine their predispositions to diseases.

"The trust in Japan's medical care has fueled the craze," Huang says.

The company's trips usually last about 10 days - two of which are earmarked for health exams - and cost 20,000-60,000 yuan ($3,000-9,100; 2,800-8,300 euros).

"(China's) medical equipment may be as good, but service is a common complaint," Huang says.

Different doctors see different results from the same X-rays, he explains.

While specialized companies, such as Beijing Saint Lucia Hospital and L'avion, have traditionally specialized in China's outbound medical tourism market, more conventional travel companies are expanding their presence, especially in the past two years.

Beijing Utour International Travel Service in 2014 launched Magic Travel, which offers superrich health-conscious Chinese high-end medical services.

Several customers last year booked its 588,000 yuan stem-cell-injection treatment package, replete with five-star hotels and a helicopter sightseeing experience.

Magic Travel's six-day US tour for checkups at the University Medical Center of Princeton costs up to 200,000 yuan and includes Statue of Liberty and Wall Street visits.

"Most of our customers are senior management," the company's product manager, Wang Mingying, says.

Medical tourism was highlighted in a June report on luxury travel by China's Hurun Research Institute, which tracks trends among China's extremely wealthy.

Roughly 60 percent of the survey's respondents have taken medical tours and prefer overseas hospitals.

More middle-class customers are also getting interested, which experts predict will soon make medical tours under 100,000 yuan very popular.

Medical tourism around the globe is projected to account for 16 percent of tourism revenue at $678.5 billion by 2017, an SRI International report predicts.

A healthy chunk of whatever the future figures are will likely come from China.

yangfeiyue@chinadaily.com.cn


China's green commitment needs support from other countries Updated: 2016-01-22 18:59 By Wang Mingjie(China Daily Europe)

President Xi Jinping attended the opening of Paris Climate Change Conference and delivered and important speech on Nov. 30, 2015. [Photo/Xinhua]

China's commitment to building green generating capacity is real but it needs the support of technologically mature economies to make sure that it invests in the right projects and that the most advanced solutions are rolled out, a leading UK industrial expert says.

"There are too many examples where compromise solutions have been implemented which don't provide the necessary plant life or environmental benefit because quality standards are too low or previous generation technology has been used," says Chris Rudd, professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Nottingham.

Rudd adds the situation is improving, but due to the scale of China's demand, any mistakes can be huge expensive and time-consuming to rectify.

China's state-owned enterprises are facing a major challenge in reinventing themselves to support China's ecological endeavours and its new role in the world economy.

A recent Beijing Youth Daily report shows that about 21 percent of the country's listed SOEs register losses in the first three quarters, with the worst ten losing a total of about 13.5 billion yuan ($2.1 billion, 1.38 billion pounds, 1.91 billion euros).

In order to enhance productivity and to further eliminate outdated procurement and management practices, Rudd suggests the pace of change will need to accelerate.

"No single measure will rescue this major part of the national infrastructure but a combination of mixed ownership, management changes, business spinoffs and overseas partnerships will help to refresh the portfolio and enhance their readiness to embrace change, new technologies and market responsiveness," Rudd says.

As major providers and consumers of energy and other natural resources, Rudd believes the SOEs are critical in delivering a green future, and accelerating reform in the sector is of paramount importance.

"It should also be borne in mind that these are huge employers in China, both directly and via their supply chains - safeguarding a major segment of the Chinese labour market is a further consideration that makes their upgrading and longevity a top national priority," adds Rudd.

Europe and UK in particular have a thriving green-tech industry and there is already a strong collaboration platform with China, based on both technology developments in R&D partnerships, manufacturing facilities and design services,

"The availability of private and sovereign capital in China means that win-win partnerships can be formed, with investment into capital-starved overseas businesses and projects while western technology can be deployed economically in China's huge domestic market," says Rudd, adds there are great examples of this with UK's next-generation green energy projects in Nuclear and Tidal Power schemes.

During the Paris climate summit, President Xi Jinping pledged to reduce CO2 per unit of GDP by 60-65% over the 2005 level, and raise the share of non-fossil fuels in primary energy consumption to about 20% by 2030.

Xi said China will adopt new policy measures to improve industrial mix, build low-carbon energy systems, and develop green building and low-carbon transportation on the basis of technological and institutional innovation.

As a direct result, innovation and green development have been put forward as two of China's major themes in its 13th Five Year Plan proposal. China's re-focus on its development strategy brings about great potential opportunities to the UK and European businesses.

The UK has particular strengths in engineering and design consultancy, and it has outstanding R&D capabilities, which will be relevant as China upgrades the energy efficiency of its buildings and implements smart city' concepts for the future, says Neil Hirst, Senior Policy Fellow for Climate Change and the Environment at Grantham Institute, Imperial College London.

"Imperial College, where I work, collaborates with many Chinese research institutions and trains many Chinese students in science and technology," Hirst adds.

Hirst believes that the scale of China's adaptation to a lower carbon future will certainly offer widespread opportunities to businesses in the UK and in Europe, which are following the same route.

China is now the world's largest manufacturer of photovoltaic modules and of wind turbines, says Hirst, adding in some areas it has the most advanced technology but there are also many technologies where Europe is at the cutting edge.

"There will be major opportunities in renewables, including wind and solar, but also in the modernisation, including efficiency improvements, of a wide range of manufacturing industries, and conventional power plant," Hirst adds.

To contact the reporter: wangmingjie@mail.chinadailyuk.com




China will play greater part in a shared world: Chinese envoy to UK

Updated: 2016-01-23 01:35 (chinese-embassy.org.uk)

It is said that the rise of China is the most important event of our time. The Chinese economy, after more than 30 years of high-speed development, is now widely recognised as a powerhouse for global growth. But China wants to make an even greater contribution to the world.

"The greatest ideal is to create a world truly shared by all," said President Xi Jinping at the UN last September, quoting an ancient Chinese adage. He highlighted the common values of all mankind: peace, development, equity, justice, democracy and freedom. And he explained China's view on the future of the world and mankind, in which international affairs are jointly managed, world order jointly built, and economic growth and social progress shared  a world truly shared by all.

In this world, peace and security is the foundation of all undertakings. Peace, like air and sunshine, is hardly noticed and easily forgotten, but its absence is life-threatening. China constantly advocates peace and harmony, and looks to renew itself through peaceful and cooperative means. Our prescription for avoiding the Thucydides's trap  the likelihood of conflict between a rising power and a currently dominant one  is to build a new type of relationship between major countries. We must treat each other as equals and work together to build a fair and equitable security architecture.

Today, the world faces various challenges, from the refugee crisis in Europe to a string of unconventional security threats. The root cause of all these problems is lack of development: the growing gap between the rich and the poor. To create stability, development must reach every corner of the world, be inclusive and be sustainable. The edifice of global prosperity cannot be built on the shaky foundation of a market without moral constraints; and for it to be sustainable, it must be based on innovation.

Building peace and promoting development in the age of globalisation, when everyone's interests are highly integrated and destinies bound together, requires a massive joint effort. This means, for example, that international governance mechanisms must be improved so as to reflect the will of the majority of countries; international rules must be observed, and international justice must be upheld. All countries have rights and responsibilities, and so should have equal access to rights, opportunities and rules in international economic cooperation.

Believing in a world truly shared by all, China has made serious efforts to fulfil its obligations in this regard: to contribute to world peace and security, to deliver inclusive and sustainable development, and to share its wisdom and strength in addressing global challenges and problems.

In the coming decade, China will establish a 10-year, one-billion-dollar China-UN peace and development fund, join the new UN Peacekeeping Capacity Readiness System and set up a peacekeeping police squad and standby force. In the next five years, in fellow developing countries, China will carry out the "Six 100s" initiative, which will include 100 poverty reduction programmes, 100 agricultural cooperation projects, 100 trade promotion and aid programmes, 100 environmental protection and climate change programmes, 100 hospitals and clinics, and 100 schools and vocational training centres.

China will establish an assistant fund for South-South cooperation, increase investment in the Least Developed Countries, cancel some of the debt of designated nations, and set up an international development knowledge centre. These are our concrete initiatives to boost common development for all.

China is also pushing for a better global governance mechanism. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the New Development Bank BRICS have been established at our initiative. China's currency, the RMB, has been included in the IMF Special Drawing Rights basket. These latest efforts will strengthen the representation and increase the say of the developing world in global finance.

As an example of our commitment to better global governance, consider our contribution to the 2015 Paris Climate Change Conference. China participated in a responsible and constructive manner, and took the initiative fully to incorporate the responses into its overall strategy of economic and social development. Working alongside other parties, we made an important contribution to the comprehensive, balanced and ambitious Paris Agreement.

Consider, too, the China Belt and Road Initiative. With the aim of building a cohesive economic area, China has signed connection and cooperation agreements with more than 20 countries in the region and reached consensus with a dozen others. It is offering a free ride aboard China's development express and a share in our growth opportunities.

Just as President Xi said at the UN General Assembly, "the realisation of the Chinese dream will bring more opportunities to other countries and will contribute to global peace and development". China's development is the world's opportunity, and China will surely make even greater global contribution in the days to come.
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Above: The Heller family one year ago, while they were still haredi

Give Ha'aretz lots of credit for publishing this new piece by Rotem. It's more than 5,300 words long  about three times longer the length of a normal Ha'aretz report. And that's a lot of space to give any single article. But Rotem's reporting is generally so good, the space allocation is well worth it:

Evening was beginning to fall on the playground that one sees from the balcony of the Heller family home in Beit Shemesh. Six-year-old Pini entered the house excited, his cheeks flushed. Mom, I played with the ball, he declared, speaking in Yiddish. There was an unmistakably triumphant tone in his words.

Yisrael Heller and his wife, Rachel Cheli Heller, exchanged a quick look. They were sitting at a table on the balcony, their 1-year-old baby cavorting between them. It looked like another ordinary day, as though a boy coming into the house holding a ball was an everyday event. In fact, it was one more sign of the revolution the family is undergoing.

In the closed Haredi, or ultra-Orthodox, community in which the Hellers lived until not long ago, children only came home from school at this time of the day, playing with a ball was beyond the pale and Hebrew was the language of the Zionist heretics: To speak it was strictly forbidden (other than as the holy tongue).

A few months ago, the Hellers and their four children left Ramat Beit Shemesh, a Haredi neighborhood within Beit Shemesh, a city between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. They stole out from their apartment late at night, without telling family or friends. Their move had been preceded by an ugly wave of rumors, accompanied by pressure that pushed them into a corner and made their lives intolerable, until they were forced to leave ignominiously.

The target of the firestorm was Yisrael, head of the household and a man of power in the community. He had trimmed his beard and had gradually started to deviate from the communitys stringent dress code, referred to as the Yerushalmer [that is, "Jerusalemite," which is also the name of the sect] style. The members of the community are quick to spot the slightest change in shirt style or hat size; such behavior is considered a gross infringement of the rules and traditions to which it adheres.

Within a single day, rumors spread that I was becoming a questioner [giving up the religious life], Heller relates now. That I was studying The Guide for the Perplexed [a forbidden text even though it is by Maimonides, the 12th-century Torah scholar] in Jerusalem every Sabbath eve, that men and women attended the tisch [a gathering of Hasidim around their rebbe] I went to, where I was playing a musical instrument. I started to receive threats, questions from functionaries. I realized that I was under surveillance.

In their former small, insular community, identified with the most extreme sects of Haredi society, the disappearance of the Heller family is perceived as desertion, the crossing of a red line. Still, everyone expected them to return. Within hours, all 12 employees of his consulting firm resigned. Heller was not surprised: The move was intended to signal him that his livelihood would be harmed if he didnt return to the straight-and-narrow. But he did not yield, nor did he beg for mercy.

There is a great deal of fear. But after you contend with it, you feel good, he says, a thin smile on his lips.
New York State Attorney General Eric Schneidermans press release:

A.G. Schneiderman Announces $47 Million Settlement With Centerlight Healthcare For Fraudulently Using Social Day Care Centers To Enroll Ineligible Members

Centerlight Healthcares Select Medicaid Managed Long-Term Care Plan Improperly Billed Medicaid; NYS Medicaid Recovers $28 Million

Schneiderman: We Wont Tolerate Companies That Seek To Exploit The System For Profit

NEW YORK  Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced a $47 million settlement with CenterLight Healthcare and CenterLight Health System, resolving allegations that CenterLight Healthcares Select Medicaid Managed Long Term Care Plan (MLTCP) fraudulently billed Medicaid for services they did not provide to more than 1,200 Medicaid recipients. Under the settlement, CenterLight Healthcare admitted that it enrolled Medicaid beneficiaries who were referred by social adult day care centers even though the beneficiaries were not eligible to receive managed long-term care under the plan, and that the centers were providing services that did not qualify for reimbursement under New York State Department of Health standards, or CenterLights contract with DOH. CenterLight receives over $3,000 a month per member from New Yorks Medicaid program as part of its MLTCP. Under the settlement, New Yorks Medicaid program will receive $28,050,652.04 and the United States will receive $18,700,434.70. The U.S. Department of Justices Southern District of New York reached a parallel agreement with CenterLight.

Its simple: CenterLight Health Care did not play by the rules, Attorney General Schneiderman said. We wont tolerate companies that seek to exploit the system for profit. My office will continue to be vigilant in protecting Medicaid against fraud.

In addition to its payment of the $47 million under the settlement, CenterLight is entering into two-year agreement with an independent compliance monitor and the Attorney Generals Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. That agreement requires CenterLight to comply with all terms of its MLTCP contract and DOH policies, and monitor and revise compliance policies if necessary.

The settlement arose out of an investigation initiated by the Attorney Generals Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the New York State Office of the Medicaid Inspector General. It also resolved certain allegations in a whistleblower case filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, as well as certain self-disclosures made by CenterLight.

CenterLight Healthcares Select program is a Managed Long-Term Care Plan that has contracted with the New York State Department of Health to provide long-term community-based health care for members who are able to remain in their homes without jeopardy to their health or safety and are expected to need more than 120 days of in-home services, including nursing, therapy, home health service and personal care service. CenterLight admitted it billed Medicaid for services provided to 1,241 recipients who did not qualify for these services.

As part of the settlement, CenterLight also admitted that:

It enrolled Medicaid beneficiaries who were referred by social adult day care centers or who received services from them, even though they were not eligible to receive managed long-term care under the plan;

CenterLight used the day care centers to provide community-based MLTCP personal care services that did not qualify as personal care services under CenterLights Select plan.

This is the second settlement from the Attorney Generals Office involving a managed long-term care plan in New York, based on allegations that the managed long-term care plan enrolled members through social adult day care centers who were ineligible. In October 2014, the Attorney General announced a $37 million settlement with VNS Choice, Visiting Nurse Service of New York, and VNS Choice Community Care regarding similar allegation related to its MLTCP.

The Attorney General thanks New York Medicaid Inspector General Dennis Rosen for the work of his office on this matter. The Attorney General also thanks New York State Medicaid Director Jason A. Helgerson and his staff for their assistance and the United States Attorneys Office for the Southern District of New York for its assistance in the investigation. A whistle-blower, David Heisler, provided valuable information through a qui tam action filed under the New York and federal False Claims Acts, and will receive an award for his contribution to the investigation.

The investigation was principally conducted by Associate Special Auditor Investigator Svetlana Volchyok and Associate Special Auditor Investigator Milan Shah, Senior Investigator Wayne Rivers, and Data Analyst Nicholas Furnari.

The case is being handled by Senior Counsel Carolyn T. Ellis and Special Assistant Attorney Alee N. Scott of the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit Civil Enforcement Division. The Medicaid Fraud Control Unit is led by Acting Director Amy Held and Assistant Deputy Attorney General Paul J. Mahoney. The Division of Criminal Justice is led by Executive Deputy Attorney General Kelly Donovan.
The Israel Religious Expression Platform (iRep), a consortium of US Jewish federations and private foundations, has awarded grants to Israeli nonprofits that are meant to encourage Israelis to marry outside the auspices of the haredi-controlled official state Chief Rabbinate.

US Jewish Federations And Foundations Form Consortium To Financially Support Breaking State-Enforced Haredi Monopoly Over Marriage In Israel

Shmarya Rosenberg  FailedMessiah.com

The Israel Religious Expression Platform (iRep), a consortium of US Jewish federations and private foundations, has awarded grants to Israeli nonprofits that are meant to encourage Israelis to marry outside the auspices of the haredi-controlled official state Chief Rabbinate, the JTA reported.

The Jewish federations involved in iRep are reportedly Ann Arbor, Boston, Cincinnati, Greensboro, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, St. Louis and Washington, DC.

Recipients of the iRep grants reportedly include Od Yishama (affiliated with the Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism) the Masorti (Conservative) Movement, Israel Hofsheet (Be Free Israel), the religious freedom nonprofit Hiddush, and the moderate Zionist Orthodox Neemanei Torah VaAvodah.

Israel has no civil marriage, and non-Orthodox weddings performed in Israel are not recognized under law. Orthodox weddings performed outside the auspices of the state Chief Rabbinate and its affiliates is technically illegal.
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Before markets open Friday, here's what you need to know.

Stock markets all over the world are in rally mode. Japan's Nikkei (+5.9%) paced the gains in Asia as it posted its biggest gain in 4 1/2 months. In Europe, France's CAC (+3.1%) leads the charge. S&P 500 futures are up 27.00 points at 1,888.00.

Oil's in a bull market. West Texas Intermediate crude oil is back above $31 a barrel after Friday's gain of more than 5%. The energy component has staged a tremendous rally off Wednesday's low of $26.19, climbing 21% to $31.08 a barrel.

Russia's central bank called an emergency meeting with bank chiefs. The Central Bank of Russia held an emergency meeting with bank heads on Thursday evening to discuss the recent weakness of the ruble. On Thursday, the currency fell to a record low of less than 80 per dollar, battered by the crash in oil prices and economic sanctions implemented by the West. Central bank head Elvira Nabiullina canceled her trip to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, to attend. On Friday, the ruble is stronger by 4% at 79.15 per dollar.

Eurozone PMI data mostly disappointed. Eurozone Flash Manufacturing and Services PMI data both missed. As a whole, the eurozone economy registered a reading of 53.5, short of the 54.2 that was anticipated. Germany's 52.1 print for manufacturing and 55.4 reading for services each disappointed. France was a mixed bag as manufacturing slipped to 50.0, which is the line between a sector that is expanding and one that is contracting. French services moved back into expansion line with a 50.6 print. The euro is weaker by 0.4% at 1.0833.

Jamie Dimon's 2015 compensation has been announced. JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon made $27 million in total compensation for 2015. The compensation was broken down into a $1.5 million salary, a $5 million cash bonus and $20.5 million in performance share units. The total represented a 35% pay raise from last year.

Story continues

GE posted a mixed quarter. The industrial giant announced adjusted earnings of $0.52 per share, beating the $0.49 Bloomberg consensus. Revenue of $33.8 billion missed the $35.9 billion that analysts were expecting. General Electric says it has a record backlog of $315 billion, and it reaffirmed its full-year 2016 earnings outlook of $1.45 to $1.55 per share, straddling the $1.49 consensus. Shares of GE are down fractionally ahead of the open.

Starbucks had its best holiday season ever. The coffee giant earned $0.46 a share, edging out the $0.45 that was expected. Revenue jumped 11.9% to $5.37 billion, missing the $5.39 billion that Wall Street was anticipating. Comparable sales surged 9%, and traffic was up 4%. CEO Howard Schultz said this was "by far" the best holiday season in the company's history. Shares of Starbucks were down 3.6% before the opening bell.

Schlumberger announced a huge buyback. The company announced adjusted earnings of $0.65 per share, topping the $0.63 Bloomberg consensus. Revenue crashed 38.7% to $7.7 billion, just missing the $7.78 billion that was expected. Schlumberger said it laid off 10,000 employees in Q4 to deal with the fallout from the oil crash, and it announced a $10 billion buyback program. Shares are up more than 4% in premarket trade.

There's a new top financial regulator in New York. Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York has nominated Maria Vullo to the position of superintendent of the New York State Department of Financial Services. According to Reuters, during her career as a lawyer, Vullo has represented banks and made campaign contributions to Cuomo. In a statement, Cuomo said he expected Vullo to be both "tough and fair."

US economic data is light. Existing-home sales and leading indicators will cross the wires at 10 a.m. ET. The US 10-year yield is up 4 basis points at 2.07%.

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(Adds details, quotes, background)

By Nadia Saleem

MANAMA, Jan 21 (Reuters) - Bahrain's national carrier Gulf Air has ordered 19 new Airbus aircraft and upgraded a 16-aircraft Boeing order on Thursday, pushing ahead with plans to renew its fleet.

The loss-making state carrier placed an order for 17 Airbus A321neo and two Airbus A320neo aircraft, building on an existing order of 10 A320neos planes, worth a combined $3.4 billion.

It also converted a previous 16-Dreamliner aircraft order from U.S. manufacturer Boeing to wide-body 787-9s from 787-8s. Gulf Air said it anticipates delivery to start from the second quarter of 2018.

Gulf Air's orders are likely to be the only significant commercial announcement at the Bahrain Airshow, which has been overshadowed by defence needs amid escalating regional tensions.

To purchase the aircraft, Gulf Air plans an equal split between financing and lease-buy-back structures.

"We're looking at all financing options in the market to keep a healthy balance sheet," Gulf Air Chief Financial Officer Sahar Ataei said at a media briefing at an industry event in Bahrain.

"We are also seeking international financial advisers' assistance in this area to look at our financing strategy."

The company is also looking to conclude contract details with Canadian manufacturer Bombardier for its 110-seat CS100 aircraft, Chief Executive Maher al-Musallam said at a media briefing.

Gulf Air in June 2011 placed an order for 10 CS100 with options for another six.

The company has gone through a lengthy restructuring. It reported an annual loss of 62.7 million dinars ($166.3 million) for 2014 from a loss of 93.3 million dinars in 2013.

"2015 was a good year - we minimised our losses but the financial year is not out yet," al-Musallam said.

(Editing by Susan Thomas)
Ratings Soar for Alaska Air Group ahead of 4Q15 Earnings

(Continued from Prior Part)

Debt reduction

Alaska Air Group (ALK) has been striving to reduce its debt burden in order to strengthen its balance sheet in the long term. The airline has made consistent efforts to reduce debt and has paid down $1.2 billion in debt payments during the last five years.

As a result of this, it has been successful in bringing down its debt-to-EBITDA ratio from about 2.19x in 2010 to 0.44x at the end of 3Q15. American Airlines (AAL) leverage ratio for 3Q15 stands at 2.74x, United Airlines (UAL) leverage ratio is 1.87x, and Delta Air Lines (DAL) leverage ratio is 1.24x.

Alaska Airlines is one of the few US airlines to have a positive net debt level and an investment-grade rating. As a result, Alaska Air Group enjoys a 36% cost advantage over legacy players.

Alaskas low debt and cost advantage is significant, especially when industry fundamentals have improved tremendously and could have reached a peak.

Strong cash flows

The reason Alaska Air Group has been able to achieve its goal is its strong profitability. ALK has been profitable for each of the last ten years. Cash flow from operations totaled ~$4.0 billion in the last five years, and free cash flow totaled $1.66 billion.

For the upcoming year as well, Alaska Air Group has set strong cash flow expectations. The airline expects to generate about $1,375 million in cash flow from operations. It expects to generate about $600 million in free cash flow in the upcoming year.

Alaska forms 3.98% of the DWA Consumer Cyclicals Momentum ETF (PEZ).

Continue to Next Part

Browse this series on Market Realist:
By Sudarshan Varadhan (Reuters) - Credit card issuer American Express Co's shares slumped in extended trading on Thursday after the company's 2016 earnings forecast disappointed analysts and investors. AmEx shares fell about 3.7 percent to $60.35 in extended trading following the company's 2016 earnings forecast of $5.40-$5.70 per share. Stephen Biggar, an analyst at Argus Research, said while the new guidance for 2016 is above consensus earnings estimates, it includes an expected $1 billion gain on the sale of Costco portfolio, which implies that underlying growth in 2016 will be "weaker than expected, not stronger." Chief Executive Officer Kenneth Chenault did not specify he size of the expected gain from the Costco portfolio sale during the company's earnings conference call. Nomura Securities analyst Bill Carcache said some investors stripped about $0.66 a share off the expected earnings per share for the year to account for the gain. Analysts on an average estimate 2016 earnings of $5.41 per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. AmEx lost long-term partners such as Fidelity Investments, retailer Costco Wholesale Corp and JetBlue Airways Corp last year. The company also said it would cut $1 billion in costs by the end of 2017 as it responds to intensifying competition in the payments industry. "Our 2015 results and outlook reflect the reset in co-brand economics, pressures on merchant fees, the evolving regulatory environment and intense competition that have been re-shaping the payments industry," Chenault said in a statement. Net income attributable to common shareholders fell to $873 million or 89 cents per share, for the quarter ended Dec. 31, from $1.44 billion or $1.39 per share, a year earlier. The latest quarter included a $335 million after-tax charge and the year-earlier period a $453 million after-tax gain. AmEx reported its fourth straight decline in total revenue, net of interest expense, of $8.39 billion. Adjusted revenue rose 4 percent. Shares of the company, which had fallen about 10 percent this year to Thursday close, lost a quarter of their value in 2015. (Reporting By Sudarshan Varadhan and Arathy S Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Cynthia Osterman)
As oil and commodity prices have dropped foreign direct investment to Africa has slowed down.

The story of global headwinds slowing down Africas economic growth is not going away. If anything it is intensifying. The continent saw foreign direct investment (FDI) fall by a third to $38 billion in 2015, recent data from the UNCTAD, the body responsible for international trade. This decline is against the overall trend, where global flows of FDI rose by 36%, with developed economies such as the United States and the European Union showing a sharp increase.

And UNCTADs report suggests that things couldve been worse for the continent but for a rebound of sorts in North Africa helped by Egypts return as an investment attraction. The country saw FDI jump from $4.3 billion in 2014 to $6.7 billion in 2015.

Thats a very bad sign for the region, John Ashbourne, Africa economist at London-based Capital Economics, tells Quartz. Yet more evidence that investor sentiment towards Africa really soured over the past year.

Fundamentally, the global decline in the demand for commodities has hit the continent hard, as it was a significant source of FDI inflows for a lot of African countries. This has given international investors a pause, shelving expansion plans at a time of weak prices. In some countries, notably Zambia, mining firms actually reduced production, Ashbourne says.

Of particular concern is the performance of some of the bigger economies on the continentNigeria, South Africa and Angola. Nigeria, the continents largest economy, saw its FDI drop to $3.4 billion, a decline of 27% from the year before. The steep decline in oil prices contributed significantly to that sharp decrease in the amount of FDI generated. Meanwhile, in South Africa, the continents most advanced economy, FDI was down by 74% to US$1.5 billion.

Those three make up around two thirds of the regions economy, so their performance really drives investors perceptions of the continent as a whole, Ashbourne points out.

Story continues

While last year was difficult, it was not all gloomy. Cross-border mergers and acquisitions were up significantly, from $5 billion in 2014 to $20 billion this year.

But all may not be lost for Africa. Interest in growth areas for the continents economies, such as telecommunications, consumer goods and financial services, is rising. Private equity investment grew by 51% last year, with companies looking to tap into these growing areas of the continents economies.

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DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Argentina's finance minister Alfonso Prat-Gay said on Friday he had met with the International Monetary Fund's head Christine Lagarde in Davos.

Prat-Gay told Reuters on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum that the country's central bank governor had also been at the meeting with Lagarde.

Asked when so-called Article 4 reviews of Argentina by the IMF could resume, Prat-Gay said they were publishing the required economic data this year and planned to have an Article 4 review by the Fund this year.

The last such review of Argentina took place in 2006.

(Reporting by Sujata Rao; Editing by Alexander Smith)
(Rewrites first paragraph, adds Vale, Petrobras, ArcelorMittal comment, iron ore price)

By Jeb Blount and Marta Nogueira

RIO DE JANEIRO, Jan 21 (Reuters) - A Brazilian federal court on Thursday ordered the suspension of activities at Vale SA's Port of Tubarao until pollution concerns are fixed, halting the world's largest iron ore exporter's ability to ship more than a third of its output.

The ruling by the court in Vitoria, Brazil was made as part of a police investigation at the giant man-made port. It comes as Vale comes under increasing pressure over its environmental record after a dam burst at a Brazilian mine run by its Samarco joint venture in October, killing at least 17 people.

The court order paralyzed imports and exports at one of the world's most important iron ore terminals. Its docks loaded 82.5 million tonnes of iron ore destined for steelmakers around the world in the first nine months of 2015, Vale said.

Vale's preferred shares, the company's most traded class of stock, reversed early gains of nearly 5 percent to fall more than 1.3 percent at the close of trading.

In addition to iron ore, Tubarao handles coal imports and steel exports for the Brazilian unit of ArcelorMittal SA , the world's largest steelmaker. ArcelorMittal said in a statement that Vale is responsible for port operations and that the closure will not have an immediate impact on its operations.

Police have said activities at Vale's iron ore dock and coal dock have resulted in iron ore and coal dust polluting the surrounding water and air and contributing to pollution in other areas, including nearby beaches.

Judge Marcus Vinicius Figueiredo de Oliveira Costa said in his ruling the suspension would remain in effect until Vale and ArcelorMittal fix the pollution problems.

The judge said that failure to obey the closure order would result in a daily fine equal to 2/30ths of Vale and ArcelorMittal's monthly revenue.

ArcelorMittal said the operation of the port was Vale's responsibility. It also handles coal imports for other steelmakers in Brazil's interior, who receive the coal by rail.

Story continues

Vale said in a statement that it will take all judicial measures necessary to guarantee the re-opening of the port. It said the closure will have serious economic impact on Espirito Santo state, where Tubarao is located, and on Minas Gerais, the state where iron ore exported at Tubarao is mined.

Vale already faces a 20 billion real ($4.89 billion) lawsuit brought by Brazil's federal government over the October breach of an iron ore tailings dam at Samarco Mineracao SA, Vale's 50-50 joint iron ore venture with Australia's BHP Billiton Ltd.

The closure could further crimp revenue at Vale struggling with a nearly 40 percent decline in the price of iron ore in the last year to 40.50 a tonne, one of the lowest prices in the last decade.

A court spokeswoman said the order does not affect state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA's fuels terminal at the site. Some areas of Espirito Santo have recently run out of fuel because of Petrobras logistics problems.

Petrobras confirmed that its terminal was operating normally and is not affected by the ruling.

Vale has had a long and torturous relationship with the government and environmentalists in Vitoria. Since it opened in 1966, many have complained of dust and other air pollutants coming from the port, which also houses a steel mill, iron ore pellet plants and giant iron ore storage patios.

Vale said in a statement that it has spent 800 million reais ($193 million) between 2007 and 2014 improving environmental control systems at the port an amount that will rise to 1 billion reais by 2020.

($1 = 4.15 Brazilian reais) (Reporting by Jeb Blount and Marta Nogueira; Additional reporting by Alberto Alerigi in Sao Paulo; Editing by Daniel Flynn, David Gregorio, Bill Trott and Bernard Orr)
By Henning Gloystein

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Amid one of the deepest oil price crashes in history, Britain's Tullow Oil (TLW.L) is sending one of the world's biggest floating deep-water oil production platforms to West Africa to pump crude for at least 20 years.

The 340-metre long production vessel, named after late Ghanaian president Prof John Evans Atta Mills, was converted in Singapore from a Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) super-tanker, and is expected to set sail this weekend to Ghana, where it is scheduled to gradually ramp up production from the TEN deepwater oilfield from July/August this year, the company's chief operating officer Paul McDade said on Thursday.

With costs (operating plus capital expenditure) of around $20 per barrel and an expected production life of 20 years or more, London-listed and Africa-focused Tullow hopes it can weather a storm which has seen crude prices (LCOc1) tumble over 70 percent in 18 months to around $30 per barrel. [O/R]

Despite its low production costs, McDade said the current downturn was causing the industry huge pain, and he added that he did not expect a sharp rise in oil prices as happened in 2009 after the last crash during the global financial crisis.

"It feels more like a 1986 than a 2008. It's a more fundamental shift. 2008 was a financial crisis, today is very different. We have oversupply, that's structural and takes longer to adjust to," he said, referring to low oil prices in the decade following the price crash of 1986.

Despite the outlook for excessive global output, McDade said the John Evans Atta Mills Floating Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel was going ahead as scheduled.

"We are very much on schedule for a July/August gradual start of production. The aim is to hit peak production in early 2017," McDade told Reuters in Singapore.

The TEN oilfield off the coast of Ghana lies at a water depth of 1,000-2,000 metres and has a maximum capacity to produce 80,000 barrels per day (bpd) of a light sweet crude quality close to Brent, and Tullow plans to operate at full production.

Story continues

Tullow already produces similar grade crude from the offshore Jubilee oilfield, also in Ghana, and the company said once TEN was at full production, combined net output from West Africa would reach 100,000 bpd in early 2017.

In the midst of a huge global production overhang, with 1-2 million barrels of crude pumped every day in excess of demand, West Africa is one of the few regions that is expected to see production increases and further investment this year.

Analysts at AB Bernstein said they expected "Africa ... as the most active basin in 2016", in terms of developments and investments of potential offshore projects.

"In Ghana, we're kind of blessed with high quality, low cost assets," McDade said.

He said that Tullow's overall cash operating costs were around $15 per barrel.

TAKE-OVER TARGET?

Because of the low prices, McDade said Tullow would have to be flexible with its next investment decisions, including expansion of the Jubilee field, which Bernstein estimated to see a final investment decision (FiD) in the second quarter of 2016.

The plunge in crude prices has already thrown several oil and gas projects off track. Energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie estimates projects worth $170 billion would be deferred or cancelled between 2016 and 2020, bringing the total since 2014 to $380 billion.

Barclays has said it expects global spending on exploration and production to fall by 15-20 percent this year, after already declining in 2015, noting it would be the first time spending will fall in consecutive years since 1986/87.

Tullow's McDade said the firm would only develop its East African oil assets in Uganda if it managed to farm out a significant part of its production in order to re-invest the money made from such a sale back into those developments.

"Ideally, you'd want to invest in the current environment as services are cheap and likely to become cheaper still. In the last 8-10 years we may not have seen a better time to invest than now," McDade said, but added this would depend on Tullow's financial and equity position.

Tullow's share price has fallen by around 70 percent over the last year, giving the company a market capitalization of 1.18 billion pounds ($1.68 billion).

The firm's low share price and market capitalisation meant that Tullow was potentially a take-over target.

"As a smaller company, you're always going to be a take-over target," he said, but added that Tullow was not up for sale and warned any bid would also be challenging as its partnerships in Africa would entail clearances from regional governments.

(Editing by David Evans and Himani Sarkar)
By Paul Kilby

NEW YORK, Jan 22 (IFR) - The Dominican Republic set a final yield of 6.875% Friday on a US$1bn 10-year bond, Latin America's first sub-investment grade deal of the year.

Leads Deutsche Bank and JP Morgan were able to squeeze pricing about 12.5bp from start to finish after generating an order book of some US$3bn.

The sovereign initially tested buyside appetite at very low 7% area, only to revise guidance to 6.875%-7.00%.

Pricing is expected later Friday. The Caribbean nation is raising funds for general purposes, including the partial financing of its 2016 budget. The 144A/Reg S deal is rated B1/BB-/B+.

(Reporting by Paul Kilby; Editing by Marc Carnegie)
By Scott Malone and Richard Weizel

BOSTON/FAIRFIELD, Conn. (Reuters) - General Electric Co's decision to move its corporate headquarters from Connecticut to Boston will boost the city's efforts to revitalize a once run-down district where mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger carried out some of his most notorious murders.

But in Fairfield, Connecticut, high-end shopowners and restaurateurs said they were worried about a loss of business after GE, the town's largest property taxpayer, moves out.

The maker of products ranging from jet engines to high-tech medical devices said on Wednesday it would be moving 800 headquarters staffers out of Fairfield, over two years beginning this summer, in a blow to the wealthy town.

Its new home will be Boston's fast-growing Seaport District. Once filled with parking lots and aging warehouse buildings not far from where Bulger killed his rivals, the neighborhood is now a hive of construction.

Tech startups including car-sharing company Zipcar Inc and software company LogMeIn have already moved into the area, across the Fort Point Channel from the city's financial district that is home to fund giants including Fidelity Investments and State Street Corp.

"We're talking about an area that was once just parking lots. GE is going to have an opportunity to reshape Boston in a really positive way," said John Gallaugher, an associate professor at Boston College's Carroll School of Management.

GE began mulling leaving its headquarters of four decades in suburban Fairfield, about 60 miles (100 km) northeast of New York City, last year. Officials cited high taxes as a main concern. The company looked at cities including New York, Atlanta and Providence, Rhode Island, according to media reports.

"General Electric's choice to move to Boston is the result of the city's willingness and excitement to work creatively and collaboratively," said Boston Mayor Martin Walsh on Wednesday.

Together the state and city offered up to $145 million in financial incentives including property tax breaks to help seal the deal, officials said.

Story continues

After decades of seeing some of its biggest corporate residents bought up by out-of-state companies, such as the former Fleet Bank, now owned by Bank of America Corp and Gillette's purchase by Procter & Gamble Co, Boston business leaders said they were glad to see one of the world's largest companies move its headquarters in.

"This could be a harbinger for the future with other blue chip companies taking a hard look at moving here," said John Fish, chief executive officer of Suffolk Construction Company, New England's largest building company.

'HIT IN THE GUT'

GE has long been the largest company located in Fairfield County, home to some 945,000 people, which stands out as wealthy even in one of the more affluent U.S. states, according to U.S. Census data.

Median income in the county stands at about $82,283, above the state median of $69,461, and the median owner-occupied home was worth about $432,100 last year, more than double the $176,600 nationwide median.

The company currently pays $1.6 million in annual property taxes to the town, said Fairfield First Selectman Mike Tetreau, the town's top elected official. If GE sells its campus, with an assessed value of $74.7 million, the new owner would be responsible for the same bill unless it is a charitable entity.

"Where it's less quantifiable is all the other areas - the volunteer hours from GE employees, the shopping they do in Fairfield, the dining out," said Tetreau. "That's harder to quantify but has a real impact."

Small business owners in Fairfield expressed concern.

"This move by GE will change Fairfield dramatically. I don't know how the town will recover," said Michael Sussman, 58, part of the family that owns Fairfield Center Jewelers.

A block away, Patrick Tennaro, owner of the Old Post Tavern, said he was shocked at the move, but not surprised.

The taxes are far too high," said Tennaro, 40. "For the town of Fairfield, this is a disaster.

GE's move could have a wider effect if it inspires other large companies to move out of Connecticut, experts said.

"This is a real hit in the gut for Connecticut," said Don Gibson, dean of the Dolan School of Business at Fairfield University.

Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy, whose office had been aggressively lobbying GE to stay, admitted disappointment, though he noted some GE units will remain behind.

"We are disappointed, and we know that many in Connecticut share that frustration," Malloy said, a day after basking in the national spotlight when he was invited to sit next to First Lady Michelle Obama at the State of the Union address.

The loss should drive Connecticut officials to rethink the state's tax rates, which are by and large above those of its neighbors, residents and experts said.

"This is bad for Malloy and it doesn't reflect well on the state," said Richard Grossman, a professor of economics at Connecticut's Wesleyan University. "They have to have a tax environment that is at least as good as Massachusetts."

(Additional reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss in Boston and Megan Davies and Ed Krudy in New York; Editing by Andrew Hay)
Volkswagen cars are lined up for sale at a car shop in Bad Honnef near Bonn, Germany, November 4, 2015. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay

BERLIN (Reuters) - Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) is not doing itself any favours by offering unequal compensation for U.S. and European customers following an emissions scandal last year, a German justice ministry spokesman said on Friday.

"This unequal treatment ... cannot be in the interest of VW," the spokesman said during a regular news conference.

On Tuesday, European Industry Commissioner Elzbieta Bienkowska demanded in a letter to VW's chief executive that U.S. and European customers be compensated in the same way after the company's emissions scandal.

(Writing by Caroline Copley; Editing by Joseph Nasr)
Aris Messinis | AFP | Getty Images. Standard and Poor's upgraded Greece's credit rating to "B-" from "CCC+" with a stable outlook, citing its reform progress.

Standard and Poor's on Friday upgraded Greece 's credit rating to "B-" from "CCC+" with a stable outlook, citing its progress in cutting costs and recapitalizing banks.

Greece is "broadly complying" with the terms of its 86 billion euro (roughly $92 billion) bailout deal financed by euro zone states, opening the possibility for broader debt relief, the ratings agency said. It noted that Greece's economy has "proved more resilient" than expected.

A possible agreement on pension reform later this year increases the chances of more relief, S&P said. It projects mostly flat growth for the Greek economy this year, followed by a "more robust" recovery.



Last year, Greece accepted the terms of the new bailout deal, which included austerity measures, after voters had rejected it in a referendum. The left-wing Syriza government, elected earlier in 2015, had campaigned against additional spending cuts.





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Robert Levinson

On January 16, the US secured the release of five American citizens who were, in the words of President Barack Obama, "unjustly detained" in Iran.

Their freedom came at a steep price: The US pardoned or dropped charges against seven Iranian citizens accused of violating US sanctions against the country, effectively swapping criminals for hostages.

The US dropped all charges against 14 additional regime-linked figures, including the CEO of Mahan Air, a state-owned airline accused of ferrying arms and fighters t o the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria . An Iranian general has also claimed that the US made a $1.7 billion direct payment to the Iranian government on debts stemming from the 1979 break in diplomatic relations as a condition for the prisoners' freedom.

Even this wasn't enough to secure the release of two other Americans still held in Iran: Siamak Namazi, an oil executive and longtime proponent of closer relations between the US and Iran who was arrested in Tehran in October, and Robert Levinson, a security consultant, former FBI agent, and CIA contractor who disappeared on the island of Kish, in the Persian Gulf, on March 9, 2007.

In 2013, Levinson became the longest-held hostage in American history, passing Associated Press correspondent Terry Anderson, who was held by Lebanese Hezbollah during the 1980s.

Levinson's situation is thorny  for both countries. Levinson  a longtime veteran of the FBI's money laundering division and specialist on Russian organized crime  was doing work for the agency that fell outside the scope of the analytics division that had him under contract, as a 2013 New York Times report uncovered. The CIA's Illicit Finance Group was using Levinson for freelance source recruitment and information gathering.

The Times reported that Levinson informed his CIA bosses that he intended on going to Kish. At the time, Levinson was in Dubai investigating cigarette smuggling in the Persian Gulf region on behalf of a private client. And although CIA investigators never firmly established that Levinson was traveling on agency business, the episode cost three CIA officials their jobs, according to the Times.

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The failure to free Levinson under the January 16 deal owes in part to the Iranian government's claims that he isn't in their custody. That might technically be true. But the best public explanation of what happened to him suggests the Iranian government was responsible for his capture.



Screen Shot 2016 01 20 at 5.55.42 PM

In December of 2013, shortly after the Associated Press and The New York Times published the details of Levinson's CIA affiliation, Time Magazine published an interview with Dawud Salahuddin, the person Levinson planned on meeting in Kish. Salahuddin was born in New York and converted to Islam as a young adult. He fled the US in 1980 after assassinating Ali Akbar Tabatabaei, an Iranian dissident and a former diplomat under the deposed Shah on Iran, in Potomac, Maryland.

Salahuddin is an almost unique figure in the Middle East: A fluent English speaker who has killed on behalf of the Iranian regime and has a deep knowledge of Iran's government and society  as well as a certain exhaustion towards a country where he's been stuck for the past 36 years. A former employee of Iran's state-owned Press TV, he is both well-connected and somewhat free to speak and travel within Iran. (Salahuddin also had one of the leading roles in "Kandahar," Mohsen Makhmalbaf's acclaimed 2001 film about a woman's search for her sister in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan).

Levinson must have realized that Salahuddin made an ideal intelligence source. But due to Salahuddin's high profile, American citizenship and links to the regime, he was an asset who ran the risk of attracting the wrong kind of attention. And as The New York Times report noted, Levinson had no experience working in Iran and little knowledge of the country.

Rezaian

According to the Times, Levinson was put in touch with Salahuddin through Ira Silverman, a retired NBC News producer who knew Levinson during his FBI days, and had profiled Salahuddin for The New Yorker in 2002.

Salahuddin told Time he agreed to meet Levinson after speaking with him on the phone three times. They met at Kish's Maryam Hotel, "where Levinson had booked them into the same room  a fatal error, Salahuddin came to realize." According to Time, "The presence of two Americans drew the attention of the Interior Ministry, whose officials routinely check hotel registrations. Both men were detained by ministry officials; Salahuddin spent the night in jail, and never saw Levinson again."

In the Time interview, Salahuddin denied he knew Levinson was attempting to recruit him as a CIA source. He also pushed back against the insinuation that Iranian intelligence services had used him as bait for Levinson.

The notion that it was some kind of brilliant move on the part of Iranian intelligence is bull---t, Salahuddin told Time. It was dumb luck. Ive been around these guys long enough to know when theyre on to something and when they get lucky. And those guys were lucky. In context, Salahuddin's "those guys" refers to security officials connected to Iran's Interior Ministry.

Salahuddin has plenty of reason not to be entirely truthful about his meeting with Levinson. As Salahuddin told Time, "over the years I have lost a lot of respect for the Iranian system ... It relies on blunt force. Iranians are afraid of their government. The basis of their rule is not love and respect for their rulers, its fear." He met with Levinson's family in Iran in 2007 and might have been looking for a way out of the country  an objective that would become a lot more complicated if it ever turned out he knowingly lured a US intelligence contractor into a state-sponsored kidnapping.

Regardless of his motives, Salahuddin told Time that he was kept in Interior Ministry custody the night he met Levinson. It's reasonable to assume the Iranian state held Levinson as well, at least at the outset of his captivity.

What exactly happened to Levinson after that? As late as 2012, then-Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made what experts interpreted as a "tacit admission" that Levinson was in Iranian state custody. The fact that the Iranian government claims it can no longer account for Levinson's whereabouts suggests that he's either considered too important of a prisoner to release even as a gesture of cooperating or goodwill, or that he was transferred at some point to a paramilitary group with ties to the Iranian regime.

The latter possibility seems the more likely of the two. Shortly after the swap, high-ranking US Middle East diplomat Brett McGurk told PBS that the US suspects Levinson is no longer being held in Iran.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei departs after casting his ballot in the parliamentary election in Tehran March 2, 2012. REUTERS/Caren Firouz

Levinson's disappearance highlights an uncomfortable reality about the nature of the Iranian regime.

The Iranian government is highly factionalized, consisting of a national security and intelligence elite that often acts independently of the country's political leadership.

The relationship between the regime's various centers of power is never entirely clear, and this uncertainty gives the regime's most dangerous elements an alarming degree of freedom. It's not obvious how much control Iran's current president, Hassan Rouhani, has over Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran's elite special forces unit, the Qods Force. However, it's clear Suleimani has broad ability to aid and coordinate Shiite militia groups throughout Lebanon, Iraq, and Syria.

Iran's boosting of militants and terrorist groups is enabled partly through the regime's compartmentalization. Iran doesn't just have external proxy groups that act as an extension of the regime's policy, or at least the preferred policies of certain regime elements. There are also government-supported paramilitaries acting within the country as well  entities like the Basij militia.

The dangers of the regime's closeness to militia groups was on display when Iran-linked militants in Baghdad kidnapped three American contractors earlier this month.

America's recent nuclear deal with Iran might have built unprecedented degrees of trust and confidence between the countries, reframing and de-escalating their relationship for decades to come. But as Levinson's ordeal and the kidnapping in Baghdad each demonstrate, the thaw hasn't changed the composition of the Iranian regime, or dissuaded it from stopping some of its most provocative behavior.

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Finance Minister Arun Jaitley gestures during the session 'India's Next Decade' in the Swiss mountain resort of Davos January 23, 2015. REUTERS/Ruben Sprich

By Sujata Rao

DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - Colourful lions adorn a salon on the main street of Davos, inviting visiting business leaders to "Make in India".

Optimism about the world's fastest growing economy contrasts with the economic gloom facing other emerging markets and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's mantra encapsulates a renewed confidence among Indian business and political leaders at the 2016 World Economic Forum.

This year's Davos push, led by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, has stirred memories of the ill-fated and extravagant 2006 "India Everywhere" marketing campaign that had aimed to showcase a resurgent India as a destination for foreign investment to rival China.

But the ruling party was routed soon after in elections and subsequent years laid bare India's frailties; its woeful infrastructure, inability to deliver reforms and a huge balance of payments deficit put it in the Fragile Five group of emerging markets seen at most risk of financial crisis.

That has all changed, and the 140-plus strong India contingent at Davos is confident the turnaround this time is for real, driven by efforts at reform and falling oil import costs.

"India will be a shining star, the I in the BRICs constellation is giving hope to the rest of the world that we won't fall in the same trap that most of the world is in, that of slow growth," Indian telecommunications tycoon Sunil Bharti Mittal told a panel at the World Economic Forum,

Indeed, the other BRIC emerging economies - Brazil, Russia, India and China - are wrestling with problems. The first two are in a second year of recession, while this week China posted its weakest growth in 25 years.

India has finally taken on the mantle of the world's fastest growing big economy; its equities and bonds are favourites with emerging market investors who are betting that growth will accelerate further.

What's more, direct bricks-and-mortar foreign investment flows into India jumped 75 percent over 2015, according to a report this week from United Nations trade body UNCTAD.

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Davos regulars feel India may actually have something to crow about. A PWC survey of more than 1,400 global CEOs found India to be the rare bright spot among big economies, with rising confidence in short-term sales growth.

"I think they are doing it (Davos) more quietly this time, I think that's good. Let China take all the heat and just keep your head down," said Martin Gilbert CEO of Aberdeen Asset Management, who counts India as one of his favourite markets.

SLOW REFORM

But India has plenty to worry about. Key reforms on land and tax remain elusive. Latest data, showing a 15 percent year-on-year decline in exports, is proof enough that India cannot escape the fallout of a global slowdown stemming from China

Neeraj Kanwar, vice chairman of Apollo Tyres, should be rejoicing in falling costs of rubber and energy. Instead, he is fretting about the weakening yuan and the possibility of more competitive currency devaluations in China and the rest of Asia.

Chinese tyres account for a third of the Indian market, he told Reuters on the sidelines of the WEF, up from 15-20 percent a year ago. Meanwhile India's tyre industry is running at 60 percent capacity, Kanwar said, adding:

"The writing is on the wall for Make in India."

Apollo will start producing tyres at its new plant in Hungary from 2017, for easier access to Western European markets but Kanwar said an investment process that took a few weeks in Hungary could have consumed up to 18 months in India.

Critics would note India ranked 130th in the World Bank's latest survey on ease of doing business and Kanwar said clearances for Apollo's planned facility in Hungary took a few weeks, a process that would have taken up to 18 months in India.

"There are still too many barriers to doing business in India," he added.

DOUBLING DOWN

But in today's bleak emerging markets, Western businesses may have little choice but to gravitate towards India with its 7 percent growth and billion-plus eager consumers.

"There is increased opportunity in India, while (reform) progress has been slow we are seeing progress and that's the key," KPMG chairman John Veihmeyer told the Reuters Global Markets Forum this week, adding that India was the consultancy's fastest-growing market.

And John Chambers, executive chairman of IT giant Cisco Systems reckons India, with its software industry, is well placed to capitalise on increasingly digitalised business.

"We all got excited about India before, but the market didn't develop as we hoped," Chambers said. "Cisco doubled down in India two years ago and we will double down again..We cannot miss this opportunity."

(Editing by Alexander Smith and Anna Willard)
By Wilda Asmarini

JAKARTA, Jan 22 (Reuters) - The Indonesian unit of Freeport McMoRan Inc must put a further $530 million into an escrow account, a government official said, among other requirements for the miner to extend its permit to export copper concentrate from Indonesia.

The funds are intended to be a guarantee that the Phoenix, Arizona-based company will complete a smelter in Indonesia, which is pushing to boost returns from its natural resources.

The amount would add to an estimated $80 million the U.S. mining giant set aside in July to obtain its current export permit, which is set to expire on Jan. 29.

The requirement adds to pressure on Freeport, whose stocks have tumbled 36 percent this month and hit their lowest in more than 15 years on Wednesday, hammered by falling prices for copper and oil, which the company also produces.

"This money is the remaining amount they should have spent on their smelter so far," Coal and Minerals Director General Bambang Gatot told reporters on Friday, adding that his team had not heard back from Freeport on the requirement.

A Freeport Indonesia spokesman told Reuters the company was still in discussions with the government on the matter.

According to Gatot, the smelter project, estimated to be worth up to $2.5 billion, is now 14 percent complete.

Energy Minister Sudirman Said said on Wednesday the new smelter should be 60 percent complete by now.

"We have warned them from a long time ago," Said said, referring to the export permit deadline.

Previously Freeport has said it had identified a site for the new smelter project.

The smelter and associated infrastructure were at the centre of scandal late last year that resulted in the resignation of parliament speaker Setya Novanto after he was accused of trying to extort shares from Freeport's local unit.

Freeport Indonesia's chief executive resigned on Monday, citing personal reasons.

(Additional reporting by Michael Taylor and Bernadette Christina Munthe; Writing by Fergus Jensen; Editing by Tom Hogue)
(Recasts with focus of U.S. investigation on Iran-linked groups)

By Mark Hosenball and David Brunnstrom

WASHINGTON/DAVOS, Jan 21 (Reuters) - U.S. intelligence agencies investigating the kidnapping of three Americans in Baghdad last week are focusing their probe on three militant Islamic groups closely affiliated with Iran, U.S. government sources said on Thursday.

Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah and the Badr Organization are the principle focus of the probe into how the men were snatched in the Dora neighborhood, south of Baghdad, the sources said.

The U.S. government does not know if any of the three groups seized the men. While the groups have close ties to Iran, sources said the United States does not believe Iran had a hand in the kidnapping nor that the three are being held in Iran.

Despite the U.S. belief that Iran was not involved, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday said he had asked Iran for help in finding them. Iraq's prime minister, speaking in Davos, Switzerland, said he doubted Iran was involved.

Kerry told reporters that he and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif discussed the case of the three men during a meeting on Wednesday. Iraqi intelligence and U.S. government sources on Tuesday said the men were kidnapped and were being held by an Iranian-backed Shi'ite militia.

They are the first Americans to be abducted in Iraq since the withdrawal of U.S. troops in 2011.

"I asked him (Zarif) for whatever help, if Iran knew any way to provide help, or if there was some way they could have impact in getting the right outcome," Kerry told reporters.

"He said he would take it under advisement and try to do what they can. He didn't have any immediate knowledge whatsoever about it," Kerry added.

The three men are employed by a small company that is doing work for General Dynamics Corp, under a larger contract with the U.S. Army, according to a source familiar with the matter.

'THEY JUST WENT MISSING'

Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah and the Badr Organization are Shi'ite militia groups that are part of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Front, a group closely tied to Iran, according to the New York-based Counter Terrorism Project advocacy group.

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The Iraqi government has struggled to rein in the Shi'ite militias, many of which fought the U.S. military following the 2003 invasion. Shi'ite militias have previously been accused of killing and abducting American nationals.

Speaking before a meeting with Kerry on Thursday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi was asked by a reporter if he thought there was an Iranian link to the mens' disappearance.

"I don't know about that. I doubt it very much. We don't know if they have been kidnapped...they just went missing," Abadi said in response to the question.

Unknown gunmen seized the three on Friday from a private residence in the southeastern Dora district of Baghdad, Iraqi officials say.

Kerry said the United States was working closely with Iraq on the issue.

"They are really investigating this. He (Abadi) is looking at it. He was not able to shed light on the who, where or what and they are still trying to get all of that piece together."

Some analysts believe the kidnappings were meant to embarrass and weaken Abadi, who is trying to balance Iraq's relations with rival powers Iran and the United States.

Hostility between Tehran and Washington has eased with the lifting of crippling economic sanctions against Iran in return for compliance with a deal to curb its nuclear ambitions and a recent prisoner swap.

(Reporting by David Brunnstrom and Mark Hosenball; Editing by Richard Balmforth and Andrew Hay)
* Irish PM likely to call election for the end of February

* Polls suggest coalition remains short of a majority

* Follows elections in Spain, Portugal with no clear victor

* Could add to euro zone uncertainty that risks slowing reforms

By Padraic Halpin

DUBLIN, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Ireland could become the latest euro zone country to face political deadlock in an election expected next month that risks delivering an inconclusive verdict and leaving Prime Minister Enda Kenny's coalition short of an overall majority.

Despite boasting Europe's fastest-growing economy and a lead in opinion polls, Kenny's Fine Gael will almost certainly need the support of junior partner Labour to gain re-election - and the pair remain a few percentage points light.

Similar to recent elections in Spain and Portugal that led to no clear victor, unnerving some investors, Irish voters are weighing the impact of an unpopular EU/IMF austerity programme against the start of economic recovery.

As the euro zone slowly emerges from its debt crisis with the help of massive stimulus from the European Central Bank, a wave of political uncertainty that could slow economic reforms adds to a list of problems that include rising euro-scepticism, the migrant crisis and heightened security fears.

Deadlock in Dublin could also put one of Europe's biggest bank flotations since the financial crisis on hold - of state-owned Allied Irish Banks. And analysts say it could slow crucial decision-making if a government were not in place by the time neighbour and trade partner Britain voted on EU membership.

The uncertainty surrounding the election was typified by a voter who spoke to Fine Gael candidate Noel Rock on her north Dublin doorstep.

"We're disappointed by all the cuts, they have made things extremely hard," she told Rock, referring to her work teaching special-needs pupils which has experienced sharp budget cuts.

The former nurse, who declined to give her name, says she can also sympathise with the "terrible" pay some young public-sector workers face after years of cuts. Another concern is her grown-up son who lives at home and can only find low-paid work.

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She is undecided about who to vote for, and Rock - a 28-year-old councillor aiming to win Fine Gael's first seat in the constituency for almost 20 years - believes the "lack of credible alternatives" will swing such voters towards Fine Gael.

The largest opposition party, Fianna Fail, is trailing Fine Gael by over 10 points in some polls after being hammered in the 2011 election - and it says it will not govern with its rivals, especially Sinn Fein, the one-time political wing of the IRA with which it could potentially reach a majority.

"I'm not ready to forgive Fianna Fail and I would be worried and concerned if Sinn Fein were in a position of power," said another voter, 71-year-old pensioner Dan. "I will be voting Fine Gael, I'm generally happy with how things are going."

SPAIN, PORTUGAL

The uncertainty seen so far in countries like Portugal and Spain risk slowing the pace of economic reforms in the euro zone, potentially creating obstacles for growth in high-debt economies seeking to build on fledgling recoveries.

Spain is without a government one month after no party won an outright majority in an election, and political analysts say that if the next administration is a fragile coalition of many parties, it could struggle to agree on a strong reform agenda.

Meanwhile in Portugal, following an inconclusive October election, a shaky alliance of the moderate and far left is struggling to reconcile pledges to end austerity with budget deficit cuts promised to the EU.

In Ireland the recovery is more established and a bout of political stalemate is unlikely to derail an economy that grew by around 7 percent last year and where the jobless rate has fallen to 8.8 percent from over 15 percent in 2012.

But Danske Bank said on Thursday that a "muddled" result could lead to a short-term rise in record low Irish borrowing costs and a postponement of a possible credit rating upgrade by Moody's, the only agency holding Ireland below an 'A' rating.

And the Allied Irish Banks flotation could be affected; the government wants to sell a 25 percent stake but only if re-elected, while the two main opposition parties have said they would not rush to sell the state's shares.

However the main risks to Ireland come from external risks, such as a downturn in the global economy and a possible British exit from the EU, say analysts.

Ireland has more to lose than other EU members in a "Brexit". Trade with its larger neighbour Britain could fall by at least a fifth, according to a government-commissioned report that also flagged "far-reaching consequences" in other areas.

"External factors are the main risk for the Irish economy," said Theresa Reidy, a politics lecturer at University College Cork. "Should they deteriorate and require an unstable government unsure of its majority to take decisive action, that could become a problem."

If Rock gets elected, it could spell a return towards the 36 percent of the national vote Fine Gael captured in 2011. However it would likely be at the expense of Labour, which has borne the brunt of public anger over austerity.

On the most recent polls, the two parties are 13 seats short of the 79 needed for a majority, according to Adrian Kavanagh, a politics lecturer at National University Ireland Maynooth who conducts constituency-level analysis on each survey. Such an outcome could lead to a minority government, a coalition relying on a large number of independent MPs or an election re-run.

"It is looking less and less likely that a combination of Fine Gael and Labour are going to be able to get back into government," said Reidy.

"Unless Labour see some steady improvement in the campaign, which is hard to envisage right now, you'll be left in the quite challenging position where government formation is up in the air. I expect a very uncertain period after the election." (Editing by Pravin Char)
Jakarta Terrorism attack

Late last week, ISIS claimed its first attack in Indonesia, which might be a signal that the group is seeking to expand its reach in Southeast Asia, according to The New York Times and other news outlets.

Though the attack on a shopping center in Jakarta, Indonesia's capital, is the first for which the terrorist group ISIS (also known as the Islamic State, ISIL, or Daesh) has claimed responsibility in the country, smaller-scale attacks have been carried out by self-identified ISIS sympathizers in the region over the past year.

And it appears that ISIS didn't just take credit for inspiring the Jakarta attack  there's evidence that the group actually funded it, as the Associated Press reported last Friday.

Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian man who spent a year in prison in 2011 for weapons possession and is now allegedly fighting for ISIS in Syria, was reportedly the point of contact.

"In the last six months, we've seen a spike of planning for violence in Indonesia," Sidney Jones, a terrorism expert and the director of the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict in Jakarta, told The Times. "It's a desire to prove that jihadi groups are still alive and well in Indonesia and are committed to carrying out the ISIS agenda."

Though ISIS' influence spread quickly in Iraq and Syria, where sectarian tensions run high and government structures are shaky at best, Indonesia has been largely insulated from jihadist ideology. But tensions between moderate Muslims and hardline extremists has been growing in Indonesia, and ISIS seems to have aspirations for the most populous Muslim-majority country in the world.

Indonesia "is an obvious target for the Islamic State, even if it is relatively resistant to the group's violent extremism," the strategic security firm The Soufan Group wrote in a recent note. "Numerous regional groups, such as Katibah Nusantara and East Indonesian Mujahideen, have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. All are jockeying for recognition as Indonesia's official Islamic State affiliate, with the corresponding increase in notoriety, funding, and recruitment."

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In a column for The Times, Jones predicted that there was "more violence to come" in Indonesia.

When ISIS established a presence in Indonesia, Jones wrote, "suddenly there was the potential for Indonesian extremists to go to Syria and get military training, combat experience, ideological indoctrination and international contacts."

And because the death toll from the Jakarta attack was relatively low compared with other recent ISIS attacks, the group could decide to ship trained jihadis from the Middle East into Indonesia to carry out deadlier, more sophisticated operations.

"The need for more preventive measures has therefore become pressing," Jones wrote.

"One necessity is plugging the holes in Indonesia's anti-terrorism law, which at present does not ban membership in ISIS or similar organizations, or participation in terrorist-training camps abroad. Even when the Indonesian police know that individuals are actively recruiting for ISIS, they have few legal tools to stop them."

ISIS is also seeking to carry out attacks in Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand, according to The Times.

But the outlook for Indonesia isn't quite as bleak as it is for countries in the Middle East. The Soufan Group pointed out that the country had robust counterterrorism forces to face the threat of terrorism and that the low number of casualties in the Jakarta attack (two civilians and five attackers died) suggests that the attackers didn't have the same capabilities of those who carried out the bombings and shootings that killed 130 people in Paris in November.

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DAVOS, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Talks with the European Union on how to manage a mountain of bad loans clogging up Italian banks are going well, Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan said on Friday.

"The state of play is good," Padoan told reporters on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos.

Italian plans for a vehicle to take more than 200 billion euros ($216.62 billion) of bad loans off banks' balance sheets have been held up partly by arguments over how to price the debt.

"We are looking at a mechanism which involves the price of the guarantee," Padoan said, adding they were discussing the details of the plan. ($1 = 0.9233 euros) (Reporting by Paul Taylor, writing by Isla Binnie)
national review donald trump

The influential conservative magazine National Review launched an all-out effort Thursday night to take down Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump.

The latest issue was nothing short of an anti-Trump manifesto, featuring a symposium of opinion pieces from conservative leaders who argue that Trump isn't a true conservative.

It also had a scathing article from the magazine's editors.

"Donald Trump is a menace to American conservatism who would take the work of generations and trample it underfoot in behalf of a populism as heedless and crude as the Donald himself," the editors wrote.

That editorial compared Trump's past Democratic positions to those of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), accused him of flip-flopping on his signature issue of illegal immigration, declared that he knows little about foreign policy, and bashed his business record, among other things.

"If Trump were to become the president, the Republican nominee, or even a failed candidate with strong conservative support, what would that say about conservatives?" the editors said. "The movement that ground down the Soviet Union and took the shine, at least temporarily, off socialism would have fallen in behind a huckster."

In the National Review's anti-Trump symposium, there were six core arguments about why conservative voters should not choose Trump to be the Republican presidential nominee.

First, the magazine argued that Trump's past embrace of Democratic politicians and liberal policies exposed him as a fake conservative who would say anything to win. David Boaz, the executive vice president of the Cato Institute, wrote that conservatives were upset with GOP leaders but that Trump may be "the greatest charlatan" of them all.

While conservatives were fighting the good fight, Boaz argued, Trump was busy "publicly raising money for liberals such as the Clintons; championing Planned Parenthood, tax increases, and single-payer health coverage; and demonstrating his allegiance to the Democratic party."

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Other conservative leaders said they welcomed Trump's switch to the Republican Party, but they argued that he needed more time to be viewed as a reliable conservative.

"I love conversion stories," radio host Dana Loesch wrote. "I have my own, from when I became a conservative 15 years ago. But I'm not running for president. Donald Trump is. And his 'conversion' raises serious questions."

Donald Trump

Third, many of the leaders argued that Trump's strongman persona and policy prescriptions were antithetical to the anti-government philosophy of conservatism. Ben Domenech, publisher of the Federalist website, wrote that Trump's candidacy was effectively "an embrace of Barack Obama's authoritarianism."

The Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol further asked: "Isn't Trumpism a two-bit Caesarism of a kind that American conservatives have always disdained? Isn't the task of conservatives today to stand athwart Trumpism, yelling Stop?"

Trump's self-proclaimed evangelicalism was also scrutinized. Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, pointed to Trump's recently saying he didn't "like to have to ask for forgiveness."

"One also cannot help but look at the personal life of the billionaire," Moore wrote. "It is not just that he has abandoned one wife after another for a younger woman, or that he has boasted about having sex with some of the 'top women of the world.' It's that he says, after all that, that he has no need to seek forgiveness."

Moore continued: "Can conservatives really believe that, if elected, Trump would care about protecting the family's place in society when his own life is  unapologetically  what conservatives used to recognize as decadent?"

Donald Trump Liberty University

Still others criticized Trump's business record, arguing in particular that his embrace of eminent domain  in which the government forces property owners to sell their land  went against conservative principles.

Mona Charen, a senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, was particularly scathing on both the eminent-domain issue and on some of Trump's crude statements:

We can talk about whether he is a boor ("My fingers are long and beautiful, as, it has been well documented, are various other parts of my body"), a creep ("If Ivanka weren't my daughter, perhaps I'd be dating her"), or a louse (he tried to bully an elderly woman, Vera Coking, out of her house in Atlantic City because it stood on a spot he wanted to use as a garage).

Last, several of Trump's critics in the National Review accused him of being ignorant of the Constitution and of foreign policy.

Former US Attorney General Michael Mukasey questioned Trump's plan to bar Muslims from entering the US, which Mukasey said was impractical. And he said Trump's suggesting the US should attack terrorists' families "would be a direct violation of the most basic laws of armed conflict."

Novelist Mark Helprin had the most brutal anti-Trump piece of the group. Helprin wrote that Trump's "raging egomania" and ignorance of the Constitution were disqualifying. He added that Trump had "like a tapeworm invaded the schismatically weakened body of the Republican party."

For his part, Trump dismissed the "failing" magazine's attack as an attempt to get publicity:

"A DYING PAPER" Trump dismisses National Review editorial https://t.co/IG7N7iViSG  FOX & Friends (@foxandfriends) January 22, 2016

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Find Out How To Sign Up For Obamacare In Miami with Hola Obamacare, A New Obamacare Enrollment Center In Miami With A New Software That Enrolls Customers Quickly. Find an Obamacare Help Center in Broward too

MIAMI, FL / ACCESSWIRE / January 22, 2016 / Hola Obamacare's Enrollment Centers are enrolling people fast and in big numbers with the new system and software they're using to enroll. Mass amounts of people have piled through the doors of Hola Obamacare's Enrollment centers in South Florida and found themselves getting in and out with their plans for next year in just 5-10 minutes with the ACA enrollment platform. Quick and easy is the way it is done at their Enrollment Centers located throughout Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach County Florida. One customer quoting "Way better than last year" when he enrolled at the Mall of the Americas in Miami. At the Mall of The Americas, people enrolling for 2015 coverage waited up to 10 hours to speak with an agent, and some were even unsatisfied with the plans that were offered and left uninsured. At Hola Obamacare, even if there are long lines, the new ACA software will have customers in and out within 5-10 minutes. Hola Obamacare has over a thousand State-Licensed Professional agents spread in 15 different locations within the 3 counties. The Hola Obamacare motto is quality combined with efficiency.

All of the agents are Certified by CMS and licensed by the state of Florida. Hello Obamacare Agents are also bilingual. Spanish  speaking customers can visit these locations in comfort , knowing that there are at least 120 bilingual agents who can help them through their enrollment of Obamacare for 2016. Find out how to get the best plans with Hello Obamacare Locations in Florida right here.

One thing many people don't know is that there's actually three ways to apply for Obamacare health insurance in the marketplace. There's private exchange, or The Health Insurance Marketplace (the government facilitated websites). Here are a list of pros and cons for both. Here are the positives when it comes to the Private Exchanges such as ezHealthMart's website. First: consumers can buy health insurance from licensed agents, online and in person (there are many times, especially when the consumer is self employed, a legal resident, changing jobs, where they must upload multiple documents which is much better when a consumer may go to an enrollment center such as ezHealthMart's Enrollment Center's Page and have an agent do it for them). The third option is directly from insurance companies (in this case the insurance carrier will only offer their product's which might not be best for the consumer. Second, private enrollment centers are typically staffed with state licensed health insurance agents. There are more options when shopping for plans through a licensed agent. Examples are Major Medical Plans (Under the ACA, consumers who do not qualify for or want a subsidy, but who want to avoid the tax penalty, can buy major medical health plans that meet ACA coverage standards on or off of government-run state exchanges). The off exchange plans may be lower in cost and have a better network.The rest of the info on this matter may be found by clicking here on Obamacare Miami ezHealthMart website for How To Sign Up For Obamacare correctly.

Story continues

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Nicole Connolly Hollywood USA

In 2011, Nicole Connolly started saving money.

Living in Brisbane, Australia, Connolly had come across the world of travel bloggers and was quickly sucked in.

"I had always wanted to travel more than the four weeks a year we get in Australia, and in early 2011 I discovered the world of travel blogs and read stories about how these bloggers were traveling full-time," she says. "I became obsessed with the idea and I just knew that was exactly what I wanted to do."

Spurred by the death of her mother, who, in their last-ever conversation, encouraged her to do whatever made her happy, Connolly decided she would do it: She and her partner Michael would leave their jobs and set off on a long-term trip around the world.

Connolly was working 70-hour weeks at the award-winning day spa she had owned for 13 years, and Michael was working as a project manager for a construction company. By January 2012, they had saved $50,000 to finance their trip and booked a one-way ticket to the US, where they embarked on a three-month road trip.

Connolly started taking on remote jobs to earn money as they traveled, including travel blogging, social media management, writing e-books, freelance writing, and virtual assistant work.

"I have been an entrepreneur for a very long time, but the online world was new to me," she remembers. "So I had to fumble my way through it. I took several courses and read hundreds of books to help get me on the right path."

Then, in January 2015, she launched what has become her primary business: Freedom Junkies, a resource for people who want to veer off the traditional career path and follow their dreams. The site includes Connolly's e-books, a blog, a Facebook community, and a course on becoming a social media manager who can work from anywhere.

nicole connolly barbados

Today, Connolly and her partner earn six figures a year between their blog, Freedom Junkies, and a social media management business.

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Typically, she says, she works about four hours a day as they travel everywhere from Iceland to Costa Rica. Currently, they're spending three months in the Bahamas.

In February, they'll begin to offer a 16-week e-course based on what she's learned about working remotely as a social media manager: Quit the Cubicle.

"[The course] came about because we had hundreds of emails through our blog and communities asking us how we started an online business," Connolly says. "There were just so many others out there dreaming of quitting the 9-to-5 life and starting their own online business so they could work from anywhere in the world."

Then, in 2017, they'll close the social media management company (which Michael currently oversees) to devote more energy to online courses.

"The 'freedom business' revolution is growing quickly because more and more people are seeing that it is actually possible to work from a laptop anywhere in the world and make good money," Connolly says. "Long gone are the days where budget travelers made pennies cleaning hostel bathrooms to support themselves. They are all online now making good money  most of them making better money than they were at corporate jobs! It is 100% possible to make your dream a reality if you put in the work. And, if you dont know where to start, there are plenty of resources and people to help get you on the path to a life full of freedom and joy."

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Android mascots are lined up in the demonstration area at the Google I/O Developers Conference in the Moscone Center in San Francisco, California, May 10, 2011. REUTERS/Beck Diefenbach

By Steve Trousdale

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Google's Android operating system has generated revenue of about $31 billion and profit of $22 billion since its release, an Oracle Corp lawyer told a U.S. court hearing the software company's copyright lawsuit against Google.

A lawyer for Google did not discuss the figure, according to a transcript of the hearing in a Northern California federal court last week. But he said the Alphabet Inc unit might be willing to disclose more information about the revenue produced by Android as part of the court proceedings, the transcript reviewed by Reuters showed.

The Android mobile operating system began with the release of the Android alpha in November 2007. The first commercial version, Android 1.0, was released in September 2008.

Oracle is accusing Google of using its Java software without paying for it to develop Android.

Google said in a court filing on Wednesday that the Android disclosures should not have been made public, and asked the court to place it under seal.

Google was not immediately available for comment. Oracle declined to comment.

The closely watched case involves how much copyright protection should extend to the Java programming language, which Google used to design the operating system. Oracle is seeking royalties for Google's use of some of the Java language, while Google argues it should be able to use Java without paying a fee.

Bloomberg previously reported the Oracle lawyer's comment.

(Reporting by Anya George Tharakan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sayantani Ghosh and Richard Chang)
charlotte rampling

Charlotte Rampling, a best-actress nominee at this year's Oscars for "45 Years," has weighed in on the #OscarsSoWhite controversy following a second consecutive year in which no minorities received acting nominations.

After being asked about the criticism toward the Academy in an interview with Europe 1, a French radio network, Rampling called the controversy "racist to whites." The interview was translated by the Guardian.

One can never really know, but perhaps the black actors did not deserve to make the final list, Rampling added.

Her response is in contrast to statements by actors such as George Clooney and director Spike Lee who have pointed out the lack of diversity in opportunity and representation within the Academy and Hollywood more broadly.

Twitter users are responding to Rampling's comments:

Wisdom, apparently, doesn't always come with age. #CharlotteRampling  Paula Zargaj (@PaulaZargaj) January 22, 2016

Oh, Charlotte Rampling. Wow.   James Gunn (@JamesGunn) January 22, 2016

Charlotte Rampling is just coming across as extremely ignorant, privileged, uninformed & naive rn  Katie (@SciPhiKat) January 22, 2016

Congratulations to Charlotte Rampling on her nomination for 45 Years Since That Attitude Was OK"  David Schneider (@davidschneider) January 22, 2016

Charlotte Rampling exemplifies the deep & dangerous ignorance of unexamined white privilege & the false utopia it assumes to protect itself.  deray mckesson (@deray) January 22, 2016

NOW WATCH: Hollywood's new power couple were both nominated for Oscars





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Negotiations over how companies can transfer personal data across the Atlantic are ongoing, and a vote is expected by February 2, 2016, U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker told Yahoo Finance editor-in-chief Andy Serwer at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

We have a comprehensive package that weve worked out over the last two years with the European Commission, said Pritzker. Were down to the last few issues. My hope is that well get all of this done shortly.

EU officials are working on finalizing their position on data transfers from the European Union to the United States. This comes after the European Court of Justice struck down a 15-year-old transatlantic data-sharing privacy framework called Safe Harbor last year. Safe Harbor was the agreement under which U.S. companies were permitted to transfer Europeans personal data to the U.S. without violating EU data-protection laws.

The European Commission is leading the talks on the EU side, and the onus is now on the U.S. to comply with European privacy regulations.

Its complicated, but we have to keep in mind whats at stake here, said Pritzker. Trade is at stake. Our economy is at stake. The digital trade back and forth between the U.S. and Europe is about $260 billion per year and a lot of jobs. Were working to try and resolve issues that would be affected if Safe Harbor went away.

And the uncertainty does not just impact big U.S. consumer tech firms. Pritzker noted that a total of 4,400 companies have benefited from Safe Harbor. If the two sides fail to reach an agreement, individual country data-protection authorities will be able to halt EU-U.S. data transfers.

Its important we address the issues raised by the EU, address the issues raised by the European Court of Justice, and bring Safe Harbor to the 21st century, said Pritzker. We need to move forward. Its very important for transatlantic trade.
Julio Pino

An Ohio professor with a long history of expressing anti-Israel views is being investigated by the FBI for possible ties to the terrorist group ISIS.

The FBI confirmed to The New York Times and other outlets that it was investigating Julio Pino, an associate professor of history at Kent State University in Ohio who's known for defending his right to free speech as he speaks out against Israel.

KentWired.com, a student-run publication, broke the story this week that a joint terrorism task force has been investigating Pino, who is a Muslim convert, for a year and a half.

FBI agents have been questioning students on campus, some of whom he's suspected of trying to recruit to join ISIS (also known as the Islamic State, ISIL, or Daesh), according to the website. Pino has tenure and was still teaching on campus after news of the FBI investigation broke.

An unnamed FBI agent who spoke to KentWired.com said there is "no direct threat to the university."

Pino has denied the allegations. He said at a press conference on Thursday that he has "no ties to any politics of Islam, the Islamic State or any other political organization here in the United States or abroad."

"I have never discussed the politics of Islam, the Islamic State or any other political organization with the students, with the faculty or with anyone else on campus," Pino said. "I do not endorse violence. I do not advocate violence nor do I practice it and I always try to fulfill my duties, which are to my family, to this community, to this university and obviously to my students."

This isn't the first time federal authorities have looked into Pino, who didn't respond to a request for comment from Business Insider about the newest allegations.

The Secret Service questioned him in 2009 about his beliefs, according to the Akron Beacon Journal. Pino has been known to make anti-Semitic comments. And in 2011 he shouted, "Death to Israel!" at a lecture hosted by a former Israeli diplomat, the Beacon Journal reported.

Story continues

Pino has an open history about his apparent jihadist sympathies online. On his personal Facebook page, he has posted photos of ISIS militants and criticized the US government.

This AFP photo, which Pino used as his Facebook cover photo in 2014, shows ISIS militants in Aleppo, Syria:

Julio Pino ISIS

Under another photo of ISIS jihadists, Pino wrote: "Keep it a secret: that's me on the left!"

Julio Pino ISIS

In a comment on a photo of himself in front of the US Capitol building, he made a reference to Ziad Jarrah, one of the hijackers involved in the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on US soil. He wrote, "I told Ziad Jarah [sic] to head for the Capitol, but did he listen? No!"

Julio Pino

Under the same photo on an earlier date, Pino wrote, "I come to bury DC, not to praise it.":

Pino

In a photo from 2013, meanwhile, Pino was pictured in the United Arab Emirates. In a comment beneath the photo, he wrote about visiting a Salafist imam. ISIS members are considered Salafist-jihadists, implementing a strict version of Islamic law in the territory they control.

Pino wrote, "They had us listen to some Salafist imam preacher, had a Wahhabi line but still couldn't reach me, all I kept thinking about was Palestine and al-Shams and all the other jihad lands when a Saudi brother turned to me and said 'Get outta Mecca, Julio, Go, get outta Mecca and just go, cause you look just like jihadi and you just might be an AQ [Al Qaeda] member, baby, go!'"

Julio Pino

He also posted a photo of children with weapons:

Julio Pino ISIS

Students have expressed concern about Pino's teaching style in the past.

KentWired.com interviewed several students who have taken Pino's classes, and one student said there was something "off" with the professor. Another student, Harold Horsley, a sophomore who took one of Pino's classes last semester, told the news outlet that Pino was "racially insensitive on multiple instances."

Though some students said they didn't remember him making any incendiary comments during class, others said he focused too much on violence.

"After the first week of classes, I called my parents and told them I thought he was an extremist," Madi Nitschke, who took Pino's world history class in 2014, told KentWired.com. "The majority of my class felt the same way, however, there were a few students that really enjoyed his lectures."

She said that Pino "constantly talked about violence and killing."

"He would make comments about how he wanted to see blood, emotion, hatred and other disturbing things during debate," Nitschke said.

Pino has a documented history of making provocative statements.

In 2014, he wrote a letter to the editor about Israel and Palestine that was published in the Kent Stater. Pino declared himself a "slave of Allah" and said that he was being accused of "accused of stirring hatred [and] promoting terrorism" in the US.

That same year, he wrote a letter for an academic website blaming certain scholars for the deaths of more than 1,000 Palestinians. He ended the letter by saying, "Jihad until victory."

In 2007, a professor at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington accused Pino of running a blog that supports jihadism, as KentWired reported. And in a 2002 column for the Kent Stater, Pino praised a Palestinian suicide bomber, The New York Times reported.

Pino has still been teaching classes amid the controversy:

Associate history professor Julio Pino walking to class. (photo by Max McCarty) pic.twitter.com/9SLAfbojtl  KentWired (@kentwired) January 21, 2016

NOW WATCH: Former Defense Secretary calls out Trump for 'over-the-top ISIS plan





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(Adds Storchak comments)

MOSCOW, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Russia's finance minister said on Friday that Moscow was open to "talks in good faith" with Ukraine over the $3 billion debt it owes.

But the minister, Anton Siluanov, added that said Ukraine's position was inconsistent as long as it insisted the debt it owed to Russia was of similar nature to that owed to private creditors.

Russia says the $3 billion, owed from a two-year eurobond issued in December 2013, is bilateral, country-to-country debt and is not up for restructuring along the lines of Ukraine's commercial debt to private creditors.

"Ukraine cannot claim that it is ready in good faith to negotiate and at the same time insist that they will only consider the variant which was already offered to private creditors," Siluanov said.

Russian Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Storchak said talks mediated by the German Finance Ministry had enabled "an informal exchange of views" but Ukraine had not changed its position.

(Reporting by Lidia Kelly; writing by Jason Bush and Jack Stubbs; editing by Richard Balmforth)
(Adds government, Samarco comments, preliminary plan details, background on disaster and lawsuit)

By Anthony Boadle

BRASILIA, Jan 21 (Reuters) - Brazil's government and Samarco Mineracao SA moved closer to a deal to settle a 20 billion-real ($4.8 billion) lawsuit for damages related to a deadly November dam disaster, Brazil's attorney general said on Thursday.

The two sides met in Brasilia on Thursday and talks have "advanced significantly" with the likelihood that the outline of an accord can be completed by early February, Attorney General Luis Inacio Adams told reporters after the meeting.

Brazil sued Samarco, a 50-50 joint venture between Brazil's Vale SA and Australia's BHP Billiton Ltd, for 20 billion reais ($4.8 billion) after an iron ore tailings dam burst. The resulting tsunami of mud roared through river valleys in two states, killing at least 17 and dumping mine waste as far away as the Atlantic Ocean.

It is considered Brazil's biggest-ever environmental disaster. Samarco has been shut down since the dam burst.

"Negotiation of the agreement is under way and we made considerable progress today," Adams said. "We agreed on the actions that have to be carried out. There was convergence between the companies and federal and state governments on what has to be done."

If agreement is reached and financing is provided for 38 actions agreed to on Thursday to resolve the social and environment impact of the disaster, Samarco would be allowed to restart operations, Adams said.

Work should take up to 10 years and Samarco will not have to pay all at once, Adams added, saying Vale and BHP would have to guarantee Samarco's financial commitment to the recovery plan.

The company's new chief executive officer, Roberto Carvalho, said it did not have the funds available now, but told Reuters: "If it is operating again, Samarco will easily have enough funds."

Not all who attended Thursday's meeting were as positive as Adams, whose office needs to sign off on any accord. Marilene Ramos, president of IBAMA, Brazil's environmental protection agency, said Samarco's initial proposal for dam-disaster remediation offered "much less" than she expected.

Story continues

"The program that Samarco presented is a package of short-term actions focused on areas hurt by the disaster," she said. "The part where they propose new actions we consider very incomplete, and we need faster action."

The recovery plan includes setting up a privately run foundation that would be responsible to a board made up of local communities, universities and research centers, government agencies and Samarco.

($1 = 4.1564 Brazilian reais) (Reporting by Anthony Boadle; Writing by Jeb Blount in Rio de Janeiro; Editing by Matthew Lewis and Peter Cooney)
MADRID, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Spain's acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on Friday declined the offer of King Felipe to be the first candidate for next prime minister to seek the confidence of the parliament, the palace said, forcing a new round of talks next week.

Rajoy, who has called for a 'grand coalition' of centre-right and centre-left forces, has failed to win any support from other parties since an inconclusive election on Dec. 20 and was almost certain to lose the first investiture vote.

(Reporting by Julien Toyer)
Monster Beverages Investor Meeting: Monstrous Growth Ahead?

(Continued from Prior Part)

Market share

The investor meeting held on January 12 shed light on Monster Beverages (MNST) leadership in the US energy drink market based on unit sales. According to Nielsens data, for the period ending December 26, 2015, the Monster brand held a 36.6% share of the US energy drink market in terms of unit sales. Austria-based Red Bull held a 28.4% market share and was followed by Rockstar with a 10.9 % market share. In terms of dollar share in all measured channels for the period ending December 26, 2015, the Monster Beverage brand held a 35.1% share and was slightly ahead of Red Bull with a 35% share.

Strategic brands

Monster Beverage gained energy drink brands NOS, Full Throttle, Burn, Mother, Play, Power Play, Relentless, and Nalu under its strategic partnership with Coca-Cola (KO), which closed in June 2015. In the first nine months of fiscal 2015, these strategic brands, which constitute Monster Beverages Concentrate segment, contributed $82.9 million in net sales and $54.4 million in operating income.

These strategic brands have further expanded Monster Beverages energy drink portfolio. Some of these brands like NOS and Full Throttle have good market positions. As indicated in the above graph, in the period ending December 26, 2015, NOS had a 4.3% market share and Full Throttle had a 1.3% market share in the United States in terms of unit sales in all measured channels. PepsiCos (PEP) AMP Energy brand held a 2.3% share. The Dr. Pepper Snapple Group (DPS) lacks a strong energy drink brand in its product portfolio. Monster Beverage and Dr. Pepper Snapple together constitute 0.7% of the iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF (IWR).

Revamping efforts

At the investor meeting, Rodney C. Sacks, Monster Beverages chairman and CEO, talked about the companys efforts to boost the sales of its strategic brands. The company has started repackaging and redesigning certain strategic brands like Burn. The companys CEO also spoke about redesigning the Relentless brand. The newly packaged Relentless brand is being rolled out in Germany and the United Kingdom, where it will be positioned against Rockstar. The Monster Beverage brand will be positioned against Red Bull in these two markets.

Story continues

In certain strategic brands, the company is also working on introducing new flavors like Passion Punch for Relentless. Monster Beverage is also bringing in new package sizes, such as a 24-ounce cap can for NOS.

Continue to Next Part

Browse this series on Market Realist:
DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 22 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew praised International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde on Friday hours after she announced her bid for a second term, saying he looked forward to continuing to work with her.

While the comment in a live CNBC television interview stopped short of a formal endorsement of the former French finance minister's candidacy, it appeared to be a strong signal that Washington, which holds a blocking vote in the IMF, wants her to stay.

"I have a very close working relationship with Christine Lagarde," Lew said. "I have the highest regard for her. I think she's done a great job. I look forward to continuing working with her."

A judge last month ordered Lagarde, whose first term expires on July 16, to stand trial in France over alleged favours for a businessman ally of then President Nicolas Sarkozy while she was finance minister. Lagarde has said she will appeal against the judge's order and no date has been set for the trial.

(Writing by Paul Taylor; Editing by Dominic Evans)
Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuk

It's no coincidence the UN Women has chosen the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos  the retreat where global leaders from business, politics, and academia discuss major global issues  to release its first ever parity report as part of its HeForShe campaign.

Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, UN Women executive director, told Business Insider ahead of the report's publication: "You can't get more elite than that [Davos]."

"That really is the iconic place for the private sector," she said.

UN Women convinced 10 companies' top male executives (CEOs, a chairman, and a global managing director) to release numbers on how many women are in their workforces, senior leadership, the board, and among new hires.

The companies that lifted the lid on gender parity at their organizations were: Vodafone, Unilever, Twitter, Tupperware Brands, Schneider Electric, PricewaterhouseCoopers, McKinsey & Company, Koc Holding, Barclays, and AccorHotels.

In short, the report shows that while the companies are making great strides to attract and retain women in the workplace, there is still a lot of work to do (see the results below.) It's "not flattering," Mlambo-Ngcuka said.

Mlambo-Ngcuka told Business Insider that the company deliberately selected the WEF annual meeting to release the report because it will offer the HeForShe movement far more outreach than usual UN Women campaigns. That's because she's inviting some of the "corporate impact champions" who were involved with compiling the report to speak at the HeForShe event to directly plea to other CEOs to improve gender parity in the workplace and release their numbers too.

She said: "The issue of peer pressure we should not underestimate ... these are not people we speak to every day, but [at the WEF Annual Meeting] they will be spoken to by their peers in a language they understand."

CEOs shouldn't delegate the issue of gender equality to anyone other than the CEO

Working on this report validated the importance of the CEO leading from the front and being hands-on when it comes to improving gender equality in their companies, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka said.

Story continues

"In all of this, there was always the temptation at certain times for this to be delegated to someone else that did not have as much authority as the CEO  and we resisted that all the time, " she said. "Whenever the CEO was the one driving [the issue,] you actually saw the company moving up and moving forward. They have to take responsibility. This is not something to be delegate to someone that is junior that does not have authority."

The other important observation from working with the 10 companies was the importance of budgeting the resources to bring about change.

"Gender equality is not cheap. But has a high rate of return once you have been able to put all of the necessary building blocks in place. These companies have themselves to invest in projecting what the benefits will be in the medium to long-term," she said.

Fortunately, McKinsey & Co. have already done a lot of this work and the management consultants collaborated with the CEOs of the other companies involved to exchange data and information on what the benefits would be in the long-run.

The HeForShe movement defines parity as anywhere between 40% and 60% between the genders. While women make up 39% of employees at these companies  close to parity  the number of women in senior leadership  defined as the top 6%  at the companies involved ranged from anywhere between 11% and 33%. Unilever reported a higher figure, but it defines senior leadership as the top 9% of management roles.

Here are the numbers, which were based on a 2014 reporting cycle. Click the images to enlarge:

UN WOMEN

UN WOMEN

Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka said she hopes many more companies will be involved with the project in Davos next year. By 2020 UN Women will conduct a much "deeper" cross-industry global analysis, with refined methodology, she added.

NOW WATCH: Here's how much the presidency ages you





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(Adds details about lawsuit, settlement amounts.)

By Suzanne Barlyn

Jan 22 (Reuters) - A group of 11 banks agreed to pay more than $63 million to settle allegations that they misled the Commonwealth of Virginia and its retirement system about residential mortgage backed-securities, Attorney General Mark R. Herring said on Friday.

The banks, which include two Bank of America Corp units , Morgan Stanley and a unit of the Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC, defrauded the state's retirement fund by selling it shoddy mortgage bonds in the run-up to the financial crisis, Virginia's attorney general said in a 2014 lawsuit.

None of banks admitted liability in the settlement, Herring said.

The $63 million pact is the largest non-health care-related sum ever obtained in a suit brought under a Virginia law aimed at curbing fraud against the commonwealth's taxpayers, Herring said in a statement.

In the lawsuit, Herring said an analysis showed nearly 40 percent of the mortgages that backed 220 securities purchased by Virginia's retirement fund were fraudulently represented as posing a lower risk of default than they actually did.

The fund, which bought the securities between 2004 and 2010, lost a total of $383 million when it was forced to sell the securities, the lawsuit said.

Herring had originally sought a total of $1.15 billion from the banks, or triple the commonwealth's damages, a penalty allowed under the law at issue.

Two Bank of America units will together pay $19.5 million, the largest share of the settlement, followed by a Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC unit ($10 million), a Barclays PLC unit ($9 million) and Morgan Stanley ($6.9 million).

Other banks in the settlement include units of Credit Suisse AG, Goldman Sachs Group Inc, Deutsche Bank AG, HSBC Holdings plc,, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and UBS AG.

A spokesman for HSBC said the bank is pleased to have concluded the matter. Representatives for the other banks either declined comment or could not be immediately reached for comment.

(Reporting by Suzanne Barlyn; Editing by Dan Grebler and Alan Crosby)
Volkswagen cars are lined up for sale at a car shop in Bad Honnef near Bonn, Germany, November 4, 2015. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Volkswagen's (VOWG_p.DE) development of software to cheat diesel-emissions tests was an open secret in the company department striving to make its engines meet environmental standards, Germany's Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper said on Friday, citing results from VW's internal investigation.

Many managers and staff dealing with emissions problems in the engine-development department knew of or were involved in developing the "defeat devices", said the newspaper, which researched the matter with regional broadcasters NDR and WDR.

A culture of collective secrecy prevailed within the department, where the installation of the defeat software that would cause the carmaker's biggest ever corporate crisis was openly discussed as long ago as 2006, Sueddeutsche said.

But it said there were exceptions: a whistleblower, who was himself involved in the deception and has been giving evidence to investigators hired by Volkswagen, alerted a senior manager outside the department in 2011.

This manager, however, did not react, the newspaper said.

Volkswagen has said that to the best of its knowledge only a small circle of people knew about the manipulation, which Europe's biggest carmaker admitted to U.S. environmental authorities in September last year.

It has said it is not aware of any involvement by top management or supervisory board members in the affair, which toppled its chief executive last year and is likely to cost billions of dollars for recalls, technical fixes and lawsuits.

A Volkswagen spokesman declined to comment on Friday on what he called "speculation", saying the investigation - for which Volkswagen has hired U.S. law firm Jones Day - was continuing.

Contacted by Reuters late on Friday, Jones Day in Munich said its spokespeople had left for the day.

The Sueddeutsche Zeitung said the whistleblower was being investigated by prosecutors in Braunschweig.

Braunschweig prosecutors did not immediately return calls from Reuters late on Friday.

Story continues

Volkswagen initiated an amnesty program last year for witnesses who could shed light on the scandal, promising not to fire employees who came forward with information by Nov. 30.

The carmaker plans to give the first public results of its investigation at the annual shareholders' meeting in April.

(Reporting by Georgina Prodhan, Jan Schwartz and Edward Taylor; Editing by Greg Mahlich)
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Hemera/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) -- The New Jersey Shore, one of the hardest hit areas from Super Storm Sandy in 2012, is now bracing for potential flooding in this weekend's impending snow storm.



A coastal flood warning has been issued for Delaware, New Jersey and the southern coast of Long Island.



But the worst coastal flooding and erosion is expected in southern New Jersey, where some coastal areas could see record flood levels.



This video shows a drone flying over emergency dune construction on Belmar, New Jersey's beach Thursday, in preparation for the weekend:

Officials are also building up sand dunes in Toms River, New Jersey, where hundreds of first responders are on standby, according to ABC station WABC-TV in New York.



"We're going to get the flooding and we're going to get the high winds," Paul Daley of the Toms River Office of Emergency Management said, according to WABC-TV. "These are high water rescue trucks...we did learn some things from Sandy -- we didn't have enough of these and we had to actually borrow from other towns."



Further south, in Barnegat Township, New Jersey, a voluntary evacuation is available for residents who may have difficulty leaving the area, WABC-TV reported.



"The concern is that people who stay in the area aren't going to be able to get out until the waters recede later on Sunday," said Lt. Keith Germain of the Barnegat Police Department, according to WABC-TV.



Germain said they're also worried about power outages.



As the shore prepares for the storm, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, whos in New Hampshire campaigning for the Republican presidential nomination, decided to return to his state Friday afternoon.



"I'm sorry, NH but I gotta go home - we got snow coming," Christie tweeted.



"But I will be back, because I am able to do both things. The fact is - you are never not the governor," he wrote.



Christie was on the fence earlier Friday about leaving New Hampshire, explaining, This is not something that New Jersey hasnt dealt with multiple times every winter for every winter that Ive been governor and this has been a state that has dealt with Hurricane Irene and Hurricane Sandy."



New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, a Democrat, told CNN Friday morning that Christie needs to come back.



"A day or two ago it might have been a question mark, right now its not a question mark anymore, de Blasio said. Obviously we are being warned it could be even worse. We find this out with each storm. Sometimes it's less than we expected, sometimes its more. For any governor, its time to come home."

Copyright  2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
The health authorities have warned the fertile women to avoid getting pregnant as the mosquito-borne Zika virus continues its rampage through South and Central America.

The health officials have advised women to delay pregnancy for the next two years to avoid passing on the virus to their children. Those who have been pregnant should take preventive measures in order to reduce the risk of mosquito bites.

More than 5,000 cases of Zika virus were detected in El Salvador in 2015 and the first few days of this year. According to official figures, nearly 100 pregnant women contracted the virus but so far none have given birth to a baby with birth defects.

Wed like to suggest to all the women of fertile age that they take steps to plan their pregnancies and avoid getting pregnant for the next couple of years, said Eduardo Espinoza, the vice-minister of public health.

The mosquito-borne virus is spreading so rapidly in Brazil and neighboring countries. Since the outbreak in April 2015, Brazil have recorded the highest Zika infection rate while Colombia came second on the list. The South American nation of Brazil documented more than 3,500 cases of microcephaly since October last year.

The Colombian government has also warned women to postpone their motherhood but only for six to eight months. Moreover, the pregnant women should avoid traveling to over a dozen countries in the Caribbean and Latin America due to the single-stranded RNA virus.

Recently scientists detected genetic material of Zika virus in the placenta of a woman. She had undergone an abortion due to the fetus microcephaly in the state of Parana, Brazil. The detection of Zika virus in the placenta proved that it is capable to pass the placenta.

Zika virus, which is transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes, causes a mild illness with fever, maculopapular rash, joint pain and conjunctivitis known as Zika fever or Zika disease. In pregnant women, it can spread to the fetus and cause microcephaly, brain shrinkage that severely limits intellectual and physical development.

The virus belonging to the Flaviviridae virus family was discovered in 1947 in the Zika forest of Uganada. IMAGE/Skynews
Midland University students taking the interterm class American Culture in the 1960s got a small taste of what it feels like to campaign against something they feel is an injustice.

On Thursday afternoon, 39 Midland students lined the streets from 23rd and Main Street to 23rd and Bell Street protesting against college tuition cost for about an hour.

Janet Lack, class instructor, said the protest provided students with the opportunity to walk a mile in the shoes of people working hard to peacefully bring about change in the 60s.

We werent marching in Selma, we didnt have dogs snarling at us and we werent being sprayed at by fire hoses, she said. You cant recreate the things that Dr. King and others went through, but it gave the students a little taste of how much sacrifice, effort and work it takes to make change happen.

Lack, who also taught the class in January 2014, said that interterm  where students only take one extended class throughout the day  provides the necessary time to complete an activity like this.

Prior to holding the protest, Lack said she contacted university officials and the Fremont Police Department to give them a heads up about what was going to take place.

We wanted to keep everybody safe and not put anybody in a bad position, she said.

Students brainstormed various ideas of what to protest, and eventually, unanimously agreed to protest against inflated tuition rates, she said.

Two of the students, freshmen Maddy Schmaltz and Mariana Ramirez, stood with picket signs at the corner of 23rd and Bell streets.

College is getting more and more expensive and everybody is having to go into extreme debt to attend college, Ramirez said. They protested injustices in the 1960s, so we are out here doing the same thing.
Ivan Hildreths knees had gotten so bad he couldnt walk up a flight of stairs without a lot of pain and effort.

He had resisted getting his knees replaced, but his wife finally convinced him last year to see an orthopedic surgeon to discuss options.

He went to Dr. Scott Bigelow at Lincoln Orthopaedic Center, because Bigelow was advertising partial knee replacements.

It turned out Hildreth wasnt a candidate for a partial replacement, but Bigelow told him about a new procedure using a custom implant.

Hildreth went ahead and had his first knee done in June and the second at the end of November.

Hes been more than pleased at the result.

Ive had no pain whatsoever, said the 61-year-old Lincoln resident.

Other than the scars, Hildreth said he doesnt even feel like hes had his knees replaced.

I dont have any sensation of not having my God-given knees whatsoever, he said.

Bigelow was the first doctor in Nebraska to start doing total knee replacements with customized implants from a Massachusetts-based company called ConforMIS. Hes now one of two in the state who do them.

Bigelow said he has been doing total knee replacement surgeries for 20 years and was looking for a better option than trying to match mass-produced implants to patients knee joints.

He said he talked with surgeons who had used the ConforMIS implant and came away impressed. He took a course on how to use the implant and did his first surgery with it in March.

Six weeks after his surgery he rode his bike 50 miles, Bigelow said.

The ConforMIS knee uses a proprietary platform to create a 3-D map of a patients knee after the patient has had a CT scan. The company then uses a 3-D printer to produce a precise wax mold that is used to form the metal components of the total knee. The result is an implant designed for optimal bone preservation and made in the exact shape and size of the patients natural knee.

Bigelow said the surgery needed to implant the custom knee is less invasive and patients tend to recover faster than with traditional knee implants. The implant also costs about the same as traditional models, and he said hes had no issues with insurance companies.

Hildreth said he was out of the hospital within 24 hours after each knee replacement.

I was walking the halls and going up the stairs before I left.

A study published last summer at the Pan Pacific International Congress for Joint Reconstruction showed that patients with the ConforMIS implant were about twice as likely as those with traditional implants to have excellent or good results with range of motion, alignment and stability.

Other than the time it takes to get the implant made, which can be as long as two months, Bigelow said the only drawback as far as hes concerned is the lack of long-term data on performance and durability.

Because the surgery is so new, its impossible to know whether the implant will last as long as traditional implants; 80 to 85 percent of them last for at least 20 years.

Thats the big risk, Bigelow said. I tell people we dont know.

Hildreth said thats not much of a concern for him.

Even if it wears out quickly, Id do it again in a heartbeat.
Since 2004, Sid Dillon Chevrolet Buick has been an integral part of the Wahoo community  as a dealership, body shop, and with its full-service parts and service shop.

While presently all of the dealerships business operations are conducted from its 257 West A Street location, later this year Sid Dillon will open an additional Wahoo site (on the new U.S. Highway 77 bypass, south of Wahoo).

Prior to the opening of the bypass on U.S. 77/Nebraska 92, which diverted traffic around Wahoo, Sid Dillon purchased land for an additional local site. This new location, situated east of Saunders Medical Center on Highway 77, would further enhance the automotive business and increase the dealerships visibility within the community.

Construction is in progress on Sid Dillons (Highway 77) building with an anticipated opening date this year.

Upon completion, the dealerships clients will have two locations to provide service for their automotive needs. All new and used vehicle sales will be conducted from the new site, along with providing a full-service parts/service department.

Sid Dillons original Wahoo location will continue to operate from its present address and will serve as the dealerships automotive body shop.

We are reinvesting in the community with this new building to show our loyalty and commitment to Wahoo and the surrounding area, Sid Dillon, Jr. said.

Dan Fagervik will continue as the general manager for both Wahoo locations. He will be assisted by the current management group of Sid Dillon Chevrolet Buick Wahoo. Additionally, staff will transfer from the current business site to the new dealership.

Throughout the past 11 years of providing automotive sales and service in the Wahoo area, this Sid Dillon dealership has continued to grow and expand to better serve all of its clients automotive needs.

We have received wonderful support from all the communities we are located in, including Ceresco, Crete and Wahoo. And, we look forward to that continued support from Wahoo and the surrounding area with this new dealership, Dillon said.

There are nine Sid Dillon dealerships in six cities, including: Blair, Ceresco, Crete, Fremont, Lincoln and Wahoo. In addition to its car dealerships, this longtime area business owns and operates several motorcycle retail locations, including Dillon Brothers MotorSports; Dillon Brothers Harley-Davidson; Dillon Brothers Indian Motorcycle (all in Omaha); and Dillon Brothers Harley-Davidson in Fremont.

Altogether, 2015 was a highly successful business year for Sid Dillon dealerships, with both the automotive and motorcycle sales of approximately 15,000 vehicles total, Dillon said.

Continued success of the business is contributed to great employees who have been with us for many years, Dillon added.
WASHINGTON  Maximilien Arvelaiz does not look or sound like a hardened socialist tactician going toe-to-toe with the U.S. government.

Instead of military garb emblazoned with medallions, the young Venezuelan diplomat wears designer suits and vintage glasses. His talk isnt peppered with vitriolic attacks on Yankee imperialism, but with references to pop culture and U.S. television.

Yet Arvelaiz, 43, is at the center of one of the most acrimonious relationships in the Western Hemisphere. For the last year and a half, Arvelaiz has been working behind the scenes trying to re-establish a functional relationship with U.S. officials.

It hasnt been easy.

Its like youre on a plane and it feels like every five minutes you have to put your seat belt back on because of the turbulence from the two countries, Arvelaiz said during an interview at the Venezuelan Embassy.

The United States and Venezuela havent had full diplomatic relations since 2010, when Venezuela refused to admit the newly appointed American ambassador. The United States followed suit by expelling Venezuelas envoy to Washington.

Five years later, inspired by the breakthrough between the United States and Cuba, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro sent Arvelaiz  as his ambassador-designate  to Washington to establish a new channel of communication.

While Arvelaiz has made inroads with U.S. officials, the two sides remain far apart. The Obama administration has been reluctant to give Arvelaiz the ceremonial tap on the shoulder that would allow him to become the official ambassador.

Its not personal. U.S. officials like Arvelaiz. They say hes a good diplomat who understands the benefits of a constructive agenda. But they dont think he necessarily has the full backing of his government.

It is safe to say that dealing with Venezuela has been extremely frustrating for us, said a senior administration official who spoke only on the condition of anonymity, lacking authorization to speak publicly.

Its understandable that the United States would want a more productive relationship with Venezuela. It would allow for greater cooperation on important issues such as energy, trade, drug trafficking and human rights. A U.S. ambassador in Venezuela would be there to defend U.S. interests.

Since the ascendancy of Venezuelan icon Hugo Chavez to the presidency in 1999, the two countries relationship has been defined largely by differences  over Cuba, over human rights, over the U.S. presence in Latin America. Chavez famously described then-President George W. Bush as the devil in a 2006 speech to the United Nations. He later called President Barack Obama a clown. Maduro took over as president when Chavez died in 2013.

Patrick Duddy, the last accredited U.S. ambassador in Venezuela, said the Venezuelan government might want to assure the global community that it was serious about engaging in the global economy. But he doubted it wants meaningful relations with the United States.

The U.S. government has made several serious attempts to re-establish a working relationship with Venezuela. But, he said, each time a breakthrough appeared close, something would scuttle the talks.

In the last 10 years, anti-Americanism has been a central tenant in the Chavista narrative, said Duddy, who served in Caracas from 2007 to 2010. They have not yet abandoned the notion that a part of their dialogue with the base revolves around perpetual conflict, with the eternal struggle, with the colossus to the north. An ambassador on the ground saying the U.S. is interested in a functional relationship bilaterally does not fit that narrative.

Arvelaiz, who also served as Venezuelas ambassador to Brazil, thinks many of the problems stem from a lack of communication. Its not that Venezuela expects to become best friends with the United States, he said. But the government does expect a mutually respectful relationship.

Arvelaiz is a bit of a boy wonder in Venezuela. The French-born diplomat first met Chavez as a student in London. They met again in France, where Arvelaiz was hosting a seminar on the Venezuelan revolution.

Impressed with the young academic, Chavez invited Arvelaiz to join him back in Venezuela.

From your extraordinary forum organized in Paris in October 2001  Transform Venezuela: Is utopia possible?  Ive seen in you a tenacious fighter with a strong vision: deploy all efforts and intelligence to prevent the isolation of our revolution, Chavez wrote to Arvelaiz on his birthday in 2005.

Arvelaiz said he saw his work in the United States as explaining to the White House, Congress or anyone who would listen what had happened in Venezuela over the last 15 years.

He described Chavezs so-called Bolivarian Revolution as a process of social inclusion. In his description, the changes Chavez ushered in empowered a large part of the Venezuelan public that previously had been kept out of key social and political aspects of the country.

Arvelaiz compares the movement to the civil rights era in the United States and said that just as the push to end segregation in the United States met fierce opposition, so had the changes in Venezuela, especially from the elite.

What was fundamental in the Bolivarian Revolution was the fact that the majority of people who were regarded as second-ranked citizen, they have become real citizens with political, social and economic rights, he said. And that is very important.

As for the inflamed rhetoric, Arvelaiz defended his bosses. He said much of the talk was in response to U.S. efforts to undermine Chavezs and then Maduros government.

The fact that Im not the ambassador to some extent can be seen as a way that this administration regards Venezuela, he said. In diplomatic matters, its all the same, yet its not exactly the same. Its missing that little touch that can make a big difference in the conversation.
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A massive winter storm was barreling toward Washington D.C. on Friday, with the system poised to drop near-record snowfall on the U.S. capital before walloping New York and other East Coast cities with blizzard conditions. About 2,300 flights have been preemptively canceled for Friday ahead of the storm, and that number is expected to rise.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) announced Thursday that Metrorail, Metrobus and MetroAccess service will be suspended during the blizzard, according to a news release. At 11 p.m. Friday, the train system will be shut down and remain closed through Sunday. Bus service will be shut down at 5 p.m. Friday and the MetroAccess transit service for customers with disabilities will be suspended Friday after 6 p.m.

American Airlines has canceled all Friday's flights out of the Charlotte-Douglas airport and travelers may change flights without penalty in select cities listed here.

Jet Blue, Regionals, ViaAir, Air Canada, Lufthansa and Southwest Airlines have all canceled Friday Charlotte flights.

Airports in the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore area will see flight cancelations beginning Friday afternoon with all flights canceled Saturday, reports the Associated Press. Flights are expected to resume at noon on Sunday.

All Saturday afternoon American flights from New York's three airlines will be canceled and are expected to resume Sunday, AP also reports.

AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said the storm taking aim at Washington could rank among the biggest snowfalls on record, eclipsing the "Snowmageddon" storm of 2010 that dropped 17.8 inches (45.2).

Federal employees in the Washington area were told their offices would close at noon on Friday to allow them to get home safely before the snow begins piling up in the afternoon. Public schools were canceled.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which includes the second-busiest U.S. subway system, took the rare step of suspending operations from late on Friday through Sunday.

Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio urged motorists to stay off roads starting on Friday amid icy and whiteout conditions.

Source: Agencies
Norwegian Cruise Line, Regent Seven Seas Cruises and Oceania Cruises ships will not be cruising to Turkey in 2016. Parent company Norwegian Cruise Lines Holdings has canceled all 61 calls the company had scheduled for Istanbul and other Turkish ports this year.

The company said, At Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises, our primary concern is to ensure the safety and security of our guests and crew. Due to recent events in Turkey, we are suspending all calls to the country through 2016 across all NCLH brands. We will continue to closely monitor the situation and make future itinerary adjustments as appropriate. We have begun the process of informing guests booked on the affected cruises of the itinerary changes and will update the respective brand websites with revised voyage information."

Frank Del Rio, president and CEO of NCLH, said that the decision to remove Turkey from itineraries was "painful," but was due to security concerns. "It's the right thing to do but I feel terrible about it," he said. Rio added, "We're hopeful by 2017 we will once again have the confidence to return to Turkey."

Norwegian Cruise Line alone was to visit Turkey 32 times this spring, summer and fall, bringing nearly 100,000 passengers and crew. Seventeen Oceania cruises and 12 Regent cruises are also impacted.

MSC Cruises earlier this week, luxury line Crystal Cruises and Disney Cruises also announced similar drops in calls to Turkey in the last weeks. Costa Cruises and Celebrity Cruises both cancelled some itineraries last fall.
A textile blog about food and family life ...and my creative journey.
Swedish English

Toronto, January 21, 2016 (TSX: LUN; OMX: LUMI) Lundin Mining Corporation (Lundin Mining or the Company), announces production results for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2015. The Company also provides operating and capital guidance for 2016.

2015 Highlights:

Exceeded the high-end of annual production guidance for copper and nickel while meeting overall targets for zinc.

Candelaria outperformed the most recent copper production guidance due primarily to higher than expected mill throughput in Q4.

At Candelaria as previously announced, the successful exploration and mine plan optimization efforts resulted in total Mineral Reserves increasing by approximately 20% and resulted in the extension of the mine lives of all of the higher grade underground mines as well as the open pit.

Zinkgruvan achieved new annual records relating to tonnes of ore mined and milled. Annual zinc production also constituted a new record for the operation.

As at year end 2015, the Company had a net debt balance of $441 million, and did not have any amounts drawn on its $350 million revolving credit facility.

A summary of the Companys production results compared to the latest guidance is shown below and further details are provided in the tables at the end of the release.





(contained tonnes) Q4 2015 Production Results Full Year 2015 Production Results 2015 Production Guidance 1 Copper Candelaria (80%) 31,875 144,832 138,000 - 141,000 Eagle 5,996 24,331 23,000 - 24,000 Neves-Corvo 11,078 55,831 54,000 - 56,000 Zinkgruvan 5 2,044 2,000 Aguablanca 466 6,221 6,100 Wholly-owned 49,420 233,259 223,100 - 229,100 Tenke (24%) 2 n/a n/a 50,600 Total attributable n/a n/a 273,700 - 279,700 Nickel Eagle 7,074 27,167 26,000 - 27,000 Aguablanca 514 7,213 7,100 Total 7,588 34,380 33,100 - 34,100 Zinc Neves-Corvo 14,196 61,921 59,000 - 62,000 Zinkgruvan 25,339 83,451 82,000 - 85,000 Total 39,535 145,372 141,000 - 147,000

1. Guidance as presented in the Company's Management Discussion and Analysis for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2015.

2. Production results for Tenke have not yet been released by operator Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (Freeport).

Mr. Paul Conibear, President and CEO commented: The Company finished 2015 on a strong note and achieved or exceeded annual production guidance at each operation. In light of the current commodity price environment our operating and capital investment activities will continue to focus on financial flexibility and maximizing cash flows in order to preserve the Companys strong balance sheet.

2016 Production and Cost Guidance

All production guidance estimates for 2016 have remained unchanged from the figures previously disclosed on December 2, 2015.

The outlook below does not include guidance for the Aguablanca mine which remains under suspension pending further notice.

Our 2016 cash cost guidance reflects the results of cost review and reduction plans undertaken at each operation in order to help offset the cash cost impact of lower expected by-product credit metal prices.

2016 Production and Cost Guidance 1 Tonnes C1 Cost 2 Copper Candelaria (80%) 118,000  123,000 $1.55/lb Eagle 20,000  23,000 Neves-Corvo 50,000  55,000 $1.65/lb Zinkgruvan 3,500  4,000 Tenke (@24%)3 ~50,000 n/a Total attributable 241,500  255,000 Nickel Eagle 21,000  24,000 $2.25/lb Total 21,000  24,000 Zinc Neves-Corvo 65,000  70,000 Zinkgruvan 80,000  85,000 $0.45/lb Total 145,000  155,000

1. Production guidance is based on certain estimates and assumptions, including but not limited to; mineral resources and reserves, geological formations, grade and continuity of deposits and metallurgical characteristics.

2. Cash costs remain dependent upon exchange rates (forecast at /USD: 1.10, USD/SEK: 8.50, USD/CLP: 700) and metal prices (forecast at Cu: $2.05/lb, Ni: $4.15/lb, Zn: $0.70/lb, Pb: $0.70/lb, Au: $1,100/oz, Ag: $15.00/oz, Co: $13.00/lb).

3. Tenke guidance has not yet been provided by operator, Freeport. Lundin Mining anticipates production from Tenke in 2016 to be comparable to expected 2015 production.

2016 Capital Expenditure and Exploration Guidance

Capital expenditures for 2016 for mines operated by the Company are expected to be $220M, which includes:

$35M in capitalized stripping at Candelaria. This has significantly decreased from prior estimates due to a deferral of 30Mt of waste being mined from Phase 10, resulting in expected cost savings of approximately $65M in 2016.

At Candelaria spending on the Los Diques tailings facility is expected to amount to $70M in 2016. The total capex budget for the project is expected to total $325M between 2016 and 2018, in-line with prior estimates.

At Eagle sustaining capital costs are expected to total $10M in 2016, which represents a decrease of 50% compared to 2015 guidance levels.

At Neves-Corvo capital costs in 2016 are expected to total approximately $55M, in-line with guidance levels provided for 2015.

At Zinkgruvan the guidance amount of $35M for 2016 includes the spending of $8M on an expansion project which is aimed at increasing the overall mill capacity by approximately 10% by the end of 2017.

Exploration expenditures in 2016 are expected to total $40M, which represents a decrease of approximately $20M from 2015 guidance levels due to the deferral or cancelation of most greenfields exploration work.

The 2016 exploration budget comprises spending approximately $18M on exploration at Eagle East and $17M at Candelaria. All exploration activities remain discretionary and can be further reduced if necessary.

Capital & Other Costs ($ millions) 2016 Candelaria (100% basis): Total Capitalized Stripping1 35 Los Diques Tailings Capex2 70 Other Sustaining Capex 15 Total Candelaria 120 Total Eagle 10 Total Neves-Corvo 55 Total Zinkgruvan 35 Total Capital Costs 220

1. During the production phase, waste stripping costs which provide probable future economic benefits and improved access to the orebody are capitalized to mineral properties. The Company capitalizes waste costs when experienced strip ratios are above the average planned strip ratio for each open pit phase under development.

2. The Los Diques project capex is based on project review estimates completed in 2015 which assumed an USD/CLP exchange rate of 625.

About Lundin Mining

Lundin Mining Corporation is a diversified Canadian base metals mining company with operations in Chile, Portugal, Sweden, Spain and the US, producing copper, nickel and zinc. In addition, Lundin Mining holds a 24% equity stake in the world-class Tenke Fungurume copper/cobalt mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo and in the Freeport Cobalt Oy business, which includes a cobalt refinery in Kokkola, Finland.

On Behalf of the Board,

Paul Conibear

President and CEO

The information in this release is subject to the disclosure requirements of Lundin Mining under the Swedish Securities Market Act and/or the Swedish Financial Instruments Trading Act. This information was publicly communicated on January 21, 2016 at 5:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

For further information, please contact:

John Miniotis

Senior Manager, Corporate Development & Investor Relations

+1-416-342-5565

Sonia Tercas

Senior Associate, Investor Relations

+1-416-342-5583

Robert Eriksson

Investor Relations, Sweden

+46 8 545 015 50

Forward Looking Statements

Certain of the statements made and information contained herein is forward-looking information within the meaning of the Ontario Securities Act. This release includes, but is not limited to, forward looking statements with respect to the Companys estimated annual metal production, C1 cash costs, and capital expenditures. These estimates and other forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, risks and uncertainties relating to estimated operating and cash costs, foreign currency fluctuations; risks inherent in mining including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, unusual or unexpected geological formations, ground control problems and flooding; including risks associated with the estimation of mineral resources and reserves and the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Companys expectations; the potential for and effects of labour disputes or other unanticipated difficulties with or shortages of labour or interruptions in production; actual ore mined varying from estimates of grade, tonnage, dilution and metallurgical and other characteristics; the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses, commodity price fluctuations; inability to successfully integrate the Candelaria operations or realize its anticipated benefits; uncertain political and economic environments; changes in laws or policies, foreign taxation, delays or the inability to obtain necessary governmental permits; and other risks and uncertainties, including those described under Risk Factors Relating to the Companys Business in the Companys Annual Information Form and in each management discussion and analysis. Forward-looking information is in addition based on various assumptions including, without limitation, the expectations and beliefs of management, the assumed long term price of copper, nickel, zinc and other metals; that the Company can access financing, appropriate equipment and sufficient labour and that the political environment where the Company operates will continue to support the development and operation of mining projects. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

2015 Operating Statistics

Details of operating statistics by mine, by quarter and for the year are summarized below:

Candelaria

2015 (100% Basis) Total Q4 Q3 Q2 Q1 Ore mined (000s tonnes) 33,922 8,012 8,240 9,022 8,648 Ore milled (000s tonnes) 29,694 7,504 7,933 7,327 6,930 Grade Copper (%) 0.64 0.53 0.61 0.68 0.78 Recovery Copper (%) 92.7 92.2 92.4 94.0 92.6 Production (contained metal) Copper (tonnes) 181,040 39,844 45,195 46,651 49,350 Gold (000 oz) 102 23 25 27 28 Silver (000 oz) 1,874 394 433 464 583

Eagle

2015 Total Q4 Q3 Q2 Q1 Ore mined (000s tonnes) 740 190 191 175 184 Ore milled (000s tonnes) 746 183 193 184 186 Grade Nickel (%) 4.3 4.3 3.9 4.2 4.7 Copper (%) 3.4 3.4 3.5 3.1 3.6 Recovery Nickel (%) 84.2 83.8 85.0 84.4 83.5 Copper (%) 97.0 97.9 97.3 96.4 96.4 Production (contained metal) Nickel (tonnes) 27,167 7,074 6,438 6,349 7,306 Copper (tonnes) 24,331 5,996 6,514 5,403 6,418

Neves-Corvo

2015 Total Q4 Q3 Q2 Q1 Ore mined, copper (000 tonnes) 2,501 583 614 673 631 Ore mined, zinc (000 tonnes) 1,000 241 255 254 250 Ore milled, copper (000 tonnes) 2,542 584 619 699 640 Ore milled, zinc (000 tonnes) 1,014 240 257 258 259 Grade Copper (%) 2.7 2.4 2.8 2.7 2.9 Zinc (%) 8.0 7.5 8.1 7.9 8.5 Recovery Copper (%) 80.6 79.6 79.1 81.1 82.4 Zinc (%) 71.8 75.6 63.3 73.6 74.9 Production (contained metal) Copper (tonnes) 55,831 11,078 13,917 15,348 15,488 Zinc (tonnes) 61,921 14,196 14,363 16,022 17,340 Lead (tonnes) 3,077 311 366 1,080 1,320 Silver (000 oz) 1,329 270 310 359 390

Zinkgruvan

2015 Total Q4 Q3 Q2 Q1 Ore mined, zinc (000 tonnes) 1,126 313 257 289 267 Ore mined, copper (000 tonnes) 137 nil 40 52 45 Ore milled, zinc (000 tonnes) 1,096 307 260 267 262 Ore milled, copper (000 tonnes) 139 nil 52 43 44 Grade Zinc (%) 8.3 9.0 7.7 8.6 7.6 Lead (%) 3.8 4.2 4.0 3.4 3.4 Copper (%) 1.7 nil 1.1 2.4 1.5 Recovery Zinc (%) 92.1 91.5 91.5 92.8 92.6 Lead (%) 82.9 83.0 83.7 82.4 82.6 Copper (%) 88.1 nil 80.1 91.9 89.0 Production (contained metal) Zinc (tonnes) 83,451 25,339 18,458 21,237 18,417 Lead (tonnes) 34,120 10,733 8,609 7,379 7,399 Copper (tonnes) 2,044 5 475 974 590 Silver (000 oz) 2,542 729 627 622 564

Aguablanca
NEW YORK, Jan. 21, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Attorney Advertising. Stull, Stull & Brody today announced that an ERISA action has been filed and that it has commenced an investigation relating to the 401(k) defined contribution plans of SunEdison, Inc (NYSE:SUNE) ("SunEdison" or the "Company"). Among other things, Stull, Stull & Brody is investigating whether fiduciaries of SunEdison's 401(k) plans violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA") by failing to disclose the Company's true financial and operating condition to participants and beneficiaries of the plans and/or by offering SunEdison stock as an investment option under the plans when it was imprudent to do so.



If you held SunEdison stock in an individual account under any of the Company's 401(k) plans during the last several years and have questions about your legal rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact Michael Klein, Esq. at Stull, Stull & Brody by e-mail at SUNE@ssbny.com, by calling toll-free 1-800-337-4983, by fax to 1-212-490-2022, or by writing to Stull, Stull & Brody, 6 East 45th Street, New York, NY 10017. You can also visit our website at www.ssbny.com.

You may retain Stull, Stull & Brody, or other counsel of your choice, to represent you. Stull, Stull & Brody has litigated many class actions for violations of securities laws in federal courts over the past 40 years and has obtained court approval of substantial settlements on numerous occasions. Stull, Stull & Brody maintains offices in New York and Beverly Hills.

Attorney Advertising. Prior Results Do Not Guarantee A Similar Outcome.
NEW YORK, Jan. 22, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ABM (NYSE:ABM), a leading provider of facility solutions, announced that ABM Healthcare Support Services has been selected to provide environmental services management for Yale-New Haven Hospital in New Haven, CT. Yale-New Haven Hospital, one of the prominent medical centers in the nation, provides comprehensive, multidisciplinary, family-focused care in more than 100 medical specialty areas.



Under the terms of the multi-year contract, ABM has begun overseeing all environmental services operational aspects with a commitment to enhance Yale-New Havens exceptional patient care and increase operating efficiency.

"We are elated to partner with one of our country's most prestigious and respected hospitals," said Dan Bowen, ABM Healthcare Support Services president. "We will leverage our extensive experience of environmental services management to help ensure Yale-New Havens patients, visitors, and staff have a safe, clean, and healthy environment. We strive every day to enhance the patient experience by delivering the highest standard of care and look forward to a long and productive partnership."

ABOUT ABM



ABM (NYSE:ABM) is a leading provider of facility solutions with revenues of $4.9 billion and over 100,000 employees deployed in more than 300 offices throughout the United States and various international locations. ABMs comprehensive capabilities include electrical & lighting, energy solutions, facilities engineering, HVAC & mechanical, janitorial, landscape & turf, mission critical solutions and parking, provided through stand-alone or integrated solutions. ABM provides custom facility solutions in urban, suburban and rural areas to properties of all sizes  from schools and commercial buildings to hospitals, data centers manufacturing plants and airports. ABM Industries Incorporated, which operates through its subsidiaries, was founded in 1909. For more information, visit www.abm.com.

ABOUT YALE-NEW HAVEN



Yale-New Haven Hospital was founded as the General Hospital Society of Connecticut in 1826 and was affiliated with the Medical Institution of Yale College, which had been founded in 1810. Since then, the hospital's name was changed to Yale-New Haven Hospital and is a 1,541-bed private, nonprofit teaching hospital. Yale-New Haven is regularly recognized as a Best Hospitals in the U.S. by the U.S. News & World Report rankings of specialty services. With two main campuses, Yale-New Haven is the largest acute care provider in southern Connecticut and one of the Northeast's major referral centers. Yale-New Haven Hospital is committed to innovation and excellence in patient care, teaching, research and service to our communities. For more information, visit www.ynhh.org
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Most Westerners are aware that growth has slowed substantially in China, from over 10% per year in recent decades to below 7% today (and possibly lower). The countrys leaders have not been sitting still in response, seeking to accelerate the shift from an export-oriented, environmentally damaging growth model based on heavy manufacturing to one based on domestic consumption and services.

But there is a large external dimension to Chinas plans as well. In 2013, President Xi Jinping announced a massive initiative called One Belt, One Road, which would transform the economic core of Eurasia. The One Belt component consists of rail links from western China through Central Asia and thence to Europe, the Middle East, and South Asia. The strangely named One Road component consists of ports and facilities to increase seaborne traffic from East Asia and connect these countries to the One Belt, giving them a way to move their goods overland, rather than across two oceans, as they currently do.

The China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), which the US earlier this year refused to join, is designed, in part, to finance One Belt, One Road. But the projects investment requirements will dwarf the resources of the proposed new institution.

Indeed, One Belt, One Road represents a striking departure in Chinese policy. For the first time, China is seeking to export its development model to other countries. Chinese companies, of course, have been hugely active throughout Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa in the past decade, investing in commodities and extractive industries and the infrastructure needed to move them to China. But One Belt, One Road is different: its purpose is to develop industrial capacity and consumer demand in countries outside of China. Rather than extracting raw materials, China is seeking to shift its heavy industry to less developed countries, making them richer and encouraging demand for Chinese products.

Chinas development model is different from the one currently fashionable in the West. It is based on massive state-led investments in infrastructure  roads, ports, electricity, railways, and airports  that facilitate industrial development. American economists abjure this build-it-and-they-will-come path, owing to concerns about corruption and self-dealing when the state is so heavily involved. In recent years, by contrast, US and European development strategy has focused on large investments in public health, womens empowerment, support for global civil society, and anti-corruption measures.

Laudable as these Western goals are, no country has ever gotten rich by investing in them alone.

Public health is an important background condition for sustained growth; but if a clinic lacks reliable electricity and clean water, or there are no good roads leading to it, it wont do much good. Chinas infrastructure-based strategy has worked remarkably well in China itself, and was an important component of the strategies pursued by other East Asian countries, from Japan to South Korea to Singapore.

The big question for the future of global politics is straightforward: Whose model will prevail?

If One Belt, One Road meets Chinese planners expectations, the whole of Eurasia, from Indonesia to Poland will be transformed in the coming generation. Chinas model will blossom outside of China, raising incomes and thus demand for Chinese products to replace stagnating markets in other parts of the world. Polluting industries, too, will be offloaded to other parts of the world. Rather than being at the periphery of the global economy, Central Asia will be at its core. And Chinas form of authoritarian government will gain immense prestige, implying a large negative effect on democracy worldwide.

But there are important reasons to question whether One Belt, One Road will succeed. Infrastructure-led growth has worked well in China up to now because the Chinese government could control the political environment. This will not be the case abroad, where instability, conflict, and corruption will interfere with Chinese plans.

Indeed, China has already found itself confronting angry stakeholders, nationalistic legislators, and fickle friends in places like Ecuador and Venezuela, where it already has massive investments. China has dealt with restive Muslims in its own Xinjiang province largely through denial and repression; similar tactics wont work in Pakistan or Kazakhstan.

This does not mean, however, that the US and other Western governments should sit by complacently and wait for China to fail. The strategy of massive infrastructure development may have reached a limit inside China, and it may not work in foreign countries, but it is still critical to global growth.

The US used to build massive dams and road networks back in the 1950s and 1960s, until such projects fell out of fashion. Today, the US has relatively little to offer developing countries in this regard. President Barack Obamas Power Africa initiative is a good one, but it has been slow to get off the ground; efforts to build the Fort Liberte port in Haiti have been a fiasco.

The US should have become a founding member of the AIIB; it could yet join and move China toward greater compliance with international environmental, safety, and labor standards. At the same time, the US and other Western countries need to ask themselves why infrastructure has become so difficult to build, not just in developing countries but at home as well. Unless we do, we risk ceding the future of Eurasia and other important parts of the world to China and its development model.



Read more at https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/china-one-belt-one-road-strategy-by-francis-fukuyama-2016-01#FBY3KgUY7y6IbHhV.99
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Folk icon Woody Guthrie, like many valiant New Yorkers before and after him, hated his landlord. Among the legions of aggrieved tenants, Guthrie is unique in that a) he was a pretty handy writer of songs and agitprop b) in the early 1950s he put some of that gift towards griping about his landlord's greed and racism and c) that landlord was Donald Trump's dad and silver spoon provider Fred Trump.

A Gawker contributor recently paid a visit to Guthrie's archives in Oklahoma and uncovered a trove of Trump-bashing lyrics inspired by the troubadour's time at Trump's lily-white Beach Haven development in Gravesend, Brooklyn.

As Gawker explains, the bard lived for two years in the middle-income development, backed by a Federal Housing Administration that, as part of its middle-class-building project following World War II, had become an ardent propagator of racial segregation. The elder Trump would later be investigated for over-billing on public contracts, but during his time as a tenant, Guthrie's chief concern was the racism of his neighbors and the exclusion of black people from "a decent place to get pregnant in and to have your kids raised up in."

At the time of the 1950 Census, the tract that contained Beach Haven was home to 1,804 people, all but two of whom were white. The census takers did not record the races of the ultra-minorities in the neighborhood.

To an imagined African-American couple, Guthrie wrote in his notebook, "Im yelling out my own welcome to you."

There were also these little ditties:

I suppose

Old Man Trump knows

Just how much

Racial Hate

he stirred up

In the bloodpot of human hearts

When he drawed

That color line

Here at his

Eighteen hundred family project

And, to the tune of "I Ain't Got No Home":

Beach Haven aint my home!

I just caint pay this rent!

My moneys down the drain!

And my soul is badly bent!

Beach Haven looks like heaven

Where no black ones come to roam!

No, no, no! Old Man Trump!

Old Beach Haven aint my home!

The segregation at Beach Haven is one of many instances of overt and alleged bigotry attributed to the Trumps, spanning a period from Fred Trump's youth all the way to his son's current run for the country's highest office on a platform of naked racism and xenophobia. For example:

A man with Fred Trump's name and address was, according to a New York Times article published in June 1927, arraigned after 1,000 Ku Klux Klan members attacked police in Queens. Donald Trump denied the man arrested was his father to the Times, then in the same interview seemingly confirmed it, saying, "Its unfair to mention it, to be honest, because there were no charges."

In the early 1970s, when Donald Trump was in his late 20s and beginning to play an executive role in his father's real estate empire, the federal government sued the Trumps, saying their company refused to rent to black people, and was throwing black apartment-seekers off by instructing supers and agents to claim units were no longer available, represent rents at higher than actual prices, and send them to an office to apply while white renters were given applications on site.

The Donald told the Times the charges were "absolutely ridiculous" and Trump Management sued the U.S. government for $100 million. A judge threw out that lawsuit, and in 1975 the Trumps settled, agreeing to send the Urban League a list of apartment vacancies weekly and let the organization send qualified applicants for one of every five listings for two years. After the agreement expired, the feds sued again, saying Trump Management was back to violating the Fair Housing Act.

Throughout the battle, Donald claimed that his company was being persecuted for refusing to house welfare recipients who couldn't afford apartments, which had no apparent basis in the allegations.

In 1983, the state's Division of Housing and Community Renewal said that two Trump Village developments in Coney Island were at least 95 percent white.

In 1989, the Trump of Our Time told SPY magazine that white people bear the brunt of discrimination these days, saying, "If I were starting off today, I would love to be a well-educated black, because I believe they do have an actual advantage."

The magazine also reported that a Trump Organization executive instructed a temp agency not to send black temp workers. A company spokeswoman denied the allegation, saying, "We have a new [black] gal [and] I think we have another one still with us."

In 1991, Trump the younger was accused by a former Trump Plaza Hotel & Casino president of saying "laziness is a trait in blacks" and "Black guys counting my money! I hate it. The only kind of people I want counting my money are short guys that wear yarmulkes every day." Trump later told Playboy that the former employee's book was "probably true," but that "the guy's a fucking loser. A fucking loser."

There was also, famously, the full-page ads Trump took out in newspapers during the prosecution of the Central Park Five calling for their execution over their alleged role in the rape of a white jogger. Following the exoneration of the five, Trump has been unapologetic, telling the Daily News:

They should be very thankful I wasnt mayor because they wouldnt have gotten a dime. They owe the taxpayers of the city of New York an apology for taking money out of their pockets like candy from a baby.

The more recent the racial and nationalistic provocations, the more familiarfor instance, Trump's howling for President Obama to produce his birth certificatebut throughout it all, Trump says he has followed in the footsteps of Papa Fred.

This summer, Trump told the Washington Post, "My legacy has its roots in my fathers legacy."

The Trump legacy of racism doesn't just live on in the candidate's calls for President Obama's birth certificate, or his proposal that we destroy millions of immigrant families, or his calls to register Muslim-Americans. The Brooklyn zip code of Woody Guthrie's former home is still two-thirds white, according to census data, and has an African-American population of just 4.2 percent. The tract containing Beach Haven is even whiter, with 3,701 people of European ancestry living there, 81 percent of the total population, compared to just 142 African Americans, or 3 percent.
Are you relatively new to this bustling metropolis? Don't be shy about it, everyone was new to New York once upon a time, except, of course, those battle-hardened residents who've lived here their whole lives and Know It All. One of these lifers works among us at Gothamistpublisher Jake Dobkin grew up in Park Slope and still resides there. He is now fielding questionsask him anything by sending an email here, but be advised that Dobkin is "not sure you guys will be able to handle my realness." We can keep you anonymous if you prefer; just let us know what neighborhood you live in.

This week's question comes from a New Yorker who's had it up to here with people littering.

Hi Jake,

I'm tired of trash being littered all over the sidewalks, and my frustration around the issue has grown exponentially greater throughout the past two years of dog ownership. Pulling discarded chicken bones out of her mouth on a daily basis really pisses me off.



I know that nothing can be done. It's NYC and there is going to be trash. I can deal with it or GTFO. However, my question is about confronting some of the many assholes that i see littering. Even a sarcastic "You dropped something" is a personal victory for me. What's your take on calling out these literal garbage-people? Is it worth my time/energy/safety?



If you support such actions, how should a rogue vigilante respond when he sees someone throw their halal styrofoam container under a seat on the G train?

Sincerely,



Ticked by Trash

A native New Yorker responds:

Dear TBT:

New York City has a long history of rogue vigilantism, so I think your plan to form a paramilitary Guardian Angels-type organization to police and persecute litterbugs would do very well here. Like somebody drops the cellophane wrapper on their cigarette pack into the wind and suddenly, BLAM, there you areten hooded trash terrorists in black berets. It'd probably take just fifteen or twenty slobs getting thrown headfirst into dumpsters to really clean up this town.

Like all New Yorkers of good will, I despise litterbugs. Sure, our city has many undesirables actively making things worse: real estate agents, hedge fund operators, manspreaders, cat-kickers, Martin Shkreli, Russian kleptocrat condo owners... But their evil is at a remove, and is often easily ignored. The same cannot be said about the gum spat out on the pavement, the quarter-full Starbucks cup left precariously on top of the overfull can, or the huge piles of garbage blocking the sidewalks outside our hospitals, schools, and apartment buildings. Littering is vile, sinful, immoral wickedness that affects each and every one of us, every single day.

My many years of residency in New York have given me ample time to consider the pathology of litterbugs. I've come to believe these depraved reprobates come in two forms: the oblivious and the intentional. The first, though less ethically culpable, occur in huge numbers. These are the people that "accidentally" leave their newspapers on the subway and "innocently" drop their used tissues on the street. These are careless peoplethe ignorant, the self-involved. Their littering takes the form of things unconsciously left behind, and in their vast cluelessness they simply don't consider those who will be forced to clean up the mess they have made.

The second type of litterbug, however, is far worse. These are the actively nefarious psychopaths who intentionally scatter their garbage on the streets and subways. The men and women who throw down their half-eaten bagels and paella-filled styrofoam containers as a challenge to society, and then look around with a half smile and a hard stare to see who among us dares to stand up and challenge their anarchism. The dog owners who don't even bother to carry bags to clean up after their mutts belong in this category. These are people who thought about it, know it's wrong, and do it anyway, because their hearts are full of malice.



Come on, people. (via)

The first type of litterbug can be easily corrected. Most times a gentle reproving glance, a quiet clearing of the throat, or at most, a simple shout of "hey fucko, did you lose this?" while waving their garbage at them, will suffice. These people are contemptible, but not intentionally malevolentwhen their littering is brought to their attention, they usually respond with embarrassment and contrition.

The second type of litterbug is another matter altogether. This is the one that calls for vigilantism. Most people don't have the strength of character and self-defense skills to take them on, and would do well to simply call 311 to report their trash piles, and chalk it up as one of the many inconveniences we are willing to deal with to live in such a great city.

However, there are some, and they number very fewthe Tzadikim Nistarimundercover superheroes who walk among us, the bold spirits willing to risk a stabbing to keep our city slightly less filthy. Are you one of them? If so, let me say for all of us: your work is appreciated and your inevitable mortal sacrifice is recognized!

An important lesson to meditate on is that the categories of "litterbug" and "litterbug-avenger" are not mutually exclusive. All of us at one time or another have been careless with our garbage, and left behind a mess that some poor MTA employee or Department of Sanitation worker had to take care of. It takes a certain amount of self-awareness, consideration for others, and physical effort to avoid this, but the strain is worth it.

There's a reason the first thing they teach you when you join a Buddhist monastery is to wash your own dishes and keep your monk cell clean. The path to enlightenment leads first through the janitor's closet.

N.B.: Don't forget to compliment people when you do see them cleaning up after themselves. I was once eating a bagel with cream cheese on the F Train, and a small plop of cream cheese exited the bagel and landed on the floor. Of course, I quickly wiped it up with a napkin, and after I was done, an old lady across the aisle said, "Good for you, young man." It was the greatest compliment another New Yorker has ever paid to me.

Ask a Native New Yorker anything via email. Anonymity is assured.


Engineer Ted Zoli on the bridge, before it opened. (Photo by Sam Horine/Gothamist)

In 2013, the Squibb Park Pedestrian Bridge was opened, connecting Brooklyn Heights to Brooklyn Bridge Park and DUMBO. The Park has been vastly developed in the preceding years, with more visitors and foot traffic throughoutwhile the bridge didn't save much time, it was a nicer way to get from point A to point B. But despite the $5 million that went into building it, and celebrated chief engineer and bridge designer Ted Zoli (of HNTB Corporation) being the one to design it... the bridge failed. By the summer of 2014, the bridge abruptly closed, and has remained closed since.

This morning learned that the Brooklyn Bridge Park Corporation has not only fired Zoli and HNTB, but is suing HNTB Corporation and HNTB New York Engineering and Architecture, P.C. The lawsuit, which you can see in full below, was filed today. It reveals that "The Bridge design was defective. The Bridge was unstable and became deformed. The defective design of the Bridge endangered the public. As a result of the defective design, BBP had to close the Bridge less than l8 months after it was first opened to the public."

They are suing for damages including the cost of redesign and repair of the bridge. The suit states, in part, that BBP is seeking "an amount to be determined at trial, but not less than $3 million." Worst pedestrian bridge EVER?



(Jen Carlson/Gothamist)

Update: Here is a statement from Belinda Cape, spokesperson for BBP:

"Today we filed a lawsuit seeking recovery of all repair costs from HNTB Corporation. After working with the firm to reopen Squibb Park Bridge over the past 16 months, it has become clear that the firm was either unwilling or unable to provide a workable solution to fix the bridge, and that its design was inherently flawed. Our new engineer of record, ARUP, will now work with NYC DOT's Division of Bridges to design and oversee implementation of a plan to complete stabilization of the bridge. Through this new course of action, our goals remain the same: to recoup costs related to HNTB's professional failures, and, most importantly, to safely reopen this vital connection to the park. We are doing everything we can to make sure parkgoers have the bridge they've been promised."

BROOKLYN BRIDGE PARK CORPORATION vs HNTB CORPORATION, HNTB NE\ry YORK ENGINEERING AND ARCHITECTURE, P.C.
"It exploded. I plugged it in and it went boom," said Francisca Ixtilico, a longtime tenant at 533 46th Street in Sunset Park, describing the hot plate issued by her landlord. For the past three weeks Ixtilico and her fellow rent-stabilized tenants have been without cooking gas. According to the city, it was cut off because of a gas leakthe latest in a long string of grievances at 533, and adjacent rent-stabilized townhouses 545 and 557 46th Street.

Outside Ixtilico's apartment, with its broken refrigerator and stove, apartment-wide renovations are underway. Last week, sheets of clear plastic were taped across the front door of each apartment, with a slit just narrow enough to pass through. On Wednesday, the sound of jackhammers rattled through the building. Maria Gil, a tenant for 34 years, said the workers were drilling the tile to expose brick. She's gleaned that the plastic sheets are meant to keep out dust, but she says no notice of repair work was posted by the landlord.

For the majority-Spanish speaking and immigrant residents, updates on building repairs come primarily from workers in the hallways.

All three 46th Street buildings are part of an Alternative Enforcement Program through NYC Housing Preservation and Development (HPD), which identifies and monitors the 200 "most distressed" apartment buildings in the city. Tenants launched a two-year rent strike in 2010 over a laundry list of complaints, from rodent and roach infestations and spotty heat and hot water to leaking ceilings and a 10-foot-tall pile of garbage in the basement.

The buildings went into foreclosure in 2011 (the Observer details how Sunset Park properties proved difficult to flip at the time, even as real estate heated up in nearby Park Slope and Cobble Hill) and by 2013 they'd wracked up 684 HPD violations across 51 apartments. Today, 656 of those violations remain open.



Inhabited apartments covered in plastic sheeting at 533 46th Street (Emma Whitford/Gothamist)

Sharp Management took over last May, ending the foreclosure process. But while repair work is finally underwaythanks to considerable pressure from HPD and South Brooklyn Legal Servicestenants say that repairs have been administered unevenly, without proper notice, and in some cases, shoddily (Moshe Mehlman, listed on HPD as the management office's chief officer, is on Public Advocate Letitia James' worst NYC landlord watchlist). While Ixtilico has resorted to taping her refrigerator's insulation into place, an upstairs apartment has fresh paint and brand-new appliances.

Tenants say that 533 doesn't have functional mailboxes, and that the buzzer system is broken. Heat and hot water are intermittent, though two apartments we toured on Thursday were very warm (the residents credited a recent boiler fix).

About 20 tenants are also battling eviction cases, according to the Urban Homesteading Assistance Board (UHAB), a nonprofit that has been working with the tenants since the foreclosure proceedings began. In some cases, Sharp is demanding rent that they allege went uncollected during the foreclosure process.

"In all of the foreclosure buildings I've ever worked with, it's always a complete disaster," said UHAB spokeswoman Kerri White. "For a new landlord to be like, 'You owe me all of this money from when you were living in a disaster area' is immoral and ridiculous."

White added that it is not uncommon for rent payment records to get jumbled in the foreclosure process. "I've never worked with a building that was in foreclosure where the records were intact," she said. "It just never goes smoothly. So it's not surprising to me that there's not full records, but it is surprising that their first tactic is to try to evict half of the building."

"It is very clear to me that the record keeping was a bit careless," said Stephen Myers, a Legal Aid attorney representing six of the tenants. He confirmed that some tenants withheld rent in protest during the foreclosure process. Others have been paying with money orders, which can be difficult to trace in housing court.



One of the freshly-renovated apartments, with a hot plate on the non-functioning stove (Emma Whitford/Gothamist)

None of the tenants we spoke with on Wednesday said they had been offered a buyout. "I'm stabilized," Gil said. "I'm not worried."

But while repairs from the foreclosure process lag, local politicians and activists fear that the tenants are facing a new threatapartments that former owners couldn't wipe their hands of fast enough are becoming more attractive with the arrival of Smorgasburg and the gentrification of nearby Industry City.

According to local councilmember Carlso Manchaca, "There is no doubt that Sunset Park has been experiencing what a lot of other parts of the city have been more aggressively experiencing. As soon as someone vacates an apartment, an owner will take any opportunity to replace it with a market-rate paying person."

"The landlord sues you for non-payment of rent, evicts you for that, and then renovates the apartment," Myers said, describing situations he's seen play out in the past. "Or he won't evict you now, but he'll spend some money renovating the apartment and double or triple the rent." Under current law, landlords have the right to permanently increase the rent when rent-stabilized apartments undergo renovations.

"They think they can take advantage of us Latinos, us immigrants, us Mexicans, and that's not going to happen anymore," said Menchaca, translating for the tenants on the steps of 533 46th Street on Wednesday. "We're going to stand together in solidarity. Not just for these owners, but for all of the owners who want to come into our community, buy property, and kick us out. That is not going to happen."

A spokesperson for HPD confirmed that the agency had received reports of a gas leak, and that a plumber had been hired to address it. Repair work is expected to be complete in a few weeks. HPD, charged with closely monitoring Sharp, did not respond to a request for confirmation as to when they were notified of the leak.

Sharp Management did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A 53-year-old woman was shot in the stomach outside of a Hampton Inn in Queens on Thursday night, while attempting to defend her daughter from a robber. According to the NYPD, the suspect pistol-whipped the 20-year-old woman in the head before her mother intervened.

The 53-year-old victim, identified by the News as Andrea Koller of Maryland, remains in critical condition at Jamaica hospital. The NYPD confirmed that the victim and her daughter were visiting NYC from out of town.

Koller and her daughter arrived at the Hampton Inn at 144-10 135th Ave near JFK airport shortly before 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, according to the NYPD. Koller exited her vehicle to inquire about a room, leaving her daughter in the passenger seat. While Koller was inside, a man opened the driver-side door, demanded money, and hit the daughter in the head with his firearm. The Post reports that the man also stole her rings.

Police say Koller ran to her daughter's aid, and "struggled" with the man. The suspect then shot her once in the torso before fleeing the scene in a Volkswagen Jetta with her purse and cellphone. No arrests have been made, and the investigation is ongoing.

An NYPD spokesman said that there may have been an accomplice in the getaway car.

The Hampton Inn declined to comment.

Surveillance footage acquired by the Post shows the suspect's Jetta following the victim's vehicle into the parking lot before the attack.

Both the Post and the News also note that Andrea Koller, an English language teacher in the Baltimore public school system, published a letter to the editor in the Baltimore Sun in 2013, decrying gun violence.

"We cannot cling to the naive belief that we are safe merely because someone runs a background check on a gun buyer," Koller wrote. "Guns change hands and the simple truth is, more guns in more hands means more gun-based crimes."
Opinion

Destination Sharjah

Come November and all roads will lead to Expo Centre Sharjah. Every year, we wait for this moment to arrive. The 41st edition of Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) is all set to begin from Nov.2. Everybody in the UAE is super excited for SIBF. Lots of authors of international repute will grace the much-loved event. A total of 1,632 exhibitors from 83 countries will attend the event. I am also looking forward to meet and listen to a few of them.


-- Thomas JeffersonSyndicated columnist Charley Reese (1937-2013): "Gun control by definition affects only honest people. When a politician tells you he wants to forbid you from owning a firearm or force you to get a license, he is telling you he doesnt trust you. Thats an insult. ... Gun control is not about guns or crime. It is about an elite that fears and despises the common people."The rifle itself has no moral stature, since it has no will of its own. Naturally, it may be used by evil men for evil purposes, but there are more good men than evil, and while the latter cannot be persuaded to the path of righteousness by propaganda, they can certainly be corrected by good men with rifles -- Jeff Cooper (1920-2006)Note for non-American readers: Crime reports from America which describe an offender just as a "teen" or "teenager" almost invariably mean a BLACK teenager.We are advised to NOT judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but we are encouraged to judge ALL gun owners by the actions of a few lunatics.Two lines below of a famous hymn that would be incomprehensible to Leftists today ("honor"? "right"? "freedom?" Freedom to agree with them is the only freedom they believe in)It is of course the hymn of the USMC -- still today the relentless warriors that they always were.The intellectual Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius (AD 121-180) said: "The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane."How much do you know about Trayvon Martin? It's all here (Backups here and here An armed society is a polite society. Manners are good when one may have to back up his acts with his life. -- Robert A. HeinleinAfter all the serious stuff here, maybe we need a funny picture of a cantankerous cat
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For All U of U Health Patients & Visitors
MISSOULA -- The last time Israeli Consul-General Andy David was in Missoula, the United States was about to close a deal restricting Irans nuclear weapons program and Israel wasnt happy about it.

On Tuesday, he was back to say were no longer trying to derail the agreement -- we accept it as a done deal and will work to get the benefits out of it. Instead, David was here to talk business in Montana.

That included a conversational lunch at First Interstate Bank downtown with a couple of dozen Missoula business owners and a tour of the Rocky Mountain Biologicals facility near the airport. Throughout the day, David pitched the opportunities small places can bring to big business.

We used to think that way about ourselves, David said of the Montana image of being far from anywhere. But if we invest in knowledge and innovation, great things can happen. It doesnt make sense for Israel to send oranges to Montana. But it takes just a click of a computer to deliver ideas.

Or really small products, like the medical growth media and serums produced at Suresh Daniels Rocky Mountain Biologicals. Daniel told David how his firm was already receiving livestock plasma from Australia and New Zealand to avoid the mad-cow problems associated with material from Europe. RMB uses the material to grow animal vaccines and other medical substances, and is working on expanding to human medical products.

David and Maya Shoshani of the Binational Industrial Research and Development Foundation explained how U.S.-Israeli government investment programs could leverage any dollars an American company put toward partnership with an Israeli company. They also discussed ways Montana companies could arrange trade delegations to Israel or receive similar visits from Israelis.

Explaining why he located in Montana, Daniel said there were only seven places in the country where he could be close to a major pharmaceutical company, a National Institutes of Health laboratory, and a university with a solid biomedical program at once. Plus, he added, there was fly-fishing.

The lifestyle has kept me here, Daniel told David. It gives you the ability to pull all this talent in. Thats been an advantage for us.

Working in a small state also made it easier to get access to state agencies, from the governor on down, Montana World Trade Center director Brigitta Miranda-Freer added.

Business is such a relationship thing, said Paul Kingsford, an advertising director who came to hear David. In a large city, you can meet more people, but guess what weve just done here today? Weve bridged the gap.
13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

At the Cinemark

(R)

Grade: B

When a film with Benghazi in its title arrives on the verge of the first presidential primaries, we can assume that Hillary Clinton best head for a well-fortified bunker.

But surprisingly, this recounting of the siege of the Benghazi compound is remarkably apolitical.

Of course, thats not to say that the herd of elephants galumphing towards the White House wont try to politicize this film. They will, of course.

But 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi actually presents a tense, sustained portrait of American soldiers under fire in Libya. Theyre actually former soldiers now working for the CIA to protect the compound. Trivial distinction: The boys are armed.

Despite being more than two hours long, Michael Bays bro-fest never sags or drags.

Michael Bay (Transformers, Armageddon) likes to blow things up. He likes to make noise. And he probably sings Lee Greenwood songs between takes: Im proud to be an American

Given all that, I was primed for jingoistic disappointment.

Instead, I came away mildly impressed.

What saves the film are realistic close-up scenes of soldiers under fire and believable cynical dialogue asking the inevitable question: Why are we here?

Every so often, we see Libyans thanking Americans for being there, but thats about the extent of the Bays swagger in this script. Bay even takes some shots at the CIA civilian leaders whose egos interfere with efforts to protect the compound.

The CIA itself has complained about how the CIA is portrayed. I take that as a good sign.

For me, Benghazi boils down to a pro-warrior, anti-war tract. The script regrets the loss of lives in an ill-conceived foray into a volatile African nation.

The soldiers are not fully fleshed out, but theres enough honest emotion to make us care for them. The score, led by the heartbeats of kettle drums, contributes to the tension.

The battles, plenty of them, come with casualties. Not all the heroes will get home safely. All gave some, as Billy Rae Cyrus sang, and some gave all.

All this does not lift 13 Hours to a great film, but does save it from being a bad one.

The parts justify the whole, providing us with moments of insight and honesty worth waiting for.

Yes, theres too much noise and relentless action. What else would Bay give us?

Ultimately, 13 Hours pays tribute to the sacrifice of soldiers, even while casting doubt on why they were there. Thats a thoughtful balance, not always found amidst Bays booms.
Related article: Holter opens new exhibits

In September, the health of the Holter Museum of Art was rocky, and the executive director was predicting it could close its doors in three months.

Since then, the storys changed.

The Holter Museum of Art wont be closing its doors, and I cant envision that ever happening, said Holter Board President Carla Potter.

Thanks to community support and a lot of work by the staff and board, the Holters gotten a new lease on life.

After its annual holiday break, it will open its doors from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 22, with a reception. Artist talks are Friday afternoon and Saturday morning (see sidebar).

The year-end annual appeal exceeded expectations, bringing in $82,104 as of Jan. 19. It continues until Valentines Day, with a total goal in mind of $90,000. It far exceeded the goal of $53,900 set for the end of 2015.

Its been astounding, said the Holter's new operations manager Chris Riccardo of the community response.

Riccardo, who in November took on his new duties -- which include day-to-day management of staff and museum operations -- has been working as the Holter assistant education curator in 2015.

A resident artist at the Archie Bray Foundation, Riccardo has 15 years of experience working with arts nonprofits, most recently as the chair of the sculpture department and foundry director at the Armory Art Center in West Palm Beach, Florida.

The HoHoHolter holiday sale, which changed format this year with a four-day Grand Holter Bazaar, brought in $24,000 that weekend alone, said Riccardo. Eighty artists participated in the bazaar, Riccardo said, and 90 percent of them reported sales.

It was a huge success and the staff pulled it off, he said.

Next holiday season, the Holter would be willing to open the entire museum to art and have more music, he said. Its time to change things up.

Another thing thats been changed is the Holters database, which has been updated and is now current.

Thats a giant step forward, Riccardo said, and its taken a lot of staff time to accomplish.

Until recently, the full capabilities of the database werent being utilized, he said, adding that it wasnt being updated because of staff turnover and some leadership issues.

Recently, Riccardo and board members took part in a group effort to phone members and reconnect, he said.

The Holter also received a grant to hire a development person, he said. In the meantime, were applying for more grants, Riccardo said. Its a huge team effort.

The board is working hard and that is a continuous thing," he said. "It was a tough few months, but were all confident that the community wants us here.

There are things we need to do better, he said, but like Potter he doesnt foresee the Holter shutting its doors.

The point is the museum is financially struggling, he said, and part of the problem was turnover. It wasnt done purposefully, and it wasnt done to mislead.

We can move beyond this issue, he said. I think it grew into a panic thing, which he believes was premature but could have been a good thing.

We can fix this, especially with the amount of support in this community, he said. It happened for the better and were moving forward.

He and the staff and board have been deeply moved by the community support, he said.

Weve lost touch with the community, said Riccardo, which the Holter is taking steps to change.

Were going to offer more to more people, he said, adding that the Holter has already added healing arts classes working with vets and women from the YWCA.

The Holter is also revamping its membership, he said. The new membership card will spell out all the benefits of membership, as well as discounts members can receive at sponsoring businesses.

Its an exciting time, Riccardo said. Its a fresh start. Its exciting. Its fun and were all on board.

This years auction gala is April 22 and will be organized by Emily Free Wilson, who ran the successful Bray auctions for years.

Were going to make it more fun and more of a party, Riccardo said of the Holters plans.

Since a September 2015 Holter membership meeting, the Holter board:

terminated the contract of executive director Caleb Fey;

held a community meeting that drew more than 100 people who shared ideas and support;

held a Nov. 22 board strategic planning session, which helped them focus in on their top priorities -- fundraising, governance and communication.

The board will be sending out a newsletter every three months, said Riccardo, on the state of the museum.

Well be as transparent and as open as we can, he said.

It will be a way to update the membership on the museums finances, as well as classes and events.

A December 2015 museum update reported: For the fiscal year-to-date, expenses have exceeded revenues by $57,000. The board has drawn $45,000 from one of the museums endowments to cover the shortfall.

In September, the board reported that museum expenses had exceeded income by an estimated total of $700,000 over six of the past seven years, which it covered by using some of its assets, including savings, interest payments from endowment funds and the sale of two donated artworks that could be used at the museums discretion. The amount is not a debt.

We have to move on, said Riccardo. Thats the past. We as a group have moved on. ... We wouldnt be here without the community. Were here to stay.

Potter concurred.

"I feel good about everything we're doing," she said. "I feel like we're out of the woods. If we get our sponsorships for the gala and the exhibits, we'll be on solid footing.

"Just having the success of the appeal has invigorated everybody," she said.
As a devoted reader of the Helena Independent Record, I look forward to and depend on insightful local news stories, exciting outdoor reports, and fantastic coverage of our students in sports, studies and community service. I am inspired by the frequent Your Turn articles from my fellow Montanans covering a variety of issues -- on the environment, government, and relating how national issues affect us here at home. I may not always agree with the writer, but I do like the challenge their viewpoint presents, and I try to see where they are coming from.

Unfortunately, I cannot say the same about the recent trend in your Opinion column, where one writer from the "right" and one from the "left" alternate dissertations attacking the other side, often with many grammatical errors, and seemingly with the objective of inciting the most reaction from your readership. This is not the way to encourage thoughtful discussion of important topics. This may have worked in other big cities, but it is not the Montana way. As our past governor, Marc Racicot once stated, We still talk to each other out here, not at each other. It would behoove the editor of the IR to remember this.
MISSOULA -- Missoulas David Thatcher, one of two remaining crew members of the famed Doolittle Raiders of World War II, will be feted again Friday night.

Thatcher and his wife, Dawn, are in Beverly Hills, Calif., where hell be inducted into the Living Legends of Aviation at a $5,000-a-plate dinner ceremony hosted by John Travolta.

Thatcher, 94, will be joined by the other Doolittle survivor, Dick Cole of Texas, who turned 100 in September.

Thatcher was a 20-year-old engineer-gunner on one of 16 U.S. Army Air Corps B-25 bombers to take off from the USS Hornet and bomb Toyko on April 18, 1942. Nicknamed The Ruptured Duck, the planes crash landing and evasion of Japanese troops in China was depicted in the Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo, a 1944 feature film based on a book written the year before by Ted Lawson, the captain of the Ruptured Duck.

Thatcher was played in the movie by Robert Walker.

The daring raid came just months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. It is credited in many corners as turning the psychological tide of war on the Pacific front.

It was led by famed aviator Jimmy Doolittle, who passed away in 1993. Cole was his co-pilot. The last official reunion of the Raiders took place in 2013.

Last year, Thatcher and Cole were on hand in Dayton, Ohio, to present the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force the Congressional Gold Medal on behalf of the Doolittle Raiders.

Travolta, dubbed the official ambassador of aviation, will be joined on stage for the 13th annual awards dinner by fellow screen star Harrison Ford, who will present the Aviation Legacy Award to Scott Terry, founder of Global Flight Relief.

Other new inductees include Michimasa Fujino, president/CEO and founder of Honda Jet; Daniel Wolff, chief pilot and manager of Nationwide's flight department and an active volunteer to children's flying programs; and Greg Feith, a former air safety investigator and aviation commentator for NBC News.

Also receiving awards are the president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, and the founder and chairman of VistaJet. The Legends will recognize the Candy Bomber, Col. Gail Halvorsen. Halvorsen dropped candy bars on final approach to Tempelhof Airport while flying the Berlin Airlift, prompting an expanded effort supported by the Hershey Co. that showered a million chocolate bars to German children.

Thatcher will return to Missoula for another induction Feb. 5 into the National Society, Sons of the American Revolution.
DECATUR  The state presented 16 witnesses Thursday to paint a picture of how Rickie Kendricks obtained a gun and transportation to enable him to shoot to death Isaiah Wiley, 21, then a key witness in a double murder by Demarta Cunningham, a close associate of Kendricks.

Kendricks, 28, who is being held without bond in jail due to his parolee status, is facing 45 years to life in prison if convicted of first-degree murder with a firearm enhancement.

On the third day of his jury trial, a witness testified that she was staying all weekend with Kendricks at a home he shared with Jon Whittle on Buena Vista Avenue, the day Wiley was shot to death in the 400 block of East Waggoner Street, on Sunday, Dec. 9, 2012.

The woman, then a college student, said she had been dating Kendricks since the previous month. She had a white 2004 Dodge Stratus with a spoiler, which Kendricks took sometime that Sunday. She believed that Kendricks and Whittle were both in her car that day.

When they returned, she asked where her keys were. Kendricks said he would leave them for her. About a half hour later, he left with Whittle, taking her keys with him. Her car remained in the garage for a couple of days, with the woman unable to retrieve her keys.

Within about a week, Kendricks followed her in his car to an auto paint shop in Springfield to paint her car black. He paid for the work.

A sporty-looking white car with a spoiler was identified by eyewitnesses as the vehicle driving near Wiley the day of the shooting and fleeing from the scene. A surveillance video from the Concord high-rise captured images of a similar vehicle nearby shortly before the shooting.

The Glock .40-caliber pistol Kendricks allegedly used to shoot Wiley 13 times was located by police April 1, 2013, after Whittle was pulled over by police who were looking for a male who shot out of a blue SUV.

Decatur patrol officer Michael Claypool testified that he located a blue GMC Envoy in the 1100 block of North College Street. When he attempted to pull it over, the drive sped away. When the vehicle stopped, police discovered the front seat passenger had two firearms in her purse.

That woman testified, after Associate Judge Thomas E. Little threatened to jail her for contempt if she refused. She said the guns belonged to Whittle, who handed them to her during the police chase.

Whittle is serving a 24-year sentence after he was convicted of being an armed habitual criminal Jan. 24, 2014.

The trial will resume at 9 a.m. today in Macon County Circuit Court.
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Throughout the centuries, Russo-Iranian relations have had a significant social, political and economic impact on the South Caucasus.

On January 26, George Bournoutian, professor of history at Iona College, will be In Conversation with USC Professor Hani Khafipour on the topic: 19th Century Diplomatic Encounters in the Caucasus: Iran and Russia.

The discussion will take place at Ground Zero Coffeehouse at USC from 12 to 1 pm. Lunch will be served

Born in Isfahan, Iran, Professor Bournoutian is the author of A Concise History of the Armenia People. He is a researcher of a region that includes Armenia, Georgia, Iran, and Azerbaijan. Professor Bournoutians previous posts include Assistant Director of Russian Institute at Columbia University and Assistant Provost of Columbia University. He has been a visiting professor at Tufts, Rutgers, and New York Universities among others.

Professor Khafipour is a specialist in the history of medieval and early-modern Iran. He teaches courses on the Middle East, Islamic political thought and theory, and comparative history of the political and religious institutions of the early modern states in the Middle East.Khafipour is the editor of the forthcoming book with Columbia University Press, Empires of the Near East and India.

Armenia is, as we often say, at the crossroads of world cultures. Professor Bournoutian will talk about Armenia and Armenians at the crossroads of regional diplomacy. And this isnt just serious scholarship, this is scholarship about real people changing history, says Salpi Ghazarian, director of the USC Institute of Armenian Studies.

The talk will be live streamed at http://tinyurl.com/iran-russia so those who cant attend can watch.

This event will follow a morning program entitled, Invitation to launch Gulbenkian Foundations report Armenians in 2115: Strategic Directions for the Twenty-first Century. At 9 a.m. on January 26 (at HNB 100), the USC Institute of Armenian Studies will be one of three sites  Yerevan, London, Los Angeles  discussing the report and its findings. In addition to USC, a similar discussion will be taking place in Yerevan and London simultaneously, with each city following the other discussion as well.

For information: 213.821.3943; [email protected]
The Delegation of the European Union issued the following statement in agreement with the EU Members States Heads of Mission in Armenia.

The EU is committed to supporting reforms in Armenia, in particular in the area of democracy, human rights and fundamental freedoms and rule of law. Good governance and human rights protection are essential for the future of Armenia and increased public trust in the political and judiciary system.

The institution of Ombudsman is crucial for promoting and monitoring the effective implementation of international human rights standards at the national level and in advancing all aspects of the rule of law, including with respect to the judiciary, law enforcement agencies and the correctional system.

The high importance attached by the EU to the institution of the Ombudsman is confirmed also by the recently signed human rights budget support programme (20162018) for Armenia with value 12 million. This is designed to support Armenia in tackling key issues related to anti-discrimination, child rights, prevention of torture, fight against domestic violence and enhancing electoral legislation. The programme was designed to contribute also to the strengthening of the Ombudsmans office capacity in monitoring human rights education and providing recommendations, addressing concerns of minorities, persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups as well as cooperation with state institutions. The programme aims at enhancing coordination and cooperation among relevant stakeholders and its implementation will be monitored by a steering committee co-chaired by the Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ombudsman, Head of EU Delegation, and with the inclusion of civil society representatives to ensure a structured dialogue.

We learned with regret that Ombudsman Karen Andreasyan has resigned and we commend him for his excellent work. It is of the utmost importance to ensure a proper selection of and to safeguard the full and unconditional independence of his successor. Therefore, the EU trusts that the next Armenian Ombudsman will be appointed by the National Assembly in a consensual manner and will be able to preserve the independence of this important institution. A more efficient follow-up by state bodies of the Ombudsmans recommendations will certainly contribute to better human rights protection in Armenia.

Photo: Former Ombudsman Karen Andreasyan, Dr. Piotr Antoni Switalski, Head of EU Delegation to Armenia
A company called Karalyevas Ltd. is planning to build a hydroelectric plant on the banks of the Vararakn River in Armenias Syunik Province.

Karalyevas, founded in November 2013, is equally owned by the brothers Karen and Sashik Khachatryan. The two brothers have connections in high government circles. They are the sons of Sasun Khachatryan, General Director of the Vorotan Complex of HPP, and are the grandsons of the uncle of Syunik Provincial Governor Surik Khachatryan.

The Vararakn River is a tributary of the Vorotan. The plant will produce 6,732 million kW of electricity per year.

The company has already filed documents with Armenias Ministry of Nature Protection in order to conduct an environmental impact assessment study.

Karalyevas estimates that its yearly revenues will be in the neighborhood of 159 million AMD (US$327,000).

The rush to construct small hydro-electric plants in Armenia is due to the fact that the government has obligated Electric Networks of Armenia to purchase the electricity produced by these small plants for the next fifteen years.

The chart below shows the number of operating small hydro-electric plants and those being constructed in Armenia by province (marz).

Top Photo: Sasun Khachatryan, Surik Khachatryan (Photolur)
On January 20-21, Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia Garen Nazarian participated in the 16th session of the Armenia-EU Parliamentary Cooperation Committee held in Strasbourg, co-chaired by Samvel Farmanian, Member of the National Assembly of Armenia and Sajjad Karim, Member of the European Parliament. Members of National Assembly of Armenia and the European Parliament, as well as officials of the European External Action Service attended the session.



According to established tradition, Nazarian presented to the Committee Armenias approaches and positions on the agenda issues of the session, such as the current level Armenia - European Union relations and perspectives of development, negotiations on a new framework agreement with the EU, revision of the European Neighbourhood Policy, international recognition of the Armenian Genocide, settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, regional developments and other issues.



During the session, Deputy FM Nazarian answered and commented on numerous questions of the participants concerning the dynamic development of Armenia-EU relations, achievements and further steps. Garen Nazarian attached significant importance to the continuous support of the EU to the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group, mentioning the attempts to shift the issue to other formats or initiate parallel activities could undermine mediatory efforts and further jeopardize the regional stability.



In his remarks, Deputy Foreign Minister commended corresponding resolutions of the European Parliament and member-states on the Centennial of the Armenian Genocide, as well as touched upon the needs of people who found shelter in Armenia in the result of the Syrian crisis, calling upon the European partners to support efforts of the Government of Armenia towards their social-economic integration.




TransCanada Donates to Hansford Food Bank

Cecil R. Biggers, President of Spearman Ministerial Alliance; Lay Minister Faith & Grace Spearman; Yvette Hopper, Sec./Treasurer Spearman Ministerial Alliance and Exec. Director Hansford Food Bank; Curt Fitzgearld, representative of Transcanada; Dan Kovaly Vice-President Spearman Ministerial Alliance; Pastor First Christian Church, Spearman

Hansford Food Bank was presented with a check for $1000 from TransCanada in support of their food pantry to provide assistance to the low income, elderly and handicapped of their community. This grant will provide 6,000 lbs. of food for those in need. Hansford Food Bank is associated with the High Plains Food Bank in Amarillo, Texas.



TransCanada is committed to building strong and vibrant communities near our operations. We have worked hard over the past 60 years to earn and maintain the trust of our community neighbors. Funding initiatives which support the community is part of that commitment.






Mount Greylock Books LLC has published my autobiography as an historian, A Life in History. Long-time readers who want to find out how th...
Share your opinion on this topic by sending a letter to the editor to tctvoice@madison.com. Include your full name, hometown and phone number. Your name and town will be published. The phone number is for verification purposes only. Please keep your letter to 250 words or less.
Dane County purchased the former Messner Inc. property at 1326 E. Washington Ave. for use as a day resource center for the homeless last year.
Terry Kline operates a spotlight at the Dane County Coliseum. The longtime Madison stagehand and experimental filmmaker died Monday at the age of 61.
Morning briefing: Is the state of Wisconsin still trying to suppress information about Steven Avery?
Dave Zweifel is editor emeritus of The Capital Times. dzweifel@madison.com and on Twitter @DaveZweifel
Bonnie Block and the Rev. Jim Murphy protest drones outside Volk Field, a military facility in Juneau County, on May 17, 2014. They are part of a group that regularly protests at Volk Field, usually on the fourth Tuesday of each month. Mary Anne Grady Flores, a member of a similar group in upstate New York, is now serving time for her role in a drone protest.
John Patrick Hunter tried unsuccessfully in 1951 during the McCarthy era to get people to sign a petition with excerpts from the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. Hunter, who died in 2003, worked for The Capital Times for 44 years and was a staunch defender of the First Amendment.
A Racine man accused in the fatal 2008 shooting of another man uttered just five words in court on Wednesday before pleading not guilty to the homicide charge.

Jonathan W. Sparks, 25, sat dressed in orange Racine County Jail scrubs during the two-minute appearance in court. Prosecutors charged Sparks on Nov. 9 with first-degree reckless homicide by use of a dangerous weapon in the fatal shooting of Jamaal Stanciel, 20, also of Racine.

Reports at the time state Stanciel was standing with a group of friends on June 14, 2008, in the area of 11th Street and Hilker Place when he was shot. Two bullets hit Stanciel: one in his right shoulder and the other went through his torso and punctured his lung, killing him, according to autopsy results.

Sparks waived his preliminary hearing on Wednesday, which is where prosecutors must prove a felony has been committed and the defendant likely committed it. Sparks responded five times with only one-word answers  yeah, both and no  when asked questions such as whether he voluntarily was waiving the hearing, if the form was read to him or if he read it, and whether anyone made any threats to force him to waive it.

Assistant State Public Defender Gretchen Rosenke entered the not-guilty plea, on his behalf, during his arraignment.

Court Commissioner Alice Rudebusch found probable cause for the charge and (bound) him over to stand trial on the charges.

Sparks remains jailed on $500,000 cash bond.

Gone cold, then a spark

After Stanciel was fatally shot, the case went cold. A break in the case came last year, more than seven years later.

Investigators interviewed Sparks in June in an Illinois prison after reportedly being tipped that he was the shooter. Sparks allegedly told them he held a gun over the top of a fence and fired that night, according to his criminal complaint.

Three people  who were identified as associates of Sparks and interviewed by police  allegedly were in a car with Sparks the night of the shooting. When Sparks returned to the car, police said he told one of the men that he had fired multiple times, the complaint states.

Police arrested Sparks on July 14, 2008, after they were called to an area where he allegedly was found with a gun and cocaine, the complaint states. Police said one of Sparks associates identified that weapon as the gun Sparks allegedly used to shoot Stanciel.

But it wasnt until a December 2012 interview with investigators that an associate of Stanciels, who reportedly was near the scene of the shooting that night, said he saw Sparks shoot over the fence five or six times, according to the complaint.

Sparks next court date is Feb. 19.
Monroe County authorities have charged a mental health worker accused of sexually assaulting patients at the Tomah VA Medical Center with sexual exploitation by a therapist.

Charles W. Davis, a peer support specialist, was arrested earlier this month after two female patients accused him of ongoing harassment, exposing himself and receiving oral sex in his office.

Davis, 47, was charged Thursday in Monroe County Circuit Court with two counts of sexual exploitation by a therapist, each of which carries a maximum 12-year sentence. He was also charged with lewd and lascivious behavior, a misdemeanor.

According to the criminal complaint, Davis made repeated sexual advances to two patients, including a 26-year-old veteran receiving treatment for past military sexual trauma.

She told VA police that Davis called her into his office in December and exposed himself.

A 32-year-old patient said Davis sent her sexually explicit pictures of himself and that she gave him oral sex in his office, according to the complaint.

Both women said Davis would frequently rub his crotch and make lewd gestures in common areas, the complaint stated.

Davis, whose bond stipulates he may not possess a cell phone, could not be reached for comment.

According to the VA, Davis was hired in 2013 as a housekeeper and promoted several months later to peer support specialist. VA spokesman Matthew Gowan said Davis was certified by the VAs own peer support training program, which requires more ongoing training than a similar state program.

Gowan said Davis had maintained his certification through the past fiscal year.

Peer support specialists have experienced mental illness or substance abuse themselves and have specialized training. They are certified in Wisconsin by the state Department of Health Services, although the state provides no way of independently verifying that certification.

Davis, who is prohibited by the court from having contact with the Tomah VA, is on unpaid leave, according to the VA.

The Tomah VA has been plagued with scandals since a story by the Center for Investigative Reporting last year detailed high levels of opioid prescription at the facility, which patients dubbed Candy Land because physicians there dispensed prescription painkillers so freely, and a pervasive culture of intimidation and retaliation against employees who spoke out.

A 35-year-old Marine veteran died in the hospital from a lethal combination of prescribed medications.

At least three top officials  including the medical chief of staff and the centers director  were later fired.
A year ago, the economy was improving. In a survey, Wisconsin business leaders were optimistic.

This year, citing concerns about the weak global and national economies, respondents to the Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce semi-annual survey were less positive.

The survey of 304 top private-sector state business executives was conducted in December and January.

In it, 52 percent thought Wisconsins economy will experience moderate growth in the next six months, down from 71 percent in June 2015 and 81 percent last January. Thirty-nine percent say the U.S. economy will see moderate growth, down from 53 percent six months ago and 74 percent a year ago.

A majority 62 percent of survey respondents rate the Wisconsin economy as moderate, 21 percent say it is strong, and 1.6 percent say it is very strong. Eleven percent rated the Wisconsin economy as weak or very weak. The U.S. economy received lower ratings with 37 percent calling it weak or very weak. Forty-eight percent rated the U.S. economy as moderate and 9.8 percent said it was strong. No one rated it as very strong.

Finding qualified workers remains a top concern for business leaders. Sixty-eight percent said they are having trouble hiring employees, down slightly from 70 percent in June, but still up from 64 percent a year ago.

Growing employer uncertainty could rival the lack of qualified applicants as a significant obstacle to job growth, said Kurt R. Bauer, WMC president/CEO, in a news release. A year ago, it looked like Wisconsin and the nation had turned the corner economically. But it looks like that progress has been halted.

Bauer blamed a weak global economy, a strong U.S. dollar, which especially harms exporters, and federal policies that have steadily increased costs for U.S. businesses, like health care.

Other key points include:

In the next six months, 46.7 percent of respondents expected their number of employees to stay the same; 43.4 percent expected to increase staff.

82.2 percent said their businesses were profitable in the last six months while 85.5 predict profitability in the next six months.

The largest response, 31.9 percent, said the one thing state government could do to improve Wisconsins business climate is to reduce taxes.

71.9 percent didnt expect to improve exports in the coming year.

The state results echoed a survey of CEOs around the world conducted by consulting and accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, or PwC, during the last quarter of 2015 and released this week in time for the start of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss ski resort of Davos.

Dennis Nally, PwCs chairman, said Tuesday that concerns over the global economy, which have contributed to the big volatility in financial markets over the past few weeks, have combined with geopolitical issues to dent confidence and put question marks over the CEOs ambitions for this year.

When you put it all together, the outlook for 2016 is not as encouraging as many of us would have hoped for, Nally told The Associated Press in an interview. I have to imagine that if we had done the survey in the first two weeks of January the results would have been even more gloomy. Its not a great picture, its not a great outlook.

PwC said only 27 percent of top executives are confident that global growth will improve over the coming year. Thats down 10 percentage points over the past year to its lowest level since 2013, and highlights the extent to which the global recovery appears to be running out of steam.

PwC also found that 66 percent of CEOs think there are more threats to their businesses than there were three years ago, up 7 percentage points.

PwCs survey was based on 1,409 interviews with CEOs in 83 countries and across a wide range of industries and sizes between Sept. 28 and Dec. 8. It said 26 percent of interviews were conducted by phone, 60 percent were online and 14 percent by mail.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.
A Vermont utility executive says her company is helping customers slash their energy use even as it is cutting their electric rates.

Green Mountain Power, in Rutland, Vermont, offers an extreme energy makeover that can go as far as customers want in scaling down their energy use  even going off the power grid, the nations energy delivery backbone, CEO Mary Powell said.

At the same time, Green Mountain has lowered electric rates three times in the past four years.

Powell was a keynote speaker Thursday at RENEW Wisconsins Energy Policy Summit, Shaping the Utility of the Future.

Green Mountains home energy makeover program was featured in New Yorker magazine last June. The article described a family of four whose 100-year-old home was updated with insulation, heat pumps, LED lights and a small solar array. As a result of the changes, financed through monthly electric bills, the family used 16 percent less electricity and its three-month use of fuel oil fell from 325 gallons to zero.

In just over a year, Green Mountain has completed 112 home energy makeovers. The customers are saving a lot of money as well as a lot of carbon, Powell said, in an interview.

The program has been amazing, she said, adding, Its also amazing to me that more utilities arent doing this.

Powell worked as a bank executive and served as human resources director for Vermont state government before she joined Green Mountain in 1998 as a vice president  after turning down that job three times. She rose through the utilitys ranks and became chief executive in 2008.

Green Mountain has built Vermonts largest wind farm and made Rutland the solar generation capital of New England, the companys website says.

The daughter of an actor  her father, Addison Powell, is best known for playing Dr. Eric Lang on the 1960s Dark Shadows soap opera  Powell, 55, said she never expected to work for a utility company. She said she has transformed Green Mountains culture to meet consumers demands for low-cost renewable power.

Powell said giving people more power over their use of power will increase in the coming years. The nations electric grid  the network of high-power lines that crisscrosses the U.S. to keep the lights on  will become as old and archaic as telephone landlines in years to come, she said.

We believe there are going to be more and more amazing ways to help customers transform to community-based energy generation, she said. It sharpens the mind when you think about what could the future look like.

Green Mountains example comes as Wisconsin utilities are struggling with questions of how to structure their rates to account for increasing customer interest in new technologies and renewable energy. Madison Gas & Electric has held a series of conversations with customers about what they want from the local utility.

Tyler Huebner, executive director of RENEW Wisconsin, said the organization brought Powell to Madison to show how renewable energy technology can be incorporated here.

Shes probably doing a dozen things there. We feel like our utilities can take one or two of those examples as a starting point ... and replicate them here in Wisconsin, Huebner said.

MGE spokeswoman Dana Brueck said a lot of ideas can be on the table. Our focus has been and will continue to be working with our customers over time to figure out the products and services they are most interested in and believe will best meet their needs, Brueck said.

About 250 people attended the daylong conference at Monona Terrace.
Merchants at East Towne Mall should be careful when customers are trying to use $100 bills for purchases after fake bills showed up at stores on Thursday, police said.

Madison police said one shopper was successful in passing the counterfeit money while another shopper wasn't.

The two suspects were seen with a third suspect, and all three left the mall before police were able to talk to them.

According to police:

The first suspect made a successful purchase with a fake $100 bill at Hot Topic, a teen-oriented store that sells T-shirts and accessories.

"An employee at another store said a second suspect attempted to use a bogus $100 bill, but the bill appeared to be washed and faded, so she rejected it," said police spokesman Joel DeSpain.

The employee at the second store told this to a police officer who was on his way to the Hot Topic call.

The first suspect is a black male, early 20s, 5 feet, 7 inches tall, short hair, wearing a red jacket and several gold chains.

The second suspect is a black female, early 20s, 5 feet, 6 inches tall, large tattoo of a bird on her chest and another tattoo on her chin.

The person they were seen with is a black male, 5 feet, 8 inches to 6 feet tall, wearing a blue zip-up hooded sweatshirt and an orange hat.
For the past 25 years, Doug Keillor has worked alongside the man he calls his professional mentor, the strong-willed executive director of the union representing Madison public teachers.

On Thursday, Madison Teachers Inc. announced Keillor will succeed John Matthews, who is retiring Jan. 31 after 48 years, likely the longest tenure in the country for a teachers union leader.

In choosing Keillor, the unions leaders opted against a national search, going instead with someone who has sat beside Matthews at the bargaining table for decades as his assistant.

Its a logical transition, said Andrew Waity, a fourth-grade teacher at Crestwood Elementary School and president of the bargaining unit that represents classroom teachers, one of five bargaining units within MTI. Doug is someone who is known and trusted and respected by us.

Matthews, who threw his support behind Keillor from the start, suggested there would have been little point in posting the position because the best-qualified candidate already works for the organization.

Hes got labor in the gut, Matthews said of his successor. He understands the totality of the operation, and hes highly respected among members.

The transition comes as labor unions struggle nationally and especially in Wisconsin, where Republican Gov. Scott Walkers signature 2011 legislation, called Act 10, curtailed collective bargaining rights for public employees.

On Thursday, Keillor, 52, acknowledged the changing landscape for unions but said those challenges bring opportunities to think more deeply about why unions still matter. This coming year will be particularly illuminating for MTI, as it will no longer be able to collect dues from members through automatic payroll deductions or collect what are called fair share fees from teachers who are not members of the union but still benefit from its work.

Both aspects of union life go away in the Madison School District July 1 due to Act 10. Teachers who remain with MTI will be doing so in a much more deliberate and voluntary way.

People can opt in or opt out, Keillor said. That change forces us  and allows us  to focus on that discussion of Why do we have this organization? Were really engaging our membership on that question, and its actually a pretty exciting place to be.

MTI has five bargaining units representing about 5,000 teachers, substitute teachers, educational assistants, school security assistants and clerical/technical employees. The unions Personnel Cabinet, which includes the presidents of each of the five bargaining units, selected Keillor.

In November, all five bargaining units voted overwhelmingly to retain union representation.

Keillor will be only the second executive director ever for the union  Matthews originated the role in 1968.

His contributions are incredible, Keillor said of his predecessor. I dont really think of this as shoes to fill so much as a continuation of the work that has been done before me, not just by John but by everyone in the union. My charge is to carry that forward.

Mike Lipp, immediate past president of MTIs teachers unit, said Keillor and Matthews share many traits, such as an encyclopedic knowledge of bargaining contracts and a caring nature. But as with any two people, their personalities differ.

Doug is a little more easygoing, a little more folksy, Lipp said. When it comes to hard-nosed negotiations, they have different styles, but both are successful.

Lipp said Keillor showed his mettle last summer when the union and the district conferred for many months on an employee handbook that will take the place of union contracts this summer, another ramification of Act 10.

Madison Superintendent Jennifer Cheatham said shes enjoyed working with Keillor, calling him a trusted and respected leader in the district who works hard to give voice to employees and to solve problems together.

On paper, Keillors background looks pretty traditional. He earned a bachelors degree in sociology and a masters degree in industrial relations, both from UW-Madison. But as a high school student, Keillor said he was very non-traditional.

He dropped out of Madison West High School his senior year to work in a grocery store. He was a chronic truant, he said, someone who just didnt connect with the classroom.

He worked six years, earning a high school diploma along the way and experiencing the world as a low-wage worker. When he enrolled in college, it was as a person ready to learn, especially about how the business world functioned for laborers.

Its an old chapter of my life, but a part of who I am, Keillor said. Its why I feel its absolutely critical that we have multiple avenues for people to get on the path they need to be on. My message to parents is always, Never give up on your kids. Never give up hope.

Keillor lives on the citys Near East Side with his wife, Sheri, and three grown daughters, all graduates of East High School.

He is the son of the late John Philip (Phil) Keillor Jr., a nationally prominent coastal engineer, and the nephew of author and humorist Garrison Keillor, host of the public radio show A Prairie Home Companion. Phil Keillor helped start a homeless shelter in Madison that grew into Porchlight Inc., Dane Countys largest provider today of housing for the homeless.
A meeting between University of Wisconsin System President Ray Cross and student activists pushing UW to create a better climate on campus for minority students drew condemnation from a prominent Republican in the state Legislature this week.

Cross met for two hours on Thursday with representatives from the United Council of University of Wisconsin Students  the same group that held a protest during a meeting of the UW Board of Regents last month.

The students, like those at campuses across the country, have demanded the UW System take several steps to improve the experiences of black and other minority students at predominantly white colleges and universities.

Those demands include mandatory racial awareness training for every student and employee of the UW System, increased funding for mental health services and new evaluations of the Systems diversity plans.

Students have also called for administrators to issue a public apology for what they describe as a lack of progress on diversity within the UW System, and said after their meeting that Cross had agreed to do so.

United Council shared governance chairman and UW-Fond du Lac student Lamonte Moore said the group appreciated the opportunity to meet with Cross, but will need to see more action from UW officials before they are satisfied.

It was definitely a good first step, but we have a long way to go, Moore said.

On Friday, state Sen. Steve Nass, R-Whitewater, sent out a press release blasting Cross for wasting time appeasing the political correctness crowd.

Cross needs to prioritize the educational interests of all students, said Nass, vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Universities and Technical Colleges.

By promising to issue an official apology for unsubstantiated charges of racial injustice, he further damages the systems already tattered credibility with the public and further divides the citizens of this state, Nass wrote.

Moore said Nass statement unfairly characterized the United Council, and said the changes the organization is pushing for will benefit all students by making them more culturally competent.

UW System spokesman Alex Hummel declined to respond to Nass statement.

Hummel confirmed that Cross will issue a statement acknowledging shortcomings in efforts to improve racial climate and plans to continue meeting with student demonstrators.

Hummel said Cross has made similar statements about diversity in the past, including on Monday for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

We need to do a better job of not only increasing the number of students, staff and faculty of color but also improving their experiences on our campuses, Cross wrote in a statement on Facebook.
A conservative advocacy group is standing by its claim that former Sen. Russ Feingold was warned of problems at the Tomah VA Medical Center and failed to respond, which Feingold  and the author of a memo central to the claim  are disputing.

The group, Wisconsin Alliance for Reform, featured the claim in an ad in the Green Bay Press-Gazette this week and hasnt ruled out running more such ads.

Feingold responded a day later, flatly saying the attack ad is not true.

The Tomah VA center has been in the headlines since an investigation by the VAs Inspector General found deficiencies in care at the facility contributed to the 2014 death of a U.S. Marine from Stevens Point, Jason Simcakoski. The facilitys director and chief of staff were fired last year after those findings were disclosed.

Other lawmakers such as U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, have faced blowback about their offices handling of the matter.

Now comes the anti-Feingold ad, based on a memo written in 2009 by a union official at the Tomah VA facility and marked hand-delivered to Feingold  then a U.S. senator  and U.S. Reps. Ron Kind and Dave Obey. The memo warned that veterans were being over-prescribed narcotics at Tomah.

But the author of the memo  Lin Ellinghuysen, president of AFGE Local 0007, the local union representing most workers at the Tomah VA  changed course last year, saying the document never was delivered to Feingold or his staff.

Feingold noted that in his rebuttal to the ad, adding that his office searched for the memo and had no record of receiving it.

Ellinghuysen told the Wisconsin State Journal this week that she wrote the 2009 memo to a union official at the VA medical center in Iron Mountain, Mich., after the official told her he would testify to a congressional panel about problems at his facility. Before he testified, Ellinghuysen said she told Balkum about her plans to write the memo and that Feingold and Kind represented the Tomah area in Congress. On that basis, Ellinghuysen said she mistakenly assumed Balkum would deliver the memo to them while in Washington, D.C., and wrote that on the document.

Last year, when a reporter contacted Ellinghuysen to inquire about the memo, she said she contacted Balkum to ask if he hand-delivered it, and he said he did not.

Attempts to reach Balkum on Friday were not successful.

The memo became a public document after Ellinghuysen provided it to police when they were investigating the suicide of a former psychologist at the Tomah VA, Christopher Kirkpatrick.

I made a bad assumption, Ellinghuysen said. Russ Feingold did not receive my memo addressed to Ben Balkum.

A spokesman for Wisconsin Alliance for Reform, Chris Martin, asked in a statement why Ellinghuysen changed her story.

Im more inclined to believe what someone wrote down at the time and submitted in an official police report than what they are now saying five years later under immense political pressure, Martin said.

AFL-CIO, which is affiliated with AFGE, has contributed significantly to Feingolds past campaigns.

When asked by the State Journal if anyone urged her to change her story about the memo, Ellinghuysen said no.

Feingolds opponent in the November election, U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Oshkosh, has faced questions of his own regarding his response to the Tomah VA scandal.

Johnson, who succeeded Feingold in 2011, was criticized after it was reported that his office failed to act on whistleblower tips about problems at the Tomah VA. Johnson later acknowledged his office could have done more to respond.

La Follette questions DFIs apostille authority

Secretary of State Doug La Follette warned this week that an authentication process for local business documents used in foreign transactions now being offered by Gov. Scott Walkers administration might not be valid.

But Department of Financial Institutions spokesman Tom Evenson countered that the international organization that authorizes local officials to issue apostilles  which are similar to a notarized signature, but for documents used in foreign business transactions  now recognizes DFI on its website as a valid authority alongside the secretary of state.

Offering this service makes good business sense as it is a natural product of our notary program, allowing DFI to enhance customer service and citizen options, Evenson said.

La Follette also said apostilles not issued by his office wont bear the Great Seal of the State of Wisconsin and wont be maintained by his office. He called the DFI move one more of Walkers slimy efforts to take control of everything.

The schism is the only one of its kind in the country. All other states have only one office or website portal recognized by the Hague Conference on Private International Law for issuing apostilles. They can also be issued by federal court clerks.

DFI first inquired with the Hague about the change in late November and sent an official letter on Dec. 28, according to records released by the department. Since Jan. 4, the department has processed 32 apostilles, Evenson said.

In July, La Follette sued Walkers administration for cutting funding to his office in the latest budget. His staff was cut from three full-time positions to one full-time and one part-time position, and his office was moved from a 4,000-square-foot space rented on the Square to a 600-foot office in the basement of the Capitol.
Heres how members of Wisconsins congressional delegation voted on major issues this week. The House was in recess.

SCREENING IRAQI, SYRIAN REFUGEES: Voting 55 for and 43 against, the Senate on Wednesday failed to reach 60 votes for advancing a bill (HR 4038) to impose additional security screening on refugee applicants from Iraq and Syria. The bill requires the secretary of Homeland Security, FBI director and director of national intelligence to clear each applicant from the two countries before they can enter the U.S. This would add layers to an existing two-year process that requires clearances by seven departments and agencies. The administration plans to accept 10,000 Syrian refugees in coming months in addition to the nearly 2,000 admitted over the past four years on humanitarian grounds. Applicants are first screened by a United Nations agency and then drawn from refugee camps in the Middle East.

A yes vote was to advance the bill to full debate.

Voting yes: Ron Johnson, R

Voting no: Tammy Baldwin, D

CLEAN WATER ACT, PRESIDENTIAL VETO: Voting 52 for and 40 against, the Senate on Thursday failed to advance to a direct vote on President Obamas veto of a bill concerning the 1972 Clean Water Act. Supporters needed 60 votes to start debate on their bid to override the veto. This ended long-running GOP-led opposition (SJ Res 22) to a new Environmental Protection Agency rule designed to protect the quality of headwaters, wetlands and other waters upstream of navigable waters. Critics called the EPA rule a federal power grab, while backers said it would protect waters used for drinking, recreation and other purposes.

A yes vote was in opposition to the EPAs new headwaters rule.

Voting yes: Johnson

Voting no: Baldwin

FEDERAL JUDGE WILHELMINA WRIGHT: By a vote of 58 for and 36 against, the Senate on Tuesday confirmed Wilhelmina Marie Wright as a federal judge for the District of Minnesota. The vote occurred nine months after her nomination by President Obama. Wright, 52, had been a justice on the Minnesota Supreme Court since 2012, the first African-American woman to serve on that court.

A yes vote was to confirm Judge Wright.

Voting yes: Baldwin

Voting no: Johnson

In the week of Jan. 25, the House will debate a bill on sanctioning Iran, while the Senate will take up energy legislation.

 Thomas Voting Reports
The state treasury will be $94.3 million lighter by the end of the 2015-17 budget cycle because of lower tax revenues, according to an updated snapshot of state finances from the Legislative Fiscal Bureau.

That could affect the scope of legislation lawmakers pass this session before adjourning to campaign prior to the fall election.

Lawmakers are considering legislation to make college more affordable, provide more services to Alzheimers and dementia patients and help people find jobs. All will cost money, and the latest figures mean lawmakers have only about $70 million available  on top of spending already authorized  through July 30, 2017.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, said in December the legislation on his agenda for the session could cost tens of millions of dollars. Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, warned after this weeks State of the State address that the reduced figure would affect which bills the Legislature can adopt.

The state is now projected to end the current biennium with $135 million in the general fund, which is the same amount it ended the previous biennium with, according to fiscal bureau director Bob Lang.

State law requires a minimum $65 million general fund balance, so if lawmakers want to pass legislation that raises spending or cuts revenue, it cant total more than $70 million without changing the law, Lang said.

The amount is a far cry from what the Legislature had at its disposal two years ago heading into an election cycle. In January 2014, the fiscal bureau projected a $1 billion general fund balance due to tax revenue projections exceeding conservative estimates that were used when the 2013-15 budget passed.

The Legislature used that projection to cut income and property taxes by about $541 million (or $131 on a median home and $46 on an average income tax bill) but the revenue projection turned out to be off. As a result, the state faced a $2 billion shortfall heading into the 2015-17 budget deliberations.

This years projected fund balance includes the spending associated with all bills enacted through Thursday, but not any upcoming bills the Legislature is working on this winter and spring. For example, Lang noted the changes to the civil service system awaiting Gov. Scott Walkers signature will cost $6 million next year, which isnt accounted for in the projected balance.

The new projected ending balance is $94.3 million below where projections were prior to the nonpartisan agencys review. The reduction comes mostly from a $158.2 million decrease in projected tax collections, though expenditures are also expected to be $87.1 million lower. There are also other adjustments.

The reduction is a minuscule 0.6 percent of the $15.6 billion the state expects to receive in taxes in 2016-17. But the states reserves are also small. A recent study from George Mason University ranked Wisconsin 36th among states in being prepared to weather a recession based on its anemic fund balance and rainy day reserves.

Wisconsin has historically kept little to no reserves. Under Walker the states rainy day fund has grown to $280 million.

Walker noted in a statement the state has finished every fiscal year since he took office with a positive cash balance.

We have a proven track record of keeping the states fiscal house in order, and these projections show the impact of our sound fiscal management, Walker said. We will continue to prudently manage taxpayers dollars while ensuring state government is more efficient, more effective, and more accountable to the public.

Senate Minority Leader Jennifer Shilling, D-La Crosse, called the declining revenue numbers another sign of Wisconsins underperforming economy and declining family wages under Republican control.

Were never going to grow our middle class if legislative Republicans continue to drive down wages and outsource Wisconsin jobs, Shilling said. After the worst year for mass layoffs and plant closings in Wisconsin since 2010, we need to do more to turn things around. Democrats will continue to fight for investments in local schools, worker training and infrastructure projects to create jobs and move our state forward.

Sen. Alberta Darling, R-River Hills, and Rep. John Nygren, R-Marinette, co-chairs of the Legislatures Joint Finance Committee, highlighted that personal income continues to grow.

According to the fiscal bureau, personal income is projected to grow 4.2 percent in 2016 and 5.2 percent in 2017, though that was adjusted down from the previous forecast of 5.0 percent and 5.5 percent, respectively, due to reduced expectations for growth in wages, salaries, interest and farm income. Such a reduction, along with concerns that the national economy isnt as strong as projected a year ago, contributes to state income and sales tax revenue projections being adjusted down.
In a move with ramifications in Madison, Pope Francis is changing church regulations to explicitly allow women to be included in an Easter Week foot-washing ritual.

While Vatican rules for the Holy Thursday rite had long called for only men to participate, some Catholic dioceses, especially in the U.S., had ignored the rule or interpreted it more expansively and already were including women.

That was not the case in the Madison Catholic Diocese, where Bishop Robert Morlino, a staunch traditionalist, had prohibited priests from washing the feet of women. That changed on Thursday.

I accept this change with loving obedience, as I always would, Morlino said of the popes decision.

Local priests are now free to include women, Morlino said. But they can also still opt to skip the ritual altogether  it has always been optional  or follow the traditional practice of washing only male feet, which recalls Jesus having done so for his 12 male apostles, he said.

In a diocese where many progressive Catholics had found the male-only rule disagreeable, Morlino added that he hoped people will avoid pressure tactics and allow priests to make good and prudential decisions as to how they want to proceed.

It is my hope that in their outstanding care for the people entrusted to them, the priests will engage serious prayer and reflection in coming to their choice of option, Morlino said.

The popes decision was announced Thursday, and it sent the Catholic world abuzz. The Vatican said the foot-washing rite can now be performed on anyone chosen from among the people of God. It specifies that the group can include men and women, and hopefully young and old, healthy and sick, clerical, consecrated and lay.

The change corresponds to the pontiffs own rule-breaking ways. Shortly after he was elected, Francis raised conservative eyebrows by performing the rite on men and women, Christians as well as Muslims, at a juvenile detention facility in Rome. He has continued to include men and women, young and old, sick and healthy, and people of different faiths.

Priests must make sure that those participating are instructed beforehand as to the significance of the gesture. While the phrase people of God generally refers to baptized Christians, the decree also said both the chosen faithful and others should be instructed by the priest, suggesting the rite could be open to non-Catholics as well.

In an accompanying letter, dated Dec. 20 but released Thursday, Francis wrote that he wanted to change the current rules to fully express the significance of Jesus gesture, his giving of himself to the end for the salvation of the world and his unending charity.

Thursdays news was received very differently among Catholics.

Its fantastic, said Johanna Hatch of Verona, the immediate past-president of the Womens Ordination Conference, a national Catholic group that advocates for female priests. I think it is wonderful that the pope has made it really explicit that women can be involved in this ritual. It recognizes all the important work women do in the church.

However, Hatch said she would hesitate to assign any larger meaning to the popes decision, as hes been very explicit that ordination to women is closed.

For Catholics who are more traditional  sometimes called hard-identity Catholics  the rule change was upsetting.

The Rev. John Zuhlsdorf, a priest in the Madison Catholic Diocese who blogs under the name Father Z, wrote disapprovingly Thursday that the change could be interpreted to mean that liturgical norms mean very little and, worse, that liturgy means very little.

Among the followers of his blog, one wrote its a dreadful idea to change a law because people are breaking a law already. Another called the changes shocking, troubling and just plain sad.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
For decades, many liberals have dreamed of a universal health insurance system in which the federal government provides coverage to everyone and pays the cost. Known as single-payer, its modeled on programs in Canada and Britain, among others, as well as Medicare.

Now Bernie Sanders is making that idea a centerpiece of his presidential campaign. He unveiled an outline for Medicare for all on Sunday. And one thing is clear: It has all the qualities of a dream.

If Sanders has his way, private health insurance will be a thing of the past, replaced by a federally administered single-payer health care program that will cover the entire continuum of health care. Patients will be free to choose their doctors, and everything will be simple and free, because there will be no more copays, no more deductibles and no more fighting with insurance companies when they fail to pay for charges.

How would Sanders pay the $1.38 trillion annual price tag he puts on his model? He would raise marginal income tax rates, which currently top out at 39.6 percent, to 43 percent on households earning $500,000 a year or more, going up to 52 percent on those making more than $10 million. He would raise taxes on capital gains, dividends and inheritances.

He would also impose a 6.2 percent income-based health care premium paid by employers and a 2.2 percent income-based premium paid by households. But most people, in his forecast, would come out ahead because theyd no longer be paying for private insurance.

Among the things Sanders skates over is the practical impossibility of getting this plan written into law. The Affordable Care Act got zero Republican votes, barely passing in the House and narrowly averting a filibuster in the Senate  back when Democrats controlled both chambers. Today, Republicans command a majority in each house, and they are likely to retain one if not both in the November elections. In that case, Sanders program wouldnt be dead on arrival. It would be dead on departure.

Sanders also wants those covered to think they can have anything they want from medical providers at minimal cost to them. But that 6.2 percent levy on employers will almost certainly come out of wages. And the marginal tax rate increases he wants are so steep they would almost certainly have a negative effect on investment and economic growth  to the ultimate detriment of workers.

The abolition of copays and deductibles, combined with the promise of covering any treatment or medicine any patient wants, would make this program far more generous than Medicare. The first effect would be to stimulate even more demand for services. The second would be to prevent sensible limits on therapies. No system can be financially sustainable under such lavish terms.

Sanders, however, insists he can bring down our total health care spending by $6 trillion over the next 10 years. Dont bet on it. Thats tremendously aggressive cost containment, even after you take the administrative savings into account, Larry Levitt, vice president of the Kaiser Family Foundation, told Vox.com.

As Ezra Klein wrote on that website, the way single-payer systems curb expenditures is by cutting reimbursement to doctors, hospitals, drug companies and device companies  which inevitably means denying some treatments to actual patients. Canada and Britain are notorious for rationing care through long waits. One result, says the Fraser Institute, a free-market think tank based in Vancouver, is that 52,000 Canadians went abroad for treatment in 2014.

The bold new plan Sanders offers is really a variation on an old theme: the government will provide ever-more health care to more and more people at a lower cost. It ducks the painful problem of how much health care we can afford and pretends it can be financed without any real sacrifice by ordinary people.

In the long run, choices have to be made and trade-offs have to be accepted. Under Sanders blueprint, either the government would have to restrict access to some things people want, or it would end up spending far more than he claims.

He and his supporters are entitled to dream. But there comes a time when you have to wake up.
Low pressure coming through the Madison area on Monday might produce accumulating snow, but that's about it as far as snowfall goes through the upcoming work week, forecasters say.

The National Weather Service said measurable snow should be expected Monday and Monday night in Madison, "though totals at this time are expected to be light."

People heading to Milwaukee on Friday could see some lake effect snow, with 1 to 2 inches possible in southeastern Wisconsin. Drivers should watch for slippery road conditions.

Other than the snow on Monday, the weather should be relatively quiet in south-central Wisconsin through next Friday.

27 Storm Track meteorologist Lee Ann Okuly said a few flurries could come down in Madison on Friday with a high of 25, then the sun comes out on Saturday with a high of 29, before clouds return on Sunday with a high of 32.

The high should stay around the freezing mark on Monday, then dip a bit to the mid-20s on Tuesday and Wednesday, before bouncing back to the low 30s Thursday and next Friday.

Thursday's high in Madison was 23, 3 degrees below normal and 29 degrees below the record high of 52 for Jan. 21, set in 1964.

The low on Thursday was 12, 1 degree above normal and 41 degrees above the record low of 29 below for the day, set in 1888.

A trace of precipitation in the form of snow fell at the airport on Thursday, keeping the precipitation (rain plus melted snow) totals at 0.56 inches for January and 2016, 0.28 inches below normal.

The record precipitation total for Jan. 21 was 0.57 inches in 1895.

During the meteorological winter of December through February, Madison has received 3.89 inches of precipitation, 1.31 inches above normal.

2.1 inches of snow has fallen in Madison so far this month, 6.6 inches below normal. The record snowfall on Jan. 21 was 7.2 inches in 2008.

For the winter, Madison has received 9.5 inches of snow, 12.7 inches below normal, and 13.6 inches for the snow season, also 12.7 inches below normal.
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Established in 1990, in response to the media coverage of conditions in Romania following the Revolution, Humanity at Heart started by sending out lorry loads of aid to the orphanages. Subsequently our focus has changed to long term community based projects.



We provide funding for Romanian-led initiatives in the community, thereby fostering and supporting an ethos of self-help. We fund a voluntary project helping the elderly in Petrila, and provide significant funding for a therapy centre for children on the autistic spectrum, a day centre in Arad for poor families and street children, a day centre helping a poor Roma community, as well as project which provides a small home for 6 youngsters with special needs in Birlad.

























Humanity at Heart (Reg. Charity No. 1042937) is a small, independent charity, based in a village called Hassocks in West Sussex, England, where we have a charity shop.
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The HRA Promotes and Supports Peace Talks and encourage uniting people to support the Peace Talk or Peace Process on the formulations of CHARTER CHANGE or CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM in the Peace Talk between Government and the Rebels OR INSURGENTS CPP/NPA/NDF and others at stake to END WAR and live in Peace and Equal and fair just society.

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SUPPORT THE CHARTER CHANGE IN THE PEACE TALK NOT IN ANY KIND OF CHARTER CHANGE INITIATED OR DRAFTED BY GOVERNMENT PEOPLE IN THE POSITION OR ANY POLITICAL PARTIES OR INFLUENTIAL PERSON....

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Update! Another thing got Swedes talking last night: Carola's boobs when she was giving away an award. This is not the first time her boombs cause headlines; her misfortunate adventures in the 80's in Japan wer explained with her boobs being too big for Japanese market. Ok.... Or was it the song ? Anyways, Carola apologies and says she thinks the dress is stylish and elegant (even her friends said so) and she's a mature woman in her 40s, not a 16-year-old girl and looks like one. The Swedish Oscars, Guldbagge awards were given out last night. Carola was there as a guest star to sing Barbra Streisand's The way we were when honoring the movie stars who passed away during 2012. However, the cameras were too much on Carola, not on the stars showed in photos in the background and that upset many viewers as that part of the show was to celebrate them, not Carola. Oh well... The producer of the show tells in Aftonbladet the part of the show was made the sam
Mr. Foster makes the argument that unions cannot be considered beneficial in Illinois. Now I understand the view that public sector unions have been able to successfully increase wages and benefits for their members over the last 40 years and that this imposes an additional cost on the taxpayers of Illinois. But do workers not have the right to organize in a labor pool and negotiate?

I knew my article the other day would stimulate a conversation so I wanted to take a minute to respond to my colleague Howard Foster . Hopefully we can debate a little bit back and forth on an issue that definitely needs it.

And are we going to seriously contemplate the idea that public sector workers are denied this right just because they work for a government entity? Since when does government work require a sense of pathological altruism? As for the $100 Billion in pension liability, I blame the politicians of both parties who failed to husband the resources necessary to meet the States obligations when times were good. This amount though is still manageable in a state with assets that run in the trillions.

And do we really want to go back to the days of The Jungle when employers would pit all workers against each other as individuals and pay the lowest possible wage they could often under horrible working conditions? I remind all of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in NY where employers locked seamstresses in to their working areas to ensure better efficiency. Of course, dozens of them got incinerated when an unfortunate accident started a huge fire. Unions defend their members from such conditions, along with government. This alone is an argument for their existence and usefulness.

And is an economy without unions the way to build a middle class? Or is it a way to build an underclass? I would say that were building an underclass on the altar of free trade and open borders already. But without unions, whether private sector or public sector, wed be further along in that process.

Regarding fair-share fees.. should a worker that benefits from the usually positive results of collective bargaining not have to pay a share of the costs of that negotiation? Should he/she be able to do something that conservatives generally detest  be a free rider?

As for the economics of unions and above-equilibrium wages, Mr. Foster asserts that if the unions hadnt negotiated higher rates in his building that his law firm would have more money and that it would be spent and not sit in a bank account. Now maybe that is true in his case, but I doubt that in general terms and at this time that a business owner has a higher marginal propensity to consume than a union worker does. In fact, according to a recent piece by Adam Davidson in the New York Times, American businesses are collectively sitting on a record $1.9 Trillion in cash!

Now if the banks were lending this money out, this wouldnt be as much of a problem. But banks are also holding near record reserves at the Fed as well - $2.45 Trillion in fact as of January 21, 2016 according the Federal Reserves website. So, assuming a worker is more likely to spend money than a business, I would think a worker getting that money is better for the economy from a macro perspective.

As for the politics of the issue, yes Democrats are the largest beneficiaries of the political donations of the unions. But Republicans need to see through their self-imposed theoretical cobwebs and realize that the results of what unions actually do  help their mostly middle class and working class constituents  are fundamentally conservative and therefore healthy for American society.

If we want strong families that raise educated children who are less prone to drug-abuse, out of wedlock pregnancy, and the corrosion of the mind, body and soul by post-modern culture, then the breadwinners of the household need higher wages. Unions negotiate these for them.

Are there other ways to improve wages in this country? Certainly. But unions are one such mechanism that still works for some in an economy where management seeks to outsource jobs and the government seeks to import a higher labor supply through massive immigration. If Republicans put down the Ayn Rand books and opened up their minds on this issue and reached out to union workers, I know they would find a receptive audience from much of the rank and file. Maybe theyll win more elections this way too.

Finally, Mr. Foster also pointed out a long known and unfortunate fact that further supports my arguments - unionization in the private sector has shrunk to less than 10% of the labor force. This just so happens to dovetail with recent research that none of us could possibly consider good news - a study by the Pew Institute that shows that the absolute middle class is now less than 50% of the US population. So are these sad realities a correlation or merely a coincidence?

Related posts:

Biga: Time for GOP to shift its anti-union stance

Foster: Unions benefits themselves, no one else - especially taxpayers


Pastor Abedini with North Carolina Congressman Robert Pettinger

WASHINGTON - Pastor Saeed Abedini was scheduled to return to U.S. Thursday, after four and a half years of being held captive in Iran. Abedini and four others return's stirred frustration as the Administration revealed the cost of their release.

U.S. Senator Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) responded to reports the Obama Administration, in addition to giving the terror-sponsoring Iranian regime as much as $100 billion in sanctions relief, used U.S. taxpayer funds and other accounts to pay an additional $1.7 billion to Iran. Iranian Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Naqdi, commander of the Basij volunteer militia force, characterized the $1.7 billion as a "ransom payment."
Franks congratulated Marter for stepping up against an "out of touch" incumbent.

"My enthusiasm goes beyond agreement with Mr. Marter on issues affecting our citizenry and government. It is clear he has the will, instincts and integrity to work repairing the contemporary damage done to the first principles built into our institutions by America's Founders," Trent endorsed.

OSWEGO - Republican candidate for U.S. Senate James Marter pleaded his case before conservative federal lawmakers and several organizations in D.C. last week, then came home with the endorsement of Arizona Congressman Trent Franks.

"When no one else in Illinois would, Mr. Marter has stepped up to oust an incumbent out of touch with the people of Illinois who has repeatedly voted against his constituents and his party, harming the people's liberty protected by the United States Constitution."

Franks was the first endorsement to bag since returning from D.C., and more could be coming.

"I spoke with several members of Congress and held private meetings with leading conservative groups, and they were all encouraging," Marter told Illinois Review. "For the most part, all had scratched Illinois off their radar, thinking that if Kirk were the GOP candidate, they would lose this U.S. Senate seat in November."

Now Marter is focused on taking his campaign message throughout the state - a message that is the polar opposite of Republican incumbent Mark Kirk's on almost all issues.

And that's why County Tea Party leader Patrick Harlan endorsed Marter last week. Harlan is also running to be the 17th CD's GOP nominee against Democrat incumbent Cheri Bustos.

I appreciate everything that James is going to bring because number one hes going to defund Planned Parenthood, Harlan told local press. Mark Kirk doesnt believe in doing that.

Marter has been making appearances at events where Senator Kirk will not appear - specifically pro-life rallies and gun shows. Those venues are where Marter's message is embraced.

The Illinois GOP Establishment is jealously guarding Kirk's incumbency, and county chairmen report off-the-record that Kirk campaign staffers have been doing all they can to intimidate GOP leaders to ignore Marter and back Kirk - if they want to retain their party leadership status.

Because of the pressure behind the scenes, Marter is making more appearances at Tea Party events throughout the state - as he'll be appearing at the Huntley Area Tea Party on Wednesday February 3.

"Jim Marter has a passion and a premise that the people of the State of Illinois should have a Senator who is looking out for them, and not powerful corporations or lobbyists," the party wrote in a recent announcement about the Marter event.

"He knows we share many concerns that face our nation today. We need to work together to bring the original purpose of our constitution and limited government back to our great nation; and return to our country's foundations of Life and Liberty. It is time to send a Senator to Washington D.C. whose first interest is the Liberty and Security of the American citizen taxpayer."

Those sentiments are voiced throughout the state in support of Marter, who has limited campaign funds and volunteer staff.

Those supporting him suggest that Marter could defeat Kirk in the March 15th primary because Kirk consistently votes with Democrats and Leftists on social issues. He has one of the lowest ratings among the National Rifle Association and pro-life groups.

"Incumbent Illinois Senator Mark Kirk's voting record is out of touch with Illinois values. He is a consistent supporter of gun control, a history of opposing school choice, voted NO against Kate's Law ending unlawful Sanctuary City Status," the Huntley Tea Party wrote.

"He has opposed almost every effort to significantly cut spending or balance the budget, and finally Mark Kirk is the only sitting Republican senator to have voted FOR Cap and Trade energy taxes and AGAINST defunding Planned Parenthood. He is failing us, the people of Illinois."

Kirk's campaign typically chooses not to respond to queries about Marter, reflecting confidence that their candidate will easily win the GOP primary, leaving Republican voters no choice in November but to support Kirk and maintain the Republican majority in the U.S. Senate.

However, those who gathered petition signatures say that GOP rank and file happily signed Marter petitions while it's been reported that the Kirk campaign was forced to pay $5 per signature in the closing days of signature gathering.

"We'll see how easily Kirk wins in March," one Marter supporter said. "And if he does, he won't get my vote in November."
Next Thursday night, Republicans in Hillary Clinton's old Park Ridge neighborhood will gather at the Pickwick Theatre, blocks from where the Rodham's once lived, to watch "13 Hours."

"13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi" came out last weekend. It is the story of 9-11-201 attack on the American Embassy and a CIA annex about a mile away resulting in the murder of United States Ambassador Christopher Stevens, Information Officer Sean Smith, as well as two CIA operatives Glen Doherty, and Tyrone Woods.

I saw the film last week and found it captivating, informative, and tragic. The film is an adaptation from the book, "13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi" written by Mitchell Zuckoff, a professor of journalism at Boston University. The film was directed by Michael Bay known for directing Pearl Harbor, Bad Boys, Armageddon, and the four Transformer movies.

The film is an account from the defenders' point of view and does not address the political firestorm that followed the attack. There is no mention of President Barack Obama or then- Secretary of State Hillary Clinton or the alleged YouTube video which they blamed on the attacks. Further investigation showed that Hillary Clinton may have ignored Ambassador Stevens' requests for additional security along with a failure to respond that night with assistance, including military support.

The release of this film is expected to be another blow to the candidacy of Hillary Clinton with the Iowa Caucuses next week. In addition, more stories of her email scandal are breaking everyday with rumors of possible indictments.

The historic Pickwick Theater will have a special screening of the film Thursday, January 28, 2016 at 8:00 p.m. Tickets are $15.00 in advance (includes popcorn and a soda) on the eventbrite link below. It will be hosted by the Republicans of Maine Township and Niles Township Republican Organization. The Pickwick Theater is located at 5 South Prospect Avenue at Touhy Avenue in Park Ridge, Illinois. Tickets may also be purchased at the door the night of the event and are available HERE.
The report of the Justice Arumughaswamy Commission which probed the circumstances leading to former chief minister Jayalalithaas death stated in its concluding remarks that the fault has to be found with VK Sasikala, the late CMs confidante. Meanwhile, Rishab Shetty's Kantara is the next big offering from the Kannada film industry after Yash's KGF: Chapter 2. According to reports, Kantara is going steady at the box office. If reports are to be believed, the film earned over Rs 1 crore (Hindi version) on its sixth day.
By Asit Jolly: The original aam aadmi," is how Manpreet Singh Badal, Punjab Chief Minister and Shiromani Akali Dal patriarch Prakash Singh Badal's long estranged nephew, likes to describe himself. Edged to the sidelines of Punjab's political spectrum since the People's Party of Punjab (PPP) failed to register a single victory in the February 2012 assembly polls, Manpreet had peripherally always hobnobbed with the Congress till he eventually decided to go the whole hog on January 15.

"I realised that the Congress has a more mature and experienced leadership," he said after signing up. Manpreet, who polled approximately five per cent of Punjab's voteshare in 2012, says he agreed to join the Congress on the promise that the party would wholeheartedly implement his 11-point agenda which includes ending the VVIP culture in Punjab.

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Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, he insists, is fully on board: "I met Rahul Gandhi thrice. He has accepted our agenda as his own and we merged," Manpreet said after the tie-up was formally acknowledged by the AICC in Delhi a day after the Maghi Mela, where the AAP and Arvind Kejriwal held sway on January 14.

Sitting it out on the sidelines for over five years since he quit as Punjab's finance minister (in what is widely viewed as a family feud among local political circles), Manpreet says he has joined the Congress without any preconditions. "We have made it clear that we will not be working for any position in the party until I am able to win the trust of every Congress worker in the state. I first need to integrate myself into the party," he says.

Significantly, though the man who had refused to stay on in the SAD and play second fiddle to deputy CM Sukhbir Badal, sees bigger things for himself in the future. "It is not about any political leader-Sukhbir Badal, Amarinder Singh or myself," Manpreet told a reporter in Chandigarh clearly positioning himself in the lead in Punjab.

But even as his entry may buoy the Congress in Punjab, the Aam Aadmi Party is already dismissing Manpreet Badal as an insider who failed to expose the rot within the ruling coalition. "Dikhawe mein aam aadmi nahi ho sakte hain aap (You cannot be an aam aadmi for appearances)," says Durgesh Pathak, AAP's chief strategist in Punjab, insisting that Manpreet needs to prove his credentials to Punjab's voters. "Hum Gandhiji ko kyun yaad karte hain (Why do we remember Gandhiji)?" he asks. "Not because of what he said, but because he actually practiced all that he said."

Manpreet says that despite overtures he elected to join the Congress because the AAP did not have a worthwhile blueprint for Punjab. And that is precisely where he could help-in helping state Congress chief Amarinder and the party forge a plan that raises questions, even contradicts AAP's agenda for Punjab.

His appearance could clearly count as a big plus for the Congress in Punjab. But as a senior commentator says, he has arrived with "too little time to be properly toilet-trained in the Congress household culture". Given his grounding as an Akali under his uncle Prakash Singh Badal, it could also be some time before Manpreet Badal actually makes the transition.
By Ananya Bhattacharya: Cast: Akshay Kumar, Nimrat Kaur, Prakash Belavadi, Purab Kohli, Inaamulhaq

Direction: Raja Krishna Menon

Ratings: (4.5/5)

Once in a while, Bollywood reminds you why it can never be written off. That no matter how many commercial, trashy films it bombards us all with, there are times it can rise to the occasion. Like its hero Ranjit Katiyal, Airlift helps Bollywood airlift itself out of the mess it normally resides in. Raja Krishna Menon's Airlift is a tale of heroism, courage, patriotism, and a lot more. And deserves a standing ovation.

ALSO READ: Akshay's best performance till date in Airlift, says B-Town

WATCH: War survivors share their real-life stories

ALSO READ: What India had done in 1990 is not a matter of joke, says Akshay Kumar about Airlift

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Shrewd businessman Ranjit Katiyal (Akshay Kumar) walks in circles out of the reach of normal people. He seals deals with the alertness that can put an assassin to shame. And quite like the assassin, Katiyal doesn't mix business and friendship. This Indian residing in Kuwait cringes when his driver plays Ek-Do-Teen in the car, and promptly gets it replaced with some authentic Arabic tunes, such is his disgust for anything remotely Indian. Ranjit's relation with wife Amrita (Nimrat Kaur) displays the strains of time and stress. Their daughter Simu is understandably the glue that keeps these Blue Valentines from parting ways.

On the night of August 1, 1990, the Katiyal couple party together, Ranjit sings his heart out alongside belly dancers and all is well. Except, a few hours later, all turns topsy-turvy in Kuwait City. Saddam Hussein's Iraqi Army invades the country and war is unleashed. The Kuwaiti government deserts the city and Kuwaitis are shot through the head wherever they are seen. Ranjit sees his world crumbling in front of his eyes and goes to the Indian Embassy to try and fly out of this war zone. Whatever meets the eye is either destroyed or on the verge of destruction. Human lives cost less than a dime in this necropolis.

As Ranjit Katiyal, Akshay Kumar delivers an oeuvre-defining performance. Watching the man go from one who not even death can touch to one who is utterly helpless, Kumar displays a range of emotions which he probably keeps reserved for these kind of films. If Baby (2015) was an 8/10 in terms of Akshay's performance, Airlift has him at 12/10.

Nimrat Kaur throws her lot behind Amrita and proves yet again why she is someone Bollywood should tap every bit from. Her confrontation scene with Prakash Belavadi leaves one speechless. Belavadi, on his part, is fabulous as the irritable, always-complaining old man George. Purab Kohli strikes the right notes with his Ibrahim. Filmistaan star Inaamulhaq's Major Khalaf Bin Zayd is at once subtly menacing and somewhat pity-evoking.

Raja Krishna Menon's tale of the largest evacuation in the history of the world is gritty, edge-of-the-seat and heart-stopping. There are moments in the film which actually catch you so off guard, you have your heart in your mouth. The research that has gone in into the creation of Airlift is visible in every frame. Menon resurrects the Kuwait of 1990 and how!

However, despite all the brilliance, the last bit of the film looks hurried. It is almost like the filmmaker too couldn't wait to finish the film and get home, just like all those Kuwaiti-Indian refugees.

In all, Airlift is the story of unparalleled courage and unsung heroes. From unknown names in the Ministry of External Affairs in Delhi to people who had their Indianness rearing its head from within just when it was required, Airlift is un-miss-able. Go watch it.
Mission Sapne is a show that sees celebrities engage in odd jobs to raise money for a noble cause.

By Mail Today: Akshay Kumar has come up with a few really innovative ploys to promote his new film, Airlift. After his spoof of Delhi's odd-even scheme, based on the trailer of the film, went viral, the superstar took to nobler ideas recently. He has taken to selfless service for the sake of greater good, just as he does in Airlift.

For an episode of the show Mission Sapne, to be telecast over the weekend, Akshay took to the streets of Jodhpur to prepare and sell sugarcane juice. The money he would raise, it was decided, would be donated to three farmer widows.

As the superstar took to the streets with his mission sugarcane, news travelled fast. Very soon a regular road in the sleepy town of Jodhpur was buzzing with excitement.

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By the end of the day, Akshay managed to garner Rs.10,000. The actor, however, was not satisfied. He took to playing an impromptu game of volleyball nearby, to raise some extra money outside his commitment. Reason: the three women - Yogita, Yamuna and Kavita - spoke to him of their desire to educate their children. Akshay promptly moved beyond the show's script to raise double the amount for the cause.

Mission Sapne is a show that sees celebrities engage in odd jobs to raise money for a noble cause. For Akshay, participation on the show could not be better timed considering his new film Airlift is slated for a release this weekend.

Being on Mission Sapne absolutely suits the role Akshay plays in Airlift, too. The film sees him play a rich Indian businessman based in Kuwait, who helped authorities evacuate over a lakh Indians who were stranded in that country when Iraq attacked in.

Airlift is based on a true incident that occurred during Iraq's attack on Kuwait in 1990. The film features Nimrat Kaur alongside Akshay.

Nimrat makes a comeback to Hindi films for the first time since her defining act in The Lunchbox.

Airlift also sees the return of director Raja Menon to the big screen after a hiatus. Not many may recall, but Menon has directed the crossover films Bas Yun Hi and Barah Aana in the past.

Also Read:

Best of Nimrat Kaur's style to #Airlift your day



Akshay Kumar on Airlift: What India had done in 1990 is not a matter of joke


Across Punjab, the AAP and Kejriwal are what's making the news. Can the party ride the wave till 2017, or will a wily Badal and a rejuvenated Congress peg it back?

By Asit Jolly: Mein Badalon se kehna chahata hoon, ke upar baithe tumhaare tauji mere ko nai dara paye, to in Badalon ki kya aukaat hai (I want to tell the Badals that when their uncle (Narendra Modi) could not frighten me, why would I be scared of them?)," forsaking his signature muffler for a bright basanti pagri (yellow Sikh turban), Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was unforgiving and at his blistering best.

Evidently encouraged by the surging crowds, way more enthusiastic than those at parallel political rallies by Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and Congress at the Maghi Mela (fair) on January 14 in Muktsar, Aam Aadmi Party's national convener launched a no-holds-barred attack on Punjab's ruling dispensation-centered on the Badal Family but roping in every political rival from Prime Minister Modi to the newly re-instated Punjab Congress president Captain Amarinder Singh. And the crowd, going by the thunderous applause interrupting Kejriwal's harangue, was clearly loving it.

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The Punjabi hinterland, well known for bucking political trends like in failing the 'Modi Magic' in the summer of 2014 and virtually every general election before that, is abuzz once again. A full year before they go out to vote in the state's 15th assembly polls in early 2017, Punjabis are seriously weighing the prospects of what Rampal, a dalit farmer of Sangrur's Balad Kalan village, describes as the "teeja panth (third force),"

The AAP, which had surprised most pundits and perhaps even its own leaders by winning Patiala, Sangrur, Fatehgarh Sahib and Faridkot-four of Punjab's 13 Lok Sabha seats-is back and quite literally exploding onto the political arena. Kickstarting the state campaign almost immediately in the wake of its mammoth success in the Capital last year, the scenes witnessed in Muktsar were preceded by eight frenetic months of activity.

The four Lok Sabha wins in May 2014 came purely on the buzz it had generated in being a part of Anna Hazare's anti-corruption movement and in some measure its early success in winning 28 seats in the December 2013 Delhi polls. AAP leaders admit the party had virtually no organisational structure or boots on the ground in Punjab. "Our first challenge was to build an organisation at the grassroots," says Sanjay Singh, AAP's 43-year-old national spokesperson and observer for Punjab.

Deftly coordinated by Durgesh Pathak, a 27-year-old Allahabad boy who abandoned his IAS dreams to join the party in 2013 (and scored wins in every one of the 35 Delhi constituencies assigned to him last year), the AAP has in a short time managed to construct an organisation that would perhaps even impress its mainstream SAD and Congress rivals.

Quickly stepping past the crisis where it parted ways with senior founding members Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan along with two of its Punjab MP's-Dharminder Gandhi and H.S. Khalsa-and a sizeable section of volunteers nationally, AAP managed to, at least temporarily, quell nascent signs of further rebellion amid its Punjab unit by apportioning responsibility. Bhagwant Mann, the party's most recognisable face and Sangrur MP, was named head of the poll campaign committee, and Sucha Singh Chhotepur, formerly with the pro-Khalistan Akali Dal-Amritsar, was appointed state convenor.

Acting somewhat in the style of the RSS, the AAP set up 13 parliamentary zones, jointly headed by a prabhari or observer from Delhi and a local coordinator. Every zone was divided into nine assembly segment-wise sectors with further circles or clusters of 20 polling stations. And exactly like the BJP's saffron mothership, every booth already has an identified volunteer in-charge. "Nearly 10,000 Punjabis volunteered in AAP's campaign for Delhi and each one of them returned home with never-ending stories of the party and what we stand for," says Himmat Shergill, party spokesperson in Punjab.

Now consider this: Pathak claims a Punjab-based membership of "24 lakh" at last count, including some 14 lakh who physically signed up by filling out forms and another 10 lakh who took advantage of Punjab Jodo, a mobile phone-based application. All this piggybacking first on Baiman Bhajao, Punjab Bachao (drive out the dishonest, save Punjab), a series of intensive roadshows through May-June 2015, and later in September 32 public rallies reaching voters in each of Punjab's 117 assembly constituencies.

Spilling over to October, AAP's not-so-quiet campaign was impeccably timed. It not only managed to join ranks with the highly successful farmers and farm workers' agitation demanding remunerative compensation for cotton crops lost due to the supply of spurious pesticides, but later also tied in rather neatly with the Sikh devotees protesting incidents of sacrilege involving the Guru Granth Sahib. Evidently sensing an opportunity, Kejriwal even made time to visit the families of two Sikh protesters who were gunned down by police outside Behbal Kalan village near Kotkapura.

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Keeping up the momentum, on December 6, a large contingent of the AAP's youth wing created quite a stir by courting arrest outside chief minister Parkash Singh Badal's official residence to refocus public attention on what Shergill says is "India's biggest pesticide scandal involving government ministers and state officials".

Though there are no means to authenticate this, but AAP leaders claim their January 14 rally in Muktsar had participants from every one of Punjab's 12,000-plus villages. Another claim, which is confirmed by anyone travelling in the state, is that there are posters of Kejriwal and other AAP leaders-Mann, Chhotepur, Sadhu Singh, Shergill-staring back at you in every city, small town and village in the border state.

Show of strength at an AAP rally directed at the upcoming 2017 Punjab polls. Photo: Getty images

Back in Lehra Gagga (Sangrur), former Congress CM Rajinder Kaur Bhattal's assembly constituency, for instance, AAP is currently the only topic of any real conversation. "I've never seen anything like this," says Kawaljit Dhindsa, who runs a small private school that gives preference to children of distressed farmers who committed suicide. "The AAP is drawing the kind of people who want to do something for the party and not those looking for easy opportunities," he says citing the case of numerous individuals and groups who have offered to organise public camps under the RTI and Right to Education Act.

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Curiously, both the ruling SAD-BJP combine and the Congress, newly enthused after the reappointment of Amarinder as state chief, appear somewhat spooked by the huge response Kejriwal drew at the Maghi Mela. Both parties, clearly seeing AAP as the main challenge, devoted a large portion of their speeches to badmouthing the "topiwallahs". Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal and his father taunted Kejriwal for not knowing the difference between the different crops grown in Punjab, asking the people to reject the "traitor" for "betraying Anna Hazare". The Congress, surprisingly, did no different.

Predicting that SAD-BJP would crumble under the burden of 10 years of anti-incumbency, Amarinder Singh says, "2017 will essentially be straight contest between Congress and AAP." Although this is part of Congress's strategy to slight the Badals, given the rapid emergence of AAP in Punjab, Amarinder's words could well be prophetic.

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So is Punjab already a cakewalk for the AAP? Despite the widely known Punjabi proclivity to try out new things, analysts say a whole lot could change over the coming 12 months. The AAP which has already shown its hand and, as Sanjay Singh says, must now "concentrate on building a lasting presence in popular consciousness and memory".

But popular recall of the five years under Amarinder Singh is positive. He is seen as the one capable of challenging the Badal clan. He's also the only Congress leader to stand up to the party high command as he did in abrogating inter?state water treaties in 2005. Observers say Manpreet Badal's inclusion in the party could further ramp up the Congress's prospects.

Finally, given the absolute surprise Sukhbir Badal pulled off in winning a consecutive second election in February 2012, there are many who still want to hedge. Sukhbir is a formidable adversary eminently capable of turning situations to his advantage.

Some months ago, a company that manufactures lamps was trying to market a new, high-tech product. Along the Grand Trunk Road through Haryana, salesmen sweated to convince Haryanvi dhaba owners to try the new lamp. But past the Shambhu Barrier in Punjab, at the first Punjabi-owned dhaba: "It's new huh? Change all my lamps." Will Punjabis live up to their story? The AAP certainly hopes so.

Follow the writer on Twitter @asitjolly


A group of militants had stormed the Bacha Khan university in Pakistan on Wednesday leaving 25 people dead and 50 injured.

A group of militants had stormed the Bacha Khan university in Pakistan on Wednesday leaving 25 people dead and 50 injured

By India Today Web Desk: At least 12 suspects were arrested today morning from the tribal belt of Charsadda in Pakistan.

An FIR was registered on Thursday against four unidentified militants who attacked Bacha Khan University in north Western Pakistan.

The FIR was lodged on behalf of the Counter-Terrorism Department under Section 7 and Section 15A of the Anti-Terrorism Act.

Pakistan police is searching the university area in Charsadda. Many suspects have been arrested.

A group of militants had stormed the Bacha Khan university in Pakistan on Wednesday leaving 25 people dead and 50 injured.

Also Read

Bacha Khan University terror attack: Operation ends, 25 dead, 50 injured


If you have been active on social media lately (and we guess you have), there's a quite a chance you've come across the viral 'Be like Bill' memes. Ever wonder what's the story around it?

By India Today Web Desk: Have you been on Facebook lately?

You have? Okay, then there's a quite a chance you have seen these memes about a stick figure named Bill, who is telling everybody how to behave.

Yes, we're talking about the 'Be like Bill' cartoons that has been spreading like wildfire on social media.

With short, sarcasm-laced sentences, Bill has been doling out advice on the internet by sometimes being outright funny, while sometimes being passive-aggressive.

And so has been Bill's effect on people, that now we have many more like him, such as Billu, Billal, Sid, Jose, etc., but Bill's charm seems to remain unshaken among his admirers.

Well, he has been serving well, after all. Take a look at some of Bill's 'take on life':

Photo: Be like Bill/ Facebook Photo: Be like Bill/ Facebook

Photo: Be like Bill/ Facebook

Photo: Be like Bill/ Facebook

Photo: Be like Bill/ Facebook

Photo: Be like Bill/ Facebook

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Eugeniu Croitoru, the Moldovan man behind the Be like Bill page on Facebook, that now has 1.4 million followers, told the BBC that his idea was "very simple".

"'Bill' can be anyone who is smart and has common sense and doesn't do annoying things," he said, "You'll also notice Bill can be someone who makes fun of himself and jokes about others too occasionally."

Debabrata Nath, a friend of Croitoru's who helps to run the page, told BuzzFeed, "Most people tend to take it in the way it should: as a joke, and something which is meant to be funny and not to be taken seriously."

He has a point, we think:

Photo: Be like Bill/ Facebook

Photo: Be like Bill/ Facebook

Photo: Be like Bill/ Facebook

Photo: Be like Bill/ Facebook

Photo: Be like Bill/ Facebook

But even Shakespeare had critics, so why shouldn't Bill? Thus, soon after Be like Bill became a rage, came another page on Facebook called Don't be like Bill. And they have there reasons too:

Photo: Don't be like Bill/ Facebook

Photo: Don't be like Bill/ Facebook

Photo: Don't be like Bill/ Facebook

And then, there are people who are just tired of what the stick man has to say:



This is Bill. This is what I will do to Bill if I see him on the internet ever again. pic.twitter.com/n39lHecJE1 Karl Sharro (@KarlreMarks) January 20, 2016
The Supreme Court has ordered a crack down on the builders after surprise checks by the court-appointed Environment Pollution Control Authority.

By Harish V Nair: Builders who are going about with their job violating norms and causing dust pollution are in trouble. The Supreme Court has ordered a crack down on the builders after surprise checks by the court-appointed Environment Pollution Control Authority.

The move by the apex court comes after Harish Salve, the amicus curiae in the case, told the court that Rs 50,000 fine, which was imposed by the National Green Tribunal on violators like those who dump construction material like dust cement, rocks, brick on roads as per its order last year December hardly proved to be a deterrent

When Salve said Rs 50,000 fine on somebody who is building a Rs 50,000-crore project is nothing, Chief Justice TS Thakur asked "why there is no higher fine on repeat offenders?"

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The court then asked the EPCA, whose member and Centre for Science and Environment Director General Sunita Narain was in the courtroom, to conduct surprise checks on various construction sites on getting complaints and file report in the court. "You inform us on the nature of activity going on and we will have the person suspended," said CJI Thakur.

The Supreme Court told Narain that the EPCA could hire volunteers for the job if there was manpower shortage for the task entrusted by the court.

The court also said that the construction materials kept inside the covered premises should also be covered apart from ensuring that there was no emission.



Also read:

Centre's new push to curb indoor pollution

Rising electricity costs enticing schools, varsities to shift to solar power
The government has also fixed an upper age limit for admission to entry-level classes with the maximum age for nursery being set at 4 years, and 5 and 6 years for pre-primary and class-I, respectively.

By PTI: The government's move to make the EWS admission process online for schools recognised under the Delhi School Education Act and Rules (DSEAR), 1973 and continue with the offline process for schools recognised under the Right to Education (RTE) Act 2009, saw parents hassled about which school is under which category. Accessibility to the Internet and required infrastructure also came across as a major problem for them.

Several camps have also been set up at the offices of MLAs to help parents fill up the admission form online.

The move to make admissions online came in wake of the fake admissions detected under the categories in previous years.

Till now, the government has just been issuing a common form and monitoring the draw-of-lots. The rest of the process used to be managed by schools. In an online system, however, candidates will be allotted seats and the admission process will be centralised.

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The government has also fixed an upper age limit for admission to entry-level classes with the maximum age for nursery being set at four years, and five and six years for pre-primary and class-I, respectively.

ALSO READ:

Delhi govt asks over 400 schools to refund extra fee charged within 15 days

50 per cent extra seats freed up after scrapping management quota: Arvind Kejriwal


The Delhi Police today sent out an advisory to the media channels alerting about a white Alto taxi that was hired from Pathankot by three unkown people and whose driver was found dead on January 20 in Kangada.

By India Today Web Desk: Security in the capital has been beefed up after an alert was sounded by intelligence agencies following the attack at the Pathankot Air Base.

The Delhi Police today sent out an advisory to the media channels alerting about a white Alto taxi that was hired from Pathankot by three unkown people and whose driver was found dead on January 20 in Kangada.

The Alto car with registration no. HP 01D2440 is still missing and search operations are on. The driver of the taxi, Vijay Kumar was from Gaggal area in Kangada.

Image of suspects

14 alleged ISIS 'sympathisers' have also been arrested from across the country including Karnataka, Hyderabad, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.



Delhi will remain on high alert till the Republic Day as the Centre has asked the Delhi Police to be prepared to foil any attempt by terrorists to carry out strikes in the city. Checks have been increased at the airports, railway stations, bus stands and other vital installations around the city, especially for vehicles coming from Punjab and Haryana.

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Asked on the threat perception, Delhi police Commissioner B S Bassi urged people in the city to remain alert without disclosing any further details citing security concerns.



Days before the Pathankot attack, central security agencies had reported that a group of 8 to 10 terrorists had crossed border from Pakistan.

In the aftermath of the terror attack, the BSF has transferred two top officials in the Gurdaspur sector. The action was taken after the security agency conducted an internal probe into how six Pakistani terrorists managed to slip in across the border.

Days after the Pathankot terror attack rocked the country, the Punjab Police arrested a BSF constable, who was allegedly involved in helping a cartel of drugs and arms smugglers infiltrate heroin and weapons into India.

Three weeks after the terrorist attacked the Pathankot airbase - the National Investigation Agency's (NIA) investigation is in full swing.

The investigating agency is likely to move court for conducting lie detector test on Gurdaspur Superintendent of Police Salwinder Singh who had claimed that he, along with his cook and a friend, were abducted by terrorists on his way back from Panj Pir shrine.
A drunk woman, now identified as Dr Anjali Ramkissoon, was caught on camera assaulting an Uber cab driver in Miami.

By India Today Web Desk: Alcohol can lessen inhibitions. It is not a rare occurrence that we come across people who do crazy things after a few drinks down.

But not always is it excusable.

Last Sunday night, Dr Anjali Ramkissoon, a neurology resident in Miami, was caught on camera attacking and verbally abusing an Uber cabbie left, right and centre, clearly under the influence of alcohol.

A video of this scuffle between the driver and Ramkissoon was posted online on Tuesday by Youtube user JuanCinco, who described the incident in the description:

Photo: YouTube

Ramkissoon, a 30-year-old fourth-year resident at Jackson Memorial Medical Center, has been placed on administrative leave. The driver in question has not been identified yet.

In the light of this incident, the University of Miami Medicine has released a statement on their Facebook and Twitter pages regarding Ramkisoon's status:



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"The video, which has now gone viral, shows Ramkissoon trying to attack the driver repeatedly, who defends himself by holding her hands away. Ramkissoon is heard abusing the man as he asks someone to call 911."

Later in the video, Ramkissoon is seen jumping into the Uber vehicle as the driver tries to leave, then throwing everything out of the car.

JuanCinco writes in the description that Ramkissoon became remorseful after police arrived. "It was only when they put her in the police car she started crying, apologizing, and claiming that she would lose her medical license (she claimed to be a neurologist) if she got arrested."

Ramkissoon, however, was not arrested as the driver did not want to press charges. She has also not commented publicly since the video went viral.

Here's the video of Dr Ramkissoon losing it:
Google said that the service would be next rolled out to Allahabad, Patna, Jaipur and Ranchi.

By Javed Anwer: Google and RailTel joined hands to bring free Wi-Fi to millions of train commuters last year. Now, there is some action on the ground. On Friday, Google and RailTel announced that free high-speed Wi-Fi was now available at the Mumbai Central train station.

Google said that the service would be next rolled out to Allahabad, Patna, Jaipur and Ranchi. The plan, according to the company, the service will be rolled out to cover 100 of the busiest stations by end of 2016, making it the largest public Wi-Fi project in the world.

The project was announced last September during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Google headquarters in Mountain View. Also Sundar Pichai, during his visit to India recently, highlighted how Google and RailTel were working to bring connectivity to Indian train stations. Eventually, the plan is to offer the Wi-Fi at 400 stations.

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Designed to offer users the best Internet experience, RailWire Wi-Fi will be available to any user who has a working mobile connection on a smartphone. Users will be able to easily stream a high definition video while they're waiting, research their destination, or save some videos for offline viewing, download a book or a new game for the journey.

"Our intent was to fulfill Indian Railway's vision of providing Railway passengers access to high speed internet through our optical fibre communication network. With our partnership with Google, we are very confident of rolling out a robust, scalable service at railway stations in the near future," said chairman and managing director of RailTel R K Bahuguna.

To use the service, consumers will have to first authenticate their credentials. That will happen though a SMS.

To use the free Wi-Fi at Mumbai Central, you will have to use following method:

1- Select RailWire from available Wi-Fi networks

2- Open browser and enter railwire.co.in

3- Enter the phone number in Wi-Fi login screen and click Receive SMS button

4- SMS with 4-number OTP will be sent. Use the OTP to login

The RailWire uses Indian Railways extensive optical fibre network. "We're delighted to launch India's first high speed public Wi-Fi service in partnership with Indian Railways. By end of this year over 10 million people will be able to enjoy this experience at 100 stations spread across the country," said Rajan Anandan, VP & managing director Google South-East Asia.


On Thursday, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh addressed a mammoth rally in North 24-Parganas' Ashoknagar area and another district that shares its borders with Bangladesh.

By Soudhriti Bhabani: With the 2016 West Bengal Assembly elections round the corner, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is targeting fringe districts that share borders with Bangladesh to begin their poll campaign. It is perhaps easier for the saffron brigade to make political inroads in such pockets riding on the strong anti-Muslim sentiments.

On Thursday, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh addressed a mammoth rally in North 24-Parganas' Ashoknagar area - another West Bengal district that shares border with Bangladesh.

Last week, Union minister for road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari had held a rally In South Dinajpur district, another bordering district.

The rally was initially slated to be held in Malda district but it was shifted from there to Dinajpur as the state administration did not grant permission.

A series of meetings by the BJP top brass are lined up in the run up to the state polls. Other saffron biggies like party all-India president Amit Shah and Union HRD minister Smriti Irani are also scheduled to address rallies in Burdwan district's Asansol and Kolkata's twin Howrah district, respectively, this month.

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West Bengal has over 28 per cent of Muslim population, which plays a crucial role in the electoral fate of any political formation. Currently, the party has only one representative, Samik Bhattacharya, in the 294-member West Bengal Assembly from North 24-Parganas' Barasat south constituency.

Also Read: Performance, polls to decide on Cabinet rejig

Also Read: BJP sounds war cry, attacks TMC


By :- Adinda Aura Salsabil- Annastasya Barbie Dwi Oktavia Putri- Khoirunnisa Fitriana- Wahyu RomaningsihAs we all know, Indonesia unemployment rise amid sluggish economy. It is showed by unemployment rate that always increase from year to year. According to the latest data from BPSs February 2015 data, the unemployment rate stands at 5.81 percent. In comparison, in February 2015 the unemployment rate stood at 5.7 percent. There are several reasons that will explain why it is happened. There are three causes of rising Indonesias unemployment.First reason is about slow economy. The unemployment rate in Indonesia to 6.18 percent in August amid layoffs by businesses hit with a slowdown in consumer demand brought on by the slowest pace of economic growth in six years. The economy is slowing, domestically and globally. It just cant be helped that unemployment rose, Darmin Nasution, the coordinating minister for the economy, said in Jakarta on Thursday. Some 7.6 million people out of Indonesias workforce of 122 million was out of a job in August, compared to 7.24 million, or 5.9 percent, in the same month last year, according to the latest data from the Central Statistics Agency, or BPS. In response to the slowdown, the administration of President Joko Widodo has since September rolled out a series of policy reform packages intended to stimulate growth, the latest of which was announced on Thursday and offered hefty incentives to foreign investors to set up businesses in special economic zones.The second reason of the increasing unemployment rate is population growth. Population growth in Indonesia, from year to year will increase. The total population of Indonesia in 2011 amounted to over 241 million people (source: BKKBN), this population growth must be balanced with the quality and quantity of the population itself. With the rapid population growth, many have negative consequences. For example, the number of unemployed is increasing, food shortages are not balanced by the number of Indonesian population, so much malnutrition and food. The occurrence of increased criminality and the poverty rate increased. This is due to the incompatibility of population and employment in Indonesia. As well as increased costs for education so as not to create a quality and quantity of the population to get a job, even lead to crime to meet their daily needs that must be met, namely food.The last reason is about job opportunities. The problem of job opportunities in Indonesia now has reached in worrying condition. It is mentioned by a large number of unemployment, low relative income and uneven development, especially in the village left. Economist of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Edimon Ginting said, there are 2.7 million jobs created in Indonesia for a year, but the capacity is not proportional to the number of job applicants and it makes job opportunities in Indonesia is very low as compared to people who need jobs. There are several factors that lead to a lack of jobs and solutions to cope the lack of job opportunities. The causes why Indonesia lack of jobs are low education, low skills, and unadequate mental, and the solutions that can be given are repairing the education in Indonesia, skills training and create a job.Based on some reasons above, we can conclude that unemployment in Indonesia is caused by slow economy, increasing population growth, and job opportunities problem. Unemployment is not a simple problem, because the impact is so great for the economy and development of society itself. So, we should think about solutions that can be applied to solve this social problem. And of course involve all elements of Indonesian society, in particular educational institutions in this country.
By India Today Web Desk: Chillies have been known to cause tears, the wild grab for water the moment you bite on one by mistake is something all of us have experienced at least once. Before Wilbur Scoville however, no one knew how to measure a pepper's "heat". The doodle team thought his work in this field-and the development of his eponymous Scoville Scale-deserved some recognition.

Born in Bridgeport Connecticut on January 22nd, 1865, Wilbur Lincoln Scoville was a chemist, award-winning researcher, professor of pharmacology and the second vice-chairman of the American Pharmaceutical Association. His book, The Art of Compounding, makes one of the earliest mentions of milk as an antidote for pepper heat. He is perhaps best remembered for his organoleptic test, which uses human testers to measure spice level of peppers.

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Spiciness is described as a mini fighting game in this doodle. It allows you to test spice level of every chilly in existence with a brief description of the pepper before you faceoff against it. Each level gets progressively tougher, starting off with bell peppers that has 0 scoville heat units and facing off against the fearsome Trinidad Morgua Sorpion pepper that has over 2 million in Scoville heat units.
The Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) today ordered the formation of a judicial commission to probe the suicide case of Rohith Vemula.

By India Today Web Desk: The Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) today ordered the formation of a judicial commission to probe the suicide case of Rohith Vemula, a PhD scholar who was found hanging in his hostel room on the University of Hyderabad campus on Sunday. The ministry has sought a report in three months time.

The development came after a two-member fact-finding committee set up by the HRD ministry submitted its report to HRD Minister Smriti Irani today. The committee to probe the suicide case of the Dalit research scholar was formed earlier this week by the ministry itself and consisted of Shakila T Shamsu, OSD and a Deputy Secretary-level officer Surat Singh.

Meanwhile, the University of Hyderabad has announced a compensation of Rs 8 lakh for Rohith's family.

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The suicide of the Dalit student snowballed into a huge controversy and sparked off a political storm. Several politicians, including Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, rushed to Hyderabad earlier this week to show solidarity with students protesting against the university administration and the HRD ministry for forcing Rohith to commit suicide.

Also read:

Hyderabad Dalit suicide: ABVP student's medical report contradicts assault claims

Hyderabad Central University V-C Appa Rao on Rohith Vemula's suicide: Wrong to label me as BJP man




India's top green watchdog has once again found a Coca Cola plant pumping out toxic waste water into a pond surrounded by vast swathes of agricultural fields near Delhi.

By Darpan Singh: India's top green watchdog has once again found a Coca Cola plant pumping out toxic waste water into a pond surrounded by vast swathes of agricultural fields near Delhi. This is the second time it has happened in less than two months.

One of the two effluent treatment plants (ETPs) at Coke's Hapur facility has long been defunct, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has said in its inspection report calling it 'a matter of serious concern.'

This could mean 350 KLD (kilo litres a day) of 'high strength organic wastewater' from the fruit juice section flows out raw. The board filed the report before the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on January 14.

Raw or partially-treated discharge from the Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt. Ltd (HCCB) plant, operational since 1999, might be flowing into the underground drainage system - this was established by the water quality in the 75m x 75m pond, said the report. "The ETP was dry; there was no wastewater in it," the report said. Submitting photographs to back its findings, the CPCB said, "Had the ETP been operational, gases - mainly methane -would have been collected and utlised. There was nothing in the gas holder."

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The CPCB had filed its first inspection report on November 19 as asked by the National Green Tribunal (NGT). The report, carried first by MAIL TODAY, said the two sewage treatment plants (STPs) and one of the two ETPs were defunct. Overall, the plant throws out 1,900 KLD of industrial waste water and 100 KLD of sewage.

The NGT found the report alarming and sought immediate action. However, they had to order a second inspection when the HCCB said it only had one ETP and it was functioning. The latest CPCB report trashes HCCB's claim and says the plants needs to fix its clean-up systems immediately.

HCCB on Wednesday said, "We have informed the tribunal that we only have one ETP, which is functioning. The CPCB is incorrect. We will file a detailed response."

HCCB has till February 9 to come clean on its entire drainage and wastewater clean-up plan of its bottling plant in western Uttar Pradesh which is already battling groundwater crisis.

The CPCB has stood by all of its earlier findings. "The pond was overflowing with effluents. There was a growth of mosquitoes and flies. The coliform (found in excreta) count in the pond was about 3,500 times more than what should be in treated waste water," it had said. The report had also spoken about the soil in the surrounding fields becoming infertile.

"Water quality in the pond - with inlet and outlet at the same corner - is also poor on organic strength indicators. This major water polluting industry has no facility for online pollution monitoring," the CPCB had said, adding that the 'consent to operate' the bottling plant expired a year ago, something the HCCB denied.

The NGT ordered the inspection in July last year after a lawyer filed a petition, complaining of groundwater contamination. The petitioner's lawyer, Vikas Gaur, said, "Despite the present case, pollution continues."

Former CPCB scientist Mahendra Pandey said it was shocking that pollution watchdogs did not wake up unless they were dragged to court.

Also read: India Today sting shows anything eatable can be banned


India Today TV has obtained exclusive information which shows how the various terror sleeper cells are guided by their handlers in Pakistan over the phone.

An unprecedented alert has been issued ahead of the Republic Day celebrations in the wake of the January 2 Pathankot attack.

It was not only for Pathankot. Pakistani handlers are regularly giving real-time guidance to sleeper cell operatives from across the border, according to intelligence sources.

India Today TV has obtained exclusive information which shows how the various terror sleeper cells are guided by their handlers in Pakistan over the phone.

The various recordings include a telephone conversation between Harkat-ul-Jihad al-Islami (HuJi) chief Jan Mohammad and his contact, a terrorist named Imtiyaz, at Darugmul in the Kashmir valley. The HuJi chief used a Mobilink Pakistani mobile number +923******737 while Imtiyaz used a BSNL mobile number 946****805. In the recording, Jan tells Imtiyaz to get hold of assault weapons.

Sources say a lot of conversation between terrorists in India and their handlers in Pakistan happens using codes. For example, chotta maal means pistols, while bada maal refers to assault rifles, typically an AK-47. An improvised explosive device is referred to as American Girl.

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During the conversation, HuJi's Jan Mohammad asked Imtiyaz to go to a pre-decided location and get hold of a pistol which has to be handed over to a contact in the Valley two days later.

In another such conversation, a terrorist named Yusuf Baloch, leader of the Al Badr group, called up a person named Mir, who is on a mission in the Valley. The Al Badr leader used the Pakistani mobile number +923******197, operated by Ufone, while Mir used an Aircel J&K number +729****948. Yusuf talked about sending a person across the Line Of Control.

In the conversation, the Indian contact of the Pakistani handler is very concerned about the level of training of the person who is being sent across the border. Intelligence sources tell India Today TV that the reference to education in the conversation is actually a reference to the level of training the terrorist has received. Mir wants to ensure that the terrorist who is coming across is well-trained in operations.

According to intelligence sources, terrorists in India talk to their handlers not just about the movement of personnel across the border and shipment of weapons and ammunition, but things as basic as the handler telling his operative where to get hold of a second SIM card from, without giving any proof of identity.

"Don't give away any personal details. Open a new Gmail account in another name. And stay in constant touch with the new SIM," was the direct instruction given by a handler to his agent operating in the Valley.

In another such conversation, a handler using a Thuraya Satellite phone spoke to an agent who is at a trade fair in New Delhi's famous Pragrati Maidan. Sources said amid the 72,000 square metres of the exhibition space, an ISI agent had put up a stall at a recent trade fair and was providing details to his handler in Pakistan.

Also read: Operation Sleeper Cell: How Pakistani handlers guide terrorists in India


By Priya Pathak: What is a dream job? There are many answers but we are sure that for most engineers and techies one of them would involve working at Microsoft. The company is one of the best employers, globally as well as in India. So what does it take to get hired by Microsoft?

There are many requirements and then finally there is the interview. Thankfully, the recruiters at Microsoft have shared some of the insight on how they hire people and have a few tips to offer to prospective employees. We pick 10 that you should follow in case one day you find yourself appearing in an at interview at Microsoft's office. They won't guarantee that you will be hired but they sure will improve the chances.

1. Brush up your basics first: "Practice your coding, design and algorithms, and always validate or test your solutions," suggests recruiter Abby Arvanitidis, who hires engineering and programme management candidates for OneDrive and SharePoint. Remember, you can't build a great building on a weak foundation!

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2. Review your resume: Abby also suggests going through your resume first. You would not want to look like someone with a completely different identity than what your resume says about you. You should be able to give real examples from your past projects and companies.

3. Internet for in-person interview: In case if you are going to have a phone or Skype interview, you must have a good internet connection before you go for a personal interview. Recruiters ask the candidate to code in personal interviews. For that purpose your phone needs to have Code editor - a text editor program that allows interviewers to see your screen and watch you deliver your work on time.

4. Enthusiasm and expectation: Seema Chandrasekharan, recruiter for Outlook, Office 365 and Enterprise Cloud, says that knowing about your expectations helps the recruiter to take better decisions for you. So, be opportunistic and try finding out what you can from your recruiter.

5. Go ahead, show off: Your interview is an opportunity to show your best traits to the recruiter. When in Microsoft, Chandrasekharan suggests that you show off with the help of these seven traits:



a. Look interested in technology



b. Be innovative



c. Be creative



d. Be adaptive



e. Try to show problem-solving abilities



f. Be analytical in thinking



g. Handle your feedback well

6. Strong communication skills: Good communication is all about listening and also letting the person know you heard what was said. "I've seen more than a handful of occasions where candidates have accidentally answered different questions than they were asked, or have over complicated their answers due to a communication mix-up," shares recruiter Yamaguchi.

7. Ask your interviewer: It is important to understand that job interviews are two-ways streets. So, make sure you ask questions to your interviewer regarding your interests, your work process and what is important to you. The recruiter might try some mind tricks but certainly can't hack your mind!

8. Check your work: Always check your work before you go for final submission. The habit of revising your test paper before the submission can always help you score some extra points.

9. Keep it simple: Chandrasekharan suggests you to consider the logicality of your solution and avoid making it too complex. Clear steps of solution also reflect how clear you are in your line of thinking.

10. Be yourself: Last but not the least-be yourself. Take pride in what you are, and feel good about it. Yamaguchi also suggests you to be quick in thinking and receptive to feedback as it shows that you have potential to soar high.

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Job interviews in tech: Google's hardest to crack, Twitter gets on your nerves
18 suspected terrorists have been detained in the past 24 hours in nationwide counter-terror raids by intelligence agencies, state police and the NIA said.

By India Today Web Desk: 18 suspected terrorists have been detained in the past 24 hours in nationwide counter-terror raids by intelligence agencies, state police and the NIA said. There are fears of Paris-like attack on metro cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata. Terror suspects have been detained Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Meerut, Roorkee.

Raids are still on across the country against ISIS and Jaish -Mohammad (JeM) sympathisers. Intelligence agencies say the terror groups are planning to target Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Republic Day parade, which will be attended by French President Francois Hollande.

There are intercepts to suggest that there are different modules of two different terror groups which are working to strike against Republic Day. Security agencies also fear attack by a lone wolf.

In Delhi, the police issued an alert after the driver of a taxi hired by three Punjabi speaking unidentified men from Pathankot was found dead in Kangra district in Himachal Pradesh.

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The driver, identified as Vijay Kumar, a resident of Gaggal village in Kangra district, was found dead on Wednesday at the Kalta bridge in Kangra and his taxi missing, Delhi Police said.

Earlier this week, an SUV fitted with a blue beacon was stolen from the Noida house of the Inspector General of the Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Anand Swarup. The Tata Safari remains untraced.

The chain of events is similar to what happened before the January 2 Pathankot attack.

Former DGP of Uttar Pradesh, Vikram Singh, while speaking to India Today, described the present situation as unprecedented as never before so many terror suspects were apprehended in raids across the country.

"The threat is real. It is well known that the cadres of the Indian Mujahideen and SIMI are behind these disturbances. Therefore, the sleeper cells, their supporters and the men detained in the last 24 hours could reveal important leads and the need to pursue those," Singh said.

Four men were arrested in Mumbra, Thane today. One of the arrested men is a software engineer. Security agencies claimed that he is a recruiting agent of Islamic State.

In Hyderabad, NIA picked up 4 men and reports say that they were under the watch of intelligence agencies for the last 4-5 months. The intriguing part of the story is that they belong to two different terror modules. The suspects are currently being interrogated about their plans.

The largest number of arrests were made in Karnataka today. Four in Bangalore, 1 in Mangalore and 1 in Tumkur. According to reports, all the six men were in touch with a person named Anzar Shah, who has links with Al Qaeda. But the worrying fact is that these arrested men are well educated and at least one of them is a software engineer. Sources in NIA told India Today that there is a link between the six men arrested in Karnataka and the man held in Mumbra.

There are fears of Paris-like attack on metro cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata. (India Today Television grab)

"These arrests are just the tip of the iceberg. Agencies should bring them all to Delhi to interrogate and confront them with each other so that you get to the bottom of the story," Singh said.

Former Additional Secretary R&AW Jayadeva Ranade described the situation as a race against time for security agencies.

"Looking at 26 January as the immediate date of concern...don't forget that French President will be here during the Republic Day. I understand that there is a very level of cooperation going on between the French, Indian and also the American intelligence agencies. Foreign agencies would also assist agencies here to identify people who could have gone unnoticed otherwise," Ranade said.

ALSO READ:

Pathankot attack fallout: Air force demands demolition of houses around Agra air base

City on high alert, Delhi Police conduct mock security drills


Sambia Sohrab, who has been accused of crushing to death an IAF officer during Republic Day parade rehearsal in Kolkata, has confessed to his crime.

By India Today Web Desk: Sambia Sohrab, who has been accused of crushing to death an IAF officer during Republic Day parade rehearsal in Kolkata, has confessed to his crime.

Sohrab has admitted that he was behind the wheels of the speeding Audi when it hit 21-year-old IAF Corporal Abhimanyu Gaud on January 13. Sohrab is the son of former Rashtriya Janata Dal legislator Mohammad Sohrab.

The brand new white Audi broke three guard rails and barged into the parade rehearsal before fatally hitting Gaud on the Red Road.

Sambia has been booked under IPC sections 120(B) (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence), 212 (harbouring offender) and 427 (mischief causing damage).

Eyewitnesses Johny and Shahnawaz, who were behind Sohrab's Audi in another car when the accident happened are also in police custody.

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The case had created a political storm with the opposition parties claiming that police delayed Sohrab's arrest as his father was a leader of West Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress.

However, the Trinamool denied its links with Mohammad Sohrab and pointed out that he had become a state legislator in 2006 with support from the Communist Party of India-Marxist led Left Front.

The Indian Air Force, which is also probing the matter, too earlier claimed "vested interests" were thwarting the probe.

Also read:

Kolkata hit-and-run case: Sambia Sohrab sent to 14-day police custody


By India Today Web Desk: Mrinalini Sarabhai, dancer, choreographer, founding director of Darpana Academy of Performing Arts in Ahmedabad and wife of well known Vikram Sarabhai, had passed away yesterday. The 97-year-old Sarabhai was admitted to a hospital in Ahmedabad due to old age complications.

Around yesterday midnight, Mallika Sarabhai, daughter of Mrinalini and Vikram Sarabhai, updated a status on her Facebook profile slamming Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not condoling her mother's death, despite she being a Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri awardee, and having showcased the Indian culture before the world for over 60 years.

Mallika, a dancer and an activist, has in the past, protested against PM Narendra Modi, who was then the Gujarat CM, accusing him of being responsible for the 2002 communal riots in the state. She joined the Aam Aadmi Party in 2014.

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She started her post writing, "My dear prime minister, you hate my politics and I hate yours." and stated "That her death sees no word from you shows your mentality."

Here's what she wrote:



"My dear prime minister,

You hate my politics and I hate yours.

That has nothing to do with what Mrinalini Sarabhai did to promote the culture of this country to the world over sixty years. She blazed a trailer for our culture in the world.

That her death sees no word from you shows your mentality. How ever much you hate me, as our prime minister it behove you to recognise her contribution.

You have not. Shame on you"



Here's the original post:





My dear prime ministerYou hate my politics and I hate yours.That has nothing to do with what Mrinalini Sarabhai did to...Posted by Mallika Sarabhai on Thursday, January 21, 2016




Five people sleeping on a pavement were injured as a speeding Mercedes car ran over them in south Mumbai last night. Driver Amin Khan who had fled the spot, has been arrested.

By India Today Web Desk: Five people sleeping on a pavement were injured as a speeding Mercedes car ran over them in south Mumbai last night. Driver Amin Khan who had fled the spot, has been arrested.

Among injured are four women and a child.



The incident occurred around midninght at Mohammed Ali road when the white Mercedes, with a Jharkhand number plate, drove over a pavement, crashing into a Toyota car.

"Investigation is being done. We are however not sure about the number of people inside the car. It can be determined only after thorough investigation," said Ashok Dudhe, a senior police officer.

The injured are being treated at the government-run JJ Hospital.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses the convocation ceremony at Ambedkar university in Lucknow on Friday, January 22, 2016. (PTI Photo)

By India Today Web Desk: Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the convocation ceremony at Ambedkar university in Lucknow today. Speaking at the event, the PM got emotional while remembering Hyderabad university student Rohith Vemula, who committed suicide last Sunday.

Modi choked and paused while referring to the PhDscholar's death."Politics aside, a mother lost her son, and I feel the pain. A mother has lost his son, there cannot be a bigger grief," he said.

Highlights Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar did a lot for the nation but one thing he was particular about was education: PM in Lucknow People know Dr. Babasaheb's role in the making of the Constitution but he was also a doctorate in economics from USA. Dr. Ambedkar did not live for himself. He achieved everything even then he dedicated his life to the nation, to marginalised communities. Look at Dr. Ambedkar's life. He faced several obstacles, even insults. But he had the strength & faced these obstacles. Dr. Ambedkar felt that struggles could be overcome through education. There are so many people, some of whom you would not even be aware of, who have helped you achieve this degree. Sources of information are many but whats essential is to pick out relevant portions that one requires. What his family members must be going through. Mother India has lost her son. Politics aside, the fact is that we lost a son. I can understand the pain: Modi on Rohith Vemula's death

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Modi's speech was disrupted by some students to raised slogans against him at the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University in Lucknow. The students were escorted out of the auditorium by the police and some of the protesters have been detained.

PhD scholar Rohith Vemula had committed suicide inside the hostel of University of Hyderabad last Sunday days after he alongwith his four friends were suspended by the university administration for manhandling a local ABVP leader.

Rohith suicide triggered massive protests across the country with political parties claiming that he was compelled to take the extreme step due to the discrimination he faced because of his caste..

Union minister Bandaru Dattatreya has been accused of forcing the university to punish Rohith and the four other Dalit students. HRD minister Smriti Irani, however, rejected the that it was a Dalit versus non-Dalit drawing ire from protesting students and opposition parties.

Watch full video here:
By Kumar Vikram: The curious case of a Lutyens' building on Jantar Mantar Road has put the urban development ministry (MoUD) in a quandary. The ministry has no record to show who owns the much-valued property. Officials are digging out files to trace the owner after an RTI query by activist Subhash Agarwal raised the pertinent question: Who owns 7, Jantar Mantar?

The activist was told that the property was allotted to the undivided Congress party in 1969. The building is now in a dilapidated state and almost resembles a ghost bungalow. Apart from housing the office of Bihar's ruling party Janata Dal (United), the premises also houses a "dhaba".

"As per the records of lease-1 Section of Land & Development Office, there is no information as to which political parties the property at 7, Jantar Mantar Road, New Delhi was allotted," reads the RTI reply received recently.

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Mail Today visited the site on Thursday and found smaller companies and NGOs are also running their offices from the property. Lack of maintenance over the years has turned the old building into a hazard zone.

Documents show there is no clarity on the ownership of any building made on land given to a political party after division in that party. Records said that the Union of India had sold the property to the All India Congress Committee, which used it as its office. Later, the AICC split into the Congress (O) and the Congress (R) in 1969. The Congress (O) managed to retain the rights over the premises, while the Congress (R) moved out. The Congress (O) merged into the Janata Party in 1977.

An NGO, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Smarak Trust, claims to be the holder of the property. It has claimed that on April 30, 1977, Ashok Mehta, the then president of the Indian National Congress, the AlCC and four others had executed the deed in favour of the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Smarak Trust, transferring all its rights and interest of obtaining convenience of the said property from the government as was agreed in 1959. The deed

Documents received in compliance to the Chief Information Commissioner's verdict reveal that MoUD had declined to entertain a deed executed on April 30, 1977 by Ashok Mehta in favour of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Smarak Trust.

"The Trust was informed that it would not be possible to execute the deed in favour of the Trust as it had not entered into transaction with them," said the RTI reply.

However, HK Gupta, administrative officer at the Trust library, said all the occupants have the permission of the Trust. "They give rent to the Trust since years," he said. When asked about the ownership of the property, he said the matter is in court.

Raising question on the government's policy to provide land to political parties at cheaper rates, Agrawal said, "The current status of the building puts a big question mark on a policy where there is no clarity about ownership of any building made on land provided to a political party after division in the party.

Agrawal said since political parties and the Union government are not in favour of complying with the CIC verdict in June 2013 holding political parties under purview of the RTI Act, it is unjustified for the government to indirectly fund political parties through heavily subsidised land.

"Union and state governments must not allot property including land, building, floors, apartments, etc, to political parties. Buildings built on subsidised land given to political parties may become government property in case of division in the party," he added.

Also read: Plan to revamp Lutyens Bungalow Zone irks heritage experts


#AwardWapsi sequel is here - #AwardWapsiReturns! Are we getting a closure to the intolerance debate?

By India Today Web Desk: On October 7, 2015, India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru's niece and noted writer Nayantara Sahgal returned her Sahitya Akademi Award in protest against the Modi government's failure to safeguard cultural diversity, and what she called as "growing intolerance" in the country.

She was first Sahitya Akademi award winner to return the honour in protest. Soon, 40 other writers joined her.

As per a report in the Hindustan Times, some of the eminent writers who had returned their awards have eased up and agreed to take them back.

The protest then was termed as #AwardWapsi now has a sequel - #AwardWapsiReturns.

Sahitya Akademi president Vishwanath Prasad Tiwari said they have mailed Akademi's stand to all 40 people who had returned their awards stating there is no provision in its constitution to accept returned awards.

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Sahgal told HT, "The Akademi wrote a letter to me saying it is against their policy to receive returned award and therefore they are sending back the award. I will use the money for a worthwhile cause and welfare schemes."

But Nayantara told ANI minutes ago that she's being misquoted. She said, "People are quoting me incorrectly, haven't agreed to take back returned award. It is Sahitya Akademi's policy to not accept awards back once they confer it on an individual."

Erm, we think that means she's accepting the return of the award.

Nand Bhardwaj said, "I found the conduct and action of the Akademi satisfactory and appreciate the efforts they have taken and hence I have decided to take back the award."

Nayantara had sent a cheque of Rs 1 lakh and Bhardwaj a cheque of Rs 50,000 to the Akademi, and now the Akademi has returned the money.

Poet Ashok Vajpeyi, on the other hand, is unwilling to take back his award. He said, "I don't think that its [Akademi's] conduct as an autonomous institution devoted to excellence has been rehabilitated. So I don't think there is reason enough for me to reconsider the decision of taking the award back."

Let us await news about more members of #AwardWapsi sequel to take back their returned awards.



Maybe, just maybe, intolerance debate is getting a closure here.




Quoting a Taiwanese official, the website claims that since the coffin was too long to be put in a plane bound for Tokyo, where the body was originally scheduled to be taken for performing his last rites, they had to cremate Netaji in Taihoku.

The website, www.bosefiles.info has been coming out with serialised 'revelations' backing the theory that the Indian revolutionary leader died in a plane crash on August 18, 1945, in Taiwan.

By India Today Web Desk: Subhas Chandra Bose was cremated in Taihoku claims a British website.

Quoting a Taiwanese official, the website claims that since the coffin was too long to be put in a plane bound for Tokyo, where the body was originally scheduled to be taken for performing his last rites, they had to cremate Netaji in Taihoku.

The website, www.bosefiles.info has been coming out with serialised 'revelations' backing the theory that the Indian revolutionary leader died in a plane crash on August 18, 1945, in Taiwan.

In its latest post on Thursday, the site created by London-based journalist and Netaji's grand nephew Ashish Roy referred to the evidence provided by Tan Ti-Ti, who was in charge of issuing cremation permits in Taipei, together with that of other local officials, to buttress its claim.

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Tan Ti-Ti, in his testimony contained in the British Foreign Office's file number FC1852/6 of 1956, said that he personally attended to Bose's body at the concerned crematorium.

It also transpires from the file that Japanese army officers probably did not issue a death certificate in Bose's name to maintain secrecy about his demise.

Ko Keng Yuan, who was the Director of the Health Centre in Taipei, stated the matter of Bose's death and whether the cremation permit was issued under an assumed name "were important secrets of the Japanese military".

Eleven years after the alleged air crash, British Consul General in Taiwan Albert Franklin wrote to the Taiwanese government requesting an investigation into the death of Bose.

In response, CK Yen, Chairman of the Taiwan Provincial Government, sent a detailed police report dated June 27, 1956. This included an interview with Tan Ti-Ti, who said the cremation took place on August 22, 1945.

A Japanese army officer who accompanied the body told Tan Ti-Ti, "The deceased was Bose, the Indian leader who, proceeding to Tokyo on important business, was injured when his plane was involved in an accident."

The previous day - August 21, 1945 - the same Japanese officer, according to Tan Ti-Ti, "submitted the death certificate of a certain Ichiro Okura".

Yen clarified to Franklin that during World War 2 in the case of military personnel--Bose was then Supreme Commander of the Indian National Army -- without family members in Taiwan, "permission for cremation was granted on the strength of a certificate from a military hospital".

This appears to have occurred in the case of Bose, the website claimed.

The police findings based on a report prepared by Taiwan's Department of Health said: "There is a register of cremations at the Municipal Health Centre and the officers of the Health Centre are of the opinion that the entry was made in the name of Ichiro Okura."

Tan Ti-Ti confirmed that on the day of the cremation, the same Japanese army officer "came to the crematorium in a car in the company of an Indian", said to be Bose's aide-de-camp Colonel Habibur Rehman, who survived the crash.

He went on to say "the Indian, it was said he was Bose's follower, some said he was an aide-de-camp; he was dressed in the white garment of Japanese soldiers under medical care, wore slippers, parts of his face were bandaged; he was tall and swarthy, wept bitterly and seemed extremely sorrowful".

Tan Ti-Ti asserted he and another person called Lin Sui Mu opened the coffin. He added the body had been "put into a coffin for conveyance to Tokyo but the coffin was too big for aeroplanes available at the time. It was, therefore, cremated in Taipei.

The next day (August 23, 1945), the Indian (Col. Rehman) and the same Japanese army officer came to collect the ashes, Tan Ti-Ti further maintained.

Tan Ti-Ti's testimony matches that of Colonel Habibur Rehman.

"I requested the (Japanese) Army authorities to arrange for the early transportation of the body either to Singapore or Tokyo, preferably to Singapore," Rehman testified on August 24, 1945.

He went on: "On 21-8-45 a senior Japanese Staff Officer informed me in the hospital that the length of box (coffin) did not allow the box being put into the plane. He suggested that the body be cremated in Taihoku.

"Seeing no other alternative, I agreed to the suggestion and the body was cremated on 22-8-1945 at Taihoku under the arrangement of the Army authorities. The ashes were collected on 23-8-1945."

Also Read

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Don't believe Netaji died in plane crash, must probe Russian angle, says Mamata Banerjee


By Sonia Chopra: It's one of those lesser-known events of American history that has faded from collective memory but one which briefly captured the imagination of the public, bringing into sharp focus what "protestors" could accomplish. That said, it vanished quickly from the headlines and became a news story, which was much mocked and little understood.

It happened in late 1999 when the mass protests of the World Trade Organization meetings on global trade became a contentious, bitter battle in Seattle, Washington, with lasting consequences. The city was taken over by an estimated 60,000 anti-WTO demonstrators who protested and sought to raise awareness by voicing their concerns on labour, environmental, and secretive free trade agreements.

It was planned as a peaceful protest but escalated into violence. Protesters blocked delegates from 125 nations from entering meetings at the Washington State Convention Center.

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This enraged law enforcement authorities who attacked protesters with tear gas and made hundreds of arrests, which resulted in several charges of police brutality and lawsuits. The fallout was disastrous: local businesses reported an estimated $3 million in damages, city officials such as police chief Norm Stamper were forced to resign, and Mayor Paul Schell's future in politics seemed like it was prematurely over.

Those were five extraordinary, chaotic days with high drama and emotions ranging from anger to frustration tinged with hope for change. And, this is the story explored in the unusually startling, thrilling and ambitious literary debut by Sunil Yapa.

The 38-year-old author lived briefly in Seattle after the protests and was inundated with stories of that time. In his novel, Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist, Yapa reimagines and recreates the riots with a ferocious, visual intensity and turns them into an epic kaleidoscopic event. The title has been taken from a song by artist Dalia Sapon-Shevin, one that got much play during the demonstrations. Yapa's novel takes us into the heart of the battle between the protesters and police. It is told by seven different participants who bring to the table their own prejudices, perspectives and wish lists.

Through the drugged consciousness of Victor, who is a homeless teenaged pothead and weed dealer, we see the group of dedicated protesters. On one side, there's Kingfisher, an eco-activist, and Henry, a strong supporter of non-violent civil disobedience. They form a human chain to block the delegates from entering the convention center.

On the other side are two upright police officers, Yu and Park, who try to wrest some control from the surging crowd and fail. Ultimately, they give in to their frustration and unite with the other cops who try to disperse the crowd with beatings, tear gas and rubber bullets.

The brutality is documented in excruciating detail. It's a bit gory, it's a bit disgusting, and it's worthy of condemnation. The violence by the angry protesters is somewhat difficult to stomach but the account is well told and you are led into going with the flow. One of the most heart-wrenchingly tender and dramatic moments in the book is the meeting between the police chief and his estranged son Victor in the street.

The genius factor of this debut isn't just in the capturing of the two perspectives between the police and protesters. It's the diverging points of view of the other narrators, each of whom has a back story, an opinion of the world and their own psychology that make this richly crafted novel with multicultural threads work amazingly well. There's the protestor who is consumed inwardly by the choices of her past, there's a lover who doesn't want to be a part of the violence, the two well-meaning officers who are struggling with the crowd, and the desperate delegate from Sri Lanka.

Yapa uses a lot of strong imagery which invokes the senses and stirs up a sense of nostalgia. His style of writing is polished and pared down. He uses politics, human nature and all its triumphs and failures to raise many important issues. One of the most powerful statements of the novel are also the chief's personal mantra: "Care too much and the world will kill you cold." A lesson that the protesters learnt the hard way.


In Delhi, the police issued an alert after the driver of a taxi hired by three unidentified persons in Pathankot was found dead in Kangra district in Himachal Pradesh.

By India Today Web Desk: Five suspected terrorists were arrested in raids conducted by security agencies across the country today. The arrests were made in Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Mumbai. 14 people have been detained and are being questioned by the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) amid a heightened terror threat ahead of Republic Day. Reports say some of them may have links with Islamic State.

The NIA said that explosives were also recovered from the men arrested in Hyderabad and Mumbai. The men were planning to organise a terror camp, the Home Ministry said. Sources added that the arrested men were planning coordinated Paris, Jakarta-like attacks in major cities like New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru. Meanwhile, IS suspect Mudabbir Mushtaq Shaikh, who was arrested from Mumbra, Thane today, has been sent to a 3-day transit remand.

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Separately, in Delhi, the police issued an alert after the driver of a taxi hired by three unidentified persons in Pathankot was found dead in Kangra district in Himachal Pradesh.

The driver, identified as Vijay Kumar, a resident of Gaggal village in Kangra district, was found dead on Wednesday at the Kalta bridge in Kangra and his taxi missing, Delhi Police said.

"A white colour Alto taxi No. HP 01D 2440 was hired from Pathankot by three unknown people. The driver of the taxi, Vijay Kumar from Gaggal, Kangada was found dead on 20 Jan 2016 at the Kalta Bridge, District Kangada. The Alto car is missing. Search operations are on. Stay Alert!" Delhi Police's message on the Twitter said.

CCTV images of the three men hiring the taxi have also been released by the police.

ALERT Pathankot Alto Carjacked... Here are the images of the suspects. #SayNoToTerror #SafeTogether pic.twitter.com/VfBC1b5qDY&; Delhi Police (@DelhiPolice) January 22, 2016

Earlier this week, an SUV fitted with a blue beacon was stolen from the Noida house of he Inspector General of the Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Anad Swarup.

Pakistani terrorists who attacked Pathankot air base had used Gurdaspur SP Salwinder Singh's Mahindra XUV500 to get past several checkpost before abandoning it.

Delhi will remain on high alert till the Republic Day as the Centre has asked the Delhi Police to be prepared to foil any attempt by terrorists to carry out strikes in the city. Checks have been increased at the airports, railway stations, bus stands and other vital installations around the city, especially for vehicles coming from Punjab and Haryana.

ALSO READ:

Operation Sleeper Cell: How Pakistani handlers guide terrorists in India

Terror threat to Haridwar Kumbh Mela, terrorist arrested from Roorkee


Now beards and headscarves suggest radicalism! Where are we headed?

By India Today Web Desk: In a new low, Tajikistan Police link full beards and hijabs to radicalism.

As per an Al Jazeera report, Tajikistan Police have shaved the beards of over 13,000 men and closed 160 shops selling traditional Muslim clothing including hijabs (headscarves), as part of the nation's fight against "foreign" influences.

The head of south-west Khathlon region's police, Bahroom Sharifzoda, also said they convinced over 1,700 women to abandon headscarves.

Authorities say the move is to check radicalism in the country and to prevent unwelcome traditions from neighbouring Afghanistan. Last week, the Tajikistan parliament also banned Arab-sounding "foreign" names and marriages between first cousins, which is otherwise allowed in Islam.

In 2015, Supreme Court of Tajikistan had banned the only registered Islamic political party - Islamic Renaissance Party - alleging it promoted violence.

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Al Jazeera states, "the country of 7.1 million people has struggled with poverty and instability since independence from the Soviet Union more than two decades ago. It remains heavily dependent on Russia, where the majority of Tajik people go for work."
The Himachal Pradesh police are still clueless about the murder of a taxi driver and the whereabouts of the three people involved in the gruesome murder.

The Himachal Pradesh police are still clueless about the murder of a taxi driver and the whereabouts of the three people involved in the gruesome murder. Also, the vehicle has not yet been found.

Three unidentified men on January 14 had booked a taxi bearing number HP 01D 2440 from Gaggal, Kangra, Himachal Pradesh to Pathankot. The taxi driver Vijay Kumar had agreed to drop the passengers at a very nominal fare, police sources said today.

The incident was brought to the notice of Kangra police on January 19 by the maternal uncle of Vijay Kumar and others as the driver Vijay Kumar did not return home. The police then started a manhunt to trace the whereabouts of the taxi driver whose body was recovered from a ditch near a place called 32 Miles on January 20. The place is on the Shimla-Pathankot highway and is located at a distance of 35 kms from Dharamsala.

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Investigations also revealed that the vehicle was not driven on the Pathankot road but on a link road, providing enough evidence that the men who hired the taxi headed somewhere else after killing the driver Vijay Kumar.

"The taxi was booked on the evening of January 14 left Gaggal at 8.15 pm. We have sent three teams to Talwara in Hoshiarpur district, Pathankot in Punjab and Lakhanpur in Jammu and Kashmir to trace the vehicle and the people involved in the crime. We have also got the CCTV footage from Gaggal Chowk which shows the three men with taxi," Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP), Kangra, Vijay Saklnai said.

Kangra police is also investigating whether the three men stayed in a Mcleodganj hotel. The motive of the murder is still not clear. Also the police are probing if the killers abandoned the vehicle somewhere and whether they were heading to Punjab or New Delhi.

The alert issued by Delhi Police has sent the Himachal police into tizzy as one of the theories floating around is about a possible terror attack. The security agencies are now trying to ascertain whether the murder was done to snatch the vehicle in a normal act of crime or were the men indeed terrorists.

Sources say the taxi driver was a former convict who was previously involved in narcotic smuggling. The police are also trying to find out whether the three men who hired the taxi were known to Vijay or they were adversaries.

Though the police have sounded an alert and have appealed to the people to help locate the criminals by releasing the CCTV footage but investigations so far are only leading to dead end, so much so that even the vehicle has not yet been traced. The police are also worried because ealier six Jaish-E-Mohammed terrorists had killed a taxi driver in Gurdaspur on December 31 to snatch his vehicle to reach Pathankot Air base.

The state police have sounded an alert in Himachal Pradesh where the security has been heightened following the IB alert and Republic Day celebrations. Alert has also been sounded in neighbouring Punjab following the murder of the taxi driver.

"We are taking this matter very seriously and are making efforts to locate the missing taxi. An alert has been sounded in Pathankot," R.K. Bakshi, senior superintendent of police, Pathnakot said.
After having an "eventful" journey back home, this girl took to social media to let the world know that she's proud of her periods.

By India Today Web Desk: Period-shaming is not a concept our country is unfamiliar with-be it the "hush hush" advertisements for sanitary napkins, the general unawareness amongst people about menstruation hygiene or just the fact that every time you ask your chemist for a pack of sanitary napkins, he takes out a black plastic bag to wrap it in first.



Also Read: Sugary drinks can lead to early periods

Narrating a story most Indian girls know all too well is a girl named Anushka Dasgupta. After staining her pants on an average day, Dasgupta repeatedly got told by women passersby to "pull her tee down" and was offered sanitary napkins without even asking for them.



Also Read: This doll comes with pads for periods; no kidding

So, after an eventful journey back home, Dasgupta took to social media to vent out her frustration at being stained because of a natural bodily function all women of the world go through ever month.

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This is what she wrote on Facebook and Instagram:





I came home today at four minutes past nine after a long walk, a metro journey and a 10 minute bus ride. There's...Posted by Anushka Dasgupta on Sunday, 17 January 2016
Vikas who was accused by Parth of molestation has instagrammed an intimate picture of the two in which Parth is seen kissing Vikas on cheek.

By India Today Web Desk: The ongoing legal tussle between Kaisi Yeh Yaariyaan actor Parth Samthaan and Vikas Gupta is getting murkier with each passing day. Vikas who was accused by Parth of molestation has instagrammed an intimate picture of the two in which Parth is seen kissing Vikas on cheek.

"When you accuse that someone tried to touch u inappropriately and is threatning you. You don't do this. The boy who claimed I molested him and continues to torture me and my family through his friends and fans. I don't know who is molesting who and touching inappropriately in this picture. No one molested each other @the_parthsamthaan u r a liar and your legal notice is a lie and sham. You will not insult another family member and friend again," (sic) reads the caption of the picture.

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Parth had sent a legal notice to Vikas Gupta in December last year, over molestation, non payment of dues and 'threatening him to ruin his career'. The actor had also lodged complaint at Versova Police Station and given his statement. Vikas on the other hand vehemently denied all the allegations and is planning a defamation case against the actor. Also read: Kaisi Yeh Yaariyan actor Parth accuses his producer Vikas Gupta of molestation



Ekta Kapoor, a common friend of the two, came out in support of Vikas, and said that the two were in a relationship and even holidayed post the alleged molestation incident. Also read: Parth Samthaan and Vikas Gupta were in a relationship, reveals common friend Ekta Kapoor



"Vikas and Parth were close to each other and were in a relationship. Parth has accused Vikas of touching him inappropriately on December 7, 2013 and 20 days later, he was with Vikas holidaying in Bangkok! I know because I was also there to bring in the New Year. I have seen several videos of him professing his love for Vikas," Ekta had told DNA. She, however, later said she was misquoted and did not say that the two were in a relationship. Also read: Parth Samthaan was dumped by this girl after she discovered his affair with Vikas Gupta

Parth and Vikas have worked together in shows like Gumraah, Pyaar Tune Kya Kiya and Kaisi Yeh Yaariyan.
The Modi government is all set to declassify 33 files related to Subhash Chandra Bose on Saturday January 23, which also happens to be Netaji's birth anniversary.

By Rahul Kanwal: The Modi government is all set to declassify 33 files related to Subhash Chandra Bose on Saturday January 23, which also happens to be Netaji's birth anniversary. Bose's death has been one of free India's greatest mysteries. The one question that has been asked repeatedly, but never answered convincingly in 71 years, is how did Netaji die. What can we expect to learn tomorrow? Will the veil of secrecy around Netaji's death finally be lifted on January 23?

This is the last known, undisputed picture, of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. It was clicked around noon on August 17, 1945 when Netaji's Japanese aircraft landed at a deserted aerodrome at Vietnam. The next day, Netaji flew from Vitenam to Taiwan. What happened next, as Netaji's flight took off from Taipei to Tokyo, is part of one of the greatest mysteries of modern India. That mystery could finally be unravelling.

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Last year on December 4, Prime Minister Modi's Principal Secretary Nripendra Mishra handed over a set of 33 files to the Director General of the National Archives. These files will be placed in the public domain on January 23. For decades now, successive governments have done everything in their power to keep these files secret. India Today has been able to piece together details about the subjects covered in the files that are set for declassification.

The Prime Minister's Office is in possession of a total of 41 classified and 17 unclassified files about Netaji.

Among the 41 secret files, 5 are deemed to be highly classified, so much so, that the PM'S office was not even willing to reveal the subject of their content while responding to a RTI query filed by an organisation known as Mission Netaji.

14 of the files being declassified tomorrow relate to the formation and working of the three inquiries:

* The Shah Nawaz Committee of 1956.

* The Khosla Commission, which functioned between 1970 and 1974.

* And the Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry which operated between 1999-2006.

Two files relate to communications between West Bengal politician and Netaji's associate Sameer Guha and Subhas Bose.

There's one file from 2006 on the communication between Forward Bloc leaders and the central government. One on the construction of the Indian National Army memorial. One about conferring a Bharat Ratna to Subhash Bose. One file about the transfer of Netaji's ashes from Japan to India.

One file is about the properties of the INA in the Far East. And one regarding the funeral of the widow of Netaji.

Three each of the files that will be declassified are from the 1970's, 1980's and 1990's, while one was generated in 2006. Only 10 of the total files with the PMO are about the disappearance of Netaji Subhash Bose. Most of the the files that are being declassified have already been seen by Justice Mukherjee during his investigation.

The PMO also has three files about the personal life of Netaji Bose, which are not being made public. These are about Netaji's wife, his daughter and his alleged mistress. Prime Minister Modi has promised Netaji's family members that ALL the files in the possession of his office will be made public. However, no deadline has been fixed. Even though all the Netaji files are not being declassified, a very important chapter in modern Indian history is about to be re-written.

Also read:

Subhas Chandra Bose was cremated in Taihoku: British website
General Mills to close UK facility

General Mills has announced it has completed collective consultation on the proposed closure of its manufacturing facility in Berwick, United Kingdom and has made a decision to close the facility by the autumn of 2016.

General Mills has announced it has completed collective consultation on the proposed closure of its manufacturing facility in Berwick, United Kingdom with employee representatives and union officials and has made a decision to close the facility by the autumn of 2016.

The company had announced a proposal to close the Berwick facility on October 29; the proposal was subject to consultation with employee representatives and union officials. That consultation process has closed and a decision was made to proceed with the proposal. The company will now begin the necessary phases to close the plant.

The closure will impact approximately 265 positions. General Mills said it will provide severance and transition benefits to all affected employees.

The Berwick facility manufactures baking mixes, and refrigerated and frozen dough products. It has been operated by General Mills since 2001.
Investigative reporting from the inner city to Wall Street to the United Nations This is the blogspot version InnerCityPress.com
Under the skin of the risk business: The Economist hosts conference to explore the re/insurance industry's role

The re/insurance industry is undergoing perhaps its greatest-ever transformation. As traditional practices and norms are washed away by a tidal wave of disruptors amid fast-paced economic and social change, The Insurance Summit 2016, hosted by The Economist , aims to unravel the complex issues that are shaping tomorrow's industry. XPRIMM Publications support the event as Media Partner.



Speakers include an accomplished group of experts from across the re/insurance spectrum, from the innovators to regulators and industry leaders, who will share their insights on the key issues that everyone in the re/insurance sector ought to be talking about.



They will explore topics ranging from the ways in which the digital revolution is shaping the firms of the future, to how new capital and global M&A creates disruption and opportunities, through to ways in which the industry can use data and expertise to be a true force for good by supporting the sustainable growth in underdeveloped economies.



Also on the agenda :

Closing the global protection gap: Learn about new growth prospects

The insurance company of the future: Challenge the adequacy of business models

Expanding into new markets: Opportunities consolidation offers

Disruptive technologies: What is about to transform the industry?

Tackling climate change, fostering sustainable development: Insurance and these challenges

Joanna IZMAJLOWICZ, Programme Manager at The Economist said: "Unprecedented change in the re/insurance sector invokes a need to re-evaluate how business is transacted and its purpose. While the re/insurance industry is a master at understanding risk, it faces plenty new challenges from evaluating the threat posed by cyber technology and new forms of terrorism, to adapting as new players and sources of capital disrupt old models.



"Through an exciting agenda, this conference aims to challenge our speakers to demonstrate fresh thinking about the direction of the industry."



Key speakers include : Tom BOLT, Director of Performance Management, LLOYD's, Bart De SMET, Chief Executive Officer, AGEAS; Lise KINGO, Executive Director, Global Compact, United Nations; Robert P. HARTWIG, President, Insurance Information Institute; Maurice TULLOCH, Chairman, AVIVA Global General Insurance and Chief Executive Officer, AVIVA UK & Ireland General Insurance and Chair, ClimateWise; Graham WRIGHT, Group Managing Director, MicroSave; and Michael LYNCH, Founder, Technology Entrepreneur, INVOKE Capital.



The summit is sponsored by EY and youTalkinsurance.

Join us at Grosvenor House, London, on 25th February, 2016. For more details, access www.insurance.economist.com.



Contact



Laurence Allen , Marketing Manager

laurenceallen@economist.com

+44 207 576 8321





Author: Adina TUDOR on 22.01.2016





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Ukraine's Anti-Monopoly Committee has decided to fine Gazprom UAH 85 billion ($3.47 billion) for abuse of its monopoly position on the market of gas transit through trunk pipelines on the territory of Ukraine.

"We have just made a decision regarding the abuse of monopoly position on the market of natural gas transit via trunk pipelines on the territory of Ukraine by the company Gazprom as a monopoly buyer. The fine is UAH 85 billion," Yuriy Terentyev, the head of the Anti-Monopoly Committee, wrote on Facebook.

Yaroslav Tekliuk, director on legal issues and interaction with the authorities at NJSC Naftogaz Ukraine, told reporters that Gazprom representatives had not taken part in the Friday meeting of the Anti-Monopoly Committee.

According to earlier reports, the Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers in April 2015, asked the Anti-Monopoly Committee to begin a probe into possible violations of the legislation on the protection of economic competition by Gazprom.

Ukraine's Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk said Kyiv intends to offer to the EU to conduct a joint investigation into the fact of the monopoly position of Gazprom both on the EU markets and on the Ukrainian market. He said the amount of the fine may reach up to 10% of the total proceeds received by Gazprom on the Ukrainian territory.

The Anti-Monopoly Committee determined during the investigation that Gazprom has a monopoly position on the market of gas transit on the territory of Ukraine and constantly breached the conditions of the contract with Naftogaz Ukraine in 2009-2015.

The Anti-Monopoly Committee sent the tentative conclusions made by the investigators to Naftogaz and Gazprom in late November 2015. Naftogaz said it agrees with the conclusions made by the Anti-Monopoly Committee, whereas no reaction followed from Gazprom.
The discrepancies between weekdays and weekends in Ukraine and the U.S., and the fall of the Russian ruble rate, may explain the temporary instability of the hryvnia over the past few days, Ukraine's Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko said.

"I am not in Kyiv, but I can imagine that there is some psychological effect from what is happening to the ruble in Russia, Jaresko told reporters on Friday at the Ukrainian Breakfast in Davos, Switzerland, organized by the Victor Pinchuk Foundation.

Jaresko said the demand and supply on Ukraine's forex market temporarily lost their balance due to the holidays, which led to a reduction of the national currency rate.

At the same time, the minister said there are no fundamental causes or decisions made by the Ukrainian authorities for such fluctuations.
Constitutional Court of Ukraine has declared a bill on amendments into the Constitution of Ukraine on justice reform the one, which complies with the Articles 157 and 158 of the Fundamental Law.

As a correspondent of Interfax-Ukraine reported, the court took a respective decision after considering an appeal of Verkhovna Rada to present conclusions regarding the president's bill on amendments into the Constitution on justice reform.

"The conclusions of the Constitutional Court, under the which the bill on amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine on justice reform complies with the Articles 157 and 158 of the Constitution of Ukraine, are obligatory for execution, final and can't be appealed," read the conclusions of the court.

On January 12, the Constitutional Court started consideration of the parliament's appeal under the president's bill on amendments to the Constitution on justice reform.




transform itself into what is it calls a digital industrial companyhiring more people to write complex software codes to efficiently run its jet engines, power turbines and medical equipment. The latest move in that direction will be moving its headquarters from Fairfield, Connecticut to Boston, which will give it access to the talent pool in a city that is quickly becoming a leading U.S. technology hub.

this move seems great. An office on the waterfront near great restaurants, museums, tech startups and transit stops in Boston sounds a lot more appealing than one surrounded by lawns and parking lots in suburban Connecticut.

Sometimes this Kat cannot resist speculating about some grand IP idea that has the potential to transcend the moment. This urge was recentlyaroused in hearing about the decision of the General Electric company to move its headquarters from the New York suburbs in Fairfield, Connecticut to Boston, in the near-by state of Massachusetts. When the move is consummated, the company will decamp in the rapidly developing area of the South Boston waterfront, variously described as the Seaport District or, perhaps more ambitiously, the Innovation District. Those Kat readers who are familiar with the area also appreciate that it is located only a short ride across the water from Logan International Airport.Most reports on this announced move focused on the importance of tax considerations, namely that the State of Connecticut had raised taxes and that GE was offered $120 million dollars in tax benefits and other attractions to make the move. But some commentators have observed more tectonic aspects in connection with this move. Justin Fox , formerly of the Harvard Business Review and now affiliated with Bloomberg News, noted that in 1960, eight out of 10 of the largest Fortune 500 countries had been located in big cities (four in New York City). What followed was an exodus of these company headquarters to suburban-based office parks (including GE). The sad plight of corporate city centers was embodied in the 1975 headline of the New York Daily News in connection with the reluctance of the federal government to bail out New York City. More recently, the iconic high-tech companies have set up shop not in the cities themselves but in less urban Silicon Valley. Traditional urban centers continue to be shunned, at least until now.What does this have to do with IP technology, a Kat reader might be asking. The answer lies in the fact that GEs move is not merely in response to tax considerations, but reflects an attempt by the company to recalibrate itself in terms of its technological capabilities. Fox referred to it as the attempt by the company to profile itself as a high-tech global industrial company. Another description was offered in a recent article that appeared on Reuters, which observed that GE is seeking to Professor Edward Glaeser of Harvard University has become perhaps the best-known champion of the city as the preferred locus for development in the 21st century, knowledge-based economy (""). Fox, while not referring directly to Professor Glaeser, echoed his thoughts when he wrote that for the 800 GE headquarter employeesAnd so the questionis the GE move to Boston a harbinger of things to come? On the one hand, one could argue that the move reflects a specific set of circumstances, including tax benefits and the availability of land and resources in the developing South Boston seafront. On the other hand, one cannot ignore Professor Glaesers arguments in favor of the city as the preferred setting best situated to take advantage of the possibilities of the knowledge-based economy. Indeed, there is evidence that development in the suburbs has stagnated and we are witnessing a return to urban centers. Professor Robert Gordon of Northwestern University has lamented for some time that following a century (1870-1970) of unparalleled technological development, aided, in his words, by the patent system, since the 1970s, the United States has become less dynamic and productive. Tantalizingly, the start of this decline, as recounted by Professor Gordon, took place at the same time as the move out of the big cities of the headquarters of major companies. This Kat does not want to argue that moving GE to Connecticut necessarily made GE a less dynamic company. However, the view seems to have been expressed that suburban Connecticut was increasingly viewed as an unfavorable setting to enable GE to become a high-tech global industrial company.At least three questions follow from this. First, will other companies of the ilk of GE follow in its footsteps and return to major city centers?Second, if so, will the nature of the technology developed by such companies be favorably impacted due to the presence of the companys headquarters at the ground zero of the knowledge economy ecosystem? Third, will the IP practice need to change to address the possibility that the company headquarters of more and more multinational companies will be returning to the big city? We shall see.
Comtrol Corporation to Lead Session on Traffic Technology at Mobotrex Minnesota User's Group Meeting

Comtrol Corporation, a leading manufacturer of industrial device connectivity products will be attending the Mobotrex Minnesota User's Group Meeting. Comtrol's Traffic Sales Representative, Katya Lee will be leading a classroom session to discuss our innovative technology for the traffic community. Highlighted in the session will be Comtrol's RocketLinx Industrial Ethernet and Power over Ethernet switches.

"RocketLinx switches are designed to provide a quick convenient setup while their advanced capabilities and NEMA TS2 certifications for traffic applications enable the switches to provide reliable connectivity under extreme conditions," states Katya Lee.

The User's Group Meeting is on January 27th starting at 7:30 a.m. and will last until January 28th at 4:00 p.m. One day passes are available during the registration process. It will be hosted at the Embassy Suites in Bloomington, MN.

To register visit this site: http://www.mobotrexdistribution.com/mobotrex-distribtion-minnesota-users-group/







About Comtrol Corporation

For more than 30 years, Comtrol Corporation has been a manufacturer and provider of quality networking and industrial data communication products, specializing in industrial Ethernet and device connectivity. With representation across North America, EMEA, Asia and Latin America, Comtrol sells RocketLinx industrial grade Ethernet and Power over Ethernet switches, IO-Link Master industrial gateways, DeviceMaster Ethernet device servers and gateways and RocketPort multiport serial cards through distributors, resellers and integrators worldwide. Providing exceptional product and technical support, Comtrol establishes solutions for a wide range of security, energy, industrial automation and traffic and transportation applications. For more information, contact Comtrol Corporation at 800-926-6876 or visit www.comtrol.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160121006233/en/
[January 21, 2016] Fitch Affirms Chickasaw Health System (OK) Rev Bonds at 'BBB'; Outlook Stable

Fitch Ratings has affirmed the following Chickasaw Nation, OK (the Nation) bonds: --$9.6 million health system bonds series 2007 at 'BBB'. The Rating Outlook is Stable. SECURITY The bonds are payable from the Nation's full faith and credit, limited to the net available assets of the government, and further payable from the health system revenues (Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance). The Nation granted a limited waiver of sovereign immunity in conjunction with the bonds. The Nation has agreed to submit to jurisdiction of federal and state courts and that any claim or controversy related to the series 2007 bonds documents may be resolved by arbitration. KEY RATING DRIVERS STRONG FINANCIALS; REVENUE CONCENTRATION: The Nation continues to realize strong performance across governmental and enterprise operations, including health system and casino operations, the latter representing a highly concentrated revenue source supporting the nation's governmental functions. SOLID ENTERPRISE POSITION: The gaming enterprise's financial performance remains strong and the enterprise benefits from a solid position in the competitive Oklahoma City market and the Dallas feeder market. Risks to gaming operations include the ongoing threat of gaming legalization in Texas, which Fitch continues to monitor but views as a remote risk in the near term. HEALTHCARE ESSENTIALITY; AMPLE COVERAGE: Stable performance of the nation's essential healthcare operation results from volume gains reflected in steady growth of the Indian Health Services' (IHS (News - Alert)) funding and third-party pledged revenues, and surplus operating results. Significant improvement in gross coverage results from growth of pledged third-party health revenues and aggressive early debt retirement. ROBUST GOVERNMENTAL BALANCES: The Nation's general fund has accumulated very high fund and cash balances over the past few years due to the increased amount of gaming fund transfers. The Nation has a practice of maintaining general fund cash balances equal to at least one-year of budgeted spending. TIGHT LEGAL SAFEGUARDS/EXCESS COVENANT RESERVES: Solid legal protections include a daily sweep of pledged revenues to a trustee-held lock-box and multiple liquidity reserve requirements, all of which the Nation exceeds. RATING SENSITIVITIES SHIFT IN HEALTH SYSTEM PERFORMANCE: A shift in the currently strong performance of the health system and/or declines in the pledged third-party revenues could influence the rating. REVENUE CONCENTRATION: As the gaming enterprise fully supports the Nation's services, any material decline in enterprise performance would have an adverse effect on the rating. CREDIT PROFILE The Chickasaw Nation is the 12th largest federally recognized tribe in the U.S. The majority of its more than 62,000 citizens live within the 13 counties in southern and central Oklahoma or other parts of the state. The Nation is governed by a tri-partite constitutional governmental structure. The current governor is in his eigth consecutive term and is not term limited. STRONG GAMING REVENUE GROWTH; TX LEGALIZATION OVERHANG REMAINS Gaming revenues are the Nation's largest revenue source. More than half of the gaming revenue is derived from the Nation's flagship casino facility, the WinStar World Casino, which is located on the Oklahoma-Texas border and serves the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) market. The Nation's gaming enterprise operating trends are strong, with stable EBITDA margins remaining at 40% - 42% in fiscal years 2012 through 2015. The stability is partly supported by the Nation's considerable reinvestment in its facilities and improved operations at its 20 different gaming facilities. Liquidity at the gaming enterprise consists of $88 million as of Sept. 30, 2015, which just covers day-to-day operations. An ongoing risk to operations is the possibility of gaming legalization in TX, given the location of the Nation's WinStar World Casino (represented greater than 40% of the Nation's fiscal 2014 gaming EBITDA) near the DFW market. The Nation partially hedged this risk through its acquisition of Lone Star Park in the DFW area in May 2011 via its Global Gaming Solutions, LLC (GGS) and ongoing investments in other casino properties. ESSENTIAL SERVICE AND STABLE PERFORMANCE OF HEALTH SERVICES The Nation's IHS user population totaled approximately 36,000 in 2015 and the health system also serves a large number of non-Chickasaw Native Americans from other areas. To accommodate the growing population the Nation opened its $148.5 million replacement hospital in August 2010, funded by the series 2007 bond proceeds and equity. The replacement facility provides sigificantly expanded inpatient, outpatient, and ancillary capacity to accommodate the expanding utilization levels.



The Nation's total revenues continued to grow in fiscal 2015 driven by an 11.2% increase in third-party collections to $74.3 million, despite relatively flat IHS funding. Growth in overall third-party revenues reflects generally higher volumes. A decline in ambulatory volumes is associated with closure of a clinic operated by the tribe pursuant to a joint venture contract with another tribe. The Nation covenants to transfer 1.25x maximum annual debt service (MADS) from gaming to the Department of Health for debt service; however, because of the strong gains in third-party revenues, these transfers are not relied on for debt service and have enabled early paydown of debt: $27 million in fiscal 2011 and $28 million in fiscal 2013. Currently there are no further plans for early debt redemption and all debt will retire by 2019. Total governmental debt outstanding is low relative to the significant amount of general fund resources on-hand. Debt service is not a pressure, claiming a modest .6% of fiscal 2014 governmental spending. The nation does not have any defined benefit post-retirement obligations.

SWEEP OF PLEDGED REVENUES; EXCESS COVENANT RESERVES Pledged health system revenues are swept daily, or when first received, to the trustee-held bond fund account. The bonds are payable both by the Nation's full faith and credit and the third-party revenues, which have experienced good growth. Gross third-party revenues increased 11.3% to $74.3 million in fiscal 2015, covering MADs a high 13.6x. Additional legal provisions include a liquidity covenant whereby the Nation must maintain $40 million of its governmental net assets in cash and minimum fund equity for the health system of $20 million, including 60 days cash on hand. The Nation comfortably exceeds the liquidity covenants. GOVERNMENTAL OPERATIONS REMAIN STRONG Transfers from the gaming enterprise represent an extremely concentrated 90% of general fund sources. The amount of the annual gaming transfers is determined annually by the legislature as part of the Nation's budget process rather than by a set, formal transfer rate. The gaming transfers increased by a sound 5.7% compounded annual average from fiscal years 2012 - 2014. The Nation has increased governmental spending in conjunction with gaming transfers to support enhanced services for health, education, family, and housing. Even with the increased spending the Nation has posted very large operating margins in five of the past six fiscal years. The Nation has a prudent policy of maintaining at least 100% of the upcoming budget in cash, which provides for a robust fiscal cushion against potential swings in gaming revenue and federal budget actions affecting grant income. The general fund completed fiscal 2014 with a very large unrestricted fund balance of $259 million (2.1x annual spending). Fitch believes that the general fund's ample fiscal cushion and the discretionary nature of the spending increases indicate a good degree of budget flexibility in the event of unforeseen revenue declines from weakened gaming performance. Additional information is available at 'www.fitchratings.com'. Fitch recently published an exposure draft of state and local government tax-supported criteria (Exposure Draft: U.S. Tax-Supported Rating Criteria, dated Sept. 10, 2015). The draft includes a number of proposed revisions to existing criteria. If applied in the proposed form, Fitch estimates the revised criteria would result in changes to less than 10% of existing tax-supported ratings. Fitch expects that final criteria will be approved and published by the end of the first quarter of 2016. Once approved, the criteria will be applied immediately to any new issue and surveillance rating review. Fitch anticipates the criteria to be applied to all ratings that fall under the criteria within a 12-month period from the final approval date. In addition to the sources of information identified in the applicable criteria specified below, this action was informed by information from CreditScope, Lumesis, IHS Global Insight, and Zillow Group. Applicable Criteria Exposure Draft: U.S. Tax-Supported Rating Criteria (pub. 10 Sep 2015)

https://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=869942 Tax-Supported Rating Criteria (pub. 14 Aug 2012)

https://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=686015 U.S. Local Government Tax-Supported Rating Criteria (pub. 14 Aug 2012)

https://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=685314 Additional Disclosures Dodd-Frank Rating Information Disclosure Form

https://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/press_releases/content/ridf_frame.cfm?pr_id=998187 Solicitation Status

https://www.fitchratings.com/gws/en/disclosure/solicitation?pr_id=998187 Endorsement Policy

https://www.fitchratings.com/jsp/creditdesk/PolicyRegulation.faces?context=2&detail=31 ALL FITCH CREDIT RATINGS ARE SUBJECT TO CERTAIN LIMITATIONS AND DISCLAIMERS. PLEASE READ THESE LIMITATIONS AND DISCLAIMERS BY FOLLOWING THIS LINK: HTTP://FITCHRATINGS.COM/UNDERSTANDINGCREDITRATINGS. IN ADDITION, RATING DEFINITIONS AND THE TERMS OF USE OF SUCH RATINGS ARE AVAILABLE ON (News - Alert) THE AGENCY'S PUBLIC WEBSITE 'WWW.FITCHRATINGS.COM'. PUBLISHED RATINGS, CRITERIA AND METHODOLOGIES ARE AVAILABLE FROM THIS SITE AT ALL TIMES. FITCH'S CODE OF CONDUCT, CONFIDENTIALITY, CONFLICTS OF INTEREST, AFFILIATE FIREWALL, COMPLIANCE AND OTHER RELEVANT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES ARE ALSO AVAILABLE FROM THE 'CODE OF CONDUCT' SECTION OF THIS SITE. FITCH MAY HAVE PROVIDED ANOTHER PERMISSIBLE SERVICE TO THE RATED ENTITY OR ITS RELATED THIRD PARTIES. DETAILS OF THIS SERVICE FOR RATINGS FOR WHICH THE LEAD ANALYST IS BASED IN AN EU-REGISTERED ENTITY CAN BE FOUND ON THE ENTITY SUMMARY PAGE FOR THIS ISSUER ON THE FITCH WEBSITE. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160121006310/en/

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Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization Announces Global Experts to Present at the 2016 Conference

The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO), which combines education, advocacy, and community to help ensure justice for asbestos victims, today announced the speakers scheduled to present at the upcoming 12th Annual Asbestos Awareness and Prevention Conference, "Where Knowledge and Action Unite", April 8 - 10, 2016 at the Crystal Gateway (News - Alert) Marriott in Washington, DC.

ADAO is the only U.S. nonprofit that organizes annual conferences dedicated to preventing and eliminating asbestos-caused diseases.

"Since 2005, ADAO conferences have recognized nearly 400 internationally renowned honorees, keynote speakers, and presenters whose voices and actions have been critically important to ending the man-made asbestos disaster," stated ADAO Co-Founder and President Linda Reinstein. "As in the past, many on this year's nearly 40 speakers also include courageous patients helping build a global community of support and hope."

2016 Conference Keynote Speakers:

Saturday: Paul Brodeur, Awarding-winning Investigative Journalist and Author of Expendable Americans and Outrageous Misconduct: The Asbestos Industry on Trial

Sunday: Dr. Eudice Goldberg, Pediatrician in the Division of Adolescent Medicine at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto and co-founder of the Canadian Mesothelioma Foundation (CMF)

The recently finalized conference list of speakers includes a highly esteemed group of research, advocacy, and medical experts from six countries:







About the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization

The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) was founded by asbestos victims and their families in 2004. ADAO is the largest non-profit in the U.S. dedicated to providing asbestos victims and concerned citizens with a united voice through our education, advocacy, and community initiatives. ADAO seeks to raise public awareness about the dangers of asbestos exposure, advocate for an asbestos ban, and protect asbestos victims' civil rights. For more information, visit www.asbestosdiseaseawareness.org.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160121006315/en/
[January 21, 2016] AXIS Healthcare Launches Insurance Coverage to Protect Hospitals Against Losses from Pandemics

AXIS Capital Holdings Limited ("AXIS Capital") (NYSE:AXS) today announced that AXIS Healthcare-the division of AXIS Insurance that provides professional liability insurance and associated standard casualty coverages for physician groups, hospitals, allied healthcare facilities and individual physicians-has launched an innovative new medical catastrophe ("contagion") business interruption product for hospitals in the U.S. and Canada to protect against a loss of revenue caused by the outbreak of a contagious disease. The AXIS Healthcare Medical Catastrophe Business Interruption and Extra Expense product includes coverage for any disease that is transmitted by direct or indirect contact. These diseases include bubonic plague, MRSA, Legionnaires' Disease, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome ("MERS"), Hantavirus, SARS, West Nile Virus, HIV, Ebola Virus, Marburg Virus, Lassa Fever, Influenza, and Bird Flu, as well as other lesser-known viruses or plagues. The new product would also provide coverage for diseases that have not yet been discovered by science, or a disease that could mutate into a pandemic at some point in the future. Commenting on the announcement, Peter Wilson, President of AXIS Insurance's U.S. operations, said, "AXIS Healthcare's medical catastrophe coverage represents an industry first, and we are pleased to be able to offer North American hospitals a new tool to safeguard their critical operations against pandemics and other disease outbreaks. The healthcare industry is an important market for AXIS Insurance, and we are committed to applyig our specialty underwriting expertise, service capabilities, and capital strength to provide innovative and competitive solutions like this one."



Kimber Lantry, Head of AXIS Healthcare, added, "Our new Medical Catastrophe Business Interruption and Extra Expense coverage serves a critical need in the healthcare marketplace that has thus far gone unaddressed by the insurance industry. Pandemics represent an especially serious risk for healthcare providers. During the 2003 SARS outbreak, hospitals were identified as the source of the spread of infection, resulting in the partial or complete shutdown of three hospitals in Canada. Indeed, after the first Ebola patient was admitted to Texas Presbyterian Hospital in October of 2014, the hospital lost $20.3M (News - Alert) in revenue over a two-month period, with a decline in inpatient days of 22% and a decline in ER visits of 49% during the first month. " The policy responds when the contagion directly results in any one of four triggers:

A governmental quarantine of a hospital;

If 25% or more of the medical personnel do not come to work;

A 25% or more reduction in inpatient stays; or

A 25% or more reduction in emergency room visits. The maximum length of coverage is limited to twelve months from the date the coverage is triggered. Prior to offering a quotation, a hospital must work with AXIS Healthcare on a pandemic preparedness assessment. The company will send, at its own expense, a healthcare risk manager with specialized skills in pandemic preparedness to assess the quality of the hospital's pandemic program. Hospitals potentially interested in coverage should reach out to their insurance broker, or contact [email protected]. About AXIS Capital AXIS Capital is a Bermuda-based global provider of specialty lines insurance and treaty reinsurance with shareholders' equity attributable to AXIS Capital at September 30, 2015 of $5.8 billion and locations in Bermuda, the United States, Europe, Singapore, Canada, Australia and Latin America. Its operating subsidiaries have been assigned a rating of "A+" ("Strong") by Standard & Poor's and "A+" ("Superior") by A.M. Best. For more information about AXIS Capital, visit our website at www.axiscapital.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160121006406/en/

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proxima

Lectores matutinos de AJN/Iton Gadol, estos son los titulares de la manana en Israel
"I think he recognized that the fight\s over and we can move on," CNN quotes Kerry as saying of Netanyahu.

US Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday stated that "the fight\s over" between the Israeli and American governments, regarding the Iranian nuclear deal, now that the accord has been implemented, according to a CNN report.

Kerry\s remarks came days after the formal commencement of the nuclear agreement Saturday, following which world powers eased sanctions on the Islamic Republic.

"I think he recognized that the fight\s over and we can move on," CNN quoted Kerry as saying of the premier.

Also on Thursday, Netanyahu and Kerry met on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

During a public interview with CNNs Fareed Zakaria on center stage at the World Economic Forum, Netanyahu said he hoped he would be proven wrong in his fierce objections to the nuclear deal with Israel\s arch-foe, though I have my doubts, and we shall see very soon.

Now that the deal has been signed, he said, there are three things that must be done, and on this he sees eye to eye with US President Barack Obama. The first is to keep the Iranians feet to the fire and ensure they fulfill their obligations under the agreement.

The second is to resist Iranian aggression in the region by bolstering Americas allies, first and foremost which is Israel.
There is nobody so irritating as somebody with less intelligence and more sense than we have. - Don Herold

Sometimes the appropriate response to reality is to go insane. - Phillip K. Dick

In the fight between you and the world, back the world.- Frank Zappa
ASSUMPTION -- The traveling exhibition Cultivating Creativity 2015-2016: Consolidated Communications Childrens Art Exhibit will travel to the First National Bank of Assumption, 141 North Chestnut Street.

The display will be on view from Jan. 30 to Feb. 21. Cultivating Creativity showcases some of the outstanding art produced through east-central Illinois school art programs. Presented is art by 48 students, each representing a different school. The art was created during the 2014-2015 school year.

Representing schools in the Assumption area are the following: Chris Fenton, Central A&M High School; Lexie Rogers, Central A&M Middle School; Myleigh Sieben, Bond Elementary School; and Cheyenne Tulak from Gregory Intermediate School.

Skatepark, made with scratchboard, was created during Fentons senior year at Central A&M High School under the instruction of Justin Smith.

Rogerss created Design as an eighth grader at Central A&M Middle School with metal relief under the instruction of Pamela Moore.

As a second grader, Sieben created Self-Portrait at Bond Elementary School under the instruction of Moore. She used charcoal.

Tulak used watercolor to create Fruit Still Life as a fourth grader at Gregory Intermediate School also under the direction of Moore.

Cultivating Creativity 2015-2016 is sponsored by Consolidated Communications and the Tarble Arts Center, Eastern Illinois University. The exhibit will travel to 14 area communities, from Assumption to Paris and from Tuscola to Effingham.

The Tarble Arts Center teams with Consolidated Communications in this annual program to showcase some of the outstanding art by area students and to help raise awareness of the importance of including the arts as part of the regular school curriculum.

Area schools represented are as follows: Altamont Grade School; Altamont Jr. High School; Arcola Elementary School; Arcola High School; Arthur Grade School; Arthur Jr. High School; Ashmore Elementary School; Bond Elementary School; Carl Sandburg Elementary School; Carolyn Wenz Elementary School, Casey-Westfield High School; Casey-Westfield Jr. High School;

Central A&M High School; Central A&M Middle School; Central Grade School; Charleston High School; Charleston Middle School; Chrisman Elementary School; Chrisman High School; Chrisman-Scottland Jr. High School; Gregory Intermediate School; Jefferson Elementary School; Kansas School; Lake Crest Elementary School; Lovington Grade School; Mark Twain Elementary School; Mattoon High School; Mattoon Middle School; Memorial Elementary School; Moulton Middle School; Neoga Elementary School; Neoga High School; Neoga Middle School;

Oakland High School; Okaw Valley High School; Okaw Valley Middle School; Riddle Elementary School; Shelbyville High School; South Side Elementary School; St. Anthony Grade School; St. Marys School; Williams Elementary School; Windsor Elementary School; and Windsor Jr.-St. High School.

The exhibit is comprised of art works in a wide variety of media and styles. Included are artworks in glazed clay, scratchboard, colored pencil, watercolor, print, crayon, linoleum print, tempera, acrylic, pencil, mixed fibers, marker, oil pastel, chalk pastel, India ink, cut paper, tissue paper, charcoal, metal relief, blue jeans applique, pen, graphite, and other mixed media.

Cultivating Creativity is a community engagement program of the Tarble Arts Center. The Tarble also offers a variety of other educational programs for area schools, including a tour/workshop Enrichment Program that is open to area fifth grade and to junior/senior high school art students, a month-long artist-in-the-schools residency, guided tours, and teacher workshops.

Most programs are presented free of charge to the participating schools and are supported through Tarble membership contributions and the Tarble Arts Center Endowment.

For more information about the Cultivating Creativity exhibit or other programs, contact the Tarble Arts Center at 217/581-ARTS (-2787) or tarble@eiu.edu.

The Tarble is funded in part by the Tarble Arts Center Fund/EIU Foundation, Tarble Arts membership contributions, and program sponsors. A division of the EIU College of Arts & Humanities, the Tarble is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums.
CHARLESTON -- The habitat for the birds Mike Elam enjoys hunting seemed to be disappearing, he thought.

So, he said, he feels fortunate for his chance nine years ago to buy a former sheep farm in southeastern Coles County. Thanks to his and his wife Sandy's efforts, there are now "all kinds of wildlife" on their property, he said.

"We basically converted everything into native prairie," Elam said.

The work, which new includes maintaining bee hives and providing the pollen-producing plants they need, helped lead to the Elams' selection as the Conservationists of the Year by the Coles County Soil and Water Conservation district.

Elam said he was "pretty shocked" by the award and feels like he's following what others have done, especially in the part of the county where he lives.

"I think this area in particular has a lot of people doing this," he said. "There are a lot of nice prairies out here."

R.J. Alier, conservationist with the Soil and Water Conservation District, said the Elams are "always looking" for new ways to improve natural habitats on their property.

They showed an early interest in the types of native plant species that grow on their land and have also learned to identify the non-native plants so they can be removed, Alier added.

"Mike and Sandy are true conservationists," he said.

Elam said the work to convert the first prairie plot started within a couple of years of when his family bought the land. He got help from Paul Brewer with the local Illinois Department of Natural Resources office to help plan plant selection.

Now, the plot features typical Illinois prairie plants such as the big bluestem and little bluestem grasses as well as species such as cup plant and black-eyed Susans that commonly grow in low-lying areas that also make up part of the Elams' property.

Elam said the plot is now mature enough to show the array of color that's possible with a natural mix of native plants.

"It blooms out pretty nice, especially now that it's getting a little older," he said.

Later, Elam used the IDNR as a resource again to get a mix of seeds for plants that attract bees and started beekeeping on the property.

He also cleared part of the land of non-native trees and other plants, getting help from local naturalist David Mott, who was last year's conservationist of the year award winner. Elam said he was "pretty excited" to find that burr oaks, a typical woodland tree of Illinois, were growing in the area.

After nine years of owning and working to improve the property, Elam said he still feels fortunate for the chance.

"It's been work but it's something I really enjoy doing," he said.
MATTOON -- Security for their property has become a growing worry for farmers.

Because many farmers are often dealing with expensive equipment, grains, chemicals and fuels essential to their job and well being, a growing amount of producers are taking extra preventive measures, beyond just locks, to protect their property.

Todd Ratliff of Total Home and Farm Video Solutions said theft is becoming a growing issue in the farming community.

He said he provides security systems to area houses, businesses and farms. Talking with farmers, Ratliff said there has been a growing need for better security in and around the farm.

Unfortunately, due to society now, we have had to step (security) up, Ratliff said.

Ratliff said he has heard many stories of farmers losing everything as result of a robbery. Unlike in a home, a robbery is often not noticed until the morning after when the farmer heads to the barn, which can often be miles away from his or her home.

To combat this, Ratliff said he has motion cameras installed that provide a clear picture of what is happening in the barn, day or night. The video feed from the cameras can be pulled up from a smartphone or tablet, with ability to set up email alerts when something is moving in the barn.

While there is growing interest in these types of security on the farm, Ratliff said many farmers either don't know or don't think of the ability to have cameras on a farm to deter burglars.

Roughly one in 10 farmers in the area know of his services or similar services with security, Ratliff estimated.

The growing need for these farm security systems also followed the improvement of technology in security. Ratliff said because many farms are far from a Wi-Fi source, which is a necessity for many motion cameras today, challenges have arisen in implementing high-end security to these locations.

Now, Ratliff said that is not an issue, at least with his business. He now has a receiver on the site that can pick up Wi-Fi from an area some distance away.

Improving technology has also allowed for clear images of the property in high definition, which some time ago was not possible.

Now, if a burglary were to occur, video of the incident would clearly get the person who burglarized the farm on camera. Ratliff said this is crucial for law enforcement, especially within a 72 hours of the crime.

He said thieves often try to sell whatever they stole soon after the incident. Also, these criminals often have serial offenses on their record, making them easier to track down.

The purpose of the video system is to get officers a direction to go immediately, he said.

This quality of video has spawned interest outside of security for farming as well, Ratliff said.

Ive got farmers who have my systems installed in their cattle barns, and theyre watching their (cows) to see when they are ready to calf, he said.

Instead of having to drive over to check on the cows to see if they are ready to birth the calf, they simply look on their smart device and check.

As an extra measure of security, farmers are also seeking patrols of their sites to ensure the site is protected. In partnership with Ratliffs business, Signal 88 provides on-site services where a person will randomly monitor buildings.

With their partnership, Signal 88 employees will be able be to keep an eye on the property for the farmer.

Frank Pfeiffer, Signal 88 regional manager, said when the motion cameras go off, they are alerted and are sent to the property for inspection, which is useful at night or when the customer is away for long periods of time.

Pfeiffer said Signal 88 security personnel will be ready to respond to the property once they are alerted, along with random checks.

Ratliff said farms are slowly but surely becoming more secure, deterring burglaries or at least catching the thieves when they do steal.
TOLEDO -- The possibility of large-scale hog farms being developed in Cumberland County has generated concerns and debate among residents and property owners there in recent months.

The following presents the perspectives of two rural homeowners and a hog farmer in Cumberland County on different sides of this issue.

Rural homeowners

Marjorie Cook said ever since she purchased her rural Toledo home in 2001, she has felt blessed to be able to sit on the front porch and enjoy the fresh air. She added that she also enjoys line-drying her clothes and leaving her windows open in the summer.

Cook said she worries that this quality of life will disappear if a farm operation with many hundreds of hogs is developed near her home, bringing the odor of the resulting manure with it.

The odor does not stay on their property. The odor does not stop at the property line, Cook said. She added that she also worries about manure storage lagoons overflowing due to heavy rainfall.

Cook said grain farming is the traditional use of land in rural Toledo and many homes are located among these fields. Cook said she would not have purchased her home if it was near a large-scale hog farm.

She worries that such a livestock operation would lower the property values of nearby homes and drive residents away, Cook said.

Both Cook and rural Toledo resident Debby Tolle have helped circulate a petition calling for the state to increase the minimum setback distance between large-scale hog farm operations and the nearest off-site occupied residence from the current 1/4 mile to 1 mile.

Tolle said she believes that hog farmers could still find sites for their operations with a 1-mile setback. She said if they cannot find a site in Cumberland County then this would indicate that the rural population density is too great there to allow for these operations.

Cumberland County board member Ron Black has stated that the county is one of the few in Illinois to have more residents living in the countryside outside of municipalities than in them, Tolle said.

Hog farmer

Hog farms were a common sight among cropland in Illinois in past decades before farmers started specializing in either grain or livestock, said hog farmer Jason Propst of Toledo.

Many grain farmers are now adding livestock to their operations so they are not dependent on one source of income, Propst said. Hog farms also provide steady employment for farm workers outside of the planting and harvesting seasons, he said.

The development of new hog farms has been spurred by growing demand in the United States and abroad for pork, Propst added.

Propst said he believes that the states current livestock facility regulations, enacted in 1996, provide a good framework under which farmers can safely develop hog operations. He said an increased setback would make it tough for this development to occur.

It would make it more difficult for farms to be placed and to grow, Propst said.

Odor control is much better in modern indoor facilities than it was in the era of large, outdoor hog farms, Propst said. For example, he said manure is stored under facilities and then pumped out once or twice a year to minimize odor in the area.

Propst said he does not believe that hog farms drive away rural residents or deter newcomers from moving to the country, adding that he has seen new homes be developed in Sigel and other areas near existing hog farms.

Hog farmers have an interest in being good neighbors in the communities where they reside and work, Propst said. They also have an interest in being good stewards of the land that they own, he said.
URBANA -- University of Illinois and Syngenta Crop Protection, LLC, have signed an agreement to implement a commercialization strategy for intellectual property developed under the RIPE: Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency for Sustainable Increases in Crop Yield project.

The effort is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, according to a press release.

In the context of this project, Illinois is collaborating with seven other institutions to improve photosynthetic efficiency in food crops in an effort to help resource-poor farmers increase their sustainable yields.

This collaborative partnership brings leading academic groups working in the area of photosynthesis together with a major agriculture industry partner to evaluate and advance the technologies developed by the RIPE project. Syngenta will serve as a commercialization partner by providing research materials and facilities to support RIPE project goals, as well as bring the industry perspective for bridging key, fundamental photosynthetic research to commercial product development.

Mitchell Altschuler, former Intellectual Property Manager for the Energy Biosciences Institute at the University of California-Berkeley, will be the RIPE Intellectual Property Officer. He will ensure RIPE inventions are protected for commercial development in a manner that is consistent with Gates Foundation objectives. The collaboration is the first of its kind for a Gates Foundation-funded project.

This is a win-win-win deal. The synergies give the academic partners, Syngenta, and the Gates Foundation, benefits that none of the partners alone could gain, said RIPE project director Steve Long, who is a Gutgsell Endowed Professor of crop sciences and plant biology at Illinois. It is a unique alliance that will accelerate the cause of increasing global crop yield potential, and provide a new model for industry-academia collaboration for the mutual benefit of society and industry.

Associate Project Director Don Ort and Robert Emerson, professor of plant biology at Illinois and USDAAgricultural Research Service research leader at Illinois, noted that in the search for photosynthetic traits to improve crop yield potential, there is a huge gulf between proof of concept, discovery, and delivering traits to farmers' fields.
SPRINGFIELD -- The state of Illinois will no longer restrict the movement of any cut, non-coniferous firewood within the state, according to a press release.

Illinois joins Missouri, Iowa, and Kentucky in the deregulation of Emerald Ash Borer (EAB).

The 2015 survey of traps detected EAB in 10 new counties in Illinois: Madison, Mercer, Jackson, Saline, Hamilton, Wayne, Clay, Jefferson, Washington, and Bond. The addition of 10 new counties has brought the total count of confirmed counties to 60.

The survey results this year support deregulation with nearly 60 percent of our counties confirmed positive for EAB, said Plant and Pesticide Specialist Supervisor Scott Schirmer. Over the past decade, the regulations and quarantines have served their purpose to slow the rate of spread and afford people time to manage for this pest. However, there comes a time when the pest is too widespread to continue to regulate, and this is our time.

Previously EAB presence was confirmed in 50 counties, but 61 of Illinois 102 counties were under a state quarantine, which was intended to prevent artificial or human assisted spread of the beetle.

Even though the state of Illinois is lifting its in-state EAB quarantine, I urge all Illinoisans to remain vigilant against the man-assisted spread of not only this pest, but all invasive species, said Acting Agriculture Director Warren Goetsch.

Illinois will remain part of a federal quarantine, meaning firewood or other ash related products cannot travel into a state that currently has regulations. I urge people to consider the potential impacts of their actions, in general, before they move items like firewood. Weve witnessed the impacts EAB has had on our trees and budgets, and we want to prevent introduction and spread of other current and future invasive species.

Anyone who suspects an ash tree has been infested should contact their county Extension office, their village forester or the Illinois Department of Agriculture at 815-787-5476.

For more information about the beetle, visit www.IllinoisEAB.com.
SPRINGFIELD -- In a move that will forever change the landscape of the Illinois State Fairgrounds, the Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) has announced a new partnership with Illinois Green Industry Association (IGIA) to replace dozens of trees removed due to an invasive pest known as the Emerald Ash Borer.

In June 2015, staff members with the Illinois Department of Agriculture Bureau of Environmental Programs identified 73 trees on the fairgrounds impacted by the bug, according to a press release.

Due to an increase in the number of visitors on the fairgrounds, 41 trees were removed for safety reasons prior to the start of the state fair in August. Internal tree removal work took place last year.

Research shows trees improve overall quality of life, said Gov. Bruce Rauner. The state fairgrounds should be a showcase for what can be done in public spaces to promote the states forestry resources.

With this new partnership, IGIA will donate 50 trees a year to the Illinois Department of Agriculture until the year 2019. IDOA and IGIA worked together to select a diverse variety of trees, as well as find a suitable planting location on the fairgrounds that is free of underground utilities.

IDOA staff will plant and develop a care plan that will enhance the potential for long-term tree survival.

I have had the privilege of having an office on the state fairgrounds for the last 35 years, said Acting Agriculture Director Warren Goetsch. I have seen the number of trees continue to dwindle and this is a great opportunity to improve the grounds. We are extremely grateful for the work of the Illinois Green Industry Association and this gracious gift that will have a lasting impact on the landscape of the Illinois State Fairgrounds.

The shipment of replacement trees from the Illinois Green Industry Association included 25 evergreen trees, including Black Hills spruce, Norway spruce, Serbian spruce, and Canaan Fir trees.

Also included in the 2015 trees are 25 various deciduous trees: Sugar Maple, Midget Crab low branched, Thornless Cockspur low branched, Kentucky Coffee, Donald Wyman Crab, Triumph Elm, and Skyline Locust trees.

Members of the IGIA are good stewards of the land and of our most valuable natural resources. They also are good stewards of their local communities, said Joe Khayyat, executive director of Illinois Green Industry Association. The IGIA has long been involved in and active on the Illinois State Fairgrounds; we are proud to be a part of the State Fair family and community.

Thanks to Governor Bruce Rauner and staff members from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), this tree-planting campaign will also bring a new Lincoln connection to the state fairgrounds.

Seedlings from an oak tree planted in Washington, Ill., by a friend of Abraham Lincoln have been grown with the intent of replanting throughout the state. The original oak tree, planted in Lincolns honor, was re-discovered by IDNR staff members during a post tornado tree inventory in Washington. The original tree was not destroyed by the tornado but is in a state of decline. In order to preserve this historic connection, IDNR staffers collected acorns to grow the seedlings.

These new trees are being planted as part of IDNRs Tornado Re-Leaf efforts and other special projects.

About the Emerald Ash Borer

Since the first detection of the pest near Detroit, Michigan in 2002, the beetle has killed more than 250 million ash trees nationwide. The borer, known for its distinctive, metallic green wing color, is native to Asia. Its larvae burrow into the bark of ash trees, causing the trees to starve and eventually die. The tiny beetle often is difficult to detect, especially in newly-infested trees. Signs of infestation include thinning and yellowing of leaves, D-shaped holes in bark of trunk or branches and basal shoots.

In October 2015 IDOA dropped its internal quarantine of ash products, as the invasive pest has been detected in half of all counties in the state of Illinois.
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Friday, January 22, 2016 Friday Clippings From Our Newsroom Floor



. . . Amend Article 11 of the New Mexico Constitution to have Public Regulation Commission members appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate; members would be appointed at large from the state and serve four- year terms; of the five members, one shall be an attorney, one shall be a licensed engineer, one shall be a certified public accountant, one shall be a person with at least five years experience working in a regulated industry and one shall be a member of the public.



And then there's ABQ Dem liberal State Senator Jerry Ortiz y Pino whose motto is "never say die" when it comes to his often daring bills. He comes with this one again that would probably pass muster with the electorate but it's doubtful the proposed constitutional amendment will escape the legislative graveyard:



. . . Amend Article 20 of the New Mexico Constitution to allow possession and personal use of marijuana by persons 21 years of age or older; the legislature shall provide by law for the production, processing, transportation, sales, taxation and acceptable quantities and places of use of marijuana and hemp; any state revenue generated from the sale off marijuana shall be used to fund the states Medicaid Program or drug and alcohol rehabilitation programs.



SHE'S NOT ON IT



After reporting the on again off again plans of ABQ GOP State Senator Lisa Torraco seeking the gubernatorial appointment for a vacant seat on the state Court of Appeals, we have



Three Albuquerque attorneys have applied for a vacant seat on the New Mexico Court of Appeals, a position held for 14 years by Cynthia Frye, who announced her retirement in December. The states Judicial Nominating Commission will meet at 9 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 27, at the state Supreme Court building in Santa Fe to interview applicants for the judgeship  attorneys Ned Fuller, Stephen French and Julie Vargas  before making a recommendation to Gov. Susana Martinez.



BERRY'S BUSES (CONT.)



Chavez Former ABQ Mayor Marty Chavez comments on



This argument over Rapid Bus Transit is yet another example of Albuquerque selling it's future short. Nothing more than an upscale Rapid Ride - yes, that's all it is. Rapid Bus Transit adds no value to adjoining properties and doesn't advance Albuquerque's woefully anemic economy. If the taxpayers are going to take a hit and also see their streets torn up, it ought to be toward joining every other major city with a modern street car system, if not a full-blown light rail system.



Phoenix, Tucson, Denver, Salt Lake City and Dallas have made the jump and property values along the routes have gone up, restaurants and housing have jumped and riders have flocked aboard. I can certainly testify to how contentious rail can be politically. Everyone is against it until it opens and then its hard to find a detractor. But if elected officials are going to sacrifice themselves on the altar of a fancier bus system, they ought to at least make the sacrifice for something that will actually move our community forward on a permanent basis.



While many business owners along the proposed rapid bus route are up in arms over the plan, not all of them are. Here's Robert Munro, co-owner of O'Neill's, the popular east Central pub and restaurant:



Councilor Davis ART will create a more pedestrian friendly environment throughout Nob Hill, which will in turn create a more robust retail scene. Up to four-foot-wider sidewalks will create a wonderful place to walk while decreasing the distance pedestrians will have to travel to get across Central. The benefits include new landscaping throughout Nob Hill, traffic calming and reduced vehicle speeds due to a single lane of traffic in both directions.



The construction is the most pressing issue and one that we must all work on together through a myriad of construction mitigation techniques. It must be our goal to ensure that we will all be here to enjoy the overwhelming long-term benefits that the ART will bring to our corridor.



This is an opportunity for Nob Hill to get to a more level playing field with lifestyle centers such as ABQ Uptown and the new Winrock, which are taking a large portion of the available market share. Shoppers have a comfort zone that lifestyle centers focus on; ART will allow Nob Hill to enter that comfort zone without changing its traditional character.

Munro's full commentary is



Thanks for stopping by this week.



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( c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2016 There will be a lot of tilting at windmills during the 30 day legislative session, with the vast majority of bills never seeing the light of day. That's probably true of this one from Four Corners area GOP State Rep. Paul Bandy, but given the constant controversy and embarrassments over the years at the state Public Regulation Commission (PRC) it looks like an idea whose time has come.And then there's ABQ Dem liberal State Senator Jerry Ortiz y Pino whose motto is "never say die" when it comes to his often daring bills. He comes with this one again that would probably pass muster with the electorate but it's doubtful the proposed constitutional amendment will escape the legislative graveyard:After reporting the on again off again plans of ABQ GOP State Senator Lisa Torraco seeking the gubernatorial appointment for a vacant seat on the state Court of Appeals, we have our finalists --which do not include Torraco:Former ABQ Mayor Marty Chavez comments on the recall trouble City Councilor Pat Davis has run into over his support of Mayor Berry's ABQ Rapid Transit Plan for Central Avenue While many business owners along the proposed rapid bus route are up in arms over the plan, not all of them are. Here's Robert Munro, co-owner of O'Neill's, the popular east Central pub and restaurant:Munro's full commentary is here Thanks for stopping by this week.This is the home of New Mexico politics. E-mail your news and comments. (jmonahan@ix.netcom.com)
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The Republican establishment -- once seen as the force that would destroy Donald Trump's outsider candidacy -- is now learning to live with it, with some elected and unelected leaders saying they see an upside to Trump as the nominee.

In the past few days, Trump has received unlikely public praise from GOP luminaries who said they would prefer him to his main rival, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas.

In private, some veteran conservative Republicans have been reaching out to Trump. And Trump himself called the ultimate establishment figure in Washington, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, for a talk late last year.

"If it came down to Trump or Cruz, there is no question I'd vote for Trump," said former New York mayor and 2008 presidential candidate Rudolph W. Giuliani, who has not endorsed a candidate. "As a party, we'd have a better chance of winning with him, and I think a lot of Republicans look at it that way."

This warming toward Trump comes after establishment favorites such as Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former Florida governor Jeb Bush have failed to reach the top tier. It signals that, among the party's entrenched elites, there is a growing fear that none of those candidates may be able to beat both Trump and Cruz.

Many have decided that Trump -- for all his faults -- is better. For one thing, many Republicans in Congress especially despise Cruz, who has a history of picking long-shot fights and blaming other Republicans when they're unsuccessful.

Beyond that personal hostility, there's a political calculation. If Cruz is nominated, they say, he could alienate swing voters with his brand of scorched-earth conservatism. If he's elected, they fear, Cruz would shut Republican moderates out of power.

Perhaps most notably, parts of the establishment are starting to think Trump can win.

"Between Trump and Cruz, it's not even close," said Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.), a longtime House moderate who has not endorsed a candidate. "Cruz isn't a good guy, and he'd be impossible as president. People don't trust him. And regardless of what your concern is with Trump, he's pragmatic enough to get something done. I also don't see malice in Trump like I see with Cruz."

This week, the New York Times quoted another major Republican figure -- former Senate majority leader and presidential nominee Robert J. Dole -- as saying he would prefer Trump to Cruz. "Nobody likes him," Dole said of Cruz, adding that the senator would bring on a "cataclysmic" loss as the GOP's nominee.

But other Republicans still believe it is impossible to choose between the two, because they believe that either would be a disaster as the nominee -- and that others can eventually rise.

"Whether you jump off a cliff or drive off a cliff, you're still off a cliff," said Sen. Lindsey O. Graham, R-South Carolina, who recently dropped out of the race and endorsed Bush.

In theory, that feeling -- and the way that Trump and Cruz have torn each other down lately -- could still provide an opening for a more centrist candidate. The problem is that there are at least four such contenders, and most of their advertising attacks have been concentrated on each other rather than Trump.
Cabela's is considering selling off its World's Foremost Bank credit card operation, according to two media reports.

The New York Post, citing anonymous sources, reported Thursday that the Sidney-based outdoors retailer has decided to first try to sell its credit card operation before making any decision on what to do with its retail store operation.

That report followed one last week by financial website DealReporter, which suggested Cabela's is exploring the sale of its credit card operation because it would be necessary for any sale of the company to a private equity fund.

Financial analysts have suggested the credit card operation, which is headquartered in Lincoln, could be worth $3.5 billion or more.

The Post story said one potential complication with a deal for the credit card business is that Cabela's wants keep the profit stream from the business.

Cabela's has been under pressure to improve its profitability since late October, when activist hedge fund Elliott Associates disclosed that it had taken an 11.1 percent stake in the company.

In December, Cabela's announced it had retained Guggenheim Securities LLC to help it explore and evaluate strategic options for the company.

Bass Pro Shops, one of Cabela's main competitors, reportedly was interested in making a bid for the company, but the Post article said Bass Pro Shops is now in a holding pattern, waiting to see what happens with the credit card operation.

Experts the Journal Star spoke with in November said selling the credit card business could both unlock value for Cabela's and make it easier to sell the rest of the business.

What would happen to the credit card operation and its workforce in Lincoln would likely depend on the buyer, those same experts said.

Jim Zipursky, managing director of the Omaha office of Corporate Finance Associates, said at the time that a likely buyer for the standalone credit card operation would be a bank or other financial services company.

In that case, the Lincoln operation at 4800 N.W. First St. and its 700 or so employees could be in jeopardy because such a company would likely look to integrate the Cabela's credit card operation into its own existing infrastructure, which could mean job cuts at a minimum or a closing of the Lincoln operation, Zipursky said.

Cabela's officials could not be reached for comment. The company reports its fourth-quarter earnings Feb. 18 and may offer more insight then.
A hotel concept that is new to Lincoln opened its doors earlier this month.

A co-branded Sleep Inn & Suites and MainStay Suites opened Jan. 12 at 2803 Folkways Blvd.

The four-story, 96-room hotel is only the second in Nebraska to have two hotel brands under one roof, said Blayne Harcey, sales manager for the hotel. It's also only the third co-branded Sleep Inn and MainStay in the U.S.

Of the 96 rooms, 56 are for Sleep Inn & Suites and 40 are MainStay, which is an extended-stay hotel concept.

While the Sleep Inn rooms are standard hotel fare, the Mainstay rooms have full kitchens with dishwashers, and some have separate bedrooms.

Harcey said it's not unusual for hotel companies to put two or even three brands they own together at one location, but they are almost always in separate buildings.

Putting the hotel brands together in one building is a fairly new concept, he said.

At the Lincoln hotel, one side of the hotel has MainStay rooms and the other has Sleep Inn rooms. All other amenities, such as the pool, fitness center and breakfast area, are shared.

Harcey said that for the guests, having two brands under one roof can mean access to amenities they might not otherwise get in a single-brand hotel.

For example, many extended-stay hotels don't have pools and other amenities.

For the hotel, it's just good business. Having two brands under one roof means cost savings on staff and other things. It also diversifies the guest mix, Harcey said, as the hotel can appeal to business travelers, leisure travelers and people who need a place to stay while working on a temporary basis in Lincoln, such as construction workers.

A North Dakota-based company called Northridge developed the hotel, which is its first co-branded hotel and its first hotel in Nebraska.
Nebraska is one step closer to lifting its ban on hogs owned by meatpackers.

Supporters overcame a filibuster on Friday and gave the measure (LB176) second-round approval with a 32-12 vote. They tout the measure as a way to help Nebraska's hog industry, which has grown slower than in several nearby states.

But critics say the bill would give large packers too much leverage over small farms by allowing them to control the entire supply chain.

They also criticized Smithfield Foods, a Chinese-owned pork processor that has quietly lobbied for the bill and contributed to at least 20 current state lawmakers, Gov. Pete Ricketts and Attorney General Doug Peterson.

One final vote is needed before the bill goes to Ricketts.
Leaders in Nebraska's two largest cities are scrambling to protect local laws aimed at curbing gun violence, while gun-rights advocates in the Legislature press for statewide uniformity on the issue.

Lincoln Mayor Chris Beutler as well as the head of Omaha's police union and four Omaha city councilmen all penned letters to state lawmakers Friday opposing a bill (LB289) that would prevent cities from enacting their own restrictions on gun possession and sales.

Supporters of the measure, sponsored by state Sen. Laura Ebke of Crete, said it was designed to avoid making criminals out of well-meaning gun owners from elsewhere in Nebraska who might unknowingly break the law when traveling in the state.

Ebke also argued her bill would provide a reasonable protection of Nebraskans' Second Amendment rights.

However, Beutler noted "significant concerns" about how the measure could impact police officers' ability to battle gun crimes.

"We respectfully submit that local elected officials, with input from local citizens, are in the best position to analyze whether to legislate in this area," the mayor wrote.

Ebke's measure drew little opposition when she introduced it last year, but that changed this week as lawmakers prepared to debate it Friday on the floor of the Legislature. That debate will continue next week.

In the meantime, some senators are working frantically to carve out exceptions in the bill, to allow cities to keep ordinances such as Omaha's decades-old requirement that handgun owners register their guns with the police department. Lincoln has a similar code that requires reporting sales of firearms other than sporting guns.

The four Omaha councilmen called that city's requirement a valuable tool that helps keep the public and police officers safe. John Wells, president of the Omaha Police Officers' Association, made a similar point in his letter.

Ebke signaled willingness to compromise: "We're talking about some possibilities," she said.

That includes working with Omaha Sen. Heath Mello on a change to accommodate the registries while ensuring protections for people who don't live in the cities and are simply passing through, Ebke said.

She also supports an amendment proposed by Bellevue Sen. Sue Crawford that would allow cities to ban open-carry firearms in public buildings and parks.

Ebke said she understands Omaha and Lincoln are "a different creature than the rest."

Some opponents argued the bill should be sent back to committee for further discussion.

The measure sailed through the Judiciary Committee last year after no elected leaders from either of the state's two largest cities opposed it at a public hearing. Papillion Mayor David Black and a representative for Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert testified in support of the measure.

But Friday, four senators  half the Judiciary Committee  said they should have voted against the bill being released from committee because it eliminates local control.

Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers said his fellow committee members mistakenly voted to advance the bill when he wasn't there to sound the alarm.

"The damage has been done, but it's not the kind of damage that cannot be undone," he said.

Chambers accused gun-right advocates of being "afraid of their own shadow."

"This has nothing to do with the Constitution," he said. "This has to do with paranoia and the NRA going to have its way everywhere."

Opponents said Ebke's bill would invalidate at least 10 Lincoln city gun restrictions.

Those ordinances ban firearms  concealed or carried openly  at city buildings and public parks, in domestic violence shelters and substance abuse treatment centers, on StarTran buses and at the city landfill.

Other Lincoln ordinances require gun dealers to secure firearms on shelves, ban a lengthier list of criminals from possessing guns for 10 years than is included in state law, and prohibit people from leaving guns unattended in cars for more than 24 hours.

One city code gives the mayor power to limit gun possession or sales "in the state of an emergency." Another prohibits carrying an unsecured firearm on a snowmobile.

Beutler's letter also questioned the bill on technical grounds, writing that while the measure appears to prevent cities from banning guns in places like courthouses and city parks, it doesn't strip the ability of county governments to restrict guns in similar places.

The letter followed conversations with representatives of the Lincoln Police Department and the city's legal department.

"Constituents in different areas of the state may believe that additional local ordinances are appropriate and necessary to address the issues faced by their community," Beutler wrote.

Sen. Bill Kintner of Papillion questioned whether other constitutional rights, such as freedom of religion, should be subject to local legislation.

"Would we tolerate the leftists in the city of Lincoln closing down a church because they didn't like it?"

Sen. Tommy Garrett of Bellevue said local firearm rules unfairly strip responsible gun owners of their right to bear arms. Garrett, who cosponsored Ebke's bill, has proposed his own legislation to eliminate so-called gun-free zones on college campuses.

"It takes guts to carry a gun because it's an awesome responsibility. None of us who are gun proponents carry that lightly. We know the awesomeness of ... the damage a firearm can do and it rightfully scares us."
State Ombudsman Marshall Lux is pleading the case for the Department of Correctional Services to find a remedy for prison crowding sooner -- not later.

Lux, whose office in part serves as a liaison between the prisons and the Legislature, said the crowding at the male prisons has reached a critical point.

In a memorandum he sent to Sen. Heath Mello, chairman of the Legislature's Appropriations Committee, Lux questioned a proposal by the department to use $26 million to expand Lincoln's Community Corrections Center by 148 beds for women.

In turn, prison officials have said that would free up beds for men in other prisons.

In community corrections facilities, inmates spend a portion of their time at jobs in the community to get them ready for parole or release. Nebraska's prison system has a need not only to reduce crowding but also for community custody beds, officials have said.

Lux said he is glad to see the department proposing to spend money on new beds, but a net gain of 148 community custody beds would not resolve the problem of too few community beds and would not make a significant dent in the crowding within the overall system.

The Appropriations Committee has explored the idea of adding 200 beds, instead, by leasing and renovating a building in Air Park at a lower cost. That, Lux said, would be a better option.

But an even better option might be to do both, he said.

Renovate the Air Park building and build the 148 community beds several years down the road, and several miles down the road in Omaha instead of Lincoln.

Lux said that considering most inmates would come from Omaha and when released would return there, expanding in Lincoln would mean an inmate might leave a job in Lincoln while at Community Corrections there and have to find a new one in Omaha.

Lux also questioned the per-bed cost of expanding Lincoln's Community Corrections Center, saying the $26 million would work out to about $176,000 per bed. The $18 million for Air Park renovation would be closer to $90,000 per bed.

That difference, Lux said, is stunning and suggests there may be more going on with the proposal than meets the eye.

The departments proposal to expand Lincoln's Community Corrections Center, Lux said, may really be a minimum custody expansion disguised as a community custody expansion, conceived before Department of Correctional Services Director Scott Frakes came on board.

"I'm not suggesting that he is being disingenuous," Lux said Thursday of the proposal.

But there has been an interest in the past in expanding beds for minimum -custody inmates in Lincoln.

A 2014 master plan for the prison system calls for the first phase to include renovation and expansion of Lincoln's Community Corrections Center to be a minimum custody and community custody reentry facility.

It's also conceivable some of that excess money for expansion could be wanted for renovations for the Lincoln Correctional Center and the Diagnostic and Evaluation Center, Lux said.

In the memo to Mello, Lux said he believed the Air Park renovation would bring some relief from crowding faster. In the past two years, the population at the male prisons has ranged from 158 percent of design capacity to 163 percent. Without an agreement with county jails to house some prisoners, the capacity would be at 165 percent, Lux said.

The Legislature passed a prison reform law (LB605) to relieve crowding, but officials are unsure if those reforms will even work or if they will make enough difference if they do, Lux said.

Frakes sent an email to the Ombudsmans office Jan. 9 saying two employees visited with the Airport Authority in December, when members said they were willing to negotiate a lease rate of between $70,000 and $100,000 a year, which amounts to $2 to $3 a square foot.

Frakes reiterated that he had not changed his mind about not wanting to rent and renovate the Air Park facility.

We need to invest our tax dollars into improving CCC-L, rather than improving property that we dont own, Frakes told the Ombudsmans office.

All of the life and safety systems at Air Park would have to be brought up to code, he said. Also, because of small dorm spaces and poor sight lines, the Air Park facility would require additional custody staff.

Frakes estimated it would take at least 14 positions more at Air Park over those to staff an expansion of the Community Corrections Center.

The benefits to CCC-L expansion would include the ability to provide appropriate services for women and elimination of co-ed housing in both Lincoln and Omaha, Frakes said. Also, support services such as programming, visits and food service, would be improved for the entire center, and the investment would belong to the state.

Frakes said he realized there is an $8 million difference in estimates for the two options. And the Air Park facility might have quicker turnaround.

But operating costs at Air Park would be at least $1 million a year more. And in about eight years, the construction cost difference for CCC-L can be recouped through reduced operating costs per bed.

Mello said he and the committee would consider Lux's information in discussions of the Corrections budget proposals.
From making upcycled Valentines Day cards to painting mini murals, everyone is an artist at the Lux Center for the Arts annual Winterfest Celebration.

The free family event will be 1-4 p.m. Sunday at 2601 N. 48th St.

In addition to the upcycled cards and mural painting, people can try their hand at origami, jewelry making and more.

Winterfest is in keeping with the LUX Centers mission of enhancing lives by providing learning opportunities in contemporary art, craft and design.

For information go to luxcenter.org or call 402-466-8692.

Also happening

* Families can test their archery skills at the Archery Fun Shoot, noon-4 p.m. Saturday, at the Nebraska Game and Parks Outdoor Education Center, 4703 N. 44th St. Cost for kids 8 to 15 is $3 and includes one hour of range time, plus equipment. Cost for those 16 and older is $10 for an hour of range time and equipment. People are free to bring their own archery equipment. No pre-registration is necessary. For information go to outdoornebraska.gov/outdooredcenter/.

* The Lincoln Childrens Museum makes weekends special with its Super Saturday and STEAM Sundays. Super Saturdays, 10 a.m. to noon, feature performances and hands-on activities from various community organizations. STEAM Sunday invites visitors to experience science, technology, engineering, art and math, 2-4 p.m. Super Saturday and Steam Sunday activities are included with the price of admission to the museum: $9.50 for ages 2-61; $9 for ages 62 and older, $6.50 for 1-year-olds and and free for children younger than 1. More, lincolnchildrensmuseum.org or call 402-477-4000.

Coming up

* Snug as a Bug, the annual winter program inviting children and parents to probe through leaf litter and logs for the insects living within, returns 10 a.m.-noon Jan. 30 at Spring Creek Prairie Audubon Center, 11700 S.W. 100th St., Denton. Activities include a short hike (weather permitting) and an indoor investigation session. Activities are geared toward children in grades K-6 and adult family members. Cost is $8 per family team. For information go to springcreekprairie.audubon.org or call 402-797-2301.

* The 12th annual Dinosaurs & Disasters returns to Morrill Hall, 645 N. 14th St., 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Feb. 6. This years theme is Mythbusters, with University of Nebraska-Lincoln scientists and students leading activities and demonstrations answering fact or fiction questions. Visitors will learn about animals and their environments past and present, test their knowledge of the Earths history, build a city to see if it can withstand a simulated earthquake and investigate the mini marvels in water that help the world. Bring a rock or fossil for scientists to identify. Dinosaurs & Disasters activities are included in the price of museum admission.

In addition, Mueller Planetarium in Morrill Hall will present Solar Superstorms on the hour every hour, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Show tickets are sold the day of the program in the Planetarium lobby. For information go to museum.unl.edu/events or call 402-472-2642.
Them thats got shall get. Them thats not shall lose  Billie Holiday

It was in April of 2014 that the water turned bad. Residents of Flint, Mich., reported that the stuff smelled. It was yellowish brown. You drank it and your hair fell out. Or you developed a rash. Or you were nauseous.

Again, this was in April.

According to a computer search, it was not until the following January that the Detroit Free Press, just an hour down the road, took note. It wasnt until March that The New York Times began reporting the story. It wasnt until Jan. 5th of this year  almost two years later  that Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder saw fit to declare a state of emergency and nine days afterward that he asked President Obama to declare the city a disaster area.

And it is not until today that yours truly is writing about it.

There are many points of outrage in the story of Flints ill-fated attempt to save money by switching its water supply to the filthy Flint River. You could focus on findings that the river water contained fecal coliform bacteria. Or on the fact that chemicals used to kill said bacteria apparently created new contaminations of their own. Or on reports that much of the problem could have been avoided by adding an anti-corrosive agent to the water for about $100 a day, but the city declined.

You could fix your anger on city officials who continued to insist, long after it was obviously untrue, that the water was safe. Or on state regulators who said the same even after a group of doctors reported finding elevated levels of lead in the blood of Flints children. The World Health Organization says lead poisoning in kids can lead to brain damage, shortened attention span, antisocial behavior, hypertension, and damage to the reproductive organs, among other things. The effects are irreversible.

So yes, this slow-rolling disaster offers many causes for anger. But one of them is the very fact that it has been a slow-rolling disaster.

It is inconceivable that it would take so long for public officials to respond or media to notice if the water became unsafe in New York, Miami, Charlotte, Chicago, Atlanta or L.A. But Flint is none of those places. Rather, it is a hard-luck, hardscrabble, post-industrial wasteland, a shrinking town of 100,000 people, with a poverty rate of 41 percent and per capita income of less than $15,000. It doesnt even have a grocery store.

In 2005, when New Orleans drowned, some of us seemed surprised that there were Americans too desperately poor to escape the path of a monster storm. There followed much media hand-wringing over the failure to report so fundamental a story as the continued existence of poverty.

Yet here we are over a decade later, and once again it takes a calamity to make poor people visible. We saw the same pattern in Ferguson, Mo., where it wasnt until a teenager died and weeks of urban unrest followed that we learned how that city was pimping its poor.

One is reminded of what happens when theres a blackout: Windows are broken and merchandise taken. No one is surprised by this. Under cover of darkness, people are seldom their best selves. Under cover of darkness, terrible deeds are often done.

Well, news media have left the poor under cover of darkness. Our light shines on politics, the middle class, technological gimmickry and celebrity gossip, yes. But on those the Bible calls the least of these? Not so much. Our inattention frees politicians to ignore them as well. And all of a sudden you look up and its been almost two years since 100,000 people had safe water to drink and were just beginning to notice.

Thats unconscionable. News medias mission, it is often said, is to afflict the comfortable and comfort the afflicted. Where the plight of the nations poor is concerned, we seem to have failed on both counts.
Ambitious minds in City Hall are buzzing with dreams of new roundabouts, smart traffic-control systems, hiring more firefighters and bike-sharing programs.

Uh, dont forget about the funding gap in the pension plan for police and firefighters.

Its a boring topic, what with terms like mortality assumptions, actuarial science and the like.

But ignoring the problem can be disastrous.

Just ask the residents of Detroit, which had to declare bankruptcy, partly because of ongoing burden of payments to retirees. Or San Jose, where the city cut salaries and closed four libraries, as well as other facilities, because of unfunded pension liabilities. Fifty miles down the road Omaha pension fund is only 50 percent funded.

The actuarial firm that studied Lincolns plan recommended that the city plunk $12 million into the plan next year.

Thats a big diversion from the citys revenue stream. Its almost twice the $5.6 million the city put into the fund last year, and about three times the amount the city was kicking in before the 2008 financial crisis.

The actuarial firm Cavanaugh, Macdonald Consulting LLCC based its report in part on an Aug. 31 snapshot of the funds assets, which were down $8 million from the year before.

The fund goes up and down with the stock market, of course, but it seems a safe bet that the fund is even worse shape now with the market dropping like a rock since the start of the year.

Given the current conditions, its comforting that Councilman Trent Fellers pushed for a study of the growing cost of the citys defined benefit plan for police and firefighters. (The rest of the citys employees have a defined contribution plan similar to a 401(k) plan in the private sector.)

A committee appointed by Fellers and Mayor Chris Beutler is expected to make recommendations this spring for the city council to consider during its budget recommendations.

The Journal Star editorial board hopes that elected officials, the Lincoln Police Union and the firefighters union will be open to making long-term changes in the retirement plan.

Any changes to the defined benefit plan would be subject to negotiation between the unions and the city. Alternatives include switching to a defined contribution plan or a cash balance plan sometimes referred to as a defined benefit plan in drag. It guarantees a minimum payout, but usually pays more depending on the funds balance.

As Patrice Beckman, a consulting actuary with the Cavanaugh Macdonald firm, told the council, when it comes to filling the pension fund gap its pay me now or pay me later, with interest. The responsible thing to do is to take care of the problems as quickly as possible.
The IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program helps bring millions of dollars back to the Lincoln, Neb., area. Local leaders kicked off a new VITA season at a news conference Jan. 22 at Bennett Martin Library, 136 S. 14th St.

The Lincoln VITA Coalition, led by the University of Nebraska-Lincolns Center for Civic Engagement and funded, in part, by the Community Health Endowment Fund, operates 10 sites throughout the area. The sites provide free tax preparation for low- to-moderate-income taxpayers who generally earn $54,000 or less. The IRS also works with AARP to offer the Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) program to provide free tax help to taxpayers who are 60 and older.

Without the VITA program, many of these families may feel compelled to get paid tax help, and that could mean hundreds of dollars out of their pocket unnecessarily, said Linda Moody, UNL, Center for Civic Engagement. The VITA program helps people keep more of their hard- earned money, maximize their refund and get free face to face tax help. Its a vital service for this community."

EITC is key

The news conference also highlighted the Earned Income Tax Credit . The EITC is one of the federal governments largest benefit programs for working families and individuals. VITA helps ensure families get it. Workers must file a tax return, even if they do not have a filing requirement, and specifically claim the credit to get the benefit.

Without VITA, some families would surely miss out on this valuable tax credit, said Rick Carter, Executive Director of the Lincoln/Lancaster County Human Services Federation. This one credit can mean more than $6,000 to a qualifying family with three or more children.

Last year, in the Lincoln area alone, the VITA program helped bring back more than $5.1 million in tax refunds to the local families by preparing more than 4,500 tax returns. The IRS also encourages people to get tax help from programs that use IRS-trained volunteers. In Lincoln, the only IRS-approved VITA program is through UNL.

We make sure volunteers are trained according to IRS-approved standards, so that taxpayers can rely on the accuracy of their returns, and thats important, said Moody.

VITA volunteers can also help eligible taxpayers with the Child Tax Credit or Credit for the Elderly. Along with the federal tax return, volunteers will also prepare Nebraska state returns. Some sites also have multilingual volunteers who can assist people with limited English skills.

Contact information

To locate the nearest free tax preparation site in Lincoln offering IRS-certified volunteer assistance, go to http://lincolnvitacoalition.unl.edu/ or call the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Center for Civic Engagement at 402-472-6150. In addition, taxpayers can call 2-1-1 in their community or go to a special webpage to use the online locator tool on IRS.gov, or download the free IRS smartphone app, IRS2Go. Before going to a VITA or TCE site, taxpayers should review Publication 3676-B for services provided.

Most sites also file returns electronically for free. E-file, when combined with Direct Deposit, is the fastest way to get a refund. The IRS expects to issue most refunds in less than 21 days.

VITA sites in Lincoln:

 Asian Community & Cultural Center, 2635 O St.

 Bennett Martin Library, 136 S. 14th St.

 Center for People in Need, 3901 N. 27th St.

 Good Neighbor Community Center, 2617 Y St.

 Indian Center, 1100 Military Rd.

 Jackie Gaughan Multicultural Center, 1505 S St.

 Loren Eiseley Library, 1530 Superior St.

 Southeast Community College, 285 S. 68th St. Place

 UNL Tax Credit Campaign, (Center for Civic Engagement), East Union, 33rd and Holdrege

 Victor E. Anderson Library, 3635 Touzalin Ave.

Taxpayers need to present the following items to have their returns prepared:

 Proof of identification (photo ID)

 Social Security cards for you, your spouse and dependents

 An Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) assignment letter may be substituted for you, your spouse and your dependents if you do not have a Social Security number

 Proof of foreign status, if applying for an ITIN

 Birth dates for you, your spouse and dependents on the tax return

 Wage and earning statements (Form W-2, W-2G, 1099-R,1099-Misc) from all employers

 Interest and dividend statements from banks (Forms 1099)

 A copy of last years federal and state returns, if available

 Proof of bank account routing and account numbers for direct deposit such as a blank check

 To file taxes electronically on a married-filing-joint tax return, both spouses must be present to sign the required forms

 Total amount paid for daycare services and the daycare provider's tax identifying number such as their Social Security number or business Employer Identification Number

 Forms 1095-A, Affordable Health Care Statement, if applicable

 Copies of income transcripts from IRS and state, if applicable
Lisa Lampanelli has often been called upon to provide the closing invective blasts on the Comedy Central Roasts of actors, musicians, comics and the like. It's been about five years since she did her last one on Comedy Central, but some of the jokes still have some sting left on them.

After perusing a few roast videos at work on YouTube and somehow not getting fired, here are six of Lampanelli's clean-ish zings. See if you can match the joke with the six guys who were the butts of them: Donald Trump, Paul Shaffer, Flava Flav, The Situation from "Jersey Shore," Gene Simmons and Larry the Cable Guy.

1. Youre all over television. And you have a book out! I tried ordering your book on Amazon.com. Amazon said customers who bought this book also bought a rope and a stool.

2. Id like to be sincere and say something from the heart. This is difficult, because what do you call a man who is a true rock n' roll icon? What do you call a man whose songs will live forever in the hearts of millions of fans? What do you call a man who has inspired countless young people to pursue their dream of making a difference in the world? You call that man  John Lennon. But hes dead, and all we have is this untalented windbag.

3. "And those jackets, what the hell? Did Michael Jackson's chimp have a yard sale?"

4. Youve disappointed more women than 'Sex and the City 2.'

5. "Thanks for getting dressed up for the big roast tonight. Thats a nice ensemble, Sling Blade, does it come with a banjo?"

6. "Dude enough with the clock, you can take it off. You haven't had to be anywhere in 13 years."

Answers: 1. The Situation, from the roast of Trump; 2. Simmons, from his own roast; 3. Shaffer, from Chevy Chase's roast 4. Trump, from his own roast; 5. Larry, from the roast of Jeff Foxworthy (she hosted the Cable Guy's roast, too); 6. Flav, from his own roast.

-- Cory Matteson
Open Friday

THE BOY. This horror movie about a doll that may or may not be alive was not screened in advance for critics. PG-13. (Grand, Edgewood)

DIRTY GRANDPA. Robert De Niro goes on spring break with his grandson Zac Efron in this comedy that wasn't screened in advance for critics. R. (Grand, East Park)

THE 5TH WAVE. A 16-year-old girl tries to survive after an alien invasion that has decimated the earth in this sci-fi picture that wasn't screened in advance for critics. PG-13. (Grand, East Park, Edgewood)

JANIS: This illuminating documentary looks at the life of rock icon Janis Joplin through recollections of her family, friends and band members and old footage of her interviews and performances. Not Rated. (Ross) Grade: A

Now Showing

13 HOURS: THE SECRET SOLDIERS OF BENGHAZI. The heroic story of six security team members taking charge during the Sept. 11, 2012, terrorist attacks in Benghazi allows blockbuster shoot-'em-up director Michael Bay to linger a little too long on the carnage and a set of blood-stained abs. (Grand, East Park) Grade: C

THE BIG SHORT. This furious, funny film turns its stars loose on a savage odyssey through the financial collapse of the 2008, indicting the traders who bet against America with steadily building rage. R. (Grand) Grade: B

CAROL. This tale of friendship, then romance between homemaker Cate Blanchett and shop girl Rooney Mara is an exquisitely created and acted 1950s drama from director Todd Haynes. R. (Grand) Grade: A

DADDY'S HOME. The story is essentially a masculinity faceoff between step-dad Will Ferrell and dad Mark Wahlberg, and will pleasantly surprise you when it lets loose. PG-13 (Grand, Edgewood, SouthPointe) Grade: B

THE FOREST. "Game of Thrones" star Natalie Dormer's talent is wasted in this rotten horror film about twin sisters and the spooky Japanese woods where people go to kill themselves. PG-13. (Grand, Edgewood) Grade: D-

THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY PART 2. Director Francis Lawrence takes the epic action down a notch and zeroes in on what matters most: Family, trust, compassion, authenticity in the final installment of the series based on the young adult novels. PG-13. (Grand) Grade: B

NORM OF THE NORTH. This animated real estate drama about a polar bear in New York City is barely passable as kid's fare and has little to recommend it to adults. PG. (Grand, Edgewood, SouthPointe) Grade: C-

THE REVENANT. Leonardo DiCaprio is a fur trader enduring attacks, both human and animal, in the Rocky Mountains in the 1820s in this strikingly shot survival saga. R. (Grand, East Park, Edgewood, SouthPointe) Grade: B

RIDE ALONG 2. Kevin Hart's comedy wins over the audience in this cop buddy comedy sequel in which he's again paired with Ice Cube. PG-13. (Grand, East Park, Edgewood, SouthPointe) Grade: B-

SISTERS Amy Poehler and Tina Fey are sisters who throw one last party in their old haunts in this inconsistent, too long, ultimately unsatisfying scattershot comedy. R. (Grand, Edgewood) Grade: C

SPOTLIGHT. This accurate, involving drama that tells the story of the Boston Globe's Spotlight team investigation of the Catholic Church sexual abuse cover up is one of the best journalism movies ever. R. (Grand) Grade: A

STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS. Director J. J. Abrams' much anticipated, well made 'Star Wars' picture passes the torch to a new generation in action-packed, entertaining fashion but is too familiar to be great. PG-13. (Grand, East Park, SouthPointe). Grade: B

YOUTH. Michael Caine and Harvey Keitel are old friends on vacation together in the Swiss Alps in this serious, very European film about aging and creativity. R. (Ross) Grade: B

NOTE: Theaters are for Friday only and are subject to change the other days of the week.
As the 2015 holiday season rapidly recedes, so do the daily stories in electronic, print and social media recounting many year-end acts of kindness.

Concurrently, the ongoing projects of Retired & Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) members regularly, systematically and without fanfare continue to serve Racine County residents.

In 2015, more than 230 RSVP-Racine County members recorded an average of 1,200 volunteer hours a month through 32 job descriptions. RSVP-Racine County concentrates on five Focus Areas designated by the Corp. for National and Community Service (CNCS): Healthy Futures, Education, Disaster Services, Veterans and Military Families and Community Priorities.

Healthy Futures projects are divided into two areas: Aging in Place, represented by Senior Companion Inc. and ADRCs Meals on Wheels, and Obesity and Food, served by St. Vincent DePaul Food Pantry. Healthy Futures has the largest percentage of RSVP-Racine County volunteers.

Some RSVP members are steady, trusted companions of elementary and middle school students in Racine Unified School Districts Mentoring Program. RSVP volunteers also participate in disaster preparation through amateur radio organizations, the Wisconsin Blood Center, the Racine County Sheriffs Patrol substation and the Medical Reserve Corps.

RSVP-Racine County members provide military-to-civilian transition services through the Navy Operational Support Center and the new Racine Area Retirement Council (RARC).

Agencies and projects associated with Community Priorities activities include: AARP Tax-Aide, the Caledonia Historical Society, Friends of the Wind Point Lighthouse, MyRIDE Senior Transportation, Racine Literacy Council, Wheaton Franciscan, Wisconsin Veterans Home, Safe-Assured ID and the RSVP Advisory Council.

RSVP-Racine County operates under a federal grant awarded to the Volunteer Center of Racine County Inc. by CNCS. RSVP matches volunteers ages 55 and older with service opportunities in Racine County. RSVP members are eligible for mileage reimbursement and complimentary, supplemental accident and liability insurance while volunteering.

As 2016 dawns, RSVP welcomes volunteers ages 55 and older interested in joining projects serving their Racine County neighbors year-round.
The Wisconsin state Senate voted to strip Planned Parenthood of an estimated $7.5 million in federal funding by approving two bills on Wednesday.

The first would place limits on how much Planned Parenthood can be reimbursed for prescription drugs acquired through a Medicaid program. The second would prevent Planned Parenthood from receiving federal Title X funds, diverting the money to other groups at the discretion of the state Department of Health Services.

The state Assembly in October approved the second bill, but hasn't yet taken up the first. The Senate passed the Republican bills on a party-line vote.

Democrats say the pair of bills would restrict access to reproductive health services throughout the state, while Republicans argue just the opposite.

While the Medicaid reimbursement bill language addresses abortion providers in general, bill author Sen. Chris Kapenga, R-Delafield, acknowledged it would specifically affect Planned Parenthood.

Under the bill, family planning clinics could only bill Medicaid for the actual acquisition cost plus a dispensing fee for prescription drugs obtained through Medicaid's 340B program.

"This is a consistent stance with where I have always been, where many others in this body have always been, and that is, we are going to protect life," Kapenga said. "I believe that that begins at conception, and I believe that one of the cornerstones of the Declaration of Independence and what our Constitution is drafted around is the protection of life."

Sen. Lena Taylor, D-Milwaukee, argued the bills aren't about protection of life, but rather about passing a vindictive agenda.

Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Middleton, said the Medicaid bill isn't about abortion at all; rather, it's about saying it's OK for other entities to be reimbursed for dispensing birth control, but not for Planned Parenthood to receive the same reimbursement.

"Birth control, for men, you can go to a truck stop. You can go to a gas station. You can go to a big box store. We, women, we have to to go to a pharmacist. We have to go to a health center," said Senate Minority Leader Jennifer Shilling, D-La Crosse, arguing bills like this wouldn't be introduced if the situation were reversed.

Sen. Duey Stroebel, R-Saukville, rejected the premise that Republicans are going after birth control. He disputed the argument that access can be challenged, arguing, "I think it's pretty easy to find. At least, that's the way I thought it was."

"Womens birth control? Im for womens birth control. I think probably most everybody else here is, too. Thats not an issue," Stroebel said. "I support womens health care. I think everybody else here does. What we dont support is a taxpayer subsidy for a private abortion provider. That's what this bill is about. We are for women's health care, and we want to see that that is available."

The second bill would bar the state from giving any federal Title X dollars to organizations that perform abortions.

Under federal law, Title X money must fund family planning and contraceptives, STD testing and breast and cervical cancer screening. It is not allowed to be spent on abortions, but supporters of the bill argue that when Planned Parenthood spends federal money on family planning services and screenings, money is freed up to fund abortion services.

Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin has been the direct recipient of Title X funds for more than 35 years. A portion of those funds are distributed to a total of 18 health centers across across the state, including 9 non-Planned Parenthood health centers. According to the organization, about 50,000 men and women are served under the funding stream each year.

Five Planned Parenthood clinics have closed since Gov. Scott Walker cut off the organization's state funding in 2011, none of which provided abortions. The organization has said the pair of bills would "devastate" Planned Parenthood and other safety-net health care providers.

Walker has said he supports efforts to further restrict Planned Parenthood's funding.
Most Americans agree that the forces of ISIS could be defeated if we spent sufficient American blood and money, but what happens then?

History illustrates ways of establishing peace. One solution  defeat the enemy and grab new land as in the Spanish-American War. A second solution  expel the other from their land and occupy the territory.

The Indian Wars so ended. The Palestinian-Israeli tragedy reflects a failing attempt at this solution. Immigrants pushed out Arab inhabitants by force and occupied the territory. A similar pattern was involved in South Africa by the Dutch. This solution is always tempting, but peace requires justice.

A third solution  remove the perpetrators of the war and allow the defeated to again govern themselves. World Wars I and II involved that process. Unfortunately in the present Middle East, there is a lack of such national identity and unity. This lack may largely be explained by the artificial boundaries imposed after World War I by the British and French. Old tribal loyalties prevail.

No sane person would suggest solution one or two for the war against terror. The third model remains  rid the lands of terrorist elements and then assist those lands as they develop the identity and unity needed to govern themselves once again. This will require serious and persistent diplomacy aimed at uniting Arab and other nations toward that end. Brute military force on our part cannot bring that about. Fortunately, this is the plan laid out by President Obama.

Wayne G. Johnson

Racine
Jane Stillwater is a freelance journalist, war correspondent, blogger, political Cassandra and author. Her latest motto is "Stop Wall Street, War Street, Big Pharma and Big Tech from destroying our world."
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The US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit [official website] ruled [opinion, PDF] in favor of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) [official website] on Thursday, dismissing a claim that the imposed pollution regulations in Minnesota are too lenient. The National Parks Conservation Association [advocacy website] challenged the EPAs approval of a reasonable-progress plan as satisfying the Minnesota Regional Haze Plan [official website] to improve air quality. The court found that EPAs approval of time allowances was not arbitrary,capricious, an abuse of discretion or otherwise not in accordance with law.

In another victory for the EPA Thursday, the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit refused to block [JURIST report] the Clean Power Plan (CPP) [materials]. A three-judge panel of the DC Circuit issued an order denying an application seeking to stay the rule while litigation continues. A highly divided US Supreme Court ruled [opinion, PDF] 5-4 last June that the EPA could not make regulations [JURIST report] regarding the toxic emissions of power plants without considering costs. The panel of judges on the case issued a set of concurring and dissenting opinions disagreeing either with the judgment or the reasoning of it. In August the EPA proposed new rules [JURIST report] to cut methane emissions by the oil and gas industry, as part of the Obama administrations commitment to taking action on climate change.
The US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit [official website] on Thursday rejected a bid to block [order, PDF] the implementation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Clean Power Plan (CPP) [materials]. A three-judge panel of the DC Circuit issued an order denying an application seeking to stay the rule while litigation continues. The parties challenging the Obama administrations proposal to curb carbon dioxide emissions from power plants included 27 states led by West Virginia and several business groups. However, more than a dozen states on the other end of the spectrum and the National League of Cities, which represents more than 19,000 US cities, filed their own papers with the court backing the CPP. The CPP aims to lower carbon emissions from power plants to 32 percent below 2005 levels by the year 2030. This ruling only means that the regulations will remain in place for the time being, but the appeals court still has to hear oral arguments on June 2 to decide whether the regulations are lawful. However, West Virginias Attorney General Patrick Morrisey has already expressed his intentions to appeal the ruling to the US Supreme Court [official website].

Regulating power plant emissions has been a contentious issue. A highly divided US Supreme Court ruled [opinion, PDF] 5-4 last June that the EPA could not make regulations [JURIST report] regarding the toxic emissions of power plants without considering costs. The panel of judges on the case issued a set of concurring and dissenting opinions disagreeing either with the judgment or the reasoning of it. In August the EPA proposed new rules [JURIST report] to cut methane emissions by the oil and gas industry, as part of the Obama administrations commitment to taking action on climate change. Also in August the US District Court of the District of North Dakota granted a preliminary injunction [JURIST report] against a rule granting the EPA and the US Army Corps of Engineers jurisdiction over small US waterways. In another recent case involving the Clean Water Act [JURIST report], two environmental groups filed a lawsuit last December against the EPA accusing the agency of failing to comply with a court order to strengthen storm drain pollution regulation. The presently disputed Clean Power plan was announced [statement, video] by US President Barack Obama in an attempt to to improve air quality and reduce green house gas emissions
Myanmar began the process of releasing the first set of 102 mostly political prisoners on Friday days before a democratic power transfer takes place in Myanmars parliament [official website, in Burmese]. The democratic party led by Aung San Suu Kyi [BBC profile] will be sitting in parliament for the first time since winning the election last November. This development has come within days of a visit to Myanmar by US Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken [official profile], who urged the outgoing administration under President Thein Sein [official profile] to free all political detainees. According to Zaw Htay, a director at the presidents office, it was unclear how many prisoners had already been freed and whether all of them were political prisoners, however, the joint secretary of Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), Bo Kyi, put the number of prisoners released [Reuters report] so far at 52. Zaw Htay also stated that death sentences for 77 prisoners would now be reduced to life imprisonment. Among those to be released shortly include Phillip Blackwood, a New Zealand citizen jailed in the notorious Insein prison on a charge of insulting religion [Telegraph report]. This prisoner release is expected to contribute to a positive legacy of Thein Sein.

This development also comes in the wake of significant pressure from several members of the international community including human rights groups, the UN, and other countries. Less than a week ago, Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] urged Myanmar to release all remaining prisoners currently being held for political and religious violations. The National League for Democracy Party (NLD) [official website, in Burmese], which won the national elections [JURIST report] last November, promised [Myanmar Times report] that there will be no political prisoners when they take office in late March. However, HRW Asia Director Phil Robertson [official profile] had stressed [HRW report] that current Myanmar President Thein Sein should immediately fulfill a similar promise he made in 2012.
[JURIST] Two of three Guantanamo Bay detainees scheduled for release boarded a plane for transfer on Wednesday while the third detainee turned down the opportunity. Though the two released detainees were natives of Egypt and Yemen, they were resettled in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro [DOD press releases]. The third detainee, Mohammed Bawazir, has gained a reputation for hunger striking as a protest against his 14 years of captivity without trial. Though Bawazir originally agreed to resettle in an unidentified country, he changed his mind reportedly upon realizing that he would not be returning to any family. Currently, 91 detainees remain in Guantanamo Bay, and 34 await resettlement in foreign countries.

The Obama administration has promised to close Guantanamo but has struggled due to Congressional opposition to relocating detainees to the US, as well as the slow process of transferring prisoners to other countries. White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough said last week that President Barack Obama intends to fulfill [JURIST report] his promise to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility before leaving office. There have been multiple detainees released from Guantanamo recently, following reports that 17 were scheduled for release this month [JURIST report]. The US Department of Defense confirmed [JURIST report] earlier this month that 10 Yemeni detainees from Guantanamo Bay arrived temporarily to Oman. In November the US Senate passed [JURIST report] the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 (NDAA) [text, PDF], which prohibits Guantanamo detainees from being transferred into the US. Obama signed the bill into law, despite the fact that it could delay his plan to close the prison. The NDAA comes after the Department of Defense said [JURIST report] they were sending teams to review three Colorado prisons as part of Obamas efforts to close the facility in October. The Guantanamo Review Task Force (GRTF) was created in response to a 2009 presidential executive order [text, PDF] to review the status of all detainees. In September White House Spokesperson Josh Earnest said Obama was considering a wide array of options [JURIST report] for closing the prison.
[JURIST] According to a 300-page judicial report [text, PDF] released Thursday, the poisoning death of former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko was probably approved by President Vladmir Putin [official website]. In his report, Sir Richard Owen noted that Litvinenkos crossings with Putin began during his time working for the KGB where he investigated the Tambov criminal group, a St. Petersburg organized crime group. As Litvinenko investigated he became convinced that members of the Tambov were colluding with members of the KGB, including Putin. Throughout his life, Litvinenko publicized his findings both while he was in Russia and when he left, and he published his findings in his book The Gang from the Lubyanka and an essay The Uzbek File. Litvinenko also acted as a whistleblower when he had been given orders he felt were unlawful such as killing Boris Berezovsky. According to the report, orders to poison Litvinenko likely came from the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) and were probably approved by Putin. While many have been waiting for the release of the report, Russian officials have sharply criticized [Al Jazeera report] it, calling it biased and opaque.

Litvinenkos death has led to strained relations [JURIST report] between the UK and Russia, due in part to Russias refusal to extradite Andrei Lugovoy [JURIST news archive], the man suspected of administering the radioactive poison polonium-210 [CDC backgrounder], which killed Litvinenko, so that Lugovoy could stand trial for murder in the UK. The two countries have otherwise battled politically since Litvinenkos death with each expelling a number of the other countrys diplomats in July 2007 and Russia closing down local offices of the British Council in December 2007 [JURIST reports]. Lugovoy was charged [JURIST report] with Litvinenkos murder in May 2007.
The UN Special Rapporteur on North Korea Marzuki Darusman [official profile] called [press release] Friday for leader Kim Jong-un [BBC profile] to be held criminally responsible for the human rights conditions in the nation. While on a five-day mission in Japan, following a recent nuclear test [BBC report] by North Korea, the expert criticized the country for having shown no improvement of its human rights situation two years after he filed a report of the Commission of Inquiry. Darusman called for international community to step up efforts to engage with the DPRK in human rights dialogue while seeking to ensure accountability. He also noted that relations between Japan and North Korea have been deteriorating due in part to the forced disappearances of Japanese citizens by North Korea. Darusman is nearing the end of his term as an independent expert for the UN, and he has never been granted visitation into North Korea by its government.

The recent nuclear test in North Korea is cause for international concern due to the countrys human rights record and instability. In November Japan and the EU circulated [JURIST report] a draft UN resolution condemning North Koreas human rights abuses and encouraging the UN Security Council to refer the country to the International Criminal Court [official website], noting reports of torture, limits on freedom of mobility, restrictions on freedom of speech, restrictions on freedom of religion, privacy infringement, arbitrary imprisonment, prison camps and more. Darusman expressed deep concerns [JURIST report] regarding human rights violations in the country just a month earlier. In November 2014 Darusman said that there is enough evidence to hold Kim responsible for massive human rights atrocities [JURIST report] committed in the country. In response to these concerns, the UN in June opened a new office [JURIST report] in Seoul to specifically monitor human rights in North Korea.
The US Supreme Court [official website] ruled [opinion, PDF] Wednesday that an insurer cannot recover equitable relief under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) [official website] for settlement funds a participant has already spent. The court found that nontraceable assets are not recoverable under 502(a)(3). This decision overturned the order from the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit [official website] for Robert Montanile to pay over $120,000 back to his health benefit plan, to be taken from his general assets, after he was awarded a settlement for his 2008 automobile accident. The insurer seeking equitable relief delayed their suit [Lexology report] for over six months following Montanile receiving the settlement funds.

ERISA [JURIST backgrounder] has been the frequent subject of Supreme Court litigation since its passage in 1974. In September 2013 the US Department of Labor issued guidance [JURIST report] stating that the terms spouse and marriage in Title I of ERISA should be read to include same-sex couples who were legally married in any US state or jurisdiction that recognizes same-sex marriages. In April 2013 the Supreme Court ruled [JURIST report] that the terms of a contract in a health benefit plan should not be overturned through the application of equitable principles under Section 502(a)(3). The ruling was meant to have the impact of reinforcing the viability of employee health plans and thwarting a landslide of ERISA legislation.




3rd Saturday of the month: This is our normal monthly KaCSFFS meeting date. Setup begins at 6:00 p.m. If there's a business meeting, it'll run 6:30-7:00 p.m. Programming starts at 7:00 p.m., followed by socializing, eating, and tabletop games as available. Meetings usually last till 9:30 or so.



4th Monday of the month: Our friends the SF&F Literati meet to discuss a book selection ten months out of the year (not in December or May), at the Oak Park Barnes & Nobles Booksellers, 11323 W 95th Street, Overland Park, KS 66214, at 7:00 p.m. on the 2nd floor.



Every Memorial Day Weekend (May): Don't miss ConQuesT, our annual SF Convention!







Please watch the blog for notices of changes to any of these!Our friends thenormally present a program on one of these two weekends (usually the 2nd Saturday), starting about 4:15 p.m. Watch the blog for program announcements, exact dates, and how to learn about the location!
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3 killed, 9 injured in Morang police firing

At least three persons were killed in police firing in Rangeli Bazaar and Dayaniya in Morang on Thursdayfirst deaths in the eastern Tarai district during the five-and-a-half-month-long Madhes agitation.
ADB ready to boost annual lending to Nepal by 60pc

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has stated that it is ready to increase its annual lending to Nepal by 60 percent from 2017. The bank has been investing about $275 million annually in Nepal in the last five years.
Haiti presidential runoff 'to go ahead' despite boycott threat

A runoff vote to choose Haiti's next leader will go ahead on Sunday, President Michel Martelly says, despite threats of an opposition boycott.
Morcha supporters organise baton rally in Janakpur to protest Rangeli incident

Normal life was affected in Janakpur on Friday after the cadres of Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha (SLMM) and Sanghiya Samabesi Madhesi Gathabandhan started demonstration by burning tyres in various parts of the district.
NC, UML to urge Madhesi Morcha for flelxibility

Big two political parties of NepalNepali Congress and CPN-UMLhave concluded that the Madhes agitation will not come to an end at once and decided to urge the agitating Madhesi Morcha to become flexible to end the crisis.
Normal life in Dhanusha affected again

Normal life in Dhanusha district that had started limping back to normalcy from January 20 has again been affected from Friday after cadres of Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha (SLMM) intensified their agitation.
Paris attacks: Hasna Ait Boulahcen 'died of asphyxiation'

Prosecutors say a woman who died in a police raid after the Paris attacks died of asphyxiation, although her family argue she was murdered.
Threat bars victim of rape from court visit

A gang rape victim from Bardiya district has been threatened by the families of the men who had raped her in Katarniyaghat, India.
1. Yes. Its important to cast my votes early and avoid the lines on Election Day.

2. Yes. With nearly two weeks of early voting, its a more convenient way to take part.

3. No. Its better to wait until Election Day, in case any last-minute information surfaces.

4. No. Im not planning to vote early or on Election Day. It isnt worth my time.

5. Unsure. It depends on how the campaigns are shaping up. Ill play it by ear.

Vote

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Mike Dunleavy the governor of the US state of Alaska is intending to introduce legislation that will repeal the two state boards which regu...
Radios news queen: Her voice is smooth and the way she spells out each word, makes you love listening to news. Catherine Ageno, fondly known as Cathy, has been on radio for 10 years now and she met her fan Doreen Ekyam, with whom she shared her radio journey.

I am so glad to finally meet you Cathy. So what inspired your passion for radio?

My love for radio stretches way back when I was about five years old. I used to listen a lot to BBC on my dads small radio. Whenever he returned from work, he would tell us to keep quiet and the rest would go away because news bored them. I would stick around, not because I wanted to listen to the news, but to understand what it was all about. There is something about news that was captivating and I promised myself that one day, I would read news.

What was your breakthrough?

When you dream, you have to work at it. Of course, I went to school but I would tell myself that this is what I wanted to do. My dad, because of his teaching background, encouraged me to take that path.

He told me I could teach and at the same time read news because to him, reading news was a part-time job. I got the teaching job, and when time came to choose my career, I took on journalism. I knew he was not comfortable, but today he is so proud of me.

Did you face any challenges starting out?

Yes. The first challenge I had, was wanting to sound like the person who inspired me and that was the late Bbale Francis. I kept trying but could not sound like him, and my only consolation was that maybe he is a man and that is why I could not sound like him, but with training in broadcast, I realised that you have to be yourself when reading news.

Where did your journey start?

I was lucky to start working while studying. I started out as a Lusoga news anchor. By then I was studying at Uganda Institute of Business and Media studies but I landed a job at Lira FM in Lira Town, which is owned by my friend.

She wanted me to gain some experience and because of the big Lusoga audience that side, she told me to tap into that audience. But my challenge was that people found it hard to pin my name to what I was reading. It went well, but I got home sick. I was there for six months and just got up one morning and left for Jinja where my family is. She was disappointed.

A radio station, known as NBS radio, that had heard my voice in Lira called me and asked if I could join them. I said yes, as long as it was not reading Lusoga. I asked if I could try out English, but they refused. I had no option, so I joined as a Lusoga news anchor and presenter. I did it for some time then decided to come to Monitor Publications without papers, but just my voice.

What drives you to always wake up and go to work?

I love what I do, although sometimes I hate waking up early. I have done it for so many years but I have failed to get used to it.

Do you have time for your family?

Yes, I do but my job is more like that of a policeman. When everybody is on holiday, we are working and I do not complain about it. It is a service I am giving to the nation. But I always make time for my son and he understands.

What are your hobbies?

I love reading, cooking, and travelling, as long as it is not work-related.

What can I do to get to where you are?

If you love something, nothing can stop you. This is something you can do alongside another job.

What is that one trait people do not like about you?

I am very impatient and I keep time.

You have a nice voice, why dont you join TV as well?

I think most of my time has been taken up by radio, but I will give it a shot.

What is that one thing you would ask for?

Patience. Because it has cost me a lot. I have lost friends, I also lost a business deal.
A preliminary report on file census indicates that the case backlog in the judiciary stands now stands at over 114,000.

The findings released by Chief Justice Bart Katureebe this morning are from a national file census that was conducted in December last year in all courts of Judicature to establish the actual number of pending cases for the purposes of proper planning.

While officially opening the New Law Year at Kampala High Court premises, Justice Katureebe said with this information, the can now review the case backlog reduction programme focusing more on stemming the growth of case backlog as well as clearing the existing old cases.

The preliminary file census report shows that the Supreme Court has 97 pending cases, Court of Appeal; 5,800, High Court; 35,500 while the lower courts have 68,000.

The New Law Year is when the Judiciary officially opens to the general public and also draws a plan of what it intends to do in the new law year and reveals the same to the public.

To that effect, Katureebe outlined several plans to hundreds of lawyers and judges who had converged at High Court grounds that the Judiciary he heads intends to do in this new law year.

According to the new set targets for the judicial officers this new law year(2016), each Supreme Court justice is expected to hear 80 cases, Court of Appeal/Constitutional Court justice; 600 cases, High Court judge; 300 cases, Registrars; 400, Chief Magistrate 600 cases, New Grade One Magistrate; 300 cases, Magistrate Grade Two 300 cases.

Other resolutions that the Judiciary intends to do in this new law year are; establish more High Court circuits at Mukono, Iganga, Mpigi, Rukungiri and Mubende in order to bring services near the people.

Justice Katureebe as well proposed that the High Court circuit at Nakawa that serves several central Buganda Districts will be restructured and if need be, merged into existing Divisions of the High Court.

Story By Ruth Anderah
Shang-Jin Wei, the Chief Economist of the Asian Development Bank, talks to the Post from his office in Phnom Penh earlier this week.

Data released this week showed Chinas economy grew by 6.9 per cent in 2015, compared with 7.3 per cent a year earlier, marking its slowest growth in over a quarter of a century. ThePosts Ananth Baliga sat down with Shang-Jin Wei, chief economist of the Asian Development Bank, to discuss the reasons behind the Asian giants economic slowdown and its potential impact on Cambodia.

Is Chinas economic slowdown just a hiccup or a sign of something bigger?

Are we seeing a China slowdown? Yes, for sure. China used to grow at double digits and now it is growing at single digits. When the growth rate moves slowly, it will come down progressively over the next 10 to 15 years, until it reaches something like 3 to 4 per cent.

Are we seeing a collapse, which some people are saying? Chinas growth rate last year was 6.9 per cent. If it becomes 2 per cent this year there will be a collapse in the growth rate, but it is very unlikely we will see an event like this. Instead we are likely to see a gradual slowdown.

Is it too early to gauge what is happening?

The slowdown is understandable and driven by fundamentals. There are two important fundamentals in this context, one is labour costs and the other is demographics.

Chinese labour costs in terms of local currency are higher today than five or 10 years ago. Thats good for anyone who earns a wage, but means many sectors that China used to be globally competitive are less so today.

An example of this is low-end garments. While China has been dominant supplier of garments to the world market, today it is still number one, but market share is sinking. Other countries with lower labour costs have the potential to pick up that market share, and some of them are doing that.

The second fundamental is demographics. China for forty-some years till 2010 had an unusually favourable demographic structure. The ratio of working-age people to people dependent on working-age people  like children and retirees  was unusually favourable for China, partly because of its family planning policy.

But starting from 2011, China switched to an unfavourable demographic for the same reason, because in the preceding decades too few children were born. Therefore, too few people were entering the labour force while their parents and grandparents were retiring. So therefore the ratio of working-age people to dependents becomes unusually unfavourable to other countries.

So what does China need to do to reverse this slowdown?

It has to switch what it was good at and find new ways to grow. The new ways to grow have to be based more on innovation and productivity improvement. These two things are intrinsically harder than growth based on wage costs.

What are the implications of Chinas slowdown on other countries in the region?

In terms of affecting other economies, there are two broad categories. The first is countries or country sectors that are expected to be negatively affected by the change in the China economy. This would be countries that produce commodities like oil, silver and copper.

In the last two decades, China has been a voracious importer of commodities  the single largest contributor to incremental demand for commodities. If you happen to produce commodities and commodity revenues are your principal source of budget revenue then this is a difficult time for you to adjust.

The second type of country to be affected negatively by this is countries that export parts and components to China.

There are few scenarios where countries can potentially benefit from this slowdown, but one would entail countries that compete with China in the garment market. China has been the leading garment exporter, but there are other countries that also do garment exports. Cambodia is certainly one, Vietnam, Bangladesh and Myanmar are the others.

In principal, consumers are not wearing fewer clothes, in fact they are wearing more. So demand for clothing is not coming down. So if China is producing less of this, other countries will produce more, mathematically speaking. It is not automatic that orders will come to you; you have to compete for it.

So we are seeing Bangladesh and Vietnam increasing their garment exports. Cambodia certainly has the potential to do the same, given that it has even lower labour costs than Vietnam. In principle, Cambodia can do better than Vietnam. But again its not automatic.

How do you expect the slowdown to affect Chinese investments in Cambodia?

FDI does not only bring in capital, but also know-how and marketing channels, so it will shorten the learning [curve] for Cambodian workers and firms and they can market their goods and value-added to the world market more easily. Chinese manufacturing firms used to do this, but now they cannot do it on a cost-competitive basis. So if they want to do it here it will create employment and future entrepreneurship. Those who work in Chinese garment or electronics factories will know how to run a factory, and someday they may run their own firms. Thats a very good thing.

Real estate investments have two sides  on the one side there is still money coming in. When international investors come into buy properties it will bid up prices, which raises the wealth level of Cambodian citizens who used to own those units. So the ones who benefit are the ones who own properties. But for others, like younger people who currently do not own property, the price is getting higher. So there is a trade-off.

With the yuans depreciation, what potential impact do you see on Chinese tourist arrivals?

Myanmar and Vietnam are also popular tourist destinations, so relative to these places the cost in Cambodia has increased. By itself this cannot be a positive for tourism. But on the other hand, Cambodias absolute cost is still very competitive. For hotels, food and other things it is still very inexpensive.

So the yuans depreciation will have a moderate negative effect. People are still looking for international holiday destinations and tend to favour destinations that are well known  and Angkor Wat is extremely well-known in China.

In addition to Chinas woes, there are concerns that the US rate hike last December could result in capital flight from developing economies. Should Cambodia be worried?

What people are worried about is that rate changes dont come in isolation and tend to be followed by a sequence of change in the same direction. In terms of its impact on Cambodia and developing nations in general, there are three scenarios.

The first scenario is that the US increases rates only when it decides the economy is stronger than previously thought. The US does not want the next increase in rates to cause a recession. A stronger US economy means stronger demand for imports, potentially including imports from China, so that is a good thing.

The second scenario is capital flow reversal. Now, this scenario is comparatively less important for Cambodia than for India or Indonesia.

But the third scenario is very important  the exchange rate scenario. Often when US rates increase the US dollar tends to appreciate against other currencies. That scenario can potentially be very important for Cambodia because the economy is very dollarised and even the local currency is maintained at a very tight exchange rate with the US dollar. So when the US dollar appreciates against most other currencies, including those of Vietnam, Bangladesh and Myanmar, the exporting industry in Cambodia becomes less competitive.

The country should be looking at if something can be done about the degree of the economys dollarisation and the linkage between the dollar and local currency.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Trollfest '09

Trollfest '07 was such a success that Jackson Jambalaya will once again host Trollfest '09. Catch this great event which will leave NE Jackson & Fondren in flames. Othor Cain and his band, The Black Power Structure headline the night while Sonjay Poontang returns for an encore performance. Former Frank Melton bodyguard Marcus Wright makes his premier appearance at Trollfest singing "I'm a Sweet Transvestite" from "The Rocky Horror Picture Show." Kamikaze will sing his new hit, How I sold out to da Man. Robbie Bell again performs: Mamas, don't let your babies grow up to be Bells and Any friend of Ed Peters is a friend of mine. After the show, Ms. Bell will autograph copies of her mug shot photos. In a salute to Dancing with the Stars, Ms. Bell and Hinds County District Attorney Robert Smith will dance the Wango Tango.



Wrestling returns, except this time it will be a Battle Royal with Othor Cain, Ben Allen, Kim Wade, Haley Fisackerly, Alan Lange, and Big Cat Donna Ladd all in the ring at the same time. The Battle Royal will be in a steel cage, no time limit, no referee, and the losers must leave town. Marshand Crisler will be the honorary referee (as it gives him a title without actually having to do anything).



Meet KIM Waaaaaade at the Entergy Tent. For five pesos, Kim will sell you a chance to win a deed to a crack house on Ridgeway Street stuffed in the Howard Industries pinata. Don't worry if the pinata is beaten to shreds, as Mr. Wade has Jose, Emmanuel, and Carlos, all illegal immigrants, available as replacements for the it. Upon leaving the Entergy tent, fig leaves will be available in case Entergy literally takes everything you have as part of its Trollfest ticket price adjustment charge.



Donna Ladd of The Jackson Free Press will give several classes on learning how to write. Smearing, writing without factchecking, and reporting only one side of a story will be covered. A donation to pay their taxes will be accepted and she will be signing copies of their former federal tax liens. Ms. Ladd will give a dramatic reading of her two award-winning essays (They received The Jackson Free Press "Best Of" awards.) "Why everything is always about me" and "Why I cover murders better than anyone else in Jackson".



In the spirit of helping those who are less fortunate, Trollfest '09 adopts a cause for which a portion of the proceeds and donations will be donated: Keeping Frank Melton in his home. The Keep Frank Melton From Being Homeless booth will sell chances for five dollars to pin the tail on the jackass. John Reeves has graciously volunteered to be the jackass for this honorable excursion into saving Frank's ass. What's an ass between two friends after all? If Mr. Reeves is unable to um, perform, Speaker Billy McCoy has also volunteered as when the word jackass was mentioned he immediately ran as fast as he could to sign up.



In order to help clean up the legal profession, Adam Kilgore of the Mississippi Bar will be giving away free, round-trip plane tickets to the North Pole where they keep their bar complaint forms (which are NOT available online). If you don't want to go to the North Pole, you can enjoy Brant Brantley's (of the Mississippi Commission on Judicial Performance) free guided tours of the quicksand field over by High Street where all complaints against judges disappear. If for some reason you are unable to control yourself, never fear; Judge Houston Patton will operate his jail where no lawyers are needed or allowed as you just sit there for minutes... hours.... months...years until he decides he is tired of you sitting in his jail. Do not think Judge Patton is a bad judge however as he plans to serve free Mad Dog 20/20 to all inmates.



Trollfest '09 is a pet-friendly event as well. Feel free to bring your dog with you and do not worry if your pet gets hungry, as employees of the Jackson Zoo will be on hand to provide some of their animals as food when it gets to be feeding time for your little loved one.



Relax at the Fox News Tent. Since there are only three blonde reporters in Jackson (being blonde is a requirement for working at Fox News), Megan and Kathryn from WAPT and Wendy from WLBT will be on loan to Fox. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both and a torn-up Obama yard sign will entitle you to free drinks served by Megan, Wendy, and Kathryn. Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required. Just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '09 is for EVERYONE!!!



This is definitely a Beaver production.



Note: Security provided by INS.


South Korea called on Japan Friday to drop its reckless claim to sovereignty over a pair of rocky islets in the East Sea.



It was responding to a Tokyo speech by Japan's top diplomat Fumio Kishida. He reiterated that Dokdo belong to Japan and said his government will deliver the position constantly.



In a statement, Seoul's Foreign Ministry said it can't help deploring Kishida's repeat of such an "unfair claim."



"(We) urge the Japanese government to immediately abandon its reckless claim to Dokdo, which is South Korea's indigenous territory," it said.

It showed that a territorial row remains a thorn in their ties despite a landmark deal on the issue of Korean women coerced into sexual slavery by Japanese troops during World War II.



Under the agreement, Japan admitted its "responsibility," pledging to pay 1 billion yen (8.3 million Dollars) in compensation to the 46 surviving victims.



In a separate policy speech in Tokyo, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called South Korea his country's "most important neighbor that shares strategic interests."




The United States should slap "hard sanctions" on North Korea to force it back to the nuclear negotiating table, a former American negotiator with the communist nation said Thursday.



Robert Gallucci, a former senior State Department official who negotiated a now-defunct 1994 denuclearization deal with Pyongyang, made the remark during a discussion at George Washington University, stressing that the problem shouldn't be left unattended any longer.



"One thing to do is slap hard sanctions on them. It's right to say that sanctions on North Korea are not as tough as sanctions we've applied to Iran, and we think those were important in the Iranian calculations, A, to negotiate B to make a deal," he said.

Gallucci said, however, that sanctions on the North would have limits because of China.



"Don't expect it to bring North Korea to their knees, or even to the negotiating table. Not as long as you have China, who, while sharing some views and interests to us, does not have congruent interest with us and does not want to see that regime so badly hurt it will fall, because that would present bigger problems to the Chinese than what they now have," Gallucci said.



"Consequently, sanctions would be limited in the potential impact, I would argue," he said.



Joel Wit, also a former State Department negotiator who is currently editor of the website 38 North, stressed that the U.S. should elevate the North Korea issue in its relationship with China, arguing that he believes it is more important than the South China Sea issue.



"What I would say is, the first thing we need to do, which we haven't done, is we need to elevate this issue to a much greater importance in the U.S.-Chinese relationship. Honestly, it hasn't been that important," he said.



"It needs to be elevated. Certainly in my perspective, more important than the South China Sea," he said. "Maybe more important than some of the other issues that are near the top of the list." (Yonhap)




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LAX has spruced up a few of its terminals (with more upgrades on the way) and opened itself up to pickups from Lyft and Uber, but one of the big (but necessary) hassles of air travel persists, and that's the TSA security check line. Even those ritzy travelers utilizing the prime features of the airport's "paparazzi-proof" terminal have to go through it (though they get their own premium security check line). It's rough working the TSA line. There's an immense volume of travelers who are not psyched about waiting in line to take their shoes off and get a full-body X-ray, and there are also so many people trying to sneak guns in a carry-on. ABC7 recently got a backstage look at what the TSA has to deal with, and reveals what it's like working security at the airport.

TSA officers at LAX screen around 36 million passengers a year, or about 100,000 travelers a day. ABC says, that makes the airport "number one" in terms of the volume of travelers that have to be checked.

3,000 TSA workers are tasked with making sure all those passengers are good to fly.

TSA employees switch to a new position in the screening every half hour so they can stay sharp.

But even in a 30-minute block, one TSA worker says, "you can do 250 to 300 bags easily." Easily!

In 2015, 2,600 guns were collected from carry-on bags by the TSA in the nation's airports. That's a 20-percent increase from 2014's total (which was a "record-setting year," says ABC.)

In 2015, there were also 450 "illegally trafficked" pork tamales confiscated by TSA officials and later destroyed, which is more sad than scary.

But the biggest threat isn't guns (or tamales), but explosives, which can be small and hard to find. That's part of the reason that "TSA security lines have earned a reputation as slow and mentally draining."

 TSA TAKES ABC7 BEHIND-THE-SCENES AT LAX SECURITY [ABC7]

 Inside the Allegedly Paparazzi-Proof New Terminal at LAX [Curbed LA]
A photo posted by Jorge Ameer (@jorgeameer) on Dec 11, 2015 at 12:46am PST

Developers of a new six-acre mixed-use complex on a Hollywood lot near Las Palmas and Santa Monica have been swayed by preservationists looking to save a long-running, inclusive gay disco on the site from being totally lost. The LA Times reports that AvalonBay , which is planning to build the disco-destroying project, has reached an agreement with preservationists to save key parts of the Circus Discowhich will still be demolishedand weave them in among the project's 695 residential units and 25,000 square feet of retail.

The Circus Disco is notable for its non-exclusivity. The club was founded in 1975 by Gene La Pietra and Ermilio Lemos out of frustration at "being turned away from white, gay establishments," La Pietra told LA Weekly. In contrast, at Circus Disco, "the only reason people were shut out was the fire code," a former patron told the Times. The club became an important location for LA's gay Latino community and for gay people of color, and that role is a large part of why many argue the structure should be saved.

But, it turns out, that's not going to happen. The physical club will still be torn down, with the focus shifting to preserving its memory. To do that, the club's "dance floor, neon ceiling lights and that fanciful clown entrance" will be saved and inserted into the planned residential/retail complex. Other important elements will be saved, too, like the lone disco ball that will hover over the planned elevator lobby. The president of the preservation group Hollywood Heritage (HH) told the Times that this arrangement will spare most of the historic parts of the club, and will also allow for its story to be told after the physical structure is gone. AvalonBay's complex will eventually have an exhibit about the Circus Disco and its role in LA gay history, and a "walking path" through the development will be named Circus Way.

As part of this deal, Hollywood Heritage will stop trying to get the Circus Disco building named a historic monument, a move that would have posed hurdles to demolishing it. (HH's plan to get the designation for the building had its own hurdles, says the Times: "Historic preservationists had discovered that half of the original club had been torn down decades ago, which would have made it difficult to enshrine the building itself as a monument.") So now it's just a matter of time before this once-gritty corner of Hollywood, notable for its strip malls and a trans prostitution hangoutthe Donut Time shopis, for better or worse, unrecognizable.

With this preservationist-developer accord reached, there's just one major unresolved battle for a historic LGBT site left: In West Hollywood, developers are trying to raze the building that once held the gay dance club Studio One to make a pedestrian-oriented shopping area with a fancy hotel. The National Trust for Historic Preservation has tried to come to the rescue, adding the site to its list of most endangered places in the nationa move they're hoping will draw the attention needed to save the place.

 Deal with developers will recognize Circus Disco's place in Hollywood gay history [LAT]

 The Past and Future of Three of LA's Historic But Threatened Gay Nightclubs [Curbed LA]

 "Megadevelopment" Seeks to Singlehandedly Gentrify Hollywood's Donut Time District [Curbed LA]
The infamous Playboy Mansion came up for sale earlier this month asking $200 million, and with the provision that Hugh Hefner be allowed to continue living there until his death. It's one of the craziest real estate stories of all time in a city known for its crazy real estate stories, and thank god and Larry Flynt, it just got a million times crazier: Flynt, the founder of Hustler and the Rabelaisian pornographer of the people to Hef's aspirational smut peddler, supposedly wants to buy the Playboy Mansion, kick Hef out, and turn the place into the Hustler Mansion. STONE COLD.

Is it a stunt? Who cares? It's a GREAT stunt. Of course, Flynt told TMZ last week that he wasn't interested: "I like my own toys and I don't want his dirty sheets," but Harry Mohney, the head of the company that runs the Hustler Stores, claims that was before the two talked and decided that the Mansion "is an excellent place for The Hustler Club and Hustler Mansion," reports the New York Daily News. Mohney claims that Hustler wants to "move their own staff into the 29-room estate and host 'at least' three parties per week for VIP guests. He also says those gatherings would out-Hef the parties Hefner has been throwing there for 45 years."

And, to add insult to injury, Mohney says "We are not going to offer half" of the $200-million asking price. That might be a problem, since one of the real estate agents involved says the land alone (five acres on one of Los Angeles's most coveted blocks, plus a rare private zoo permit) is worth $100 million.

But the biggest problem is that Mohney says "Hefner could not live in the mansion" (and, incidentally that "Hef's old pal - accused serial rapist Bill Cosby - will never step foot on the estate again if Hustler moves in," as the NYDN puts it). Playboy is firm on that matter, though: "a condition of any potential sale is that Mr. Hefner have the right to continue living at the Playboy Mansion." Maybe he'll really enjoy those Hustler parties.

 EXCLUSIVE: Larry Flynt wants Hugh Hefner's $200 million Playboy Mansion [NYDN]

 Everything to Know About the Bonkers $200M Playboy Mansion Listing [Curbed LA]
STURTEVANT, Wis. (AP)  Amid the vibrant green farm fields that once covered swaths of Racine County, a problem was growing in the early to mid-1940s.

So many men had been sent off to war overseas that concerns were increasing about how farmers here would be able to harvest their crops. There were shortages of workers for factories, too.

The solution? Nazi prisoners of war.

"When they came down the road they were singing. They had marching songs," said Joyce T. Schmitt, who along with friends researched and wrote "Camp Sturtevant Wisconsin" about the prisoner of war camp that existed in 1944 and 1945.

The POWs arrived on June 16, 1944  reportedly singing Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler's Hitler Youth anthem  and lived in large tents, which they had to erect themselves, according to published accounts maintained by the Racine Heritage Museum. They had to set up the tents, Schmitt said, "and just about the time they set the tents up, it rained and rained and (the) tents blew down. There was nothing there, so they had to do it."

Schmitt, 89, of Sturtevant, helped create the book with Betty Harmann Luebke, Delores "Lori" Stuart Woiteshek, Laurel Newton Gehrig, Betty Weiss Wilsey, Dorothy Creuziger Klingenmeyer and Ursula Kraus Thillemann, The Journal Times (http://bit.ly/1RCdheV ) reports.

Schmitt and published accounts vary on how many POWs were in the camp: 250 or 350.

The POW camp sat on the northwest corner of 90th Street and Highway 11, said Racine County historian Jerry Karwowski, who operates Oak Clearing Farm & Museum. A used car dealership sits there now, "and behind it there's new houses," he said. "Already at 90th you were getting out into the country" at that time.

At the time the camp opened, people flocked to the area  some with picnic baskets so, seemingly, they could have lunch and watch the Nazis, according to published accounts of the day. But they were turned away and sheriff's deputies had to direct traffic away from the camp because a treatise strictly prohibited nations from putting their POWS on public display.

The Geneva Convention established how prisoners of war were to be treated. This treatise required humane living conditions, including not being confined in irons and receiving food of equal quality to that consumed by that country's troops.

The Geneva Convention also required that prisoners not be subjected to violence, and be protected from "public curiosity," so members of the public couldn't tour the POW camps and were not allowed to fraternize with the prisoners. But in Racine County, Nazi POWs often were sent to work on area farms, and sometimes in factories.

According to published accounts, only one POW at Camp Sturtevant tried to escape, "and he was captured in the outhouse."

"They wanted to treat them well because there were so many Americans held in Germany. They began working on the farms mostly because so many of our guys were in the service," said 1945 Horlick High School graduate James Bie, who grew up in Racine and now lives in Palm Desert, California. "After the war, many of them came back as immigrants."

Bie, 87, who retired in 1994 from a nutritional products company, said he went to school with students whose families had Nazi POWs working on their farms. One boy said he and his brother would work to hoist up bags of grain to put them on a truck. But German POWs "would pick it up with one hand and throw it on the truck," he added.

He said he returned to Racine last year for his class reunion and he and some of his former classmates talked about the POW camp. Then he began reading about POW camps in Wisconsin.

Schmitt said it was in 1943 when the Racine-Kenosha County Truck Growers Association voiced concerns "about how they were going to get the food out. They had Jamaicans come out (to help previously), but that didn't work."

So POWs came by train, working in farmers' fields, the Nestle plant in Burlington, tomato canning plants in Union Grove and parts of Caledonia. They topped carrots and sugar beets. Area students sometimes were trucked to farms, where they weeded onions along with POWs, published accounts detailed. One woman remembered "some flirtation between American girls" and the young German men, although most of the American teens didn't speak German.

One Camp Sturtevant POW returned to Racine County, more than 10 years ago, after contacting a church pastor here, Schmitt said.

"He tried to stay after the war was over. I think it was because he knew if he went back he didn't have anything. He knew his home in Poland was in shambles," Schmitt said. "But he had to be repatriated."

He since has died.

"It's a subject I think is largely forgotten," Chris Paulson, executive director of the Racine Heritage Museum, said of the Sturtevant POW camp. "It remains a memory with some people. There was some interest 10, 12 years ago. Somebody did a book on it  that's when I heard about it."

At one point, there were approximately 30 POW camps in Wisconsin, research shows.

"I think it's more fascinating because there were so many of them around," Paulson said of the POW camps.

Paulson said people living in the Midwest don't always realize how important this territory was to the war effort. Food was grown here, and products made here.

"Even in Wisconsin there were still missile silos," he said. "You don't think about bombs being manufactured here, either."
LAS VEGAS (AP)  Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said Thursday the Republican establishment is "warming up" to his candidacy as he ramped up his attacks against his chief rival, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.

"I think they're warming up. I want to be honest, I have received so many phone calls from people that you would call establishment, from people  generally speaking ... conservatives, Republicans  that want to come onto our team," Trump told reporters in Las Vegas before an appearance at the Outdoor Sportsman Awards.

"We are getting calls from everybody that it's actually amazing. I'm actually surprised," he added. He declined to provide names.

The comments came not long after the conservative magazine National Review published its latest issue online featuring a collection of scathing anti-Trump essays from noted conservatives, underscoring the deep resistance that remains to his unorthodox candidacy, despite his commanding lead in early polls.

Trump responded by calling it "a dying paper" out for publicity.

In addition to criticism from some conservative circles for some of his positions, the billionaire businessman has also faced resistance from the Republican establishment, which remains largely splintered between candidates like former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Ohio Gov. John Kasich

At an earlier rally, Trump painted himself as a pragmatic dealmaker capable of working with lawmakers, in contrast with Cruz, his top rival in the Feb. 1 Iowa caucuses.

Cruz is an ideological purist who has long argued that Republicans need to elect a conservative who will energize the base instead of another moderate.

"You know what? There's a point at which: Let's get to be a little establishment," Trump told the crowd at the South Point resort and casino. "We've got to get things done folks, OK? Believe me, don't worry. We're going to make such great deals."

The author of "The Art of the Deal" suggested that Cruz, largely boxed out of Senate deal-making circles, can't operate effectively in office.

"Guys like Ted Cruz will never make a deal because he's a strident guy," Trump said, pushing back against the idea that collaboration is a dirty word. He pointed to the famous relationship between Republican President Ronald Reagan and Democratic House Speaker Tip O'Neill in the 1980s. "That's what the country's about really, isn't it?"

He repeated that refrain later Thursday as he presented himself as the kind of leader who could bridge both wings of the party.

"The party has to be healed; it has to be brought together," he said. "And I think the party can be brought together."

Speaking to reporters in New Hampshire, Cruz repeated his charge that the Republican establishment is "rushing to support Donald Trump."

"So if, as a voter, you think what we need is more Republicans in Washington to cut a deal with" congressional Democratic leaders, Cruz said, "then I guess Donald Trump is your guy."

At the awards ceremony, held in conjunction with a gun show, Trump reiterated his support for the Second Amendment  a topic that has been a constant refrain at his rallies and often draws loud applause.

"We're going to protect the people in this room and what they love," he told those gathered in an ornate ballroom at the Venetian resort casino. The hotel is owned by Republican Party mega-donor Sheldon Adelson.

Trump's defense of gun ownership rights during the campaign marks a departure for the billionaire businessman, who had previously supported a ban on assault weapons.

Trump also announced the endorsement of "Duck Dynasty" star Willie Robertson, who introduced him at the event.
When West Salem High Schools DECA chapter was founded in 2012, members were preparing for the unknown. The school had recently hired business teacher Jason Holter, and he created the current DECA chapter with just 11 student members.

One of those first 11 members is West Salem senior Kyrsten Stockus. According to Stockus, the first year of the chapter involved a major learning curve. Since none of us knew much about DECA, we had to rely on each other more, Stockus said. If one of us even made it onto the stage, heard their name mentioned at competition, we would scream and cheer like we had won the Super Bowl.

Things have changed, however. West Salems DECA chapter, led by Holter and most of the 2012 group, has grown tremendously. After the district competition in 2012, the chapter sent every member to state, thanks to an incentive put in by Wisconsin DECA allowing a new chapter to have 12 automatic berths to the state competition in their first year.

At this years district competition at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, the chapter had 60 students compete and more than half of them clinched berths at state (32). In 2012, eight competitors claimed medals at Districts compared to 37 this year, an incredible increase.

Holter is very pleased with his chapters growth. We started small our first year, competing in only a couple of events with just 11 members, he said. Now we follow the model of the more competitive chapters in the state and we really compete with them.

According to Holter, the chapter couldnt have been this successful without the original group of students. Of the 11 original members, four have graduated, and five are still in DECA. Four of those five competitors took first in their respective competitions at the district competition and will be headed to state. These kids learned how to be competitive that first year, and they teach the newcomers how to compete. They all put in the work and effort, and they set the tone for everyone else in the chapter, Holter said.

Senior Brennan Bahr is another student who has been a part of the chapter since its inception, and he, too, has noticed the change in the group. The chapter has really grown and expanded far beyond what any of us could have imagined, Bahr said. In addition to competing, we now operate the school store, put on dances, clean highways, and raise money for charity.

Holter said he is proud of the 2012 group for the chapter they have created. DECA allows kids to be active socially through activities like community service and competitions, he said. The kids have created the success they are having and its been a privilege to work with them. Something good is happening here.
WASHINGTON (AP)  One in seven Americans will get at least half a foot of snow outside their homes when this weekends big storm has finished delivering blizzards, gale-force winds, whiteout conditions and flooding to much of the eastern United States.

The first flakes of what could become two feet or more of wet, driving snow began falling in Washington Friday afternoon, sloshing in from the Ohio River Valley looking just like the forecasts promised.

Conditions quickly became treacherous along the path of the storm. Arkansas and Tennessee got eight inches; Kentucky got more than a foot, and states across the Deep South grappled with icy, snow-covered roads and power outages. In Mississippi, the storm spawned two tornadoes.

At least seven people died in storm-related crashes, including Stacy Sherrill, whose car plummeted off an icy road in Tennessee. Her husband survived, but it took him hours to climb up the 300-foot embankment and get help.

Officials warned people to shelter in place as the blizzards continue.

The forecast does not show any evidence of lightening up, Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said, stressing the life and death implications.

The good news? Meteorologists appear to have gotten this storm right. Predictions converged and millions of people got clear warnings, well in advance. Blizzard warnings and watches stretched through New York City into New England, stopping just short of Boston, but the Washington area should get hit the hardest.

This is probably going to be one of the top three snowfalls of all time for Washington, said Daniel Petersen, a forecaster at the National Weather Services Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland.

As food and supplies vanished from store shelves, states of emergency were declared, lawmakers went home and schools, government offices and transit systems closed early around the region. Thousands of flights were canceled, sporting events were called off, bands postponed concerts and NASCAR delayed its Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

Broadways shows were still going on in New York, but as far south as Atlanta, people were urged to stay home to avoid a repeat of the citys icepocalypse, when a relatively mild winter storm in 2014 caused commuter chaos for days.

All the ingredients have come together for a massive snowfall and gale-force winds, causing white-out conditions and dangerous flooding. The winds initially picked up warm water from the Gulf of Mexico; now the storm is taking much more moisture from the warmer-than-usual Gulf Stream, and swirling slowly over Virginia and Maryland.

Snowfall could continue for a day and half, leaving accumulations of two feet or more in the Washington-Baltimore area. Philadelphias forecast was increased Friday to 18 to 24 inches by Sunday morning. New York could get 8 to 10, though some forecasts suggest more, Peterson said.

Put another way: 82 million Americans will get at least an inch of snow, 47 million more than 6 inches, and 22 million Americans more than a foot, Ryan Maue at WeatherBell Analytics said Friday.

The storm could easily cause more than $1 billion in damage, weather service director Louis Uccellini said.

Fortunately, temperatures will be just above freezing after the storm passes in most places, and theres no second storm lurking behind this one, making for a slow and steady melt and less likelihood of more floods, Peterson said.

Travel was already impossible across a wide swath of Kentucky on Friday. Nashville, Tennessee was gridlocked by accidents. Several drivers died on icy roads in North Carolina. In Washington, Baltimore, and Delaware, archdioceses reminded people that dangerous travel conditions are a legitimate excuse to avoid showing up for Sunday Mass.

In New Jersey, coastal flooding and the loss of beaches from high surf were major worries. Republican Gov. Chris Christie canceled presidential campaign events in New Hampshire, which should be spared from the storm. Im sorry, NH but I gotta go home  we got snow coming, Christie wrote on Twitter.

In Washington, the federal government closed its offices at noon Friday, all mass transit was shutting down through Sunday, and many people stayed home. President Barack Obama was hunkering down at the White House, while Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina addressed anti-abortion activists at the annual March for Life as the storm closed in.

I would come here if it were thunderstorming, said Kristlyn Whitlock, 20, who came from Steubenville, Ohio, wearing four layers of pants and five layers of tops to stay warm.

As the snow began falling in Arlington, Virginia, the parking lot at a Safeway supermarket looked like the mall at Christmas, with drivers lining up to snag parking spaces.

In downtown Baltimore, social worker Sean Augustus raced home, stocked with flashlights and water.

I think its going to be a bad storm, but Baltimore tends to come together when disasters strike.

This is when youll see Baltimore city in a different light, Augustus said. Youll see neighbors coming together to help each other. Thats the side of Baltimore people rarely see.

A similar spirit was evident in Annapolis, where 350 midshipmen from the U.S. Naval Academy signed up to shovel people out.

Elsewhere, people woke to snow and ice, and then got stuck on dangerous roads. A jack-knifed tractor-trailer started pure gridlock around Nashville, where Tennessee Highway Patrol Lt. Bill Miller said snow plows and salt trucks couldnt keep up with the weather.

All major airlines have issued waivers for the weekend, allowing passengers to rebook onto earlier or later flights to avoid the storms. More than 6,000 flights were canceled Friday and Saturday  about 12 percent of their schedules, according to the flight tracking service FlightAware. By Sunday afternoon, airlines hope to be back to full schedules.

Train service could be disrupted by frozen switches, the loss of third-rail electric power or trees falling on wires. Across the region, track workers, power company employees, road crew members, firefighters and other first-responders were mobilized for the long weekend. In New York City, 79 subway trains will have scraper shoes to reduce icing on rails, the Metropolitan Transit Authority said.

For our region, this is good timing, said Jeffrey Knueppel, general manager of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, which is suspending almost all service around Philadelphia Saturday. Saturday is the day to stay home and Sunday will give us a chance to really clean things up.

At least one industry could benefit: Eastern ski resorts, which suffered from Decembers record high temperatures.

Were thrilled, said Hank Thiess, general manager at the Wintergreen ski resort in central Virginia, where 40 inches was expected. Were going to have a packed snow surface that will just be outstanding.
BLACK CREEK, Wis. (AP)  Five minutes passed before the buck finally moved his head and Kyle Rosner could focus his eyes on what he thought he saw when he first glanced over in the deer's direction. At 70 yards, the buck wasn't in his crossbow range yet, and soon disappeared from his sights.

Rosner, who lives in Black Creek and was hunting on land behind his godfather's house in the area, thought the buck he had seen only on trail cam photos a handful of times since July was gone for good. It was Jan. 3, the final day of the bowhunting and crossbow season, and he was just happy to finally lay eyes on this 160-class buck he had only dreamt about seeing.

But he showed up again, this time at 50 yards and following a few other deer, and they were headed toward his ground blind.

Like most big bucks, he wasn't in a hurry, but it was only a few minutes after 4 p.m., so Rosner knew time was on his side.

The deer disappeared from his view again. After another five minutes he showed up off to Kyle's left. Now he was just 25 yards away and Rosner, who had his crossbow set up in the Barronett Blind window on the right, slowly moved it over to the left and placed the scope on the animal. Four long, agonizing footsteps later, the buck moved from behind a tree and Rosner buried the arrow behind the deer's front shoulder.

He watched as the deer took off 50 or 60 yards and began stumbling before disappearing into some brush, and the buck never reappeared on the other side. Elation and joy overtook Rosner as tears began to flow.

"I went from being calm and collected to shaking like a leaf and literally crying like a baby," Rosner told Press-Gazette Media (http://gbpg.net/1PHGX4l ). "I had tears going down my face, it was nuts. I was just trying to realize what had just happened."

He called his dad, Jeff Rosner, right away, who answered the phone by asking, "How big is it?" It was still light out, so Jeff knew Kyle wasn't calling to get picked up, and Kyle made a pact with himself this season to shoot only a mature buck.

Kyle, 26, told him what had happened, and the two and 10 of Kyle's friends retrieved the deer from the woods. The buck gross scored 1691/8 inches, easily the biggest of his life.

Life. A word Kyle has become increasingly thankful for each and every day. Four years ago, it was nearly taken from him.

On April 1, 2012, Kyle was in a car accident in Pulaski, and neither he nor his friend in the car were wearing seat belts. His friend walked away from the accident without a scratch. Kyle didn't walk away at all.

The crash broke his neck, leaving him paralyzed from the chest down. Kyle has movement in his head and neck, as well as his arms down to his wrists. He has no movement in his fingers.

He spent the majority of the next year in and out of hospitals and nursing homes, but preparations were being made for when he did finally come home.

He moved into his uncle's  and godfather's  fully furnished basement, and they made a handicap-accessible bathroom to accommodate his needs. They also bought a handicap-accessible van they picked up at an auction.

Kyle was extremely appreciative, but all he wanted to do was get back to doing the things he loved as quickly as possible.

"When you spend a year in the hospital, you want to spend every minute you can outside," Kyle said. "Looking out of a hospital window is not as fun as looking out of a blind window."

He and his dad started by shooting trap in the backyard. They were able to purchase several items and get his wheelchair set up so that whatever weapon of choice Kyle was using on that day was essentially weightless. They also attached a sling to his finger and connected it to a harness on his wrist so he could pull the trigger by cocking his arm back.

It didn't take long for Kyle to get the hang of it.

"We shoot trap in the backyard, and he was always a better shot than me, and the first time we shot (after the accident) I beat him," Jeff said. "I didn't feel good about it, but I wish I would have felt good about it because he's way better than I am already. ... You start to look around and there's all kinds of things out there, you can do almost anything you want to do, no matter what your conditions are."

Once comfortable shooting with his new style  he has about 40 yards right to left and 50 yards up and down of shooting range mobility  he took to the woods for turkey hunting. His friends, and there are a lot of them, would sit him in the back of a 4-by-6-foot trailer behind a four-wheeler and drive him out to the blind behind Kyle's godfather's house. They also laid plywood down on the trail so his wheels wouldn't get stuck in the mud.

In April of 2013, just a little more than a year after the accident, Kyle harvested his first animal  a beautiful tom turkey with a 9-inch beard.

Three months later, Jeff and Kyle purchased an Action Trackchair from TSS Equipment in Cleveland, Wisconsin, and things have only gotten better for Kyle since. TSS also hooked him up with a heater bodysuit, a prototype for disabled people, to keep Kyle warm during his hunts.

His disability hasn't slowed down his passion or desire. It's only made it stronger.

Perhaps it's because he's seen what could have happened to him.

A little less than two years before Kyle's car accident, his younger brother Brent died at just 17 after a steroid he was taking for kidney disease led to an infection in his body. Brent died less than 24 hours after the infection entered his system.

Kyle understands that could have happened to him as well. Instead of moping and feeling sorry for himself, he enjoys every breath he takes.

Since the accident, Kyle has harvested eight deer, two turkeys and several dozen waterfowl with his crossbow and gun.

"I can tell you honestly that since this has happened, I can count on one hand the amount of bad days I've had," Kyle said. "With my brother dying early, I know how much worse it could be. ... You could sit around and mope and be pissed off all day, but you're still in the same spot at the end of the day so why even do that? Be happy and go do stuff. Life is nowhere near over, there's tons of stuff you can do still."

And when he took the biggest deer of his life, he sent two texts to his friends. Ten of them showed up within 15 minutes to celebrate with their friend.

That's the type of love Kyle feels every day.

"The friends and family, it all definitely helps me," Kyle said.

"All the friends we have out here, and we have some awesome neighbors, too, they all let Kyle hunt all over around here," Jeff said. "It's pretty cool."
Former U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold is calling on the federal government to make a commitment to making college  especially community and technical colleges  more affordable.

Feingold, campaigning to get his old job back from Republican Sen. Ron Johnson, connected affordable college and training to job creation and better employment opportunities Friday during a tour of the Coulee Region Business Center on La Crosses North Side.

We have to make it clear that the federal government will play its role in making that affordable and possible for these young people, Feingold said. People want it, communities want it and businesses want it to expand.

Those businesses have good jobs available for those with the training to fill the positions, he said.

There are jobs to be had in the state, but we have to make that linkage to make it affordable for young people coming out of high school, coming out of college to make that link and get that training, Feingold said.

Feingold toured several workspaces in the business center, including San Graal Guitars, owned by Bruno Jacquet of La Crosse.

Jacquet, a French native who moved to La Crosse in 1996, designs and builds electric guitars, partnering classic acoustic sound with new technology. He said it was a treat to meet the candidate to discuss his business, which moved to the center in September.

I wanted him to see that someone from another country can take something that originated as part of the American story and take it even further than it is now, Jacquet said.

Heather Johnson, manager of the Coulee Region Business Center, shared the centers expansion plans with Feingold, saying it plans to bring in more light industrial businesses throughout this year.

We do not have a community-designated production place, which is what were looking to add, Johnson said.

Johnson hopes to see an increase in federal support for low-interest small business loans and grants for entrepreneurs, which she said would improve funding options.

Thats probably the biggest issue most of them have, Johnson said.

Feingold also spoke about the importance of making sure families have money to spend.

Nothing is worse for a business thats trying to sell lunch, thats trying to sell a guitar, or certainly if youre trying to sell somebody a t-shirt, nothing is worse than if people dont have any expendable income, Feingold said.

Feingold said the best thing the government could do for small businesses is create an economy that allows regular families that work hard every week to have more to spend.

Feingold touched on the presidential campaign during his visit, declining to speak in favor of any specific candidate but praising his fellow Democrats professionalism and economic policy.

Feingold said he basically agrees with Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders and Martin OMalley when it comes to the need to create an economy that benefits the middle class and working families, addressing concerns such as long-term health care, college education and daycare costs.

Its very hard to put this together, and I think all of our candidates understand it better than those who believe that somehow just making sure the rich are richer is going to trickle down to the rest of us. It doesnt usually happen like that, Feingold said.
A Holmen man who pleaded guilty to a charge of criminal vehicular homicide for drunken driving in the death of his wife five days before Christmas 2014 has been sentenced to 90 days in jail  and an annual grim reminder of the crash.

For five years, Hunter Scott, 29, also must submit to 30 days of electronic home monitoring with an alcohol sensor starting Dec. 20, the anniversary date of the crash that killed 27-year-old Laura Finseth Scott. The wreck occurred near her hometown of Fountain, Minn., where the couple had been visiting her family.

Minnesota District Court Judge Carmaine Sturino added that stipulation to other penalties, including five years of probation, 300 hours of community service and a $3,000 fine, during Scotts Jan. 5 sentencing in Preston.

Laura, a beloved, award-winning nurse in the Family Birthplace at Mayo Clinic Health System-Franciscan Healthcare, died after the car her husband of three years was driving crashed on a slick Fillmore County Road 11 at about 7:20 p.m. Dec. 20, 2014.

Laura, who had been wearing a seat belt, died en route to a Rochester hospital, and Hunter was hospitalized with injuries.

A Minnesota State Patrol reconstruction of the accident determined that the vehicle missed a curve and crossed the center line. It slid sideways about 100 yards, hit a driveway and was airborne for 60 feet before landing on its wheels in a ditch, according to the report.

The vehicle was traveling between 65 and 75 mph on a surface that was slick because of a misty fog and was beginning to ice over, according to the patrols report.

Scott was driving in a grossly negligent manner, considering his speed, road conditions and alcohol impairment resulting from a blood alcohol count of 0.15 percent, based on a preliminary breath test at the scene, according to the report.

He was charged in March with three felony counts of criminal vehicular homicide. He pleaded guilty on Oct. 8 to a count of operating a motor vehicle with an alcohol concentration of 0.08 percent or more, and the other two charges were dismissed.

Scott had faced a maximum penalty of up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $20,000, or both.

Judge Sturino was not available for comment Thursday on her unusual decision to impose the 30-day alcohol monitoring periods on the crash anniversaries, but a court official said she would not have commented anyway.

Scott declined to comment through his attorney, Zachary Bauer. He is to begin serving his 90-day sentence in the Fillmore County Jail, with the possibility of work release, within 30 days of Jan. 5.

Although Scott would have been eligible to fulfill the jail time in another jail at his own expense, Bauer said he plans to serve it in the Fillmore facility.

Lauras death left her co-workers at Mayo-Franciscan grief-stricken, they said before the annual Nurses Day celebration in May, when she was honored with a posthumous DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses.

She grew up here, Desirae Bailey, patient care director for the Family Birthplace, said at the time.

Laura began working at Mayo-Franciscan in 2007 as a certified nursing assistant and graduated from Viterbo University in La Crosse with her registered nurse degree in 2011.

She meant so much to so many people, Bailey said.

Every day, she was a role model to all staff  when I say all staff, I mean anybody she came in contact with, she said.
Embattled Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, grappling with a police shooting that could destroy his mayoralty, has lamented the code of silence around police brutality.

But now the famously outspoken Emanuel seems to be adopting his own code of silence.

The former congressman and top official in the Obama and Clinton administrations was listed as a featured panelist at the opening plenary luncheon of the U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting. The topic: Reducing Violence and Strengthening Police/Community Trust.

This took some guts: Emanuel was, before a national audience, going to address head-on the crisis that has engulfed him since the release almost 60 days ago of video showing a Chicago policeman shooting 17-year-old Laquan McDonald 16 times as McDonald appeared to be walking away. Emanuels administration had resisted having the video of the killing released, and emails show involvement of the mayors office in how to deal with the PR problem. Now there are accusations of a cover-up and calls for his resignation.

But Laquan McDonald didnt cross Emanuels lips at the Police/Community Trust forum. He didnt even mention the incident directly, instead proffering a variety of facts and figures indicating everything is awesome in Chicago.

Chicago is at a record-high, near-70 percent graduation rate. Our sophomore class is on track, according to the University of Chicago, to get 84 percent.

We now have 26,000 kids in summer jobs. ... Four years ago we were at 14,000.

The overall crime over four years is down about 35 percent.

We now have the largest re-entry second-chance program in the United States.

We doubled the amount  were now up to 400 police officers on bicycles.

During the entire 45-minute session, incredibly, the elephant in the ballroom went unacknowledged.

The Chicago Sun-Times previewed Emanuels appearance at the forum with the headline Emanuel to confront political demons head-on at national panel on policing.

Instead, he ducked his demons. An aide pointed out that he wasnt asked specifically about McDonald, and its true that his fellow panelists werent in positions to prosecute him: Baltimore Mayor and panel moderator Stephanie Rawlings-Blake (whose city saw rioting after the Freddie Gray death in police custody), New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu and former Mayor Marc Morial (whose city was found by the Justice Department to have had widespread police misconduct) and the police chief of St. Louis (who had a close view of the Ferguson affair).

Asked for an update on crime in Chicago and the biggest problems you currently face, Emanuel said nothing about Topic A. Guns and gangs, he answered.

After Landrieu raised the civil liberties problems for police, Emanuel asked for another turn with the microphone  and mentioned high school dropout rates.

Morial spoke about the need for mayors to know how many civil rights complaints there are against the police, to avoid being bit, surprised by something.

Emanuel addressed Morial: Ive got nothing to add, but Im going to be a Jewish mother. Youve got to move that microphone up.

Landrieu talked about the need to have a transparent inquiry after a police shooting  an implicit rebuke of Emanuel.

Emanuel spoke about the need to target the most violent members of gangs and the gun dealers who sell most of the guns used to commit violence.

A mayor from New Jersey had a question about personal responsibility, providing another opening for Emanuel to admit failings in the McDonald case.

Were not going to answer until you tell us what exit you are on the highway, Emanuel quipped.

Turnpike, Rawlings-Blake corrected.

Emanuel, in his answer, spoke more about summer jobs, and the role of parents in teaching right and wrong. Still, nothing about Laquan McDonald.

Finally, in her last question, Rawlings-Blake made a halfhearted grasp at the elephant, asking the others to talk about the panels advertised theme: the trust between police and communities.

The trust factor is not just a goal  its a key ingredient to effective community policing, Emanuel said, then got as close as he would to the matter that threatens his tenure. The public has to know theres legitimate oversight, its certain and its not biased, and the truth is were working at that  our city, other cities  because theres been a lot of judgment that the oversight has been lax and theres not an accounting system.

And that was it. The once fearless Emanuel closed with an anecdote about a woman thanking him for the fine job the police do. The code held.
One of the more important arguments between Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton during Sundays Democratic debate occurred over whether to push for Medicare for all, as Sanders insisted, or to build more slowly on the limited success of Obamacare.

Clinton said:

I do not want to see the Republicans repeal it, and I dont want to see us start over again with a contentious debate. I want us to defend and build on the Affordable Care Act and improve it.

Sanders retorted:

I voted for it, but right now, what we have to deal with is the fact that 29 million people still have no health insurance.

For Europeans, that staggering fact is impossible to understand. There are debates there about national health care systems, but not this one. All the big economies there have universal health care systems under which everyone is insured. Even the most conservative politicians support them.

Sanders critics say that expanding Medicare would cost too much and require much higher taxes. Without big changes in the structure of U.S. health care, that would be true. But thats also a fact that sounds strange to European ears because European countries tend to deliver high-quality care while effectively controlling the cost.

In general, American taxpayers do pay less than their European counterparts, but not everywhere. Some of the European Unions biggest economies arent collecting much more tax revenue per capita than the United States does.

In 2014, the United States collected $14,202 in taxes per capita, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Thats about $3,000 less than Germany, nearly as much as the United Kingdom and $4,000 more than Spain. Those three countries, however, all have universal health care systems that are mostly or entirely tax-funded. One can get private health insurance there, too, but generally it only guarantees quicker access to the same quality of service.

During the Democratic debate, NBC News anchor Andrea Mitchell questioned the feasibility of Sanders approach to health care, reminding him that his home state, Vermont, had rejected such a scheme because by some estimates, it would double the budget. Yet Europes example shows that universal health care doesnt have to be about burdening people with more taxes. Its not necessarily even about reconsidering the spending structure, as Sanders suggested during the debate when he said that the U.S. should be investing in jobs and education, not in jails and incarceration.

According to the OECD, the United States already spends a bigger share of its economic output on health care than any of the other advanced nations. It might help, of course, if some more of the countrys unusually high defense spending and higher-than-average public safety outlay were shifted toward health. That wouldnt bring the United States into line with the European societies, though. It would need to simplify the funding systems for health care and education, and it would need to drive down costs in both sectors.

Prescription drugs, for example, are far more expensive in the United States than in Europe, and the most important reason for that is that European countries regulate them and force pharmaceutical companies to accept thinner margins. European governments dont give much credence to big pharmas argument that higher prices help consumers by paying for more research and development: These companies spend more on marketing than they do on research, and big European drugmakers havent given up on research because they are more tightly regulated in their home markets.

European governments have also carved out a smaller niche in the health industry for private insurance companies: serving those who want premium care. It makes sense: The profits are made from people who are willing and able to pay more.

Sanders sounds like a rabble-rousing socialist to Americans when he says:

What this is really about is not the rational way to go forward  its Medicare for all  it is whether we have the guts to stand up to the private insurance companies and all of their money, and the pharmaceutical industry.

Sure, his approach is not as business-friendly as the current U.S. policies that Clinton wants to change only incrementally. But in Europe theres nothing remotely radical-sounding about Sanders ideas because Germany, the U.K. and Spain, among others, provide certain basic services to their residents on roughly the same amount of per-capita tax dollars that the U.S. collects.

Europeans often complain about the quality of their comprehensive health care. Yet the residents of Europeans countries are generally in better health.

It is often said Americans are tired of mainstream politics, with the implication that Sanders is as far from the mainstream as the man he calls his good friend, Donald Trump. What Sanders suggests, however, is mainstream policy for any European center-right party. Its not clear why Americans should settle for less.
Former Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson said he is reserving judgment on a plan passed by the Assembly and Senate this week that eliminates civil service exams, but said an apolitical process is critical.

Its very important for the state to let a nonpartisan or bipartisan group hire those people, he said in an interview with the Cap Times.

The states civil service program has done a good job protecting employees, but has needed to be modernized, he said.

We have a degree of security and comfort to employees that they appreciate, he said. This has always been my critique of the civil service program, it doesnt act fast enough. That helps the future of the state if you can modernize it so the state gets good people state government too often loses out on getting quality employees.

Gov. Walker has been supportive of the changes approved by the Legislature and is expected to sign the bill, which would take effect in July. In addition to scrapping the exams, the measure removes reinstatement guarantees for workers who have been laid off and changes probationary periods for managers and supervisors, along with seasonal and permanent employees. It also establishes a progressive grievance process for employees and lays out what constitutes "just cause" for removal or demotion, which includes harming coworkers and showing up to work drunk or high.

The idea of a test to measure potential employees was a focal point of the program when it was founded.

Gov. Robert M. LaFollette advocated for testing in a speech he gave to the Wisconsin Legislature on January 12, 1905.

"What proposition is plainer than that every citizen should have an equal opportunity to aspire to serve the public, and that when he does so aspire, the only test applied should be one of merit. Any other test is undemocratic. To say that the test of party service should be applied is just as undemocratic as it would be to apply the test of birth or wealth or religion," he wrote.

During Thompson's tenure as governor, he called for modernization of the system and enacted several reforms but retained exams. He established a commission in 2001 to examine what reforms were needed to streamline the hiring process, following others that have tweaked the program since it was founded.

Dennis Dresang, professor emeritus of public affairs and political science at the University of Wisconsin- Madison, was the director of a bipartisan study group in the late 1970s that aimed to reform the program. The group met for a year-and-a-half and recommended changes to exams administered for each job that the Legislature adopted, he said.

There was no such bipartisan commission involved in the latest iteration of changes.

Democrats say the overhaul fundamentally changes the civil service system, arguing it will lead to a flood of political candidates for nonpartisan positions and make the state's public sector less reliable or accountable.

A chief concern among critics is a new reliance on resumes, like the private sector.

That could be problematic because people sometimes lie about education and work experience, Dresang said.

Screening people or appointing is the key issue that I think has gotten lost in all of this. People lie on their resumes, he said. If Im considering hiring you to be an accountant, I am better served by giving you a brief examination, giving you an accounting problem and seeing how you do it rather than looking at your resume."

Vetting resumes may require more manpower and time than the current system, Dresang said.

"If indeed were going to rely on resumes, either were going to be dealing with a considerable amount of dishonesty or were going to have to hire a lot of people to check those resumes and make sure what people say is actually the case and that is a lot of work, he said.

Democrats have also argued that it could lead to public employees being fired for campaigning against the party in power.

That fear is overblown, Dresang said.

Thats probably not going to happen, he said. If it does happen, its going to be a result of litigation. There are some United States Supreme Court cases that say the idea of hiring or firing people based on their political identity or their party activity is a violation of the United States Constitutionand thats really critical.

Anthony Reeves works in the Department of Health Services as a research analyst and is a labor activist. He serves on the state employee council on the executive board of the American Federation of Teachers in Wisconsin and says the bill will result in a less qualified public workforce.

Reeves, who has been a public employee for 21 years, said no one in his department has been notified about potential changes.

Its hard not to be cynical, he said. I think they want to make it hard not to fire people and put people they want in the positions they want them (in), he said of Senate and Assembly Republicans.

If managers wanted to get rid of an unfit public employee, they always could, Reeves said.
Dysfunction in the United States Congress takes many forms, but it rarely is as egregious as the $300 million it cost taxpayers last year to subsidize cotton farming in Brazil.

Rep. Ron Kind (D-La Crosse) held a listening session in Viroqua, last Thursday, and discussed issues from Veterans Administration (VA) health care to student loans. In talking about the institution of Congress itself, the Kind said the lack of support to reform to the Farm Bill was a glaring example of conflict.

Kind pointed to subsidies received by cotton farmers in the United States, which eventually led to a long-term trade dispute between the United States and South American cotton growers. Since 2003, third-party panels and the World Trade Organization (WTO) have found the United States to be providing its cotton growers with illegal subsidies.

Brazil prepared to launch a series of tariffs on goods produced in the United States in reaction to the cotton trade dispute. To avoid an escalating trade war, the United States agreed in 2014 to pay the Brazil Cotton Institute $300 million, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.

Kind said he authored an amendment to the Farm Bill that would have brought United States cotton subsidies in line with existing trade agreements, but it did not receive support in Congress.

Whats amazing is a handful of very wealthy families control the cotton industry and they apparently bought and own the United States Senate on this issue, Kind said. Its hard to get the cotton reform issue passed because of that political resistance.

In reaction to losing Brazils challenge to our trade practices were supposed to reform our cotton subsidy program, Kind continued. Instead of that we now are sending payments to Brazil that are helping them subsidize their own cotton farmers. So, our Farm Bill now is not only subsidizing our big cotton producers, its subsidizing foreign cotton producers.

Kind said such information rarely reaches the public.

If the average American knew about this, theyd be outraged, Kind said. Theyd say, What the heck is going on here? ... Its just ridiculous.

Kind spoke with Vernon County residents at the Viroqua American Legion for an hour-and-a-half.

Kind offered help from his office for veterans who are having difficulties with health care coverage through the VA.

Rod Olson of Vernon Communications Cooperative asked for Kinds help in dealing with the Rural Utilities Service (RUS).

Olson said Vernon Communications has a bid opening today (Thursday) for a $1.5 million project to bring broadband to Viola, De Soto and La Farge. However, over the course of the last month, officials at the RUS had not returned phone calls to help Vernon Communications work out details of the project needed to move forward.

Olson said the lack of communication could delay the project and that would ultimately cost an additional $500,000 while also impacting broadband improvements planned in Westby and Readstown.

Kind offered his assistance in getting Vernon Communications in contact with officials at the RUS.

Kind said bipartisan bickering in recent years at the nations capitol has not been democracys finest hour.

Too many of my colleagues have come to Congress with a My way or no way attitude, Kind said. Thats just no way for a democracy to function. Theres got to be better listening, more cooperation, more common ground being found amongst members.

He asked people not to get discouraged or cynical despite the looming presidential election that he said would be rough.

Our country is extremely resilient and adaptable, Kind said. Weve overcome a lot in the past and we will this time as well. The thing that renews my faith and confidence of where were going as a nation is the tremendous resilience of the American people.
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05 (4) Mar 04 (4) Mar 03 (3) Mar 02 (4) Mar 01 (5) Feb 28 (4) Feb 27 (5) Feb 26 (6) Feb 25 (4) Feb 24 (5) Feb 23 (5) Feb 22 (4) Feb 21 (6) Feb 20 (6) Feb 19 (4) Feb 18 (4) Feb 17 (2) Feb 16 (4) Feb 15 (3) Feb 14 (4) Feb 13 (5) Feb 12 (4) Feb 11 (3) Feb 10 (4) Feb 09 (4) Feb 08 (3) Feb 07 (2) Feb 06 (3) Feb 05 (3) Feb 04 (4) Feb 03 (3) Feb 02 (3) Feb 01 (3) Jan 31 (3) Jan 30 (4) Jan 29 (3) Jan 28 (5) Jan 27 (3) Jan 26 (5) Jan 25 (3) Jan 24 (4) Jan 23 (2) Jan 22 (3) Jan 21 (4) Jan 20 (3) Jan 19 (4) Jan 18 (3) Jan 17 (3) Jan 16 (2) Jan 15 (2) Jan 14 (3) Jan 13 (2) Jan 12 (3) Jan 11 (3) Jan 10 (2) Jan 09 (4) Jan 08 (2) Jan 07 (2) Jan 06 (2) Jan 05 (3) Jan 04 (3) Jan 03 (3) Jan 02 (3) Jan 01 (1) Dec 31 (2) Dec 30 (2) Dec 29 (2) Dec 28 (2) Dec 27 (2) Dec 26 (2) Dec 25 (1) Dec 24 (2) Dec 23 (4) Dec 22 (3) Dec 21 (2) Dec 20 (1) Dec 19 (2) Dec 18 (3) Dec 17 (2) Dec 16 (2) Dec 15 (4) Dec 14 (2) Dec 13 (1) Dec 12 (3) Dec 11 (2) Dec 10 (2) Dec 09 (2) Dec 08 (3) Dec 07 (2) Dec 06 (1) Dec 05 (2) Dec 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Planet Hugill - Classical Music blog from Robert Hugill Planet Hugill

The Robert Farnon Society- Home of Light Music The Robert Farnon Society
If youre interested in adoption issues and able to be in the Cleveland area the weekend of March 18-20, youll want to know about the Annual Adoption Gathering hosted by Adoption Network Cleveland. Coinciding with the first anniversary of this, ANC offers this:

From Adoption Network Clevelands Open Invitation:

The Ohio adoption community has experienced a transformative year since Ohios Opening Day. Please join us Friday, March 18 through Sunday, March 20, 2016 as we continue our journey together, to celebrate, discuss, process, grieve, and commune with others.

Where: DoubleTree in Westlake (1100 Crocker Road, Westlake, OH 44145) Rooms are at the group rate of $99/night. The hotel has a free airport shuttle for guests.

What: A conference to facilitate conversations about adoption that will be shaped and driven by its participants. After the tremendous outpouring of interest, support, and participation surrounding the implementation of Ohio adoptees right to access their original birth records in March of 2015, Adoption Network Cleveland recognized the enormous need to continue fostering the community that organically developed among Ohio adoptees near and far. This conference is an outcropping and continuation of the conversations that originated in the aftermath of last years monumental events.

There are nine breakout sessions and two award-winning theatrical presentations from New York City. Other highlights include filmmaker Jean Strauss and footage from last years Ohio opening day events, Six-Word Stories from adoptees and found birth family members, and a time for sharing with an open mic.

Event hashtags are #OHadopteesSOAR (SOAR = Success Opening Adoptees Records) and #Journey2Unite16.

CEUs available.

Click to register. Get an early bird rate  $100 for Adoption Network Cleveland members and $135 for non-members  by registering before February 5, 2016.
Friday, January 22, 2016

The Kansas Court of Appeals, the intermediate appellate court, has found that the Kansas Constitution includes a due process right applicable to abortion and that the Kansas Unborn Child Protection from Dismemberment Abortion Act (SB95) violates that right in its opinion by Judge Steve Leben in Hodes & Nauser v. Schmidt.

Before the discussion of the constitutionality of the Act, there were some preliminary - - - and unusual - - - issues, including some noteworthy matters of procedure. Unusually, the Court of Appeals heard the case en banc rather in a panel of three. And presumably also unusual, the judges were "equally divided, seven voting to affirm the district court and seven voting to reverse." Thus, the trial court's ruling granting a preliminary injunction against the Act was affirmed.



Judges of the Kansas Court of Appeals via



Additionally, there were some state constitutional law issues. Importantly, the plaintiffs' argument that the Act is unconstitutional rests solely on the state constitution. As the Leben opinion stated, this was a case of first impression and a "plaintiff has the procedural right to choose the legal theories he or she will pursue; we cannot force the plaintiffs here to choose another legal avenue.") But the Kansas State Constitution does not include a due process clause - - - or even the words "due process" - - - unlike the United States Constitution's Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments, in which the right to an abortion has been anchored. Instead, plaintiffs argued, and the court found, that 1 and 2 of the Kansas Constitution Bill of Rights include a due process right despite their explicit language:

 1. Equal rights. All men are possessed of equal and inalienable natural rights, among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.



 2. Political power; privileges. All political power is inherent in the people, and all free governments are founded on their authority, and are instituted for their equal protection and benefit. No special privileges or immunities shall ever be granted by the legislature, which may not be altered, revoked or repealed by the same body; and this power shall be exercised by no other tribunal or agency.

Judge Leben's finding was based in large part on previous decisions of the Kansas Supreme Court. Where the dissent differed was not on the matter of due process as a general matter but on the specific inclusion of "abortion." Indeed, as Judge Leben's opinion admitted "What the Kansas Supreme Court has not yet done is apply substantive-due-process principles in a case involving personal or fundamental rights, like the right to contraception, the right to marry, or the right to abortion." But as Judge Leben's opinion noted, "the Kansas Supreme Court has explicitly recognized a substantive-due- process right under the Kansas Constitution and has applied a substantive-due-process legal standard equivalent to the one applicable under the Fourteenth Amendment at the time of these Kansas decisions." This past practice was an embrace of the present, and Judge Leben's opinion interestingly quotes the Court's recent opinion by Justice Kennedy Obergefell as well as opinions from the Kansas Supreme Court. Judge Leben nicely sums up the position:

The rights of Kansas women in 2016 are not limited to those specifically intended by the men who drafted our state's constitution in 1859.

Having decided that the Kansas constitutional text merits a co-extensive interpretation with the federal constitution, Judge Leben's opinion for the Kansas Court of Appeal does not rest on "adequate and independent state grounds" under Michigan v. Long. Judge Gordon Atcheson's extensive and scholarly concurring opinion makes the case that 1 of the Kansas Bill of Rights provides "entirely separate constitutional protection without direct federal counterpart" for abortion and that such protection is greater under the Kansas state constitution than under the Fourteenth Amendment.

Under the co-extensive interpretation, Judge Leben's opinion thus confronted the constitutionality of the Kansas Act under the substantive due process "undue burden" standard. This entailed an application of the disparate Carhart cases: Stenberg v. Carhart (2000) and Gonzales v. Carhart (2007). In Stenberg, the Court concluded Nebraska's so-called "partial-birth abortion" statute was unconstitutional; in Gonzales, the Court concluded that the federal so-called "partial-birth abortion" statute was constitutional.

The Judge Leben opinion distinguished Gonzales:

But the circumstances here are quite unlike Gonzales. There, the Court considered a ban on an uncommon procedure and noted that the most common and generally safest abortion method remained available. Here, the State has done the opposite, banning the most common, safest procedure and leaving only uncommon and often unstudied options available.

Interestingly, Judge Atcheson's concurring opinion responded to the Justice Kennedy's language in Gonzales and the language of the Kansas Act:

The State's remaining argument rests on the unaesthetic description of a D &E abortion contained in Senate Bill 95 and in Gonzales v. Carhart (2007). But aesthetics really cannot justify legislative limitations on safe medical procedures. The lack of justification is even more pronounced when the procedure is integral to a woman's constitutional right to self-determination and reproductive freedom. The government cannot impose upon an essential right because some exercise of the right may be unaesthetic or even repulsive to some people. That's all the more true when those people needn't see or participate in the protected activity.

The dissenting opinion concludes that there is "nothing in the text or history of 1 and 2 of the Kansas Constitution Bill of Rights to lead this court to conclude that these provisions were intended to guarantee a right to abortion."

This matter is surely going to the Kansas Supreme Court, as Judge Leben's opinion for the Kansas Court of Appeals acknowledged. Rendered on the 43rd anniversary of the United States Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade and as the Court prepares to consider its first abortion case in 8 years, Whole Woman's Health v. Cole, the Kansas Court of Appeals evenly split decision exemplifies how divided opinion on this issue can be.

https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/conlaw/2016/01/kansas-appellate-court-affirms-finding-that-kansass-dismemberment-abortion-act-is-unconstitutional.html
. . . . Emperors and kings

Are but obeyed in their several provinces,

Nor can they raise the wind or rend the clouds;

But his domain that exceeds in this

Stretcheth as far as doth the mind of man.

A sound magician is a mighty god.



* * *



Cut is the branch that might have grown full straight,

And burned is Apollo's laurel bough,

That sometimes grew within this learned man.

Faustus is gone; regard his hellish fall,

Whose fiendful fortune may exhort the wise

Only to wonder at unlawful things,

Whose deepness doth entice such forward wits

To practise more than heavenly power permits.





Christopher Marlowe, "Dr. Faustus" (before 1593)


Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier

Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird created the series in Dover, New Hampshire. The negatives for that first comic, printed in 1984, have surfaced and the owner, a Colorado collector, came to Biddeford In September to look around.


Russian President Vladimir Putin probably approved the killing of a Russian spy turned dissident, says a top British government investigator.

Alexander Litvinenko was the Russian spy turned dissident, or critic of the government. He was exiled in Britain after criticizing Putin and describing him  among other things  as a pedophile, or someone who sexually abuses children.

Robert Owen, a retired judge, served as the chairman of the yearlong inquiry. On Thursday, he announced that two Russian agents were responsible for the November 2006 poisoning of Livinenko. It occurred at the Millennium hotel in central London just a few meters from the U.S. Embassy.

For nearly nine years since her husband's death, Marina Litvinenko has been demanding answers. Speaking to reporters outside the courthouse in London, she said she was "of course, very pleased" by the outcome.

She added, "The words my husband spoke on his death bed when he accused Mr. Putin of his murder have been proved true in an English court with a high standard of independence and fairness.

In Moscow, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zhakarova said, "We regret that a purely criminal case has been politicized and has darkened the general atmosphere of bilateral relations.''



Back story



Litvinenko was an agent of the Russian Federal Security Service, the Russian spy agency that came after the KGB. In 1998, he became an outspoken critic of Putin and sought asylum in Britain.

He criticized Putin in an article and described the Russian leader as a pedophile. Russia rejected the accusation.

In early November 2006, Litvinenko agreed to meet with Russian agents Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun. British officials said they added radioactive polonium to his tea. Polonium is a highly toxic substance and just one microgram -- about the size of a speck of dust -- is enough to kill a person.

Litvinenko quickly became ill and died 23 days later.

Reactions from London



Prime Minister David Cameron's spokeswoman said the British government was considering what actions to take.

"It is not the way for any state, let alone a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, to behave," the spokeswoman said. "Regrettably, these findings confirm what we and previous governments believed."

London financier Bill Browder is a human-rights advocate and a critic of Putin. He said Britain will not take any action.

He said it comes down to money. Theres a lot of Russian money sloshing around London, and I believe that theres a concern among certain members of the government that that money would be less available if Britain took a moral stand on some of these issues.

I'm Jim Tedder.

VOA Moscow Correspondent Daniel Schearf and Chris Hannas reported this story. Hai Do adapted it for Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor.

What do you think about this intrigue? Write to us in the Comments section and on our Facebook page.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

pedophile  n. a person who has sexual interst in children

outspoken  adj. talking in a free and honest way about your opinion




Test centers in China and Macau are canceling the SAT planned for Saturday because of claims of cheating.

The SAT is a standardized test that measures academic ability. Many colleges and universities in the U.S. require students to take the SAT before applying.

The College Board is a private company that develops and administers the SAT. The College Board announced the cancellation of the test in China and Macau on Thursday.

The College Board sent a message explaining the cancellation to several schools that partner with the company. The message said the company chose to cancel the test because of evidence of cheating.

The company said some students had gained access to Saturdays test materials.

Zachary Goldberg is the senior director of Media Relations for the College Board. Goldberg told VOA, We act on all information.We workto [fight] cheating and to protect the integrity of the SAT.

Almost 400,000 foreign students registered to take the SAT in 2014.

SAT cheating scandals have happened several times before. The College Board cancelled the SAT across South Korea in 2013 after finding evidence of cheating.

Several Chinese citizens admitted in 2015 to being part of an organized SAT cheating group in the United States. International students in the Pittsburgh area would pay group members to use fake passports and take the SAT test for them.

The new evidence of cheating comes as the College Board prepared to release a new version of the SAT later this month. The last time the company released a new version of the test was in 2012.

Saturday would have been the last time the older version of the test was offered.

Bob Schaeffer is the Public Education Director for the National Center for Fair and Open Testing, or NCFOT. The NCFOT is an organization that works to show the problems with standardized testing. The organization has gathered evidence of SAT cheating in several cases.

Schaeffer said the desire to cheat increases whenever standardized test-makers create a new version of a test.

"There is always tremendous fear of the unknown. Whenever a test is changed, there is a huge surge of students enrolling in test prep courses becausethey want to find out whats on the test.

He also said people all over the world believe getting a U.S university education is the best path to success.

Middle class and upper class families overseas believe that a degree from a U.S. institution of higher learning is a passport to future success for their children. And they will do anything for it.

The College Board said the cancellation is only temporary. The company is planning to let students know when they will be able to take the test next week.

Goldberg said that the company will do more to increase its security. He said, We [understand] that organizations and individuals will [keep trying] to [beat] the system and find a new way to cheat.

Goldberg did not say how the company discovered the evidence of cheating.

Im Pete Musto.

Pete Musto reported and wrote this story for VOA Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor.

Now its your turn. What are your thoughts about cheating on tests? How should cheating be handled? Let us know in the comments section or on our Facebook page.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

standardized test  n. any form of test that requires all test takers to answer the same questions, or a selection of questions from common bank of questions, in the same way, and that is scored in a consistent manner

academic  adj. of or relating to schools and education

apply(ing)  v. to ask formally for something such as a job, getting into a school or a loan, usually in writing

administer(s)  v. to manage the operation of something

integrity  n. the quality of being honest and fair

scandal(s)  n. an event in which people are shocked and upset because of behavior that is morally or legally wrong

surge  n. a sudden, large increase

enroll(ing)  v. to enter someone as a member of or participant in something

prep course(s)  n. a class the prepares someone for something

institution  n. an established organization


The Taliban claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing against Afghanistans top private media group Wednesday.

The bombing took place in a western part of Kabul at Tolo TV. The bomber crashed a vehicle full of explosives into a bus transporting employees of the television station to their homes.

The blast killed at least seven people and wounded 24 others. VOA news reported that women and children were among the victims.

Tolo TV is the biggest television station in Afghanistan. Dozens of journalists are employed by the news group.

The Taliban said the violence was meant to punish Tolo TV for broadcasting anti-Afghan and anti-Taliban programs. A Taliban spokesperson called Tolo TV a spy agency.

The attack against the Afghan media created outrage throughout the world as an attack on freedom of speech.

The Committee to Protect Journalists, a New York-based group, said the attacks aimed at crushing independent media organizations in Afghanistan are a direct assault on the very foundation of Afghan democracy [and] a free and open press.

Im Mario Ritter.

Ayaz Gul reported on this story for VOANews.com. Jim Dresbach adapted this story for Learning English. Kathleen Struck was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or visit our Facebook page.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

blast  n. a powerful explosion

journalist  n. a person who collects, writes and edits news stories for newspapers, magazines, television or radio

outrage  n. extreme anger

assault  n. being attacked or criticized


This is Whats Trending Today

In less than two weeks, the state of Iowa will vote on its choices for the 2016 Democratic and Republican presidential nominees. The Iowa Caucus begins a months-long process of selecting presidential candidates.

Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont is one of the Democratic presidential candidates. On Thursday, he released a new ad targeting Iowa voters. The 60-second ad is set to a famous song from the 1960s: the folk rock band Simon and Garfunkels America.

The video shows images of Iowa farms, coffee shops, families at kitchen tables, and thousands of Sanders' supporters. The ad is designed to show Sanders growing crowd of supporters made up of everyday Americans.

Simon and Garfunkel trended worldwide on Twitter and on Facebook. Simon Garfunkel and Bernie Sanders was also a Top-10 Google search on Thursday.

On social media, people praised Sanders for his choice of avoiding attacking other candidates and instead focusing on voters, as one New York Times headline said.

As Simon and Garfunkels famous line, Theyve all come to look for America, plays, so, too, does video footage of Sanders' supporters.

Twitter user @Hilary_Crisan tweeted: This is what political ads should look like. No intimidating. No trash-talking. Just Simon and Garfunkel.



And @dsfriends tweeted: Not in any way an endorsement - but this is a well done political ad #emotionwins.



Twitter user @STrimel said: Best political ad of the season! Brings a tear to my eye. Maybe yours, too.

Bernie Sanders himself tweeted:  This campaign is not about Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton, or Donald Trump. This campaign is about you.

And thats Whats Trending Today.

Im Ashley Thompson.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

trash talk - n (informal). insulting speech intended to intimidate or humiliate someone, especially an opponent

endorsement - n. a public or official statement of support or approval
At approximately 1:30 p.m. on January 21, 2016 deputies with the Dawson County Sheriffs Office stopped at 2004 Ford F-150 pickup for stop sign violation at the exit 231 eastbound exit ramp. A Dawson County K-9 was deployed and indicated that there was the odor of illegal drugs in the vehicle.
Michelle R. Henry, age 62, of Council Bluffs, Iowa, died Jan. 8, 2016 at Methodist Hospital in Omaha. A time for Music and Memories will begin at 10:30 a.m. and continue up to the celebration of her life at 11:30 a.m., Saturday, Jan. 23, 2015 at the Hoy-Kilnoski Funeral Home. Following the service a pot-luck will be served in the Hoy-Kilnoski community room. She was born in Lexington, March 26, 1953 to the late Paul and Betty (Walker) Cunningham. She graduated from Lexington High School with the class of 1971. Condolences may be sent in care of Hoy-Kilnoski Funeral Home, 1221 North 16 St., Council Bluffs, IA 51501. The family will direct memorials.
New Delhi: Indian dance icons on Thursday paid glowing tributes to Mrinalini Sarabhai, calling her an epitome of grace and impeccable taste who will never cease to inspire dancers.

In the words of her daughter Mallika, "Mrinalini Sarabhai has just left for her eternal dance."

Padma Bhushan awardee Mrinalini, 97, passed away on Thursday morning in Ahmedabad following age-related health issues.

"In her death, whom we affectionately called Amma, a significant volume of Indian dance history has reached its last page," Bharatnatyam dancer Geeta Chandran, a Padma Shri recipient, told IANS.

"She will be best known for two crowning achievements: First, for introducing the dances of south India to Gujarat, where till then only the folk dances had ruled.

"Later, she became the first icon to daringly embrace contemporary themes of social integration, social justice and human rights into her dance repertoire. She was truly a leader and a culture visionary."

Uma Anantani, another Bharatnatyam exponent, told IANS: "She was an epitome of Indian culture and a Vidushi in Vedic terms, encompassing the aesthetics and wisdom of Indian art.

"She mastered all the four modes of abhinaya and transformed the traditional into contemporary context," Anantani said.

"Amma is a mother to us dancers, who will remain alive in us. Today, she has transcended into divine ananda," Anantani added.

Kathak danseuse Kumudini Lakhia from Mrinalini's state Gujarat also paid rich tributes.

"Mrinalini's passing away has created a void in the life of Ahmedabad, which she embraced and made it aware of our cultural heritage," Lakhia, a Padma Bhushan awardee, told IANS.

"She has left behind a positive legacy. Her soul will always celebrate the myriad lives she led."

Shovana Narayan, a well known Kathak exponent, described Mrinalini as "one of the pioneers of the dance field of an era when India itself was in a phase of discovering itself and its identity.

"She was a part of that movement and she represented that genre... So, it's a big loss," Narayan told IANS, reminiscing Mrinalini as a "down-to-earth, gentle, well-spoken person, who was very connected to her work".

On Mrinalini's body of work, Narayan said: "She did a lot of work. She was a traditionalist in a way, yet there was a contemporariness about her work."

Mrinalini was a legend, pointed out choreographer Shobha Deepak Singh of Delhi's Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra.

"I have photographs of her which are perhaps 50 or 60 years old. She used to stay in our family home (in Delhi). She and her husband (Vikram Sarabhai) were an integral part of my grandfather's household."

"She was a great person and dancer. She did a lot for Bharatnatyam. She always had an amazingly keen eye for dance aesthetics."

Also stunned by the news of Mrinalini's death was Kathak exponent Shaswati Sen, a disciple of Pandit Birju Maharaj.

"Losing her is a very big loss for the art community as she was a great pillar in the field of dance. She supported and propagated the development and enrichment of Bharatnatyam in particular in India and beyond."

Mrinalini trained in the south Indian classical dance form Bharatanatyam under Meenakshi Sundaram Pillai and the classical dance-drama of Kathakali under the legendary Guru Thakazhi Kunchu Kurup.

A highly honoured artiste, she was also the founder director of the Darpana Academy of Performing Arts, an institute for imparting training in dance, drama, music and puppetry.

"I am too sad that Amma has gone," said Alpana Shukla, danseuse and a long-time disciple of Sarabhai.

"She has left behind a legacy of social and culturally relevant dance forms," Shukla, also an alumnus of Darpana, told IANS.
New Delhi: Investment through Participatory Notes (P-Notes) into India's capital markets has hit a 15-month low of Rs 2.35 lakh crore (about USD 16 billion) at the end of December.

P-Notes, mostly used by overseas HNIs (High Net Worth Individuals), hedge funds and other foreign institutions, allow investors to invest in Indian markets through registered foreign institutional investors (FIIs).

This saves time and cost for them, but the flip side is that the route can also be used for round-tripping of black money.

According to Sebi data, total value of P-Notes investment in Indian markets (equity, debt and derivatives) declined to Rs 2,35,534 crore at the end of December from Rs 2,54,600 crore in the previous month.

This is the lowest level since September 2014, when the cumulative value of such investments stood at Rs 2.22 lakh crore.

In October, investment was at Rs 2.58 lakh crore through this route. The total outstanding value of P-Notes witnessed a steady rise since January and the momentum continued till March.

However, investments through this route registered a drop in April, but hit a seven-year high in May. The inflows slipped in the subsequent three months (June-August) but marginally rose in September and October and again fell in November as well as in December.

The drop in investment via P-Notes during June-August came when Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) on black money asked Sebi to review its regulations on participatory notes to help identify the end users of these instruments.

However, the government later said it had no intention of banning this financial instrument overnight.

The quantum (percentage) of FII investments via P-Notes fell to 10.1 per cent from 11 per cent.

Till a few years ago, P-Notes used to account for more than 50 per cent of total FII investment, but their share has fallen over the years after Sebi tightened disclosure norms and other related regulations.

As things stand, P-Notes make up around 15-20 per cent of the total FII investment in India since 2009. While it used to be much higher, 25-40 per cent in 2008, the reading was as high as over 50 per cent at the peak of stock market bull run in 2007.

In absolute terms, the value of P-Notes investment rose to a record of Rs 4.5 lakh crore in October 2007, but dropped to Rs 3.22 lakh crore in February 2008 and Rs 60,948 crore in February 2009.

PTI
The recent arrest of the online travel portal Makemytrip executive on the ground that the portal was remiss in not paying a whopping Rs 82 crore service tax and his release following censure by court of the ham-handedness and highhandedness of the administration, hides a larger malaise---how to come to terms with the seemingly intractable problem of online aggregators cocking a snook at the tax authorities.

Makemytrip earns its keeps from sale of airline tickets and doing hotel bookings. The excise authorities who have been doubling up to administer service tax ever since it was introduced in 1994 know that the service component embedded in the price must be drawn out first before service tax can be imposed.

Accordingly, for hotels and restaurants, it allows a 60% abatement which means a hotel or restaurant has to pay service tax only on 40% of its billings. And for airlines the abatement is still higher---90%. But then Makemytrip in common with online aggregators argues that it is not a hotel or airline itself; it is only a service provider or aggregator.

We have had examples of similar ham-handedness in the past by state governments, flummoxed by the inexorable online spatial expansion and the consequent loss of revenue. The Karnataka government charged Amazon with the responsibility of the seller whereas it pleaded that its online portal only offered a marketplace for any seller and that owning warehouses where the wares of these thousands of sellers did not make it a seller.

The Kerala High Court too squashed the penal proceedings against Flipkart which too was slapped with similar charges---not being VAT compliant. Online sales are the order of the day, with mobile internet accessibility on the back of apps registering a quantum jump, catapulting India possibly into the third position in terms of internet users in 2018.

Livemint.com has some disconcerting statistics for brick and mortar organized stores and the harried tax authorities----the share of online retail is likely to leapfrog from 2% in 2014 to 11% in 2019 with a corresponding fall for organized brick and mortar stores from 17% to 13%.

Deloitte.com corroborates this assessment when it projects a $60 billion online retail sale in India in 2017, with a steady growth up from 3.5% share in 2008 to 6.5% share in 2013 and 10.1% share in 2018.

Walmart, USA, has seen the writing on the wall, and ramping up its online facilities and scaling down its giant brick and mortar stores. The point is our government too should see the writing on the wall. It must smoke the peace pipe with the online trade by recognizing them for what they are---marketplace unless they sell on their own account.

It is easy to collect VAT or GST from a Flipkart rather than from thousands of small manufacturers and traders who have been using online portals to a telling effect. To be sure, the online portals exercise a lot of powers on behalf of these sellers---order acceptance, rejection acceptance, payments etc. ---but the government simply cannot brand them with the status of sellers only on these grounds. It has to gear up and gird its loins to gun after the actual sellers whose identity and address can be obtained from the likes of Flipkart.

The online aggregators must be subjected to service tax and the sellers using their portals must be subjected to local VAT/CST/service tax/GST as and when implemented, period. The governments must eschew the temptation to do an encore of dividend distribution tax (DDT) success. DDT is collected from thousands of companies which is far easier than collecting tax on dividend from millions of investors.

But the same cannot be replicated on the indirect taxes front with online portals many of which are successful startups that have attracted sizeable FDI and kept the otherwise somnolent economy going. They are all technology driven as envisioned by the governments 16th January 2016 startup vision document. The hen that lays golden eggs should not be killed by foisting on it the tax burden of others. It is for the respective hotels and airlines to pay the taxes and not for Makemytrip except service tax attributable to the services it provides. Ditto for sellers in the online marketplace.
New Delhi: Moody's Investors Service today placed the ratings of state-run oil producers ONGC and its subsidiary ONGC Videsh "on review for downgrade" on slumping oil prices, weakening demand and prolonged period of oversupply.

Besides Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) and ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL), Moody's placed the ratings of Oil India Ltd amongst 120 global exploration and production firms on review for downgrade.

"These reviews reflect a mix of declining prices that are near multi-year lows, weakening demand and a prolonged period of oversupply that will continue to significantly stress the credit profiles of companies in the oil and gas sector," it said.

The action, Moody's said, reflected the rating agency's effort to recalibrate the ratings in the oil and gas portfolios to align with the fundamental shifts in credit conditions.

Of the 120 companies, seven are from south and southeast Asia. These include Pertamina of Indonesia, Malaysia's Petroliam Nasional Berhad or Petronas and PTT Exploration & Production of Thailand.

Moody's said it is placing local currency issuer rating of Baa1 of ONGC on review for downgrade. The same has been done for the foreign currency issuer rating of Baa2 of ONGC Videsh and Oil India's Baa2 Backed Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture rating.

"Oil prices have deteriorated substantially in the past few weeks and have reached nominal price lows not seen in more than a decade," Moody's said.

Stating that it has adjusted its view downward for the likely range of prices, the rating agency said it saw "a substantial risk that prices may recover much more slowly over the medium term than many companies expect, as well as a risk that prices might fall further."

"Even under a scenario with a modest recovery from current prices, producing companies and the drillers and service companies that support them will experience rising financial stress with much lower cash flows," it said.

As part of its ongoing assessment of energy markets, Moody's sharply reduced its oil price assumptions in light of continuing oversupply in the global oil markets and demand growth that remains tepid.

"Iran is poised to add more than 500,000 barrels per day to global supply while OPEC and many non-OPEC oil producers continue to produce without restraint as they battle for market share.

"The addition of Iranian oil to the market this year will offset or exceed expected declines in US production of about 500,000 bpd," it said.

The increased production vastly exceeds growth in oil consumption, given modest growth in consumption from major consumers such as China, India and the US.

"Production now exceeds demand by about 2 million barrels per day, adding to already high global oil stocks," Moody's said, projecting crude oil price to average USD 33 per barrel in 2016, USD 10 lower than its previous estimate.

PTI
Pune: Days after a 17-year-old ragpicker was allegedly murdered by three persons here after setting him afire, his father and some right-wing activists on Thursday claimed he was killed because he was a 'Hindu' and the brutality meted out to him was like an act of IS.

However, police have denied any communal angle behind the murder of Sawan Rathod in Kasba Peth area of the city last week.

Sawan, a pavement dweller, was hospitalised last Wednesday after he sustained severe burns when the accused trio, suspecting his involvement in stealing vehicle batteries, poured petrol on him and set him ablaze on 13 January. He died in hospital on 15 January.

"When my son was admitted to hospital, he told me that he was set on fire by three suspects after they came to know that he was Hindu," Sawan's father Dharma claimed.

Milind Ekbote, president of 'Samast Hindu Aghadi', alleged that the amount of cruelty exerted by three suspects was "inhuman" and the act resembles the "modus operandi" of Islamic State (IS). He demanded a probe by ATS into the incident.

Ekbote said they will organise a protest at the Police Commissioner's office here on 27 January.

Activists of various right-wing bodies said the police had botched up the investigation in the case.

"We had given a video clip to the cops in which the deceased was seen telling that he was set on fire by three suspects, after they came to know that he was 'Hindu'.

"It is as good as the dying declaration and police should investigate the communal angle. They failed to take his dying statement when he was being treated at state-run Sassoon Hospital," said Ramesh Rathod, city unit president of 'Banjara Kranti Dal', the community to which the deceased belonged.

Police had arrested Ibrahim Shaikh, Juber Tamboli and Imran Tamboli in connection with the murder. When contacted, DCP (Zone I) Tushar Doshi dismissed the claim of the activists and the boy's father as an "afterthought".

"Nothing of this sort (communal) surfaced in our investigation so far," he added.

PTI
Suri, West Bengal: Two brothers, who were Trinamool Congress supporters, were killed when a bomb exploded in their house, at Amodpur in Birbhum district on Friday.

Sheikh Hafizul (24) and his elder brother Shiekh Tariq Hussain (27) were killed on the spot when a bomb exploded in their house in the wee hours, Superintendent of Police Mukesh Kumar said.

The victims' brother Jabir Hussain, who is a Trinamool Congress representative in the local gram panchayat, and other family members escaped unhurt.

The intensity of the blast was so high that a portion of the house was blown up, he said.

Police are investigating the incident, Kumar said.

PTI
The Maharashtra government moved the Supreme Court on Friday, challenging Bollywood star Salman Khan's acquittal by the Bombay High Court in a 2002 hit-and-run case filed after the actor Khan's Toyota Land Cruiser ran over five men sleeping outside American Express bakery in Mumbai's Bandra locality. Khan was convicted in May 2015 by a trial court of killing one man on the night of 28 September, 2002.

The High Court shot down the trial court's ruling on 10 December, acquitted Khan of all charges and scrapped his five-year jail term. The high court said that the prosecution was not able to sufficiently establish that the 49-year-old star was behind the wheel that night or was drunk at the time of the accident.

The appeal, filed by state counsel Nishant R Katneshwarkar, criticizes the HC ruling on the ground that it ignored Salmans conduct who did not make any attempt to report the accident to the police.

The state is questioning how the actor took the defence, for the first time in 12 years, that his driver was driving the vehicle at the time of the accident, reports The Hindustan Times.

The HC had ignored the crucial statement of the injured witness who had testified Salman was on the drivers seat, the state said. It insisted the court should have taken into account the evidence of the actors bodyguard, Ravindra Patil. Patil had died by the time trial started in the case.

The Indian Express reports that Maharashtras chief standing counsel Nishant R Katneshwarkar filed the petition. Here, the state of Maharashtra is refuting the HC finding that the probe was conducted to weaken the prosecutions case.

The state police version in the new petition is that the Bombay High Court has "not appreciated the evidence on record in its proper perspective.

The Maharashtra government petition disputes the High Court view that the investigation was careless and faulty. The State government claims that enough witnesses were examined to frame charges against Salman Khan.

The appeal said evidence of complainant Ravindra Patil, who was with Salman in the Toyota Land Cruiser, was legally tenable and its rejection was wrong. Patil was the actors bodyguard who had said Salman was driving drunk and had ignored his warnings.

Patil died of tuberculosis in 2007. The petition says the prosecution could not have been indicted for non-examination of Kamaal Khan in the trial court, who was also in the SUV on September 28, 2002. It said the HC had also ignored the conduct of Salman as he did not make any attempt to report the incident to police or help the victims.

Rewind to the acquittal

Justice AR Joshi, who heard Khan's appeal against the five-year sentence awarded to him by a sessions court, dictated the detailed judgment for three days starting from 7 December, and then pronounced the verdict .

"The appeal is allowed and the decision of the trial court is quashed and set aside. Salman Khan is acquitted of all charges," Justice Joshi said.

On hearing the verdict, Salman Khan broke down in court.

The court has set aside his sentence of imprisonment for five years.

The sessions court had convicted Salman Khan under section 304 (ii) and section 338 of the Indian Penal Code, for charges relating to culpable homicide not amounting to murder and causing grievous hurt.

In his judgment, Justice Joshi expressed doubts over the statement of eye witness Ravindra Patil, former police bodyguard of of the actor, recorded by a Magistrate, in which he had implicated the actor. As far as the deposition of Ashok Singh, the family driver of Salim Khan, is concerned, it was as per rules and laid down procedures of criminal law, the court said.

"This court has come to the conclusion that the prosection has failed to bring material on record to establish beyond reasonable doubt that the appellant (Salman Khan) was driving and was under the influence of alcohol," the court observed.

Salman contended that the charge of culpable homicide was not justified and wrongly invoked in the case. He also challenged the prosecution's step of relying upon Patil's statement in the trial court, saying this witness died and hence was not available for cross-examination.

The prosecution opposed Salman's plea and justified the invocation of culpable homicide charge against the actor saying he had driven the car in a rash and negligent manner under the influence of liquor in September 2002, when he met with a mishap.

While the prosecution has argued that the actor had taken alcoholic drinks at Rain Bar and Restaurant at Vile Parle before meeting with the mishap in suburban Bandra, Salman has denied the charge saying evidence does not suggest this.

Earlier, the HC had rejected Salman's plea on issuing a directive to examine Kamaal Khan as witness.

Way back in 2002, the Bombay High Court had directed Khan to pay a total of Rs 19 lakh as compensation to the victims. This included Rs 10 lakh to the family of Nurullah Sharif, who died in the accident, as reported by The Times of India. However, the relatives of Sharif were quoted by Hindustan Times as saying in May this year that they have not yet received the compensation.

With PTI inputs
The National Investigative Agency (NIA) has busted an alleged Islamic State network that was planning to attack the country by simultaneously exploding multiple homemade improvised explosive devices (IEDS) at different locations on the eve of Republic Day, reported The Hindu. The network was broken up after raids were conducted on Thursday night in Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Tumakuru and Rajasthan. Eleven suspected Islamic State recruits were arrested.

The arrests come at a time when the country is on high alert after the French embassy in Bengaluru received a letter cautioning French President Francois Hollande not to visit India for the coming Republic Day parade. The single-page letter, with an Indian map in the background, contains three lines in English language, with the warning. Intelligence Bureau sources told the CNN-IBN that Islamic State may target the Republic Day parade with Paris-style attacks as Hollande is the chief guest of the celebrations.

Even Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh had reviewed the security at the parade and concluded that the threat from Islamic State "is very real", NDTV reported.

According to CNN-IBN, four suspected Islamic State sympathisers were arrested in Bengaluru, one in Mangaluru and one in Tumakuru. The suspect arrested in Mangaluru has been identified as Najmul Huda, a 25-year-old with a diploma in polymer technology, The Hindu reported, adding that four suspects have also been arrested in Hyderabad.

Meanwhile, one suspected Islamic State recruit was also arrested in Mumbai. He is being questioned by the NIA and the ATS after investigators found online material implicating him, reported CNN-IBN.

Last week, an anonymous postcard claimed to have been sent by terror group IS threatening to kill Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Parrikar was received at the Goa Secretariat. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on Thursday dismissed it by saying, "It (the threat) was (issued) on a 50 paise postcard."
New Delhi: Virtually anointing himself as the chief ministerial candidate for the fourth straight term, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi today said the coming Assembly election would be a direct fight between him and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and ruled out any alliance.

"Everyone's face will be there. But I will be the captain. I am the General of the party and Modi is the General of BJP," he said at a press conference.

Gogoi was replying to a question on whether he would be the chief ministerial candidate of Congress or not in the state Assembly polls expected to be held in April-May.

The 79-year-old Congress veteran also ruled out any alliance with any political party saying Congress is more interested for electoral "understanding" with "secular" parties to defeat BJP.

"I am going alone. There will be no seat sharing. There will be no 'mahajoth'. Only 'maha-understanding' with some

secular parties to ensure BJP's defeat. Understanding means vote for Congress but not BJP. Vote for AGP but not for BJP," he said.

He said Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi has left it to him and the party's state unit to decide on the issue of alliance.

Gogoi, who has been chief minister of Assam for last 15 years, however, admitted that the coming polls would be a

tough one for Congress but he likes such challenges.

"BJP is eyeing Assam. It will be an interesting election. Every election is tough. I welcome tough election. A tough election makes us tougher," he said.

The chief minister said there is little anti-incumbency in Assam as such things come if there is a failure in implementing promises.

"Whatever little anti-incumbency is there, it will be overcome by our development work," he said.

Launching a direct attack on the Prime Minister, Gogoi said Modi is "not a dignified" prime minister as no prime minister in the independent India had criticised his or her predecessor the way Modi did recently.

"I have never met any prime minister blaming his predecessor. It is a great departure from precedent. Besides,

whatever statement he made, it was not correct. He is not a dignified prime minister. I have not seen any prime minister condemning his predecessor," he said.

Modi, in a recent rally in Assam, had said that despite former prime minister Manmohan Singh being a Rajya Sabha

member from the state, it has not seen the kind of development it would have come across.

"He made allegations against Manmohan Singh. I want to ask have all problems in Gujarat solved when he was chief minister for three consecutive terms. I know that 30,000 small and medium enterprises in Gujarat are sick. Farmers of Gujarat are in distressed state, they are unhappy," he said.

The chief minister said people of India had high hope when Modi was elected as prime minister and thought that he was the only man who can bring drastic change.

"But instead of concentrating on internal affairs, instead of solving country's problems, he is more interested on

foreign affairs. No other prime minister has spent so much time in meeting NRIs than farmers. He enjoys the company of NRIs and CEOs," he said.

Gogoi also claimed that Modi is losing control over his ministers as different minister was making different statement on the same issue.

"I don't know whether he has hold over them or allow them to speak like that," he said.

Asked about former Congress leader Himanta Biswa Sarma's joining of BJP, Gogoi said his departure had helped the

Congress and brought resentment in BJP.

He also ruled out taking help of poll strategist Prashant Kishor, who was widely credited for the victory of Nitish

Kumar in Bihar polls last year and helping Modi during 2014 Lok Sabha polls.

PTI
Srinagar: A BJP worker was allegedly thrashed on Thursday by supporters of Independent MLA Sheikh Abdul Rashid and some locals when he objected to the lawmaker's targeting of Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the killing of a civilian in the south Kashmir town.

Shabir Ahmad, who claims to be the youth president of the district BJP unit, entered into a verbal duel with the supporters of Rashid, who had staged a sit-in in Pulwama town against the killing of a youth in firing by security forces during stone-pelting protests after an encounter on Wednesday.

Initially, police personnel intervened and separated the two groups.

Later, as the BJP worker was talking to the media, a group of local youths pounced on him and the policemen had to come to his rescue a second time.

Following the incident, BJP media in-charge Altaf Thakur has demanded registration of a case against the supporters of the Independent MLA who were involved in the assault on Shabir.

Shabir claimed that "they had painted a picture of the prime minister with blood" and he was "protesting against it".

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the MLA denied the allegations.

"We had organised a peaceful sit-in in front of the Deputy Commissioner's office in Pulwama against the brutal killing of Parvaiz Ahmad Guru by security forces yesterday in the district.

"Scores of volunteers led by Rashid started the protest early this morning and were soon joined by hundreds of locals," he said.

Rashid demanded the arrest of the personnel involved in the killing of the youth during the stone-pelting protests on Wednesday and rejected any magisterial probe, claiming that such inquiries have yielded nothing except provide cover to the killers.

"It is shameful that police tried to justify the killing by dubbing Parvaiz a mobster. Let police answer if being part of a mob is such a heinous crime that someone should be murdered?" charged Rashid.

PTI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi may look to press the reset button on his leadership this spring to reinvigorate stalled economic reforms and appease critics, eyeing a mix of tried and tested allies and fresh blood, senior government sources said.

The government has overseen rapid economic growth but failed on tax and land reforms, and the euphoria that met Modi's 2014 election triumph has given way to investor disillusionment; stocks have erased all of their gains since he won power.

The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) faces a crucial election test in the most populous state of Uttar Pradesh in 2017 that it probably needs to win if it wants to hold on to power nationally in 2019.

"Modi needs to identify new talent and bring changes in his government. It will be too late if he fails to do it now," said veteran newspaper editor and commentator Shekhar Gupta.

With an eye on Uttar Pradesh, Modi looks set to keep Amit Shah on as BJP president, the sources said, extending his closest aide and election campaign manager's tenure by three years when it expires at the weekend.

But Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, responsible for delivering the Modi message to international investors, may move to defence after he delivers his annual budget in late February, sources said.

Jaitley, 63, has failed to push through a major tax reform and critics have faulted his stewardship over India's $2 trillion economy, which is growing fast but not creating enough jobs to employ an expanding workforce.

A spokesman for Modi declined to comment on the move and an official in Jaitley's office said he had no knowledge of a possible reshuffle.

Moving Jaitley to defence, a post he also held in the early months of the Modi government, could better suit the veteran corporate lawyer and keep the strategically important portfolio in trusted hands.

It would also open the way for power and coal minister Piyush Goyal to take the finance portfolio, while underperformers in other minor posts may be weeded out.

A central minister and two BJP officials said Goyal, 51, was being groomed for his next big role, and a white paper on banking was recently shared with him to seek his inputs. A Goyal aide denied all knowledge of an impending promotion.

Goyal is a good communicator and has often travelled abroad with Modi, but lacks political and electoral experience.

The ex-investment banker has turned around state-run Coal India, tackled chronic power shortages and backed renewable sources of energy.

Those are key wins for Modi, whose provision of 24/7 electricity as chief minister of Gujarat state helped him become prime minister.

"Goyal is doing a fine job - he has brought a lot of energy to the coal and power sector," said Rajiv Kumar, senior fellow at the Centre for Policy Research in New Delhi.

"But I'm not sure he can do justice to the complex finance portfolio," he said. "Goyal, with his micro orientation, might struggle to get to grips with multi-dimensional and serious macroeconomic issues facing the country."

BALANCING ACT

Modi, who has relentlessly centralised power in the prime minister's office, has held his cards close to his chest and would have the last word on recruiting new talent from a pool of candidates that is short on experience.

Shah, Modi's right-hand man in Gujarat and the architect of his general election triumph, lost his winning touch last year with a heavy defeat to an upstart party in Delhi and a crashing loss in the big eastern state of Bihar.

That has tested the patience of the Hindu nationalist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). But, apart from a brief rebellion by party elders, Modi has managed to fend off challenges to his authority.

At a meeting between BJP and RSS leaders earlier this month in New Delhi, Modi made his support for Shah clear. No challenger has applied for the post, meaning that Shah's term that expires this weekend will be extended by three years.

While party workers praise Shah as a tough and effective administrator, many want him to promote new faces instead of, as he has done, focusing his campaign strategy exclusively on Modi.

Even though Modi addressed more than 30 rallies on the campaign trail, the BJP fell in Bihar in November to an alliance of regional parties. Realising its fate was sealed, it did not even field a candidate for chief minister.

The party's fortunes will depend on five state polls in 2016 that will build up to next year's crunch vote in Uttar Pradesh. The outcome of that ballot will set the tone for the 2019 general election.

Shah helped Modi win the biggest general election mandate in three decades by sweeping 71 of 80 seats in the northern state, whose 200 million population is as big as Brazil's.

"If Shah wins Uttar Pradesh, then no one can stop Modi from becoming the prime minister again," said one senior BJP leader.

Reuters
New Delhi: Perturbed over the CBI raids at the office of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's principal secretary, Delhi government on Friday charged the probe agency with conducting the searches under "undue political pressure" and "malafidely intruding" in its working.

The AAP government, in its submission before Delhi High Court, also accused CBI of raiding the office of Rajendra Kumar, located next to the Chief Minister's office in the Delhi Secretariat, in "unprecedented haste" and "indiscriminately" seizing documents, an act which smacked of "vindictiveness and arbitrariness".

Opposing CBI's plea seeking stay and quashing of a trial court's direction to return some documents seized by it during the 15 December, 2015 raid, the AAP government said

"CBI has filed the frivolous, baseless, vexatious and merit less petition with obtuse motives and the same is liable to be dismissed with heavy cost."

The Delhi government's affidavit, which was filed after Justice P S Teji sought their stand on CBI's petition, said the raid at Delhi Secretariat was "not only devoid of merit but also smacked of vindictiveness and arbitrariness".

"In the instant case, CBI proceeded and acted with unprecedented haste for the obvious obtuse reason under undue political pressure in as much as CBI failed to requisition the relevant files to verify the allegation, at first instance from Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) of the concerned department which were under scanner in FIR/RC (regular case).

"If CBI was to follow the rules, law and laid down statutory procedures and guidelines, then there was absolutely no need to raid at the said premises and much less seize indiscriminately the documents unrelated to the case," the 38- page reply, filed through Delhi government's senior standing counsel Rahul Mehra and standing counsel Richa Kapoor, said.

They said the petition filed by CBI was an "abuse of process of law, not maintainable and is liable to be dismissed at the threshold".

The trial court's special judge on 20 January had also castigated the CBI for flouting its own manual by seizing documents without showing how they were related to the alleged graft case against Kumar.

CBI, in its petition, had claimed that the Special CBI Judge had failed to appreciate that the Delhi government has already obtained photocopies of the documents seized and thus the order of returning the documents was "wholly misconceived".

CBI had claimed that the trial judge had also failed to appreciate that the right of investigation was its inherent right which cannot be curtailed by passing such orders.

On the contrary, the AAP government said the agency has "miserably failed to explain the relevancy of the documents pertaining to Delhi government which are totally unrelated for the purposes of investigating, either before the trial court or before the High Court, seized indiscriminately by the CBI on 15 December, 2015 from the office of the Chief Minister, under the garb of search warrants".

"In any event, the Special Judge had granted liberty to the CBI, if required, to seize back any of released documents in original during the investigation, in accordance with law".

Maintaining that the sole object of the raid was to "malafidely intrude, obstruct and dislocate" its working, it said "that inspite of allegation in the FIR/RC being specific to department such as Power, Delhi Jal Board, Health and Trade & Taxes relating to limited period from 2007 till August 2014, CBI still intentionally carried out indiscriminate search, firstly targeting the said premises and seized documents which were either unrelated to the case, nor were connected with accused persons but rather pertained to Delhi government.

"Thus the order of 20 January, 2016 being passed on sound reasoning, is totally correct on law and facts, requiring no interference. Hence the petition is liable to be dismissed," the Delhi government said in their reply.

It said the functioning of the "democratically elected government was sought to jeopardised when on 15 December, 2015 CBI arbitrarily targeted to raid the office of Rajender Kumar and "indiscriminately seized the documents unrelated for investigation into the allegation of case registered against Kumar and other."

"It is highly improbable that a person accused of an offence relating to abuse of his official position while functioning as erstwhile postings on previous occasions in different other departments, would carry with him all such files to the office of current posting where he is holding charges as principal secretary of Chief Minister," it said.

CBI had registered a corruption case against Kumar and others on the allegations that he had abused his official position by "favouring a particular firm in the last few years in getting tenders from Delhi government department.

Yesterday, the High Court refrained from passing an order on CBI's plea seeking stay of a trial court's order and had listed the matter for further consideration on 25 January.

It had asked the Delhi government to file their response, which they did today. Now the agency will have to respond to the Delhi government's reply by tomorrow.

The state government said the CBI petition was filed with "oblique motives in order circumvent the prescribed procedures of their own CBI manual which are binding in law, with intention to arbitrarily target the functioning of democratically elected Delhi government, is liable to be dismissed with heavy cost.

"That apart from vindictiveness and targeted decision to search the said premises, raiding team of CBI in the instant case grossly misconducted themselves during the raid and caused indiscriminate seizure of documents, which are totally non-essential for the purpose of investigation under the garb of search warrants," the reply said.

"CBI has thrown to winds all procedure safeguards while conducting raid... which it had blatantly violated the provision of its CBI manual which is binding in nature and have statutory force," it added.

PTI
Chennai: DMK legislators were evicted from the Tamil Nadu Assembly in Chennai today for raising a din after the Privileges Committee condemned DMK president M Karunanidhi.

Marshals were called to escort the DMK members out after they tore up copies of the committee's report and shouted slogans while massing near Speaker P Dhanapal.

The Privileges Committee had recommended that Mr Karunanidhi should be condemned for attributing comments to a minister who denied making them.

After the resolution accepting the committee's recommendation was passed, Speaker Dhanapal said Mr Karunanidhi should not do such things again. This triggered the DMK fury.

IANS
New York: Which gasbag is worse? Donald Trump or Ted Cruz?

Prominent conservative heavyweights are grappling with the prospect of which motor-mouth will dent their brand less as the bitter battle between Donald Trump and Ted Cruz escalates.

While the two go at each other to over who is the phoniest outsider candidate, the enemy within is striking back at Republican frontrunners days ahead of the first presidential nominating contests in Iowa and New Hampshire.

The most influential right leaning media is pulling out all stops with stinging attacks against the so far unstoppable Trump. The week before the Iowa causus, National Review is dedicating a special issue of its magazine yelling out for a hard stop to Trump. The magazine also calls out The Donalds misplaced views on the H1B visa, saying he (Trump) clearly had no idea whats in the plan.

National Review calls him "astoundingly ignorant," a "charlatan," a "glib egomaniac" and plain "crazy" and express revulsion at the prospect of President Trump.

Their views reflect the panic that Trump has set off within a Republican establishment deeply at odds with the celebrity billionaire's angry, populist message which is relentlessly drawing top poll numbers. Almost simultaneously as news of 'Against Trump' broke, Trump indulged in more name calling, retweeting an account called "@WhiteGenocideTM" on Friday, prompting a backlash on social media over the real estate billionaire's sharing of an apparent neo-Nazi's depiction of rival candidate Jeb Bush.

Rich Lowry, the editor of National Review has unleashed 22 of the countrys leading conservatives on the anti-Trump special, slamming close to 9000 words onto GOP voters ahead of the crucial Iowa caucus.

In a teaser ahead of the full blown Against Trump issue, the editors have written a one pager saying Trump seems unaware that a major contribution of his own written immigration plan is to question the economic impact of legal immigration and to call for reform of the H-1Bvisa program. Indeed, in one Republican debate he clearly had no idea whats in that plan and advocated increased legal immigration, which is completely at odds with it. These are not the meanderings of someone with well-informed, deeply held views on the topic.

Against Trump, roars the cover page headline.

The magazine tweeted the cover picture late Thursday night.

Trump, of course, responded, in his signature genre: 'Good, bad, stupid!' or 'I have money, you dont, so you dont count'.

National Review is a failing publication that has lost it's way. It's circulation is way down w its influence being at an all time low. Sad!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 22, 2016

Donald Trump is a menace to American conservatism who would take the work of generations and trample it underfoot on behalf of a populism as heedless and crude as The Donald himself, the magazine said in an editorial accompanying the manifesto, titled Against Trump.

"Trump is a philosophically unmoored political opportunist who would trash the broad conservative ideological consensus within the GOP in favor of a free-floating populism with strong-man overtones, the editorial reads.

This comes at a time when 5 in 10 Americans think Trump will make a poor or terrible president, according to a brand new Pew study. Only 12% think Trump would be an average president. But that does not mean Americans regards any of his competitors better  they think most of them are equally sketchy.

Of nine candidates included in the survey, far more voters say each would make a terrible than great president, says Pew.

Polarising figures on both the Republican and Democrat sides have polarised voters too.

Sarah Palin ditched Cruz for Trump and split the evangelical vote in two. As social media erupted with The Farce Awakens, Palin put a match to a Republican revolt already on the boil.

"It's like she's a malfunctioning robot": Sarah Palin gets the full "Daily Show" treatment https://t.co/04xgP0zPFe pic.twitter.com/0mTTa7qtwF  Salon.com (@Salon) January 21, 2016

"I'm with stupid!" blared the New York Daily News, depicting the pair on its front page.

"OMG. Sarah Palin has gone rogue," William Kristol, founder and editor of The Weekly Standard magazine, tweeted after Palin's speech, in which she used foul language, mocked President Barack Obama as a "weak-kneed" coward, and evoked disturbing terrorism imagery.

Young evangelical Christians, a coveted voting bloc, are facing a dilemma about whether they should vote as most evangelicals have in the past, for a "pro-life" anti-abortion candidate, or should they embrace a new set of values?

Donald Trump and Ted Cruz both are not traditional evangelical choices and in a volatile election season marked by sharp rhetoric, the break from tradition extends beyond religion.

Endorsements alone dont guarantee victory, but Palins embrace of Trump may turn the fight over the evangelical vote into a war for the soul of the party, says Ralph Reed, chairman of the Faith and Freedom Coalition, in The Guardian.

The Washington Post says that for its lack of pretense and its abundance of voices, you've got to give "Against Trump" a chance. It probably has a better shot to sway Republican voters than anything else so far.

Links: As Iowa nears, ghosts from the 1990s back to haunt Clinton; Bernie Sanders soars
Cairo, Egypt: A bomb blast killed six people, including three Egyptian policemen, as a team of officers on Thursday raided an apartment in Cairo suspected to be a militant hideout, the interior ministry said.

The explosion in the capital's Al-Haram district, near the pyramids, came ahead of next week's anniversary of the 2011 revolution that ousted longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak.

The interior ministry blamed Thursday's incident on the blacklisted Islamist Muslim Brotherhood movement of ousted president Mohamed Morsi.

"Police had information that a group of Muslim Brotherhood members were preparing to carry out aggressive acts in the coming days using explosives and crude bombs," the ministry said on its Facebook page.

"This group was using an apartment in a Cairo building, and on Thursday night the police raided this apartment where they found a number of crude bombs.

"When the bomb squad expert were dealing with one of the bombs, it exploded killing three policemen, one civilian and two unidentified men."

Thirteen other people were wounded, the ministry said, after a police officer had put the number at 15.

Security officials said the impact of the explosion damaged part of the residential building housing the apartment.

Al-Haram has witnessed several attacks and gunfights since Morsi's overthrow in July 2013.

The neighbourhood is known to house many sympathisers of Morsi and it used to be a regular venue for clashes between his supporters and security forces in the aftermath of his ouster by then army chief and now President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

Warning against anniversary 'chaos'

It also houses several hotels used by tourists visiting Cairo because of its proximity to the pyramids.

Militants have regularly attacked policemen and soldiers since the army toppled Morsi.

The Cairo bomb blast comes after gunmen killed five policemen late Wednesday when they attacked a checkpoint in the North Sinai town of El-Arish.

The Islamic State jihadist group's Egyptian affiliate, the Sinai Province, claimed that attack.

The Sinai Province is spearheading an insurgency against security forces in the region, and has carried out deadly attacks in North Sinai as well as in other cities including Cairo.

Jihadists say their attacks are in retaliation for a brutal government crackdown targeting Morsi's supporters that has left hundreds dead and thousands imprisoned.

Morsi was Egypt's first freely elected president and succeeded Mubarak, who was driven from power after an 18-day popular uprising.

On Monday, Egypt marks the fifth anniversary of the anti-Mubarak revolt, and Sisi has warned against any form of demonstration on that day.

The Muslim Brotherhood has called for protests throughout January.

But its ability to mobilise supporters has diminished amid the blistering government crackdown that has seen several of its top leaders jailed and some sentenced to death and lengthy prison terms.

The interior ministry has warned against any "chaos" on Monday, and has boosted security across Egypt, including around the capital's iconic Tahrir Square -- epicentre of the anti-Mubarak revolt.

AFP
WASHINGTON A U.S. congressman from Michigan said he worked in public and behind the scenes, once meeting privately with Iran's foreign minister, to win the release of an Iranian-American prisoner from his congressional district sentenced to death for spying.

Amir Hekmati, 32, a Marine veteran who grew up in the Flint area, was released as part of a swap of American and Iranian prisoners and arrived back in Michigan on Thursday. Hekmati, a naturalized U.S. citizen of Iranian origin, had been detained in August 2011 while visiting family in Iran.

Congressman Dan Kildee, a Democrat, told Reuters in an interview after Hekmati's release he met with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif at the United Nations in late September as part of his efforts on behalf of Hekmati. He also had a four-hour meeting with Iran's then ambassador to the United Nations, Mohammad Khazaee, in December 2013.

Hekmati was released along with Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian and three other Americans to coincide with the lifting last weekend of economic sanctions against Iran in return for curbs on Tehran's atomic program. The White House offered clemency to seven Iranians who were convicted or facing trial in the United States.

After the release, Kildee, who represents the struggling industrial city of Flint which was recently hit by lead poisoning in city water, flew to a U.S. military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany where on Tuesday he met with Hekmati, who said he felt "very lucky" to be free again.

Hekmati initially was sentenced to death and had no communication with family or attorneys.

Kildee said the release had symbolic importance, adding: "We will never leave an American behind."

Kildee's role was praised by many including Hekmati and U.S. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi who tweeted Kildee to thank him "for unrelenting efforts" to help win Hekmati's release.

Only after he was freed was Kildee willing to disclose the back-channel role he had played in U.S. negotiations to secure the release of American prisoners. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry led an effort, connected to the Iranian nuclear deal, that ultimately led to the exchange.

Kildee described a frustrating process in which it was never clear what might happen, and he perceived apparent conflicts between power centers in Iran. His account of events could not be independently confirmed.

"Sometimes you could get someone to agree to something but they can't get it done," Kildee said.

Kildee said he insisted in meetings that Hekmati was innocent of spying charges, and Iranian officials never presented evidence that rebutted his claim.

Momentum started to build in July after the United States and other world powers reached their nuclear deal with Iran. That "created space for direct negotiations through a formal negotiating process," Kildee said.

Kildee first learnt about Hekmati's detention during his first run for Congress in 2012. "After I was elected, it was my job," Kildee said.

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by James Dalgleish)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Washington: Residents of the eastern United States are bracing Thursday for a major snow storm that threatens to bury Washington, which was already reeling from a mere dusting that caused massive traffic snarls.

The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a blizzard watch stretching from the Washington area, which was due to see the first snowfall on Friday, up to New York, which could catch the tail end of the storm as the weekend progresses.

Washington and neighboring cities including Baltimore could see up to two feet (61 centimeters) of snow accumulate in a short time as a result of the monster storm, which was also expected to generate fierce winds, forecasters said.

"Heavy snow and blowing snow will cause dangerous conditions and will be a threat to life and property," NWS said.

"Travel is expected to be severely limited if not impossible during the height of the storm Friday night and Saturday."

Heavy snow was expected across 15 states, according to the Weather Channel, which reported that more than 70 million people were under some sort of winter weather advisory as of Thursday morning.

Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser tweeted that she would declare a "snow emergency" effective Friday morning at 9:30 am (1430 GMT) and that city schools would be closed.

The city was already struggling after evening flurries on Wednesday left traffic at a standstill, even snaring President Barack Obama's motorcade, which spent more than an hour navigating the icy streets from Andrews Air Force Base in suburban Maryland to the White House -- normally a trip of 20-25-minutes.

Virginia state police tweeted that troopers responded to "767 crashes & 392 calls for disabled vehicles Wednesday, majority in #NOVA," an abbreviation for Northern Virginia.

One person was confirmed dead in the crashes and a state trooper was struck and sustained minor injuries in a separate incident, local ABC affiliate WJLA reported.

If the blizzard dumps as much snow in Washington as predicted over the weekend, it could surpass a record set in 1922 by a storm that dumped 28 inches over three days and killed 100 people after a roof collapsed at a theater.

Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe declared a state of emergency on Thursday.

"All Virginians should take the threat of this storm seriously and take necessary precautions now to ensure they are prepared for travel disruptions and possible power outages during a cold weather period," he said.

Residents were already flocking to supermarkets for essentials.

- 'First big storm'

The NWS reported that there was "uncertainty" in snowfall through early Saturday in the corridor stretching from New York City to Boston, which saw massive amounts of snowfall last winter.

However, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio told a press conference that his city was assuming it would get up to eight to 12 inches, as he issued a hazardous travel advisory for the weekend.

"We're bracing for the first big storm of the winter. I want to let my fellow New Yorkers know we're prepared, the agencies here are ready for what's coming up ahead," de Blasio said.

"At this moment on Thursday morning the forecast is still unclear, but there's an increasing potential for a major winter storm this weekend. The latest forecast shows snow beginning early Saturday and continuing through Sunday."

He said more than 575 salt spreaders would be pre-deployed on Friday evening and that the city had 303,000 tons of rock salt on hand.

South of Washington, "significant icing is likely for portions of Kentucky and North Carolina," NWS said.

The frigid weather marks a stark departure from what has otherwise been a mild winter along the eastern seaboard.

On Christmas Eve, the NWS reported that temperatures in New York's iconic Central Park peaked at 72 degrees Fahrenheit (22 Celsius), the warmest ever for the day since records began in 1871.

AFP
A British judge has published a report on the 2006 death of former Russian agent Alexander Litvinenko, saying President Vladimir Putin probably approved a plan by the Russian security service to kill him with poison.

But who was Litvinenko?

The former Federal Security Service (FSB) official was born on 4 December, 1962 in the Russian city of Voronezh. After completing his schooling in 1980, he opted to attend military college as he was unable to secure a seat at university. It was through his time at the South Ossetia-based military college that Litvinenko made his foray into the world of intelligence: His five-year stint was followed by a job in the interior ministry, that involved intelligence work.

After three years with the ministry, he was recruited in 1988 by the Committee for State Security (better known as the KGB, which was the predecessor to the FSB). After training for three years at a facility in Siberia, he was transferred to the KGB headquarters in Moscow in 1991.

After working with economic security until 1994, Litvinenko was re-assigned. This time, to the anti-terrorism department of the erstwhile Federal Counterintelligence Service (FSK). "If you remember, 1994, it was the year when (the) Chechen war started and (the) involvement of FSB in this war (was) in a different way, it was a very high involvement. (Litvinenko) spent a lot of time in Caucasus , he knew (the) mentality of people, he had a lot of connection(s), and after that, he received a lot of business trip(s), not to (the) place of the war, but areas around, and he did this communication to have information from what happened inside of this war," said his wife Marina Litvinenko.

It's worth pointing out that Litvinenko had lived in the Caucasus during his formative years, which presumably provided him plenty of insight into the region and its prevalent issues.

But it was during his time investigating economic security that Litvinenko stumbled upon a terrifying secret: The Tambov criminal group was smuggling heroin from Afghanistan to Western Europe, using St Petersburg as a conduit. Worse yet, he was certain of 'widespread collusion' (see report below) between the Tambov group and KGB officials  including Vladimir Putin. He continued with his work, while keeping his eyes open to developments on the drug-smuggling issue.

In 1997, Litvinenko was transferred to the Department for the Investigation and Prevention of Organised Crime (URPO)  a secret organisation, and one that by Litvinenko's own admission in 2006, dealt with "killing political and high business men person without verdict". Among his assignments were the abduction of wealthy Chechen businessman Umar Dzhabrailov, and the assassinations of former FSB officer Mikhail Trepashkin and Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky.

These were orders Litvinenko was not willing to follow  particularly the Berezovsky directive  and so, he turned whistleblower. Finally, in the early hours of 20 April, 1998, Berezovsky's dacha was the venue for Litvinenko and his colleagues to go on record  on video with ORT journalist Sergei Dorenko  and outline their grievances against the Russian security establishment. The video would finally be aired only in November that year.

But by then, there had been too much water under the bridge.

What happened next?

In his book The Gang from the Lubyanka, Litvinenko explained, "TV is no place for an intelligence officer, but what we did I consider a self-defence. There was no other way"

Soon after the interview had been conducted, Litvinenko and his colleagues were suspended from the FSB. In addition, Putin had been appointed by then president Boris Yeltsin as head of the FSB.

In his book, Litvinenko would go on to relate the events that led up to his only ever meeting with the man who would soon become President of Russia.

"Go to Putin and tell him everything you know. I trust this man. I think he will understand, he is a smart man," Berezovsky is quoted as telling the author of the book.

And when Litvinenko finally met Putin, he described the meeting as follows:

He came out from behind the desk and to greet me. Apparently he wanted to show an open, likeable personalty. We, operatives, have a special style of behaviour. We do not bow to each other, do without pleasantries  and so everything is clear. Just look into each others eyes, and it becomes clear, do you trust the person or not. And I immediately had the impression that he is not sincere. He looked not like an FSB director, but a person who played the director... Putin agreed with everything (I said). Promised to call, but did not.

It is not entirely surprising that Putin never called, because after the airing of the interview in November, Litvinenko and his colleagues were dismissed from the FSB. The following year (1999) brought with it a string of ignominous arrests and detentions on dubious charges, backed up by false testimonies.

Eventually, Litvinenko left Russia in 2000 after a warning from Russian American historian Yuri Felshtinsky  who was at the time working on Berezovsky's biography  that "there (was) no way they (were) going to leave him alone and that he should think about emigration from Russia".

What followed was a whirlwind journey  aided and financed by Berezovsky  to Tbilisi in Georgia, Malaga in Spain and Ankara in Turkey. This journey finally culminated in an Istanbul-Tbilisi-London flight, also financed by Berezovsky. The oligarch, reportedly, spent around $130,000 on the Litvinenkos' expenses including "tickets, business class, the lawyer, lawyer's fees and so on".

Upon his arrival at London's Heathrow airport, Litvinenko is believed to have approached the first police officer in the transfer zone and said: "I am KGB officer and I'm asking for political asylum".

What happened after he arrived in Britain?

Here's a brief timeline:

2002: Litvinenko co-writes a book in which he accuses his former FSB superiors of carrying out a number of Russian apartment block bombings in 1999, which were blamed on Chechen militants.

1 November, 2006: Litvinenko falls violently ill after drinking tea with two Russian men, Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun, at the Millenium Hotel in London.



20 November, 2006: The Kremlin dismisses allegations that Russia's government poisoned Litvinenko as "sheer nonsense."

23 November, 2006: Litvinenko dies at 43 after a heart attack in London's University College Hospital. A day later Litvinenko's family releases a statement accusing Putin of involvement in his death. His death is blamed on poisoning from radioactive polonium-210.

2007: British prosecutors charge Lugovoi, an ex-FSB agent, with murder, but Moscow refuses to extradite him. As a result of the tussle, Britain and Russia both expel embassy staff and diplomatic relations drop to a low.

2013: An inquest into Litvinenko's killing  the usual method of examining an unexplained death  is stalled after it was barred from considering secret evidence about the possible role of the Russian state.

July 2014: Britain announces that in place of an inquest, Judge Robert Owen will instead chair a public inquiry into Litvinenko's death.

January 2015: The inquiry opens. Owen holds 34 days of public hearings and also looks at secret intelligence evidence behind closed doors.

21 January, 2016: The inquiry report is published. Judge Owen says there was a "strong probability" that the FSB directed the killing of Litvinenko and that the operation was "probably approved" by Putin.

What did the report say?

 Owen cited abundant evidence that Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun placed radioactive polonium-210 in Litvinenko's tea at a London hotel on 1 November, 2006. He died on 23 November.

 Owen concluded there is a "strong probability" the poisoning came under the direction of Russia's FSB spy agency, and that the operation was probably approved by then-FSB chief Nikolai Patrushev and by Putin.

 Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov denounced the inquiry as a "quasi-investigation" that would "further poison the atmosphere of our bilateral relations" with Britain.

 British Prime Minister David Cameron said the evidence in the report of a state-sponsored killing is "absolutely appalling," and Britain summoned the Russian ambassador for a dressing-down and imposed an asset freeze on Lugovoi and Kovtun.

 Interpol has issued notices calling for their arrest, although Russia refuses to extradite them. UK-Russian relations have been chilly, but the report comes as the countries are cautiously trying to work together against the Islamic State group in Syria, and neither wants a major new rift.

You can read the full report below:

Litvinenko Inquiry Report January 2016

With inputs from AP
When Cathie and Demetrio Scarfone applied for a bank loan and were knocked back, they were shocked. They soon discovered incorrect credit default listings against their names.

In haste, they filled out an online "credit repair" form to have their names removed. They were charged $2200 by a debt management firm for a service they ended up receiving for free through the courts.

"I asked them for a refund because the local court had taken off my credit listing, not them. But they said I couldn't get my money back," said Ms Scarfone, a nurse assistant from Griffith, NSW.

"I'm really angry at them. I feel like they're robbers. I feel like I was scammed."
January 26 looms as a nationwide celebration but there was a time when Australians were not that patriotic: an earlier generation even tried to shoot and kill half the coat of arms.

Twenty-four years after King Edward VII granted a coat of arms to the Commonwealth of Australia, Australians declared war on the emu.

The birds lost the battle but won the war.

In November 1932 Australia was limping through the Depression when emu numbers skyrocketed and launched a full frontal assault on West Australian wheat farms.


Since publishing this article, an enormous amount of feedback on social media has made me realise it was poorly written and insensitive. This has been unfair on those with a mental illness and their loved ones. This was never my intention. My intention was to achieve the opposite. At this I clearly failed. I'm genuinely sorry.*



In recent years, awareness of mental health in the workplace has ramped up  and rightly so. An employee's job can often be a source of mental illness or, if not the source, then an aggravator of it. So it's great that initiatives such as RUOK Day are becoming widespread. This, however, has given rise to the type of employee willing to take advantage of the heightened sensitivity: the employee who fakes a disorder for their personal benefit.

Faking mental illness is known as 'malingering'.

There a number of ways this becomes manifest. There's the employee who goes on stress leave the moment he's placed on a performance management plan. There's the employee who makes allegations of bullying or harassment just because a manager provided some harsh feedback. There's the employee who, on account of her questionable anxiety, demands she be given more breaks and a lighter workload.

Lest you think those cases are exaggerated, I assure you they're not. I've heard dozens of variations from leaders over the past couple of years. And those are just the mental claims; physical ones also abound. The consequence is that every inauthentic assertion detracts from the individuals who genuinely endure those mental illnesses but are unfairly confronted by misplaced cynicism.
A former principal who fled to Israel after allegedly molesting her students is doing "whatever she can" to avoid extradition to Australia, a victims support group says.

Malka Leifer, the former principal of the Adass Israel School in Melbourne is under house arrest in Israel and authorities have been trying to extradite her to Australia for more than a year.

Malka Leifer is under house arrest in Israel.

The former head of the Orthodox Jewish school is wanted on 74 counts of sexual assault.

Michelle Meyer, the chief executive of Jewish victims support group Tzedek, said Ms Leifer was avoiding extradition "at all costs."
Gov. C.L. Butch Otter sent out a strongly worded op-ed Wednesday afternoon blasting the critics of his proposal to extend primary-care coverage to the uninsured and defending it as the only politically viable option to give them some kind of coverage.

That difficult but unassailable truth is occasionally referenced by commentators, Otter wrote. However, so far it has been quickly dismissed as an illegitimate and weak-willed excuse for advancing an admittedly limited public policy initiative. Like a horse that starves waiting for oats while grass grows thick all around, they couch the debate in absolute terms  short-circuiting constructive discussion with a false either/or choice between expanding Medicaid and doing nothing at all.

Obamacare originally envisioned extending Medicaid to all of the working poor, but it has been a state option since a 2012 U.S. Supreme Court ruling and most Republican states, including Idaho, have rejected the expansion. This means there are an estimated 78,000 Idahoans in the Medicaid gap where they dont qualify for Medicaid but are too poor to qualify for tax credits to buy insurance on the state exchange.

Otter's Primary Care Access Program proposal would extend primary care coverage to the uninsured, but wouldnt cover other medical expenses such as hospitalizations and prescriptions. It has run into criticism from both the left and the right, with Democrats calling it a poor substitute for Medicaid expansion and some more conservative folks, such as Idaho Freedom Foundation head Wayne Hoffman and Majority Leader Rep. Mike Moyle, R-Star, have concerns about the cost and about creating a new welfare program.

"If you support this new entitlement program, then you have to remember you're taking money away from stuff like roads and water," Moyle told the Associated Press Wednesday. "I haven't seen the bill, but why would I support an entitlement program?"

"Our public discussion must recognize that PCAP is not short for 'panacea,'" Otter wrote. "It is intended instead as a point of departure for a longer-term effort to improve access to primary and preventive healthcare, especially in our under-served rural communities."

Otter's full op-ed is below:

Ive read and watched with interest in recent days as legislators, healthcare providers, community leaders, columnists, editorial boards and citizens have reacted to the Primary Care Access Plan that I unveiled January 7th.

Responses have run the gamut from Its not enough  just expand Medicaid to We shouldnt do anything but focus on repealing Obamacare.

Despite what seems to be an immutable impasse, it certainly is a conversation worth having, and Im glad we are having it. But critics seem to be missing the point of the proposal that Director Dick Armstrong and his team at the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare crafted specifically for Idaho. The fact is that the PCAP option  or something very much like it  is all that we can reasonably hope to achieve right now in the context of Idahos political environment.

That difficult but unassailable truth is occasionally referenced by commentators. However, so far it has been quickly dismissed as an illegitimate and weak-willed excuse for advancing an admittedly limited public policy initiative. Like a horse that starves waiting for oats while grass grows thick all around, they couch the debate in absolute terms  short-circuiting constructive discussion with a false either/or choice between expanding Medicaid and doing nothing at all.

The latter position has carried the day so far, and I will stick to the commitment I made to legislative leadership in June 2010 not to act unilaterally on any Obamacare-related issue. Yet I believe it is my responsibility to build support for homegrown solutions  not government entitlements but rather the kind of cost-effective solutions that involve building public-private partnerships and which reflect the independent, self-reliant character of Idaho citizens.

Our public discussion must recognize that PCAP is not short for panacea. It is intended instead as a point of departure for a longer-term effort to improve access to primary and preventive healthcare, especially in our under-served rural communities. Its based on a patient-centered medical home model focused on connecting patients with a healthcare provider who supervises their long-term primary and preventive care.

The need is undeniable. Approximately 78,000 people in Idaho fall into the gap  the working poor who do not qualify for Medicaid, people who fell through the Obamacare net. But rather than growing the entitlement culture, PCAP embodies goals and priorities  including personal responsibility  which we have been independently developing here in Idaho since I took office in 2007, pre-Obamacare.

Havent we gone long enough without addressing the issue?

The point of this column, and of my administrations work during this legislative session, is to make it clear to everyone that PCAP is not the final word on providing Idaho citizens with the opportunities they need to keep themselves and their families healthy. But it could be a great start.
TWIN FALLS  Police say a string of break-ins at Magic Valley churches and non-profits may be connected, and theyre asking church leaders to be on the look-out for suspicious behavior.

A Wednesday burglary at Amazing Grace Fellowship was the latest in a recent uptick of break-ins and vandalism at local churches and non-profit organizations.

The Islamic Center of Twin Falls was vandalized with graffiti Dec. 7; the food pantry Safe Harbor was broken into and ransacked Christmas Eve and again Dec. 26 or Dec. 27; the Monastery of the Ascension in Jerome had cash stolen from the gift shop in December and a golden Tabernacle stolen in January; and LDS church buildings on Eastland Drive and Harrison Street in Twin Falls were both burglarized within about a week in early January.

On Wednesday morning, someone broke into Amazing Grace Fellowship and stole a sound board and two TVs worth about $1,700, a church employee said.

Detectives are investigating the burglaries as possibly being connected, Twin Falls city spokesman Joshua Palmer said.

Kendra Juarez, an administrative assistant at Amazing Grace Fellowship, was alerted Wednesday morning that the temperature in the churchs fellowship hall had dipped to about 50 degrees. When she went to investigate, she felt a gust of wind and saw a glass door was shattered.

It was completely dark so I wasnt sure what happened, Juarez told the Times-News Thursday. I wasnt sure if the person was still there or not.

Church staff placed the fellowships preschool on lockdown until police arrived and ensured there was no threat to the children.

Its definitely scary, Juarez said. Its nerve-racking when children might be involved.

At first, staff at the Amazing Grace Fellowship didnt realize anything was stolen. Later they discovered a sound board and two flat screen TVs were missing.

The sound boards value is about $1,200, Juarez said. The TVs looked more expensive than they are. Theyre value is about $250 each.

Based on icy footprints left by the burglar, police think the break-in happened sometime between about 2 a.m. and 8 a.m. Wednesday, Juarez said.

We were already looking into getting a security system, Juarez said. Now I think well definitely have something in place.

As police look into a possible connection between the recent break-ins, theyre asking for church leaders and churchgoers to keep an eye out for suspicious behavior.

Someone who might be new who is checking doors or looks like they might be scoping things out, Palmer said. Any suspicious behavior, please call the police department.

Anyone with information on the recent break-ins or who sees suspicious behavior can call Twin Falls police at 208-735-4357.
BOISE  Lawmakers studying an overhaul of Idahos public defense system will meet at least once more before introducing a bill.

The Public Defense Reform Interim Committee had originally hoped to wrap up its work Thursday evening. But two hours into their meeting, members realized they would need to meet one more time and scheduled another meeting for next Thursday.

Despite my rose-colored glasses at the beginning I think were going to need another meeting, said committee co-Chairman Sen. Todd Lakey, R-Nampa.

The system in the draft bill, Lakey said, is similar to that in Michigan, which overhauled its system in 2013 and created a commission to oversee public defense statewide. Michigan, like Idaho, was also being sued by the American Civil Liberties Union over what it alleged was an inadequate public defense system.

How to enforce the states public defense standards on counties that arent complying was one of the major points of the discussion, and whether to use stronger language saying the state shall take over a countys public defense system when other remedies are exhausted. The counties would then be billed for the cost of running it, under the version being discussed.

It actually makes our case that we are trying to comply with the Constitution, said Rep. Lynn Luker, R-Boise. If it becomes a may, I think that opens us up more for a lawsuit.

Another issue is the distribution of state grants to help out counties with extraordinary public defense costs. Sara Thomas, the states appellate public defender, said it would have to be done in such a way that smaller counties that need the help with big cases are treated equally, in terms of access to resources, to larger counties that have the money, using the example of a murder case, which could be an extraordinary occurrence and expense in Madison County but not Ada County. If theyre not, she said, it could become an equal protection problem.

You have defendants in the same situation facing the same charges who will have different standards potentially apply  (when) they get funds for an investigator, when they get funds for an expert witness, she said.

Lawmakers are also focused on the commissions staff. One proposal is to have seven people, one in each region of the state, who would work with counties on matters such as applying for public defense grants. Lawmakers debated whether seven was the right number or the job could be done with fewer.

I realize we all want to be conservative here, but we also have to have the people to do this, said co-Chairwoman Rep. Christy Perry, R-Nampa.

Gov. C.L. Butch Otter wants to put $5 million into the 2016-2017 budget to implement whatever lawmakers approve.
BOISE  The fund used to pay for medical treatment for Idahoans who can not afford it themselves will need $5 million less next year, thanks to more people having insurance, the programs administrator told lawmakers in a budget report Thursday.

The Catastrophic Health Care Program is asking for $22 million in state money for the 2017 fiscal year, a drop from $27 million in the current one and the $35 million spent on the program in the 2011 fiscal year.

The 87,000 people who have insurance on the state exchange  of whom all but 10,000 got subsidies to buy  has led to a steep drop in follow-up treatment costs, fund administrator Roger Christensen told the Legislatures budget-setting Joint Finance Appropriations Committee. Some non-insured people applied for the CAT fund and discovered they qualify for subsidized insurance, so the fund might have to pay for their immediate medical need but their insurance covers ongoing treatment.

Idaho instituted its own insurance exchange, called Your Health Idaho  one of the few Republican-run states to do so  in 2013.

Another reason for savings, Christensen says, has been the use of medical reviews, in which a contractor questions the medical need for each service and rejects those deemed unnecessary. This has saved $18 million since 2011, he said.

According to Christensens report, the number of cases has dropped from 5,308 statewide in 2013 to 3,795 in 2015, and both state and county payments to the fund have been dropping as a result.

Many cases take more than a year, but there were 721 new cases approved in 2015, of which the most  173  were in Ada County. Twin Falls County came in second with 82 cases. Lincoln, Gooding, Camas, Jerome, Blaine, Cassia and Minidoka counties had 70 cases combined.

Of the $18.6 million in payments authorized statewide last year, $1.87 million was for Twin Falls County, making it third behind Ada and Kootenai counties.

So far, 308 cases have been approved this fiscal year, which started on July 1, with the average cost being $26,937 per case. Christensen projects there will be 712 cases this year overall, a 20 percent drop from 2015.

A small number of applicants end up qualifying for Medicaid, the report says  about 10 percent on average, or 432 of 2,593 applicants so far this year.

Heart, digestive and mental problems and injuries resulting from accidents are among the most common reasons people turn to the fund.

Christensen said the current debate on either expanding Medicaid or repealing Obamacare could have a dramatic effect on future CAT fund spending.

Sen. Jim Guthrie, R-Inkom, said that while the Affordable Care Act may have been a negative for other areas of the economy, it had been a positive for the CAT fund.

I hope this isnt the only bright spot we have in the budgets, said JFAC co-Chairwoman Rep. Maxine Bell, R-Jerome.
BUHL  Molly Tinajero got her first taste of politics last summer as a delegate at the 69th Annual Session of the American Legion Auxiliary Idaho Syringa Girls State.

On Friday, the Buhl High School senior will take a bigger bite as part of her senior project.

Twin Falls County Sheriff Tom Carter and challenger Cliff Katona, a retired Idaho State Police detective, will both take part in an open public forum at the Buhl High School auditorium as part of Tinajeros senior project.

Tinajero planned the debate and Buhl School District Superintendent Ron Anthony will moderate.

I want this to go smoothly and be exciting, Tinajero said in an email. Especially since nothing like this happens around Buhl.

Im excited about the debate, Im looking forward to it, Katona said Thursday. This is a project for Molly  and Im hoping she has a great project. At the same time, Im ready to educate the community about who I am.

As for Carter, the sheriff since 2008, he said he enjoys the public aspect of his job and campaigning.

Its a good day for me if Im visiting with people, Carter said. I love to visit with people.

The official window to file for candidacy is from Feb. 29 to March 11, so technically neither Carter nor Katona are candidates on the November 2016 ballot just yet. But the two are expected to be the leading candidates, if not the only candidates.

I would like for the general public to come prepared with questions for both candidates, Tinajero said.

The Project

The idea of hosting a sheriffs debate for Tinajeros senior project came about Oct. 23 at a meeting of the West End Mens Association, a social civic club of which Katona is a member. Katona approached Tinajero and other students after they gave a presentation about their participation in the Girls State program.

He talked about how he would like to have the chance to visit the many communities in Twin Falls County and talk to the general public, Tinajero said. He suggested an idea of turning it into a senior project. I really liked what he had to say and it sparked my interest more than running a stuffed animal drive, which had been my original idea.

Tinajero reached out to Carter in November, and the sheriff agreed to participate, while Tinajero started working with her mentor to plan the debate.

Ive always wanted to be an attorney when I grow up, so debate has always been something I was interested in, Tinajero said. Its just interesting to see how one person can sway the opinion of others with quick thinking and thought out responses on different issues.

The Candidates

Carter won election in 2008 when he beat out former sheriff Wayne Tousley, the 16-year incumbent who fired Carter, then a sergeant in the office, in 2007. Carter won re-election in 2012 beating Jack Johnson, now the chief deputy in Jerome County.

As far as preparing for the debate, its kind of tough, but Im comfortable in my knowledge of the office, Carter said Thursday. I think it will mostly be his issues we address, the issues he thinks we need to change like putting a sub-office in Castleford and bringing back the explorers program.

But Carter said theres obvious reasons we have neither.

I have not increased patrol staff, I have enough patrolmen, Carter said. If we start putting deputies in places like Castleford, then we have to put one in Murtaugh. We dont need it.

While hes enthusiastic about participating in Fridays debate as part of Tinajeros senior project, in general he thinks its too early for serious campaigning.

When the times appropriate, Ill campaign, Carter said. But I dont want to start bombarding the voters too early.

Thats the opposite approach of Katona, who declared his candidacy Jan. 16, 2015, more than 22 months before Novembers election.

Katona started his law enforcement career in Pocatello in 1985, moved to Twin Falls as an Idaho State Police trooper in 1992 and became an ISP detective in 1995, the department where he spent 18 years before retiring in 2013. This is the first time hes tried running for public office, and his first debate.

Im expecting questions about topics Ive learned about this last year, like the refugee center or the federal government coming in like the situations in Oregon and Nevada, Katona said. Also open carry and improving the sheriffs office. Im hoping for questions about reinstating the explorers program.

As for the ideas he hopes to convey to Twin Falls residents, Katona said he doesnt expect people to vote for him if they dont know who he is and he would be a service-oriented leader.

I want them to understand the desire, knowledge, skills and experience I have, Katona said. Above all, Id be involved in the community. I want them to know theyll have good rapport with deputies, I am there to serve them and Im committed to involve our youth.
Gov. Butch Otters recent State of the State address to the Legislature wont go down in history as the most dramatic in Idahos history, and it certainly wasnt among the longest. But on a personal level for him, it was one of his more gratifying talks.

This was the first time since 2008 that I didnt come to the Legislature with a State of the State apology for what we had cut and what we couldnt do, he told reporters afterward.

So with the recession behind us and revenues going up, the governor is calling for a lofty 7.9 percent increase for public schools and a laundry list of spending requests  including more money for higher education, health care and public defenders. The tone of this speech was far different from the recession years.

But not everyone was satisfied. Otter drew some battle lines for those who think hes asking for too much, and others who dont think the governor is asking for enough.

Wayne Hoffman, director of the Idaho Freedom Foundation, was quick to fire off one of the early shots of criticism  offering a few talking points to his fellow conservatives.

The governors budget is a tax-and-spend bonanza, Hoffman says. His budget should be declared dead on arrival. Moreover, according to Hoffman, Otters message contains no proposals for tax relief and no exciting, bold, innovative and conservative policy ideas.

Of course, conservative messages dont often come across as bold or exciting  as Otter found out during the recession years. Theres nothing sexy about cutting the tar from education, draining reserve funds and dismantling public-service programs. But Hoffmans comments represent the bottom line for a lot of conservatives  mainly that Otter is too liberal for their taste.

The Democrats offer criticism in the other direction  saying the governor isnt doing enough for education. They even have come up with an insulting name for his health care plan: Ottercare.

Ouch!

If Democrat A.J. Balukoff had been elected governor, hed probably be signing onto the Democrats agenda, which includes more money for education and increasing the minimum wage. And maybe hed address some modest tax increases to pay for a growing education budget. Hoffmans mind would explode.

The Democratic legislators are thin on specifics. For instance, they dont say how much the education budget should be, how much money it would take to make higher education affordable, or how they would pay for any of those things. But they do` identify some of the problems they see.

Twice in his speech  the governor proposed getting us to 2009 levels for accomplishing 2009 goals as if that were a laudable achievement, said Senate Minority Leader Michelle Stennett of Ketchum. We cannot compete in todays economy if we are still trying to catch up to 2009. Touting modest funding increases as on the right path is not leadership.

The Legislatures passive approach does nothing to slow down the wave of school supplemental levies, which amount to massive tax increases. True leadership would work to correct this unequal educational system in Idaho, Stennett says.

The House assistant minority leader, Mat Erpelding of Boise, says Otters health care proposal (Ottercare) falls short of providing 78,000 Idahoans the medical care they need. In essence, the proposal provides a few doctor visits, but does not support services most likely to cause severe financial hardship. His plan omits hospital care, emergency medical transportation, cancer care, expensive prescriptions and mental health care.

Democrats say Medicaid expansion would make more sense for Idaho; the problem, of course, is there is no sentiment for Republicans to embrace it.

Stennett and Erpelding endorse raising the minimum wage, which is another sore spot for Republicans. Idahoans deserve a better wage, which helps everyone reach economic stability, says Stennett.

Erpelding is promoting a phased-in increase in the minimum wage that will get workers to a point where an Idahoan can get off government services. He doesnt identify the amount, but if the minimum wage is going to amount to a livable wage, then $15 per hour would be about right.

The top Democrats say their priorities are driven by what Idaho families, workers, businesses and communities need to prosper. Democrats say that policies, such as reviewing existing tax exemptions, are part of what Idahaons want.

Stennett and Erpelding certainly have outlined a Democratic campaign platform. The question is how many run, and win, on it.
Hugo Damian Prieto and his wife, a few hours after being released. (Angel Moya)

Via Translating Cuba, 14YMedio has the story:

14ymedio, Havana, 21 January 2016  Released on Wednesday, after three months detention, were two members of the Cuban opposition: Hugo Damian Prieto Blanco, leader of the Orlando Zapata Tamayo Front for Civic Action, and Wilberto Parada Milan, a member of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU), according to reports to this newspaper from opposition sources. Also released on Thursday morning was the opponent Carlos Manuel Figueroa, who was arrested after jumping the fence of the US embassy in Havana last October. According to dissident sources, the activist shouted slogans at the time: Down with Raul and Down with the dictatorship.

Figueroa was a part of the group of 53 political prisoners released in January 2015 after negotiations between Washington and Havana, according to a report at the time from Elizardo Sanchez, head of the Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation (CCDHRN).

Hugo Damian Prieto Blanco and Wilberto Parada Milan were arrested on 24 October 2015, two days after holding a protest against the Attorney General of the Republic through which they demanded the release of Maria Josefa Acon, Zaqueo Baez and Ishmael Reni, the three activists jailed for approaching Pope Francis before Mass in the Plaza of the Revolution on 20 September of last year

The opponents were charged with disorderly conduct and sent to prison pending trial. The first has been held in Valle Grande and the second in the Combinado del Este in Havana.

After his release, Hugo Damian Prieto and his wife visited the headquarters of the Ladies in White in Havanas Lawton neighborhood, according to former prisoner of the Black Spring, Angel Moya.

The Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation (CCDHRN) reported the arbitrary detention of the two opponents in their last three reports and condemned it for going against the well-known expectations encouraged by the announcement of the restoration of diplomatic relations between the governments of Cuba and the United States.

According to the independent organization, political repression increased steadily throughout 2015 from 178 cases in January to figures in the vicinity of 1,000 arrests by years end.
President Xi Jinping of China announced on Thursday multibillion dollar investment plans in the Middle East.

Addressing the Arab League in Cairo, President Xi unveiled a multimillion dollar investment plan in the Middle East, including special loans worth $15billion to promote industrial production, soft loans amounting to $10billion and a similar amount in trade credit for joint energy projects.

He reiterated Chinas neutrality and nonintervention policies saying that China is not setting up proxies or building a sphere of influence in the region.

He insisted that the international community should respect the will and role of those directly involved.

He however pointed out that Beijing is willing to enhance cooperation with Arab States on cyber security, block the online transmission of audio and video materials instigating violence and terrorism, and jointly participate in the formulation of an international counterterrorism convention in cyberspace.

At the bilateral level, China and Egypt signed 21 agreements including a $1billion loan agreement to the North African countrys central bank, a $700million loan to state-owned National Bank of Egypt as well as other investments in development and infrastructure projects.

The two sides also discussed plans to launch around 15 projects in electricity, infrastructure and transport worth around $15billion.

China is expanding its presence in Egypt. 32 companies are working in the Suez Canal Economic Zone and the number is expected to reach 100 when the next phase is completed thereby boosting Chinese investments from more than $400million to $2.5billion.
Turkeys Prime Minister Davutoglu urged the EU to release the more than the 3billion it pledged to extend his country under an agreement signed in November 2015 to combat the influx of illegal migrants to Europe; mostly refugees fleeing wars in Syria and Iraq.

The Turkish Prime Minister recalled that the root cause of this refugee crisis is not Turkey or anything related to Turkey. Almost 3 million refugees are settled in the country and Ankara has already spent $10billion from its states coffers to accommodate these refugees. He stressed that the Turkish government is not begging for money from the EU despite being the country which is most affected by the refugee crisis because for us, its a humanitarian duty; therefore the problem is not financial assistance.

Davutoglu will be meeting with Germanys Angela Merkel on Friday to discuss the refugee crisis and ahead of the meeting, he stated that he will call for concrete steps from the EU and ask for solidarity and a sense of common destiny.

The 3 million pledged by the EU is reportedly being blocked by Italy, a country also dealing with illegal migration from Libya. Davutoglu said the EU financial support is just to show the political will to share the burden but hinted that the burden could continue for a while because there are no signs of the wars ending soon. We are not exporting a crisis  a crisis has been exported to Turkey. Now, it has become a European crisis, he said.

Before his departure to Germany, Prime Minister Davutoglu told the World Economic Forum in Davos during a session dedicated to Turkeys Global Role that Turkey is the country who is paying for all the instability in Syria and Iraq which also includes terrorism.
Israel announced that it is annexing 154hectares of land in the Jordan Valley, northern part of the occupied West Bank, close to Jericho. The move has been condemned by the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

It is also expected to increase tensions between Tel Aviv and the EU because houses built by the continental organizations humanitarian agency were also destroyed in the area known as E1.

The US and the EU have warned against building settlements there considering this to be a red line because it would cut Palestinians off from East Jerusalem, their aspired capital.

According to press reports, the Coordination of Government Actions in the Territories (COGAT) a unit in Israels defense ministry, stated that the lands are in the final stages of being declared state lands.

Ban Ki-moon said in a statement that If implemented, this declaration would constitute the largest land appropriation by Israel in the West Bank since August 2014. Calling for substantial policy changes on the ground by Israel that will improve the lives of Palestinians, he added that settlement activities are a violation of international law and against the two-state solution that Israel said it supports.

Deputy State Department spokesman Mark Toner said Tel Avivs actions are fundamentally incompatible with a two-state solution.

Hanan Ashrawi, a senior member of the PLO, said the latest annexation should be a reason for real and effective intervention by the international community to end such a flagrant and grave aggression which kills all chances of peace.

Israel has not officially reacted to the criticisms of its actions but last week Prime Minister Netanyahu told reporters that the EU was building in the West Bank without authorization, against the accepted rules, and theres a clear attempt to create political realities.

The EU has not yet commented on the destruction of the buildings and the issue was not raised by the EU High Representative Federica Mogherini when she met on Thursday Benjamin Netanyahu in the margins of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos.
Djiboutis president signed earlier this week trade and economic agreements with the Chinese government to set up a legal framework and allow Chinese financial service providers to do business in the tiny country of 876,000 inhabitants.

The economic agreements include banking deals and a proposed 48 square kilometre free trade zone, with the first section to be operational before the end of 2016, President Ismail Omar Guelleh said in a statement.

Djibouti, which lies at the entrance to the Red Sea and Suez Canal, will operate as a trans-shipment and redistribution hub for Beijings trade, the presidential statement said.

Ismail Omar Guelleh has also signed an agreement with the Chinese to have their banks operate in Djibouti although details of the agreement remain scanty.

Last year, China had said it want to set up a military logistics facility in the country even though Djibouti hosts US and French military bases.
The Head of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Akinwumi Adesina, presented a New Deal on Energy for Africa to the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday.

The New Deal on Energy for Africa, a transformative partnership program, aims to bring Africa out of the doldrums and into a new light by 2025, Adesina explained, adding that Africa is tired of being in the dark.

In his address, Adesina said, the importance of energy in society was clearly underscored in 2015 with the inclusion of energy in the Sustainable Development Goals. Hence, lighting up and powering Africa is a key priority for the Bank.

The New Deal on Energy for Africa sets the ambitious target of universal access by 2025, which means bringing modern energy to 900 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa, to cover for those who do not currently have access as well as the expected population growth. This implies a step change in the way that the Bank, African countries, development partners and the private sector approach the energy sector on the continent, he said.

To succeed, we must work together. As the African proverb says: If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.

Presidents from several African countries including Rwanda, Ethiopia and the Cote dIvoire have voluntarily agreed to the new deal and will now have to increase their spending on energy.
Heavily armed Islamic fighters attacked a beachfront area popular with Somali locals on Thursday night, killing more than 20 people, reports said.

A car rigged with explosives rammed into the Beach View Hotel on Lido Beach in the capital of Mogadishu, Al Jazeera reported.

Islamic extremist group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack, in a broadcast on its online radio late Thursday.

The assailants may have taken some hostages inside the Lido Seafood restaurant, which is popular with Mogadishus elite and government officials.

Witnesses said that gunmen shouted Allahu akbar, the Arabic phrase for God is great, and entered the restaurant from the direction of the beach as clients.

Somalias Prime Minister urged the public to remain calm and called the attack on a civilian target was a desperate move by a group facing annihilation.

Let it remain clear that (the attack) will not hamper the commitment of my government and that of our people to resurrect Somalia, Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke said in a statement.

Despite being pushed out of Somalias major cities and towns, al-Shabab continues to launch deadly guerrilla attacks across the Horn of Africa country.

The group, which has ties with al-Qaeda, has also carried out many deadly attacks inside Kenya.
Zimbabwe has secured a $200 million loan from Africa Export and Import Bank (Afreximbank) to import maize in 2016, as 10 percent of the population is facing hunger, Central bank governor, John Mangudya said on Thursday.

Zimbabwe plans to import up to 700,000 tons of the staple maize this year to avert hunger as the El Nino weather pattern brings poor rains and affects crops in the Southern African nation.

We have secured a line of credit of about $200 million to pay for the maize from September thereabout going forward but still we need more, the governor said.

Agriculture is critical to Zimbabwes economy, generating 30 percent of export earnings and contributing 19 percent to GDP while 70 percent of the population still survives on farming.

But over the past few years, the Southern African nation of 13 million people has been importing grain to cover for shortfalls due to poor weather conditions.

A united kingdom-based research group, BMI Research, has predicted that Zimbabwe will remain a net importer of maize until at least 2020 as the country battles to overcome serious challenges in the agricultural sector.

In a report, the group forecasted that there was no way the countryonce the regional breadbasket would be able to produce enough maize to feed its population in the short to medium term.
At least 39 people have died of swine flu in Russia since last month, according to AFP calculations based on official data, with more than half the cases announced in the last week.

Health authorities in the southern region of Volgograd told state news agency RIA Novosti on Friday that 11 people had died from the virus and that nearly 50 schools had declared a quarantine.

One deadly swine flu case was also reported in Moscow, local authorities said Friday.

Six swine flu-related deaths have also been recorded in the southern region of Rostov and five deaths were reported in Saint Petersburg.

These latest cases follow the deaths of four adults and one child from the virus in the North Caucasus region of Dagestan, and the deaths of two infected patients in Yekaterinburg in the Urals and the southern region of Adygea.

Swine flu deaths have also been reported in the Kostroma, Tambov and Kaliningrad regions, among others.

The country's top doctor, Anna Popova, told Russian news agencies this week that "all necessary measures" were being taken to prevent the virus from spreading.

In post-Soviet Armenia, 18 people have died of swine flu since the start of the year, the South Caucasus country's health ministry said this week.

Authorities in neighbouring Georgia told AFP on Friday that three deadly cases of the virus had been reported.

In nearby Iran, swine flu has left 112 dead and forced the hospitalisation of more than 1,000 since mid-November, authorities said late last month.

A major H1N1 outbreak sparked a World Health Organization pandemic alert in June 2009, after the virus emerged from Mexico and the United States.

The outbreak killed around 18,500 people in 214 countries. The alert was lifted in August 2010.

Explore further At least 17 deadly swine flu cases reported in Russia (Update)

 2016 AFP
An Israeli Holocaust survivor may be the world's oldest man at 112, Guinness World Records said Thursday, providing he can find the documents to prove it.

His family say Yisrael Kristal was born in Poland on September 15, 1903, three months before the Wright brothers took the first aeroplane flight.

He lived in the country until the Nazi occupation during World War II, when he was eventually sent to the Auschwitz death camp.

Robert Young, senior consultant for gerontology at Guinness World Records, confirmed that if proven, he would become the oldest man currently on record.

To do so, however, Kristal would have to produce documents from the early years of his life. Currently, the family have said the oldest document they have is from his wedding aged 25.

"We have standard rules and it would be unfair on other people if we bent the rules," Young told AFP, while expressing sympathy for Kristal's circumstances.

The best hope for finding the missing proof may be in the town of Zarnov where he was born.

The family later moved to Lodz, where Kristal worked in his family's confectionary factory.

When the Jewish quarter of the city became a ghetto under Nazi occupation, Kristal was eventually sent to the infamous Nazi death camp Auschwitz.

His wife died but he survived, weighing just 37 kilos (81 pounds) at the end of the war, daughter Shula Kuperstoch said.

"But he gained the strength and then eventually travelled to Israel."

He moved to the northern Israeli city of Haifa and opened a sweet shop, marrying again.

Kristal himself did not give interviews as his health is frail, but Kuperstoch says he is in good spirits.

"He is a very positive man, very optimistic and with a good heart," she said.

In a 2014 interview with Israeli media, Kristal was once asked what he ate to live so long.

"There wasn't always food in the camps. I ate what I was given. I eat to live, and I don't live to eat," he said.

He also recalled throwing candy at the Emperor of Austria before World War I.

The previous oldest man, Yasutaro Koide of Japan, died on Tuesday at the age of 112.

The oldest living woman, at 116 years old, is Susannah Mushatt Jones, who was born on July 6, 1899.

Jeanne Louise Calment, who died in 1997, was the oldest verified person everpassing away in France aged 122 years and 164 days.

Explore further World's oldest man dies in NYC at age 111

 2016 AFP
What is the male gaze, and does the female gaze exist? Credit: Andy Simmons, CC BY-ND

The "gaze" is a term that describes how viewers engage with visual media. Originating in film theory and criticism in the 1970s, the gaze refers to how we look at visual representations. These include advertisements, television programs and cinema.

When film critics talk about the gaze, they are often referring to the "male gaze". But what does that really mean? And is there a female equivalent?

Where did the idea of a 'male gaze' come from?

The "male gaze" invokes the sexual politics of the gaze and suggests a sexualised way of looking that empowers men and objectifies women. In the male gaze, woman is visually positioned as an "object" of heterosexual male desire. Her feelings, thoughts and her own sexual drives are less important than her being "framed" by male desire.

A key idea of feminist film theory, the concept of the male gaze was introduced by scholar and filmmaker Laura Mulvey in her now famous 1975 essay, Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema.

Adopting the language of psychoanalysis, Mulvey argued that traditional Hollywood films respond to a deep-seated drive known as "scopophilia": the sexual pleasure involved in looking. Mulvey argued that most popular movies are filmed in ways that satisfy masculine scopophilia.

Although sometimes described as the "male gaze", Mulvey's concept is more accurately described as a heterosexual, masculine gaze.

Visual media that respond to masculine voyeurism tends to sexualise women for a male viewer. As Mulvey wrote, women are characterised by their "to-be-looked-at-ness" in cinema. Woman is "spectacle", and man is "the bearer of the look".

The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) offers a famous example of the male gaze. In the scene below, the audience is introduced to Cora Smith, the film's lead female character. Using close-ups, the camera forces the viewer to stare at Cora's body. It creates a mode of looking that is sexual, voyeuristic, and associated with the male protagonist's point-of-view.

It also establishes some important plot points: that the hero desires Cora, and that Cora recognises his lust. But the strongest message is that Cora is sexy. Indeed, the viewer learns that Cora is sexy before they even learn her name.Even if a viewer isn't attracted to women in "real life", the scene still makes sense. A lifetime of seeing women sexualised in television, music videos and advertisements has made us very comfortable with assuming the male gaze.

Finding the male gaze

The male gaze takes many forms, but can be identified by situations where female characters are controlled by, and mostly exist in terms of what they represent to, the hero. As Budd Boetticher, who directed classic Westerns during the 1950s, put it:

What counts is what the heroine provokes, or rather what she represents. She is the one, or rather the love or fear she inspires in the hero, or else the concern he feels for her, who makes him act the way he does. In herself the woman has not the slightest importance.

This can be see in the different ways the camera repeatedly positions us to look at women's bodies. Think of Rear Window (1954), for a literal framing of women's bodies, or She's All That (1999), which revolves around a make-over. For a modern example, the Transformers film series (2006-2014) presents women as sexual objects to be desired.

Filmmakers often attempt to avoid presenting female characters as "mere" sexual objects by giving them complex back stories, strong motivations and an active role in the plot of their story. Yet the masculine gaze is still commonplace. Catwoman in The Dark Knight Rises (2012) has significant personal motivations, yet she is still clearly there to be looked at.

Different ways of looking

Although written 40 years ago, Mulvey's essay still provokes strong reactions. One common response is that both women and men are objectified in cinema.

After all, isn't Johnny Farrell (Glenn Ford) as sexy as Gilda Mundson (Rita Hayworth) in Gilda (1946)?

Isn't Fitzwilliam Darcy as beautiful as Elizabeth Bennet in the BBC teleseries of Pride and Prejudice (1995)? Surely this indicates the presence of a (heterosexual) female gaze.

Such arguments don't consider how insistently women are presented as sexual objects.

The Hawkeye Initiative is a project that draws attention to the different ways male and female superheroes are posed in comics and movies. Take this illustration as an example, which poses the male heroes of The Avengers in the same hyper-sexualised position as the film's sole female protagonist, Black Widow.

The illustration makes a good point about double standards. But its humour derives from the fact that it is unusual to see men sexualised in the same way as women.

Another argument is that cinema doesn't invite women to desire men's bodies. Rather, female viewers are positioned to identify with a heroine who is herself desired by a man. According to this logic, it is not Fitzwilliam Darcy's wet undershirt that inflames the female viewer in Pride and Prejudice. Rather, it is Darcy's longing for Elizabeth that truly appeals.

Is there a female gaze?

Many films that represent women's desire do so in "non gaze"-related ways. Jane Campion's The Piano (1993) expresses the heroine's passionate nature through the film's famous score.

Sofia Coppola's The Virgin Suicides (1999) conveys female experience through sound and visual aesthetics, portraying the teenage protagonists' inner life. This scene uses warm tones (yellow, salmon), feminine symbols (flowers, unicorns) and music to express female adolescence.

Coppola uses a similar strategy in Marie Antoinette (2006), using florid set design to communicate women's claustrophobic life at Versailles.

The argument that women's desire is best expressed through sensation rather than a gaze may evoke the cliche that male desire is "visual" whereas women's is "sensory". But men's inner lives have always been conveyed via sound and sensation. Action films like Rambo (2008) or Casino Royale (2006), for example, bombard the senses with male anguish and aggression.

So is there a female gaze? Certainly, beautiful men abound in cinema. But I'd argue that there is no direct female equivalent of the male gaze. The male gaze creates a power imbalance. It supports a patriarchal status quo, perpetuating women's real-life sexual objectification.

For this reason, the female gaze cannot be "like" the male gaze.

Instead, films that centre women's experiences are deeply subversive. Think of Fish Tank (2009), a coming-of-age story about a disadvantaged girl's vulnerability, or In the Cut (2003), a story about a woman's sexual discovery.

Films about women's sexuality often face censorship ways that prove their subversiveness. For instance, the makers of The Cooler (2003), Boys Don't Cry (1999) and Blue Valentine (2010) claim that their films were rated R or NC-17 for depicting cunnilingus. Such scenes focus on female pleasure and undermine women's "to-be-looked-at-ness". Censorship bodies like the Motion Picture Association of America, however, seem to treat cunnilingus as "more graphic" than other forms of sex.

Films like The Piano, In The Cut or Marie Antoinette show that cinema can use music, erotic scenes and visual aesthetics to express a feminine point of view. In doing so, such films counter the gaze, depicting women as subjects rather than objects "to be looked at". Whilst not replicating the male gaze exactly, they challenge the enduring dominance of masculine worldviews in film and media.

Explore further New research explores complex relationship between sexual identity, sexual attraction and sexual arousal

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.


A field hospital. Credit: ATS

Leaders of the Syrian-American Medical Society describe their efforts in bolstering what remains of the Syrian healthcare system and the health care context in which those efforts take place in their article, "War is the Enemy of Health: Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine in War-torn Syria." The article is published online ahead of print in the American Thoracic Society journal Annals of the American Thoracic Society.

The Syrian-American Medical Society was formed shortly after the war began to help Syrian refugees in Turkey. Since then, it has grown into a $25-million enterprise that has helped more than two million people, according to lead author Mohammed Z. Sahloul, MD, a pulmonologist and critical care physician in Oak Lawn, IL, who served as its president for four years.

The Society provides 24/7 telemedicine consulting to nine Syrian ICUs. It has conducted 17 "train-the-trainer" webinars for 850 doctors, nurses, paramedics and technicians on such topics as how to resuscitate trauma patients, the fundamentals of critical care and triaging surgery patients. And in classrooms in Turkey and Lebanon, it has trained Syrian doctors in the use of, and equipped them with, portable ultrasound to diagnose bodily injuries. Powered by rechargeable batteries, this technology has proved especially helpful in the war-torn region prone to power outages.

By all accounts, the health care situation in Syria is grim. The authors cite statistics that they and other organizations have compiled:

In the first four years of the conflict, 75,000 civilians died from war injuries; 25 percent of those killed were women and children.

More than twice that number have died from chronic and infectious disease because of inadequate medical care.

There is growing incidence of TB among Syrian refugees in Lebanon. 2014 British Medical Journal article found a 27 percent increase in TB.

By 2013, 70 percent of the health care workforce had left the country. In Syria's largest city, Aleppo, only 70 of the 6,000 physicians who once practiced there remain.

Syrian life expectancy has plummeted by 20 years since war broke out.

Responding to this health care crisis has been made much more difficult by the targeting of hospitals and health care workers, primarily by the government but also by the rebels, according to the authors.

"The Syrian conflict is unprecedented in the scale and gravity of the attacks on medical neutrality, which was something that was agreed upon 150 years ago in Geneva," Dr. Sahloul said. "Nearly 700 medical workers have been killed in this war, and more than 300 hospitals attacked, according to Physicians for Human Rights."

Dr. Sahloul decried the absence of a forceful response to these war crimes by physicians and international medical organizations. Medical neutrality, which is designed to protect civilians and the health care professionals who treat them during a war, is something "sacred among medical professionals," he added.

"The medical community is very late in responding to the situation in Syria," Dr. Sahloul said. "As physicians, we not only have an obligation, we have a powerful voice to insist that policy makers ensure that populations under siege have access to care."

The Syrian-American Medical Society has also documented the use of chemical weapons, another war crime, by the Syrian armed forces. Since December 2012, the group reports that there have been 152 attacks using toxic gases, including 8 using sarin, which paralyzes respiratory muscles, and 92 with chlorine gas, which dissolves lung tissue.

Dr. Sahloul said that most people have only heard of the 2013 sarin attack that killed 1,400 people and injured 10,000 others. The Syrian-American Medical Society has trained Syrian health care workers in how to treat patients exposed to chemical agents.

Despite the makeshift conditions under which medical care is provided in Syria, the authors argue that the efforts of the Syrian-American Medical Society and other groups supporting the health care workers remaining in the country should be subject to evaluation and measurement. "A retrospective survey of 527 health care workers trained in portable ultrasound found that 87 percent had incorporated the technology into the daily management of violent conflict," Sahloul said. "This technology should be studied in areas of war. It has the potential to save thousands of lives."

Sahloul's observation captures the animating principle of the Syrian-American Medical Society implicit in the journal article: even in humankind's darkest moments, caring and rational people can provide light.

Explore further Has Syria painted a target on medical teams around the world?

More information: Mohammed Z Sahloul et al. War is the Enemy of Health: Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine in War-torn Syria, Annals of the American Thoracic Society (2016). Mohammed Z Sahloul et al. War is the Enemy of Health: Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine in War-torn Syria,(2016). DOI: 10.1513/AnnalsATS.201510-661PS
Students who texted in bed in the dark reported significantly poorer academic performance and were sleepier during the day than their peers who shut off their smartphones when they turned off the lights.

Can't stop texting? If you're a teenager, it may be to blame for falling grades and increased yawning in school, according to a new Rutgers study.

The study, published in the Journal of Child Neurology, is the first of its kind to link nighttime instant messaging habits of American teenagers to sleep health and school performance.

"We need to be aware that teenagers are using electronic devices excessively and have a unique physiology," says study author Xue Ming, professor of neuroscience and neurology at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. "They tend to go to sleep late and get up late. When we go against that natural rhythm, students become less efficient."

The American Academy of Pediatrics reports that media use among children of all ages is increasing exponentially; studies have found that children ages 8 to 18 use electronic devices approximately seven-and-a-half hours daily.

Ming's research is part of a small but growing body of evidence on the negative effects of electronics on sleep and school performance. But few studies, Ming says, have focused specifically on instant messaging.

"During the last few years I have noticed an increased use of smartphones by my patients with sleep problems," Ming says. "I wanted to isolate how messaging alone  especially after the lights are out  contributes to sleep-related problems and academic performance."

To conduct her study, Ming distributed surveys to three New Jersey high schools  a suburban and an urban public school and a private school  and evaluated the 1,537 responses contrasting grades, sexes, messaging duration and whether the texting occurred before or after lights out.

She found that students who turned off their devices or who messaged for less than 30 minutes after lights out performed significantly better in school than those who messaged for more than 30 minutes after lights out.

Students who texted longer in the dark also slept fewer hours and were sleepier during the day than those who stopped messaging when they went to bed. Texting before lights out did not affect academic performance, the study found.

Although females reported more messaging overall and more daytime sleepiness, they had better academic performance than males. "I attribute this to the fact that the girls texted primarily before turning off the light," Ming says.

The effects of "blue light" emitted from smartphones and tablets are intensified when viewed in a dark room, Ming says. This short wavelength light can have a strong impact on daytime sleepiness symptoms since it can delay melatonin release, making it more difficult to fall asleep  even when seen through closed eyelids.

"When we turn the lights off, it should be to make a gradual transition from wakefulness to sleep," Ming says. "If a person keeps getting text messages with alerts and light emission, that also can disrupt his circadian rhythm. Rapid Eye Movement sleep is the period during sleep most important to learning, memory consolidation and social adjustment in adolescents. When falling asleep is delayed but rising time is not, REM sleep will be cut short, which can affect learning and memory."

Ming notes some benefits to early-evening media use, such as facilitating collaboration for school projects, providing resources for tutoring, increasing school readiness and possibly offering emotional support systems.

She suggests that educators recognize the sleep needs of teenagers and incorporate sleep education in their curriculum. "Sleep is not a luxury; it's a biological necessity. Adolescents are not receiving the optimal amount of sleep; they should be getting 8-and-a-half hours a night," says Ming. "Sleep deprivation is a strong argument in favor of later start times for high schools  like 9 a.m."

Explore further Social media and drinks before bed are affecting teenagers' school performances
The News in Brief

EU representative Mogherini congratulates Kvirikashvili on taking PMs post



The senior representative of the European Union (EU) for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and the Vice-President of the European Commission, Federica Mogherini, has congratulated Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikahsvili on his appointment to the post and expressed her hope that the countrys new top official would continue comprehensive reforms for Georgias further integration into Europe.



Based on the final conclusion of the European Commission, all the benchmarks of the action plan have been successfully achieved.



This was the result of non-stop efforts and the reforms carried out by the Georgian Government that you were one of the members of. Now you chair the Government.



Your leadership will be of significant importance in preserving the pace Georgia has shown on the path to visa liberalisation, as well as in the process of fulfilling the obligations revealed through the Georgian-EU Association Agreement (AA) and the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement(DCFTA), the EU top official wrote.



The letter - which was released by the Georgian Prime Ministers webpage - also read that Mogherini expressed the EUs support to Georgias sovereignty and territorial integrity.



The EU also welcomed the current Georgian Governments efforts to establish active cooperation and ensure peace with Georgias de-facto regions of Tskhinvali (South Ossetia) and Abkhazia.

(Agenda.ge)







No to Gazprom Protest Gig Held in Tbilisi



Several Georgian bands and musicians performed at an hour-long outdoor concert outside government headquarters in Tbilisi on January 16, in protest against the authorities talks with the Russian energy giant, Gazprom.



The event, No to Gazprom, was organized by a campaign group, Defend Liberty, uniting over dozen of civil society organizations, think tanks and media outlets. It was launched last autumn with the purpose to counter Russias aggressive propaganda campaign against the West in Georgia.



We are gathered here to defend our country from our collaborationist government. We should tell very loudly to our government that we do not want Gazproms gas, because this is a political weapon of the Kremlin, Nino Danelia, a professor of journalism at the Tbilisi-based Ilia State University, told the few hundred demonstrators at the rally before the concert.



According to the Georgian Energy Ministry, it held talks with Gazprom regarding the terms of the transit of Russian gas to Armenia via Georgia, and on the purchase of additional gas from Gazprom to fill the gap amid increasing gas consumption. Gazprom wants to pay cash as a transit fee instead of giving Georgia 10% of gas transported to Armenia. On top of the transit fee, Georgia was also importing relatively small volumes of gas from Russia over the past five years; an exception was 2013, according to Energy Ministrys data.



Talks with Gazprom over a supply of additional gas volumes have become a source of criticism for the opposition, as they fear that it may lead to Georgias energy dependence on Russia and negatively affect ties with Georgias strategic partner, Azerbaijan, which supplies about 87% of Georgias annual gas needs.



Georgian Energy Minister Kakha Kaladze says that the further import of supplies from Azerbaijan is not possible because of technical reasons, especially during the winter period when gas consumption peaks in Georgia.



The President of the Azerbaijani state energy company SOCAR, Rovnag Abdullayev, visited Tbilisi and held talks with PM Giorgi Kvirikashvili and the Georgian Energy Minister on January 13. The chief executive of SOCARs Georgian subsidiary, Mahir Mammadov, said after the talks that technical capacities of gas supplies, especially during peak period and how to fill the deficit were discussed.



The Georgian Energy Minister said that additional investments will be required, specifically for a gas compressor station, in order to the increase volume of gas supplied by SOCAR. Kaladze, however, also added that it will not be possible to complete these works this year, indicating that Georgia will require an increased supply from Gazprom to offset the deficit.

(Civil.ge)







PM discusses regional problems, infrastructure projects with governors



Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili and regional governors held a working meeting in the governmental administration and discussed regional problems and infrastructure projects.



As IPN was told by the governmental administration, the meeting was focused on the investment potential of each region, regional development and attraction of investments.



Elementary needs of the region's population, including gasification, rehabilitation projects of roads and drinking water systems, were also discussed.



The Prime Minister said the government's goal is to provide safe drinking water to all families and significant steps should be taken in this direction.



Kvirikashvili also stressed the importance of taking care of the problems of the youth, and the need for youth involvement in important processes.



The Prime Minister listened to the opinions and suggestions of the governors about possible future plans.

(IPN)




Supporting social entrepreneurship

In 2006, Mary Nally of the Third Age Foundation saw a growing need to teach English to migrants living in the Summerhill area of Co Meath. From that idea, the Failte Isteach project was born.

Today, volunteers with Failte Isteach teach conversational English to around 450 adults each week in 21 centres nationwide, and at least nine more centres are expected to open by the end of the year, according to Liam Carey, head of national development for Third Age.

The adults learning English through the project hail from more than 50 countries, including Burma, Kurdistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Iraq along with Poland, Lithuania, Argentina, South Africa and the Dominican Republic.

Failte Isteach is a prime example of social enterprise, says Noreen Keegan Kavanagh, project and finance manager for the Wales Ireland Network for Social Entrepreneurship (Winsent), which works with the Third Age Foundation.

A lot of social enterprises start out of a need, says Kavanagh, who pointed out how Nally spotted that need and found a way to provide it through her volunteer organisation.

Taking the enterprise further is the idea of social entrepreneurship, whereby businesses are set up for the good of the community.

Social entrepreneurship is when somebody who has a social ethos will have an idea that will benefit the community, explains Kavanagh. They generally set up a business to help those people. Where Winsent comes in is we try to help them sustain it so that it will grow.

Winsents goal is to find and nurture social entrepreneurs, provide them with business planning and steer them towards funding  but also, more importantly, to help them operate a business that can be sustained without outside funding.

Providing services in Dublin and the counties of Meath and Kildare, Winsent in particular seeks to aid entrepreneurs with disabilities, as well as those in the Travelling community and other ethnic backgrounds.

We want to help them plan it more like a business, to use the tools for business planning and see how you can take that road in a more secure way so that it will be lasting, says Kavanagh. Were here to help them with that.

Kavanagh explains that the money earned in a social entrepreneur business usually goes back into the business, but charitable status is also possible. She tells the story of Karen Leigh of Kildare, whose son, born without an ear, received surgery and occupational therapy in the United States. When her son wasnt able to maintain his occupational therapy in Ireland because the service was too expensive and too far away, she helped set up the charity Sensational Kids, which now provides such services in Co Kildare at a much lower cost.

Indeed, social enterprise and entrepreneurship usually come in a flash of inspiration, says Kavanagh. Such inspiration could extend to the current recession, which may be an opportunity for budding social entrepreneurs to take advantage of the services of Winsent and other schemes as people who have lost their jobs think of what to do next.

The people arent coming through the door yet, but Ive been talking to some who are thinking of maybe using their skills in a new way, says Kavanagh. There is hope out there and there are some very inspirational people.



Winsent will be on hand at the Entrepreneur Show taking place this Friday and Saturday 2324 April at RDS Simmonscourt in Dublin. An array of speakers from all types of businesses will be featured at the show, which is designed to inspire entrepreneurs.

Winsent, which is partly funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the Ireland Wales Programme and partnered by Partas, was launched in June 2009 and is funded through to May 2012.
The number of Irish people making donations to charity has fallen off as the recession takes hold, but charity shops are still doing brisk trade  providing a great way to make some savings while making a difference at the same time.

Such shops have enjoyed an increase in the number of volunteers since the onset of the recession, as the newly unemployed seek to retain some job skills during the downturn. Meanwhile, a big influx of foreign nationals coming into the shops  both as volunteers and customers  has resulted in a greater diversity of products available on the shelves.

Statistics compiled by the Irish Charity Engagement Monitor show that on-street bucket collections and buying products from charity shops are the two most common methods of giving to charity. It seems that the interactive experience of a charity shop is very appealing to the Irish public.

Moreover, a new survey conducted by Fundraising Ireland has shown that Irish people are also more giving in their time towards charitable activities. And this isnt limited to the Irish!

In August last year, popular British band Arctic Monkeys recorded a music industry first when they released their single Crying Lightning in selected Oxfam Ireland shops, with proceeds going to help the charitys lifesaving work throughout Africa.

This served as a huge public statement, intended to inspire contributions and to quell the image that charity shops were operating solely with the poor or elderly in mind.

Last year alone the 48 Oxfam shops across Ireland raised over 300,000 through music sales  enough to fund its entire programme in Kitgum, northern Uganda. The programme is assisting people who have lived in refugee camps for the last 10 years to return to their home villages and rebuild their lives and livelihoods.

The environmental aspect of the charity shops should not be overlooked either; they prevent countless goods from ending up in Irish landfills. Indeed, in 2005 Irish charity shops ensured that more than 10,000 tons of clothes, shoes and household textiles that would otherwise have been dumped were either reused or recycled.

More than 80 per cent of the items were reused; the rest were recycled either as re-carded wool or cotton or as insulation and padding in the motor industry.

Despite the recent drop in donations, its quite clear that charity shops are still providing an important public service, and the public are still keen to avail of it. At the same time, the many volunteers who run these shops should serve as an inspiration to those who have been left confused and angry by the recession.

So why not pop in to your local charity shop, make a donation or a purchase, and know that youre helping make a better world.
Irish small food producers urged to contribute to EU funding consultation

By Staff Reporter

An EU initiative to drive growth in the food sector is calling on micro, small and medium food producers in Ireland to share their views and inform a key set of funding recommendations for the sector to the European Commission.

The TradeIt Network, led by the Institute of Technology in Tralee, has been engaged in an EU-wide consultation with small to medium enterprise (SME) food producers since 2013.

This engagement, via nine national hubs, aimed to identify the innovation opportunities, needs and challenges of traditional food-based enterprises.

The final phase of the project involves the completion of a strategic research and innovation agenda (SRIA) for the sector which will be presented to the European Commission.

More than 150 small Irish food producers have been actively involved to date, among 850 in total across nine EU countries.

The outcomes presented in the draft SRIA following almost three years are not as anticipated, said Dr Helena McMahon, TradeIt lead at IT Tralee. It is clearly evident that the needs of these small-to-micro SMEs differ greatly from the larger food industry and require specific innovation supports and actions.

We urgently need further feedback from micro and SME food producers to ensure that their needs are met. This is a unique opportunity for small Irish food producers to share their views. Its an opportunity to take control, drive their own support agenda and influence the shape of future funding in 2020 and beyond.

Irish food production SMEs are invited to input on the open consultation until 11 February by contacting Prof Brian McKenna at sria@tradeitnetwork.eu. The SRIA document may also be requested from the TradeIt website at www.tradeitnetwork.eu/sria.
Clock is ticking for criminal networks based on prostitution & sex trafficking

By Staff Reporter

Pimps, traffickers and other criminals running Irish prostitution rings are a step closer to bankruptcy with widespread political support for the Sexual Offences Bill during a debate in the Seanad, the Immigrant Council of Ireland has said.

The organisation added that the ongoing political consensus on the bill was necessary to ensure that Ireland joins the growing international trend of targeting sex buyers rather than sellers.

Prostitution is a violent, exploitative and abusive criminal enterprise  and it is clear that the overwhelmingly majority of Senators have accepted the evidence put forward by the 73 Irish organisations which make up the Turn Off The Red Light Campaign, said Brian Killoran, chief executive of the Immigrant Council of Ireland.

At the Seanad debate, the Government committed to decriminalise those involved in prostitution to bring Irelands laws into line with those in Northern Ireland and Nordic countries.

Killoran said the ICI welcomes this but will study the amendment in more detail in the coming days, adding that it is now important that the momentum behind the bill is maintained and that the laws become reality early in 2016.

Denise Charlton, an anti-trafficking consultant with ICI, described the widespread political support as a clear indication that the clock is now ticking for thugs with multi-million euro criminal empires built from the proceeds of prostitution and sex trafficking.

She continued: Senators and TDs now have a duty to act on the overwhelming evidence which has been placed before them, including the experience of every frontline agency supporting victims of sex trafficking in Ireland, and make sex buyer laws a reality in weeks.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE DEMOCRAT PARTY? I can no longer remain in todays Demo Party that is now under the control of an elitist cabal of warmongers driven by cowardly wokeness, who divide us by racializing every issue and stoke anti-white racism, actively undermine our freedoms, are hostile to people of faith, demonize the police and protect criminals at the expense of law-abiding Americans, believe in open borders, weaponize the national security state to go after opponents.TULSI GABBARD
The Florida House and Senate are reviving their traditional budget schedule and this week gave "allocations" to their budget subcommittee chairs that set the parameters for their chamber's proposed budget.

As happens most years -- except last year when budget negotiations broke down over health care spending -- this means that the chambers will have budget details available from subcommittees in the third week of session, in full committee in the fourth week and on the floor in the fifth week.

"We're in a very, very conventional budget calendar,'' said Sen. Tom Lee, R-Brandon, chairman of the Senate Appropriations committee.

Neither Lee nor Senate President Andy Gardiner would disclose what their allocation numbers are for the decisions that are made behind closed doors.

"We don't have an allocation document,'' Lee acknowledged "because if we had an allocation document, somebody is going to ask for it."

Both Gardiner, R-Orlando, and Lee said the decision on tax cuts will come later but Gardiner acknowledged that they are prepared to give the governor his full request for economic development funds -- $250 million -- for Enterprise Florida.
From: Rachel Ammon < racheldekelammon@gmail.com >

Sent: Wed, Jan 20, 2016 8:37 pm

Subject: I need an assistance to move



Hello my dear friend,

I see it as a nice pleasure, getting in touch with you My name is Miss Rachel Dekel Ammon, i am a mixed race, my late mother was from Southern Africa ,(Lesotho), I'm citizen of Southern Sudan in Africa. I am 26 years old, my birthday is 27th October 1989, I want to be a Nurse, i am hoping to further my education in this career, I am never married and don't have children,I value the many facets of life and love, I'm always sensitive to the environment that surrounds me and that includes finding happiness, peace, and of course love and adoration,I love to laugh and smile with good friends. I enjoy going to dinner, movies, beaches, mostly all outdoor activities.

I was about enrolling to have a master's degree in nursing /midwifery before, myself and my family suffered a tragedy out of civil war in my country and several political unrest,My late father Dr. Dekel Ammon was one of the managing directors in Oil and Gas Industries in Sudan e.g, MBendi, and also a top Government Personality during his time, in JUBA the capital of my country,and a successful top business man in my country too, He was unfortunately assassinated together with my lovely mother by the wicked rebels in the midst of the civil war and political unrest in my country,could you believe that the Rebels forced my father to have sex in front of their kids ! I'm the only survival for now out of a family of five. I managed to make my way to a country that's one of the most peaceful in Africa where i am leaving as an Orphan in this place; I have decided not to go back to my country for now even if the Ongoing fighting in Darfur, South Kordofan, Blue Nile, and eastern Sudan continues to affect the stability of Sudan and impede democratic transformation is over, because there are still political instability, killings and several problems and diseases,I lost so much, my parents, my sister and three lovely brothers as well as some other relatives and family capital investments.

I would like you to tell me little more about your interest to my life situation at present, don't forget I need an assistance to move further in life and to achieve my educational goals and objectives. Thanks and God bless you.

Always yours,

Rachel Dekel Ammon

























From: Rachel Ammon < racheldekelammon@gmail.com >

Sent: Thu, Jan 21, 2016 11:37 am

Subject: I need your assistance to move on





Hello, how is your day; mine is a little bit warm over here in Dakar Senegal, my condition here is terrible It's just like one staying in the prison and i hope by God's grace i will come out here soon, i don't have any relatives now whom i can go to,all my relatives were killed in the middle of the war the only person i have now is Rev Father Paulo who is in charge of the Church( in the camp) he has been very nice to us since i came here but i am not living with him rather i am leaving in the women's hostel because here they have two hostels one for men the other for women.The Rev Father Tel number is 00221.778924512 if you call tell him that you want to speak with me he will send for me in the hostel,in my condition here i don't have any right or privilege to any thing be it money or whatever because it is against the law of this country, i want to go back to my studies because i have never finished my studies before the tragic incident that led to my being in this situation took place; well i like a person of caring and loving spirit, i am praying to God that he has shown me someone who will lead me, who will be there for me in any situation which i found my self especially in a situation like this ! I want you to know that i have a full confidence in you since our first correspondence and my heart is telling me that you are the right person for me who will be there for me in anything i want to do in life.I need you to assist me and help me out from this place because my life is not safe here in this refugee camp, i want to come out from this place and start a new life with you because no place in this country is secured for my life. Please i want you to know about this information which is very important and also a secret to any body who is around me. I have with me here some valuable documents of my late father including some amount of money in the foreign bank as i told you he was one of the managing directors in Oil and Gas Industries in Sudan e.g, MBendi. The amount in question is Five million Four Hundred United State Dollars which he deposited with my name as his next of kin,i want you to assist me to get the money out from the bank and transfer it into your bank account so that you will send me money from there for my papers to come to you and start a new life there,i want you to know that my life is in danger in this country because i am afraid here and i don't want to loose this money because it's all my late parents kept for me and i have to get it to start my life again. Please i promise you that i will not disappoint you in life,i will set aside 17% for any expenses you will make during the transfer, i promise to be there for you in anything and also respect your personality, I want you to know that i trust you before i am giving you all this information and i want you to keep this as a secret because i am afraid of loosing my life and the documents which i have with me here,i want you to help me because you are the only person i can trust now and i hope you will not disappoint me too, i will be waiting for your mail.

Take good care of yourself for me and please try and send your below details to me.

Always yours,

Rachel Dekel Ammon,



Your Full Name . . .

Age . . . .

Address . . .

Telephone . . . . .

Occupation. . . . . .

Country. . . . . . . . From: Rachel Ammon < racheldekelammon@gmail.com >

Sent: Thu, Feb 18, 2016 8:56 pm

Subject: Rachel about the fund, contact



My dear, I'm happy to inform you about my success in getting those

funds transferred under the cooperation of a new partner from

Paraguay. Presently I'm in Paraguay for investment projects with my new partner, meanwhile, I didn't forget your past efforts and attempts to assist me in transferring those funds despite that it failed us some how. I hereby deposit a cheque worth of US$350,000.00 (THREE HUNDRED AND FIFTY THOUSAND US DOLLARS) certified bank draft in western union Senegal which I raised on your favor as your compensation for all your past efforts and attempts to assist me in this matter. I appreciated your efforts at that time very much.

My dear please try to contact Western Union Dakar Senegal Head Office,

and they have agreed to transfer it to you through Western Union Money

Transfer, I have done this with the Help of Senegal Law here.

In order to receive the cheque in cash through western union , ensure

that you send an E-mail to Western Union Solicitors Fund Verification

Department with the following e-mail address : westernuntransfer@mail.md

westernunitedtrans@mail2senegal.com +221-761-311328

+221-001-338390445



Try to contact the Western Union Today or tomorrow and send them your

details with this E-mail as soon as this information is received by

the WESTERN UNION HEAD OFFICE DAKAR - SENEGAL, the Money will be sent

to you via Western Union Money Transfer.



Please do let me know immediately you receive it so that we can share

the joy after all the sufferings at that time,This period, I'm very

busy here because of the investment projects which my new partner and

i are having at hand.



Finally,remember that i had forwarded instruction to the western union

office in Senegal on your behalf to send the program a MTCN to you,so

feel free to get in touch with them without any delay.



Best regards,

Rachel Dekel Diego. From: Western Union < westernunitedtrans@mail2senegal.com >

Sent: Fri, Mar 18, 2016 7:24 pm

Subject: WELCOME TO THE DESK OF WESTERN UNION REMITTANCE DEPARTMENT



WELCOME TO THE DESK OF WESTERN UNION REMITTANCE DEPARTMENT

AGENCE DE POINT E

Rue 9xf Dakar, 392

+221-001-338390445

+221-761-311-328





DEAR CUSTOMER,





Be informed that your cheque from



NOTE ;

Because of the status of the cheque which is in paper form, an amount of ($185 USD dollar) is required in order to generate the bank draft into fiscal cash denomination before it's transfer through western

union money transfer or bank to bank transfer. This fee is to activate the bank draft into fiscal cash before the transfer procedures.



This is very important as we have to finalize all requirements in other to release your fund to you within 24 hours after we have received this ACTIVATION FEES. Immediately we will activate and credit your cheque, It will be registered in our international file KTU/ 9023118308/03 code,then you will receive an automatic EMAIL/SMS that will contain the transfer details,e.g

SENDERS:

NAME, +221-001-338390445+221-761-311-328DEAR CUSTOMER,Be informed that your cheque from racheldekelammon@gmail.com has been confirmed and approved by the Central Bank du Senegal since few days while we are waiting for your data information to process it. For this reason,Our office now have the right to activate and credit your fund to our international file KTU/ 9023118308/03 code in accordance to remit through western union online remittance or through bank to bank transfer.NOTE ;Because of the status of the cheque which is in paper form, an amount of ($185 USD dollar) is required in order to generate the bank draft into fiscal cash denomination before it's transfer through westernunion money transfer or bank to bank transfer. This fee is to activate the bank draft into fiscal cash before the transfer procedures.This is very important as we have to finalize all requirements in other to release your fund to you within 24 hours after we have received this ACTIVATION FEES. Immediately we will activate and credit your cheque, It will be registered in our international file KTU/ 9023118308/03 code,then you will receive an automatic EMAIL/SMS that will contain the transfer details,e.gSENDERS:NAME, MTCN NUMBER, SECRET QUESTION ANSWER OR BANK ALERT to withdraw your fund.



INFORMATIONS :



This is western union and we do not contradict issues, or entertain interrogations, we are straightforward and honest in our service. It means after we have received the fee of $185 USD dollar from you to

activate and credit your cheque into fiscal cash,you will receive an automatic EMAIL/SMS sending information's within 24 hours



PAYMENT INFORMATION TO SEND THE FEE OF $185 USD TO THE SECRETARY, EQUIVALENT THROUGH DEPARTMENTAL WESTERN UNION.



NAME:. . . . . . .ROSE MOHAD MARIBO

CITY:. . . . . DAKAR

COUNTRY:. . . . . . SENEGAL

TEST QUESTION:. . . . CODE

ANSWER:. . . . . PICK

AMOUNT: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $185



DO EFFECT THIS OFFICE WITH THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION'S ONCE PAYMENT IS EFFECTED.



BANK NAME:. . . . . .

BANK ACCOUNT NUMBER:. . . . . . .

IBAN NUMBER:IF ANY. . . . . . .

BANK BRANCH:. . . . . . .

SWIFT CODE:. . . . . . . . . .

COUNTRY:. . . . . . . .

TEL/ CELL NUMBER:. . . . . . . .



THANKS AND PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU SEND THE ABOVE DETAILS OF YOUR PAYMENT TO THIS OFFICE AFTER MAKING THE PAYMENT VIA WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER. YOUR INTERNATIONAL REMITTANCE FILE WILL BE READY TO EFFECT THE TRANSFER OF YOUR FUND.





BEST REGARDS,

MR. MARSHA IBRAHIMMA.

Western Union Agency Dakar,

Western UnionA





This e-mail and its attachments may contain proprietary information that is privileged, confidential or subject to copyright belonging to the Agency of Western Union Dakar. This e-mail is intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to which it is addressed. If you are not the intended recipient of this e-mail, or the employee or agent responsible for delivering this e-mail to the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution, copying or action taken in relation to the contents of and attachments to this e-mail is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you have received this e-mail in error, please notify the sender immediately and permanently delete the original and any copy of this e-mail and any printout. The Agency of Western Union Dakar does not accept responsibility for the contents of this message and although it has been scanned for viruses, Agency of Western Union Dakar will not accept responsibility for any damage caused as a result of a virus being passed on from a third party.













If you received a similar letter, please ignore it. Do not answer it. If you do, you will end up on more of the mailing lists used by the criminals behind this fraud. Read more....
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@NewsbySmiley

Car2Go, the car-sharing service with the blue and white two-seaters, announced Thursday in a message to members that it is pulling out of Miami and Miami Beach at the end of next month. Here's the text of an email sent Thursday afternoon:

Were writing to inform you of a difficult decision. Due to slower adoption in Miami than expected, car2go will suspend operations in Miami and Miami Beach effective March 1, 2016.



What factors led to this decision?



Since our launch in 2012, we have received strong support from our members in Miami, as well as the broader Miami community  and for that we are incredibly grateful. Together, weve been able to explore exciting new ways to help people move throughout urban areas with greater ease.



While we believe Miami can benefit greatly from a service like car2go, Floridas rental-car tax doesnt reflect the innovation we bring to the rental car sector, making Miami one of the most expensive cities in North America for one-way carsharing. Other services have also entered the mobility market, and are not subject to this additional tax.
@MichaelAuslen

Surrounded by members of the House and Senate -- and President Andy Gardiner's entire family -- Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday signed the first three new laws of 2016.

Together, the legislation represents a joint agenda set out by Gardiner, R-Orlando and House Speaker Steve Crisafulli, R-Merritt Island, after they took office in 2014: a comprehensive re-write of state water policy and an expansion of resources available to help people with special needs get an education and career training.

"It's a great start to session," Scott said. "I know we're going to have a great finish to session, and I'm sure we'll have a lot of fun along the way."

That made the assembled lawmakers laugh. Both Crisafulli's water bill and the Gardiner Scholarship -- which senators named the expansion of Personal Learning Scholarship Accounts for children with special needs -- failed to pass last session, held hostage in the budget blowup.

Lawmakers passed them last week as a sign of good faith for cooperation this session.

That doesn't mean there aren't detractors, however. While some environmental groups endorsed the new water policy, others have been outspoken against it. This week, former Gov. Bob Graham wrote a letter opposing the legislation on behalf of the Florida Conservation Coalition.

"This 134-page bill represents a purposeful effort to weaken protection and management of Floridas water resources," he wrote. "It will result in further corrosion of what was once hailed as the water management standard of the Nation."

Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam gave lawmakers and the governor a nod of support.

"In order to accommodate our explosive growth and ensure that our state, residents and visitors thrive, we need this long-term, science-based and comprehensive approach to water policy," he said in a statement. "This legislation will help provide the resources to meet the needs of our growing population, while protecting our environment."

The Gardiner Scholarships legislation includes what Sen. Jeff Clemens, D-Lake Worth, called a "giveaway to the school uniform industry": $14 million in incentives for school districts and charter schools that require students to wear uniforms.

But Gardiner, Crisafulli and Scott hailed the day as significant. It's especially so for Gardiner, whose son Andrew has Down syndrome and who has focused on the issue for years.

"To see the Gardiner Scholarship now officially done, that's very special for us," Gardiner said. "But it's also important for the families around the state."

Photo by Michael Auslen, Times/Herald
@JeremySWallace

When the Republican Party of Florida meets in Orlando this weekend for their annual meeting, there will be one notable Republican missing from the crowd.

Gov. Rick Scott confirmed he will not be part of the two-day event at the Rosen Centre, which includes planning discussions for the 2016 election cycle and features the Republican candidates running for the U.S. Senate.

Im not going to be able to go, Scott said in an interview this week.

The two-day conference is the first annual meeting for the RPOF with chairman Blaise Ingoglia. Scott was at the annual meeting last year, when Ingoglia, a Hernando County Republican, beat out Clay County Republican Leslie Dougher, who Scott had backed.

It was around that same time, Scott transferred $580,000 he helped the party raise to his own political action committee called Lets Get to Work.

Ingoglia said this years meeting will outline ways to improve the partys ground game and outreach efforts on social media. Republicans will have breakout sessions aimed at reaching out to minority voters and women in preparation for the 2016 races.

The Florida GOP will be laser-focused during this meeting and throughout 2016 in electing a Republican not only to the White House, but in all offices across the Sunshine State, Ingoglia said in a statement previewing the meeting.
@JeremySWallace

Gov. Rick Scott's new jobs chief is picking up just where the old one left off.

In her second week on the job, Cissy Proctor, the new head of the Department of Economic Opportunity, delivered her first economic growth update to Scott and the Florida Cabinet on Thursday morning by continually noting how Floridas economy compares to Texas.

Since Scott was elected in 2010, he has continually used Texas as the example of a state Florida needs to mimic for creating jobs. In his State of the State addresses and other speeches, Scott frequently talks about a friendly rivalry with former Texas Gov. Rick Perry about who has a better business climate.

The growth of private sector jobs in November was the strongest we have seen since 2010, Proctor said during Thursdays Cabinet meeting. Not only was it the highest we have seen, it was the highest number of jobs created in November of any state across the nation.

Proctor was more than ready when Scott asked how Florida compared to Texas. Proctors power point showed Floridas job gains  about 36,000 in November - compared to a handful of other states, including Texas, which had 13,000. In each of several slides relating to job growth or the unemployment rate, it showed how Florida was ahead of Texas in key indicators, a point Proctor highlighted repeatedly during her presentation.

Attorney General Pam Bondi jokingly warned Proctor to always be ready to show Florida compares to Texas.

You should always know the answer to that because youre going to get that at every meeting, Bondi said.

Scott is a former Texan who attended law school at Southern Methodist University and once worked for a major Dallas law firm.

Scott named Proctor the new DEO executive director after former DEO chief Jesse Panuccio, who held the position since 2013, announced in December he would be leaving the agency. During the monthly cabinet meetings Panuccio regularly noted how Florida compared to Texas during presentations.
Despite an appeal from a former Supreme Court justice, a Florida House committee on Thursday approved a controversial bill that would ask voters to impose term limits on state appellate judges and Supreme Court justices.

The measure, HJR 197, was approved by the House Appropriations Committee and, if it passes, could be on the 2016 ballot. It would limit to 12 years anyone who serves on the Florida Supreme Court and appellate courts, although it will allow some long terms if they are appointed to partial terms. No current member of the bench would be affected, and trial-court judges would not face term limits.

The idea is a top priority of Rep. Richard Corcoran, R-Land O'Lakes, who is the House budget chairman and will be the House speaker in 2017 and 2018, but it is opposed by The Florida Bar, many legal scholars and judicial advocates.

Former Supreme Court Justice Major Harding, who served 11 years on the Florida Supreme Court, spoke against the bill and told the story of his former colleague, Stephen Grimes, who left private practice to serve on the Second District Court of Appeal in 1973 and took a $40,000 a year pay cut to do it. Grimes served 14 years on the court of appeal and then 10 years on the Florida Supreme Court.

"He indicated to me that had he not had the expectation of devoting his entire judicial life to the judiciary with the hope of retiring when we reach 70, he would never had abandoned the role that he was playing as a member of that law firm,'' Harding said.

Harding said the move to limit the terms of judges will not only discourage people from seeking a court appointment but will diminish the quality of people who serve on the bench.

"I really have a significant fear -- in my conversations with people that served on judicial nominating commissions -- that there are numbers of unqualifed people who are seeking judicial appointments because they unable in the practice of law to make what a judge would make,'' he said.

But Corcoran, who has condemned many of the rulings of the current Florida Supreme Court, including their recent ruling on redistricting, noted that former President Thomas Jefferson strongly believed that no judge should ever serve a life term and believes that if legislators and governors have term limits, the judiciary should as well.

He said the governors are appointing people to the bench at younger and younger ages and it has become "a legacy thing for a sitting governor" and the merit retention system, which requires appellate judges to seek voter approval every six years, "is not real accountability."
via @learyreports

Marco Rubio has been attacking Chris Christie over Common Core and yesterday went after Jeb Bush, saying the former governor was nowhere to be found when Republicans were fighting President Obamas agenda and spent most of his time traveling the country trying to push the education standards.

Bushs support is clear as is the damage it has done to him in the presidential race. But while Rubio never advocated for Common Core, he was a proponent of the building blocks.

Bush on Thursday noted that Rubio had supported Race to the Top, the federal program that incentivized states to adopt Common Core.

I think thats a good idea, Rubio said in 2009. He did stress, however, that he felt education is a state function, best regulated and governed at the state level.

That year Rubio also praised Obamas hire of Arne Duncan as education secretary, calling him an innovator while praising the federal governments effort encouraging states to adopt curriculums that reflect the 21st Century.



Rubios 100 Ideas book, a template for his tenure as House speaker, endorsed ideas such as more testing and a revamped curriculum. Idea No. 2 called for Florida to systematically and sequentially replace the Sunshine State Standards with a new, world-class curriculum comparable to those found in the leading education systems in the world.
@PatriciaMazzei

A Miami billionaire political donor has made his pick for Florida's contested Republican U.S. Senate race.

Health-care magnate Mike Fernandez threw his support Friday behind U.S. Rep. David Jolly of Indian Shores, praising legislation Jolly proposed earlier this week to ban members of Congress from personally soliciting campaign contributions. Fernandez's backing will likely give Jolly a big financial boost in a primary where the congressman faces several other serious candidates.

Fernandez, who has been one of Jeb Bush's biggest political backers in the presidential race, has broken traditional South Florida GOP ranks and endorsed President Obama's policy toward Cuba.

Here's Fernandez's endorsement of Jolly, as provided by Jolly's campaign:

As an immigrant who came to this country over 50 years ago, I learned that hard work and core-values will allow you to succeed in this great country. I will never be able to repay this great country for what is has given me and provided for my family, but if I can leave this country better than when I came here I consider that success. In order to leave this country better than it is today, we must have the proven leaders who are courageous enough to lead this great country and to act upon their morals and principles. I cannot think of a better proven leader with better morals and principles than David Jolly. He is a guy who is unafraid to speak his mind and call things like he sees it. His recent STOP Act proposal to get Congress working again is a prime example of that. We need more people who have the guts to shake things up in Washington.
@ByKristenMClark

Senators debated on Thursday proposed changes to Florida's "stand your ground" law, clearing the way for a floor vote.

Sen. Rob Bradley, R-Fleming Island -- the sponsor of SB 344 -- spent 20 minutes answering questions posed mostly by Democratic senators who probed the need for and implications of the bill.

Bradley's legislation would shift the burden of proof in a pre-trial hearing from defendants to prosecutors, requiring state attorneys to prove "by clear and convincing evidence" why a defendant could not claim "stand your ground" in self-defense cases.

He said the legislation is in reaction to a Florida Supreme Court last summer. Justices stated that defendants who claim a stand-your-ground defense have to prove before trial why theyre entitled to that immunity, but Bradley contends the justices "misinterpreted legislative intent" of the decade-old law.

"This bill brings full measure to what was done in 2005 and finishes the job and fairly and accuracy reflects what a true immunity hearing should be -- and thats a hearing with the burden being on the state," Bradley said during Thursday's debate on the Senate floor.

Democratic Sen. Chris Smith, D- Fort Lauderdale, questioned the intent of the change, which has been described as a strengthening of the "stand your ground" law.

"This bill and this law is a way of avoiding trial," Smith said. "This is a way of not even going to a trial or going to a jury. This is a away of getting rid of it in front of a judge without a persons peers looking at (it)."

Senators moved the bill to third reading, so it now needs to be scheduled on the calendar for a vote. It isn't slotted for the floor calendar for the next day of session, Jan. 28.

The House companion -- which required the demonstration of a higher burden of proof from prosecutors -- stalled in November in committee. Bradley said previously he wants his bill to pass out of the Senate and for House Speaker Steve Crisafulli, R-Merritt Island, to then take it up under messages directly on the House floor.
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Before she was a photographer, Lucy Capehart studied anthropology, an initial passion that colors the philosophy of her artwork.

"I'm interested in traces of lives, evidence, things left behind. Which is what archaeology is all about," she said.

Since 2011, she's been using the stark Prussian blue and ethereal white of the cyanotype to investigate deeply personal objects: the clothing of her parents, who died when she was only 7 years old.

Raised by an aunt and uncle, no one in the family discussed her parents much due to the trauma of losing them so young.

Her aunt kept numerous articles of their clothing: slips, white shirtwaist dresses, black evening gowns, her father's button-up shirts.

The inheritances became fuel for cyanotypes after she returned to school to get her MFA in photography.

She found that the simple process suited the subject matter. It produces "a shadow of the actual object," she said. "It's so direct. There's not a negative, intermediary step."

It's as simple as placing an object on treated paper and laying it in the sun.

She likes its "ghost-like and mysterious" qualities, plus the life-size scale that underscores the themes.

Her work wasn't always so direct.

"It was a huge turning point to do work that was so personal," she said.

In one of her other projects as a photographer, she studied the interiors of homes  the objects and arrangements that revealed the owners' identities, even though they were absent from the photographs.

"Material culture is something that I focused on: how objects reveal cultural practices, how they're imbued with power and significance," she said.

She said it was similar to being an anthropologist  going out into the world and reporting back on what she found.

"This was turning inward and seeing what was going on in my own life," she said.

She said it was cathartic to "make something of this sadness" and "bring them alive again."

***

The technique removes many of the myriad variables that photographers normally have at their disposal.

Instead, she has only a quarter of a minute or less to arrange the clothing on the paper.

In that limited window, she wants to arrange lifelike compositions, filled with human motion absent the human body  a left-shoulder strap of a dress tilted as though her mother were gesturing or leaning backward; or a jacket sleeve curled inward as though her father had placed his hand in the jacket pocket.

She's also produced cyanotypes of other pieces of clothing, owned by strangers and found at garage sales, that might strike her. She's intrigued by the strange "ultra-feminine" clothing from the 1950s that she finds, like a baby's dress or a babydoll nightgown.

As a practical matter, semi-translucent clothing works the best, and the items need a cut or shape that will produce a dynamic composition.

Although she doesn't have any personal attachments to these found objects, the items still provoke curiosity and a sense of sadness in the viewer.

Capehart, originally from Indiana, came to Missoula to study at UM. She signed up for a non-degree course with influential photographer Lee Nye, whose black-and-white portraits pack the walls at Charlie's Bar.

She realized she wanted a hands-on career, not a doctorate path, and began to study photography.

She's lived off and on between Montana and Portland, Oregon, where she's located now.

She's still taking pictures in more traditional formats, and experiments with other objects in cyanotype: bird's nests, feathers and bones.

Maybe it's the anthropologist in her, looking for "remnants from animals and evidence and things that are left behind," she said.
Randi O'Brien's pelicans are realistically crafted in stoneware. You'd never mistake her work for realism though  the birds are banded with a deep blue stripe of glaze, sometimes on their midsections, other times on their beaks, that separates their otherwise solid white and muted gray colors.

O'Brien moved from functional ceramics into animals some four years ago as a way to draw on their fable-like possibilities.

"The animals become bearers of messages," she said.

The message in O'Brien's current work at the Radius Gallery is a personal one about travel and belonging.

O'Brien earned her MFA at the University of Montana and followed as series of adjunct positions around Montana before spending almost a year in New York for work.

She and her young daughter wanted to come back, though.

"It became apparent that the state was what we were yearning for," she said, including the plains, mountains, rivers and forests.

"Once that's a part of your life, it's hard to leave it," she said.

Pelicans, too, she said bond themselves to a region, giving birth and dying in the area where they're born.

The stripes, meanwhile, are a reference to banding  being marked, wedded pairs of birds are banded, she said.

"In some ways it's a sense of identity, both in a literal and metaphorical sense," she said, also noting the sense of melancholy.

The pelicans at the Radius Gallery are part of a larger exhibition, "Alas for the Pelicans!" that was shown at the Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art in Great Falls. (The title comes from a quote from a British navigator, who said "Alas, for the pelicans! Their golden age is past; but it has much exceeded in duration that of man.")

She also is exhibiting platters and life preservers with complementary visual motifs.

The larger exhibition at Paris Gibson included 200 eggs, functional cups and a video.

O'Brien, now a tenure-track professor at Montana State University-Billings, works with large ideas that can be split into smaller components, she said. They can fulfill the greater concept, she said, or provide a glimpse on their own.

***

Also on display at the Radius Gallery this month are new works by Stephen Glueckert, who retired as curator from the Missoula Art Museum earlier this month.

Glueckert's kinetic sculptures, assembled from found objects, encourage viewers to push cranks and levers to operate them.

The largest new piece is titled "Town and Country," an assemblage combining an old work table with carefully arranged sets of tools, with a large horse's head adorned with light bulbs as eyes. If you hand-crank it, the head will gently lift up and down. On the horse's back, one of Glueckert's automatic drawing machines begins pushing a pencil around on a small pad.

Many of the other works reference historical figures: "Lucky Lindy" places the famed pilot on a green pedestal outfitted with instrument gauges; "Classical Gas" does the same for Mozart.

The portraits feature historical figures paired with mundane everyday objects: Hitler with a toothbrush, Castro with a fishing lure, Lincoln with a fly swatter.

While it's counterintuitive to enter a gallery and touch the art, Glueckert has painted each with a small sign of encouragement. Follow the instructional arrows to set the lure in motion.
Amid changes in wild turkey limits, permits to hunt from a vehicle and mule deer quotas, most speakers at Thursday nights Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks hunting rules open house wanted to discuss the coming shoulder seasons for elk.

And many held deep concerns for the proposal to open cow elk hunting on private land for nearly six months across much of Montana.

While no one at the Missoula discussion opposed the shoulder season outright, the idea of starting as early as Aug. 15 had many archery hunters worried for their personal safety. Others noted the shoulder season hunts could have an unintended consequence of leaving motherless calves to starve during the winter or shooting pregnant cow elk, doubling the recruitment losses for each animal killed.

The state needs to have more tolerance for elk, hunter Brendan Conners said during the public comment period. The long-term impact of hunting six months of the year could cause a pendulum swing. Id hate to see us swing it too far. Then everyone in the room suffers.

The Fish and Wildlife Commission authorized a pilot project allowing shoulder seasons for cow elk on private land in four hunting districts between Cascade and White Sulphur Springs this winter. It has also slated shoulder seasons for dozens more hunting districts throughout the state starting in August and running as long as February 2017.

The goal is to reduce the number of elk harboring on private farm and ranch pastures, which are not commonly available to general season hunters. While elk populations in some public land regions of the state are struggling, the overall number is over objective by several thousand animals in parts of Region 2 around Missoula.

Several speakers questioned the safety of opening the shoulder season at the same time as archery season. Bowhunter Dan Hoffman said he and many other archers use decoys when hunting. Recently when he was in an area he mistakenly thought was archery-only, a rifle hunter shot his decoy three times while he was just 15 yards away.

Missoula County chief archery instructor Jeff Hill warned that ethics and safety would be the biggest concerns in managing the longer private land season.

I think were going to have some fatalities with people not seeing camouflage bowhunters, Hill said.

FWP Region 2 wildlife manager Mike Thompson told the audience the shoulder season idea has come about after several years of trying other means to improve the distribution of elk. The agency is attempting to balance the needs of landowners who are trying to make a living on their property with hunters who have a right to harvest public wildlife.

The measures weve taken to this point did nothing but grow more elk on private land, Thompson said. The longer we wait, the more dramatic and draconian measures will have to be taken."

Friday is the last day to send comments to the Fish and Wildlife Commission before it begins final debate on the 2016 shoulder season and other hunting changes. Online comments can be accepted until 5 p.m. Friday through 1.usa.gov/1SAI3oH.

The commission will make a final decision on the hunting season changes at its Feb. 11 meeting.
KALISPELL  Two Kalispell police officers were justified in shooting a man who pointed a rifle at them during a welfare check earlier this month, an investigation by the Flathead County Sheriffs Office has concluded.

Police Chief Roger Nasset released the findings of the sheriffs department report, which identified the officers as Sgt. Chad Zimmerman and Officer Eric Brinton, Thursday night.

Zimmerman and Brinton both shot 30-year-old Ryan Pengelly, a decorated veteran of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, during a welfare check on Pengellys mother Bonnie on Jan. 12.

The report says Pengelly, who was struck four times but survived, admitted pointing a rifle at one of the officers but said he wasnt given enough time to comply with an order to drop his weapon.

He said put the rifle down, but he didnt give me enough time to do so, Pengelly, who emerged from a bedroom with the firearm while Zimmerman and Brinton were attempting to take Pengellys mother into custody, told investigators.

Thats probably what I did wrong, I pointed the rifle at him, it was wrong, the report quotes Pengelly as telling investigators. If I would have known it was a police officer, I would have put it down immediately.

***

Zimmerman and Brinton went to the home at 145 Looking Glass Ave. after Bonnie Pengelly reportedly made comments of being suicidal and homicidal, according to the report, and saying her son had weapons in the home and she had access to them.

The report does not say whether Bonnie Pengelly made the comments directly to law enforcement, or whether they were reported by someone else.

The officers went to the home at 1:19 p.m. Jan. 12.

When officers arrived they made contact with Bonnie Pengelly at the front door, according to the report, prepared by Flathead County Detective Cmdr. Brandy Hinzman. When officers attempted to take her into custody, she resisted arrest by running back into the house screaming and actively fighting the officers.

Another male in the residence, identified as James Malley, was the first to hear the disturbance and emerge from a bedroom where he had been sleeping, the sheriffs department says.

Malley recognized the two men who were struggling with Bonnie Pengelly, and were both in full duty uniform, as police officers, and complied with instructions given to him by Zimmerman and Brinton, the report says.

Shortly thereafter Ryan Pengelly, who had been sleeping in another room, heard the disturbance, grabbed his loaded rifle and exited the bedroom, the report says.

***

Both officers said that Zimmerman shouted, Drop the gun, before opening fire.

Malley told investigators that just prior to the shooting he heard a loud voice holler.

He later told the investigators that he recollects hearing shots fired, officers hollering at Pengelly to drop it, put it away, get away from it, according to the news release issued by Nasset. Malley clarified with investigators that he was unsure of exactly what the officers hollered prior to the shooting.

Bonnie Pengelly said that one of the officers hollered, Gun, prior to the shooting.

Zimmerman said the rifle was being aimed directly at him at the time he fired.

The two officers fired a total of six shots. Four struck Ryan Pengelly.

***

Medical personnel were summoned immediately, according to the report, and Zimmerman and Brinton began first aid. Ryan Pengelly was taken by ambulance to Kalispell Regional Medical Center, where he underwent surgery.

Bonnie Pengelly was also transported, by officers, to the same hospital for evaluation.

Ryan Pengelly, an Army veteran, suffered a traumatic brain injury in a bomb blast during one of his multiple deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq.

The home on Looking Glass Avenue was built for him by Operation Finally Home in 2012, after Pengelly and his wife lost their mobile home in a fire in 2011.

The Montana Highway Patrol assisted the sheriffs departments investigation of the crime scene, Hinzman said, using a total station to plot evidence.

After reviewing all available evidence and statements I feel that Sgt. Zimmerman and Officer Brinton acted within Kalispell Police Department policy and Montana state law, Hinzman said. It is the conclusion of the investigative team that the shooting was justified.
Missoulas David Thatcher, one of two remaining crew members of the famed Doolittle Raiders of World War II, will be feted again Friday night.

Thatcher and his wife, Dawn, are in Beverly Hills, California, where hell be inducted into the Living Legends of Aviation at a $5,000-a-plate dinner ceremony hosted by John Travolta.

Thatcher, 94, will be joined by the other Doolittle survivor, Dick Cole of Texas, who turned 100 in September.

Thatcher was a 20-year-old engineer-gunner on one of 16 U.S. Army Air Corps B-25 bombers to take off from the USS Hornet and bomb Toyko on April 18, 1942. Nicknamed The Ruptured Duck, the planes crash landing and evasion of Japanese troops in China was depicted in the Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo, a 1944 feature film based on a book written the year before by Ted Lawson, the captain of the Ruptured Duck.

Thatcher was played in the movie by Robert Walker.

The daring raid came just months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. It is credited in many corners as turning the psychological tide of war on the Pacific front.

It was led by famed aviator Jimmy Doolittle, who passed away in 1993. Cole was his co-pilot. The last official reunion of the Raiders took place in 2013.

Last year, Thatcher and Cole were on hand in Dayton, Ohio, to present the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force the Congressional Gold Medal on behalf of the Doolittle Raiders.

Travolta, dubbed the official ambassador of aviation, will be joined on stage for the 13th annual awards dinner by fellow screen star Harrison Ford, who will present the Aviation Legacy Award to Scott Terry, founder of Global Flight Relief.

Other new inductees include Michimasa Fujino, president/CEO and founder of Honda Jet; Daniel Wolff, chief pilot and manager of Nationwide's flight department and an active volunteer to children's flying programs; and Greg Feith, a former air safety investigator and aviation commentator for NBC News.

Also receiving awards are the president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, and the founder and chairman of VistaJet. The Legends will recognize the Candy Bomber, Col. Gail Halvorsen. Halvorsen dropped candy bars on final approach to Tempelhof Airport while flying the Berlin Airlift, prompting an expanded effort supported by the Hershey Co. that showered a million chocolate bars to German children.

Thatcher will return to Missoula for another induction Feb. 5 into the National Society, Sons of the American Revolution.
DEER LODGE  Patricia A. Bielenberg, 74, passed away peacefully of natural causes in her home on Saturday, Jan. 2, 2016.

She attended schools in Deer Lodge and graduated from Montana State University where she was a member of the Pi Beta Phi sorority.

Patricia also attended Portland State University and obtained her CPA license in Oregon where she worked before moving to Phoenix, Arizona, in 1985. She retired as audit manager in 1992 and returned to Deer Lodge. Wherever she lived, she found kindred spirits. One of her favorite groups was the Missoula Calligraphy Guild.

Patricia continued learning throughout her life. One subject she strove to master was calligraphy, many friends have received her wonderful hand crafted cards and artwork.

She explored jewelry making, and quilling as well as anything involving the art of drying flowers. Then she discovered computers and enjoyed the early chat rooms, actually becoming a lay administrator, she pioneered a blog about 20 years ago and help many groups with their efforts to communicate.

Passionate about many causes, Patricia was active in civic and arts organizations. Locally, she was one of the founding people for the New to You store with Deer Lodge Womans Club; an active member of Powell County Progress (now Powell County Economic Development), and Powell County Museum and Arts Foundation to name a few. She always helped those less fortunate than herself through many charities. Patricia lent her talents as a calligrapher, leader and computer aficionado to many projects.

Patricias lifestyle was one of loving people, animals and beauty. She devotedly help her mother through her final illness, making sure there were many happy times, and loved to tell of the fun they had. She showed the same generosity of spirit and care to her brother Nick. She had the best laugh, a quick and often sharp whit which she did not employ to hurt and a very fun but complex personality. She tried hard not to offend, but she believed we all have the right to live our lives in our own style and wanted her choices to be accepted.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Nick and Bette Bielenberg and her brother brother Nick. She is survived by her nephew Denis Bielenberg. A small private graveside memorial is planned in the spring.
SAN JOSE, California  Wesley Arlin Fachner was born to Arlie and Marietta Fachner on Jan. 4, 1962, in Wolf Point. He was promoted to heaven on Monday, Dec. 28, 2015.

Wesley had a rich childhood, growing up in Wolf Point surrounded by loving family, applying himself in school, developing his musical talents on the piano and the clarinet, and helping his dad, Arlie, on the farm with the laborious task of rock-picking and shooting gophers with his .22. Arlies influence taught Wesley the value of working hard and always trying to do his best. One way that it paid off was that he became the salutatorian of his high school graduating class.

After high school, Wesley moved to Missoula to attend the University of Montana. During his college career, he also worked in the hotel industry, which he very much enjoyed. He graduated from the UM with his bachelor of science degree in accounting in 1990. After graduating and passing the CPA exam, he moved to California and worked for the Defense Contract Auditing Agency, then as controller at various companies. He started his own accounting firm in San Jose in 1999 and continued in practice until his death.

After receiving his CPA license in California, he fully intended on moving back to his family in Montana. Then he met Cindy. On Oct. 21, 1995, Wesley and Cindy were married and have resided in San Jose since. In April 2000, Wesleys greatest joy came into this world with the birth of his son, Ethan. He thoroughly enjoyed being a dad.

Since an early age, Wesley had a passion for being involved in the community. He served at various levels with the Institute of Management Accountants, the California Society of CPAs, and the Campbell (CA) Chamber of Commerce as treasurer, president and past president. Other organization involvements include the Santa Clara Estate Planning Council, Silicon Valley Bar Association, ElderCare Matters Alliance, and Society of Trust & Estate Practitioners. He also held various board positions with his church, HOA and school.

Wesley was a faithful Christian from an early age. His faith and trust in God were steadfast. He was a man of integrity with a strong work ethic. He genuinely cared for people. Wesley strove for perfection in all that he did.

His survivors include his wife Cindy (Litfin) Fachner; his son Ethan; his mother Marietta Fachner; his sister Penny and her husband David Rodli; his mother-in-law Hilda Litfin and his brother-in-law Harold Litfin and his wife Brigitta. Nephews and nieces include Brett (Gabriela) Rodli, Scott (Eriko) Rodli, Mark (Sunny) Rodli, Amy Rodli, Nathan Litfin and Janelle Litfin. Great-nephew and nieces include Daniela Rodli, Juliana Rodli, Eathan Rodli and Ella Rodli.

In Wesleys memory, charitable donations can be made to Life Challenge International (lifechallenge.com) or Mark & Sunny Rodli Ministries  missionaries to Thailand (markrodli.com).

A memorial service was held at Camden Assembly of God Church in Campbell, California, on Friday, Jan. 8.
This week, Gov. Steve Bullock announced an executive order, which renews and broadens the state employee nondiscrimination and harassment policy to be more inclusive of state workers. As we recognize Martin Luther King Jr. Day and continue to advance policies that promote greater social, racial, and economic justice, we commend Bullocks critical step in supporting workplace equality for all state employees and those employed by contracting companies.

The governors executive order expands the state workplace policy to include discrimination or harassment based on gender identity or gender expression, pregnancy or childbirth, and military service or veteran status in the hiring of state employees. This executive order also applies to entities contracting with state agencies, so those companies must also comply with this nondiscrimination policy. The Montana Budget and Policy Center has served as a state contractor to research the economic benefits of paid family leave for Montana families. As an entity that would be subject to this expanded workplace policy, we believe this is an important step to ensuring all workers are adequately protected.

Every day, people who are working hard to make ends meet are denied jobs or harassed at work, simply for being who they are. Discriminatory practices negatively impact workers and their families well-being, as well as harming businesses and the economy as a whole.

The wage gap between men and women in Montana can be attributed to a number of things, but we know discriminatory practices play a role in hurting womens economic security. Nationally, evidence suggests that women and their families lose an average of $434,000 in income over their lifetimes, in part because of workplace inequality.

The gender pay gap also has a significant impact on our entire economy. If women were compensated at the same rate as their male colleagues, we could cut the national poverty rate in half and inject hundreds of billions of dollars of income into our economy.

For businesses large and small, workplace discrimination can significantly harm bottom lines and reduce competitive advantage. When individuals remain working while facing harassment, research shows that their performance suffers, which impacts a business productivity, bottom line and ability to out-perform competitors. Hiring practices based on job-irrelevant characteristics force otherwise qualified workers into unemployment.

In the next 10 years, Montana will see over 130,000 workers retire, and new workers entering the labor force will not fill that gap. As Montana faces potential worker shortages, state agencies and employers should consider policies that will attract and retain skilled workers.

Combining nondiscrimination laws with other workplace policies like paid family and medical leave, fair scheduling and fair pay laws is the best way to ensure that everyone in Montana has an equal opportunity to find and retain work, achieve a healthy work-life balance and provide for themselves and their families.

Bullocks executive action is a significant step in protecting Montana workers and enabling individuals to achieve economic security. In the future, we hope that Montana legislators will build on this momentum and support policies that continue to strengthen our families, businesses and state economy.
Let's see here, a terrorist shoots up San Bernardino. Our fine president immediately jumps in and makes more gun laws against law-abiding citizens, saying, "If we can just save one life, it will be worth it."

My question is, why aren't these new laws aimed at the criminals? In respect to this, a terrorist bombs Istanbul, killing many people. He registered as a refugee the week before. With our refugee problem (that is way bigger and way more refugees than our fine government is disclosing), why hasn't our president jumped in and immediately made some new laws about the refugees coming in here? With his same thought process, "If we can just save one life..."

The terrorists have outwardly said they would disguise themselves as refugees; why hasn't our government laid plans to keep us safe? The liberals say, "But they are women and children," yet half the shooting crew in California was female. Oh, I forget, that doesn't fit the agenda of this president of weakening the U.S. and letting in more Muslims.

Just think about this: maybe not all Muslims are jihadists, but all jihadists are Muslim.

Shawn Wells,

Missoula
It's been an interesting couple of weeks following the land takeover in Oregon and the rising Powerball jackpot. Both seem connected by the desire for instant wealth/land. One by paying $2 and the other by using force to steal from the public.

Listening to folks interviewed about what they would do with their lottery winnings, they invariably mention buying land. The Ore-goons (the Bundys) want the land they are occupying (and for other public lands) to be sold off to other private citizens. How would we go about doing this? Have a huge nationwide lottery in which a few winners would own the Grand Canyon, Zion, Yellowstone and our other national treasures? This kind of thinking is unfathomable to me and, I believe, the large majority of Americans. We like our national forests, parks and our Bureau of Land Management lands.

Fellow Montanan Timothy Egan, in an opinion piece, says that these Ore-goons are "not far removed from a better-dressed crowd in Congress pushing for radical change in the nations public land endowment." The Bundys are using the same language as many of our Republican legislators who want to sell off our public lands to private individuals/corporations. Most of us are not able to afford our own private wildlife refuge, so we visit the unique landscapes that our government has had the foresight to set aside for all of us. We want to keep these existing public lands unencumbered with access to all. And we want these lands to be kept out of the hands of the profiteers.

Another Montanan, Gloria Flora, in her time.com opinion, called for collaboration between groups to seek a consensus of management for the common good. This kind of collaborative effort does work, as evidenced by the recent passing of the Rocky Mountain Front Heritage Act.

Bill Fordyce,

Polebridge
A Troy woman has been convicted of mailing a loaded gun to U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont.

A U.S. District Court jury in Missoula found Cathleen Roselyn Cantlon, 57, guilty of interstate mailing of a firearm and ammunition, and possession of a firearm and ammunition by a person who has been committed to a mental institution.

Cantlon faces up to 10 years in prison, and a $250,000 fine, on each count.

According to an affidavit in the case, the U.S. Capitol Police received a report from the U.S. Senate mail facility on May 18, 2015, that a suspicious package had been discovered during the mail screening process.

An X-ray image revealed the package contained a handgun, knife, and some form of liquid.

Capitol Police special agent Christopher Desrosiers said the package was addressed to Home land Security Sentoe Johns Tester at Testers Hart Senate Office Building address in Washington, D.C.

The return address was Kootenai Drug True Value in Troy. A second package with the same return address was then discovered in the mail facility.

***

Desrosiers said Capitol Police Hazardous Incident Response Division technicians responded to the facility.

They determined that the first package contained a loaded Taurus .22 handgun, a knife, pepper spray, 53 rounds of .22 caliber ammunition, a holster, a five-page handwritten letter to Tester, and other miscellaneous paper and mail.

The second package also contained miscellaneous papers, including an envelope on which someone had written Hazard Contaminated/Dirty Bomb.

The handwritten letter, addressed to Senator John Tester Homeland Security, made reference to mental health and banking issues, and to the writer receiving numerous letter bombs and toxic poison, according to Desrosiers.

He said it was signed by Cantlon, who provided a post office box number, two physical addresses for herself on U.S. Highway 2 in Troy, a cellphone number and the name another woman identified as owner of camping spot.

***

Capitol Police contacted the Lincoln County Sheriffs Office in Libby, and were told of a 2014 incident report involving Cantlon, in which two firearms  including the Taurus handgun later shipped to Tester  had been seized from the woman. The two weapons were later returned to Cantlon, the sheriffs office said.

Agents interviewed employees at the Troy drugstore where the packages were mailed from. An employee who remembered Cathy shipping them recalled telling the customer she needed to tape the boxes, and said Cantlon did not reveal she was mailing ammunition and a firearm.

Employees also reviewed surveillance video at the store that showed Cantlon mailing the packages, Desrosiers said. Tracking information located on the packages shows they processed in Libby on or about May 11, 2015, and arrived at the Senate mail facility in Landover, Maryland, on or about May 18, 2015.

***

On May 19, at the request of Capitol Police, the Lincoln County Sheriffs Office dispatched deputies to Cantlons residence to attempt an interview.

Cantlon allegedly told the deputies, Its none of your (expletive) business. Get off my property.

The affidavit said probable cause had been established to charge Cantlon with causing a package containing a firearm and ammunition to be delivered to a common carrier for transportation and shipment in interstate commerce, to persons other than licensed importers, licensed manufacturers, licensed dealers and licensed collectors, without written notice to the carrier as to what was being shipped.

Court records indicate Cantlon had been committed to a mental health facility in 2014.
I saw this piece somewhere on the internet and it got me laughing. This is totally not true!!!HAHAHA Here are few of the reasons ...
Then Mr. Waters backed up and held up his hands as if he were surrendering, only to take off running again, prosecutors said. He was stopped by Officer Holders partner a few minutes later, while Officer Holder stayed with the weapon, a white-handled .22-caliber revolver with two bullets in the cylinder.

The trouble for the prosecution is that none of the other officers involved in the chase saw the pistol in Mr. Waterss hands, and now Officer Holder cannot testify. Mr. Waterss lawyer, Gurmeet Singh, has asked Justice Charles H. Solomon of State Supreme Court in Manhattan to exclude the weapon from evidence, which would cripple the case.

On Thursday, Justice Solomon heard testimony from other officers at a hearing. Officer Holders partner, Javish Acevedo, said he and Officer Holder got a call from a supervisor, Sgt. Christopher Giannetti, directing them to intercept Mr. Waters, who was walking along 104th Street near Park Avenue with two other people.

Officer Acevedo said he recognized Mr. Waters, whom he had arrested a few months earlier and who had been charged with gun possession. He said Mr. Waters spotted the officers and started walking away quickly, his hand in his jacket pocket, pressing something to his waistband.

The officer drove his patrol car up on a curb and cut off Mr. Waters, who turned and ran, with Officer Holder in pursuit. A few minutes later, Officer Acevedo said he caught Mr. Waters inside the next building, 50 East 104th Street. Then Officer Holder arrived and said he had recovered a gun.
An international court on Thursday sentenced a leading Kosovo Serb politician, Oliver Ivanovic, to nine years in prison for war crimes against ethnic Albanian civilians. Judges of the European Unions justice mission in Kosovo found Mr. Ivanovic guilty of the murder and torture of civilians in 1999 during Kosovos war for independence from Serbia when Serb paramilitary forces attacked ethnic Albanians. The judges said Mr. Ivanovic was a member of a paramilitary group that chased ethnic Albanians from the Serb-controlled part of the town of Mitrovica and then tortured and killed at least four of them. Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008. Serbia and Kosovo Serbs do not recognize the split.
I can speak to him, in any given week, a few times, Mr. Prieto said of the governor. Or it can go a few weeks or a month that I have not had a conversation.

On the most difficult legislative issues, Mr. Prieto said personal interaction was essential. Im a people person, he said. Im not a phone guy.

In Mr. Christies absence, legislative leaders said two of his top aides had been deputized to act as his proxies: Regina Egea, the chief of staff, and Thomas P. Scrivo, the chief counsel.

Ms. Guadagnos role as acting governor appears strictly limited. She has signed only nine pieces of legislation, all of them uncontroversial, since the start of Mr. Christies presidential campaign, according to the administrations website. Those measures included one regulating veterinary clinics and others related to the beekeeping industry.

Jon M. Bramnick, the Republican leader in the State Assembly, said Mr. Christie remained in frequent contact while campaigning, returning phone calls and text messages within seconds, unless hes in the middle of a speech.

New Jersey Democrats, Mr. Bramnick said, had become less and less cooperative with Mr. Christie and more eager to undercut him during the presidential race.

Running for president is really, really hard, and somebodys got to do it, he said. Weve got a governor from New Jersey whos willing to do that, and I think that is something we should respect.
The governor of Michigan said on Friday that race was not a factor in the states response to lead contamination in the drinking water in Flint, a poor, majority-black city where the supply has been tainted for more than a year, but for much of that time, state officials insisted that it was safe to drink.

Later in the day, Gov. Rick Snyder suspended two environmental regulators over their roles in the crisis.

Mr. Snyder was asked Friday morning on MSNBC whether Flint residents were victims of environmental racism, and he replied, Absolutely not.
The Butte-Silver Bow County zoning board of adjustment voted 6-0 Thursday night to grant a variance allowing a four-building, 90-unit apartment complex to be built near Montana Tech.

The variance request, from Digger-Digs LLC, was to build the complex in an area zoned single-family residential. The area is the north side of the 1400 block of West Granite, across the street from the Tech campus.

The proposed complex would feature three four-story buildings and one three-story building. It would span three and a half acres along Granite Street between May and Ophir streets and would offer students two- and three-bedroom apartments in addition to off-street parking.

The 2.5-hour zoning board meeting spurred lots of discussion from Butte landlords who have rental properties around town and Montana Tech supporters.

Those who spoke in favor of the apartment complex included Montana Tech Chancellor Don Blackketter, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Doug Abbott, professor Mary North-Abbott, and Butte resident Tom Downey.

All four said they felt the apartment complex would help the universitys efforts to increase enrollment. They described the rental market around Tech as one where students struggle to find safe, affordable housing. The lack of housing, said the supporters, stands as an impediment to the universitys growth.

According to Blackketter, Techs housing shortage discourages students from attending the university. He said that Tech only has 238 beds for its 2,945 students and that the university has had to turn away foreign exchange students who are required to live on campus.

By building the 90-unit apartment complex, Blackketter said, the university would be better equipped to meet its goals for expansion. He also added that the project is totally a private endeavor not formally affiliated with the university and that no university official stands to gain financially from the complex.

Abbott echoed Blackketters sentiments and added that in March the university will unveil new programs that he hopes will help the university grow.

Meanwhile, those who spoke against the zoning variance raised doubts about whether the zoning board analysis sufficiently proved that the apartment complex would not have an adverse impact on traffic and noise.

But by far the greatest concern expressed by the dissenters, who mostly consisted of landlords, was the potential impact on the rental market.

At least three of the dissenters said that a competitive rental market has not been their experience. To the contrary, several of the landlords said that their rental properties stay on the market for weeks at a time.

Mike Riley said he owns six student rentals, four of which are vacant. Gary Dryden, owner of Dryden Properties, said his $575 apartments often stay on the market for as long as six weeks. The two both expressed a concern that putting 90 units on the market would make filling their vacancies all the more difficult.

Robert Edwards of Silver Bow Property Management also spoke during the hearing. He said he worries the complex will discourage people from investing in Butte. According to Edwards, hes been fielding calls from investors who have just been freaked out over this. He also said granting the variance would equate to a slippery slope in which more zoning variances will be granted to developers in the future.

Can you say yes to him but no to the next guy? Edwards asked the board.

Despite these concerns, board members were optimistic about the Granite Street Apartments project.

Zoning board member Julie Jaksha reassured the dissenting landlords that you will still own your properties here and said that profits from the apartment complex would trickle down into the local economy.

Board member Rocko Mulcahy recalled a time in Buttes past when arguing whether an apartment complex was too big or whether a construction project was moving too fast would have seemed impossible. He said that the argument was a good problem to have and called the project forward thinking.

Terry Holzwarth, owner of Digger-Digs, also spoke at the hearing.

We are committed to providing a good construction project to the people of Butte, said Holzwarth.

Originally from Townsend, Holzwarth is a Billings resident and Montana Tech graduate who is married to a Butte girl. According to Techs website, Holzwarth is also a board member of the Montana Tech Foundation.

In the end, those in favor of the apartment complex won out and the variance was passed. Digger-Digs must now submit building plans to the zoning board in order to fulfill certain conditions of the variance. If their plans are accepted, they will be issued a building permit. The company hopes to start construction some time in 2016.

Zoning board members also voting to grant the variance Thursday were John Habeger, Dolores Cooney, Tyler Shaffer and Dave Wing.

About 30 people attended the meeting. If all goes as planned, construction on the complex could begin this year.
A 36-year-old Butte man arraigned on felony charges for selling methamphetamine to an undercover informant pleaded not guilty in Butte district court Thursday.

Phillip Michael Pratt was arrested Dec. 12, 2015, after a Butte-Silver Bow police officer saw him on the 700 block of South Montana Street and recognized him as wanted on a $100,000 warrant for felony criminal distribution of dangerous drugs, according to court documents.

Pratt was found with a small plastic bag containing a clear, crystal-like substance, which the officer suspected was meth. County prosecutors charged him with felony criminal possession of dangerous drugs.

In a charging document filed last week, County Attorney Eileen Joyce accused Pratt of two counts of felony criminal distribution of dangerous drugs in connection with selling meth to an undercover officer on two separate occasions outside a Butte casino in January 2013.

Pratt is being held at the Butte-Silver Bow Detention Center on $110,000 bond. His court-appointed attorney asked that Pratt be released on his own recognizance, which Deputy County Attorney Ann Shea opposed, citing police found him with meth when he was arrested on a warrant.

Judge Brad Newman set a bail hearing for Monday.

Pratt is accused of selling meth to an undercover informant as part of a drug sting operation by the Southwest Montana Drug Task Force and Butte law enforcement two years ago, an affidavit states.

Both transactions  one on Jan. 17, 2013, and the other a week later  were made at night outside the casino. Quantities of 7.3 grams and 7.4 grams of meth were sold by Pratt, who was paid $750 for each sale, according to the affidavit.

The money was provided by the Montana Division of Criminal Investigation.

During the second transaction on Jan. 24, the affidavit states that Pratt told an undercover agent that he could provide larger quantities of methamphetamine in the future.
FISTICUFFS

Police are investigating a fight between a 22-year-old Butte man and two other men about 8 p.m. Thursday on the 900 block of Evans Avenue. The man suffered a possible concussion and was not making sense when treated at St. James Healthcare. The man reported that he had attempted to see his child at her mothers residence when the womans brother and another male arrived.

ARGUING IN TRAFFIC

Brice Babcock and Randy James, both 24 and of Butte, were arrested on misdemeanor criminal contempt warrants issued in Butte city court shortly after midnight Friday on the 1700 block of Harrison Avenue. Police say the men were arguing in the middle of the southbound lane of traffic.

NO, THEY'RE MINE

John Eric Fix, 37, was arrested after police say he was yelling and screaming at another male at the Butte Rescue Mission, 1204 E. Second St., about 10 p.m. Thursday. Police asked him to calm down and leave the area, at which time Fix hurled profanities at police.

The two men allegedly argued over a pair of headphones that did not belong to Fix. He resisted arrest at the shelter and attempted to kick out the windows in the patrol car. He is facing misdemeanor charges of resisting arrest and disorderly conduct.

TANK THEFT

Five 15-pound propane tanks were stolen from Three Bears Alaska, 45 Three Bears Dr., between Wednesday night and early Thursday. A lock was cut on an exterior unit that stored the tanks. Each tank was valued at about $47.

WANTED MAN

Aaron Hunt, 25, was arrested on a violation of release condition after police recognized the homeless man about 1 p.m. Thursday in the area of Utah Avenue and First Street.

VANDALISM

Several plastic panels were reportedly removed from the bus stop at Mural Park on Park Street and used as sleds by four to six individuals Thursday afternoon. The sledders were gone when police arrived.
The CINEMAtech Film Series, a new initiative at Montana Tech, will host a free screening of Chantal Akermans La Captive at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 26, in the Tech library auditorium. The 2000 film is the first of four screenings to be held throughout the spring semester.

Described as one of the boldest cinematic visionaries of the past quarter century, the feminist filmmaker, who died in October, takes a personal and idiosyncratic approach to the form, using it to investigate geography and identity, space and time, sexuality and religion.

CINEMAtech is the brainchild of Isabel Sobral Campos, assistant professor of liberal studies at Montana Tech. Campos seeks to hold screenings of international art cinema once a month during the academic year. She is a specialist in comparative literature, including film and contemporary American poetry. She moved here last semester from New York City

I want to show films that people would not necessarily see otherwise. But I dont want to screen just anything that doesnt adhere to mainstream expectations. I want to show some of the best work ever done in this incredible medium. If were showing it, Campos insists, you can be sure its worth seeing.

All screenings are free. Upcoming films include:

Feb. 16: Late Spring, directed by Yasujiro Ozu (1949)

March 29: Man With a Movie Camera, directed by Dziga Vertov (1929)

April 26: Black Girl, directed by Ousmane Sembene (1966)
Idaho Department of Fish and Game officials intend to monitor four wolves they improperly radio-collared in the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness during an elk research project.

The only way to remove those collars would be to go back in with helicopters, IDFG spokesman Mike Keckler said Thursday. And were reviewing what happened  taking another look at our procedures to prevent this sort of thing from happening again.

The four wolves were collared between Jan. 7 and 9 when IDFG used helicopters to capture 30 adult elk cows and 30 calves for a population study in the wilderness area. On Wednesday, Salmon-Challis National Forest Supervisor Chuck Mark issued a notice of noncompliance to IDFG for exceeding the limits of a special use permit to fly helicopters for the elk project.

The notice of noncompliance ordered IDFG to explain how it had decided to collar wolves in violation of the permit conditions and to discuss ways of avoiding future mistakes. It did not ask the state to remove the wolf collars.

A coalition of environmental groups that had sued the U.S. Forest Service in order to block the permit has amended its complaint to address the wolf collaring. Its main argument challenges the Forest Services decision to allow helicopter flights for wildlife management in federal wilderness, where agencies are supposed to use the minimal tools necessary to preserve wilderness character.

Weve asked at a minimum that Idaho be prohibited from using any data from those collars for its removal program, lead attorney Tim Presso said Thursday. They have a predation management program that calls for 60 percent removal of the wolf population in the Middle Fork area. Now we understand they have multiple packs with collared wolves, and that gives them the ability to locate a large number of wolves. We think thats fundamentally incompatible with wilderness.

Keckler said two capture teams with helicopters were involved in the elk project. One of the teams did not understand that the Forest Service permit was limited to elk captures only, he said.

In general when our guys are up in the air, if they encounter a species they want to put a collar on, they do it, Keckler said. They saw some wolves and put collars on them. We have apologized for that.

Idaho currently has 75 wolves with radio collars in its statewide monitoring program, Keckler said. Its also in the process of collaring more than 400 elk in eight areas of the state. Montana currently has 25 radio-collared wolves.

The elk population in the Middle Fork between 2002 and 2011 has dropped by 43 percent, Keckler said. By placing the collars, it gives us fresh data on the population. If one stops moving because the animal dies, we can go in and retrieve the collar and determine the cause of death. Overall, the elk population in Idaho is rebounding, but in some places its not. The wilderness is one of those areas.
WASHINGTON (AP)  In what environmentalists hailed as a victory for efforts to curb climate change, an appeals panel in Washington on Thursday rebuffed efforts to delay enforcement of President Barack Obama's plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions until legal challenges are resolved.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued an order denying requests for a stay that would have barred the Environmental Protection Agency from implementing the Clean Power Plan.

The plan has been challenged by more than two dozen mostly Republican-led states and allied business and industry groups tied to fossil fuels. The states deride the carbon-cutting plan as an "unlawful power grab" that will kill coal-mining jobs and drive up electricity costs.

Thursday's order allows federal regulation of carbon emissions pending the court's review of the case, set for June 2.

Attorney General Tim Fox said in a statement Thursday, "It's unfortunate that the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals denied the states' motion for a stay on the EPA's carbon regulations. I am, however, pleased that the court agreed with the states that the case should be expedited. The 28 states and broad coalition of groups that have filed suit against the regulations are considering petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court for a stay, which would prevent businesses, state agencies, ratepayers, and energy workers from bearing the burden of regulations that we believe will be overturned ultimately."

Obama press secretary Josh Earnest said the White House was pleased with the decision.

"We are confident that the plan will reduce carbon pollution and deliver better air quality, improved public health, and jobs across the country," Earnest said. "We look forward to continuing to work with states and other stakeholders taking steps to implement the Clean Power Plan."

West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, whose state is heavily reliant on coal mining, said his office will consider urging the U.S. Supreme Court to halt what he termed the "ongoing, irreversible harm" caused by the new federal regulations.

Implementation of the rules is considered essential to the United States meeting emissions-reduction targets in a global climate agreement signed in Paris last month. The Obama administration and environmental groups also say the plan will spur new clean-energy jobs.

The federal plan aims to stave off the worst predicted impacts of climate change by reducing carbon dioxide emissions at existing power plants by about one-third by 2030. The plan also encourages further development of alternative energy sources such as wind and solar by further ratcheting down any emissions allowed from new coal-fired power plants.
Anaconda Road massacre Brown Bag topic

The Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives, 17 W. Quartz St., will continue its Brown Bag Lunch series at noon Wednesday, Jan. 27, with a presentation by Julie Crowley titled The Anaconda Road Massacre.

The lecture will explore eyewitness testimony provided in the coroners inquest into the murder of Thomas Manning which occurred during the April 21, 1920, massacre. On the fourth day of the strike called by the IWW, Anaconda Copper Mining Co. guards faced up to 500 strikers on the Road and opened fire on the crowd of unarmed strikers, shooting 16 men in the back and murdering Manning.

Crowley, a Butte native, grew up on the Anaconda Road and has a bachelor's degree in communications.

Upcoming lectures include the Spanish flu epidemic, the 30th anniversary of Our Lady of the Rockies, the Easter Rising in Ireland in 1916, and the Boulder Batholith as well as other topics of local interest. Details: 406-782-3280.

Bingo event benefits Catholic churches

A bingo fundraiser to benefit St. John the Evangelist Church and St. Joseph Church will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 31, at the Knights of Columbus, 224 W. Park St.

Prizes will be given away. The cost is $5 for three cards for 10 regular games and $2 for a card for three special games.

LAOH to celebrate St. Brigids Day

ANACONDA  Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians will celebrate St. Brigid's Day Sunday, Feb. 7, with a mass at 8:30 a.m. at St. Peters Church. A brunch will follow at the Haufbrau.

The cost is $11.50. Reservations and payment are due to Patty Ungaretti, 406-563-2351, by Feb. 2. Members may bring guests and should wear their vests and sashes.

Kiwanis coupon book now available

The Butte Sunrise Kiwanis members are selling their 2016 Dining and More coupon booklets. This years proceeds go to fund the Bring Up Grades programs that is held in all of Buttes elementary schools.

The booklet is valued at well over $300 and sells for only $20. The booklet can be purchased at Leisure Way Barbershop or by calling 406-491-2530.
By corporate standards, the job of a Montana state legislator is not a great gig.

Among the drawbacks are the long hours, which are apparent during the legislative session held once every two years but extend far beyond that.

One of the factors that separates good legislators from great ones is the amount of time they spend working for their constituents. Many serve on various committees throughout the year, and all of them should take time regularly to meet with the people they serve in their home districts and throughout the state to identify and implement solutions to their concerns.

And because of Montanas citizen-Legislature structure, most of the legislators have full-time jobs in addition to their responsibilities as elected officials. That means much of a legislators duties are completed during the discretionary time that others use to unwind with friends and family.

Public scrutiny is another downside to the job.

In politics, unlike in the corporate world, a persons job performance has very little to do with his or her evaluation. And regardless of what legislators accomplish, they should expect harsh criticism from individual constituents, organizations, the media and the opposing political party.

And did we mention the lousy pay?

Most legislators earn $82.64 per day during the legislative session or while engaged in other authorized legislative business. They get some other perks too -- such as mileage, expenses and insurance benefits -- but their compensation is hardly comparable to what they could earn for the same amount of work in the private sector.

With all of that said, we hope to see a lot more candidates file for Montanas legislative positions up for election this year before the filing deadline of 5 p.m. March 14.

We are pointing out the disadvantages of serving in the Legislature not to discourage anyone from running, but in hopes that it will encourage people to run for the right reasons.

We want the candidates to know that if they want to become a Montana state legislator for fame, fortune or recognition, they should probably just bow out of the race right now. If their goal is to make a meaningful difference in the lives of everyday Montanans, however, the role of a state legislator might be one of the best opportunities there is.

Montanans need legislators who can find and implement ways to address issues like the states crumbling infrastructure, growing fire danger and reliance on nonrenewable fossil fuels. On a local level, we need leaders who are passionate about finding adequate care for residents of the soon-to-be-shuttered Montana Developmental Center and protecting the states monetary and cultural investment in the Montana Historical Societys collection.

There are no easy solutions to many of the issues facing our state, as evidenced by the many times past legislatures have tried and failed.

But much can be accomplished by good legislators working for the right reasons, and we encourage anyone up to the task to get their hat in the ring.

-- Helena Independent Record
Discussion was held with Muscatine County Historic Preservation Commission Chairperson Lynn Pruitt regarding an Iowa Grant-in-Aid Agreement for a CLG Muscatine County Historic Jail pre-development project. Pruitt stated the upper level would be for storage of records with the lower level having historic displays. Bonebrake asked if there could be a better suited building because this building is only in fair condition. Pruitt stated they considered this building because it was already there and they had a need for a place to store historic documents. Bonebrake stated the heating/cooling of a building for storage of historic documents is an added cost the County does not need and a waste of taxpayer money. Budget Coordinator Sherry Seright stated the purpose of the grant is to bring out a consultant to make recommendations of potential use. Sorensen stated it could be really expensive to renovate that building. Bonebrake stated the County has put a fair amount of money into that building and would have to tear out some of what they have done to make the building handicap accessible. In response to a question from Howard, Pruitt stated they have not identified potential donors yet because they are just in the process of evaluating the building and for the handicap accessibility they only intend to make the main floor handicap accessible which would require a ramp. Seright stated there are grants available for renovating historic structures. Sauer stated the County never should have installed the geothermal heat pumps in the basement of that building and it will be a money pit that will continue to cost the County residents. Bonebrake feels there are other more suitable buildings and he does not know why someone would want to store documents in a historic building when the second floor will not be accessible to the public. Sorensen stated a part of the pre-development project will be to determine whether the building is a good fit for display and storage of documents. Howard stated he is not looking at it as a storage place, but the County has been putting money into maintaining it as a historical building and the Board needs to decide whether or not to continue to maintain it. Bonebrake stated he is not saying the County should not maintain the building, but he has no interest in using any part of that building for storage. Sorensen stated the reality is the building is registered as a National Historic building and with that comes strings. Sorensen stated the grant is an investment to look at the options for the building. Pruitt stated the grant will allow them to decide whether this is a good fit or if there is another option. On a motion by Kelly, second by Howard, the Chair was authorized to execute Contract No. 2016-06 State Historical Society of Iowa Grant-In-Aid Agreement for a CLG Muscatine County Historic Jail pre-development project in the amount of a $15,000.00 grant with a $5,600 cash match and a $5,000 in-kind match for a total project cost of $25,600.00. Ayes: Kelly, Howard and Sorensen. Nays: Sauer and Bonebrake.
The Muscatine County Zoning Commission will conduct a public hearing on Friday, February 5, 2016, starting at 10 a.m. in the Board of Supervisors Office, Muscatine County Administration Building, 414 E. 3rd St., Muscatine, Iowa to discuss the following:

Zoning Agenda Item #01. All Star Storage LLC by Devin Warner, Record Owner, requests approval to rezone this property from A-1 Agricultural District to C-2 Commercial District in order to have rental mini storage on this property. This property is located in Fulton Township, 3468 Hwy. 927, Durant, in the NE of Sec. 6-T78N-R1E, South of Hwy. 927 and West of Verde Avenue, containing approximately 3.30 acres and is currently zoned A-1 Agricultural District.

Zoning Agenda Item #02. W & H LLC by Dana Wells and Ryan Hagerty, Record Owners, request approval to rezone a portion of their property from C-1 Commercial District to R-3 Residential District. This property is located in Moscow Township, 1159 Moscow Road, Lot 1, and W of Lot 2, Block 11, Moscow, containing approximately 0.32 acres and is currently zoned C-1 Commercial District. The Record Owners are proposing to rezone the E of Lot 1 and the W of Lot 2, Block 11, Moscow, containing approximately 0.20 acres from C-1 Commercial District to R-3 Residential District.

Any interested party may attend said hearing to express their views or correspond with us in time for the hearing.

MUSCATINE COUNTY

ZONING COMMISSION

By Eric S. Furnas, Planning &

Zoning Administrator

Muscatine County Building ~

Zoning ~ Environmental Office

3610 Park Avenue West

Muscatine  IA  52761

Telephone 5632630482

FAX 5632884338
MUSCATINE, Iowa  The Jan. 15 shooting of a suspect by a Muscatine County Sheriff's Deputy has been ruled a "lawful" action by Muscatine County Attorney Alan Ostergren.

The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation conducted an investigation into the shooting of Timothy Seefeldt, 41, of Muscatine, by Deputy Eddie Cardenas. Seefeldt allegedly stole a 2008 Hummer H3 from downtown Muscatine about 10 p.m. Friday, Jan. 15.

The DCI investigation showed that Seefeldt was the operator of a Hummer H3 which had been reported stolen. Cardenas located the H3 about 10:30 p.m. on U.S. Highway 61 and attempted a traffic stop. He was assisted by Muscatine Police Officer Anthony Arnaman. Seefeldt attempted to elude law enforcement but the pursuit ended quickly when Seefeldt drove into the parking lot of Pearl City Inn/Best Western, 305 Cleveland Ave., which was a dead end, according to a statement by Ostergren.

Despite being stopped, Seefeldt refused to obey Deputy Cardenass commands, according to authorities. He abruptly placed the vehicle in reverse and backed up, striking Cardenass patrol car with the front door of the Hummer.

Cardenas perceived this action as threatening, both to himself and to Officer Arnaman, according to Ostergren's statement. Cardenas shot at Seefeldt in response to the threat. Seefeldt then struck four parked cars in the hotel parking lot before stopping again. Cardenas fired his weapon again when he believed that Seefeldt was placing the vehicle in drive in order to move forward toward him.

I have considered the application of Iowa law to the actions of Deputy Cardenas. A person is permitted to use force, including deadly force, to prevent or resist an imminent threat of death or injury to himself or to another. Deputy Cardenass actions were reasonable based upon the threat presented by Seefeldts actions. I therefore find that the shooting of Seefeldt by Deputy Cardenas was lawful," Ostergren wrote in a statement released Thursday.

Seefeldt sustained a non-life threatening gunshot wound to the upper torso. He was later transported to Trinity Hospital-Muscatine then to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City. He left the hospital against medical advice.

I would like to emphasize that I do not merely find Deputy Cardenass actions to meet the minimum standards imposed by the law. In my view he acted bravely during this incident. He was motivated primarily by a desire to protect a fellow officer and the public in general. His actions and demeanor during this incident were in the finest traditions of Iowa law enforcement," Ostergren stated.

Muscatine County Sheriff C.J. Ryan also issued a statement on the matter.

I have reviewed Deputy Cardenass actions in regard to departmental policy on the use of force. I find that Deputy Cardenass actions were in compliance with all applicable policies. I share the view that Deputy Cardenas acted bravely during this incident. A motor vehicle can be just as dangerous as a gun or knife. Deputy Cardenas acted decisively to end the threat. I am proud of him," Ryan stated.

Criminal charges against Seefeldt are pending.
WAPELLO, Iowa  Another day and another three proposed Fiscal Year 2017 budgets were reviewed Thursday by the Louisa County Board of Supervisors. The board reviewed three budget proposals Wednesday and examined the county attorney, zoning and veterans affairs anticipated spending plans on Thursday.

County attorney Adam Parsons presented his proposed $212,271 spending plan, which would be slightly over $11,000 higher than this years budget. While around $1,400 in new spending would cover cellphone reimbursements for Parsons and his two assistants, most of the additional spending would go toward salary increases.

Although the supervisors have not settled on any final salary increases for county officials or staff, they did not reduce Parsons proposed 5.5% increase for his department.

They pointed out Parsons and his entire staff works part-time and often spend longer hours on the job than a normal part-time position.

Parsons said he felt the increase was justified.

If I thought (the increase) was violating the public trust, I would not recommend it, he said.

On the revenue side, Parsons said assistant county attorney Julian West was continuing to operate a successful delinquent fines program. According to Parsons, $43,700 was collected last year and his office would likely exceed that amount this year.

The majority of the collection goes to the state of Iowa, but 40% is returned to Louisa County. Once a $25,000 threshold is reached, the county attorneys office can directly receive a small amount. Parsons budgeted $1,700 in revenue from that source.

County zoning administrator Greg Johnson also appeared before the board to go over his proposed $28,143 budget for FY17. The zoning budget for this year is $27,252.

Johnson said most of the increase was tied to salary hikes, although there was also a small boost for paper and other office supplies.

He also reminded the board that he would be retiring in about one year and a new administrator would have to be hired. Johnson said he had asked another county employee about interest in the job and would continue to discuss it.

He said having a person available throughout the day would be important.

I think the public would get frustrated if they came in and couldnt get (permits), he said.

Although the zoning office collects permit fees, officials said the amount varies too much to be accurately estimated. Instead, they said the revenue is added in as part of a larger anticipated revenue pool in another part of the county budget.

The final FY17 budget proposal reviewed by the supervisors was for the Louisa County Veterans Affairs (VA) office. VA director Andy Beaver presented a $44,415 spending proposal, which would be about $1,700 above this years anticipated spending.

Beaver said he had included a 12% salary hike in the proposal, which he based on a salary survey of other comparable counties. The Louisa County Veterans Affairs Commission had already approved the increase, which would boost his annual salary from $19,500 to $21,840 for the part-time position.

Most of the remaining budget proposal either stayed about the same or was reduced. Beaver showed $10,000 in revenue from a state allocation.

The supervisors are expected to continue reviewing proposals next week. A final budget is not likely to be approved until sometime in March.
WEST LIBERTY, Iowa  Congressman Dave Loebsack announced on Friday that he will continue his Coffee with Your Congressman tour, including a stop in West Liberty on Saturday, Jan. 23.

Loebsack will mingle with local patrons to chat one-on-one and hear directly from Iowans. The Coffee with Your Congressman tour will make periodic stops throughout Iowas Second District. The event is open to the public and media.

Loebsack will be at Local Grounds, 105 W. Third St. in West Liberty, at 9:30 a.m. Jan. 23.
MUSCATINE, Iowa  Residents filled the lower level of the Muscatine City Council chambers and occupied space in the balcony to show their support for repealing the city's pit bull ban.

Eight people spoke in favor the repeal, one against and another attacked the character of the person who started the petition.

Paige Sours, who started the petition to repeal the ordinance that went into effect Aug. 1, 2003, started the conversation during citizen communication  the time on the city council agenda for members of the public to bring up items not specifically on the agenda.

She started with a hypothetical situation: The owner of a Ford Taurus drives drunk and damages a car or hits a person. Do you punish the person or ban Ford Taurus cars?

We need to be looking at the other end of the leash, Sours said, relating it back to pit bulls.

She then read the ordinance, noting the description listed for banned breeds, it includes any dog which has the appearance and characteristics of being predominantly of the breeds of Staffordshire terrier, American pit bull terrier, or American Staffordshire terrier.

With that being said, the ordinance refers all dogs, Sours said.

She said there are many dogs that have features similar to the pit bull that are not banned from Muscatine City limits. She read the American Kennel Clubs description of a bully breed: Medium length; dark, round eyes set farther apart; medium muzzle; and fairly short.

It would be almost impossible to ban every breed on the bully breed list that had pit-bull like features without banning every single dog, Sours said.

Sours proposed an ordinance that cracked down more on aggressive dogs, judged by their history of behavior rather than just their breed.

Sours was backed up by fellow pit bull supporters.

Sarah Peters read a statistic that 86.6 percent of pit bulls passed the temperament test by the American Temperament Test Society. The Journal could not find test results specifically for a pit bull at atts.org, but found that a test of the Staffordshire Bull Terrier  specifically mentioned in Muscatines ordinance and commonly associated as the pit bull breed  had 117 of 129 (90.7 percent) pass the test.

The test simulates a casual walk through a park or neighborhood where everyday life situations are encountered. During this walk, the dog experiences visual, auditory and tactile stimuli. Neutral, friendly and threatening situations are encountered, calling into play the dogs ability to distinguish between non-threatening situations and those calling for watchful and protective reactions, it states on atts.org.

Breed discriminatory legislation is completely ineffective in purpose, Peters said.

Peters then read information she found on the Center for Disease Controls website: Because of difficulties inherent in determining a dogs breed with certainty, enforcement of breed-specific ordinances raises constitutional and practical issues. Fatal attacks represent a small proportion of dog bite injuries to humans and, therefore, should not be the primary factor driving public policy concerning dangerous dogs

The Journal was able to verify this statement on the CDC website, which notes several statistics on dog bite deaths from 1979 until 1998. In that data, 66 of 238 (27.73 percent) human dog bite-related fatalities were from pit bull-type breeds. However, that was the single highest breed, second on the list was Rottweiler with 39 total. This is a death-based approach to calculating statistics instead of a dog-based approach, which shows 118 of 440 (26.8 percent) deaths from pit bulls.

John Meyer stayed away from statistics and gave an emotional argument, noting hes owned three pit bulls before.

We know more about a dog than we ever have as a society, Meyer said. We know they have feelings. They cry, they love, theyre jealous. Right?

To which many in the audience audibly agreed.

Same as a human, Meyer said. Were not banning people for their religions and stuff like that. Why are we doing this for dogs? They have personalities just like we do.

Keep the ban

But there was opposition to the crowd. Kerry Denison was the lone person who spoke against the pit bull breed, wanting the city to retain its ban.

Denison provided a rebuttal against Sours car analogy.

Were not going to let people drive tanks down the street, OK, Denison pointed out. A pit bull is a different thing than a beagle, OK.

Denison also provided his own statistics from dogsbite.org. From 2005 to 2014, pit bulls killed 203 Americans and accounted for 62 percent of the total reported deaths (326 total) from dog bits, Denison cited from the website.

Im glad you guys love your pit bulls. Im glad you have a good experience with them, Denison said. Its not a matter of whether theyll bite, its a matter of what they do when they do bite.

Dustin Trimble spoke immediately after Denison. He refuted Denisons information, saying the dogsbite.org website is known for inflating numbers and has been debunked by many people. The Journal searched this and found several websites claiming to debunk the site but they were mostly blog sites by individuals or groups in favor of pit bull bans. The Journal could not verify Denisons figures by press time.

How it started

Sours started the petition after the city gave notice to her and Josh Hunn, her boyfriend, that their dog, Sissy, violated the citys pit bull ban.

The final person to speak on the issue was Shannon Aguirre, Sours and Hunns next door neighbor. She said their dogs aggressive behavior has been ongoing since October.

We thought we were being nice neighbors, Aguirre said about why she didnt report it then.

But she said after repeated incidents, she finally called police this month to report it. She showed the Journal photos of her dogs injuries. She has a cockapoo, miniature pincher/Jack Russell terrier mix and English bulldog. Hunn and Sours have a Labrador in addition to Sissy.

She said shes not anti-pit bull but had to do something to protect her dogs.

They say theyre not aggressive  theyre absolutely aggressive, Aguirre told the council. The deeds continue to happen.

Sours mantra has been blame the deed not the breed.

Police Chief Brett Talkington confirmed police have responded to such instances at those residences on Green Street. Neither neighbor has a fenced in yard. Aguirre said the instances have happened when the dogs are off leash. Sometimes its been by accident when theyre off leash and sometimes there was no effort to keep dogs on leash.

Not over

Councilmen Phil Fitzgerald, Allen Harvey and Bob Bynum said they would not want the ordinance to be a discussion item on a future agenda. Santos Saucedo said he would like to see it on a future agenda and Scott Natvig said possibly. Councilmen Tom Spread and Michael Rehwaldt were absent.

Sours said shell return to the council to continue pressing the issue and remember their actions come election. Someone in the hall cried out that reminder as they exited the meeting.

Hunn said the ordinance is biased. He referred to one of the instances with the neighbor, saying three dogs were involved: a lab, a bulldog and a pit bull, and a pit bull was made to leave.

Arrangements have been made with a friend of Sours and Hunn to take Sissy to Hunns mother in Las Vegas in February.
Unpack your old tie-dyed T-shirts, roll yourself a fat doobie and warm up the ancient VW bus. We're going to do Woodstock and the 1972 presidential election all over again. And this time, the hippies are going to win! Four years of peace, love, and single-payer health care.

But do take care to clear the path for Bernie Sanders. Because if he steps in something the dog left behind, he's going to blame Wall Street and start yelling and waving his arms around.

And you know how much that upsets Republican congressmen who are otherwise so eager to oblige his plans to soak the rich and give everybody free college, free health care, free Bubble Up and rainbow stew, as the old Merle Haggard song had it.

OK, so I'm being a smart aleck. I was moved to satire by a couple of moments from last week's Democratic and Republican presidential debates. First, Sen. Sanders, boasting about a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll that shows him beating Donald Trump by 15 points at 54 to 39 (Hillary Clinton tops Trump only 51-41).

Both would be huge landslides. In 1972, Richard Nixon defeated George McGovern 61-38. The Democrat won only Massachusetts.

The part Sanders left out and that Hillary was also wise enough to leave unmentioned is that the same poll shows her leading him 59 to 34 percent in the Democratic contest nationally. Twenty-five points.

She'd have to be a fool to take that to the bank, although it does demonstrate why a lot of the racehorse commentary has it upside-down. See, unless Bernie manages to prevail in the Iowa caucuses, his campaign pretty much goes on life support. A New Englander nearly always wins in New Hampshire, and rarely goes anywhere after that.

Almost needless to say, all polls are individually suspect. Also, the national media gives far more play to surveys depicting a close contest. They're better for journalists' careers.

That would be true even if you didn't know that bringing Hillary Clinton down has been an obsessive quest in Washington and New York newsrooms for 24 years.

During most of which time it's been, "Bernie who?" That Vermont socialist who's all the time yelling? That guy?

Yeah, him. The guy with the Brooklyn accent and the Wacky Prof look who says "billionaire" the way some people say "ebola."

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

The same guy Ohio Gov. John Kasich boldly predicted would lose all 50 states if Democrats were foolish enough to nominate him.

Actually, I'm confident Sanders would carry Vermont and probably Massachusetts against any Republican nominee. New Hampshire and Maine could be out of reach.

Even against Trump? Well theoretical matchups mean next to nothing this far out. Also, I suspect that Bernie's big advantage  hard for politically active readers to believe  is that most voters know almost nothing about him. Only that he's neither Hillary nor The Donald.

I also suspect that a Trump vs. Sanders matchup would bring a serious third-party challenge. Anyway, let the GOP attack machine get to work on Sanders and I'm guessing we'd soon learn that there's no great yearning among the electorate for socialism  democratic or not.

Did you know, for example, that Sanders took a honeymoon trip to the Soviet Union in 1988? George Will does.

Does that make him disloyal? Of course not, merely a bit of a crank. As Sanders loyalists are quick to remind you, President Reagan went to Moscow to negotiate nuclear arms reductions with Gorbachev that year.

Anyway, as a personal matter, I got my fill of Marxist faculty lounge lizards back in the tie-dyed, VW bus era. Disagree, and you're an immoral sellout. That gets old really fast.

Writing in Washington Monthly, David Atkins does a manful job of trying to explain away a Gallup poll showing that while 38 percent of Americans say they'd never vote for a Muslim president, and 40 percent wouldn't support an atheist, fully 50 percent said no socialists need apply.

Can Bernie persuade them otherwise?

I don't see how. Most Americans don't actually hate the rich, and his despairing portrait of contemporary American life doesn't square with most people's experiences.

"Against these liabilities," writes Jonathan Chait, "Sanders offers the left-wing version of a hoary political fantasy: that a more pure candidate can rally the People into a righteous uprising that would unsettle the conventional laws of politics."

Meanwhile, not only has Sanders presented no realistic political scenario for enacting his vaunted reforms, serious observers also question their substance.

Liberal MVP Paul Krugman:

"To be harsh but accurate: the Sanders health plan looks a little bit like a standard Republican tax-cut plan, which relies on fantasies about huge supply-side effects to make the numbers supposedly add up."

During the recent debate, Bernie accused Hillary of failing to take his candidacy seriously. Fair enough. But has he?

Arkansas Times columnist Gene Lyons is a National Magazine Award winner and co-author of "The Hunting of the President." Readers can email Lyons at eugenelyons2@yahoo.com.
Can the Rational Right segment of the Republican Party stop Donald Trump and Ted Cruz from getting their party's nomination?

Given the feckless flailing of GOP leaders so far, the answer has to be somewhere between "maybe" and "doubtful." But as the primaries are growing closer, the voices of alarm are growing louder.

Some of the most thoughtful conservatives writing today  George Will, Michael Gerson, Jennifer Rubin, David Brooks, Peter Wehner  all agree that nominating Trump would be a total disaster for the Republicans, a profound betrayal of what Brooks calls the party's proud heritage of "governing conservatism."

"If Mr. Trump heads the Republican Party, it will no longer be a conservative party," writes Wehner in The New York Times. "It will be an angry, bigoted, populist one. Mr. Trump would represent a dramatic break with and a fundamental assault on the party's best traditions."

Wehner, who served in the last three Republican administrations, says he will not vote for Trump if he wins the nomination. The Donald's proposed plans are "nativist pipe dreams and public relations stunts," he explains, and his temperament "is erratic, inconsistent and unprincipled."

Many, though not all, of these Rational Republicans lump Cruz and Trump together. "Alas, too many self-styled serious conservatives are treating Cruz with reverence, and as a more responsible alternative to Trump," writes Rubin in her Right Turn column for The Washington Post. "Nah. Cruz is an echo, not a choice."

One of their concerns is practical: that Trump or Cruz would lead their party to a devastating defeat, dragging down countless Republican candidates with them.

Trump's negative numbers, argue the Rationalists, hit 58 percent in the latest Wall Street Journal/NBC poll, with only 29 percent viewing him favorably. A Gallup poll shows only 17 percent with a positive view of the tea party, the movement that fueled Cruz' rise to power. And their virulent anti-immigrant stance is driving away nonwhite voters, the fastest-growing segment of the electorate.

"The idea that the GOP can march into the 21st century alienating every person of color is borderline insane," writes Brooks, a New York Times columnist.

That's why Will, a Post columnist and Fox News commentator, argues that "Conservatives' highest priority now must be to prevent Trump from winning the Republican nomination." Gerson, a top aide to Bush 41 who also writes for the Post, adds, "For Republicans, the only good outcome of Trump v. Cruz is for both to lose."

To the Rational Right, the prospect of a Trump or Cruz nomination is scary enough. It would be even more frightening if one of them actually became president.

Wehner says Trump "would be the most unqualified president in American history," adding: "The prospect of Donald Trump as commander in chief should send a chill down the spine of every American."

Cruz would be just as bad, says Brooks: "He's always been good at tearing things down but incompetent when it comes to putting things together."

These are journalists and analysts, not organizers or activists. Like the pope, they have no armies; just the power of persuasion. But unlike party functionaries, they have nothing to lose by criticizing a candidate who might actually win.

Brooks calls for action. "Maybe it's time for governing Republicans to actually do something," he writes, suggesting they fashion a grass-roots movement that solidifies behind a single candidate to oppose Trump and Cruz by mid-February.

That's easy to say, very hard to do. Trump and Cruz have their own campaign organizations, loyal contributors and direct channels of communication. That makes them immune to pressure from party poobahs.

So any "grass-roots movement" would have to happen voter by voter, official by official, precinct by precinct. South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley made a good start in her response to the State of the Union by counseling fellow Republicans to "resist ... the siren call of the angriest voices."

But for every brave voice like Haley's, too many Republicans cower in fear or put self-interest ahead of their party and their country. Ed Rogers, a normally sensible GOP strategist, wrote in the Post that Republicans should ignore the voices of alarm: "My advice to the party faithful is: Do nothing. Wait." And somehow hope that Trump and Cruz self-destruct?

That advice is, to use Brooks' words, "borderline insane." He's right when he says that "there's a silent majority of hopeful, practical, pragmatic Republicans" who despise the direction their party is taking.

But if they want to stop that drive toward doom, they have to end their silence. Now.

Steve and Cokie Roberts can be contacted by email at stevecokie@gmail.com.
Important stuff you won't get from the liberal media! We do the surfing so you can be informed AND have a life!
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Les emplois a Rennes sont abondants et varies. Il y a quelque chose pour tout le monde. Que vous soyez a la recherche dun emploi []
Les blattes ou cafards (Blatta orientalis) sont des insectes qui appartiennent a la famille des Blattoptera. Ils se caracterisent par leur forme allongee, leurs ailes []




Step 1. Book an appointment here.





(Applicants are advised to avoid making multiple bookings as this may lead to the cancellation of the appointment.)









Step 2. Personal appearance at the consulate

Step 3. Pay the fees at the cashier (Room No 3)

Absentee voting registration (Room No 4)

Step 4. Passport encoding and Biometrics enrollment (Next to Room No 4)









Step 5. Check here for available passports for collection.





When our passports expired in August last year, I dreaded the renewal process. Philippines passport renewal in Dubai can be tedious but surprisingly this time around, it wasn't as hard and lengthy as I expected it would be. It was easier and faster compared to the process I've gone through five years ago. Even with two kids in tow whose passports are also to be renewed, we didn't feel annoyed or waited too long in line.There is no secret to this, all we did was come prepared with all the requirements in hand and do what we needed to do.Here are a few steps you can follow for a smooth Philippines passport renewal in Dubai:The link above will take you to the Consulate General of the Philippines Dubai's official passport appointment booking site. There's no need to go to the consulate anymore for an appointment. I'm glad because I've saved so much time because of this.In order to book online, you must have an access to a computer and the internet and you will need your email for registration. Register first to have a username and password to log in.As suggested, use the Mozilla Firefox browser. I used Chrome and it was fine, see what works best for you.Important Note:Book an appointment early, at least a month or two before the passport expiry date. For frequent travelers, it is ideal to renew six to eight months before the passport expires because some airlines and consulates require a passport with six months of validity and sometimes even more.Children 5 years of age and younger don't need appointments, so I didn't have to book for Prince. My daughter on the other hand is age eleven so I have to get a separate appointment for her.Keep in mind that the date you want might not be available so make sure to have an alternative date or simply chose a date from the ones available on the appointment booking page that suits your schedule.I logged in last week and the appointment availability shows one month from that day.It is best to prepare all that you need for the passport renewal ahead of time. Here's what you need.1. Duly filled the passport renewal form, and ensure to write legibly.2. Printed appointment confirmation email3. Two color copies of your passport with visa page and emergency contact page, bring extra just in case.Arrive at the consulate office at least fifteen minutes to half an hour ahead of the given time so as not to feel rushed. Dress appropriately, they do not allow entry for people wearing shorts, sando, and slippers.The passport renewal section is on your left from the main entrance of the consulate not in the main villa. When you enter the door, go straight to the counter and place your passport along with the requirements in the tray that is marked with your appointment time. Attach your documents to your passport with a clip so they will not be misplaced or mixed up with other applicants' documents.Sit down and wait for your name to be called. They will issue you a receipt and you have to go behind the main villa to the cashier to pay.The cashier is behind the main villa of the consulate. It is wise to have the exact amount in hand to shorten your cashier transaction time. The passport fee is 240 dirhams as of this writing.This is an extra step I needed to do when I renewed my passport last year because of the upcoming Philippine national election this year. Everyone renewing their passports at that time until the end of October 2015 has to register for AOV which was fine by me.Here, the staff will need your old passport to encode all the information needed. Take your fingerprints, photo, and signature. A printout will be given to you to verify all the information are correct and has no typographical errors, this form requires your signature.Keep your receipt safe as this is your ticket to collect your brand-new passport.It will take 4-8 weeks before your passport is ready. Ensure to check one month after submission. Ours took only a month and I am glad about how smooth and fast the process was.Bring your receipt for passport collection. This time the collection is inside the main villa of the consulate at the passport releasing room.Al Qusais 3, Beirut Street, Dubai, United Arab EmiratesTel. No. + 971 4 2207100Sunday to ThursdayConsular Services : 8:00 am - 3:30 pmPassport Releasing : 8:00 am - 5:00 pmPhilippine Visa : 8:00 am - 11:30 amMarriage: 8:00 am - 3:30 pm ( Sunday to Wednesday only )
DAVOS, Switzerland  Worries over a British exit from the European Union weighed on participants at the World Economic Forum on Thursday, with Frances prime minister warning that it would be a tragedy that could prove an inspiration to populists around the region at a time when many countries are contending with massive numbers of refugees.

British Prime Minister David Cameron said hes in no hurry to hold a referendum on his countrys future in the E.U., if a deal on his reform proposals doesnt emerge at a summit of European leaders in February. But he insisted that his aim is to secure Britains future in a reformed E.U., a stance that he says is the best outcome for both sides.

If theres a good deal on the table, I will take it, he told an audience of mainly business leaders in the Swiss ski resort of Davos. But if there isnt the right deal, Im not in a hurry. I can hold my referendum any time up until the end of 2017. And its much more important to get this right than to rush it.

One of the major tenets of the manifesto of Camerons Conservative Party, which won a governing majority in last Mays general election, was a pledge to hold a referendum on Britains future in the E.U. by the end of 2017 after a renegotiation process.

Britains future in the E.U. is set to be the main discussion a summit of the E.U.s 28 leaders on Feb. 18-19. The thinking until very recently was that an agreement would emerge then, paving the way for a referendum in the summer.

The refugee crisis that has engulfed Europe over the past few months as people leave conflict zones, notably from Syria, has raised worries that a deal may not be achieved in time  for one thing a referendum date will need time to legislate. Many European issues are up in the air at the moment, including what to do with the Schengen Agreement that allows borderless travel across much of the continent.

Cameron laid out his four reform proposals, which he insisted were not outrageous asks. He said he wants to hard-wire competitiveness into the groups DNA, make sure non-euro countries like Britain arent discriminated by the 19 E.U. countries that use the euro currency, get Britain out of the idea of an ever-closer union and curbs on migration and benefits.

Since joining what was then known as the European Economic Community in 1973, Britains membership has often been strained. Over the past few years, a groundswell of opinion in the country thinks exiting the EU is the best option, especially at a time when many of its members are getting closer together, notably with the creation of the euro currency. In last Mays election, the U.K. Independence Party, which aims to get Britain out of the EU, won 4 million, or just under 13 percent of the total. Many supporters of Camerons Conservatives would likely vote for Brexit too whatever deal emerges.

While Britain has been at the forefront of efforts to create the European single market and led a series of foreign policy and development initiatives, there have been growing concerns of late over high levels of immigration particularly from eastern Europe and over the influence of the 19-country eurozone.

Mark Rutte, the Dutch prime minister whose country holds the rotating presidency of the EU, said hes fairly optimistic that a deal can emerge in February but thats hes not absolutely sure.

Rutte, often referred to as Camerons best friend in the EU leaders club, said Europe needs Britain to remain in the EU as the country is outward-looking and trade-oriented, attributes that the stagnant economic region needs.

If we achieve that, then this whole episode will have positive ending, he told a panel on the future of Europe.

And French Prime Minister Manuel Valls went further, saying a Brexit would be a tragedy and Im saying this as a Frenchman.

Valls said France will do everything it can so that Britain stays  but not under any condition.

Thatd be senseless, he said. I hope that the summit in February will at least help us to make decisive steps forward.

A potential Brexit loomed large over discussions in Davos, especially at a time that Europe has so many issues to contend with, including the parlous state of many of its economies, terrorism and the sheer scale of the refugees crisis its facing  Germany alone took in over a million last year.

Nothing could be worse than to see a member state to leave because it would be a signal to others and pave the way for more populism so we have a collective responsibility at this historic moment, Valls said.
WASHINGTON  Sinking oil prices have cratered the stock market. But a silver lining could appear eventually.

Cheaper gasoline and heating oil are giving consumers worldwide more money that they can use to step up spending later  and perhaps energize economies in the United States, Europe and much of Asia.

The question is, will they  and when?

Its definitely a plus for consumers, Sara Johnson, an economist at forecasting firm IHS Global Insight, said of the deep savings being accumulated from sharply lower energy prices. We should see a pickup in spending in the first quarter.

The price of oil reached a 12-year low of $28.15 a barrel by the end of trading Wednesday before poking above $29 on Thursday. As recently as June, the price was about $60.

Retail gasoline prices have sunk to a national average of $1.86 a gallon, the lowest since 2009, according to AAA.

The timing and size of the economic benefit that many analysts expect to result from cheaper oil and gas isnt clear. Oil prices began falling in mid-2014 but have failed to deliver the kind of boost to U.S. growth that economists had expected. One factor is that widespread layoffs and spending cuts by oil drillers have offset some of the boost from steady consumer spending.

And many Americans have saved, rather than spent, the money left over after filling up. That has depressed growth because consumer spending drives about 70 percent of the U.S. economy. At some point, though, continued savings from cheaper energy could fuel more robust investment and spending.

Its a question of, do they spend it now, or do they spend it later? said Scott Hoyt, senior director of consumer economics at Moodys Analytics.

Since the start of the year, global stock prices have plummeted. Many stock investors fear that cheaper oil reflects a worldwide economic slump that has sapped demand, particularly in emerging markets like China and Brazil.

But most economists say that a huge increase in the supply of oil, rather than a falloff in demand, is the main culprit for tumbling energy prices. That makes it more likely, they say, that developed economies will benefit from energy savings and remain healthy.

Another factor is the long-term nature of the price decline. Oil and gas prices have fallen for about 18 months. Eventually, Johnson said, the persistence of the price declines are likely to assure consumers that cheaper gas is here to stay and encourage more spending.

Michael Gapen, an economist at Barclays, forecasts that consumer spending will grow at a 3 percent annual rate in the first half of this year, lifting growth back to a decent 2 percent to 2.5 percent range. In the final three months of 2015, most analysts think U.S. growth slowed to an annual rate below 1 percent.

Lower oil prices should also bolster Europes fragile recovery, according to economists at Citi. And many Asian countries are also optimistic about the long-term impact

The country has really benefited from the lower oil price, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of Pakistan said at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. People have a sort of sigh of relief.

At the same time, the government also started losing money  revenue that had come from the import of oil, he added.

The drop in oil prices is good news for Korean consumers, said Choi Kyung-Hwan, South Koreas former deputy prime minister.

Yet Choi, too, noted, in remarks at Davos, that falling oil prices reflect sluggish growth in emerging markets, which could hurt South Koreas exports.

A fall in oil prices is not just a blessing, he said.

The outlook is also complicated in the United States. Energy drilling companies, which scaled back their operations in 2015, will likely have to cut back further this year. Last year, the U.S. mining sector, which includes oil and gas, shed 130,000 jobs even as overall hiring grew at a healthy clip.

Houston-based Southwestern Energy said Thursday that it would slash 1,100 jobs from a staff of about 2,780. And Regions Bank, based in Birmingham, Alabama, said it would cut 260 jobs in the first three months of this year. The bank recently wrote off a large chunk of its loans to energy companies.

Last year, those layoffs and sharp reductions in spending by drilling companies partly offset the benefit to consumers of lower prices. And consumers saved more, perhaps reflecting lingering caution in the aftermath of the Great Recession. Americans saved 5.5 percent of their incomes in November, up nearly a full percentage point from a year earlier.

Overall, consumer spending likely rose just 2.6 percent last year, according to Jesse Edgerton, an economist at JPMorgan. Thats below the 3.6 percent increase he expected. Still, spending might have been ever lower without cheaper gas, he notes.

For now, there are already some signs of cheaper oils benefits.

Delta Air Lines told investors this week that bookings for this spring are ahead of last years pace because cheaper gasoline means consumers have more money.

And other airlines, including United Continental and Southwest Airlines, have reported big profit increases, thanks to savings from cheaper fuel.
SACRAMENTO  A look at California's death penalty and proposed changes:

 The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation calculates the cost of an execution at nearly $187,000.

 More than 900 killers have been sentenced to die in the state since the death penalty was restored in 1978. Only 13 have been executed amid legal challenges.

 Under a proposal to use a single drug in executions, the warden at San Quentin State Prison could choose between amobarbital, pentobarbital, secobarbital or thiopental, depending on what is available.

 The Berkeley Law Death Penalty Clinic, which opposes executions, says amobarbital and secobarbital have never been used in executions.

 Inmates could choose the gas chamber instead of a drug injection.
Dear Len and Rosie,

Last year, my wife and I bought a revocable living trust. We own a modest home, some stocks and bonds, three bank certificates of deposit and two insurance policies that are payable to the trust.

I am the only trustee, because my wife, Gloria, was never all that good with handling money. When I die, my eldest son, Josh, will be the successor trustee. He has promised to take care of his mother after I am gone.

I want to know how it is supposed to work. How does Josh become trustee when I am gone? What if I lose my mind and wind up in a nursing home? How do my stock broker and the banks know that Josh is supposed to be the trustee? They might think he was some punk coming in off the street to rip us off.

Reuben

Dear Reuben,

You bought your trust from a trust mill, didnt you? Most of the time when clients who already have a trust come into our office with questions such as yours, we learn that they purchased their trust from a trust mill that didnt even bother to explain how their trust is supposed to work.

According to your letter, you are the sole trustee and your son is the successor trustee. He will become the trustee upon your death, resignation or incapacity as directed by the language of your trust. Because we do not have a copy of your trust, I cannot tell you exactly how this is supposed to happen. This, however, is the way most revocable living trusts work:

If you die or resign, Josh would become trustee automatically. All he would need to prove he was trustee is your death certificate or your letter of resignation as trustee. There will be other documents needed to transfer specific assets such as your home and accounts to Josh as trustee.

But if you become incapacitated, it can get sticky.

The question is this: Who decides whether or not the trustee has become incapacitated?

Many trusts are written with provisions that one or two doctors can determine that the trustee is no longer able to handle the job. Other trusts may require the successor trustee to petition the Court for a determination of incapacity. Some trusts have no provision for the removal of a trustee, which means the successor trustee or the beneficiaries of the trust may have to ask the court to intervene. In any event, your son will have to talk to doctors and lawyers if you become incapacitated.

The easiest way to handle the issue of incapacity is to avoid it. Ideally, you should resign as trustee before you become incapacitated. Or, you and your wife could amend your trust to appoint your son as co-trustee and give him the authority to act alone. This way, if anything happens to you, he already has the ability to take care of things for you and Gloria. Of course, you must really trust your son to give him that kind of power over your property while you are still alive.

What you should do is contact the trust mill that wrote the trust for you and request an explanation. If they are not much help, and they probably wont be, then you should consult with a local elder law attorney to review your trust.

Len and Rosie
Thanit (or Tanit) Klangprapan has been known by many locals as a massage therapist, but last week many of her clients were surprised to learn that she is also an exceptional chef. Tanit is the namesake of the new Pan Asian restaurant located at 1350 Lincoln Ave. in downtown Calistoga.

Most people recognize me from my massage work at resorts and spas around town, she said, but now they get to see another side of my life.

Klangprapan was born in northeast Thailand and moved to Bangkok when she was 12. There she went to school, eventually finishing college and beginning a career as an office assistant. By the late 1990s shed moved to the United States, where she started to cook and work in restaurants.

I had traveled to Europe, she said. But what I really dreamed of was coming to California. Id seen pictures of San Francisco, and they had made a big impression. When the visa official asked me why I wanted to travel to the United States, I told them that I just must see the Golden Gate Bridge at least once in my life.

She traveled first to Los Angeles and then eventually made her way up to San Francisco.

When I got to San Francisco I started working in Thai restaurants. Growing up I had done a lot of cooking at home, and I was a fast learner, she said. By the time I moved to Santa Rosa and married my husband I felt ready to start our own place. We had two restaurants: Pad Thai in Santa Rosa and the Bangkok Express in Petaluma.

As time passed life got increasingly busy.

Having a restaurant is a lot of hard work and takes a lot of time, she said. We sold the business so that I could take care of my young children. I went to school to become a massage therapist so that I could have a flexible schedule, but I ended up really loving the practice of massage. Its so calming and therapeutic.

But even while providing massages her desire to continue to share food persisted.

Some of my clients learned my background and asked me to cater for them. I also have maintained my donation of food to our Buddhist temple in Ukiah.

Calistogan Mary Morrow has used Klangprapans catering services and looks forward to eating at her restaurant soon.

Tanits food awakens my memories of living in Asia, Morrow said. Weve had her cook for a dinner of 10, and she has her own personal touch. I look forward to enjoying even more of her healthy, fresh food.

Although Klangprapans first name is on the sign out front, the restaurant is truly a family affair. Her husband, one of her sons and her daughter-in-law are all involved.

The restaurant serves what Klangprapan calls Pan Asian cuisine.

I give everything my own personal touch, which, of course, is influenced by my growing up in Thailand, but we also serve dishes from Korea, China, Malaysia and even some dishes from India. But all the food is fresh and we make it from a base that is both vegetarian and also gluten-free. If people want to add meat they can, but we want to provide a range of options for everyone.

Meals can be enjoyed in the restaurant or taken out. The menu offers five starter options, two salads, two soups, various rice, curry and noodle dishes, and a couple of desserts from which to choose. Starters range from $8 to $10 and entrees from $13 to $15. A beer and wine license is still working its way through the system, so only nonalcoholic drinks are currently available.

The Eggplant Ginger, Tanits signature dish, includes lightly sauteed eggplant in a bright sauce of ginger, garlic and mild jalapeno peppers. The flavors are balanced  not overly sweet or salty. All the dishes come with loads of crisply prepared vegetables. Diners can choose to add meat, and tofu is also available. One delicious option for dessert is a simple plate of sliced mango accompanied by a slightly savory-sweet sticky rice and a drizzle of rich coconut cream.

Lining the walls of the interior are black-and-white photos taken by friends of Klangprapan and her son, Jay. Each highlights a different culture represented on the menu.

We want to honor where the influence of the food we serve came from, she said about the photos.

Calistoga is our hometown, she said. It is so beautiful here with all the trees, peaceful landscapes and mountains. But its the people here that make it feel like home. I love my local friends and the people are so warm. Everyones been so supportive of our opening and I dont want to disappoint them.
ARBOR ALLIANCE

Join us Sundays at 5 p.m. Child care will be available. We share the Christian & Missionary Alliance Church at 721 Trancas St., Napa. Come get acquainted and be refreshed. Info, thearborchurch.org, 530-304-4704.

BEIT ABBA

Messianic Jewish ministry of The Fathers House is held the first Friday of each month at 7 p.m. Child care provided for ages infant to 7 years old. Join us Feb. 5 for a Shabbat service at our Vacaville Campus with special guest Rabbi Jonathan Bernis. Join us Feb. 19 at 7 p.m. at the Napa Campus for our mid-month Havurah: Our Hebrew Legacy, Rediscovering Our Covenant Roots. The Fathers House, 2557 Napa Valley Corporate Drive, Napa. Info, tfh.org/beitabba.

CARMELITE MONASTERY

Mass times: Sunday 9 a.m.; Monday through Saturday 8 a.m. (except for the first Saturday of the month, Mass will be at 11 a.m.). Morning of recollection every first Saturday of the month: Spiritual Talk 9-10 a.m.; Confessions 10-11 a.m.; Mass 11 a.m. Bible study, on Tuesdays with Father Michael Buckley: Tuesdays, 8:30-9:30 a.m. following the 8 a.m. Mass (Contact the office to confirm time and day at 944-2454, ext. 103). Confessions-English: Monday, Wednesday, Friday; 10 a.m.-noon, 3-5 p.m., 8-9 p.m. Confessions-Spanish: Wednesday 10 a.m.-noon., 3-5 p.m., 8-9 p.m. 20 Mount Carmel Drive, 0.9 miles west of Highway 29, off the Oakville Grade; Info, 944-2454; oakvillecarmelites.org.

CENTER FOR SPIRITUAL LIVING

Services are 9 and 10:30 a.m. with youth program at 10:30 and Teen Group at 11:30. Rev. Jay Lang concludes his January talks on A World that Works for Everyone. A new members class will be held this Sunday 12:15-1:45 p.m.. Wednesday Open Meditation, 6:30 pm followed by Life Talks at 7:15. Sunday, Jan. 31 Annual Community Meeting 12:15-1:15. (Sign up please for light lunch). Info, 1249 Coombs, 252-4847.

CHRISTIAN & MISSIONARY ALLIANCE CHURCH

Adult Sunday School class begins at 9:30 a.m., (coffee available) in the fellowship hall. Morning worship for the whole family starts at 10:45 a.m. and our congregation sings mainly from traditional hymnals  a rare treat. Located at 721 Trancas St., Napa. Info, 224-6717.

CHRISTIAN SCIENCE CHURCH

Sunday service and Sunday school for youths up to age 20 at 10 a.m. The Wednesday evening service is at 7:30. Child care provided at all services. New hours for the Reading Room, located in our church building,: open to the public weekdays except Wednesdays, 1-4 p.m. All current Christian Science literature, including the writings of Mary Baker Eddy and the renowned Christian Science Monitor are available to all to read or purchase; 2210 Second St., Napa. Info, 255-5255.

CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS, NAPA  SECOND WARD

Sacrament meeting is Sunday at 9 a.m. Young mens and young womens programs are on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. Twelve-step addiction program is on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. 2590 Trower Ave., Napa. Info, 758-8085.

COMMUNITY CHURCH OF LAKE BERRYESSA

This Sunday at the Community Church of Lake Berryessa, Pastor Bob will begin a series on the books of the Bible starting with Genesis. Join us as we look at Gods word and find its meaning in our life today. We are a non- denominational Christian church welcoming all to enjoy the life changing power of Jesus Christ. A weekly food distribution is available along with groups and activities. Address is 6008 Steele Canyon Road at Moskowite Corners. Info, 252-4488.

CONGREGATION BETH SHALOM

On Friday Jan. 22 from 7 to 8:30 p.m, Anne Perselay will lead the service welcoming Shabbat. Mark your iPhones on April 9 when Comedy Night returns. Dana Eagle of Last Comic Standing will keep us laughing followed by perhaps the only Vietnamese Jew doing stand-up, Joe Nguyen of San Franciscos Punchline. Prepare to laugh until you cry. Call Maxine at 707-479-3312 for tickets. Congregation Beth Shalom is located at 1455 Elm Street, Napa. For more information, visit, cbsnapa.org.

CORNERSTONE MINISTRIES

Sunday service at Cornerstone Ministries is at 10:15 a.m. Our Spanish Church begins at 1:30 p.m. Sunday school and childcare is available. Middle School and High School Study is on Wednesday nights at 6:30. On Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. at 3305 Vista Ave. Freedom From Bondage meets. Info, cmnv.org, 252-2909.

COVENANT PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

Join us as we gather for worship at 10 a.m., Sunday, Jan. 24, at Covenant Presbyterian Church, 1226 Salvador Ave., Napa. The Rev. Linda Powers will preach. The liturgist is Liz Groelle. Covenant Choir will sing His Eye Is on the Sparrow, composed by Mark Hayes. Weekly Sunday School for preschool  8th grade. For more information: 255-9426; cpcnapa.org; or find us on facebook, facebook.com/cpcnapa.

CREEKSIDE COMMUNITY CHURCH

Weekly worship service is Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Services and attire are casual with a blend of fellowship, music and teaching. Child care and childrens church offered during service. At 1050 Hagen Road, Napa. Info, CreeksideChurchNapa.org; 255-7266.

CROSSWALK COMMUNITY CHURCH

Join us at CrossWalk Community Church for our series on Making Sense of the Bible. Services at 9 and at 10 a.m. with Childrens programs available during the 10 a.m. service. CrossWalk also has CrossWalk Food Pantry offering fresh produce and providing grocery bags with several meals once a month at 2590 First St. Info, 226-1812.

FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH

First Christian Church of Napa welcomes you to attend our service this Sunday. At 8:45 and 10:30 a.m., Pastor Allen continues our series The Voice: Tune Out the Noise, Tune in to God. Swerve Student Ministry: Middle SchoolWednesday 7-8:30 p.m., High SchoolThursday 6:30-8:30 p.m. Street address: 2659 First St., Napa. Church website: fccnapa.org.

FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

This Sunday, Pastor David will lead us in a study of No Ordinary Man, from The Story. Please join us in the gym at 9 a.m. for the traditional service, with choir and special music; the contemporary service with a variety of praise music will be at 10:30 a.m. Our guest musicians at 9 a.m. are Brad and Fritz Wagenknecht. Sunday School: 9 a.m. for Youth, and 10:30 for elementary-school age children. Birth through kindergarten-age childcare at both services. The Coffee Meet-and-Greet is at 10 a.m. 1333 Third St., Napa; 224-8693 or fpcnapa.org.

GRACE CHURCH OF NAPA VALLEY

Sunday services: Worship service at 9 and 10:40 a.m. Adult Sunday school classes at 9 a.m. Childrens service at 9 and 10:40 a.m. Nursery and preschool care available. Junior high ministry meets Tuesday, 7 p.m.; high school meets Wednesday at 7 p.m. 3765 Solano Ave., Napa. Info, 255-4033, GraceNapa.org.

HILLSIDE CHRISTIAN CHURCH

We meet at 9 a.m., 11 a.m., and 6:30 p.m. at 100 Anderson Road, Napa. Info, 255-3036.

HOLY GROUND CHRISTIAN CENTER

Sunday worship begins at 10 a.m., and Bible study is Wednesday at 7 p.m. 3860 Broadway, Suite 111, American Canyon. Info, 373-2015.

MEMORIAL CHAPEL AT VETERANS HOME OF CALIFORNIA, YOUNTVILLE

Sunday worship service, 10:15 a.m. Coffee fellowship one hour before the service. Bible study on Wednesday at 1 p.m., Fellowship Room, with refreshments served; prayer meetings Thursday, 1 p.m. The memorial chapel is on the Veterans Home  Yountville campus on California Drive, across from the administration building. Info, 944-4840.

NAPA COMMUNITY SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCH

Saturday, 11:15 a.m. service. 1105 G St., Napa. Education Day with Napa Christian Campus of Education. The sermon will be Essentials: Worship by Pastor Marvin Wray. Info, 252-2444.

NAPA METHODIST CHURCH

Napa Methodist Church holds two Sunday morning services: a 9:30 a.m. Traditional service held in the sanctuary and an 11 a.m. Fusion Worship service held in the Asbury Room. This Sunday we invite you to hear Pastor Lee Neish preach the message: Phases of Life at our 9:30 a.m. Sanctuary service. At our 11 a.m. Fusion Worship service, we invite you to hear Keith Calara preach on David as part of our continuing series: Covenants. GRAPE Express Childrens Worship and Nursery are available during both services. Childrens Carol Choir meets Sundays at 10:30 a.m., between our two Sunday services. Silent Meditation is Mondays at 5:30 p.m .in the Sanctuary at 625 Randolph St. Info: napamethodist.org or 253-1411.

NAPA-SONOMA FRIENDS MEETING (QUAKERS)

Sunday worship at 10 a.m. Silent meeting in the custom of Friends. Meet at the VOICES Youth Center, 780 Lincoln Ave. Enter at parking lot on left side of building, using door at end of wheelchair ramp. Quaker signs will be posted on Sunday mornings. We welcome visiting friends or those who are new to Quaker practice. Info, nvquaker@napanet.net; 257-0509.

NAPA VALLEY BAPTIST CHURCH

Sunday Bible study for all ages at 9:30 a.m. Worship service, along with a kids program, begins at 10:30 a.m. Info, NapaValleyBaptist.org; 252-2100.

NAPA VALLEY BIBLE CHAPEL

Norman Reece, one of our elders, will continue his series on the incarnation of Christ in the 11 a.m. service on Sunday, Jan. 24. We start Sunday services by remembering the Lords death, burial and resurrection during a time of worship and thanksgiving at 9:30 a.m., followed by a fellowship and coffee time starting at 10:30 a.m. At 11 a.m., we enjoy a time of Bible teaching. Classes are available during this service for children and young teens. On Wednesdays at 6 p.m., we meet for a brief Bible study and a time of prayer at 1559 Second St., Napa. Info, napavalleybiblechapel.com or 258-8606.

NAPA VALLEY COMMUNITY CHURCH

Imagine the joy of living a life victorious over all of lifes circumstances. The Apostle Paul in Philippians 1 reminds us that victory is ours and joy is assured no matter the circumstances, when we live A Singularly Purposed Life. Join us this Sunday at 10 a.m. as we continue our study of the book of Philippians. Service is at 10 a.m., Open Forum at 11:30 a.m. Child care and Sunday school provided. 4149 Linda Vista Avenue, Napa, 337-328. napavalleychurch.org.

NAPA VALLEY LUTHERAN

Sunday worship with anointing for healing at 10 a.m. Fellowship time follows. All are welcome because all belong to God. The church is located at 1796 Elm St., Napa. Info, 226-8166, napavalleylutheran.org.

NAPA VALLEY UNITARIAN UNIVERSALISTS

Sunday, Jan. 31, 9:30 a.m.: Faith with Rev. Bonnie Dlott; presentation and informal discussion. 11 a.m.: Faith with Rev. Bonnie Dlott and Worship Associate Anne Jungerman. The word faith makes some UUs queasy. The notion that we should believe in or trust in something in the absence of any evidence flies in the face of our tradition and makes us suspicious, for good reason. Is there a way we can re-imagine faith in a way that is helpful to us as Unitarian Universalists? Infant care, child care, and religious education provided. 1625 Salvador Ave., Napa; Info, nvuu.org, 226-9220.

NEW LIFE TABERNACLE

Sunday school at 10 a.m., followed by worship service at 11 a.m. Sunday evening service the first Sunday of every month. Bible study on Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m. at 2625 First St., Napa. Info, 255-1062; NewLifeNapa.com.

ST. JOHNS LUTHERAN CHURCH

Sunday, 8:30 a.m. and 10:15 a.m. Childrens Church during the 10:15 a.m. service. 3521 Linda Vista Ave., Napa. Info, 255-0119; StJohnsLutheran.net.

ST. MARYS EPISCOPAL CHURCH

Worship on Saturdays at 5:30 p.m. or Sundays at 8 a.m. or 10 a.m. (organ and choir). Childrens Chapel (Sunday school) is at 9:50 a.m. Sunday. Nursery care is provided during the 10 a.m. service. Coffee hour follows the worship services on Sunday. 1917 Third St., Napa. Info, 255-0991; StMarysNapa.org.

ST. STEPHENS ANGLICAN EPISCOPAL CHURCH

Hope you all will come and worship with us at 1250 Oakville Grade Road, Oakville. Info, 953-9369.

ST. THOMAS AQUINAS CHURCH

Mass times are Saturday 4 p.m. (English), Sunday 8 a.m. (English), 11 a.m. (English) and 1:30 p.m. (Spanish). Daily mass is 9 a.m. except on the first Friday, which is at noon and in English. 2725 Elm St, Napa. Info, 255-2949.

SALVATION ARMY

Join us for services Sundays at 10 a.m. 590 Franklin St., Napa. Info, napasalarmy.org.

THE FATHERS HOUSE

Sunday Service times are 8:30, 10 and 11:45 a.m. Child care and Kids Church are available (ages infant through sixth grade). Youth ministry Encounter meets every Wednesday Night at 7 p.m. The Fathers House, 2557 Napa Valley Corporate Drive, Napa. Info, tfh.org.

UNITY SPIRITUAL CENTER IN NAPA VALLEY

Sunday, 10 a.m. Service. Join us as we celebrate Unity and spiritual growth. Prayer Chaplain Emeritus Dr. Scott Sutherland delivers this Sundays Message entitled Justify and Sanctify. Music for our Service selected and performed by Lon Eakes. Scott will facilitate a follow-up Forum exploring other aspects of his Message topic in more detail after our Refreshments Time. Sunday Service held at the historic Grange Hall, 3275 Hagen Road (1/2 mile east of the Silverado Trail), Napa. Parking next to the building. Info, UnityinNapaValley.org, 255-6881.

YOUNTVILLE COMMUNITY CHURCH

Sunday, Jan. 24, Contemporary Worship, 9:30 a.m. and Traditional Worship, 11 a.m. Lead Pastor Bart Pense continues a seven part series in the book of Revelation: God Wins! Love Letters Part 2. An Adult Bible Class, 9:30 a.m. in the Callison Ministry Center, Room 3. Childrens classes, 9:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. Jesus and Me. (birth-kindergarten), and first-fifth grades are offered. Vertical Student Ministry 11 a.m.; fifth-eighth grades and high school students. Church office hours, Monday-Thursday 8 a.m.-4 p.m.; 6619 Yount St., Yountville. Info, 944-2179.

Pastors and church staffneed to update your listing, or add your church? Please contact Register Editor Sean Scully at 256-2246 or sscully@napanews.com. Weekly deadline is Wednesdays by 5 p.m.
The Napa Valley Culture of Life announced that it will begin its semi-annual campaign against abortion, 40 Days for Life, in front of the Napa Planned Parenthood clinic on Feb. 10.

Participants pray and witness in front of the clinic, 1735 Jefferson St., from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily for six weeks.

This is the 43rd anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Courts Roe v. Wade decision to legalize abortion, the organization notes.

The local nonprofit group is also planning to participate in Saturdays Walk for Life, West Coast in San Francisco at the Civic Center. Buses and car pools are leaving from Napa to join a crowd from around the state and the West.

For more information about these events, go to Napavalleycultureoflife.com.
Napans seem to like the idea of a food truck roundup, but no one has been able to figure out where such a gathering could be located.

The Gasser Foundation has a solution. The foundation recently submitted an application for a city use permit to establish a temporary food truck corral at a vacant pad in the South Napa Century Center.

We are continuing to look at different restaurant options for the center, said project spokesman Joe Fischer. Until we get those spaces built out and restaurants in place, we thought it would be a good idea to have some options at the theater available now.

The Gasser Foundation is the developer of the commercial center.

A temporary food truck court would feature four to five trucks. It would include lighting, tables, trash bins, access for people with disabilities, hand-washing facilities, restrooms, ground cover and shade structure. Beer or wine may be served. Days and times would depend on season and demand, said Fischer.

Even though the food truck corral would be considered a temporary use, we wanted to do it in a compelling way  a defined area with some thought put into the kind of environment. It should be a welcoming, fun place to sit, order, eat, and socialize, said Fischer.

With city approval, We will refine the execution details, then identify food truck partners that we think are a fit, he said. We have had interest from a couple of operators, but no names have been announced.

Fischer said the food trucks at the Century Center should offer a compelling menu. They also shouldnt compete with any other restaurants in the complex, such as the Forge Pizza, which is under construction.

The court could also serve as a good test market for food truck concepts and operators, said Fischer. If customer response is good at the Century Center, those merchants might be ready to jump to a bricks and mortar location, perhaps at the movie complex itself, where space will be available for lease.

Its possible we could be supportive of the food truck corral, said Napa city Associate Planner Michael Allen, but we need some more details about the project, including where the toilets would be located, how beer and wine would be served while meeting ABC requirements and other compliance issues.

Its a new thing to us, Allen said. We need to determine if we want to have these kinds of events in such a space.

Historically, attempts to form food truck courts have not been successful in Napa. In 2011, businessman Andrew Siegal started a gathering called Food Truck Fridays near the Oxbow Public Market without the correct use permits. It stopped.

In 2015, another group of Napans, including BottleRock 2013 co-founder Gabe Meyers, tried to kick off a similar concept called the Action Avenue Truck Stop. It also stalled due to lack of permits. Chefs Market downtown used to include food trucks, but that event was cancelled in 2013.

Rene Gonzalez, owner of Tacos La Esperanza food truck, said that he hadnt yet heard of the Century Center food truck corral, but he supports the idea. Gonzalez originally planned to be a part of the Action Avenue Truck Stop before those plans fell through.

I think it could work in Napa, he said of a food truck gathering. I feel like it would be a good idea, especially somewhere like the theater complex.

Gonzalez had questions about the plan, including how often the trucks would gather at the site, whether there would be music and what times the corral would operate.

If he participated, Gonzalez said hed recommend a combination of other complementary food truck such as Cousins Maine Lobster, Smokeys Old Skool BBQ and Crossroad Chicken be included. By creating a critical mass of popular trucks offering good food, Im sure they will bring people in.

That location would be great, said Chad Alexander, co-owner Cousins Maine Lobster food truck. I think wed be interested. Other cities have food truck gatherings and Napa should too, he said.

In other Century Center news, the 38,000-square-foot In-Shape fitness gym opened on Jan. 15. We are thrilled, said Fischer.

The Hampton Inn & Suites hotel is currently scheduled to open in mid-February, he added. That hotel will offer 115 rooms.

The Gasser Food Truck corral project will go before the Planning Commission at a date to be announced.
For 25 years, Louis Salem has had a business selling sofas, mattresses and home furnishings in Napa. What he has not had is a storefront with the feel of a permanent home  but that may soon change.

The owner of Furniture 4 Less is preparing to move his business downtown, into a 14,000-square-foot space that previously hosted two other furniture stores but has lain mostly dormant for eight years. His move to 1326 Main St. gained approval from the city Planning Commission Thursday night, four months after Salems first attempt to open there ended with a shutdown by the city over his lack of a use permit.

Salem and Ron Drapinski, the buildings owner since 2010, predicted the furniture store could reopen in April after a host of repairs, including the replacement of the roof and a swath of boarded-up windows.

The citys acceptance of Furniture 4 Less is likely to end the exodus of the locally owned business, which has bounced around several locations and left its most recent base, on the Silverado Trail and First Street, after that building was scheduled for demolition.

Relief, Salem said succinctly of his reaction when the Planning Commission  after a two-hour discussion  finally gave him the go-ahead to come downtown, following four months of keeping a stores worth of inventory in storage.

Furniture 4 Less upcoming move not only would help secure the future of a local business, but also promises to fill one of the largest, most glaring cavities on Main Street.

The Main Street space, with a facade occupying most of a block, housed two different furniture retailer between the 1960s and 1990s  Modern Furniture Co. and Mathis Furniture Co., whose painted logo still adorns the south wall. Later, The Salvation Army operated a thrift shop at 1326 Main, then shut it down in 2008; only a seasonal Halloween novelty store has done business there since.

While a local merchants need for a permanent home would seem to mesh well with Napas need for street vitality and tax revenue, zoning rules in the Downtown Specific Plan threw into doubt whether a furniture store could do business in the neighborhood.

Though home furnishings are among the products allowed to be sold in the area  a transitional zone between the city cores taller buildings and smaller single-family homes farther north  furniture retail is not on the list of specifically permitted uses.

Jeff Doran, the developer who owns the historic Napa Steam Laundry building nearby, warned against relaxing the citys downtown land-use rules  even for Salem, for whom he expressed admiration.

Good guy. Great business. Wrong location, he said, doubting a furniture business would draw as much foot traffic or sales as other alternatives.

Though Napa came down on the side of allowing Salems furniture store to open downtown, planning officials admitted the zoning rules contained arguments both for and against the move.

Beds, tables and bulky merchandise draw less of the walk-up business on downtown streets that smaller goods do, and the need for regular truck deliveries also would affect the areas character as easy to walk, said Rick Tooker, director of the Community Development Department.

But he added the availability of ready-made space with a loading dock off the street  and the presence of similar businesses in the past  made Furniture 4 Less a hard tenant to refuse.

This is an existing commercial space, a dilapidated structure, one thats been vacant a very long time and needs some TLC, he told commissioners. And its been a furniture store before, twice; it still has the (red, vertical and roof-mounted) FURNITURE sign in front. Were hard-pressed to say that a furniture store cant work here.

In response, several of Salems friends urged the city to let him move to Main Street rather than pursue a strict interpretation of zoning law. He cant be in limbo for that long, said Patrick Hodge. He needs to provide for his family, and he needs to get into that building.

Jamison Crosby called on the city to help out a local retailer trying to serve residents in a downtown increasingly filled with tourist-facing businesses. She shared the story of a couple whose furniture purchase was nearly derailed by a late tax refund check  until Salem agreed to deliver the goods first and take payment later.

Who does that anymore? Crosby asked. Only a small-business person, which is exactly the kind we want in Napa.

Commissioners ultimately decided the zoning rules did allow for Furniture 4 Less, although they set several conditions requiring repairs to the building and banning the outdoor display of merchandise. In the end, they accepted an expansive view of home furnishings in order to fill a nagging vacancy in an otherwise flourishing downtown.

Home furnishings, to me, clearly include furniture, said Commissioner Beth Painter. The Downtown Specific Plan doesnt say, Is this store 50 percent or 80 percent or 20 percent furniture? Does a lamp count as furniture?

To wait another four years  or who knows how long  doesnt give us an opportunity to improve the building, or to help a small business owner.
OAKVILLE  About 80 people stood on the new concrete deck of Oakville Cross Road Bridge Thursday morning and welcomed the rebirth of a major cross-Napa Valley link.

Napa County built the rural bridge over the Napa River in just over 6 months to replace an aging, earthquake-damaged version. During construction, residents, commuters and tourists traveling between Highway 29 and Silverado Trail had to use detours.

Jack Rydman came to the grand opening. He lives about a half-mile to the east of the Napa River and wanted to see the new bridge as it debuted.

Its a mixed blessing, he said with a smile. When the bridge was closed, we didnt have any traffic.

The downside was going to the Oakville Post Office, he said. A journey of two miles became one of more than 13 miles because he had to take the Rutherford Road bridge over the river.

Its a big deal, he said as he waited for the new bridge to officially open. And having it wider is going to be really nice.

With the old, narrow bridge, a driver sometimes had to wait for an oncoming truck to cross first, he said.

Jason Garner of Napa and his father, Phil Garner, of Lake County attended the grand opening. They have a family tie to this crossing  their ancestor, John Riley Garner, petitioned the county to build the first Oakville Cross Road bridge in 1872.

They came with a family story from the pioneer days before that first bridge was built.

John Riley Garners children had to cross through the waters of the Napa River to go to school. The girls rode the familys horse and the boys waded, holding onto the horses tail during high flows.

Napa County Public Works Director Steven Lederer said that the 1872 drawbridge was replaced by a stone bridge in about 1900. During this era, Napa County had a few hundred stone bridges that gained the county national fame.

This stone bridge washed away in 1922 storms and was replaced with a concrete bridge. Its that 1920s-era concrete bridge that the county demolished last summer.

But, Lederer said, stones from the stone bridge had been part of the center pillar for the concrete bridge. The county saved these stones after the bridge demolition and could use them in a memorial feature and to repair the countys remaining stone bridges.

Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, attended the opening. River crossings and bridges are part of whats attractive in Napa Valley, he said.

Napa County has long planned to replace the aging Oakville Cross Road Bridge. The original idea was to start work in summer of 2015 in phases and take two years for construction, with one lane always remaining open to traffic.

Then came the May 21, 2015 earthquake east of Yountville. The relatively small quake dealt a fatal blow to the aging bridge. The west abutment of the bridge sank four inches, and this pulled apart existing cracks to expose steel.

Suddenly, the old bridge became a tear-down and a more-leisurely, phased-in approach to its replacement became impossible.

The lucky thing for us is we had plans in place, we had environmental permits in place, Napa County Supervisor Diane Dillon said.

Thompson, Dillon and county Supervisors Alfredo Pedroza and Brad Wagenknecht cut plastic tape strung across the new bridge at about 10:30 a.m. Shortly thereafter, a pickup became the first vehicle to cross the officially opened bridge.

The $7 million, concrete box-girder bridge is 120 feet long and 33 feet wide. Most of the money for the project came from the Federal Highway Administration.
On the same Napa site where a planned affordable housing complex came to grief eight years ago, a developer is pursuing another.

The Pacific Companies, an Idaho-based builder of multi-family housing, has targeted a one-acre parcel at 535 Coombsville Road for 20 apartments to be rented to lower-income households.

Thursday night, the city Planning Commission signed off on the Napa Courtyards project, setting up a City Council vote next month for final approval.

Developers hope to succeed where an earlier proposal by Napa Valley Community Housing, the 30-unit Fairview Heights, crumbled in 2008, amid fierce resistance from neighbors who complained that projects size would overpower the neighborhood and worsen traffic congestion. Planning commissioners twice rejected Fairview Heights before the project was dropped.

The new design cuts the number of residences by a third and reduces the number of floors from three to two  changes that were enough to win over the five commissioners, even one who voted against the earlier version.

Most of us would agree we desperately need affordable housing, said Gordon Huether. Its just really hard to work in Napa and afford a decent place, a clean place, a safe place, and I think this project gives us that.

Napa Courtyards two buildings, one with 16 units and the other with four, would occupy a parcel on Coombsville Roads south shoulder and across from Tulocay Cemetery. A small commercial building that houses the Napa Recovery Recourse Center would be torn down to make room for the apartments and 43 parking spaces.

All 20 apartments will be reserved for tenants making less than Napas median household income, currently $87,400, said Ryan Gregory, a Napa civil engineer working with the developer, in his report. Those making between 30 and 60 percent of the median will be eligible, and average monthly rents are expected to be $600 for a one-bedroom unit, $900 for two bedrooms and $1,100 for three.

Though labeled as a lower-income development, Napa Courtyards main audience will be those with jobs in the city, but little chance of finding housing in a costly and almost vacancy-free market.

This project is geared toward work force housing, Doug Gibson, a Pacific Companies architect, told city officials. It could be teachers, it could be firefighters, it could be retirees; its not necessarily people one associates with what you think of when you hear the words low-income housing.

Missing on Thursday were the audiences of about 100 that had packed the City Hall chamber eight years earlier to block the arrival of apartments, but even the reduced project got a cool reception from some residents.

Carol Brazelton derided the design as a cookie-cutter complex, styled like a hotel and a poor fit for the neighborhood. But an even greater concern, she added, is the increased load on local traffic and parking spaces that would result from dozens of new residents  not to mention major public gatherings.

You could not move through my street during BottleRock, because it is a solid block of cars then, she told commissioners. And now you want to put an apartment complex next to us? I know it meets code, but the reality is that people have more cars than they tell you they have.

Others were more supportive of the apartment complex but asked for changes to open the southward view and enable a closer survey of Fairview Park, which they described as isolated, neglected and plagued by drug use and littering. Toward that end, commissioners made a change to the plan, moving a bank of covered carports from the parcels south side to its west.

The apartment projects smoother path this time around gave Commissioner Paul Kelley hope that neighbors could meet other housing plans halfway  and understand the importance of helping more people live in the same town where they work. Its good to see people understanding that this is for fellow Napans, he said.
TEHRAN, Iran

Chinese president in Tehran for first visit in 14 years

Iranian state TV reported that the Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Tehran to hold talks with Iranian officials about future economic and political cooperation.

State TV quotes Ebrahim Rahimpour, Irans deputy foreign minister for Asia and Pacific affairs, as saying the Chinese president is in Tehran with a high-ranking political and economic delegation at the invitation of his Iranian counterpart President Hassan Rouhani.

This is the first visit by a Chinese president in 14 years, Rahimpour said, During his one-day official trip, it is expected to visit Irans supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Rouhani.

The television report said total trade between Tehran and Beijing stood at some $52 billion dollars in 2014. However, that figure dropped in 2015 due to decreasing global oil prices.

MEXICO CITY

Mexico president to accelerate extradition of drug lord

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto said Friday hes ordering officials to accelerate the extradition of recaptured drug lord Joaquin El Chapo Guzman to the United States.

Mexico had balked at extraditing Guzman after he was captured in 2014, but his escape from a top-security prison in July apparently changed officials minds.

Pena Nieto said hed told his Attorney Generals office to achieve the extradition of this highly dangerous delinquent as soon as possible. He made the comments during a news conference at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Mexican marines captured Guzman on Jan. 8, six months after he tunneled out of a top-security Mexican prison  his escape from a maximum security lockup. The Sinaloa Cartel chief is wanted on multiple charges in both Mexico and the U.S.

Officials have already said they plan now to extradite Guzman, but have said the process could take a year or more of legal wrangling.

PARIS

French plan to prolong state of emergency over terror threat

President Francois Hollande said that the French government will ask parliament to approve a three-month renewal of the state of emergency put into place after the Nov. 13 Paris attacks that killed 130 people. It would be the second time the measure has been prolonged.

The presidents office said Friday that Hollande cited the terrorist threat in asking the government to present a bill at the Feb. 3 Cabinet meeting seeking a three-month extension of the state of emergency. The current state of emergency is to expire at the end of February.

A state of emergency gives special powers to authorities, making it easier to place people under house arrest and conduct searches. Critics contend the measure impinges on personal freedoms to little effect.

CHARLOTTE AMALIE, U.S. Virgin Islands

U.S. Virgin Islands reports its first Zika virus case

The U.S. Virgin Islands reports its first case of the mosquito-borne Zika virus.

Authorities said Friday that the patient is a 42-year-old woman who lives on the island of St. Croix and has not traveled recently.

The U.S. territorys Health Department has been distributing free mosquito bite prevention kits.

Brazilian officials have linked the tropical illness to birth defects. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has warned that pregnant women should avoid traveling to 14 countries and territories in the Americas where the virus has been detected. Puerto Rico and Haiti have already reported Zika cases.

Zika symptoms are generally milder than those of dengue and chikungunya and can include a slight fever, headache and pain in the hands and feet.

LONDON

Charlotte Rampling says Oscars diversity debate racist to whites

Academy Award-nominated actress Charlotte Rampling has entered the debate over a lack of diversity at the Oscars, saying the calls for a boycott are racist to white people.

All this years acting nominees are white. Rampling told Frances Europe 1 radio Friday that maybe the black actors didnt deserve to be in the final stretch.

Asked if there should be quotas  not a suggestion made by boycott supporters  Rampling said we live in countries nowadays where everyone is more or less accepted, but there would always be problems with people being judged not handsome enough, too black or too white.

COPENHAGEN, Denmark

Finland to start second sanctioned trial wolf hunt

Finnish authorities say a second, government-sanctioned trial wolf hunt is set to begin Saturday in an attempt to manage numbers and curb poaching. Finlands state Wildlife Agency says 46 licenses have been given out for the hunting period that ends Feb. 21.
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NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg addressed global security challenges at the World Economic Forum in Davos (21-23 January 2016). Mr Stoltenberg took part in a plenary session on the global security outlook together with Afghan President Dr Ashraf Ghani, US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter and the Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore Tharman Shanmugaratnam.

The Secretary General stressed the importance of NATO's agility, adaptability and strength at a time when the lines between war and peace are blurred by hybrid warfare, terrorism and cyber attacks. "When we are strong, we are able to deter and prevent war. We want to be strong not to fight war but to avoid one, to make all understand that any attack on any Ally is doomed to fail," Mr Stoltenberg said. He also highlighted the critical task of helping partners build their defence capacity. "We project stability not always with forces, but with training and helping to defend," he said.

Mr Stoltenberg held bilateral talks with some of NATO's key partners. With President Ghani, he discussed the security situation in Afghanistan and NATO's continued commitment to the country through its mission to train, advise and assist Afghan security forces and institutions.

The Secretary General and Iraqs Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi spoke about NATOs plans to start training Iraqi officers in the near future in order to strengthen their ability to fight ISIL and defend their own country. He also agreed with the Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid on the need to further enhance cooperation and capacity building in the fight against terrorism.

In a meeting with Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili, Mr Stoltenberg reaffirmed NATO's commitment to Georgia's territorial integrity, and discussed the implementation of the substantial NATO-Georgia package, including the progress made by the NATO-Georgia Joint Training and Evaluation Centre.

Defence capacity building was also high on the agenda in the Secretary General 's meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada. The Secretary General thanked Prime Minister Trudeau for Canada's commitment to NATO and contribution to international security and cooperation. The Secretary General also met Senator Bob Corker, Chairman of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, to discuss NATO's adaptation to complex challenges, as well as the latest trends in Allied defence spending.
Newspaper: Karabakh delegation to head for Moscow, meeting with Putin considered probable

Azerbaijan army opens fire towards Armenia positions at midnight

White House is puzzling over how to avoid meeting between Putin and Biden at G-20 summit

Eduard Aghajanyan: Once again I remind that Armenia was deprived of opportunity to protect rights of people of Artsakh

U.S. says that limiting Russian oil prices is not aimed at OPEC

OSCE sends mission to Armenia to assess situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border

Jeff Bezos warns that U.S. economy may face recession

Kiev says nearly 40% of Ukraine's energy infrastructure has been damaged

Raisi: Iran will use all its capabilities and potential to end war in Ukraine

Qatar gets first pandas in Middle East

Armenian president delivers lecture at St. Kliment Ohridski University in Sofia

More than half of Britons think Liz Truss should resign

Bloomberg: Putin and Erdogan's cordial relationship arouses Western anger

Dutch government invests up to 3.5 billion in military procurement

Erdogan discusses latest developments in Ukraine with Zelenskyy

School in Paris expels student from class for denying Armenian Genocide

Germany would like to participate in EU observer mission to Armenia

U.S. is considering plan to co-produce weapons with Taiwan

Poland to buy K239 Chunmoo from South Korea

Air defense system repels several missile attacks by Ukrainian troops at Kakhovskaya HPP

Baku court does not definitively terminate criminal prosecution of Yunus spouses

Liz Truss has no plans to resign

CSTO countries agree on draft agreement on standardization of military equipment

EU countries agree to sanction eight people and organizations over Iranian drones

Congressman David Price meets with rector of Yerevan State University

Chairman of Amsterdam City Court visits Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex in Yerevan

ASPU supports process of unification of universities

Deputy Chief of Police on new draft law: 'Citizen of Azerbaijan' is extremely relative notion

Benny Gantz: Israel will not supply weapons to Ukraine

Saudi Arabia lifts ban on Turkish soap operas

Armenia lawyer arrested

Remains discovered during renovation of Ministry of Culture building in Tbilisi are transferred to Armenian Pantheon

Dollar goes up, euro falls in Armenia

IRGC special forces conduct helicopter operations on third day of exercises on border with Azerbaijan

MFA: France position on achieving Armenia-Azerbaijan peace is unchanged

Foreign Minister: Iran will not allow blocking its communications with Armenia

Kremlin: Russia does not intend to close borders amid introduction of martial law in four regions

EU mission delegation visits some border communities of Armenias Gegharkunik Province (PHOTOS)

Armenias Papikyan attends defense ministers assembly in India

Brusov university rector: Armenia education minister offered me a high position in new university, I declined

Putin imposes martial law in new territories of Russia

Yerevan to host Eurasian Intergovernmental Council meeting

Putin holds meeting of Security Council

Armenia MOD spox: Azerbaijan still preventing search operations

Iran announces retaliatory sanctions against EU

Russian Defense Ministry reports on strike on military facilities in Ukraine

Artsakh Foreign Minister receives Ruben Vardanyan

Israel calls Australia's refusal to recognize Jerusalem as capital of Israel 'pathetic decision'

Armenia to tighten penalties for overloading of trucks

Georgia, Azerbaijan, Turkey army elite units conduct demonstration military drills

Luxembourg parliament speaker: Azerbaijan aggression is direct attack on Armenia sovereignty

Russia Investigative Committee chief confirms theory of Crimean Bridge explosion accomplices

Uruguay vice president: We express our solidarity with Armenian people

GeoProMining's ZCMC has tripled tax payments to the state budget of Armenia

Yerevan judge to be arrested

Paul Krekorian unanimously elected as LA City Council President

ThePrint: Armenia eyes procuring Akash missiles, loitering munitions from India

Armenia MP to international colleagues: Azerbaijan intends to carry out new aggression

Ukraine military hits Energodar city hall

Armenia PM: We hope Azerbaijan will cooperate in clarifying destiny of our compatriots

Newspaper: Where is 1991 declaration by which Armenia, Azerbaijan once recognized each other's territorial integrity?

Azerbaijan fires at Armenia positions at midnight

PACE lawmakers call for Azerbaijan militarys immediate withdrawal from Armenia

Australia reverses decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel capital

Armenia MPs meet with European Parliament colleagues, reflect on recent Azerbaijan attack

Nouriel Roubini: In some sense, World War III has already started

EU considers paying Elon Musk to provide Starlink Internet to Ukraine

U.S. will continue to take practical, aggressive steps to make it difficult for Iran to sell drones to Russia

German Prosecutor's Office searches Deutsche Bank headquarters

Head of Germany's national cybersecurity agency fired amid reports of ties to Russia

Uruguayan Chamber of Deputies condemns Azerbaijan's invasion of Armenian territory

Spanish minister: EU is far from solution to energy crisis

Fake Azerbaijani names of Syunik province communities removed from Google Maps and Google Earth apps

Artsakh President presents details of meetings held in Yerevan to MPs

Lavrov: Russia sees no point in maintaining its previous presence in Western countries

UAE: OPEC+ decision has no political motive

Opposition to David Price: Right to self-determination is the right of people of Artsakh to survive

Iran is ready to negotiate with Ukraine to resolve ambiguities

Deputy Speaker of Armenian National Assembly: 47 PACE deputies made written statement condemning Baku's aggression

Lapid will discuss Kiev request for Israeli systems with Kuleba

Morawiecki: Poland is not afraid of losing EU funds

Armenian President meets with Sofia Mayor

Speaker of Armenian National Assembly to Norway FM: Withdrawal of Azerbaijani Armed Forces from Armenia is a priority

Nikol Pashinyan receives delegation headed by Norwegian Foreign Minister Anniken Huitfeldt

Iran responds to Borrell's garden and jungle statement: EU needs to accept realities or it will continue to wither

Pashinyan: No one can accuse Armenia of evading its obligations

Congressman: U.S. was not active in terms of security in Armenia, but now situation is changing

Indian defense company Solar group says it has received orders from Armenia for 'Pinaka' missiles

Price: U.S. military aid to Azerbaijan will not be used for offensive purposes against Armenia

Military expert assesses possibility of new hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan

Russian Embassy: Armenians' attitude towards Russians who moved to Armenia remains very friendly

Clarification by Price: What Could Armenian-American military cooperation look like?

Armenian Defense Minister visits DEFEXPO exhibition in India

President of Artsakh talks about results of discussions held in Armenia

Borrell angers UAE with his comparison of world outside Europe to 'jungle'

Public Council formed in Artsakh

China Daily: Party's anti-graft efforts generate fruitful outcomes

Price: We demand that Azerbaijan return to its initial positions

Aghajanyan: This visit should be seen as another stage in dynamic development of Armenian-American relations

Ukraine will officially ask Israel for transfer of air defense systems
WASHINGTON, D.C.  The United States (U.S.) began implementing changes under the Visa Waiver Program Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act of 2015 (the Act).

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) welcomes more than a million passengers arriving to the United States every day and is committed to facilitating legitimate travel while maintaining the highest standards of security and border protection. Under the Act, travelers in the following categories are no longer eligible to travel or be admitted to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP):

 Nationals of VWP countries who have traveled to or been present in Iran, Iraq, Sudan, or Syria on or after March 1, 2011 (with limited exceptions for travel for diplomatic or military purposes in the service of a VWP country).

 Nationals of VWP countries who are also nationals of Iran, Iraq, Sudan, or Syria.

These individuals will still be able to apply for a visa using the regular immigration process at their embassies or consulates. For those who need a U.S. visa for urgent business, medical, or humanitarian travel to the United States, U.S. embassies and consulates stand ready to process applications on an expedited basis.

Beginning January 21, 2016, travelers who currently have valid Electronic System for Travel Authorizations (ESTAs) and who have previously indicated holding dual nationality with one of the four countries listed above on their ESTA applications will have their current ESTAs revoked.

Under the new law, the Secretary of Homeland Security may waive these restrictions if he determines that such a waiver is in the law enforcement or national security interests of the United States. Such waivers will be granted only on a case-by-case basis. As a general matter, categories of travelers who may be eligible for a waiver include:

. Individuals who traveled to Iran, Iraq, Sudan or Syria on behalf of an international organizations, regional organizations, and sub-national governments on official duty;

. Individuals who traveled to Iran, Iraq, Sudan or Syria on behalf of a humanitarian NGO on official duty;

. Individuals who traveled to Iran, Iraq, Sudan or Syria as a journalist for reporting purposes;

. Individuals who traveled to Iran for legitimate business-related purposes following the conclusion of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (July 14, 2015); and

. Individuals who have traveled to Iraq for legitimate business-related purposes.

Again, whether ESTA applicants will receive a waiver will be determined on a case-by-case basis, consistent with the terms of the law. In addition, we will continue to explore whether and how the waivers can be used for dual nationals of Iraq, Syria, Iran and Sudan.

Any traveler who receives notification that they are no longer eligible to travel under the VWP are still eligible to travel to the United States with a valid nonimmigrant visa issued by a U.S. embassy or consulate. Such travelers will be required to appear for an interview and obtain a visa in their passports at a U.S. embassy or consulate before traveling to the United States.

The new law does not ban travel to the United States, or admission into the United States, and the great majority of VWP travelers will not be affected by the legislation.

An updated ESTA application with additional questions is scheduled to be released in late February 2016 to address exceptions for diplomatic- and military-related travel provided for in the Act.

Information on visa applications can be found at travel.state.gov.
YEREVAN.  The newly appointed Ambassador of Bangladesh, Jashim Uddinwhose diplomatic residence is in Athens, on Friday presented his credentials to President Serzh Sargsyan of Armenia.

Press Office of the President informed Armenian News-NEWS.am that the President congratulated the ambassador on his appointment, and wished him success in carrying out his diplomatic mission in Armenia. He noted that since Uddin is the First Ambassador of Bangladesh to Armenia, his mission is even more important and full of responsibility. The new ambassador is called upon to create a strong basis for the continuous development of bilateral state relations, and to strengthen friendly relations between the two peoples. The President of Armenia stressed the importance of creating a legal foundation for the development of bilateral cooperation.

Noting that the Armenian-Bangladeshi relations date back to the 17th century and the Armenian Surp Harutyun (Holy Resurrection) Church still stands in Armanitola, the Armenian quarter of the Bangladeshi capital city of Dhaka, the interlocutors concurred that, unfortunately, after the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, not much has been done to develop state relations and establish cooperation in a variety of domains.

According to the parties, the appointment of the first Bangladeshi ambassador to Armenia and the latters readinessbased on the principle of reciprocityto appoint an ambassador to Bangladesh testify to the two countries political will and determination to develop relations.

At the meeting, Serzh Sargsyan and Jashim Uddin stressed also the importance of strengthening Armenian-Bangladeshi cooperation within international organizations.
YEREVAN. - The distortions of the facts and the one-sided approach of the reports by Walter and on Sarsang reservoir, which will be put to vote at PACE January session, is an active topic of discussion today. At the same time, the institutional and functional shortcomings of PACE are not sufficiently presented.

First of all, it should be noted that settlement of conflicts is the priority of the OSCE, not of PACE, and the fact that PACE has, for some reason, "taken" a mission beyond its power, is more than illogical. It can be assumed that this is an institutional problem, because according to the rules set, all European supranational structures must not hinder each other's activities. In other words, they must not interfere in each other's affairs. Moreover, PACE has a commitment not to interfere in the OSCE Minsk Group activities (PACE resolutions and statements about the importance of not interfering in Minsk Group activities are indicative of this).

It should be noted that it does not refer to the humanitarian problems of the conflicts, in regard of which PACE has a defined broad field of activities. However, it should be noted that in this aspect as well we cannot talk about the effectiveness of PACE. Instead of establishing, developing and strengthening confidence building measures among the sides of Karabakh conflict, some PACE parliamentarians, having a particular interest, spare no efforts to politicize the humanitarian issues and make their constructive solutions impossible.

Unfortunately, some PACE MPs do not realize that such irresponsible behavior, particularly in conflict-related matters, directly affects the Karabakh conflict settlement process, the escalation of the conflict and even the maintenance of the ceasefire. Fortunately, the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, who deal with the conflict settlement, realize this, which is evident even in Warlick's statement that, "before publishing reports on Nagorno-Karabakh the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) should consult with the OSCE."

The dissatisfaction of the Co-Chairs is more likely justified, and those committees of PACE that have voted in favor of Artsakh-related reports, have made quite serious mistakes on this issue. From both professional and ethical points, to put it mildly, it is not right to deal with any issue without holding regular consultations with the body, under whose jurisdiction the issue is (over 20 years), and which is aware of all the nuances of the process. PACE and other institutions should have the perception that any issue related to the Karabakh conflict will not contribute to the conflict settlement process without being consulted with the Minsk Group Co-Chairs. On the contrary, it will hinder and in some cases make the issue even more complicated.

Summing up all the above-mentioned arguments, a question arises: isnt it high time for Armenian delegation together with its partners to undertake reforms in PACE, due to which, PACE, without interfering in its partners' activities, will carry out its mission more effectively?

Armen Gevorgyan
YEREVAN. - Activists of the Rise up, Armenia movement presented their demands in front of the Armenian police building, after which they continued their march to the Prosecutor Generals Office.

Ashot Aharonyan, Head of the Communication and Public Relations Department of the Armenian Police, approached the activists. The protestors presented him their demands to release activist Gevorg Safaryan and punish the Commander of 4th special police battalion, Captain Gegham Khachatryan, Armenian News  NEWS.am correspondent reports. According to them, the policeman came at the activist and not the other way round.

In Aharonyans words, the police do their best within their authorities to ascertain the circumstances. Criminal case has been launched into the statement by Safaryan, and if the investigation finds out that the activist was really attacked by the policeman and Gegham Khachatryans powers are to be terminated, this will happen.

Clashes took place between the New Armenia activists and policemen on New Year Eve because of an activist who had dressed in Christmas tree costume and walked down the capitals streets.
US Vice President Joe Biden admonished the Turkish leadership over the prosecutions of the academics, who signed a declaration urging to stop the violence in countrys southeast.

Biden arrived in Turkey on a two-day visit, during which he will meet with the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and PM Ahmet Davutoglu.

"We will continue to explain to Turkey and other countries that the ability to criticize freely is as important as to breathe freely. Freedom of speech and press are not just American, but universal values. () These freedoms are in the constitution of Turkey (). The strength of Turkish democracy affects the strength of the union between Turkey and the United States," Biden said at the round table, which was attended by the Turkish MPs in Istanbul.

He also noted that the situation with the freedom of expression in Turkey will become one of the topics of the talks with the Turkish leaders, RIA Novosti reports.

1128 Turkish and foreign academics signed a petition entitled We wont be part of this crime, in which they called the Turkish authorities to stop the slaughter and massacre of Kurds in countrys southeast. The Turkish authorities detained 24 academics who signed the petition, but later set them free.
The U.S. has shut down five Honorary Consulates of Russia. The U.S. authorities called this a response to the actions of Moscow against their diplomats. The Russian MFA stated about the provocations against the workers of the Russian diplomatic mission.

The Russian Embassy received an official notification from the US authorities on the necessity to shut down five out of the six Honorary Consulates, which operated in California, Minnesota, Florida and Puerto Rico, Russian Embassy spokesman Yury Melnik said. The responsibilities of the Honorary Consuls were fulfilled by the U.S. citizens. This status was retained by the Honorary Consul in Colorado.

Maria Zakharova, the official representative of the Russian MFA, stated that the American intelligence agencies dont stop provocations against the workers of the Russian diplomatic missions. According to her, the consuls, whose accreditations were withdrawn, are threatened with criminal prosecution.

For its part, the U.S. embassy in Russia stated that the Honorary Consulates were closed in response to the Russian interference in their diplomatic consular activity in Russia. The embassy spokesman William Stevens said that apart from the closing of the U.S. center in Moscow, 28 of its branches had to cease their operation in Russian provinces, RBK reports.
Cameron Taylor

It is an election year, and Congress is scheduled to be in session for only 111 days in 2016. Despite the potential for politics and floor time to constrain meaningful policy formulation, I am excited that Congress is finally making research investment a priority again. This commitment is good news for Emory, for Georgia, and for our nation.

It has been almost 13 years since Congress finished doubling the budget of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Since 2003, the research community has faced federal budgetary challenges that have caused success rates for grant proposals to plummet to historic lows, and the proportion of labs headed by young scientists to decline by half of what it was in 1998.

On Capitol Hill, research advocates, like Emorys Office of Government and Community Affairs (OCGA), have had to closely monitor deficit reduction efforts, like sequestration, and explain how these congressional budgetary tactics impose instability that harms our nations research enterprise.

While Emory has done comparatively well in attracting non-federal funding, some researchers have still felt the pinch. Last spring, I escorted Emory PhD candidates Amanda York and Laura Mariani to meetings on Capitol Hill. They spoke in very concrete terms about the constriction of the young researcher pipeline, especially poignant because these talented women spoke of leaving laboratory research for other career paths.

From OGCA's point of view, these meetings were among our most effective efforts to illustrate the direct and personal impact of the decline in federal research funding.

Since that time, the OGCA has continued to look for collaborative opportunities to raise the visibility of the topic within the Georgia delegation. In September, Emory and other Georgia universities worked with the Georgia Research Alliance and the Georgia Department of Economic Development to host a congressional delegation dinner focused on the message that research investment is important to Georgias economy.

In October, Emory President James Wagner joined university and business leaders from across the state to send a research support letter to every member of the Georgia congressional delegation. The letter can be viewed here.

Effort paying off

The collective effort of the research advocacy community is paying off, and we are now seeing an attitude shift on Capitol Hill. In December, Congress passed a meaningful increase in federal funding for medical research.

The NIH received an additional $2 billion for FY2016, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention saw a 5 percent increase in funding over FY2015 levels, and the National Science Foundation received an additional $118 million and the freedom to continue their work in the social and behavioral science fields unhindered.

In addition, there are efforts on both sides of Capitol Hill, as well as in the White House, to deliver cures and hasten innovation. Last July, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed H.R. 6, the 21st Century Cures Act, which creates an Innovation Fund, a dedicated $1.75 billion funding stream for five years for NIH. Most of our delegation voted in support of this legislation.

Last month, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee announced that it was turning its attention to a medical innovation bill, with the goal of speeding up the FDAs approval process for new drugs and boosting funding for NIH research. In last week's State of the Union address, President Barack Obama announced an initiative to cure cancer.

2015 was a good year for research funding, and 2016 has great potential indeed. Between the cures/innovation effort and the leadership push for a regular FY2017 appropriations process, I am hopeful that we will look back on the FY2016 research agency increases as the beginning of a heightened national commitment to science funding  one that will be sustained for many years to come.

Cameron Taylor is vice president for government and community affairs at Emory University.
Graduate students Aja Daniels, left, and Jorcyelin Ani have been awarded social work fellowships for their commitment to helping underrepresented youth.

Graduate students Jorcyelin Ani and Aja Daniels, both in the master of social work degree program, aspire to work with disadvantaged children and teens to improve young lives.

Ani has set her sights on opening a nonprofit that offers low-income youth activities, such as tutoring, sports, mentoring and counseling. Daniels aspires to become a school social worker to help underrepresented children dealing with mental health issues.

To assist them in pursuing their career goals, each has been awarded a $6,500 fellowship from the Council on Social Work Educations Minority Fellowship Program, the organizations inaugural masters-level fellowship. Only 40 fellowships were awarded nationwide to students committed to providing mental health services to at-risk children, adolescents and young adults in underserved and underrepresented communities.

The fellowship provides training, as well as financial and professional development support, including two days of intensive training March 6-8 in Alexandria, Virginia.

The goal of the fellowship program is to improve the health outcomes of underrepresented populations by training mental health professionals who originate from similar ethnic groups. Through the program, underserved communities will receive care by practitioners who understand the norms and values of their culture.

This opportunity will afford me specialized training in my areas of interest, which includes providing mental health services, said Daniels. Ultimately, receiving this fellowship means that Im on my way to becoming a more skilled and more effective clinician.

For Ani, choosing the social work profession is her way of paying it forward.

I came from a disadvantaged background, and within the community I grew up in, we lacked a lot of community resources and support, she said. My main area of interest is working with children and families that live in low-income, disadvantaged communities. I was an at-risk youth, so giving back to at-risk youth is a must, now that I am able to tell my own success story.

The fellowship for advanced social work masters students is funded by a grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, a public agency within the Department of Health and Human Services.

For more information about CSUFs Master of Social Work program, launched in 2007, visit the website.
01:07

Eminent tabla player Pandit Shankar Ghosh passed away tonight at a private city hospital in Kolkata, his family said. He was 80.



Ghosh leaves behind his wife -- Hindustani classical vocalist of Patiala gharana Sanjukta Ghosh -- his famed percussionist son Pt Bickram Ghosh, daughter-in-law Jaya Seal Ghosh and two grandsons.



Ghosh, who had been admitted to the hospital following heart ailment, was in coma since past 40 days and died at 9 pm today, Jaya Seal Ghosh said. The legendary classical exponent, who is the mentor of Bickram Ghosh, had been admitted to the ICU of a super-speciality hospital on E M Bypass, since mid December and underwent angioplasty on December 14.



"He was in an unconscious state for about one-and-half months and left for his heavenly abode at 9 pm. The condition further worsened since Wednesday last. We will keep the body at a mortuary and are planning to take it to our ancestral residence and then to Rabindra Sadan complex tomorrow morning," Jaya, an acclaimed dancer and actor, said.



After being initially admitted with cardiac problems, Ghosh had developed symptoms of pneumonia and geriatric complications and had multi-organ failure in the last few hours, the bereaved family said.



'He had been suffering from pneumonia with a background of ischaemic heart disease. Old age, diabetes and hypertension had added to the problems,' a statement released by the hospital said.



'Lost him, The Emperor of Tabla. My beloved father,' Bickram tweeted.



The 80-year-old, amongst the most well-known tabla players in the country, was awarded the prestigious Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in the year 2000.



Ghosh trained mainly with legendary Pandit Gyan Prakash Ghosh. Ustad Feroz Khan, Pandit Anath Nath Bose and Pandit Sudarshan Adhikari were his other teachers and he followed the Farukhabad gharana of Hindustani classical music.



He had taught tabla to a large number of students not only in Kolkata but also in Europe. He also received the ITC Sangeet Research Academy award and the Ustad Hafiz Ali Khan award.



At various points, Ghosh performed with vocalists such as Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, Pandit Omkarnath Thakur, Pandit Vinayakrao Patwardhan, Girija Devi and Akhtari Bai.



Away from India, he collaborated with artists like Greg Ellis, Pete Lockett and John Bergamo.



He had also done 'jugalbandi' with celebrated classical musicians like sitarists Pandit Ravi Shankar and Ustad Vilayat Khan and violinist Pandit V G Jog and earned rave reviews.



A pall of gloom descended over the city's music fraternity as news of his death spread and many prominent personalities from the art and culture world rushed to the hospital.
BANGALORE: The emerging wave of next generation applications require that data centers be incredibly responsive, agile, accessible and automated. The only way to keep up with business needs is to adopt a software-defined approach to infrastructure accelerated by flash technology. In order to help its customers reach that goal, Hitachi Data Systems (HDS) today announced the newest addition to its flash portfolio, the Hitachi Flash Storage (HFS) A series family of all-flash arrays.

The Hitachi Flash Storage A series packs a powerful punch with industry-leading total cost of ownership (TCO), unmatched capacity density, dependable performance and efficient power in a small footprint. The simplified appliance package is easy to deploy and includes data optimization technologies, making it ideal for quickly boosting performance in multiple environments for fast business insights and services delivery. System performance can be efficiently shared between multiple applications through quality of service (QoS) software. HFS A is the ideal platform for customers who want unprecedented performance and TCO in all-flash arrays.

Advanced Data Efficiency Services

Hitachi Flash Storage A series systems include a full suite of user-selectable data services that enable the right levels of capacity efficiency, data protection and predictable performance for a variety of workloads. Advanced features and selectable data services include inline data deduplication and compression, thin provisioning, snapshots, replication and data encryption. Customers now have the power to choose between turning on or off the inline data deduplication or compression based on application requirements for the right mix between performance and efficiency.

Customers can realize an average of 5:1 more effective capacity and optimize data reduction rates with performance through optional deduplication tuning. They can also save even more space by allocating capacity on demand with thin provisioning technology.

HFS A Solution at Glance

Available in three models, HFS A series includes a pair of high-performance controllers and up to 60 SSDs in a single 2U-high tray. With up to 384TB of effective capacity and 1 million IOPS, customers can easily and quickly consolidate multiple applications to reduce data center footprint while alleviating management headaches. The HFS A series is ideal for customers seeking optimized solutions for a particular set of use cases like virtual desktop, virtual server real-time analytics and database environments.

Hitachi Flash Storage A series arrays also provide data protection in a number of ways. Customers can protect data with copy-on-write snapshots per logical volume and full clones of logical volumes can also be created and copied for redundancy.

Finally, QoS controls can be set for maximum IOPS and bandwidth consumption per logical volume to enable consistent application performance.

Integrated Flash Solutions for Every Use Case

Hitachi Flash Storage A series is Hitachis latest entry in its flash portfolio, which delivers flash solutions for multiple use case. The Hitachi Flash Storage A series joins the recently announced all-flash Hitachi Virtual Storage Platform (VSP) F series and enhanced models of the hybrid Hitachi VSP G series in the Hitachi flash storage portfolio, enabling Hitachi to provide the right solution for the widest variety of customer applications.

A flash technology leader, Hitachi has invested heavily in next-generation flash research and development for over 15 years and has delivered industry innovation worldwide through more than 350 flash-related patents, more than any other vendor in the industry. These patents make our offer unique, helping to deliver the highest efficiency, reliability, capabilities and quality in the flash market. As one of the leading suppliers of enterprise flash in the industry, Hitachi has been meeting customer demand for flash technology since 2008, having shipped more than 250PB of total flash capacity and supporting the world's largest all-flash deployments for critical business applications.

Supporting Quotes:

Hitachi has delivered a full portfolio of optimized flash solutions bound together by a software-defined approach to storage infrastructure. This gives customers the ability to optimize solutions for a particular set of use cases while getting the power and efficiencies of common management, workflows and policies across their infrastructure, said Miklos Sandorfi, vice president, Infrastructure Platforms, Solutions and Cloud, Hitachi Data Systems.

In this fast-paced marketplace, businesses cant afford disruption or loss of any competitive advantage. So, they turn to Hitachi, an industry leader with proven IT innovations. Now, customers have one more reason to consider Hitachi Data Systems: Hitachi Flash Storage, said Gerard Luchinger, chief technology officer, UMB AG.

Time and time again, Hitachi is proven to be an innovator of high-quality, high-value solutions. As a longtime partner, I can tell you that both the company and its portfolio of solutions and services are exceptional. Its a great time to be an HDS partner and customer, said Miriam Murphy, senior vice president, North Region, EMEA, Avnet Technology Solutions.

Customers looking to solve for the growing pressure points around cost, operational performance, and response times will be amazed by Hitachi Flash Storage. Unequivocally, it delivers the most effective cost per gigabyte with the highest efficiency, fast response times and high performance, said Mark Poon, managing director, ICON Business Systems Ltd.

With best-in-class density, capacity, and efficiency as well as selectable data deduplication and compression, thin provisioning and quality-of-service controls, the new Hitachi Flash Storage solutions will change the face of flash storage for many organizations. This is a game changer, said Christine Zagielski, senior vice president, Sales & Marketing, Lumenate.

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Law school event features Monsanto attorneys

by Pete Rosenbery

CARBONDALE, Ill.  A discussion next week at the SIU School of Law will provide insight into the work of attorneys with a large biotech firm.

The law schools Intellectual Property Society, a registered student organization, is sponsoring a discussion featuring attorneys from St. Louis-based Monsanto. The presentation, IP Law and Agricultural Biotechnology: A Discussion with Monsantos IP Lawyers, begins at 12:15 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 26, in the Hiram H. Lesar Building Courtroom at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

The discussion is open to students and the public. Lunch will be provided for law school students who attend.

Ryan T. Holte, an assistant law professor whose teaching expertise is intellectual property law and property law, said the talk will center on intellectual property law as it relates to biotechnology and corporate intellectual property practice.

Our hope is that students -- especially law students -- and the public will better understand how a large biotech company legal group works, what issues they deal with on a daily basis, and insight into becoming an in-house lawyer as part of a legal career path, he said.

Four members of the Monsanto Co. legal staff are expected to participate:

Carine M. Doyle, assistant general counsel.

Matthew Madsen, assistant general counsel.

David Lanzotti, senior corporate counsel and intellectual property attorney.

Amanda Carmany-Rampey, assistant general counsel.

Holte is a faculty adviser with the IP Society, which has between 50 and 75 law school student members. The RSO has hosted previous events geared toward understanding and debating the numerous issues of patent, trademark, and copyright law.
Mandara Savage to lead Extended Campus

by Pete Rosenbery

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Mandara D. Savage, who has served as interim director of Southern Illinois University Carbondales Extended Campus since March, is the programs executive director.

Savage, an associate professor and chair in the Department of Technology, began his new duties Jan. 1. Extended Campus provides online and off-campus academic programs.

James Allen, associate provost for academic programs, said a university screening committee enthusiastically recommended Savages appointment after a competitive national search and on-campus interview of finalists in December.

Already the off-campus programs have witnessed a notable improvement in services and support, Allen said of Savages work as interim director.

I am excited about the opportunities that await Extended Campus and the programs throughout the university, Savage said. The purpose of Extended Campus is to, Extend the four walls of the university. This is done by offering a first-rate education through expanded availability, increased convenience and affordability. Extended Campus is an important factor in the universitys future growth into new markets and providing the level of quality education for which it is known and recognized. I look forward to working with all constituencies of the university in continuing our progress together.

Savage came to SIU Carbondale in 1999 as an assistant professor in the Department of Technology. He became associate professor in 2007 and department chair in 2008. While serving as department chair, Savage worked in developing distance education programs, as director of the Technology Off-Campus Degree program (TOCDP), which has 10 locations at community college and military sites in Illinois, Tennessee, Arkansas and Delaware. He was a spring 2015 Provost Faculty Fellow at SIU Carbondale. The program provides part-time academic leadership experience and skill development to university faculty with an interest in academic administration.

Savage earned his doctorate in industrial education and technology from Iowa State University, and his Master of Science in manufacturing engineering technology from Memphis State University. He received a bachelors degree in industrial technology (electronics) from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff.
Pakistan T20 skipper Shahid Afridi has admitted that poor display by top-order batsmen led to their humiliating 95-run defeat in the third and the final match against New Zealand at Westpac Stadium in Wellington on Friday. The 35-year-old Afridi said that his side's dip in T20 form was a serious concern ahead of the World T20, adding that there was an immediate need to take some important decisions for the team's benefit. Afridi said if his players keep continuing these minor mistakes, then they would stand nowhere in the coming future, the Dawn reported. Opting to bat first, New Zealand posted an imposing 197 for Pakistan to chase, thanks to Anderson's quick-fire knock of 82 not out. The swashbuckling southpaw smashed six boundaries and four sixes in his 42-ball innings. In reply, Pakistan lost wickets at regular junctures as they were bundled out for mere 101 runs despite some resistance by wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfraz Ahmed (41). With the defeat, Pakistan have also lost the three-match series 1-2 against New Zealand. The two sides will now head into the three-match ODI series, starting from January 25 in Wellington. (ANI)
Yogesh Tiwari, 25, was duped by a recruitment agent who lured him to Malaysia with a lucrative job offer. After he ran out of money, he tweeted last week to Fadnavis seeking help to return to India.

Fadnavis took up the matter with External Affairs Minister Susma Swaraj.

Tiwari reached Mumbai on Friday, and will proceed to his hometown Yavatmal, the officials said.

--Indo-Asian News Service qn/py/mr

( 101 Words)

2016-01-22-14:51:34 (IANS)
Patnaik held a discussion with Verma and sought to expand the cooperation of the US in developing information technology and the electronics industry in Odisha.

He also highlighted the initiatives taken by the Odisha government to promote ease of doing business in the state.

"Discussed US-Odisha closer ties in investment, climate change and disaster management with @USAmbIndia Shri Richard Verma," tweeted the chief minister.

Patnaik stressed on increasing cooperation between Odisha and the US in the education and tourism sector.

"Discussed how the US and Odisha can collaborate on many areas including in investments, climate change and disaster management," tweeted Verma.

Earlier on Friday, Verma interacted with some business leaders of the state and gained insights into the improving business climate in the state.

He also met Odisha Governor S.C. Jamir and discussed ties between Odisha and the US.

--Indo-Asian News Service cd/pr/bg

( 178 Words)

2016-01-22-19:21:35 (IANS)
Security forces detain a man at the scene of a bomb blast in a main street in Giza, Egypt, January 21, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

CAIRO - A blast killed 10 people, including seven policemen Thursday evening as security forces raided a terrorist hideout in Egypt's Giza province near the capital Cairo, Egypt's state-run Ahram online reported.

The blast occurred when policemen attempted to defuse a bomb that was found at an apartment used as a hideout by a terrorist group in Giza's Mariotya district.

The explosion also left 13 injured; two of them are in critical conditions.

Egypt's Ministry of Interior said a security force stormed the apartment after receiving information that a group of terrorists were hiding inside.

Egypt has been facing anti-government attacks, mostly in the Sinai Peninsula, which killed hundreds of police and soldiers since 2013.

Most of the terror attacks have been claimed by Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis militant group, which has changed its name to "Sinai State" and declared loyalty to the Islamic State.

Military continuous massive operations in the peninsula have killed hundreds of militants as part of the country's "war against terrorism."
Congress expressed serious concern over curtailment in budget for higher education by the Modi Government and its fallout over academic activities in universities and fate of the ambitious flagship initiatives like Skill India, Make-in-India and Start-up India.This has been leaving stifling effect on our universities, creating hardship before a large number ofstudents and scholars who are not getting their scholarship and stipends for months, the opposition party held in a note issued here last night."Modi Government is stifling our Universities by cutting budget for higher education..,..In his final letter, Dalit scholar late Rohith Vemula had written...I have to get 7 months of my fellowship, one lakh and seventy five thousand rupees..,..please see to it that my family is paid that..., the note observed reflecting on the seriousness of the situation."Back in July last, Vemulas monthly stipend was stopped by the Hyderabad Central University..,.. according to a media report, this happened because of paper-work..,..this trend is being seen across India..,..In some cases reason cited is lack of funds, while in others, it is used to control activism of students..', it further stated.In the revised estimates of Budget 2014-15, the government had reduced the funds for higher education by Rs 3,900 crore, which has put Universities under financial stress and they can no longer disburse stipends to research scholars from their own resources and have to wait for the University Grants Commission (UGC) to reimburse them, the party observed, adding that the victims ultimately are students.Many of the SC/ST students conducting research in Universities across the country require scholarships to help fund their education. In many cases now, research scholars have not received stipends for nearly 5-6 months, which has put them under stress and has affected their work, it said, adding when the HRD Ministry proposed scrapping of financial support for thousands of Post Graduate students, it triggered major protests outside the UGC headquarters in Delhi. "Shri Modi and Smt Irani, how can there be a Skill India, Make in India or a Start-up India, if you discourage Indias greatest resource and strength - its youth.?..", the opposition party questioned.UNI SS SV 1235 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0089-551303.Xml
: The National Fishworkers Forum (NFF) has urged the Pakistan Government to release Saeed Baloch, who was arrested on January 16 by the Pakistan Rangers, working under the command of the Pakistan Army. "According to Muhammad Ali Shah, the Chairperson of the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum and Co-chair of the World Forum of Fisher Peoples in which National Fishworkers Forum is an active member and founder, it is not known under what charges the paramilitary force has detained Mr Baloch," NFF National Secretary T Peter said in a press release here today. "Approached by Mr Ali Shah, a Rangers spokesperson, neither confirmed, nor denied the arrest of Mr. Baloch. In a statement by the Awami Workers Party, deep concern is raised over the Pakistan Rangers' continued targeting of political and social activists and workers under the guise of anti-terror operations. Human Rights defenders can be detained for up to three months without charge under the wide powers granted to the Rangers under the Anti-Terrorism Act." "Mr Baloch was apparently misjudged as one of the terrorists. We wish to state that he is a Human Rights activist since the 1980's. He was associated with the Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF), that works to protect the socio-economic and political rights of the indigenous fisherfolk communities in the country, since its inception. Baloch is also one of the senior Human Rights activists of Pakistan," he said. "As the repeatedly elected General Secretary of PFF, Mr Baloch has been outspoken in advocating for ecologically sustainable and economically equitable fisheries. His commitment to a fair society is also reflected in his repeated election as General Secretary of the Fishermen Cooperative Society Employees Union. Global appreciation of Mr Balochs commitment to human rights is illustrated by continued election to the Board of the International Network for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, as well as frequent invitations to be a Pakistan delegate at Regional and Global Assemblies of Justice Activists such as the Asian Peoples' Movement on Debt and Development and the World Social Forum." The NFF is utterly unhappy about this stand of the Pakistan government. While we agree that is important to combat terrorism, it cannot become a pretext to arresting people who have disagreement with it. We condemn the arrest and criminalisation of Mr Baloch and call upon his immediate and unconditional release, he added.UNI DS KVV ADB 1205 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0324-551254.Xml
Dr Martin Ney was accompanied by his wife and Consul General of Germany, Achim Fabig.

A release from Amir Mahal described the visit as acourtesy call.

During the meeting, Dr Ney evinced keen interest in the political history of Carnatic, under the Nawabs and their religious policies towards non-Muslims, during the 18th and 19th centuries in this part of the country.

The Ambassador expressed his happiness in visiting the historic Amir Mahal and admired the continued services of the Prince, in promoting secularism and harmony among the people belonging to various faiths.

The Prince hosted a reception in honour of the visiting dignitaries.

He offered garland and a memento to them.

Among the dignitaries, who attended the function were the Consuls General of several countries, besides other prominent citizens of Chennai.UNI GV KVV ADB 1300

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Congress leader Manish Tewari on Friday said the NDA Government must declassify all files pertaining to freedom fighter Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose to help shed more light on his disappearance. "Since the government has decided to declassify files pertaining to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, one would expect that the files are declassified in their entirety. There is nothing which the government should keep for posterity. All the papers, which are available with the government, must be put out in the public domain in their complete and true form and nothing should be redacted or subtracted from it," Tewari told ANI. "And, if eventually, once the papers are there, it would probably help shed more light on what really happened in those fateful hours which led to Netaji's unfortunate death or disappearance," he added. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has said that it will declassify some of the secret files on Netaji on January 23, the birth anniversary of the legendary freedom fighter. The Prime Minister had in October 14 last year promised to declassify Netaji files when he met the members of Bose's family at his official residence. "The process of declassification of files relating to Netaji will begin on January 23, 2016, Subhas Babu's birth anniversary," he had tweeted after an hour-long interaction with the family members. Tewari also emphasized that one must respect the viewpoint of Netaji's daughter, Anita Bose Pfaff, who is possibly in the best position to appreciate all the information that is available with her. "If she has a point of view, (then) that point of view should be respected," he said. Seventy three-year-old Anita is annoyed that instead of accepting evidence, many continue to be obsessed with 'asinine' theories that Netaji survived the plane crash in Taipei in 1945 and lived in the mountains as "Gumnami Baba". Based on available evidence, she is convinced that he died in the crash on August 18, 1945, and has proposed a DNA test on his remains kept at the Renkoji Temple in Japan to put the row to rest. The demand for the declassification of secret files with the Centre has gathered momentum, especially after the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal had declassified 64 files that were in its possession. (ANI)
Arsenal must be prepared to battle Chelsea striker Diego Costa when the two London rivals meet in the Premier League on Sunday, manager Arsene Wenger has said. Costa was at the centre of controversy in their last meeting earlier this season as his first-half scuffles with Laurent Koscielny and Gabriel eventually led to the Brazilian being sent off for retaliating. Gabriel's red card was later rescinded, but the defender was given a one-match suspension for failing to leave the pitch quickly enough, while Costa was slapped with a three-match ban and both clubs were fined for not controlling their players. "We have to be prepared for a battle because Costa gives you a fight. After that, it's down to the referee," Wenger told British media. "We have to focus on our performance. It's another game where people look at us and see how we behave."It will be an intense game, as usual in the Premier League. Overall, I think because of the qualities of the players on the pitch and what is at stake for both teams, it will be a very intense battle." Costa seems to have recovered from his slump, having scored five goals in his last five appearances in all competitions for champions Chelsea, who are 14th in the table after 22 games. Arsenal are top of the table with 44 points, 19 points ahead of the Blues, and head into the clash having lost just once in their last 12 games in all competitions.REUTERS SHS NS1345 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0329-551489.Xml
Delhi Police today sounded an alert after a taxi, hired from Pathankot, went missing and its driver was found dead mysteriously in Himachal Pradesh. According to sources, three men rented a taxi from Pathankot. Later, its driver, Vijay Kumar, was found dead in Kangra Valley and the car was not traced. The incident has raised concerns of the security agencies as similar modus operandi was applied during Pathankot Attack, where terrorist hired a cab and later killed the driver before storming the Airbase in which seven security personnel died. Leaving no stone unturned to ensure security in the national capital, which is all set to host French President Francios Hollande on Republic Day, the Delhi Police has released images of the three suspects, who hired the white Alto taxi from Pathankot earlier this week, on its official twitter handle. However, sources said it could be an ordinary case of robbing. A car of senior police official with a beacon atop was also stolen in the early hours of Wednesday. Mock security drills were conducted last evening by the Delhi Police at Khan Market with NSG commandos participating in it ahead of Republic Day celebrations.According to Police source, this was part of the measures taken to tighten security across the national capital after intelligence agencies alerted the authorities about possible terror attacks by modules of the Islamic State (IS). All the vital installations around India Gate and Rashtrapati Bhavan were also put on high alert. There were reports of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) warning of a possible terror attack by the IS on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Franois Hollande, who will be the chief guest at the Republic Day celebration on January 26 in the capital.Security will be tighter this time as compared to US President Barack Obamas visit last year, an official of the Home Ministry said.The government will also ensure security in the air by deploying anti-aircraft guns and declaring no-fly zones in many areas of the city.UNI RG ADG 1400 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0377-551478.Xml
A representation demanding the probe was handed over to Chief Minister Oommen Chandy by the party leader and Chandrasekharan's wife K K Rema at the government guest house today.

She had earlier met Central Ministers too to press her demand.

Later talking to newspersons, Ms Rema said Chief Minister took favourable stand on the issue.

However, Mr Chandy refused comment.

Welcoming CBIarraigning CPI (M) Kannur district Secretary P Jayarajan in RSS leader Kadirur Manoj murder case, she said, had he been booked Mr Chandrasekharan murder case, Manoj would not have been murdered.UNI PCH KVV ADB 1425

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The Supreme Court today ordered a CBI probe into the murder of Uttar Pradesh Bahujan Samaj Party leader Raju Pal on a plea filed by his wife. A division bench of Justices Pinaki Chandra Ghose and Amitava Roy issued a notice to then Samajwadi Party MP Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf Ahmed, who were arrested by the state police in connection with the brutal murder.Pooja Pal has sought intervention of the Supreme Court for a thorough and impartial probe by an independent agency, citing threat to her life as well as to Rajus mother from the SP. Allowing the petition, the Supreme Court asked the Central Bureau of Investigation to conclude the probe, preferably within a period of six months.Pooja had alleged in her plea, that it was a political murder carried out at the behest of certain SP leaders. She submitted that the investigation carried out by the UP state police so far had not been fair and impartial, as a result of which she had to approach the Apex Court for an impartial probe. The controversial BSP MLA Raju Pal and two others were allegedly shot dead and another person seriously injured by unidentified assailants in Allahabad on January 25, 2005.Raju Pal represented the Allahabad West constituency in the UP state assembly.In 2006, the Apex Court had stayed the trial of the case before a Fast Track Court (FTC) in Allahabad.UNI XC RP1450 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0386-551510.Xml
Larsen & Toubro (L&T), an engineering and construction conglomerate, announced that the railways unit, a part of the transportation infrastructure business of L&T Construction has bagged an orderworth Rs 1213 crore from the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India (DFCCIL). "This order has been secured by a consortium of L&T and Sojitz Corp. The design and build order involves electrification works for a 422 km section of the western dedicated freight corridor from Vadodara in Gujarat to JNPT (near Mumbai) in Maharashtra." company said in a filing with BSEThe section spanning across two states is in continuation to the Rewari-Vadodara section (915 km) for which L&T is already executing the electrification works with similar design. Both these projects put together make it one of the largest railway electrification projects in the world, covering 1337 route km with over 3000 trackkm of highrise railway electrification."This section will be designed for 2x25 kV traction power systems with high-rise overhead equipment (OHE) suitable for double stack containers dedicated for freight transport. The scope of work includes construction of seven traction substations (TSS) out of which one TSS will be GIS based, 40 switching stations, 897 track kmof OHE, SCADA works at 12 stations and an operational control centre along with the supply of all associated equipment," it added.Traction power transformers, auto transformers and copper conductors will be imported from Japan for this project. The project is scheduled to be completed in 42 months.The project will be executed using mechanized means of OHE installation using the latest technology in railway construction.This will be a one-of-its-kind energy efficient system to be implemented for India's rail sector.UNI JS NV SM1449 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0171-551583.Xml
: As part of a national crackdown againstalleged harbours of terrorist organisation ISIS when, according toreports 25 persons were arrested across the country, including sixpeople in Karnataka in a pre-dawn action jointly conducted by NIA,Anti Terrorist Squads (ATS) of different states and the State police. Confirming the arrests, Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwarasaid six people were arrested on charges of supporting orharbouring the terror organisation and they were being interrogatedby the officials. Police sources said the intelligence agencies and ATS of theMumbai Police and State police under the direction of NIA, aftertracking their activities in the social media, arrested them. While four arrests were made in Bengaluru, one each suspect waspicked up from the Port city of Mangaluru and Tumakuru respectively.Those arrested in the last two named cities were identified asNazmul Hudah (25) and Syed Hussain (25). While the former was aengineering course drop-out, the latter was a fruit merchant. Sources said the duo were arrested following the leads gained bysimilar arrests made in Delhi and Mumbai and the duo's contact whichthose arrested earlier through social media, skype. It was alleged that the ISIS handlers had come in contact withthem after their social media postings were tracked from them andthey influenced to support the terror organisation and alsooffered to invite them to Syria. Nazmul, studied BE before being a drop-out in a reputedengineering college in the city, was arrested from his house atParmude near Bajpe in Mangaluru and Hussain was arrested from hismodest residence near Gumchi circle in Tumakuru. Dr Parameshwara said four others were picked up from differentplaces in the city. They were arrested from areas like Madiwala,Chamarajapet and Jakkasandra. Sources said the arrests were made following the informationprovided by a Moulvi Syed Ansar Shah Khazmi, who was arrested in thecity last month. In a similar action, the investigating agencies hadarrested two suspected terror operatives in Gulbarga and a ITprofessional in the city during the last few months.UNI RS MSP KVV ADB 1435 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0287-551521.Xml
The incident happened on Thursday night or possibly just after midnight inside the house of Sheikh Jabir Hussain in Ahmedpur, some 180 km from Kolkata, a police officer said.

"Two people have died. Prima facie it appears a bomb was being made in the house when it exploded," said the officer.

The victims were identified as Sheikh Hafizul and Tariq Hussain, brothers of Sheikh Jabir Hussain, a Panchayat member from the Trinamool Congress.

Residents insisted that some bodies were removed before police reached the scene.

--Indo-Asian News Service and/kb/mr

( 127 Words)

2016-01-22-15:17:36 (IANS)
The Supreme Court on Friday issued notice to the Maharashtra government on a plea by Delhi University professor G.N. Saibaba for bail in the case of his alleged links with the Revolutionary Democrats Front -- an alleged front organisation of the banned CPML-Maoist. The apex court bench of Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar and Justice C. Nagappan also issued notice on author and social activist Arundhati Roy's plea challenging her summoning in a contempt plea. While issuing notice returnable in two weeks, the court did not accept plea by Roy for exemption from appearing before the court in pursuance to her summoning. --Indo-Asian News Service pk/pr/vt ( 117 Words) 2016-01-22-15:23:34 (IANS)
"Four people were arrested in Bengaluru and one each in Mangaluru and Tumakuru," he told the media on the margins of an event here. Those nabbed in Bengaluru are Asif, Afzal, Sayed and Ahad.

Suspect Nazmul Huda, arrested from Bajpe suburb in Mangalore, is also accused of encouraging youths to join the Islamic State terrorist outfit. He is a dropout from a private engineering college in Bengaluru.

Arrested in Tumakuru was Syed Mujahid Husain, 25.

Mangaluru and Tumakuru are located about 350 km 70 km respectively from Bengaluru.

"The suspects are being interrogated by NIA (National Investigation Team) about their roles and links," Parameshwara said.

The arrests followed raids by NIA teams on the rented houses and hideouts of the suspects in the city.

Huge quantities of arms and ammunition were recovered and seized from the rented house of two of the suspects.

Earlier, Karnataka Director General of Police Om Prakash told IANS that the Anti-Terrorist Squad was not informed and its help was not sought by the central security agencies which made the arrests.

"Central agencies have the judicial powers to arrest any suspect in the country," Prakash said.

Informed sources said raids were conducted on a tip off that the Islamic State sympathizers were planning bomb attacks on Republic Day (January 26) in the city or any other place in the state.

--Indo-Asian News Service fb/mr

( 264 Words)

2016-01-22-15:29:36 (IANS)
UP Governor Ram Naik, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Lucknow Mayor Dinesh Sharma welcomed Mr Modi at the Chaudhury Charan Singh international airport.

This is the first visit of any prime minister during the past 11 years.Dr Manmohan Singh visited the state capital in September 2005 to launch the gold scheme of Life Insurance Corporation.

Mr Modi will attend three functions, including convocation of the Bhimrao Ambedkar University (BBAU), distribution of e-rickshaws and visit to Bharatratna Bodhisatva Babasahab Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar Mahasabha for around four hours.

During the distribution of e-rickshaws, the Prime Minister will interact with a select beneficiaries for about 15 minutes.

He will return to New Delhi later this evening.UNI MB AE RP RAI1509

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Meghalaya's opposition United Democratic Party (UDP) has asked Chief Minister Mukul Sangma to sack Urban Affairs Minister Mazel Ampareen Lyngdoh after the High Court directed the CBI to register a case against her and 21 others for granting illegal permission to construct high rise buildings illegally. "We feel that for a free and fair investigation, it is only right for a person holding high public office to resign, so as to facilitate due process of law without fear or favour, not as long as she can influence by continuing in office. The education scam against the same Minister could not take off because of the very same reason," the UDP stated in its memorandum submitted to the Chief Minister. UDP General Secretary AF Dkhar said that it was the prerogative of the Chief Minister to drop Ms Lyngdoh from the Cabinet, considering the fact that till date, the Minister, has not taken any position on this matter. Recently, the Meghalaya high court had passed an order which relates to a PIL filed by a group of lawyers, who contend that construction of buildings beyond "ground floor plus three floors" in the city poses danger, as it falls under seismic zone V. In his verdict, Chief Justice Uma Nath Singh said the CBI has submitted its final inquiry report. "In the findings recorded after holding a detailed preliminary inquiry, the CBI has found inculpatory evidence against Ampareen Lyngdoh, chairperson of Muda, and Muda members F. War, T. Lyngwa, B.R.M. Lyngdoh, K. Wahlang, B.P.F. Lyngdoh, S. Shullai, and R. Rymbai and L.K. Jyrwa for granting permission for raising illegal construction of high rise buildings beyond G+3," the order said. Parliamentary Secretary Taxation Lamboklang Myllliem is also of the13 owners of highrise buildings, who were found guilty of procuring "illegal permission". Recalling the impact of the recent Manipur earthquake, the court order also said, "The grant of permission to raise highrise buildings as well as an act of raising such constructions in an illegal manner in violation of laws have to be dealt with firmly."? While granting liberty to the CBI to register the case at their headquarters, New Delhi, and seek liberty from the Supreme Court, if so advised, the court ordered prosecution of the aforesaid persons in a Delhi court so that the trial could reach its logical conclusion well within time and to the full satisfaction of the litigants.UNI RRK KK ADG AE RAI1523 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0212-551454.Xml
The Serbian defending champion claimed a hard-fought 6-1, 7-5, 7-6 (6) win over Seppi at Margaret Court Arena. He will next face French 14th seed Gilles Simon for a quarterfinal spot.

In the women's singles, top seed Serena Williams marched into the Australian Open fourth round with a 6-1, 6-1 demolition of hapless teenager Daria Kasatkina, Sport24 reported.

Serena, a six-time winner at Melbourne, outmuscled the Russian in just 44 minutes, the shortest match of the tournament so far. (ANI)
In his speech at the 6th convocation of the Bhimrao Ambedkar university in Lucknow, he choked and paused while referring to the scholar's death on last Sunday, triggering protests across the country.

"I am not going into the reasons, politics of the issue, but I empathise with the family who has lost so much," he said as tears welled up in his eyes.

He said that at a time when the entire nation looks up to the youth for inspiration and strength, a news like this brings sadness.

He told youngsters not to take such drastic steps.

Earlier at the event, two students raised slogans against the prime minister as union Home Minister Rajnath Singh concluded his speech and Modi rose to address the gathering.

As they shouted that the killers of Rohith Vemula were still alive and raised slogans like "go back Modi", police officials whisked them away and the prime minister began his speech.

--Indo-Asian News Service md/pr/tsb/

( 199 Words)

2016-01-22-16:29:34 (IANS)
''How anguished his parents might have felt. There might be reasons and politics behind it but the fact is that a mother has lost her son,'' Mr Modi said while delivering the convocation address at the Bhimrao Ambedkar university.

While mentioning the death, the voice of the Prime Minister turned hoarse, and there was a pause in his speech before he could recollect himself to continue.

He said he could well feel the agony of the parents.

The Prime Minister said he wanted to create an atmosphere and circumstances in the country in which every youth could realise his dream and take the country to new heights.UNI MB-NAZ RSA AE 1616

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The trouble started immediately after Friday prayers were over in the historic Jamia Masjid and other mosques in the downtown and Shehar-e-Khas (SeK) this afternoon.

People, mostly youngsters took to the streets at Nowhatta and adjoining areas, raising pro-freedom slogans. However, security forces and state police personnel deployed in the area chased them away.

However, the demonstrators, who later pelted stones, clashed with the security forces at Gojwara and other places, disrupting traffic to Soura and outskirts. Vehicular traffic was later diverted to other routes.

Security forces resorted to lathicharge which had no impact on the demonstrators who continued stone pelting.

Later security forces burst teargas shells to restore normalcy in the area.UNI BAS AE AS1652

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Prashant Kishore, the man behind success story of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar in the state assembly elections, has been appointed advisor to the CM, with rank of a cabinet minister, on policy and programmes implementation in the state. Official sources said here today that a notification of appointment of Mr Kishore as advisor to the Chief Minister was issued yesterday, who would have the responsibility to advise the CM on formulation and implementation of policies of the state government. Mr Kishore would play vital role in implementation of seven resolves of Mr Kumar which he had promised during Bihar assembly elections last year. Mr Kumar, appears impressed with Mr Kishore for his good strategy for the ruling JD(U) in recent Bihar assembly elections which fetched thumping victory for the party and its allies in grand alliance. Mr Kishore has been given the rank of cabinet minister while state cabinet coordination department would be his parent department. .Other important responsibilities might also be given to Mr Kishore in days ahead, sources informed. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee are also reported to be in touch with Mr Kishore, seeking his services to boost their poll prospects in assembly elections in their respective states. Earlier, Mr Kumar had appointed reputed agricultural scientist Mangla Rai as agriculture advisor in the state while former diplomat Pawan Kumar Verma was made cultural advisor to the CM.UNI KKS KK ADG AE RAI1630 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0212-551653.Xml
The National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) has decided to support eight projects of Haryana involving an investment of Rs 1272 crore. Haryana Public Works (Building and Roads) Minister Rao Narbir Singh today said these projects included one of Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) and seven of the Public Works (Building and Roads) Department. Haryana would get Rs 826 crore as loan for these projects which would substantially help in improving transportation. He said for development of 52.33 km-long access controlled Manesar-Palwal Expressway at a cost of Rs 458 crore, the state would get a loan support of Rs 343.85 crore from the NCRPB. He said for improvement a length of 38.41 km Gurgaon-Pataudi-Rewari state highway-26 would cost Rs 354 crore and the state would get a loan of Rs 265.50 crore. Similarly, the project of 1.86 kilometers long elevated road from old bus stand, Rohtak to Chotu Ram Chowk on NH-10 would cost Rs 153 crore and the state would get a loan of Rs 115 crore from NCRPB. Apart from this, the state government would construct four Railway over Bridges (RoB) on railway crossings in the state. These included four lane over bridge over Lakhan Majra-Meham road on Delhi-Bhatinda Railway line at a cost of Rs 56 crore, a two-lane over bridge on Jind-Panipat line along with Delhi water carrier link channel at a cost of Rs 32.58 crore and another two-lane over bridge on Jind-Panipat line over Panipat-Kabri road at a cost of Rs 29 crore. He said that an additional two-lane over bridge would be constructed over Hisar-Sadalpur line on Dabra Chowk in Hisar at a cost of Rs 74.67 crore. He added that Jhajjar-Farukh Nagar-Gurgaon road, a part of which falls in Jhajjar and Gurgaon districts would be made four lanned at a cost of about Rs 115 crore.UNI KS SW AE NS1607 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0292-551661.Xml
French Ambassador Francois Richier on Friday said he could not comment on the outcome of the ongoing talks on the Rafale fighter plane deal with India, and added it was a "complex negotiation". "Discussions are taking place at present. I cannot say what the outcome will be. It is a complex negotiation indeed. I don't know what is going to happen," Richier told the media here on the issue of the multi-billion dollar warplane deal that was finalised during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Paris in April last year. "Of course, I am hopeful. But hopeful does not mean we have certitude. Work is being conducted with a lot of energy," the French ambassador to India said. His comment comes two days ahead of French President Francois Hollande's official visit to India. Hollande will be the chief guest at the Republic Day parade in Delhi on January 26. Asked if an inter-governmental agreement is expected to be signed during Hollande's visit on the deal, he said: "In any case, there will be an inter-governmental agreement because it is a government-to-government negotiation. Everything will be within this IGA and its annexure. I can confirm this because this is no surprise." Air Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria is heading the price negotiations for the Indian side. The final contract for the 36 aircraft, including its missile system and others, for which an agreement was arrived at during Modi's visit, is expected to cost around Rs.60,000 crore. The ambassador said: "There is no commercial contract in the Rafale deal. It is an issue between the French and the Indian government. There is no private contract involved in this deal." Countering the contention that the French defence deal was expensive, Richier said: "I don't agree... otherwise, there will not be any business. If you look at it with a bit of precision, you'll discover it is not very expensive. In most cases, in India, there is a lot of competition. We may win, we may lose. If we win, it is (given) that we are not expensive." Asked about the short-range surface-to-air missile (SR-SAM) project between India's Defence Research and Development Organisation and MBDA of France, he said, "We are working on it. Of course, we expect a decision on this by the Indian side. May be not now, but in the future," he said. --Indo-Asian News Service sid/tsb/vt ( 409 Words) 2016-01-22-17:23:35 (IANS)
The incident happened in the house of Sheikh Jabir Hussain in Ahmedpur, some 180 km from Kolkata.

Two people have been killed. Prima facie it appears a bomb was being made in the house when it exploded, said a police officer.

The victims have been identified as Sheikh Hafizul and Tariq Hussain, both brothers of Sheikh Jabir Hussain, gram panchayat member from the states ruling Trinamool Congress.

Residents claimed that some bodies were removed before the police reached the spot.

--Indo-Asian News Service and/mr

( 117 Words)

2016-01-22-17:25:34 (IANS)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday paid glowing tributes to Dalit icon Babasaheb Ambedkar and said the late leader's life was a lesson in how education could be a tool of empowerment. Speaking at the 6th convocation of the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University here, Modi said the great leader suffered a lot of humiliation in his formative years, but used that experience to overcome the hurdles he faced. "While he was the first Indian to do a doctorate in economics abroad, he chose the country, welfare of its people over his self-promotion and gave India so much," the prime minister said in praise of the architect of the Indian Constitution. Modi said the key to Ambedkar's success was that he did not waste time complaining but rather used the challenges he faced to strengthen his will to succeed. He said the students should thank the people from various strata of society who were behind their education and success. --Indo-Asian News Service md/kb/vt ( 171 Words) 2016-01-22-17:25:35 (IANS)
India will become the fastest growing economy at 7.3 per cent in 2016 and would improve further to 7.5 per cent in the next year, a United Nations world economy report said today. "India's economy, which accounts for over 70 per cent of South Asia's GDP, is projected to grow by 7.3 per cent in 2016 and 7.5 per cent in 2017, slightly up from an estimated 7.2 per cent in 2015." The report said South Asia is expected to be the world's fastest-growing region in 2016 and 2017. "As in other countries of the region, the macroeconomic environment in India has improved, helped by the sharp decline in the prices of oil, metals and food. "Consumer and investor confidence has risen even as India's government faces difficulties in implementing its wide-ranging reform agenda and some economic indicators, such as industrial production, remain volatile", said the report. Highlighting the challenges for South Asia, the UN report said countries like India, Bangladesh, Iran and Nepal have narrowed their fiscal deficits in 2015, however, weaknesses are there. "Despite some recent progress, fiscal positions remain generally weak owing to the small tax base, poor tax administration and the large expenditures required for closing the infrastructure and energy gaps and maintaining internal security". UNI ASH ABI 1719 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0388-551926.Xml
Red alert has been sounded in the State and District authoritieshave been instructed to beef up vigil on sensitive places.

Mr Siddaramaiah speaking at the meeting instructed the officialsto take more precaution and maintain law and order in view nationalalert about possibility of terrorists allegedly striking on RepublicDay on January 26.

According to sources, the Chief Minister has also instructed toprovide all necessary help to NIA sleuths who have succeeded innabbing the suspected terrorists.

Speaking to newsmen after the meeting, Dr Parameshwar confirmed the arrest of six suspected terrorists--four from Bengaluru, oneeach from Tumkuru and Mangaluru. "We are providing all help to NIAofficials and details about arrested cannot be disclosed in theinterest of national security," he added.

Following news about one of the suspect had links with Hubballi,the Hubbali-Dharwad Police have increased security near Governmentoffices, important installations, airport, bus stand and other places.

Security was beefed up in Mysuru and Mandya Districts followingarrest of terror suspect in the state. Following inputs from theState Home Department, the City Police stepped up vigil at sensitiveareas, public joints, tourist spots, prominent commercialestablishments, Government Offices and other key locations in thecity with CAR, KSRP and other Police teams patrolling.

Additional Police force has been deployed at tourist spotsincluding Mysore Palace, Zoo, Chamundi Hill, city railway station.

The Mandya Police too have sounded alert and deployed additionalforces at famous tourist destinations such as KRS, RanganathittuBird Sanctuary, Kokkarebellur and Srirangapatna.UNI MSP/BSP VV AK1745

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He said that following information Sauvadati Police arrestedSantosh and Suraj who had smuggled the Ivory and trying to sell themand also seized a two wheeler and two mobile phones from them.

The arrested duo have confessed that they had smuggled the Ivoryremoved after killing Elephants in Khanapur Forest area.UNI MSP VV AK1800

-- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0285-552116.Xml
The fact that Mehbooba Mufti refused to take oath as the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir immmediately after the death of her father, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, proves that she is not poewr-hungry, a former PDP minister has said. "Mehboobaji's refusal to be sworn in immediately after Mufti Sahib's death proved she is not power hungry," senior PDP leader and former revenue minister Javaid Mustaffa Mir told IANS in an interview on the phone from Srinagar. Mufti Sayeeds death created a constitutional situation in the state forcing Governor N.N. Vohra to impose governors rule to run its administrative affairs. After Sayeeds death, Mehbooba Mufti was all set to become the first woman chief minister of the countrys only Muslim majority state, but the grief of her fathers death shattered the bereaved daughter. She refused to take oath immediately, even refused to talk politics as she mourned. Asked if Mehbooba was ready to handle the pressures that come with the crown of thorns, Mir said: She is capable enough to handle anything. I think she will not only continue in late Mufti Sahabs footsteps but add laurels to the deceased leaders legacy. But she has the opportunity to improve upon what Mufti Sahib did." The former minister and legislator from central Kashmirs Chadoora constituency also threw some light on the PDP presidents work in the party and her stature as a leader. Mehbooba is not an amateur by any means, she is an experienced leader who has worked hard with her father to serve the people of the state. She will not only run the party well, but will provide good governance to the people of the state. Even before Mufti Sahabs demise, she took various measures to ensure a government committed towards the betterment of people and aimed towards development. She can become an even better chief minister than her father," he asserted. Mir disclosed Sayeed always saw her as his successor, not because she was his daughter, but due to her contribution on the ground. Late Mufti Sahib always said She is mature enough to handle responsibilities. It is a democracy. She works more than I do in addressing peoples problems on the ground, he always saw her as a leader, the former minister said. Mehbooba Mufti was a great emotional support to her father even when he meant the world to her, his death has devastated her, he added. Everyone in the Peoples Democratic Party, from lower-rung party workers to MLAs, wanted Mehbooba Mufti to take over as chief minister of the state immediately after her fathers demise in New Delhis AIIMS on January 7. Alliance partner, BJP has also committed unconditional support to for Mehbooba Mufti for heading the coalition. During a five-hour long party meeting held in Srinagar on Sunday, the People's Democratic Party (PDP) said the coalition will continue in Jammu and Kashmir, however, there is no deadline on government formation, asserting that the final call will be taken later by Mehbooba Mufti. The entire party is behind Mehboobaji and will backup whatever she decides, Mir asserted. On Mufti Sayeeds leadership and the future goals of a PDP-led Government, Mir said: "Mufti Sayeed was not only a visionary leader for Jammu and Kashmir, he was also a political asset for the entire nation. It was his leadership and statesmanship that paved the way for an Indo-Pak dialogue. His mission was to bring peace and prosperity to the state," the legislator said. Our endeavor would be to respond to and mitigate the complex problems faced by the people, including the decades-long political uncertainty, development deficit, unfulfilled aspirations, mounting unemployment, corruption, nepotism and favoritism, Mir said. "However, the state needs the cooperation of the centre in changing the ground situation in J&K". he added. Sayeed was the third J&K chief minister to die in office, but a delay in the announcement of the successor has been unprecedented. When Ghulam Mohammad Sadiq died in a Chandigarh hospital on December 12, 1971, the transfer of power took place the same day and Mir Qasim succeeded him. National Conference founder Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah was succeeded by his son, Farooq Abdullah, even before the legendary Kashmiri leader was laid to rest on September 8, 1982. (Shamshad Ali can be contacted at shamshad.a@ians.in) --Indo-Asian News Service shamshad/vm ( 734 Words) 2016-01-22-18:19:36 (IANS)
Marshals were called to escort the DMK members out after they tore up copies of the committee's report and shouted slogans while massing near Speaker P. Dhanapal.

The Privileges Committee had recommended that Karunanidhi should be condemned for attributing comments to a minister who denied making them.

After the resolution accepting the committee's recommendation was passed, Speaker Dhanapal said Karunanidhi should not do such things again. This triggered the DMK fury.

--Indo-Asian News Service vj/mr

( 110 Words)

2016-01-22-18:27:36 (IANS)
The ceremony to confer awards on the recipients of the National Medal of Science and National Medal of Technology and Innovation highest honors for achievement and leadership in advancing the fields of science and technology in the United States has been deferred due to snowfall and inclement weather in and around Washington. US President Barack Obama was scheduled to confer the National Medal of Science on a scientist of Indian origin, Dr Rakesh K Jain, for the latter's work on tumour biology at around 1430 hrs according to the United States Eastern Standard Time at the White House today. The ceremony was scheduled at 0130 hrs in the wee hours tomorrow. The postponement of the ceremony was intimated to the recipients through e-mail last night. The White House stated that a fresh date for the ceremony would be announced shortly. The ceremony is now likely to be held in March. Dr Rakesh K Jain hails from Uttar Pradeshs Lalitpur District and has authored two books on cancer. His research focusses on conveying medicine to cancer-affected cells. Dr Jain emigrated about four decades back, his younger sibling local-resident CK Jain who was associated with establishment of the Bharat Oman Oil Refinery Ltd in Sagar Districts Agasod and is leading a retired existence here told UNI. After completing his schooling in Lalitpur, Dr Jain went on to earn a Master of Technology degree from the Kanpur-based Indian Institute of Technology. He possesses a doctorate from Columbia University. Dr Jain donned the mantle of professor of chemical and biochemical engineering in New York. He is serving as Professor of Radiation Oncology at a Boston-based institution.UNI PKJ-PS AE RAI1807 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0044-551853.Xml
Police said the miscreants broke the glass of the four wheeler which was parked near the road at Ozone Plaza and decamped with the cash.

The cash belonged to a councillor of the Dhanbad Municipal Corporation. The councillor after withdrawing the cash from HDFC bank had gone for shopping in the plaza by parking his car when the miscreants looted the cash.UNI XC-AK AKM PY AS1847

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Former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal today charged the state government with its failure to promote industrialisation in the state during its past three-year regime. In a statement here, the senior BJP leader said the progress was tardy and no new big industry had come to state. He said even after spending crores by holding two investors meets in 2014 and 2015, the response of industrialists was not up to mark and instead industrialists were leaving the state to set up their units in other states of India. Prof Dhumal termed the claims of the state government regarding industrial activities "a big hoax" and said these were confined up to media only and there was nothing concrete in the reality. He alleged that the red tapism, lack of control over the administration and non-providing of infrastructural facilities to the new industrialists was the main and root cause of non-coming of new industrial units in the state. Moreover, the repeated power cuts were another reason for this. The BJP leader demanded that the state government release a white paper about the industrial activities if it was serious otherwise it would be presumed that the claims of the government were simply on paper and there was nothing in reality. He said while the Centre was sincere towards Make In India programme it was shocking to point out that the state government was not taking steps to make full use of the central government schemes that were aimed at to help the un-employed youth of India in general and that of Himachal Pradesh in particular. UNI XC DB SW AN1847 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-551852.Xml
"The meeting discussed the joint operation in the Maoist-affected states. The Maoists cross the border when operation is launched in one state. The states agreed to that," a police official told IANS.

K. Vijay Kumar, security advisor in the union home ministry, suggested a three-point strategy to deal with the Maoist menace, he said.

--Indo-Asian News Service ns/pku/bg

( 101 Words)

2016-01-22-19:25:34 (IANS)
The Himachal Pradesh Police on Friday ruled out the possibility of a terror angle to the murder of a car driver hired by three people for travel to Pathankot in Punjab. A police officer said there could be a drug angle to the crime. However, the police said an alert had been sounded in the hill state after driver Vijay Kumar's murder. His body was found near a bridge on January 20, three days after he went missing. "Our investigations have not shown any terror link so far to the murder. We are on the job to identify and trace the three accused and recover the vehicle," Director General Sanjay Kumar told reporters in Shimla. The Delhi Police had earlier on Friday issued an alert after the taxi driver was found dead in Himachal. Through its official Twitter handle, the Delhi Police released the photographs of three suspects and the details of the Maruti Alto car, bearing registration number HP- 01D-2440. The car was hired on January 17 from Gaggal town on the outskirts of Dharamsala, some 250 km from state capital Shimla, in Kangra district. Kangra Superintendent of Police Abhishek Dular told IANS that Vijay Kumar was strangulated. "We have got some clues from the CCTV footage of the suspects. Our investigations don't suggest any terrorist angle. There could be a drug angle as the victim was in jail for 18 months in a drug case," he said. He said information about the crime was shared with the neighbouring states. Six Pakistani terrorists attacked the Indian Air Force base in Pathankot on January 2, killing seven security personnel. Prior to the attack, they had killed a taxi driver Ikagar Singh and allegedly kidnapped a Punjab Police superintendent of police and two others accompanying him. --Indo-Asian News Service vg/tsb/bg ( 311 Words) 2016-01-22-19:43:35 (IANS)
Five suspected members of terror outfit Islamic State (IS) were arrested and nine others detained by the NIA in cooperation with state police agencies across India, a home ministry official said on Friday. Informed sources said all the raids were conducted on tip-offs that the IS sympathisers were planning bomb attacks in several cities on the Republic Day (January 26). Huge quantities of arms and ammunition were seized from the rented house of two of the suspects in Bengaluru, an official told IANS. "The National Investigation Agency has arrested five suspected terrorists and detained nine others in a joint operation with state police organisations across India," Home Ministry Joint Secretary (Internal Security) M.A. Ganapathy said. The arrested men - Mudabbir Mushtaq Shaikh, Mohammad Nafees Khan, Mohammad Shareef Mounuddin Khan, Najmul Huda and Mohammad Afzal - are accused of encouraging the youth to join the IS. Mudabbir is from Thane near Mumbai, and Nafees and Shareef from Hyderabad. Najmul lives in Mangalore while Afzal hails from Banglore. The arrested men are in the age group of 25-30, Ganapathy said. "We have no indication so far that they were planning a terror attack in Delhi during the Republic Day function," the officer said. An NIA official, on the condition of anonymity, told IANS that four of the detained suspects were Asif, Sayed and Ahad - all from Bengaluru - and Syed Mujahid Husain from Tumkuru in Karnataka. "The NIA with the help of local police picked 14 youths from different cities in raids since Thursday night. They were under security surveillance regarding their activities on the social media," the official said. The nine suspects, yet to be arrested formally, are being interrogated for their alleged links with the IS sympathisers and their role in the possible terror strikes. According to sources, the NIA is on the lookout for five to eight more suspects. --Indo-Asian New Service rak/tsb/vt ( 324 Words) 2016-01-22-19:55:34 (IANS)
The Congress on Friday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remarks on the suicide of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula have deeply disappointed the country as he did not announce action against union ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya. Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala told reporters here that concrete action needs to be taken to do justice to the memory of Vemula, a student of the Hyderabad University who committed suicide last Sunday. "We want to humbly tell the prime minister that mere crocodile tears will not return Vemula or do justice to him. For doing justice, for eroding anti-Dalit mindset of ABVP, BJP, concrete action will have to be taken," Surjewala said. He said the entire youth of the country, the Dalits and underprivileged section stand disappointed with Modi's remarks. Surjewala said the party had hoped the prime minister would announce sacking of Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani and Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya and also action against the university vice-chancellor. The Congress has been demanding removal of Irani from the cabinet for "misleading" people about the suicide of the Dalit research scholar and resignation of Dattatreya, saying he had written a letter after which HRD ministry exerted pressure for expulsion of five Ph.D. Dalit students from the cabinet. Surjewala said there was also s hope that the prime minister will announce compensation and job for the family of the student who committed suicide. "But Modi did not say anything. The entire country stands disappointed deeply, he said. Modi on Friday said he was deeply saddened by the tragedy. In his speech at the sixth convocation ceremony of the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University in Lucknow, he choked and paused while referring to the scholar's death on last Sunday. --Indo-Asian News Service ps/pku/vt ( 301 Words) 2016-01-22-20:03:36 (IANS)
With a keen ear for music, Malayalis make encouraging audiences for classical music concerts in Kerala where he has been performing for over half a century, renowned Carnatic maestro T V Sankaranarayanan said today. In fact, Kerala is my second home, the septuagenarian vocalist said a press conference, where he shared space with famed Violin LN Sisters young Dr M Lalitha and M Nandini amid their participation in the ongoing Nishagandhi festival conducted by Kerala Tourism in the state capital. Recalling that his Kerala concerts date back to more than 50 years, Sankaranarayanan said: There is hardly a temple where I have not performed. Among his initial performances in this state was at the Sree Krishna Swamy temple in Mavelikkara of central Travancore, he added. As for the Nishagandhi festival, the Padma Bhushan awardee hailed the festival as one of the most prestigious in the country. The high attendance here shows that Carnatic music has not seen a reduction in its passionate audience, he noted. At age 71, Sankaranarayanan will be performing this time at the Nishagandhiwith assistance from his son, Mahadevan Sankaranarayanan, an up-and-coming vocalist. I would not compromise on the quality of music delivered, said the veteran, who is a disciple and nephew of celebrated 20th-centry musician Madurai Mani Iyer. It is another matter I am open to changes. I do allow freedom within my traditional values. As for jugalbandis, which has caught up as a trend nowadays, he said: I am not interested in it, as I may have to compromise on Carnatic music to fit into the scheme of Hindustani or any other sort of music. All the same, I do not mind anyone performing it. Sankaranarayanans laurels include Central Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and Sangita Kalanidhi. He is poised to receive the Purandaradasa award at Bangalore. Personally, I do not believe in returning awards as it would be unfair on our part to the organisation which presented the award, he said as his take on the recent string of award wapsi. The Chennai-based violin sisters, who will stage an instrumental fusion on Saturday, spoke of their roots in Kerala, with their grandparents hailing from Alappuzha and Tripunithura near Kochi. Lalitha and Nandini too agreed with Sankaranarayanan, saying the state has an overwhelming presence of music lovers. The audience response is fantastic here, said the sisters, who are to perform for the first time at Nishagandhi. The duo, who is popularly acclaimed as the Queens of Violin, hails from a family of musiciansand are trained under iconic Semmagudi Srinivasa Iyer. Being globetrotters, they have been to all the five continents and have been instrumental in introducing Carnatic music to many countries like Nepal. Music be it Carnatic, Western or global fusion is ultimately God, said the duo. It has its energy focused in spirituality. We will have our Lana Band being performed at the Nishagandhi fest, which includes artists from Germany, Italy and Kerala, added LN Sisters. There will also be performances by Pandit Sugato Bhaduri, Ileana Citarisi, Hema Malini and Ustad Zakir Husain on the following days.UNI CR VV AK1926 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0324-552201.Xml
Leaders of eight opposition parties today condemned government's alleged move to "strip Aligarh Muslim University and Jamia Millia Islamia of their minority status".Terming it "sinister" and "unholy communal agenda of the government", the leaders said they would approach the President and seek his intervention and also threatened to raise the issue during the upcoming Budget Session of Parliament. In a joint statement issued by JD-U leader K C Tyagi, the MPs condemned the statement of Attorney General Mukhul Rohtagi for mentioning before the "Supreme Court that these two institutions are not minority institutions". The MPs also condemned the Attorney General for making a flimsy claim that the legislature never intended AMU and Jamia Milia Islamia to be minority institution. The leaders in their letter have appealed to eminent intellectuals, civil society and all secular minded political parties to "condemn this and expose the hidden agenda of the government to sabotage the idea of the country". Signatories to the joint statement are Pramod Tiwari (Congress), K C Tyagi (JD-U), D Raja (CPI), Sukhendu S Roy (Trinamool Congress), D P Tripathi (NCP), J P Yadav (RJD), Ritabrata Banerjee (CPI-M) and Bhagwant Mann (AAP). UNI RBE RSA AE 1927 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0379-552404.Xml
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Friday arrested 14 suspects in connection with planning to carry out terrorist activities in various parts of India. The agency also claimed to have seized certain "incriminating" articles, mobile phones, laptops, unaccounted cash, jihadi literature and videos, besides materials for preparation of bombs from their places. According to an NIA statement, acting on a tip-off that certain individuals from various cities were in the process of organising themselves to commit terrorist acts in different parts of the country, various central agencies and concerned State Police forces worked upon information and certain leads emerged out of the investigation. Based on these leads, said the NIA, simultaneous searches or raids were conducted at 12 locations in six cities - Bangalore, Tumkur, Mangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Lucknow -with the support of local police forces, while Anti-Terrorism Squads (ATS) in Maharashtra also conducted raids and reaches at two other locations, and arrested the 14 suspects. According to the statement, the accused were planning, and making effort to establish a channel of procurement of explosive, weapons, and identifying locations to organise training camps, including training of fire arms. Besides, they were motivating fresh recruits to target police officers, foreigners in India and to carry out terrorist activities in various parts of India, said the NIA, adding that details interrogation of the arrested accused and verification of their backgrounds was in progress. The five accused arrested by the NIA included Mudabbir Mushtaq Shaikh, alias, Abu Musab, 33, a resident of Mumbai; Mohammed Nafees Khan, alias, Fatima Khan, alias, Abu Zarrar, alias, Akram, 24, a resident of Hyderabad; Najmul Huda, alias, Majnu, 25, a resident of Mangalore in Karnataka; Mohammed Shareef Moinuddin Khan, 54, a resident of Hyderabad; and Mohammed Afzal, alias, Abu Mariyam, alias, Yasir, 35, a resident of Bengaluru. (ANI)
The central government on Friday decided to set up a judicial commission to probe the suicide of a Dalit student in Hyderabad as Prime Minister Narendra Modi, breaking his silence, said he was saddened by the tragedy. Hyderabad University, where Rohith Vemula committed suicide on January 17 and which remained shut for the fifth straight day on Friday, announced Rs. 8 lakh as ex gratia assistance to the bereaved family. At the campus, students continued their indefinite protest seeking the resignation of Vice Chancellor Appa Rao over the suicide which has sparked widespread anger. The students say Rao drove Vemula to suicide by suspending him from the university and stopping his stipend after a leader of the ABVP, the RSS student wing, alleged assault by Vemula and his Dalit friends. The union human resource development ministry meanwhile decided to set up a judicial commission to probe the incident. It will submit its report in three months. The ministry took the decision after a fact-finding committee which went to the university submitted its report. The judicial commission will "review the entire sequence of events and the circumstances and establish the facts and correctives in the context of the university", said an official statement. Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani on Friday also spoke to the mother of Vemula over telephone and extended her condolences. The ministry also took a decision to address the issues faced by the students from disadvantaged social, economic and educational backgrounds in higher educational institutions. The university announced Rs.8 lakh as ex gratia assistance to Vemula's family. The protesting students had demanded a compensation of Rs.5 crore. The decision came a day after the university revoked the suspension of four Dalit students who along with Vemula were suspended last year. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday broke his silence on Vemula's suicide, saying he was deeply saddened by the tragedy. In a speech at the 6th convocation of the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University in Lucknow, he choked while referring to the scholar's death. "I am not going into the reasons, the politics of the issue, but I empathize with the family which has lost so much," he said as tears welled up in his eyes. At the event, two students raised slogans against the prime minister as Home Minister Rajnath Singh concluded his speech and Modi rose to speak. The students, who shouted "Go back Modi", were whisked away by police. In Hyderabad University, there was no let up in the protests by students. An indefinite strike by seven students continued for a third day on Friday. The students have ignored an appeal by the vice chancellor to return to classes. Leaders of various political parties continued to visit the campus to express solidarity with the students and to demand action against central ministers Bandaru Dattatreya and Irani for meddling in the affairs of the university leading to the suicide. CPI-M MP T.N. Seema alleged that the Modi government was trying to keep Dalits away from institutions of higher education. Janata Dal-United leader K.C. Tyagi said a free and fair investigation into the suicide would not be possible as long as Irani and Dattatreya remained in their posts. (Mohammed Shafeeq can be contacted at m.shafeeq@ians.in) --Indo-Asian News Service ms/mr/bg ( 558 Words) 2016-01-22-21:27:34 (IANS)
Hundreeds of loaded vehicles were stranded for more than three days at Ratacherra in Meghalaya's East Jaintia Hills district due to the dilapidated condition of the National Highway-44 after torrential rains. Drivers and passengers blamed lack of monitoring of the roads by the authorities for their woes. "For the third day the roads are closed and vehicles are stranded as the conditions of the roads are poor and we are living hungry without and food. Moreover, we have to pay bribes to police, somewhere Rs 200, somewhere Rs 300 it is no use in complaining. We are empty of our food stock in our vehicle and live hungry, even do not have arrangement to drink tea," said Sumit Paul, a driver from Tripura. Meanwhile, another driver from Assam, Laddu Bora complained, "My lorry is stranded for more than two days because the roads are in dilapidated condition and vehicles cannot move in them. People do not realize about our sufferings. If dry sand or something is put then it will be helpful." Stranding of vehicular movement in the Nation Highways of Northeast during rainy seasons is a regular phenomenon but during the winter the road conditions are comparatively better. But this year there has been no repair at many spots which is leading to such problem. Sumanta Marak said, "I am stranded at Ratacherra for the last two day and have no food. I have transport business and the road is closed as the Meghalaya government does not do mantainence of the roads. Two-three vehicles have faced accident here and my vehicle also had an accident due to the poor road condition and the police also disturb a lot. Some 1000 to 1200 trucks are stranded here for more than two days. I am unable to go even in my small vehicle." With rail connectivity having stopped from September 20 for broad gauge conversion work between Karimganj and Agartala, Tripura is totally dependent on the highway for importing fuel and food grains from Assam via Meghalaya. The closure of the roads has also lead to fuel crisis in Tripura. (ANI)
"We have lodged a first information report against vice chancellor A.K. Pujari and others, including Jagdish Jadhav, R.K. Pardasani, S.N. Ambedkar and Atiq Ahmen, under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and various sections of the Indian Penal Code on Thursday evening," a police official of Bandar Sindri police station told IANS on phone.

The FIR was lodged by research scholar Umesh Kumar Jonwal, who moved a court in Kishangarh. The court directed the Bandar Sindri police station in Ajmer district to lodge the complaint and investigate the matter.

Police said investigations were underway in the case.

Jonwal alleged that university officials harassed him and expelled him from the university in October last year for remaining absent for 15 days in May 2015.

He said he had submitted a medical certificate regarding his illness that led him to remain absent.

--Indo-Asian News Service as/tsb

( 186 Words)

2016-01-22-21:49:34 (IANS)
Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu today launched the free public Wi-Fi service at the Mumbai Central Station, heralding a new beginning in the railway passenger amenities. The service has been rolled out by RailTel in collaborationwith Google. Speaking on the occasion, Mr Prabhu said the Railway Ministry has accorded high priority to improve passenger amenities at all railway stations. He said the proposal to provide Wi-Fi services was first announced in the Railway Budget last year. The project got a boost when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Google Incs headquarters in California and the subsequent meeting of Google chief executive officer Sunder Pichai with the PM in New Delhi, he said. He said free Public Wi-Fi facility will be made available in 100 of the busiest stations of Indian Railway and later on extended to 400 stations. The RailWire Public Wi-Fi system is accessible by all Wi-Fi enabled smartphones. Users will have to visit Wi-Fi section in their phones and select the RailWire network. A four digit OTP (One Time Password) will be sent via SMS and upon entering the code they can log into the free public Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi services will soon be available at Bandra Terminus and Surat under the Mumbai Division and also at Vadodara, Ahmedabad, Rajkot and Indore stations of Western Railway.UNI ST SS PY AJ RAI2248 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0169-552563.Xml
Amid protesting slogans by a handful of students, an emotional Prime Minister Narendra Modi today broke his silence over suicide by Dalit Scholar Rohit Vemula, in a choked voice saying ''politics aside, a mother has lost her dear son and I can well understand the pain''.Speaking at the sixth convocation of the Baba Sahab Bhimrao Ambedkar Central university here a visibly moved Mr Modi said in a choked voice ''it is unfortunate that Mother India has lost her son and I feel that pain....I was saddened to know that a youth of my country was compelled to commit suicide....reasons and politics aside, when I came to know that Rohith ended his life, I was hurt"."There cannot be a bigger grief than a mother losing her son", he said.The suicide by Rohith, 26, a PhD scholar of Central Hyderabad University which has snowballed into major political controversy that cast shadow on two prominent BJP union ministers, also echoed in the state capital today when a handful of students shouted anti-Modi slogans just before his speech as chief guest at the programme in the university. They were immediately whisked away by the security personnel.A visibly moved Mr Modi took some time to collect himself but then went on to exhort the students to take inspiration from leaders like Dr Ambedkar.Eds rest pick up suitably from earlier series.UNI JN-SS-NB AJ 2335 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0298-552873.Xml
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has summoned senior Pradesh Congress leaders from West Bengal for a crucial meeting in New Delhi on February 1. State Congress sources here today said, Mr Gandhi has summoned Pradesh Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Pradip Bhattachrya, Abdul Mannan, Manas Bhunia, Omprakash Mishra, Abu Hasem and many more to participate in the meeting. Mr Chowdhury said leaders of all the wings of the state Congress have been asked to be present in the meeting. I have received a call from Congress General Secretary in-charge of the state C P Joshi today and he communicated about the meeting convened by Mr Gandhi. The agenda has not been stated but it has to be about the coming assembly elections in the state, the state party president said. Congress in Bengal has already come under lot of controversy against the issue on making an alliance with CPI(M) before the coming election. Meanwhile, Pradesh Congress president addressing the media said many supporters in his party and CPI (M) have voiced for a coalition to fight the Mamata Banerjee led Trinamool Congress. Mr Mishra, supporting the idea of a coalition between Congress and CPI(M), has said the coalition will easily win over 160 seats in the elections. However, Congress leader Manas Bhunia clearly seemed to be against the coalition and has voiced his opposition earlier. When asked about his opinion on the alliance, he tactically replied that he will abide by the decision of the party.UNI BM AD AJ AN2330 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0108-552609.Xml
Sindhkhed police today arrested two accused during their attempt to sale two kg fake gold ornaments for Rs two lakh to a merchant under pretext of pure gold in Mahur tehsil town of the district. While, their third accomplice absconded from the spot. One of accused, named Raju, approached a merchant of Wai Bazaar, Sachin Subhash Padalwar (35), on January 17 and showed two gold coins bearing a stamp of the year 1885 and 1900. One of the coins also had a picture of Queen Victoria, police said. The accused asked the merchant to purchase gold at cheaper price and also shown him gold beads of 700 mm in diameter. The merchant agreed to purchase two kilogram of gold for Rs two lakh at Mahur. Meanwhile, feeling suspicious, the complainant contacted the police and informed about the matter. Then police laid a trap and caught the two accused red-handed while one managed to slip from the spot. The police team confesticated various articles from the accused including gold beads of 700 mm in diameter, 2.05 kg of fake (polished) gold and others. The arrested accused have been identified as Ramu Jeeva Rathod (45) and his sister Amribai Jeeva Rathod (40), while the third accused Roshan Rathod (32) is absconding. They all are residents of Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh.UNI XR/VKB SS PY AJ RAI2337 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0169-552848.Xml
Japan today lifted sanctions on Iran, falling in line with major world powers after the United Nations atomic energy agency confirmed last weekend that Tehran had fully taken steps to curb its disputed nuclear programme.Iran emerged from years of economic isolation when the US and other countries lifted crippling sanctions against the Islamic republic.Tens of billions of dollars worth of Iranian assets are now unfrozen and global companies that have been barred from doing business there will be able to exploit a market hungry for everything from automobiles to airplane parts."Japan would like to strengthen our cooperative relationship with Iran further and contribute to the peace and stability of the Middle East through our traditional friendly relationship with Iran," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said as he made the announcement at a regular press conference.With the lifting of the sanctions, Japanese insurance companies will be able to issue policies covering trade deals involving Iran. Japanese business will also be able make new investments in Iran's oil and gas sector.An investment agreement between Tehran and Tokyo is expected to be signed soon. Japanese companies are already lining up to resume business ties with Iran, with Suzuki Motor Corp on Thursday saying it was considering returning to the Iranian market.The International Atomic Energy Agency ruled tomorrow, January 16, that Iran had abided by an agreement last year with six world powers to curtail its nuclear programme, triggering the end of sanctions.The United States and other countries formally lifted banking, steel, shipping and other sanctions on Iran, a major oil producer that has been virtually shut out of international markets for the past five years.Iran has always denied its nuclear programme was aimed at obtaining an atomic bomb.Washington still maintains separate, less comprehensive sanctions on Iran over its missile programme.That has left some companies cautious, with Japanese oil refiners telling Reuters last week they will keep using special government insurance to ship Iranian oil because of uncertainty over whether US insurers can provide coverage.REUTERS SHS RAI0932 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0329-551104.Xml
Twelve US Marines missing after two military helicopters collided last week off Hawaii's Oahu island have been listed as deceased, the military said.The Coast Guard called off the search for the missing Marines on Tuesday after five days of search and rescue efforts across some 40,000 square nautical miles of ocean, along with shorelines.The Marines were officially classified as deceased on Wednesday and Marine Corps officers personally notified each family, a statement from the Marines said.The victims ranged in age from 21 to 41, the statement said.The two CH-53E helicopters belonging to the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing from the Marine Corps Air Station at Kaneohe Bay were on a routine training mission when they were reported to have collided just before midnight on January 14, according to the Coast Guard.The search was hampered by storms.A Coast Guard helicopter crew spotted debris in the water off the town of Haleiwa on the north shore of Oahu but no passengers were found. The debris field spanned more than 11 km off the coast, the Coast Guard said.No distress call was issued by either aircraft. REUTERS SHS RAI1028 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0329-551131.Xml
US Vice President Joe Biden and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi discussed the urgency of mobilizing international support to stabilize the city of Ramadi, which the government recently retook from Islamic State militants, the White House said."The vice president encouraged continued dialogue between Iraq and Turkey to resolve concerns about Turkish troop deployments in northern Iraq and reiterated US respect for Iraq's sovereignty and territorial integrity," the White House said in a statement yesterday about the meeting between the leaders, in Davos, Switzerland.REUTERS KU 0414 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0348-551035.Xml
Members of the United Nations Security Council received a draft of a resolution that calls for establishing a UN mission to oversee disarmament should Colombia's government and leftist FARC rebels reach a final peace deal.Colombia's government and FARC agreed on Tuesday to ask the 15-nation council to help monitor and verify rebel disarmament should the two sides reach a deal to end their 50-year-old war.The text, drafted by Britain and seen by Reuters, would have the 15-nation council "establish a political mission to participate for a period of 12 months ... to monitor and verify the definitive bilateral ceasefire and cessation of hostilities, and the laying down of arms."To begin the process of creating the mission, it would ask Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon "to initiate preparations and to present detailed recommendations to the Security Council for its consideration and approval."It added that the council would establish "a political mission of unarmed international observers" and welcomed the willingness of members of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States to contribute personnel.The draft said Ban would submit his recommendation on the size and operational details of the mission within 30 days of the signing of a final ceasefire deal by the Colombian government and FARC.One council diplomat said on condition of anonymity that he hoped the draft resolution would go to a vote next week.Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said last year he would make such an appeal to the UNThe rebels' willingness to make the request jointly with the government is a sign of progress as the two sides aim to reach a comprehensive peace agreement before a March 23 deadline that negotiators set last year.In addition to verifying a bilateral ceasefire and presiding over the FARC's disarmament, the international monitors would also settle any disputes and make recommendations.REUTERS PS KU RK623 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0421-551038.Xml
Britain will permanently station 1,000 military personnel in Poland from next year, Poland's defence minister said, in an apparent contradiction of an announcement by Britain about plans for temporary exercises on Polish soil.On Wednesday, the British defence ministry said London would send 1,000 military personnel to take part in defence exercises in Poland, as part of an agreement with Warsaw to strengthen security ties.But Poland's Antoni Macierewicz told Catholic broadcaster Radio Maryja that Poland and Britain have agreed at a meeting of foreign and defence ministers in Scotland that a number of troops would stay in Poland permanently."One of the decisions, which resulted from yesterday's talks (is) a permanent presence of the British forces on Polish territory, that is 1,000 soldiers, who will permanently station on Polish territory from next year," Macierewicz said."They will switch around, it will be a rotational, but permanent presence of 1,000 soldiers."The British defence ministry was not immediately available to comment.Warsaw, which is due to host a NATO summit in July, has repeatedly pressed for more North Atlantic Treaty Organization forces on its soil and in former communist-ruled Europe, arguing it needed a stronger response to Russia's aggression in eastern Ukraine.But some of its NATO allies are reluctant to permanently station troops in central Europe, wary of violating a 1997 NATO-Russia agreement on the size of forces the alliance can have in former Warsaw Pact countries.Moscow has previously signalled it would regard the establishment of a standing NATO presence on its borders as a hostile act.Some western governments are also concerned about the cost of permanent new bases at a time when defence budgets are strained by fiscal austerity or costly engagements elsewhere.Macierewicz said, however, that having British troops in Poland meant that permanent NATO presence in Poland was "realistic"."Not so long ago we were told that it will be impossible to get permanent bases, NATO presence ..., that it's an unrealistic demand," he said."Well, it turns out it's realistic."Macierewicz's spokesman was not immediately available to comment about the apparent contradiction with the British announcement.Aside from the troops, Britain will also station a ship on the Baltic Sea to support the Polish fleet, Macierewicz said.Warsaw and London have also agreed to form a joint "situational awareness" unit, tasked with gathering information on any potential threats to NATO's eastern flank, he said.REUTERS PS KU 0441 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0421-551041.Xml
President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel discussed the refugee crisis in Europe during a phone call and agreed an upcoming donors' conference in London would be a chance to galvanize global efforts on the issue, the White House said.Obama told yesterday Merkel he plans to host a summit for leaders at the UN General Assembly in September to secure new commitments to help address the refugee crisis, the White House said in a statement."The two leaders committed to working together over the coming months to help protect and provide for the millions of people whose lives have been upturned by war," the White House said.REUTERS PS KU RK0635 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0421-551045.Xml
US intelligence agencies investigating the kidnapping of three Americans in Baghdad last week are focusing their probe on three militant Islamic groups closely affiliated with Iran, US government sources said.Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah and the Badr Organization are the principle focus of the probe into how the men were snatched in the Dora neighborhood, south of Baghdad, the sources said.The US government does not know if any of the three groups seized the men. While the groups have close ties to Iran, sources said the United States does not believe Iran had a hand in the kidnapping nor that the three are being held in Iran.Despite the US belief that Iran was not involved, US Secretary of State John Kerry yesterday said he had asked Iran for help in finding them. Iraq's prime minister, speaking in Davos, Switzerland, said he doubted Iran was involved.Kerry told reporters that he and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif discussed the case of the three men during a meeting on Wednesday. Iraqi intelligence and US government sources on Tuesday said the men were kidnapped and were being held by an Iranian-backed Shi'ite militia.They are the first Americans to be abducted in Iraq since the withdrawal of US troops in 2011."I asked him (Zarif) for whatever help, if Iran knew any way to provide help, or if there was some way they could have impact in getting the right outcome," Kerry told reporters."He said he would take it under advisement and try to do what they can. He didn't have any immediate knowledge whatsoever about it," Kerry added.The three men are employed by a small company that is doing work for General Dynamics Corp, under a larger contract with the US Army, according to a source familiar with the matter.'THEY JUST WENT MISSING'Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah and the Badr Organization are Shi'ite militia groups that are part of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Front, a group closely tied to Iran, according to the New York-based Counter Terrorism Project advocacy group.The Iraqi government has struggled to rein in the Shi'ite militias, many of which fought the US military following the 2003 invasion. Shi'ite militias have previously been accused of killing and abducting American nationals.Speaking before a meeting with Kerry yesterday, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi was asked by a reporter if he thought there was an Iranian link to the mens' disappearance."I don't know about that. I doubt it very much. We don't know if they have been kidnapped...they just went missing," Abadi said in response to the question.Unknown gunmen seized the three on Friday from a private residence in the southeastern Dora district of Baghdad, Iraqi officials say.Kerry said the United States was working closely with Iraq on the issue."They are really investigating this. He (Abadi) is looking at it. He was not able to shed light on the who, where or what and they are still trying to get all of that piece together."Some analysts believe the kidnappings were meant to embarrass and weaken Abadi, who is trying to balance Iraq's relations with rival powers Iran and the United States.Hostility between Tehran and Washington has eased with the lifting of crippling economic sanctions against Iran in return for compliance with a deal to curb its nuclear ambitions and a recent prisoner swap.REUTERS PS RK0714 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0421-551048.Xml
A Christian minister and a former US Marine who were released by Iran in a prisoner swap returned to the United States after years behind bars in the Islamic Republic.Pastor Saeed Abedini, 35, arrived in North Carolina yesterday afternoon, a spokesman for a Christian group said.Ex-Marine Amir Hekmati, 32, touched down in a private jet at the airport in his hometown of Flint, Michigan, and stepped onto a small red carpet on the tarmac.They were among five Americans whose release coincided with the lifting last weekend of economic sanctions against Iran in return for curbs on Tehran's nuclear program. The White House offered clemency to seven Iranians who were convicted or facing trial in the United States.Hekmati spent more than four years in jail in Iran where he faced the death sentence at one point."I am happy to finally be home. It's been a very long road, a very long journey. Unfortunately, many people have traveled this road with me," he told reporters.He was arrested while visiting family in Iran in 2011 and accused of being a US spy, a charge his relatives and the United States deny. He was sentenced to death the following year but that was commuted to a 10-year prison term.Hekmati said yesterady he was "healthy, tall and with my head held high." The son of Iranian immigrants, Hekmati went to high school in Flint, an industrial town now struggling with a water contamination crisis."It's great to be back in Flint, my hometown. I love this city. I love its people. They have been so good to me and my family and we are very grateful," Hekmati said.Abedini, a naturalized US citizen of Iranian origin, arrived at the Billy Graham Training Center at The Cove, a Christian conference center in Asheville, North Carolina, that is linked to popular evangelist Billy Graham."He arrived safely in Asheville," said Todd Shearer, a spokesman for the Graham family.Abedini was sentenced in 2013 to eight years in prison after being accused of harming Iran's national security by setting up home-based churches in Iran.He was reunited with his parents yesterday, his wife said.REUTERS PS KU RK0621 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0421-551051.Xml
According to The Express Tribune, Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif telephoned Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, Chief Executive Dr Abdullah Abdullah and Commander Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan General John Campbell to share details of Pakistani investigations.

The deadly attack on the university killed 21 people, mostly students, and injured 30 others when four terrorists stormed the university in Charsadda.

The attack was reminiscent of the December 2014 attack on Army Public School in Peshawar that left more than 100 students dead. (ANI)
Five children were hurt today when an explosive ripped through a schoolyard in Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast, a region gripped by violence between militants and state security forces for months, security sources said.The sources blamed the attack on the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), saying members tossed a homemade explosive into the yard of the middle school in the Baglar district of Diyarbakir, the region's biggest city.There were no immediate claims of responsibility.Authorities have been battling PKK militants in cities and towns in the southeast since July, after a 2-1/2-year ceasefire collapsed. More than 150 civilians have died in the violence, the worst the southeast has seen in two decades.Turkey, the United States and the European Union all classify the autonomy-seeking PKK as a terrorist organisation.The attack, which media said may have been a kind of percussive bomb, occurred before the children entered their classrooms to collect their report cards on the last day of the semester, officials said.REUTERS CJ VP1453 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0400-551560.Xml
UN Security Council diplomats told Burundi officials today that a crisis that has left hundreds dead had to be resolved by dialogue, after rebels raised the stakes by saying a general who led a failed coup in May was now leading their force.Thursday's announcement by FOREBU that the group was now commanded by the former intelligence chief, General Godefroid Niyombare, deepens concerns that Burundi is sliding back into conflict after its ethnically charged civil war ended in 2005.U.N. estimates put the death toll at 439 people but it says it could be higher. More than 240,000 people have fled abroad.Diplomats from the 15-member council arrived in Burundi on Thursday evening and are scheduled to meet President Pierre Nkurunziza later on Friday.Some of the visitors want to persuade Nkurunziza, whose re-election for a third term sparked the crisis, to accept an African peacekeeping force to prevent an ethnic conflict in a region where memories of Rwanda's 1994 genocide remain fresh.The president has rejected the deployment, saying they would constitute "an invading force". The issue is expected to be a focus for an African Union summit at the end of January."The fighting has to stop and the killings have to stop," deputy French ambassador to the United Nations, Alexis Lamek, told Reuters after diplomats met Burundi's foreign minister, Alain Nyamitwe, adding that dialogue was "the only way".Burundi's first vice president, Gaston Sindimwo, said the government was open to dialogue. "We can't, at the same time, stand by and allow criminals to have their way," he said.Months of talks between the government and the opposition last year failed to make progress. A new round of negotiations launched at the end of December in Uganda have already stalled.Regional Western diplomats say the government has set too many conditions about who can attend talks to make them meaningful. They also say rebels may believe they can make more gains through force of arms than at the negotiating table.Rebel leader Niyombare disappeared after the coup. Allies said he was alive and still working to unseat Nkurunziza, although he has made no public statements. Other coup plotters have been jailed.Burundi's 12-year civil war pitted what was then a army led by minority Tutsis against rebels from the majority Hutu ethnic group, including one led by Nkurunziza. Niyombare, a Hutu, had been part of Nkurunziza's rebel CNDD-FDD force.The crisis has broadly followed political allegiances with Hutus and Tutsis on both sides. The opposition says Nkurunziza's third term violated the constitution and a peace deal that ended the civil war. Loyalists cite a court ruling that he could run.The government insists there is no ethnic bias, but opponents say districts of Bujumbura where many Tutsis live - and which were also hotbeds of protest against Nkurunziza last year - have been targeted with some Tutsis singled outREUTERS CJ VP1500 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0400-551602.Xml
According to the Dawn, the incident caused panic amongst the parents of the students who rushed to the school and tried to barge into the premises in order to evacuate their children.

A large crowd was gathered outside the gate of the government-run school.

The principal of the school also called law-enforcement agencies, and a police contingent rushed to the school to take stock of the situation.

On Thursday, civilian security forces conducted a mock counter-terrorism drill at the Punjab University, which spread panic as most of the students were unaware of the drill being conducted.

Earlier this week, 21 people were killed in the deadly attack on the Bacha Khan University in Charsadda. (ANI)
A Chinese court has jailed a well-known rights activist for 19 years on state security charges, including supplying intelligence abroad, as the leadership widens a crackdown on rights lawyers that has triggered international condemnation.Zhang Haitao, a rights activist based in the troubled western region of Xinjiang who wrote online postings critical of the ruling Communist Party, was jailed for inciting subversion of state power and illegally supplying intelligence abroad, said his lawyer, Li Dunyong, by phone.Li added that the evidence for the latter charge might amount to nothing more than accepting phone interviews with foreign journalists."The sentence was very severe, but it's normal for that region of the country," he said.The court could not be reached for comment.A second rights activist, Li Xin, has been missing for 10 days after leaving Thailand for Laos with the hope of returning to Thailand to apply for political asylum, said his wife, Shi Sanmei.Li, a former writer for the Southern Metropolis Daily, a respected semi-independent newspaper, arrived in Thailand from India on Jan.1 and boarded a train to the northeastern border town of Nong Khai where he tried to enter Laos, said Shi."When I heard he had gone missing, I was very shocked," said Li's friend, Liu Xuehong, a Thailand-based activist. "I think he's in danger now and has probably been arrested."Shi said Thai police refused to accept her report of her husband's disappearance, asking her to contact the Chinese embassy.Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei, asked about Li's disappearance, said he "did not understand" anything about him or about the "relevant situation". He did not elaborate.Police General Dechnarong Sutticharnbancha, Thailand's national police spokesman, said he had no knowledge of Li's case.Public concern has risen in Hong Kong in recent weeks that a Hong Kong-based bookseller, Gui Minhai, has been abducted in the Thai seaside town in Pattaya. Gui, who worked for a publisher specialising in gossipy political books on Chinese Communist Party leaders, went missing along with four other associates.Gui and a Swedish NGO worker named Peter Dahlin both appeared on Chinese state television this week confessing to crimes. The confessions have sparked criticism from western governments and rights groups, who have said the confessions were likely forced.Chinese authorities have detained Dahlin, the 35-year-old co-founder of the Chinese Urgent Action Working Group, on suspicion of endangering state security. The organization worked with Chinese human rights lawyers.Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom told Swedish news agency TT on Friday it was unacceptable to put Dahlin and Gui on television."It is an unacceptable behaviour and we are using all our diplomatic contacts to try to get as much information as possible," Wallstrom told TT.The US Department of State also expressed concern about the "coerced" confessions on Thursday.Asked about the State Department criticism, Chinese spokesman Hong said "foreign countries have no right to interfere on the relevant issue". REUTERS CJ VP1553 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0400-551739.Xml
Syrian Kurds must be represented at peace talks in Geneva or they will fail, a Syrian Kurdish leader said today, adding that one of the opposition groups involved, Jaysh al-Islam, had the "same mentality" as al Qaeda and Islamic State."If there are some parties that are effective in this Syria issue who are not at the table, it will be the same as what happened in Geneva 2," Saleh Muslim, co-chair of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) told Reuters, referring to failed negotiations in 2014."The negotiations and political solution will fail so we are keen to have everyone at the table."He also accused Jaysh al-Islam (Islam Army), one of the groups within the Saudi-backed opposition council, of being no different to other radical Islamist groups. "Their mentality is the same as the Nusra Front and Daesh. They clearly want to establish an Islamic state," he said. REUTERS CJ RAI1632 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0400-551835.Xml
A spike in kidnappings and general insecurity in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo's volatile North Kivu province in recent months has made delivering life-saving humanitarian aid a "Herculean task", the United Nations said today.Congo's east has been plagued by instability since regional wars between 1996 and 2003 killed millions, most from hunger and disease. Dozens of armed groups continue to prey on the local population and exploit the region's rich mineral deposits.The latest in a string of foreign-backed insurrections, the M23, was defeated by Congolese and U.N. forces in late 2013 but smaller armed groups and criminal gangs have since proliferated."Kidnappings of aid workers and civilians and attacks on convoys have increased, often forcing organizations to delay the delivery of aid and other essential operations or suspend activities entirely," the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in statement.Congo, which ranks 176 out 188 countries on the UN Human Development Index, is heavily dependent on aid from non-governmental organisations and UN agencies. OCHA estimates that 7.5 million Congolese will require humanitarian assistance this year.The declaration comes two days after French medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) announced the suspension of its activities in the town of Mweso in North Kivu's Masisi territory. Unidentified assailants attacked one of its convoys and abducted two staff members last month.The hostages were freed within days but MSF said that its demands for new security assurances from officials in the region were not met. The Mweso facility treated over 176,000 patients in 2015.At least 175 people were kidnapped for ransom in eastern Congo last year, according to a report last month by New York-based Human Rights Watch. The group said many of the kidnappings appeared to be carried out by former and current members of armed groups, some of whom quit government-run demobilisation camps.Almost all of the hostages, who included humanitarian workers, UN employees and local residents, were released after ransoms were paid, the report added. REUTERS CJ AS1724 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0400-551999.Xml
The decision to set the probe was taken by an all-party meeting held here.

According to Nepali media, the panel is headed by CPN-UML MP Shiva Kumar Mandal.

Madhesi protestors had yesterday disrupted an event organised by the Youth Association of Nepal to honour the Prime Minister, leading to police action.

The last five months of Madehsi movement for their political rights has seen 50 deaths.

Meanwhile, India today expressed deep concern concern over the killing of three Madhesi protesters in Nepal. India underlined to the country that political problems could not be resolved through force. ''Deeply concerned at loss of 3 lives in police firing in Morang distt in Nepalese Terai today. Political problems require political solution,'' Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted in reaction to the incident.UNI XC NAZ RSA AE 1943

-- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0091-552476.Xml
Pakistan's Supreme Court lifted a ban on hunting a rare bird today, after the government argued it hurt relations with Gulf states whose wealthy hunters traditionally travel to Pakistan to pursue the endangered species with falcons.The court ruling overturns a ban introduced last year on hunting the houbara bustard, pending new hearings of petitions by both the government and conservationists. Conservationists say the bird is at risk of extinction if hunting continues.Wealthy Arabs used to be granted special licences to travel to Pakistan, with falcons worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, to hunt the bustard. Some believe the bird's meat is an aphrodisiac.The government last year asked the court to review the ban because it was damaging Pakistan's relations with Gulf states, key investors in the country. It argued that sustainable hunting of the bustard was the best means of conservation.The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists the bustard as a vulnerable species with a global population of between 50,000 and 100,000. It has almost vanished on the Arabian peninsula,Last year Pakistani wildlife officials fined a Qatari prince and seized two of his prized falcons after he was discovered hunting the bird without a permit. REUTERS MI AS2021 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0387-552657.Xml
US Secretary of State John Kerry said today he believed that, with effort and good faith on both sides, it would be possible to implement the Minsk agreements on Ukraine in coming months to allow for a lifting of sanctions on Russia.In a speech to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Kerry said he and US Vice President Joe Biden had meet this week in the Swiss resort with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to help ensure full implementation of the agreements."And I believe that, with effort and with bona-fide legitimate intent to solve the problem on both sides, it is possible in these next months to find those Minsk agreements implemented and to get to a place where sanctions can be appropriately, because of the full implementation, removed," Kerry said.Sanctions on Russia's banking, energy and defence sectors, imposed in July 2014, are part of the West's efforts to pressure Russia to help end the crisis in eastern Ukraine, in which more than 9,000 people have been killed since April 2014.The United States has repeatedly linked a lifting of the sanctions to full implementation of the Minsk accords, which were agreed last February by Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany after the collapse of a ceasefire between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists.The terms of the deal provide for a ceasefire, a pull-back of heavy weapons, prisoner exchanges, local elections in rebel-held areas and greater autonomy for these regions.A US State Department official, citing data from the International Monetary Fund, said this month that EU and US restrictions imposed on Moscow had shaved about 1.5 per cent off Russian economic output in 2015.Russian President Vladimir Putin told Germany's Bild newspaper this month that the sanctions were "severely harming Russia", although the fall in global oil prices was having a bigger impact. REUTERS MI RAI2051 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0387-552686.Xml
A tableau of the Election Commission and a marching contingent of the French army will be among the firsts at this year's Republic Day parade with the Indian Army dog squad also slated to make a return to Rajpath. The French contingent, consisting of 100 French army personnel and 36 band members, will march on the 67th Republic day for the first time in history. Their position will be behind Param Veer Chakra, Ashok Chakra and Mahavir Chakra winners. France's President Francois Hollande will be the guest of honour at this year's celebrations. Trained dogs of the Indian army, including Labradors and German Shepherds, will march in the parade after 26 years. "After 26 years, a dog contingent will be participating in the Republic Day parade. "We (Ministry of Defence) hope that all these new additions will bring beauty and charm to the occasion," said D. Mohanty, PRO (Defence). This year a tableau on the Election Commission will take part in the parade depicting the large participation of people in elections. The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment will present a tableau with its theme based on the 125th birth anniversary of Indias first law minister Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, who is regarded as the chief architect of India's Constitution. This year 23 tableaux will participate in the parade where the country will showcase its cultural diversity, development in science and technology and economic and military strength. According to official, this year many states including Arunachal Pradesh, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Maharashtra will not participate in the tableaux. Delhi will also not be there. Jammu and Kashmir will present its tableau on the economic transformation and natural environment. The state's tableau designer Ahmad Dhar said, The state has seen turmoil. We want to show people different things about the Valley. Madhya Pradesh will feature the rare breed of white tigers. The state has one of the largest populations of tigers in the country. Gujarat is also presenting a theme on wildlife as Asiatic lions of Gir forest will be highlighted in its tableau. Bihar, in its tableau, will be showcasing the 1917 Champaran movement by Mahatma Gandhi whereas Karnataka will showcase the theme of coffee since the state counts among the top six coffee producers in the world. Tamil Nadu will showcase the Toda tribe of Nilgiri district. The tribe is identified as one of the six primitive tribal groups of the state. Tableaus from the Ministry of Communication and IT, Ministry of Panchayat Raj, Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation and Ministry of New and Renewable Energy will also be a part of the Republic Day parade. --Indo-Asian News Service ar/ahm/bg ( 457 Words) 2016-01-22-22:21:36 (IANS)
A powerful storm barreled toward Washington, D.C., and much of the East Coast today, threatening to bury the region under as much to 76 cm of snow after blasting Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky with a wintry mix.The National Weather Service said the storm had the potential to cripple a broad swath of the Northeast, with about 61 cm of snow due to hit the Baltimore and Washington metro areas starting on Friday afternoon. Western suburbs could get even more snow."I want to be very clear with everybody. This is a major storm," Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said as the nation's capital braced for what could turn out to be one of the worst storms in its history."This has life-and-death implications and all the residents of the District of Columbia should treat it that way."Given the extraordinary conditions expected, Washington has been preparing all week for the type of blizzard that Bowser said the Washington has not seen in 90 years.AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said the storm taking aim at Washington could bring one of the biggest snowfalls on record, eclipsing the "Snowmageddon" storm of 2010 that dropped 45.2 cm.The largest snowstorm recorded in Washington was the 1922 Knickerbocker storm, which buried the city under 71 cm.Weather forecasters were looking for storm to hit the capital between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. on Friday and last until late on Saturday, bringing up to 61 to 76 cm over 36 hours and winds of 30 to 50 mph (48 to 80 kph), the mayor said."It will be wet, heavy snow," she said.Farther north, a blizzard watch was issued for New York City and parts of its Long Island and New Jersey suburbs starting early Saturday. Snow accumulation could reach 30 cm in the region, forecasters said. Southeastern Pennsylvania, including Philadelphia, was expecting 25 to 42 cm of snow.Governors of Arkansas and Tennessee ordered state offices closed on Friday as the storm pushed across their states and Kentucky. It dropped 13 cm of snow in Arkansas and a wintry mess of snow, sleet and freezing rain in parts of Tennessee and Kentucky, Petersen said.STORM GROWING"It's expanding and coming east," he said. "It will continue to grow as it crosses the mid-Atlantic states, where Maryland, southeastern Pennsylvania and northern Virginia will get the heaviest snow."Across the Southeast, government offices, schools and universities were shuttered today.Millions of residents in the storm's path scrambled to prepare, picking stores clean of bottled water, food and other supplies.Federal employees in the Washington area were told their offices would close at noon today to allow them to get home safely before the snow begins piling up in the afternoon. Public schools were canceled.The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which includes the second-busiest US subway system, took the rare step of suspending operations from late on Friday through Sunday.District of Columbia officials, who expected to be dealing with the storm's aftermath for a week, said everyone except emergency workers should stay off the streets.Marisa Kritikson, 27, nursing student at George Washington University in Washington, feared she might be unable to get out of her basement apartment."I think it's going to be a nightmare, the rates of snow we're talking about," she said. "I think we're going to be incapacitated through next week."The Virginia National Guard planned to bring in up to 300 troops to assist in response operations.Airlines have canceled more than 5,000 flights for today and tomorrow, most of them at airports in North Carolina and Washington, according to FlightAware.com. Philadelphia's airport said it would cancel all flights scheduled for tomorrow.Residents along New Jersey's coastline were preparing for potential flooding during high tides on tomorrow and Sunday. In the beach community of Ocean City, emergency management officials warned of forecasts calling for the highest flood levels since Superstorm Sandy brought heavy damage in 2012.High winds and a full moon could combine to create a tide of nearly 2.4 meters in Atlantic City, officials said, still shy of the 3 meters that Sandy caused in Ocean City. REUTERS MI RAI2218 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0387-552817.Xml
North Korea has detained a US university student, the third western citizen known to be held in the isolated state, for committing a "hostile act" and wanting to "destroy the country's unity", it said today. Otto Frederick Warmbier, 21, of the University of Virginia, was in North Korea for a five-day New Year trip and was detained at Pyongyang airport on January 2 ahead of a flight back to China, said Gareth Johnson of Young Pioneer Tours, which organized the visit. According to the North's official KCNA news agency, Warmbier entered North Korea as a tourist and "was caught committing a hostile act against the state", which it said was "tolerated and manipulated by the US government". The US State Department, in a statement, said it was aware of reports that a US citizen had been detained in North Korea but gave no other details, citing privacy concerns. US Rep. Brad Wenstrup, whose district includes the area where Warmbier went to high school, tweeted on Friday that his office was asking the State Department "to assist however possible in getting Mr. Warmbier home." Further official comment was not immediately available as U.S. government offices were closed ahead of an impending blizzard. Johnson said China-based Young Pioneer Tours was in contact with Warmbier's family and U.S. officials. "We are in touch with Otto's family, the US State Department and the Embassy of Sweden in Pyongyang and doing all we can to secure his release," Johnson told Reuters. The Swedish Embassy represents US interests in North Korea. KCNA said Warmbier had entered the country with an "aim to destroy the country's unity". It did not elaborate. According to his social media profiles, Warmbier is from Cincinnati and is an Echols Scholar, awarded to the top 7 percent of incoming first-year students at the University of Virginia, where he majors in economics with a minor in global sustainability. Warmbier has also visited Cuba, Ireland and Israel, according to his Facebook profile. Warmbier was detained four days before North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in violation of UN sanctions, which drew condemnation from its neighbors and the United States. A friend and former high-school classmate of Warmbier, who wished to remain anonymous, told Reuters: "Otto is a wonderful, warm person who should never have to go through anything like this. ... The idea that any of this happened is crazy." Calls to the Warmbier home in Cincinnati, Ohio, were not immediately answered on Friday and nobody answered when a Reuters reporter knocked on the door of the house. South Korea warned that the United States and its allies were working on further sanctions to inflict "bone-numbing pain" on North Korea after its latest nuclear test, and urged China to do its part to rein in its neighbor. North Korea has a long history of detaining foreigners, and the US and Canadian governments advise against travel there. Pyongyang has in the past used detained US citizens to extract high-profile visits from the United States, with which it has no formal diplomatic relations. While the vast majority of tourists to North Korea are from China, roughly 6,000 westerners visit the country annually. Most are adventure-seekers curious about life behind the last sliver of the iron curtain, and ignore critics who say their dollars prop up a repressive regime. Warmbier was on Young Pioneer's "New Year's Party Tour," which, according to the itinerary on the company's website, was to include watching fireworks in Kim Il Sung Square in the heart of Pyongyang, and an optional helicopter ride. A South Korean-born Canadian pastor was arrested in North Korea last year and given a life sentence for subversion. This month, a Korean-American told CNN in Pyongyang he was being held by the state for spying. In 2014, Pyongyang released three detained Americans. Last October, it freed a South Korean national with a US green card after holding him for six months. REUTERS MI AN2339 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0387-552881.Xml
Washington University in St. Louis has announced that Leading Together: The Campaign for Washington University is expected to reach its initial, minimum goal of $2.2 billion two years ahead of schedule. The campaign total reached $2.12 billion as of Dec. 31, 2015. The universitys Board of Trustees has approved a new goal to raise $2.5 billion by June 30, 2018.

Leading Together has attracted record support so far from more than 120,000 alumni, parents and friends of Washington University, including hundreds of volunteers in St. Louis and in cities across the United States and worldwide. Their generosity is helping to strengthen the universitys leadership and contributions to society in four key areas: preparing the leaders of tomorrow; advancing human health; inspiring innovation and entrepreneurship; and enhancing the quality of life.

We have achieved great progress, said Washington University Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton. As a premier research university, we have a responsibility to anticipate the challenges of the future and prepare to meet them. This is the core of Leading Together, which has as its overarching goal to enhance our leadership today to benefit America and the world tomorrow. 

We have not yet accomplished everything we set out to do, Wrighton said. A great university has great responsibilities  to our students and to the society we serve. That responsibility has increased in proportion to the growth and progress we have achieved through the campaign. It offers an unprecedented opportunity  and a responsibility  to aim even higher.

The campaign was publicly announced on Oct. 6, 2012. At that time, the university identified $4 billion as the total needed to fully realize its strategic plans for the future. Washington Universitys leadership in medicine, social work and undergraduate education is recognized worldwide, and the university is a global leader in liberal arts education.

Recent decades have seen enormous progress in the strength and quality of other programs, including engineering, law, Olin Business School and the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts.

Leading Together already has enabled us to make exciting new breakthroughs in medicine and genomics to support the fight against cancer, Alzheimers disease, mental illness and other devastating diseases, Wrighton said.

The campaign has helped us build on our expertise in social work, public health, law and business to improve the well-being of people in St. Louis and in communities around the world. The campaign has made it possible for our scientists and scholars to make new discoveries and innovations in the sciences, the social sciences and the arts. It enables our researchers to work toward a sustainable environment and a more just society.

And Leading Together is striving to make a top-tier education possible for every qualified undergraduate and graduate student who aspires to attend Washington University, Wrighton said.

Taylor to continue work begun by McDonnell, Fox

Leading the public phase of the campaign is Andrew C. Taylor, a Washington University trustee and the executive chairman of St. Louis-based Enterprise Holdings. Trustees John F. McDonnell, retired chairman of the board of McDonnell Douglas Corp., and Sam Fox, former U.S. ambassador to the Kingdom of Belgium and founder and retired chairman and CEO of Harbour Group Ltd., guided the campaigns initial leadership phase, which raised more than $1 billion between March 2009 and October 2012.

Great research universities and academic medical centers are shaping the future of our world today, Taylor said. Individuals and organizations all over America and around the world are investing in a St. Louis institution because Washington University delivers the best possible return on philanthropic investment  and few institutions deliver more significant, critical contributions to the future of humankind than Washington University.

For example:

Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis is leading innovative research to understand the genetic origins of diseases ranging from cancer and diabetes to autism and Alzheimers, with the aim of developing more effective diagnoses and treatments.

The Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine has earned the highest possible rating  exceptional  from the National Cancer Institute. The center serves nearly 9,000 newly diagnosed cancer patients each year.

As the top-ranked school of social work in the nation, the Brown School is an international leader in policy and procedures to address challenges from poverty to productive aging.

The Institute for Public Health harnesses the multidisciplinary strengths of Washington University to address complex health issues facing St. Louis and communities worldwide.

Each year, Washington University physicians provide clinical care to nearly 500,000 children and adults at 49 clinical sites across the St. Louis metropolitan area.

Research initiatives across the university are laying the scientific groundwork to help meet the global need for abundant, clean and economical energy.

Washington University was one of the founders of the Cortex Innovation Community in midtown St. Louis, which so far has attracted more than $550 million in investment and generated more than 3,600 permanent jobs in the Cortex District. In the last 48 months, Cortex development has resulted in an additional $500 million of private investment and development in 20 surrounding neighborhood projects.

Washington University collaborates with 29 leading institutions worldwide to educate future leaders and address global challenges such as energy and sustainability, public health, education and international understanding. These efforts are carried out through the McDonnell International Scholars Academy, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year.

Our alumni and friends have worked together to make Washington University a world-renowned center of learning and discovery, Wrighton said. Their generosity will have a lasting impact  on human health, on a sustainable environment, on economic prosperity, on quality of life and on the young people who will lead our society in the future. Together, we will build on our accomplishments to contribute even more to our community, our nation and our world.

To learn more about Washington Universitys impact on St. Louis and beyond, go to together.wustl.edu .
Ten-year-old Elison with his 2-month-old brother Jose Wesley, who was born with microcephaly, in Poco Fundo, Brazil. (Felipe Dana/AP Photo)



If youve heard about the Zika virus and are wondering what it is, youre not alone. Cases of this emerging infectious disease are soaring in Latin America. And while evidence of any endemic cases in the continental United States is lacking, U.S. travelers are bringing the infection back with them.

For most people, the Zika virus causes only a brief, mild flu-like illness. But in pregnant women it has been linked to an alarming increase in the rate of the birth defect known as microcephaly  a debilitatingly small head and brain size.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) posted a travel alert advising pregnant women to delay travel to areas in 14 countries and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean, where Zika is active. And the CDCs newest guidelines recommend pregnant women coming back from these areas get tested for Zika, if they have symptoms.

A baby born recently with microcephaly in Oahu, Hawaii, had been infected with Zika, according to a press release from the Hawaii Department of Health, and the childs mother had previously lived in Brazil  a Zika hot zone.

With the 2016 summer Olympic Games coming up in Rio de Janeiro, public health experts are worried that the virus may spread far beyond Latin America.

Given the possible link to birth defects, preventing the spread of Zika is critical, especially for women in their childbearing years.

Here are the facts about the Zika virus:

1. The Zika virus is carried by mosquitoes and people, but spread by mosquitoes. Zika is an RNA virus related to West Nile, yellow fever, and dengue viruses, and caused by the bite of the Aedes mosquito. These viral diseases have mosquitoes as their vector  the bug or organism that transmits an infection  and are generally not passed from person to person, explains Peter Jay Hotez, MD, PhD, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.

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A person bitten by a mosquito that has the virus then becomes viremic. They get bitten by another mosquito, which then passes the virus along, Dr. Hotez says.

While you probably cant give the Zika virus directly to someone else, a mosquito can give it to you and then another mosquito could get it from you  and that second mosquito could pass it on to others.

2. Symptoms of Zika virus infection are usually mild. Eighty percent of people who become infected never have symptoms. In those who do, the most common Zika virus symptoms are fever and rash; it can also cause muscle and joint pain, headache, pain behind the eyes, and conjunctivitis (itchy, red eyes), according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Health experts at the WHO Regional Office for the Americas note that symptoms generally last two to seven days. No effective treatment is available for Zika infection, but over-the-counter fever or pain medication can be helpful for symptom relief.

3. Unborn babies are most at risk from Zika virus complications. When pregnant women are infected with Zika, the unborn child is at risk, says Hotez. Were seeing illness when it strikes women who are pregnant, and its producing a horrific effect of microcephaly, he says. We dont know when in pregnancy the consequences are greatest. Microcephaly may cause mental retardation, as well as delays in speech, movement, and growth, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Healthcare workers in Brazil were stunned to learn that, throughout all of 2015 and up to the present, there have been more than 3,500 total new microcephaly cases that were suspected to be caused by Zika  more than 20 times higher than the numbers in prior years.

RELATED: Zika Virus: CDC Guidelines for Pregnant Women



4. Theres no vaccine to protect against the Zika virus. Theres going to be a need to accelerate a Zika vaccine, says Hotez. I think the world got caught by surprise at the congenital infections. Now theres going to be a lot of interest in a vaccine for women of reproductive age, like the rubella vaccine [to prevent birth defects]. Rubella vaccination is now mandatory for children and is a recommended vaccine for adults; it helps prevent miscarriage in pregnant women, and heart problems, blindness, and hearing loss in newborns.

5. Zika began in Africa and spread rapidly. The virus, originally named ZIKV, was first discovered in 1947 in a rhesus macaque in the Zika forest in Uganda. Researchers there found that it lived in mosquitoes, and they learned through experimentation that it could also infect mice.

Outbreaks were reported from 1951 to 1981 throughout Africa and Asia, and in 2007 in Polynesia. But since the first cases were discovered in Latin America in 2014, the virus has quickly spread. In December 2015, the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) recommended Latin American countries start gearing up to screen for Zika and prepare for demands on the healthcare systems due to the severe health problems its causing in newborns.

6. Zika has reached Puerto Ricos mosquitoes and may keep traveling north.Puerto Rico has reported the first locally-acquired Zika virus case in the United States, says Benjamin Haynes, a CDC spokesperson. The case was reported in December 2015.

I think we have to proceed along a worst-case scenario that the Gulf Coast is at risk. Were vulnerable, says Hotez. Im not an alarmist. But I am worried about a Zika outbreak on the Gulf Coast. That includes areas around Houston, New Orleans, and Tampa-St. Petersburg, Florida, which are all potential hot zones for tropical diseases because mosquitoes thrive there.

7. All U.S. cases of the Zika virus disease are travel-related. These imported cases happen when a person is infected elsewhere and then visits or returns to the United States. The first travel-associated Zika virus disease case among U.S. travelers was reported in 2007, says Haynes. From 2007 to 2014, a total of 14 returning U.S. travelers had positive Zika virus testing performed at the CDC. He adds that in all of 2015 and in 2016 to date, at least eight U.S. travelers have tested positive for the Zika virus. The CDC is still receiving specimens for Zika virus testing from returning U.S. travelers who became ill in 2015 or 2016, he cautions, which means the counts could get higher.

8. Travelers probably wont bring infected mosquitoes along with them. Its extremely unlikely that mosquitoes would be carried back to the United States by citizens traveling abroad, says Jim Fredericks, PhD, chief entomologist and vice president of technical and regulatory affairs for the nonprofit National Pest Management Association in Fairfax, Virginia. As adults, mosquitoes are a relatively fragile insect that doesnt travel very well. In addition, since only a fraction of the total mosquito population in Zika-endemic areas carries the virus, its even less likely for an infective mosquito to be brought back alive, he says. The bigger concern is that a person infected with the virus could pass it along to local mosquito populations.

RELATED: Natural Ways to Prevent Mosquito Bites

9. You can help prevent Zika infection by using insect repellents. Travelers going to areas with current Zika outbreaks can take steps to avoid catching the virus. The best way to avoid mosquito bites is to use a repellent containing at least 20 percent DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon-eucalyptus, or IR3535 when venturing outdoors, especially near dawn and dusk when mosquitoes are most active, says Dr. Fredericks. Whenever possible, it also makes sense to wear long sleeves and pants when outside during these times, he says.

10. Mosquito control can help prevent Zika. Controlling the insect vector by cutting down on mosquito breeding is one way to prevent spread of this and other mosquito-borne viruses. Breeding sites include water-filled habitats like plant containers and toilets inside the home, and puddles, birdbaths, and pooled water outdoors. Chemical pesticides can kill mosquitoes, but use them carefully to prevent contamination that could be harmful to your health, notes the CDC.

More on the Zika virus on Yahoo Health:

This article originally appeared on EverydayHealth.com: 10 Essential Facts About the Zika Virus

By Jennifer J. Brown, PhD, Everyday Health Editor

Medically reviewed by Chad Tewell, MD

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By Sebastien Malo NEW YORK (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - More than a third of the world's food goes uneaten, and many crops harvested in Africa are discarded rather than sold, according to an initiative announced on Thursday by the Rockefeller Foundation to cut food waste and loss by half. The seven-year, $130 million project aims to tackle food waste from crops in the fields to dinner tables in industrialized nations, the Foundation said in its announcement at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland. Sub-Saharan Africa will receive much of the initiative's resources, the Foundation said. In Kenya, Nigeria and Tanzania, up to half of some crops are lost due to inefficient harvesting, storage, processing and time to market, it said. "The amount of food lost or wasted before it ever reaches a table is simply unacceptable, with devastating impacts on people, profit and planet," said Judith Rodin, president of the Rockefeller Foundation, in a statement. Enough food is grown to feed the 1.2 billion hungry or undernourished people worldwide, but a third is never eaten, according to United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization figures cited by the Foundation. That lost food is worth about $1 trillion, according to the FAO. The initiative, called YieldWise, aims at cutting food waste and loss in half by 2030, the Foundation said. Last year, the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama also announced a goal of reducing food waste by 50 percent by 2030. In France, legislators have banned big supermarkets from destroying unsold but edible food. The Foundation said it is counting on partnerships with food giants Coca-Cola Co and Dangote Group to help small farmers bring produce to market. Training at mango farms in Kenya, maize farms in Tanzania and tomato farms in Nigeria is already in the works, the New York-based philanthropic organization said, teaching farmers such skills as the use of crop-preserving technologies and strategies against crop loss. (Reporting by Sebastien Malo, Editing by Ellen Wulfhorst. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, corruption and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org)
A deadly U.S. special operations raid on a top Islamic State commander last May that swept up a trove of intelligence has become the gold standard for how the Obama administration envisions the secretive war against the militants. But the White House may be overburdening the limited number of American commandos on the ground with unrealistic expectations of turning the tide in Iraq and Syria.

Fewer than 200 U.S. special operations forces make up the Pentagons much-touted expeditionary targeting force that recently arrived in Iraq to take the fight to the militants, but only a few dozen will take part in raids, according to U.S. officials. An even smaller team  about 50 special operators  has deployed to Syria.

The Pentagon rarely discusses the secretive missions of U.S. commandos that the Obama administration calls a crucial part of its bid to intensify the war against the Islamic State. Yet in announcing their deployment to Congress, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said the elite American troops will conduct raids, free hostages, gather intelligence, and capture Islamic State leaders in both Iraq and Syria.

Their deployment puts everyone on notice in Syria: You dont know at night whos going to be coming in through the window, Carter said Dec. 1.

The plan

During the night-shrouded raid in eastern Syria last May, U.S. Delta Force troops killed Islamic State financial guru Abu Sayyaf and as many as 11 of his henchmen after a short firefight. They also captured his wife, Umm Sayyaf, and loaded computer hard drives and stacks of financial documents from his compound into their Black Hawk helicopters before flying back across the border to Iraq.

Over the following days, the records revealed critical details of the Islamic States oil infrastructure in Syria. But the real prize was Umm Sayyaf, who could provide much-needed context to the files and a living, breathing source on how the terrorist group funds its operations. Within months, acting on that information, airstrikes began targeting Islamic State oil operations across eastern Syria, depriving the militants of millions of dollars worth of revenue.

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But the aftermath of the raid that nabbed Umm Sayyaf also pointed to one potential Achilles heel in Washingtons plan: the need for detention facilities. The U.S. military shuttered all of its American-run prisons in Iraq before it left at the end of 2011, and without a place to continue holding Umm Sayyaf, U.S. officials were forced to turn her over to Kurdish authorities last August.

There are no plans for American forces to reopen detention centers in Iraq, a U.S. defense official told Foreign Policy. Interrogation details are still being worked out, but generally well only observe and the Iraqis will share information, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

That means the new U.S. counterterrorism mission in Iraq will likely miss out on collecting critical pieces of information from detainees who might be more willing to talk after weeks or months behind bars.

If you capture high-level people, what do you do with them, and all of the information that comes from them? said Aki Peritz, a former CIA counterterrorism analyst and co-author of Find, Fix, Finish: Inside the Counterterrorism Campaigns That Killed Bin Laden and Devastated Al-Qaeda.

If we can create an intelligence-driven mission, thats great, Peritz said. But we cant detain anybody, and thats the No. 1 source of information.

Reliable information has become harder to come by with fewer U.S. forces on the ground. In Afghanistan, where the Obama administration is also leaning heavily on a small number of special forces, a tragic Oct. 3 operation in Kunduz underlined the risks of operating with incomplete intelligence.

That night, a team of U.S. Green Berets, who had spent long days fighting alongside Afghan special forces, called in an airstrike on a nearby building where Taliban extremists were believed to be hiding. But a lack of constant information sent to the AC-130 gunship overhead resulted in the air crew identifying the wrong building.

The blistering hourlong attack instead targeted a charity hospital, killing 42 medical staff and patients, and leading to accusations of war crimes. U.S. military officials are currently weighing punishments for several of the soldiers involved.

The relatively small military footprint in Iraq and Syria, down from a high of nearly 170,000 U.S. troops in Iraq during the height of the surge in 2007, has put firepower at a premium. But experts said equally as important  if not more so  are surveillance drones and intelligence gathered on the ground.

You turn that on, and it makes a huge difference, said retired Col. Stu Bradin, a former U.S. Army Special Forces officer who helped establish the NATO Special Operations Forces Coordination Center in Afghanistan and served as director of a fusion cell there.

He said round-the-clock surveillance from the air and ground intelligence help military planners seamlessly juggle raids and other operations, while building a picture of the network of insurgents like what senior U.S. commanders painstakingly created in Iraq and Afghanistan at the height of those wars.

Just the size of the intelligence side of the house alone is massive, Bradin said. You can only do some of it from a distance  you really have to have intelligence staff co-located with the operators [on the ground].

He said it took at least three or four intelligence analysts and support staff to run a special forces operation for every one soldier on the ground.

McChrystals way

As head of the Joint Special Operations Command, now-retired Gen. Stanley McChrystal transformed the way American commandos wage war. McChrystal oversaw the missions that tracked down al Qaeda in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and, most famously, Saddam Hussein.

During the height of the U.S. war in Iraq, McChrystal and Gen. David Petraeus created so-called fusion centers where intelligence analysts and special operations forces together pored over information to help plot the next mission.

The analysts were critical to fusing the various pieces of intelligence as the operators picked them off the battlefield, said Linda Robinson, an analyst at the Rand Corp., who has written several books about special forces. They would go out and do the raid, and they would  this is very important  capture versus kill the individuals on the target and then be able to gain human intelligence from them.

McChrystals collaborative approach remains a model for the ongoing missions in Iraq and Syria, several U.S. officials told FP. But now, officials noted, the effort is dramatically smaller, with dozens of commandos instead of thousands in the battle zone. And this time, U.S. commandos will be operating jointly in partnership with Kurdish and Iraqi counterparts.

President Barack Obama, who when elected pledged to end wars not start them, had long resisted sending special operations forces to Iraq or Syria. And until recently, the Obama administration relied on air power and the training of local troops for full-fledged combat against the Islamic State.

But as the U.S. military campaign came under mounting criticism, Obama reversed course  opting for a tactic honed during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. At the Pentagon last month, Obama lauded the role of special forces in warning that Islamic State leaders cannot hide.

Our next message to them is simple: You are next, Obama said.

This month, Carter suggested more commandos may soon be headed for Iraq and Pentagon officials are pushing European allies to deploy their own commandos. The more we use it, the more well learn about additional uses for it, Carter said of the new contingent of special operations troops. The more we do, the more we learn what more we can do.

But with only a handful of U.S. ground troops, and lacking consistent, reliable local partners, its unclear whether American special operations forces can seriously damage the Islamic State.

It will fall to Kurdish and Iraqi fighters to act on intelligence gathered by the United States. Yet U.S. officials are only cautiously optimistic about the Kurds ability and privately admit the Iraqi Army remains plagued by leadership and morale problems.

Its also uncertain whether local troops will be capable of coming to the aid of American special forces who may find themselves pinned down in a fight. That was less of a concern in the past, when commanders could rely on nearby rescue units to justify taking more risks, analysts said.

Just how many operations American commandos have conducted in recent months, or exactly what theyre doing across Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria, is unknown. Only four missions over the past year have received any public scrutiny: the Abu Sayyaf raid, Kunduz, and two more that resulted in the deaths of Americans.

Last October, Delta Force Master Sgt. Joshua Wheeler was killed in a raid on an Islamic State prison near Hawijah, Iraq. And earlier this month, on Jan. 5, a firefight in Afghanistans Helmand province killed Staff Sgt. Matthew McClintock, wounded two other Green Berets, and disabled an American helicopter. Early attempts to bolster U.S. troops in the Helmand firefight failed after one helicopter broke a rotor blade on landing, and another was chased away by Taliban fire. It wasnt until hours later, after dark, that a rescue mission finally made it to the team.

That operation highlighted the dangers and difficulties special operations forces now face as they stage raids with an imperfect intelligence picture, limited air power, and a small military footprint.

Recent reports say a small contingent of American special operators has set up operations at the Rmeilan Air Base in the Syrian Kurdish region near the countrys borders with Iraq and Turkey, but U.S. officials have declined to comment. Because of the special nature of these forces, its very important that we not discuss specifically where theyre located, Col. Steve Warren, the U.S. militarys spokesman in Baghdad, told reporters. It puts those forces at increased risk.

Five or 10 years ago, with tens of thousands of U.S. troops in Afghanistan or Iraq, commando units were operating at full throttle.

An estimated 12 special operations raids happened across Afghanistan on the same night SEAL Team 6 killed Osama bin Laden in May 2011. And the successful manhunt that took out Zarqawi in June 2006 came only after the United States went after dozens of guys first to get to him, said Peritz.

And even in an unrelenting war of that magnitude, during which a steady march of militant leaders were killed or captured, the United States still fell short of fully defeating al Qaeda in Iraq, which has since morphed into the Islamic State.

A purely counterterrorism operation is not effective  unless you have the intel piece to back it up, Peritz said.

Photo credit: Spc. Connor Mendez/Department of Defense
KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan forces have arrested eight members of the feared Haqqani militant network who they say carried out a suicide attack this week on journalists working for the country's most-watched television channel. The Haqqani network, which mainly operates out of Pakistan's border areas, is blamed for some of the deadliest and most sophisticated attacks on U.S. and Afghan troops in Afghanistan. The National Directorate for Security (NDS), Afghanistan's intelligence agency, said in a statement those arrested were behind the attack that killed seven journalists in Kabul. The journalists died when returning home after a day's work when their company minibus was rammed by a car driven by a suicide bomber in evening rush hour traffic. NDS said the arrests were made in a district in the southeast Kabul and no further details were given. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the bombing and said they targeted Tolo TV, Afghanistan's largest private television network, because it was producing propaganda for the U.S. military and its allies. The Taliban openly threatened to target the station after it reported allegations of summary executions, rape and kidnappings by Taliban fighters during the battle for the northern city of Kunduz last year. Tolo, which created Afghanistan's first 24-hour news channel, has won a reputation for fast and credible reporting. During their five years in power, the Taliban banned television to stop people viewing what they derided as vulgar, immoral and anti-Islamic materialThe Haqqani network technically falls under the command of the Taliban, although U.S. officials believe they can act independently. The group's leader Sirajuddin Haqqani was appointed as the deputy to the Taliban's new leader last year. The Haqqanis have been blamed for some of the most spectacular attacks against American targets in Afghanistan, a raid on Kabul's top hotel, an assassination attempt on then-President Hamid Karzai and a suicide bombing at the Indian Embassy. (Reporting by Hamid Shalizi; Writing by Andrew MacAskill; Editing by Tom Heneghan)
Doha (AFP) - Pan-Arab television network Al-Jazeera said on Thursday that one of its journalists had gone missing in the battleground Yemeni city of Taez and that it suspects he was kidnapped.

The Doha-based channel said it had not been able to contact Hamdi al-Bokari since Monday night, when the correspondent was covering fighting between loyalist and rebel forces in the central city.

It said in a statement that there were indications that the Yemeni reporter had been "kidnapped by unknown persons".

Al-Jazeera Media Network director general Mostefa Souag called for Bokari's immediate release, saying it was the kidnappers' responsibility to ensure his safety.

Other circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the journalist were unknown.

The city of Taez is under the control of Yemen's internationally recognised government, but it has been besieged by Iran-backed rebels for months.

The Huthi Shiite rebels overran Sanaa more than a year ago, forcing the government of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi to flee the capital for second city Aden and then abroad.

Hadi loyalists backed by a Saudi-led coalition have been fighting back, and for weeks they have been trying to retake Taez province and pave the way towards the rebel-held capital.

More than 5,800 people have been killed in Yemen since March, about half of them civilians, according to the UN.

Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders says at least five journalists were killed in Yemen last year.

On Sunday Yemeni journalist Almigdad Mojalli was killed south of Sanaa in an apparent air strike carried out by the Saudi-led coalition.
Just a month after the Government Accountability Office released a damning report that found the Navys new class of littoral combat ships is both less survivable in its expected threat environments and less lethal than initially planned, another of the $362 million vessels has been taken out of commission.

In December, the USS Milwaukee, one of the Navys three commissioned Freedom Class LCSs, broke down off the coast of Virginia and had to be towed back to port. Now, the USS Fort Worth, also a Freedom class LCS vessel, is confined to port in Singapore because of engine problems.

Related: The Navys New $362 Million Ship Needs a Tow to Get Home

The good news for the Fort Worth is that it didnt need a tow to get home. The damage to the engine apparently occurred while maintenance was being performed in port.

Based on initial indications, the casualty occurred due to an apparent failure to follow procedures during an operational test of the port and starboard main propulsion diesel engines, the Navy said in a press release Thursday. An investigation is underway to examine the incident in depth and determine any necessary corrective action.

The combining gears are the same part of the propulsion system that failed in the case of the Milwaukee, though apparently for different reasons. According to the Navy, combining gears allow Fort Worth to configure different types and combinations of engines for propulsion at sea.

Unlike the Milwaukee, which broke down before it even reached its first post, the Fort Worth has been in service in the Pacific for more than a year, where it has reportedly performed well and had its 16-month scheduled deployment extended.

Related: Why the Pentagon Is Cutting Back Orders on Its New Combat Ship

Nevertheless, with the Fort Worth in port for an indeterminate amount of time, and the Milwaukee still out of commission, that means two out of the three Freedom class ships are now inoperable. The USS Freedom, namesake of the class, remains functional.

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The Freedom class is one of two types of LCS being built for the Navy. The other is the Independence class.

The GAO report issued in December was critical of both, not because of their apparently sensitive propulsion systems but because they are not living up to expectations. But the Navy is spending more money on them anyway.

The Navy has requested $1.4 billion for three LCS in the fiscal year 2016 President's budget, even though it is clear that the current ships fall short of identified survivability and lethality needs, the report said.

Further, it found, the Department of Defense's Director of Operational Test and Evaluation has stated that there is insufficient data to provide statistical confidence that LCS can meet its lethality requirements in future testing or operations, and further testing is needed to demonstrate both variants can meet requirements in varied threat environments. The Navy also has not yet demonstrated that LCS will achieve its survivability requirements, and does not plan to complete survivability assessments until 2018after more than 24 ships are either in the fleet or under construction.

In December, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter directed the Navy to scale back future orders of the ships.

Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
AppleInsider points us to a recently published U.S. patent application from Apple which suggests that Apple may at some point in the future consider a wrap-around OLED display for the iPhone. The patent covers an item called an electronic device with a wrapped display and explains how a flexible OLED display or other flexible display structure may be wrapped around a device.

DONT MISS: The math they dont want you to see: iPhone carrier trade-ins are always a bad idea

While the images contained in the patent application dont quite resemble an iPhone, or any smartphone for that matter, the patent does make a point of noting that a wrap-around display could be used on an electronic device that may have a touch sensor, accelerometer, gyroscope, and other sensors for gathering input

The patent description adds:

The device may display content that moves or that remains at a fixed location on the surface of the flexible display layer. For example, the electronic device may display pages of content on the display layer in response to tilt events or other motions of the device. The electronic device may also adjust scrolling activity and other on-screen content motions based on detected device rotation and other measured movement of the device. If desired, content can be displayed in synchronization with the rotation of the electronic device about the longitudinal axis so that the displayed content remains at a fixed location relative to a user. Content may be simultaneously displayed at a fixed location on the surface of the display. In response to detection of a vertical device orientation in which the longitudinal axis is vertical, the device may automatically scroll content on the display around the longitudinal axis.

As for Apples interest OLED displays, its worth noting that weve seen a few rumors suggesting that future iPhones will incorporate OLED displays, perhaps by the time Apple rolls out the iPhone 8 in 2018. Indeed, recent reports have relayed that both LG and Samsung are close to finalizing contracts to supply OLED displays to Apple. While OLED displays certainly have their advantages (thinner displays, more vibrant colors), theyre not without their drawbacks, namely color saturation issues over time. Still, Apple is reportedly working with manufacturers to address this particular concern. Whats more you might recall a relatively recent report from Bloomberg which detailed a secretive Apple research lab in Taiwan staffed with scientists and engineers working towards creating more advanced displays for mobile devices.

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As for a wrap-around iPhone? Well, dont expect to see such a device anytime soon. Nonetheless, Apple patent filings can sometimes give us an indication of future technologies and products Apple is considering.

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This article was originally published on BGR.com
By Steve Barnes

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (Reuters) - A firefighter in Arkansas responding to a medical emergency was fatally shot on Friday by the person he had intended to assist, authorities said.

East Pulaski Volunteer Fire Department firefighter Ronald Adams, 29, had responded to a report that a man had suffered a seizure and collapsed in suburban Little Rock, police said.

"We're still interviewing witnesses, trying to put together what happened," said Captain Carl Minden of the Pulaski County Sheriff's Department.

Adams lived a short distance from the man he was trying to help, Minden said. The name of the shooter was not disclosed.

An ambulance driving through a winter storm took Adams to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Adams worked for the Sherwood, Arkansas, fire department and was a volunteer firefighter in a nearby unincorporated area where the shooting occurred

(Reporting by Steve Barnes; Writing by Jon Herskovitz)
If Planet Nine really exists, astronomers have a pretty decent chance of spotting it.

On Wednesday (Jan. 20), scientists announced that a planet about 10 times more massive than Earth likely lurks in the distant outer solar system, orbiting perhaps 600 times farther from the sun than Earth does on average.

The evidence for the existence of this "Planet Nine" is indirect at the moment; computer models suggest a big, undiscovered world has shaped the strange orbits of multiple objects in the Kuiper Belt, the ring of icy bodies beyond Neptune. But direct evidence could come relatively soon, in the form of a telescope observation, Planet Nine's proposers say. [Evidence Mounts for Existence of 'Planet X' (Video)]

"It's actually not obscenely faint," said Mike Brown of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena. Brown and lead author Konstantin Batygin, also of Caltech, wrote the new paper laying out the evidence for the putative planet's existence.

"In fact, it's bright enough over a lot of its orbit that we should have seen it already, if it's in the closest approaches to the sun," Brown told Space.com. Indeed, at closest approach, "you could almost see it with some backyard telescopes," he added. (Planet Nine's orbit likely brings it as close as 200 to 300 astronomical units, or AU, to the sun, and takes it as far away as 600 to 1,200 AU, Brown said. One AU is the average distance from Earth to the sun  about 93 million miles, or 150 million kilometers.)

Finding Planet Nine

Planet Nine is therefore probably not too close to the sun at the moment, said Brown, who has discovered or co-discovered a number of distant solar system objects, including the dwarf planets Eris and Sedna. But powerful ground-based telescopes can probably still detect the object, wherever it may be, he added. [The Case for "Planet Nine" in Pictures]

"Even at its most distant, and at the smallest guesses of how big it is, it's like 24th or 25th magnitude," Brown said, referring to the brightness scale astronomers use, in which higher numbers denote fainter objects. "It's not crazy; this is the kind of stuff people are finding all the time. We just need to go out and cover a good swathe of the sky."

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Just how big a swathe? Astronomer Scott Sheppard, of the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, D.C., has come up with a rough estimate: between 2,000 and 4,000 square degrees. (For perspective, the full moon as seen from Earth covers about 0.5 degrees of sky.)

That corresponds to about 50 nights of observations using a powerful instrument such as the Subaru Telescope in Hawaii, said Sheppard, who has a lot of experience finding far-flung objects in the solar system. For example, in 2014, he and Chadwick Trujillo of the Gemini Observatory in Hawaii discovered an object called 2012 VP113, whose orbital characteristics hint at the presence of a Planet Nine.

The 27-foot-wide (8.2 meters) Subaru Telescope is the go-to observatory for the search, because Planet Nine is predicted to be visible in the Northern Hemisphere sky, both Brown and Sheppard said. (Many other big, powerful scopes are in Chile, south of the equator.) [World's Largest Reflecting Telescopes Explained (Infographic)]

Sheppard stressed that it's tough to know just how detectable Planet Nine would be, considering the uncertainties surrounding the putative world's size, orbit and composition  all characteristics that affect brightness.

But, Sheppard told Space.com, "if it's not on the extreme ends of the orbit or the size, then Subaru should be able to find it."

The hunt is on

Sheppard and his colleagues have already covered some parts of Planet Nine's possible orbit using Subaru, as part of a larger, years-long survey for more objects such as 2012 VP113. (The broader survey also employs a telescope in Chile, which spotted 2012 VP113.)

The researchers will likely use Subaru to narrow in on more promising possible locations, now that Batygin and Brown have given them a better idea of where to look, Sheppard said. But the hunt for smaller bodies such as 2012 VP113 will continue as well.

"We're trying to find many more of these smaller objects, which could lead us to the bigger object," he said.

The hunt for Planet Nine will also probably send astronomers back to their archives; it's possible that the undiscovered world has already been photographed by powerful telescopes, but researchers didn't spot it, Brown said. (Confirming the planet's existence will require more than one image, because astronomers will need to see the object move to know it's not a background star or other extremely distant object.)

Sheppard said that he had pegged the odds of a big planet lying undiscovered beyond Neptune at 50-50, but the new study by Batygin and Brown boosts his confidence in the existence of Planet Nine to about 75 percent.

Brown seems even more confident.

"I find this really compelling," Brown said. "I think it's there. But, like everybody else, I want to see it."

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.

Copyright 2016 SPACE.com, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Berlin (AFP) - Vienna's decision to cap its asylum seeker intake serves as a "wake-up call" to push Europe to find a common solution to resolve its migrant crisis, Austria's foreign minister said Friday.

Migrant hotspot Austria said Wednesday it would seek to cap the number of asylum seekers at 37,500 in 2016, less than half of the 90,000 claims received last year.

"Our national action is above all a wake-up call to Brussels," Sebastian Kurz told Bild newspaper.

"I believe that in the long-term there is a European solution. But as long as that is not there, we have to protect ourselves," he said.

In a separate interview with Germany daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Kurz said he believed Austria's decision to limit the number of migrants "will have a positive impact".

"Pressure will now grow on Europe to find a common solution," he said.

Kurz argued that as long as countries like Austria and Germany are willing to keep a door open to refugees, other EU nations will have no incentive to budge.

"Many countries are only affected as transit countries. For Greece, for instance, the situation has been comfortable. That's why I'm not surprised that we have not been successful in finding a European solution," he said.

"Only when this issue hits these countries hard, because they have become destination countries, then would there be a greater interest in a common European accord."

Austria is itself a key transit country for hundreds of thousands of migrants and refugees entering the European Union, with many headed for Germany which took in 1.1 million asylum seekers in 2015.
Sheep, it seems, are more than just prolific figures on the New Zealand landscape, they also have a role in law enforcement.

A flock of sheep managed to stop a car-load of fugitives who had led police on a 90-minute chase through Central Otago in the South Island on Friday.

The sheep, who belonged to a local police officer, were being moved along a road to a new grazing block when they found themselves recruited as police deputies.

A police spokesman said the fugitives had led police on a high-speed chase and even managed to elude capture when road spikes deflated one of their car tyres.

The chase started when the car was pulled over for speeding and not having licence plates.

The driver took off at speed and refused to stop despite several police cars joining the chase, the spokesman said.

But when confronted by the flock of sheep on a road near the resort town of Queenstown, they stopped and their time on the lam came to an abrupt end. All four were arrested.
In the mystery of degenerative brain disease, scientists have found a clue in among the most surprising of places: the plant life of Guam.

An environmental toxin produced by bacteria found in Guam's palm trees has been linked to dementia and could potentially help fight Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases, the BBC reported Thursday. Scientists from the Institute for Ethnomedicine and the University of Miami documented their findings in a study recently published by the United Kingdom's Royal Society.

How did scientists make such an unlikely connection? The discovery was rooted in Guam in the 1950s, when U.S. Army physicians "described a puzzling [Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis]-like among the indigenous Chamorro villagers of Guam," the scientists wrote. The mysterious ailment also resembled aspects of Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease, and those afflicted with it tended to have dementia too. "In some villages," the scientists wrote, "one-quarter of the adults perished from the disease."

The illness wasn't genetic. "Since even outsiders who adopted a Chamorro lifestyle experienced an increased risk of illness, a common environmental exposure seemed likely," the scientists wrote.

The location of Guam

In the 1960s, experts honed in on a possible cause of the mysterious deaths: beta-N-methylamino-L-alanine, or BMAA, an environmental toxin produced by bacteria found in the roots and seeds of Guam's cycad palm trees. Not only did the Chamorro people use the cycad seeds to make flour, but they also ate fruit bats, which subsisted on the seeds.

Over the course of decades, BMAA emerged as a likelier and likelier culprit. Still, no one had ever collected real, hard evidence that the chronic consumption of BMAA triggered the strange neurodegenerative disease that killed so many Guam villagers.

Fruit bats eat cycad seeds.

Until this recent study, that is. For 140 days, the scientists fed fruit laced with BMAA to a group of vervet monkeys, and regular, un-laced fruit to another group of vervet monkeys. At the end of the trial period, the BMAA-ingesting vervets exhibited abnormal "tangles" in their brains  while the vervets who ate regular fruit did not.

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"Every single one that had eaten the BMAA bananas developed the brain tangles," researcher Paul Cox said, according to the BBC, "even the cohort given low-dose BMAA."

If the same findings apply to humans, Cox said, "it may be possible to prevent some other neurodegenerative diseases."

Cox and his fellow researchers also found that an amino acid called L-serine "significantly reduced" the density of the brain tangles caused by BMAA. Now, they're running FDA-approved trials to see if "L-serine is a safe and efficacious treatment to reduce disease progression in patients."

Dr. Thomas Wisniewski, director of the Center for Cognitive Neurology at New York University Langone Medical Center, told Mic the study "makes a good case" that the Chamorro people's mysterious disease was linked to BMAA. However, "whether this particular toxin, or similar toxins, play a significant role in regular Alzheimer's disease is quite another matter," he told Mic.

That's not to say the BMAA study is worthless in the fight against Alzheimer's disease. The significance of the study, Wisniewski told Mic, is that "it's pointing to what pathways might be important in driving Alzheimer's-related pathology."

The study could also help find the root causes of other highly specific cases of neurodegenerative disease, such as the increased incidence of ALS symptoms among military veterans. "Maybe this could be related," he said, "an analogous ... toxin they were exposed to," similar to BMAA.

It's a welcome advancement. Currently, no medicine exists to effectively cure any neurodegenerative disease, according to the Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases.
Brussels (AFP) - A Belgian judge on Friday charged an 11th person with terrorism-related offences over the deadly Paris attacks, two days after the suspect was arrested in a raid in Brussels.

The man identified as Zakaria J. "has been charged with terrorist murders and participation in the activities of a terrorist group", the prosecutor's office said in a statement.

The Belgian national, who was arrested in the troubled immigrant neighbourhood of Molenbeek on Wednesday, is being kept in police custody, it added.

Ten other people have been charged in Belgium under the investigation into the attacks that killed 130 people and wounded hundreds more in the French capital on November 13.

The prosecutors declined to deny or confirm Belgian media reports that Zakaria J. is considered close to Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the presumed mastermind of the attacks who was killed in a French police raid days after the massacre.

Under Belgian law, Zakaria J. must appear within five days before a court which will decide whether he should remain in custody.

The suspect, who was born in 1986, was arrested Wednesday, a day before police carrying out another raid in Molenbeek detained Mustafa E., a Moroccan national who was born in 1981.

Mustafa E. was arrested and released on Thursday, the statement said.

No weapons or explosives were found in the raids in Molenbeek, an area dubbed a hotbed of jihadists which has seen a string of police raids since the Paris attacks.

French President Francois Hollande has said the Paris attacks were decided in Syria but prepared and organised in Belgium. The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the attacks.

- Safe houses -

Last week Belgium said it had identified three safe houses used by key suspects including Abaaoud.

The premises include a flat in Charleroi, a town south of the capital Brussels where a major airport is located, a house in the rural village of Auvelais near the French border, and a flat in Brussels.

Story continues

Four suspects remain at large, including Salah Abdeslam who allegedly drove suicide bombers to the French national stadium outside Paris, as well as Mohamed Abrini, suspected of having helped scout out the attack sites. Both are from Molenbeek.

Prosecutors said Belgian national Ayoub Bazarouj, 22, who was arrested December 30 during a raid on a house in Molenbeek, was released Friday, making him the second among the 11 charged to be released while still facing charges.

The cases against the two do not appear to be strong.

Federal prosecutors' spokesman Eric Van Der Sypt said Bazarouj, who has two extremist brothers and a sister who left for Syria, remains charged with "terrorist murder" and involvement in the activities of a terrorist group.

Bazarouj was arrested after alluding to Salah Abdeslam, a fugitive from the Paris attacks, during telephone conversations but these were just "jokes," Bazarouj's lawyer Yannick De Vlamynck said.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump has made "appalling" comments about Bowe Bergdahl and may be called as a witness in the Army sergeant's court-martial on a desertion charge, one of Bergdahl's lawyers said on Friday.

Eugene Fidell, a military law attorney at Yale Law School who is defending Bergdahl, said on CNN that Bergdahl's legal team has been monitoring statements by the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination in November's election as possibly affecting his client's right to a fair trial.

Fidell said the defense team has compiled an eight-page log of "some of the various appalling comments that Mr. Trump has made in an effort to  it's like a lynch mob actually  to incite ill will and vilification of Sergeant Bergdahl."

Bergdahl is accused of abandoning his combat outpost in Afghanistan before being captured by the Taliban in 2009.

He spent five years as a Taliban prisoner before being released in a prisoner swap in 2014. Bergdahl, 29, was charged last year with desertion and endangering U.S. troops. The latter offense carries a possible life sentence.

Some fellow troops resented the military resources devoted to searching for him. Republicans criticized the Obama administration for the prisoner swap and Trump has become one of its most unforgiving critics, calling Bergdahl "a no-good traitor who should have been executed."

"There has been a pattern here that is so extensive that it has certainly raised in the mind of the defense team whether Sergeant Bergdahl's right to a fair trial has been irreparably compromised by Mr. Trump's comments," Fidell told CNN.

Fidell said Trump "may wind up facing a defamation case down the road," but said he has not made a final decision on calling the billionaire businessman as a witness in the court-martial. "Wed like to continue to monitor his comments, Fidell added.

(Reporting by Tim Ahmann; Writing by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Will Dunham)
AMC hit Better Call Saul is heading to Berlin.

Season 2 of the Breaking Bad prequel will screen during the Berlin Film Festival next month as part of Berlin's special section focusing on high-end television series.

Better Call Saul is one of six shows picked for Berlin's TV sidebar. The others are The Night Manager, a John le Carre spy thriller adapted for the small screen by Oscar winner Susanne Bier (In a Better World); Australian sci-fi dystopian drama Cleverman featuring Game of Thrones actor Iain Glen and Love, Nina, a British series set in the 1980s, written by Nick Hornby, directed by SJ Clarkson and starring Faye Marsay and Helena Bonham Carter.

Plus, the latest hot Danish drama, Splitting Up Together, will have its world premiere at the Berlin festival; and The Writer, an acclaimed Israeli series focusing on the struggles of an Arab Israeli writer, will have its international premiere.

But Better Call Saul is definitely this year's hottest TV ticket in Berlin. The show's second season premieres on AMC in the U.S. on Feb. 15 and be available on Netflix outside the U.S.

In addition to the six shows featured in the special festival program, Berlin's European Film Market will host its Drama Series Days on Feb.15 and Feb. 16, screening new television programming for international buyers at the EFM.

Read More: Berlin: New Series from Israel, Canada, Denmark in Co-Production Market
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My god, what have you done?

Hey, guys! Apologies for the lateness of the column. Sometimes accessing shows totally legally when you dont get them in your country is tedious work!

Before you dive in, get caught up on what happened last week here. Be sure to follow me on Twitter here, With Spandex here, and Uproxx here. While youre doing that, share the column around so that everyone can see the what topical 90s reference we shoehorned in this week. We even have buttons that do the work for you:

This week on Impact Wrestling: Zero people fight zero babies, but theres still some stuff worth watching. Promise.

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Worst: Matt Hardy Believes In Himself, So Now Jeff Does, Too

Jeff Hardy comes out to have a chat about how great his brother is, and give him an unnecessarily long pep talk about his match against EC3 later on in the evening. Sadly, I feel like this already has the opposite effect of Jeffs opening segment last week.

Matt and Jeff have a shared history, though their careers have admittedly taken incredibly divergent paths at times. Last week, Jeff made Ethan Carter III stand toe to toe with him as on a level playing field when there are still a considerable amount of people who see EC3 as a guy who cant wrestle (he can) (hes very good). Here we have him in the ring with Matt for almost ten minutes, but when he says that he believes in him and tries to put him over as being better than Jeff himself, it doesnt work. Its really easy to go with the yeah, because its Matt Hardy, dummy line of thinking, and thats fair becauseyknow, Matt Hardy, but I think in this case its more so a failure of the build. Well get a little more in depth on that later, though. All I know is Matts out here standing next to a dude who painted fake eyes on his real eyes on purpose wearing three quarters of a shirt in the weirdest way possible and he STILL comes off as cool and tough as the very last copy of Michael Keaton in Multiplicity.

Story continues

Oh, Honey: Tyrus

Tyrus wants a match against Jeff Hardy, and sets it up thusly:

You made fun of me. You said I couldnt read. That I was stupid. NOBODY makes me stupid!

oh, honey.

jeff hardy

Best: Jeff Hardy Is Still Doing The Eye Thing

Before we get into his match, we need backtrack and remind everyone that Jeff Hardy closing his eyes and blindly feeling around to high-five people is one of my absolute favorite things. It will never not make me smile. You can do anything you want to in the whole world and you go ahead put fake eyes on your real eyes but pretend those fake eyes are real? Bless you, you weirdo.

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Worst: Jeff Hardy vs. Tyrus

I want to Best this, because in the context of this episode everything is Capital Letter Fine. At one point Jeff slips off the top rope in pretty spectacular fashion, but then Tyrus immediately turns it around and works Hardys previously injured knee for the rest of the match. Tyrus looks like a big mean monster, and Jeffs injury allows him to look like he should lose, but without making him look like the weaker wrestler overall. The wipeout isnt what Worsts this, though. If it was legit, whatever, not a big deal, those ropes are tight as heck and wrestlings hard. If it was on purpose, the onus falls on Tyrus for being out of place for a planned spot, but again, the match still works as a whole. I dont even mind Hardy suddenly feeling good enough to distribute his weight onto his injured leg so he can give Tyrus a stunner. What doesnt work for me is how it ties into the past two episodes.

Two weeks ago, it was hammered into us that Jeff Hardy has to start at the absolute bottom. A week ago he wrestled a guy who thinks hes a spirit dragon who doesnt even have entrance music. The logical progression is for Hardy to have these fun, throwaway matches until he starts climbing up through at least the mid-card guys. Jeff Hardys Excellent Adventure through the Impact Wrestling roster could be used in so many ways: you can make X Division stars look great, you can introduce new people, you can generate interest in wrestlers who dont have a solid feud right now, and you can even bring back a guy like Norv Fernum (do that one). Just thinking about it actually gets me really pumped to watch Jeff Hardy each week to see who his opponent will be, yknow? Whens the last time that even happened? This week hes wrestling Tyrus, a guy we know isnt super great in the ring, but earned himself a world title shot and who, in this moment, needs to look like the biggest, baddest, ball-swingingest motherf*cker in the place. Putting Tyrus against the legend he has a heated personal history with who is ALSO related to the guy feuding with his boss makes so much sense. Having that same guy be the person whos only supposed to wrestle shitty dudes creates a really unfortunate cognitive dissonance. Thinking beyond the context and story of a single episode is important!

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The Saddest Worst: Gail Kim vs. Awesome Kong

I feel like I want to give this a best, I really do. If I did, it would be a Best with a lot of caveats, so it doesnt really seem fair. As womens wrestling progresses around them, the Knockouts seem to be moving further and further backwards into all of the negative things we associate with a ~certain type of womens wrestling, but in this case theyre doing it with the people who really helped set the Knockouts apart. Gail Kim and Kong worked so well together, and have had some incredible matches, but that time has passed. When the revolutionary thing you do becomes the standard, a pale imitation of the original just doesnt cut it.

I used to take a lot of flak for not being satisfied with Samoa Joes performance, because outside of a very small handful of matches, it was him just going through the motions but still getting high praise because people remembered the Joe that he used to be. This would stop people from paying attention and thinking critically about the Joe that was in front of them. Now hes in NXT having baller matches, is in incredible shape, and actually looks like a guy whos gonna kill you instead of maybe cuddle you gently in the center of the ring for five minutes. If Impact is going to play through this feud, it needs to be more than a bunch of forearms and Rebel on the outside doing her best Laganja Estranja impression. However

Best: Gail Kim

She sure is trying her best out there, huh. Kim carries the bulk of the match, and has the most standout spots for sure. There are times where it seems like shes slowly wading through the match, waiting for everyone else to catch up to her. Theres a spot at the end where Jade goes up to the top to interfere, and Kim grabs her and just launches her into Kong, whos already been laid out in the ring. Its fast and well-executed, and really makes me want a throwdown, knockout, banger of a match with Jade and Kim maxing out their skills. At this point, shes probably the only one whos going to rise to Kims level, right? And I definitely want that before Impact decides its a great idea to pair the two Asians together in a tag team called Siamese Dream. Dont think thats not scribbled in Billy Corgans dream journal.

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Best: Jessie Godderz, Utility Player

Beer Money calls out Bram and Eric Young, but end up getting Eli Drake and Jessie Godderz instead. Its a throwaway tag match Id forget instantly regardless of whether or not Im still recovering from a head injury, but I really want to take a second to shout out Jessie on this. Commentary pointing out the Jessie has taken on the speaking pattern of Eli Drake is about the only worthwhile thing they have to say, but its also interesting when you think of it in the grander scheme of who Jessie is and what he can do. We know hes not the guy whos gonna be making waves in a main event anytime soon, but hes just so gosh darn serviceable. Hes the perfect empty vessel. Back in the halcyon days of the Bromans, he similarly took on some of Robbie Es personality, but thankfully it was the charismatic part that came with Robbies undeniable comedic timing. When you combine that with Jessies efforts in the ring  not sheer, gifted talent, but a dude making a genuine effort  it was a wholly likable package. Jessies stretching himself a bit, and I dunno if the way Eli Drake speaks is a thing you want to emulate in front of people, but it shows that adaptability is his strongest suit. Allegiances shuffle around so much in Impact, and a guy who looks like he wants to be there and can mold himself to fit any situation is a solid asset.

Also, he comes with a cape. I am still very much in love with this cape.

Worst: What If They Just Kissed Instead

Kurt Angle is sure that hes the greatest wrestler of all-time, but hes not sure he can beat Bobby Lashley, which is why he wants to beat Bobby Lashley. This is a very small part of a lot of talking and even more awkward staring. This is also where Impact gets so cringe-worthy that you start peeking through your fingers and shouting at the screen like you would at someone making very poor choices in a horror movie. Why are you leaning in, Bobby? The music is playing why you still leaning in, Bobby? Dont go up those stairs when the front door is right there, Bobby! Are you gonna kiss him dont get that close if youre not gonna kiss him! Would be 1,000% more into this feud if Lashley would have ended this with a gentle peck on Angles forehead.

Worst: Speaking Of Awkward

Hahahahahahaha wut



Worst: Live From Fete Music

I really wish that Impact would start posting longer clips, especially when theyre trying to get over someone like Mike Bennett. Heres the thing: Impact Wrestling is pretty much its own developmental. Transitioning someone from the indies directly to television means that youre gonna see them learning to wrestle on television on television. Ring of Honor may be televised, but its still not as structured as an Impact or WWE production can and should be. If you watch someone like EC3, or even look at Sami Callihan now that hes been through the developmental system and is back on the independent circuit, they have this really great awareness of where the camera is, and always keeping themselves in the focus of whatever theyre doing. Bennett is working through transitional growing pains, so where Maria is great at somehow being constantly active despite doing literally nothing, you can see all of his rough edges. And hes so gassed after a squash.

Pepper Parks is perfect in the role of someone who is talented but will still make Bennett look like a million bucks, but theres no shine on Impacts shiniest new toy. As such it feels like a match youd have on any East Coast independent show. You fully expect to see someone like Papadon run in at the end so he and Parks can continue a token Bald Guy Wrestler feud because who knows if the company will have enough money to bring in Bennett and Maria at the next show? Not exactly the feeling you want for a guy you just positioned to go against the top wrestler in your company.

Also quick shout to to Pepper Parks for having the most sassy background girl in an Archie comic name in all of professional wrestling. Whos the new girl at Riverdale High with the quippy attitude and flirty brunette bob? Why thats Midges cousin, Pepper Parks!

Best, But Also The Biggest Worst: Matt Hardy, TNA World Heavyweight Champion

Okay. So first the good. We can get really mad when things seem obvious, and sometimes when we do we take away from the story being told and the work done to foreshadow events. The little things that have been leading up to Tyrus turning on EC3 just like everyone else in his life has turned on him are great. Its consistent with his character, and calls back to both Spud and Dixie turning on him. Its another layer of depth to EC3s character, and Im into it. If we remove the disconnect in Jeff Hardys arc, what Tyrus did at the top of the show made him look big and tough enough to try to take out EC3. It services every character when you let him be the distraction instead the finishing blow: EC3 still looks the strongest, because he won the belt clean and also hes your top guy. Tyrus is still a subordinate, but it services how he got his title shot. Matt Hardy is now the one taking advantage of Tyruss feelings, but hes still the one who is ultimately cheating and acting like a real piece of shit. Within this episode, the story works.

That said, oh boy. This sure was a long journey in a lot of scattered directions to get Matt Hardy from maligned hero to shitheel villain. HE gave up the belt, lost his shot at the belt, got another title shot he realistically didnt deserve, and then cheated to win. Ehhhhhhh okay sure. If you say it out loud and dont actually watch any of it executed, I guess its fine. And on the bright side, at least well get to keep seeing EC3 win title belts? Yeah. Yeah! Thats the brightest side of all.

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Best: The Totally Not Fake Hammer Returns

Well, I guess if you couldnt get Doc Gallows this is the next best Aces & Eights return, right?
Stockholm (AFP) - A Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) plane carrying 72 people from London to Stockholm was on Friday diverted to Gothenburg and the passengers evacuated, due to a bomb threat which turned out to be false, police said.

After landing at Gothenburg's Landvetter airport at 10:00 am, the plane was parked and a bomb squad was called to search the aircraft.

"The technical examination finished at 2:45 pm (1345 GMT), and no dangerous objects were found on board," police said in a statement.

The bomb threat was called in to air traffic controllers while the plane was in the air, police spokesman Stefan Gustafsson told AFP.

All air traffic to and from the airport was interrupted because of the bomb scare, but departing flights were later resumed, a spokeswoman for Landvetter said.

Landvetter is Sweden's second-biggest airport, registering around six million passengers in 2015.
The odd-couple mix of bondage and big sizes collided on the Paris catwalk Friday, in clothing that was at once roomy and adorned with nude women who were tied up tight.

Japanese label Christian Dada -- in its first official appearance on a Paris Fashion Week runway -- showed off models in ballooning stovepipe trousers and oversized overcoats, some with belts as wide as a copy of Vogue.

The bondage crept in with the image of a nude kneeling woman -- hands bound together behind her back -- printed onto some of the spacious coats paraded on the catwalk to the echoing sound of a beating heart.

The risque theme did not stop there, with designer Masanori Morikawa saying he sprinkled the autumn and winter collection with embroidered flowers and elephants to represent male and female naughty bits.

"This collection is about tying, like everything, like belts, like buckles, like bondage," Morikawa told AFP after the show, which was inspired by controversial Japanese photographer Nobuyoshi Araki.

"I'm really mixing his iconic things and my iconic things."

Founded in 2010, Christian Dada -- a mashup of Christian Dior and the anarchic art movement -- is known for an edgy, rock n' roll influence on its designs, which have included chain mail t-shirts and studded shoes.

- Duffle coat deconstructed -

Bondage, however, was not on the menu as fashion house Margiela marched its collection past fashion watchers in a defunct railway worker's cafeteria in the French capital.

Deconstruction was the byword for the men's clothing, which was crafted without house creative director John Galliano, who works on women's ready-to-wear and haute couture.

The classic Paddington Bear duffle coat was made sleeveless and ankle-length -- but still equipped with its signature clasps -- in Margiela's hands.

"We question the world-weary modes of the masculine wardrobe, jarring the finite expectations of a traditional garment," the house said in a note to the audience.

Story continues

The brand, founded by Belgian Martin Margiela, also confirmed the potency of a trend already gracing catwalks elsewhere: the super sleeve.

Coats and pullovers strutted down the runway had sleeves that covered the models' hands partly or completely, paired with trousers that didn't quite make it to the ankles.

Keeping with the house's love of making the familiar somehow unfamiliar, its collection showed biker shorts on a bomber jacket or loose-knit pullover-wearing model.

- Cerruti stays chic -

Cerruti's new star designer, American-born Jason Basmajian, sent a serious, subdued collection onto the catwalk that was certain not to offend house founder-Nino Cerruti.

High-end materials -- cashmere, silk and sheep skin -- formed the basis for the somber-coloured collection that deviated little from standard suit and coat cuts.

"I imagined a luxurious, masculine chic, but without pretension, a subtle collection with a focus on the cut and a choice of top-of-the-line materials," Basmajian told AFP.

"Working for this international house, with Italian roots and based in Paris, allows me to take advantage of all my past experiences.

Ahead of his arrival at Cerruti last year, Basmajian had worked at Calvin Klein, Donna Karan, S.T. Dupont and Brioni before taking his talents to legendary British tailor Gieves & Hawkes.
A year ago Samuel Forrests life abruptly changed forever. In the span of just a few days he gained a son, began divorce proceedings with his wife and found himself the focus of a lot of media attention.

(Photo: Samuel Forrest)



Now, a year later, Forrest and his wife have reconciled.

Leo Forrest was born with Down syndrome on January 21, 2015 in Yerevan, Armenia. After he was diagnosed, his mother, Ruzan Forrest, gave his dad, Samuel Forrest, an ultimatum: if he decided to keep the baby, shed file for divorce.

Samuel Forrest decided not to have Leo placed for adoption.

Related: Clerk With Down Syndrome Gives Special Needs Mom a Moment Shell Never Forget

They took me in to see him and I looked at this guy and I said, hes beautiful, hes perfect, Forrest told ABC News last year. Im absolutely keeping him.

Forrest decided he and Leo would move back to Auckland, New Zealand, where he is from, and his wife remained in Armenia and began divorce proceedings.

Related: To My Daughter With Down Syndrome on Her Wedding Day

(Photo: Samuel Forrest)



Forrest went public with the decision hed been faced with to help raise money to support his son and get Leo from Armenia to New Zealand. He created a GoFundMe fundraiser page called Bring Leo Home with the goal of raising $60,000. After Forrests story went viral, his campaign raised more than $500,000.



(Photo: gofundme)



Related: 22 Ways Parents Totally Caused Their Kids Down Syndrome

Now, one year since Leos birth, hes living in New Zealand with both of his parents, ABC News reported. Ruzan and Samuel Forrest reconciled over Skype when Leo was about a month old. Ruzan then moved to be with her family. Samuel Forrest says it was clear her initial ultimatum was the result of cultural misunderstanding and pressure from her family.

At first I was very, very scared because I didnt know what Down syndrome was like. Doctors said he would be like a vegetable. It was very scary. I think I was also very selfish and then there was depression[it was] all of that together, Ruzan Forrest told ABC News. I love him [Leo] very much. One year ago, I couldnt imagine life with him and now, I cant really imagine my life without him. Hes changed me so much. I can say Im a different person now.

Story continues

Forrest says Leo is receiving therapy for both physical and intellectual development, can say the word dad and is now crawling.

He had this to say about his wife:

Shes adapted to Leos therapy programs and shes turned out to be a wonderful mother, he told ABC News.

Get more on the story from the video below:

By Melissa McGlensey



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Geeta was lying on her cot, her two small daughters cradled at each side. The night seemed like any other for the 23-year-old mother living with her husband and her in-laws in a slum of Agra, India. But Geeta felt something was wrong. The birth of her daughters had caused tension with her husband, who feared that his lack of a son could mean he would lose rights to property claimed by other family members. Some nights, he would come home drunk and beat Geeta. Tonight, though, the house was quiet.



As Geeta closed her eyes, her daughters were already fast asleep. Then, in an instant, her face was consumed in unbearable pain. Her daughters were screaming. Her husband had thrown acid on all three of them as they slept. The acid burned the skin from their faces within seconds. Geeta feared all three would soon die. She rushed to the police station where, with both her daughters in critical condition, she explained who had attacked them  her own husband.



Geeta still remembers every detail of that night, more than two decades ago, that changed the course of her life. Weeks later, one of her daughters succumbed to her injuries and died. The other daughter, Neta, then 3, would grow up in shameful isolation, without a face and nearly blind. Out of fear of her husband's wrath, Geeta dropped all charges against the man who had attacked them, welcomed him home, and had a third daughter, Poonam, in 1999. The women have spent the past two decades living in fear that he will attack them again. Poonam says that she, too, has constant nightmares of her father.



"He threatens to attack us and kill us," she says. "Whenever I think of what happened, I feel awful. I even begged my mother for surgery to give my sister one of my eyes.



For years, Geeta and Neta lived in near isolation, shunned by neighbors, and mocked and humiliated on the streets. Daily tasks like walking to the market or catching a bus once meant covering their faces with scarves and hiding the scars on their faces and arms.



But that life of isolation ended two years ago. Both mother and daughter joined Sheroes, a cafe set up by acid attack survivors in Agra, a city famous for the Taj Mahal. The cafe offers victims employment, connects them with other survivors, and helps them integrate back into society after years of isolation. At Sheroes, Geeta and Neta have met fellow survivors they've come to call their "sisters."



One of those sisters, Dolly, 15, was attacked two years ago, after weeks of sexual harassment by a 45-year-old neighbor. Dolly reported him to her parents, who confronted the man and warned him to stay away from her. Hours later, he appeared at Dollys house and tossed acid in her face. Because of the dozens of operations she would have to repair her face, Dolly never returned to school, and her family struggled with debt to pay her doctor's bills. Sheroes now helps Dolly pay for dance classes, a source of healing and inspiration for her.



Ahead, these incredible women share their stories of survival and sisterhood with Refinery29.



Photo caption: Poonam, 16, and her sister Neta. When she was just 3 years old, her father poured acid on her face while she slept. Both sisters and their mother still live with him, although they live in fear.





Story continues

Acid attacks in India have escalated over the years, despite a Supreme Court ban on the sale of acid. Used as a household cleaner, it costs between 15-40 cents for half a liter, and can be brought in any market. Organizers with Stop Acid Attacks in New Delhi estimate 40% of the acid attacks are committed by disgruntled lovers or husbands, while an additional 30% involve other family members. Similar attacks have occurred in countries around the world, including Colombia and the U.K.



Survivors face prejudice and can have trouble finding work. Geeta (left) explains how she gave birth to Poonam after her husband attacked her; she believed that their lives would be much more difficult without a man to protect and support them, even though he's violent and abusive.

16-year-old Poonam (left) talks about how much she loves her sister, Neta (center), and wishes she could give her part of her skin and one of her eyes to make her life easier.

Geeta, Neta, and Poonam pose for a photo with a family friend during a fashion show organized by Sheroes. Its the first time in Netas life to dress up for a special event.

Inside the kitchen at Sheroes, Geeta prepares chai masala for a group of American visiting to learn more about acid attacks. The cafe is a bustling, colorful place where survivors cook food and serve tea to their guests. There are no prices on the menus, so guests  mainly foreigners from all corners of the world  leave donations or pay as they please. Its not uncommon to hear the women who work there call out to each other as "sister;" they consider themselves a small family now.

A colorful mural of a woman with facial scars stands outside of Sheroes. The women say the artwork represents their defiance of the male-dominated world they live in. In December, the cafe celebrated its one-year anniversary and announced plans to open more branches in other cities to help more survivors live normal lives again. For the women it serves, it offers a life-changing experience of both work and sisterhood.

17-year-old Ansu had just arrived in Sheroes and kept her head down. She doesn't yet have the same self-esteem that the other women have. But on her first day, she was warmly welcomed by a group of American women, who sang a song for her.

But by the end of her first day, Ansu said she loves her new job at Sheroes. She helps the woman she now calls her "sisters" close down the cafe before heading to her new home in Agra.

20-year-old Ritu was the subject of the 2014 Al Jazeera film Black Roses and Red Dresses, which documented her struggle to survive following an acid attack. Since the film, Ritu has become one of the strongest voices advocating for change, and is a leader among the women of Sheroes.

To encourage women to come out of their shell, Sheroes organizes photo shoots at the Taj Mahal, where the women dress in saris and langas, another type of traditional Indian dress. Here, Ritu strikes a pose, proud of who she is and the way she looks once again.





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By Sharon Bernstein SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Reuters) - Advocates and opponents of capital punishment sparred on Friday over California's proposed new lethal injection protocol, highlighting deep divisions in a state that houses a quarter of U.S. death row inmates but has not executed anyone in a decade. The plan to use barbiturates to execute inmates sentenced to die in the most populous U.S. state drew fire from religious activists, who called capital punishment grisly and anti-democratic at a hearing in Sacramento. Law-and-order advocates urged its adoption. "As of next month, the state will have been remiss in its duties for a decade," said Michele Hanisee, vice president of the Los Angeles Association of Deputy District Attorneys. "The family members of the victims are dying before the murderers." The informational hearing was part of the state's process for adopting a new protocol for lethal injection that would use one drug, a barbiturate, to put condemned inmates to death. It would replace a three-drug cocktail that a California court declared unconstitutional 10 years ago because it could possibly cause pain. Under a court settlement, the state must develop a new procedure for executions. At the same time, Californians have grown more divided over capital punishment, with nearly half the electorate and many top officials now opposing the death penalty. Death penalty opponents hope to place an initiative on the November ballot that would outlaw capital punishment. On the same ballot, supporters back a different initiative to speed up executions. "The people on death row, most of them have perpetrated grave crimes," said Linda Fox, a board member of the group Death Penalty Focus, who spoke against the protocol. "But they are still human beings." There was no proof, she argued, that using a barbiturate to carry out a death sentence would not result in a botched or painful execution. California juries have sentenced nearly 900 people to death since 1978, but only 13 have been executed. Sixty-eight have died of natural causes, 36 for other reasons. Of more than 750 inmates currently on death row, seven have been there since the 1970s. If the new protocol is adopted by corrections officials and voters do not outlaw the death penalty next November, the state could theoretically begin executing 18 prisoners who have exhausted their appeals. Legal challenges to the lethal injection drug, however, could drag on for years. (Reporting by Sharon Bernstein; Editing by David Gregorio)
Xi forges stronger participation in energy and infrastructure around New Suez Canal region

President Xi Jinping's visit this week to Egypt, described by Egyptian Ambassador to Beijing Magdy Amir as a "golden opportunity" to expand bilateral ties, helped further Egypt's economic revival and China's Belt and Road Initiative.

With the opening of the New Suez Canal last August, the two nations have a chance to take advantage of the geographic advantages the waterway creates, he said.

"We must fully translate our strategic partnership into concrete plans. As we can see now, China will participate in many projects in the sectors of energy, transport and infrastructure within the New Suez Canal region," said Amir.

He said Egypt has a had special economic zone similar to the Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area for more than six years but added that it is small in scale compared with the plans for industry zones around the New Suez Canal, which expands the capacity of the existing Suez Canal.

The new canal is an alternate 35-kilometer shipping lane that complements the existing canal, which is 164 kilometers in length.

China is the top user of the Suez Canal. Amir said its expansion is just the beginning.

"More international players, including China, will benefit from this project. More shipments of goods are about to begin," he said.

Egypt's geographical advantage as the center of many important markets, he said, will help China expand globally. He also stressed that Egypt's myriad memberships in international organizations allow the nation's producers to benefit from favorable taxation policies.

For instance, Egypt's membership in the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, he said, allows "products from Egypt to have zero taxes for other member countries. This applies to Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia".

"It benefits any countries producing products in Egypt. This naturally gives Chinese companies an edge," Amir said.

He said Egypt expects more skills, technologies, finance, and investment from China. "China has a strong edge in the railway industry and we are expecting to cooperate with them to produce trains in Egypt and develop the industry," he said.

In discussing the present turmoil in the Middle East, he said Egypt is not isolated from the fighting but added that the national situation is much better than in 2011.

Amir said Egypt also hopes to leverage its dual membership in the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and the China-Arab States Expo to work with China more closely in a number of sectors.

"FOCAC has been successful and we understand the forum is not to foster a Chinese presence in Africa, but to help Africa develop better. There is enough space for us to carry out concrete actions in many fields," said Amir.

He also said deepening cultural exchanges, such as in language, is crucial.

During Xi's visit from Wednesday to Friday, Egypt held an opening ceremony to celebrate Egyptian-Chinese Cultural Year, said Hoda Jadalla, press counselor of the Egyptian embassy.

Amir said learning Mandarin is growing into a trend in Egypt.

"Egypt has two Confucius Institutes for Chinese language and cultural education. There are 15 Chinese language departments in Egyptian universities," he said. "For higher studies, at least 300 scholarships for language studies each year are offered to Egyptian students. There are young people coming to China on their own."

Amir also said there are hundreds of Chinese students who go to Egypt each year to learn Arabic.

lilianxing@chinadaily.com.cn

Two travelers from Beijing in front of the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. The country is a popular African destination for Chinese tourists. Zhou Guoqiang / for China Daily

(China Daily 01/22/2016 page10)
By Anjali Athavaley NEW YORK (Reuters) - Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump retweeted an account called "@WhiteGenocideTM" on Friday, prompting a backlash on social media over the real estate billionaire's sharing of an apparent neo-Nazi's depiction of rival candidate Jeb Bush. Trump, who is campaigning for the first contests on Feb. 1 in Iowa and Feb. 9 in New Hampshire, is known for attacking other candidates competing for the party's nomination to run for the White House in November's general election. Trump retweeted Donald Trumpovitz, who uses the handle "@WhiteGenocideTM," gives the location of the account as "Jewmerica" and features an image that references George Lincoln Rockwell, a prominent figure in the neo-Nazi movement in the United States. The tweet read, "@realDonaldTrump Poor Jeb. I could've sworn I saw him outside Trump Tower the other day!" and included a photoshopped image of Bush holding a "Vote Trump" sign. Tim Miller, communications director for Bush, tweeted in response on @Timodc: "The Godwin's Double: Trump's anti-Jeb retweets now include one from a Nazi's account and another calling Jeb a Nazi." The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In November, Trump retweeted and then deleted a collage attacking former Florida governor Bush that featured a swastika. Some on Twitter were appalled and perplexed by Friday's retweet by Trump, who has not sought the backing of white supremacist groups but several say his success has helped them win new supporters. Kris Hammond (@KrisHammond), who identifies himself as a civil rights attorney on Twitter, said: "#Trump retweets account with the words white genocide in the handle. Plays to #whitenationalism base. Natalie Borden (@Natalie_Borden) tweeted: "Guy, who likely will be a POTUS, retweeting a Twitter user named "White Genocide" who says he lives in "Jewmerica." What a day..." A week ago, a white supremacist group said it had placed thousands of automated phone calls in Iowa urging voters to support Trump's bid for the Republican nomination because "we don't need Muslims." The telephone campaign is led by the American Freedom Party, which on its website says it "shares the customs and heritage of the European American people." (Additional reporting by Gina Cherelus; editing by Grant McCool)
(Reuters) - Twelve U.S. Marines who died when two helicopters collided during a training exercise off the coast of Hawaii were honoured at a ceremony on Friday where they were remembered as dedicated and full of life. The memorial service was held on the island of Oahu at Marine Corps Base Hawaii in Kaneohe Bay, the home base for more than 6,000 Marines. "As I look into the crowd, I can see that this tragedy has affected the entire community," Marine Lieutenant Colonel Eric Purcell said. The service was shown live on the Internet. The Marines were full of "joy and hope" and showed a willingness to "train at any time" that contributed to the defence of the United States, Purcell said. They were officially classified as deceased on Wednesday after the U.S. Coast Guard, military, police and others ended their search. No bodies were found. The cause is under investigation. The Marines were on board two CH-53E helicopters on a training mission off Oahu on Jan. 14 when the crash occurred. The death toll made it one of the worst training mishaps for the U.S. military in the last decade. Last year, an Army Black Hawk helicopter crashed off the coast of Florida, killing 11 service members. Friday's service in Hawaii began with Marines in dress uniform ceremoniously striding up to a dozen crosses that represented their fallen comrades. In succession, the honour guard covered each cross with a helmet, a vest and a wreath, then placed a rifle and boots at its base. "Communities from coast-to-coast are mourning these Marines, and our nation is forever grateful for their patriotism, service, and sacrifice," President Barack Obama said in a statement. (Reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis in Los Angeles; Editing by Daniel Wallis, Toni Reinhold)
BEIJING (Reuters) - China will ban firms responsible for auditing carbon dioxide emissions and offset projects from trading on a national carbon market due to be launched in 2017, according to new government guidelines aimed at increasing the credibility of the verifiers. Tens of thousands of firms will have to participate in the nationwide emissions trading scheme (ETS) from next year, and third-party agents need to verify their carbon emission levels as well as the offsets allowed on carbon mitigation projects. China is the world's biggest emitter of climate-warming greenhouse gases and it has vowed to make use of market mechanisms to bring carbon dioxide levels to a peak by around 2030, but the accuracy of its data has been questioned. Amid concerns about the independence of verification firms, China's top economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), said it would ban them from trading and from managing the carbon portfolios of market participants. China has already accredited nine organizations to verify emissions reports for projects capable of generating offset credits tradable on the seven pilot regional carbon markets. But provincial governments have also allowed hundreds of local agents to assist in carbon auditing, many involved in trading. "Such agents have breached the independence of data reporting," said a carbon project developer who did not want to be named. To improve the credibility of the verifiers, the NDRC also said they should not hire staff who have worked in companies being audited at any time during the previous five years. It has not been decided how many agents will be approved. China has set a capital threshold of 5 million yuan ($760,098) for private firms, who must also have at least 10 staff members with experience in carbon-related projects. Companies consuming more than 10,000 tonnes of standard coal in any year between 2013-2015 have been obliged to submit emissions data, and the biggest emitters will join the national trading scheme in 2017. China's carbon market is likely to be the world's biggest ETS once it is launched. Officials are sticking to the 2017 launch date, though Reuters Point Carbon expects China may need another two years to develop a national market, citing legislative bottlenecks and the difficulties in integrating the existing pilot markets. Sectors to be covered by the national market include energy-intensive industries like oil, aluminum, copper, steel and cement. ($1 = 6.5781 Chinese yuan) (Reporting By Kathy Chen and David Stanway; Editing by Tom Hogue)
Tehran (AFP) - Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Saturday hailed a "new chapter" in relations with China after talks with President Xi Jinping, who is touring the region to boost Beijing's economic influence.

The Asian giant and the Middle East's foremost Shiite power aim to build economic ties worth up to $600 billion within the next 10 years, Rouhani announced.

The two leaders oversaw the signing of 17 agreements in areas including politics, the economy, security and cooperation on peaceful nuclear energy.

"With the Chinese president's visit to Tehran and our agreements, a new chapter has begun in Tehran-Beijing relations," Rouhani said in a televised speech, flanked by Xi.

It is the first visit to Iran by a Chinese president in 14 years, state news agency IRNA said, and comes just days after sanctions against Tehran were lifted under a historic nuclear deal with world powers.

"Iran is China's major partner in the Middle East and the two countries have chosen to boost bilateral relations," IRNA quoted Xi as saying.

"China and Iran are two important developing countries that must continue regional and international cooperation," Xi added.

Beijing has long taken a back seat to other diplomatic players in the Middle East, but analysts say the region is crucial to Xi's signature foreign policy initiative known as "One Belt One Road", touted as a revival of ancient Silk Road trade routes.

China, the world's second-largest economy, also relies heavily on energy imports from the Middle East.

Beijing is Tehran's top customer for oil exports, which in recent years were hit by US and EU sanctions over Tehran's nuclear programme.

Trade between the two countries was worth $52 billion in 2014. They did not elaborate on their goal of developing relations worth $600 billion over the next decade.

According to Iranian media, more than a third of Iran's foreign trade is with China.

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The two presidents issued a joint statement outlining a long-term "comprehensive strategic partnership".

The two countries agreed to enhance cooperation including in fossil and renewable energy, transportation, railways, ports, industry, commerce and services, said the statement published by Mehr news agency.

- 'Constructive role' -

In the statement Iran welcomed China's commercial "belt" and the "21st century Silk Seaway" projects, pledging to help the initiative.

China has committed to "invest and finance upstream and downstream energy projects in Iran", it said.

China "acknowledges Iran's constructive role in the fight against terrorism and maintaining peace and stability in the region", it added, while supporting Tehran's increased regional and international role.

China, along with the United States, Britain, France, Germany and Russia, was among the countries that agreed with Iran in July to curtail its nuclear activities in exchange for ending international sanctions.

Xi was accompanied by three deputy premiers, six ministers and a large business delegation.

Late Saturday he met supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who said Tehran "would never forget" Beijing's cooperation during the years of international sanctions against Iran.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran has always sought relations with reliable and independent states like China," Khamenei's website quoted him as saying.

That is why the agreement on long-term strategic relations is "very wise and prompt", and must be "seriously followed up" until it becomes operational, he said.

"Westerners have never been able to gain the trust of the Iranian nation," he added.

Xi was quoted as saying that "the economies of Iran and China complete one another".

Countries on the Silk Road route can "protect their interests against the American pattern of disrupting the regional economic balance by boosting cooperation," Xi added.

"Some superpowers seek the rule of monopoly... but the development of emerging economies has taken the power of monopoly from them."

Xi's tour, his first of the Middle East as China's president, has also taken him to Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

Riyadh and a number of its Sunni Arab allies broke diplomatic ties with Tehran this month after protesters angered by the execution of a prominent Shiite cleric ransacked Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran.

In Cairo, Xi offered $55 billion in loans and investments to the Middle East, a region where China wants to strengthen its economic presence.
ANKARA (Reuters) - Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Tehran on Friday to discuss improvement of economic and political ties after lifting of international sanctions because of Iran's disputed nuclear program, state TV said. Xi will meet top Iranian officials, including the country's most powerful figure, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and President Hassan Rouhani. He has also visited Saudi Arabia and Egypt during his Middle East tour, which started on January 19. "A high-ranking political and economic delegation is accompanying the Chinese president during his one-day trip," state television quoted deputy Foreign Minister Ebrahim Rahimpour as saying. "This is the first visit by a Chinese president in 14 years." "Total trade between Iran and China stood around $52 billion in 2014. But it dropped last year because of falling oil prices," Rahimpour said. "Some 16 accords including a strategic cooperation agreement will be signed during the Chinese President's Iran visit." The Chinese president is the first leader to visit Iran after international sanctions were lifted on January 16 under a nuclear deal reached with six major powers including China. Muslim Shi'ite Iran and its regional Sunni rival Saudi Arabia, Xi's first stop on his Middle Eastern tour, have been at odds since Saudi authorities executed Shi'ite cleric Nimr al-Nimr on Jan. 2. The execution triggered outrage among Shi'ites across the Middle East. Riyadh severed ties with Tehran after Iranian protesters stormed the kingdom's embassy in Tehran and its consulate in Mashhad. China has called on both countries to exercise calm and restraint amid their on-going feud. (Writing by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Tom Heneghan)
Paris (AFP) - A Paris court on Friday handed a 20-year jail term to a Chinese nanny for murdering and chopping up her employers after their two-month-old baby died in her care.

The woman, 34-year-old Hui Zhang, had admitted killing the couple, Ying Wang and Liangsi Xui, during a violent row at her home after they learned the little boy had died.

The judge followed the prosecutor's recommendation of 20 years behind bars for Hui, who had claimed she acted in self-defence as the furious parents of the dead child attacked her and her boyfriend Te Lu, also 34, with a butcher's knife.

Te, who was a co-defendant in the macabre case, was acquitted.

In his closing arguments, Julien Eyraud had told the court: "When I learned of this case I was overcome by the horror of what happened, imagining the smell of blood, this butchery in the bathroom, this violence."

As the trial opened on Tuesday, Hui confessed to the killing, saying: "It's true, I killed them, and I will regret it for the rest of my life."

She and Te had decided to offer the child's parents money to try to get them not to report the boy's death.

-- Electric saw --

They invited the parents to their home, but said their plans quickly went awry faced with the fury of the grieving couple.

Te testified Tuesday that he fell unconscious during the fight and remained so while Hui chopped up the two bodies in the bathroom with an electric saw, using the washing machine to cover the noise.

"I was sucked into a whirlwind of nightmares but I am innocent," Te told the court.

Hui then wrapped the body parts in rubbish bags and scrubbed her apartment clean.

Te later helped her get rid of the remains, transporting them "by foot or public transport" to the forest of Vincennes east of Paris, a policeman said.

Eyraud cast doubt on Hui's claim of self-defence and said there was no proof Te had taken part in the murders.

The case first came to light in June 2012 after two joggers came upon a leg, cut off at the ankle, in Vincennes forest.

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Several days later, a guide dog found a human torso in the same area, but the hunt for further remains was fruitless.

Before the bodies could be identified, Hui and Te turned themselves in.

They then directed police to the locations of more body parts around the forest.

However, they did not find the baby's body, which Hui said she had thrown in rubbish bins along with some of the other remains.
MELBOURNE (Reuters) - The Australian Open continued to be an unhappy hunting ground for Marin Cilic on Friday as the former U.S. Open champion perished in the third round in a 6-4 7-6(5) 7-5 defeat by Roberto Bautista Agut. The Croatian 12th seed fired down 15 aces and belted 46 winners but that was not enough to topple his Spanish rival, who capitalized on Cilic's 55 unforced errors to equal his best showing at Melbourne Park. Since reaching the semi-finals at the Open in 2010, Cilic has failed to make it past the fourth round and will be disappointed that he missed out on a last 16 showdown with either Australian firecracker Nick Kyrgios or Czech sixth seed Tomas Berdych. (Writing by Pritha Sarkar; Editing by Alison Williams)
By Lisa Rapaport (Reuters Health) - Standing desks in classrooms could be an easy way to help make kids time in school less sedentary, a new research review suggests. The study team analyzed data from eight previously published papers and found, not surprisingly, that kids spent more time on their feet when these desks were used instead of traditional classroom furniture. Standing desks were also linked to a decrease in sitting time ranging from 59 to 64 minutes per school day. In schools, children spend over 50 percent of the school day sitting  traveling to school, during class, at lunch, sometimes during recess, traveling home after school, etc., said lead study author Karl Minges of the Yale School of Nursing in Connecticut. While one cannot easily reduce sitting time at lunch or during transportation, changing the classroom environment to be more conducive to standing seems like low-hanging fruit, Minges added by email. Reducing sedentary time among school-age children is important because inactivity is linked to a wide range of health problems including obesity and diabetes, Minges and colleagues note in the journal Pediatrics. Some previous research has also linked sedentary time to poor academic achievement and low self-esteem. For the current study, researchers focused on standing desks used in first through sixth grades. Students in the studies were around eight to 12 years old, on average, and the studies ranged in size from eight to 337 participants. Four studies were done in the U.S., while two were from New Zealand and one was in Germany. An additional article included data from Australia and the U.K. The types of desks varied across the studies, with some configurations fixed at a standing height and other adjustable options that allowed students to alternate between sitting and standing throughout the day. Five of the studies tracked the effect of these desks on standing time. In two studies, children spent significantly more time standing after they got the desks than they did before, with increases ranging from about 26 percent to 31 percent. In two other studies, children stood 24 minutes longer per school day with standing desks. One study also looked at screen time, often used as a proxy for sedentary behavior, and found that after standing desks were put in classrooms, students spent 71 fewer minutes each day watching television and using computers. Six studies looked at physical activity and didnt find significant changes with standing desks by looking at total steps or time spent stepping. Limitations of the analysis include the small number of studies and participants, as well as the varied ways of tracking the impact of standing desks, the authors acknowledge. More research is needed to determine whether standing desks might be cost-effective or feasible to provide in schools, and additional studies are also necessary to assess any potential health or educational benefits of standing desks. Still, the preliminary evidence on standing desks points to their potential to help reduce sitting time and increase standing time among elementary children, the authors conclude. The long term use of these desks might result in reduction in sedentary behavior amongst children not just in schools but even outside the school environment, said Dr. Seema Kumar, a pediatric endocrinologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, who wasnt involved in the study. Children may become more active overall and these changes in behavior may translate into better weight outcomes, improved ability to learn and pay attention and greater self-esteem. SOURCE: http://bit.ly/1PsKFhB Pediatrics, online January 22, 2016.
Gay best friends may be great if you're Grace from Will & Grace or Madonna in The Next Best Thing, but one former Pennsylvania teacher said that talking about her gay BFF with students forced her to resign.

On Jan. 18, Winden Rowe, a former teacher at Unionville High School in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, posted a message on her Facebook page that addressed why she decided to resign a month prior.

The post, which is available on Facebook via a reposting in the Unionville High School Alumni group, describes an incident in which students, one by one, were pulled out of class and asked questions about Rowe's personal life, including whether she had a gay best friend and if she spoke to her high school students about it.

According to Rowe, she was then asked to tell administrative professionals whether she had a gay friend, whether they ever had dinner together and whether they went on vacations together. Rowe said that the only charge the administration brought against her was "misusing class time." Rowe was put on administrative leave for two days after she was questioned.

"If that's the level of investigation and questioning that they can do without the professional knowing that it's even happening, then that's not the work environment for me," Rowe told Mic. "I definitely believe in giving the individual the opportunity to represent themselves professionally, and my professionalism was called into question. I would've liked the opportunity to have that dialogue, instead of the way in which it unfolded."

Rowe told Mic that she resigned from her teaching position and was neither asked to resign nor fired.

In a statement to Mic, the Unionville-Chadds Ford School district communications coordinator Dave Listman said they pride themselves on being a "completely inclusive organization" and that Rowe's Facebook post made "false accusations."

"[I]n every meeting that was held with Winden prior to her resignation, she was represented," the statement said. "The union is not claiming any wrongdoing on the part of the administration and that is because there was no wrongdoing."

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Listman told Mic that the Rowe via email the day prior to questioning her and her students. The next morning, Listman said, the administration began questioning students before they spoke to Rowe.

According to Listman's statement to Mic, a nine-member board of directors reviewed and accepted Winden's resignation and the circumstances surrounding it and found the administration acted ethically and in accordance with district policies.

Regardless of whether officials followed policy, Rowe said that her record prior to this incident was spotless and did not deserve that level of scrutiny.

"There was nothing that was brought forth to me that would validate that level of concern," Rowe said.

When asked if there were ever any indications from officials that sexual orientation was a taboo topic, Rowe replied: "No, no, none at all." Rowe said she spoke to her students about sexual orientation because the topic was "developmentally appropriate" for her students who are "exploring themselves and the world around them."

Winden said she identifies as an ally to the LGBTQ community and that she wonders whether a story about going on vacation with a heterosexual friend would have garnered the same reaction. After the incident, Winden sought counsel from an attorney, Stephen Planzer, who told Mic that he had the same concerns.

"How is it different than saying she went to Vegas with her gay friend, as opposed to 'Oh, I'm going to Orlando with my wife and two kids?'" Planzer asked Mic. Planzer also said he was concerned with the "chilling effect" of Rowe's case.

"Because of how they reacted, because of how they punished her, even though it was a paid administrative leave, it was still kind of a punishment," Planzer said. "It chilled her first amendment rights, it made her unable to speak about homosexuals or having a gay friend. She was being punished for having mentioned those things in the classroom."

In an email that Planzer shared with Mic, he called the circumstances surrounding Winden's situation "concerning" and that, regarding any complaints about Rowe, "it is unclear what is being complained about."

"None of these behaviors, associating herself with gay person, nor traveling to Las Vegas, is illegal," the email stated. "Furthermore, sharing this information with her classroom is also not illegal and does not rise to the level of moral misconduct. There has been no demonstration that this information that was shared with her class is harmful nor detrimental to their well-being. Therefore, it is unclear why she has been put on pay administrative leave and why she has not been apprised of what is being investigated."

News of Rowe's resignation and Rowe's original posting created a passionate conversation in the public Unionville High School alumni group on Facebook.

However, some Facebook commenters are pushing back against Rowe's story, stating that Unionville is an inclusive school environment. In Listman's statement to Mic, he pointed to one Facebook comment specifically: that of the school's gay-straight alliance adviser Jennifer Fulton, who Listman told Mic is not only an adviser but a Unionville High School alumni and a parent of students in the district.

"UHS administrators are welcoming, supportive and caring for our LGBTQA students," Fulton wrote. "By going after them you are contributing to fear mongering unnecessarily. I believe there is a grave misunderstanding on Ms. Rowe's part, and I suggest that everyone consider that there is not one truth, just a perception of truth for each of us."

Rowe told Mic that she does not plan to fight to get her job back, but is more concerned about the message this sends to teachers and students.

"How do we support our educators? Do we support teachers by thinking that they're guilty before innocent and not even letting them into that dialogue until after the fact?" she asked. "What are we teaching these kids? They are our future. What do they see in that?"
Congress may be edging closer to formally authorizing the use of military force against the Islamic State.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell quietly introduced a joint-resolution on Wednesday to authorize the use of military force against the terrorist group. It would grant the administration sweeping authority to combat the Islamic State, though it is far from certain that the measure will receive a vote.

Disagreement over how much authority Congress should hand the president in the fight against ISIS has so far stalled efforts to authorize force on Capitol Hill. McConnell has been sharply critical of the presidents request for military force, and has thrown cold water on the prospect that the Senate would vote to approve it. Even close colleagues were surprised by the move. When the National Journal asked Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn to comment on the fact that McConnell had introduced the resolution, he replied, He did?

Whether or not a vote is held, the resolution may revive debate in Congress over how aggressive American military action against the Islamic State should be. It also creates an opportunity for Republicans to cast the president as overly passive in the fight against the terrorist group. The Senate majority leaders proposal is broader than what Obama asked Congress to pass last February. The presidents proposal did not authorize enduring offensive ground combat operations. It was also time-limited: The authorization was set to expire after three years.

Hawkish Senate Republicans such as former 2016 presidential candidate Lindsey Graham oppose such restrictions, saying they would tie the administration's hands as it works to fight a terrorist threat. Essentially a modern-day equivalent of a declaration of war, an authorization of military force, or AUMF, would allow Congress to spell out its priorities in the fight against the Islamic State. And the resolution introduced by McConnell highlights a clear contrast with the administration on foreign policy. It authorizes the president to:

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use all necessary and appropriate force in order to defend the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, its associated forces, organizations, and persons, and any successor organizations.

Nothing in its provisions constrains the length of that fight, limits its geographic scope, or imposes restrictions on the nature of the forces that could be deployed. That may be well received by Republican lawmakers concerned that the administrations proposal didnt go far enough. But it is likely to alarm war-weary Democrats fearful that the U.S. could become locked into a protracted conflict abroad.

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The resolution is co-sponsored by Graham along with Republican Senators Orrin Hatch, Joni Ernst and Daniel Coats.

The administration did not immediately signal opposition to the proposal on Thursday, instead indicating a potential willingness to compromise. We certainly welcome Republicans taking an interest in specifically authorizing the continued use of military force against ISIL, a White House spokesperson said, adding that the administration remain[s] open to reasonable adjustments to the presidents proposal. But there was a warning, too: The president has also been clear from the beginning that we will not be engaging in the type of armed conflict that we saw in Iraq and Afghanistan, and that remains the case.

It seems unlikely that a Senate vote is imminent. A spokesman for the senate majority leader said that McConnell would be open to supporting an AUMF that doesnt tie the hands of this or any future commander-in-chief. He added that if the president were to seek approval for such a measure: It would be the intent of the leader to consider an AUMF through the regular order, working with Chairman [Bob] Corker and the Foreign Relations Committee.

The presidents undeclared war on ISIS puts Republicans in an awkward spot. GOP leaders dont want to look as though they have ceded authority, a perception Republicans risk if they fail to act as a check on the administrations power to deploy military force. But if Congress does authorize military force, such an action might be construed as a stamp of approval for the presidents broader foreign-policy objectives, making it harder for the GOP to credibly level criticism against the administration as it fights the Islamic State.

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For now, McConnell can point to the resolution as evidence that Republicans are working to hold the president accountable, and perhaps convince the administration to take a harder-line in the fight against ISIS. The measure also gives the majority leader a chance to paint a picture of a more assertive brand of Republican foreign policy compared to a more constrained approach from the administration.

If McConnell were to set up a vote on an authorizing measure, the House might be willing to do the same. Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan recently told reporters: it would be a good symbol of American resolve to have a new AUMF to go after ISIS. In the meantime, the administration continues to rely on an authorizing measure dating back to 2001 as a legal justification for military operations already being carried out to combat the Islamic State.

Read more from The Atlantic:

This article was originally published on The Atlantic.
Either Michael Saba and Christina Lee have put together a massive operation that goes around the country stealing iPhones and Android phones, or they simply happen to live in some strange Bermuda triangle of lost and stolen smartphones.

Okay, its definitely the latter. Saba and Lee are just the victims of bizarre bug that keeps sending angry iPhone and Android owners to their house in their efforts to retrieve a lost device. It might sound funny, but for them its definitely not a laughing matter.

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As Fusion reports, it all started the first month Lee and Saba moved in together in Atlanta. iPhone user after iPhone user, with friends, family or police offers acting as wingmen, came to their house telling them the Find My iPhone app directed them there.

For some reason, it has happened more than a dozen of times since February 2015, and the couple is baffled by this strange occurrence. Its not clear why Apples and Googles smartphone retrieval services send people to that particular address. But it keeps happening.

Im sorry you came all this way. This happens a lot, the couple tells anybody coming looking for an iPhone, but not everyone seems to believe it. Theyve had two visits already in 2016.

My biggest fear is that someone dangerous or violent is going to visit our house because of this, Saba told Fusion. If or when that happens, I doubt our polite explanations are gonna go very far.

And things can go bad. In June last year, police came looking for a teenage girl whose parents reported her missing, and police made Lee and Saba sit outside for more than an hour while they decided whether they should obtain a warrant to search the place.

Your house is a crime scene, and you two are persons of interest, the officer told them.

Experts and phone companies have yet to figure out whats happening, and theres no known link between any of the lost devices. These are iPhones and Android phones operating on different networks.

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Security analyst Ken Westin believes its a flaw with cell tower triangulation, which is one element used to identify the location of a missing iPhone. Find My iPhone tech looks first at GPS satellite data if there is any available, then at cell towers and at Wi-Fi networks.

Others believe the problem is related to the Wi-Fi mapping technology used to track the phones. iPhone forensic expert Jonathan Zdziarski  who is quite the iPhone expert  also said that Wi-Fi mapping data might be to blame, but he would only be able to offer a definitive answer by looking at the lost phones. Unfortunately thats not a possibility since their actual locations are unknown.

Apple and Google could not help with the matter, Fusion said, and T-Mobile never answered the couples requests  a T-Mobile tower is closest to their home. Furthermore, the FCC told the site this is a problem that doesnt fall under their jurisdiction.

The couple filed a complaint with the police, but that didnt help either. They will further submit a complaint with the FCC and with their senator in an effort to fix this problem.

Fusion reports that a similar case happened in Las Vegas, but a Sprint tower was found to be the culprit. The carrier said that a mans home happen[ed] to be in the center of a geometric circle denoting the coverage area of one sector of a Sprint cell site, and thats why his house came up when people started looking for lost devices.

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This article was originally published on BGR.com
PRAGUE (Reuters) - Miloslav Ransdorf, a Czech communist member of the European Parliament who was arrested in December after trying to withdraw hundreds of millions of euros from a Swiss bank, has died, his political party said on Friday. The Czech Communist party confirmed media reports of his death on its website on Friday. No cause of death was given. Media had reported Ransdorf, 62, had checked into the Institute for Clinical and Experimental Medicine in Prague. Ransdorf was arrested in December along with three Slovak nationals. Swiss police said they had tried to withdraw, or transfer, 350 million euros ($378.74 million) using forged documents. Ransdorf denied after his arrest that he was trying to carry out an illegal transaction. A former philosophy teacher and expert on Karl Mark who spoke about a dozen languages, Ransdorf entered politics in 1990 after the Velvet Revolution ended communist rule in what was then Czechoslovakia. He won a seat in the Czech parliament in 1996 and was voted to the European Parliament in 2004 after the Czech Republic joined the European Union. Ransdorf had been released last month just after his arrest and in public statements he did not mention facing any charges. (Reporting by Jason Hovet, editing by Larry King)
As Johnny Depp is linked to Paramount's South American crime thriller "Triple Frontier" (per Variety), take a quick look at some of his other roles concerning illegal enterprise: "21 Jump Street," "Donnie Brasco," "Blow," "The Tourist," and this year's awards contender "Black Mass."

21 Jump Street (1987-1991)

Depp's mainstream acting career and heartthrob status started here -- especially for those that wouldn't have seen him debut in "Nightmare on Elm Street" nor in "Platoon" -- where he operated more or less on the right side of the law as undercover officer Ted Hanson, one half of a fresh-faced police duo posing as high school teens, hooligans, racketeers and so on. The acting duo of Depp and Peter DeLuise scored a cameo on Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum's 2012 film remake.

Intro: youtu.be/ajKI4lRGwZ8

Donnie Brasco (1997)

Ten years later and it was time for Depp to return to undercover work, though this time of a much more grisly nature. As real-life FBI agent Joseph Pistone he entered the New York mafia with the help of an old hand (Al Pacino), all but ensuring three associates would be murdered for gross incompetence once his mission was over.

Trailer: youtu.be/ShM8bGKVFXg

Blow (2001)

Depp starred as the lead in this rise-and-fall biopic of drug dealer George Jung, who smuggled and distributed an immense amount of Pablo Escobar's cocaine in the US. Penelope Cruz co-starred as Jung's eventual wife Mirtha, in the same year that she appeared opposite Tom Cruise in "Vanilla Sky."

Trailer: youtu.be/scWkP1GdnuU

The Tourist (2010)

This romance thriller garnered a heap of scathing reviews but also three Golden Globe nominations. Depp played an American who, holidaying in Paris and Vienna, stumbles into a manhunt that has Elise (Angelina Jolie) as its main focus. Or so audiences are led to believe.

Trailer: youtu.be/E1kljT9uibw

Black Mass (2015)

Undeniably the more successful of Depp's two 2015 films -- the other being light comedy "Mortdecai" -- this darker outing returns to true-life crime with Depp headlining as Boston mob boss Whitey Bulger. Acclaim for his performance followed, accompanied by nominations for the upcoming Satellite Awards (January 30) and Screen Actors Guild ceremony (February 21).

Trailer: youtu.be/R_F-lVhSfx8
LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister David Cameron has pledged to renegotiate Britain's ties with Europe and then give voters a referendum on European Union membership by the end of 2017. Cameron could reach a deal at an EU summit in February, paving the way for a public vote as soon as June. Following are the views of business leaders: AEROSPACE AND AIRLINES Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O'Leary: "We're very actively supporting the campaign to keep the UK in the European Union. There's absolutely no doubt that the UK economy is better off in Europe than outside of Europe." Rolls-Royce President of Aerospace Tony Wood: "Uncertainty is unhelpful in any businessman's mind. This is a very long-term business. It takes us 10 years to design an engine, we make it for 15 to 20 and we continue to service it for another 15 to 20. Any kind of uncertainty politically is not good." Aircraft parts maker Meggitt CFO Doug Webb: "We want the business environment to be as supportive as possible and being able to easily trade across borders is important. Equally, being able to trade in an efficient way with as little red tape as possible is important. I guess what we would like to see is the best balance across that." AUTOMOTIVE Ian Robertson, BMW Director for Sales and Marketing: "The UK has the most diverse car industry in Europe and is the fourth largest market of BMW Group worldwide. From an industry perspective we would therefore regret seeing the UK leave the EU." Chief Executive of carmaker Opel , which owns the Vauxhall brand, Karl-Thomas Neumann: "We have plants in Luton and Ellesmere port. We will not turn our back on England. If Britons voted to leave the EU, life would carry on. We would continue to find ways to invest." CEO of Volkswagen-owned British brand Bentley Wolfgang Duerheimer: "Volkswagen Group has 110 locations around the world where they produce cars. That means they are not in any case reliant on the UK so if the situation changes dramatically, future decisions need to be considered among the circumstances you face." BANKING AND FINANCE Colm Kelleher, President of Morgan Stanley : "If Britain were to leave Europe you would see a significant backlash against London as a financial centre." Citi's UK head James Bardrick on what could happen post-Brexit: "We would have to operationally change the business and reallocate certain businesses back into the EU. That's not technically impossible ... but enormously costly and enormously inefficient ... and will mean the scale of our activities here will reduce." British Bankers Association Chief Executive Anthony Browne: "Some banks have recently moved operations and jobs out of the UK due to punitive hikes in bank taxes. Other banks have deferred decisions about whether to invest in Britain until after the referendum." Standard Life Investments Chief Executive Keith Skeoch: "This would be a shock that would register about 15 on the Richter scale," he said, referring to the possibility that Britons might vote to leave the EU. You want to make sure the rights you have today will persist for the next 20-30 years." (NB - the highest Richter scale earthquake ever recorded was 9.5) ENERGY, OIL AND GAS Chief Executive of oil giant Royal Dutch Shell Ben van Beurden was quoted as saying by The Sunday Times newspaper: "We are a company with a strong heritage in the UK and on the Continent. There would be a real break between the two, which would affect freedom of movement of staff, trade  we would be impacted. "There will be a path of divergence, and that will have all sorts of inefficiencies. Thats not good for companies like ours that thrive by there being no barriers. That is a fundamental economic aspect of it." Chief Executive of BP Bob Dudley told the BBC: "Being outside the EU would be worse for the country as many of the rules would still apply and Britain would be in danger of losing influence on the world stage. "There are lots of technical tax reasons, trade flows, regulation, that would make it better for our business and the energy business in general, the oil and gas business, (if Britain) were a part of Europe." National Grid Chief Executive Steve Holliday: "We cannot afford to lose the access to (European) energy supplies and interconnection, whatever the framework is eventually. Being part of the European energy market is unquestionably essential for the UK." HOUSEBUILDERS AND ESTATE AGENTS Managing Director of London-focused housebuilder Berkeley on what could happen if Britain leaves: "My concern would be around inward investment into London and it would slow down the growth of jobs and its influence." "If it retained less influence and less jobs, it will grow less quickly so it would actually need less homes built." Head of Commercial Research at real estate group Savills Mat Oakley: "The biggest risk to the commercial markets is that pre-vote period. Is it going to be three months, six months, nine months of speculation and the market may just go slightly quieter. "We have spoken to a number of people who've said we'll seriously consider moving our headquarters functions ... and our growth over the medium term to long term may well be more skewed to the EU ... if the UK were to leave." INDUSTRIALS AND CHEMICALS MANUFACTURERS Chief Executive of industrial equipment hire group Ashtead Geoff Drabble: "We have an ageing population in a small nation that needs to have skills in order to be globally competitive. And in a market that is becoming ever more global, I really struggle to see how increased isolation improves that situation." JCB Chief Executive Graeme MacDonald: "I really dont think it would make a blind bit of difference to trade with Europe. There has been far too much scaremongering about things like jobs. I dont think its in anyones interest to stop trade. I dont think we or Brussels will put up trade barriers. "What is needed is a lot less red tape and bureaucracy. Some of it is costly for us and quite frankly ridiculous. Whether that means renegotiating or exiting, I dont think it can carry on as it is. Its a burden on our business and its easier selling to North America than to Europe sometimes." INSURANCE Chief executive of the Association of British Insurers Paul Evans: "In the UK, the real political uncertainty for our sector comes from the dual and interconnected possibility that the UK could leave the EU and that the UK could dissolve if Scotland voted to become independent. Even five years ago, the likelihood of both would have seemed far more remote than they do now and so we certainly cannot be complacent." RECRUITMENT Steve Ingham, chief executive of one of Europe's largest recruitment firms Michael Page , told Reuters: "I am concerned about the disruption, because it causes uncertainty and uncertainty means that people are unprepared to make decisions. It's not good for a candidate thinking about moving job, and it's not good for a client and that's more a concern." RETAIL Chief executive of fashion retailer Next Simon Wolfson: "My view is that if we have Brexit then what will make a difference isnt so much the fact of coming out of Europe but whether the policies pursued by the government post Brexit are ... free trade, open, positive, embracing a global trade view or a protectionist one. I havent made my mind up yet. Im going to wait and see what deal the Prime Minister is able to secure. That matters." Marks & Spencer Chief Executive Marc Bolland: "I feel that some of those (European) reforms can be done and should be done. Actually, I think the best judgement call for Britain to take is to see what the result of the reforms are before they take a point of view (on EU membership)." "Europe is very important for Marks & Spencer because we have over 100 stores within the EU." TELECOMS Vodafone Chief Executive Vittorio Colao in a letter to Italian newspaper La Repubblica: "I think (Cameron) is right to say these reforms would be good for the entire EU and not just the UK, showing clearly the advantages all Europeans would get from them. "European companies have been asking for these reforms for years, sadly with limited results, while our competitors in the United States and Asia continue to grow more quickly." (Reporting By UK bureau and EMEA corporate finance team; compiled by Costas Pitas)
A federal judge who already ruled that former race-car driver Scott Tucker violated U.S. lending laws must now decide whether to order him to pay $1.3 billion for operating an illegal payday-lending business.

The Federal Trade Commission this week asked U.S. District Judge Gloria M. Navarro of Nevada to award the large sum in damages, which it said was how much borrowers were overcharged for the companys payday loans from 2008 to 2012.

Until court documents were recently unsealed, the size of Tuckers enterprise was unknown. The Center for Public Integrity and CBS News exposed Tuckers online business in a 2011 joint investigation. Tucker at that point was best known as a millionaire professional race-car driver in the American Le Mans series.

The investigation revealed that Tucker set up a series of shell corporations to hide his involvement in the payday lending company, AMG Services of Overland Park, Kansas. Once state law enforcement agencies tried to shut down those shell companies for violating payday lending laws, Tucker turned over ownership of the business to the Miami and Modoc tribes of Oklahoma and the Santee Sioux tribe of Nebraska. However, the deal allowed the tribes to keep only 1 percent of revenues.

In April 2012, the FTC sued Tucker and tribal entities for making loans with deceptive terms. Borrowers were told that a $300 loan would cost only $90 in interest, but in fact borrowers would have to repay as much as $1,000, the court found.

The tribal entities settled last year for $25 million. AMG Services shut down and Tucker dissolved his racing team.

This story is part of Finance. The latest investigations about U.S. financial reform, corporate accountability and consumer finance. Click here to read more stories in this investigation.

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The federal agency now says the judge must decide damages for Tucker and his businesses. The FTC says the payday lending business gave $60 million to Tuckers racing team, Level 5 Motorsports, with little to show for its sponsorship. The FTC also claims that $20 million went to Tuckers wife and $8 million was used to buy a home for the couple in Aspen, Colorado.

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The agency is also asking the judge to bar Tucker from ever being able to operate a lending business again, noting that he previously was convicted on federal charges related to making illegal loans.

The FTC is seeking damages from the estate of Blaine Tucker. Blaine, Scotts brother, committed suicide in 2014 shortly after the judge ruled against the defendants.

Tuckers attorneys accused the FTC of overreaching its authority in seeking such a large amount in damages. They say Tucker agreed shortly after the lawsuit was filed to stop engaging in business practices that the FTC said were illegal.

This story is part of Finance. The latest investigations about U.S. financial reform, corporate accountability and consumer finance. Click here to read more stories in this investigation.

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Copyright 2016 The Center for Public Integrity. This story was published by The Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit, nonpartisan investigative news organization in Washington, D.C.
Melbourne (AFP) - Novak Djokovic underlined his supremacy in men's tennis on Friday as he marched unstoppably into the Australian Open fourth round -- along with Serena Williams, who raced through in just 44 minutes.

As Roger Federer reached a landmark 300th Grand Slam win, Djokovic still looked like the man to beat as he weathered a strong challenge from Andreas Seppi to reach the first weekend without dropping a set.

The top seed and defending champion saved two third-set points against Seppi before reeling off the next four points to clinch it 6-1, 7-5, 7-6 (8/6), his 33rd straight victory over Italian opposition.

It was a moment that once again demonstrated the mental strength of the Serbian 10-time Grand Slam winner -- against an awkward opponent who beat Federer at the same stage last year.

Federer earlier went through 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 against Grigor "Baby Fed" Dimitrov, a man whose game is so similar to his own that he admitted it was like playing a mirror.

It wasn't all plain-sailing for Federer, but with the win he became the first man to reach 300 Grand Slam victories and lies six away from Martina Navratilova's record of 306.

"It's very exciting, I must tell you," said the Swiss, who also became the oldest man to reach the round of 16 since Andre Agassi in 2005.

"Not something I ever aimed for or looked for, but when it happens, it's very special."

- Sharapova win -

Maria Sharapova also weathered a fightback when she beat pint-sized American Lauren Davis 6-1, 6-7 (5/7), 6-0, helped by a strategic break and change of dress, for her 600th career win.

Sharapova left the court after she lost the second-set tiebreak but after she came back refreshed and revitalised, she raced to victory to set up a clash with Switzerland's Belinda Bencic.

Williams had no such problems as she crushed overawed Russian teenager Daria Kasatkina 6-1, 6-1 in 44 minutes, the shortest match of the tournament so far.

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"I definitely think I played better today. Everything I've been trying to work on was kind of clicking today," said the buoyant world number one, who is seeking a record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam title.

The busy day of action helped take the focus off corruption claims which have overshadowed the year's first Grand Slam after a report said players had been suspected of fixing matches but never faced action.

Belgium's David Goffin awaits Federer in round four, after he beat Dominic Thiem 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (7/2), 7-5 in a match which included a generous act of sportsmanship from the Austrian.

Thiem, leading in the second set, told the umpire to give a point to Goffin rather than replay it after a Hawk-Eye challenge found a shot from the Belgian had landed in.

Elsewhere, fourth seed Agnieszka Radwanska reeled off nine straight games to floor Monica Puig 6-4, 6-0, despite continuing pain from a left-leg injury which stopped her competing in Sydney last week.

And Roberta Vinci was knocked out by Germany's Anna-Lena Friedsam in three sets, meaning there will be no rematch of last year's US Open semi-final when she halted Williams' bid for a calendar-year Grand Slam.

In other matches, Japan's Kei Nishikori beat Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 7-5, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga ousted fellow Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert 6-4, 7-6 (9/7), 7-6 (7/4).
Melbourne (AFP) - Swiss great Roger Federer was delighted to become the first man to reach 300 Grand Slam match wins on Friday as he swept past Grigor Dimitrov to reach the Australian Open fourth round.

Federer said it was "very exciting" to reach 300 wins, a total that leaves him just six away from Martina Navtratilova's record of 306 and moves him closer to a fifth Australian Open title.

The 17-time major winner and third seed won 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 in two hours, 40 minutes under the closed roof on Rod Laver Arena and will face Belgium's 15th seed David Goffin in the next round.

"It's very exciting, I must tell you," Federer said of his 300th Grand Slam win, a sequence that also started at the Australian Open when he beat Michael Chang in the first round in 1999.

"Like when I reached 1,000 (career wins) last year, it was a big deal for me. Not something I ever aimed for or looked for, but when it happens, it's very special. You look deeper into it, I guess, where it's all happened and how. So it's very nice, I'm very happy."

With the landmark win, Federer also extends his record over Bulgarian 27th seed Dimitrov, dubbed "Baby Fed" because of the similarity in their playing styles, to 5-0.

Last year Federer was ambushed in the third round by Italian Andreas Seppi, but he made no mistake this time at the same stage.

However, it wasn't an entirely convincing display from the four-time Australian Open winner who committed an uncharacteristic 55 unforced efforts, much more than Dimitrov's 44.

"It was a difficult position for me after losing the second set and Grigor was playing well. I thought I was struggling a little bit," Federer said.

"I didn't feel it was really happening out there and it was an important start for me to the third set.

"Thankfully I got the early break and I was able to stay in the lead and everything started to come back, the serve, my footwork. It was complicated, but those matches are even nicer to win, I must say."

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Federer only lost his serve once in 18 service games and broke the Bulgarian's serve four times, twice in the third set, with Dimitrov troubled by a sore right elbow and losing serving power.

He sought courtside treatment from the trainer several times during the match.

Dimitrov was bidding to reach the round of 16 at the Open for the third straight year including making the quarter-finals in 2014, where he lost to Rafael Nadal.
Benghazi (Libya) (AFP) - Firefighters on Friday battled a blaze at an oil facility in northern Libya for a second day, an official said, after an assault by jihadists aiming to seize export terminals.

Libya's internationally-recognised government, meanwhile, called for Western air strikes to repel the jihadists.

"Four storage tanks together containing around two million barrels of crude oil are on fire," said a security official in the Ras Lanouf region along Libya's northern coast.

The blaze in one of the tanks is beyond control "and we expect it to collapse at any moment", he said. "We are now working on putting out the fires in the other three tanks."

"The disaster exceeds our capacities," added the official, asking not to be named.

Fighting broke out at dawn on Thursday in Ras Lanouf, the National Oil Corporation (NOC) said.

It said storage tanks filled with crude had caught fire, causing clouds of dense smoke.

It called the situation "catastrophic for the enviroment" and said that nearby high-voltage power lines and electrical towers had also been downed.

State news agency LANA said Islamic State (IS) group jihadists were behind the attack and that the storage tanks belonged to Harouge Oil Operations.

The company has 13 storage tanks with a combined capacity of 6.5 million barrels at its site, nine kilometres (six miles) from Ras Lanouf port.

An NOC official told AFP a committee has been formed to evaluate the damage.

The attack came two days after a national unity government was formed under a UN-brokered deal aimed at ending political divisions that have seen Libya torn between rival administrations.

A spokesman for Libya's recognised government in the east told AFP it was requesting a "limited intervention" by the international community to "protect oil fields from IS attacks".

Hatem el-Ouraybi said the government wanted "air strikes against IS positions" in Libya.

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The government has previously called for an air campaign against IS, like in Iraq and Syria, but world powers are first waiting for rival sides to endorse the unity government.

IS has in recent weeks launched repeated attacks from its stronghold in the city of Sirte on facilities in the "oil crescent" along the country's northern coast.

Libya sits atop estimated oil reserves of 48 billion barrels, the largest in Africa.

But output has slumped since the North African country's longtime leader Moamer Kadhafi was ousted and slain in a 2011 revolution, tipping the country into insecurity and political chaos.
DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) - Five children were hurt on Friday when an explosive ripped through a schoolyard in Turkey's mainly Kurdish southeast, a region gripped by violence between militants and state security forces for months, security sources said. The sources blamed the attack on the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), saying members tossed a homemade explosive into the yard of the middle school in the Baglar district of Diyarbakir, the region's biggest city. There were no immediate claims of responsibility. Authorities have been battling PKK militants in cities and towns in the southeast since July, after a 2-1/2-year ceasefire collapsed. More than 150 civilians have died in the violence, the worst the southeast has seen in two decades. Turkey, the United States and the European Union all classify the autonomy-seeking PKK as a terrorist organization. The attack, which media said may have been a kind of percussive bomb, occurred before the children entered their classrooms to collect their report cards on the last day of the semester, officials said. (Reporting by Seyhmus Cakan; Writing by Ayla Jean Yackley; Editing by Daren Butler and Alison Williams)
Diyarbakir (Turkey) (AFP) - Five children were wounded on Friday when suspected militants hurled a hand-made explosive device into a schoolyard in majority-Kurdish southeast Turkey, security sources said, blaming the attack on the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

The blast ripped through the yard of a secondary school in the Baglar district of Diyarbakir province where students had gathered during a classroom break, a security source told AFP.

The pupils were about to enter their classrooms to pick up their school report cards on the last day of the semester when the blast occurred, the source added.

Five were hospitalised after suffering cuts from shattered glass, but none of them was in serious condition.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the violence underlined how over 1,200 academics were wrong in signing a much-debated petition condemning the military crackdown in the southeast.

"This attack is an answer to the petition," he told reporters in Istanbul.

"These so-called academics have made clear who they are siding with: They are clearly siding with those who staged this heinous attack on schoolchildren," he said.

Police detained some two dozen academics after prosecutors began an investigation into all those who had signed the petition, accusing them of engaging in "terrorist propaganda." They have all been released but remain under investigation.

Meanwhile two Turkish soldiers were wounded in a rocket attack blamed on the PKK, Dogan news agency said.

The Turkish government has been waging a relentless offensive aimed at crippling the PKK, which has staged a string of attacks against security forces in Turkey since a more than two-year-long ceasefire fell apart in late July.

Vowing to flush out the PKK from Turkey's urban centres, the authorities have in recent weeks enforced curfews in three locations in the southeast to back up military operations that activists say have killed dozens of civilians.

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Six people were killed, including three children, last week in a truck bomb attack that ripped through a police station and an adjacent housing complex for officers' families in the town of Cinar in Diyarbakir.

The PKK claimed responsibility Saturday for the bombing, but apologised for having killed civilians.

The PKK launched an insurgency against the Turkish state in 1984, initially fighting for Kurdish independence although it now presses more for greater autonomy and rights for the country's largest ethnic minority.
The doctor credited with exposing the lead contamination in the Flint, Mich., water supply says she has accepted Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder's apology for failing to recognize the crisis sooner.

"The state has apologized," Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, director of the pediatric residency program at Hurley Medical Center in Flint, told CNN. "I've accepted their apology."

Hanna-Attisha, a Michigan native, says her "crusade" began by chance last August, when she was discussing the city's decision to switch its water supply source from Lake Huron to the dirty Flint River over dinner with a friend.

That friend, a former Environmental Protection Agency staffer, had heard Flint wasn't doing enough to prevent lead in aging, corroded pipes from leaching into the water supply.

"When pediatricians hear anything about lead," Hanna-Attisha, a mother of two young girls, said, "we absolutely freak out."

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, lead is a known neurotoxin and is particularly harmful to young children whose neurological systems are still developing. "No safe blood lead level in children has been identified," the CDC says. "Lead exposure can affect nearly every system in the body. And because lead exposure often occurs with no obvious symptoms, it frequently goes unrecognized."

Hanna-Attisha and other doctors at Hurley Medical Center began research to see if the lead in the water was getting into the bodies of Flint's children. What they found, she says, was shocking.

"The entire city was exposed," Hanna-Attisha said. "Every neighborhood had high water lead levels. And every neighborhood had children with high blood lead levels."

Of the 737 children they tested, about 5 percent had elevated lead levels in their blood  or double the number of kids with elevated lead levels (2.4 percent) before the switch.

According to 2010 U.S. census data, the predominantly black Detroit suburb is home to about 8,657 children.

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"In some neighborhoods, it actually tripled," Hanna-Attisha said. "(In) one specific neighborhood, the percentage of kids with lead poisoning went from about 5 percent to almost 16 percent of the kids that were tested. It directly correlated with where the water lead levels were the highest."

She added: "We couldn't believe that in 2016 now, in the middle of the Great Lakes, we couldn't guarantee a population access to good drinking water."

Hanna-Attisha said their findings were embraced by Flint city officials, but shunned by the state.

"When we shared it with the state, we were told it was wrong and that it was not consistent with [their] data," she said.

So Hanna-Attisha called a press conference to release the data.

"You don't usually release data in a press conference," she said. "It's supposed to be in published in journals, which it is now. But we have an ethical, moral, professional obligation to alert our community about these risks."

Hanna-Attisha's research was published in the American Journal of Public Health in December  and led to the current outcry over Snyder's handling of Flint's water crisis.

On Saturday, President Obama declared a state of emergency in Michigan and designated a federal disaster coordinator to oversee the response.

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders called for Snyder's resignation.

There are no excuses," Sanders said in a statement released by his Democratic presidential campaign. "The governor long ago knew about the lead in Flint's water. He did nothing. As a result, hundreds of children were poisoned. Thousands may have been exposed to potential brain damage from lead. Gov. Snyder should resign.

"I'm sorry and I will fix it," Snyder told Flint residents during a state of the state address Tuesday. "You did not create this crisis, and you do not deserve this."

"Government failed you at the federal, state and local level," the governor said. "We need to make sure this never happens again in any Michigan city."

Hanna-Attisha is now working with the state to address the crisis.

Related video:
PARIS (Reuters) - France will provide 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) over 5 years to help Tunisia deal with its transition to democracy, President Francois Hollande said on Friday, as Tunis struggles with the worst unrest since an uprising five years ago. Tunisia declared a nationwide curfew on Friday after four days of protests and rioting over jobs and economic conditions, which have worsened since autocrat Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali was toppled in 2011. [nL8N15620C] "One of the main objectives of the plan is to help disadvantaged regions and youth, by acting strongly on jobs," the French president said in a statement after a meeting with Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid. ($1 = 0.9247 euros) (Reporting by Elizabeth Pineau; Writing by Michel Rose)
Paris (AFP) - With little more than a year to go before presidential elections, French opposition leader Nicolas Sarkozy has admitted to some "regrets" over his time in power in a new book to be published Monday.

Sarkozy, 60, faces an uphill struggle as he tries to see off more popular members of his party, The Republicans, in order to make a new bid for the presidency in May 2017.

His new book, "France for Life", blames his defeat at the hands of Francois Hollande in 2012 on his failure to get tough on France's famously generous benefits and heavy taxes.

"Today, I regret delaying some reforms that should have been made in the first days of my presidency," writes Sarkozy, who ran the country from 2007 to 2012.

He admonishes himself for not challenging the 35-hour working week introduced by the Socialists in the late 1990s, or the "solidarity tax on fortunes" that targets the richest citizens but is accused by right-wing opponents of driving wealthy people out of the country.

Actor Gerard Depardieu and rock star Johnny Hallyday are among those who have left France in recent years to escape its hungry taxmen.

Sarkozy also acknowledges his reputation for being short-tempered, regretting that he "gave into anger" on occasion, such as the time he was caught on camera mumbling "Get lost, you stupid bastard" at a man who insulted him during an agricultural show.

The decision to go on a yachting holiday with a millionaire friend immediately after winning the election -- a time when France was plunging into an economic crisis -- also makes it onto the list of regrets.

He now says he was trying to save his marriage, which soon ended in divorce and led to his much-publicised relationship with singer-model Carla Bruni, now his wife.

"I should have anticipated better, and been more cautious, and put my new status as president before everything," he writes.

- Return to politics -

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Sarkozy makes no secret of his ambitions to return to the Elysee Palace.

"With this book, Nicolas Sarkozy is not offering his memoirs, he is giving us a self-examination designed for an eventual return to power," the daily Le Figaro wrote on Friday.

After his defeat in 2012, Sarkozy vowed to disappear from the public eye, saying he was done with politics.

It took only two years for him to change his mind, returning to lead the UMP party -- which he renamed The Republicans -- and lining himself up for another possible run at the presidency in May 2017.

But while he remains popular with more right-wing sections of his party for his willingness to challenge some of France's tax-and-spend policies and his tough talk on immigration, he is a hate figure for more left-leaning voters.

Opinion polls are not looking favourable for him, and he faces a tough primary against his party rivals at the end of the year.

Only 21 percent of centre-right voters said they backed Sarkozy in a poll this week, way behind his main Republican rival, Bordeaux mayor Alain Juppe, on 45 percent.

Sarkozy has also been dogged by scandal since leaving office, and uses the new book to once again deny any knowledge of the "Bygmalion affair", a corruption scandal centred on claims that his party paid some of his campaign expenses to get around strict spending limits.

The scandal involving PR firm Bygmalion has dogged Sarkozy since he went into opposition and led to charges against party leader Jean-Francois Cope.

In the book, Sarkozy reiterates that he "knew nothing about this company (Bygmalion)," which is accused of orchestrating the budget fiddle.
Former Solicitor-General Francis Seow. Photo: YouTube screengrab

The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) has paid tribute to the late Francis Seow, calling him a potent critic of Singapores iniquitous laws and a defender of people who run afoul of those laws.

Seow, a former Solicitor-General and Law Society president, passed away in Boston, Massachusetts on Thursday (21 Jan) at the age of 87. He had been living there in exile since the late 1980s.

The news was broken via Facebook by SDP chief Chee Soon Juan, who had been in touch with Seow and his family.

SDP chair Dr Wong Souk Yee was among 22 people detained in 1987 under the Internal Security Act (ISA), who were alleged to be part of a Marxist conspiracy against the government and people of Singapore. Seow represented some of the detainees.

In 1988, Seow was detained under the ISA himself when he went to prison to interview his clients, having been accused of receiving political campaign funds from the United States to promote democracy in Singapore.

Wong quoted his memoir, To Catch a Tartar: A Dissident in Lee Kuan Yews Prison, where Seow described the conditions of his first three days of arrest.

My limbs were stiff all over. I was unsteady. The two Gurkha guards on either side of me supported me under my arms. I staggered out of the interrogation room, half carried by them, along the dark corridors, up two flights of stairs to the ground level of Block C, along a corridor, to a toilet located in an empty cell in Block D It was 11.30 in the morning. I was astounded. I then realised that I had been standing in the interrogation room for about sixteen hours warding off questions thrown unremittingly at me

Wong also recalled that as Law Society president, Seow undertook a different path from his predecessors. In May 1986, he issued a press statement criticising the governments amendments to the Newspaper and Printing Presses Act (NPPA), which sought to restrict the sale or distribution in Singapore of foreign publications deemed to be engaging in the domestic politics of Singapore.

The statement, which called the amendments ambiguous and superfluous, was widely circulated in both the domestic and foreign media, engendering animated discussion within Singapore and abroad, said Wong.

Separately, consultant Mark Looi, who claims to be Seows nephew, posted his own tribute on LinkedIn: He had an independent and righteous streak that combined with his clear legal mind and superlative command of the English language, made him at first useful to Lee Kuan Yew, then ultimately a threat. He was a necessary milepost in the development of Singapore and the rule of law in Asia and one day hopefully his native country will recognize this.
Officer Robert Olsen will face murder charges for the March shooting death of Anthony Hill, the New York Times reports. The announcement came Thursday after a DeKalb County, Georgia, grand jury agreed to a six-count indictment, including charges for aggravated assault, felony murder and violation of oath by a public officer.

The indictment stems from an incident that took place in March at an apartment complex in Chamblee, 14 miles northeast of downtown Atlanta. Neighbors called the police when they saw Anthony Hill  a black, 27-year-old U.S. Air Force veteran  naked, speaking incoherently and jumping repeatedly from a second-story balcony.

Olsen of the DeKalb County Police Department responded to the call. Olsen shot Hill twice when the 27-year-old allegedly continued to approach the officer after being ordered to stop. Hill was unarmed at the time, and his death sparked protests across the region, part of a nationwide surge against the same patterns of anti-black police violence that killed Michael Brown, Freddie Gray and hundreds more across the country.

Bridget Anderson, Anthony Hill's girlfriend, speaks at press conference in December.

Hill's family has since said Hill was bipolar and had post-traumatic stress disorder, the latter stemming from a recent tour of military duty in Afghanistan. "To me this is the most blatant case of police brutality that's out there right now," Bridget Anderson, Hill's girlfriend of three years, "I just don't see how you could kill a naked man."

Law enforcement officers in the United States killed 1,138 people in 2015, a rate of 3.1 per day, according to the Guardian's Counted database. And black victims were killed at a rate of 7.18 per million, more than twice the rate of Hispanics and Native Americans, the "runners-up," for lack of a better term. White people were killed at a rate of 2.92 per million. According to the Washington Post, approximately one-quarter of people shot and killed by police in 2015 showed signs of mental illness.

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Protesters march in Decatur, Georgia, after Anthony Hill was shot and killed by police.

OIsen is the ninth American police officer to face criminal charges for an on-duty shooting that occurred in 2015, according to the Post. Police officers rarely face criminal charges for on-duty shootings, but reports indicate that Thursday's decision was especially unusual. According to the Times, officers in Georgia are afforded unique privileges under the law. These include having access to grand jury meetings in their own cases, and being able to address said juries without being cross-examined or rebutted by prosecutors.

It's clear Olsen's indictment won't bring Hill back, but it does represent some semblance of justice for his family. "This is a day in history," Christopher M. Chestnut, a lawyer for Hill's family, said, the Times reported. "Hopefully, this will set a precedent for discouraging paramilitary policing."
Australian Simon Gerrans won a feisty sprint finish to claim Friday's 138-kilometre fourth stage of the Tour Down Under, setting himself up for his fourth overall victory in the event.

Gerrans, who also won Thursday's third stage in a sprint, has the advantage going into the fifth stage, a 151.5-kilometre stretch from McLaren Vale to Willunga Hill on Saturday.

"I'm absolutely thrilled with that," the 35-year-old said while thanking his team for making his run "as easy as possible".

Gerrans, the overall winner of the Tour Down Under in 2006, 2012 and 2014, will be hoping experience pays off when it comes to Willunga Hill.

But the Orica GreenEdge leader is taking nothing for granted, having been caught in a mass pile-up inside the final kilometre of Wednesday's stage just after putting himself in a perfect position to take the stage win.

"I still have to be very, very attentive going into Willunga tomorrow. We have a nice little buffer there, but there's still a heck of a lot of work to be done," he said.

Gerrans crossed the line Friday in three hours, 13 minutes and 59 seconds ahead of English Sky rider Ben Swift and Italian Giacomo Nizzolo (Trek-Segafrefo) who were both credited with the same time.

In the general classification, Gerrans (13:41.58) leads fellow Australians Jay McCarthy (+14 seconds) and Rohan Dennis (+26).
New York (AFP) - Plaintiffs attorneys in the first General Motors trial over an ignition-switch defect abruptly withdrew the case Friday, handing a victory to the US automaker.

"Plaintiff hereby voluntarily dismisses all claims" against GM, attorney Robert Hilliard said in a filing to a US federal court in New York.

Hilliard's client, Robert Scheuer, blamed the ignition-switch defect for injuries suffered in a May 2014 crash when the airbag on his 2003 Saturn Ion failed to deploy.

GM has admitted the link between the faulty ignition and airbag non-deployment, but had maintained there was no evidence Scheuer's injuries arose from the ignition-switch defect.

The Scheuer lawsuit had been seen as a "bellwether" case because of its similarity to other cases involving car owners who say they were injured due to the defect.

But Scheuer's case came under fire when GM asserted that he and his wife had lied on the witness stand about their reasons for being evicted from their home.

GM said it had evidence Scheuer had doctored a check on the down payment for the home, raising doubts about his overall credibility.

US District Court Judge Jesse Furman said in court that GM's evidence would probably be "devastating" for the Scheuer case and that the case was "almost worthless" as a bellwether lawsuit, Bloomberg News reported.

Furman's court is scheduled to hear five additional bellwether cases.

GM applauded the outcome.

"We said all along that each case would be decided on its own merits, and we had already started to show by strong, clear and convincing evidence to the jury that the ignition switch didn't have anything to do with Mr Scheuer's accident or injuries," the automaker said in an emailed statement.

"The apparent lies the plaintiff and his wife told the jury ended the trial early, and we are pleased that the case is over without any payment whatsoever to the Mr Scheuer."

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Hilliard said he was looking forward to the next case in the litigation.

"To have any trial end in such an unexpected and unforeseen way is disappointing. Especially one such as this where the concerns regarding the underlying safety of certain GM vehicles are legitimate and real," Hilliard said.

"A jury's decision regarding the existence of a defect will have to wait until the next trial."

Thousands of people have claimed damages linked to the ignition defects, which GM admitted it hid for more than a decade before it began recalling 2.6 million cars worldwide in February 2014.

GM established a compensation program for injured car-owners that found 399 claimants meriting payments totaling $594.5 million, according to a December report by the program.
By Lefteris Papadimas KASTRO, Greece (Reuters) - Three years ago, a young Greek opposition politician named Alexis Tsipras clambered onto a tractor to give a rousing speech to hundreds of cheering farmers blockading the roads, vowing to 'crush' harsh reforms that he said were leading nowhere. But now, as the prime minister who had to promise fresh austerity in return for a new multi-billion euro bailout last year, on pain of ejection from the euro zone, Tsipras would not be so welcome in the tractor convoys once more vowing to bring Greece to a standstill. "Tsipras is a liar," spat Yiorgos Kostakiopoulos, a father of three blockading the Kastro junction about 100 km northwest of Athens, who said his livelihood growing wheat and cotton was threatened by plans to overhaul the state pension. "He was here with us, told us that he would fight with us for a dignified income for us and our children. He lied, he imposed more taxes than all the others put together." Up to 350,000 people who declare farming their sole activity will see their contributions to a national insurance scheme triple if reforms proposed by Tsipras's leftist-led government are adopted. The bill is designed to save 1.8 billion euros this year, and is key for the first review of Greece's EU-led bailout, which the coalition wants to conclude swiftly so that it can open talks on long-term debt relief. But approval of the bill, likely to come to a vote early next month according to government officials, is far from certain, with wavering leftist lawmakers from farming regions threatening to cancel out Tsipras's three-seat majority. UNAFFORDABLE SHORTFALL The Labour Ministry says more than 80 percent of farmers declare an annual income of less than 5,000 euros, implying that in some cases they are understating earnings and contributing less than they should be. As a result, the state now covers about 90 percent of farmers' pensions, something it says it cannot afford in the face of massive unemployment and lower social security contributions. But the farmers argue that they have already been hit particularly hard by broader reforms, including an abolition of fuel subsidies and hefty increases in taxes on fertilizer and animal feed. At least one leftist lawmaker has said he will reject the reform and others are demanding changes. The main opposition and other smaller parties have vowed to vote against. The government says it is open to changes but that, without any reform, farmers will be left without a pension. "We are ready to make corrections ... provided however we do not yield from the basic principle that we cannot have second-class citizens," said Labour Minister Georgios Katrougalos. "We cannot leave farmers without a pension." But 40-year-old Yiota Karamani, sitting atop her tractor in Kastro, said she was already in arrears on her contributions, and that the planned increase would spell disaster. "My home, our fields are mortgaged to the bank ... I couldn't even afford to get presents for my three children at Christmas," she said. "If Tsipras wears trousers, he should revoke these measures or quit. He was here, with us ... and he lied." (Writing By Michele Kambas; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
By Mathieu Bonkoungou OUAGADOUGOU (Reuters) - Ivory Coast's army chief encouraged a coup leader in neighboring Burkina Faso during his failed bid to seize power last year, according to a recording of a conversation in the hands of Burkina Faso judicial authorities. The recording's emergence comes after Burkina Faso issued an arrest warrant for Ivory Coast's parliament speaker Guillaume Soro for alleged links to the coup, further straining relations between the two West African neighbors. Burkina Faso authorities issued the warrant against Soro for crimes including complicity in treason last week on the basis of another recorded phone conversation. Two Burkina Faso judicial officials vouched for the authenticity of the latest recording, obtained by Reuters on Friday. Ivorian authorities were not immediately available to comment. Recorded at a time when loyalist troops were turning the tables against the putsch, a voice allegedly belonging to Ivory Coast military chief of staff General Soumaila Bakayoko asks coup leader General Gilbert Diendere for an update of the situation. "The situation is a bit difficult," Diendere responds. "Among the officers there is some hesitation. I'm not saying I'm all alone. But many are very hesitant for their future." Later, Bakayoko urges Diendere to go on the offensive or risk seeing the coup fail. "They're going to pin it all on you. You have to know that. Politically, they are going to say 'You have the highest rank. You are the general," Bakayoko says. "You are constrained to take action. So carry out something good." Last September's brief coup by the elite Presidential Security Regiment (RSP) temporarily derailed Burkina Faso's transition to democratic rule after President Blaise Compaore was ousted in late 2014. It failed after a week when loyalist regular army troops marched into the capital Ouagadougou and Diendere, Compaore's former spy chief, was arrested. ARMORY RAID A judicial source involved in the cases against Diendere, Soro and ex-foreign minister Djibril Bassole said the recording was included in evidence files. A second judicial source added that authorities had obtained a total of three gigabytes of digital recordings. Compaore was driven from power and forced to flee Burkina Faso in October 2014 after a popular uprising following his attempt to alter the constitution to extend his 27-year rule. He now lives in exile in neighboring Ivory Coast. The two nations, once part of the same French colony share a history of close, often fraught, economic and political ties. Soro and his New Forces rebels controlled northern Ivory Coast for eight years following a 2002 civil war and were accused by then Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo's allies of receiving support from Compaore. Burkina Faso denied the allegation. General Bakayoko was the military chief of staff of the rebels. The New Forces played a crucial role in Ivory Coast's 2011 civil war, backing President Alassane Ouattara's claim to leadership after Gbagbo refused to recognize his election defeat. Burkina Faso's RSP, a pillar of Compaore's regime, was disarmed and disbanded following last year's coup attempt. But at least a dozen elite troops rejected the process and went missing. The army on Friday blamed ex-RSP members for an overnight raid on an armory on the outskirts of Ouagadougou. Coming less than a week after al Qaeda fighters killed 30 people in a restaurant and hotel in Ouagadougou popular with foreigners, the assault further exposes the security challenges facing new President Roch Marc Christian Kabore. (Additional reporting by Nadoun Coulibaly; Additional reporting and writing by Joe Bavier; Editing by Andrew Roche)
Whats the hottest thing you can buy on the dark web today? According to new research, PayPal accounts with at least $500 in them and Uber accounts are among the most expensive items hackers are selling. In fact, it looks like Uber logins, which would let buyers score free rides on the popular taxi service, are even more expensive than Netflix logins and credit card account numbers.

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According to CNBC, a study from security firm Trend Micro revealed that Uber accounts sell for up to $4 each on the dark web, which is less than what youd pay for a cup of coffee at Starbucks. But thats significantly more expensive than Netflix logins ($0.76) and credit cards ($0.22). Comparatively, Facebook logins cost an average of $3.02 each, and PayPal accounts with balances have an average selling price of $6.43.

Users who purchase Uber credentials can then book ghost rides with the car service. The real account owner is then charged the fee for a ride he or she didnt actually take. Thats a clear sign an Uber account was hijacked, although it obviously doesnt mean Uber was hacked.

There are many ways a hacker can access login details for online services including Uber, especially considering all of the awful passwords people continue to use.

The International Business Times does say that prices for Uber logins had decreased on the dark web during 2015 when Uber introduced multi-factor authentication, but the feature hasnt yet been rolled out in all markets. That explains why some of the ghost rides affecting Uber users report actually happen on other continents, including Asia and Africa.

Comparatively, the price for credit cards is so low because banks have taken additional steps to prevent credit card fraud, making them a less attractive purchase for individuals shopping for stolen goods on the dark web.

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Uber apologizes after driver strands a pregnant woman, charges her $13

Teen who hacked CIA director's email hits Director of National Intelligence next

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This article was originally published on BGR.com
As Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) looks to score a momentum-building victory in the Iowa caucuses just 10 days from now, the progressive populist is ramping up his attacks on rival Hillary Clinton for delivering paid speeches before Wall Street banks after leaving the State Department, seizing on Clinton's hefty fees to depict her as a creature of the financial establishment.

But Clinton is defending her decision to deliver the speeches, which often brought in upwards of $225,000 a pop.

"Anybody who thinks they can buy me doesn't know me," Clinton said in a Des Moines Register interview Thursday.

The former secretary of state added that she spoke "to so many different groups" after leaving the Obama administration in 2013.

"What they were interested in were my views on what was going on in the world. And whether you're in health care, or you sell automobiles, or you're in banking  there's a lot of interest in getting advice and views about what you think is happening in the world," she told the Register.

Sanders' attack: That defense won't mollify Sanders. The senator argues that Clinton's Wall Street speaking fees are evidence of a cozy relationship with the financial industry, which has helped bankroll her bids for the United States Senate and president.

"Goldman Sachs also provides very, very generous speaking fees to some unnamed candidates, very generous," the Register quoted Sanders as telling voters in Carroll, Iowa, on Wednesday. "Now I know that some of my opponents are very good speakers, very fine orators, smart people. But you gotta be really, really, really good to get $225,000 a speech. That's all I'll say."

As the New York Times noted, Clinton has received a total of $675,000 from Goldman Sachs for delivering three speeches. But progressive concern goes beyond the mere fact that Clinton raked in big bucks from 30-minute speeches before banks.

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During some appearances, Clinton reportedly sounded decidedly less populist notes than she's been hitting on the campaign trail. The Times reported that during a $275,000 speech before GoldenTree Asset Management in 2013, Clinton defended the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial reform law but added that Wall Street should be seen as "a partner in securing the country's economic future, not an enemy."

Sanders, meanwhile, boasts that he'd be an enemy of Wall Street.

"The CEOs of large multinationals may like Hillary. They ain't going to like me  and Wall Street is going to like me even less," he said in last month's Democratic debate in Manchester, New Hampshire. "And the reason for that is we've got to deal with the elephant in the room, which is the greed, recklessness and illegal behavior on Wall Street."
Brdo castle (Kranj) (Slovenia) (AFP) - Hungary and Slovenia on Friday urged the erection of a fence along Greece's northern border, effectively sealing off the EU's passport-free Schengen area to migrants seeking to enter the bloc via the western Balkans.

Both countries criticised Greece -- the asylum-seekers' first entry point into the bloc after crossing from Turkey -- for failing to protect its sea borders.

"Just complaining that Greece is not protecting its borders isn't enough," Hungary's right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban said at a joint news conference with Slovenian counterpart Miro Cerar.

"We should take a man's stance and say we expect a fence to be built on the Macedonian and Bulgarian border with Greece and stop the migrant wave," said Orban.

The two leaders held talks Friday at Brdo Castle, some 20 kilometres (12.5 miles) northwest of the capital, Ljubljana.

Cerar warned that Europe faced "conflicts and disintegration" if the EU failed to find a solution for the migrant crisis before the flow picked up again with the onset of spring and warmer weather.

"We have no time, we can't wait until the spring. Millions of people are waiting on the borders to enter the EU as migrants, and that figure will increase to tens of millions," the centrist Slovenian leader said.

"If we aren't able to find an efficient solution for Greece (on its southern sea borders), we need to do something immediately where that could be effective (on the Macedonian border with Greece)," Cerar said.

More than one million migrants and refugees made the perilous journey by sea to Europe in 2015, the majority fleeing violence in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.

With most crossing the Mediterranean from Turkey to Greece, they then travel overland through Macedonia and Serbia to reach EU countries.

Very few try to enter the bloc via Greece's frontier with EU member Bulgaria.

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With the crisis showing no signs of abating, Macedonia has already fenced off several kilometres along its 250 kilometre (155 mile) Greek border and imposed stricter entry controls.

Hungary's response to the influx was to seal off its southern borders with barbed wire to migrants in autumn last year.

This diverted the flow to Slovenia, a tiny state of two-million people, which is now a key transit country for migrants heading for Austria and Germany.
By Marja Novak BRDO PRI KRANJU, Slovenia (Reuters) - Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban said that a fence should be erected on the Macedonian and Bulgarian borders with Greece to curb the inflow of migrants into Europe. "If we cannot secure the outer border (of the EU), regardless of how costly or demanding that is, we will destroy the Schengen regime by ourselves," Orban said, referring to Europe's free-travel area. He was speaking during a one-day visit to Slovenia. Slovenian Prime Minister Miro Cerar told the same news conference the European Union needed a joint solution within weeks to the migrant crisis to avoid possible conflicts between countries. "We do not have time until spring to find a solution. We need a solution within weeks ... if not, we can expect conflicts between countries," Cerar said. "The (migrant) situation is entirely out of control and has nothing to do with humanitarianism, integration and help," Cerar added. Over 411,000 migrants have entered Slovenia since Hungary fenced off its borders in October and pushed the migrant flow to the west through Slovenia. Almost all of them continued on their way to Austria and further north to Germany and other EU states. Slovenia on Thursday followed Austria with an announcement that it will reject all migrants apart from the ones seeking asylum in Austria or Germany. Over the past months Slovenia, too, has erected about 156 kilometers of fence on its southern border with Croatia to ensure that migrants can only enter the country through official border crossings. Cerar said Slovenia would pull the fence down as soon as a joint EU solution to the migrant crisis is found. Orban said Bulgaria, which lies north of Greece, should also join the Schengen area as it has shown that it is ready to secure its borders. (Reporting By Marja Novak; Editing by Tom Heneghan)
Indian counter-terror police arrested a group of suspected Islamist radicals and seized bomb-making material in a series of nationwide raids ahead of next week's Republic Day celebrations, officials said Friday.

A home ministry official said the National Investigation Agency (NIA), a federal police unit that probes terror offences, formally arrested five suspects, while nine more men are being interrogated over their links to a local militant leader after the overnight raids in four different states.

"We have recovered material used to make IEDs (improvised explosive devices) from two locations but no explosives have been seized," the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told reporters.

"They were part of the online radicalised group who were in touch with a militant leader for some time and were planning to procure arms," the official said, identifying the leader as an Indian Mujahideen (IM) militant, a home-grown extremist group blamed for multiple bomb attacks.

The exact whereabouts of the IM leader, whose name was only given as Yusuf, are unknown to investigators, the official said in New Delhi.

He refuted media reports that the suspects were part of a cell operated by the Islamic State organisation but said some of the suspects were trying to organise arms training within India.

The suspects, who are from Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh states, will be brought to the capital for further questioning.

"We have been told that six terror suspects... have been arrested after raids since Thursday night," G. Parameshwara, home minister in the Karnataka state government, told reporters in the southern city of Bangalore.

Security has been increased in large parts of India ahead of the Republic Day celebrations on Tuesday, when it marks the anniversary of its democratic constitution taking force in 1950.

Thousands of armed policemen have been deployed across the capital New Delhi where French President Francois Hollande will be the guest of honour at a military parade on Tuesday as part of a three-day visit.

France has said security will be high on the agenda after deadly Islamist attacks in Paris in November that evoked memories of the 2008 Mumbai attacks which left 166 people dead.
By Sanjeev Miglani NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Indian and French negotiators were haggling on Friday over the price of 36 combat planes for the aging Indian air force, officials of the two nations said, just days before President Francois Hollande visits New Delhi to cement commercial ties. The fighter jet deal is part of a $150-billion military modernization drive India has launched, drawing global arms makers into one of the world's biggest markets. Hollande and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stepped into the estimated $9-billion deal last year, ordering government-to-government talks after commercial negotiations with the plane maker, Dassault Aviation, collapsed. The leaders agreed to scale back the original plan for 126 Rafale planes to just 36 in flyaway condition, to meet the Indian Air Force's urgent needs, as it faces China and Pakistan. But even the smaller deal ran into problems over the unit price of the planes and other contract terms. France's envoy to India, Francois Richier, said the two sides were holding talks in New Delhi but he could not say for sure if they would strike a deal ahead of, or during, Hollande's visit, which begins on Sunday. "Discussions are taking place, can't say what will be the outcome," he told reporters. "It's not finalised yet. It's a complex negotiation. I am hopeful, but hopeful does not mean certitude." An Indian foreign ministry spokesman said the deal for the 36 planes was in an advanced stage. Hollande will be the guest of honor at India's Republic Day parade on Jan. 26, in a sign of deepening political and commercial ties. U.S. President Barack Obama was given that honor last year. Modi will welcome Hollande in the northern city of Chandigarh, designed in the 1950s by the French architect Le Corbusier. It is one of 100 "smart cities" Modi has designated for rapid development, in which the French will be partners. The two sides are also discussing a plan by French nuclear company Areva to build six reactors in western India, as part of Modi's push to ramp up nuclear capacity. But negotiations have been stuck over the price, and French utility EDF's recent takeover of Areva's reactor business has slowed progress. "EDF will be in the lead now, that is creating a change in the way nuclear negotiations will be conducted," Richier said. A French diplomatic source said Rafale was far from being the main reason for Hollande's visit, but it would provide an opportunity to move the deal towards completion. (Additional reporting by Krista Mahr in New Delhi and Elizabeth Pineau in PARIS; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
Indonesian President Joko Widodo broke ground Thursday on the country's first ever bullet train line, heralding the project as a symbol of "major cooperation" with China.

The controversial $5.6 billion project sparked a fierce bidding war between China and Japan as the two Asian powerhouses jostle to build key infrastructure projects in Indonesia and the wider region.



Widodo kicked off the first construction phase at a tea plantation in West Java, where one of the stations along the line will be situated.



"Send my regards to (Chinese) President Xi Jinping," Widodo said at the event, attended by Chinese officials.



"This is a (sign of) major cooperation between Indonesia and China," he added, calling for the two trading partners to further expanded ties in other industries.



The bullet train should in theory be able to travel up to 350 kilometres an hour (220 miles per hour) between the sprawling capital Jakarta and the mountain-fringed city of Bandung, about 160 kilometres (100 miles) away.



It is a key project for Widodo, who has pledged to overhaul the archipelago's rickety infrastructure in a bid to attract investors and boost growth in Southeast Asia's largest economy, which last year dipped below five percent.



Last year Jakarta asked for proposals from investors for the ambitious project, with China and Japan bidding so intensely a senior minister likened Indonesia to a pretty girl being courted by many admirers.



After a chaotic bidding process, China was awarded the contract -- infuriating Japan, which was long expected to build the track given its high-speed rail expertise.



Indonesia lacks a mass-transport system, forcing its increasingly affluent 250 million people to rely heavily on private transport, resulting in grinding traffic in the biggest cities.



Widodo said he hoped the high-speed railway would spur demand for future public transport alternatives in other parts of Indonesia, as well as speed up the movement of people and goods between cities, helping economic growth.



Construction of the line is expected to finish by 2018, and it should be operational the following year.




Irma Suryati, the owner of Mutiara Handicraft, inspects the skills of the employees at her company which is staffed by 20 disabled workers. Suryati set up the firm three years ago after she found difficulty finding work to teach other disabled people how to sew and make crafts. "We are professionals in the business and we're up for competition with other companies," she said. The craft company has already entered the Australian market and plans to expand its business to Singapore this year.
(This version of the Jan. 21 story corrects name to Counter Extremism Project in paragraph 5) By Mark Hosenball WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. intelligence agencies investigating the kidnapping of three Americans in Baghdad, Iraq last week are focusing their probe on three militant Islamic groups closely affiliated with Iran, U.S. government sources said on Thursday. Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah and the Badr Organization are the principle focus of the investigation into the armed kidnapping of the three Americans in the Dora neighborhood, south of Baghdad, the sources said. The three men are employed by a still-unidentified small company doing work for General Dynamics under a larger contract with the U.S. Army. The U.S. government still does not know if any of the three groups kidnapped the three men. While the three groups have close ties to Iran, sources said the United States does not believe Iran was involved in the kidnapping, or that the three are being held in Iran. Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah and the Badr Organization are Shi'ite militia groups that are part of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Front, a group closely tied to Iran, according to the Counter Extremism Project, a New York-based advocacy group. The Iraqi government has struggled to rein in the Shi'ite militias, many of which fought the U.S. military following the 2003 invasion. Shi'ite militias have previously been accused of killing and abducting American nationals. Hostility between Tehran and Washington has eased in recent months with the lifting of crippling economic sanctions against Iran in return for compliance with a deal to curb its nuclear ambitions and a recent prisoner swap. However, the United States imposed sanctions on 11 companies and individuals on Sunday for supplying Iran's ballistic missile program. (Reporting By Mark Hosenball; writing by David Greising; Editing by Andrew Hay)
CAIRO (Reuters) - Iraq's defense minister said on Thursday the three Americans who went missing in Baghdad last week had been seized by an "organized gang" that carries out abductions for "blackmail". In an interview with Reuters in Cairo, Khaled al-Obaidi said the kidnappers spotted the three Americans as they repeatedly visited the same place. The three men are employed by a small company that is doing work for General Dynamics Corp, under a larger contract with the U.S. Army, a source familiar with the matter said. "An organized gang spotted them coming repeatedly to this place, which, I believe, is suspect," he said. "We cannot say whether these gangs are Sunnis or Shi'ites but they carry out kidnapping and blackmail operations." The minister did not say why he considered the place from which the men were kidnapped to be "suspect". U.S. intelligence agencies investigating the kidnapping are focusing their efforts on three militant Islamic groups closely affiliated with Iran, U.S. government sources said on Thursday. Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah and the Badr Organization are the principal focus of the investigation into the armed kidnapping of the three Americans in the Dora neighborhood, south of Baghdad, the sources said. In Switzerland on Thursday, Iraqi Prime Minister Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said, however, that they "just went missing," and he very much doubted any Iranian involvement. The Iraqi government has struggled to rein in the Shi'ite militias, many of which fought the U.S. military following the 2003 invasion. Shi'ite militias have previously been accused of killing and abducting American nationals. Hostility between Tehran and Washington has eased in recent months, with the lifting of crippling economic sanctions against Iran, in return for compliance with a deal to curb its nuclear ambitions and a recent prisoner swap. However, the United States imposed sanctions on 11 companies and individuals on Sunday for supplying Iran's ballistic missile program. (Reporting by Malak Ghobrial and Mahmoud Mourad; Writing by Maher Chmaytelli; Editing by Andrew Roche and Clarence Fernandez)
MOGADISHU (Reuters) - At least 17 people were killed in the Somali capital of Mogadishu when five Islamist gunmen set off bombs and stormed a popular beach-front restaurant late on Thursday, Somali police said. Al Shabaab, a militant group aligned with al Qaeda, said its fighters set off two car bombs at the Beach View Cafe on Mogadishu's popular Lido beach, and engaged in a gun battle for hours with government troops trying to flush them out. "The operation ended at 3 a.m. last night and at least 17 civilians were killed," police officer Osman Nur told Reuters on Friday. Somalia's security minister, Abdirizak Omar Mohamed, said four of the gunmen were killed and one was captured alive. "The government forces rescued hundreds of civilians who were dining there," he told state-run Radio Muqdisho. Police said al Shabaab fighters set off the first car bomb at dusk. A huge second blast, which witnesses said echoed around the city center, struck about an hour later as government soldiers laid siege to the restaurant. Al Shabaab, which regularly targets hotels and restaurants in the capital, seeks to topple the Western-backed government and impose a strict version of Islamic law across Somalia, a nation racked by conflict since the outbreak of civil war in 1991. The group at one point controlled most of Somalia, including the capital Mogadishu, but in recent years an African Union peacekeeping force has wrestled most of that territory away from the group. Somalia's prime minister urged the public to remains calm and called the attack on a civilian target was a desperate move by a group facing annihilation. "Let it remain clear that (the attack) will not hamper the commitment of my government and that of our people to resurrect Somalia," Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke said in a statement. The attack came a week after al Shabaab overrun an African Union base near the Kenyan border, saying they had killed more than 100 Kenyan soldiers. Kenya has not commented on the toll. (Reporting by Feisal Omar; Writing by Drazen Jorgic; Editing by Edith Honan and Alison Williams)
MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Islamist gunmen stormed a popular beachside restaurant in the Somali capital Mogadishu on Thursday, setting off two car bombs and battling government soldiers trying to flush them out. Al Shabaab, a militant group which is aligned with al Qaeda, claimed responsibility for the attack on the Beach View Cafe on Mogadishu's popular Lido beach. "We are inside and control the cafe," Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, spokesman for al Shabaabs military operations, told Reuters. "There are many casualties lying inside and outside the cafe." Police said al Shabaab fighters set off the first car bomb at dusk. A huge second blast, which witnesses said echoed around Mogadishu city centre, struck about an hour later as government soldiers laid siege to the restaurant. "The second car bomb has just exploded and the fighters are still inside," Major Farah Abdulle, a police officer at the scene, told Reuters. "We cannot know the number of casualties inside." Al Shabaab wants to topple the Western-backed government in Mogadishu and impose a strict version of Islamic law across Somalia, a nation racked by conflict since the outbreak of civil war in 1991. (Reporting by Abdi Sheikh and Feisal Omar; Writing by Drazen Jorgic; Editing by Richard Balmforth)
Hebron (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) - Israeli security forces evicted dozens of Jewish settlers from two homes in the heart of the West Bank city of Hebron on Friday, a day after they had moved in.

Dozens of settlers left the house on Friday morning, carrying their possessions and accompanied by Israeli border police, an AFP photographer on the scene said.

Police later welded the doors of the homes shut, the photographer said.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld confirmed 80 people had been removed from the homes, with the evacuation occurring without incident.

The buildings stand near a religious site known to Jews as the Cave of the Patriarchs and to Muslims as the Ibrahimi Mosque in the heart of the flashpoint southern West Bank city.

The families had only moved in on Thursday after buying the homes from Palestinian families, the settlers said.

Yishai Fleisher, a spokesman for the settler community in Hebron, told AFP the properties were vacant when they moved in.

However, the move had not been coordinated with the Israeli security forces ahead of time.

He said the defense ministry said they would not examine the documentation showing they had bought the house until they left.

"There was a request made by the defence minister to get the Jews out of the house," he said.

In Hebron, where 500 Jewish settlers live protected by Israeli forces in a city of around 200,000 Palestinians, the expansion of the Jewish enclave is a fiercely contested matter.

Under Palestinian law, it is illegal to sell homes to Israelis in the West Bank but a very small number still do so.

Israeli Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon would have to approve the settlers' move, which would in effect expand the boundaries of the Jewish area in Hebron.

In a statement on Friday, Yaalon said the "squatters" were evicted as they had not followed legal proceedures.

"To be allowed to move into a house there is a certain number of actions that have to be taken so this is legal. None of these actions have been taken in this case," he said.

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Fleisher said they would submit the relevant paperwork in the coming days and were confident the Jewish families would be able to move back in relatively quickly.

He said the Arab seller had been moved to "a safe house" to protect against recriminations.

Three members of parliament from ruling parties announced on Friday they would not vote with the government again on any matter until the settlers were returned to the homes.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government has a majority of just one in Israel's Knesset, or parliament.

Jewish settlements in the West Bank, which Israel seized in 1967, have been declared illegal by the international community.
By Ori Lewis JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli troops forcibly removed Jewish settlers on Friday from homes in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron that they said they had bought from Palestinians, prompting some right-wing lawmakers to threaten to withhold support for the government. Ministers and members of parliament from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party decried Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon's refusal to sign off on the settlers' occupancy of the homes in a city where tensions between Israelis and Palestinians run high. The settlers said they had bought the properties legally from Palestinian owners, but to live in the apartments they need Defence Ministry approval. "To take occupancy of the homes, a number of actions are required, and none were carried out, which is why the trespassers were evicted," Yaalon said in a statement. A Netanyahu aide, who declined to be named, said that the prime minister backed Yaalon's move, but added: "In this case, not all the permits have been obtained. Once this happens, the settlers will be able to return, as has happened in past cases." Two right-wing lawmakers from Likud and another from the ultranationalist Jewish Home party said they would boycott parliamentary votes on Monday in protest at the move. "It is forbidden to evict Jews from their homes and there will be consequences, we demand the prime minister's involvement in the matter," said Ayoub Kara, a Druze Arab Likud lawmaker. TENSE CITY Hebron, a city of about 220,000 Palestinians, has long been a source of tension, fueled by the presence of around 1,000 Jewish settlers who live in the heart of the city, protected by Israeli troops. A holy site in the center is divided between the faiths. One half is known to Jews as the Cave of the Patriarchs, where the biblical figures Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their wives are said to be buried. The other, where the Ibrahimi mosque stands, is known to Muslims as the Sanctuary of Abraham. Tourism Minister Yariv Levin said Yaalon's move was "scandalous", while Diaspora Affairs Minister Zeev Elkin described it as "wrong". The settlers moved into the apartments on Thursday and were evicted on Friday morning. Television footage showed scuffles as the police forced them out. Police said about 80 settlers had been removed without major incident. Israeli settlements in occupied territory, deemed illegal by most countries, are a fundamental issue in the stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace process. Israel confirmed on Thursday that it was planning to appropriate a large tract of land in the West Bank, drawing condemnation from the U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the United States, Israel's closest ally. (Writing by Ori Lewis; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
MILAN (Reuters) - Italian police said on Friday they had shut down a website selling fake products carrying the high-fashion Prada label. No figures on total sales were available, but police called the website "very sophisticated". It ran worldwide, using 90 service providers and standard electronic payment systems, and carried pictures of actual Prada products sold at prices in line with Prada's factory outlets, lending it credibility. Police said they had traced a person in France's Loire region who had registered the website in the Netherlands and was using a server located in England. The products were made in China's Guangdong region and shipped by international couriers from Hong Kong. They could not be delivered to clients unless duties were paid. Inspectors from the Milanese fashion house were brought in to give an expert opinion on whether the goods were fake. "The products, although very accurate in every detail, were not authentic. They were extremely well-made counterfeits," police said in a statement. (Reporting by Valentina Za, editing by Larry King)
By Mathieu Bonkoungou OUAGADOUGOU (Reuters) - Ivory Coast's army chief encouraged a coup leader in neighbouring Burkina Faso during his failed bid to seize power last year, according to a recording of a conversation in the hands of Burkina Faso judicial authorities. The recording's emergence comes after Burkina Faso issued an arrest warrant for Ivory Coast's parliament speaker Guillaume Soro for alleged links to the coup, further straining relations between the two West African neighbours. Burkina Faso authorities issued the warrant against Soro for crimes including complicity in treason last week on the basis of another recorded phone conversation. Two Burkina Faso judicial officials vouched for the authenticity of the latest recording, obtained by Reuters on Friday. Ivorian authorities were not immediately available to comment. Recorded at a time when loyalist troops were turning the tables against the putsch, a voice allegedly belonging to Ivory Coast military chief of staff General Soumaila Bakayoko asks coup leader General Gilbert Diendere for an update of the situation. "The situation is a bit difficult," Diendere responds. "Among the officers there is some hesitation. I'm not saying I'm all alone. But many are very hesitant for their future." Later, Bakayoko urges Diendere to go on the offensive or risk seeing the coup fail. "They're going to pin it all on you. You have to know that. Politically, they are going to say 'You have the highest rank. You are the general," Bakayoko says. "You are constrained to take action. So carry out something good." Last September's brief coup by the elite Presidential Security Regiment (RSP) temporarily derailed Burkina Faso's transition to democratic rule after President Blaise Compaore was ousted in late 2014. It failed after a week when loyalist regular army troops marched into the capital Ouagadougou and Diendere, Compaore's former spy chief, was arrested. ARMOURY RAID A judicial source involved in the cases against Diendere, Soro and ex-foreign minister Djibril Bassole said the recording was included in evidence files. A second judicial source added that authorities had obtained a total of three gigabytes of digital recordings. Compaore was driven from power and forced to flee Burkina Faso in October 2014 after a popular uprising following his attempt to alter the constitution to extend his 27-year rule. He now lives in exile in neighbouring Ivory Coast. The two nations, once part of the same French colony share a history of close, often fraught, economic and political ties. Soro and his New Forces rebels controlled northern Ivory Coast for eight years following a 2002 civil war and were accused by then Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo's allies of receiving support from Compaore. Burkina Faso denied the allegation. General Bakayoko was the military chief of staff of the rebels. The New Forces played a crucial role in Ivory Coast's 2011 civil war, backing President Alassane Ouattara's claim to leadership after Gbagbo refused to recognise his election defeat. Burkina Faso's RSP, a pillar of Compaore's regime, was disarmed and disbanded following last year's coup attempt. But at least a dozen elite troops rejected the process and went missing. The army on Friday blamed ex-RSP members for an overnight raid on an armoury on the outskirts of Ouagadougou. Coming less than a week after al Qaeda fighters killed 30 people in a restaurant and hotel in Ouagadougou popular with foreigners, the assault further exposes the security challenges facing new President Roch Marc Christian Kabore. (Additional reporting by Nadoun Coulibaly; Additional reporting and writing by Joe Bavier; Editing by Andrew Roche)
By Drazen Jorgic NAIROBI (Reuters) - The al Shabaab commander who masterminded an assault on a Kenyan army base in Somalia last week is believed to have been killed in air raids by Kenyan warplanes, the country's armed forces chief said on Thursday. The strikes over the weekend targetted two al Shabaab camps where the militants were hiding, General Samson Mwathethe, head of Kenya Defence Forces, said. "It is believed Mwalimu Janow, the leader of (an al Shabaab) brigade, who led this attack, was killed," Mwathethe told reporters. Al Shabaab, which is aligned with al Qaeda, said its fighters killed more than 100 Kenyan soldiers when they overrun the base in Ceel Cadde, near the Kenyan border, on Jan.15. The Islamist militants also claim to have captured some Kenyan soldiers belonging to an African Union peacekeeping force in Somalia. Kenyan officials have not yet revealed the death toll but newspaper pictures of coffins draped with Kenyan flags bringing back dead soldiers has increased pressure on President Uhuru Kenyatta and his military chiefs. Al Shabaab, which wants to impose a strict version of Islamic law in Somalia, said it has not lost any fighters since Friday's attack. "This is merely propaganda meant to soothe Kenyans minds after the recent shocking massacre of Kenyan troops," Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, al Shabaabs military spokesman, told Reuters. Al Shabaab on Wednesday published gruesome photos which purport to show the bullet-riddled bodies of dozens of Kenyan soldiers. Most appear to have been shot in the head. 1998 U.S. EMBASSY BOMBING Mwathethe, providing the first in-depth details about the attack, said al Shabaab struck the base with a truck bomb which was as powerful as the one used by al Qaeda in 1998 to destroy the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, when more than 200 people were killed. The militants then detonated two more equally strong vehicle bombs and launched a flurry of rocket-propelled grenades while a a wave of suicide bombers surged towards Kenyan positions, Mwathethe said. Kenya immediately launched helicopter search and rescue operations for troops who had fled into the bushes but military reinforcements could not reach the base for two days as al Shabaab possessed anti-aircraft guns, Mwathethe said. The Kenyan military said it was still searching for troops, though it would not comment on how many soldiers were unaccounted for. The main opposition party in Kenya has called for the withdrawal of troops from Somalia but Kenyatta said Kenya was committed to bringing stability to Somalia, a nation ravaged by conflict since civil war broke out in 1991. (Reporting by Drazen Jorgic; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
South Korean President Park Geun-Hye on Friday offered a "creative" solution to stalled six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear programme -- cut Pyongyang from the equation and make them five-party negotiations instead.

"We should find various and creative approaches, including attempting to hold five-way talks excluding North Korea," Park said during a policy briefing with top ministers.

The six-party talks, involving the two Koreas, the United States, Japan, Russia and China, began in 2003 as an effort to dismantle North Korea's nuclear programme in exchange for aid.

The North quit the dialogue process in 2009, ostensibly to protest sanctions imposed after a long-range rocket test. The following month it conducted its second nuclear test.

North Korea's main ally, China, has repeatedly pushed for the talks' resumption, but Park said the North's fourth nuclear test on January 6 underlined Pyongyang's rejection of denuclearisation as a bargaining chip.

"Even if the talks are resumed, their effectiveness would certainly be called into question," she said.

South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-Se said excluding North Korea from the dialogue process would serve as a powerful signal of the international community's anger and frustration.

"If this takes place, it will send a very strong message to North Korea both substantially and symbolically," Yun said.

On top of the five-way talks, South Korea's top diplomat said his government was also considering a "diverse dialogue framework" that could kick-off with a "three-way cooperation body" involving South Korea, the US and China.

But when asked about Park's proposal, China's foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei insisted that bringing all parties together, including North Korea, was the only way forward.

"Six-party talks are the key to solving the root of the issues," Hong said.

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Pyongyang's latest test triggered a flurry of diplomatic activity between the five non-North Korean members of the defunct talks process, with the US, Japan and South Korea urging China to take the lead in imposing stronger sanctions on its maverick neighbour.

"I expect China to take effective measures to make sure North Korea can recognise that the development of its nuclear programmes serves no purpose, and that it should re-join the international community as Iran did," Park said.

Beijing will have a crucial role to play in the wording of the resolution currently under discussion within the UN Security Council to punish Pyongyang for its latest test.

China is North Korea's chief diplomatic protector and economic benefactor, but Beijing's patience has worn thin with Pyongyang's behaviour and unwillingness to rein in its nuclear weapons ambitions.

However, Beijing's leverage over Pyongyang is mitigated by its overriding fear of a North Korean collapse and the prospect of a reunified, US-allied Korea directly on its border.
By Martin Petty (Reuters) - Laos's Communist Party chose veteran Bounnhang Vorachit to be its new leader on Friday and elected a new 11-member politburo at the end of a five-yearly congress that saw the exits of several high-profile politicians. Bounnhang, the current vice president, won the leadership vote and five new faces joined the elite politburo as outgoing party chief and president, Choummaly Sayasone, Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong and two deputy premiers made way. The selection of Bounnhang, 78, was anticipated by experts, who see a continuation of a status quo in which power is tightly controlled by the party while pursuing strong economic expansion, which has averaged 7.8 percent since 2011. Bounnhang is now one of the last remaining members of the revolutionary generation in the higher echelons of a party that has run Laos for four decades. He topped the list of a new 77-member central committee announced on Friday. Second on the list and re-elected to the politburo was National Assembly chairwoman and former central bank governor Pany Yathotu, suggesting her rise in the party hierarchy to be a possible prime minister, according to Martin Stuart-Fox, a Laos expert and retired professor of the University of Queensland. The prime minister and cabinet posts are expected to be announced later in the year. "The most significant promotion has been Madame Pany," Stuart-Fox said, adding she was now "a very powerful figure". He said major policy changes from the new leadership were unlikely. Laos has close political ties to communist Vietnam and mirrors its political system. Both countries are holding their five-yearly congresses this week. Communist neighbour China has been vying aggressively for influence on Laos, however, providing scholarships, aid, loans and infrastructure investment to a fledgling $12-billion economy 862 times smaller than its own. Growth in Laos has been driven by investment, mining and sales abroad of most its growing hydropower output, largely to Thailand. This has boosted incomes and access to electricity, telecoms and healthcare for its mostly rural population of 6.8 million. Foreign media were not permitted to cover the congress. A senior foreign ministry press official said there was insufficient time to invite international media. (Reporting by Martin Petty in Hanoi; Additional reporting by My Pham; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
By George Georgiopoulos and Renee Maltezou ATHENS (Reuters) - At least 43 people, including 17 children, drowned when their boats capsized off two Greek islands near the Turkish coast on Friday, coastguards said, marking one of the deadliest days for migrants risking the perilous route to Europe from Turkey. According to survivors' testimonies, dozens were on board a wooden sailboat which went down off Kalolimnos, a small island in the Aegean Sea close to Turkey's coast, one coastguard official said. Twenty six people were rescued and at least 35 migrants drowned in one of the worst incidents in months, the official said. It was not clear why the vessel capsized, but witnesses said strong winds were blowing at the time. Fishing vessels assisted the search and rescue operation which lasted hours. "They weren't wearing life jackets, I don't understand. They couldn't swim," Michalis, a local fisherman, told Reuters. He rescued three migrants but one of them, a 50-year old man, later died in his small fishing boat. "The hospital is now full of dead people." Survivors said that more people were missing, he said. "There must have been a lot of people on board. It was one of those closed yachts with a small hatch. You can imagine what happened if it had a lot of people on board," the fisherman said. In the sinking at Farmakonisi, another small island also close to the Turkish coast, six children and two women drowned when their wooden boat crashed on rocks shortly after midnight. Another 40 migrants on the vessel managed to swim to the shore. "Once again, last night ruthless human smugglers at the Turkish coast crammed dozens of refugees and migrants in risky and unseaworthy vessels and led innocent people, even young children to perish," the shipping ministry said in a statement. The International Organization for Migration said the deaths of migrants and refugees in the Mediterranean already make this "the deadliest January on record". The latest incidents bring the number of people killed on the eastern Mediterranean route in the past year to at least 900, said IOM spokesman Joel Millman in Geneva. The total number of arrivals in Europe by sea rose to about 37,000 in January, more than six times the combined figures for the same month in 2014 and 2015, usually a slow month due to the bad weather. Fleeing war, thousands of mainly Syrian refugees have braved rough seas this year to make the short, but precarious, journey from Turkey to Greece's islands, from which most continue to mainland Greece and northward into wealthier western Europe. Winter conditions make the journey even more dangerous. (Reporting by Renee Maltezou, George Georgiopoulos and Theodora Arvanitidou in Athens and Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva; Editing by Richard Balmforth)
Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) - Manchester United will be looking to improve on their recent home record against Southampton on Saturday to give further credence to their unlikely challenge for the Premier League title.

Since Southampton's return to the top flight in 2012, United have beaten them only once in three attempts at Old Trafford, a 2-1 win three years ago this month.

Wayne Rooney scored both of United's goals that day and his current form has revitalised United's season, taken the heat off manager Louis van Gaal and kept the team in touch with the league pace-setters.

Rooney has scored five goals in his last four games, including last Sunday's winner in a 1-0 victory at Liverpool, which took United to within seven points of joint-leaders Arsenal and Leicester City.

After the win at Anfield, Van Gaal declared that his side can still win the league for the first time since 2013.

But they will need to improve on their general level of performance and will no doubt be under pressure again on Saturday with many supporters unimpressed by Van Gaal's management and playing style.

Midfielder Juan Mata, left out of the starting line-up for the last two games, admits the team has to do better, but believes that there is still an opportunity to push for the top.

"I hope this win (at Liverpool) will give us a boost of confidence and help us play better and keep getting results in order to move up the table," said Mata, who scored the decisive goal in United's 3-2 win at Southampton in September.

"There's a long way to go and there is no team who is showing a great consistency, so everything is still open. For the moment, we have to stay focused and keep the same mentality in our next game against Southampton.

"They have got two convincing wins in the last two games so we must be careful."

United may have Bastian Schweinsteiger back from a knee injury that has kept him out for two games to partner ex-Southampton player Morgan Schneiderlin in midfield.

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- Austin set for debut -

Auxiliary full-back Ashley Young is a doubt with a knock picked up in the win at Liverpool, but Phil Jones could return to increase Van Gaal's defensive options.

Last weekend's 3-0 victory over West Bromwich Albion moved Southampton back into the top half of the table and helped draw a line under a testing period last month.

James Ward-Prowse, the midfielder, spoke confidently after that game about reviving the club's bid to claim a place in the Europa League for a second successive season.

The arrival of striker Charlie Austin from Queen Park Rangers has only added to the growing optimism at St Mary's.

Austin, 26, has joined Saints in a 4 million ($5.7 million, 5.2 million euros) transfer and manager Ronald Koeman is set to hand the forward his debut at Old Trafford.

"His fitness is OK," Koeman said.

"I was a little bit worried about his fitness, because he came out from a hamstring injury, but he showed his quality, he showed his fitness this week, and normally he will be part of the team for this Saturday."

However, Koeman has concerns over the fitness of striker Graziano Pelle and left-back Matt Targett.

"We have some small problems with players like Graziano, if he is really fit to be part of the team," the Dutchman added.

"Matthew Targett had some little stiffness about last weekend, and tomorrow (Friday) we have our final session, then we make those kind of decisions."
As the likely "historic" Winter Storm Jonas, as it's been named by the Weather Channel, travels north along the East Coast Friday through Sunday, slamming several mid-Atlantic and Northeastern states along the way, it'll leave several feet of snow in some areas and just a few inches in others. Here's where the snowstorm is headed and which states it's expected to hit.

The storm sparked a viral #Blizzard2016 hashtag on Twitter, but the technical conditions of a blizzard are 35mph or stronger winds and less than a quarter mile visibility for at least three hours, according to the National Weather Service. Only a few states will experience those harsh conditions. Nonetheless, the storm will likely bring snow, wind and dangerous conditions to much of the East Coast through the weekend.

Here's a full list of states in the storm's path, according to the National Weather Service's radar, and what they can expect from Jonas:

These probabilities go through Sunday AM. Note DC is in 90% for 12+ inches of snow! Be safe everyone! #winterstorm pic.twitter.com/mqki85h1QU https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CZUWTrkXEAAKQSD.png:large

North Carolina: The storm arrived in North Carolina Friday morning in the form of snow, sleet, and freezing rain, TWC News for central North Carolina reported. While Jonas is expected to just skim North Carolina, there's still a 30 to 40% chance some eastern North Carolina towns will get a foot of snow. "Heavy snow" is likely for northern North Carolina Saturday, TWC reported, but winter storm conditions should otherwise dwindle by mid-weekend.

Kentucky: Jonas hit southeast Kentucky Friday and will head to the state's northern region as the storm tracks north throughout the day. The Lexington region should expect between 10 to 18 inches of snow, local station WKYT reported.

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Virginia: Virginia will experience the brunt of Jonas Friday morning through the afternoon, leaving at least a few inches of snow, local station WTVR reported. The snow should transform to rain by Friday night. Eastern Virginia should experience the harshest conditions in the state.

West Virginia: Most of West Virginia has an 80% chance of getting a foot of snow starting Friday, while some areas in the state may get up to 20 inches, the Weather Channel reports.

Washington D.C.: Jonas may hit D.C. hardest as several feet of snow and life-threatening conditions are expected Friday through Saturday. The Washington Metro will close Friday at 11 p.m. EST and resume Sunday. A state of emergency has been issued.

Delaware: Though adjacent to D.C., Delaware shouldn't expect as brutal a storm. Some areas in western Delaware have a 50% chance of getting a foot of snowfall while east Delaware has a 20-30% chance, according to the National Weather Service. A Google public alert showed a winter storm warning for Delaware predicts 4 to 8 inches of snow accumulation over the weekend.

Maryland: The storm is expected to hit Maryland hard Friday afternoon as a blizzard warning is set to go into effect, WJZ Eyewitness New reported. "Our state is taking every precaution  coordinating all available resources  to prepare to clear roads, manage incidents, and recover from this storm," Gov. Larry Hogan told CBS. "We urge all Marylanders to take action now to prepare, before this severe weather strikes, with the knowledge that our state will do everything it can to respond quickly, effectively and efficiently to this major storm event."

Ohio: The outskirts of the winter storm will pass through central and eastern Ohio, but it shouldn't expect more than a few inches of snow. "Forecasters now are saying central Ohio likely will be spared any heavy snowfall," the Columbia Dispatch reported.

Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf declared a state of emergency Thursday in anticipation of heavy snowfall throughout the weekend, Penn Live reported. Pennsylvania won't experience the worst of the storm, the National Weather Service reported, but some eastern areas could see up to a foot of snow at maximum potential.

New York/New Jersey: A blizzard warning is in effect for New Jersey and southern New York, including New York City, from Saturday 4 a.m. EST through Sunday morning, according to Google public alerts. The forecast shows 7 to 12 inches of snow accumulation for parts of the states and winds up to 35 mph with gusts up to 50 mph.

Massachusetts/Connecticut/Rhode Island: Being that New England is located on the storm's tail end, it's expected to experience relatively mild effects of the storm. Still, it's possible that some areas will get hit with over six inches of snow, Mass Live reported. A winter storm watch is in effect for Connecticut regions including New Haven, New London, Fairfield and Middlesex starting Saturday, Fox 61 reported. Forecasts seem confident that snowfall accumulation will be less than the Mid-Atlantic at maximum potential, but strong winds and minor coastal flooding are expected.
Marseille (AFP) - Marseille's managing director Philippe Perez has been placed under investigation as part of an ongoing transfer probe involving the French club, a judicial source revealed on Friday.

Perez, 55, faces accusations of "misuse of company assets, forgery and use of forgery and criminal association", the source told AFP.

He is suspected of having played a role in "about 15" suspicious transfers, including that of former OM striker Andre-Pierre Gignac from Toulouse in 2010.

All the deals are the subject of an investigation launched five years ago.

Several current and former officials from Marseille have already been questioned in the affair, with former president Jean-Claude Dassier, 74, charged with various offences last September.

An investigation into "extortion, money laundering and criminal association" was first opened in July 2011, with investigators suspecting unwarranted payments of commissions were made following major transfers.

That investigation led to club offices being raided in January 2013 and current club president Vincent Labrune being arrested and briefly held in custody in November 2014, along with Dassier and another former president, Pape Diouf. They were all later released without charge.
The original Captain America is back.

As revealed during the ABC Captain America: 75 Heroic Years special on Tuesday night, Steve Rogers will return to duty in a new comic book series this spring titled, simply, Captain America: Steve Rogers, which is planned to run parallel to the current Captain America: Sam Wilson series. Both series will be written by Nick Spencer, with art on Steve Rogers by Jesus Saiz.

"Captain America: Steve Rogers and Captain America: Sam Wilson will act as great counter-points to one another," Spencer said in a press release from Marvel. "If you're digging the topical, ripped-from-the-headlines approach we're taking in Sam's book, we've got plenty more of that to come. And if you're up for a more timeless take, with Captain America facing off against Hydra and his classic rogues gallery, Steve's book will be just the thing for you."

Rogers was replaced with much fanfare by Wilson  formerly the superhero known as the Falcon  in October 2014, with the switchover being announced on Comedy Central's The Colbert Report. Despite the timeframe, Wilson's Captain America hasn't had much chance to fly solo. Thanks to the line wide suspension caused by Marvel's Secret Wars storyline, the character had only headlined six issues of his own series before it was relaunched as part of the publisher's All-New All-Different reboot last October.

The move underscores a trend at Marvel to pull double-duty with big name characters. Currently, the publisher has two separate versions of Spider-Man, Wolverine, Thor, Hawkeye and other heroes  including four different members of the X-Men  active in its comic book universe, allowing the publisher to satisfy fans of the classic (inevitably white, straight male) versions while also expanding the diversity on offer, with alternatives in terms of race or gender also available.

Captain America: Steve Rogers will be available in comic book stores and digitally later this year, ahead of the character's next cinematic outing in May's Captain America: Civil War.

Read More: How 'Captain America: Civil War' May Improve on the Original Marvel Comic Book
Chemotherapy is notoriously hard on patients. It works by pumping powerful drugs into the body in hopes of killing the disease. To reduce the nasty side effects of cancer treatment, Hadiyah-Nicole Green, a 35-year-old physicist, wants to research using laser technology to kill cancerand she just won $1.1 million to do it.

Green, an assistant professor at Tuskegee University, is the first woman to win the five-year grant geared toward nurturing black scientists from the Veterans Administration Research Scientist Training Program. She hopes to help change the perception of what black girls can aspire to.

When someone says scientist, I want them to think of someone other than Albert Einstein, Green told TakePart.

Greens professional passion is inspired by her personal journey. She was raised by her aunt and uncle, who both fought cancer. Her aunt refused chemotherapy for what the family believed to be ovarian cancer and died when Green was just 22 and a recent physics graduate. Shortly afterwards, her uncle was diagnosed with esophageal cancera disease that he fought for years before he passed away two years ago.

After her aunts death, Green shifted her focus from optical communications to cancer treatment. The award will enable her to explore the concept in depth and conduct trials.

I didnt hit a lottery. Its very structured funding for specific purposes. And yes, I applied multiple times till I got it, she said. That perseverance and tenacity, she said, is critical for anyonewhite, black, female or malewho seeks to build a career in science.

Thats why Green is a bit flustered by her newfound fame. She just set up a Facebook account this month and already has more than 3,000 followers. Her friends, she jokes, are helping her with Twitter next. Since the award was announced, she has received countless emails from young women, and more specifically young black women, saying that they want to become scientists like her. Having a role model, someone that looks like you, makes it seem more tangible, she said.

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When was the last time a scientist was on [a box of] Wheaties or Cheerios? And if all they see is Nicki Minaj and Beyonce, then thats what shapes their aspirations. Its just a lack of exposure, Green said.

She is among a select few. According to the National Science Foundation, there are only about 80 female black physicists in the United States.

Green doesnt like to dwell on her race or gender in a profession traditionally dominated by white men. But the numbers do indicate that theres a gap in STEM fields, which include the sciences, technology, engineering, and math. In 2012, black women earned 684 STEM degrees; for white women, the number was 6,777. And there were 8,478 degrees in STEM awarded to white men.

Ray Leach of JumpStart, an Ohio-based organization that helps entrepreneurs launch tech and STEM-based companies, said visibility is essential. Having worked with women entrepreneurs who established multimillion-dollar biotech companies, Leach is passionate about backing more women of color in the sciences.

Increasing the number of women in STEM starts with our entire society having the chance to learn and understand the stories and motivations for these incredible women. If more people knew these stories, we would begin to make greater strides in increasing the number of women in STEM, Leach said.

Green was personally inspired by one of her teachers, Aisha Fields, an African American woman who told her after a calculus class that she could not only be a science major in college, but she could excel at it.

If she hadnt told me that, the thought would not have occurred to me, Green said.

Related stories on TakePart:





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Original article from TakePart
Davos (Switzerland) (AFP) - Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto said Friday his country is working to extradite recaptured drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman for trial in the United States as soon possible.

The Mexican attorney general's office is pursuing charges against Guzman while also working on his extradition, the president said at an annual gathering of billionaires and political leaders in the snow-covered Swiss Alpine resort of Davos.

"The instruction is to accelerate its work to obtain his extradition as soon as possible," Pena Nieto said.

The Mexican administration was deeply embarrassed when Guzman escaped a maximum-security prison through a tunnel on July 11, just 17 months after marines had arrested him in his native northwestern state of Sinaloa.

The Mexican authorities launched a massive manhunt that led to his recapture on January 8 in the seaside Sinaloa city of Los Mochis -- a triumph that ended up having to share headlines with US actor Sean Penn's bombshell revelation that he met Guzman three months before his capture.

While the Mexican government seeks to ship Guzman across the border, a tank is positioned outside the Altiplano prison west of the capital and a cell's floors have been reinforced with metal rods to prevent another tunnel.

The extradition effort marks a reversal from Pena Nieto's refusal to send Guzman to the United States prior to his July escape from the maximum-security facility.

The Mexican authorities have warned, however, that the extradition process could take a year or more with Guzman's lawyers vowing a tough legal battle.

Some experts say the government could try a "fast-track" extradition manoeuvre to speed up the process.
London (AFP) - Oscar-winning actor Michael Caine on Friday said Britain should leave the European Union if it does not manage to negotiate "extremely significant changes", as the country prepares for a historic membership referendum.

"Unless there are some extremely significant changes, we should get out," he said on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, adding: "I sort of feel certain we should come out".

The 82-year-old star said Europe was now being run by a "sort of government-by-proxy" which has now got "carried away".

"You cannot be dictated to by thousands of faceless civil servants who make these rules," he said.

Caine, well known for his distinctive working class Cockney accent, started out in film in the 1960s, starring in a string of classics including "Zulu", "Alfie" and "The Italian Job".

In 1986, he won an Oscar for best supporting actor for Woody Allen's "Hannah and Her Sisters".

Caine has previously said he has no party allegiance and has voted for both Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair, two former prime ministers from the Conservative and Labour parties, in the past.

Prime Minister David Cameron says he is hopeful of reforming Britain's EU membership at a summit next month and has said he will campaign to stay in if he does so in a vote due to be held by the end of 2017.

Many commentators expect a vote later this year.

The head of the anti-EU UK Independence Party (UKIP) Nigel Farage immediately welcomed Caine's comments.

"I welcome @themichaelcaine's support for #Brexit. Let's blow the bloody doors off!" he tweeted, quoting one of the actor's most famous lines.
Ben Chaplin, who stars in Amazons new original dark comedy Mad Dogs, revealed that the most trying part of his portrayal of Joel, a depressed teacher estranged from his wife and children, was effectively communicating the characters depression in a way that wouldnt bore audiences.

The most challenging part of playing the character was trying to play somebody who is struggling with depression and with seeing the negative side of everything, and just trusting that thats not really boring and irritating to watch, Chaplin told Variety Wednesday at the Los Angeles premiere, which was held at the Pacific Design Centers Silver Screen Theater.

Mad Dogs is based on a 2011 British TV series of the same name  which also starred Chaplin, but in the role of Alvo. The series follows a middle-aged group of longtime male friends as they travel to Belize to reunite. Their vacation ultimately goes awry, leaving the men intertwined in dark, unexpected situations.

Also challenging about the role of Joel, Chaplin noted, was acting in both versions of the series.

The pilot was the toughest one, because that was the one that my character was in, so I had to watch someone else do what Id done, said Chaplin. I found myself remembering, (with) almost perfect recall, what the other actor (Philip Glenister) had done who played my part. It was really odd.

In terms of consistencies between the two series, Mad Dogs creator Cris Cole said that, while the shows differ, elements that worked in the British version were cherry picked out and implemented into the American version.

The first four episodes are quite similar, and then it veers off in a very different direction, said Cole, who also created the original Mad Dogs. Thematically, its quite similar. Its still looking at the same idiocies of middle-aged male friendship.

Joining Chaplin and Cole at the premiere were Mad Dogs executive producer Shawn Ryan and co-stars Michael Imperioli, Romany Malco, Billy Zane, Mark Povinelli and Rachael Holmes.

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Imperioli, who portrays a burnt-out rock musician, praises Mad Dogs' perspective on middle-aged male friendship.

[The characters are] old enough that its not about going out and having a good time anymore. Its really about how much were going to be there for each other, how much were going to love each other and how far were willing to go for that, said Imperioli. The former Sopranos star continued, What is real friendship? And when its tested, how strong is friendship? I think thats what its about.

Povinelli, who portrays a cat mask-wearing hitman, also commented on Mad Dogs' approach to friendship, admiring the shows dark comedic components.

Theres so much dark humor in it and so much absurdity to the positions they find themselves in, that it becomes kind of funny, he said.

The full season of Mad Dogs will debut to Amazon Prime subscribers in the U.S., U.K., Germany and Austria on Jan. 22.

Related stories

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TV Review: 'Mad Dogs'
From House Beautiful

Every winter since 2012, three brothers from New Brighton, Minnesota, take to their snow-laden front yard and transform it into a massive thing of beauty. Collecting their material from all over the neighborhood, Austin, 21, Trevor, 20, and Connor, 17, spend 12-hour days for two weeks of their holiday break crafting it into enormous sea creatures. Their previous pieces include a massive shark and a huge sea turtle.

This year, their masterpiece is an 18-foot octopus that fans have named Octavius.

Why the sea creature motif, you wonder? It all goes back to some good old-fashioned family memories.

"We first were inspired to do snow sculptures when I caught a puffer fish in Florida. A month later we had no school because of a snow day and decided it would be cool to make a snow sculpture of a puffer fish," Austin told HouseBeautiful.com. "We always stick with the sea life theme, this is why we chose the octopus this year. We wanted a sea creature we could put our own twist on and have fun with!"

While the snow sculptures have always been popular, Austin said that the media attention was bigger than ever this year.

"Thousands of people came by our house to take pictures and admire the sculpture," he said. "The weather channel did a live broadcast in our front yard even!"

Using their attention for good, the boys have set up a donation box for One Day's Wages, an organization that helps provide clean drinking water for people in Haiti. So far, they've raised $7,000 of their $10,000 goal.

If you want to see more of their sculptures, you can check out their Facebook page. If you'd like to donate to the charity online, you can do so here.
Mexico City (AFP) - One lawyer is accused of helping Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman escape from prison. Another claims to represent the fallen drug lord for free. In total, 13 attorneys have recently worked for Guzman.

This motley crew of legal eagles is representing Mexico's most powerful imprisoned criminal, with some working in the shadows and a few vocal ones defending him in front of television cameras.

One of them, Oscar Manuel Gomez, is accused of acting more like an accomplice than a member of Guzman's legal team.

Gomez was arrested under charges that he helped the Sinaloa drug cartel leader plan his brazen prison break on July 11, when he slipped out through a 1.5-kilometer (one-mile) tunnel.

While Guzman was on the run, it was another lawyer, Andres Granados, who put the then-fugitive in touch with Mexican-American actress Kate del Castillo.

Granados, Del Castillo and Guzman exchanged text messages last year, leading to the drug baron's astonishing meeting with the actress and US star Sean Penn in October, though it ended up working against him as it helped the authorities locate him.

"His legal team looks more like a team of company advisors. They're partners, accomplices of the business," said Raul Benitez Manaut, security expert at the National Autonomous University of Mexico.

-- '13 different lawyers' --

But now his lawyers are working hard to prevent the 58-year-old cartel leader's extradition to the United States.

While most keep a low profile, Juan Pablo Badillo, 74, has not been shy about appearing in front of TV cameras.

Badillo represented Guzman after his first arrest in 1993. The slippery criminal escaped from prison for the first time eight years later.

The lawyer described his client in a Washington Post interview last year as someone of "exceeding intelligence," who has the "greatest fortitude" and treats others with the "utmost respect."

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Badillo visited Guzman six times while he was held at the Altiplano maximum-security prison from February 2014 until his July escape.

But he was not the only one.

Oscar Manuel Gomez, who was arrested in October, visited Guzman several times and even saw him hours before his client escaped from the prison 90 kilometers (55 miles) west of Mexico City.

"Last time (Guzman was in prison) 13 different lawyers saw him," Interior Minister Miguel Angel Osorio Chong said last week.

"Now we will be much stricter. All the flaws have been corrected," Osorio Chong said.

While Badillo claims that Guzman has not been allowed to see his attorneys since his arrest, the interior minister said one of them, Jorge Rodriguez, has visited the notorious inmate.

Rodriguez and four other lawyers are the only ones registered to defend Guzman, according to a prison official. Their faces however are unknown to the public.

-- Working for free --

One man whose face has become a familiar sight is Jose Luis Gonzalez Meza, a small 73-year-old man known for his theatrical public appearances who claims to represent Guzman.

Gonzalez Meza has gone as far as saying that even Adolf Hitler would not have been treated like the drug lord. He told AFP that he does not know Guzman and does not plan to bill him.

Last week, Gonzalez Meza appeared outside the prison and showed the media a pair of shaggy slippers and underwear that guards did not let him bring inside.

Outside the Supreme Court on Tuesday, he held a sign protesting the extradition process.

Gonzalez Meza's resume stands in odd contrast with the man he claims to represent, as he heads a human rights organization that defends "the poorest people." He also had a failed bid to run for president in 2012.

The attorney said that he started representing Guzman after "a relative" contacted him shortly after the drug lord's capture.

Gonzalez Meza believes that Guzman hired him because of his left-leaning views and his choice words for former Mexican presidents like Carlos Salinas.

He calls Salinas (president 1988-1994) an "assassin," a "dictator" and a "drug trafficker" in three books that he has written about the politician.

"Do you know why I like (Guzman)? His group has never kidnapped poor people. ... Has a Mexican politician ever given money to the poor? None! But these people, yes. So I consider him admirable," Gonzalez Meza said, adding that the deaths attributed to Guzman are "insignificant."

"By defending 'El Chapo,' I'm attacking the government," he said.
- World champion Sebastien Ogier defied bitter cold and tricky, icy conditions to set the fastest time on the opening stage of the Monte Carlo Rally, the first round of the 2016 series on Thursday. The French Volkswagen driver, bidding for a fourth successive world title, finished the 21.25km stage between Entrevaux and Rouaine with a 4.1sec advantage over Citroen's Kris Meeke. Ogier is chasing a fourth success in the storied event and third in a row. Norway's Andreas Mikkelsen, also in a VW Polo, was third, more than nine seconds off the pace with the third VW of Finland's Jari-Matti Latvala, just a second and a half further back. A second night stage, over 20.38km between Barles and Seyne, takes place later Thursday.

AFP
The tech giant has begun offering free Wi-Fi service in the Mumbai Central Station in India in a bid to strengthen its position in the country.

As of Friday January 22, travelers going through Mumbai's largest rail station will have access to high-speed internet service thanks to what Google describes on its Asia Pacific blog as "the largest public Wi-Fi project in the world." The California-based company plans on rolling out the same offer in as many as 400 other train stations across the country.

All mobile phone owners will have access as long as they possess an Indian cell number. Though the service is free for now and the tech brand notes that "some level of free W-Fi" will always be available for free, some aspects may end up as payable services in order to allow for expansion throughout different cities.
Seoul (AFP) - North Korea said Friday it had arrested a US student who, under orders from Washington, had engaged in an unspecified "hostile act" after entering the country on a tourist visa.

The detention comes at a sensitive time, with the United States taking a leading role in efforts to secure tough international sanctions on North Korea over its latest nuclear test.

Pyongyang has a history of using foreign detainees as bargaining chips to extract concessions and high-profile visits to secure their release.

The student, identified as Otto Frederick Warmbier from the University of Virginia, had entered North Korea as a tourist "for the purpose of bringing down the foundation of its single-minded unity at the tacit connivance of the US government and under its manipulation," the North's official KCNA news agency said.

He was detained "while perpetrating a hostile act against the DPRK", it added, using the official acronym for North Korea.

China-based Young Pioneer Tours, which organises regular trips to North Korea, said Warmbier had been a member of a New Year tour and was arrested when the group was set to return to Beijing on January 2.

"We hope his release can be secured as soon as possible," the tour group said, adding that it was assisting the US State Department in the affair.

- 'Privacy considerations' -

State Department spokesman John Kirby, citing "privacy considerations," declined to comment beyond acknowledging the reports of Warmbier's arrest and stressing that the welfare of US citizens was always a top priority.

The United States has no diplomatic or consular relations with the North, and the Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang provides limited consular services to US citizens detained there.

Warmbier becomes the third North American detained in North Korea, which last month sentenced a 60-year-old Canadian pastor to life imprisonment with hard labour on sedition charges.

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During a recent interview that the pastor, Hyeon Soo Lim, gave to CNN in Pyongyang, the North presented another ethnic Korean prisoner, whom they said was a US citizen arrested for spying in October.

- High tensions -

The term "hostile act" is a catch-all accusation that has been levelled at numerous detained foreigners in the past -- covering a range of possible charges from espionage to illicit missionary work.

The fact that Warmbier is accused of acting under US direction, would suggest he faces a spying charge.

The latest arrest comes months after the North released another male student -- a South Korean studying at New York University.

Arrested in April for illegal entry, Joo Won-Moon, who had permanent US residency, was freed in October through the border truce village of Panmunjom on the inter-Korean frontier.

Unlike some other foreign citizens detained in the North, Joo was never put on trial.

Several Americans have been held in North Korea in recent years, including the South Korean-born missionary Kenneth Bae, who was similarly charged with hostile acts and sentenced in 2013 to 15 years in prison.

Bae was released in November, 2014, along with fellow American Matthew Miller, after a secret mission to Pyongyang led by US intelligence chief James Clapper.

Tensions are currently running high on the Korean peninsula, as North Korea braces for fresh sanctions in the wake of the fourth nuclear test it carried out January 6.

The United States, along with allies Japan and South Korea, has led calls for a tough UN Security Council resolution that would impose economic penalties that go well beyond existing sanctions.

In a show of strength earlier this month, a nuclear-capable US B-52 bomber -- flanked by South Korean F-15 fighter jets and US F-16 planes -- flew a mission just south of the inter-Korea border.
Brussels (AFP) - NATO member states are discussing a request to use the alliance's AWACS air surveillance aircraft in the battle against the jihadist Islamic State group, an official said Friday.

An AWACS commitment would mark a departure for NATO which up to now has had no direct role in combating IS but is increasingly concerned by the threat it poses on its southern flank.

"We can confirm there has been a request for concrete support from NATO to the anti-ISIL effort in the form of NATO AWACS surveillance planes," a NATO official said, when asked about reports Washington had raised the issue. ISIL is an alternative name for the IS group.

"This request is under discussion by allies," the official said, without identifying which country had submitted it.

"Any decision would be in line with the Wales summit declaration which indicates NATOs readiness to support the bilateral efforts of allies," the official said, referring to a 2014 meeting of alliance leaders.

US officials said Defence Secretary Ashton Carter had recently sent letters to all members in the US-led anti-IS coalition seeking additional support.

"This included a letter to NATO -- of which all member countries are (also) members of the coalition -- to begin the discussion on ways in which it might contribute," one US official said.

The official declined to give details about what that might involve, saying the letters were "part of an ongoing global dialogue about how to increase our fight against IS."

Diplomatic sources told AFP an agreement could involve NATO deploying its AWACS aircraft to the United States to free up planes Washington could then use for strikes by the anti-IS coalition.

"There would be no direct NATO role in the anti-IS coalition," the source said, describing the discussions as "cautious."

"There will be no NATO AWACS planes over Iraq or Syria," the source added.

NATO has few military assets of its own, providing the umbrella command structure for the 28 allies, but in the 1980s they agreed to establish an AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) unit to counter the then Soviet threat.

The AWACS unit comprises more than 20 planes capable of monitoring activity, principally in the air but also on the ground, within a radius of some 400 kilometres (260 miles) to warn of threats and coordinate a response.
By Keith Coffman

DENVER (Reuters) - Five sheriffs deputies will not face criminal charges after a black Denver jail inmate died last year while they restrained him during a schizophrenic episode, the district attorney said on Thursday.

Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey said in a letter that while he sympathized with the family of Michael Marshall, he could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the deputies acted criminally.

Absent that certainty of proof, criminal charges are not appropriate and are not justice, Morrissey said. There is no evidence suggesting any force was used for the purpose of harming Mr. Marshall.

The death of the 50-year-old Marshall in November came amid scrutiny of police killings and in-custody deaths of young black men since mid-2014. Those killings have triggered waves of protest and fueled a civil rights movement under the name Black Lives Matter.

Autopsy results released this month by the Denver medical examiners office ruled the death a homicide. The report concluded that the 5-foot-4 (1.6-meter), 112-lb (51-kg) Marshall choked on his own vomit and died from asphyxiation "while being physically restrained by law enforcement.

A lawyer for the Marshall family, Mari Newman, said she was not surprised by the district attorneys decision.

Morrissey has never prosecuted any law enforcement for killing anyone, and this empowers Denver law enforcement officers to act recklessly, knowing that they will never be held accountable for their conduct, Newman said. This is a broken system and it needs to be changed.

Marshall was being held at the citys main lockup on a trespassing charge, and for two days leading up to the incident refused to take his schizophrenia medication and became aggressive with another prisoner, the district attorneys statement said.

Marshall refused repeated commands from officers, became combative with them, and despite his diminutive stature deputies described Mr. Marshall as surprisingly strong, the decision letter said.

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No choke holds or carotid restraints were used. Tasers were not used. The physical force used by the deputy sheriffs during this incident was applied by holding Mr. Marshall and by preventing him from getting up, the letter said.

Morrissey noted that Marshall suffered from emphysema and heart disease, and that his "agitation from psychosis" was not caused by the deputies.

Sadly, this situation is an example of how difficult it is for society as a whole, including deputies in a jail, to handle the complex issues presented by those suffering from severe mental illness, he said.

(Reporting by Keith Coffman in Denver; Editing by Dan Whitcomb and Lisa Shumaker)
North Korea has arrested an American college student who it says entered the country in an attempt to bring down the government. The news was released Friday in an announcement on the website of the country's state-run media, Korean Central News Agency.

The student, identified as Otto Frederick Warmbier, was accused of "perpetrating a hostile act against the DPRK," and disguising his plans by entering as a tourist. KCNA also accused Warmbier of working with "the tacit connivance of the U.S. government and under its manipulation."

Otto Frederick Warmbier (as identified by the BBC)

T KCNA report was confirmed by the North Korea adventure tour group Young Pioneer Tours through a statement on its website. Warmbier, reported the Associated Press, is an undergraduate commerce major from the University of Virginia. A Facebook page believed to be his identifies him as a Cincinnati native.

Mic reached out to YPT, which did not return request for comment. In a statement the company said that they were "working with the [North Korean] Ministry of Foreign Affairs to address the case," as well as "assisting the U.S Department of State closely with regards to the situation."

On numerous past occasions, the Communist country has jailed Americans. In 2009 journalists Euna Lee and Laura Ling were detained while filming a documentary along the North Korean border, accused of illegally entering the country. The pair was only sprung after the personal intervention of former President Bill Clinton who traveled to the country and met with then-leader Kim Jong Il.

While successful, Clinton's involvement set a precedent that such detainments could win the North access to the highest reaches of the U.S. government. Since then, random acts of detention against U.S. citizens  rare before Lee and Ling  .

Kenneth Bae spent more than a year in a North Korean jail after being accused of illegal religious activity in the country. Merrill Newman did time after being a little too glib about his service in the U.S. Army fighting against the North in the Korean War  a war that technically remains ongoing. There was also Matthew Miller, Jeffrey Fowle and Robert Park. Warmbier now joins Kim Dong Chul, another U.S. citizen currently incarcerated in the country.

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In a profile published on Oprah.com, Laura Ling spoke of being coerced into a false confession of trying to overthrow the government by her interrogators:

I knew that that was the confession that they wanted to hear, and I was told, 'If you confess, there may be forgiveness. And if you're not frank, if you don't confess, then the worst could happen.' It was the most difficult decision to have to do that. I didn't know if I was sealing my fate and could be sent out to a firing squad the next day. But I just had to trust that this was the right thing to do.

The North has not elaborated on the exact nature of the Warmbier's crimes, but it likely aims to follow the same playbook  to use the college student as a means to access U.S. officials and gain economic concessions.

Coming just weeks after the North claims to have tested a hydrogen bomb, the DPRK may be looking to drag the U.S. back to some form of negotiation over the country's nuclear weapons  historically those negotiations have resulted in economic, food and energy aid for the impoverished country but have otherwise proved fruitless.

Friday morning the U.S. State Department acknowledged the allegations on Twitter:

We are aware of media reports a US citizen was detained in #NorthKorea. Welfare of US citizens is one of @StateDept's highest priorities.

In cases where US citizens are reported detained in #NorthKorea, we work closely with the Swedish Embassy.

With no formal diplomatic relations, the United States does not maintain an embassy in North Korea and consular service is typically handled by Sweden or back channels. At this time it remains unclear what steps will be taken to secure both Warmbier's and Chul's releases.

Correction: Jan. 22, 2016

A previous version of this story stated the State Department tweeted Thursday morning about reports of North Korea detaining an American citizen. The tweets came Friday morning.
By Alwyn Scott NEW YORK (Reuters) - China could "leapfrog" the United States in certain technological capabilities in coming years, thanks to its burgeoning investment in research and development, the head of Northrop Grumman Corp warned on Thursday. "Although the United States is still the leader overall in research and development spending, that is changing quickly," the defense company Chief Executive Wes Bush said in an address to the Wings Club, an aviation organization in New York. U.S. spending growth is lagging behind China's, he said, "a situation that acts like a break on progress and even places our nation's technological lead in jeopardy." Measured in purchasing power parity, China is expected to surpass the United States in R&D spending by around 2022, he said, adding that "the quality of R&D is China is impressive. U.S. Defense Undersecretary Frank Kendall has been critical about the high level of share buybacks among defense companies, which put a drain on capital resources, and recently said he hoped new research funding in the Pentagon's fiscal 2017 budget proposal would help motivate companies to invest more in internal research and development, or IRAD. Bush said he thought defense companies are striking the right balance between research spending and rewarding investors, but acknowledged Kendall's frustration. "Defense R&D has taken a very brutal hit" in recent U.S. budgets, he said. Bush said numerous emerging technologies where China is investing "represent avenues for potential leapfrogging." Among them, he cited cyber technology and synthetic biology as areas where China could assume global leadership. (Reporting by Alwyn Scott; Editin gby Tom Brown)
Its been a few weeks since the close of 2015, but its not too late to save money on your taxes and boost your retirement savings while youre at it.

The IRS allows you to put money aside in an IRA through April 15, as long as you specify that the contribution is for the 2015 tax year. Although it doesnt carry the same immediate benefits for your IRS filing, the contribution period for putting after-tax money into a Roth IRA also extends through April.

IRAs are a great savings vehicle for millions of Americans, particularly for those who dont have access to a 401(k) at work or whose employer-sponsored 401(k) has high fees or lousy options. Theyre also a place for those lucky folks who are maxing out their 401(k)s to stash additional tax-sheltered money.

Related: Why More Baby Boomers Wont Enjoy Retirement Like Their Parents

Planners love IRAs  especially Roths  for their flexibility and tax perks, but Americans consumers are less enamored. Just 8 percent of those surveyed by TIAA-CREF last year said that contributing to an IRA was their first financial priority, one-third the number who said that saving for things like vacations and household appliances topped their list.

Nearly 40 percent of those surveyed said that they werent contributing to an IRA because they didnt know enough about the accounts to consider one. If youre among those who could use a refresher, read on to learn what you need to know about IRAs:

1. Theyre easy to open. You can set up a Roth or a traditional IRA with just about any bank, brokerage or mutual fund company. The two accounts share contribution limits (currently $5,500 for younger savers, $6,500 for those over age 50), though there are some key differences in the two accounts, which well detail below.

Related: Ready for Retirement? Americans Saving More, but Still Not Enough

2. The tax implications depend on the type of account. Youll pay taxes now on any money contributed to a Roth, but the money then grows tax-free and you wont owe any taxes on qualified withdrawals. For most people, the Roth will give you more spendable income in retirement, says Stuart Ritter, a senior financial planning analyst at T. Rowe Price. The exception is if you think that your tax bracket is going to go down significantly in retirement.

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In a traditional IRA, your withdrawals will be taxed, but you may be able to deduct your contributions. If you have a retirement plan at work, deductible contributions phase out for individuals making between $61,000 and $71,000 and for joint filers earning between $98,000 and $118,000.

3. Roth IRAs have an income limit, but theres no age cut off. Roth IRA contribution limits phase in for individuals making between $116,000 to $131,000 and for married couples making between $183,000 and $193,000. Savers earning more than that will have to stick with a traditional IRA. It is possible to convert a traditional IRA to a Roth, but the rules get complicated so consult a CPA or financial advisor.

Related: Is It Time to Eliminate the Retirement Age?

Theres no age limit for contributing to a Roth IRA, but savers over age 70.5 can no longer put money into a traditional IRA.

4. Roths offer more flexibility on withdrawals. While theyre intended as retirement accounts, you can withdraw contributions (but not earnings) to a Roth at any time penalty-free. That flexibility makes Roth IRAs a good option for new savers who havent yet amassed both an emergency savings account and a retirement account. Since withdrawals can be made at anytime, the Roth can serve as both saving for retirement and emergencies until youre able to designate funds specifically for the latter.

The problem then is that it can then become tempting to take money out of your retirement account, says Ed Slott, author of the retirement-planning books Fund Your Future: A Tax-Smart Savings Plan in Your 20s and 30s and The Retirement Savings Time Bomb  and Hot to Defuse It. Hopefully you wont touch it, but if you have to, you know that you can.



Making pre-retirement (before age 59.5) withdrawals on a traditional IRA typically results in a 10 percent tax penalty. After age 70.5, however, youll have to start taking required minimum distribution, or RMD, each year, and paying taxes on them. Failing to take the required minimum withdrawal (which is calculated based on your life expectancy and account balance) results in a penalty of 50 percent of the amount you failed to withdraw.

Related: 3 Money Moves to Make When Stocks Are Sinking

5. You can contribute even if you have a 401(k). More than 80 percent of households with an IRA in 2014 also had some sort of workplace retirement plan, according to the Investment Company Institute.

You may not be able to deduct your contributions if you have a workplace retirement plan, but it may still be worth putting money in an IRA to get additional tax-deferred earnings. Since you decide where and how to invest your money, IRAs have far more options than 401(k)s and can be a good way to round out a portfolio with investments you may not have access to via your workplace plan.

Related: 7 Common Myths That Can Ruin Your Retirement 

6. You need to put the money to work. In your haste to meet the tax deadline, you might be tempted to park last-minute IRA contributions in a money-market fund. Thats a common move, but two-thirds of investors who put money into a money-market fund during tax season hadnt invested the cash four months later, according to a 2014 Vanguard report. What seems like prudent temporary decision can become an ill-advised longer-term investment choice, the report states, advising investors instead to make a target-date fund, which adjusts its investment mix based on your age, their default investment option.

7. Theyre a great place to stash old 401(k) money. If you took a new job last year and are unimpressed with the investment options in either your old 401(k) or the one offered by your new employer, you can take the money from your former plan and put it into an IRA of your choosing. Last year, more than half of affluent investors planned to roll their 401(k) money into an IRA, according to a study by Cogent Reports.

Now that youve got the basics, remember  you have until April 15 to make your 2015 contribution. If you have other questions about IRAs and how they work, email us at AskTFT@thefiscaltimes.com. Your questions could be used in a future article.

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By Nick Mulvenney MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Japan's Kei Nishikori played down a problem with his right wrist after outlasting Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 7-5 2-6 6-3 6-4 to move into the last 16 of the Australian Open on Friday. The seventh seed had some trouble with the joint in the early part of the match when his Spanish opponent mounted his sternest challenge but by the end of the two hour, 12 minute encounter, was playing at his free-flowing best. "It was little bit sore in the beginning, but after the treatment it was fine. I'm sure it's going to be okay," he said. "It was a really tough match. There were many long rallies. I have to give a lot of credit to him, because he was hitting really hard. I thought he was going to hit more spin, but he was hitting a lot of flat balls and it was going in. It was tough to play." The 26-year-old served out to love for victory, a fierce forehand winner to the left, a sumptuous top-spin forehand winner to the right and an ace giving him three-match points, the first of which he converted when Garcia-Lopez netted. Into the fourth round at Melbourne Park for the fifth straight year, Nishikori will next have a chance to avenge his loss to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in an epic five-setter in the quarter-finals of last year's French Open. "We played last year in French and I almost came back, but he raised his level in the fifth," recalled the former U.S. Open finalist. "It was really tough loss for me, so I hope I can revenge here. You know, I have been playing good and a lot of confidence coming up, so it's gonna be a good match." Ninth seed Tsonga followed Nishikori onto Margaret Court Arena and needed two tiebreaks to get past qualifier Pierre-Hugues Herbert 6-4 7-6(7) 7-6(4) in an all-French third round clash. Tsonga, an Australian Open finalist in 2008, danced a jig on court after pounding 23 aces to subdue his 24-year-old opponent, who made 46 unforced errors and ceded the match when he netted a backhand return. "It's never easy to play against a guy you like, it's never easy to find the motivation but I have to do it," said 30-year-old Tsonga. "I feel really good, a few times ago I was really fat but I'm feeling good and hopefully I can have a really good tournament." Tsonga was also looking forward to the re-match with Nishikori. "It's gonna be a really tough match, we've played a few times and it's always tight," he added. "It's going to be a different type of game." (Editing by Sudipto Ganguly)
By Kay Johnson ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan's Supreme Court lifted a ban on hunting a rare bird on Friday, after the government argued it hurt relations with Gulf states whose wealthy hunters traditionally travel to Pakistan to pursue the endangered species with falcons. The court ruling overturns a ban introduced last year on hunting the houbara bustard, pending new hearings of petitions by both the government and conservationists. Conservationists say the bird is at risk of extinction if hunting continues. Wealthy Arabs used to be granted special licenses to travel to Pakistan, with falcons worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, to hunt the bustard. Some believe the bird's meat is an aphrodisiac. The government last year asked the court to review the ban because it was damaging Pakistan's relations with Gulf states, key investors in the country. It argued that sustainable hunting of the bustard was the best means of conservation. The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists the bustard as a vulnerable species with a global population of between 50,000 and 100,000. It has almost vanished on the Arabian peninsula, Last year Pakistani wildlife officials fined a Qatari prince and seized two of his prized falcons after he was discovered hunting the bird without a permit. (Writing by Tommy Wilkes; editing by Andrew Roche)
By Kay Johnson ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan's Supreme Court lifted a ban on hunting a rare bird on Friday, after the government argued it hurt relations with Gulf states whose wealthy hunters traditionally travel to Pakistan to pursue the endangered species with falcons. The court ruling overturns a ban introduced last year on hunting the houbara bustard, pending new hearings of petitions by both the government and conservationists. Conservationists say the bird is at risk of extinction if hunting continues. Wealthy Arabs used to be granted special licences to travel to Pakistan, with falcons worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, to hunt the bustard. Some believe the bird's meat is an aphrodisiac. The government last year asked the court to review the ban because it was damaging Pakistan's relations with Gulf states, key investors in the country. It argued that sustainable hunting of the bustard was the best means of conservation. The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists the bustard as a vulnerable species with a global population of between 50,000 and 100,000. It has almost vanished on the Arabian peninsula, Last year Pakistani wildlife officials fined a Qatari prince and seized two of his prized falcons after he was discovered hunting the bird without a permit. (Writing by Tommy Wilkes; editing by Andrew Roche)
DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - Turkey could do more in the fight against Islamic State militants, U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter said on Friday. "Turkey is a longtime friend of ours. It's a NATO ally. We're strongly in support of it. We stand with it in terms of defense of its own territory," Carter said at the World Economic Forum in Davos. "But the reality is it shares a big border with Iraq and Syria, which border has been porous to foreign fighters going in both directions and I think the Turks could do more," Carter added. "I think the Turks can do more to fight ISIL. They are helping us fight ISIL by for example hosting our aircraft in Turkey, I'm grateful for that. But I think they can do more." (Writing by Noah Barkin; Editing by Alexander Smith)
By Toby Sterling

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Philips said on Monday the sale of its $3.3-billion Lumileds business to Go Scale Capital was uncertain, due to U.S. government concerns.

Philips had announced in March an agreement to sell a stake of 80.1 percent in the business to Go Scale Capital, an investment fund of Asian private equity firms. But the Dutch company said on Monday the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) had expressed "certain unforeseen concerns" about the deal.

"Philips and Go Scale Capital will continue to engage with CFIUS and will take all reasonable steps to address its concerns, but given these, the closing of the transaction is uncertain," Philips said.

Lumileds comprises Philips' automotive lighting business and its LED components business. GSR Ventures, Oak Investment Partners, Asia Pacific Resource Development, and Nanchang Industrial Group all participate in Go Scale.
By Robin Emmott and Wiktor Szary BRUSSELS/WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland is putting its own spin on a nuanced NATO plan to deter Moscow in eastern Europe without stationing permanent troops on Russia's borders, prompting disquiet from allies including Britain, which needs Warsaw's help in EU reform negotiations. Poland's defense minister on Thursday seized on Britain's announcement that it is sending troops for exercises in the country, telling local radio that London would station 1,000 military personnel in Poland from next year. Britain's defense ministry declined to comment, but alliance diplomats say there are no such plans. Britain is providing nearly 1,000 troops for two NATO exercises later this year, as well as 1,000 personnel in four years' time, when Poland will lead the new NATO rapid-reaction spearhead force. But the subtlety of the language used to promote the new NATO deterrent policy in the east is an opportunity for Poland's new conservative government. Warsaw, which is hosting the NATO summit in July, has called for a permanent NATO troop presence in the past and the new government has intensified those demands. NATO's current compromise aims to have a "persistent" - rather than "permanent" - military in the east, based on a new network of eight small NATO outposts, more war games, and, if needed, a rapid response force, including air, maritime and special operations components of up to 40,000 personnel. "Some people say 'permanent', others use 'persistent', other people use 'rotation'. In fact we are talking about the same thing," General Petr Pavel, chairman of NATO's military committee, told a news conference on Thursday. The idea is to reassure the ex-Soviet countries in NATO that they are protected from the kind of annexation Russia orchestrated in February in 2014 in Crimea, while avoiding a return to the Cold War, when the United States had some 300,000 service personnel stationed in Europe. NATO also wants to keep a 1997 promise to Moscow not to permanently station forces on the Russian border, thereby avoiding antagonizing a newly-assertive Russia and reach a peace settlement in eastern Ukraine, where NATO says Russia supports the rebels with weapons and troops. Russia responded on Friday by saying it will form four new military divisions this year to strengthen its western and central regions because of the stepped-up exercises, which NATO set out in a calendar published on Thursday. That is exactly the kind of reaction NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg wants to avoid, saying last year that he will not be "dragged into an arms race". BREXIT LINK Publicising NATO's message is a sensitive task, because eastern and Baltic NATO allies hope that a persistent NATO military presence in the east may one day become permanent, whereas NATO wants to avoid giving that impression. Poland and the Baltic states prepared a joint position in May last year to lobby NATO for the permanent stationing of a brigade. All three former Soviet republics have Russian minorities and fear Kremlin moves to inflame tensions there after the pro-Russian insurrection in eastern Ukraine. Polish President Andrzej Duda said last week at NATO he wanted any NATO troop presence to be "permanent to the greatest extent possible". NATO allies such as Germany and Britain are against stationing forces permanently in the east. But Britain is also wary of publicly criticizing the Polish government as London seeks its support in negotiations aimed at keeping Britain in the European Union ahead of a referendum on "Brexit" expected in June. Poland is understood to be open to compromise over British demands to limit the rights of EU migrants if London helps build up NATO's presence in central Europe. NATO's main focus is on a 5,000-strong "spearhead" force, part of which can move within 48 hours. But Poland's Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski said that was not enough. "A few years ago, it was assumed that (the eastern flank's security) could be guaranteed through a support mechanism, a spearhead," he said on Thursday at a joint news conference with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Warsaw. "Today, this position is evolving and is starting to head in the direction of security guarantees being fulfilled through ... a presence of allied troops." (Additional reporting by Justyna Pawlak in Warsaw; editing by Andrew Roche)
WARSAW (Reuters) - Britain will permanently station 1,000 military personnel in Poland from next year, Poland's defence minister said late on Thursday, in apparent contradiction of an announcement by Britain about plans for temporary exercises on Polish soil. On Wednesday, the British Ministry of Defence said London would send nearly 1,000 military personnel to take part in NATO exercises in Poland. But Poland's Antoni Macierewicz told Catholic broadcaster Radio Maryja that Poland and Britain had agreed at a meeting of foreign and defence ministers in Scotland that troops would stay in Poland permanently. "One of the decisions, which resulted from yesterday's talks (is) a permanent presence of the British forces on Polish territory, that is 1,000 soldiers, who will permanently station on Polish territory from next year," Macierewicz said. "They will switch around, it will be a rotational, but permanent presence of 1,000 soldiers." The Ministry of Defence in London declined to comment on Friday. Warsaw, which is due to host a NATO summit in July, has repeatedly pressed for more NATO forces on its soil and elsewhere in former communist-ruled Europe, arguing it needed a stronger response to Russian aggression in eastern Ukraine. But some of its NATO allies are reluctant to permanently station troops in the region, wary of violating a 1997 NATO-Russia agreement on the size of forces the alliance can have in former Warsaw Pact countries. Moscow has previously signalled it would regard the establishment of a standing NATO presence on its borders as a hostile act. "PERMANENT BASES" Some Western governments are also concerned about the cost of permanent new bases at a time when defence budgets are strained by fiscal austerity or costly engagements elsewhere. Macierewicz said, however, that having British troops in Poland meant that a permanent NATO presence in Poland was "realistic". "Not so long ago we were told that it will be impossible to get permanent bases, NATO presence ... that it's an unrealistic demand," he said. "Well, it turns out it's realistic." Macierewicz's spokesman was not immediately available to comment about the apparent contradiction with the British announcement. Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski said earlier this month Poland could be open to compromise over British demands to limit the rights of EU migrants if London helped it bolster the NATO presence in central Europe. In a statement issued on Wednesday after a meeting between Macierewicz and his British counterpart Michael Fallon in Edinburgh, the Ministry of Defence said Britain would send around 800 military personnel to NATO's Exercise Anakonda. The statement said that for Exercise Swift Response, Britain would commit 150 personnel to "elements of a Brigade HQ, Battlegroup HQ and a Company". Britain will also commit around 1,000 personnel to the Polish-led Very High Readiness Joint Task Force in 2020, the statement said. The force has no permanent base. The frigate HMS Iron Duke will visit Poland as part of NATO's Standing Naval Maritime Group this summer, the helicopter carrier HMS Ocean will participate in Exercise BALTOPS in the Baltic Sea over the summer, and a Royal Navy minehunter is due to visit Poland in the autumn, the statement also said. (Reporting by Wiktor Szary and Pawel Florkiewicz; Additional reporting by Estelle Shirbon in London; Editing by Andrew Roche)
Vatican City (AFP) - Pope Francis spoke out Friday over the increasingly aggressive nature of much political discourse and the use of social media as a forum for personal abuse.

In a message published on the same day that the Twitter-friendly pontiff met Apple boss Tim Cook, Francis said digital technology and the Internet could help bring people together but also had the potential to create deep wounds.

"Our words and actions should be such as to help us all escape the vicious circles of condemnation and vengeance which continue to ensnare individuals and nations, encouraging expressions of hatred," he said.

The pope urged politicians and others in positions of power "to remain especially attentive to the way they speak of those who think or act differently or those who may have made mistakes."

And he emphasised the importance of everyone applying the same principle to encounters in cyberspace by showing respect for "the neighbour whom we do not see."

"It is not technology which determines whether or not communication is authentic, but rather the human heart and our capacity to use wisely the means at our disposal," Francis said.

"Social networks can facilitate relationships and promote the good of society, but they can also lead to further polarization and division between individuals and groups.

"The digital world is a public square, a meeting-place where we can either encourage or demean one another, engage in a meaningful discussion or unfair attacks."

The Vatican did not release any details of the pope's meeting with Cook, who was in Italy to inaugurate a new Apple applications research centre in Naples. Francis met last week with Google supremo Eric Schmidt.
Lisbon (AFP) - Portugal has proposed former prime minister and ex head of the UN refugee agency Antonio Guterres as a candidate for UN secretary general, Prime Minister Antonio Costa said Friday.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon's second five-year term expires at the end of the year and some candidatures have already been announced including those of UNESCO chief Irina Bokova -- endorsed by her native Bulgaria -- as well as former Slovenian president Danilo Turk.

"The government will present the candidacy of Antonio Guterres," Costa told the Publico newspaper.

Guterres, 66, just finished his term as the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in December, a post he had held since 2005.

He served as Portuguese prime minister from 1995 to 2002 and is known for capacity for dialogue. Guterres is a Socialist and pro-European.

Before stepping down as UN refugee chief last year, he repeatedly sounded alarm bells on the burgeoning migrant crisis saying humanitarian agencies were now at a "breaking point" due to the enormous numbers.

"In the last few years, we have seen a staggering escalation of displacement caused both by conflict and by natural hazards," Guterres said in December.

Conflicts and serious crises are raging in 27 countries, and six of them -- the Central African Republic, Burundi, Nigeria, South Sudan, Syria and Yemen -- have spilled over to surrounding regions, bringing the total number of countries currently in peril to a staggering 37, the UN said last month.

The conflicts have forced more than 60 million people to flee their homes worldwide, with those escaping violence in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan especially sparking Europe's biggest migration crisis since World War II.
By Edmund Blair NAIROBI (Reuters) - Save the Children charity said on Friday it had raised less than a third of what it needed for its campaign to help Ethiopia cope with drought which has left 10.2 million people critically short of food. Experts say the drought is worse than the one in 1984, when years of conflict followed by the failure of rains led to a famine that killed up to a million people. This time, Ethiopia is better positioned to respond after rapid economic growth, but still risks being overwhelmed as it digs into strategic food reserves. "The scale of the need is really huge and has outstripped the Ethiopian governments ability to do this on their own," Save the Children President Carolyn Miles told Reuters from the United States after a visit to Ethiopia. The drought has mainly been blamed on El Nino, a weather pattern causing rainfall to decline in some areas of the world and floods elsewhere. Save the Children has been seeking $100 million for the next 12 to 18 months, but so far has only $30 million. "One of the hardest things right now is getting the awareness up," Miles said. The U.N. World Food Programme is also facing a funding shortfall. It needs $480 million to help meet the needs of about 7.6 million of 10.2 million at risk in coming months, but has raised just under $60 million, a WFP official said. Save the Children has ranked Ethiopia a Category 1 emergency, like the Syrian crisis. Miles said the Syrian conflict, rumbling on for five years, had "really stretched the humanitarian system", making it harder to find international support for Ethiopia. Ethiopia was showing more openness than in the past in publicising the crisis, which could help. "But because there is so much stress and strain on the humanitarian system, I am not sure how much of a difference that will make," she said. Ethiopia was using its food reserves cautiously to make them last, Miles said. Some families received rations for not all of their members, while handouts were often made only every other month. More international aid would make the government "more comfortable using (the) reserves," she said. Almost 5.8 million of those facing critical food shortages are children, with 400,000 severely malnourished or close to it, making them highly susceptible to pneumonia or malaria, Miles said. "We really want people to act now when we can actually save those childrens lives," she said. (Editing by Andrew Roche)
By Rod Nickel WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - Five people were killed and two critically injured in a school shooting in a remote part of Saskatchewan on Friday and a suspect is in custody, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said. Trudeau did not give a motivation for the shooting in La Loche, about 600 km (375 miles) north of the city of Saskatoon. But La Loche acting Mayor Kevin Janvier told the Canadian Press the incident may have started at the suspect's home. Im not 100 percent sure whats actually happened but it started at home and ended at the school," Janvier said. Mass shootings are relatively rare in Canada, which has stricter gun laws than the United States. With five dead, La Loche would be the country's worst school shooting since 14 college students were killed at Montreal's Ecole Polytechnique in 1989. "Obviously this is every parent's worst nightmare," said Trudeau, who was in Davos, Switzerland for the annual World Economic Forum. The shooting occurred in building that houses middle school and high school students, according to the Facebook page of the district, which has about 900 students. Extra doctors and nurses have been sent to treat patients in Keewatin Yatthe Regional Health Authority's 16-bed hospital, said spokesman Dale West. Teddy Clark, chief of the Clearwater River Dene Nation, said that his daughter told him about the shooting, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported. "We're just trying to pull together here and make sense of all this," Clark told CBC television. "It's not a very pretty scene right now." La Loche student Noel Desjarlais told the CBC that he heard multiple shots fired at the school. "I ran outside the school," Desjarlais said. "There was lots of screaming, there was about six, seven shots before I got outside. I believe there was more shots by the time I did get out." A cellphone video taken by one resident and broadcast by the CBC showed students walking away from the school through the snow-covered ground and emergency personnel moving in. In 2014, a teacher expressed concern about violence at the La Loche school, citing an incident where a student who had tried to stab her was put back in her classroom after serving his sentence, and another attacked her at her home. "That student got 10 months," Janice Wilson told the CBC of the student who tried to stab her in class. "And when he was released he was returned to the school and was put in my classroom." (Additional reporting by Susan Taylor and Jeffrey Hodgson in Toronto and Martinne Geller in Davos, Switzerland; Writing by Lisa Shumaker; Editing by Grant McCool)
Back when radio announcers ended their shows by listing the names of American soldiers killed in Iraq  not so very long ago, was it?  artist Matt Kenyon got it in his head to make an IED. The only person it would hurt was himself.

To make his Improvised Empathetic Device, Kenyon got techy. He wrote a program to scrape websites that reported the killings of American soldiers in Iraq. He rigged an armband up to his computer, and when bad news came, the IED would stab me with a needle once for every person who died, he says. The pain was tolerable, like a wasp or bee sting, and though he developed bruises, Kenyon figured that was nothing compared with the sufferings of others; his father and stepfather both served in Vietnam. Yet over time he grew to dread Friday afternoons, when he was teaching in the studio at the State University of New York, Fredonia. It took him a while to realize his anxiety was related to the deluge of casualty reports released at the end of the week.

As many Americans as were killed fighting in Iraq, Kenyon knew the Iraqi civilian death toll was higher. There was no easy way to embody that pain, even a simulacrum of it. [W]e dont do body counts on other people, former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld said, in 2002. But some nongovernmental organizations and public health researchers did, and Kenyon decided to make a memorial to civilian casualties on the other side  to count the dead, to name their names.

It wouldnt be like other memorials, he knew. Kenyon didnt want a sculpture languishing off in some corner where people could choose to visit or not. He wanted the memorial to get right under our noses. He wanted the names of the forgotten to be recorded for history. And so, as he describes in his TED Talk, he settled on the humblest of office products: the legal notepad.

Notepad banner

With a loupe, you can see the names of Iraqi civilians in the lines of the legal pad.

Source: SWAMP

Kenyon had some experience with printing. He had trained as a printmaker and painter before attending grad school, where he opened to the possibilities of more experimental, conceptual and data-driven art. What better place to print the names of the all-but-forgotten than in the lines of a legal pad? The civilians were a subtext, a line no one was paying attention to, Kenyon says. And legal pads, the stationery of lawyers and politicians, could circulate in the halls of power.

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And they did. Kenyon wont describe the methods by which he smuggled the pads in and infiltrated the office supplies of the Capitol. That took a while, he admits. Its a very nervous thing, to case Capitol Hill. Since he didnt want the memorials to be treated like scrap paper and thrown away, he made a preservation plan. He would distribute sheets of paper, for free, to citizens who promised to write letters to members of government. We know that those letters are kept in archives and libraries, he says, and so they would be treated with care and chemicals and stored for as long as the U.S. is powerful.

The legal pad is now in its fourth edition, and yes, you can procure a couple of sheets of that subversive paper on Kenyons website. Or you can see a pad at New York Citys Museum of Modern Art, where its on permanent display. (The IED, by the way, can be found at the Centre de Cultura Contemporania de Barcelona.)

As for Kenyon, now 38 and a professor at the University of Michigan, hes at work on a bunch of other projects. He wont say much about the work related to drone strikes. Hes happy, though, to talk about Giant Pool of Money, a sculpture related to the 2008 financial crisis. At its center is an 8-foot-tall pyramid of Champagne glasses next to a conveyor belt rigged up to a change machine. A viewer can insert a dollar, and thus start a process: Quarters made from gallium, a metal with a low melting point, begin to drop into the glass at the top of the pyramid. The quarters melt, and ooze, and turn the color of mercury. They take on the aspect of toxicity, spreading.

Matt Kenyon's Subversive Art

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Melbourne (AFP) - World number one Serena Williams Friday showed no mercy to Daria Kasatkina in a straight-sets demolition at the Australian Open on Friday, but then offered words of encouragement to the overawed teenager.

The six-time Melbourne Park winner and defending champion easily out-muscled the young Russian 6-1, 6-1 on Rod Laver Arena in just 44 minutes, the shortest match of the tournament so far.

It sets her up with a fourth-round clash against another Russian, Margarita Gasparyan, with a quarter-final beckoning against old foe Maria Sharapova -- a showdown Williams would be confident of winning.

She has beaten Sharapova in every match they have played since 2004.

"I definitely think I played better today. Everything I've been trying to work on was kind of clicking today," she said.

"I thought I played pretty well in the other matches. My first match I thought I gave a great effort. My second match I thought, under the circumstances, I thought I played well. Hopefully with each match I can just do better."

Playing on centre court against the top seed at a Grand Slam was a huge occasion for the 18-year-old Kasatkina, who was not just making her debut at the tournament but is on her first ever trip to Australia.

- 'Bright future' -

"She has such a bright future. She's so young and she's headed in the right direction," she said, adding that she felt it was important for older players to help nurture the younger generation.

"I think it's important. We definitely want to encourage each other. This is our sport. We want to see it grow,' she said.

"Ultimately you want to see it be the best sport for women and continue to be the best sport and biggest sport for women.

"Hopefully we can all encourage and just hope for the best."

Kasatkina came into the event as the world's 69th-ranked player but was no match for the composed and massively experienced American, who is gunning to equal Steffi Graf's Open-era record of 22 Grand Slam titles.

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The powerful Williams wasted little time in laying down the law, winning a break for a 2-0 lead with the Russian barely getting her racquet on the ball as she was pushed around the court.

Kasatkina managed to get on the scoreboard in holding serve for 1-3 but she had no answers to Williams' serve as she rattled through the set in just 22 minutes.

After her second-round win, Williams said she was pleased by her consistency and lack of errors, and it was a similar story on Friday.

She made few mistakes in a dominant display and broke in the first game of the second set with outgunned Kasatkina struggling against the Williams weaponry.

Kasatkina didn't give up and won a service game to be 1-2, but that was as good as it got as Williams cantered to the finish line.

Despite her impressive performance, Williams said she could be better.

"I never think I'm playing fantastic ... I'm always very hard on myself," she said. "I always feel like there's room for improvement."

Williams won three majors -- the Australian and French Opens and Wimbledon -- last year which took her to within one of Graf's long-time record of 22.

She claimed her first Australian Open title in 2003, beating sister Venus in the final, and reached her sixth last year when she toppled Sharapova.
Madrid (AFP) - Spain's acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on Friday abandoned attempts to form a government due to lack of support in parliament, a statement issued by the royal palace said, a month after inconclusive elections.

The announcement came after the king, who had held a series of meetings with the leaders of political parties that won representation in parliament, invited Rajoy, of the conservative Popular Party (PP), to form a government.

"His majesty the King nominated him to form a government. Mr Mariano Rajoy thanked his majesty the King but declined the offer," the statement said.

The king will now hold a fresh round of consultations to chose another candidate.

The PP won the most seats (119) in the December poll but fell well short of an absolute majority in the 350-seat parliament

Rajoy had called for a "grand coalition" of the PP, the Socialists who came in second place winning 89 seats, and new centre-right party Ciudadanos which took 40 seats.

- 'Majority against me' -

But with no party expressing any intention of voting for Rajoy, and with only Ciudadanos offering to abstain from voting, Rajoy decided to withdraw.

"For the moment, I don't have the necessary support. I am maintaining my candidacy but I cannot present it today because not only do I not have a majority but there is a majority against me," he told reporters.

Earlier on Friday, the leader of Spain's anti-austerity party Podemos proposed forming a government with the Socialists, making a left-wing governing alliance more likely.

Pablo Iglesias told reporters he had informed King Felipe VI of "our desire to form a government of change with the Socialists and the United Left".

Socialist leader Pedro Sanchez should lead the government with the Podemos leader himself as deputy, said Iglesias.

Podemos, a close ally of Greece's ruling Syriza which came third in a general election on December 20, had so far not said if they would try to form a government with the Socialists.

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Last month's general election produced a hung parliament with no easy way of forming a ruling coalition majority.

A future government must win a vote of confidence in the assembly before taking office.

Socialist leader Pedro Sanchez has rejected the PP's advances and instead wants to form a left-wing alliance of "progressive forces" that includes Podemos and its allies who have 65 seats along with the United Left with two seats.

Sanchez welcomed the Podemos proposal but said the two parties needed to first reach an agreement on a programme.

"Podemos and Socialist voters would not understand if we did not reach an agreement," he told a news conference after he met with the king.

The formation of a left-wing coalition government has been complicated by Podemos' backing for an independence referendum in the wealthy northeastern region of Catalonia, which Sanchez fiercely opposes.

But Podemos, which did well in Catalonia, appears to have softened its position on the issue in recent days, saying it wants to focus on economic and social issues rather then the Catalan question.

- Support first -

The head of the United Left, Alberto Garzon, accepted the proposal and said he hoped negotiations could begin as soon as possible so there was a left-wing "government of change" as in neighbouring Portugal and Greece.

A left-wing coalition government would still need the support of tiny Catalan and Basque nationalist parties to survive a confidence vote in the event that Ciudadanos decided to vote for the PP.

Parliament has two months from the first confidence vote to approve a new government before fresh elections are triggered.

Sanchez said the PP should get the first chance at forming a government because it won the most seats in December and such a move would also respect "procedures".

Several PP lawmakers had in recent days tried to convince Rajoy not to not submit himself to a vote of confidence to avoid a humiliating defeat, a PP lawmaker who asked to remain anonymous told AFP.

Iglesias said a left-wing government would adopt measures within the first 100 days to prevent evictions of homeowners struggling to pay their mortgages and do more to help the long-term unemployed whose benefits have run out.

He also said a left-wing government would honour Spain's debt but "reduce the deficit at a slower rhythm" and would adopt measures to fight corruption and reform the justice and electoral system.
Frank Morales spent years in the 1980s and 90s walking the line between legal and illegal  unusual stomping ground for an Episcopal priest. Along with hundreds of others who routinely made homes in vacant buildings in New York Citys Lower East Side, Morales was squatting. Then as now, the cost of housing was ridiculous, and at the time, all kinds of properties languished, unloved and there for the taking by urban homesteaders. But anti-squatter pushback from the city was fierce, including mass evictions and surprise demolitions, with peoples pets and belongings trapped inside.

Morales no longer has to worry about that, because today he doesnt squat. No, he didnt move. Rather, in 2002, he was part of a complicated process through which 11 squats were granted ownership of their homes.

The neighborhood has changed too. In part because of Morales and his merry band of outlaw building renovators, the Lower East Side has gone from heroin central to, well, Whole Foods central. It was a form of protest as well as a necessity, says Morales, who, like many of his friends, built up his place from an empty, decrepit shell to the kind of charming dwelling that newcomers with finance gigs pay premium prices to emulate.



There are about 610,000 homeless people in the U.S., while approximately 17 million housing units remain vacant.

Nowadays, with the U.S. in the midst of an affordable housing crisis, we would be smart not just to applaud Morales craftiness and subversion but also to encourage others to do the same. The math is basic: On any given day, there are about 610,000 homeless people in the U.S., while approximately 17 million housing units remain vacant. Getting municipalities or banks to fork over abandoned buildings happens, but rarely. Thats where squatting comes in.

Virtually every state in the U.S. has laws permitting adverse possession after a fixed period, usually between 7 and 21 years. But it is not an easy gauntlet to run. Florida recently outlawed the practice, and in many other states, successful squatting is rare. Those who do succeed typically face multiple arrests and trespassing charges before they can call themselves proud homeowners.

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And while many today consider squatting the province of anarcho-punks (in some cases, it is), the concept dates back to the Code of Hammurabi, enacted by the first king of the Babylonian Empire circa 1754 B.C. Hammurabi introduced adverse possession, entitling someone who is tending to unoccupied land for a certain amount of time to legally claim that land. The idea was to improve land productivity and stewardship so that everyone would benefit.



Our society is much less agrarian now, but squatting has the same benefits today as in Hammurabis time. Nobody pays rent, utilities or property taxes on an abandoned building  and boarded-up windows arent exactly good for property values or neighborhood morale. Squatters-turned-homeowners make payments, rejuvenate the block and raise property values  and inspire the Jane Jacobs in us.

Of course, not everyone is on board. Squatters arent usually desperate families looking for any port in a storm but opportunists who try to profit from what is often someone elses misfortune, argues Steven Bender, a professor of law at Seattle University School of Law. Not all squatters are looking to rebuild houses; some end up treating the places poorly, he says.



Yet if the real benefit to society stems from occupation, and not just ownership, isnt it in all our best interests to make the road to legal possession a bit less illicit? Until then, caveat agripeta. Squatter, beware.

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The following isnt the silly plot of an upcoming movie starring Seth Rogen and James Franco, though the story of Leland Ayala-Doliente, 22, and Holland Sward, 23, is definitely worthy of a marijuana-fueled comedy: the two weed dealer wannabes were so high during what would have been a successful 20-pound smuggling operation that they called 911 to save them from the undercover police officers who were chasing them in civilian cars.

Best of all, the audio recording from this particular 911 call is available on YouTube in its entirety. And before you ask, no, there were no undercover police following them when they called for help.

DONT MISS: 25 hidden iPhone features that are really, truly hidden

Hi, were the two dumbas that got caught trying to bring some stuff through your border and all your cops are just driving around us like a bunch of jack wagons and Id just like you guys to end it. If you could help me out with that, we would just like to get on with that, Ayala-Doliente told the operator, as can be heard in the recording.

He continued, We kind of got spooked here trying to bring some stuff across your Idaho border. A bunch of your cops are driving around in a bunch of civilian cars not wanting to pick us up. I dont know whats the deal. I was just wondering if you could help us out and just end it.

The police came and apprehended the two suspects, who were found in a parking lot outside the car with their hands above their heads and the marijuana waiting to be collected, The Telegraph reports.

Ayala-Doliente, who tested positive for marijuana, cocaine and oxycodone on his sentencing day, got one-and-a-half to eight years in prison for drug trafficking. Sward was sentenced to 30 days in prison after pleading guilty to a downgraded charge of possession with intent to deliver.

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Yamaha introduces police bike designed for urban environments

Florida cop shows up drunk to an anti-drunk driving conference

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Dramatic police car chase video shows officer's brush with death

More from BGR: 25 hidden iPhone features that are really, truly hidden

This article was originally published on BGR.com
Davos (Switzerland) (AFP) - The world must act quickly to avert a future in which autonomous robots with artificial intelligence roam the battlefields killing humans, scientists and arms experts warned at an elite gathering in the Swiss Alps.

Rules must be agreed to prevent the development of such weapons, they said at a January 19-23 meeting of billionaires, scientists and political leaders in the snow-covered ski resort of Davos.

Angela Kane, the German UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs from 2012-2015, said the world had been slow to take pre-emptive measures to protect humanity from the lethal technology.

"It may be too late," she told a debate in Davos.

"There are many countries and many representatives in the international community that really do not understand what is involved. This development is something that is limited to a certain number of advanced countries," Kane said.

The deployment of autonomous weapons would represent a dangerous new era in warfare, scientists said.

"We are not talking about drones, where a human pilot is controlling the drone," said Stuart Russell, professor of computer science at University of California, Berkeley.

"We are talking about autonomous weapons, which means that there is no one behind it. AI: artificial intelligence weapons," he told a forum in Davos. "Very precisely, weapons that can locate and attack targets without human intervention."

- Robot chaos on battlefield -

Russell said he did not foresee a day in which robots fight the wars for humans and at the end of the day one side says: "OK you won, so you can have all our women."

But some 1,000 science and technology chiefs including British physicist Stephen Hawking, said in an open letter last July that the development of weapons with a degree of autonomous decision-making capacity could be feasible within years, not decades.

They called for a ban on offensive autonomous weapons that are beyond meaningful human control, warning that the world risked sliding into an artificial intelligence arms race and raising alarm over the risks of such weapons falling into the hands of violent extremists.

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"The question is can these machines follow the rules of war?" Russell said.

- 'Beyond comprehension' -

How, for an example, could an autonomous weapon differentiate between civilians, soldiers, resistance fighters and rebels? How could it know that it should not kill a pilot who has ejected from a plane and is parachuting to the ground?

"I am against robots for ethical reasons but I do not believe ethical arguments will win the day. I believe strategic arguments will win the day," Russell said.

The United States had renounced biological weapons because of the risk that one day they could deployed by "almost anybody", he said. "I hope this will happen with robots."

Alan Winfield, professor of electronic engineering at the University of the West of England, warned that removing humans from battlefield decision-making would have grave consequences.

"It means that humans are deprived from moral responsibility," Winfield said.

Moreover, the reaction of the robots may be hard to predict, he said: "When you put a robot in a chaotic environment, it behaves chaotically."

Roger Carr, chairman of the British aerospace and defence group BAE, agreed.

"If you remove ethics and judgement and morality from human endeavour whether it is in peace or war, you will take humanity to another level which is beyond our comprehension," Carr warned.

"You equally cannot put something into the field that, if it malfunctions, can be very destructive with no control mechanism from a human. That is why the umbilical link, man to machine, is not only to decide when to deploy the weapon but it is also the ability to stop the process. Both are equally important."
By Alister Doyle OSLO (Reuters) - Some white storks have taken to spending the winter in rubbish dumps eating garbage rather than making the usual, exhausting journey south across the Sahara, scientists said on Friday. The lure of landfills is a new sign of how human influences, ranging from climate change to pollution, disrupt migratory routes for animals from turtles to elephants, they said. Tracking juvenile white storks in countries from Spain to Uzbekistan, they found that some from Germany, for instance, spent the winter at landfills in Morocco rather than completing the traditional migratory route to sub-Saharan Africa. Some adult birds spent the winter in Spain or as far north as Nordic nations. "The storks use less energy and it seems they are benefiting" by abandoning migration, lead author Andrea Flack, of the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, said of the findings published in the journal Science Advances. In Uzbekistan, easily available food from man-made fish farms may have led to some birds staying put in winter, rather than flying south to Pakistan or Afghanistan, the scientists said. They tracked juvenile birds, born in countries including Armenia, Greece, Poland, Russia, Spain, Germany and Tunisia and Uzbekistan, by fitting them with satellite tracking devices. The majority flew all the way to Africa in winter. Many other migratory species face problems from man-made factors including dams, roads, forest clearances and wind turbines that can kill birds that fly into their blades. "A whole suite of impacts is disturbing migration," said Jean-Christophe Vie, of the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) which groups governments, scientists and environmentalists. "Climate change is one of the key factors." (Editing by Louise Ireland)
By Estelle Shirbon CANTERBURY, England (Reuters) - A Sudanese man who walked through the Channel Tunnel from France in an extreme example of the desperate measures refugees are prepared to take to reach Britain will face trial for obstructing a railway, a court was told on Thursday. Abdul Haroun, who is from the war-ravaged region of Darfur, walked for close to 12 hours in near total darkness last August, dodging high-speed trains and evading security cameras, before he was arrested by British police close to the English end of the tunnel at Folkestone. He was charged and sent to prison, where he remained until he was given bail on Jan. 4. In December he was also granted asylum by British authorities - a decision his supporters hoped would lead to the charge being dropped, but which tunnel operator Eurotunnel and some lawmakers criticised as encouraging other migrants to risk the walk. Thousands of migrants are camped out in squalor near the northern French ports of Calais and Dunkirk, seeking clandestine ways to enter Britain such as stowing away on trucks or trains. Haroun was the first person known to have made it through the 31-mile (50-km) tunnel on foot. Since then, two Iranian men have also walked through the tunnel. They too were arrested and charged with the same offence and are due to stand trial in April. FRAMING THE DEBATE The Calais and Dunkirk camps are among many flashpoints in a continent-wide crisis that saw over 1 million refugees and migrants enter Europe last year, most to escape war and poverty in the Middle East and Africa. Almost 3,700 died or went missing in the attempt. In Britain, Haroun's case has framed a heated political debate over whether refugees should be welcomed or stopped from coming. The issue will feature heavily in campaigning for a referendum on whether Britain should stay in the European Union, expected to take place later this year. Since being freed on bail, Haroun has been living with a volunteer from a charity that has supported him through his detention, prosecution and asylum application. Haroun attended Thursday's hearing at a court in Canterbury, southeast England, in a dark grey suit and a blue shirt and surrounded by supporters. He spoke only to confirm his name. About a dozen refugee rights campaigners staged a protest outside the courthouse, holding up banners in support of Haroun. The offence with which he is charged carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison. Judge Adele Williams provisionally set Haroun's trial for June 20 and extended his bail. (Editing by Stephen Addison and John Stonestreet)
In the sub-zero temperatures of Utah, U.K.-based documentary banner Dogwoof has swooped on Jim: The James Foley Story, Brian Oakes' directorial debut chronicling the life, work and death of U.S. war correspondent James Foley.

The film  which is having its world premiere in Sundance and saw its U.S. TV rights picked up by HBO Documentary Films earlier in the month  will be represented for international sales by Dogwoof, which will present it to buyers at the EFM in Berlin next month. Dogwoof will also distribute the film itself in the U.K. this year.

Foley was kidnapped in Syria on Thanksgiving Day in 2012 while working for Agence France-Presse and GlobalPost and went missing for two years before the infamous video of his public execution in 2014 at the hands of ISIS sent shockwaves around the world. Director Oakes, a close childhood friend of the photojournalist, tells his story through intimate interviews with family, friends and colleagues, while fellow hostages reveal never-before-heard details of his captivity.

Jim is a deeply immersive film which offers an unparalleled insight into the world of being a hostage. It's simply extraordinary, in every way," said Dogwoof CEO Anna Godas. "The fact that Dogwoof has been trusted to handle this film is a total privilege."

Oakes added that the film had "tremendous significance" outside of the U.S. because of the story's global impact. "His work as a journalist crossed many borders," he said. "Because Jim was held in Syria with eighteen other hostages which included citizens from France, Spain, Denmark, Germany, Britain, Russia and Italy, many of the films interviews took place in Europe."

Jim: The James Foley Story is produced by Eva Lipman, George Kunhardt and Teddy Kunhardt and exec produced by Peter Kunhardt. It also includes an original song "The Empty Chair, written by J. Ralph & Sting, who is set to attend Sundance on Saturday for a performance in support of the film.

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See More: THR's Photo Lounge at Sundance: Don Cheadle, Ellen Page, Nick Jonas and More Stars of Park City
Berlin (AFP) - A Syrian suspected of being among jihadists who kidnapped a UN peacekeeper in Damascus in 2013 has been arrested over the "war crime", Germany's federal prosecutor said Friday.

The 24-year-old man named as Suliman A.-S. is believed to be a member of a branch of the Al-Nusra Front jihadist group, the prosecutor said.

Investigations found that he had participated in the kidnapping on February 17, 2013 and was "involved in guarding the kidnapped victim between March and June 2013".

He is "suspected of an attack during Syria's civil war against a person, who was involved in a peacekeeping mission under the United Nations Charter, and was therefore entitled to protection," said the prosecutor.

"The arrest warrant against him is on suspicion of a war crime against a humanitarian operation," the prosecutor added.

The peacekeeper with the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) in the Golan Heights managed to free himsexlf in October 2013. It was unclear why he had been in Damascus.

The peacekeeper's identity was not revealed by German prosecutors, but the UN had said in 2013 that Carl Campeau, a Canadian legal advisor, was abducted on February 17 as he drove through a Damascus suburb.

He was freed in October, without a ransom being paid.

Two groups of UNDOF peacekeepers were also abducted in the same year in the Golan Heights ceasefire zone, the first comprising of 21 soldiers, and the second four. All were Filipinos and subsequently freed.

UNDOF, which has been in the Golan Heights since 1974, had about 1,000 troops and civilian staff in 2013. The 917 troops from Austria, India, the Philippines, Morocco and Moldova carried only very light arms.

In the wake of the spate of kidnappings, Austria withdrew its force over security reasons.
By John Irish PARIS (Reuters) - Syrian Kurds must be represented at peace talks in Geneva or they will fail, a Syrian Kurdish leader said on Friday. Saleh Muslim, co-chair of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), also said one of the opposition groups involved, Jaysh al-Islam, had the "same mentality" as al Qaeda and Islamic State. The negotiations, due to begin on Jan. 25 in Geneva, look increasingly uncertain for reasons including a dispute over the composition of the opposition delegation. "If there are some parties that are effective in this Syria issue who are not at the table, it will be the same as what happened in Geneva 2," Muslim told Reuters, referring to failed negotiations in 2014. "The negotiations and political solution will fail so we are keen to have everyone at the table." Russia wants the opposition negotiating team expanded to include other figures that could be deemed closer to its own thinking as well as the main Syrian Kurdish party, the PYD, and the affiliated YPG militia. The YPG has meanwhile established close ties with the United States and is an important partner in the fight it is leading against Islamic State militants in Syria. The Saudi-backed opposition council has said it will boycott the Geneva negotiations if Russia insists on such a shake-up. Its chief negotiator Mohamad Alloush said on Thursday the PYD's "natural place" was with the government delegation and the opposition has accused the Kurds of fighting rebel groups. Muslim dismissed those suggestions as propaganda, saying Kurdish groups were not cooperating with the Syrian government and were defending themselves against groups that one day were affiliated to radical Islamists and another day calling themselves moderates. 'NOT ACCEPTABLE' When asked whether the Riyadh opposition platform set up in December was a step forward compared to previous opposition delegations, Muslim took aim at Alloush's Jaysh al-Islam group, which Russia has called a terrorist group. "Their mentality is the same as the Nusra Front and Daesh. They clearly want to establish an Islamic state," he said. "The Riyadh platform is accepting to establish an Islamic caliphate. It's not acceptable." In an interview in May last year, the late leader of Jaysh al-Islam, Zahran Alloush, backed away from previous hardline rhetoric, saying the Syrian people would be free to choose the type of state they want and calling Alawites - President Bashar al-Assad's minority sect - part of the Syrian people. A French diplomatic source said it was clear that at the end of the process the PYD and its affiliates would have to be associated to a definitive accord, but in the short-term it would be problematic. "We can't risk exploding the (Riyadh) opposition platform. The opposition considers that the PYD is not opposed to the regime and has no place being on its side of the table," the source said. "They have set parameters for talks and the first is that Bashar al-Assad goes. As far as I can tell that's not the PYD's position." The YPG militia has seized swathes of Syria from Islamic State with the help of U.S.-led strikes. The Syrian Kurds have declared an autonomous administration across parts of northern Syria along the Turkish border, rankling Ankara, which has fought a decades-long insurgency against Kurdish PKK separatists. "I don't know what will happen, but we are very keen to stop the bloodshed," he said. "I think this is the beginning of the political solution. It will take time." (Reporting By John Irish; Editing by Janet Lawrence)
BEIRUT (Reuters) - At least 30 people were killed in air raids carried out by Russian or Syrian warplanes near the city of Deir al-Zor in eastern Syria on Friday, a group monitoring the war said. The strikes hit the town of Tabiyat Jazira, the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The dead included more than a dozen children, it said. Russian jets have been bombing around Deir al-Zor as Syrian pro-government forces clash with Islamic State fighters, who control most of the province. The group has besieged remaining government-held areas of the city since last March, and last week launched new attacks. (Reporting by John Davison; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
ALMATY (Reuters) - Tajikistan's parliament approved constitutional changes on Friday that give veteran president Imomali Rakhmon the right to run for any number of terms, citing his status as "Leader of the Nation", a title bestowed by lawmakers last month. Constitutional changes and a referendum have already allowed Rakhmon to successfully run for president four times, most recently in 2013, when he was re-elected for a seven-year term. The Central Asian parliament, dominated by Rakhmon's supporters, has sent the amendments to the Constitutional Court to be reviewed, the final stage before a popular vote. Another proposed amendment reduces the minimum age for presidential candidates to 30 from 35. Rakhmon's elder son, Rustam Imomali, is 28 and will be 33 when his father's second term ends in 2020. A third major change will ban political parties from being established based on religious platforms. This will ensure that the main opposition force, the Islamic Renaissance Party of Tajikistan, does not reform after being outlawed last year. Although Tajikistan does not export oil, the plunge in oil prices has hit it hard, partly because hundreds of thousands of Tajiks work in Russia and support their families through remittances whose value has shrunk due to the rouble's decline. (Reporting by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Louise Ireland)
Is the world too indebted? Yahoo Finance editor-in-chief Andy Serwer is joined by an esteemed group of economic and policy leaders from around the globe to debate what strategies policy makers and market makers should deploy in managing debt, and whether rapidly growing sovereign, corporate, and private debt will lead to the next global economic shock.

Debt owed by Chinas state-owned enterprises, the strength of the global economy, student debt, and emerging-market debt are among the topics discussed by the panel.

Panel members:
Kano (Nigeria) (AFP) - Thousands of Nigerian refugees, who fled to neighbouring Cameroon in 2014 to escape Boko Harm militants, have returned to the liberated northeastern town of Gamboru only to find their homes and their livelihoods destroyed, residents and officials told AFP Friday.

Over the past three days more than 15,000 Nigerians have crossed the 300-metre (yard) river bridge that forms the border with Cameroon, following calls by military and local leaders for residents to return, an official in Gamboru said.

"More are coming in everyday," he added.

Boko Haram fighters seized Gamboru in violence-wracked Borno state in August 2014, forcing thousands to flee across the border to the town of Fotokol on the other bank of the river in northern Cameroon.

Chadian forces reclaimed Gamboru in February last year, after intense fighting that left hundreds of insurgents dead, as part of a regional military coalition put together to crush the Islamist group which has become a threat to regional security.

"We found a looted and burnt out town which is a shadow of its former self," said Abacha Mari, one of those who returned to Gamboru on Wednesday.

"More than nine-tenths of the buildings in the town have been damaged by fire while the rest have been washed away by the rains," he added.

"Everything was looted and the streets are barely recognisable."

- 'Nobody found anything ' -

Gamboru has been repeatedly targeted in the Boko Haram insurrection which has cost the lives of 17,000 people in Nigeria and made over 2.5 million homeless since 2009.

Although Boko Haram were forced out of Gamboru 11 months ago, the refugees say they are only now beginning to feel confident enough to return because the Nigerian army has sent a large contingent to the town.

The return of the refugees is being coordinated by Cameroonian soldiers and local officials in Gamboru, the returning residents said.

The Nigerian refugees and their belongings were screened at the Cameroonian side of the bridge by soldiers using sniffer dogs to detect explosives before they were allowed cross back into Nigeria, where officials were ready to welcome them and provided them with the necessary papers for their return.

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Returning residents scoured their empty homes in the vain hope of finding any personal effects neglected by Boko Haram.

"Nobody found anything in their homes which have been looted and burnt," said returnee Ibrahim Wanzan.

The destruction that they found came as no surprise. Some of the refugees had already visited Gamboru under the protection of Chadian soldiers in February 2015 and described it then as a"ghost town".

A key source of the locals' livelihood, the market, has also been destroyed. It formerly attracted traders from neighbouring Chad and Cameroon.

"Our main problem is food and how to rebuild our homes," Wanzan said.

The returned residents have been living on the food they brought from Fotokol and desperately hope to receive aid from the Nigerian government before supplies run out, Mari said.

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) plans to send aid to Gamboru in coming days.

"We are aware of the return of thousands of Gamboru residents from Cameroon and we are working to send relief items to them in the next few days," a NEMA official told AFP.
(Reuters) - China has taken a series of steps to stabilise its foreign exchange market and stock market amid the slowing growth of the world's second largest economy. The yuan has been in bearish pressure at a loss of 2.8 percent since Nov. 30 when the Chinese currency was admitted into the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) benchmark Special Drawing Rights (SDR) basket. Following is the timeline of Beijing's market-stabilising measures, reforms and statements. ** Jan 18 - The People's Bank of China (PBOC) said it will start implementing a reserve requirement ratio (RRR) on offshore banks' domestic deposits as of Jan. 25. ** Jan 15 - The China Association for public companies (CAPCO) called on major shareholders of listed firms to work together to stabilise the stock market. ** Jan 8 - The State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) has ordered banks in some trading hubs to limit dollar purchases this month, in the latest attempt to stem capital outflows. China suspended its stock market circuit breaker after the mechanism helped promote sharp falls in the country's volatile markets. ** Jan 7 - China's securities regulator restricted share sales by listed companies' major shareholders, saying the move will stabilise market expectations. ** Jan 4 - China's onshore yuan's trading hours started to last until 11:30 p.m. local time (1530 GMT), rather than end at 4:30 p.m., a major reform step that should help onshore and offshore rates converge. ** Jan 1 - China introduced circuit breakers to the Shanghai Stock Exchange, Shenzhen Stock Exchange and China Financial Futures Exchange to "stabilise the market". ** Dec 30, 2015 - The PBOC has suspended at least three foreign banks from conducting some foreign exchange business until the end of March, three sources who had seen the suspension notices told Reuters. ** Dec 27 - China's top legislature approved a proposal to revamp the country's initial public offering (IPO) system, authorising the government to implement changes to the system that could be in place as early as March. ** Dec 12 - The China Foreign Exchange Trade System (CFETS) announced that it had launched a new trade-weighted yuan exchange rate index against a basket of currencies, a move that will eventually loosen the currency's link to the greenback. ** Dec 9 - China plans to shift to a U.S.-style registration system for stock market flotations on the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges within two years, the cabinet said. The PBOC has suspended new applications for the Renminbi Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor (RQDII) investment scheme, which is seen to avoid capital outflows and control risks of complicated products. ** Nov 30 - China's yuan was admitted into the IMF's benchmark SDR basket in a win for Beijing's campaign for recognition as a global economic power. ** Nov 18 - Offshore yuan clearing banks and related offshore participant banks had been instructed by the central bank to suspend trading in bond repos and yuan account financing. For more information about China's authorities' steps during June to October in 2015, please click: (Reporting by Shanghai Newsroom and Lu Jianxin; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)
Athens (AFP) - At least 21 people including eight children died after their boats sank off the Greek islands of Farmakonisi and Kalolimnos early Friday, with dozens of other migrants reported missing, the coastguard said.

They said 48 survivors managed to reach the shore of Farmakonisi in the Aegean Sea close to the Turkish coast after the first boat hit rocks around 2:30am (0030 GMT) as it was making the perilous crossing from Turkey.

The coastguard recovered the bodies of six children and a woman.

Several hours later, a second boat capsized off the tiny nearby island of Kalolimnos. The coastguard recovered 14 bodies -- two children, nine women and three men.

The 26 survivors reported that dozens of people had been on the boat. The coastguard was searching for the others, backed by a helicopter from EU border agency Frontex.

People fleeing war and misery in the Middle East and elsewhere -- many of them Syrian refugees -- are still arriving from Turkey in flimsy boats in their thousands every day, despite the dangers and the harsh winter weather.

The International Organization for Migration estimates that some 31,000 migrants have reached Greece by sea so far this year, hoping to start new lives in Germany, Sweden and elsewhere in the European Union.

The IOM reported 77 people died trying to cross the Mediterranean between January 1 and January 17.

On Thursday at least 12 migrants, including children, drowned off the Turkish coast as their boat tried to reach Greece. The Turkish coastguard rescued 28 people.
BOGOTA, Jan 21 (Reuters) - A Colombian high tribunal on Thursday approved the government's bid to extend for up to 30 years its contract with coal company Drummond to mine under new conditions in the north of the Andean nation.

The tribunal said there were no legal impediments to stretching the life or altering the terms of the contract for La Loma mine when it ends in 2019. The original contract was signed in 1988.

The government would need to negotiate any changes to the contract, an official from U.S.-based Drummond, the second biggest coal miner in Colombia, told Reuters.

Colombia is the world's fifth-biggest coal exporter, shipping mainly to Europe after rising gas production in the United States crimped demand in that once-large market. Coal is Colombia's most important export after crude oil.

Drummond produced about 25.8 million tonnes last year and exports reached more than 28 million tonnes. Colombia set an export target for 2015 of 87 million tonnes.

(Reporting by Luis Jaime Acosta; Writing by Helen Murphy; Editing by Sandra Maler)
Ive never received a telegram. This realization, when it occurred to me recently, made me feel inexplicably nostalgic.

There are, after all, plenty of technological rituals in which Ive never participated. I havent taken a daguerreotype, or asked a switchboard operator to connect me to a phone number with letters in it, or fired up a Victrola for some sweet tunes on the ole phonograph.

I grew up in an era when cassette tapes, fax machines, and long-distance telephone calls gave way to CDs, emails, and cellphonesonly to be supplanted by MP3s, chat platforms, and smartphones. I still write letters. I will neither confirm nor deny having gone through a vinyl phase.

But telegrams! I could have sent one. And I didnt seek them out until it was too late. Western Union closed its telegraphy service a decade ago. (The last 10 telegrams included birthday wishes, condolences on the death of a loved one, notification of an emergency, and several people trying to be the last to send a telegram, the Associated Press reported of the closure in 2006.) These days, its nearly impossibleit may actually be impossibleto send one in the United States, even if you try.

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I tried.

Sending a telegram in 2016 is not what it was in the 1850s, or even 1950s for that matter.

What it was, in the beginning, was astonishing. The telegraph meant that human communication could, for the first time ever, travel faster than humans could carry a message from one place to the next. A wire was faster than a pony or a boat. It was, for all practical purposes, instantaneous. There is nothing now left for invention to achieve but to discover news before it takes place, one New-York Herald reporter declared of the telegraphs achievement in 1844.

As in the grand history of technological curmudgeonry, not everyone was dazzled. The New York Times, in 1858, called the telegraph trivial and paltry, also superficial, sudden, unsifted, too fast for the truth. The writer and cultural critic Matthew Arnold referred to the transatlantic telegraph in 1903 as, that great rope, with a Philistine at each end of it talking in-utilities!

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By then, the telegraph was both well-established and taken for granted. The earliest electric telegraph systems involved numbered needles on a board that, when a transmission came in, pointed to corresponding letters of the alphabet. One such device, along Britains Great Western Railway, became the first commercial telegraph in the world in 1838.

The telegraph that set the standard in the United States was an electric device that Samuel Morse was developing around the same time; a system that transmitted electric signals that were then interpreted and handwritten by a human receiver. By the 1850s, a system that automatically printed telegrams was introduced, but humans were still required to help send the message in the first place. In the 1930s, that part of the process became automated, too.

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Today, you go online if you want to send one, which, sure, is where you go for basically anything you want to do in 2016.

First I tried iTelegram. It cost $18.95 and was supposed to take three to five business days to deliver a message to my editor, Ross, in The Atlantics newsroom in Washington, D.C. The company says on its website that it operates some of the old networks, like Western Unions, that used to be major players in the telegram game. It plays up the novelty aspect, suggesting a telegram as a good keepsake on someones wedding day, for instance. It also leans on the nostalgia factor. The smart way to send an important message since 1844. Worldwide delivery guaranteed!

Welp.

Three weeks passed, and my telegram still had not arrived. My Slack messages (the modern equivalent of a telegram, I suppose) to Ross had gone from: Keep your eyes peeled for a telegram! to Did you ever get my telegram? to still no sign of the telegram!? to telegrams, not that impressive, actually.

I requested a refund.

Next, I tried Telegram Stop. It cost $29.65 and promised delivery within four to eight business days. Eight business days passed. Still no telegram. It was, apparently, being sent to Washington from Melbourne, Australia. But Telegram Stopwhich assured me it was very concerned about the very disappointing news of my telegrams disappearancedidnt know what happened.

Telegram Stop relies on the services of Standard International Postal Networks for delivery, the email I received read. For unforeseen reasons the delivery via the USPS has been delayed.

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Which is funny, really, because it turns outand I should have appreciated this sooner, I knowI wasnt sending a telegram at all. I was, apparently, sending a letter that looked like a telegram, first over the Internet and then by the postal service. Which, because I had already received a digital preview of the telegram when I ordered it, I could have just emailedor texted, or Facebook messaged, or, you know, published to the Internet in an article for The Atlantic.

Sorry you never received this telegram, Ross. (Adrienne LaFrance)

My message, naturally, features some old telegram humor. (The salutation is actually a telephone joke.) What hath god wrought, is what Morse transmitted over an experimental line from Washington to Baltimore in 1844, and whats widely celebrated as the first telegraphic message in the U.S. These words were, according to numerous 19th-century accounts, suggested to Morse by Annie Ellsworth, the young daughter of the federal Patents commissioner. Annie got the idea from her mother. (The line originally comes from the Old Testaments Book of Numbers.)

Here is, according to a Morse-code translation website, what the original message would have looked like in Morse code:

.-- .... .- - / .... .- - .... / --. --- -.. / .-- .-. --- ..- --. .... -

And heres the original paper transmissionwith the the message transcribed by hand, though difficult to readkept by the Library of Congress:

Heres a close-up:

One curious footnote: There are scattered accounts that argue there were earlier telegraphic messages sent by Morse. A 1923 New York Times article quotes a man who says, citing an anonymous source, that the real first message was sent near Washington Square Park, over a wire from one New York University classroom to another, and that it said, Attention: The universe. by republics and kingdoms right wheel.

Most of this, I must admit, seems foreign to me. (And not just because I have no idea what that alleged missive refers to, other than the fact that it appears in an 1823 edition of the Niles Register, a popular 19th-century news magazine, as part of an equally perplexing manuscript.) Im realizing that the more I think about telegrams, the more I learn of them, the stranger they are to me.

I dont know what a telegram sounded like when it arrived, or what the paper felt like in someones hands. My mind reels to imagine what it was like for journalists who filed their stories by telegraph. I cant read Morse code without the help of an online translator. These are details you can read about, but never truly know without having experienced themthe way I can still hear the shriek of a dial-up modem in my mind when I stop to think about it, or the singsong of Nokias classic ringtone.

All of which is another way of saying: It doesnt really matter whether I sent zero or one telegrams in my life. The tools that characterize a persons time and place in technological history are the ones that a person actually uses, the technologies relied upon so heavily that they can feel like an extension of oneself. This is part of how technology can define a culture, and why sometimes you forget the thing youre using is technology at all. Until, eventually, inevitably, the technology is all but forgotten.

Read more from The Atlantic:

This article was originally published on The Atlantic.
By Tarek Amara KASSERINE, Tunisia (Reuters) - Tunisian police firing tear gas clashed on Thursday with hundreds of protesters who set fire to police posts and tried to storm local government buildings in towns across the country in the largest protests since the 2011 "Arab Spring" uprising. At least one policeman has been killed in three days of riots over jobs and economic conditions that amount to one of the most sustained tests to Tunisia's stability since the revolt that toppled autocrat Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali. Several thousand youths demonstrated on Thursday outside the local government office in Kasserine, an impoverished central town where protests began this week after a young man killed himself after apparently being refused a public sector job. Police fired tear gas to disperse protesters trying to storm local government buildings in several other towns including Sidi Bouzid, where youths chanted "Jobs or Another Revolution", according to state media and local residents. "I've been out of work for 13 years and I am a qualified technician. We are not looking for handouts, just our right to work," protester Mohamed Mdini told Reuters in Kasserine, where crowds were angrily chanting: "Work, Freedom, Dignity". Protesters set fire to a police station in the town of Guebeli in southern Tunisia and officers abandoned another post in Kef in the northwest, the interior ministry said. Later on Thursday night, the protests spread to the capital where rioters burned a small police post in the poor Tunis district of Cite El Intilaka and residents set alight tyres in the streets of Cite Ettadhamen district, a Reuters witness said. This week's events have evoked memories of the suicide of a struggling young market vendor in December 2010 that became a catalyst for Tunisia's 2011 uprising, which in turn inspired mass protests across the Arab world. Tunisia has since been held up as a model for democratic progress, with free elections and a modern constitution. It managed largely to avoid the violence that marred political upheaval in other countries. "WORK, FREEDOM, DIGNITY" But for many Tunisians, the revolution has not delivered on its economic promises, with the young in particular complaining about a lack of jobs and high living costs. Three major Islamist militant attacks in Tunisia last year have also hit the economy, especially tourism which generates essential revenue and employment. Unemployment stood at 15.3 percent in 2015, up from 12 percent in 2010, reflecting economic weakness, lower investment and a rise in the number of university graduates who account for one-third of jobless Tunisians. Responding to the latest protests, Prime Minister Habib Essid's office said he would return home early from a visit to the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos and would hold an emergency cabinet meeting before visiting Kasserine on Saturday. President Beji Caid Essebsi said on Wednesday the government would hire more than 6,000 young unemployed people from Kasserine and start construction projects. On Thursday hundreds came to sign up for work, but tensions remained high. "We're not looking for gifts, just a chance," said Mohamed Mdini, an electrician unemployed for 13 years in Kasserine. "We don't have any hope left any more." (Writing by Patrick Markey; Editing by Gareth Jones/Ruth Pitchford)
By Emily Stephenson ASHEVILLE, N.C. (Reuters) - A Christian minister and a former U.S. Marine who were released by Iran in a prisoner swap returned to the United States on Thursday after years behind bars in the Islamic Republic. Pastor Saeed Abedini, 35, arrived in North Carolina on Thursday afternoon, a spokesman for a Christian group said. Ex-Marine Amir Hekmati, 32, touched down in a private jet at the airport in his hometown of Flint, Michigan, and stepped onto a small red carpet on the tarmac. They were among five Americans whose release coincided with the lifting last weekend of economic sanctions against Iran in return for curbs on Tehran's nuclear program. The White House offered clemency to seven Iranians who were convicted or facing trial in the United States. Hekmati spent more than four years in jail in Iran where he faced the death sentence at one point. I am happy to finally be home. Its been a very long road, a very long journey. Unfortunately, many people have travelled this road with me," he told reporters. He was arrested while visiting family in Iran in 2011 and accused of being a U.S. spy, a charge his relatives and the United States deny. He was sentenced to death the following year but that was commuted to a 10-year prison term. Hekmati said on Thursday he was "healthy, tall and with my head held high." The son of Iranian immigrants, Hekmati went to high school in Flint, an industrial town now struggling with a water contamination crisis. Its great to be back in Flint, my hometown. I love this city. I love its people. They have been so good to me and my family and we are very grateful, Hekmati said. Abedini, a naturalized U.S. citizen of Iranian origin, arrived at the Billy Graham Training Center at The Cove, a Christian conference centre in Asheville, North Carolina, that is linked to popular evangelist Billy Graham. "He arrived safely in Asheville," said Todd Shearer, a spokesman for the Graham family. Abedini was sentenced in 2013 to eight years in prison after being accused of harming Iran's national security by setting up home-based churches in Iran. He was reunited with his parents on Thursday, his wife said. (Reporting by David Bailey, Colleen Jenkins and Ben Klayman; Writing by Alistair Bell; Editing by James Dalgleish and Peter Cooney)
As earnings season gets underway, investors can use a few tools to figure out if companies are being honest with their reports.

But determining truthfulness is no easy task, of course.

Most people think it is about body language cues, said Jason Voss, content director at the CFA Institute. However, there's been lots of scientific research done over the years and definitively, body language cues just don't work.

According to Voss, trying to determine a CEOs truthfulness by looking for cues on, say, a video interview only works 54% of the time, or a little bit more than a 50-50 guess.

Instead, investors can use a couple of other methods to clue them in on whether theyre being dealt with honestly, said Voss, a former fund manager.

Text-based analysis

One thing that you can rely upon is text-based analysis, Voss said It's usually generated by a computer algorithm or very knowledgeable human being who looks at the text in, say, a press release or a 10-K [or] an annual report, and they evaluate the truth of the statements coming out of management.

New Yorkbased Rittenhouse Rankings is one such company that conducts this type of analysis. They've created a stock index which tracks the top ten firms that have the most candor, he said. It outperforms the S&P consistently. So this is pretty good proof that their techniques work.

Another company, LIWC, has a website that lets users cut and paste text which to be analyzed.

You can feed in the text of these annual reports and these press releases, and it will evaluate the veracity of these statements, said Voss. These techniques, on average, are 70% effective, which is a far better chance than you would have if you were relying upon body language.

[For the record, this article had an authenticity score of 31.4 points versus an average of 24.84 for professional or scientific writing using LIWCs methods.]

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Strategic Use of Evidence (SUE)

Voss also recommends strategic use of evidence. This is the cutting edge technique in interrogation, Voss said. Its being taught to the Israeli Mossad and its being taught to the CIA.

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Here's an example of how it works: rather than confronting a CEO with a tough question right away, this method starts off with relatively light inquiries and slowly builds up to the tough stuff to confirm a suspicion.

Voss said this method delivers veracity about 70% of the time, with some studies showing it coming in as high as 82%.

Gradually, with question after question, narrow the context of your questions down to something that you're really concerned about answering," said Voss. This is almost like handing rope to people that they can hang themselves with.

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By David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. congressman from Michigan said he worked in public and behind the scenes, once meeting privately with Iran's foreign minister, to win the release of an Iranian-American prisoner from his congressional district sentenced to death for spying. Amir Hekmati, 32, a Marine veteran who grew up in the Flint area, was released as part of a swap of American and Iranian prisoners and arrived back in Michigan on Thursday. Hekmati, a naturalized U.S. citizen of Iranian origin, had been detained in August 2011 while visiting family in Iran. Congressman Dan Kildee, a Democrat, told Reuters in an interview after Hekmati's release he met with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif at the United Nations in late September as part of his efforts on behalf of Hekmati. He also had a four-hour meeting with Iran's then ambassador to the United Nations, Mohammad Khazaee, in December 2013. Hekmati was released along with Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian and three other Americans to coincide with the lifting last weekend of economic sanctions against Iran in return for curbs on Tehran's atomic program. The White House offered clemency to seven Iranians who were convicted or facing trial in the United States. After the release, Kildee, who represents the struggling industrial city of Flint which was recently hit by lead poisoning in city water, flew to a U.S. military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany where on Tuesday he met with Hekmati, who said he felt "very lucky" to be free again. Hekmati initially was sentenced to death and had no communication with family or attorneys. Kildee said the release had symbolic importance, adding: "We will never leave an American behind." Kildee's role was praised by many including Hekmati and U.S. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi who tweeted Kildee to thank him "for unrelenting efforts" to help win Hekmati's release. Only after he was freed was Kildee willing to disclose the back-channel role he had played in U.S. negotiations to secure the release of American prisoners. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry led an effort, connected to the Iranian nuclear deal, that ultimately led to the exchange. Kildee described a frustrating process in which it was never clear what might happen, and he perceived apparent conflicts between power centers in Iran. His account of events could not be independently confirmed. "Sometimes you could get someone to agree to something but they can't get it done," Kildee said. Kildee said he insisted in meetings that Hekmati was innocent of spying charges, and Iranian officials never presented evidence that rebutted his claim. Momentum started to build in July after the United States and other world powers reached their nuclear deal with Iran. That "created space for direct negotiations through a formal negotiating process," Kildee said. Kildee first learned about Hekmati's detention during his first run for Congress in 2012. "After I was elected, it was my job," Kildee said. (Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by James Dalgleish)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. military commanders have been given the authority to target Islamic State fighters in Afghanistan, the Pentagon said on Thursday, the first such order beyond Iraq and Syria, where the militants control parts of both countries. The U.S. State Department said last week that it had designated Islamic States offshoot in Afghanistan, known as Islamic State-Khorasan, as a foreign terrorist organization. U.S. forces could previously strike Islamic State in Afghanistan but it was under more narrow circumstances, such as for protection of troops. Senator John McCain of Arizona, a Republican who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the administration of President Barack Obama, a Democrat, "seems to be waking up to the fact that more than a year into the U.S. military campaign, ISIL's reach is global and growing." McCain told a hearing on Thursday that the authorization given by the White House was much needed and "many of us may be interested to know that we confined our attacks on ISIL to Iraq and Syria." ISIL is another name for the Islamist militant group, which has supporters and sympathizers around the world who have carried out bombings and gun attacks on civilians, notably in Paris in November and San Bernardino, California, in December. A Pentagon spokesman, Capt. Jeff Davis, said there had been an adjustment to the authorization for U.S. forces in Afghanistan, but he did not give details on when exactly it was given. "As part of this mission, we will take action against any terrorist group that poses a threat to U.S. interests or the homeland, including members of ISIL-Khorasan," Davis said. Davis said there had been some strikes on the group in recent days. The change in the authorization was first reported by the Wall Street Journal. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. According to the State Department, Islamic State-Khorasan was formed in January 2015, based in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region, made up of former members of the Pakistani Taliban and Afghan Taliban. U.S. Army General John Campbell, who leads international forces in Afghanistan, has said Islamic State had coalesced over the last five or six months in Nangarhar and Kunar provinces and had been fighting the Taliban for several months. (Reporting by Idrees Ali; editing by Grant McCool)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. military said on Friday two civilians were likely killed and four others wounded in air strikes against Islamic State targets in Iraq and Syria between July 4 and July 17, 2015. It was only the fourth time since the start of the U.S.-led air campaign against Islamic State in 2014 that the U.S. military's Central Command has disclosed civilian casualties following its internal investigations. Last week it reported that eight civilians were likely killed in strikes between April 12 and July 4, 2015. U.S. military data shows there have been 9,782 U.S.-led coalition air strikes as of Jan. 19, with 6,516 in Iraq and 3,266 in Syria. The two civilian deaths occurred in strikes on July 4 and July 11 near al Raqqa, Islamic State's de facto capital in Syria, said Central Command, which is responsible for American forces in the Middle East region. "I do think its worth mentioning ISIL's culpability as they continue to operate and hide among innocent civilians and populated areas in an attempt to avoid being targeted, said Air Force Colonel Patrick Ryder, a spokesman at Central Command. Ryder said that since the beginning of the campaign, 120 allegations of civilian casualties had been received, 87 of which were deemed not credible. This latest news brings the total number of civilians likely killed to 16, Ryder said. In one case an air strike targeting 16 bridges likely killed a civilian driving a truck with a trailer, a Central Command statement said. In another case, a secondary explosion from a vehicle near the intended target probably killed a civilian, it said. Four other people were wounded in three strikes in Syria and Iraq, the statement said. In all of the cases released today, assessments determined that although the strikes complied with the law of armed conflict and all appropriate precautions were taken, civilian casualties unfortunately did occur, it said. (Reporting by Idrees Ali; Editing by David Alexander)
By Phil Stewart PARIS (Reuters) - The top U.S. military officer said on Friday urgent and decisive military action was needed to halt the spread of Islamic State in Libya, warning the jihadist group wanted to use the country as a regional base. Marine General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, avoided detailing any recommendations he might make in Washington. His goals included better leveraging support in the region from allies, building up local forces capable of defending Libya, and strengthening its neighbors. "You want to take decisive military action to check ISILs expansion and at the same time you want to do it in such a way that's supportive of a long-term political process," Dunford, using an acronym for Islamic State, told a small group of reporters. Islamic State forces have attacked Libya's oil infrastructure and established a foothold in the city of Sirte, exploiting a prolonged power vacuum in a country where two rival government are battling for supremacy. The political chaos has also slowed the international community's ability to partner with the loose alliances of armed brigades of rebels who once fought veteran leader Muammar Gaddafi, who was overthrown in 2011. Western powers hope stability will come via a new unity government announced on Tuesday, though two of its nine members have already rejected it. "I think it's pretty clear to all of us -- French, U.S. alike -- that whatever we do is going to be in conjunction with the new government," Dunford said after talks with France's military, which is active in parts of Africa battling Islamic extremists. "My perspective is we need to do more," Dunford said, He would weigh factors including the ability to identify the right forces on the ground to support. He also suggested that the willingness among Libyans to have foreign military forces "in there, taking the fight to ISIL" would also be important in deliberations about the way forward. He said he wanted to move soon, but acknowledged that, when it came to Libya, "quickly is weeks not hours", adding that the U.S. military leadership owed President Barack Obama and the U.S. defense secretary ideas about the "way ahead" for dealing with the militant group. The United States says it killed Islamic State's senior leader in Libya, known as Abu Nabil, in a November air strike by F-15 aircraft. It believes he was operating in Libya with the support of Islamic State's core leadership in Iraq and Syria, in a likely sign of the country's strategic importance to the group. "So as I look at Libya, I look at Libya as an ISIL platform from which they can conduct malign activity across Africa," Dunford said. (Reporting by Phil Stewart; editing by Andrew Roche and John Stonestreet)
By Julie Steenhuysen CHICAGO (Reuters) - U.S. doctors are fielding a spate of calls from expectant mothers who recently traveled to countries affected by the Zika virus and fear possible exposure to the mosquito-borne infection linked to a spike in fetal brain damage in Brazil. New U.S. treatment guidelines only recommend blood tests for pregnant women with symptoms of infection. But 80 percent of Zika patients show no symptoms, leaving many women no way to know early enough to make an informed choice about their unborn children, leading obstetricians told Reuters this week. "These effects are not necessarily going to be seen at a time when the mother can decide to terminate the pregnancy," said Dr. Natalie Meirowitz of Long Island Jewish Medical Center. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is advising pregnant women not to travel to 22 countries and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean where the Zika virus causing infections. The agency added eight of those countries to the list on Friday. Brazil said the number of babies born with microcephaly, a condition marked by an unusually small head, rose 10 percent to 3,893 over a period of 10 days. El Salvador officials have urged women to avoid getting pregnant until 2018 due to Zika. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists estimates its members have received "hundreds, if not thousands" of calls from patients who had traveled to affected regions, a spokeswoman said. "It's consuming our lives," said Dr. Laura Riley, president of the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine and a specialist in high-risk pregnancies at Massachusetts General Hospital. The CDC is trying to determine how many pregnant women may have traveled to affected regions in the past several months. The agency issued interim guidelines this week advising doctors to administer blood tests only for pregnant women with symptoms. Some doctors are concerned that the guidelines mean other pregnant women who are at risk would not be identified. That is because 80 percent of people infected by Zika never have symptoms. For asymptomatic women, the CDC recommends ultrasounds to check for microcephaly in the fetus, looking for underdeveloped heads or calcium deposits in the brain. But microcephaly typically does not become apparent on ultrasounds until later in pregnancies, often after the 24th week when many U.S. states prohibit abortion. "That's the toughest situation that we have with the guidelines right now," said Dr. Emily Landon, an infectious disease expert at the University of Chicago Medical Center, referring to the testing recommendations. "We know women can become asymptomatic and still have Zika." LIMITS TO TESTING With no commercially available Zika tests, only the CDC and some state health laboratories are equipped to detect the virus. Riley, who advised the agency on its guidelines, said testing every woman who visited or lived in affected countries during the outbreak period could "flood the CDC." Dr. Denise Jamieson of the CDC, who helped write the guidelines, said lab capacity was just one factor in the decision to only test pregnant women with symptoms. The biggest concerns, she said, were that the tests are hard to interpret and prone to false positive results, which could lead to decisions based on inaccurate information. Jamieson said the guidelines will be reviewed for their effectiveness. Riley stressed that asymptomatic women will be offered ultrasounds. "Ultimately, what patients want to know is whether their baby's brain has been affected," said Riley. "You aren't going to know that without the ultrasound." The main benefit of testing is to put at ease women at ease, said Scott Weaver, an expert in mosquito-borne diseases at the University of Texas Medical Branch. A positive test result for Zika in a pregnant woman does not necessarily mean a baby will develop microcephaly, Landon said. Additional ultrasounds would be necessary, and even those may not show evidence of a problem early enough for a woman to take action. No therapy is available for an infected fetus that has developed microcephaly, obstetricians said. Meirowitz recently saw a patient who had vacationed in Puerto Rico during her seventh week of pregnancy, and recalls getting a mosquito bite. Because the woman, now 20 weeks pregnant, never got sick, she was not offered a blood test. "We ruled out microcephaly" after doing an ultrasound, but still had concerns, Meirowitz said. "We know from other viruses that you may not see ultrasound findings showing fetal infection right away, particularly microcephaly. That is what's so difficult." (Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen; Editing by Richard Chang)
By Michelle Nichols BUJUMBURA (Reuters) - The United Nations Security Council met with Burundi's president on Friday to push for peace talks and an international force to quell worsening political violence, but U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power said little was achieved. The meeting came a day after rebels in the tiny African state raised the stakes in the crisis by declaring a general who led a failed coup in May as their leader, deepening concerns that Burundi is sliding back into conflict after its ethnically charged civil war ended in 2005. The 15-member council, which arrived in Burundi's lakeside capital Bujumbura on Thursday, met with President Pierre Nkurunziza in Gitega for more than two hours. It is the council's second visit to Burundi in less than a year. "None of us want the situation in Burundi to deteriorate, we're here because we want to support efforts at dialogue, because we believe as a council that a more substantial international presence here can help, we conveyed those points to the president," Power told reporters after the meeting. "In this meeting we did not achieve as much, frankly, as I think we would have liked. But we never give up, the cause of peace in Burundi is too important to give up," she said. Nkurunziza's re-election for a third term sparked the crisis, which has raised fears of an ethnic conflict in a region where memories of Rwanda's 1994 genocide remain fresh. The government insists there is no ethnic bias, but opponents say districts of Bujumbura where many Tutsis live - and which were also hotbeds of protest against Nkurunziza last year - have been targeted with some Tutsis singled out. The United Nations estimates the death toll at 439 people but says it could be higher. More than 240,000 people have fled abroad. The rebel group, FOREBU, announced on Thursday that it was now commanded by the former intelligence chief, General Godefroid Niyombare. The group said it welcomed international mediation but also called for Burundians to support their fight against Nkurunziza. "This development shows why the U.N. Security Council is concerned about the risk of a downward cycle of violence," British U.N. Ambassador Matthew Rycroft told Reuters. Burundi's government has accused neighbouring Rwanda of supporting a rebel group by training and arming Burundian refugees recruited on Rwandan soil. Nkurunziza raised those accusations again on Friday with the Security Council, said diplomats who were in the closed-door meeting. Rwanda has previously dismissed the allegations. "We've expressed concern about the allegations of external interference ... and it's very important that nobody support armed opposition groups no matter what they assess the history," Power said. The president has rejected the deployment of an African peacekeeping force, saying the troops would constitute "an invading force". The issue is expected to be a focus for an African Union summit at the end of January. "It's not peacekeepers that the Burundians need. What they need is to increase their own capacity, especially their police capacity," Russia's Deputy U.N. Ambassador Petr Iliichev told Reuters. "Maybe what we need is some kind of policing mission, either advisors, either trainers or maybe formed police units that will be deployed in Bujumbura ... from the African Union or the U.N.," he said. Months of talks between the government and the opposition last year failed to make progress. New negotiations begun at the end of December in Uganda have already stalled. Nkurunziza backed Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni's mediation efforts. "We told (the Security Council) that he is somebody who knows very well the problems of Burundi," Nkurunziza told reporters after the meeting. Regional Western diplomats say the government has set too many conditions about who can attend talks to make them meaningful. They also say rebels may believe they can make more gains through force of arms than at the negotiating table. (Writing by Edmund Blair; Editing by Alison Williams, Drazen Jorgic, Larry King and Chizu Nomiyama)
CAPE TOWN (Reuters) - U.S. oil major Chevron said on Thursday it plans to sell 75 percent of its South African business unit which includes a 110,000 barrel a day refinery in Cape Town. Chevron is a leading refiner and marketer of petroleum products in South Africa, the most industrialised economy in Africa, where it has had a presence for more than a century. Chevron said its call for expression of interest was in line with a three-year asset sales programme it announced in 2014. This demonstrates Chevron's continuing focus on balancing our global portfolio with our long-term business priorities, and it is aligned with our previously announced $15 billion divestment program, said Mark Nelson, the company's president for international products, in a statement. Besides the Cape Town refinery, Chevron also has interests in a lubricants plant in Durban on the east coast. Its network of Caltex service stations makes it one of South Africa's top five petroleum brands, according to its website. Chevron has already disposed of several assets in Africa's top crude exporter Nigeria, as oil majors globally looked to cut costs and streamline business models in an over-supplied oil market and plunging prices. (Reporting by Wendell Roelf; Editing by James Macharia)
By David Dolan ISTANBUL (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said on Friday that Turkey, once vaunted by Washington as a model of Islamic democracy, was setting a poor example for the region in intimidating media, curtailing internet freedom and accusing academics of treason. On a two-day visit to the NATO ally, part of the U.S.-led alliance against Islamic State in neighbouring Syria and Iraq, Biden said the strength of Turkey's democracy had a direct impact on its ties with the United States. Turkey is a vital partner for both Washington and Europe in efforts to combat Islamic State, end Syria's civil war, and curb the flow of migrants and refugees. Opponents of the government have accused the West in the past of pulling its punches over the country's human rights record as a result. "The more Turkey succeeds, the stronger the message sent to the entire Middle East and parts of the world who are only beginning to grapple with the notion of freedom," Biden said, flanked by members of Turkish civil society groups. "But when the media are intimidated or imprisoned for critical reporting, when internet freedom is curtailed and social media sites...are shut down and more than 1,000 academics are accused of treason simply by signing a petition, thats not the kind of example that needs to be set," he told reporters. Turkey was cited by Washington as an example for the Middle East of a functioning Islamic democracy in the early years of then prime minister Tayyip Erdogan's rule. More recently, reforms have faltered and Erdogan, now president, has demonstrated a more authoritarian style. Last week, he denounced as "dark, nefarious and brutal" more than 1,000 signatories, including U.S. academic Noam Chomsky, of a declaration that criticised Turkish military action in the largely Kurdish southeast. Security forces briefly detained 27 academics on accusations of terrorist propaganda. Dozens face investigation by their universities. "ROBBED OF OPPORTUNITY" Biden met members of the Turkish parliament from the ruling AK Party, the secularist opposition CHP and the pro-Kurdish HDP, largely to discuss the southeast. Biden, who laid roses at the site of a suicide bombing blamed on Islamic State that killed 10 German tourists last week, will meet Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Saturday. Talks are expected to focus on Syrian border security and the role of Syrian Kurdish fighters, backed by Washington in the campaign against Islamic State. Turkey fears their advances will fuel separatist sentiment among its own Kurds. Turkish media reports said Biden also met the wife and son of jailed journalist Can Dundar, editor-in-chief of the secularist Cumhuriyet newspaper, arrested in November over the publication of footage purporting to show the state intelligence agency helping send weapons to Syria. He also met prominent journalists fired over the past year following critical coverage of Erdogan and the government. The government says journalists are held for promoting terrorism or for anti-state activities, not their journalism. It denies intimidating media bosses, many of whose parent companies hold lucrative government contracts in other areas of industry. "If you do not have the ability to express your own opinion, to criticise policy, offer competing ideas without fear of intimidation or retribution, then your country is being robbed of opportunity," Biden said. (Writing by Nick Tattersall; Editing by Daren Butler and Ralph Boulton)
London (AFP) - Britain's Home Office was left red-faced Friday after unveiling new English tests for migrants -- but misspelling the word "language" in its announcement.

Prime Minister David Cameron on Monday launched a 20 million language fund to help women, particularly Muslims, who arrive in Britain after getting married but struggle to speak English.

He also said women from non-EU countries who fail to pass an English language test after two and a half years in the country could face deportation, drawing criticism from Muslim groups and opposition parties.

A Home Office press release giving details of the move Thursday spoke of a "new English langauge test" and had to be corrected.

Asked if Cameron was disappointed by the mistake, his official spokeswoman told reporters: "All of us are open to mistakes at times.

"The prime minister is pretty confident that his team speak English competently."

The error drew ridicule on Twitter -- broadcaster Anita Anand wrote it was "beyond parody", while user @DaveGoddard 1971 joked: "Makes you proud to be British".
Kiev (AFP) - Ukraine on Friday stepped up its economic warfare with Russia by demanding a mult-billion-dollar payment from the Gazprom gas giant for allegedly underpaying Kiev for its fuel transits to European states.

The gesture is largely symbolic because Russia has dismissed similar Ukrainian claims.

But it underscores the severe tensions between the two neighbours and potentially complicates the solution of a litany of existing trade disputes.

The westward-leaning former Soviet country's Anti-Monopoly Committee said Gazprom had two months to pay 86 billion hryvnias ($3.5 billion / 3.2 billion euros) for abusing the "monopoly status" it enjoys on gas transits through Ukraine.

The committee's deputy chief Mariya Nyzhnyk said the sum represented 30 percent of the price for natural gas that passed through the country over the past five years.

The Russian firm expressed "extreme surprise" at the announcement and stressed that it would have no impact on its future operations in Ukraine.

"Gazprom intends to defends its rights and legitimate interests by all legal means at its disposal," it said in a statement.

Ukraine's decades-old pipelines account for about 15 percent of all gas imported by the European Union -- its members rely on Russia for about a third if their outside supplies.

Some of Gazprom's EU clients saw their deliveries limited in 2006 and 2010 when the state-run behemoth  long accused of raising the rates of neighbours who want to ease their dependence on Moscow  halted supplies to Ukraine over price disputes.

Kiev's announcement came just three days after Gazprom itself demanded the payment of a previously-undisclosed $2.55 billion bill for the July to September period of 2015.

Ukraine has been weening itself off Russian energy imports and purchased almost no gas from its eastern neighbour in the period mentioned by Gazprom.

But the Russian firm said the amount it was after fell under the take-or-pay scheme that requires clients to reimburse Gazprom for any contracted gas they failed to purchase in a specific timeframe.

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Russia's latest charge brings to nearly $32 billion the bill it claims is due by Kiev.

Ukraine's Naftogaz state energy company is itself seeking nearly $26 billion from Gazprom in a Stockholm arbitration court.

- 50% transit rate hike -

Kiev authorities have vowed repeatedly not to halt shipments to Europe despite its multiplying disputes with Gazprom.

Ukraine is reliant on EU backing in its struggle with pro-Moscow insurgents in its industrial east -- a 21-month conflict Russia denies either plotting or backing in retaliation for Kiev's decision to anchor its future with the West.

But its cash-starved economy also needs proceeds from Russian gas shipments that Moscow intends to limit by expanding pipelines that already bypass Ukraine.

Kiev this month raised the price it wants Gazprom to pay for its transits by about 50 percent.

Ukrainian Energy Minister Volodymyr Demchyshyn said on Wednesday that Russia had simply ignored Kiev's move.

"So now we will meet in Stockholm," he said in reference to the arbitration court.

The Swedish tribunal has not yet examined the issue and it remains unclear when -- or if -- a ruling will be issued on the counter-suits.
Bujumbura (Burundi) (AFP) - UN Security Council ambassadors met Burundi's leaders on Friday to push peace efforts amid renewed violence in the capital of the troubled central African nation.

The visit is the council's second to Burundi in less than a year, with the ambassadors on Friday travelling outside the capital Bujumbura to meet President Pierre Nkurunziza at his residence, in an appeal to take urgent action to stop the violence sparked by his re-election.

Council envoys have pushed for the government to hold talks with the opposition and agree to an international presence -- such as a proposed 5,000-strong African Union force -- to restore stability.

Burundi's government has branded AU peacekeepers an "invasion force" and insisted there is no need for foreign troops.

Foreign Minister Alain Nyamitwe, speaking after meeting the envoys, said the government had "not changed our position" on the AU force.

Clashes in Bujumbura overnight Thursday left three people dead, police said, in violence that has become a near nightly event in the city. Explosions and gunfire were heard in several places across the capital at night.

The 15 council members were greeted on arrival Thursday by pro-government demonstrators telling them to stop meddling.

Hundreds of pro-government demonstrators lined the road leading from the airport to greet the envoys with signs that read "genocide will not happen" and "stop interfering in Burundian affairs".

They UN first met Friday morning with Vice President Gaston Sindimwo, who admitted to the diplomats that it was "true there are problems," but insisted "the government will do everything in its power to bring peace and security."

More than 400 people have died since April, when Nkurunziza announced his ultimately successful re-election bid, and at least 230,000 have fled to neighbouring countries.

The UN has warned that the violence could escalate into ethnic killings and mass atrocities.

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- Talks and peacekeepers -

AU Commission chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has expressed "fervent hope" that the UN ambassadors would work towards achieving the rapid deployment of peacekeepers and the "immediate resumption of the inter-Burundian dialogue", a reference to stalled talks between the government and opposition.

Uganda hosted a meeting between the government and the opposition in December that resolved nothing, and further planned talks failed to take place.

The United States and France support the AU proposal, but other UN Security Council members such as Russia, Angola and Egypt are reluctant to put too much pressure on the government.

Nkurunziza is also balking at AU plans to deploy more rights monitors in Burundi while the United Nations is beefing up its presence in Bujumbura.

Council envoys travel to Addis Ababa on Saturday to meet with AU officials about the proposal, which is expected to be a key element of talks at an AU summit in Ethiopia on January 30-31.

On Thursday, two former Burundian presidents appealed to the council ambassadors to take action and pleaded for an AU force to be sent.

"We really need that force," said Domitien Ndayizeye, who led the landlocked nation from 2003-2005.

Jean-Baptiste Bagaza, in power from 1976 to 1987, urged the council envoys to "stop this bloodletting that is making our young people disappear".

Bagaza warned that without urgent international action, Burundi could "become another Rwanda", referring to the neighbouring country's 1994 genocide.

Hours before the UN diplomats arrived, Burundian rebels named a fugitive ex-general who fled after leading a failed coup bid in May as their leader.

The rebel force, which announced its formation in December, calls itself the Republican Forces of Burundi, or "Forebu" after its French acronym.
Berlin (AFP) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel will press Ankara to help stem the flow of migrants to Europe in talks with Turkey's prime minister Friday, as two more refugee boats capsized, killing eight children.

Germany and Turkey have emerged as key players in the biggest migration crisis to rock Europe since World War II, and both Merkel and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu will seek to drive a hard bargain at the meeting between the two countries' cabinets.

The outcome of Friday's talks is not only important for Merkel, who faces intense pressure at home to impose a cap on Germany's refugee intake, but it will also have resonance across Europe where public opinion is hardening against a record asylum seeker influx.

Despite wintry conditions, thousands of people fleeing war and misery are still embarking on the dangerous journey across the Mediterranean to seek a better life in Europe.

Another two boats carrying dozens of migrants sank, killing 21 people, Greece's coastguard said Friday.

EU member states have been split about how to resolve the crisis, with Austria the latest to draw fire when it decided to impose a limit on its asylum seeker intake.

Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz said his country's measure serves as a "wake-up call" to push Europe to find a joint solution.

Merkel has so far faced down demands for a quota, after nearly 1.1 million asylum seekers arrived in Germany in 2015.

She has instead promised a "tangible reduction" in new arrivals, and is counting on international efforts to deliver.

Turkey, which shares a border with war-torn Syria, plays a pivotal role as it is a launchpad for thousands of migrants.

- 'Not asking for money' -

Merkel will ask Davutoglu to honour a deal with the EU to reduce the number of migrants coming through, as between 2,000 and 3,000 people are still arriving daily in Greece from Turkey despite the November 29 accord.

But the EU hasn't delivered on the deal either, with member states still squabbling over the financing for aid towards the 2.2 million Syrian refugees that Turkey is hosting.

Story continues

Davutoglu Thursday said he would not even ask about the three billion euros ($3.2 billion) promised by the EU but will demand concrete action instead.

"We are not asking (for) money, we are not negotiating (for) money... For us, it's a humanitarian duty, therefore the problem is not financial assistance," Davutoglu told the Davos summit of business and political elites.

"We hope the next steps will be concrete steps to address this issue," he said on the eve of the Berlin talks.

Die Welt newspaper said "it is possible that Germany would promise additional bilateral funds".

Both sides might point to a recent success in cooperation -- major raids announced Wednesday by German and Turkish police which dismantled a criminal trafficking network that used unseaworthy ships to send more than 1,700 refugees to Europe.

With the meeting coming on the heels of last week's attack in Istanbul that killed 10 German tourists, discussions would also invariably focus on the international battle against the Islamic State group, Merkel's spokesman said.

- Press freedom, Kurds -

Turkey has a special relationship with Germany as the EU's biggest economy is not only home to around three million people with Turkish roots, but is also its biggest trading partner.

Friday's talks are part of so-called government consultations -- a format that Germany has with only a handful of countries. It will be the first with Turkey, and includes interior, foreign and defence ministers from both sides.

Merkel herself has said she will use the occasion to raise thorny topics such as media freedom and the situation of the Kurds.

Concerns over press freedom are rising in Turkey, after an increasing number of journalists were arrested for insulting or criticising top officials.

Turkey is also waging an all-out offensive against the separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), with military operations backed by curfews aimed at flushing out rebels from several southeastern urban centres.

But Kurdish activists say dozens of civilians have died as a result of excessive force.

Under the banner "Not welcome, Mr Davutoglu", Kurdish and some Turkish groups in Germany are planning to march in protest to the chancellery, where the talks are due to begin at midday.

Prominent actors, writers and academics in Germany, including members of the Turkish community, have also signed a petition urging Merkel to raise the plight of "victims of the aggression in south-eastern Turkey."
CHICAGO (Reuters) - A United Airlines plane carrying 179 passengers and six crew members skidded partly off the runway on Friday at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport after arriving from San Francisco, but no one was injured, airline and airport officials said.

Chicago had light snow but it was not known whether the incident was weather-related, Chicago Department of Aviation spokeswoman Karen Pride said. The mishap occurred shortly after noon.

Flight 734, a Boeing 737, "partially rolled" off the runway after arriving from San Francisco, United spokeswoman Maddie King said. King said maintenance crews will "fully inspect" the aircraft.

(Reporting by Mary Wisniewski and Suzannah Gonzales in Chicago; Editing by Will Dunham)
Miami (AFP) - US health authorities Friday expanded a travel warning for pregnant women to avoid 22 places in Latin America and the Caribbean due to the Zika virus, which has been linked to birth defects.

Barbados, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guadeloupe, Saint Martin, Guyana, Cape Verde and Samoa are now included in the level two travel alert issued by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Last week the agency urged pregnant women and women considering becoming pregnant to postpone visits to Puerto Rico, Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname and Venezuela.

Women in these areas are urged to take measures to avoid mosquito bites, including wearing long sleeves and pants and applying insect repellent.

"Mosquitoes that spread Zika, chikungunya, and dengue are aggressive daytime biters, prefer to bite people, and live indoors and outdoors near people," said the CDC.

"There is no vaccine or medicine available for Zika virus. The best way to avoid Zika virus infection is to prevent mosquito bites."

Symptoms of Zika virus infection include fever, rash, joint pain and red eyes, muscle pain and headache.

The World Health Organization says global investigators are probing an apparent link between the Zika virus and a rise in microcephaly in Brazil, where thousands of babies have been born with unusually small heads in the past year or so.

WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier said 3,893 microcephaly cases have been reported in Brazil, along with 49 deaths.

Travel-related Zika cases have also been reported in Hawaii and Florida, though no cases of direct mosquito-to-human transmission have been documented in the United States.

In addition to the Americas, around 10 nations in Africa, Asia and the Pacific have reported outbreaks of the Zika virus, Lindmeier added, most of them involving "sporadic cases."
Washington (AFP) - Safety officials announced Friday the recall of another five million Takata airbags in cars in the United States just a month after a ninth airbag-linked US death was revealed.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recall announcement covers driver-side airbags and includes, for the first time, cars from Volkswagen and Audi.

NHTSA spokesman Gordon Trowbridge said the five million is a rough estimate, adding: "It's a massive safety crisis."

The inflators for the airbags can erupt and send shrapnel into occupants of the vehicle.

Nine people in the United States have died in accidents tied to the airbag problem, and one outside the country.

The Japanese company has been forced to recall some 28 million airbags in cars around the world because of the issue, which it is accused of having attempted to hide.

The new recall comes after one person died in a crash in South Carolina in December with the airbag being considered a factor.

In November, the NHTSA announced a record $200 million fine on Takata for providing inadequate and inaccurate information about the airbags and for failing to recall them quickly once it became aware of the problem.
Chances are, after reading about high-profile health scares following a measles outbreak at Disneyland in California last January or the latest travel advisory for the Zika virus in Mexico, travel-related health concerns have crossed your mind. To help you better understand which places pose health risks before traveling abroad, and when immunizations are essential to avoid contracting a serious and preventable disease, here's a primer on common vaccinations, with advice from medical experts for a happy and healthy trip.

If You're Headed to Europe ...

"I think that most people, when they travel overseas and particularly to developing world countries, they think about exotic diseases," says Dr. Phyllis Kozarsky, Travelers' Health Consultant to the Division of Global Migration and Quarantine at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and a professor at Emory University's School of Medicine. But she cautions that it's not necessarily exotic diseases to be concerned about -- it's common, everyday things, and especially routine immunizations. Staying up to date on regular immunizations such as measles, mumps and rubella is critical, she explains. Influenza and measles can have very high morbidity rates, especially if the traveler has any underlying diseases, she says. Getting properly vaccinated, even before visiting places like Western Europe, where there have been large outbreaks of measles, is important, she adds.

Dr. David Hamer, director of the Travel Clinic at Boston Medical Center and a professor at the Boston University Schools of Public Health and Medicine, says influenza is the most common and serious health risk U.S. travelers can encounter overseas. He emphasizes the importance of getting vaccinations for measles -- whether you were born before or after 1957 -- and ensuring that you've had the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccinations. Places across Europe, excluding Portugal, Spain, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, also pose the threat of tick-borne encephalitis, which is transferred by ticks in the summer months in wooded areas. While there's no vaccination available in the U.S. for tick-borne encephalitis, there are vaccinations available in Canada and Europe.

If You're Visiting Mexico, Central America or South America ...

In Mexico and places throughout Central and South America, it's critical to take effective vaccines for threatening water- and food-borne diseases such as hepatitis A, Hamer says. With heightened risks for water- and food-transmitted infections, getting vaccinated for typhoid is also a smart idea, he adds. And with the latest advisory from the CDC cautioning pregnant women to avoid destinations in the Caribbean and Central and South America to prevent contracting the Zika virus, a tropical mosquito-borne virus that may be linked to brain defects, it's also critical to arm yourself with insect repellent, he says.

"There's the old adage: boil it, peel it or forget it," Kozarsky says. "Basically, if you come to contact with a food or beverage where there is mishandling or any risk of contamination, you're at risk," she adds. "If someone has the capacity to get the hepatitis A vaccine, I think that's really critical." In more exotic destinations in developing world countries, typhoid is very common, she adds. And getting immunized for yellow fever before visiting certain high-risk areas within South America, including Brazil, Bolivia, Columbia, Venezuela, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guinea, Suriname and Guyana, is also important.

According to Dr. Rajiv Narula, medical director of International Travel Health Consultants, "the reason we all live longer is good water and vaccines." And beyond taking the proper vaccinations, he suggests preparing a health kit stocked with repellents, Band-Aids, sterile syringes and a water purifier. He also cautions that "repellents are crucial," especially those containing DEET, an effective mosquito repellent that uses an odorous compound to detract the insects and prevent mosquito-transmitted diseases in this part of the world as well as Asia.

If You're Traveling to Africa or the Middle East ...

Beyond routine immunizations and a vaccination for typhoid, it's important to get vaccinated for hepatitis B, rabies, meningitis and yellow fever in sub-Saharan African destinations like Kenya. It's equally important to ensure that all travelers to malarious regions in Africa take anti-malaria medications. Narula emphasizes the importance of receiving vaccinations for meningitis, especially if you're visiting the region between December and May, the peak season in sub-Saharan Africa to catch meningitis. "The way meningitis works is 10 to 20 percent of people may have it," he says, but they're symptoms may be nonspecific, such as coughing and sneezing once it goes into your circulation, underscoring a serious condition.

While vaccination requirements vary by country, it's essential to receive the polio vaccine if you're traveling to Afghanistan or Pakistan, Hamer says. Another top consideration (and in many countries a requirement for international visitors) is a yellow fever vaccine. While certain destinations such as Ghana require immunizations, he explains, others do not impose an international certificate of vaccination, though it's advisable to get vaccinated before visiting areas across tropical Africa such as Angola, Cameroon and Nigeria.

If You're Going to Asia ...

Before traveling to Asia or any other corner of the globe, it's important to factor in individual health conditions, the time of year you're planning to visit, the activities on your itinerary and whether the destinations you'll visit are urban or rural, Kozarsky says. In fact, this is where a travel health provider can really assist. Case in point: A business traveler going to a five-star hotel in Bangkok versus an aid worker at the Thai-Burmese border at a refugee camp have very different needs and are at different risks, she explains. Recommended vaccines may vary even for travelers visiting the same country, depending on whether they're planning an adventurous versus city-based itinerary. This applies to other destinations as well. Your exposure to malaria, for instance, is "not just country-specific," she says. "It's based on a lot of other factors."

The same can be said for Japanese encephalitis, which has been identified in a variety of places across Southeast Asia but is not essential for urban areas. It's better to consider the vaccine during the rainy season, from May to September, Hamer says. And thanks to the new Japanese encephalitis vaccine, the treatment has become very safe and very effective, he adds.

Other Health Risks and Considerations

Beyond region and itinerary, it's critical to consider pre-existing health conditions or chronic illnesses as well as access to medical facilities overseas before you leave for your trip , Kozarsky says. It's also a smart idea to stock up on extra prescriptions before your trip and pack a travel health kit filled with items such as Advil or motion sickness remedies, depending on your itinerary, she adds. And with a different health care system overseas, it's important for travelers to ask their health insurance company or credit card providers what kind of coverage they have overseas and consider supplementing their insurance with evacuation insurance to avoid getting treated at a less-desirable hospital or paying a $100,000 evacuation fee, she says.

When You Should See a Doctor or Specialist ...

Unfortunately, not all primary care physicians will have the intel to provide counseling for your specific trip, which is why it's important to solicit guidance from a specialist. "Most people in routine medical training don't spend a lot of time looking at diseases that are indigenous to other countries at certain times of the year," Kozarsky says. Therefore, "they would not carry the special immunizations because it's not reasonable for all providers to have all vaccine, she adds. To find a trusted travel health provider, Hamer recommends online directories like the International Society of Travel Medicine for finding a travel clinic directory with certified specialists as well as the American Society of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene.

To allot for the incubation period, the ideal time to seek a specialist for vaccinations is four to six weeks before your trip, Narula says. "All these things need planning, and people need to understand the risks," he adds, pointing out that most travel-related issues and diseases are preventable, but travelers don't fully grasp the importance of getting vaccinated for prevention. "Travel is good, as long as you protect yourself and you do the right thing," he says.



Liz Weiss is the Travel editor for Consumer Advice at U.S. News & World Report. You can follow her on Twitter, connect with her on LinkedIn, circle her on Google+ or email her at eweiss@usnews.com.
More than 200,000 voters went to the polls in Vanuatu on Friday to elect a new 53-member parliament in a snap ballot called after a corruption scandal hit the Pacific island archipelago.

The parliament was dissolved in November by President Baldwin Lonsdale when 14 lawmakers were jailed for bribery.

The political breakdown in Port Vila follows a period of instability with four changes of prime ministers in the past four years.

The chief executive of Transparency International in Vanuatu told Radio New Zealand the vote was crucial in moving the country forward and improving government integrity.

Wilson Toa said the bribery case underlined how the Vanuatu political system required substantial reforms.

"This election will only show two things as far as transparency is concerned," he said.

"Either we've learned from the past, or we haven't learned from the past, and I think the onus is on the voters and it will give us an indication of which direction Vanuatu is heading."

The election has taken place amid criticism that the electoral roll is not up to date.

Electoral Commission chairman John Killion Taleo said there was not enough time to add people who reached the voting age of 18 since last July to the roll.

Priscilla Meto, the president of Vanuatu Youth Against Corruption, claimed about 3,000 eligible names were missing from the roll.

There was also a problem with removing the names of people who had died as some of the impoverished nation's outer islands did not maintain official records of residents who passed away.

The constitutional crisis erupted last year when the 14 lawmakers were convicted on bribery charges and hastily tried to pardon themselves.

Lonsdale was overseas at the time and restored the convictions on his return, vowing "to clean up the mess".

Parliamentary speaker Marcellino Pipite, using his powers as acting president, issued pardons for himself and his co-conspirators.

The charges centred on payments of 35 million vatu (US$312,000) made by Deputy Prime Minister Moana Carcasses to 13 other politicians while they were all in opposition.

Vanuatu, which gained independence in 1980 and has an estimated population today of more than 270,000, is still recovering from a deadly category five storm last March that destroyed homes and crops and contaminated water supplies.
The following factors are likely to influence Malaysian palm oil futures and other vegetable oil

markets.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Malaysian palm oil futures stretched their losses into a second straight session on Thursday

to hit a four-day low, tracking weak crude and competing vegetable oil prices.

* U.S. corn futures fell on Thursday, breaking a three-day streak of gains, as a pick-up in

country movement of the yellow grain pulled prices from one-month highs hit early in the

session, traders said.

* Oil prices rebounded over $1 a barrel from 12-year lows on Thursday, their biggest daily gain

this year, as rallying financial markets gave some bearish traders reason to take profits on

record short positions.

MARKET NEWS

* Asian stocks gained early on Friday, after the markets were given some breathing space when

the European Central Bank hinted of more monetary policy easing, while crude oil extended an

overnight rally.

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> Russian grain exports record-high in December on weak rouble

DATA/EVENTS

> Cargo surveyor ITS releases Malaysia's Jan 1-25 palm oil export data on January 26.

> Cargo surveyor SGS releases Malaysia's Jan 1-25 palm oil export data on January 26.

> MPOB releases Malaysia's January 2016 data on February 10.

* For a table on Malaysian physical palm oil prices, including refined oil, Reuters Terminal

users can double click on or type.

* To view freight rates from Peninsula Malaysia/Sumatra to China, India, Pakistan and

Rotterdam, please key in and press enter, or double click between the brackets.

* Reuters Terminal users can see cash and futures edible oil prices by double clicking on

the codes in the brackets: To go to the next page in the same chain, hit F12. To go back, hit

F11.

Palm, soy and crude oil prices at 0027 GMT

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Contract Month Last Change Low High Volume

MY PALM OIL FEB6 0 +0.00 0 0 0

MY PALM OIL MAR6 0 +0.00 0 0 0

MY PALM OIL APR6 0 +0.00 0 0 0

CHINA PALM OLEIN MAY6 4582 -16.00 4558 4584 431282

CHINA SOYOIL MAY6 5554 -4.00 5526 5558 158624

CBOT SOY OIL MAR6 29.94 +1.50 0.00 0.00 0

INDIA PALM OIL JAN6 426.00 +1.50 421.10 426.50 760

INDIA SOYOIL FEB6 604.60 +1.15 602.00 605.00 34170

NYMEX CRUDE MAR6 29.78 +0.25 29.67 29.99 3637

Palm oil prices in Malaysian ringgit per tonne

CBOT soy oil in U.S. cents per pound

Dalian soy oil and RBD palm olein in Chinese yuan per tonne

India soy oil in Indian rupee per 10 kg

Crude in U.S. dollars per barrel

Vegetable oils --

Malaysian palm oil exports --

CBOT soyoil futures --

CBOT soybean futures --

Indian solvent --

Weekly Indian vegetable oils --

Dalian Commodity Exchange --

Dalian soyoil futures --

Dalian refined palm oil futures --

Zhengzhou rapeseed oil --

European edible oil prices/trades --

(Reporting by Rozanna Latiff)
Caracas (AFP) - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said Friday he and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have agreed to work together to fight falling oil prices that have hit their economies.

"Without doubt we are going to defend the market. We have agreed with President Vladimir Putin to carry on working on a common vision and plan," Maduro told business leaders.

He said he spoke to Putin by phone Friday about "the situation in the oil market."

Venezuela has the world's biggest known crude reserves but the price of oil has slumped over the past year and a half, slashing its revenues.

On Friday, Venezuela's oil price fell to $21.50 a barrel. In mid-2014 in contrast, world prices were over $100 a barrel.

Venezuela has called on fellow members of the OPEC major oil producers' group to hold an extraordinary meeting in February to discuss reining in prices.

Maduro said he would keep pressuring them "until we clear the way for a stabilization and a recovery of the market."

Russia is the world's second biggest crude oil producer after Saudi Arabia, according to the International Energy Agency, but is not a member of OPEC.

An economic crisis sparked by the falling oil price has led to a political crisis in Venezuela.

Socialist leader Maduro is in a standoff with the center-right opposition, which has won control of the legislature.
Washington (AFP) - The wife of freed US reporter Jason Rezaian has described her harrowing 25-hour ordeal as she tried to leave Iran with her husband in an interview with the Washington Post.

In her first comments since Rezaian was freed from the notorious Evin prison where he spent 18 months on spying charges, Yeganeh Salehi told of how she feared she would not be able to leave the country with him as part of a prisoner swap.

Rezaian was among four prisoners freed in Iran on Saturday, just hours before world powers sealed a deal with Iran on its nuclear program. In return, the US pardoned seven Iranian prisoners and dropped charges against 14 other Iranians.

Salehi told the Post she and Rezaian's mother, Mary, spent hours being shuffled around various halls at Tehran airport by Iran's Revolutionary Guards until they were finally allowed to board a Swiss jet with him and the other freed prisoners.

"It was a real war to get me out," Salehi said in the interview, published Thursday, adding that she was unaware at the time that her being on the plane was part of the deal.

The Post said it was not clear if the ordeal stemmed from poor communication among the Iranians, or if the women were being used as a bargaining chip.

"The Iranians were playing games to the end," it quoted an unnamed senior US official saying.

Rezaian and his mother hold dual Iranian-US nationality while Salehi is Iranian, meaning it was not a given that she would be able to leave the country.

It was only after US Secretary of State John Kerry called his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad Zarif, that the Iranian prosecutor general issued an order allowing Salehi and Mary Rezaian to board the plane to Germany, the Post reported.

Rezaian said in a statement Friday he has completed medical tests at a US military base in Landstuhl, Germany and is returning to the United States, the Post reported separately.

"Today my family and I left Landstuhl to return home to the United States," Rezaian said in the statement. "I appreciate the exceptional care I received from the doctors and medical staff, as well as the hospitality we were shown during our stay on the base."

Story continues

Salehi said that, as she and Mary were being moved around the airport -- sometimes by guards covering their faces with surgical masks -- her mood swung from elation that her husband was to be freed to worry for her mother-in-law and herself.

"At some point I told her, 'Mary, somebody wants us out of the picture and there is a reason for it,'" Salehi said. "Something is wrong."

Another of the four freed Iranian-Americans, former US Marine Amir Hekmati, returned to the United States on Thursday.
London (AFP) - Claudio Ranieri has told his Leicester players to make the most of their surprise challenge for the Premier League title because they may never get so close to the trophy again.

Ranieri's second placed side host Stoke on Saturday knowing a victory would put them back on top of the table, at least until current leaders Arsenal face Chelsea 24 hours later.

To still be in contention for the title at this advanced stage of the campaign is a truly remarkable achievement for an unheralded team that only narrowly avoided relegation under Ranieri's predecessor Nigel Pearson last season.

But, with Leicester unable to match the spending power of the English game's superpowers and rising stars like Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez certain to be tempted by offers from bigger clubs in the future, Ranieri knows this could be a once in a lifetime opportunity for his players to win the league, or at least qualify for the Champions League.

"This league is crazy. Last season it began with Chelsea and ended with Chelsea. Now everyone is fighting," Ranieri said.

"What we are doing is fantastic. This is something special and we want to fight for something special.

"Maybe I'm sure next season we are better but maybe we don't fight for the top four."

Arsene Wenger has warned Arsenal not to underestimate troubled Chelsea as the leaders bid to end their long barren run against their London rivals.

The Gunners' 1-0 win over Chelsea in the Community Shield in August was Wenger's first success against his arch rival Jose Mourinho in 14 attempts.

But that victory in the Wembley sunshine proved a false dawn for Arsenal in their attempt to end Chelsea's stranglehold over their derby showdowns.

Wenger's men were beaten 2-0 at Stamford Bridge in September in one of the few highlights of a miserable campaign for Chelsea, who have since parted company with Mourinho and are now under the interim stewardship of Guus Hiddink heading into Sunday's clash at the Emirates Stadium.

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That loss meant Arsenal have failed to win any of their last eight league meetings with Chelsea dating back to their previous success in October 2011 and, even more remarkably, they have been unable to muster a single goal in the last five of those matches.

- Spluttering -

So, although Arsenal sit top of the table while spluttering champions Chelsea are languishing four points above the relegation zone in 14th place, Wenger has suffered enough against the west Londoners to know not to take victory for granted.

"They are not in this title race but I know the quality of their team. This season there have been exceptional circumstances for them and they will be back. I consider them direct rivals," Wenger said.

"It is another game where people look at us and see how we behave because even if Chelsea are not in the best position you look at their squad.

"It is a big game because of the quality of players on the pitch and it has a big importance to us because we play at Emirates Stadium and we know it will be important to win these types of games."

Manuel Pellegrini expects another difficult test of Manchester City's ability to win a "different" title race when they travel to West Ham.

Pellegrini's team brushed aside a Crystal Palace side enjoying one of their best top-flight seasons last weekend with a comfortable 4-0 home win.

But City, a point behind the leaders in third place, were beaten at home by West Ham in September and Pellegrini knows they can't take any result for granted this weekend.

"If you have good players and a good performance as a team I think everyone can beat another team," Pellegrini said.

"The difference is very slight between one team and another. That gives more importance to the Premier League."

Fourth placed Tottenham, five points adrift of the leaders, face Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

Manchester United, buoyed by a 1-0 win at bitter rivals Liverpool that eased the pressure on boss Louis van Gaal, host Southampton as they look to maintain their hopes of a title challenge.

Fixtures (1500 GMT unless stated)

Saturday

Crystal Palace v Tottenham, Leicester v Stoke, Manchester United v Southampton, Norwich v Liverpool (1245 GMT), Sunderland v Bournemouth, Watford v Newcastle, West Brom v Aston Villa, West Ham v Manchester City (1730 GMT)

Sunday

Arsenal v Chelsea (1600 GMT), Everton v Swansea (1330 GMT)
Slow snow: Theres now heavy snow falling in Tennessee, West Virginia, and parts of North Carolina and Virginia. In D.C., district denizens are still waiting for the snow to arrive. If you were trying to fly on the Eastern Seaboard Friday, you have our condolences. Theres much more detail from Adam and Marina here.

Oscars race controversy: In other news about the white stuff, debate over the paucity of black actors in this years slate of Academy Award nominees is still raging. Will Smith says he wont attend the ceremonies, while English actors Charlotte Rampling and Michael Caine both criticized the backlash.

Two horrible boat accidents: At least 42 migrants are dead off Greeces Aegean coast, after two incidents involving faulty wooden boats trying to reach Europe. Among the dead are 17 children.

Environmental racism charges in Michigan: As questions about the handling of tainted water in Flint continue, Governor Rick Snyder said Friday morning that race was not a factor in the states slow response. I have more detail on Snyders approach here.

News from the morning here.

Read more from The Atlantic:

This article was originally published on The Atlantic.
Its 3 a.m. Laptop is open on my bed; in one hand, Ive got a Clif Bar, and in the other, a coffee mug. When I glance up from the screen, out the window I can see the military base across the street from my D.C. apartment. Is my Internet tapped? I wonder. My apologies if youre watching, Mr. Commander in Chief. I just cant seem to stop. Even if it is pure Putin propaganda, 24/7 Russian news channel RT USA has me hooked.

A haunting promo shows a video of Edward Snowden before asking: What secrets make a government go to war with whistle-blowers? Another blames the European refugee crisis and the rise of ISIS on the Western allies who gleefully deposed Libyas Muammar Gaddafi. Then theres Olivia Munn pimping Proactiv acne treatment. Yes, the coverage is self-serving and laughably biased. But the thing is, it isnt wrong. Americas treatment of whistle-blowers is both chilling and hypocritical. Deposing dictators did create a vacuum that gave rise to ISIS and, later, war-fleeing migrants. And Olivia Munn does have great skin.

Experts say this is all part of Russias plan: Dial down the blatant Homerism, add an aura of reputability and pitch themselves as the second opinion to disillusioned millennials, who believe mainstream U.S. media coddles the rich and powerful. To the naked eye, its headlines read like The Huffington Post. The outlet interviews undercurrent folks with a hint of credibility, from Noam Chomsky on the left to Pat Buchanan on the right, and even libertarian Ron Paul. RT, founded in 2005 as Russia Today, was created to discredit democracy and undermine American exceptionalism: a rebuff to what Vladimir Putin saw as anti-Russian bias in Western media. I know this. Still, I cant look away  because what else is there? While Today obsesses over Marco Rubios booties or Donald Trumps comb-over, RTs relentless coverage of police brutality and government spying tugs on my Black Lives Matter and Bernie Sanders sympathies. And Im not the only one who is hooked: In 2010, Nielsen Media Research reported that Russia Today was the second-most-watched foreign broadcast outlet in America, trailing only the BBC.

Story continues

Libertarian commentator Andrew Demeter, an 18-year-old from Cleveland, relies primarily on RT and other YouTube pundits for his news. It covers what mainstream media in the U.S. wont dare touch, Demeter says. RT has 2.8 million weekly viewers in seven major cities, the outlet told OZY, adding that in December, its YouTube channels hit 3 billion views, besting CNN, Euronews and Al Jazeera. But like so much of what Im watching tonight, those facts seem self-serving; RT has, according to multiple media reports, likely exaggerated its reach. (The company declined to comment.)

Kremlin propaganda is mostly effective in Russia because it functions in a monolingual space, says Natasha Rulyova, a professor of Russian studies at the University of Birmingham in England. When the Kremlin uses the same tools [abroad], they are confronted by other voices. And so their appeal gets limited to fringe groups and anarchists  and weary political correspondents.

Related Articles
By Sebastien Malo NEW YORK (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - An ambulance driver working with Doctors Without Borders has been killed in an air strike in Yemen, the medical charity said on Friday, the latest attack on the group's workers and facilities. The ambulance was hit by an air strike on Thursday in Dhayan, in Saada province in north Yemen, the group said. The driver was described as a Yemeni Ministry of Health employee, it said. The attack was the fourth to hit the group's medical operations in the war-torn Arabian Peninsula country, a spokesman told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. "This latest loss of a colleague is devastating, and it demonstrates the ruthlessness with which healthcare is coming under attack in Yemen," Teresa Sancristoval, emergency coordinator, said in a statement. Earlier this month, a blast at a clinic near the city of Saada killed six people, the group said. Other attacks occurred in October and December, when air strikes damaged medical facilities near Taiz city and in Saada province's Haydan district, it said. A military coalition led by Saudi Arabia has been fighting the Iran-allied Houthi group in Yemen, and nearly 6,000 people have been killed since the conflict began in March. (Reporting by Sebastien Malo, Editing by Ellen Wulfhorst. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, corruption and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org)
Zanzibar (Tanzania) (AFP) - Zanzibar's election commission said Friday new presidential polls for Tanzania's semi-autonomous islands will be held on March 20, after elections last year were scrapped for alleged irregularities.

"Preparations for the fresh election are going on. I appeal for patience, and the observation of election laws," Zanzibar Election Commission (ZEC) chairman Jecha Salim Jecha said in a statement after announcing the date of the rerun.

Security was boosted on the Indian Ocean archipelago before the announcement, an AFP reporter on the main island said.

Zanzibar has experienced sectarian and political tensions in recent years -- including recent grenade explosions -- with the unrest affecting the islands' key tourist industry.

The October 25 elections, which were held across Tanzania, were scrapped on Zanzibar after ZEC reported "violations of electoral law", claims dismissed by the opposition.

The annulment came after a key candidate, Seif Sharif Hamad of the opposition Civic United Front (CUF), declared himself the winner before the results were officially announced.

CUF spokesman Nassor Mazrui on Friday criticised the new polls and said the party would meet to deliberate if they would take part.

"It is an unfair move," Mazrui said. "We oppose fresh polls, but since they have forced it, we have to meet and review our position."

The rerun will cost an estimated some $3.4 million (7.5 billion Tanzanian shillings, 3.2 million euros), according to ZEC.

Zanzibar's 500,000 registered voters also cast ballots for Tanzania's national president, and despite the cancellation on the islands, new Tanzanian President John Magufuli was been sworn into office last year.

Zanzibar President Ali Mohamed Shien of the long-ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) -- the same party as Magufuli -- remains in power until the polls are held.

Tanzania's vice-president, Samia Suluhu Hassan, the first woman ever to hold the post, comes from Zanzibar.

Story continues

Several homemade bombs were detonated in Zanzibar town following the October polls -- including in the heart of the historic Stone Town district, a UNESCO-listed area popular with tourists -- although there were no major injuries.

There have also been wider tensions around Zanzibar's union with the mainland, with some opposition parties wanting to break ties and return to the independence it briefly enjoyed in early 1964 before merging with Tanganyika.

The CUF promised to campaign for full autonomy if it wins, while the CCM has vowed to maintain the status quo.
HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe has secured a $200 million loan from Africa Export and Import Bank (Afreximbank) to import maize following a drought that will see 10 percent of the population facing hunger, the central bank governor said on state radio on Friday. The Southern African nation of 13 million people said early this month it planned to import up to 700,000 tonnes of the staple maize this year to avert hunger as the El Nino weather pattern brings poor rains and affects crops. "We have arranged a facility of $200 million from Afreximbank and we will be importing from anywhere in the world," John Mangudya was quoted saying by state radio. He did not say how much the country would import. Mangudya said Zimbabwe had 250,000 tonnes in its strategic reserves, adding that the country had enough maize to last until September. Private millers have previously said maize stocks would not last beyond June. The United Nations World Food Programme said some 14 million people face hunger in Southern Africa because of a drought that has been exacerbated by an El Nino weather pattern. Zimbabwe's annual maize consumption is 1.5 million tonnes but the 2015 harvest was half that following another drought. Agriculture is critical to Zimbabwe's economy, generating 30 percent of export earnings and contributing 19 percent to GDP, while 70 percent of the population still survives on farming. (Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe; Editing by James Macharia)
What you need to know about the Octagon Art Festival on Sunday in Ames

news
'Nai Manzil' Scheme Launched in Jammu and Kashmir on 20th January 2016 -Dr. Najma Heptulla

Jammu and Kashmir, Fri, 22 Jan 2016 NI Wire

Three Month skill development training in seven identified sectors for minority girls- Dr. Najma Heptulla

The 'Nai Manzil' scheme has been launched, for the first time in Jammu and Kashmir. Dr. Najma Heptulla, the Minister of Minority Affairs informed this while briefing the media on the new initiatives of the Ministry for the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Dr Najma Heptulla said that the scheme was launched for girls in Srinagar on 20th January, 2016 in three institutions. The institutions are Skill Development Centre, University of Kashmir and two Madarsas (Madarsa Shahi-i-Hamdan in Pampore and Madarsa Imam Sadique in Shadi pur ,Bandipora.

Under the scheme girls from minority communities will be imparted three month skill development training in seven identified sectors relevant to the region. These include training in saffron processing, food processing, embroidery, computers IT (both software and hardware), Tourism/hospitality, electronics and plumbing. Trainees will also be given stipend of Rs.4500/-for the course.

Replying to a question ,the Minister said that the scheme has already been introduced at Patna and Motihari in Bihar and Bhandup in Mumbai. It will be introduced in other Madarsas too in phased manner.

Nai Manzil Scheme is an integrated Education and Livelihood Initiative for the Minority Communities. The scheme aims to benefit the minority youths who are school-dropouts or educated in the community education institutions like Madrasas, by providing them an integral input of formal education (up till Class VIII or X) and skill training along with certification. This will enable them to seek better employment in the organised sector and equipping them with better lives. The scheme covers the entire country.

Source: PIB
Kangana Ranaut is a 'One take actress'

Bollywood, Fri, 22 Jan 2016 NI Wire

~Floors Director Vishal Bhardwaj with her performance~

Mumbai, January 22, 2016: Kangana Ranaut is busy shooting for her upcoming film Rangoon in the city. The actress who has impressed the industry and audience with her dedication and hard work has managed to floor Director Vishal Bhardwaj. While shooting, Kangana would not only deliver a brilliant performance in a single take but the shots were often approved by the director at once.

This led the crew of the film, to call her a one take actor, a tag that is not common on the sets of a Vishal Bhardwaj film.

A source from the sets revealed, Kangana excels at her work and for Rangoon, she mostly has been giving excellent shots in just one take, so everyone has started calling her 'one take actor'. She is also very professional in her acts. For instance, there's a particular scene, which required her to feed a Japanese prisoner. Since it was a prolonged shot, she ensured that she washed her hands every time and also insisted the Japanese translator on the sets conveyed it to the actor. Kangana is gelling very well with the crew too.

Kangana essays the role of Fearless Nadia in Rangoon, set against the backdrop of World War 2 opposite Shahid Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan. The film is being shot at film city Mumbai.
BJP Asks Kejriwal Government To Present The Said Secret File Before Senior Sikh Leaders

New Delhi, Fri, 22 Jan 2016 NI Wire

Kejriwal Government has no concern for actual Administrative secret Files as IT is very busy Protecting many secret Files of ITs Misdeals & Misdeeds

New Delhi, 22nd January: Reacting on news reports that 1984 Sikh Carnage Secret File going Missing from Kejriwal Secretariat Delhi BJP President Shri Satish Upadhyay has said that Kejriwal Government has so many secret files of misdeals & misdeeds to protect that they have no concern left for actual secret and important files. Shri Upadhyay has said that like in the matter of corruption issues of Congress regime, it appears there is someone in the Delhi Secretariat who is trying to save the Congress leaders whose names must be in the said secret file. After this disappearance episode the file no more remains secret and hence should be revealed before sikh community leaders.

BJP National Secretary Sardar R P Singh has said with such an important file going missing it is amply clear as to how serious Kejriwal government is on Sikh Matters ? For Kejriwal SIKHS ARE A ISSUE ONLY TILL PUNJAB ELECTIONS.

Shri Singh has said that for Kejriwal every issue is for political mileage, be it Martyr Honor or Sikh Relief Compensation. He does selective honour of martyrs & delays relief distribution to showcase as a political gimmick.

Shri Singh said that time and again I have supported advocate Sardar H.S. Phoolka who claims to be a champion of Sikh Carnage Victims Cases and who is today the main Sikh face of the Aam Aadmi Party and today his activism stands questioned. Today he owes a reply to the sikh community as to how the file went missing and suddenly after media pressure it has been found?

Rubbishing the claims which have suddenly appeared that the file has been traced Sardar R.P. Singh has said that it is an eye wash and Kejriwal Government should immediately call a meeting of senior sikh leaders of all political parties to present before the sikh community the file as we have all the reason to suspect that the Kejriwal Government is trying to mislead the sikh community about the status of the file.

Delhi BJP Spokesperson Shri Rajiv Babbar, Media Incharge Shri Praveen Shankar Kapoor & Yuva Morcha General Secretary Sardar Impreet Singh have challenged AAP Sikh face Advocate Sardar H.S. Phoolka, Punjab MPs and Delhi's Sikh MLAs to seek a report on such major negligence of 1984 Sikh Carnage file going missing and to support the demand for presentation of file before sikh community leaders.

Source: BJP
Two men traveling from Nevada to Montana with over 20 pounds of marijuana got so incredibly stoned they handed themselves over to police in a bout of paranoia. The resulting recording obtained by East Idaho News had YouTubers in stitches

The men  Leland Ayala-Doliente, 22, and Holland Sward, 23  were driving across the Nevada-Idaho border almost exactly a year ago when fear struck so deep it completely paralyzed their ability to reason.

The following police call might be really bad publicity for marijuana, as things like this rarely happen outside of movies. The two decided they were being followed by undercover police after crossing over the border. They saw cars everywhere that they thought were being driven by cops just itching to bust them but were keeping their distance for some inexplicable reason.

And so, the two pulled over after exiting a highway in Rexburg. Parked at a gas station, they made a 911 call that will go down in history:

Hi, uh, were the two dumb asses that got caught trying to bring some stuff through your border and all your cops are just driving around us like a bunch of jack wagons and Id just like for you guys to end it. If you could help me out with that, we would like to just get on with it, Ayala-Doliente told a puzzled dispatcher, who then had to collect his thoughts.

You got caught doing what? the 911 dispatcher asks. They confess again that they got spooked trying to bring some stuff over the border. And, yeah. A bunch of your buddies driving around in a bunch of civilian cars not wanting to pick us up. I dont know whats the deal. I was just wondering if you could help us out and just end it, the young man continued.

They gave the police the address of the gas station, said that they werent carrying firearms and only had munchies for the road and a dog, which they were bringing back to its owner. The dispatcher listened patiently, taking down the details  even playing along a bit, probably realizing the state the two young potheads were in: the officer asked them about the guns, because the undercover cops were just curious.

Yeah, yeah. We tried walking away from the car a couple times and that didnt work. We tried waving them down and that didnt work, so I dont know whats going on here, Ayala-Doliente continued.

The dispatcher then promised to send one of his nearby marked units to pick the pair up.

And the young stoners were real role models for how to get arrested without incident. Police say that on arrival the pair of dopeheads were up with their hands behind their heads. Sward was then said to address an officer with the words We got caught and were surrendering.

A hearing resulted in the following outcome: Sward got five years, amended to 30 days in jail for being a good sport; but Ayala-Doliente learned the hard way not to smoke weed, snort cocaine or swallow oxycodone hours before sentencing day: having tested positive for all of these things, he got one-and-a-half to eight years in prison.

This is not the first time marijuana has driven someone to stupidity, but YouTube comments ranged from quoting cult movies about weed to being happy for the dispatcher  for having had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to bring in the stupidest person youve ever talked to.

Others were more serious, however, reminding people that the Mormon-run Idaho is really intolerant of marijuana, and was therefore likely to charge the guys as much as it would have if they had got caught without handing themselves in.
Read more

The guide , aimed at explaining Germany and its People, teaches about common customs, including handshakes and eye contact. It also includes a photo of two men holding hands, with a caption that reads: In Germany, homosexuals are allowed to show their sexual preference in public.Examples of behavior thats frowned upon are accompanied by a huge X over the pictures. Those actions include a man touching the bottom of a woman wearing a short skirt, accompanied by text which reads: Women are to be respected, no matter what they wear.Engaging in fist fights is also frowned upon, according to a separate picture which explains that conflicts must not be solved with violence.The guide was posted online in October by the Bavarian branch of public broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk. However, it wasn't until this week that it attracted the attention of the Twittersphere, which has since come up with a number of satirical responses.After seeing the guide, Twitter user @KarlreMarks thought it was only fair to respond with instructions on how the West should act in the Middle East  including no airstrikes, no military tanks, and no putting people in jail. His guide was so popular that it's been re-tweeted over 2,000 times.He went on to laugh about the fact that the original instruction manual looks exactly like an airplane safety card.But one person pointed out that hand-holding among two men is actually quite normal in the Middle East, despite the satirical guide showing an 'X' over that very action.That thought was echoed by another person, who provided a picture of what is allegedly two Yemenis holding hands.Another person stated that the new, mock guide has some faults, claiming that it doesn't accurately portray the realities of the Middle East.On a more serious note, one user pointed out that Western citizens aren't migrating to the Middle East, and therefore the satirical guide isn't needed.Despite the derision taking place online, the guide is one of many attempts to help incorporate refugees into their newly-adopted country. Other efforts include a guidebook aimed at refugees who already speak German, a shorter pamphlet available in 13 languages, a phone app offered in Arabic, Persian and French, and a video podcast series.On Wednesday, German President Joachim Gauck noted during a speech at the World Economic Forum that not all migrants have taken on board all European fundamental convictions.This is true in particular of some people who come from or whose families come from Muslim-majority countries, in relations to their views on, for example, the role of women, tolerance, the role of religion or our judicial system, he said.Earlier this week, Czech President Milos Zeman stated that integrating Muslims into Europe is next to impossible.Let them have their culture in their countries and not take it to Europe, otherwise it will end up like Cologne, he told tabloid newspaper Blesk, referring to a string of sexual assaults perpetrated by migrants in the German city on New Year's Eve.Meanwhile, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls has stated that Europe may not have been conceived in order to face such [a] powerful crisis like refugees or terrorists....We won't be able to solve the problem of Syria in a few days. We have to have the right means to intervene there. But we have to live with this, it's a part of our lives now, it's a challenge  history can be tragic and Europe could break up in a very short time, he said during a speech at the World Economic Forum.That sentiment was also expressed by European Council President Donald Tusk earlier this week, who warned that Europe had no more than two months to get the refugee crisis under control, or else its borderless Schengen zone would collapse.Austria temporarily suspended its adherence to the Schengen zone on Sunday, and implemented a strict monitoring process for asylum seekers. So far, 11 countries  Austria, Greece, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Hungary, Slovenia, Sweden, Denmark, Italy, Finland and Germany  have implemented some form of border control amid the refugee crisis, ranging from simple ID checks to razor-wire fences.Efforts to assimilate asylum seekers come as Europe continues to face the worst refugee crisis since World War II, with the number of new arrivals expected to increase this year. Germany has extended an open-door policy to refugees, and has accepted more people than any other European country.More than 1 million refugees entered Europe in 2015, most of whom hail from Syria where a civil war has claimed the lives of 250,000 people and displaced 12 million others since 2011, according to UN figures.
Welcome to the new Enlightenment, an era when suppressed science, hidden history and the enlightening nature of reality are all revealed to those with eyes to see and ears to hear.

These are the thoughts and ideas of New Illuminati - bold forerunners and pioneers of new awareness all over the globe.



Notes on new emerging paradigms from the NEXUS New Times Magazine Founder R. Ayana, who lives in a remote Australian rainforest (and is no longer involved with the magazine) - Catching drops from the deluge in a paper cup since 1984.

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Norfolk has grown, but some of the needs and wants havent kept up with the growth. A proposed half-percent sales tax would get the city caught up with many of those needs and wants with safety, streets, sports and recreation.
Social protests in Kasserine and other regions of the country have spilled into the capital city Tunis with demonstrations and looting in two popular neighborhoods of the capital.

A group of youth demonstrators reportedly burnt a security check-point on Thursday and blocked the main road in Hay al-Tadamon with burning tires.

The neighborhood housing thousands of unemployed youth is the poorest and one of the largest neighborhoods of capital Tunis. It was one of the hottest zones during the 2011 revolution which deposed former President and dictator Ben Ali.

According to press reports, police clashed with the young protesters and fired tear gas to disperse the riot.

It also emerged that amid the protest, groups of looters ransacked shops and stole appliances, while a branch of Attijari Bank has been also reported looted.

Analysts fear beginning of riots in those two neighborhoods could slide the whole capital into a thorough chaos.

Riots which started in Kasserine and other regions qualified as victims of social disparities have also gained major cities including Sousse and Sfax. Meanwhile, the government announced a set of measures to close social gaps.

Prime Minister Habib Essid has called off his Europe tour and is announced back to the country to chair an emergency cabinet meeting scheduled for Saturday.

From Switzerland where he has been attending the Davos Forum, The Prime Minister warned against the risk of exploitation of rallies and the dispersion of efforts of security forces to commit terrorist acts, undermine citizens security and sow disorder in the country.

He also warned against the attempts by some sides to exploit the legitimate demands of jobless for partisan purposes and narrow interests that seek to disrupt public institutions, impede their action and trigger hatred and regional rivalries.

Meanwhile, the Defense Ministry on Thursday said they arrested 7 dubious suspects as they were climbing Mount Chaambi, a zone which was subject to military raid by the national army this week.
A bomb blast killed at least ten people including seven security forces on Thursday in Cairo, in El-Haram district of the Giza governorate as security forces tried to flash out militants hiding in an apartment.

The bomb went off as the squad was trying to defuse it, killing seven security forces and three civilians living in a flat in the building.

Security authorities have finger-pointed the Muslim Brotherhood as being behind the bomb planting.

Police had information that a group of Muslim Brotherhood members were preparing to carry out aggressive acts in the coming days using explosives and crude bombs, the interior ministry said on its Facebook page.

This group was using an apartment in a Cairo building, and on Thursday night the police raided this apartment where they found a number of crude bombs.

Several people have been also been reportedly wounded in the blast.

No-one in the neighborhood knew that they were terrorists. Had we known, we would not have left them alone. The building is still new. The residents have only been here for six months at the most. So, we really didnt know them, Um Sameh, a resident of the building said.

Also on Thursday, a group of IS-affiliate militants in North Sinai in an armored vehicle attacked a security check-point in the city of Arish, killing one security officer and four recruits. The militants succeeded in running away.

Eyewitnesses told reporters the militants attacked their victims shortly after the latter nearly set up the check-point.

These attacks come as Egypt is bracing up for January 25 celebration of Egyptian 2011 revolution which deposed President Mubarak. Critics of President al-Sisi and Muslim Brotherhood have called for a revolution on Monday to overthrow al-Sissi.

President al-Sisi last year warned Egyptians against a revolution urging Egyptians to look at situations in other hotbed conflicts zones where revolutions tried to rewrite history.

AL-Sissi came to power after overthrowing Islamist President Mohamed Morsi in 2013 following a military-backed uprising.
Morocco, land of tolerance, peace and co-existence, will host January 25-27 in Marrakech an important conference on the rights of religious minorities in Muslim countries.

The list of attendees include eminent religious leaders from Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Egypt and many other Muslim countries.

The conference, which is expected to issue a declaration on the protection of religious minorities in the Muslim world, comes to counter the Islamic fanatic groups such as Isis and their extremist ideology.

The conference is sponsored by the Forum for the Promotion of Peace in Muslim societies, a think tank based in the United Arab Emirates.

Morocco had also hosted in April last year a United Nations-backed forum on the Role of Religious Leaders in Preventing Incitement that could Lead to Atrocity Crimes that adopted a draft action plan for religious leaders on preventing incitement to violence.

The plan of action called for monitoring of incitement, the development of alternative messages, engagement in dialogue, efforts to develop and revise education to include better mainstreaming of appreciation of all cultures, engaging in and strengthening inter-religious and intra-religious dialogue and activities to ensure understanding, respect and communication, engaging in dialogue on grievances, strengthening clarity of message and engaging with political leaders.

The Plan also recommends several other actions including dialogue training, mapping and networking of religious leaders who actively work to prevent or counter incitement that can lead to atrocity crimes around the world, engaging with youth and ensuring a gender perspective in all actions proposed and undertaken.

The decision to convene such conferences in Morocco is an international recognition to the sustained efforts made by the North African country in the fight against Islamic radicalization.

King Mohammed VI has set up a leading center that provides training to hundreds of imams of various nationalities, including some from France and Belgium.

The center seeks to teach Imams the precepts of a tolerant and non-violent form of Islam based on Maliki rite and to fight extremism and prevent the use of religion as an excuse for barbarism, regression and terrorism.

Based on a tolerant-based version of Islam, the Moroccan approach provides the necessary tools to spot early signs of extremism to religious professionals, who are in constant contact with their communities.

Morocco is currently training foreign Islamic scholars and imams, mainly from sub-Saharan Africa, in order to disseminate an Islam of the middle path doctrine, based on tolerance, intercultural dialogue and respect of other faiths.
A site to hold the biographies of those Northern Bank / Belfast Bank officials who died or served during the Great War, World War 2 and the Northern Ireland conflict. Through this website, the families and descendants of around 300 bank officials of the Belfast Banking Company Limited, Northern Banking Company Limited and Northern Bank Ltd will know that "We Will Remember Them". It is not connected with Northern Bank. Any views or comments expressed are those of the writer.
This blog is run by Google. Google uses cookies to analyze traffic to this website. If you submit a comment that is posted, it will be publicly visible to all. If you contact me via my blog through email or the comment on this page, I will use your email only to respond to your inquiry. If you click on any links from this blog to outside website, please review their privacy policies and content. By using this website you agree to and accept these terms of use.

This privacy policy may change from time to time at my sole discretion. You should check this page often for any changes. Your use of this website after any change in this privacy policy will constitute your acceptance of such change.




American patriot or dangerous Canadian infiltrator: you decide! Photo: Scott Olson/2016 Getty Images

If youre a constitutional scholar who loves debating the etymology of terms used in the late 18th century, the past few weeks have been particularly exciting. For years theres been chatter among birthers about whether or not Ted Cruz is eligible to run for president, but when he announced his candidacy earlier this year, the general consensus was that hes probably qualified, and thats good enough.

But then, as can be said for much of the U.S. political landscape in this election cycle, Donald Trump happened. In the first week of January, Trump dusted off his old Obama-birther handbook and went to work on new rival Ted Cruz, transforming his Canadian birth from joke fodder to a legitimate issue  depending on whom you ask. Now the obscure academic debate has moved to mainstream publications, and it may have real implications for Cruzs political future. Heres a guide to the various arguments on whether the Texas senator is the latest victim of birther fearmongering, or a sneaky Canuck trying to seize control of the U.S. government.

The Issue

Ted Cruz was born in Calgary, Alberta, on December 22, 1970, to Eleanor Darragh, who was born in Delaware, and Rafael Cruz, who was born in Cuba. The Cruzes were working for the oil industry at the time, and relocated to Houston, Texas, when Ted was 4.

Someone is considered an American citizen if they meet one of three qualifications: They are born on U.S. soil, regardless of their parents citizenship; they are born outside the U.S. to at least one American parent; they go through the naturalization process and are granted U.S. citizenship.

Cruz is clearly a citizen under the second qualification, so whats the problem? Well, according to Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution:

No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citizen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty five Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.

Cruz is 45 years old and has lived in the U.S. since he was a child, but since the framers never explained what the term natural born Citizen means, his presidential eligibility is up for debate.

Arguments in Favor of Cruzs Eligibility

Of course, one of the biggest proponents of the Cruz is eligible theory is Harvard-educated lawyer and former clerk to Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist, Ted Cruz. In the last GOP debate he argued:

Under longstanding U.S. law, the child of a U.S. citizen born abroad is a natural-born citizen. If a soldier has a child abroad, that child is a natural-born citizen. Thats why John McCain, even though he was born in Panama, was eligible to run for president. If an American missionary has a child abroad, that child is a natural-born citizen. Thats why George Romney, Mitts dad, was eligible to run for president, even though he was born in Mexico.

(Cruz went on to paint birthers as so nutty that theyd question the citizenship of Donald Trump, who was born in the U.S., because his mother was born in Scotland.)

The longstanding U.S. law Cruz is likely referring to is the Naturalization Act of 1790, which was passed by the first Congress three years after the Constitution was written. It states that the children of citizens of the United States, that may be born beyond sea, or out of the limits of the United States, shall be considered as natural born citizens.

So, case closed? Nope! Thats the only time Congress clarified the meaning of natural born citizen, but as FactCheck.org explains, that law was superseded by the Naturalization Act of 1795, where the term natural born citizens was changed to just citizens.

A 2011 report from the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service noted that switch, and delved deep into the 19th-century understanding of the term natural born under English common law. It concluded that anyone who is a U.S. citizen at birth can run for president:

The weight of legal and historical authority indicates that the term natural born citizen would mean a person who is entitled to U.S. citizenship by birth or at birth, either by being born in the United States and under its jurisdiction, even those born to alien parents; by being born abroad to U.S. citizen-parents; or by being born in other situations meeting legal requirements for U.S. citizenship at birth. Such term, however, would not include a person who was not a U.S. citizen by birth or at birth, and who was thus born an alien required to go through the legal process of naturalization to become a U.S. citizen.

Neal Katyal and Paul Clement, two former solicitor generals who served in the Barack Obama and George W. Bush administrations, respectively, backed up that analysis in an often-cited March 2015 op-ed in the Harvard Law Review. They explain that children born outside of the British Empire were still subjects, and were described in British law as natural born. The framers, of course, would have been intimately familiar with these statutes and the way they used terms like natural born, since the (British) statutes were binding law in the colonies before the Revolutionary War, they said.

Katyal and Clement also note that we have a good idea of why the natural born citizen requirement was included in the Constitution. Shortly before the document was drafted, John Jay, the future first chief justice of the Supreme Court, suggested in a letter to George Washington that they should provide a strong check to the admission of Foreigners into the administration of our national Government; and to declare expressly that the Command in chief of the american [sic] army shall not be given to, nor devolve on, any but a natural born Citizen.

The framers were concerned about foreign influence on the newly formed U.S. government, but as Katyal and Clement point out, John Jays own children were born abroad while he served on diplomatic assignments, and it would be absurd to conclude that Jay proposed to exclude his own children, as foreigners of dubious loyalty, from presidential eligibility.

Bryan A. Garner, law professor and longtime editor-in-chief of Blacks Law Dictionary, took a stab at the issue this month in The Atlantic and found that the framers would have understood the British term natural born subject to include the foreign-born child of a subject, as long as the subject-parent was the father.

Today, Cruz would not be disqualified by that patriarchal stipulation. Even if it once mattered (until 1934), the sex of the parent-citizen almost certainly isnt a factor under current American law, Garner writes. The Supreme Court would today hold that the Fourteenth Amendments Equal Protection Clause obliterated any such distinction.

Akhil Reed Amar, a law professor at Yale University, agreed in a CNN opinion piece that Cruz might not have been eligible if he were born in 1790. But he writes:

Note that the right question to ask is not: What were the natural-born statutory rules in 1788 or 1790? The right question is: What are the natural-born statutory rules on the day a given presidential candidate was born? These statutory rules have changed over the years, and Article II builds these future changes into its elegant language. And a good thing, too, given that the rules of 1790 were rather sexist. In both England and America, the law in that era typically focused on the status of a foreign-born babys father, not mother. In other sections of the 1790 law, race tests were in place, treating white persons better than all others.

Arguments Against Cruzs Eligibility

Like many issues surrounding Ted Cruz, the eligibility controversy appears to be partially fueled by the fact that pretty much everyone hates him. One scholar Donald Trump frequently cites when making his Cruz-birtherism argument is Harvards Laurence Tribe, who was once the senators professor. Hes the scholar Trump mentioned in the last debate, prompting Cruz to dismiss him as a left-wing judicial activist and major Hillary Clinton supporter.

In a recent Boston Globe op-ed, Tribe said he actually believes Cruz is eligible to be president  but thats because unlike Cruz, hes not an originalist, or one who claims to be bound by the narrowly historical meaning of the Constitutions terms at the time of their adoption. Tribe argues that the sort of judge Cruz admires  one who refuses to discard the Second Amendments right to bear arms as a historical relic, or to limit that right to arms-bearing by members of todays state militias, the national guard  should stick with the sexist 1790 definition of a natural born citizen and find Cruz ineligible for the presidency.

It appears Tribes aim wasnt to derail Cruzs campaign, but to needle him for his opposition to living constitutionalists, like his old professor. Apparently, the dispute between Cruz and Tribe dates back several decades:

When Cruz was my constitutional law student at Harvard, he aced the course after making a big point of opposing my views in class  arguing stridently for sticking with the original meaning against the idea of a more elastic living Constitution whenever such ideas came up. I enjoyed jousting with him, but Ted never convinced me  nor did I convince him. At least he was consistent in those days. Now, he seems to be a fair-weather originalist, abandoning that methods narrow constraints when it suits his ambition.

Other scholars arent arguing against Cruz simply because they find him irritating and his position ironic. Earlier this month, Mary Brigid McManamon, a constitutional law professor at Widener Universitys Delaware Law School, said Cruz is ineligible, writing in the Washington Post:

The concept of natural born comes from common law, and it is that law the Supreme Court has said we must turn to for the concepts definition. On this subject, common law is clear and unambiguous. The 18th-century English jurist William Blackstone, the preeminent authority on it, declared natural-born citizens are such as are born within the dominions of the crown of England, while aliens are such as are born out of it. The key to this division is the assumption of allegiance to ones country of birth.

McManamon, an originalist, takes issue with Katyal and Clements Havard Law Review op-ed, saying the laws they cite are new statutes passed by Parliament rather than longstanding English common law. While it is understandable for a layperson to make such a mistake, it is unforgivable for two lawyers of such experience to equate the common law with statutory law, she writes. The common law was unequivocal: Natural-born subjects had to be born in English territory. The then-new statutes were a revolutionary departure from that law.

Writing in Salon this week, Harvard Law professor Einer Elhauge agreed with McManamon that what the framers had in mind was the English common law meaning of natural born: someone born within a U.S. territory. He also argues that even if there are other methods by which one can become a citizen at birth, the word natural is a limiting qualifier that indicates only some persons who are born citizens qualify for the presidency.

Furthermore, Elhauge says that if were willing to accept that a naturalized citizen (say, Arnold Schwarzenegger) is ineligible for the presidency, the idea that an American born abroad cant be president either is reasonable:

The concern at the time was obviously that foreign-born persons might not be as loyal to the U.S. One might think that concerns about disloyalty are odd for persons who have lived in the U.S. as citizens for a long time, but that oddity was also true at the founding. Moreover, no one claims the clause means that naturalized citizens (who may have lived in the U.S. since they were small children) are eligible to run for president, even though they had to do far more to prove their loyalty to the U.S. than someone born abroad who happened to have one U.S. citizen parent. The line between those born in the U.S. versus abroad to U.S. parents certainly seems debatable. But it is no less sensible than the alternative line between those born abroad to U.S. parents versus those have been naturalized citizens for decades. This is one of those issues where general principles (even living ones) do not dictate any particular dividing line, and we need some technical fixed rule. Unfortunately for Ted Cruz, that technical rule does not permit his candidacy.

The Bottom Line: We Dont Really Know If Cruz Is Eligible to Be President

Yes, this may be one of those instances where Donald Trump is right. While more legal scholars seem to think the court would find Cruz eligible, we cant say for sure because the Supreme Court hasnt taken up the issue. As PolitiFact notes, lawsuits filed in 2008 contesting John McCains eligibility didnt go anywhere. We know from the McCain lawsuits, courts dont want to touch this, said Sarah Duggin, a Catholic University law professor who has studied the issue extensively. It very well may be that the courts would refuse to go near this. There are so many issues.

In McCains case the matter was settled when the Senate passed a measure stating that while he was born in Panama, John Sidney McCain, III, is a natural born Citizen under Article II, Section 1, of the Constitution of the United States. The Senate is far less likely to do the same for Cruz because his claim is murkier than McCains  and as with everything Cruz does, theres the usual interpersonal issue.

Houston attorney Newton B. Schwartz Sr. is still hoping the Supreme Court will address the issue, so he filed a lawsuit last week in U.S. District Court challenging Cruzs natural born citizenship. Duggin believes private citizens dont have standing to sue, but the court could be forced to take up the issue if Cruz is challenged by another presidential candidate, or excluded from a primary ballot due to his Canadian birth.

Regardless of the legal outcome, Trump has achieved his goal. Remember, he isnt saying he knows Cruz is ineligible, hes just helpfully pointing out that you dont want a huge legal controversy hanging over your partys presidential nominee. A Monmouth University poll released this week shows that a sizable number of Republican voters are at least confused about whether Cruz is eligible to be president (and presumably most havent even delved into the definitions of early American legal terms). Two-thirds think Cruz is eligible to run, while 12 percent say he isnt and 24 percent arent sure.

On the other hand, Cruz has reason to hope that hell survive this controversy over his citizenship. President Obama is about to end his second term, and two years ago a poll found 19 percent of Americans still thought he was definitely or probably not a U.S. citizen.
Survivors try to warm up at Kalymnos island after a rescue operation by the coast guard Friday, January 22. Photo: Giorgos Drosos/Kalymnos-News.gr via AP

At least 43 migrants traveling from Turkey drowned when their boats capsized last night. At least 17 of those killed were children. According to the BBC, at least 700 migrants drowned while making the voyage across the Aegean Sea last year. Another 100 have already died this year, making this month the deadliest January on record. Last year, not many migrants traveled to Europe in January because of the horrible weather. The same logic didnt hold this year, as people have become increasingly desperate. About 37,000 people have made the trip already, per Reuters.

They werent wearing life jackets, I dont understand, a local fisherman who tried to help rescue some of the 26 people who survived told Reuters. They couldnt swim.  The hospital is now full of dead people.

Meanwhile, German chancellor Angela Merkel is meeting with Turkish prime minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Friday. They are trying, once again, to think of a way to solve the migrant crisis, which shows no signs of dissipating in 2016. Merkel, who pledged that the EU would give $3 billion in aid to Turkey if it promises to deal with its borders and fight for peace in Syria, echoed the statement of the fisherman. Today, once again, we heard of dreadful numbers of dead, including children, in the Aegean, she said.

At home and abroad, Merkel is finding fewer and fewer people who agree with her on refugee policy. At home, opposition parties are gathering strength, especially after the horrifying New Years assaults in Cologne, where dozens of women were attacked by men who were described as appearing to be North African. Since then, raids on North African neighborhoods have increased across the country. One man, who moved to Germany 57 years ago, told NPR, They pulled people out of cafes or stores like animals and made such a scene. It was so bad. What are our German neighbors going to think about us?  They forget most of us here are German citizens who can vote.

Meanwhile, many Germans are increasingly worried about migrants; according to the BBC, pepper spray has been selling like crazy.

Austria just put a cap on the number of refugees it will accept in 2016: 37,500  far fewer than the number who arrived in 2015. Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban said this was great news on Friday, adding that the best migrant is the migrant who does not come. The best number is zero. Macedonia closed its southern border earlier this week. In Germany, temporary controls on the Austrian border have now become permanent.

In Greece, where those dozens of people now dead were destined, migrants are being told, as of Thursday, that they cannot enter the country unless they can say where they plan on ending up. Those who refuse to declare whether they plan to seek asylum, one police official told The Wall Street Journal, will not be able to cross the borders.

At Davos, French prime minister Manuel Valls said that the entire European Union may be in danger of crumbling if the problem isnt fixed soon. If Europe is not capable of protecting its own borders, he warned, its the very idea of Europe that will be questioned. EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini also spoke at the World Economic Forum and warned that the closing borders would wreak havoc on the economy.

William Lacy Swing, the Organization for Migrations director, told the Washington Post, We are in a period of unprecedented anti-migrant, anti-foreign sentiment, in which everybody sort of retreats in their own circle and says, No one can come in.

Some migrants have protested their treatment. Twenty-two-year-old Moder Mothama Magid is suing the Swedish government for $116,420, per the AP, after he was accused of terrorism and labeled as such in the media. He is no longer a suspect, but it seems likely that hasnt deterred people from treating him differently.
These New York firefighters are just stocking up on salt, but well all get a crack at the real thing soon enough. Photo: Bryan Thomas/Getty Images

Good morning and welcome to Fresh Intelligence, our roundup of the stories, ideas, and memes youll be talking about today. In this edition we prepare for an icy weekend, a Bernie Sanders music video warms Americas heart, and a cow almost escapes his destiny. Heres the rundown for Friday, January 22.

WEATHER

Winter Storm Jonas is almost here! D.C. is set to get the worst of it, with the storm kicking off this afternoon, while New Yorkers can expect snow to appear on Saturday morning and carry on through the weekend. Serious thunderstorms are expected in Mississippi and Louisiana, and a tornado watch is in effect. Be safe everyone! [Weather.com]

FRONT PAGE

East Coast Freak-out: Winter Becomes Winterlike

The East Coast is rushing to prepare for Winter Storm Jonas: Shelves are stripped in D.C., and across the eastern seaboard hundreds of flights have already been canceled. The D.C. Metro will be suspended for the duration of the storm, but in New York the subway should continue running. Mayor de Blasio said this wont be like last year, when he found out Governor Cuomo was shutting down the subway from a TV news report. The lack of coordination was a real problem, and obviously decisions should have been different, he said. But this time theres going to be a lot more communication and coordination. Speaking of coordination, theres still time to pick up that case of beer, but youd better hurry. [Weather.com, NYT]

EARLY AND OFTEN

Americans Cry Over Bernie Video, Dont Know Why

New ads from the front-running Democratic candidates have brought their differences into sharp relief. Specifically, Hillary feels she is qualified for the difficult, complex job of running the country, and Bernie  well, Bernie really digs the song America by Simon and Garfunkel. He finds it very calming after a long day of shouting about pretty much everything.

Iowa Family Dinners Extremely Tense

A new poll has both Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders heading into the Iowa primaries with commanding leads. The CNN/ORC poll released yesterday shows Trump leading Cruz 37 percent to 26 percent, and Sanders leading Clinton 51 percent to 43 percent. [CNN]

Obama on Flint: Being Forced to Drink Poison Un-American

During a speech at a reception for mayors at the White House yesterday, the president touched on the growing controversy in Flint, Michigan, saying the situation was unacceptable. He then announced the resignation of the Environmental Protection Agency boss for Flint, and pledged $80 million to Michigan to shore up their water infrastructure. See? That wasnt so hard. [CNN]

Graham Endorses Random American Who Is Not Trump or Cruz

An understandably gloomy Lindsay Graham told reporters yesterday that a nomination for either Trump or Cruz would spell the death of the Republican Party. He compared choosing between the two front-runners to being shot or poisoned and instead suggested the country just pick somebody out of the phone book. [USA Today]

THE STREET, THE VALLEY

Walmart Back to Old Self

Just a day after announcing company-wide raises for millions of employees, the familiar Walmart was back in the news for illegally firing workers who protested in front of its headquarters. The company was also found to have fired employees at 29 stores for unexcused absences after refusing them permission to strike. The retail giant must now host meetings in those stores, reminding workers of their right to strike. [WSJ]

Airline Saves Up All Those Fees, Splurges on Planes

United Airlines, one of the worst-rated carriers in America, is updating its fleet with a purchase of 40 new 737s. The purchase affected the companys earnings report out yesterday, which fell below analysts expectations. United still managed to have its most profitable quarter ever, earning $934 million. Remember that next time theyre charging you for a blanket. [CNN]

Google Pays Apple for Right to Exist

A lawsuit between Oracle and Google has shined a light on the companys infamously mysterious finances. Among the big reveals is the news that Google paid Apple more than $1 billion in 2014 to keep its search bar on the iPhone. Yahoo, you never stood a chance. [Bloomberg]

Starbucks Slowdown Blamed on Terrorists

Starbucks released its second-quarter profits yesterday and blamed its disappointing international growth in part on the terrorist attack in Paris. Though domestic growth beat forecasts, the company underperformed abroad, especially in the Middle East and Africa. Starbucks recently closed 50 stores temporarily after an outlet in Jakarta was targeted in a terrorist attack. [Bloomberg]

MEDIA BUBBLE

Twyla Tharp Ex, Steve Jobs Widow Team Up

Rumors that editor Leon Wieseltier was preparing to buy the The New Republic after Facebook founder Chris Hughes abandoned it were a bit off-base. Wieseltier is instead planning to team up with Laurene Powell Jobs  of Steve Jobs marrying fame  to start a new journal. Tech money will save journalism yet, youll see. [Daily Intelligencer]

Fox News Obsessed With Benghazi Movie, Too

Fox News spent nearly three hours hyping 13 Hours, the new Michael Bay action blockbuster based on the real tragedy in Benghazi. Now Bay just needs to find a Trump tie-in for Transformers 5. [Media Matters]

Millions Clearly Havent Seen Narcos

Recent boasts by Netflix executives arent backed up by the numbers. Adweek released data yesterday from Symphony Advanced Media showing streaming services trail broadcast television by millions of viewers. Oh, but the data counts DVRs, on demand, and broadcast shows watched on streaming services as part of broadcast television. TV, youre still doomed. [Adweek]

PHOTO OP

Queens Moo-rauder Caught

Police responded to a cow on the loose in Queens yesterday after the freedom-loving animal reportedly escaped from a nearby halal slaughterhouse. The unnamed cow enjoyed a few moments of freedom along Jamaica Avenue before it was recaptured by police. In a tweet the police announced that all officers were safe, totally misreading our allegiance.

Yes, you heard right! Cow on the loose-Jamaica Queens.All Officers safe.No injuries.Thank you all for your patience. pic.twitter.com/A1kGV85fUP  NYPD 103rd Precinct (@NYPD103Pct) January 21, 2016

MORNING MEME

Sometimes Theyre Not After You, Youre Just Paranoid (and High)

Though it happened a year ago, this great 911 call was only made public yesterday. It really makes you feel like you have your life together.

OTHER LOCAL NEWS

Tip of the Day: Dont Skimp on the Getaway Driver

A burglar in Alaska might have gotten away with robbing two businesses yesterday had he not locked his keys in his car. He was apprehended after he gave his personal information to the taxi company he called to rescue him. [ABC]

Mans Dying Wish: Anybody But Trump

The obituary for 65-year-old chiropractor Jeffrey Cohen published in the Pittsburgh Gazette closed with the line, Jeffrey would ask that in lieu of flowers, please do not vote for Donald Trump. The number of tributes to Cohen should be huge. [The Wrap]

HAPPENING TODAY

Weather, Possible Signs From Above, Cant Stop Protesters

The annual March for Life anti-abortion rally will go ahead tomorrow as scheduled despite the blizzard set to bear down on it. Thousands of pro-lifers are expected for the march up Capitol Hill. [WaPo]
Anthony Hill. Photo: Family handout.

A white police officer who shot an unarmed black man to death in Georgia last year has been indicted on six charges, including felony murder, the New York Times reports.

On March 9, DeKalb County officer Robert Olsen was dispatched to the apartment complex where Anthony Hill, a 27-year-old Air Force veteran, was behaving erratically, jumping from the balcony of his second-story apartment, speaking unintelligibly, and removing his clothes.

Witnesses said Hill was unarmed, and in fact, completely naked, when Olsen, who was carrying a Taser and had been trained in dealing with mentally-ill people, opened fire on Hill and killed him after he did not comply with Olsens directions not to approach him.

Hills family says he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder.

In a wrongful-death lawsuit filed in Atlantas Federal District Court against Olsen and the county, Hills family contends that the officer had a long and extensive history of aggressive conduct and propensity toward anger when dealing with members of the public.

Olsens defense lawyer insists that his clients reaction to the threat of violent injury was reasonable.
Sarah Palin and Donald Trump, together at least. Photo: Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images

In 2008, Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin electrified conservatives in a way the more sober presidential nominee could not. People who paid close attention to Palin saw her as a dangerous buffoon. Anti-intellectualism was her driving impulse, as Noam Scheiber aptly demonstrated in a 2008 profile. She knew so little about public policy (she believed England was literally and not just symbolically ruled by a queen, she did not realize North and South Korea were separate countries, and so on) that the McCain campaign frantically scurried to conceal her ignorance, and some members of her team were actually prepared to publicly warn America against her before the election if they felt she had a chance to win. Despite those efforts, Palins crude ignorance shined through for anybody who cared to see it. But most conservatives (outside the McCain campaign) chose not to see it. They fervently defended Palin as an authentic populist beset by sinister liberal elites.

This week, National Review has an editorial and a cover symposium with 19 conservatives denouncing Trump as crude, a boor, astoundingly ignorant of everything that to govern a powerful, complex, influential, and exceptional nation such as ours he would have to know, and so on. One of the writers, Andrew McCarthy, a National Review contributing editor, expresses astonishment that Trump could not identify such figures as Hassan Nasrallah, Ayman al-Zawahiri, and Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. When Palin responded to a question about the Bush Doctrine with bug-eyed incomprehension, McCarthy angrily dismissed the suggestion that she did not know what it was as nonsense.

Hypocrisy is the tribute paid to virtue by vice. In the case of Donald Trumps candidacy, the virtue is revulsion at the spectacle of a clownish reality-television star potentially claiming their partys nomination for the presidency. National Reviews denunciation of Trump is a sign of civic health. Conservatives and liberals may not agree on policy, but some standards of public decency ought to stand apart from ideology. Conservatives may be hypocritical about this virtue, but their tribute to it reinforces its standing.

The anti-Trump conservatives are so eager to cast him out as a heretic that they refuse to acknowledge their own reflection in him. If Trump were to become the president, the Republican nominee, or even a failed candidate with strong conservative support, asks National Reviews editorial, what would that say about conservatives? The editorial treats this question as rhetorical, and moves on. It needs a real answer.

The most prominent theme in the anti-Trump symposium is that Trump is not a real conservative. Mona Charen: Trump is no conservativehes simply playing one in the primaries. Steven Hayward: Worse, [Trumps] inclination to understand our problems as being managerial rather than political suggests he might well set back the conservative cause if he is elected, if not make the problems of runaway executive power even worse. Yuval Levin: Donald Trump is no conservative. Brent Bozell: A real conservative walks with us  Until he decided to run for the GOP nomination a few months ago, Trump had done none of these things, perhaps because he was too distracted publicly raising money for liberals such as the Clintons; championing Planned Parenthood, tax increases, and single-payer health coverage; and demonstrating his allegiance to the Democratic party. Katie Pavlich: Given the high stakes both at home and abroad, America cannot afford to elect a man who is not rooted in conservatism. NRs editors call him a philosophically unmoored political opportunist who would trash the broad conservative ideological consensus within the GOP in favor of a free-floating populism with strong-man overtones.

That is all mostly correct. Trump is not a movement conservative, and people who are have good reason to doubt that he would stick with their principles if (and when) they became inconvenient. But Trumps ability to commandeer the presidential race is no more an accident than Palins brief but torrid rise to the heights of right-wing idolatry. Modern American conservatism is inherently vulnerable to this kind of exploitation.

One reason for this is that, whereas liberalism tries to apply the conclusions of science and academia to public policy, conservatism rejects those conclusions in favor of an a priori belief that more government is always wrong. One contributor, the not notably hinged commentator Glenn Beck, assails Trump for supporting the stimulus, the auto bailouts, and the bank bailouts  three measures that most economists believe helped prevent a much deeper recession. Movement conservatism rejects the conclusions of wide swaths of economists, social scientists, the entire field of climate science  of course it is liable to attract anti-intellectual candidates.

A second problem is that conservative doctrine is unpopular with the public as well. The majority may often support generalized anti-government sentiment, but it does not follow those generalities through to their specific implications. During George W. Bushs first term, the proposition that Medicare ought to add prescription-drug coverage drew the support of 90 percent of the public. Conservatives did not believe this  some of them grudgingly accepted the Bush administrations political need to cater to popular sentiment, while others castigated Bush as a traitor to conservatism for doing so.

The habit of doublethink has embedded itself so deeply in right-wing discourse that its members hardly even notice it anymore. David McIntosh, president of the anti-tax Club for Growth, flays Trump for his advocacy of universal coverage. About health care he has said: Everybodys got to be covered and The governments gonna pay for it, writes the disgusted anti-tax lobbyist. Of course, most Republicans have also spent the last seven years promising their own vague alternative health-care plans that will help cover the uninsured. The difference is that, when Ted Cruz or Marco Rubio promise to repeal Obamacare and replace it with something terrific, conservatives can trust that theyre lying.

This is the rub with Trump. Conservatives fear him not because he is an ignorant demagogue, but because hes not their ignorant demagogue.
Kim Jong-un is at it again. Photo: KCNA/Corbis

On January 2, North Korean officials arrested Otto Frederick Warmbier, a 21-year-old University of Virginia student, at Pyongyang airport just before his flight back to China. Warmbier had entered the country five days prior for a New Years trip with a Chinese travel company, Young Pioneer Tours. Korean officials released a short statement saying, Warmbier Otto Frederick, student of Virginia University in the United States, was caught committing a hostile act against North Korea after entering the country as a tourist. He aimed to destroy the countrys unity under the US governments acquiescence and control. They did not elaborate on the nature of the hostile act.

Gareth Johnson, a spokesman for Young Pioneer Tours, told Reuters the company is in touch with Ottos family, the U.S. State Department and the Embassy of Sweden in Pyongyang and doing all we can to secure his release. (The Swedes handle American diplomatic efforts in the DPRK, since the U.S. has no embassy there.)

Warmbier is the third Western citizen to be held in North Korea under Kim Jong-uns regime. In October North Korean officials released Joo Won-moon, an NYU student who was held for more than five months, and last week CNN interviewed a man who claims to be a U.S. citizen arrested by North Korea for spying. Although the Department of State strongly recommends against travel to North Korea, there is no outright ban, and Young Pioneer routinely brings in Americans from China.

Warmbiers arrest comes after North Korea tested what might or might not be a hydrogen bomb. The U.S. and South Korea were understandably peeved, with the latter calling for bone-numbing sanctions against its northern neighbor. So far South Korea has contented itself with blasting K-pop over its northern border, and Warmbiers arrest might be used as a bargaining chip to stave off further repercussions.
Photo: Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg via Getty Images

The courts will not block one of the Obama administrations most significant policies to combat climate change  for now. A federal appeals panel on Thursday rejected a request from 27 states and scores of industry groups to halt the implementation of new emissions limits on coal-fired power plants. But the panel set hearings on the broader legal challenge to those limits for this June, with the cases final resolution not expected until the Supreme Court weighs in sometime next year.

The disputed regulations would require each state to reduce carbon emissions for electric-power plants, the largest sources of such pollution in the country. Since coal-fired plants are the filthiest major power source, compliance with the rule would require states to shift much of their electricity generation from coal to natural gas or other alternatives. The Environmental Protection Agency expects the new rules to cut coal-based carbon emissions by as much as 30 percent by 2030, from 2005s peak levels.

The sooty states and corporations challenging the new rule claim that the Clean Air Act does not give the EPA the authority to regulate greenhouse-gas emissions. Under President George W. Bush, the EPA itself shared this assessment. But in 2007, the Supreme Court ruled that the law gave the agency unambiguous authority to regulate any air pollutants that endanger public health or the environment. In 2009, the EPA issued an endangerment finding that laid the groundwork for the regulations announced last summer.

The merits of the new challenge will be decided by a three-judge panel in the D.C. circuit Court of Appeals. That panel will include two judges appointed by Democratic presidents, including Obama appointee Sri Srinivasan.

The big news is not just that the court didn't stay the GHG case - but that a panel including Rogers + Srvinivasan will rule on the merits.  Nicholas Bagley (@nicholas_bagley) January 22, 2016

Obamas victory at the appeals court comes amid a flurry of new administrative actions regarding climate change. The Interior Department issued a moratorium on new leases for coal mining on public lands last week, as the agency drafts new (and almost certainly higher) rates and royalties for access to such lands. The department is also expected to propose new regulations targeting methane emissions from oil and gas drilling on public lands, the New York Times reports.
Photo: Shutterstock.com Dont plan your trip to Sudan around your Niagara Falls visit.

At the tail-end of 2015, Congress delivered an end-of-the-year present in the form of a trillion dollar omnibus spending bill that neither Democrats nor Republicans loved but begrudgingly supported because it averted a government shutdown. That bill, which was signed by President Obama, contains many disparate provisions, as massive and very rushed legislation is wont to do.

One such policy change included in that package was a tightening of the United States visa-waiver program to prevent most people from qualifying if theyd visited Syria, Iraq, Iran, or Sudan since March 2011. Basically, the visa-waiver program lets travelers from select countries, including most European states, visit or vacation (stays of less than 90 days) in the U.S. without a formal visa application  and the screening it entails. About 20 million people take advantage of this passport-only travel, per NPR, which will surprise no one whos walked through Times Square. But in the wake of the Paris attacks in November and the San Bernardino massacre a few weeks later, that policy was spotlighted as a potential loophole that radicalized citizens of visa-waiver countries  like France or Belgium, for example  could exploit to come to the U.S. and elude authorities.

Today, those new restrictions officially go into effect. The Obama administration did say they may make exceptions on a case-by-case basis, specifically for people who may be going to Syria, Iraq, Iran, or Sudan to report or do humanitarian work. People who hold dual citizenship with one of those four countries  even if they have not actually visited there ever  will also need to apply for a visa now, which some lawmakers have criticized as being too stringent.

The Obama administration will also consider exemptions for people whove traveled to Iraq and Iran for legitimate business-related purposes, which has angered some congressional Republicans who are accusing the White House of doing everything in its power to successfully implement this Iran nuclear deal. Officials in Tehran had apparently warned Washington that including Iran among those countries would deter foreigners from doing business in Iran and might violate the nuclear deal. Secretary of State Kerry had tried to ease Irans concerns last month, and got an earful from the GOP. Iran was ultimately included on that list, but some Republicans are saying some of the exceptions the administration is considering violate the intent of the law passed by Congress.

Speaking of that bill, in the weeks leading up to the legislation, Congress was hotly debating (along with state governors and presidential candidates) the fate of Syrian and Iraqi refugees. House GOP leaders, with some Democratic support, had pushed through a bill in November that would stop the admission of Syrian and Iraqi refugees until each was vetted and approved by the Secretary of Homeland Security, the FBI, and the Director of National Intelligence. The House wanted to put that measure into that omnibus spending bill, too, but it never made it in. Republican leaders vowed to take it up in 2016  which they did.

On Wednesday, Senate Republicans tried to bring to the floor a bill that would block Syrian and Iraqi refugees, but were ultimately stymied by Democratic leaders who said theyd happily consider it  if, in exchange, everyone got to vote on a few amendments that Republicans were sure to loathe. Those included an amendment that would have banned people on the no-fly list from purchasing firearms and another that would have recorded senators positions on Donald Trumps Muslim ban, says Roll Call. Since no GOP leaders quite wanted to go there  especially in an election year  the bill died in the Senate and probably wont be taken up again anytime soon.

All refugees, including those from Syria and Iraq, go through an extensive screening process as is, so its likely that any bill would have been vetoed once it reached President Obamas desk anyway.
Someone make her life into a movie already. Photo: Kenzo Triboullard/AFP/Getty Images

The writer and editor Edmonde Charles-Roux passed away last night at age 95, The Guardian is reporting. Though her name is less-known in the U.S., her life story is certainly biopic-worthy, encompassing war heroism, high fashion, and literary fame.

Charles-Roux spent most of her early life outside of France, owing to her fathers job as a diplomat, but on the eve of World War II she enlisted as a volunteer nurse in her home country. She was wounded while rescuing a soldier, and later joined the French Resistance. She received the Croix de Guerre and was named a Chevalier de la Legion dHonneur for her wartime heroism.

Postwar, she would become a major player in French fashion publishing. She became one of the founding editors of Elle in 1946, and went on to work at French Vogue  eventually rising to the position of editor-in-chief, a job she held from 1955 to 1966. While there, she nurtured talents like Guy Bourdin and William Klein and promoted designers including Christian Dior and Yves Saint Laurent in its pages. However, the magazine brass broke ties with her after she tried to put Kleins image of the black model Donyale Luna on the cover. (That wouldnt come to pass until Naomi Campbell covered the magazine 20 years later, in 1988.) They changed the cover overnight and fired her.

It was a brave stance to take at the time, though she didnt fully realize it. Nearly 40 years later, she recalled in an interview with Le Monde, When I went to get my paycheck at the accountants, they handed me the envelope, saying, I fear that this is the last one. I didnt realize that this image could at this point shock. There was no desire for provocation on my part.

Her next act was as a novelist: Within months of her Vogue departure, she lived every editor turned novelists revenge dream when her novel Oublier Palerme (To Forget Palermo), based on her time in Sicily, won Frances biggest literary prize, the Prix Goncourt. She would go on to pen nine more novels and the scripts for several ballets. Her biography of Coco Chanel, LIrreguliere, became the basis for the film Coco Avant Chanel, starring Audrey Tautou.
Photo: Manchester Daily Express/Getty Images

Amanda Durbin, a 17-year-old senior at Edmonson County High School in Kentucky, attempted to protest her schools draconian dress code that dictates girls cannot wear leggings as pants and that skirts cannot be more than six inches above the knee. In gentle protest, she and her friends wore black leggings under a sweater dress, the length of which she carefully measured to show her teachers that leggings under a dress was fine and wouldnt result in a pregnancy or a cameo in a Girls Gone Wild video.

Amand Durbins outfit is horrifyingly offensive  not really. Photo: WKBO

Unfortunately, she tells BuzzFeed, her teachers saw it differently. By third period, shed been sent to the principals office, where she was asked to kneel in front of her male principal to have the length of her dress checked, because it seemed too short. Since Durbin understandably felt uncomfortable, she requested her parents be present, which resulted in her missing most of her school day while waiting for their arrival, after which she had to kneel on the ground, and then was submitted to a walk test to see if her dress would ride up.

The outcome? She was sent home, because after the skirt Olympics, unsurprisingly, her dress moved.

I didnt really appreciate having to get down on my knees, especially while I was in a dress, Durbin told BuzzFeed of the embarrassing experience. Which is a very classy and restrained way of saying my principal is a monster.


smh

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19 Days the BL/shounen-ai one? Cuz that one is Chinese

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omg 19 days and tamen de gushi, i check for udates every day... didnt think id be so invested in those dumbass boys but omfg my heart

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oop I thought it was korean too



But yes!! I love 19 Days sfm. The author also has another cute series with a lesbian couple in it, although I haven't read as much of it.

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do you have a link? :)

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i keep hearing good things about it but i'm trying to gather more episodes to marathon it.



i think i've all kdrama'd out. i watched soooo much 2015.

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It's really solid, but almost dense in some ways. The pacing is fast and events in the first couple episodes spread over a year quickly. It doesn't feel like something that you would want to marathon. A few 2-4 episode chunks would be about right. Can't say more without spoilers.

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Well on a positive note I like that all the most hated characters are guys?

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Me too? There are two girl characters that no on can stand either, but they weren't included. It'd get pretty nasty if they were there.

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oh, it'll come soon enough for the girls. The hate for women in Korean popular culture is so disturbing.

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Lawd. Korean stans stay doing the most. Literally no chill.

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Jesus, what kind of nightmare of a contract are these people under????

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I read about this earlier today but also read that that TVN released an apology about this event and it's now been cancelled because of knetz reaction but I'm not too sure about that since my source is just someone's comment lol



Anywho I'm watching cheese in the trap right now and I'm completely obsessed with everyone! They even had a gays hugging this week YASSSS for kdrama representation am I right? Btw on Yoo Jung I really like his character he's so complex and I'm like Seol I can't figure him out either. I read some people having theories that he has aspergers I'm not sure about that since I haven't read that comics and I haven't seen enough of him to make that kinda speculation so I have no clue what's sup with him. Can anyone give me any spoilers? ( Ps I can't stand InHa the actress over acts so badly it's so sad because I loved her in it's okay that's love she's a mess now )



Edited at 2016-01-22 05:38 am (UTC)

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At least the netz are doing something right for once!

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I love it! Haven't read the webtoon and probably won't until the show is finished, so no idea re: the Asperger's theories about Yoo Jung. There are lots of viewers who say that he may be a psychopath, who knows? Personally, I think that he was heavily influenced by the way he was brought up, always expected to be nice and polite, while his father was probably way more lenient with the Baek children.







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I like 5% of the time think he has Asperger, 25% of think he's just an ass, and the rest of the time think he's legit a psycho. That boy ain't right.

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I LOVE IT. I needed something to unbreak my heart after that horrible Reply 1988 ending, and this did. Seol is my favorite everrrr, she's so great (I want all of her clothes).

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it's suppose to be a roast session but will end up with teen girls lusting after their oppas

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this sounds awful wtf. this is already abuse.

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Yikes. I was planning to watch this too. The dramas this season are so boring. Thank God for Beautiful You lol. It's messy but rlly entertaining. Same with All About Mom.

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who the fuck thought this was a good idea

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I'm currently catching up on Reply 1988 and its fucking amazing



I cry like every episode ;___;

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Bora and her dad make me cry so damn much

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i hope you like the ending

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I've seen all the Reply series now and it's easily my favorite. My husband even really enjoyed it and he didn't bother with 1997 or 1994. I felt like 1994 really trolled the audience with the 'who is the husband' bullshit, but this one I didn't mind the husband mystery as much.



I really loved how the series followed several families, no one person was the main character, but if I had to point out a favorite it'd be Ra Mi Ran. She is a criminally underused actress in Korea so I hope this series gets her some better/meatier roles.



Prepare to cry some more. Both my husband and I ugly cried at the last episode.

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I'm catching up too. It's so good! I accidentally got spoiled on the ending a few days ago though :( It's my second favorite in the series I think, after 1997.

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It was so so good up until the last 2 episodes

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Misaeng, Pinocchio, Angry Mom, Kill Me, Heal Me, Producers, It's Okay, That's Love, She Was Pretty

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SK netizens harassing actors? What could possibly be wrong?!

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bumpass  PT cruiser 



DUI though 

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My exact train of thought

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He also rides a recumbent bicycle.

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Why is he driving a PT cruiser tho? He's a voice actor one would think he could afford something better

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ikr i'd rather have a 92 camry than a pt cruiser

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Voice actors get paid shit tbh.

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bumpass  pt cruiser  the soup 

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I've always hated this dump show.



It's fucking ridiculous that DUIs are such a problem, like people are the fucking worst.

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I've always hated this dump show.





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dumb, whatever



it isn't good and was never good not even the ~first three seasons~ which a lot of people claim are "the best" for some asinine reason.

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"what's your problem?""I can't see my forehead."

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i could never get into spongebob. i rmbr in middle school i won a spongebob squarepants stuffie. i was like, "great. i never win ANYTHING, and the one time i do..." i think i left it on the bus.

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i had an ex co-worker come in on a monday and started bitching and whining about how she got a second DUI over the weekend and i was just giving her a dirty look the entire time she tried to downplay it and act like it was nbd and my only response to her was "good thing you didn't kill anyone" and she just laughed and thought i was kidding like uhhhh?

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We don't have taxis/uber/thatothershit and every town is a least 10 miles from one another here, that plus the insane amount of alcoholism/drug abuse here causes SO much drunk driving. I think I know two people who haven't driven drunk, and they've definitely driven after a few. I can only imagine other small town USA places are just as bad. :( I offer to DD for every event/holiday, but even on Halloween no one took my offer, even when I was sitting AT the bar.

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I hate it too. we are rare!

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My roommate revealed to me not too long ago that when we were in college he drove drunk a few times and I fucking smacked him upside the head. He knew that I was a non-drinker then and constantly offered to be DD (even at 4AM) to avoid things like that.



It drives me crazy. My dad has been an alcoholic my whole life and I remember him driving drunk as a kid and there being nothing we could do to stop him (my mom would try to take the keys away but he'd just take them back and tell her to fuck off). Once I got my permit I used to tell him I wanted to practice driving but really it was so he didn't drive drunk.



There's really no excuse for driving drunk. I'll never get it.

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Squidward would drive a PT Cruiser tbh. I bet it's eggplant or maroon, too, idk why.



also the episode where spongebob has to write an essay and procrastinates speaks to me on a spiritual level.



Edited at 2016-01-22 05:18 am (UTC)

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tbh one of my favorite scenes of any tv show ever is when you see Spongebob struggling for hours to write the essay, and then it shows the paper after all that time and it's just the word "The" written in really fancy calligraphy.



The first time I saw that I think I nearly threw up from laughing so hard.

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that moment and the scene in american dad where roger has a tuning fork and then sings... 'NOOOOO' are like the exact same type of perfect to me, idk what it is about them but they both make me laugh for the same reason

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lol i love that scene/episode too. there are so many hilarious moments in spongebob + there's a spongebob quote for p much every situation in life, idg how people can hate it other than the shitty disastrous later seasons.



then again i was a bb when it started coming out and grew up watching so maybe it's an age thing

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i love that episode so much more now as a college student.

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That episode is me right now oop

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y'all making fun of his pt cruiser but they haven't made those things in like, 12 years? he sounds cheap. he probably has a lot of money lmao /thrifty

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lol this comment proves you're probably nicer than the rest of us tbh. Bless you.

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they're like tiny douchey hearses for ponies or something, idgaf how frugal he is, get a damn jetta if you're going down that road

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whenever I think PT cruiser I think of this





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omg lmao

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I live in Phoenix, AZ and every summer while I'm out driving if I spot a PT Cruiser my husband and me will check to see if their windows are down because every PT Cruiser I've ever seen out here during the summer has a broken AC.. They are the worst cars on Earth.

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omg yesss fucking same!!! haha i can't even see one on the street without hearing saying PT Cruiser in a German accent lmao

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same, lol



Whenever i see one i always say CAN YOU BELIEVE IT????

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Those things are horrible. I think it's been longer than 12 years

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There's a 2015 PT Cruiser though





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I've lost SO many friends because I've called them out when they've driven drunk.



idgaf, I don't want to associate with people who would do that.

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i feel like whenever you comment with an image, it's imgur every time

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Oh man, they can't replace him.

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I drove a PT for a year...hated it

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One time like a decade ago I was in this small random town in Washington state and like every third car was a goddamn pt cruiser, it was bizarre



our best guess was that it must have been the only car dealership for like sixty miles or something lol

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It sounds like a dealership bought a bunch of PT inventory for like bottom dollar at the end of the run of them producing the car and then sold them for cheap. At least this is what I would I do if I was a shady as fuck car dealership owner in a small town. PT CRUISER FOR ALL YA'LL! No $$$ down! No credit no problem!

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i'm dying i'm dying

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omg that takes this up so many notches



IN QUOTES.

ON HIS CAR.

LIKE.... I could maybe MAYBE give him a pass for having an actual decal of squidward or spongebob but JUST "SQUIDWARD" IS ABSURD



ALSO MIDNIGHT BLUE IS PRETTY CLOSE TO EGGPLANT I'M JUST SAYING



Edited at 2016-01-22 05:26 am (UTC)

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you are single handedly killing me in this post omgggg hahahahaha

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Lmfao

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Oh jfc what a douchebag.

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"Sir why shoudn't I arrest you?" *points to sticker*

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LMAOOO

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I was going to say maybe he drives a PT Cruiser to be inconspicuous, but noooope, that's not if.

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lmao why is it in quotes

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Oh my god lol

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lmaooooo why

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oh my god

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lmaooo

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lol omg i hope he has customized plates relating to either squidward or BUMPASS, preferably the latter.

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your icon tho UNFF. nathan is bae<3

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omg

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cackling

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oh my god! lmao

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lol i didn't realize ppl were so passionate about pt cruisers

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Me neither...sounds like a lot of hoopla.

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At 16 my bff got one and all I got was a shitty Chevy 02 or something like that. I really wanted the PT I was young. Anyway I've moved on but I managed to focus that jealousy into hate.

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lol yes

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What's that about a PT cruiser?









Either way I somehow feel like this is classic Squidward behaviour.

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Jerk move, buddy. Don't drive drunk, stay your ass at home or catch a ride.





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no shade but he looks like an alcoholic

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he looks like what Hal from Malcolm in the Middle would look like after 30 years of drinking due to his insane family

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ew lol he looks like my high school math teacher, who was also an alcoholic (and a pedo)

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The nose gives it away

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YEs, this so much

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nose and those eyes too

I hope this results in getting some help

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exactly

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Investors trying to decide how to approach the oil markets in 2016 have a fundamental conundrum to deal with, and that is whose views they should trust. This question pits two major camps on Wall Street against one another; analysts and traders.

On the one hand, analysts are of the view that oil production will fall late in 2016 as a sizeable number of drillers face hard times and end up collapsing under the weight of debt obligations. Those that continue to survive will cut back E&P so much that production will fall dramatically as the lack of new supply combines with the sharp decline in production associated with shale wells.

On the other hand, traders are betting on a more malleable supply side of the market. Many see oil companies cutting every cost that isnt already spent and pumping every drop of oil they can at any price they can get as a mechanism to service debt obligations. Traders then are betting that the oil glut will be slower to evaporate and prices will stay lower for longer. Related: Saudi Air Strikes on Yemeni Oil Port; ISIS Attacks Libyan Oil Port

Both sides make good points. Traders have been right so far, but that does not mean they will continue to be correct. For one thing, at current prices, many oil companies are probably starting to reach the point where their marginal cost of production is higher than the prevailing price in the market. If this is the case, then many of these firms should choose to shut down soon rather than keep pumping and losing money on every barrel.

More importantly, with the Fed starting to raise rates and equity markets crumbling, many firms are going to find their supply of credit all but exhausted regardless of how much oil they are producing. Firms often cite their average debt maturity for their whole portfolio as evidence they have staying power lasting years from now. Yet the reality is that with prices as low as they are, most firms have no free cash to spare, and even a very small debt maturity could be enough to force a restructuring if credit is completely unavailable. In that sense then, analysts should be correct in the end  there is going to be a bloodbath among the oil fields. Related: Seven Years Of Distortion By The Fed Are About To Take Their Toll

The view of traders that oil companies are very resilient also valid though. The oil industry carries substantial amounts of sunk costs, but once these costs are incurred, the cost of extracting oil is quite low. And that price is likely to be lower per barrel on average as a firm pumps more and more. Thus firms have a significant incentive to pump as much as they can. Further, oil companies have already proven very resourceful at wringing savings out of their supply chains and their own cost structures. Related: 10 Reasons why Sub $30 Oil Is A Major Problem

Finally, oil company executives have a personal incentive to keep pumping oil as long as they can  their jobs depend on it. Even if an oil firm is losing money, as long as there is enough cash to keep paying executive salaries, firms which are run by executives may keep operating. This is especially true in the current market  after all, an oil company executive who ran his last firm into bankruptcy and is looking for a new job is probably not going to be a hot commodity at present.

In the short-run then, traders will probably prove prescient again as oil companies adapt and look for ways to minimize losses or even breakeven at current prices. Over the long-run though no one is going to extend credit to oil companies in the current price environment, which should give analysts the last laugh.

By Michael McDonald Of Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
The investigatory microscope has been focused on Exxon Mobil Corp. since last summer, beginning with a group of journalism students working in tandem with the Los Angeles Times. Their reporting led New York to mount its own investigation, and now California is joining the probe and a member of Congress is urging the federal government to get involved.

At issue is whether Exxon relied on climate-change research to help guide its business planning, privately recognizing the dangers that the companys activities posed to the environment while publicly brushing aside such concerns with the argument, still used today, that climate science is ambiguous.

This was the subject of articles written by the Columbia University Energy and Environmental Reporting Fellowship, published in association with the L.A. Times. A series of stories based on their reporting was also issued by the non-profit website InsideClimate News. Related: Oil Stages Rebound From Twelve Year Lows

Last fall, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman began a state investigation into these reports, focusing on whether Exxon lied to the public  and, more to the point, its investors  about how the oil companies practices may hurt their ability to make profits. Now the L.A. Times reports that California Attorney General Kamala Harris is mounting a parallel probe.

Now, maybe, its time for other states and even the federal government to step in, says Rep. Ted Lieu, a California Democrat. He said hes written to U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch and to the Securities and Exchange Commission urging them to look into the reports suggesting that Exxon may be guilty of breaking other laws including securities fraud and violating other laws to protect consumers and investors.

Further, Lieu said he hopes Harris decision will encourage additional investigations, given that California has the eighth-largest economy in the world. I think this action will be taken very seriously by Exxon Mobil, he said. Related: Goldman Sachs Sees Oil Markets Turning Bullish Soon

A spokesman for Harris had no comment and declined even to confirm that she had begun an investigation.

Exxon had no immediate reaction to the report of the California investigation, but previously it has condemned the news reports assertions that it tried to play down the impact of fossil fuels on the Earths climate.

The facts are that we identified the potential risks of climate change and have taken the issue very seriously, chief Exxon spokesman Kenneth Cohen said in a statement in October. Activists deliberately cherry-picked statements attributed to various company employees to wrongly suggest definitive conclusions were reached decades ago by company researchers. Related: OPEC At Peak Production

And in a Nov. 20 letter to Columbia University President Lee Bollinger, Cohen accused the journalism students and their instructor of major ethical lapses. In response, Steve Coll, the dean of the universitys Graduate School of Journalism, said Cohens allegations are unsupported by evidence.

More than that, I have been troubled to discover that you have made serious allegations of professional misconduct in your letter against members of the project team even though you or your Media Relations colleagues possess email records showing that your allegations are false, Coll wrote.

An important tool for the New York investigation is the states Martin Act, which empowers the attorney general to prosecute any companies operating in New York that are suspected of financial fraud. It doesnt require prosecutors to prove that a company intended to defraud, only that its information was inaccurate or not disclosed.

By Andy Tully of Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Cable news networks along with the main stream media are contributing to anxiety about the probability of Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary elections outcomes. Regardless of each candidates strengths, it's the Democratic candidates who are a trio of excellent choices. Compared to the line up of chaotic Republicans, the three Democrats- Senator Bernie Sanders, Secretary Hillary Clinton and Govenror Martin O'Malley perform like a triumverate of awesome political fireworks clusters, while their GOP rivals are like the "duds".

Although Democratic primary caucus goers in Iowa and primary voters in New Hampshire are justifiably challenged to select only one from the cluster. In fact, the Democratic choice is really tough. Each Democratic candidate is a brilliant burst of energy!





In some ways, it's unfortunate to be in a position of only being able to select one from the political Democratic trilogy.





On the other hand, the Republicans are in a negative position of having to eliminate all but one in their dismal line up list.





My political wish is to see Senator Sanders, Secretary Clinton and Governor O'Malley become political allies who will work together to provide progressive leadership for America. Only one of them can win the 2016 nomination to be President, but the three of them can work together, regardless of which one of them is eventually nominated. At this point in our history when it seems like every news cycle is reporting stories about fear, economic anxiety and violence, the American voters need the sparkle and "awwwwwww" effect of a patriotic fireworks display. Thankfully, Senator Bernie Sanders, Secretary Hillary Clinton and Governor Martin O'Malley are the red white and blue we universally smile up at when their fireworks light up their faces on televised debates.





Democrats must unify behind all the party's candidates who are running for political offices and blot out the duds who are lining up like lemmings behind the negative Republicans.





Americans must thank the trilogy of 2016 Democratic presidential candidates and reward them by voting! Whatever the eventual outcome, the leadership result will be a net positive for America.

Labels: Democrats, Iowa caucus, New Hampshire
It's probably safer to be fighting against ISIS than to be a journalist in Russia!





But, Russia has a mortality list of tragically public assassinations, people murdered without evidence or in the absense of any justice. Obviously, the most disgraceful and horrific of the political assassinations were the brutal murders in 1918, of the family of Czar Nicholas II. Journalists murders have followed a drum beat of mortalities, especially in recent decades since news reports are keeping detailed accounts of the deaths.

Alexander Litvinenko (1962-2006)

On 1 November 2006, Litvinenko suddenly fell ill in London, and was hospitalized. He died three weeks later, becoming the first confirmed victim of lethal polonium-210 -induced acute radiation syndrome . Litvinenko's allegations about the misdeeds of the

Search Results

Russian Federal Security Service ( FSB) and his public deathbed accusations that Russian president Vladimir Putin was behind his unusual malady resulted in worldwide media coverage.





Well, there's absolutely no doubt that President Vladimir Putin will be among those who follow in his predecessors' graves. Given how Putin quickly finds the means to kill all of his enemies, won't protect him from the proverbial sword. Putin's misguided policies has driven Russia into an economic crisis (the Russian ruble is as valuable as a casino chip). Putin won't survive the chaos he's created, in spite of his hyped up popularity polls. It won't be long before the Russian military will be asking to be paid in real money and the population will be unable to carry their useless currency to the public markets to buy food for their tables. These likely scenarios may already be in the works.





It's soon coming on 100 years since Czar Nicholas II and his family were brutally assassinated. Does Putin realize how these horrific events are often doomed to be cyclical?





Here is a Widipedia article about the tribute to the Russian journalists who have been murdered since Putin has been president of Russia:









I would like to tribute all of the dead journalists, but refer you to the Wikipedia site...of course, Russia could easily take down this site and the names might be lost....





1992: Sergey Bogdanovsky, correspondent of TV "Ostankino", killed in Moscow



1993: 15 April  Dmitry Krikoryants, correspondent for Express Chronicle weekly (Moscow), murdered in his apartment in the Chechen capital, on the night of 1415 April. Chechnya was then de facto independent. Homicide.





2008 died 2009: Moscow, January 4, 2009  Shafig Amrakhov, editor of news agency RIA 51, Murmansk, was shot in the stairwell entrance from the traumatic pistol on December 3, 2008 and died in hospital. Homicide.





Novaya Gazeta, in Moscow. Baburova became the fourth 2009: 19 January  Anastasia Baburova, with, in Moscow. Baburova became the fourth Novaya Gazeta journalist to be killed since 2000. On 19 January Stanislav Markelov , lawyer for Novaya Gazeta, anti-fascist activist and opponent of human rights abuses in Chechnya , was shot and killed in the centre of Moscow . With him, died Anastasia Baburova, a reporter trainee, aslo with Novaya Gazeta , and a fellow anti-fascist activist. In early November 2009 a man and a woman were arrested for the killing.

Anastasia Baburova (1983-2009).

She investigated the activities of neo-Nazi groups, shot and killed together with human rights lawyer Stanislav Markelov , who was the other of the assassin's targets.





he prime suspects in the murders of Baburova and Markelov . The boldness of the attack by a single gunman in broad daylight in the center of Moscow required professional preliminary planning and surveillance that would necessitate the security services, which closely control that particular neighborhood, turning a blind eye . The use of a gun with a silencer does not fit with the usual pattern of murders by nationalist neo-Nazi youth groups in Russia, which use homemade explosives, knives, and group assaults to beat up and stab opponents to death. According to Russian military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer , the details of the murder indicate involvement of Russian state security services.He stated: ....the Russian security services or rogue elements within these services are t. The boldness of the attack by a single gunman inrequired professional preliminary planning and surveillance that would necessitate the security services, which closely control that particular neighborhood,. The use of a gun with a silencer does not fit with the usual pattern of murders by nationalist neo-Nazi youth groups in Russia, which use homemade explosives, knives, and group assaults to beat up and stab opponents to death.









Putin's time will come: Vladimir Putin (1952- )

Labels: Anastasia Baburova, Moscow, Novaya Gazeta, Stanislav Markelov
This is the first in a five-part series from Madison365 highlighting Wisconsin residents of Latino heritage who have accomplished great things in business, education, government, media and the nonprofit sector.

Para leer en espanol, haga clic aqui.

Rachel Campos-Duffy

Rachel Campos-Duffy is someone you might recognize from the MTV reality show "The Real World." Others might recognize her as the wife of Congressman Sean Duffy. She is much more than either of those titles. Rachel is a national spokesperson for the LIBRE Initiative on the topic of education and an advocate for economic empowerment of Hispanics through entrepreneurship, limited government and self-reliance. She also writes for Fox News Latino and NBCLatino.com, and regularly appears as a commentator on Fox News, CNN and EWTN  all while raising seven children.

Ramon Ortiz

Ramon Ortiz is Interim Assistant Vice Chancellor of Multicultural Affairs and Student Success at UW-Whitewater. He is a lifelong Madisonian who has dedicated his career to helping students of color prepare for college and succeed once there. He worked at the University of Wisconsin as the Assistant Director of the PEOPLE Program, where he supervised 18 permanent staff and 150 instructional staff. In his current role, he oversees the Academic Excellence Program, the Upward Bound Program and the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction pre-college summer programs at UW-Whitewater. He is responsible for managing a $1.1 million budget. In his limited down time, Ramon is working his on getting his PhD at UW-Madison.

Lupe Martinez

(PHOTO: UMOS, Inc. Facebook)

Lupe Martinez might be the most influential Latino in the state of Wisconsin. He became President of United Migrant Opportunity Services (UMOS) in 1974. Over 40 years, Lupe has led UMOS to grow into one of the largest Hispanic non-profits in Wisconsin. UMOS focuses on three major initiatives: child development, social services and workforce development. Lupe oversees more than 40 statewide programs. In their job centers, they serve more than 20,000 individuals monthly and help more than 5,500 children. UMOS assisted 7,000 households with home energy assistance and distributed over 550,000 pounds of food to families in need.

Kathy Flores

Kathy Flores is a name that comes up every time the topic of diversity and inclusion is raised in the Fox Valley. If this were a list on the LGBTQ community in Wisconsin, Kathy would probably also make that list. In her full-time work, she has been in charge of the City of Appletons Diversity and Inclusion for the past six years. Kathy works on a variety of issues with the City of Appleton to promote inclusion. Her responsibilities are wide, including combating racism, bigotry, sexism, homophobia, transphobia and religious intolerance. In addition, she works on issues for those with disabilities, mental health needs, homelessness and addiction.

Griselda Aldrete

Griselda Aldrete is the President & CEO of Hispanic Professionals of Greater Milwaukee (HPGM). Previously, she served as the Executive Director at the Cream City Foundation, where she still serves on the board of directors. Shes been a corporate events director, a criminal justice instructor and an investigative reporter. Griselda serves on the board of directors for 88Nine Radio Milwaukee, the Milwaukee Ballet and the Milwaukee Public Schools Foundation, and on the advisory boards for Visit Milwaukee Multicultural Committee, Notre Dame Middle School, United Way Emerging Leaders and United Way Latina Taskforce. In 2013, Aldrete received Milwaukee Business Journals 40 under 40 award, and in 2014 the United Way of Greater Milwaukees Philanthropic 5 award. In 2015, Marquette University recognized her as the College of Art and Sciences Young Alumna of the Year, and the Biz Times named her the winner of the Regional Spirit Award.

Juan Jose "The Notorious" Lopez

Juan Jose "The Notorious" Lopez is a true champion for Latinos statewide. On his tour of community service, he was the past Executive Director for the Boys and Girls Club of Dane County and for Briarpatch. He was also a founding member of the Latino Professional Association of Greater Madison and board chair for United Migrant Opportunity Services (UMOS). Lopez was the first Latino to be elected to the Madison school board. He now is a Bureau Director in the Department of Workforce and Development. Mr. Lopez is a true legend.

Raquel Filmanowicz

Raquel Filmanowicz, a Chicago native who now calls Milwaukee home, has a passion for the healthy lifestyle. She runs five miles or takes a long walk every day and enjoys cooking healthy meals. That type of discipline helps her in job as Director, U.S. Community Affairs for BMO Harris Bank overseeing Rockford, Ill.; Kansas City, Mo.; Wisconsin; Minnesota; Arizona; Florida; and Indiana. In her role, Racquel leads BMOs strategic philanthropic outreach. She is currently on the Board of Directors of Hispanic Professionals of Greater Milwaukee, AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin, and the Childrens Hospital of Wisconsin Community Initiatives and Advocacy Committee.

Jose Araujo

Jose Araujo is a market analyst for Latin America for Kohler Company, the multifaceted global family of brands that is one of Wisconsins most iconic companies. The Sheboygan area, known as the land of bratwurst and Germans, is also home to an exploding Latino population. Araujo is not just a local leader of his community, but a statewide one as well. This dynamic professional has vast experience in project management, public relations and customer services. He put those skills to good use as he senior director of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Wisconsin where he cultivates and manages relationships with government officials, private sector executives and funding sources throughout the state of Wisconsin.
The wait for Wauwatiki, the tiki-themed bar and restaurant coming to 6502 W. North Ave., looks like it may be coming to a close.

Originally, co-owner Panagiotis (Peter) Panagos, he and his partners (James Findlay and Jason Growel) set their sights on Sunday, March 13 for a public soft opening. However, due to construction delays, the partners have delayed their opening, which is likely to take place in late March or early April.

Panagos says that interior remodeling has progressed steadily over the past few months, and he's excited for the public to be able to see the results. Among other details, Lono, one of four ancient tiki gods and protector of fertility, music and peace, has been chosen as a primary symbol for the concept. His visage appears in the Wauwatiki logo, and other elements within the space.

Tiki drinks

Panagos says theyve worked with a number of talented bartenders, including esteemed Indiana bartender Kendall Lockwood, who has served as a consultant in the development of some of Wauwatikis signature offerings.

There will be a variety of classic tiki drinks, says Panagos, including the Mai Tai, which (thanks to sponsorships from Mount Gay and Trader Vics Rum) will be made with the classic Trader Vics recipe. A rum-based bloody Mary will be made with spiced rum. And there will be a single barrel old fashioned made with Single Barrel Cruzan Rum. There will also be drinks built for sharing, including a punch bowl that serves six to eight guests.

Panogas says theyll also have over 20 sipping rums, with a goal of "building the rum line based on input from regular customers." There will also be a Cruzan Single Barrel club through which patrons can buy a personal bottle of rum, which will be kept for them at the Wauwatiki bar.

Small plates

The food menu has evolved, says Panagos. Lunch will be primarily sandwich based, with a focus on items like the signature Wauwatiki burger. Dinner service will be comprised primarily of Polynesian and Caribbean inspired small plates including options like barbecue, wings (potentially pork wings) and a pu pu platter, complete with a central flame that functions as a mini hibachi grill.

"The best way to enjoy the relaxed tiki environment is really to sit back, socialize and share food with friends," says Panogas, who notes that the menu will be built to encourage people to linger and socialize.

Despite dashed hopes that Wauwatiki would be open before the end of November, Panagos says hes beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. He credits assistance from Ald. Joel Tilleson, Flux Design and FF&SJ lawyers Brian Randall and Larry Glusman, all of whom he says kept the project moving along despite obstacles.

Once open, Wauwatiki plans to serve customers from 11 a.m. to close daily.

Work at Wauwatiki

Wauwatiki will be issuing an open call for professional servers, cooks and mixologists at events held at the restaurant Feb. 8-10 from 6 to 10 p.m. All interested parties should plan to attend.
New Year's celebrations are behind us, leaving only the resolutions to eat better and get fit. Don't worry, we're here to help. This week  Healthy Living Week, brought to you by The Milwaukee Y  we will focus on articles and information about exercise, eating right and staying healthy in a variety of ways.

Traditional "talk therapy" doesnt work for everyone because some people are simply not comfortable verbalizing their feelings. This is where art therapy might work for someone who has suffered a trauma or is going through a rough spot in their lives and would like to process it in a more creative way.

"Art therapists provide counseling in a way thats visual," says Dr. Emily Nolan. "There is a parallel between the creative and therapeutic process. Art taps into more parts of the body than just the brain."

Nolan has a PhD in art therapy from Mount Mary University. Nolan was one of the first few people to graduate from the colleges new doctorate program in 2014. Nolan also holds a bachelors in art education from the University of Illinois  Urbana-Champagne and a masters degree from the Adler School of Professional Psychology in Chicago.

Today, Nolan is a full-time art therapy professor at Mount Mary and also runs the Bloom Center, a Bay View-based counseling center that makes art therapy available to the community both on site and by hosting art workshops at hospitals, homeless shelters, non-profits, schools and private practices.

Bloom: Center For Art and Integrated Therapies, which opened in 2012, employs three therapists and interns who run a variety of community programs, including an open-to-the-public art-making session every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. A small monetary donation is requested.

All forms of creative expression are used in art therapy, including writing, drawing, painting, sculpture, crafting and more. Although art therapy is imaginative and open, it is also structured and tailored to the persons needs and goals.

Art therapy patients can choose the art form they want to use therapeutically. For example, if a person has a history working with clay, he or she can choose that as the medium to integrate with their therapy.

So how, exactly, does art therapy work?

According to Nolan, if someone is experiencing anxiety, for example, she will ask the person to get the feeling of anxiety out on the canvas and then have a conversation around it. The purpose of the conversation is to identify and, eventually, achieve goals. Most importantly, the patient learns through art therapy how to transfer the solace and understanding they glean through the creative process into their daily lives.

Nolan has worked with people with a range of mental health issues, from bipolar disorder to addiction to the inability to maintain healthy relationships.

"Ive seen people come through some very negative experiences and make deep and wonderful changes in their lives," says Nolan.

Recently, a woman at a homeless shelter created a quilt during art therapy sessions hosted by Bloom interns, and within a year, she got a job and was no longer dependent on the shelter.

"We have not seen her since, which is, of course, a good thing," says Nolan.

Art therapy can be effective with individuals or groups. For some, it is less stigmatized than traditional therapy. "This creates less anxiety for some individuals," says Nolan.

Nolan says that although art therapy is a creative process, it is also effective with people who arent artists.

"Ive worked with very logic-oriented people who said, through art therapy, they were able to let go of issues they felt they needed to control but were unable to do so," says Nolan. "Art helps people  all different kinds of people  process and regulate their feelings."
Earth Day NOT well attended in Wichita this year From Wichita Peace and Freedom Party Examiner; This years Earth Day events were kind of disappointingnot because the events werent ...

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Bourgeois press admits there are still communists in the world today A few articles in the US mainstream press have dared to venture into the questions "Why would anyone today want to be a commun...

Sri Lanka Government is under fire for war crimes From Amnesty International; We deserve to know why civilians were used as human shields against bullets . And why observers and journalists...
Some Monte dei Paschi customers have been pulling savings out of the Italian bank, its chief executive said on Wednesday, as it faces a crisis over a mountain of bad loans that has wiped nearly 60 percent off its market value this year.

CEO Fabrizio Viola did not say how much money savers had withdrawn, or when the outflow began, though he said the fall in deposits was limited and that the bank could cope with it as he sought to reassure customers and investors.

Italian bank shares have lost 24 percent since the beginning of 2016 as investors, already rattled about global economic growth, have sold out of a sector with low profitability and about 200 billion euros ($218 billion) of loans that are unlikely to be repaid.

Italian banking stocks crashed again on Wednesday, continuing a month of poor performance and raising questions over the sustainability of the industry in its current structure  and even if it could end up in the same boat as Greeces banking sector.

Long-suffering Monte dei Paschis stock dived another 18.5pc on the day, meaning the shares are down 57pc so far this month.

Even much more stable banks are witnessing a flight of investors  Unicredits shares are down 6pc on the day and 27pc since the start of the year.

The analysts estimate the average Texas ratio  a measure of bad loans versus a banks capital buffers  of Italian banks stands at around 105pc, compared with just over 50pc in much of the eurozone.

A Bloomberg analysis puts Monte dei Paschis non-performing loans at almost one-third of its asset book, followed by Banca Carige at 27.4pc and Banco Popolare at 26.2pc, all cripplingly high levels.

European markets dived into the red on Wednesday morning, and they didnt come back out.

All major stock indexes on the continent had a pretty horrible day, with all but two, the DAX 30 in Germany, and the AEX in the Netherlands, falling more than 3%. The FTSE MIB in Italy, and the FTSE100 here in the UK are the biggest losers.

At the close Italys benchmark was down by 4.95% to 17,946 points, while the FTSE100 fell 3.39%, or 199 points.

The Italian financial meltdown that we have been waiting for has finally arrived. For quite a long time I have been warning my readers to watch Italy, and now people are starting to understand why. Italian banking stocks continued their collapse for a fifth consecutive day on Wednesday, and nervous Italians are beginning to quietly pull large amounts of money out of the banks. In particular, Monte dei Paschi is a complete and utter basket case at this point. A staggering one-third of their loans are non-performing, and the stock price has fallen a staggering 57 percent since 2016 began. Monte dei Paschi is going to need a major bailout, and the same thing could be said about almost all of the largest Italian banks. But where is the money going to come from? As rumors of trouble at Monte dei Paschi spread, Italians are getting money out of the bank while they still can. The following comes from the Daily Mail And investors are pulling money out of Italian banking stocks at an alarming pace as well. According to the Telegraph , Unicredit is down 27 percent since the start of 2016 and Monte dei Paschi has plunged a total of 57 percent so far this monthOverall, the FTSE Italia All-Share Banks Index has plummeted 21 percent over the first three weeks of this year.We normally only see numbers like this during a major financial crisis, and that is precisely what is happening.Of course trouble has been building at Italian banks for a very long time. They have been exceedingly reckless, and almost all of them are absolutely saturated with bad loans at this point. Here is more from the Telegraph And all of this comes in the context of a much broader European financial meltdown. The carnage that began at the turn of the year continued on Wednesday. Here are some of the specific numbers from Business Insider At this point, almost all of the major European indexes have entered bear market territory.Just check out how far stocks have fallen in some of the largest European nations since their 52-week peakUnited Kingdom: down 20 percentNetherlands: down 22 percentFrance: down 22 percentGermany: down 24 percentTurkey: down 24 percentItaly: down 25 percentSweden: down 25 percentPoland: down 26 percentPortugal: down 28 percentSpain: down 30 percentGreece: down 44 percentOverall, global stocks have now officially entered a bear market , and panic is spreading fast.In the U.S., our markets are still in better shape than most of the rest of the world, so we dont necessarily understand the severity of the situation quite yet. But let me assure you that what we are facing is incredibly serious. Even at the best of times, most of the major banks in Europe and Asia were on shaky ground, and all it was going to take was a major financial downturn for them to start toppling like dominoes.Many people are now beginning to speculate that Italy may be the next Greece. Those that are saying this dont truly grasp what is going on.Greece is the 44th largest economy on the planet.Italy is the 8th.We have already seen how the rest of Europe really struggled to come up with a bailout for tiny Greece.What in the world are they going to do when Italy goes down?And of course Italy is not the only one that is going to need help. Financial meltdowns are now erupting all over the continent.Those that believed that the European crisis was finished were sadly mistaken.The European crisis is not over.The truth is that the European crisis is just beginning.Italy will probably be first, but economic and financial problems are going to spread like wildfire.And by the time it is all said and done, European society is going to be fundamentally altered, trillions of euros will be lost, and the face of the continent will change.Source: http://endoftheamericandream.com/archives/a-run-on-the-banks-begins-in-italy-as-italian-banking-stocks-collapse
...observed with extreme concern heavy shelling from the ground and air in areas of Yemen with a high concentration of civilians and the destruction of civilian infrastructure, such as hospitals and schools.

Advisers to Philip Hammond, the Foreign Secretary, have stepped up legal warnings that the sale of specialist missiles to the Saudis, deployed throughout nine months of almost daily bombing raids in west Yemen against Houthi rebels, may breach international humanitarian law

thousands of Yemeni civilians have been killed, with schools, hospitals and non-military infrastructure hit. Fuel and food shortages, according to the United Nations, have brought near famine to many parts of the country.

One should note that massive civil unrest began in Yemen in 2011 as the direct result of so-called the Arab Spring, orchestrated by the US and its allies. In 2014, Shia tribesmen that are known today as the Houthis started fighting government forces and consequently managed to capture a significant part of the country due to the massive support that was shown for them by the Yemeni population. In March 2015, Saudi Arabia launched its first airstrikes against the Houthis, which were, according to various human rights organizations, badly coordinated and resulted in massive civilian casualties.Concerned by the grave state of affairs in Yemen, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Raad al Hussein announced at a meeting of the UN Security Council back in December that it is the so-called Arab coalition that is responsible for the absolute majority of attacks on residential areas and civilian targets in Yemen. According to Reutres , the UN High Commissioner announced that he:It is curious to note that in pursuit of its criminal goals in Yemen, Saudi Arabia has been using weapons that were bought from the UK in 2012. Moreover, it keeps on restocking its supply of deadly British-made weapons. For this reason, at the end of last year, leading British diplomats and lawyers warned David Cameron that he was running the risk of facing an international tribunal for war crimes due to the fact that the weapons that his government supplies to Saudi Arabia are being extensively used against civilian targets in Yemen.According to The Independent Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch (HRW) and other NGOs, claim there is no doubt that weapons supplied by the UK and the United States have hit Yemeni civilian targets. One senior Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) legal adviser told The Independent: The Foreign Secretary has acknowledged that some weapons supplied by the UK have been used by the Saudis in Yemen. Are our reassurances correct  that such sales are within international arms treaty rules? The answer is, sadly, not at all clear.Yet, The Guardian notes that Saferworld and Amnesty released a legal opinion from Professor Philippe Sands QC and a number of other lawyers, according to which the sales of British arms to Saudi Arabia in the light of its military intervention and bombing of Yemen violate national, European and international laws. The lawyers are pointing out that in the period of 9 months before July 2015 the UK supplied 9 million pounds worth of rockets and bombs, while in the next three months this number hit a staggering one billion pounds. Additionally, theres clear evidence that those weapons were used against hospitals, schools, markets, warehouses, ports, and camps for displaced persons, turning Yemen into a nightmare. The Saferworld human rights organization is convinced that theres a direct link between the increase in sales of ammunition and bombings in Yemen.Many British observers, including those from The Guardian, have been pointing out that days after David Camerons statements about his attempt to initiate a political process in Yemen, and remarks that there could be no military solution in Yemen, the data released by the government showed that UK officials approved the sale of a billion pounds worth of bombs to Saudi Arabia.Under these circumstances the only natural question is: Will international human rights organizations and the international community as a whole, all those who failed to say a resounding NO to Western military interventions in Iraq, Syria, Libya, Afghanistan, that were only profitable for arms sellers, carry on watching silently the destruction of Yemen? How many Yemenis do we need to see die before we start solving conflicts within a political framework? How many lives should be spared? Do we ever bring to justice those responsible for such massacres? Or will we rather allow politicians, the likes of Cameron, to call for peace, while selling huge amounts of deadly weapons behind our backs with impunity?
Bacha Khan University Attack

The terrorists hit once again and left the entire nation in gloom. The most untimely demise of the young aspirants and future leaders of the nation being an irreparable loss will not be easy to forget, more so by the bereaved families of the Shuhada whose all hopes of a bright future have been dashed to the ground. As reported the university security guards put up a gallant fight and held the terrorists at bay till the local police arrived. Some of the faculty members, the students and other staff too put up a heroic resistance and opened fire on the terrorists. Even some of the citizens also rushed to the university with their fire arms which is indeed laudable and highly befitting the proud Pakhtoons and Pakistanis. The terrorists scaled the rear perimeter wall cutting its barbed wire atop. In the military parlance an obstacle is said to be no obstacle unless covered by fire and sight. Had ther! e been an armed guard or two on the roof top keeping a vigil over the barbed wire, I think the catastrophe could have been averted or at least mitigated to a great deal.



Col. Riaz Jafri (Retd)
Nawaz Sharif held a trilateral meeting with Biden, Ghani

DAVOS: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif held a trilateral meeting with US Vice President Joe Biden and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani here on Thursday and discussed with them efforts for peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan.



The meeting, on the sidelines of the 46th World Economic Forum, reviewed the progress made so far and pondered on the way forward.



US Secretary of State John Kerry, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and Special Assistant to Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi attended the meeting.



An official statement issued after the meeting said talks were held in a warm and cordial atmosphere. The participants reviewed the peace and reconciliation process in Afghanistan that is being pursued on the establishment of the quadrilateral mechanism that resulted from the Heart of Asia- Istanbul Process, it added.



The leaders expressed satisfaction over the two meetings of the quadrilateral consultative group held in Kabul and Islamabad.



They agreed to focus on the goal of ensuring peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan, which was both in the interest of Afghanistan and the region, the statement said.



Mr Biden and Mr Ghani condemned the Charsadda terror attack and conveyed their grief over the loss of lives. They appreciated the resolve of the Pakistani nation in its war against terrorism and extremism.APP



Anwar Iqbal adds from Washington: The White House said Vice President Joe Biden, during the meeting with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Afghan President Ghani in Davos, urged them to work together to eliminate militant safe havens within their borders.



The vice president encouraged both leaders to remain committed to a credible peace process reinforced by tangible steps to reduce violence, eliminate militant safe havens, and promote bilateral cooperation, the White House said in a statement.



The vice president reaffirmed US support for reconciliation and improved bilateral ties between Afghanistan and Pakistan and called them important pillars of regional stability, it added.



At a news briefing at the US State Department, deputy spokesperson Mark Toner said the US welcomes Pakistans involvement and support for this process and stressed the US belief thats ultimately whats going to  end this ongoing conflict in Afghanistan.



Mr Biden and Secretary Kerry commended Afghan and Pakistani leaders for their diplomatic efforts to advance peace, the White House said.
Raheel called Ghani and shared evidence on BKU attack

ISLAMABAD: Chief of the Army Staff Gen Raheel Sharif called Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, who is in Davos for attending a meeting of the World Economic Forum, Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah and top US and Nato commander in Afghanistan Gen John Campbell to inform them about the evidence that has emerged from investigations into the university attack pointing towards Afghanistan-based terrorists controlling it.



As investigations and leads so far, Charsadda terror attack was being controlled from a location in Afghanistan through Afghan cellphone by a TTP operative, military spokesman Lt Gen Asim Bajwa said in a tweet about an update on the probe into the attack.



Gen Bajwa, who addressed a press conference on Wednesday in Peshawar, had then stayed short of saying that the attack was handled from Afghanistan. A Foreign Office spokesman too, at his weekly media briefing held hours before Gen Bajwa issued the update, had asked journalists to avoid jumping to conclusions and instead wait for the completion of investigations.



The army chief, during his telephonic conversations with both Afghan leaders and the US commander, who is also leading the Resolute Support Mission, asked them to cooperate in bringing to justice the mastermind, planners and handlers of the attack.



The attack left at least 21 people, including students, a faculty member and security guards dead. Most of the casualties took place in the university boys hostel, where the terrorists struck after scaling the campus wall.



The strike was claimed by TTP Geedar groups commander Aurangzaib alias Khalifa Umar Ameer Naray, who was also involved in attacks on Peshawars Army Public School in December 2014 and Air Forces Badabher camp in September last year.



Following army chiefs telephone calls to Davos and Kabul, a security official said that proofs were delivered to the Afghan authorities. These detailed the location from where the calls were made and the mobile phone number that had been used.



The TTP elements, including its chief Mullah Fazlullah, who fled military operations here, have set up sanctuaries in Afghanistan along the border.



The official said the attacker had called from a terrorist base in Afghanistan close to the border with Pakistan. He would not specify the location fearing that it could compromise further investigations.



The allegation was immediately dismissed by Afghan interior ministrys spokesman Sediq Seddiqi. He denied that the TTP had sanctuaries in Afghanistan and instead accused Pakistan of sheltering the Afghan Taliban.



Afghanistan has on a number of occasions pledged that it would not allow its soil to be used against Pakistan, but TTP sanctuaries continue to exist in Afghanistan. Security officials allege that the TTP has developed close links with Afghan intelligence agency NDS and has also been infiltrated by Indian spy outfit RAW.



After the Army Public School attack, President Ghani had carried out a limited operation against TTP hideouts in Kunar, but dismissed Pakistans claims that the attack on the Badabher camp was planned and controlled from Afghanistan.



Afghanistan had renewed the pledge of acting against the TTP at the second meeting of the coordination group of quadrilateral mechanism established to pursue reconciliation with Taliban.
SC lifted ban on hunting of houbara bustard

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Friday lifted a ban on the hunting of houbara bustard, a rare desert bird whose meat is prized among Arab sheikhs as an aphrodisiac.



A five-member larger bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali announced the verdict on the review petitions filed by the federal and provincial governments against the ban.



In a 4-1 majority ruling, the court lifted the ban on hunting of the endangered bird however, Justice Qazi Faez Isa wrote a dissenting note opposing the bench's order.



A three-judge bench of the apex court headed by then chief justice Jawwad S. Khawaja had on August 20 banned hunting of the houbara bustard in a decision welcomed by wildlife campaigners and conservationists. The court also ordered the cancellation of all existing permits in this regard.



The ban had resulted from a petition that recalled that Pakistan had imposed a permanent ban on the hunting of houbara bustards under the Third Schedule of the Pakistan Wildlife Ordinance 1971, after declaring the species a protected bird. But despite the ban, licenses or permits were being issued to VIP dignitaries of Gulf states for hunting the species.



In October, the federal government and governments of Punjab, Balochistan and Sindh asked the court to review its decision, with federal government terming the invitations to Arabs for houbara hunting a cornerstone of [Pakistan's] foreign policy.



The government of Sindh earlier this month had informed the Supreme Court that its order of imposing a ban on the hunting of houbara bustard was not implementable.



Sindh governments counsel Farooq H. Naek had said that hunting of the bird was permitted for 10 days only.



Balochistan High Court in November 2014 cancelled all permits for hunting in the province, but its order has now been quashed by today's SC ruling.



As the federal government concluded its arguments in the houbara bustard case earlier this month, the attorney general (AG) asked the Supreme Court to allow sustainable hunting of the bird.



The government did not want the order set aside in its entirety, just that the ban should not be perpetual, AG Salman Butt told SC at the time.



Wealthy hunting parties from the Gulf travel to Balochistan province every winter to kill the houbara bustard using hunting falcons, a practice that has sparked controversy in recent years because of the bird's dwindling numbers.



The issue has also cast a spotlight on traditionally close ties between Pakistan and its allies in the Arab world, particularly Saudi Arabia.



Pakistans soil is regarded as an attractive wintering ground and milieu for the migratory birds which is also an attractive destination for hunters every year at the onset of winter. Consequently, a large number of vulnerable species like the houbara bustard from atrocious freezing regions of Siberia migrate to Pakistan and other countries.


Security forces arrested dozens in BKU attack

CHARSADDA: Security forces have arrested dozens of suspects in a search launched in the aftermath of the Charsadda university attack.



An FIR was registered on Thursday against the four unidentified militants who attacked Charsaddas Bacha Khan University, killing 20 people and injuring at least a dozen others. An injured university employee, Muhammad Fayyaz, expired Thursday morning in the Neurosurgery Intensive Care Unit at Peshawars Lady Reading Hospital ? where two others wounded in the attack remain in critical condition. The death toll now stands at 21. The FIR lodged was lodged on behalf of the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) by Station House Officer Irfanullah of the Serdheri Police Station in CTD Mardan under sections 7 and 15AA of the Anti-Terrorism Act.



Search operations in Charsadda are ongoing as police comb the area around the university. Several suspects have been arrested. During initial investigations, four grenades, 16 magazines and 240 cartridges were recovered from the site of the attack, CTD sources said. Several schools were closed last weekend after intelligence suggested militants were planning an attack, according to Muhammad Amir Rana, director of the private Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies. A Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government spokesman said they were closed as part of a security drill.



Fazlur Rahim Marwat, the universitys vice chancellor, said security forces alone could not keep students safe, saying it required a move away from an extreme interpretation of Islam. After the Peshawar attack, the government promised to set up a joint Intelligence Directorate, but that has not happened yet. The government is trying to develop a response but is facing capacity issues, Rana said, particularly in the area of intelligence-sharing among the powerful intelligence agencies and the police. Rana, whose institute tracks militant movement, said the divisions in the Taliban over who carried out Wednesdays attack probably has more to do with a fear of retribution than a reflection of a deeply divided Taliban.



The backlash that followed APS attack was so severe that it probably left the Taliban reluctant to take credit, he added, noting that Afghan security forces joined in operations against Pakistani Taliban hideouts afterward. In a press conference after the attack, Pakistan military spokesman Lt. Gen Asim Bajwa stated the attackers carried mobile phones with Afghan numbers and were in touch with their handlers in Afghanistan.
From Greg Swank, 12-4-2 You are about to read a list of 45 goals that found their way down the halls of our great Capitol back in 1963. As...
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Media Report : During a stormy session at the Scottish Parliament , former top judge Lord Brian Gill - who twice refused to face a Holyrood probe on judges secret wealth, connections & links to big business - demanded MSPs close proposals to require judges to register their interests as called for in Petition PE1458: Register of Interests for members of Scotland's judiciary . Video footage of Lord Gills stormy evidence session with MSPs can be viewed here: Evidence of Lord Gill before the Scottish Parliament 10 November 2015

The proposals, backed by cross party MSPs during a debate in the Parliaments main chamber on 9 October 2014 - Debating the Judges - call for the creation of a publicly available register of judicial interests containing information on judges backgrounds, their personal wealth, undeclared earnings, business & family connections inside & outside of the legal profession, offshore investments, hospitality, details on recusals and other information routinely lodged in registers of interest across all walks of public life in the UK and around the world.
Edward Steichen A Masterful Photographer

Edward Steichen:The Early Years - a spectacular walk through New York with one of the most innovative photographers of the last century
Phuket, 21 January 2016  La Gritta, an authentic Italian restaurant at Amari Phuket, presents a special Valentines menu crafted by Chef Patrizia from Rome. Couples will experience their most romantic Valentines dinner under the stars, listening to the gentle sounds of the waves hitting the white sand beach. Lovers will be surprised with a spectacular view of Patong City at night, whilst enjoying grilled tiger prawns with avocado mousse, ravioli filled with crabmeat, red lemon and ginger sorbet, Australian beef tenderloin medallions, snow fish, and dessert.



The Valentines menu for two includes cocktail, a four-course dinner, tea and coffee at 4,200 THB++, and with a bottle of Prosecco at 5,800 THB++. Couples will receive an exclusive treat with a surprise Valentines gift set from Clarins cosmetics company.

For more information and reservations, please contact +66 (0) 7629 2697, email lagritta@amari.com or visit https://www.facebook.com/LaGrittaPhuket.

Address: Amari Phuket, 2 Muen-ngern Road, Patong Beach, Kathu, Phuket 83150
Credit:  The Trustees of the British Museum and courtesy of the Centre for Heritage Imaging and Collection Care, University of Manchester

An exhibition of early colour printing in Germany shines a light on the ways in which technology jump-started a revolution in image making. The British Museum show is curated by Dr Elizabeth Savage, whose research makes a radical contribution to an understanding of colour in woodcuts.

The fearsome dragon is dead, its body contorted and mouth hanging open. Above it, a triumphant St George sits astride a splendid horse. He wears full armour, his legs thrust forward, spurs glinting and lance held high. Atop his helmet, impossibly elaborate plumes and feathers cascade upwards and outwards. In the background, a city perches on a mountain top, silhouetted against a glowering sky.

This opulent image, worked in black and gold on a blue background, is one of the earliest European examples of colour printing used in fine art. It was created in 1507 by Lucas Cranach the Elder (14721553) at the request of his patron, Friedrich III, Elector of Saxony. Artisans working for Cranach, whose initials are worked into the design, used two wood blocks (black and gold) to print his masterful design of a horse and rider on to paper pre-painted with indigo. The medieval imagery contrasts with the strikingly modern Renaissance technology.

Cranach's print is one of 31 German Renaissance woodcuts and a single drawing currently on display at the British Museum in an exhibition of early colour printing. All come from the British Museum's collection but few have been shown to the public before. Together, they chart the ways in which advances in early print technology opened up new avenues for artists in creating a sense of movement, depth and opulence not possible in black and white.

The exhibition German Renaissance Colour Woodcuts has been curated by Dr Elizabeth Savage (Faculty of English and Department of History of Art). Her pioneering research into archival collections in Germany and the UK, combined with her detailed grasp of the medium of woodblock printing, challenges accepted thinking about the use of colour in woodcuts, a craft-based technology associated almost exclusively with black-and-white or monochrome images.

When colour does appear in early woodcuts (for example St Dorothea and the Christ-Child, c.1450-1500) it has generally been applied by hand as a secondary process, often as a wash to draw attention to a significant aspect of the design. Given the considerable technical difficulties of colour printing using wood blocks, it was long assumed that colour printing did not develop on any significant scale until 1700, when Jakob Christoff Le Blon (1667-1741) invented a way to print all natural colours using only blue, red, yellow and black. His method became our CMYK: cyan, magenta, yellow, 'key' (black), following his order. Scholars thus assumed that early colour prints were extremely rare and judged them to be unrepresentative 'outliers'.

Close analysis of colour images by Savage now reveals that, throughout the 1500s, thousands (and perhaps tens of thousands) of colour prints were in circulation in European countries. Furthermore, the range of colour woodblock prints in production varied from costly images, commissioned and collected by wealthy patrons, to more affordable 'mass-produced' prints designed to decorate the surfaces of furniture and the interiors of homes whose owners hankered after the latest styles of intarsia and marquetry  effects created by laborious and highly skilled inlay techniques.

One reason why so many colour prints have hidden in plain sight is that colour can be mistaken for paint. When the surfaces of prints are examined by an expert eye a different story may emerge. For instance, the pressure of the press often leaves tell-tale marks like indenting the design into the paper, forcing 'ink squash' into a raised outline, even giving the paper an almost sculptural relief. Savage collaborated with Gwen Riley Jones, a specialist in imaging gold at the University of Manchester, to document the surface texture of the portrait of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (1519) by Hans Weiditz (c.1500c.1536). It can now be identified as the sixth image printed with gold in early modern Europe.

The development of colour printing may have been technology-led, emerging from the workshops in the German cities of Augsburg and Strasbourg, among others, where competitive, innovative printers developed new ways to make their books stand out. But, in order to flourish, these advances required the backing of rich and powerful individuals whose status was closely tied to the conspicuous (and competitive) consumption of the latest in luxury goods, from textiles to prints.

"The British Museum holds one of the world's largest collections of colour prints, including unique examples from late medieval and early modern Germany. Early printers vied with each other to achieve stunning colouristic effects  500 years before the advent of Photoshop," says Savage. "We think of prints as being exactly repeatable black outlines on white paper, but some survive in many as 30 very different palettes. Their printers developed inks in royal blues, baby pinks, dusky oranges, lush greens, rich burgundies to create endless variety and unprecedented three-dimensional effects."

Three prints, displayed side by side, illustrate how rivalry between members of the ruling elite stimulated important developments in colour printing. When in 1507 Friedrich III in Wittenberg sent images by Cranach of "knights printed from gold and silver" to his friend and competitor collector, the imperial advisor Konrad Peutinger in Augsburg, he created a friendly contest between two major artistic centres with artists and artisans stretching their skills to the limit in the quest for the most impressive image.

In response to the receipt of Cranach's St George, Peutinger sent Friedrich a pair of larger colour woodcuts of St George and Maximillian I on horseback designed by Hans Burgkmair the Elder (14731531). With these woodcuts, Peutinger demonstrated that his Augsburg artists and craftsmen were able to outdo Frederick's ostentatious effort. "Friedrich and Peutinger's glittering exchange jump-started colour printing on a scale that we are only now beginning to appreciate," said Savage. "It's mind-boggling that one of Peutinger's technicians corresponded directly with the Holy Roman Emperor about colour printing. Like Cranach's nearly 24-karat gold printing ink on flimsy paper, it suggests the incredible value of these vivid breakthroughs."

That extraordinary, short-lived, pre-Reformation heyday is thought to be the whole story, but Savage's research recasts it as a short chapter. Dozens of colour impressions of German prints were known, by just a few artists, from the 1510s. This exhibition hints at the thousands of colour prints, circulating in perhaps tens of thousands of impressions, which were made and used across Germany. Rather than dying out before the Reformation, later European adaptions attest that the craft knowledge and market demand survived for generations and even spread abroad.

All prints are team efforts, with the artist normally considered the main producer. In the exhibition curated by Savage, the printer is the star player. Two colour impressions by Albrecht Durer (14711528) and one by Hans Holbein (c.14971543) are on display, but neither ever designed a colour print. Instead, printers commissioned others to design and cut tone blocks to accompany the great masters' 'normal' woodcuts. As a woodcut, Durer's portrait of Ulrich Varnbuler (1522) is a 16th-century German masterpiece; as a colour print, it's a triumph of 17th-century Dutch marketing.

The exhibition's focus on printers, not artists, expands an apparently small and sporadic fine art movement into an ever-growing wave. Savage said: "People prayed with them, collected them, learned from them, decorated with them, upgraded cheap wooden furniture with them. Few were as stunning as Cranach's golden, saintly knight, which is precisely the point. We've forgotten that colour woodcuts were normal, not exceptional, in the 'golden age' of print."

German Renaissance Colour Woodcuts is on display in Room 90 on the fourth floor of the British Museum until Wednesday, 27 January 2016.

Explore further This article can be printed on a hair with revolutionary laser printing technology
Rallus aquaticus skull (above) and Rallus "minutus" (below). Scale: 2 cm. / Alcover et al.

When Charles Darwin visited the Azores islands in the 19th Century, the birds he observed were familiar to him. However, if he had travelled there 500 years before, he would have found an ornithofauna as particular as that of the Galapagos. The recent discovery in these Portuguese islands and in Madeira of five extinct species of rail, which lost the ability to fly due to having evolved on islands, confirms how fragile they are in the face of changes to their habitat like the ones that must have occurred after the first visits by humans over 500 years ago.

In September 1826, the British naturalist Charles Darwin visited the Azores archipelago during the HMS Beagle's return voyage to the United Kingdom after more than four years travelling the world. In his diary he only mentions the existence of starlings, wagtails, finches and blackbirds; however, on the islands also lay the remains of other birds which populated the islands a few centuries before his visit. A new study, published in Zootaxa, now highlights the discovery of five extinct rail species, two in Madeira and three in the Azores.

"The species of birds very probably disappeared following the arrival of humans and the animals that came with them, like mice, rats and cats," told Josep Antoni Alcover

Paleontological exploration by Spanish, German and Portuguese researchers has made it possible to "discover new species of birds that very probably disappeared following the arrival of humans and the animals that came with them, like mice, rats and cats," SINC was told by Josep Antoni Alcover, a CSIC researcher working at the Mediterranean Institute for Advanced Studies (IMEDEA-CSIC/UIB) and co-author of the paper.

The five new species discovered in Madeira and Azores. From left to right: R. carvaoensis, R. adolfocaesaris, R. montivagorum, R. lowei, R. "minutus". Credit: Jose Antonio Penas (Sinc)

The new species are: the Madeira rail (Rallus lowei), a flightless species with a very stout body; the Porto Santo rail (Rallus adolfocaesaris), graceful and probably not a very able flier; the Sao Miguel rail (Rallus carvaoensis), quite small, stout, flightless and with a somewhat curved beak; the Pico rail (Rallus montivagorum), larger than the Sao Miguel rail (but smaller than the continental species), graceful and with reduced flying capability; and the Sao Jorge rail (Rallus "minutus"), diminutive, relatively stout, with short legs, flightless and which does not have a definitive scientific name.

According to dating obtained from the bones of these birds, or from those of other species found which were associated to them, these five extinct species lived until fairly recently, especially the Azores rails. "At least one of these species survived until the 15th Century, so we are looking at a very recent extinction process," stresses Alcover.

According to the scientist, in Madeira the extinction may have been related to a possible visit by the Vikings (whether it was a colonisation is still not verified), who could have transported mice to the island. These would have brought about the disappearance of rails and other birds.

"The bone remains of native bird species which are now appearing show that if Darwin had been able to study the fossils hidden on these islands, or if he had visited 500 years earlier, he would have found a much more singular ornithofauna, with many indigenous bird species, like that which was found on the Galapagos islands," Alcover highlights.

Ground-dwelling birds

Today, there are only 13 living rail species of the Rallus genus. "This is because other species, which only lived on islands, have disappeared recently," the expert clarifies. Two or three thousand insular rail species (rallids) are thought to have lived in the Pacific. In the Atlantic, only on the most remote islands, such as Tristan da Cunha and Gough, are there surviving indigenous rail species today; however, in the Antilles, Bermuda and on the islands of Ascension and Saint Helena, extinct species have been found.

The extinct birds found on the islands of Macaronesia "were smaller in size than today's continental rails, such as the water rail (Rallus aquaticus), from which they very probably originate," says Alcover. Fossils uncovered also make it possible to verify that all these species had a reduced flying capability. "Some were completely incapable of regular flight," the researcher reveals.

While on continents, rails live near water, on islands, they occupy more terrestrial habitats. The reason for this is that in order to live on islands, they evolve differently, to the point where they become indigenous insular species. This evolution implies changes in their size and body proportions and a reduction or complete loss of their ability to fly; this is why they tend to walk.

"For that reason, the rails that reach islands and evolve on them lose their dispersive capacity: they cannot leave the islands and they are trapped in limited insular territories, which is why we observe an extremely reduced distribution area," the scientist explains.

"The history of insular rails is an intense story of evolution, and frequently, extinction," Alcover highlights

This circumstance also makes them very prone to extinction when there are changes to the islands' ecology (for example, when they are colonised by humans). "The history of insular rails is an intense story of evolution, and frequently, extinction," Alcover highlights.

The tip of the iceberg of diversity

The fossil remains surfacing on the Madeira and Azores archipelagos represent one part of all the diversity of animals that used to inhabit these islands, and are now beginning to be discovered.

In addition to the five rail species the paper describes, there are other species, for example two indigenous species of scops owl. "This is only the tip of the iceberg of what is to come in terms of knowledge about the ornithological fauna native to these islands", according to the authors.

"The existence in the past of indigenous species of scops owls and rails points to the great magnitude of the devastation birds suffered on Atlantic islands after the arrival of humans and the fauna that came with them," the scientists conclude.

Explore further An extinct species of scops owl has been discovered in Madeira

More information: JOSEP ANTONI ALCOVER et al. JOSEP ANTONI ALCOVER et al. Five new extinct species of rails (Aves: Gruiformes: Rallidae) from the Macaronesian Islands (North Atlantic Ocean) , Zootaxa (2015). Journal information: Zootaxa (2015). DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4057.2.1
Chris Tuan, professor of civil engineering at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, stands on a slab of conductive concrete that can carry enough electrical current to melt ice during winter storms. Tuan is working with the Federal Aviation Administration and U.S. Strategic Command on multiple applications for his patented concrete mixture. Credit: Scott Schrage/University Communications

A 200-square-foot slab of seemingly ordinary concrete sits just outside the Peter Kiewit Institute as snowflakes begin parachuting toward Omaha on a frigid afternoon in late December.

The snow accumulates on the grass surrounding the slab and initially clings to the concrete, too. But as the minutes pass and the snow begins melting from only its surface, the slab reveals its secret: Like razors, stoves and guitars before it, this concrete has gone electric.

Its designer, UNL professor of civil engineering Chris Tuan, has added a pinch of steel shavings and a dash of carbon particles to a recipe that has literally been set in concrete for centuries. Though the newest ingredients constitute just 20 percent of Tuan's otherwise standard concrete mixture, they conduct enough electricity to melt ice and snow in the worst winter storms while remaining safe to the touch.

Tuan's research team is demonstrating the concrete's de-icing performance to the Federal Aviation Administration during a testing phase that runs through March 2016. If the FAA is satisfied with the results, Tuan said the administration will consider scaling up the tests by integrating the technology into the tarmac of a major U.S. airport.

A slab of conductive concrete demonstrates its de-icing capability outside the Peter Kiewit Institute in Omaha during a winter storm in December 2015. The concrete carries just enough current to melt ice while remaining safe to the touch. Credit: Courtesy photo/Chris Tuan and Lim Nguyen

"To my surprise, they don't want to use it for the runways," Tuan said. "What they need is the tarmac around the gated areas cleared, because they have so many carts to unloadluggage service, food service, trash service, fuel servicethat all need to get into those areas.

"They said that if we can heat that kind of tarmac, then there would be (far fewer) weather-related delays. We're very optimistic."

A unique bridge that resides about 15 miles south of Lincoln has given Tuan reason to feel confident. In 2002, Tuan and the Nebraska Department of Roads made the 150-foot Roca Spur Bridge the world's first to incorporate conductive concrete. Inlaid with 52 conductive slabs that have successfully de-iced its surface for more than a decade, the bridge exemplifies the sort of targeted site that Tuan envisions for the technology.

"Bridges always freeze up first, because they're exposed to the elements on top and bottom," Tuan said. "It's not cost-effective to build entire roadways using conductive concrete, but you can use it at certain locations where you always get ice or have potholes."

Potholes often originate from the liberal use of salt or de-icing chemicals that can corrode concrete and contaminate groundwater over time, Tuan said, making the conductive concrete an appealing alternative with lower operating and maintenance costs. The power required to thermally de-ice the Roca Spur Bridge during a three-day storm typically costs about $250several times less than a truckload of chemicals, he said.

Tuan said the conductive concrete could also prove feasible for high-traffic intersections, exit ramps, driveways and sidewalks. Yet the technology offers another, very different application that doesn't even require electric current.

Catching the next wave

By replacing the limestone and sand typically used in concrete with a mineral called magnetite, Tuan has shown that the mixture can also shield against electromagnetic waves. The electromagnetic spectrum includes the radiofrequency waves transmitted and received by cellphones, which Tuan said could make the concrete mixture useful to those concerned about becoming targets of industrial espionage.

Using the magnetite-embedded concrete, Tuan and his colleagues have built a small structure in their laboratory that demonstrates the material's shielding capabilities.

"We invite parties that are interested in the technology to go in there and try to use their cellphones," said Tuan, who has patented his design through NUtech Ventures. "And they always receive a no-service message."

While Tuan's collaborations have him dreaming big about the future of conductive concrete, he's currently enjoying its benefits much closer to home.

"I have a patio in my backyard that is made of conductive concrete," he said with a laugh. "So I'm practicing what I preach."

Tuan developed the concrete with the assistance of Lim Nguyen, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering; Bing Chen, professor of electrical and computer engineering; and Sherif Yehia, a professor at the American University of Sharjah who earned his doctorate in civil engineering at UNL. The FAA is currently funding the team's research, which also received past support from the Nebraska Department of Roads.

Explore further The flip side of salting winter roads
Figure 1: This map shows the results of using the Reference Electrification Model (REM)  a computer program designed at MIT with collaboration from IIT-Comillas University  to determine a minimum-cost electrification solution for each of the approximately 400,000 buildings estimated to be non-electrified in the Vaishali district in Bihar, India. The program assigns each building to either a stand-alone system, a microgrid, or a grid extension (indicated by the low-voltage lines).

More than 300 million people in India have no access to grid electricity, and the problem is especially acute in rural communities, which can be difficult and expensive to reach with grid power.

At MIT's Tata Center for Technology and Design, researchers are exploring ways to extend electricity access to such communities using microgridsindependent electricity generation and distribution systems that service one village or even just a few houses. In addition to being flexible in size, microgrids can run on whatever power sources are available, including wind, hydropower, and the source accessible at all sites: solar power.

"A large number of people, particularly in rural India, won't be electrified for decades, and the situation is similar in other parts of southern Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. The statistics say that 1.5 billion people worldwide lack access to electricity, but many more don't have reliable access," says Robert Stoner, deputy director for science and technology at the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI) and director of the Tata Center. "We're looking for ways to make electricity available to everyone without necessarily having to go through the costly and time-consuming process of extending the [national] electric grid. With policy support in the form of regulation and financing  it's conceivable that microgrids could proliferate very quickly. They might not supply a level of access equivalent to that offered by a well-managed grid but would provide an affordable and significant step forward in quality of life."

Microgrids can be powered by diesel generators or by renewable technologies, among them solar power, which is becoming more attractive as the cost of solar technology falls. "If you use solar, [the fuel is] essentially free," says Rajeev Ram, MIT professor of electrical engineering and a Tata Center researcher. In addition, he says, "microgrids are attractive because they let you pool resources."

Nevertheless, the widespread adoption of microgrids has been stymied by several challenges, including the high cost of setting up private generation and distribution systems and the business risk of investing in a system that's susceptible to being undercut by an extension of the electric grid.

At the Tata Center, researchers are addressing such concerns from multiple anglesfrom mapping out national electrification networks, to providing planning assistance to rural entrepreneurs, to developing technology that can make it easier to build microgrids organically, from the grassroots up. Indeed, the researchers say that properly designed microgrids can be grid-compatible, reducing the risk to investors and providing an intermediate stage to grid connection where this is technically and economically viable.

"Everyone agrees we have to scale microgrids" to address the rural electrification gap, says Brian Spatocco, a Tata Fellow who worked on microgrids as a PhD candidate in materials science and engineering at MIT. The problem, he says, is that "not one size fits all."

Figure 2: This GridForm model of a village in Bihar, India, shows the optimal layout of hardware for the load profiles of the community. Each building, color-coded by the cost (in Indian rupees) of supplying electricity to that structure, is wired to a central generation/storage node (solid lines), and the nodes are connected to each other (dotted lines).

Reference electrification model

To address the microgrid challenge at the macro level, Tata researchers led by Stoner and Ignacio Perez-Arriaga, a visiting professor at the MIT Sloan School of Management from IIT-Comillas University in Madrid, Spain, have been developing and implementing a sophisticated computer program that can help government planners determine the best way to provide electricity to all potential consumers.

The Reference Electrification Model (REM) pulls information from a range of data setswhich in India include satellite imagery, the Census of India, and India's National Sample Survey, which gathers statistics for planning purposes. REM then uses the data to determine where extending the grid will be most cost-effective and where other solutions, such as a microgrid or even an isolated home solar system, would be more practical.

"We are approaching the problem of rural electrification from the perspective of planners and regulators," Stoner says.

Satellite imagery is used to map the buildings in a given location, and demand is estimated based on the types and profiles of the buildings. REM then uses pricing and technical data on such equipment as solar panels, batteries, and wiring to estimate the costs of electrification on or off the grid and to make preliminary engineering designs for the recommended systems. The model essentially produces a snapshot of a lowest-cost electrification plan as if one could be built up overnight.

"This is a technology tool that [officials] can use to inform policy decisions," says Claudio Vergara, a MITEI postdoc working on the REM project. "We're not trying to tell them what the plan should be, but we're helping them compare different options. After a decision has been made and detailed information about the sites is gathered, REM can be used to produce more detailed designs to support the implementation of each of the three electrification modes."

Currently, Tata researchers are using REM to model an electrification plan for Vaishali, a district of 3.5 million people in the state of Bihar in India. "We're designing the system down to every house," Stoner says.

Figure 3: Sample microgrid with peer-to-peer electricity sharing using uLink. uLinks power management units (PMUs) are shown connecting generating sources, batteries, and loads to form an ad hoc microgrid. Sophisticated computing power within the units enables power and information to be transferred automatically throughout the microgrid, which could one day employ the mobile phone system (a.k.a. the GSM network) for payments and system monitoring.

In the project, results from REM were used to identify the best locations in Vaishali for microgrids (see Figure 1 in the slideshow above). In July 2015, the team visited two candidate sites, each with between 70 and 250 houses, and REM will now be used to produce a detailed technical design showing all the equipment and wiring needed to electrify them. Then, Vergara says, a local Tata partner will put REM to the test by actually building the microgrids. "The pilot will help us improve the model," Vergara says. "We're making many modeling assumptions now, so we need real-world validation." Once the software has been perfected, Stoner says, the researchers plan to make it openly available.

GridForm

Another project under way at the Tata Center addresses the barriers to entry for potential microgrid entrepreneurs. Such businesses face several hurdles, including the high cost of determining the most cost-effective sites for their projects. India's government and public utilities often provide no information about where the electric grid is likely to be extended next, and calculating the likely demand for electricity in a village typically requires costly, on-the-ground researchall of which makes it tough for any potential microgrid entrepreneur to make the case for profitability and to secure financing.

Three MIT graduate students and a postdoc are working to develop GridForm, a planning framework that rapidly identifies, digitizes, and models rural development sites, with the goal of automating some of the work required to design a microgrid for a small village.

"Doing a custom system for every village creates so much work for companiesin time and in the human resources burdenthat it can't scale," Spatocco says. "We're trying to expedite the planning piece so [entrepreneurs] can serve more people and reduce costs."

Like REM, GridForm begins with satellite data, but GridForm goes on to use advanced machine learning to model individual villages with a high level of detail. "We'll say this is a house and this is a house, hit run, and the machine learns the properties of a house, such as size and shape," Spatocco says. The goal is to produce a hardware and cost model of a target village that is 90 percent accurate before anyone even visits the site.

GridForm also develops load estimates, based on factors such as demographics and the proximity of buildings, and provides entrepreneurs with potential microgrid designs and even lists of necessary equipment. The program incorporates data sets on solar radiance and uses an algorithm to determine the best configuration of solar panels, battery packs, and distribution wires to power the greatest number of houses at the lowest cost.

"We're providing everything from siting to planning to implementationthe whole process," says Kendall Nowocin, a PhD student in electrical engineering and computer science working on GridForm. The other two researchers working on the project are George Chen PhD '15, anMITx postdoctoral teaching fellow, and Ling Xu, a PhD student in health sciences and technology.

The main difference from REM, the researchers say, is that GridForm envisions electrification being built from the ground up rather than from the top down. "We think rural entrepreneurs will electrify themselves," Spatocco says. "We want to create insights that are immediately useful to practitioners on the groundwhat to buy, what it will cost, where to put it."

Already GridForm has been used to develop detailed microgrid plans for four villages in the state of Bihar, and the team is working with Indian social enterprise SELCO Solar to do the installations, providing service to 2,000 to 3,000 people.

uLink

A third Tata Center project focuses on fostering the organic growth of microgrids by enabling residents to share extra power-generating capacity with their neighbors via an inexpensive piece of hardware, the uLink power management unit (PMU).

A "demand response" system that meters and controls the flow of electricity, uLink can adjust the demands it serves based on the supply of electricity that's available. The system reflects an innovative approach to electrification, Ram saysone that acknowledges that the standards for electrification common in the developed world are unrealistically high for poor, remote areas. Building in the system redundancies necessary to ensure 99.9 percent availability is simply too expensiveand particularly unrealistic in India, where even the areas served by the grid are plagued by power outages.

"Here we can guarantee a basic level of service, but we don't guarantee 99.9 percent," Ram says. "This is a very powerful way to manage the cost of electricity infrastructure. Demand response allows you to size the system for average demand, versus peak demand."

What that means is that when the sun is shining and batteries are fully charged, microgrid customers can run all of their appliances, but when it's been cloudy for a few days and the system is low on power, uLink can signal users to shut off loads; as a last resort, it can even shut off loads automatically. Automating this function eases the social difficulty of sharing electricity, the researchers say. Once users have pooled their resources, there's no need to argue over who can use which appliances; uLink allots electricity based on which loads have been predetermined as "critical" and therefore not subject to shutoff when system demand peaks. Everything else can be shut off by uLink as needs arise.

Users themselves determine which few loads are "critical," providing an element of choice not typically seen in home solar systems, which hardwire their loads. uLink features several outlets, enabling users to plug in a variety of appliances. At maximum capacity, the initial prototype low-voltage, DC system provides about 25 watts per household, enough to run a fan, a cellphone charger, and a couple of lights.

"The hardest part is making a box with all these functions at a cost people can afford," Ram says, noting that the uLink consumer unit is designed to cost about as much as a cellphone, making it affordable for most Indian villagers.

uLink was field-tested in June 2015five houses were wired together for two weeksand the delivery, metering, and networking systems worked well. The next milestone for the developers is to test the algorithm designed to estimate how much electricity is available from the system's batteries and solar panels and optimally shed loads. "This is definitely a work in progress," Ram says.

Indeed, all three Tata Center projects are still being refined, but together they offer a rich portfolio of potential solutions to the problem of rural electrification, the effects of which many of the researchers have seen firsthand.

"Electricity is not just empowering. It's an enabling force. Electricity goes right into livelihood activities," Spatocco says, noting that just a few lights make it possible for residents to work in the evenings, for example, or to improve their efficiency with simple machinery, such as sewing machines. "People can double or triple their economic output."

There are also benefits few in the West might imagine, as Ram discovered by interviewing residents of one non-electrified Indian village: "They conveyed how frightening it can be to have a snake in the village if no one has a light."

Explore further Bringing microgrids to rural villages

More information: Architecture and system analysis of microgrids with peer-to-peer electricity sharing to create a marketplace which enables energy access, Architecture and system analysis of microgrids with peer-to-peer electricity sharing to create a marketplace which enables energy access, DOI: 10.1109/ICPE.2015.7167826 Kush R. Varshney et al. Targeting Villages for Rural Development Using Satellite Image Analysis, Big Data (2015). DOI: 10.1089/big.2014.0061

This story is republished courtesy of MIT News (web.mit.edu/newsoffice/), a popular site that covers news about MIT research, innovation and teaching.
An out of date operating system can let the hackers in to your computer network. Flickr/Don Hankins, CC BY

A virus attack on the computer system of one of Melbourne's largest hospital networks is cause for concern because it affected machines running Microsoft's Windows XP, an operating system no longer supported by the software giant.

A report this week in The Age said a "computer virus" has affected Windows XP systems across the hospital, interfering with the delivery of meals and pathology results. Staff have resorted to "manual workarounds", telephones, and fax machines to ensure continued delivery of these services.

A statement from the Royal Melbourne Hospital said IT staff at Melbourne Health, the network that runs the hospital, were doing all they could to "restore the remaining Windows XP computers" as soon as possible.

While the virus has been disruptive to the organisation, due to the tireless work of staff we have been able to minimise this disruption to our patients and ensure patient safety has been maintained.

While critical patient treatment is, according to the hospital, unaffected, it has clearly been a major inconvenience for the already hard-worked staff of a busy hospital.

Further, existing patient data could have been compromised by the breach, as The Age reports:

When asked if the virus would jeopardise the safety and privacy of patient's records, she made no comment.

Health-care providers are hacker targets

While all IT systems are targets for hackers, health-care IT systems have not traditionally been thought of as attractive targets for cybercriminals. But the data they hold is highly lucrative in the hands of crooks.

When you enter a hospital, a great deal of basic personal information, such as your name, age, date of birth, marital status, a variety of contact details, and possibly billing information including health insurance provider and banking details, is recorded. Cybercriminals can use this information to commit identity fraud.

Identity fraud encompasses a wide variety of crimes in which a criminal pretends to be you for financial gain. According to the Australian Federal Police, such crimes can include applying for and using credit cards in your name, gaining access to your bank accounts and even applying for government benefits in your name.

Cybercriminals operate well-organised global black markets in illegally obtained information, as well as tools for obtaining and exploiting it. Both the computer company Dell and journalist Brian Krebs have described how collections of data from health-care providers are bought and sold on these markets.

The reported information on the Melbourne Health attack makes it impossible to judge whether this was a deliberate attempt to steal patient data for profit. Regardless, hospitals and other health-care providers are and will continue to be the target of skilled and well-resourced criminals.

The end of Windows XP

But let me return to the issue of the affected systems running Windows XP. This version of Microsoft's Windows operating system was originally released in October 2001.

Over more than 12 years, Microsoft regularly released updates that fixed bugs in XP, including many security related patches. In any large software system, the number of bugs is never zero, and they can remain present but unknown for many years.

For instance, the Shellshock bug which affected Unix systems was at least 20 years old when discovered in 2014.

Microsoft advised in 2008 that Windows XP support would end in April 2014, and stuck precisely to this schedule. Its announcement warned of the security consequences of continuing to use XP:

Without critical Windows XP security updates, your PC may become vulnerable to harmful viruses, spyware, and other malicious software which can steal or damage your business data and information. Anti-virus software will also not be able to fully protect you once Windows XP itself is unsupported.

Antivirus software vendor Symantec also said that its products are not sufficient to protect a system running XP.

XP unpatched

Since April 2014, several serious security faults have indeed been found in Windows XP, which have not been patched. Some of these faults allow a hacker to take full control of an XP system remotely.

While a few specialised variants of XP used in "embedded systems" such as ATMs are still supported, all consumer and mainstream business versions are now unsupported by Microsoft. This includes versions with Service Packs installed, as well as the Professional Edition.

Some large customers, including the US Navy and several Australian government departments, continue to pay Microsoft for custom support. While these support contracts are negotiated privately with Microsoft, media reports indicate that the price of supporting XP, and its cousin OS Windows Server 2003, is steep, and doubles each year.

It's unclear whether the Melbourne Health computers affected by the security breach were covered by a support contract with Microsoft. Even with support, XP lacks a number of security features present in more recent versions that make it harder for hackers to take advantage of any security bugs.

Time to let it go

Web access statistics suggest that roughly 2.5% of Australia's desktop computers still use Windows XP. While a few will have some protection due to support contracts from Microsoft, the vast majority are now completely unprotected.

Anybody who uses such a computer connected to a network is a sitting duck for hackers, who can and will attack them.

All users with an unsupported copy of XP, even if they have antivirus software, are vulnerable and should cease using the operating system as soon as possible. Organisations storing large amounts of private information are particularly likely to be attacked.

Home and small business users still using XP are likely to find that they will require a new PC if they wish to continue to use the latest version of Windows. Fortunately, low-end Windows PCs are cheaper and more capable than ever.

Alternatives such as tablets and Chromebooks can be a viable, low-cost and lower-maintenance option for users with basic computing needs.

But if you do nothing, and continue to run Windows XP, then you'll have no excuse when your system gets hacked. The malware used against Melbourne Health can, and almost certainly will, be used against others.

Explore further Microsoft counting down to the end of Windows XP
Marseille during the Great Plague of 1720. Credit: public domain

Black Death, mid-fourteenth century plague, is undoubtedly the most famous historical pandemic. Within only five years it killed 30-50% of the European population. Unfortunately it didn't stop there. Plague resurged throughout Europe leading to continued high mortality and social unrest over the next three centuries.

With its nearly worldwide distribution today, it's surprising that the once omnipresent threat of plague is all but absent in Western Europe. Plague's abrupt disappearance from Europe leaves us with many unanswered questions about the disease's history. Where did the outbreaks begin? Where was plague hiding between outbreaks? What would cause a resurgence of the dreaded plague?

Archaeology holds many of the answers to these questions if you know where to look for clues. An international team of scientists led by members of the Max Planck Institute (MPI) for the Science of Human History in Jena, Germany, has taken one important step forward to understanding the European plagues of our not-so-distant past. In the online journal eLife they report the reconstruction of complete pathogen genomes from victims of the Great Plague of Marseille (1720-1722), which is conventionally assumed to be the last outbreak of medieval plague in Europe. Using teeth from plague pits in Marseille, the team was able to access tiny fragments of DNA that had preserved for hundreds of years.

"We faced a significant challenge in reconstructing these ancient genomes," comments computational analyst Alexander Herbig. "To our surprise, the 18th century plague seems to be a form that is no longer circulating, and it descends directly from the disease that entered Europe during the Black Death, several centuries earlier". Being distinct from all modern forms of plague, the scientists believe they have identified an extinct form of the disease.

Kirsten Bos, a lead author of the publication, cautions that the geographical source of the disease cannot be identified yet. Marseille was a big hub of trade in the Mediterranean, so the Great Plague of Marseille could have been imported from any number of places by ship and cargo. But she concedes that it equally could have been close to home. "Our results suggest that the disease was hiding somewhere in Europe for several hundred years".

"It's a chilling thought that plague might have once been hiding right around the corner throughout Europe, living in a host which is not known to us yet" explains Johannes Krause, director of the Department of Archaeogenetics at the MPI in Jena, and he adds: "Future work might help us to identify the mysterious host species, its range and the reason for its disappearance".

Explore further Black death strains persisted to create repeated European outbreaks

More information: Eighteenth century Yersinia pestis genomes reveal the long-term persistence of an historical plague focus, eLife, 2016. Journal information: eLife Eighteenth century Yersinia pestis genomes reveal the long-term persistence of an historical plague focus,, 2016.
The LISA Pathfinder spacecraft will help pave the way for a mission to detect gravitational waves. NASA/JPL developed a thruster system onboard. Credit: ESA

While some technologies were created to make spacecraft move billions of miles, the Disturbance Reduction System has the opposite goal: To keep a spacecraft as still as possible.

The thruster system, managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, is part of the European Space Agency's LISA Pathfinder spacecraft, which launched from Kourou, French Guiana on Dec. 3, 2015 GMT (Dec. 2 PST). LISA Pathfinder will test technologies that could one day allow detection of gravitational waves, whose effects are so miniscule that a spacecraft would need to remain extremely steady to detect them. Observing gravitational waves would be a huge step forward in our understanding of the evolution of the universe.

Now, LISA Pathfinder is on its way to Lagrange Point L1, about 930,000 miles (1.5 million kilometers) from Earth in the direction of the sun. L1 is a special point that a spacecraft can orbit while maintaining a nearly constant distance to Earth. This month, scientists and engineers have been switching on LISA Pathfinder's instruments to test them in space. This has included the Disturbance Reduction System instrument computer and thrusters.

The system uses colloid micronewton thrusters, which operate by applying an electric charge to small droplets of liquid and accelerating them through an electric field, to precisely control the position of the spacecraft. Thrusters that work this way had never been successfully operated in space before LISA Pathfinder launched.

This cluster of four colloid thrusters is part of the Disturbance Reduction System, developed by NASA/JPL, which will help keep the LISA Pathfinder spacecraft extremely stable. Credit: ESA/NASA/JPL-Caltech

As of Jan. 10, all eight identical thrusters, developed by Busek Co., Natick, Massachusetts, with technical support from JPL, passed their functional tests. The thrusters achieved their maximum thrust of 30 micronewtons, equivalent to the weight of a mosquito. This level of precision is necessary to counteract small forces on the spacecraft such as the pressure of sunlight, with the result that the spacecraft and the instruments inside are in near-perfect free-fall. A mission to detect gravitational waves would need that level of stability.

"We reached a major milestone with this technology development," said Phil Barela, Disturbance Reduction System project manager at JPL. "The DRS is helping point the way to a system that could be used to detect gravitational waves in the future."

Gravitational waves are one of the last unverified predictions from the theory of General Relativity, which Albert Einstein published about a century ago. Einstein wrote that as massive bodies accelerate, such as black holes, they produce distortions in space-time. Scientists are interested in observing and characterizing these ripples in space-time so that they can learn more about the astrophysical systems that produce them, and about gravity itself. Proposed experiments to detect them from space, such as a future LISA mission, would need to measure how two freely-falling objects move ever so slightly, relative to each other, as a result of gravitational waves. In order to rule out any disturbances that could mask these waves, there must be a system to compensate for solar pressure and other factors. The Disturbance Reduction System on LISA Pathfinder will demonstrate this technology.

The Disturbance Reduction System could also lead to advanced thruster systems for other space applications. Space telescopes need to be very stable to detect distant planets in other solar systems, for example, and could use a similar system. A set of thrusters like the Disturbance Reduction System's could also be used in small satellites to help synchronize flying patterns.

LISA Pathfinder will reach its final orbit on Jan. 22, and begin science operations on March 1. For the first phase of the mission's science operations, a thruster technology system designed by the European Space Agency will be used. JPL's Disturbance Reduction System will then take over in June or July, operating for 90 days.

Explore further Image: LISA Pathfinder launch sequence
NOAA's GOES-West satellite imagery from Jan. 21 at 1500 UTC (10 a.m. EST) shows the large winter storm over near the Gulf coast and another storm approaching the Pacific coast. Credit: NASA/NOAA GOES Project

Update #2 - 1:48 PM Eastern Standard Time (image above)

Update #1 - 9:23 AM Eastern Standard Time

NASA and NOAA satellites are tracking a large winter storm that is expected to bring heavy snowfall to the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region on Jan. 22 and 23. Data from NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP and NOAA's GOES-East satellite were used to create images and an animation of the movement of the powerful storm.

On Jan. 20 at 2:30 p.m. EST the VIIRS instrument aboard NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP captured this image of the winter storm moving through the central U.S. Credit: NASA Goddard Rapid Response

The low pressure area from the Eastern Pacific Ocean moved into the western U.S. and tracked across the four corners region into Texas where NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite observed the clouds associated with the storm. The Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instrument aboard Suomi NPP satellite captured the visible image on January 20, 2016 at 19:30 UTC (2:30 p.m. EST) when the storm was over the central U.S. In the image, snow cover is visible in the Rockies and southern Great Lakes states.

VIIRS collects visible and infrared imagery and global observations of land, atmosphere, cryosphere and oceans.

That low pressure system located over the south central United States on Jan. 21 is expected to track east across the Tennessee Valley and will give way to a deepening coastal low pressure area. The National Weather Service said "This latter feature takes over and becomes a dominant force in setting up heavy snow bands over the Mid-Atlantic and very gusty winds."

A 21 second animation of infrared and visible imagery from NOAA's GOES-East satellite from Jan. 19 to 21 shows the movement one system that moved across the southern U.S. on Jan. 20 followed by a second storm system that is expected to bring the powerful winter storm to the Mid-Atlantic. Credit: NASA/NOAA GOES Project

The storm system is expected to bring an increased risk of severe weather from far southeastern Texas across southern Louisiana/Mississippi, and into the far western Florida Panhandle on Thursday, Jan. 21. That threat for severe weather will move east as the low pressure area continues heading in that direction.

The National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland said "A potentially crippling winter storm is anticipated for portions of the mid-Atlantic Friday into early Saturday. Snowfall may approach two feet for some locations, including the Baltimore and Washington, D.C. metro areas. Farther north, there is uncertainty in snowfall for the New York City-to-Boston corridor. Farther south, significant icing is likely for portions of Kentucky and North Carolina."

A 21 second animation of infrared and visible imagery from NOAA's GOES-East satellite from Jan. 19 to 21 shows the movement one frontal system moving across the southern U.S. followed by a second storm system that is expected to bring the powerful winter storm to the Mid-Atlantic. The animation was created by NASA/NOAA's GOES Project at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. GOES satellites are managed by NOAA, and the NASA/NOAA GOES Project creates imagery and animations using the GOES satellite data.

Early on Jan. 21, the NWS hazards web page showed a winter storm watch stretching from the Tennessee valley into the interior Carolinas and up into the Central Appalachians/Mid-Atlantic region. Even a blizzard watch is in effect across the Washington, D.C. metro area along with adjacent locations.
Virunga National Park reopened to tourists last year after being closed for two years because of militia violence in the region

International environment and rights groups on Thursday launched a joint plea to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Ugandan governments not to allow oil drilling in or around the Virunga National Park, Africa's oldest wildlife reserve famed for its mountain gorillas.

British NGO Global Witness said the appeal has been signed by some 60 groupsincluding Greenpeace, the African Wildlife Foundation and the Zoological Society of Londonand urges the two countries as well as the UN cultural body UNESCO to take action.

In November the Congolese government said that seismic tests carried out by British oil company Soco in Virunga confirmed the presence of oil.

The announcement reignited a heated debate over the merits of exploring for oil in the vast park, which covers some 7,800 square kilometres (3,010 square miles) of lush forest, glaciated peaks and savannah in the restive eastern province of DR Congo's North Kivu region.

The UNESCO world heritage site reopened to tourists last year after being closed for two years because of militia violence in the region.

UNESCO has warned several times that any exploration for oil in the park would be "incompatible" with its heritage status.

The Congolese government however has promoted prospecting for oil in Virunga as offering a chance to lift the vast country out of poverty.

'Devastating impact'

According to Global Witness, next month the Ugandan government will receive bids on six new oil licences, all of which include protected areas and one of which shares a lake with Virunga National Park.

"Drilling for oil in Lake Edward may have a devastating impact on both Virunga and the local people and wildlife in Uganda," said Global Witness spokesman George Boden.

There is a need "to act urgently to stop oil exploration in the entire lake for good," he added.

Last month the European Parliament called for an end to all oil exploration and exploitation in the Virunga region.

The 60 NGOs called on "the governments of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo to reach a deal to stop new oil drilling licences from being awarded in Virunga National Park and the surrounding area."

In 2010, the DR Congo government awarded several oil concessions straddling the park's boundaries, including giving "block V" to Soco, but suspended the permits following a domestic and international outcry.

To date no oil exploration has begun in Virunga, nor have any licences to do so been granted.

Critics warn that, not only would oil drilling affect the wild life and environment but would exacerbate the armed conflicts that have torn North Kivu apart for more than two decades.

 2016 AFP
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U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-Willsboro, scored 76 out of a possible 100 points on a video welding simulator test.

"You may have the all-time high first visitor's score," said Scott Martel, business manager of United Association of Plumbers and Steamfitters Local 773.

Stefanik toured the union's training center at Tech Meadows Business Park in Queensbury on Thursday, where she agreed to promote plumbing apprenticeships for women.

"If you're out there talking to young women's groups, let them know," Martel said.

Stefanik, the youngest woman elected to Congress, frequently speaks to women's millennials groups across the country.

Martel said construction trades often are not promoted to high school students as an employment option.

"I think it needs to start in grades K-12 -- getting the right education," Stefanik said.

Martel also spoke with Stefanik about opportunities for veterans.

The union has a "VIP" program, which stands for "Veterans in Piping," in which military personnel can receive the first segment of training during the last 16 weeks of military service and then transfer the credit to an apprenticeship program in their home area, Martel.

The union also has a "Helmets to Hardhats" program that recruits veterans for apprenticeships.

Martel said veterans come to the program with a strong work ethic.

"They make some of our best apprentices," he said.

Stefanik, a freshman congresswoman, formally announced her campaign for re-election on Wednesday.

Mike Derrick, a retired Army colonel from Peru, is seeking the Democratic nomination to challenge her.

Matt Funiciello, the Green Party candidate in 2014, is laying groundwork to run again.
CAMBRIDGE  The summer Virginia May Edinger was 9, her best friend signed up for acting camp at Hubbard Hall and young Ginny tagged along.

Now, the 19-year-old cant be dragged away from the hall.

The college sophomore, who grew up in Greenwich, spent the rest of her childhood taking every class she could at Hubbard Hall and has since acted there, led the childrens theater program and presented plays she wrote at the Winter Carnival of New Works, which is in its second year.

Since I first went there, I just knew it was how I wanted to spend my life, Edinger said.

She attended Interlochen Arts Academy, a fine arts boarding school in Michigan, to study theater. Now shes a double major at SUNY Purchase, studying playwriting and screenwriting, and theater.

But she returns to Hubbard Hall every chance she gets.

Last year, her play Breakfast for Two, was among the 10-minute plays featured at the inaugural Winter Carnival of New Works. The show focuses on an elderly couple grappling with whether the woman should go to a nursing home.

It was heart-breaking to see that actualized, she said. At the end of the show, people around me were crying and I was like, Dang, that was really sad  and I wrote it when I was, like, 16.

Bob and Sally Sugarman, hosts of Theatre Talk on WBTN, a Manchester-based radio station, starred in the show.

It was very interesting because my wife and I are old  shes two years younger than me  and here we are in a play written by a 16-year-old and its about being old, said 88-year-old Bob Sugarman.

The show so impressed him, the longtime writer and retired professor started exchanging projects with Edinger and giving one another feedback.

I just want to see more of her work, he said. What Ive seen is very promising, really good.

This year, another of Edingers shows  this one a full-length production  was selected for Winter Carnival.

In Compost, a young widow is forced to help the drug lords who killed her husband get rid of the bodies of their victims, hiding them among the decomposing bovine corpses in her cow compost business.

When the woman finds a living victim among the corpses, shes faced with difficult decisions.

She is not a killer, she is only doing this for her family, to keep her kids safe, Edinger said, describing how her character doesnt know if she should kill the man, hide him from the drug lords or hand him over. So youre watching her grapple with that and trying to figure out how to handle it.

Compost is the result of an assignment in one of Edingers freshman year courses.

One of the things I really love is how you can focus on the human condition and how characters speak and how they interact and their needs and their wants and how you can create relationships through dialogue, she said.

The Winter Carnival lets her see the complexities of those characters brought to life.

Its really nice to have a place like Hubbard Hall, where you can see your work actualized, Edinger said. It helps to hear the play acted out, so you can hear where it doesnt sound natural.

Its great for someone like me to have that on your resume, she said.

The opportunities the festival provides, though, is really just an extension of what Hubbard Hall has done for Edinger throughout her life.

Hubbard Hall is a really, really magical place, gushed Edinger. Since I first went there, I just knew it was how I wanted to spend my life.
QUEENSBURY  Warren County has been negotiating a possible settlement of claims that the county lost money on an alternative energy project at the former county nursing home, the countys chief executive said Wednesday.

Warrensburg Supervisor Kevin Geraghty, chairman of the county Board of Supervisors, told The Post-Star editorial board on Wednesday that lawyers for the county have been discussing a possible financial settlement with Siemens Building Technologies over allegations that a natural gas cogeneration project at the former Westmount Health Facility did not bring any savings.

Critics contend the project was flawed, Siemens fabricated numbers and the county lost millions of dollars. Siemens has stood by the project.

The county Board of Supervisors has met numerous times with special counsel Lawrence Paltrowitz, hired to look into possible litigation against Siemens, behind closed doors in executive session in recent months. Little has been publicly revealed about where the review of potential litigation was headed, though.

County leaders are also scheduled to meet with the state Attorney Generals Office in coming weeks to discuss a state inquiry that arose out of a Warren County Sheriffs Office/FBI inquiry into the cogeneration project.

I can tell you we are going to recover what is owed by Siemens, Geraghty said.

He said he could not estimate how much would be paid back, but the loss found by engineering consultant EnerNOC would be a starting point for negotiations. EnerNOC found no savings from the project, as were guaranteed, but a net loss of $63,369.

Others who have reviewed cogeneration project data, including Queensbury engineer Travis Whitehead, have concluded the loss was higher. Whitehead said his analysis showed a $1.4 million deficit.

Geraghty said he believes the chorus of concerns from municipalities where officials believe they did not get what Siemens had promised in energy performance contracts is putting pressure on the company.

I believe Siemens is starting to feel the pinch right now, he said.

After a report on the Sheriffs Office investigation was released last fall, Siemens issued a statement asserting the project saved Warren County more than $1.8 million.

The company did not immediately respond to an inquiry Wednesday or Thursday about the settlement talks with Warren County.
A Greenwich man who is serving a state prison sentence for possession of child pornography is the subject of a police complaint of child sexual abuse at a prestigious prep school in Rhode Island.

The school is embroiled in an unfolding sex scandal, according to a lawyer and media reports.

Timothy H. Tefft was identified as one of five former employees of St. Georges School in Middletown, Rhode Island, who had been accused of sexual abuse by former students, according to a report in Thursdays Boston Globe newspaper.

Tefft was editor of the Greenwich Journal weekly newspaper in Greenwich, until his arrest in 2013 for possessing child pornography. He is serving a five-year federal prison sentence for the pornography conviction.

The public identification of Tefft in the Rhode Island case this week comes as more than 40 former students have come forward, alleging they were sexually abused decades earlier by staff members and older students.

Tefft, 67, was one of five former St. Georges School staff members who were identified in a report compiled by the school as it looked into the allegations.

Eric MacLeish, one of the lawyers who represents the former students, said one had accused Tefft of initiating sexual contact with him, and others alleged he provided them alcohol while underage. He taught at the school in 1971.

He was only at the school for three or four months, MacLeish said.

Police were not contacted by school officials at the time, he said. Instead, Tefft was fired and moved on to other schools.

He was previously identified in a 2013 report on sexual abuse of students at another prep school, The Brunswick School in Connecticut. The school publicly stated that three former students had accused him of sexual abuse when he taught there in the 1970s and 1980s, but no criminal charges were filed.

A former federal prosecutor has been hired by St. Georges School to investigate the allegations.

St. Georges School officials and lawyers who are representing the victims have also forwarded information to Rhode Island State Police for investigation, including the information about Tefft.

Rhode Island State Police Capt. Matthew Moynihan said the police investigation was ongoing as of Thursday, but the agency was not commenting on the allegations.

We will have more to release when the time comes, he said.

The state has a longer statute of limitations than New York in sex crime cases, which can allow for prosecution in some decades-old sexual assault cases, depending on the allegation.

A sentencing memorandum filed in federal court in Teffts pornography case indicated he worked as an English teacher at boarding schools in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New York, and was headmaster at childrens camp Pok-O-MacCready in Essex County for years.

It doesnt mention his time at The Brunswick School in Connecticut, the school where he was accused of child sexual abuse by three former students, however.

Tefft is serving his prison sentence at Fort Dix Federal Correctional Institution in New Jersey and is eligible for release in January 2018.
FORT EDWARD  General Electrics plant in Fort Edward is so busy that the company has given up trying to close it on time.

The most recent closing date was set for this weekend  Saturday specifically  but after months of paying workers overtime to try to finish their jobs in the apparently booming capacitor business, General Electric Co. officials decided to postpone the closing.

They have reached agreements with 20 workers, who will stay to complete the work. Theyll probably work at the plant for the next three months.

The new closing date is on or before April 16, according to GE. Then the company will switch all operations to its new capacitor manufacturing plant in Clearwater, Florida, where workers have been hired with far lower salaries and the company has been offered generous tax breaks.

For 104 workers in Fort Edward, Saturday will be their last paid day. They worked on parts of the assembly line that are no longer needed.

But the new plant cant yet handle all of the tasks involved in building capacitors. So testers will remain in Fort Edward, performing electrical checks on capacitors after they are built in Clearwater, Florida.

That means GE is taking on huge shipping costs, said union leader Paul Rosati.

GE must ship the capacitors  large, heavy machines usually sent by truck  back to Fort Edward for the testing.

Ship em here, then ship em back, Rosati said. Its an area they dont have operational down there yet. Actually theres a few areas they dont have operational yet, but theyve just decided to sink or swim.

The problem fits with problems union workers reported last month. They described a chaotic and expensive closing.

Work done in Clearwater, Florida, had to be sent back to Fort Edward and redone correctly. Items still needed at the Fort Edward plant were sent to Clearwater early, so capacitors had to sit on the floor for weeks, waiting for materials to be sent back. Some capacitors were sent back and forth  at huge shipping costs  so that half the work could be done at each location.

Adding to the cost was the labor contract. Many workers at the front of the assembly line at the Fort Edward plant have had nothing to do for months, while those at the end were paid to work overtime. The union, UE Local 332, negotiated a deal in which GE would pay every worker until Jan. 23 rather than laying people off as their jobs were completed.

By December, some workers were standing around, doing nothing all day. In the last two weeks, GE management took pity on them, and began releasing them.

The majority of employees stopped reporting to the plant for work over the past two weeks, said Joan Gerhardt, a spokeswoman for Behan Communications, which was hired by GE to handle public relations. We thank the employees for their long, dedicated service to produce outstanding products for GEs customers and to help keep the plant competitive in a tough industry.

Rosati said the decision was a welcome one.

Basically, it was a paid vacation, he said.

Those who remain will send the final capacitors to customers or to Clearwater, Florida. Then they will take apart equipment, some of which will also be sent to Clearwater, Florida.

Other items will be sold or trashed.

Its gotta be cleaned first, PCB-wise, and then sold or scrapped, Rosati said. Maintenance will do that.

That crew must also do work in the buildings to prepare them for what might be years of sitting vacant. GE officials say they plan to maintain and own the property indefinitely, but not use it.

So workers must take steps to maintain the property, Gerhardt said.

The skeleton crew of 20 all agreed to stay on their original contract terms, Rosati said. Not a single person refused when GE officials asked them to stay.

Most of them are saying, If I can make this money for another month or two, I will,  Rosati said.

He added that employees didnt take advantage of the situation to push for more money.

Weve got a contract, he said. Were not like GE, to try to renegotiate a contract in the middle.

For those who will file for unemployment benefits next week, its time to start weighing options. Workers are eligible for state-funded training at community colleges.

I havent decided yet, Rosati said. If I can get a job  I know it wont be comparable to what Im making now, but if its halfway decent  otherwise Ill explore education.

Either way, eventually hell be working somewhere else.

Ive got to start over at the bottom somewhere, he said. But Im not the only one in the area this has happened to, so I cant sit around feeling sorry for myself.
A new requirement that defense lawyers staff arraignments in most criminal cases is proving problematic for lawyers on both sides of the courtroom in Warren County.

Defense attorneys and prosecutors are finding themselves scrambling to get to arraignments at courts around the county, and it is taking a toll on their other duties, Warren County District Attorney Kate Hogan and Warren County Public Defender Marcy Flores said.

Hogan and Flores said the new requirement has caused scheduling problems and forced lawyers to work extra hours.

My attorneys are working more hours than they are getting paid for, and thats a problem, Flores said.

Hoping to cut down on overtime costs, county officials are trying a new practice of scheduling arraignments in lower courts at 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., to allow lawyers to handle their regular duties during the workday.

Typically, the arraignments have been held when police can arrange for a judge and lawyers to get to court. But the volume of cases, and travel times around the county, have made juggling the new work difficult.

We have had an 11:15 in Lake Luzerne, 1 oclock in Queensbury and then a 3 oclock and we still have other courts to cover, witnesses to interview and trials to prep for, Hogan said. Logistically it has been very difficult for us to be at the arraignments and fulfill our other obligations.

Working with the county Sheriffs Office and local judges, courts are trying to designate morning and afternoon arraignment time slots to keep lawyers from running around the county at all times of the day.

But the system will likely result in some defendants spending more time in the Warren County Jail police lockup, awaiting arraignment.

The new arraignment requirement stems from a lawsuit against five counties in New York, one of them Washington County, over the quality of court-appointed legal representation in criminal cases. It has resulted in public defenders offices around the state having to staff all arraignments at which the defendant could be jailed. And with defense lawyers there, prosecutors often opt to attend to make arguments for bail.

So prosecutors offices and public defenders offices have been sending staff to all arraignments, even late at night and on weekends.

Warren County Sheriff Bud York said the Sheriffs Office, which runs the lockup and transports inmates to and from arraignments, is willing to try the new system, provided the lockup doesnt get too crowded.

It could help out the district attorney and public defender, York said.

Warrensburg Town Justice Bryan Winslow said he had heard rumors about a change to arraignment practices, but had not been officially notified.

He said there have been concerns among judges who may have to wait for lawyers to arrive for after-hours arraignments, after police have transported defendants to court.

No one has told us anything. Well have to see how it goes, he said.

Hogan said she and Flores were hoping to slowly phase in the new process around the county on a trial basis, and hadnt notified all courts, pending a decision on whether to continue it across the county.
Several Saudi allies have followed the kingdom's lead and scaled back or cut diplomatic ties to Iran.

Ibrahim al-Jaafari was speaking on Wednesday in a joint press conference with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who appeared to indicate that Tehran was open to resolving the stand-off.

Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister Zhang Ming is now in Saudi Arabia and will travel on to Iran, a ministry spokesman told reporters. Earlier protesters stormed the embassy and set parts of it alight.

Iran's top leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, predicted "divine vengeance" for the execution of al-Nimr, an outspoken opponent of the ruling Al Saud family.

Anger in both countries is running high after the execution of a prominent Shiite cleric by Saudi Arabia last Saturday.

Iran on Thursday said Saudi Arabia warplanes had attacked its embassy in Yemen's capital.

The visit came after the crisis between Saudi Arabia and Iran widened on Tuesday when Kuwait recalled its ambassador to Tehran and Bahrain severed air links with the Islamic republic.

The Yemeni conflict, which pits the rebels known as Huthis against pro-government forces backed by Riyadh and other Gulf Arab states, is one of the main sources of dispute between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

"Obviously, it's something that we're concerned about, and that's why the secretary has spent so much time on it", he said, referring to Secretary of State John Kerry.

Tehran announced Thursday it was banning imports of goods from Saudi Arabia in response to the incident.

Iranian state television made the announcement Thursday.

The statement condemned the stories run by the Iranian media and the accusations against Erdogan, and demanded an end to such publications and broadcast that aim to create a negative image of the Turkish president in the minds of Iranians. That could spark further unrest, as witnesses in eastern Saudi towns have reported hearing gunfire overnight and armoured personnel carriers have been seen driving through neighbourhood streets.

The executions, which drew global condemnation, took place in 12 cities in Saudi Arabia, four prisons using firing squads and the others beheading.

Four share lead in La Quinta

CareerBuilder is in its first year as the title sponsor of the event long called the Bob Hope Classic, taking over for Humana. McIlroy laid down a marker of his own in his first event of the year after a two-month break and laser eye surgery.
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Ars Technica asks this question amid concerns that the move may have motivated by contributions from the healthcare company whose poor track record prompted the drafting of standards in the first place:

[A] 2014 medical review and a June 2015 report by CNN, which found that one particular medical facility, St. Marys Medical Center and Palm Beach Childrens Hospital, had an abysmal track record for pediatric open-heart surgerya death rate more than three times the national average. And the two reports found that the facility was failing to meet the now-repealed standards, which include proficiency in performing the surgeries themselves.

The St. Marys facility is run by Tenet Healthcare, which coincidentally donated $200,000 to the states republicans between 2013 and 2014, including $100,000 to Republican Governor Rick Scotts political action committee. Those donations were the highest of any Tenet gave to political groups in other states.

Medical professionals are strongly against the repeal of the standards, Ars reports.

Read more here.
M WAQAR..... "A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary.Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death." --Albert Einstein !!! NEWS,ARTICLES,EDITORIALS,MUSIC... Ze chi pe mayeen yum da agha pukhtunistan de.....(Liberal,Progressive,Secular World.)''Secularism is not against religion; it is the message of humanity.''    
The anti-graft agency had accused MTN, along with some other telecoms companies in the country of failing to pay taxes totaling R4.9 billion.

Mobile Money Africa reports that MTN spokesman, Chris Maroleng, stated on Thursday that the network was fully compliant with all the laws of Cameroon, and was ready to cooperate with authorities in the event of an investigation.

We are operating a fully-compliant business in Cameroon and we are very careful when it comes to tax matters, said Maroleng, according to the report.

Maroleng also emphasized that MTN had not been charged with any crimes, nor had it been briefed on the claims officially.

In a statement released Thursday, Philisiwe Sibiya, CEO MTN Cameroon, stated that the company is not and has never been implicated in any corruption-related actions in the process of carrying out its activities in the country.
Electrification, a key enabler of this progress  to power hospitals, facilitate studying at night, and run equipment necessary for manufacturing and job creation  is lagging behind. More than one in six people still lack access to electricity and one in three cant depend on the sources they have. In Africa alone, over 600 million people still lack access to basic electricity and 70 percent of businesses cite unreliable power as a main constraint to doing business on the continent. Moreover, the worlds poorest often pay the most for what little electricity they do get. We can do better.

The coming year presents a number of opportunities to take action:

Distorted energy markets are a key culprit in preventing people from accessing electricity. When governments subsidise fossil fuels and cap electricity rates, there is under investment in fuel production, power generation and distribution. But today, sustained lower oil prices mean governments have the political space to wind down subsidies. Over the long term, removing subsidies will improve fiscal health and lead to a market mechanism for reallocating resources to produce more reliable, efficient, and fairly priced power  and get it to more people.

Egypt and Indonesia are two countries that have begun to phase out subsidies. As evidenced by GEs experience in both countries, energy market reforms are important to expanding electricity. We are investing and building capacity to train up future workforces in both countries. Last year, GE helped add 2.6 GW of power to Egypts grid, enough to light 2.5 million homes. In Indonesia we are adding 500 MW of fast power with more to come.

2. Emerging Markets Are Embracing Innovation

Achieving electrification, particularly in emerging markets and the least developed countries, will depend on new technologies and new business models. The 2016 GE Global Innovation Barometer finds that business leaders and influencers in emerging markets are embracing disruptive innovation far more than their peers in developed markets. The results are particularly encouraging with respect to Africa, the region suffering the greatest from lack of electricity. For example, 62% of Innovation Barometer respondents in Nigeria see energy efficiency, transmission, and distribution as the areas ripest for innovation.

At GE, Africa is a test bed for novel power products. From distributed power applications that will light entire villages in Algeria to Africas first self-sufficient micro grid in Equatorial Guinea, GE employees and our partners are working together to innovate, build new skills and create the next generation of jobs on the continent. In Nigeria, we have plans to invest over $1 billion over the next five years to strengthen our local presence in manufacturing and product services, particularly in the energy sector.

Addressing the global electrification challenge will require massive investments. Happily, we are seeing examples of investment, often driven by market reforms. Mexico and India are two examples that provide ongoing lessons.

A new report by the World Economic Forum spotlights how Mexico is taking steps to bring private companies into the power sector, opening the state-owned system to private investment and creating a wholesale power market. Last year we saw positive results from earlier steps taken in the oil and gas sector. The report also highlights reforms underway in India, including policies that encourage investment across the energy value chain. If consumers get access to affordable and reliable energy while investors receive fair compensation, these countries should see successful results.

Last year, the global community adopted the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which include a specific goal to expand energy access. The world also came together in Paris to reach a global climate agreement that recognised the need for the worlds least developed countries to provide sustainable electricity to their people. There seems to be a newfound momentum behind the goals of electricity access, efficiency, and sustainability. This includes a recognition of the importance of governments and the private sector working together.

It was encouraging to see the international community address funding mechanisms for both these global agreements. Development banks and the IMF committed $400 billion in conjunction with the SDGs. The United Nations and partners have pledged $5 billion to promote renewable energy adoption in Africa. 2015 also saw the formation of a new infrastructure finance institution, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. For these funding sources to have maximum impact we need a continued focus on creating a pipeline of financeable energy projects. We also need to encourage financial institutions to prioritise infrastructure projects that underpin economic growth  electricity, water and healthcare.

The power industry has embarked upon a transformational journey. Power producers are starting to apply big data and analytics to optimise plant operations and accelerate the adoption of technologies that produce fewer or no emissions. They are also developing new ways to interact with customers, empowering them to become more efficient, participative and responsive to demand and supply. These advances present opportunities for the power industry to enhance the efficiency, reliability, and affordability of electricity.

It will take cooperation between technology companies, utilities, investors, financial institutions and governments to create flexible and prudent policies that ensure innovation happens in a secure and sustainable manner. We are at the beginning stages of a power revolution, it is gaining momentum and we should start to see exponential adoption and innovation in 2016.
David Connell, 21, bought the antidepressant etizolam online to try and alleviate anxiety problems but unfortunately he died after ingesting too much of the drug, which is approved in Japan and India but banned for human use in most of Europe.

Mr Connell, who lived in Hull, East Yorks, had bought etizolam online from a Scottish company to help tackle anxiety issues, which he had kept secret from family and friends.

The final-year university student, who was on track to achieve a first-class honours degree from the University of Hull, body was found when his housemates broke down the door to his room after not seeing him for five days, an inquest heard.

Coroner Professor Paul Marks said the student underestimated the power of the drug, which is up to ten times more powerful than diazepam.

'I think this was an experiment to try and find alternate means other than alcohol to dispel his anxiety,' he added.

Mr Connell bought the drug for 43 (17 thousand Naira) a few days before his death after researching tips to help anxiety on the internet.

Professor Marks, who recorded a conclusion of misadventure at Hull Coroner's Court, said: 'The pressures of student life are such that people do become anxious and can't see beyond their finals, which is the culmination of their three-year university course.'

The drug, which is only used for research purposes in Britain, is meant to calm the respiratory system but can cause organ failure if too much is taken.

Humberside Police would urge anyone considering using or taking any unregulated medicines or research substances to please think again.
The game of chess is a waste of time and an opportunity to squander money. It causes enmity and hatred between people, he said, according to a translation by Middle East Eye.

Sheikh justified the ruling by referring to the verse in the Quran banning intoxicants, gambling, idolatry and divination. It is not clear when the fatwa was delivered.

Abdullah reportedly compared it to a pre-Islamic Arabian game called maisir which was forbidden by the Koran.

Musa Bin Thaily, president of the Saudi Chess Associations law committee, said a planned chess tournament in Mecca would be going ahead on Friday despite the fatwa. Independent UK reported.

Many things are said to be illegal and religiously banned in Saudi, Mr Thaily wrote on Twitter, sharing photos of United Arab Emirates dignitaries at Saudi Chess Association events.

He noted that many religious prohibitions are not enforced in Saudi Arabia, adding that religious society banned public music festivals but theyre everywhere.

The Saudi Chess Association has put great efforts in chess popularity and will continue holding events everywhere unless forced otherwise., He added.

It is unlikely that Sheikhs ruling will be enforced, and more plausible that chess will be relegated to the status of other minor vices, such as music, which many in the clerical establishment frown upon.
She made her intentions known when she appeared on France 2 Television.

"Yes, I am running for a second mandate," she said. "I've had the honour of receiving support since the opening of the procedure," she added.

So far, she has endorsements from France, Britain, Germany and China.

Jin Zhongxia, Chinas representative to the IMFs board said, We also support her to serve a second term.

Christine Lagarde has demonstrated outstanding leadership and strategic vision, as well as excellent professionalism and coordination skills, he added.

The UK's Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne "delighted to nominate" her for a new term.

US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew also endorsed Lagarde, saying, I think she has done a great job."

The executive board of IMF also announced on Wednesday that it has initiated selection processes for the next managing director.

The Dean of the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Mr. Aleksei Mozhin, said in a statement:

I am very pleased to announce that the Executive Board has adopted an open, merit-based, and transparent process for the selection of the Managing Director, similar to the one used in the previous round.

Individuals may be nominated by a Fund Governor or Executive Director. Like we did in 2011, we aim to reach a decision by consensus.

The appointment of current Managing Director Christine Lagarde expires on July 5, 2016. The Board intends to complete the selection process by early March, Mr. Mozhin said.
The outbreak, which began last year has already killed nine people in the Tain, Wenchi and Bruohan in the Brong Ahafo Region.

The Head of the Disease Surveillance Department of the Ghana Health Service, Dr Badu Sarkodie has told Accra-based Citi FM that his outfit is collaborating with the Health Ministry to control a further spread of the disease.

We have heightened surveillance and all the regions and districts have received alerts to be on high surveillance alert. We are conducting public education in particularly the areas affected. We have oriented and sensitized the staff regarding the case management team to manage this adequately so that the best of care will be given to the people that will be affected.

He said the Ghana Health Service is in communication with the World Health Organisation on the appropriate use of vaccines to control the disease.

We are working with the World Health Organisation and other agencies to ensure that should it be necessary to use the vaccines, to what extent to vaccinate the whole community and then the criteria to use to get the vaccine, he added.

Meningitis is an inflammation of the lining of the brain and spinal cord (meninges).
"The police officer whose actions caused those fatalities has been detained in accordance with police regulations.

"Investigations under the leadership of the regional Crime Officer has been initiated into the incident, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Greater Accra Regional Police Command, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Afia Tenge said this at a news conference on Thursday.

The Accra regional police has subsequently paid a visit to the deceased family to commiserate with them.

ASP Afia Tenge has told Accra-based Joy FM, that the police have transferred the case to the CID.

"When the police engage in an operation like this and an innocent life is lost in the process, some of these issues would be given to the individual complaints Commission for them to handle," she said.

The police had earlier indicated that the deceased was shot because he was resisting arrest.

But the family of the deceased have come out strongly to deny the allegations.
Managing Director at Grenotek Energy and Environmental Services Desmond Amankwah is outspoken on the practice of galamsey in Kyebi and last month filmed what he called illegal mining in the area.

His company promotes renewable energy products and environmental remediation services in Ghana.

Amankwah visited Afiasa and Apapam in the Kyebi area in the Eastern region of Ghana, where he witnessed the destructions and menace of illegal mining activities.

He told Pulse.com.gh he has grave concerns about minings impact on the environment.

He had been to the area before and written about his finding, but was amazed to see that his previous story did not inspire any change, he witnessed locals excavating land, destroying forests and cocoa farms in search of gold dust.

He had previously spoken to leaders and chiefs in the area about his concerns and was disappointed to see nothing had been done.

They are the main people who are supposed to stop these things, he said.

Instead, he said there was an increase in the mining and the degradation of the environment.

He said even those who had permits were not doing enough to regenerate the land once they close the mines.

He wanted to see the Minerals Commission, the body responsible for issuing permits for mining, do more to combat illegal mining and ensure environmental protection.

Amankwah said the permits the Commission issued also took into account what would happen to the land once mining is completed, but he did not see people upholding the requirments.

The problem is most people are not concerned about what they will do to bring back the environment before they start mining. They don't do any environmental impact assessments into the place they are going to mine. That is the problem we have now.

People need to restore the land by filling in pits and planting, he said.

Once they have got the money out of it they are done.

He said it was locals doing the mining, but they were generally sponsored by foreigners.

He had interviewed people who were willing to destroy cocoa farms in the hopes that they are sitting on gold, but without proper analysis of the area, the efforts could be futile and destroy the farms for no gain.

A further concern was that they would not replant the farms afterwards.

Amankwah wanted to urge collective responsibility for the environment because our natural resources is all we have.

He said gold and minerals need to be mined to support the economy but should be done in an environmentally-friendly way.

Is such illegal mining profitable when you consider the damage to the environment? he asked.

Meanwhile, the Eastern Region Police deputy spokesperson sergeant Gideon Boateng told Pulse.com.gh the police in the region are on orders to crack down on illegal mining.

Frantic efforts are underway to stop those who dont have documents to operate, Boateng said.

Boateng said that a month ago the police arrested people in the region where illegal mining is ongoing, and the case was currently before the courts.

The effort is being made to arrest others who do not have permits to permit or give them the mandate to operate, he added.

Boateng said some of those arrested turned out to have permits, while a number had been charged with illegal mining, operating without licences and or encroachment.
Organised Labour, including the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), Ghana Employers Association and the Industrial and Commercial Workers Union on Wednesday embarked on a nationwide demonstration to demand withdrawal of the energy sector levy as well as a reduction in utility tariffs.

Government has subsequently, at a meeting with Organised Labour proposed a financial package for them.

Our assurance to Organised Labour and AGI is that President Mahama will not take any political expedient decision that will hurt the fortunes of the economy and strain the economy further, Haruna Iddrisu told journalists at the end of the meeting.
According to him, his determination to ensure that his government, as a matter of priority, assists small-scale enterprises and self-employed people, like them, to grow and expand their businesses.

He made this known when he addressed victims of two separate fire outbreaks in Kumasi, which hit the Kumasi Central Market and the Dagomba Line area, in Aboabo, within a spate of five days on Thursday, January 21, 2016.

Read more:

Making his way, first, to the Kumasi Central market, Nana Akufo-Addo was taken to the worst hit parts of the market, where some 400 shops had been razed down by the January 6, 2016, fire.

Addressing the market women, Nana Addo bemoaned the failure of government to pay critical attention to markets across the country, and put in place measures that will reduce the incidence of market fires to the barest minimum.

Contributing 200 bags of cement towards the rebuilding of the market, Nana Akufo-Addo assured the market women that an Akufo-Addo government will ensure that securing our markets, which is the source of livelihood for many families across the country, is a topmost priority. We will make our markets safe for you so that you can make a decent living out of trading. The spectre of losing your livelihood because of fire outbreaks must end."

"I want you to put your trust in me and put Ghana under an Akufo-Addo government," he said.

"My government, I assure you, will manage the resources of this country prudently and put the country back onto the path of progress and prosperity. I am not coming into office to steal your money. I am not seeking your mandate because I want to enrich myself. No! I am coming to assemble a first class government whose sole aim will be to bring relief to all Ghanaians. I am coming so all Ghanaians, without discrimination, can make a decent living," he said.

To this end, Nana Akufo-Addo urged the market women to help send the NPPs message of hope to every corner of the Ashanti Region, so that "the NPP will record a massive margin of victory in the Ashanti Region, and across the country, when the results of the 2016 elections are declared."

Accompanied by party stalwarts, Nana Akufo-Addo also visited the Dagomba line area, located around the main Aboabo drain in Kumasi. The fire of January 11, 2016 destroyed about 200 makeshift structures, which served as shelter for residents.

Nana Akufo-Addo donated 100 bags of cement and 5 packets of roofing sheets to aid in the reconstruction efforts. To the school children resident in the area, he donated 100 textbooks and 100 school uniforms.

"We have 290 more days left for Ghanaians to witness the proper management of the National Health Insurance Scheme to be put, 290 days towards the restoration of teaching and nursing trainee allowances, and 290 more days for the prudent management of the nation's resources." Dr. Bawumia noted.

Describing the John Mahama government as incompetent, a description which was met with a raucous response from the residents, Dr. Bawumia urged the electorate "to vote for Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. He's the leader who has your welfare at heart and has always put the Ghanaian people first."

He stressed his determination to ensure that his government, as a matter of priority, assists small-scale enterprises and self-employed people, like them, to grow and expand their businesses.
You should use the opportunity of these festivals to admonish those who use coarse invectives and say soar and provocative things on the radio. This year being an election year people are being very sensitive and I dont think we should be creating undue stress leading up to it, he said.

The two traditional leaders had called on the former President to invite him to the Suma Akwantu Kese Festival and the Adoagyiri Odwira respectively.

They further expressed gratitude to the former President for the role he played in bringing electricity and other forms of infrastructural development to their towns.

If others are refusing to acknowledge what you did for their communities, we are, Odeneho Dr. Affram Brempong III added.

The former President also asked the traditional rulers to lead the fight against corruption in their communities.
According to them, "A declaration that the Dr Zanetor Rawlings election as a parliamentary Candidate elect for the Klottey-Korley Constituency is null and void and is of no effect as same violates the constitution of the NDC and the rules governing the conduct of the 216 parliamentary primaries."

It would be recalled that an Accra High Court has dismissed the suit by some members of the NDC in Constituency seeking to get rid of the Dr. Zanetor Rawlings.

In the ruling of the court, presiding Judge Justice Patience Mills Tetteh said the plaintiffs did not demonstrate in anyway their rights which had been violated or will be violated.

She also indicated court that the action of the plaintiffs were an abuse of the court hence her decision.

But the two are challenging the legitimacy of Dr Zanetor Rawlings to contest for a parliamentary seat under the 1992 constitution.

Below are what the plaintiffs are seeking in the case:

1. A declaration that the decision by the NDC to allow the Dr Zanetor Rawlings to contest parliamentary primaries in the Klottey-Korle Constituency when she was not a registered voted within the meaning of Article 94 (1) (a) of the 1992 constitution at the time of the said contest, violates the constitution and the internal regulations governing the conduct of the parliamentary primaries of the NDC and same is illegal and of no effect.

Read also: Court throws out suit against Zanetor Rawlings

2. A declaration that the Dr Zanetor Rawlings election as a parliamentary Candidate elect for the Klottey-Korley Constituency is null and void and is of no effect as same violates the constitution of the NDC and the rules governing the conduct of the 216 parliamentary primaries.

3. An order of injunction restraining the Dr. Zanetor, agents, privies, assigns or anyone claiming through her from holding herself out or allowing herself to be held out by the other defendants as Parliamentary Candidate-elect for Klottey Korle Constituency until the matters in dispute are heard and disposed of by this honourable court.

4. An order of court directed at the NDC for a re-run of the parliamentary primaries in Klottey Korle Constituency between the plaintiffs in accordance with its constitution and the regulation governing the 2016 parliamentary primaries within one week of the annulment of the 2nd defendants election.

5. Any order Order(s) as the court may deem fit.
This is a response to the misconception that was noticed among members of the public.

The Director, Corporate Communications, CBN, Mr. Ibrahim Muazu, explained that the guidelines advised banks and other financial institutions operating in the country to commence the collection of N50 on eligible transactions only.

The implementation of the stamp duty came from a Federal High Court order that the CBN should direct the DMBs under its supervision to commence the collection of the duty on behalf of the Federal Government, in compliance with the provisions of the Stamp Duty Act 2004 and the Federal Government of Nigeria Financial Regulation of 2009.

Consequently, the DMBs have been directed to commence the collection of the duty thus: Banks are to collect the N50 stamp duty and above, remit same to the Nigerian Postal Services on behalf of the customer.

The N50 stamp duty is charged per transaction and not per volume. Hence, irrespective of the amount, the sum of N50 is to be charged provided such a transaction is N1,000 and above.
A source reveals to Us Weekly magazine that the parents of six will be leaving for London in March and would stay for at least six months as the actor gets ready to shoot his sci-fi thriller, 'World War Z 2'.

Jolie, on the other hand plans to focus on her political projects dealing with the ongoing refugee crisis in Europe. However., the source says they will have to find a home first.

"They want to buy, but have yet to find a place that suits their needs. Their wish-list includes an underground drive-in entrance and a courtyard," says source.

The United Nations special envoy, who's also the mom of Maddox, 14, Pax, 12, Zahara, 11, Shiloh, 9, and twins Vivienne and Knox, 7, has described their life as nomadic. "Theyre participating more in the choices of where we go. And if we have to go somewhere where theyre going to miss their friends, we try to get them back for a period of time  or we try to have their friends come out," Jolie explained to The Guardian back in November.
According to People magazine, the 41-year-old, who's the biological mother of the rapper's adopted daughter, Alaina Scott, was discovered passed out in a home in Macomb County, Michigan. The emaciated elderly woman also found with her body was taken to the hospital.

"She was found slumped over in bed and unresponsive," Mayor James Fouts of Warren, Michigan told the mag. "It's suspected to be drug use, possibly heroin."

The Macomb County Medical Examiner's office confirmed Scott's identity, but could not confirm an official cause of death as a toxicology report is still pending.

READ MORE: 10 Famous Hollywood stars who died of drug overdose

Scott's sister Kimberly Mathers, posted a heartfelt message saying: "Dawn was my sweet, beautiful sister who lost her way. I kept a light lit for her hoping she'd find her way back to me. I miss her and love her more than anything I could ever say. I wish she was here so I could hug her and tell her I love her."

She added on the funeral home's tribute wall: "Half of me is gone and I will never feel whole again. She made me laugh and kept me on my toes. She was the best sister and friend in the world and I will miss her until we are together again."
In a statement on January 21, a rep said, "The happy couple did het engaged this evening."

According to reports, the Australian billionaire proposed to the superstar at a private dinner with friends and family in New York City on Thursday night. The engagement comes after less than a year of dating. Packer reportedly popped the question with a diamond ring featuring a whopping 35 carats.

Carey and Packer were set up last spring by their mutual friend, Brett Ratner, who is one of the moguls business partners. They confirmed the romance by showing PDA during a getaway in Italy throughout June, and went on to take trips around the world together in his yacht.

In July, Carey dedicated 'Hero' to Packer during one of her Las Vegas residency concerts, and in August, denied reports she was expecting a her first child with Parker.
Among those putting her on blast for this, is her ex, American rapper, Ryan Prophet , who shared a photo of Dash before going into a long rant, questioning her views on black culture.

"@realstaceyldash your views on black culture & people of color as a whole are Fucking terrible I wonder do you truly love your self & this is coming from a brother that had genuine Luv for you since day1 as a fan Artist lover & creater many young sisters look up to you....Ask your self do u really Luv BLACK BABIES?! #blacklivesmatter but out of respect for your son That post was took down make me a believer help those people in #flint oh I forgot your a Foxnewspuppet just remember bleaching your skin is poisonous. @bet#giveBETtheyCheckBack #shaderoom #TMZ #LuvBScott #allhiphopdotcom staceydumb #doNotMakeMeTellItAll #BeautifulOutsideInUGLY #DontMakeMeTell staceyGone#."
The Style House Files initiative launched to nurture, support and grow the Nigerian creative fashion industry and has been doing this consistently in past years.

Now in the 6th year, LFDW will remain dedicated to the growth and promotion of creatives in the industry by nurturing, fine tuning, rewarding their skills and providing them with a solid platform for achieving their goals.

At the heart of the Lagos Fashion and Design Week platform is the fundamental vision to position Lagos as a global destination for Africas finest fashion design talents. Through LFDW, they present their collections, grow their fashion businesses and contribute to the sustainability of Nigerias Creative Economy Omoyemi Akerele creative director and founder of Style House Files revealed the passion behind the Lagos Fashion & Design Week.

The vision of the initiative which debuted in 2011 is to provide on-going support to designers via education, mentorship as well as opportunities to present their work to a larger market.

The 2015 edition featured a remarkable list of designers, including Orange Culture, Mai Atafo, Meena, Lanre Da Silva- Ajayi, Grey, Iconic Invanity, Bridget Awosika, Iamisigo and the LFDW Top 16 Fashion Focus Finalists amongst others.
Welcome to the Pulse Community! We will now be sending you a daily newsletter on news, entertainment and more. Also join us across all of our other channels - we love to be connected!
The incident which happened on January 17, saw Nyanchama losing a tooth and suffering a broken arm in brutal beating.

It was gathered that the woman who is private school teacher was separated from Omondi who is a mechanic but that he never stopped calling her at odd times and expected her to pick his calls even she is with another man.

The victim narrated what led to the attack on her on the day:

"I had gone for an outing in Dagorettion on Saturday when he called but I did not not answer because he chased me from his house in 2014 without a clear reason."

But on getting back home the following morning, Nyanchama said she met Omondi waiting outside her house and descended on her, beating her blue black. Before leaving, he vowed to come back and kill her, prompting her to report the case of assault at the Muthangari police station and he was arrested.
HRM Obi Akaeze Ofulue III, had reportedly been abducted by suspected Fulani Herdsman along Obior/ Igbodo Road, Delta State, as well as his driver.

A source close to the family revealed that an Hausa man had been arrested 3 days ago after the Kings mobile phone had been found on him.

The source went on to reveal that the sad occurrence had thrown the Kingdom as a whole into mourning.

The late monarch was so dear to us. His death has brought setback to the kingdom."

The Police Public Relations officer, PPRO for Delta State, Celestina Kalu, has confirmed the incident, revealing that the police were still in search of the perpetrators of the crime.

The Monarch passed away at the age of 52.
Unlike some states of the federation, there have not been reports of Kidnapping in Kaduna since the Kidnapping of the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Mr.Waje Yayok in 2009.

Residents say since the boy was kidnapped, they have not been able to established contact with the abductors.

Since on Tuesday when the boy was kidnapped along Force Road Marafa Estate by unknown man driving a Toyota Highlander Silver color, no contact has been established, a concern resident Umar Sani said.

He disclosed further that the abductors of the boy have not contacted the family.
According to information, the young man who is currently being detained at Nkando Police Station in the district, was said to have gruesomely hacked his mother to death during a domestic quarrel and went ahead to bury her within the house.

The murder was discovered when some relatives asked after her and the boy pretended he did not know where his mother went to. The relatives reported the case to the police, saying they suspected the boy. He was arrested and he later confessed to the police and led them to the shallow grave he buried her and her body was exhumed.
There was the story of the notorious cult figure and politician in Ilorin, Kwara State, Adebayo Ajia who was murdered in cold blood by people suspected to be rival cult members who were on his trail for many months. Ajia was macheted to death at his car wash in the city center.

A sex starved couple who could not wait to get behind close doors were caught while in action right in the open at the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ife, Osun State. Even with people gathering to watch the free show of shame, the couple could not disengage until the police had to come in and stop people from lynching them.

In local parlance, this is called 'Ghen-Ghen', where a lovestruck young girl took to Instagram to unleash the photo of herself and her married lover, leading him to begging hr to get down the photos.

Over in China, a woman who caught her husband right in the act of having sex with his mistress, went ballistic, beating up the intruder so bad people could not separate them easily.

Another disturbing case of child-bride came to the fore when photos of a 28-year-old man getting married to a 10-year-old girl in Kano, became viral.

Reports emerging form Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, has it that one of the most notorious cultists and convicted murderer in that state, Adebayo Ajia, met a gruesome end in the hands of a rival cult group that has been on his trail for years for allegedly killing some of their members.

The late Bayo Ajia

Photo Credit: Sahara Reporters

Eyewitnesses account has it that the incident happened at about 12:30 pm at the car wash Ajia owns along the popular Taiwo Road in the commercial nerve center of the town.

Ajia was said to be one of the ring leaders of the Aiye Confraternity, said to have held the state to ransom for many years as he was once convicted for the killing of two of his rivals, Abdul Yekini Gobir and Abdul Ganiyu Hussein, at a night party at Deens Motel, Ilorin, in 2004 but was later granted amnesty by then Governor of the state, Bukola Saraki, who is now the Senate President.

It was a show of shame when two you couple threw caution to the wind and allowed their lust get the better of them and they got down to action in public.

The incident, according to those who caught them and captured them on video, happened at the security post of Road 1 gate of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State.

Scene of OAU sex scandal

Photo Credit: Pulse

They were seen at a vantage spot, where the roads meet, engaging in the act without regard to the timing and people increasingly gathering to watch them.

It was gathered that the couple were on top of a commercial motorcycle (Okada), which rode through the gate, and alighted at the security post. While they were on the bike, they were said to have been engaged in serious kissing and necking and by the time they got down, they stripped and began having sex oblivious of their environment.

A young lady shared a photo of herself and her married lover, referring to him as "Bae" on Instagram, only to have him order her to take it down.

The lady with IG handle, Barbie-davina posted photos of herself and boyfriend, who also happens to be married, just before he orders her to delete the photo.

Barbie-Davina and her 'Bae'

Photo Credit: Instagram

The unidentified man went on to plead with her to delete the pictures, when he noticed that she only added more pictures to her acount.

The young lady whose intent in sharing the photos is yet to be confirmed, went on to share more photos of themselves as a couple, including a photo she had taken with her boyfriend's daughter.

A woman who caught her husband with her mistress in bed decided to go rough on the intruder.

In the clip that has gone viral, a Chinese woman allegedly caught her husband with his mistress in a hotel room and her reaction was out of this world. The woman went into overdrive and beat the living daylight of the mistress.

Chinese women fighting

Photo Credit: Daily Motion

The wife kicks off her high-heels and whacks her hubbys lover with them, while he attempts to protect the girl who is screaming and crying.

Disturbing photos photos have been reveled showing a marriage ceremony being held for a 28-yr-old man and a 10-yr-old girl.

The photos are reported to have been taken in Kano State, where such things are far from rare.

The Child-Bride an hr groom

Photo Credit: Pulse

Sadly, as much as these actions have been criticized, nothing has been done to stop it.
The state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Jide Idris, who announced the development, said the deceased will be buried later on Friday.

Idris also revealed that as at January 21, 14 suspected cases of Lassa Fever has been recorded in the state, adding that the Ministry of health has shortlisted 447 contacts of the confirmed cases and 438 (98 per cent) of the contacts who are currently being monitored.

Three of the suspected cases were confirmed positive of Lasssa Fever. One case was confirmed on January 15 and two cases were confirmed on January 18. Eight suspected cases tested negative, while we are awaiting results for the remaining three suspected cases, the Commissioner said.

He said the late victim was a 51-year-old man and lived in Ilasan, Lekki, Lagos state and returned from Edo where he attended a wedding ceremony on December 28, last year.

According to him, the late patient was initially admitted at Divine Medical Centre in Ikoyi on January 12, 2016 and referred to Mainland Hospital Yaba early January 18, 2016 and later died at 2pm same day before the result of the laboratory test that confirmed him positive of Lassa Fever was received.

He also gave the breakdown of the Lassa Fever cases in Lagos, saying the first confirmed case at Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) and listed the contact line as follows; Ifako Ijaiye; 100, Mushin; 18, Alimosho; 42 and Kosofe; one with a sub-total of 160.

Other contacts being monitored are as follows; Ifako Ijaiye- 91; Mushin  18, Alimosho- 42; Kosofe- 1, with a sub-Total of 151.

For case the two at Mainland General Hospital the contacts line listed is Eti-Osa- 66 and the contact line being monitored is at Eti-Osa- 66, with a sub- Total: 66.

He added: Case three, Mainland General Hospital, the contact line listed is at Amuwo: 220 and the contact being monitored is at Amuwo: 220, Sub-Total: 220. The over cases, total figure for both contacts line listed is 447 and contacts being monitored is put at 438.
Ehanire, who disclosed this during his familiarisation visit to the Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta, said constructing more healthcare centres would reduce pressure on tertiary health institutions.

He noted that the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari was committed to tackling medical tourism.

According to him, the country loses an estimated one billion dollars annually as a result of Nigerians travelling abroad to get the desired medical services.

The minister said as part of the government's agenda, over 10,000 functional primary healthcare centres would be established in various parts of the country.

This, according to him, would help to reduce the pressure on tertiary health institutions, which would be repositioned to address health challenges often treated in foreign countries.

"We are losing estimated one billion dollars on Nigerians going abroad to get treatment. We have tertiary hospitals that should be good enough to handle what most Nigerians go abroad for.

"What we should do is to ensure training and retraining of staff, provide equipment and ensure proper modern service delivery; we must have patient-centred healthcare service," he said.

Ehanire pointed out that the Federal Government was trying hard to generate resources from all areas to fund the health sector amidst the competing needs and priorities of the nation.

Dr Dapo Sotiloye, the Chief Medical Director of the hospital, said the hospital needed funds for some of its vital capital projects, including completion of water schemes, reticulation of electricity, among others.
According to a statement by PRNigeria, a media group for the government and military, the Minister's appointment was effective from January 1.

The Hon. Minister of Transportation Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi has been appointed by the Secretary General of the United Nations Mr. Ban ki-moon to serve as a Member of the Board of Trustees of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) for a Three Years Term beginning from January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2018, the statement said.

It is an autonomous Institute established within the framework of the United Nations for the purpose of enhancing the effectiveness of government in achieving major objectives of the UN.

The director, decentralized corporation UNITAR, Alex Mejia, presented the letter to Amaechi on behalf of the UN Secretary General, Ki-Moon.

By this appointment, the Hon. minister, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi is expected to make useful and valuable contributions to the growth and development of UNITAR and is now empowered to guide UNITAR and all its works in Nigeria, Mejia said.
The terrorists were killed during a raid on their camps in the Gwoza area of the state, according to Sahara Reporters.

The disclosure was made by the Deputy Commander for Counter-Insurgency operations, Major Gen Lucky Irabor at a press conference today, January 22, 2016.

During the fierce of battle, 10 terrorists were killed, two AK-47 rifles were obtained, [as well as] magazines, some solar panels, and cell phones were recovered. One utility vehicle was recovered and destroyed, he said.

Our vigilant troops gunned down one terrorist and the other two bombers blew themselves up while rushing toward troops along Mafa Road, about 1 kilometre from the capital, he added.
According to Deputy Theatre commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Major General Lucky Irabor, the troops at the checkpoint sighted two female suicide bombers and a male suicide bomber, trying to infiltrate Maiduguri along Maiduguri-Mafa road, where one of the female bombers detonated her own - killing herself and one other female bomber, while the male suicide bomber was gunned down by the troops of the Nigerian Army while trying to run into their midst.

He also disclosed that 63 Boko Haram terrorists were killed from Monday 18th January 2016 to Friday 22nd 2016 at various places within the theater of operation, stating that many AK47 riffles, ammunition, Anti Aircraft Gun, RPG, GMPG, explosives, vehicles, motorcycles among others were recovered from the operations.

Our troops conducted a fighting patrol at Afe, Kudiye, Souma, Dikwa Mijigeta, Mida villages of Borno state. During the operation our troops come in contact with Boko Haram terrorist at Kudiye and Mijigete where 370 hostages were rescued and brought to IDP camp in Dikwa and 3 rifles and 41 motorcycles were destroyed, Irabor told newsmen at the operation media centre in Maiduguri.

The Commander also stated that troops have cleared some Boko Haram hideouts in Wala, Tirkopytir and Durubajuwe in Gwoza local government area, where they recovered GMPG, locally made Dane gun and a grinding machine.
Buhari expressed his condolences to the people of Ibadan and the government of Oyo State via a statement released by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina on Friday, January 22, 2016.

Nigeria needs the wisdom of such senior citizens and their wealth of experience and moral standards, especially at a time like this that we want to change the orientation and ethical values of our people to place higher priority on hard work, discipline, honesty, accountability and transparency, Buhari said of the late monarch.
Punch reports that he was arraigned before Justice Chizoba Orji of the Federal High Court in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Abuja, on a two count charge.

The charges against him read That you, Ali Gambo Abdullahi, sometimes in August 2013 at Abuja did made a statement to one Abdulmajeed Ibrahim, a detective with the EFCC while in the course of the exercise of the duty of his office that the sum of N1.8 million paid into your Zenith Bank Account Number 1002849471 on December 12, 2012 by one Rasheed Owolabi was to assist you to settle your fathers hospital bill, a statement you knew to be untrue and thereby committed an office contrary to section 39(2)(a) of the EFCC Act. 2004 and punishable under section (39) (2) (b) of the same act.

That you Abdullahi, sometimes in August 2013 at Abuja did made a statement dated 13th August 2013 pertaining to N1.8 million paid into your bank account by one Rasheed Taiwo, which is inconsistent with the statement you made on August 12th, 2013 to one Abdulmajeed Ibrahim, a detective with EFCC while in the course of the exercise of the duty of his office and thereby committed an offence contrary to section (39) (2) (b) of the EFCC Act 2004.
Dasukis lawyers had urged the court to stop proceedings in the case but the application was opposed by counsel to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Rotimi Jacobs, Premium Times reports.

The former NSAs lead lawyer, Joseph Daudu however said that the details in the application need to be strongly evaluated, as it contained an abuse of the rules of court.

The case was subsequently postponed by the judge who ruled that the matter could not be heard yet.

Having heard all parties, I can say with all sense of notice that the matter cannot be heard today, he said.

Dasuki is at the center of a massive money laundering investigation and is alleged to have supervised the looting of the $2.1 billion in funds which were meant for the procurement of arms for Nigeria's military.

He was arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) on December 1, 2015 and handed over to the EFCC the day after.

The former NSA is reported to have implicated several prominent persons in the deal including former governors, ex-ministers and members of the PDP.

Dasukis lawyer however denied the report that his client had become an informant while the former NSA said that ex-President, Goodluck Jonathan was aware of the transactions he had made.

Jonathan has however denied authorizing the release of the stated funds despite the former NSAs claim that he got the necessary presidential approval for the transactions.
Adesina said further that Buhari would not shield any corrupt person from prosecution, Premium Times reports.

The presidential aide is said to have made the remark on Thursday, January 21, 2016 during a visit to the publications office in Abuja.

There is no accord, Adesina said, if the corruption fight needs to get there (making Mr. Jonathan face justice), it will get there.

There is no accord that if corruption is proven, it will not be tried, he said of the former president.

With this president, nobody will be protected. And I underscore it, if it needs to get anywhere, it will get there, he added.

Adesina also denied claims that Buharis war against corruption was only targeted at members of the opposition adding that probes into the affairs of other sectors in the country would soon start.

Corruption under Jonathans government has been a major subject of discussion in recent times after it was alleged that officials misappropriated funds meant for Nigerias waragainst Boko Haram.

The discovery was made by a special panel constituted by Buhari to investigate arms purchases in the country from 2007-2015.

Former National Security Adviser (NSA) Sambo Dasuki is at the fore of the investigations and is alleged to have supervised the alleged laundering of $2 billion funds meant for the procurement of arms.

He was arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) on December 1, 2015 and handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) the day after.

The former NSA is reported to have implicated several prominent persons in the deal including former governors, ex-ministers and members of Jonathans party, Peoples Democratic Party(PDP).

Dasukis lawyer however denied the report that his client had become an informant.
The assembly issued the directive in Abuja when the company briefed the Senate Committee on Gas and the Senate Committee on Niger Delta on developments in the area.

The one week directive was given by the Chairman of the Committee on Gas, Sen. Bassey Akpan, when the Managing Director of NLNG, Mr Babs Omotowa, could not give details of the amount paid out so far as taxes and dividends.

Akpan also directed the company to provide details of an alleged payment of about eight billion dollars to Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) as contained in a report by Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI).

Akpan said, "MD we need a documentary evidence of the taxes that you have paid and the dividends that you have paid from the end of your tax holiday till date.

"We must be able to substantiate the argument by NEITI that about eight billion dollars dividend has not been transferred to the Federation Account.

"The interest of Nigeria is reflected in this, a cumulative return on investment amounting to about 88 billion dollars you have remitted to NNPC but it has not been transferred to the Federation Account.

"This can be justified by the content of what you told us here that in 2015 alone you paid one billion dollars as dividends to NNPC.

"So, we need documentary evidence that this money has left your position to NNPC so we can take it up with NNPC immediately because according to NNPC, you have not paid a dime.

"So, you should submit to the secretariat all the details within one week.

"The president needs money to perform and we must help the president at the National Assembly to get the money.

The committee chairman also directed that NLNG provide evidence of N33 billion it claimed it paid the Federal Government.

He said that the evidence of 2.1 billion dollars paid in 2015 should also be provided.

"You presentation states that your projection for 2016 is N197 billion, we need to understand how you arrived at that with dwindling prices of gas since you say your prices are tied to crude prices.

"Also how you intend to achieve a budget of N265 billion for 2016 when you paid nothing in 2015 because these are all part of governments revenue projection for 2016.

"If you add up what should come from NLNG it adds up to almost N500 billion.

"So, we need to know how you arrived at this and we also want evidence to prove all these figures assigned to you, he said.

Omotowa promised that the company would provide all evidence of remittances to the Senate.

He said that just as the NEITI report suggested, the company had paid all dividends due to NNPC but was not in position to monitor what NNPC or any shareholder did with their receipts.

"We will provide to you whatever evidences you want; it is not in our place to determine what shareholders do with their funds or where they have paid their money.

"I am no more a Nigerian than the NNPC is. As much as I am Nigerian, they are also Nigerians so we cannot take upon ourselves NNPC issues.

"We will give it to you as you said, NEITI has said it and confirmed it and it is very clear in their report so the same evidence we will provide to you, Omotowa said.

In a related development, the committee gave international Oil Companies (IOCs) one week to submit details of gas flaring as well as the environment impact assessment of oil exploration in the Niger Delta region.

The Senate also requested from the IOCs evidence of social responsibility projects they were executing to alleviate the sufferings of the people in communities affected by their activities.
Presenting the award and her investiture as life patron of the Assembly, the speaker, Hon. Mohammed Danlami Salisu, said that within the short time of her husband's leadership, Maryam has contributed alot to the upliftment of the Youth not only in Adamawa and Northern Nigeria but the country as a whole.

The first lady commended the Assembly for the honour adding that it will spur her to do more in giving hope to the hopeless especially women, youth and orphans.
According to Vanguard, the Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) of the command, Rear Admiral Atiku Abdulkadir said this was in line with the Federal Governments ban on the dumping of illegal immigrants on the countrys shores.

He also gave a break-down of the passengers on the ship.

Abdulkadir said Over 35 of them again are with emergency travel certificates and no passport. We are trying to work with the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) to re-assure ourselves that they are not of any dangerous character.

It is a big concern to us that people are coming into this country without proper travel documents.

Now that there is Lassa Fever and other health challenges, we also want to ensure that those that are here are of no health threat to the people around.

He also said the Nigerians will be thoroughly screened, before allowed to go, adding that the illegal immigrants will be sent back to their countries.
Mohammed made the remark on Thursday, January 22, 2016, during a visit to the Women FM 91.7 radio station in Ogun State, Punch reports.

The Federal Government is being criticised for infringing on human rights. This is not true. People who have stolen billions of naira have no moral authority to be claiming human rights when their theft left to the infringements of other peoples rights, deaths and suffering, the minister said.

We want Nigerians to weigh the matter. Fifty five Nigerians stole over N1.34tn in eight years. Should we now jettison the rights of 170 million Nigerians whose rights have been tampered with because of these few people who have stolen the country blind?

When we start talking about human rights, we need to put the issue in the right perspectives. The granting of bail is at the discretion of the court of law and when there is a tendency that someone is likely to jump bail, such a right may be declined.

While it takes just little time to prosecute an average offender, it takes seven years to prosecute a high-profile person for corruption charges. This is because the corrupt leaders can afford to hire the smartest lawyers which even the EFCC cannot afford to hire. Finance is crippling the operations of the anti-graft commission," he added.

President Muhammadu Buharihas been accused of rights violations due to the continued detention of former National Security Adviser (NSA), Sambo Dasuki on corruption charges despite orders of bail granted on his behalf.

Dasuki is at the center of the massive money laundering investigation and is alleged to have supervised the looting of the funds which were meant for the procurement of arms for Nigeria's military.

He was arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) on December 1, 2015 and handed over to the EFCC the day after.

The former NSA is reported to have implicated several prominent persons in the deal including former governors, ex-ministers and members of the PDP.

Dasukis lawyer however denied the report that his client had become an informant while the former NSA said that ex-President, Goodluck Jonathan was aware of the transactions he had made.

Jonathan has however denied authorizing the release of the stated funds despite the former NSAs claim that he got the necessary presidential approval for the transactions.
Speaking in Lagos on Friday, Jan. 22, during his meeting with online publishers, the Minister urged the publishers to be credible and responsible, as that is the only sure way to retain their readers.

If the online publications suffer credibility problems, they stand the risk of losing the confidence of their readers and the advertisers who provide the lifeblood for the publications survival, he said.

Mohammed said even though it is inevitable that the number of online publications grow, only the credible ones would survive and enjoy patronage from advertisers and readers.

He said it is also in the interest of the government that this section of the media grows as it would "bridge the information gap between the government and the governed, and the easier it becomes for the government to carry the citizens along in the formulation and implementation of policies that touch on their lives.

While promising that the government would patronise online publications in terms of advertising, the Minister said publishers would need to prove accurate information to the people, and avoid sensationalism and partisanship in return.

Addressing the war against corruption issue, Mohammed said it is one of the cardinal programmes of the Buhari-led administration.

He said: Some have said the government is dwelling too much on the war against corruption to the detriment of other areas of governance. Our response to that is that indeed, there is nothing like dwelling too much on this war, which is a war of survival for our nation.

The situation is grim, very grim indeed, as far as corruption is concerned. That is why the Federal Government is embarking on this sensitization Campaign Our approach is not to vilify anyone but to use facts and figures to give Nigerians a sense of the cost of corruption.

Giving a comparative analysis of the number of those who benefitted from the funds allegedly collected from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and funds allocated for the 2015 Zonal Intervention Projects, Alhaji Mohammed said the amount received by 21 individuals and companies from ONSA is more than the 2015 Zonal Intervention Project budget by 2.829 billion Naira!

Whereas the sum of 51.829 billion Naira was appropriated for 1,278 projects in the Zonal Intervention Projects for 2015, a total of 21 individuals and companies benefited from the Dasukigate to the tune of 54.659 billion Naira as we know so far.

The implication, therefore, is that the amount received by 21 individuals and companies is more than the 2015 Zonal Intervention Project budget by 2.829 billion Naira! Furthermore, the value of what beneficiaries of Dasukigate contributed to development is zero, compared to how the lives of Nigerians would have been transformed, poverty reduced and livelihoods improved by the Zonal Intervention Projects which would have cost 2.829 billion Naira less than Dasukigate."
The government has also donated a land for the construction of a Super Mega Stations and urged Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to make petroleum products available.

Masari spoke at the Katsina Governor's Lodge, Abuja on Friday when a delegation from the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) led by the Executive Director, Commercial and Investment, Dr.Baba Tunde paid him a courtesy call.

The governor urged the NNPC management to ensure that the proposed Super Mega Stations live up to expectations and should have not less than 12 pumps at each site.

"This would addressed the huge demand for petroleum products in our state. Your plan to build more Mega and new Super Mega Stations across the country is commendable.

"NNPC should strive to make the proposed Super Mega Stations to operates at least 12 pumps, as well as make petroleum products constantly available," Masari said in. Statement signed by Abdu Labaran Malumfashi, his SSA on Media.

"This would go a long way in not only addressing the huge demand for petroleum products in the state, but would also arrest frightening desert encroachment in the northern part of the country," the statement added.

The Katsina state Governor assured that his administration was ever ready to partner with any organisation that shares the government's aspirations of moving the state forward.

"Let me also assure you that we are always ready to partner with any organisation that shares our aspirations to move the state to the next level.
The Minister had told the Senate Committee on Marine Transport that it would amount to a waste of funds if the Federal Government goes head with building the proposed institution, pushing for the project to be discontinued.

Amaechi had said:We are not going ahead with the university project proposed by NIMASA because we have a institution in Oron, we have Nigeria Institute of Transport Technology, Zaria, and we have the Nigerian College of Aviation in Zaria which we could upgrade to a university status and NIMASA is proposing to build a new one.

Who will attend the university? How many parents will allow their children to go to such place where it proposes to site the university? What is the aim of the university that we cannot achieve in Oron where they have all the necessary infrastructure?

He also alleged that an unidentified man, believed to be Government 'Tompolo' Ekpemupolo,collected N32 billion for the purpose of the projectand left the country.

However, according a new report, work is ongoing at the University site, with picture 'evidence' showing heavy duty equipment on the site.

The report said: "The minister while trying to justify the Federal Government's decision to scrap the Nigerian Maritime University told the Senate Committee on Marine Transport that there was no work on the Permanent site of the Maritime University in Okerenkoko, Delta state and insisted that what was on ground was "just the feasibility study".

"Photographic evidence gathered by our correspondent who visited the site of the Maritime University, contractors were seen on working on site with heavy duty equipment, while buildings were captured at various phases of construction contrary to Mr. Amaechi's claims.

"The temporary site of the Maritime University in Kurutie, Warri South-West of Delta state was equipped with necessary structures and facilities and was set to admit students into the 2016 Academic year pending the completion of structures at the permanent site."

According to the report, a resident of the University community said there is no truth in Amaechi's claims, adding that the contractors working on the site were being arrested while working.

"Other residents remarked that in spite of the difficult terrain of the area where it is difficult to get sand, the contractors remained on site and dismissed the Ministers comment as uncharitable and sending a wrong signal", it said.

Former President Goodluck Jonathan on the 10th of May, 2014, declared the site open in a ground breaking ceremony, while the Federal Executive Council approved the decision for the school to take off in 2015.

However, independent investigations by Pulse to ascertain the state of the University site proved abortive, as a resident of the community where the University is located promised to get back to us with picture confirmation after visiting the site. But failed to do so as at press time.
In a fresh charge bordering on destruction of evidence, Justice Ishaq Bello granted the PDP spokesman bail in the sum of N300 million with two sureties in like sum.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), had alleged that Metuh tore and chewed his confessional statement.

Metuh is facing trial for allegedly receiving N400 million from the embattled former National Security Adviser (NSA), Sambo Dasuki.

At is first bail hearing, he was also brought to court in handcuffs, the move which has been highly criticized by many Nigerians and Human Rights Organizations.
Ooni Ogunwusi said this during the Oodua Festival at Oduduwa Square, Ooni Palace, on Thursday in Ile-Ife.

He said that if there was unity among all ethnic groups across the country, the lost glory would be restored, adding "united will stand and divided we fall".

Ooni pledged to work towards promoting peaceful co-existence among the people and the rest of the country, saying that God has ordained him to unite Yoruba people and position them for a brighter future.

Earlier, the chief promoter, Olokun Festival Foundation, Otunba Gani Adams, commended Oba Ogunwusi, for his vision.

Adams said that history would not forget the journey to Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi after 79 years of such last meeting with late Oba Adesoji Aderemi.

He decried the lack of unity among the entire Yoruba race, but expressed optimism that Oba Ogunwusi would utilise every opportunity to unite Yoruba people in order to usher in unprecedented development.

He appealed to Ooni to turn Oduduwa grove, Opa Oranmiyan, Moremi Ajasoro, Oke-Itase and several other sites in Ile-Ife into global tourists' haven.

He said that since Ooni and Alaafin had started the process of unifying the Yoruba people, other Yoruba monarchs should support them, so that there would be peaceful co-existence.
Find out what is making headlines all over the country from the covers of The Punch, Vanguard, The Guardian and more.

For today, Friday, January 22, 2016:

VANGUARD NEWSPAPER

$2.1bn Arms probe: EFCC slams fresh charges against Olisa Metuh

ABUJA  THE Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has arraigned the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh, on a fresh two-count-charge of destroying the evidence against him.

ARMS PROBE: Ill open up next week, says Falae

NATIONAL Chairman of Social Democratic Party, SDP, Chief Olu Falae, yesterday, said he has fixed next week to adequately address his alleged involvement in the ongoing arms deal scandal involving the former National Security Adviser, NSA, Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd). READ MORE:

Man, 37, rapes mentally-challenged girl

LAGOSpolice in Lagos State have arrested a 37-year-old man for allegedly raping a mentally-challenged girl (names withheld). It was learned that the suspect, Adesola Moses, who resides at Osenatuilo Street, Alagbado by AIT Road, reportedly raped the victim in her mothers shop.

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THE PUNCH NEWSPAPER

Fuel subsidy removalll save govt N985bn  Osinbajo

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has said the Federal Government, which relies on crude oil for about two-thirds of its revenue, is seeing a silver lining to the plunge in crude prices because it will no longer have to subsidise fuel. Lower oil prices also mean there is some advantage, Osinbajo said in a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday. READ MORE:

Arms probe: Metuh arraigned for destroying evidence

A Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, Abuja, again on Thursday ordered the remand of the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, Chief Olisa Metuh, over two counts of destruction of evidence and mischief preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.READ MORE:

Domestic debt servicing gulped N2.95tn in five years

The Federal Government spent a total of N2.95tn to service domestic debts for a period of five years from 2010 to 2014, investigation has shown. Statistics obtained from the Debt Management Office in Abuja on Thursday showed that the actual amount spent on servicing the domestic component of the countrys total debt rose from N334.66bn in 2010 to N846.64bn by the end of December 2014. The amount spent on domestic debt in 2015 is not yet available

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THE GUARDIAN

Senate condemns fresh destruction of oil facilities in Niger Delta

THE Senate Committee on Petroleum Oil and Gas has condemned in totality the fresh blowing up of pipelines in the Niger Delta region. At a press briefing yesterday in Abuja, Chairman, Senate Committee on Petroleum (Upstream), Senator Tayo Alasoadura condemned the unpatriotic act of some vandals, who blow up pipelines at this time of national emergency when the dwindling price of oil and the insurgency in the northeast of Nigeria is confronting our nation. READ MORE:

Oil prices surge past $30 on eurozone stimulus pledge

Oil prices surged past $30 a barrel in Asia Friday after the European Central Bank (ECB) signalled further stimulus measures to help the struggling eurozone economy, but analysts expect oversupply woes to limit gains. READ MORE:

FG to build 10,000 primary healthcare centres  Minister

The Minister of State for Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, said on Thursday in Abeokuta that the Federal Government would build 10,000 functional primary healthcare centres across the country. Ehanire, who disclosed this during his familiarisation visit to the Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta, said constructing more healthcare centres would reduce pressure on tertiary health institutions.

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THE NATION NEWSPAPER

EFCC arraigns Metuh for destroying his statement

Detained Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) spokesperson Olisa Metuh was arraigned yesterday before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, for allegedly destroying the statement he made to Economic and Financial Crimes Commissions (EFCC) operatives.Metuh is being held at the Kuje prison, Abuja, following his arraignment at the Federal High Court, Abuja, on a seven-count of money laundering.

PDP governors deplore spokesmans handcuffing

Governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have described Tuesdays handcuffing of the partys National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, as a new low in the Federal Governments profiling. Deploring the action, the governors said the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led administration was a step away from full-blown fascism. READ MORE:

Osun airport contract: PDP at lowest ebb of rational thinking

The Osun State government has said the allegation by the states chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that the Rauf Aregbesola administration inflated the airport project at Ido Osun by N11 billion is a confirmation that the party is suffering from hallucination that is causing its wild imagination and delusions.

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Business Day

FG retirees access pensions on release of N40bn bond

Federal Government retirees who left employment between February and September 2015 can now access their retirement benefits from their Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs), following governments release of an estimated N40 billion into the Retirement Benefits Bond Redemption Fund covering about eight months, BusinessDay learnt last night.

Nigeria loses N470m daily from Escravos pipeline attack

As security agencies intensify the search for culprits behind the recent attack on the Escravos pipeline, latest information from the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing shows that the pipeline owned by the Nigeria Gas Company and connected to Chevrons facility at Escravos is making Nigeria lose N470 million daily. READ MORE:

Nigeria: Dangote, Bill Gates set aside N30bn to end under-nutrition
To be written, produced and directed by Perry, the movie has been set for an October 21 release.

The movie which will star Perry as Madea, originated from when Chris Rock and Perry conspired to add a Madea Halloween film to Rocks film Top Five.

Following that, the actor was approached by Lionsgate, who suggested that the movie be made a reality.

In Boo! A Madea Halloween, Madea winds up in the middle of mayhem when she spends a hilarious, haunted Halloween fending off killers, paranormal poltergeists, ghosts, ghouls, and zombies while keeping a watchful eye on a group of misbehaving teens.

ALSO READ: undefined

In addition to his role as Madea, the actor will also play the roles of Joe and Brian.

The film will also star Bella Thorne as Rain, Cassie Davis as Aunt Bam, Patrice Lovely as Hattie, Andre Hall as Quinton, Yousef Erakat as Jonathan, Lexy Panterra as Leah, Diamond White as Tiffany,Liza Koshy as Aday,Brock OHurn as Horse, Jimmy Tatro as Sean, JC Caylen as Mikey, among others.
Aliyu made the denial after a list of prominent Nigerians who allegedly own property in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was released by online platform, Sahara Reporters.

The former governors response was contained in a statement released by his spokesman, Israel Ebije on Friday, January 22, 2016.

It reads:

They should do their investigation and if I am found guilty of owning any property in UAE, the Federal Government (FG) should appropriate (it).

I am totally committed to the President Muhammadu Buhari decisive effort towards repatriating stolen funds and his plan towards making political offices less palatable and incidence of impunity as low as possible.

I am however concerned over baseless accusations peddled against my person.

The allegations were made after the Nigerian government reached an agreement with the UAE to enable the extradition of corrupt officials hiding stolen funds in Dubai.
Akande made the comment during a recent interview with Vanguard.

Excerpts below:

What is your reaction to the continuous defection of politicians from the PDP to APC?

The situation is like bringing together two pieces of wood to make furniture. If the wood is weak, the furniture will not be strong enough.

It is true that we put the party (APC) together in a hurry and we put it together by merging political parties but before it became a political party, and glued into one, election had come and we seemed to be more concerned with election than the making of the party.

Whats your reaction to Abike Dabiris comment that the spate of defection from PDP to APC being shameful?

You know, in a country where most leaders are parasites, a parasite, when it kills the original host, it will have to go to another host and kill it. Only we in the APC should be careful, the defection is not a strange thing but I know its always done by parasites.

Political parasites

But those who are defecting from one party to the other, by nature, they are political parasites, they have killed the original hosts which was PDP and they are now coming to APC which is the new host, and its for APC to guard its own loins and prevent the parasites from killing the party because a parasite has no root of its own but feeds on the little food that the host is having.
Vanguard reportsthat Senator Buruji Kashamu andformer Speaker of House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole are the two major contenders for the control of the party in the state.

Reports say that Bankole has issued a warning saying I am still in PDP, if they repeat the same manipulation they did at the last congresses, we will react.

Adding that The event in the next few months will determine our actions.

Also, Buruji, in what seems to be a response, said the era of sitting in your room and writing the names of the delegates and executive members of the party has gone.

Adding that There is no need for any harmonisation of groups, let us not make that mistake. We can only come together after congresses. Let each group bring its candidates and allow voting to be done transparently.

But the only thing I cannot do is to sit in my room and start writing names of the delegates and the executives from ward to the state level. It is not possible, the Senator said.

Dimeji Bankole was elected as the 9th Speaker of the House of Representatives, at the age of 37, making him the youngest speaker, in the history of the Green chambers.
The incident occurred on Wednesday, January 20, at 11am during an altercation that turned sour.

Eyewitness report showed that the incident happened during a fight that ensued between the deceaseds brother and Ado-maje at the school gate.

The deceased, who was transferred to another school to complete his SSS studies, was in the school to collect his JSS 3 Placement Examination result.

On reaching the school area, he witnessed his brother in a fight with Ado-maje. Salisu, who was attempting to settle the fight, got a stab in his stomach as reward.

The intervention of Salisu angered the suspect (Ado-maje), who thought that he intervened in the matter in favour of his brother, when he quickly stabbed him with a knife on his stomach.

Salisu was rushed to the hospital where he was later confirmed dead.
Thirty people were killed when gunmen struck a restaurant and hotel in the capital Ouagadougou on Friday, exposing a days-old government to a critical security challenge that risks derailing its pledge to transform the economy of one of the poorest nations on earth.

Mass protests in October 2014 drove out former President Blaise Compaore, who had ruled for nearly three decades after taking power in a 1987 coup. Following a year of transition, Roch Marc Christian Kabore won an election to become leader.

Kabore promised to improve access to water, healthcare and education and signalled a break from the past last week by naming a cabinet packed with ministers with no ties to Compaore.

"The timing is not random," said Cynthia Ohayon, an analyst with the International Crisis Group. "We are at a moment of political fragility because the country is coming out of a transition after 27 years and the new government is just starting to get to work."

Compaore's departure has left Burkina's security apparatus in disarray.

Having taken power in a coup himself, Compaore sought to prevent his own overthrow by pouring resources into the elite presidential guard.

However the unit, the best equipped and trained in the army, was disbanded last year after it mounted an unsuccessful coup against the transitional government in September.

Compaore's fall also disrupted discreet links his security officials had established with militant and rebel groups in the region that could perhaps have served to warn the authorities of the attack or even prevent it, according to Ohayon.

While neighbouring Mali has been subject to a growing campaign of militant assaults in the past year including one on a hotel in the capital in November, until last week Burkina Faso had been spared a major attack.

HIGH STAKES

President Kabore and his ministers have taken to the airwaves to reassure the public, investors and potential tourists that the government can face down the threat facing Burkina Faso, one of a belt of French-speaking countries in the Sahel, south of the Sahara.

"All security measures have been taken to make Burkina Faso peaceful," Foreign Minister Alpha Barry told ambassadors on Tuesday at a specially-convened meeting.

Security Minister Simon Compaore was even more direct: "We want to reassure everyone who lives on Burkinabe soil that foreigners can continue to come to our country, to invest in our country and live here."

In the days to come, France is set to play an important security role both in terms of investigating the attack and using its intelligence network to track potential threats.

Burkina's former colonial master has around 200 special forces based in Ouagadougou as part of a regional operation against Islamist insurgents. Some of them participated in the counter-attack that killed three of Friday's attackers.

"Everything depends on the effort by the government after this attack to reassure our international partners and the friends of the country to continue to come here," said Idrissa Nassa, chief executive of Coris Bank, a leading lender in Burkina Faso.

"If the government can limit it to just one attack then I think the climate of fear will dissipate quite quickly and things will go back to normal," he added.

The stakes are high. Kabore campaigned on promises to revive the economic and social fortunes of a landlocked country that produces gold and cotton but remains impoverished.

Political uncertainty has slowed an economy already hurt by a fall in global gold prices, but one senior security official said the attack would put security at the top of the public agenda.

Former President Thomas Sankara, who was murdered in the 1987 coup that brought Compaore to power, remains a hero in the country that he named Burkina Faso - meaning "The land of the upstanding people" - and his image is plastered on walls around Ouagadougou.

Sankara himself took power in a coup in 1983 and pursued a philosophy of Marxism and pan-Africanism that led him to be called "Africa's Che Guevara". Many African intellectuals view him as a visionary.

Adama Ouedraogo, who teaches philosophy at a high school in the capital, said Sankara's revolutionary spirit was shown in the 2014 uprising and would now help the country overcome the militant threat.
Thursday's announcement by FOREBU that the group was now commanded by the former intelligence chief, General Godefroid Niyombare, deepens concerns that Burundi is sliding back into conflict after its ethnically charged civil war ended in 2005.

U.N. estimates put the death toll at 439 people but it says it could be higher. More than 240,000 people have fled abroad.

Diplomats from the 15-member council arrived in Burundi on Thursday evening and are scheduled to meet President Pierre Nkurunziza later on Friday.

Some of the visitors want to persuade Nkurunziza, whose re-election for a third term sparked the crisis, to accept an African peacekeeping force to prevent an ethnic conflict in a region where memories of Rwanda's 1994 genocide remain fresh.

The president has rejected the deployment, saying they would constitute "an invading force". The issue is expected to be a focus for an African Union summit at the end of January.

"The fighting has to stop and the killings have to stop," deputy French ambassador to the United Nations, Alexis Lamek, told Reuters after diplomats met Burundi's foreign minister, Alain Nyamitwe, adding that dialogue was "the only way".

Burundi's first vice president, Gaston Sindimwo, said the government was open to dialogue. "We can't, at the same time, stand by and allow criminals to have their way," he said.

Months of talks between the government and the opposition last year failed to make progress. A new round of negotiations launched at the end of December in Uganda have already stalled.

Regional Western diplomats say the government has set too many conditions about who can attend talks to make them meaningful. They also say rebels may believe they can make more gains through force of arms than at the negotiating table.

Rebel leader Niyombare disappeared after the coup. Allies said he was alive and still working to unseat Nkurunziza, although he has made no public statements. Other coup plotters have been jailed.

Burundi's 12-year civil war pitted what was then a army led by minority Tutsis against rebels from the majority Hutu ethnic group, including one led by Nkurunziza. Niyombare, a Hutu, had been part of Nkurunziza's rebel CNDD-FDD force.

The crisis has broadly followed political allegiances with Hutus and Tutsis on both sides. The opposition says Nkurunziza's third term violated the constitution and a peace deal that ended the civil war. Loyalists cite a court ruling that he could run.
There were further demonstrations on Friday in several regions, including Kasserine and Sidi Bouzid. In Tunis, demonstrators blocked a major thoroughfare and burned tyres in the street. At least 19 people were arrested in the capital in connection with the unrest, a security official said.

Tunisia has been held up as a model for democratic progress since the 2011 revolution that toppled Ben Ali. But there has been rising discontent over a lack of jobs and high living costs, especially in the country's interior.

There is also concern over attacks by Islamist militants, including an assault on a beach resort in June that killed 39.

The protests started on Tuesday in the impoverished central town of Kasserine after a young man who was apparently being refused a public sector job killed himself.
They said the attack targeted a facility used to load tanker trucks with refined products for domestic distribution. The area was on fire and at least five people were killed, the workers said. The number of casualties was expected to rise, they said.

Ras Isa is Yemen's main oil export terminal but no shipments have been leaving since the Saudi-led Arab coalition intervened in Yemen in March last year to shore up President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi against his Iran-allied Houthi enemies.

Local oil workers said the oil exports facilities in the area and a nearby sugar refinery were not affected.
Nelda Goode always wanted a drum as a teenager living on a Navajo reservation in the Four Corners area of the Southwest.

As an adult, she took matters into her own hands and started making ceremonial drums.

I just wanted a drum and I couldnt afford one, she said. Theyre not a toy. Theyre definitely a musical instrument and they are pricey because they are crafted well.

Her drums are all designed and painted with a Southwestern or Native American theme since that is what Goode has always loved, having lived or worked on several reservations throughout the years.

Plus, there is Cherokee in her family line.

My heart is Native American and it always will be, she said.

Goode took a class on how to make drums from a Montana woman she met at a drum circle in Pahrump.

Crafting the drums is quite easy for Goode since she has 38 years of experience as an upholsterer and had a business in Pahrump for 18 of those.

Ive always done something creative, she said. Both my parents were creative people and its just kind of come down the line.

Goode made her first dress when she was 8 years old when her mother taught her how to sew, follow a pattern and what to do with fabric.

Goode said she has made close to 100 drums and it takes several hours over three days to make one.

She buys a complete hide, such as cow and elk, which is hard and sharp and then you need to find a way to cut it to size while dry before soaking it. Goode said this is the most difficult part, managing the leather. The hide can only be soaked once or there will be problems.

The wooden ring forming the base of the drum is made out of cherrywood, which comes in a tube which she also cuts to size, and sands so it doesnt cut the animal hide.

The easiest part is giving it its spirit and its voice, she stated. Every drum has a different voice.

All her drums are hand-painted with an oil-based paint.

The first drum she made depicts the grandmothers  based on a Native American expression. Goode symbolically included herself and a late friend as one of the grandmothers painted on the drum.

It means that if the grandmothers could run the world we wouldnt fight, Nelda said.

If you have a drum, you need something to play it. Goode even makes drum beaters from driftwood which has washed down the mountain near her house. Scraping off all the bark and dirt is a lot of work she added.

The beater ends are made out of leather and crafted with her handiwork.

Goode makes ceremonial drums to sell, but said it is much more than that.

I feel that I have a closer connection with the people (Native Americans). It gives me a spiritual lift or spiritual feeling when I make them, she said.

She has even sold drums to some Native Americans around the area, including Las Vegas and Death Valley.

Goode and her son were recently invited to an event at Stovepipe Wells Village in Death Valley for some visitors from Switzerland. They took drums, rainsticks, and rattles for a man from the Swiss Alps who wanted to celebrate his 60th birthday in the desert. Goode said the group joined in the drumming festivities.

They just loved it; they just really had a good time, she said.

According to Goode, about 10 years ago there was a group of 350 women drummers in Vegas. They would drum non-stop for two hours.

It was powerful; I mean that place just rang, Goode said. It touched everybodys soul.

She used to be part of a now disbanded drum circle in Pahrump organized by her late friend. Goode would like to see another drum circle formed, as would Rhonda Nelson, who met her at a recent craft show.

Nelson has two Native American wooden flutes and joined in accompanying Goode on her drums at the show.

It was pretty fun and it was interesting, Nelson said.

She said that some of the vendors stopped to say they really enjoyed the music, which was soothing and calming.

I would like to meet up with Nelda some other time and just sit around and play the flute and she can play the drum again and I think we would enjoy that, Nelson added.

Goode said a person does not need any type of special training to be a ceremonial drum player. Someone starts with a beat, or cadence and others join in.

You just kind of stay in rhythm with the other ones, but you dont have to do the same beat, you know, she said. Theres nothing to it and its a lot of fun.

For more information on Goodes ceremonial drums, having her drum at an event or forming a drum circle email her at: womanami2003@yahoo.com.
After making cuts to the sixth draft of the Basin 162 Groundwater Management Plan, Nye County commissioners turned it over to the Nye County Water District Governing Board for a review.

Nye County Commissioner Dan Schinhofen spearheaded the decision to move forward with the controversial plan, cutting eight of the items out and sending them to the WDGB during the Nye County commissioners meeting on Wednesday. As part of the motion, commissioners also dissolved the Basin 162 Groundwater Management Plan Advisory Committee that had drafted the plan.

The items that were bounced back to the WDGB included aggressive water education, adoption of a water conservation plan, construction of rapid infiltration basins (RIBs), creation incentives to voluntarily connect to public water systems, investment in existing and future development agreements, filling out charts with data, continuation of a water level measurement program and evaluation of redistribution of production well pumping.

Several other items that fall outside of the purview of the Nye County commissioners a were sent to Nevada State Engineer Jason King.

Among them were a requirement for meters on new domestic wells, limit on new domestic wells to 0.5 an acre foot per year, aquifer storage and recovery, allowing utilities to put back new infrastructure with PUC approval to reach more lots and the conservation credit program for water rights.

Everybody out there whos been concerned about us doing anything with current wells, we cant. We dont have any authority to do anything with Pahrump wells, Schinhofen said. The half-acre foot that was suggested, thats something we cant do.

General manager of Nye County Water District Darrell Lacy said the Basin 162 Groundwater Management Plan Advisory Committee had come up with a summary of recommendations to address the overallocation of water rights and the future water demand in Basin 162.

Many of the items that are being addressed in this (plan) are currently outside of the authority of Nye Countys Board of Commissioners, some are outside of the purview of the Division of Water Rights State Engineers Office and will require additional changes to groundwater law, Lacy said.

The plan was tabled in December after it had been in the works for nearly two years. During the Tuesday meeting, many Pahrump residents spoke against the plan, calling for its elimination.

We all want a plan that protects us, we dont want a plan that isnt for everybody. And right now, this plan really is not for everybody, and Im totally against passing any of this plan until its all right, Pahrump resident Amy Nelson said.

Pahrump activist Kenny Bent called the plan dangerous to domestic well owners and said it doesnt address the problem of growth, and the overallocation of the water rights.

What Id like to see is the board to go ahead and vote on this motion and vote it down and come back with another motion that eliminates this plan as a dangerous weapon, Bent said.

Prior to the vote, Commissioner Lorinda Wichman, whose husband Oz Wichman works as a contractor for the Nye County Water District Governing Board, made a disclosure stating that her household doesnt benefit from the passage of the plan.

This board does not direct any of the contracts for the water district, Wichman said. The board is voting on the plan. My household does not benefit from the passage of this plan and quite frankly, Im the only commissioner sitting up here who will not benefit from any passage or rejection of the plan either way. So therefore, I will be voting.

Commissioner Butch Borasky was the only one of the Nye County commissioners who voted against the plan.

I think we should get rid of it, I really do. Its not doing this community that much good, he said.

After the Nye County Water District Governing Board reviews the approved portions of the plan, they will be passed back to Nye County commissioners.

If the plan is approved, it will have to be submitted to the state engineer.

Contact reporter Daria Sokolova at dsokolova@pvtimes.com
The school board in Howard County, Maryland took the religious-diversity plunge last week by voting unanimously to close schools for the Hindu festival of Diwali, the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha and the Asian celebration of Lunar New Year.

Students in the suburban Maryland district already get days off for Christmas, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah.

Welcome to the new religious America  a pluralistic society where Protestants are no longer the majority and people of every conceivable faith and belief are increasingly visible in the public square.

For many religious and ethnic communities, a place on the school calendar symbolizes a place at the American table. Petitioning to add a religious or cultural holiday to the calendar is tantamount to asking public schools to finally live up to government neutrality among religions promised by the First Amendment.

Protestants, of course, have had pride of place on the school calendar from the beginning. As primary movers behind the founding of public education in the 19th century, Protestant leaders baked in accommodations for their faith: No school on Sunday, major Christian holidays off, and  until struck down by the Supreme Court in the 1960s  Protestant prayers and devotional Bible reading led by teachers.

Under the First Amendment as now applied by the courts, public schools must treat students of all faiths and beliefs with fairness and respect while remaining neutral among religions and between religion and non-religion. This means, among other things, that religious holidays cant be added to the school calendar for religious reasons  or simply to accommodate a particular faith. Religious holidays may only be added if there is a legitimate secular or educational purpose for doing so.

Thats why the choices made in Howard County are supposed to be based on numbers: If school officials can demonstrate that student and staff absentee rates will be high on certain holidays, then they have a valid secular argument for closing school on those days. But if the numbers arent there, the district is vulnerable to a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of adding holy days to the calendar.

Even with a clearly articulated secular purpose, Howard County will still face a conundrum as religious diversity expands in the district: When other groups ask for their holidays to be added to the calendar, can school officials say no after saying yes to others?

Howard County school board members are painfully aware of the all or nothing dilemma. Last fall, they considered denying requests for more holidays by removing Jewish holy days from the calendar and leaving in place only the closings mandated by state law: Christmas, Good Friday and Easter Monday. Not surprisingly, that proposal triggered a backlash that led to last weeks decision to go in the opposite direction by adding three more religious and cultural holidays celebrated by significant numbers of people in the school district.

If somehow the historical slate could be wiped clean, an equitable long-term solution might be no school closings on religious holidays, with the proviso that students of all faiths have a reasonable number of excused absences without penalty. For this arrangement to be seen as fair, however, the State of Maryland would need to repeal the law requiring school closings during Easter (Christmas would stay since it is also a national holiday).

As Howard County can attest, school calendar decisions can be messy and complicated in what is now one of the most religiously diverse societies in the world. But the changing calendar is also a healthy sign that the United States is learning how to level the First Amendment playing field for citizens of all faiths and beliefs.

Its about time. Religious monopolies like the one enjoyed for so long by Protestants in public schools are antithetical to religious freedom. We can disagree on how best to move from monopoly to diversity, but we should work together toward the shared goal of fairness and equity for all.

After all, the future of America is going to look very much like the school calendar in Howard County.

Charles C. Haynes is vice president of the Newseum Institute and founding director of the Religious Freedom Center.
Julie Allessee, the former president and CEO of the Clinton Area Chamber of Commerce, has returned to the position while the chamber searches for a new leader.

The chamber announced Thursday that Allessee will serve in the interim following the resignation of Nathan Sondgeroth, who is leaving to accept a new position with a Quad-City-based real estate investment firm after 3 years with the chamber. Sondgeroth's last day will be today.

Board chair Nate Krienbrink said Allessee will fill the vacancy on an interim, part-time basis over the coming months until a full-time person is hired. "Having an individual with Julie's credibility and the respect in the community is extremely important during this transition process," he said.

Allessee is a longtime Clinton resident, entrepreneur and public servant.

"I'm happy to return to the Chamber during the interim period continuing the programs and events that Nathan and the staff have put in place for the upcoming months,'' she said.

"The chamber and the community is in great hands with Julie coming back during this transition period," Sondgeroth said. "It speaks volumes about her dedication to our members and the entire Clinton area that she will be willing to provide day-to-day management while the next president and CEO is found and hired."

Sondgeroth joined the chamber in May 2012 after Allessee retired. He had served previously as economic development coordinator for the City of Davenport. Before that, he was involved in economic development with the Quad-Cities Chamber of Commerce.

He added that "Julie has been an enormous help to me from day one during my tenure at the chamber. We have always worked well together and will continue that relationship to ensure a smooth transition."

The 140-year-old chamber organization has more than 535 members in Clinton and Camanche, Iowa, and Fulton, Ill.
A Davenport man was sentenced Thursday to up to 20 years in prison for two separate shooting incidents last year.

Joshua C. Brewer, 19, pleaded guilty in November to willful injury resulting in serious injury, intimidation with a dangerous weapon, unauthorized possession of an offensive weapon, second-degree criminal mischief and reckless use of a firearm, an aggravated misdemeanor.

As part of the plea agreement, Scott County prosecutors dismissed additional charges of willful injury and going armed with intent.

Brewer declined to make a formal statement before Chief District Judge Marlita Greve handed down the sentence.

Per the plea agreement, Greve sentenced Brewer to up to 10 years in prison on the willful injury and intimidation charges. The sentences will run back-to-back.

The sentences on the remaining sentences will run at the same time, for a total of up to 20 years.

Brewer has 30 days to file a notice of appeal.

Police say Brewer shot an 18-year-old man and a 19-year-old woman with a sawed-off shotgun on Sept. 10 in the area of South Hancock Avenue.

He was arrested four days later at an apartment in the 1200 block of Marquette Street. Brewer, who was found in the attic, had a 12-gauge shotgun shell in his pocket, according to police.

A search of the apartment turned up a sawed-off shotgun in a bedroom closet, according to police.

At the time of the Sept. 10 shooting, Brewer had been out on bond in another case.

Police say on Aug. 18, Brewer, armed with a .45-caliber handgun, fired several rounds at another person in the 2600 block of Diehn Avenue.

During the exchange of gunfire between the two, Brewers gunfire struck two residences and a vehicle, causing $1,000 to $10,000 in damage, according to police.
A Rock Island man is heading to his second stint in federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Kenneth Russell, 34, was sentenced to eight years in federal prison Thursday during a sentencing hearing in U.S. District Court, Rock Island.

U.S. District Judge Sara Darrow also ordered Russell to spend on year on supervised release once his term of prison has been served.

Russell was arrested in May after a federal grand jury indicted him for possessing a Kel-Tec, PF-9, 9mm handgun in April. He pleaded guilty to the charge in September.

It is the second time Russell has been sentenced to federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

According to U.S. District Court, Davenport, electronic records, in December 2005, a federal grand jury indicted Russell for possessing a Taurus .38-caliber revolver.

He pleaded guilty to the charge and on Feb. 16, 2006, during a hearing in U.S. District Court, Davenport, U.S. District Judge Robert Pratt sentenced him to five years and three months in federal prison. Russell also served a term of two years on supervised release.

Russells criminal history includes two drug convictions in Champaign County (Ill.) Circuit Court, according to U.S. District Court, Davenport, electronic records.

On Feb. 24, 2000, Russell was sentenced to 30 months on probation after he was convicted of unlawful possession with the intent to deliver a controlled substance.

On Oct. 10, 2000, he was sentenced to eight years in the Illinois Department of Corrections after being convicted a second time of possession with the intent to deliver a controlled substance.

In August 2002, Russell pleaded guilty to a charge of unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon in Rock Island County Circuit Court. He was sentenced to three years in the Illinois DOC for that offense.
Davenport's longest-serving alderman thinks it is "irresponsible" for the city to consider any increases in fees or taxes.

The Davenport City Council has been meeting in a series of Saturday morning work sessions to iron out this year's operating budget after city staff suggested cutting $900,000, including a dozen city employee positions. The idea of tacking on a 3 percent utility franchise fee to residents' gas and electric bills was raised at one of those meetings.

Alderman Ray Ambrose, who has served the 4th Ward since 1997, scoffed Thursday at the idea of introducing the fee, which has come up before.

"With the economy the way it is, it's foolish and irresponsible to talk about raising fees and taxes," he said. "You don't stimulate the economy by raising fees and taxes."

Davenport Finance Director Brandon Wright recommended the 3 percent fee, which he said could equate to a MidAmerican Energy customer paying an additional $50 annually. If the City Council OKs the fee this year, it would take effect July 1.

Alderwoman Maria Dickmann, 2nd Ward, supports the fee.

"I'd rather see a city functioning than save $50 a year," Dickmann said.

Scott County Auditor Roxanna Moritz, a former 1st Ward alderwoman, also supports the fee, especially if it means saving public safety positions that are proposed to be eliminated.

"I'm terribly concerned about the fire department," Moritz told the council at the Jan. 9 budget session. "There's not enough manpower now. I want the police and fire departments taken care of. I want you to raise my taxes."

About 100 Iowa communities have utility franchise fees ranging from 1 percent to no more than 5 percent, and there are 10 more communities that will have fees take effect in the coming years.

Cities with franchise fees include Des Moines, 5 percent each on gas and electric; Iowa City, 1 percent each on gas and electric; Cedar Rapids, 2 percent each on gas and electric; Dubuque, 5 percent each on gas and electric; and Sioux City, 5 percent each on gas and electric. None of the Iowa Quad-City communities has the fee.

In the past several years, the number of cities adding a utility franchise fee has grown significantly as a way to gain additional revenue, said Mark Douglas, president of Iowa Utility Association, a nonprofit corporation formed in 1971 to work on behalf of the state's six investor-owned electric and natural gas companies, including MidAmerican Energy.

"There is no secret," Douglas said. "They're looking for revenue."

The Iowa Utility Association keeps a list of the communities with utility franchise fees on its website, at iowautility.org/city-franchise-fees.

Once a city council decides to add the fee, it moves forward to develop an ordinance that the association then signs off on, Douglas said. The city may then charge the fee on gross revenues that are generated by the franchisee.

State law prohibits municipalities from adding a fee greater than 5 percent.

The Davenport City Council has set a public hearing on the fiscal year 2017 budget for Feb. 17.
A roundup of legislative and Capitol news items for Thursday:

PIPELINE OPPONENTS: A couple dozen opponents of a proposed crude oil pipeline through Iowa rallied at the Iowa Capitol on Thursday. Members of the Bakken Pipeline Resistance Coalition gave prepared remarks and delivered a letter to Gov. Terry Branstad's office, calling on the governor to reject the pipeline project. The proposed pipelines would carry crude oil from oil fields in North Dakota to refineries in Illinois. It would traverse 343 miles and 18 counties in Iowa. Opponents of the pipeline cite concerns that a spill or leaks would harm the environment and the use of eminent domain to acquire land for a private company project. Supporters of the pipeline project also appeared at the rally. They say the pipeline would create construction jobs for Iowa and help the country reduce its dependence on foreign oil.

EDUCATION FUNDING: Republicans who control the Iowa House plan to debate a bill on Monday setting state supplemental aid to schools at 2 percent above current per-pupil spending, House Speaker Linda Upmeyer, R-Clear Lake, said Thursday. She said she expected "many amendments" would be offered during floor debate, but she expected Republicans to pass a bill dedicating an $80.1 million increase to K-12 schools base budgets. That's a 2 percent growth rate that is half of the 4 percent that majority Democrats in the Iowa Senate favor. Upmeyer expected the Legislature could reach a compromise sometime next week so schools know quickly what the "reliable and responsible" amount of state aid they can expect for budgeting in the next school year. "The worst thing we could do is come back and have to cut later. So we're sending over a number that fits within the budget, and we're pleased with that number," she said. Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs, pointed to results of a survey of Iowa school administrators showing they overwhelmingly support at least a 4 percent increase. "We'll make a decision when we get that bill where to go from there," he said. "We think 2 percent is inadequate. We think the governor's 2.45 percent was inadequate last year, so I think you can guess we're probably not going to settle for that."

NO SESSION FEB. 1: Iowa's Legislature will not be in session on Feb. 1 so Democratic and Republican lawmakers can attend their local precinct caucuses. House Speaker Linda Upmeyer, R-Clear Lake, said it is traditional for the General Assembly not to conduct business at the state Capitol on the day that Iowa conducts its first-in-the-nation caucuses that kick off both political parties' presidential selection process every four years. The Legislature has convened on caucus day in non-presidential election years, said Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs, but the standard practice has been not to require legislators to travel to Des Moines on the day when evening caucuses are scheduled in their hometowns. "This is effectively our primary for president, and all of us have strong feelings about that," Gronstal said. The House and Senate plan to convene on the Tuesday following caucus day, leaders said Thursday.

HOUSE SUBCOMMITTEE WORK: Three subcommittees in the Iowa House took up high-profile topics Thursday with mixed results. A three-member House judiciary subcommittee voted 2-1 to approve a bill seeking to take away state officials' legal authority to restrict gun owners' lawful use of weapons during state emergencies. House File 2044 would specify that state officials cannot prohibit, regulate or curtail lawful gun possession during a public disorder or disaster emergency proclamation. Current law allows state officials to suspend or limit the sale, transportation or dispensing of firearms, explosives, combustibles and alcohol under certain emergency management and security provisions. On a separate 2-1 vote, GOP members of a House transportation subcommittee declined to change state law governing the operation of vehicle headlights under certain conditions. House File 2019 would require the use of headlights or other lighting devices on vehicles at all times during inclement weather. Under current law, motor vehicles are required to display lighted headlamps when conditions, such as fog, snow, sleet or rain cause insufficient lighting to render clearly discernible people and vehicles on the highway at a distance of 500 feet ahead. And finally, Republicans on a House education subcommittee voted 2-1 to give school boards home rule in their districts to exercise powers not in conflict with state law as it would relate to the operation, control and supervision of their schools. Not included would be taxing powers that would remain the authority of the General Assembly.

SOLAR ADDED: The Governor's Wind Energy Coalition has added solar energy to its portfolio and adopted a new name to reflect its new focus. Officials said Thursday the renamed Governors' Wind & Solar Energy Coalition will now work to advance solar as well as wind energy, following a unanimous vote from member governors. "We are proud of Iowa's leadership in wind energy and we are also encouraged by the recent growth in solar energy," said Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, who is the current chairman of the bipartisan, 22-member coalition. "The addition of solar to the Coalition's portfolio represents a commitment to future economic and renewable energy growth, and further diversification of our nation's energy portfolio." Since its creation, the coalition has successfully supported policies that promote wind energy  including advocating for a long-term extension of the federal Renewable Energy Production and Investment Tax Credits. When the Governors' Wind Energy Coalition was formed seven years ago, wind energy resources supplied about 1 percent of the nation's electricity. Today, wind energy provides more than 5 percent of the nation's electricity needs and employs more than 73,000 Americans. Solar is expected to supply more than 3.5 percent of the nation's electricity by 2020.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: "I'm hoping that we have meaningful discussions, work in good faith to get this job complete because kind of taking our pencils and papers and dollars and standing in a corner is not going to be helpful to schools. So we need to focus on how we can move this forward and reach an agreement and reach certainty so the schools can plan their budgets."  House Speaker Linda Upmeyer, R-Clear Lake, in discussing prospects for a House-Senate compromise agreement on fiscal 2017 state school aid funding next week.

 Times Bureau
DES MOINES  A top Senate Democrat said Thursday she does not think Iowa will have the safeguards in place by March 1 to proceed with the change to privately managed Medicaid services, and she hopes federal regulators again will delay implementation of Gov. Terry Branstads modernization effort.

Absolutely, I do, Senate President Pam Jochum, D-Dubuque, said. We are still not ready. If I had my way, we would stop the whole thing from happening altogether.

Jochum said, however, the final decision rests with the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), which funds 55 percent of Iowas Medicaid program that covers 560,000 recipients. The agency spelled out requirements for state officials to meet in a readiness report when plans to switch management to private companies were moved back by two months.

The governor had planned to switch Iowas Medicaid system to private management Jan. 1, but federal officials told the state in December they didnt think Iowa was ready to transition its $5 billion Medicaid program to managed care and delayed the move until March 1.

CMS regulators have indicated they think they eventually will be able to grant waivers to allow three, possibly four, private companies to manage care to Iowas Medicaid clients.

But Jochum said she has concerns vulnerable Iowans may get shortchanged without proper oversight in place to head off problems regarding access to improved service and reimbursement reductions to local providers that cropped up in other states that privatized Medicaid service delivery. She also challenged the savings projections Branstad administration officials have attached to privatization.

Following Jochums remarks Thursday, Branstad spokesman Ben Hammes issued a statement saying the state was ready to move to managed care on Jan. 1. We are working hand in hand with CMS for a March 1 implementation date. But I would point out to Sen. Jochum that the delay has already cost the state savings and any additional delay will be savings lost.

Earlier this week, state Long-Term Care Ombudsman Deanna Clingan-Fischer told state lawmakers her office already is struggling to keep up with the volume of calls from Iowa Medicaid recipients who have questions about the change-over to managed care even with the addition of two staff members. She said best practices call for one ombudsman per 3,500 Medicaid clients.

A multi-agency work group issued a report earlier this month indicating Iowa would need to hire 134 additional workers and spend as much as $17 million more a year to properly expand ombudsman oversight of the switch to privatize Iowas Medicaid management, a level the governor called overkill.

On Thursday, Jochum said a $2 million alternative oversight plan or a phased-in approach might be more doable, and she hoped legislative Republicans would help forge a bipartisan funding and oversight package this session to foster the stated goals of improved health outcomes while better controlling spiraling Medicaid costs.

House Speaker Linda Upmeyer, R-Clear Lake, said House Republicans want to make certain the ombudsman has adequate staffing to respond to questions that legitimately belong to that office but many of the current inquiries should be handled by the providers.

Oversight questions will be addressed during the appropriations process, Upmeyer said, but the cost projection contained in the multi-agency work groups report was a staggering number and it was too early to predict where the Legislature would land on the oversight issue.

I think that number seems very large and that would take another really large bite out of the resources, she said.
Theyve talked about it, but Paul and Karen Rohlf arent ready to move out of their Davenport home theyve lived in now for 44 years.

I dont blame them. Their two-story, nearly 4,000-square-foot wood-frame abode sits along River Street just outside the Village of East Davenport in McClellan Heights.

We havent wanted to give up the view, said Karen, who takes a true sense of pride in her residence that overlooks the Mississippi River.

In recent weeks, however, the couple has grown tired of their newest neighbors: a gaggle of Canada geese.

In the afternoon on Monday, Paul, a 78-year-old retired urologist, said he noticed more than 200 of the birds had congregated across the street from his place at Lindsay Park.

They don't belong here, said Paul, who described them as a noisy nuisance, and subsequently attempted his best honking call in his kitchen. Theyre just unsightly in the park.

Jeff Harrison, conservation officer for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, said the lack of much snow and frozen water in the Quad-Cities has drawn huge flocks of the waterfowl to town.

If they have a food source and open water, theres no need for them to go farther south, added Harrison, whos currently investigating an incident in Bettendorf that resulted in the killing of seven Canada geese.

Paul said he wishes someone could thin the number of geese, he thinks now call his neighborhood home.

Harrison noted that the annual goose-hunting season ended locally on Jan. 8, and stressed that hunting is prohibited within Davenport and Bettendorf city limits.
The state of Iowa is moving quickly to privatize Medicaid. I am deeply concerned for the more than 560,000 Iowans on Medicaid, including 120,000 coping with life-altering disabilities, whose quality of life and future depend upon accessible health care.

You can see the numbers: businesses wanting a piece of the $4.2 billion Iowa Medicaid system; four out-of-state companies chosen to decide the future of Medicaid; nearly $500 million in added administrative costs. Well, behind all of these big numbers are real people. And today, tens of thousands of Iowans with disabilities are especially at risk because the current administration decided to outsource Medicaid. I believe we can and must do better.

We must ensure that Iowans who now use Medicaid have access to the health care they need, when and where they need it - period. While for some, privatization makes for good talking points in a political speech, the reality is the states outsourcing plan is simply moving too fast, with too much uncertainty and too many problems.

Recognizing that the administration had failed to meet the minimum requirements necessary for implementation, the federal government recently stepped in and ordered Iowa to slow down. And, one of the companies the state picked to run the program was thrown out by an administrative law judge for serious questions raised about the bidding process. Finally, no one promoting privatization can tell you when it will begin, how it will work, or whether Iowans with disabilities will have uninterrupted access to health care.

Some will make the argument that Medicaid is growing, and we dont want to handle it anymore. Well, Medicaid is growing because more people now have health care. Thats a good thing. For years, expanding access to health care was a bipartisan effort. In fact, Gov. Terry Branstad and I both signed laws making health care, including Medicaid, more accessible.

So, I am concerned that instead of continuing our efforts to make Iowa healthier, our leaders have decided to simply award Medicaid to private, out-of-state, for-profit companies that, by contract, will be allowed to nearly quadruple Medicaid administrative costs, costing millions of dollars but adding no benefit to those in the program.

In state after state, this kind of health care outsourcing has failed. Promises to lower costs, raise quality and improve access to care have been broken. Fraud and unethical or illegal medical practices have been alleged against these managed care companies, resulting in millions of dollars in fines and even prison sentences. Instead of a rush to privatization, lets learn from the mistakes of other states  and also from our own successes here in Iowa.

As an advocate for Iowans with disabilities, I encourage everyone to get involved on this issue  and to demand that our political leaders find a solution that works. Lets protect people who depend on Medicaid for their health care needs.

I urge Iowans to tell their Medicaid stories and to share their concerns with legislators by contacting them online or calling them at the Capitol The Senate can be reached at 515-281-3371. The House can be reached at 515-281-3221.

By working together, we can ensure a healthy future for all Iowans.
There has been a lot of political talk about guns, killings, murders, gun violence, and shots-fired lately. But perhaps on one point, Republicans, Democrats, gun-owners and gun-haters can all agree.

There is way too much killing and gun violence on TV. I am not just talking about cable; it is all over network TV. You cant watch a ball game without an ad for some show where someone is pointing a gun or shooting.

Lets take last Friday night for example. From 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., almost every show is about killing and murder - Undercover Boss, Blue Bloods, Hawaii Five-O, Criminal Minds, Mexicos Drug War, and even so-called news shows like Dateline NBC. That is just one evening.

Think about teens and pre-teens seeing this day after day, week after week and month after month. According to California State University, a child will see 40,000 murders, mostly by guns, before leaving high school. Is it any wonder children think it is acceptable, or even normal, to use a gun as a weapon? TV is giving them permission to kill.

We cannot, stop the violence, take back the night, make black lives matter, or end the killings, until we clean up what we see on TV. Are you listening WHBF, KWQC, WQAD, and KLJB-TV? How about it ABC, NBC, CBS and FOX-TV? Unfortunately, killing is all too common for our children on TV, in movies, and video games. Are you listening presidential candidates?

Steve Garrington

Davenport
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PIERRE | The South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Department (GFP) will host four weeks of workshops in Sioux Falls aimed at providing habitat information to interested landowners.

The workshops, titled Habitat University, provide landowners with practical and technical information on how to create winter cover, food plots, native grass seedings and other topics.

Landowners want more information about putting habitat on the ground, said Andy Gabbert, GFP habitat resource biologist. Putting together a series of workshops that can help interested agricultural producers will help them get the habitat information they are looking for.

Representatives from GFP, Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS), Pheasants Forever, the Minnehaha Conservation District and others will be available for presentations and questions at each workshop.

Habitat programs and resources are out there to help landowners with improving habitat on their land, said Gabbert. We know that not every program will work for every landowner. The options available for habitat are diverse and we want to provide another way of explaining these programs and resources with our partner organizations.

Online registration is preferred, but not required. Attendees can fill out the form online at http://habitat.sd.gov/workshops/default.aspx. The first 20 people to pre-register will receive a copy of the book, Ringnecked-Pheasants Thriving in South Dakota.

The workshops will be from 7-9 p.m. CST and held at the GFP Outdoor Campus in Sioux Falls on Feb. 18 and 24 and March 3 and 10. For a complete schedule of topics, visit http://habitat.sd.gov/workshops/default.aspx.

For more information, contact Andy Gabbert at 605.367.4411.

About Habitat Pays: Habitat Pays is a joint effort between the South Dakota Departments of Game, Fish and Parks and Agriculture to connect farmers and ranchers to the appropriate habitat resources and help them implement wildlife habitat where it makes the most sense.

Habitat Pays is designed to provide more information and education to assist landowners in designing, developing and funding habitat on their land; working directly with habitat advisors who possess the knowledge of federal, state and local programs.
During the Newell School Boards Jan. 18 meeting, the focus was firmly on the future. The board approved the 2016-2017 school calendar. Despite much discussion, the next school year will start prior to Labor Day.

The board also discussed ways to encourage students to use the Friday morning help sessions. At the suggestion of some teachers, the board moved the eligibility week from Monday-to-Monday to Tuesday-to-Tuesday so that any assistance student receive on Friday would be reflected.

The board appointed Leanne Wells and Matt Rolph to review the eligibility rules as published in the student handbook and review how the rules are being implemented and enforced.

The board approved the proposed changes to the policy manual with the exception of the tobacco policy, which was left unchanged. The changes will be uploaded onto the school website soon.

The board approved June 7, 2016 as the next board election date. This will coincide with the county primary election. The seats currently held by board members Don Alexander and Kim Jackson are to be contested.

In reports to the board, technology coordinator Aileen Brunner advised there were some surplus computers and equipment left. As this is the first year everything has not sold, she will research other ways of disposing of the items.

Special Education Director Kim Smeenk advised the board of the yearly child count. Approximately 20 percent of students in Newell are receiving some special education services.

Transportation and maintenance director Todd Komes advised the district the new van is performing nicely. He indicated issued continued with the Austin Auditorium showers, but they believe they have located the problem with mixer valves that contain a small thermostat. Replacing these valves is less expensive than trying to repair them.

K-8 Principal Barb Paulson advised the board the school Focus Grant had been approved but the funds have not yet been received. The Focus committee attended another Focus leadership seminar with a third training scheduled in February.

Superintendent Joel Hovland thanked Paulson for chaperoning the FFA trip. He also advised the board about the last staff development day where they discussed how testing standards affect curriculum. The next development day will discuss how to integrate the NWEA test results into the classroom.

In other business, the board referred discussion of open enrollment of two students to the executive session under personnel. They approved to surplus a 1992 Suburban and 1994 Suburban via sealed bids to be opened at the next regular business meeting.

The contract for a replacement speech language pathologist assistance was approved with renewal contingent on completing state certification by July 1, 2016. The board approved the FFA membership rules.

The board adjourned to an executive session to discuss personnel and legal issues.

The next regular board meeting will be Feb. 18 in the Multipurpose Room at 6:30 p.m.
KYLE | The family of a 24-year-old former Kyle man missing for 12 weeks says Bureau of Indian Affairs agents have been indifferent to his disappearance amid rumors that he was murdered and buried somewhere on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.

Alex Tank Gay, also known as Alejandro Tank Vazquez, a 5-foot-7, 200-pound Lakota, was last seen Oct. 29 near Kyle.

Its been more than two months and still not a word from him or help from anyone, said his cousin Misty Hernandez, 42, of Kyle. Weve been asking for help, and no one seems to care.

Vazquez had arrived back in South Dakota for a visit the weekend before Halloween from Dodge City, Kan., where he lived off and on with his father, Mario Vazquez, a mechanic at a packing plant. Since his return, the younger Vazquez had been staying with a brother, Angel, at his house five miles west of Kyle, Hernandez said.

His brother saw him on the 29th (of October) when he left a trailer house out in the country at 3 a.m., she said. His brother said he didnt say anything about where he was going, but a couple people saw him knocking on his brothers door in Kyle on Halloween morning. But, his brother didnt open up.

Since Tank Vazquez went missing, Hernandez said, the family had contacted the tribal presidents office, which in turn alerted BIA criminal investigators. Tribal police had searched several areas with ATVs but turned up nothing, and Hernandez said searchers had even used an airplane in their efforts, which were similarly unsuccessful.

Friends and family organized a search party, she added. It wasnt very big, because most people were too busy to help. Weve been trying to get it posted on news stations everywhere, but it doesnt seem like anyone is really wanting to get involved. Even search and rescue said theyd leave it up to the police.

Another search is planned for Sunday.

Calls from the Journal seeking comment from the Kyle Police Department on progress of the investigation into Vazquezs disappearance were referred to the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety and were later referred to BIA Agent Darrell Robinson at Pine Ridge, whose office then referred all media inquiries to BIA District Special Agent in Charge Mario Red Legs in Aberdeen, whose office in turn referred the calls to BIA Public Affairs Officer Nedra Darling in Washington, D.C., whose office informed the Journal that she was unavailable, but queries could be submitted in writing to two email addresses.

A half-dozen questions were submitted in writing to the BIA on Tuesday and receipt was confirmed by Darling but, as of Thursday afternoon, the Journal had received no BIA response to that query.

Ellen Fills The Pipe, an Oglala Sioux Tribal Council member representing the Medicine Root District and chairwoman of the tribes Law & Order Committee, said Wednesday that her committee had been informed of the continuing search for Vazquez, although she said the law enforcement officer who briefed them had not identified him by name.

We were informed of a missing male, that officers had been out with a search party, out with cadaver dogs, and had explored an area around the dam at Kyle, Fills The Pipe said. The search is still going on.

The councilwoman said she was concerned with the disappearance as well as the toll on tribal and BIA officers and agents involved in the search.

Our prayers go out to their families, and wishes of strength for them also, she said. Im concerned for the personnel who have to do the searching because it takes a lot out of you.

Tribal Councilman Chancy Wilson of Kyle said Thursday that he and OST Tribal President John Yellow Bird Steele had been briefed twice by police since Vazquezs disappearance, the last time right before Christmas.

Ive also talked to the family on a couple of occasions to see if we can do anything, Wilson said. I hope we can find Tank safe so his family can be at rest. I just hope that, wherever he is, that he is in good health.

Hernandez and the elder Vazquez said rumors about Tanks disappearance were running rampant on the reservation, and both were critical of BIA investigators who they said had not pursued obvious leads.

There are so many people talking that somebody did something to him and buried him outside of Kyle, Hernandez said. My biggest fear is just that the rumors might be true, that he was tortured.

The elder Vazquez said he thinks he knows who might have killed his son.

Ive got a pretty good idea, but I dont know if I can say it, Vazquez said.

I just hope they get caught, that someone provides that information, that this gets settled, and that someone gets arrested, he added.

Vazquez said his son was not particularly ambitious, was known as a heavy drinker, but had a good heart.

I think he got his nickname from one of his brothers, the father said sadly, speaking as if his sons fate were already sealed. He was built like a tank, and hed drink like a tank, too. But, he was a person who was full of life, a gentle man with a good heart. He cared a lot for his family. He was a good guy, but he had a drinking problem, though he was so full of life.
PIERRE | Low gas prices and two landmark Black Hills anniversaries  the 75th Sturgis Motorcycle Rally and the 50th Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup helped draw 13.7 million tourists to South Dakota in 2015, Secretary of Tourism Jim Hagen said on Thursday.

But, he added, tourism numbers apart from those events stayed strong into the fall for a "tremendous year" in which tourists spent nearly $3.8 billion. That was "the largest impact South Dakota's economy has ever seen from the visitor industry," according to a press release from Tourism South Dakota.

"You can feel it in the air," Hagen said. "It's palpable when you're having a good summer."

Gov. Dennis Daugaard said the number of visitors increased by nearly 3 percent over 2014. Roughly 13.3 million tourists spent just over $3.7 billion in 2014, according to a report prepared for the South Dakota Department of Tourism.

Tourism's contribution to South Dakota's economy climbed 6.1 percent in 2015, generating more than $270 million in state and local tax revenue and supporting more than 50,000 jobs, according to the department.

An estimated record of 739,000 people attended the Sturgis rally in late July and early August, and the Custer Buffalo Roundup, also attracted a record crowd of about 40,000.

Those two events alone, the press we got nationally and internationally just created a buzz about the Black Hills and Rapid City and the national parks, said said Julie Schmitz Jensen, executive director of the Rapid City Area Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Daniel Becker, of Ohio, spent several days in South Dakota as part of a roughly 2,300-mile road trip to explore a handful of states he'd never seen before. The 44-year-old custom cabinet designer said he watched the sun rise in the Badlands, took in Mount Rushmore National Memorial and saw his first buffalo when a half-dozen of them caused a traffic jam in Custer State Park in the western part of the state.

"It was just breathtaking," Becker said of the park scenery.

Visitors to Custer State Park were up 11 percent compared with the year before, and revenue was up about 14 percent, an official said. Craig Pugsley, park visitor services coordinator, said around rally time the park brought in over $200,000 more from motorcycles than during the same period last year.

"The weather throughout September and October was gorgeous," Pugsley said.

Daugaard said 2016 is expected to be another strong year for tourism as gas prices are projected to remain low. State officials are looking forward to the centennial of the National Park Service and the 75th anniversary of the completion of Mount Rushmore.

Robust 2015 numbers also mean the state has more money available to spend on advertising South Dakota for the following year, Daugaard said.

"Good tourism begets even better tourism," Daugaard said.

Jensen said Rapid City is well placed to take advantage of the National Park Service centennial, situated within an hours travel time of five national parks or monuments: Wind Cave, Jewel Cave, Mount Rushmore, the Badlands National Park and Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming.

I dont know of any other city in the nation that can lay claim to that, she said.
Russian soldier pleads guilty to killing family in Armenia

MOSCOW, January 22 (RAPSI) - Valery Permyakov, a soldier at a Russian base in the Armenian town of Gyumri, pleaded guilty to killing seven members of a family, RIA Novosti reported on Friday.

The family, including a six-month-old baby, was killed as a result of an armed assault on January 12, 2015.

Permyakov was arrested and later charged with the murder of two or more persons under the Armenian Criminal Code.

On August 12, Permyakov was found guilty of desertion, theft of weapons and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

The murder case was singled out for considering it in a separate procedure and passed to the Armenian authorities.

On October 13, Permyakov was found sane. According to experts, he was not in the heat of passion while committing the crime. He also could recognize the consequences of his actions.

On October 16, Permyakov was additionally charged with armed assault, home-invasion robbery and attempted border crossing.
Third criminal case opened against former Sakhalin governor Khoroshavin

MOSCOW, January 22 (RAPSI)  A new criminal case has been opened against Alexander Khoroshavin, ex-governor of the Sakhalin Region who stands accused of taking bribes, his lawyer Ivan Mironov told RAPSI on Friday.

Khoroshavin has been questioned as a suspect in the case connected with the Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk City Duma elections held in 2014, Mironov said.

Investigators announced in March 2015 that Khoroshavin and several other officials were arrested for allegedly taking a $5.6 million bribe to secure a contract to build a power unit for the Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk thermal plant.

Khoroshavin asked earlier either to place him under house arrest or to release him on 5-million-ruble bail, but the motion was dismissed.

Last April, Khoroshavin was charged in another criminal case with taking a bribe of at least 15 million rubles ($230,000) for providing credits on advantageous terms to one of the local businessmen. He pleaded not guilty.

President Vladimir Putin dismissed Khoroshavin from his post due to loss of trust in March 2015.
BUTTE - The trial for a Texas man accused of fatally shooting a Whitehall man and injuring two others has been set for Sept. 6.

Tony Dwade Sawyer, 48, is facing charges of felony deliberate homicide and two counts of felony attempted deliberate homicide. He appeared in court Thursday before Butte district court Judge Brad Newman wearing street clothes.

Sawyer pleaded not guilty at his December arraignment to killing Joe Powers, 37, and wounding two other men in a late-night shooting spree about 13 miles southeast of Butte on Nov. 3. He fled the scene on Fish Creek Road near state Highway 2 with what police say was the weapon as well as other firearms and was arrested by authorities a day later in Idaho Falls, Idaho.

Public Defender Ed Sheehy filed a motion for bail reduction Jan. 13. Sawyer is being held at the Butte-Silver Bow Detention Center on $1 million and has not been able to post bond. County Attorney Eileen Joyce said a response to the motion would be filed Monday.

Newman set a bail hearing for Thursday.

Sheehy also filed a notice Jan. 12 to introduce evidence at trial, arguing that Sawyer used justifiable use of force the night of the triple shooting.

His client reasonably believed such force was necessary to prevent imminent death or serious bodily harm to himself," Sheehy stated in the court document.

Family members of victim Joe Powers were seated in the courtroom Thursday. His mother declined to comment on the case.
HELENA  Before speaking in Helena on Thursday, Greg Gianforte walked into the office of Gov. Steve Bullock, who he hopes to unseat in this falls election, and hand-delivered a folder that contained a letter to his opponent and a pledge to not accept any money from political action committees.

I refuse to accept any campaign contributions from special-interest PACs, state and federal, read the first line of the pledge, released by Gianfortes campaign just a day after the Bozeman businessman formally announced he would seek the Republican nomination for governor and as he completed a two-day rally tour. I will tear up and/or return any special-interest PAC donations previously sent to my campaign. Montana voters deserve a clean campaign focused on the issues.

John Malia, who works in the Citizens Advocate Office, was at the reception desk outside Bullocks office when Gianforte arrived, saying simply that he was dropping it off for the governor. Malia said he gave the folder to Tracy Stone-Manning, Bullocks chief of staff.

Meanwhile, Bullock was in Billings, talking with students at City College at Montana State University-Billings about workforce development, joined by John Cech, deputy commissioner for academic and student affairs for the Montana University System and Department of Labor and Industry Commissioner Pam Bucy.

Its news to me, Bullock told a reporter there. Ill take a look ... and respond at that point.

On Thursday evening, Bullock affirmed his commitment to election transparency in a statement on the sixth anniversary of the disastrous Citizens United decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, which eliminated some restrictions on how corporations spend money in elections.

I will continue to fight for fair, transparent and accessible elections because I, along with all Montanans, believe that our elections should be decided by we the people  not by a small number of wealthy people who seek to hide their money and motivations, he said in the statement.

The incumbent governors campaign manager, Eric Hyers, did not say whether Bullock would sign the pledge and described it as an empty gesture from Gianforte, who donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to groups that fought against a 2015 bill that expanded campaign disclosure requirements.

Look, for Gianforte to be taken seriously, why doesnt he start by pledging he wont spend or funnel more than $1,300 of his own fortune into this campaign? Hyers said in a written statement. Heres a guy thats dumped hundreds of thousands of dollars into groups who lobbied against Montanas DISCLOSE Act. And a guy that has a Koch brothers PAC, Aegis PAC, soliciting funds on his behalf on this very day.

Aaron Flint, Gianfortes campaign spokesman, fired back.

Its a pretty simple pledge for the governor to sign or not to sign, he said. Particularly as the governor has been out there gallivanting all across the state using taxpayer dollars. It seems Bullock is trying to buy this race with taxpayer dollars because hes having a little trouble raising money.

Gianforte co-founded RightNow Technologies with his wife, Susan, and became a multimillionaire when Oracle purchased the company in 2012 for $1.8 billion. He has previously said they controlled about a quarter of the stock at the time of the sale, worth more than $300 million.

Montana Democrats have shadowed Gianfortes campaign stops throughout the state this week with their own news conferences about the businessmans candidacy.

In Helena, Democratic Party Director Nancy Keenan downplayed Gianfortes pledge, one she said the multimillionaire was well-positioned to make.

Hes a self-funder, he can write the check, Keenan said. So its pretty easy for him to say, Oh, were not going to take any money when he can write the check for millions and millions of dollars.

In his letter to the governor, Gianforte took a congenial, serious tone, sending Bullock warm greetings and hopes for a positive, spirited race.

I am committed to rejecting any special interest PAC money, he wrote. I simply wont cash their checks. Any checks sent my direction have already been returned, or torn up. ... Id ask that you join me in this effort.

Gianforte has not ruled out personally donating to outside political groups. If he did, Flint said Gianforte would not directly benefit from those contributions.

Campaign finance reports through the end of 2015 do not list any contributions to Gianforte from political action committees and all the refunds listed in his expenditures appear to be to individuals.

He brought in $162,771 between Aug. 17 and Sept. 30, and another $221,677 through the end of 2015, according to his reports. Of that, $12,814 were in-kind contributions from Gianforte himself. Additionally, several members of his family have donated the maximum contribution of $650 each.

On Bullocks most recent campaign finance report covering Oct. 1 through Dec. 31, he reported receiving $12,140 from 20 PACs and $216,042 in total donations during that time. On his prior filing covering July 1 through Sept. 30, he reported receiving $9,806 from 18 PACs and $283,779 total.

Gianforte started Thursday in a Hoven Equipment warehouse in Great Falls, where the lectern and 24 folding chairs were set up next to towering farm implements.

Supporters talked over coffee and maple bars as they waited. When Gianforte began to speak, his remarks were interrupted by applause, cheers and, at mention of the familys old Ford Bronco, a quip from the audience that elicited a chuckle from the candidate.

To the supporters gathered in Great Falls, his remarks were fresh even though Gianforte had given largely the same speech in Billings, Sidney, Lewistown and Kalispell a day earlier.

He vowed to remove job-killing business regulations, eliminate the business equipment tax, support gun rights, develop the states natural resource industries and focus more on customer service than enforcement, in part, by placing someone from industry or business at the helm of state agencies such as the Department of Environmental Quality.

Im here to tell you very definitively, Montana can prosper again, he said to applause.

Gianforte declined to answer media questions, saying: Were going to have time to sit down. Today, Im here for my supporters.

The candidate also made stops in Missoula, at Advanced Technology Group downtown, and Bozeman on Thursday.

Holly Michels and James DeHaven contributed to this report.
Kathy Miller has worked with the Marcus Daly Imaging Department for the past 27 years as lead mammographer, breast health educator, and aid for mammography advocate for Ravalli County and surrounding areas.

She retired Jan. 1.

Earlier this week the Marcus Daly Mammography Department celebrated her contributions.

I am retiring but I want women to still get their yearly mammogram, Miller said. The women of the community all have a special place in my heart. I wish them health and happiness and to get their yearly mammogram and do the breast self-exam each month.

Drew Hayward, imaging department head, said Miller has been a key asset at the Hamilton hospital.

We value Kathy and thank her for bettering our services and for her commitment to the cause, Hayward said.

The hospital has made great improvements over 27 years with the biggest change in 2006 when Marcus Daly changed from film to digital imaging for the mammography unit, he said. At that time, they also remodeled to include a womens suite with private dressing and waiting rooms and a crossover with mammogram and ultra sound.

Last year the hospital added a new imaging machine, stereotactic biopsy, 3D imaging, and a larger field of view  reducing the number of images needed for women with larger breasts.

Now the hospital offers complete breast care services and we are continuing to offer during-business-hours radiology reads reducing call backs, saving time delays and reducing patient stress, Hayward said. We transitioned staff and Kathy Miller was able to retire and Judy Rothie has assumed the role of the lead mammographer. We added Rochelle as our second mammography tech  she has a ton of experience.

Rochelle Leishman is a registered technologist and registered mammographer with over 20 years of experience in mammography.

I used to work at Marcus Daly in 2000 when we moved to the valley, Leishman said. People come in and are nervous about having a mammogram and what they are going to find. I want to be a calming, reassuring personality, who makes them feel comfortable. Sometimes just getting their mind off what is going on is a positive distraction and they arent noticing the compression quite so much.

Leishman said she values the fact the hospital offers a same-day result service because it offers peace of mind.

If the results are normal I can go enjoy the rest of my day and if its not and theres something else that needs to be done I dont have to worry for two weeks until I can get another appointment. I can have it done that day and know whats going on, Leishman said. This is a unique service and very, very nice.

Judy Rothie, lead mammographer, agreed.

Patients love getting their results the same day, Rothie said. We have women making the drive from out of state because it is so worth it to them to find out the same day. Plus, we get to spend more time with our patients than average mammography units because the administration and our radiologist allow us to take the time with the women to make them feel comfortable. It is very important.

Miller said it has always been the policy and standard for Marcus Daly to give same-day results and provide for longer appointment times.

Rothie said Leishman is a great addition to the team because she has worked at the hospital before and has a passion for people.

There is a loss for our facility with Kathys retirement but theres a gain with Rochelle, Rothie said. People come and say Im so glad I get to spend time with you and theres a connection. Its not just an exam.

Miller agreed that Leishman is a great fit in the department.

I worked with her when she worked here before and I was impressed by her compassion, Miller said.

Rothie said it is exciting to be part of changing the outcome for women.

Find breast cancer early and it is not such a gloom and doom diagnosis. We want stories to have a happy ending, Rothie said. If you catch breast cancer early, it is curable. The standards with the American College of Radiology and the American Cancer Society are not changing. Please, dont let anyone talk you into not having this done yearly.

Miller is retiring to spend time with her children and grandchildren but will continue helping with the Aid for Mammography Fund and Sprinkle Pink fundraising and community awareness.

There was no fund for women who could not afford a mammogram 27 years ago, Miller said, adding shes proud of improved access to health care for the community.

We got help from other agencies for uninsured and under-insured, Miller said. Marketing came on and the community helped us get those funds because we still have so many women that cant afford a mammogram. Women are aware now that they can get help and so there isnt one woman in the valley that should ever go without a mammogram because they dont have funds. The funds are here for them.

Community member Sarah Fryer said Miller has been a bright light in tough situations.

Kathy may not realize how special she is to so many people because she has been there during very stressful times in our lives, Fryer said. Having a mammogram is a very personal experience and she made the process comfortable. She helped me through tough times and was very comforting.

Kathy has been the face of mammography, Rothie agreed.

It is time for new faces, Miller said. Please, support the new experienced, compassionate team that we have at Marcus Daly.
Back in 2014, David G. Dahl was told he had one last chance to turn his life around.

On Wednesday, that chance went away.

The 56-year-old Hamilton man was sentenced Wednesday to 20 years in a Montana Department of Corrections operated prison with 10 years suspended on two drug counts.

Ravalli County District Judge Jeffrey Langton also tagged him as a persistent felon, which means he will have to spend at least five years in prison.

When Dahl was arrested last September with $700 worth of methamphetamine, he was on felony probation for his third domestic abuse conviction that occurred in 2014.

In that first case, Dahl was arrested after his then 7-year-old daughter ran into a bar where she urged a woman to call the police after seeing her father hit his girlfriend. The young girl said she was worried about her younger brother.

At his 2014 sentencing hearing, Dahls public defender told Langton that her client had reconciled with his girlfriend and the couple had abstained from drinking alcohol. She said Dahl also had completed an anger management course.

The public defender also said that Dahls children remained in his care because their mother was in prison.

A plea bargain agreement in the 2014 case allowed Dahl to stay out of jail as long as he didnt break the law again for the next five years.

The prosecutor in the case told him it was his last chance to get his life in order.

A little over a year later, Hamilton police found Dahl in possession of five grams of methamphetamine at the home he shared with his wife and their children.

At his sentencing hearing Wednesday, Dahl told Langton that he had been on the right track, but then something came into my life and I fell again.

Ravalli County Deputy Attorney Angela Wetzsteon said Wednesday that Dahl has never had a period of compliance when he lived in the community.

Ravalli County Detention records show that hes been arrested 13 times since 2011 on charges that range from partner/family member assault to being a habitual traffic offender.

Langton noted his long criminal history, including convictions for burglary and parole violations before he moved to Ravalli County.

His level of addiction is not treatable, Langton said at the hearing. He does pose a danger to the public. The risk of severing his parental relations with his children was not enough to stop him.
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About me Karel Steenbrink This is the website of Karel Steenbrink born in Breda 16 Jan. 1942. Professor Emeritus Intercultural theology, Utrecht University. Relindonesia wants to give reports, messages and opinions about the development of religion in Indonesia. Steenbrink wrote his doctoral dissertation 1974 about Islamic Education in Modern Indonesia. He taught in Jakarta and Yogyakarta between 1981-1988. From 1989 Steenbrink worked at Utrecht University, where he taught Islam, but also Christianity in Asia. He wrote three volumes on Catholics in Indonesia (Leiden: KITLV, 2003 and 2007, 2015) and edited together with Jan Aritonang the 1004 pages classical History of Christianity in Indonesia (Leiden: Brill). He wrote in Dutch a commentary on the short suras 79-114 (De Korte Hoofdstukken van de Koran), on the Jesus Verses of the Qur'an, and a commentary of Surat al-Baqarah. A Dutch language weblog is placed as http://karelsteenbrink.blogspot.com Mijn volledige profiel tonen
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The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Powers first series has come to an end. The Amazon spinoff series addressed at least a...
Sagarmatha Network Pvt. Ltd. is the organization dedicated in the field of printing, publishing service since 2001. As part of media, we've been publishing Review Nepal, an English medium weekly registered at District Administration Office (DAO) Kathmandu with registration number 130-162-163 and reviewnepal.com as an online digital newspaper, with registration number 849-075-076 at Department of Informational and Broadcasting (DIB) from Kathmandu, Nepal since 2003.
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EWB-USA Rutgers Guatemala Team updates friends, family and fans about the progress of the project with our Central American neighbors in the community of Chi Elias in Totonicapan, Guatemala.
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The Rev. Chuck Arnold is pastor of Valley of the Flowers United Church of Christ in Vandenberg Village. He can be reached at 733-3333.
About Me Kay Hardy Campbell I'm a freelance writer based in Maine. I lived in Saudi Arabia for many years. I studied Arabic in college eons ago and married my college sweetheart, a fellow Arabic student. My first novel, A CARAVAN OF BRIDES, is set in Saudi Arabia. I'm working on my second novel while writing feature stories about the Middle East. I am also the co-founder and Administrative Director of the Arabic Music Retreat. View my complete profile

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The Financial Times looks at the Ups and Downs of the decision to leave the EU and ITV looks at how poorer people are coping with the mess of the British...

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When sales were down at Louisiana Creole Gumbo a couple years ago, owner Joe Spencer turned to Detroit's small business support system for help. Now he's opening a second location among other ambitious plans.
Back in 2007, small business owners Liz Blondy and Claire Nelson launched Open City to serve as a forum to discuss the opportunities and challenges of starting a business in Detroit. Over the last seven years, Open City has helped shape the local entrepreneurship movement into a community.On Monday, October 20 at 6:00 p.m., the eighth season of Open City kicks off at Cliff Bell's in downtown Detroit with an event entitled "It Takes a Village: Working Together to Grow Your Business." The following people will participate in a panel discussion:Garret Koehler (moderator) - ASSEMBLE Ebony Rutherford - Trish's Garage Sebastian Jackson - The Social Club Grooming Company Mandisa Smith - Detroit Fiber Works Herman Jenkins - The Collective Detroit The discussion begins at 6:30 p.m. followed by a Q&A and casual networking.Open City is a program of the Build Institute , an organization that helps people turn their business ideas into reality by providing them with the necessary tools, resources, and support network in Detroit. Build Institute spun off of D:Hive Detroit earlier this month.For more details about "It Takes a Village" and other upcoming Open City events, visit Open City's Facebook page
A couple of tech startups in Ann Arbor are making a splash with some big headlines. Millendo Therapeutics reports that it has raised a $62 million Series B investment round, setting a new record for venture capital investment in Michigan. Duo Security also is reporting 200 percent revenue growth for 2015 over the previous year. Both are banner headlines for a couple of Ann Arbors most promising growth firms.Millendo Therapeutics, formerly Atterocor, is a biopharmaceutical firm working on treatments for endocrine diseases. The University of Michigan spinout is focused on developing novel, disease-modifying treatments for specialty and orphan endocrine diseases caused by hormone dysregulation. It recently signed an exclusive license agreement with AstraZeneca for the worldwide development and commercialization rights to test a new compound for the treatment of polycystic ovary syndrome.Millendo Therapeutics Series B investment round will fund clinical trials for that new compund and expand its testing of the drug ATR-101, a treatment for adrenal cancer patients. Among the investors in the Series B is the University of Michigan MINTS (Michigan Investment in New Technology Startups) program.Duo Security also announced some big growth news in its recent revenue gains. The downtown Ann Arbor-based company specializes in providing cloud-based access security through two-factor authentication. Last sprung Duo Security launched its Platform Edition , which builds on two-factor authentication to offer cloud security and endpoint visibility.Over the last year, Duo Security has doubled its customer base, serving a broad spectrum of companies and institutions including American Public Media, Duke University, DraftKings, and King.com, the makers of Candy Crush. Duo Security analyzed nearly 2 million devices with 1 million users, and handled nearly 2 million authentication events per day by the end of last year."It's all about ease of use and keeping our customers happy," Dug Song, CEO and co-founder of Duo Security, said in a press release. "We're passionate about continuing to be the most loved company in security. People are feeling the pain of the cumbersome security products and we're here to make it painless for them."Source: Millendo Therapeutics and Duo SecurityWriter: Jon Zemke
It's the dead of winter (19 degrees Fahrenheit at the time of this writing), but we at Model D just got got really excited for Memorial Day weekend, the unofficial kickoff of summer. That's because local event production company Paxahau just announced that legendary German electronic music pioneers Kraftwerk will be headlining this year's Movement Electronic Music Festival. Kraftwerk has never played Movement, which is celebrating its 10anniversary this summer, though they've performed in Detroit sporadically over the last 35 years. Listen to their first ever Detroit concert, which took place on July 25, 1981 at Nitro, a now-defunct club that was located in a shopping mall at Telegraph and Schoolcraft on the city's west side:By all accounts, Kraftwerk's most recent Detroit show, which took place Oct. 6 at the Masonic Temple, was a real crowd pleaser. The Detroit News's Adam Graham described the performance, which involved audience members wearing 3D glasses, as "eye popping." According to a press release by Paxahau, Kraftwerk's upcoming performance at Movement will also incorporate 3D elements.Detroiters who attended the October show's after party at MOCAD were treated to DJ sets by Detroit techno legends Kevin Saunderson, Juan Atkins, and Eddie Fowlkes, as well as a surprise appearance by Kraftwerk members.Kraftwerk has often been cited by the pioneers of Detroit techno as a critical musical influence since the group's music was first introduced to Motor City audiences by the Electrifying Mojo, a legend of local radio. Members of Kraftwerk, meanwhile, were recently quoted in Rolling Stone as saying that they feel a "spiritual connection" to Detroit.Movement is celebrating its 10anniversary this year. Other acts scheduled to perform at the 2016 festival, which will take place at Hart Plaza in downtown Detroit over Memorial Day weekend (May 28-30) include Caribou, For Tet, Carl Craig, Kevin Saunderson, Juan Atkins, and more. Visit movement.us for details.
Ever want to own a chicken but don't know where to start? Or don't have the time to build a coop? Perhaps you live in a city and don't know whether owning a hen to lay fresh eggs every day is allowed?A new Chelsea-based company believes it can provide the answers to these chicken questions and more. My Urban Hen plans to rent hens to urbanites in a turnkey fashion so they can enjoy their own fresh eggs."We always have friends who live in the city who say they always wanted to own chickens but couldn't," says Erin Zempel, co-owner of My Urban Hen . "It was too much work or they didn't know where to start."My Urban Hen wants to help people satisfy that urge with minimal labor. The company plans to rent chickens to people chickens for a summer season, providing the chickens, coop, feed, and other intangibles so the customer can harvest fresh eggs each day. Zempel and her family will make the coops and provide the rest of the materials from their farm near Chelsea."We will bring everything you will need," Zempel says. "You will not need to go to the store at all."Having your own chickens has become more popular with the rise of the slow-food and urban agriculture movements. More and more people have demanded the right to have a small coop to raise chickens and other small, low-impact farm animals. So much so that dense cities like Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti have amended their regulations to allow for it.My Urban Hen will allow customers to rent two egg-laying hens for a $400 annual fee and four hens for a $500 fee. The customers not only get to keep the hens but the coop and a spring/summer/fall's worth of feed during the warm months from April to November. The hens get to return to the Zempel farm during the cold months. The customers also have the option of adopting the chickens and buying the coop.An average, healthy hen lays an egg each day, so My Urban Hen's offerings could provide enough eggs for everyone from a single person to a small family. There are also other options, like providing the hens with organic or GMO-free feed for an extra charge. The company plans to offer the chickens in local cities that allow for chickens, like Ann Arbor, Chelsea and Ypsilanti.Source: Erin Zempel, co-owner of My Urban HenWriter: Jon Zemke
 "Pulling Leviathan's Teeth  The Political Economy of Death Penalty Abolition" | Main | "Why hasnt President Obama granted clemency to a single Latina inmate?" 

As regular readers should now know, debate over mens rea reforms for federal offenses has become the latest hot-button issue in the extended discussions inside the Beltway concerning statutory federal sentencing reform. On the terms of the statutory debate in Congress and with the White House, the federal mens rea debate is quite interesting and important. But this interesting new commentary by sociology professor William Kelly, titled "Rethinking Criminal Intent: Why 'Mens Rea' Matters," provides an even richer perspective on what deeper mens rea concerns might entail. I recommend the full piece, and here is a taste:

I believe the debate has so far sidestepped one of the more troubling impacts of mens rea on our justice system. I agree that there is a valid question about whether citizens can be aware of all federal crimes. But the problem associated with mens rea is much broader than just the question of whether someone is knowingly breaking the law. My concern is with the psychological, neurological, psychiatric, and intellectual ability or capacity of many offenders to form the required criminal intent.

Criminal intent or criminal responsibility requires awareness, conscious will, volition, and rational decision making. There is a routine presumption, which is rarely challenged, that criminal offenders have the ability to form intent. I challenge that presumption. Here is why.

Today, 40 percent of individuals in the U.S. criminal justice system (federal and state) have a diagnosable mental illness. Sixty percent of inmates in the nations prisons have experienced at least one traumatic brain injury. Nearly 80 percent of justice-involved individuals have a substance abuse problem. The prevalence in the justice system of individuals with intellectual disabilities is three to five times what it is in the general population. There are substantial numbers of individuals in the justice system with neurodevelopmental and neurocognitive deficits and impairments.

Moreover, theres overwhelming evidence that many individuals with mental illness, addiction, neurodevelopmental deficiencies, and intellectual deficits lack the ability to form intent as it is defined in the law. How many lack this ability we dont really know, because we rarely inquire about intent. But the statistics cited above should raise serious questions about how we go about the business of criminal justice in the U.S.

In the vast majority of state and federal criminal convictions, the government rarely is required to prove intent. Thats because the vast majority of criminal indictments (roughly 95 percent) are resolved through a plea agreement. If the offender agrees to the terms of the agreement, its essentially a done deal. That puts prosecutors in charge of sorting out who is criminally responsible and who is not. At the end of the day, the vast majority are held responsible.

Mens rea is supposed to serve as a gatekeeper at the front door of the justice system, separating innocent from criminal behavior. The reality is that criminal intent is just not much of an issue under current criminal procedure. That in turn has significantly contributed to our incarceration problem by facilitating the punishment of more and more individuals.

It has also contributed to our recidivism problem. When we punish mentally ill, addicted, intellectually disadvantaged and/or neurocognitively impaired individuals, we tend to return them to the free world in worse shape than when they came in. This is simply more grease for the revolving door.
 Will FBI child porn operations generate same controversy as Fast and Furious? | Main | "Incarceration Incentives in the Decarceration Era" 

January 22, 2016

Over dissent of Justice Breyer, Alabama goes forward with its first execution in years

As reported in this lengthy local article, headlined "Alabama executes Christopher Eugene Brooks for 1992 murder of Jo Deann Campbell," Alabama got its capital punishment tide rolling again last night. Here are some of the details:

Alabama death row inmate Christopher Eugene Brooks was executed Thursday night for the 1992 slaying of a Homewood woman after the U.S. Supreme Court denied his request for a stay of execution. Brooks was pronounced dead at 6:38 p.m. in the execution chamber at the Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore. He was the 57th death row inmate executed in Alabama since executions resumed in 1983 after an unofficial more than decade-long nationwide moratorium ended. He was the first person executed in Alabama since 2013.... After the execution Alabama Prison Commissioner Jeff Dunn said the execution with the controversial sedative drug midazolam "went exactly as planned." Brooks did not appear to struggle during the administration of the drugs. His attorneys and other inmates had claimed the first drug in the cocktail does not put the condemned inmate in deep enough sleep to prevent pain when the other two drugs are administered. Dunn said that there are no other executions currently planned, but the prison system does have the drugs available to conduct more. He said the same drug combination has been used in other states. Dunn also read letters from victim Jo Deann Campbell's two sisters and mother, all of whom witnessed the execution. Mona Campbell, her mother, said the execution does not give her closure and will not bring back her youngest daughter. She said she hoped Brooks had "made peace with God." Jo Deann's sister, Fran Romano and Corinne Campbell also issued statements. "Just as God forgives me for my sins I pray for mercy for this man's soul," Corinne wrote.... Minutes before he was to die, word spread that the U.S. Supreme Court had denied Brook's request to stay the execution. Justice Stephen Breyer dissented from the ruling. Dunn said prison officials were notified of the justices' decision at 5:55 p.m., five minutes before the execution was scheduled to begin.... The request for the stay was made to Justice Clarence Thomas. Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg concurred with Thomas' decision to deny the stay. Brooks, 43, was convicted in the December 1992 rape and murder of 23-year-old Jo Deann Campbell. Investigators linked Brooks to the crime through DNA, fingerprints, and Campbell's car and other items taken from her Homewood apartment, including a credit card he had used. Her partially clothed body had been found under her bed and she had been beaten with a barbell. Brooks was one of 187 inmates on Alabama Death Row. Twenty-two have served longer than Brooks on death row. Alabama changed its drug combination for executions in 2014 after it and other states reported they could no longer find supplies of the drugs it had used in the past, mainly because manufacturers did not want their drugs used in executions.

The SCOTUS order denying a stay in this case is available at this link, and here is the text of the concurrence and dissent:

January 22, 2016 at 08:58 AM | Permalink

Comments

Why would Justice Breyer decide to sentence the victim's family to more heartache? There's no good argument for retroactivity, and the appeals are long done. Basically, it's mercy for a brutal killer. It's scary that there is such a lack of a moral compass in a member of the Supreme Court.

Posted by: federalist | Jan 22, 2016 9:11:15 AM

It would be cheaper to kill all inmates locked up for murder. But only cheaper if there were quick mass executions on the first Sunday after the Revolution. Shoot em in their cells.

Posted by: Liberty1st | Jan 23, 2016 10:40:56 AM

federalist, I agree. Mercy has no place in our system of criminal justice.

Posted by: Dave from Texas | Jan 23, 2016 11:13:13 AM

I agree with Dave From Texas. No mercy. So, when you killers which includes citizens of states which kill in the name of all of the people of the Great State of Texas, go to meet your maker at the Pearly Gates for the interview you will hear from Saint Peter: "Straight to Hell!"

I heard this from another fellow on this blog or on the Turleyblog. I am from Planet Remulak and am just here to hear and learn.

Posted by: Beldar From Remulak | Jan 24, 2016 10:30:53 AM

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 A much deeper (too deep?) dive into mens rea and its place in criminal justice reform | Main | Will FBI child porn operations generate same controversy as Fast and Furious? 

January 21, 2016

"Why hasnt President Obama granted clemency to a single Latina inmate?"

The question in the title of this post is the headline of this recent Fusion commentary authored by Jason Hernandez. Here are excerpts from his commentary:

Last month, President Obama announced a new series of pardons and commutations for federal prisoners, just like he has for the past three years, just before the First Family leaves for their Christmas vacation. Since he took office, Obama has commuted the sentences of 184 federal prisoners, many of whom were sentenced to life without parole for nonviolent drug crimes.... On December 19, 2013, I was one of the people he chose. At the time, I was serving a life sentence for a nonviolent drug crime. In total, I spent 17 years behind bars for a crime committed at age 21. I was the first Latino man to receive clemency from President Obama, and I will be eternally grateful that he gave me a second chance. But Im baffled that of the 184 individuals who have received his mercy in the last seven years, not one has been a Latina. Latinas make up about 17% of the U.S. population and 33% of the womens federal prison population. They are three times more likely to go to prison than white women. And the number of Latinos sent to federal prison nearly quadrupled between 1991 and 2007. Theres no shortage of worthy Latina candidates for a presidential clemency. Take, for example, Elisa Castillo, a 56-year-old grandmother who unknowingly smuggled cocaine on tour buses from Mexico to Houston. Because she had no information to negotiate a plea bargain with, she was indicted for conspiracy, went to trial, and received life without parole. Then theres Rita Becerra, who was arrested because of her involvement with her boyfriends drug dealing. Rita cooperated with the prosecution against her boyfriend, but because he cooperated too, he got just nine years and Rita 27 years  she has been in prison over 20 years. And Josephine Ledezma, who in 1992 was sentenced to life without parole for a nonviolent drug crime: she is now 57 and has been in prison 24 years. President Obama has urged members of Congress to reform our broken criminal justice system and spoken eloquently about racial disparities in sentencing. One might want to blame him for failing to help incarcerated Latinas like these women, but the Latino community shoulders the blame as well. To my great disappointment, Latino groups like the National Council of La Raza or LULAC have not only remained silent about the presidents failure to commute the sentence of a single Latina, but also havent done enough to highlight the abuses of the War on Drugs more generally. This is a disgrace. The War on Drugs should be called the War on Minorities. Harsh drug sentencing has deeply hurt the black and hispanic communities, especially our children. Studies show our drug policies have done more harm than good by breaking up families and decimating communities of color. Brown lives matter, too.

January 21, 2016 at 07:35 PM | Permalink

Comments

"Why hasnt President Obama granted clemency to a single Latina inmate." Perhaps because he realizes that being Latina is not a legitimate criteria for clemency. Nor is being any other racial characteristic.

One doesn't have to read very far in this commentary to realize the author is not being straight about the facts. He claims that "Elisa Castillo, a 56-year-old grandmother who unknowingly smuggled cocaine on tour buses from Mexico to Houston. Because she had no information to negotiate a plea bargain with, she was indicted for conspiracy, went to trial, and received life without parole." One cannot be convicted of a conspiracy to smuggle drugs unknowingly. Something has to give here. Also since when is being a grandmother a criteria for clemency. Multi generational reproductive capability seems to be a weak indicator of true rehabilitation.

What is really disappointing here are advocates who seem to think that the system is improved by legitimizing the consideration of race in discretionary decisions. All they will get is more varied and more arbitrary results from case to case. Most people don't call such a system fair.

Posted by: David | Jan 21, 2016 11:14:04 PM

I note the author himself was granted clemency by Obama and is likely surely aware of the thousands of pending clemency petitions. I am certain that he will get his Latina clemency wish granted sometime within the next 365 days.

Posted by: David | Jan 21, 2016 11:20:15 PM

Because there hasn't been a black nominee of an Oscar in two years?

Posted by: Daniel | Jan 22, 2016 12:25:57 PM

How many Hawaiians has he pardoned?

Posted by: Liberty1st | Jan 23, 2016 10:44:16 AM

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 "Why hasnt President Obama granted clemency to a single Latina inmate?" | Main | Over dissent of Justice Breyer, Alabama goes forward with its first execution in years 

January 22, 2016

Will FBI child porn operations generate same controversy as Fast and Furious?

The question in the title of this post is prompted by this new USA Today report headlined "FBI ran website sharing thousands of child porn images." Here are the basics from the article:

For nearly two weeks last year, the FBI operated what it described as one of the Internets largest child pornography websites, allowing users to download thousands of illicit images and videos from a government site in the Washington suburbs. The operation  whose details remain largely secret  was at least the third time in recent years that FBI agents took control of a child pornography site but left it online in an attempt to catch users who officials said would otherwise remain hidden behind an encrypted and anonymous computer network. In each case, the FBI infected the sites with software that punctured that security, allowing agents to identify hundreds of users. The Justice Department acknowledged in court filings that the FBI operated the site, known as Playpen, from Feb. 20 to March 4, 2015. At the time, the site had more than 215,000 registered users and included links to more than 23,000 sexually explicit images and videos of children, including more than 9,000 files that users could download directly from the FBI. Some of the images described in court filings involved children barely old enough for kindergarten. That approach is a significant departure from the governments past tactics for battling online child porn, in which agents were instructed that they should not allow images of children being sexually assaulted to become public. The Justice Department has said that children depicted in such images are harmed each time they are viewed, and once those images leave the governments control, agents have no way to prevent them from being copied and re-copied to other parts of the internet. Officials acknowledged those risks, but said they had no other way to identify the people accessing the sites. We had a window of opportunity to get into one of the darkest places on Earth, and not a lot of other options except to not do it, said Ron Hosko, a former senior FBI official who was involved in planning one of the agencys first efforts to take over a child porn site. There was no other way we could identify as many players. Lawyers for child pornography victims expressed surprise that the FBI would agree to such tactics  in part because agents had rejected them in the past  but nonetheless said they approved. These are places where people know exactly what theyre getting when they arrive, said James Marsh, who represents some of the children depicted in some of the most widely-circulated images. Its not like theyre blasting it out to the world.... But they have also prompted a backlash of a different kind. In a court filing, a lawyer for one of the men arrested after the FBI sting charged that what the government did in this case is comparable to flooding a neighborhood with heroin in the hope of snatching an assortment of low-level drug users. The defense lawyer, Colin Fieman, asked a federal judge to throw out child pornography charges against his client, former middle school teacher Jay Michaud. A federal judge is scheduled to hear arguments on that request Friday. Fieman said more than 100,000 Playpen registered users visited the site while it was under the FBIs control. The Justice Department said in court filings that agents had found true computer addresses for more than 1,300 of them, and has told defense lawyers that 137 have been charged with a crime, though it has so far declined to publicly identify those cases. The government always considers seizing an illegal child pornography site and removing it from existence immediately and permanently, Justice Department spokesman Peter Carr said. While doing so would end the trafficking of child pornography taking place on that one website, it would do nothing to prevent those same users from disseminating child pornography through other means. Still, he said, The decision whether to simply shut down a website or to allow it to continue operating for a brief period for a law enforcement purpose is a difficult one. Justice officials said they were unable to discuss details of the investigation because much of it remains under seal, at their request. The Justice Department said in court filings that agents did not post any child pornography to the site themselves. But it did not dispute that the agents allowed images that were already on the site to remain there, and that it did not block the sites users from uploading new ones while it was under the governments control. And the FBI has not said it had any ability to prevent users from circulating the material they downloaded onto other sites. At some point, the government investigation becomes indistinguishable from the crime, and we should ask whether thats OK, said Elizabeth Joh, a University of California Davis law professor who has studied undercover investigations. Whats crazy about it is whos making the cost/benefit analysis on this? Who decides that this is the best method of identifying these people?

January 22, 2016 at 08:39 AM | Permalink

Comments

So the FBI knows about a CP website, has the ability to remove it but instead, pirates it for their own amusement, that's a sick government for you. They leave the website up in hopes of catching the little fish that may lead to a big fish. Unfortunately it's the little fish that fill our prisons, the big fish is seldom caught.

In the meantime, the FBI who is aware of the website and allows it to continue circulating CP is as culpable as the idiots who posted the CP on the website and the servers who allowed it on a website. Maybe the FBI should be paying restitution to the CP victims since prosecuters maintain that the victims are re-traumatized everytime their images are viewed, and now FBI are "intentionally encouraging viewers."

This is an insane tactic for "battling online CP", it only proliferates it, catching little fish in an FBI sting-net and then ruining lives forever with their haphazard SO labels. If the FBI truly wants to stop CP, take down the websites punish those responsible for producing and the servers who allowed it, simple as that. If the CP isn't there, people who search it out and people who inadvertently download it wouldn't have it to view in the first place. But then, that would probably create less jobs for FBI agents.

I have to agree with the last paragraph of the article, the government's investigation is indistinguishable from the crime!

Posted by: kat | Jan 22, 2016 9:45:36 AM

This is astonishing for many reasons. It significantly undermines the unexamined but oft-cited platitude that the victim is harmed each time an image is seen. If thats true, than the FBIs operation of the website is akin to the FBI taking over the operation of a house in which rapes occur, and permitting and enabling them to occur so that they could see who engages in rape and later arrest them. It's like the FBI actually allowing rapes to happen, and facilitating them.

Either law enforcement doesnt actuallywhen push comes to shovebuy their own cliche about harm at every viewing, or the FBI does but has nonetheless overseen a staggering criminal enterprise of perpetrated sexual offenses. I think it's the former (as the latter is pretty hard to accept). I think most people actually fall into the former camp, though they've never encountered examination or counterfactuals to draw that view out from behind surface-level cliches.

The FBI would never countenance the rape house scenario. So it likely believesin practice, though not when askedthat the harm in viewing an image is overblown. But this is an area that has gone totally unexamined, because nobody wants to actually think about the philosophical underpinning and underlying assumptions of pornography legislation.



Posted by: Anonymous | Jan 22, 2016 11:23:44 AM

I may be wrong but IIRC this isn't the first time the government has done something like this. So I'm not sure why the angst now.

Posted by: Daniel | Jan 22, 2016 12:27:52 PM

Taxpayer funded organizations, law enforcement, FBI agents and the prosecutors that specialize in these types of stings...nothing but thug POS's.

Posted by: angry taxpayer | Jan 22, 2016 5:10:49 PM

.

Posted by: angry taxpayer | Jan 22, 2016 5:10:55 PM

Those who are convicted of viewing porn sites with children on them should be blinded and not fined or jailed. Just remove the eyes from the eye sockets.

Posted by: Liberty1st | Jan 23, 2016 10:42:58 AM

Those who see nothing wrong with this government enterprise, like libertylast, are just as sick as those who do the viewing. Ah, the platitudes with stereotypes without meaningful definitions. We now have the government of the ignorant, by the ignorant for the ignorant under the color of law.

How can you respect the "law" (heads bowed pleased)? I cannot and will not.

Posted by: albeed | Jan 23, 2016 7:42:22 PM

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About Severn Valley Authors

We are a small group of writers who share: a passion for writing; a love of language and a commitment to being published.



We are based in the part of the West Midlands of England which borders the River Severn, extending from the town of Bridgnorth in Shropshire, to the north, and south to the Worcestershire towns of Bewdley and Stourport. Our meetings are held on the second and fourth Tuesday in every month.



Severn Valley Authors is 'twinned' with Cornwall and Area Writers' Society of Cornwall, Ontario, Canada.




Lenox Stained Glass has been at its current location at 1840 Clement Street for over three years, but it still looks like they are just moving in in. "Every year I tell myself I'm going to straighten the place up. Every year I say, this is going to be the year," says owner John Lenox.

Lenox is a packrat by nature. The further back in the studio you go, the more there is. He knows he ought to do something about it, but he has years upon years of treasure here, rare and finely crafted glass of species and styles that they simply don't make anymore.



 Unbeknownst to most of us, not all glass is created equal. Every glassmaker has his or her own formula and style, which a glass connoisseur can often identify on sight. Lenox has so many choice sheets that he might need a lifetime, or even in several, to use them all.

The workspace is a broad array of worktables, tools, frames, sketches, and of course glass panes of every size and color, like squares of brittle candy. Yes, it's mildly chaotic. But here, perfection comes out of chaos.



John Lenox at work; photos via Patricia Chang

 Lenox moved to San Francisco 34 years ago for lovefriends set him up on a blind date with his now-wife right before she moved to California for a job. After a minimal degree of soul searching he said "What the heck," and followed.

He found his other lovestained glassthrough similar serendipity. "Someone asked me if I would do a stained glass window for them. I'd never done one before. I said okay," he explains. Lenox had previously restored mirrors as a hobbyist craftsman, and the leaded glass is similar to that in a stained glass window.

Out of this experimental work order Lenox got two decent quality windows and a new calling. He chucked his previous career plans (parks and recreation) and became a stained glass man, piecing together windows, skylights, and ornamental installations for countless San Francisco houses. Over three decades the shop has seen ups and downs, and it's presently riding high on the white-hot real estate market. It seems that what's good for Realtors is also good for craftspeople.



 Lenox can't always quite put his finger on what the elemental appeal of glasswork. "There's just something about the way the colored glass plays with the light," he says.

The work that goes into is gritty, hard, and blue-collar. With the exception of diamond grinders, the tools are the same as they were a century ago, mostly pliers and glass cutters. Most of Lenox's orders are contractor commissions. "They've all got their plumbing guy, their wiring guy, and their stained glass guy," he says.

It's a best of both worlds formula: Stained glass work lets him be an old school craftsman who works with his hands and also a savvy artist producing works of fragile beauty.

The challenge is also part of the appeal. Glass is an unforgiving medium, and it prefers to do things on its own terms. "It wants to break a certain way" when you put pressure on it, Lenox explains. Coercing it to break the way you wantthe way that will create pieces shaped to fit your designis a test of patience and diligence, not to mention the steadiness of your hand.

Straight lines are easiest, inside curves the most difficult. (Lenox's hardest commission ever was a quarter-sphere of colored glass.) Most jobs are for residences, either new pieces or restorations of old ones. Lenox has lost track of how many thousands of San Francisco houses feature his work. In some neighborhoods he can cruise slowly down the block and point them out, one after another. Not all the work is residential: Right now he's working on a metal and glass memorial for a middle school student.



From left: John Lenox holding Roxy, Bob Lucas, and David Fontes; photos via Patricia Chang

 Gentrification has been good for business Lenox admits, cringing a little at the term. He's felt the sting of the city's soaring real estate market himself through the rising cost of owning a business (Clement Street is Lenox Stained Glass' third location), but he's working more than ever.

Which of course means that that long-deferred cleanup may have to wait just a little longer. But there's always next year. Adam Brinklow



 Lenox Stained Glass [Official Site]
It's hard to say definitely whether, as PC World Does, this marks a kind of first for autonomous vehicle accidents in San Francisco because human error could be the root cause. Basically, it's confusing, and that's the point, as the Wall Street Journal's Digits blog also argues.

This all happened a couple of weeks ago on January 8th: A Nissan Leaf hit a parked Prius. Now, with so many Priuses in town, smashing into one would seem to be the San Francisco equivalent of running into a tree or a telephone pole. But the notable item here is that the Leaf was a test car operated by Cruise Automation, and had just been in autonomous mode. It had finished switching to human driver mode before impact, though how long before remains unclear. There were no injuries and both cars suffered minor damage, nothing more.

The crash took place around 7th and Bryant, when "The vehicle began moving in its lane to the left, then began correcting to the right at which point the driver decided the take over manual control, the company said in a report to the California Department of Motor Vehicles. After taking over manual control, the operator did not change the path of the vehicle and it collided with an unoccupied Toyota Prius."

We know of the incident because the California DMV requires there to be a report of every accident that involves autonomous driving tests on public roads. Most of those accidents have occurred in Google's backyard of Mountain View, such as one fender-bender SFist noted last summer, reported as the company's first.

According to Cruise Automation's CEO There was enough time [the driver] took over manual control but unfortunately made a mistake.

In the end, the incident highlights the grey area between an automated driver and a human one, and feels important because that's how it looks like driverless cars will start out  right in that zone.

Related: [Update] Muni Antenna Tears Hole In Tech Shuttle Downtown
When it comes to sex, particularly of the more adventurous variety, you may be all tied up, but you never want to be tongue-tied.

All kink scenarios or scenes should, Mistress Mina Bellamy explains, start with a chat between parties "before you enter the sandbox." Even if you've set rules in the past, "you have to talk out how you're feeling on that day and what your boundaries are on that day," she tells SFist.

Mistress Mina is, in fact, nobody's mistress, but if you'd like, you can be her subordinate. The part-time dominatrix tells SFist she likes to explore the intersection of kink and consciousness  hence her website of that name. But say you're literally losing consciousness under Ms. Mina's command? It might be time to tap the brakes.

In the popular cultural imagination, each person selects their own safe word. That's indeed common among couples who only play with each other, and leaves room for fun safe words like, I don't know, "Beetlejuice."

But Mistress Mina clarifies that if you're used to using different safe words with different partners or plan on engaging with multiple partners, that could get confusing. Or say you're in a Beetlejuice role-playing scene: All of a sudden your safe word doesn't exactly stand out. Hence some industry standardization: "The people who play the most use the same safe words for the most part." Those are simply "yellow" for caution and "red" for stop.

Of course, it's not always so simple. "Sometimes you can't talk in a scene," says Mistress Mina, inspiring all manner of ideas, "or sometimes you won't think to talk because you go so nonverbal. So you can always look out for signals that convey 'I need some help.' That could be blinking eyes, tapping twice. If someone has a gag on, or a blindfold, it might be shaking their head from left to right, for example/"

Safe words might model communication in its simplest form: They're direct instructions that must be followed. It's not always so easy. "I'm exploring something that doesn't always have a good vocabulary behind it," Mistress Mina says of her kinky pursuits. "I teach a class called 'How To Eat Pussy Like a Champ,"and I learned through doing that that the communication we had in bedrooms, even just asking, 'I would like that softer and one centimeter to the left, please'" can be difficult for people." Why the difficulty (other than who's left we're talking about here)? "It's feedback about the most vulnerable thing," says Mina, "which is scary."

In those situations, maybe it would serve us well to consider safe words. When someone shouts "yellow!" or "red!" or offers feedback, no one is to blame  everyone is to be congratulated. The system is working, everybody, and it's working because no one is stigmatizing it. "Using a safe words isn't seen as a failing of the top or the bottom," says Mistress Mina, "It's the best thing we can do."

In fact, safe words and their philosophy might be more useful in general than we think. With one of her partners, Mistress Mina says, "If we're at a boring party, our safe word might be, 'I'm bored.'" In that vein, we could start using safe words everywhere, from ordering a burrito  yellow spicy, please  to waiting in line for brunch  red, red, RED!

More practically, maybe it's time to talk safe words with your partner(s), you know, so you can play a little more dangerously and a little more safely at the same time. It'll open the lines of communication generally, because regardless of what they are, or even how vanilla you think you are, you should use your words.

Previously: Eff-ing In SF, Vol. 4: New Year's Dating Resolutions And How To Break Them

Eff-ing In SF, Vol. 3: What He's REALLY Saying When He Sends A Dick Pic

Eff-ing In SF, Vol. 2: I Left My Heart In San Francisco, Should I Post To Craigslist?

Eff-ing In SF, Vol. 1: How To Use Tinder
A new study released this month claims that over a fifth of the revenue generated in San Francisco by Airbnb is the result of hosts operating in direct violation of San Francisco law. That such a large portion of the company's earnings could derive from hosts violating a 2014 law meant to regulate the $24-billion company is sure to provide extra fuel to critics who argue for stepped-up enforcement, and it already has Airbnb defending itself anew.

Researchers looked at data spanning September 2014 to September 2015, and found that while only a small percentage of hosts in San Francisco rented 365 days a year (in direct violation of San Francisco law), that group accounted for a disproportionately large share of Airbnb's SF-based revenues. The 308 full-time operators in SF (study note: "unique units, such as boats, tree houses and tents are excluded") represent just 2.9 percent of hosts in the city, and yet they account for 22.4 percent of the revenue generated for the company in SF. That comes out to a whopping $43,559,557 made illegally.

The study, notes the Examiner, was conducted by researchers at Penn State Universitys School of Hospitality Management and funded by the American Hotel & Lodging Association  a group that has commercial reason to be upset about potential law breaking by Airbnb and its hosts.

These are not individuals simply making some extra money theyre corporate landlords engaged in clear commercial activity, Kathleen Lugar of the American Hotel & Lodging Association told the paper on Wednesday.

Airbnb, for its part, disagrees.

This report uses misleading data to make false claims and attack middle class families who share their homes and use the money they earn to pay the bills, company spokesman Nick Papas told the Examiner. "The overwhelming majority of Airbnb hosts are middle class people who occasionally share only the home in which they live and while Airbnb hosts keep 97 percent of the price they charge for their listings, hotels take most of the money they earn out of the community.

Whether or not this study, which comes just over two months after voters rejected a ballot measure designed to increase regulations on short-term rentals, will change the way the public thinks about companies like Airbnb remains to be seen. It should, however, provide an extra incentive to city officials looking to crack down on scofflaw hosts.

Related: City Cracks Down On Airbnb/VRBO Law Violators, Issues $400,000 In Penalties
Assuming their flights into town weren't canceled or their buses don't get stuck a rainstorm, as many as 30,000 people opposed to a woman's ability to terminate her pregnancy will descend upon and walk through San Francisco in the 11th annual event known as the "Walk For Life."

Now a full weekend of events held mainly at various Catholic churches across San Francisco (their schedule can be found at the website located at walkforlifewc.com), the centerpiece activity is their "rally and march."

After a Civic Center rally at 12:30 p.m. Saturday, at 1:30 participants will hoof it "from Civic Center Plaza via Gough Street to Market Street and to Fremont Street," according to the SFMTA.

"The march may not completely clear of Market Street until 3:30 p.m.," the MTA warns.

Because of the march, Market Street will be closed between 10th Street and Fremont Street from 1 to 3:30 p.m. Saturday, and "cross traffic between gaps in marchers will not be allowed." "Significant delays" for drivers, all surface Muni routes, and cyclists are expected all along the route.

In years past, the event has concluded with another impromptu rally at Justin Herman Plaza. However, according to event organizers "Due to the presence this year of the Super Bowl City, which is under construction on the day of the Walk, we wont be able to end at Justin Herman Plaza."

But be warned: After the demonstration, don't expect the crowd to just disappear. Instead, they're encouraged to descend on Rincon Park, the Ferry Building, and (of course) Fisherman's Wharf. From their website:

After the Walk ends, we invite Walkers to proceed 4 blocks east to Rincon Park on San Franciscos waterfront. There you will be met by Mariachi Real de San Pablo, the Walks traditional mariachi band. Here you will be able to relax, meet up with friends, take group pictures and enjoy beautiful views of the Bay. There is a walking path along the waterfront from Rincon Park to the Ferry Building, where you can enjoy a number of food shops and other attractions, or even walk another mile to Pier 39 (Fishermans Wharf) and its attractions. For a quieter, more reflective time, proceed south on the Embarcadero along the walking path for beautiful views of the bay, the Bay Bridge, and Oakland.
My musings, reflections on life here in Shiloh, Israel. Original, personal, spiritual and political. Peace, security and Israeli sovereignty. While not a "group blog," Shiloh Musings includes the voices of other Jews in The Land of Israel. **Copyright(C)BatyaMedad ** For permission to use these in publications of any sort, please contact me directly. Private accredited distribution encouraged. Thank you.
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NEW YORK | The Spanish-language broadcaster Univision is buying a stake in the owner of satirical website The Onion, in what may be considered a serious grab for younger viewers.

"I'm happy to announce that we've just finished a deal with what might at first seem like an unusual partner: Univision," Onion Inc. CEO Mike McAvoy wrote in a memo to employees. He said Univision acquired "a good chunk" of Onion Inc., and may acquire the remainder down the line.

Once solely comedic enterprises have earned younger audiences who rely on them as a news source.

The Pew Research Center found that 12 percent of Americans cited "The Daily Show" on Comedy Central as the place where they got their news, with that number skewing heavily toward younger viewers.

While The Onion veers well outside of news boundaries, its preposterous articles regularly involve politics, health care and science.

Univision says it sees comedy as crucial in covering news for young people, particularly with the upcoming U.S. presidential election.

Univision Communications Inc. said that it is a minority investor. Univision spokeswoman Rosemary Mercedes and Onion spokeswoman Lauren Pulte both declined to specify the size of Univision's investment.

There is a scramble by TV networks for younger viewers and their spending dollars. Disney, the owner of ABC, Disney and ESPN, has invested in digital video network Vice, which is getting its own U.S. TV channel; Comcast's NBCUniversal has put money into online content and news hubs BuzzFeed and Vox.

And it isn't Univision's first digital foray. The company, which last summer filed to go public amid declines in TV ratings, in 2015 bought The Root, a news and opinion site aimed at African-Americans, and launched a digital video site, Flama, aimed at English-speaking young Hispanics in 2014.

Onion Inc. scuttled its print version, and today also includes pop-culture site The A.V. Club; ClickHole, a swipe at viral-stories generator BuzzFeed; and Onion Labs, an ad agency. McAvoy says it has been searching for a year for a "partner" to help it grow. Univision says it will have oversight of Onion Inc., but the company will operate independently.
NEW YORK | Broadway's next king has been awfully busy chasing bad guys on the streets of Honolulu.

Daniel Dae Kim, who plays a detective on the TV series "Hawaii Five-0," takes over in May as the King of Siam in the blissful Lincoln Center Theater revival of "The King and I," a role he calls "maybe the greatest role for an Asian male in theater."

Kim, who graduated from New York University with a master's degree in acting and cut his teeth in off-Broadway shows, said he's been "looking for a way to get back" to the New York stage but instead found himself in Hawaii doing TV for the 12 past years.

Kim managed to see the current "The King and I" twice  once with Ken Watanabe and once with Hoon Lee  and said "it was treat to be able to watch both of them interpret the role."

The king, who is both imposing and romantic, will mark Kim's Broadway debut, but he's played the same monarch before, at London's world-renowned Royal Albert Hall in 2009.

"It was really a fantastic opportunity and I felt at the time that as much as I enjoyed it, there was more to be done with the role," he said by phone from Hawaii.

"The opportunity to revisit it is a really valuable one for me. I've grown since then, my experiences have changed and I look forward to trying it again on Broadway."

Born in Busan, South Korea and raised in New York and Pennsylvania, Kim will be stepping into a role made famous by Yul Brynner, who was king for more than 4,600 performances. Kim saw the movie version, but the actor hopes to leave his own imprint.

"I have a healthy level of respect for what Mr. Brynner did, but, at the same time, I look forward to my bringing something of my own to it," he said.

"This work is strong enough where there can be many different interpretations of the same character. When you look at a Shakespearian play, you don't say, 'Well, there is one definitive Hamlet.' There are many different Hamlets that you can find relatable."

The 51-cast-member revival won the Tony Award for best revival and co-stars Kelli O'Hara as the Englishwoman who travels to Siam to teach the children of the king. Its score by Rodgers and Hammerstein includes "I Whistle a Happy Tune," ''Getting to Know You" and "Shall We Dance."

The show's current king, Lee, abdicates on Feb. 28 and Tony Award-nominated Watanabe returns to the role from March 1 to April 17.

Jose Llana, who starred last summer in the royal role, returns to it from April 19-May 1 and then Kim, who also played Jin Soo Kwon on the TV series "Lost," takes over from May 3-June 26.
WASHINGTON | It's cold season and the miserable trudge in seeking antibiotics because of mucus turned green, or the cough has nagged for weeks.

Despite years of warnings, doctors still overprescribe antibiotics for acute respiratory infections even though most are caused by viruses that those drugs cannot help.

Now doctors are getting new tips on how to avoid unnecessary antibiotics for these common complaints  and to withstand the patient who's demanding one.

Sure bronchitis sounds scary. So describe it as a chest cold. And no, color changes don't mean it's time for an antibiotic.

"Antibiotics are terrific. Thank God we have them for really bad things. But we need to be judicious in the way we use them," said American College of Physicians President Dr. Wayne J. Riley, an internal medicine professor at Vanderbilt University.

Rather than sending patients off with little advice about what to do while their bodies fight off a virus, how about a prescription instead for some over-the-counter or home remedies that just might ease the cough or the pain?

"We're calling for the symptomatic prescription pad," Riley said, describing information sheets that suggest simple aids like humidifiers and plenty of fluid, have a space to scribble directions for an OTC drug  and tell patients when to return if they're not getting better. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has a sample on its website.

Antibiotics are losing their effectiveness, and inappropriate prescribing is one factor. Repeated exposure can lead germs to become resistant to the drugs. The CDC estimates that drug-resistant bacteria cause 2 million illnesses and 23,000 deaths each year in the U.S.

Another reason not to use them unnecessarily: side effects. Antibiotics are implicated in 1 of 5 emergency-room visits for bad drug reactions, CDC says. Particularly troubling is an increase in severe diarrhea caused by C-diff, the Clostridium difficile bug that can take hold in the gut after antibiotics kill off other bacteria.

CDC has seen improvement from pediatricians in antibiotic prescribing but overuse remains a big problem for adults, especially with respiratory illnesses, said Dr. Lauri Hicks, who heads CDC's "Get Smart" antibiotic education campaign.

The guidelines, from CDC and the American College of Physicians, move beyond simple statements that antibiotics don't work for viruses like the common cold or the flu. They lay out how doctors begin deciding if antibiotics are warranted for some other common respiratory complaints, explain that decision to patients and offer guidance on symptom relief.

Among the advice, published in Annals of Internal Medicine:

 Acute bronchitis is airway inflammation, irritation that makes you cough, sometimes as long as six weeks. The guidelines say not to perform special testing or prescribe antibiotics unless pneumonia is suspected, something often accompanied by a fast heartbeat, fever or abnormal breathing sounds.

Over-the-counter symptom relief includes cough suppressants such as dextromethorphan; mucus-thinning expectorants such as guaifenesin; and antihistamines or decongestants.

 Sore throats are hugely common but adults are far less likely than children to have the strep throat that requires an antibiotic. A rapid strep test is available if patients have suspicious symptoms such as persistent fever, night sweats or swollen tonsils.

Pain-relieving options for adults include aspirin, acetaminophen, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen, and throat lozenges.

 Sinus infections can be very painful but usually clear up without antibiotics even if bacteria are to blame. The guidelines say antibiotics should be reserved for patients with no signs of improvement after 10 days, severe symptoms such as fever higher than 102, or what's called double-sickening, when someone starts to recover and then gets worse.

Possible symptom relievers include decongestants, nasal sprays, saline nasal irrigation and pain medications.

Riley often has to explain how to tell if cough and cold relievers contain a sedating antihistamine, and that nasal sprays clear congestion quickly but that using them for too many days can trigger rebound symptoms. He asks if patients are taking multiple products that contain acetaminophen, best known as Tylenol, because too much can damage the liver. Often, his patients say an over-the-counter drug isn't working when in fact, they didn't take it as directed.

"There is a dizzying array" of drugstore symptom relievers, so don't make miserable patients sort through them without help, said CDC's Hicks.

"There isn't a right answer that works for everybody," she said. But sometimes something as basic as a humidifier "can make a difference in terms of how you feel when you wake up in the morning."
The Iowa caucuses occur every four years in the midst of winters that can be filled with cold and snow. That means the campaign events set by presidential candidates at times take place during snow storms and the highway routes can be clogged with snow or ice.

Iowans got a reminder of that reality on Tuesday, when Braden Joplin, a volunteer for Ben Carson's presidential campaign, died after being hospitalized with injuries suffered in a car wreck in western Iowa.

That crash occurred when a van carrying three Carson volunteers and a paid staffer flipped onto its side on an icy road and was hit by another vehicle. The other three workers were injured. Joplin, 25, attended Texas Tech University, and many of the 15 presidential candidates gave quick condolences.

Republican Mike Huckabee was the first candidate to come through Sioux City following the sad death. I asked him Thursday about how candidates juggle the desire to meet as many people as possible with trying to keep safe during travels. Presidential candidates typically plan out events days in advance, when the weather ahead may not be known.

Huckabee said safety governs all decisions on whether to hold to a campaign event during poor winter conditions.

"There is no event that is worth taking a chance with....We have to put the people first," Huckabee said.

He said he immediately sent an email to all campaign workers reminding them to be careful, and if they encounter dicey driving conditions to pull back and wait for a better time. Huckabee noted some of the staffers are not from Iowa and may have limited experience in driving on snow.

He told the workers, "We want to run with every ounce of energy...but put your safety first."

Huckabee said the weather during his Iowa stops during the 2015-16 winter months have worked out well, as no bad conditions have necessitated cancellation of a planned event.

Six days ago, Marco Rubio planned three Iowa stops. Rubio made the first one near Des Moines on Saturday, then due to wintry weather cancelled one in Spencer, Iowa, before making it on time to Sioux Center, where 600 people turned out.
SIOUX CITY | The new President Thomas Jefferson animatronic exhibit will be celebrated at 12:30 p.m. Sunday at the Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center, 900 Larsen Park Road. Admission is free.

A kids history challenge will begin after the inauguration. The first 50 participants who complete the challenge will receive a $2 bill which bears the image of President Thomas Jefferson. A drop-in cookie activity will follow from 1 to 3 p.m. in the Betty Strong Encounter Center.
SIOUX CITY | Sioux City Bishop R. Walker Nickless was a priest in the Archdiocese of Denver when Pope John Paul II visited that area in August 1993. Nickless still remembers the groundswell of attention, especially at World Youth Day.

The pope took the city like a rock star, and the youth fell in love with him, Nickless said Friday.

The attention will be back on the late John Paul II Sunday when the Catholic Church makes him and Pope John XXIII saints. It marks a rare dual papal canonization.

John Paul's path to sainthood started during his 2005 funeral Mass, when chants of "Santo Subito" or "Sainthood Now" erupted from the crowd. Bowing to the calls, Pope Benedict XVI waived the typical five-year waiting period before a saintly investigation can begin and allowed the process to start just weeks after his death.

In 2011, the Vatican certified that a French nun with Parkinson's disease was miraculously healed after she prayed to him. A Costa Rican woman whose inoperable brain aneurysm purportedly disappeared after she prayed to John Paul was the second miracle needed for canonization.

John XXIII was beatified in 2000 after the Vatican certified that the healing of an Italian nun suffering from a gastric hemorrhage was miraculous.

Pope Francis waived the Vatican rule requiring a second miracle so that John could be canonized alongside John Paul.

Nickless, who became Sioux City bishop in 2005, said the canonization is an important moment not only for the church but for the world."

He pointed to the effort by Pope John XXIII to help Jews during World War II and his calling for the Second Vatican Council, as well as his discussions with President John F. Kennedy and Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev during the Cuban Missile crisis.

Nickless called John Paul II a strong defender of the poor and marginalized and a great champion for the unborn and for families, adding that he made a major impression on his important 1979 visit to Des Moines.

It will take the church a long time to truly process and appreciate his nearly 27 years of service and teaching," he said.

Said Nickless, "These two men had a significant impact on the Church and the world.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
SCREENINGS

Free blood pressure screenings, 9:30 to 11 a.m. Wednesdays at Countryside Senior Living, front lobby. No appointment necessary.

PROGRAMS/SELF-HELP GROUPS

Al-Anon Information Center, call 255-6724.

Al-Anon and Alateen, meetings locally. For times, dates and locations of area meetings, call 255-6724.

Alcoholics Anonymous, beginners information, call 252-1333.

Arc of Woodbury County, serving the mentally challenged, 5:15 p.m. meeting, second Monday of the month at Mid-Step Services, 4303 Stone Ave. For families and interested persons.

Child Care Resource and Referral, provides resources, education and advocacy for children, parents, and child care providers. Assists in child care needs. For more information, call 712-277-1180.

Co-Dependents Anonymous, 7 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays at First Lutheran Church, Fireside Room.

Co-Dependents Anonymous (CODA), 10 a.m. Saturdays at Hawkeye Club, 420 Jones St.

Compassionate Friends, 7 p.m. fourth Wednesday of each month (third Thursday in November and second Sunday December) in Mercy Medical Center's Leiter Room. For families who have lost children. Contact Nancy Webb 712-212-4032 or Don Mulder 712-541-5512.

Children of Divorce, to help children cope with the challenges of parental separation or divorce. Call 712-279-2373 for more information.

CLINICS

Siouxland District Health immunization clinics, call for appointment, 712-279-6119 or 1-800-587-3005.

INFORMATION

Dual Recovery Anonymous, 12-step peer support meeting, 4 to 5 p.m. Wednesdays at 625 Court St. Framework of recovery for those with addiction and emotional or psychiatric illness. For more information, call Mike at 255-1691.

Family and Addictive Illness series, for more information, call 234-2300.

Iowa Fathers, 6 to 8 p.m. fourth Tuesday of each month at Hope Lutheran Church, Education Building, 218 W. 18th St., South Sioux City, Neb. Support group to help single, divorcing and divorced parents residing in the state of Iowa.

Mercy Pathways Outpatient Program, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, on the third floor, Mercy's Central Medical Building, 801 Fifth St., Suite 360. Provides hope, help, opportunity to connect through group therapy for individuals experiencing personal, relationship, psychiatric issues. For more information, call 712-279-5991.

Narcotics Anonymous, meetings daily, various times, dates and locations. For more information, call 712-279-0733.

Overeaters Anonymous, 7 p.m. Mondays at Floyd Valley Hospital, Lower Level, 714 Lincoln St. NE, Le Mars, Iowa; 1 p.m. Tuesdays at Wesley United Methodist Church, 3700 Indian Hills Drive; 6 p.m. Tuesdays at St. John's Lutheran Church, 402 Lane Ave., Storm Lake; 7 p.m. Tuesdays at Church of the Nazarene, 226 N. Main St., Viborg, S.D.; 5:30 p.m. Thursdays and 9 a.m. Saturdays at Newman Center, 320 E. Cherry St., Vermillion, S.D.; 10:30 a.m. Saturdays at Hawkeye Club, 420 Jones St. A 12-step recovery program for people who have problems with food and weight. No fees.

St. Lukes Outpatient Behavioral Health Program, 9 a.m. to noon Monday, Tuesday and Thursday on fifth floor of St. Luke's, located at 2720 Stone Park Blvd. Offers several levels of outpatient care including partial hospitalization, intensive outpatient, and group therapy. This program provides support and integrated treatment to individuals experiencing personal or relationship issues as a result of their mental illness. For more information and admission criteria, call 712-279-3906.

Sobriety By Faith, 8:30 a.m. Saturdays at Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, 1421 Geneva St. For more information, call James Mothershead at 712-577-9715.

The Link-Recovery and Freedom, at PMA Building, 6000 Gordon Drive; 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Saturday workshop, and Christian 12-step meeting 7 to 8 p.m. Tuesday. For all ages. Call Dee at 389-7432.

Women in Recovery, meets monthly at Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, 1421 Geneva St. For details, call 712-255-4623.

Tarahouse Meditation Center, 8 a.m. Mondays through Thursdays; 6:30 p.m. Fridays; 10 a.m. Saturdays and Sundays, all at 3112 Rebecca St. Three easy 10 minute sessions in small group; beginners welcome. For more information, call 490-6410.

Blood pressure and blood sugar screening, 9 to 11 a.m. Wednesdays in the lobby at Westwood Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Free to public.

SUPPORT GROUPS

NAMI Siouxland (National Alliance on Mental Illness), 6:30 p.m., second Tuesday of the month, Friendship House, 1101 Court St. For individuals and family members dealing with mental illness. 712-255-4209.

Food Addicts in Recovery Anonymous, 7-8:30 p.m. Wednesdays at Hawkeye Club basement, 420 Jones St. For more information, call 277-5935.

Celebrate Recovery, Bible-based 12-step recovery group. Thursdays at 6:30 at Sunnybrook Community Church, 5601 Sunnybrook Drive. Daycare provided. 712-490-3343.

PFLAG of Siouxland, (Parents & Friends of Lesbians and Gays), 7 p.m., fourth Monday of January, March, May, July, September and November. St. Mark ELCA Church, 5200 Glenn Ave., in the upstairs meeting area. 712-258-3116.

Singles widowed and divorced, all ages, 4 p.m., Sundays. McDonald's at Sixth Street and Lewis Boulevard. 712-252-2675.

HIV/AIDS Support Group, meets weekly. For more information, call Darla or Teri at Siouxland Community Health Center, 712-252-2477 or 888-371-1965.

La Leche League of Siouxland, breastfeeding support group meets every third Thursday at 11 a.m. at Morningside Lutheran Church. Children are welcome. For more information, call Mary at 712-546-7280 or Jacquie at 712-255-2998.

Living Each Day Cancer Support Group, 7-8 p.m. second Thursday of the month, Floyd Valley Hospital, Conference Center Room 2, Le Mars, Iowa. Open to all cancer patients, cancer survivors and family members. No charge. Pre-register by calling 712-546-3441 or 800-642-6074, ext. 441.

Mom and Baby Support Group, 10-11 a.m. last Monday of the month at the Orange City (Iowa) Hospital, lower level. For new moms and babies. 712-737-5260.

Tri-State Sober Project 12-step meeting, 7:30-8:30 p.m., Tuesdays, Friendship Community Church, 305 Sergeant Square Drive, Sergeant Bluff. 6-7 p.m., Thursdays, Transitional Services of Iowa, 1221 Pierce St., Sioux City.

Doug's Donors Support Group, information for organ donors and recipients, 12:30-1:30 p.m. Wednesdays, 5:15-6:30 p.m. second and fourth Thursdays of the month at Mercy Cafeteria Woodbury Room. 712-277-1050.

Divorce Care, noon Sundays starting Jan. 10; GriefShare, 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays starting Jan. 12; Single & Parenting, 6:30 p.m. Thursdays starting Jan. 14; all at Sunnybrook Community Church, 5601 Sunnybrook Drive, Sioux City. 712-276-5814.

Multiple Sclerosis Support Group, 1:30-3:30 p.m. first Saturday of the month at the CNOS, Dakota Dunes. For anyone with MS and/or their families. Call Janet Limoges at 605-217-2726 prior to attending.

New Life Life Support Group, 3:30 p.m. every Saturday at 2929 W. Fourth St. Spiritual 12-step program. For more information, call Donald at 712-574-1744 or James at 712-255-7624.

Post Polio Support Group, 11 a.m. first Thursday of the month at Perkins Restaurant by Menards. 712-490-8213.

Relationship Support Group, 7 p.m. Fridays at Marketplace Mall. For more information, call 239-3129.

Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence, Individual and Support Groups. For more information, call CSADV in Sioux City at 712-258-7233; Plymouth County at 712-546-6764; Monona County at 712-423-3443. Advocacy and support available 24 hours a day at 1-800-982-7233. All services free of charge and confidential.

Sickle Cell Disease Support Group, 11 a.m. third Saturday of each month at St. Luke's Hospital, meeting room 1. For patients, their family and any concerned member. Call La'Keshia Rainey at 712-203-2019 for more information.

Sioux City Association of the Deaf, 7 p.m. third Saturday of the month at Morningside Church of Christ, 5015 Garretson Ave. Regular meeting, September-May; no meeting, June, July, August and December.

Siouxland Autism Support Group, second Thursday of the month at Northwest Area Education Agency, 1520 Morningside Ave. For more information, call Julie Case at 712-490-8939.

Siouxland Epilepsy Support Group, 5 p.m. third Tuesday of the month at Prestwick Apartment Clubhouse, 4230 Hickory Lane. For anyone diagnosed with seizures or epilepsy and family or friends. For more information, call Steve at 274-6927.

Siouxland IC support group, meets quarterly in Sioux City. For patients struggling with interstital cystitis. For more information, call Jacque Dundas 316-641-9766.

Siouxland Informational Group for the Blind, 2-5 p.m. second Tuesday of the month at Northern Hills Retirement Community, 4002 Teton Trace. For more information, call 712-266-8926 or 258-8151.

Grief support group, 5:30-7:30 p.m., beginning Oct. 5 for 13 weeks (may join at any time), Crescent Park United Methodist Church, 2826 Myrtle St., Sioux City. Scott, 712-899-6315.

Siouxland Ostomy Association, 2 p.m. first Sunday of each month (except September, which will be second Sunday; and no meetings June, July, August), in Room 300 at Mercy Medical Center, 801 Fifth St. For more information, call Dick Lindblom at 251-2453.

Siouxland Parkinson Disease Support Group, 1 p.m. fourth Monday of the month at Siouxland Center for Active Generations, 313 Cook St. For more information, call at Jack Scherrman at 712-277-9337.

Sojourners, support group for families of persons with life-threatening illness, 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays at St. Luke's Regional Medical Center, Room 416. For more information, call Marjorie Jarvill at 402-241-8637.

South Sioux City Weight Support Group, 8:30 a.m. Wednesdays at St. Paul United Methodist Church, South Sioux City. For more information, call 494-1401 or 494-2133.

Support groups at Disabilities Resource Center of Siouxland, 520 Nebraska St., Suite 101: Women's Support Group, 1:30 p.m. first Wednesday of the month; LGBT Support Group, 1:30 p.m. first Friday of the month; Adult ADHD, 6 p.m. second Tuesday of the month; Advocacy Group, 1:30 p.m. third Tuesday of the month. For more information, call (712) 255-1065.

Take Off Pounds Sensibly, group meetings various times, days and locations in Siouxland. For information on the chapter in your area, call 1-800-932-TOPS.

Voice Disorder Support Group, meets as needed at Mercy Medical Center, Buena Vista Room. 712-279-2686.

Women's Peer Support Group, in Wayne and South Sioux City, Neb., for those who have experienced domestic abuse. For more information, call the Wayne office at 402-375-4633 or 1-800-440-4633; in South Sioux City, call 402-494-7592. Help and support available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Services free and confidential.

Woodbury County D.M.D.A., noon-2 p.m. first Saturday of the month at Country Friendship Acres, 4501 West St.; 7-8 p.m. first Tuesday of the month at 515 Court St. in the Community Room; 7-8 p.m. second Tuesday of the month at 441 W. Third St. in the Community Room; 7-8 p.m. third Tuesday of the month at 409 W. Third St. in the Community Room. Support group for people with disabilities and mental disorders.

Natural Mamas in Siouxland, 1 p.m., third Tuesday of each month in the Garretson room of the Morningside Public Library. All ages of children are welcome to come with moms. For sharing natural living tips, recipes, natural remedies and health, homemaking, mothering, etc. For more information, call 402-913-0038 or visit their Facebook page.

A Step Beyond support group, 3:30 p.m. second Tuesday of the month, except for August, November and December when it meets at 5:30 p.m. (no meeting in January) at the Christy-Smith Resource Center, 1819 Morningside Ave. For more information, call 712-276-7319.

Divorce care, 5 p.m., Sundays. Fireside room, Morningside Lutheran Church, 700 South Martha St.

Gamblers Anonymous meetings, 4 p.m. Thursday at Immanuel Lutheran Church, 315 Hamilton Blvd.; 7 p.m. Wednesday, Morningside Presbyterian Church, 4327 Morningside Ave.; 7 p.m. Tuesdays, St. John Lutheran Church. 712-277-2901.

Art therapy support group, 5:30 p.m. second Thursday of the month at the June E. Nylen Cancer Center. Registration required, call 252-9387.

After Breast Cancer Support Group, 5:30 p.m. third Tuesday of the month at the June E. Nylen Cancer Center. For more information, call Brenda, 252-9370.

After Prostate Cancer Support Group, 5:15 p.m. first Tuesday of the month at the June E. Nylen Cancer Center. For more information, call 252-9426.

Alzheimer's Association, Big Sioux Chapter Support Group, 2 p.m. second Tuesday of the month; 4 p.m. third Tuesday of the month (under age 65) at 201 Pierce St., Suite 110 (Famous Dave's building); and 6 p.m. first Tuesday of the month at the Barnes and Noble Cafe. For more information, call Emily Lord at 712-279-5802.

Christy-Smith Funeral Homes of Sioux City, extensive grief library at the Morningside location. Open to the public during weekday hours. For more information, call 276-7319.

Chronic Pain/Chronic Illness Support Group, 7:30 p.m. fourth Wednesday of the month in the lower level of the Orange City Hospital. For more information, call 712-737-5260.

Connections Area Agency on Aging, and Mercy Medical Centers Older Adult Services Welcome to Medicare, 1:30-4 p.m., the first Friday of every month at Connections Area Agency on Aging, 2301 Pierce Street. To pre-register, or for more information, contact Connections Area Agency on Aging at 712-279-6900.
SIOUX CITY | The Rev. Andy Nelson will be installed at 6 p.m. Wednesday at St. Mark Lutheran Church ELCA, 5200 Glenn Ave. Nelson recently served as the pastor at Bethel Lutheran Church in Rochester, Minnesota, and at the Luther Center (campus ministry) at the University of South Dakota in Vermillion. A dinner will follow the service. Reservations for the dinner can be made by calling St. Mark at 712-276-2418. For more information, visit scstmark.com.
SIOUX CITY | Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, 3204 S. Lakeport St., will hold a lunch and presentation on a recent mission trip to West Africa beginning at noon Sunday.

A group of parishioners recently returned from Bamako, Mali, West Africa, as part of their sponsorship of Bibi's Hope, a child sponsorship program for orphans.

"We baptized nearly 30 infants and children and two adults," said the Rev. David N. Zirpel.

"We served a Christmas feast of lamb, fried potatoes and fruit to 200 children. They even got a bottle of Coke as a special treat," he added.

Bibi's Hope started in 2012. Two hundred children, including more than 40 infants, benefit from donations in support of the orphanage.

As part of Sunday's presentation, Zirpel said members will show photos and tell stories of the children at the orphanage.

"While we were there, we picked up a runaway from the police station," he said. "You can see her transformation in just a few short days with Bibi, the orphanage founder and day-to-day operator."

There also will be a silent auction of West African arts and crafts -- such as clay nativity scenes, carved wooden animals and handmade jewelry -- with proceeds going to the orphanage building fund.

Anyone wishing to attend the lunch is asked to email bibishope@gmail.com.

For more information on the mission trip, visit Bibi's Hope Mission Trip on Facebook.
SIOUX CITY | As snow fell outside his office Tuesday, Bishop R. Walker Nickless remarked that the cold, snowy weather reminded him of the day he was ordained bishop of the Diocese of Sioux City.

There were concerns whether his parents and siblings would be able to get to Sioux City in time. The weather held, and everyone was able to make it and witness the ordination and celebration.

On Wednesday, Nickless celebrated the 10th anniversary of his ordination and 10 years of leading the Catholic faithful in Northwest Iowa.

On Nov. 10, 2005, Nickless, a Denver native, was named the seventh bishop in the diocese's 114-year history, succeeding Bishop Daniel DiNardo (since elevated to cardinal), who had been appointed bishop in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston.

Two months later, on Jan. 20, 2006, Nickless was ordained at Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ Church in Sioux City.

On Tuesday, Nickless sat down for an interview with the Journal, reflected on his experiences in the past 10 years and looked forward to challenges the diocese will face in the future. A portion of that interview follows. The full interview can be heard at siouxcityjournal.com.

Q: How would you sum up your 10 years as bishop?

A: It's been a ride. It's been an adventure. It's been a grace. Some bishops get the opportunity to be an auxiliary bishop, an assistant bishop before they become the bishop of a diocese. I never had that chance. I went right from being a pastor at a parish in Lakewood, Colorado, to being bishop. There's no real training than on-the-job training, and you learn by doing. ... I look over the 10 years and I see a lot of changes, hopefully good, in the Diocese of Sioux City. I'm so much more comfortable.

Q: What's been the most rewarding part?

A: There's been many blessings in visiting the parishes throughout the diocese. I especially like the school visits. ... I love to go to the schools. I always wanted to be a pastor with a school because of the children, the parents, the activities are so exciting. ... I truly enjoy being with the young people in the parishes when I confirm them, giving them the sacrament of confirmation.

Q: Has Sioux City become home now?

A: It has. Especially when I go back to Denver and see the traffic and the huge amount of people and the consternation of getting anywhere, it's a blessing to be back in Iowa and Sioux City. It's perfect for me. I love being here because it's just the right kind of place for me.

Q: Moving forward, what are the main issues facing the diocese that you'll be dealing with?

A: Some of the difficult things are, first of all, the changing demographics of Iowa. We all know that our population is steady if not declining and that includes Catholics and obviously the implications for the future about difficult decisions about what parishes and churches can we keep open, which do we need to consolidate, what do we need to do to make sure that our priests do not get overworked and the people get served. We're in the midst of a pastoral planning project right now that will take us to 2025 to look to the future, to see what we need to do and make the necessary changes and adjustments along the way. I'm worried about that. Nobody likes to change, and it's going to be a difficult several years as we put the plan into place, but I hope with positive aspects because we're trying to make viable, exciting Catholic parishes and communities, and we're going to try to do our best to make that happen.

Q: Probably the most important question: As a Denver native and probably one of the biggest Bronco fans in Sioux City, are they going to win Sunday and go on to win the Super Bowl?

A: Absolutely, and I'm glad that I'm converting a lot of Siouxlanders to be with the Denver Broncos. Everywhere I go, I notice people that have the orange Bronco paraphernalia on, and I'm always complimenting them for that.
SEATTLE | As a college student in Illinois, Robin Smith was a regular blood donor who considered it a civic duty to open her veins.

But she fell out of the habit, rushed by the demands of life and work, until November, when the 26-year-old research technician at Seattles Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center discovered a whole new way to donate.

Instead of offering a routine sample of blood or plasma to be used in transfusions, Smith signed up to provide peripheral blood stem cells, or PBSCs, the less-well-known cells that are in crucial demand for scientific research.

This is sort of a nice way for me to cumulatively do all of the effort of what would be several blood donations, said Smith, who spent four hours on two weekdays with needles in both arms. I actually work with PBSCs. I was very happy to do it.

Smith earned $800 for her time and effort, enough to fly to Boston to see her family for Thanksgiving. Its a far higher fee than the typical $40 to $60 paid for single donations of blood or plasma, but the ramifications of her contribution may have far more impact.

The idea is that these cells contribute to research thats helping develop treatments for patients, said Dr. Shelly Heimfeld, a scientific director at Fred Hutch and Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (SCCA), where the donations are collected.

Blood stem cells, identified in the early 1960s, were the first type of stem cells discovered and launched a new era of research. Like other stem cells, they can copy themselves, differentiate into specialized cells and undergo cell death  functions that make them critical research tools for scientists.

Investigators studying diseases as diverse as cancer and sickle-cell anemia have relied on the Hutch cells, which have also been used in research for more than 50 papers published in leading journals in the past five years, Heimfeld added.

Heimfeld runs the 16-year-old program  funded through a grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases  that collects PBSCs and provides them to dozens of researchers across the country.

The nonprofit Hutch program is one of the largest in the nation to collect and sell the cells. Theyre also available from commercial producers, but at a much higher cost. A single vial of CD34-positive cells, a type of stem cell vital for research, could cost $2,500 from a commercial provider. Heimfelds program charges $500.

Bloodworks Northwest, the regions blood bank, collects PBSCs, but only from donors providing stem cells for transplants for specific patients. They collect no cells for research, said Dave Larsen, Bloodworks spokesman.

Last year, about 100 local donors at Fred Hutch provided billions of cells to more than 100 outside investigators not only in the U.S. but in far-flung places such as Germany and Singapore, Heimfeld said.

It doesnt make money, but it does allow us to recover costs, he added.

The PBSCs are collected through a process called leukapheresis, which removes blood through one arm, separates out white blood cells, and returns the blood to the donor.

To donate, Smith agreed to receive four days of shots containing granulocyte-colony stimulating factor, or GCSF, a protein that triggers the bone marrow to mobilize, or boost production of stem cells, which then can be retrieved from the blood.

Some people have reactions to the shots, which can cause joint aches and flu-like symptoms, but Smith said she felt fine.

Im always willing to help out, she said. Employees give back in other ways, but for me, my cells are much more renewable than my piggy bank.

Donations that dont require the shots (non-mobilized) are also accepted. Donors receive about $300 for those procedures, said Kristie Rollins, the project manager who oversees recruitment.

A single mobilized donation can yield 20 billion to 30 billion total cells, which contain about 100 million to 200 million stem cells, Heimfeld estimated. From those, scientists can request specific components, such as T cells and B cells, which play a key role in immunity.

They might order a batch of 20 million or 40 million T cells, for instance, for use in an experiment. Finding enough donors to supply the cells is a constant challenge, said Sharvari Joshi, who helps manage recruitment. For every successful donor, seven people have to be screened.

Donors must be between the ages of 18 and 70 and in good health, plus they must meet typical criteria for donating blood products. Mobilized donors can participate only three times in a lifetime, a cap put in place because theres too little data about the effects of the GCSF shot. It appears safe, researchers said.

Ravi Prasad, 37, a Community Transit worker from Marysville, Washington, has donated PBSCs twice, both times on his birthday, after learning about the opportunity at a backyard barbecue. Although he did develop flu-like symptoms from the shots, he said he welcomed the chance to share his cells.

The money was nice, but I didnt do it for the money, he said.

As an immigrant from Fiji, he said he felt an obligation to give back to the community that welcomed him.

If my cells can contribute to even the smallest part of the betterment of humankind, I think Ive done a lot, he said. More than most people will ever do.
PLANO, Texas | For three years, Kelley McKissack and her husband tried to have a baby. Three times, McKissack miscarried.

McKissacks mother, Tracey Thompson, offered to be a surrogate and carry an embryo from the Wylie couples final round of in vitro fertilization.

Last week, the 54-year-old gave birth to a healthy baby girl named Kelcey  a combination of Kelley and Tracey  at the Medical Center of Plano.

The following day, McKissack showed off her rosy-cheeked daughter, all 6 pounds and 9 ounces, with Thompson beaming by her side.

Say hi to the world! McKissack told Kelcey, tucking her tiny arms in a mint-colored blanket as a camera shuttered in their hospital room.

Thompson, who lives in the rural community of Nevada, was already seven years past menopause when she began the pregnancy, but her health was excellent, doctors said. Medical advances allow older women to be surrogates, under strict supervision.

Though noteworthy, Thompsons pregnancy was no medical breakthrough. Surrogates as old as 61 have given birth to children in Chicago and Japan in recent years. Among the oldest mothers in recorded history is a 70-year-old Indian woman who delivered a baby girl in 2008.

It was a beating, Thompson told reporters about her surrogacy. It really was.  Its been many years since Ive been pregnant.

Thompson has two adult children. McKissack is 28, and her brother is 30.

The family was protective of Thompson during this pregnancy. Her husband, Ben, helped with any lifting. McKissack religiously attended her mothers medical appointments, treating them as her own.

I didnt want to disappoint her, Thompson said of her daughter. I was overly cautious with everything.

Sometimes, strangers would stare. First at Thompsons face, then at her belly.

Her husband would jokingly tell people the baby wasnt his and walk off, leaving Thompson to explain it was her daughters.

The looks we got were quite funny, Thompson said.

Doctors noted Thompson went through a comprehensive medical evaluation. Her family also had to sit down with a counselor to check for any emotional problems. Once it was determined that Thompsons uterine cavity was normal, she started taking hormones to prepare for the implantation of a 5-day-old embryo.

Pregnancy is a heavy load on a woman, said Dr. Ali Guerami, McKissacks fertility specialist in Frisco. We have to make sure that their heart can accept it, and then we have to make sure the patient understands that when theyre older theres much more chance youll have an operative procedure like a C-section.

With older women, theres also a higher possibility of complications, Guerami said.

Thompson had a C-section Jan. 6 after Kelceys heart rate dropped. The baby had a bowel movement inside the uterus.

Becoming a surrogate wasnt a decision Thompson came to lightly.

She and her husband, Ben, talked about it together, with their family and their pastor John Spencer of Lone Star Cowboy Church in Nevada.

The couple is active in the church. Ben Thompson is a church leader. On Sundays, the Thompsons and other members eat dinner together. Games of dominoes often follow at the couples house.

They talked with Spencer about Tracey Thompsons health and concerns about her age.

But whether the surrogacy was part of Gods plan wasnt a discussion, Spencer said. He knew about the difficulty of the couples daughter and son-in-law to have a baby.

I have come to appreciate that we serve a huge God. Im afraid we tend to put him in this little box because then it feels safe for us, rather than understanding that God is almighty and he uses different channels for his purpose, Spencer said during a phone interview. God uses medical channels to heal, or in this case, bring new life.
SIOUX CITY | Debbie and David Haak drove 13 hours from Arkansas on Wednesday to frigid Northwest Iowa to boost a longtime family friend -- Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee.

Debbie Haak said it was well worth the drive and weather shock -- it was 20 degrees during an early morning stop Thursday at the Siouxland Center for Active Generations -- as Huckabee began his final push to line up supporters in advance of the Feb. 1 Iowa caucuses.

"I love our country, y'all ... (Huckabee's) main goal is to make our country the country it used to be," Haak said to the 35 people present.

Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor, won the 2008 Iowa caucuses, but noted the campaign dynamic with a slew of new Republican candidates in 2016 is that voters are angry. He has polled in low single digits nationally and in Iowa at a time when Republicans Ted Cruz and Donald Trump are dominating. But Huckabee contended he can still surge in Iowa.

"I want you to prove that the Iowa people think for themselves," he told the audience.

Huckabee said policy changes to firm up federal government finances and strengthen the military are needed, but added that a moral rebirth also is vitally necessary. He cited Americans being confused about sexual identity and 4,000 abortions daily taking lives of babies.

"It is all about getting our national soul back," Huckabee said.

Huckabee described how the loss of prayer in public schools has undercut a sense of community. He cited how prayer in his schools growing up in Hope, Arkansas, did not make anyone "warped."

"It wasn't that we were trying to favor one religion over another," he said.

Huckabee spoke for 45 minutes in Sioux City, then moved on to planned stops in Le Mars, Sioux Center, Rock Valley and Sheldon. Huckabee asserted that continuing local events work best to connect with Iowans.

"I don't think you can win (the caucuses) with a short cut," Huckabee said.

Isabel Trobaugh, of Elk Point, S.D., said she was glad Huckabee has competed hard in Iowa.

"Mike Huckabee has listened to the people of (Iowa)," Trobaugh said.
SIOUX CITY | Daniel Walock joined the Sioux City Journal Wednesday as the new circulation director.

Walock has a lengthy career in circulation, serving as an executive for multiple companies, including the Forum, Howard Publications, Huckle Media, and Lee Enterprises. Davenport, Iowa-based Lee Enterprises is the parent company of the Journal.

He started in the newspaper industry as a reporter before moving into circulation and operations. He previously worked for newspapers in Minnesota, North Dakota and Idaho.

"Dan is a seasoned professional with a lot of experience," Journal publisher Ron Peterson said. "He's a very creative individual that I am confident will do an outstanding job leading our circulation team."

Walock has been active in numerous boards and committees and was recognized in 2012 with the Lefty Hymes Award, which recognizes lasting contributions in the field of circulation.

After growing up in Lisbon, North Dakota, Walock attended North Dakota State University, where he earned undergraduate degrees in print media, public relations and business and later his master's degree in business administration.

He is married to Kari Walock and has three children, Kayleigh, Kelsey, and Keaton.
DES MOINES | A state-mandated school program for struggling young readers is in desperate need of funding, state education board members told the governor Thursday.

Multiple members of the Iowa State Board of Education told Gov. Terry Branstad on Thursday that they are concerned by the lack of funding for the Intensive Summer Literacy Program in the governors 2016-17 budget proposal.

The program, which must go into effect in the summer of 2017, is designed to help struggling young readers reach literacy benchmarks to prevent them from being held back in the third grade.

Were concerned about the impending disaster thats going to occur in May of 2017, and thats one that were all going to be blamed for: the board, the governor, the lieutenant governor, the Legislature. Were all going to share in the blame, board member Mike May said. The question is how we can mitigate that as much as possible.

Branstad said he hopes to work with the Iowa Legislature to secure $9 million in funding for the program during the 2017 legislative session. But state education board members said schools need to do work this summer to have the program ready for launch in 2017.

I want you to understand the timing, Branstad said to board members at Thursdays meeting in the Grimes state office building.

For school districts, the timing is very real, board president Charles Edwards countered.

Edwards called the program massively underfunded.

During the discussion, the governor asked board members if they would prefer the early reader program funding come at the expense of general school funding. One board member suggested it may be prudent to delay the programs implementation.

I would argue that (program funding) may have to end up coming out of the supplemental (state school funding), Edwards said. But thats not my place.

The governor and state lawmakers put together the state budget, and they are trying to determine how much money to budget for public schools in the next school year. The negotiating parties are starting millions of dollars apart, so removing more money to divert to another program could complicate negotiations.

We are going to work very hard to make sure we make good on that commitment to the third-graders, said Pam Jochum, D-Dubuque, president of the Democratic-controlled Senate. There has to be something in the budget to help at least get ready.  We know they need at least some start-up money to prepare for that (program).

Jochum also criticized the Branstad administrations move to tweak a manufacturing tax break, which will reduce state revenues by more than $40 million annually, saying that decision put a bigger pinch on what already was a tight budget.

House Speaker Linda Upmeyer, R-Clear Lake, said Republicans in control of the House are not yet crafting their budget proposals.

I know that there is a great deal of interest of people having the resources there that are necessary for reading programs that prepare kids to move forward, Upmeyer said. Were just not at the point in the (budgeting) process.  Its just really kind of early to predict where (legislators) will land.

Branstad was hesitant to embrace the possibility of delaying the programs implementation date. He said that could be done next year, if the state still cannot devote the necessary resources.
DES MOINES | Average teacher salaries have increased, moving Iowa to 25th place in the national rankings, according to data contained in the annual Condition of Education report issued Thursday by the state Department of Education.

Salaries for Iowas 34,725 teachers increased by an average of 2.7 percent to $55,356 in the 2014-15 school year, the report indicated. That moved Iowa up one spot from its previous national ranking and placed Iowa sixth out of 12 Midwest states for the 2013-14 school year.

The states total per-pupil expense was $10,240 in the 2013-14 school year, up from $9,888 the year before, data in the yearly report indicated.

One of the critical functions of the Iowa Department of Education is to provide and interpret education data, state education agency director Ryan Wise said in a statement. The Condition of Education report provides valuable feedback about our students, educators and school districts across a number of statewide measures.

The report provides a wide range of state-level data, including shifts in student populations and demographics, teacher salaries and characteristics, student achievement results and school financial information, Wise noted.

Highlight of the statewide data through the 2014-15 school year included a student population of 480,772 in Iowas 338 public school districts, a total that was up from 478,921 the previous school year and represented an increased makeup of 21.8 percent minority students. The percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch was down slightly to 41 percent.

Slightly more than 90 percent of Iowa high school students graduated and the percentage of students who took a higher-level mathematics course -- including calculus and trigonometry  was unchanged from the prior year, according to the yearly report.

Roughly two out of every three high school students took the ACT college entrance exam and the composite score was up slightly at 22.2. Also, the report indicated that the percentage of schools equipped with 50 MB or more of bandwidth climbed to 71.9 percent in the 2014-15 school year from 60.1 percent in 2013-14 and 44.4 percent in 2012-13.
Herschel's Dictum. There arent too many human interaction problems that cant be fixed with a .45 ACP 230-grain fat-boy. -- Herschel Smith.



Always remember: "A communist is an impatient socialist." - Anonymous contributor to this blog.

The Nyberg Flag of the Three Percent



Edmund Burke reconsidered in the light of 20th Century funeral pyres.







"Remember: Evil exists because good men don't kill the government officials committing it." -- Kurt Hofmann.

Collected video links of my speeches on liberty and armed civil disobedience. From 2013 to date.

Absolved Chapter Links Click HERE.

And, as things begin to spin out of control, remember this: "All politics in this country now is just dress rehearsal for civil war." -- Billy Beck, August 2009.



From MamaLiberty over at War on Guns: "Here's an idea...If nobody wants a 'civil disturbance,' why in heck don't they quit disturbing us?"



Indeed.



"When Democracy Becomes Tyranny



"Progress made under the shadow of the policeman's club is false progress." I believe that liberty is the only genuinely valuable thing that men have invented, at least in the field of government, in a thousand years. I believe that it is better to be free than to be not free, even when the former is dangerous and the latter safe. I believe that the finest qualities of man can flourish only in free air  that progress made under the shadow of the policeman's club is false progress, and of no permanent value. I believe that any man who takes the liberty of another into his keeping is bound to become a tyrant, and that any man who yields up his liberty, in however slight the measure, is bound to become a slave. -- H.L. Mencken



On the efficacy of passive resistance in the face of the collectivist beast. . . Had the Japanese got as far as India, Gandhi's theories of "passive resistance" would have floated down the Ganges River with his bayoneted, beheaded carcass. -- Mike Vanderboegh.



In the future . . . When the histories are written, National Rifle Association will be cross-referenced with Judenrat. -- Mike Vanderboegh to Sebastian at "Snowflakes in Hell"



"Smash the bloody mirror." If you find yourself through the looking glass, where the verities of the world you knew and loved no longer apply, there is only one thing to do. Knock the Red Queen on her ass, turn around, and smash the bloody mirror. -- Mike Vanderboegh



From Kurt Hoffman over at Armed and Safe. "I believe that being despised by the despicable is as good as being admired by the admirable."



From long experience myself, I can only say, "You betcha."



"Only cowards dare cringe."

The fears of man are many. He fears the shadow of death and the closed doors of the future. He is afraid for his friends and for his sons and of the specter of tomorrow. All his life's journey he walks in the lonely corridors of his controlled fears, if he is a man. For only fools will strut, and only cowards dare cringe. -- James Warner Bellah, "Spanish Man's Grave" in Reveille , Curtis Publishing, 1947.

"We fight an enemy that never sleeps." "As our enemies work bit by bit to deconstruct, we must work bit by bit to REconstruct. Be mindful where we should be. Set goals. We fight an enemy that never sleeps. We must learn to sleep less." -- Mike H. at What McAuliffe Said



"The Fate of Unborn Millions. . ." "The time is now near at hand which must probably determine, whether Americans are to be, Freemen, or Slaves; whether they are to have any property they can call their own; whether their Houses, and Farms, are to be pillaged and destroyed, and they consigned to a State of Wretchedness from which no human efforts will probably deliver them. The fate of unborn Millions will now depend, under God, on the Courage and Conduct of this army-Our cruel and unrelenting Enemy leaves us no choice but a brave resistance, or the most abject submission; that is all we can expect-We have therefore to resolve to conquer or die." -- George Washington to his troops before the Battle of Long Island.



"We will not go gently . . ." This is no small thing, to restore a republic after it has fallen into corruption. I have studied history for years and I cannot recall it ever happening. It may be that our task is impossible. Yet, if we do not try then how will we know it can't be done? And if we do not try, it most certainly won't be done. The Founders' Republic, and the larger war for western civilization, will be lost.



But I tell you this: We will not go gently into that bloody collectivist good night. Indeed, we will make with our defiance such a sound as ALL history from that day forward will be forced to note, even if they despise us in the writing of it.



And when we are gone, the scattered, free survivors hiding in the ruins of our once-great republic will sing of our deeds in forbidden songs, tending the flickering flame of individual liberty until it bursts forth again, as it must, generations later. We will live forever, like the Spartans at Thermopylae, in sacred memory.



-- Mike Vanderboegh, The Lessons of Mumbai:Death Cults, the "Socialism of Imbeciles" and Refusing to Submit, 1 December 2008







"A common language of resistance . . ." "Colonial rebellions throughout the modern world have been acts of shared political imagination. Unless unhappy people develop the capacity to trust other unhappy people, protest remains a local affair easily silenced by traditional authority. Usually, however, a moment arrives when large numbers of men and women realize for the first time that they enjoy the support of strangers, ordinary people much like themselves who happen to live in distant places and whom under normal circumstances they would never meet. It is an intoxicating discovery. A common language of resistance suddenly opens to those who are most vulnerable to painful retribution the possibility of creating a new community. As the conviction of solidarity grows, parochial issues and aspirations merge imperceptibly with a compelling national agenda which only a short time before may have been the dream of only a few. For many Americans colonists this moment occurred late in the spring of 1774." -- T.H. Breen, The Marketplace of Revolution: How Consumer Politics Shaped American Independence, Oxford University Press, 2004, p.1.


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These ski towns might be the best places to invest in real estate, but not everyone is buying. Instead, Curbed Ski predicts that Recreational Park Trailers like the ones made by the Jackson Hole-based design firm Wheelhaus are about to go mainstream. Although we featured the luxury, portable living spaces back in April 2013, a slew of new press is taking Wheelhaus to the big leagues: Outside Magazine just included the tiny digs in their 2014 Editors' Choice Awards of Perfect Things and the Boston Herald chimed in on the gorgeous mini cabins too. What's all the buzz about? Let's just say these prefab cabins are the most luxurious, mobile 400 square feet we've seen in a while.

More on tiny home living:

Relive Your Oregon Trail Dreams in This Tiny Backyard Hut

Tiny, Transforming A-Frame Costs Less Than $1200 To Build

Why Tiny Homes Might Be Just the Thing To Save Ski Towns

Genius Camper From 1972 Is Coolest Mobile Home Yet

Camouflaged Boulder in the Swiss Alps Is Actually A Tiny Cabin

Most models include a well-appointed living room/dining room featuring a 42" TV and gas fireplace, a bathroom stocked with Kohler fixtures and a bedroom with enough space for a king bed. In the Wedge model, the angled ceiling is made out of recycled snow fencing and the inside feels much bigger than 400 square feet. There's even a decently-sized deck to boot.

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 The Caboose model has a slightly different layout and construction, with two decks and a lofted section over the living room. Instead of snow fencing, the exterior is a mix of rusty metal and cedar siding, and the interior is laid out with bamboo flooring, LED lighting, energy-efficient SIP walls and ceiling, and a full kitchen. The models start at around $92,000, and sit right at the limit of RV size regulations, which means owners can park their new homes in any campground or RV park without special permits. While they're trailer-friendly, the intention is for them to be located somewhere more permanently.

For those who want to test drive, both models, along with glamping options, are available at Fireside Resort, which is right off the road on the way to Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.

 400 Square Feet Feet in Ski Country in Style and Mobile For $85 K [Curbed Ski]

 Wheelhaus

 Fireside Resort, Jackson Hole, WY
Jim Fowler has been at the forefront of crowd sourcing for over a decade. First, he was co-founder of the cloud-based contact management service Jigsaw, before selling it to Salesforce.com for $175 million. Then, he was with InfoArmy, and finally today with Owler  a free, competitive intelligence service.

Fowler discusses how changing technology has impacted how crowd sourcing business models over the years, and how these models will only succeed if humans and the way they communicate are not automated out of the equation, but freed up to think and share more efficiently, improving their abilities to create even more value.

* * * * *

Small Business Trends: Before we jump on full bore with that maybe give us a little bit of your personal background leading up to what you were doing with Jigsaw.

Jim Fowler: After college I was a diving and salvage officer in the United States Navy doing salvage operations and paid back Uncle Sam for my college tuition. Then when I got out of the Navy I was an owner-operator of a small ski area up in Idaho until I hit age 30 and that was 1995. At that point in time I thought Id better get serious and get a real job, so I ran away and joined the internet circus in 1995. Got into the internet technology business then and became a sales guy for a while before I founded Jigsaw in 03.

Small Business Trends: Was that a need that you filled from your experiences of being a sales person?

Jim Fowler: Actually I had been on my 3rd stint as the VP of sales at that point and I was just frustrated with how much time my sales reps were spending trying to figure out who to contact at a target organization. Needing a phone number and an email to get them and talk to them, so Jigsaw was really founded out of a point of need.

We looked at how that market was working. It was lots and lots of players, no one really owned it and we came up with a crowd sourcing model for that. It was basically a gigantic business card exchange in the sky where you could go in and say, Hey, I need to know who are the people at this company, and I have contact data for people at this other company so Im going to trade it, and thats how it worked and it ended up creating a huge and really high quality database that in 2010, Salesforce ended up buying for $175 million dollars.

Small Business Trends: You used a crowd sourcing model and what modern technology was back then to create that business. Fast forward to 2012 after you had sold to Salesforce and you started up with InfoArmy, there were some similarities. You were still looking at the business information space, although I think it was a little bit more competitive intelligence information with InfoArmy.

Jim Fowler: Yep.

Small Business Trends: It was crowd sourced and it was the modern technology at the time, so talk a bit about the differences from what you did with Jigsaw and InfoArmy from a crowd sourcing perspective?

Jim Fowler: The commonalities have always been business information and crowd sourcing it. InfoArmy was really about recruiting an army of global researchers who would do really in depth reports on companies and use the crowd that way. I funded it for our 1st round for 2 million, and then we raised another 17 million dollars in late 12 because we got a lot of traction, but we found that that model really didnt work. We ended up just changing the name of the company and pivoting, which was by the way a very painful process.

From the whole concept around this crowd sourcing model, it just has huge value because you end up getting the crowd, in exchange for getting a free product that has a lot of value to them they do a lot of work on the data, which creates a very valuable data set that large companies will pay a lot of money for. Thats exactly how Jigsaw worked and thats exactly how the InfoArmy and Owler models work as well.

Small Business Trends: The model didnt quite work the way you expected with InfoArmy. Youre still using the wisdom of the crowd approach and youre still using modern technology, but how are you applying it now when it comes to Owler?

Jim Fowler: Owlers just much more open, its completely free. What it does is it helps people keep on top of their competitive set. They get these weekly showdowns that show them how their companys doing versus their competitors and they get daily snapshots which give them information about their companies, their competitive set, their customers, anyone they want to follow.

What happens is the users come in and interact with this data, thats for instance some of these weekly showdowns will show revenue estimates and how the companies are doing revenue wise amongst many other factors and our users actually go in there and, with the wisdom of crowds give their estimates. When you combine it all you get a really high quality there, but we also do other things like news and alerts where we also use a combination of technology and people.

We get business news feeds from about 5,000 global sources, and technology handles most of that, but what happens is we have a team of people that actually make sure that its high quality. A lot of your listeners probably use Google Alerts, and thats a pretty frustrating experience. Google is an amazing technology company, but technology can only take you so far down the road and theres just a lot of noise with Google Alerts, you get tons of different emails.

What ours does is just brings it all together. If youre following 50 companies, its just going to give you 1 email that shows what is all the news and alerts on those companies thats really super high quality without all the noise, if you will.

Small Business Trends: This is really interesting because now were 2015, getting ready to go to 2016 and the technology available is just amazing in a lot of instances, but what youre saying, at least it sounds like is, youre using that amazing technology thats at your disposal to enhance what humans do in the business model. Not to try to take over or cut out what humans do.

Jim Fowler: Yeah, lets take a quick example. We have another product thats also free called Special Reports. A lot of people are interested when a company receives funding, or a company gets acquired. Right now, the way that most people have seen that data come out is theyll just see a headline that says, So and so got bought, or maybe So and so got bought got X dollars, or , So and so received this much money. Then theyve got to click it and try to read this article to get all the data they want.

What we do is go in and create a special report that gives a quick one sentence description of the company. Were pulling data from the prop file on Owler.com, what their funding history is, who funded them, who their competitors are and how much revenue their competitors are doing estimated by out community. It just gives a full picture, plus all the news articles that talk about that funding or that acquisition so that you can just see it in 1 place.

See Also: Cognytics Helps Small Businesses with Better Data Visualization

If you just used technology to try to do this, you would get a lot of noise in there because really its a lot harder than it looks to figure out that the article is actually about Apple. Apple gets mentioned in millions of articles. To know that its actually about Apple is  To just do it with technology is really hard. What technology can do is say, We think this is an article about Apple and we think its an Apple acquisition and we think this is the company that they did and we think this is it, but what you need to do is create a task that gets prioritized very highly that a human looks at really quick. Checks out all the data and goes, Ah, thats right. Were good, and then sends it on to the people.

Otherwise you get a lot of noise, what Im getting at is that technology can get you way down the road, but you need humans to get you all the way down the road if you want high quality data.

Small Business Trends: Youve made a number of different changes, from when you started with Jigsaw to where you are with Owler in terms of tweaking the model, leveraging the technology, but at the heart of it all its still been about leveraging the intelligence that actual humans have. How, if at all, has the model changed for the more traditional business data services like Dunn and Bradstreet? Have they morphed to take advantage of whats available today or is it still pretty much the same business model?

Jim Fowler: Its pretty much the same business model. They always go out there and talk about, well weve got this technology and that technology. There are some good technologists there certainly, but the reality is is they just dont innovate. Many of the big guys have tried crowd sourcing models and completely failed and I think its just because its not in their DNA.

If you dont start from the very beginning with the crowd in mind and what they want and make sure that theyre equal partners in your business model, then it is destined for failure. Ive spoken on stage about this many many times, but what crowd models do do for you, its what I call the Tom Sawyer effect. Youre getting people to paint your picket fence. In this case, theyre getting more value back than theyre giving to you, in Jigsaws case it was free.

By the way, people had a pay option in Jigsaw, so each of these models is a little bit different. At Jigsaw you could go in and either trade data you have for data you needed or you could just pay for the data you wanted. At Owler, what we do is its so many people are use it, we get a lot and were getting more and more interaction on it. Were getting such value we can just keep it free and open  We want millions and millions of business professionals using Owler everyday for free as part of their workflow. Everyday, this is how they do it, this is how they keep track of their competitors, their own company, their customers, their prospects, etc.

Every single one of these crowd sourcing models provide value to the crowd because once you get that, theyre doing the work for you. Youre just providing a platform for them to do it, thats why these models are so valuable. Companies like D&B, they have to either build their own technology to do that which only will get them so far. Then they have to actually pay people to do it all the time and when you do that at scale it just doesnt work. Its too expensive, and thats why D&B is so expensive comparatively.

Small Business Trends: I think my final question around this is youve been looking at leveraging the wisdom of the crowd for over a decade, through Jigsaw to InfoArmy to what youre doing with Owler. How has the crowd changed? Whats been the most significant change youve seen in the actual crowd, the people? Not the technology, but just the people.

Jim Fowler: I think they change in the same way that we all have. We all are just overloaded with information. Getting peoples time and getting them to pay attention is much more difficult now than it was back in the beginning of Jigsaw for sure. Getting journalists and analysts to talk and write about you is different because theres so much going on. In fact a lot of the big publications dont even exist or dont write about it anymore.

Its become much more flat, if you will. More players in it, so thats interesting, but I just think the biggest thing is just people  Theres so much stuff flying around out there now that really making sure you have a crisp clear message so that they understand the value is even more important than it ever was and thats just been the big change. People are more sophisticated, theyre more  They know how to use data and I see that trend continuing.

This is part of the One-on-One Interview series with thought leaders. The transcript has been edited for publication. If it's an audio or video interview, click on the embedded player above, or subscribe via iTunes or via Stitcher.
Businesses that use Slack to collaborate got some welcome news this week. The platform is testing a feature that will let teams communicate via Skype calls within their Slack threads. In addition, Microsoft made an acquisition this week that could improve its Skype for Business offering.

Read about these headlines and more news that could impact your business in this weeks Small Business Trends news and information roundup.

Communication

Slack Users Can Now Use Skype to Collaborate

Microsoft revealed in a post last week that Skype will now integrate with Slack, the popular instant messaging and collaboration platform for teams. The integration, still in preview, allows Slack teams to complete Skype voice and video calls from within Slack threads, speeding up communication.

Microsoft Acquires Event Zero Assets for Analytics on Skype for Business

Microsoft has announced acquiring, for an undisclosed amount, some Skype-related technology tools from Australian-based Event Zero. Previously, Event Zero provided management and reporting software for Skype for Business Online, which is the cloud version of Skype for Business.

Plugin Detects Weak Language in Emails  Avoid These Words

Words like sorry, just, I think, I am not an expert and other ubiquitous words and phrases minimizes others confidence in your idea and could be softening your business communications.

Economy

Bill Giving More Small Businesses Access to Federal Contracts Heads to Congress

Small businesses may soon have better opportunities to bid for federal contracts. The U.S. House Committee on Small Business has approved bipartisan legislation to expand and boost the prospects for smaller firms in the federal bidding process.

Employment

Non-Employers Growing: A Concern?

The Census Bureau recently released its preliminary figures from the Survey of Business Owners (SBO)  the statistical agencys twice-a-decade snapshot of the status of American businesses. Census Bureau Survey of Business Owners The numbers do not tell a pretty picture about Americas small business sector.

Marketing Tips

Digital Display Ads To Surpass Search Ad Spending in 2016

Marketers have long anticipated it, and if the latest estimates from eMarketer are to be believed, this will be the year when digital display ad spending finally surpasses search ad spending in the U.S. The forecast has been published in eMarketers new report US Digital Display Advertising Trends: Eight Developments to Watch for in 2016.

Small Biz Spotlight

Spotlight: Native Grill and Wings Brought Chicken Wings to the Southwest

Everyone loves chicken wings. At least, thats what the proprietors of Native Grill and Wings have learned over the course of running the business. Native Grill and Wings started out focusing on other menu items, but then was saved by chicken wings. And now, the company even has multiple locations through a franchise system.

Social Media

Big Twitter Outage Leaves Users Disconnected

Twitter started the day on the wrong foot. Many users noticed early on they were unable to access the service as the social network experienced a worldwide outage Tuesday morning. Anyone having flashbacks of the fail whale? The image above was once the familiar screen icon users would see when the site was inaccessible in its early days. The worldwide outage started at 3:20 a.m.

How Small Businesses Can Use New Periscope Streaming on Twitter

Periscope is a live-streaming video mobile app for iOS and Android owned by Twitter. Periscope allows you to go live via your smartphone and become your own on-the-go broadcasting station, streaming live video and audio from any location, at any time of the day or night. Viewers can tune in to your broadcast from anywhere in the world.

Startup

When Power Lunch Isnt Enough: Texting to Get Lunch Delivered

The power lunch, a fast bite at a local eatery perhaps with business acquaintances has become a staple of business culture. But now, it seems that even power lunches may not be convenient enough and a new solution is being cooked up to get a convenient lunch without interrupting work and important business.

Technology Trends

First Data Introduces Clover Go Card Reader to Compete with Square

Do you happen to be in the market for a mobile card reader? There is a new player hitting the scene thats been recently announced by First Data. Called Clover Go, this EMV-enabled card reader is being touted as an affordable option. Clover Go appears to be a card reader similar to those offered by Square and PayPal.

How Does the Latest E-Signature Tool Concord Differ from the Pack?

Ever need to pull up a contract with its legal signatures quickly and wish it could be accessed by computer? According to Matt Lhoumeau, CEO of Concord, an e-signature tool and contract platform company, 96 percent of all contracts are still written and signed on paper.

Study Finds Four Factors That Define Business Innovators

Its no secret that innovation is vital for businesses of all types and sizes. This fact was once again made clear in the 10th annual global survey of the state of innovation released in December 2015 by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), a global management consulting firm and leading advisor on business strategy.

Google Maps Now Guesses Destination Based on Driving History

Heading to a critical meeting and trying to ensure you have the right directions to get there on time? As long as youve been to your destination before, Google Maps may be able to help. Google has added a new feature  dubbed Driving Mode  to its Maps app.

HTTPS Sites Now 25 Percent of Top Google Search Results

One letter can indeed make a difference. If you havent already, you should really make the change from HTTP to HTTPS on your business websites. Not only are HTTPS sites more secure, but Google is giving these sites a priority when indexing. If you want to know how much importance Google is placing on HTTPS sites, here is an important piece of data. Marketing scientist at MOZ, Dr.

Crowdfunding Investment in Technology Could Hit $8 Billion By 2020

Investments in crowdfunded technology are set to increase seven-fold from an estimated $1.1 billion in 2015 to $8.2 billion by 2020, according to Crowdfunding: Strategies & Impacts for Technology Markets 2016-2020, a new study conducted by Juniper.

Image: Skype

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Oh and if you find that you don't have enough units/forces to do the job properly then perhaps the problem isn't with the US Marines or Army...perhaps policy makers are asking to do too much with too little.
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There are many fitness goals out there that we desire. Some of us want to be leaner and others wish to put on muscle mass. The thing is, for you to achieve your fitness goals, you need to
This is a sore point, sometimes, we do not dare to say how things really are because we believe it will play into the hands of the Sverigedemokraterna (Sweden Democrats). We have to take responsibility for this within the police.





All men know that it is wrong to assault women. Yet it happens. It is done in different ways, based on different conceptions of what is accepted, what a man can allow himself, to get away with. But this is everyday life. And in at least me there is a reflex to avoid drunk Swedish men in group. The crucial difference is that Swedish women know that they can notify the police and be taken seriously.





The sexual abuse incidents in Europe have exposed the logical flaws in the Swedish debate about immigration and they also show how unprepared Sweden and Europe are in facing the challenges that have arisen because of the migration crisis.After women were assaulted by "asylum seekers" in several places in Europe, it emerged that it also had happened in Sweden. However, in Sweden this had happened in August 2015 at the "We are Sthlm" festival where about 150 girls had been victims of sexual abuse by "refugee youths" from Afghanistan.The reason that this August 2015 incident was not reported until January 2016, was because one of Sweden's largest newspaper, Dagens Nyheter , and the Swedish police, who had access to the information, did not report these incidents to the public.Dagens Nyheter is known as a newspaper that romanticizes immigration and multiculturalism but the actions of the police shocked many in Sweden, because the police are one of the institutions in Sweden that many Swedes have great confidence in. The explanation that the police chief Peter Agren gave for not reporting the sexual abuses in August 2015 was:The fact that a Swedish police chief was making political considerations came as a shock to a country that never had to think about what political views the police have. In Sweden, the general view is that police chiefs who let their political views affect their job are found in other countries, mostly in dictatorships, and not in Sweden. That the police chief wants to disfavor the third largest party in the Swedish parliament just makes the situation even more uncomfortable. It must also be said that Swedens national police commissioner, since 2015, Dan Eliasson, holds openly hostile views against the fastest rising party in Sweden. One of the famous tweets of the national police commissioner is that he wants to vomit over the party-leader of the Sweden Democrats.At the same time, the Swedish polices work with newly arrived migrants is completely classified . It is impossible for Swedes to know about the security situation in the homes where "asylum seekers" are staying, or how many of the newly arrived migrants have broken the law.But this whole situation also reveals much about the important role of culture in the immigration issue. The migration crisis has not only created huge economic costs. Large parts of Sweden and Europe have learned in a furious pace that all migrants coming into Europe have not become feminists or liberals when they crossed the border. Many migrants have brought their cultural framework which includes a clear "non-European" view of women.It's really no big secret how the majority of women are treated in the Middle East and in most of the Muslim world. It is also no big secret what the content of the Qur'an and Sunnah says about women and how these writings are interpreted today by a large portion of the Muslim world. At best, women are treated as second class citizens and as property.During 2015 , 70 percent of the 162,877 asylum seekers in Sweden came from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq. Additionally, 64 percent of the Syrians, 82 percent of the Afghans and 73 percent of the Iraqis were men. The ordinary Muslim refugee to Sweden is a young man, so young Muslim mens views against women in the Muslim world becomes relevant.The Muslim countries' legislation can be easily found on the Internet. There are thousands of books on what role women have in countries like Afghanistan and Iraq and the oppression they are enduring every day. Despite this, many in Sweden are surprised that this kind of sexual abuse has occurred. It is as if the Left in Sweden lacks any knowledge of how other cultures view women in other parts of the world.One would hope that the fact that so many women have been attacked in Europe by young male asylum seekers would make the Swedish Left wake up. After the sexual abuses in Cologne Kerstin Weigl, the columnist for Sweden's largest newspaper Aftonbladet, wrote Two days after her column, where her message was that Swedish girls will be taken seriously by Swedish police, it emerged that the police had covered up sexual abuse against girls because the perpetrators were Muslim "asylum seekers". The Swedish Left's response to sexual abuse committed by "asylum seekers" has been to portray all Swedish men as rapists in to get away from the fact that those who were behind the latest sexual abuses have been "asylum seekers". But it is an assertion that feels strange to the Swedish people, who have never seen similar sexual abuses like those committed by the newly arrived "asylum seekers".In addition to the Swedish Lefts lack of understanding that all the migrants who come to Sweden will not become feminists at the border, they have also completely missed the power relationships between cultures. 1.6 billion people are part of the Islamic cultural sphere. Sweden has approximately 9.5 million inhabitants. If someone comes to Sweden from a part of the Muslim world, and ends up in a situation where he/she has to choose between Islam and Sweden, the person will usually choose Islam, because Islam is the stronger party. What the Left in Sweden has missed is that the values of 1.6 billion people ends up being stronger than the values of 9.5 million Swedes.As Sweden does not have a policy of assimilation and has not had any such policy since 1975, there are not many immigrants that are assimilated in the Swedish society and power relations between the Islamic world and Sweden makes it problematic for Muslims to voluntarily embrace the Swedish culture.It is not only Swedish women who will face a "cultural challenge" in the coming years that will make their lives more frightening and insecure. Women and children who have immigrated to Sweden and live in accommodations for "asylum seekers" live risky and precarious lives as well. Despite the fact that the Swedish police does not report about the security situation in the accommodations of "asylum seekers", there has been reports about rape attempts in these accommodations, in Swedish media.The fact is that if you come into Europe and then migrate through safe countries all the way to Sweden, then you are not really a refugee. A refugee seeks refuge at the first safe country. Having thousands of frustrated young men with a medieval attitude towards women in a country where women have a liberal way of life creates the conditions for a cultural confrontation. We have already seen some of the consequences of such a cultural confrontation in the sexual abuses that occurred in different cities in Europe.Sweden and Europe will learn that even if democracy, freedom, equality between women and men and human rights are things that are respected in Europe, there are cultural discourses in which these things are not respected. Sweden and Europe will learn in the near future, the hard way, why women do not go out alone on the streets of Kabul.The difficulties that Europe will face is a consequence of ignorance and arrogance disguised as ideology. There has been an establishment that has had an illusion that people belonging to an expansionist civilization like Islam will come to Europe and then when they're here, they'll just embrace European values. The establishment in Europe has believed that young men who have been brought up with a medieval view towards women will suddenly start respecting women. This establishment is now colliding with reality and thus finds itself in an ideological crisis.The multicultural ideology that gives influence to non-European cultures in European nations is under current circumstances a threat to Europe and the European nations' identities and freedoms.Europe and Sweden are compelled to embrace an ideology, because of the massive migration that has taken place, where the society has to stand up and support the national culture and let this culture continue to steer the development of society while having a workable policy of assimilation without empty phrases and political slogans, that can be implemented.The sexual abuses, carried out by "asylum seekers", in European cities are a part of a larger crisis that right now is about how women should dress, and how and where women should move, but in the long term it will be about issues that concern the entire European society. If European nations do not firmly confront this Islamic "cultural challenge," then they will pay a much higher and painful price than they have done so far.
ANNAPOLIS (Jan. 21, 2016)Legislators and nonprofit groups are still digesting the $42.3 billion budget Gov. Larry Hogan submitted Wednesday. But there were few signs of indigestion over a proposal that increases spending by $2 billion (5%), while setting aside a record $1.5 billion in reserves and surplus.



"We don't know until we get into all the details" is the way House Speaker Michael Busch summed it up after breakfast with the governor and fiscal leaders.



House Appropriations Committee Chair Maggie McIntosh had lots of unanswered questions, as well.



Hogan had already laid out the broad outlines of his plans in a budget preview two weeks ago and a press conference on "very modest" tax relief last week.



Slimmed down budget books



The governor's staff has already saved money and slimmed down the budget. They cut one whole 500-page volume from the budget detail, and kept to last year's stark black-and-white covers, without the colors and cover photos of the O'Malley years.



What the Hogan administration has stopped printing is the Managing for Results pages that are a holdover from the Glendening administration and the budget personnel detail. All that can be found online, along with the budget books themselves.



Sean Johnson, legislative director of the Maryland State Education Association said he was cautiously optimistic about the governors budget. The governor has repeatedly boasted he is providing record funding for K-12 education, to the tune of $6.3 billion, a 3% increase that fully funds all the mandated education formulas.



Hogan wants to reduce those mandates, but that will be a separate fight on a piece of legislation still being worked on. A much bigger fight is more likely to come next year over the likely changes in school aid a commission is currently studying. Such commissions almost always recommend spending more on schools.



Hogan is also increasing funding to community colleges by 6%, while aid to state universities goes up just 3%, triggering a likely 2% tuition increase.



Biggest gains for transportation, environment



The biggest gains are a $500 million boost for transportation, an 11% hike largely funded by automatic increases in the gasoline tax that Hogan tried to reverse last year. They now have gone completely unnoticed as gas prices have plummeted. Having failed last year, Hogan has said he will not ask legislators again to reduce those taxes.



The biggest percentage increase was for national resources and the environment, which get 17% more, but that is only $140 million.



Alison Prost, Maryland executive director of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, said, At first glance, this budget appears to be a welcome New Years resolution by Marylandto spend revenues on Bay clean-up efforts that were intended just for those purposes. Shifting some of those funds to other purposes has become an Annapolis tradition."



We still are examining exactly how the $53 million in revenue in The Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays 2010 Trust Fund is proposed to be spent."



Budget Secretary David Brinkley and his deputies handled the budget briefing this year, while Hogan was doing an interview on WBAL radio. Hogan said his spending plan is "one that people may have a hard time disagreeing with."



Naysayers



But of course there were already some naysayers.



Sen. Richard Madaleno, D-Montgomery, remained skeptical.



The governor 'says' he fully funds education," said Madaleno, who is the vice-chair of the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee which will gets first whack at the spending plan. His approach has been to do the minimum and that's what he has done."



Patrick Moran, president of AFSCME 3, said they were unhappy that they only got 2 to 4% step increases in pay, and not the additional cost-of-living hike they had sought. He said the administration was constantly complaining about the cost of overtime, but Moran said that was because there were 6,300 vacant positions in state government, 600 vacant in corrections along.



Many of the correctional officers and juvenile service workers his union represents are working mandatory overtime "out the wahzoo" because jobs go unfilled.



Maryland Center on Economic Policy Executive Director Benjamin Orr said, "Even though the state can afford to maintain current levels of state services, the governor has opted to shortchange certain programs. For example, while he has touted his support for public primary education, he has opted not to invest in higher education at the levels that state experts said is needed.



Some of the savings in Hogan's budget may result from problems with people getting their Medicaid renewed, an issue Maggie McIntosh raised as well.



Rachael Bluth of Capital News Service contributed to this story with the quotes from MSEA's Johnson and Sen. Madaleno.
ANNAPOLIS (Jan. 21, 2016)During the opening prayer in the Maryland House of Delegates, Curtis Stovall Curt Anderson, D-Baltimore, mimicked a verse to reflect the days agenda.



Where there is veto, override, he said.



Andersons sentiments proved true, as the House voted Wednesday to override three of Gov. Larry Hogans vetoes, including legislation that would give voting rights to ex-felons.



A three-fifths majority is needed in the House for an override, and 85 votesjust enoughwere cast to override the voting rights veto.



Eric Luedtke, D-Montgomery, voiced strong opposition to the veto and urged his fellow delegates to follow suit.



Voting is not just a right. It is a fundamental right, he said. (Ex-felons) get jobs and they pay taxes, but they should not be taxed without representation.



The House also faced opposition to the override from several delegates, including Jason Buckel, R-Allegany, who said there should be consequences for those convicted of a felony.



These overrides mark the first legislative clash between the majority-Democratic House and the Republican governor during the 2016 General Assembly session.



Before discussing the voting rights bill, the House voted 90-51 to require hotel room vendors to collect sales tax and pay the full amount to the state for hotel rooms in Howard County.



The House also voted 92-49 to override Hogans veto of a bill that would have allocated $2 million to a performing arts center in Annapolis.



The Senate, which also holds a Democratic majority, is expected to attempt to override the voting rights bill Thursday, as two members were absent Wednesday for medical reasons. Twenty-nine votes are needed in the Senate to override a veto.



The Senate is scheduled to vote on three additional vetoes Thursday, including legislation that would decriminalize drug paraphernalia; a bill that would prevent police from taking assets worth less than $300; and a bill that would require hotel booking agencies to pay the same sales tax as hotels.
ANNAPOLIS (Jan. 21, 2016)Despite impassioned speeches from Republicans, the Democrat-controlled Maryland Senate voted Thursday to override three of Gov. Larry Hogans vetoes from last session, and decided to postpone voting on a fourth.



Five pieces of legislationfunding an Annapolis arts center; seizure of assets by police; marijuana paraphernalia decriminalization; and two on hotel taxeswere approved by both the state House and Senate this week. Because both chambers approved the overrides, the bills become law in 30 days, according to the Maryland constitution.



The Senate on Thursday morning voted 29 to 17just achieving the 29 votes required for an overrideon legislation to decriminalize the possession of marijuana paraphernalia, SB517. Though possession of small amounts of marijuana are no longer a criminal offense in Maryland, the devices required to smoke it remain prohibited.



Worried about toking while driving



Hogan and other detractors worried that legalizing paraphernalia would make it harder to prosecute people who smoked while driving.



This bill in no way legalizes, decriminalizes or makes OK someone getting behind the wheel of a car and driving while high, said bill sponsor Sen. Robert Zirkin, D-Baltimore County.



Sen. Robert Cassilly, a Republican from Harford, said it sent a wrong message that driving with an open container of alcohol in the car is a misdemeanor, but driving with a jointwhile not intoxicatedis only a civil fine.



And oh by the way, if you dont have the funds to pay that civil penalty, you can take those citations and use them to roll your marijuana cigarettes, because youre pretty much immune, Cassilly said.



I find it ironic that the governor wants to invest money in Baltimore to help Baltimore but yet at the same time recriminalize marijuana so a large number of minority youthsAfrican Americans as well as white peoplewill have a criminal record, said Sen. Paul Pinsky, D-Prince Georges. On one hand, were investing in buildings, but were going to invest criminal attributes to young people who might make a mistake. I find it a little hypocritical.



Later Thursday, the House of Delegates voted 86 to 55 to also override Hogans veto of the paraphernalia bill, just one vote over the 85 needed.



Internet hotel tax



The Senate voted 30 to 16 to override a veto on SB 190, which requires hotel-booking sites, like Travelocity, to give the state the full tax that customers pay.



Now, sites keep a part of the tax as a service fee, instead of remitting the full amount to the State of Maryland. The sites, a brick-and-mortar travel agents as well, have only been paying 6% sales tax on the discounted amount they pay the hotels, not the full charge shown on the customers bills.



Republicans, including Hogan, wanted to wait until litigation in tax court between Comptroller Peter Franchot and Travelocity was finished, but the bills sponsor, Sen. Richard Madaleno, D-Montgomery, said that the Senate couldnt wait.



I would remind the body that we have been in court now for close to five years with just one company  it is up to us as the legislative branch to set the policy for this state, and not to delegate that authority to the judicial branch, Madaleno said.



Sen. Andrew Serafini said that this legislation would amount to triple taxation, between the state, the county and corporate income tax.



Lets make no mistake, this is a new tax, Serafini, R-Washington, said.



On Wednesday, the House of Delegates overrode a similar bill that only pertained to Howard County, and the Senate voted 32-14 to do the same.



All the votes were party line votes, with all 14 Republican senators voting to support the action of the Republican governor, joined on some votes by two or three Democrats.



Police seizing assets



By a 32 to 14 vote, the Senate voted to override Hogans veto of SB 528, which prohibits police from seizing assets of less than $300 from those they arrest, which Hogan and police said would inhibit law enforcement from going after drug dealers.



Sen. Jamie Raskin, D-Montgomery, who sponsored the bill, said he chose the $300 threshold because that is what he said an hour with an attorney in the state of Maryland would cost. He said the problem with civil forfeiture is that the burden of proof is on the person who was arrested to prove that their money was not being used for illegal purposes.



I reject completely the claim that this disarms law enforcement, Raskin said.



He noted the if the police suspect distribution of an illegal substance, not merely possession, they are empowered to take all of the suspects assets, even if it is less than $300. The House of Delegates voted 90 to 51 to override that veto as well.



Felon voting rights



The Senate postponed until Feb. 5 a bill granting voting rights to felons who are on parole or probation. The House of Delegates voted to override the bill, HB980, Wednesday with the bare minimum of votes, 85-56.



Karen Montgomery, D-Montgomery, resigned from the Senate last month. She was one of the 29 senators who voted in favor of the bill last session. Once the Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee nominates a replacement, Hogan has 15 days to approve the name, which means a new senator will likely be in office on Feb. 5.



I think thats a bit disingenuous to the public, I think they expect us to come down here and do the work with the people that we have, said Senate Minority Whip Stephen Hershey, R-Caroline, Cecil, Kent and Queen Anne's. We shouldnt necessarily be playing games.



Senate President Mike Miller, D-Calvert, said he simply wanted everyone to be present for the vote. But he did refer to the closeness of the vote on the marijuana bill.



On Wednesday, the Maryland House of Delegates voted to override Hogans veto on funding for Maryland Hall, a performing arts space in Annapolis. The Senate also voted to override that veto.



The $2 million item was part of a tiff between the governor and House Speaker Michael Busch. Hogan had actually put $500,000 in the capital budget for the hall, the former Annapolis High School, in Busch's district. The House Appropriations Committee raised the amount to $2 million, and Hogan used that to justify the rarely used line item veto.



Len Lazarick of MarylandReporter.com contributed to this story.
A Journal of Fishing, Hiking, Historic Sites, Nature Photography, Birding, and anything else Outdoors
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) _ A man charged with killing four people in two states in 2014 to protest U.S. foreign policy was on a federal terrorism watch list and wrote in his journal that he planned to follow the Islamic State group and ``learn the ways of jihadis,'' a New Jersey state prosecutor said Wednesday.

The details came out before Ali Muhammad Brown was sentenced to 36 1/2 years in prison on an unrelated armed robbery case.

The armed robbery occurred during the same time period as four killings now linked to Brown, three in Washington and one in New Jersey. Brown is still awaiting trial in all four slayings. He also faces a charge of terrorism, the first and only time New Jersey's state terrorism statute has been used.

Before Brown was sentenced for the armed robbery on Wednesday, assistant prosecutor Jamel Sempter revealed the contents of Brown's journal to an Essex County judge. The prosecutor also said Brown was on a federal watch list, although he did not elaborate.

Dave Joly, a spokesman for the FBI's Terrorist Screening Center, said the agency does not publicly confirm or deny whether an individual is included on its terror screening or no-fly lists.

Brown, who has refused to participate in most of the court hearings, was flanked in court by 10 sheriff's office deputies. He said little, refused to sign any papers and once pulled an ear plug out of his ear to better hear a judge's question.

Brown also attended a status hearing on the murder and terrorism charges in New Jersey. His lawyer, Albert Kapin, told the judge that he still wants to get some more evidence and plans to file some motions in the terrorism case. But Kapin would not say if he would seek to have the charges dismissed.

The New Jersey slaying victim, Brendan Tevlin was shot at a West Orange traffic light on June 25, 2014. The 19-year-old University of Richmond student was driving to his home to Livingston.

Brown also faces three aggravated murder charges in Washington: the April 27, 2014, shooting of 30-year-old Leroy Henderson in Skyway, south of Seattle, and the June 1, 2014, shooting deaths of two young men outside a Seattle gay nightclub, Ahmed Said and Dwone Anderson-Young.

Authorities in Seattle have said that Brown described himself to detectives as a strict Muslim who was angry with the U.S. government's role in Iraq, Iran and Afghanistan because of the death of innocent civilians and children.

New Jersey passed its anti-terrorism statute following the Sept. 11 attacks.

Other states have similar laws, though they have rarely been used. Some state charges, such as ones filed against gang members in New York, have failed to survive the courts. More recently, though, New York state successfully prosecuted two cases under its terrorism law against men who had planned bomb attacks.
A West Hollywood man who fatally stabbed his boyfriend and mutilated his body in March 2014 was sentenced Thursday to 12 years in prison, WeHoVille.com reports.

Andre Davis, 38, was found guilty on Dec. 17 of the voluntary manslaughter of his live-in boyfriend Kurtland Ma, a 34-year-old emergency room doctor. Jurors, however, acquitted Davis of more serious charges of second-degree murder.



The victim's brother, Wayland Ma, addressed Davis during the sentencing in Los Angeles Superior Court.



"When anyone, including your family, looks at you, the first thing they will see is a murderer," he said. "Even if they say they're OK with having you alone in a room with their family, no matter what they say to you, what you have done will always be on their mind. You will never escape the evil you carry inside of you, and people will know."



Prosecutors said Davis stabbed Ma 40 times in their West Hollywood apartment after learning Ma wanted to end the relationship. Prosecutors also said Davis stuffed some of Ma's organs into the victim's mouth during the March 29, 2014 killing.



Deputy District Attorney Michele Hanisee told WeHoVille the killing was "absolutely one of the most gruesome crime scenes that I or the homicide detectives have ever seen."
Someone hated and persecuted Florida 16th Circuit Chief Judge David Audlin, but in an odd twist of fate, his resignation over a Manhunt profile did more for marriage equality in Florida than he could have accomplished if he had heard the case himself.

Over breakfast at Island House Gay Hotel where he is often to be found relaxing with friends and visitors to Key West, David Audlin tells me that he has never really explained his resignation from the bench and that he is glad for this opportunity to reveal the truth.

After having worked in a lucrative white glove commercial litigation firm in California, and in the gritty Public Defenders Office in Key West, and in the Attorney Generals Office in Tallahassee, Audlin returned to Key West in 1996 where, he says, I hung out my shingle and made a freaking ton of money in a solo practice where I would help anyone who walked in the door. The lawyers up north remembered me, and the judges remembered me, so I got great referrals. Business was strong, but after awhile, I began to think it would be worthwhile to be a judge because there are so few liberal ones in Florida. My lawyer friends nominated me, and I ran unopposed twice. I was elected in 2006 and re-elected in 2012.

Audlin says that because he was always out-and-proud, he was not going to go into the closet after becoming a judge. In Key West, he continued to socialize at gay establishments such as Island House where people knew his name and his partner of 17 years, Frank Alvarez.

Audlin says, Frank was the most important part of the decision I made to resign my judgeship.

In 2008, Judge Audlin ruled in favor of gay adoption rights, effectively dismantling Floridas long-standing and unique state prohibition that had its roots in the Anita Bryant hysteria of the 1970s.

Audlin recalls, I dont think any of the other circuit court judges really wanted the case. It was a hot potato. I had given some thought as to whether I should take myself off the case. For the record, I formally disclosed that I was gay. But the best guidance I got was from the example and words of black Federal Judge A. Leon Higginbotham, Jr. who wrote that a judge should not recuse himself from a case just because he is a member of a minority group. He should recuse himself only if he has already made up his mind about a case before hearing it. If, as a gay judge, I have an open mind and come to my ruling based on the evidence I hear, I am acting appropriately.

Because of his ruling on the gay adoption case, Equality Florida wanted to honor Audlin at a gala to be held in Key West. He accepted the offer and the event was publicized in South Florida newspapers. Shortly before the gala, Audlin received a phone call from an appellate judge on the west coast of Florida who was a member of the Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee. That judge said that he had been informed that Audlin was planning to attend an event where funds would be solicited, making his presence a serious violation of judicial ethics.

Although Audlin did not agree with the judges warning, given that Equality Florida was not the kind of organization targeted by the prohibition, he canceled out of the event. He put the experience out of his mind, but recollected it when he got a call from the Judicial Qualifications Commission, (JQC) saying that they had received a complaint about a personal profile on a site called Manhunt.

Audlin says, Someone had apparently tipped off the JQC that a gay judge had a profile on Manhunt. They asked me if it was my profile and if I had created it. I never denied it. That profile was not shocking or particularly sexy. It was funny more than anything else. There was some kind of self-appointed judicial watchdog blog out of Miami that was making a huge deal out of it, claiming that this was inappropriate. It seems this same source had sent the information to the Miami Herald and to the Key West Citizen. When the papers did not consider the tip to be newsworthy, the complainer brought it to the JQC. My lawyers asked the JQC why this profile on Manhunt was different from any other profile such as one that youd see on Match.com or even ChristianMingle.com. The JQC was of the opinion that my Manhunt profile would somehow constitute behavior that would bring the judiciary into disrepute. It turns out that the judge who had warned me not to attend the Equality Florida gala was also a member of the JQC! Through my lawyers, I learned that the JQC had already made up its mind  without hearing any evidence  that my behavior was inexcusable. I began to feel pursued by a lynch mob. In fact, one of my lawyers called my situation a genteel lynching.

Huntsman v. Heavilin attorney Bernadette Restivo feels that this attack on Audlin, coming concurrently with the filing of her marriage equality case was no coincidence. The JQC knew that the case would be decided by Judge Audlin who concurs with her suspicions, saying, I think shes right, given the warnings I had received and then the comments made by Republican-appointed members of the JQC.

Because of those complaints to the JQC, Judge Audlin resigned from the bench and the marriage equality case went to the straight, conservative Monroe County Chief Circuit Judge Luis Garcia who issued his pro-marriage equality ruling on July 17, 2014. Audlin says he admires Garcias decision and thinks he himself would have reached the same conclusions.

Audlin recalls the anxiety he had deciding whether to fight the JQC or resign from the bench.

He says, It was a miserable time for me. Look, I did the math. I talked it over with my partner Frank. I wanted our life back. Were these threats going to continue? Was I going to become the object of constant attacks, and would I always have to look over my shoulder whenever I was here having a drink at Island House or stuffing a dollar tip in a dancers shorts? I knew how to keep my personal and professional life separate, and I hadnt even identified myself as a judge on that Manhunt profile. Part of my decision was personal but part of it was my desire to protect the court from an ongoing mess. Also, if they ruled against me it would set a very bad precedent for any gay judge coming after me. The JQC wanted a highly visible public spectacle. I wasnt about to give them that kind of lynching. I also knew what that situation would do to the Huntsman v Heavilin case. Whoever was persecuting me was doing it to fight marriage equality.

I had a final question for Audlin. Did the JQC have anything else on him? Had he ever been caught somewhere with his pants down? His answer was clear. No, that's all they had. The reaction of the JQC was like something out of a French farce. Should I have been more discrete? I don't know. I'm a gay man who has been out since I was 20 years old. Never had an issue with it. Never wanted to hide it. Consider this: what if a female judge had listed her body type in an online profile? I put my dick size on that Manhunt profile, and I think that is what really upset the JQC. To them, it was shocking. I think that if the JQC had to focus on anything, they should have examined me to see if I had lied about the stats I put up. I hope that when people look back at this time, they will say, Youre kidding! Judge Audlin got chased off the bench because of that? Being a judge was a chance for me to do something good. I hope I served people well. You know, some gay men live their lives in a very gay world, whereas some of us venture out into the straight world as openly gay men and this is the price we sometimes pay.

(This profile of Judge Audlin is from a chapter - edited for SFGN - of the forthcoming book by Tony Adams Ending Anita  How Two Key West Bartenders Won Gay Marriage In Florida.)
ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Tim Peake works on the Advanced Colloids Experiment 2 (ACE H2) Hardware Configuration and Mix Part 1. Peake sent out a Twitter message with this image: Stirring samples using a bar magnet to turn a tiny metal rod - preparing for today's @ISS_Research. #Principia". Credit: NASA. NASA

The six-member Expedition 46 crew participated in a range of long term space science Wednesday to benefit life on Earth and future astronauts. The crew is also gearing up for the second spacewalk of 2016 planned for early February.

Astronauts Tim Kopra and Tim Peake participated in eye and blood pressure checks for the Ocular Health vision study. Kopra then scrubbed spacesuit cooling loops before reconfiguring their hardware. Peake set up gear for the Airway Monitoring experiment to determine how gravity and microgravity influence the lungs. Commander Scott Kelly collected blood and urine samples and took ultrasound and blood pressure measurements for the Cardio Ox and Twins Study experiments.

Cosmonauts Sergey Volkov and Yuri Malenchenko are getting ready for a Russian spacewalk planned for Feb. 3 that will be broadcast live on NASA TV. The duo prepared their Orlan spacesuits and the airlock inside the Pirs docking compartment. The spacewalkers will spend about five hours and 30 minutes installing hardware and science experiments on the Russian segment of the International Space Station.

On-Orbit Status Report

Cardio Ox: Kelly performed his Flight Day 300 (FD300) Cardio Ox ultrasound and blood pressure measurement session with Peake acting as operator. Throughout the day today, Kelly collected urine samples that will be used by the Cardio Ox and Twins Studies. Tomorrow, he will collect blood samples and store them in Minus Eighty Degree Celsius Laboratory Freezer for ISS (MELFI) until their return to ground for laboratory analysis. The goal of Cardio Ox is to determine whether biological markers of oxidative and inflammatory stress are elevated during and after space flight and whether this results in an increased, long-term risk of atherosclerosis risk in astronauts. Twelve crewmembers provide blood and urine samples to assess biomarkers before launch, 15, and 60 after launch, 15 days before returning to Earth, and within days after landing. Ultrasound scans of the carotid and brachial arteries are obtained at the same time points, as well as through 5 years after landing, as an indicator of cardiovascular health.

Airway Monitoring: Peake configured equipment in the Lab for the Ambient Pressure monitoring session of the Airway Monitoring Experiment. Peake changed out the sensor for both the Low and High Nitric Oxide (NO) Analyzers. He then configured camera views and activated the Portable Pulmonary Function System (PPFS) prior to a software update performed by ground teams. The primary goals of the Airway Monitoring experiment is to determine how gravity and microgravity influence the turnover of NO in the lungs. During future manned missions to the Moon and to Mars, airway inflammation due to toxic dust inhalation is a risk factor. Since dust may cause airway inflammation and since such inflammation can be monitored by exhaled NO analysis the present study is highly relevant for astronaut health in future space programs.

Ocular Health: This week Kopra and Peake are performing their FD30 Ocular Health activities. Today, the crew performed tonometry to measure intraocular pressure, blood pressure measurements, vision tests and a vision questionnaire. The Ocular Health protocol calls for a systematic gathering of physiological data to characterize the risk of microgravity-induced visual impairment/intracranial pressure in ISS crewmembers. Researchers believe that the measurement of visual, vascular and central nervous system changes over the course of this experiment and during the subsequent post-flight recovery will assist in the development of countermeasures, clinical monitoring strategies, and clinical practice guidelines.

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Loop Scrub: Kopra configured EMU suits 3008 and 3011 for loop scrubbing. During EMU 3011 loop scrub, a leak was observed at the Liquid Cooling and Ventilation Garment (LCVG) to water processing jumper connector. Photographs of the leak were taken and the area dried. An attempt to recreate the leak during iodination was unsuccessful. After the scrubbing activity was completed, he reconfigured hardware and performed Iodination of Ion Filters for both suits. Finally he performed a dryout of the EMU Fan Module and Vent Loop. Samples containing 250 mL of the water were obtained after the loop scrub activity to determine the effectiveness of the filtering. 10 mL of this water sample will be used for a conductivity test on Friday onboard ISS and the remaining water will be sent to the ground for chemical analysis.

Nitrogen Oxygen Recharge System (NORS) Oxygen Transfer: The NORS Oxygen transfer to the high pressure O2 tanks was successfully completed yesterday. Early this morning, the ground teams commanded the NORS Oxygen transfer to the low pressure O2 tanks. Transfer to the low pressure tanks is complete and the crew has closed the transfer valve.

Todays Planned Activities

All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.

Laptop RS1(2) Reboot

SLEEP  Questionnaire

SM ??? (Caution & Warning Panel) Test

TWIN  Urine Sample Collection

??-8. Configuration Setup

Body Mass Measurement

HRF  Sample Insertion into MELFI

Nitrogen Oxygen Recharge System (NORS)  Oxygen Transfer to Low Pressure O2 Tank

Fine Motor Skills

Soyuz 718 Samsung Tablet Recharge

Eye Test (Ocular Health)  Blood Pressure Operations

CRHYT  Hardware Removal

HAM radio session from Columbus

HMS Visual Testing Activity

BIOCARD. Experiment Ops.

Health Maintenance System (HMS)  Tonometry Test Configuration

Eye Imaging (Ocular Health)

Window Observational Research Facility (WORF)  Cable Installation

Preparation of spacesuit replaceable elements, service and personal gear.

USND2

CARDOX

Airway Monitoring (AIRMON)

EMU cooling loop scrub

RADIN  Handover of Detectors to RS

MATRYOSHKA-R. Handover of BUBBLE-dosimeters from USOS

HRF Blood Collection

RS ??28-120Power Converter Checkout.

??? and DC1 config for EVA 42

EMU Cooling Loop H2O Sample

PAO Event with the 1 Year Mission crew

Inspection and Cleaning of Laptops RS2, RS3

IPAD Configuration for Dose Tracker

VEG-01

HABIT

RS1 Laptop Inspection and Cleaning.

JRNL  Journal Entry

INTERACTION-2. Experiment Ops

IPAD Configuration for Dose Tracker

Health Maintenance System (HMS)  Nutritional Assessment (ESA)

??? Maintenance

EMU  Long Dryout

ISS Emergency OBT Review

COGNITION

Completed Task List Items

WHC KTO Replace

Ground Activities

All activities were completed unless otherwise noted.

TRRJ Survey, Nominal System Commanding

Three-Day Look Ahead:

Thursday, 01/21: ISS Emergency Training, Fundoscope, Airway Monitoring

Friday, 01/22: RRM Taskboard 4 Removal from JEMAL, ELF, OcularHealth, HMS Ultrasounds, Airway Monitoring Stow

Saturday, 01/23: Crew Off Duty, Weekly Housekeeping

QUICK ISS Status  Environmental Control Group:

Component  Status

Elektron  On

Vozdukh  Manual

[???] 1  SM Air Conditioner System (SKV1)  On

[???] 2  SM Air Conditioner System (SKV2)  Off

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Lab  Operate

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3  Override

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab  Idle

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3  Operate

Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA)  Process

Urine Processing Assembly (UPA)  Standby

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab  Full Up

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3  Off
NASA astronaut Scott Kelly (left) and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko (right) marked their 300th consecutive day aboard the International Space Station on Jan. 21, 2016. The pair will spend a total of 340 days in space on their one-year mission as researchers hope to better understand how the human body reacts and adapts to long-duration spaceflight. This knowledge is critical as NASA looks toward human journeys deeper into the solar system, including to and from Mars, which could last 500 days or longer. Credit: NASA. NASA

The Expedition 46 crew of two U.S. astronauts, one British astronaut and three Russian cosmonauts practiced their emergency response skills today in conjunction with the Mission Control Centers in Houston and Moscow.

The station residents also continued more human research to improve crew health while moving along with preparations for a Feb. 3 spacewalk.

The crew members spent an hour today conducting an emergency drill to practice communication, familiarize themselves with safety gear and procedures and memorize evacuation routes. After the drill the crew called down to ground teams to review their actions and results.

Meanwhile, international space science is ongoing as scientists and doctors explore the long term effects of living in space on a crew members body which could also benefit life on Earth. Commander Scott Kelly and Flight Engineers Tim Kopra and Tim Peake were conducting more eye checks for the Ocular Health vision study. Kelly also took a blood sample for stowage in a science freezer. Kopra and Peake were back at work exploring how an astronauts lungs adapt to microgravity for the Airway Monitoring experiment.

Two cosmonauts, Sergey Volkov and Yuri Malenchenko, are getting tools ready for the next spacewalk scheduled at the beginning of February. The spacewalkers will work outside in space to install hardware and science experiments on Russian modules.

On-Orbit Status Report

Ocular Health: Kopra and Peake performed their Flight Day 30 Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) to measure retinal thickness, and this afternoon conducted fundoscopy measurements to obtain images of the retinal surface. By systematically gathering physiological data to characterize the risk of microgravity-induced visual impairment/intracranial pressure in ISS crewmembers, the Ocular Health experiment will give a better understanding of visual, vascular and central nervous system changes over the course of spaceflight and post-flight recovery.

Airway Monitoring: Peake and Kopra used the Airway Monitoring equipment this morning to perform Nitric Oxide (NO) measurements at ambient pressure. Peake performed a calibration and then three Fractional Expired Nitric Oxide (FENO) measurements. Kopra was able to successfully perform two of his three FENO measurements due to a kinked cable, recalibrated the system and collected three Diffuse Capacity in Lungs Nitric Oxide (DLNO) measurements. Peake completed his DLNO measurements and then powered down and stowed the Airway Monitoring equipment. Ground teams are analyzing the downlinked data of the FENO (low NO) protocol (determines how much NO is exhaled with respiration) and the DLNO (high NO) protocol (determines how much NO is diffused into the blood). The primary goals of the Airway Monitoring experiment is to determine how gravity and microgravity influence the turnover of Nitric Oxide (NO) in the lungs. During future manned missions to the Moon and to Mars, airway inflammation due to toxic dust inhalation is a risk factor. Since dust may cause airway inflammation and since such inflammation can be monitored by exhaled NO (Nitric Oxide) analysis the present study is highly relevant for astronaut health in future space programs. The next Airway Monitoring session will be scheduled at the end of February, and will utilize the reduced pressure of the Joint Airlock.

Russian Segment (RS) Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Preparations: Kopra gathered and transferred US tools to the Russian Segment in preparation for RS EVA #42 currently planned for February 3.

ISS Emergency Response On-Board Training (OBT): This training session was performed by both the ground and crew to practice ISS Emergency response based on information provided by a simulator. During the exercise the crew practiced required actions for two cases: a fire in Mini Research Module-2 (MRM-2) and an ammonia leak in the US segment. Following the training the crew and ground teams conducted a conference to discuss questions and comments.

Commercial off the Shelf (COTS) Ultra High Frequency (UHF) Communications Unit (CUCU) Loop Back Test  Today, ground teams successfully checked out the path carrying UHF Radio Frequency (RF) signals to/from CUCU and Space to Space Station Radio (SSSR) to the UHF Antennas. The loop back test radiated from both the US Lab UHF and P1 UHF antennas to the CUCU. The test was performed to obtain baseline data prior to installation of the External Wireless Communications (EWC) internal cabling, and will be repeated post EWC cable installation. The cable installation is expected to be completed in Increment 47

Todays Planned Activities

All activities were performed unless otherwise noted.

Laptop RS1(2) Reboot

SLEEP  Questionnaire

RSS1,2 Reboot

SM ??? (Caution & Warning Panel) Test

TWIN  Urine Sample Collection

HRF Blood Sample Collection and Cold Stowage

PILOT-T. Experiment Ops

Health Management System (HMS)  Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT)

AIRMON  Experiment Ops

CUCU  Activation

COSMOCARD. Setup. Starting 24-hr ECG Recording

Preparing for Replacement of Storage Battery Module 800? No.8

??? Maintenance

JRNL  Journal Entry

HABIT  Experiment Ops

Training for Emergency Response On-board ISS

Internal Review of Training for Emergency Response On-board ISS

IMS Delta File Prep

Initiate EMU LLB Battery Autocycle

ISS crew and MCC-M OBT Debrief

Gather EVA Equipment and Tools

OTKLIK. Hardware Monitoring

CUCU Deactivation

Health Maintenance System (HMS) Vision Test

Fundoscope  Eye Exam

Ocular Health Experiment

Transferring US EVA Tools from the USOS to RS in preparation for RS EVA 42

Health Maintenance System (HMS)  Nutritional Assessment (ESA)

Completed Task List Items

None

Ground Activities

All activities were performed unless otherwise noted.

CUCU Loopback Test

Three-Day Look Ahead:

Friday, 01/22: RRM Taskboard 4 Removal from JEMAL, ELF, Ocular Health, HMS Ultrasounds, Airway Monitoring Stow

Saturday, 01/23: Crew Off Duty, Weekly Housekeeping

Sunday, 01/24: Crew Off Duty

QUICK ISS Status  Environmental Control Group:

Component  Status

Elektron  On

Vozdukh  Manual

[???] 1  SM Air Conditioner System (SKV1)  Off

[???] 2  SM Air Conditioner System (SKV2)  On

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Lab  Operate

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3  Override

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab  Idle

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3  Operate

Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA)  Process

Urine Processing Assembly (UPA)  Standby

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab  Full Up

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3  Off
Economic logic has only a distant relationship to planning in the energy sector.

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Late last year, Slovakia's dominant power producer, Slovenske Elektrarne (SE), was sold in a 750-million deal to a Czech-Slovak conglomerate, Energeticky a Prumyslovy Holding (EPH).

Or at least part of it was: the 66-percent stake held by Italian energy giant Enel will go to EPH in two stages, it was announced on 18 December. The second stage of the sale will depend on the completion of two new nuclear reactors now being built at Mochovce.

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Those reactors should have long since been up and running (Mochove was first planned in 1981; the first two reactors have been generating power since 1998 and 2000), but the launch date has been pushed back repeatedly, and the budget for completion of the third and fourth reactors has ballooned  from 2.8 billion to 4.6 billion.

In fact, the pressure vessel for the third reactor was lowered into its pit more than five years ago. The Slovak Spectator noted in September 2010 that by then it was already more than 20 years old. Comfortingly, we reported Slovakias Nuclear Regulatory Authority (UJD) as saying that "the ravages of time have not caused damage to the pressure vessel," and added a reassuring comment by Miroslav Fiala, from the manufacturer, Skoda JS: The vessel was supplied many years ago, indeed, but the inspection has showed that it is in perfect condition.

Inconveniently, while the pressure vessel remains strong (we hope), the price of electricity has weakened considerably. By some estimates, it is now only one third of the rate used in the original investment plan.

But economic logic has only a distant relationship to planning in the energy sector. In January 2001, we reported, in a story entitled 'Government stunned by SE Mochovce plans' that the company (then wholly state-owned) had ignored the government of the day and directly approached potential partners to invest in the third and fourth reactors.

Ondrej Studenec, then general director of the energy section at the Ministry of Economy, stated flatly: "There is zero return potential in that project." But SE spokesman Rastislav Petrech argued that completion would be the most cost-effective solution, adding: "In 2006 and 2008, when the two reactors at Bohunice are decommissioned, Slovakia will need a replacement."

Those reactors have long since closed, but the lights have stayed on. Among other reasons, this is because demand for power Europe-wide has stalled, amid recession, advances in energy efficiency, and pressure on carbon emissions. Electricity from the new Mochovce reactors will be carbon-free, but very expensive.

So why is EPH buying into SE? Presumably, the government have offered it a very sweet deal, probably on the price at which the state-controlled grid will buy the power it generates, or at the very least on the revenues of SE (which is effectively a monopoly).

The fact that the prime minister announced, immediately after the deal was reported, that the government had acquired a pre-emptive right to increase its stake in SE to 51 percent, mirroring a similar deal over gas monopoly SPP when EPH bought a share in that business in 2014, suggests that neither it nor EPH will lose out.

So who will? Well, to paraphrase a poker aphorism, if you look around the table and you don't see a sucker, then it's you. The normal advice in this situation is to leave the table. Enel, which clearly lacks EPH's political connections, just has. But we, the consumers, have little choice but to stay. Something to think about when your next bill arrives...
THOUSANDS of teachers will join a strike initiated by the Initiative of Slovak Teachers (ISU), which will start with a demonstration planned for January 25 in Bratislava.

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ISU representatives confirmed they will go on an across-the-board strike after a meeting of teachers representatives and Education Minister Juraj Draxler failed to resolve the long running dispute on January 21.

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Though I would like to satisfy [their requirements], it is not possible technically, Draxler said, as quoted by the Sme daily. It is not possible to summon the parliament and change the budget.

Draxler earlier suggested the teachers protests were politicised and manipulated.

The ministry on January 19 sent its calculation to the media that the average teacher makes 997 per month, and more than the average salary in most of Slovakias regions.

The January 25 demonstration will start on SNP Square in Bratislava at 11:00. To increase the participation of teachers outside of Bratislava,the organisers plan to secure mass transport by trains.

When The Slovak Spectator went to print on January 21, more than 10,000 teachers from nearly 600 kindergartens, primary and secondary schools had pledged to join the planned strike.
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The University of California, Davis, was host to specialty coffees first-ever Sensory Summit, a Roasters Guild of America event this past weekend. The university has become a taste-driven center of serious food and beverage studies that includes a honeybee research institute, a department of viticulture, and an olive center just to name of few. Members of the Roasters Guild, senior Specialty Coffee Association of America staff, enthusiastic QC managers from food companies nationwide, and coffee producers from El Salvador, Brazil, and Guatemala together spent two-and-a-half days frantically taking notes, brewing coffee, and tasting mysterious items in clear containers with three-digit codes, under the encouraging eyes of flavor industry professionals.

Nine sessions were interspersed with presentations from Davis professors in his or her field of food/beverage expertise, along with two SCAA courses where one could receive an SCAA Educational Pathways certificate.

The first session included a beginners booze tasting with four wines and a blindfold. With impaired vision, the audience was asked to smell isolated aromas before tasting a wine that complimented the scent. Leading the tasting with yogi-like grace was Henry Hoby Wedler, a Chemistry PhD student guiding coffee drinkers to focus their remaining senses in a different manner. Wedler serenaded the crowd through wine after wine, occasionally dropping flavor notes set to push the groups indulgencehazelnut in the pinot noir, green pepper in the chardonnay. This session was an appropriately passionate kickoff.

But on to the big stuff. A major takeaway from the weekend came from SCAA Science Director Emma Sage, alongside Molly Spencer, a Sensory Science graduate student, who presented on the new SCAA Flavor Wheel currently making waves across the coffee worlds collective Facebook page. The wheel and its accompanying lexicon, to be published by World Coffee Research, is a major update to the SCAAs original flavor wheel, released twenty-one years ago. Presenting via Power Point, Sage and Spencer covered the reasoning and tools used to develop for this new wheel, with changes being made with the intent of improving communication and clarity. Sage asked, If you have two coffees with the same score, how do you know that its different?

Theres a need for definitions along with vocabulary, Sage went on. The lexicon and wheel were born from the data of a thorough process, which was comprised of a trained tasting panel (coined as robot tasters), a tasting panel of industry expert cuppers (which included Peter Giuliano of SCAA and Trish Rothgeb of the Coffee Quality Institute), as well as statistical analysis, which included results from a survey sent to SCAA members. This new wheel, Sage told the crowd, was built to be more intuitive to the cupper.

The lexicon provides a list of words with definitions, in addition to a 15-point intensity scale. These 99 words are placed on the wheel into nine major clusters, one of which is titled Other. Colors and cluster names were intentional and were born out of dendrographic hierarchical clustering. The new wheel controversially does not include defects, and many in the group found it lacking culturally appropriate descriptors to producers in the tropics, which stirred some debate during the session. Overall, the utility of the wheelas a living communication tool for use in relating coffee characterwas well-received by those in attendance, though its real utility test begins now, as it begins life out in the world in the hands of coffee professionals.

Few flavor wheels in food impress as much as coffees, but there was one sensory presentation during the summit that seemed to reflect issues in the sourcing process of coffee in an unexpectedly humanizing way. Amina Harris, Director of the Honey and Pollination Center at the Mondavi Institute (and recent publisher of honeys first flavor wheel) gave a warm and impassioned 90 minutes on honey, from pollinations role in the preservation of ecosystems, to the staggering genetically programed work ethic of bees, with a thorough sensory exploration of honeys ranging from horsey and medicinal aromas, to tropical, to cinnamon buns.

Refusing to accept sweet as a descriptor and to the obvious delight of coffee tasters, she talked the group through six honeys from distinct forage areas in California, Florida, Hawaii, Italy, and Canada, with a range of character to rival the variety of any natural food. The politics and improbabilities of forcing certifications on honeya truly wild productwere made apparent, as well as efforts to, in her own words, elevate the perceived value of varietal honey in commerce through education. Not too distant-sounding a proposition for a coffee audience.

Dr. Harris session was the one that touched a motivational nerve for these writers. Sensory science begins with a specific fascination, one born from the discrepancy between how complex the workings of the natural world can seem by our limits of perception, and yet how passively and flawlessly theyre performed by nature. Dr. Harris exudes this original curiosity still, 30 years into her career, with such respect and advocacy for the process, the product, and the producers thereof.

Though reactions to the Sensory Summit may vary depending on ones experience and career path, one fact was very apparentpublic scientific resources relevant to the specialty coffee industry are limited. This event marked the beginning, a taste of coffee in academia; if UC Davis sets the example for sensory professionalism and coffee takes its cue, then dedication from and funding for those who want to pursue academia is a must. For the next Summit, let there be more research presentations, more QC strategy from food industry leaders, and less survey-level material. This must be the beginning.

Juliet Han is an American coffee professional based in Oakland, California. Read more Juliet Han on Sprudge.

Charlie Habegger contributed to this reporting.
MOSCOW (Sputnik)  Tunisia has imposed martial law throughout the country at nighttime due to increased attacks on public and private property, the Tunisian Interior Ministry announced Friday.

"Given that the country has seen attacks on public and private property, and if the attacks continue, a threat might be posed to the homeland and the citizens' security.Tthe ministry decided starting from today, 22 January 2016, a curfew throughout the entire territory of the Republic from 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. will be imposed, the ministry said on its official Facebook account.

The ministry recalled that each violation of the curfew would be prosecuted, except for urgent health cases and work at nighttime.
Shale rock is porous dehydrated clay containing oil. After horizontal drilling the rock is fractured by a pressurized liquid. The process involves injection of fracking fluid, primarily water containing various chemicals, to the wellbore to squeeze oil out of clay pores. Such oil fields are considered not reusable, but there are a lot of them in the US.

Hydraulic fracturing is very controversial in many countries and harshly criticized, especially by environmental activists. It endangers the earths climate with the potent greenhouse gas methane. Its other potential environmental impacts include risks of ground water contamination, air pollution, and potentially triggering earthquakes. Following a wave of anti-fracking protests, the technology was banned in Germany, France, and Bulgaria as well as in some US states.

"The more oil companies frack, the more contaminated wastewater they produce, and that dangerous waste is polluting our water and putting large parts of our country on shaky ground," the Center For Biological Diversity Climate Media Director Patrick Sullivan told Sputnik.

Despite its high production and environmental costs (minimal shale oil production cost is $30 a barrel), it sparked a boom in the US petroleum industry. Production of light shale crude jumped to 2.3 million barrels daily in 2013, and in early-2014 topped 3.5 million, or 4.3 percent of global oil production. The entire world, primarily largest material exporters, called it a "shale revolution" in the US. At the same time, the US was suspected of making efforts to change the balance of the global oil market. Arab oil producers began increasing output to drop prices and squeeze US shale oil producers from the market.
DAVOS (Sputnik)  Tehran is interested in investing in the Russian economy, particularly in the area of research and development, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's chief of staff Mohammad Nahavandian told Sputnik on the sidelines of World Economic Forum in Davos on Friday.

"There have been discussions about working together in research and development projects, and our joint commission has been very active to work on the details of our cooperation plan, and they are mapping forward how to expand the ties. There were two persons appointed by the two presidents to look after the matter and come up with the map of future cooperation."

He said that since sanctions have been lifted against Tehran many economic opportunities have opened up.
MOSCOW (Sputnik)  GK Investment Holding is currently working on several projects related to Russian infrastructure, including the construction of airports and highways. It is also finalizing a batch of agriculture-related projects with Russia.

"Russia is a very interesting market. Our interest in investing in the Russian economy reflects very clearly our great confidence in Russia and our long-term commitment to this very important market," Ghribi said.

The company has wide-ranging interests  from food and agriculture, social and economic infrastructures and associated services to oil and gas, commodity trading, retail, shopping malls, and real estate. It collaborates with agencies and distributors all over the world, including AGIP, Elf, Amoco, Exxon, Phibro, Mitsubishi and Marubeni.
It was German investigators who dug up UBS files during a search. After discovering fishy documents involving French citizens during a search, the Germans sent the files to the French tax authorities. A probe has been started. Although the French authorities haven't found the owners of the accounts, they easily identified that the accounts belonged to French citizens due to their ending code  111.

This is not the first time that UBS has been accused of helping French citizens in tax evasion cases.

Three years ago, a formal investigation was launched against UBS for illegally soliciting French citizens. In July 2014, French authorities challenged the Swiss bank for aggravated tax fraud and money laundering and most recently in March 2015, for another case of money laundering. If UBS is found guilty in the 2015 case, the bank would face a 4.88 billion ($5.3 billion) fine, according to Reuters.

Regarding the new case, the French branch of UBS promised Thursday to fully cooperate with French authorities in the new probe against the Swiss bank. The list of secret accounts has been sent to French justice officials, who are set to find and punish French tax evaders.

"It's a matter of justice," French Finance Minister Michel Sapin said, according to Le Point.
In 2014 Pakistan produced 42 billion cubic meters of natural gas. The total volume of gas produced in the country is consumed domestically but the demand is rising and the supply is not enough.

In July 2014, the Pakistani government approved the construction of three LNG terminals, including the Engro LNG Terminal. The first shipments of LNG began to arrive at the terminal in July 2015, via a floating, storage and regasification unit (FSRU).

It is planned that the pipeline will be completed by 2018, and by 2020 it will be put into full operation. The contract value is estimated at $ 2 billion. Rostec has already held an initial engineering training of the project, studying the project documentation and reviewing options for pumping tariffs.
And its not only big businesses  banks too have given Camerons cause their backing. Goldman Sachs donated hundreds of thousands of pounds to the 'Britain Stronger in Europe' campaign which is fighting to keep the UK inside the EU.

James McGrory, chief campaign spokesman for 'Britain Stronger in Europe', said that the group was pleased to have "gathered" donations "from a wide range of individuals and businesses who believe that Britain is stronger, safer and better off in Europe". And it seems this wide range of individuals and businesses is only growing.

As David Cameron says, Britain is better off in a reformed EU. Play your part today: https://t.co/QWpZVEUR8B pic.twitter.com/jZIPvTkUJI  Stronger In (@StrongerIn) January 21, 2016

Building a 'Pro-EU Case'

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is an internationally-renowned law firm with over 2500 lawyers in offices all over the world. John Davies, a partner at the firm, has assembled a team of lawyers who support Camerons pro-EU Britain. The group call themselves 'Lawyers  In for Britain'. This comes as no surprise as John Davies founded the firms office in Brussels and has worked for the European Commission as a case officer.

Biggest beneficiaries of Brexit = lobbyists/lawyers. In Brussels touting for UK business, in London pushing for new global trade deals  Grilling Kippers (@GrillingKippers) January 21, 2016

Several law firms have privately voiced their position, but Davies group are the first to publicly support the 'In' campaign. Most law firms have stayed neutral as their clients may fall on either side of the debate. However, it seems the fear of a Brexit is catching up with the law world too. Some partners are becoming increasingly worried about the impact a Brexit could have.

Brexit is seen as "the defining issue for the UK, for the economy, if not society as a whole, for a generation," David Morley, senior partner at Allen & Overy told the Financial Times.

"Typically law firms wouldnt get involved in politics as we have to work with governments and we dont like to take positions which clients might disagree with but this is different," Morley said.

Mr Davies however, insists that members of the 'Lawyers  In for Britain' campaign are acting as individuals and do not represent the law firms they work for. He said:

"I feel strongly that the UKs economic future and security is better protected as being part of the European Union, so I took a view before the general election that it is something I ought to take an interest in."

Implications for Law Firms

The group consists of some of the most high-profile law professionals, not only in the UK, but Europe as well. And even though, Mr Davies argues he has no political agenda, it seems that his group is driven by the implications a Brexit could have on their practice as well as their clients businesses.

"About a third of our revenue is in the UK and another third in Europe," said Mr Morley, of A&O.

"We were able to grow because of EU harmonization and the recognition of professional qualifications, which meant we could go into business with German, French and Dutch lawyers, which then laid the foundation for our global business. Would we still have mutual recognition? Would we still be able to continue in the same way? The biggest issue is the uncertainty."

.@catherinemep No doubt doing very nicely off the back of the taxpayer.  Alex Powell (@PowellPolitics) January 22, 2016

This exact fear was expressed by David Cameron during his 20-minute speech in Davos, and shared by big business and bank chiefs. It is therefore, no surprise that City law firms, with links to some of the biggest corporate players, have followed suit.
The answer lies in the fact that next year  2017  the French will go to the polls to elect its president and Germany votes-in a new Bundestag. With the European refugee crisis showing no signs of abating, both French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel know they have only a few months to get the situation under control or they will be the losers.

France and Germany are at the heart of Europe, having both been founding fathers of the European Union with its central dream of the freedom of movement of goods, workers, services and capital. Any threat to those freedoms spells doom for the union.

With the refugee crisis causing chaos in the Schengen zone of borderless Europe, leading to Germany, Austria, Hungary, Italy, Denmark, Sweden, Slovenia and others all imposing border controls  completely against the values of the four freedoms  the European dream is hanging on a gossamer thread.
A Swedish court dismissed the case of a young man from Bosnia, who was caught operating a car without a driving permit. The man told judges that he actually had a driver's license in his country of origin, but had lost it nine months ago when he moved to Sweden.

Although the man did not prove that he had a license in Bosnia, Swedish judges chose not to charge him, because they could not prove that he did not have a license in Bosnia, according to the Swedish newspaper. In other words, Swedish judges had to prove that the man didn't have a driver's license in Bosnia, which ended up being an impossible thing to do.

"In practice, this means that newly arrived migrants can drive vehicles without a driver's license," Fria Tider said.
DAVOS (Sputnik), Daria Chernyshova  Finding a solution to the Syrian crisis is directly linked to the fight against terrorism, Iran's Presidential Chief of Staff Mohammad Nahavandian told Sputnik on the sidelines of the annual World Economic Forum in the Swiss town of Davos on Friday.

"Solving the Syrian problem goes hand in hand with fighting terrorism. Without a unified fight against terrorism, there will be no solution for Syria."

Nahavandian added that the peace process's foreign mediators now understood this, which he welcomed as a positive development, especially ahead of the intra-Syrian talks later in January.
Moreover, the Syrian army is preparing military operations in three more directions, Chief of Russia's General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov told Rossiya-24 channel.

"Currently, strategic initiative in almost all directions is in the hands of the [Syrian] government forces. They are actively fighting, so sooner or later Daesh's resistance would be broken."

While the Syrian army had been on defensive since the start of the civil war in 2011, the government forces began to advance only two weeks after the launch of the Russian military operation, Gerasimov said.
Syria has been in a state of civil war since 2011, with government forces fighting anti-government rebels as well as extremist and terrorist groups, including Daesh (Islamic State). Over four million Syrians have fled to neighboring countries, including Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt, while at least a million have traveled to Europe to seek refuge.

In December, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution outlining a peace process for Syria. The resolution supports a ceasefire in Syria and called on all parties to the Syrian conflict to allow humanitarian agencies to deliver aid to those in need. The resolution also calls for talks to be held between the countrys leadership and the opposition.

Beating Daesh With Airstrikes Impossible, Root Causes Must Be Addressed

Airstrikes against Daesh will not defeat it but could create more terrorists, instead the root causes of the groups emergence need to be addressed, the former head of the Arab League told Sputnik.

"ISIS cannot be fought and defeated that way, just [through] airstrikes. Even if it is defeated, what is defeated is ISIS1, there would be [an] ISIS 2," Amr Moussa said.

Moussa said that people were unhappy about the practices of their governments, as well as foreign interventions.

"As long as we don't deal with the reasons why people were angry, why people were suffering from discrimination, bad governance and religious intolerance and so on, all those practices continue and all those practices will produce the same frustrated people, angry people and so on," Moussa explained.

Daesh is a terrorist group that has been fighting the Syrian government since 2012, later expanding to the neighboring state of Iraq and proclaiming caliphate in the territories under its control.

Since 2014, a US-led international coalition has been conducting airstrikes against Daesh positions in both countries without the approval of the Syrian government. Russia, having outlawed the group, launched its own campaign against it in Syria in 2015.
"By cooperating with terrorist organizations, Turkey has turned Syria into ruins, brought chaos into all spheres of life. Without the use of its terrorist accomplices, Turkey won't be able to carry out its plan in Syria [the overthrowing of the Syrian government] and it would collapse like a house of cards," Kobane told Sputnik.

The PYD leader also hailed Russia's position on Syria and its work to bring all sides of the Syrian conflict together. Moscow wants to see the Kurds at the intra-Syrian talks in Geneva, because the Russians know that only the participation of all parties, with the exception of terrorist organizations, can bring positive results when it comes to finding a peaceful solution in the war-torn country.

"We want the Syrian crisis to be resolved using peaceful measures and a democratic dialogue Previously, we conducted a series of negotiations with Russia and the United States, as well as with UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura regarding the participation of the PYD in the upcoming negotiations," Kobane said.
According to Chinas Navy chief the amount of defense facilities on islands and reefs of the Nansha Islands totally depends on the level of threat China faces and China will not seek militarization in the region, Wu Shengli said on Wednesday.

Wu Shengli during a teleconference with US Chief of Naval Operations Admiral John Richardson said that the building of necessary defense facilities on islands and reefs of the Nansha Islands is not militarization. This has been malevolently hyped up by certain countries and media.

China's PLA Navy is determined and capable of defending the sovereignty and security of the islands and reefs in the South China Sea, Wu added.
"That era was perhaps the climax of the US-Saudi friendship as both extended their military as well as financial co-operation into fighting the Soviet Union in Afghanistan," the analyst underscores.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Washington and Riyadh continued to pursue common objectives in the Middle East. During Kuwait-Iraq war the US demonstrated its willingness to ensure Saudi security and preserve the region's status quo.

However, all good things come to an end: eventually, cracks have appeared in the US-Saudi relationship.

Washington's hidden exasperation at the Saudi government's decision to behead Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr could be regarded as a clear sign of the US leadership's increasing dissatisfaction with Riyadh.

"The fracture in US-Saudi relations isn't going away, because the foundations of the relationship  the interests the two countries had in common  are no longer as strong," American columnist and foreign correspondent in the Middle East Doyle McManus notes in his article for The Los Angeles Times.
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When the USAF decided to sunset the A-10 the global threat environment looked different, he explained. The retirement plan was introduced in the fiscal year 2015 budget request, worked out before the rise of Daesh.

The nature of the budget cycle forces the Air Force to plan its force structure two years ahead of time, he added. Often, the assumptions planned in the budget request change, and the USAF must be agile enough to adjust to new requests.

"What happens is that life gets in the way of the perfect plan," Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein told Defense News. "So when we made the decision on retiring the A-10, we made those decisions prior to ISIL [Daesh], we were not in Iraq, we were coming out of Afghanistan to a large extent, we didnt have a resurgent Russia."
Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Alexander Turchinov met with his Turkish counterpart Seyfullah Hacmuftuoglu to combine efforts in the fight against global terrorism and buil up military and technical cooperation, the councils press office reported

The meeting was held on Thursday during Turchinovs working visit to Turkey.

According to the report, the participants discussed a number of issues on security cooperation and challenges the two countries are currently facing.
"Until militants sit down to talk we will continue fighting them  no matter if its Daesh or Taliban . They understand only one language  force. At the same time, there are countries that are interested in the Afghan conflict. They want the country to remain an international troubled place," he added.

For the US, there are "desirable" and "unwanted" terrorists in Afghanistan, military observer Abdoulsabur Sabur said in an interview with Sputnik Dari.

He assumed that the Daesh militants the Pentagon intends to attack have offended Washington in some way.

"If we take a closer look at Obamas policy toward Afghanistan it would be clear that he has contradicted himself and dodged. On the one hand, he praises the troops honestly fighting terrorists in Afghanistan. On the other hand, he labels as liars other countries which stand against terrorism in Afghanistan. Thus he proves hes incompetent," the analyst said.

According to Sabur, the US is fighting two militant groups in Afghanistan. The first is the one Americans created, and they pretend to be fighting it. The other is those who really fight terrorists.

"Undoubtedly, the US is targeting those terrorists who are useless to the Pentagon. They may have provided intelligence data to the US or refused to do this. As for me, Im skeptical about the success of another US anti-terrorism operation," he concluded.
MOSCOW (Sputnik)  According to the aboriginal chief, the shooting at the La Loche Community School (LLCS) left at least two people dead. Earlier, CBS reported that several people with gunshot wounds had been admitted to a local hospital.

"Both Clearwater (River Dene Nation) and La Loche, a lot of people are in shock. This is something that you only see on TV most of the time," Clearwater River Dene Nation Chief Teddy Clark said on Friday, as quoted by the Saskatoon Star Phoenix newspaper.

Clark said as cited by the Saskatoon Star Phoenix newspaper that the suspect is in custody.
An announcement made Wednesday sent shockwaves throughout the harness racing industry in the United Kingdom as one of that country's main tracks stated it would not be applying for live race dates in 2016.

"It is with immense regret that the BHRC post that York Harness Raceway proprietor, Mick Welling, has decided to withdraw all 2016 fixture dates for racing at York," the British Harness Racing Club posted in a statement on its website. "The BHRC appreciate entirely all the determination, hard work and funding Mr Welling has injected into York Harness Raceway and also the extent of what has been achieved there in promoting the racing and the sport. The loss of which is a colossal blow to the BHRC and Harness Racing.

"Should Mr Welling have a change of heart at any time in the future, the BHRC will be poised and available to offer assistance in any form to aid Harness Racing at York."

Welling's letter to the BHRC is below.
Trot Insider would like to remind owners and participants to perform due diligence when making purchases after a prominent owner says he was recently sold what turned out to be a fraudulent share in pacing stallion Somebeachsomewhere.

Allan Saul told Trot Insider that the horse trader from the Chicago area who sold him the share was familiar to him as someone who had discussed potential broodmare prospects from time to time.

"We were talking... and then he mentioned 'are you interested in any breedings when it comes to Somebeachsomewhere and Captaintreacherous?' I said 'absolutely, if the price is right'. He said he's got two shares somebody's selling."

Saul knew of another possible buyer for the Captaintreacherous share but he was most interested in the share in Somebeachsomewhere. The prices were in Saul's range so he gave the deal the go-ahead.

"I said to him draw up the papers and everything. He sent it over, and he needed a deposit -- which I gave him. And he told me that it might take two or three weeks because you have to put it through the syndicate whenever you sell a share."

It was after a few days when Saul started to do a bit more digging into the nature and origin of the share that the longtime owner started to wonder.

"I started to do a little bit of investigating because I wanted a copy of the share after the deposit, about three of four days later. He says 'I've got that don't worry about that'." said Saul. "I asked him again to send me a copy, and then I got stories after stories...he's in the hospital with sick children, and he hasn't been home for three or four days, as soon as he needs to get some clothes he'll go there and fax it to me.

"So I started making some phone calls. First I called Hanover Shoe Farms and they told me that there's been no letter that's gone out at all in the last month for the selling of shares and then I knew something was off. Then I called the person he said I was buying the share from, Jerry Silva. And Jerry said 'I don't even own a Somebeachsomewhere share'. So then I knew that something was wrong."

Saul told the agent that he wanted his deposit back and is willing to take him to court to do so. Above and beyond that, he wants other owners not to fall victim for the same scam. This is the first time in 45 years he's had a deal like this end up being fraudulent.

"Obviously he's ran into some problems so he's taking money from people on deposits on things he doesn't have, and I wanted horsemen to be aware. I feel terrible about it so if I can help somebody along the way I wanted to put a warning out."
For the first time since 2005, the Harness Horse Youth Foundation has named two winners of its Service to Youth Award, the highest accolade the organization offers.

The horse-racing professor, Chris Wittstruck, was honoured for his generosity to the foundation, while former president and trustee Callie Davies-Gooch was selected for her long-term commitment to HHYF.

In announcing the award, HHYF Executive Director Ellen Taylor said, Callies efforts on behalf of HHYF were tireless and creative. She never lacked the willingness to try new ideas or the determination to get them done. When HTAs Stan Bergstein approached HHYF about developing the curriculum for the Harness Racing Youth League, Callie ensured that every aspect of the program was comprehensively implemented. She even travelled on the first road trip to northern Indiana and personally assisted with the original horse purchases including our beloved Sweet Karen.

Callie Davies-Gooch served as Trustee for nearly 25 years and HHYF President for 14 years. She was the driving force behind many groundbreaking HHYF projects including the creation and distribution of 50,000 harness racing career guides to high school guidance counselors across North America. Not only did she secure the mailing lists and organize the entire process, she provided valuable input as the guide was compiled.

Chris simply took the boards collective breath away with his kindness, Taylor explained. His bigheartedness is already allowing HHYF to seriously think about ways to make improvements in several areas.

The awards will be presented at the HHYF 40th anniversary celebration on June 5 at the Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame in Goshen, NY.

(With files from HHYF)
SusChem, the European Technology Platform for Sustainable Chemistry, addresses challenges specific to the European chemical and industrial biotechnology industry for the benefit of society as a whole.
One incumbent is running in the five-candidate race for two open seats.
For a guy with such a fragile name, Hugh Glass must have seemed unbreakable.

Shot twice and mauled by a grizzly bear, the mountain man made famous in the book and acclaimed movie The Revenant grew to mythological proportions in his era. Yet after cheating death so many times, and under such unusual circumstances, in real life his adventures were ended on the Yellowstone River, just east of Billings, in 1833.

He was quite a character, said Jay Buckley, an associate professor of History at Brigham Young University, who is familiar with Glass story. We dont know a ton about that era, but we wouldnt know anything about Hugh Glass if he hadnt been attacked by a bear.

Glass was a fur trapper in the heydays of the mountain man, the 1820s to 1840s.

It was a really pivotal time in history, said Laurie Hartwig, who served as director of the Museum of the Mountain Man in Pinedale, Wyo., for 14 years and is now a staff member.

The mountain men traveled on the heels of western explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, some of the first white men to explore the Missouri and Yellowstone river drainages in Montana. The routes the fur trappers traveled, Hartwig said, are the same paths that settlers would later follow to lay claim to the West.

The living dead

A revenant is a person who has returned from the dead, and Glass certainly fit that definition. Although he never wrote about his near-death encounters, parts of his life have been pieced together from accounts written by others he associated with, as well as by articles of the era based on stories that mythologized the man.

There isnt a lot of actual information about any of the mountain men, Hartwig said. Were hoping somebody is going to find a diary up in their attic.

Buckley said there are four accounts from which Glass life has been pieced together, including one line from a journal of one of the men on the trip with Andrew Henrys Rocky Mountain Fur Co. when Glass was attacked that reads in part: one man was torn nearly all to pieces by a bear.

From what has been woven together, though, the museum created its own Hugh Glass website  hughglass.org  to help separate fact from the fictionalized version now showing on movie screens around the world. It is from that website and other historical books written about the period in history from which this story is pieced together.

Montana history buffs contacted for comment had never heard of Glass until this movie was advertised.

Its a fascinating story and movie and special effects, said Bill Cole, a Billings attorney who has led preservation efforts for western scout Yellowstone Kellys gravesite on the Rimrocks north of the city. But you cant be too concerned about the authenticity.

Hugh who?

As near as historians can establish, Glass was born around 1783 in the Philadelphia area. If thats the case, Glass was about 40 years old when he joined a group of 100 men traveling up the Missouri River in 1823. The group had been assembled by William Ashley, who together with Henry had formed the Rocky Mountain Fur Co. to exploit the rich beaver lands of the new West.

Portrayed in the movie by actor Leonardo DiCaprio, there are no known photographs, lithographs or paintings of the real Hugh Glass, Hartwig said.

Henry had already made other trips into the new territory, first under the sponsorship of the St. Louis Missouri Fur Co. Led by scout John Colter, a member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Henry and a party of men in 1810 established the first of several Fort Henrys near Three Forks in the heart of traditional Blackfeet Indian territory.

The crew only lasted two months at Three Forks because of the unceasing Indian raids. Abandoning the fort, Henry and his men went upstream where his name was bestowed upon Henrys Lake and the Henrys Fork of the Snake River in southeastern Idaho.

Twelve years later, in 1822, Henry returned to the region with a party of 150 men to establish a trading post and another Fort Henry near the confluence of the Yellowstone and Missouri rivers  about 20 miles southwest of present Williston, N.D.

Bad luck begins

It was this same fort that Henrys partner  Ashley  was traveling up the Missouri River from St. Louis in 1823 to resupply via keelboats, along with a party of 90 men that included Glass and a 19-year-old Jim Bridger, who had reportedly signed on as a blacksmith.

While en route, Glass was shot in the leg during a skirmish with Arikara Indians who had attacked the party. The Indians had killed 14 members of the group and all 19 of the horses they had traded to the mountain men. Eleven other men in the group were wounded. This was Glass first of several dangerous encounters with the semi-nomadic Plains Indian tribe.

Given the difficulty of traveling via the river in boats, Ashley decided to break the group into two teams. One  led by Henry and including Glass and Bridger  would travel overland on foot using horses to pack their gear to reach the latest Fort Henry. The other, led by Jedidiah Smith, set off about four weeks later after finally acquiring enough horses.

Grizzly attack

It was while on this overland trek with Henrys party of about 15 men and six pack horses that Glass was attacked by a sow grizzly with two cubs, supposedly along the upper Grand River south of Lemmon, S.D.  a landscape much flatter than that shown in the movie. The mauling was so devastating  his throat slashed, chunks of flesh gouged from his back  that Glass was expected to die.

Im sure there were hundreds of people mauled by grizzly bears back then, because they were everywhere on the plains, Hartwig said. He was popular among the mountain men because of surviving a grizzly bear attack.

Since Glass clung to life, Henry decided to make a stretcher to carry Glass. After two days, Henry was worried that the groups slowed progress would endanger all of them. To save the many he was willing to sacrifice the one. Eager to return to the small band of trappers he had left at Fort Henry, he offered to pay two men a bonus to stay with Glass until he died and then bury him. Bridger and John Fitzgerald volunteered for the grave-digging duty.

After staying behind for five days, Bridger and Fitzgerald became concerned they would be too far behind to catch up with the rest of their party, as well as feeling vulnerable to another Indian attack. Stripping Glass of his rifle, knife, tomahawk, fire-starting kit, shot and powder, they left him for dead next to a stream.

Somehow Glass regained enough strength to begin hobbling east toward the Missouri River. Some accounts have him feeding off a wolf-killed bison for nourishment. Upon reaching the river he obtained a boat to float downstream to Fort Kiowa, located near what is now Chamberlain, S.D. The trek had covered an estimated 250 miles. By the time Glass arrived at the fort it was already October  about the same time the rest of his party finally reached Fort Henry.

Not one to wait around after healing his wounds for a couple of days, Glass set out to reportedly seek revenge against Bridger and Fitzgerald for abandoning him. Traveling upstream with a group of five traders by boat to a Columbia Fur Co. trading post, he went ashore rather than paddle around a large oxbow. The rest of the party, which remained in the boat, was killed by a group of Arikara Indians. Glass narrowly escaped capture, aided by some Mandan Indians.

In addition to being mauled by a grizzly and left to die, Glass had been involved in three Indian attacks in which 21 men were killed and 16 wounded, wrote Clay Landry, a Helena mountain man re-enactor and history buff who authored some of the hughglass.org articles. While this number of close calls would give most men pause, Glass actions indicate he remained focused on his current situation and his pressing need to reach the mouth of the Yellowstone River.

One more time

It was late November when Glass set off across the Dakota territory for whats believed to be a 38-day hike to Fort Henry. His revenge would have to wait, though, since the party had abandoned the fort for lack of beaver to establish a new winter outpost near the confluence of the Bighorn and Yellowstone rivers, closer to the friendly Crow Indians.

Undeterred, Glass set out again in the middle of winter to make another 250-mile trek. How he knew where to go is uncertain; perhaps Henry had left a note at the old fort. According to trapper George Younts account, Glass reached the newest Fort Henry on New Years Eve of 1823.

The man who everyone in Henrys trapping party thought had died on the Dakota plains was very much alive and, one would have to believe, looking for vengeance against the men who had left him for dead. Otherwise, why would he have ventured so far in such perilous winter weather? Even among modern travelers the frigidity of the Dakotas is well-known and feared, a place where low temperatures are commonly in the single digits or below zero during December and January.

Unfortunately for Glass, Fitzgerald was not with the group, and Bridger was pardoned, possibly because of his youth and after claiming he was influenced by the older Fitzgerald into leaving Glass. Fitzgerald had set out for Fort Atkinson. Possibly he and Glass had passed within miles of each other on their excursions in opposite directions.

On the trail again

When Henry asked for a volunteer to deliver a dispatch to Ashley in St. Louis to update him on the trapping partys endeavors, Glass supposedly volunteered in hopes of catching up to Fitzgerald. On Feb. 29, 1824, Glass and four others set off on the journey to reach Fort Atkinson, located near present Omaha, Neb., at the junction of the Missouri and Platte rivers, more than 1,000 miles to the southeast.

Enroute, Glass and his compatriots would have yet another run-in with the Arikaras, this time along the North Platte River. Two of the men were killed. The other three, including Glass, scattered and were without their rifles. Once again, Glass was walking back to a prairie fort. This time, however, he at least had his knife and fire-starting kit.

Supposedly Glass told another trapper, Although I had lost my rifle and all my plunder, I felt quite rich when I found my knife, flint and steel in my shot pouch. These little fixens make a man feel right peart when he is three or four hundred miles from anybody or any place.

In mid-May Glass finally arrived at Fort Kiowa  the same place he had ventured to after the grizzly attack. It was there he learned that Fitzgerald had enlisted in the Army and was now at Fort Atkinson, farther down the Missouri. In June he arrived at Fort Atkinson but was denied access to Fitzgerald because he was now protected as a government employee. Glass had to settle for getting his cherished rifle back as his only consolation.

Meanwhile, Henry decided to abandon his fort at the junction of the Bighorn and Yellowstone rivers. According to a National Park Service account, Henry and his men ventured south along the Bighorn River, through Bad Pass above Bighorn Canyon, to explore Wyomings Green River region. From there the men later returned to St. Louis, and Henry ended his raucous career in the fur business.

Shot once more

That same year, 1824, Glass set out on a trading adventure to New Mexico where he was shot with an arrow in the back by a Shoshone Indian. After healing from this latest wound  the metal arrowhead cut out by a fellow trapper using a razor  Glass supposedly returned to the Yellowstone country.

By the spring of 1830 historical records confirm that Glass was on the payroll at Fort Union, near the junction of the Yellowstone and Missouri rivers, working as a hunter for the American Fur Co. Supposedly Glass killed so many bighorn sheep that lived on the side of nearby badland cliffs that they named it Glass Bluffs.

Last fall

In yet another attempt to establish trade with the Crow Indians, in 1832 Fort Cass was built by the American Fur Co. three miles downstream from the confluence of the Bighorn and Yellowstone rivers  close to the last Fort Henry location. Glass, now about 50 years old and tattooed with scars from his many brushes with death, supposedly moved to the new fort to provide his services as a hunter.

It was here where Glass would fail to cheat death again, that all of his wild adventures would finally come to an end. This time the Arikaras  who through some quirk of fate had so far only managed to injure the hardy mountain man  would finally kill him.

As mountain man history buff Landry writes on the hughglass.org website, In the early spring of 1833, Glass, accompanied by Edward Rose and Hilain Menard, departed Fort Cass to trap beaver a short way downriver from the fort. As the trappers were crossing the ice of the frozen river they were ambushed by a large party of Arikara Indians who had been concealed on the opposite bank. All three men were shot, scalped and plundered. It was these mens misfortune that an Arikara war party, bent on stealing horses, had been scouting the area around the fort when they spotted the trappers.

Sometime after his death, two members of the Arikara war party that killed Glass supposedly were buried alive and scalped by other trappers near the headwaters of the Powder River north of Casper, Wyo. The trappers had recognized Glass rifle in the Indians possession and sought revenge. Even from beyond the grave it appeared as though Glass was exacting some measure of revenge.

So somewhere along the banks of the Yellowstone River are buried the remains of a mountain man who has now gained fame beyond anything he could have imagined.

After seeing the movie and given her long association with the Museum of the Mountain Man, Hartwig is hopeful that there will be a resurgence in interest in the era, its history and the unusual cast of real-life characters who populated the brief period.

Already Hartwig and other members of the museum have received calls from magazines as diverse as Cowboys and Indians and Maxim. Not since Robert Redford starred in the 1972 movie Jeremiah Johnson have mountain men drawn such widespread attention, she said.

Thats why were so excited about this movie, because it will renew interest in the mountain man and fur trade.
Funding of chinook, coho and steelhead fish hatchery programs throughout the Columbia River Basin is being challenged by wild fish advocates who contend that hatchery fish adversely affect struggling native fish stocks.

Last week, the Wild Fish Conservancy, based in Duvall, Washington, issued a 60-day notice of intent to sue the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Department of Commerce for funding Columbia Basin hatchery programs under the Mitchell Act without complying with provisions of the Endangered Species Act.

Fishing groups are reeling from the announcement, which could lead to significant impacts for Columbia and Snake river salmon and steelhead returns.

Congress approved the Mitchell Act Programs in 1938 to fund hatcheries built to mitigate the impact of dams, logging and pollution on native fish runs. In Southwest Washington, the Mitchell Act funding includes the Kalama River hatcheries, the North Toutle (Green) River Hatchery, the Grays River Hatchery and the Beaver Creek Hatchery on the Elochoman River.

According to the Wild Fish Conservancys notice, the act authorized federal support for 62 hatchery programs that now produce about 63 million smolts a year. Costs from 2003 to 2012 ranged from $12 million to $22 million a year.

Mitchell Act Programs are operated by states, tribes and federal agencies. However, some of the Columbia Basins salmon and steelhead hatcheries are funded by other programs such as those managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Wild Fish Conservancy lawyers say federal funding requires fish managers to assess the effects of releasing hatchery fish, which compete with threatened and endangered wild fish ranging from chinook salmon to bull trout.

The group cites scientific evidence that hatcheries adversely impact wild fisheries.

Liz Hamilton, Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association executive director, said in a statement, If (Wild Fish Conservancy) legitimately cared about wild fish recovery in the Columbia River, hatcheries would be the last thing they would be concerned about.

Changing dam operations to spill more water would double the returns of wild spring chinook back to Idaho, potentially taking them off the endangered species lists, she said.

Instead they attack the hatcheries that were built to mitigate the building of eight federal dams in a system of over 208 dams. The only effect wild fish would notice from (Wild Fish Conservancy) activities in the Columbia would be the loss of tens of millions in funding for conservation and recovery.

Guy Norman, Washington Fish and Wildlife Department regional manager in Vancouver, said, Mitchell Act hatcheries contribute about 30 percent of the Columbia River fisheries harvest and about a quarter of the ocean harvest for Oregon and Washington.

The potential suit would directly involve the 24 hatchery programs managed by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife as well as coho programs affecting the Clearwater River in Idaho, he said.

But a suit like this has the potential to set precedent that could affect hatchery facilities managed by the corps, Bonneville Power and so on through the system, said Chris Donley, Fish and Wildlife Department regional fisheries manager in Spokane.

The Wild Fish Conservancy in recent years has filed suits to challenge operations at the Leavenworth National Fish Hatchery as well as state hatchery operations in Western Washington.

State officials reached an agreement with the conservancy in April 2014 that stopped for two and a half years litigation against the Fish and Wildlife Department over its Puget Sound hatchery programs.

The state had to cancel traditional releases of early winter steelhead into most Puget Sound rivers in 2014 and 2015.

The proposed suit for the Columbia Basin could go even further by threatening commercial hatchery fish programs and gillnetting operated by Indian tribes.

It is unlikely that the Basins Tribal, recreational, and commercial fisheries could be maintained without support from the Mitchell Act and its hatcheries, state and federal agencies say in a Mitchell Act fact sheet.

Part of the problem is the bottleneck of hatchery program permit applications that must be approved by the understaffed National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration offices, fish managers say.

Plans have been developed for several years to address threats associated with wild fish and hatchery fish interactions as well as with broodstock collection and monitoring, Norman said. Were trying to actively implement them.

He said the state agency will be consulting with other hatchery program operators and federal agencies as well as working with attorneys on how to respond to the potential lawsuit.

Its too soon to speculate on potential outcomes, he said.

Sara Thompson, speaking for the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, said in a statement, Carefully managed hatcheries play a critical role in Columbia Basin salmon recovery by rebuilding salmon populations while supporting fisheries.

Lawsuits like this one could hurt salmon recovery efforts and distract us from the bigger picture of working together to reform hatchery practices.

And it could lead to a huge impact on fishermen, Donley said.
Opponents of Cowlitz Tribes mega-casino near La Center are raising concerns about the tribes plan to inject millions of gallons of treated wastewater deep underground.

Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler Wednesday sent a letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to express my deep concerns, and those of the residents I serve, with what could be a serious potential threat to the groundwater resources of Clark County.

The tribe has proposed a $13.4 million wastewater treatment plant and disposal system because it cannot connect to the City of La Centers sewage system. Under the proposal, about 400,000 gallons of wastewater daily would be would be filtered through a membrane bioreactor system and pumped into deep underground wells, The Columbian reported.

The tribe says it will use state-of-the-art technology to treat wastewater to meet federal drinking standards. Some of the treated wastewater would be reclaimed and used for flushing toilets, laundry, fountains and irrigation.

Were building a very advanced plant with green technology that would address all the drinking water quality issues, said Cowlitz Tribal Chairman Bill Iyall.

The tribe has requested approval of the proposal under the Authorization by Rule, which would enable it to start construction without additional permits.

Herrera Beutler questioned the rationale behind the Authorization by Rule request, and suggested the wastewater system could threaten Clark Countys primary source of water.

It is alarming to hear from countless residents and community stakeholders concerned that the EPA is preparing to sidestep the adequate safeguards and solicitation of public input on this mega casinos plans to inject its sewage into the ground directly above their sole source of drinking water, she wrote.

Furthermore, have there been thorough studies conducted on the long-term impacts on human health for such a waste treatment facility that specifically accounts for the presence of such potentially dangerous chemicals as cleaning agents and prescription drugs? Herrera Beutler asked.

Iyall said opponents are merely trying to stall construction of the $510 million casino, and that the wastewater plant would use proven technology. Similar wastewater injection systems have been allowed on tribal lands, including the Tulalip, Nisqually, Skagit, Squaxin and Grand Ronde Tribes, the Columbian reported.

Rule by authorization has been used in several instances and so we just want to be treated the same, Iyall added.

The tribe is absolutely committed to their environment  after 150 years of being landless and now we have a homeland, were not going to harm it whatsoever, he said.

Contractors for the tribe are continuing site preparation work on the tribes 152-acre reservation near La Center. Plans for the 134,000 square-feet casino have been met with fierce opposition from Clark County, La Center card rooms and Confederate Tribes of the Grand Ronde. Although a federal judge sided with the Cowlitz Tribe last year, an appeals process is expected to last several more months. Oral arguments in the case will be heard in March, Iyall said.
Sex offender  Longview police Wednesday arrested Travis John Trotter-Parker, 35, of Kelso on suspicion of failing to register as a sex offender.

Harassment  Longview police Wednesday arrested Juan Duron Garay, 49, of Longview on suspicion of felony harassment.

School assault  On Wednesday, Kelso police arrested a 10-year-old student at Wallace Elementary School after he allegedly punched, kicked and head-butted three teachers. He was booked in juvenile detention center on suspicion of three counts of fourth-degree assault and third-degree malicious mischief after he broke a ceiling tile.

Assault  Longview police Wednesday arrested Wayne Dean Rutherford, 63, of Peshastin, Wash., on suspicion of felony harassment and disorderly conduct after he allegedly threatened another man with a knife.

Rape  Longview police Tuesday arrested a 71-year-old man from Longview on suspicion of first-degree child molestation and first-degree rape of a child.

Burglary

 5000 block of Meeker Drive, Kalama. Wednesday. TV, hand tools, statue, lamps, change and coin collection missing; valued at $2,000.

Vandalism

 1500 block of North Third Avenue, Kelso. Wednesday. Mailbox broken off and drug down the street.

 1000 block of 15th Avenue, Longview. Wednesday. Red 1999 Ford Mustang keyed, causing $3,000 in damages.

Theft

 800 block of North First Avenue, Kelso. Wednesday. Gas siphoned from two vehicles.

Stolen vehicle

 1000 block of 16th Avenue, Longview. Wednesday. Silver 1991 Honda Civic hatchback, license plate unknown.
CHICAGO  New research confirms that many Hispanics, blacks and other minorities perceive that doctors just dont care about them and that their medical care isnt as good as it could be.

According to University of Pennsylvania research fellow Abigail Sewell, compared with whites, Latinos and blacks are less likely to trust the technical judgment and interpersonal competence of doctors. Latinos are also less likely to trust the fiduciary ethic of their physicians. And the differences between black and Hispanic levels of trust have to do with whether a patients parents are U.S.-born or not.

Most people who are immigrants or have some immigrant connection feel more disenfranchised from the health care system, Sewell said in a University of Pennsylvania press release announcing her study, which was published in the November issue of the journal Social Science Research.

Though her paper notes that past research has produced mixed evidence about whether minorities trust physicians less than whites, Sewell used 2002 and 2006 General Social Surveys to ascertain that not only is there lower trust, but that these findings are not easy to uncover due to the way physician evaluation methods assess a patients confidence in a doctor.

Specifically, Sewell found that respondents believed that their doctors dont take the challenges of their personal lives  such as their access to transportation and safe spaces for exercise or other factors, like legal status  into consideration.

The idea that minorities dont feel respected when they seek health care is being studied more, which is yielding a clear body of research that shows these perceptions are widespread.

Studies going back over a decade have found that women report more severe levels of pain, more frequent incidences of pain, and pain of longer duration than men, but are nonetheless treated for pain less aggressively.

New research based on nationwide data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that non-Hispanic blacks and other minorities are 22 percent to 30 percent less likely to receive pain medication during an emergency room visit, relative to non-Hispanic whites.

And just in case youre thinking this is a problem that only affects non-whites, think again. This same study, which was published in the journal Medical Care, found that some white patients were also less likely to get pain medication if they were treated at a hospital with high concentrations of minority patients.

With only about 8.9 percent of U.S. physicians identifying as black, American Indian, Alaska Native or Hispanic, the most pressing need is for the cultivation and training of more minority physicians. But not far behind is the necessity of educating seasoned doctors to be more understanding of the cultural differences between themselves and their increasingly diverse patients.

And these measures are only part of the equation.

This problem needs to be addressed through both providers and patients, said Jose Ortiz, president and CEO of the Hispanic Health Council, a Hartford, Connecticut-based organization that creates bilingual, culturally tailored programs to eliminate health disparities in the Latino community. We work with providers through participatory training that builds a foundation of knowledge, attitudes and skills needed to work effectively with diverse populations. The training explores issues of health inequity, stereotyping and unequal dynamics of power between providers and patients, and builds concrete skills toward addressing them.

But we also work with patients through community health worker service programs, and it is clear that a number of factors must be overcome  these include histories of oppression of various types, lack of health and health care literacy, some cultural factors, among others. This requires an intensive educational and empowerment process that allows health care consumers to learn their rights and gain the practice and confidence needed to act upon them.

You can imagine these intensive processes arent cheap, but they can be effective not only for minority communities, but also for underinsured, low-income whites and elderly patients who might be intimidated by the preponderance of high-tech gadgetry and more diverse caregivers in routine medical care.

But first we have to start with this: The disconnect between white physicians and their minority patients is becoming a legitimately documented phenomenon, not just one of those all-in-your-head things.

Once the medical establishment and patients of all races can internalize this, we can really start addressing it.
Block the bills

I would like to alert honest gun owners of this state that some of our most influential legislators are trying to pull the rug out from under us. House Bill 2354, sponsored by representative Jim Moeller, would ban possession, purchase, sale, transfer and manufacture of any gun that the state government defines as an assault weapon. This could be used also to ban any magazines that they care to as well.

Another dangerous bill that would rip the U.S. Constitution in two is House Bill 1857. This bill would allow a family member or cop to take away a persons firearms without due process. This one is proposed by Rep. Laurie Jenkins.

Another house bill that is over the top is HB 1747, by anti-gunner Ruth Kagi. It would penalize you if the state deems that you are not storing your guns and ammunition correctly, according to them.

A short time ago we gave the state the authority to require that all guns sold, traded or loaned must go through a federally licensed dealer, and this includes gun shows.

The above just whetted the antis appetite for more and more gun controls.

Please call the state Legislature and vehemently oppose these proposed new laws. Remember what happened in Australia a few years back? All of the citizens guns were melted down with no compensation. Dont think it cant and wont happen here.

Ken Spring

Longview

Walking tall

Recently I had an accident in my home. I broke two ribs and was sitting at home when I received a knock at my door. A sergeant from the Kelso Police Department, Sgt. Mike Dalen. He was inquiring about my welfare.

Im 76-years-young and can sincerely say that Sgt. Mike Dalen is an honorable man, and he definitely walks amongst men.

Joseph Kulcsar

Kelso

Bonded in fireworks

I am not a real enthusiastic fan of fireworks, but I cant see banning them completely from our state (TDN Letters to the Editor, Jan. 14). I certainly enjoyed the wonder of them when I was young. It is a real spectacle and makes the Fourth of July a special, thoughtful and symbolic time. This longtime historic tradition celebrating the founding of our nation is often a fun-filled time that families enjoy together.

I do know loud explosions create a serious problem for pets. It is up to owners to prepare for this: Perhaps some insulated comfortable area could be created for their domesticated animals?

We hate to lose another tradition as we already feel the loss of many things that have made a bond of togetherness, tight family ties and community. Teach caution, respect and compassion for others so it becomes part of who they are as they grow into responsible adults. If they care about their neighbors, they will think before they act.

Gwen Boss

Castle Rock

No time for games

To the legislators: Quit playing games. Institute an estate tax, tax corporations, raise enough money to pay for schools. Thats what the law says.

George Robertson

Longview
Between January 2003 and September 2006, out of 138 letters to the editor that I sent to the Financial Times before I placed them on this blog they published these 15 . Not bad! Thank you FT!Unfortunately, since then and until the very last day of the decade, out of some 1.000 letters that you can find here, FT published none, zero, zilch. Of course FT is under no obligation whatsoever to publish any of my letters and of course one should not exclude the possibilities that my letters might have quite dramatically gone from bad to worse yet one wonders.My usual suspects are:1. Someone in FT with a delicate ego feels his or her importance diminished by giving voice to a lowly non PhD from a developing country daring to opine on many issues of developed countries.2. That FT has some sort of conflict of interest with the credit rating agencies that makes it hard for them to give too much relevance to someone who considers they have been given too much powers.3. The FT establishment had perhaps decided there were only macro economic problems and not any financial regulation problems, and wanted to hear no monothematic contradictions on that.4. That FT feels slightly embarrassed when someone repeatedly asks the emperor-is-naked type question of what is the purpose of the banks and realizing this was something FT should have itself asked a long time ago.5. It is way too much oversight for FT to handle.6. Or am I just supposed to be a living example of one half of the Financial Times motto, namely that of "without favour"Which one do you believe is closest to the truth?
tech2 News Staff

Google, in partnership with the Railways telecom wing RailTel, introduced the first public Wi-Fi service at the Mumbai Central railway station. In the future, Wi-Fi services will be provided at Bandra Terminus and Surat stations of Mumbai division. In addition, Vadodara, Ahmedabad, Rajkot and Indore stations of Western Railway shall also be covered with Wi-Fi services in the near future.

RailTel will provide Internet services as RailWire via its fiber network, in partnership with Google. Railwire Wi-Fi will be available to any user who has a working mobile connection on a smartphone. The project was announced last September during Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Google headquarters in Mountain View.

In an statement, Google stated that even with just the first 100 stations online, this project will make WiFi available to millions of Indians, who pass through railway stations every day, making it the largest public Wi-Fi project in India and among the largest in the world by number of potential users.

Commenting on the launch, Chairman and Managing Director of Railtel Shri R. K. Bahuguna of Railtel said, Our intent was to fulfill Indian Railways vision of providing Railway passengers access to high speed Internet through our Optical fiber communication network. Affordable smartphones have made it possible for the common men to experience the power of Internet. With our partnership with Google, we are very confident of rolling out a robust, scalable service at Railway stations in the near future.

Speaking at the launch, Rajan Anandan, VP & Managing Director, Google South East Asia and India said, Were delighted to launch Indias first high speed public Wi-Fi service in partnership with Indian Railways. Bringing affordable Internet access to millions of people is an important part of making the Internet both easily accessible and useful for more than 300 million Indians who are already online, and the nearly one billion more who are not. By end of this year over 10 million people will be able to enjoy this experience at 100 stations spread across the country. I would like to thank the Indian Railways for their support and vision to provide a world class high speed public Wi-Fi network at the stations.
Nash David

Since the beginning of the year, we've had a new found interest in yet another company from China that was looking to making it big in India. That's precisely the perception that it is yet another Chinese company. But when it comes to LeTV, which is now re-christened as LeEco, things change. LeEco is pronounced lah-eeko. Le is the in French, while Eco refers to the ecosystem based approach that the company has successfully implemented in China, and intends to rollout in India.

(Also read: The complete review of the Le Max.)

And while the feature rich device did gain significant interest, a budget device in the LeEco portfolio is generating a lot of online buzz as well. We had the opportunity to try out the device. Here's our first impressions of the LeEco Le 1s.

Build and design

At first look, the device captures your attention with its use of aluminium. The choice of gold and silver as colours also add to the impression it creates. The finishing of unibody design has a certain level of elegance in it. Unlike the Nexus 6P and 5X released in 2015, where the build material is different; in case of LeEco, the higher-end flagship as well as the budget offering have a visually consistent feel. The LeMax is huge on specs, with a superior design. At about one-third the price, the Le 1s manages to retain a similar visual identity.

If exquisite detail is the secret to an enamouring work of art, chamfering indeed is the recipe to artistic product design. That seems to be a checklist many device manufacturers are incorporating into their products. And at the price that the Le 1s has been launched, it does check all the boxes recommended by modern day industrial design.

There's unibody design, a symmetrical language in the product, chamfered edges and it does feel good to hold. And since it comes in colours such as gold, silver and gray, it could convince a novice that it's a higher end offering as well. Even the fingerprint sensor on the Le 1s has an element of elegance in it.

Display

The Le 1s manages to pack in a good list to begin with. Similar to the build and design, the Le 1s also features an impressive spec sheet when it comes to the display. With a 5.5-inch Full HD display, the device promises a larger viewing experience. That places it with a pixel density going up to 403ppi, which means the viewing quality shouldn't disappoint. The IPS display comes with 10 point multi-touch.

Chipset, RAM, Storage

The LeEco Le 1s is powered by the MediaTek Helio X10 a, which is a 64-bit octa core chipset clocked at 2.2 GHz. This is the same chipset found on the Xiaomi Redmi Note 2. Among the budget devices currently available, the Helio X10 chipset compares among the best chipsets out there. Compared to 4GB on the flagship Le Max, the Le 1s comes with 3GB RAM and 32GB of storage. With 3GB RAM, handling a plethora of apps shouldn't be a problem.

Software and OS

Just like the Le Max, the Le 1s also runs on Android 5.0 with a layer of its proprietary eUI. Simply put, the plain Android experience is refined by making it more practical. To begin with, there's no app drawer, just like we see in most customised user interfaces from Chinese vendors.

There's a working homescreen where you swipe through apps. When you check out the Settings, the UI resembles iOS to quite an extent. In fact, it is a good looking and vivid user interface. However, the sheer amount of customisation possible here is what makes it interesting. LeEco also mentioned that the OS should upgrade to Marshmallow around March or April this year. On the flip side, the company's devices are known for added benefits, especially in terms of content. However, it still doesn't have much India-centric content to offer, but this bound to change with time.

Camera

On the camera front, the Le 1s has a 13MP rear camera with LED flash and phase-detection autofocus (PDAF). For selfie lovers, it comes equipped with a 5MP front-facing camera. The device supports slow motion video recording as well. And although the images we saw during looked good, we'd be able to give an informed opinion only after we do a detailed review of the Le 1s.

Battery and Connectivity

The 'super value phone' as LeEco refers to it, has a 3000mAh battery whereas the Le Max has a 3400mAh battery. According the LeEco, with fast charging, 5 minutes of charge time provides 3.5 hours of talktime.

In addition, the LeEco Le 1s supports all the prominent GSM bands including WCDMA for 3G services (quad band) as well as FDD and TDD LTE bands including 1800, 1900, 2100 and 2300 bands that are used in India. The dual SIM device supports a micro and a nano SIM. For navigation, it supports GPS, A-GPS and GlONASS.

The Le 1s, similar to the Le Max comes with the USB Type-C for faster charging. The connectivity options include Wi-FI 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.1, along with Wi-Fi Direct for streaming to a Wi-Fi Direct compatible smart TV. The Le 1s is fitted with an infrared port that lets the device add up as an infrared remote control for your television or set-top box. It also includes presets for most popular brands currently available.

Bottom line

When we used the Le Max, we were impressed. And why not, it is packed with specifications. And with that kind of a spec sheet, performance is bound to follow. Albeit, it is still premium, with a premium pricing. However, with the Le 1s, that is bound to change. Not only has it sweetened the deal in the price range of Rs 11000 that it was announced, it also betters the deal as an offering. It will further intensify the competition in the fierce Indian budget segment. While it got ignored for most part prior to the launch event, when LeEco announced pricing in India, the Le 1s has spiked in interest. Watch out the space for a detailed review soon.
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Telecom regulator Trai will firm up its view on spectrum price for the next round of auction and differential pricing of data, which is central to the net neutrality issue, by the end of this month.

"We will finalise recommendations on spectrum price by the end of this month... even on differential price (of data), whatever we have to say will be done by the end of the month," Trai Chairman R S Sharma told reporters Wednesday on the sidelines of Convergence India 2016 in New Delhi.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has put out a consultation paper on a reference made by the government to suggest the base or floor price for all available airwaves for mobile services.

The government had pegged revenue from communication services for the current fiscal at Rs. 42,865 crore, which include upfront realisation from spectrum sale and licence fee.

According to an official source, the government will be able to meet the Budget target even without the auction, but still a section of the government wants the auction by March to keep fiscal deficit in check.

Sources see slim chances of the spectrum auction going through in the current financial year because of the processes involved, and the main procedure will start after Trai submits its suggestions on the pricing aspect. The regulator is pulling out all the stops to speed up the process.

On differential pricing of data, Trai has received maximum comments on any of its consultation paper issued till date.

As things stand, telecom operators are making a strong pitch for differential pricing for data services, which is pricing of the Internet based on its usage and business case.

On the other side of the spectrum, the Indian IT industry through Nasscom, Internet-based companies though IAMAI and many Internet forums are opposed to zero-rating platforms.

IAMAI members include Google, Facebook, LinkedIn and the like. However, Facebook is one of those select few Internet companies that have come out with its support for differential pricing of data.

The last date to receive feedback on the Trai paper was December 30, which was later pushed back to January 7. Trai has received some 24 lakh comments on the issue.

Releasing the details, Trai has said it received only 1.89 million responses through Facebook's platform supporting its Free Basics programme to make parts of the Internet available for free whereas the social network put it at more than 11 million.

The social media giant feels there's something amiss and has shot off a letter to Trai, saying "someone with access to designated Trai e-mail account appears to have blocked receipt of all e-mails from Facebook to that Trai account."

Facebook said that during its query, it found that "on December 17 at 5.51.53 GMT, an individual with access to the Trai e-mail account designated to accept comments took action that blocked Facebook from delivering any additional e-mail to that address".

It added that the action by the person prevented Facebook from sending further responsive e-mail to Trai.

An analysis of the record 24 lakh comments shows that 18.94 lakh replies are in support of Free Basics, of which 13.5 lakh are through supportfreebasics.in. A further 5.44 lakh comments have come from facebookmail.com.

Asked about Facebook's allegations, Sharma said: "We have put all the communication in this regard on our Website for the sake of transparency. Beyond that, I will not like to make any comment."

Trai is holding an open-house discussion on the subject tomorrow.

PTI
Court should not interfere with economic decisions unless clearly illegal

Appellate Division (Civil) :

Nazmun Ara Sultana J

Md Imman Ali J

Md Anwarul Haque J

Hasan Foez Siddique J

Judgment

February 2nd, 2014.

Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation, and others. ................Appellants (in all the cases)

Vs

Md Abdur Rashid and others Respondents

Constitution of Bangladesh, 1972

Article 102(2)

The process was a policy decision involving complex economic factors. The court 'would be slow from interfering with the economic decisions as it has been recognized that the .economic expediencies lack adjudicative decision and unless the economic decision, based on' economic expediencies, is demonstrated to be 'so violative of constitutional or legal limits. It is the administrators and legislators who are entitled to frame polices and take such administrative decisions as they think necessary in the public interest. The court should not ordinarily interfere with policy decisions, unless clearly illegal. (22)

Voluntary Retirement

Prayers of voluntary retirements came in effect after acceptance of the prayers. The moment prayers are accepted the retirement became effective. . ..... (20)

Service Matter

Voluntary retirement scheme "Termination" and "voluntary retirement from the service" have different connotations and cannot be equated for the reasons that the termination can be termed as "naked hire and fire" rule and paralled of which was to be found only in the "Henry VIII clause". Voluntary retirement scheme is a method used to reduce surplus staffs. Participation in the voluntary retirement plan is voluntary. It has to result in an overall reduction in the existing strength of employees. . ..... (21)

Public Servant (Retirement) Act (XII of 1974) Section 9

Since the respondents accepted the ex gratia payment, they could not have resiled there-

from. . ..... (18)

State of Haryana vs SK Singhal (1999) 4 SCC 293 ref.

Mahbubey Alam, Senior Advocate, instructed by NI Bhuiyan and Shamsul

Alam, Advocate-on-Record-For the Appellants. (In all cases)

Abdul Wadud Bhuiyan, Senior Advocate, instructed by Zainul Abedin, Advocate-on-Record-For Respondent Nos. 1-5. (In CA No. 45 of 2012)

Probir Neogi, Advocate, instructed by Taufique Hossain, Advocate-on-Record-For the Respondent. (In CA No. 47 of 2012)

None represented-Respondent Nos. 6-8. (In CA No. 45 of 2012)

None represented-Respondent Nos. 2-11. (In CA No. 46 of 2012)



Judgment

Hasan Foez Siddique J: Civil Appeal Nos. 45 to 48 of 2012 have been heard together. Since all the appeals raised common points of law, they are being disposed of by this single judgment.

2. The common question in these appeals is as to whether employees who opted for voluntary retirement pursuant to or in response of a special scheme floated by the Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) would be precluded from re-instatement in their services after acceptance of their prayers for voluntary retirement and payment of retirement benefits.

3. In Civil Appeal No. 45 of 2012, the respondent Nos. 1-5 filed Writ Petition No. 8872 of 2008 being aggrieved by the notification dated 26-10-2002 issued by the Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture amending Clauses 4 and 5 of the Notification No. Krishi-5/Ma-2/98 (Part-8)/727 dated 17-11-1999 issued by the Government with regard to reorganization of BADC and office order communicated under Memo No. ^Qv/1K-1/2002/2003/361 dated 20-10-2002 purportedly terminating 135 employees including writ petitioners. The High Court Division made the said rule absolute holding that identical matter had been disposed of by a judgment and order dated 27-5-2008 by this Division in Civil Appeal Nos. 158-184 of 2006 and Civil Appeal No.136 of 2007.

Accordingly, the writ respondents were directed to re-instate the writ petitioners to their respective posts with all wages subject to refund of the termination benefits by the writ petitioners, if those were withdrawn by them.

BADC filed Review Petition No. 49 of 2010 in the High Court Division mainly on the ground that the writ petitioners were not terminated rather they had voluntary retired from their service. The High Court Division rejected the said review petition summarily holding that the service of the petitioners were terminated in the garb of voluntary retirement. Against the said order of rejection of review petition. BADC filing leave petition, obtained leave.

4. In Civil Appeal No. 46 of 2012, the writ petitioners Md Ataur Rahman and 7 others filed Writ Petition No. 7724 of 2008 being aggrieved by the above mentioned notifications and the orders of termination from their service. The High Court Division made the said Rule absolute taking similar views. BADC filed Review Petition No. 48 of 2010 on similar grounds. The High Court Division rejected the said review petition summarily holding that the order of termination had been passed in the garb of voluntary retirement. Against the said order, BADC, filing Civil Petition for leave to Appeal, got leave.

While pressing this appeal No. 46 of 2012 Mr Mahbubey Alam, learned Senior Counsel, submits that out of the 8 writ petitioners, Md Ataur Rahman, Md Abdul Hakim, Mozibor Rahman and Md Anowarul Hoque had retired from their service voluntarily and the rest were terminated. Though the rest of the writ petitioners namely, Md Mostafizur Rahman, Md Alauddin, Md Amir Hossain and Nobiul Islam have been impleaded as respondent Nos. 5-8 in this appeal but he would not press the appeal against respondent Nos. 5-8. Accordingly, the appeal be dismissed in respect of the respondents No.5, Md Mostafizur Rahman No.6. Md Alauddin, No.7. Md Amir Hossain and No.8. Nobiul Islam.

5. In Civil Appeal No. 47 of 2012, respondent Md Rafiqul Alam was writ petitioner No.5 in Writ Petition No. 7682 of 2007. The said Md Rafiqul Alam and 5 others filed the aforesaid writ petition challenging the above mentioned notices and the orders of termination. Similarly, Rule was also made absolute by the High Court Division observing that since identical matter had been disposed of by this Division, the writ petitioner, were entitled to get relief in the light of the said judgment. BADC filed Review Petition No. 52 of 2010 impleading Md Rafiqul Alam, stating that he had voluntarily retired from his service.

So, the matter decided by the Appellate Division was not identical so far as it relates to Md Rafiqul Alam. The High Court Division summarily rejected the said review petition by an order dated 27-9-20 10. Then, BADC preferred this appeal getting leave.

6. In Civil Appeal No. 48 of 2012, the respondents were 20 in number. They filed Writ Petition No. 2331 of 2009 being aggrieved by the above mentioned notifications and the orders of termination.

(To be continued)

The High Court Division made the said Rule absolute in the light of the decision and directed to reinstate the writ petitioners in their service. Against the said judgment and order, BADC preferred this appeal getting leave. Mr Mahbubey Alam, learned Senior Counsel, submits that he would not press the appeal in respect of other respondents except respondent No.9, Md Safiul Alam Khondoker, who had retired from service voluntarily. Accordingly, the appeal be dismissed against the other respondents except the respondent No.9, Md Safiul Alam Khondoker.

7. Mr Mahbubey Alam, learned Senior Counsel appears on behalf of the appellants for all the appeals. On the other hand, Mr Abdul Wadud Bhuiyan, Senior Counsel appears for respondent Nos. 1-5 in Civil Appeal No. 45 of 2012 and Mr Probir Neogi appears for the respondent in Civil Appeal No.47 of 2012.

8. No one appears on behalf of the respondents in other appeals.

9. Mr Mahbubey Alam, submits that the respondents, against whom he is pressing the appeals, had voluntary retired from their services and had withdrawn their financial benefits. They were not terminated from their service. After acceptance of their prayers for voluntary retirement and payment of the financial benefits, the respondents could not claim that they had been terminated from the service. The High Court Division has committed error of law in holding that the service of these respondents had been terminated in the garb of voluntary retirement.

10. Mr Abdul Wadud Bhuiyan, learned Senior Counsel appearing for the respondent Nos. 1-5 in Civil Appeal No. 45 of 2012, submits that the prayers for voluntary retirement of respondents were stayed by BADC and allowed them to continue for a considerable period thereby those prayers had been rejected by implication. By the impugned orders all the respondents had been terminated in the garb of voluntary retirement. The High Court Division rightly held so.

11. Mr Probir Neogi, appearing on behalf of the respondent in Civil Appeal No. 47 of 2012, submits that the respondent Md Rafiqul Alam initially though submitted an application for voluntary retirement but the same was not accepted and by the impugned order he had been terminated. He further submits that Rafiqul Islam did not receive any financial benefit out of same scheme of voluntary retirement like other respondents who had retired from services voluntarily. He submits that the High Court Division rightly declared the order of termination void and meanwhile . BADC had reinstated him and he has been serving in BADC.

12. It appears from the materials on record that in Civil Appeal No. 45 of 2012 the respondents are 5 in number. They are I. Md Abdur Rashid, 2. Md Fazlur Rahman, 3. Solaiman Ali, 4. Md Abdur Rashid Mondal, 5. Md Jahangir Alam. Md Abdur Rashid prayed for voluntary retirement with effect from 30-9-1994. BADC, accepting the said prayer by a letter communicated under memo No. ^"Qv/1K-1/2002-2003/369 dated 20-10-2002, paid his retirement benefits who received 80% of the payable benefits on 23-11-2002. Respondent No.2, Md Fazlur Rahman prayed for voluntary retirement from service with effect from 30-9-1994 which was accepted by BADC on 20-10-2002. This respondent received his entire retirement benefits of Taka 2,85,728 on 26-11-2002 under special. scheme of voluntary retirement and 19-5-2003. Respondent No.3, Solaiman Ali prayed for such voluntary retirement with effect from 30-9-1994 which was accepted on 20-10-2002. The payable financial benefits of retirement was 4,48,425. He had received Taka 3,65,120 on 23-11-2002 and Taka 16, 610 on 31-7-2004. The respondent No.4, Md Abdur Rashid Mondal prayed for voluntary retirement from his service with effect from 30-9-1994. The payable amount against his retirement benefits was Taka 2,62,729. He received Taka 76,737 on 12-5-2003 and Taka 23,311 on 20-12-2004. Respondent No.5, Md Jahangir Alam prayed for a voluntary retirement from service with effect from 30-9-1994 and payable amount against his retirement benefits was Taka 3,61,145. He received Taka 3,51,145 on 30-11-2002 and Taka 10,615 on 31-7-2004. Similarly, respondent No. I, Md Ataur Rahman No. 2. Md Abdul Hakim, No.3. Mozibor Rahman, No.4. Md Anowarul Hoque in Civil Appeal No.46 of 2012 filed their respective applications for voluntary retirement from services with effect from 30-9-1994. BADC assessed the payable amount of financial benefits against their services and almost all of them withdrew considerable amount out of the amounts payable under such a special scheme of voluntary retirement.

13. Mr Probir Neogi, learned counsel for the respondent Md Rafiqul Alam, in Civil Appeal No. 47 of 2012 submits that meanwhile this respondent of this appeal has been re-instated and he has been serving in BADC. After such reinstatement of respondent Md Rafiqul Alam, we are of the view that the appeal against him is tenable.

14. In Civil Appeal No. 48 of 2012, Mr Mahbubey Alam, submits that the respondent No. 9. Md Safiul Alam Khondoker had retired from his service voluntarily. From the materials on record it appears that the respondent No.9 Md Safiul Alam Khondoker prayed for/voluntary retirement from service with effect from 30-9-1994. The same was accepted on 20-10-2002. Though it appears that, on 30-10-2002, he was terminated from service but Mr Alam submits that the same was a clerical mistake. After acceptance of the prayer for voluntary retirement from service, the question of termination thereafter does not arise. It further appears from the materials produced by the appellant that he had also received a considerable amount out of the amount payable as retirement benefits.

15. BADC was said to be overstaffed. For the purpose of effective management, manpower planning was contemplated by the Ministry of Agriculture. In order to downsize the strength of staffs of BADC, the Ministry of Agriculture issued a circular comrnunicated under Memo No. Kwl-5/g-2/(Ask-1)/375 dated 13-12-1992, the Voluntary Retirement Scheme in which some privileges had been specially offered to the employees of BADC who intended to retire from their services voluntarily. As per terms of the scheme. the employees who sought for voluntary retirement, were entitled to accept ex gratia payment as specified therein. In said circular there was a clause wherein it was specifically mentioned, ?? ????'? ???????? ?"??? ???, ????? ???? ??????? ?"?? ?????? ???? ?? ??? ?????????? ??? ???? ??? In their respective applications for voluntary retirement from service, the respondents mentioned that in view of the aforesaid circular they decided to retire from service, voluntarily. Knowing fully well about the consequence of the aforesaid clause of the circular they offered their prayers. That is, admitted position is that the respondents. while working in the BADC had applied for voluntary retirement, pursuant to the scheme framed by the Ministry of Agriculture to relieve the surplus staffs, which had been acceptance of the impugned orders. Since the respondents had been relieved from the duty after acceptance of their offers of voluntary retirement, and special payment of retirement benefits, the rural relationship of the BADC and respondents came to an, end.

16. In the case of AIR India vs Nergesh Mirza, Supreme Court of India' 'held that Government servant is not entitled to demand as of right, permission' to withdraw the letter of voluntary retirement, it could only be given as a matter of grace. In the case of State of Haryana vs SK Singhal reported in (1999)4 SCC 293 Supreme Court of India. observed that the cases of voluntary retirement ,can broadly be decided into the following categories.

(i) . Where voluntary retirement is automatic and comes into force on the' expiry of

notice period,

(ii) When. it comes into force ; unless an order is passed within, the notice period with

holding permission; and . ;',

(iii) When voluntary retirement does' riot come to force, unless .. permission. to this effect is specifically granted by the controlling authority ..

17. In the cases, in hand, the respondents, while working in appellant BADC had applied for voluntary retirement, and, thereafter, they withdrew' all or 'considerable' amounts of retirement benefits: 'from BADC. Since' the respondents had applied for voluntary retirements, such applications should be ,effective in view of the provision of the circular. as quoted above or by the relevant law:

18. Mr Bhuiyan submits that since the BADC allowed the respondents to continue in service for a considerable period thereby BADC had rejected the prayers for voluntary retirement of the respondents by implication. It is not possible to accept the contention because as a general principle, one who knowingly accepts the benefits of the offer is estopped to deny the validity and binding effect of the offer and acceptance of the same. Moreover, clause 2 of the circular provides, ??? ????? ???? ??????? ?"?? ?????? ???? ?? ??? ?????????? ??? ???? ??? Implication may arise in consideration that statute is of something not expressly declared. He the circular quoted above provides that option once exercised shall be final. Section 9 of the Public Servant (Retirement) Act also provides so. Since the respondents accepted the ex-gratia payment, in our considered opinion, they could not have resiled therefrom.

19. In the case of Nand Keshwar Prasad vs Indian Farmers Fertilizers Co-operative Ltd. Supreme Court of India held that unless controlled by condition of service or the statutory provisions, the retirement mentioned in the letter of resignation must take effect from the date mentioned therein. The option having once been exercised the respondents could not go back on the same because the principle is that, one person may not approbate and reprobate expresses two proposition.

20. In view of the specific provision in the circular that, ??? ????? ???? ??????? ?"?? ?????? ???? ?? ??? ?????????? ??? ???? ???, which indicates as absolute terms and since that there is no provision quoted clause to withdraw prayers, we are of the view that prayers of voluntary retirements came in effect after acceptance of the prayers. The moment prayers are accepted the retirement become effective.

21. "Termination" and "voluntary retirement from the service" have different connotations and cannot be equated for the reasons that the termination can be termed as "naked hire and fire" rule and paralleled of which was to be found only in the "Henry VIII clause". On the other hand, voluntary retirement scheme is a method used to reduce surplus staffs. Participation in the voluntary retirement plan is voluntary. It has to result in an overall reduction in the existing strength of employees. Accordingly, we are not inclined to accept the observation of the High Court Division that the respondents had been terminated in the grab of voluntary retirement. Moreover, the respondents have filed writ petitioners after about 8 years of the acceptance of their prayers and after receiving retirement benefits.

22. The instant process was a policy decision involving complex economic factors. The court would be slow from interfering with the economic decisions as it has been recognized that the economic expediencies lack adjudicative decision and unless the economic decision, based on economic expediencies, is demonstrated to be so violative of constitutional or legal limits. It is the administrators and legislators who are entitled to frame polices and take such administrative decisions as they think necessary in the public interest. The court should not ordinarily interfere with policy decisions, unless clearly illegal. We do not find any violation of constitutional provision or legal limits in the instant scheme.

23. In view of the discussion made above Civil Appeal No. 45 of 2012 is allowed; Civil Appeal No. 46 of 2012 is allowed so far as it relates to respondent Nos. 1-4 namely (I) Md Ataur Rahman, (2) Md Abdul Hakim, (3) Mozibur Rahman and (4) Md Anwarul Haque and dismissed against the rests. Civil Appeal No. 47 of 2012 is dismissed. Civil Appeal No. 48 of 2012 is allowed so far as it relates to respondent No.9 Md Saiful Alam Khondker and dismissed against the rests.




Importers to be notified before final assessment of taxes by authorities

High Court Division :

(Special Original Jurisdiction)

Md Ashfaqul Islam J

Kashefa Hussain J

Judgment

May 10th, 2015.

Muksudul Alam (Md)

and others .... Petitioner

vs

Commissioner of Customs & others......Respondents

Customs Act (IV of 1969)

Section 81

It would be just and proper to direct the Customs Authority to finally assess the imported goods under correct HS Code and determine the taxes, duties and other charges on consideration of the papers and documents submitted by the petitioner within 120 days from the date of receipt of this judgment and order. Be it mentioned that in doing so the Customs Authority should give proper hearing to the parties after notifying them .......... (12)

Secretary, Ministry of Finance vs Serajul Islam 20 BLC (AD) 64 ref.

None appears-For the Petitioners.

SM Moniruzzaman, DAG with SM Quamrul Hasan & Shuchira Hossain, AAGs-For the Respondents.

Judgment

Md Ashfaqul Islam J: All the writ petitions are taken up together for hearing and disposed of by a common judgment as there involved common question of law and fact.

2. In Writ Petition No.8725 of 2014 Rule was issued in the following terms:

"Let a Rule Nisi be issued calling upon the respondents to show cause as to why withholding the assessment of the petitioner's goods imported under Letter of Credit No. 685140111877 dated 27-5-2014, on HS Code No. 8426.19.00 (Crane), covered by Bill of Entry No. C-643263 dated 7-8-2014 shall not be declared to have been done without lawful authority and is of no legal effect and why the respondents should not be directed to assess the petitioner's goods provisionally and release the same on payment of customs duty and taxes in cash on HS Code No. 8426.19.00 and on furnishing continuing bank guarantee for the difference amount of duties and taxes between HS Code No. 8705.10.00 and HS Code No. 8426.19.00 as per direction of National Board of Revenue (Annexure-I)".

3. Almost in similar terms Rules were issued in other petitions.

4. At the time of issuance of the Rule this Division directed the respondent No.1, Commissioner of Customs, Chittagong to assess the petitioner's goods provisionally and release the imported goods on payment of customs duty and taxes in cash on HS Code No. 8426.19.00 pursuant to Note Order No. 10 of Nathi No. 813/ AP /section-5(A) / 14-15 (Annexure-'G') and on furnishing continuing bank guarantee for the difference amount of duties and taxes between the HS Code No. 8705.10.00 and HS Code No. 8426.19.00 as per direction of National Board of Revenue (Annexure-I) within 5 (five) working days from the date of receipt of this order positively.

5. The facts necessary for disposal of the Rule in Writ Petition No. 8725 of 2014 are that the petitioner has been carrying on the business of importing machinery, used in transport sector and construction industries. In course of business the petitioner opened a Letter of Credit being L/C No. 685140111877 dated 27-5-2014 (Annexure-' A' for importing some goods.) After shipment of the goods the petitioner collected the shipping documents and after arrival of the goods, he, through his C & F Agent submitted Bill of Entry on 7-8-2014 (Annexure-'D'). Thereafter respondent No.3 Assistant Revenue Officer, Customs House, Chittagong along with his team completed physical examination of the goods and the respondents were directed to release the goods after provisional assessment on HS Code No. 8705.10.00, against the petitioner's claim that the goods ought to have been assessed provisionally under HS Code No. 84.26.19.00. It is at this stage the petitioner moved this Division and obtained the Rule and order of direction for the release of the goods as aforesaid.

6. The facts of the other petitions are almost similar to that of the Writ Petition No. 8725 of 2014, i.e. the dispute between the questions of HS Code as decided by the respondent customs authority and the one that has been claimed by the petitioner to be the proper one. Therefore, in all the petitions it is to be decided that whether the HS Code as it has been fixed by respondent customs authority or the HS Code as it has been pressed by the petitioner is correct.

7. No one appears for the petitioner though these writ petitions are appearing in the list for a long time.

8. Mr SM Moniruzzaman, the learned Deputy Attorney General by filing affidavit-inopposition opposes the Rules mainly on the points as stated in paragraph 7 and 8 of the same. He submitted that classification of the imported goods is a disputed question of fact which cannot be resolved in the writ jurisdiction and the ratio has already been settled by the Appellate Division in the Case of Secretary, Ministry of Finance vs Serajul Islam 20 BLC (AD) 64 and, as such, the Rule is liable to be discharged.

9. Next he submits that the goods were released by the Customs Authority after completing assessment provisionally as per order of this Division and the final assessment is still pending and, as such, the present writ petition is absolutely premature for which the Customs Authority may be directed to make final assessment in accordance with law and accordingly all the Rules may be discharged. In support of his contention he placed reliance in an unreported decision of Shohel Ahmed vs The Commissioner of Customs, Chittagong in Writ Petition No. 12467 of 2013.

10. We have heard the learned Deputy Attorney-General, perused the petition and other materials on record carefully. The issue has been finally set at rest by the Appellate Division in 20 BLC (AD) 64 as referred to above. It was observed:-

"Classification of imported goods and assessment thereon by the Customs Authority are disputed questions of fact which could not be resolved in the writ jurisdiction. The High Court Division exercised writ jurisdiction without considering this aspect of the case at all and on this score alone the writ petition was not maintainable."

11. Further Justice Zinat Ara in the unreported decision observed as referred to above observation:

"Be that as it may, in this case, the petitioner challenged the with holding of goods. As the goods have already been released, the only thing now left is to finalize the assessment of goods in accordance with law."

12. Admittedly, by order of this Division goods have been released upon provisional assessment as per direction of this Division as aforesaid. However, under the circumstances it would be just and proper to direct the Customs Authority to finally assess the imported goods under correct HS Code and determine the taxes, duties and other charges on consideration of the papers and documents submitted by the petitioner within 120 days from the date of receipt of this judgment and order. Be it mentioned that in doing so the Customs Authority should give proper hearings to the parties after notifying them.

13. The Customs Authority is at liberty to encash the bank guarantee deposited for releaseing of the goods, if the amount that become due after such final assessment is not paid by the petitioners.

14. With these observations and direction the Rules are disposed of without any order as to cost.

Communicate at once.
Barrister M. A. Muid Khan :"It is not merely of some importance, but of fundamental importance that justice should not only be done, but should be manifestly and undoubtedly seen to be done".(Lord Chief Justice Hewart in 1924)Despite having strict punishment for the murders in the UK to ensure "justice seen to be done" yet we are still failing to protect the innocent victims from the hands of murderers and their associates. As a lawyer practising in the United Kingdom, I agree with Lord Chief Justice Hewart when he said "Not only must Justice be done; it must also be seen to be done."Therefore, in this article an attempt would be made to explain the strict UK law to combat the common law offence murder, penalise the murderers and their associates in the light of a recent unfortunate death of a British Bangladeshi girl, which has not only shocked the whole British Bangladeshi community but also shacked the whole England and Wales. Unfortunately we could not protect the life of this innocent victim from the hands of those people who were supposed to ensure her wellbeing and protect her life.The main purpose of this article is to create awareness about the law of murder in the UK and bring the criminals before justice to ensure "justice is seen to be done". Teenage Brit-Bengali girl was beaten to death : In this case study, a British Bangladeshi woman who beat her teenage sister-in-law to death in the family home following a "regime of terror" has been jailed for life by the St Albans Crown Court. This murder case was published on 21st December 2015 in various national newspapers of the England and Wales. In this unfortunate murder case, the victim Shahena Uddin, 19, was a British Bangladeshi girl. During the trial, the Court heard that, prior to her death; she fell unconscious after suffering 54 injuries and was left to die by choking on her own vomit. She was force fed, slapped and beaten for eating too slowly and was often kept from using the toilet or from also drinking water. The court also heard that if she didn't do something right she could be made to stand bent over the toilet bowl face down looking at the water for ages, for up to six or seven hours.Miss Uddin was also made to lick the toilet seat, drink the toilet water and eat her own vomit and faeces. The court heard how letters written by Miss Uddin to her killer (Mrs. Sister-in-law) revealed the power she had over her victim and younger girls in the family.We were shocked to learn that Miss Uddin, prior to her death, had been under the guardianship of Suhail Uddin and his wife since she was 15 and lived in a terraced house in Leavesden Road with all five defendants. Hertfordshire County Council's children's services worked with Shahena's family from 2000 until 2010, after which the courts granted a special guardianship order giving parental responsibility of Shahena to her brother and his wife. Unfortunately, her legal guardians were involved actively in her tragic death.At the end of the trial, Salma Begum, 32, denied murder but was convicted at St Albans Crown Court. She must serve a minimum of 18 years. The court also jailed four of Miss Uddin's brothers and a sister. Her eldest brother, 35-year-old Suhail Uddin - Begum's husband- was acquitted of murder and an alternative charge of manslaughter. He must serve a minimum of 10 years for causing or allowing the death of a vulnerable adult.Three brothers were also convicted of the same charge. Jhuhal Uddin, 33, was sentenced to nine years; Jewel Uddin, 27, received eight years and Tohel Uddin, 24, must serve six-and-a-half years. In addition, Miss Uddin's sister, Rehena Uddin, 22, was handed a sentence of five years for the same charge.All six defendants were found guilty of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice by attempting to impede the police investigation. This unfortunate murder case shocked the whole British Bangladeshi Community. Our heart and soul cried out loudly to learn that Miss Uddin was kept a prisoner in her own home and punished regularly. It is just horrendous to think what she must have undergone that night prior to her death when she was found unconscious after suffering 54 injuries and was left to die by choking on her own vomit.This ground breaking judgment gives clear signals to all would be murderers in England and Wales that if they are involved with any incidents of murder either directly or indirectly, they would be punished strictly with full force of English Law.Murder - Definition : There is no legal definition of Murder in any of the statutes of UK. Murder is a common law offence in England and Wales. This offence is generally defined in law as an intent to cause serious harm or injury (alone or with others), combined with a death arising from that intention. It is considered the most serious form of homicide, in which one person kills another with the intention to unlawfully cause either death or serious injury.Two elementsFor a person to have committed a murder in the eyes of the law they must satisfy all the below requirements: (a) The Actus Reus of murder and (b) Mens Rea of Murder.First element - Actus Reus of murderThe term "actus reus" is a Latin term for "wrongful act". For a person to have committed a murder in the eyes of the law they must satisfy all the below requirements: Firstly, the victim of the killing must have been a 'person in being' , this means a murder will only occur if a person is unlawfully killed and that the victim is a person who is independent from their mother (not still in the womb). Secondly, the victim must have died, If a person attempts to unlawfully kill a person but they survive the attack that person would most likely be guilty of attempted murder and not actual murder itself. Finally, the victim's death must have been caused by the act (possible failure to act) of the defendant. If a person dies of a disease, then this is not murder.For the purpose of legal definition of murder, the Victim must have been a 'person in being'. A person is classed as a 'person in being' and able to be unlawfully killed when the foetus is independent form the mother's womb and therefore surviving without the mother. There is often confusion as to when a person is classed as a human being during pregnancy.Furthermore, the Victim must have died for the purpose of legal definition of murder. A person is legally dead once their brain stem is dead. This is what the prosecution will need to prove when they are trying to convict the defendant for the unlawful killing of the victim.To summaries, the victim must be a person, who has died as a result of the defendants actions.Second Element - Mens Rea of MurderFor a person to be guilty of murder they must also have the intention to kill or cause grievous bodily harm (GBH).Law in England and Wales : Murder is an indictable only Offence. The sentence for murder is, in all cases, mandatory and depends upon the age of the offender at the time of the crime or convictionSection 1(1) of the Murder (Abolition of Death Penalty) Act 1965 stipulates that, 'No person shall suffer death for murder, and a person guilty of murder shall be sentenced to imprisonment for life'. In other words, there is a mandatory punishment for murder, a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment.Even though every person that is found guilty of murder will be given a life sentence, the actual amount of years a life sentence represents will be up to the complete discretion of the court. This period of years is then called the Tariff period of the sentence.In addition to the 1965 Act, the Criminal Justice Act 2003 introduced and created three broad categories of murder. For each category there is a starting point for the length of the sentence and then the judge in the court has the power to reduce the length of the sentence as they see fit.Category 1: This is the most serious category of murder; this act of murder is considered the most heinous of crimes. The direction to the court with anyone convicted of a category 1 murder is that a life sentence should mean life. This applies to all those of 21years of age plus. The judges can reduce this providing they have reasonable justifications.Category 2: This is classed as an intermediate murder with the starting point for sentencing for this type of crime being 30 years in relation to a person over the age of 18years old.Category 3: This is defined as a residual murder; the starting point for sentencing in this type of murder is 15years for those defendants over the age of 18years old and then a starting point of 12years for those under the age of 18years old.Murder has been split into these sub categories primarily due to the objective of fair labeling.Grievous Bodily Harm (GBH): The intention to cause Grievous Bodily Harm (GBH) is enough to be convicted of murder. This theory often causes controversy, as a person may be convicted of murder as long as a person unlawfully dies as a result of the defendants actions even if they only intended to cause that person serious harm and not kill them.In the above case law, the sister-in-law was given life imprisonment for the murder of Miss. Uddin. Her other family members were also given exemplary punishment as they were found guilty of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice by attempting to impede the police investigation. Their punishment varied as Murder has been split into the above mentioned three sub categories primarily due to the objective of fair labeling.As a lawyer of England and Wales, I believe in the British legal systems and am proud of the strict application of Criminal Law to punish murderers and their associates. I firmly believe that the strict punishment given by the Court to the criminals in this case will let the public see "Justice is seen done" I strongly believe that the victim's family would want the punishment to represent the crime, especially when a loved one has been taken away from them as a result of the murder. The punishments for murder are linked to the severity of the actions by the criminal, the more severe and sadistic the murder the longer the term in prison.By punishing the offenders involved in the killing of Miss. Uddin, we would not be able bring her life back. However, we can at least ensure that "justice is seen done" by bring the murders and their associates before justice. To combat the Common Law offence of Murder, we must stand together shoulder to shoulder and bring the murders and their associates before justice. Our political leaders, law enforcement agencies, Community Leader and public interest groups should join in this journey to combat and wage a legal war against the murderers and their associates.(The writer is a Barrister of the Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn, Chartered Legal Executive Lawyer of CILEX and Principal of an International Law Firm based at Marble Arch, London, UK. He can be contacted at [email protected] ).
Radhika Apte sets pulse racing in her glam avatar

Radhika Apte recently shot with renowned magazine GQ and the end result was palpitating! The bold and beautiful Radhika, who is known for her dare to bare attitude and contribution to Indian Cinema with some phenomenal performances, looked undoubtedly hot!

Radhika has garnered tremendous response from the industry as well as her audiences for her sensuous shoot for the magazine.

The actress looks her best ever in the hot avatar. Ever since the issue released in stands, the magazine has been receiving overwhelming feedback all thanks to Radhika.


Writing judgments after retirement illegal: CJ

bdnews24.com :Chief Justice SK Sinha has expressed dissatisfaction over the inordinately long time some judges take to give verdicts. He has insisted the judgement be completed within the judges' tenure in office."Some judges take extremely long to write their judgments. Some others keep writing their verdicts long after their retirement, a practice that is against the law and the Constitution," the chief justice said.Justice Sinha made the observations in a statement given on the completion of his first year at Bangladesh's highest judicial post.He was sworn in as the country's 21st chief justice on Jan 17, 2015.In a four-page statement, he has highlighted the various aspects of his term so far.He admitted his failure to convince his colleagues that it was possible to finish writing the judgments of resolved cases within a "reasonable" time."A judge is considered to be an ordinary citizen after his retirement and the oath he takes also exhausts itself," the chief justice said, explaining the illegality involved in writing judgments after retirement."Court papers are official documents. A judge loses his authority to keep them, review them or prepare judgments and sign on them," he said."I hope judges will refrain from such illegal practices in deference to the law," the chief justice said.Justice AHM Shamsuddin Choudhury, who retired from the Appellate Division a few months back, had complained that the chief justice had withheld his pension for not completing the writing of his judgement before retirement.He said many earlier judges had followed a similar practice in the past and alleged that he was a victim of 'unfair treatment'. Justice Choudhury had even demanded Chief Justice Sinha's impeachment.Justice Sinha stressed the importance of the judiciary in a democracy and referred to several steps taken after he became the chief justice to speed up the judicial process.He has promised to take steps to solve problems that lawyers might face, and urged them to lodge complaints instead of going on strike.He expressed the hope that the mass media, as the 'Fourth Estate', would continue to make people aware of the rule of law.He also stressed greater use of information technology to streamline the judiciary.The chief justice's statement also spoke of online publication of the Supreme Court cause list, bails granted by the High Court, important verdicts of the Appellate Division and the High Court.He also mentioned an initiative to introduce e-court facilities in the High Court and lower courts.He also mentioned a day-care centre in the Supreme Court, modernisation of the apex court museum, enhanced medical facilities and the establishment of a legal aid office in the apex court.Chief Justice SK Sinha said the number of cases disposed had gone up across the judicial tiers in the past one year.
DITF visitors become hostage at 'discount trap'

Badrul Ahsan :

Thousands of people visiting Dhaka International Trade Fair (DITF) 2016 have become hostage of traders' 'discount trap'.

Almost all the pavilions and stall owners of the annual trade carnival have announced various types of stocky discounts, free offers, lucky coupons and many more to attract customers.

Many traders have declared different package offer like 'buy one get ten free' and some others have offered up to 70 per cent of cash discounts along with attractive prizes in weekly draws of lucky coupon.

But even after the huge presence of discounts and free offers, many visitors were looking disappointed due to high price of goods being charged at the fair.

They said that the prices of the products on discounts are much higher than that of the same items in different markets of the city.

Along with higher prices, they also expressed their dismay over the low quality of goods being displayed in the fair and claimed that the stall owners were misleading the customers in the name of discount.

"People like us come to such exhibitions to pickup the best bargain of products. But in fact, the traders are making us to spend too (Picture on back page)

much in the name of discounts," Abida Ferdous, a visitor at the fair, told The New Nation on Friday.

"Some stall owners are charging exorbitant prices from the customers, even for low quality and substandard items. They announce discounts after poaching inflated prices of the discounted items," Munima Sultana, another visitor at the fair said.

"Being a member of middle-income group of people, I have come here to avail the benefit of competition, but prices of majority products on display are seems to be higher than those in different markets of the city," said Ahsan Habib, a private jobholder.

"Stall owners also push date expired and tempered goods to the customers during the huge rush of visitors. Such incident happened with me," he claimed.

Stall owners, however, denied such claims, saying they are offering discount on the best quality products due to intense competition.

Meanwhile, visiting to different markets of the city, this reporter found that a micro-oven being sold in the city's New Market at Tk 6,500 were being offered in the DITF at Tk 9,800 with 'buy one and get ten free' offer.

Besides, one piece Pakistani 'kamiz' was being sold at Tk 1,600 with a stocky cash discount in the fair whereas the same variety was found being sold at Tk 1,300 at Gawsia market in the city.

Similarly, in many cases, from household items to dresses and food items were also found selling at comparatively cheaper prices in different city markets than those were being sold in the DITF.

However, replying to a query, a high official of the Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection under the Ministry of Commerce preferring anonymity said the department knows about the unholy activities of the traders but did not take any action due to strong political connection of the participants.

"It is not possible for us to take action against the unholy activists as because of their strong political connections. Besides, we did not receive any formal complains yet from the consumers," he said.

However, the Dhaka International Trade Fair (DITF) 2016 drew a large number of visitors on Friday, the third weekly holiday since its inauguration.

According to organisers, tens of thousands of people visited the exhibition on the day.

Stalls selling cosmetics, crockery, plastic products, processed food and home textiles are popular among visitors. The Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) and the Ministry of Commerce are jointly organising the mega event at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in the capital that will continue until January 31.


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power to endanger the public liberty." - - - - John Adams


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Public Defender G. Paul Marx Photo by Robin May

Within a week of the Orleans Parish Public Defenders Office and the Louisiana Public Defender Board being slapped with a class-action lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union over the shortage of lawyers to handle indigent cases, the head of the office that provides attorneys for poor defenders in the Lafayette region confirms that budgetary problems now have it officially refusing to handle some criminal cases.

That ACLU lawsuit, which claims the lack of legal representation violates the Sixth Amendment rights of due process for new clients, came on the heels of the Orleans Public Defenders offices Jan. 11 announcement that it had started refusing some felony cases where defendants face lengthy or life sentences and that a shortage of public defenders is resulting in many clients being placed on waiting lists.

Citing the Restriction of Services Protocol mandated by the Louisiana Public Defender Board, 15th Judicial District Public Defender G. Paul Marx this week says much of the same is happening here and throughout many of the states remaining 40 judicial districts.

Nine attorney positions in the local office have been terminated, leaving 22 full-time and 33 contract attorneys handling the workload. Cases related to those cuts  the local policy affects only defendants who are not in jail, with incarcerated clients getting priority  are posted to a waiting list, which means the criminal justice process is at a halt in Lafayette, Acadia and Vermilion parishes, Marx says. The attorneys who do remain are now subject to a 17 percent reduction in pay.

Marx says the action is consistent with the Louisiana Supreme Courts decision in State v. Citizen, which established that district courts should halt prosecutions in cases where effective counsel is unfunded.

The district defender explains that drastic steps had to be taken to meet a projected budget shortfall of $250,000 or more in the fiscal year ending June 30. Essentially our local revenue sources are not keeping up with historic levels, the State Public Defender Board is out of money to assist me, and legal ethics requires that over a certain level of overload my lawyers cannot take any more cases. The result is a formal, legally required process of reducing services that will impact clients and court processes, he says in a Jan. 19 statement.

Marx says this issue is not new. He says the local program, which has a $4 million annual budget, got the bulk of its funding from state boards District Assistance Fund, which was able to supplement local funds but hasnt seen an increase in the past six years. With state government now in such dire financial straits, no assistance is expected this year.

Local funding sources, like Lafayette City Court traffic tickets, have also been squeezed. In talking to Chief [Jim] Craft, there has been an impact from the speed vans and red light cameras, resulting in fewer traditional citations through traffic court, Marx tells ABiz. The revenue from the automated enforcement goes to the private company and the city police budget. There are less police officers needed for regular court based enforcement [he says the city is down to five traffic enforcement officers], which seems to be causing less citations in the traditional court where $45 in costs is allotted to the Indigent Defender Fund.

The workload of the local district is in the top four in the state, according to Marx, with annual felony filings of about 8,000 cases, almost 12,000 traffic cases and 10,000 misdemeanors in city and district courts.

We have the restraints of ethical rules, statutory law and Constitutional Law that simply dont allow me to act as if a lawyer can do the impossible work of representation no matter how many cases he is assigned, Marx says in the written statement. ...We cannot meet our duty to provide effective representation, and Im not going to force clients to bear the damage by giving them half-hearted counsel just to move things along. ... The sad reality is that the vast majority of the people incarcerated in this district are poor people there for relatively minor, non-violent offenses. Unfortunately these are the people who are affected the most by cuts as they are forced to wait longer and longer for their cases to be resolved.
Monet rahapelien ystavat ovat viime vuosina loytaneet netticasinot ja olleet ihmeissaan. Verrattuna kotimaisen Veikkauksen kivijalkarahapeleihin puhutaan aivan eri tason palautusprosenteista ja lisaksi pelaaminen on aarimmaisen helppoa ja turvallista. Netticasinoiden maara on tana paivana todella suuri ja niita loytyy jokaiseen lahtoon, suurin ongelma aloittelevalla pelaajalla onkin tehda valinta siita, minka netticasinon valitsee. Kaikkien netticasinoiden mainospuheet naet lupaavat kauniita asioita ja niiden lapinakeminen on tietysti tarkeaa. Nyrkkisaantona voidaan kuitenkin jo kattelyssa todeta, etta jos valitsemasi netticasino on lisensoitu ETA-alueella, sen kanssa ei tule olemaan ongelmia, ellei niita itse jarjesta. Kay tutustumassa parhaisiin netticasinoihin osoitteessa www.ilmaiskierroksia.info!

Ensimmainen nyrkkisaanto on siis varmistaa, etta valitsemallasi netticasinolla on ETA-alueen lisenssi. Suurimmassa osassa tapauksista se on Maltan eli MGA:n lisenssi. Myos Viron, Englannin ja Gibraltarin lisensseja nakyy ja naissa valvonta on jopa Maltaa tiukempaa. Lopputulema on kuitenkin se, etta ETA-alueen lisenssi takaa suomalaisille verovapaat voitot seka sen, etta niita valvotaan kontrolloidusti. Maailmalla on iso nippu Curacaon lisenssilla toimivia netticasinoita ja niistakin suurin osa on laadukkaita. Ne eivat kuitenkaan ole suomalaisille asiakkaille verovapaita, joten emme suosittele niita.

Tana paivana markkinoille on ilmaantunut paljon ETA-alueella toimiva netticasinoita ilman rekisteroitymista. Jos tarkoitus on vain pelata yksittaisia pelikertoja, on varsin helppo suositella naita. Netticasinot ilman rekisteroitymista tarjoavat palvelun tunnistautumisen verkkopankin avainlukulistan avulla ja saman palvelun kautta tapahtuvat talletukset ja mahdolliset voittojen nostot silmanrapayksessa. Normaaleihin netticasinoihin pitaa asiakkaan rekisteroitya, tehda talletukset ja tunnistautua dokumenttien avulla. Tama on lisenssiehtojen mukainen kaytanto, eika kovinkaan monimutkainen, mutta silti monet asiakkaat haluavat yksinkertaista ja nopeaa palvelua. Toki normaalit netticasinot tarjoavat usein asiakkailleen laadukkaita talletusbonuksia ja erilaisia kampanjoita, joten kannattaa tarkkaan punnita, kumman ratkaisun valitsee. Kannattaa myos muistaa, etta tunnistautuminen tehdaan vain kerran, joten mikaan jatkuva riippakivi se ei ole.

Suomalaiset asiakkaat ovat netticasinoille tarkeita, joten kaikilla vahankin laadukkailla netticasinoilla on suomenkieliset sivut seka suomenkielinen asiakaspalvelu  suomenkielisyys kannattaakin ottaa netticasinoa valittaessa nyrkkisaannoksi. Vaikka tana paivana englanninkielisyys on harvoille ongelma, on suomenkielisten netticasinoiden maara niin valtava, etta suosittelemme niiden kayttoa. Rahansiirrot ovat tana paivana niin hyvassa mallissa, etta niiden kanssa tuskin tulee mitaan ongelmia. Kolme tarkeinta segmenttia: Suomalaiset verkkopankit, luottokortit (Visa, Mastercard) seka nettilompakot (Skrill, Neteller) loytyvat jokaisesta laadukkaasta netticasinosta. Viime vuosien trendiksi noussut verkkokauppa on kehittanyt rahansiirrot niin laadukkaiksi ja nopeiksi, etta niiden suhteen ei ole enaa vuosiin ollut ongelmia. Luonnollisesti netticasinot kayttavat naita samoja palveluita ja hyotyvat kehityksesta.

Naiden isojen linjojen jalkeen netticasinon valintaan vaikuttavat luonnollisesti tarjottavat tervetuliaisbonukset  uudet asiakkaat saavat tana paivana kovan kilpailun myota merkittavia etuja netticasinoilta ja niita kannattaa luonnollisesti vertailla. Erilaiset talletusbonukset, ilmaiskierrokset seka ilmaiset pelirahat tuovat suuriakin rahanarvoisia etuja ja niiden vertailu on ehdottomasti kannattavaa. Myoskaan useampien tilien avaaminen ja tervetuliaistarjousten kayttaminen ei missaan nimessa ole huono idea.

Kun edella mainitut asiat ovat mieleisia ja vaihtoehtoja on vielakin jaljella, mennaan jo nyansseihin. Toki pelivalikoima on yksi kriteeri, mutta taman paivan netticasinoissa tamakin asia on paasaantoisesti varsin samanlainen. Toki useamman samantasoisen netticasinon vertailussa kannattaa yleensa valita se, jossa on eniten peleja tarjolla. Vaikka omat suosikit loytyisivatkin useammasta, voi tulevaisuudessa mielenkiinto nousta joihinkin muihin peleihin ja silloin on tietysti mukavampaa, etta ne loytyvat valikoimista. Viimeisena voidaan nostaa esiin kaytettavyys  joidenkin netticasinoiden sivut ovat vilkkuvia, valkkyvia ja epakaytannollisia. Omaan silmaan ja kaytettavyyteen sopiva sivusto on luonnollisesti aina se paras valinta. Tarjonta netticasinoissa on tana paivana valtava ja jokaiselle loytyy varmasti se oma netticasino  onnea matkaan!
President Joe Biden has decided to ban Russian oil imports, toughening the toll on Russia's economy in retaliation for its invasion of Ukraine. The United States generally imports about 100,000 barrels a day from Russia, only about 5% of Russia's crude oil exports, according to Rystad Energy. Last year, roughly 8% of U.S. imports of oil and petroleum products came from Russia. Gas prices have been rising for weeks due to the conflict and in anticipation of potential sanctions on the Russian energy sector. The U.S. national average for a gallon of gasoline soared 45 cents a gallon in the past week and topped $4.06 on Monday, according to auto club AAA. Should the US ban Russian oil imports over Ukraine war?

You voted:
By AM Friday, January 22, 2016 Share Tweet Share Share Email

We, Fayadhs fellow poets, urge the Saudi authorities to desist from punishing individuals for the peaceful exercise of their right to freedom of expression and call for his immediate and unconditional release

calls for the release of a poet facing execution in Saudi Arabia.is a Melbourne based writer and activist.We, poets from around the world, are appalled that the Saudi Arabian authorities have sentenced Palestinian poet Ashraf Fayadh to death for apostasy. It is not a crime to hold an idea, however unpopular, nor is it a crime to express opinion peacefully. Every individual has the freedom to believe or not believe. Freedom of conscience is an essential human freedom - PEN International letter signed by a group of poets in an expression of solidarity with Ashraf Fayadh.Ashraf Fayadh (35) is a Palestinian refugee and writer living in Saudi Arabia. He is also a leading member of the young Saudi art scene. Fayadh is awaiting execution, after being sentenced to death by a Saudi court on charges of apostasy, or abandoning his faith in Islam. The charges against him appear to be based on his poetry and other writing, but maybe also retaliation for Fayadh posting an online video showing Saudi religious police lashing a man in public.In January 2014, he was arrested and his identity documents confiscated and Fayadh was held for a lengthy period without charge. He was then sentenced to four years in prison and 800 lashes for what he wrote in his book of poetry and for allegedly having illicit relations with women. After he appealed the sentence, Fayadh was re-tried and sentenced to be executed. He did not have any legal representation.Fayadh was sentenced to death for renouncing Islam, a charge which he denies. Evidence used against him included poems from his collection Instructions Within, which is banned in Saudi Arabia, as well as his posts on Twitter and a conversation he had in a coffee shop in the town of Abha which was said to be blasphemous.Fayadh said his poetry book, Instructions Within, is just about me being a Palestinian refugee  about cultural and philosophical issues. But the religious extremists claimed his writings were destructive ideas against God.According to Human Rights Watch, as well as the charges of blasphemy and spreading atheism, Fayadh was also charged with having an illicit relationship with women, based on pictures found on his phone. He told the court the pictures were of women he had met at an art gallery.His supporters are now asking how the case could draw such different verdicts, especially when, according to US-based Human Rights Watch, two of the three judges in the original case also served in the later retrial. The case illustrates how courts in Saudi Arabia can issue vastly different punishments based on how judges interpret Islamic law, a system derived from scholarly interpretations of the Koran and verified and documented rulings and sayings of the prophet Muhammad.Fayadh's friends have submitted testimony disputing the veracity of a complaint filed to the religious police by an acquaintance who accused him of making blasphemous comments about God, the prophet Muhammad and the Saudi state during a heated discussion at a cafe in Abha, the city where the case was heard.The one-page court document says their testimony was not accepted in the retrial because the defendant's own "admission is the strongest evidence", without specifying what Fayadh admitted to. He was arrested and released within a day for that argument in August 2013, Human Rights Watch says.Just days earlier, Fayadh's friends say he may have caught the attention of religious police when he filmed one of them slapping a man on the face and forcibly pinning him against a wall in Abha. The video on YouTube has been viewed over 195,000 times.While judges in the initial trial accepted Fayadh's repentance for anything deemed offensive to religion in his poetry book, judges in the retrial said the case was considered an instance of Hadd (literal meaning "limit", or "restriction" is an Islamic concept: punishments, which under Islamic Sharia law are mandated and fixed by God. The Sharia divided offenses into those against God and those against man) with specific crimes, such as apostasy, having fixed punishments in Islam.Sharia is open to various interpretations and many Muslim clerics say the death penalty is not the standard punishment for someone who leaves the faith or is an apostate, sourcing it to the prophet Muhammad's pardon of a Muslim who had renounced Islam.Saudi Arabia's ultra-conservative teachings of Islam, known as Wahhabism, have drawn comparisons to some of the ideologies behind the other Islamic State, which executes non-Muslims and Muslims alike for criticism of the faith. In Saudi Arabia, however, there are no known cases in recent years of executions for apostasy, though 152 people have been executed this year for crimes such as murder, rape and drug smuggling, according to Amnesty International.Saudi Sharia courts can issue discretionary judgments on a wide range of crimes, which also allows leniency. But in crimes of Hadd even the Saudi king cannot issue a pardon, though he can interject if there are questions around how the case was handled, according to Human Rights Watch researcher Adam Coogle and Fayadh's friends who are familiar with the case.The judges in Fayadh's retrial sentenced him to death after one hearing, but the first trial lasted six hearings. Nowhere in the court's second judgment did it state what Fayadh said that was allegedly insulting to God and religion.Fayadh's brother-in-law, Osama Abu Raya, described the artist's 2008 Arabic poetry book, Instructions Within, as a compilation of his thoughts as a young man. The court began assessing the book last year after a man filed a complaint against him and mentioned his poetry to the religious police. Then a fatwa council, which issues religious edicts, was asked to analyse it.Fayadh had been better known for his role in the modern art world, curating an exhibition of Saudi artists at the 2013 Venice Biennale. He also curated a show in Saudi Arabia called Mostly Visible, which was visited by the director of London's Tate Modern, Chris Dercon. He also produced Saudi artist Ahmed Matar's presentation, Word Into Art, at the British Museum in 2005.Ahmed Matar said Fayadh's poetry book was about Palestinian issues. He said Fayadh, who was born and raised in Abha, "is in a weak position" because he is Palestinian and does not have the backing of a powerful Saudi tribe to mediate. In a statement, the Palestinian Authority in the Israeli-occupied West Bank publicly appealed to Saudi Arabia to release him.The Saudi government's human rights body says it sent representatives to meet Ashraf Fayadh in prison in Abha, where he has been under arrest since January 2014. Fayadh's case will likely now go back to the appeals court and then to the Supreme Court for a final ruling."He's not an atheist. He is a Muslim artist and poet ... He's very sensitive, he's very intelligent. He's a very good friend to major artists," said Stephen Stapleton, founding director of the London-based Edge of Arabia, which promotes Saudi artists.Over one hundred Arab intellectuals, as well as many cultural, free speech and human rights groups, such as Pen International, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network have joined the calls for the immediate freedom of Ashraf Fayadh.In protest at the terrible treatment of Fayadh, many Palestinian poets, writers and intellectuals have been gathering in Ramallah and other towns in the West Bank of Palestine to read poems and make calls to save Fayadhs life and the release him from prison. These actions are part of an international campaign, with Fayadhs poems to be read in 42 countries.Poets from around the world are also lining up in solidarity with the Palestinian poet Ashraf Fayadh, with the Syrian poet Adonis, Irelands Paul Muldoon and Britains poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy signing a PEN letter stating they are appalled at the death sentence he has been handed by Saudi Arabian authorities. Among other poets who rallied and joined in signing the letter attacking the Saudi ruling were Serbian-American poet Charles Simic, the American John Ashbery, Palestinian Ghassan Zaqtan, Israeli Amir Or and the Hungarian-born George Szirtes. They wrote:The letter says that Fayadhs death sentence is the latest example of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabias lack of tolerance for freedom of expression and ongoing persecution of free thinkers, it ended with a plea for the Palestinians release.Incitement can be a crime, hate speech may be a crime, but opinions are not, Szirtes said. It runs counter to all our thoughts, habits and instincts, not just as poets or writers but as human beings. Nor is it just a cultural matter: it is a matter of exactly that which we describe as universal human rights. he added.According to Szirtes it is, That is precisely why organisations such as PEN exist. Any sentence for an individual opinion brings shame on Saudi Arabia: a death sentence brings maximum shame.The appeal follows the release of a joint statement signed by more than a dozen cultural and free speech organisations condemning the conviction of the Palestinian poet, including PEN International.PEN said that during his trial, the poet expressed repentance for anything in the book that religious authorities may have deemed insulting, and said, according to trial documents: I am repentant to God most high and I am innocent of what appeared in my book mentioned in this case. Fayadh stated, I didnt do anything that deserves death.In a message to his supporters on 25 November, Fayadh said he was grateful for everyone working on my behalf. To be honest, I was surprised because I felt alone here. I am in good health. Im struggling to follow all the developments. People should know I am not against anyone here, I am an artist and I am just looking for my freedom, said Fayadh.In another separate case that also drew widespread condemnation, including from Saudi Arabia's closest Western allies, Saudi blogger Raif Badawi who was publicly flogged 50 times this year and is serving a 10-year sentence for expressing his opinions and criticising the kingdom's powerful religious establishment online.Fayadhs imprisonment, persecution and death sentence by the Saudi regime reflects the extremely reactionary role played by the Saudi regime in the region, with the support of its close allies, as it seeks to repress Palestinian and Arab culture and independent movements and works to suppress any struggle for genuine free expression.The deplorable situation of Fayadh is very dire and life threatening. Please act to express your solidarity with Ashraf Fayadh and do whatever you can to publicize his case and exert pressure on the Saudi regime. Help save Fayadhs life and support his struggle for justice and freedom.They accused me [of] atheism and spreading some destructive thoughts into society, he said, describing his poetry collection as just about me being [a] Palestinian refugee  about cultural and philosophical issues. But the religious extremists explained it as destructive ideas against God. Ashraf Fayadh.Information from Samidoun (Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network)-1.in your area and demand freedom for Ashraf Fayadh. In the United States, call 202-342-3800. In Canada, call 613-237-4100. Find the embassy in your country here: http://embassy.goabroad.com/embassies-of/saudi-arabia 2.in your area for freedom for Ashraf Fayadh. Print signs and materials, and gather outside the Saudi embassy with Palestine rights activists, artists and others to demand his freedom. See the list of Saudi embassies here: http://embassy.goabroad.com/embassies-of/saudi-arabia 3.The Saudi regime is a close partner of the United States, Canadian and various European governments. Demand that your government pressure the Saudi regime to release Fayadh. In Canada, Call the office of the Foreign Minister, Stephane Dion, at 613-996-5789 and demand Canada pressure Saudi Arabia to release Fayadh, or email: stephane.dion@parl.gc.ca . In the US, call the White House (202-456-1111) and the US State Department (202-647-9572); demand the US pressure Saudi Arabia to release Fayadh. In the EU, contact youre MEP  you can find your MEP here.Sources-Samidoun, Human Rights Watch, PEN International, Amnesty International, Electronic Intifada, Mondoweiss.
The S.P.D. Murder of John T. Williams

On a sunny, warm Seattle August day in 2010, Native American wood carver John T. Williams was murdered by the Seattle Police Department as he walked down the crowded downtown streets while on his normal daily routine of carving small totem poles with a small pen knife, then selling them to the tourists that flock by the Seattle Public Market.

Seattle Police Officer Ian Birk noticed Mr. Williams walking down the city streets and deemed him a threat, do in major part I believe - simply because he was Native American. Williams was one of many homeless Native Americans who roam downtown Seattle. These people are usually dismissed and overlooked by Seattles daily bustle of businessmen, the working class, and tourists.



When the officer approached Williams from behind, and then ordered him to freeze and drop his small carving knife and a stick of carving wood he was carrying, Williams was hard of hearing in one ear, and failed to hear the police officer over the traffic and pedestrians, thus did not immediately comply; officer Birk then instantly felt that this gave him the right to use lethal force against John T. Williams.

No threat was ever given by the homeless woodcarver. Officer Ian Birk coldly gunned down John T. Williams from behind, murdering him in the streets of Seattle, Wash, right in front of many horrified citizens who later professed that they felt no threat from the homeless Native American man whatsoever.



The officer was fired  thats it, and was allowed to live his life somewhere else, work a steady job, live in a nice house, somewhere out of media sight, and out of the publics mind; smug in the fact that he got away with legal murder with just a slap on the wrist. We must all remember that this type of legal homicide happens every day all over this nation of ours, by those sworn to Serve and Protect us. And that this violent tragedy can happen to anyone, or anybodys family members, especially if they are citizens of color. This makes it everybodys problem who believes in justice, personal safety from unwarranted persecution, and true American freedom in the society they live in. Let us still remember John T Williams, and never forget the fact that he was ruthlessly murdered by the S.P.D.






















































The sextoy market is growing quite rapidly in India right now.

Although it is not a big trend, it is a hot topic on the internet as it is secretly expanding its market.

In this article, we will focus on sextoy and introduce recommended sextoy for Indian beginners of sextoy by gender.

India, the birthplace of the Kama Sutra, is very strict about sex.

Also, premarital sex is basically not allowed. Therefore, there are many people who are sexually restricted.

But what happens when you continue to be sexually restricted?

Frustration may build up and you may end up taking your sexual stress out on your partner.

If you are able to adopt sextoy in a timely manner, you can get rid of those problems.

I want to have more exciting sex than Im having now.

I want more variation in masturbation

I want to get even stronger pleasure than I do on my own.

If you have any of these problems, please stay with me until the end.

What is sex toys for Indian?

Sextoy, as the name implies, is a toy used during sex and masturbation.

It is a generic term for vibrators, Egg-vibrators, Electric massagers, dildo, handcuffs and condoms.

They are used to make regular sex more exciting or to make masturbation more pleasurable.

Because sextoy is very stimulating, it can help you to get rid of the problems and frustrations of being in a rut of sex with your partner for a long time, or if you are unhappy with the lack of pleasure in sex with your partner.

The ability to satisfy your desires with movement, texture, and size, which cannot be done by a normal human being, can help you to be satisfied with sex and, as a result, improve your relationship with your partner.

It is also said to help improve sexual dysfunction (inability to get an erection or ejaculate) and difficulty in feeling during sex (insensitivity), which is attracting more attention than in the past.

In recent years, the demand for sextoy has increased due to the spread of smartphones and the Internet and the increasing number of people using online shopping.

Even those who are concerned about the appearance of sextoy (and find it difficult to purchase) can now easily obtain it by using mail order.

In the case of online shopping, most of the stores have taken steps to ensure that the contents of the products delivered to you are not revealed, so you can purchase them without your family members knowing.

Until a while ago, you had to go to the store where the adult goods were sold to buy them, so it was quite a hurdle to overcome.

Also, many people may have an image that sextoy is somehow embarrassing to own.

But nowadays, some of them are so stylish and cute that you cant believe they are sextoy at a glance.

More and more people are using them for travel and outdoor use because they are not too bulky and are suitable for carrying around.

Sextoy situation in India

Before introducing the recommended sextoy for Indians, lets talk about one of the sextoy situations in India in recent years.

In India, due to the high concentration of population, the following six cities have particularly high sales of sextoy in India.

Mumbai

Kolkata

Bangalore

Delhi

Chennai

Hyderabad

These cities account for roughly 70 percent of sextoy sales in India.

In the future, the percentage of sextoy use will gradually increase in other cities in India as well.

If you never talk about sextoy publicly, that girl in your neighborhood might be a sextoy user too.

If you are interested in sextoy, you dont have to suppress your desire for it.

What are Sextoys for beginner?

Among all sextoys, sextoy for beginners are vibrators, dildo, masturbators, Sex Lubricants, and condoms.

Sex Lubricants and condoms, which are familiar to people who have had sex, are also a great beginners sextoy.

I will explain the details of each toy later, but there are many sextoy products that are painful to use and can only be used after some anal expansion.

I assume that the Indian readers of this article are people who have not had much experience with sextoy.

If such people use professional sextoy suddenly, they are at risk of injury or trauma.

Therefore, to introduce sextoy, you need to start with a beginners version and gradually become familiar with it.

Advantages of using sextoy for Indians

There are three advantages of using sextoy for Indians

You can masturbate in a wide variety of ways.

Can have stimulating sex

Can develop new sexual zones

If you try to masturbate with your own fingers or hands, it tends to be a pattern.

However, with sextoy, you can easily masturbate in a variety of ways.

You will definitely be fascinated by the attraction of new stimulation.

Also, your daily sex life will be more exciting than ever.

There are many things in sextoy that are visually stimulating and give you a strong and intense feeling of pleasure.

This allows you to see your partners promiscuity in a way that you wouldnt normally see it.

When you are in a relationship, sex with your partner may become a pattern, but it can also eliminate these problems.

It can also lead to the development of new sexual zones (which is the training of sexual stimulation to allow you to feel orgasms).

For more information on the development of new sexual zones, see the following articles

[Women's Erogenous Zone]How to find and develop, 7 hidden sexual zones !![In India] In this issue, we will dissect the female erogenous zone! ..." Many of you may be like that. Men, in particular, shou...

Thus, the use of sextoy can only be a good thing for the men and women of India.

Sextoy for beginner men in India

So, lets continue with the recommended goods for Indian sextoy beginners.

For ease of understanding, we will introduce them by gender. Lets start with the men!

The following five goods are recommended for novice Indian sextoy men

Masturbator

Cock rings

Love Doll

Sex Lubricants

Toys for the prostate

Lets check each one in detail.

Masturbator

The masturbator is a sextoy for men that elaborately reproduces a womans vagina, mouth, and anus, and is one of the most popular sextoy products.

It is used by men to masturbate, and it is popular because it provides stronger stimulation and pleasure more easily than using hands.

Most are made of good quality silicone, and their softness is something that cannot be achieved with ones own hands.

They can provide stronger pleasure than a real womans vagina, so be careful not to overuse them. (You wont be able to have an orgasm in a womans vagina anymore.)

Again Male masturbators are a wonderful toy. I do not need any favourite timing, bothersome bargaining. You do not have to worry too much.

Revolutionize your masturbation time! ! !

Made in Japan is a wonderful kinky toy.#sextoysindia #SexToyIndia #Japanhttps://t.co/4k70QGzoTP pic.twitter.com/tRVdxTKPpa   SEXToys India PR  (@SextoysIndia) November 12, 2018

Some of them are disposable, while others can be washed and used over and over again, so its fun to buy a few to use depending on your mood.

If you want to know more about masturbator, please click here

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[For Beginners] How to choose and use a male masturbator without fail Gentlemen.Have you ever used a masturbator? The person who sees this article is probably the one who has not experien...

Cock Ring

A cock ring is literally a ring-shaped sextoy that is worn on a mans penis.

It maintains an erection by binding the penis with a ring of rubber and blocking blood flow.

It is sometimes used as an accessory to be worn on the penis, and may be made of metal or plastic as well as rubber.

In some cases, cock rings have parts or vibrators attached to them that stimulate the vagina, so they kill two birds with one stone, giving a woman pleasure while maintaining an erection.

Cock rings are also sometimes used to treat erectile dysfunction.

It can help with erectile dysfunction, where the penis doesnt get hard when you get an erection or doesnt last long when you try to insert it.

Men who are prone to breakage or who are unsure of the hardness and size of their erections can use a cock ring to increase the size of their penis and maintain an erection for a longer period of time.

Cock rings vary in price from around RS700 to over RS2000 with a vibrator function.

Some of them do not fit your penis, so you should check the size of the cock ring before you buy.

You should know the size of your partners or your own penis when it is erect.

[Penis enlargement] What is a cock ring? Types and usage Cock rings can make your penis bigger and harder. It also makes sex with women more fulfilling and increases your sat...

Love Doll

Love dolls, also known as Dutchwives, are dolls with the appearance of a woman who can experience simulated sex.

There are dolls that look like a woman, but they have no face and only have their breasts and lower torso cut off, and some dolls are so realistic that they can actually be mistaken for real women.

Some expensive dolls can cost more than 1 million yen, and the quality of the doll is easily influenced by the price.

The higher the price, the higher the quality of the doll will be, the closer it will be to the real woman, and the cheaper the doll will be, the less elaborate it will be, making it look like a real doll! Something is wrong! That is also true.

You cant go wrong if you choose a balance between price and taste.

There are stores that allow you to make custom-made love dolls, so you can create a girl of your choice.

You can make a girl of your choice. You can start with inexpensive love dolls at first, and once you get used to it, you can try custom-made love dolls.

If you want to know more about Love doll, please click here

Thorough explanation of the charm of sex dolls! Have you ever heard of sex dolls that are used primarily for pseudo-sex purposes? It is a doll that is quite close to...

Sex lubricants

Sex lubricants are used as a substitute for lubricating fluid during sex or as a lubricant for men to use masturbator rules.

It is not uncommon for women to have difficulty getting wet, depending on their physical condition, or to have difficulty getting wet due to their constitution.

Forcing the penis into the vagina at such times can cause painful intercourse.

There are various types of Sex Lubricants, some with a warming effect, some with a cooling effect, and some with a scent.

Changing the Sex Lubricant used during play is recommended as a good sex accent.

If you want to learn more about Sex Lubricants, click here.

What is sex lubricant?Explain the difference and usage of each ingredient The word "sex toy" may seem like a hurdle to overcome, but lotion is actually one of the most familiar sex toys. Many...

Toys for the Prostate

Another sextoy for men is prostate toys.

The most famous prostate toys include Enemagra, which was originally a prostate massager developed by an American urologist to treat an enlarged prostate line.

Modern prostate toys are imitations of Enemagra that have spread as sextoy for men.

Many people think of prostate toys as being used by gay men, but in fact they are often used by straight men.

What is the prostate?

The prostate is an organ found only in men. It is a walnut-sized organ located deep in the pelvis, just below the bladder, and its primary role is to protect and nourish sperm.

You cannot touch the prostate gland from outside the body, but you can touch it by inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus.

By inserting a finger or sextoy through the anus and touching the prostate and developing it, you can feel intense orgasms.

Orgasms felt in the prostate are mainly dry orgasms, which are orgasms that do not involve ejaculation. (You can also feel orgasms with ejaculation through prostate stimulation.)

The prostate is called the male G-spot, and dry orgasms can be much more intense than ejaculation.

Therefore, men who are able to develop a prostate can become addicted to the pleasure.

sextoy for beinner women in India

The following are the recommended goods for Indian women who are new to sextoy.

The following three are recommended for use by women who are new to sextoy.

Vibrator.

Dildo

Electric Masserger

Lets check out what each one is in detail.

If you want to check out womens toys, click here.

[BEST25]Sex Toys for Women in IndiaThat Can Help You Have an Orgasm There are many women who pretend to feel orgasm during sex. But don't worry, you don't have to pretend to feel orgasm...

Vibrators

A vibrator is a sextoy that vibrates with an Egg-Vibrator to provide stimulation and is often referred to simply as a vibrator.

Some vibrate as well as rotate, and there are many variations of sextoy.

It is quite a popular sextoy, and is well recognized by people who do not know much about sextoy.

Its usage is similar to that of a massager, but it is more compact and easier to carry than a massager, and many of them look as cute as a lipstick or a macaroon, so they are popular among women.

For a while, a famous influencer on twitter said, This is good! You may have heard of the topic of this article by introducing the recommended vibrators.

Vibrators are great for women to use on their own, but they are also recommended for men who have difficulty satisfying women with sex.

Since it is powered by electricity, it is far less tiring than moving your hands by yourself.

This makes it easier to satisfy a woman with sex because you can caress her for longer than usual.

Vibrators are mainly used on the female side, but they can also be used on men.

When used on men, they are used to attack the nipples and glans, and in both cases it is recommended to wear a condom for hygiene reasons.

Introducing how to use the vibrator, its purpose, and how to choose it! Vibrator uses the vibrations caused by the rotation of the motor to provide stimulation. It is one or two of the most...

Dildo

A dildo is a model sextoy made to mimic a male penis.

It can be made of silicone, elastomer (think of it as a material similar to PVC), metal or glass.

A dildo can be used by a man for his female partner during sex, or by a woman for masturbation to get pleasure from it.

They are mainly inserted into women, but some can be used in the male anus as well.

It is sometimes used synonymously with vibrators, but the vibrator is not the same thing as a vibrating device.

A model of a penis that does not vibrate is a dildo.

Some of them have suction cups that can be attached to the floor or wall so that you can enjoy realistic masturbation without using your hands.

For fun, there is a dildo made in the shape of your partners penis.

This one is also popular as a gift, and if youve been together for a long time and are having trouble finding a gift for your partner, you might want to pick one.

To learn more about dildo, please click here.

What is Dildo: Orgasms with Dildos for Men and Women A dildo is a model of a male organ that is used by women for masturbation and by men to stimulate the prostate gland. Th...

Electric Masserger

A Electric Masserger is a hand-held electric massager, also known as a handheld massager, and can usually be purchased at electronics stores.

It was originally designed to relieve stiff shoulders and back pain, so the hurdle of buying one in a physical store is quite low.

Many people may have seen or used it in some form or another, as it is often installed in leisure hotels.

Such a massager is highly recommended for beginners because it is easy for women to get pleasure from it when they use it during masturbation.

It is larger than Egg-Vibrator and vibrations are stronger than those of Egg-Vibrators and vibrators, so even just hitting the clitoris can give you a great deal of pleasure.

For those women who have never had an orgasm during sex with their man, the massager may be a good way to get a feel for what it feels like to have an orgasm.

It looks and feels like an electric massager, so you wont have to feel awkward if your roommate finds out.

If you are in a rut of having sex with your partner, if you want to feel an orgasm through masturbation, or if you are thinking of using a sextoy, why dont you try it from a simple massager?

To learn more about Electric Masserger, click here.

What is a massager? Introducing types, selection methods, and usage Originally, the Magic-wand vibrator and the massage machine were sold as a home massage machine used for the back and th...

How to choose a sextoy for Indian

Now that weve covered the different types of sextoy, heres how to choose one.

Especially if you are trying sextoy for the first time, pay attention to the following three points:  Does the size fit you (the partner)?

Does the size fit you (your partner)?

Is the environment able to produce sound without problems?

Price range

First of all, the choice of size is quite important.

Most sextoy are used against or inserted into the genitals, but the genitals are very delicate organs for both men and women.

For this reason, using an inappropriate size may cause damage.

Secondly, the environment should be able to produce sound without problems.

Some sextoys not only wear, but also rotate and vibrate. Its easier to get pleasure from something that moves than something that doesnt, but the fact that it moves means that the internal rotors make some noise.

If you live in a house with thin walls or if you have roommates, you may not be able to concentrate because of the noise, so it is best to choose one that is silent or has a low noise level.

Especially in India, where many people live with their families, it is very important that you dont have to worry about sound when you use it.

Finally, there is the price range.

The price range of sextoy ranges widely, from around RS500 at the cheapest to RS10,000 or more at the highest.

Its good to consider how much money you can afford and how much you want to buy.

Do you want your family to not find out about sextoy?

I live with my family and want to use sextoy without them finding out! If you are a man, you should buy a camouflage sextoy that does not look like a sextoy at first glance.

For men, there are many masturbators that do not look like a sextoy, and for women, there are vibrators that only look like cosmetics.

If you choose such a type, youll be safe in case your family members find out.

How to buy sextoys in India

The best way to purchase sextoy is through online shopping.

For more information on how to purchase sextoy, please see the article below.

Sextoy is one of them.

Therefore, you can easily get sextoy in India by using online shopping.

SexToysINDIA is a long established and stable sextoy store and you can have sextoy delivered to any place in India.

They also offer cash on delivery, so those who are worried about shopping with a credit card do not have to worry.

Of course, the latest security is in place, so your information will not be taken out when you use your credit card.

To begin with, many people may be concerned about whether they are legally allowed to purchase sextoy.

ikmAs it turns out, its not illegal.

Right now, it is not open to the public because the Indian adult market is still in the development stage, but it will gradually spread from now on.

Take advantage of sextoy and open the door to new pleasures and culture.

Cautions for Indians using sextoy

When using sextoy, keep the following three things in mind

Keep sex toys clean

Watch out for electrical leakage

Beware of the heat generated by the body while using a sex toy

As I mentioned earlier, many sextoy products are used for the delicate zone.

Therefore, it is most important to keep the sextoy itself clean. It is very important to keep the sextoy itself clean, because if a slight scratch is created by friction, bacteria can enter and breed there.

It is safe to wear a condom when using the masturbator, just in case.

In addition, many sextoy devices are powered by a power source, so if they are not waterproof, there is a possibility of electric shock or malfunction due to wetness.

Some may even develop heat during continuous use. If the fever becomes too much, you may get burned, so be careful.

If you get a fever during use, stop driving the sextoy immediately and refrain from using it.

You will enjoy sex more if you keep it safe and use it correctly.

Summary

What did you think?

In this article, we have introduced the recommended sextoy for the beginners of sextoy in India.

The sextoy market is growing rapidly in India and it will continue to grow steadily in the future.

As India is a rather closed-minded country, it can be difficult to be open about ones sexual habits and values.

However, being faithful to ones desires by properly dissolving ones sexual desire is very effective for ones physical and mental health.

If this is your first time to learn about sextoy, or if you are interested in using sextoy, why not give it a try?

Indian Sextoys for ur best! will introduce you to sextoy and other trivia about sextoy, sexuality, and sexuality for men and women.

I want to read more! If you think its a great idea, please bookmark it.
MARION  The budget stalemate in Springfield is wreaking havoc on construction cash flow for the Marion High School building project.

At its next meeting in February, members of the Marion Community Unit School District 2 school board will vote on taking out a line of credit of up to $7.3 million to keep construction going as the district waits on government funds to come through.

New Marion High School twice size of old building MARION  Perhaps one of the first challenges Marion High School students and teachers will h

Nearly half of the $67 million project is funded through state and federal dollars. A bond issue, combined with revenue from a 1 percent sales tax, has funded the rest.

District Superintendent Keith Oates said about $5.8 million in capital development dollars and Illinois Emergency Management Agency funding is held up at the state level, thanks to the budget standoff.

Its very frustrating, Oates said. Ive reached out to our local legislators, theyve not been able to make any progress with this issue.

Just as aggravating, he said, is the fact that the district likely will have to cover the interest charges while waiting for Gov. Bruce Rauner to release the funds the district has been promised.

Administrators are poised to reach out to the governor and his staffers next week.

Oates said the district only has enough funding available to pay invoices through the end of January. As long as the board approves the credit line, construction will continue uninterrupted. Oates said hes asking the board to approve a credit-line limit in excess of $5.8 million just to be safe.

The six-phase project is expected to be completed by June 2017, but Oates said he hopes to have the final major element, the classroom building, open for use by January of that year.

Marion High School students getting Chromebooks this year MARION  There is at least one item Marion High School students will not have to worry about

Its going very well thus far, he said Our kids are enjoying utilizing whats been remodeled and whats new, whats been opened. We look forward to completing the final phase and having a fantastic campus  a showpiece in Southern Illinois.

Originally slated to cost $64 million, the budget since has expanded.

Oates said unexpected expenses during early construction phases  along with several other little factors  caused the project to run over-budget.

According to a budget from July 2015, construction of the Health Education Complex ran about $1 million over its original $8.4 million budget, while construction of the fine arts classroom building is expected to run about $1.5 million over, for a total expected cost of $12.7 million.

In the five years  were in year four  of such a large and long project, that number has continued to change, and we expected that to happen, Oates said.

The school board is slated to meet at 6 p.m. Feb. 16 in the district office, 1700 W. Cherry St.
CHICAGO  Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner said Thursday that he would support a top Democrat's proposal to tackle Illinois' pension crisis, as long as it includes a union-weakening provision aimed at collective bargaining.

The governor told reporters at his downtown Chicago office that he'd spoken to Senate President John Cullerton and agreed to move forward with a plan that offers state workers a choice on reduced benefits. However, both sides quickly disputed the specifics of the proposal they discussed.

Cullerton, who wasn't at the news conference, said in a statement that he didn't support Rauner's position on collective bargaining. Rauner's administration argued it was a "core" principle of Cullerton's plan and lawyers on both sides had agreed it was necessary to withstand a legal challenge.

"We apparently still have a fundamental disagreement over the role of collective bargaining in this process, in the sense that I think collective bargaining should continue to exist and the governor does not," Cullerton said in a statement.

Rauner sees steps in right direction despite lack of budget As a first-time candidate running for Illinois governor, Bruce Rauner vowed to shake up Spr

Since 2013, Cullerton has floated some version of a plan to let workers choose between keeping cost-of-living increases in retirement and counting future raises when figuring retirement benefits. He's said the choice makes the plan more likely to pass constitutional muster. Last year the Illinois Supreme Court threw out another 2013 overhaul, saying it violated a constitutional clause that said benefits can't be reduced.

Rauner has supported such a "consideration" model before but said Thursday that he'd tweak it, ensuring that discussion of wage increases be removed from the collective bargaining process. In a statement, spokesman Lance Trover said Rauner's administration spent weeks negotiating language and if Cullerton didn't agree he should introduce new legislation for the governor to consider.

"In order for President Cullerton's bill to be constitutional, salary increases have to be taken out of collective bargaining. This is a key point," Rauner said. "Salary increases come out of collective bargaining so the union has nothing to do with it in the future."

A coalition of unions involved in negotiating the Cullerton bill blasted Rauner's statements as an attack.

Madigan skips meeting with leaders, governor SPRINGFIELD  Notable by his absence from a Thursday meeting of the governor and the legisla

"Another day, another hostage for Governor Rauner in his war on the working people of Illinois," said a statement from the We Are One Illinois coalition.

Illinois has the worst-funded pension system of any U.S. state and is roughly $111 billion in debt. There's been little progress since the state high court's decision because of budget gridlock. Rauner and legislative Democrats can't agree on a spending plan for the fiscal year that began July 1.
CAIRO  Accusations of wrongdoing continued to build for the Alexander County Housing Authority on Thursday.

Maurice McGough, the Department of Housing and Urban Developments Region V director of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, sent a letter to housing authority board Chairman Andy Clarke on Thursday that stated the correspondence was an official notification that HUD has found the housing authority in violation of its civil rights requirements and the voluntary compliance agreement the housing authority board entered into with HUD on Aug. 28.

One of five violations of the agreement cited by McGough is that the housing authority voted to hire Sesser Mayor Jason Ashmore as its executive director after McGough informed board members he did not approve of the hiring and directed the housing authority to consider other applicants. The compliance agreement states that the Region V Fair Housing director or designee is to approve of the executive director candidate before an official offer is finalized.

Neither Clarke nor Ashmore returned phone calls seeking comment.

The letter notes that possible ramifications for its noncompliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act include, but are not limited to, denial of federal financial assistance and appointment of a third-party receiver to administer the housing authority.

On Tuesday, Ashmore was asked by reporters what he would do if HUD threatened to pull funding for the housing authority that is almost entirely federally financed. Ashmore said he would "never let the residents be affected" and called them "No. 1" here. Ashmore stated he believed HUD would work with him as part of a team.

Clarke has continuously defended Ashmore's hiring as it has been criticized by HUD and various community leaders in Cairo, including Mayor Tyrone Coleman. In an interview earlier this month, Clarke called him a "compelling individual" and said it was unfair that HUD officials were making a decision about Ashmore without even knowing him. "Thats the epitome of racism," Clarke said. Clarke then backpedaled and said that perhaps he did not choose his words wisely as he was asked to clarify how he felt McGough's concerns that Ashmore did not plan to relocate to Alexander County and doesn't have experience in public housing amounted to racism.

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act that HUD says the housing authority is in violation of prohibits any entity receiving federal funds from discriminating on the basis of race or national origin. The letter states that the correspondence is an official notification that it is in violation of the law, and notes that a referral may also be made to the Department of Justice, the cabinet-level agency charged with enforcing U.S. law.

In addition to requiring HUDs approval for the executive director position, the voluntary compliance agreement the letter references lists a number of corrective actions with prescribed timelines that the housing authority was to make as a means of resolving the numerous civil rights laws HUD found that the housing authority had violated in a 2014 review related to discriminatory practices in the housing and employment of African-Americans.

McGough said the housing authority also has failed at the following mandates:

 To submit a plan to HUD to open up the Connell F. Smith, Sr., low-rise building offering Ohio River views to people with disabilities. The housing authority had for years only been allowing seniors to live there, in violation of HUD regulations.

 Canvass the McBride and Elmwood apartment complexes that are in the worst condition to identify families who may want to be placed on a wait list to move to other complexes that are in better condition and for which they may be eligible. This was to take place within 60 days of the agreements effective date.

 Schedule time for the lease enforcement manager to visit the Elmwood and McBride complexes every day, as is practical, beginning within 60 days.

 Review maintenance employee assignments and ensure that pay and assignments are equitable within 60 days.

Among problematic practices cited by HUD in a 2014 review that led to the compliance agreement was an allegation the housing authority spent far less on maintenance and security at McBride Place and Elmwood Place, two family developments that house predominantly black residents and their children while the complexes that are more predominately white were better maintained.

Former housing authority executives also are accused of spending money on themselves in pay, generous benefits, questionable contracts and retirement incentives, travel and dining, that was intended to be used for resident programs and maintenance of the housing developments in one of Illinoiss most destitute counties.

Alexander County housing board likely violated Open Meetings Act CAIRO  It appears members of the Alexander County Housing Authority board violated the Illi

On Thursday, The Southern Illinoisan reported that it appears the housing authority board violated the Open Meetings Act at its meeting Tuesday when there was a 3-0 vote to hire Ashmore as executive director of HUDs objections when board members did not allow time for citizen comment at the meeting. Illinois law requires that governmental bodies allow time for public comment at all meetings.

The three board members who did not provide time for public comment are white, and the roughly 15 citizens who attended the meeting were predominately black. Several expressed a desire to speak at the meeting, and stood up after Clarke declared the meeting was over in an attempt to address the board for the record. Several people in attendance said they were infuriated that the all-white board denied their lawful right to speak, particularly as the housing authority is alleged to have a long history of civil rights violations. Clarke said that in the future he will ensure there is a public comments section at all meetings, but maintains he does not believe the meeting violated the Open Meetings Act. Most of the people in the audience said they were there to speak against the hiring of Ashmore.

Phillip Matthews, a pastor in Cairo, on Thursday said he filed a request for review of the legality of the meeting with the Illinois Attorney Generals Office Public Access Counselor. In his letter asking for the review of the meeting, Matthews said he believes the violation of the law was inexplicable, inexcusable, blatant and malicious.
Gary Marx Gary Marx is the opinion page editor and projects editor for The Southern. Follow Gary Marx Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today

We were driving through the country, poking along the backroads toward Cape. We were going for lunch and cheap Missouri gas. Mostly, though, we were going just to be doing something together. Annie, of course, was in the backseat. Annie being the dog.

My friend did most of the talking as I drove, telling stories of the old days in Cairo and Unity, Hodges Park  the whole county, really. She spilled a little gossip, too. Told secrets. She told once again how she met Russell and how they courted. She talked about how they lost Jana, their only child, and about how life keeps on going. Though she didnt know why or how.

Every now and then, shed look back at Annie as if to confirm a memory. Isnt that right, Miss Annie? Yes, I thought so.

Annie is an off-white curly-haired Terrier-esque creature with pleading eyes, a dog who needed a home and got really lucky. "She was an orphan, so I call her Annie. Theyve been inseparable ever since.

We were on the Grapevine Trail, heading west, and she was talking about Russell.

"I fell in love with that man, almost at first sight," she said. They didnt do much more than cross paths in the halls of Cairo High School, but she was smitten. When World War II broke out he entered the Marine Corps, and she started to write to him. Every day. Her letters, and their frequency, surprised him. After a few weeks or so, I had to send him a snapshot to show him who he was writing to.

They courted each other that way, across the Pacific, through the smoke of battle. We never had a date, had never talked, she said. The written word. That was it.

After the war, he came home by train. She met him at the station, and they kissed for the first time. It was Monday. They were married that Saturday.

Jana was born in 1948, and the whole world tilted in that direction.

She was a marvel. She walked in nine months, talked in sentences at 12 months. I dont know where we got her. She was different.

Jana excelled in school. She won the Freshman Cup, and was valedictorian of her class. She went on to college and law school and was just starting her life when it ended. A few weeks shy of her 30th birthday, she was electrocuted in a freak accident on Lake Springfield.

She was just not meant to be.

We rode into Cape and ate in some restaurant down at the floodwall. We were finishing our meal when she suddenly looked up as if shed heard something.

Did we leave the windows open for Annie? she asked. Im sure we had. She gets excited if shes alone for too long. I better go check on her. And so she did, and the Annie was fine.

She and Russell, who died in 2006, were fixtures in the community, volunteering and working for various causes. He worked for the post office and she was the librarian.

Before Russell died in 2006, the two of them were among a small group of people who helped save the Cairo Custom House from demolition. They applied for grants and did the manual labor. They refurbished walls and floors and ceilings, painted and sanded and repaired doors, restoring the building to its former grandeur. Its a museum today, a landmark in a once proud city. It stands as a testament to what a community can do if it has people who pull together, who care for each other, and who are not afraid to give.

Louise Ogg UNITY  Louise P. Ogg of Unity, passed away at 8:45 p.m. Monday, Jan. 18, 2016, at her residence.

Louise Ogg lived life fully, with grace and good humor and courage. Her heart was always joyful. Forever young she was. She leaves a huge void behind. Although Annie has been taken in by good friends, she is an orphan once again. And anyone who knew Louise Ogg knows exactly how that feels.

Her funeral was Friday, 11 a.m., Jones Funeral Home in Villa Ridge.
Matthew 18:21 (KJV) -- 21) "Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? 22) I tell you, not as many as seven, Jesus said to him, but 70 times seven."

Jesus proved His point personally on the cross when He said: Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots." -- Luke 23:34 (KJV)

Recently I read two articles that really touched my heart. One told of a black highway patrolman assisting a white supremacy advocate who was suffering from intense heat to a cooler place. The other is of a German fighter pilot in WWII escorting a damaged American B-17 to a safer location and bidding them farewell. This story concludes with a reunion years later of both pilots who embraced each other as brothers.

Only a sense of forgiveness can achieve such a transformation in the human spirit. That transformation comes as one seeks to follow the teaching of a radical religious teacher named Jesus.

Jesus came to let us know more about God, His love, compassion, mercy, justice and forgiveness. Forgiveness is a tremendous key to relationships; we are prone to make mistakes, and forgiveness wipes them away. Jesus spoke many times about this need in our lives. Once Jesus told us that if we are in church and remember a friend has something against us, to leave our offering and go and be reconciled (Matthew 5:24 KJV).

"Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift." -- Luke 23:34 (KJV)

I believe this truly indicates how important forgiveness is. Jesus also taught to forgive if we expect to be forgiven ourselves. He said to them, 2) Whenever you pray, say: Father, Your name be honored as holy. Your kingdom come. 3) Give us each day our daily bread. 4) And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves also forgive everyone in debt to us. And do not bring us into temptation. Luke 11:2-4 (HCSB)

A Gunsmoke episode tells of a bandit robbing a church and killing the priest. As the priest lay dying, he reached out to his killer and said, I forgive you." The robber tried to sell the silver but no one would buy it. In frustration, he threw the bag at the priest in Dodge City and ran out. The words of the priest he killed haunted him daily, and when the marshal in Dodge City shot him, in his dying gasp he said, I forgive you."

The writer of the following verse had it right; if our greatest need had been information, God would have sent an educator. If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist. If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist. But since our greatest need was forgiveness, God sent us a Savior! Unknown forgiveness is a commodity we cannot live without.

Dear friends, is there someone you need to forgive? Perhaps someone has wronged you; get it straightened out. I find it does not matter who says, "Im sorry first," just so it gets said and heeded.

No matter how we see our world, its the only one we have, and we all must learn to live together.

God Bless.
Professional reporters have found themselves in competition with many using todays platforms, from personal websites to social media, to lay claim to the banner of journalist.

While the consumer will ultimately determine who is a journalist and who is not, and the credibility of professional journalism will win the day, there is no room for criticism of anyone who wishes to exercise the 1st Amendment right to speak out in whatever forum he or she chooses.

Logistically, the number of people looking to cover high-profile events can cause problems. From determining access based on legitimate roles with mass media to screening for security purposes, organizers have had to get more detailed in seeking information about coverage plans and other aspects of journalists jobs.

At times, limits on access are necessary  even being imposed by government at public events. Logistics and security are primary factors.

Not OK in any way is government defining who is a legitimate journalist based on any other factors.

Enter South Carolina state Rep. Mike Pitts, R-Laurens, with proposed legislation that would establish a "responsible journalism registry" with requirements that journalists must meet before working for a news outlet in the state.

He proposes fees being charged to be listed in the registry, which would be operated by the Secretary of State's Office. His bill also would authorize "fines and criminal penalties" for violating the law.

A journalist  defined as a person who in his professional capacity collects, writes, or distributes news or other current information for a media outlet, including an employee or an independent contractor  that is not registered would be fined $25 to $500, would be cited with a misdemeanor and could be imprisoned up to 30 days.

Thank goodness this is America, where such a proposal can be dismissed on its face.

S.C. Press Association Executive Director Bill Rogers told The Associated Press: "Any registration of journalists would be unconstitutional  unless you lived in Cuba or North Korea.

Thats because the 1st Amendment is taken seriously as a foundation of freedom in the United States: Congress shall make no law  abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.

Pitts knows his legislation is unconstitutional. But he is gaining a forum. The Post and Courier described his proposal as one meant to reflect a lawmakers personal political statement.

Pitts told the Charleston newspaper his bill is not reactionary and that he is not a press hater. Rather, its to stimulate discussion over how he sees 2nd Amendment rights being treated by the printed press and television news. He said the bill is modeled directly after the concealed weapons permitting law.

It strikes me as ironic that the first question is constitutionality from a press that has no problem demonizing firearms, Pitts said. With this statement, Im talking primarily about printed press and TV. The TV stations, the 6 oclock news and the printed press has no qualms demonizing gun owners and gun ownership.

Beyond his assessments on the guns issue, the lawmaker directly questioned whether working journalists follow the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics, which outlines principles for professional journalists to follow to ensure fair and accurate reporting.

Do journalists, by definition, really adhere to a code of ethics? Pitts said. The problem that I have with the printed press is, like I said, it appears especially in the last decade to me each story has become more editorial than reporting. It might just be my perception.

No, there are many who will agree with Pitts about reporting and the journalism of the 21st century. And there are many who call themselves journalists who likely have never heard of the Society of Professional Journalists or a code of ethics for reporters.

But determining who is a responsible journalist is not a function of government. In a nation built on a free press and the marketplace of ideas, the consumer will make that decision.
Its the call that every aspirant in the political hinterland dreams of: Will you give our partys response to the State of the Union address?

The answer is always yes  and then the drama begins. The stakes are incredibly high. Many fail, some miserably (see Gov. Bobby Jindal in 2009) but the opportunity is exposure to more than 30 million people as the alternative voice to the president of the United States.

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley got the call  pretty heady stuff for a kid from Bamberg, or anywhere else for that matter.

Enough about the drama, so how did she do?

The speech itself had two parts. The first short section was an obligatory, gratuitous slap at President Barack Obama with familiar lines about Obamacare, the deficit and terrorists. It was just a little red meat thrown to the Obama haters and then she moved on to talk about a vision of a brighter American future.

But though she never used his name, her words were not really about America but about Donald Trump. She talked about Trumps racism, inflammatory language and immigration. Then she talked about the good way that South Carolina responded to the Emanuel Nine shooting and then threw in a not-so-oblique reference to the troubles of Ferguson and Baltimore  We didnt have riots, we had hugs.

Most of all, it was a repudiation of Trump. She used her own personal story as the daughter of Indian immigrants juxtaposed with Trumps rhetoric   it can be tempting to follow the siren call of the angriest voices. We must resist that temptation. No one who is willing to work hard, abide by our laws and love our traditions should ever feel unwelcome in this country.

She continued, Some people (Trump) think that you have to be the loudest voice in the room to make a difference. That is just not true.  We would respect differences in modern families, but we would also insist on respect for religious liberty as a cornerstone of our democracy, (i.e. Trumps ban on Muslim immigration).

David Brooks, the influential columnist for The New York Times, summarized Haleys speech as the Republican Establishments case against Trump and indeed it was. The reaction from the Trump forces was swift and venal; pundit Anne Coulter tweeted Trump should deport Nikki Haley.

Haleys address rekindled the speculation that she would be the perfect vice-presidential candidate  but presumably not for Donald Trump. Her boosters cite the obvious: She is an attractive woman of immigrant parents whos handling of the removal of the Confederate flag was a rare example of racial sensitivity by a Deep South Republican. Shes the perfect antidote to the angry old white men problem that is crippling the Republican Party with the fastest growing segments of American votes  women, the young and people of color.

There is so much irony in all this that its hard to know where to begin.

First, the establishment Republicans. It is indeed rich that Haley is now the darling of the very folks she ran against when she was first elected. She was a rabid tea party favorite. Who can forget the picture and endorsement by Sarah Palin on the steps of the Statehouse in Haleys first gubernatorial campaign (never mind that they had to pay Palin)? Palin went all out for Haley with recorded robo calls and TV ads that blasted the establishment and praised Haley as a kindred spirit.

In many ways, Haley and Palin were a lot alike  both are attractive, they came from nowhere politically, and they were light on substance and long on flash. But the difference is that Palin gave up being governor of Alaska and Haley has continued as governor of South Carolina.

Second, the flag. Prior to the shooting of the Emanuel Nine, no one ever used the words Gov. Haley and racial sensitivity in the same sentence. She had been an ardent supporter of keeping the Confederate flag flying and the list of issues where she had ignored the interest of the 30 percent of her citizens who are African-American is very long.

Third, the vice-president nomination. The talk is hot and heavy and on the surface it all makes sense, shes on everyones short list of possible candidates. But Id bet dollars to doughnuts it will never happen. The reason is Haleys problems from her past.

In her first campaign and early days of her administration, she was dogged by allegations of multiple illicit sexual affairs  complete with lurid details by a blogger/lover and an affidavit by a lobbyist. Then there were all sorts of allegations of financial irregularities and conflicts of interest that put tens of thousands of dollars in her pocket.

Are the allegations true? Isnt it a double standard to raise sexual issues as she is an attractive woman? Were the payments she received legitimate or a clear corrupt conflict of interest?

As regrettable as it may be, in the hyper media age we live in  it doesnt matter if they are true or not.

What matters is the allegations are there and though largely forgotten by most South Carolinians, they have never really been resolved. Now fast forward to about five dozen reporters, investigative journalists, hungry bloggers and political rumor mongers descending on Columbia 10 minutes after she is picked for vice president and  well, you get the picture.

And so does every political operative with access to Google who is charged with vetting Haley for consideration for the vice-president slot.

Its unfortunate, its ugly, its disgusting  and its also the way it is today.

So, Im glad that Haley is taking the high road in condemning Trump and talking about the need for racial and religious tolerance. She presents a good image for our state. Let her enjoy her time in the spotlight.

But lets not let ourselves get carried away. As many politicians have learned, too much time in the white hot heat of the national political spotlight and you can get burned. Ask Sarah Palin.
The following letter was addressed to Holly Hill Mayor William Johnson

As a Holly Hill native who now lives in Atlanta but who visits my parents there often, I am saddened by the recent headlines that have punctuated local news from Holly Hill, including murders, gun violence, drug use, sexual assault and domestic violence.

Pastor Marshall Locke of the First Baptist Church of Holly Hill spoke to the topic in his sermon on Jan. 10. Using John's gospel and the words of John the Baptist as but a "voice of one crying out in the wilderness," Locke admonished each of his hearers to "be a voice" or to use one's voice, actions or influence to address the root causes of crimes reported in the media and hopefully to reframe the positive community values that better reflect the Town of Holly Hill.

So here's a go at my being "one voice," obviously from a distance, with no actual boots on the ground, as they say, or knowledge of what is already being done:

1. Address head-on with the city council members the need for a community-wide conversation about the underlying reasons for the devastating headlines regarding criminal activity in Holly Hill.

2. Develop an across-the-board "blue ribbon" task force of the community's faith, school, law enforcement, business, social service, mental health and civic leaders in a collaborative process to outline problems in the community and ways to address those problems.

3. Seek the professional counsel of the best available outside sources to assist with leading the process, whether from the S.C. Municipal Association, the public policy institutes of state universities with track records in such matters (College of Charleston, University of South Carolina, Clemson University, Furman University), or the Lower Savannah Council of Governments.

4. Request advice from area leaders/mayors who have addressed such issues, including Mayor Keith Summey of North Charleston or recently retired Charleston Mayor Joe Riley.

You are known as a conscientious and responsive leader, Mayor Johnson. I trust that you will consider using voices heard both from those within Holly Hill and outside to work toward restoring a positive narrative being written about the second biggest town in Orangeburg County.

Syd Janney, Atlanta
COLUMBIA  South Carolinians warily eyed approaching winter weather Thursday though the state appeared to be on the extreme southern fringes of a major storm that's expected to clobber the East Coast with heavy snow.

Rain and freezing rain were expected to start falling Thursday evening in South Carolina, with snow possible Friday evening into Saturday morning, the National Weather Service said.

When Peter Ramsey heard the weather report, he headed to the store. While skies were sunny Thursday morning in Greenville, he didn't want to be caught without a shovel for snow or salt to melt ice.

Ramsey hit a couple of places but couldn't find what he wanted.

"The problem is it was so warm over the holidays that they have their spring stuff out," said Ramsey, 34, a salesman. "I have a few more places to go. I just want to have it on hand, just in case."

A winter storm warning was in effect for nine counties in the northwestern and central parts of the state until 7 p.m. Saturday. A freezing rain advisory was in effect in the northeastern section of the state.

At least 2 inches of snow was possible in the northwestern mountains, with lesser amounts east to Rock Hill.

Up to a half inch of ice accumulation was also expected. Freezing rain was possible from Lancaster to Conway.

Transportation Department officials said the worst conditions were expected along the Interstate 85 corridor from Anderson to Cherokee counties. Crews began working 12-hour shifts Thursday to pre-treat roads especially in the mountains and north of I-85, transportation department spokesman Pete Poore said.

Crews also began pre-treating parts of I-77 in York County and some roads in the Pee Dee.

The state Emergency Management Division asked people to prepare for the frozen precipitation. That included taking precautions for family members and pets, as well homes and vehicles and pipes that might be exposed to the cold. Spokesman Derrec Becker said in a statement that power outages were a possibility where ice develops.

Duke Energy reported no problems Thursday afternoon.

Business was normal at several grocery stores. Usually before a storm, they're packed with shoppers stocking up.

"It's too early. People wait until the last minute," said Emily Marcus, 44, a financial consultant. She was running into a Publix grocery near Greenville to pick up a few things for her office.

But she wasn't thinking of snow: "The weather has been so unpredictable. I have flowers coming up. As far as snow, I'll believe it when I see it."
This spring, the South Carolina Bar Pro Bono Program will present a "Law School for Non-Lawyers" course at Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College, 3250 St. Matthews Rd., Orangeburg.

Law School for Non-Lawyers is a seven-week course on different areas of the law that is offered to the public.

The course will meet from 6 to 9 p.m. one night a week in Building C, Room 118 for seven consecutive weeks (Feb. 16 to March 29).

The cost of the course is $45, which includes the textbook and all materials that will be needed.

Law School for Non-Lawyers will give the public much needed legal information and a chance to meet some of their local attorneys.

Course topics and dates are scheduled as follows:

Feb. 16 -- Overview; state courts; alternative dispute resolution

Feb. 23 -- Juvenile justice and child protection

March 1 -- Family law; real estate; landlord tenant law

March 8 -- Wills, estates and probates; health care and elder law

March 15 -- South Carolina workers' compensation law; employment law

March 22 -- Bankruptcy law; consumer law; debt collection

March 29 -- Criminal law; torts

Registration for the course ends at noon on Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016.
The council will continue in the running for SC-SIC's annual Dick and Tunky Riley Award for School Improvement Council Excellence. Named for the former U.S. secretary of education and South Carolina governor and his late wife, the Riley Award was created by SC-SIC to recognize the vital contributions, hard work and commitment of School Improvement Councils in supporting the success of their schools in the last year.
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Aquesta simpatica postal ha estat editada amb motiu de la trobada de Postcrossing que s'ha fet a la ciutat-estat. Singapur te mes de tres mil membres de Po...

Il y a 14 heures
The positive signals about a possible recovery in oil prices in 2016 began appearing on the global oil market this week for the first time over a long period of time.

The prices dropped to record levels over the last 13 years. The two heads of the major world oil companies, namely, BP and LUKOIL, have made the same statement with a difference of one day. They stated that the prices can increase by late 2016.

Robert Dudley, the head of UKs BP, which is producing 3.2 million barrels of oil equivalent a day, said in an interview with BBC that the prices may reach $40 per barrel in the middle of 2016 and $50 by late 2016.

Vagit Alekperov, the head of the Russian LUKOIL company, controlling one percent of the world proven oil reserves, said that the prices will start increasing in July-December 2016, RIA Novosti reported.



The statement made by Khalid al-Falih, the head of the world largest oil producer - Saudi Aramco, can be also considered as a positive signal.

Khalid al-Falih has made a statement at the Davos economic forum this week, saying that the oil market prices have greatly dropped and will be inevitably increasing, Financial Times reported.

But the head of Saudi Aramco, controlling more than ten percent of the world oil market, added one important remark. He said that Saudi Arabia does not consider it right to cut oil production by OPEC members unilaterally.

Thus, Khalid al-Falih openly called the non-OPEC countries for the reduction of production. Nearly 60 percent of oil production - 56.77 million barrels per day will account for these countries in 2016. However, OPEC will produce 39.16 mbd. Nigerian oil minister Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu supported the idea.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Kachikwu called OPEC members this week in Davos to hold a meeting to stabilize the global oil market and to exert maximum efforts for negotiation with independent producers, including Russia. Currently, the country mines an average of 10-11 million barrels of oil per day.

Nigerian oil minister, who is also OPECs president, already said in early January about a possible meeting of the OPEC oil cartel in March. How OPEC intends to take unanimous decisions that affect the world economy, and actually everyone on the planet, when two of its largest members - Iran and Saudi Arabia - are at the level of open conflict over Riyadhs early January execution of a prominent Shia cleric Nimr al-Nimr?

His execution caused indignation of the Shia political and religious leaders and resulted in massive protests and attacks on Saudi Arabias representations in Tehran and Mashhad. After that Riyadh announced the severance of diplomatic relations with Tehran. Bahrain, Sudan and Djibouti also ceased diplomatic relations with Iran because of solidarity with Riyadh - one of the leaders of the Arab Sunni world.

OPEC, by the way, with the beginning of a low prices period - since September 2014  held meetings much more frequently than when oil prices were much higher.

Any important decisions to stabilize the market were not made during these meetings. It has led to the fact that today Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador, are forced to sell their oil for a price that is less than its production cost.

These South American countries, in total provide up to seven percent of the world oil supply. Venezuela, in particular, sells oil for $15 per barrel, and Colombia for $20-21 per barrel.

The desire of OPEC to hold negotiations with countries outside the cartel on ways to reduce production in order to restore oil prices is probably due to the fact that the cost of OPEC Reference Basket (ORB) has recently amounted to an average of $23 per barrel, which may not trouble Saudi Arabia but makes other members of the organization very concerned. It is obvious that all oil-producing countries that didnt cut production even by one barrel since the beginning of the prices fall, are very worried about the current situation.

But no one wants to be the first one to increase prices, as its place will be immediately taken by a competitor for sure. With some degree of probability, one can assume that for a significant increase in oil prices, OPEC will unilaterally be able to reduce production only after the cartel waits until many US shale companies, the break-even level of which is significantly higher than this range, go bankrupt by keeping prices in the range of $25-$30. There are many such companies.

Namely this could potentially lead to reduce in exports of raw materials from the US during 2016. Last year, for example, because of low oil prices, more than 40 companies producing shale oil have stopped work in the US, despite the fact that the average spot price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil in 2015 amounted to $48 per barrel on the terms of FOB (Free On Board).

In January 2016, the price of WTI fell by a third - to $32 per barrel. The US will increase imports with the reduction of exports, and expects a similar move from other major economy of China, which, according to various estimates, will begin to recover significantly since the end of the first half of 2016.

As of Jan. 22 morning, the March futures price for Brent reached $30.21 per barrel, WTI  $30.41 per barrel. The average spot price for Brent on FOB since early January was $30.36 per barrel, according to the EIA (US Energy Information Administration).

The maximum price for Brent this year - $36.28 per barrel - was observed on January 4, and the lowest - $25.99 per barrel  on January 20. Over the past 30 years, the maximum price of Brent reached $143.95 per barrel, which was observed in July 2008.

/By Trend/
/By AzerNews/

By Amina Nazarli

The paintings of Azerbaijans most popular artist-surrealist Mehriban Efendi will tour the world as part of a major Portuguese project "Surrealism Now", aimed at finding surrealists and promoting their works.



The world tour has started with the exhibition at the Cullis Wade Depot gallery in the U.S. state of Mississippi.



The project brings together 50 well-known surrealist painters from more than 30 countries including Azerbaijan, Austria, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Spain, the U.S., Italy and others.

Mehriban officially joined the project in 2010 and since that time, the talented artist achieved great successes conquering international art arena.

Creating her paintings from the age of 5 to 6 years old, Mehriban did not imagine that the masterpieces she draw would be considered surrealism, which allowed Mehriban to express her space dreams on canvas.

Mehribans paintings has been included in the famous Italian "Byblos" studios latest catalogue, which will release in June and be presented in the top ten museums in the world.

Efendi took part in an international exhibition organized by Australian artist Paris Saint-Martin, becoming one of the top ten computer artists of 2003. The artist's piece was presented at an international exhibition in the Netherlands in 2009.



She is the winner of the prestigious Sandro Botticelli (named after the Italian painter of the Early Renaissance) award called For art and talent in 2014.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, who embarked on a working visit to the snowy Swiss mountains on January 20 to participate at the World Economic Forum in Davos, continues to hold high-level meetings here.

President Aliyev has met with Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum Klaus Schwab in Davos on January 22.

The sides stressed the importance of the World Economic Forum. Azerbaijan's active and continuous participation in this prestigious event was hailed.

They also discussed the Silk Road Project, and the current regional and global oil-related processes.

Klaus Schwab presented a badge of Davos club of honorary members to President Aliyev, marking his tenth participation in the World Economic Forum.

The president later met with Foreign Minister of Norway Borge Brende. The sides hailed the development of relations between the two countries, and exchanged views over the issues of mutual concern.

President Aliyev also received Prime Minister of Georgia Giorgi Kvirikashvili in Davos.

The sides praised the successful development of bilateral ties between Azerbaijan and Georgia in a variety of fields. They exchanged views on the intensification of the relations, the conduction of consultations on the outstanding issues, and the implementation of joint projects.

President Aliyev later met with President of the Swiss Confederation Johann Schneider-Ammann.

The presidents expressed their satisfaction with the high-level of relations between the two countries, and noted that there were ample opportunities for the further expansion of the ties.

The sides stressed that the two countries enjoyed fruitful cooperation in political, economic, energy, investment making and transport spheres. They also highlighted the role of Azerbaijan in ensuring European energy security.

The parties exchanged views over the current international situation, the economic processes amid falling oil prices, the financial and economic crisis, and the steps taken on this front both in Azerbaijan and Switzerland.

They also discussed the current state of talks to settle the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

As part of the visit, President Aliyev earlier held meetings with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, Head of the Iranian Presidential Administration Mohammad Nahavandian, European Commission Vice-President for Energy Union Maros Sefcovic, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif.

President Aliyev also held meetings with Vice Chairman of Lazard Europe Mathieu Pigasse, President of Russian Lukoil Company Vahid Alakbarov, Chief Executive Officer of BP Robert Dudley, President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Suma Chakrabarti, Corporate Vice President of Microsoft Susan Hauser and President of Europe Selling and Market Operations at Procter & Gamble Gary Coombe, and Chief Executive Officer of Total Patrick Pouyanne.
/By AzerNews/

By Laman Sadigova

The Slovenian National Council has urged Armenia, which keeps 20 percent of Azerbaijani internationally recognized territories under the occupation for over two decades, to liberate these lands.

The decision on the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was adopted on an initiative by Rudi Matjasic, a member of the Council, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry reported.

Slovenias government was urged to support the UN Security Councils resolutions on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that is aimed at its peaceful settlement. The document also calls on to return the refugees and internally displaced people to their native lands.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict began in 1988 after Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan and, in 1992, occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia hasnt yet implemented the UN Security Councils four resolutions on its withdrawal from Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.

Slovenian National Councils document also condemned the ethnic cleansing and mass extermination of the civilian Azerbaijani population conducted by Armenia. It was also stressed that the genocide committed by the Armenian armed forces in the Azerbaijani town of Khojaly on February 26, 1992, is a crime against the very word of humanity.

The document, issued by Slovenias National Council, recalled that 24 years will pass on February 26 from the murder of 613 people, including 63 children, 106 women, 70 elderly people, as well as the disappearance of numerous civilians in Khojaly.

This crime against humanity was condemned by many world countries, says the document.
/By AzerNews/

By Laman Sadigova

The OSCE Minsk Group hailed the interest of PACE in the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group  Igor Popov of the Russian Federation, James Warlick of the United States of America, and Pierre Andrieu of France  welcome efforts to find a negotiated settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and are prepared to work cooperatively with those committed to a peaceful settlement, said a statement posted on the OSCE official website on January 22.

There are two resolutions on the agenda of the upcoming PACE winter session. They are PACE MP Robert Walters (UK) report entitled Escalation of Violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and Other Occupied Territories of Azerbaijan, and PACE MP Milica Markovi?s (Bosnia and Herzegovina) report about Sarsang Reservoir in Nagorno-Karabakh, and entitled Inhabitants of frontier regions of Azerbaijan are deliberately deprived of water.

We understand that the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe may consider resolutions on the conflict in the near future and remind PACE, and other regional and international organizations, that the Minsk Group remains the only accepted format for negotiations, said the OSCE Minsk Group.

The statement also says that the OSCE appreciates the interest paid by PACE members, but urge that steps not be taken which could undermine the Minsk Groups mandate from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe or complicate ongoing negotiations.

Earlier, in 2015, the OSCE numerously urged two sides to stop clashes as since 2015, the risk of broader conflict in the South Caucasus, a region crisscrossed by oil and gas pipeline has intensified.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
Petroleum Minister Bijan Zangeneh said on Thursday that Iran will start within the next ten days negotiations on how to use Oman's unused LNG capacity.

Having returned from a short visit to Muscat, he told Shana that during the meeting with Omani Oil and Gas Minister Mohammed bin Hamad Al Rumhi, both sides also exchanged views on the international crude oil market, IRNA reported on Jan.21.

'The visit which lasted few hours was made upon the invitation of the Omani minister of oil and gas. Gas export, using vacant LNG capacity, and oil market were the main issues discussed during the meeting.'

On exporting Iran's gas to Oman via pipeline, he said, 'It was agreed that a pipeline to carry 1 billion cubic feet or 28 million cubic meters a day at the annual volume of 10 billion cubic meters be constructed jointly between the two countries.'



'The value of the contract depends on the oil price. Nevertheless, with the current oil prices, the value of exporting 10 billion cubic meters a year will be around 1.5 to 2 billion dollars annually.'



Saying that technical aspects of the pipeline were finalized during meeting, Zangeneh added that Oman unused LNG capacity which Iran could not use to export the product due to sanctions, will be utilized.

'Today it was decided that in the first possible time, which I think will be the next 10 days, National Iranian Gas Export Company and the Oman side will start negotiating with the foreign firms to use the unused capacity.'



'We also discussed financing the project,' said the Iranian minister.

Regarding the talks on oil markets in Muscat, Zangeneh said Oman has always been ready to cooperate with OPEC.



'However, and unfortunately, OPEC lacked any clear stand in this regard and there is difference among the members on how to manage the market,' he said.

/By Trend/
US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said that the US-led coalition will put boots on the ground to fight against Daesh terrorists in Syria and Iraq.

Carter said in an interview with CNBC that there would be boots on the ground as part of the strategy to fight Daesh in Iraq and Syria.

We're doing more, because we need to do more because we need to defeat ISIL [Daesh], Carter told CNBC. I'm confident we will, but I want to accelerate that process.

He also said that the US' allies in the fight against Daesh "can do more," adding that the terrorist group needs to be defeated in the Iraqi Mosul and it's de facto capital in Syria's Raqqa.

/By Trend/
WordPress.com dailyvanuatu posted: " Air New Zealand has suspended all flights to Port Vila's Bauerfield International Airport, citing concerns over the deteriorating state of the runway. Qantas has also followed suit, suspending their codeshare arrangement with Air Vanuatu this after" Respond to this post by replying above this line New post on Vanuatu Daily Digest Breaking news: Air New Zealand, Qantas suspend all flights to Port Vila by dailyvanuatu Air New Zealand has suspended all flights to Port Vila's Bauerfield International Airport, citing concerns over the deteriorating state of the runway. Qantas has also followed suit, suspending their codeshare arrangement with Air Vanuatu this afternoon. Both airlines will despatch safety experts over the weekend to assess the state of the runway. Air New Zealand's flight operations general manager said that the runway had been deteriorating for some time, and that Air New Zealand had "taken the difficult decision to suspend services before the situation became unsafe, according to a story published this afternoon on the Australian Financial Review's website afr.com. dailyvanuatu | January 22, 2016 at 6:28 pm | Tags: Air New Zealand, air safety, Air Vanuatu, Airports Vanuatu Limited, Qantas | URL: http://wp.me/p2A4RK-NR Comment See all comments Unsubscribe to no longer receive posts from Vanuatu Daily Digest. Change your email settings at Manage Subscriptions. Trouble clicking? Copy and paste this URL into your browser: http://ift.tt/1RCP342 Thanks for flying with WordPress.comfrom Gmailvia IFTTT
One year from today, Barack Obama will be handing over the reigns of power to his Democratic successor. As has been pointed out on this site too many times to count (and why is it that I seem to be the only person to have noticed this little statistic thus far?) the last time the Democrats exchanged the office of the presidency on Inauguration Day was on March 4, 1857. It hasn't happened since. It will happen again a year from today. Take that to the bank and don't bother locking the vault. So dysfunctional and corrupted have the Republicans become in the last decade, it's an easy bet that they'll never occupy the White House again. I cannot predict the name of the man or woman who will be taking the oath of office on that day, but, barring an electoral coup d'etat (they're working on that), it will not be a member of "the party of Abraham Lincoln".





Here's another prediction you can bet the farm on: The last year of this administration is going to be the most tumultuous in its eight-year history.





I kinda miss the good old days when the GOP was comprised of a collection of bumbling, befuddled, not-too-bright, but essentially well-meaning old geezers. Today it is nothing less than an organized criminal enterprise. I miss those days of yore when the Republicans were only a danger to the economic security of the American people. In recent years they have become a danger to life on this planet. Within days of discovering that the drinking water consumed by the unfortunate people of Flint, Michigan has been poisoned by the governor of that state in an effort to save money, we learn that the Republicans in congress are working overtime to gut any-and-all clean water laws. This after we learn that some of the innocent children living in that forsaken city may have suffered permanent brain damage from drinking the right wing's Stinky Water.





Who's side do you think these people are on? Wake the fuck up.





A lot can happen between January 20, 2016 and January 20 2017. With that in mind let's look at where we are:




Hydrochem Saudi, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hyflux Group, has been awarded a contract by a subsidiary of Saipem, to design, manufacture and supply a desalination plant in Khurais, Saudi Arabia.



The project value is approximately $50.4 million.



This win underscores Hyfluxs growing presence in the Middle East region and our expertise in designing high-specification plants for industrial customers, said Olivia Lum, executive chairman and group CEO of Hyflux.



The Khurais oil field is located approximately 150 km northeast of Riyadh. Italian group Saipem is the engineering and construction contractor for the project to boost the daily production capacity at the Khurais central processing facility by 300,000 barrels of oil from the current 1,200,000 barrels.



The contract is to be fulfilled over one year, and is expected to contribute to the financials of Hyflux for the financial year ending December 2016.  TradeArabia News Service
Marking the 40th year anniversary of the first Concorde flight to Bahrain, a scale model of the airliner with graphics was showcased yesterday (January 21) at Sakhir, the venue of Bahrain International Air Show (BIAS) 2016. The occasion of the first flight from London to Bahrain which coincided with inaugural day of the three-day air show was celebrated as the highlight of events marking the aviation heritage shared by Bahrain and the UK, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.

To read further, please visit GDNonline
Graduated from University of Marmara, Academy of Fine Arts, Department of Design of Industrial Products and completed her dissertation titled "A Review on the Effects of the Trends & Periods on the Structural Constructions on the Products That are Associated With Consumer Electronics" in the same department for her Masters Degree.

Lectured at University of Anatolia, Department of Industrial Products on part-time basis. Currently, she has been lecturing on part-time basis Faculty of Arts & Science, Department of Industrial Products Design at University of Dogus.

She was the Head of ETMK Istanbul Branch from February 2010 to June 2011.

She took part in many competitions and projects as a member of advisory board and jury. Currently, she is the acting executive officer coordinating various projects between the Industry and University at the company where she is employed.
A federal agency ordered Wyoming regulators Thursday to conduct an investigation into two bankrupt coal companies mining permits, saying the state may be allowing the firms to operate in violation of the law.

The orders follow the bankruptcy of two of the countrys largest coal companies, Arch Coal and Alpha Natural Resources, and comes amid growing concern they may not be able to afford their hefty reclamation obligations. The combined cost of cleaning up the two companies Wyoming mines is about $900 million.

The warnings mark the U.S. Office of Surface Mining and Reclamations first public foray into the raging debate over coal companies cleanup obligations. The office has largely remained silent on the issue since Alpha filed for bankruptcy in August.

But in a letter responding to a petition from the Powder River Basin Resource Council, a Sheridan-based landowners group, the government gave Wyoming regulators 10 days to investigate the two firms reclamation bonds.

The Office of Surface Mining and Reclamation has reason to believe that the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality-Land Quality Division may be allowing Arch Coal Inc., Thunder Basin Coal Company LLC and Arch Western Resources (collectively, Arch) to operate in violation of the Wyoming Approved State Program, the agency wrote in a Thursday letter to state regulators.

A similar letter was sent to the state regarding Alpha on the same day.

Federal laws require companies to carry what is essentially reclamation insurance in order to maintain a mining permit. Concerns about a form of insurance known as self-bonding have grown amid a historic downturn in the coal market.

Companies using a self bond are allowed to employ their own finances as collateral, but they must first pass what amounts to a financial stress test.

State regulators oversee the mining sector, but ultimate authority rests with the Office of Surface Mining and Reclamation. Wyoming officials have long expressed worry their federal counterparts may enter the self-bonding debate.

Gov. Matt Mead, responding to questions about the development at a meeting of the Wyoming Press Association on Friday, said the letter sent by the Office of Surface Mining and Reclamation represents a first. DEQ officials have never received a letter of its kind and are reviewing it to determine how to respond, he said.

The state believed it was in compliance with the law at the time it approved the companies bonding obligations, Mead said, adding The best I can answer that question now is well work through that. Im not sure.

The state is looking at self-bonding alternatives that offer the same level of environmental protection, but are less costly for companies, he noted. The creation of lakes at former mine sites has been floated as one, potentially cost-effective option, Mead said.

The governor acknowledged regulators were attempting to walk a fine line. Coal is central to the Wyoming economy, contributing about a $1 billion in annual tax revenue and employing roughly 23,000 people. Arch and Alphas mines together employ more than 2,000 people.

It puts the state in a position where we want to keep those mines open, but we cant do that if the state has to pay for reclamation, Mead said.

Both Alpha and Arch have continued to operate as they navigate bankruptcy proceedings. Environmentalists and conservationists have questioned the continued mining activity, saying it may represent a violation of the federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act.

Wyoming regulators rejected those calls. The deal with Alpha ensured money is set aside for mine cleanup, they said. In Archs case, they noted the company had continued to qualify for self-bonding through a subsidiary, Arch Western Resources.

Conservationists hailed news of the federal governments orders.

It is a big deal because it is recognition from a regulator that theres a problem here, said Shannon Anderson, a lawyer at the Powder River Basin Resource Council. It does look like there is going to be some accountability. Hopefully it will send a message to the state and the companies.

Alpha has $411 million in self-bonds. The company had argued in bankruptcy filings that full payment of its reclamation liabilities would potentially harm its restructuring. But the Virginia-based firm struck a deal with state regulators in September, granting Wyoming a $61 million super-priority claim during its bankruptcy proceedings. The agreement was approved by a federal bankruptcy judge.

The Powder River Basin Resource Council raised concerns over the deal and filed a compliant regarding Alphas application for a permit renewal for its Eagle Butte Mine. The group withdrew its complaint after it was threatened with contempt of court for objecting to a deal approved by a bankruptcy judge.

The Office of Surface Mining and Reclamation reserved its right to object to the arraignment, however. And in its letter sent to the DEQ on Thursday, it questioned the deal. The agreement could represent a violation of mining laws, the agency wrote, because it may have allowed the bond amount to fall below the amount necessary to assure that the operator will faithfully perform all requirements of the Wyoming Environmental Quality Act and will comply with all rules and regulations and any provisions of the approved permit.

An Office of Surface Mining and Reclamation spokesman did not respond to requests for comment Friday. In its letters, the agency gave Wyoming 10 days to correct deficiencies or identify good cause for the errors.

Alpha and Arch officials sought to downplay the development. An Alpha spokesman noted its deal with Wyoming was approved by a bankruptcy court and said the company, supports the responsible, continued operation of two productive coal mines in the state during our restructuring process.

Arch has $490 million in self-bonds, according to bankruptcy filings. As part of its Chapter 11 proceedings, the company requested $75 million from a $275 million debtor-in-possession loan be set aside to cover its reclamation liabilities. The Missouri-based company operates two mines in Wyoming. Its Black Thunder Mine near Wright is the second largest in the country.

Logan Bonacorsi, a company spokesman, noted reclamation at its mines continues throughout the companys bankruptcy.

We fully expect to continue our award-winning reclamation practices, and to reclaiming the land to the highest value, she said.
A judge sentenced a Casper man to probation Thursday for whipping three children with a vacuum cord last year.

Jorge Serafin has undergone family counseling, along with anger management and parenting classes, his defense attorney said during a hearing in Natrona County District Court.

We think hes taken every step to rehabilitate himself, Britney Turner said.

Judge Thomas Sullins imposed a three- to five-year suspended prison sentence in the case. Should Serafin fail to complete three years of supervised probation, he could be sent to prison.

Prosecutor Kevin Taheri said Serafin could face deportation for the felony convictions since he is not a United States citizen. If that happens, Serafins probationary sentence would be discharged.

Taheri did not specify what country Serafin might be deported to.

According to court documents, Serafin whipped his girlfriends three children with the cord of a vacuum cleaner as punishment for taking inappropriate photos.

With the help of a translator, Serafin told the judge he was very sorry for what happened. He said he was born in another country with different customs, and he now understands what he did was wrong.

Im very ashamed to even talk about it because I love my family, Serafin told Sullins just before learning his sentence.

Taheri said Serafin had been remorseful and cooperative.

Serafin pleaded guilty in October to three counts of child abuse.

Court documents state officers responded to a Casper elementary school in May after school officials observed bruises to the childrens arms and backs. A Department of Family Services investigator was present while officers interviewed the children.

One of the children told authorities his moms boyfriend whipped him and his brothers with the cord of a vacuum cleaner because they were taking inappropriate photos on their moms tablet. He said Serafin had also whipped them with a belt.

The mother of the children told officers she knew Serafin had whipped the kids with the cord but said the punishment was acceptable where she came from, according to the documents.
A Casper man shot by his wife earlier this month would have died had he not received immediate medical treatment, a police detective testified Thursday.

Dana Miller, who faces an attempted second-degree murder charge, called 911 just after shooting her husband in the chest Jan. 3 at their apartment.

The victim, Dustin Edward Baer, suffered a collapsed lung and a severed artery in his neck, Casper police Det. Mitch Baker said during Millers preliminary hearing in Natrona County Circuit Court.

Following Bakers testimony, Judge Michael Patchen ruled there was probable cause for the case against Miller to move forward. Miller will enter pleas to the charges during a District Court arraignment that has not yet been scheduled.

In addition to the attempted murder charge, Miller faces three counts of aggravated assault and one count of possession of a deadly weapon.

Miller, dressed in blue jail scrubs and wearing handcuffs, sat beside defense attorney Kurt Infanger during the detectives testimony. She appeared alert but showed little emotion throughout the hearing.

After receiving Millers call at about 6 p.m., officers responded to the couples apartment at 1900 S. Missouri Ave. and found Baer in the kitchen, Baker testified. A Glock 9 mm handgun was next to him.

Medics treated Baer before taking him to the Wyoming Medical Center emergency room. He was in a medically induced coma following the shooting, but has since been released from the hospital.

Miller maintains she accidentally shot her husband. She told detectives she knew the magazine in the gun was loaded but she was not aware there was a bullet in the chamber, Baker said.

She said she pointed the gun directly at his chest and deliberately pulled the trigger, he said.

Miller was interviewed at the police department on the night of the shooting. She told detectives she and Baer had been drinking vodka at their apartment. She said Baer became drunk and started calling her insulting names, which upset her.

According to Bakers testimony, Miller grabbed a handgun the couple kept under their mattress in their bedroom. She told detectives she then walked into the kitchen where Baer was standing and pointed the gun at him. Baer continued to insult her, so she pulled the trigger.

Detectives went to the hospital after Baer had been brought out of the coma. Baer was having difficulty breathing and was unable to open his eyes, Baker said. During the interview, Baer told detectives Miller had been drinking more than him and had become violent and verbally offensive. He said they were fighting over medication Miller was taking.

Baer told detectives he had retrieved the gun, but gave it to Miller when she asked for it.

During a second police interview about a week and a half later, Baer said he and his wife were arguing over Miller taking his debit card and refusing to return it, Baker testified. He reiterated that hed given the gun to Miller.

Baer also told detectives he tried to call police, but his phone was too soaked with blood.

Natrona County District Attorney Michael Blonigen is prosecuting the case.
The Wyoming State Board of Education will hold a meeting via GoToMeeting from 8 to 11 a.m. Jan. 25.

The SBE will hear reports from the SBE Coordinator and WDE Liaison on topics that include the State System of Support, an update on the WDE strategic plan and a preview of the 2016 Legislative Session. Updates on the Every Student Succeeds Act and on the National Association of State Boards of Education stipends will also be addressed. Lastly, SBE Committee chairs will report out and information on the Boards Charter School Process will be given.

The board will receive an update from Superintendent Balow and a presentation from Secretary Murray on Youth and Voter Turnout.

In addition to the above agenda items, two actions items will be presented to the board: a communications plan update from Pascal Public Relations and revisions to the Chapter 31 rules on graduation requirements and the standards review timeline. To find the full agenda, go to http://edu.wyoming.gov/board/meeting-materials//

All meetings are open to the public. Please join the meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone at www.gotomeeting.com/join/230090261, or dial in via phone: 1-312-757-3119, access code: 230-090-261

For more information or questions, contact Chelsie Oaks at 307-777-6213 or Chelsie.Oaks@wyo.gov.
CHEYENNE  A bipartisan group of Wyoming legislators has put forth a bill that would change the way the state treats cryptocurrencies, such as bitcoin.

House Bill 26 would amend the Wyoming Money Transmitter Act to define digital currency as a permissive investment. That means cryptocurrencies would be treated the same as U.S. dollars, Euros or any other currency when dealing with monetary transfers.

The bills main sponsor is Rep. Tyler Lindholm, R-Sundance. Lindholm said the best way to explain what the bill would do is to consider the current rules for transferring money using a company like Western Union.

If I was going to send you $100 via Western Union, the Wyoming Money Transmitter Act requires Western Union to have $100 in cash reserves, so they have a backup if they lose my money somewhere along the way, Lindholm said.

But what if you wanted to buy something using a service like PayPal, and you wanted to pay with bitcoin instead of dollars? Under the states current interpretation of the law, PayPal would need to have the corresponding amount of bitcoin in reserves, in addition to dollars.

In other words, if you wanted to buy $100 worth of product in bitcoin, the company making the transaction would need $200 in reserves to cover the transaction  half in bitcoin, half in dollars.

With bitcoins, theyve got to do double what anybody else does, Lindholm said. And for that reason, several institutions have refused to do business in the state of Wyoming.

Bitcoin is the most prominent cryptocurrency, but there actually are more than 650 such currencies available for trade in online markets. Lindholm describes them as a sort of hybrid between fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar and precious metals like gold or platinum.

Like fiat currencies, bitcoins and other digital currencies base their value on trust in the system instead of any specific backing commodity. But like precious metals, bitcoins are finite; there is an upper limit to the number of bitcoins that can ever be produced.

Bitcoins are created using a decentralized process called mining, where individuals process transactions and secure the decentralized bitcoin network using specialized computer hardware. In exchange for that service, they collect new bitcoins, or fractions of new bitcoins.

In terms of the mathematics behind it, its absolutely fascinating, said Sen. Chris Rothfuss, D-Laramie, one of HB26s co-sponsors. Its certainly not a system I would have 100 percent confidence in  I dont want all my money in bitcoin, thats for sure  but from a policy standpoint, for the state of Wyoming to treat it differently than any other currency holds it back.

Despite wide swings in value, bitcoin has seen increased usage in online transactions. And for that reason, Rothfuss and the other co-sponsors of HB26 believe it and other cryptocurrencies deserve a fair shot in the Equality State.

The legislation were providing doesnt do an awful lot other than try to provide that level playing field, Rothfuss said. In my view, it needs to be treated the same as a ruble or a Euro, or any other currency.

Lindholm said HB26 makes good business sense, given that the current state law has already caused some bitcoin-friendly businesses to pull out of Wyoming.

Thats actually how I found out about it; I was going through my Facebook feed and a friend from Casper brought it up, Lindholm said. A business called Coinbase let them know they could no longer operate in the state because of the regulations.

Lindholm concedes that the nature of bitcoin may make it difficult to explain to fellow legislators who are unfamiliar with it. But hes hopeful he can get HB26 past the two-thirds majority threshold needed for successful introduction in the House of Representatives in a budget session.

Ive got two minutes to introduce the bill for the introductory vote, but essentially this is about keeping equal opportunities between currencies, Lindholm said. A big reason for me pushing this bill is that we dont want to run businesses, especially emerging technologies, out of Wyoming.
TAYLORSVILLE, Utah  A man died of a self-inflicted gunshot after deliberately crashing an RV into a government building because he was upset about having his drivers license suspended, authorities said Thursday.

Gary K. Chandler, 52, of Kearns, died Wednesday after ramming the vehicle into the glass entrance of a law enforcement building in Taylorsville, a suburb of Salt Lake City, Utah Highway Patrol Col. Daniel Fuhr said. No one inside was injured.

Chandler sent an email earlier in the day to the agency saying he was unhappy his drivers license had been suspended and would appeal, Fuhr said, noting the message wasnt threatening.

This was definitely not an accident, theres no way a car is going to come off the roadway and come through the front doors, he said.

The nose of the RV ended up about five feet inside the building, covered in shattered glass. The nearest person was a receptionist some 20 feet away who was behind bulletproof glass. The building was evacuated as a precaution.

The building houses the Utah Highway Patrol and Utah Department of Transportation, among other agencies. It is located about 10 miles south of Salt Lake City.

Large boards covered the broken windows on Thursday, with the public guided to an alternative entrance. Scott Whitney, a state facilities manager, said it could take six to eight weeks until the entrance is open again. A damage estimated was not available.

Fuhr said investigators are talking with family members to learn more about Chandlers mental state the day of the incident.

There had to be some mental anguish going on, Fuhr said. It was probably more than just a suspended drivers license.

Chandler had been charged with DUI stemming from a Dec. 5 incident in which he was pulled over after weaving in traffic and making an illegal turn, online state court records show.

Chandler pleaded not guilty to the DUI, citing a reason of insanity. A hearing on the case was set for early February.

A phone number listed for his family was out of service. His attorney on the DUI case, Casey Hoyer, declined comment.
First Hand: Kurdish YPG Forces 'Routinely Terrorize' Assyrian Christians in Syria

Multiple reports have indicated that the Kurdish Democratic Union Party's militia (YPG) in northern Syria attacked the Assyrian Christians in the region, leaving several people dead. The YPG has known ties to the U.S.-designated Marxist terrorist group, the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). Jeff Gardner, director of operations for Restore Nineveh Now, which has discreetly worked to prop up forces that can defend the historical Christian communities in the region, has spent much of his time on the ground in Syria and Iraq. He provides Breitbart News Network with an account from an Assyrian Christian perspective:

Over the past year and half I traveled in and out of the Middle East some six times, with my latest trip taking me to Northern Iraq and Syria. While there, I met with key leaders of the Assyrian Christians and Yezidi people, those who suffered most at the hands of [the Islamic State] ISIS. After many days of travel, meetings and inspections I can summarize two major developments in the region that of vital interests to the people of United States. The first is the very real potential for a safe zone for refugees in Northern Syria, and the second is a critical tipping point in the Syrian war that will, if not addressed, expand the war to other countries and perhaps permanently fracture the Middle East. Over the course of four days, I traveled throughout Northern Syria, visiting the devastated Assyrian Christian villages of the Khabur Valley (the site of the ISIS attacks and kidnappings in February, 2015) and the cities of Qamishli and Hasakah. These two cities recently withstood massive ISIS attacks and are home to thousands of Assyrian Christians. While there, I came in contact with, toured and rode with battle-hardened Assyrian Christian police and soldiers who actively want to establish a safe zone in Northern Syria. These men (and even some fighting women) are ideal to take part in the building of a safe zone because they want to stay put and rebuild Syria, are pro-democratic and non-sectarian, have training facilities and programs to stand-up more men for the effort and have a zero infiltration or defection rate by or/to jihadist groups  unlike the 60 so-called Free Syrian fighters who have been trained by the United States. The US should work with the Christian groups as much as possible. Next, contrary to the soaring rhetoric of the SOTU [State of the Union address], there is no US-led coalition controlling the situation in Syria. However, thanks to the Obama Administration's "let's not answer the phone and maybe they will stop calling" approach to Middle East foreign policy, the next war in Syria, and likely the wider Middle East, is already taking shape. Northern Syria is now under the near complete control of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party and its militia, the YPG. The YPG is so tightly aligned with the terrorist group, the Kurdish Workers' Party or the PKK, that some say they are one in the same. The YPG and PKK are hard-core Marxist organizations with long histories of terror and brutality, and they already declared a de facto Marxist-Kurdish State in Syria, calling it Rojava. These groups routinely terrorize the populace of the region, especially the Christians, extorting money from business and kidnapping young men for forced service in their ranks. But here is the coming train wreck: When the war in Syria is resolved (and it will be), and when there are national elections held, the YPG/PKK Kurds in the north show no willingness to give up the power they seized, which will certainly ignite a second war with the Arab south and/or the Assyrians in the North. Likewise, Turkey, that NATO ally that lets us fly our planes in and out of the region, has made it crystal clear that they will not tolerate a YPG/PKK State, and are already moving troops into the region.

Afram Yakoub, the chairman of the Assyrian Federation of Sweden, which monitors news linked to Assyrians across the region, told Al Jazeera that at least one Assyrian and eight Kurdish fighters were killed in the "rare" clash in Syria's al-Hasakah province. "Taj Kordsh, a Kurd from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), confirmed that the clashes broke out because of the checkpoints, but gave a different death toll," notes Al Jazeera. Two Assyrian fighters were killed in the clashes and five others were injured, he said, adding that a civilian had been killed and that Kurdish fighters say these checkpoints have bothered residents and must be removed."
Residents at a high-rise student housing facility near the Islamic Center of Tucson once again tossed alcohol bottles and other objects from their balconies into the mosques parking lot.

Three times last week  the first week of classes for the University of Arizona  members of the center arrived to find debris littering the parking lot.

Its quiet for a while, and then it happens again, said Ahmed Meiloud, the president of the Islamic Center of Tucson, 901 E. First St. Sometimes it escalates, and sometimes its a small incident.

Meiloud noted that racial slurs are also occasional occurrences.

Thursday, GMH Capital Partners, the Pennsylvania-based company that has owned the Sol Y Luna apartments since fall 2015, sent out a letter to residents condemning the behavior and promising retribution, including fines and evictions.

GMH Capital Partners and its affiliates will not tolerate any actions involving violence or destructive behavior towards any other human being or organization, nor will any words or actions that reflect racial or religious hostility be condoned at any of our properties, reads the letter, signed by Rand Ginsburg, the senior vice president of asset services for the company.

The apartments, which were previously known as Next and Level and owned by Denver-based Cardinal Group Management, house 389 and 588 beds respectively, said Bruce Pilarczyk, senior vice president of marketing and public relations for GMH Capital Partners.

Were looking through video tapes now and working with local police to figure out what happened, Pilarczyk said.

If an individual can be identified through the video, we will fully pursue eviction as well as turning them over to the authorities or school, he added.

A sample copy of the lease for Level, the building that is now called Luna, was still on the facilitys website on Thursday. The lease noted: Tenant understands that in the event that ANY items come off a balcony or window, Tenant will be subject to an immediate $1,000 fine and potential eviction and shall be subject to criminal prosecution. Any investigation of alleged incidents will be reported to the University of Arizona and local authorities.

Pilarczyk said the website is currently being updated, but the actual lease still includes the right to evict and fine residents based on inappropriate behavior, particularly on the balconies.

The Islamic center first made the issue public in the fall of 2014, after more than a year of dealing with residents dropping glass bottles, trash and other objects into its parking lot.

In response, surveillance cameras were installed at both the mosque and apartments, evictions were served and the UA and the city hosted a public forum.

Pilarczyk said the company knew of that history when it took ownership last fall and intends to develop a similar forum with Ward 6 City Councilman Steve Kozachik in addition to sensitivity training for residents.

People wonder why I have this issue with these out-of-town student housing projects, he said. Its because you flip them and youre back at square one again.

Kozachik said he spoke on the phone Thursday morning with Pilarczyk and Ginsburg about next steps and will meet with a representative from the company, the Tucson Police Department and the Islamic Center next week.

Pilarczyk sees the sensitivity training as a recurring program, as students cycle through the housing complex. Sol is at 1031 N. Park Ave. and Luna is at 1020 N. Tyndall Ave.
The Art Institute of Tucson is winding down operations and will close within a few years, a spokesman for its troubled parent firm said Thursday.

The for-profit school stopped enrolling new students this week and will shut down once its 300 or so students finish their studies, said Bob Greenlee, a spokesman for Pittsburgh-based Education Management Corp.

The cost-cutting decision was made for a variety of reasons including changing student and area demand, Greenlee said.

The school at 5099 E. Grant Road has been in business since 2002, according to the Southern Arizona Better Business Bureau website. Its most popular programs are visual and performing arts and personal and culinary services.

The local closure is the latest of many for the Art Institutes chain. Fifteen other sites nationwide were slated for closure less than a year ago.

The Art Institute of Tucson is a sister school to Brown Mackie College in Tucson, which is owned by the same parent firm and is under scrutiny by its accreditor and by Arizonas attorney general.

Education Management Corp. agreed in November to pay more than $95 million to settle state and federal claims that the companys schools used high-pressure recruiting tactics to lure students. The firm denied wrongdoing.

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich also is seeking separate compensation for local Brown Mackie nursing students who were trained so poorly they posed a potential hazard to the public, the state nursing board found last year.

Brown Mackie Tucsons accreditor, the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools, still is weighing whether to impose sanctions over the problems that led to the nursing board action, spokesman Anthony Bieda said.

Both Brown Mackie Tucson and the Art Institute of Tucson are below average nationally in areas such as graduation rates (30 to 35 percent) annual income of former students ($25,200) and the number of students (30 percent) who repay their federal student loans, a U.S. Education Departments website says.

Both schools charge higher than average tuition. Brown Mackie Tucsons annual cost of attendance is $20,000 and the art institutes is $25,000 while the national average is about $16,800, the federal website says.

Education Management Corp.s finances have been in decline for years with total losses of $2.34 billion between 2012 and 2014.

Its stock, worth $15 a share in 2013, now trades over the counter for around a nickel a share.
Former U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was sent off by crowds of people from Tucson five years ago today in an ambulance, on her way to a Houston rehab hospital.

Well-wishers started gathering outside D-M and at UMC before 8 a.m. Some made signs and said prayers. It was described as "Tucson at its best," by her spokesman.

She remembered the event in a Facebook post, writing: "Five years ago today I left the hospital in Tucson to start my rehab in Houston. It wasnt easy, but I never stopped fighting to get better!"

Five years ago today I left the hospital in Tucson to start my rehab in Houston. It wasnt easy, but I never stopped fighting to get better! Posted by Gabby Giffords on Thursday, January 21, 2016

"Inside an ambulance that drove slowly from University Medical Center to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, paramedics rolled down a small window so Giffords could hear the applause of people outside, said her spokesman, C.J. Karamargin. When they did, Giffords smiled and began to tear up, Karamargin said," from a story by Andrea Kelly, Carmen Duarte and Rhonda Bodfield in the Arizona Daily Star on Jan. 22, 2011.

Giffords was shot in the head Jan. 8, 2011 during a meet-and-greet with constituents in Tucson. The attempted assassination left six people dead and 13 wounded.

Close 1 of 6 Rep. Giffords departs Tucson The ambulance carrying Rep. Gabrielle Giffords leaves University Medical Center behind a police escort as hospital staff wave as she is transferred to Davis-Monthan AFB for a flight to Houston for rehabilitation. Rep. Giffords departs Tucson Hospital staff and others wave as a convoy of cars follows the ambulance carrying Rep. Gabrielle Giffords from University Medical Center to Davis-Monthan AFB for a flight to Houston for rehabilitation. Rep. Giffords departs Tucson People stand along Campbell Avenue in Tucson, Ariz., as the ambulance carrying U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., passes by on Friday, Jan. 21, 2011 in Tucson, Ariz. Giffords is being transported to a medical facility in Houston. Rep. Giffords departs Tucson Shirley McReynolds, right, and Dortha Bradley, second from right, stand along Campbell Avenue in Tucson, Ariz., as the ambulance carrying U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., passes by on Friday, Jan. 21, 2011 in Tucson, Ariz. Giffords is being transported to a medical facility in Houston. Rep. Giffords departs Tucson Don Nelson, treasurer the Sky Islands Chapter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, waits outside the hospital to help escort the ambulance carrying Rep. Gabrielle Giffords from University Medical Center. Rep. Giffords departs Tucson The ambulance carrying Rep. Gabrielle Giffords leaves University Medical Center behind a police escort in Tucson, Ariz., to move to Houston for further rehabilitation. More like this... Photo gallery: Rep. Giffords departs Tucson Rep. Gabrielle Giffords is transferred to Davis-Monthan AFB for a flight to Houston for rehabilitation. 1 of 6 Rep. Giffords departs Tucson The ambulance carrying Rep. Gabrielle Giffords leaves University Medical Center behind a police escort as hospital staff wave as she is transferred to Davis-Monthan AFB for a flight to Houston for rehabilitation. Rep. Giffords departs Tucson Hospital staff and others wave as a convoy of cars follows the ambulance carrying Rep. Gabrielle Giffords from University Medical Center to Davis-Monthan AFB for a flight to Houston for rehabilitation. Rep. Giffords departs Tucson People stand along Campbell Avenue in Tucson, Ariz., as the ambulance carrying U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., passes by on Friday, Jan. 21, 2011 in Tucson, Ariz. Giffords is being transported to a medical facility in Houston. Rep. Giffords departs Tucson Shirley McReynolds, right, and Dortha Bradley, second from right, stand along Campbell Avenue in Tucson, Ariz., as the ambulance carrying U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., passes by on Friday, Jan. 21, 2011 in Tucson, Ariz. Giffords is being transported to a medical facility in Houston. Rep. Giffords departs Tucson Don Nelson, treasurer the Sky Islands Chapter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, waits outside the hospital to help escort the ambulance carrying Rep. Gabrielle Giffords from University Medical Center. Rep. Giffords departs Tucson The ambulance carrying Rep. Gabrielle Giffords leaves University Medical Center behind a police escort in Tucson, Ariz., to move to Houston for further rehabilitation.
As the midterm elections come ever closer, it can feel as if were stewing in a cauldron of tribalism, of our side vs. their side with no middle ground and little agreement on much of anything. That makes it a good time to take a breath and realize the consensus weve reached on some issues that were incredibly contentious not long ago. It gives us hope in the angry days ahead.
The Pima County Sheriffs Department broke state law when it allowed a high-ranking officials relative to operate a restaurant inside its headquarters.

Off the Record  The Exclusive Cafe has operated in the building without a contract and without paying rent for more than three years, and is run by the niece of Pima County Sheriffs Chief Deputy Christopher Radtke.

The issue with that arrangement is that when department officials selected vendors they broke a state law that says the contract must be offered first to legally blind vendors through an Arizona Department of Economic Security entrepreneurship program.

The mini Randolph-Sheppard Act, a state version of a federal law with the same name, says priority must be given to blind vendors in operating snack bars, cafeterias and vending machines on government property, according to the Arizona Department of Administrations website.

Before the latest cafe operator came on board, the sheriffs department had worked with outside food service providers for more than 15 years, said Capt. Harold Janes, the departments administrative services director.

Incorrect assumptions

In November County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry told the Star the sheriffs department didnt violate procurement policies by not offering the space to other food service providers before giving it to Radtkes niece, Nikki Thompson.

The county has since learned some steps were missed.

This ended up being a unique situation, county spokesman Mark Evans said last week. Some assumptions were made early on that were not accurate.

Asked whether county officials knew about the Randolph-Sheppard Act, Evans referred the question to the sheriffs department.

This all started with the sheriffs department  its their facility, he said.

But when contacted by the Star, Janes referred the issue back to the county.

The Sheriffs department cafe opened in the mid- to late 1990s and I dont know who exactly was in charge except Chief Deputy Stan Cheske and Sheriff Clarence Dupnik, he said, referring to two officials who are now retired.

He was unfamiliar with the mini Randolph-Sheppard Act, but said Pima County Facilities officials would be who to ask about the law.

Regardless of who failed to notify DES about the cafe space, government agencies are required to offer the contract first to the DES program, and the mini Randolph-Sheppard Act was broken in this situation, said Tucson employment attorney Michael Boreale.

The words shall cooperate means that the government agency must notify DES about the facility. So if they didnt notify DES, by plain reading of the statute, they violated the law.

Repercussions for violating the mini Randolph-Sheppard Act depend on if theres standing to pursue a case and damages were inflicted, Boreale said.

contract will be put out for bid

After clarifying its information in November, the county offered the contract for DES to review in December, Evans said.

DES Arizona Business Enterprise Program, which oversees vending opportunities for legally blind entrepreneurs, inspected the cafe, then advertised it to potential vendors, said Maura Kwiatkowski, Huckelberrys administrative assistant.

The AZDES Review Committee declined the food service (cafe) at the Sheriffs Department Administration Building, she wrote in an email last week.

Because DES was not interested in including the sheriffs cafe space in its enterprise program, the county now is free to offer the contract to outside vendors, Evans said.

The details of the competitive process for food service providers are still being worked out and the information will likely be posted on the countys procurement website when it becomes available, Evans said. Thompson will be able to seek the contract along with other food service providers, he said.

The contract that will be developed by the county will include a monthly rental rate, Kwiatkowski said.

For now Thompson continues to operate the cafe in the headquarters without a contract and rent-free.

Jail permit skipped

Off the Record had a second location inside the Pima County jail that the Star found in November was operating without a county health permit.

After the Pima County Health Department was told about the situation, Thompson closed the cafe, which served jail employees.

When contacted by David Ludwig, the health departments consumer health and food safety program director, Thompson told him she didnt know she needed a permit for each location.

But an email obtained by the Star that Thompson sent to Corrections Chief India Davis and Radtke days later says she didnt obtain a health permit for the jail location because of its outrageous cost.

This was the issue from the beginning, Thompson wrote in the email. Since its a county building, that cost all falls on you guys, and thats how we ended up skipping this huge step in the beginning because the cost was outrageous.

To apply for a health permit in order to reopen, Thompson would have to submit a construction plan and menu review, which costs $480, environmental health supervisor Loni Anderson told Thompson in an email.

She has since decided not to obtain a health permit and the jail cafe remains closed, despite an email from Davis saying the jail was willing to do all the work necessary to obtain the permits.

Its unclear if the jail location would be included with the headquarters cafe as part of the contract, were Thompson to bid for the opportunity to run the sheriffs cafe, or if the jail location will even reopen, but the county spent $5,500 on equipment for it, receipts show.

Receipts also show the department bought more than $12,000 worth of equipment for the headquarters cafe, days before Thompson moved in.

Radtke said in November hes had nothing to do with the cafe or its operations since he told the department about his niece when it was looking for someone to operate the cafe in 2012.

I offered them up to the sheriff and, recognizing the conflict, backed out of the process because of our relationship, he said.
Help India!

By IANS,

Hyderabad : Tech Mahindra, the new owner of Satyam Computer Services, Monday said the fraud-hit IT major would remain a stand-alone entity in the foreseeable future.

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Excited about the prospects of the fraud-hit IT major, the buyer declared that restoring Satyams financial health will be its priority.

After the first meeting with the government-appointed board, Anand Mahindra, chief of Mahindra Group, said Satyam would remain a stand-alone unit in the foreseeable future and its leadership would continue with marginal changes.

Satyam is going to be a very strong and viable entity. I dont think its a sinking ship. No longer. It may not be a racing car yet that is what we want to make it one. I believe that Satyam is on a way to very viable future, he told reporters after the interaction with the six-member government-appointed board.

Stating that there are still regulatory constraints, Mahindra declined to answer specific questions, especially about Satyams liabilities.

He expressed hope that the company would win back clients and clinch new deals.

Vineet Nayar, vice-chairman and chief executive of Tech Mahindra, said the new chief financial officer (CFO) would be named in the next few weeks.

The new buyer left it to A.S.R. Murthy to continue as the CEO of the company. Murthy, appointed as CEO by the government-appointed board, has expressed his willingness to continue.

Tech Mahindra said it was too early to comment on whether there would be lay-offs.

Mahindra said all the resources for buying Satyam were raised in a record 72 hours in the local market and largely through non-banking sources. This is a strong signal to India that India is driving economy, Nayar said.

Mahindra said Rs.700 crore was raised from internal accruals and partial funding was done via special purpose vehicle route.

Nayyar added that he was overwhelmed by quality of Satyam staff and their competencies. They have the determination to take this company on successful path. The fact that they were able to retain major portion of business despite the Tsunami is an indication of their capabilities.

Earlier, the board said an open offer would be announced Tuesday to obtain an additional 20 percent stake in the software major.

Deepak Parekh, a member of the board, said more financial details would be revealed in offer documents.

Tech Mahindra, which deposited Rs.2,910 crore in an escrow account Monday for a 31 percent stake in Satyam, will see its total holding increase to 51 percent after the open offer.

Satyam board chairman Kiran Karnik said the six directors, appointed to the board by the government, will continue in their posts till further orders from the Company Law Board. Tech Mahindra will appoint up to four more members soon.

Karnik said Tech Mahindra officials attended the board meeting as invitees as some formalities for the buy were not completed.

Today, they came to the meeting as invitees as some regulatory approvals have to come from Germany and US regulators. Once those approvals come, they will be inducted as full board members, he said.

Added Parekh: Transition is going to take some time as restatement of accounts is going on. The Company Law Board has directed all of us to continue till further notice.

Its a happy day for Satyam, Karnik said, while thanking Satyam leaders and staff for the role played in these difficult times.

The board has submitted a list of 100 key Satyam employees to Tech Mahindra, Karnik said, adding that no decision had been taken yet on the continuation of Ram Manyampati, who was the interim chief executive after former chairman B. Ramalinga Raju stepped down.
Help India!

By Maulana Waris Mazhari

(Translated by Yoginder Sikand)

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Some days ago, I had the chance to meet a leading Islamic scholar, an author of several books. During our conversation he remarked that the biggest and most influential madrasa in India had, in the last thirty years or so, produced only two well-researched books. This, he said, was evidence of the pathetic state of scholarship characteristic of the vast majority of the Indian madrasas today.

While in the past our madrasas produced numerous scholars, today this is hardly the case at all. Today, most madrasas restrict themselves only to the teaching of what is specified in their curriculum. In most cases, the only extra-curricular activity that they provide for their students is training them to deliver emotion-driven speeches. Not surprisingly, then, almost all madrasa graduates become either teachers or orators. Some of them earn their bread by penning tracts, whose only purpose is to foment sectarian strife. Very few madrasa graduates actually go on to do any serious scholarly research at all. Shockingly, even those men who spend years teaching voluminous tomes on Hadith, Fiqh and Quranic commentary for years on end in the madrasas often only pen a few tracts of a very elementary sort or a commentary on some basic text book and consider this to be a great scholarly contribution! And their sycophantic students and other followers are ever ready to convince them of the supposed great intellectual contributions that they have made thereby!







It is an undeniable fact that expansion of the frontiers of knowledge, even with regard to religion, is now no longer happening in the madrasas. If at all this is happening, it is outside the madrasasin institutes, universities and private intellectual circles. This is so not just in India alone but throughout the rest of South Asia. The intellectual stagnation in our madrasas can be exemplified with the help of a single instance. Almost all the Sunni ulema groups in South Asia claim to be heirs of the intellectual legacy of Shah Waliullah Dehlavi, the influential eighteenth century Indian scholar, but besides his Hujjat al-Balagha, no other of his many works is taught in the madrasas or has been published by them. And today conferences about Shah Waliullah and his legacy are being held at universities in Delhi and Aligarh, not in the madrasas in Deoband and Lucknow.

Interesting and new, well-researched scholarly Islamic texts are being produced by some Muslim academies in Delhi. But nothing of this sort comes out of the hundreds of publishing houses associated with madrasas across the country. Scores of journals and magazines are published by madrasas throughout India, but most of these are of a very poor standard in terms of intellectual output. They lack originality, focus on hypothetical and theoretical issues as against practical realities, are overly preachy and normative and very often are geared to fanning sectarian conflicts and hatred.

The main reason for this pathetic state of affairs is, undoubtedly, the narrow mindedness of the majority of our ulema and madrasa students. This is related to the fact that they have restricted the work of madrasas to what they see as guiding people on issues of day-to-day concern in matters of ritual, practice and belief and the preservation of what is generally considered to be Islamic culture. In this way have cut themselves off from the wider world. But, the question arises, what is the need for students to spend eight long years, studying numerous different subjects, if this is what the madrasas are training them for? A course of a much shorter duration, of say three years or so, would suffice for this purpose.

Another factor for the poor standards of scholarship and research in madrasas today is the almost total lack of any collaboration between madrasas and other academic institutions, which could have helped madrasas improve their scholarly output. In fact, the relationship between the two sets of institutions is charatcerised by considerable mutual hostility and suspicion. It is also a fact that the wrong notion of a divide between religious and worldly knowledge that is constantly stressed by the madrasas has played a major role in this furthering the division between madrasas and secular institutions.

A third factor for this lamentable state of affairs is that the vast majority of madrasas are controlled by certain families. They have become, in essence, family-run affairs. This is the mother of all illnesses, in my humble opinion. It has resulted in the complete absence of democratic functioning in the madrasas, in their commericalisation and in the exploitation of their employees, all of which have had an extremely deleterious impact on the madrasas and their scholarly environment. The monopoly that certain individuals or families exercise over the madrasas is often reflected in the sort of literature that they bring outmuch of it being pure propaganda, in the form of hagiographies, heaping praise on the founders of their respective institutions and the ulema associated with their sects.

A fourth factor for the deplorable state of scholarship and research in the madrasas is their extremely restricted syllabus, which has made for the ulema to remain confined within the four walls of their madrasas and to have little or no knowledge of the rapid changes happening in the world around them. This is reflected in the sort of publications that the madrasas and the ulema churn out, many of which have no social relevance at all or else lack any originality.

A fifth factor is economic. There are undoubtedly many capable students and teachers in the madrasas, who, if given the facilities and necessary support, can engage in fruitful scholarly research. However, madrasas make no arrangement for financing this sort of research work. What generally happens, instead, is that some maulvis take to making money and winning cheap popularity through penning emotionally-driven, and often fiercely sectarian, books of low scholarly standard. They seem to enjoy a mutually beneficial relationship with certain publishing houses affiliated with their own sects. These publishing houses specialize in producing this sort of literature, which rakes in handsome profits for their owners as well as for those who pen these books.

A sixth factor for the virtual absence of any creative scholarly work in the madrasas is that very few of them have any special departments for research and publications. Most of the few madrasas that do have such departments lack qualified people to staff them. It is very difficult, if not impossible, for creative, independent-minded thinkers and scholars to adjust to the closed and insular environment of the madrasas.

Seventhly, the fact that the vast majority of madrasa graduates have expertise in just one language (Urdu, in north India), with little or no familiarity with English greatly limits their potential as researchers and scholars. Most madrasa graduates do not even know proper Arabic despite having spent many years ostensibly studying that language.

*

What Should Be Done?

Intellectual work on a large scale cannot depend simply on the efforts and initiative of individual scholars. Rather, community-based organizations have to create funds and provide facilities to encourage scholars. But this is completely lacking in the case of the madrasas. In the past, Muslim rulers and nobles generously patronized madrasa-based scholars. In the West today, huge research foundations like the Ford Foundation and the Carnegie Foundation provide research projects to scholars. Sadly, there are virtually no Muslim organizations that promote this sort of work. At least the larger and well-funded madrasas ought to arrange for separate budgets for research projects that can be assigned to selected scholars to work on.

Improving the standard of scholarship in the madrasas is inextricably linked to the issue of widening their focus so that they see their task not simply as teaching students a set of texts or expanding their stock of knowledge but also widening their thought and mental horizons. Intellectual development can only happen in an environment that promotes, rather than discourages, curiosity. Sadly, this is totally absent in the madrasas. Further, madrasas make little or no provision for teaching social sciences and various languages, without which the sort of creative research that one hopes for cannot be produced. I think madrasas must include English as a compulsory subject in their curriculum, and, perhaps through open universities or the Maulana Azad National Urdu University in Hyderabad, arrange for their students to learn various social sciences. In the absence of this it is doubtful if the madrasas can at all engage in any sort of creative and relevant research and scholarly work.

I would also suggest that all big madrasas set up research centres and academies. Some madrasas already have such institutions, but, sadly, most of these exist just in name and only for show, bringing out literature glorifying their founders or fanning sectarian hatred and strife. Madrasas must also expand their range of extra-curricular activities in order to encourage students to take greater interest in research work. They can arrange for experts in different subjects (and not just those narrowly defined as religious) to deliver regular lectures to their students. They can organize regular essay-writing competitions and debates for students. They must also arrange for their libraries to stock important journals and books, including on contemporary social issues and developments. They can provide students with training in writing skills and journalism, and arrange for selected students essays on issues of contemporary concern to be published in madrasa journals or as edited volumes that can be made available to the public. Final year students must be made to write full-length research-based dissertations. This will help improve their writing and analytical skills besides adding to the scholarly output of the madrasas. Dissertations of good standard, especially if they represent new and creative thinking, can also be published in the form of books so that they can be accessed by the general public. Bigger madrasas can also encourage scholarly work by organizing annual seminars on topics of current interest and contemporary import.

Madrasas can also arrange for their staff and senior students to visit other madrasas, and even institutions of learning run by non-Muslims, so as to benefit from them. In this regard some of the larger madrasas can also consider sending some of their capable students who are firm in their faith to the top institutions of religious learning in the West. These students can play a major and vital role in providing scholarly responses from an Islamic point of view to present-day global challenges.

*

These are some suggestions for addressing the pathetic state of scholarship that characterizes our madrasas today. In this regard I believe the major hurdle that we face is the misplaced sense that the madrasas have of their supposed self-sufficiency, their reluctance to introspect, their feeling that all is right with them and that there is no room for improvement at all. Obviously, this attitude is hardly conducive to intellectual development and the thirst for broadening and deepening their intellectual horizons.

Since the malaise of poor standards of scholarship in the madrasas is deep-seated and a result of many factors, obviously it cannot be solved at once. For this to change, madrasas need to critically and realistically examine their present curriculum and system. Only then can they become centres of scholarly activity and creative thought and researchas were madrasas centuries agoand in this way prove beneficial not just to Muslims alone but to humankind in general. Or else, this complaint of the poet Muhammad Iqbal will continue to haunt them:

Neither life, nor love. Neither realization, nor vision

Maulana Waris Mazhari, a graduate of the Dar ul-Uloom at Deoband, is the editor of the Delhi-based Tarjuman Dar ul-Uloom, the official organ of the Deoband Graduates Association. He can be contacted on [email protected]
Help India!

By IANS,

Islamabad : Pakistans President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani Wednesday strongly condemned the assassination of the countrys Minister for Minorities Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti.

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Zardari in a statement vowed that such acts would not deter the government from eliminating extremism and terrorism. He also sought a report on the incident, Pakistans news agency AAP reported.

Terming the incident as a heinous act, President Zardari said the government would continue to stand firm on its stance and would not bow to the extremists and terrorists.

Conveying his heartfelt condolences to Bhattis family, Zardari said the extremist elements were trying in vain to destabilise the country. He expressed the resolve that such attempts would fail.

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, meanwhile, ordered a probe into Shahbaz Bhattis assassination, as he visited the local Al-Shifa hospital where the body of killed minister was shifted soon after he was shot dead by unknown assailants.

He said such acts would not deter the governments resolve to fight terrorism and extremism.

He expressed deep sorrow and grief over the death of Bhatti.


Help India!

By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net,

Distance and decent job did not deter the determined Syed Wasif Haider from desiring to contribute to society of his home country India. Bachelor in Technology (Computer Engineering) of Aligarh Muslim University, Haider did M.S. in Computer Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, USA, and got a white-collar job in Silicon Valley, California. But he remained focused on his ambitious target  Indias top civil job: IAS. And he reached the target yesterday when he cracked the Civil Services Examination 2010 while living and working in California. Haider is among 920 candidates declared successful by Union Public Service Commission.

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In an exclusive interview to TwoCircles.net, Syed Wasif Haider said: My parents have been a constant motivation. Other factors include the challenges faced in Civil services and desire to contribute to society, when asked who inspired you to opt for the civil services.

Who will you give credit for this success?

Foremost it is Almightys grace. Credit also goes to my parents and teachers at OLF (Our Lady of Fatima Hr. Sec. School, Aligarh), Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and Carnegie Mellon University (CMU).

What/who inspired you to opt for civil services?

My parents have been a constant motivation. Other factors include the challenges faced in Civil services and desire to contribute to society.

How did you prepare for the civil services exam?

Dedication and hard work were the basic ingredients  they always are. But I had some special hurdles, in view of the fact that I am already working in the Silicon Valley, California for a while now. One was to keep myself from getting astray and instead stay focused and self-motivated. Second was the practical issue of squeezing time from an already busy routine (job, household stuff like cooking, etc). I made it a point to be aware of current events through Indian newspapers (e-papers) and concentrated on some core books for optional papers. I made heavy usage of the Internet.

What were your subjects in the civil services exam?

History and Public Administration.

Your education journey?

I passed X standard from Our Lady of Fatima Hr. Sec. School, Aligarh and Class XII from Senior Secondary School, A.M.U. Then I completed my B.Tech in Computer Engineering from ZHCET, AMU (2005). My last degree is M.S in Computer Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, USA, which I obtained in 2008. I was Alhamdllah always blessed with a decent performance, though not making it to IIT was a disappointment.

A little about your parents and family?

Both my parents are doctors. My father, Prof. (Dr.) Syed Javed Haider, is a graduate of K.G.M.C, Lucknow (also called CSMMU now) and served in J.N.MC, AMU for about 20 years. He is currently a Professor of Anatomy in King Khalid University, Abha, K.S.A. My mother, Dr. Naheed Rizvi, did her MBBS from Lady Hardinge Medical College,New Delhi and is a gynaecologist, working in U.P. Provincial Medical Services. My younger sister is currently pursuing MBBS from JNMC, AMU, while my younger brother is in Class X, studying in O.L.F, Aligarh.

Your native place?

My family is originally from Faizabad, U.P, though I was born and brought in Aligarh.
Help India!

By Mohd. Ismail Khan, TwoCircles.net,

He never spoke about killing himself, I can never accept that my son who was deeply religious, can end his life in a Haram (prohibited) way, saying that my son has committed suicide, is like someone swearing on me.

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This is how Mohammed Abdul Sattar expressed his grief when asked about his son Mohammed Abdul Razzaq alias Masood. 38 year old Razzaq, a terror accused allegedly committed suicide on October 10, supposedly due to police harassment.

Earlier they used to kill Muslim youths directly in encounter, now they are killing them by continuous mental harassment, it is a slow poison killing, says Abdul Sattar, almost breaking into tears. He was firm in reiterating that police and intelligence agencies (both Indian and international) are responsible for his youngest sons unexpected demise, as they kept harassing him constantly.

Hyderabad police is still tight lipped:

But Hyderabad police is still tight lipped on the suicide case. They refused vehemently that they were harassing Razzaq, but at the same time, they are not making public anything related to the case.

TCN tried to contact investigating officer, i.e. police inspector of Hamayu Nagar and the ACP of Asif Nagar, but both were not reachable.

With each passing day the reason for his extreme step is getting shrouded in mystery, as police is unwilling to give details. Razzaqs case is deeply complicated by the changing stance and contradicting statements of Indian security agencies.







Abdul Sattar, father of Abdul Razzaq. [TCN Photo]



Background:

According to his family Razzaq did graduation from his home town in Nizamabad and then left for Dubai in 2000 and was working as a manager in a hotel there. His name first cropped up in 2004 as one of the accused in the charge-sheet of Sai Baba temple blast of 2002.

He was arrested in Iran in 2005. His family claim that he went to Iran via Dubai for some visa related issue, and there he was arrested as he was already black listed by the Indian Government.

But national security agencies for long claimed that Razzaq was chief of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) in Dubai and he was arrested when he entered Iran through Afghanistan, to fight in Iraq against American troops.

After 5 months in Iranian prison, Razzaq was arrested at Delhi airport when he was deported back to India. Next day Delhi Police showed him as arrested from Jamia Nagar area of New Delhi, where they claimed that he was hiding. Huge haul of weapons were also shown to be confiscated.

Every major English newspaper carried that story. Telugu newspapers in Andhra Pradesh had already passed the verdict: terrorist in town.

His father showed Xerox copies of letters of Razzaq sent from Iranian prison to refute the Delhi police claims about his arrest in Delhi.







Letter sent from Iranian prison.



His father claims that Razzaq had told him that during his captivity by Delhi police, he was interrogated by C.I.A and MOSSAD along with Indian intelligence agencies. In Delhi intelligence agencies used to torture him like an animal, his father alleged.

After three months of incarceration in Delhis prison, his custody was taken by Hyderabad Police as he was already a wanted man in 2002 Sai Baba temple blast which had killed 2 people and left four injured.

His family in Nizamabad urban town claimed that they were never informed or questioned before 2005 by the Hyderabad Police in connection with the Sai Baba temple blast case.

From 2005 to 2009 Razzaq was lodged in Charlapally jail in Hyderabad and Rajhmundry jail in Andhra region. He was Narco tested twice during that period.

His family alleges that due to extreme mental harassment and torture that he went through in prisons, he had become mentally unstable. In fact, at one time he was shifted to Erragada Mental Hospital.

Trial court allowed him conditional bail as police on different occasions failed to present him before the court. But when he was finally out in 2009, according to his father, he could barely make sense of things. His treatment was going on with different psychiatrists in Hyderabad.







News in Telgu announcing Razzaqs arrest



But even as Razzaq was out on conditional bail and ordered not to leave Hyderabad, his name cropped up in 2002 American Cultural Center attack, and Mumbai 26/11 attacks.

Razzaq also found a mention in Praveen Swami of The Hindu in an article on Dec 2009, Ties that bind: Lashkar and the global jihad. According to Swami, Razzaq met Muzammil Bhat of LeT, who allegedly supervised over the training of 26/11 attackers in Dubai before Mumbai attacks. But the fact is that Razzaq was in Indian prisons since 2005.

Swami wrote: Masoods story helps to understand the complex ties that bind the Lashkar and the global jihadist movement, and also went on to track Razzaqs history as an Al-Qaeda operative.

After his release he was in deep mental disturbance as his name was dragged into two other terror cases. He used to tell me that IB officers often visit me; they are pressurizing me to become a governments witness or to implicate an innocent youth in a terror case. I cannot do this, I cannot destroy life of an innocent, says Sattar.

Abdul Sattar says that IB people were of opinion that Razzaq was an international Jihadist and wanted to use him as their mole, which Razzaq resisted till his end.

Even with all this odds in his life, and the mental pressure he was going through, his family is still not ready to accept that Razzaq can commit suicide. His elder brother, Abdul Muqeet who is a counselor in Nizamabad Urban town, says that Razzaqs future was settled and he could not end his life at this juncture.

During 2005 to 2009 or even in 2010 it was the time when his life appeared to be at dead end, but he fought back, and lived his life with utmost patience. Now he was planning to get married and had already bought a room to open an internet cafe near his home town. When everything in his life seems to be getting established, why would he commit suicide? asks Muqeet.

Razzaqs family has a list of doubts about his suicide. His nephew Mohammad Ommair who works in Hyderabad and was one of the first relatives to arrive at the suicide scene says that he saw the suicide note (police has still not made the content public), and he is of the opinion that the suicide note is like one of the articles he wrote about the harassment of Muslim youths by police.

Razzaq was pursuing journalism from Maulana Azad national Urdu University and use to write articles in Urdu. Some of them were even published in Siasat Urdu daily.

Omair claims that in the note which police found in his room, there was no mention of him committing suicide. It was just an article of the harassment of Muslim youths, he argues. His suspicions do not end here. His clothes were clean and pressed, and he was wearing his slippers. As far as I know, if a person shakes his legs desperately in the proses of hanging, how come his slippers were still there on his legs, he poses the question.

His family whines that police has not handed them the suicide note, or the postmortem report, even two weeks after his death.

Abdul Qadeer runs a small kirana shop in a three floored building where Razzaq stayed for one year and subsequently committed suicide. He is also the landlord of that building.

He found Razzaq a simple man who used to perform prayers regularly, Only the next day when I read the newspaper, I got to know that he was accused in bomb blasts, I would have never given him the room on rent if I had any idea about it, told this reporter, scared that the suicide occurred at his house.

According to Qadeer, he was a soft spoken man but he appeared confused on some occasions. He recalled an incident, four months back he called me and said that he got blood cancer, he seemed worried, then again after two days he called me again and inform that village doctors has not diagnosed him properly, he was just having a fever. Qadeer added, Yes at times he felt little disordered.

Speaking on getting news of Razzaqs suicide, Qadeer said, Razzaq left one small paper stuffed in the main gate, in which it was written check my room and inform Qadeer bhai in English and in Urdu.

One of the bachelors who live in the house saw that note at 2:30 P.M. He went to check his room and found Razzaq hanging, and then he informed me. I immediately came and peeped into the door which was open. I then informed his family and police.

Qadeer is of the opinion that Razzaq might have committed suicide in the afternoon; as the man who had found the chit at door had not seen it at 10.00 A.M. when he left for work, but saw it only on his return at 2.30 P.M.

Abdul Qadeer, however, denies that police or intelligence agencies used to visit him. If they used to, then I would have asked him to leave the very next day.

Coming to terms with the demise of son:

Razzaqs family is meanwhile trying to come to terms with his inconceivable and sad demise. But his father has list of complaints against the Muslim community. Not a single Muslim leader condemned the suicide of my son, no Urdu newspaper followed his story, all are tight lipped, I dont know why they are so scared, said Abdul Sattar in a anguish tone.

While Sattar was continuing, his elder son Muqeet cut him short, Forgive my father, he is still delusional that whole Muslim community will stand behind us or fight for us, things are changed no one wants to speak on this issues anymore.

Razzaqs family is pleading that an independent enquiry on the reason behind Abdul Razzaqs alias Massods death, because the family believes the picture is still far from clear, as they fear some international players are also involved.

Related stories:

Bomb blast accused committed suicide due to police harassment
Help India!

By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter

Jammu: In a significant move, the NDA led central government launched a skill development programme for Muslims girls of Jammu and Kashmir under its Nai Manzil initiative.

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Nai Manzil, meaning New Goal is an educational and skills-development programme funded by the World Bank. It has been designed to help minority youth (17-35) from poorer backgrounds. Aimed particularly at school dropouts, the project will provide them necessary skills to find jobs which they couldnt get even after completing their education. The scheme was launched last year from Bihar.

We launched the skill development programme in three madarsas for girls in Jammu and Kashmir yesterday. The programme is being launched under our Nai Manzil initiative.We will provide the girls area-specific training, based on local requirements as part of the programme, Union Minority Affairs Minister Najma Heptulla was quoted by PTI.

The Minister said girls from economically poor background will be trained at three institutions which include a development centre in Kashmir University and Madarsa Shahi-i-Hamdan in Pampore and Madarsa Imam Sadique in Shadipur in Bandipora.

She said training will be given in seven areas including saffron and fruits processing, traditional embroidery, tourism, hospitality, software and hardware, electronics and plumbing.

The Minister said students will be trained in these areas over a period of three-month beyond learning hours and also offered stipend of Rs 4,000 each besides they will receive certificates from Sector Skill Councils.

Heptulla said her Ministry has sought more funds from Finance Ministry in the upcoming budget.

Nai Manzil scheme, already introduced in Mumbai and Patna, is an integrated education and livelihood initiative for minority communities.

Importantly, on New Years eve the Indian government and the World Bank had signed a $50 million loan for Nai Manzil prorgammes.
Help India!

By Amit Kumar for Twocircles.net

You may not know too much about Abdul Sami, except that he is alleged to be an Al-Qaeda operative caught from Mewat on Sunday. But if you had read Dainik Jagran, the Hindi Daily on Monday, you would be aware of where his retired father lives on rent for the past two years. Even the flat number has been mentioned. Prabhat Khabar has done one better; it has published a picture of the building too with the address, just in case you might need a picture. Just in case you feel like visiting him. Maybe one could ask him the question no father wants to hear: is your son a terrorist? A traitor?



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Over the past few days, Abdul Sattar, Samis father, has had to answer that question and his response has been courageous and possibly the only exception in what has become a standard reporting drill when it comes to terror arrests. Sit in front of the Special Cell officials, and publish everything they say verbatim. But yes, for the sake of balancing the argument, drop the word allegedly every now and then. The patterns are also similar: each of the six arrested have, at some point, allegedly visited Pakistan, received training and were here to carry out attacks. In fact, even yesterday, the DNA says that four youth have been arrested based on credible information that they were out to carry attacks in India, including attacks on the Ardh Kumbha Mela. The entire story is based on information received, but there are no counter arguments. Never.



When we visited Sambhal to talk to the people after three of its youth had been linked to Al Qaeda, one of the first questions people asked us was: why would Al Qaeda chose a Class 5 passout (Mohammed Asif) as its India head? Surely, they would need someone more educated, right? But I digress, so allow me to come back to Sami.



Sami, who is said to be 32 years old, was arrested from a Punwana Masjid on Sunday night and is said to be an Al-Qaeda operative and was mentored by Abdul Rehman (37), the cleric from Jagatpur, Orissa in December. The Special Cell also told media persons that he was radicalised as early as 2001, in short, when he was 18. By Rehman, who would have been 23 in 2001? Let us assume this to be true.

For the next 13 years, however, according to the cops the only thing that Sami did was go to Pakistan in 2014, even though his father is sure that his son has never been abroad. Sami is said to have come as an Al-Qaeda operative, but according to his father, the Class 12 dropout, who had found school to be difficult, was unemployed and spent most of his time at home. Sounds weird? Al Qaeda operative who had nothing to do but sit at home? His father also said that he was not sure if his son had a passport or not. He could have denied that he had one, but he remained brutally honest in this tough moment. The same cannot be said of others.



According to sources in Mewat, about a dozen people arrived from Bihar and Jharkhand on January 1 and 2. While one Hindi paper has said the same, another paper said about 23 people had arrived in the city for the Tableeghi Jamaat meeting. On Sunday night, a team of Delhi Police Special Cell along with the local police arrived at a Punwana Masjid. The team asked for people who had come from Jamshedpur, and four people came forward. Of these, three were taken to the police station, following which some members of Jamaat also went to the local police station. One of them, whose name was Mohammed Sajid, was released at the police station itself, while two, Abdul Sami and Mohammed Qasim, were detained. The next morning, Qasim was released, while Sami was later identified in the news as an Al Qaeda operative.

The Hindi media in Ranchi had a field day, printing one story after another over how Jamshedpur is the new terror hubSounds familiar? Jamshedpur now joins an increasingly long list of cities that have been dubbed as terrorist hotspots, from where it seems the signals for all the terror attacks are relayed. It joins the likes of Bhatkal, Azamgarh, Sambhal, and even Madhubani (to a lesser extent) as cities that breed terrorists. But do I sound bitter if I ask: how does one associate an entire region with such heinous crimes based on the arrests of people, who, even now, are terrorists allegedly? What makes a city a hub for terror exactly? According to Prabhat Khabar, five arrests in the last 18 years is enough evidence. And mind you, the connections are indeed strong for calling it a terror hub. Of the five cases, one is that of a person accused of the Ansal Plaza blasts around Diwali in 2003 had learnt how to drive in Jamshedpur (surely that is a terror connection!). The other incident sighted is of 2004 when two people, Tarik Akhtar and Noor Mohammed were arrested for allegedly having links with Lashkar-e-Taiba. Both were subsequently acquitted by the court (even the newspaper report admits that) but why let facts get into the middle of a gripping analysis?

It is not just the reporting that can be questioned here: more than that, the supposed tactics of Al-Qaeda need to be looked at also. If a decade ago, luring young, talented, suave, educated Muslims to become terrorists was the ultimate aim of Al-Qaeda and its sister organisations, the Al-Qaeda in Indian Sub-continent (AQIS) seems to have now taken particular interest in hiring uneducated, small-town residents who barely make ends meet as their top officials. Sample this: Mohammed Asif was so broke at the time of his arrest that he had to stop his sons education, leave an unfinished house to move to a smaller place on rent and had a sever back problem. Zafar Masood was unemployed and spent most of his time at home, Sami was unemployed who spent most of his time at home, and of late, had been attending the meetings of Tableeghi Jamaat. Asifs family can barely make ends meet; Masoods family is in a similar situation, and Samis father is retired. None of these families can even pay for a lawyer, let alone fight a case for years.

This article is not meant to exonerate the Muslim leadership either: notice that among these arrests, one name has not been mentioned until now: Maulana Anzar Shah Qasmi. On January 6, Maulana Qasmi was arrested for having links with Al Qaeda. The clerics wasted no time and within five days, more than 150 Muslim clerics and heads of mosques and madrasas across Karnataka held a meeting at the Eidgah grounds in Bengaluru on Monday and decided to extend him all possible legal help The same people have chose to remain silent when Asif, Masood, Rehman and Sami were caught. The clerics efforts seem to extend only for their own, or when they feel like jumping in. Why? No one knows, no one asks.

Among all this, it is also important to remember that in the past, poor Muslims have been targeted mercilessly, jailed for all kinds of accusations and spending years in jails before the courts have come to their rescue. The recent news of Sheikh Mukhtar Hussain, a tailor from Mednipur who spent eight years and seven months in jail on false charges, is an important reminder: once caught, even if by some luck you are free, the live you go back to will never be the same: Hussain was a tailor with children who went to school: after the stint in jail, he now returned to see his kids become tailors too, having left education in order to earn a living.

Mufti Abdul Qayyum, lost 11 years of his life on false charges of being involved in the Akshardham Temple attack. During this period, he lost his father, the childhood of his two sons, and the sanity of his wife. The list of Muslim youth arrested on charges and rotting in jails is one long, dreary read: whether Sami, Masood, Asif and others are innocent or not will be proven by the court, but it seems that their trials have already been conducted by the media and the verdict passed. And like always, there are few questions asked.
Joy is director David O Russells third consecutive collaboration with Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper. However, the spark of their earlier collaborations like Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle is amiss here. Though, Russell accomplished to spark moments of heart-rending emotions at some instances, but the end result is a complete mess.

The movie opens up with a pompous message saying, Inspired by the true stories of daring women. One in particular. Well, this makes up an interesting case for making a Film, which is clearly a larger tribute to women entrepreneurs.

And, this is where the problem lies. While making his film a universal case for female visionaries, Russell loses his track and miserably fails to glorify the real hero Joy Mangano.

Lawrence, as Joy, struggles to maintain her calm and composure, while struggling to be a good mother and a proud daughter at the same time. She lives with her mother Terry (Virginia Madsen), grandmother Mimi (Diane Ladd), ex-husband Tony (Edgar Ramirez), father Rudy (Robert De Niro) and two children. As evidenced, Mimi is the only one who reminds Joy of her creative abilities every now and then, which only leads to Joy inventing a new mop after having moppedred wine on a boat that belonged to her dads new girlfriend Trudy (Rossellini).

The film unspools with a voiceover by Joys grandmother to introduce the characters including Joys soap opera addicted mother, husband, children, father, stepsister and best friend. Russell is indeed a brilliant writer and a wonderful creator of characters, but in this flick he fails to do so. Every character that appears in the film is written as a service to Joy only.

This is the main reason why the movie seriously fails to hold the level of excitement.

It is evident that Russell and his co-screenwriter Annie Mumolo dont plan to get to the point straight away. They rather twist and entangle the plot with weird dreaminess, bizarre dizziness and crooked craziness to create a mess thats easy to understand, but difficult to digest.

Its a very interesting situation for audiences to feel inspired by a young entrepreneurial underdog. Yet the weirdness of this film sometimes makes it an entertaining watch, and at other instances a disconcerting torture.

The performances are mediocre, very mediocre. Bradley Coopers performance is, frankly, pretty dull. Its clearly not Coopers fault, but a flavourless script is to be blamed for such an abysmal act by a wonderful actor. Edgar Ramirez, as Tony, tries to emote well to show his concern for Joy at various points in the film. On the other hand, Robert De Niro has precious little to do in a role that he can perform with eyes closed.

It is Lawrences dauntingly confident performance that stands out of the rest.

Joy is a brilliantly written character, and the only one. She has some top-notch sequences with her father that reaffirms her stature as one of the best. Watch out for the sequence, when Joy storms out of her dads garage and then relieves her pain by some pump-action at the shooting range. The moment when Joy signs the bankruptcy documents and breaks out in front of her daughter and tears the designs of the magic mop will sweep you off your feet.

Overall, Joy leaves you with an eternal sense of disappointment, thinking that the idea couldve portrayed a lot more than it did. You will feel that Russell owes you something even after leaving the theatre, but thats a lot to expect from him.

Rating: 
One of the famous lines of George Orwell's book "1984" is:

Every record has been destroyed or falsified, every book rewritten, every picture has been repainted, every statue and street building has been renamed, every date has been altered. And the process is continuing day by day and minute by minute. History has stopped. Nothing exists except an endless present in which the Party is always right.

Orwell has been quoted frequently inNew Orleans after a December 6-1 vote by the City Council to approve Mayor Landrieu's request toremove four monuments to men and veterans honored for lifetime efforts and achievements.

Additional monuments are to be evaluated.

After four non-profits joined together to file a lawsuit to stop the removal, the Mayor's office admitted in January during a court hearing it was in private discussions with a museum to display thepriceless monuments.

Most New Orleans' residents assume the museum referenced is part of a slave museum program begun by Louisiana Attorney John Cummings who remodeled Whitney Plantation as a Slavery Museum, which opened on Dec2014 outsideNew Orleans.

In Mimi Read's article publishedin the New Orleans Advocate, she wrote: "Cummings said he plans to keep expanding the museums offerings and might even open a second facility."

In the Fall of 2015, Mayor Landrieu announced he had a private donor with $170,000.00 to cover the cost to remove the four monuments.

Cummings said that Robert E. Statue does not belong on an eighty-foot pedestalsince he fought for slavery. Robert E. Lee, whose is the "Lee" of Washington and Lee University has been honoredby Congress, and numerous building dedicated for his character.

In 1856 Lee wrote to his wife onthe evils of slavery. "....In this enlightened age, there are few I believe, but what will acknowledge, that slavery as an institution, is a moral & political evil in any Country."

As President of Washington University, whichadded Lee's name, Lee argued and won over Congress that the defeated ConfederateSoldiers should be allowed to vote.However Congress placed many other hardship laws and taxes on the defeated Confederates, which lead to bankruptcy for many.

In 1874, a rebellion happened in New Orleans against the Governor and Lt. Governor, more than twenty died in the fighting. Eleven were police officers, who died defending an African-American Lt. Gov. C.C. Antoine.

Later a marker was added and written: "A Lesson of the Past thatShould Teach Lessons for the Future."

Forward to Iraq2007-2014.

The US toppled Saddam'sSunniPartyGovernment, and Shites took power and sought revenge on the defeated Sunni. Years later ISIS emerged from senior figures once part of Saddam Hussein's Military.The lessons of the US Civil War Reconstruction Past were not learned for Iraq.

That marker with its message is to be sent to a warehouse before possibly heading to a museum viaprivate negotiations.

Two other Monuments face the same Re-purposing.

PGT Beauregard, designed and supervised much of New Orleans Railroads and Streetcar lines. He invented a system of cable-powered railway cars.He served as supervisor of the Louisiana Lottery and Adjutant General of the Louisiana State Militia.Beauregard organized 100 bi-racial families in New Orleans to unify the school district.

Jefferson Davis and his brotherput in a program forslaves to accumulate wealth, education, and management skills on their Hurricane Plantation in the 1850s. Benjamin Montgomery, a slave,excelledin purchasing, shipping, and facilities.Montgomery designed awater propeller and sought a Patten.The Davis's sold and financed the purchase ofthe plantation to Montgomery.

However Lee,Beauregard, and Davis have been describedas murderers.

New Orleans has learned George Orwell.
At least 22 people were killed after armed Al-Shabab fighters attacked beachfront restaurant in the Somali capital, setting off a car bomb earlier at 16:30 (GMT) which rammed into the popular restaurant known as Beach View. As of 23:05 (GMT) Alshabab continue to hold Beachview and lido restaurant under siege.

Witnesses on the ground described that the attackers wore suicide vests and fully loaded with AK47 forced their way into the second restaurant known as Lido Seafood. Pro-al-Shabaab website Caasimada is reported that al-Shabaab beheaded 3 people, thrown their heads out of windows.

Al-Shabab spokesman Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab told Reuters: "We are inside and control the cafe. There are many casualties lying inside and outside the cafe."

Lido beach is in northern Mogadishu, popular with residents on Somalia weekend which falls on a Thursdays and Fridays. The Somali Prime Minister, Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke, condemned the attack and tweeted "I unreservedly condemn the barbaric attack @ Lido. My thoughts and prayers are with the victims #Somalia" @SomaliPM.

Alshabab gave serval warnings to the public to refrain from Lido beach since Ramadan last year (June, 2015). The beach front restaurants are also very popular with government officials, aid workers and foreign visitors.

Beach View restaurant also host a wide range of annual events, some with an international presence such as TEDx Mogadishu.

Last week an African Union peacekeeping (AMISOM) base was attacked by Al-Shabab leaving over 61 Kenyan forces dead and 31 hostages. There is growing resentment on twitter and inside Mogadishu on how effective AMISOM role is in Somalia.

@jjzalim tweets "Amisom earn 1500$ so no one can expect rescue or protection from them #LidoBeachAttack".

Somalia National Army is underfunded and tainted with corruption in a recently published by UN Monitoring Group for Somalia and Eritrea. With elections expected for 2016, can Somalia build a government that will eradicate or reconcile with Al-Shabab ? or will 2016 lead to another power vacuum.

Get updatedmore at blasting news:
DTD Signs Up For Bravo, GVC to Sell Kalixa, and Merger Given Green Light

January 22 2016 Matthew Pitt Editor

Dusk Till Dawn (DTD) is set to adopt the BRAVO Poker System in its Nottingham-based casino after its management team signed a deal with Genesis Gaming Solutions, owners of the renowned poker room management system.

BRAVO is widely used in the United States with the majority of casinos in Las Vegas signed up to the system. It enables poker room teams to make faster decisions such a rulings at the tables and keeping the correct number of tables open. The BRAVO system also monitors the action at the tables then analyses the data, which it then uses to generate information to improve the gaming experience.

One of the key features of BRAVO, and one that is sure to be a hit with DTDs players, is the ability for players to add themselves to cash game lists and even pre-register for tournaments.

Rob Yong, owner of DTD, said in a press release, I am really proud of my team at DTD and when we reviewed the BRAVO poker system this message was reinforced. We had built our own poker system 10 years ago and there were huge similarities with BRAVO so it was great to see the leading system in the world was like ours and with some great new additions on top. I am particularly excited to see the reaction of the players to the pre-registration player app function which will create a better experience for everyone when ready later this year.

Spains Casino Gran Madrid, the venue for the European Poker Tour (EPT) Grand Final in Season 7 and an EPT festival in Season 8, has also signed up for the BRAVO system.

GVC Holdings Look Set to Offload Payments Division

In November 2015, a UK & Ireland PokerNews article revealed GVC Holdings had already rejected offers for bwin.party assets despite its 1.1 billion takeover not being completed. However, in a recent interview with The Telegraph, GVCs chief executive, Kenny Alexander, revealed it is likely GVC will sell parts of bwin.partys payments business during 2016.

Kalixa began life as bwins internal payments department, but has now grown and it manages transactions for other companies and retailers.

Well probably look at maybe disposing bits of that. Weve has very early discussions, said Alexander.

Alexander also revealed that GVC is not looking to sell bwin.partys successful Foxy Bingo brand and that GVC would be looking to acquire more businesses once the 1.1 billion reverse takeover of bwin is completed; a date of February 1, 2016 has been set for this to happen.

GVC is currently listed on the Alternative Investment Mark (AIM) but Alexander aims to have the new, larger company listed on the FTSE 250 and then the FTSE 100. The FTSE 250 is a capitalisation-weighted index consisting of the 101st to 350th largest companies on the London Stock Exchange, with the FTSE 100 being the largest 100 companies.

Paddy Power and Betfair Merger Nears Completion

As 2015 drew to a close, the United Kingdoms Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) cleared the near 10 billion merger of Betfair and Paddy Power, but the companies needed the blessing of The Republics Competition and Consumer Protection Commission before completing the merger.

The Irish authorities last week gave the merger the green light, paving the way for the companies to merge on February 2, 2016, subject to the British high court approving a scheme of arrangement.

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http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/features/ideology-not-tactics-killed-trumpcare-w494720 "There was no plan in that seven years, an...
Chinese student shot to fame in Iran for role in TV series Updated: 2016-01-22 15:14 (chinadaily.com.cn)

Zhang Menghan, a fluent Persian-speaking student at the University of Tehran. [Photo/Xinhua]

A female Chinese student studying in Iran became well-known across the country after recently playing a role in Iran's top TV series The Capital.

The Capital, now into its fourth season, mainly tells the story of a truck driver and his family from an ordinary village in northern Iran. The show has been a popular since its inception in 2012.

Zhang Menghan, a fluent Persian-speaking student at the University of Tehran, was recommended by one of her teachers in 2014 to be a crew member before shooting the third season.

In The Capital 3, Arastu married Chun Chang (played by Zhang), a Chinese maid he met in a restaurant on his way to Iran from Turkey.

Zhang said the crew members encouraged and helped her adapt to the filming despite her lack of acting experience.

The series aired at 10pm during the month of Ramadan, a prime time for TV stations in the Islamic world and Zhang's role brought many compliment from the audiences.

Zhang said she was so popular that she was getting recognized by Iranian friends when she went out in public.

In 2015, Zhang joined the cast and crew members of The Capital for their fifth season in which Arastou searched for his missing Chinese wife. His journey eventually takes him to China.

For the first time ever, some parts of the TV series were filmed in Beijing, including the famous Great Wall and Tian'anmen Square.

The Capital helped more Iranians get a better understanding of China as many Chinese cultural elements were displayed in the series.
Ye-Sho Chen: Making studies come to life Updated: 2016-01-22 11:30 By May Zhou in Houston(China Daily USA)

The professor at Louisiana State University plays key role in facilitating Chinese investment for US state

The work of Ye-Sho Chen, professor and director of globalization at the E. J. Ourso College of Business at Louisiana State University (LSU), goes way beyond the classroom.

He is frequently consulted by the Louisiana Economic Development Agency on attracting Chinese investment, he serves on the international committee of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber and teaches entrepreneurship with higher education institution partners in China and Brazil.

He also keeps in touch with many of his students, some of whom have become entrepreneurs in different countries after graduating from LSU.

Through his connections, business relationships have been forged across oceans and borders.

Chen's passion for turning academic teaching and learning into practical action came from his early experiences. He had a hard time finding work after graduating from Taiwan's National Cheng Kung University as a math major, despite all of the scholarships he had won in college.

"I realized that academic pursuits were often disconnected from society, and I have been pondering this issue since I began my PhD," he said.

In 1985, Chen secured a position at LSU after graduating from Purdue.

"When I came to Baton Rouge, it was very similar to today. Oil prices were low and the economy hit the bottom in 1988 when many factories were closed and massive unemployment followed. I began to pay attention to economic development and how to connect what we teach in school to practice in the real world," recalled Chen.

In 1988, in order to help the state develop and diversify the local economy, LSU established a business incubator on campus, and Chen has been involved with it ever since.

In 2000, Chen was invited to the Chinese mainland to introduce US business models.

"I visited Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, and found that a lot of Chinese manufacturers wanted to export their products to the US, and I realized that there was a lot of potential and demand. People in China needed to understand how to do business in the US," said Chen.

Chen discussed his findings with LSU leadership and colleagues. With their support, he spearheaded and helped establish the China Initiative at LSU in 2006. Working with Central University of Finance and Economics in Beijing and other higher education institutions in China, Chen undertook the task of teaching the Chinese how to develop their businesses globally.

Under the China Initiative, Chen developed an innovative entrepreneurial curriculum for Chinese small and medium-sized enterprises going abroad. Titled Flying High, Landing Soft, the curriculum has benefited more than a few Chinese entrepreneurs who had ambitions to develop their businesses beyond China.

One of Chen's Chinese students, with the help of the LSU incubator and Chen, formed the company Hitlights, which markets LED lighting in Baton Rouge. It succeeded and continues to grow. Another student of Chen's successfully built a renewable energy company which has transformed from doing business between China and the US to a multi-nation global enterprise.

"Asia-East, a pharmaceutical company in Beijing, was so impressed with our program that they sent people to study with us in 2010. Although they postponed their plans to enter the US market because opportunities in China at that time were greater than in the US, they are now planning to come to the US and are already armed with the knowledge of how to penetrate the US market," said Chen.

When LED selected 10 countries as its top choices for seeking international investment, LSU formed a partnership with a top university in Brazil, and the China Initiative was broadened into an emerging market program under Chen's leadership. Last year, LSU further expanded it to its current globalization program to include all international business, with Chen as director.

Chen enjoys establishing real relationships with his students that last beyond their school years.

"I found that a lot of international students are hungrier probably because most of them came from less wealthy countries. I like to find out what their passions are, what kind of resources they can offer and I try to help them with my connections and resources through the incubator. In turn, they become my resources also," said Chen.

Under the US supply diversity program, large corporations are required to help small companies become suppliers, and Chen said he had helped to connect local suppliers in Louisiana with some Chinese manufacturers over the years. This network benefits Chen's students and business partnerships have been formed from China to the US, Brazil and Africa.

Chen has been on the international committee of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber since 2008, and has often been consulted by the LED when it comes to international investment, especially when Louisiana actively seeks investment from China.

"I often provide translations and pertinent information to them for free, and give them tips when they lead delegations to China," said Chen.

When representatives from Heze, Shandong first visited Baton Rouge in 2007, the mayor of Baton Rouge asked Chen to interpret for them.

"Afterwards, the mayor wanted me to find out what kind of city Heze was. I had served as advisor for the Chinese Student Association at LSU for a few years, so I sent a notice to the association. The next day, five Chinese students showed up to tell me all about Heze. Then I made a report to the mayor," recalled Chen.

Last year, Shandong Yuhuang Chemical from Heze made a $1.8 billion investment in Louisiana to build a large chemical plant complex by the Mississippi River.

Chen likes bringing his relationships - with government, students, companies and business organizations - together to make things happen.

"When I connect people, stories happen, and I like to teach business by telling stories," he said.

mayzhou@chinadailyusa.com
Sally Tsou: Chinese art teacher enlightens young pupils Updated: 2016-01-22 11:30 By Hua Shengdun in Washington(China Daily USA)

Almost every child at the Fillmore Arts Center in Washington knows Ms Tsou, a visual arts teacher who draws beautiful bamboo and water lilies by a Chinese brush.

Sally Tsou is not only a teacher at the center but an active artist who has been invited to multiple international exhibitions around the world. She was born in Shanghai, raised in Taiwan and came to the United States at age 18.

As a Chinese artist, Tsou believes she has a lot to offer in terms of introducing Chinese culture to young generations in the US.

"Although it feels tiring to switch between the two roles, I would never quit being an art teacher," Tsou said. "I think art can transcend language and prejudice to convey culture."

Tsou explained that a water lily grows in mud, yet never is contaminated, so that is a way to describe integrity. But some of the students still do not understand, Tsou said.

However, one third grader said: "If my friends ask me to play outside, I refuse to join them because I have to finish my homework first. I can be called water lily."

All his classmates got the point, she said.

"I'm convinced art can be a cultural carrier that explains complicated Chinese philosophy by a vivid and direct way. That is why my students can learn so much from water lilies in Chinese painting," Tsou said.

At first, Tsou did not expect her art class would become the most popular art program at the center. "I have 29 students in my class, which is the biggest class size at the center," she said.

Tsou believes it is the Chinese elements of her class that pupils find most appealing.

Her class is distinctively different from other art classes, which are based on European oil painting and artistic values, according to Tsou. "The students have never used Chinese brush to draw bamboo and water lily. For them, it is very creative and cool," she said.

"Boys in third grade are crazy about drawing bamboo; their parents cut off bamboo from their backyard, and one of the boys bought me Chinese lucky bamboo," Tsou said, pointing to the bamboo at her desk.

Tsou said that parents and children find her class refreshing because they usually associate art with Europe. Chinese art emphasizes simplicity and encourages people to use their imagination, Tsou said.

This European art-dominated mentality is something Tsou said she wants to change by teaching youngsters Chinese art. People need to know there are more options beyond European arts, she said.

When Tsou decided to study fine arts in a US college, she was surprised that there was no Chinese art and few Asian arts in the curriculum.

"Though I was bored by the courses, I did learn a lot about Western arts and the methodologies of creating paintings and sculptures," she said.

Tsou believes that what she learned in college enabled her to combine Chinese arts with Western arts so that she can spread Chinese arts and culture in a way that Westerners would understand.

Tsou not only teaches Chinese arts like brush painting and ceramics but Western arts, too. That way, students can compare the different art forms, she said.

Tsou presents a Chinese brush painting and European oil painting side by side to her pupils. They feature the same subject, a mountain. She lets students explain the differences so that they can better understand composition, color and texture in different cultural contexts.

She still remembers The Rise, one of her exhibitions in which all the works were painted by brushes. Tsou said the exhibition best represents the Chinese element in her works because it shows simplicity.

"A mountain was drawn just by a couple of brushstrokes, which is simple yet powerful," Tsou said. The painting was sold to a French buyer for $10,000. He was deeply connected to the painting and it helped him to get through the darkest time of his life, according to Tsou.

For young Chinese-American artists, Tsou suggests they take risks and continuously try to express new ideas.

"I often hear young artists say: 'This is it, there is no other way,' " she said. "They are too young to say that. They should reach out to other artists to learn and to connect with them. They can combine new ideas, methodologies to add into their own art."

Tsou said she used to be shy but studying in the US has made her more expressive and honest to herself and her fellow artists.

Two of Tsou's students visited her international exhibition in Washington on Jan 9.

Quinn Defilipes, a third grader whose favorite thing to do is draw bamboo since he started taking Tsou's class, said: "Ms Tsou taught us how to draw bamboo by Chinese brush; it was so cool. I will keep signing up for her classes until I get into middle school."

"Many of the parents talked to me about my class," Tsou said. "They really like to see that their children can be exposed to more diverse art environments and get some hands-on experience in art class. One parent even told me her child used to be obsessed with the iPad after school and now he also wants to do some artworks like drawing bamboo and water lilies, according to Tsou.

"Everyone in school loves Ms Tsou; we hope there will be more teachers like her," Quinn's mother said.

Pan Jialiang in Washington contributed to this story.

Sally Tsou's painting Phenix. It is made of materials including ink, oil and glasses, which Tsou said symbolize the rise of a phenix. Provided to China Daily
'Island defenses depend on threat': PLAN chief Updated: 2016-01-22 12:44 By LI Xiao Kun in Beijing Chen Weihua in Washington(China Daily USA)

The number of military facilities China builds on its South China Sea islands will depend upon the level of threat it faces, People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) chief told his US counterpart on Wednesday in a video teleconference.

Admiral Wu Shengli, PLAN commander, stressed that Beijing does not seek militarization.

This month, Beijing landed three commercial airplanes on Yongshu Jiao in the Nansha Islands. While Vietnam, the Philippines and the US protested, Beijing said its sovereignty over the region is indisputable.

Earlier in January, the Foreign Ministry confirmed that China had completed an airfield on Yongshu Jiao, China's southernmost airfield.

Wu told US Chief of Naval Operations Admiral John Richardson that the landings were made to see whether the airport was up to civilian airline standards, according to China's Ministry of National Defense.

This would better help China meet its international obligations and provide more public service to other countries, Wu said.

The two-hour discussion was the third time the two have engaged with each other through video teleconferencing, the previous time being last October. Conversations between the two heads of navy serve to establish a dialogue that reduces the risk of miscalculation between their two forces, the US Navy said in a press release.

"Our necessary defensive step of building on islands and reefs in the Nansha Islands is not militarization, but that interpretation has been maliciously hyped up by certain countries and media," Wu told Richardson.

He said any militarization would depend on the purpose of the construction and how the facilities are used once they are completed.

"We will certainly not seek the militarization of the islands and reefs, but we won't neglect to set up defenses. The extent of military defense measures depends completely upon the level of threat we face," Wu said.

The Chinese navy has the ability and determination to protect the sovereignty and security of the Nansha Islands, he said.

Richardson added in a news release that the US Navy would continue sailing in and flying over the South China Sea and the rest of the world in accordance with international law.

He told Wu that 2015 was the "most productive year" for the development of bilateral ties between the Chinese and US navies.

"I value these discussions - face-to-face interaction and frank exchanges help build a personal connection that benefits both our navies now and into the future," Richardson said.

The two naval chiefs highlighted progress in the relationship between the US Navy and PLAN, noting successful exchanges and visits that occurred during 2015. Each conveyed a willingness to build on that progress in 2016.

Both admirals discussed upcoming opportunities to meet in-person for the first time later this year, according to a US Navy press release.

In October, China was angered that a US Navy ship sailed near one of the islands. The Pentagon said it plans additional patrols in the future.

Zhu Feng, executive director of the Collaborative Innovation Center of South China Sea Studies at Nanjing University, said that as China makes a huge investment in construction on islands in the South China Sea, "it is impossible to not set up defenses there".

"However, making some defense cannot be equated with militarization. Those are two different concepts," he said.

The US is unlikely to end its navigation of the South China Sea, Zhu said, and the impact that has on regional stability depends on "how much it will threaten China's sovereignty and security".

US Deputy Secretary of State Anthony Blinken visited China on Wednesday and Thursday to prepare for a trip to Beijing on Jan 27 by Secretary of State John Kerry. Tensions arising from North Korea's nuclear test and in the South China Sea are likely to be among major topics discussed.

Chinese President Xi Jinping said during his state visit to Washington last September that China has no intention of militarizing its facilities in the South China Sea.

Douglas Paal, vice-president for studies and director of the Asia program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, believes the US will try to nail down that commitment and test for any change.

"China will have complaints about freedom of navigation exercises and perceived US interference," Paal said.

Visiting Washington early this week, Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull described President Xi's commitment to the South China Sea as genuine and he called on the US to ratify the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Reuters contributed to this story.

Contact the writers at lixiaokun@chinadaily.com.cn and chenweihua@chinadailyusa.com
Man arrested in fatal hit-and-run Updated: 2016-01-22 12:44 By Paul Welitzkin in New York(China Daily USA)

Police have arrested a man in connection with a hit-and-run that killed a Chinese immigrant who was riding his bicycle.

Junior Hicks, 31, of Queens in New York, was charged on Wednesday with leaving the scene of an accident resulting in the death of Can Reng Ma, police said. Hicks was the driver of a Ryder rental truck that struck Ma, 54, on Tuesday as he was riding his bicycle on Avenue U near East 9th Street in the Sheepshead Bay section of Brooklyn at around 5 pm. Ma, riding parallel to the truck, apparently swerved to avoid hitting a parked vehicle when he went under the truck, police said.

Ma was rushed to a nearby hospital where he died from injuries to his pelvis and lungs, family members told the New York Daily News.

Ma's daughter, Yanping Ma, said her family immigrated to the US from Taishan in Guangdong province in 2007 in search of a better life. Before coming to the US, her father worked for the local government in their hometown.

Her father worked at New Sunrise Lumber Inc in Brooklyn. "His work is so hard, he always left very early in the morning regardless rain or shine," Yanping Ma told the China Press.

Yanping Ma is in her last semester at Hunter College in New York, majoring in nursing. Ma said that she always told her father that after graduation he would not have to work as hard because she would take care of the family.

"I really want to ask him (driver of the truck) why he (did) that to my father and leave my father there. Maybe if he had stopped and called 911, he'd still be alive," the Daily News quoted her as saying.

The hit-and-run happened hours after Mayor Bill de Blasio proclaimed that the city's streets were the safest they have ever been with traffic fatalities and pedestrian deaths at their lowest since 1910, the first year statistics were kept.

The number of traffic-related fatalities fell to 231 in 2015 from 257 in 2014. But the number of hit-and-runs increased, according to the data. In 2014, there were 4,343 hit-and-runs causing injuries. In 2015, there were 4,754, a 10 percent increase over the 4,343 in 2014. The mayor has launched an ambitious street safety agenda called Vision Zero.

Hong Xiao contributed to this story.

paulwelitzkin@chinadailyusa.com
China reaffirms its effort on Korean peninsular denuclearization Updated: 2016-01-22 20:32 (Xinhua)

BEIJING - China reaffirmed its effort on promoting denuclearization and stability on the Korean peninsula on Friday.

"China has always been a supporter to the international nuclear non-proliferation regime, a contributor to peace and stability on the Korean peninsula and a promoter of resolving issues via dialogue," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei said at a daily press briefing in response to a question about an article by two American scholars hailing China's role on the peninsular nuclear issue.

The article, published in the South China Morning Post on Wednesday, was written by American political historian John Kotch and Columbia University professor Charles Armstrong, who said the world should be thanking China, not rebuking it, for its role on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

The two wrote that Beijing has used dialogue, not confrontation, over the past 40 years to promote denuclearization and stability on the Korean peninsula.

"China adheres to achieving denuclearization of the peninsula and has made its due efforts," Hong said.

China hopes relevant parties could adhere to their responsibilities and obligations so as to work for an early solution to the Korean peninsula nuclear issue, Hong said.
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Patriarch Sako: Iraqi Assyrian Monastery Destruction "a Disaster"

St. Elijah's Monastery, the oldest Assyrian monastery in Iraq, near Mosul, was razed by ISIS. The head of the Chaldean Church and Archbishop of Baghdad, Patriarch Louis Sako has described the destruction by jihadists of the ancient monastery of St Elijah near the city of Mosul as an attempt to wipe out the history and heritage of Christianity in Iraq. New satellite images confirmed that St Elijah's monastery which dated back to the 6th century has been razed to the ground. Patriarch Sako was asked by Susy Hodges for his reaction to the news. St Elijah's monastery belonged to the Chaldean Church and was one of Iraq's most ancient Christian monasteries and Patriarch Sako described its destruction as "a disaster." He said that through this action against ancient Christian sites, the jihadists are seeking to "cancel the memory" of the Church's history and heritage in Iraq. The Chaldean Patriarch noted that the nearby city of Mosul had been in the past a "totally Christian city" and as a result it contained many historic monasteries and churches dating back to the early centuries after Christ. Archbishop Sako said he feared that all these ancient buildings could be destroyed in the same way in the future. St Elijah's monastery was named after the monk of the same name who built it in the 6th century. It had been a holy site for Iraqi Christians for centuries. In 1743, its monks were given an ultimatum by Persian forces to convert to Islam. They refused and as many as 150 were massacred whilst the monastery building sustained heavy damage. St. Elijah's Monastery, the oldest Assyrian monastery in Iraq, near Mosul, was razed by ISIS. Before its destruction by the IS militants, the monastery had 26 distinctive rooms including a sanctuary and chapel, although its roof was largely missing. Since taking control of large areas of Iraq and Syria in 2014, the IS group has damaged or destroyed a large number of monasteries, churches and mosques as well as ancient monuments in Nineveh, Palmyra and Hatra.
By ABEL URIBE/CHICAGO TRIBUNE

Melanie Walchli, 20, smokes during a downtown Chicago walk on Jan. 14. She said she supports the idea of raising the minimum age to buy tobacco. Mayor Rahm Emanuel is proposing raising the minimum age to buy tobacco from 18 to 21.
Big oil lines up to battle kids in climate court case





By Alex Pashley Last updated on 15/01/2016, 12:12 pmThree US trade associations representing the worlds energy giants have been named defendants in a court case brought by young Americans, in a move they say shows the stakes are high.The American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM), the American Petroleum Institute (API), and the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) joined the US government in the case on Wednesday, after a magistrate in the Oregon district court agreed an adverse ruling would be a threat to their business.In August, 21 young plaintiffs charged the federal government with violating their constitutional right to life, liberty and property, by failing to prevent dangerous climate change. Renowned scientist James Hansen is backing the case.They want the administration to deepen carbon emission cuts in line with what science says need to be done to avoid catastrophic levels of global warming.
Christine Lagarde (pictured) picked up nominations from across Europe for a second term as leader of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as part of a selection process that member nations intend to complete by early March. Germany, France and the UK all came out for Lagarde, whose current term ends on July 5. Aleksei Mozhin, dean of the fund's executive board, said in an e-mailed statement on Wednesday that the board aims to reach a decision by consensus. Individuals can be nominated by a fund governor or executive director through February 10, the Washington-based institution ...
Around 10,000 people staged a mass protest in the Moldovan capital Chisinau today as tensions in the pro-Western nation flared following the secret midnight swearing-in of a new government.

Lawmakers of the impoverished former Soviet republic yesterday approved a new government amid political turmoil, with protesters storming the parliament building and opposition legislators attempting to block the vote.

The swearing-in of the new cabinet has exacerbated tensions over alleged high-level corruption in the country of 3.5 million wedged between Ukraine and Romania.

Opposition protesters marched along the capital's main avenues in sub-zero temperatures and rallied in front of the parliament building, which was blocked off by a police cordon six rows deep.

Clutching state flags, protesters urged the authorities to hold snap elections as they chanted "down with the government" and "down with parliament."



"Yesterday we were cheated, they trampled on democracy, freedoms, human rights and laws," opposition leader Andrei Nastase said.

"All of this is happening because Moldova's chief oligarch Vlad Plahotniuc usurped the country," he said, referring to one of the targets of the protests.

Plahotniuc, one of Moldova's richest men, is accused of using his fortune to meddle in politics.

Another opposition leader, Renato Usatii, vowed protesters would "topple this regime."



"Down with thieves and the illegal government!" he said, pledging to continue the protest tomorrow.

Some protest leaders met with parliament speaker Andrian Candu who said afterwards that "there are too few reasons to hold snap elections", and urged giving the new government a chance to work.

Security meanwhile has been tightened to prevent a repeat of yesterday's clashes.

Moldova has been locked in political crisis over a USD 1-billion corruption scandal that triggered mass demonstrations and the arrest of Vlad Filat, who served as prime minister from 2009 to 2013.

President Nicolae Timofti has endorsed the new government despite the protests.

"I hope that this government, formed following a long period of political instability and the government's temporary fulfilment of its obligations, can competently and skillfully govern in this difficult situation," Timofti said in a statement after the swearing-in ceremony.
The Centre has objected to the Punjab government releasing a survey on opioid-dependent population in the state and asked it to immediately remove it from its website as the report has not been yet officially accepted by it.

According to the senior government officials, the survey was conducted by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and the report was sent to Punjab government for its comments.

But instead of giving its comments and suggestions, the state government uploaded it on its official website, officials said.

As per the survey report, there are about 2.3 lakh opioid dependent people in Punjab, of whom 76 per cent are aged between 18 and 35 years. The findings also indicate that there is a huge illegal market for opioid drugs in Punjab and that opioids worth Rs 7,500 crore are consumed every year.

"Before we accept the report, we wanted to have the comments of the Punjab government on the report. Accordingly, it was forwarded to Jaspal Singh, Principal Secretary, for his comments on November 26, 2015. The comments are still awaited.

"It has further been pointed out to us that the report has been placed on the website of the Department of Health, Government of Punjab," said the letter sent to the chief secretary, Punjab government.

"I would be grateful if you could personally look into the matter and direct the authority concerned to remove the contents from the official website at the earliest as this report has not been accepted by the ministry yet," the letter said.

The survey 'Punjab Opioid Dependence Survey' (PODS) was jointly conducted by the Society for Promotion of Youth and Masses and the National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre of AIIMS.

The survey covered 3,620 opioid dependent individuals across 10 districts -- Bathinda, Ferozepur, Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Moga, Patiala, Sangrur, Tarn Taran -- which together house about 60 per cent of the population of Punjab.
A Chinese journalist who said he was fed up with a life as a government informant and fled China last year has been missing from Thailand since January 11, his wife said today, raising concerns he might have been abducted by Beijing.

He Fangmei said she last spoke to her husband, Li Xin, around 7:40 am on January 11, when he was riding a train from Bangkok to Nong Khai in northeast Thailand. She said she fears the journalist was taken back to China by Chinese security forces.

Li, formerly a website editor for a Chinese media group, fled last October to India, where he told the media he could no longer bear working as a secretive informant for the Chinese government.

Li's wife said he was planning to seek asylum in Thailand before he went missing.

The journalist's vanishing is the latest in a string of disappearances of activists in Southeast Asia that have raised suspicions of Chinese involvement.

Last October, Hong Kong publisher Gui Minhai suddenly disappeared from his apartment in Pattaya, Thailand. Gui only emerged late Tuesday on China's state broadcaster, where he said he returned to China to turn himself in for an old crime, although his friends insist Gui was forcibly taken away.

Four other people connected to the publishing company that sells gossip books on China's politics and politicians have disappeared.

One of them, Lee Bo, has claimed he returned to China voluntarily through handwritten notes to his wife, but supporters believe he was kidnapped and smuggled into mainland.

Beijing also took back the teenager son of a detained rights lawyer from Myanmar after he fled China.

Li, 37, escaped from China in October to India, where he revealed he had been an informant for the government. He said he was coerced into the role after the government detained him on suspicion of endangering state security for sharing information with the rival Taiwanese government.

"I believe there are many people like me who are working on behalf of the authoritarian government. But I cannot be one of them," Li said in a recent interview from New Delhi. "This kind of work goes against my own nature, and I was extremely miserable.
Would Flint crisis happen in wealthy city?

FLINT, Mich. (AP)  Ever since the full extent of the Flint water crisis emerged, one question has persisted: Would this have happened in a wealthier, whiter community?

Residents in the former auto-making hub  a poor, largely minority city  feel their complaints about lead-tainted water flowing through their taps have been slighted by the government or ignored altogether.

The frustration has mostly been directed at Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, who appointed an emergency manager to run Flint. That manager approved a plan in 2013 to begin drawing drinking water from the Flint River, and the city began doing so the next year. But officials failed to treat the corrosive water properly to prevent metal leaching from old pipes.

Crocodile in pool greets homeowners in Florida

ORLANDO, Fla. (TNS)  An unwelcome guest greeted new arrivals to the Florida Keys Thursday: An 8-foot-long crocodile was swimming in the homeowners pool.

The residents are from Pennsylvania and bought the oceanfront house earlier in the week, an official said.

In a photograph, the crocodile appeared to take up most of the shallow end of their brick-lined swimming pool.

Crocodiles like salt water. Theyre also federally protected. The new residents a surprise to them, officials said, but they werent frightened. They may install a fence.

New prime number has 22.3 million digits

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP)  Mathematicians at the University of Central Missouri have discovered a record-setting prime number thats so large it would take about 6,000 pages of paper to print.

The 22.3-million-digit discovery is the 49th known Mersenne prime number and the fourth discovered at the university. Primes are numbers such as 3, 7 and 11 that are divisible only by themselves and 1 without leaving a remainder.

Alabama carries out 1st execution in 2 years

ATMORE, Ala. (AP)  A man convicted of the 1992 rape and beating death of a woman received a lethal injection Thursday in Alabamas first execution in more than two years.

Christopher Eugene Brooks, 43, was pronounced dead at 6:38 p.m. at the Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore, authorities said. The procedure began at 6:06 p.m., shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court had denied a last-minute request for a stay.

Brooks was convicted of capital murder in the death of 23-year-old Jo Deann Campbell, a woman authorities say he first met when they worked at a camp in upstate New York.

Oregon college plans 'Whiteness' Month

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP)  An Oregon college intends to undertake a project on racism that it says examines how white privilege affects peoples daily lives.

Called Whiteness History Month, the project at Portland Community College will look at employment, education and criminal justice systems that carry advantages based on race.

The project set for April also aims to spark conversations about racism.A mong other things, it will ask how whiteness is socially constructed and in what ways does it emerge from a legacy of conquest, colonialism and American enterprise, according to the project website.

Peter Fricke, a reporter for the conservative online news organization Campus Reform, wrote that the school was planning to devote an entire month to whiteness-shaming.
CEDAR FALLS  Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders will be back in the area on Sunday, with four stops throughout the region.

He will be at the following locations on Sunday:

12:30 p.m. at Luther College Regents Center, 700 College Dr., in Decorah. Doors open at 11:30 a.m.

3 p.m. at Upper Iowa University Student Center, 605 Washington St., in Fayette. Doors open at 2 p.m.

5:30 p.m. at Heartland Acres Agribition Center, 2600 Swan Lake Blvd., in Independence. Doors open at 4:30 p.m.

8 p.m. at the University of Northern Iowa West Gymnasium, in Cedar Falls. Doors open at 7 p.m.

Ted Cruz plans Cedar Valley visit

WATERLOO  Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz has a series of events planned throughout the region.

Cruz, a United States senator from Texas, will continue his Cruzin to caucus bus tour in the area on Saturday and Monday, as well as hold a rally in Waterloo on Saturday night.

Cruzs stops are as follows:

5:15 p.m. on Saturday at Slice Ultra Shed, 115 W. Elder St., in Dike.

6:20 p.m. on Saturday at the New Hartford Community Center, 301 Broadway St.

7 p.m. on Saturday at the Five Sullivan Brothers Convention Center, 205 W. Fourth St., in Waterloo, Cruz will join a rally with radio personality Glenn Beck.

3:30 p.m. on Monday at Heartland Acres Agribition Center, 2600 Swan Lake Blvd., in Independence.

The events are free and open to the public.

People can RSVP for the bus tour events through Cruzs website at www.tedcruz.org/events. People can RSVP for the Saturday night rally through the hosting organization Keep the Promise, a political action committee supporting Cruz, at www.keepthepromise.com.

Hillary Clinton sets stops in the area

CEDAR FALLS  Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton will continue her get out the caucus organizing events with stops in Cedar Falls and Decorah on Tuesday.

Her Tuesday stops are as follows:

2:15 p.m. at the Hotel Winneshiek, 104 E. Water St., in Decorah. Doors open at 12:45 p.m.

5:45 p.m. at Gallagher Bluedorn Performing Arts Center, 8201 Dakota St., in Cedar Falls. Doors open at 4:15 p.m.

The events are free and open to the public. People can RSVP online at Clintons website at www.hillaryclinton.com/events.

Stump for Clinton set for Saturday

CEDAR FALLS  Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, will campaign on behalf of Hillary Clinton in Cedar Falls Saturday.

She will be joining actor/producer Tony Goldwyn during a stump at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Maucker Union on the campus of the University of Northern Iowa.

Polls: Cruz, Trump leading the pack

Two new polls say the fight for the top spot in Iowas Republican caucuses continues to be between Donald Trump and Ted Cruz.

A poll from Monmouth College and KBUR-AM in Burlington, released Wednesday, says that Cruz, a senator from Texas, is leading the New York real estate mogul by 27 percent to 25 percent. Retired surgeon Ben Carson is third at 11 percent followed by Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida at 9 percent.

The poll sampled the opinions of 687 likely Republican voters Monday and Tuesday, and it has a margin of error of plus-or-minus 3.7 percentage points.

Separately, a new Loras College poll says that Trump is leading Cruz, 26 percent to 25 percent. Rubio was next at 13 percent and Carson fourth at 8 percent.
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CLUTIER  Mervin Del Sealock, 73, of Clutier, died at home Tuesday, Jan. 19, following a sudden illness.

He was born Feb. 25, 1942, in Waterloo, son of Sheryl and Marlys Mason Sealock. On June 1, 1968, he married Lynda Vogt at St. Nicks Catholic Church, Evansdale; she preceded him in death.

Mervin graduated from Traer High School in 1960 and then attended Iowa State University and Gates Business College. He also was a veteran of the U.S. Army Reserves. He farmed north of Clutier for many years.

Survived by: three sons, Del (Michelle) of Clutier, Ryan (Ashley) of Waterloo and Reece Sealock of San Diego; four grandchildren, Jordan, Amber, Erin and Jacob; and two sisters, Char (Jim) Kokotan of Waterloo and Rosemary (Ned) Vaughn of Traer.

Preceded in death by: his parents; and an infant grandson, Brett.

Visitation: 4 to 7 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 24, at Overton Funeral Home, Traer. Services are private with burial in Buckingham Cemetery, Traer. Military rites will be conducted by Traer American Legion.

Memorials: may be directed to the family.

Condolences can be left at www.overtonservice.com.

Mervin enjoyed bowling, playing cards, talking with friends, driving around and looking at his crops, and spending time with his family, especially his grandchildren.
DES MOINES | A couple dozen opponents of a proposed crude oil pipeline through Iowa rallied at the Iowa Capitol on Thursday. Members of the Bakken Pipeline Resistance Coalition gave prepared remarks and delivered a letter to Gov. Terry Branstad's office, calling on the governor to reject the pipeline project. It would carry crude oil from North Dakota to Illinois, crossing 343 miles and 18 counties in Iowa. Opponents cite environmental concerns and oppose eminent-domain land acquisition proceedings. Supporters cite job create and a reduction in foreign oil dependence.

School funding

Iowa House majority Republicans plan to debate a bill on Monday setting state supplemental aid to schools at 2 percent above current per-pupil spending, House Speaker Linda Upmeyer, R-Clear Lake, said Thursday. Upmeyer expected the split-control Legislature could reach a compromise resolution sometime next week. Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs, said a survey showed Iowa school administrators overwhelmingly support at least a 4 percent increase.

Caucus day off

The Iowa Legislature will not be in session on Feb. 1 so Democratic and Republican lawmakers can attend their local precinct caucuses.

Headlight use

On a 2-1 vote, GOP members of a House transportation subcommittee declined to change state law governing the operation of vehicle headlights under certain conditions. House File 2019 would require the use of headlights or other lighting devices on vehicles at all times during inclement weather. Under current law, automobiles are required to have headlights on when conditions, such as fog, snow, sleet, or rain make it hard to see people and vehicles on the highway 500 feet ahead.
WATERLOO  The fate of a Cedar Falls man accused of trying to lure away a teenage girl and sell drugs to her brother is in the hands of a jury.

Charged with attempt to entice a minor, possession of meth with intent to deliver and possession of Clonazepam with intent to deliver, Roy Alfred Halverson, 35, waived his right to a jury trial and allowed Judge David Odekirk to decide the case based on statements and records filed by investigators.

Assistant County Attorney Jeremy Westendorf said Halverson, a registered sex offender, had approached a 15-year-old girl at the University Studios in Cedar Falls in April and began to pull her by the wrist.

No one in their right mind would think thats OK, Westendorf said. That screams, Ive got bad intent.

He said Halverson asked to use the girls cellphone and then took it and also told her he was packing heat, pretending to have a gun.

After police were called, officers found Halverson with two bags of meth and 30 prescription pills, Westendorf said. He said Halverson had condoms in his pocket.

During a brief Tuesday hearing, defense attorney James Fisher argued against the enticing charge, saying Halverson had only taken about two steps while holding the girls wrist before letting go on his own.

Mr. Halverson made no statement whatsoever of a sexual nature, Fisher said. He said Halverson wandered off with other people after he released his grip, and she followed, apparently unconcerned.

Lots of guys carry condoms, that doesnt make them rapists, Fisher said.

Fisher also said the court shouldnt consider Halversons prior criminal record, which includes a conviction for lascivious acts with a minor stemming from a 2004 incident involving a 9-year-old girl.

Fisher said the possession of meth with intent to deliver should be reduced to the lesser charge of possession of meth because of the small amount of meth involved, but he conceded there wasnt much of an argument against the prescription drug charge.

Odekirk will issue a verdict after reviewing the court file.
DES MOINES (AP)  A man whose second-degree murder conviction was thrown out by the state appeals court must face a new trial in the case in which a mob beat a Des Moines man to death in a downtown parking lot in 2013.

The Iowa Supreme Court on Friday ruled that Kent Tyler III must face a new jury on the charges involving the death of 40-year-old Richard Daughenbaugh.

Tyler, now 20, was convicted of second-degree murder in December 2013 and sentenced to 50 years in prison for the August 2013 slaying of Daughenbaugh. He's been serving the sentence at the state prison in Anamosa.

Witnesses testified that Tyler punched Daughenbaugh after he arrived uninvited at a parking lot where dozens of young people were partying. The witnesses said Tyler's punch knocked Daughenbaugh to the ground and several partygoers attacked him, kicking and stomping him to death.

The appeals court concluded there was insufficient evidence to prove any of the prosecution's three theories implicating Tyler and reversed his conviction.

The Supreme Court's ruling reversed that finding, saying a jury could have convicted him on two of the prosecution theories  principal liability for punching Daughenbaugh and aiding and abetting the crowd in his beating. The third theory  joint criminal conduct  required the state to prove there was a plan in place among several of the crowd participants including Tyler to continue the fight after the Tyler's initial blow to the face that knocked Daughenbaugh to the ground.

While the justices said it's a close question, there's too much speculation required given the facts of the case.

"Having found that the joint criminal conduct theory was not supported by the evidence and should not have been submitted to the jury, we must reverse Tyler's conviction and remand for a new trial," the court said.

The Iowa court noted it is not alone in throwing out verdicts and ordering new trials when one of multiple prosecution theories given to the jury is not supported by evidence. The court listed rulings in Kansas, Massachusetts, Ohio, Oklahoma and Washington.

Prosecutors often present to juries several theories for which they believe they have evidence to prove a crime. In doing so they must prove facts of the case support all the theories alleged.

The court's ruling means Tyler returns to Polk County court for a retrial on the two prosecution theories that remain.

"Obviously we're happy that at least he gets a new trial," said his attorney, Angela Campbell.

Two other men present when Daughenbaugh was beaten also are serving lengthy prison sentences.

James Shorter and Yarvon Russell, both 21, were convicted of second-degree murder in May 2014 and both are in prison on 50-year sentences.

Tyler's half-brother, Le'Prese Williams, was acquitted by the same jury that convicted Shorter and Russell.
WATERLOO  Doctors detailed how they tried to save Shawonyta Marq Norman after he arrived at Covenant Medical Center in 2014 unconscious with no pulse.

Authorities said Norman, 38, had been stabbed several times by his sisters boyfriend, Martez Deroy Smith, on Nov. 25, 2014, following an argument at Smiths West Third Street home. Smith is charged with first-degree murder in Normans death and domestic assault for allegedly shoving his girlfriend, Latres Johnson, Normans sister. and his trial resumed Thursday.

Norman had lost a lot of blood, and paramedics had undertaken the procedure of infusing IV fluids directly into his bone marrow while en route to the hospital, said Dr. Todd Lawrence, an emergency room physician. He said it was a sign of how dire Normans situation was.

The attempts to resuscitate Norman continued when he arrived and Covenant as medical staff attempted to stabilize him enough to get him into surgery. From the outside, doctors knew he suffered a number stab wounds to the cest and abdomen, but they couldnt tell what was going on inside Normans body and were perplexed by Normans lack of blood pressure and heartbeat, which was erratic at best but mostly nonexistent.

Hospital staff began giving Norman blood.

He had four units over 40 minutes, Lawrence said. For blood products, thats a fair amount. We were doing everything possible to save this mans life.

Lawrence said he inserted two tubes into Normans chest to relieve the pressure of blood pushing on the heart, and when that didnt work, surgeon Neil McMahon directed a large needle into the sack around Normans heart for the same purpose. Again, the effort didnt work, and the small amount of blood flowing through the tube alluded to other problems.

There were times he had a heartbeat, and then we lose heartbeat, and back and forth for the next hour, Lawrence said.

Eventually, Dr. McMahon decided to open the chest for direct access to the heart.

Thats very much an emergency type procedure ... We didnt feel we had any other course of action to try to salvage his life, McMahon said.

I could feel a hole in the right side of the heart, McMahon said. He said he planned to sew up the hole, but then Normans heart stopped completely and couldnt be restarted.

During testimony, Lawrence told jury that Norman had a blood-alcohol level of .190.

Also on Thursday, the defense continued its cross-examination of Johnson, who resumed testifying with her back to the courtroom as she had done the day before. Johnson testified that she told police that when Norman staggered back into the West Third Street house after being stabbed, she saw Smith standing outside with something in his hands. She also testified she hadnt been honest during her earlier sworn deposition because she was offended by questions the defense asked.
DES MOINES | A state-mandated school program for struggling young readers is in desperate need of funding, state education board members told the governor Thursday.

Multiple members of the Iowa State Board of Education told Gov. Terry Branstad on Thursday that they are concerned by the lack of funding for the Intensive Summer Literacy Program in the governors 2016-17 budget proposal.

The program, which must go into effect in the summer of 2017, is designed to help struggling young readers reach literacy benchmarks to prevent them from being held back in the third grade.

Were concerned about the impending disaster thats going to occur in May of 2017, and thats one that were all going to be blamed for: the board, the governor, the lieutenant governor, the Legislature. Were all going to share in the blame, board member Mike May said. The question is how we can mitigate that as much as possible.

Branstad said he hopes to work with the Iowa Legislature to secure $9 million in funding for the program during the 2017 legislative session. But state education board members said schools need to do work this summer to have the program ready for launch in 2017.

I want you to understand the timing, Branstad said to board members at Thursdays meeting in the Grimes state office building.

For school districts, the timing is very real, board president Charles Edwards countered.

Edwards, a former publisher of The Des Moines Register, called the program massively underfunded.

During the discussion, the governor asked board members if they would prefer the early reader program funding come at the expense of general school funding. One board member suggested it may be prudent to delay the programs implementation.

I would argue that (program funding) may have to end up coming out of the supplemental (state school funding), Edwards said. But thats not my place.

The governor and state lawmakers put together the state budget, and they are trying to determine how much money to budget for public schools in the next school year. The negotiating parties are starting millions of dollars apart, so removing more money to divert to another program could complicate negotiations.

We are going to work very hard to make sure we make good on that commitment to the third-graders, said Pam Jochum, D-Dubuque, president of the Democratic-controlled Senate. There has to be something in the budget to help at least get ready.  We know they need at least some start-up money to prepare for that (program).

Jochum also criticized the Branstad administrations move to tweak a manufacturing tax break, which will reduce state revenues by more than $40 million annually, saying that decision put a bigger pinch on what already was a tight budget.

House Speaker Linda Upmeyer, R-Clear Lake, said Republicans in control of the House are not yet crafting their budget proposals.

I know that there is a great deal of interest of people having the resources there that are necessary for reading programs that prepare kids to move forward, Upmeyer said. Were just not at the point in the (budgeting) process.  Its just really kind of early to predict where (legislators) will land.

Branstad was hesitant to embrace the possibility of delaying the programs implementation date. He said that could be done next year, if the state still cannot devote the necessary resources.
A front-page Courier headline on Feb. 9, 2012, read Prices at the pump could jump past $5, analyst says.

With gasoline hovering around $1.70 per gallon today, that crystal ball has long since imploded. In fact, concerns now exist that the price of oil is dropping so far, so quickly, it is having an adverse impact on the global economy.

The outlook four years ago, though, was quite different. Gas had hit a record high of $4.02 per gallon in May 2011 during the unrest of the Arab Spring, then dropped to $3.37 when the article ran. Continuing instability in the Mideast and North Africa led to fears oil prices  then $100 per barrel, well below the record $145 in July 2008 amid the U.S. financial crisis  could skyrocket, with gasoline increasing 60 to 90 cents by Memorial Day.

I could say if oil would go to $200, you could take the price of oil today and add $2.50 to the price of what a gallon would cost, said Gregg Laskoski, an analyst with GasBuddy.com, which tracks energy market trends.

Today, though, oil from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries  the consortium that consists primarily of Arab and North African nations as well as Venezuela, Ecuador and Indonesia  has fallen below $26 per barrel.

In Canada  the leading exporter of oil to the United States  it is less than $15 per barrel.

So what happened?

The slumping economy in China, the leading importer of oil, is one reason. Meanwhile, production has increased thanks to the shale oil boom  extracted from shale formations using hydraulic fracturing or fracking  most notably in the United States, Canada and Russia.

Saudi Arabia, which supplies 10 percent of the worlds oil, decided to attack more expensive shale oil production by increasing its output. U.S. production of shale oil  primarily in North Dakota and Texas, which account for half of the U.S. shale supply  has declined. However, no shale oil collapse is imminent, and overall U.S. oil production is up.

Factor in another 500,000 of barrels per day of crude oil from Iran now that sanctions against its nuclear program have been lifted, and the world is awash in petroleum.

Prices have fallen below $1.659 per gallon in some areas of Iowa. Thats great for consumers, but not investors with major indices plummeting in the new year.

The big three issues in the market right now are oil, oil and oil, Mike Mayo, a banking analyst with CLSA research, told USA Today.

Big banks investing heavily in the oil boom are taking it on the chin. Last week, JPMorgan announced its fourth-quarter expenses linked to energy loans increased by 49 percent. It estimated reserves to cover its bad oil and gas loans could total $750 million if oil plateaus at $30 per barrel for 18 months.

Other big losers include:

Russia, which depends on oil and gas for nearly 70 percent of its exports. It loses $2 billion whenever oil drops by $1 per barrel. It needs oil at $105 to balance its budget.

Venezuela, where the opposition to the socialist government won a majority of seats in parliament in December as its economy deteriorated. It needs oil to be at $118 per barrel to balance its budget and can no longer provide huge subsidies for Cuba and left-leaning governments in South America.

Many OPEC members, such as Iran, Algeria and Nigeria, which need oil between $123 and $131 per barrel to balance their budgets. The Saudis have large reserves to withstand the hit.

Ukraine, after Chevron canceled a $10 billion shale-oil exploration project in December. Globally, new shale-oil investments had been expected to total $1 trillion.

ISIS. According to the Atlantic magazine, analyst Torbjorn Soltvedt estimates ISISs revenue from oil has dropped to $300,000 per day, down from between $1 million and $2 million a day in 2014.

Wind and solar initiatives, which compete against oil prices. The impact on climate change is offset somewhat by less reliance on expensive heavy crude oil, which pollutes more than light crude.

Tar sands. The Keystone Pipeline would have carried tar sands from western Canada to U.S. refineries but was rejected by President Obama on environmental grounds. Producers are now selling at a loss, and new projects and expansions have been canceled.

So what headlines await four years hence? With possible technological breakthroughs by 2020, perhaps inexpensive fuel-cell technology will usher in a revolution in transportation and in the home, further lessening dependence on oil  and all the politics surrounding it.
Morrissey sets input meetings

WATERLOO  Ward 3 City Councilman Pat Morrissey will continue his monthly meetings for residents of his ward in coming months.

Morrissey, who has held 24 such events since taking office in January 2014, will hold the meetings in the Waterloo Public Library first floor conference rooms from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Jan. 28, Feb. 17, March 30, April 21 and May 26.

The meetings are specifically for those living in Ward 3.

Harvest of Hope reduces hunger

HUDSON  Harvest of Hope, a local growing project of Foods Resource Bank, completed its 11th year of raising funds to alleviate world hunger recently.

A total of $28,000 was sent to FRB to support projects in Uganda, Peru, Guatemala and Nicaragua. In 11 years, $259,650 has been raised for Foods Resource Bank.

Churches participating were St. Timothy Lutheran and Zion Lutheran of Hudson and the South Waterloo Church of the Brethren in Waterloo.

Local participating farmers include BarLee Farms Ltd., Lanehaven Farms Inc., Rousselow Bros., Ohrt Farms Inc., Mary Jane Boorom and Kevin and Diane Sittig. Local business contributing were Spence Fertilizer and P & J Equipment of La Porte City.
Q: How many students are projected to attend the proposed new high school Career and Technical Education Center? Will students be there all day or part of the day?

A: By examining enrollment trends in other districts, Waterloo Community Schools anticipates that up to 50 percent of its high school students will attend the career center, said spokeswoman Tara Thomas. The capacity of the center is 510 students per session. We will begin with a morning and afternoon session, but stand ready to offer additional sessions when we hit full implementation, she said. Other districts have indicated that enrollment increases each year for the first three to five years. After 14 years of implementation, Des Moines Public Schools is now looking to add additional space to serve additional students.

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Q: Regarding the information I received from the Waterloo Schools about the career center: What does property tax neutral structure and a four percent income surtax mean to the general public?

A: Property tax neutral means your property tax rate will not go up as a result of the bond, said district spokeswoman Tara Thomas, because the additional cost will be offset with the surtax. An income surtax is based on the amount of state taxes owed on an individual Iowa income tax form. It is not a tax on an individuals income, said Thomas. Over 80 percent of Iowa school districts use an income surtax. Currently, Waterloo Schools does not. The 4 percent income surtax means a tax on what district residents owe the state on their incomes. For the average Waterloo School District resident, thats $53 annually.

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Q: We have Tech Works and Hawkeye Community College; why do we need to spend $47 million for another Tech Center in Waterloo?

A: Tech Works is a great facility and one that was extensively explored, said Waterloo Community Schools spokeswoman Tara Thomas. Unfortunately, the space that would be needed to support the programming of a planned career center was not available. We hope to have students partner with organizations at the Tech Works building. She added, Hawkeye Community College is extremely supportive of our initiative and has been from the beginning. Our programming would complement Hawkeyes programming and very likely increase their enrollment with students wishing to obtain additional skills and increase their earning potential, said Thomas. The University of Northern Iowa has also worked alongside the district and fully supports the recommendations, she added.

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Q: How many people are allowed to dwell in a single-family home?

A: The Waterloo zoning ordinance does not put a limit on how many people related by blood, marriage or adoption can live in a single-family home. The ordinance states no more than four non-related people can live in a single dwelling unit. For example, a family of 12 could live in a house but five unrelated college kids could not.
If you have opinions about the subject matter of posts on this blog please share them. Do you have a story about how the system affects you at work school or home, or just in general? This is a place to share it.
(By American Zen 's Mike Flannigan, on loan from Ari)

E arlier this month in Burlington, Vermont, where Senator and leading Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders was mayor for eight years, arlier this month in Burlington, Vermont, where Senator and leading Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders was mayor for eight years, Donald Trump held a so-called private rally (How does one turn a rally in a public, taxpayer-funded venue private? Simple. Just give away tickets.). Without warning, provocation or preamble, the paranoid crowd suddenly surrounded a young woman who was just quietly sitting in her seat and was forcibly ejected by the Burlington Police Department.

As the lady was manhandled out of her chair and pushed out the front door, the mob began screaming, "Trump, Trump, Trump" as they were instructed to do earlier by a Trump flak. During this travesty of Constitutional rights, Trump wearily sneered from behind the podium, "Get 'em outta here, get 'em outta here." That same night, a young man was thrown out in the cold in -10 degree weather, on Trump's insistence, without his coat. And, that same evening, a Young Turks producer was thrown out by the police with this simple explanation: "They don't want you here."

The fact this took place in what is ordinarily a nice, sleepy New England city in which Independent Socialist Bernie Sanders was once their Chief Executive is more chilling than most people realize. It doesn't take much of a stretch of imagination to theorize that Trump could hold a rally in a commune in Berkley and still attract a crowd of thousands of screaming racists.

Comparisons have been understandably made between Trump and Adolph Hitler, but perhaps that isn't accurate enough. When one looks at Trump's flat shark eyes, the defiant, upturned chin and the lips distorted in a sneer of constant contempt, those who know their history cannot help but see the modern day analog of Benito Mussolini, the fascist who ruled Italy for two decades.

And you would think you'd have a problem when David Duke , the arch racist and white supremacist of his generation, says that Donald Trump is more radical than him. But no, they don't see a problem unlike we who are on the outside looking in and wondering in amazement how there can be so many bigoted, fascist mouth-breathers in 21st century, "post-racial" America.

Daily Beast nailed it in a R. Douglas Fields of thenailed it in a recent article in which he sought to answer Trump's sudden and inexplicable appeal (at least to those of us who aren't obsessed with NASCAR and the WWE). In "This is Your Brain on This Election", Fields breaks down how many times the word "kill" was used at a recent Republican debate (53 times) vs 0 times when Kennedy debated Nixon in 1960. Or 0 times in the final GOP debate in 2000. Or 0 times in the final Republican debate in 2008.

So why is a thrice-married, former abortion-supporting multibillionaire casino mogul now suddenly so popular with the screaming Teabagger rage monkeys of modern-day America? Well, as someone once famously asked, "Did the Beatles make the 60's or did the 60's make the Beatles?"





Which Came First? The Chickenhawk or the Egg?

Trump is the very epitome of the triangulating, opportunistic politician or wouldbe politician, someone with just enough smarts to know how to exploit a situation. He's like an overflowing septic tank whose sewage is ever seeking the weakness in the infrastructure, hence the path of least resistance. Trump isn't saying anything remarkably different than he was during his brief stunt of a presidential campaign four years ago that barely got out of his exploratory committee: Trump's just being more vocal, belligerent and strident about it now that he sees America is a bitterer, more frightened and racist nation than it was back in 2012.

We had the chutzpah to re-elect a black man as president whom the gun-clutching NRA membership is convinced, despite all contrary evidence, is going to grab their guns. The fear is pumped out like rancid river water into Flint over ISIS (created by Bush but blamed on, again, the black guy), immigration is now suddenly a YUGE concern despite the fact that more Mexicans are leaving the US than entering because they find their native Mexico that's racked with ceaseless drug cartel warfare preferable to the United States.

Then there's the hysteria over Syrian refugees who have killed fewer Americans than Ebola last year, which is to say none.

Trump is counting on this fear, is nakedly pumping it up and actually exhorting his security and supporters to get even angrier and, amazingly, is able to do so with complete impunity because he has the Teflon coating of being a major presidential candidate. Even taxpayer-funded police departments now reduced to acting as Trump's temp goon squads are ejecting people from Trump rallies left and right from coast to coast based on little or nothing.

So, indeedy. Has the paranoid, xenophobic faction in our once-great nation created Trump or is Trump recreating America in his own cynical image?

To revisit R. Douglas Field's article, he mentions something interesting that's rooted in scientific fact: He theorizes that Trump, as with virtually all the other GOP contenders but more adroitly, is appealing not to the cerebral cortex that distinguishes us from the animal kingdom, the part of the human brain controlling rational, cognitive thinking. Rather, he's specifically appealing to the limbic portion of the brain that keeps us tethered to the animal kingdom as it governs the baser drives of Man: Libido, fear, anger and rage. Especially rage. In other words, Freud's Id.

One doesn't need to be a neurologist or social scientist to see how incredibly dangerous and wantonly reckless this is. And whatever racist teabaggers that haven't been sucked into Trump's toxic orbit are getting mopped up by the other Republicans who are trying to outdo Trump with playing King of the Dunghill and trying, vainly, to topple him.





Throwing Out the Dog Whistle

One of the reasons for Trump's appeal happens to be the very same reason why he's so reviled by establishment conservatives starting with the All Star Republican hit squad recently assembled by the National Review : The complete lack of a filter. Oddly enough, that same establishment GOP is now at war with the venerable conservative periodical founded by William F. Buckley, having dropped their debate sponsorship over this collective ankle-biting.

Trump's saving grace among overweight, barely literate racists and protofascists was his distorted Bulworth-like decision to throw the dog whistle over his shoulder and "say what other 'real' Americans are thinking." Trump doesn't have any time or patience for dog whistle language such as "state's rights" or "entitlement programs". One is half-amazed Trump hasn't gone full bore racist and dropped the N bomb in a speech while referring to the president. And one would half expect that if he did, it would automatically make him the Republican nominee and the convention this summer a mere formality. Which it may already be.

Yet in reality, Trump isn't betraying the GOP or core values in his spittle-flecked speeches and Twitter account- He's just amplifying and purifying them. And the establishment Republicans, horrified to hear their positions repeated back to them unfiltered, hate him for it and hate his enduring success even more. Even so, most of these Republicans are barely smart enough to see a good tactic and, as with everyone else in this country, is very willing to be the first to do something second.

And this seems to be working for Ted Cruz, whose own loudness and nastiness of late has paid dividends in the straw polls as he's now snuggled up just below Trump. Ted Cruz is such a vicious prick that when he was Solicitor General of Texas, he actually petitioned the Supreme Court to keep a man in prison for the full 16 years to which he was sentenced for stealing a Walmart calculator. The reason it was appealed all the way to the high court is because the infamously-flawed Texas criminal justice system mistakenly categorized the defendant as a habitual offender.

Brokeback Mountain, "just can't quit (him)." The fact is, Trump wouldn't make a more horrible President than Ted Cruz or any other batshit insane Republican screaming out of the 11th century because they're all saying the same thing. But Trump keeps the parishioners coming in, as the saying goes, and continues this sick, silly love-hate relationship with the mainstream media that, as Ennis del Mar said in, "just can't quit (him)."

But the one thing that distinguishes Donald Trump from the rest is his uncanny ability to unite and rally the worst elements our society can inflict on the rest of humankind. That is how and why Donald Trump is the most dangerous man in America.
In the early 1980s, Mary Whitehouse of the National Viewers And Listeners Association, backed by the tabloid press, took issue with the availability of such titles as SS Experiment Camp (1976) and Cannibal Holocaust (1980), which unlike their theatrical incarnations were uncut, unregulated and could be viewed at home by children. Whitehouse publicly stated that she had never seen a Video Nasty and was probably basing her assumption on the films sensationalistic artwork. SS Experiment Camp, for instance, showed a naked woman on an inverted cross, leered over by a Nazi soldier. In a country with high crime and unemployment, video violence was the perfect scapegoat, and the Conservative government got behind it with a passion, authorizing police to confiscate any videos they thought were in violation of the 1959 Obscene Publications Act. Eventually, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) drew up a list of 72 offending titles, 39 of which were successfully prosecuted. Some Video Nasties were resubmitted and heavily censored, while many others were rejected and remained unavailable for years. You cant keep a movie down forever, though, and some of the most gruesome titles on that list are now available as they were originally meant to be seen...
Billy Bob Thornton has come a very long way from his humble beginnings in the film business, where hed regularly appear in bit parts on low-budget films like Chopper Chicks In Zombietown. Even then he showed a charisma that overcame the terrible scripts he was working on, but it was only when he created his own material that people started taking notice. He wrote and starred in the acclaimed  but little seen  thriller One False Move, which soon led to him writing and directing Sling Blade, the film that made his career. Since then hes written, directed and starred in a wide variety of movies, ranging from tiny budget indies to massive summer blockbusters. There doesnt appear to be any role Thornton cant tackle, and hes equally comfortable in sily comedies or deathly serious dramas. He also has the ability to find humanity in seriously unlikable characters; a talent hes demonstrated more than once. He seems to be more comfortable in indie movies, stating his dislike of the Hollywood process. This might explain why - when he does show up in larger budget movies - he tends to coast a little bit. With today's UK release of Our Brand Is Crisis, where he co-stars with Sandra Bullock, lets take a look back on some of the highlights  and lowlights  of Billy Bobs eventful career.
Not content with dominating a large part of TV's superhero landscape with Arrow and The Flash, The CW have now introduced a third series into their own DC universe with Legends Of Tomorrow. The difference this time is that, rather than being focused on one titular hero, it's got a whole group of them, the majority of whom will be familiar to fans of Arrow and The Flash. Arrow's Ray Palmer and Sara Lance are joined by The Flash's Captain Cold, Heat Wave, Firestorm, and Hawkgirl and Hawkman, and the 8 characters are brought together by newbie Rip Hunter, something akin to this world's version of the Doctor (he's even payed by Doctor Who alum Arthur Darvill). It certainly borrows quite a bit from that show, right down to having a Council of Time Masters, and when The CW president Mark Pedowitz described it as "Guardians Of The Galaxymeets Doctor Whoyou can see what he means, sort of. It's a rag-tag group of misfits - heroes and villains alike - travelling through time, all in a quest to stop Vandal Savage (who was also introduced during the 'Flarrow' crossover event). While it shares characters in common with Arrow and The Flash, the pilot episode at least promises something a bit different. This is very much a group show, although at the moment it's a bit of a hot mess, albeit a rather fun one. It has to spend a lot of time on the setup, and as a result it isn't a wholly convincing episode, but there's certainly a lot of promise moving forwards, and also a fair few questions it's going to have to answer.
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Life is fragile and let it down and it will get you. In the Russian Village as in any village far away from society, life will catch you unaware and surprise you. This is on my mind because Vova has not appeared for a day and his lights were off all night long. I must drudge through the snow to his home. It snowed all night and now the drifts are 6 to 7 feet deep. Therefore it is time to make a social visit to Vova

* * * * * * * * * *

Life is a full time job here in the Tiny Russian Village. You have to prepare for anything to happen. If the electricity goes out; well it could be weeks before it comes back on. The well freezes and you have to chop a hole to get water. Wood from the wood pile does not carry itself and you must constantly carry wood. Boza wants to play and run and you must try to accommodate his wishes also. You have to keep yourself from getting too hot and sweating outside and at the same time; keep yourself from getting too cold. You have to adjust as the Tiny Russian Village gets smaller and smaller everyday, for the snow is getting deeper and deeper, everyday

* * * * * * * * * *

When I cook, I cook for two or three meals at a time. The skillet above is full of potatoes, carrots, kielbasa and onions. I ate a third of it, with the help of Boza of course, and will eat more later today. Looks like three meals in this skillet

* * * * * * * * * *

The 44 you see belongs to Vova and it has a bad alternator. I just communicated with someone about how people seem to hate to fix things, they simply buy new instead. This is an example, but besides Vova has his Niva for getting girls, he says. (I have a girl and she is nice and sweet!) This truck is the answer to the issues here in the village, Vova has all papers for the truck and I think if the price is correct, like almost free, case of vodka, a please let me have it, then I can work on it in the spare time during the summer and next winter have a way to get around. It needs some minor work and a new set of tires. If I can swing the money and not destroy my budget, (to terribly bad,) then it is what Sveta and I need. It will crawl through very deep snow and get us to civilization

Sometimes we have to buy what is a necessity and in this case, this truck would solve huge issues

Probably never happen, because money is tight for this American and even the dirt cheap trips we use to take, have become out of reach in price. The world is crashing as people look around and ask, What Happened?

* * * * * * * * * *

All my cut paths are gone. The snow has drifted in and they smoothed over. I see at least an extra foot of snow this morning and getting around is tough. Sveta is trying to work a deal for snowshoes, but that is in the city, where deals can be made. She has found a set of very expensive snowshoes owned by a Muscovite, who has never used them and never will, and she can possibly get them for like 4000 rubles ($50) and they are made for big men and less than a third of what they cost right now in the store. She is looking for skies for her and maybe she has some at her moms house? This is one of those budget destroying items that becomes a necessity and since she wants to come down in February, I will be able to use them through March

Sveta and I decided that as we can afford such luxuries, we buy what will last and not cheap. Items have to last for many years, not one season. The fact that these snowshoes are cheap is a plus benefit and why we have to try to get them. They are quality

Lucky the paths are easy to redo as the snow is dry and light!

* * * * * * * * * *

I had to smile at an e-mail I got from an office in Washington, D.C, How do you like the cyber attacks, you unpatriotic POS? We have more to send your way!

and

I responded, Good and please pass my site around to the rest of your cronies! It is good for rankings! But hey why would you call me a Point of Sale (POS?) or do you mean it in the way of Urban Dictionary type of language! But thanks anyway, however you mean it

You have to wonder how they can send hate from a DC office and such, but when I complain and send the facts, I am ignored and they, those who are suppose to care about such hatefulness, look the other way 

WtR
The AAS Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy maintains this blog to disseminate information relevant to astronomers who identify as women and share the perspectives of astronomers from varied backgrounds. If you have an idea for a blog post or topic, please submit a short pitch (less than 300 words). The views expressed on this site are not necessarily the views of the CSWA, the AAS, its Board of Trustees, or its membership.
Crisis Phone Numberspecial noticeIf you are a veteran in emotional crisis and need help RIGHT NOW, call this toll-free number 1-800-273-8255, available 24/7, and tell them you are a veteran. All calls are confidential.1-888-899-9377A Crisis Intervention Hotline has been established by the VA Heartland Network to assist veterans who may be dealing with a mental health crisis or difficult issue in their lives. The hotline will also aid family members or friends of veterans who need help in assisting a veteran in crisis.
Youve got a decent hand. Youre sure of it, but you dont want to bet everything on it because you know the game and know that youll lose. What do you do? That depends in part upon how strong your hand is (or isnt). For example, if you have an ace low flush, you might be tempted to fold, knowing you probably wont make money betting with it. On the other hand, if you hold a pocket pair, you may have enough confidence in the strength of your hand to bet all-in, hoping for a full house or better. In order to get the most from your hand, you need to understand what the odds are against each possible outcome. Heres how you can figure out whether or not you should push your luck with a particular hand.

The decision of the player to do the okbet login will provide him good return in the future. This is the platform that is considered as the reliable option. It provides the players with the high stake of the winning. Even a representative is there who will work to serve the people.

The Value of A Pair

Lets assume weve just dealt two cards and one player has three suited cards and another has four. If the first player bets, then hes going to win about half the time (assuming everyone else folds), so his expected return is 50 percent. The second player has a much tougher time. Hell have a good chance of winning only when he gets three of a kind, which happens 1/4th of the time. So he has a 25 percent chance of winning. When he makes the call, the third player has a 55 percent chance of winning. His expected return is 45 percent. Of course, if the first player loses, then the chances of the third player winning go way up  about 80 percent. All of these percentages are based on the assumption that all players will fold.

The value of the hand is calculated by taking the probability of winning times the amount you would win if you did win. This gives us a number between zero and 100. Well use $5 as our basic unit for calculating the value of the hands. If you had 10 chips and could choose any five, what would you pick? Well, wed obviously take the top hand, which is worth $50. The second best hand is a little bit worse  $45  since youre giving up some equity for the opportunity to win more. So now lets calculate the value of the remaining hands.

If the second player chooses a third card, his expected gain is $25, which represents the difference between the two hands. A fourth card increases the expectation to $30, while adding a fifth card drops it back down to $20. Since there are no sixth cards, the value of the hand is equal to the average of the five cards, which is $24.60.

The value of a suit

We can also figure out the value of a suit by looking at the value of each individual card within that suit. Lets say were dealing a standard deck of 52 cards. One person holds a KQ; the next person has a 7D; and the third has a 2S. Each person has a 20% chance of winning. What is the expected return of having this group of cards? Well, the KQ has a 5% chance of winning, the 7D has a 4% chance, and the 2S has a 3% chance. So the total expected return is 25%. The same logic applies to the other suits, where the probability of winning goes up as the value of the card decreases. For instance, the Aces have a 9% chance of winning, Kings have 8%, Queens have 7%, Jacks have 6%, and Tens have 5%. So the expected returns add up to 36%.

Now lets add all of these numbers together to get an estimate of the value of a hand. Assuming that each hand was equally likely to come up, our total would be 60 percent. But we know thats wrong! Not every hand is created equal. It turns out that a royal flush beats the rest of the pack pretty consistently. So were going to adjust our calculations to reflect this fact.

Royal Flushes

So far, weve assumed that all of the cards were equally likely to come up. Actually, most poker players believe that Royal Flushes are extremely unlikely. In fact, many experts estimate their frequency at less than 0.1 percent. To account for this, lets increase the probability of winning for each card in a Royal Flush by 10 percent. Now when we calculate the value of a Royal Flush, well find that its actually worth 62.5 percent of what it used to be. The value of the cards in each rank will still add up to 100, but theyre now weighted differently.

So what does this mean for you? Well, if you hold a Royal Flush, youre probably going to win about 75 percent of the time. And if you hold a hand like QJT, youll win about 75 percent of the time too. And if you hold a straight, youll win nearly 70 percent of the time. In short, the bigger your hand, the more likely you are to win. Of course, even though youre getting a higher hit rate, youll also tend to lose more often. So if you hold a straight, youre almost guaranteed to lose. But if you hold a Royal Flush, youre going to win about one-quarter of the time, and youll win about twice as much money. So youre almost certain to profit from such a hand, but youll also take a lot of losses.

Now, I mentioned that youll lose money on any hand. In fact, youll lose money roughly half the time. So if you hold a straight, youll lose about 25 percent of the time. If you hold a flush, youll lose about 40 percent of the time. And if you hold a pair, youll lose 35 percent of the time. In addition, if you hold a set  one of the two highest ranks  youll lose 35 percent of the time. Finally, if you hold a high card in the lowest rank, youll lose 30 percent of the time.

But the interesting thing is that youll lose less money on those losing hands than you do on winning hands. Why is that? Well, suppose you hold a straight. Theres a 65 percent chance youll win. But suppose you hold a pair instead. Theres a 65 percent chance youll win. But you lost on your last hand. So theres now a 75 percent chance that youll lose again. On the other hand, if you hold a straight and lose, theres still a 65 percent chance youll win again. So youre only losing about 15 percent of the time.

This means that you can minimize your losses by playing only hands that are reasonably likely to win. So if you hold a straight, youll probably lose around 25 percent of the time. But if you hold a flush, youll probably lose around 40 percent of the time. And if you hold a pair, youll probably lose around 35 percent of the time. And if you hold a set, youll probably lose around 35 percent of the time. But if you hold a high card in the lowest rank, youll probably lose around 30 percent of the time.

In summary, the higher the probability that youll win, the lower your loss percentage will be. And the lower the probability youll win, the higher your loss percentage will be. So the optimal strategy is to play only hands whose probability of winning exceeds your expected return. If you hold a straight, theres a 65 percent chance of winning, so youll lose around 25 percent of the time. If you hold a flush, theres a 65 percent chance of winning, so youll lose around 40 percent of the time. And if you hold a pair, theres a 65 percent chance of winning, so youll lose around 35 percent of the time. But if you hold a set, theres a 65 percent chance of winning, so youll lose around 35 percent of the time. And if you hold a high card in the lowest rank, theres a 65 percent chance of winning, so youll lose around 30 percent of the time.

Of course, you shouldnt ignore your opponents actions entirely. You should always give them credit for being smart, making decisions, and doing whatever it takes to beat you. But just remember that youre being punished for having a decent hand.
Assyrian Delegation Tours Political Poles in Lebanon

A Syriac [Assyrian] delegation visited Lebanese politicians Thursday to push for more representation of the sect in Parliament as well as discussing other matters related to the situation in the region. Syriac Catholic Patriarch Ignatius Ephrem Joseph III Younan and Syriac Orthodox Patriarch Ignatius Ephrem II meet with MP Mohammad Raad, head of Hezbollah's Loyalty to the Resistance bloc. The delegation, in a released statement read, discussed "the region's affair and what Christians are being subjected to in Iraq, especially the Syriacs." "There was also a hope by the Patriarchs that the Loyalty to the Resistance Bloc would support the request to strengthen Syriac representation in Parliament." Syriacs are considered one of the minority ethnic-religious groups in Lebanon. The delegation also met with Change and Reform bloc leader Michel Aoun where they expressed hope that a president would soon be elected to end the ongoing vacuum. The delegation hoped that the top post would be filled by a president who preserved all sects and minorities. The delegation also visited Lebanese Force's leader Samir Geagea, former premier Fouad Siniora and Kataeb President Sami Gemayel.
Jan 21, 2016 | By Kira

Israeli 3D printing startup MASSIVit 3D has signed a distribution agreement with Global Graphics to sell its large-format, high-speed MASSIVit 1800 3D printer throughout France. The partnership entails that Global Graphics will market, sell, support and service MASSIVit 1800 3D printers, as well as the company's proprietary Dimengel 3D printing material.

MASSIVits supersized 1800 3D printer model boasts a build size of 1.5 x 1.2 x 1.8 m, and thanks to its proprietary 3D printing technique, known as Gel Dispensing Printing (GDP), it can print up to 35 cm per hour (meaning a human-size sculpture could be completed within just five hours). The GPD 3D printing process deposits Dimengel, a non-flammable, proprietary material, which hardens when exposed to UV light. The instant solidification allows for high-speed 3D printing and eliminates the need for support structures.

Global Graphics is a distributor of traditional and digital printing technologies within the French market, with a well-regarded network of customers and several years of experience providing digital printing solutions to the graphic arts and visual communication sectors.

This profile makes Global Graphics an ideal distribution partner for MASSIVit, who designed its super-sized super-fast 1800 3D printer specifically for the visual communication and themed environment markets, noting that its speed, cost effectiveness and large size are ideal creating short-run 3D prints of objects for marketing and branding, as well as movie props or event decorations.

The first MASSIVit 1800 3D printer was installed at ES Digital, an Israeli powerhouse specializing in wide format digital printing, visual merchandising, and point-of-sale branding and signage, just a few months ago. To further showcase how its 3D printer can create powerful, large-scale visual messages, MASSIVit has 3D printed an entire Strati car in one piece, as well as a 2-meter-long shark for the Silence of the Sharks anti-hunting campaign.

As a market innovator, we are looking for great partners with established business in the graphic arts market that can take our solution to potential customers as fast and effective as possible, said Avner Israeli, CEO of Massivit 3D. "Global Graphics offers a great combination of being well established in the French market while possessing a lot of enthusiasm and the necessary vision to join the 3D revolution."

"We have been highly impressed with Massivit 3D and their innovative solution for the graphic arts and visual communications markets, added Jean-Pierre Las, President of Global Graphics. We believe that Massivit's unique solution will provide exciting opportunities to our customers and complement our company vision of strong brands and powerful solutions.

Posted in 3D Printer Company

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Jan 22, 2016 | By Tess

There is little question that the 3Doodler 3D printing pen has made 3D printing technologies much more accessible to people as it is marketed as being used by children and families to create some very fun objects and decorations. What is particularly astonishing about the 3Doodler, however, is the impact it has had on certain artist communities around the world, from Barbara Taylor Harris who uses the 3Doodler in her mixed media paintings, to artist Erica Gray who has made astonishing 3Doodled wearable art. Recently, 3Doodler has highlighted another creative soul who has taken to using the 3D printing pen as his tool: emerging fashion designer Patrick Tai.

Patrick Tai is a recent graduate from the Fashion Design program at the Art Institute of Charlotte in North Carolina who recently broke into the world of 3D printed fashion by creating an entire dress using only a 3Doodler pen and plastic filament. The project took him almost one hundred hours to create.

Patrick Tai was inspired to embark on the ambitious fashion project after he could not find an existing fabric that had the texture he wanted. As he explains, My inspiration comes from geometric shapes, modern architecture, and unique texturesI feel that giving your audience the chance to feel your designs whether its being seen in a photo or on a runway is important. After unsuccessfully looking high and low for materials with repetitive lines, shapes, and unique textures, Tai realized he could try to make his own material and found that the 3Doodler 3D printing pen would be the perfect medium to do so.

The 3Doodled dress, pictured above, was Tais first project using the 3D printing pen, though his experience using it was so positive he has since incorporated the pen into other garments, which he notes are perhaps more wearable than the entirely 3Doodled dress. The entirely 3Doodled dress was made on a mannequin, as Tai essentially drew the fabric onto the mannequins body, while the other pieces were made using more traditional pattern making processes.

The dress is made of a combination of ABS plastic and FLEXY plastic, which happened rather serendipitously. As Tai explains, I originally started experimenting with ABS plastic to get familiar with the 3DoodlerI accidentally purchased the new FLEXY strands and liked the flexibility of it more so most of the dress is made with FLEXY plastic and some ABS plastic at the edges for supports.

Tais dress, and the other designs which also feature the 3Doodler have been showcased at some venues, including the North Carolina Fashion Association, and various local fashion shows.

The reactions that I have received from these 3D fashion have been nothing but positive, gushed Tai. People have been so supportive and full of compliments, some people couldnt believe that the pieces were created by a pen.

Fortunately for us, Patrick Tais career in 3D printed fashion is just getting started and there is lots to look forward to. The young designer is currently working on launching his online store which will feature womens formal attire as well as accessories made using the 3Doodler. Tai has also entered his 3Doodled dress in the 2015 3Doodler Awards, where it took home one of six prizes in the Fashion category.

Patrick Tai also hopes to expand his experience with the 3Doodler as well as other 3D printing technologies. As he explains, The long term goal is to eventually [invest] in additional 3D technology. At 3Ders, we will be sure to keep an eye our for the emerging 3D printed fashion talent that is Patrick Tai.

Posted in 3D Printing Application

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Jan 22, 2016 | By Kira

Interactive design company Ideum recently partnered with JCB Wines to create an immersive, multifaceted wine tasting experience, brought to life by 3D printed smart coasters by Graphene 3D Lab. Thanks to Graphene 3Ds conductive 3D printing filaments, when placed between Ideums multitouch table and the wine glass, the 3D printed coasters can digitally identify the wine in question, and launch either a cinematic presentation of the wine, or give the taster access to personalized tasting notes and additional information, blending the physical and digital to create a truly innovative wine tasting experience.

Wine tastings are all about engaging the five sensestaking the time to fully appreciate and experience the color, scent, sparkle, body, smoothness and temperature of the wine. However, winemaker Jean-Charles Boisset sought to give his visitors an entirely new way to experience the exclusive wines within the JCB Collection. Boisset thus partnered with Ideum to create a first-of-its kind interactive wine tasting.

Our vision has always been to transcend the traditional wine experience and bring a new dimension to the wine world. We partnered with Ideum to create the first truly interactive and social wine tasting we have ever seen  an inspired experience that unites guests together while enhancing their wine experience to go beyond into another sensory world, said Boisset.

Ideum, based in Corrales, New Mexico, focuses on creating high-tech interactive experiences through its multitouch tables and walls. Specializing in software and hardware design, human-computer interaction, user experience, programming, gaming and more, Ideum has created next-generation visitor experiences for clients as varied as the Smithsonian National Museum, NASA, and Coca-Cola.

For its collaboration with JCB, Ideum created a customized Platform 44 4K UHD multitouch table, with a gold top and crocodile skin base to reflect the vibrancy and opulence of the JCB Tasting Salon. The company also designed and developed an interactive software experience, custom hardware, and a proprietary Fudicial Marker Recognition System, designed to work with Graphene 3Ds 3D printed smart coasters.

Graphene, considered a sort of holy grail in 3D printing materials, due to its remarkable strength, light weight, flexibility, and most important, ability to conduct heat and electricity, is the base of Graphene 3D Labs signature conductive filament, which was specifically designed to 3D print electrically conductive components including sensors, human interface devices, circuitry and more. The collaboration between Graphene 3D and Ideum turned out to be an ideal opportunity for Graphene 3D to work through some kinks in the early development stages of their conductive 3D printing filament.

Ideum had heard about our conductive polymer and wanted to try it out for their project, Daneil Stolyarov, Co-CEO of Graphene 3D Lab, told 3Ders.org. We were still in early testing and had some issues, so we offered to 3D print the coasters for them. After a few months of testing back and forth on the concept, and some engineering design changes, we were able to 3D print them, added Ian Klassen, COO. We ended up with fabulous results.

Although initial prototypes of the 3D printed coasters required assembly, the final iterations were entirely 3D printed in one piece, using a standard, commercially-available desktop 3D printer. Once programmed by Ideum, these smart 3D printed coasters could act as fiducial markers, allowing the software to identify each individual wine and launching the immersive wine tasting experience.

Images courtesy of Ideum - Ideas + Media

New York-based Graphene 3D Lab is known for developing and marketing a range of proprietary, commercially available graphene-based nanocomposite materials for 3D printing functional electronics and devices. Alongside its commercially-available graphene filaments, the company recently launched a magnetic 3D printing filament, and filed a patent for a multi-functional 3D printer, the Romulus III.

The mission of our company is to develop a set of functional 3D printing materials, Stolyarov told 3Ders. The vision I have for the future of 3D printing is that eventually, everything can be printed with a 3D printer, including electronic devices that can operate straight off the print bed. Any gadget consists of a body, wires, magnets and so on, so we have to find materials which can be 3D printed, but also be electrically conductive, magnetic, strongso that is what we are developing. The conductive graphene-based filament is our signature product, and just one example of our vision.

The 3D printed smart coasters for the Ideum/JCB Wine Tasting Salon are just the first in a series of projects in which Graphene 3D will collaborate with Ideum to 3D print functional electronic devices that utilize Ideums proprietary fiducial software. Graphene 3D also has a number of collaborations in development that it hopes will prove the functional capabilities of 3D printing, and open the doors to further applications for their innovative conductive materials.

Indeed, there has been a growing demand within the 3D printing industry to develop more functional and multi-functional materials, which have a wide variety of applications, from Ideums human-computer interaction tables, to uses in the semiconductor, automotive, and aerospace industries, to name just a few. Conductive filaments can be used in whatever the imagination allows, said Klassen.

Stay tuned, because we have a lot of specialty filaments coming, he added. Just earlier this week, we announced magnetic filaments, and well be introducing a series of specialty 3D printing filaments over the course of the next few months.

Posted in 3D Printing Application

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Robert Macfarlane in More Intelligent Life:

The Guadarrama mountains of Spain run from north-east to south-west across the central plains of Castille. They are ancient mountains, formed of pale granite and gneiss, their slopes densely wooded with pines of several species: black pines, maritime pines, sentry pines, Scots pines. I once walked across the range from south to north, sleeping in caves and forest clearings. Years on I still clearly recall the scents of those days and nights: the piney smell ofcrushed needles, as Ernest Hemingway puts it in For Whom The Bell Tolls, and the sharper odour ofresinous sap. Hemingways novel is set in the Guadarrama during the last May of the Spanish civil war. Its hero is Robert Jordan, a young American fighting for the International Brigade. Jordan, an explosives expert with a profound disinterest in his own fate, is tasked by his Soviet commander with destroying a bridge in the Fascist-held mountains. He joins forces with Republican partisans who have gone guerrilla. Their base for the operation is a cave in the rim-rock at the cup-shaped upper end of a little valley.

In the books second paragraph, Jordan unfolds a photostatted map on the pine-needle floor of the forest. That contrast between military perception and natural presence preoccupies Hemingway throughout the novel. The landscapes of the Guadarrama are interpreted chiefly in terms of tactics: open ground is read for its lines of fire, timber for its cover. Those with close knowledge of the range  like Jordans trusted guide Anselmo  are valuable because they can move discreetly through this hostile territory. Yet these tough men remain alert to the beauty of the mountains. When a two-day blizzard blows in, Jordan relishes its wildness, though he knows it will betray their position. Pilar, a fellow partisan, agrees: What rotten stuff is the snow and how beautiful it looks. The hurry-up-and-wait aspects of war mean there is time to appreciate the afternoon cloudsmoving slowly in the high Spanish sky. Maria, Jordans lover, speaks of her passion for the pine forest: the feel of the needles under footthe wind in the high trees and the creaking they make against each other. Even their target is assessed both aesthetically and militarily  it is a steel bridge of a single span, possessing a solid-flung metal grace, standing dark against the steep emptiness of the gorge.

More here.
(Bloomberg) Apple Inc. is pushing back against a European tax investigation that could force the iPhone maker to pay more than $8 billion in back taxes.

Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook met with the European Commissions antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager in Brussels on Thursday to press the companys case. After the meeting, Cook sent out a tweet highlighting figures showing that the companys products support more than 1.4 million jobs across Europe. Meanwhile, government officials on both sides of the Atlantic have come to the companys defense to lobby against a penalty.

Apple is being scrutinized by European officials, who accuse the company of using subsidiaries in Ireland to avoid paying taxes on revenue generated abroad. While Apple generates about 60 percent of its sales outside the U.S., its foreign tax rate is about 1.8 percent, according to Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Matt Larson.

If the commission follows its own precedent from recent cases and effectively requires Ireland to impose the statutory tax rate, Apple will be looking at around 10 percentage points of tax on substantially more than a hundred billion dollars of profit from a decade of sweetheart deals, said Alex Cobham, director of research at the Tax Justice Network.

Kristin Huguet, a spokeswoman for Cupertino, California- based Apple, confirmed Thursdays meeting between Cook and Vestager without commenting further.

U.S. lawmakers have weighed in. The top members of the Senate Finance Committee, the panel in charge of writing tax code, wrote a letter to U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew last week urging him to lobby European regulators against imposing a penalty on Apple and other U.S. companies that have been caught up in a wide-ranging investigation into tax avoidance.

The European Commission contends that Apples corporate arrangement in Ireland allows it to calculate profits using more favorable accounting methods. Apple determines its tax bill using low operating costs, a move that dramatically decreases what the company pays to the Irish government.

Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny also defended its relationship with Apple on Thursday, calling the claims the country is a tax haven "false and baseless." If Ireland is found to have traded a special tax deal with Apple in exchange for a pledge to creating jobs in the country, it could be forced to recoup the billions of euros in back taxes.

A decision may come as soon as March, though regulators are still seeking information on the case, which could mean it will take longer.

Apple isnt the only U.S. company being investigated. U.S. companies facing scrutiny from officials in Europe include Starbucks Corp., Amazon.com Inc. and McDonalds Corp.

Apples tax policies have been a source of controversy for years. In 2013, Senate investigators released a report accusing Apple of not paying corporate income tax to any government on tens of billions of dollars of overseas income. Cook, who testified before Congress about the topic, has maintained that Apple pays all the taxes it owes and that the criticism was political crap.

Apple has throughout its history mostly avoided entangling itself with high-profile policy debates. But as the company has grownnow the worlds most valuable at about $540 billionthat stance has changed. Cook has called for revamping the U.S. tax code so American companies can bring overseas money back to the U.S. without a big tax hit. Hes also been an outspoken advocate for encryption and blocking governments from gaining access to digital communications.

Apple spent $4.48 million on lobbying in the U.S. last year, up from $4.11 million in 2014, according to Consumer Watchdog, a nonprofit public interest group. Thats still less than the $16.8 million that Google Inc. spent in 2015.

As part of its push against the European probe, Apple on Thursday released a batch of data showing its influence on regions economy. The company employs 22,000 people directly, with more than a million more jobs created through the ecosystem of developers who make applications for the iPhone and other Apple products.
IMGCAP(1)]Tax reform is on the horizon, but the horizon likely extends beyond 2016, according to Marc Gerson, tax partner at Miller & Chevalier and former majority tax counsel to the House Ways and Means Committee.

While both the new Speaker of the House, Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and the new chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, Kevin Brady, R-Texas, have voiced their support for tax reform, 2016 is likely to be another year of discussion and debate rather than serious legislative consideration, given the pending Presidential and Congressional elections, he believes.

The conventional wisdom is that tax reform will be difficult to move forward in an election year, he said. The White House and the Senate are both in play, and a number of Senate Finance Committee members are up for reelection, he said. The notion of members taking difficult votes on tax reform faces long odds. Moreover, as evidenced by the State of the Union address, the Administration doesnt see tax reform as high priority.

In prior years, tax reform got very cursory mention in the State of the Union address, Gerson noted. This year there was very little on tax and nothing on tax reform, so the fact that the Administration is not willing to engage in the topic makes the odds even longer for this year, he said. But with both Speaker Ryan and Chairman Brady interested in tax reform, we will see some progress made this year.

Efforts will be made to advance the debate and prepare for potential consideration in 2017, Gerson indicated, so expect to see more hearings and discussion drafts on different issues affecting tax reform.

Some discussion will come from the new leadership in the Speakers office, and the Ways and Means Committee, he said. Also, a number of the Presidential candidates are spending more time discussing tax issues. The important thing is that taxes are being discussed and are getting air time. The candidate proposals are not detailed, and some are extreme in different ways. Theyre more designed as stump speeches than actual legislation, but theyre being discussed more than in the past. So taxes could be a priority for the next President based on the fact that theyre talking about taxes more.

Whether tax reform goes forward in 2017 depends on the results of the election, Gerson indicated.

Depending on who controls the Senate, and who wins the White House, it could be a high-priority issue for the first term of a new President, he said.

There are different ways to look at the effect of the passage of the extenders bill on tax reform, according to Gerson. One is that the passage of so many of them on a permanent basis arguably makes tax reform easier because they no longer need to be considered as part of a tax reform package and they dont have to be paid for, he suggested. This helps tax reform from a revenue baseline perspective.

On the other hand, the fact that so many important provisions needed to be passed demonstrated why theres a need to do reform, he said. Now that they have been passed, thats arguably no longer the case.
USAF. (U.S. Air Force Graphic by Rosario "Charo" Gutierrez)

An F-16 Fighting Falcon assigned to the 56th Fighter Wing at Luke Air Force Base crashed at approximately 8:45 a.m. today north of Luke AFB in the vicinity of Bagdad, Arizona.Luke AFB officials are working closely with local authorities in a search and rescue operation. Due to the remote location and rugged terrain, the status of the pilot is unknown.The cause of the crash is unknown at this time.Brigadier General Scott Pleus, the 56th Fighter Wing commander, has established an interim safety board to begin the preliminary investigation.Information will be released as it becomes available. For questions, please contact the 56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs Office at 623-856-6011.
Operation Desert Storm changed the Air Force through innovation

Air Force Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations Lt. Gen. John Raymond addressed the Air Force Association on innovations that took place during Operation Desert Storm at the first AFA breakfast of the year Jan. 20 at the Key Bridge Marriott in Arlington, Virginia.



The anniversary of Operation Desert Storm affords us an excellent opportunity, which brings to life the vision statement of the U.S. Air Force, Raymond said. The worlds greatest Air Force -- powered by Airmen and fueled by innovation.



The Air Force celebrated the 25th anniversary of Desert Storm on Jan. 16. The occasion offered an opportunity to reflect upon the first conflict in history to make comprehensive use of stealth and space systems support capabilities against a modern, integrated air defense.



With the help of the total force model, the Air Force made several contributions that led to one of the most successful air campaigns in U.S. history.



Desert Storm is largely recognized as the first space war. It was the first war where operationalized strategic assets were used for operational and tactical advantages. The Defense Support Program helped add to the advantage by developing missile warning satellites used to detect and geolocate Scud missile launches in theater.



Just as it is important to reflect on previous conflicts, Raymond noted the Desert Storm anniversary presents the opportunity to compare and contrast the 1991 and 2016 versions of the Air Force.



Today we are the smallest, busiest (and) oldest Air Force, operating in the most complex and strategic environment that it has ever faced, he said.



The Air Force is comprised of fewer aircraft than in 1991, but todays force is fully integrated. Airmen from the Air National Guard and Reserve maintain 55 percent of the Air Forces aircraft. Raymond said without the total force Airmen completing day-to-day missions and capabilities professionally, operations would not be successful.



As we sit here this morning, our Airmen are fully engaged all over the world, Raymond said. Airpower continues to be the force of choice countering the violent and extremist threats.



Innovation is still a major part of Air Force operations. During the period of Desert Storm there was no such thing as a remotely piloted aircraft. Today, the RPA program represents the weapons system with the largest number of pilots and increasing demands for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions, thanks to emerging requirements and combatant commander needs.



The Air Force has an incredible story to tell and that story is innovation, which has been written by incredible Airmen who operate those capabilities for us each and every day, Raymond said.
F-35 fires first AIM-9X missile

An F-35 fighter jet from the 461st Flight Test Squadron launched an AIM-9X missile for the first time over the Pacific Sea Test Range Jan. 12.



The flight sciences aircraft, AF-1, of the Joint Strike Fighter Integrated Test Force, was piloted by David Nelson, the Lockheed Martin chief F-35 test pilot at Edwards Air Force Base.



The AIM-9X is an advanced infrared missile and the newest of the Sidewinder family of short-range air-to-air missiles carried on a wide range of fighter jets.



The missile was launched at 6,000 feet.



The shot paves the way for the F-35 to utilize the weapon's high off-boresight and targeting capabilities, increasing lethality in the visual arena.
CSAF visits Guam, thanks Airmen who provide Pacific airpower

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III and wife, Betty, thanked Airmen and discussed the importance of their mission in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region during a visit here Jan. 21.



At an all call, Welsh spoke about Air Force matters and shared personal stories about himself and his service.



Im really proud to be an Airman and am really proud of the Airman I grew up with  my dad, Welsh said. He is just one of many who made the Air Force such a huge success story. It is not because of airplanes or technology, but because of (the Airmen). Every now and then take a step back and pat yourself on the back.



Welsh also discussed budget changes, future of benefits, readiness, and the modernization of the force.



Im not worried about the last 50 years; Im worried about the next 50 years. Hanging on to things that made us great will not make us great in the future, Welsh said. We have got to modernize  air forces that do not stay in front of technology fail.



Welsh assured the Airmen in attendance he continuously fights for their best interests. As the budget and benefits are being worked and discussed by Congress, the chief of staff constantly works to defend Airmen and their ability to complete the mission.



When the nation calls, we send you, and if you are not ready to go, we have an issue, Welsh said. We will continue to fund training, education and professional development, so that you are ready, willing and able to do your jobs.



After the all call, Welsh opened the floor to questions, and spoke about helping Airmen and morale, by doing what he can to alleviate long hours and ensure a healthy work-life balance.



He emphasized how important everyone is to the fight and how it is impossible to fly, fight and win without Airmen.



Airmen here live in a place that proves geography matters, Welsh said. Thank you for the way you represent the Air Force, the way you serve our nation and the way you take care of each other and your families. Never forget how critically important each and every one of you are to the mission.
If you thought 2015 was a difficult year for investors, then 2016 is shaping up as a puzzle for the ages.

With falling commodity prices weighing on returns, the benchmark ASX 200 ended the year 2.1 per cent lower (or 3.8 per cent higher after dividends). But while the driving forces of 2015 could be summed up by the routs in oil, iron and gold, other factors are vying for our attention in 2016.

Just a few weeks into the year and we are awash with enough geopolitical frights and macro-economic head-scratchers to perplex the most experienced investor. North Korea testing a "hydrogen" bomb, renewed tensions in the Middle East and an increasingly volatile Chinese sharemarket are expected to remain at the forefront of concerns for some time.

Our research, however, shows that Smart Investor readers are, above all, obsessed with the performance of individual large cap stocks that make up the ASX 20.

At home, the overall state of the economy could be described as overcast with the prospect of improvement. Economic growth is expected to remain muted, wages growth is at its lowest level for almost 20 years and unemployment has dipped from 6.1 per cent to 5.8 per cent.
The December issue of Citizen Airman magazine is now available. The cover story highlights Staff Sgt. Lucy Reyna of the 434th Operations Group at Grissom Air Reserve Base, Indiana, who has made it through some tough times thanks to help from her family, friends and the Air Force Reserve.

Other stories include:

* The 20th anniversary of STARBASE Robins;

* A salute to retired Maj. Gen. Homer "Pete" Lewis, the first person to serve as both chief of Air Force Reserve and Air Force Reserve commander, who died Oct. 21;

* A feature on the 610th Security Forces Squadron, which after almost 25 years has closed its doors;

* The selection of Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina, as the preferred location for the first Air Force Reserve-led KC-46A Pegasus main operating base;

* A feature on the many opportunities available for Reservists in the Civil Air Patrol Reserve Assistance Program; and

* A synopsis of recent changes to the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Program.

Citizen Airman, the official magazine of the Air Force Reserve, is published every other month: February, April, June, August, October and December.
The Office of the Air Force Reserve unveiled 13 portraits of Air Force Reserve leaders during the Profiles in Leadership display ceremony here Dec. 7. The display celebrates and honors Citizen Airmens contributions in serving the Nation.

Air Force Reserve Command Public Affairs Director Col. Bruce Bender spent over a year curating the project to completion. These leaders were selected based on how integral they are in shaping our Air Force Reserve, said Bender. Through the Profiles in Leadership project, Citizen Airmen shared personal stories about how their service impacted their lives and made a difference to the Air Force Reserve.The significance of the day was not forgotten. The surprise attack on Pearl Harbor galvanized our nation and it also revealed the strength of our nation and highlighted the dedication and commitment of our troops, said Lt. Gen. James F. Jackson, Chief of the Air Force Reserve. Today we honor their sacrifices and legacy by honoring those who have come after them.The exhibit featured Airmen from Maj. Gen. Stayce Harris, the first female numbered air force commander to Col. Chris Cunningham, an emergency preparedness liaison officer for the state of Indiana. Their stories paint a mosaic of experiences illustrating how Citizen Airmen use their civilian expertise to benefit the Air Force in a variety of ways.One of the honorees, Col. Melissa Coburn, a C-17 pilot and deputy director of mobilization in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense, was at the ceremony to see her portrait presented to the crowd of reservists. "I am truly honored to be among such great leaders who are part of this new display. I hope our stories help inspire the next generation of citizen Airmen."

Notable Airmen such a pararescue team leader Tech. Sgt. Daniel Warrens portrait is among those featured in the exhibit. Warren was recognized in the Citizen Airman for his heroism during a firefight in Afghanistan. He is also the recipient of a Bronze Star for valor and the prestigious MacKay Trophy.

Their stories are a part of more than 70,000 reservists who serve in operations with active duty forces around the globe. Whether it is through supporting disaster relief or combat insurgencies, Reserve Airmen answer the call of duty and contribute to the best Air Force in the world.

The Air Force Reserve plans to replace the portraits every year with leaders who make a significant impact to Air Force Reserve legacy. The display is a lasting testament to the proud tradition of excellence and service by Americas Citizen Airmen.Portraits will be displayed in the Pentagon on the 5th floor, A ring, 10 1/2 corridor until further notice.

Leaders featured in the exhibit::

1. Maj Gen Stayce Harris, 22nd Air Force commander

2. Maj Gen Michael Kim, MA to AFRC commander

3. Maj Gen Ken Lewis, director of air, space and operations at AFRC

4. Maj Gen Richard Scobee, 10th Air Force commander

5. Col Melissa Coburn, deputy director of mobilization in the Office of Assistant Secretary of Defense

6. Col Chris Cunningham, IMA emergency preparedness liaison officer for the state of Indiana

7. Col John Tree, AAFES Board of Directors and CEO Raymond Express International

8. Dr. Josef Schmid, flight surgeon for NASA

9. Lt Col Brett Zipper Robison, F-35 pilot training lead at the Academic Training Center, Eglin AFB

10. Maj Dan Rooney, 301st Fighter Squadron pilot and founder/CEO of Folds of Honor Foundation

11. Master Sgt. Samuel Ameen, broadcaster, 4th Combat Camera Squadron

12. TSgt Daniel Warren, pararescue team leader
Grissom's KC-135R Stratotankers can transfer more fuel in eight minutes than a gas station can pump in 24 hours, but its ability to transfer that fuel after dark moving at speeds up to 500 mph is truly amazing.The 72nd and 74th Air Refueling Squadrons conduct around the clock operations and training in order to meet Air Force mission objectives."Our primary mission is to provide aerial refueling to enhance the Air Force's mission of global reach and global power," said Col. Doug Schwartz, 434th Air Refueling commander. "Our ability to operate around the clock is a key asset that allows us to accomplish those missions."That around the clock capability was demonstrated during a recent nighttime aerial refueling mission over Southern Kansas. During the flight a 434th ARW KC-135 refueled a B-2 Spirit from the 509th Bomb Wing, 13th Bomb Squadron Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri."One of our biggest challenges during nighttime refueling is depth perception," said Master Sgt. Christopher Nack. "We have to rely on visual cues like the shadows from the boom onto the receiver aircraft to help us judge the distance between them."Those shadows are produced by the natural light from the moon and stars," added Nack.Each boom operator is required to complete a certain number of nighttime refueling hours to maintain their qualifications."Regardless of weather or lighting conditions, we have to be able to accomplish the mission in order to maintain global reach," explained Nack.When lighting conditions are not optimal, boom operators and pilots rely on artificial light to conduct the mission."You never know what the sky is going to be like above the clouds," said Senior Airman Zach Holmes, 74th Air Refueling Squadron inflight refueling technician. "If there isn't enough artificial light we have rely on lights on the outside of the aircraft."The KC-135 has a system of exterior lights located on the belly of the aircraft just behind the nose gear and flood lights on the boom pod used to pass fuel to the receiver aircraft."We are in constant communication with the receiving aircraft," explained Holmes. "Using the belly lights, we have the ability to position the receiver aircraft in the optimal position to receive fuel.""Being able to receive fuel at any hour is critical on the battlefield," said Lt. Col. Rich Day, 74th Air Refueling Squadron pilot. "The training we receive from these local missions prepares us for what we do when we are deployed.""At night we lose a certain amount of our depth perception and rely heavily on our instruments, because it is easy to become disoriented," explained Day. "You do it a lot and you get used to it, but without practicing that wouldn't be the case."'Doing it a lot' is something the 434th Air Refueling Wing does well, and last year the wing demonstrated just that when it logged a historical record of 7,030 flight hours for fiscal 2015."We had over 3,600 combat flight hours this year, and it proves that we can employ our capabilities because our training prepared us to do so," Lt. Col. Todd Moody, 74th Air Refueling Squadron director of operations. "This [record] shows that preparation and training at home station provides what the warfighter needs wherever we deploy to, and kudos to maintenance Airmen for allowing us to accumulate this many flying hours."The 434th ARW is the largest KC-135R Stratotanker in the Air Force Reserve Command. Airmen and aircraft from the 434th ARW routinely deploy around the world in support of the Air Force mission and U.S. strategic objectives.Stay connected with the 434th ARW on Facebook and Twitter
Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James met with 434th Air Refueling Wing Airmen and leadership during a visit to Grissom Air Reserve Base, Ind., Dec. 15-16.During the visit, the Secretary learned about the base's history and gained a more in-depth understanding of Grissom's mission capabilities and the local communities that support the base."My first impression of Grissom was wow!" said James. "You've been involved with every major operation for the past two decades; it's unbelievable the importance of your mission.""The visit went extremely well," added Col. Doug Schwartz, 434th Air Refueling Wing commander. "This was a great opportunity for her to meet the men and women of the Hoosier Wing and see first-hand the outstanding facilities that we have here as well as learn more about our mission and capabilities."James' visit began with a dinner in Wabash, Ind. at the historic Honeywell House where she met with Grissom's leadership and local civic leaders."This is an amazing community," said James. "You can really tell that the base has their support."The following day, James was given a mission briefing and tour of the north-central Indiana base that included visits to a KC-135 simulator and Grissom's new boom operator weapon system trainer. James also had an opportunity to share the tour with Sen. Joe Donnelly and a couple of his staff members as well as U.S. Rep. Jackie Walorski's military legislative assistant."This is very realistic," said James as she took the controls of the KC-135 simulator. "What a valuable asset to the pilots [who fly these aircraft]."Donnelly echoed those words as he took over the controls of the simulator."These [simulators] are amazing," concurred Donnelly "I'm honored to have the opportunity to meet [Secretary James] and see first-hand the mission at Grissom."The tour moved from simulator to the real thing as the wing showcased one of Grissom's 16 KC-135R Stratotankers. Crewmembers and maintainers showed her around the aircraft and answered questions."I am blown away by the condition of your aircraft!" explained James. "They truly are a testament to pride your maintainers take in their work."As the visit progressed, James met with Hoosier Wing Airmen during a luncheon. She highlighted several key topics with the Airmen in attendance including resiliency, innovation and career development."I couldn't have gotten where I am today without good mentors and a lot of resiliency," she said. "Be prepared to zig-zag in life; you will have your ups and downs, but when you are down you have to bounce back."James also discussed the importance of every Airman and what they bring to the mission."There is no substitute to engaging with Airmen in person," said James. "Each of you brings valuable assets to the mission."Airmen asked questions and listened to the advice she had to offer."Meeting the SecAF was a great opportunity for me and gave me an insight of how the Reserve and our mission fit into the big picture," said Senior Airman Courtney Dotson-Essett, 434th Maintenance Squadron hydraulics specialist. "It really shows that what I do in the Air Force matters and makes a difference."James concluded her visit by reassuring Airmen that reservists will continue to play a vital role in the defense of our country in the future."We continue to rely on reserve units more and more, and we are going to continue to build up their end strength," she said. "Continue to keep up the good work; everyone is proud of what you are doing with the KC-135 and its mission."The 434th ARW is the largest KC-135R Stratotanker in the Air Force Reserve Command. Airmen and aircraft from the 434th ARW routinely deploy around the world in support of the Air Force mission and U.S. strategic objectives.Stay connected with the 434th ARW on Facebook and Twitter.
Three Air Force Reserve officers have been selected to lead active-duty units under the voluntary Extended Active Duty tour program.EAD tours assign Reservists to active duty units to help meet active force requirements. The assignments are part of a larger initiative to leverage Total Force capabilities that includes assigning active-duty officers to lead Air Force Reserve units.Reservists recently selected to command active duty units are:Col. Michael Hernandez, 482nd Fighter Wing vice commander, Homestead Air Reserve Base, Florida, will command the 325th Fighter Wing, Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida.



Lt. Col. Matthew Bianchini, 514th Maintenance Squadron commander, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, will lead the 736th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron at Dover AFB, Delaware.

Maj. Albert Knapp, Air Force Reserve Command Directorate for Logistics, Engineering and Force Protection executive officer, will command the 58th Maintenance Squadron, Kirtland AFB, New Mexico.They join Lt Col. Michael Giedt, who is currently on an EAD tour as deputy commander of the 23rd Maintenance Squadron, Moody AFB, Georgia.

Their selection speaks highly of their qualifications and continued outstanding performance, said Lt. Gen. James F. Jackson, Air Force Reserve Command commander and chief of Air Force Reserve. I am confident they will excel in these command opportunities.



Hernandez is the first Air Reserve Component colonel in recent history selected to lead a regular Air Force wing. His career has been a blend of Total Force assignments. He spent 16-and-a-half years on active duty, is a former active duty F-22 squadron commander and has racked up more than 2,900 flying hours in the F-22, F-16 and T-38.



Im thankful for the opportunity the Air Force is giving me to lead the wing, he said. This is another example of the Air Forces commitment to the Total Force.



The selections are part of a growing crossflow of active-duty and Reserve members, as several active duty officers are filling billets in the Air Force Reserve.



Col. Robert Bruckner is a RegAF officer and the 919th Special Operations Wing (AFRC) vice commander, Duke Field, Florida. Lt Col. Stuart Rubio is an AD member from AMCs squadron commander list and will lead 815th Airlift Squadron (AFRC), Keesler AFB, Mississippi.

Several other Reservists are completing tours in active duty command billets. Col. Jim Lackey just finished a tour as the active duty vice wing commander at Vance AFB, Oklahoma; Col. Robert Graham is currently the 436th Airlift Wing vice commander at Dover AFB, Delaware. They join a growing list of Reserve officers serving as vice, operations group, and squadron commanders where the Air Force Reserve has associate units.

These actions serve to strengthen the Air Force enterprise to help build the future force we need, said Jackson.



Integrating Air Force Reserve and active-duty Airmen falls in line with Total Force Initiatives outlined in the National Commission on the Structure of the Air Force that calls for increasing integration of Reserve, Guard, and Active Component Airmen at headquarters and units, and increasing the number of integrated or multi-component (associate) units.



The Air Force unequivocally relies on three strong components, states Deborah James, Secretary of the Air Force, in the 2015 USAF Posture Statement. The Air Force is absolutely committed to leveraging the distinct and complementary characteristics of its Total Force more effectivelyand to do that, Airmen must be postured to operate cohesively and seamlessly as one team.

Col. Dawn Wallace, director of Air Force Reserve Senior Leader Management, said the One Air Force objective directs increased opportunities for component integration. It is less about supporting the use of Reservists in active duty positions, and more about the Total Force integration and leveraging the strengths of each component and individual talent, she said.Each of the Air Force Reserve selectees brings extensive experience to the positions and go through a rigorous screening process. Candidates are selected by their Development Teams and must be on the AFRC Command Screening Board list. The names are then vetted and approved by a panel of general officers. After that, the active duty command screening board considers them for assignment to fill command opportunities.Both Knapp and Bianchini come highly qualified. With a combined 52 years of maintenance experience on multiple airframes and multiple deployments to Southwest Asia, they understand the rigors and responsibilities of command.Wing commanders have to have faith and hire us based on record only, said Knapp about the selection process.

Im excited and energized, said Bianchini, a maintainer for 27 years. He served 12 years as an enlisted guidance and control technician, got commissioned in 1998 and has held command positions at two Reserve wings, served as a Pentagon action officer and deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. This is an awesome opportunity that I hope opens more doors for other Reservists.



The Kirtland assignment brings familiarity, but a different perspective for Knapp. He walked the hangars at Kirtland as an enlisted guidance and control technician working on MH-53 and H-3 helicopters in the 1990s. After commissioning in 2002, Knapp served as a Traditional Reserve logistics officer and was an airframe and power plant mechanic in between his Reserve duty. He went on to become an Air Reserve Technician, deployed to Afghanistan in 2009 and led maintainers as a squadron commander at MacDill AFB, Florida.



I think we are forging new ground [with the EAD program] that will open opportunities that didn't exist in the past, he said. Anything is possible. Im beyond excited and ready to go do this job.
Reservists support historic launch, landing of rocket

Helicopter aircrews from the 920th Rescue Wing held their hover near Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station while a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket blasted skyward at 8:29 p.m. Dec. 21.



On board the Falcon were 11 communications satellites, which were to be placed into low-Earth orbit (LEO) (between 99 - 1,200 miles up). Normally, once that task was done, so was the life of the rocket.



But not this time. This time, there would be a slight change.



Which is how it came to be that, after setting the satellites adrift in low-Earth orbit, the Falcon 9 made a U-turn. Moments later, the rocket reappeared in the muggy Florida night, orientated itself toward Landing Zone 1 (former Launch Complex 13), and proceeded to execute a perfect vertical landing back at the Cape a mere 10 minutes after liftoff.



SpaceX had been trying to engineer rockets to be reusable launch systems for some time but was never able to produce a successful landing. And the launch itself marked the first for the company since June, a Falcon 9 had exploded in mid-air two minutes after liftoff from the Cape.



The launch, satellite deployment and safe return of the Falcon 9 marks the first time in history a large-scale rocket was able to return safely to Earth after performing a mission.



As part of an integrated team, 920th Airmen launch in two HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopter several hours prior to every Space Coast rocket launch to clear civilian and commercial marine traffic from the launch trajectory are, which extends roughly 80 miles east from the shores of Cape Canaveral.



The wing's primary mission is combat search and rescue (CSAR), which includes rescuing servicemembers trapped and/or wounded behind enemy lines. Additionally, the wing performs civil search and rescue and humanitarian relief.



Since being activated in 1956, the 920th Rescue Wing has saved roughly 4,000 lives, including more than 850 combat rescues. It is the only CSAR unit in the Air Force Reserve.
Colorado Reservists to support Southwest Asia airlift ops

Approximately 150 Air Force Reservists and four C-130s from Colorados 302nd Airlift Wing have begun a four-month deployment to Southwest Asia in support of Operation Freedoms Sentinel.



Assigned to the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing based at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, the aircrew, aircraft maintainers and support personnel will provide airlift, airdrop and aeromedical evacuation support to operations throughout the U.S. Central Command Area of Responsibility.



The flying training missions we conduct in Colorado have been critical in preparing our crews for deployment operations, said Col Jay Pittman, 302nd Airlift Wing commander.



This scheduled rotation of aircraft and personnel is the fifth deployment of this type since 2005 for the Reserve airlift wing stationed here.

Airmen and aircraft from the 302nd AW have deployed and provided airlift support for Operations Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom and New Dawn.



The 302nd Airlift Wing is one of nine Air Force Reserve C-130 wings with an airdrop and airlift mission located throughout the nation and the only Air Force Reserve C-130 wing assigned the special Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System (MAFFS) mission.


Life goes on, but not the same

Four years ago Jan. 12, I received a phone call that completely changed my life. I woke up to news that my best friend Robby had been killed. For several hours I felt paralyzed before I broke down. I poured through all the photo albums I had looking at pictures of us from when we were kids hanging out with all of our friends.



It didnt seem real. Barely a week ago, we were hanging out, having a blast celebrating the New Year while I was on leave.



It turned out there were a lot of things going on beneath the surface that no one really knew about.



Robby lost his life to a gunshot wound inflicted by a police officer. A shot was heard from inside his house by a neighbor, and the police were called. When the police arrived Robby stepped outside with a shot gun and refused to put it down when he was warned to. It was later revealed that his gun wasnt loaded.



He purposely forced the officer to shoot him.



Robby was a member of the Air Force Reserve, attached to the 442nd Fighter Wing at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri. After a deployment to Southeast Asia, he transferred from the Air Force to the Navy to become a corpsman so he could help save lives. He was a husband, father and best friend to everyone who knew him. If you knew him, he would have been your best friend too.



But, this isnt about Robby and his struggles. This isnt about him not seeking help or opening up about his issues.



This is about those of us who are left. This is about those of us who have a giant hole in our lives, how a part of us is missing with Robby gone.



Several of us struggled since that day. Many wrestled with their faith, questioning every belief they grew up with. A few threw themselves into alcohol, trying to numb the pain of him being gone.



Its hard when your best friend or brother disappears. His sister and brother-in-law adopted a little boy since his departure, and his nephew will never get to know his uncle. His daughter wont get to have her daddy there when she graduates high school or goes to her first dance.

Her daddy wont walk her down the aisle.



One of our friends had moved to the U.S. from Canada for school and lived in the U.S. for a decade. After Robby died, he moved back. Robby was the glue that held our circle together.



Robby was the first person to tell me that my wife was interested in me. I didnt really believe him. He would have been the best man at my wedding, but wasnt even around when we started dating.



I flew out the next day after I received the call so I could be there for his funeral. When I arrived back the next week to report for duty, I had to prepare for a contingency deployment to Korea. I had to take a physical fitness test and go to the combat arms range.



At the range, I couldnt help but wonder if the sound I was hearing as I pulled the trigger was the last sound he heard. My heart was barely in it as I prepared to go overseas, an assignment I had previously been thrilled about. After losing Robby, I couldnt get excited about anything.



Four years later, the ache is still there. His family has holidays and theres an empty space. I go visit my hometown and all I can think of is how I want to be able to invite Robby to hang out with us. Theres a missing piece in all of our lives that can never be replaced. Memories are made that are supposed to include him.



One of the things that helped me heal was speaking with a chaplain and other friends who had lost people too early. If youve lost someone or are struggling yourself, strongly consider seeing a chaplain or talking to a psychological health professional. It worked for me.



Four years ago, my best friend died. It still sucks.




As a civilian, he protects the computers that run the Texas power grid. As a military member, he protects the computers that run the Air Force. As a Citizen Airman, he's proud to serve his country.



In the U.S. Air Force Reserve, Senior Master Sgt. Michael Weeks serves as the superintendent of Standards and Evaluations for the 854th Combat Operations Squadron at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas. In his civilian profession, he is a Cyber Security Engineer-Analyst at the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which controls the Texas portion of the U.S. Power Grid.



"My job is to protect computers from bad guys," the Round Rock, Texas, native explained. "At ERCOT, I protect the computers that run the Texas power grid, and for the Air Force, I protect the computers that run the U.S. Air Force."



Breaking it down into layman's terms, he went on to explain that, on the military side, he ensures that Air Force cyber operations controllers are able to execute their mission of engaging, defending, and operating the Air Force portion of the Department of Defense Information Networks. He says being a cyber-analyst and engineer in his civilian profession helps immensely with the defense-focused operations of his military occupation.



"At ERCOT, my job is very technical," he said. "I look at the individual computers and network connections for bad guys, and then respond. I work diligently to ensure the network is protected from future attacks."



As a Citizen Airman, he does the same thing, but on a larger scale.



"In the Air Force, my job is to coordinate between the organizations that run the computers and the guys that look for bad guys," Weeks said. "Due to the size of the Air Force, there are a lot of disparate organizations that do different things for the Air Force computers and networks. It's my job to ensure the proper orders are communicated to prevent bad guys from getting into our systems."



In his civilian profession, he says he has deployed multiple very complicated systems to better protect the network and enjoys actually seeing the results at ERCOT. According to Weeks, his position at ERCOT is a much different environment, mostly because it's a much smaller scale and he is able to directly affect the organization much more significantly. However, with more than 15 years of service under his belt, he's very proud to be a senior master sergeant in the Air Force Reserve.



"Being involved in cyber at this time and space in our nation's history is pretty exciting, and the capabilities in and through cyberspace are very impressive," Weeks said. "In fact, if you think back to the effect that airpower had in World War II, there are a lot of parallels in the domain of cyberspace. With the ability to communicate globally and instantaneously, to track and monitor hundreds of operations simultaneously, as well as the automation that cyber has had, you can see that the U.S.'s defense capability has exponentially increased. Just as it was in World War II that the country that controlled the skies won, now the nation that can control the cyber domain will win...hands down."



Staff Sgt. Greg Rivas, a cyber transport technician assigned to the 860th Network Warfare Flight and a former co-worker of Weeks agrees that cyber is an exciting place to work and that it has far-reaching impacts in the defense of the Nation.



"Cyber defense is the newest force multiplier," Rivas said. "It is an extremely effective way for a nation state to quickly gather intelligence and affect enemy readiness. It allows us to project power in a covert, safe, and relatively cost-effective manner when compared to other military solutions."



He recalls Weeks being the "go-to guy" in their previous unit for cyber security matters and had this to say about him.



"Sergeant Weeks really has a job that many in the cyber defense career field strive for," Rivas said. "He can speak in-depth about a wide variety of digital tools quite intelligently, and he uses that knowledge of them to great effect in the military."



No matter which proverbial hat he's wearing, it's his love of the job that makes his work so gratifying.



"I enjoy the puzzle - being presented with a problem or issue that could take years or minutes to fix is fascinating," Weeks said. "Sometimes it's as easy as blocking an [Internet Protocol] address or domain, but sometimes - actually most of the time - the issue is something that a lot of people can't figure out. When you can figure out the issue that involves people, processes, and technology, and they all come together, it is very satisfying!"
As a stream of visitors walks across brightly colored carpet in an immense hotel here, a man in a suit directs them to a registration table. He does this for scores of people over a 3-hour period at the start of an Air Force Reserve Yellow Reintegration Program training event.

Professional, yet courteous, said Master Sgt. Bryant Hamlor, describing the type of demeanor he and other security team members strive to project at each Yellow Ribbon training weekend. We want people to know were here and that their loved ones are protected.

Hamlor works multiple conferences per year in addition to serving as a security forces action officer with the 459th Security Forces Squadron at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. He has provided security at Yellow Ribbon events since 2010.

More than 900 people  reservists and those closest to them -- attended this event Sept. 25-27 in Florida. Yellow Ribbon promotes the well-being of reservists and their families by connecting them with resources before and after deployments.

The primary purpose of the security detail is to ensure the safety of children in the childcare area, he said. We want parents to know that, although the childcare process is unfamiliar, its very secure.

The safety of the participants is of paramount importance to the 8-person security detail at this event and allows the attendees to focus on receiving information from the resource providers there.

This is my first Yellow Ribbon event, and its funny that the first one I attend its through a security detail, said Tech. Sgt. Hector Flores of the 507th Security Forces Squadron at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma. From this perspective I see how important it is that families of military personnel have the opportunity to receive a lot of information that is missed or needed during the deployment process.

Hamlor, the team leader, traveled to the Orlando location prior to the event to conduct a site survey, and walked areas of concern the day before attendees arrived to get a detailed perspective of the facilities. Wearing suits and ties, the Yellow Ribbon security team members provide a visible presence throughout the event.

Yellow Ribbon attendees wear badges to allow for accountability and identification. To accommodate the massive gathering of visitors, dozens of rooms were reserved for briefings designed to inform attendees on all the services and resources available to them before and after a deployment. The large area of responsibility dictates the size of the security detail. The team in Orlando had two reservists from Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, four from Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, and two from Andrews.

Unlike some security forces temporary assignments, which may include long hours and a harsh environment, the job at this Yellow Ribbon event was a welcome tasking for the detail, said Senior Airman Colby Crosser, a fire team member with the 932nd Security Forces Squadron at Scott Air Force Base.

Its Orlando, Florida, he said. Thats been my favorite part. Its a different style of (duty) thats new to me, and its kinda nice.

Yellow Ribbon began in 2008 following a congressional mandate for the Department of Defense to assist reservists and National Guard members in maintaining resiliency as they transition between their military and civilian roles. Each year, the Air Force Reserve program trains 7,000 reservists and family members in education benefits, health care, retirement information and more.
Confident from daily encounters with danger and thousands of hours flying military and civilian aircraft, the pilots and crews of the 10th Flight Test Squadron also happen to be the biggest troublemakers on Tinker Air Force Base.



They'd be out of a job if they weren't.



The 38-member Air Force Reserve Command squadron led by Lt. Col. Scott Wilson serves as the final quality check for planes fresh out of depot maintenance work at the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Complex. After OC-ALC maintainers dismantle KC-135 aerial refueling tankers, B-1 and B-52 bombers and E-3 Airborne Warning and Control System planes - restoring or replacing anything from toggle switches to tail sections - the 10th FTS pilots are the first to fly the like-new birds.



If something wasn't fixed right, they're also the first ones to know about it and deal with sometimes dangerous consequences.



A thousand feet in the air after takeoff on Nov. 1, 2012, squadron pilots flying a newly overhauled B-52 heard a "bang-boom-thud," according to an Air Force accident report. The heavy bomber banked left. Despite a yoke dragged to full right rudder, the Stratofortress's 185-foot wingspan dangerously persisted in a 30- to 45-degree left roll.

About 25 seconds later, another "bang-boom" jolted the plane. The pilots could feel the bomber's flight dynamics change. The lead pilot wheeled the plane back to level flight. After nearly 2 hours in the air, the pilot safely landed the plane using an improvised plan because their misfortune wasn't covered in the B-52's emergency procedures manual of the time.



What had happened was the bomber's right and left inboard flaps, which extend and retract on command from the back of the wings, had fallen off one after the other and plunged into sparse forest a few miles from the base. The flaps' critical retainer plugs were mistakenly never installed during overhaul.



All the aircraft that the 10th's pilots and crew fly after depot maintenance, repair or modification are by definition "unairworthy." It's the squadron's job to fly them first and test all avionics, flight controls and even cause emergencies to make sure they can be fixed in flight.



Shutting off engines in flight is routine. Descending disturbingly close to "land" on a Tinker runway with no wheels down tests whether the warning alarms will blare.



"When you come here as a new pilot to the unit," Operations Director Lt. Col. Kelly Buck said, "the first time you pull all the fire switches, or you shut down the engines in flight on purpose, it feels a little unsettling because it's stuff that you would never do in a normal unit. But we do that."



Major Josh Thompson, a KC-135 Stratotanker pilot, added, "There's a hydraulic crossover handle that when I went through training they said never touch that thing. We move it about three times a flight, back and forth. We make sure every switch, every system, works. Then that's when it becomes airworthy."



All those system checks, including crew members who test equipment such as refueling boom extenders in KC-135s, mean pilots and crews must be highly experienced. As Reservists they have earned that experience through active, guard, civilian and reserve experiences in the airframes. The 17 pilots average around 2,000 hours of flying time. Only one of the pilots, navigators and weapon system operators is ranked below major or lieutenant colonel.



Flying more than 400 "functional check flights" annually, the squadron registered a six-year streak of Air Force Flight Safety Awards. Colonel Buck described them as "you-saved-the-plane" citations.



Checking out a plane usually takes more than one flight. Crew members note everything that needs to be fixed and go up again to verify repairs.



"You write it up if a light bulb's burned out - minutiae, things that you'd get shot for on active duty for writing up," Major Thompson said.



The squadron's mission, though, is perfection, Colonel Buck said.



"It's a pride thing," the colonel said. "You want when the owner comes to pick it up for them to go, 'Man, everything's working,' because they don't always get that. You can fly a mission with a lot of things not working. Our mission is to return perfect warplanes back to the warfighter as quickly as possible."



Some of the squadron's tests turn into real emergencies declared to the air control tower.



"I can't remember a week that's gone by when one of our planes hasn't come back as an emergency," Colonel Buck said. "Talk to the firemen. They know that when we're flying they're going to be busy."



Although their jobs mirror those of mythical aircraft-sabotaging gremlins, the pilots say it's significantly less stressful when they degrade a system themselves to perform a test.



"I've shut every engine down every initial flight that I've done here for 10 years, so it doesn't bother you anymore," Colonel Buck said. "We have to fight complacency because we see so many emergencies. We treat every one as important even though we've seen it over and over again."



Major Thompson said he was attracted to the 10th FTS because it allows active-duty service status even though he's a Reservist. He's also stationed long-term at one location, allowing more time with family.



B-52 pilot Maj. Steve Miracle said he enjoys the work. Working for Air Force Materiel Command, the squadron returns about 120 planes a year to their units.



"Every time we go fly we're doing our mission and making sure that these airplanes we're testing are fit to give back to the user so they can go to war with them," the major said. "I go home every day with pretty high job satisfaction, and I love the kind of flying that we do. It's real hands-on kind of stuff."



The squadron's other work can include ferrying battle-damaged planes from combat theaters to Tinker. They also deliver aircraft to foreign customers. Major Thompson and crew took several trips to France earlier this year delivering refueling tankers because they were so extensively modified that no French pilots were qualified yet to fly them.



"It was purely work. It was terrible," the major said with a grin.
Air Reserve Component Teen Leadership Council members volunteered during a Yellow Ribbon Reintegration event here Nov 20-22.



The council is a nationwide group of 14 teens from Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard families. It provides a youth perspective in the planning, implementation and evaluation of Guard/Reserve youth programs.



Teens speak on behalf of the youth at selected functions and programs, including Yellow Ribbon which promotes the well-being of reservists and their families by connecting them with resources before and after deployments.



Yellow Ribbon began in 2008 following a congressional mandate for the Department of Defense to assist reservists and National Guard members in maintaining resiliency as they transition between their military and civilian roles.



Each year, the Air Force Reserve program trains 7,000 reservists and family members in education benefits, health care, retirement information and more.



Three of the council members volunteered for room monitor duties, manning a table to promote awareness of the council, and were able to speak to leaders of the event. Room monitors scan each person who enters a breakout session so they can get credit for attending.



Volunteer efforts aside, the most important contribution the teen leadership council makes is connecting.



The most significant part of this council is the connections we make, said Biannca Recoder, council member from San Antonio, Texas. Being teens of Guard and Reserve parents presents unique challenges that most of the teens in your area know nothing about.



Recoder said having someone to talk to who understands makes all the difference in the world.



Its shocking living in a town so full of military, how many teens in my school have no idea what its like to have one parent in the military, let alone both, said Recoder. They certainly dont understand the unique challenges having parents in the Guard and Reserve poses.



Council member Nathan Williams of Mason, Ohio, said that some teens can be unintentionally cruel because they simply dont understand the strain these families are constantly under.



Having a circle of friends who understand all over the world to reach out to when times get tough is a truly empowering thing, Williams said.



According to Williams the council teaches teens the value and benefit of being a good leader as well as how to do it successfully. It gives big-picture perspective, he said.



I have seen so much change in many of my friends in this council, said Williams. They came into the program just fun-loving teens and now they are full blown leaders at such a young age from the experiences theyve received through the council.



Williams recently launched a Facebook page and group along with an Instagram profile to help teens stay connected and give them better access to information about the program.



Some of the youth programs include Teen Adventure Camp and Military Kids Camps that partner with local 4-H programs.



For more information on the youth programs available or to apply to the council visit www.myairforcelife.com.
Financial management classes drew standing-room only attendance last weekend at the final Air Force Reserve Yellow Ribbon Reintegration training event of the year.

The choices a couple makes today will impact them in five years, said instructor Kristy Tubbs. This can be a loan for a vehicle or an investment. Either way, they need to be on the same page or the outcome can be disastrous.

Tubbs, a private financial counselor, is wife of Col. Richard S. Tubbs, vice commander of the 439th Airlift Wing at Westover Air Reserve Base, Massachusetts. Her sessions, which focus on helping couples work together to achieve financial success, are the scene of the beginnings of many success stories.

Tubbs said that she knows of at least 12 couples who had either already divorced -- or were on the verge of it  before attending her training as part of Yellow Ribbon, which promotes the well-being of reservists and their families by connecting them with resources before and after deployments.

The unique challenges military families face is what led Tubbs to her career and helps explain why she is so passionate about Yellow Ribbon. She already had a profession as a marriage counselor when her husband joined the military more than 26 years ago. She said that most of their disagreements involved finances, which prompted her to head back to school to pursue a degree in finance. Tubbs offers one-on-one counseling to military families for free.

Its whats important to me. I had to learn about deployment on my own. Things are different today, but reservists still dont have as easy access to resources, so I try to help that, she said.

Her affiliation with the Yellow Ribbon program began in 2010 and her 7 Steps to 7 Figures seminars are well attended.

People are hungry for advice and assistance, she said.

Two of those people, Maj. Robert Hammontree and his wife, Brandy Ann, of Little Rock, Arkansas, were happy with the information they received at the most recent Yellow Ribbon training weekend.

Robert is a C-130 navigator with the 913th Airlift Group at Little Rock AFB, and when he isnt flying, he and Brandy Ann run their familys restaurants.

We dont want money problems to affect our familys future, he said. With sound planning we can worry less about money and focus more on whats important.

They have two teenage sons and two pizza restaurants which afford them little time to focus on financial planning.

We took this class because we want to be ready in case of a deployment, Brandy Ann said. This isnt a passive activity, you have to think and act in unison. Were always planning ahead.

Tubbs said that the financial challenges the Hammontrees face are similar to many of the military families she meets. She recommends that families begin their road to financial success by taking three steps:

- Establish a family success motto such as, We will stay debt-free in order to follow our financial dreams.

- Create deployment financial goals. Families should create an alternate budget to follow during deployments.

- Restore and repair your familys credit. A good credit score not only affords you access to necessities, it can also reduce how much you pay for borrowing money, as well as lowering the cost of items like auto insurance, Tubbs said.

Its really exciting when people come through post-deployment having followed a plan and accomplished their goals, she said.

However, this isnt always the case. A 2012 Kansas State University study, Examining the Relationship Between Financial Issues and Divorce, concluded that financial disagreements were the single strongest indicator of a couples likelihood to separate.

When families are out of sync with their spending habits it can wreak havoc on day-to-day living. An example Tubbs shares is her story of an Airman who had deployed to Afghanistan and purchased an expensive motorcycle through an overseas purchase program. When the servicemember returned home, the family returned to their pre-deployment spending plan, and realized that the motorcycle was creating a hardship. They faced a decision whether to keep the vehicle and sacrifice somewhere else, or sell it and stick to the original plan. The family eventually sold the motorcycle, but its purchase had an adverse impact on their financial plan.

I get that deployers sacrifice a great deal, and its OK to reward themselves when they come home, but a couple needs to be on the same page in order to accomplish their goals, she said.

While challenges are prevalent, Tubbs added that her success stories are the reason she remains so passionate about helping Yellow Ribbon participants. When one couple left a seminar, she was convinced that they werent committed to sticking to a plan. She believed that their commitment to the relationship was tenuous at best. When the same couple returned to her seminar months later following a deployment, they gave her an envelope with the specific instructions that she not open it until the end of the weekend.

I opened it and found torn up pieces of paper. When I put the pieces together it was their divorce papers, she said. They wanted me to know that my seminar had helped them put their relationship back together. Thats why I do this (counseling) for free.
Operation Desert Storm was an exceptional example of Total Force integration in support of combat operations with an all-volunteer force.

Jan. 16, 2016, marks the 25th anniversary of Desert Storm, the coalition effort to free Kuwait from the grips of an Iraq invasion force. Below are some factoids on Air Force Reserve contributions to the campaign, courtesy of the Air Force Reserve Command History Office.

In the build-up to Desert Storm, Reservists provided fully 50 percent of the Air Forces strategic airlift aircrew and aerial port capability, 33 percent of its aeromedical evacuation aircrews and 25 percent of its tactical airlift forces.By August 1990, more than 15,300 Reservists had volunteered to serve, about 22 percent of the Air Force Reservists.The first Reserve assets to reach the theater of operations was a C-141 Starlifter aircrew that landed in Saudi Arabia on Aug. 8, 1990. By the eve of Desert Storm, Air Force Reserve aircraft and crews flew more than 107,000 hours, moved more than 135,000 passengers, 235,000 tons of cargo and delivered five million pounds of fuel.On August 29, 1990, an Air Force C-5, flown by an all-Reserve, all volunteer crew from the 68th Military Airlift Squadron, 433th Airlift Wing, Kelly AFB, Texas, crashed on takeoff from Ramstein Air Base, Germany. Thirteen people died and four were wounded. Ten of the 17 were Reservists. Of those 10, nine died and one was injured. Staff Sgt Lorenzo Galvan, Jr., a loadmaster, earned the Airmans Medal for his efforts to rescue other crash victims. The nine who died were the only Reservists to lose their lives during the conflict.

On Aug 22, 1990, President Bush authorized the call-up of 200,000 Reservists for 90 days under Title 10 US Code Section 678b. The decision, the first significant, conflict-related call-up of the Reserve component since 1968, marking the beginning of a process that would eventually see more than 20,000 Air Force Reservists called to active duty.

By February 1991, more than 17,500 Reservists were on active duty. Roughly one in four was a woman; approximately 1,800 were Air Reserve Technicians, 1,300 were individual mobilization augmentees, and more than 500 were members of the individual ready reserve. More than 7,800 of the Reservists called up were in medical specialties. In expectation of massive casualties that never came, all Air Force Reserve medical units were called to active duty.Mobilization reached its peak on March 12, 1991 with almost 23,500 Air Force Reservists on duty. Of these, more than 20,000 were assigned to 215 Reserve units; 2,300 were IMAs, 960 were IRR or retirees. Most of the Ready Reserve were medical personnel.The Air Force Reserves first (and only) tactical fighter unit to be recalled was the 706th Tactical Fighter Squadron, 926th Fighter Group, Naval Air Station New Orleans. The A-10 squadron deployed to Saudi Arabia in mid-January just before the beginning of the air campaign against Iraq.Capt Bob Swain, a pilot with the 706th TFS, scored the first-ever A-10 air-to-air kill when he destroyed an Iraqi helicopter. During one day of combat, Lt Col. Greg Wilson, 706th FTS and 1st Lt. Stephan K. Otto of the 354th Tactical Fighter Wing, Myrtle Beach AFB, S.C., destroyed 10 mobile Scud launchers and a pair of ammunition dumps and helped F/A-18s destroy 10 more Scuds.Crews from the 1650th Tactical Airlift Wing (Provisional), drawn largely from the 914th Airlift Wing, Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station, New York, and 927th Tactical Airlift Group, Selfridge Air National Guard Base, Michigan, flew more than 5,000 hours, and 3,200 sorties in 42 days of combat.Tactical airlift forces played a major role in the redeployment of forces in northern Saudi Arabia as commanders set up what became the dramatic left hook into Iraq. A-10s operating from bases close to the front lines, attacked a full range of ground targets including Scud missiles. Reserve AC-130 Gunships and HH-3E helicopters also supported special operations as well as search and rescue missions.The Department of Defense authorized commanders of the gaining major commands to demobilize Reservists, consistent with military requirement, on March 8, 1991. Most Reservists had been demobilized by late June, but a handful remained on active duty through August and beyond.
Remembering Desert Storm - Where we are today in the Total Force Continuum

See all those contrails heading north, Captain? the salty lieutenant colonel asked me on Jan. 16, 1991. Yes sir! I replied flying as a brand new aircraft commander in the C-141B Starlifter.



The contrails covered the darkening sky and seemed like hundreds of fingers reaching north into Iraq to grab Saddam Hussein. That means we are at war, said the colonel, as the cockpit fell silent and each crewmember pondered the greater implication of the contrails.



That was a quarter of a century ago this week, marking the opening salvo in Operational Desert Storm. The operation was an American shock and awe campaign to evict Saddam Hussein from Kuwait and displayed airpower that the world had not seen since Operation Linebacker II over Vietnam.



I was honored to be part of the largest air bridge in history, often flying 24-hour airlift missions from Torrejon and Zaragosa, Spain, or Ramstein and Rhein Main, Germany to locations in Saudi Arabia such as Dhahran or Riyadh.



The ramps at these locations were so full and it was sometimes difficult to find the assigned aircraft to preflight. Loading crews were challenged to keep up with the volume of cargo and people necessary for the fight.



We would often augment our crews with pool pilots  additional pilots to extend our crew duty day. Each day was long and hot; our ground times downrange were short but filled with the apprehension of dreaded Scud missile alerts. Tired crews would return to Europe for a short rest before repeating the process.



We were all supported by the greatest cast the world has ever known, filled with maintainers, aerial porters, fuelers, logisticians, and services Airmen. All told, the Total Force flew more than 69,000 sorties in support of Desert Storm.



The operation also saw the first comprehensive use of stealth and space technologies integrated with precision guided weapons.



Twenty-five years later, my C-141B has long ago been retired, replaced by the C-17 Globemaster III. While much of our Air Force has been modernized since that first night in the desert, our average aircraft age today stands at 27 years.



We have gone from having 188 fighter squadrons during Desert Storm to 54 today. Aging combat aircraft such as our B-52s and KC-135s are slated to keep flying for a decade or more.



In Operation Desert Storm, I was an Airman in the Regular Component when it consisted of over 600,000 Airmen; today, it has decreased to approximately 313,000 Airmen. Even with that size , Desert Storm required more than 48,000 Air Reserve Component Airmen to remove Saddam Hussein from Kuwait.



As a result of a smaller force, our Air Reserve Component consisting of over more than 105,000 Air National Guardsmen and 69,000 Air Force Reservists have gone from a strategic reserve force to one that provides daily operational capability and surge capacity where needed.



These figures do not include the vital capability our Air Force civilian Airmen bring to the fight.

Southwest Asia is no less secure and in some ways is more complex and dangerous even though Saddam Hussein is long gone. Commitments to our friends and allies are not decreasing, so we will continue to rely on the Total Force more, not less.



In my current role in the Total Force Continuum Air Staff office, our team is looking for the most efficient mix of Regular, Guard, and Reserve Airmen in each primary mission area. In the aggregate, our analysis shows that our Air Force is at least 12 percent too small for current requirements.



Just as during the peak of Desert Storm, we are all in and have cleared the bench to meet current requirements.



We are also looking at policy and legislative ways to make our Total Force more integrated by preserving and leveraging the strengths and efficiencies of each individual component. Programs that will allow transitioning between Air Force components, provide career development opportunities, and feature our three components working more closely together will become the norm over the next 25 years.



In commemoration of Desert Storms largest air campaign this week, make sure you thank a veteran for serving in the operation, and ask a wingman or relative who participated about their experiences. If youre reading this and not part of the worlds greatest Air Force, consider joining either the Regular, Reserve, or Guard component.



We may be smaller than in 1991, but were the most lethal air, space, and cyber force. And there is no question our Total Force will continue to answer our Nations call.


All active-duty, Guard, Reserve, retiree and civilian Airmen will need proof of health care coverage when filing their federal tax returns for 2015.This is the first year that Affordable Care Act requires health care validation for filing their taxes and Airmen need this information, said Robert W. Burke, the Air Force Accounting and Finance Office director, finance division.Under the ACA, U.S. citizens and legal residents are required to obtain and maintain a minimum standard of health care insurance, called minimum essential coverage. The proof of minimum essential coverage will be provided by the Department of Treasury Internal Revenue Service Form 1095. TRICARE is one of many health providers qualifying for this coverage.In January 2016, Defense Finance and Accounting Service is required to provide each employee with the IRS Form 1095 for employment during 2015. A hard copy form is scheduled to be mailed to each employee and the form will also be available electronically through myPay under the taxes section.The Air Force would like to stress the importance for Airmen to elect to receive the form electronic only, Burke continued. This action will save the Air Force $200,000 and cause no environmental impact.Additional information about the impact of the ACA can be found here
Grissom Airmen share their Desert Storm stories

Jan. 16 marks the 25th Anniversary of Desert Storm and Airmen from Grissom were there to fuel the fight.



Operating out of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, members of the 434th Air Refueling Wing joined coalition forces to launch a crippling air campaign against Iraqi forces who invaded Kuwait.



In all, nearly one out of every seven Air Force Reservists was on active duty during that time according to Air Force Reserve officials.



At Grissom, personnel assigned to the 72nd Air Refueling Squadron, 434th Consolidated Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, 434th Headquarters Squadron, 434th Security Forces flight, 434th Clinic members and others.



"When the air campaign kicked off literally everything on the ground launched, and that was sustained for about three weeks straight," said Chief Master Sgt. Tony Hoffman, 434th Maintenance Group superintendent, and a staff sergeant crew chief at the time.



"We literally had planes in line, with engines running, waiting to come into parking spots for fuel and maintenance," he said. "As fast as you could turn the aircraft you had aircrew ready to take off and go back up. I'll never forget that continuous sustained surge. It took a while to get used to the tempo, eventually it became a daily 12-hour routine."



"The amount of sorties flown by the tankers and the B-52s," is what Senior Master Sgt. Tim O'Brien, 434th Logistics Readiness Squadron superintendent of plans and integration said he remembers most."I had been on some very busy Air Force bases prior [to that], but never saw that many aircraft flying that many sorties in one location."



As a staff sergeant at the time and an aircraft ground equipment mechanic O'Brien said he recalls the heat and humidity.



"I had never been to a place that was that hot and humid," O'Brien said. "As soon as the cargo door opened, I instantly started sweating. We actually had to wear gloves to touch the AGE equipment because it was so hot."



Senior Master Sgt. Darin Schenher, 434th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron production superintendent, was a crew chief and a technical sergeant at the time. He was also deployed to Jeddah during the initial invasion.



One of Schenher's most vivid memories was a Grissom KC-135E aircraft 58-0013 that lost two engines, and the aircrew was still able to land with no loss of life.



Shortly after takeoff crew encountered jet wash, a kind of turbulence that builds behind large aircraft. The unexpected jet wash pitched them so violently from side-to-side, that somewhere in the process, both engines on the left side of the tanker were torn free, leaving the fully loaded tanker with very serious control problems.



Then staff sergeants, Rich Miller and Rusty Owens both recovered 58-0013 from an earlier mission and pumped on fuel before crew members came out to taxi for launch.



"When I got back to the compound I took the phone call that two engines had departed the aircraft," said Miller who is now a senior master sergeant with the 434th AMXS.



The entire crew was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for their skill in safely landing the aircraft.



"They tried to duplicate the feat in the simulator and crashed every time," Schenher said of the flight.



Dawn Everett was a navigator and first lieutenant at the time.



"I was the only female crewmember from Grissom to deploy to the theater for Desert Storm," she said.



"I remember the briefing we received the day before the "war" kicked off and the huge unknown, it was a bit scary," she said. "After the first combat mission was under our belt, it was business as usual!"



At the beginning of the gulf crisis, the 434th AREFW provided volunteer aircrews and maintenance personnel who deployed to forward operating locations in New England and Europe within 12 hours of the first phone call from Air Force Reserve Headquarters.



The wing, along with other units, served as a 'transatlantic air bridge" to provide inflight refueling to fighter and transport aircraft travelling to the Middle East. After the massive movement of aircraft was completed the unit switched its operations to Saudi Arabia.



The 434th AREFW banded with other reserve, active and Air National Guard refueling units to form one of the world's largest tanker task forces.



The 434th and its partners flew more than 7,000 refueling missions with over 30,000 hours of flight time offloading nearly seven million pounds of fuel to more than 25,000 receivers!



"To this day I have not seen that capability repeated with all the activations and deployments since," Hoffman said.



In addition to having members in Saudi Arabia, the 434th AREFW had security forces members deployed to Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota, and medics deployed to Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.



"Desert Storm would be the first of many deployments and operations the wing would be participate in," said Col. Doug Schwartz, 434th ARW commander. "The 434th has served with distinction in every campaign since then."



Gen. Merrill McPeak, Air Force chief of staff at the time, recognized the unit as well, saying "your strength in peace and your courage in battle have earned you the respect of the free world."



The 434th ARW is the largest KC-135R Stratotanker unit in the Air Force Reserve Command. Airmen and aircraft from the 434th ARW routinely deploy around the world in support of the Air Force mission and U.S. strategic objectives.



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NIA has raided across India and arrested 13 ISIS sympathisers. Six lakhs recovered from Muddabir who is an Ameer (Governor) of Western India.

The NIA along with state police forces and central security agencies have made a vital breakthrough by arresting 13 ISIS sympathisers across the country ahead of Republic Day. The raids were conducted in four states of Karnataka, Telangana, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh as 13 people had formed a group named Janood-ul-Khalifa-e-Hind a terror group which is following the ideologies similar to ISIS. Mumbra resident Muddabir Mushtaq Shaikh was arrested in a joint operation carried out by sleuths from Maharashtra ATS and National Investigation Agency (NIA). Mushtaq who is in his early thirties has designated himself as Ameer of the organisations.

According to Home Ministry sources, Muddabir was entrusted with the task of carrying out blasts at various locations across the country besides attacking foreigners. He had recently received funds worth Rs 6 lakh and was in close contact with those arrested. Mushtaqs mobile phone and laptop, have been seized and will be sent for forensic examination, said police sources. The sleuths recovered explosive material, detonators, wires, batteries and hydrogen peroxide besides Jehadi literature.

Shaikh is an unemployed youth residing in Amrut Nagar, Mumbra. Since he was active on social networking sites a team of investigation agencies were keeping a close watch on his activities. He was in contact with a ISIS handler who brainwashed him, said an officer from ATS on the condition of anonymity.

He is a graduate and holds a diploma in computer software and used to spend most of his time at home. Shaikh was produced before an NIA court in Mumbai, where the agency sought for a transit remand to produce him before a court in Delhi, and was granted a three-day transit remand.

He tried to influence other people for joining ISIS. He might be one of the key recruiters in India, said a police officer on the condition of anonymity.

The crackdown comes days after the arrest of a madrassa teacher from Karnataka for suspected links with al-Qaeda. The office of the Consulate General of France had also received a threat letter against French President Francois Hollandes proposed visit to India on the occasion of the Republic Day.

With increased activities of ISIS supporters online, the government has taken the threat of the dreaded terror group seriously and asked states to remain alert.

Earlier this week, the Delhi Police arrested a suspected militant along with his three accomplices from Roorkee for allegedly planning an attack at Ardh Kumbh Mela in Haridwar, Uttarakhand. It was later revealed that they had links with ISIS.
The Sahitya Akademi on Friday said some of the writers, including Nayantara Sahgal, have agreed to take back the awards they had returned citing growing intolerance in the country.

Sahitya Akademi has started sending back the awards to the writersIt has already been sent to Nayantara Sahgal.

Another writer Nand Bhardwaj has also agreed to take back the award. It would be sent to other writers as well, Sahitya Akademi president Vishwanath Prasad Tiwari said.

He said the Akademi is also sending a copy of their resolution, which was passed in the October meeting, to all writers mentioning that there was no provision in its Constitution to return the honours.

In October 2015, Sahgal had returned the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award in protest of the vanishing space for diversity.

Sahgal, niece of Indias first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and one of the first to join the award waapsi campaign, agreed to take back her award in view of the contention that there is no provision to return it.

Nayantara Sahgalsaid, The Akademi wrote a letter to me saying it is against their policy to receive returned award and therefore they are sending back the award. I will use the money for a worthwhile cause and welfare schemes.

Rajasthani writer Nand Bhardwaj has also reportedly taken his award back. Bharadwaj had sent back the prize money of Rs 50,000 as a mark of protest against the killing of rationalists  including MM Kalburgi  and the Dadri beef lynching incident of September 2015. Bhardwaj contended that he was satisfied by the Akademis response to the whole movement.

About 40 writers had returned their awards in the past few months in the backdrop of Akademis silence on the murder of writer M.M. Kalburgi as well against the communal atmosphere in the country following the Dadri lynching incident.

Meanwhile, a Culture Ministry source said, There is a list of 10 writers, who have agreed to take back the awards they had returned. Ms. Sahgal and Mr. Bhardwaj are two confirmed names in the list.

Not all agreed to this though. Poet Ashok Vajpeyi said, I have received the resolution and the letter from the Akademi but I dont think that its conduct as an autonomous institution devoted to excellence has been rehabilitated. So I dont think there is reason enough for me to reconsider the decision of taking the award back.
Dalit student Rohith Vemula hung himself with a banner of his union, after he and four other students were suspended and banned from the hostel, the cafeteria and other common areas for allegedly beating an activist of a rival student union in August. The five students had been living outside the campus in a tent. They are from lower middle class background and economically poor. The suicide has set off a political row with students and the opposition alleging that he was subjected to caste discrimination. A police complaint accuses union minister Bandaru Dattatreya and another BJP lawmaker of driving Rohith to suicide by compelling the university to punish him. Vice Chancellor Appa Rao Podile has also been named in the complaint.

After pressure build from media and think tanks, finally the university revoked the suspension of Rohiths comrades, hours after 15 Dalit teachers resigned accusing Union Education Minister Smriti Irani of distorting the facts related to the suicide. Irani had alleged a misrepresentation of facts and proclaimed that the tragedy had nothing to do with a caste battle. Here, Im not giving clean chit to HRD Minister but strongly condemning the Rohith Vemulas death. However, after his death selective attacks were on BJP and Smriti Irani, for which Im not in favour.

RohithVemula is not the first victim of social boycott in this University, albeit he was the 6th. In 2008, Senthil Kumar was the 1st who committed suicide due to social proscribe in Hyderabad Central University. In 2008, Senthil and Balaraj committed suicide followed by Swaran Singh in 2012. Pulayala Raju and Madari Venkatesh had ended their lives in 2013 and now RohithVemula has taken this drastic step in 2016. Interesting fact is that maximum suicides by Dalit students were committed in various states during UPA Government due to poor management and discrimination. Dalits were harassed, targeted and used by almost all politicians including Dalit leaders, who are representing Ambedkars ideology to fight for social justice.

Biggest threats to Dalits are their own representatives than any other political forces. In 1932, M. C. Rajah concluded a pact with two members of the Indian National Congress, Dr. B. S. Moonje and Jadhav. According to this pact, Moonje offered reserved seats to scheduled castes in return for Rajahs support. This demand prompted B. R. Ambedkar to make an official demand for Separate electorates on an all-India basis. By late 1935, Rajah had already decided not to support Dr. Ambedkars intention of religious conversion from Hinduism. Rajah, as well as other Dalit leaders, felt that conversion from Hinduism would undermine the morale of Dalit and forward-caste Hindu activists engaged in a two-front war against both upper caste reactionaries as well as the British.

The saffron shift among Dalits is unmistakable but what is still not clear is that whether this would continue to benefit BJP electorally or is it a temporary phenomenon? The upcoming UP assembly elections hold the key to this question. And much will depend on how much real participation and power BJP is willing to vest in the hands of Dalits within the party and the government. The Congress, under the inspiration of Gandhi, has taken up the question of removal of Untouchability and the Hindu Mahasabha has followed the suit. However, time and again, Congress and BJP governments had betrayed Dalits and were responsible for their poor plight even after 68 years of Independence.

Congress had systematically thrown Dalit leaders out of party and some leaders like Ram Vilas Paswan compromised with upper caste ideological parties for their own political gains. BJP too reduced its former national president Bangaru Laxman a political non-entity after he was accused of receiving a kickback of Rs. 2 lakh as party fund. However, the saffron party has not taken any serious action against its strong man B S Yeddyurappa even after facing corruption charges because his vote bank is strong and the party was not in a mood to take chance. Dalit leaders not only sabotaged Ambedkars ideology but they also compromised to powers for personal interest than the community welfare. They dont have honesty towards themselves or their society or ideology. Dalits dont have faith in their ideology and doubt if they can achieve their goals through Ambedkars movement. They consider it a failure.

Ambedkar never compromised with the State. If ever he stepped back, it was due to compulsions or to buy time for another strategy. He always stood against radical Hindutva. In history, he emerged as a friend of Muslims. One reason why Dalits are being fascinated towards saffron parties is that even today the caste system is prevalent among the Dalits. That is a gift of Hinduism. The Buddhism that Dalits adopted has been in the form of a religion, not as an ideology. For them, Buddha is not a progressive icon or Ambedkar a ladaku sainik. Saffron forces are trying to eliminate those who stood against Hindutva, and if that fails, they co-opt them. And today, the process of saffronisation of Dalits is catching pace. The current system does not solve the problems of the masses but only of a few. The saffron forces are capitalising on that discontent among the Dalit youth.

This is high time, Dalit need to understand and learn that regardless of coming into the saffron fold, their status has not changed, discontent will grow. They do not have commitment towards anybody, how can they be committed to saffron forces? The damage was done long back, when Republican Party of India leaders like R.S. Gawai joined hands with the Shiv Sena. Then Dhasal, Ramdas Athawale and Joginder Kawade followed the suite. The Dalit movement needs to be aggressive. There is no other way of stopping the atrocities committed against them.
The Bombay High Court asked Maharashtra Government to explain why a proposal of elevated rail corridor on the citys suburban network has been kept in limbo for the last six years. The information was sought by the High Court after counsel for Railways said that a proposal of elevated rail corridor had been sent to the State Government six years ago by Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation but it was not considered perhaps because of the issue pertaining to Floor Space Index.

A bench headed by Justice Naresh Patil asked the State government to file an affidavit by February 3, stating whether the proposal was stuck because of FSI or any other issue.

The HC was hearing a suo motu (on its own) PIL which was converted out of a letter written by A B Thakker urging reservation of a separate compartment for senior citizens in local trains. Several issues had cropped up during the course of hearing, including overcrowding in trains.

Nearly 3000 people die every year on the railway tracks and we are just not bothered (about it). It is time that we (Court) will have to step inthe convenience of the people (commuters) has to be seen and better administration and better governance, the bench observed.

The court had on last occasion asked the State to consider changing timings of offices, schools and colleges to prevent overcrowding in suburban local trains. The state government said it had issued an order providing one hour relaxation in office timings for Mantralaya employees from January 1, 2015. However, if an employee reached office late, then he has to compensate by working for that duration after office hours.

The government also informed that it was considering the HC suggestion to change the timings of schools, colleges and statutory bodies during the peak hours to prevent overcrowding in trains.
Lots of news sites have picked up this story, including the San Francisco Chronicle. Notice the reasons given for the bill's failure: parental rights, need, and potential for harm.

...But opponents say vaccinations should be decided by parents and there have been too few cases of meningitis in Nebraska to mandate a statewide vaccination.

Hard-line conservatives and civil libertarians in the Legislature argued the vaccination is unnecessary and potentially unsafe, and that requiring it would infringe on parents' freedom to choose what is best for their children .

The bill (LB18) sponsored by state Sen. Bob Krist of Omaha would have required Nebraska students to be immunized for meningococcal meningitis before starting seventh grade, then get a booster shot at 16.

A measure that would have required most Nebraska students to be vaccinated for bacterial meningitis failed to surmount a filibuster in the Legislature on Wednesday.

By Anne Dachel Wed, January 20th the state legislature in Nebraska voted down a bill to expand the vaccine schedule.

The Nebraska Legislature v. Paul Offit

This comes at the same time we're being told by vaccine industry insider Dr. Paul Offit that parents do not have the right to decide what vaccines their children receive.

On Dec 15, 2015, Offit starred in video entitled, Is it your right not to be vaccinated?

Offit was adamant that parents' rights are superseded by those promoting vaccines for every child. Citing the 14th Amendment, Offit claimed that the equal protection clause of the 14 Amendment means, "even if your parents have ill-founded beliefs about vaccine safety, that doesn't mean that children shouldn't be protected. Essentially it became a civil rights issue."

Offit went on, "[I]f you are a child, it's assumed that your parents represent your best interests, and that's not always true. When it's not true, as in this case where parents have a false belief that vaccines cause autism and they don't want to vaccinate their children, who do those children go to?

"The answer is, they go to the state. That's what happened, frankly, in California, which basically used a child's rights issue as the central focus of how they made that change."

Since Offit brought it up, let me also cite the 14th Amendment, you know, the equal protection clause.

The U.S. government has recognized that vaccines carry the risk of side effects. The National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986 acknowledged that fact also when they indemnified the vaccine makers and doctors from vaccine injury suits. The U.S. Supreme Court categorized vaccines as "unavoidably unsafe."

Dr. Greg Poland of the Mayo Clinic has for years talked about the genetic susceptibility of certain individuals for having a vaccine reaction.

The equal protection of which you spoke also entitles children to protection from vaccine injury. No effort is made to identify which children may be at risk for a vaccine reaction. Why is that? Parents being forced to vaccinate their children also have the right to know if their child should have a medical exemption.

Why is there no pre-screening? Forced vaccination is a barbaric medical practice placing countless thousands of children in harm's way. Where is the equal protection?



Anne Dachel is Media Editor for Age of Autism.
WASHINGTON, D.C., Jan. 21, 2016 - Monsanto has fired a pre-emptive strike in an attempt to stop the state of California from adding glyphosate, aka Roundup, to its list of chemicals known . . . to cause cancer.

The placement of the worlds most widely used herbicide on the Proposition 65 list, the company said in a complaint filed Jan. 21 in the Superior Court of California for Fresno County, would cause irreparable injury to Monsanto and the public (and) would adversely affect Monsantos reputation for manufacturing safe and reliable herbicides; would potentially result in lost sales due to consumer deselection of glyphosate-based herbicides; and would require Monsanto to spend significant sums of money to re-label and re-shelf its products.

The states Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) wrongly relied on a determination in March by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) that glyphosate is a probable carcinogen, Monsanto said. IARC is an arm of the U.N.s World Health Organization.

But OEHHA contends that it doesnt have to make its own scientific determination. In fact, it said when it proposed to place glyphosate, parathion and malathion on the list in September that under its own regulations, it cannot consider scientific arguments concerning the weight or quality of the evidence considered by IARC when it identified these chemicals and will not respond to such comments if they are submitted.

Monsanto contends that by proposing to place glyphosate on the Prop 65 list, OEHHA effectively elevated the determination of an ad hoc committee of an unelected, foreign body, which answers to no United States official (let alone any California state official), over the conclusions of its own scientific experts.

In a news release, Monsanto alleged that the members of the ad hoc IARC working group were hand-picked and conducted their assessment in a non-transparent process. Further, it said that unlike regulatory risk assessments, the IARC classification process followed non-standard procedures and selectively included and interpreted only a subset of the data actually available on glyphosate.

OEHHA had reached the opposite conclusion on glyphosate in 2007 when it conducted a review of the same studies as part of the process of establishing a Public Health Goal for drinking water, Monsanto said. Based on the weight of evidence, glyphosate is judged unlikely to pose a cancer hazard to humans, OEHHA said then.

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The lawsuit alleges that the Prop 65 listing process violates provisions of the U.S. and California constitutions guaranteeing due process and free speech:

If glyphosate is added to the Proposition 65 list, Monsanto will be required to provide a clear and reasonable warning on its glyphosate-based products that states that (they) contain a chemical known to the state to cause cancer. However, OEHHAs scientific experts in fact reached the opposite conclusion -- namely, that glyphosate is unlikely to pose a cancer hazard to humans. As such, the Proposition 65 warning requirement, as applied to glyphosate, would compel Monsanto to affix false and/or misleading statements to its products. Such compelled commercial speech does not advance any legitimate or substantial government interest.

OEHHA extended the comment period on its proposal until Oct. 20. Access some of the comments by clicking here.

#30
WASHINGTON, Jan. 22, 2016  Looking for a quick overview on the issues that you need to know as you start your day?

The Agri-Pulse editorial team plans to deliver a new electronic product called Daybreak, starting Monday Jan. 25, sponsored exclusively by McLeod, Watkinson & Miller and their clients. Daybreak will provide Agri-Pulse readers with an additional value-added service, at no additional cost.

This will be an insightful, edgy overview of topics that our ever-expanding audience members want to know as they start their day, says Agri-Pulse Editor Sara Wyant. We think it will be an eye-opener in more ways than one.

Senior Editor Philip Brasher will take the lead on writing Daybreak, but all Agri-Pulse editors will contribute. Agri-Pulse has the largest team of journalists covering farm, food, fiber and renewable energy issues in Washington, D.C.

Readers will be able to quickly scroll through the content, as well as listen to Daybreak as an audio file. Its a flexible format, designed to be easily accessible whether you are on the Metro, stuck in traffic or riding in a tractor.

The voice will be familiar: Veteran broadcaster Jeff Nalley, who also conducts Agri-Pulse Open Mic interviews, will be the voice of Agri-Pulse Daybreak.

We have had tremendous success with the early-morning Agri-Pulse Daily Harvest, which provides readers with an easy scan of national and regional news stories from around the country, noted Wyant. But we wanted to give readers even more of the unique insights that only our editorial team can deliver.

#30

For more news, go to: www.Agri-Pulse.com
Assyrians Christians Should Protect Themselves in Syria As ISIS Violence Grows

The Syriac Security Office commonly known as the Sutoro Police is a Syriac (Assyrian) Christian militia in the Al-Hasakah Governorate of the Syrian Arab Republic. The Head of the Foreign Relations of Sutoro Police spoke to Sputnik in an exclusive interview about the component of Sutoro Forces, their location and their goals. Akhikar Rashid said that the "The Gazerto Protection Forces (Sutoro Police) are a group of Christian youth in general, which is comprised of Syriacs, Assyrians, Armenians and all Christian communities that existed in the al-Jazira area." The head further explained that the group was formed for the purpose of self-protection in the areas where Christians live. "It was developed to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Arab Syrian Army, and we participated in battles that took place in al-Hasakah, al-Qamishli District, Khabur and others." Earlier, it was reported that Daesh militants had captured 36 Christian villages along the Khabur River in the province of Hasakah in February. The extremist group destroyed ancient churches, killed scores of civilians and kidnapped over 300 Assyrians in the offensive. Rashid further said that the group is financially and spiritually supported by its own people from abroad; "it is aimed at maintaining self-protection and fighting terrorism; they are located in al-Hasakah, al-Qamishli, and Khabur." According to the head, the group is ready to cooperate with any faction or party to fight together against terrorism, "but there are some parties that do not accept/approve the name of the Arab Syrian Army, or even the country, or even the Syrian national flag... Therefore, we disagree with this and we ought to give a respond to a lot of 'media attacks' against us." Talking about Daesh, the head said that the southeast of al-Hasakah and southeast of Abdel-Aziz Mountain are under the militants' control. Earlier it was reported that over 15,000 Assyrian Christian families remain at risk in Syria amid the ongoing crisis, according to the Assyrian Church of the East in Lebanon. Rashid said that for more support the group depends very much on the fact that their voice reaches "Geneva Conference". "We are excluded as Syriac and Assyrian component from attending the Conference; we do not know who stands behind this. We attended the talks Moscow-1 and Moscow-2; therefore, we wish that the Russian leadership take in consideration the Assyrian component and represent it in the Conference," Rashid concluded.
January 21, 2016

The European Unions top diplomat has made it clear to Congress that the EU has no intention of reversing its policy of labeling Israeli settlement goods.

Congressional accusations that the EU policy is akin to a boycott of Israel are not only misleading, but also unjustified, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini wrote to House and Senate lawmakers in identical letters obtained by Al-Monitor. The letters, dated Dec. 23, stress that there is no EU boycott of any product and that trade between the EU and Israel has doubled over the past two decades.

Allow me first to state in the clearest possible terms that the European Union is a friend of Israel and has never advocated or condoned a boycott of Israel, of its citizens, of its companies or of its products, Mogherini wrote.

The high representative for foreign affairs goes on to assure lawmakers that she has discussed the EUs concerns about continued Israeli settlement construction with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and remains confident that the EU and Israel will continue to have excellent relations.

Mogherinis missives are a direct response to November letters from pro-Israel lawmakers in the House and Senate that compared the labeling policy to an illegal, de facto boycott of Israel. The congressional letters were spearheaded by Republican presidential candidate and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and New York Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, and by Republican Reps. Doug Lamborn of Colorado and Randy Weber of Texas.

Faced with this reality of escalating anti-Semitism, Lamborn and 35 of his House colleagues wrote Nov. 10, we believe it would be ill-advised to endorse a policy that likewise singles out Israel and holds it to different standards than any other country.

The Senate letter, for its part, opens by stating the lawmakers unequivocal opposition to the EU labeling guidelines.

While they were eager to trumpet their opposition to the EU policy, the lawmakers have not been nearly as keen to showcase their inability to effect any change, as evidenced by the month-old response. Cruz and Lamborn did not immediately respond to requests for comment about possible next steps.

The exchange is but the latest in a series of skirmishes as Israel and its allies push back against the Palestinians boycott, divestment and sanctions campaign. Already in June, Congress passed trade legislation that conditions a potential US-EU trade pact on Europe not discriminating against Israel, prompting the Obama administration to reiterate that it, too, has concerns with the settlements.

In her response, Mogherini largely repeats EU justifications for its labeling policy. She says it simply seeks to codify existing EU trade law that covers Israel proper but not its settlements, which the EU and a UN panel consider to be illegal.

The EU, she writes, has decided to make the necessary distinction between Israeli settlements in the occupied territories on the one hand and Israel within its pre-1967 borders on the other, which has allowed the development of our bilateral relations within the framework of the 1995 Association Agreement.

Mogherinis response does not address accusations that the EU policy could fuel anti-Semitism. Nor does she respond to accusations that it is discriminatory, since it singles out Israel while the EU does not require special labeling for Moroccan products from the Western Sahara, for example.

She does, however, counter the congressional argument that labeling settlements prejudges the outcome of negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians by arguing that, in fact, the opposite is true.

On the contrary, the guidelines enable the continued access to European markets of products from both Israel and Israeli settlements in territories occupied by Israel since 1967, but requires a distinction between them in terms of ensuring a correct indication of origin of those products, Mogherini wrote.

To do otherwise might be seen as prejudging the outcome of future negotiations on borders, which would be contrary to both European and US policy.
January 22, 2016

RAMALLAH, West Bank  The Ramallah-based Central Elections Commission will launch an electronic registration process in February to update the annual register of voters, though there is no hope of holding presidential and legislative elections any time soon in Palestine.

On Jan. 8, Mousa Abu Marzouk, a member of Hamas political bureau, announced the movements willingness to go through the presidential and legislative elections and the elections of the Palestine Liberation Organizations National Council as soon as possible, placing the ball in President Mahmoud Abbas court. It's an approach to show that Hamas is not the one disrupting the elections and that Abbas should first issue a presidential decree to hold the elections.

After the national consensus government formed under the Beach Refugee Camp Agreement was sworn in before the president in Ramallah on June 2, 2014, Abbas instructed the Central Elections Commission to begin preparation for the presidential and legislative elections six months later on Dec. 2. However, several obstacles prevented the government from making the preparations.

Azzam al-Ahmad, Fatah leader and official in charge of the reconciliation talks with Hamas, told Al-Monitor, No date was specified for the elections and there is no need to talk about it now. When Hamas shows its commitment to the reconciliation agreements, only then will we discuss everything else. We can only talk about elections after Hamas allows the national consensus government to exercise its authority in the Gaza Strip, which the movement controls.

On Dec. 30, Abbas called for the formation of a government of national unity  a government formed by members of different factions, unlike the national consensus government that was formed by independent parties as per the Beach Refugee Camp Agreement.

But Jan. 6, on the occasion of the Eastern Church Christmas celebration at the presidential palace in Bethlehem, Abbas said in a speech addressing Hamas, If you want a government, we agree to form it with you and all other factions, and you know the price we will pay for it, but we will go immediately for the elections.

Ahmad said, This is not the first time the president has called for a national unity government and elections. I have repeated this call to Abu Marzouk and invited him to either allow the consensus government to exercise its functions in Gaza, or to form a government of national unity whose members would be from all Palestinian factions, including Hamas, Fatah and all other factions, and which would be responsible for Gaza and the West Bank and prepare for elections. But Hamas did not agree.

In an interview with Al-Monitor, the secretary-general of the Fatah Revolutionary Council, Amin Maqboul, said that Abu Marzouks announcement of his movements readiness to hold elections was not serious.

Maqboul added, If Hamas were honest, it would have taken the first required steps to hold elections, like forming a national unity government or enabling the reconciliation governments action in Gaza. Hamas is not serious and does not want to hold elections.

Jamil Mezher, a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestines political bureau, told Al-Monitor that the calls made by both movements are part of the bickering and taking stances against one another, as holding elections requires certain steps such as agreeing on a national strategy in the framework of a comprehensive policy review, a reform within the PLO in order to rebuild it and the formation of a unity government to pave the way for the elections.

He added, Holding the elections needs a real political will and a decision to end the division first. Thus talking about elections before any of that happens is a sort of deception.

The director-general of the Palestinian Center for Policy Research and Strategic Studies, writer Hani al-Masri, shares Mezhers point of view. He told Al-Monitor, Neither Hamas, Fatah nor President Abbas are serious about holding the elections. Every time a party mentions this, it is only a matter of bickering and maneuvering, nothing more.

The last presidential elections were held in 2005, when Abbas won. However, Fatah lost to Hamas in the last parliamentary elections held in 2006, with Hamas securing 76 out of 132 seats in a surprise victory.

Fatah is not ready for the elections, and Hamas does not want the elections because it is afraid it would not score as high as in the previous election, or because it fears it would not be allowed to govern if it wins, so the two movements are in a disagreement, that is all, Masri added.

When asked which party is the decision-maker when it comes to the elections, Masri said, The decision to hold the elections is not a Palestinian decision; it is an Israeli-Arab-US-international decision. Israel will only agree to hold elections if they will result in a political program based on the Oslo Accord, while the Arab states and the international community do not want any elections in which President Abbas  whose popularity has recently decreased  could lose.

The results of a poll conducted by the Arab World for Research and Development published on Nov. 5, 2015, showed that 83% of Palestinians support holding legislative and presidential elections. Meanwhile, Abbas popularity went down, as the poll showed that only 32% would vote for him. Another poll the same group conducted on July 27, 2015, had shown that 38% would have voted for Abbas.

Another poll conducted by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research on Dec. 14, 2015, indicated that 65% want Abbas to resign, in the belief that he would lose against Hamas candidate if elections were held.

To hold elections, a presidential decree needs to be issued three months before the scheduled date, so that the Central Elections Commission can begin its preparations.

On the reason that prevents Abbas from issuing a decree to hold elections, and whether it is linked to his low popularity or because Fatah did not hold its seventh conference, Maqboul said that Abbas did issue one in 2014 after the consensus government was formed. But the obstacles Hamas put before the government prevented the preparations, and therefore issuing decrees without applying them is undesirable.

Fatah is preparing to hold elections as soon as they are rescheduled and it trusts its popularity and followers, Maqboul said. Fatah insists that President Abbas would be its candidate for any upcoming elections. However, should he insist on not running, the movements institutions would do their research and find a proper solution.

So far, no other potential names are lined up.

Meanwhile, Masri believes that some figures in the Palestinian Authority want the situation to remain as it is and thus they do not want to hold elections, as they cling to the positions they acquired as a result of the division. In addition, Fatah lacks unity and a clear mechanism to transfer the leadership of the movement, the PA and the PLO, should President Abbas really decide that he will not run for any of these positions.

So long as a government of national unity  which many see as a first step toward holding the elections  is not formed, the ballot box will remain out of the Palestinians reach.
January 21, 2016

In the months that immediately followed the 2013 election, the Labor Party under Shelly Yachimovich was left licking its wounds after another resounding failure at the polls. At the time, former Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi was mentioned as someone who could pull the party out of its morass and lead it back to power.

Proponents of the idea included former minister and then-Knesset member Binyamin Ben-Eliezer and the Chairman of the Histadrut Labor Union Ofer Eini. Both Eini and Ben-Eliezer were close to Ashkenazi, who ranked high in popularity polls. They both believed that he could extract himself from the public imbroglio he had gotten into as a result of his fierce disagreements with Minister of Defense Ehud Barak. Eini and Ben-Eliezer were supposed to be Ashkenazis turbo engines, when he ran in the primaries for head of the Labor Party. They planned to present the former chief of staff as an updated version of Yitzhak Rabin in 1992 and of Ehud Barak in 1999  former generals appointed chair of the party who managed to bring the party back to power.

At the time, Eini and Ben-Eliezer also claimed, and rightly so, that the Harpaz scandal (allegedly involving Boaz Harpaz, an associate of Ehud Barak, and forged documents concerning Ashkenazi's successor) was only of interest to the press. The story was too convoluted to interest the public and affect its attitudes toward Ashkenazi. Polls conducted at the time, including polls immediately following the release of the first draft of the State Comptrollers serious report about Ashkenazi in March 2012, proved that his popularity barely suffered as a result of the scandal. On the contrary, the public remembered him fondly for rehabilitating the Israel Defense Forces after the Second Lebanon War in 2006, with its controversial results. In other words, even after he got himself entangled in the Harpaz affair, Ashkenazi was still a hot political item. He had the reputation of a folksy figure who was not afraid of conflict, but also as someone with moderate political views. In the leadership vacuum in the center-left, Ashkenazi stood out.

Even with the law requiring military brass to have a cooling off period before they enter politics, Ashkenazi would have been eligible to run in February 2014. Nevertheless, he was in no hurry. He enjoyed being courted by politicians, and explained that he would not take any action until the entire Harpaz affair was over. That finally happened Jan. 20, more than five years after it all began. Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein announced that he would not be indicting Ashkenazi over the Harpaz affair. Nevertheless, it is not at all certain that the former chief of staff will indeed enter politics, and even if he does, it is still not certain that he will do so as part of the Zionist Camp (previous the Labor Party). Eini and Ben-Eliezer are no longer there to pave the way for him, and current Chairman Isaac Herzog has no intention of giving up his seat without a fight. Meanwhile, Herzog made do with tweeting congratulations to Ashkenazi now that the case against him has been closed.

Chairman of Yesh Atid Yair Lapid also took to Twitter to congratulate Ashkenazi, though in his case it is more than highly likely that a personal conversation was also involved. Lapid has been courting Ashkenazi for months. He is offering him the No. 2 spot in the party in the next elections and naming him as Yesh Atids candidate for defense minister. But as we have already noted, Ashkenazi is in no hurry. The very fact that Lapid is so interested in him shows that he is still popular with the public and, therefore, a valuable asset. This is especially true since Lapid suffers from a dearth of security credentials. He needs people like Ashkenazi to draw voters from the moderate right. Then there is the fact that Ashkenazi is of Middle Eastern origin (Mizrahi in Hebrew) on his mother's side  a factor that could help Lapid shatter Yesh Atids reputation as a party of Israeli Jews of European origin (Ashkenazi in Hebrew).

The bottom line is that the Harpaz affair did not destroy Ashkenazis public career. He can even use it now to his political advantage by claiming that Ehud Barak and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tried to eliminate him out of fear that he might threaten their status. Furthermore, the attorney generals decision to close the criminal case against him could become a badge of integrity. Even after the authorities listened to 100,000 recordings of phone calls he made as chief of staff, they found no evidence to indict him. Nevertheless, it is also worth noting that the report released by Weinstein this week refers to a behavior that was allegedly harmful to national security. This means that if Ashkenazi does decide to enter politics, he will need the skin of an elephant to withstand all sorts of artillery attacks. The big question is whether the former chief of staff has what it takes. Can he contend with a brutal, highly focused campaign against him? The way things seem now, the answer is no. Ashkenazis actions over the past few years indicate that he lacks this ability. He is easily insulted, extremely sensitive to criticism and wary of every word written about him. These particular traits only grew more pronounced as a result of the Harpaz affair. In many ways, the former chief of staff is now an exhausted man. It is not at all sure if he still has the appetite needed to wage a campaign for the office of prime minister.

Ashkenazi neither looks nor sounds like someone with an urgent need to get into politics and prove something. He needs time, a political figure who spoke with him told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. Fortunately for Ashkenazi  and for the politicians courting him, too  there are no elections on the horizon. In other words, he is under no pressure to decide right now.

Given the current leadership crisis within the political center-left, Ashkenazi will likely be courted by these parties up until the next election. His name will come up again and again as a potential partner in all sorts of political alliances, whether it is with Yair Lapid, Isaac Herzog or even Gideon Saar of the Likud. After all, they all share one main objective: removing Netanyahu from power.
January 22, 2016

The COP21 world climate conference in Paris was a dramatic event. The participants agreed to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius and to reach zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2100. Of course, those numbers are significantly higher than originally planned. It was hoped to limit warming to just 1.5 degrees and to reach zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Nevertheless, the whole world agreeing to stop the planet from heating up is undoubtedly a historic milestone.

Even Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attended the conference (though climate affairs dont seem to have been the reason). But the Israeli media was so focused on terror attacks, corruption and other urgent items on the national agenda that it offered scant coverage of the conference. As a rule, environmental issues get no meaningful coverage in Israel.

After the 2009 Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Israel announced that it would reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 20% by 2020. In 2010, the government went so far as to approve a national plan in which 2.2 billion shekels (about half a billion dollars) were supposed to be invested to meet that target. That program was put on hold last year without any attention whatsoever in the media.

Similarly, the Israeli governments new program, approved in advance of the Paris summit, received very little media coverage, even though it will have a dramatic impact on all of our lives. It calls for reducing the consumption of electricity by 17% by 2030 and reducing private automobile usage by 20% by that same year.

When it comes to the use of private cars, architects and academics agree that the target is unrealistic. The fact is that new construction Israel continues to plan will actually lead to an increase in private car usage, while making it difficult to provide public transportation alternatives or implement any other incentives that would encourage people to forego their use of cars.

Transportation is responsible for some 20% of greenhouse gas emissions, explains Amir Zalzberg, who is in charge of transportation-based pollution at the Ministry of Environmental Affairs. When it comes to this particular issue, most of our efforts focus on reducing electricity usage, which accounts for 70% [of greenhouse gas emissions], and the exploitation of alternative sources of energy. The problem with transportation emissions revolves more around pollution per se, which affects peoples health.

According to Zalzberg, Promoting sustainable transportation requires proper urban planning that supports the reduction of private car usage. This means mixed use of land for housing, commerce and employment, preferential treatment for public transportation at stoplights and traffic lanes, paving new sidewalks to encourage pedestrians and creating bicycle lanes. The main problem is daily usage, meaning the way that people use their private cars on a daily basis to commute from home to work and back, mostly in traffic jams.

The kind of urban planning described by Zalzberg is far from the current Israeli standard. According to Irit Solzi, an architect with Irit and Dror Architects and former chair of the nonprofit Movement for Israeli Urbanism, The distribution of construction in Israel is insane. There is always another excuse as to why it is better to occupy new territory instead of developing existing towns. Enormous sums get invested in endless roads. Entire populations are encouraged to live scattered about in such a way as to make it impossible to create good public transportation routes that reach every settlement, while the population within the settlements themselves is also dispersed excessively. People need to go far from their homes just to be able to use public transportation.

As early as four years ago, Naama Riba, then a young architecture graduate and now the architecture reporter for Haaretz, wrote, The cities we are building are not productive cities. A city that consists entirely of residential buildings is not an effective city. It is wasteful. It is the kind of place where coming and going is difficult, and the schedules of people without cars are dictated by the whims of public transportation.  Cities in Israel are built like suburbs. There is little density, which makes it difficult to have efficient public transportation.  In order to get out of this loop, we need to build within existing cities, on existing lots.

Riba was reiterating what many experts feel.

We must take advantage of the housing shortage to get back into the downtown areas, from Kiryat Shmona all the way to Eilat. We need to go back to the old abandoned neighborhoods and engage in urban renewal, says Solzi. What we are doing instead is focusing on the old familiar solutions. In other words, we are bringing large companies and bulldozers to open spaces and building there.

Eran Feitelson, a professor at the Faculty of Geography and the Advanced School of Environmental Studies at The Hebrew University, holds a similar position. Open land is being scorched due to the housing hysteria,'' he tells Al-Monitor. ''We take pride in planning 99,000 housing units per year, but there is no real reason to be proud. Most of these units are built outside cities, with uncrowded construction. The minute an open tract of land is designated for construction, it is lost. This will make the problem with traffic so much worse. Planning is rapid and hysterical and does not include transportation solutions at all.

He also claims, The emphasis must be on proper urban renewal, including infrastructure and services, rather than simply granting [building] rights to contractors. We need planning that favors public transportation and that includes connections to the entire network, including those systems that provide inter-urban mass transit. Right now, they only start thinking about that after theyve already built there.

It is also worth noting that Israels public transportation services shut down every weekend for about 26 hours because of the Sabbath and during various holidays throughout the year. So far, any attempts to change this situation have run into vigorous government opposition.

The patterns of suburban living require the use of private cars. The [authorities] do not provide public transportation in advance to the localities, and even when there is public transportation, it is not the ideal solution. That is why people buy cars, and once they buy a car, they will use it. This means that they will need two cars per couple, and it becomes a lost cause. They will not go back to taking the bus, says Feitelson.

From a professional standpoint, public transportation should be provided on the Sabbath everywhere there are potential clients for it, says Zalzberg. Many people own a car for the Sabbath, but then they tend to use it on other days as well.

Given the trend favoring construction outside cities, the lack of any preferential planning for public transportation and the insistence that there be no public transportation on the Sabbath and holidays, it is hard to see how the government plans to meet its target of reducing the use of private cars.
January 21, 2016

If even Education Minister Naftali Bennett, the most right-wing member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus government, has reached the conclusion that the siege on the Gaza Strip should be lifted, we can only wonder: What is actually delaying Netanyahu? After all, lifting the siege would be an easy and wise move on the part of Israel.

In a Jan. 19 speech at the conference of the Institute for National Security Studies, Bennett harshly criticized Netanyahu and Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon and accused them of a conceptual freeze. Bennett presented the Gaza Strip as an example and said, After all, you wont suspect that Im a lefty, God forbid, but are we doing the right thing in Gaza? Wouldnt it be better to reconcile with reality and disengage from our responsibility for the Gazans, open new paths in their lives with proper security oversight?

Naturally, the response of the criticized came quickly. Netanyahu and Yaalon responded with scorn, but sources in the prime ministers office revealed that the subject was examined in meetings of the diplomatic-security Cabinet. Bennett is a copycat, it was claimed among those close to Netanyahu. They were reported as saying, He hears ideas and analyses in meetings with the prime minister and presents them as if theyre his own. If this is true, the obvious conclusion is that the prime minister also believes that a new path of life should be granted to residents of the Strip.

Netanyahu is not the one who placed the siege on Gaza. He inherited the situation from his predecessor, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, but he has sustained it.

Olmerts main assumption and that of the security establishment in his day was that a siege on Gaza would pressure Hamas and lead the heads of the movement, which took over Gaza by force, to give up their rule. This forecast hasnt transpired. Hamas has not only not given up its rule and the sovereignty it created in the strip, but sought to lift the siege by force after the many diplomatic efforts and messages to Israel fell on deaf ears, as far as it was concerned.

The siege on nearly 2 million residents in the Gaza Strip, who live under horrific conditions, has continued for eight and a half years. Remember that the United Nations declared that Gaza may become uninhabitable by 2020  four years from now.

As the siege continued, the Strip became not only a difficult humanitarian problem but also a bigger security threat to Israel. Two million residents lacking a livelihood or future, including youths who have nothing to lose, are a ticking human time bomb.

The youth of Gaza are far more depressed and hopeless than the West Bank youths who in recent months have carried out an individual intifada. What would Israel do if tens of thousands of despairing young men and women from Gaza climbed the fence surrounding the Strip, unarmed? How would the military force surrounding it react? What deterrence could be used against them?

During his rule, Netanyahu has been forced to ease the siege more than once. The first time, which was traumatic for Israel, was after the bloody flotilla incident with the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara, which sought to break through the siege. In order to pacify angry Turks, at the height of the crisis Netanyahu promised to allow the passage of more goods into the Gaza Strip, to grant a basket of benefits to lessen the pressure on Israel. That same basket of benefits, before the flotilla, was considered a security risk to Israel.

Later, two violent conflicts erupted in Gaza (Operation Pillar of Defense in 2012 and Operation Protective Edge in 2014), mostly because Hamas tried to bring Israel to the negotiation table and remove the siege by force. As we know, Hamas failed and the destruction in Gaza was enormous, but Hamas was promised in the cease-fire agreement talks that took place in Cairo in 2014 that there would be further easing of the siege, in an increase of the basket of goods that Israel would allow to enter Gaza.

But it wasnt only international pressure that led Netanyahu and Yaalon to agree to ease the siege by allowing the importation of building materials, fuel, basic products and other goods that were previously forbidden to enter the Strip.

The Israel Defense Forces and the security establishment have warned more than once that the humanitarian situation in Gaza is deteriorating. In July of last year, senior IDF officers recommended partially opening the crossings into the Strip. Their main concern was and remains the impossible situation in the Gaza Strip and its disastrous effects, but not one of them dared to argue what is clear to everyone: The siege on the Gaza Strip has been a colossal failure. The time has come to own up to the mistake that has caused enormous loss of life as well as great damage to Israel's international image.

Now that we have discovered that even Bennett supports a route recalibration, in his words, and the development of a new line of thinking regarding Gaza, we should make the necessary move and lift the siege, before Israel is forced to do so under conditions determined by others.

Recently it became known that in the contacts regarding reconciliation between Ankara and Jerusalem, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan insisted that Israel end the siege on the Strip as a main condition for the normalization of relations between the two countries. Israel needs Turkey and Turkey needs Israel as allies in the new reality of the Middle East. It seems that sooner or later Israel will have to give up on the issue of Gaza, and Erdogan will be considered the hero who lifted the siege.

We must create an innovative security understanding that is creative and clear. We have to update our outlook, not only our weapons, Bennett advised in his speech, and became the target of loads of ridicule from Ya'alon and Netanyahu. But if (almost) everyone has already been convinced  from the security establishment to the most right-wing member of the government  that the siege on Gaza has failed and does not guarantee security for Israel, they just might be right.

So what is stopping the government from making a decision that would benefit Palestinians in Gaza, remove international pressure and be efficient from a security standpoint? Israel wallowed in the Lebanese quagmire for nearly two decades in the belief that the security strip in south Lebanon was essential to its security, until it admitted its mistake and withdrew. Its time to admit that the siege on Gaza is not necessary to Israels security, but quite the opposite.
January 21, 2016

In mid-January, Beirut was preoccupied with news about potential security incidents or disturbances in Lebanon. While there was no noteworthy incident to report, insinuations continued to circulate in the media and among politicians and diplomats, suggesting the matter could be political. What's the truth behind the rumors?

It all started Jan. 13 with leaks to the media that there were lapses in security measures and inadequate equipment at Beirut's Rafiq Hariri International Airport. The news circulated that Lebanon is still on the EU air safety blacklist, though there is no official list.

Al-Monitor communicated on the same day with Public Works and Transport Minister Ghazi Zeaiter, whose ministry supervises the airports operations. Al-Monitor also contacted the airports aviation management officers. Zeaiter told Al-Monitor that he planned to hold a press conference at the airport to respond to the allegations, which he said were false.

However, speaking to Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, a senior official at the Directorate General of Civil Aviation confirmed having information that at least two European airlines, Air France and British Airways, received warnings from reliable sources that their flights to the Beirut airport might be subject to a terrorist act.

According to the officials information, airline officials expressed their concerns over these warnings to the Lebanese government and insisted that the airport implement maximum security measures.

Zeaiter said at his Jan. 16 press conference that the Beirut airport is not blacklisted and that any lapses in the work of the General Directorate of Civil Aviation had been handled. Surprisingly, while Zeaiter was trying to reassure the public, Environment Minister Wiam Wahhab tweeted on the same day, Is it true that an attack by the Islamic State against an Air France plane was uncovered at the Beirut airport?

This shocking tweet required an immediate response by the Lebanese Interior Ministry, which a few hours later issued an official statement denying knowledge of any planned terrorist act against any scheduled flight to or from the Beirut airport. The same statement pointed out that airport security has been under scrutiny by foreign companies operating there, and their concerns have been resolved.

Wahhab replied to the Interior Ministrys statement in another tweet: The operation was scheduled to be carried out on Jan. 8, similarly to the attack against the Russian jet. It was revealed by US agencies, which informed the French.

Later that day, he added, The airport was not infiltrated, but the operation was uncovered during the preparation phase.

As Wahhab noted that US security disclosed the information, eyes turned to a Jan. 15 visit made by Richard Jones, the US interim chief of mission, to Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil.

Following the visit, Jones was asked by journalists at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs if he was concerned over Lebanons security situation. He replied, Unfortunately, we have concerns over the situation in almost all of the world's countries at present. We have lately witnessed the tragic incident in Jakarta on Jan. 14; a similar incident occurred in Burj el-Barajneh in Lebanon on Nov. 12, 2015, as well as the attacks in Paris on Nov. 13, 2015, and in other countries. We have always had security concerns. Yet we are sure that active cooperation with Lebanon is to the advantage of the Lebanese people, the Americans and foreigners residing in Lebanon.

This statement seems to intersect with the information referred to by Wahhab. Yet Bassil told Al-Monitor he did not discuss the security situation with Jones during his visit.

Al-Monitor spoke with Wahhab by phone to learn about his source and its credibility. He attributed his information to official security sources that are directly concerned with the information he revealed, and added, These sources and information are highly credible and reliable.

Wahhab further stated that his information was confirmed by the Interior Ministry replying to his first tweet, which came in the form of a question. He added that when he revealed in his second tweet that the terrorist act under discussion had been uncovered during the preparation phase and that it had been planned for Jan. 8, the Interior Ministry did not reply.

Among the Lebanese public, some link the rumors with the ongoing political crisis since the president's office was left vacant on May 24, 2014. Some people think that a bombing could have been planned in Beirut to force a breakthrough in the impasse. A significant security breach would require Lebanon to go along with foreign efforts to improve overall security through a comprehensive settlement that includes the election of a new president.

In 1988, there was another presidential vacuum that only ended after a two-year war among the Lebanese themselves, and between the Lebanese and the Syrians. In 2007, another presidential vacancy ended after military incidents between the Sunnis and Shiites in Beirut broke out in May 2008. This history is enough to make some Lebanese people fear that military methods might be used to end the current presidential vacuum. They fear a conspiracy could be designed to engineer the security scares needed to reach a presidential solution.
January 21, 2016

One day after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei indirectly approved a massive disqualification of aspiring parliamentary candidates, President Hassan Rouhani showed he is not retreating from his attempts to fill Irans next parliament with like-minded allies.

The Guardian Council disqualified more than half of the 12,000 candidates who registered to run in the February parliamentary elections and only qualified 1% of the 3,000 Reformist candidates who registered. Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, head of the council, said he would not budge under pressure to reinstate them. A council spokesman said some candidates were not approved because of previous disqualifications, unreliable education credentials and open court cases. Other candidates, including clerics, were disqualified for non-adherence to Islam and to the Islamic Republic.

During a Jan. 21 speech at the Interior Ministry, Rouhani criticized the disqualification of candidates over their alleged non-adherence to Islam. He said that when Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib (regarded by Shiites as the first imam, and also the son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad) looked for governors, he not only judged their religious qualifications, such as whether they prayed at night or how much they gave to charity, but also considered their efficacy, understanding and administrative and management ability.

Rouhani noted that those two criteria  adherence to Islam and to the Islamic Republic  are often cited in disqualifying candidates while other criteria are ignored. Referencing the dire security situation in the region and tumultuous oil prices, Rouhani said, Under these conditions today, employment is the primary issue for us and competent individuals must be sent to parliament.

Rouhani also said that since the Iranian Constitution stipulates that Jews and Zoroastrians each should have a member in parliament to represent their communities, according to the constitution, other groups should too. Without mentioning a specific group's name, Rouhani said there is a faction in the country that has 7 million to 10 million followers. He probably was referring to the Reformist faction. While it is inaccurate to compare Reformists to a religious group, they have been essentially sidelined from Iranian politics despite having popular support. Reformist candidates are likely to support Rouhanis policies, given that many of them supported him in the 2013 presidential elections.

The Feb. 26 parliamentary elections will determine the domestic policies of the administration, said Rouhani, who will now be focusing on domestic issues after the implementation of the nuclear deal with the six world powers. Rouhanis ministers have been summoned at a record pace by the current conservative-led parliament, which has opposed the administrations domestic and foreign policies.

Referring to parliament by one of its names, Rouhani said, Parliament is the Peoples House and not the house of one faction. He added that his administration is a moderate one, and though he would prefer parliament to be made up of moderate politicians, his administration will not interfere with other groups' candidates. Rouhani also said Vice President Eshag Jahangiri is currently consulting with the Guardian Council, presumably to reinstate some of the disqualified candidates.
January 21, 2016

Turkey faces numerous political land mines as it prepares to rebuild war-torn areas of the Kurdish-majority southeast.

The country continues to be preoccupied by the fighting that broke out in July between government armed forces and the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). Over the past three months, their battles spilled over from rural areas into town centers in the southeastern part of the country, which has a Kurdish majority. Government troops have cleared some populated areas of the PKK, prompting Ankara to announce plans for reconstruction of a kind it has never previously attempted.

Information released Jan. 20 by the office of the chief of the General Staff said that since the clashes began, 610 PKK members had been killed in three areas: 364 in Cizre, 140 in Silopi and 106 in Diyarbakirs Sur district. The number of PKK militants killed since July exceeds 1,000 when losses are included from 10 other towns that experienced occasional clashes. During the same period, 236 security personnel were killed.

Civilian fatalities now exceed 500. The dimensions of the social and economic ramifications of this conflict can be better understood by bearing in mind that the clashes in towns have displaced more than 1.3 million people. Some 400,000 students have not attended school for three months. The economic fallout in Cizre alone has reached $300 million because of the disruption in border trade with Iraq. If clashes continue at the current pace, Turkey will in four years have replicated the economic losses of the 29 years between 1984 and 2013.

During a Jan. 19 visit to London, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told journalists that operations in Silopi had ended. Silopi is cleaned. We will set up a new security structure there. There wont be any more streets for terrorists to strut down. Soon Diyarbakirs Sur and Cizre will also be secured, he declared.

Davutoglu also disclosed that there will be major urban transformation projects implemented in the towns where clashes were heavy. He said Hakkari's provincial capital will be relocated to Yuksekova and Sirnak's provincial capital moved to Cizre. Only then will public services be more effectively provided in these critical provinces, and security weaknesses will be rectified, Davutoglu said.

In contrast to Davutoglu's low-key statements regarding the post-conflict period, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was in no way conciliatory in a speech during his traditional meeting with village leaders (mukhtars). In the next phase, we will never deal with the separatist terror organization [PKK] or parties and other organizations it manipulates. That is over. Justice will deal with their organizations, deputies and municipalities, Erdogan said. He also, however, signaled that major urban transformation projects will be undertaken in places where clashes had ended.

Although Davutoglu declared Silopi clear, and the military high command says 140 militants were killed there, local sources think it is still too early to declare anything over. According to information Al-Monitor received from a source in Silopi, all trenches and barricades have been removed, and security forces are in full control of the town. Mustafa A. said, however, The real test of the state is now about to begin. Actually, in Silopi, street clashes were not as intense as in Cizre and Sur. With the lifting of the curfew, civilians living in neighborhoods affected by clashes are returning to their homes, but they are still afraid to bring their children back, as they are not sure that clashes are totally finished.

Meanwhile, Suleyman D. observed, There were about 30 PKK militants and 200 YDG-H [Patriotic Revolutionary Youth Movement] youngsters fighting in Silopi. About 30 of them were either apprehended or killed. The rest? They melted away; that is, they left the town. He noted the challenges presented by winter. Because of snow, communication between towns is spotty. Security forces are making good use of thermal surveillance technology in winter and snowy weather. We always have drones over our heads. It wont be easy for the PKK this winter. But when the snow melts in April, if negotiations dont begin, then clashes could resume.

Indeed, fear prevails in the region that negotiations will not resume in spring, and even more intense violence will ensue. From Erdogans statements it is clear that the government intends to pursue a strategy of all-out aggression in a war of attrition aimed at eliminating the PKK presence along with its partisans. This strategy involves wiping out entire economic, intellectual, cultural and social habitats of terrorism in a "tooth for tooth" approach. Ankara is not pursuing a policy of deterrence, but one of total annihilation.

Security sources in Ankara told Al-Monitor that nearly all the trenches and barricades in Cizre have been removed, and two battalions of Turkish army special forces with 150 elite maroon berets have been tasked to sweep the Sur district. Sirnak and Nusaybin are said to be next in line.

The question now is what will happen after these towns are secured by the state. Holding on to secured areas and reconstructing them is usually harder than the fight to take them. Experiences from Iraq and Afghanistan have shown that military sweeps limited to military methods and instruments are the easiest phase. Post-conflict reconstruction, with which Ankara is unfamiliar and will be attempting for the first time, is an extremely complex undertaking that requires identifying problems and taking proactive measures before they erupt. Among the critical elements involved are determining how to organize political power, ensure security, design rebuilding and distribute allotted funds.

Ankara appears to be inclined toward a centralized state structure in the affected areas. All critical actions will adhere firmly to established rules and regulations or be referred to Ankara for approval or decision. Local decision makers will have diluted powers and limited capacities for taking the initiative. Here one must be on the lookout for possible discord between the field and the headquarters.

One question that must be addressed is whose security comes first: the state's, state organizations' or citizens'? If Ankara gives excessive priority to public order in lieu of citizens security, a stable security arrangement might be difficult to achieve. Local sources have frequently said that the police special operations teams brought in from elsewhere as reinforcements have intolerant attitudes that aggravate local residents.

The design and reconstruction of towns is obviously important. For example, in the reconstruction of Silopi, all zoning rules and plans will be reviewed. Where will the administrative center of the town be located? Will all public agencies be relocated to a compound behind high walls, like Baghdads Green Zone, or will they be scattered, as in Kabul? In particular, how will the neighborhoods that had trenches and barricades be redesigned without making life unbearable for residents facing strict security measures?

The material damage inflicted by clashes might have infuriated most citizens, but for a small, ambitious group it represents a lucrative source of income. Construction work for the urban transformation means more tenders to bid on and more money to make. The state needs to keep close watch on who is making how much from reconstruction. Reports are already circulating that the projects will be awarded to entrepreneurs close to the ruling Justice and Development Party.

The matter of hearts and minds might override the critical material, security and financial issues. Although one can visibly assess the economic consequences of the damage in Silopi, Cizre and other towns, one cannot measure the destruction to the hearts and minds of the people, except to observe its profundity.

Ankara has to think long and hard about the reconstruction process. Sadly, the country's increasing polarization impedes having a constructive debate. The deadliest outcome of a sterile debate could be Ankaras whole-hearted return to a security-oriented policy encouraged by its success thus far.
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Click here to register for the free event.
Making a murderer.JPG

"Making a Murderer" (Netflix)

Did Steven Avery really kill photographer Teresa Halbach?

Despite the fact Avery is serving a life sentence for the 2005 murder, Netflix's "Making a Murderer" leaves viewers with many unanswered questions.

A former police detective who worked on the FBI serial killer task force, John Cameron, has a new theory. He claims on his website that serial killer Edward Wayne Edwards actually murdered Halbach and set Avery (and ultimately his nephew Brendan Dassey) up for the crime.

Avery, whose life and murder trial is the subject of the Netflix docuseries, was convicted in 2007 of killing Halbach on his property in Manitowoc County, Wis. Avery contends the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Office set him up for the crime.

Cameron said Edwards set up other people for crimes he committed. He was also obsessed with receiving attention from the media.

Uproxx reported Edwards would sometimes pick victims based on newspaper reports he read.

Cameron claims Edwards killed for 66 years. He wasn't captured and implicated in his first homicide until 2009 in Jefferson, Wis.

Edwards was convicted of five homicides: two in Ohio in 1977, two in Wisconsin in 1980 and one in Ohio in 1996. He died in 2011.

Uproxx provided a few facts to help support the claim:

Many of Edwards' victims were murdered on Halloween night, and Halbach disappeared on Halloween night.

Edwards killed in Wisconsin.

Edwards lived an hour away from Avery at the time of Halbach's murder.

Kathleen Zellner, Avery's new lawyer, freed one man wrongfully convicted of a crime that Cameron believes Edwards committed.

What do you think?
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A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

Don't Edit

Amber Sutton | asutton@al.com

Feeling a fling?

Now that we know Alabama has a high percentage of virgin singles looking for love, we thought it'd be interesting to see how our state ranks when it comes to singles looking for flings.



Internet dating site OKCupid released their annual trend report for 2015 this week, which includes a map ranking the states based on the percentage of users who said they were looking for casual sex in their profiles.



Overall, New Jersey finished last with the least amount of users interested in hook-ups. On the other hand, Oregon topped the list after more than 15 percent of users said they were looking for casual sex.



As you can imagine based on our high population of single virgins, Alabama pops up in the rankings pretty quick on this list. Check out this slideshow to see how all the states placed.

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50. New Jersey

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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49. Alabama

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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48. Virginia

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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47. Connecticut

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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46. Mississippi

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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45. Georgia

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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44. Maryland

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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43. Delaware

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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42. Florida

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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41. New York

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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40. Ohio

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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39. Texas

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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38. North Carolina

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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37. South Dakota

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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36. South Carolina

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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35. Kentucky

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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34. Hawaii

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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33. Michigan

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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32. Tennessee

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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31. California

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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30. Wisconsin

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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29. Rhode Island

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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28. Pennsylvania

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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27. Minnesota

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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26. Illinois

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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25. Massachusetts

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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24. Utah

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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23. Iowa

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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22. New Hampshire

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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21. Indiana

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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20. Missouri

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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19. Arizona

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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18. Louisiana

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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17. Kansas

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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16. Arkansas

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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15. West Virginia

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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14. North Dakota

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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13. Maine

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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12. Nebraska

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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11. Colorado

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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10. New Mexico

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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9. Oklahoma

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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8. Wyoming

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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7. Montana

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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6. Nevada

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5. Alaska

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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4. Idaho

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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3. Vermont

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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2. Washington

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.

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1. Oregon

A look at how internet dating site OKCupid ranked the state in their annual trend report for 2015 based on the percentage of users who said they were interested in casual sex.
Alabama grandparents who seek rights to visit their grandchildren were dealt another legal blow on Friday.

The Alabama Supreme Court on Friday refused a request by Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange to review a lower appeals court decision that declared the state's Alabama Grandparent Visitation Act unconstitutional. That law was enacted in 2010.

Alabama justices in 2011 had first struck down the act because they said it violated the rights of parents to decide what's best for their children.

The Alabama Legislature made changes to the law to address those concerns. But in a case in October the Alabama Civil Court of Appeals declared the amended law, as amended by legislators, also was unconstitutional. The case out of Autauga County involved a grandmother (E.R.G) who went to court seeking visitation with two of her grandchildren over the objections of the children's mother.

In its ruling today, the Alabama Supreme Court denied Strange's request to consider its appeal of the Civil Court of Appeals ruling.

While the justices did not issue an opinion today, Justice Greg Shaw wrote that he concurred with other justice's decision to deny Strange's petition for a writ of certiorari (review).

"The attorney general, in his certiorari petition, contends that various writings by the Justices in E.R.G., including my writing, indicated that a presumption in favor of the parent's decision was required for the GVA to be constitutional," Shaw writes. "Because the 2011 amendments to the GVA provide such a presumption in favor of the parent's decision, the attorney general contends that the GVA as amended in 2011 is now constitutionally sufficient."

Shaw stated that it is correct that the 2011 amendments to the GVA "create a rebuttable presumption" that parents know what is in the best interests of the child. "However, the GVA 'does not mandate any other criteria for a court to use when determining whether the statutory presumption has been rebutted'."

"Although the 2011 amendments to the GVA create a presumption in favor of the parent's decision regarding grandparent visitation, that presumption, according to the Court of Civil Appeals, is insufficient," Shaw writes.

Strange responded to the Supreme Court's ruling Friday afternoon in a statement to AL.com.

"I regret that the Supreme Court denied certiorari," Strange stated. "The Legislature could have benefited from the Court's guidance on how to craft a statute that passes constitutional muster."

Updated at 3:45 p.m. Jan. 22 with statement from Strange
A 37-year-old man wanted in Blount County after he failed to show up for court Thursday led lawmen on a two-county chase this morning before he went airborne for 100 yards and crashed upside down.

Greg Fowler, of Oneonta, was trapped inside a stolen SUV in a ravine off of Tarrant Huffman Road near Seventh Avenue North for about 30 minutes before he was extricated from the overturned vehicle. He was conscious but had multiple injuries and was taken to UAB Hospital.

A Blount County sheriff's deputies was also injured during the chase and was taken to another local hospital.

Oneonta Police Chief James Chapman said it all began one week ago today when Fowler was involved in a wreck that damaged a fence at an Oneonta hotel. Fowler was charged with DUI after that crash, and at the time was already on probation for other non-violent charges in municipal court.

Fowler had a court appearance Wednesday night in city court. At that time, the judge revoked his probation on the earlier charges but allowed him to take home his mother who had attended court with him, Chapman said.

Fowler was supposed to return to jail after taking home his mother, but never showed up. Officers went to his home that night looking for him, and learned he had stolen his mother's gun, was threatening suicide and had run off into some nearby woods. He was not found during the search for him.

On Thursday, another warrant for failure to appear was issued against him. Also Thursday, police say he stole the white SUV from an acquaintance, and she filed a felony theft of property warrant against him.

Police and deputies were on the lookout for him when he was spotted Friday morning at a Remlap grocery store. That is where the chase began.

Authorities and police radio traffic indicated Fowler was armed and suicidal. At some point during the chase, or right before, he was on the telephone with a Blount County mental health officer.

Fowler, in the stolen SUV, reportedly rammed police cars and led pursuers into Jefferson County before crashing on Tarrant Huffman Road.

At 9:16, the SUV left the road and was airborne for 100 yards before landing on its roof. Fowler was extracted from the flipped vehicle at 9:50 a.m. Some officers had guns drawn while rescue workers cut Fowler out of the car.

Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service Capt. Rouglas Datcher said the man appeared to have internal injuries. "He's pretty broke up,'' Datcher said. "We were trying to find the weapon in the car and trying to get him to help us, but he couldn't move."

Asked about the severity of Fowler's injuries, Datcher said, "He's going to survive."

The crash scene, which was in a construction area where workers are in the process of widening the road, proved difficult for getting to the crashed cars, and getting Fowler to a waiting rescue truck. "The challenges were getting all the tools down there, the tools we needed,'' Datcher said.

Birmingham police Sgt. Chris Hays said they responded to the scene after the chase and crash. He said early reports were that Fowler had multiple weapons in the car.

Datcher said a gun was recovered from the vehicle after Fowler was removed. At least five agencies responded to the scene of the crash including Blount and Jefferson County deputies, Birmingham police, Tarrant police and Alabama State Troopers.

This is a developing story that will be updated.
A Birmingham police officer was arrested Thursday night after he fired a shot at a woman's car during a fight in the front yard.

South Precinct Officer Demarcus Blanding was booked into the Jefferson County Jail at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, according to jail records. He remains in the jail this afternoon with bond set at $500.

Jefferson County sheriff's deputies responded to a home in the 2700 block of Shoemaker Street in Grayson Valley about 4 p.m. on a domestic dispute. Once on the scene, a witness told deputies that the 30-year-old suspect and the woman who lived at the home were arguing. When the woman tried to leave, the man shot the front tire of her car.

The woman, also 30, left the scene on foot and called someone to come get her. There were no injuries.

As customary with any arrest, the sheriff's office declined to release the name until formal charges are filed. He was identified, however, through jail records. Blanding is expected to be charged with third-degree domestic violence and reckless endangerment.

"This officer's arrest is extremely disappointing for us and our profession,'' Birmingham police Chief A.C. Roper told AL.com. "He was taken out of service immediately as our Internal Affairs Division began an administrative investigation. He is actually facing departmental charges in addition to the criminal charges."
A 37-year-old drug suspect tried to run over a West Alabama Narcotics Task Force officer Thursday night, and was taken into custody after police shot out his tire and later pulled him from his submerging vehicle.

Officials with the Tuscaloosa Metro Homicide Unit today identified the suspect as Renato Lubert Savage. He faces multiple charges in Tuscaloosa County, as well as bond revocations from Mississippi.

It all began about 10:35 p.m. when Capt. Gary Hood said narcotics task force agents tried to stop Savage, who had parole violations in Mississippi and was believed to be carrying a large amount of cocaine.

Savage was known to investigators because they had arrested him last month on several drug charges. The agents saw Savage driving on Kauloosa Avenue near Peco Foods, Hood said. As they approached 35th Street, the agents pulled him over.

Once the agents began to approach Savage's vehicle, Hood said Savage accelerated and was heading directly toward one of the agents. The agent tried to retreat, but was forced to fire his weapon. He was in fear of his safety and that of other agents, Hood said.

Savage then drove his vehicle around the agents and left the scene. After turning west on 35th Street, Savage's vehicle hit a wet patch, lost control and ended up in a ditch near Bambarger Wrecker Service at 2700 block of 35th Street. This area was severely flooded and the vehicle began to submerge, Hood said.

Agents pulled Savage from the vehicle and was taken into custody. Hood said an undisclosed amount of cocaine and prescription drugs were recovered from Savage's vehicle.

Savage is charged with attempted murder, possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, possession of a controlled substance, illegal possession of prescription drugs, and attempting to elude. His bonds on the Alabama charges total $114,000.

He will also face addition charges for the Mississippi parole violation, as well as bond revocations related to his December arrests in Tuscaloosa County.

Hood said the Tuscaloosa County Sheriff's Office is reviewing the incident regarding the officer discharging his weapon in the line of duty.
central Alabama rain snow transition Jan 22

West Alabama would be the first to see snow between 8 a.m. and 11 a.m. before the system moves eastward across the state. (National Weather Service Birmingham)

UPDATE: At 2:45 p.m., the National Weather Service in Birmingham updated the forecast for Friday night. Snow showers are likely, but any accumulations will remain under 1 inch.

The NWS has not removed any counties from the winter weather advisory issued Friday morning. That advisory remains in effect through 6 a.m. Saturday.

UPDATE: Flakes have begun to fall in downtown Birmingham and Vestavia Hills. Police warn motorists to drive carefully.

It's starting to come down now...If your traveling please drive safely and with regard for other motorists. No need to rush   Birmingham Police (@BhamPolice) January 22, 2016

UPDATE : Snow could still fall this afternoon in the Birmingham area, but accumulation is less likely than forecasters previously thought, according to the National Weather Service.

NWS Birmingham is evaluating recent data and monitoring additional snow bands developing to the northwest in order to update the winter weather advisory area.

Rain will be mixed with snow, then change over to all snow Friday afternoon and evening. Accumulations between .25 and 2 inches are possible north of Detroit, Hayden and Centre.

On Saturday, strong winds with gusts around 30 mph will continue as the storm system leaves Alabama.

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Parts of central Alabama could see snow as early as Friday morning as colder air moves into the state more quickly than expected, according to the National Weather Service in Birmingham.

Forecasters expect a "very potent" storm system to move across the Tennessee Valley and through the northern half of central Alabama, bringing rain that changes over to snow late Friday morning.

West Alabama would be the first to see snow between 8 a.m. and 11 a.m. before the system moves eastward across the state.

A winter weather advisory goes into effect at 9 a.m. Friday and expires at 6 a.m. Saturday.

The NWS is describing this snow event as "showery," meaning each area included in the advisory could see a different amount of accumulation. It also means that snow could potentially cause travel difficulties, from limited visibility to slick roads.

Much of central Alabama - including Tuscaloosa, Birmingham and Anniston - is part of an area expected to see very little snow accumulation, likely less than an inch. Slightly further north, Hamilton and Gadsden could see an inch of snow. (National Weather Service Birmingham)

Much of central Alabama - including Tuscaloosa, Birmingham and Anniston - is part of an area expected to see very little snow accumulation, likely less than an inch. Slightly further north, Hamilton and Gadsden could see an inch of snow.

Measurable snow accumulation is possible along a line north of Carollton to Calera to Wedowee.

Temperatures will fall through the day and dip below freezing after sunset Friday. The NWS warns motorists that roads could be slick through Saturday morning.

These counties are included in the advisory: Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Clay, Cleburne, Etowah, Fayette, Jefferson, Lamar, Marion, Pickens, Shelby, St. Clair, Talladega, Tuscaloosa, Walker and Winston.

One Alabama school system has announced early dismissal, another has closed for the day, while many continue to monitor the weather before making a decision. See the list here.

NWS Birmingham also has issued a wind advisory for all of central Alabama warning of strong, gusty winds up to 25 or 30 mph.

With the ground saturated from rain, winds could knock over weaker trees and down large limbs. They also can cause difficulties for drivers.

The advisory expires at midnight.

Updated at 1:18 p.m.
A young Birmingham man awaiting trial in a 2013 murder is back in custody again after Birmingham police arrested him and another man at a Forestdale hotel.

Devaris Browning, 23, was arrested Thursday by the Birmingham Police Department's Crime Reduction Team. His arrest was part of an effort to round up suspects wanted for violent felony crimes and drug crimes, said Birmingham police spokesman Sgt. Bryan Shelton.

The arrests of Browning and three others took place throughout the day and took officers into other jurisdictions. " We are determined to get these violent criminals and drug dealers off our streets,'' said Birmingham police Chief A.C. Roper. "Our communities are much safer with these suspects locked up and hopefully removed from society for a very long time."

Browning was arrested on an attempted murder warrant and a warrant for failure to appear on a previous murder charge. Browning and another man are charged with murder in the death of Justin Golden on Aug. 10, 2013. At 2:15 a.m., Golden was found shot in the parking lot of Hong Kong Seafood at 1101 3rd Ave. West. He was pronounced dead at UAB Hospital.

Browning was first arrested on that murder warrant on Aug. 14, 2013 and later released from jail on $75,000 bond. He was indicted on Jan. 1, 2014. He applied for youthful offender status in the Golden case, telling Jefferson County Circuit Judge Stephen Wallace he was in fear for his life and protecting himself when the shooting occurred. Under Alabama law, someone who is charged with crimes while he or she is 21 or younger can apply for youthful offender status. If granted, the most prison time the person could face is three years.

Wallace denied Browning's request for youthful offender status, citing "the severity of the charge."

Browning's murder trial is set for March 7, 2016. Court records show his bond in that case was revoked Jan. 5, 2016. Shelton said he was arrested Thursday on an attempted murder charge, but efforts to obtain details on that case weren't immediately available.

Also arrested at the hotel with Browning was 23-year-old Brennen Dinatale. Dinatale is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana, unlawful possession of a controlled substance, and failure to appear on a charge of unlawful possession of a controlled substance.

CRT officers seized two guns, pills, and 10 bags of marijuana from Dinatale, Shelton said.

Also arrested during Thursday's operation were Rodrekus Woods, 30, and Boyd McSwain, 35. Shelton said Woods was arrested on a first-degree robbery charge; McSwain on charges of third-degree robbery, failure to appear on third-degree robbery and second-degree theft of property.
Crash Victims

Jalesa Kiara Merrit, left, Jhayden Pippen, center, Rodney Hutton, right, were killed in the crash. (Special to AL.com)

(Special to AL.com)

The driver of an Oldsmobile Cutlass illegally street racing on a Saturday night in December lost control when he was struck by his opponent toward the end of the race and then plowed into a crowd of onlookers, killing three and injuring eight others, Alabama State Troopers officially announced this evening.

A 17-page newly-released accident report includes a diagram of the fatal crash, and confirms what authorities have previously said led to the death s of Rodney Hutton, 30, Jalesa Kiara Merritt, 22 and 3-year-old Jhayden Pippen.

The crash happened at 5:30 p.m. Dec. 26, 2015 on Greene County 231 near Eutaw. Hutton and Jhayden were taken to Greene County Hospital, where they were pronounced dead. Merritt was airlifted to DCH Regional Medical Center in Tuscaloosa, where she was also was pronounced dead.

Eight others, including children ages 6, 7 and 9, received medical treatment from area hospitals.

Authorities have said Maurice Devonte Wedgeworth, 22, was driving the Cutlass. Clyde Dewayne Lawson, 27, was driving the Monte Carlo. Both are charged with three counts of manslaughter and one count of leaving the scene of an accident with injuries.

According to the crash report, both cars were traveling east on County Road 231 while a crowd of people were gathered on the side of the road to watch the race. Lawson, behind the wheel of the Monte Carlo, struck Wedgeworth in the Cutlass on the passenger's side, causing the Cutlass to lose control.

Wedgeworth's Cutlass veered off onto the left shoulder, and then left the roadway to the right, according to the report. After leaving the road to the right, the Cutlass struck the crowd of bystanders. After hitting the onlookers, the Cutlass then struck a tree before coming to a final rest.

Both drivers left the crash site. Lawson left the scene in the Monte Carlo he was racing, trooper said, while Wedgeworth was driven from the scene by someone else. Wedgeworth was taken into custody just before midnight Saturday when he turned himself in to troopers at a hospital. Lawson was taken into custody in Huntsville.

The report also listed those injured in the crash, but redacted their ages. Those injured were: Bernethea Fay McNeal, Terriana Benison, Cecil Marshall Jr., Takyla Fowler, Brittany Lashondra Hicks, Jamarris Pippen, Hakeem Powel and Krystalyn Brianona Harris.

McNeal, Benison, Marshall, Fowler and Pippen were taken to Greene County Hospital. Hicks, Powell and Harris were taken to DCH Medical Center in Tuscaloosa.

Street racing is illegal in Alabama. A new law went into effect in June that not only increased the punishment for those arrested for street racing, but also made it a crime to watch. Under the new law, being caught watching the races could result in $500 fines. Previously, they faced no punishment. Authorities have not announced any charges against the onlookers.

Greene County District Attorney Greg Griggers, who has said a grand jury will decide if any additional charges will be filed, told AL.com in December the "reckless act of street racing" led to the manslaughter warrants issued by his office.

"What happened is bad enough but to happen during the holidays,'' he has said. "I just feel so sorry for all of the families involved. My prayers are with them. There are some whose injuries are still very serious."
A Florence man earlier this month rammed his girlfriend's head into a wall so hard that it created a hole in the sheet rock, according to police.

Jason Bernard Cole, 33, is charged with domestic violence strangulation/ suffocation, third-degree domestic violence, third-degree domestic violence assault, interfering with a domestic violence emergency call, third-degree theft of property and unauthorized use of a car. According to the Times-Daily, Cole was picked up at a home in Florence late Wednesday by the U.S. Marshals Gulf Coast Fugitive Task Force and Florence police officers.

Cole is accused of assaulting a 31-year-old woman - and the mother of his child - Jan. 2 at a home in Florence. He allegedly punched the victim in the face and head multiple times and then slammed her head into the wall.

The alleged victim was treated for her injuries at Eliza Coffee Memorial Hospital. Cole is being held without bond at the Lauderdale County Detention Center.
The Alabama man who pleaded for the return of his late wife's wedding ring has gotten his wish.

Jack Boxley said the ring was mailed anonymously to the Anniston Police Department on Thursday. Boxley said he received a call from police and went to the station to identify the ring.

"It's already in a safety deposit box," he said.

The white gold ring with a large Moissanite center stone had belonged to Boxley's wife Stacy, who was killed in an auto accident on Aug. 15, 2013 while on her way to pick up the couple's six-month-old son Mark. Jack Boxley said he planned on giving the ring to his son but, in December, discovered it had been stolen from his home while he was at his mother's house in Kentucky.

At the time, Boxley said he believed the ring had been taken by a female friend or movers who had been in the house.

Boxley appealed via social media, as well as in a story on AL.com, for the ring's return. He said he's overjoyed the precious piece of jewelry is back in his safe keeping and grateful to those who shared his story.

"Now Mark can hold the ring while I tell him about all of you," he said.

He also had a message for whoever took the ring.

"To the person who returned it; thank you for doing the right thing. To the person who stole it: I forgive you. I forgave you before it was even returned."
An Alabama man must serve nearly 27 years in prison in a Texas drug smuggling case linked to 35 pounds of methamphetamine in a truck muffler.

James Marcus Malone of Boaz was sentenced Thursday by a federal judge in McAllen.

The 42-year-old Malone in September was convicted of importing and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Prosecutors say Malone has several prior drug convictions.

The Texas case involves a March 2015 search at the Hidalgo (hih-DAL'-goh) port of entry. The meth was hidden in the muffler of a pickup truck driven by a person associated with Malone.

Investigators say Malone and others traveled from Alabama to Reynosa, Mexico, to help pick the Dodge Ram loaded with drugs. Authorities believe the methamphetamine was being smuggled to the Houston area.
firearms class 2 12

A glut in requests for background checks have prompted the FBI to temporarily halt the processing of appeals by those who were denied the right to buy a gun. (Cherokee County Sheriff)

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has halted the appeals process for those denied the right to purchase a firearm as a massive wave of background checks has the agency scrambling to keep up.

Some 7,100 appeals are currently backlogged and awaiting processing, according to the FBI. More than 70 appeals examiners are working through the requests but have temporarily halted the process due to the influx, USA Today reported. It's not known when the processing of appeals will restart.

"The last several months, we've kind of found ourselves in a perfect storm,'' Morris told the newspaper.

That "perfect storm" includes the high-profile terrorist shootings in Paris and San Bernardino, California and President Obama's announced executive order that will expand background checks for gun buyers. The FBI said they often see a wave of gun purchases following a mass shooting event.

On Black Friday alone, the FBI processed 185,345 background checks.

"This was an approximate 5 percent increase over the 175,754 received on Black Friday 2014," Stephen Fischer, the FBI's chief of multimedia productions said. "The previous high for receipts were the 177,170 received on Dec. 21, 2012."

Law requires the government to notify a dealer on the status of the person's background check within three days. If that doesn't occur, the person is allowed to buy the gun without the results of the check being completed. Federal officials said it is becoming increasingly more difficult to complete the checks within the three-day window.

Included in a President Obama's executive order is request to hire 230 more background check examiners and 200 additional agents for the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms. The goal, he said, is to provide background checks around the clock for 365 days a year.

Massive number of background check requests

According to FBI statistics, there were 3.3 million requests for background checks in December 2015, up from 2.3 million for the same month the previous year. The December 2015 figures were a new record for the FBI.

The previous high was in the wake of the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary in December 2012, when the FBI processed 2.8 million background check requests.

Total background check requests in 2015 were a record 23 million, up from 21 million the previous year and more than double the amount from 10 years ago. Requests do not necessarily equal the number of gun sales, though the figures closely track.

Attorney Gen. Loretta Lynch told the Senate Appropriations Committee yesterday the system is struggling to keep up with demand.

"Sadly, the (background check) system is overwhelmed at this time,'' Lynch said.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation ran a child pornography website for two weeks last year in an effort to catch those attempting to download its illegal photos and videos.

USA Today reported the FBI took control of the website, known as "Playpen" from its operators but left it online. Agents infected the site with software that penetrated user security, allowing typically shielded visitors to be identified. The site was operational Feb. 20 to March 4, 1015.

At the time, the site had more than 215,000 registered users who could access as many as 23,000 sexually explicit images and videos of children. It operated on what's called the "dark web," a part of the internet only accessible by those using special software that makes users largely untraceable.

Agents eventually tracked the site to North Carolina, where it seized its computers and moved them to an FBI facility in Virginia. As many as 100,000 users visited the site while it was under FBI control, according to USA Today. Of those, about 1,300 were identified and 137 have been charged with a crime so far.

FBI officials have defended similar operations in the past as the only way to uncover users.
Susan Durden greets every resident by name during a morning tour of Angels for the Elderly in Montgomery, the specialty care assisted living facility she has owned and operated for more than a decade.

The facility is calm and cheery on a cloudy December morning as residents gather for a short concert by area schoolchildren. As Durden passes, many of the residents brighten as a ripple of recognition crosses their faces.

Angels for the Elderly consists of a modest collection of low-slung buildings that can collectively house more than 60 residents with dementia. The facility became a specialty care assisted living facility in 2002, and has an almost spotless record with the Alabama Department of Public Health.

"Dementia care is a calling for me," Durden said.

The scene at Angels for the Elderly is bright and orderly. Residents are separated according to their ability, and the progression of their dementia. The buildings are a far cry from the chaos families have described at other dementia care homes.

But how can a family discover which homes are well-run and which ones are not?

If you want to know which nursing home is the best, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services provides a bevy of information, from star ratings to detailed citations.

There is no such system for assisted living facilities, including those that serve residents with dementia. Experts from around the state provided tips for families who may be seeking a home for a loved one who can no longer live independently.

One of the best resources for families is the Alabama Department of Public Health, which keeps an online repository of inspection and deficiency reports. You can find those here. Facilities are also required to make inspection reports available to anyone who asks.

Al.com created a searchable database based on those reports. You can find out whether a facility has ever been cited for improperly handling certain patient care concerns, such as repeated falls, allegations of abuse or medication errors. For more information on citations, please check online records.

Check here to find out if a home has ever been cited by state regulators

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Matthew Minner, an attorney at Hare, Wynn, Newell and Newton, advises people to tour any prospective facility and ask to see the administrator. Administrators, nurses and staff should know all residents, he said.

"You've got to go to the facility and do your research," he said.

Minner said he cautions people to look carefully at deficiency reports. A history of repeated violations might raise more red flags than a couple of isolated incidents such as elopement, when a resident gets out of a secure facility, he said.

Dr. Kathleen Fix, who treats elderly patients at UAB and the VA and often visits assisted living facilities, also advised families to visit prospective homes. She suggested that families ask how problematic behaviors are handled, and how many dementia patients are on powerful anti-psychotic drugs.

"We can't get away from that entirely," she said. "But certainly south of 20 percent is something to look for. You just don't want the response to bad behavior to be a drug."

Rita Jablonski-Jaudon, a nursing professor and researcher at UAB, said assisted living facilities can be better than nursing homes for some patients, even if there is less regulation. Nursing home care is not necessarily appropriate for residents who can still manage most of the activities of daily life, she said.

Like Fix, she encourages family members to pay attention to the strategies facilities use to work with patients who may resist care. And if the facility is located near a university of medical school, ask if they have a relationship with researchers, she said.

"If a facility allows me and my team to walk in and engage in research, they are not trying to hide anything," Jablonski-Jaudon said.

If you have a family member in an assisted living facility, and you aren't satisfied with their care, reach out to nurses and administrators, Minner said. If that fails, try the ombudsman, a state official who investigates complaints at assisted living and nursing homes.

"Always go up the chain of command in the nursing home first," Minner said. "Get it in writing and follow up with an email. That doesn't always do the trick, but it should if you're in a good facility."
Alabama Circuit Court Judge Marvin Wiggins has been censured after the Alabama Judicial Inquiry Commission filed charges against him that he threatened to throw defendants in jail who had no money to pay their fines unless they donated blood.

The charges, which were filed Jan.8, were brought to the Alabama Court of the Judiciary, which could reprimand, suspend, or remove Wiggins from the bench.

"This court, in arriving at the decision to issue a public censure of Judge Wiggins rather than a more serious sanction, considered that Judge Wiggins... admitted the same and its wrongfulness and has before this Court acknowledged such misconduct," Thursday's final judgment read.

Wiggins has served as a judge for the Fourth Judicial Circuit, serving Bibb, Dallas, Hale, Perry and Wilcox counties since 1999.

After the charges were filed last week, Wiggins was suspended without pay. He then requested and was granted an expedited hearing because under Alabama law he couldn't act as a judge while the commission charges were pending.

The complaint filed to the commission involved an incident that happened on Sept. 17, 2015, during a "pay-due" docket in Perry County.

At that time, no one went to jail and Wiggins' and other judges are under pressure to collect fines, the judge's attorney said. Wiggins admits he used "very poor language" in encouraging the defendants to donate blood, the attorney said.

Wiggins, "while sitting on the bench and clothed in his judicial robe, violated the Alabama Canons of Judicial Ethics by threatening to incarcerate defendants who had 'no money' to pay their court-ordered financial assessments unless they 'donated' blood," the complaint stated.

The notices the defendants received did not include any warning of incarceration or that they would need an attorney, according to the commission complaint.

The complaint quotes from a recording made by one of the defendants:

"For your consideration, there's a blood drive outside and if you do not have any money and you don't want to go to jail, as an option to pay it, you can give blood today. If you do not have any money, go out there and give blood and bring in a receipt indicating you gave blood. Consider that as a discount rather than putting you in jail, if you do not have any money. So, if you do not have any money and you don't want to go to jail, consider giving blood today and your receipt back, or the sheriff has enough handcuffs for those who do not have money."

All but six of the 47 defendants who ended up donating blood at a mobile LifeSouth blood bank outside the Perry County Courthouse were made by defendants on Wiggins' docket, according to the complaint.

"Judge Wiggins' conduct regarding the incarceration of criminal defendants and his conduct in threatening to incarcerate those defendants who did not have 'any money' unless they gave blood were so coercive as to be reprehensible and inexcusable," the complaint stated.

After Thursday's censure was issued, the Southern Poverty Law Center, which had filed their own complaint against Wiggins, released a statement praising the censure.

"The Judicial Inquiry Commission is sending a clear message that the constitutional rights of the poor must be respected in Alabama courtrooms," SPLC senior staff attorney Sara Zampierin wrote. "No one should be forced to give blood or go to jail simply because they cannot afford to pay their court fines and fees. And no one's rights should be tied to their bank account. Today's hearing is an encouraging sign for anyone who believes in equal justice under the law."

In addition to the commission's censure, Wiggins will be taxed for costs in the proceeding.

AL.com reporter Kent Faulk reported this story.
North Korea announced Friday the arrest of a U.S. university student for what it called a "hostile act" orchestrated by the American government to undermine the authoritarian nation.

In language that mirrors past North Korean claims of outside conspiracies, Pyongyang's state media said the University of Virginia student entered the country under the guise of a tourist and plotted to destroy North Korean unity with "the tacit connivance of the U.S. government and under its manipulation."

The North's official Korean Central News Agency said in a short report that the student, whom it identified as Warmbier Otto Frederick, was "arrested while perpetrating a hostile act," but didn't say when he was detained or explain the nature of the act. North Korea has sometimes listed English-language surnames first, in the Korean style. The University of Virginia's online student directory lists someone named Otto Frederick Warmbier as an undergraduate commerce student.

A China-based tour company specializing in travel to North Korea, Young Pioneer Tours, confirmed that one of its customers, identified only as "Otto," had been detained in Pyongyang, the North's capital, but provided no other details. Social media accounts for Warmbier show interests in finance, travel and rap music; he was on the University of Virginia's dean's list and attended high school in the Cincinnati, Ohio, area.

North Korea's announcement comes amid a diplomatic push by Washington, Seoul and their allies to slap Pyongyang with tough sanctions for its recent nuclear test. In the past, North Korea has occasionally announced the arrests of foreign detainees in times of tension with the outside world in an apparent attempt to wrest concessions or diplomatic maneuvering room.

North Korea also regularly accuses Washington and Seoul of sending "spies" to overthrow its government to enable the U.S.-backed South Korean government to control the entire Korean Peninsula. Some foreigners previously arrested have read statements of guilt that they later said were coerced.

A few thousand Westerners are thought to visit North Korea each year, and Pyongyang is pushing for more tourists as a way to help its dismal economy. The U.S. State Department has warned against travel to the North, however, and visitors, especially those from America, who break the country's sometimes murky rules risk detention, arrest and possible jail sentences, although most have eventually been released.

Earlier this month, CNN reported that North Korea had detained another U.S. citizen on suspicion of spying. It said a man identified as Kim Dong Chul was being held by the North and said authorities had accused him of spying and stealing state secrets. North Korea has yet to comment on the report.

The U.S. State Department has said it could not confirm the CNN report. It declined to discuss the issue further or confirm whether the U.S. was consulting with Sweden, which handles U.S. consular issues in North Korea because Washington and Pyongyang do not have diplomatic relations.

North Korea has previously released or deported U.S. detainees after high-profile Americans visited the country. In late 2014, for instance, North Korea released two Americans after a secret mission to the North by James Clapper, the top U.S. intelligence official. Critics say such trips have provided diplomatic credibility to the North.

The Korean Peninsula remains in a technical state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea.

North Korea is holding at least three South Koreans and one Canadian.

Last month, North Korea's Supreme Court sentenced a Canadian pastor to life in prison with hard labor for what it called crimes against the state. The offenses he was charged with included harming the dignity of the North's leadership and trying to use religion to destroy the North Korean system, according to the North's state media.
A poll taken for Alabama state Senate and House Republicans shows that the state's GOP presidential primary is essentially a two-man race between billionaire businessman Donald J. Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz.

But while the race may be a two-man race, it's not all that close. Or at least it was not when the poll was taken about a month ago.

The results showed Trump with a comfortable lead over Cruz, 35 percent to 15 percent.

The survey was conducted from Dec. 10th to the 13th. It polled 500 likely Republican primary voters in Alabama who said they intend to cast ballots in the GOP primary on March 1.

Sen. Ted Cruz

The survey has an accuracy of plus or minus 4.5 percent.

Tied for third place in the poll at just 12 percent of the vote are Dr. Ben Carson and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio.

Next comes two former governors, Florida's Jeb Bush and Arkansas's Mike Huckabee. Both men are tied at 4 percent of the vote.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has 3 percent of the vote followed by Ohio Gov. John Kasich at 2 percent. Businesswoman Carly Florina at just 1 percent.

U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, former Sen. Rick Santorum and Sen. Lindsey Graham all polled less than 1 percent. Since the poll was done Graham has pulled out of the race.

The numbers are likely disappointing most for Santorum who won the Alabama GOP primary in 2012 and for Huckabee who won the state primary in 2008.

One of the most interesting findings of the poll showed Republican voters far more likely to vote for candidates who are new to politics and will "bring fresh thinking" opposed to candidates who are running for office based on experience in office and getting things done.

Sixty-three percent of likely GOP voters said they would likely support such a candidate as opposed to the 27 percent who said experience was a key deciding factor for them.

While that specific dynamic was aimed toward state government elections, it's also a fact that Trump, Cruz and Carson have all campaigned as essentially outsiders and challengers to the political status quo.
The Marine Corps says the 12 Marines who were in two helicopters that crashed off Hawaii are considered dead.

The status of the missing Marines changed to deceased on Wednesday, after five days of searching for them. The Marine Corps says casualty assistance calls officers personally notified each family of the change.

The search began late Thursday when a civilian on a beach reported seeing the aircraft flying and then a fireball.

The Marines were alerted when the CH-53E helicopters carrying six crew members each failed to return to their base at Kaneohe Bay following a nighttime training mission. Hours later, a Coast Guard helicopter and C-130 airplane spotted debris 2 1/2 miles off of Oahu.

The Marines were from various states and ranged in age from 21 to 41.

They are:

-- Maj. Shawn M. Campbell, 41, College Station, Texas.

-- Capt. Brian T. Kennedy, 31, Philadelphia.

-- Capt. Kevin T. Roche, 30, St. Louis.

-- Capt. Steven R. Torbert, 29, Florence, Alabama.

-- Sgt. Dillon J. Semolina, 24, Chaska, Minnesota.

-- Sgt. Adam C. Schoeller, 25, Gardners, Pennsylvania.

-- Sgt. Jeffrey A. Sempler, 22, Woodruff, South Carolina.

-- Sgt. William J. Turner, 25, Florala, Alabama.

-- Cpl. Matthew R. Drown, 23, Spring, Texas.

-- Cpl. Thomas J. Jardas, 22, Fort Myers, Florida.

-- Cpl. Christopher J. Orlando, 23, Hingham, Massachusetts.

-- Lance Cpl. Ty L. Hart, 21, Aumsville, Oregon.
The leader of the Alabama Senate is working on legislation that would end the tenure system for future teachers and replace it with a plan that ties employment and pay more closely to student performance.

Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh, R-Anniston, has circulated a bill called the RAISE Act (Rewarding Achievement in Instruction and Student Excellence).

Marsh has not introduced the bill and said the latest draft, which he said was not yet available, includes significant changes.

An earlier version would have allowed teachers hired in May 2017 and after to work in a grandfathered tenure system or in a new performance salary system.

Marsh said the updated bill would not offer the tenure option to the future teachers.

Teachers already in the tenure system could remain in it, but new teachers would work under contracts with new evaluation standards.

Evaluations would be based partly on student scores on standardized tests -- the ACT Aspire or its successor -- according to the earlier version of the bill.

Marsh said taxpayers need to know that the Legislature will hold educators accountable for results.

"We are going to require that student performance over time be achieved," Marsh said. "It's hard to do that with the tenure system."

Other factors in evaluations would include classroom observations by principals and other trained evaluators and surveys of parents and students.

Marsh's bill calls for the state Department of Education to define the elements of evaluation and standards of effectiveness.

Teachers would receive annual evaluations rating them at one of five different levels, from significantly below expectations to significantly exceeding expectations, according to the earlier draft of the bill.

School boards would base decisions on significant pay differentials, promotions, transfers and retention primarily on the evaluations.

Teachers could be paid more for teaching high-demand subjects or taking hard-to-staff assignments.

Marsh said he has met with the Alabama Education Association, Alabama Association of School Boards and School Superintendents of Alabama, as well as with state Superintendent Tommy Bice and Community College Chancellor Mark Heinrich to get their input on the proposal.

Eric Mackey, head of School Superintendents of Alabama, said he has talked to more than half of the state's 138 superintendents about the bill.

Mackey said they were nearly unanimous in opposing a plan that ties teacher pay and employment to standardized test scores.

Multiple factors affect test scores, he noted.

"It's difficult to measure student achievement in a vacuum," Mackey said.

Mackey said superintendents don't want the Legislature to impose specific rules governing teacher evaluations.

He said that's the role of the state Board of Education and state Department of Education.

Mackey said a new teacher evaluation system is in its pilot phase now.

"Now the Legislature comes along and says we're going to scrap that and do a new system," Mackey said. "We can't get traction if we are constantly changing."

Mackey said he thinks the association could support some of the provisions in the earlier draft of Marsh's bill.

Those included increasing from three years to five years the time it took for teachers to earn tenure, and providing extra pay for teachers in high-demand subjects and hard-to-staff assignments.

For example, Mackey said it would be helpful to offer incentives to attract special needs teachers because there is a shortage.

Marsh has spearheaded education reform bills for several years.

He was the main proponent of the Alabama Accountability Act and sponsored the charter school bill that lawmakers passed last year.

Democrats have generally opposed those bills and been critical of Republican education policies since the GOP took control of the Legislature in 2010.

Rep. Craig Ford, D-Gadsden, minority leader in the Houses of Representatives, said it's unfair to judge teachers based on test scores.

Ford said student performance depends on factors outside the teacher's control, such as parents who don't take education seriously or who can't help their children enough with school because they're working two jobs to make ends meet.

"It's what's happening between 4 p.m. and 6:30 a.m.," that makes some students struggle in school, Ford said.

Teachers have received one cost of living raise, a 2 percent increase in 2014, in the last eight years. Ford said the stagnant pay has hurt teacher morale.

Ford said he will sponsor a bill to give K-12 employees and community college employees a 5 percent raise, and to give education retirees a 2 percent COLA.

Marsh said he expects legislators to support an across-the-board pay raise for teachers this year.

Marsh said Republicans have gotten "a bad rap" by being characterized as not supportive of public education.

Marsh said the goals of changing to performance-based pay include boosting Alabama teacher pay above the national average. He said he would also like to see Alabama's starting pay for teachers be the highest in the southeast.

The legislative session starts Feb. 2.

The earlier draft of Marsh's bill called for establishment of the Alabama Longitudinal Data System Center. It would compile the student test scores and other information that would be used in determining teacher performance.

Marsh said that is no longer part of his bill. He said Rep. Terri Collins, R-Decatur, planned to introduce a separate bill to set up the data system.
1-22 AL wx

Although the accumulations aren't expected to be high, many areas in north and north-central Alabama will see snowfall on Friday. This map shows the probabilities of 1 inch or greater of accumulating snow for a 24-hour period ending Saturday afternoon. 1-2 inches of snow will be possible across north Alabama on Friday, with most areas in north-central Alabama getting 1 inch or less. The weather service said the snow will be showery in nature -- some areas will get accumulating snow, and some won't. (Weather Prediction Center)

Snow was falling across parts of north and central Alabama on Friday afternoon, and it was sticking in a few places, mainly in north Alabama.

As of 3 p.m. the National Weather Service offices in Huntsville had gotten reports of an inch of snow on Monte Sano and in Toney in Madison County and smaller amounts elsewhere across north Alabama.

Other reports were three-fourths of an inch near Harvest in Madison County, a half inch in west Huntsville, a quarter inch in Marshall County near Arab and a tenth of an inch near Falkville and Athens.

Snow made it into central Alabama around 1 p.m., according to the National Weather Service, although the only accumulation reported so far was a tenth of an inch near Smoke Rise in Blount County.

Snow now falling across Downtown Birmingham. Temperature is still 37 degrees at BHM airport. #alwx #bmxwx  NWS Birmingham (@NWSBirmingham) January 22, 2016

The National Weather Service in Huntsville said that the rain-snow line was steadily moving eastward.

Band of snow moving E of I-65 now. Light snow continues to fall behind the line. How much snow did you get? #HUNWx pic.twitter.com/VxfYOMTZg0  NWS Huntsville (@NWSHuntsville) January 22, 2016

Flurries have even been reported in south Alabama.

1220pm - Light snow flurries reported by @ClarkeCountyEMA in the Thomasville, AL area. No accumulation & no impact expected. #alwx  NWS Mobile (@NWSMobile) January 22, 2016

A winter weather advisory, originally slated to go into effect Friday afternoon, instead was pushed up to 9 a.m. for parts of north and north-central Alabama, the weather service said.

The advisory went into effect at 3 p.m. for northeast Alabama counties, the weather service said.

Read the advisory for north Alabama here.

Read the advisory for central Alabama here.

What hasn't changed -- at least as of Friday morning -- were anticipated accumulations.

The weather service in Huntsville said 1-2 inches of snow will be possible across much of north Alabama, with areas in Lauderdale County getting up to 3 inches.

The weather service in Birmingham said areas in north-central Alabama will get an inch or less but opted to keep the winter weather advisory in effect for the time being.

Forecasters in north Alabama said that travel conditions there will go downhill rapidly beginning early this afternoon. Black ice was possible in spots by Friday night as temperatures fall into the 20s, the weather service said.

This snow event will be a bit different in that the snow will be what the weather service called "showery" in nature. Some places will get accumulating snow -- but some will not. It will just depend on where the heavier precipitation bands set up.

Friday also looks to be windy as the storm system moves away from Alabama. A wind advisory is in effect until midnight for central Alabama. Winds are expected to be 15-25 mph with higher guests.

The wind combined with the saturated ground could bring down a few trees and larger limbs, the weather service said.

This isn't the last of Alabama's brushes with winter weather -- the weather service is already watching another storm system expected to affect Alabama late Monday into Tuesday that also has the potential to bring more winter precipitation to the state.
Killeen student.jpg

Anthony Ruelas, 15, of Killeen, Texas, listens as his mother, Mandy Cortes, talks about his school suspension. Ruelas was suspended for two days after leaving class to carry a classmate having an asthma attack to the school nurse's office. (KCEN-TV)

A Texas teen was suspended this week for helping out a fellow classmate suffering from an asthma attack.

It was not the first time that Anthony Ruelas, a 15-year-old student at the Killeen Independent School District's alternative school, had been suspended, he and his mother told news station KCEN-TV. Tuesday's suspension was different, though.

Ruelas admits he broke the rules by walking out of class that day. The reason? He carried a girl having an asthma attack to the nurse's office.

"I was like, what? I'm suspended for this? Like, I was trying to help her," Ruelas told the TV station.

Ruelas' teacher was awaiting an email from the school nurse and had told the students to remain seated and calm. After several minutes of watching and listening to his classmate wheezing and coughing, however, Ruelas' concern outweighed the rules.

Ruelas' referral form from his teacher read, in her handwriting:

"During 5th period another student complained that she couldn't breathe and was having an asthma attack. As I waited for a response from the nurse the student fell out of her chair to the floor. Anthony proceeded to go over and pick her up, saying 'f--k that we ain't got time to wait for no email from the nurse.' He walks out of class and carries the other student to the nurse."

Ruelas' mother, Mandy Cortes, was initially angry with her son for getting suspended. When she found out why he'd walked out of class, however, she began defending him.

"He may not follow instructions all the time, but he does have a great heart," Cortes told the news station.

Killeen ISD's superintendent, John Craft, released a statement Wednesday in response to the incident:

"The district is unable to provide details related to the matter as it pertains to information involving student discipline and/or health records. In an effort to

protect students' rights to confidentiality granted under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, the details of the investigation and/or disciplinary actions may not be provided by the district at this time. The Killeen ISD maintains the safety of our students, staff and campuses as a priority and applauds the efforts of students who act in good faith to assist others in times of need."

Ruelas, who received a two-day suspension, got a text from the girl Wednesday, thanking him and telling him she was doing all right.

Cortes also got a phone call from the school on Wednesday - asking her why her son was absent. The mother said she had to remind the administration that they'd suspended her son.

Ruelas was allowed to return to school Thursday, but his mother is considering home-schooling him instead, the news station reported.
Anyone who weathered the Blizzard of 1993 with its frigid temperatures and power outages will likely tell you that March snowfall has to be the biggest ever recorded in Alabama. After all, snow of more than 15 inches was reported in the state and it was one of the few times when all 67 counties saw at least some measurable amount of the white spot.

But, at least according to the Weather Channel, no time in March 1993 holds the Alabama record for the largest amount of snow to fall in a single day. That record was set on Jan. 23, 1940, when 18.5 inches of snow was reported in the west-central Alabama town of Reform.

While that's a lot of the white stuff for Alabama, it only ranks us 45th out of the 50 states for our highest single day total.

The state with the lowest total to qualify as a state's biggest snowfall is Florida, who recorded a measly 4 inches northeast of Pensacola on March 6, 1954. The highest single day total is from Colorado, where Georgetown holds the record for the greatest single snowfall in U.S. history with 63 inches on Dec. 4, 1913.

Oh, and if you're curious - The Weather Channel left Hawaii out of its rankings. The channel's meteorologists said while upper elevations on Maui and the Big Island can see snow, no records are kept of the totals, so Hawaii gets passed over.

Welcome to Friday's Wake Up Call. Let's hope today's weather is more like Hawaii and less like Colorado.

Man asks people not to vote for Trump in obituary

A Pittsburgh chiropractor who recently passed away made sure his final wishes included a plea for people not to vote for Donald Trump.

Jeffrey Cohen, who died Sunday at age 70, asked his loved ones not to vote for the Republican front runner in lieu of sending flowers to his funeral. Cohen's obituary said he took pride in being the only Jewish cowboy he knew and that he lived the motto "the meaning of life is Oops!"

Donations, he said, could be made to the charity of your choice - as long as it's not Trump related.

Capitol police: Bring on the sleds

The Capitol Hill police have a message for children wanting to sled down the hill of the Capitol building this weekend: Bring it on.

The U.S. Capitol Police said they will be lenient when it comes to sledders who want to use the Capitol grounds, a change from past policy that has been criticized by some members of Congress. That doesn't mean it will be a free-for-all, however.

"Given the direction of Congress, the USCP will be monitoring any weather-related activity on the Capitol grounds, and also monitoring conditions to ensure a positive and safe experience for the young sledders," police said in a statement. "Please note that if the conditions are unsafe for the public and/or the Congressional community, the USCP officers will limit the amount of sledding in the best interest of the public."

AG: Obama right on guns

Attorney General Loretta Lynch is defending President Obama's recent executive action on firearms, saying the administration had to do something to combat gun violence.

Earlier this month, President Obama unveiled a series of measures designed to increase the number of people who are considered federally registered firearms dealers, thereby increasing the number of people who must undergo background checks before purchasing a weapon.

The order has drawn the ire of Republicans who consider it encroachment on Second Amendment rights.

Lynch said she believe the gun control act was "fully consistent with the laws passed by Congress."

Detroit schools back in session

Students at Detroit Public Schools are back in class a day after teachers staged a massive sick-out to protest school conditions.

The educators said Gov. Rick Snyder is ignoring problems in the school system, including dilapidated buildings, overcrowded classrooms and low teacher pay. More than 85 of the district's 100 schools were forced to close due to the sickout.

The school district had gone to court to try and prevent the teacher absences.

Until tomorrow.
FEDERAL WAY, Wash.  A select few members of the Alaska Nanooks swim team will be in action this weekend at the 67th Annual SCY Husky Invitational hosted by the University of Washington. The three-day events begins on Friday at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center and runs through Sunday.

The Nooks will be sending four swimmers to compete in the meet, as All-Americans Victoria Adams and Martha Hood will be joined by newcomers Cassidy Heaton and Kate Mathews in the Lower 48. This meet also caps off the 2015-16 regular season for the Alaska Nanooks swim team, as they prepare of US Nationals.

Heaton and Hood will get things started for the Nanooks this weekend on Friday. Heaton will be competing in the 500-yard freestyle to open the meet for Alaska, and Hood will conclude the day's events for the Nooks with the 50-yard free style. Heaton is seated 14th in the 500-yard freestyle. The freshman has been strong in the event this season, and posted a career-best time of 5:06.05 her last time out at the Calvin Invitational. For Hood, she will be seated fifth in the 50-yard freestyle, as she returns to the site where she set a personal-best in the event. At last season's Husky Invitational, Hood recorded a time of 23.44 to finish fifth.

Three swimmers will partake in events on the second day of the Husky Invitational. Adams kicks off the day with the 100-yard backstroke, followed by Mathews in the 100-yard breaststroke and Heaton concludes her weekend with the 800-meter freestyle. Adams, an All-American in the backstroke, enters Saturday's race as the three seed. Adams is coming off a second-place finish in the 100-yard backstroke at the prestigious Calvin Invitational by clocking in at a season-best 55.79. Mathews looks to add another stellar performance to her already outstanding rookie year with the Nanooks, as she opens the 100-yard breaststroke as the 14 seed. Mathews finished fourth in her last 100-yard race at the Calvin Invitational, as she set a new career-best time of 1:04.87. Heaton ends the day as the seventh seed in the 800-meter freestyle. The distance swimmer will be making her debut in the 800-meter race at the Husky Invitational.

Alaska's stay in the Husky Invitational comes to an end on Sunday, as Adams, Hood and Mathews will take to the pool. Adams will participate in the 200-yard backstroke, while Hood will compete in the 100-yard freestyle and Mathews ends things with the 200-yard breaststroke. Adams is coming off a season-best performance in the 200-yard backstroke, as she posted a time of 2:02.20 to finish third at the Calvin Invitational. Hood also placed third at the Calvin Invitational in the 100-yard freestyle, as she collected a season-best time of 56.39. Mathews looks to finish the meet strong for Alaska, as she is seeded third in the 200-yard breaststroke. Mathews won the event at the Calvin Invitational, as she posted a career-best time of 2:18.61.

For more information on the Alaska Nanooks swim team, follow @NanooksSwim on Twitter or like the Alaska Nanooks Swimming on Facebook.
Record number of Cuban migrants cause concern in South Florida



MIAMI BEACH, Fla. (WSVN) -- A record number of incoming Cuban migrants is making some wonder about South Florida's readiness to support so many newcomers.



Many migrants are happy to be out of the island nation. "There's no life in Cuba," said Cuban migrant Joel Blanco in Spanish. "There's no way to live. You have to live it to be able to understand it."



Blanco was part of the 8,000 Cubans stuck in Costa Rica after Nicaragua closed its border. "Costa Rica gave us good attention as much as they could," he said through a translator. "They weren't ready for us."



However, the question now has become, is South Florida ready for so many immigrants? The number of Cuban migrants traveling to the country by land and sea is staggering.



In January alone, the Coast Guard has reported that 435 migrants have attempted the trip by boat with some being rescued at sea and sent back to Cuba. "We are certainly concerned because we are seeing more migrants take to extreme measures," said Lt. Cmdr. Gabe Somma of the Coast Guard Guard 7th District. "There's some hostility."



With the United States working to normalize relations with Cuba, many migrants believe that this is the time to leave the country. "The perception by a lot of migrants is that the window of opportunity is going to close," said Somma said.

Despite there being no change in immigration policy, thousands are still making the journey.



Local leaders have asked the federal government to step in and help as South Florida fears a shortage of resources needed to assist the migrants and educate their children. "We are ready to teach love and hug every one of these kids," said Miami-Dade County Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho. "It's our moral and legal responsibility, but the federal government cannot shirk it's responsibility in terms of financially supporting their needs."



Blanco said he will work to be reunited with his family. "I'm going to work and work and work until I can bring them here," Blanco said in Spanish. "Nobody wants their children to go through what they went through."

At the current rate, the Coast Guard expects 6,000 Cubans to arrive in the country by sea this year.




Contrary to its idyllic image, Hawaii is a hub for the sex trafficking of girls and women.

Honolulu, Hawaii  It doesnt seem like theres any action today, Tammy Bitanga says, pointing out all the possible prostitutes in Honolulus Chinatown.

For the uninitiated, she breaks the city down into two zones. The area around Waikiki beach, lined with posh hotels and boutiques, is, she says, for high-class street walkers.

This area  drug addicts, low-class streetwalkers, she adds.

This is not your typical Hawaiian holiday tour. Those tend to involve snorkelling adventures or biking down sooty volcanoes. But hidden behind the pristine image of this Pacific paradise is a thriving sex tourism industry.

The streets are mostly empty in the mornings, but today there is some activity in a park  a fair or festival of sorts has drawn a meagre crowd. Then she points. This girl might be. Right here.

A female, possibly in her teens, is standing on a corner. She had been doing the same thing a few blocks earlier. She is standing alone, checking her phone. Bitanga says she appears too dirty to be a trafficked child prostitute.

READ MORE: Inside Sonagachi, Asias largest red-light district

Bitanga knows this, because she used to be one.

Bitanga is one of an unknown, and some say very difficult to measure, number of children and women who have been forced into sex work in Hawaii.

It is hard to quantify but, by our estimates, the number of females trafficked for sex in Hawaii each year is most likely in the thousands, says Kathryn Xian, the founder and head of Pacific Alliance to Stop Slavery, an anti-trafficking pressure group.

There are about 150 brothels on Oahu alone that we know about [not including those in private homes]. For each brothel, there are between three to 15 girls, mostly from Asia and some youth victims. This doesnt include the street prostitution and online scene.

Most of the girls are from China, Japan, Korea and Thailand, Xian says. There are also girls from Russia and parts of Eastern Europe. A large number of the women are taken to or through Honolulu, Oahu, a centre for tourism and conventions and home to a large transient military population.

Clients are usually men with money, some military, some tourists, Xian says. Many come from Asia or mainland United States, but there are local clients as well.

After a few months of work in the city, she says, the girls are shipped to their next destination, often to major US cities such as San Francisco, Oakland, Dallas, New York or Washington DC.

Hawaiis central placement in the Pacific sex trade circuit has cast a shadow over the islands, Xian says.

Deep roots

But it has been this way for almost two centuries, she adds, telling the story of the first case she knows of from 1825, when American whalers trafficked a young girl.

Ever since then, its gotten worse, she says.

Xian believes that the states location and its popularity with tourists makes it the ideal trafficking corridor.

In the vernacular of human trafficking, Hawaii is a source, destination and transit location, says Nicholas Sensley, a retired California police chief and a global expert on sex trafficking.

In Hawaii, Sensley says, networks import victims from abroad, but the trade does not exclude locals.

This is a melting pot of very beautiful people from the Pacific, [from] Asia, and mainland United States, and unfortunately part of the reality is that it creates a draw, he adds.

A failure to help victims

One of the most frustrating things for Xian is what happens to the victims who manage to escape.

Instead of being treated like survivors of rape and psychological abuse, they are put in the difficult position of having to give evidence against their abusers and face grave consequences, or face criminal charges themselves, Xian explains.

They dont fear law enforcement. They fear their traffickers, who have sometimes controlled them for years, she says. As a result, victims typically drop their cases.

Hawaiis record in dealing with the issue is erratic, activists say. In recent years, the states response to human trafficking has improved according to two independent anti-trafficking organisations. Shared Hope International improved the states rating in an annual report from the lowest possible grade of an F in 2013 to a D last year.

Meanwhile, the Polaris Project, an organisation that works on human trafficking, said in a 2014 report that Hawaiis human trafficking laws were good, though its law enforcement rating, safe-harbour and task-force development needed improvement.



The Nigerian Connection

Last July, Hawaiis state governor vetoed an anti-sex trafficking law, which supporters said would have helped victims more effectively than the states current legislation.

We need to combat sex trafficking in Hawaii, and we are, Governor David Iges press representative wrote in an email. The law was well intentioned, he said, but could actually impair law enforcements ability to prosecute crimes related to prostitution and sex trafficking, including sex trafficking of juveniles.

Xian, whose organisation had drafted the new law, said she had hoped it would bring Hawaii up to speed with the rest of the US. Hawaii remains the only state in the US with no comprehensive law specifically criminalising sex trafficking while protecting victims from prosecution, she said.

A home-grown victim

Jessica Munoz, a nurse practitioner and anti-trafficking activist, founded Hoola Na Pua, a non-profit organisation that works with girls trafficked from Hawaii. She shares the story of one who was lured into prostitution four years ago, when she was 14.

At the time, the young girl, who was from a good family, was in her first year in high school, Munoz explains. At a mall in Waikiki, she met two men in their late 20s who promised her fame and fortune. They took her to an apartment, where she spent several days hanging out with them. They gave her drugs and then her instructions: She had to go to Chinatown, wait on a street corner and meet a client. Munoz says the girl was afraid so did as they told her.

That was her foray into prostitution.

Her pimp  had her live with him with six other girls, and she was being prostituted every day. She returned to her family several times, but kept running away because she was unhappy at home, Munoz explains.

Even when she gave birth to a baby fathered by her pimp and served a short prison sentence for prostitution, she felt unable to leave the sex trade. Now, aged 18, she is still working as a prostitute, Munoz says.

$100 for 15 minutes

There is no particular victim profile, Munoz explains. The girls can be as young as 11 or 12, she says. Some are runaways who have ended up homeless, others come from stable, supportive families but continue to be prostituted even as they live under their parents roofs.

Once they are in the trade, the girls are often afraid of what their pimp might do to their families, she says.

But the typical way they are brought into the sex trade is different from what the public might think. These are not snatch and grab abductions, like in the movies, Munoz says. Instead, girls are lured through boyfriending, as she calls it, or, as Xian says, the lover boy approach.

Like the young woman who was coaxed from a mall with promises of stardom, victims are often vulnerable teenagers who respond to an older mans attention and flattery. Eventually, a few days or weeks later, they are ordered to have sex with a client.

The victims are pushed into the first encounter in several ways, Xian says. Sometimes they are gang-raped and beaten into submission. Other times they are drugged into compliance.

Less abusive pimps, she says, will entice them by appealing to their desire to please him and earn or cement his love.

Girls are forced or asked to perform certain acts and from there, it gets worse and worse, until a John forces himself upon her. Boom. Its done. Shes broken in, Xian says. If she tries to leave, the pimp beats her up.

They often also threaten to tell their families.

They must meet a quota of $1,000 to $1,500 per day, Munoz says, explaining that the rate for 15 minutes with a child prostitute in Honolulu is $100. At that rate, they must serve between 10 to 15, but sometimes even 20, men a day.

The fees for children are much higher, Xian says. At minimum, $250 for a half an hour, if not more. She remembers a victim she met two years ago, whose pimp was paid $10,000 for one night. She was 16 then.

No escape

Over a traditional Hawaiian breakfast of pancakes with coconut syrup, Bitanga describes the gruesome reality of underage sexual exploitation. Escape is near impossible, she says. The girls can end up in prison or with criminal records, the public is largely in denial about the problem, and the victims do not get the therapy they need to move on and heal, she adds.

Its like people dont know that it happens in Hawaii to underage girls. I mean, I was 15 when it happened to me, and its still happening.

Through Munozs organisation, Bitanga been mentoring two former child prostitutes. One, who she simply refers to as my young, young girl was pulled into prostitution after meeting a pimp at a party. Now she is fighting the impulse to return to sex work.

OPINION: The rights of sex workers

It is not very different from what happened to Bitanga. She met a man when she was 14 years old, during an evening of partying, drinking, smoking. After boyfriending her, he proposed she trade sex for money and said she should work in Alaska, which was enjoying a boom in oil infrastructure work at the time.

She paid for her own ticket from two nights of prostitution and ended up in an Anchorage massage parlour, where she handed her earnings to a pimp. She returned to Hawaii two months later and stayed in the sex trade.

How can a 15-year-old choose that? The argument is she cannot choose that, Bitanga says. Her pimp was not violent or coercive, she adds. He just boyfriended me. Its a boyfriend type of thing. He showed me affection, he gave me nice things, he boyfriended me into wanting to do it.

That was in the 1970s, and she has spent her whole life since trying to leave the world she was pulled into. Even when she had a professional job, at one time as a paralegal for a prominent lawyer, she still went out at night. It was impossible to stop, she explains, because she did not value her body and it was the only world she knew.

Now that she is about 50, she no longer works as a prostitute. Instead, she volunteers to help trafficked teens who have managed to escape to stay out of sex work, and she is a vocal advocate for treating them as victims, not criminals.

I want to be a voice for the girls who cant talk about it yet, she says.
The cruelty of the ruling empire is not through military domination alone but by posing as the last court of appeal.

In two successive opinion pieces for The New York Times, the Iranian and Saudi foreign ministers have published two opposing views, charging each others respective countries of mischief and misdemeanour.

On January 10, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Irans foreign minister, published a piece in which he warned against Saudi Arabias reckless extremism. He further amplified: Saudi Arabia seems to fear that the removal of the smokescreen of the nuclear issue will expose the real global threat: its active sponsorship of violent extremism. The barbarism is clear. At home, state executioners sever heads with swords  abroad, masked men sever heads with knives.

Shortly after that piece, on January 19, Adel bin Ahmed al-Jubeir retorted back in kind.

In an outlandish lie, Iran maligns and offends all Saudis by saying that my nation, home of the two holy mosques, brainwashes people to spread extremism, the Saudi foreign minister declaredon the same pages of the US newspaper. We are not the country designated a state sponsor of terrorism; Iran is. We are not the nation under international sanctions for supporting terrorism; Iran is. We are not the nation whose officials are on terrorism lists; Iran is. We dont have an agent sentenced to jail for 25 years by a New York federal court for plotting to assassinate an ambassador in Washington in 2011; Iran does.





The moral of these two pieces when put together for the readers of the paper of record in the United States is simple: Saudi Arabia mirrors the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group in extremism and barbarity and Iran is a rogue terrorist state sponsoring terrorism. You will scarce find anyone among the US neo- and old Conservative warmonger Islamophobes who would disagree with that.

A simple question

Why do these two distinguished and articulate gentlemen write their accusatory pieces in English and publish them in The New York Times?

Why do they make their cases against each other in a major newspaper in a major city at the heart of a global empire that dominates them both and beyond?

ALSO READ: Iran and Saudi Arabia and the art of Islamic tolerance

Why dont the Iranian and the Saudi foreign ministers talk to each other directly  in Arabic, in Persian, or even in English if they must, but face to face, person to person?

Why do they make their cases against each other in a major newspaper in a major city at the heart of a global empire that dominates them both and beyond? by

Why two sovereign nation states, and two Muslim countries at that, settle their differences in public, in English, in terms (extremism and terrorism) determined by a language and rhetoric that rule them both, and on the pages of a leading forum from and for the normative ascendency of a far away and global empire?

Dont they see what they look like standing next to each other on these two adjacent pages of the New York Times: Two medieval feudal vassals rushing to their mutual lord accusing each other of mischief, trying their best to endear themselves to their master, in terms determined by the master.

For their common warlord, these two columns achieve one thing: that they are both right, that Iran is what Saudi Arabia says it is and that Saudi Arabia is what Iran says it is. The white interlocutor did not say so: the brown snitches said so themselves.

The combined result of these two columns is one thing and one thing only: that the fictive white interlocutor, the real warlord, to whom they have both made their case, is the judge, the jury, and the executioner of arbitration, of justice, and of truth  that the Empire, the single most powerful military force that has wreaked havoc in the region in which these two countries reside is pure as the gold standard of truth, the tabula rasa of justice, the arbiter of reality, the true and reliable measure of separating fact from fiction.

The conceptual hegemon

What are the concepts and categories by which Iran and Saudi Arabia take their respective cases to their common imperial court? Extremism and terrorism: the terms and measuring tape concocted and manufactured by and for and geared to the best interest and towering hegemony of the self-same imperial interlocutor in the region.

Look he is an extremist, declares one vassal. Look he is a terrorist, retorts the other.

Iran and Saudi Arabia are not the only itinerants of these terms of the imperial hegemon. If Turkey wants to denounce and suppress the Kurds it calls them terrorists; if Egypt wants to discredit the Muslim Brotherhood to eliminate them en masse, it calls them terrorists, even if Russia wants to discredit the entire gamut of opposition to the criminal Bashar Assad it calls them all terrorists.

Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and even Russia represent an entire spectrum of political maneuverings that use the identical term of terrorism and extremism, to discredit their internal opposition and external adversaries: the terms coined, convoluted, and turned into a currency by their common imperial interlocutor, ruling them all together, not just by military force but by ideological lexicography.

ALSO READ: Is Iran friend or foe of Arab regimes?

By taking their respective cases against each other to this imperial interlocutor the foreign ministers of Iran and Saudi Arabia are far more instrumental in generating Islamophobia than the most fear-mongering Islamophobes combined.

They are two Muslim states in high positions of power and authority to know Muslims, both Sunnis and Shias.

In his exquisite parable, Before the Law (1915), Kafka tells the story of a countryman who come to enter the court of law, but a gatekeeper says he has to wait. The man spends a lifetime waiting without access. Upon his moment of death he asks the gatekeeper why is it that all his time no one else came to seek entrance to the law.

No one else could ever be admitted here, the gatekeeper tells him, Here no one else can gain entry, since this entrance was assigned only to you. Im going now to close it.

The cruelty of the ruling empire is not merely manifested in its military domination of the world. But far more debilitating in its linguistic and ideological lexicography of domination, in positing itself as the first and last court of appeal, of turning the whole world, all religions, all cultures, all languages, even all acts of defiance in terms determined by the master tropes of its own superior reason to dominate, its will to truth.

Before the court of the empire come two vassals spending their lifetime awaiting admission.

Hamid Dabashi is Hagop Kevorkian Professor of Iranian Studies and Comparative Literature at Columbia University in New York.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy.
Security services at Bacha Khan University received several warnings before raid in which 21 people were killed.

Security services at Pakistani schools and universities are poor and ineffective, family members of those killed in an attack on a university in Pakistan have said.

The Bacha Khan University in the town of Charsadda in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, which came under attack on Wednesday, had reportedly received several warnings before the deadly raid.

A breakaway faction of the Pakistani Taliban killed at least 21 people in the attack.

I thought Id lost my daughter. It is a miracle that she is alive and with us, Nazif Lala, whose daughter was at the university at the time of the attack, told Al Jazeera.

We are worried about our children every single day when sending them to schools and universities because the security provided is extremely poor, Lala said.

Our politicians get the best security protocols wherever they go. Instead of spending money on that, they should focus on improving security at our educational institutes; otherwise our education system will be affected severely.

They should be aware that only education can make us or break us as a nation, he added.

Pakistan attack: My son died protecting his guest

Ashfaq Ahmed, the head of security at Bacha Khan University, told Al Jazeera that threats were made to the university, but we were never briefed about it or prepared for it.

We dont have proper weapons that can help us stop such attacks; but just think about it, if we were prepared for it, we would have handled the terrorists really well, Ahmed said.

However, Syed Wazir, the deputy inspector general of the Mardan region, told Al Jazeera that despite

repeated threat warnings to the university, the administration did not act upon it.

They were issued [with] several warnings to be vigilant and to take necessary measures according to protocols issued by the government. But despite that, they failed to take adequate security measures, he said.

No end to Pakistans school trauma, one year on

Dr. Ala Uddin, an assistant professor of chemistry at the Bacha Khan university, who lost his friend Dr Syed Hamid Hussain in the attack, said he would continue to teach at the university as soon as it reopened, adding that he would stay cautious as more attacks are expected.

The police and the university security services both are answerable for not providing us with proper security, even after receiving several threats, Uddin said.

Threats of more school attacks

The head of a breakaway Taliban faction, Umar Mansoor, who claimed responsibility for this weeks attack on the university, released a video on Friday, threatening to carry out more raids on schools and universities across the country.

Pakistan is not an Islamic state. We will continue to target schools and universities in the future, Mansoor said in the video.

Pakistans evil democratic system, its military and political leadership, use these educational institutions as their nurseries.

Lieutenant General Asim Saleem Bajwa, a Pakistan army spokesman, said in a series of tweets that the Bacha Khan University attack was coordinated from a location in Afghanistan through Afghan cell phones by an operative of the Taliban alliance Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.

Pakistans Chief of Army Staff called on Afghan leaders to cooperate against the fighters involved in the attack.

The assault on the university came a year after the Taliban attacked the Army Public School in Peshawar, killing at least 144 people, most of them children and teachers.

Attacks on educational institutes indicate our failure. It is a big loss to our country, Nazif Lala said.

Follow Shereena Qazi on Twitter: @ShereenaQazi

With additional reporting by Hameedullah Khan
Ahead of peace talks, PM David Cameron tells Al Jazeera that Britain must talk to Russia to reach any deal in Syria.

Britains government should not shy away from talking to Russia about peace in Syria, though relations with Moscow are strained, Prime Minister David Cameron told Al Jazeera.

A British inquiry on Thursday said that Russian President Vladimir Putin probably approved the assassination of ex-KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko in London, increasing tensions between Russia and the UK.

Obviously, we have real difficulties with our relationships with Russia because of what has happened. by British Prime Minister David Cameron

Judge Robert Owen said it was likely the Russian leader signed off the killing of the former spy in 2006 after a long-running feud.

There is no doubt that when it comes to Syria that we need all of the players, whether it is Saudi Arabia or Iran or Russia. Everyone needs to be involved, Cameron said in a wide-ranging interview with Al Jazeera on the sidelines of the Davos summit.

Obviously, we have real difficulties with our relationships with Russia because of what has happened, and it is right we take the action we announced yesterday, but when it comes to Syria, difficult as it is, we have to discuss these issues with them because the crisis will only be solved when all the players recognise that it is in their interest to have a settlement, he added.

READ MORE  UK Judge: Putin probably approved killing

UN-backed talks between the Syrian government and opposition are scheduled for Monday, though officials have said they might be briefly delayed.

When asked whether Britain would agree to accept more refugees as the crisis in the Mediterranean continued, Cameron said his government did not want to incentivise people to travel to the UK.

We said we will take 20,000 refugees from the Syrian refugee camps in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. We dont want to provide an extra pull factor into Europe. We said we will resettle a thousand by Christmas, and we did that, Cameron said.

Watch the full interview in the video above
President says Palestinian problem should not be marginalised as he outlines series of economic deals for Middle East

Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for the establishment of a Palestinian state, with East Jerusalem as its capital, as he announced a series of multibillion-dollar investment plans for the wider Middle East.

Speaking from Egypt during the second leg of a Middle East tour, Xi said on Thursday that the Palestinian problem should not be marginalised.

China supports the peaceful process in the Middle East [and] the establishment of a Palestinian state with its capital being eastern Jerusalem, Xi told the Cairo-based Arab League through an interpreter.

Xi also announced aid of 50 million yuan ($7.6m) for a solar power station project in the Palestinian territories.

For the Palestinian-Israeli conflict to end, negotiations should be pushed forward to reach a peace agreement, Xi said.

Tensions between the two sides have been growing in recent months after a wave of Palestinian stabbing attacks on Israelis and clashes between Palestinians and Israeli soldiers.

Maintaining the legitimate interests of the Palestinian people is the responsibility of the Arab League as well as the international community, Xi said.

Separately, Xi also also announced that China would donate $35m in humanitarian aid to Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya and Yemen.

The situation in Syria could not continue as there is no winner in this conflict and it is only the Syrian people who are suffering, he said.

The immediate priority to end this conflict is a ceasefire and to engage in a political dialogue and, at the same time, there must be an urgent need for humanitarian aid operations in Syria.

Regional tour

Xi arrived in Egypt on Wednesday, the first visit by a Chinese head of state to the country in 12 years.

Heralding a new era of closer political and economic ties, officials from the two countries signed 21 deals at a ceremony in Cairo.

READ MORE: Chinas vision of the Middle East

The agreements span several development and infrastructure investments, including the first phase of a new Egyptian administrative capital announced last year, a $1bn financing agreement for Egypts central bank and a $700m loan to the state-owned National Bank of Egypt.

Xis visit to Egypt comes as part of a regional tour, which has already taken him to Saudi Arabia, amid efforts by Beijing to assert its economic and political clout in the Middle East.

Xi said China would dedicate $15bn in special loans to boost industrial production in the region, $10bn in trade credit for joint energy projects and another $10bn in soft loans.

China would also set up funds with the United Arab Emirates and Qatar worth a total of $20bn to invest in conventional energy.

On Tuesday, China and Saudi Arabia signed a memorandum of understanding to build a nuclear reactor in the oil-rich kingdom.

Iran will be the final stop in Xis three-nation trip, a visit that comes days after the implementation of a landmark nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers, leading to the lifting of international sanctions on Iran.
CENTCOM says US is not controlling any airfield in Syria, despite images appearing to show air strip expansion works.

The US has denied taking control of a Syrian air strip in response to an opposition groups claim that American troops are supporting Kurdish fighters in northern Syria with such a takeover.

Speaking to Al Jazeera on Friday, a spokesman of the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) said that the military denied that US forces have taken control of any airfield in Syria.

However, also on Friday, the website of Texas-based security analyst Stratfor said that satellite imagery supports claims of US military activity in Syria, as it posted graphics appearing to show an expansion of the airfields runway.

On Wednesday, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said the US had taken control of the Rmeilan air strip in Syrias northern province of Hasakah to support Kurdish fighters against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group.

The air strip near the city of Rmeilan was previously controlled by the US-backed Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG). The formerly disused runway is close to Syrias borders with Iraq and Turkey.

The new and improved infrastructure could help the Syrian Democratic Forces conduct offensive operations against the Islamic State. The United States has already carried out two weapons airdrops to the rebel Syrian Arab Coalition, a faction of the Syrian Democratic Forces, Stratfor said on its website.





Taj Kordsh, a media activist from the SDF told Al Jazeera on Tuesday: Under a deal with the YPG, the US was given control of the airport. The purpose of this deal is to back up the SDF, by providing weapons and an airbase for US warplanes.

This airport was previously controlled by the YPG for over two years now. This strategic airport is close to several oil bases  one of the biggest in this area.

Rmeilan airport was previously used for agricultural purposes by the Syrian government.

Previous reports published by the Syrian Local Coordination Committees say that the US has been preparing and expanding the Rmeilan airstrip for a while now.

READ MORE: Kurdish-Arab coalition in Syria forms political wing

The US has previously supplied the SDF with weapons. It also backs the group with its air strikes in their fight against (ISIL) in northern Syria.

The SDF was founded in Syrias mainly Kurdish northeastern region in October 2015, and is made up of at least 15 armed factions  mostly fighters from the YPG and the Free Syrian Army.

The fighters include Christians, Arabs and about 500 foreign fighters, Kordsh said, adding that some groups in Aleppo and Idlib pledged allegiance to the SDF last month.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor also reported on Tuesday that the US had taken control of the airbase.

Sourcing activists, the Observatory said the airfield is still being prepared for use by the US.

Meanwhile, Syrian opposition activists said air raids on two villages in eastern Syria killed at least 40 people and wounded scores more. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on Firday said the victims of the raids on the villages of Tabiah and Bouleil included whole families. The Local Coordination Committees (LCC) said the air raids killed 30 in Tabiah and dozens in Bouleil. Opposition activist Omar Abu Leila said Fridays air raids hit the two villages that are under the control of ISIL, saying all those killed were civilians. The LCC and Abu Leila said the air raids were carried out by Russian warplanes but it was not possible to independently confirm the claim. ISIL controls most of Deir Ezzor province and over the past week launched a wide offensive capturing some areas from government forces near the provincial capital city of Deir Ezzor.







With additional reporting by Diana Al Rifai
Nearly 3,500 people flee to neighbouring country, raising concerns of new refugee crisis in Southern Africa.

Intermittent fighting between government forces and the Mozambican National Resistance (Renamo) has sparked a flight of nearly 3,500 people into neighbouring Malawi, raising concerns of a new refugee crisis in Southern Africa.

Bestone Chisamile, Malawis commissioner for refugees, told Al Jazeera on Friday that with no end to fighting in sight across the border, his government had no choice but to take in the refugees and asylum seekers who continued to arrive daily.

We dont have much of a choice. Most of those coming are women and children. We have to assist them on humanitarian grounds, Chisamile said.

Refugees have been fleeing fighting between Renamo and government forces in the province of Tete since July.

Renamo has refused to accept the results of elections in late 2014 that saw the return of the Frelimo party to power.

The group has repeatedly threatened to take power by force in central and northern Mozambique.

Clashes have intensified in recent weeks, prompting an exodus from the area, following a pledge by Renamo leader Afonso Dhlakama in December that he would take six of Mozambiques 11 provinces by March 2016.

The United Nations said that most refugees were arriving at Kapise, a village in the Mwanza district, around 100km away from the countrys second biggest city Blantyre, while others had made their way to villages in the district of Chikwawa.

On Thursday, the UNHCR, the UNs refugee agency, told Al Jazeera that as of January 20, a total of 3,477 people had fled to Malawi, with as many as 50 or 60 arriving daily.

We were not expecting these numbers. It suggests that people are not going to return any time soon [and] at this rate we could have between 5,000 to 6,000 refugees by March, Monique Ekoko, a UNHCR representative, said.

Malawi already hosts some 25,000 refugees mostly from the Great Lakes region in Dzaleka camp, some 35km from Lilongwe.

The camp is already stretched to the limit, and the World Food Programme has warned that a lack of funding will have consequences for those housed there.
Epidemic reaches record levels, according to top AIDS specialist, who warns true figures could be much higher.

Russias AIDS epidemic is at a dangerous tipping point after the number of people registered HIV-positive passed the one million mark, the countrys top AIDS specialist said, warning that the rate of infection had reached record levels.

Russia registered its millionth HIV-positive patient  a 26-year-old woman in the south of the country  on Wednesday, Vadim Pokrovsky, the head of the federal AIDS centre, told the Reuters news agency on Thursday.

But he said the real number of HIV-positive Russians could be as high as 1.5 million, or 1 percent of the population, based on his and other expert estimates.

WATCH MORE: Why do HIV cases keep rising in Russia?

The epidemic is gathering strength. Unfortunately the measures that have been taken have clearly not been enough, Pokrovsky said.

He warned that Russia was on the threshold of moving from a concentrated epidemic, where HIV is highly prevalent in one subset of the population, to a generalised epidemic, where HIV rates among the general population are sufficient for sexual networking to drive new infections.

Were in a transitional phase, he said.

AIDS, which stands for Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, is caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

Pokrovsky said 204,000 people had died of AIDS in Russia since the first case was recorded in 1987. He expected the number of new cases in 2015 to be at least 93,000, up from just under 90,000 in 2014.

That, he said, would be the largest number of new cases since Russia began keeping data almost 30 years ago.

The escalation comes as Russia struggles financially, beset by low oil prices, Western sanctions and a falling currency.

READ MORE: Africa  where AIDS infections are dropping

It plans to spend 40bn roubles (about $475m) on fighting HIV/AIDs in 2016. But Pokrovsky said 100bn roubles were needed.

Almost 20 percent of the countrys drug users and nearly 10 percent of the countrys gay people were HIV-positive, he said.

More than 1 percent of the population in at least 10 regions had been recorded as having the virus for more than a year.

Government data shows 24,000 HIV-positive people died in 2014, the last full year for which data is available. Of those, around 12,000 died as a direct result of AIDS.
Some 20,000 Afghan Shia fighters said to be fighting alongside Iran to help save government of Syrian President Assad.

Iran is recruiting Afghan Shia fighters in their tens of thousands to step up the Islamic Republics efforts in the Syrian war, offering them salaries to join the fight to save the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

As the conflict enters its fifth year, Iranian media has said that there are some 20,000 fighters in the Fatemiyon division, which is made up of both naturalised Afghans who lived in Iran and those who have travelled from Afghanistan.

Five days ago, four Afghan Shia fighters were captured in southern rural Aleppo. In addition to Iranian fighters, there are also militia fighters from Lebanon, Iraq, Pakistan, and recently China, Anas al-Abdah, the secretary of the opposition Syrian Coalitions political committee, told Al Jazeera.

Iran is recruiting fighters from Shia communities across the world to fight in Syria, continued al-Abdah, who is based in Turkey.

Iran considers itself the one and only reference point for all Shia people in the whole world. It organises them into political, social, and military organisations, both in their local communities and abroad.

This is part of the main mission of the Iranian regime in terms of exporting the revolution. Iran recruits, motivates, organises, finances, and trains Shias from all over the world to help support Bashar al-Assads regime from collapsing.

Confirming the exact number of Afghan Shia fighters in Syria was impossible, but Al Jazeera spoke with a military official who said 20,000 was in the correct range.

Colonel Hussain Kenani Moghdam of Irans Sepah Pasdaran, or Revolutionary Guards  a branch of Irans armed forces  told Al Jazeera: Fatemiyon  numbers in the tens of thousands; most of its fighters are already trained in Afghanistan and those that have no training get trained in Afghanistan, and enter into Syria through Iraq or Lebanon.

ISIL hits Afghan airwaves to drum up support

He added that the Fatemiyon force could be likened to Shia-led militias in Iraq.

Meanwhile, Faris Baiush, a colonel in the Syrian opposition Free Syrian Army, told Al Jazeera that the FSA estimates that there are at least 2,000 Shia Afghan fighters currently in active battles in Syria, with most engaged in the city of Aleppo.

A report by Irans Mashregh News, which is affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards, said that the Fatemiyon force comprises some 20,000 fighters. More than 200 of them, it added, have been killed in battles across Syria since 2013.

Rewards

Many captured Afghan Shia fighters say they are attracted to Syria by the promise of a financial reward. Salaries made by their Iranian recruits are reported to range from $500 and $1,000 a month.

Others say that joining the war is a way of escaping prison sentences on charges including drug trafficking, which often end in the death penalty in Iran.

Ghanbar Naderi, an Iranian political analyst and journalist for Kayhan International, told Al Jazeera: There are some Afghans who are naturalised Iranians and are part of the armed forces as a foreign legion.

They are sent to Syria to defend the holy sites and key government buildings just like Iranian nationals. A large number of these people have been killed in Syria and Iraq.

Military links between Afghan nationals and the Iranian army have been ongoing for quite some time. Now the truth has surfaced that these people are fighting side by side [with] the Iranian, Syrian and Iraqi forces.

ANALYSIS: Is Iran really pulling out of Syria?

The fact that there are no jobs any more due to the economys downturn and punitive sanctions in this country, some Afghans find it lucrative to be sent to Syria to fight and make good amount of money  between $500 to $1000, but they are not forced to go.

The Fatemiyon is just one example of Irans growing influence in recruiting fighters in the region.

200-strong regional army

Earlier this month, Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari, commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC)  another Iranian military branch  announced that Iran commands a regional force of 200,000 young armed men in Yemen, Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The current developments in the region, the formation of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and Takfiri groups, and the events that occurred in the past years are paving the ground for the emergence of Imam Mahdi, and you can now see the positive results in the readiness of nearly 200,000 young armed in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Yemen, Jafari said, addressing a memorial ceremony in Tehran for an Iranian killed in Syria.

Video footage emerges, almost on a daily basis, of Afghan fighters killed in Syria and paraded in their coffins across Iranian cities before burial.

Many captured by the Syrian opposition say they are from Afghanistan and belong to the Fatemiyon division, which has gained a reputation for its make up and heavy losses.

It is a division of Irans Revolutionary Guards Quds Force  an elite special forces unit responsible for extraterritorial operations.

The brigade works under the command of Qasem Soleimani, head of Quds Force, who has risen to prominence recently to become Irans most famous general.

Photos of Suleimani standing next to Afghan Shia fighters are available on a Facebook page dedicated to the Fatemiyon.

In a documentary broadcast by Iranian media, one commander of the Fatimiyon force, Moallem, said: The greatest freedom-loving men from all over the world and the Islamic world have come together here in whichever way they could, and as always the Shia of Afghanistan have also felt responsible and rushed to Syria to defend our religion and the Shrine of Zainab.

Afghans reticent

There has not been a census for several decades in Afghanistan, but it is estimated that between 10 and 15 percent of the Muslim-majority population are Shia  mostly from the Hazara ethnic minority.

READ MORE: Iranian troops in Syria for joint offensive

In a video recorded by the Syrian opposition, one captured Afghan said: We came from Afghanistan to Iran, and from Iran to Syria. In Iran they paid us two million toman (about $660) and told us to go to Syria to fight and protect the shrine of Zainab.

In another video, a captured Afghan Shia fighter who identifies himself as Burat-Ali, said: I was imprisoned on drug charges with a sentence of six years  they told us the shrine of Zainab will be destroyed [by ISIL]  I came from Iran to join the war with the promise of a monthly salary of $600.

But while Iranian papers openly discuss and glorify the role of the Afghan Shia militia in the Syrian war, the Afghan media is largely silent on the subject.

Contacted by Al Jazeera, Afghan authorities did not confirm attempts by Iran to recruit Afghan Shia volunteers to join the wars in Syria or Iraq.

There are some media reports of Afghan nationals recruited by the Iranian government to join the war in Syria, Ahmad Shakib Mustaghni, spokesman for Afghanistans foreign ministry, told Al Jazeera.

However, we have no credible report or proof in hand to suggest that these reports are correct, but there may be individuals who have joined the war of their own accord.

INSIDE STORY: Iranian influence in Syria: At what cost?

The creation of an Afghan Shia division in the Iranian Revolutionary Guards structure is not new, and dates back to the Iran-Iraq war during the 1980s when an Afghan Shia force, the Abouzar Brigade, was formed to help fight Iraq.

Al Jazeera contacted Mohammad Mohaqiq, a serving member of the Afghan parliament and founder and chairman of the Hezb-i-Wahdat, or the Peoples Islamic Unity Party  the main Shia party in Afghanistan with close ties with Iran  but he refused to comment on the subject via phone.
Israeli settlers evacuated from Palestinian homes after latest attack in uptick of violence gripping West Banks Hebron.

Israeli police have evacuated Israeli settlers from buildings they had raided and temporarily took over in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron, as fearful residents say they have endured intimidation and attacks.

Officers on Friday morning evicted the settlers from two homes of Palestinians in Hebron, a flashpoint city during recent unrest.

Writing on Twitter, Israeli police spokesperson Micky Rosenfeld said police removed around 80 people who had entered illegally, adding that there were no injuries and the homes were closed off.



Israeli settlements make money on Palestinian expense: Human Rights Watch

When the settlers first occupied the buildings on Thursday, many of them attacked Palestinian residents and their homes, according to local media reports.

Reportedly protected by Israeli troops, the settlers broke the doors of several homes and threw rocks at Palestinian residents.

Local resident Shada Haddad, 25, said that clashes broke out between Palestinian youth and Israeli troops when the home owners were blocked by the settlers from entering their buildings.

The settlers occupied the homes in the Old City, and then the problems broke out between Palestinians and the army, she told Al Jazeera.

READ MORE: Israel razes Palestinian homes in key area of West Bank

The army was protecting the settlers like they always do, Haddad added, recalling that soldiers fired tear gas and the crowd of Palestinians who gathered.

The polices eviction of the settlers also sparked anger among many right-wing Israeli legislators who support the expansion of Jewish-only settlements throughout the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.

Bezalel Smotrich, a lawmaker from the ultra-nationalist Jewish Home party, was joined by Oren Hazan and Kara Ayoub, Knesset members from ruling rightist Likud party, in announcing a boycott of coalition votes until the settlers are allowed back into the homes.

In a press release, the Jewish Home party chastised the police as irresponsible, bullheaded and inflammatory for evicting the settlers, as reported by the Times of Israel news site.

A focal point in the ongoing unrest, the city is divided into three spheres of control  including full Palestinian Authority administration, joint administration between Israeli military forces and PA police, and full Israeli control.

Amid the 37,000 Palestinians that live there, thousands of soldiers are stationed in the H2 area of the city  under full Israeli military control  to protect the 600-strong Jewish settler population.

Dozens of Israeli military checkpoints severely restrict Palestinian movement into, out of and within Hebron.

Most Israeli settlers carry government-issued firearms and some have attacked Palestinians in Hebron and elsewhere in the past.

READ MORE: How settlement businesses sustain Israeli occupation

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Daoud, a local resident who did not provide his last name, said that there were tear gas canisters everywhere after the clashes subsided on Friday.

Daoud is a resident of the Hebrons Tel Rumeida neighbourhood, part of which was declared a closed military zone by Israeli forces in recent weeks.

Speaking of violent attacks by settlers and soldiers, Daoud said that local Palestinians are scared to go out due to a crackdown by Israeli forces.

There has been a huge military presence all the time since October, he said, referring to the outset of the ongoing escalation in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories.

Where there used to be one soldier, there are now six.

Protests in other parts of the West Bank and the besieged Gaza Strip on Friday also saw at least 21 other Palestinians shot with live ammunition by Israeli soldiers.

Speaking to Al Jazeera by telephone on Friday night, an Israeli military spokesperson said only that Israeli forces used riot dispersal means in the West Bank and Gaza before using live ammunition.

The spokesperson said soldiers fired at main instigators during the protests and hits were confirmed.

Between 2009 and 2014, Israeli settlements expanded by 23 percent in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Upwards of half a million Jewish Israelis already live in more than 150 Jewish-only settlements across the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Back in Hebron, resident Daoud said that Palestinians are living in fear of a domino effect when settlers move to takeover more Palestinian homes. They are terrified of settlers moving into their house next.

Follow Patrick Strickland on Twitter: @P_Strickland_
Authorities recover bodies of 43 people, including 17 children, after two refugee boats capsize in the Aegean.

At least 43 people, including 17 children, have drowned after two boats carrying refugees capsized in the Aegean Sea, the Greek coastguard has said.

In the first incident, the bodies of six children and two women were recovered early on Friday after a wooden boat carrying 49 people capsized off the small Greek island of Farmakonisi in eastern Aegean.

Authorities said they rescued one girl, while 40 more people safely made it to land.

Separately, at least 35 people  17 women, seven men and 11 children  died after another refugee sailing boat sank off the island of Kalolimnos early on Friday.

The coastguard said that 26 people had been pulled to safety and rescue operations were ongoing.

Three helicopters and patrol boats from the Greek coastguard and the European border agency Frontex were part of the rescue operations, alongside fishing vessels.

About 850,000 refugees crossed into Greece last year, paying smuggling gangs to ferry them over from Turkey in often frail boats.

On Friday, German Chancellor Merkel said that unilateral measures by European Union member states would not solve the refugee crisis, which requires a joint effort.

Unilateral solutions, each member state for itself, will not help us. Instead we need an overall European approach, Merkel said during a news conference with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.

Merkel said earlier this week that Austrias decision to cap the number of refugees and tighten border controls was not helpful.

For his part, Turkeys Davutoglu said the country is doing its best to stem illegal migration to Europe but will keep its open-door policy for refugees fleeing the civil war in Syria.

In a deal struck at the end of November, Turkey promised to help stem the flow of refugees to Europe in return for cash, visas and renewed talks on joining the European Union.

Turkey hosts 2.2 million Syrians and has spent around $8.5bn on feeding and housing them since the start of the civil war nearly five years ago.
Friday deadline to form transitional government of national unity is unlikely to be met as bitter differences persist.

The setting up of a unity government in South Sudan is expected to be further delayed  a fresh setback in efforts to end a brutal conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people.

Despite missing key deadlines, warring parties were scheduled to establish a transitional government by Friday after a peace deal was signed by President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar in August.

But progress has been slow and analysts said it was now highly unlikely that Machar would return to the capital Juba from his HQ in the bush to take part.

Q&A: South Sudan moves towards forming unity government

Al Jazeeras Anna Cavell, reporting from Juba, said Machars delegation was supposed to be in the capital by Thursday before the planned formation of the government on Friday.

They are still not here and there is absolutely no chance that this government will by formed by the deadline of January 22, Cavell said.

At the heart of the latest delay is a decision by Kiir in October to split South Sudans 10 states into 28 states.

The surprise move voided key parts of the the unity government agreement and opponents have argued that it was not taken in in the spirit of the peace deal, which was based on a 10-state model.

Machar has since said that he will not agree to a new government unless Kiir withdraws the plan to create the new states.

This has been a huge issue for the opposition [who] have said they cannot tolerate it, Cavell said.

Not only that, it actually delays the bureaucratic process because the constitution of the transitional government was formed on the basis of 10 states.

If there are going to be 28 states that becomes void and everybody has to return to the drawing board and draw a whole new constitution  a process that the government says will take at least four weeks and probably more like eight.

Ruinous conflict

South Sudan descended into conflict in December 2013 after Kiir accused his former deputy Machar, who he had sacked earlier that year, of plotting a coup.

The clashes that followed set off a cycle of retaliatory killings that have split the worlds newest country, which won its independence from Sudan in 2011, along ethnic lines.

READ MORE: South Sudan marks two years of war

At least eight ceasefires or power-sharing deals have been broken since the start of the war, which has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced more than two million.

Thousands of child soldiers have fought in the conflict, used as foot soldiers by both government and opposition forces, according to human rights groups.

Widespread atrocities

A UN report said on Thursday that all sides were guilty of atrocities, including hundreds of extra-judicial killings, gang rapes, sexual slavery, massive child soldier recruitment and indiscriminate attacks against civilians with entire villages burned.

The report said that from the middle of 2015, a new pattern emerged, particularly in the central and southern counties of Unity state, with entire villages being burned down, food crops destroyed and livestock looted.

There are indications that this may have been a deliberate strategy by the government or [the army] aimed at depriving civilians of any source of livelihood with a view to forcing their displacement, the report said.

It also documented at least 280 cases of conflict-related sexual violence, as well as a sharp increase in child recruitment, estimating that between 13,000 to 15,000 child soldiers were being used by both government and opposition forces as of December last year.
New report urges Lebanese government to scrap sponsorship scheme for refugees, many of whom live in extreme poverty.

Beirut  On his release from prison in January 2012 after being arrested for his activism, Ahmad al-Homsi left Syria.

There is now a death sentence with his name on it, so he cannot return home. He has taken shelter in Lebanon, but has no money to go anywhere else.

Although a refugee from Syrias war, Homsi is in Lebanon illegally because of a law introduced last year requiring all Syrian refugees to pay $200 for a six-month or annual residence permit, and provide proof of sponsorship by an individual or company.

Homsi did not obtain the required permit and has been arrested once by Lebanese authorities. He fears that if it happens again, they will deport him.

Im worried every minute that I will be arrested again, Homsi told Al Jazeera. I am expecting to be forced to leave the country at any moment, but the only place I could go is Syria, and the second I cross the border I would be arrested or shot.

WATCH: Will new laws bar Syrians from fleeing to Lebanon?

Those registered with the UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, are not required to find a sponsor  but they are prohibited from working and face other obstacles. As of May 2015, the Lebanese government instructed the UNHCR to stop registering new arrivals. More than one million Syrians are officially registered as refugees in Lebanon, but the real number is higher, aid agencies say.

In a report released earlier this month, Human Rights Watch urged the Lebanese government to scrap its sponsorship scheme and the $200 fee, which is cripplingly expensive for many refugees, 70 percent of whom live in extreme poverty, according to UN data.

Homsi says life was much easier before the legislation was handed down last January.

Before, while refugees still had to battle with Lebanons bureaucracy, they did not have to pay the fee or find a sponsor  a system that leaves refugees open to abuse, as sponsors can renege on the deal, at any time rendering the refugee immediately illegal. Refugees are often forced to work long hours for low pay.

Refugees and aid workers said that employers can get away with paying lower wages, harassing employees in the workplace, or forcing employees to work in unsafe conditions because they lack legal redress, the HRW report stated.

Homsi, 33, has a wife and three children to support, but is unable to travel far for fear of hitting the army checkpoints that dot the roads around Lebanon. Now, in an apparent effort to track down as many illegal Syrians as possible, Lebanese authorities are conducting raids into refugee settlements, he said.

Things are changing, and now the army is going in and arresting people in their homes, not waiting for them to come to checkpoints, he said. Homsi was recently arrested in a camp raid and held for four days. On his release, he was given a temporary paper that he must renew in the capital every two weeks as authorities continue to investigate his case.

When they came to take everyone, they took 27 people. They took every male above the age of 14 for four days. And they took all our documents and gave us one week to sort out our residency, he said.

Completing that lengthy, expensive and complex process requires refugees to have all their Syrian papers in order, which for many means a trip back home.

My only hope is to get out of Lebanon, to get somewhere where I can educate my children. by Ahmad al-Homsi, Syrian refugee in Lebanon

It would have required going back to Syria, Homsi said. So none of us could do anything, [and] now were all illegal in the country My only hope is to get out of Lebanon, to get somewhere where I can educate my children.

Homsi is not alone. Manar, 29, who hails from the Syrian city of Homs and did not provide her last name, has been illegal in Lebanon since last May, when her previous papers  obtained before the new law came into effect  expired.

Manar, whose husband vanished in the early days of the Syrian uprising, was a qualified elementary school teacher in her hometown, but cannot find work in Lebanon, as she does not possess the requisite French and English skills. To help support her five-year-old son, she makes a bit of money babysitting.

The lack of residency status affects her life in every way, Manar told Al Jazeera.

Some armed men came to the camp where we live and took my brothers and beat them up. My son was so scared. And I cant even complain to the police because I do not have residency, she said.

They were attacking them and insulting them, just because they are Syrian.

READ MORE: Lebanon forcibly returns 100 stranded Syrian refugees

Manar says she is permanently afraid of the authorities.

When I escaped from Syria, I thought I would come here to my second home, but I dont feel safe here. Every time someone knocks on the door I am scared. Theres no state, theres no security, she said.

I dont want to dream because every time I dream, something destroys it, Manar added, noting that her main hope now is to one day feel safe again and be treated like a normal human being  the least anyone would expect, anywhere in the world.

While Homsi hopes to escape from Lebanon to Europe, Manar says her only hope is to return to a peaceful Syria one day.

We escaped death in Syria; we cannot go back to that, she said. I just want to go anywhere where I can go to bed and feel safe, and not in the fear that someones going to attack me and my family or shoot at us.

Manar also lamented the impact of the familys circumstances on her younger brother.

My brother is a young man and hes scared to open his door, as hes afraid of what will be on the other side. This is shameful, she said. At his age he should be able to go out and work and grow.
At least 222 are dead, while reported cases have risen to 14,303 since August as government battles to contain disease.

Tanzania is struggling to contain a deadly outbreak of cholera that has claimed at least 222 lives since August, the United Nations has said.

In a statement released to Al Jazeera on Thursday, the World Health Organisation and UNICEF, the United Nations childrens fund, said that the outbreak was straining local capacities and resources, and posed a high risk to lives and the economy.

According to the UN, the number of reported cases of cholera has climbed to 14,303 across 27 districts in the country since the outbreak began last August.



Cholera is a deadly diarrhoeal disease that can kill within hours if left untreated. Results from water quality surveys show that the source for the outbreak is contaminated water, usually borne out of poor hygienic practices and lack of sanitation facilities.

Rapid intervention

Authorities say the first case was reported in Dar es Salaams Kinondoni district in August 2015 before spreading throughout the Dar es Salaam region, including Zanzibar.

Reliefweb reported that a surge in cases in November suggested that without a significant and rapid intervention there is a very real possibility that up to 40,000 people could be at risk.

The Tanzanian government says it believes it is well on the way towards successfully managing the scourge.

Rapid response teams had been deployed to the most affected areas to assist the work of the regional and district health authorities, said Dr Janneth Mghamba, the assistant director of the epidemiology and disease control section at the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare.

She said that the numbers showed that rate of infection had slowed.

Responding to criticism that the government was late to react to the outbreak, Mghamba said her government was working on the issue as a matter of priority.

Improving sanitation

This government is well aware that the first issue to address is that of safe water, followed by improved sanitation.

There was a period when there was no cholera in Tanzania [] water and sanitation coverage in the country have climbed and now it is a case of implementation, Mghamba said.

Earlier in January, Tanzania was one of 11 countries that received a cholera vaccine from WHO, but authorities said a shortage of the injection meant that it would not be accessible to all Tanzanians.

In mid-2015, the WHO had organised about 164,500 doses of the oral cholera vaccine to help to avert an epidemic in Kigoma, specifically the Nyarugusu refugee camp, where tens of thousands of Burundian refugees sought refuge after fleeing the political crisis in their neighbouring country.
Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi has warned that members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group in neighbouring Libya may use the unrest in Tunisia to sneak into the country.

Protests over unemployment in Tunisia, which started in the western Kasserine province, intensified and spread to other parts of the country on Thursday.

On Friday, Essebsi said in a televised address that the government will put in place a programme to try to ease the jobless rate that spurred protests in impoverished regions.

Such protests were natural, Essebsi said the address. There is no dignity without work You cant tell someone who has nothing to eat to stay patient.

After the start of these demonstrations, ill-intentioned hands have intervened and inflamed the situation, the president said in his first public remarks since the troubles broke out.

Essebsi said that there were dirty hands involved in the unrest after Tunis declared a nationwide curfew over the protests.

We have more than 700,000 unemployed, among them 300,000 youth who have qualifications and cannot find a job. And they are being targeted by outside forces, ISIL and others, he said.

Protests and clashes in Kasserine started on Saturday after the death of an unemployed man who was electrocuted on top of a power pole near the governors office.

Solidarity rallies were held in cities including Tunis, Sidi Bouzid and Gafsa, with several reports of suicide attempts as frustration over the lack of jobs boiled over.

My Arab Spring  Tunisias revolution was a dream

Economic conditions have worsened since autocrat Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali was toppled in 2011 and the country, still being transformed into a democracy, is now facing its worst unrest since then.

Al Jazeeras Hashem Ahelbara, reporting from Tunis, said that Essebsis statements displayed two main messages: One is that the government is committed to answering their demands for job opportunities, but he also said the government is not going to tolerate situations getting out of control, warning that groups like ISIL could take advantage of the situation.



Tensions high in Tunisia protests

Roxanne Farmanfarmaian, a lecturer at Cambridge University, told Al Jazeera that it Essebsis move of blaming outside forces for the protests was typical of the authoritarian type of leadership in the Middle East.

This is not a good sign, because it implies he is not addressing the real cause. he is blaming outside forces, she said.

This uprising is perhaps helping to focus the mind of those who have supported Tunisia as being that beacon of Arab DemocracyI think we are coming to see that for a democracy to be established, it is not quite as easy as everyone thought.

And a very important part of that is to ensure that the youth in particular who are on the streets and helped put Essibsi into the job he has today, that they are given some answers and some jobs.

France has said it will provide $1.1bn over five years to help Tunisia deal with its transition to democracy, President Francois Hollande said on Friday.

One of the main objectives of the plan is to help disadvantaged regions and youth, by acting strongly on jobs, the French president said in a statement after a meeting with the Tunisian prime minister.
Protests over unemployment rates and the economy had intensified and spread to several cities including the capital.

Tunisia has declared a nationwide curfew after days of protests and rioting over jobs and economic conditions, the interior ministry announced .

Protests over unemployment in the country, which started in the western Kasserine province, intensified and spread to other parts of the country on Thursday.

Solidarity rallies were held in cities including Tunis, Sidi Bouzid and Gafsa, with several reports of suicide attempts as frustration over the lack of jobs boiled over.

A policeman was reportedly killed when demonstrators overturned his car in the town of Feriana.

READ MORE: My Arab Spring  Tunisias revolution was a dream

Protests and clashes with security forces started in Kasserine on Saturday after the death of an unemployed man who was electrocuted on top of a power pole near the governors office.

Ridha Yahyaoui, 28, was protesting because his name was removed from a list of potential recruits for coveted public sector jobs.

The government has ordered an investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death.

Al Jazeeras Hashem Ahelbarra, reporting from Kasserine, said the army has been deployed to ensure that the curfew is observed.

He added that Beji Caid Essebsi, the countrys president, was expected to give a speech tomorrow.

The government is coming under intense pressure to take measures to tackle corruption and unemployment, Ahelbarra said.

In the face of the unrest, Prime Minister Habib Essid cut short a European tour to return home on Thursday.



Tensions high in Tunisia protests

Barhoumi Tareq, an unemployed protester in Kasserine, said Tunisians are united against discrimination and marginalisation.

We have suffered for decades, he told Al Jazeera. We dont feel like we belong to this country because government officials  they dont care about us.

Tunisias 2011 revolution was sparked when Mohamed Bouazizi, 26, a street vendor, fatally set himself on fire in protest at police harassment.

Demonstrations spread throughout the country and eventually ended the 23-year presidency of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

The post-revolution transitional period has brought about uncertainty, economic instability and sporadic political violence.
Three teenagers and a disabled man in French refugee camp are allowed to travel to families in UK after legal case.

A group of young Syrian refugees who had been living in squalid conditions at a refugee camp in France have been reunited with their families in Britain after a potentially landmark court ruling.

The refugees left France after UK activists defeated the British government in a court case that argued the children had the right to live with their carers.

The activist group, Citizens UK, said that they hoped their victory could be used as a precedent to reunite refugee families in other parts of Europe.

Al Jazeeras Laurence Lee, reporting from London on Thursday, said that the three teenagers and a young disabled man who had been in the infamous Calais camp for several months simply took a high-speed train from Paris to London after the judgment.

Within an hour they were being greeted privately by their relatives who were already living in Britain.

In a nearby cafe, the brother of one of the teenagers could barely contain his excitement at the prospect of being able to look after his younger sibling.

I want to provide my brother with all the affection hes missed out on by being on his own for so long. I just want to make up for all the time he was alone so he never lives another day by himself again, Ahmad, also a refugee, told Al Jazeera.

Denmark urged to reject cruel refugee laws

The British government had argued that the children should seek asylum in France and then try to get transferred to Britain. It is not clear whether more children might be able to be reunited with their families in Britain as the government may continue to contest the ruling.

A member of Citizens UK has moved to Calais where she tries to locate children who have relatives in Britain. So far she estimates she has counted 200 in the camp.

The knowledge that it is hopefully going to help a couple of hundred children in Calais and Dunkirk, and possibly many more across Europe if other countries can follow suit, is a wonderful, wonderful development, George Gabriel, a community organiser with Citizens UK, told Al Jazeera.

It is also a big blow to people smugglers across Europe who exploit the people who are most desperate, which is the families trying to reunite.

Al Jazeeras Lee said that the Syrian children disappeared into the London night for a new life, no longer surrounded by police with tear gas but instead in a warm bed with a roof over their heads  some love, and finally some refuge.
Public health officials in El Salvador have advised women to delay pregnancy for the next two years to prevent children from developing birth defects from the mosquito-borne Zika virus.

Eduardo Espinoza, the countrys vice-minister of public health, said on Thursday that women who were already pregnant should stay covered outdoors to reduce the risk of mosquito bites.

Wed like to suggest to all the women of fertile age that they take steps to plan their pregnancies, and avoid getting pregnant between this year and next, he said.

The government decided to make the announcement after 5,397 cases of the Zika virus were detected in El Salvador in 2015 and the first few days of this year, Espinoza said.

READ MORE: Zika virus cases spread in Latin America, Caribbean

Official figures show 96 pregnant women were suspected of having contracted the virus, but so far none has had babies born with microcephaly, or abnormally small heads, which the disease can cause.

In Colombia, which has the second-highest Zika infection rate after Brazil, the government is also advising women to delay becoming pregnant, but only for six to eight months.

Vaccine hopes

President Dilma Rousseff said on Thursday that Brazilian researchers were working with domestic and foreign laboratories to try to develop a vaccine for the Zika and dengue viruses.

READ MORE: Worlds first malaria vaccination approved

The Zika virus is transmitted by Aedes species mosquitoes, which also spread dengue and chikungunya viruses. Zika causes a mild illness with fever, rash, joint pain and conjunctivitis, with symptoms usually lasting under a week.

But in pregnant women, the virus can spread to the foetus and cause microcephaly  a condition involving brain shrinkage that severely limits a childs intellectual and physical development  or death.

Brazil has been the hardest hit, documenting more than 3,500 cases of microcephaly between October 2015 and January 2016

Health experts are unsure why the virus, which was first detected in Africa in 1947 but unknown in the Americas until last year, is spreading so rapidly in Brazil and neighbouring countries.

Last week, the United States warned pregnant women to avoid travelling to 14 countries and territories in the Caribbean and Latin America owing to the virus.

The level two travel alert applies to Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname, Venezuela and Puerto Rico.
We speak to the renowned US academic, and look at the state of Egypt five years after the Arab Spring

In this episode of UpFront, Mehdi Hasan speaks to the renowned American academic Noam Chomsky about his public spat with the Turkish president, the war against ISIL and Russias annexation of Crimea.

We also look at the ramifications of the Saudi Arabia-Iran feud, and debate the state of Egypt five years after the Arab Spring.

Headliner: Noam Chomsky on ISIL, Turkey and Ukraine

Noam Chomsky has been described as arguably the most important intellectual alive. And as one of the worlds most celebrated academics, he has published more than 100 books and is a leading critic on United States foreign policy.

In the first of a special two-part interview, Chomsky sits down with Mehdi Hasan to discuss the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group, Ukraine and Turkey.

Chomsky and other so-called intellectuals were recently criticised by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for supporting Kurdish separatists. The author and activist, who has accused the Turkish government of waging a terrorist war against the Kurds, tells UpFront that President Erdogan is undoubtedly carrying out vicious repressive actions attacking the Kurdish population, adding that he would call him a murderer.

Chomsky also talks about imperialism, and comments on the row between Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Part two of the interview to be aired Friday, January 29 at 1930 GMT includes who Chomsky would vote for in the US presidential election, why he doesnt support a full boycott of Israel, and the impact of the rise of Islamophobia.

Reality Check: Beyond the Saudi Arabia-Iran feud

The spat between Saudi Arabia and Iran heated up earlier this month after the execution of Shia religious leader Nimr al-Nimr and the burning of the Saudi embassy in Tehran.

Some have called the feud a war within the Muslim world, pointing to what many see as an inevitable clash between the two countries. A look at history however, proves otherwise.

In this weeks Reality Check, Mehdi Hasan challenges the notion that the current row between Saudi Arabia and Iran stems from a 1,400-year-old theological split and says the feud should not taint relations between Muslims, the majority of whom live outside the Middle East.

Arena: Is Egypt better off under Sisi?

Monday marks the fifth anniversary of the uprising that ended the 30-year rule of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.

In 2013, the countrys first ever elected civilian president, Mohamed Morsi, was deposed in a military coup following massive protests against his rule.

Since then, there have been large crackdowns on dissidents by the government and, according to Amnesty International, there has been a dramatic deterioration in human rights.

So, is the country better or worse off than it was before the Arab Spring? In this weeks Arena, Egyptian-American activist Mohamed Soltan, who was arrested and tortured for two years as a political prisoner in Egypt, debates with Raymond Stock, an expert on the Middle East.

Follow UpFront on Twitter @AJUpFront and Facebook.
UF is getting a new student support service program this February.

UFs Office of Academic Support received a $1.1 million grant from TRiO Student Support Service. The new support service will help low-income, first-generation and disabled students complete their undergraduate degrees, said Angeleah Browdy, the OAS director.

The TRiO SSS grant aims to increase college retention and graduation rates among undergraduate students, Browdy said.

The 5-year grant will fund 140 eligible UF students and provide academic advising, career counseling, scholarships, student travel funds, a free textbook resource library, printing services and personal development, she said.

This grant will be a great help to students who want to excel in their academic program and further their education, Browdy said. Students have to learn to be resourceful.

The program will also help grant recipients apply to graduate and professional school, she said. Students can meet with counselors and get free tutoring as well.

Kevin Reeves, the OAS assistant director, said he is excited about the new opportunities the program will bring to the office.

The opportunity to get additional students to receive the support services offered through the Office of Academic Support will allow us to help a higher number of them, he said.

Gabriela Pedrido, a UF linguistics sophomore, said she applied to the program to receive academic support.

My GPA has suffered a bit due to pre-med, and I would like to get it back to a good standing, the 19-year-old said.

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Students can sign up to run for Student Government starting this weekend.

The first day of qualifying and slating, the process that gives students the chance to interview and run with a political party for SG Senate, begins noon Sunday in the Reitz Union Grand Ballroom.

The purpose of slating is for parties to determine the candidates that they want to run, supervisor of elections Erica Baker wrote in an email.

Students can run with Access Party, Impact Party or as an independent.

I think a lot of students dont understand how easy it is to be in Student Government, said Praveen Varanasi, the Access Party president.

Varanasi and Will Smith, the Impact Party president, said students should put aside their beliefs and be involved with SG.

No matter what you believe in, or what you have in mind, come meet us and let us know what you think, Smith said.

Slating will be Sunday from noon to 6 p.m., Monday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Reitz Union Grand Ballroom. The qualifications for Senate or for an executive position, students must be full-time, in good academic standing, free of conduct probation and delinquent financial obligations to UF and must not have been removed from an SG office by impeachment.

Senate candidates must be enrolled in the college they want to represent. Undergraduates must maintain a 2.5 overall GPA. Graduate students must maintain a 3.0 GPA or the minimum GPA for their program.

Executive candidates must have successfully completed three semesters, excluding Summer, at UF.

Contact Melissa Gomez at mgomez@alligator.org and follow her on Twitter @MelissaGomez004.

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Ive wanted to write about the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement for a while, but I havent had a real reason thatd be worth the inevitable barely-coherent shouting in my direction.

Then came Tuesdays release of a report by Human Rights Watch titled Occupation, Inc. The gist of the report is businesses cannot both maintain a commitment to human rights and operate or invest in commercial activities within the territories Israel illegally occupies.

It seems fairly straightforward, but in todays warped discourse, the very idea that businesses and people should divest from Israeli economic activities in the occupied West Bank, or even the idea Israel is capable of doing wrong at all, is inflammatory and controversial.

Heres where we enter the debate over BDS: a political movement that calls for businesses and consumers to boycott products manufactured in territory illegally occupied by Israel.

I continue to use the adverb illegally because it is an indisputable fact that, since 1967, Israel has engaged in activities in the West Bank that violate numerous codified and recognized standards of international law. Namely, the Israeli military has transferred Israeli civilians from Israel into suburb-style settlements built on land that has belonged to Palestinians for centuries, displacing residents and destroying farmland and villages in the process. This isnt merely immoral. Its a flagrant violation of the law  you know, a crime.

But the big point, where BDS comes into play, is that these crimes are facilitated by the practice of businesses and investors shifting production and investment activity into the illegally occupied areas on the Palestinian side of the border, expropriating natural resources and setting up industrial zones. A major reason for these transfers is the abundance of Palestinian laborers, who are hired at exploitative rates  often as low as one-third of the Israeli minimum wage  with zero benefits. But the situation gets better for businesses: Since Palestinian laborers in the West Bank are subject to Israeli military law without any civil rights (totally not apartheid!), workers in the illegally occupied territories have no right to sue or even bargain with their employers.

Through multiple incursions of human rights and international law, Israel and the companies that pursue economic activity in the West Bank turn a profit. The goal of BDS is to minimize or eradicate the profit turned through peaceful boycotts and economic pressure. By disincentivizing the occupation, BDS activists hope to bring about its end.

That is BDS. A peaceful and humanitarian effort using economic leverage to safeguard peace and human rights. The movement is growing in support from figures like Jewish Voice for Peace, Israeli human rights groups and humanitarian activists around the world.

The problem with BDS is the campaign is perhaps the most wildly misunderstood and maligned political movement of the 21st century, perhaps next to Black Lives Matter.

Now that its been embraced on many college campuses, BDS has been raised as a spectral vision of corrosive campus leftism, or anti-semitism, or as a front for radical Islamist terror groups.

This is not a coincidence; there exists a well-funded and well-organized campaign to intimidate and cajole BDS activists into submission. This is exemplified by Canary Mission, an uber-creepy McCarthyist website that collects profiles on Palestine/BDS activists  be they Jewish, Muslim, Arab or black  with the explicit intent to smear them and hinder future job opportunities.

Many state legislatures, including Floridas, have passed resolutions condemning BDS. What is, in reality, a sensible economic boycott against illegal activity has been smeared and silenced across the globe.

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What I find interesting about the BDS debate is that people who are usually quite quick to stand up for free speech are conspicuously quiet when the speech of BDS activists is silenced with legal intimidation and blacklisting. Folks who proudly proclaim their disdain for political correctness silencing effects often have no problem silencing and attacking people who hold incorrect opinions on Israel. And, when France criminalized BDS activism altogether, there was nary a peep from the we-must-defend-free-speech Je suis Charlie crowd.

The Palestine Exception to Free Speech is thought-provoking, especially as Israels Likud government continues its rightward slide to despotism and un-democratic behavior. True to its name, the Likud (consolidation) party exploits the inherent tensions in Israeli society to its own benefit. Economic pressure against its policies can embolden Likuds opposition in Israel. BDS is a pragmatic, humane and nonviolent way to reverse the tide and make Israel the humanitarian and multicultural society it should be.

Alec Carver is a UF history junior. His column appears on Fridays.
courtesy of Albuquerque Museum

On Sunday, Feb. 7 at 1 pm, the Albuquerque Museum will offer a program exploring the musical talents of Higinio Gonzales. Cultural Anthropologist Dr. David Garcia and Literary Folklorist Dr. Enrique Lamadrid will discuss the history of cancion and corrido, popular musical genres in New Mexico in which Gonzales wrote and performed. Dr. Garcia will also perform songs composed by Gonzales.



The Artistic Odyssey of Higinio V. Gonzales: A Tinsmith and Poet in Territorial New Mexico, now on exhibit at the Albuquerque Museum.

General admission for N.M. residents is $2 for seniors, $3 for adults and $1 for children age 4-12. Admission for out-of-state adults is $4.

Albuquerque Museum

2000 Mountain NW

alibi.com/link/18785

Sunday Feb. 7 1pm
Veteran newscaster Charlie Rose let out one of his rare nervous smiles on last Sundays 60 Minutes during an interview with actor Sean Penn. Rose, usually a distinctly eager, curious and captivated interviewer, recognized his interviewee had made a remark that would appear to viewers as perhaps insensitive at worst and tone-deaf at best: My article failed.

What Penn meant by that statement, which would later propel the interview into becoming a Facebook trending topic, was he regretted that the public mistook what his intentions were in traversing the Sierra Madres in search of interviewing the worlds most notorious drug lord.

You wanted to have a conversation about the policy of a war on drugs? Rose asked.

With the reader, Penn affirmed.

Sometime between his widely publicized escape from a Mexican prison in July 2015 to his recapture earlier this year, Mexican drug cartel leader Joaquin El Chapo Guzman Loera arranged a meeting with Mexican telenovela actress Kate del Castillo and two-time Academy Award winner Sean Penn.

When Castillo and Penn finally arrived at Guzmans hideout, they found that he had primarily been interested in meeting with Castillo, with whom he had been keeping a correspondence since 2012.

He did not even know who Penn was.

Guzman began his career in the drug cartel in Sinaloa, Mexico, before the age of 10. Now, at 61, he is the former leader of the largest international drug cartel in human history, which is responsible for shipping, by some estimates, more than half of all the illicit narcotics that enter the U.S.

Im drawn to explore what may be inconsistent with the portrayals our government and media brand upon their declared enemies, Penn wrote in his article with Rolling Stone.

In his interview with Charlie Rose, he added, I feel complicit in the suffering that is going on Im looking the other way. I find that equally complicit with murders in Juarez.

Penn is right to be concerned. The drug epidemic ranks among this nations most pressing issues and, in terms of direct causalities, is even more fatal than many other highly publicized domestic issues.

For example, since 2001, more Americans have died due to gun violence in the south side of Chicago than in Iraq and Afghanistan combined.

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On a nationwide level, between 88 and 92 Americans die daily from firearms, and more than 120 die per day from a drug overdose.

Penns intention with his article was to not only highlight this, but also the international relationship of the drug trade  for every American life ended, exponentially more Mexicans die as well.

But perhaps what Penn did not foresee was that, by the ludicrous nature of the meeting  an American celebrity meeting the international kingpin of narcotics on the run  he did not put himself in the best position to discuss any serious issues, and instead made himself the center of the story. To make matters worse, this is exactly the narrative angle Penn used in Rolling Stone.

Im really sad about the state of journalism in our country. It has been an incredible hypocrisy and an incredible lesson in just how much they dont know and how disserved we are, he told Rose.

Penn, in turn, calls his work experiential journalism, reporting only on what he sees and largely ignoring much mention of the countless deaths his interviewee has caused.

Again, journalists, he said, adding air quotes to the word journalists, who want to say that Im not a journalist: Well, I want to see the license that says that theyre a journalist.

Few people would claim Penn has no right to practice journalism, they just wouldnt suggest questing through the mountains as a means of saving journalism from itself.

Neel Bapatla is sophomore English major. His column appears on Fridays.
           2005     ..        
Against the backdrop of the Education World Forum, the worlds largest gathering of education and skills ministers, universities from the UK and Egypt signed 10 partnerships boosting collaborative work and research. A British Council organised senior delegation from the Egyptian education sector is currently in London attending the Forum, including: HE Prof Ashraf El Sheihy, []http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Appa-sourceTheAfric...
The closing of the 8th African Gender Pre-Summit on 2016 African Year of Human Rights, with Particular focus on the Rights of women at the AU headquarters on Wednesday 20 January 2016, was marked by high moments after the adoption of the final communique. The over 400 women worldwide with participation from 45 African countries []Source : http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Appa-sourceTheAfric...
A trade delegation from the state of North Dakota is visiting Cairo for the first time for two days of meetings with prospective business partners and government officials. The delegation will explore possible expansion of U.S. trade and investment opportunities with Egypt in certain fields. Two American agricultural companies, Healthy Oilseeds and JM Grain, are []http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Appa-sourceTheAfric...
The last weeks have once again seen an escalation in violence in the Blue Nile, Darfur region and Nuba Mountains. Children unfortunately continue to bear the biggest burden of one of the most protracted man-made disasters, in some areas for over a decade. Violence and conflict do not only deprive boys and girls their basic []Source : http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Appa-sourceTheAfric...




AR's Editor Joe Shea Talks About Elections On Iranian TV Bear Stearns Saved By Fed As Lehman Bros. Falters; Major Bank

Failure Looms Over Wall Street, Sends Markets Into 200-Pt. Dive Lie Upon Lie Five Years Into the Iraq War

The Administration Still Churns Out Lies by Randolph Holhut A Small Tragedy Even at 90, As Friends Turn Cool

She Knows the Show Must Go On by Joyce Marcel I'll Take Me Imagine John Wayne or Arnold

In Heels, Silk and a Girdle by Elizabeth Andrews Sen. Nelson Calls For New Fla. Primary; Gov Crist Backs 'Do-Over' Who'll Win? Ask Spock Spock.com Engine Predicts Winners

By Site Searches; It Can be Wrong by Jay Bhatti Chatting Up The Cat God Gave Me Dominion Over Him

But I Think He's a Non-Believer by Constance Daley Death of a Thug The Life and Horrors of Suharto by Andreas Harsono ___________________________ This Just In Sierra Club: McCain Ducked All 15 Key Votes On Green Laws (AR) A Work By AR's T.S. Kerrigan Is Chosen As 'Best Poem' By Wordpress Site Murder At Mile 63

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and Andreas Harsono 5427 14th St. West, Bradenton, FL 34207 $6.99 Fish Fridays! Manatee Co.'s Only 24-Hr.

FREE Wi-Fi Paid Advertisement On Native Ground

AFTER 5 YEARS, WE'RE STILL LIED TO ABOUT IRAQ by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- Next week is the fifth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq. And it is likely that sometime in the next couple of weeks, the 4,000th American soldier will die in Iraq. [MORE] Momentum

OFF TO SEE THE WIZARD by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt. - It's 1931, and a 14-year-old girl is standing alone on a stage. She's small and lively with dark curly hair, widespread hazel eyes, slender wrists and an open, eager face filled with the wonder of performing. Her name is Rose, and one day she will be my mother. But now she is performing an Eugene O'Neill monologue called "Before Breakfast" for a ladies' club in a wealthy suburb of Long Island. [MORE] One Woman's World

COMFORTABLE WITH MYSELF by Elizabeth T. Andrews CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- I'm not sure but I think I may be socially incorrect. [MORE] On Native Ground

ENOUGH FOR A WAR, NOT FOR A PEOPLE by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- Last week, the National Governors Assn. met in Washington, D.C. One of the tasks the NGA had on its agenda was to ask President Bush to increase federal spending on roads, bridges and other public works projects as a way to stimulate the economy. He rejected their pleas out of hand, claiming that infrastructure projects wouldn't offer any short-term economic boost. [MORE] Brasch Words

BEWARE THE SELF-REVERENTIAL PRESS by Walter Brasch BLOOMSBURG, Pa. -- Shortly before the primary votes this past week, Newsweek's Jonathan Alter called Sen. Barack Obama's surge to the Democratic nomination "inevitable." It also called for Hillary Clinton to "start her campaign for Senate majority leader." [MORE] Constance

A CONVERSATION WITH MY CAT Constance Daley ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. -- Normally, when the cat starts his evening rant of meowing continuously until he makes his point, I just take it as long as I can, pick him up, and put him in the garage for the night. He doesn't want to go, but the meowing stops and I don't care if he likes it or not. [MORE] Momentum

OUT OF STRUGGLE, ART by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- Here we are again at the crossroads of art and social change, having the opportunity to watch good and great films about the lives of women in support of the Women's Crisis Center. [MORE] Campaign 2008

HOW TO PREDICT SUPER TUESDAY II WINNERS? ONLINE SEARCH by Jay Bhatti NEW YORK, March 4, 2008, 7:00PM ET -- With the outcomes of the Texas, Vermont, Ohio and Rhode Island primaries to be decided tonight, how possible is it that online searching can predict who will win tonight's primaries? [MORE] One Woman's World

DON'T VOTE; IT ENCOURAGES THEM by Elizabeth T. Andrews CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- Call me angry and disgusted but don't call me un-American because I won't be voting come November. [MORE] On Native Ground

BUSH AND THE KEYBOARD COMMANDOS by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- As the days tick down toward the eventual departure of President George W. Bush from the White House, it's a hopeful sign that most Americans are no longer moved by his Administration's constant exploitation of terrorism for political gain. [MORE] Momentum

WHICH AMERICA DO YOU LIVE IN? by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- It's a little confusing. [MORE] Make My Dat

THE LAWYER THAT ATE NEW YORK by Erik Deckers INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- I used to know a guy who, quite literally, didn't get hyperbole. He didn't understand exaggeration. As a result, he missed most jokes that came his way. [MORE] On Native Ground

FIDEL RETIRES: NOW THE COLD WAR IS REALLY OVER by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- Maybe now, we can finally say the Cold War is over. [MORE] Make My Dat

THE LAWYER THAT ATE NEW YORK by Erik Deckers INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- I used to know a guy who, quite literally, didn't get hyperbole. He didn't understand exaggeration. As a result, he missed most jokes that came his way. [MORE] One Woman's World

POLITICS IS NO PARTY by Elizabeth T. Andrews CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- Are you having a hard time focusing your eyes? Do you have faint red spots all over your body? Is there a ringing in your ears and do you see wavy lines when you look at your television set? Do your hands shake when you try to hold a cup of coffee? And have you recently been forgetting what day of the week it is - or what year? [MORE] Make My Day

FOR BETTER OR WORSE ... A LOT WORSE by Erik Deckers INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- "Marriage: It's Only Going to Get Worse." [MORE] Constance

YOU CALL THESE RIGHTS? by Constance Daley ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. -- When you express an opinion you hope to persuade others to your point of view. It doesn't always happen but still, opinion writers try. [MORE] Momentum

THE BRIDGE WOMAN by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt. - Out there in America - yes, still - is a generation of women who were born in the 1940s, raised in the 1950s, and who came to radical consciousness in the late 1960s and early 1970s. I am one of them. Hillary Clinton is one of them. [MORE] On Native Ground

OBAMA AND MY GENERATION by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- I originally planned on voting for Dennis Kucinich in the Vermont Primary on March 4. [MORE] The Willies:

WARNING: THIS MEDICATION MAY MURDER YOUR FRIENDS by Joe Shea BRADENTON, Fla. -- You've heard the warnings, haven't you? Stop Prozac and you may take a shotgun, an Uzi or an AK-47 and mow down your family and friends, or even a whole classroom full of your fellow students. You didn't? Well, that warning is not on the bottle, but like countless mass-murder incidents before it, Friday's shootings at Northern Illinois University, as well as the Virginia Tech shootings that killed 32 last year, was probably precipitated by the effect of stopping medications that suppress anger and other powerful emotions but do not relieve the underlying cause. Isn't it time we started warning people - or stopped prescribing these medicines? [MORE] One Woman's World

DON'T KNOCK ON MY DOOR by Elizabeth T. Andrews CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- I wish I could feel delight in my poet's mansion being like Grand Central Station all the time, but I can't. And I wish my place was such a place that someone would one day write: "Her door was always open and she always made you feel all fuzzy and warm in her presence. She could make a cup of coffee seem like a banquet." [MORE] Reporting: Panama

PANAMA'S VIOLENT LABOR UNREST INTENSIFIES Mark Scheinbaum PANAMA CITY, Panama, Feb, 15, 2008 -- After just one day of relative calm, wildcat construction strikes by some members of Panama's largest union flared up again Friday morning, four days after a police sniper shot one worker. More than 140 demonstrators have been injured and at least 500 arrested, authorities say. [MORE] Brasch Words

TO STIMULATE ECONOMY, BUY A CHINESE-MADE U.S. FLAG by Walter Brasch BLOOMSBURG, Pa. -- Walking down Main Street, pushing a grocery cart loaded with clothes, toys, and appliances was Marshbaum. Fastened to the right front corner of the cart was an American flag tied onto a three-foot ruler. [MORE] Make My Day

THE TOOTH, AND NOTHING BUT THE TOOTH by Erik Deckers INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- To commemorate the death of noted shark exploder Roy Scheider, and the "Jaws" movies that resulted in Erik never setting foot in the ocean again, we are reprinting this column from 2003. Shark Experts 0, Sharks 1 [MORE] Momentum

THE WINTER OF MY DISCONTENT by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt. - As I write this, it's raining ice. Maybe a half a foot of snow and ice has already landed up here in the woods of Dummerston. Our cars are encased in it, and the door to the house is blocked. The satellite dish that brings in our Internet service quit about 20 minutes ago - frozen solid. [MORE] The Willies

AMERICA TO HILLARY: GET OUT! by Joe Shea BRADENTON, Fla., Feb. 13, 2008 -- Sen. Hillary Clinton has adopted the Rudy Giuliani strategy, and it's working - for Sen. Barack Obama. It turns out to be the strategy all Democrats are seeking - an exit strategy. But it's not for Iraq. It's for her exit from the race for the 2008 Democratic Presidential nomination. [MORE] Constance

CONFESSIONS OF A DISAPPOINTED VOTER by Constance Daley ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. -- A week ago at just about this time, I completed an article and was about to submit it as scheduled to The American Reporter. I was feeling rather elated, ready to show up on Super Tuesday morning, firmly touch the X next to Rudy Giuliani's name and get on with my day. He was my choice; he would get my vote. [MORE] Reporting: Florida

SIERRA CLUB SET TO SUSPEND FLA. CHAPTER by Joe Shea BRADENTON, Fla., Feb. 10, 2008 -- The national Sierra Club is set to suspend its Florida chapter after years of divisive infighting, the president of the national club told Florida members in a letter delivered to some this weekend. It is the first time in its 116-year history that such a step has been considered by the club, according to news reports. [MORE] One Woman's World

PLANT A NEW WORLD THIS SPRING by Elizabeth T. Andrews CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- For a little while, the men will just have to toss and turn in their fear-free-women beds. For a small space of time Hillary Clinton will just have to trudge on toward the White House without my faint applause in the background. [MORE] On Native Ground

VERMONT AND THE 5 STAGES OF CONSERVATIVE GRIEF by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- First, Vermont tried to convince the nation to impeach President Bush and Vice President Cheney. [MORE] Make My Day

REBEL WITHOUT A TONGUE by Erik Deckers INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- Kids' brains work in amazing ways. At times, they can grasp complex concepts and make impressive discoveries. Other times, you have to wonder how we ever survived as a species. [MORE] The Willies

FOR DEMOCRATS, NOW IT'S ABOUT RACE, INCOME AND GENDER by Joe Shea BRADENTON, Feb. 6, 2008 -- It's not a good time to be a Democrat. As the Super Tuesday results demonstrated, the presidential race between Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton has divided the partly along clear racial, income and gender lines - the very distinctions the party has sought to erase in principle but has emphasized in its pursuit of diversity. [MORE] Momentum

SUPER TUESDAY BLUES by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- Super Tuesday has come and gone and I still can't get excited about the upcoming presidential elections. [MORE] The Willies

ON THE BRINK OF HISTORY, YOUR PUSH IS NEEDED by Joe Shea BRADENTON, Fla., Feb. 5. 2008 -- I'm expecting a sea change tonight. I believe that for the first time in this nation's history we will once and forever banish racism as the deciding factor in the destiny of African-Americans, and indeed adopt diversity as our path to the future. [MORE] Campaign 2008

AT 88, EVERY VOTE REALLY COUNTS by Ted Manna DENVER, Feb. 5, 2008 -- Pearl Turner will caucus for Mitt Romney tonight in Denver. [MORE] One Woman's World

STAND BY YOUR WOMAN by Elizabeth T. Andrews CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- The black vote. The gay vote. The fundamentalist vote. The Hispanic vote. [MORE] An AR Special

SUSPECTS IN BENAZIR ASSASSINATION HAVE TIES TO MUSHARRAF by Ahmar Mustikhan WASHINGTON, D.C. -- When Gordon Brown this past Monday feted coup-leader-turned-President Pervez Musharraf at 10 Downing Street, Britain's new prime minister probably didn't ask the Pakistani dictator a question that is now on many minds: Did you order the murder of Benazir Bhutto? [MORE] Momentum

TO THE VERMONT DELEGATION: WHAT HAVE YOU DONE FOR US LATELY? by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt.  Back when President George W. Bush and Dick Vice President Dick Cheney were building up to their loathsome war in Iraq, very few people were brave enough to call the bullies' bluff. [MORE] On Native Ground

IF BUSH HAS HIS WAY, WE'LL NEVER LEAVE IRAQ by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. - In his final State of the Union address on Jan. 28, President Bush cautioned against accelerating U.S. troop withdrawals from Iraq, saying that it would endanger the process that has been made over the past year. [MORE] Campaign 2008

CLASH OF COMMENTS AND PROTESTORS AT CLINTON, OBAMA RALLIES IN DENVER by Ted Manna DENVER, Feb. 1, 2008 -- At least four presidential campaigns of both partiers rolled into in Denver this week ahead of the Feb. 5 "Super Tuesday" primaries in 22 states, but it was the Democratic presidential contenders who drew the big crowds and duked it out Wednesday. If sheer numbers are any indication, Sen. Barack Obama - preceded by a buoyant and beautiful Caroline Kennedy - won the round handily. He is the overwhelming favorite to win the Colorado primary next Tuesday. [MORE] The Willies

WHY THE FLORIDA PRIMARY STINKS by Joe Shea BRADENTON, Fla., Jan. 30, 2008 -- I was with my wife and daughter driving the back way from Miami home to Bradenton when we stopped at a McDonald's in Clewiston, the only big town along the vast shore of Lake Okeechobee, the state's precious freshwater reservoir. The McDonald's had three televisions at a central seating area, each tuned to a different network, and our table was in front of CNN as the very first election results started to pour in around 7:30PM. With them, almost as counterpoint, suddenly came such an overwhelming odor of cow plop that my wife started to throw up as we all ran to the parking lot. [MORE] Passings: Suharto

DEATH OF A KEMUSU THUG by Andreas Harsono JAKARTA - A few minutes after hearing that former president Suharto had died in his hospital bed, Marco, a militia leader in downtown Jakarta, raced to Suhartos house, wearing his jungle camouflage and began guarding the Suhartos residence on Cendana Street. [MORE] Constance

I REMEMBER YOU by Constance Daley ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga.. -- It seems to be more often lately that the sentiment is spoken but it's always been out there: "You never get over the death of your child." This is true. But the heartfelt expressions come from some who cannot fathom the notion of losing a child; their own child is who is in their mind, not another mother's child. [MORE]
A regional director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) resigned Thursday in connection with the drinking water crisis in Flint, Michigan, and agency chief Gina McCarthy issued an emergency order directing state and city officials to take actions to protect public health.

The EPA said in a statement that Susan Hedman, head of the agency's regional office in Chicago whose jurisdiction includes Michigan, was stepping down Feb. 1 so it could focus "solely on the restoration of Flint's drinking water."

High levels of lead have been detected in the impoverished city's water since officials switched from the Detroit municipal system and began drawing from the Flint River as a cost-saving measure in April 2014. Some children's blood has tested positive for lead, a potent neurotoxin linked to learning disabilities, lower IQ and behavioral problems.

While much of the blame has been directed at Gov. Rick Snyder and state officials, particularly the Department of Environmental Quality, some have faulted the EPA's Region 5 office for not acting more forcefully.

The order issued Thursday acknowledges the state notified EPA officials in April 2015 that Flint was not treating the river water with additives to prevent corrosion from pipes. It says Hedman and others in the regional EPA office voiced concern to state and city officials over the next few months. But it wasn't until Oct. 16 that EPA established a task force to provide technical help  the day Flint switched back to the Detroit water system.

"Mismanagement has plagued the region for far too long and Ms. Hedman's resignation is way overdue," said U.S. Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah, chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

The EPA said McCarthy had sent a memo to all staff members establishing a policy assessing and responding to "critical public health issues."

The agency also released a letter from McCarthy to Snyder outlining terms of the emergency order, which says that city and state responses to the water crisis have failed.

The EPA "is deeply concerned by continuing delays and lack of transparency," the letter said, describing the measures as "essential to ensuring the safe operation of Flint's drinking water system and the protection of public health."

Among them: submitting plans for ensuring that Flint's water has adequate treatment, including corrosion controls; making sure city personnel are qualified to operate the water system in a way that meets federal quality standards; and creating a website where citizens can get information.

The agency also said it would begin sampling and analyzing lead levels and would make the results public.

Snyder's office released a statement saying the state would cooperate with EPA.

President Barack Obama said during a U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting Thursday that about $80 million in federal funding would be sent to Michigan next week  part of a nationwide investment in water system upgrades. It wasn't immediately clear how much would go to Flint. Obama met earlier this week with Flint Mayor Karen Weaver who declared a state of emergency over the water crisis in December.

Also Thursday, Michigan officials said they still aren't certain whether there's a link between a drinking water crisis in Flint and an increase in local cases of Legionnaires' Disease.

A report by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services says nine people died of the bacterial illness between June 2014 and October 2015 in Genesee County, which includes Flint. That's down from the 10 fatal cases reported earlier this month. Officials say the number was changed after they found some deaths weren't considered to have been caused by Legionnaires.

Eighty-seven Legionnaires' disease cases were confirmed between June 2014 and November 2015. About one-third of the infected people's homes received Flint water, which was found to have elevated lead levels after the city began drawing from the Flint River.

The Associated Press
A Canadian tribal chief is calling for urgent efforts to revive indigenous languages, saying their extinction is going unnoticed while the world focuses on the preservation of cultural heritage sites.

Edward John, a member of the U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, told a news conference that ancient wonders are important but indigenous languages are "the essential component of cultural heritage" and should get international attention and support to ensure their survival.

John spoke Thursday at the end of a three-day meeting of indigenous language experts at U.N. headquarters on revitalizing many of the estimated 6,000 to 7,000 languages spoken by native peoples around the world.

"The priority focus that I hear from all of the experts is, create fluent speakers," he said. "That's what you need to do. How do you do it? That's the discussion taking place."

"There's been a large focus on literacy, developing books and calendars and dictionaries" in indigenous languages, John said, "but not as much of an effort in fluency."

John pointed to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's address in May 2011 to the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues where he said: "Today, one indigenous language dies every two weeks. Indigenous cultures are threatened with extinction."

What's needed urgently is a commitment from every government to identify the indigenous languages in their country and the number and age of speakers so that a global map of where they are can be drawn up for the first time, he said. Then, the focus must be on revitalizing those with fewer speakers and finding the resources to keep languages from becoming extinct.

"We know there are some languages where there are less than a handful of speakers left, and when they're gone that language is gone and everything  everything about that culture and that heritage is gone as well," John said.

He said smart phones and technology should become tools to help teach young people today their native languages.

Google sent an expert to this week's meeting, he said, and "we will reach out to all willing partners to help us in this gigantic effort of revitalization."

Tatjana Degai, an ethnic Itelman from Kamchatka on Russia's Pacific coast, said her people's language "is severely endangered."

"There are only five elderly speakers left, all of them female speakers, about 70 years old," she said. "There are about 10 to 15 middle-aged speakers who grew up hearing the language but don't consider themselves speakers."

Degai, who is trying to help keep the language alive, said Itelman is taught in only one school, and for just 40 minutes a week.

"We appreciate that Russia is developing legislation in relation to indigenous language but we also think that it is not enough for our language to survive," she said.

Degai said Itelman is not the only language in trouble  40 of the 47 recognized indigenous peoples in Russia are from the north, Siberia and the Far East, and most of their languages "are at the brink of extinction."

Amy Kalili, a native Hawaiian who heads an education organization promoting fluency in the Hawaiian language, said that in middle of the last century there were perhaps 30 speakers under the age of 18. But she said there was "a cultural renaissance" in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and now schools are educating 3,000 students a year in Hawaiian.

"People are passionate about not letting language die," Kalili said, and not just in Hawaii.

She said the Maoris in New Zealand not only get education in their own language but they have government-funded Maori language radio and television channels.

John, who is grand chief of the Tl'azt'en Nation in British Columbia, said he attended a residential school for native Canadians and was banned from speaking Dene, a language also spoken in Alaska and the northwestern and southwestern United States by native Americans.

John said recommendations from this week's meeting will be presented to the Permanent Forum meeting in May, and then to the U.N. Economic and Social Council in July.

The Associated Press
Faced with a water contamination crisis that could imperil the health of thousands of people and has has pitted residents against municipal and state officials they have accused of negligence, the Stevens family has had to learn a kind of household triage.

Life now revolves around bottled water. And everyday tasks like brushing teeth, washing hair and bathing have become needlessly difficult.

And like many others in Flint, sickness has befallen the family in the months since the switch to water from the Flint River in April 2014. About a year ago, Stevens came down with strep throat and placed blame on the tap water. So she started relying more and more on bottled water, and now bottled water is a way of life.

Youve got to take care of your kids because one day, youre not going be around, and theyre still going to be affected by this, she said.

Just about every day, she joins the steady parade of Flint residents who pick up free water distributed by the National Guard. Everyone gets one case per day, but at one point, she used food stamps to buy water. Before I got my stamps, I was freaking out because I only had that much water to survive on, she said.

Under the direction of a state-appointed emergency manager, Flint  a working-class, mostly black city of 100,000 people north of Detroit  switched its water source to save money. But the more corrosive water from the Flint River, which is known locally as a dumping ground, was not treated and caused more lead to leach from the citys aging water pipes than Detroits water did.

Complaints about the water began within a month of the change, but officials did not take steps to remedy the situation until October 2015, after tests showed elevated levels of lead in some tap water in the city and in some children. Lead is a toxin that can damage brains and cause other health problems.

The city switched back to Detroit water in mid-October, but the contamination continued. According to Flint Mayor Karen Weaver, despite switching back to water from Lake Huron, it was too late to undo corrosion damage to the water pipes, The New York Times reported.

Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder and other state officials are now under fire from many quarters for their slow and insufficient response to the crisis. Snyder, a Republican, has rejected calls from critics for his resignation. He asked the Michigan state legislature this week to approve $28 million to assist Flint and said there would be additional funding requests.

On Thursday, President Barack Obama said his administration would provide $80 million in aid to Michigan, much of which will go to remedy the situation in Flint, The Detroit News reported.

Stevens blames local, state and federal officials for the crisis. They were lazy. They wanted a cheaper way out. You get what you pay for.

Snyder is expected to appear before a congressional panel under the auspices of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, according to the office of Rep. Brenda Lawrence, D-Mich. but the media representative for at least one Republican on the committee said details about any hearing are entirely premature.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services said that it saw an increase in Legionnaires disease cases in Genesee County, which includes Flint, during the time the Flint River was the primary water source but that it could not conclude if the cases were related to the water switch. A report released on Thursday said there were 87 Legionnaires cases in the county from June 2014 through October 2014, including nine deaths.

Residents like Stevens have little faith in city and state officials to undo the damage that has been done to their lives.

She asked, When will we catch a break? When will our lives just go back to what we call normal?

Al Jazeera and Reuters
A bill introduced Thursday in the New Hampshire state assembly seeks to add post-traumatic stress disorder to the list of ailments eligible for medical marijuana treatment, which was legalized in 2013 but remains hard to obtain in the Granite State.

The proposed legislation comes as New Hampshire grapples with an opioid addiction and overdose crisis. Medical marijuana advocates argue that better access to cannabis would offer an alternative means of pain relief to people now using painkillers or heroin. In 2015 the states medical examiner attributed 385 deaths to opiates, almost double the 192 fatalities in 2013, according to New Hampshire Public Radio.

Also, adding PTSD to the list of illnesses approved for cannabis treatment could provide another option to people whove found no relief with standard anti-anxiety or antidepressant medication, advocates say.

A University of New Hampshire poll last year found strong backing for the legalization of both medical and recreational marijuana, with support levels growing each year.

Joe Lachance, a Republican state assemblyman who co-sponsored the PTSD measure, is one of the 62 medical marijuana cardholders in the state of 1.6 million people. A military veteran and former police officer, Lachance said he suffers from chronic pain and PTSD, ailments only marijuana has helped ease. He also said marijuana helped him kick an opiate habit.

I can tell you, yes, it does work, Lachance told Al Jazeera. We have an opioid overdose crisis, and by allowing legal access to cannabis we could reduce overdose rates by 30 percent, he added. You dont get addicted to marijuana. But you get addicted to opioids physically.

Opioid painkillers including hydrocodone and oxycodone are all legal for prescription in New Hampshire, but widespread dependence on them led the states medical board last November to restrict how much doctors can prescribe. Lachance said this move prompted some painkiller addicts to turn to heroin.

But Lachance said that almost three years after the passage of the states medical marijuana law, there still isnt a single dispensary open in the state. He has to go to neighboring Maine to legally buy his medical marijuana.

Lachance said veterans are particularly vulnerable to painkiller addiction and the ravages of PTSD. Some drugs meant to treat the disorder have side effects that include impotence and have been linked to suicide.

Veterans are dying every day from PTSD. If I could help one person, one kid, one soldier, one rape victim, then Ill have done my work, he said.

But New Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan, a Democrat, has stood in the way, Lachance said. He believes that Hassan has buyers remorse over signing the bill into law, and that she has set up a series of hurdles to making medical marijuana available.

For example, until recently the governors office declined to allow the issue of medical marijuana cards, saying they shouldnt be available until dispensaries had opened. But in December, a woman suffering from late-stage cancer won a lawsuit against the states Department of Health and Human Services, forcing the agency to start issuing cards, the Union Leader newspaper reported. The cards allow for the legal possession of up to two ounces, or 50 grams, of marijuana.

The states first dispensary, Sanctuary ATC, will likely open by March, Lachance said.

New Hampshire remains a deeply conservative state in some ways. Many residents believe marijuana acts as a gateway drug that opens young people to heroin and other hard drugs. The Union Leader editorial board came out forcefully against marijuana legalization bills introduced earlier this week.

William Hinkle, a spokesman for Hassan, said that the governor understands how debilitating PTSD can be for those who suffer from the condition  including many veterans  and that she has worked to make permanent state aid to those suffering from PTSD and brain injuries. But she believes marijuana isn't the answer.

The most effective treatment for PTSD is to consult a mental health professional, Hinkle said. Use of medical marijuana by those who suffer from PTSD can discourage them from seeking appropriate mental health care when experiencing symptoms, raising significant concerns about including the condition in the bipartisan legislation that the Governor signed.

Although research in the area has just begun, anecdotal evidence and recent studies indicate significant decreases in PTSD symptoms, including anxiety and depression, in people prescribed medical marijuana. Some veterans say smoking pot decreases the frequency of nightmares.

Unless legalization bills introduced earlier this week pass, veterans or anyone else caught with marijuana in New Hampshire can expect to face criminal charges. Although its decriminalized in the neighboring states of Vermont, Massachusetts and Maine, possession of a joint in New Hampshire can send a person to jail.

New Hampshire is a police state, said Rick Naya, the executive director of the New Hampshire chapter the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML).

Naya said he warned state policymakers 10 years ago of the dangers of reliance on painkillers.

By stuffing opiates down peoples throats, its going to create a problem. You guys are going to have a heroin epidemic. Youre going to see it. And in the last two years, it is just out of control, Naya said. You can get stoned on marijuana and not chase a dragon thats going to kill you.
North Korea has detained a U.S. university student, the third western citizen known to be held in the isolated state, for committing a "hostile act" and wanting to "destroy the country's unity," its government said Friday.

Otto Frederick Warmbier, 21, of the University of Virginia, was in North Korea for a five-day New Year trip and was detained at Pyongyang airport on Jan. 2 ahead of a flight back to China, said Gareth Johnson of Young Pioneer Tours, which organized the visit.

According to the North's official KCNA news agency, Warmbier entered North Korea as a tourist and "was caught committing a hostile act against the state," which it said was "tolerated and manipulated by the U.S. government."

The U.S. State Department, in a statement, said it was aware of reports that a U.S. citizen had been detained in North Korea but gave no other details, citing privacy concerns.

Johnson said China-based Young Pioneer Tours was in contact with Warmbier's family and U.S. officials.

"We are in touch with Otto's family, the U.S. State Department and the Embassy of Sweden in Pyongyang and doing all we can to secure his release," Johnson told Reuters.

The Swedish Embassy represents U.S. interests in North Korea.

KCNA said Warmbier had entered the country with an "aim to destroy the country's unity." It did not elaborate.

According to his social media profiles, Warmbier is from Cincinnati and is an Echols Scholar, awarded to the top seven percent of incoming first year students at the University of Virginia, where he majors in economics with a minor in global sustainability.

Warmbier has also visited Cuba, Ireland and Israel, according to his Facebook profile.

Warmbier was detained four days before North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in violation of U.N. sanctions, which drew condemnation from its neighbors and the U.S.

South Korea warned that the U.S. its allies were working on further sanctions to inflict "bone-numbing pain" on North Korea after its latest nuclear test, and urged China to do its part to rein in its neighbor.

North Korea has a long history of detaining foreigners, and the U.S. and Canadian governments advise against travel there.

Pyongyang has in the past used detained U.S. citizens to extract high-profile visits from the United States, with which it has no formal diplomatic relations.

While the vast majority of tourists to North Korea are from China, roughly 6,000 westerners visit the country annually.

Warmbier was on Young Pioneer's "New Year's Party Tour," which, according to the itinerary on the company's website, was to include watching fireworks in Kim Il Sung Square in the heart of Pyongyang, and an optional helicopter ride.

A South Korean-born Canadian pastor was arrested in North Korea last year and given a life sentence for subversion. Earlier this month, a Korean-American man told CNN in Pyongyang that he was being held by the state for spying.

In 2014, Pyongyang released three detained Americans. Last October, it freed a South Korean national with a U.S. green card after holding him for six months.

Reuters
The charity, also known by its French acronym MSF, said the ambulance driver was killed in an airstrike on the northern town of Dahyan. Dahyan is part of Saada province, the stronghold of Shia rebels who control much of the country including the capital, Sanaa. The rebels, known as Houthis, announced that airstrikes in Dahyan killed 26 people.

In Sanaa, officials said that 22 people were killed in strikes that targeted the mountain of Nahdeen believed to house weapon caches. In Dhamar, Taiz and Jawf, similar airstrikes targeted gatherings of Houthis and allied army units. In the port city of Hodeida, at least 10 civilians were killed when airstrikes targeted trucks carrying smuggled oil from the port, according to officials.

The officials all spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press.

Yemen's civil war began when the Houthi rebels, allied with a former Yemeni president, overran the capital in September 2014. In March 2015, a coalition of countries led by Saudi Arabia began airstrikes and later, a ground operation to retake the country. More than 5,800 people have been killed and over 80 percent of Yemen's population is in dire need of food, water and other aid, according to the United Nations.

The Associated Press
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said during a trip to Turkey on Friday that by intimidating the media, curtailing Internet freedom and accusing academics of treason, the country was not setting a good example in the Middle East.

Speaking on a two-day visit to Turkey, a NATO ally and key member of the U.S.-led alliance against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), he said the strength of Turkish democracy has a direct impact on the strength of ties with the United States.

"The more Turkey succeeds, the stronger the message sent to the entire Middle East and parts of the world who are only beginning to grapple with the notion of freedom," Biden said, flanked by members of Turkish civil society groups.

"But when the media are intimidated or imprisoned for critical reporting, when Internet freedom is curtailed and social media sites like YouTube or Twitter are shut down and more than 1,000 academics are accused of treason simply by signing a petition, thats not the kind of example that needs to be set," he told reporters.

Turkey was cited by Washington in the early years of Recep Tayyip Erdogan's rule  starting in 2003 he served three terms as prime minister and was elected president in 2014  as an example for the Middle East of a functioning Islamic democracy. But more recently, reforms have faltered, and he has demonstrated a more authoritarian style.

Nonetheless, he is a vital partner for the U.S. and Europe in efforts to combat ISIL, end Syria's civil war and curb the flow of migrants and refugees.

Erdogan last week denounced as "dark, nefarious and brutal" more than 1,000 signatories, including American academic Noam Chomsky, of a declaration that criticized military action in Turkeys largely Kurdish southeast, where violence has flared since a cease-fire collapsed in July. They accused the government of heavy-handedness in its efforts to weed out autonomy-seeking fighters there.

Security forces briefly detained 27 of the academics on accusations of terrorist propaganda. Dozens face investigation by their universities.

Turkish media reports said Biden met the wife and son of jailed journalist Can Dundar, the editor-in-chief of the left-wing Cumhuriyet newspaper, who was arrested in November over the publication of footage purporting to show the state intelligence agency helping send weapons to Syria.

The Turkish government says detained journalists are being held for promoting terrorism or engaging in anti-state activities rather than for their journalistic work.

Insulting public officials is a crime in Turkey, and cartoonists, teenagers and a former Miss Turkey have faced charges over alleged affronts against Erdogan.

Biden, on the first day of his two-day visit, said, "If you do not have the ability to express your own opinion, to criticize policy, offer competing ideas without fear of intimidation or retribution, then your country is being robbed of opportunity."

Wire services
NAFTAs opponents were critical of its controversial investor-state dispute settlement mechanisms (ISDS), which gave investors the right to sue governments. Private interests lobbied successfully for the treaty to work through private courts because national legal systems are open to public scrutiny. Fears over the agreements long-term effects have materialized over the last 20 years. Corporations have used the ISDS again and again to undermine citizens interests on such matters as environmental regulations, climate change policies, indigenous lands and even national health and mail systems.

NAFTA promised to create one of the worlds biggest free trade zones in order to improve the economic benefits of commerce among the United States, Canada and Mexico. The labor movement and citizens groups in the U.S. were against the agreement, saying it would outsource jobs and weaken labor standards and wages. Many other eco-friendly organizations such as Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth and the Sierra Club also rejected the treaty, noting the danger it posed to the integrity of national environmental standards.

The Democratically controlled Congress passed NAFTA in part because of the support of the Environmental Coalition for NAFTA, which included the Audubon Society, Conservation International, the Environmental Defense Fund, the National Wildlife Federation, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Nature Conservancy and the World Wildlife Fund. Clinton and Vice President Al Gore managed to coax these big green organizations to support NAFTA despite the stiff opposition of their peers.

The decision by TransCanada, a Canadian company, has put in an awkward position several environmental groups that were instrumental in securing NAFTAs passage in 1993. In his triumphant speech after the signing of the treaty, President Bill Clinton thanked the environmental movement, acknowledging its pivotal role in gaining congressional approval of the highly contested treaty.

Obama killed the pipeline to demonstrate serious action on climate change. By promoting the continued exploitation of oil sands crude, the Keystone project was a bad bet for the American people. The project was strongly opposed by Native American and rancher groups alike. It offered limited economic benefits compared with its long-term effects on the environment.

On Jan. 6, TransCanada filed a lawsuit alleging that President Barack Obamas decision in November to reject the Keystone XL pipeline breached Washingtons obligations under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). The corporation is seeking $15 billion in damages.

Two decades after NAFTA became law, many among the old guard have retired, leaving a new generation of environmental activists to deal with the moral dilemma they have inherited.

Since NAFTAs inception, close to 80 corporate claims have been lodged against participating governments. Challenges seeking to erode environmental protections outnumber attacks on all other measures. The Keystone pipeline is but one high profile case among many. The Environmental Coalition for NAFTA must now consider its role in this debacle.

In December world leaders finally got their act together and came to a historic accord in Paris to limit the effects of climate change. They now have to make good on those promises and implement national plans to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, promote green energy policies and restructure their industries.

But the accord gave little attention to trade agreements that are already derailing climate change policies and pose a barrier to attempts to stabilize the climate. New trade agreements such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which may soon be pushed through Congress, could present even graver threats.

To be clear, trade is an important part of a healthy economy. But it has to be pursued in concert with other societal considerations. Climate change, if unchecked, will wreak untold devastation on communities. Its potential costs to the economy outweigh any short-term gains from unfettered trade. Thats why stringent safeguards that preserve the democratic rights of citizens and countries to determine domestic policies must accompany any trade promotions.

There are concrete ways to embed climate-friendly provisions in trade deals. For example, language protecting national climate actions from legal attacks should be included in trade agreements. In addition, unethical and undemocratic ISDS provisions that favor the interests of corporations over the environment and citizens rights should be abolished.

The Environmental Coalition for NAFTA may have been asleep at the wheel two decades ago, but it is time for the group to speak out against trade regimes that threaten our collective future. Climate champions such as Gore must take responsibility for their role and help end the toxic effects of ISDS mechanisms and damaging trade agreements.

Unfortunately, NAFTAs green supporters show few signs of having learned any lessons. Environmental organizations are once again being hoodwinked by small offerings, ignoring the high stakes involved that carry profound implications. In October, David McCauley, the senior vice president for policy and government affairs at the World Wildlife Fund, praised the Trans-Pacific Partnership for environmental concessions that it may offer in terms of regulating wildlife trade.

Two decades after NAFTA became law, many among the old guard have retired, leaving a new generation of activists working for pro-trade environmental organizations to deal with the moral dilemma they have inherited. The public will be watching their response to NAFTAs Keystone lawsuit. Its time for these groups to do the right thing.
One crucial element of Russias effort to improve its image has been its intervention in Syrias civil war, which has long made the West appear powerless and divided. Russia has launched airstrikes that it claims are against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), but many observers and Western officials say they target mostly the Western-backed opposition to the regime of Bashar al-Assad, an ally of Russias.

The accusation that Putin and his former top security services chief, Nikolai Patrushev, were probably complicit in Litvinenkos murder reminds Western leaders and the public that the Russian state regularly kills its critics, even if they reside abroad and are citizens of other sovereign states. This is not to suggest that British Prime Minister David Cameron should be watching his tea. But it does lay bare the costs of cooperating with a country with a paranoid and violent security service and a leader from those very ranks.

Already facing European Union sanctions and international isolation over its intervention in Ukraine since 2014, the Russian government has reacted furiously. The report flies in the face of its campaign of rapprochement with the West. Russia desires to be a great world power, and the sanctions and its 2014 expulsion from the G-8 group of leading industrialized powers hurt its image.

Why the outrage? The outlines of the incident have been clear for almost a decade, and the 328-page report, by former Judge Robert Owen, only adds detail to the long-known story. Litvinenko, who obtained British citizenship in 2006 after fleeing Russia in 2000, met with two other former KGB agents, Andrei Lugovoy and Dmitry Kovtun, on Nov. 1, 2006, at Londons Millennium Hotel. Litvinenko drank green tea spiked with the rare radioactive isotope polonium-210. He fell violently ill and died on Nov. 23, at age 44. Kovtun and Lugovoy (who has since received a state honor from Putin) live in Russia, where they are safe from British extradition requests.

The Russian government reacted with full force to the release of a British inquirys report stating that President Vladimir Putin probably approved the murder of Alexander Litvinenko, a KGB officer turned Putin critic. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the report was a joke and its findings can be can be attributed to that elegant British sense of humor. Russian Ambassador to the United Kingdom Alexander Yakovenko called it a gross provocation. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova blasted it as a nontransparent investigation with results determined beforehand  a particularly rich accusation coming from a government that often delivers justice in exactly that manner.

The British government is unlikely to sanction Russia over the inquirys findings, as it wants to maintain official cooperation in Syria against ISIL. Nevertheless, Cameron has gone from saying in December that he would work together with Moscow to take on ISIL to saying that he had to maintain some sort of relationship with Russia. He called the murder absolutely appalling, and British Home Secretary Theresa May said the murder was a blatant and unacceptable breach of international law. Camerons critics in the opposition Labour Party have criticized his response as weak and demanded a review of all the U.K.s links to Russia.

The report paints a much darker picture of Putin that flies in the face of Russian efforts to portray him in a lighter manner. Especially of late, a great deal of Western news coverage of him  amplified and encouraged by Russian state media  has been on the softer side. He has inspired a perfume line called Leaders Number One. He has inserted himself into the U.S. presidential race by praising the talented Republican presidential front-runner, Donald Trump, who in turn has drawn criticism from his rivals for praising Putin. A 2016 calendar of photographs of Putin in action made international news.

Some of the allegations Litvinenko made before his death go to the heart of the legitimacy of Putins government. He accused the FSB, Russias security service, of being responsible for a series of apartment bombings in Moscow and other cities in 1999. Putin, then the prime minister under President Boris Yeltsin, used the attacks as a pretext to escalate a military campaign against rebels in Russias semiautonomous Republic of Chechnya. Partly as a result, Putin went from being a virtual unknown to ascending to the presidency.

He has denied the FSB was involved, but books by Western scholars and journalists such as John Dunlop and David Satter, along with Russian investigative reporting, have presented convincing evidence that the agency had a role. Litvinenko also publicly accused Putin of ordering the unsolved 2006 killing of Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya, who reported critically on the war in Chechnya.

That Putin ordered the killing of Litvinenko is practically impossible to prove conclusively; anyone who gave such proof would almost certainly be killed like Litvinenko. Hence Russian officials have cited the reports use of probably as a reason to dismiss it entirely. However, the report is measured and based on independent analysis and evidence. It would be equally rejected  and would have less credence  if the adverb in question had been undoubtedly.

Internationally, Putin is well known for his KGB background and for the killings of journalists and opposition figures that have been a ubiquitous feature of his rule. But these facts often get brushed aside in favor of Russias supposed campaign against ISIL in Syria and Internet-ready images of the president. The Litvinenko inquiry is a reminder of the true nature of Putin and the state he has created.
Today marks the 43rd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that protected womens right to make personal medical decisions, including the right to have an abortion.

One-third of women in the United States will have an abortion by the age of 45. The overwhelming majority of those who choose abortion do so because its economically the best decision for their families. Yet the constitutional protection for womens rights to choose recognized by Roe v. Wade now faces new threats from politicians.

Access to abortion is a fundamental human right. A womans right to choose a safe and legal abortion is also part of the Democratic Partys platform. Voters often evaluate candidates for public office on the basis of their abortion stances. Yet at the fourth Democratic presidential debate, on Jan. 17, contenders were not asked a single question on the topic. As a black woman who has had an abortion, I find this deeply disappointing. Similarly, President Barack Obama did not mention the fight to protect reproductive rights in his final State of the Union address. This raises the question, Are Democrats taking this issue and voter support for granted?

Abortion remains a key issue in the 2016 election. For the first time in a decade, the U.S. Supreme Court may take up an abortion case. There are unprecedented attacks on abortion  legislatively and literally  including the murder of three people at a Colorado Springs, Colorado, Planned Parenthood clinic in November.

So far, most Democrats have appeared deaf to these threats. The party must help candidates tell voters what their plans are for ensuring every womans right to decide if, when and how to become a parent  free from violence and government interference.

In a recent New York Times Magazine interview, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida, the Democratic National Committee chairwoman, said she sees a complacency among young women who grew up after Roe v. Wade. She later acknowledged that she is unaware of some of the ways in which young people are organizing  clinic escorting, ensuring people are able to afford and have rides to and from their abortions and working in reproductive health care organizations.

Other party leaders have expressed ambivalence. I dont believe in abortion on demand, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi told Roll Call on Jan. 13. I dont even like to use the word abortion. Thats my generation  but this is something so personal.

Unlike Pelosi, I do not feel such reservations. I talk about my abortion openly and support increasing access to abortion because I believe every woman should have that option if she needs it. Its clear that the party leadership is perpetuating abortion stigma. This is isnt a generational crisis or a young peoples problem. There are hundreds of women who can share abortion stories. That is exactly what we need do to fight the Texas law that is currently before the Supreme Court and will be decided by the end of June. Among other restrictions, the law prohibits abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy and requires abortion clinics to meet hospital-style surgical standards  an unnecessary and costly burden.

Republican presidential candidates are arguing over who would ban abortion and contraception faster. And many anti-abortion politicians wont even have a conversation on increasing access to contraception. But what is the Democratic plan to challenge them?
Southern California might not seem like the malarial hotspot of the world, but through layers of secure doorways in a basement lab at the University of California, Irvine there is an innovation in genetically engineered mosquitos that could someday be a game changer for the spread of malaria. Currently, half the worlds population is at risk and 438,000 deaths occurred last year as a result of the disease. On this weeks TechKnow, contributor Kosta Grammatis delves deep into the world of a new species of genetically engineered mosquitos specifically targeted to stop the spread of malaria in urban India. The innovator in charge of this process is University of California, Irvines Distinguished Professor of Microbiology, Anthony James. He and his team have been working at eradicating malaria for 20 years. Professor James said, this is supposed to be for the benefit of poor peopleI always say we are willing to give it away, why not. The following was adapted from an interview with TechKnow. It has been edited for length and clarity.

TechKnow: What exactly are you doing at your lab? Anthony James: Im interested in contributing to controlling diseases that are transmitted by mosquitos. The reason is that they represent the biggest threats to human health worldwide and the two biggest examples that we have now are malaria and dengue fever. Theyre transmitted by mosquitoes and traditional ways of controlling the diseases have focused on going after the mosquitoes as well as going after the organisms that actually cause the disease. What is the concept behind your work? Theres a simple concept of taking a mosquito that would normally be able to transmit malaria, and (were) building a gene and putting that gene into a mosquito into such a way now that the mosquito can no longer transmit it. How does that work? One of the design features is that if we put this gene in, that it would completely eliminate the parasites (that cause malaria)We look in the development of the parasite in the mosquito, and we ask where this parasite is. We look for ways to target our gene to that specific area. Youre changing mosquito genes? Well, were actually giving them another gene so were giving them one extra gene in this case or a small package of genes that do things so they have everything they have before plus something extra and that extra prevents the parasite being transmitted by the mosquitoes.

TechKnow correspondent Kosta Grammatis and Professor James in the lab.

How can you see if your genes took? We have a microscope that has florescent capability and if they glow (red) then we know that they have our gene. But it does other things to prevent the spread of malaria? It does other things in the context of being able to spread itself. When we think about gene drive, you can imagine a truck and then a truck that has cargo. The gene drive component is the truck and then what the truck is carrying are our genes so we link our anti-malaria genes to the actual thing that moves the gene drive system.

Kosta gets a closer look at the mosquitoes under a special microscope.

Florescent glowing eyes help scientists determine if a mosquito is genetically engineered or not.
ISU volleyball defeats No. 1 Texas

Iowa State's upset over Texas marks the program's first win over the national top-ranked team since beating Nebraska in 2012.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Armenia has exported 76.678 tons of fruits and vegetables in 2015 against the 46.459 tons it exported at the same period a year before. Exportation of fruits and vegetables from Armenia to Russia amounted to 63.919 tons which is the 83% of the total volume. Exports to Russia formed 21.537 tons in 2014 which is the 45% of the total volume of exports.

Armenia exported 12 .188 tons of fruits and vegetables to Georgia, Belarus - 312 tons, Kazakhstan - 176 tons, whereas in 2014 Armenia exported a total of 18 tons of fruit and vegetables to Kazakhstan. Grape exports particularly increased which amounted to 13.086 tons in 2015 as compared with last years 8.000 tons.

Armenian Deputy Minister of Agriculture Robert Makaryan, introducing the mentioned data during the interview with Armenpress reporter, clarified that the growth of fruits and vegetables exports as compared with 2014 is conditioned by simplification and facilitating the procedures of movement of agricultural products.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture emphasized that there are absolutely no monopolies in fruit and vegetable export industry.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Poet Andrei Dementiev described him as a man fallen in love with life. He had so much humor and humanity that music was born from that kindness. He had an instinctive sense of beauty, the Russian writer said on one occasion about composer, pianist, SSR and USSR People's Artist, laureate of state prizes Arno Babajanyan.

As Armenpress reports, one of the greatest composers of Armenian composing art in the 20th century Arno Babajanyan would have turned 95 years old on January 22.

On January 21 or 22?

Arno Babajanyan was born on January 22, 1921, in Yerevan. According to some data, Babajanyans father changed his sons date of birth in the certificate after the death of Lenin in 1924 as January 21 had become annual day of mourning. At the age of 5, he was noticed by composer Aram Khachaturian, who recommended that Babajanyan must study music seriously. At the age of 9, Babajanyan wrote his first composition, 'Pioneer's March'.

Musical career start

In 1938 Babajanyan moved to Moscow and was admitted to the graduate level at the Gnesin School of Music, where he studied piano with Yelena Gnesina and composition with Vissarion Shebalin. He was a professor at the Yerevan Conservatory from 1950-1956. Since 1956 he lived and worked in Moscow.

Creative activity

While in Armenia Babajanyan composed his most celebrated concert works such as the 'Heroic Ballade' for piano and orchestra (1950), the 'Armenian Rhapsody' for two pianos (1950), and the acclaimed 'Piano Trio' (1952). Babajanyan became famous with his title song for the film 'Song of the First Love' (1958). It became a popular radio hit and a best-selling record in the former Soviet Union. The composers unique talent was also demonstrated in his songs with deep emotions. Babajanyans The best city on earth, Bridges, Do not rush and other songs are prominent which were created in Soviet Union and abroad.

Arno Babajanyan funds were established in Moscow, 1991 and in Yerevan, 1996. Armenian Philharmonic small concert hall, a street, and music school are named after him. Babajanyans monument was erected in 2003.

Prepared by Roza Grigoryan
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. The issue of extradition of detained Armenian driver Hrachya Harutyunyan continues to be discussed in Russian Federation, Head of the Armenian Republics Ombudsman's Office violence prevention department Yeranuhi Tumanyants informed Armenpress. Now the whole process is in the domain of the Armenian Ministry of Justice. The Ministry sent the relevant documents to the Russian Federation, and the mentioned issue is discussed there. But there is no final answer yet. We maintain a connection to his family, if there is such a need. They also know it is a long process. In case the complete consent is given, there will be an opportunity to transfer him, Tumanyants mentioned.

When asked whether in what time frame it will be possible to organize the extradition of Hrachya Harutyunyan, Tumanyants found it difficult to answer. In practice, 1, 1.5 and even 2 years may be required. In other words, in such cases complete study of the documents is required which is a long process. I repeat, there were cases in our practice when the extradition process took up to two years, he concluded.

Hrachya Harutyunyan, an Armenian truck driver, who was involved in a bus crash near Podolsk last summer that left 18 people dead and 40 others injured, was sentenced to 6 years and 9 months in prison. The accident happened on July 13, 2013 when a Kamaz truck carrying rubble, at the intersection crashed into a bus with 64 passengers, following from Podolsk to Kurilovo. As a result of the accident 18 people were lost, 40 more got wounds.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. PACEs resolutions of this or that kind do not have much significance in the world, they meanly have a blaze of publicity in the media, Armenpress reports, Executive Director of the Noravank Foundation Gagik Harutyunyan said, emphasizing that the European bureaucracy is in crisis.

There are serious problems within Europe itself connected with corruption. There is news being circulated that several thousands of European officials are comfortably off with billions of dollars. So it is not right saying that those resolutions have great significance. Regarding the tension on the border, I must say that its reduction or increase is not connected with these resolutions. This is connected with the policy led by Turkey and Azerbaijan, Harutyunyan said.

According to the expert, Azerbaijan will try to be more modest this year, which is connected with the deterioration of Russian-Turkish relations. Azerbaijan, as Harutyunyan considers, will try not to get ahead of its elder brother  Turkey.

If Azerbaijan and Turkey attempt to open a third front for Russia in Nagorno Karabakh, they will receive a tough answer, he concluded.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. The doors of the Republican party of Armenia have always been open for other political forces, public organizations and all the parties interested in cooperation.

MP of "Republican Party of Armenia" /RPA/ faction Lernik Aleksanyan said the aforementioned during the meeting with journalists on January 22, when speaking about the possibility of forming a coalition with "Armenian Revolutionary Federation".

First of all, I want to emphasize that it is not the first time that "Armenian Revolutionary Federation" has cooperated with the leadership. I think that RPA and "Armenian Revolutionary Federation are the political parties within our political arena that have many things in common in terms of preservation of national values and conservative ideology, the MP said.

Speaking about the spreading talks that "Armenian Revolutionary Federation wants to form a coalition in order to hold ministerial portfolios, Aleksanyan said that it is not possible to realize serious projects with 1-2 portfolios.

I think forming a coalition means agreeing with the social-economic policy led by the government. So, one can form a coalition even without any portfolios, as it is not possible to make serious changes by several portfolios. If one political force supports the policy led by another political force, it can form a coalition without asking for portfolios, the MP said, clarifying that the format of RPA-Armenian Revolutionary Federation cooperation has not yet been specified.

He concluded that in current complicated geopolitical situation all the political parties, as well as the society should be united in behalf of national interests.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) must understand that OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs are carrying out Nagorno karabakh conflict resolution and refrain from discussing unilateral reports which do not correspond to the announcements of co-chairs and settlement principles. National Assemblys RPA faction Secretary Gagik Melikyan expressed such opinion during the meeting with journalists on January 22. I do not think that such one-sided discussion can bring an honor to the PACE. It can also cause extra tension in other European structures as well as in the structure which is authorized to deal with the Nagorno-karabakh conflict, the deputy mentioned, as Armenpress reports, referring to 2 anti-Armenian reports involved in the agenda of PACE winter session which voting will be held on January 26.

Melikyan expressed confidence that the job carrying out by the Armenian delegation to PACE will give a positive result and the adoption of the mentioned reports will possibly fail.

PACE winter session will start on January 25. Two anti-Armenian reports are included in the session agenda. One of the draft resolutions is authored by British MP Robert Walter on Escalation of violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and the other occupied territories of Azerbaijan. The second draft resolution is titled Inhabitants of frontier regions of Azerbaijan are deliberately deprived of water by MP Milica Markovic (Bosnia and Herzegovina). Anti-Armenian resolutions will be put to the vote on January 26.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. On 22 January President Bako Sahakyan signed a decree on conferring the honorary title of the Nagorno Karabagh Republic Honored Art Worker to woodcarving craftsman Melik Vardanyan for substantial contribution in the maintenance, promotion and development of non-material cultural heritage.

The Pres Service of Artsakhs presidents office informed Armenpress about the aforementioned.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Republican Party of Armenia and ARF still discuss cooperation prospects, but there is no final decision over the format of the cooperation. RPA faction Secretary Gagik Melikyan told the journalists about the aforementioned in an interview with journalists on January 22. No one, either from the ruling camp or from opposition, have made any announcements about formation of a coalition. Meetings and discussions with different political forces are held, which is not something new. The political process will go on in the future; there are no final decisions yet. Meeting between the President and ARF representatives has taken place, but final results are not clarified yet, Armenpress reports, Melikyan mentioned.

Referring to the issue of cooperation, the MP said, The issue is over political cooperation which aims to ensure political and economic stability. RPA trusts all the political forces which are in favor of cooperation, and the rest will become clear after they engage in work. Any political cooperation in any country temporary nature: they can take place before elections, coalition formations occur either after or before elections, until the next elections. If the programs of any political force are identical to the programs of our political force, we trust that party, he said.

Referring to cooperation prospects with the ARF, Gagik Melikyan thinks that part of the well-known 7 points suggested by ARF have already been implemented. I hail Dashnaktsutyun for stubbornly pursuing its political statements and the implementation of those well-known points. In this context, those points mainly comply with our party program. Quite serious efforts have been made to implement them, Gagik Melikyan said, adding that the ARF is on the right path.

On January 21, after RPA executive body session, RPA National Assembly faction member, Executive Body member Gagik Minasyan told the journalists that the Republican Party of Armenia and Armenian Revolutionary Federation continue discussions over the format of future cooperation but there is no final decision of the cooperation format.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. On January 21, during the meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council, head of the Armenian Republics mission, Ambassador Arman Kirakosyan made an announcement on the 9th anniversary of Agos newspapers editor in chief Hrant Dinks murder. The Press, information and Public Relations Department of the Armenian MFA informed Armenpress on the aforementioned.

Armenian Ambassador shared OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatovics expressed expectation in media report of January 19 which read that the organizers of Hrant Dinks murder will be subjected to responsibility which will show the public the significance of the fight against violence towards journalists and freedom of speech.

He mentioned that Armenia consistently supports the press freedom and the security of journalists and human rights defenders. Intimidation of journalists, human rights defenders and community leaders and the inability to respond over the murders and violence against them creates an atmosphere of impunity thereby encouraging intolerance towards the country's official stance opposing any idea.

In this context, Armenian side pointed out the reaction of the Turkish government against the Turkish intellectuals who dared to raise a voice in support of a wide array of Turkish society. Emphasizing that an investigation was opened against them on the basis of Article 301 of the Turkish Republics Criminal Code which was previously used to accuse and condemn Hrant Dink.

Ambassador Kirakosyan appreciated the fact that a significant segment of Turkish society came out for the protests to commemorate the 9th anniversary of the Hrant Dinks murder calling for subjecting all the organizers to responsibility. Armenian representative also called the Turkish authorities to respond properly to the mentioned calls.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Newly-appointed Ambassador of Bangladesh to Armenia Jashim Uddin handed over his credentials to the Republic of Armenia President Serzh Sargsyan.

As Armenpress was informed by the Department of Public Relations and Mass Media of the Office to the President of the Republic of Armenia, President Sargsyan congratulated and wished success to the Ambassador during his diplomatic mission in our country. He stated that as Jashim Uddin is the first Ambassador of Bangladesh to Armenia, his mission is more important and responsible, as it is aimed at creating firm basis for continual development of bilateral interstate relations, as well as strengthening the friendship between the two peoples. President Sargsyan once again emphasized the creation of a legal framework for cooperation development.

The interlocutors expressed their conviction that the appointment of the Ambassador to Armenia and Armenias readiness to appoint its Ambassador to Bangladesh speaks about the two countries' will and resolution to develop the relations.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Valery Permyakovs court hearing at Russian 102th military base in Gyumri has been carried over till January 29 at 12:00, as the victims successors, namely the daughters of the Avetisyans - Anahit Koshtoyan and Lusine Avetisyan - were not able to participate in the interrogation.

As Armenpress correspondent reports, the other witnesses will be will be notified about the next court hearing.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. The Co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group  Igor Popov of the Russian Federation, James Warlick of the United States of America, and Pierre Andrieu of France issued a statement on the discussion fact of anti-Armenian resolution. As Armenpress reports, the Co-chairs recalled in the announcement that the only acceptable format of the resolution of Nagorno Karabakh conflict is Minsk Group over.

We understand that the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) may consider resolutions on the conflict in the near future and remind PACE, and other regional and international organizations, that the Minsk Group remains the only accepted format for negotiations. We appreciate the interest paid by PACE members, but urge that steps not be taken which could undermine the Minsk Groups mandate from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe or complicate ongoing negotiations.

Co-chairs informed that they welcome efforts to find a negotiated settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and are prepared to work cooperatively with those committed to a peaceful settlement.

PACE winter session will start on January 25. Two anti-Armenian reports are included in the session agenda. One of the draft resolutions is authored by British MP Robert Walter on Escalation of violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and the other occupied territories of Azerbaijan. The second draft resolution is titled Inhabitants of frontier regions of Azerbaijan are deliberately deprived of water by MP Milica Markovic (Bosnia and Herzegovina). Anti-Armenian resolutions will be put to the vote on January 26.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Vice President of Armenia National Assembly, Head of Armenia-Greece Parliamentary Friendship Group Eduard Sharmazanov who is on an official visit in Greece, met with the Secretary General of the Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy, Deputy Foreign Minister of Greece Mr. Ioannis Amanatidis on January 21.

Vice President of Armenia National Assembly expressed his gratitude that the Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy condemned the Armenian Genocide with a resolution. He emphasized that it is necessary to jointly struggle in behalf of condemnation of the Christians genocide and against Turkeys denial. Armenpress was informed about it by the Staff of the Vice President of the National Assembly of Armenia Eduard Sharmazanov.

Ioannis Amanatidis expressed his satisfaction for the statement unanimously adopted by Armenia National Assembly on March 24, last year condemning the genocide of the Greeks and the Assyrians in the Ottoman Empire.

The interlocutors also discussed regional issues. Exceptionally peaceful solution of all conflicts was mutually emphasized.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Iran hopes to join the World Trade Organization this year. Armenpress reports Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's chief of staff Mohammad Nahavandian told Sputnik, calling to expedite the process.

The European Union, the United Nations and partially the United States lifted on January 16 their sanctions against the Islamic republic after the International Atomic Energy Agency verified Tehrans compliance with the nuclear agreement.

"I hope so," he said when asked if Iran could become a member of the WTO in 2016.

He said that the request has already been sent. Iran is currently an observer in the organization.

"The only thing is that a working party has to be held. And I think that will be expedited," he said.








Sometimes I wonder why I spend my lonely nights wondering about the mindset of petulant people and groups who wallow in animosity and hatred towards those with whom they disagree. Above all, the haters of Israel and the prejudiced, sometimes anti-Semitic, boycotters of Israel haunt my reveries.

The latest instance of this deplorable mindset is the revelation that a young woman, named Amira Jumaa, said to be 20 years old, a Kuwait national whose mother is a Palestinian from Jordan, a former student at the prestigious Paris Institute of Political Studies, usually referred to as Science Po, made repulsive remarks about Jews on Facebook.

In an online debate with an Israeli student, Jumaa wrote to him, You dont belong anywhere in this world-thats why you guys are scum and rats and discriminated against wherever you are. Do not blame it on the poor Palestinians. I am not an immigrant from France. I am from Kuwait so my country can buy you and your parents and put you in ovens.

Her comments were made public in October 2015 in the website blog, The Inglourious Basterds, named after the 2009 film of the same name directed by Quentin Tarantino, about American Jewish soldiers who hunted Nazis in World War II.

Jumaa has been punished in two ways for her disgraceful remarks. She was at first suspended in October 2015 from Sciences Po, the world-class institution that ranks first in Continental Europe for political and international studies. Its alumni, who must be ashamed of Jumaa, have included hundreds of prominent and distinguished figures, including the last four and five of the last six presidents of France, more than 30 heads of foreign states, and former heads of the United Nations, the IMF, the European Bank, and diplomats, major business leaders, and bankers.

After a college disciplinary committee hearing by five professors and five students, Jumaa was expelled in December 2015 from Sciences Po, the first student ever to be expelled since the creation of the school in 1872. Also, she was immediately dismissed from her position in the cultural division in the French Consulate in New York, where she had been an intern as part of a school program.

Although so young, Jumaa, who is said to be very wealthy, a jet setter and a horseback rider, also worked in the Kuwaiti Embassy in Athens. That embassy issued no statement about the nature of her remarks.

What is most disturbing about the remarks was not simply the expected anti-Israel tirade and her advocacy of a boycott of Israel but the crude anti-Semitism, referring to the Holocaust. Her behavior provides a timely warning for those in the U.S. engaging in intense anti-Israeli activity. Though they are of course not connected to Jumaa in any possible way, the recent proponents in the U.S. of boycott of Israel must be concerned about the link of anti-Israel animus and anti-Semitic prejudice that she has illustrated.

The recent culprits of the intense bias against Israel are familiar: the American Studies Association (ASA) in December 2013, the American Anthropological Association in November 2015, and the National Womens Studies Association in December 2015. These groups do not openly profess anti-Semitic opinions as does Jumaa, though some of them have talked of symbolic action to cleanse Israel. But all of them have called for a boycott of Israel academic institutions and, usually, Israeli personnel.

Hypocritically, they have spoken of this as concerned engagement. Yet in effect, it is the exact opposite. It is a refusal to engage in a normal dialogue with scholars who should be colleagues. The boycotters are opposing the very institutions that are the center of freedom of expression and major contributors to human welfare.

Jumma, the Kuwaiti young woman, issued a grave threat to the existence of Jews as well as to the State of Israel. The Americans have issued a grave threat to academic freedom. The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) has criticized the boycotters and their selective boycott of Israel for acting against the fundamental principles of academic freedom and free exchange of ideas. Indeed, the boycotters have imposed an ideological litmus test. Political or religious views cannot be used as a test for participation in an academic community. Moreover, the boycotters, who perhaps think of themselves as liberal humanitarians, are in effect counterproductive reactionaries preventing the search for peace and discouraging Palestinian authorities from coming to the negotiating table.

These boycotters, moreover, have perverted the purpose of their own professional organizations. For example, 1,800 people attended the business meeting of the Anthropological Association on November 20, 2015, the largest number in its history. Their main purpose was not to vote on any anthropological issue but on boycott of Israeli academic institutions. At the meeting, 88.4 per cent, 1040-136, voted in favor of the resolution to boycott Israeli academic institutions and not to enter into any formal collaboration with Israeli academic institutions, ostensibly until Israeli academics end their complicity with Israels human rights violations.

It would be enticing to know what exact anthropological perspectives the 88.4 per cent supposedly concerned with human rights brought to the cancer research, DNA-based biological computer, the vaccines for diabetes and the examining conditions for Alzheimers at the Weizmann Institute in Rehovot, or to the Brain Labs at the Hadassah Medical Center.

In spring 2016, the full membership, about 12,000, of AAA will vote electronically on the November boycott resolution. The sensible and reasonable members might ponder if they want to have the disgraced Amira Jumaa as an intellectual soul mate. Anthropologists, like all sensible people, should confront the evil words of Jumaa and the evil deeds of Islamist terrorists. Implicitly, her message was that Jews are unwelcome in the world and can be put in ovens. The AAA must show it does not share her views by renouncing the boycott resolution.
For those of us who are steeped in high-tech celebrity minutiae, it was bound to happen. Steve Jobs, founder of the most highly-valued company in American history, has posthumously become a poster boy for those supporting Syrian immigration to the U.S. Jobs was conceived in Homs, Syria, his biological fathers hometown, during a summer visit with his girlfriend. Abdulfattah John Jandali had met Steve's mother, Joanne Carol Schieble, at the University of Wisconsin where he eventually completed a PhD in political science. Jandali hoped to marry Jobs mother but Steve was given up for adoption after Schiebles strict Catholic father of German decent prohibited her from marrying a Muslim.

Steve Jobs technological genius rejuvenated the American entrepreneurial pioneering spirit for a new generation. The personal computer, iPod and iPhone changed the world and restored Americas reputation as its foremost innovator.

In his autobiography, Dreams from my Father, Barack Obama described the powerful influence that his Kenyan Muslim father, who abandoned him, had on his life. That outsider attitude has weakened America both at home and abroad during his presidency.

If Obama hadnt withdrawn American troops from Iraq, the Islamic State wouldnt have come into existence and control extensive areas of Syria today. ISIS has openly boasted that they intend to infiltrate terrorists into the West along with the Syrian refugees. There is risk associated with bringing anybody in from the outside, but especially from a conflict zone like that, said FBI director James Coney. He added that particularly worrisome are encrypted communications via mobile devices that allow operatives to link to cells around the world undetected.

Ironically, the late Jobs personal history is being used to boost Obamas plan to bring Syrian refugees to the U.S. It began with a tweet by entrepreneur David Galbraith that contained a picture of Jobs, who is highly venerated in the tech community, simply captioned: A Syrian immigrants son.

Last month, Bansky, the elusive British-based graffiti artist revealed a portrait of Steve Jobs as a Syrian immigrant: sack cast over his shoulder and an early Macintosh in hand. The graffiti was painted on a wall of the refugee camp in Calais, France dubbed the jungle. The taciturn Banksy, who refuses to be photographed, released a rare statement about his intention: Were often led to believe migration is a drain on the countrys resources but Steve Jobs was the son of a Syrian migrant. Apple is the worlds most profitable company, it pays over $7bn a year in taxes -- and it only exists because they allowed in a young man from Homs.

America's historic exceptionalism is that we are a country of immigrants, but can we reverse engineer a super-achiever down to the gene-level? What caused Steve Jobs to think different?

Barack Obama clearly felt the absence of his father. Steve Jobs, on the other hand, considered his adoptive parents to be his real family. Having located his real progenitors, he chose to contact only his mother. When I was looking for my biological mother, obviously... I was looking for my biological father and I learned a little bit about him and I didn't like what I learned, Jobs told his biographer Walter Isaacson.

Was Steve ashamed that his father, a non-practicing Muslim, was an immigrant? Probably not. Jobs urged President Obama to allow foreigners who earned an engineering degree in the U.S. to be allowed to stay.

John Jandali, 84, is a successful immigrant. After completing his PhD, he taught in various universities before going into the restaurant business. He eventually became vice-chairman of Boom Town Casino in Reno, Nevada. Jandali had some intellectual capital which he must have passed on to Steve. His family in Syria had financial capital as well.

Steve Job's Syrian grandfather was a self-made millionaire with interests in oil and other businesses. He owned several entire villages and at one point pretty much controlled the price of wheat in the region. In authoritarian clan-oriented Syria, success is rarely based on marketing genius and democratic management techniques. Did Jobs somehow inherit his well-known abrasiveness and authoritarian executive ways from his paternal grandfather? Perhaps not. John Jandali, who until recently managed 450 workers at the casino, had a quiet leadership style very much unlike his son's.

Money is often inherited, but does being the grandson of a millionaire give one a genetic predisposition to become a billionaire?

Jobs insisted that his adoptive parents were my parents 1,000 percent. Paul Jobs worked as a machinist for a firm that made lasers. He taught Steve how to build beautiful things and the rudiments of electronics. Growing up in Silicon Valley, his neighbors were engineers. He got a summer job at Hewlett-Packard while in high school. These are the influences that helped create Apple. Yet some have called John Jandli "the father of invention."

Steve is my biological son, but I didnt bring him up. So if its said that Im the father of invention, then thats because my biological son is a genius and my daughter a brilliant writer... but Im no inventor. Jandli said in an interview.

That brilliant writer is novelist Mona Simpson, Job's sister. Shortly after Steve was given up for adoption, Schieble's father, who had been so against the union with Jandali, died. They then married. Mona was born, but the marriage broke up a few years later. When he was thirty-one, Jobs established a relationship with his mother and sister but was apparently upset that his father had abandoned the whole family. He never contacted him.

In his State of the Union speech, Barack Obama said that American's spirit of discovery is in our DNA, citing examples of mostly women and minority technology pioneers. Steve Jobs was not mentioned. Always looking to push his liberal immigration agenda the president added, We're every immigrant and entrepreneur from Boston to Austin to Silicon Valley racing to shape a better world.

The president spoke of a collective DNA. I really am not his dad acknowledged John Jandali, Mr. and Mrs. Jobs are, as they raised him. His biological father admitted that his Arab origins didn't mean much to Steve Jobs, I dont think he pays much attention to these gene-related things, he said.

Many Middle Easterners did count Steve Jobs as one of them, calling him the most famous Arab in the world Yet most were compelled to admit that: If he had lived and died in Syria, he would not have accomplished anything.

Americas success is the result of the confluence of a diverse gene pool in a land of great resources and democratic opportunity. That achievement must be protected by restricting immigration when it becomes a geopolitical danger.

Who knows -- there may great high-tech entrepreneurs among the 10,000 Syrian immigrants that Barack Obama wants to add to the American dream, but there may also be ISIS fanatics who wish to destroy that dream. They may even use iPhones with full encryption as tools of terror. While refugees are as old as history, its a brave new world. This requires us to think different about immigrants than we have in the past. In the meantime, we can help the Syrians on their own soil. By preserving our democracy, freedoms and entrepreneurial spirit, we can be confident that Americas shared DNA will eventually provide us with the next Steve Jobs.
The recent publication of a close-up of Lena Dunham's naked bottom as season's greeting from America's new sweetheart prompts a moment of psychoanalysis.

Fundamentally, Dunham's repulsive presence is political propaganda. Totalitarianism maintains its control through fear and imposition of the irrational, inhumane, and self-destructive mental condition generally termed dissociation. The vulgarity and obscenity of many female comics play a role in inducing that malleable mental state in people who have fallen into attenuated connections with God and conscience. Dunham leads the pack of the propagandistas of the disgusting.

On the material plane, it is wrong to draw any comparison between contemporary American sociopolitics and the horrors of Nazism. But on the psychological level, especially regarding the psychodynamics of the descent into totalitarianism, parallels exist. In her fervent promotion of the prosaic abortion, Lena Dunham plays the role of an Adolph Eichmann for today's creepy American totalitarianism.

Last Halloween, looking for a costume that would be "newsy and sexy" Dunham arrayed herself as a Planned Parenthood (PP) abortionist. The newsiness is obvious. Last October, PP was in the news with videotapes of doctors talking about extracting fetuses to preserve body parts for sale and films of those procedures. The sexiness to Dunham of performing abortions is less obvious, but here's a hypothesis. For Dunham, sexiness and power are inseparable. Sex has nothing to do with physical love shared in private. The purpose of sex is power publicly claimed. Dunham's impact lies in inexhaustible variations on the theme of disgusting, valued not for her number of actual admirers, but for her corrosive effects on morality and culture. She is enabled by the inescapable HBO, which no longer has to care if anyone is actually watching.

Dunham has exploited her ability to be impishly disgusting all of her life. It is her only talent. She works it unrelentlingly. That which many people find cruel or repellent Dunham celebrates as trendy, sexy newsiness. She claps and coos at a PP clinic as if she is at a festive occasion, because she is. Doctors who save lives are not her heroes. She idolizes abortionists because unconsciously, she wishes to share in the sexiest power of all  to kill human beings.

Dissociation is a mental state caused by abuse in which the mind dulls and clouds over, making it more difficult to act for one's own happiness, welfare, and safety. A totalitarian regime, be it communist, Nazi, or progessivist, cultivates this overcast and immobilized consciousness in several ways. It undermines the personal, private sphere of life  the home and natural family  and places the pre-eminence of the state, aka the village, above the home. Secondly, totalitarianism undermines morality based on God and theistic religion. In the United States, that is the Judeo-Christian code. The state, through its educational and propaganda systems, tries to indoctrinate a new code of conduct based on the regime's ideology. The regime redefines good and evil, ostensibly to benefit the volk, or folks, a word often used in Obamaspeak. Private economic success is redefined as greed. The natural family becomes a harmful patriarchy, where abuse and oppression arise. The state assumes control over basic necessities for children. Privacy of personal information protects only people who have something to hide.

But American progressivism departs from communism and Nazism in its special reliance on moral chaos. There is no propaganda for a worker's Shangri-La or an Aryan paradise. In America today, virtue is the stumbling block to pacification. Apart from hopes for heaven, the temporal benefit of morality based on spiritual absolutes is that it conserves energy to be used for important purposes. Moral chaos makes any lawful, worthwhile political progress almost unattainable. For example, students preoccupied with sexuality and "gender," no matter how gifted they may be, are prisoners of the unimportant and will be easy to placate and control.

Unlike the great communist powers or the Nazi Reich, the United States has not had a revolution since its founding and has not explicitly overthrown or replaced the statement of identity contained in the Declaration of Independence or the plan for government called the Constitution. Therefore, the descent into socialist tyranny is led by hypocrites spouting about rights but really just enriching and aggrandizing themselves in destroying the economic and moral order, without proposing a workable alternative.

Eichmann's role was antithetical to celebrity. He was a cog in a massive, out-of-sight killing machine. Today, celebrity is essential to the destruction of morality and in the service of the American killing machine.

Comedy, especially, seems to serve the cause of desensitizing the public to raunch. Female comics in particular have abandoned the craft of humor in favor of dull crudity. Whether Kathy Griffin's bucket of female genitalia or the lewdness of Amy Shumer or Chelsea Handler, female comics seem to lead the way in distasteful unfunniness.

Historians make it clear that Adolph Eichmann was not very intelligent. He was an average man with a knack for the bureaucracy of evil. Lena Dunham has a parallel knack. Eichmann was called the "desk murderer." Dunham characterizes her nationally televised sex acts as just another day at the office. Eichmann and Dunham were and are ordinary people playing special roles in the respective totalitarian initiatives of their times. In Not that Kind of Girl, Dunham brags that when she was eight, she could shock and disarm adults by saying, "When I'm bad my father sticks a fork in my vagina." At twelve, she describes riding a bicycle with a boy of similar age, pulling her shirt off; the feelings of the other child did not seem exist for her. While at Oberlin, she writes that she threw a used tampon into the bushes in front of a church.

There is a tendency to want to view an Eichmann or Dunham as sick. But they are not sick. They are self-deluded with a hunger for power.

The Nazi regime did not exterminate Jews at its onset, and the earliest American progressives could not have foreseen the enormity of government support for Planned Parenthood clinics.

The totalitarian regime reaches full psychological dissociation when a class of human beings is deemed a threat to public welfare and its elimination is necessary and salubrious, and comes to be regarded as banal. Eichmann reportedly said five million people on his conscience would be for him a source of extraordinary satisfaction. Lena Dunham is also pleased with herself and passionate for her cause and its millions and millions of successes.
The recent controversy over the eligibility of Ted Cruz for the office of the Presidency is one of those conundrums embedded in the U.S. Constitution. That august document is full of ambiguous words and phrases that challenge even the strictest and most principled interpreters. The phrase natural born citizen could mean any number of things. For example, at the time of birth:

At least one parent is a U.S. citizen. Both parents are U.S. citizens. The birth occurs in a state of the United States. The birth occurs in a state of the United States or in a territory thereof.

There is truly unanimous agreement that if both 2 and 3 are satisfied, there is no question that the child is a natural born citizen. In the early days of the Republic, the parental requirement was interpreted as patrimonial. Of course at that time, citizenship was restricted to free white persons, but a combination of the Fourteenth Amendment and various statutes have eliminated the gender issue and nowadays. I have never heard anyone try to distinguish between 1 and 2, so let us stipulate that 1 and 3 together are enough. It is nearly universally accepted that 4 is as good as 3.

That leaves us with 1 and 4 together as being sufficient for natural born citizenship. Beyond that, if neither parent is a citizen nor does the birth occur inside American territory, nobody would suggest that the person is a natural born citizen. I apologize for the preceding rather pedantic discussion, but I want to have absolute clarity on the key question. That question is:

Does either having one American parent or suitable geographic location by itself qualify?

In the current instance, liberal hack (my opinion) law professors like Laurence Tribe argue that an American parent by itself is not enough. I have not heard his opinion on the companion question, but it is my guess that he would deem a baby born on American soil to illegal aliens to be natural born citizens because that is part of the current politically correct agenda. Ironies abound. What is the principle by which one chooses one criterion over the other? Liberal law professors generally are willing to disregard the actual language of the Constitution to find new features in the penumbra of the document. But here they become strict interpreters of ambiguous language. When it suits them, they ignore the plain meaning of words in the Constitution to let it be a living document. How adorable!

Conservatives have no cause for smugness. There is some mildly ambiguous language in the 14th Amendment concerning the citizenship of babies born on American soil. Recently, a lot of conservative legal scholars have adopted the opinion that those babies are not American citizens at all, let alone natural born citizens. I call that sophistry, unworthy of principled interpretive standards. When it comes to free speech and press, conservatives say that no means no. Liberals attacking the decision in Citizens United argue that free speech and press adhere to individuals and not to corporations. Yet they do not deny freedom of the press to corporations like newspapers. Conservatives correctly read the Second Amendment as guaranteeing a right to bear arms to individuals, while liberals seize on an ambiguous reference to a well-regulated militia. The most obvious way to interpret the plain language of the Constitution is to protect speech both by individuals and groups of individuals like corporations. Similarly, the plain language of the Second Amendment guarantees an individual right to bear arms. Also similarly, the language of the Fourteenth Amendment seems to give citizenship to anyone lucky enough to be born on American soil. Can you wiggle around the words to negate these interpretations? Of course you can, but it seems strained and disingenuous. Perhaps the authors meant to include only those born on American soil to a mother who is here legally. If so, they should have written it that way.

Getting back to the main discussion, either location or one American parent is enough to grant to a baby American citizenship from birth on, perhaps even from conception (hint to conservatives: think abortion).

The entire controversy boils down to whether citizen at birth and natural born citizen mean two different things. I can only say that I have heard no principled argument based in the Constitution for that distinction. Absent such an argument, anyone conceived by an American parent or who is born on American soil is a natural born citizen. Is it really plausible that the founders really meant to create three categories of citizenship, natural born, citizen from birth but not natural, and non-citizen at birth but acquired later in life via naturalization? Yet they did not actually say so? The only principled conclusion is that citizen at birth and natural born citizen are synonymous.

Aside from the merits of the case, by what mechanism can one interpretation or another actually be enforced? Donald Trump seems to think the courts should have a decisive role. Does he really think the Supreme Court would give a declaratory judgment? Would anything from a lesser court carry any weight? I would argue that the courts should have no role. The Constitution prescribes the method of electing Presidents. The voters in each state choose (literally chuse) electors in a manner prescribed by state legislatures. Those electors vote and the result must be certified by Congress. By this mechanism, the Constitution effectively cedes to Congress the sole power to judge the eligibility of a presidential candidate. Congress must interpret the words of Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution. There is no hint in the Constitution that any other branch of government or institution can reverse a Congressional decision on this point. Once Congress certifies the election, any constitutional challenge to eligibility is moot. No court would try to remove a sitting president from office. The only remaining Constitutional remedy is impeachment by the House and removal from office by the Senate as prescribed in the Constitution.

In the current instance, there is no realistic chance that Congress would annul the result of an election by refusing to certify a candidate over the supposed ambiguity of the term natural born. But it is only Congress that could enforce any eligibility requirement. That should put this whole silly thing to rest. Ted Cruz can be elected President. So can the child of an American mother born in Kenya, even if such an improbable event were to occur!

One scenario remains. The courts are so out of control that surely some liberal judge will agree to hear a challenge to Ted Cruz and rule against him. That could happen anytime between now and the election or beyond. It is far from clear that any federal court even has the power to enjoin a state from allowing a slate of electors to be on the ballot. One can only hope that a quickly facilitated appeal to the Supreme Court would resolve the matter correctly. That is what happened in the Bush-Gore lawsuit in 2000, where a 5-4 decision* saved the nation from a constitutional crisis.

Our highly politicized courts remain a ticking time bomb for our Republic. Maybe SOTUS needs to step up and break with tradition by issuing an unsolicited opinion now. Will they? No way. Instead, precedent will triumph over justice as it usually seems to.

*Richard Baehr notes: "The Supreme Court decision in Bush v Gore was not 5-4, but 7-2, with Souter and Breyer joining 3 conservatives, and 2 moderates- Kennedy and OConner. This vote was to overturn the Florida Supreme Court decision to force a statewide recount based on the equal protection clause of the Constitution. The 5-4 vote was on a secondary issue of what to do next -- in this case, end the process.
It is long past time that the Bible be taught, discussed, analyzed, explained, and understood in every public school in the United States.

Of course, there is historical precedent for this, and it doesnt take too much research into American education before you realize that our current practice of purging the Bible from the schoolroom is a modern phenomenon facilitated by an insufferable minority intent on raping the First Amendment in their effort to impose a secular agenda on the nation. Its time to ignore these perpetually offended radicals whose dogmatic opposition to any government recognition of religion is as irrational as the very fundamentalist zealots burning copies of Huckleberry Finn that they claim to oppose.

If a student graduates from high school without an understanding of basic addition and subtraction, we say the school has failed. Why? Because those are the foundation of understanding mathematics.

If a student graduates from high school without an understanding of basic grammar and spelling, we say the school has failed. Why? Because those are the foundation of understanding the language necessary to function in society.

If a student graduates from high school without an understanding of mitosis and photosynthesis, we say the school has failed. Why? Because those are the foundation of understanding the natural world.

And the dirty little truth is that if a student graduates from high school without an understanding of the Bible, we should say the school has failed. Why? Because it is the foundation of understanding Western Civilization.

Regardless of the internal distress it may cause the isolation of church and state crowd, there is, intellectually speaking, no denying the impact of the Bible upon the European countries that seeded our civilization. Theres no questioning that the backbone of law in Western Civilization, embodied most notably in the work of Sir William Blackstone, was predicated upon the Moral Law of God articulated in Scripture. Theres no avoiding the reality that the history of Western art, music, literature, language, and culture is flush with biblical references and overtones.

Im not suggesting teaching Creationism in Biology class. This isnt about teaching Christian doctrine in exclusion to other religions in some sham comparative religions course. No, school boards should be implementing cultural, literary, and historical Bible courses that are court-tested and constitutionally approved.

The Bible Literacy Project is currently taught in over 600 American high schools in 43 states. Given that it is not religious indoctrination but rather cultural literacy, the question isnt whether or not it is responsible to offer such courses in our schools; the real questions is whether or not it is irresponsible to fail to offer some introduction to the most influential book in the history of the world.

After all, what text does Shakespeare reference no less than 1,200 times in his plays? What text was the source of countless Negro spirituals, embodying the invincible spirit of American slaves? What text offered the context for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s "Letter from a Birmingham Jail"? What text has welcomed the hand of almost every American president taking his oath of office?

Simply put, an educated person knows the Bible. Ignoring or denying that reality isnt a recipe for tolerance or equality, but for cultural confusion and decay.

And how bad has it gotten? How ignorant have we become of the foundations upon which our civilization is built? Consider just a handful of recent examples of Biblical illiteracy amongst our so-called intelligentsia. These arent average citizens being interviewed by Jay Leno with a microphone. These are experts and journalists with advanced degrees from leading universities. These are Pulitzer Prize winning reporters and elites. And they are staggeringly clueless.

Start with Washington Post journalist Kathleen Parker who recently embarrassed herself, not understanding that Ted Cruzs appeal to the body of Christ refers to the church and not the physical body of Jesus. The New York Times is just as bad. Columnist David Brooks confused Jesus with Paul and wrongly placed Saul, David and Esther in the Jewish Torah. And keep in mind all of those mistakes flew right past the highest-priced editors you will find. This is the consequence of an intentional deprivation of biblical exposure.

To say our country is well served by having people who are biblical buffoons acting as intellectuals expounding on issues that matter is the height of societal suicide. If you have no understanding or appreciation of your civilizations cornerstone, history confirms you have no hope of its survival.

Peter Heck is a speaker, author and teacher. Follow him @peterheck, email peter@peterheck.com or visit www.peterheck.com.
On October 10, 2015, a bill was introduced in the U.S. Congress to counter the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel. By the U.S.-Israel Trade and Commercial Enhancement Act, U.S. trade negotiators are instructed to discourage potential trade partners from engaging in economic discrimination or participating in or promoting acts of BDS against Israel. The bill seeks to eliminate the politically motivated boycott and barriers on Israeli goods, services, and other commerce imposed on the State of Israel.

President Barack Obama and the U.S. Congress should relate this firm statement to the shameful behavior of the European Union. It is generally assumed that the EU and Israel share common values. Yet on January 18, 2016, the European Council of the European Union issued yet another of its fatuous conclusions on the Middle East peace process. It was "deeply concerned about the continuing cycle of violence" in Israel and the Palestinian territory in recent months. It recalled the special significance of the holy sites and called for the upholding of the status quo put in place in 1967 for the Temple Mount/al-Haram al-Saharif.

With the moral equivalence that it illustrates to perfection, the EU urged "all parties" not to worsen the situation by way of incitement or provocation and called on all parties to condemn attacks when they occur.

The remembrance by EU ministers and officials of things past is uneven, if not schizophrenic. Absent from its memory is any note of the unprovoked Palestinian violence that has "worsened" the situation in recent months. The EU memory is steeped in the Palestinian Narrative of Victimhood. There is no hint in it of the corruption and inefficiency of Palestinian authorities and the intent of some to start Intifada III, let alone their refusal to come to the negotiating table for peace. Above all, not a word is said or thought about the Palestinians wielding knives to stab innocent Israelis to death. The EU did not point out that since October 1, 2015, Palestinians have killed, by stabbings, car-ramming, and attacks by guns, 24 Israelis and a U.S. citizen. Israeli soldiers, in defense, have killed 93 terrorists, and another 50 died in clashed with Israeli security forces.

What is present in a full way is the reiteration of EU opposition to the policy of Israeli settlements, which it considers illegal and an obstacle to peace. So is the EU "strong opposition" to actions such as building the separation barrier, which more properly may be considered an Israeli security fence, beyond the 1967 line, demolitions and confiscations, illegal outposts, and restrictions of movement.

The EU, like the U.N. General Assembly, holds Israel to a double standard. No censure applies to other territorial conflicts such as those in northern Cyprus (Turkey), Western Sahara, Kashmir (India), or Tibet (China). This is now shown in a dramatic way. The EU decided on November 11, 2015 to issue guidelines for the labeling of exports originating from Israeli settlements in the West Bank. They cannot be labeled "Made in Israel." The EU says the objective of the labeling policy is to distinguish between goods made inside the internationally accepted borders of Israel and those outside. Britain, Belgium, and Denmark already do this.

There are seven factors the EU should have considered.

The first is the humiliating analogy of its boycott with Nazi Germany, which was the last country in Europe to label Jewish products.

A second factor is that in response to the EU action, Israel on November 29, 2015, announced it was suspending diplomatic contacts with those EU bodies and institutions, though not necessarily individual states, involved in peace negotiations with the Palestinians. It would continue business as usual with EU member-states.

The third basic issue, referring to recognized boundaries, is that most of the Arab countries and certainly the Palestinians do not recognize the legitimacy of the State of Israel, let alone borders.

A fourth is the fact that economically, the effect of the EU decision is minimal. The produce going to the EU from the settlements is worth about $50 million a year  mainly grapes, dates, wine, poultry, and cosmetics, compared to almost $300 million's worth of goods made in the settlements every year. Also, Israel exports some $30 billion's worth of goods and services to the EU every year  about a third of all Israeli exports.

A sixth factor is that more than 20,000 Palestinians work in the settlements at a salary considerably higher than in Palestinian-run enterprises. They may consequently become unemployed as a result of the EU proposal, which is in effect a form of boycott.

A seventh factor is that the very imbalance of the EU on the Middle East itself prevents it from playing the larger role in the Middle East peace process that it desires.

At a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels on January 18, 2016, the ministers finally agreed on a joint statement on the degree to which they should stress a distinction between the country, Israel, and its occupied territories. Even the final softer text expresses that all agreements between the State of Israel and the EU must unequivocally and explicitly indicate they are not applicable to the territories occupied by Israel since 1967.

The ministers had spent several days in heated discussion and had been deadlocked over the statement concerning Israel's actions in the territories it has occupied since 1967. Interestingly, Greece, Cyprus, Romania, and Hungary were concerned that the criticism of Israel not be too strong, while Sweden, Ireland, and Malta pressed for tougher language.

It is noteworthy that the person most in favor of a stronger text against Israel was the Swedish foreign minister, Margot Wallstrom, who has already called for an investigation not of the Palestinian terrorists wielding their knives against Israeli civilians, but of how Israel deals with the knife-attackers.

President Obama and Congress now have the opportunity to implement the October 2015 bill. They should inform the EU that its boycott, call it what you will, will not be tolerated.
There seems to be a certain weariness in the formerly mainstream media when it comes to reporting on the Trump campaign. He's had them so many times they're behaving like those trout in popular catch-'n'-release western streams that have been hooked so often that they come out of the water dragging along like an old boot.

Instead, most negative energy now emanates from the right. This is because conservatives, and I include myself, are wedded to what we could call a conservative victory script  i.e., elect a strict constitutionalist president, Tea Party majorities in both houses, the right Supreme Court appointees, and so on down our flower-strewn imaginary road back to the former Republic.

And Trump doesn't fit into that scenario.

Well, so what? Isn't that cherished victory script only an illusion? As proof, we might look at what has happened with our state governments  in a word, nothing. Because despite all the hoopla about how many governorships and state legislatures Republicans now firmly control, those victories are essentially meaningless. None of these Republican governments has moved against the extreme left-wing taxpayer-funded mental health establishment or welfare establishment; curbed the absurd explosion of damaging zoning laws, tree commissions, and ridiculous environmental regulation at the local government level; dug out the Democrat endemic voter fraud in their big cities; or squashed taxpayer funded sexual propaganda  a list of conservative reforms that goes on and on, un-attempted, even unmentioned in our Republican-controlled state deliberative bodies.

Let's make this point with a hammer. In every Republican-controlled state I know something about, there is a state university sometimes absorbing hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars that has a significant plurality of professors doing their best to teach our young to despise America, its history, and the majority of its people. We all know this, yet the Republican state governments still provide them with an unbelievable level of job security, generous salaries, ridiculously brief working hours, enviable pensions, gold-plated medical plans, and paid travel both domestically and overseas so that they can conference with the like-minded.

Do Republican leaders come down on the side of the angels from time to time? Yes. Do they throw up the occasional great local like Scott Walker? Yes. But overall, the Republican Party at any and every level has shown it does not provide fertile soil for any return to republican values as much as it does a steady harvest of go-along-to-get-along Paul Ryans, John Kasichs, and Jeb Bushes.

And it's this template for governing imposed at the federal level that conservatives expect to lead us back to the promised land?

Wishful thinking, folks.

Enter Trump. I do not know if he is going to be the Republican nominee. I do not even know if I want such a thing. But what is evident is that a lot of voters are sensing, as I do, that there has to be some other path back home to America. Therefore they're willing, even eager to take a roll of the dice with Trump, bust things up, get some new thinking going, some fresh juice.

And humans being human, they enjoy the theater.

Just take solace in the fact that while we conservatives are going all angst and anger about this that or the other remark Trump is making in the midst of a campaign, the Democrats for the first time in memory are losing whatever slim grip they had on reality. Dazed and stupid with dread, they have to watch the formerly mainstream media begin to turn on Hillary  a development Fritz Pettyjohn wonderfully described as "the hive breaking up." They also can't come to terms with the idea that some great number of blacks might vote for Trump in the general election out of sympathy with his stand on immigration; that Reagan Democrats are likely to do a 2016 redux; or the fact that Trump has snatched Hillary's "War on Women" right out of her sweaty little paw and, turnabout being fair play, driven that stiletto deep into her own liver.

Something different is going on in America, and while your love interest might be getting unfairly gored, it's not as if candidates Cruz and Rubio themselves have their mouths wired shut. And so prudence demands that not only our candidates, but we conservatives ourselves think a little deeper about why this election year is unfolding the way it is and how we should position ourselves in order to best advance our cause.

Start thinking about a new victory script.

Before we inflict any Revenant-level wounds on each other.

Richard F. Miniter is the author of The Things I Want Most, Random House, BDD. See it here. He lives and writes in the colonial-era hamlet of Stone Ridge, New York; blogs here; and can also be reached at miniterhome@gmail.com.
In an effort to cut down on burritos contaminated with fecal matter, here in America, Chipotle Grill is working hard to teach undocumented workers, guilty of third-world bathroom habits, how to wash up before handling the refried beans.

Lesson #1: Failing to remove those hygienic-looking rubber gloves before visiting the restroom, and then handling the avocadoes and cilantro without putting on a new pair, does not make for a healthy crispy corn taco.

In any case, farther south, teams in Brazil are going door to door to educate residents about how to clean up standing water. The reason? Although standing water festering in a deflated tire can double as the watering station for feral dogs, it is also a breeding ground for, in this case, mosquitoes infected with the Zika virus.

Right now, in South America, Central America, and the Caribbean, Zika is considered pandemic.

Normally, the Zika virus causes only minor symptoms, but Brazilian health officials are concerned because, in the last three months, more than 3,500 children have been born with microcephaly, a typically rare condition that causes incomplete brain development and an unusually small head. Babies born with microcephaly usually dont survive more than one or two days.

Officials believe that the recent uptick in this ordinarily rare condition may be caused by the tremendous increase in Zika-infected mosquitoes.

In response, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention spokesman Tom Skinner is warning Americans that at least a dozen or so confirmed cases of Zika virus have been diagnosed in residents who traveled to countries where the mosquito-borne virus is currently spreading.

Here at home, Americans are being infected with things like scabies, Chikungunya virus, Chagas disease, chicken pox, and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections. These illnesses are part of an ever growing hodgepodge of imported diseases once foreign to North America.

Now that Zika virus has been added to that list, predictably illegal immigrant-friendly health officials/amnesty allies are making an effort to reassure the American public not to be nervous about yet another foreign virus. Why? Because Zika is dangerous only to unborn babies who contract the virus in utero.

Pregnant or not, what the CDC statement alludes to is that rather than the source being mosquitos currently residing in the U.S. mainland, or crossing the U.S. border in the backpack of an already infected illegal immigrant, the domestic cases cropping up are being blamed on travelers who came home with the virus after falling victim to foreign mosquitos.

Travelers? Coming home?

Blaming American travelers for illnesses endemic to the countries illegal immigrants migrate from is similar to the liberal mantra that Islamic terrorism is in no way tied to Islam.

In other words, if one were to be dumb enough to take the CDC seriously, Americans whose immune systems are presently under siege would have to believe that the Zika virus is not the result of hosts who have illegally crossed the Mexican border from countries where the virus is spreading.

If what the CDC is selling is true, then it would be quite a coincidence that four out of five of the states where the virus has been confirmed (Florida, Texas, New Jersey, and Illinois) also have the largest unauthorized immigrant populations.

It would also mean that the baby recently born in an Oahu hospital who was infected with the Zika virus couldnt have possibly been born with microcephaly, because his mother traveled from Brazil to have her baby in Hawaii.

And just because a woman with the disease happened to visit Bergen County after Thanksgiving, was diagnosed with Zika at Christmas, recovered, and has since returned to Colombia, that doesnt mean that the overabundance of illegal immigrants wandering around New Jersey who may have been bitten by a hungry mosquito should be suspect.

Thats why, if there is a similar increase in microcephaly in newborn babies born in the U.S., Americans shouldnt conduct themselves like the xenophobic fearmongers who blamed the throngs of unaccompanied minors last year for American children dying of Latin America-imported Enterovirus D-68.

Instead, Americans should believe what the government says and place the blame on vacation, not invasion.

And with that in mind, lets swat away those pesky mosquitoes flying around Chipotle Grill and dig into a burrito bowl prepared by a feverish, albeit hardworking, non-English-speaking undocumented food handler suffering from a rash and pinkeye.

Jeannie hosts a blog at www.jeannie-ology.com.
The headline at The Clarion Project reads: Christian Persecution in 2015 at Levels Akin to Ethnic Cleansing. The sub-heading notes that 2015 was the most violent year in modern history for Christians. It takes ones breath away to see the blunt truth summed up like that. And the world is turning a blind eye.

The article references a piece at Open Doors that provides an overview of the rise of Christian persecution around the world. (See summary below.)

In 2015, more than 7,000 Christians were killed because of their faith (twice as many as the year before). And the estimate is conservative because it excludes places where there is ongoing persecution but where accurate records dont exist (such as in North Korea, Syria, and Iraq). In addition, last year 2,400 Christian churches were attacked or damaged (more than double from 2014).

Islamic supremacy remains the most virulent ideology that drives persecution. Countries singled out for being particularly risky for Christians were North Korea, Nigeria, the Central African Republic, and India (due to hardline Hindu nationalists).

The Middle East, as we are well aware, has become an increasingly dangerous place for Christians as the Islamic State sweeps across the region, massacring Christians, enslaving them, raping Christian women, destroying ancient Christian buildings and artifacts, and spurring a mass exodus of Christians fleeing the region. There is also a constant low-level persecution as Christians are driven out of their communities, denied jobs, denied an education, and/or refused burials.

As the caliphate expands, there are two central hubs: one in the Middle East and the other in sub-Sahara Africa. Though both regions are threatening to Christians, the Middle East poses the gravest threat. The Islamic State is in Syria, Iraq, and now Libya, while Muslims across the Middle East become more devout. Meanwhile, Boko Haram has moved into Cameroon and Chad, Al-Shabaab is in Kenya, and smaller terror organizations continue to pledge themselves to the Islamic State and the vision of the caliphate.

Lawlessness contributes to the risk level for Christians, who face untold suffering in Syria, Iraq, and Libya, where migrant Christians from Sudan, Egypt, and Eritrea have been brutally executed. Meanwhile, Saudi-led forces in Yemen have made life for the few Christians remaining even more dangerous. Pakistani Christians are fleeing as well, heading to countries in Southeast Asia.

In Central Asia, governments are tightening controls where, under the guise of fighting Islamic extremism, theyve increased surveillance of the church, while in Myanmar, the state punishes those who convert from Buddhism to Christianity.

Christians are on the move around the globe, running for their lives, taking enormous risks as they cross deserts and hope they dont fall victim to trafficking gangs. The journey is long and filled with danger. And even after they arrive at refugee camps, they continue to face threats and attacks by Muslims. At the same time, though not comparable to the barbarism Christians are facing around the world, the climate in the West is increasingly hostile to them  a climate so sick that the United States has essentially closed its doors to Christians fleeing the growing caliphate.

We are living in perilous times. As Christianity is replaced with Islam (as well as godlessness in the West), Western culture will collapse. The process has already started. It is a time to pray, a time to act, and a time to be unified against the forces of evil.

Hat tip: Counter Jihad Report
A recent (1/18/16) article by Doug Bandow, a senior fellow of the Cato Institute, titled Saudi Arabia Is More Dangerous as a Frenemy than Iran is as an Adversary, details the havoc wrought not only in the Middle East, but in Europe and the U.S. by U.S. administrations, and especially by the Bush administrations, treating Riyadh as a supposed ally.

It has been known for some time that there was a cozy financial connection between the Bushes and Saudis. This was well-documented in Craig Ungers book (2004), House of Bush, House of Saud: The Hidden Relationship Between the World's Two Most Powerful Dynasties.

Here is the review of Ungers book in the Guardian (2004):

 for the most part this is a very powerful, well-researched and sober book that leaves the reader both enlightened and more than a little disturbed. You will certainly view the Bush administration  and, indeed, American policy-making  through a rather different prism[.]

What the Bandow article adds is the consequences of U.S. administrations, and the Bushes in particular, turning a blind eye to the vicious home rule and Middle Eastern ambitions of the 7,000 ruling Wahhabi-driven Saudi families. In the case of the Bush family, this was done in conjunction with sub rosa financial support for their various investment activities:

In all, at least $1.476 billion had made its way from the Saudis to the House of Bush and its allied companies and institutions.

As to what the Saudis were up to in return, here are some excerpts from the Bandow article:

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is essentially a totalitarian state which acts as a tool of plunder for some 7000 princes and their families.  Unfortunately, Riyadh doesn't keep religious repression at home. The licentious royals long ago made a deal with fundamentalist Wahhabis to enforce repressive Islamic theology at home and fund its propagation abroad the royals consistently triumphed, brilliantly manipulating the U.S. to advance their interests By turning the American military into the Saudi royals' bodyguard, Presidents Bush, Clinton, Bush, and Obama spurred terrorism and attacks on Americans. The first Gulf War was directed more to safeguard Saudi Arabia than liberate Kuwait The monarchy's relationship with the Bush clan, including both Presidents H.W. and George, was particularly intimate.

Here is an account of the basic thrust of the Saudi Wahhabi agenda by none other than Thomas Friedman of the NYT:

Nothing has been more corrosive to the stability and modernization of the Arab world, and the Muslim world at large, than the billions and billions of dollars the Saudis have invested since the 1970s into wiping out the pluralism of Islam -- the Sufi, moderate Sunni and Shiite versions -- and imposing in its place the puritanical, anti-modern, anti-women, anti-Western, anti-pluralistic Wahhabi Salafist brand of Islam

Indeed, while it was not just the Bush administrations that became enablers of the Saudi agenda, given that patriotism and forthrightness were the supposed hallmark of the Bush clan, collusion for financial gain, in spite of its ongoing disastrous consequences, is especially disheartening.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Deputy Foreign Minister of the Republic of Armenia Karen Nazaryan participated in the 16th session of EU-Armenia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee from January 20-21 in Strasbourg. The session was co-chaired by MP Samvel Farmanyan and MEP Sajjad Karim. The session was attended by member of Armenian and European parliaments, as well as EU External Action Service officials.

As Armenpress was informed from Department of Press, Information and Public Relations of MFA Armenia, in line with the established working tradition, the Deputy Foreign Minister introduced the position of the Republic of Armenia on the current situation and development prospects of Armenia-EU relations, negotiations with the EU over the new framework agreement, revision of the European Neighborhood Policy, international recognition of the Armenian Genocide, Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement, regional developments and other issues.

During the session the Deputy Minister answered and commented on a number of questions raised by the participants, which referred to the dynamic development of Armenia-EU relations, achievements and upcoming activities. Karen Nazaryan highlighted the consistent support by the EU to the efforts of OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairs, stating that transferring the issue to other platforms or conducting parallel procedures can ruin the efforts of the mediators and jeopardize regional stability. In his speech, the Deputy Minister highly appreciated the resolutions adopted by the European Parliament and Member States on the 100th anniversary of the commemoration of the Armenian Genocide, touched upon the problems facing the people who found asylum in Armenia caused by the Syrian conflict, calling on the European partners to support the Government of the Republic of Armenia for their social-economic integration.

These and other issues were included in the sessions final announcement.
The dates reveal that the hell-hole comes under our current president's watch.

The U.N. Reports:

A UN report released today details the severe and extensive impact on civilians of the ongoing conflict in Iraq, with at least 18,802 civilians killed and another 36,245 wounded between 1 January 2014 and 31 October 2015. Another 3.2 million people have become internally displaced since January 2014, including more than a million children of school age.

Who is mainly responsible for humanitarian disaster? The Islamic State:

The violence suffered by civilians in Iraq remains staggering. The so-called Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) continues to commit systematic and widespread violence and abuses of international human rights law and humanitarian law. These acts may, in some instances, amount to war crimes, crimes against humanity, and possibly genocide, the report states. During the reporting period, ISIL killed and abducted scores of civilians, often in a targeted manner. Victims include those perceived to be opposed to ISIL ideology and rule; persons affiliated with the Government, such as former Iraqi security forces (ISF), police officers, former public officials and electoral workers; professionals, such as doctors and lawyers; journalists; and tribal and religious leaders. Others have been abducted and/or killed on the pretext of aiding or providing information to Government security forces. Many have been subjected to adjudication by ISIL self-appointed courts which, in addition to ordering the murder of countless people, have imposed grim punishments such as stoning and amputations. The report details numerous examples of killings by ISIL in gruesome public spectacles, including by shooting, beheading, bulldozing, burning alive and throwing off the top of buildings. There are also reports of the murder of child soldiers who fled fighting on the frontlines in Anbar. Information received and verified suggests that between 800 and 900 children in Mosul had been abducted by ISIL for religious education and military training. ISIL continued to subject women and children to sexual violence, particularly in the form of sexual slavery, the report states.

I think it's wrong to score elaborate political points, so let's just say we should never have withdrawn from Iraq and that the president bears some level of responsibility. And let me move over to another relevant topic. Those punishments and atrocities committed by ISIS are all endorsed by original Islam. Unfortunately, the Western elite just don't seem to get it. They must push for Islam's reform that does not leave behind the Quran, but reinterprets it.

James Arlandson's website is Live as Free People, which is updated almost daily and where he has posted How the world works, Time to reform Islam, and Thirty sharia laws.
Encryption is a very hot topic right now and especially for consumers in the U.S. So much so, that it has been widely reported that New York is considering a ban on encrypted smartphones. Or at least, encrypted smartphones which cannot be decrypted. However, this week also saw California join the debate with a bill being introduced in much the same fashion as New York. One which also is intended to consider a ban on the sale of encrypted smartphones in the state. This has all led to quite the debate on whether authorities should be able to have access to consumer smartphones at this level. On the one hand, there is the clear issue of security and this is the argument which is largely put forward by the powers-that-be. While consumers on the other hand, seem less keen on a smartphone encryption ban, for obvious reasons.

Another voice which joined the debate this week, is AT&Ts CEO, Randall Stephenson. During an interviewing giving in Switzerland, Stephenson was reported noting that it should be up to Congress to make a decision like this. The statement comes when Stephenson was asked about the debate and the sentiment being made is that Stephenson feels that tech companies should not have the power to decide whether devices are encrypted or not. Instead, this is much more of a Congress and the American people decision. The statement is thought to be in direct retaliation to Apples Tim Cook, who was also recently reported joining the debate by taking the consumer side and suggesting consumers should not have to make a choice between security and privacy. Reiterating his stance, Stephenson was noting explaining I understand Tim Cooks decision, but I dont think its his decision to make.

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Of course, it is understandable that tech companies will take a harder line against such encryption. If the California bill was to be passed, then devices which run on Android (as well as Apples range) will not be able to be sold in California  if they do come with unbreakable encryption enabled. However, the issue remains that while news reports keep coming through on various breaches of consumer data, it is going to be hard for Google and manufacturers to balance the needs of the consumers, as well as that of Congress.
Hardware and software developers have been working towards making the ubitious touchscreen display more useful since it was first introduced. One way that a touchscreen can be more useful is to allow the hardware to not only know where the user is touching the screen, but with how much force. This could be used to give the hardware a third dimension when assessing what the user is doing and means the interface could behave differently depending on how it is being handled. Apples use of force touch in their products is hardly revolutionary, as we have seen the technology used for some years now (and the Samsung Galaxy Note series of devices has been able to detect the pressure placed on the screen from the S Pen for some time, although the technology used here is somewhat different). Huawei introduced the Mate S line of devices, which includes force touch display technology: features that the Mate S has include the ability to weigh objects using the screen and changing the zoom of an image in the gallery depending on how hard one is pushing on the screen.

However, these are features Huawei, one of the largest smartphone manufacturers in the world, has engineered and incorporated into their Android builds. At the current time, Googles Android does not fully support the technology. Because of this, and according to undisclosed Taiwan businesses speaking to the source newspaper, the industry does not expect any major increases in force touch screen sales to Chinese Android manufacturers during the first half of the year. However, things are expected to pick up in the second half of the year.

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Now; this is Android, where unsupported features may be engineered into the code by developers, right? Yes absolutely, but many Chinese companies are using a similar build of Android, which has a small number of additions to the core software but it does not yet have integrated force touch display technology. It would be expensive to engineer force touch technology into Android, especially when Google is likely to include the technology in due course. Another factor is how demand for smartphones in China is weaker than expected, which of course means that the cost in developing and testing the necessary drivers and software for Android will be spread over a smaller number of devices. As and when Google incorporate the technolgoy into Android, so the logic follows that we will see an increase in force touch display panels. However, Digitimes sources do not believe we will see a significant rise in the use of force touch dislay devices being sold into the Chinese market until 2017.
The Galaxy S7 handsets are expected to be announced during the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona at the end of next month. Samsungs flagship devices have been leaking for quite some time now, both the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge have surfaced on AnTuTu quite recently, and the Galaxy S7 has also popped up on Geekbench. Thats not all though, the Galaxy S7 Edge has also been certified in Taiwan yesterday, and now we have a new piece of news to share with you.

Both the Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge have been spotted at Zaubas listing. Zauba, as many of you probably already know, is Indias import / export site which is often a great source for spotting incoming flagships. This listing actually confirms screen sizes for Samsungs new flagships. According to the info, the two devices wont sport identical displays as far as size goes, the Galaxy S7 (SM-G930R4) will ship with a 5.1-inch panel, and the Galaxy S7 Edge (SM-G935R4) will feature a 5.5-inch display. Both of these displays will sport a QHD (2560 x 1440) resolution, at least according to Zauba. Now, both devices have been valued at $351.57 in this listing, but that really doesnt mean much to us considering these are test units and their pricing is far off.

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Now, as far as other specs go, the two phones are said to sport 4GB of RAM, and ship in both Snapdragon 820 and Exynos 8890 SoC variants. The Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge will be made out of metal and glass, and their design will be altered compared to Samsungs 2015 lineup, but not by much. The battery will, once again, going to be non-removable, and you can expect Android 6.X Marshmallow to come pre-installed on both of these devices, while Samsungs TouchWiz UI will be installed on top of Googles operating system. The 12.2-megapixel camera (BRITECELL) has been mentioned in a number of leaks thus far, but it remains to be seen how accurate is that info. That is more or less it, stay tuned for additional info as were waiting for Samsung to introduce their new flagships.
What might be close to one of the biggest startups in history as well as a being an easy future multi-billion dollar company is something that started all thanks to the dream of creating artificial intelligence. The dream of making an AI is nothing new considering we have major companies that are playing with their own virtual assistants something that closely resembles artificial intelligence. With the assistant like Apples Siri or Googles Google Now were able to snag a glance into what the future could really be like with having an artificial intelligence answer or every beck and call. Unlike Siri and Google Now though, future artificial intelligence will actually be able to learn from itself and carry out more complex commands.

A startup that is currently in the works of creating a personal assistant that will understand what you say and then be able to act on those commands is currently in the works of creating such an AI. Viv Labs, founded by developers of Apples own Siri and created nearly right after have said that they are on the verge of achieving true greatness, something that Google and Facebook have actually tried to buyout from them but have failed many times at doing so. Offering around $100-$200 million for Viv Labs product also named Viv, which is Latin for live, the company respectively declined stating they believe that the key to winning the AI race is by acting as a neutral portal for third-party developers. Creating their own AI, the company hopes that by already achieving the hard part, other companies will simply be able to build their own assistant of whatever they chose on top of Viv. This will also be used where third-party developers can train their AI, in their AI app store, to carry out specific tasks and functions. The company explained that they want to be independent of big tech companies and simply want to be third-party for developers and services essentially where other third parties can use their service to create their own AI assistants. However, Liv Labs would eventually need to use companies like Google and Facebook to tap into their unlimited amounts of resources and data.

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Viv which is based on an open system will let other businesses and companies tap into what they call the global brain to use for endless applications. With co-founder Adam Cheyer once saying, I want to do something bigger than mobile, bigger than consumer, bigger than desktop or enterprise. I want to do something that could fundamentally change the way software is built, we can all agree that this will definitely be along the lines of fundamental change as Viv Labs is on the track to building what could very well be the first artificial intelligent assistant.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Kremlin has denied media reports that Moscow has allegedly proposed Bashar al-Assad to resign. No, it is not true, RF Presidents spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told TASS.

Earlier on January 22, Financial Times, citing unnamed sources of western special services, had reported that the head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of Russia's General Staff, known as the GRU, Igor Sergun allegedly visited Damask, in order to suggest Assad to step down at the request of RF President Vladimir Putin.

According to the publication, Assad gave a negative answer.

Igor Sergun suddenly died at the age of 59 on January 3.

Photo by AP
Free public WiFi has been turned on in parts all over the world by some network or other, and while the majority of the time its simply to get the companys name out there, when its from Google, it feels a little different. Thats because Googles name needs no introduction, but they do need people to get online to use their services. In emerging markets such as India, its getting people online that is the bigger hurdle, and so its unsurprising that the Internet giant is happy to introduce free, high-speed internet to Mumbais Central Station in India.

Perhaps like no other nation on Earth, trains are essential for people getting to where they need to be in India, so train stations become a big part of local communities. Google is partnering with Indian Railways and RailTel to provide WiFi to 400 stations across India, with 100 of them to hopefully go live before the end of 2016. Mumbais Central Station is the first up, and despite the fact Google isnt putting a number on it, theyre claiming the ability to stream HD video using the free service while waiting for your trains. The network will be recognized by its RailWire Wi-Fi SSID, and each individual device will get its own code using the simple sign-in process from Google. Theres a curious piece of wording in Googles blog post announcing the launch in which it says that the WiFi will be entirely free to start which could mean that a small charge might be introduced later down the line, although we hope not.

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People might be angry that Google isnt detailing the overall speed of their free network at launch, but this is presumably because Google doesnt know how long its starting speed will remain good for. After all, over 100,000 pass through Mumbais Central Station, and the more people that hop on the network, the less bandwidth therell be to spread around. Hopefully though, the promise of being able to stream HD video is one that signals a speedy connection for some time to come. This is the first of four stations to go online in the coming weeks and months and Google hopes to have 100 of them online before 2016 comes to a close. Unfortunately though, theres no list for us to take a look at just yet.
The 2016 United States Presidential Election is heating up as the primairies draw closer and closer by the day. While some are desperate to ignore anything and everything about the 2016 presidential debate and get everybody involved off their browser window, a good number of Americans are checking into the candidates and what theyve been saying, as well as posing questions of their own. According to Googles statistics, in fact, search volume in regards to politics can spike as much as 440 percent during debates. With a mere two weeks left, Google has announced theyre partnering with Fox News to present the Republican debate in Des Moines, Iowa. The way theyve decided to go about hosting the debate, however, is a bit on the unconventional side and very in line with the times.

In collaboration with Fox News, Google will be checking out Google Search Trends and taking questions from YouTube during the debate, giving politicians a chance to answer the burning questions that real Americans may never get a chance to ask otherwise. Google says that the purpose of this effort is to create a more fun and informative way for people to learn more about the candidates and issues in this primary race. Google will also be interacting with the Google Trends home page in real time as it updates. Essentially, this means that both Americans and those abroad who are interested in American politics can have somewhat of a say in what questions the debating parties are asked. Normally, this privilege is limited to attendees and the press. The implications of this run quite deep; with what amounts to a viewer-controlled debate, candidates may be forced to answer tough questions they would otherwise have either dodged or simply never been asked.

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The debate will be shown live on Fox News Channel at 9 P.M. Eastern Time on Thursday, January 28. Those wanting to see it live should, of course, be mindful of their time zone. There are many, of course, who will be satisfied to watch through one of the many usual channels that pick up debates after the fact. However you watch this years republican debate, its sure to be interesting.
Huawei and Xiaomi are the two largest smartphone manufacturers in China. These two companies have sold quite a bit of handsets this year, and Huawei has even managed to become worlds third largest smartphone OEM. Anyhow, these two companies have released quite a bit of smartphones in 2015, but theyre more than just smartphone OEMs. Both of these companies have introduced additional devices next to smartphones (smartwatches, tablets), and Xiaomi has introduced a number of different interesting smart gadgets.

That being said, rumors have been surfacing for quite some time that these two companies are working on their very own laptops. Inventec has already confirmed that theyre going to manufacture Xiaomis laptops, and those devices are going to be releasing in the coming months. As far as Huawei goes, the latest report that surfaced said that the company is developing a dual boot hybrid laptop which will be released this year. Well, a new report has surfaced in China today, lets see what it says.

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According to this info, both Huawei and Xiaomi will release sub-13 2-in-1 devices. Huawei is said to release a 12.9-inch notebook powered by Windows 10 operating system. Xiaomi, on the other hand, plans on releasing a sub-13 notebook which will ship with two operating system, dual boot configuration (Windows 10 + Android-powered MIUI OS). Analysts say that it wont be easy for these two companies to face tough competition out in the market, there are a number of well-known PC vendors which are currently controlling the market at the moment, vendors which are well established and know the market well.

Both Huawei and Xiaomi are capable of releasing truly great devices, and it will surely going to be interesting to see if their notebooks will be as successful as the two companies are hoping they will. We still dont know when exactly will these devices going to be released, but it seems like Xiaomis offering will reach the market first. Nothing is confirmed just yet, so stay tuned for further info, well let you know if anything new pops up in the coming weeks, and it almost certainly will.
China has a number of smartphone brands that people even within the country have barely heard of, let alone outsiders. While that helps to keep vendors on their toes and allows for amazing devices at even more amazing prices, manufacturers often complain of the stifling competition that robs them of their profit margins. While companies like Huawei, Xiaomi, Lenovo and a few others have been able to not just survive but actually thrive in the madness that is the Chinese smartphone market, global giants like Sony, Samsung and LG have found out that the marketing textbook kind of goes out the window in one of the largest, most vibrant, yet, complex markets on the planet unless youre willing to play by the rules set by the local companies, and respect market preferences.

Talking about a whole host of smartphone vendors in the country, Vivo happens to be one of those companies that offer high-end specs in their smartphones at pocket-friendly prices. Now, a new device from the company, called the X6S Plus, has apparently been certified for sale by the countrys telecom equipment certification board  TENAA. The listing, of course, has revealed a number of important hardware specs of the upcoming gadget, which reveals that it will be, as the name indicates, a fairly similar device to the X6 and X6 Plus from the company that were unveiled late last year. While there may be a few tweaks here and there, the only real difference  at least on the partially revealed spec sheet  seems to be the 16-megapixel primary camera instead of the 13-megapixel one found on the X6 Plus.

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The rest of the hardware remains fairly similar, at least on paper, including a 5.7-inch Full HD display panel and a 1.8 GHz octa-core CPU of unspecified make. The phone is also said to have 4 GB of RAM and as much as 64 GB of internal storage. As for the imaging options on the upcoming device from Vivo, the aforementioned 16-megapixel rear-facing camera will come with the customary LED flash while there will be an 8-megapixel front-facing secondary camera for selfies and video chats. The Vivo X6S Plus will run Android 5.1 Lollipop out the box and carry a 3,000 mAh battery. It will also have 4G LTE, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity.
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Armenian and Iranian Armed Forces are in close strategic ties with each other and, considering the new geopolitical situation, it cannot be ruled out that cooperation with the neighboring country will expand further. The assessment belongs to First deputy Defense Minister David Tonoyan.

Considering the fact that sanctions were imposed on Iran, strategic partnership was limited by some logistics, training and strategic consultations. This new reality gives new opportunities, and there are all grounds to expand strategic partnership, Armenpress reports, he said.

From the viewpoint of geopolitics, Tonoyan also highlighted cooperation with neighboring Georgia. In the recent years cooperation with Georgia expands, and we hope to establish firm strategic cooperation, he said, adding that cooperation will go closer in the future.
Jimmy Savile and Jon Peel: the BBCs ugly Englishmen are always perverts

Jimmy Savile is back in the news. The Sun leads with the Jimmy Savile Report, the review by Dame Janet Smith into the BBC stalwart who post-death was labelled the most prolific child molester of all time. News is that the BBC HID news that Savile had seduced a 15-year-old dancer on BBC TVs Top of The Pops music show. The paper adds: Clair [sic] McAlpine killed herself weeks after the alleged sexual encounter.

We dont know if the pair did have sex. We dont know what part if any the alleged sex had in Claire McAlpines tragic death. All we know is that when Claires mother read of the alleged sex in her daughters diary  we dont get to see what the teenager wrote  she rang the BBC demanding to speak to the chairman but was told that was impossible.

The Sun joins the dots, saying just a month later Clair died after taking an overdose of sleeping pills.

The report says the BBC made no attempt to interview Claire or her mother. The BBC did meet with Savile, who denied any wrongdoing. He was also interviewed by an independent barrister.

Dame Janet says the BBC review was inadequate. She cannot understand why the BBC destroyed its own call logs from the time. Really? This is the BBC that erased or tossed away and wiped lots of its output, including Not Only But Also, starring Peter Cook and Dudley Moore, and the BBC studio footage from the 1969 Apollo 11 moon landings.

On pages 4 and 5, the Sun re-introduces us to Sylvia Edwards. She says that when age 18, the 50-year-old Savile stuck his hand up her skirt in 1976 and told her A fella could get used to this as it appens. The Sun says millions of BBC TV viewers saw this because Savile was presenting Top of the Pops at the time and Sylvia was in the audience.

Horrified Sylvia ran to a floor manager to report what the DJ had done only to be told: Get lost  its just Jimmy messing about. In the judges draft report, she said Sylvias was one of two quite serious indecent assaults and girls on the show were placed in moral danger. But she added: I do not think any member of senior management was ever made aware of Saviles abuse of young people while working on Top of the Pops. In the testosterone-laden atmosphere where everyone was, in theory at least, over 16, child protection was simply not a live issue. No one noticed what Savile was doing: he was able to hide in plain sight.

The Sun lists Dame Janets main findings:

 Savile abused 45 victims who worked at or visited the BBC  He abused staff and kids on Top of the Pops and Jimll Fix IT  Some evidence a paedophile ring operated at BBC in 1970s  Stars like Savile untouchable and managers above the law  Bosses quizzed Savile about his interest in young girls but no action was taken  Managers should have heeded interviews with Savile in The Sun where he told of picking up girls  BBC in 1970s dominated by booze culture and staff feared reporting abused would damage careers  Culture of secrecy means whistleblowers are more scared to come forward today thand 40 years ago  Another Savile scandal could still unfold at the BBC

And how did the Sun comment on Saviles death, after he old them about picking up girls? Like this:

RIP JIMMY SAVILE  Prince Charles leads tributes as Jimll Fix It star dies aged 84 Now then, now then, cries and gals  We join 3,000 fans at Sir Jimmy Saviles send-off

As for Sylvias story, we heard it first back in 2012. The Sun told us about the 19-year-old victim:

In todays report she is 18:

The Daily Mail has more on the BBCs 10m Whitewash.

He raped , groped and abused girls and boys under the noses of complacent BBC chiefs. He preyed on his 45 victims in almost every BBC building he set foot in

The Mail mentions Claire McAlpine. It makes a clear link between her death and Savile:

Claire McAlpine, 15, killed herself after being abused by an unnamed DJ on the show [Top of the Pops] on 1971.

Yes, thats CLAIRE, the teenager the Sun calls CLAIR. In the rush to be right and prove Savile was a raping would-be killer who had sex with the dead on NHS time, the papers cant even agree on the victims ages and names.

This is, of course, as much about bashing the BBC as it is hitting the revolting Savile. On cue, heres resting BBC DJ John Peel. Hes the national treasure, who also worked at the BBC. Hes dead. Julie Burchill wrote in 1999.

What did YOU do in the war, Daddy? Well, John Peel caught VD, and banged on about it. Until recently, Peel banged on a lot about sex. Like many an ugly Englishman, he went to America, where that nations young women found a Limey accent so beguiling that they barely looked at the face it came out of: All they wanted me to do was abuse them, sexually, which, of course, I was only too happy to do, Peel told the Guardian in 1975. Girls, he said to the Sunday Correspondent in 1989, used to queue up outside oral sex they were particularly keen on, I remember one of my regular customers, as it were, turned out to be 13, though she looked older. This was the Sixties. Fleeing America after the authorities quite rightly objected to him having sex with young teenage girls, Peel was joined by his wife, Shirley, a Texan girl, who was 15 when he married her.

If you are connected. If you are rich. If you have friends in high places and do things they like, you get away with it. Same then as it is now. Nothing changes.

Anorak

Posted: 22nd, January 2016 | In: Celebrities, Key Posts, NSFW Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
(ANSA) - Rome, January 22 - Police on Friday conducted searches and arrested 14 alleged members of Calabria's 'Ndrangheta mafia, accused of crimes related to international drug trafficking.

Of the 14 arrested in the towns of Gioiosa Ionica, Rosarno and Siderno, eight were sent to jail and six were placed on house arrest.

One of the arrest warrants was for currently incarcerated Commisso clan boss Giuseppe Commisso, who is serving 14 years for mafia association.

In 2010, investigators placed audio bugs inside the Apegreen laundromat that Commisso managed in Siderno, which they say was the group's operational base.

The hours of conversations they recorded became the basis for an investigation that closed with 300 arrests, as well as the operation that led to Friday's arrests.

Based on those conversations, investigators said the clan was operating in international drug trafficking in Belgium, the Ivory Coast, and Venezuela.


YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. Prominent Armenian benefactor Kirk Kerkorians testament is not kept in secrecy. Armenpress reports publisher of The California Courier Harut Sassounian told Voice of America, referring to different Armenian media reports over the philanthropists testament. Mr. Kerkorian left all his wealth for charity, but he mentioned no precise names. No doubt, there is a testator and when it is high time, he or she will decide which charitable organizations will get the money and how much, and for which programs. Now it is early to speak about that as there are still issues needing solution, which will take quite a lot of time. Probably, after a year the testator will start to make decisions, Sassounian said.

Harut Sassounian, who for years ran the activities of the Lincy Foundation created by Kirk Kerkorian in Armenia, added that the testament is about launching new programs, but not continuing the previous ones. Sassounian also informed that by the decision of board members of the United Armenian Fund, which he had created and chaired for 26 years, closed the Fund at the end of November. He stated that the Fund had provided Armenia with $720 million humanitarian aid. As our nation is in need of such aid, I opened a new fund called Armenia-Artsakh on December 1, Sassounian mentioned, adding that the Fund will provide Armenians in both Armenia and Artsakh with all possible assistance.

He stated that in the near future measures will be taken to help Syrian-Armenians.
(ANSA) - Rome, January 22 - The following are changes affecting citizens and firms contained in 11 enabling decrees to the government's civil service reform decree, which cabinet approved on the night of January 20.

-Public employees and supervisors who shirk, risk losing their jobs. Falsely claiming to be at work - whether it be by clocking in and then leaving, or with the aid of third parties - is a violation and those who in any way abet this conduct "whether actively or by omission" will also be held responsible.

Employees caught red-handed while shirking must be suspended without pay within 48 hours and without a prior hearing. Disciplinary proceedings must close within 30 days from the commission of the offence - not the current four months. If confirmed guilty of the offence, employees are subject to termination. If the offence made it into the news, the employee is liable for damages to the image of the civil service, which must be equal to at least six months' wages.

Managers or supervisors who fail to suspend errant employees and to initiate disciplinary proceedings against them are subject to sacking. Their failure to take action constitutes the crime of omission of official acts - a prosecutable offense in Italy.

-Local administrations must review all the private companies they have a stake in and eliminate those that are not strictly necessary, those with more managers than employees, those with turnover of less that one million euros in three years, and those duplicating another's functions. Employees who become redundant are obliged to change jobs, with a hiring freeze in place and a mechanism to match available jobs and overmanning.

The reform sets up an ad hoc monitoring agency at the economy ministry to oversee this process. It will have powers of inspection and substitution.

-Companies providing local services - from water to trash collection - are to be merged on the basis of districts. It is up to the regions to draw the districts, if they fail to do so cabinet will intervene.

-The reform merges the forest ranger corps into the Carabinieri military police corps. Some 7,000 forest guards will make the change, with small contingents transferred to the fire service, police force and finance guard. There will be only one national emergency number: 112. Port authorities will be reduced from 24 to 15.

-The reform sets stricter rules for appointing local public health managers, whose appointments can be revoked if they fail to meet objectives.

-The reform halves the time for major public works. Meetings will be held online, silence will be taken for assent with 60 days maximum for decisions, and there is to be a single representative for each government level. Cabinet will intervene in case of gridlock, and everything must conclude within five months. -Citizens needing permits to open a store or make home renovations must fill out a single form, valid throughout the country. The local administration has 30 days to respond to citizen filings. If the administration fails to comply with the new regulations, it becomes liable for aggravated omission of acts of office. -Every citizen will have their own 'digital domicile' or email address by 2017, and a unique PIN code. Steps will be taken to promote electronic payments for bills and utilities and to beef up digital security systems.

-Civil service manager salaries must be posted online. Access to the public archives will be liberalized in the name of freedom of information. Citizens will have the right to receive information and certain classes of documents within 30 days of making a request, without having to explain why they want the information.


(by Francesco Tedesco) - NAPLES - ''When I wrote this book in 2010 it looked like a political peace process had started in Turkey for us Kurds. Today the situation is again difficult but many Turks have a different attitude towards the Kurds''. This is how Bejan Matur, a poet and writer born in Moras, in Turkish Kurdistan, describes the scenario around ''Looking beyond the mountain'', the book that has become an editorial case in Turkey with over 50,000 copies sold and is now being published in Italy by Poiesis.



The writer spoke to students today at the Universita Orientale in Naples, in a meeting organized by Professor Lea Nocera. In the book, Bejan talks about two different moments during which she ''climbed the mountains'', the Kurdish expression for joining the guerrilla. The story is about youth in the Pkk, including many young women, who decide to make their voices heard by joining the armed fight, trying to build a fairer society towards the Kurds and women, who are often forced to have a marginal role, although Kurdish tradition gives them the role of passing on traditions and the language banned in Turkey. The book talks about meetings, conversations, nights spent in camps on the mountains during which young Kurdish women rested in their uniforms, though getting some sleep was never relaxing. ''One of the strongest moments - Matur told ANSAmed - was the meeting with a university friend who had told me years ago she was leaving. I didn't know at the time that she was joining the Pkk but then I met her there. She had changed her name into Mizgin, which means 'good news', I didn't ask her why she had made such a choice, we looked at each other and understood but before I left I asked her 'when will you be back?'. And I am still waiting for her''.
ATHENS - At least 21 people died in two separate shipwrecks off the coast of Greece, reported the Associated Press, quoting the Greek coast guard.

There are at last 8 children among the victims, according to the media in Athens.

Seven people, among whom six children, drowned in the shipwreck of a vessel carrying 48 migrants, off the island of Farmakonissi. Other 14 migrants, among whom two children, died in the aftermath of another shipwreck close to the Greek island of Kalolimnos. Twenty-six migrants were rescued, while at least other 10 are still missing.
TUNIS - Tunisian Parliament convened at the Bardo, this morning, for an extraordinary meeting to address the social and security situation in the country, President Mohamed Ennaucer announced.



Demonstrations which began in Kasserine spread to at least 16 of the 24 Tunisian administrative governatorates. Protests have turned violent and could compromise the country's stability.



Parliament, today, will set the date for another extraordinary meeting with the government to tackle the issue of youth unemployment, affecting both high school and university graduates, at the root of current demonstrations.



Demonstrations carried on late into the night, yesterday.



Some 300 demonstrators in Jendouba (north-west) invaded the seat of the governatorate demanding the governor's resignation and similar scenes were witnessed in Beja and Kairouane.



In Sfax, a delegation of Shkira, tires were burnt and the state highway was blocked.



Scuffles erupted and tear gas was used in Sidi Bouzid, Medenine, Siliana, Tozeur, Mahdia, Kef, Sousse, Sfax. Yesterday afternoon, tensions were also running high in Kasserine where demonstrations first began last Saturday.



Police forces moved back and let the army take their place in in El Hamma and in Souk Lahad and a police station was set on fire.



Riots also broke out in the evening in the outskirts of Tunis in cite Ettadhamen and Soukra.



Authorities fear the presence of terrorist infiltrators among the demonstrators, especially in the Kasserine region.



Tunisian premier Essid who was attending the Davos Forum, decided to cut his visit short and head back home to confront the serious situation. International meetings, including a trip to France today, were cancelled.
Turkey: bomb hits school in south-east, 5 kids injured According to the authorities, PKK responsible for the attack

(ANSAmed) - ISTANBUL, JANUARY 22 - A bomb exploded in the courtyard of an elementary school in Diyarbakir, the Kurdish-majority town in the south-east of Turkey, injuring five students, this morning, local news agencies reported.



According to the authorities, the PKK is responsibile for the attack and militants placed the improvised explosive device in the courtyard.



The blast occured on the day school reports were due to be handed out at the Eser school, in the Baglar neighbourhood, right before the winter holidays. (ANSAmed).




Isis: Biden in Istanbul for talks with Erdogan Two-day visit to Turkey, to discuss fight against terrorism

(ANSAmed) - ISTANBUL, JANUARY 22 - American Vice-President, Joe Biden, landed at the Istanbul Ataturk airport overnight for a two-day official visit to Turkey during which he will meet President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Premier Ahmet Davutoglu.



The fight against terrorism and the strategies of the US led anti-Isis international coalition will be at the centre of the meetings.



The issue of the presence of Ankara troops at the training field of Bashiqa, in the north of Iraq, 30 km to the north of Isis stronghold Mosul, a presence the Baghdad government has objected to and demanded to be withdrawn, will also be raised.



Biden already discussed the topic with Iraqi Premier Haider al Abadi at the Davos meeting on the eve of his arrival to Istanbul.



Other meetings between the US vice-president and Turkish political and civil society personalities have also been scheduled. (ANSAmed).




YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, ARMENPRESS.The Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly) welcomes Mihran Toumajan as the Assembly's Western Region Director effective immediately. As Armenpress was informed from the press service of the Assembly, Toumajan has been active with the Assembly since 1996, when he interned for the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) as a participant in the Assembly's Terjenian-Thomas Summer Internship Program in Washington, D.C. Toumajan coordinated the internship program the following summer and has contributed to the Assembly's Public Affairs department.

Toumajan rejoins the Assembly after spending 15 years as an executive in the telecommunications and enterprise software industries. "Mihran has been a member of the Assembly family for almost two decades and we are excited to officially welcome him to the team," stated Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny.

A native of Armenia, Toumajan spent his formative years in Michigan where he earned a Bachelor's Degree in History from Wayne State University in Detroit. Toumajan became accustomed to political advocacy relatively early in life, having volunteered as a teenager for the election campaign of now retired congressman and former co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues Joe Knollenberg (R-MI). Upon relocating to southern California in 2000, Toumajan continued his service to the Armenian American community and to the Armenian Apostolic Church, to which he was ordained a deacon in 2003 by His Eminence Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate of the Western Diocese of the Armenian Church. Toumajan is a founding member of the Board of Directors of the widely acclaimed Dilijan Chamber Music Series, a former Trustee of the Tekeyan Cultural Association Arshag Dickranian Armenian School, a twice-elected Diocesan delegate and thrice-elected member of the Parish Council of St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Church of Pasadena, and Chairman of St. Gregory's Consecration Committee in 2007. "It is a distinct honor to, once again, be a part of the Assembly team, contribute to the growth of the Assembly's grassroots network in the western United States, advocate for continued reaffirmation of and restorative justice for the Armenian Genocide, and encourage Armenian Americans to serve as a voice for the security and prosperity of our brothers and sisters in Armenia and Artsakh," Toumajan said.

Established in 1972, the Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian issues.
Each chapter of Art THINK contains from four to twenty-one relatively short essays on different aspects of learning to think like an artist. Originally written for an artists' online discussion group, these "ArtyFacts" (as they were first called) can be bitten off, chewed, and digested in as little as fifteen minutes. Some items are light and fluffy-brain candy. Some are snack food for thought. Some are downright chewy. And, a few are (gulp) stick-in-your-throat fruit-cakey. They employ humor, irony, a gentle dose of art history, common sense, conventional wisdom, and good old school-of-hard-knocks experience.
Le CBD, cette molecule active du cannabis a aujourdhui le vent en poupe. Et cela est en grande partie du au fait quil permet...
The January 2016 edition of the Readiness Report newsletter is now available for digital download. The Readiness Report is the official newsletter of Headquarters Individual Reservist Readiness and Integration Organization.Click the link below to download the full PDF:
Warfighters convene at Nellis for weapons, tactics conference

Air Force senior leaders, industry executives, joint and coalition warfighters converged for the 2016 Weapons and Tactics Conference, hosted by the Air Combat Command at Nellis Air Force Base Jan. 3-16.



"WEPTAC is where wars are won," said Lt. Col. Kendrick Carroll, the ACC's WEPTAC chairman. "There is no other venue on this planet where you can get the best and brightest subject matter experts throughout all the domains in one location to work on solving today's biggest warfighting challenges."



Weapons officers from across the Air Force capitalized on this year's theme, "Integrating multi-domain effects into next generation's warfighting," alongside their joint and coalition counterparts, Carroll said.



"What that means is we're taking all of our capabilities: air, space, cyber, land, sea, and electromagnetic, and integrating those into a combined effect so that we can continue to be the world's greatest Air Force," he said. "We're taking the world's most complex problems, what we call major combat operations, and we are essentially planning to engage if and when an MCO is required, so that we can bring all those domains to bear."



The conference, divided into two parts, includes a mission area working group portion where hand-selected teams of weapons officers gather to troubleshoot current air, space and cyberspace challenges. During the second week, participants transition into the Tactics Review Board, where tactics, techniques and procedures are improved upon using creative, cost-effective solutions.

For the first time, WEPTAC involved coalition partners this year.



"We are a much smaller fighting force than what we used to be five to 10 years ago," Carroll said. "What the coalition allows us to do is leverage upon their additional capacity in capability because we won't fight another MCO with just the U.S. Air Force. It will be the U.S. Air Force, Army, Navy and coalition partners. In order for us to levy on joint and coalition capability and capacity we have to integrate them in the planning process, so there is no lag or gap in capability, and that's what we're doing here."



According to Carroll, there have been cases where solutions developed at WEPTAC were implemented into real-world operations in a matter of 30 days or less.



Gen. Frank Gorenc, the commander of U.S. Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa, provided this year's keynote address, where he commended the participant's fiscal and technical innovation, along with their ability to force multiply with partner services and nations.

"I am so excited to be here," said Gorenc, who's served in the Air Force for 37 years." To hear what you all came up with ... I rely on the captains, majors and subject matter experts in this room to inform me.



"Since I have been in, these new capabilities have been incredible; we turned short range into long range, long range into unlimited. We've turned unguided bombs into precision-guided or GPS weapons. We've turned line-of-sight into beyond line-of-sight, we've given legacy equipment modifications and it works side by side with the new," Gorenc continued. "I've seen a lot and know what we're capable of and I'm counting on all of you to keep the world's greatest power strong."



WEPTAC aligns with ACC's priorities, including delivering the greatest amount of combat capability to meet national security objectives and win the nation's wars.
B-52 veteran recalls close call on Desert Storm mission

Pilot, we have a lock-on, the B-52 Stratofortress electronic warfare officer called out in surprise.



Capt. Jim Bowles, a B-52 instructor pilot, gritted his teeth, looked downward and sure enough, an SA-6 surface-to-air missile had been launched in his direction.



For most, being shot down by a missile over enemy territory is not a concern expected to become a reality. But for Bowles and his crew, this could be reality flying toward them in the dark Iraqi night.



Minutes passed, each one an eternity in itself. Bowles held his breath.



This is it, this could be it, recalled Bowles, now an Air Force Global Strike Command program analyst.



He could see the missile. What he couldnt see were the jamming systems working to save him and his aircrew. Operating perfectly, the jamming sent the missile in another direction.



Bowles avoided a missile that night while deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Desert Storm. Throughout the preparation and deployment, his training and his family were constantly in his mind.



Prior to the deployment, Bowles, his wife and their children went on a family vacation and visited relatives. Every afternoon at 2 p.m., he was required to call and check in with his unit on Barksdale Air Force Base and in the meantime, planned for a duty station move to Castle AFB, California.



One phone call just after returning from vacation changed his plans.



It was about 11:30 at night and the phone rings, he said. My wife and I looked at each other and said, oh no. I picked up the phone and was told to report to Barksdale.



The situation in the Persian Gulf had escalated in December 1990.



While Im doing Christmas decorations, Im also packing my bags for deployment to do combat operations, he said. Its a unique experience when you think about peace on earth and goodwill toward men, and I may have to bring combat to my enemy.



After moving to the air base in January, Bowles was sent to Nellis AFB, Nevada, for a two-week preparatory exercise called Desert Flag.



The ramp was full of every type of aircraft, he said. Desert Flag was a Red Flag (exercise) on steroids. By Wednesday of the exercise, we saw aircraft leaving the base, and by Thursday, the airfield was a quarter empty. Wheres everybody going? We all knew.



After the exercise, Bowles boarded a bus to get a final round of immunizations and immediately deployed to Saudi Arabia to conduct combat operations against Saddam Husseins forces.



While there was some apprehension about going into combat and the potential for not coming home, there was also a confidence because we knew we could do our mission, Bowles said. Wed trained together, and wed do the jobs we were assigned to do.



The first couple of missions went off without a hitch, he said. They were relatively uneventful and weapons were released on critical targets.



Additionally, Bowles and his aircrew would make Taco Bell runs, nicknamed after the 1980s advertising campaign.



There were mine-breaching missions where we released our bomb-release lines just a few miles short of the Saudi Arabian-Kuwaiti border, and because of height and time of fall, those weapons would fall into the mine fields that Saddam Hussein had sewn, Bowles said. We called those our Taco Bell runs because they were our runs for the border.



At one point, Hussein sent three armored units to advance into the town of Khafji. All Bowles and his crew were given was a slip of paper with coordinates.



At that time, Saddams armored columns were exposed and we laid down the fire on him with two aircraft full of MK-82s and one aircraft full of cluster bombs, Bowles said. After we landed, we received a report saying wed stopped them in their tracks.



Throughout the numerous combat missions, the B-52 continuously demonstrated itself to both ally and enemy forces as a fearsome and unmatched weapons delivery system.



The B-52 has such a high capacity magazine that you can drop a very large number of munitions, Bowles said. We would get reports of enemy prisoners of war that surrendered because of the threat of B-52 attacks. Theyd cross the Saudi border and surrender to the Saudis, surrender to our troops and even to our photographers because they didnt want to experience the onslaught of the cluster bomb units we were carrying.



Bowles, having completed 25 combat missions in 10 weeks, considers Desert Storm to be a career-defining moment.



When I look back on Desert Storm, it feels like yesterday. Its a memory deep within myself and my family, Bowles said. That was 25 years ago, but we cant fight the last fight. We have to fight the fight of tomorrow.
Winter time at Osan AB -- They see me rollin'

An Airman from the 51st Civil Engineer Squadron uses a runway sweeper truck to remove the first snow of the year on the flightline behind the Air Mobility Command passenger terminal Jan. 13, 2016, at Osan Air Base, South Korea. Airmen remove snow from the runways, taxiways and flightline to ensure passenger and aircraft safety. The runway sweeper head is approximately 20-feet wide, which helps reduce the amount of time it takes to completely clear the flightline of snow. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Travis Edwards)
MET provides secure comms to warfighter

The first fully funded Air Force modernization enterprise terminal (MET) outside the U.S. is now operational at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar.



The terminal, which cost $15 million, provides secure communication capabilities including voice, video and data services, linking service members in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility with military leaders around the world.



The system also features anti-jamming software and uses the most current technology, said Vernon Jones, the 379th Expeditionary Communications Squadron plans and programs manager.



It provides tremendous capability and reliability to the warfighter, said Jones, a retired Marine chief warrant officer 2.



Jones, who served more than 20 years in the Navy and Marine Corps, said he knows how important it is to communicate quickly and securely. He served in combat on three occasions and said having reliable communication is vital.



In Iraq, we were moving from one base to another near Baghdad, Jones said. As we were going in, I couldnt get any of my satellites up and locked to get vital information to the logistics people who were coming in after us. Our primary terminal was down and that left about 5,000 Marines without reliable communications.



Jones said his Marines lost secure communications capability for two weeks and were forced to send runners in Humvees from point-to-point to deliver secure messages.



Having been shot at, I understand the criticality of having dependable communications, he said, and thats what this terminal provides.



It ensures the CENTCOM commander has the communication capability to get his guidance to his subordinate commanders to execute the mission, he continued. It also provides the assurance to the warfighter that when an extraction team or a rescue helicopter is needed, it will be there.



The terminal is part of the Defense Departments MET program, said Lt. Col. Carlos Alford, the 379th ECS commander.



The programs goal is to install new terminals around the world to enable U.S. military forces to take advantage of increased data capabilities of its constellation of Ka-band wideband global communication satellites, Alford said. The MET will simultaneously handle both X and Ka-band signals which use WGCS.



The previous Defense Satellite Communications System could only handle X-band and one WGCS satellite is equal to about 10 DSCS satellites in terms of bandwidth it provides, he added.



The MET program will continue expanding by installing more enterprise terminals around the globe, Alford said. In 2018, Al Udeid AB will likely have a second MET set up to further increase CENTCOMs communication capabilities.



Work to install the MET began in September 2012. A few years later on Jan. 14, the terminal was certified to operate by the Defense Information Systems Agency.



Carlise Krawzyk, a 379th ECS MET program manager, oversaw installation of the terminal and said she was committed to seeing the project completed.



This project has been challenging and I just kept thinking we have to get this done, we are going to support the warfighter, Krawzyk said.



Krawzyk coordinated with more than 20 agencies within the DOD and the government of Qatar, overcoming numerous obstacles, including a change in contractors early in the process, she said.



Its very satisfying to see the MET up and running and know that were able to provide reliable and secure communications across the AOR, Krawzyk said.
If you havent invested in business signage yet, you need to make sure you purchase quality signage that will last for years. The last thing you want is for your signage to be damaged or to lose its beauty, which can be just as damaging to your business as having no signage at all. A good business sign should be eye-catching year-round, and it should be made of a material that can withstand the elements. There are several different materials you can choose from when selecting a business sign.

One of the most popular types of business signs today is an LED banner. This type of sign uses LED lights to display a message on either a short or widescreen. An LED banner is customizable in real-time, and its most common form is the marquee sign. Movie theaters and other businesses use marquee signs to announce events. If you want to make a big impact with your business signage, consider purchasing a LED banner. Its a great way to attract attention and increase sales for your business.

A good sign should reflect your business branding and highlight your products. Technology-based businesses might benefit from a dynamic electronic message center. For a more classy and classic approach, a simple, classic sign can be very effective. If you dont want to spend too much money on a sign, check out Canva, Vistaprint, or Fiverr for a quick sign. There are many great websites online that will design and create your sign for you.

Regardless of the industry, a well-designed signage will give your business an edge over competitors. According to a recent study, up to 68 percent of Americans have purchased a product because of a visually appealing sign. A business owners signage speaks volumes about their brand, and should be made with attention-getting colors and bright lighting. It can be updated as frequently as necessary, and the potential for different products and services to be advertised is huge.

The cost of a sign depends on the materials used and the design. A black-and-white sign will cost much less than a colorful one. Complex designs will cost more than simple ones. Another factor affecting the price of a sign is how long you plan to have it. If you plan to change the design of your sign often, consider using a design that can be easily updated. This will save you money and time in the long run.

If youre planning to get business signs, consider hiring a professional sign company to handle the process. A full-service sign company can take care of the permitting process, submit the required plans, and start creating your signage. Despite the benefits, you should still be careful when selecting business signs. A wrong choice of location can violate ADA requirements and make your business signage unusable. You dont want to end up with a sign that is hard to read or doesnt tell anyone anything about your products or services.

A properly designed sign will draw attention and generate positive emotions. Customers are attracted to beauty and a beautifully designed business sign fulfills that desire. It will also help you earn the loyalty of your customers. A nicely-furnished sign can also show the commitments of your business. Whether youre in a retail store, office, or a restaurant, signage should convey what you stand for. This means that you should take your time choosing a design that fits your business image.

LED lights are a great option for lighting your signs. They can be 80% more efficient than neon lights and have an incredibly long lifespan. LED lights can be easily installed in any space, and you can install as many as you need. However, you should be aware that the color of your signage will depend on the type of LED lights you choose. This is why you need to research LED lights before you purchase them. This can help you choose the right type of lighting for your business signs.

Businesses should invest in digital signage in order to attract potential customers. This is a highly effective advertising option that can reach your target audience in a cost-effective way. It is also a great way to connect with your employees and customers. A digital storefront business sign can communicate with customers, build brand recognition, and make your outlet a landmark. So, it is important to invest in quality signage to make the most of your business. It is important to keep in mind that a poorly designed sign may even cause confusion.
On a recent Saturday afternoon in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic a group of people from all walks of life assembled in a movie theater.

Some of them knew each other  I watched as people who are obviously friends and see one another on a regular basis hugged, chatted before the performance, or introduced new acquaintances to old ones. Others seemed to be either alone or in pairs  just there for the day to enjoy the performance and leave afterwards. All came to hear The Pearl Fishers, Bizets neglected opera recently presented by the Metropolitan Opera and now broadcast across the world through The Met: Live in HD. This was an opera performance benefitting from digital streaming: One of many technology-driven arts delivery-systems taking the sights and sounds of the opera house into a much wider space and speaking to a much more diverse audience.

This is hardly the first time this kind of thing has taken place. The Met has been broadcasting opera for decades upon decades. Many a Saturday afternoon was spent by a generation of listeners huddled around a radio in the days of the old Texaco-sponsored broadcasts of the 20th Century, and certainly opera has been seen on television, and the internet as well. The particular platform, while interesting as an innovation, is less important than the fact that what has heretofore been a local experience has now become available to a larger audience. It is art taken from the stage and suddenly made regional, national or international in scope.

Elsewhere, Ive blogged about the Mets summer outdoor opera presentations at Lincoln Center, but this particular performance struck me because it represents something relatively new in the Building-an-Arts-Community movement. As all of us know, we are experiencing the very redefinition of community in our lifetimes. What has always been understood as primarily local has moved beyond the limitations of geographic space into a digital space. A map no longer matters. Community is driven and defined by shared interests rather than proximity.

Now, what does that do to us? How does it impact relationships? What about access to quality artistry? Does this digital opportunity replace the live experience or does it enhance it? How do other new technologies affect relevance, intimacy, and impact? What does a Twitter feed do to develop communication and community between performers and listeners? What about Facebook, or Instagram?

Im here in the Dominican Republic for a couple of months working on a music festival taking place in the Colonial City. While here, I visit with friends, and enjoy the vibrancy of relationships forged through the creation of the festival. One of those friendships is with someone who has taken on the role of opera lady. She has become that person in Santo Domingo who organizes, informs, and draws together many people who might or might not have experienced this art form in the past. She has developed relationships with individual artists through those social media platforms, and she uses those relationships to deepen her own experience of the art. Every day, even though she is in a country with no national opera company, she follows developments across the world. She reads blogs, listens on youtube, scans new sources for tidbits and tidal waves in the world of opera. And, of course, when the Met broadcasts are announced, she makes plans, schedules events and, yes, builds community around the broadcast. When she can, she flies to New York and hears opera in person, but that is now only one of the many ways she is able to experience this art form.

Last weekend, after the final notes of Bizets The Pearl Fishers, had sounded, I found myself in a restaurant with four couples, discussing the opera, reveling in its beauties and being grateful that we had been able to experience it together. A work that none of us had heard before was humming back to our inner ears, and we were basking in its melodies. And an innovative opening scene watched during the overture was now visually etched in our memories, presented in a way that none of us will forget. We were able to learn how it was accomplished in an intermission interview.

Beyond experiencing the opera itself though, it was that local component in an international delivery platform that truly struck me. We all understand that social media is changing our relationships; we know that streaming concerts now make the entire world available to listeners across the globe. Some feel threatened by this development. They ask, How can this local organization compete with an internationally recognized company whose level of artistic achievement dwarfs all but a few organizations in the world. Others see this development as the great democratizing moment in the arts  when technology breaks down the walls of non-access and replaces exclusivity with inclusivity.

What hit me, though, was that we might not have noticed that these international broadcasts have local implications  that friendships are developed not only online but in the movie lobby; not only on the screen, but in the restaurant. When community is redefined in this digital age, we can either become more estranged from each other  more isolated and separate  or we can reach out and enrich our non-digital lives. At least in Santo Domingo, over the past decade Peter Gelb has made something that is bringing people together, not only online, but in person. In that regard, there is no difference between going to the opera in the Dominican Republic, and doing the same thing at Lincoln Center: A chat in the lobby, some Bizet, and then a glass of wine with friends afterwards.



Even in a virtual-reality world, we still remain real. Yes, a streaming opera is different than one presented in person. But the differences have nothing to do with community; they do not enforce isolation any more than they encourage assembling. To the issue of coming together or of being alone we must look to ourselves. Our sense of community is a reflection of what we truly want  and at what we are willing to do to have it.
Thursday, January 21, 2016 by: J. D. Heyes

(NaturalNews) In early November, Chino Valley, Arizona, residents Marie Snow and Cori Gunnels made a discovery which they said frightened them. According to published reports -- and there were few -- they witnessed what appeared to them to be 50- to 60-foot long "raindrops," which were "solid" in nature, falling in clusters from the sky after seeing a C-130 military transport plane and two escort aircraft fly overhead.As reported by the news website, the pair were of the mind to gather some samples of the fibrous material, which was found in stringy blotches clinging to fences, plants and other structures throughout the bucolic landscape of the region, to have them examined by experts, with the hope of figuring out what it was that was dropped from the sky. Snow, the website reported, even decided not to touch the strands with her bare hands, and collected them on white pieces of paper.Not long after, Snow decided to contact her local news station, KPHO, a CBS affiliate, and asked them to investigate her discovery. A few days later, the station sent a reporter, Greg Argos, to look into Snow's finding and get her story, including the part where the fibrous material appeared to be distributed overhead from a military transport aircraft."However, what happened after CBS 5 interviewed Snow may shock you,"reported.The roughly three-minute video piece produced by KPHO reported Snow's details and included some quotes from her regarding her discovery. The report noted that the fibers gathered by Snow, which were "thicker than a spider web" and "very strong," were taken by the station to Grand Canyon University's Forensic Science Lab for testing.According to the report, Melissa Beddow, director of the university's forensic science program, tested the substance samples under "40 times magnification." Though at first the samples stumped her, she eventually concluded that they were likely "biodegradable gauze" from "nearby cattle farms." She said they were comprised of "a mixture of wheat, gluten, flour and bacitracin, an antibiotic."As further reported by, that conclusion did not satisfy the curious:On Nov. 22, Snow contacted IntelliHub's Shepard Ambellas for another attempt at finding out what to do next, since the Chino Valley resident remained unconvinced of the local media's findings. Ambellas said he advised the same thing DiCicco did: Get some independent testing done.Snow and Gunnels sent several of the fibrous samples to a credible laboratory located in Redding, Calif.The work order for the samples numbered "14K0279" was dated Dec. 4, 2014, the order numbered "14K0683" was dated Dec. 2, 2014. They both came with this guarantee: "All analysis were performed under strict adherence to our established Quality Assurance Plan." Both said that "solid" "fibers" were submitted by "Marie Snow" for "general testing.""Astonishingly, both tests concluded that both samples indeed tested positive for three metal analytes, 'Aluminum,' 'barium' and 'strontium,' three substances commonly known by dedicated researchers to be found in persistent contrails, i.e. chemtrails and or geoengineering, terraforming operations as pointed out by investigative researcher, activist, Rosalind Peterson, Agriculture Defense Coalition, in Shade the Motion Picture,"reported.But the rest of the mainstream media has thus far ignored the story -- and, for that matter, most all other "chemtrail" stories, unless they are attempting to discredit the notion or the sources bringing the issue to the public's attention.You can -- and should -- read the fullreport here You can see
All the latest Ashbourne news. Ashbourne is an historic market town in Derbyshire. Situated on the southern edge of the Peak District, it is known as the 'Gateway to Dovedale' and the 'Gateway to the Peak District'. Ashbourne is famous for the annual Royal Shrovetide Football Match, which has been played since at least 1667, although its origins may date back centuries earlier. Ashbourne became a Fairtrade town in March 2005. The popular Tissington Trail, which follows the route of the former Ashbourne to Buxton railway, starts on the edge of town. Keep up to date with the latest news from the town by signing up for our newsletter.
The Archbishop of Abuja is among the speakers at the International Eucharistic Congress in Cebu (Philippines). Speaking to AsiaNews, he stressed the need to "draw real fruits of these meetings. Some of us come from poverty and misery; others from wealth and well-being. When we go home, does anything change?" The sense of the Eucharistic celebration "is increasingly global, even in the Church itself. Christ shed His blood for the whole world, not only for Catholics."

Abuja (AsiaNews)  Card John Onaiyekan, archbishop of Abuja, will be a keynote speaker at the upcoming International Eucharistic Congress in Cebu. He spoke to AsiaNews about his address, which is titled The Eucharist: dialogue with the poor and the suffering.

The Eucharist "is the real engine of Christian change, he said. I mean complete change of thought and attitude. In fact, before multiplying the loaves and fishes, Christ himself urged his disciples who had ask him to disperse the crowd, Give them some food yourselves. This is a crucial lesson on the need to share. Sharing is not just a matter of charity that is done because one is good, but a duty that we all have as Christians against the world.

His text "focuses on the catechesis, the cardinal explained. It is not an academic lecture. It is very simple and straightforward. I want to talk about the meaning of the Eucharist and how to apply it to the poor and the suffering.

There are many pastoral implications for the poor in the Eucharist as a gift of God given to us for free to help us grow and share with others'. I am referring here to both the Holy Scriptures and the Gospel of Jesus' life." To feed people who were hungry, "Christ applied mercy towards those in need, the cardinal said. However, it is also important to point out that Jesus was not pleased by the attitude of the apostles, who asked him to disperse the crowd to 'make them go look for food'.

Instead, he urged to do more and not settle for the most obvious answer. From this comes a serious lesson on the need to share. Sharing is not just a matter of alms giving that one does to be good, but it is a duty that we all have as Christians. A duty to all the world."

The lesson in the Epistle of Saint Paul to the Corinthians is also relevant, where the apostle says we celebrate together the fraction of the bread. The clear reference is to breaking the bread of the Eucharist. This reference is useful now more than ever; it highlights the scandal of inequality.

Saint Paul used to say that whilst some were hungry, others had too much to eat. Do we do not see this as well? We must try to revive this even inside the Church, changing the attitude of Christians and the Church itself in a world that is so unfair and unequal."

For the Archbishop of Nigeria, the meaning of the big gathering in Cebu lies in the Eucharistic banquet. "We are coming to the Philippines from almost every country in the world to celebrate the Eucharist together. But what happens when the meeting ends? Does everyone just go home, someone to poverty and misery, and others to wealth? Or do we go back with clear convictions about what we should do to improve humanitys social life?

The Body of Christ is not only for those who receive the communion; it is for the whole world: even for non-Catholics, for those who do not go to church . . . every time we celebrate for the whole world. Jesus died for us and for everyone."

The congress is international but, given its location, will draw many Asian participants. "I do not expect many will come from Africa, he said, but I am happy because it is important that we move away from the usual venue in large European cities to the Philippines, the only Asian country with a Catholic majority.

For this reason, we can say that they [the Filipinos] deserve to host a Eucharistic Congress. As archbishop of Abuja, I can say that if we today are going to Cebu, the next time you will come to us."
Hassan Rouhani said elections would be pointless if there were "no competitors". Almost 12,000 people applied to stand in the elections for Iran's 290-seat parliament and 88-member Assembly of Experts Reformists does not plan to boycott the elections. A final list of approved candidates will be published on 4 February.

Tehran (AsiaNews/Agencies) - Irans president has called on the committee vetting candidates for next month's parliamentary elections to allow more reformists to stand. In a televised speech, Hassan Rouhani said parliament was the "house of the people, not a particular faction".

Elections would be pointless if there were "no competitors", he warned.

His comments came a day after nine factions said the Guardian Council had approved only 1% of the reformist candidates who had registered to run.

Many were disqualified because they were not considered sufficiently loyal to the ruling system by the committee, which is made up of six judges elected by the conservative-dominated parliament and six clerics appointed by the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Almost 12,000 people applied to stand in the elections on 26 February for Iran's 290-seat parliament and 88-member Assembly of Experts, the body that will pick the country's next supreme leader.

Some conservatives were among the 7,300 candidates who were disqualified by the Guardian Council.

But reformist factions, who favour more political and economic freedom, said they were overwhelmingly targeted, with only 30 of their 3,000 candidates approved.

"This is the biggest number of disqualifications in [Iran's] history," said prominent reformist Hossein Marashi on Wednesday. But he added that reformists did not plan to boycott the elections, vowing: "We will stay to fight because we don't want extremists to grow."

Reformists have been largely sidelined since the authorities launched a crackdown on the opposition Green Movement following the disputed presidential election in 2009, and few contested the last parliamentary polls in 2012.

But their hopes were raised by the election the following year of Mr Rouhani, a moderate cleric, and his success in negotiating a landmark nuclear deal to get international sanctions lifted this month. In his speech on Thursday, the president called for "healthy competition" in the forthcoming elections. "We must create hope, enthusiasm, competition," he said.

"No official without the vote of the people would be legitimate."

Mr Rouhani said that he had assigned Vice-President Eshagh Jahangiri to discuss the disqualifications with the Guardian Council. The head of the committee, Ayatollah Ahmed Jannati, has said its members "will not be influenced by pressure.

A final list of approved candidates will be published on 4 February.
Some 300 members of an armed Christian group, the Red God Soldiers, have vowed to fight Muslim rebels in self-defence. If government troops can defend civilians whether they are Muslims or Christians, then I think it will not come to this, said Mgr Lampon. For PIME missionary, things can escalate in the future.

Manila (AsiaNews)  Some Christians have started to arm themselves against extremists in Southern Philippines. However, as Christians, "we must say that this is not the right way to respond to violence. We must not go down this road," said Fr Sebastiano D'Ambra, PIME missionary in the Philippines.

On the website of the Philippine Bishops Conference (CBCP), Bishop Angelito Lampon, of the Vicariate of Jolo, is quoted as saying that some Christians, out of frustration and fear, appear to be ready to take up arms following provocations by some Muslim groups. They have taken the name Red God Soldiers.

In an apparent show of force, around 300 members of the group on Tuesday showed off their firearms, and vowed to drive Moro rebels from their communities.

The group burnt a flag of the Islamic State group and condemned recent attacks by the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), a group that split away from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front

Since 24 December, BIFF members have attacked some villages in Sultan Kudarat and North Cotabato, killing nine farmers working in their rice plantations.

This is a kind of desperate attempt by these Christians who are being attacked now and then by these armed groups, Mgr Lampon said.

The Red God Soldiers said they are ready to fight BIFF for the sake of their families, communities, and in the name of self-defence, the prelate explained.

Hopefully, If the government troops can defend civilians whether they are Muslims or Christians, then I think it will not come to this, added Lampon.

Fortunately, most Christians are under control, Fr DAmbra noted. They know that violence is not the Christian way. However, some groups can get out of hand. This is not new; the same thing happened in the 1970s, but it eventually stopped."

For the missionary, this is not only a religious conflict. "It is true that Christian villages were attacked at Christmas, but for a variety of reasons: land and power. Some groups want to sow confusion before the elections in May.

"We have not had any major incidents lately, Fr D'Ambra said. In my opinion, however, violence will escalate in the future. The situation in Mindanao is not very good, even though it is under control for now.

In addition to the more radical, ISIS-inspired groups like BIFF, there are those who are unhappy with the agreements between Muslim rebels and the government. The situation will become more difficult in the coming months. "

"Currently, the clergyman said, all the bishops of the Philippines are in Cebu for the bishops' conference (which meets twice a year) and for the Eucharistic Congress.
Pope Francis chose Communication and Mercy: A Fruitful Encounter as the theme for the 50th World Day of Social Communications. Indeed, Words can build bridges. For him, a society rooted in mercy is not hopelessly idealistic or excessively indulgent. Yet, Listening is much more than simply hearing. Hearing is about receiving information, while listening is about communication, and calls for closeness."

Vatican City (AsiaNews)  Pope Francis chose Communication and Mercy: A Fruitful Encounter as the theme of the 50th World Day of Social Communications, set for 8 May.

In his message, which was released today, he pontiff calls on those with institutional and political responsibility, and those charged with forming public opinion, to remain especially attentive to the way they speak of those who think or act differently or those who may have made mistakes.

For the Holy Father, words and deeds should be based on mercy, not self-righteousness, for We can and we must judge situations of sin  such as violence, corruption and exploitation  but we may not judge individuals, since only God can see into the depths of their hearts.

Similarly, in a world of expanding social media, Francis disagrees with those who believe that a vision of society rooted in mercy is hopelessly idealistic or excessively indulgent. He warns though that The digital world is a public square, a meeting-place where we can either encourage or demean one another, engage in a meaningful discussion or unfair attacks.

The Holy Year of Mercy invites all of us to reflect on the relationship between communication and mercy. The Church, in union with Christ, the living incarnation of the Father of Mercies, is called to practise mercy as the distinctive trait of all that she is and does. What we say and how we say it, our every word and gesture, ought to express Gods compassion, tenderness and forgiveness for all. Love, by its nature, is communication; it leads to openness and sharing. If our hearts and actions are inspired by charity, by divine love, then our communication will be touched by Gods own power.

As sons and daughters of God, we are called to communicate with everyone, without exception. In a particular way, the Churchs words and actions are all meant to convey mercy, to touch peoples hearts and to sustain them on their journey to that fullness of life which Jesus Christ was sent by the Father to bring to all. This means that we ourselves must be willing to accept the warmth of Mother Church and to share that warmth with others, so that Jesus may be known and loved. That warmth is what gives substance to the word of faith; by our preaching and witness, it ignites the spark which gives them life.

May words and deeds not lead individuals and nations to hate

Communication has the power to build bridges, to enable encounter and inclusion, and thus to enrich society. How beautiful it is when people select their words and actions with care, in the effort to avoid misunderstandings, to heal wounded memories and to build peace and harmony. Words can build bridges between individuals and within families, social groups and peoples. This is possible both in the material world and the digital world. Our words and actions should be such as to help us all escape the vicious circles of condemnation and vengeance which continue to ensnare individuals and nations, encouraging expressions of hatred. The words of Christians ought to be a constant encouragement to communion and, even in those cases where they must firmly condemn evil, they should never try to rupture relationships and communication.

For this reason, I would like to invite all people of good will to rediscover the power of mercy to heal wounded relationships and to restore peace and harmony to families and communities. All of us know how many ways ancient wounds and lingering resentments can entrap individuals and stand in the way of communication and reconciliation. The same holds true for relationships between peoples. In every case, mercy is able to create a new kind of speech and dialogue.

Shakespeare put it eloquently when he said: The quality of mercy is not strained. It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven upon the place beneath. It is twice blessed: it blesseth him that gives and him that takes (The Merchant of Venice, Act IV, Scene I).

Our political and diplomatic language would do well to be inspired by mercy, which never loses hope. I ask those with institutional and political responsibility, and those charged with forming public opinion, to remain especially attentive to the way they speak of those who think or act differently or those who may have made mistakes. It is easy to yield to the temptation to exploit such situations to stoke the flames of mistrust, fear and hatred. Instead, courage is needed to guide people towards processes of reconciliation. It is precisely such positive and creative boldness which offers real solutions to ancient conflicts and the opportunity to build lasting peace. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God (Mt 5:7-9).

How I wish that our own way of communicating, as well as our service as pastors of the Church, may never suggest a prideful and triumphant superiority over an enemy, or demean those whom the world considers lost and easily discarded. Mercy can help mitigate lifes troubles and offer warmth to those who have known only the coldness of judgment. May our way of communicating help to overcome the mindset that neatly separates sinners from the righteous. We can and we must judge situations of sin  such as violence, corruption and exploitation  but we may not judge individuals, since only God can see into the depths of their hearts. It is our task to admonish those who err and to denounce the evil and injustice of certain ways of acting, for the sake of setting victims free and raising up those who have fallen. The Gospel of John tells us that the truth will make you free (Jn 8:32). The truth is ultimately Christ himself, whose gentle mercy is the yardstick for measuring the way we proclaim the truth and condemn injustice. Our primary task is to uphold the truth with love (cf. Eph 4:15). Only words spoken with love and accompanied by meekness and mercy can touch our sinful hearts. Harsh and moralistic words and actions risk further alienating those whom we wish to lead to conversion and freedom, reinforcing their sense of rejection and defensiveness.

The digital world is a public square where one can encourage or demean

Some feel that a vision of society rooted in mercy is hopelessly idealistic or excessively indulgent. But let us try and recall our first experience of relationships, within our families. Our parents loved us and valued us for who we are more than for our abilities and achievements. Parents naturally want the best for their children, but that love is never dependent on their meeting certain conditions. The family home is one place where we are always welcome (cf. Lk 15:11-32). I would like to encourage everyone to see society not as a forum where strangers compete and try to come out on top, but above all as a home or a family, where the door is always open and where everyone feels welcome.

For this to happen, we must first listen. Communicating means sharing, and sharing demands listening and acceptance. Listening is much more than simply hearing. Hearing is about receiving information, while listening is about communication, and calls for closeness. Listening allows us to get things right, and not simply to be passive onlookers, users or consumers. Listening also means being able to share questions and doubts, to journey side by side, to banish all claims to absolute power and to put our abilities and gifts at the service of the common good. Listening is never easy. Many times it is easier to play deaf. Listening means paying attention, wanting to understand, to value, to respect and to ponder what the other person says. It involves a sort of martyrdom or self-sacrifice, as we try to imitate Moses before the burning bush: we have to remove our sandals when standing on the holy ground of our encounter with the one who speaks to me (cf. Ex 3:5). Knowing how to listen is an immense grace, it is a gift which we need to ask for and then make every effort to practice.

Emails, text messages, social networks and chats can also be fully human forms of communication. It is not technology which determines whether or not communication is authentic, but rather the human heart and our capacity to use wisely the means at our disposal. Social networks can facilitate relationships and promote the good of society, but they can also lead to further polarization and division between individuals and groups. The digital world is a public square, a meeting-place where we can either encourage or demean one another, engage in a meaningful discussion or unfair attacks. I pray that this Jubilee Year, lived in mercy, may open us to even more fervent dialogue so that we might know and understand one another better; and that it may eliminate every form of closed-mindedness and disrespect, and drive out every form of violence and discrimination (Misericordiae Vultus, 23). The internet can help us to be better citizens. Access to digital networks entails a responsibility for our neighbour whom we do not see but who is nonetheless real and has a dignity which must be respected. The internet can be used wisely to build a society which is healthy and open to sharing.

Communication, wherever and however it takes place, has opened up broader horizons for many people. This is a gift of God which involves a great responsibility. I like to refer to this power of communication as closeness. The encounter between communication and mercy will be fruitful to the degree that it generates a closeness which cares, comforts, heals, accompanies and celebrates. In a broken, fragmented and polarized world, to communicate with mercy means to help create a healthy, free and fraternal closeness between the children of God and all our brothers and sisters in the one human family.
Christian marriage is not "an ideal for the few, this despite modern models centred on the ephemeral and the transient, but is a reality that can be experienced by all the baptised faithful. However, those who, by choice or unhappy circumstances of life, live in an objective state of error, are still the object of Christs merciful love and thus of the Church itself."

Vatican City (AsiaNews)  Pope Francis on Friday said that "There can be no confusion between the family as willed by God and every other type of union'. This is the essential truth of marriage according to God's design. The Holy Father spoke before to the Roman Rota, the Vatican court, on the occasion of the inauguration of the new judicial year.

The pope's words stem from a reflection on two "complementary" prerogatives of the Rota, i.e. "family court" and "Court of the truth of the sacred bond". In view of this, the pontiff recommends that the Rota consider "very carefully" errors concerning the "sacramental character of marriage." For "The Church, in fact, can show Gods unfailing merciful love towards families, especially those injured by sin and trials of life, whilst at the same time proclaim the essential truth of marriage according to God's plan.

Such a pastoral attitude means that, even when the Church "seeks to declare the truth about marriage in actual cases, for the good of the faithful, it will equally remember those who, by choice or unhappy circumstances of life, live in an objective state of error, and are [therefore] still the object of Christs merciful love and thus of the Church itself."

"The family, founded on indissoluble, unitive and procreative marriage, he said, belongs to the 'dream' of God and his Church for humanitys salvation. As the Blessed Paul VI said, the Church has always looked at the family and its problems in a special way, full of concern and love. Through marriage and the family, God has skilfully combined two of the most important human realities: the mission to pass on life and the mutual and legitimate love of man and woman, in which they are called to complement each other in mutual giving, not only in physical terms but also in spiritual terms. More to the point, God wants spouses to share his life, the personal love that He has for each of them in which he calls them to help each other and give themselves to each other so as to reach the fullness of their personal lives; as well as share the love that he brings to humanity and to all his children, and for which he wants the children of men to multiply to make them share his life and his eternal happiness."

The Church, as mother and teacher", knows that, among Christians, "some have a strong faith, based on charity, strengthened by good catechesis and nurtured by prayer and the sacramental life, whilst others have a weak faith, neglected and untrained, poorly educated, or forgotten. It must be clearly said that the quality of faith is not an essential condition for marital consent, which, according to the doctrine [. . .], can be undermined only at a natural level (cf. CIC, can. 1055  1 and 2). In fact, the habitus fidei is infused at the time of Baptism and continues to have mysterious influence on the soul, even when the faith has not been developed and seems to be psychologically absent. It is not uncommon for the engaged, pushed into real marriage by the instinctus naturae, to have a limited awareness of the fullness of God's plan when they celebrate the marriage. Only afterwards, as their family life unfold, do they discover all that God the Creator and Redeemer has set out for them. The lack of preparation in the faith and error concerning the unity or indissolubility or sacramental dignity of marriage do not vitiate matrimonial consent provided that it does not determine the will (cf. CIC, can. 1099). Exactly for this reason, errors that touch the sacramental nature of marriage must be weighed very carefully."

"Therefore, with a renewed sense of responsibility, the Church continues to propose marriage, in its essential elements  children, the couples welfare, unity, indissolubility, sacramental nature  not as an ideal for the few, and this despite modern models centred on the ephemeral and the transient, but as a reality that, in the grace of Christ, can be experienced by all the baptised faithful. What is more, and for a still stronger reason, the pastoral urgency, which involves all the structures of the Church, leads us to converge towards a common and ordered purpose towards the proper preparation for marriage, some sort of new catechumenate, which some Synodal Fathers wished for so much.

Dear brothers, said the pope in concluding his address, the age in which we live is very demanding both for families and for us pastors who are called to accompany them. Cognizant of this, I wish you good work in the new year that the Lord has given us. I assure you of my prayers and I count on yours. May Our Lady and Saint Joseph enable the Church to grow in the family spirit and may families feel more as a lively and active part of the people of God."
From now on, the missionary of the Immaculate has to apply for a new visa every year, as an NGO employee. The Vimala Dermatological Centre is supported by local people. Among them are Hindus, Christians and Muslims.

Mumbai (AsiaNews) - Sister Bertilla Capra has again received a one-year Indian visa. The nun, who is a member of the Missionaries of the Immaculate, an institute associate with the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Mission (PIME) might have had to leave India after working in the country for 44 years in the service of lepers.

Recently, India's Home Ministry told Sister Bertilla, 77, that she can remain in the country until November 2016, but that from now on she has to apply forfor a visa every year.

In the past, the nun was given a five-year visa. In 2010 the government changed the rules andthe sister and other missionaries working in the health field with lepers, must ask for a one-year visa as "employees of non-governmental organizations".

Speaking to AsiaNews, Sister Bertilla expressed her gratitude to the government for granting her a visa.

The Missionaries of the Immaculate have worked for decades at the Vimala Dermatological Centre, located in Versova, a Mumbai suburb, looking after leprosy patients at different stages of their illness. Here they are not marginalized, but help them live with their families and find job opportunities for them.

"What is very nice," said one of the sisters, "is that people around us - Hindu, Christian or Muslim - support us and each day bring rice, cereals, fruits, medicines to the sick ."

"Even doctors," she added, "whether surgical doctors, ophthalmologists or orthopaedics, come to visit the sick and care for them by treating them like other patients."
Pope Francis signs the decree on the martyrdom of the Servant of God Justo Takayama, who died in exile in the Philippines for refusing to give up his beliefs. For PIME regional superior in Japan, this is fantastic news that brings great joy to the Church in Japan. Takayamas song of love song and faith for the Christian proclamation.

Tokyo (AsiaNews) - Takayama Ukon, a feudal lord in Imperial Japan, who converted to Catholicism in 1564, will become a Blessed. Pope Francis signed the decree recognising his martyrdom from hatred for the faith in 1615.

Four centuries after his death, despite the difficulty of finding documents about his life, the Church in Japan can now celebrate its first individual native martyr. For the regional superior of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions in Japan, Fr Mario Bianchin, this is fantastic news that brings great joy to the Church in Japan.

Local bishops had initially prepared the cause hoping that his heroic virtues could be recognised, Fr Bianchin told AsiaNews. However, it was very difficult to complete the application for the lack of sources and original documents. About a year ago, we were told that it was decided to choose martyrdom" as a way to see him acknowledged.

Takayama Ukon was born in what is now Osaka Prefecture in 1552 to Takayama Tomoteru, lord of Sawa Castle. When he turned 12, his father converted taking the name of Darius whilst he was baptised with the name of Justo.

Both father and son were daimyo, feudal lords appointed by the imperial court, entitled to raise a private army and hire samurai. Before his conversion, Justo practiced bushido, the "way of the warrior," a code of conduct for the Japanese warriors.

The new Blessed "was a very well-known at the time because of its political weight. We could say that he was high up among the local nobility, Fr Bianchin said. However, he paid a high price for his baptism. As the chronicles of the time indicate, his life was a song of love song and faith to the Christian proclamation, albeit within the constraint of his daimyo status.

Afterwards, Dom Justo Takayama lived under the protection of aristocratic friends. However, when Christianity was definitely outlawed in 1614, the former daimyo chose the path of exile and led a group of 300 Christians to the Philippines, welcomed by Spanish Jesuits and Filipino Catholics, when they arrived on 21 December.

Here some exiles proposed to seek Spanish support to overthrow the Japanese government, but Justo refused. On 4 February 1615, 40 days after his arrival in the Philippines, he died and was buried with full military honours in a Catholic ceremony.

Today his statue dominates Plaza Dilao. The new blessed (pictured) is dressed in the typical samurai costume, but his katana is sheathed pointing downward. Upon it hangs a figure of the crucified Jesus.
One Of Interpol's Most Wanted Caught Working At Subway Restaurant

Trending News: Interpol Caught A Suspected Murderer Working At Subway

Why Is This Important?

Because you thought "wanna see my foot-long?" Jared was the most notorious criminal associated with Subway.

Long Story Short

A man allegedly associated with a murder in Poland was arrested while working in a Subway restaurant in Wiltshire, England. Piotr Kupiec was on Interpol's most wanted list.

Long Story

It has, to say the least, not been a good few months for sandwich purveyor Subway. In November, former spokesman Jared Fogle was sentenced to 15 years in prison for having, like, all of the kiddie porn. They've now been found harboring another (alleged) criminal in Piotr Kupiec, a man on Interpol's most wanted list in connection with a murder/manslaughter in Poland.

The kicker? The Wiltshire, England Subway Kupiec was arrested in is located across the street from the local police station.

Details are scarce, but according to Interpol's website, Kupiec was wanted in connection with a crime only described as "INJURY CAUSING DEATH/MANSLAUGHTER/MURDER, ASSAULT/MALTREATMENT, theft." The "theft" part is how you really know he's a bad guy!

We can confirm that a staff member at the Devizes Subway franchise in Wiltshire was arrested in relation to a matter not connected with the store. As this is now being investigated by the police, we are unable to comment further," a Subway spokesperson told Independent.

Someone should see if he has anything to do with the death of this mouse.

Own The Conversation

Ask The Big Question

What is it about Subway that attracts so many deviants?

Disrupt Your Feed

First a child pornographer and now a potential murderer. Find a rapist and Subway will have the awful-person trifecta!

Drop This Fact

Subway's "BMT" is named for the "Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit" system, one of the original New York subway lines.
A U.S. federal judge dismissed a defamation law suit brought against Bill Cosby by a Pennsylvania woman yesterday.



The woman, Renita Hill, 48, claimed that Cosby had defamed her when he accused her of lying and extortion when she said she had been sexually assaulted by him in the 80s.



The statements were reportedly made by Cosby and his representatives in response to Hills public accusation of the sexual assault in 2014.



But U.S. district judge Arthur Schwab dismissed her claim, saying that the statements do not support a claim for defamation defined by Pennsylvania law. He also said that the remarks were protected under free speech and that Hill couldnt prove that the comments harmed her, Reuters reported.



Cosbys lawyers welcomed the decision, saying they are hopeful it may influence other pending lawsuits against their client, who has now been accused of sexual assault by more than 50 women.



The Court found opinionated speech by a defendant's attorney is protected and not actionable as defamatory, Cosbys representatives said in a statement.



It is our hope that courts in other jurisdictions with similar matters will respond in like manner.



Hills attorneys said that Cosby had mentored Hill as a young woman and paid for her education before arranging meetings in Atlantic City, New York and Denver, where they claim he sexually assaulted her.
An Ohio judge told a prisoner his lawsuit was being denied by verse.



Prisoner Darek Lathan was suing Ohio penitentiary for emotional distress, seeking $2m in damages over being denied a bathroom break, in one of three civil lawsuits he filed against the prison back in October. According to Reuters, Lathan was sentenced to 17 months prison in January last year after pleading guilty to vandalism.



Judge David E. Cains poem explains his rejection of the lawsuit:



Cold showers caused his bowels to malfunction

Or so the plaintiff claims

A strict uncaring prison guard

Is whom the plaintiff blames.

While in line for recreation

And little time for hesitation

His anal sphincter just exploded

The plaintiffs britches quickly loaded.

It made the inmates laugh and play

To see the plaintiffs pants this way

The foul, unsightly, putrid mess

Caused the plaintiff major stress.

Claiming loss and shame to boot

The plaintiff filed the present suit

But the law provideth no relief

From such unmitigated grief.

Neither runs nor constipation

Can justify this litigation

Whether bowels constrict or flex

De minimus non curat lex.



The last line translates as the law takes not account of trifles, the judge explained.



Cain said lawsuit was filed incorrectly and was in the wrong court. This was even more frivolous than we are used to seeing so I thought I would have a little fun with it, Cain said.



It was a change from going into a courtroom and hearing about wrecks, rapes and robberies.



Reuters reported that this is the first time the 72-year-old judge has used rhyme to deliver his judgement in over 30 years on the bench, but noted that as a former newspaper reporter, he did write song parodies for press events back in the 70s.



All three of Lathans personal injury lawsuits have now been dismissed.


Taking full account of all the evidence and analysis available to me, I find that the FSB operation to kill Mr. Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr. Patrushev and also by President Putin.

Owen was referring, of course, to Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as to Nikolai Patrushev, then head of the Federal Security Service (FSB) and now secretary of the Russian security council. The judge also said he was "sure" Litvinenko was killed by the radioactive polonium-210 isotope found in his body, and that this was administered by two ex-FSB colleagues he met for tea in London's ritzy Mayfair district.

Litvinenko's murder is one of the most publicly investigated in history, so much of what's in the report isn't new. But to have a recently retired British High Court judge say he is "sure" (for which read "beyond a reasonable doubt") about the guilt of Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun is a sobering moment for the U.K. -- and should be just as serious for Russia. Since the murder, Putin has personally honored Lugovoi, who has been turned into a national hero and senior member of the Russian parliament.

Just as widely accepted outside Russia is the finding that the two men were working on the orders of the FSB. But to say the hit was "probably" ordered by Putin takes quite a leap. It's a finding that Owen based on testimony from witnesses he acknowledges to have been biased, and from the historian Robert Service, about the way in which Russia's hierarchy works.

There are two things to say on this. The first is that Owen seems to have been more willing than he should to believe everything told him by Litvinenko's shady circle of ex-FSB friends. He relies in part on their accounts to establish the Kremlin's motive for murder. These include a book about a series of 1999 apartment bombings around Russia that triggered the second Chechen War and helped propel Putin to the presidency. Litvinenko and his friends maintain these weren't carried out by Chechen terrorists, as generally believed, but by the FSB. Much remains unexplained about those bombings, but the case has hardly been proved to a level that could be used in any court of law. Even so, Owen says:
The shock I felt when I first started work in South Australia came about because I was used to the lean and austere system I came from in pre-independent Papua New Guinea.

Apart from a couple of mundane things, they served no useful purpose other than to complicate once simple procedures.

Over the years it got worse, particularly after the rise of human resources divisions in each department. These divisions seemed to multiply overnight like an all-devouring virus programmed for one thing  to perpetuate itself.

WHEN I left Papua New Guinea in the 1970s and went to work for the South Australian government I was amazed at the incredibly complicated bureaucratic system that I had walked into.

Like runners in a race, the old Papua New Guinean system was lean and fit while the South Australian system was obese and decidedly unhealthy.

When I returned to Papua New Guinea in the 1990s, I discovered that the bureaucracies, both public and private, had adopted this self-same bloated system but with the added encumbrances of bad management, inefficiency and corruption.

Getting anything done, even the simplest thing, involving these bureaucracies was a mammoth and frustrating task. Whether getting a new biro from Santos to lodging land owner registrations with the Lands Department.

Reflecting on that now, it seems clear that this is one of the major problems with service delivery in Papua New Guinea, particularly in rural areas.

The complex systems also open up numerous opportunities for corruption; and perhaps that was one of the reasons they were designed the way they were.

Then again, Im sceptical that there was any intelligent design involved in the first place, except perhaps for the purposes of establishing power bases.

You would expect that, in this digital age, bureaucratic processes could be streamlined to create efficiency but this has not happened either in Papua New Guinea, Australia or the rest of the world.

In the 1960s, economists and political scientists were predicting that technology would largely do away with labour intensive work so that people would have more leisure time and a better work-to-life balance.

This never happened. In the interests of ever increasing production and profit, people found themselves working longer hours just to keep up and compete.

Instead of doing a 10 hour job in five hours and having the other five hours off for leisure, workers found themselves working 10 or 15 hours producing five times as much output but under pressure to do even more.

Running a lean and technologically-assisted bureaucracy has many attractions. It not only makes service delivery more efficient but it engenders a responsibility and pride in its operators  success breeds success.

In pre-independent Papua New Guinea we did a lot with very few resources but we couldnt have done that without the cooperation of the people and their leaders.

The Okuk Highway was built by hand with shovels and picks by a proud people who prided themselves on outdoing their tribal neighbours. The picks and shovels were bought from the proceeds of collecting war time wreckage and selling it to scrap metal dealers.

The diversity of the people was a distinct advantage in those days. In the drive for development tribal groups excelled at building schools and hospitals in their areas for next to nothing but with freely provided blood sweat and tears. The rush to develop also left little time for tribal fighting.

Bureaucrats have brought down mighty civilisations in the past. Rome and the various dynasties in China are clear examples.

I suspect that it will be the bureaucracy, with its inherent inefficiencies and corruption that brings down Papua New Guinea.

As Michael Dom has pointed out, Papua New Guineas diversity can be harnessed for the greater good. Tribalism does not have to be a negative factor but can be a positive one for change.

This is no more apparent than in the electoral system. If electorates reflected tribal groupings, just like the kiaps designed local level government wards, a sense of pride would develop and people would soon realise that if they wanted to get ahead electing greedy and stupid political leaders was a bad idea.

In pre-independent Papua New Guinea, the central administration in Port Moresby generally left the districts (upon which the present provinces are based) to their own devices and district headquarters generally left the sub-districts to their own devices.

Port Moresby and the district headquarters were simply the people who enabled the sub-districts to get on with it.

In the 1970s, the Western Highlands was the star performer. It went ahead in leaps and bounds and left the more moribund districts gasping in its wake.

The colonial administration also worked to help private enterprise develop but it never got involved in individual companies or projects itself.

It was only at the local level where cooperative businesses were set up by local people that the kiaps, didimen and others helped. It was received wisdom that government should not get involved in private enterprise. This is wisdom that Peter ONeill seems to be ignoring.

There is a hint of this old style administration now appearing in Gary Juffas Oro Province.

As Martyn Namorong has pointed out, it will be ordinary people who save Papua New Guinea, not the bloated government in Port Moresby.

All those people need now is the oxygen and the room to exert themselves. A sensible government would be working towards providing these things.
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Hi,My question is for anyone who has applied for a police check from Republic of Ireland.I need to get that police check as part of my 820 visa application. Could someone, please advise me the best way to go about it?I have requested a police check from Dublin suburb I used to live in for a different purpose, and got a letter with addresses I have lived at in Ireland, but no dates or anything. Not sure if that is sufficient for 820 visa or can I request a different kind of police certificate from Ireland?Any responses much appreciated. Thanks.
Carmaker says six-month waiting period likely to remain for now. To commence exports to Japan and other countries this month.

Maruti Suzukis latest premium hatchback, Baleno, has received an overwhelming response since its launch in October 2015 and has clocked nearly 70,000 bookings till date. The huge demand, however, has resulted in a waiting period of around five to six months for the car and company officials do not see the long waiting period shrinking anytime soon.



We did not anticipate such a response for the Baleno. The waiting period of close to six months is likely to continue. However, we are in talks with our production team to see how quickly we can ramp up the production, Partho Banerjee, Senior Vice President (NEXA Channel), Marketing & Sales, told Autocar India today.

Maruti produced 11,203 units of the Baleno in December 2015. In fact, the hatch sold 10,572 units during the same month and toppled the Hyundai i20 (10,379 units) to become the top selling premium hatchback.

The carmaker plans to begin exporting the Baleno starting later this month, which is further likely to weigh on production. R S Kalsi, Executive Director, Marketing & Sales, Maruti Suzuki said, We will export the Baleno to Japan. We also have plans to then export it to Western Europe, Latin America, some African countries. The carmaker has export orders from more than 100 countries, he added.

S-Cross price cut

Maruti Suzuki recently cut prices of the S-Cross premium crossover, by up to Rs 2.05 lakh in an attempt to boost sales. The prices of the car now start at Rs 7.79 lakh and go up to Rs 11.69 lakh for the top-spec variant. Both prices are for ex-showroom, Delhi.

Kalsi added that bookings have already increased following the price cut and the carmaker anticipates a pick-up in sales in the near term. In India, the customer compares price to value proposition. The gap between prices of the 1.3-litre variant and 1.6-litre variant was perceived to be high by the customer, hence we have done price correction in line with market expectation, he said, commenting on the move.

Maruti Suzuki today inaugurated its 100th Nexa premium dealership in the country in Thane, Mumbai. It has plans to ramp up the number of outlets to 140 by April this year, and is targeting 250 showrooms by April 2017.
Tests revealed high emissions from Renault's 108bhp dCi diesel engines as a result of faulty filtration system.

A week after the police raid which took place at Renault's headquarters, the Renault Technical Centre in Lardy and the Technocentre in Guyancourt, France, the French carmaker has announced that it will recall and fix 15,000 cars after tests revealed high levels of emissions in some of its models. Renault has revealed that the affected engine is the 108bhp dCi engine found in the Captur. It is being recalled "to address an error in the engine's calibration unit", with no further engines affected. In India, the same engine is also found in the Duster and Lodgy models.



The carmaker was quick to add: "Renault Group vehicles are not equipped with fraudulent software or systems designed to bypass the emission control system", and that the recall was a "known issue that was corrected on production vehicles from September 4, 2015."

It is understood that the filtration system of certain models did not work above certain temperatures or below 17deg C. The group also denies early reports that stated around 7,00,000 cars would be subject to a software update in relation to the ongoing emissions scandal.



Several computers belonging to company directors are said to have been seized. The CGT Renault union suggested that the raids are linked to the consequences of the Volkswagen rigged-engines affair, and confirmed that the raids had targeted engine control units. The manufacturer revealed that prior to the raids, the UTAC (the French homologation authority) had already been testing Renault vehicles, with four of 25 models being examined before the new year. It said that the testing enabled "the French public authorities to initiate productive discussions with Renault's engineering team".

These latest police raids are said to be part of "additional on-site and material investigations, in order to definitively confirm the first findings resulting from the analysis of the independent technical commission".

Despite such scrutiny, the carmaker is confident its cars will pass the tests without issue. It currently has the support of the French Agency for Energy and Climate (DGEC) and states that these on-going tests provide it with an opportunity to improve the Renault Emissions Plan.



Renault was one of the vehicle manufacturers to welcome more stringent test procedures in the wake of the emissions scandal which broke last September.



Shares in the French car maker fell sharply this morning as the first reports of the raids surfaced, with stock prices dropping by as much as 20%.



Volkswagen has been subjected to the most scrutiny under the emissions scandal, but it's known that authorities are looking into other vehicle manufacturers. German officials from the KBA(Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt (KBA) - Federal Motor Transport Authority) said late last year that they would be investigating 23 different marques.
Monday was another slam-dunk for the FoMoCo boys, after they stole the Detroit Auto Show with three performance vehicles: the 2017 Ford GT, a dune-rated 2017 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor and the 2016 Shelby GT350R Mustang . Clearly, the GM gang needs to hurry up with that 2016 Camaro.According to CamaroNews , a black & white image flashed from time to time during Chevys press conference in Detroit, depicting five cars General Motors main brand plans to unveil in 2015. Lets focus on the silhouette at the three oclock position and surprise:As for the others, one looks like the recently unveiled 2016 Chevrolet Volt , while the other appear to be the new generation Cruze , Spark and Malibu . Posted on the Camaro6 forum by user HattanKSA, the teaser looks remarkably similar to chazcrons renderings and 3D dimensional animations of the car.After deleting the other four cars in the image, chazcron managed to outline the Camaro and sharpened the hard lines of the pony and we werent surprised by the end product. Since the first ever 2016 Camaro rendering from chazcron, we knew the finished car wont differ too much from the artists work because he used only spy shots of pre-production Maros to draw the exterior design.As for a potential release date, Chicago in February is highly unlikely. With the New York International Show slated to kick off on April 1st and with Chevrolet confirmed at booth #400 of the Jacob Javits Convention Centers north hall, fingers crossed this is the real place of unveiling.
However, we now want to take you behind the scenes of that memorable drift battle. Spoiler alert: expect plenty of dream-worthy tire-burning material to come your way.While the original clip made it look like the world's only Lamborghini drift car met a drift-spec 2015 Mustang in an abandoned Russian Village replica, with the two simply going at it, the path to those spectacular pixels wasn't all that easy.It all started with the location itself, as the production team had just two weeks to turn the rubble-covered area into a drift course, one that also had to be camera worthy.Then there was Vaughn Gittin Jr.'s crash, which, as you'll see, wasn't exactly the light kind.The Making Of video also brings forth Liberty Walk's Wataru Katu, who explains how his crew brought not only their widebody machines to the site but also a pair of Dekotora trucks (you'll recognize these when you see them).This is also a good opportunity to reiterate the fact that Daigo Saigo is making massive efforts to cope with the challenges of the Murcielago drift car - we get some in-vehicle scenes that show just how limited space and visibility are.Oh, and by the way, did we mention the racer jumped straight from filming this event to a Formula D event? No time pressure or anything.We hope you have just enough popcorn for this 12:35 clip, since every bit of the footage can easily be labeled under "quality time."
HP

The plate were talking about is screwed to the rear apron of a McLaren 12C, simply spelling Vitamin C. The message is nicely assorted with the New York status of the plate.This thing is... right on so many levels. First of all, releasing North of 600from a 3.8-liter engine probably wouldnt have been possible without the engineers taking quite a lot of Vitamin C while designing the powerplant.The positive effects allowed the team over in Surrey, UK, to come up with a twin-turbo setup that gifts the V8 with so much grunt it makes the back of your neck hurt under full loads. Oh and as we noticed during our test drive , you can forget about that thing called turbo lagThen theres the nice match between Vitamin C and the hue of this 12C, the wonderful McLaren Orange Metallic.Photo via: JHeislerPhotography
Of course, one doesn't necessarily have to be a rider and own a Ducati to get one of these two-wheelers. If you are looking for a new bicycle and want to stand out from the crowd, and possibly enjoy appreciation from other Ducatisti, these bikes may turn out to be a neat choice.All the bikes are manufactured in collaboration with Bianchi, a legendary Italian maker that has been in the scene since 1885, so we're not talking about "yet another branded bikes."As distinctive features for the new bikes, Ducati mentions the high-tech integrated in them, the styling and the classic Italian design. These work hand in hand, bringing the two iconic brands closer together and creating a synergy that is coherent with both makers' core values.Ducati's offer comprises a full range of bikes, from those destined to kids to those addressing serious cyclists who will tackle the forest trails.We simply loved the kids models because their graphics are heavily inspired by those of the Monster and Hypermotard, two of the long-standing symbols of the Bologna maker. Having the kids astride these bikes creates an interesting precedent, so parents should not be surprised if their children end up buying a Ducati later on.The Kids models are, obviously, the most affordable, with prices ranging from 169 to 189, followed by the Junior models, 279-309. A Ducati mountain bike can be had for anything between 349 and 899, while the Sport versions will set you back 689 to 769.As expected, the pedelecs are the most expensive Ducati bicycles, with their prices varying between 2,500 and 2,690. Four models are available, E-400, E-Sport Man, E-Sport lady and E-City, all equipped with 250W Bosch mid-mounted motors and fed by 400 Wh batteries that need 3.5 hours for a full charge.Ranges vary from 50 to 80 km (31 to 50 miles) in Turbo Mode, and from 140 to 180 km (87-112 miles) in Eco mode, with a Walk Assist function also available. The Lady version has traditional brakes, whereas the rest have hydraulic systems.No word so far as to whether they will be sold stateside, as Ducati only mentions select dealerships and certain bicycle retailers, namely Alpen, a Bianchi subsidiary.
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"PEACE IS A BY-PRODUCT OF VICTORY. PROSPERITY IS A BY-PRODUCT OF LIBERTY AND JUSTICE. "

"The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender, or submission." - John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 35th President of the United States QUESTION: WHICH VERSION OF ISLAM DID MUHAMMED PRACTICE, "MODERATE ISLAM"OR "RADICAL ISLAM"?



THE ANSWER IS THE ONLY THING YOU REALLY HAVE TO KNOW ABOUT ISLAM - AND ITS APOLOGISTS.

Blog Archive
According to Automotive News , the list made by Elzbieta Bienkowska includes a possible compensation for the customers who purchased a Volkswagen vehicle with an emissions system that featured devices made to trick government testing.The request of the EU official did not go unnoticed by Volkswagens boss, especially since the letter's motivation was built on the fact that customers of Volkswagen vehicles sold in the United States of America were promised compensation amounting to $1,000.However, Volkswagens leaders do not feel the same way. The German companys officials have stated that they will consider the issue and will come back to the EU Commissioner on the points discussed, but they do not feel the EU market is the same as the US market.The German company explained that it cannot provide the same compensation in all markets, especially since they do not consider that European customers have been affected by the Dieselgate situation or the emissions problem involving gasoline engines.The German corporation motivated its decision by highlighting the fact that it pledged to fix all the cars affected with no cost to the owners and to take care of any supplemental tax issues involving the previous emission figures generated by those vehicles.If we take a look at the figures of the Volkswagen Dieselgate scandal, out of the 11 million vehicles affected worldwide, around 8.5 million were sold in Europe.Along with the cost of fixing these cars and the occupation generated in the companys service departments, providing compensation to each owner could bring the German company in a dangerous financial situation.Since the Volkswagen Group is Europes largest carmaker and employs many people, risking those jobs and many other connected ones would pose a threat to economic stability on a European level.Furthermore, EU laws are different from those applied in the United States of America, and the company might not be obliged to provide compensation if it repairs its wrongdoings.
A former pilot for Alaska Airlines was charged this week with flying on the job under the influence of alcohol in 2014. David Hans Arnston, 60, of Newport Beach, California, was in federal court on Wednesday and charged with one felony count, The Associated Press reported. He was freed on $25,000 bond and will return to court on Feb. 10 for a hearing. The charge stems from two flights Arnston made for the airline on June 20, 2014. He flew from San Diego International Airport to Portland, Oregon, then from Portland to John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California, the AP reported.

A criminal complaint states Arnston was pegged for a random drug/alcohol test when he landed at John Wayne, according to the AP.He had blood-alcohol readings of 0.134 and 0.142 percent, after which the airline removed him from flying duties. When the drug tester appeared at the airport, Arnstonwas heard to say to his first officer, I bet its for me, the complaint said, although in the document he denied consuming alcohol, according to an NBC report. He later retired. Under the felony charge, he faces up to 15 years in prison.
22 January 2016 12:34 (UTC+04:00)

By Sara Rajabova

Irans traditional and major trade partner China is determined to further strengthen the relations with the Islamic Republic.

The removal of sanctions have enabled Beijing, which did not cease the cooperation with the Islamic Republic during sanctions-period, to expand economic cooperation, especially in the field of investment and providing financial resources.

With an aim to get more benefits from cooperation with Iran, Chinese President Xi Jinping is going to pay an official visit to Tehran, which is the first visit of Chinese president to the Islamic Republic in 14 years.

The Chinese president reportedly will arrive in Iran heading a big delegation of political and economic representatives.

Prior to his Tehran visit, Chinese leader Xi Jinping has called for strengthening political, trade and cultural ties with Iran through an op-ed published on IRNA news agency.

Speaking about trade ties between Iran and China, he said over the past six years Beijing has been Tehrans major trade partner. China and Iran have developed a broad and deep partnership centered on China's energy needs and Iran's abundant resources as well as significant non-energy economic ties.

In 2011, approximately 10 percent of China's oil imports were from Iran. Approximately 80 percent of Chinas total imports from Iran are oil and the rest is mineral and chemical products.

Iran exported 17.56 million tons of non-oil goods, worth $5.33 billion to China during the first eight months of 2015, according to Iranian Customs Administration. China was the main importer of Iranian goods in the mentioned period. Beijings imports accounted for 22.7 percent of Irans total non-oil exports in terms of value and 33.3 percent in terms of volume.

Omid Shokri Kalehsar, an energy analyst and PhD candidate in international relations at Turkeys Yalova University, said Iran and China has historical relations, and after Islamic Revolution both countries was interested to develop bilateral relations.

China and other countries are interested to invest in Irans energy and industry sectors. Chinnese firms have a good potential in energy sector and are ready to come back to Iranian energy sector and invest in it. China is Irans first business and trade partner and both counties enjoy a potential to increase trade volume in coming years, the expert told AzerNews.

He voiced assurance that during Xis Tehran visit both countries will seek to discuss new agreement especially in oil and gas sector.

Iran expects Chinese companies to be more active in the country and invest in its major projects. Iran is interested to attract about $30 billion investments from Chinese companies. In the first six months of 2014, Chinas oil imports from Iran increased 48 percent from the same period the previous year. That pace slowed over the rest of 2014, but the year as a whole still registered a 28 percent increase in oil imports from Iran, Shokri said.

He believes that energy will be backbone of IranChina relations in post-sanctions era.

Shokri added that China is keen to convince Iran in joining the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

That regional grouping is currently devoted to fighting the three evils of separatism, terrorism, and religious extremism but it has grown economic aspects as well. China is also moving to integrate Iran into its own multilateral institutions. Iran has been officially accepted as a founding member of China-founded Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, which is another small step toward normalizing Irans interactions with the global community, the expert underlined.

As, over the past several years, China became Iran's number one oil customer and trading partner, Iran is now seeking Chinas help in the technological know-how to develop its energy resources.

Shokri said after the lifting of the sanctions Iran is planning to export more oil to world oil market.

Before sanctions, China firms had played key role in some Iranian oil and gas fields, as well as in Irans LNG sector. By December 2008, Chinas Sinopec signed a 25-year agreement with NIOC for developing of Yadavaran oil field and according agreement Sinopec has to invest $1.76 in this field with an aim of increasing oil capacity. By 2009, China national oil company made agreement with Iran over developing South Azadeghan oil field. By June 2009, another important agreement was signed between Iran and Chinas companies over phase 11 of South Pars field. China National Oil Company with Petronas and Iranian National Oil Company agreed to invest about $4.5 billion in this phase with an aim of producing 1.75 bcm daily form this phase, the expert said.

He went on to say that this phase is very important for Iran and after coming to stream Iran will able to produce more oil and gas from South Pars fild.

Chinas CNPCI has also signed agreement to invest in Irans LNG project. Iran has a plan to produce about 75 million ton annually and has five LNG production facilities project. Chinas firms have delayed the completion of oil and gas projects. Iran was not satisfied with such delays. Chinas delays in completing oil and gas projects cost about $ 40 billion for the Iranian economy.

Shokri believes that China also seeks to play mediator role between Iran and Saudi Arabia and help these countries to solve the problems.

China is importing oil from both countries and good relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia would help to keep peace in the region and whereas Chinas oil imports from the region can contribute the stability in the region. Stability and peace in the region is very important for Chinas energy security, he said.

Beyond its oil resources, Iran also plays an important role in Chinas regional economic ambitions.

Since 2013, China has pushed to expand its overland trade routes through the Silk Road Economic Belt, an initiative to build roads, railroads, and other transportation infrastructure throughout Central Asia. Iran is a critical part of this plan, due to its strategic location with access to key waterways.

Prior to his Tehran visit, Xi called for expansion of ties on transport sector and said Iran and China both are considered to be significant destinations that are located along the Silk Road.

Earlier in 2015, Iranian media reported that Tehran plans to participate in an ambitious Chinese plan to revive the Silk Road aiming to connect Asia to Europe and Africa through a network of roads, railways, ports and airports.

--

Sara Rajabova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @SaraRajabova



Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
22 January 2016 10:19 (UTC+04:00)

The National Hero Chingiz Mustafayev Foundation and ANS Group of Companies have named Azerbaijan`s First Lady, President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, UNESCO and ISESCO goodwill ambassador, MP Mehriban Aliyeva Person of the year 2015.

Mehriban Aliyeva was honored for her role as chair of the Organizing Committee in excellently delivering the first European Games, outstanding contribution to the promotion of Azerbaijan worldwide, role in ensuring mutual integration of Azerbaijani and global cultures, contribution to the establishment of multiculturalism in the country, and charity activity.

Mehriban Aliyeva first received the award in 2005.

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Follow us on Twitter: @AzerNewsAz
22 January 2016 10:43 (UTC+04:00)

Trend Agency's exclusive interview with the new OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Foreign Minister of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier

Question: How do you assess the current state of bilateral political relations between Germany and Azerbaijan? What will be the main priorities of Germany in its relations with Azerbaijan in the future?

Answer: For us, Azerbaijan is an important partner in the region of the Southern Caucasus, strategically located at the Caspian Sea and blessed with enormous energy resources. Our economic exchange increased in 2015, and this was not only due to the fact that Germany buys significant quantities of oil from Azerbaijan. The German-Azerbaijani Chamber of Commerce is very active.

Other than that, we are also interested in increasing our cultural and humanitarian exchange. Our Embassy and the German Cultural Centre Kapellhaus run many cultural activities like concerts and exhibitions. There are nine schools in Azerbaijan that teach German as the first foreign language and we have a number of scholarships for Azerbaijani students. All of these are important vectors of our bilateral relationship and we intend to develop them further. We want Azerbaijan to be an important element of stability in the region.

Q.:Germany will be chairing the OSCE this year. Considering the protracted conflicts in the OSCE area, what can Germany do to bring Azerbaijan and Armenia closer to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and start working on the peace agreement?

A.:The theme of our chairmanship in the OSCE is to renew dialogue, rebuild trust and re-establish security. We will put an active focus on trying to find solutions to regional conflicts within the OSCE framework. But we also want to develop the OSCE further as a platform for an open and constructive dialogue.

Concerning Nagorno-Karabakh, we think that the recent escalation we have witnessed is in nobodys interest. Therefore, as OSCE chair we will support the efforts by the Minsk Group to work towards a resolution of this conflict. It would be very important for the overall stability of the region and we count on a constructive approach by all sides.

Q.:How can Germany as OSCE chair contribute to reducing the tension between Russia and Turkey?

A.:Russia and Turkey are important members of the international community and of the OSCE. They both have an enormous responsibility for peace and stability in the region. They also have a crucial role to play in the current international efforts to stop the civil war in Syria and in the fight against ISIL. We therefore encourage them to find constructive ways out of their bilateral crisis.

Q.:Europe is experiencing the worst refugee crisis since World War II. What are the keys to resolve this crisis?

A.:The immense number of refugees is a big test and a challenge for our countries and societies which we urgently need to solve. Of course, we must work on securing our external borders. We cooperate with Turkey on this question. And we do what we can to find solutions to the conflicts that cause people to leave their home country, such as the civil war in Syria. This means that we have to tackle the root causes of the refugee problem. No single country can solve this crisis alone and there is no single solution. Therefore, we need to act in unison and solidarity within Europe, but also with our partners beyond Europe.

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Follow us on Twitter: @AzerNewsAz
22 January 2016 11:40 (UTC+04:00)

The first meeting of the Intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation between Azerbaijan and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland will be held on February 10-11, 2016 in London.

Azerbaijans Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev announced about this at the meeting with the UK Ambassador to Azerbaijan Irfan Siddiq, the Economy Ministry reported.



The reform program of the Azerbaijani government was introduced and the possibilities of cooperation with the UK in this area, as well as the prospects of expansion of the cooperation and existing economic ties between Azerbaijan and the UK were discussed during the meeting.

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and the UK decreased twofold, amounting to $472.07 million in January-November 2015, according to the Azerbaijani State Customs Committee

Azerbaijan and the UK have benefitted from close bilateral partnership and cooperation since 1992, in the framework of international organizations such as the United Nations, OSCE, Council of Europe, and NATO. The relations have covered a wide range of issues, from high-level political dialogue to growing trade and investment, as well as strengthening cultural and humanitarian ties.

Economic cooperation between the two countries, especially in the energy sector, is at the core of the relations between Azerbaijan and the UK. The UK is the largest foreign direct investor in Azerbaijan, followed by the U.S. and Japan.

Azerbaijan cooperates with the UK in the exploration and transportation of oil and natural gas from the Azerbaijani part of the Caspian Sea.

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22 January 2016 10:32 (UTC+04:00)

A group of 42 Azerbaijani soldiers of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Azerbaijan serving within the NATO-led "Resolute Support" mission launched in Afghanistan in January 2015 returned to Baku on a rotating basis.

According to the Defense Ministry, Azerbaijani armed forces started their peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan on November 20, 2002.

Currently, 94 servicemen, 2 medical officers and 2 sappers of Azerbaijani armed forces are involved in peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan.

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22 January 2016 11:10 (UTC+04:00)

By Aynur Karimova

Azerbaijans economy is stable and sustainable, and despite the drop in oil prices, the country has kept the social package in place.

This was stated by President Ilham Aliyev, who addressed "The New Energy Equation" session of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on January 21.

He said it is difficult to expect the oil price going lower, but having this situation today, a decrease in oil price will not be surprising.

Touching upon coordination with OPEC, President Aliyev said that Azerbaijan is ready to do it, and actually that was a part of the discussions with some of OPEC members.

The president added that though Azerbaijan is not a big oil producer, more coordination between OPEC members and large non-OPEC members with respect of the reduction of production can bring results.

Therefore, coordination between large non-OPEC countries and OPEC members and increasing the level of mutual trust is of significant importance, according to President Aliyev.

If it doesnt happen, OPEC itself will not make a decision, and without it we will have this situation and just wait when the oil price will reach its bottom, he said.

The president added that this is very exhausting, also from a psychological point of view, not to mention Azerbaijans needs to balance the budget, to have funds for investment and not only into oil and gas.

President Aliyev further stressed Azerbaijan's need to invest in social infrastructure, industrial infrastructure, and at the same time to maintain the level of production needed to invest in oil and gas.

The head of state also said that Azerbaijan has started fundamental reforms of its financial sector, economic reforms, focusing on export-oriented non-oil economy production and forgetting about the oil factor.

We were trying to prepare ourselves for this period [to come] in 15-20-25 years, but we have to do it now, and I think that we will cope with this situation, said the president.

President Aliyev also spoke about the economic situation in Azerbaijan.

Our foreign debt is only 12 percent of GDP, and our foreign currency reserves are almost the same level as our GDP. I am sure we will manage the crisis, but of course we want to have a predictable future, and to plan our budget for the next year, President Aliyev said.

As for the decline of Azerbaijans national currency, the manat, President Aliyev said there were several factors for that, such as the drop in oil prices.

The president noted that Azerbaijans national currency during the last 10 years gained weight against the US dollar, which was a little bit artificial.

President Aliyev went on to add that previously one manat was $1.3, so the first change in the national currency rate was to bring one manat back to $1.

He further said the second change in the rate was mainly due to devaluation of national currencies in neighboring countries, and Azerbaijani goods became non-competitive, adding that this was an additional burden on the countrys budget.

We tried to resist as much as we could, we lost some of our national bank reserves, but we had to take this measure. There were of course some concerns about that, because it immediately reflected in the rise of consumer prices, which we import, since we are still goods-import dependent country. So the increase in prices created certain concern, said the president.

He further said that there was some minor concern based on stress situation, people weren't prepared for that.

"But now it is over, and I believe that the economic development in Azerbaijan will be sustainable, Ilham Aliyev said.

The President said he believes that Azerbaijan had one of the fastest growing economies in the world with 300-percent growth in the last 10 years.

It was too much, I think, so now the cycle goes down, and I think that with the currency reserves we will manage the situation, President Aliyev said.

Talking about further dynamics of the global oil prices, Azerbaijani president said that he believes that they are close to dropping $3 more, and then, in the second half of the year, the market will grow.

It is a cyclic system, said Ilham Aliyev.

I remember the time when we launched our main oil development project in 1994, the oil price then was $12, and it seemed to be very normal. And when we were planning the development, I remember, we thought about an optimistic scenario, which was $22 dollars, President Aliyev said.

Now we are very close to that optimistic scenario, the president said, expressing hope that the market will stabilize, because the oil sector needs investments.

Azerbaijani president said that last year the world experienced the highest percentage of drop of investments in the oil sector.

"So, without that the price will definitely go up," he said.

Ilham Aliyev added he believes that for companies, for investors, for governments, the price at $60-70 per barrel will be perfect.

When asked about the possibility of oil prices rising again, sometime by 2017, Ilham Aliyev agreed that it is indeed possible.

This second half of this year will be the period of stabilization, and I hope that we can see the growth, President Aliyev said.

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Aynur Karimova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova

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22 January 2016 15:34 (UTC+04:00)

By Nigar Orujova

Azerbaijan, located on the junction of two continents- Europe and Asia, created all necessary conditions for representatives of different nationalities, religions and cultures to exist freely. The state is committed to its strategy on developing and strengthening the traditions of multiculturalism.



An Azerbaijani model of multiculturalism can be exemplary for the countries keeping away from this tradition, believes Kamal Abdulla, the state adviser on international issues, multiculturalism and religion.

The Azerbaijani model of multiculturalism is viable. The interest in this model in the world is the result of recognizing Azerbaijan as a country having these traditions throughout the history, he told journalists on January 22.

The International Centre for Multiculturalism was established in Baku in 2014, as a concrete effort to promote the values of multiculturalism. Moreover, earlier in 2008, Azerbaijan launched the so-called Baku process, a dialogue between culture ministers, individuals and groups with different cultural and religious backgrounds, promoted as an antidote to violence.

Asked about the Baku International Multiculturalism Centers activity, Abdulla said it will also work outside Azerbaijan as well, adding that its branch has already been working in Dresden.

Azerbaijan will continue this policy, the adviser said. The multiculturalism centers will be established in the regions of the country, as well as in Russia, Portugal and other countries in 2016.

Abdulla also said that teaching multiculturalism would continue at the world universities.

Speaking about the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia, the advisor said that there is no Armenia-phobia in Azerbaijan.

Armenians, who arrived in Baku within the framework of public diplomacy, were surprised by how neatly items and books in Armenian stored in the Armenian Church. We should show the world the lack of Armenia-phobia with specific examples. We even have Azerbaijani citizens of Armenian nationality, Abdulla said, noting the potential for coexistence of Azerbaijanis and Armenians.

Armenia captured Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions from Azerbaijan in a war that followed the Soviet breakup in 1991. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and nearly 1 million were displaced as a result of the war.

Azerbaijan seeks the peaceful settlement of Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and work in this direction continues, Abdulla added.

Throughout the history Azerbaijan, where the first secular democracy in the Muslim world created and women were granted the right to vote, has always been distinguished for its traditions of tolerance. Today, the country is a model for many countries in the world for peaceful coexistence of members of different nations and religions.

This year, Azerbaijan will host the 7th Global Forum of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations on April 25-27. By using the UN tribune, Azerbaijan will once again show its multiculturalism traditions, and urge the world countries to respect to tolerance, intercultural and inter-civilization dialogue. Furthermore, Azerbaijan named 2016 the year of multiculturalism.

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Nigar Orujova is AzerNews staff journalist. Follow her on Twitter: @o_nigar

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22 January 2016 16:33 (UTC+04:00)

By Laman Sadigova

The Slovenian National Council has urged Armenia, which keeps 20 percent of Azerbaijani internationally recognized territories under the occupation for over two decades, to liberate these lands.

The decision on the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was adopted on an initiative by Rudi Matjasic, a member of the Council, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry reported.

Slovenias government was urged to support the UN Security Councils resolutions on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict that is aimed at its peaceful settlement. The document also calls on to return the refugees and internally displaced people to their native lands.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict began in 1988 after Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan and, in 1992, occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia hasnt yet implemented the UN Security Councils four resolutions on its withdrawal from Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.

Slovenian National Councils document also condemned the ethnic cleansing and mass extermination of the civilian Azerbaijani population conducted by Armenia. It was also stressed that the genocide committed by the Armenian armed forces in the Azerbaijani town of Khojaly on February 26, 1992, is a crime against the very word of humanity.

The document, issued by Slovenias National Council, recalled that 24 years will pass on February 26 from the murder of 613 people, including 63 children, 106 women, 70 elderly people, as well as the disappearance of numerous civilians in Khojaly.

This crime against humanity was condemned by many world countries, says the document.

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22 January 2016 17:41 (UTC+04:00)

By Laman Sadigova

The OSCE Minsk Group hailed the interest of PACE in the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group  Igor Popov of the Russian Federation, James Warlick of the United States of America, and Pierre Andrieu of France  welcome efforts to find a negotiated settlement to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and are prepared to work cooperatively with those committed to a peaceful settlement, said a statement posted on the OSCE official website on January 22.

There are two resolutions on the agenda of the upcoming PACE winter session. They are PACE MP Robert Walters (UK) report entitled Escalation of Violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and Other Occupied Territories of Azerbaijan, and PACE MP Milica Markovics (Bosnia and Herzegovina) report about Sarsang Reservoir in Nagorno-Karabakh, and entitled Inhabitants of frontier regions of Azerbaijan are deliberately deprived of water.

We understand that the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe may consider resolutions on the conflict in the near future and remind PACE, and other regional and international organizations, that the Minsk Group remains the only accepted format for negotiations, said the OSCE Minsk Group.

The statement also says that the OSCE appreciates the interest paid by PACE members, but urge that steps not be taken which could undermine the Minsk Groups mandate from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe or complicate ongoing negotiations.

Earlier, in 2015, the OSCE numerously urged two sides to stop clashes as since 2015, the risk of broader conflict in the South Caucasus, a region crisscrossed by oil and gas pipeline has intensified.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.

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22 January 2016 17:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Aynur Karimova

Azerbaijan, which is keen on to overcome the economic difficulties caused by drop in oil prices on the world market, is taking necessary measures in this regard.

Deputy Parliamentary Speaker Bahar Muradova announced that the government is developing the necessary economic programs, adding that measures are being taken for the development of the non-oil sector.



"The Parliament has passed a number of important bills this week aimed at economic development and improvement of the social welfare of citizens," Muradova told Trend on January 22.

These measures are expected to help Azerbaijan to overcome the economic difficulties with less significant losses.

Another important measure towards improving the economic situation in the country and improving the doing business was cancellation of 22 types of licenses, and narrowing of a list of the licenses required for doing business in Azerbaijan from 59 to 37.

Such a decision was envisaged in a presidential decree dated December 21, 2015.

Also, in early October, licensing procedures for entrepreneurship were simplified, paving the way for encouraging business transparency in the country. Moreover, the number of inspections among entrepreneurs was also reduced for two years.

The simplification of the licensing procedure, decrease of their number, application of online license portals offering issuing licenses, reduced amount of duties, issuance of perpetual licenses, and most important - online issuance of licenses have allowed to get licenses without making any illegal payments and avoid illegal procedures.

Aydin Huseynov, the member of the Parliament, has urged the Azerbaijani entrepreneurs to be more active and take an advantage of improved business climate in the country.

"The issues related to the reduction of the tax burden have already been reflected in a legal manner, and inappropriate interventions are eliminated. Entrepreneurs should take maximum advantage of created conditions," he told Trend.

All implemented works will create conditions for further liberalization of economy and a more flexible operation of tax and customs systems in the country.

MP Kamran Nabizade believes that the creation of a flexible control mechanism is one of the important issues for today.

"Today we should pay attention to the work of state institutions and determine which ones are working effectively, and which ones are not. Naturally, the institutions with the same function should be either united or liquidated. Although there is a negative consequence of such a decision, such as job cuts, but with the development of entrepreneurship and the private sector, these people can be involved in this sector, and the elimination of unemployment can be achieved," he stressed.

The Economy and Industry Ministry issued 264 licenses to entrepreneurs through the ASAN service centers in 2015. Some 202 licenses were issued in Baku while 62 licenses - in Azerbaijan's regions. Some 19,000 licenses have been issued for entrepreneurs so far.

Currently, the cost of the state duty for a license varies between 220 manats ($141)-11,000 manats ($7,069) depending on the type of activity. No state duty is required for the reissuance or recovery of the license.

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Aynur Karimova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova

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22 January 2016 11:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Amina Nazarli

History is probably the only science that is often subjected to ideological pressures of certain political forces. And a scientist needs to have a strong character and specific resistance to remain faithful to the historical truth.

The daughter of a famous oilman, hereditary nobleman and representative of the famous Ashurbayovs family Sara Ashurbeyli could go down into the Azerbaijani history as a genius historian, outstanding orientalist and talented artist.



The history remembers monumental buildings, palaces, mosques, large donations for the construction of the Shollar aqueduct as a contribution of the famous philanthropists Ashurbayovs to the prosperity of the nation.

Sovietization of Azerbaijan by nationalizing Ashurbayovs' private property and oilfields and announcing them "class enemies", the Soviet government also began to physical destruction of the male half of this noble family.

Somehow survived, 14-year-old Sara Ashurbeyli had to hide her noble origins, enduring hardship for more than 70 years.

The story of her life well mirrors the realities of Soviet Azerbaijan in the 20th century. She managed to survive the revolution, Sovietization, emigration, and homecoming, as well as terrible repression of 1930s claiming the life of her father and uncle and no less terrible World War that took the life of her only brother.

Ashurbeyli had a perfect education. She graduated from the Jeanne DArc College in Istanbul before entering Baku State University. She also studied European languages in Azerbaijan Pedagogical Institute, and was perfectly proficient in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, French, German, Russian and English.

Being the only person from the family who had to support her mother and two unmarried sisters, she started teaching languages, though she was paid only half a salary because of her disgraced family.

The efforts of Soviet government to distort the Azerbaijani history did not allow Ashurbeyli, the daughter of an enemy of the people, to carry out true researches in her field of science.

Any of her article and book always caused controversy, despite her powerful documentary base and true facts that were stronger than the pseudo-scientific arguments.

"The daughter of an oilman, Bourgeois will write the history of Azerbaijan?! Forget! Do anything else, but forget about the history! Forget forever! they shouted at her in one of the top offices. It was a story that would be repeated over and over again throughout her life, as she was five times fired from different jobs.



"The only thing I never lost through all those years was my optimism," Ashurbeyli said, smiling while recalling hard times of her life. "When I was prohibited from working in a specific field, then I turned to a new specialty".

But Sara was strong and ambitious enough to become one of the best experts of the medieval period of the Caucasian history.

And even now, looking at the three major famous books including The Shirvanshah's State, The Economic and Cultural Links between Azerbaijan and India during the Middle Ages and "History of Baku" it is really difficult to imagine fully what these work were worth for this fragile woman with the character of Napoleon (her nickname given by colleagues).

Living long and difficult 95 years, the legendary women eventually succeeded in becoming immensely popular and widely recognized as an historian and as the selfless scientist who devoted her whole life to the development of the history of Azerbaijan...

Contributed by Gulnar Aliyeva, Honored Cultural Worker.

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Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli



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22 January 2016 14:40 (UTC+04:00)

Construction of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) is the largest infrastructure pipe project in the world, BP Group Chief Executive and BP Director Bob Dudley said following a meeting with Greek Minister of State Nikos Pappas, Greek media outlets reported on January 22.

Dudley said that the sides discussed the progress on the TAP.

Were very appreciative of the Greek government, it has helped put in place the installation agreement, he said. Im very pleased with the help and the mutual recognition of the importance of the project in Greece and actually for all of Europe and the very, very significant investment.

This pipeline is the largest infrastructure pipe project in the world that we know, the production of gas by Azerbaijan through Georgia into Turkey and then into Greece and then across Albania into Italy, he said. I think I would like to add that this is a great example of the business-minded support of the Greek government for inward investment into Greece and BP is very happy to be a part of this project, and I am very comfortable with the alignment on this important European project.

The 878 km TAP pipeline will transport Azerbaijani natural gas from the giant Shah Deniz II field through the last leg of the Southern Gas Corridor, connecting with the Trans Anatolian Pipeline at the Turkish-Greek border at Kipoi and then crossing Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea, before coming ashore in Southern Italy.

TAP will promote the economic development and job creation along the pipeline route; it will be a major source of foreign direct investment and it is not dependent on grants or subsidies. With first gas sales to Georgia and Turkey targeted for late 2018, first deliveries to Europe will follow approximately in early 2020.

TAPs shareholding is comprised of BP (20 percent), SOCAR (20 percent), Snam S.p.A (20 percent), Fluxys (19 percent), Enagas (16 percent) and Axpo (five percent).

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22 January 2016 17:52 (UTC+04:00)

The longer oil prices remain low, the greater the pressure on OPEC members to resolve their differences, analysts of the US JP Morgan bank said in a report, obtained by Trend.

Analysts retain their view that OPEC is unlikely to reach any agreement in the short-term.

The first two objectives of either getting all the OPEC countries to collectively make production cuts or introduce participation of additional major non-OPEC countries, albeit not necessarily with a membership of OPEC, were to ensure that the burden of adjusting to market balances does not entirely fall on the Gulf Trio and Saudi Arabia in particular, analysts said.

They also believe that the key issue to making a production cut at this time is the re-introduction of Iran crude to international markets.

While the expected increase in supply is only 400,000 barrels per day year over year, any move to reduce supply by other OPEC members only creates additional room for these barrels and possibly creates a false image of a functioning cartel," said the analysts.

OPEC 2016 crude supply growth is expected at 0.8 million barrels per day (at 32.2 million barrels per day), driven by Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

OPEC oil supply in 2017 is expected at 32.3 million barrels per day. Next years crude supply growth is driven almost exclusively by the analysts assumption that Iran can lift production by a further 300,000 barrels per day.

OPEC has decreased oil production by 210,000 barrels per day in December, month-to-month, according to the OPEC latest report.

OPEC members produced 32.182 million barrels per day in December, including some 693,000 barrels per day, produced by new member, Indonesia.

Demand for OPEC crude in 2015 is estimated at 29.9 million barrels per day, an increase of 0.2 million barrels per day over the 2014 level. In 2016, demand for OPEC crude is forecast at 31.6 million barrels per day, some 1.7 million barrels per day higher than the previous year.

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22 January 2016 13:11 (UTC+04:00)

The Tajik parliament has passed amendments to the Constitution allowing the incumbent Tajik President Emomali Rahmon to be elected unlimited number of times, RIA Novosti reported.

The amendments to the Constitution envisage a decrease in the age limit of the presidential candidates from 35 to 30 years old.

According to the amendments, the Council of Justice will be also abolished. The changes also envisage a ban on the establishment of political parties of a religious nature. The lower house of the parliament submitted the adopted bill to the Constitutional Court. Afterwards, the date of the national referendum will be scheduled to adopt these changes.

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22 January 2016 15:02 (UTC+04:00)

NATO will continue cooperation with Georgia, said Alliances Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on the results of the meeting with Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili in Davos, TASS reported.

Stoltenberg noted that it was the first meeting with Giorgi Kvirikashvili after his approval to the Prime Minister post (December 29, 2015).

Although we were acquainted with him when he was the Minister of Foreign Affairs, he added.

He said that issues related to the upcoming NATO summit in Warsaw (June 2016), as well as scheduled for February in Brussels ministerial meeting of the defense ministers and the meetings of the NATO-Georgia Commission were discussed at the meeting with Kvirikashvili.

During the meeting with Stoltenberg, issues on the country's integration into NATO and the continuation of reforms were discussed, according to the Georgias delegation members in Davos.

Georgia actively cooperates with NATO since the late 1990s. In November 2002, President Eduard Shevardnadze has officially declared at the NATO summit in Prague that Georgia wants to become a member of the Alliance.

The new government that came to power after the victory of the "Georgian Dream" coalition in the parliamentary elections in Oct. 2012, stated that Tbilisi will continue the course of integration into NATO.

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22 January 2016 18:17 (UTC+04:00)

By Laman Sadigova

The Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance of the Russian Federation has introduced temporary restrictions on import of a number of agricultural products from Armenia from January 20.

The decision was made given the epidemiological situation regarding the foot-and-mouth disease, and the high probability of it entering Russia, TASS news agency reported.

Particularly, the import of animals that are susceptible to the foot-and-mouth disease and of their meat and genetic material to Russia, or their transfer via Russia, is prohibited.

Russia will provide Armenia with a new vaccine against foot and mouth disease, Armenias State Food Safety Service reported.

Foot-and-mouth disease is a highly contagious disease of cloven-hoofed animals. The disease was initially described in the 16th century and was the first animal pathogen identified as a virus.

FMD has severe implications for animal farming, since it is highly infectious and can be spread by infected animals through aerosols, through contact with contaminated farming equipment, vehicles, clothing, or feed, and by domestic and wild predators.

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22 January 2016 18:36 (UTC+04:00)

By Aynur Karimova

Kazakhstan, an energy rich nation in Central Asia, announced that it will hold snap parliamentary election in March 2016. Political analyst Daniyar Ashimbayev believes that this will not bring any surprises or scandals.

The preparation for the election has been conducted for a long time, he told Trend on January 21. It is hard to expect anything extraordinary."

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev scheduled the snap election of the Mazhilis for March 20. Earlier, the MPs appealed to the president with an initiative of the early dissolution of the parliament and snap election due to the aggravated economic situation in the country.

Ashimbayev said that the parties and the approximate parity of forces in the next sixth parliament will remain the same as in the fifth convocation.

Only three parties in Kazakhstan have sufficient potential to enter the parliament, he said. Among them are the Nur Otan presidential party, the Ak Zhol right-wing liberal party and the Communist People's Party of Kazakhstan. The balance of votes which they can get, in my opinion, would be about the same: 80 percent of the Nur Otan and within the 7-10 percent - Ak Zhol and Communist People's Party of Kazakhstan."

Ashimbayev further added that any reforms and extraordinary laws of the new parliament are not expected as well.

"The package of legislative measures to ensure the presidential program for the countrys further development has been adopted by the previous parliament in late 2015 and there are no urgent bills. The main task of the future parliament is to provide social protection under controversial circumstances of 2016, he said.

President Nazarbayev also scheduled Regular election of MPs of maslikhats (local representative bodies) for March 20, 2016.

The Central Election Commission of Kazakhstan is sure that early parliamentary election in the country will make it possible to save budget funds.

In general, we believe that the combination of election of the MPs of the Mazhilis and MPs of maslikhats in current economic conditions is an objectively reasonable solution, CEC Chairman Kuandyk Turgankulov said at a press conference on January 21.

This will make it possible to provide significant savings of the budget funds allocated for election campaigns, which is about 4.8 billion tenge [$1 = 374.6 tenge as of Jan. 21], he added.

The process of nomination of candidates at the election of MPs of the Mazhilis elected on party lists will be held until February 8, and the registration of party lists will last until February 19.

Political parties can nominate candidates for MPs of the Mazhilis elected on party lists, while the Kazakh Assembly Council can nominate candidates for MPs of the Mazhilis elected by the Assembly of People of Kazakhstan.

Nomination of candidates for MPs of the Majilis from the Assembly of People of Kazakhstan will last until February 29, and their registration will be held from February 29 to March 5.

At the election of MPs of maslikhats, the nomination of candidates will last until February 19, 2016.

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Aynur Karimova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova

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22 January 2016 17:35 (UTC+04:00)

By Amina Nazarli

The historic part of Sheki, one of the most ancient and picturesque regions of Azerbaijan will be protected, in accordance with the order issued by President Ilham Aliyev on January 21.

Yukhari Bash Historical-Architectural Reserve will receive the National reserve status under the order. The reserve includes Sheki fortress which accommodates Palace of Sheki Khans, and the main shopping street, along which caravanserais and artisan shops located here.

To preserve the historic appearance and architectural style of Sheki, which is of great importance for Azerbaijani culture, as well as to promote the cultural achievements of the Azerbaijani people, the relevant agencies should submit proposals about the restoration of buildings and roads, preservation of historical and cultural monuments, conservation of natural landscape in the city to the Cabinet of Ministers during two months.

Sheki, located on the descriptive hillsides of the Caucasus Mountains in the background of snowy peaks is among Azerbaijans main tourist destinations, hosting hundred thousands of tourists every year.

The city is a real natural wonder with its beautiful landscapes, mineral water springs, forests and rivers.

Shekis Caravanserai

Since ancient times, Sheki has been famous as a city of artists, artisans and merchants. The city hosted the traders from all over the Great Silk Road, due to which the construction of caravanserai was very important. Between the 18th and 19th centuries some five large caravanserais were operating in the city, and today only two of them namely Upper and Lower survived.

Sights of attraction

The must-see place in Sheki is the local Old Fortress. There are 11 historical bathhouses here, and one of them built in 19th century, is still in operation. Most of the historical monuments from different periods are located in this part of the town, including the 5th century Albanian temple and barracks built in the time of Tsar.

Juma Mosque, built in the18th century is another tourist attraction in Sheki, which is protected by the state as an important historical monuments.



The majestic Palace of Sheki Khans, located in the city fortress, takes a special place with its magnificent wall paintings and colorful windows' mosaic.

The palace is a two-story brick masonry structure elongated on the north-south axis and covered with a wooden hipped roof with long eaves. The layout of both floors is identical; three rectangular rooms are placed in a row, separated by narrow, south-facing balconies that provide access to the rooms.



The summer residence is renowned for the lavish decoration of its exterior and interior. The facades are covered in tiles with floral and geometrical motives. The interior walls of the residence are covered with frescoes painted during the eighteenth century. Many of the frescoes feature flowers in vases, while a series of paintings on the first floor halls depict hunting and battle scenes. Signatures on frescoes list the names of artists Ali Kuli, Kurban Kuli and Mizra Jafar from Shemaha, Usta Gambar from Shusha, and Abbas Kuli, who may also have been the architect of the summer residence.

The palace was the residence of Sheki khans back in 1762. The interior design of the palace reflects the best traditions of Azerbaijani architecture. The palace is considered as one of the most beautiful architectural monuments of medieval Azerbaijan.

Samples of Sheki cuisine

Famous local dish is Piti. No one could resist the flavor of this Piti, which is cooked in special earthenware pots in eight-nine hours.

Piti is traditionally a workers dish, local people say. There is even a belief that one portion of piti is enough to see a worker through the whole day; it is a very satisfying and, at the same time, inexpensive lunch. The main ingredient is lamb, rich in proteins and fat. The use of only fresh meat and the fat from the distinctive tails of Azerbaijani sheep give the dish its special flavour.

Sheki is also famous for its own sweet pakhlava made of rice flour, nuts, and sugar-honey syrup. Anyone visiting Sheki will not be able to resist the temptation of its famous Pakhlava.

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Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli



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AUBURN | David Fogarty's first published book started around 18 years ago on a legal pad.

The early writings, according to the Auburn native, depicted fictional battle scenes from the French and Indian War set along the shores of Owasco Lake. Writing is a hobby for Fogarty, a former language teacher who worked at several schools across central New York, including Auburn.

Fogarty penciled out the battles over a roughly six-month period before showing them off to his friends. He said the writings strove to capture the mass confusion of combat, but peer reviews suggested he add characters and a central hero into the mix.

Advice in mind, Fogarty set to work on establishing those characters and a driving plot along with thorough research into the book's setting: upstate New York in the late 1700s. Fogarty continued writing through much of the last decade before submitting his work for publication.

The fruit of his labor is "Out of the Shadows," a work of historical fiction about one woman's quest for social justice amid colonial ideals and oppression across upstate New York. The novel was published in November by self-publishing company Xlibris.

"Out of the Shadows" follows the exploits of heroine Caroline York, an Irish settler whose family settles on her uncle's Maryland farm along the Susquehanna River during the 1760s. When York is kidnapped by a nefarious British captain, her family works with French soldiers and an Iroquois tribe to rescue her.

Fogarty said he approached the book with one central character, Caroline, in mind, though he developed her life and the lives of several other characters with biographies at the end of the work.

"When you're writing a story like this about people, you can't be one-dimensional," Fogarty said. "Everybody's interacting with each other and you've got to bring that out."

Fogarty said York's harrowing experience prompts her to undertake a mission to establish schools and support for oppressed people while invoking Indian ideals into a white society  a quest that serves as an allegory to modern social justice issues, he added.

"She's really her own thinker," Fogarty said of York.

Her journey develops across several upstate New York areas, including Cayuga County, according to Fogarty. Indeed, Forgarty said York's family finds itself settled at one point among the Cayuga Nation on a hilly landscape  part of an area that would later become Fort Hill Cemetery.

Fogarty said his novel features endnotes describing what modern-day locales are featured in the work, though he does take a few creative liberties here and there. Still, Fogarty said he put significant research into developing "Out of the Shadows" to translate the feel of 18th-century living.

"What I wanted to do is put together a comprehensive study of what life was like back in that era of 1760," he said. "To do that, you've got to examine life inside of a fort, life inside of a village, stuff like that."

For Fogarty, studying history  like writing  has been something of a hobby.

The Auburn man said his interest in state history started with his middle school classes, though he went to college at Michigan State University with a secondary education degree to teach French and Spanish. After returning to Auburn a few years later, Fogarty said he eventually joined the Auburn Historical Society as an archivist.

Fogary said he studied area history and landmarks during his time with the society, which helped him complete "Out of the Shadows" in 2012.

"It gives students of history a look into what happened back in those days. Not in a specific case, but those types of issues," he said.
This blog is written solely by John Ray, who has a Ph.D. degree in psychology and 200+ papers published in the academic journals of the social sciences. It does occasionally comment on issues in psychology but is mainly aimed at giving a conservative psychologist's view on a broad range of topics. There are very few conservative psychologists.The blog originated in Australia and many (but not most) posts discuss Australian matters. Australians have an unusually good awareness of events outside their own country. Australian newspapers feature news from Britain and the USA not as an afterthought but as a major part of their coverage. So Australians do tend to have a truly Western heart, which is the reason behind the old name for this blog. So events in Australia, Britain and the USA all feature frequently here, plus occasional coverage of other places, particularly Israel.SCOTUS is the Supreme Court of the United States, the highest court in the landThe "GOP" stands for "Grand Old Party" and refers to the Republican party. The GOP is at present center/Right, while the Democrats have been undergoing a steady drift Leftwards and now have policies similar to mainstream European Leftist parties.The ideological identity of both parties has however been very fluid -- almost reversing itself over time. In the mid 19th century, the GOP was the party of big government and concern for minorities while the Democrats advertised themselves as "The party of the white man" -- an orientation that lasted into the mid 20th century in the South. The Democrats are still obsessed with race but have now flipped into support for discrimination AGAINST whites.Was Pope Urban VIII the first Warmist? Below we see him refusing to look through Galileo's telescope. People tend to refuse to consider evidence if what they might discover contradicts what they believe.Climate scientist Lennart Bengtsson said. The warming we have had the last 100 years is so small that if we didnt have meteorologists and climatologists to measure it we wouldnt have noticed it at all.The term "Fascism" is mostly used by the Left as a brainless term of abuse. But when they do make a serious attempt to define it, they produce very complex and elaborate definitions -- e.g. here and here . In fact, Fascism is simply extreme socialism plus nationalism. But great gyrations are needed to avoid mentioning the first part of that recipe, of course.Beatrice Webb, a founder of the London School of Economics and the Fabian Society, and married to a Labour MP, mused in 1922 on whether when English children were "dying from lack of milk", one should extend "the charitable impulse" to Russian and Chinese children who, if saved this year, might anyway die next. Besides, she continued, there was "the larger question of whether those races are desirable inhabitants" and "obviously" one wouldn't "spend one's available income" on "a Central African negro".Hugh Dalton, offered the Colonial Office during Attlee's 1945-51 Labour government, turned it down because "I had a horrid vision of pullulating, poverty stricken, diseased nigger communities, for whom one can do nothing in the short run and who, the more one tries to help them, are querulous and ungrateful."The book,, authored by T.W. Adorno et al. in 1950, has been massively popular among psychologists. It claims that a set of ideas that were popular in the "Progressive"-dominated America of the prewar era were "authoritarian". Leftist regimes always are authoritarian so that claim was not a big problem. What was quite amazing however is that Adorno et al. identified such ideas as "conservative". They were in fact simply popular ideas of the day but ones that had been most heavily promoted by the Left right up until the then-recent WWII. See here for details of prewar "Progressive" thinking.R.I.P. Augusto Pinochet. Pinochet deposed a law-defying Marxist President at the express and desperate invitation of the Chilean parliament. He pioneered the free-market reforms which Reagan and Thatcher later unleashed to world-changing effect. That he used far-Leftist methods to suppress far-Leftist violence is reasonable if not ideal. The Leftist view that they should have a monopoly of violence and that others should follow the law is a total absurdity which shows only that their hate overcomes their reasonFranklin Delano Roosevelt was a war criminal. Both British and American codebreakers had cracked the Japanese naval code so FDR knew what was coming at Pearl Harbor. But for his own political reasons he warned no-one there. So responsibility for the civilian and military deaths at Pearl Harbor lies with FDR as well as with the Japanese. The huge firepower available at Pearl Harbor, both aboard ship and on land, could have largely neutered the attack. Can you imagine 8 battleships and various lesser craft firing all their AA batteries as the Japanese came in? The Japanese naval airforce would have been annihilated and the war would have been over before it began. FDR prolonged the Depression . He certainly didn't cure it. WWII did NOT end the Great Depression . It just concealed it. It in fact made living standards worse Joe McCarthy was eventually proved right after the fall of the Soviet Union. To accuse anyone of McCarthyism is to accuse them of accuracy! The KKK was intimately associated with the Democratic party . They ATTACKED Republicans!People who mention differences in black vs. white IQ are these days almost universally howled down and subjected to the most extreme abuse. I am a psychometrician, however, so I feel obliged to defend the scientific truth of the matter:The average African adult has about the same IQ as an average white 11-year-old and African Americans (who are partly white in ancestry) average out at a mental age of 14. The American Psychological Association is generally Left-leaning but it is the world's most prestigious body of academic psychologists. And even they have had to concede that sort of gap (one SD) in black vs. white average IQ. 11-year olds can do a lot of things but they also have their limits and there are times when such limits need to be allowed for. America's uncivil war was caused by trade protectionism . The slavery issue was just camouflage, as Abraham Lincoln himself admitted . See also here Leftist psychologists have an amusingly simplistic conception of military organizations and military men. They seem to base it on occasions they have seen troops marching together on parade rather than any real knowledge of military men and the military life. They think that military men are "rigid" -- automatons who are unable to adjust to new challenges or think for themselves. What is incomprehensible to them is that being(to use the extreme Prussian term for following orders) actually requires great flexibility -- enough flexibility to put your own ideas and wishes aside and do something very difficult. Ask any soldier if all commands are easy to obey.
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One of the most harrowing and vaunted human expeditions in history came when Maj. John Wesley Powell and nine men traveled three months down the Green and Colorado rivers and ultimately through the Grand Canyon in 1869. They became the first known people to make the journey down a virtually unknown river and sealed themselves tight as whiskey barrels in the annals of adventure history.

Its no wonder the Powell Expedition has received multiple documentary and film treatments that date back to the 1960 Disney film Ten Who Dared and continue through the present day. Recently, as part of this flowing continuum, a number of Flagstaff river-runners and film logistics crews worked on a new take on the Powell Expedition. Operation Grand Canyon is a two-part documentary filmed for the BBC2 network. The special presentation has aired in Europe, but this week will be the first time it will be screened for the public in the U.S. when it presents at the Orpheum Theater on Thursday night.

The filming involved a variety of Flagstaff residents or others with connections to guiding companies here. AzRA guides Fred Thevenin, Adam Bringhurst and Tom OHara were the three river guides rowing the Powell boats. Longtime river-runner and river historian Brad Dimock was on the support crew, as was B.J. Boyle, Derrick Spice and Marieke Taney. They worked to help the production company bring the film to life.

Among these contributors is Harlan Taney, owner of 4 Corner Film Logistics, who helped the BBC plan and execute the 21-day trip and film project. The documentary involved the first-ever cable-cam footage shooting of the river scenes and a specialized solar-powered boat named Cleopatra, which provided the power source for the equipment. Arizona Raft Adventures also assisted and provided support for the project.

The BBC2 out of Great Britain had a film project idea to re-create a story but not necessarily to replicate the John Wesley Powell trip, Harlan Taney shares in a recent interview. They wanted a little twist to re-create the human experience. Their original concept was they wanted to bring nine people that had never been down the Grand Canyon and limited rowing experience. But that is something the park service doesnt allow. So, we had one experienced Grand Canyon person in each of the boats and the other six had limited rowing experience.

He continues, The genre of the film falls under reality documentary. Its as much a documentary as it can be. They went for unscripted and real-time events as they unfolded. They need the drama and the cliffhangers, but they were hard to come by on the trip. The runs were clean. Other than small mishaps and setbacks, it went pretty well.

Despite the trip going more on the smooth side, the $4.5 million film project had its share of issues. Taney notes that the film crew had all its hard drives crash. To continue the trip, they needed to have new hard drives overnighted to Flagstaff then curried down Diamond Creek only a few hours before a major flash flood of historic proportions hit that side canyon.

The boats themselves, replicas of the Powell boats, experienced wear and tear along the way, as well. And, as part of the documentary, the repairs they did were using tools from 1869 or earlier. Repairing a boat involved tar and copper nails or hand-drilling out the oarlock holes.

Taney is excited for the film screening, as it brings together a number of people involved in the project and puts a spotlight on the intriguing story of Powell. I think first and foremost, through all of human history, the Powell trip has to be one of the great exploratory expeditions ever. Maybe even bigger than Shackleton in Antarctica and Hillary on Everest  Anyone who has been influenced by the Canyon can pretty easily put themselves in that mindset to think, What if I was the first person in this place, one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World?

Check out this latest cinematic revisit of the famed trip at the Orpheum Theater, 15 W. Aspen, on Thu, Jan. 21 and their new deluxe screen and audio for film-showing action. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the show is at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10. The presentation of the nearly two-hour documentary will be accompanied by a compilation of past Powell film treatments, a slide show and a Q&A session. To learn more, call 556-1580 or visit www.orpheumflagstaff.com.
Director of Coconino County Community Services Janet Regner has been appointed to serve on the Arizona Commission on Judicial Performance Review by the Chief Justice of the Arizona Supreme Court, Scott Bales. Regner, whose appointment is from January 2016 through December 2019, is one of 19 members on the commission.

The JPR exists to provide meaningful and accurate information to the public for its use in voting on the retention of judges and justices appointed to the bench through merit selection. To accomplish this, a carefully designed method of providing clear and accurate information about each judge and justice appearing on the ballot at the general election is used. The JPR Commission evaluates each judge eligible for retention election to assess the judges legal ability, integrity, communication skills, judicial temperament and administrative performance.
A backlog at Flagstaffs crime lab could delay the Steven Jones murder trial.

Jones was not present at a case management conference in Coconino County Superior Court Thursday. During the hearing, prosecutor Ammon Barker said the Department of Public Safety Northern Regional Crime Lab is so backed up that the state has had to send all the evidence from the Oct. 9, 2015, shooting on the Northern Arizona University campus to a crime lab in Phoenix for analysis.

This, as you know, is always an issue, Barker told the judge.

He also said the state has roughly 30 pieces of evidence in need of analysis, but the lab will only accept five items at a time. So far, he has only sent the first five items to the Phoenix lab, with results expected in about two months.

Are we looking at 2018? asked Judge Dan Slayton.

Barker said the lab would put the evidence from the Jones case on the fast-track once there was a set trial date. He added that he would like to be able to go to trial by the end of this year.

Slayton also raised concerns about his cousin, Flagstaff Police Department Detective Mike Slayton, who was listed on the prosecutions initial witness list. Barker said the detective was one of several law enforcement officers who collected evidence at the scene of the deadly shooting.

Its always been my practice that if Detective Mike Slayton is on a case, obviously I recuse myself, Slayton said. There was only one circumstance where I did not take that action and that was where both parties stipulated that he would not be called as a witness . . . and that none of the actions that he took would be challenged.

Barker said he would have no problem with removing the judges cousin from the witness list.

Slayton gave defense attorneys Burgess McCowan and Joshua S. Davidson, who participated telephonically, 15 days to decide whether they would call the judges cousin or challenge any of the detectives actions at the scene of the shooting. If they agree to stipulate that he is not a witness, Slayton will continue to preside over the case.

If, however, theres the slightest possibility that he could be called as a witness or that his collection of evidence could be challenged, Im going to recuse (myself) off the case, Slayton said.

Jones, 18, is charged with six counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and one count of first-degree murder for shooting 20-year-olds Colin Brough, Kyle Zientek, Nicholas Prato and Nicholas Piring during an altercation that began early on Oct. 9, 2015 in front of an off-campus fraternity party on East Franklin Avenue and ended across the street in an NAU parking lot. Brough died at the scene.

The defense filed a motion earlier this month claiming that during the grand jury proceedings that resulted in Jones indictment on those charges, the Coconino County Attorneys Office of withholding exonerating evidence that would have supported Jones claim he fired in self-defense. The defense has asked the judge to either dismiss all charges against the former NAU student or remand the case back to a new grand jury.

The Coconino County Attorneys Office has until Feb. 10 to respond to the defense motion. Barker said the prosecution would respond to a separate defense motion to modify Jones release conditions by that date, as well. The Clerk of the Superior Courts Office is expected to make the document requesting new release conditions public by the end of this week.

Jones is currently being held at the Coconino County Detention Facility in lieu of $2 million bond.
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It was a happy homecoming in Tampa Thursday night for airmen from the 379th Expeditionary Aero-Medical Evacuation Squadron (EAES).

They arrived at Tampa International Airport after being deployed in Qatar for the last four months. Family members greeted them with flags and "Welcome Home" signs.

Tech Sgt. Chip Crain has been deployed seven times. His family said they're very proud of him for serving.

"He's my hero. He's my older brother. He's done a lot for this country as all of our military has. I have a lot of respect for him and everyone who serves our country," said Glen Crain.

Crain said since he's been deployed before, homecoming's don't bring a lot of surprises. Still, he said the joy of seeing family who he's been separated from for months, gets him everytime.

"Oh, it's great. It's always good to have people out here saying 'Hi' and 'Welcome Back,'" he said.

Captain Kevin White said this was his first deployment. His wife and 3-year-old daughter were at the airport to greet him.

"I've been waiting months for this day so I'm stoked to be home, glad to be home with my family. That's what it's all about," Captain White said.

All of the airmen said they're glad to be back.

"Yeah, the beach, the weather, c'mon, it's Florida!" said Tech Sgt. Crain.

And they made jokes about what they're planning to do next.

"Probably have to use the cliche "Going to Disney World." The family is into Disney World," laughed Captain White.

The EAES helps move injured and sick patients.
A girl who found a dog tag that washed ashore at Madeira Beach on Sunday, returned that lost treasure to its owner in Hudson on Thursday.

"I didn't ever think I would see them again," said Lexis Cummings, 38. "I thought I lost them for good."



Cummings said she lost the tag while body surfing at Madeira Beach last summer and has been distraught about it ever since.

"I forgot to take them off and I went in on a wave and I came up and they were gone," she said. "I looked for at least two hours... and I couldn't find them."

A storm that hit the Bay Area washed the tag ashore on the same stretch of beach and that's where Nola Isales, 10, found it. The girl reached out to Bay News 9 to try and find the owner. The next morning after her story aired, Cummings claimed the tag. The Tampa girl and her family drove to Hudson and hand delivered it to Cummings.

"Thank you, so much," she said. "It was a gift from my Dad and I didn't have them long before I lost them."

"Im really happy that she got it back," said Nola.

At first, Nola thought the tag was from WWI. That's because when she researched the name it came back to a Sgt. Lutellis Cummings from Pennsylvania. Turns out that's Lexis' great granddad and her dad is Lutellis Cummings III.

"On dog tags they won't put if it's junior, second, third," Lexis said. "World War I dog tags are completely round, like a circle. The rounded edges like this are from the Vietnam era. My father was not in Vietnam, thank goodness. He was actually stationed in Germany and he was a tank commander."

Even though the tag was in the Gulf of Mexico for less than a year, it was barnacle covered. Cummings took a hammer and knocked off the barnacles, revealing an antique chain.

"It was my great grandmothers and its very unique," she said. "It has a very unique shape to it. They dont make it anymore."

Nola said it feels good to have the tag back with its rightful owner.

I think its really amazing that I helped her find it and its really weird how you can lose something like that and then you think youre never going to find it again and then you do.



Nola Isales, 10, returns the dog tag to Lexis Cummings. (Josh Rojas, Staff)
Sex offender notification

The Coconino County Sheriffs Office would like to make the following Level 3 (high risk to the community) sex offender notification:

 Kee Bahe Jr., 53, is living at 13095 Red Mountain Road near Flagstaff. Bahe was convicted in 2005 on two counts of child molestation and one count of continuous sexual abuse of a child. He is not wanted by police at this time.

Notification that Level 2 and Level 3 sex offenders are living in the community is required by Arizona law. Resident abuse of this information to threaten, intimidate or harass sex offenders will not be tolerated by the Coconino County Sheriffs Office.

If residents have information about current criminal activity by any offender, contact the sheriffs office at (928) 774-4523 or visit www.coconino.az.gov/sheriff.

For more information on sex offenders in the Flagstaff area, visit the Arizona Department of Public Safety sex offender website at www.azsexoffender.com.

City and county residents who want to report a crime but wish to remain anonymous may call Silent Witness at 774-6111 or (877) 29-CRIME, submit a tip online at www.coconinosilentwitness.org, or text the word Flagtip along with your information to 274637 (CRIMES). Rewards of up to $2,000 are given for information that leads to an arrest.
N. Oregon Coast's Seaside Has History of Startling Geological Changes

Published 01/21/2016 at 6:23 PM PDT

By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff





(Seaside, Oregon)  The legendary tourism hotspot of Seaside has shifted and changed in some remarkable ways in recent history. It has received a few major makeovers. Starting 300 years ago with a massive natural disaster, up to two large-scale geological changes in recent decades, the north Oregon coast family fun centerpiece used to look much different. (Photo above: Seaside dunes and its wide beach did not exist until 100 years ago).





Perhaps one of the most impressive  if not shocking  facts about the layout of Seaside is that there used to be a lot less of it. Until about 100 years ago. And it was a rocky, stony beach, not unlike what the cove area is now  or like Bayocean or or Arch Cape. (Above: Seaside's boardwalk and pier, 1908. Historical photo courtesy Seaside Museum).

Until about 1917, the surf was 300 feet or so closer to the vegetation line, or what was then still the boardwalk (the Prom was built around 1920).. Thanks to the completion of the south jetty at the Columbia River, some 300 feet of sandy beach was created, not only elongating the beach but making it much more covered in sand (and thus more comfortable to sit on).

Construction began on the first jetty on the south side of the Columbia River in 1885, and the system was completed by 1917. Creating these structures shifts the currents drastically and causes sediment to build up nearby, sometimes for tens of miles in either direction. In this case, the south jetty (at Warrenton's Fort Stevens State Park) affected sand distribution all the way down to Seaside, some 20 miles.

Even more impressive, it added a few square miles of sandy ground to the marshland that would later become Fort Stevens State Park.





Because of all this, Seaside is currently known as one of the safest beaches on the Oregon coast, even during storms, as it is broad enough to let you keep a distance from large waves. There are also a lot of eyes on those beaches, with all the hotel rooms and businesses on that oceanfront stretch. (Above: Seaside's Prom in 1921 or so. Below: the Prom and beach today. Note how much wider the beach is now. Historical photo courtesy Seaside Museum).

.



The famed Cove area of Seaside, at its southernmost tip, is also a curious shocker, but more recently so. Until about 1987, there was a lot less of that shoreline too.

Tom Horning, a local geologist, said a huge a landslide coming down from Tillamook Head that year added some 100 yards of beach. If you head to Avenue U these days, near the Cove, you'll walk a few hundred feet through soft sand and puffy dunes to get to the water. That walk used to be much shorter.

Horning explains that Tillamook Head sometimes drops tons and tons of rocky material into the sea, which periodically changes the landscape. Boulders and rocks from this particular landslide slowly filled in the cove area, extending one part outward by hundreds of feet.

First, a new spit was formed by the rocks for a while, which locals used with glee to catch loads of fish. Fairly quickly, that space between the spit and the land filled up, creating an enormous dead tide pool for a time. Eventually, sand and rocks filled all that in, as well as down the beach.

Horning points to the building at the cove that is the beachfront section of The Tides by the Sea hotel. Back when they first built this, the sea practically came right up to the building, Horning said. They had boulders and rip rap there to keep it away. After 1987, 100 yards of beach was created in front of that area.

If you want to get a glimpse of just how serious the big tsunami will be (the one predicted to hit the Oregon coast within the next 100 years or so), you need only look at at the Necanicum River in Seaside. Then, look at the famed Turnaround, about a half mile south. Back before the massive tsunami of 1700, those two were in the same place.

That is to say, that great big inundation ripped apart the coastal landscape so much it moved the river mouth a whole half mile to the north, according to Horning. The river mouth used to be where the Seaside Turnaround is now. Seaside, Oregon Hotels in this area - Where to eat - Maps - Virtual Tours



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The Eagles may have sung about standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona in their hit 1972 rock song Take It Easy, but it was a corner in Flagstaff that inspired songwriter Jackson Browne to pen those lyrics.

According to one interview, Browne started writing Take It Easy in the back of a Dodge paneled van in 1971 after his car broke down in Flagstaff and some new friends offered him a ride back to Los Angeles.

He was in east Flagstaff when he saw a woman in a Toyota truck pulling out of what was then Der Wienerschnitzel at the corner of East Route 66 and North Switzer Canyon.

The image stuck with him.

Browne had a hard time finishing the lyrics, so Glenn Frey of the Eagles convinced him to let them take over the tune. Frey added the line Its a girl, my Lord, in a flatbed Ford slowin down to take a look at me after Browne told him about the woman at the Flagstaff Wienerschnitzel.

I gave him this image of the girl, Browne told Matthew Ziegler in an interview. I said, You know, girls out there drive trucks.

The Wienerschnitzel that inspired Take It Easy is now the Route 66 Dog Haus, located at 1302 E. Route 66. Owner Gary McElfresh has posted laminated copies of the interview in the Dog Haus windows to remind patrons of its significance in music history.
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One of the state's smallest school districts -- tiny Olfen ISD in rural west Texas -- is moving ahead with a schedule change that would likely take months of public debate in a more populated environment.

On Jan. 12, the Olfen school board unanimously approved what it believes is the first four-day school week under a change approved by the state Legislature last year.

Previously, Texas public schools were required to provide instruction on 180 days, but new guidelines have translated that into minutes. The number is ridiculously huge, but allows for more flexibility.

Olfen ISD has one school with about 70 students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade and eight teachers. The community of Olfen, whose name reflects its German heritage, sits in the middle of a triangle that takes in the towns of Ballinger, Paint Rock and Rowena, said Superintendent Gabriel Zamora.

The district's new schedule will include school-as-usual Monday through Thursday, with 25 minutes added to each day and optional attendance on Fridays, when all staff will be present, according to an announcement.

Plans call for offering tutoring and enrichment activities on Fridays, said Zamora, who also teaches seventh and eighth grade science.

Zamora said he would like to see the tutoring sessions become mandatory for students who are failing, but that remains under discussion.

The district's enrollment is up from the 56 attending at the end of May, Zamora said. Nearly all of them are transfer students from other districts, since only one pupil lives within the district's geographical boundaries, which Zamora estimated at about 28 square miles. Some students come from San Angelo, about 35 miles west.

The announced schedule change was well planned and has generated local excitement and outside interest, Zamora said.

"Some people have visited already in an effort to enroll their students for next year," he said.

As for the few negative comments, Zamora said those have come from people who didn't know the whole story, such as those who mistakenly thought the school would be closed on Fridays.

"I know it's not the solution for every school in the state, but it's a solution for us," he said.
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When a forensic sculptor visited Beaumont last year, she made the McFaddin-Ward House the hottest venue in town.

The historic home was already the site of several popular events, but last year's lecture by Amanda Danning, "Making Heads and Telling Tales," attracted so many guests that people had to be turned away at the door.

Danning returned Thursday night for another in the McFaddin-Ward House's series of lectures, a look at French explorer La Salle's expedition to the Gulf Coast in a talk titled "La Folly, La Cobbler and La Rogue."

This time, the talk was moved to the Betty Greenberg Center for the Performing Arts, which has about twice the seating capacity of the McFaddin-Ward Visitors Center.

Danning had never given the lecture on La Salle before - she even changed the title of the lecture in the first five minutes to "Bodies. Like Bread Crumbs."

This change, Danning told an almost full house, was because of how forensics has changed the story previously known through journals kept by explorers.

McFaddin-Ward House 2016 Lecture Series Feb. 18: Dan Hartman, director of Gleensheen, "Glensheen -Minnesota's House Museum" March 3: Phil Lancaster, musician/presenter, "Riders on the Orphan Train" April 14: Hermes Mallea, New York architect and author, "The Great Houses of Havana" (lecture and book signing) May 12: David Lackey, Houston Antique Dealer & Appraiser (Seen on "Antiques Roadshow") June 16: Randy Tibbits, Houston Art Historian & Collector, "As Much as the Walls Can Hold" July 21: James Evans, West Texas photographer, "Crazy from the Heat" (lecture, book signing and exhibit) Aug. 18: Marla Fields, documentarian, "Frank Reaugh: Pastel Poet of the Texas Plains" Sept. 22: Paul Doros, "The Art Glass of Louis Comfort Tiffany" (lecture and book signing) Oct. 13: Adair Margo, president and founder of Tom Lea Institute in El Paso, "The Art of Tom Lea" See More Collapse

Musket balls found at a grave site revealed that one explorer - thought to have drowned based on journal record - was most likely killed by La Salle's nephew, who sought vengeance when his uncle was murdered.

Danning's first lecture, which had people standing along the walls and sitting on the floor, had a direct impact on the museum, with the McFaddin-Ward House's Facebook following growing by a few hundred, said director Allen Lea.

Although Danning said she didn't expect a crowd "that intense" last year, she said people usually show up for her lectures.

"I think people have a morbid curiosity about skeletons," Danning said.

Danning's skeletons are just part of the McFaddin-Ward House's efforts to achieve a more accessible, higher profile in the community.

For 30 years, the lecture series featured speakers on fine art or precious metals, Lea said, and a handful of people would show up for the events.

A change was coming, said Lea, 31, who has been the director for almost six years.

In trying to figure out how to attract more young people, McFaddin-Ward staff and volunteers started meeting and drinking wine.

"We'd sit around and drink wine and read magazines," said Karen Chapman, the McFaddin-Ward communication coordinator and former volunteer.

The group came up with the idea to invite Daniel Vaughn, Texas Monthly's barbecue editor, while reading the magazine at one of their wine-drinking, brainstorming sessions.

Chapman said everyone started to realize the lectures had to be relatable, like Danning's lecture.

"What's relatable about the skull? It's just fascinating. Everyone is going to die," she said.

It isn't difficult to get people here, because simply being asked appeals to most lecturers' egos, Lea said. Speakers also receive a small fee.

The McFaddin-Ward House went through a rebranding, while offering some of the same events with a new twist.

Picnics on the lawn have food trucks and live music; free movie nights are cult classics; and now Southeast Texans can explore the McFaddin-Ward House's nooks and crannies through the museum's "secret tours."

The popularity of Danning's lecture and subsequent lectures enabled the museum to have 11 more this year.

See more photos from Danning's lecture as well as scenes from inside the McFaddin-Ward House in the gallery above.

MHeath@BeaumontEnterprise.com Twitter.com/mheath31
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Beaumont's Public Health Department is moving today into its new home at 3040 College St. after more than a year of construction.

Health department activities are expected to open Monday.

The department's new home will gather all of the city's health-related divisions under one roof instead of the four buildings at 950 Washington Blvd., where patients must check into one place and go to another for services. The main benefit of the new health department building is ease of access to patients for the children's and adult immunizations and for the Women's, Infants and Children's nutrition program, city health director Sherry Ulmer said.

The new health department arose atop the rubble of the former Texas National Guard Armory building, which reverted to city ownership after the armory closed and moved its operations to Houston. The armory building deated to the early 1960s.

At the new building, people will be able to enter the front door, for which there will be ample parking, see one of five clerks arrayed right in front of visitors and be directed to the appropriate office.

Ulmer credited architect Dohn LaBiche with incorporating ideas from health department employees about work flow and basic information on what the department does.

The 304-seat waiting area is a major improvement compared with the cramped waiting areas at the Washington Boulevard location, which is overwhelmed each year at the beginning of the school year for immunizations and during flu season.

Upstairs, the department will have conference and classrooms for training, particularly for EMS, which constitutes about half of the department's 91 employees.

Also, the second floor will be the new home of Environmental Services, which inspects restaurants and issues permits for mobile food trucks or weekend food stands at events.

The new building provides plenty of space for vital statistics, including birth and death records.

The city has two WIC clinics, one of which is at the Target shopping center on Eastex Freeway. The clinics currently are served by one laboratory. The new building combines the two clinics and doubles the lab space, which includes functions like hemoglobin testing for anemia.

The city's health department also is the primary agency for tuberculosis testing and record-keeping, required by state law.

A specially walled office with hepa filters is set aside for TB patients for testing and to keep the air separate from the rest of the building to prevent the spread of the disease.

The Public Health Department also is responsible for sexually transmitted disease reporting. A nurse specializing in STD treatment also will draw blood for testing and will have adequate lab space.
A secular group sent a follow-up letter to the mayor of Port Neches asking again for the removal of the large cross in Port Neches Riverfront Park.

The City of Port Neches was initially asked to remove the cross in November after someone anonymously complained to the Freedom from Religion Foundation, a Wisconsin-based group dedicated to the separation of church and state.
The main goal for Gov. Doug Ducey is to have a structurally balanced state budget by 2017, at least according to some of the answers Lorenzo Romero, the governors top budget analyst was giving to Flagstaff residents Wednesday afternoon.

Duceys budget would add $284 million to last years $9.2 billion budget and leave the state with an estimated surplus in June 2017 of $600 million, plus a rainy day fund of more than $400 million. But the governor has not yet revealed whether he will ask for a substantial tax cut -- and how much.

Romero did a quick run-through of the governors budget priorities, such as $90 million for K-12 education, $30 million for Joint Technical Education Districts and $39 million for the Department of Child Safety. He also gave a breakdown of how funding would be allotted in each of these departments.

Romero also answered several questions that were submitted to him on index cards.

When asked if the governor planned to restore some of the Highway User Revenue Funds swept from cities and counties in previous years, Romero said that the money swept from the fund in past years went to supporting the Arizona Department of Public Safety. The Arizona Legislature tried to return some of that funding to cities and counties a couple of years ago, but in order to have a structurally balanced budget for 2017 (no borrowing or rolling costs forward to the next fiscal year), the state needed that money to support DPS.

Even though, under Duceys budget, DPS would receive $31 million for a Border Strike Force. The strike force is designed to stop and arrest drug runners at the Mexican border. It includes $20 million for equipment and $10 million in on-going funds for staffing costs for both DPS and some of the Arizona counties that sit on the international border.

Another index card comment pointed out that $10 million didnt really restore the $30 million that was swept from the annual budgets of the states technical education programs.

Romero explained that Duceys budget set aside $30 million to be spread out over three years in grants to JTED programs that met the grant requirements. Those requirements included having JTED programs partner with local industries to provide experiences for students and matching funds from industries to help bolster JTED programs.

Another comment card stated that the $8 million the governor offered in his budget barely touched the $99 million he cut from universities last year.

Romero acknowledged the heavy cut in funds universities received last year, but said that in order to maintain a structurally balanced budget the state couldnt afford to replenish all of those funds. He did not comment on why the anticipated operating surplus or Rainy Day Fund totaling nearly $1 billion could not be tapped.

Another question received by Romero asked about funding for the arts.

Were just now at a tipping point where we can reach a structurally balanced budget, he said. There may be funds in the future for the arts.
Despite outpatient surgery costing significantly less than inpatient procedures, many large employers are not offering employees outpatient coverage, according to The Washington Post.

Here are seven key points:

1. In 2015, companies with low-wage workers attempted to claim coverage without inpatient benefits met ACA guidelines, but regulators disagreed. This decision caused many employers to attempt a new cost-cutting measure: eliminating outpatient surgery coverage.

2. Employers save money from excluding outpatient coverage, resulting in hefty medical bills for employees undergoing outpatient surgery.

3. The government does not require large employers to offer a list of "essential health benefits." Rather, large employers are mandated to offer minimum value as determined by an online calculator and regulatory guidance, or face a penalty.

4. In 2014, federal regulators required large employer plans to provide "substantial coverage of inpatient hospital and physician services" to qualify as minimum value. However, the current debate is centered on whether "substantial coverage of physician services" includes outpatient surgery  regulators have yet to weigh in.

5. This year, insurers that don't provide outpatient surgery benefits have been marketed to many staffing companies, hoteliers and other lower-wage employers. In 2015, nearly half of the 1,600 corporate members of the American Staffing Association reported interest in plans with no inpatient coverage before regulators decided against them.

6. Many companies are offering plans without outpatient coverage including EBSO, a Minnesota-based benefits company that has implemented 2016 minimum-value plans. Similarly JFC Staffing offered its nearly 700 eligible employees a skinny plan lacking outpatient surgery benefits.

7. An American Hospital Association spokeswoman said the organization is "deeply concerned" about plans that do not offer outpatient coverage.

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Virginia's certificate of need program was upheld by a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, according to a Richmond Times-Dispatch report.

Here are six key notes:

1. In Virginia, medical providers must prove that proposed construction, whether for a new facility or expansion, and major equipment purchases are necessary for the region.

2. Colon Health Centers of America and Progressive Radiology has challenged Virginia's law. U.S. District Judge Claude M. Hilton ruled against them.

3. "While we cannot say whether Virginia's program is ultimately wise, it most certainly is constitutional," wrote Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III.

4. Robert McNamara, a lawyer who defended the plaintiffs, said that there has been no decision made regarding filing an appeal with the Supreme Court.

5. The CON law has been facing challenges from the state government as well. Virginia legislators are introducing measures in the 2016 General Assembly session that aim to reform or dismantle the state's certificate of need program, according to a recent report.

6. The law also has its supporters. The Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association supports the current law saying it helps curb over-expansion of certain types of care delivery.
The Grants Pass Surgery Center in southern Oregon hosted legislators for a discussion about healthcare, according to a KDRV report.

Here are five things to know:

1. U.S. Representative Greg Walden visited Grants Pass Surgery Center to see the facility and conduct a healthcare discussion.

2. Rep. Walden talked about Medicare reimbursement for small clinics; he co-sponsored a bill to find deadly disease cures.

3. Grants Pass Surgery Center called for more access to healthcare for lower income families.

4. The surgery center performs total knee and hip replacements, the only one in Rogue Valley.

5. The ASC serves more than 4,000 patients in the community, providing lower-cost alternatives for surgical procedures.
After the failure of more than half of the Affordable Care Act's 23 state health insurance co-ops  which received about $1.17 billion in federal loans  CMS Acting Administrator Andy Slavitt Thursday told the Senate Finance Committee the administration is working to recoup the federal funds, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Mr. Slavitt said CMS is working with the Department of Justice to collect the money, and is taking steps to ensure the surviving co-ops remain solvent, according to the report.

He said the organization plans to soon provide guidance for co-ops to attract capital or merger partners, audit remaining co-ops after the end of open enrollment and hold a meeting with co-op leaders to discuss how to more evenly distribute risk, according to the report.

Members of the finance committee pressed Mr. Slavitt on why so many of the nonprofit co-ops collapsed and why problems were not detected sooner. The committee chairman, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) questioned the nonprofits' accounting practices, according to the report.

Mr. Slavitt did not directly respond, according to the report. However, he noted about 75 percent of Americans who had health insurance on a failed co-op have been able to maintain coverage on new plans, according to the report.

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Financially distressed Forest Park Medical Center, a network of physician-owned facilities based in Dallas, is back in bankruptcy court, as its facility in Southlake, Texas, has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

FPMC's struggles surfaced last year, and its Southlake hospital is the latest to land in bankruptcy. The hospital network closed its flagship facility in Dallas last October, resulting in 196 layoffs.

In November, Commerce Bank of Missouri filed a lawsuit alleging FPMC's hospital in Southlake and its founding physicians defaulted on a loan and owe the bank nearly $3.5 million. The bank claimed the hospital defaulted by failing to meet minimum operating cash flow and net worth requirements and failing to provide complete financial statements for 2014.

According to a bankruptcy petition filed Tuesday, the Southlake hospital has between $10 million and $50 million in estimated liabilities and 200 or more creditors.

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WASHINGTON  When mayors of college towns gathered here Wednesday to discuss law enforcement challenges that come with having a campus in their cities, the University of Central Floridas police chief steered them toward several possible solutions.

And UCF Chief Richard Beary steered them away from another  arming students and faculty members.

Putting guns on a campus with alcohol, drugs and mental health issues, I just dont see it having a good outcome, Beary told a task force for mayors of college towns, on the first day of the U.S. Conference of Mayors winter meeting here.

His comments came the same day that the Arizona Board of Regents voted to oppose one Arizona House bill that would let registered gun owners to have weapons in their cars while on campus and another bill that would let students and faculty carry on campus.

In a statement Wednesday, the board said that it voted unanimously to oppose HB 2072 and HB 2338. But the statement also said that, given the recurring events involving deranged or terrorist shooters on campuses and elsewhere, it would work with university presidents, chiefs of police and others to find alternative solutions.

That was fine with Tempe Mayor Mark Mitchell, the co-chairman of the Mayors and Metro Universities Task Force that held Wednesdays session with Beary.

I agree with the rules the Board of Regents already have in place, he said after the task force meeting he convened with Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg.

But Arizona Rep. Sonny Borrelli, R-Lake Havasu City, and a sponsor of the two bills the regents oppose, said there should still be room for conversation.

Well, sure, irresponsible gun use will have a bad outcome, said Borrelli, the primary sponsor of HB 2072. But right now, no one knows whos carrying on campus and whos not.

Borrelli said his bill isnt just about guns but includes other means of self-defense like Tasers that are also prohibited on Arizona college campuses.

His bill would require students and faculty who carry on campus to register with campus officials, and would also require that colleges adopt and enforce guidelines for the use of a firearm in an active-shooter incident. Borrelli says the process to get a gun permit and then register with the university would not be easy, protecting students from those who dont know how to use a gun safely.

What Im proposing is that at an institution of higher learning, gun usage and safety should also be taught, Borrelli said.

Borrelli said his bill would not apply to carrying weapons to college sporting events, on the assumption that there is adequate security at such events.

Security at sporting events was another one of the highly discussed topics at the mayors panel Wednesday. Many of the mayors expressed concerns about security at large sporting events and the use of metal detectors, especially in light of the terrorist attacks in Paris.

While Arizona bans guns on all public university campuses in the state, at least nine other states allow guns on campus, including Colorado and Utah, according to ArmedCampuses.org, a gun-control group.

Borrelli said its time for Arizona to join that list.

I dont want the conversation to end, Borrelli said of the regents vote. I understand that they have their concerns and Im willing to talk about it
The UC San Diego Board of Regents approved an $83.4 million spending increase for the Jacobs Medical Center  a 245-bed specialty hospital that is set to open in La Jolla, Calif., this fall  bringing the total cost of the facility to $943 million, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune.

The price tag for the hospital was about $664 million at its 2012 groundbreaking and has been raised four times since then. UC San Diego attributes the increasing tab to features being added at the hospital. For instance, in 2012 the overall project cost increased by $34 million when the system decided to add a specialized surgical suite, more operating rooms and an anatomic pathology lab at the hospital. Two years later, the price swelled again when additions such as a discharge pharmacy and nursing administrative space caused the price to jump $20 million, according to the report.

However, documents from the board of regents show the latest cost increase for the project was due to poor financial forecasting and a lack of experience with large hospital construction projects, according to the report. Because of the repeated price tag increases for the hospital, the facility's expected opening has been pushed back from July to October or November of this year.

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Pittsburgh-based health giant UPMC is challenging a zoning code in an attempt to build a 300,000-square-foot hospital less than one mile from Allegheny Health Network's Jefferson Hospital in Pittsburgh, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

UPMC spokeswoman Gloria Kreps told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette there are many benefits to the facility being built, including creating "hundreds of jobs in the region." However, AHN officials are not pleased with the proposal, as they believe it would drive up overall healthcare costs by duplicating existing services in the area, according to the report.

"It's a predatory action. The clear intent here is to weaken Jefferson and the other independent hospitals that serve the community," Dan Laurent, an AHN spokesman, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

AHN's criticism of the proposal may be premature, as a zoning code currently does not permit a hospital to be built on the tract where UPMC hopes to construct its new facility.

In its challenge of the zoning code, ULCM  a wholly owned subsidiary of UPMC  wrote, "Hospitals by their nature serve a necessary community need. The borough's exclusion of a hospital use is not justified."

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Stay in the know with Becker's Hospital Review's weekly roundup of the nation's biggest healthcare news. Here's what you need to know this week.

1. CMS outlines next steps for MU

The future of meaningful use will be more focused on outcomes, promoting innovation and prioritizing interoperability, according to an update from CMS. CMS Acting Administrator Andy Slavitt and National Coordinator Karen DeSalvo, MD, said the focus of EHR use will shift from measuring clicks to focusing on care. Through dialogues with physician and consumer communities, CMS developed four critical principles that will drive new EHR regulations.

2. Bernie Sanders releases universal health plan

Hours before Sunday night's Democratic debate, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) unveiled a healthcare plan that would "provide all Americans with the sense of freedom and peace of mind" through universal coverage. His plan creates a federally-administered, single-payer healthcare program. He has dubbed it "Medicare for All." His public insurance system would span the continuum of care, including inpatient, outpatient, preventive, emergency, primary, specialty, long-term, palliative, mental health, oral health, vision and hearing, in addition to prescriptions, diagnostics and medical equipment. Patients would not pay copays or have deductibles. According to Sen. Sanders, this would allow the government to negotiate with drug companies and more accurately track healthcare access to avoid provider shortages. For more information on Sen. Sanders' plan, click here.

3. ER physician at Mount Sinai Hospital accused of drugging, sexually assaulting patients

David H. Newman, MD, a prominent emergency room physician at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, was arrested and charged with sexually abusing two female patients, according to The New York Times. Mount Sinai issued a statement to The New York Times saying Dr. Newman has been suspended from the hospital and has not provided patient care since the investigation began.

4. FDA issues draft cybersecurity guidance for device makers

In August, the Food and Drug Administration published a guidance recommending hospitals move away from using Hospira's Symbiq Infusion System, a computerized pump designed for continuous infusion therapy delivery. The FDA found the system's devices are vulnerable to hacking attacks, which could put patient safety at risk. In light of increasing awareness around the lack of cybersecurity for medical devices in hospitals and the risks for patients using the devices and the hospital networks they're linked to, the FDA issued a draft cybersecurity guidance for manufacturers that focuses on steps they can take to mitigate hacking risks.

5. CDC, American College of Physicians issue new guidelines on antibiotic prescription

Addressing physician mishandling of antibiotic testing and prescription is a key focus of new clinical guidelines for antibiotic stewardship issued by the CDC in partnership with the American College of Physicians. The guidelines are published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. To read the four pieces of "high-value care advice," click here.

6. HCA appeals $434M judgment over failure to fund hospital improvements

Nashville, Tenn.-based Hospital Corporation of America is appealing a December judgment ordering it to pay nearly $434 million to the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City for allegedly failing to fulfill pledges it made when it bought several hospitals in 2003, according to a KCUR report.

7. South Carolina hospital closing down Thursday

Southern Palmetto Hospital, a 53-bed hospital in Barnwell, S.C., closed its doors Jan. 21, according to a WRDW report. Hospital officials said the facility is closing due to a decline in patient volume and an increase in uncompensated care costs. Despite efforts to improve collections and become more efficient, the hospital has seen operating losses, according to the report.
The death of artist David Bowie earlier this month touched the hearts of many who were influenced by his music, stagecraft and ideas  including physician Mark Taubert from the U.K.

Dr. Taubert dedicated a recent BMJ blog to Mr. Bowie, thanking him for his ChangesOneBowie album, his Berlin days, many memories and his final message. As a palliative care physician, Dr. Taubert thanked Mr. Bowie for providing a narrative to talk to patients more openly about death, a conversation many physicians struggle to have.

He thanked Mr. Bowie for his album Blackstar, released two days before his death Jan. 10, which Dr. Taubert said had a profound effect on him and many of his colleagues. Mr. Bowie created his final album knowing he was terminally ill.

"I have often heard how meticulous you were in your life. For me, the fact that your gentle death at home coincided so closely with the release of your album, with its good-bye message, in my mind is unlikely to be coincidence. All of this was carefully planned, to become a work of death art," Dr. Taubert wrote. Specifically, he mentioned the song "Lazarus," for the thought-provoking video in which Bowie croons, "Look up here, I'm in heaven."

Dr. Taubert also thanks Mr. Bowie for his death at home, symptom control needs and advance care planning. Both Mr. Bowie's life and death helped Dr. Taubert discuss end-of-life planning with a patient who had advanced cancer and about a year left to live.

"She talked about you and loved your music, but for some reason was not impressed by your Ziggy Stardust outfit (she was not sure whether you were a boy or a girl)," Dr. Taubert wrote. "She too, had memories of places and events for which you provided an idiosyncratic soundtrack. And then we talked about a good death, the dying moments and what these typically look like. And we talked about palliative care and how it can help."

Dr. Taubert said Mr. Bowie inspired a conversation about how she envisioned her final moments, and he wrote to Mr. Bowie, "You gave her a way of expressing this most personal longing to me, a relative stranger."

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From a California hospital settling Stark Law allegations to an emergency room physician at a New York hospital being charged with sexually abusing two female patients, here are the latest healthcare industry lawsuits and settlements making headlines.

1. Medical billing company inks $500k false claims settlement

Medical Reimbursement Systems, Inc., which provides billing, coding, compliance and revenue cycle services to hospitals and physician practices, agreed to pay the federal government $500,000 to resolve allegations it submitted false claims to TRICARE.

2. HCA appeals $434M judgment over failure to fund hospital improvements

Nashville, Tenn.-based Hospital Corporation of America is appealing a December judgment ordering it to pay nearly $434 million to the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City for allegedly failing to fulfill pledges it made when it bought several hospitals in 2003.

3. Former Texas hospital employee arrested for secretly taping nude patients

A former Baylor Scott & White Hillcrest Medical Center employee was charged with two counts of invasive video recording after investigators found he secretly videotaped nude patients at the Waco, Texas-based hospital.

4. California hospital to pay $3.2M to resolve Stark Law allegations

Tri-City Medical Center, a 397-bed hospital in Oceanside, Calif., agreed to pay the federal government more than $3.2 million to resolve allegations it violated Stark Law and the False Claims Act.

5. ER physician at Mount Sinai Hospital accused of drugging, sexually assaulting patients

David H. Newman, MD, a prominent ER physician at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, was arrested and charged with sexually abusing two female patients.

6. 3 police officers charged in connection with juvenile assault at Baltimore hospital

Three Baltimore police officers were charged in an alleged assault on a juvenile that occurred at Sinai Hospital in Baltimore.

7. Former medical director awarded $1.5M in lawsuit against Missouri hospital

Springfield, Mo.-based Mercy Clinic's former medical director, Hyewon Kim, MD, was awarded more than $1.5 million in damages after claiming she was dismissed from Mercy Clinic for voicing her concerns about two physicians.

8. Planned Parenthood files lawsuit over undercover abortion videos

Planned Parenthood filed a federal lawsuit alleging anti-abortion activists engaged in a "complex criminal enterprise" to produce undercover videos and defraud the reproductive health organization over the past year.

9. Pennsylvania physician pleads guilty to healthcare fraud

John Terry, MD, of Wellsboro, Pa., pleaded guilty in a healthcare fraud case.

10. Supreme Court rejects longshot challenge to ACA

The U.S. Supreme Court dismissed Sissel v. HHS, a case that included a challenge to the Affordable Care Act.

11. St. Mary's Medical Center faces PHI breach lawsuit

A woman is suing St. Mary's Medical Center in Huntington, W.Va., alleging the hospital did not adequately protect her protected health information and permitted unauthorized individuals to view her records.

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Yadkin Valley Community Hospital in Yadkinville, N.C., unexpectedly closed last year, and a federal judge has now ordered the former operator of the shuttered facility to pay civil contempt damages and attorney fees, according to the Winston-Salem Journal.

YVCH closed May 22, which came as a shock to Yadkin County officials, as the hospital's for-profit operator was scheduled to run the hospital until July 31. After the hospital closed, Yadkin County officials filed a lawsuit requesting the operator HMC/CAH Consolidated along with its parent company and local operational unit be found in civil and criminal contempt for breaching its lease contract by shutting down the hospital in May.

On Tuesday, Judge Terrence Boyle ordered YVCH's former operator to pay $36,010 in civil contempt damages and $112,011 in attorney fees.

However, the for-profit operator is not going down without a fight. It has filed several legal actions in an attempt to avoid paying the damages, according to the report.

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For plans under the Affordable Care Act this year, the average premium cost increased to $408 per month  a 9 percent increase since this time last year, according to The Hill.

The finding is from the Department of Health and Human Services' new report.

Although the premium price has increased, 83 percent of enrollees have tax credits and only pay a portion of the $408. The average tax credit is $294  an increase of $26 since last year. Thus, enrollees only pay an average of $113. At this time last year, enrollees with tax credits paid an average of $105 per month for premiums, according to The Hill.

The report also showed premium increases were as high as 40 percent in some states. It did not highlight information on average deductible prices.
Against a backdrop of complaints she did not do enough to prevent the Flint, Mich., water crisis, Susan Hedman, regional administrator for the Environmental Protection Agency's Chicago-based region 5, which oversees Michigan, announced Thursday her resignation, according to The Hill.

Here are four things to know about Ms. Hedman's resignation and the crisis in Flint.

1. Ms. Hedman will step down Feb. 1, and her resignation has been approved by EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy, according to the report.

2. Ms. Hedman told The Detroit News her office knew as early as last April of the risks of switching Flint's water supply from Detroit to the local Flint River, according to the report. Ms. Hedman did not alert the public; she only pushed for officials to resolve the issue of pipe corrosion and unhealthy levels of lead, according to the report.

3. The city switched to the Flint River water supply in 2014 to save money while building a more cost-effective regional water system to bring in water from Lake Huron. After hundreds of children got lead poisoning from the new water supply, the mayor declared a state of emergency in December 2015. President Barack Obama declared a state of emergency in Flint Saturday.

4. The state's director of the Department of Environmental Quality, Dan Wyant, stepped down in December, according to the report.

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A new study published in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery examines the effect of workers' compensation status for cervical disc arthroplasty.

The researchers examined data on 189 patients who underwent cervical disc arthroplasty; 144 patients received workers' compensation while 45 didn't. The researchers found:

1. The average patient-reported measures were significantly improved one year after surgery for both groups. Workers' compensation and non-workers compensation groups reported similar outcomes.

2. For workers' compensation, the scores include:

 Neck Disability Index: 22.7

 Short Form-36 physical component summary: 8.3

 SF-36 mental component: 7.9

 Neck pain: 3.5

 Arm pain: 2.6

For the non-workers compensation patients, the scores include:

 Neck Disability Index: 25

 Short Form-36 physical component summary: 9.6

 SF-36 mental component: 9.6

 Neck pain: 3.7

 Arm pain: 2.8

3. The rate of operations was similar between the two groups  7.6 percent received workers' compensation compared with 13.3 percent of those who didn't receive workers compensation.

4. The complication rates were similar between the two groups  2.8 percent for the workers compensation patients compared with 4.4 percent of the non-workers compensation patients.

5. The return to work rate was 77.7 percent for the workers compensation group and 79.4 percent for the non-workers compensation patients.

6. The patients receiving workers compensation reported significantly more days off  145.2 days off  compared with the non-workers compensation patients who took off 61.9 days.
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A Flagstaff father notified police after he found sexually explicit messages sent between his 13-year-old daughter and man who identified himself as a 19-year-old on his daughters computer.

Despite the fact that the daughter sent sexual photos of herself, the images of the girl now amount to child pornography, officials said.

Flagstaff police have yet to identify the man receiving the images, but Flagstaff Unified School District officials and Arizona Attorney Generals officials are working to inform parents about the dangers of the Internet, and prevent other children from becoming victims.

Brittany Jick, a community outreach and education coordinator for the Arizona Attorney Generals Office, hosted the seminar Wednesday night, aimed at educating parents about the popular social networking apps and websites that their children are likely to be using. Jick also outlined the dangers and capabilities of popular apps and sites that parents might not know.

Jick presented about different social media apps, ranging from the most popular, like Facebook, to relatively unknown apps, like Omegle, which allows users to video chat with strangers.

She highlighted that there are aspects to familiar apps, like Facebook and Instagram, that parents may not know even exist. Facebook, for example, has video chatting capabilities through its messenger, and Instagram has private messages.

Jick said one of the biggest myths about the photo messaging app Snapchat is that the photos actually disappear after the time runs out. While the receiver can no longer see the picture, the company still stores all of the images on its own server, so the image is never actually deleted. Recipients can also take a screenshot of the image, so the sent item can be saved.

The presentation also educated parents about apps like Whisper and Ask.fm, which allow users to either post their secrets or ask people questions anonymously. Jick said the apps have led to extreme cases of cyberbullying, including instances where children have committed suicide after being tormented on the apps.

Theres no way that your child can avoid every type of social media, Jick told seminar attendees. The best thing you can do is talk to your child about the apps and familiarize yourself with what they are doing.

Jick also explained the legal repercussions of sexting, which means sending sexually explicit pictures to someone else, like the 13-year-old girl did. If a minor sends an explicit picture to another minor, the recipient can be charged with a misdemeanor possession of child pornography charge. If the recipient is an adult, the charge can be upgraded to a felony.

Jick said many students do not realize that even though they may only send the picture to their boyfriend or girlfriend, the recipient might send it to others or post it after a fight, which is called revenge porn.

If the person in the distributed picture is a minor, the person posting or sending the pictures can be charged with trafficking child pornography.

Jick also showed a video, made with permission of the parents of the children involved, of how easily an online predator can lure a child into meeting. In the video, three underage girls agreed to meet a stranger at various locations, including getting in a car with a stranger.

She said while it is impossible to completely keep students away from the Internet and off of social media, Jick recommended parents keep lines of communication open with their children, including knowing passwords to devices and being familiar with the online profiles their children use.

Parents should be open-minded, and approach the issue in a non-confrontational manner, Jick said. Ask your kids how the different apps work and have them show you what they do.

In addition to the seminar for parents, Heather Zeigler, the digital literacy specialist in the district, said students in FUSD go through age-appropriate Internet safety lessons at all grade levels.

Zeigler said the district began offering Internet safety lessons in 2011, though the content has changed with technology and trends.

The Internet safety lessons delivered to FUSD students cover topics ranging from open communication with responsible adults in kindergarten, to cyberbullying in third grade, texting safety in fourth grade, inappropriate online content in fifth grade, cyberbullying and digital footprints in seventh and eighth grade, and risky online relationships in 10th grade, Zeigler said in an email.
What the plans could look like, and Pedro Donald outside The Sunflower

A 300m project to redevelop the north of Belfast city centre has hit a roadblock, after it was refused outline planning permission.

The Northside Regeneration is planning develop a so-called mixed use development, close to Royal Avenue, which would include housing, retail, leisure and student accommodation.

But Belfast City Council has now put forward the development for refusal

The project hit the headlines last year, after it was revealed popular and award-winning pub The Sunflower could be knocked down as part of the plans.

A Save The Sunflower campaign was launched on social media, drawing support from more than 5,000 fans of Pedro Donald's popular tavern.

Northside is a consortium, chosen by the Department for Social Development (DSD) with the development, which is bounded by North Street, Royal Avenue, Donegall Street and Millfield.

The consortium, including global building firm Balfour Beatty and property developer Kevin McKay.

A spokeswoman for Northside said it remains fully committed to the development of the lands designated by the DSD for regeneration.

Further to our submission of our outline planning application the planning authorities requested supplementary information on environmental impacts. The extent and scope of the information requested required more time than was available within the deadline set and regrettably this has resulted in our application being determined as  deemed refused.

We will be resubmitting our application and re-entering the planning application process.

It is important to note that our outline plan was developed following an extensive pre-planning community consultation process and took into account the views expressed throughout the process and particular consideration has been and will continue to be given to both listed and unlisted buildings of architectural and historic interest within the scheme.

There have been concerns raised by a local councillor with Northside Regeneration Ltd regarding the Sunflower Bar and the development team will enter discussions with the owner of the property, where the bar is located, as part the planning process .

And The Ulster Architectural Heritage Society, which has previously objected to the scheme, said: Whilst the deemed refusal is welcome, it may not mean that unlisted historic buildings in the area are safe.

They are not protected against demolition and it is likely that another scheme for the area will emerge in due course.

A spokesman for Belfast City Council said:

Although Belfast City Council took on planning powers and functions in April 2015, the anticipated transfer of regeneration functions did not take place. Across Northern Ireland the Department of Social Development therefore remains in the lead for regeneration functions, including Northside in Belfast.

"The deemed refusal of the Northside Regeneration Ltd outline planning application on 18 January 2016 means Belfast City Council has no comprehensive development application for Northside to deal with at present; but there are other planning applications which the Council must determine within the Northside area.

In taking planning decisions for this area, the Council will take into account the Councils own strategy for the city centre, the adopted Belfast Metropolitan Area Plan and all other material planning policies and factors. The Council is fully aware of the value of heritage assets in the city centre and indeed has recently supported the listing, by the Northern Ireland Environment Agency, of numerous buildings across the city.
Bombardier has been dealt a body blow after a US airline placed a major order with a rival company.

United Airlines has said it will buy 40 of the 737-700 planes from Boeing, in a deal worth $3.2bn (2.3bn).

It's another missed deal for Canadian-owned Bombardier - which employs 5,500 people in Northern Ireland - as it struggles to meet target orders for its CSeries planes.

It now has orders for 243 jets.

But there could still be hope for Bombardier, as another US firm, Delta Airlines, is weighing up its options over purchasing the aircraft.

Bombardier's Belfast workforce produces a range of planes for the firm, including wings and fuselage for the CSeries jets.

Meanwhile, some of the world's biggest aerospace firms have visited Northern Ireland.

Firms taking part in the visit, aimed at furthering supply chain relationships, included Airbus, Cobham - which is the fifth largest defence firm in the UK - and engineering firm Meggitt.

Philip McBride, chairman of aviation industry body ADS, said: "We have a very strong, high quality aerospace supply base and we are very keen to develop these important relationships in a way which is beneficial to the sector and to industry in Northern Ireland."
Construction companies in Northern Ireland are getting busier as demand for new housing accelerates, according to the latest figures.

The Northern Ireland Construction Bulletin, which assesses the workload of around 700 firms, said output in the third quarter was 11.8% higher than during the same period last year.

While it had fallen by 2.4% on the second quarter, the bulletin claimed that output was still at one of the highest levels of the last three years.

Repair and maintenance work showed the biggest slump, at 6.7%. 'Other work' - the biggest category of construction work, covering everything from warehouses to colleges - fell by 6.2%.

Housing output increased by 5.5%, reflecting separate figures from the National House Building Council showing there were nearly 1,000 new starts in the third quarter, up by 44% year-on-year.

However, the bulletin did not include work being carried out by construction firms outside Northern Ireland.

John Armstrong, managing director of the Construction Employers Federation, said the increases shown in the report were to be welcomed but cautioned they were coming from a "very low base".

"The feedback is that workloads are still at a pretty low level," he added. "And while housing output may be up 5.5%, that is from a very low base.

"You have to recall that back in 2006 there were 14 house builders in Northern Ireland who were building more than 100 homes a year. But in 2015, there were only four."

Mr Armstrong claimed regulations and the planning system were holding house building up and said: "Planning was devolved to the councils in May last year, but we are yet to see any great improvement in how long planning decisions are taking." David Moneypenny, director of building firm PG Contracts in Antrim, said his firm had experienced an uplift in house building around the province.

"Confidence is a big factor - if things are moving in the property market it has a ripple effect, giving others the confidence to proceed," he insisted. "We are still heavily involved in house-building projects in Northern Ireland and we are seeing more residential projects landing on our desks."

A report by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors released last week said that nearly half of all work being done by construction firms in Northern Ireland was for projects outside the province.

Backing that up, Mr Moneypenny said his firm was currently fitting out a hairdressing salon in London as the main contractor, and was seeking other projects in central London.

The bulletin noted that construction output peaked during 2007 but then started to decline until finally picking up towards the end of 2013.

1,000

Number of new starts in housing in the third quarter of year, up 44%
What the new Dunnes Stores development could look like

Dunnes Stores is planning a major revamp and extension of its Abbeycentre outlet after cutting back on its grocery business across Northern Ireland.

It is planning to extend the unit at the shopping centre in Newtownabbey "to provide a new modern retail offering to allow the store to consolidate its position and remain competitive in an ever-changing retail landscape".

The company indicated the project was the first significant modification to the outlet since it was opened in 1979.

Planners said the current building suffered "from arguably a jaded external image".

The revamped Dunnes site will sit beside Next, which is also being redeveloped.

The company has proposed building an extra 12,100 sq ft of floor space, expanding in a number of directions. It also wants to create additional car park spaces.

The Irish chain had been involved in a legal dispute with the centre over Next's plans to expand its outlet.

Dunnes' project comes just a month after the company closed its food hall at the Park Centre in west Belfast, with the loss of around 50 jobs. The grocery business shut its doors a short time before Christmas.

Dunnes still operates around 20 food and drink outlets here, but it has closed several in the past year alone.

In February, the Dublin-based retailer shut its branch at the Connswater Shopping Centre in east Belfast. It also closed three others in Antrim, Ballymoney and in Portadown.

Pre-tax profits at the main Northern Ireland and UK arm of the company decreased by 18% to 11.3m last November after a further slide in revenues.

The revamped Dunnes outlet at the Abbeycentre will amalgamate four existing units.

A planning statement from the retailer said that "although Dunnes Stores is in a prime location within the centre", the business "fully understands that it must now take the opportunity to create a new flagship store that will breathe new life, not only into its own business, but into the centre overall".

No one from Dunnes Stores was available for comment on the proposals.

Abbeycentre currently plays host to a range of big-name retailers, including Argos, Boots and Topshop.

The Newtownabbey centre also received a major boost last month after it welcomed two new stores and three others unveiled expansions of their own.

Jeweller Pandora and outdoor clothing specialist Trespass both acquired new units. Health food chain Holland & Barrett, fashion retailer Vogue and jeweller Argento also up-sized.

Emma Mackenzie, director at NewRiver Retail - which owns Abbey Centre - said the new arrivals at the business were "testament to how well the centre is trading". "We have also started to create a 45,000 sq ft store for Next, which will span over four floors, so there are exciting times ahead for the centre and our customers," she added.

11.3m

Dunnes' pre-tax profits last November after an 18% fall
A trade union has claimed that 65 jobs are set to be lost with the closure of the Camden Glass plant in Co Tyrone.

And a Co-operative Bank branch in Belfast is also set to close with the loss of eight jobs.

Unite regional officer Joanne McWilliams said Camden Glass was start a statutory 30-day consultation on closing its glass production plant in Benburb.

"This decision will result in a loss of 65 jobs," she said. "Management seek to justify the decision on the grounds that they would be investing in a new production facility in Antrim which would create 50 new jobs.

"But this is cold comfort to the workforce."

Camden Glass is part of Camden Group, which received a 1.6m support package via Invest NI in 2011.

Ms McWilliams added: "Camden Group must live up to their social responsibilities and fully compensate their workforce for a decision driven by corporate priorities.

"Many of the workers facing redundancy have built the company's success long before the current management took over. If they remain intent on closing the plant they must provide improved redundancy for their workers in recognition of their long-standing commitment, loyalty and hard work."

Camden Glass, which makes PVCu products, did not immediately respond to a request for comment last night.

Meanwhile, Co-operative Bank has said it will close its Belfast branch in June. The branch, in Donegall Square, shut at 3pm on Wednesday as the news was broken to its eight staff.

A spokesman for Co-operative said he could not say at this stage what will happen to the staff.

The bank has a small market share here, with current accounts making up less than 5% of the Northern Ireland market.

The branch, the only one in Northern Ireland, first had its future placed in doubt in 2013 when Co-operative announced it planned to close 50 branches.

Liam Coleman, director of retail and commercial at Co-operative Bank, said that customers could continue to access their accounts via telephone, online and mobile banking facilities.

He said there were three Post Office branches within a mile of the branch where customers can undertake most day-to-day banking transactions.
Northern Ireland's economic performance will be the worst of all UK regions during 2016, according to PwC's latest forecast.

The business advisory firm predicted that the economy would expand by 1.4% during the year - well below 2.2% expansion forecast for the UK as a whole.

The downbeat assessment came after the Northern Ireland Composite Economic Index indicated there had been 1.1% growth in the year to the third quarter of 2015 - around half the rate of expansion in the UK as a whole.

The index also revealed a 0.8% decline in economic activity between the second and third quarter of last year - the first quarterly fall in activity in the past four quarters.

But PwC estimated that the Republic's economy would grow by 5.5% this year.

Chief economist Esmond Birnie said falling unemployment in Northern Ireland - the claimant count has dipped by around 20,300 to 38,700 in the past two years - masked a lack of growth in other indicators.

"Total employment in Northern Ireland had broadly returned to pre-crisis level by the third quarter of 2015," he added. "But according to the Northern Ireland Composite Economic Index, the employment gains were not reflected in output, which remains 8% below the pre-crisis peak."

He also cautioned that while the data suggested there had been an increase in employees working more than 16 hours - the definition of full-time - there was a weaker increase in those in the traditional full-time hours of 30 to 38 hours per week.

"That would partly account for the mismatch between employment and output and also suggests that the Northern Ireland labour market is less robust than the headline data suggests," he said, warning there was still a "mountain to climb" before the economy recovered.
Accountancy firm PwC has hired 15 new staff to begin developing technology to help commercialise the rise of the cryptocurrency bitcoin.

The firm is building a 'blockchain' team, which will be based in Belfast and is expected to grow to more than 40.

The announcement comes after UK's chief scientific adviser, Sir Mark Walport, urged the Government to adopt the technology that powers bitcoin to run various public services.

Bitcoin is a digital currency or 'internet money' which can be used to purchase a range of goods and services, which doesn't require banks or the traditional financial institutions.

Blockchain is a public record of all bitcoin transactions which have been executed. Last year, Belfast family-run coffee shop Boden Park Coffee Company became the first indigenous Northern Ireland business to accept bitcoin in store.

And while still very much in its infancy here, Northern Ireland-founded firm Bitnet, is at the forefront of bitcoin - helping big name retailers process their online payments.

This week, First Trust boss Des Moore told the Belfast Telegraph that, one day, it's "feasible" the currency could take banks out of the equation altogether.

Announcing the new bitcoin team, PwC partner Steve Davis said there is now "clear evidence that banks, institutions and even governments are looking at blockchain technology as a secure storage and distribution solution". PwC says its decision to focus on cryptocurrency "represents a major step in the firm's move towards developing 'fintech' (financial technology) solutions".

While bitcoin is yet to become a mainstream currency, the blockchain technology in the background, which consists of "blocks" of data in a digital ledger, is believed to be highly resistant to malicious tampering.

That could offer governments and businesses a greater deal of security.

Paul Terrington, PwC regional chairman in Northern Ireland, said blockchain could be the greatest advance in the financial technology sector in a decade. "Blockchain technology is worrying major players in the financial services industry, as they don't know where it will go or its potential to disrupt business models," he said.
James Nesbitt admits he once harboured dreams of becoming Northern Ireland's first James Bond, but accepts his new role in drama series Lucky Man is the closest he will get to playing the world's most famous secret agent.

Nesbitt will return to the small screen as flawed cop DI Harry Clayton, a character blessed with power to control the destiny of those around him, in a big-budget production from Sky.

The 10-part drama was inspired by the work of the iconic American comic book writer Stan Lee and Nesbitt said it has let him live out some of his acting fantasies.

"Five years ago, someone might have said I had a chance of being cast as the next James Bond, but let's be honest, that dream is over," says Nesbitt with a smile.

"This latest role is the closest I will get to being James Bond and one of the reasons why I loved it so much. I have been driving speedboats down the Thames at high speed at 3am in the morning, we have done dramatic scenes at the Shard building in London and the Tate modern.

"This is a city that looks amazing on camera and hopefully we are presenting it in an exciting and interesting way."

This latest role ticks another box in his impressive list of acting credits, with the multi-award-winning Coleraine man admitting luck is very relevant to his own career. "Any actor who is getting regular work can say they are blessed with some luck," he said.

"I very much believe you make your own luck by hard work and being in the right place.

"Other times, luck does come up and surprise you. If you bump into someone you haven't seen in 20 years in a place that you shouldn't see them, that is luck and fate playing a role in your life.

"What we have in Lucky Man in the notion that what is lucky for one person can be unlucky for another. Dropping a pebble in a pool and watching the ripple effect on how it affects so many people. It is a multi-faceted story, and the character that I play has so many sides to him as well."

Nesbitt is convinced he has picked the right role to make his return to work after his successful appearance in hit BBC drama The Missing, and accepts he is fortunate to pick and choose his roles from a wide selection of offers.

"In this role, I was asked to play a Northern Irish flawed character. I have to say it was not a stretch to play this role for me!

"DI Harry Clayton should be a good character, but sometimes he cannot be what he wants to be. I guess we can all associate with someone like that."
Stephanie Davis at the start of the latest series of Celebrity Big Brother at Elstree Studios, Borehamwood

Celebrity Big Brother's Stephanie Davis says she has missed her boyfriend so much that she "substituted" him for fellow housemate Jeremy McConnell.

Davis was dating model Sam Reece before she went in the house, but has been engaged in an apparent flirtation with former Mr Ireland McConnell.

But as the housemates speculated that Reece could join them in the house, Davis announced she still hoped to marry her boyfriend - leaving McConnell open-mouthed.

In the diary room, she said: " My head is mashed. I've just realised everything. Like, I don't want to get upset because I'm sick of getting upset.

"I've missed Sam so much that I've had to block him out completely. Because I wouldn't have got this far. Maybe I've substituted Jez for Sam just because I've missed that contact...

"I don't want to look like a tease, do you know what I mean? Because I'm not like that. I think the world of Jez. But it's like I can't win, because I can't speak about Sam now."

Davis does not know that Reece tweeted on January 11: "Hi everyone, I will no longer be supporting Stephanie Davis ... Thanks for all your support and love you have given me!!"

But a day later he clarified: "I would never end a relationship over text or social media. I want to talk to Steph face to face."

McConnell was unimpressed with Davis's behaviour, admitting: "I hate drama. I know it's a game. I am so over it and bored of it. I'm sure you've heard her say 'What are we gonna do on the outside? Are you gonna wait?'

"What the f**** does that mean? If she didn't have any intentions with me and she has a boyfriend, would she say that? Cos I wouldn't."

Former Hollyoaks actress Davis also had a screaming argument with Ex On The Beach's Megan McKenna over a pair of borrowed tracksuit bottoms.

McKenna angrily accused Davis of "disrespectful" behaviour over an item of clothing when she discovered her wet tracksuit, which Davis had borrowed, discarded on the floor.

"Steph, are you taking the p***?" she cried. "I knew I was going to flip. No-one's to touch my stuff any more, no-one's borrowing anything!"

McKenna has already received a formal warning for a shocking and foul-mouthed tirade that led to the Big Brother security team entering the house.

She was not the only one who was upset. Gemma Collins boycotted the shopping task, opting to stay in bed, and went on a foul-mouthed rant in the diary room about the state of her hair.

She told Big Brother: "My hair - this is very expensive hair. It's f***ing frazzled, because you've only got straighteners in here, you haven't got heated rollers.

"So you can pay for me to have a new set of extensions. The f***ing hair is frazzled. Why didn't you think of putting heated rollers in here? Straighteners are what f***ing weirdos use on their hair. That's what you think of me."
Actress Charlotte Rampling has said the controversy over there being no black actors on the Oscars shortlist is unfair to the white actors who were nominated.

"Perhaps the black actors did not deserve to be in the final straight," she said.

The 69-year-old, who is up for the best actress award for her role in 45 Years, told French radio station Europe 1: "It's racist to white people."

She continued: "We can never know if it was really the case, but perhaps the black actors did not deserve to be in the final straight."

When asked whether the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences should introduce quotas, s he said: "Why categorise people? We live in countries where everyone is more or less accepted. There are always issues like 'He is less good looking', 'He is too black'. There is always someone who says 'You are too...' So are we going to say, 'We will categorise all that to make lots of minorities everywhere?'"

Asked if the black community in the film industry felt like a minority, she replied: "No comment."

Rampling is up against Kate Winslet, Jennifer Lawrence, Cate Blanchett and Brie Larson.

The actress echoed former Oscar winner Sir Michael Caine who told BBC Radio 4's Today programme on Friday: "You can't vote for an actor because he's black. You can't say 'I'm going to vote for him, he's not very good, but he's black, I'll vote for him'."

Earlier in the day, he said that nominations should be based solely on performance.

"You have to give a good performance and I'm sure people have. I saw Idris Elba (in Beasts Of No Nation). Did he not get a nomination? I thought he was wonderful."
Steven Moffat is quitting as executive producer of Doctor Who and will be replaced by Broadchurch creator Chris Chibnall

Steven Moffat has quit his role as lead writer and executive producer of Doctor Who, the BBC has said.

He will be replaced by Broadchurch creator Chris Chibnall.

A Doctor Who Christmas special will air later this year, while series 10, Moffat's last, is scheduled to be broadcast in 2017, with a new companion on board to replace Jenna Coleman.

Chibnall will begin his tenure as executive producer of Doctor Who in 2018.

Moffat said: "Feels odd to be talking about leaving when I'm just starting work on the scripts for season 10, but the fact is my timey-wimey is running out."

He added: "While Chris is doing his last run of Broadchurch, I'll be finishing up on the best job in the universe and keeping the Tardis warm for him.

"It took a lot of gin and tonic to talk him into this, but I am beyond delighted that one of the true stars of British television drama will be taking the Time Lord even further into the future."

Moffat joked: "At the start of season 11, Chris Chibnall will become the new showrunner of Doctor Who. And I will be thrown in a skip."

Chibnal said: "Doctor Who is the ultimate BBC programme: bold, unique, vastly entertaining, and adored all around the world.

"So it's a privilege and a joy to be the next curator of this funny, scary and emotional family drama.

"I've loved Doctor Who since I was four years old, and I'm relishing the thought of working with the exceptional team at BBC Wales to create new characters, creatures and worlds for the Doctor to explore."

The Broadchurch boss also paid tribute to Moffat.

"Steven's achieved the impossible by continually expanding Doctor Who's creative ambition, while growing its global popularity," he said.

"He's been a dazzling and daring showrunner, and hearing his plans and stories for 2017, it's clear he'll be going out with a bang. Just to make my life difficult."

Controller of BBC One Charlotte Moore said: "I want to thank Steven Moffat for everything he has given Doctor Who. I've loved working with him, he is an absolute genius and has brought fans all over the world such joy.

"I will be very sad to see him leave the show, but I can't wait to see what he will deliver in his last ever series next year with a brand new companion.

"I would also like to take this opportunity to welcome Chris Chibnall, a wonderfully talented writer who I know will bring something very special to the hit series."

Moffat took over Doctor Who in 2010 and during his tenure, the show has grown into a global success.

He was responsible for introducing the 11th and 12th Doctors in Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi, in addition to casting Karen Gillan as companion Amy Pond and Coleman as Clara Oswald.

Moffat was also at the helm for the 50th Anniversary special in 2013 which saw fans around the globe celebrate the world's longest running sci-fi series with Doctors, Matt Smith, David Tennant and John Hurt fighting the Daleks in a feature length episode.
From left: John James Fisher, CLIC Sargent chair Peter Hollins, CLIC Sargent chief executive Kate Lee, and Danielle McGriskin cut the ribbon at the new Home From Home yesterday

A second special house where families of young people having cancer treatment can stay for a vital break has opened in Belfast.

CLIC Sargent yesterday opened the doors of Amy's House, which is within walking distance of Belfast City Hospital.

It will save the physical, emotional and financial cost of travel to and from hospital, and let families spend more time together.

The Home From Home opening capped a 3.7m fundraising campaign launched in 2012 with the aim of giving more support to children and young people with cancer.

The funding drive was boosted by the Belfast Telegraph, which helped raise 50,000 for the new accommodation.

Young people supported by the charity joined CLIC Sargent chief executive Kate Lee for the ribbon-cutting ceremony. They included Danielle McGriskin (19) from Lisburn, who was 14 when she was diagnosed with a brain tumour and hydrocephalus.

She was supported by a CLIC Sargent social worker and her family stayed in the charity's Bristol Home From Home, CLIC House, after travelling there for vital treatment. "The house was a godsend and meant the family could stay together," she said.

"I can't imagine how much worse my experience would have been without it. This new home is going to have a huge impact on patients and families in Northern Ireland. It is a fantastic place."

John James Fisher was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia in 2011 just before his GCSE exams. During his treatment his mother Brenda had a 65-mile round trip whenever she wanted to visit him or come home to look after her other three children.

He said: "It was really difficult. I felt very cut off from the family in that sense because the travelling didn't make things easy for my family and it was very tiring.

"You can see the difference a place like Amy's House will make. Parents and families will be able to spend more time with their children and it will really help with the costs as well as the stress."

Facilities include five large en suite bedrooms, a shared lounge and kitchen space, a quiet room, a young people's room, outdoor space and a roof terrace.

Paul's House, which provides accommodation for families of younger children being treated at the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children, was opened by the charity in February 2014.

Ms Lee said: "Every week two children and young people in Northern Ireland are diagnosed with cancer, meaning they will require treatment in specialist hospitals in Belfast.

"This can result in families having to travel huge distances, with an average journey of 95 miles, sometimes every day. Amy's House will provide vital respite and support for families of young people being treated in Belfast City Hospital.

"The Northern Ireland Home From Home Appeal has been a huge success and we are incredibly grateful for the support and donations provided by our dedicated fundraisers, donors and supporters.

"We would like to thank the Belfast Telegraph for their fantastic support, helping us ensure that our message was seen by so many members of the public in order to reach our target."

Cecilia Milburn, CLIC Sargent UK Home From Home manager, said: "This is the first CLIC Sargent Home From Home specifically for teenagers and young people. We are only a 'slipper walk' from Belfast City Hospital, and Amy's House will provide a warm, homely environment, helping families stay together as much as possible at this difficult time."

Ms Milburn added: "We have provided support for more than 100 families at Paul's House since it opened and look forward to doing the same here."

Amy's House is the 10th Home From Home opened by CLIC Sargent, which provides emotional, practical, financial and clinical support to help children and young people with cancer cope with the disease and get the most out of life.
About 75 million has been earmarked to improve the lives of children and young people in Northern Ireland as part of peace dividends from Europe.

The latest round of funding, which will run for the next seven years, also includes 13m to help victims and survivors deal with the legacy of the Troubles.

The vast majority of the money is from the European Union, with the UK and Irish exchequers making up just 15% of the 400m package, but it is potentially the last under the special Peace programme.

Officials have set targets of 40m of the total to be spent on eight new projects in interface areas to help bring divided communities together following the example set by the Foyle Peace Bridge in Derry and the Skainos Centre in east Belfast.

Finance Minister Mervyn Storey said: "The programmes will leave a lasting legacy with a strong focus on our young people."

It is also aiming to spend 26m in 350 schools to physically bring students together to learn aspects of the curriculum.

Elsewhere, 46m is being set aside for health and social care including helping 4,000 people with disabilities who are socially isolated, 35m for sustainable transport projects including border greenways and electric vehicles and 53m for research and innovation.

Seventeen local peace and reconciliation schemes overseen by councils are also being targeted with a 26m fund.

The money is coming from the EU's Peace IV and Interreg programmes and a key plank of the strategy is protecting young people through skills development for anyone up to aged 24.

It is hoped it can be used to support youths who fall out of education and training programmes and are at risk of anti-social behaviour or lives of crime and violence.

The entire grant package will be used to fund projects in Northern Ireland, the border region and parts of western Scotland.

The Republic's Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Brendan Howlin said the money will support of a range of exciting cross-border initiatives.

"I would like to pay tribute to the many individuals, groups and organisations who are responsible for making the programmes work on the ground. Without them we would not be celebrating the success of the programmes today," he said.

Gina McIntyre, chief executive of the Special EU Programmes Body which oversees the funding programmes, said: "A whole new generation of young people have grown up since the first Peace Programme was created. As such, Peace IV will have a strong youth focus with approximately 100 million euro worth of funding being allocated to children through shared education and youth development initiatives."

European Commission representative Desa Srsen, said: " The Commission is looking forward to seeing the first projects approved and contributing to improving the life of the citizens and businesses living and working in the border regions."
Staff at Dundee University and Central Lancashire University analysed more than 30,000 applications to 22 different medical schools

More than a quarter of students at medical schools in the UK come from the most-affluent parts of the country, with just over 3% of successful applications from the most-deprived areas, new research has found.

The study also found a higher rate of applications to study medicine from youngsters at independent schools as opposed to state schools.

Across the UK, just one in 20 applications (5.1%) came from the most deprived 10% of areas, compared to a fifth (21.9%) from the 10% most affluent communities.

While 26.1% of those who were granted a place came from these better-off areas, only one in 33 (3.1%) of successful applicants came from the poorest backgrounds.

Researchers found there is "no quick fix to widening participation, partly because gaining a place remains, rightly, largely determined by academic ability".

Staff at Dundee University and Central Lancashire University analysed more than 30,000 applications to 22 different medical schools across the UK covering the three-year period from 2009-10 to 2011-12.

England had the highest rate of successful applicants from deprived areas, with 3.5% of medical students from this group, and also the lowest proportion of students from the most affluent areas (22.9%)

Figures for Scotland showed one in 50 (1.9%) of medical students were from the most deprived 10% of communities with more than a third (35.5%) from the least deprived.

In Wales, 37.7% of successful applications came from the wealthiest areas - the highest proportion in the UK - with 2.6% from the poorest areas.

Northern Ireland had the lowest proportion from the most-deprived areas, with 1.2% of medical students from this background, while one in three (33.5%) were from the most affluent communities.

The research, which was led by the University of Dundee, looked at applicants' postcodes, the type of school they went to and their parents' occupations.

It discovered three times the expected number of applicants had been to an independent school while state schools produced about three-quarters of the applications that were expected.

The paper, published in the journal BMC Medical Education, stated: "Admission to medical school determines the composition of the medical profession in the future, and based on this analysis, medicine in the UK will remain dominated by those from more affluent backgrounds."

Professor Bruce Guthrie, of the University of Dundee Medical School, said: "Regardless of which measure you look at, those coming from less-affluent backgrounds are much less likely to apply to study medicine, and those that do apply are somewhat less likely to be offered a place at medical school.

"One of the major implications arising from our results is that they show that modifying selection processes is unlikely to have a major impact on widening participation because so few people from less-affluent backgrounds apply in the first place."
A disabled man left to die in a wheelie bin and a young father stabbed to death on his way home from a party are among hundreds of victims whose families are being forced to wait for justice because of striking lawyers.

At least 10 brutal murder cases have stalled because of the eight month dispute between the legal profession and the Justice Minister over pay.

Almost 600 criminal cases have been directly affected by the legal aid dispute.

Among the most disturbing criminal cases currently on hold is that of 40-year-old Owen Creaney, a "vulnerable" disabled man who was viciously beaten and dumped - still alive - into a wheelie bin in July 2014. Police believe he may have been in the bin at the back of a house in Craigavon for several days before he was found.

Others include that of 61-year-old grandmother Pauline Carmichael, whose body was discovered at Lough Shore Park in Antrim two days after she disappeared from her home and father-of-one Kyle Neil (23) who was stabbed multiple times after he left a party in Comber and his body dumped in the boot of a car.

The shocking samurai sword murders of UDA man Colin 'Bap' Lindsay (51) and his friend Stan Whiteman (51); the death of Edward Gibson (28) who was gunned down in an alley near Divis Tower, and the shooting of 31-year-old Christopher Mackin, who was shot in Belfast city centre four years ago, have also been put on hold after lawyers refused to represent the suspects.

DUP MLA Paul Givan, who led a Stormont inquiry into the justice system's treatment of victims and witnesses of crime, said it was "outrageous" that victims and their families were being caught up in the pay row.

"Justice delayed is justice denied," said Mr Givan.

"The inquiry we carried out included hearing from victims whose loved ones had been murdered.

"One of the biggest complaints was the delays with cases being dealt with."

He added: "Victims are being caught up in this ongoing industrial dispute between the legal profession and Justice Minister David Ford. It is imperative David Ford sorts this out.

"It is outrageous that families are having their day in court denied to them because of this dispute over pay. It is unacceptable."

Chairman of Stormont's justice committee Alastair Ross said he was "deeply disappointed" that the two disputing parties "have ceased talking to each other".

"I would continue to urge the Department of Justice and legal profession to recommence discussions and find a suitable resolution," the DUP MLA said.

"Legal aid is a vitally important component in a fair justice system, but current levels of spending are not sustainable in the longer term.

"That means there is an imperative on the legal community and the DoJ to work together to find ways of reducing the costs or look at innovative alternatives to current practice."

He added: "Ultimately we need a minister willing to reform the system. The current impasse will simply result in further delays for victims of crime who are seeking justice in the courts, those accused of a crime spending longer in remand, an ever greater backlog of cases and a double hit on the legal aid budget for next year when lawyers begin taking new cases again."

Barristers withdrew from cases in May last year in protest against reduced legal aid payments. The Bar Council said that the cuts meant barristers would not get any money for parts of their work.

Judicial review proceedings were launched by the Bar Council and the Law Society and a legal challenge was heard in September last year.

A High Court judge found that the new rules for legal aid fees do not provide fair pay to defence solicitors in some criminal cases.

However, legal representatives launched an appeal after the High Court refused to quash the rules for legal aid fees.

The outcome of the appeal is expected to be heard next week.

Murder cases still waiting to go to court

Grandmother Pauline Carmichael (61) went missing from her Antrim flat on the evening of February 23, 2015. Her body was discovered by police two days later at Antrim's Lough Shore Park. Alan Norman Foster (37), from Hillside in Antrim, has been charged with her murder.

Edward Gibson (28) was shot in his stomach and thigh in an alley near Divis Tower on October 24, 2014. He died in hospital. Malachy Goodman (57), of Rockmore Road, Belfast, has been charged with his murder.

Colin 'Bap' Lindsay (51), a well-known member of the UDA, and his friend Stan Whiteman (51) were killed in a horrific samurai sword attack at a house in Belfast in July 2015. Albert Armstrong, of Mahee Close, Belfast, has been charged with their murders.

Eamonn Ferguson (35) was found dead in a flat at Ardoyne Place in north Belfast in March 2014. 26-year-old Louis Maguire and 31-year-old Christopher Power have been charged with his murder.

Father-of-one Kyle Neil (23) was stabbed multiple times after he left a party in Comber in April 2015. Wesley Harry Vance from Church Gate Studios in Comber has been charged with murder.

Christopher Mackin (31) was shot up to seven times at College Square North in the centre of Belfast in March 2012. Three members of the same family, including husband and wife Charles and Julie-Ann Valliday, are accused of his murder.

40-year-old Owen Creaney, who was disabled, was viciously beaten and then dumped into a wheelie bin in July 2014. Shauneen Boyle and Stephen Hughes are charged with murder.
A woman in her 20s was fighting for her life in hospital last night after being hit by two cars in an accident.

Three ambulances attended the scene at around 8pm and the critically injured victim, believed to be a pedestrian, was taken to Belfast for emergency treatment.

The accident happened on a main road bordering the Murlough Bay nature reserve, near Dundrum, Co Down and involved a grey BMW X5.

A Northern Ireland Ambulance Service spokesman said: "We were called at 7.57pm to reports that a female pedestrian had been knocked down.

"We sent two crews who were on the scene within minutes.

"The woman was taken to the Royal Victoria Hospital with serious injuries."

A spokeswoman for the Belfast Health Trust said that the injured woman remained in a critical condition in the Royal Victoria Hospital.

The Newcastle Road in Dundrum remained closed last night as police launched an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.

The PSNI advised motorists to avoid the area while the probe was ongoing.

Local reports suggested the woman suffered head and chest injuries after being hit by more than one vehicle.

Local councillor Garth Craig said the news was very depressing, coming as it did in the wake of two young Markethill men dying on Northern Ireland's roads on the same day, and a young child being killed in an accident in Newtownards on Wednesday.

Inspector Stephen Humphries said: We are investigating the circumstances surrounding the collision and would like to hear from anyone who was in the area at the time and witnessed this incident. We can be contacted on 101, quoting ref: 977 210116.
Margaret Henderson, who has been charged with the murder of Eddie Girvan. Pic Pacemaker

Margaret Henderson, who has been charged with the murder of Eddie Girvan. Pic Pacemaker

Margaret Henderson-McCarroll, who has been charged with the murder of Eddie Girvan.

Margaret Henderson, who has been charged with the murder of Eddie Girvan. Pic Pacemaker

A woman was remanded in custody today charged with the murder of Greenisland pensioner Eddie Girvan, who was discovered bound and stabbed.

Mr Girvan was found dead at his home on Station Road, Co Antrim on Monday.

The 67-year-old father of two's hands had been tied behind his back, and he had a stab wound to his chest.

Margaret Henderson, 29, appeared at Belfast Magistrates' Court today charged with his murder.

The accused, with an address at a homeless hostel on Verner Street in the city, spoke only to confirm she understood the allegation against her, replying: "Aye."

No further details of the alleged killing were disclosed during the hearing.

As Henderson's family sat in the public gallery to offer support, a detective inspector said he could connect her to the charge.

Defence barrister Mark Farrell did not seek bail or question the officer.

However, he described his client as an extremely vulnerable and fragile woman.

Mr Farrell said she should be assessed and treated by medical professionals as soon as possible.

Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Eddie Girvan PSNI and forensic officers return to the scene of Eddie Girvans murder at his home in Greenisland yesterday Forensic officers at 162 Station Road where retired plumber Eddie Girvan, 67 was found murdered Eddie Girvan / Facebook

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District Judge Fiona Bagnall remanded Henderson in custody to appear again by video-link in four weeks time.

Two men, aged 23 and 24, who were also arrested in connection with the murder have been released unconditionally.

Mr Givan's Hyundai Sonata was seen leaving the area on Monday.

It then travelled down the motorway before being involved in a minor collision in Belfast city centre, according to police.

The car was later recovered in the Garner Street area.
A woman accused of human trafficking has been remanded in custody

A woman accused of human trafficking has been remanded in custody.

Ancuta Schwarz (30), whose address was given as Karowan, Strasa, Berlin, appeared before a judge at Belfast Magistrates Court yesterday.

She is charged with a number of offences including human trafficking for sexual exploitation and aiding and abetting the control of prostitution. The offences are alleged to have occurred between 2011 and 2013.

Schwarz was detained under a European Arrest Warrant and was extradited from Sweden following a three-year investigation by police.

Defence barrister Michael Boyd said: "We do feel that there may be an element of double jeopardy. This lady has served nearly three years in Sweden."

Requesting a four-week adjournment, the lawyer said "close comparison" of the facts of cases in Northern Ireland and Sweden would have to be made.

Mr Boyd added: "There is no application for bail at this stage. There is no address available in this jurisdiction."

A PSNI detective constable told the court that a male co-accused was expected to be extradited from Sweden next week.

The officer, who cannot be named for security reasons, said: "There is a second defendant in this case. It is a joint case."

Schwarz, who was dressed in a knee-length grey coat with leopard print collar and shoulders, sat impassively in the dock flanked by male and female prison guards for the duration of the brief hearing.

She occasionally ruffled her hands through her long dark, hair which had been pulled back into a loose ponytail, and glanced around the courtroom.

Granting a four-week adjournment in the case district judge Greg McCourt told Schwarz: "You are remanded into custody until February 18."
The scene on Scarbo Road where Joshua Kelly lost his life due to a road traffic accident.

The scene on Scarbo Road where Joshua Kelly lost his life due to a road traffic accident.

The scene on Scarbo Road where Joshua Kelly lost his life due to a road traffic accident.

The scene on Scarbo Road where Joshua Kelly lost his life due to a road traffic accident.

The scene on Scarbo Road where Joshua Kelly lost his life due to a road traffic accident.

The scene on Scarbo Road where Joshua Kelly lost his life due to a road traffic accident.

Tributes to the tragic schoolboy after he was killed in a car accident on Wednesday

A grieving mother has paid a heartbreaking tribute to her six-year-old boy who died after being hit by a car close to their home.

Joshua Kelly, a pupil at St Finian's primary school in Newtownards, was just metres from his family home on the Scrabo Road when the incident happened on Wednesday afternoon around 3pm.

Yesterday his mother Clare Kelly posted a picture on Facebook of herself and Joshua. Just one day after the tragedy she said: "Yesterday my beautiful boy grew his wings. And I thank God for the 6 brilliant years I had him. RIP my wee bird."

It's believed Ms Kelly also has a daughter of around four years old and has returned home to be with her family in Portaferry.

Outside their home, flowers with messages of support were laid at either side of the scene of the accident. Friends continued to arrive yesterday afternoon with flowers while police spoke to residents.

Next-door neighbours Coral Forsythe and Patsy Major, who are friendly with the family, had been at home when the tragedy unfolded.

"I was actually standing out the front," said Coral. "I heard the bang but I didn't actually see what happened. It was just a thud and the screaming. Then I saw him lying on the ground, I ran over to the child. I didn't see who it was at the time. We tried to resuscitate him and phoned an ambulance."

Patsy added: "It all happened very quickly, what brought my attention to it was the mummy screaming, screaming at the top of her voice. It was all over then in a split second and the ambulance was there in no time."

Both women passed on their condolences to the family.

Coral added that she has two young children of a similar age to the Kelly family who would often play together.

"It's a big shock to everyone," she added. "I can't even imagine what she's going through at the minute, it will be very hard for her to come to terms with."

Joshua's principal at St Finian's described him as a "beautiful, kind little boy" whose "smile could light up any room".

Barry Coulter added that he was a "much-loved pupil" who would be "sadly missed by the whole school community".

"Our thoughts and prayers are with Joshua's entire family circle and the St Finian's school community sends them our sincerest sympathy and support," he said.

Parish priest Fr Martin O'Hagan also paid his respects to the young boy.

He told the Belfast Telegraph: "He was a bright, spirited son and grandson and pupil of St Finian's.

"It would be our wish to express our deep, deep sympathy to Joshua's family at this very difficult time and that we are there to support them in any way we can.

"It is absolutely heartbreaking so we have to look out for all those who are caught up in the tragic event, family and wider community, and the classmates we have to keep a little eye on them and in the years to come. It's a very tough time."

The Scrabo Residents' Association have campaigned for years for improved road safety in the area. Even this week before the accident they posted concerns online about busy traffic on the Scrabo Road which passes the Model Primary School.

In a statement yesterday, they said: "The members of Scrabo Residents' Association would like to offer their condolences to the family of the young child who sadly died after a tragic accident. We are all parents and grandparents and can imagine the pain that the parents must be feeling at this time."

They continued: "We are concerned about the roundabout and traffic lights on Circular Road, with delivery vans, lorries and the high volume of traffic, and (the) parking issue at the front of the school."

The group said they would continue to lobby local representatives on the matter but also understood that "feelings will be running high after this sad and tragic incident".

SDLP councillor for the area, Joe Boyle, said he agreed that traffic moved too quickly in the residential area.

"It's a terribly sad occasion, a six-year-old child," he said.

"I know the area well. I drove past it half-an-hour after the event coming home."

He said the Scrabo Road had become a busy route for traffic heading out of Newtownards past the Model Primary School to get to the main A20 road.

"If people are saying that it is quite dangerous, certainly they would have my support," he said. "I understand exactly what they mean.

"I'm only aware of one fatality but one is too many. That may be something that Transport NI may have to look at."
Forensic officers at the scene in Station Road where Eddie Girvan was found murdered

A homeless woman charged with murdering a pensioner found tied up and stabbed in his home is a "vulnerable lady", a court was told.

Margaret Henderson, 29, with an address at the Ormeau Centre hostel on Verner Street, Belfast, was charged with murdering Eddie Girvan, 67, on January 18.

Retired plumber Mr Girvan was discovered by chance on Monday night when two police officers making routine enquiries called at his house in Greenisland, Co Antrim.

Ms Henderson was arrested in Belfast shortly after the discovery.

Appearing before Belfast Magistrates Court, she was asked if she understood the charge against her.

She replied: "Aye".

A detective inspector said he believed he could connect Ms Henderson to the killing.

Mark Farrell, barrister for the accused, said he had concerns about her as she was a "vulnerable lady and fragile" and "susceptible to others".

Ms Henderson has "complex medical needs" and required professional medical treatment while in custody, he told the judge.

There was no application for bail.

Ms Henderson appeared in court, dressed in a white top, during the brief hearing.

A small number of people in the public gallery who called out in support of her were ordered to be silent.

The accused was remanded in custody until a further hearing in four weeks time.

Mr Girvan, a separated father of two who lived at his semi-detached home on Station Road, was an antiques enthusiast.

One of the victim's two cars - a silver Hyundai Sonata - was removed and later recovered by police around 10 miles away on Verner Street in Belfast city centre.

Police said the vehicle was seen leaving Greenisland just before 7.30am on Monday being "driven dangerously".

It is understood to have later been involved in a minor crash in Belfast city centre.
Prominent flag protester Jamie Bryson has sensationally called for the end to all flag protests.

Loyalist blogger Jamie Bryson essentially became the spokesman for the flag protests when the council voted for the removal of the Union Flag from Belfast City Hall in 2012.

He said he regrets comments he made at City Hall stating that he would remain there until the Union Flag went back up.

It comes just days after hardline Unionist and former DUP councillor Ruth Patterson called for loyalists to rethink their plans for protesting on St Patrick's day.

Speaking on BBC Talkback Jamie Bryson made a U-turn and called for those still protesting to change their tactics.

He said: "I'm trying to give leadership by being honest and brave enough to say in public we need to change our tactics and think of a different way forward.

"I'm putting my hands up and saying I made a naive political statement and put myself in a cul-de-sac and that was a mistake.

"I'm being honest with the people.

"It would be easy to say keep protesting, but the longer you keep protesting and as the numbers dwindle you lose leverage because people start ignoring you and demonising you and we've seen that with the flag protests.

"The tactic is not working anymore and we need to make a change. I still absolutely support people's right to protest if they want to, but what I'm saying is I'm giving my analysis of the situation and if people choose to ignore that, that is up to them.

"I'm attempting to use whatever influence I have to articulate a vision to move things forward and if people choose to accept that that's all well and good.

"But if people don't agree with what I'm saying, well put somebody forward and articulate the vision as to what's going to be changed with continuing to protest."

Bryson said he regretted his "naive" statement made at City Hall where he said he would remain there until the flag went back up.

"I stood at City Hall and it was a naive political move by me I can't remember the exact terminology, but I said if there were one of us still standing I'd still be standing until the flag went back up."

"I look back and that was a foolish statement to make. I know that and I accept that was a mistake."

He also branded the Unionist leaflet campaign supported by the DUP/UUP as "winding people up".

"One of the issues with the flag protest was that it was spontaneous, it was a mixed bag of people

"They were spontaenous. That's not to say the DUP and UUP putting out 40,000 leaflets to wind people up didn't play a part in that.

"Obviously the DUP had an electoral interest to win the seat back from Alliance party. They targeted east Belfast because they wanted to win the seat back. They didn't really care about the Union flag, they cared about was wining back political power in east belfast."

He added that he is not "backing down" but that tactics need to change.

He said: "Once you've had your voices heard, once you've got almost international coverage to the issue, there has to be a strategy on how we move this to the next level.

"I'm very proud of my involvement in the flag protest but I've been able to effect more change this way.

"It's not backing down. There can still be a campaign to get the flag up but if you don't change your tactics you will always be doing the same thing."
Drugs squad officers have warned unsuspecting landlords about cannabis dealers setting up grow houses after the latest raid in a housing estate.

Plants worth an estimated 115,000 were taken from the house in the Deramore Heights area of Magherafelt on Thursday afternoon after tip-offs from locals.

Police said the home was a fire risk after electricity supplies were tampered with and it was full of fans and heaters and water supplies to cultivate the drugs.

Detective Inspector Trevor Stevenson said: " You have a great potential for destruction of property, serious injury, even death."

The raid was carried out by officers from the PSNI's Reactive and Organised Crime Branch and they praised the support from the local community which led to the factory being discovered and dismantled.

No arrests have been made. Detailed forensic analysis of the home and investigations are continuing.

Following the successful raid the PSNI warned landlords that drugs gangs can set up a can nabis factories in rooms, sheds and even the back of trailers or use an entire house for a farm.

The police also raised concerns about public safety and the risk of death with amateurish, crude and dangerous techniques used to source large amounts of electricity for hydroponics systems.

They asked people to be on the lookout for tell-tale signs of a grow house including blacked out w indows with possible condensation, p ungent or unusual smells from premises and u nusual activity.
Police and the family of a missing 30-year-old man are growing concerned for his welfare.

Matthew Wade was last seen at around 3pm on Wednesday January 20 in the Glenkeen Drive area of Greenisland.

Matthew is described as being approximately 5ft 11inches tall, slim build, pale complexion with rosy cheeks, short brown hair and blue eyes.

Sergeant Alan Lowry would ask Matthew or anyone who knows of his whereabouts to contact Police on the non-emergency number 101.
The judge made a series of findings of fact after analysing evidence at a family court hearing in Coventry

A lawyer for the family of a couple gunned down by loyalists in mid-Ulster has claimed a public inquiry may be necessary to investigate alleged state collusion.

Charlie and Tess Fox were shot dead at their home in Moy, Co Tyrone, in September 1992.

Members of their family believe soldiers and armed police were near the family home in the period before the murders.

A family solicitor said they were convinced state collusion was involved. Peter Corrigan said: "It is not a fanciful belief, it is based on circumstances and evidence and Historical Enquiry Team reports."

A senior judge reviewing all legacy inquests has repeatedly said it is up to the Government to fund investigations into cases which cannot be dealt with by the inquest system.

During a review of the Fox killings in Belfast, Mr Corrigan said the coroner's court must look into the wider circumstances and linked cases, connected by the terrorist organisation and people involved and the area where the killings happened.

"This inquest has the capacity to do it by widening the scope in relation to the inquests and widening the scope in relation to the personnel and ballistics."

He said the case was linked to the murder of Co Tyrone pensioner Roseann Mallon, as the same murder weapon was used.

Lord Justice Weir is reviewing all legacy inquests to determine when they can be held or if the coroner's system is not capable of dealing with some of them.

Mr Corrigan added: "If the court does determine that an inquest is not appropriate, we would seek a declaration that the Mid-Ulster murders can only be dealt with by a public inquiry."

Because there were criminal proceedings after the murders, no inquest was held.

Lord Justice Weir said if the case became one for a public inquiry it could be held at some distant point in the future, if at all.

It also emerged that the Lord Chief Justice is to meet with all victims' families next month as part of his review of legacy inquests. Sir Declan Morgan, who has previously met those bereaved by controversial killings, will seek their views on how matters can be dealt with quickly.

Lord Justice Weir said: "Quite a lot of people feel that such a long period of time has elapsed without a decisive outcome ... that they would like the matter to be brought to conclusion in their lifetimes."

The Lord Chief Justice took over responsibility for the coroner's service late last year.

Lord Justice Weir is assessing whether hearings will be held within the next two years or later, if ever.
Forensics examine the scene in west Belfast where a teenager was shot (photo Kevin Scott/Press Eye)

Forensics examine the scene in west Belfast where a teenager was shot (photo Kevin Scott/Press Eye)

The 17-year-old was shot in both legs at a flat in west Belfast

The punishment style shooting was carried out around 7pm on Friday.

A PSNI spokesman said they received a report that a 17-year-old male had been shot in both legs in the Ardmonagh Parade area of west Belfast.

He has been taken to hospital. His injuries are not believed to be life threatening.

The street remains cordoned off this evening.

Detective Inspector Pete Mullan has appealed for information about this attack.

"I would appeal to anyone with any information about this shooting to contact detectives at Musgrave Police Station on the non emergency number 101," he said.

"Or if someone would prefer to provide information without giving their details, they can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers and speak to them anonymously on 0800 555 111."

Sinn Fein MLA Pat Sheehan has condemned the shooting.

"This shooting of a 17 year-old man in the Ballymurphy area of west Belfast was wrong and I utterly condemn it," he said

Expand Close Police officers at the scene of a shooting incident in the Ardmonagh Parade area of west Belfast. (photo Kevin Scott/Press Eye) Kevin Scott / Presseye / Facebook

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"The people who carried out this shooting have nothing to offer this community other than hurt and intimidation.

"There can be no place for guns in our society.

"Those responsible need to end these futile and reckless actions immediately."

Expand Close Police officers at the scene of a shooting incident in the Ardmonagh Parade area of west Belfast (photo Kevin Scott/Press Eye) Kevin Scott / Presseye / Facebook

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SDLP West Belfast MLA Alex Attwood urged anyone with information about the attack to speak to police.

"Those responsible for this attack do not represent and are opposed by the vast majority of people," he said. West Belfast had decades of people being brutalised.

"People will resist any return to that terrible past.

"Someone will have information about this attack and those involved in other attacks. I appeal to those with knowledge to give that information to the police."
PSNI officers and forensic officers investigate. Police have said that the roads will remain closed for the next few hours. Photo: Kirth Ferris/Pacemaker Press

PSNI officers and forensic officers investigate. Police have said that the roads will remain closed for the next few hours. Photo: Kirth Ferris/Pacemaker Press

PSNI officers and forensic officers investigate. Police have said that the roads will remain closed for the next few hours. Photo: Kirth Ferris/Pacemaker Press

PSNI officers and forensic officers investigate. Police have said that the roads will remain closed for the next few hours. Photo: Kirth Ferris/Pacemaker Press

Collect picture of Eddie Girvan, the 70-year-old man found dead in his Station Road home in Greenisland last night. Pacemaker Belfast 19/01/2016

PSNI officers and forensic officers investigate. Police have said that the roads will remain closed for the next few hours. Photo: Kirth Ferris/Pacemaker Press

Collect picture of Eddie Girvan, the 70-year-old man found dead in his Station Road home in Greenisland last night. Pacemaker Belfast 19/01/2016

Pictured is police officers and forensics at the scene of an incident on Station Road in Greenisland on January 19, 2016 ( Photo by Kevin Scott )

Collect picture of Eddie Girvan, the 70-year-old man found dead in his Station Road home in Greenisland last night. Pacemaker Belfast 19/01/2016

Pictured is police officers and forensics at the scene of an incident on Station Road in Greenisland on January 19, 2016 ( Photo by Kevin Scott)

Police officers and forensics at the scene of an incident on Station Road in Greenisland on January 19, 2016 (Photo by Kevin Scott)

Victim: Eddie Girvan was tied up on chair and stabbed in chest

A 29-year-old woman has been charged with the murder of Eddie Girvan in Greenisland. She is due in court in Belfast on Friday.

The retired plumber, who was found murdered in his own home, was tied up on a chair and stabbed in the chest.

The body of Mr Girvan who was aged in his 70s, was discovered in his Station Road home shortly before 9.30pm on Monday. He was found with his hands bound and had suffered a stab wound to the chest.

Police spent most of the day at the scene and on Tuesday afternoon declared his death as murder.

The 29-year-old woman, who was arrested in Belfast shortly after the body was found, was charged with his murder on Thursday evening.

Mr Girvan, a separated father of two, was an antiques enthusiast and had many valuable items in his semi-detached home on Station Road.

However police have said nothing of note was stolen from the property.

One of the victim's two cars - a silver Hyundai Sonata - was removed and was later recovered by police around 10 miles away on Verner Street in Belfast city centre.

Police said the vehicle was seen leaving Greenisland just before 7.30am on Monday being "driven dangerously". It is understood to have later been involved in a minor crash in Belfast city centre.

Mr Girvan had two daughters. Neighbours have described him as a quiet man and said he was known as a bit of a character, but someone who kept himself to himself.

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Alliance MLA Stewart Dickson, who knew Mr Girvan well, said the local community was in shock following the death.

He said: This stretch of road is a quiet residential area and this death will stun people there. I am very shocked and saddened by this incident, particularly as I knew the deceased well, as did many people in the area.

This death will be hard to fathom for the whole community. My deepest condolences are with this poor mans family and friends at this most traumatic of times.

I would appeal to anyone with information on this sad incident to contact police immediately.

East Antrim DUP MLA Gordon Lyons said he was "shocked and saddened" to hear of the death.

He said: "My thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends at this difficult time.
A woman has been charged with murdering a pensioner who was tied up in his own home and stabbed in the chest.

Retired plumber Eddie Girvan, 67, was discovered by chance on Monday night when two police officers making routine enquiries called at his house in Greenisland, Co Antrim.

The 29-year-old woman, who was arrested in Belfast shortly after the body was found, was charged with his murder on Thursday evening.

She is due to appear in court in Belfast on Friday.

Mr Girvan, a separated father of two, was an antiques enthusiast and had many valuable items in his semi-detached home on Station Road.

However police have said nothing of note was stolen from the property.

One of the victim's two cars - a silver Hyundai Sonata - was removed and was later recovered by police around 10 miles away on Verner Street in Belfast city centre.

Police said the vehicle was seen leaving Greenisland just before 7.30am on Monday being "driven dangerously". It is understood to have later been involved in a minor crash in Belfast city centre.
Billionaire Trump is making the 'fundamental mistake' of trying to blame all Muslims for the ideology of a minority claims David Cameron

US presidential hopeful Donald Trump is making it more difficult to confront and defeat extremists, David Cameron has said.

The billionaire is making the "fundamental mistake" of trying to blame all Muslims for the ideology of a minority, the Prime Minister insisted.

Mr Trump, who is vying to win the Republican nomination, sparked widespread anger after he demanded a block on Muslims entering the US and claimed parts of London were "so radicalised" police were "afraid for their own lives".

MPs spent three hours debating whether the tycoon should be allowed into the country after more than 570,000 people signed a petition asking the Government to bar him.

Mr Cameron's warning comes after he last year branded Mr Trump's remarks as "divisive, stupid and wrong".

The interventions are likely to put diplomatic relations between Britain and the US under significant strain if the businessman is elected in the November poll.

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Mr Cameron told US website Mic.Com: "I think the problem with what Donald Trump has said, and what some others say too, is they are making a fundamental mistake of trying to blame all of Islam and all Muslims for what is the ideology and the actions of a minority, and I think that's wrong.

"In many ways, it actually helps the extremists, because they want to create a clash of civilisations between Islam and Christianity, or Islam and the West.

"Actually, what's happening is not a clash of civilisations. It is a fight within Islam, where the overwhelming majority rightly see Islam as a religion of peace, and want to live in successful multi-racial, multi-ethnic, multi-faith democracies like ours, and make an incredible contribution to our country, as opposed to a small minority that believe this rhetoric of poisonous extremism, and many of this tiny minority then believing in violence.

"So, what Donald Trump says is, in my view, not only wrong, but actually it makes the work we need to do to confront and defeat the extremists more difficult."
The island of Ireland may be seen as a "safe haven" destination for overseas visitors this year due to security concerns about other parts of Europe, a tourism chief has predicted.

Tourism Ireland's chief executive Niall Gibbons said volatility elsewhere in the world is not a basis upon which to market the Irish brand, but he said it is nevertheless a factor that has to be considered.

Mr Gibbons was giving evidence to Westminster MPs in Belfast.

Members of the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee were at Stormont as part of their inquiry into the tourism industry north of the border.

Tourism Ireland markets both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland to the international tourism market.

In a committee discussion about issues that influence visitor numbers coming to the island, Mr Gibbons outlined the significance of geo-politics

"I think the geo-political situation is far more volatile than it was this time six months ago," he said.

"We have seen the attacks in Paris and difficult situations in Brussels and North Africa.

"In a strange way what that has done in terms of international tourism trends - since the Arab Spring (2011) started we have seen tourism traffic pushed from North Africa and southern Europe up towards northern European countries. Actually northern European countries have actually made gain shares.

"And what we are possibly likely to see this year is Ireland being seen as a more safe haven type destination.

"Not the basis upon which you want to build your brand, but it is something we do take very seriously so to speak, particularly in markets like North America... We now see 10% of all North Americans travelling to mainland Europe now coming to the island of Ireland, which is a very, very big market share - it's our biggest ever.

"So that geo-political one is one we have to be very conscious of."

M Ps heard from a number of other witnesses on the tourism sector in Northern Ireland.

One of the key issues was the campaign for the 20% VAT rate paid by tourism providers north of the border to be reduced to the 9% in operation in the Republic of Ireland.

The UK Government has proved resistant to the call, insisting the potential benefits would not sufficiently off-set the reduction in revenue take.

Stormont Finance Minister Mervyn Storey told the committee a VAT cut made sense not only in Northern Ireland, but across the UK.

"If we do this on a national basis we believe this would be of a huge benefit to the tourism product right across the nation," he said.
The drugs and other similar synthetic substances come in tablet, powder and liquid form

Health authorities in the Republic of Ireland have issued a new warning over the drug 25I-NBOMe, which they have warned is extremely potent and easy to overdose on.

25I-NBOMe, with a street name of N-bomb, was behind the hospitalisation of six people in Cork earlier this week.

It is also believed to have resulted in the hospitalisation of six students from a Dublin college in 2014.

An 18-year-old man remains in hospital fighting for life after consuming the drug.

The HSE has warned members of the public that the N-bomb drug can have very serious side effects  especially when snorted as it becomes extremely potent.

Experts have warned that just one line of the drug snorted could prove lethal.

It has been linked to several deaths internationally. The EU issued a warning on the increasing use of the drug in 2014.

Side effects of the consumption of the drug routinely include paranoia, hallucinations, stomach problems and kidney problems.

The HSE warned that there is no quality control on drugs and that they are frequently contaminated with impurities.

Young people are advised that there is no quality control on these drugs. There are problems with purity and contaminants, and there is no way of checking that what is purchased or consumed is the intended substance.

Given the serious side-effects experienced by the young people in Cork, the HSE Addiction services are issuing a warning about possible contaminated party pills and advise people not to consume any unknown substances that they are offered at this time, it said.
Brendan Ogle of Right2Water said the largest demo will be in Dublin where about 20,000 people are expected

Anti-water charge campaigners are banking on 100,000 people taking to nationwide protests on Saturday.

At least 30 demonstrations have been organised in towns and cities up and down the country as part of the sixth day of action by the Right2Water movement.

Spokesman Brendan Ogle said big protests are expected in Cork and Letterkenny and the largest will be in Dublin where about 20,000 people are predicted to take to the streets and rally at the GPO.

"We'd be very happy with that. We are looking at 100,000 around the country," he said.

"If we get into six figures it'd be amazing."

Among the protests, campaigners will picket the Fine Gael ard fheis in Citywest at noon.

Right2Water, backed by trade unions including Mandate, Unite, the Communication Workers' Union, power union the TEEU, and the Civil and Public Services Union, plans to follow the latest rallies with another major demonstration on the Saturday before the election day.

It also plans a high profile conference with a panel of international speakers at the height of the election campaign.

Mr Ogle added: "The one before the election would be the biggest there's ever been.

"If politicians are saying they are not hearing this issue on the doorsteps then I don't know what doorsteps they are on."

Right2Water's latest campaign centres on claims that households use 10% of water produced in the country compared with big business and agriculture but they pay nearly 80% of costs.

It also attacked Irish Water figures which found 61% of customers have paid a bill.

Right2Water claimed Irish Water should have taken in 225 million euro in charges to date but has only collected 110 million euro and it has spent 80 million euro on conservation grants.

Paul Murphy, Anti Austerity Alliance TD, said: "People should turn out in large numbers for the national day of protest tomorrow to send a message to the Government parties that their latest concessions won't work, that this will be a major election issue and we want water charges scrapped."

At the last major rally last August, tens of thousands of people took to the streets of Dublin with organisers estimating 80,000 people marched and gardai putting the number significantly lower.
The marquee at a wedding celebration on the grounds of Larch Cottage in Ecclerigg, Windermere, which was the scene of the explosion

Two people died in a blaze at a wedding caused by an "unexplained" explosion, an inquest jury has concluded.

Andrew Coates, 41, and Polly Connor, 46, were killed as they prepared a late evening fireworks display at the luxury home of Mr Coates's business partner near the shore of Lake Windermere.

Sounds of "snapping and popping" were heard not long after John Simpson, 61, tied the knot with his bride, Nicole Rothwell, 44, in Ecclerigg, Cumbria, on August 30 2014.

Before about 75 guests were due to sit down for the afternoon reception meal, Mr Simpson described "all hell breaking loose" with two large explosions and fireworks shooting off in all directions from the area of an on-site outbuilding.

The display organiser, father-of-one Mr Coates, and his assistant, mother-of-three Mrs Connor, both from Kendal, were inside the wooden outbuilding containing a store for the fireworks when it erupted into flames. The second explosion blew off the roof.

Firefighters were called to Larch Cottage where they found the bodies of the two victims near to the outbuilding entrance.

Insurance boss Mr Simpson and Mr Coates held a licence to store fireworks there via their business hobby venture, Stardust Fireworks.

Mr Coates was responsible for the practical side of the business and had worked as a display manager for a pyrotechnics firm.

The jury sitting in Kendal returned conclusions of accidental deaths.

They ruled that the explosion rendered both victims unable to exit the store as fire consumed the outbuilding and resulted in a fatal level of carbon monoxide.

In his closing remarks at the inquest at Castle Green Hotel, HM Coroner for Cumbria, David Roberts, noted it was "questionable" whether what amounted to a wooden shed next to a compartment of a vehicular garage was a "suitable structure" for a fireworks store.

He said the evidence showed there were "large amounts" of other material in the store, some of which were combustible.

He said: "The construction and the non-firework content of the store at the very least exacerbated the ensuing fire."

Mr Roberts said the storage licence granted by Cumbria County Council in 2008 was "deficient" as it did not specify the type of fireworks or store to be used.

Records of inspections were "sketchy", he added.

The coroner said he would write to the council's trading standards department and its chief executive to "carefully review" its licensing of explosive sites in the county.

The week-long inquest heard evidence from various experts who all agreed there was no evidence to show what caused the fireworks to ignite - some of which were on racks near to the outbuilding.

Stewart Myatt, a fireworks expert from the Health and Safety Laboratory, said the "most likely sequence of events" was that a live firework shell penetrated the partitioned wooden wall of the store from outside and hit a metal cabinet before exploding.

He speculated that Mr Coates and Mrs Connor may have entered the store to either find shelter from the exploding fireworks outside or to grab firefighting equipment.

He said he thought the explosion would have rendered them unconscious immediately and prevented them escaping the ensuing blaze.

Post-mortem examinations revealed the cause of both deaths was from the effects of an explosion and fire.

Fire investigator Alan Sowerby told the jury he was unable to identify the source of the fire but said the most probable cause was a firework discharging externally.

Mr Coates's wife, Rebecca, 41, described her husband as "a perfectionist" who was "incredibly safety conscious to the point of obsessiveness".

The self-employed builder had worked alongside qualified plumber Mrs Connor in various trade jobs, including a number of firework displays.

Mrs Connor's husband, Damien, 47, told the jury he met his wife in Macau more than 20 years ago where they both worked as racehorse work riders.

Mr Connor said the family had planned to go camping on the weekend of the tragedy but his wife took the display job after they had just paid a deposit for a holiday in Spain.

He too said his wife was "very safety conscious" and would not take risks.

In a statement issued following the inquest, Mr Simpson said: "The day of this accident was meant to be a celebration of my marriage to my wife Nicole and instead turned out to be the worst day of both our lives.

"Andy Coates was a good friend of mine for more than 25 years. I had known him since he was 16 and I am still coming to terms with what happened that day and the fact he is no longer with us. I miss him greatly.

"Our loss, however, pales into insignificance compared to that which has been suffered by the families of both Andy and Polly to whom I would wish to extend all my sympathy.

"All my wife and I hope for is that the conclusion of this inquest now provides them with a degree of closure, however small that may be."

Mrs Coates said: "I would like to take this opportunity on behalf of Andy's parents, my son and I to publicly thank all our family and friends who have supported us. Your love, actions and prayers have kept us going.

"The event that occurred forever changed our lives and we are thankful for the memories we have but we strive to move forward in our lives.

"Our one reassurance is that we have peace in knowing that we will see Andy again as our faith gives us this assurance."

She also thanked her legal team and the coroner for "such a thorough inquest".

Mrs Connor's mother, Penelope Benson, said her daughter led a "a joyful but all too brief a life".

She said: "She was a responsible, caring woman who impressed everyone with her kindness and helpfulnesss, and inspired love in her many friends.

"She had some fine achievements in her life but her family was what she valued most.

"We thank the coroner and his officers for the thorough, professional and sensitive way in which the inquest has been conducted, and the jury for their time."
Britons will bask in unseasonably warm weather of 15C (59F) this weekend - while across the Atlantic 50 million Americans face a massive winter storm expected to dump up to 3ft (90cm) of snow across the east coast.

A state of emergency has been declared throughout a vast swathe of the eastern seaboard, with individual states in near-shutdown after thousands of flights were cancelled, schools and government offices closed and sports and entertainment events called off.

Warnings are in place from Arkansas in the south to New York in the far north east, and millions of people have been stocking up on food and emergency supplies.

But while Americans face the prospect of one of the worst winters in years, temperatures almost 10C above the average will leave people in the UK enjoying spring-like weather.

Thermometers are likely to peak at 15C (59F) on Sunday, a far cry from the usual 6.5C (43.7F) in January, as a dip in the Atlantic jet stream pushes warmer weather over the UK from the South West.

This comes days after temperatures of minus 12.4C (9.7F) were recorded in Kinbrace, Highlands, on January 19, the coldest day of the year so far, when it was also minus 8.4C (16.9F) in Upper Lambourn, Oxfordshire.

US o fficials are expecting blizzard conditions to combine with brutally high winds, inland flooding, white-out conditions and the possibility of thunder snow - when lightning strikes through snowstorms - paralysing the eastern third of the US and potentially causing up to a billion dollars (700 million) of damage.

Washington DC, which is further south than Madrid and Rome - where on Friday it was 11C (51.8F) and 13C (55.4F) respectively - is braced for more than 2ft (60cm) of snow and authorities are shutting the subway system until Sunday.

Forecasters believe it could threaten the previous snowfall record in the US capital of 28in (71cm) during a two-day period in January 1922.

U p to 18in (45cm) is also expected in Philadelphia, along with 1ft (30cm) in New York. But Boston, f urther north, which was hit badly by snowstorms last year, is unlikely to see major snow, with a peak of 4in (10cm) predicted.

The extreme weather is down to a collision of very warm and humid air flowing north from the Gulf of Mexico and meeting very cold air across the central northern states and south-eastern Canada, the Met Office said, but it will not affect the UK.

Here, rain on Friday will clear through the East in the afternoon, leaving a few showers in the North West overnight. Most parts will be dry on Saturday, with some rain in the South and West later.

Billy Payne, a forecaster with MeteoGroup, said: "Temperatures will be above average, with highs generally of 9C (48F) to 12C (53.6F), with most places falling in the range above the January average.

"Typically that is around 6.5C (43.7F) in London and most places 6C (42.8F) to 7C (44.6F) at this time of year, and around 8C (46.4F) in the South West.

"Sunday will be milder still, with extensive cloud and bits and pieces of light rain and drizzle, mostly in the North and West and over hills. It could be up to 15C (59F) in places, most likely in the South and West, reaching 11C (51.8F) to 14C (57.2F) locally."

The mild outlook will continue into next week, though heavy and prolonged rain is likely in the middle of the week, particularly in the North and West, with winds of up to 60mph. Temperatures will fall away again with some overnight frosts possible.

Mr Payne added: "In the next week or two flooding could become a concern again, especially for areas that have been previously affected this winter."
The Eagles may have sung about standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona in their hit 1972 rock song Take It Easy, but it was a corner in Flagstaff that initially inspired songwriter Jackson Browne to pen those lyrics.

According to one interview, Browne started writing Take It Easy in the back of a Dodge paneled van in 1971 after his car broke down in Flagstaff and some new friends offered him a ride back to Los Angeles.

He was in east Flagstaff when he saw a woman in a Toyota truck pulling out of what was then Der Wienerschnitzel at the corner of East Route 66 and North Switzer Canyon. The image stuck with him.

Browne had a hard time finishing the lyrics, so Glenn Frey of the Eagles convinced him to let them take over the tune. Frey added the line Its a girl, my Lord, in a flatbed Ford slowin down to take a look at me after Browne told him about the woman at the Flagstaff Wienerschnitzel.

The Wienerschnitzel that inspired Take It Easy is now the Route 66 Dog Haus. The folks at the Dog Haus, though, like the idea that Flagstaff and Winslow share the credit on the song, given both the inspirations and how much Winslow has become connected with the signature 70s tune.
Carers who look after a disabled adult at home could see their benefits capped further as a result of new policies, a charity has warned.

The current cap means full-time carers claiming Carer's Allowance who look after someone who is neither a partner nor a child under 18 can receive no more than 500 per week if they are in a couple or have young children. It is 350 if they are single and without young children.

The Welfare Reform and Work Bill, which will be discussed on Monday, proposes lowering the 500 cap to 442 in London and 385 in the rest of the country, and the 350 cap to 296 and 258 respectively, from April this year.

Only carers who are within the same "benefit household" - meaning the person they care for is their partner or child under 18 - are protected from the cap. This means that people who care full-time for disabled parents, adult children, siblings or friends are not protected.

However, in November a High Court judge ruled that the cap amounted to "discrimination" against the disabled person's human rights in a case where carers were forced to take on employment to make ends meet.

But Carers UK has said that the Government has failed to take the ruling into account and is calling for the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) to exempt all full-time carers from the cap, regardless of what relation they are to the person they care for.

Eddy Graham, head of advice and information at the charity, said: "At the moment the Government hasn't done anything in response to the ruling.

"What we are asking for in Parliament is broader than in the High Court case, but to do justice to the logic of the argument, we think it should apply to all full-time carers.

"Around one million carers in total are entitled to Carer's Allowance, but the number affected by these caps is in the low thousands, so we believe that it would be easier and more equitable for the exemption to apply to all these people.

"The current cap is unfair because, even when a disabled child turns 18, their needs are the same, and it can be even harder for their carers as they are no longer within the education system and they have to go through adult social services for further support."

The High Court case was brought against the Work and Pensions Secretary by two families who each had a full-time carer looking after a grandparent . Their lawyer said that the cap had a "devastating impact" on their daily lives and the judge eventually ruled that it amounted to "objectively unjustifiable indirect discrimination".

Mr Graham said: "So far, the response from the Government is as if the judgement had never been made. But it is law and we hope that the department will respect that."

Ahead of Monday's meeting, a DWP spokesman said: "This Government values the hugely important contribution carers make to society - and 98% of carers with benefit levels over the cap are already exempt.

"We are carefully considering the judgment and will respond in due course."
Centre-ground voters still hold the key to winning elections, former prime minister Tony Blair has said.

In comments which will be seen as a warning to Labour over its move to the left under Jeremy Corbyn, the party's former leader warned against populist policies which play to voters' anger.

And he admitted that he felt "a little bit of anxiety" over the upcoming presidential election in the USA, which has seen an upsurge in support for candidates from the right and left of the political spectrum, including Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders.

Asked whether he believed the kind of "centrist" politics he represented was now dead, Mr Blair told Fox Business: "N o, but I think if the centre is not muscular then the extremes gain.

"That's why centrist politics should not be a soggy compromise between left and right. It's got to have a series of tough policies that meet the concerns and anxieties of people but do so in a way that's sensible.

"A lot of the populism, left and right, is very good at playing to people's anger, but it doesn't actually provide answers. And in the end it's answers that create the right type of future for our countries. You see this in the US, you see it in the UK, you see it all over."

Mr Blair added: " The only thing I feel in the end is that, when you look at the election results, the broad public - who in the end decide the result in a democracy - I still think that they are located more in the centre than people realise."

The former PM said it would not be "sensible" for the UK to ban Mr Trump from visiting the country over his comments about Muslims, as a petition discussed this week in Parliament demanded.

"You can get petitions of half a million people on virtually anything nowadays," said Mr Blair. "However much I may disagree with what he says, I don't think that would be a sensible course of action to take.

"We're all watching your election in the US with a lot of interest and I'd say also a little bit of anxiety. It certainly makes for interesting viewing."
The code of conduct states MPs should not do anything which would cause significant damage to the reputation and integrity of the House of Commons

The code of conduct for MPs is being reviewed, with the possibility of a new test of whether a politician caught up in a sleaze scandal has damaged the reputation of the House of Commons.

A consultation on the changes launched by Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards Kathryn Hudson questions whether the "very high bar" was set at the right level.

The current code of conduct states that MPs should not do anything which would "cause significant damage to the reputation and integrity of the House of Commons as a whole, or of its members generally".

The consultation says the measure had been taken "to set a very high bar, which might be met only in extreme and extremely limited circumstances.

"It is clear that the rule is not intended to cover a member's private life. It is also clear that behaviour which may reflect badly on the particular member is not of itself sufficient to bring the House and all members generally into disrepute; the question is whether the very high bar which has been set is at the appropriate level."

The code is reviewed in every parliament, and it will be examined along with the guide to the rules.

Sir Kevin Barron, the chairman of the Committee on Standards welcomed the review and said: "T he Parliamentary Commissioner has today launched a thorough review of the code of conduct for members and of the guide to the rules.

"My committee very much welcomes the review and we hope that as many people as possible respond to the consultation.

"The review of the code is an event which happens once a parliament but this is the first time that the code and guide to the rules have been reviewed together.

"We are keen to learn what changes might be made to ensure that the code clearly reflects the standards that the public have the right to expect from their MPs."

The review process is likely to run throughout this year, in several stages, with a second consultation expected on detailed changes to the rules before the commissioner makes recommendations to MPs on the updated code and guide.
David Cameron has discussed the possibility of Britain getting an "emergency brake" on high EU migration levels with his Czech Republic counterpart.

Speaking at a joint press conference in Prague, Czech prime minister Bohuslav Sobotka again played down the prospects of the UK securing its proposal of a four-year ban on migrants getting in-work benefits - saying he would not accept "discriminatory" measures.

But he added: "We discussed possible alternatives forward on this issue. The UK has introduced their proposal... we discussed other possible alternatives to meet the same objective, ie make it possible for the UK government to respond to the mass influx of workers.

"This option involves giving a member state the possibility of an emergency brake if there is immense pressure on its welfare system."

He said: "It is very important for us that any solution that is adopted on a European level does not discriminate."

Mr Cameron made clear that the four-year proposal was still on the table, but he said he "welcomed" alternatives that would have a similar impact on migration.

He said he would not rush an agreement if it was not "available" in time for the Brussels summit on February 18.

But he indicated he still thought a deal was possible by then, pointing to the "goodwill" of other states.

"I firmly believe there is a pathway to an agreement. I am confident that with the help of European partners and with goodwill we will be able to get there and find mutually satisfactory conclusions," he said.

Mr Cameron's predecessor as Conservative leader delivered a gloomy assessment of the PM's chances of securing a good enough reform deal to justify keeping Britain in the European Union.

In comments which made clear he has not ruled out backing Brexit, Lord Howard told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I am waiting to see what the Prime Minister is coming up with.

"I have always wanted the United Kingdom to remain in a genuinely reformed European Union. It is not looking very likely I have to say that we are going to see a genuinely-reformed European Union.

"We will have to wait and see. I have great respect and admiration for the Prime Minister. He may surprise us; he has been rather good at surprising us in the past."

The peer said he had "a lot of sympathy" with the view expressed by actor Sir Michael Caine in an interview with the programme, in which he said Britain should leave the EU unless there were "extremely significant" reforms.

The veteran actor said the consequences of a so-called Brexit were "scary" but so were those of being "dictated to by thousands of faceless civil servants".

He concluded: "I sort of feel certain we should come out."

Lord Howard said: "I have a lot of sympathy with what he said but I am prepared to wait and see what the final deal looks like and then I'll decide."

Responding to the Tory peer's comments, Mr Cameron's official spokeswoman told a Westminster media briefing: "The Prime Minister has spoken before of the fact that there are many different views around on this debate.

"He is clear that the reforms we are seeking are substantial and significant and will really change our relationship and our membership of the EU."

Mr Cameron's proposal for a four-year ban on migrants claiming in-work benefits in the UK has become the main stumbling block, with the Government prepared to consider other options if they meet the aim of curbing the numbers coming from other member states.

The UK has been working to persuade members of the Visegrad Group - the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary - to support the plans.

In December the group issued a joint statement saying they would back measures aimed at strengthening competitiveness and increasing the role of national parliaments, but they "consider free movement one of the fundamental values of the European Union and will support no proposal that would be discriminatory or restrictive with regard to this freedom".

German finance minister Wolfgang Schauble said he expected a deal would be concluded "soon", and warned Brexit would leave the EU weaker.

Speaking to the BBC via a translator, he said: "I believe that we will be able to find a solution for this. I believe that this is going to happen soon. In February we are going to have meetings, consultations.

"I am very optimistic that Great Britain is going to remain an EU member state. If somebody outside Europe reads the newspapers or listens to the news and hears that Great Britain is no longer an EU member then I don't think that Europe will still be the same symbol of performance and strength."
David Cameron is concerned about the number of spurious legal claims being made against the armed forces

David Cameron's clampdown on "spurious" legal claims against veterans of the Iraq War has been welcomed by Falklands War hero Simon Weston.

The Prime Minister has asked the National Security Council to draw up a plan to "stamp out" what he described as an "industry" trying to profit from servicemen.

Proposals for action include measures to curb the use of "no win, no fee" arrangements and accelerate the introduction of a 12-month r esidence test for eligibility for legal aid.

Law firms which are found to have abused the system could also face tougher penalties under the measures being considered.

Mr Cameron said action would be taken against any legal firm found to have abused the system in the past to pursue "fabricated" claims.

"It is clear that there is now an industry trying to profit from spurious claims lodged against our brave servicemen and women who fought in Iraq," he said.

"This is unacceptable and no way to treat the people who risk their lives to keep our country safe - it has got to end."

The PM added: "Our armed forces are rightly held to the highest standards, but our troops must know that, when they get home from action overseas, this Government will protect them from being hounded by lawyers over claims that are totally without foundation."

Mr Weston, 54, who became nationally known for his recovery and charity work after being badly burned in the Falklands conflict, said he had "huge concern" over how many legal claims against servicemen could be legitimate.

He told the Press Association: "You have snipers being called into question who have judgment calls to make ... It is so wrong that other people back here in their little ivory white towers in their comfy, cosy armchairs by the fireside, once they have gone after the ambulance-chaser van, then decide to judge that person.

"Nobody ever should be above the law. But don't sit back here in your idle judgment just because it's a job for you."

Mr Weston added: "Unless you have got absolute cast iron evidence, don't put people through the traumas of having to go through a legal case which can never be proven, or in the end is proven wrong. A lot of these guys, they can't afford to defend themselves. Where are they supposed to get the money from? They are being made bankrupt by some of these cases."

He added: "It's a terrible thing to put men and women and their families, who have been through enough of armed conflict, it's a terrible thing to put them through again."

Mayor of London Boris Johnson also criticised lawyers who he said unfairly went after military personnel.

He told PA: "They have ambulance-chasing lawyers, who frankly don't make their lives any easier with some of the cases they try to bring, and make it very hard for them to do their jobs."

Law firm Leigh Day has already been referred to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal as a result of the failure to disclose a key document to the 31 million Al-Sweady Inquiry.

The inquiry concluded in its final report in December 2014 that allegations of war crimes following the Battle of Danny Boy on May 14 2004 in southern Iraq were based on "deliberate lies, reckless speculation and ingrained hostility".

Once disciplinary proceedings have been completed against any firm, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon has been ordered to prepare the ground for seeking to recover as much of the taxpayers' money spent on the inquiry as possible.

The Legal Aid Agency has also been asked to review all contracts to establish whether legal aid should be restricted on an interim basis in relation to any firm under investigation for misconduct, and whether such contracts should be scrapped entirely after disciplinary proceedings have been completed.

A Downing Street source said: "It would be unprecedented for the Government to sue a law firm in this way - but if they are found to have acted improperly, then it will be the right thing to do. The public, and the soldiers who have been subject to malicious lies, would expect nothing less."

Mr Cameron's action comes just days after Mr Fallon told MPs he was concerned about the "industrial scale" of claims against serving personnel and veterans.

The Iraq Historic Allegations Team (Ihat) has sent documents to around 280 veterans telling them they were involved in an incident under investigation.

A spokesman for Leigh Day said the Government had paid compensation in more than 300 cases relating to the abuse and unlawful detention of Iraqis, including the death of Baha Mousa in 2003.

The spokesman said: "No-one is above the law, not us, not the British Army and not the Government. We cannot imagine that the Prime Minister is proposing that this should change.

"We have made it very clear that we refute all of the allegations that have been laid before us by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority. We will contest those allegations vigorously before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal."

Shadow justice secretary Lord Falconer said: "It is absolutely vital the men and women who defend our country can do so knowing they are safe from spurious legal action.

"We will look at the details of the Government's proposals and support evidence-based measures that discourage claims without merit and make sure they are not funded through legal aid.

"But we must also ensure our armed forces are rightly held to the highest standards, and our service men and women are themselves able to enforce their rights and enjoy the same protections as any other citizen."
Townsend was sentenced to 15 years in jail 22 years after the attack

A man has been jailed after being found guilty of raping a prostitute at gunpoint more than 20 years ago.

John Townsend denied the rape and sexual assault of the woman on the outskirts of Leicester on April 23 1994.

He left traces of DNA following the attack but it was only following advances in the technology that he was identified as a suspect in 2013.

Townsend, 45, previously of Cornwall Road, Wigston, was found guilty of the charges in December and sentenced to 15 years in prison at Leicester Crown Court on Friday.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said Townsend agreed a price for sex with his victim and took her to a remote car park.

He then took out a handgun and raped her before driving away without her.

Townsend was required to give a DNA sample two decades after the crime, and it matched one taken from the victim at the time of the attack.

Lawrence English, head of the CPS East Midlands rape and serious sexual offences team, said: "Townsend subjected his victim to a terrifying ordeal.

"It cannot have been easy for her to have revisited the events of that night and part of her past life, but she has given clear, compelling evidence that has brought Townsend to justice for what he did.

"The seriousness of his offending is reflected in the sentence handed down by the judge.

"This case demonstrates the value of securing evidence at the time of the offence, from witness accounts to DNA forensics.

"Although there was nothing that could be achieved with the samples at the time, modern scientific advances meant that when a sample was taken from Townsend, it identified him as the rapist."
The huge influx of migrants from Syria and Iraq is putting the future of the European Union in "grave danger", French prime minister Manuel Valls has warned.

Mr Valls said that European societies could be "totally destabilised" unless the EU imposes tighter controls at its external borders and makes clear it will not accept all of the refugees seeking to enter the continent.

If the EU cannot control its external borders, the Schengen arrangement of border-free travel between most of the 28 member-states - but not the UK - will be thrown into doubt, he said.

But he made clear that the threat from the migration crisis runs much deeper, telling the BBC: "It's Europe that could die, not the Schengen area. If Europe can't protect its own borders, it's the very idea of Europe that could be thrown into doubt.

"It could disappear, of course - the European project, not Europe itself, not our values, but the concept we have of Europe, that the founding fathers had of Europe.

"Yes, that is in very grave danger. That's why you need border guards, border controls on the external borders of the European Union."

In an interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Mr Valls said that German Chancellor Angela Merkel had shown "courage" in announcing last year that her country would welcome thousands of refugees.

But he left little doubt that he believed her message was wrong, and had played a role in encouraging refugees to travel to Europe in the hope of a new life.

He made a pointed reference to the New Year's Eve sex attacks in the city of Cologne, which have been blamed on recent migrants, as he said that the arrival of thousands of migrants presented "a major challenge" to Germany.

"We need to help Germany," said the French PM. "But the main message we must send now with the greatest of firmness is to say that we will not take in all the refugees in Europe.

"A message that says 'Come, you will be welcome' provokes major shifts of population. If you say anything in Europe today, a few seconds later it is on the smartphones of people in refugee camps near Libya.

"Angela Merkel showed courage. She explained why she wanted to welcome the refugees in the name of values, and also because Germany needs these refugees.

"But we know clearly that after the Cologne incidents that with the continuous flow, not only to Germany but other countries of Northern Europe, Austria and the Balkans are confronted with this influx, that's why we need to find practical solutions for our borders."

Mr Valls said that ending the migration crisis would have to involve solutions to the wars raging in Syria and Iraq, the destruction of the Islamic State terror group - also known as Daesh, Isil or Isis - and the establishment of a new political process in Syria.

But he said that these processes will "take time", and that there was an urgent need for tighter border controls, as well as more reception centres for migrants arriving in Greece and Italy and assistance for refugee camps in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey.

"We cannot say nor can we accept that Europe can take in all the refugees, all of those fleeing these terrible wars in Iraq or Syria," said Mr Valls.

"Otherwise our societies will be totally destabilised ...

"We need border controls at the external borders of the European Union, because Europe has forgotten that it needs borders."

He added: "Sometimes we had the idea that borders did not exist. But, no, borders do exist. We must protect our borders. If they are not protected, then we will reimpose - as we have done - internal European border controls, and then the Schengen area is thrown into doubt.

"If we start to question the free movement of people, then one of the great European projects is also thrown into doubt."
For those not into golf, FORE! means take cover, and when followed by left, it means take cover on the left...
Andrei Lugovoi dismissed as nonsense a judge's finding that he was involved in the assassination of Alexander Litvinenko

Boris Johnson has condemned the state-sponsored assassination of Alexander Litvinenko, branding the murder "horrific".

The London Mayor said there should be the "strongest possible diplomatic response" against those behind the killing.

His comments come after a public inquiry found that the radioactive poisoning of the former KGB officer in 2006 was "probably" sanctioned by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Mr Johnson told the Press Association: "I think that the idea you could have state-sponsored assassinations on the streets of London is absolutely repugnant, horrific.

"You have got to have the strongest possible diplomatic response and move against those who have been responsible for that murder."

Britain responded to the report by announcing financial sanctions against Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun, who allegedly carried out the killing. Both deny involvement.

The Treasury has officially issued a "freezing order" in relation to funds owned, held or controlled by the pair under the Anti-Terroism, Crime and Security Act 2001.

It was laid before Parliament on Friday morning and came into force from midday.

The order states: "The Treasury believe that action constituting a threat to the life of one or more nationals and residents of the United Kingdom has been taken by certain persons who are residents of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom."

Britain came under pressure to confront Russia after the inquiry's findings were published on Thursday.

The barrister for Mr Litvinenko's widow warned it would be "craven" if the Government avoided substantial reprisals, while the Russian ambassador hit out at a "gross provocation".

The fall-out continued on Friday as Lugovoi rejected the inquiry as "nonsense".

Speaking to the BBC, he said: "I've seen the nonsense conclusions of your judge, who has clearly gone mad.

"I saw nothing new there. I am very sorry that, 10 years on, nothing new has been presented, only invention, supposition, rumours.

"And the fact that such words as 'possibly' and 'probably' were used in the report, means there is no proof, nothing concrete against us."

Mr Litvinenko died aged 43 in November 2006, sparking an extraordinary murder investigation.

A 2.2 million inquiry into his death was finally held last year following a long battle by his widow Marina.

In a 300-page report, the probe's chairman, Sir Robert Owen, found that Lugovoi and Kovtun were "probably" acting under the direction of Moscow's FSB intelligence service when they laced Mr Litvinenko's tea with polonium at the Millennium Hotel in London's Mayfair.

Singling out then-FSB chief Nikolai Patrushev alongside Mr Putin, the former judge wrote: "Taking full account of all the evidence and analysis available to me, I find that the FSB operation to kill Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr Patrushev and also by President Putin."

Moscow dismissed the findings, describing the inquiry as a political "whitewash".
Caitlin Adams posed for a suacy selfie holding a machine gun while wearing just a leotard and a balaclava

A gangster's moll who posed for a saucy selfie holding a machine gun while wearing just a leotard and a balaclava has been jailed for 10 years, police said.

Caitlin Adams, 25, and five men including a Polish former soldier, were involved in what detectives said was a plot to make and sell illegal guns and ammunition to criminals in London.

Adams picked up deactivated guns and delivered them to a workshop to be reactivated for her serving prisoner boyfriend Ishmael Brown.

Among the guns was an AK-47 assault rifle, and police discovered a selfie taken by Adams while squatting in a kitchen with the powerful battlefield weapon.

Five of the gang, including Adams, were handed jail sentences totalling 45 years at Harrow Crown Court on Friday, the Metropolitan Police said.

Detective Constable Claire Gentles, from the Metropolitan Police's Trident and Area Crime Command, said: "The firearms and ammunition this gang converted had the potential to cause great harm on the streets of London and there is no doubt that the capital is a safer place as a result of the network being dismantled.

"The sentencing of Caitlin Adams should serve as a warning to others of the grave consequences of storing and transporting guns for others."

Police said they swooped on a taxi in the Newham area of London in June and arrested two men, Aaron Murray and Uzair Patel, after a reactivated 9mm handgun was found in the footwell.

The investigation found that Murray was buying deactivated guns and reactivating them at a workshop.

It was subsequently raided and its owner, former Polish soldier and metalworker Bart Pawlowski was arrested.

Detectives said Brown was using a mobile phone smuggled into his cell at HMP Rochester to buy deactivated guns and then sell them to criminals once reactivated. Another prisoner, Ehsen Abdul-Razak, was arrested after it was discovered he helped sell the gun to Patel with his own secret phone.

Police believe that between January and June last year more than 40 guns were sourced by the gang. Eight re-activated guns linked to the group have been found and police are looking for more.

Adams, of Campshill Road, Lewisham was found guilty of conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and sentenced to 10 years on Friday.

Brown, 26, of HMP Rochester admitted conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and was sentenced to 12 years.

Pawlowski, 42, of Thornsett Rd, Wandsworth was found guilty of conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and was jailed for 13 years.

Patel, 28, of Abbey Road, Stratford, east London, admitted possession of a prohibited weapon and was jailed for five years.

Ehsen Abdul-Razak, 19, of HMP Rochester, admitted conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and was sentenced to five years.

Murray, 28, of Witley Point, Wandsworth pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and will be sentenced in March.
A man who was presented with a pin badge to commemorate his grandfather's service in the Gallipoli campaign has appealed to rail users to check their suitbags after his was mistakenly taken.

Ian Domingo had been visiting London to take part in the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign in which his grandfather was killed before departing on the 12.30pm Virgin service from Euston on November 10.

Mr Domingo's suitbag, which contained items of sentimental value including a suit with pin badges commemorating service in the Gallipoli campaign, was mistakenly picked up by a man accompanied by a woman who got off the train at Lancaster around 2.55pm.

The bag also contained tartan trousers and a blazer.

Mr Domingo had been travelling home to Dumfries, Scotland.

He said: "I had travelled down to London for the commemorations in remembrance of my grandfather who served with the King's Own Scottish Borders Regiment. He was killed in action on the 4th June 1915 at Gallipoli. The blazer had various badges attached which will be almost impossible to replace as part of the legacy to my grandson."

The bag left behind contained dresses, a jacket and a coat.

British Transport Police's investigating officer Pc Gez Cooper said: "The person who has picked up Mr Domingo's bag is likely to have just hung it back in the wardrobe, without checking the contents and won't realise their mistake until they need to wear the items again.

"I would appeal to anyone reading this who travelled on the same service and took home a suitbag, to check the contents - hopefully we can reunite Mr Domingo with his suits and pin badge and return the dresses and other items to their rightful owner."

The Gallipoli land campaign against Turkey was one of the major engagements of the First World War, involving more than 400,000 British and around 140,000 Commonwealth and Irish servicemen.

At dawn on April 25 1915, waves of Allied troops launched an amphibious attack on the strategically important peninsula, which was key to controlling the Dardanelles straits, the crucial route to the Black Sea and Russia.

But the plan backed by Winston Churchill, then First Lord of the Admiralty, was flawed and the campaign, which faced a heroic defence by the Turks, led to stalemate and withdrawal eight months later.

Around 58,000 Allied troops died, including 29,500 from Britain and Ireland, over 12,000 from France, 11,000 from Australia and New Zealand and 1,500 from India.

If you can help reunite the items with their rightful owners or have any information telephone 0800 40 50 40 or text 61016 quoting reference PSUB/B13 of 22/01/2016.
Nice recommended nivolumab for the treatment of advanced skin cancer

A new drug has been approved on the NHS for the treatment of advanced skin cancer.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) recommended nivolumab (also called Opdivo), a type of immunotherapy which stimulates the body's immune system to fight cancer cells.

Research has found that patients survive much longer on the drug than those given conventional chemotherapy.

The one-year survival rate was 73% for those on nivolumab compared to 42% for chemotherapy.

Nivolumab targets and blocks a protein called PD-1 on the surface of certain immune cells called T-cells. Blocking PD-1 activates T-cells to find and kill cancer cells.

Nice has previously rejected the drug for patients with advanced lung cancer.

One study found that patients with non-small cell lung cancer treated with nivolumab lived an average of 12.2 months, while patients treated with a chemotherapy drug lived an average of 9.4 months.

Professor Carole Longson from Nice said: "We are pleased to be able to recommend nivolumab for treating advanced skin cancer in final draft guidance.

"In 2011, over 13,000 people were diagnosed with melanoma in the UK, and it accounts for more deaths than all other skin cancers combined. I am sure this will be welcome news to patients and healthcare professionals alike."

Johanna Mercier, general manager of Bristol-Myers Squibb in the UK, which makes the drug, said: "We welcome today's decision from Nice, which is positive news for melanoma patients in the UK.

"However, we are mindful that lung cancer patients continue to await a final decision on this medicine.

"Recently, Nice issued draft guidance, which does not recommend nivolumab in advanced lung cancer. Its final guidance for these patients will be issued in May 2016."
Bijan Ebrahimi was killed after a neighbour believed he was a paedophile

PCSO Andrew Passmore, left, and Pc Kevin Duffy have been dismissed by Avon and Somerset Police

A police officer and a community support officer convicted of misconduct after the vigilante murder of a disabled man have been dismissed.

Pc Kevin Duffy, 52, and PCSO Andrew Passmore, 56, were found guilty of misconduct in a public office in connection with the death of Bijan Ebrahimi in Bristol in 2013.

Mr Ebrahimi, 44, was punched and kicked to death and his body set on fire by neighbour Lee James, who wrongly believed he was a paedophile.

Avon and Somerset Police today announced that both Duffy and Passmore have been dismissed from the force following misconduct hearings.

A spokesman said: "It was alleged that Pc Duffy breached the standards of professional behaviour in relation to his dealings with Bijan Ebrahimi between July 10-15 2013.

"Pc Duffy knew that, or ought to have known that, Mr Ebrahimi was at risk of harm.

"He failed to visit or otherwise make contact with Mr Ebrahimi and refused to speak to him on the telephone.

"As a result, Pc Duffy was convicted of misconduct in a public office on December 21, which has brought discredit to the constabulary.

"The allegations were upheld by the misconduct panel and, as a result, Pc Duffy was found guilty of gross misconduct.

"The ruling of the panel was that Pc Duffy be dismissed from Avon and Somerset police without notice.

"At a separate hearing earlier this week, PCSO Andrew Passmore was also dismissed in relation to this matter."

Duffy and Passmore are two of 18 officers and staff facing misconduct proceedings within the force. Of those, nine are accused of gross misconduct.

Pcs Leanne Winter, 38, and Helen Harris, 40, were each acquitted of a charge of misconduct in a public office following the seven-week trial.

Mr Ebrahimi's sister, Manizhah Moores, previously called on Avon and Somerset Police to remove Duffy and Passmore from the force.

Judge Neil Ford QC, the Recorder of Bristol, has said that all options are open when he sentences the men on a date to be fixed.

Jurors heard Mr Ebrahimi dialled 999 to report that James had come into his flat and head-butted him on July 11.

James wrongly believed Mr Ebrahimi, an Iranian national, had filmed his young children.

Pcs Winter and Harris arrived at the scene, Capgrave Crescent in Brislington, to find James crying with anger and frothing at the mouth.

A mob had formed outside and James was heard shouting: "Paedo! I'm going to f****** kill you."

Pcs Winter and Harris arrested Mr Ebrahimi, who was not visibly injured, for allegedly breaching the peace.

As Mr Ebrahimi was led away, the crowd outside cheered and shouted "paedophile".

While in custody, Pc Harris told him: "All you are doing is upsetting the residents... and antagonising them.

"I'm a police officer and you're a pain in the ass. Don't speak to me."

He was released from custody the following day, July 12, and made 12 calls to police non-emergency number 101.

Mr Ebrahimi was informed that Duffy, his local beat manager, would visit but the officer refused to speak to him.

"My life is in danger. Right now a few of my neighbours are outside and shouting and calling me a paedophile. I need to see Pc Duffy," Mr Ebrahimi told one operator.

Duffy told a supervisor: "He should be told in no uncertain terms that I will speak to him at my convenience, it's Mr Bijan Ebrahimi he's well known to me and I won't be taking any calls from him."

He asked Passmore to conduct a "bit of a foot patrol" around Capgrave Crescent.

Passmore was found not guilty of failing to patrol there but was convicted of later falsely telling murder detectives he had spent an hour in the area.

On July 13, Mr Ebrahimi tried to contact Duffy and Winter. He phoned police at 00.12am on July 14 - about an hour before his murder - asking for Winter.

The officer told a call operator: "I'm absolutely not interested in speaking to him ever."

Witnesses saw James repeatedly stamp on Mr Ebrahimi's head before setting him alight at 1.35am.

A post-mortem examination found Mr Ebrahimi, who had problems with mobility and suffered from depression, died before he was set alight.

James was jailed for life for the murder, while Stephen Norley, who lived next door, was sentenced to four years in prison for assisting an offender.
A man kicked a boy in a 'racially aggravated assault' in a service at Liverpool Cathedral, police said

A 13-year-old boy was kicked by a man in a "racially aggravated assault" during a church service at Liverpool Cathedral, police have said.

Merseyside Police released an image of a man they wish to speak to following the alleged incident on December 6, at around 11am.

The teenager who was left "very distressed", suffered a minor injury.

A full investigation has been launched and a number of lines of enquiry are being pursued.

Detective Constable Joanne Brough, of the specialist Sigma Hate Crime team, said: "We are treating this as a racially aggravated assault and specialist officers from the force's Sigma team are conducting enquiries.

"The victim thankfully only suffered a minor injury but has been left very distressed following this incident.

"I am sure the local community would agree that this type of behaviour is not acceptable, especially in a place of worship and has no place on Merseyside. I would therefore ask anyone who has any information about this incident or who recognises this man to get in contact."

Anyone with information is asked to call the Liverpool Sigma team on 0151 777 4048 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Parents of children at Alban Church of England Academy in Bedfordshire had been told pupils would be given only bread and butter if they did not arrive at school with a packed lunch or dinner money

A school has been forced to abandon a new policy which would have seen pupils given bread and butter if their parents did not pay for dinners or provide a packed lunch.

Alban Church of England Academy in Bedfordshire set out the move in a letter to parents earlier this month.

But after concerns were raised by parents, the school apologised and said it would not introduce the change.

The first letter, seen by BBC Radio 5 Live, said that despite regular reminders some children were still going to school without either a packed lunch or money for a dinner - 2.10 - and that this had happened more than 100 times in the past month.

It said the catering firm providing school meals has a "strict 'no debt' policy and as such, it is the school that has to fund the cost of a meal".

The school then has to try and recoup the money from parents, the letter added, with pupils given reminders and parents sent texts and letters if they failed to pay.

The letter went on to say: "As a result, and with effect from Monday February 1, this current system will cease.

"From then, if a pupil comes to school without either a packed lunch or dinner money, the office staff will phone home and ask for packed lunch or the money for a lunch to be dropped into school.

"If the parent/carer cannot make it into school then the child will be provided with a drink and bread and butter only."

But the school has now said it is retracting the policy, and has posted a new letter, signed by head teacher Sue Lourensz, for parents on its website.

It says: "Following a number of parental concerns regarding the recent school meals letter, we have decided to re-think our policy and will not be introducing the new system outlined in that letter.

"I apologise if this has caused any offence, this was not our intention. The letter itself was intended to explain the situation and trial a policy that has been successfully adopted by other schools."
Four Syrian refugees who won a landmark legal case to come to Britain from Calais, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, have arrived in London

A Syrian refugee who has been brought to Britain from "The Jungle" in Calais in a landmark case said he feels "so thankful" to be in the UK.

The 17-year-old urged the thousands of refugees waiting to enter Britain to "have faith" and see his case as proof there is a way to reach the UK "legally and safely".

The teenager, who cannot be identified for legal reasons but the Press Association is calling Muhammad, was allowed to enter Britain along with three other refugees who will stay in Britain while their asylum applications are processed.

There were emotional scenes at London's St Pancras station as he was reunited with his older brother, who he last saw in war-torn Syria and who was smuggled into the country in a tomato lorry.

Describing the moment Muhammad said: "I feel so thankful because I would never have imagined I would be reunited with my brother."

The teen also thanked his legal team, who used human rights legislation to argue they should be immediately taken out of the "intolerable" conditions of "The Jungle".

He said: "I thank every person who was part of this process - they have saved lives. They have saved people from death ... I thank Britain as a whole."

The group of three teenagers and a 26-year-old man with severe mental health issues will live with their relatives in the UK while their claims for asylum are considered.

The landmark case could pave the way for many other refugees in the Calais camp to be brought to Britain.

Asked if he had a message for those who remain in camps in France desperate to find safety elsewhere, Muhammad said: "Have faith. There is a way to come here legally and safely."

The refugees' legal team successfully argued that bureaucratic delays in France meant their cases should be handed over to the UK, where they all have relatives legally living. At least one of the group is expected to join relatives in Scotland.

Muhammad's brother described their reunion after spending more than 18 months apart as "so surreal".

Bombarded by barrel bombs and relentless fighting, he decided to flee his family's home town of Daraa in 2014, travelling to Lebanon with his wife and young daughter and on to Europe alone.

He made the final perilous leg of his journey from Calais to Dover smuggled in the back of a refrigerated lorry of tomatoes.

Muhammad made the same treacherous journey across Europe last year and arrived in Calais in October.

He said there had been times when he was close to losing hope that he would ever get refuge in Britain.

"But then slowly slowly because of the conviction of my brother and the lawyers I slowly started to have faith and began to become hopeful I would be reunited with my families."

The teenager said conditions in "The Jungle" were so bad that it was "not fit for humans".

Poor sanitation meant sickness was rife among many in the camp and its inhabitants felt helpless and shared a "great sense of depression" over the length of time they had spent there.

"It is just awful," he said.

Muhammad said he had achieved his "main hope and aspiration" by finally being reunited with his brother and now wanted to continue his education and achieve his dream of becoming a lawyer.

"I want to help people like lawyers have helped me," he said.
A court ruled four young Syrians should immediately be brought to Britain from the 'Jungle' refugee camp in Calais

Four Syrian refugees who won a landmark legal case to come to Britain from "The Jungle" in Calais have been reunited with their families in London.

Relatives, some carrying babies and young children, smiled as they were let through to greet their loved ones for the first time in months behind closed doors at King's Cross station.

Around 100 people, many holding home-made banners or balloons with the words "refugees welcome" scrawled on them, descended on the station to welcome the arrivals.

The refugees - three teenagers and a 26-year-old man with severe mental health issues - travelled to the UK after a British court ruled on Wednesday that they should be immediately brought across the Channel from the makeshift refugee camp in northern France.

Before they arrived, the brother of one of the refugees told the Press Association he could not wait to be reunited with his younger sibling, who he has not seen for nearly two years.

Ahmed, who is not using his real name in order to protect his brother's identity, said: "The first thing I'm going to do is hug him and not let him go.

"He is the youngest in my family and I haven't seen him in a long time.

"It is hard to describe how happy I felt when I heard the court's ruling yesterday. It was really, really amazing. It was everything I was waiting for."

Their arrival follows a pioneering legal case in which lawyers used human rights legislation to argue the four refugees should be immediately brought to Britain and their asylum claims processed here - effectively bypassing the French authorities.

They argued that conditions in the sprawling camp were "intolerable" and that bureaucratic delays in France meant their cases should be handed over to the UK, where they all have relatives legally living.

Ahmed said his brother, who has seen other refugees die trying to make the perilous journey from Calais to Britain, was so bowled over by the court's decision he was in disbelief.

He said: "He was in huge disbelief. He could not believe it was actually going to happen.

"A lot of people in Calais said 'this is not going to work'. He just felt like he was in a dream. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He is in shock - but in a good way."

After enduring years of fighting and bombs, Ahmed, 26, fled his hometown of Daraa in 2014 and travelled across Europe to Britain.

He hid in the back of a freezing cold lorry carrying tomatoes to make the final leg of the journey from Calais to Dover.

He left his brother with his parents, but as the fighting intensified his brother also decided to make the dangerous journey across Europe and to be reunited with his brother in Britain.

Arriving first in Turkey and then crossing through European countries he did not even know the name of, his brother eventually ended up in Calais last October.

But conditions at "The Jungle" were so bad he considered turning back to Syria.

Ahmed, who now lives in London with his wife, two year-old daughter and newborn son, was sporadically in touch with his brother by phone.

He told the Press Association: "There were times when he would say 'I want to go back to Syria'.

"My brother didn't imagine he would be living in such conditions in a European country. He was shocked.

"He thought he would find safety.

"That was how desperate he got, it was so unbearable in Calais. But I told him to be patient."

Ahmed, who was a driver in Syria, said he is grateful to be in Britain and ecstatic his brother will be reunited with him here.

He said his brother hopes to return to the studies which the war in Syria so brutally interrupted.

Ahmed said: "He wants to be a lawyer so he can help people like the way people helped him."

Oona Chaplin, who stars in Game Of Thrones and is Charlie Chaplin's granddaughter, has been to Calais several times and thrown her support behind the campaign to bring the Syrians to Britain.

She said: "My heart swells at the thought of these three families coming together again after all they have been through.

"These kids are now our precious teachers, we must all learn with them the art of compassion, kindness and forgiveness, so that we can heal these wounds together.

"May all children everywhere in the world feel the spark of hope that has been ignited with this reunion."
CCTV footage of Nahid Almanea, 31, shortly before she was stabbed 16 times as she walked along a footpath in Colchester (Essex Police/PA)

James Attfield was stabbed more than 100 times in Colchester in 2014 (Essex Police/PA)

A teenager has admitted carrying out the frenzied knife attacks on two members of the public which sent "shockwaves" through a quiet garrison town.

The boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was just 15 years old when he stabbed James Attfield, 33, more than 100 times in Colchester on March 29 2014.

Mr Attfield, who had a brain injury after being hit by a car four years before, was found fighting for his life in the town's Castle Park in the early hours of the morning. He died later in hospital.

Three months later, the boy knifed Saudi student Nahid Almanea, 31, 16 times as she walked from her student accommodation along the Salary Brook Trail towards the University of Essex on the morning of June 17 2014.

Ms Almanea was captured on CCTV shortly before the attack wearing a Muslim gown called an abaya.

The two deaths sparked fears a killer was randomly striking after police said there were "striking similarities" in the killings but nothing to link the victims.

The teenager, from Colchester, was arrested after allegedly being found with a lock knife on May 26 last year in the same area where Ms Almanea was killed.

During a hearing at the Old Bailey, the youth, now 17, denied two counts of murder and possessing an offensive weapon but admitted two alternative counts of manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility.

Mr Justice Spencer allowed the prosecution time to consider the pleas.

A murder trial has already been fixed to start on April 11 at a venue to be decided, either in Guildford or central London.

A tearful couple, believed to be the boy's parents, sat in the well of the court and blew him a kiss as he sat flanked by officers in the dock.

The defendant, who wore a grey suit, leather jacket and black rimmed spectacles, spoke only to enter his pleas and confirm his name. He was remanded in custody.

Following the hearing, Detective Chief Inspector Morgan Cronin, of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said: "We hope that today's guilty plea will provide the families of James Attfield and Nahid Almanea with some comfort by finally establishing who carried out their atrocious killings.

"The brutal manner in which they both died sent shockwaves through the community in Colchester and far beyond.

"At its height more than 100 detectives, uniformed officers, PCSOs and civilian staff were involved in these investigations and the response of Essex Police to keep people safe.

"Detectives worked tirelessly to piece together the evidence of how they died and to establish whether there was any connection between their deaths.

"Sadly we now know that one person, a 17-year-old boy, was indeed responsible. I would like to thank everyone who played a part in our investigations, and also pay tribute to the people of Colchester who supported us throughout this difficult time."
People affected by terrorist outrages overseas are being invited to have their say on the design and siting of a new memorial to British victims.

Plans for a national memorial to remember British citizens killed by terrorism abroad were announced by Prime Minister David Cameron last year in the wake of the murder of 38 people - including 30 UK tourists - at a beach resort in Tunisia.

Mike Haines, whose aid worker brother David was murdered by Islamic State terrorists in Syria in 2014, said the memorial would help victims' families and friends "share the grief and help celebrate the lives of those cut short by terrorism".

Views received from families and friends of victims, as well as individuals and groups supporting those affected, will help shape officials' thinking on how the memorial can be made a "t imeless, meaningful and fitting tribute", said the Foreign Office.

Foreign Office minister for counter-terrorism, Tobias Ellwood, whose own brother Jonathan was killed in the Bali bombing in 2002, said: "It is a sad fact that we live in very difficult and dangerous times. Sadly, there are victims of terrorism whose families do not have a place where they can grieve.

"It is therefore appropriate that we have a national memorial for those caught up in terrorism abroad. These people must never be forgotten and I encourage anyone who has been affected to have their say."

Mr Haines added: "Like so many others these days, we have lost a brother, friend, husband, father, son and grandad at the hands of terrorists. This small minority seek to sow fear and hatred in our daily lives. Around our world we have seen with recent events so many have suffered, in so many nations. We cannot let this evil win.

"Our family have lost an integral part, which cannot be replaced or mended. We have been devastated by my brother's loss and know that other families have been affected in the same way. I would say to them, come and join us, be part of this memorial. Share the grief and help celebrate the lives of those cut short by terrorism. Let us not send them gently into that good night.

"We all have different ways of remembering our loved ones. Let's come together to find a common ground. A common ground in which we all can share and be part of building communities and not dividing our society. A memorial that stands for all our grief."

Contributions to the six-week consultation can be made at www.gov.uk/government/collections/consultation-on-the-national-memorial-to-british-victims-of-overseas-terrorism
Former Labour leader Ed Miliband unveiling his party's pledges carved into a stone plinth known as the "Ed Stone"

Labour is being investigated by the elections watchdog over its failure to submit receipts for the so-called Ed Stone.

Invoices for the campaign stunt, which sparked widespread ridicule, totalling 7,830 have now been submitted by the party.

But the Electoral Commission, which released the documents, said it will be "investigating Labour over what happened".

Ed Miliband's manifesto commitments were carved on the 8ft stone in an attempt by the party to show it was serious about meeting its pledges.

The move backfired, however, when it was widely derided on social media and mocked by political opponents.

Basingstoke firm stoneCIRCLE supplied and carved the stone and its total bill came to 5,400. London company PAYE Stone Restoration charged 2,430 for putting it in place, transporting it and storing it for the 12 weeks up to July 28 last year.

The receipts were the most eagerly anticipated item of election spending when the Electoral Commission released its records earlier this week, but it soon emerged that they had not been included in the thousands of pages of invoices.

Labour blamed an "administrative error" for its failure to include the items with the rest of its campaign spend.

It faces a fine of up to 20,000 if it is found to have seriously breached the rules.

An Electoral Commission spokesman said it was considering the issue "in line with our enforcement policy".
Sir Michael Caine believes Britain should leave the EU unless there are "extremely significant" reforms.

The veteran actor said the consequences of a so-called Brexit were "scary" but so were those of being "dictated to by thousands of faceless civil servants".

Asked which camp he would back in the in/out referendum, he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: "I don't know what to vote for. Both are scary.

"To me, you've now got in Europe a sort of government-by-proxy of everybody, who has now got carried away.

"Unless there is some extremely significant changes, we should get out."

Pressed on his preference, he said: "I sort of feel certain we should come out."

Pro-EU campaigners might be right that Britain could "fail" outside the EU, he suggested , but insisted the country would recover.

"Well, OK, so you fail. Get better, work harder, try harder and you'll be a success.

"But you cannot be dictated to by thousands of faceless civil servants who make these rules.

"Then they argue about it financially but we buy more from them than we sell to them."

Sir Michael, who has said in the past that he has no fixed party allegiance and voted for Margaret Thatcher, Tony Blair and David Cameron, said his rise from a working-class background to Hollywood millionaire gave him a rare perspective.

"I'm a middle-of-the-road politician. I have been poor, I have been on the dole, I have worked in factories and I am a multi-millionaire, I have paid heavy taxes. So I know every problem from every angle and not many people are like that.

"The last time I queued up for benefits, Sean Connery was two guys in front of me."
A refugee squats after his arrival to the shores of Greece on a dinghy crammed with refugees and migrants. (AP)

At least 45 people including 17 children have drowned in the Aegean Sea as two migrant boats sunk off Greek islands.

The Greek coastguard and other boats saved more than 70 people from the sunken vessels, and a search-and-rescue operation is under way for others feared trapped in the wreckage..

One wooden boat carrying 49 people foundered off the small Greek islet of Farmakonissi. Forty people made it to shore, while authorities rescued one girl and recovered eight bodies from the sea - six children and two women, the coastguard said.

A few hours later, a wooden boat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the islet of Kalolimnos, south of Farmakonissi. The coastguard rescued 22 men and four women, and recovered 34 bodies - 16 women, seven men and 11 children.

Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency said the Turkish coastguard rescued six survivors from the area of the two accidents and found another three bodies.

One survivor told APTV that the vessel's engine failed five hours after they departed from Izmir in Turkey. Speaking at a reception centre on the island of Kalymnos, he said about 80 people on board had paid 2,500 US dollars (1,740) each for a berth, with half that sum for children.

The new drownings follow hundreds over the past year as Europe faces its worst immigration crisis since the end of the Second World War. More than a million people seeking asylum entered the continent last year - most through Greece, coming across the sea in small smugglers' boats from Turkey.

The European Union is deeply divided on addressing the influx, with several countries blocking or restricting migrants from entering and resisting plans to share the burden of refugees. In the meantime, Germany - where most immigrants are heading - has welcomed those it considers refugees.

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said on Friday that the 28-nation bloc faces big economic risks if member countries start putting up walls between each other that restrict borderless travel.
Air raids on two villages in eastern Syria have killed at least 40 people and wounded scores more, according to opposition activists.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the air raids on the villages of Tabiah and Bouleil killed 40 people, including whole families.

The Local Co-ordination Committees said the air raids killed 30 in Tabiah and dozens in Bouleil.

Opposition activist Omar Abu Leila said the air raids hit the two villages that are under the control of the Islamic State group, saying all those killed were civilians.

The LCC and Mr Abu Leila said the air raids were carried out by Russian warplanes but it was not possible to independently confirm the claim.

IS controls most of Deir el-Zour province and over the past week launched a wide offensive capturing some areas from government forces near the provincial capital city of Deir el-Zour.
Britain is embroiled in a furious diplomatic row with Russia after an inquiry concluded that President Vladimir Putin probably authorised the assassination of Alexander Litvinenko.

The Kremlin complained of a "gross provocation" after the official probe found the Russian leader was likely to have signed off the fatal poisoning of the dissident spy with radioactive polonium in London in 2006. It prompted fresh acrimony over an episode that sent relations between the two countries into the deep freeze for more than five years.

The Government summoned the Russian ambassador and announced that the two men who allegedly carried out the killing - Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun - would have their assets frozen.

But the Litvinenko family's barrister warned it would be "craven" if the Prime Minister avoided substantial reprisals due to diplomatic considerations over crises in Syria and Ukraine.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, Mr Cameron insisted Britain was "toughening up" its response to Russia. He added: "Do we at some level have to go on having some sort of relationship with them because we need a solution to the Syria crisis? Yes, we do, but we do it with clear eyes and a very cold heart."

The publication of the long-awaited report drew a blistering response from Russian ambassador Alexander Yakovenko, who branded the inquiry a "whitewash".

Mr Litvinenko died aged 43 three weeks after he drank tea laced with polonium 210 at the Millennium Hotel in Mayfair, central London.

The revelation that the father-of-three had been poisoned with a radioactive substance triggered a major security alert.

A 2.2m inquiry into the former KGB agent's death was finally held last year following a long battle by his widow Marina.
Israeli forces have evicted dozens of Jewish settlers a day after they moved into two buildings in the heart of the flashpoint West Bank city of Hebron.

The troops removed 80 people who had moved into the buildings and closed access to the sites, near an important shrine holy to both Jews and Muslims, said police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld.

Supporters of the group said the settlers had entered houses that were bought legally.

Israel captured the West Bank from Jordan in the 1967 war, but Palestinians demand the territory as part of their future state. Most of the international community views Israeli settlements in the territory as illegal.

Israel says the fate of the settlements should be resolved in peace talks, along with other core issues like security and borders.

About 850 Israeli settlers live in heavily guarded enclaves in Hebron, surrounded by tens of thousands of Palestinians.

Much of the animosity in the city is over a sensitive holy site known to Jews as the Tomb of the Patriarchs and to Muslims as the Ibrahimi Mosque. Many Palestinian attackers over the past four months of bloodshed have been from Hebron.

The buildings will remain shut until the courts determine who owns them, Mr Rosenfeld said.

Selling property to Israelis is considered taboo in Palestinian society and is against Palestinian law. Palestinians who do sell fear for their lives and usually flee the territory.

The eviction came as Israel struggles to deal with months of near-daily Palestinian attacks on civilians and soldiers. Many attackers over the past four months of bloodshed have been from Hebron.

Palestinian attackers have killed 25 Israelis and wounded dozens more since mid-September in stabbings, shooting and car ramming assaults. Some 146 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire during that time, and more than 100 have been identified by Israel as attackers. The rest were killed in clashes with Israeli troops.
Making a Murderer documents the story of Steven Avery. Above: Avery's mugshot, taken after his arrest in 1985

Making a Murderer was a pretty frustrating show to watch for a number of reasons: it showed how the American justice system is seemingly perverse, it presented Steven Avery as being innocent, and it proved how little we can do about either.

But, after showing us the majority of the evidence presented in court (you can read everything left out here), the filmmakers delved very little into one of the biggest questions every viewer was left asking - if Steven Avery didnt kill Teresa Halbach, who did?

Well, there are multiple theories doing rounds on the internet, one of the more obscure being Edward Wayne Edwards: a notorious serial killer who was once on the FBIs ten most wanted fugitive list.

For John Cameron - an FBI cold case worker who has been featured on America's Most Wanted and Dateline NBC - hes certainly the killer, the agent believing Edwards framed Avery for the murder, having set numerous people up for crimes in the past.

What it turns out Edwards would do is he would create horrific murders that were in the press constantly that created terror, and he would set people up, he told Coast to Coast AM in May 2014.

It was always about the setup. Starting a very young age, when he was 12-years-old, he was able to set up a guy for a murder he had done. And the rest of his life he would get off on not only killing people but then setting up someone close to the victim and then watching the system execute them.

Just before Edwards came to Great Falls, Montana, in 1956, he set up a guy in Berkeley, California, exactly like he set up Steve Avery. The interview starts at the 3.30 mark.

He then goes on to talk about the California case, describing how Edwards hid a persons body for three months before planting their belongings around the murderers house. Eventually, Edwards placed the body in a cabin, and the person being set up was convicted for the crime and executed by the authorities.

Thats just one case Cameron describes. According to his report, Edwards would often go to towns across America with an assumed identity - normally a preacher or a cop - before finally killing someone.

He would proceed to send false letters to the press, hinting that the innocent person was guilty, leading to the media printing numerous articles accusing someone and the system eventually punishing them.

Edwards was only convicted of five crimes in his lifetime: in 2010 he was finally charged with the murder of Billy Lavaco and Judy Straub in Ohio which dated back to 1977.

A second double murder took place in 1980 in Wisconsin - where Avery was sentenced - dubbed the Sweetheart Murders. Only 29 years later, when new DNA evidence was presented, was he actually convicted of the crime, his own child reportedly tipping off the police.

Then, in 1996, he murdered Danny Boy Edwards in Ohio. He wasnt convicted of this crime until 2011, when he was given the death sentence. However, he died a month later from natural causes.

So, how has Cameron linked Edwards and Avery? Well, first of all, Edwards murdered multiple times on Halloween night. Coincidently, Teresa Halbach went missing on Halloween.

Secondly, Edwards was known to visit the trials of his victims while they are taking place. Apparently, Edwards can be seen in the background of Making a Murderer in episode six.

Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, Cameron claims that Edwards was living just an hour away from Avery at the time of the murder.

Now, hold up. Lets not all get ahead of ourselves here. This is one man accusing Edwards of hundreds upon hundreds of murders. Check out his website, it's filled with accusations against Edwards, blaring out the headline EDWARDS IS THE KILLER OF TERESA HALBACH AND SET-UP OF STEVEN AVERY AND BRENDAN DASSEY.

Of course, he is an ex-FBI worker, which gives him some credibility, but when youre throwing around huge accusations you can never be sure whats true or not.

Cameron has spoken numerous times about the case, which you can explore for yourself by checking out his book on Edwards and these podcasts. Go forth, armchair detectives!

In other Making a Murderer news, a book based on the case is to be published by Penguin Random House for the first time in the UK.
A light dusting of snow that stuck drivers in icy gridlock for hours in and around Washington served as an ominous prelude to the massive blizzard bearing down on the eastern United States.

Less than an inch of snow fell on Wednesday night in the capital area, but that was enough for roads to immediately freeze over. Hundreds of accidents left drivers stuck for hours in icy gridlock after efforts to lay salt ahead of the dusting proved ineffective.

Washington mayor Muriel Bowser apologised for the city's "inadequate response".

"We are very sorry for (our) inadequate response," said Ms Bowser, who declared a 15-day state of emergency ahead of the potentially historic blizzard. "We should have been out earlier, with more resources."

For people already scrambling to prepare for up to 2 feet (0.6 metres) of heavy wet snow, the trouble caused by a mere dusting provided more reason to worry about what the National Weather Service is calling a "potentially crippling winter storm" expected to blanket the Mid-Atlantic region starting on Friday afternoon and continuing through Sunday.

Most major school districts in the region either closed on Thursday or opened late. Ms Bowser announced that the city's schools would pre-emptively close on Friday, and that city offices would close at noon, hours ahead of the storm.

Smaller amounts of snow are expected for New York, Boston and other northern cities, but forecasters warned of high winds, power outages and coastal flooding up and down the east coast.

States of emergency were declared in Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania, where road crews were out in force on Thursday. Blizzard watches were in effect from Virginia through New Jersey and beyond.

All major airlines have issued waivers for travel over the weekend, allowing passengers to rebook on to earlier or later flights to avoid the storms. The airports included vary by airline but include some cities in Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia all the way up the coast to New Hampshire and Massachusetts.

One major event in Washington was still on - the March for Life, an annual anti-abortion rally that is usually one of the largest events in the capital. It will be held on Friday, the anniversary of the landmark 1973 Supreme Court ruling legalising abortion.

And it took an act of Congress, but the children of Washington will finally be able to sledge down Capitol Hill, the US Capitol Police announced. The powerful House Appropriations Committee, whose chairman's office overlooks a prime sledging spot, made sure of that, instructing officers to "forbear enforcement" when sledgers are on the grounds.
Somalia's security forces took control of the restaurant just before dawn

Somalia's security forces have ended a siege at a beachfront restaurant in the capital, with more than 20 people killed in the attack.

Police official Captain Mohamed Hussein, speaking from the scene in Mogadishu, said security forces took control of the restaurant just before dawn on Friday.

It was not clear whether the report of more than 20 killed included the assailants.

Blasts and bursts of gunfire could be heard as Somali special forces went from room to room pursuing the al-Shabab gunmen who were holed up inside the restaurant.

Capt Hussein said the security forces rescued many people who were trapped inside the restaurant's hall, where a party was taking place when the attack started on Thursday.

Witnesses said gunmen shouted "Allahu akbar," the Arabic phrase for "God is great," and entered the restaurant from the direction of the beach as clients, sitting behind razor wire, watched the seashore.

"They randomly fired at people sitting near the beach before entering the restaurant," said witness Ahmed Nur, who was strolling along the shoreline when the attack happened.

Islamic extremist group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack, in a broadcast on its online radio late on Thursday.

Al-Shabab attacked Kenyan peacekeepers in south-western Somalia last week. The al-Qaida-linked group said it had killed about 100 Kenyans and seized weapons and military vehicles.

The Kenyan government has given no death toll, but said there were some fatalities.

Despite being pushed out of Somalia's major cities and towns, al-Shabab continues to launch deadly guerrilla attacks across the Horn of Africa country.

African Union troops, government officials and foreigners are frequently targeted.
Two drug traffickers in Idaho turned themselves over to police after getting so stoned and paranoid that they were convinced they were about to be arrested.

Leland Ayala-Doliente and Holland Sward were attempting to transport the marijuana through Idaho but apparently believed undercover officers were following them after smoking some of their stash.

East Idaho News released audio of the 911 call from that led to the arrests of the individuals.

While parked at an Applebees restaurant, Ayala-Doliente told the Madison County dispatcher: Hi, uh, were the two dumbasses that got caught trying to bring some stuff through your border.

"All your cops are just driving around us like a bunch of jack wagons, and Id just really would like for you guys to end it. If you could help me out with that, we would like to just get on with it.

You got caught doing what? the dispatcher replied.

Ahh, God, OK, Ayala-Doliente replies.

Expand Close Leland Ayala-Doliente and Holland Sward (Photo: Idaho Police) / Facebook

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We kind of got spooked here trying to bring some stuff across your Idaho border.

"A bunch of your cops are driving around in a bunch of civilian cars not wanting to pick us up. I dont know whats the deal.

He added: Its getting cold out here, man. I just want to get warm.

Expand Close Leland Ayala-Doliente and Holland Sward were arrested after smoking their stash, becoming paranoid and phoning the police. (Picture posed) / Facebook

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Whatsapp Leland Ayala-Doliente and Holland Sward were arrested after smoking their stash, becoming paranoid and phoning the police. (Picture posed)

Police discovered 20lbs of marijuana in their car and they were charged with drugs trafficking.

Sward was given a five-year suspended sentence, and ordered to spend 30 days in jail before the five-year probation period.

Ayala-Doliente was initially sentenced to 18 months, before having his sentence increased to a maximum of eight years in prison.

The sentence was increased because he tested high for marijuana, cocaine and oxycodone on his sentencing day.
The head of a breakaway Taliban faction behind an attack at a north-western Pakistani university that killed 21 people has threatened to carry out more attacks on schools and universities.

Khalifa Umar Mansoor said in a video released on social media on Friday that the attack at the Bacha Khan university in the town of Charsadda was just the start. He said his group will hit the "evil democratic" system at its base.

Mansoor, the Charsadda attack mastermind, said Pakistan's educational institutions provide the future workforce for the military and the government - all of which work against the "will of God".

The video also shows the four attackers who are said to have carried out the university assault practising with assault rifles at an undisclosed location.

On Wednesday, Islamic militants stormed the Bacha Khan campus, gunning down students and teachers, and triggering a gun battle that lasted for hours before the four gunmen were killed.

The assault echoed the 2014 attack by the Taliban on an army-run school in the nearby city of Peshawar that left 150 dead, 144 of them children, and raised more questions about whether Pakistan's security forces can protect the country's educational institutions from extremists.

"Pakistan's evil democratic system, its military and political leadership have these educational institutions as their nurseries," Mansoor said. "It is from there they get their people, these institutions bear them fruit.

"We have decided to target schools, colleges and universities from now on. We will demolish the foundation of this evil system."

Mansoor said Pakistan's rulers are challenging the "will of God, instead of bowing before him despite repeated warning from Allah in the form of earthquakes, floods and tornadoes".

Although his group quickly took responsibility for the university attack, a spokesman for the larger Taliban organisation, led by Mullah Fazlullah, denied having anything to do with it and called it "un-Islamic".

Muhammad Khorasani, the Tehrik-e-Taliban spokesman, said the group also disowns Mansoor's organisation.
Egyptian authorities said the bombing took place during a raid on an apartment where militants had been preparing explosives

At least six people have been killed by a bomb blast during a raid by security forces in Cairo's twin city of Giza.

Egyptian authorities said the explosion took place during a raid on an apartment where militants were preparing explosives.

At least three police officers were among those killed in the bombing, claimed by Egypt's affiliate of Islamic State.

A statement was circulated by the group's sympathisers on social media with a design and logo resembling previous IS statements.

The group has claimed multiple suicide bombings and attacks targeting the Egyptian army and police in the past year.
Mariano Rajoy has turned down a petition by Spain's King Felipe VI to try to form a new government

Spain's incumbent prime minister Mariano Rajoy has turned down a petition by King Felipe VI to try to form a new government following last month's inconclusive elections.

The Royal Palace made the announcement shortly after the monarch met with Mr Rajoy to wrap up a week of talks with party leaders before nominating a candidate.

In a statement, the palace said the king will begin fresh talks with party leaders next Wednesday in a bid to find another candidate.

Mr Rajoy's Popular Party won most seats - 123 - in the December 20 election but failed to garner a majority in the 350-seat lower house of parliament.

The king will now most likely call on opposition Socialist party leader Pedro Sanchez to try to from a government. The Socialists came second in the election with 90 seats and appear to have more chance of mustering support from other groups to form a coalition.

The nominated candidate must win a vote of confidence in parliament. If no party leader manages to win that parliamentary support within two months of the first vote, fresh elections must be called.

No group had expressed any intention of voting for Mr Rajoy, which made parliamentary approval for him highly unlikely.
Tens of thousands of people have rallied in the capital of Russia's Chechnya republic in support of strongman leader Ramzan Kadyrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Mr Kadyrov has spoken out recently against independent journalists and opposition activists, calling for them to be sent to psychiatric hospitals or prosecuted as traitors in the service of a hostile West.

In the past, Russian journalists or opposition leaders have been killed after challenging Mr Putin or Mr Kadyrov, who describes himself as the president's loyal "foot soldier".

Some of the murders were preceded by similar threats and some of the suspected killers have been Chechens.

Rights activists in Russia and the West have criticised Mr Kadyrov, with some demanding he be fired.

Participants at the rally in Grozny praised Mr Kadyrov for bringing stability to the predominantly Muslim region after two separatist wars, punctuating their speeches with cries of "God is great!" and "Kadyrov is a Russian patriot".

The rally, organised by Chechen trade unions, drew people from across Chechnya and neighbouring regions. Chechen police put the size of the crowd at a million. The population of Chechnya is 1.3 million.
Police fire tear gas during clashes in the city of Ennour, near Kasserine (AP)

Tunisia has imposed a nationwide overnight curfew in response to growing unrest over unemployment after protests across the country descended into violence in several cities.

The curfew from 8pm until 5am was imposed because the attacks on public and private property "represent a danger to the country and its citizens", the Interior Ministry said.

On Thursday night, police stations came under attack and security officers used tear gas to repel protesters armed with stones and Molotov cocktails.

In housing projects on the outskirts of the capital, Tunis, roving groups of young people pillaged a bank and looted stores and warehouses.

Prime minister Habib Essid cut short a visit to France to deal with the protests, which were triggered on Sunday when a young man who lost out on a government job climbed a transmission tower in protest and was electrocuted.

Tunisia's unemployment stands around 15%, but is 30% among young people.

Tunisia has been under a state of emergency since a suicide bombing in November killed 12 members of the presidential guard in the heart of Tunis - an attack that capped an unusually violent year for the country.

That bombing, as well as attacks earlier in the year against the Bardo museum and the beach resort of Sousse, were claimed by the Islamic State group.

The suicide five years ago of another unemployed youth set off a popular uprising that overthrew Tunisia's long-time ruler, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, and gave rise to the Arab Spring uprisings across North Africa.

In an interview in Paris just before his government imposed the curfew, Mr Essid denied the context of the two deaths was comparable.

"Tunisia has completely changed from a dictatorship to a young democracy. You know during youth there are periods of adolescence that you have to get through. We have a difficult job and we are aware of the difficulty."

France is offering a billion euros (750 million) in aid to Tunisia, including aid to regions where young people are struggling.

President Francois Hollande announced the aid over five years after a meeting with Mr Essid .
I was in Berlin the weekend after David Bowie died and it seemed the right place to be to celebrate him. It felt like Bowie was Berlin: a true oddity - experimental, androgynous, genre-defying. Old Seventies photographs show him striding through the streets in his black leather trenchcoat like some sort of beautiful alien. And sure enough, in death, Bowie was everywhere. His framed face high up in a window, his voice floating out of a dancehall as we stood outside in the softly falling snow.

Of course, Berliners were far from alone in mourning him. Huge numbers around the world heard the news with a jolt of sadness. Through the inevitable cloud of rampant narcissism, tear-drenched hysteria and mediocre musings by self-styled experts which the deaths of great musicians so often seem to generate, you could see that some people genuinely cared about Bowie's passing. There was an authenticity to their words. Something about the man or his music had touched them, and their sorrow was real.

As ever, though, there was a backlash. Claims emerged that Bowie was not some lilywhite repository of our collective dreams - did anyone really think he was? - but a man of dubious appetites, at least in the past. Apparently, he had sex with under-age girls in Los Angeles in the Seventies. The girls in question were known as the Baby Groupies, and one of them, Lori Maddox, had already spoken about her experiences with Bowie as a 13-year-old. Then, of course, there was the backlash against the backlash, with vitriolic Bowie-mourners lambasting those who dared to point out their dead hero's iniquities and imperfections.

What made the whole thing even more complicated was that Maddox, inconveniently for some, clearly did not consider herself a victim. "You need to understand that I didn't think of myself as under-age," she said. "I was a model. I was in love. That time of my life was so much fun. It was a period in which everything seemed possible. I saw the greatest music ever. I got to hang out with some of the most amazing, most beautiful, most charismatic men in the world. Am I going to regret this? No."

Yet, however Maddox thought of herself then or later, the uncomfortable truth remains that she was just 13 years old.

So what's a Bowie fan to do? Blow out the mourning candles and dump his records in the bin because he allegedly once slept with children? It's an interesting conundrum, and one reinforced in my own mind when, flicking through old records in a Berlin flea-market, I came across Gary Glitter's 1973 hit single I'm The Leader Of The Gang (I Am). The musician was later convicted and jailed for a string of child sex offences. I didn't buy the record, needless to say. Why? Because the song was dire, always was, and besides, it seemed somehow tainted.

But this in itself was a double standard. I'd have snapped up a Bowie record good and fast if I'd found one. As the writer Julie Burchill has pointed out: "It can't be a crime when rubbish entertainers sleep with children, and all fine and dandy when great ones do." True enough. All the same, I have no intention of stopping listening to Bowie, or - my latest self-indulgence - looking up pictures of his incredible suits.

The easiest way to side-step the issue is to say that, unlike Glitter, Bowie was never convicted of any crime. You could also try and argue that there's a big difference between a predatory paedophile actively in pursuit of children and a man who once slept with underage girls, as well as all sorts of other people - Bowie's sexual proclivities were famously diverse - but you'd be on pretty dodgy moral ground with that one.

No, what's better, I think, is to actively disengage with the idea that the artists we admire must be entirely admirable people. To fetishise them is to drain them of their humanity just as much as if we were to demonise them. The American feminist writer Camille Paglia once defended The Rolling Stones' song Under My Thumb - that shameless whoop of delight at subjugating a woman - as sexist but still a fabulous song. So it is.

In the same way Bowie may not have been a hero, but he made great art. That should be enough.
Luis Sorens widow, Jugita Hemrom (right), stands with their children, Shyamoli, 13, and Joy, 8, in front of their home in Chopra, a village in northwestern Bangladesh.

Bangladesh police have many questions and few answers as they investigate the brutal killing of an aboriginal Christian farmer in the northwestern district of Naogaon.

The burned body of Luis Soren, 40, a member of the Santal minority, was discovered in a rice paddy near his home on Jan. 9, a day after he went to meet friends in a neighboring village.

Sorens head was injured, and his hand and legs were tied with the shirt and lungi he was wearing, according to police. Mahfuzur Rahman, a medical officer at the hospital where an autopsy was performed, said that Soren had been strangled.

We have yet to get any clue to the cause of the murder. The place is very peaceful and almost crime-free. This is no doubt a cold-blooded murder, investigating officer Abdur Razzaq told a correspondent from BenarNews, who traveled to the district where the killing occurred.

He was carried to the paddy field after the murder; he was not killed there, Razzaq added.

Niamatpur Police officer-in-charge Obaidul Haque said more than one person was involved.

This is premeditated. Burning a human body is a matter of strong nerve. No ordinary man can do it, Haque said.

My heart sank with fear

Chopra, Sorens home village in Naogaons Niamatpur sub-district, is about 340 km (210 miles) from Dhaka. It sits in the middle of rice paddies, and is connected with an unpaved main road by a narrow strip of land (pictured).

During rainy seasons, the 35 Christian and Santal families in the village must walk in order to leave the village.

Sorens widow Jugita Hemrom, 30, said she and her husband had worked in a paddy field until 4 p.m. on Jan. 8. They ate, and then her husband left, saying he was going to the next village, Jabripara, to drink wine. He promised to return early.

Soren often went to Jabripara, about a kilometer from his house, to drink with friends there.

He did not come even after 8 p.m. I went out and asked others about his whereabouts, but nobody saw him. I could not sleep as he never did this, Hemrom told BenarNews.

In the morning, she and Sorens brothers searched for him. At around 4 p.m., villagers told them that a burned body was found in a paddy field in Jabripara.

My heart sank with an unknown fear lest the body was my mans. I told my daughter to go, but she refused. I pressed her and she accompanied me to the spot. By the time I reached there, the police had packed the body to take it to the station, Hemrom said.

Just looking at his feet and a piece of the shirt, I recognized that he was my man. Me and my daughter started screaming, she said.

Land grab?

Sorens parents converted to Catholicism before he was born. The family home sits adjacent to the local Catholic Church (pictured).

Hemrom suggested that Muslim extremists were behind the murder, a theory dismissed by a local priest and police, who said a land dispute could be to blame.

We are still confused about why he was killed, Hemrom said. We have been living peacefully with our Muslim brothers in the adjacent Musolman Para.

She said she would struggle to feed the couples two children, Shyamoli, 13, and Joy, 8.

I will not file any case as I have no wealth, Hemrom said, adding, Allah would try the killers.

The Rev. William Mermu said Soren had no issues with anyone.

We cannot assert at this stage that the militants killed him. The Christians in Niamatpur have not received any threats from Islamists. Again, land related disputes can be a cause. So, we want a fair investigation on the murder, he said.

Soren sold most of his land for 120,000 takas (U.S. $1,520) and repaired their house. Neighbor Somoy Soren, 60, said he heard that people had tried to take the rest of Luis Sorens land.

The family members would not tell anything to you or police for fear, he said.

Police agreed that a land dispute could be the cause.

We will examine whether he was killed for land-related disputes and what his wife may not know, said Haque, the Niamatpur Police officer-in-charge.

Fazle Hossain Badsha, the chairman of a parliamentary caucus on indigenous people in Bangladesh, said that the Santal and other aboriginal people in the northwestern districts have been subjected to attacks from powerful local people who try to take their land.

The state must protect them, he said.
Ghalib Guru, 16, dreams about becoming a doctor, a dream shared by his father who was executed for his role in an attack on the Indian Parliament in 2001.

For Ghalib Guru, the turning point in his life came when he met his father Afzal for the last time.

Afzal Guru went to the gallows several months later for his alleged part in a deadly attack on the Indian parliament in 2001, but that final encounter between father and son inspired Ghalib to strive for a dignified existence.

It was a very brief meeting in August 2012 inside Delhis Tihar Jail. It lasted no more than 20 minutes, recalled Ghalib, now 16, while speaking to BenarNews at his home in Sopore, a town in Indian-controlled Kashmir.

I remember he kept repeating over and over that I must study hard to shape my career, and that if I am unable to, I must at least grow up to be a good human being. I can never forget his words, Ghalib said.

Almost three years after Afzal Guru was hanged on Feb. 9, 2013, Ghalib says hes a step closer to fulfilling his fathers dream.

This month, Ghalib, a student at the S.R.M. Welkin Higher Secondary School, scored an impressive 474 marks out of 500 in the 10th grade Jammu and Kashmir Board of School Examination, ranking 19th in the state.

In India, these exams are roughly equivalent to a General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) in the United Kingdom or a high school diploma in the United States. They are important for admission to university or professional programs.

Ghalib aspires to be a doctor. He credits his mother, 38-year-old Tabasum, for keeping him focused on his studies even under the most trying circumstances.

My father wanted to be a doctor. He was preparing for medical school when circumstances forced him to give up on his dream. I want to fulfil that dream for him, he said.

Fathers execution

Ghalib was 2 years old in 2002 when Afzal Guru was convicted of playing a central role in the Dec. 13, 2001 attack by suspected Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militants on the parliamentary complex in New Delhi.

Guru, accused of providing logistics and hideouts to the suspected terrorists, was sentenced to death for the attack that resulted in the deaths of 14 people, including eight security personnel and all five attackers.

Gurus controversial conviction and subsequent execution more than 10 years later triggered widespread debate across the country. Human rights groups blamed his conviction on an unfair trial. Indias Supreme Court admitted that the trial had relied on circumstantial evidence.

In a 2006 interview with Indian journalist Vinod Jose, Guru claimed he was forced into signing a confession after being subjected to torture, which included being beaten for hours and jolted with electric shocks. He told the journalist that police had threatened to hurt his family if he didnt confess.

Only hope

Ghulam Mohammad Bohru, 73, Ghalibs maternal grandfather, believes Guru was innocent but was executed only to satisfy the collective consciousness of the nation.

Afzals execution was very hard on our family. But we have somehow been able to let go of the past and move on, with the only hope that we are able to provide his son with a good education so that Afzals desire to see him grow up to be a doctor is realized, Bohru told BenarNews.

Ghalibs mother, Tabasum, said her son was attached to his father even though all their interactions took place inside the prisons meeting room.

Many times, I would find Ghalib extremely disturbed when TV news reports referred to his father as a traitor or a terrorist. But I always tried to urge him to stay brave and focus on his studies, reminding him of his fathers last words to him, she told BenarNews.

In response to questions about his fathers conviction and execution, Ghalib said, Theres no point delving in the past. Whats happened has happened. I must look ahead.

Last letter

From his study, the teenager then took out a letter that was written in Urdu and neatly preserved in an envelope.

This is my fathers letter to me. I received it in the post four days after he was gone. Even today, these words help me find courage, Ghalib said, as he began to read from it.

By the time this letter reaches you, I may not be around. Please do not mourn my death. Continue to live with respect and dignity.

Please remember what I said to you when we last met, my brave son. I want to see you become a good doctor, and more importantly, a good human being. I am sure you will fulfil my desire one day.

Take good care of yourself and your mother, and never let her feel my absence in life.


For Immediate Release, January 21, 2016 Contact:

Ben Luckett, Appalachian Mountain Advocates, (304) 645-0125

bluckett@appalmad.org, Hannah Weigard, Appalachian Voices, hannah@appvoices.org Anne Havemann, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, anne@chesapeakeclimate.org Kirk Bowers, Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club, kirk.bowers@sierraclub.org Jared M. Margolis, Center for Biological Diversity, (971) 717-6404, jmargolis@biologicaldiversity.org Forest Service Denies Atlantic Coast Pipeline Route ROANOKE, Va. --- The U.S. Forest Service today formally denied the Atlantic Coast Pipelines (ACP) application for a special use permit. This denial is likely to seriously delay the project. The ACP must provide a new route or system alternatives before it can proceed. As planned, the pipeline would run across 550 miles through West Virginia, Virginia and North Carolina. It would be larger in diameter than the Keystone XL. Approximately 40 to 50 miles of the ACP would cut through the Washington and Monongahela national forests. The pipeline would cut a large and permanent clearcut throughout the entire length of the pipeline, causing dramatic forest fragmentation through some of the most high-quality forest habitat in our region. Ben Luckett, staff attorney with Appalachian Mountain Advocates, said: Were thrilled the Forest Service followed through on its duty to protect the forests. Dominions arrogance in trying to force its project into an entirely inappropriate area is shocking. The Forest Services basis for denying the special use permit is the proposed routes likely impacts on the Cow Knob and Cheat Mountain salamanders and the West Virginia northern flying squirrel. The Forest Services regulations and the relevant forest plans prohibit the agency from authorizing any activities that would harm those rare and endangered species. It rejected ACPs contention that using a technique called horizontal directional drilling to go under Shenandoah Mountain would avoid these impacts. This project has been fast-tracked from the beginning with no regard for the treasure trove of natural resources in its path, as todays decision by the Forest Service clearly shows, nor the extent of the impact on communities and property owners, said Hannah Wiegard, Virginia campaign coordinator with Appalachian Voices. She noted that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which must issue a permit for the project, had sent ACP a 30-page notification last month detailing scores of deficiencies in the companys permit application. This denial also sets the tone for the Forest Services forthcoming response to the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP), a similarly sized pipeline routed through West Virginia and Virginia. The MVP is proposed to cut across the Jefferson National Forest, land managed by the same branch of the Forest Service that issued todays route denial. The MVP threatens many of the same devastating impacts on prime forest habitat, Luckett said. The Forest Service is expected to comment on the MVP proposal in the coming months. Several conservation groups oppose these proposed pipelines not only because of the direct forest impacts, but also for the role they would play in delaying renewable energy development. Billions of dollars of new natural gas infrastructure is proposed for our region, said Kate Asquith, program director for Appalachian Mountain Advocates. Dominions ill-conceived plan to sink that massive investment in gas would lock us into continued reliance on dirty, climate-altering fossil fuels for decades. Every dollar invested in this outdated and destructive infrastructure could be invested in clean, renewable energy instead. Kirk Bowers, Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club, said: The Virginia Chapter of the Sierra Club applauds the action of the US Forest Service. We support their efforts to keep our national forests and our mountains from being devastated by large fracked gas pipelines. Our national forests were reserved for the enjoyment of all citizens of the states and they provide recreational and economic base for our communities. These pipelines fragment our forests, jeopardize the protection of endangered species, and cross some of the most highly sensitive areas on the East Coast. Anne Havemann, general counsel of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network said: We applaud the Forest Service for denying this permit and recognizing the threat this massive pipeline poses to the unique wildlife the agency is entrusted to protect. As more details emerge about the devastating impacts the pipeline will have on Virginians health and natural heritage, and on the world's climate, the pressure will only grow for other agencies to follow the Forest Services lead and put the public interest ahead of Dominion's profits. This pipeline would be an unmitigated disaster for rare wildlife like the Cow Knob salamander, and would intensify climate disruption by increasing fracking and continuing our reliance on fossil fuels, said Jared Margolis, an attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity who focuses on the impacts of energy development on endangered species. While it is heartening to see the Forest Service step up to ensure that vital habitats on the George Washington National Forest are protected, we do not need alternative routes for this project. What we need is to stop creating more dirty fossil fuel infrastructure and keep it in the ground.


For Immediate Release, January 22, 2016



Contact: Clare Lakewood, (510) 844-7121, clakewood@biologicaldiversity.org New Rules Won't Protect California Water From Oil Industry's Toxic Injections SACRAMENTO, Calif. The oil industry will still be allowed to endanger Californias water supplies with underground injections of toxic fluid under draft regulations just proposed by state oil officials. The draft rules come after the states Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources admitted allowing oil companies to drill more than 2,000 underground injection wells into protected aquifers across California (interactive map). The states new rules actually weaken existing law aimed at protecting Californias precious water supplies from oil industry contamination, said Clare Lakewood, an attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity. California oil officials have dragged their heels for years in proposing new regulations to correct their blatant violations of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act. Now theyve released rules that dont fix these dangerous deficiencies and in some ways actually increase the threat oil company injections pose to our underground drinking water. The new rules are part of the states Underground Injection Control program  the same program that failed to prevent the massive gas leak from a gas-storage well near L.A.s Porter Ranch neighborhood. During the Aliso Canyon disaster, its been appalling to see the Brown administration trying to give the oil and gas industry another free pass to endanger our water and our safety, Lakewood said. The Center has identified the following major loopholes and weaknesses in the draft regulations: Section 1724.10 would allow an operator to inject at pressures high enough to break up the formation rock if the operator demonstrates conclusively that the fluid will remained confined to the injection zone. The regulations do not state what would amount to a conclusive demonstration. This is an attempt to legalize ongoing steam-injection practices that state officials have admitted fracture the formation. It is a step backward because it is currently illegal to inject at pressures high enough to fracture the formation. It is also inconsistent with federal regulations that prohibit injection well operators from creating fractures in the confining zone adjacent to protected groundwater outside the stimulation phase. The definition of freshwater is overly narrow and will leave aquifers that are protected under federal law at risk of contamination. For instance, the regulations generally require the well casing to ensure that freshwater zones are protected, and require oilfield waste to be disposed of in such a manner as to not cause damage to freshwater aquifers. The narrow proposed definition is an attempt to circumvent protections provided by federal law. The area of review (AoR) for a steam injection well is the greater of either the calculated AoR or 300 feet. This means that the AoR may be significantly smaller than the standard quarter-mile that we understand is currently being used as the standard AoR for steam injection wells. Steam injection is inherently dangerous, and caused a fatal accident in California several years ago. Lessening the AoR is a step backward, not forward. Operators would not be required to analyze injection fluid for toxic and cancer-causing chemicals that are commonly used in fracking fluid. The regulations include loopholes that would allow operators to continue to hide even the information that is required if they claim it is infeasible to provide it. The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 990,000 members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.
Design Indaba is just a few weeks away, but the hype has already started - especially with Most Beautiful Object in SA (MBOISA) 2016 well underway.

In 2012 it was the Lily Pad Ring by Kirsten Goss. In 2015 Kirstenbosch's suspended walkway, affectionately called the Boomslang, was the public choice from the year's 12 nominations for MBOISA.

And 2016 may well see something even more esoteric walking away with the title of Most Beautiful Object in South Africa (MBOISA) - anything from a Wasabi-spiced vegetarian dish to a simple shaped wooden skateboard.

This year's 10 MBOISA nominees

But what exactly is MBOISA and how does it work? Who gets to decide and have the final say in what is truly beautiful design? None of us and all of us. Let me explain...

Form & function = true beauty

Running for just shy of a decade, MBOISA started in 2007 as a way to engage this very conversation on the notion of beauty, and to question what it means in terms of South African culture. The first-ever winner of the title was the Condom Applicator by Roelf Mulder - an interesting choice that brought to light the consideration that beauty doesn't merely lie in aesthetics but also in function and role within our culture.

And as MBOISA typically has a very large media presence and campaign, it's not just the winning object that benefits. Exposure for all the nominated items is significant, but of course the winner benefits the most from huge exposure on traditional as well as social media. Plus there's the physical 'win' in the form of a 'trophy' of sorts that's awarded, as well as the bragging rights.

It's definitely a major coup. Megan Wolstenholme, executive producer of Design Indaba, tells us more...

1. How does MBOISA celebrate 'beautiful design' in South Africa?

Wolstenholme: The notion of beauty differs so greatly from one person to another. It depends so much on someone's beliefs, upbringing, culture, location, exposure to media and taste in general. MBOISA asks a diverse panel of influential South African cultural commentators to examine design in our country and nominate what they feel is the most beautiful. Their decisions are based on either an object's aesthetics, functionality or the thoughts and feelings it evokes. For 2016 there are 10 nominated objects ranging from social development initiatives to products and art projects. The nominated objects celebrate beauty by way of their diversity. Anyone in South Africa would be able to relate at least one of the objects to their own individualised notion of what makes something beautiful

2. Explain the importance of cultural commentary, especially in a country as diverse as ours.

Wolstenholme: It's important to acknowledge the differences in opinion. To take the country's cultural temperature, as well as to gain a better understanding as to why there are such differing opinions. As I mentioned above, the notion of beauty is so varied from person to person because of traditions, culture, beliefs, locations, history, upbringing and taste. These are things that are exceptionally diverse within South Africa, so we tend to have a diverse opinion on what makes something beautiful too.

3. Then looking to this year in particular, tell us about the calibre of the 10 nominated entries.

Wolstenholme: This year, same as every year really, all the nominations are exceptional. They are magnificently diverse and feature both known and relatively unknown projects/products. There is something for everyone. There is not one nomination that would be questioned as to why it's there. They are all a beautiful example of what South African designers are creating in our country.

View the video below of the Design Indaba team's nomination: The Twenty Journey, which showcases the irony and anger of beauty in South Africa.

Inspirational to say the least. Creative South Africans can get involved by visiting the travelling exhibitions, which started at Rosebank Mall in Johannesburg from 12 to 18 January and will be coming to Durban at Gateway Theatre of Shopping from 26 January to 2 February, ending the run at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town from 8 to 21 February. If you like what you see, put your voting power into play either through the www.designindaba.com/MBOISA official website, via the Design Indaba Festival App, or via SMSing 'MBOISA' + your vote to 40619, at a cost of R1.50 per SMS.

So look through this year's nominations and get voting - we're so keen to see what's selected as SA's most beautiful object for 2016!
South Africa's premier digital marketing showcase, the IAB Bookmark Awards, continues to grow in both stature and popularity, as is evidenced by a record number of entries for this year's event, to be held at the Turbine Hall in Newtown, Johannesburg on 3 March 2016.

"We are delighted with both the quantity and the quality of the entrants to this year's event," says Josephine Buys, CEO of IAB SA. "Despite the fact that entrants had a shorter time in which to submit their entries than last year, the number of entries increased by over 12% year-on-year. This highlights the importance brands are placing on digital marketing to reach their consumers.

"Before entries for the 2016 Bookmarks opened, we embarked on a consultation process with all industry stakeholders to revisit the entry categories and sub-categories. This process resulted in extensive changes to the structure of the awards, adjusting to the dynamic nature of digital marketing and ensuring that the awards remain topical, representative, and inclusive."

According to recent Effective Measure statistics, close to 37 million unique browsers access the Internet on their PCs and mobile devices in South Africa every month. In this vast market, there are untold opportunities, but also the challenge to stand out from the rest and engage the right target audience. The ones who succeed in this endeavour are the ones who the Bookmarks seek to acknowledge.

"The IAB Digital Summit and Bookmark Awards encourage international best practice within the local industry, which ensures that South Africa remains relevant and competitive in terms of digital marketing.

"We are excited about the amount of support we have received from the industry this year, both in terms of the IAB Digital Summit and the Bookmark Awards. We look forward to hosting two successful events, which bring together local and international thought leaders in the industry, and which we believe will be of real value to each and every person who attends," says Buys.

The deadline for early-bird Summit tickets is 31 January, and tickets are selling fast. Book now to avoid disappointment: http://iabsa.net/digitalsummit/.

For more information on the IAB SA Bookmark Awards, or ticket bookings, visit: http://iabsa.net/bookmarks/.




I've given up the fight against 'verb-ing', as you can see. I've accepted that language evolves, is dynamic, and that these are good things.

It was a long process, from 'purist' to 'progressive', but well worth the introspection and existential struggle.

However...

Not in this universe, or any other, will I ever be able to surrender to the regressive communication that is so ubiquitous online. I refuse to submit, to write content aimed at the lowest common denominator, the 'man in the street', who, if one examines the evidence of online marketing, appears to be on an intellectual par with Forrest Gump... but with a lower EQ.

I believe in the power of belief.

In other words, I believe that if you expect people to consume your insultingly simplified and sensationalist content, they will evolve to become the target audience you have stereotyped them as being. If one only eats fast food and drinks soda; one loses the taste for an exquisitely crafted meal and a delicately bouqueted wine.

(There I go with the verb-ing again.)

The world swings to and fro, like a pendulum. I believe the era of clickbait is drawing to a blessed close. And further, I believe that those of us who opt for the high road now - paved with sincere and thoughtful copy - will be ahead of the curve, boasting truly loyal customers and satisfied clients... and not first against the wall, come the revolution.

Do you really want to be writing content that insults your audience?

And if they aren't insulted by it, do you want them to be your audience in the first place?

In my previous iteration, as an English teacher, I discovered that one can teach a 13-year-old not only to understand, but also to really appreciate and marvel at, a Shakespearean sonnet. Many colleagues were skeptical. Some even scoffed. But it bears repeating: people live up - or down - to your expectations. It's known as the Pygmalion effect (and I won't insult you by explaining where the name comes from).

Proof!

Many years ago, Professor Robert Rosenthal and Lenore Jacobson conducted a study at a school in California. All the students were given an IQ test at the beginning of the study. However, the results of this test were not used. Instead, the teachers were given a list of randomly selected names, and told that these students were the 'gifted' individuals, according to the test.

At the end of the study, all the students were again tested. I'm sure you can guess what happened.

The students who were labelled as 'gifted' performed far better in the second test, purely because of the way they had been treated by their teachers.

Rosenthal concluded that something as simple as our attitude or approach can make a huge difference to the way people respond to us. In other words, if teachers tacitly expected exceptional perception from certain students, their expectations were likely to be met.

So... let's make the world a more enlightened place, by writing content we're proud to put our names to, both ethically and linguistically. Without becoming pompous, let's give our audience the benefit of the intellectual doubt.

I look forward to seeing you join the revolution.
Czech Education Secretary distances herself from a UNHCR campaign for schools telling children that even they could become refugees

22. 1. 2016

cas cteni < 1 minuta





Czech Education Secretary Katerina Valachova said she and her ministry has nothing in common with an educational campaign prepared for Czech schools by UNHCR and the META organization. The campaign is based on Swedish material and contains a comic and a film about the journey of an Afghan boy and a Kurdish girl to Sweden. Another film tells a fictitious story in which ten million Czechs must leave the Czech Republic after a nuclear catastrophe. They move to a fictitious Asian country where their arrival is met with protests. The Czech refugees are confronted with the problem of cultural integration into an alien country.

"I will not allow under any circumstances that children should be frightened like this," said the Education Secretary, adding that the material will not be distributed in Czech schools.

Miroslava Nemcova, an MP for the right-wing Civic Democratic Party (ODS) protested against what she saw as a "multicultural" content of the campaign.

Source in Czech HERE

0
It is alleged that Ko Tun Min Khant, the chairman of the Rakhine Student Union (Dagon University branch), participated in a demonstration protesting against the new education law's decentralisation of universities' authority on 30 March 2014.

The demonstration against the new education bill's decentralisation of universities' authority took place in front of the U Tun Lin Estate at the Hledan junction near to Yangon University in Rangoon, the former Burmese capital.

Ko Tun Min Khant, who is a final-year student in the law department at Dagon University said: "I am one of four students facing a court case. The on-duty officer from Kamar Yut Police Station informed me about it on the phone. He asked me to report to the police station and apply for necessary exemptions from the arrest,

The other three accused students have been identified as Zeyar Lwin, Pai Thu and Nan Ei, all also from Dagon University.

Ko Tun Min Khant reiterated his stand against the prosecutions and said that he and the others being prosecuted by the police would fight their cases in the courts.

Edited in English by Mark inkey
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I can say I saw this coming because, really, I did.

Senator Pat Roberts (R-KS) now says he will block the confirmation of Eric Fanning as the next Secretary of the Army until President Obama leaves office.

The hold will stay until we can get past this year, the senator said. [...] I want to stress that its nothing personal, Roberts said. Its just the way it is. Fanning is widely considered to be qualified to be the Army secretary. He has been deputy undersecretary of the Navy, undersecretary of the Air Force, acting secretary of the Air Force and chief of staff to Defense Secretary Ash Carter.

As we've been over several times before, Senator Roberts will not lift his hold on Fanning's confirmation unless the Obama administration pledges not to transfer any Guantanamo Bay detainees to the United States.

More specifically, Roberts is concerned that transferring detainees to the Leavenworth maximum security in Kansas will make the state a target for a non-existent terrorist strike force that will somehow penetrate our borders in the stealth aircraft they do not possess and then covertly travel underwater and rescue detainees in a daring raid.

I wish that were an exaggeration, but it really isn't.

For Senator Roberts to say this is "just the way it is" is horsehit because the Secretary of the Army is not responsible for managing the naval base at Guantanamo Bay or the detainees held there. This is Senator Roberts holding Eric Fanning and the Obama administration responsible for the paranoid delusions in his own head.

Eric Fanning would have been the first openly-gay secretary of the Army if he was confirmed. Leavenworth has only seen two high-profile prisoner escapes in the last 100 years.
There was a mirrored symmetry to the news last week that reflects badly  but not unfairly  on American agriculture.

On Jan. 18, Farm Futures Magazine released its updated presidential surveys among farmers for both the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucus and the overall United States. The clear leaders among farmers who said theyd vote GOP in either Republican contest were billionaire Donald Trump and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.

Its not too surprising that 66 percent of Iowas farmers and 59 percent of all U.S. farmers surveyed by the magazine chose two, largely untested political ideologues with little-to-no record in American farm and food policy.

Poll after poll, after all, shows the nations Republicans collectively favor Trump and Cruz by as much or more than all the other GOP candidates combined.

The reason, say political pros, is that this years GOP presidential race is being framed as a fight between simple and complex. Cruz and Trump offer simple solutions  build a wall; bomb till the desert glows  for costly, complex problems like illegal immigration and terrorism. The other candidates offer government  complex, costly  ideas.

The electorate prefers simple and cheap because, say the pundits, it understands simple and cheap.

Farmers and ranchers are often the same. Sure, almost all are far more deeply involved in government (crop insurance, soil and water conservation, federal grain standards, food safety laws) than other Americans, but, hey, they like simple and cheap, too.

So Trump and Cruzs simple is solid in farm country.

Simple also describes how Big Ag votes for U.S. presidents. Farm Futures explained it this way: (Our) survey is dominated by commercial-sized, full-time farmers where  about 85% or more of these growers typically vote for Republican candidates at the presidential level.

Wow, if elections in farm country really are that simple  virtually every GOP candidate is A-OK in Big Ags eyes  why would any candidate know the difference between, say, coffee and CAFOs or ethanol and your neighbor Ethel when one party already has 85 out of 100 votes in its pocket without needing to know, well, anything?

This simple, sad electoral fact explains why most farm and food policy discussions are over before they begin: theres simply nothing to talk about because no one needs to know anything about farming and food to be elected.

That lack of public discourse, however, has created a policy vacuum that Big Ag is very happy to fill. Today, more than ever before, just a handful of farm and commodity groups drive nearly all policy discussions at the local, state and federal level.

By design, however, this narrow policy base delivers narrow-minded policies. For example, despite overwhelming consumer support to label the origin of meat and poultry sold in the U.S.  Country of Origin Labeling, or COOL  a few farm and commodity groups successfully held it at arms length until they finally strangled it with global trading rules.

Some of those same groups worked to ditch the Waters of the U.S. rule even as consumer anger over water quality rises to a fever pitch. Others continue to fight any state effort to label food content, and a few even continue to claim that climate change is either a hoax or conspiracy or both.

None of these simple solutions solves any of the underlying problems farmers and ranchers face now or down the road. Consumers will always want to know where their food comes from and will always want its ingredients labeled. Moreover, ditching any clean water effort by any government or public interest group only invites more consumer anger and more costly court fights.

In the end, farmers and ranchers will lose on every one of these issues because, as they well know, the market  consumers, voters, eaters  is always right.

Until then, however, well continue to believe that our illegal immigration problem will be solved by building a wall that theyll pay for and well end todays brutal terrorism by carpet bombing somewhere, maybe everywhere, until we find out if sand can glow in the dark.

Sure, thatll work.
A guest lecturer to an elementary student is like a cool aunt or uncle to a child at home  in either case, the child is excited and more likely to listen when a different adult is in charge, said Freeman Public Schools sixth grade teacher Bob Floth.

Its part of why he was excited to bring in a Senior Education Specialist of Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD) as the guest lecturer for fourth, fifth and sixth grade science classes on Wednesday. Floth teaches fifth and sixth grade science.

As one of two education specialists of NPPDs Energy Education program, Chad Johnson travels to schools around the state giving lectures that both meet state education standards and send what he says is the ultimate message: safety.

Fifth graders got a lesson about how electricity works from the charismatic Johnson, with jokes and puns sprinkled in.

It was really fun, fifth grader Jalena Salinas said with a smile. She agreed she enjoyed having Johnson as the instructor because Its another person to learn more from.

Jalena said her favorite part of the class was the hands-on portion, when she and a partner took turns making a Christmas light bulb light up by churning a handheld generator.

It was pretty cool to see how it turned on, Jalena said.

Science is Jalenas favorite subject because we get to do a lot of experiments, she said.

Vocabulary terms such as generator, conductor, load and watt were not only verbally explained but also visually, by illustrations on the white board, experiments with the generators and other examples provided by Johnson.

Were lucky to have the resources to be able to provide hands-on work in the classrooms, but its always nice to have someone else come in and bring in things like the hand-held generators so that I dont have to go buy special things in order to teach lessons, Floth said.

This is the second year Johnson has serviced Freeman with his lectures, which are free to the school. Floth called the service an awesome resource. The school gets its power from Norris Public Power District, which buys its power from NPPD. Both utility companies collaborate in the educational program.

I do this because, A, the students are learning state standards and, B, because of the community-school connection, Floth said. The kids see how what theyre learning is applicable in the real world. They see, Oh, this is what I could go do, or, This is who I could work for.

Johnsons thoughts on the program were similar to Floths.

For one, Im able to bring in equipment that a lot of schools dont have in classrooms and give students different experiences that way, Johnson said. Its fun to have a different person come in with a different way of teaching and to have these partnerships between the schools and us.

The fun part for me is that I get to be the cool guy who comes into the classroom.

The kids guessed how many digital switches, or transistors, are in a modern cell phone. Four? One hundred? One million? Nope. The answer is more than four billion.

Messages of safety were inserted throughout Johnsons lecture about electricity.

Your body is a conductor, Johnson said. When electricity travels through your body, nothing good happens.

Several students were surprised to hear that more accidents occur at wind farms than at nuclear power plants.

But, the single most dangerous place for electrical power accidents is at home, he said. The most important thing for you to learn from this is that every time you use electricity, you should stop, think and choose to be safe.

There was no shortage of jokes.

Electricity behaves like a fifth grader, Johnson said to the class. Its lazy. It hates to do work. And its always trying to get grounded.

The sixth graders learned about energy and were shown examples of the seven types of energy  sound, radiant, thermal, chemical, nuclear, mechanical and electrical  and which ones are kinetic or potential or both.

Floth said he inserts regularly in the school newspaper that he is always looking for local experts of their fields to give guest lectures in Freeman classrooms. He said parents who are engineers have provided lessons to students.

Freeman also uses distance learning courses and other services from the Educational Service Unit 5, as do Beatrice Public Schools and several others within the ESU 5 district.

Johnson said the NPPD Energy Education Program serves 200 schools and 10,000 students annually and that the experts of the company are working with the Nebraska Department of Education to hash out new science standards, which will go into effect in the next year or two.
Plan-jumping becoming an annual expectation for many

RALEIGH - As the Jan. 31 deadline to obtain a health insurance policy for 2016 on the federal health exchange looms, enrollment has grown slightly, but individuals signing up for Obamacare in 2016 should expect to pay premiums that are between 20 percent and 30 percent higher than those charged last year.According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid services, as of mid-January 563,830 individuals in North Carolina have enrolled in Obamacare plans . The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said 560,357 were enrolled in the federal health insurance marketplace in 2015.Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina is hiking its rates for 380,000 customers by an average of 32.5 percent. The state's largest insurer of the individual market abolished some plans in the Charlotte and Triangle regions, directing some 55,000 people to seek new coverage in smaller provider networks.Coventry Health Care of the Carolinas, an Aetna company, will raise rates an average 23.6 percent for 117,000 policyholders. United Health Care is increasing the average rate paid by its 86,223 customers 20 percent in 2016.According to the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index , 20.4 percent of North Carolinians had no health insurance in 2013. By the middle of 2015, that fell to 14.7 percent.The Kaiser Family Foundation puts the number of uninsured eligible for an individual Obamacare plan at 1,138,000. Of those, 25 percent would qualify for a health policy premium tax credit; 40 percent would not. Another 21 percent are in the coverage gap that would have been eligible for Medicaid had the state expanded that federal entitlement program.Teresa Parrot of Durham said her experience with Affordable Care Act plans has been disastrous.she said.Parrot was 62 when her job was eliminated in 2013 and she went into early retirement. She found a policy on the federal exchange for a $129 monthly premium, though she received substantial subsidies.but was able to buy her prescriptions under the plan, Parrot said.In 2015 her cost for the same policy jumped to more than $300 a monthshe said.She switched to a less expensive BCBSNC policy, which ended up being the only Blue Cross plan her doctor would not accept.Parrot said.and meanwhile the government was still paying for her tax credits.She turns 65 in March and will enroll in Medicare. To avoid the $695 penalty for being uninsured, she sought the cheapest plan available for January and February.Parrot said.said Katherine Restrepo, health policy analyst for the John Locke Foundation.Parrot's plan-jumping is characteristic of Obamacare's disruption in the health care market.said Duke research scholar Chris Conover, who monitors the Affordable Care Act's implementation and impacts.Even the administration, which once notoriously claimed those who liked their plan could keep their plan, now saysConover said.he said. "especially when a consumer can't keep the same doctor.Devon Herrick, senior fellow and health economist at the Dallas-based National Center for Policy Analysis, said Texas, like North Carolina, is losing more money on the exchange plans than average.Herrick said. Those earning less than 250 percent of the federal poverty level get cost-sharing subsidies in addition to premium tax credits.Because health status and wealth are correlated to a large degree,Herrick said. Many exchange enrollees were uninsured and may not have seen a doctor in years.Herrick said.Gaming of the enrollment rules further complicates matters. While there are specific open enrollment periods, they were extended in 2014 and 2015 to let more people enroll.Herrick said.he said. With nearly 30 special enrollment categories,Indeed, compared with 2014, Blue Cross reported that from January to June 2015 its ACA patients had more chronic illnesses and higher than expected demand for expensive health care services, emergency department visits jumped 27 percent, prescription drug costs rose 33 percent, and most who dropped coverage used expensive medical services before terminating their insurance.Herrick said.
Press Release:

Contact: Crystal Feldman

Crystal Feldman govpress@nc.gov

Raleigh, N.C. Governor Pat McCrory said he is pleased work has begun to place a monument honoring African Americans at the State Capitol.Governor McCrory said.Last week, a planning committee made up of members from the North Carolina African American Heritage Commission and the North Carolina Historical Commission held their first meeting in the Governor's Conference Room at the State Capitol.The committee set a goal of holding a series of public meetings throughout the state to gain feedback on the project. The goal is to hold these meetings during the spring.Also on the committee's to-do list is to identify an artist and a landscape architect to guide the project.On Monday, Governor McCrory will honor Dr. King by attending a MLK Day Breakfast Celebration in Alamance County.On Friday, the governor attended the annual State Employee Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration at First Baptist Church in downtown Raleigh.At that celebration, Governor McCrory honored North Carolina A&T students Angelica Willis, Paul Hammond and Zanetta Tyler for earning the prestigious Apple/HBCU Scholarship. The scholarship includes a three-month internship at Apple's Cupertino, California headquarters and $25,000 to be applied toward their education expenses.The governor also honored two North Carolina families that were pioneers for civil rights in our state.Governor McCrory presented the Order of the Long Leaf Pine posthumously to John and Selelia Griffith of Yancey County. The Griffiths sued the Yancey County School Board in federal court in 1959 to enforce integration provisions of the 1954 Supreme Court Brown v. Board of Education decision. Accepting the state's highest award on behalf of their parents were Patricia Griffith Watkins and John Griffith, Jr.Also honored with the Order of the Long Leaf Pine was longtime Hamlin Drug Company owner John M. Johnson. The award was accepted by Michelle Corbin, Johnson's daughter.The Hamlin Drug Company first opened its doors in downtown Raleigh in 1904 and Johnson, a pharmacist by trade, bought the drug store with a partner in 1957. The governor noted that Hamlin Drug has always welcomed customers through the front door and praised Johnson for his dedication for looking out for the health of his customers for more than five decades.Stanley C. Melvin, Center Director at Pitt Regional Juvenile Detention Center, was awarded the John R. Larkins award, the highest civil rights honor that can be won by a state employee. The award was presented by the Secretary of Administration and Human Relations.
Beaufort County Commissioner Hood Richardson photo by Stan Deatherage

Candidate for mayor, Adam O'Neal, suddenly realized something unusual was going to happen in the Belhaven polling place on election day. A super majority of the Republican poll workers were actively and openly supporting his opponent and the council candidates who opposed having a hospital in the Town of Belhaven. He realized this during the last week of October, only a few days before the election. With less than a week before the election, O'Neal was in a pickle.O'Neal filed charges with the Beaufort County Board of Elections in order to have a fair and unbiased voting place. O'Neal believed those working in the polls should at least in eye of the public be neutral and disinterested.Poll workers are nominated for appointment by both the Democrat and Republican Parties. Generally, the appointments system works by precinct leaders submitting names to the party chairmen and those names who are approved by the county executive committees are then submitted to the Beaufort County Board of elections. Potential poll workers are then screened for appointment by the Board of Elections using state regulations and past performance as a poll worker.In this case the Republican Belhaven Precinct Chairman, Bill Iller, recruited Dianna Lambeth, Karen Fisher and Jimmy Southerland to work the polls. These people were approved by the Republican Party and the Beaufort County Board of Elections.Bill Iller came to Belhaven a couple of years ago where he lives on a boat. His brother, Frank Iller, is a member of the North Carolina House of Representatives from Brunswick County. During the time we were trying to get the Certificate of need laws changed so we could reopen the hospital in Belhaven, Representative Frank Iller carried on an active campaign against Belhaven's interests. He made derogatory statements about Mayor O'Neal on the floor of the House of Representatives and campaigned against the proposed changes in the law..Bill Iller is close friends with Dianna Lambeth who is director of the Belhaven Chamber of Commerce.Jimmy Southerland is a business owner in the Town of Belhaven and has actively campaigned against the hospital and Mayor O'Neal.Karen Fisher has been a participant in lawsuits against the Town of Belhaven and the Mayor.None of these poll workers or Mayor O"Neal's opponent or those who are running for council seats in opposition to the hospital have been able to explain why they are opposed to the hospital. Speculators say opposition could be rooted in race, dislike for conservative Republicans, or their opinion the hospital could fail. The new hospital will be entirely self financed, there will be no liability on the taxpayers of the Town of Belhaven.Most of the activist anti hospital crowd are fairly recent arrivals in Belhaven.O'Neal initiates his complaint on Thursday October 29th and finally, after three tries, gets it perfected on Friday October 30. There are only three days until the election. As required by law, the Board of Elections sets a hearing date for Friday, October 30 at 6:00 PM. All parties are present for the hearing. In addition, Commissioner Frankie Waters is present and supporting the anti hospital group.The Board of Elections Chairman, Jay McRoy officiated. This is a three member board. Other members present were Attorney John Tate and Thomas Payne.With lightning speed and a lot of forethought this board settled their business in less than three minutes. First, they asked Mayor O'Neal if he had given three days notice to each of the people he was complaining about. He replied that he was not aware he was supposed to give them notice because the Director of Elections had not advised him of this requirement. Chairman McRoy said "The Director could not give him legal advice". Mayor O'Neal tried to say something else but Chairman McRoy said he could not say anything else. Obviously .this is an impossible requirement because the hearing would have had to take place Monday at 6;00 PM with the election taking place Tuesday. Got ya. A motion was made to not hear the complaint because of the three days notice issue. The vote was unanimous.Go to Beaufort Observer.net to see the entire 13 minute video.Kellie Hopkins gave no legal advice. She simply followed the statutes in her capacity as Director of Elections. All bureaucrats are expected to direct and assist all persons in complying with the laws rules and regulations. Kellie Hopkins failed to inform Adam O'Neal of all the requirements. There is nothing unusual about, even experts, reworking applications several times. To do otherwise one would need a lawyer to apply for a building permit or even a drivers license.The gross error was made when the Board confused "complaint" with "affidavit". The law says if the person complaining and represents himself by affidavit has to serve the defendants with the affidavit thee days before the hearing. There has never been and affidavit. Listen to the video and you will hear Kelllie Hopkins state that she worked with Adam O'Neal so he could personally make his case before the board. Was Adam O'Neal set up?At the end of the meeting Chairman of the Board of Elections, Jay McRoy, made a statement designed to deceive the public when he said ballots are not hand marked and it is impossible to alter a ballot. This is a false statement. All ballots are marked by hand. Ballots are counted by machine. Should any person have access to a ballot they can deface it or alter the vote. There are stories of poll workers using small pieces of pencil lead stuck to their fingers to alter and void ballots. This is a scary statement to be made by the Chairman of the Board of Elections. Maybe McRoy should resign if this is all he knows about holding elections.What is incredible about confusing a "complaint" with and "affidavit" is board member, John Tate, is a lawyer.There are a lot of ways to look at this situation. The most important is fair elections. There is no question that packing the polls with any single minded faction will ultimately lead to corruption. That is the root cause of why we have so many civil rights and other elections laws on the books.Even with this split in the Republican Party, the Party should champion fair and unbiased elections. Packing the polls only gives a temporary advantage. The public pays a harsh price (sometimes it takes years) but has always seen the light and cleaned house. In this case Republican Bill Iller, the Belhaven Precinct Chairman, has manipulated this situation to obtain an unfair advantage. The Beaufort County Republican Executive Committee failed to oversee a fair and impartial polling place.Two of the three Beaufort County Board of Elections members are Republicans. They are Jay McRoy and John Tate. They were appointed by the Beaufort County Executive Committee with the approval of the State Republican Party and then he State Board of Elections. There is plenty of mud for all to bathe in. The Beaufort County Republican Party failed in protecting it's own. The Board of Elections should want fair and unbiased elections.Let us apply a little common sense to what has become an emotional situation. If the hospital can be reopened at no risk to the citizens or the Town of Belhaven, why should these zealots even care? If you were running the Chamber of Commerce or own a business in Belhaven why not open a hospital. More people will come to Belhaven, there will be 55 new jobs, and that helps all business and citizens. It makes the Chamber Director look good too. Who does the new hospital help and who does it hurt. All of these three people fighting against the hospital have business interests in the Town of Belhaven. These people are really good at shooting themselves in their foot - more than once.The simple truth about the hospital situation is there is no liability to the Town of Belhaven when the hospital reopens. The Town will not have to repay the $6,000,000 loan. It is secured by the hospital property. The $643,000 loan for eminent domain is owed by the new Hospital not the Town.If the hospital is not reopened the Town will loose and estimated $360,000 it has advanced to the hospital to get it restarted. If the hospital opens the town will be repaid either directly or in increased sales taxes, electricity, water and sewer sales.It takes a lot of gall to move into any small town, as this group of Republicans has done, and decide that you can make decisions for its future in spite of what the long term residents want. If three or four more boat people were to show up they would try to drive the natives out and set up their own kingdom.
The political history of Lesotho is punctuated by violent power struggles, military coups and counter-coups, assassinations and arrested development.

The enclave country has been suffering severe political epilepsy going back to Leabua Jonathans seizure of power and abrogation of constitutional rule in 1970. Since then, Lesotho has been the sick-man of SADC, often plunging the region into panic mode. Had it not been for previous prompt intervention by SADC, the Kingdom could have long been counted amongst Africas failed states.

Despite various regional initiatives and interventions to save Lesotho from political and economic abyss, peace and stability has continued to be a rarity. Lesothos situation is of course puzzling because except for politicised military, it does not have pronounced common catalysts of civil disorder in Africa, which often are mineral resource and tribal conflicts.





Effectively, Basotho are one people with limited natural resources save for water. Yet even the dearth of explanations that have been offered by scholars and political scientists, it has proved insufficient to hold a clue into the Kingdoms crises. As we speak, the Kingdom is once again teetering on the brink of collapsing into a failed state.

The task so far facing President Khama as SADC Chair and President Nyusi as the Chairperson of the Organ is once again to try and give political resuscitation to the Kingdom. This would be a major victory, not only for the two Presidents, but also for the region as a whole. But so far, the attitude displayed by Lesothos political leadership is reducing the whole exercise into a practical joke.

Although the political instability in Lesotho is proving to be having multiple causes and intensifiers, the feebleness of state institutions seems to be a leading factor. As a country suffering from a history of repressive military rule, Lesothos political leadership has over the years failed to assert effective oversight and authority over its military.

At the heart of the ongoing political crisis is interference of Lesotho Defence Force (LDF) in political matters. The army is effectively a quasi-political institution that even has known political alignment. The assassination of General Maaparankoe Mahao is a further testimony that LDF is a law unto itself. It directs both military and political affairs in Lesotho and has effectively rendered the political leadership their mere cheerleaders.

Civil-military relations in the Kingdom are so terrible that it would be an exaggeration to say that LDF has become a political burden to the Kingdom. This unprofessional behaviour of the LDF cannot be allowed to continue if SADC wants to restore political order in Lesotho. Without urgent doctrinal and organisational reforms to the LDF, peace and security would continue to be but a fleeting illusion to the Kingdom.

Therefore, SADC needs to pressure Lesothos political leadership to effect those defence and security reforms as recommended by SADC facilitator, Mr. Ramaphosa. But so far this week at the Double Troika, SADC has proven its mojo. The threat of suspending Lesotho from the regional bloc has paid dividends.

At least they have made a U-turn on their hard-line stance on the Phumaphi Commission that was looking into the merciless killing of General Mahao. Initially, Lesothos Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili had refused to receive the report claiming Lieutenant Colonel Tefo Hashatsima, the head of the LDF Special Forces unit, was suing the Commission criminally in the Lesotho High Court because he alleges it showed bias against him when he appeared before it.

Just imagine, a Lieutenant Colonel was threatening to throw the whole region into crisis, this cannot be acceptable. If SADC wants to save Lesotho from plunging into a failed state, it would have to flex its muscle and push the Kingdom into our way or no way option.
Skeletons are expected to tumble this coming weekend when Botswana Federation of Public Sector Union (BOFEPUSU) Treasurer General Moses Monnatsie presents the federations audited financial statements for the past eight years.

The federation leadership is meeting tomorrow (Saturday) in Palapye for a Governing Council retreat where the financial statements will be presented. The big question now is who, between the federations leadership and its former affiliate Botswana Public Employees Union (BOPEU) especially its leader Andrew Motsamai, will the financial reports absolve.

Motsamai has suffered the wrath of the BOFEPUSU leadership for failing to release financial statements of the federation during his tenure as Secretary General. The audited financial statement stirred controversy between BOFEPUSU and BOPEU which culminated with the latter withdrawing its affiliation from the federation.





BOFEPUSU Deputy Secretary General, Ketlhalefile Motshegwa this week confirmed to Botswana Guardian that the audited financial statement will be presented at the meeting of the governing council. He said the council will discuss the financial statements before adoption. He said the council will also among other things look at our programme of action for 2016 which includes activities like influence we will have on Botswana labour laws, policies and our campaign on workers issues.

BOFEPUSU has since maintained that it did nothing wrong to warrant the departure of BOPEU and has reiterated that the truth will set them free and are hopeful that BOPEU members will return to the federation. Should the federation be found to be at fault, its leadership has promised a public apology to BOPEU and its members.

BOPEU has defended Motsamai against BOFEPUSU leadership. The union has on several occasions stated that whatever statement Motsamai makes, it is on behalf of the union and not his personal opinion. When contacted this week Motsamai said there is nothing he could say about internal matters of BOFEPUSU.

Remember as BOPEU we are no longer affiliated to BOFEPUSU so I cannot comment. If the audited financial statements are released, then good for them, he said. BOPEU has since applied for admission into the Bargaining Council.

In its last 2015 press conference in Gaborone BOFEPUSU came out with guns blazing after BOPEU ditched it. Motshwarakgole, who is the federations Labour Secretary, said Motsamai is the only one who has left BOFEPUSU and not BOPEU.

He stated that Motsamai was the inaugural secretary general of BOFEPUSU at its establishment in 2007 and should also account for financial statements during his office tenure.

He has never sanctioned for auditing of books or financial statements. We were paying him P31, 000 per month. Now he is telling BOPEU membership that BOFEPUSU has never issued financial statements. It was his responsibility because his was full time and not ceremonial.
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A file photo.

NEW DELHI (PTI): A high-level French team is set to meet senior officials of the Navy soon to brief them about the naval version of fighter jet Rafale as India works on the design of its next indigenous aircraft carrier - Vishal.



Defence sources said that during the meeting, the French side will give a presentation on the various aspects of the naval version of Rafale and the benefits it will bring at a time when the Air Force will operate Rafale too.



The Air Force is set to acquire 36 Rafales under a government-to government deal.



The development comes when the Navy is in the design phase for the next aircraft carrier.



Sources said that India has written to four countries, including France, seeking proposals for the design of the aircraft carrier that will have over 50 planes on board.



While India currently operates two aircraft carriers INS Vikramaditya and INS Viraat, the latter is set to be decommissioned soon. The country's first indigenous aircraft carrier Vikrant is already under construction in Kochi and is scheduled to be handed over by end of 2018.



Sources said that one of the basis of the design will be the aircraft component of the carrier.



"At this moment, we are doing with what we have," the sources said. The Navy will deploy MiG 29K fighter aircraft on Vikrant. However, it is not clear if the Navy will stick to MiG 29K or go in for a new aircraft for Vishal.



As per the Navy's plan, Vishal would be a 65,000 tonnes aircraft carrier and will be about 300 metres long and about 70 metres in width.



While the exact propulsion system for it has not beeen decided, sources indicated it could well be a nuclear one.



"Given the long life cycle of a carrier, about 50 years, the cost of the nuclear propulsion will be recovered as nuclear means longer duration and better availability," the sources said.




A file photo.

NEW DELHI (PTI): A high-level task force, headed by former DRDO chief V K Aatre, has recommended to the Defence Ministry ten critical segments where it can go for strategic partnerships.



In a move that may rile private companies, the task force has recommended that one company cannot be eligible for multiple partnerships. This means that, each company would be restricted to just one critical segment in the overall multi-billion dollar defence manufacturing sector.



The task force, which has submitted its report to the Defence Ministry, has divided the sectors eligible for strategic partnerships into two groups.



Segments in Group 1 are - aircraft, helicopters, aero- engines, submarines, warships, guns (including artillery guns) and armoured vehicles including tanks.



In Group 2, the segments are - metallic material and alloys, non-metallic material (including composites and polymers) and ammunition including smart ammunition.



However, it has recommended that in the initial phase, aircraft, helicopters, submarines, armoured vehicles and ammunition be considered for strategic partnerships.



"Only one company shall be eligible as the Applicant Company from one group in respect of Group 1 segments. Such applicant company shall be permitted to file an application for selection as a Strategic Partner in respect of Group 1 segments," the report said.



It has recommended a series of criteria for the ranking of the companies.



"Upon application of the applicant companies, the highest ranked applicant company shall be selected by the MoD and allotted the status of strategic partner of the segment. In event the same applicant company is ranked highest in more than one segment, the preference list as submitted by the applicant company at the time of application shall be followed.



"Therefore, such an applicant company shall be appointed the strategic partner for the segment which is listed higher in its preference list prioritising it preference to segments in rank. For other segments where it is highest ranked but has not been selected, in view of the preference list the next ranked applicant company shall be appointed the strategic partner," the report said.


Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/01/2016 (2463 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The 39th annual Manitoba Ag Days is in the books.

Billed as Canadas largest indoor farm show, Ag Days took over the Keystone Centre for three days featuring the latest equipment, technology and innovation in the sector.

General manager Kristen Phillips said many of the more than 500 exhibitors  a record for the show  were impressed by the large crowds.

Tim Smith/Brandon Sun Avery Zacharko, 7, checks out a Massey Ferguson combine during Manitoba Ag Days at the Keystone Centre this week.

It was a fantastic show, Phillips said. The optimism and the buzz in the hallways was incredible.

While there is always some volatility built into agricultural markets, Phillips said strong prices over an extended period of time has increased confidence.

Ag Days is where the ag year begins, and people are excited about the upcoming year, Phillips said. Prices are really good, and a lot of producers said they were able to strike deals at Ag Days with different elevators signing high contracts for new crop. That makes a big difference when you can put some dollars in the bank.

A big aspect of the show, which started as the Weed Fair back in 1978, is its educational component, according to Phillips.

Classes of school kids roamed through the show, some of them seeing a combine and tractor up close for the first time.

Ag Days really supports and views education and promotion of agriculture as important, Phillips said. If were not telling our story then its not getting out there.

Phillips said Tuesday was a record day for the show, while Wednesday was a little above average and Thursday average.

The show expects between 45,000 to 50,000 visitors over the course of three days, with people coming from across Western Canada and the northern United States.

Tim Smith/Brandon Sun Visitors check out the Ag Days displays in the Manitoba Room. Ag Days wrapped up on Thursday after a three-day run that included a record day on Tuesday for Canadas largest indoor farm show.

One of the highlights for Phillips was the Inventors Showcase, where Killarneys Matt Reimer won top spot for his driverless robotic tractor.

It speaks to the innovation that is coming in the agricultural industry and Matt is so humble and I dont know if he even realized how much he is pushing the envelope, Phillips said. For a southwestern Manitoba boy to push that innovation is incredible. Hes going to be a great story for Manitoba.

 ctweed@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @CharlesTweed
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/01/2016 (2463 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The extent of a mans injuries isnt known after he was found by a passerby in his crumpled car after it appeared to have hit a guardrail, rolled down a rocky embankment and came to a rest on the frozen Assiniboine River on Thursday.

Whitehead Fire Department chief Kelly Crosson was part of the crew called to a report of a car on the ice just off Highway 250, about nine kilometres north of Alexander, west of Brandon.

At about 9 a.m., passersby noticed the car and scrambled to find cell service to call for help. Minutes later, a cousin of Deerboine Hutterite Colony secretary Mel Hofer who is from North Dakota alerted men at the colony to the same.

Submitted Whitehead Fire Department members administer first aid to the driver who lost control of his vehicle at the bridge on Highway 250 north of Alexander and crashed onto the Assiniboine River. The driver was taken to hospital in serious condition.

He called us and explained the situation, and a few minutes later there was two, three, four trucks there (from the colony), Hofer said.

Deerboine is located on the banks of the Assiniboine, just east of the collision.

They said, the guys really cold in his (car), get some blankets out there, Hofer added.

Minutes after the Hutterites arrived, EMS and Whitehead fire officials had as well.

Crosson said the man was driving southbound.

It looked like he got over on the shoulder, over enough to hit the guardrail on the approach to the bridge, which actually flipped him, and it appeared that he rolled several times down the embankment, which is quite large boulders, he said.

More than a half hour after being discovered, a battered door had been cut away by firefighters and EMS workers were attending to the man, who was wrapped in blankets from Deerboine.

The man was eventually freed from his sedan and put on a backboard.

The next struggle was to get the patient up the icy rocks and into an ambulance.

Those stones are slippery and snow, you know how that is, but they had lots of people there and so up he went and then (the ambulance) took off, Hofer said.

It was a workout  the Deerboine colony guys helped out immensely, Crosson added.

He said everything was slick on Thursday morning.

The last few days, often when you get the mild temperatures, the frost starts to come out of the highway and it just glazed it over. When we were working up on the highway, you had to watch your step so that you werent sliding around, he said.

It wasnt clear what condition the man was in.

Robert Cyrenne, a media relations liaison with Manitoba RCMP, said the driver was transported to hospital in serious condition, but couldnt provide any more information.

Crosson said an accident reconstruction specialist with the RCMP was called to the bridge, which was closed until about 5:30 p.m., according to the province.

The patient said he appeared to be an older gentleman, Crosson said. Hofer didnt recognize the man.

I just hope hes all right, I hope hes still all right. He lost a lot of blood there, he said.

 tbateman@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @tombatemann
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 22/01/2016 (2463 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA  Celebrity businessman Kevin OLeary injected some Donald Trump-like buzz into the unofficial race to replace Stephen Harper as leader of the Conservatives last week, as he began kicking the tires for a possible run.

OLeary, whose highly undemocratic attempt to buy duly elected Alberta Premier Rachel Notley out of office was met mostly with eye-rolls and outright anger last week, would add some colourful commentary at the very least.

Its expected the Tory leadership convention wont be scheduled until the spring of 2017, and the actual race will last about a year, giving contenders 12 months to raise money and travel the country drumming up support.

But the big picture isnt just about who they choose, says conservative pundit and Summa Strategies vice-chairman Tim Powers.

You really have to have a full understanding and do a proper autopsy on what killed you, he told the Winnipeg Free Press. The natural reaction for political people is to think it is solely about the leader, but thats not true.

If the Conservatives learn lessons from the past, they will see leadership is only part of the battle.

In Manitoba, the provincial Tories have spent 16 years trying to figure out how to get back into government. If current polls hold true through April 19, they will finally do just that.

But it has been more than a decade and a half of meandering in the wilderness, trying a whole bunch of different identities on for size. And for much of the first five or even 10 years, it was also about resentment that Manitobans kicked them out of office in the first place, denying the wrongs of the past and underestimating the strength of the NDP machine.

While there has been internal finger-pointing among federal Conservatives, there are still an awful lot of Tories, both within the party and among its faithful voters, who dismiss the Trudeau Liberals majority government as a mistake by voters.

They have to get over that, and fast, Powers said. If you keep dismissing (the fact you lost and he won), youre shagged.

Manitoba Sen. Don Plett doesnt think there is much for the Conservatives to worry about. Its the media making a big deal about the need to rebuild, he said.

We got over 30 per cent of the vote, we have 99 MPs, a caucus of 145, he said. Its a pretty solid Opposition.

True, but ask the Liberals how earning 30 per cent of the vote and winning 103 seats in 2006 worked out for them in the next election, or the one after that.

One of the biggest problems was a belief the Liberals lost then because of the leader, Powers said. In fact, the Liberals result in 2006 was more about an arrogance voters had come to see in a party that seemed to think it just couldnt lose. It was about too many scandals and bad decision-making.

The Liberals lengthened their stint on the opposition side thanks to party infighting, fundraising failures and a general malaise among Liberal voters that set in deeply until Justin Trudeau came on board with a fresh perspective and a willingness to rebuild from the ground up.

The Conservatives wont likely face the same fundraising problems. The big blue money machine is the most powerful political fundraising operation in Canada.

However, if they arent careful, they can easily fall into the traps the Liberals did in Ottawa, or the provincial Tories did in Manitoba.

The Conservatives didnt just lose the 2015 election because of Harper. They lost because Canadians grew weary of the Youre with us or youre with the (terrorists/pedophiles/really bad people) attitude that made the federal government inaccessible and closed-minded. They lost because too many Conservatives believed no matter what they did, voters simply werent going to elect the NDP or Justin Trudeau.

Right now, many Conservatives clearly think they can lay the blame for all Canadians disliked about the previous government on Harper. So much so Tony Clement was comically attempting this week to explain why it was legitimate for him to be calling on the Liberals to produce information about the sale of military vehicles to Saudi Arabia his party refused to produce when it was in power just a few months back.

Very few people are buying what Clement is selling. And the Conservatives will find for a while, Canadians will not so easily be swayed to forgive and forget everyone but Harper.

Getting back into government will take a movement that shows Conservatives accept and take responsibility for the faults of the partys past and builds a new party around a new leader that doesnt believe it is owed an election win, but has to earn it.

 Mia Rabson is the parliamentary bureau chief for the Winnipeg Free Press. Her column was published in a recent edition of that paper.
Beneath the Wisteria, because of Coronavirus restrictions, now gathers virtually, meeting over Zoom, and so if you a keen to attend, email me at the address below and I will forward you the invite - there is no charge.

Next gathering: Saturday, May 30, 2020, 11:00 am



Topic: Our special guest will be the executive director of the Greens Institute, Tim Hollo. You can join the meeting through this link - https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81060815318.

Beneath the Wisteria is curated by Robert McLean - r.mclean7@icloud.com
























By Fiachra O Cionnaith, Political Reporter

Fine Gael officials were forced to evacuate the conference hall where Taoiseach Enda Kenny will give his opening Ard Fheis speech this evening after what appeared to be an empty shotgun shell next to the stage.

Garda sources said that the empty shotgun shell was found behind the main stage shortly after 2pm. Officers from Clondalkin garda station were then called to the City West venue.

There was no gun powder in the shell, which is believed to be from a shotgun. However, a garda crime scene examiner took photos of the find and area.

The discovery led to a busy room full of delegates and back-room officials being ordered to leave the facility for just under an hour by security personnel.

Mr Kenny was not in the large conference hall at the time. He arrived just after 5pm before his opening speech in the two-day party event at 7.30pm tonight.

The cartridge was left next to the stage area where the Taoiseach will appear this evening.

Security at the Ard Fheis is notably higher than last week when the same location hosted the one-day Fianna Fail conference on Saturday.

It is expected that elements of the national water protest in Dublin city are likely to appear at the event tomorrow, while a number of driveways within the hotel campus were blocked off with barriers this evening due to the Ard Fheis taking place.
It would take the Government just 24 hours to send another naval vessel to the Mediterranean - if it wanted to.

Twenty-one migrants drowned overnight on their way to Greece, sparking calls for Ireland to send more help to deal with the crisis.
The Taoiseach's thanked the Labour party for their work in Government.

Opening the Fine Gael Ard Fheis in Dublin tonight, Enda Kenny said their message to the people will be that to keep the recovery going the coalition needs to be re-elected.

He's outlined a 3 step plan - focussing on Jobs, Welfare Reform and Housing.

And Enda Kenny launched an attack on Fianna Fail's wish to be back in Government.

"I heard some quite incredulous comments here last weekend and I heard them shamelessly claiming what we really inherited from them was a plan for recovery.

"If that wreckage of a plan was implemented then this country would have never recovered because their so called plan was a total disaster."
Louth County Council has been forced to shut its offices to the public amid protests over Traveller accommodation.

Demonstrators gathering outside the Council are unhappy at their decision to evict residents from an unofficial halting site at Woodland Park in Dundalk.
An investigation has been launched after hackers took down several Government websites this morning.

No one has yet claimed responsibility for the cyber attacks that affected sites including the CSO, the Oireachtas and the HSE. The sites are up and running again.
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation has described the rise in the number of patients presenting at hospital emergency departments as "unprecedented".

The Health Service said there had been a 10% increase in patients nationally, and there were 386 patients on trolleys this morning.

The biggest rise is at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda - up 21% - followed by the Connolly Hospital in Blanchardstown and Cork University Hospital, both up 14%.

General secretary of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation Liam Doran said: "It's correct to say the (emergency) departments have been under unprecedented pressure.

"The escalation measures we've agreed involve a system-wide response and the cancellation of elective procedure sis a manifestation that the policy is beginning to work."

Health Minister Leo Varadkar said yesterday that everything that can be done is being done to tackle the overcrowding.

Part of that escalation protocol is that we cancel non-urgent elective surgeries when there is overcrowding, so that is an example of the escalation framework working, he said.

Its not ideal, but its better than having very large numbers or even higher numbers on trolleys."

And as the flu season has yet to peak, there are fears the number of people attending hospital may rise further.
Why "Almost Heaven South"

Im originally from northern West Virginia and one of their slogans is West Virginia  Almost Heaven. So I like to refer to our little piece of East Tennessee as Almost Heaven South.


Burmas military-backed government has released 20 political prisoners, months before it is scheduled to hand over power to an elected pro-democracy party.

The released detainees said prison authorities declared that they were among 101 prisoners including common criminals who were released from Insein Prison in Yangons northern outskirts.

Early this morning, the prison guards called the names of 20 political prisoners and told us to pack up and get ready to go back home, said Soe Zaw, a 44-year-old political prisoner released after 14 months in prison.

Our families were not informed, she added.

More than 1,300 political prisoners have been freed by President Thein Seins military-backed government, which took power in 2011 after an election that marked an end to almost five decades of direct military rule. Activists say several hundred political offenders are still detained or await trial.

Visiting US deputy secretary of state Antony Blinken has urged the government to release all remaining political prisoners.

Burma is set for a change of government after the National League for Democracy party of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi won an easy majority in last Novembers general election, dislodging Thein Seins Union Solidarity and Development party, which was widely considered a proxy for the military.

There shouldnt be any political activists in prison in this governments so-called democratic country, said Aung Myo Kyaw, a spokesperson for the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, an independent human rights organisation.

According to the group, 272 political activists were arrested in 2015, of whom 180 have been imprisoned. At least four activists were detained in the past few months over postings on Facebook.

There are a lot of political prisoners still in prison. I cannot be happy because many of our fellows are still inside, said Ba Myint, a political prisoner released on Friday. We hope other political prisoners are released soon, too.
A gangsters moll who posed for a saucy selfie holding a machine gun while wearing just a leotard and a balaclava has been jailed for 10 years, police said.

Caitlin Adams, 25, and five men including a Polish former soldier, were involved in what detectives said was a plot to make and sell illegal guns and ammunition to criminals in London.

Adams picked up deactivated guns and delivered them to a workshop to be reactivated for her serving prisoner boyfriend Ishmael Brown.

Among the guns was an AK-47 assault rifle, and police discovered a selfie taken by Adams while squatting in a kitchen with the powerful battlefield weapon.

Five of the gang, including Adams, were handed jail sentences totalling 45 years at Harrow Crown Court on Friday, the Metropolitan Police said.

Detective Constable Claire Gentles, from the Metropolitan Polices Trident and Area Crime Command, said: The firearms and ammunition this gang converted had the potential to cause great harm on the streets of London and there is no doubt that the capital is a safer place as a result of the network being dismantled.

The sentencing of Caitlin Adams should serve as a warning to others of the grave consequences of storing and transporting guns for others.

Police said they swooped on a taxi in the Newham area of London in June and arrested two men, Aaron Murray and Uzair Patel, after a reactivated 9mm handgun was found in the footwell.

The investigation found that Murray was buying deactivated guns and reactivating them at a workshop.

It was subsequently raided and its owner, former Polish soldier and metalworker Bart Pawlowski was arrested.

(clockwise from top left) Bart Pawlowski, Caitlin Adams, Aaron Murray, Uzair Patel, Ishmael Brown and Ehsen Abdul-Razak

Detectives said Brown was using a mobile phone smuggled into his cell at HMP Rochester to buy deactivated guns and then sell them to criminals once reactivated.

Another prisoner, Ehsen Abdul-Razak, was arrested after it was discovered he helped sell the gun to Patel with his own secret phone.

Police believe that between January and June last year more than 40 guns were sourced by the gang. Eight re-activated guns linked to the group have been found and police are looking for more.

Adams, of Campshill Road, Lewisham was found guilty of conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and sentenced to 10 years on Friday.

Brown, 26, of HMP Rochester admitted conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and was sentenced to 12 years.

Pawlowski, 42, of Thornsett Rd, Wandsworth was found guilty of conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and was jailed for 13 years.

Patel, 28, of Abbey Road, Stratford, east London, admitted possession of a prohibited weapon and was jailed for five years.

Ehsen Abdul-Razak, 19, of HMP Rochester, admitted conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and was sentenced to five years.

Murray, 28, of Witley Point, Wandsworth pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and will be sentenced in March.
North Korea has said it has arrested a US university student for alleged anti-state acts.

Pyongyangs Korean Central News Agency reported that authorities are investigating the student who it says entered the North as a tourist.
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6 years ago
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HELENA  The Montana Historical Society has assembled a life-sized comic strip Western town to celebrate famous Montana cartoonist Stan Lynde.

From the Heart: Stan Lyndes Comic Creations opened Thursday in Helena.

The exhibit recreates his studio with drafting table, office chair and art supplies, similar to the one he had in his Helena home, where Lynde lived for his final 15 years in Montana, before moving to Ecuador in 2013.

Here youll meet some of Lyndes most legendary characters  Rick OShay and Hipshot.

His two most famous comic strips, Rick OShay and Latigo, reached 15 million readers from 1958 to 1983.

Lyndes Montana-based comic strip, Rick OShay, began in 1958 and ran until 1977 in up to 100 newspapers across the country  including the countrys biggest newspapers, The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, L.A. Times, Philadelphia Inquirer and many Montana newspapers.

It also had an international following, appearing in Australia, Canada, the Philippines, as well as French, Italian and Spanish newspapers. He created Latigo in 1978, and it ran until 1983.

The exhibit also features artifacts, like Lyndes trademark Stetson with a beaded and quilled band, one of Hipshots guns, an array of early and later comic strips, including ones that were singed but rescued from a 1990 house fire that destroyed much of his art and many mementos from fans.

You can see photos of him on horseback, as well as the chaps, saddle and spurs he wore for the Great Montana Cattle Drive of 1989 that he co-founded and organized.

Youll also get to read Hipshots famous pardon letter, penned and signed by Montana Gov. Tim Babcock in 1966, forgiving Hipshot for all misdeeds committed in Montana.

The pardon was apparently instrumental in Hipshot recovering from nearly fatal injuries and continuing to have a starring role in the comic strip with Rick OShay.

Visitors will see the various stages of how Lynde developed his comic strips, said MHS curator Amanda Streeter Trum, from notes and rough sketches to the inked and colored panels to the printed comic.

Also on display are some of his earliest drawings and comics, which have never been printed or exhibited. Viewers can also reflect on how his artwork evolved and grew more sophisticated over the decades.

There will even be a selfie spot, where you can step into a blank comic strip panel and join Rick OShay and Hipshot.

Im really excited to share Stans passion for the West and to showcase his many talents, Trum said. We want visitors to feel immersed in Stans comic world and my hope is that people walk away with a sense of how much Stan loved Western life and how skilled he was at presenting it to others.

There will also be stations where kids can try some hands-on comic strip work. Trum hopes it will inspire kids to dream big.

We already knew that Stan was an inspiration for Montanans when he created his comic strips, and I hope that this exhibit will inspire a new generation, Trum said.

Born on Sept. 23, 1931, in Billings and growing up on a ranch near Lodge Grass on the Crow Indian Reservation, Lynde was surrounded by cowboys. They were my heroes, he said in a 2012 interview with the Independent Record, when he donated some of his original art and possessions to MHS.

He and his wife Lynda were moving to Ecuador at that time.

Lynde said the cowboys were his only playmates during parts of his childhood. They and the people of Lodge Grass became the models for his characters  Rick OShay, Hipshot, Gaye Abandon and other folks in his imaginary town of Conniption.

Most were composites, he said, of the old time cowboys and the people I knew growing up.

His mother started him drawing when they lived in isolated sheep camps to keep him from roaming in rattlesnake country.

He recalled that every Sunday the Billings Gazette and Denver Post arrived at the family ranch and his parents would read the comic strips out loud to him.

It was an epiphany, he said. I wanted to be a cartoonist all my life from age 5 or 6 thats what I wanted to do.

Its a dream that took him through some very lean years in New York City, where he arrived with just $30 in his pocket. He recalled making soup from hot water and ketchup and living on automat food, popcorn and the generosity of a friends big, boisterous Irish family who would invite him to dinner.

He would find success in his 20s, which news articles of the time noted was highly unusual, since most syndicated cartoonists werent picked up until their 40s.

Lynde returned to live in Montana in 1962.

In addition to his famous comic strips, he also wrote eight Merlin Fanshaw western novels, whose characters were also inspired by people from his youth.

In Lyndes memoir, he recounts being asked, Where are Rick, Hipshot and all the other characters from the strip now? He replied, I suppose theyre where theyve always been, living in and around Conniption in that special time and place that is theirs alone.

No doubt joining them is Lynde, who died of cancer in August 2013.

Longtime friend Tom Cook, MHS public information officer said, He told the Montana story to the whole nation and really the world. ...He had the West in his blood.
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Funding of chinook, coho and steelhead fish hatchery programs throughout the Columbia River Basin is being challenged by wild fish advocates who contend that hatchery fish adversely affect struggling native fish stocks.

The Wild Fish Conservancy based in Duvall, Wash., recently issued a 60-day notice of intent to sue the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Department of Commerce for funding Columbia Basin hatchery programs under the Mitchell Act without complying with provisions of the Endangered Species Act.

Fishing groups are reeling from the announcement, which could lead to significant impacts for Columbia and Snake river salmon and steelhead returns.

Congress approved the Mitchell Act Programs in 1938 to fund hatcheries built to mitigate the impact of dams, logging and pollution on native fish runs.

According to the Wild Fish Conservancys notice, the act authorized federal support for 62 hatchery programs that now produce about 63 million smolts a year. Costs from 2003 to 2012 ranged from $12 million to $22 million a year.

Mitchell Act Programs are operated by states, tribes and federal agencies. However, some of the Columbia Basins salmon and steelhead hatcheries are funded by other programs such as those managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Wild Fish Conservancy lawyers say federal funding requires fish managers to assess the effects of releasing hatchery fish, which compete with threatened and endangered wild fish ranging from chinook salmon to bull trout.

The group cites scientific evidence that hatcheries adversely impact wild fisheries.

Representatives with the conservancy couldnt immediately be reached for comment.

Liz Hamilton, Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association executive director, said in a statement, If (Wild Fish Conservancy) legitimately cared about wild fish recovery in the Columbia River, hatcheries would be the last thing they would be concerned about.

Changing dam operations to spill more water would double the returns of wild spring chinook back to Idaho, potentially taking them off the endangered species lists, she said.

Instead they attack the hatcheries that were built to mitigate the building of eight federal dams in a system of over 208 dams. The only effect wild fish would notice from (Wild Fish Conservancy) activities in the Columbia would be the loss of tens of millions in funding for conservation and recovery.

Guy Norman, Washington Fish and Wildlife Department regional manager in Vancouver, said, Mitchell Act hatcheries contribute about 30 percent of the Columbia River fisheries harvest and about a quarter of the ocean harvest for Oregon and Washington.

The potential suit would directly involve the 24 hatchery programs managed by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife as well as coho programs affecting the Clearwater River in Idaho, he said.

But a suit like this has the potential to set precedent that could affect hatchery facilities managed by the Corps, Bonneville Power and so on through the system, said Chris Donley, Fish and Wildlife Department regional fisheries manager in Spokane.

The Wild Fish Conservancy in recent years has filed suits to challenge operations at the Leavenworth National Fish Hatchery as well as state hatchery operations in Western Washington.

State officials reached an agreement with the conservancy in April 2014 that stopped for two and a half years litigation against the Fish and Wildlife Department over its Puget Sound hatchery programs.

The state had to cancel traditional releases of early winter steelhead into most Puget Sound rivers in 2014 and 2015.

The proposed suit for the Columbia Basin could go even further by threatening commercial hatchery fish programs and gillnetting operated by Indian tribes.

It is unlikely that the Basins Tribal, recreational, and commercial fisheries could be maintained without support from the Mitchell Act and its hatcheries, state and federal agencies say in a Mitchell Act fact sheet.

Part of the problem is the bottleneck of hatchery program permit applications that must be approved by the understaffed National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration offices, fish managers say.

Plans have been developed for several years to address threats associated with wild fish and hatchery fish interactions as well as with broodstock collection and monitoring, Norman said. Were trying to actively implement them.

He said the state agency will be consulting with other hatchery program operators and federal agencies as well as working with attorneys on how to respond to the potential lawsuit.

Its too soon to speculate on potential outcomes, he said.

Sara Thompson, speaking for the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, said in a statement, Carefully managed hatcheries play a critical role in Columbia Basin salmon recovery by rebuilding salmon populations while supporting fisheries.

Lawsuits like this one could hurt salmon recovery efforts and distract us from the bigger picture of working together to reform hatchery practices.

And it could lead to a huge impact on fishermen, Donley said.
Before speaking in Helena on Thursday, Greg Gianforte walked into the office of Gov. Steve Bullock and hand-delivered a folder that contained a letter to Bullock and a pledge not to accept money from political action committees.

I refuse to accept any campaign contributions from special-interest PACs, state and federal, read the first line of the pledge, released by Gianfortes campaign just a day after the Bozeman businessman formally announced he would seek the Republican gubernatorial nomination and as he completed a two-day rally tour. I will tear up and/or return any special-interest PAC donations previously sent to my campaign. Montana voters deserve a clean campaign focused on the issues.

John Malia, who works in the Citizens Advocate office, was at the reception desk outside Bullocks office when Gianforte arrived, saying simply that he was dropping it off for the governor. Malia said he gave the folder to Tracy Stone-Manning, Bullocks chief of staff.

Meanwhile, Bullock was in Billings, talking with students at City College at Montana State University Billings about workforce development, joined by John Cech, deputy commissioner for academic and student affairs for the Montana University System, and Department of Labor and Industry Commissioner Pam Bucy.

Its news to me, Bullock told a reporter there. Ill take a look  and respond at that point.

Later that evening, Bullock affirmed his commitment to election transparency in a press statement on the sixth anniversary of the disastrous Citizens United decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, which eliminated some restrictions on how corporations spend money in elections.

I will continue to fight for fair, transparent, and accessible elections because I, along with all Montanans, believe that our elections should be decided by we the people  not by a small number of wealthy people who seek to hide their money and motivations, he said in the statement.

The incumbent governors campaign manager, Eric Hyers, did not say whether Bullock would sign the pledge and described it as an empty gesture from Gianforte, who donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to groups that fought against a 2015 bill that expanded campaign disclosure requirements.

"Look, for Gianforte to be taken seriously, why doesn't he start by pledging he won't spend or funnel more than $1,300 of his own fortune into this campaign? Hyers said in a written statement. Here's a guy that's dumped hundreds of thousands of dollars into groups who lobbied against Montana's DISCLOSE Act. And a guy that has a Koch brothers' PAC, Aegis PAC, soliciting funds on his behalf on this very day."

Aaron Flint, Gianfortes campaign spokesman, fired back.

"It's a pretty simple pledge for the governor to sign or not to sign," he said. "Particularly as the governor has been out there gallivanting all across the state using taxpayer dollars. It seems Bullock is trying to buy this race with taxpayer dollars because he's having a little trouble raising money."

Gianforte co-founded RightNow Technologies with his wife, Susan, and became a multimillionaire when Oracle purchased the company in 2012 for $1.8 billion. He has previously said they controlled about a quarter of the stock at the time of the sale, worth more than $300 million.

Montana Democrats have shadowed Gianfortes campaign stops throughout the state this week with their own press conferences about the businessmans candidacy.

In Helena, Democratic Party Director Nancy Keenan downplayed Gianfortes pledge, one she said the multimillionaire was well-positioned to make.

"He's a self-funder, he can write the check," Keenan said. "So it's pretty easy for him to say 'oh, we're not going to take any money' when he can write the check for millions and millions of dollars."

In his letter to the governor, Gianforte took a congenial, serious tone, sending Bullock warm greetings and hopes for a positive, spirited race.

I am committed to rejecting any special interest PAC money, he wrote. I simply wont cash their checks. Any checks sent my direction have already been returned, or torn up.  Id ask that you join me in this effort.

Gianforte has not ruled out personally donating to outside political groups. If he did, Flint said Gianforte would "not directly" benefit from those contributions.

Campaign finance reports through the end of 2015 do not list any contributions to Gianforte from political action committees and all the refunds listed in his expenditures appear to be to individuals. He listed in $162,771 of contributions Aug. 17-Sept. 30 and another $221,677 through the end of 2015, according to his reports. Of that, $12,814 were in-kind contributions from Gianforte himself. Additionally, several members of his family have donated the maximum contribution of $650 each.

On Bullock's most recent campaign finance report covering Oct. 1-Dec. 31, he reported receiving $12,140 from 20 PACs and $216,042 in total donations during that time. On his prior filing covering July 1-Sept. 30, he reported receiving $9,806.26 from 18 PACs, and $283,779 total during that time.

Gianforte started the day in a warehouse of Hoven Equipment in Great Falls, where the lectern and 24 folding chairs were set up next to towering farm implements. Supporters talked over coffee and maple bars as they waited. When Gianforte did begin to speak, his remarks were interrupted by applause, cheers and, at mention of the familys old Ford Bronco, a quip from the audience that elicited a chuckle from the candidate.

To the supporters gathered in Great Falls, his remarks were fresh even though Gianforte had given largely the same speech in Billings, Sidney, Lewistown and Kalispell on Wednesday.

Gianforte declined to answer press questions Thursday, saying: "We're going to have time to sit down. Today, I'm here for my supporters."

Holly Michels and James Dehaven contributed to this story.
Qantas will spend $680,000 to strengthen its workplace safety procedures after a cleaning contractor fell and hurt his back at Canberra Airport.

An employee of Qantas contractor Star Aviation fell backwards from a service door as he cleaned the cabin of a Q400 turboprop aircraft parked in the airport's QantasLink hangar on January 31, 2014.

Qantas entered into an enforceable undertaking with WorkSafe ACT to improve its safety practices and will donate $70,000 to the Snowy Hydro Southcare rescue helicopter . Credit:Jeffrey Chan

The worker dropped 1.5 metres onto the concrete ground of the maintenance hangar and sustained spinal injuries.

He has since returned to work.
Waterfront employers and business groups are breathing a sigh of relief after strikes that have caused costly shipping delays were brought to a halt on Friday.

The nation's industrial umpire has imposed a 35-day ban on industrial action at Patrick Stevedores' terminals in four cities, after a successful bid by the company.

Tugboat engineers have been ordered to suspend industrial action. Credit:Jessica Hromas

It comes after dock workers and the maritime union this week shut down Patrick Stevedores, Australia's biggest port terminal operator, for the first time since the infamous 1998 waterfront dispute.

The simultaneous 24-hour strikes on Monday in Melbourne, Port Botany, Brisbane and Fremantle are estimated to have cost Patrick millions of dollars.
"North Sydney Council has erected signs at Balls Head Nature Reserve that read 'Cats Prohibited'," reports Simon Dodd, of Waverton, "and feature the silhouette of a moggy in a red circle with a strike through it, above a small print proclamation that the 'Penalty Exceeds $880.' This raises the question  who are these signs designed for? As any cat owner will tell you, taking your cat for 'walkies' is not really an option. So the sign is intended for the cats themselves, which is crazy. Cats, as far as we know, don't read, and even if they did, they're not going to do what a piece of tin tells them to. In fact, a sign like this is likely to make them do the exact opposite. Which leaves us with the penalty  in excess of $880. Where is a cat going to get money like that? And even if it had that kind of cash, it's not going to spend on some stupid fine, it's going to spend it on cat food, fluffy toys and scratching posts."

"I have no probs with 'no worries'," writes a relaxed Ralph Davis, of Wahroonga (Column 8, since Wednesday), "but my favourite is 'no wuckers'  a hemiteleiated spoonerism, the derivation of which may be unfit to print in a family publication." Indeed. In fact, we're not sure we should have allowed you to use the word "hemiteleiated" in polite company either.

"Comments on unsophisticated wait staff reminded me of the time we were dining in a country region," recalls Mary Watson, of Balgowlah Heights (You, youse and youses, Column 8, all week). "Each wine we selected was out of stock so eventually we asked the waiter what wine was available. He named one we did not recognise and when asked where was it from, he replied 'Over there behind the door'. We ordered it."

"I'd like to thank Ioan Ap Glyndwr Jones for the help with the Welsh pronunciation writes Greg Leisner, of Copeland ("Eglwyswrw", Column 8, Friday). "Could he now assist us with his own name, please? We think it's pronounced Jones, as in Jones. In fact, we must apologise to Ioan  somehow an extra letter (an "m") appeared at the end of his phonetic explication, but in this special case, we feel almost able to excuse ourselves.

Column8@smh.com.au
ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr announces new front bench

Who's who of ACT ministers after reshuffle With one minister out of contention and just two backbenchers left to draw on to fill an expanded cabinet of seven (the other having declared herself unavailable for higher duties) Andrew Barr's options for ministerial renewal ahead of an election year were always limited. So the main point of interest in Friday's reshuffle was not in who would be joining the frontbench (Meegan Fitzharris and Chris Bourke being the only candidates) but in what jobs would be given to whom. In the event, the most striking aspect of the reshuffle is the prominence of the portfolios handed to Ms Fitzharris, a former staffer in Mr Barr's office. At the relatively young age of 44 and with just over a year's service in the Legislative Assembly, the Molonglo MLA will become the Minister for Transport and Municipal Services, and the Minister for Higher Education, Training and Research. On July 1, when Transport Canberra (the new agency tasked with the co-ordination of public transport) comes into being, Ms Fitzharris will effectively have charge of the issue which might well determine whether Labor retains power or not  light rail. In a further sign of Mr Barr's confidence in Ms Fitzharris' abilities (and his belief perhaps that she might replace the soon-to-depart Simon Corbell as Health Minister), Ms Fitzharris has been appointed his assistant, with responsibility for, among other things, community health services. ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr announces portfolios for his new front bench. Credit:Graham Tidy For the other "newcomer", Chris Bourke (he served on Katy Gallagher's frontbench before making way for the inclusion of Greens MLA Shane Rattenburyas a minister in 2012) the portfolio responsibilities are more modest  Children and Young People, Disability, Small Business and the Arts, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs.

Shane Rattenbury, having being "deprived" of municipal services to Ms Fitzharris and sport to Yvette Berry, might be considered to have been the reshuffle's biggest loser. But he has picked up the key education portfolio held by Joy Burch until her recent resignation. His diligence, industry and leadership should prove valuable in addressing some of the issues left untended during Ms Burch's troubled tenure. Mr Barr's presence in the ministry looms large  as it has done since he succeeded former chief minister Katy Gallagher in December 2014, and perhaps even before. He has retained the key treasury, economic development and urban renewal roles, and has signalled he will be closely involved in "a range of initiatives in 2016", including CTP insurance system reforms. He's also indicated that that "jobs, tax reform and economic diversification will be a major focus for me in 2016". That Mr Barr hopes to occupy this ground when the election campaign starts to gather pace mid-year is unsurprising. These are difficult and trying economic times for the territory, and the risk for Labor is that voters will tune out if they perceive the party is not paying sufficient attention to bread and butter issues. Indeed, it may well be that jobs and the economy rather than the traditional territory election issues of health and education, dominate the campaign. The dilemma for the Barr government, however, is that its light rail proposal threatens to undermine any claims it may have to superior economic management. In fairness to Labor, the private-public partnership model it's proposed will limit the cost impact on the public purse, initially at least. Unfortunately for Mr Barr, the project's much touted $800 million price tag is now firmly fixed in the public's mind as the bill which it will be required to settle, and at time when cost of living pressures are mounting. And if details of the PPP contract do alleviate concerns, Labor is still on weak ground in regards to why it's chosen to invest heavily in light rail when the Productivity Commission and Infrastructure Australia, among others, have either disputed the business case for light rail or said that buses represent an equally efficient but cheaper public transport option.
The facts are that some students are shovelled into university immediately by parents who think that somehow their kids will fall off the study train. Worse, schools, too, encourage students to go straight to university.

What the anecdotes say about a gap year is that you will party hard and then fall into a slump, from which you will never recover. It might have been an uncle or a cousin or a friend of a friend who sat on a couch smoking dope for a year and lost that golden opportunity to go to university and has been on the dole since.

The research says different. The actual research from actual Australian researchers says that if you take a gap year, there is a strong likelihood you will do better at university.

It's not apparent in your first year of study but by second year, wham! You are killing it. It's not just the marks, it's also what we call soft skills  how you negotiate with your peers, how you deal with multiple competing demands.

The key factor for successful university life and study is to understand why you are going. What areas really interest you? What kind of work do you imagine yourself doing?
Owen was referring, of course, to Russian President Vladimir Putin and to Nikolai Patrushev, then head of the Federal Security Service and now secretary of the Russian security council. The judge also said he was "sure" Litvinenko was killed by the radioactive polonium-210 isotope found in his body, and that this was administered by two ex-FSB colleagues he met for tea in London's ritzy Mayfair district.

"Taking full account of all the evidence and analysis available to me, I find that the FSB operation to kill Mr Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr Patrushev and also by President Putin."

It isn't often that a judge in one country accuses the president of another  a superpower, no less  of participating in murder. On Thursday, however, the chairman of a lengthy British inquiry into the 2006 poisoning of a former Russian intelligence operative, Alexander Litvinenko, did just that.

Litvinenko's murder is one of the most publicly investigated in history, so much of what's in the report isn't new. But to have a recently retired British High Court judge say he is "sure" (for which read "beyond a reasonable doubt") about the guilt of Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun is a sobering moment for Britain  and should be just as serious for Russia. Since the murder, Putin has personally honoured Lugovoi, who has been turned into a national hero and senior member of the Russian parliament.

Just as widely accepted outside Russia is the finding that the two men were working on the orders of the FSB. But to say the hit was "probably" ordered by Putin takes quite a leap. It's a finding that Owen based on testimony from witnesses he acknowledges to have been biased, and from the historian Robert Service, about the way in which Russia's hierarchy works.

There are two things to say on this. The first is that Owen seems to have been more willing than he should to believe everything told him by Litvinenko's shady circle of ex-FSB friends. He relies in part on their accounts to establish the Kremlin's motive for murder. These include a book about a series of 1999 apartment bombings around Russia that triggered the second Chechen War and helped propel Putin to the presidency. Litvinenko and his friends maintain these weren't carried out by Chechen terrorists, as generally believed, but by the FSB. Much remains unexplained about those bombings, but the case has hardly been proved to a level that could be used in any court of law. Even so, Owen says:

"On the evidence I heard, the book was more than a political tract  it was the product of careful research. Professor Service's view was that the two men had 'credibly investigated' the issue and, although their contentions about it had not been 'proved 100 per cent', he considered they were more likely than not to be accurate. He said that: 'the Felshtinsky and Litvinenko book piled up the evidence pointing a very damaging finger at the FSB and its involvement in those explosions'."

The second thing to say is that most people outside Russia will, like the judge, conclude in their gut that Putin approved Litvinenko's assassination. It has come to fit their expectations of what Russia and its leader do.
Consolidated democracies in Asia are rare. India and Japan democratised after World War II, and Taiwan and South Korea did so from the late 1980s. Countries such as Indonesia, the Philippines and Mongolia have made important first steps but democracy remains fragile.

Taiwan has just undergone its third change of government since 2000. Unfortunately for the Taiwanese people, the administrations of presidents Chen Shui-bian (2000-2008) and Ma Ying-jiu (2008-2016) promised much but delivered little.

Tsai Ing-wen, Taiwan's president-elect, right, and Chen Chien-jen, vice-president-elect, left, wave to supporters after delivering a victory speech in Taipei, Taiwan, on January 16. Credit:Maurice Tsai

In the January 16 elections, Tsai Ing-wen, the presidential nominee of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), won 56 per cent of the vote in the race with three tickets. Tsai led the DPP to win an absolute majority in the legislature, gaining 68 of 113 seats.

This is the first time that the DPP has controlled the legislature and promises that Tsai will lead a unified government.
"My mother was a devout Catholic and I was an altar boy," he said.

Keaton became visibly emotional as he discussed a scene where Rachel McAdams' character tells her devout grandmother about the reality of her church.

The 64-year-old plays Boston Globe journalist Walter "Robby" Robinson, who led a team of reporters to expose widespread child abuse and systemic cover-ups in the Catholic Church in Boston.

Michael Keaton has told how he was deeply affected by new film Spotlight as he discussed his own Catholic faith.

"My mum went to mass every day and when I think of what [those revelations] would have done to her ... I think that's big, it's one thing to do, but crushing someone's faith is another level."

The actor, who said he still "drops in" to church, denied that the film's aim is to "beat up" the Catholic faith.

He said: "I haven't been Catholic since I was an altar boy, there's no pretending, I'm lapsed ... But as much as I hate what's happened in the world based on organised religion and people's alleged faith, I'm a defender and think it's good for people.

"I'm totally cool with my vision of what people call God and I'm good there, but what this movie's about is not religion, but institutions. It's about people who take power and seek power and use that power to disadvantage the disenfranchised and the powerless and it happens in a lot of places, literally all over the world."

The actor was speaking alongside Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists Robinson and Michael Rezendes, co-star Mark Ruffalo and the film's director Tom McCarthy.
RIVERTON  A Wyoming lawmaker says he is cancer-free after six weeks of treatment and ready for the legislative session.

Sen. Eli Bebout, a Riverton Republican, says his latest medical tests show that he no longer has cancer. The disease had localized in his throat.

Bebout began oncology treatments in September at Huntsman Cancer Institute in Salt Lake City. He then spent three months recuperating at home.

The senator says he is ready to report to the Wyoming Legislature when the session begins Feb. 8.

Bebout also underwent successful surgery for esophageal cancer after being elected to the Senate in 2007.
Mark Latham has been condemned by the White Ribbon foundation for "shameful" comments on domestic violence which were broadcast across the country on Friday afternoon.

During his one-off "Lathamland" show, the former Labor leader said men used domestic violence as a "coping mechanism" and described the issue of being a political bargaining chip for a "feminist left".

Mark Latham believes he has a "right to offend". Credit:Channel 9

"Blokes have lost their self-esteem, they're welfare dependent, they've got other troubles, drugs, alcohol in their life. It's that loss of self-esteem where I think they use the domestic violence as a coping mechanism to get over all the other crap they've got in their lives," he said.
The weather leading up to Australia Day has offered little encouragement to employees weighing up taking an extra long weekend.

Australia Day falls on a Tuesday this year, but forecasters predict rain and thunderstorms through to the beginning of next week.

Hardy souls take a bike ride in the rain. Credit:Graham Tidy

Rain paired with the warm weather this week brought the tropics to the capital.

Twenty-six millimetres of rain fell on the capital on Thursday evening.
Clean-shaven men are more likely to harbour infection-causing and antibiotic-resistant bacteria than bearded men, a recent United States study has found.

According to the study, published in the Journal of Hospital Infection, men without beards are more than three times as likely to be carrying a meticillin-resistant form of coagulase-negative staphylococci on their cheeks than those with beards.

A shaven face is not necessarily a healthy face. Credit:Getty

The study also found that clean-shaven men were 10 per cent more likely to have common bacterium Staphylococcus aureus present on their faces, a bacterium which causes respiratory and skin infections.

The study examined the faces of 408 healthcare workers, with and without facial hair.
Clive Palmer has promised to pour $250 million into his struggling nickel refinery and called on the Queensland and federal governments to follow suit.

The businessman turned politician denied putting business interests ahead of Queensland Nickel's (QNI) 237 recently jobless workers and said there was a "nine out of 10" chance its Yabulu refinery in Townsville would remain open.

Queensland Nickel's refinery in Townsville. Credit:Glenn Hunt

Mr Palmer told ABC News companies he owned had pledged $250 million in assets to support the refinery's ongoing operations and be used as security if workers' entitlements weren't recovered.
The former girlfriend of "Postcard Bandit" Brenden Abbott still loves and misses the notorious criminal even as she offloads striking paintings that remind her too much of their 17 and a half years together.

Tilly Needham broke things off with the 53-year-old in May following a ferocious bust up over the phone in which she told the parole board he started to "literally scream abuse down the phone at me".

Brenden Abbott, the Postcard Bandit, at Gold Coast hotel swimming pool. Credit:File

"I would never have believed it would come to this, not after everything that we had been through over all those years," she said.

"I still love him and I still miss him.
Cody Dayley was sick of working in the restaurant industry and piecing together construction jobs. But with four kids, hopping careers wasnt exactly a simple proposition.

He's thankful he and his wife had some savings. Combined with grants, Dayley, 28, has been able to stave off going into debt as he enters his second year at City College, while gaining technical skills in the colleges process plant technology program.

Nick Wells, another student in the program, started last year after working in the Bakken oil fields.

The oil field shut down again, said Wells, 29. Until you have a degree or something like that, youre just another number.

Most students will move into industrial jobs, especially at refineries. Dayley is intrigued by entrepreneurial opportunities.

It kind of blows your mind what you can do in your own garage, or start your own business, he said.

Preparing students for industrial careers has been a priority for state officials for several years as industry leaders warn of a growing skills gap, where there arent enough people in the workforce with skills for industrial careers like welding or product processing.

These students will come out with a two-year degree making $60,000 a year, said Gov. Steve Bullock, who toured City College with other state leaders Thursday morning. We have an opportunity to bring education and the private sector together.

After growing up in Dillon, Wells joined the Army for four years. When he got out, he found that his training as a calvary scout wasnt overly applicable to civilian careers, but veteran benefits helped pay for school.

The oil fields gave me a chance, gave me a home, he said. He hopes a degree makes his next home more permanent.

Its great pay, always a changing and adapting workplace, he said. Were in high demand.

Wells and others showed off work theyve done researching how to transform a waste product from the creation of plant seed biodiesel. Theyre working with instructor Andy Sullivan, hoping to turn the low-value product into something applicable.

Part of the challenge for college and state officials is to direct more students like Wells and Dayley toward programs focused on in-demand jobs and to develop better pipelines for high school students to transition into two-year schools.

City College officials highlighted programs like RevUp, which helps students pay for training programs like welding or commercial driver licensing. RevUp can help cover a significant portion of program costs, said Vern Gagnon, an automotive technology instructor.

Gagnon estimated that the state anticipates needing about 1,000 new commercial drivers over the next decade, and that training programs are hard-pressed to keep pace.

Whats the next step Bullock said about student support beyond RevUp. When asked about funding for students, especially who also work to support families, he cited several programs but said, I think theres always more and we should be working on it.

In a paramedic training program, three students learned about EKG rhythms. David Gurchiek, the Nursing and Public Safety Department chairman, teaches the class. He said that EMTs who earn the degree make a career jump comparable to the difference between a CNA and a registered nurse.

Christian Emter, a 20-year-old firefighter, commutes from Columbus. Karli Kaminsky-Brown is in the National Guard. Michelle Tristan balances school with raising six kids and working at American Medical Response as an EMT, as does Kaminsky-Brown.

This is what our student body looks like, Gurchiek said.
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I am standing in a simple room  a nondescript central European apartment. There is a grey sofa, a small sideboard with a glass candle holder, and a wooden dining table complete with four wooden chairs. With the exception of a clinical-looking bed in one corner, it's all like something you might wander through in an Ikea room display.

There's nothing to be afraid of  and yet I can't deny the peculiar feeling of unease coursing through my body.

Every two weeks somebody from Britain travels to this suburban apartment on the outskirts of Zurich to die. After being fully assessed by a doctor, they will sign a few forms, record a video in which they confirm they understand what they are doing, and then spend as long as they want in this apartment room before they lift the first cup to their mouth.

This initial drink is an anti-nausea medication, Paspertin, which will prevent their stomach from violently rejecting the lethal dose of Pentobabital, taken 30 minutes later.

A piece of Swiss chocolate is provided to take away the bitter taste of the terminal medication.

Five more minutes will pass before the person falls asleep  a gentle precursor to their imminent death. The rest, as Shakespeare put it, is silence. For them at least.

For their travelling companion, and for the accompanying representative of Dignitas  the not-for-profit member organisation that organises assisted suicide in the country  there are still more forms to be filled in. This is Switzerland after all. A doctor must confirm the death; even the police must be called.

In fact, I have not travelled to Zurich to take all this in  I'm standing in a recreation of the apartment in Bristol Museum and Art Gallery.

The installation, which opens to the public tomorrow, accompanies the Death exhibition  an exploration of our attitudes towards the ends of our lives, which has already attracted 36,000 visitors since it was launched in October.

But the Dignitas room, which will remain at the museum for just seven weeks, is a profoundly immersive experience.

Visitors can rest on the sofa, even sit on the bed, and put themselves in the place of those who have taken their final trip to Zurich for real. It gently forces you to confront your own feelings towards death and assisted suicide in particular.

It is made all the more moving by the audio testimonies of individuals facing their final breaths in the real apartment on the other side of Europe reverberating from speakers, like a voice at your shoulder.

'Puts you into the shoes of the people who experience it'

The exhibit, which has been funded by the Wellcome Trust, was the brainchild of curator Lisa Graves, who says the idea is to engage us in the debate around assisted dying  an actual public debate will be held with a panel of experts at the museum on Tuesday evening from 6pm to 8pm.

"I remember seeing pictures of the apartment for the first time a few years ago and thinking it looks really mundane," Lisa says. "A bit like a budget hotel with rubbish art on the walls.

"I realised that by recreating it physically in the museum, we would allow visitors to think about what would be going through their minds if they actually found themselves there for real  it puts you into the shoes of the people who experience it.

"We need to be informed because over the next couple of years our MPs could very well be voting on whether or not they would like similar laws passed in this country," she adds. "I hope the exhibit will add to the debate and help people to decide what they think about it."

A series of talks exploring the ethics of assisted dying accompany the exhibition which runs until March 13. For details visit www.bristolmuseums.org.uk

Majority support assisted dying

According to a survey by the Dignity in Dying campaign, 82 per cent of the general public, (and interestingly, 79 per cent of religious people) and 86 per cent of disabled people support assisted dying.

Every fortnight somebody from Britain travels to Switzerland to end their life at Dignitas. Dignity in Dying patron, actor Sir Patrick Stewart said: "We have no control over how we arrive in the world but at the end of life we should have control over how we leave it."

But for every argument for assisted dying, there are as many willing to argue against it.

Journalist and author George Pitcher has said that any change in the law would have "profound adverse affects on the social fabric of our society, on our attitudes towards each other's deaths and illnesses, on our attitudes towards those who are ill and have disabilities."

Pressure

An assisted dying bill had its first reading in the House of Lords in June 2015 and a second one was debated in the House of Commons in September 2015

But Dr Andrew Fergusson, of the Care Not Killing Alliance  which campaigns against assisted dying, said: "The simple truth is that the current law exists to protect those without a voice: the disabled, terminally ill and elderly, who might otherwise feel pressured into ending their lives"

In its 1994 report The House of Lords Select Committee on Medical Ethics concluded: "It was virtually impossible to ensure that all acts of euthanasia were truly voluntary and that any liberalisation of the law in the United Kingdom could not be abused.

"We were also concerned that vulnerable people  the elderly, lonely, sick or distressed  would feel pressure, whether real or imagined, to request early death."
We're just a few days away from the Iowa Caucus, the real kickoff to primary season. Bernie Sanders has been getting a lot of support from musicians, and a bunch of mostly-newer artists have contributed songs to a benefit compilation titled The Future's So Bright It Berns!. The 36-track digital comp features Shana Falana, Emperor X, Terror Pigeon!, Cameron Boucher (of Sorority Noise), Cameron Wisch (of Porches) and more (obviously) and is a mix of original songs and covers of Bowie, Grandaddy, Fugazi, and others.
If the Montana Board of Regents has just rewarded top university leaders for "normal" performance, the rest of the state should pray that we never see "below average" results.

It's hard for us to imagine what that might look like: Would any professor still have a job?

In a classic example of how much the "real world" differs from that of state government and education, most of the regents decided to hand out raises to top university officials, despite what is very sobering, disappointing year in Montana higher education. The university system said the bonus was a normal part of the process. We can only hope there was nothing normal about 2015, though.

Some of the lowlights of 2015:

The University of Montana announced that it will trim 201 full-time jobs from its payroll because of declining enrollment revenue.

Montana Tech in Butte gets critical international press for a grade fraud scheme involving apparently well-to-do Saudi exchange students.

Montana State University Billings continues to struggle as its enrollment numbers dip to levels that have not been seen in nearly 30 years.

UM also announces that it will have to trim between $10 million and $12 million in its 2017 budget year.

The Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education and Montana State University had been in serious planning about a proposed for-profit medical school to be located in Bozeman, even though residency slots for the students don't exist, and could undermine the state-supported WWAMI program which trains doctors from Montana.

Officials, including Commissioner of Higher Education Clayton Christian, suffered no financial penalty for such embarrassing results this past year. Instead, the regents handed out raises. In other words, taxpayer funds went to reward the mediocrity.

Keep in mind these raises, ranging from $2,000 to just more than $6,000, were in addition to the $500,000 (yes, that's a half-million dollars) the flagship university presidents and Christian were already in line to receive as "longevity bonuses." In other words, we value someone's ability to sit in a chair more than their ability to deliver results.

The only regent to vote against the pay plan was Martha Sheehy from Billings. She was the only one who seemed to understand the horrible message it sends to the public: Reward top administrators as more than 200 people lose their jobs. There's no spinning that one. It's a disconnect from a dismal reality.

Granted, the total bonuses (of just more than $30,000) wouldn't have probably saved even one of the 201 jobs that were being eliminated. But, it seems the leaders (the ones most responsible for the system's health) bear absolutely no financial consequence for what amounts to leadership bordering on inept.

Raises should be for jobs that are well done. In a system facing decline, is that really the message the university system wants us to believe  that the jobs of top leaders have been done well? Or, that those declines are "normal?" Are we rewarding officials for cutting jobs? Or failing to keep the system competitive?

The university officials have also tried to sell the public on the idea that comparatively speaking, Montana's education leaders are low paid. Surely university leaders with their doctorate degrees would be savvy enough to know what the job pays and understand that raises may not be automatically given. It seems like some regents are worried that we might lose top university leaders. Given 2015, shouldn't we be more worried about keeping them?

Since when did "everybody else is doing it" become a good enough reason for Montana to follow suit and pay more? We'd also point out that higher education isn't the only field that imposes a "Montana tax"  lower pay for a similar job than other states.

Cutting budgets and the jobs that go along with it may have been the right thing to do. But, the regents cannot appear to incentivize and reward what is a failure.

The Board of Regents, with the exception of Sheehy, has just endorsed very poor performance. In fact, they haven't just endorsed it, but rewarded it with your tax money.

UPDATED: Here is a partial list of the raises approved by the Regents.

Professional Before After President 303,144 309,207 Provost 201,243 205,268 Vice president, research 193,925 197,804 Vice president, finance 177,197 180,741 Vice president, student affairs 157,523 160,673 Vice president, communications 154,196 157,280 Associate provost, global education 136,000 138,720 Associate provost 135,000 137,700 Legal counsel 128,000 130,560

Source: Montana University System; visit link for more details
On this episode of Colony, A Brave New World, Will starts his new job and discovers that Snyder wasnt entirely forthcoming about the position while his wife, Katie, gets in deeper with the Resistance.

Its the dawn of a new day for the Bowman family as Will is about to start his new job, and Katie reopens the Yonk and steps up her work as a member of the Resistance. Will has a shiny new car in the driveway, which is a dead giveaway to the neighbors that something is up, but since the Bowmans want to keep Wills role as a lackey for the Collaborators under wraps, they come up with a mildly feasible cover story that he was promoted to the head of sanitation.

Will Gets His First Assignment

Will goes to headquarters and meets his team. Theres Jennifer McMahon who mines data from the insurgency and looks for ways to exploit it. Will quickly learns that he is not in charge. Instead, he answers to a woman named Phyllis (Kathy Baker). She emphasizes that their job is to keep the peace, and Phyllis hopes Wills skills will go a long way toward that end.

Colony Series Premiere Recap: The Sullivans Are Caught in an Unwinnable Situation >>>

Will wants to know if his primary directive is to still find Geronimo. It is, but Phyllis informs him that every journey has a first step. Will is tasked with finding a man named. Andrew Hines. He planted the IED on the truck that exploded in the Santa Monica gateway. Fortuitous, since this is the reason Will got busted and then recruited. Hines isnt Resistance, someone paid him. But true believer or not, Hines was responsible for the death of both civilians and Homeland security officers.

Katie and Wills Interests Intersect

Katie heads to the bar and gets a visit from Broussard. Hes already got a job for her, and it just so happens to coincide with Wills first assignment. Broussard somehow already knows that Wills team is looking for the cell that bombed the Santa Monica gateway, and the Resistance needs to know how close they are to finding them.

Will is partnered with Beau (Carl Weathers) who seems to relish his role as a cog in the wheel. Their first stop is Hines girlfriends apartment. Beau points out the Homeland have already tread this territory, but Will is convinced since Hines is no seasoned operative, hell return to what he knows, especially if its a hot girlfriend.

Will questions the woman, Teresa, but she swears she hasnt seen Hines since she broke up with him a month ago. Will used some soda, another rare commodity these days, to bribe some kids downstairs who told him that Hines had been around a lot lately, at least until the bomb went off. He tells this to Teresa, but she doesnt change her story.

Will leaves and heads around to the back of the building confident hes flushed Hines out. Sure enough, Will catches the guy trying to make an exit and chases him back into his girlfriends apartment. Hines heads out a window but doesnt get far before Will tackles him to the ground. As Will loads the guy into the car, a drone shows up. Apparently, Big Brother is watching.

Will delivers Hines to the Redhats and learns that he wont be interrogating him. Beau tells him that job belongs to another department. As Will leaves Hines in lock up, he sees his friend Carlos who was brought in earlier that morning. Carlos got pinched for helping Will with his plan to sneak into Santa Monica.

Will Tries to Help Out a Friend

Carlos is confused and surprised to see Will, and he tells Carlos the truth; he got caught and was forced to take a job with The Occupation because they discovered his real identity as a former FBI agent and all-around badass.

Carlos feels betrayed, and he doesnt give a shit that if Will didnt take the job his family would be sent to The Factory. Carlos has his own wife and kid, Lucia and Mateo, to think about. Will swears he will find Carlos family and get his friend out.

Finding Lucia and Mateo turns out to be an easy task, since they show up at the Bowman house. Will may work for The Man, but he doesnt share their ideologies, so he has no problem trying to help Lucia and Mateo escape. He and Katie take them to a guy named Surak who specializes in making IDs. He apparently helped Will go underground, and we see how well that worked out.

Helping Carlos is proving to be a bit more difficult. Will wants Phyllis to release him, so Carlos can work as an informant, but Phyllis isnt necessarily in the mood to grant favors. Will has to explain that Snyder may have said Will would be in charge, but this is one of what promises to be the first of many lies.

Will tells Katie about Phyllis, and he suspects that shes ex-CIA. Even though it seems high-level agents from previous government agencies were extinguished in some kind of bureaucratic genocide, Phyllis not only survived, she thrived.

A Cell Poses a Threat to the Resistance

Katie questions what Phyllis has him working on, and Will divulges all, so now she knows that Hines has been caught. First chance Katie gets, she again meets with the Resistance leader, Quayle, and tells him the Occupation arrested the man who loaded the bomb on the truck. They plan to use him to uncover the rest of the cell.

The man tells Katie that cell used to be affiliated with them, but they splintered off when there was a difference of philosophy. But this group cant be caught because they can identify key members of the Resistance, and the timing couldnt be worse. They are close to executing a plan that will do meaningful damage. They could even uncover secrets that could help them end the Occupation. If this other cell is captured, everything theyve worked for is at risk. FYI, this guy knows Geronimo.

Josh Holloway and EPs on Why Colony Is About More Than Fighting Aliens >>>

A New Normal

Will returns to headquarters to learn Carlos is being shipped off to The Factory. He confronts Phyllis who tries to impart some wisdom to Will. When the aliens arrived, they knocked out every defense mechanism in the city in eight hours. Theres no way a group of guerrillas stands a chance. All they will do is kill innocent peoples and cause life in the bloc to get far worse for its inhabitants.

Will isnt feeling too great after his first day, but Katie is there to give him a pep talk. The old rules dont apply, and all anyone can do now is whatever it takes to protect the ones they love. We know this is her logic for playing for the opposite team.

Will gets a call that Hines rolled over on the rest of the cell. Katie overhears, and once Will leaves, she relays this info to Broussard.

The Resistance Is Not What It Seems



Carlos and other prisoners arrive at The Factory. They are told to strip, and then they enter a chamber. It seems like this is going to end much like the showers in the Nazi prison camps, but they emerge dressed like doctors headed into surgery, complete with face masks.

Beau and Will show up at the location Hines has given them and find the cell members have all been executed, and Geronimo is written on the wall in what appears to be blood. So much for helping them escape.

Beau questions how the murderer(s) knew they were coming, and Will responds that they have a leak.

Colony airs Thursdays at 10pm on USA.

(Image courtesy of USA)
UB applications up significantly

Total number seeking undergraduate admission to UB grows, diversity of applicants increasing

As undergraduates ... students learn that they are uniquely positioned to take advantage of the challenging research and creative opportunities at UB that match their academic interests and career goals.

BUFFALO, N.Y.  Undergraduate applications to the University at Buffalo are 10.3 percent higher than at this time last year, and university officials are attributing the increase partly to greater awareness of UBs status as one of the nations top public universities.

As of Jan. 21, this represents the highest number of applications to the university in the past five years.

The Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at UB is receiving undergraduate applications at a rate 14.4 percent higher than one year ago.

Applications to the UB School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, ranked 37th among public universities by U.S. News and World Report, are up 11.7 percent. Applications to UBs School of Management, ranked as one of the nations top business schools by Forbes, have increased by 10.9 percent.

Based on SAT profiles, the class of students for 2016 continues to be significantly stronger academically than in 2015, and the most diverse pool of applicants in the past five years.

We have recruited significantly more than in previous years and become much more strategic and direct in delivering a very clear message to prospective students and their families, said Jose Aviles, associate vice provost and director of admissions. UB is the largest and most comprehensive university in New York State, known for interdisciplinary research and scholarship. We stand apart as a member of the Association of American Universities, an organization that consists of only 2 percent of all colleges and universities across the country.

This has resonated in a way that has produced one of the largest and strongest applicant pools at UB in recent history.

UBs AAU membership signifies that it is one of the nations leading research universities, a place where faculty and students work together on developing solutions to some of societys most pressing challenges.

In 2011, institutions in the AAU received nearly 60 percent of all federally funded research provided to colleges and universities, said Aviles. As an AAU institution, we attract some of the most acclaimed scholars from around the globe to join our faculty and teach our students, a message that resonates well with prospective students.

As undergraduates  from the sciences, to the social sciences, to the arts and humanities  students learn that they are uniquely positioned to take advantage of the challenging research and creative opportunities at UB that match their academic interests and career goals.

Additionally, the diversity of current applicants to UB has increased by 13.4 percent over the same period in 2015. Applicants representing minority populations comprise 51 percent of all students applying to the university, compared to 49 percent in 2015. The most significant gains include:

Hispanic +21 percent.

African American +13.1 percent.

Asian +7.8 percent.

Aviles said that UBs four-year graduation rate increased from 39 percent in 2007 to 55 percent in 2015, exceeding the national average of 36 percent and decreasing the cost in time and money needed to earn an undergraduate degree at UB.

Students are also attracted to Finish in 4, a model UB program that provides students with enhanced support throughout their entire undergraduate career and which has gained national attention.

UB continues to ingrain the idea of graduating in four years by introducing it at orientation and reinforcing it throughout the students career  such as through class Facebook pages and class-year souvenirs  to build a students identification with and excitement about their graduation year.

Enrollment in Finish in 4 has grown from approximately half of the freshman class in 2012 to 80 percent for fall 2015.
BSRIA is encouraged by a recent wave of house building announcements, but is concerned with how they will be executed due to the industry skills shortage.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has announced it will sell off a dozen of its sites to raise 500m and provide land for 15,000 homes. Defence minister Mark Lancaster said the money from the sale will be ploughed back into defence budgets, with the land used to help the government target of building 160,000 homes by 2020.

The 12 sites form the first lot to be sold off by the MoD. The department plans to raise 1bn in total through land sales, contributing 55,000 homes to the government target. It will announce further sites to be sold in due course throughout 2016.

Housebuilder Barratt has reported a nine per cent rise in housing completions in the six months up to 31st December 2015, completing 7,626 homes over the period. The firm has said the increase has kept it on course to deliver its target of 16,750 by the end of the financial year in June. It has invested in training and recruitment programmes to address the need for skilled labour.

Solar firm WElink Energy, which has offices across the world, plans to work with China National Building Materials to develop and build 8,000 zero-carbon homes across the UK in a 1.1bn deal. Construction of the first 4,000 homes will begin this year and be completed by 2018.

The homes will be built using a low-cost housing solution called the Barcelona Housing System, a pre-engineered construction technique. Since there is no cement or water usage or zero waste, these modular homes aim to meet ambitious affordable homes targets.

Julia Evans, chief executive at BSRIA, said: Collectively these projects represent good news for both the construction and housing industries and for those trying to get on the housing ladder, especially with the affordable housing on the cards. This will help hugely with the current appetite for first time buyers. The offsite and zero waste methods that are being adopted is also an exciting development. But BSRIA asks how are these houses going to be built when there is a severe skills shortage in the housebuilding industry?
Padres stun Phillies as big brother gets best of little brother

The San Diego Padres stunned the Philadelphia Phillies in NLCS Game 2, scoring eight unanswered runs in a victory that evened up the playoff series.
HELENA  A federal judge said he will require Yellowstone Club founder Tim Blixseth to account for what happened to $13.8 million he received from the sale of a Mexico resort in violation of a bankruptcy court order, no matter how long it takes.

U.S. District Judge Sam Haddon made the comment Friday in Helena during a status conference in Blixseth's contempt of court case.

Haddon plans a hearing on whether Blixseth is able to provide any more information and whether continuing to jail him would coerce him to do so. Blixseth has been jailed since April 2015.

But the judge said he needed to determine if he should wait for an appeals court decision on a related matter. A date for a hearing wasn't immediately set.

"I want to assure you that if Blixseth has the capacity to get the records and produce them to this court, he will be obliged," Haddon said, adding that he will not accept "I don't have the records" as an excuse.

Blixseth's lawyer, Paul Brain, said Blixseth didn't have control of some of the records, including the bank statements of his third wife, Jessica.

"There's a divorce proceeding pending," Brain said.

Haddon countered that Blixseth could subpoena the records, hold a deposition or take advantage of other court processes.

The Yellowstone Club near Big Sky went bankrupt after Blixseth kept most of a $375 million Credit Suisse loan to the resort. He later gave up control of the enterprise to his ex-wife during their 2008 divorce.

Creditors of the Yellowstone Club have civil judgments against Blixseth for more than $250 million. They argue Blixseth used complex real estate deals to hide some money and transferred wealth to relatives.

Blixseth was found in contempt of court in December 2013 for selling the Tamarindo Resort in violation of a bankruptcy court order.

In February 2014, Haddon ordered Blixseth to provide bank statements, checks and other documentation relating to the sale of the resort and where the money went. Haddon has found repeatedly that Blixseth has not complied with the order.
Wildlife carers in the Burnham-On-Sea area are dealing with an influx of hedgehogs.

Secret World Wildlife Rescue, based in East Huntspill, has seen a seasonal surge in the number of the prickly creatures following the cold spell of weather.

Secret World volunteer Sue Hulbert, right, has been caring for the centres hedgehogs for eight years and is currently looking after 26 hedgehogs.

Rescued hedgehogs are kept in an area known by the team as Hogwarts on site when they no longer need treatment at the charitys hedgehog hospital.

In Hogwarts there are rows of cages, each furnished with newspaper, a dish of food and fresh water, plus a box full of hay for the hedgehogs.

We clean every hedgehog cage out daily, taking care not to disturb any hibernating hedgehogs, says Sue.

If she finds a hibernating hedgehog she leaves it well alone, just making sure theres fresh food and water in case the hedgehog wakes up. She has found a few more hibernating over the past week during the icy conditions.

Sue checks if a hedgehog is hibernating by sliding her hand gently under the hedgehog in its hay and feeling the temperature. One hedgehog here was rescued after getting caught in fencing in a childrens play area in Taunton, and was named Franklin by his 9 year-old finder.

Now hes recovered and gained weight Sue says she is glad to find that hes settled down to hibernate.

In the wild a hedgehogs normal temperature is about 35 degrees, says Sue, but when they hibernate this drops to below 10 degrees, so I can feel by the warmth whether a hedgehog is hibernating or not.

Their heart rate and breathing rate slow down too, and they use very little energy. The state of their cage is also a tell-tale sign  if theyve made a mess and their food has been eaten, thats a good sign theyve been up and about!

Usually hedgehogs start hibernating in November when it gets cold and their food becomes scarce, but because its been so mild this winter theyve been out and about until mid-January.

Many of the hedgehogs at Secret World were rescued in recent weeks after being found out alone during the daytime, which is often a sign there is something wrong since hedgehogs are nocturnal.

One of the hedgehogs Sue finds still awake is a young male who was caught by a dog in Clevedon in December. Hes now fit and healthy and up to a good weight, but although the aim is to get rescued hedgehogs back to the wild its too cold to release them at the moment, so this youngster will stay here for now.

Hedgehogs that are awake like this one have a thorough check up once a week. We avoid disturbing them too often, says Sue, because they need peace and quiet to encourage them to hibernate.

Each hedgehog is weighed and scanned with a microchip reader to confirm its identity, and put back into a clean warm box of hay with fresh food.

Over in the hospital room, a young hedgehog is under close observation after he was found just before Christmas by the side of a road in the daytime. Once he is well enough, hell move over to Hogwarts and with Sues gentle encouragement hell hopefully settle down to hibernate as the others are starting to.

Secret World is currently appealing for urgent funds to equip their new wildlife creche, ready to care for baby hedgehogs and other orphans this year.
As she grew up watching her grandmother, a trained Carnatic vocalist, teach music to the neighbourhood children, Akkai Padmashali, then 14, wanted to sit in too. But her grandmother would have none of it.

"She was worried learning music would 'influence' me," says Padmashali, 32. After all, she had already started getting pulled up for wearing her sister's clothes. Back then, Padmashali was a boy named Jagadeesh.

Lost and muddled about the identity he was expected to embrace, Jagadeesh had even attempted to end it all when he was 12, twice. "It was very difficult growing up with violence and unacceptance all around," says Padmashali, now a household name in Bengaluru and a sari-loving gutsy human rights activist.

Last month, when she was meeting a lawmaker in the city, Padmashali told him how she was born a boy and was undergoing long term-sex change treatment. "Why do you go against the law of nature," he asked her rather bluntly.

"Akkai spoke to the minister very openly; she never antagonises people," says Jayana Kothari, director of city-based Centre for Law and Policy Research who was at the meeting as Padmashali's advocate. "She humourously questioned what nature was," says Kothari. By the end of the conversation, Padmashali had won the minister over.

"He said he had never known how much the transgender community has to face," says Kothari. Soon after, Padmashali and Kothari's team had reason to celebrate - they had assurance from the state government that the word "eunuch" would be removed from Section 36A of the Karnataka Police Act, 1963 in six months.

Section 36(A), titled "power to regulate eunuchs", allows police to maintain a diary of transgenders suspected of kidnapping boys or committing any unnatural offence, thus singling out the sexual minority. The amendment is a violation of the Delhi High Court's rule that keeps consenting adults out of the purview of unnatural offences. So, removal of "eunuch" from the section is only half the battle won.

The community is targeted by the police and its members live in fear of their names appearing in the black book. "That's why there is an ongoing public interest litigation in the Karnataka High Court to squash this section on the grounds that it's a threat to the fundamental rights of sexual minorities," says Kothari.

Akkai is the name Padmashali took on when she became a sex worker. Her story is not a new one, but it's one shared by many in the community. At 16, when she confided in her brother that she wanted to be a woman and he approached their parents, "they gave him a tight slap".

In the days to come, when Padmashali met transgender sex workers, she found kinship. "My parents thought I was working in a private company but I was doing sex work. I did it for four years," says Padmashali, who describes her education as "Class X-maths fail". Today, Padmashali runs Onede (Kannada for "convergence") that works with children, women and sexual minorities.

Two years ago, Padmashali, a Karnataka Rajyotsava state awardee, featured in an album called "Songs of the Caravan". "She auditioned over phone and we just went ahead with that. She's a very warm person," says Anubhav Gupta of Jeevan Trust in Delhi, which conceptualised the album featuring nine transgender women. Her choice of song: Kannada bhajan Bhagyada Laxmi.

Padmashali's fiance Midhun Raj SR is always by her side. "We don't believe in marriage, but we are in a live-in relationship for life," says Padmashali laughing as she heads for a conference on sexual minorities in Salem.

So how many conferences has she spoken at? "Oh hundreds, yaar," she says.
A doctor once told Harmala Gupta that cancer is like a wild horse. If you're behind it, you could chase it forever. If you're ahead of it, however, you have a fighting chance to tame it. Since the time she was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Disease while studying in Canada in 1987, Gupta has continually raced that wild horse, sometimes ahead, sometimes abreast, but never ever losing sight of it. She survived cancer and returned to India in 1991. "I realised when I returned that most cancers in India were diagnosed too late to be cured," she recalls. Cancer patients and their families suffered not only from the disease, but also lack of information, insensitive medical professionals and lack of palliative options to ease the pain and side effects of treatments. "I remember visiting the Breast Cancer Clinic at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, where women patients were being examined behind half-drawn curtains while other male attendants waited right there," she says. "One of the first things I and a bunch of generous friends did was ensure proper curtains to give women patients much-needed privacy and dignity they deserved."



Gupta founded CanSupport in 1996, with a belief that she could be a positive role model for cancer patients. In the next few years, CanSupport pioneered the concept of palliative home care in India. Studies indicate that patients who receive palliative care throughout their treatment, live longer than those who don't. Yet, overworked Indian doctors often give the concept short shrift. That's where CanSupport steps in. "We like to say it's better to add life to days, than add days to life," says Ambika Rajvanshi, CEO of CanSupport.

To this end, the support group tries to work with patients from the time they are diagnosed, the initial stage they refer to as "breaking of bad news". "We conduct empathy-building workshops with oncologists to help them see the patient, and not just his tumour," says Rajvanshi. The second stage in the course of cancer is treatment. "We operate three out-patient clinics outside NCR's major cancer hospitals to support patients through radiation and chemotherapy," she says. These also function as day-care centres where adults and children can relax with music, yoga and other recreation activities. CanSupport also provides wigs, medical equipment and air mattresses to patients free of cost.

If treatment is unsuccessful, the patients enter what CanSupport staffers refer to as the "end of life" stage."Our flagship palliative home care services are for such patients," explains Rajvanshi. Teams of doctors, nurses and counsellors currently visit 1,800 patients across NCR. Usually, they train a family member to give injections, clean tubes and sterilise dressings. "This way, the patient dies peacefully at home without expensive and pointless medical help," she explains. "This makes the end-of-life a transition from panic to peace and acceptance." Last year, 94 per cent of CanSupport's patients died at home, surrounded by family - freeing up precious hospital beds. Obtaining the licence to dispense morphine has been a step forward in this direction. "India supplies most of the world's morphine, yet cancer patients used to die in agony because of the country's outdated laws," says Gupta. Owing to their efforts, morphine is available in all states of the country to ease the final days of terminally-ill patients.

This is the largest home care programme in India, recognised by the World Health Organization for its efficacy. It is also easily replicable: "We're presently training several teams, including some from the Punjab government and Sher-e-Kashmir hospital in Srinagar, to use our palliative home care model," says Rajvanshi. Home care is quite expensive, though, with each home visit costing Rs 950. CanSupport spent Rs 3.5 crore on home care last year. "We need to expand our reach outside the limits of Delhi because a huge number of cases are coming from the capital's outskirts," says Rajvanshi.

At the end of the day, Gupta and her cohorts have learnt that cancer must be looked at holistically - and that not just the patient but his family, too, needs treatment for it. "We continue to support the family after patients have died, for they too are victims," says Gupta. In many ways, CanSupport demonstrates that while modern medicine might heal the body, no cure is complete without some kindness and empathy to heal the spirit.
To those unfamiliar with Economic & Political Weekly's history, the resignation of its editor, C Rammanohar Reddy, on January 13 was just another news item. What they wouldn't know is that in the 50 years since its inception, this was the first time the journal's editor had stepped down over internal conflict, triggering concern among its contributors: a letter signed by 101 academics from various disciplines and countries was sent to members of the Sameeksha Trust that runs the journal. It urged the Trust to ask Reddy "to take up and continue the activities he had planned to celebrate this anniversary". "We also strongly urge that he be included and given a role in the process of selecting the new editor, and that such a selection be done in an open and transparent manner with all Trustees invited to be part of that process."



Reports suggest that Reddy had a disagreement with the board of the Sameeksha Trust over plans for the 50th year celebrations for the journal. Reddy, as he explained in an interview to Scroll, wanted to create a documentary and show the story of India through the eyes of EPW.

It appears that the board, which consists of historian Romila Thapar, economist Deepak Nayyar and banker Deepak Parekh, among others, was not pleased with Reddy's plans, despite the fact that Reddy had secured the funds for this project from the Tata Trust.

Reddy, in the interview, wondered what would come next "once the autonomy of the editor is breached". Over 100 scholars, it seems, are worried about the same thing.

In 1966, Sachin Chaudhuri, changed the name of the periodical Economic Weekly, which he had edited since its inception in 1949, to EPW. That same year, Chaudhuri died and economist R K Hazari took his place as the editor. His tenure lasted three years before he joined the Reserve Bank of India. It was then that Krishna Raj, an assistant editor, took over as editor, a role he fulfilled for for 35 years, till his death in 2004.

A search committee was put together to look for his successor and the Sameeksha Trust appointed Reddy as the editor. At the time, Reddy was the economics editor for The Hindu and the financial sacrifice he had to make for the switch was considerable. There was also a personal sacrifice involved, when Reddy had to relocate to Mumbai, while his family stayed back in Hyderabad.

"Frankly, I think it is quite embarrassing," says Reddy over a phone call. "Working with EPW is a dream job for certain people and it has been an honour to have edited it."



"Role- and knowledge-wise, there aren't many other places where one could grow into the job as much. That is why, in my perception, EPW was an attractive place to work," says a former member of the staff. "The small editorial team and the immense expertise and idealism in it made the office exude a collegial atmosphere to work in."



Having read EPW with great reverence and some intimidation, I ask Reddy questions with some degree of nervousness. At once an editor and scholar, he approaches our conversation like a teacher would: listening patiently before answering calmly. Reddy puts one condition to our conversation: he will not speak to me about the controversy around his resignation.

At one point, I begin a question about the stature of EPW with the letter that scholars signed to express their concerns over his resignation and he cuts me short and rephrases the question before answering it. On that count, Reddy remains firm throughout, the teacher turning strict when the pupil veers off-course.

"I have often wondered how EPW garnered the goodwill it does. I think it is because the journal is independent and contributors and readers see it as their own," says Reddy.

He explains that EPW remains distinctive in India and perhaps even the world for presenting both research papers and news analysis. "While editorially we are a journal of defence, we have endeavoured to never shut out any debate or particular school of thought."



Even though it positions itself to the Left, it has published works by proponents of free-trade too. For instance, both Amartya Sen and Jagdish Bhagwati have contributed to EPW - two economists who belong to the opposite ends of the ideological spectrum.

Historian Ramchandra Guha, for the very fact of EPW's scholarly variety, says that he owes his career to the journal. "It is a priceless resource. But we also must keep in mind that EPW is what it is because of its editor," he says.

In a moving piece titled The Gentle Colossus for The Caravan in 2012, Guha wrote of the first time his paper was published in EPW and his long-standing professional relationship with Raj.

Another historian and a signatory of the letter to the Trust explains how EPW has survived crises such as Emergency and the 1991 foreign exchange shortage, emerging only stronger. While the quality of printing and the look and feel of the journal are abysmally akin to what a government paper would look like in the 1980s, it is the content that truly gives it distinction. "To use a cliched term, EPW bridges Bastar to Brooklyn," he says.

Reddy also played a key role in digitising EPW, increasing its reach and readership manifold, even if the official print circulation remains at 12,000 copies per week. There's a sort of fable about EPW - almost 10 times as many people read the journal than its actual print circulation, both through libraries and online research archives such as JSTOR.

Reading EPW can sometimes be challenging for first-time readers, with lengthy papers that need extra attention and patience to just wade through them. Those who accomplish that task often come out feeling intellectually valiant.

A student at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences explains how he first discovered EPW and how it enriched the years that followed. "I discovered EPW in a dusty pile in a corner of my college hostel's little-used library. The red-and-black on a yellowing white front cover was unusually appealing," he says.

While high on the academic quotient and low on the "newsy" aspect, EPW allowed him to get a sense of the economic and social realities of India and the world. "That V S Naipaul once called EPW, which is widely considered by those who do not agree with its ideological stance as a Leftist mouthpiece, India's best news publication only further set the journal apart."



What also set it apart was the fact that its editor, and not the Trust, was able to mobilise funds to keep it afloat. "Reddy always went above and beyond the scope of his duties. And unlike some media organisations where the editor has a stronger personality than the paper itself, he was always behind-the-scenes at EPW," says Guha.

In 2006, Reddy convinced Rohini Nilekani to contribute Rs 2 crore to the journal, allowing it to shift to a permanent office. Nilekani declined to comment on her relationship with the journal. The Sameeksha Trust is registered under the Bombay Public Trusts Act, which comes under the purview of Maharashtra's charity commissioner. While the Trust can be located on the charity commissioner's website, details of its financial statements and assets aren't there.

Reddy, Guha adds, had "outsized shoes to fill" after Raj, which he was able to accomplish successfully. Former colleagues, too, speak highly of the environment at EPW. "Every Tuesday, there were long meetings, two to three hours, and the debates and discussions were intense but friendly," he says. "There was a great degree of ownership among the editorial staff with the process and the product."



While some regular readers of EPW call the current row "distracting", Guha is apprehensive who would succeed Reddy. "What worries me is that if an even-tempered editor like Reddy could be pushed to the brink, anyone succeeding him would be concerned about the state of affairs, too," says Guha.

But Reddy and those familiar with the inner workings of EPW insist that the relationship between the Trust and the editorial team has always been cordial and open.

Over the last week, efforts have been made to reconcile members of the Board and Reddy, to arrive at a resolution that would be in the best interests of the journal. This might mean that the Board consults with Reddy on who should succeed him.

As a student of literature in Delhi University, I once quoted an EPW article in one of my assignments. While it did not fetch me a higher score, it certainly won me some brownie points with a professor, who then started paying more attention to the arguments I posited in class. Scholars all around, it seems, want to ensure the intellectual brownie-points don't cease.
KALISPELL  The Flathead County Sheriff's Office has ruled that the Kalispell Police officers who shot a U.S. Army soldier were justified.

The report ruled that Sgt. Chad Zimmerman and Officer Eric Brinton acted within Montana law and police department policy when they fired at 30-year-old Ryan Pengelly on Jan. 12.

Pengelly was shot after pointing a rifle at the officers and refusing orders to put it down. He was struck four times and remains hospitalized.

The officers were called to Pengelly's home to check on the welfare of his mother. When they tried to take her into custody, she resisted and Pengelly emerged from a bedroom with the rifle.
The growing instance of accidents on Indian roads is a cause for concern and many NGOs focused on promoting road safety undertake initiatives to encourage safe driving. Chaoon, an NGO has launched a road safety initiative along with the Motor Vehicles Department, Maharashtra. According to Sangeeta Chadha, chief trustee, Chaoon, Mumbai alone witnesses over 23,000 road accidents every year, in which about 1,500 people are killed and over 7,000 injured. As much as three per cent of our GDP is lost annually because of accidents, she said. About 380 people die every day in India. The NGO organised a workshop on road safety and nearly a hundred driving school instructors, driving licence applicants and even traffic rule violators participated. Road safety expert Ashutosh Atray, who also spoke at the workshop, said bus and truck drivers need to be trained about proper road safety techniques as they are responsible for ferrying hundreds of passengers.

Source : BS Motoring
Bloomberg LP, which entered India in 2008, will be terminating its agreement with Business Broadcast (the broadcast arm of Anil Ambanis Reliance ADA Group) from March 31. Employees of the company were told this at a recent meet, addressed by executive editor Siddharth Zarabi.

The two parties have mutually agreed to allow the licensing agreement to lapse and to pursue their respective new business strategies.

Business Broadcast Pvt Ltd (BBNPL) will continue to operate the TV channel, with fresh branding to be unveiled separately, effective April 1, subject to regulatory approval. Bloomberg will announce a new media partner in due course.

This will be the fourth avatar of the channel since its launch in India. When Bloomberg entered India in 2008, it was in the form of UTVi, a joint venture (JV) between the US-based media outlet and UTV Software, then owned by Ronnie Screwvala. The channel was rebranded Bloomberg UTV in 2009. In 2012, UTV exited from the JV, to be replaced by Reliance ADAG and was renamed Bloomberg TV India.

Our strategic partnership with Reliance Group and Ronnie Screwvala enabled us to successfully reach millions of viewers in India, and deliver market-moving business and financial news on Indias growth and development, said Parry Ravindranathan, managing directorinternational for Bloomberg Media Group. Together, we set new standards in financial broadcast journalism, and we will continue to value our relationship with both partners. In the coming weeks, we will unveil a new chapter for Bloomberg Media in India, as we remain more committed than ever to expanding our media operations this year in broadcast, digital and other platforms.



Tarun Katial, Director, BBNPL, said: In recent years, the channel has witnessed consistent increase in reach and viewership, and created a benchmark for credible business news reporting, with experienced anchors and marquee shows. We have had great learnings, drawing upon the global expertise and credibility of Bloomberg, and look forward to maintaining this strong relationship in the years ahead.
Consumer appliances majors are eying Indian kitchens for the next phase of growth. Consistent high growth over the past few years is prompting companies to focus on premium kitchen appliances.

The premium kitchen appliances industry is pegged at Rs 500 crore and growing at 20 per cent per year for the last three years. Kitchens that cost above Rs 5 lakh to furnish are considered premium. Typically such kitchens have four to five built-in appliances like refrigerator, dishwasher, oven, hob and hood, warming drawer and microwave.

The recent spurt in growth in the segment is attributed to changing lifestyles from joint families residing in houses to nuclear families in premium apartments. Better availability of such products and consumers moving up the socio-economic strata are the other factors driving growth in the segment.

As kitchens are increasingly becoming a part of the drawing room now, demand for well-furnished kitchens is also growing. This adds to the sale of premium items, said Gunjan Srivastava, managing director and chief executive of BSH Household Appliances. BSH offers its products under its brand Siemens, the market leader in the segment now.

Global home appliances leader Whirlpool has opened exclusive franchise stores for premium appliances in cities like Chandigarh, Bengaluru, Kolkata and Jaipur, and aims to be present in 16 major cities by March.

Although more than 90 per cent of sales still come from the top 32 cities now, we see this as a segment with huge potential. We will continue increasing our presence and availability, said Shantanu Dasgupta, vice-president, corporate affairs and strategy, South Asia, Whirlpool. The company is planning to introduce its premium kitchen appliances brand KitchenAid in India in 2016. KitchenAid is an US-based company that Whirlpool acquired in 1986.

According to industry estimates, the segment is expected to grow at 15-20 per cent per annum for the next few years. The market in India today is what it was in China 10 years ago. The premium kitchen appliances market has grown 10-fold in China since 2010, Srivastava said.

"The growing upscale urban customer has travelled the world and seeks the same level of premium products that are available in global markets, said Anil Mathur, chief operating officer of Godrej Interio.

A surge in demand prompted the company to launch Cuisine Regale, which offers premium kitchen furnishing costing more than Rs 8 lakh.

The increasing popularity of ready-to-move furnished apartments is supporting the industry too. Whirlpool now offers an entire portfolio of such appliances and has tied-up with real estate major DLF for its high-end apartments in Chennai and Gurgaon.

"Architects and premium home builders are the ones who influence buyers for these products. So it is always helpful to work with them, Dasgupta explained.
Redefining online shopping, spammart.com, a Hyderabad based start-up that intends to work as an aggregator for the brick and mortar retail outlets, is set to go live by February 2016.

"Working against the traditional norms of e-commerce, we want to work on technologies rather than services to integrate the shopping world with all the social buzz around it online in the virtual space", said Soham Acharya, co-founder and chief executive officer of Spammart.

Instead of destroying the structure of any town that has evolved over the years, we are hell-bent to retain it. Having made breakthrough in image processing and vehicle routing technologies spammart.com works on creating a social environment for buyers and sellers to interact with each other, he added.

The start-up, set to go live by February at Hyderabad, has raised $150,000 seed fund from angel investors in just a span of three months of its inception. It is in talk with investors for raising series-A fund soon.

Spammart is focused on bringing new technologies to make the online shopping interesting and enjoyable. Without extorting sellers through commission to facilitate them to build an online brand presence, this enterprise is working on development of artificial intelligence and predictive algorithms to power their revenue generation, said Acharya.

The online start up has already completed a dry run at Hyderabad.

It has already taken 70 brick and mortar shops on board , aims to add 500 in next three months in Hyderabad. He said, two delivery vans can handle 500 orders per day and deliver goods. It plans to expand its operation to Bhubaneswar by March end.

"We have the API (application programme interface ) permission from Facebook, Twitter and Google plus. Any user logging in to Spammart allows us to access the data of the user by accessing the social networking platforms, Acharya said.

Seven graduates from Indian Institute of Technology (IITs ) and National Institutes of Technology (NITs) form the core team of the Spammart.

Our endeavour is to bring each and every aspect of city online, he added. The start-up is currently advised and mentored by Bijay Sahoo ,director, Reliance, Pratyush Prasanna , former vice-president, Paytm and Sandip Das, former chief executive officer, Vodafone India.
In a bid to increase sales of its premium smartphones, the countrys largest mobile handset company, Samsung, will focus on bringing in more variants of its established brands and models, such as Galaxy S6, S6 Edge, S6 Edge+ and Note 5 in 2016. Consumers may expect more India specific innovations from the Korean major in the sub-Rs 15,000 category too, in the coming months. The moves will help the company stay future ready, Manu Sharma, director, marketing, IT and mobile, Samsung India said.

Increasing pressure and entry of Chinese on a regular basis in the domestic market has taken a toll on the share of major players already. A fleet of premium smartphone (above Rs 30,000) launches during 2015 has increased competition in the segment as well. HTC One A9, Moto X, Google Nexus 6P, Microsoft Lumia 950, Sony Xperia Z5, iPhone 6S and 6S plus entered Indian market last year among others. For Samsung which currently derives some 20 per cent of its sales from the premium category of smartphones in India, innovation in the segment is necessary.

While, it recently came up with a dual-SIM variant of its flagship Note 5, Sharma says, more such differentiating products and varieties are expected to be launched in 2016.

Overall, the company has decided to keep its focus on two strategies: India specific innovations in terms of products and services and establish its mobile ecosystem, apart from differentiation in the premium category. The India specific innovations will be based on consumer insights. J-series of smartphones which offers an ultra-light data mode is one such example. It helps users save data consumption through managing and encrypting data that are in use.

Introduction of various other accessories and entry into new categories will form part of the expansion of the company's ecosystem plan. Yesterday, it launched a range of smart watches and introduced a virtual reality device - a first in India - which can be synched with its smartphones. Samsung expects these efforts will help boost its smartphone sales, leading to higher revenue. This ecosystem will have a positive effect on our flagship device sales, Sharma said. According to Counter Point Research, in 2015, some 4,00,000 wearable devices were sold in India, of which 25 per cent were smart watches. The wearable devices market is expected to grow to two million units in 2016.

During 2015, Samsung launched seventeen 4G LTE devices in the Rs 8,000-60,000 price band. The company also put in place a dedicated online team, which now looks after its sales, marketing, distribution and new tie-ups for e-commerce. It is headed by Asim Warsi, its erstwhile mobile and IT head in India. According to estimates, at least 20 per cent of smartphones are now sold online in India.
The shareholders of United Spirits (USL) approved a resolution to inform the Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR) that the companys net worth had eroded by 86 per cent as on March 2015. USL, however, said the firm was on path to recovery, with a net worth improving to Rs 1,667 crore as on September, and would not declare it sick.

"The company (USL) is not a sick company. We are making profits and our net worth has improved," chief financial officer Rajeev Churiwala told shareholders at a extraordinary general meeting on Friday. "You should not be concerned. In the past two quarters, we have delivered profits."



The Sick Industrial Companies Act mandate firms that lose its net worth by over half over four years should inform the BIFR. USL saw its net worth eroded to 86 per cent due to losses caused by fund diversions to the now defunct Kingfisher Airlines by its chairman, Vijay Mallya.

Vice-chairman Mallya, managing director Nicholas Bodo Blazquez and chief executive officer Anand Kripalu were not present. Independent director D Sivanandan chaired the meeting, which saw shareholders urging USL to take legal action against Mallya for causing losses to the company.

This is the second year that USL, now majority owned by British liquor firm Diageo and owning brands such as Signature and Antiquity, is declaring to BIFR that its net worth had eroded by over half. An EGM was convened last October to discuss recommending to the sick company restructuring agency.

USL, in a notification to the BSE on December 29, said the accumulated losses as on March 31, were Rs 5,045.45 crore, greater than 50 per cent of the peak net worth of the previous four financial years, which was Rs 5,859.62 crore. USL said that it made a provision of Rs 2,082 crore due to losses and doubtful debts during the last financial year.
The Maharashtra government moved the Supreme Court on Friday, challenging Bollywood star Salman Khan's acquittal in a 2002 hit-and-run case by the Bombay High Court in December 2015.

The actor had been convicted in May by a trial court, of killing a man with his SUV, following a drinking session on the night of September 28, 2002. Khan's Toyota Land Cruiser had run over five men sleeping outside American Express bakery in Mumbai's Bandra locality.

The High Court had shot down the trial court's ruling on December 10, and acquitted Khan of all charges and scrapped his five-year jail term. The high court said that the prosecution was not able to sufficiently establish that the 49-year-old star was behind the wheel on the fateful night or was drunk at the time of the accident.

It discarded the testimony of the actor's bodyguard, Ravindra Patil, who was a key prosecution witness. During his deposition, Patil had claimed that Khan was drunk and driving, and had ignored his repeated warnings. The bodyguard died of tuberculosis in 2007.
A giant clock at Mumbai Central railway station was showing five o'clock in the evening when 19-year-old Shraddha Parte, a student from nearby Navneet College looked at the free Wi-Fi signboards hanging from the high roofs, designed by British architect Claude Batley.

Within minutes, she logged into the Wi-Fi network and started surfing through her Facebook timeline. "This is faster than my regular mobile internet pack!" she said while accessing photos of her friends over the social networking site.

On Friday, Mumbai residents got to know about the free internet initiative by RailTel Corporation in association with Google. The project was announced last September when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Google headquarters in Silicon Valley. Google chief executive officer Sundar Pichai had said last month that free Wi-Fi would be available at 100 railway stations by the end of this year, and would be rolled out at 400 stations eventually.

The free internet service, a favourite announcement by ministers these days, certainly grabs attention in a country where telecom companies are gearing up to make money by providing high speed internet over mobile phones. Google said the speed of its free internet would be world-class.

"Today is a historic day for internet in India. The speed you can get here is better than any other internet service providers'," said Rajan Anandan, vice-president and managing director of Google Southeast Asia at the launch ceremony.

R K Bahuguna, chairman and managing director of RailTel said, "Affordable smartphones have made it possible for the common man to experience the power of internet."



RailTel Corp, an arm of Indian Railways, is one of the largest neutral telecom infrastructure providers in the country, owning a pan-India optic fibre network along the railway tracks. A user simply has to connect to the RailWire Wi-Fi network and go to railwire.co.in. The user then keys in his mobile number. A one-time password then connects him to the free internet.

"Our tests show that one can get a browsing speed of up to 30 MB per second. Though we expect around 100,000 people to use the facility, they won't be using it at a single point of time," said a RailTel official.

"I checked my mail, downloaded an app and watched news," said Bharat Patel, a Surat-based diamond trader who shuttles between Mumbai and Surat.

Railway minister Suresh Prabhu said like internet facility, the government is ready to provide all facilities by introducing modern amenities to train passengers. "Railways will develop the infrastructure by accessing funds from World Bank," he said at the launch ceremony.

However, some people said the speed was not as good as claimed. "The connectivity is fast, but it is not consistent at all locations," said Darshan Wadikar, owner of a digital forensics firm.
The Investigation Agency (NIA), along with state police forces and central security agencies, on Friday claimed to have averted a major attack with the arrest of 14 sympathisers of the Islamic State (IS) terror group, including their self-styled chief Ameer.

The raids were carried out simultaneously in four states  Karnataka, Hyderabad, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh  where 13 people had formed Janood-ul-Khalifa-e-Hind, a terror group which had similar ideologies that of the IS.

Munabeer Mushtaq, a Mumbai resident, had allegedly designated himself as Ameer of the organisation, which was tasked to carry out blasts at various installations in the country, besides attacking some foreigners, home ministry sources said.

Mushtaq was arrested in a joint operation by the Maharashtra Anti Terrorism Squad and the NIA from Mumbra, near Mumbai.

Fridays arrest comes days after security agencies busted a terror plot to target the Ardh Kumbh Mela in Haridwar and malls in Delhi- Capital Region.

A senior police official said three youths from Malwani in north Mumbai were feared to have left for Syria to join the IS in the past few months. In 2014, too, three youth from the area had left for Syria. Only one of them managed to return.

He said the security would be stepped up ahead of the Republic Day.
President Pranab Mukherjee issued a warm condolence message following the death of Mrinalini Sarabhai, one of Indias best known dancers. But, there was no word from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is otherwise active on the social media and elsewhere and normally quick to respond with condolence messages.

This, according to Mallika Sarabhai, social activist and daughter Mrinalini, could have something to do with politics. She criticised Modi for not paying tributes to her mother who died on Thursday. My dear Prime Minister. You hate my politics and I hate yours, that has nothing to do with what Mrinalini Sarabhai did to promote the culture of this country to the world over 60 years. She blazed a trailer for our culture in the world, she said.

That her death sees no word from you shows your mentality. However much you hate me, as our Prime Minister it behoves you to recognise her contribution. You have not. Shame on you.



As an activist, Mallika Sarabhai had repeatedly attacked the then Gujarat chief minister Modi for the 2002 communal riots in the state.

She had joined the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) briefly and recounted on several instances her experience of being falsely accused and hounded by the Modi government. At a lecture in 2013 in Jaipur, she had said, I had to hide under a carpet in the boot of a vehicle and cross over to Udaipur in Rajasthan to escape arrest. From there, I had to wear disguises and move from one city to another for 18 days till I could apply for bail. As early as 2003, Mallika Sarabhai had been at the forefront of an appeal in the Supreme Court demanding compensation and justice for the victims of the Gujarat carnage of 2002.

Mrinalini Sarabhai was a Padma Bhushan awardee. She founded Darpana Academy of Performing Arts, an institute for imparting training in dance, drama, music and puppetry.

In his message, the President said Mrinalini Sarabhai exemplified the fighting spirit of her mother and freedom fighter Ammu Swaminathan and her sister Lakshmi Sehgal, who was commander-in-chief of Netaji Subhas Chandra Boses Rani of Jhansi Regiment of the Indian National Army.

She was also of inspiration and support to her husband, Vikram Sarabhai, the father of the Indian Space programme. In recognition of her invaluable contribution to Indian classical dance and arts, Smt Sarabhai was honoured by the nation with several awards, including Padma Shri in 1965 and Padma Bhushan in 1992. Her death leaves a void in the world of creativity and performing arts which will be difficult to fill. Her tireless efforts to spread Indian classical dance around the world will be always remembered.
The governments of France and India are likely to ink an agreement to develop Puducherry, Chandigarh and Nagpur as 'smart' cities during French President Francois Hollandes state visit to India from Sunday.

Another agreement for the purchase of Rafale fighter jets by India is also on the anvil. Hollande is the chief guest at this years Republic Day Parade.

That apart, much of the discussion between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and him will be to strengthen cooperation to counter terrorism.

The highlight will be terrorism in view of the situation we are in at present, the (French) state of emergency, military operations in Syria, Iraq and in Africa, the situation in India, said French ambassador Francois Richier. As many as 130 people were killed in coordinated terrorist attacks in Paris from the night of November 13.

On civil nuclear cooperation, the French envoy said Areva was being taken over by EDF, which operates 60 nuclear reactors in France. So, EDF will now be in the lead for this kind of operation. That is creating a change in the way nuclear negotiations are being conducted, he said.

He said a second focus would be climate change and both sides are to follow on the decisions taken at the Paris climate conference.

Solar energy will also be discussed. Modi had launched an 'International Solar Alliance (ISA)' during his visit to Paris in December to attend the climate change summit.

There will be a new space programme in relation to observation and prevention of climate change. We will have projects in wind energy. Investment will be announced, Richier said, adding there will also be cooperation in marine biotechnology.

Hollande arrives in Chandigarh on Sunday and will be the fifth French leader to be a chief guest at Indias R-Day celebrations, the highest number from any country so far. Earlier leaders from that country had come in 1976, 1980, 1998 and 2008.

French soldiers will also march down Rajpath on Republic Day along with Indian troops, a first for any foreign army. France had, similarly, accorded the honour to Indian troops to lead the Bastille Day Parade in Paris at the French Day celebrations in 2009.

On Monday, Modi and Hollande will attend the foundation laying ceremony of the interim secretariat of the ISA at Gurgaon.
Greenpeace India has appealed to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi to re-evaluate the 'in-principle' approval granted to the Jaitapur site in Maharasthra, or direct the Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) to finish its review of the Geological Survey of India (GSI) document and make the report public.

In its recent letter to the PM, it has said there are close to 16 fault lines near the Jaitapur nuclear project site, according to a 2006 Geological Survey of India. While the project has been given an 'in-principle' site approval, and the preliminary construction has already started at the site, the report commissioned by the Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) in 2002 has been under review for 10 years now.

According to Greenpeace India, an NGO engaged in taking up environment issues, it was allowed to examine the report in March 2014 under the Right to Information Act, but was not allowed to make copies stating that the "Report is under review, thus copy of the same has not been provided."

"The report states there are six fault lines within the 5 km radius of the project site, if the report is still under review, then on what basis was site clearance granted?" asks Hozefa Merchant, Greenpeace campaigner. He further said it the report is still under review, then it can be inferred that it is inconclusive and if it is inconclusive, it means that more studies need to be done before a site approval is granted.

Greenpeace India's missive comes at a time when NPCIL is in the midst of pre project development and infrastructure works at the project site while its talks with AREVA to enter into final works contract and commercial agreement have yet to be concluded for the proposed 9,900 Mw nuclear power project.
Moody's Investors Service said on Friday reduced oil price estimates in light of the continued oversupply in the global oil markets, with Iran poised to add 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) while demand growth remains tepid.

Brent crude, the international benchmark, and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude, the North American benchmark, will both average $33 a barrel (bbl) for 2016. For Brent, this marks a $10/bbl reduction from its previous estimate, and for WTI a $7/bbl reduction. Both prices will rise by $5/bbl on average in 2017 and in 2018.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) and many non-Opec oil producers continue to produce without restraint as they battle for market share.

The addition of Iranian oil to the market in 2016 will offset or exceed a roughly 500,000-bpd decline in the US production, Moody's Investors Service stated in a report released on Friday.

Increased production vastly exceeds growth in oil consumption, even with consumption growth by major consumers such as the US, China and India. Production now exceeds demand by two million bpd, adding to the already high global oil stocks.
4th India-Africa Hydrocarbons Conference ends; paves the way for strengthening India Africa relations . .

The 4th India Africa Hydrocarbons Conference concluded in New Delhi today with a resolve to strengthen the relations between India and Africa in all its dimensions, particularly in the Hydrocarbons sector . .

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In her valedictory address, the Minister of External Affairs, Smt Sushma Swaraj called for working together and moving towards energy justice from energypoverty.She alluded to the centuries old relationship between India and the African continent, and gave a call for injecting new dynamism in India-Africa ties by pursuing win-win opportunities in all areas for the larger common good of the people of both regions. .

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Expressing a great degree of satisfaction over the conduct of the conference, the Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan called it a rewarding event. He said that, during the calendar year the Ministry plans to mount composite delegations comprising upstream, downstream and EPC service providers from both public and private sector to countries where we assess potential for future co-operation. He also announced additional 250 fully funded scholarships for African nationals for technical and professional courses in the Hydrocarbons sector in Indian institutes. Shri Pradhan also said that India recognizes Africa as a valued partner for the comprehensive development of our peoples.

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The 4th India ?Africa Hydrocarbons Conference was organized in New Delhi on January 21?- 22, 2016. A total of 21 African countries participated in the event. The event saw enthusiastic representation from Africa at various levels including Ministers of Petroleum, Petroleum regulators, CEOs of National Oil Companies and experts in the field of petroleum. The delegations of 9 African countries ? Mauritius, Morocco, Algeria, Sudan, South Sudan, Tunisia, Senegal, Equatorial Guinea and Liberia ? - were headed by the respective Ministers. Senior officials led the delegations from Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, Egypt, Tanzania, Kenya, Mozambique, Uganda, Libya, Cote dIvory, Gabon & Sierra Leone. .

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The conference aimed to give a renewed thrust to Indias engagement with African nations in the hydrocarbon space, and carried forward the vision of a multidimensional, comprehensive India? Africa partnership spelt out by Honble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi at the 3rd India? Africa Forum Summit held in New Delhi in October 2015. .

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Many of the participating African countries made crisp presentations highlighting opportunities in their hydrocarbon sector. The two? day conference also afforded an opportunity for India to showcase its accomplishments and techno? commercial capabilities spanning across upstream, midstream and downstream sectors as also Indias unique value proposition for the rapid development of the African hydrocarbon industry. Two panel discussions on Emerging challenges and mitigating measures in hydrocarbon sector and beyond" and Regulatory and Fiscal Regime challenges and potential solutions to stimulate investment in Upstream and Downstream sectors" were held. .

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It was noted that Indias engagement with African countries in the petroleum sector has been on an upswing in the past few years. India imports crude oil nearly 16% from Africa now, with the majority coming from Nigeria and Angola. Besides, Indian public and private sector companies have interests in oil and gas fields across Africa, including Sudan, South Sudan, Mozambique, Gabon and other countries. .

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Shri Pradhan held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from nine African countries as well as with the delegations from the other visiting countries. The Minister referred to Indias thrust for achieving a geographically diversified energy basket and said that India will try to increase its oil and gas sourcing from Africa even further. The African countries evinced specific interest in using Indias expertise and assistance in refining, capacity building and training of their manpower for the petroleum industry. .

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During the bilateral meetings, it was also agreed to provide facilitating framework, wherever required, for public and private sector companies of India and the African countries to undertake oil and gas projects. A number of Indian companies from the petroleum industry including leading public and private sector players held Business? to ?Business meetings with their African counterparts on the sidelines of the conference. ONGC Videsh Limited signed an MoU with Equatorial Guinea for co?operation in pursuing E&P activities. .

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Following is the text of the speech delivered by Shri Dharmendra Pradhan during the concluding session of the 4th India Africa Hydrocarbons Conference. .

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I am honoured that my senior colleague Mrs. Sushma Swaraj, Honble External Affairs Minister, Govt of India, has graced this occasion to deliver the valedictory address. Her presence here today signifies the importance India attaches to countries of Africa across dimensions. She along with Prime Minister were the chief architects of the highly successful India-Africa Forum Summit held in October last year. She has taken deep interest in promoting harmonious relations between India and Africa. .

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It has indeed been an honour for India to host this 4th India-Africa Hydrocarbons Conference. As stated by Honble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi in his remarks at the 3rd India-Africa Forum Summit - Our partnership is beyond strategic concerns and economic benefits. It is formed from the emotional bonds we share and the solidarity we feel for each other. ..Africa will remain at the centre of our attention. Our engagement with Africa will remain intense and regular." .

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Friends, I stand before you in this concluding session with a great degree of satisfaction. The last two days have witnessed intense participation by Petroleum Ministers, Senior Officials, CEOs of National Oil Companies, private companies and petroleum experts from Africa and India. .

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I am confident that new ground has been broken in understanding potential collaborations in the hydrocarbon space. For me, this conference has been particularly rewarding as it has provided an invaluable opportunity to meet my counterparts from Africa and discuss matters of mutual interest. During my detailed discussions with individual delegations, I was pleasantly surprised to see that Indian oil and gas companies are well regarded in Africa and there is an interest to know about our experiences on our developmental path. This has prompted us to chalk out a program of activities for 2016. .

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During the calendar year 2016, we will mount composite delegations comprising upstream, downstream and EPC service providers from both public and private sector to countries where we assess potential for future co-operation. I agreed with my counterparts to enter into institutional arrangements such as Joint Working Groups to pursue our mutual interests in the field of hydrocarbons. During this Conference as well as in the bilateral meetings, we emphasized Indian governments thrust on diversification of import sources for crude oil and natural gas, and to explore avenues to further increase our petroleum imports from Africa. .

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We conveyed that Indian companies are keen to invest in upstream assets in Africa and are prepared to look at all opportunities on the table with an open mind. India will not be found wanting, whether by way of technical or managerial capability or resources. Our companies expressed interest to partner African countries in developing City Gas Distribution projects, gas-based power and fertilizer plants as well as in laying cross-country gas pipelines. .

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As I mentioned yesterday, Indian public and private sector entities have by now built up an impressive track record in setting up world-class, integrated refineries and other complex projects. We believe we can add significant value to upcoming projects in Africa. During my meetings and in the B to B meetings, this was put across to our African friends. .

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India and many countries in Africa have a similar demographic and socio-economic profile. They also share similar challenges. One such challenge facing us is the challenge of providing universal access of reliable, affordable, clean fuel to the vast sections of our population. .

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Under the current government, India has achieved significant success in pursuing this objective. Recently, one of our schemes to provide direct subsidy in cooking gas in bank accounts of about 150 million consumers has been recognized by Guinness Book of World Records as the worlds largest direct cash transfer program. .

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We have successfully streamlined subsidy and provided LPG connections to nearly 5 million poor people in last few months. I am certain that similar targeted subsidy mechanism in Public Distribution System can be replicated in Africa as well for the benefit of poor people. We will be happy to share our learnings in this regard. .

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As a part of US$ 10 billion concessional lines of credit announced during 3rd India-Africa Forum Summit 2015 by Prime Minister, we agreed that both Indian and African sides will work to identify projects in hydrocarbon sector which can be implemented under this Lines of Credit. .

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During the India-Africa Forum Summit in October 2015, Prime Minister had announced 50,000 scholarships for African students in the next 5 years including 250 scholarships in petroleum sector. I am glad to announce an additional 250 fully funded scholarships for African nationals for technical and professional courses in the hydrocarbon sector in Indian institutes. .

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Friends, the work of this conference does not end today. I believe that today is merely the beginning of a new chapter which will witness renewed engagement with African nations in the hydrocarbon sphere. .

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India recognizes Africa not merely as an important cog in the wheel in its quest for energy security but also as a valued partner for the comprehensive development of our peoples. I give you my personal assurance to working diligently on the partnership avenues deliberated during this Conference, and look forward to meeting you again to take these opportunities to the next level. .

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Before concluding, I thank you again for travelling long distances to visit India and I hope that your stay has been comfortable. .

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PM attends 6th Convocation of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University

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The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today attended the sixth Convocation of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University at Lucknow. .

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Speaking on the occasion, the Prime Minister said that on one hand he is happy to see India's rise in the 21st century, as a nation full of youthful energy, with youthful dreams and youthful resolve. He said the youth is India's source of strength. .

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On the other hand, the Prime Minister recalled the recent suicide committed by a student in Hyderabad, and said he felt and understood the pain of the family. He said that whatever may have been the reasons, a mother lost her son; indeed Mother India had lost a son. The Prime Minister said that his Government would follow the path shown by Babasaheb Ambedkar, and work towards creating an environment where problems could be overcome. .

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The Prime Minister recalled Dr. Ambedkars economic vision, and said the Government is working towards the development of youth as job creators, instead of job seekers. .

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The Prime Minister mentioned how Dr. Ambedkar had placed importance on education, and had achieved so much despite adversity. He said that Dr. Ambedkar had then resolved to return to India and devote his life for the welfare of the weaker sections of society. He urged the convocating youth to follow the example set by Dr. Ambedkar, and try to serve the poor and the downtrodden. .

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The Prime Minister laid the Foundation Stone of the state-of-the-art Student Activity Centre at the University. .

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PM attends function for distribution of e-rickshaws in Lucknow; interacts with rickshaw pullers and their families

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The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today attended a function organised by Bharatiya Micro Credit for distribution of e-rickshaws in Lucknow. .

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The Prime Minister interacted with rickshaw-puller families in a chaupal setting. During the interaction, subjects such as saving of a portion of the additional income, and education of children, came up for discussion. .

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Speaking on the occasion, the Prime Minister said the whole world has recognised that India is the fastest growing major economy in the world today. He added that this is happening despite the global recession. He said that the primary objectives of his Government are the welfare of the poor, and employment for the youth. The Prime Minister said youth should become job creators instead of job seekers. He added that his Government has taken a series of steps to fulfil these objectives. In this context, he mentioned that 2 crore people had benefited from the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana, in less than a year of the scheme's launch. .

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The Prime Minister said that for the people who are getting e-rickshaws today, it is not just a simple change from pedal rickshaw to e-rickshaw, but an entire transformative process. .

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The Prime Minister symbolically handed over RuPay cards, and social security schemes to select beneficiaries. The Prime Minister flagged off the rally of 2100 e-rickshaws. .

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PM distributes aids and assistive devices at Samajik Adhikarita Shivir in Varanasi; Flags off Mahamana Express

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The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today attended a Samajik Adhikarita Shivir for distribution of aids and assistive devices in Varanasi. .

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The distributed material included sewing machines, Braille kits, hearing aids, smart canes, and other smart devices. The beneficiaries included differently abled persons and widows. .

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Speaking on the occasion, Shri Narendra Modi recalled his speech even before taking oath of office as Prime Minister, where he had mentioned that his Government would be devoted to the service of the poor and downtrodden. He said the Union Government has taken a series of steps in this direction. .

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He said this camp in Varanasi is just one of about 1800 such camps that have been held across the country since his Government came to power. This number, he asserted, was far greater than the comparable number in the case of previous governments. He said these camps had eliminated middlemen from the activity of distribution of aids and assistive devices. .

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The Prime Minister said that he has been the target of personal attacks, because middlemen are being eliminated and governance is being tightened. He said these personal attacks will not deter him from his path, which is the service of the poor and weaker sections of society. .

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The Prime Minister spoke at length about replacing the word viklang" with divyang" in everyday usage, to describe differently-abled people. He said the focus should not be on disabilities, but on the extra-ordinary abilities that differently abled people are blessed with. .

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The Prime Minister spoke of his Governments Sugamya Bharat campaign to provide easy accessibility to differently-abled people. .

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He complimented the Railways for the launch of the Mahamana Express with modern passenger amenities, which he flagged-off on the occasion. .

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The Prime Minister spoke about the bus accident involving some people who were coming to attend this event. He said Ministers and officers had rushed to the hospital, and the injured would be well taken care of. He also met some of the people with minor injuries, who had made it to the function nevertheless. .

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Shri Piyush Goyal urged for Time Bound Programme on Reusing Municipal Waste Water . .

Shri Piyush Goyal, Minister of State (IC) for Power, Coal and New & Renewable Energy directed for a time bound program to be developed between Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) Nagpur and NTPC Mouda for reuse of the sewage treated water of NMC by NTPCs Thermal Power Plant at Mouda. Shri Goyal issued direction while chairing a meeting at Nagpur after Union Cabinets nod to Tariff Policy for Electricity which makes usage of processed Municipal waste water mandatory for running Thermal Plants. .

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The scheme would be a first and reflects the Governments Vision about the Swachh Bharat Mission. It would also help in providing more water for irrigation to the farmers as well as drinking water for Nagpur. NTPCs Solapur plant would be taken up next for use of sewage treated water. Other Thermal Power Plants on the banks of river Ganga may also be take up similar schemes thereby reflecting the Governments commitment for the environment and concern for the irrigation to the farmers. .

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Shri Pravin Datke, Mayor, NMC Nagpur, Shri Shravan Hardikar, Commissioner NMC, Nagpur, Shri K.K. Sharma, Director Operations, NTPC Limited amongst other senior officials attended the meeting. .

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RM/PS
China is willing to keep intervening in the stock market to make sure a few speculators don't benefit at the expense of regular investors, China's vice-president said in an interview. Calling the country's market "not yet mature," Vice-President Li Yuanchao said the government would boost regulation in an effort to limit volatility." An excessively fluctuating market is a market of speculation where only the few will gain the most benefit when most people suffer," Li told Bloomberg News after arriving at the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in ...
A rare note of optimism at Davos this year comes from the trade ministers, who will gather on Saturday for the first time since the World Trade Organization (WTO) closed the lid on 14 years of increasingly toxic stalemate.

About 30 governments will be represented, forming a potential coalition willing to forge new WTO deals and move on from deadlocked talks that grew from a meeting in Doha in 2001.

The WTO's 162 members, meeting last month in Nairobi, agreed to disagree about the Doha round, effectively giving licence to any country that wants to get the ball rolling on new reforms.

"That negotiation was an intense process, but the results provide an excellent base for future work," European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom wrote in an op-ed published by Politico this week. "It allows us to start reflecting on new issues for the future in a positive, forward-looking spirit." The Doha round originally aimed to bolster developing countries, but the economic rise of China, India and Brazil, and the deepening negotiating quagmire led to Washington and Brussels losing interest and all but giving up on meeting the demands of Beijing and New Delhi.

None of the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) economies' trade ministers will take part in Saturday's meeting, which is to be hosted by Switzerland.

In the end, the Doha round went out with a whimper rather than a bang, the WTO acknowledging "different views on how to address the negotiations."



That admission turned the tables on India and others who hoped to veto any move away from Doha, and gave the advantage to the US-led camp who favour new avenues of trade reform.

"(Doha) may be a zombie, but the WTO negotiating arm, in its new dress, is alive and well," wrote Gary Clyde Hufbauer, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute thinktank.

After 14 years of being stuck, nobody is rushing back into grand negotiations, but there is scope for a subset of members to pursue smaller deals in areas that are not covered by the original 1995 WTO rulebook, diplomats say.

Davos is a first chance to sound out such ideas.

"Anybody who has an issue that they are seeking a solution for should start having conversations and testing ideas and reaching out to potential allies and beginning to understand the concerns of opponents," said US Ambassador to the WTO Michael Punke.

"Those conversations will unfold for a period of several months, and then I think it will begin to become clear which conversations have the potential to be more formal." Ideas floated by the EU and others range from competition policy to investment rules, small businesses, fishing regulations, and beyond.

"(What) I'd support wholeheartedly - because of the nature of what we're dealing with on the continent, especially Kenya - would be creation of a working group on digital commerce," said Kenyan Foreign Minister Amina Mohamed.

"Another one is the establishment of a global value chain partnership. It's something we've been discussing." Bringing talks to the WTO could reopen the risk of a veto by Doha die-hards, but trade experts say the alternative - seeing all trading rules being written outside the WTO, in deals like the Trans-Pacific Partnership - might be even less palatable.
InterGlobe Aviation, the owner of Indias largest airline IndiGo, has tanked 20% at Rs 958 on the BSE. The stock recorded its biggest intra-day fall since its listing in November last year.

Shares of aviation companies were under pressure dropping over 10% on the bourses in an otherwise firm market as oil prices rebounded over $1 a barrel from 12-year lows on Thursday, their biggest daily gain this year.

The company reported a 23.7% surge in profit in the December quarter to Rs 657 crore benefited from lower fuel prices and higher traffic. Quarterly fuel costs for IndiGo declined 20% to Rs 117 crore, while the number of passengers jumped 28% to 8.33 million.

Among the other individual stocks, Jet Airways dipped 5% to Rs 629, while SpiceJet down 3% at Rs 72 on the BSE. The S&P BSE Sensex was up 1.3% or 310 points at 24,264 at 10:15 a.m.
ended 2% higher on Friday tracking a rally in global stocks amid a rebound in global crude oil prices and expectations of further stimulus measures from the European Central Bank.

The S&P BSE Sensex ended up 473 points at 24,436 and the Nifty50 closed 146 points higher at 7,422.

In the broader market, BSE Midcap index ended up 1.9% and Smallcap index gained 2.2%. Market breadth ended strong with 2054 gainers and 603 losers on the BSE.

" rebounded partly on account of shortcovering after the sharp fall in the previous sessions tracking gains in global amid rebound in crude oil prices and soothing statement from ECB President Mario Draghi," said Mayuresh Joshi, Fund Manager, Angel Broking.

Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors were net sellers to the tune of Rs 1,747 crore on Thursday, as per provisional data.

Global crude oil benchmarks, the NYMEX and Brent crude rebounded in today's trade as cold weather conditions in the US and Europe lifted demand. Both the benchmarks were trading over $30 a barrel.

SECTORS & STOCKS



All sectoral indices ended in the green led by BSE Metal and Auto indices.

Beaten down bank shares witnessed a rebound on value buying at lower levels. ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, SBI and HDFC Bank ended up 0.8%-4.8% each.

Index heavyweight Reliance Industries ended up nearly 2%. Reports suggest that Reliance Industries is planning to begin production from its coal-bed methane (CBM) blocks in the next three months.

L&T ended up 3.8% after the company said that a consortium of L&T and Sojitz Corp., Japan has won a major order worth Rs 1,213 crore from the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Ltd.

ITC ended down nearly 1%. The FMCG major's third quarter net profit was lower at Rs 2,652 crore against expectations of Rs 2,733 while revenues were also lower at Rs 9,177 crore compared with expectations of Rs 9,543 crore.

ONGC ended up 4.5% tracking a rebound in global crude oil prices while Cairn India gained nearly 2%.

In the commodity space, metal stocks also rebounded with Tata Steel, Hindalco and Jindal Steel gained over 5% each.

Auto stocks also rebounded after the recent correction led by Maruti Suzuki and M&M which gained over 5% each while Tata Motors ended up 3.2%.

Among other shares, Idea Cellular ended down 6.2% after the company lower-than-expected earnings. The company reported a 0.4 per cent year-on-year decline in its December quarter consolidated net profit at Rs 764.2 crore. This was lower than the Bloomberg consensus estimates of Rs 796 crore.

Interglobe Aviation which operates the Indigo airline plunged 20% post its third quarter earnings. Reports suggest that the relatively poor performance in the nine month numbers and delay in aircraft delivery has resulted in analysts lowering their estimates and price target.

Can Fin Homes jumped 12.5% after the company reported 63% year on year (yoy) growth in net profit at Rs 42.18 crore for the third quarter ended December 2015 (Q3FY16), on the back of strong operational income.

L&T Finance Holdings, financial services arm of engineering firm L&T, ended up 3% after the company today posted a 16.7% increase in net profit to Rs 211.96 crore during the third quarter ended December 31.



GLOBAL STOCKS



Asian markets ended higher after the ECB signaled stimulus hopes while firming up of global crude oil prices also boosted sentiment. The Nikkei ended up 5.6% on the back of a weaker yen while the Shanghai Composite ended up 1.2%. Among others in the region, Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended up 2.8% while Straits Times ended up 1.7%.

European shares also rallied led by energy and mining stocks after sharp rebound in crude oil prices and expectations of a stimulus by the European Cenral Bank. The CAC, DAX and FTSE were up 1.8%-2.8% each.
Indian witnessed a relief rally and gained two per cent on Friday on hopes of further stimulus measures from the European Central Bank and a spurt in global crude oil prices. However, the benchmark indices still ended the week in the red for the third straight week.

The benchmark BSE Sensex rose 473 points, or 1.98 per cent, to 24,436, while the 50-share Nifty climbed 146 points to 7,422, its biggest single-day percentage gain since October 5, 2015. Global crude oil benchmarks, Nymex and Brent, rebounded in todays trade as cold weather conditions in the US and Europe lifted demand. Both the benchmarks were trading over $30 a barrel.

Investor sentiment was given a boost after crude oil prices staged a recovery to scale the $30 mark breached last week and the European Central Bank (ECB) signalled that the council may provide further stimulus in its next meeting in March, said Shreyash Devalkar, fund manager, equities, BNP Paribas Mutual Fund.

According to a recent Bank of America Merrill Lynch Fund Manager Survey, a recession in China, followed by an emerging market debt crisis and a geopolitical crisis, remain the biggest tail risk for investors. With global growth refusing to pick up, Asia Pacific ex-Japan investors think the likelihood of a recession in the region is highest since the 2008-09 crisis.

International investors have been pulling out money from emerging markets, including India, and moving to safe assets like US gilts and gold. This month foreign institutional investors have already sold shares worth more than $1 billion. On Friday, they offloaded another Rs 769 crore worth of Indian shares even as domestic institutions purchased shares worth Rs 915 crore, according to provisional data.

Domestic money managers are banking on hopes of a recovery in earnings and improvement in the economy with the help of reforms. Domestic institutions, including mutual funds and insurance companies, have pumped in over Rs 10,000 crore into stocks since the start of the year.

Asian ended higher after the ECB triggered hopes of a stimulus. The Nikkei ended up 5.8 per cent on the back of a weaker yen while the Hang Seng and Kospi inched higher by more than 2 per cent each. The Shanghai Composite ended up 1.2 per cent.

Expectations of a stimulus by the ECB buoyed European shares. The CAC, DAX and FTSE were trading up anywhere between 2 per cent and 3.2 per cent at 5.40 India time.

It was another volatile week for Indian markets, as renewed concerns over global growth, a slowdown in China and a further slide in crude oil prices routed equities across the world. On Thursday, Indian joined their Asian counterparts like China, Japan and the Philippines in bear territory. A fall of 20 per cent from the recent peak is defined as bear market. Most major Asian markets and European markets such as Germany, France and the UK have entered bear territory recently. The US is one of the few major markets that has not plunged into bear zone yet.
Congress leader Manish Tewari on Friday said the NDA Government must declassify all files pertaining to freedom fighter Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose to help shed more light on his disappearance.

"Since the government has decided to declassify files pertaining to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, one would expect that the files are declassified in their entirety. There is nothing which the government should keep for posterity. All the papers, which are available with the government, must be put out in the public domain in their complete and true form and nothing should be redacted or subtracted from it," Tewari told ANI.

"And, if eventually, once the papers are there, it would probably help shed more light on what really happened in those fateful hours which led to Netaji's unfortunate death or disappearance," he added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has said that it will declassify some of the secret files on Netaji on January 23, the birth anniversary of the legendary freedom fighter.

The Prime Minister had in October 14 last year promised to declassify Netaji files when he met the members of Bose's family at his official residence.

"The process of declassification of files relating to Netaji will begin on January 23, 2016, Subhas Babu's birth anniversary," he had tweeted after an hour-long interaction with the family members.

Tewari also emphasized that one must respect the viewpoint of Netaji's daughter, Anita Bose Pfaff, who is possibly in the best position to appreciate all the information that is available with her.

"If she has a point of view, (then) that point of view should be respected," he said.

Seventy three-year-old Anita is annoyed that instead of accepting evidence, many continue to be obsessed with 'asinine' theories that Netaji survived the plane crash in Taipei in 1945 and lived in the mountains as "Gumnami Baba".

Based on available evidence, she is convinced that he died in the crash on August 18, 1945, and has proposed a DNA test on his remains kept at the Renkoji Temple in Japan to put the row to rest.

The demand for the declassification of secret files with the Centre has gathered momentum, especially after the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal had declassified 64 files that were in its possession.
At least 5000 people today gathered to witness the surrender ceremony of 10 A'chik Matgrik Elite Force (AMEF) rebels, who laid down arms at Samgrak village in Meghalaya's North Garo Hills.

The cadres took the decision to give up arms after an appeal was made by North Garo Hills Vigilance Forum (NGHVF). The move taken by the cadres were welcomed by the people.

The rebels laid down arms to DIG police western range S.S. Kynjing.

The surrender ceremony was attended by the legislator of Kharkutta Cherak W Momin, DIG police SS Kynjing, deputy commissioner of North Garo Hills SC Sadhu, superintendent of police Raghavendra Kumar, assistant SP Abraham T Sangma, besides others.

The rebels laid down a light machine gun, two AK pistols, 1 SBBL gun along with an assortment of ammunition, pistols, demand pads and mobile phones.

Speaking on the occasion, SP North Garo Hills Raghavendra Kumar lauded the effort of church bodies and vigilance forum for taking the initiative to appeal rebels to come forward to shun violence.

"I am very happy by the decision taken by the people who surrendered today as it gives a chance for peace to usher in Garo hills. I appeal to all rebel outfits to come forward in the same way so that Garo hills can breathe. Everything can be solved through talks and it is our earnest appeal to all to take the opportunity to help in the peace process", said Cherak Momin, legislator of Kharkutta.

"We have continued our efforts at ensuring those that have lost their way are able to return to the mainstream. Today's surrenders is a part of our efforts at bringing normalcy to the people of North Garo Hills and will hopefully bring forward more people to the mainstream", said Wilness Marak, a member of the NGHVF.

The cadres, who laid down their arms, are -- Saljatchi Marak, Bulthul Marak, Banjrang Sangma, Jhony Marak, Premanear Marak, Aron Marak, Nibirth Marak, Tawan Marak, Jagol Sangma and Sengjan Sangma.
The government decided to extend the 'Beti Bachao Beti Padhao' scheme to 61 more districts this year to improve the skewed child sex ratio.

The programme was launched in 100 districts with poor sex ratio across the country in January last year.

A senior official of the Women and Child Development Ministry said more than 50 percent of the districts showed improvement during initial months of launch of the scheme. He said that it is due to the success of the scheme that for the first time in ten years, Haryana's sex ratio at birth for December 2015 has crossed the 900 mark with 903 girls per 1,000 boys.

Through the programme, the government seeks to improve the declining trend of child sex ratio in 100 selected districts from every state and Union Territory from the current level of 918, by preventing gender-based sex selection and ensuring survival, protection and education of a girl child.

Meanwhile, President Pranab Mukherjee will host a lunch for 100 women achievers today at Rashtrapati Bhavan on the occasion of first anniversary of Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao scheme. These women achievers were selected by the Ministry of Women and Child Development in collaboration with Facebook through a nationwide contest and public nominations.
After rapper Meek Mill, Big Sean has donated some amount to the residents of Flint that has been affected by toxic water.

The 27-year-old rapper's Sean Anderson foundation has teamed up with CrowdRise, the world's largest online fundraising platform to raise funds to help the people in Flint.

The 'Blessings' hit-maker has donated ten thousand dollars and has offered a deal that he would meet and greet five people who will donate more than this amount, TMZ.com reports.

The lucky ones will also get a chance to get pictures with him besides special tickets to one of his concerts this year.

Earlier, Meek had sent 60 thousand bottles of water to the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan.
A car bomb exploded at a popular seaside restaurant in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, and intense firing followed the blast, said police.

According to The Guardian, the Lido beach area is busy with restaurants, including up market establishments popular with business people and Somalis who have returned home to Mogadishu.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, but al-Shabaab insurgents linked to al-Qaida have carried out a string of similar bombings in the past.

Al-Shabaab militants, who are fighting to overthrow the internationally backed government in Mogadishu, carry out regular attacks in the capital.
A Delhi court on Friday asked the police to file an action taken report on a plea against Bollywood actors Shahrukh Khan and Salman Khan for allegedly hurting religious sentiments during an episode.

A criminal complaint was lodged against Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and a TV channel for allegedly hurting sentiments of devotees by entering the sets of a temple wearing shoes while shooting for Bigg Boss 9.

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The next hearing in the case is on February 12.

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Petitioner and advocate Gaurav Gulati demanded action against the two actors and the channel for disrespecting the sentiments of the devotees.

According to him, Shah Rukh and Salman were seen wearing shoes on the sets of temple of goddess Kali while shooting for an episode of Bigg Boss where the idol can be seen in the background.

The complaint against the two actors was filed in Roop Nagar Police Station.
A Jackson law firm has filed a lawsuit on behalf of a truck driver who was poisoned by carbon monoxide that leaked into his cab, according to a press release from the firm.

The lawsuit alleges Timothy Foye sustained a permanent brain injury as a result of carbon monoxide that leaked from the exhaust system and entered the trucks cab in October 2013. The Spence Law Firm filed the suit in the Converse County District Court.

The lawsuit contends the defendants, Idealease Inc. and Color Country Diesel Inc., negligently maintained and serviced the truck, and failed to warn Foye of the dangers.

Bill Miller, a Chicago attorney who represents Idealease Inc., declined to comment on the case when reached by phone.

Steve Reber, president of Color Country Diesel Inc., also declined to comment.

Foye suffers from cognitive deficits and physical disabilities as a result of the poisoning, the lawsuit asserts. He has trouble remembering things and formulating ideas and logical thoughts, as well as with attention, processing and following simple directions.

The lawsuit seeks damages for Foyes economic losses, including medical bills and loss of future employment, and for loss of spousal companionship on behalf of his wife, Jean.

Attorneys for Foye have requested a jury trial.

In 2013, attorneys for Spence Law Firm won a $28 million verdict for a woman who suffered carbon monoxide poisoning inside her apartment.
Foreign Secretary-level talks between India and Pakistan will be held in the near future, the latter's Foreign Office spokesperson Qazi Khalilullah said.

According to The Dawn, the secretary-level talks were expected to start in mid-January, but were put off in the wake of the attack on the Indian air base in Pathankot.

"The meeting is going to be held in the near future and both sides are in touch in this regard," Mr Khalilullah told a weekly briefing at the Foreign Office.

Asked whether Pakistan will be sending a team to Pathankot, he said the interior ministry would advise on the ongoing investigations.
The number of professor resigning from their administrative posts in University of Hyderabad reached 14 on Friday.

The professors are members of the University of Hyderabad SC/ST Teachers and Officers Forum, including professors and lecturers, resigned from their administrative positions in a bid to show solidarity with the protesting students over the suicide of a Dalit scholar Rohit Vemula.

The executive council of the University had yesterday revoked the suspension of four Dalit scholars who had been expelled, along with Rohith Vemula, in December last year.

However the protesting students refused to talk to faculty members.

Earlier on Thursday, at least, 13 faculty members - including Professor V. Krishna, controller of exams, Chief Medical Officer Dr Ravendra Kumar, 10 hostel wardens and chief warden Nagaraju - put in their papers from their respective posts.

"We are deeply hurt by Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani's press conference, yesterday (on Wednesday), where we got labelled as Dalits," said Dr. Ravindra Kumar, adding that it's like adding salt to our wounds.

"We are about 40 people in Hyderabad University's SC/ST faculty forum, of which 12-13 hold administrative posts," Kumar said.

"We thought that the Government doesn't require our administrative acumen, so decided to lay down admin posts," said Kumar said.

Vemula and four others were suspended in December, and a month later Vemula hanged himself to death on the university campus.
Savage extremists have killed the three men in a public execution for the crimes of banditry, blasphemy and apostasy in Libyan town of Sirte.

Harrowing images of the executions were released online by the jihadis.

The disturbing pictures show the killings along with images of jihadis whipping four other men who were punished for allegedly drinking alcohol,reports Daily Star.

The wicked jihadis said the men belonged to a militia loyal to Khalifa Haftar the UN backed Government General who is deeply hostile to Islamist forces.

A masked crowd watched the sickening executions in Sirte without protest.

The evil death cult has imposed the strict rules familiar to those used Raqqa its self styled Syrian capital.

Thousands of citizens have fled Sirte after the militants introduced regular beheadings and crucifixions in the town.

ISIS reportedly has a terrifying 3,000 fighters in the Libyan town.

The deranged terrorists aim to bring about the Antichrist and Armageddon which they are convinced will bring victory for Islamists.
In a video, a pervert militant has urged jihadis to 'follow in the footsteps' of the Paris-styled attacks which should be twice deadly in nature.

The Daesh fighter prompted them to commit atrocities in Morocco and North Africa, reports Daily Star.

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The unidentified jihadi called for extremists from the 'Islamic Maghreb' the part of north Africa which encompasses Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia to 'do twice as much as your brothers in France'.

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Popular holiday destinations Morocco and Tunisia were highlighted as specific targets in the disturbing video.

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Around half a million Britons travel to Morocco every year while Tunisia already saw two sickening terror massacres last year.

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The separate attacks on tourist hotspots in the region saw 60 people lose their lives.
Union Minister of Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Friday slammed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for the alleged missing of files related to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, accusing him of playing 'petty politics' over an issue as serious as "genocide".

"I am not only shocked, but extremely hurt as a Sikh. The Chief Minister (Kejriwal) has stooped so low for political gains that he can play with the emotions of a community and that too of genocide," she told ANI.

"He had announced to the Sikh community that he will bring the perpetrators of the 1984 riots to the book. He sets up a SIT, and now circular surfaces that they do not even know where the file is. Leave alone bringing them to book, Mr. Kejriwal did nothing but a drama to fool the poor community," she added.

Earlier, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accused Kejriwal of playing politics on the issue, and added that it was absolutely shocking to hear that a file related to the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has gone missing for the last 10 months.

According to reports a file on constitution of the SIT to probe the 1984 anti-Sikh carnage is reportedly missing from Delhi Home Department since March 16, 2015.

The file was reportedly marked to then city home minister Jitender Singh Tomar, now on bail in a case over his fake degrees.

The "missing file" issue surfaced at a critical juncture for the Aam Aadmi Party, as it plans to contest the 2017 Punjab Assembly elections.

The AAP government has time and again raised the 1984 anti-Sikh riots issue.

It had recently given an additional Rs.5 lakhs in compensation to families of the riot victims.

However, senior lawyer H S Phoolka, today said the missing files of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) related to the 1984-anti Sikh riots ordered by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal during his 49-day-old government had no bearing with the current SIT formed by the Centre.
French Ambassador to India Francois Richier on Friday said that the ISIS threat letter warning President Francois Hollande against visiting India is being investigated and there is no evidence till now to prove the threat is 'real'.

"This one, we are still looking to it, so I can't say that it is not true but there is nothing as of now to make us think it's a real threat," Richier said at a press conference here.

He said that they are used to receiving such threats and they are generally a hoax.

"It is nothing new. We receive plenty of them and are generally just to create disorder or to raise the attention of media so they are never proved to be true," he added.

Regarding Hollande's visit to India, he said that the second visit of our President to India will be an occasion to build good relations between the two countries.

Richier confirmed that the French President will be meeting Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

Hollande will arrive in India on January 24 for a three-day visit. He is the Chief Guest for the Republic Day parade in Delhi.
A person who was in constant touch with the four suspects who were arrested from Hardiwar, has been arrested by the special cell of Delhi Police on Thursday.

The Delhi Police on Wednesday placed all four suspects involved in the Pathankot terror attack to 15 days police custody.

According to sources, the four were planning to carry out terror strikes in the ongoing Ardh Kumbh mela in Haridawar.

The arrested suspects' links with the Pathankot terror attack is being probed.

The suspects were also planning to strike Delhi as they had carried out reconnaissance of malls in the capital.
The opposition on Friday slammed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for the alleged missing files of the 1984 Sikh riots, saying the former was 'hand in glove with the Congress'.

"Kejriwal is hand in glove with the Congress on the Sikh riots issue. They are interested more in politics than in delivering justice to Sikhs," Manjeet Singh GK, a leader of the Akali Dal told ANI.

"This shows the commitment of Kejriwal to the 1984 riots, he only wants to make it a political issue," he added.

Singh further said that the Aam Aadmi Party is no less than Congress, as because they never allowed a probe to occur in the riots.

The Bharatiya Janata Party also sought an explanation from the Delhi Chief Minister if report is correct.

"Questions are going to be asked, as to why are these papers allegedly missing. Why has this happened during this tenure," BJP leader Nalin Kohli told ANI.

"I think in this case there should be specific answer and responsibility should be fixed," he added.

According to reports a file on constitution of the SIT to probe the 1984 anti-Sikh carnage is reportedly missing from Delhi Home Department since March 16, 2015.

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The file was reportedly marked to then city home minister Jitender Singh Tomar, now on bail in a case over his fake degrees.

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The "missing file" issue surfaced at a critical juncture for the Aam Aadmi Party, as it plans to contest the 2017 Punjab Assembly elections.

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The AAP government has time and again raised the 1984 anti-Sikh riots issue.

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It had recently given an additional Rs.5 lakhs in compensation to families of the riot victims.

However, senior lawyer H S Phoolka, today said the missing files of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) related to the 1984-anti Sikh riots ordered by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal during his 49-day-old government had no bearing with the current SIT formed by the Centre.
Pakistan has asked the Government of Afghanistan to take swift action against the mastermind of the Bacha Khan University attack after the initial investigation into the incident confirmed that it had been orchestrated from across the border.

According to The Express Tribune, Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Raheel Sharif telephoned Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, Chief Executive Dr Abdullah Abdullah and Commander Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan General John Campbell to share details of Pakistani investigations.

The deadly attack on the university killed 21 people, mostly students, and injured 30 others when four terrorists stormed the university in Charsadda.

The attack was reminiscent of the December 2014 attack on Army Public School in Peshawar that left more than 100 students dead.
In a bid to stop Taliban insurgents, Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the United States will take part in talks aimed at reviving the Afghan peace process.

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Officials from the four countries will meet in Islamabad on Monday for resuming the stalled negotiations and eventually ending 14 years of fighting with Taliban insurgents. The Taliban are not expected to attend the talks, reports The Guardian.

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The Islamist militants have increased their violent campaign since last year to topple the Government in Kabul, which has struggled since most foreign troops left at the end of 2014.

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Afghanistan suffered one of its bloodiest years on record in 2015. The number of civilians killed is expected to have surpassed the record high of more than 3,180 the previous year, the United Nations said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifted electronic aid to differently-abled people in his parliamentary constituency Varanasi on Friday.

Addressing the gathering, Prime Minister Modi also expressed his concern for the people, who got injured in the bus on their way to this venue. He said that the government would make adequate arrangements for treatment of those injured in the accident.

The Prime Minister lauded Lord Loomba and his wife for their contribution for the betterment of widows.

He also recalled the inspirational speech given by his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe during his visit to India.

"A few days ago, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe came here to Kashi. At a recent speech, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe spoke about Kashi, Maa Ganga and his thoughts during the Aarti. His words will make every Indian proud. I thank him for the kind words he said on Kashi and on the Ganga," he said.
On his recent visit to northeast, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that Bodos, Karbis and Mikirs would hence forth be included in the Scheduled Tribes list.

Prime Minister Modi also laid emphasis on organic farming and information technology. He also announced Sikkim as the country's first organic state and asked others to follow it to ensure a healthy future.

Modi also announced an airstrip at Rupshree in Dhubri district bordering Kokrajhar, that it would be upgraded to an airport for both Air Force and civilian use.

In Guwahati, the Prime Minister also unveiled the plaque for the foundation of the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIT), Guwahati.

In his address to students of IIT, NIT and central universities of the North-east, the Prime Minister said the 21st century was the century of knowledge.

"He came to IIT Guwahati for the first time especially for the campaign 'Start-up India'. He stated that India has a very talented youth and the country should produce everything here only. The Prime Minister's words were very inspiring," said a student.

"We got good inspiration from the Prime Minister. We are trying to do something good for our country and there is much talent in IIT Guwahati. If good students do not migrate to foreign countries and research here, then it will be very good for our country," said another student.

On his visit to Gangtok city in Sikkim, Prime Minister Modi laid emphasis on the promotion of organic farming.

He declared that Sikkim, which is nestled in the Himalayas, has become the first fully organic state by converting around 75,000 hectares of agricultural land into sustainable cultivation.

Modi said he hoped that people across the country would adopt organic farming. He also said that there was a need to ensure the farmers got proper guidance in this regard.

"We need to make special arrangements for farmers' guidance to fulfill their requirements and make arrangement for marketing of their products. If a block or a district succeeds then it (organic farming) will spread to adjoining areas automatically," said Prime Minister Modi.

The Centre has specially focused on development related schemes in the Northeast region and the Prime Minister's recent visit gives impetus to this initiative.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to speak on the suicide of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula, before he pays homage to Babasaheb Ambedkar in Lucknow.

Kejriwal further urged Prime Minister Modi to meet the protesting students of the University of Hyderabad who are staging a protest against varsity's vice chancellor.

"PM to pay homage to Babasaheb Ambedkar. Before that, PM shud speak on Rohith's suicide. PM shud also go n meet protesting students," Chief Minister Kejriwal said in a tweet.

The number of professors who have resigned from their administrative posts in the university has risen to 14.

The professors are members of the University of Hyderabad SC/ST Teachers and Officers Forum, including professors and lecturers, resigned from their administrative positions in a bid to show solidarity with the protesting students over the suicide of a Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula.

The executive council of the university had yesterday revoked the suspension of four Dalit scholars who had been expelled, along with Rohith Vemula, in December last year.

However the protesting students refused to talk to faculty members.

Earlier on Thursday, at least, 13 faculty members - including Professor V. Krishna, controller of exams, Chief Medical Officer Dr Ravendra Kumar, 10 hostel wardens and chief warden Nagaraju -put in their papers from their respective posts.

Vemula and four others were suspended in December, and a month later Vemula hanged himself to death on the university campus.

Prime Minister Modi will be attending the Ambedkar Mahasabha in Lucknow.
The Supreme Court on Friday ordered the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe the 2005 murder of Bahujan Samaj Party MLA Raju Pal.

On January 25, 2005, unidentified gunmen sprayed Pal's vehicle with bullets, injuring him and several others. Pal died while being taken to hospital.

Former Samajwadi Party MLA Khalid Azeem was declared the prime accused in the murder and was arrested by the police in 2011. He was later released on bail.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has held a trilateral meeting with United States Vice President Joe Biden and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and discussed with efforts for peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan.

US Secretary of State John Kerry, Pakistan Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and Special Assistant to Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi attended the meeting.

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The meeting, on the sidelines of the 46th Economic Forum, reviewed the progress made so far and pondered on the way forward.

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The officials agreed to focus on the goal of ensuring peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan, which was both in the interest of Afghanistan and the region.

The leaders also expressed satisfaction over the two meetings of the quadrilateral consultative group held in Kabul and Islamabad.

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Mr. Biden and Secretary Kerry commended Afghan and Pakistani leaders 'for their diplomatic efforts to advance peace'.
Delhi Police today issued an alert after the driver of a taxi hired by three unidentified persons from Pathankot was found dead in Kangra district in Himachal Pradesh, in the aftermath of the airbase attack.

The taxi driver, identified as Vijay Kumar, a resident of Gaggal village in Kangra district, was found dead on Wednesday at the Kalta bridge in Kangra and his taxi missing, police said.

"A white colour Alto taxi no. HP 01D 2440 was hired from Pathankot by three unknown people. The driver of the taxi, Vijay Kumar from Gaggal, Kangada was found dead on 20 Jan 2016 at the Kalta Bridge, Dist. Kangada. The Alto car is missing. Search operations are on. Stay Alert!" the pinned tweet on Delhi Police's official handle read.

Asked on the threat perception, Delhi police Commissioner B S Bassi urged people in the city to remain alert without disclosing any further details citing security concerns.

The alert was issued in the backdrop of the attack on IAF base in Pathankot where terrorists had first killed a cab driver and robbed his car before launching the strike.

Delhi Police has approached media houses in helping it find the car and spread the alert message through retweets.

This is also the second alert about a stolen vehicle in the NCR region.

Early on Wednesday, a blue-beacon flashing SUV of a senior IPS officer was stolen in Noida.

"Official vehicle white Tata Safari with blue light of IG ITBP stolen from sector 23 Noida(nn the outskirts of Delhi) last night.CH01GA2915. Alert sounded."

"All requested to share info if any with Delhi 100 or Noida SSP or 100 reg this vehicle if spotted. Join hands to keep Delhi safe. Retweet pl" the Delhi Police said on its official twitter handle in an attempt to inform people at large.

They said the Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) bearing registration number CH-01 GA 2915 of ITBP Inspector General (IG) Anand Swarup was stolen from his Sector-23 residence in the intervening hours of January 19-20.

There have been instances in the past when vehicles with beacon, including during the Parliament attack, were used to launch terror attacks by hoodwinking security officials.
A faction of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistani (TTP), that claimed responsibility for Bacha Khan University attack, has released a new video vowing to attack schools across the country, calling them "nurseries" for people who challenge Allah's law.

According to The Express Tribune, the video, which spread rapidly on Facebook but was not released on official media accounts for the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistani (TTP), shows Khalifa Umar Mansoor, whose faction claimed responsibility for the attack on the university Wednesday.

Heavily armed gunmen attacked the Bacha Khan University in Charsadda, killing 21 people and injuring 30 others.

The attack was reminiscent of the deadly 2014 assault on the Army Public School in nearby Peshawar, which was also claimed by Mansoor's faction.
Two personnel of Khyber Pakhtunwa police's Elite force have been shot dead by an unknown militant in Rasheed Ghari area on the outskirts of the provincial capital.

Superintendent of Police (SP) told that the two elite force policemen were riding a motorcycle on route to their office when unidentified armed men opened fire, reports Dawn.

The assailants riding motorcycle escaped from the attack site.

The SP stated that both the victims were well trained in the use of security scanners.

An eyewitness informed that the two policemen succumbed to their wounds on the way to the hospital.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has warned his side to be wary of Chelsea, especially of their forward player Diego Costa ahead of the Premier League clash between the two sides.

The 66-year-old French manager believes that Costa could give his side a tough fight and, therefore, called on them to prepare well for the battle, the Mirror reported.

Labelling the upcoming match against Chelsea as 'intense', Wenger insisted that his side need to focus on their performance to claim victory against the Guus Hiddink-led club.

Costa was at the centre of an explosive encounter between the two sides as he was handed a three-match ban for his 'violent conduct' against Arsenal centre-back Laurent Koscielny in September last season.

Arsenal, which will lock horns with Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, are currently standing at the top of the league table.
Rapper Young Dro's drug habit seems to have landed him in trouble as he has been arrested on drug charges in Georgia.

Clayton County Sheriff's Department said that the 37-year-old hip-hop artist was arrested earlier today for violating the controlled substance act, TMZ.com reports.

While it's unknown what the actual substance was that Dro had, it is being said that the 'We In Da City' hit-maker will remain in custody at least until Friday morning when he will have a bail hearing.

Earlier, Dro got arrested for grand theft auto after some trickiness with a strip club employee.
Jaguar Land Rover has now become the United Kingdoms largest carmaker, removing Nissan from the top spot. The company under Tata Motors' leadership built 489,923 cars as compared to 476,589 units of Nissan in 2015.

"Britain is the beating heart of our business, so becoming the country's largest vehicle manufacturer is a remarkable achievement, demonstrating our steadfast commitment to the UK manufacturing sector," said Wolfgang Stadler, Jaguar Land Rover's executive director of manufacturing. He added, "2015 was a challenging year for the industry against a backdrop of socio-economic instability, but it is a testament to our strong product range and dedicated team of employees that JLR has delivered year-on-year growth, with more exciting products come."

The good news for JLR coincides with a recent declaration made by the UK's Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. They recently announced that 2015 was the best year in last decade for the automobile industry, as there was a total production of 1,587,677 vehicles. Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: "Despite export challenges in some key markets such as Russia and China, foreign demand for British-built cars has been strong, reaching record export levels in the past year."

Land Rover recently topped sales chart in the United States with a stunning growth of 37%. The carmaker was able to sell 70,582 units in the North American country for 2015 and the company insists that they do not focus on large numbers, rather they want their products to be prestigious.

Also Read: Land Rover will bring new petrol engines to India

Read More on : Land Rover Range Rover

Source : CarDekho
Sales rise 23.34% to Rs 1615.04 crore

Net profit of Gujarat State Fertilizers & Chemicals declined 0.22% to Rs 103.24 crore in the quarter ended December 2015 as against Rs 103.47 crore during the previous quarter ended December 2014. Sales rose 23.34% to Rs 1615.04 crore in the quarter ended December 2015 as against Rs 1309.39 crore during the previous quarter ended December 2014.1615.041309.3910.9211.37181.17172.08155.44146.40103.24103.47

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Three Month skill development training in seven identified sectors for minority girls- Dr. Najma Heptulla

The 'Nai Manzil' scheme has been launched, for the first time in Jammu and Kashmir. Dr. Najma Heptulla, the Minister of Minority Affairs informed this while briefing the media on the new initiatives of the Ministry for the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Dr Najma Heptulla said that the scheme was launched for girls in Srinagar on 20th January, 2016 in three institutions. The institutions are Skill Development Centre, University of Kashmir and two Madarsas (Madarsa Shahi-i-Hamdan in Pampore and Madarsa Imam Sadique in Shadi pur ,Bandipora.

Under the scheme girls from minority communities will be imparted three month skill development training in seven identified sectors relevant to the region. These include training in saffron processing, food processing, embroidery, computers IT (both software and hardware), Tourism/hospitality, electronics and plumbing. Trainees will also be given stipend of Rs.4500/-for the course.

Replying to a question ,the Minister said that the scheme has already been introduced at Patna and Motihari in Bihar and Bhandup in Mumbai. It will be introduced in other Madarsas too in phased manner.

Nai Manzil Scheme is an integrated Education and Livelihood Initiative for the Minority Communities. The scheme aims to benefit the minority youths who are school-dropouts or educated in the community education institutions like Madrasas, by providing them an integral input of formal education (up till Class VIII or X) and skill training along with certification. This will enable them to seek better employment in the organised sector and equipping them with better lives. The scheme covers the entire country.

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Friends of Caitanya Lila Holt, 30-year-old US national, who died after allegedly choking on mud in a paddy field last week, have started an online campaign on the social media seeking justice for the former US soldier.

The #JusticeforCaitanya campaign started on Facebook on Thursday, alleges that Caitanya, a member of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (Iskcon) in the US was "murdered by a lynch mob and the police in Goa. We seek Justice!"

As part of the campaign, a letter has been sent to Goa's lawmakers questioning the circumstances in which Holt was killed, insisting on the lynching theory.

"He was a United States soldier in US Air Force. He was a lifetime member of Iskcon and a devotee of Lord Krishna. We demand justice. We will not stop till you investigate his murder and arrest the people responsible," a letter addressed to Goa's legislators said.

Ohio-born Caitanya Lila Holt died reportedly choking on mud in the paddy field in Korgao village of North Goa as he was chased by the villagers and police after being mistaken for a thief.

It was also reported by the media that Holt was beaten up by some individuals in the mob who chased him.

A subsequent post-mortem conducted in the presence of the US embassy officials and an Iskcon member deputed by Holt's family, revealed that he died of asphyxia caused by choking on sludge.

Body injuries of non-fatal nature were also acknowledged in the post-mortem conducted by a panel of forensic doctors of Goa Medical College.

Superintendent of Police (North Goa) Umesh Gaonkar told IANS that the deceased was cremated earlier this week in the presence of family members.

"We are in contact with the US embassy and investigations in the case are still on," Gaonkar said on Thursday.

While the Opposition has alleged that Holt's death was technically murder, Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar termed the incident unfortunate and said the American died accidentally.

Caitanya's family used to live in Washington, but later moved to Ohio, when he was young and as a child Caitanya was a regular visitor to the Iskcon temples in both the US states.

The campaign, which has the letter addressed to Goa's legislators uploaded on the social networking site, alleges the murder theory.

"How did he end up face down in the mud? How did he sustain wounds on his head and body? Why was he running in fear for hours?," the note in the Facebook campaign says, raising questions.

"Claiming that no one is at fault here will only hurt your reputation and position. even a child can see he was murdered and you are covering it up... Do the right thing. Lord Krishna is watching," the letter adds.

The campaign also contains videos of a condolence meeting in Ohio following Caitanya's death and photos of the former US Air Force soldier, several of them were performing with Indian musical instruments.
Rome, Jan 22 (IANS/AKI) Apple will open in Naples a centre to teach a "new generation" of computer coders how to develop new software for its app store, the tech giant announced.

The app training centre will be the first in Europe, where the European Union's executive predicts a lack of coding skills could lead to a shortage of up to 900,000 ICT professionals by 2020.

Italian premier Matteo Renzi welcomed the news, saying it would create jobs for some 600 people in the impoverished southern city.

Vincenzo De Luca, the governor of the under-developed Campania region surrounding Naples, also hailed Apple's planned training centre.

"It's a great opportunity for the city, a significant investment in a type of advanced industry that can bring 600 jobs to Naples," De Luca said.

"Europe is home to some of the most creative developers in the world and we are thrilled to be helping the next generation of entrepreneurs in Italy get the skills they need for success," Cook said in a statement on Thursday.

The Naples centre will "give students practical skills and training on developing iOS apps," the statement said.

Apple will work with partners around Italy and expects to expand the programme to other countries around the world, it added.

Apple said its app store has created more than 1.4 million jobs in Europe. "In Italy, over 75,000 jobs are attributable to the App Store and the developer community is vibrant," it stated.

Apple in December agreed to pay Italy 318 million euros in backtaxes for the period 2008-2013.

The case was one of several Italy has brought against global technology companies that have headquarters in low-tax nations like Ireland.

Italian tax authorities have also examined Facebook's Milan offices and are working with Google to determine what might be due.

--IANS/AKI

py/vt
Media giants Bloomberg and Business Broadcast News on Friday announced that their media licensing agreement will lapse at the end of the contracted period on March 31, 2016, after seven years of partnership.

Both parties have mutually agreed to allow the licensing agreement to lapse, and to pursue their respective new business strategies, a joint statement said here.

Business Broadcast News will continue to operate the television channel with fresh branding (which will be unveiled separately) effective April 1, 2016, subject to regulatory approval, and Bloomberg will announce a new media partner in due course.

"Our strategic partnership with Reliance Group and Ronnie Screwvala enabled us to successfully reach millions of viewers in India, and deliver market-moving business and financial news on India's growth and development," said Parry Ravindranathan, managing director - international, Bloomberg Media Group.

Bloomberg Television India has reached an Indian viewership of 30 million in the last seven years.

"Together, we set new standards in financial broadcast journalism, and we will continue to value our relationship with both partners. In the coming weeks, we will unveil a new chapter for Bloomberg Media in India as we remain more committed than ever to expanding our media operations this year both in broadcast, digital and other platforms," he added.

"In recent years, the channel has witnessed consistent increase in reach and viewership, and created a benchmark for credible business news reporting with experienced anchors and marquee shows. We have had great learnings drawing upon the global expertise and credibility of Bloomberg, and we look forward to maintaining this strong relationship in the years ahead," Tarun Katial, director, Business Broadcast News Private Limited said.
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom David Cameron reiterated his determination to secure the future of the UK in a reformed European Union.

He made the remarks on Thursday when addressing a special session during the ongoing World Economic Forum summit in Swiss ski resort of Davos, Xinhua reported.

Cameron outlined four key areas where he needs to see progress in Brussels in order to deliver on the concerns of the British people. The first area concerns Europe's economic competitiveness. Although he confessed that he found the single market of 500 million people "an absolutely thrilling prospect", the EU lags behind the US in technology and productivity.

Second, Cameron called for fair rules for countries that are not part of the Eurozone.

He referred to the situation last summer, when Eurozone countries wanted to help bail out Greece using a fund to which the UK contributes, saying that would be "completely unacceptable, to use the money of a non-Eurozone state to solve a Eurozone crisis."

However, he added, "I want the Eurozone to succeed -- the Eurozone is our biggest trading partner."

Third is the sovereignty issue. He said Britain has "never been happy with the idea that we're part of an ever-closer political union -- we're a proud and independent country."

Fourth are the twin issues of migration and welfare. He noted that the pressures from migration into the UK had become too great.

Cameron said he hoped to secure agreement with the EU as soon as February, but he added that "If there isn't the right deal, I'm not in a hurry. I can hold the (EU membership in-out) referendum at any time up to the end of 2017. It's much more important to get this right than to rush it."

Over 2,500 leaders from business, government, international organisations, civil society, academia, media and the arts are participating in the 46th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on January 20-23.
In the backdrop of Chinese "muscle flexing" in the South China Sea and the ongoing nuclear issue in the Korean Peninsula, senior officials of China and the US met in Beijing for a strategic meeting, the media reported.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hong Lei told a press briefing here on Friday that Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui and US Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken had a frank and extensive exchange of views on "major strategic and security issues" as part of their Strategic and Economic Dialogue, Xinhua reported.

Without elaborating, Hong said the two sides agreed to continue to use the Dialogue platform to smoothen bilateral differences, if any.

Earlier in December, the Chinese defence ministry accused the US of "flexing muscles" when a military flight strayed into disputed airspace near the South China Sea islands.

In response to a separate question, Hong said dialogue and negotiation remain the best way to resolving the nuclear issue of the Korean Peninsula.

He called for resumption of the six-party talks as soon as possible to realise long-term peace and security.
The Delhi government on Friday sought the central government's help in reducing the level of ammonia gas in the Yamuna river and shutting down its two water treatment plants.

Delhi's Water Minister Kapil Mishra informed Union Water Resource Minister Uma Bharti about the increased level of ammonia gas in the Yamuna.

"Higher ammonia level again (witnessed) in Yamuna. Just had a talk with Uma Bharti and she has promised (us) to intervene and take it (issue) up with Haryana," Mishra tweeted.

The Delhi government also decided to temporarily shut down its two water treatment plants in Wazirabad and Chandrawal after the level of ammonia in the raw water supply from Yamuna river was found to be higher than the desired level.

The acceptable limit of ammonia in water is 0.2 milligrams per litre.

"Both plants (water treatment plants) have been closed due to high levels of ammonia in Yamuna," Mishra said in a number of tweets.

To take stock of the situation, Mishra also called an emergency meeting of Delhi Jal Board officials at Wazirabad plant.
A youth stranded in Malaysia for a few weeks has returned to India on Friday after Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis intervened, officials said.

Yogesh Tiwari, 25, was duped by a recruitment agent who lured him to Malaysia with a lucrative job offer. After he ran out of money, he tweeted last week to Fadnavis seeking help to return to India.

Fadnavis took up the matter with External Affairs Minister Susma Swaraj.

Tiwari reached Mumbai on Friday, and will proceed to his hometown Yavatmal, the officials said.
Five suspected members of terror outfit Islamic State (IS) were arrested and nine others detained by the NIA in cooperation with state police agencies across India, a home ministry official said on Friday.

Informed sources said all the raids were conducted on tip-offs that the IS sympathisers were planning bomb attacks in several cities on the Republic Day (January 26).

Huge quantities of arms and ammunition were seized from the rented house of two of the suspects in Bengaluru, an official told IANS.

"The National Investigation Agency has arrested five suspected terrorists and detained nine others in a joint operation with state police organisations across India," Home Ministry Joint Secretary (Internal Security) M.A. Ganapathy said.

The arrested men - Mudabbir Mushtaq Shaikh, Mohammad Nafees Khan, Mohammad Shareef Mounuddin Khan, Najmul Huda and Mohammad Afzal - are accused of encouraging the youth to join the IS.

Mudabbir is from Thane near Mumbai, and Nafees and Shareef from Hyderabad. Najmul lives in Mangalore while Afzal hails from Banglore. The arrested men are in the age group of 25-30," Ganapathy said.

"We have no indication so far that they were planning a terror attack in Delhi during the Republic Day function," the officer said.

An NIA official, on the condition of anonymity, told IANS that four of the detained suspects were Asif, Sayed and Ahad - all from Bengaluru - and Syed Mujahid Husain from Tumkuru in Karnataka.

"The NIA with the help of local police picked 14 youths from different cities in raids since Thursday night. They were under security surveillance regarding their activities on the social media," the official said.

The nine suspects, yet to be arrested formally, are being interrogated for their alleged links with the IS sympathisers and their role in the possible terror strikes.

According to sources, the NIA is on the lookout for five to eight more suspects.

--Indo-Asian New Service

rak/tsb/vt
Four persons, including two youth, were arrested in Karnataka for their alleged links with the dreaded IS terror outfit, a top police official said on Friday.

"We learnt that four suspects were arrested in the state by central security agencies, but have not yet been officially informed," state Director General of Police (DGP) Om Prakash told IANS here.

Of the four suspects, two were taken into custody on Thursday night after their rented house was raided in Bengaluru and one each from Mangaluru on the west coast, 350 km away, and at Tumakuru, 70 km from here, on early Friday.

"You have to verify the arrests with the union home ministry in Delhi as central agencies have judicial powers to arrest any suspect in the country for internal security purpose and to prevent untoward incidents," Prakash said.

Based on intelligence inputs from the sleuths, teams of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) raided hideouts of Najmal Houda, 25, at Bajpe in Mangalore and Syed Husain, 25, at Tumakuru.

Houda is learnt to be a student in a engineering college in Bengaluru.

Names of two suspects nabbed from a Bengaluru residential suburb have not been revealed, but official said huge quantities of ammunition and explosives were seized from their rented house.

"Raids were conducted on a tip-off that the IS suspects or sympathisers have been planning bomb attacks on Republic Day (January 26) in the city or any other place in the state to cause scare or seek publicity," an official with the state anti-terrorist squad said on anonymity.

On alert and inputs from the home ministry, the state police have taken steps to beef up security across the southern state, especially in and around Bengaluru, with additional deployment at sensitive and vital installations.
With a kaleidoscope of pan-India sounds, myriad crafts and a culinary blend of cuisines from all over the country -- 'The Great Indian Golchakkar' (The GIG), to be held here next month, will celebrate the gastronomical, artisanal and musical culture of modern India.

Curated by food group Gourmet Planet and the Ministry of Tourism's Incredible India campaign, the three-day carnival will be held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium from January 5-7.

The focus of the carnival, which will be spread out aross 9 acres, is to celebrate the spirit of India.

Talking about it, Ambar Walia, partner and show runner, GIG carnival, told IANS: "The GIG is different from any other festivals, as it's a carnival that by definition celebrates every aspect and facet of modern India."

With over 30 performing acts from across the nation, catering to every kind of music --from Jazz and Blues to Ska, EDM, Electronica, Hindi Rock, Sufi and everything in between, the event will see "Coke Studio" artistes take to the stage apart from The Karsh Kale Collective, Prateek Kuhad, Hamza & Mannu, Medieval Punditz and more.

In terms of crafts, there will be traditional natural perfumes of Kannauj, Rogan Art from Gujarat, Stone Pottery from Meghalaya, Jamdani work from Varanasi, Silver Filligree work from Orissa, Mask Making from Majuli, Leather craft from Pondicherry amongst a host of other things.

The GIG will also have a luxury crafts section emphasising on luxury Made-In-India brands that use traditional methodologies with a modern design aesthetic.

For the foodies, the event will offer varied regional foods of India.

And such a fest is only suited for present times when "we dine at the best fine-dining restaurants yet finish that meal with a drive to go eat a paan; we buy the choicest modern design items for our homes, yet find the same homes filled with traditional handicrafts and textiles... we enjoy our glass of red wine, yet still manage to visit the temples", Walia said.

There will be something for everyone.

"Our musical line-up has been highlighted and kept in focus for university and college students, whilst our luxury zone with high-end eateries and luxury craft have been marketed towards those looking for an upmarket vibe.

"For others still, we have chosen to keep a fine balance of craft, culture and cuisine to highlight all aspects. Our expected demographic runs across the board from students, to young professionals and families with children. We hope that The Great Indian Golchakkar will be an experience for one and all," Walia added.
Virtually bringing the campaign for the upcoming Assam assembly elections to the heart of the national capital, state Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Friday lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for criticising his predecessor Manmohan Singh.

"I have never seen any prime minister criticising his predecessors," Gogoi said while addressing the media here.

"Manmohan Singh did not and not even (Atal Bihari) Vajpayee," he said.

Launching the Bharatiya Janata Party's election campaign at Kokrajhar in Assam on Tuesday, Modi said that Assam sent Manmohan Singh as prime minister for 10 years and the state has been having a Congress government for 15 years but still there were a number of problems.

If a state has sent a prime minister for 10 years, then it should have been free of all problems, he said.

Elections for the 126-member Assam assembly are expected to be held in April-May.

On Friday, Gogoi said that Modi has become "shaky" ahead of the elections and that was why he was blaming Manmohan Singh.

"You have also been chief minister of Gujarat for 15 years. Are all problems (in Gujarat) solved?" the Assam chief minister posed.

He said that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Gujarat were sick, farmers were unhappy and the BJP lost the local government polls there.

Gogoi said that before becoming the prime minister, Modi raised high hopes and people too had high expectations from him.

"But instead of concentrating on internal problems, he started concentrating on foreign affairs," Gogoi said.

"Modi enjoys the company of NRIs and CEOs more than his own people."

Referring to Modi's charge that Manmohan Singh did nothing for Assam, Gogoi said the foundation of the Indian Institute of Information Techonlogy (IIIT) that the prime minister laid in Guwahati earlier this week was actually a gift of Manmohan Singh.

"Now he is going to the gas cracker project. It's the biggest PSU in the northeast and is a gift from Manmohan Singh. And he (Modi) is asking what has Manmohan Singh done," the chief minister said.

He said that the central government has been asking from the state government a white paper on its work in the last 15 years but all major indicators showed the state was developing on all fronts.

"Modi himself gave an award to my agriculture ministry," he said.

Gogoi said that during Manmohan Singh's tenure as prime minister, bridges were built across the Brahmaputra river, new roads constructed and electricity supply increased.

"Even Rajiv Gandhi gave Assam the Numaligarh (oil refinery) and central universities," he said.

"They have asked for white paper, we will give them. But they can see the figures for themselves as these are all government figures."

According to Gogoi, Modi should be accountable for the people of Assam as the people of the state voted for the BJP in the last general elections.

"He should be accountable for the people of Assam as he is the PM of India," the chief minister said.

Stating that while Modi wanted the northeast and Assam to be at par with Gujarat, Gogoi said that, instead, the Centre has taken away whatever little was available within the region.

"They suspended the special category status of the northeastern states and the NEIIPP (Northeast Industrial and Investment Promotion Policy)," he said.

Gogoi said that the Congress would go it alone in the upcoming assembly elections in Assam.

Asked if the Congress was planning a grand alliance of parties as was in the case of Bihar, he said he wanted a "grand understanding" of parties so that the vote went against the BJP.

After being in power for three consecutive terms, is not the Congress facing the anti-incumbency factor?

"Anti-incumbency arises only when you fail to deliver on your promises," Gogoi said.
In the context of the global economic slowdown compounded by worries about China, India can stand out with the resilience shown during past crises, provided it continues with reforms and responsible economic planning, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Friday.

"If India continues its reforms and responsible economic planning, we can stand out," Jaitley said in an interview here.

The finance minister is in Davos attending the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF).



"The Indian economy in 2001, 2008 and 2015 has shown resilience to defy global slowdown and crisis. Today, we are better equipped to face that situation and show the resilience," he said.

He said there is a mood of concern among global leaders and other participants at this year's WEF.

"The mood is one of concern because global economy is facing a lot of uncertainty," he said.

"A lot of challenges have surfaced simultaneously. There is worry over China, though Chinese themselves have said that it is no longer possible for China to have a double-digit growth and that they consider 7% growth as their new normal. But there is still a lot of global worry about China," he added.

In a television interview here on Thursday, Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan said he is not too worried about China's economic slowdown.

"In terms of the quantity of growth, there's still a lot of growth coming from China in terms of dollars. Of course, percentages are falling all the time. That is naturally to be expected of an economy which is growing richer and. therefore. going to slow," he said.

"So I'm not excessively worried about the Chinese growth," he added.
The nuclear deal with Iran was a milestone, of course, but the lifting of sanctions has freed Tehran to sign contracts left, right and centre. A thousand such contracts were signed on Sunday alone.

There was an impression that New Delhi would be ahead of others in the queue boosting economic ties with Tehran. But alongside all the goodwill in Tehran is also a growing scepticism about India's ability to meet deadlines.

Negotiations for building the Chabahar port on the Persian Gulf was signed in 2003. The cabinet approved $85 million for the first phase. But nothing has moved, despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi's promise to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani during the UFA summit for swift clearance.

Iran's National Railways signed a deal in 2013 for 250,000 tonnes of rolling stock. The first phase of the transaction should have been completed by now. But Tehran does not know what the last minute hitch is.

New Delhi must speed up its implementation process. A new and vibrant Iran with the world knocking at its doors will go elsewhere. The attractiveness of Iran cannot be overstated against the rest of bleak and dismal, war ravaged West Asia. Iran's clout is already in play in the evolution of the Syrian script towards the Geneva process.

US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov are trying to shepherd all parties to the Syrian conflict in the direction of Geneva. Notwithstanding their determination to set into motion the Geneva process between Damascus and the Syrian opposition, ground realities inside Syria continue to alarm.

Even according to the United Nations, 440,000 civilians, elderly and the very young are either besieged by rebels or government forces in the country.

This is not all. International Red Cross in Syria confirmed to me over the telephone other forbidding data: nearly four million people cannot be accessed at all. Either roads are not motorable or gunweilding men and occasional snipers keep aid workers at bay.

High pressure diplomacy by the US and Russia is trying to douse the flames but the conflicts continues on two planes - the battlefield and the media. A series of tactical battles are raging across Syria.

These are little proxy wars. At his crowded press conference at New Delhi's Leela hotel, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem was quite firm: only Syrians will be allowed to attend the Geneva conference on Syria's future.

"Those fighting inside are actually proxies of outside powers. Since these powers are financing the groups, they will determine the stands of the various delegations." Muallem shrugged his shoulders. "That is the reality - we can't help it."

Riyadh is in difficulties trying to put together its preferred delegation because its would be nominees are in common parlance "terrorists". The definition of "terrorists" has been contested in the Syrian context. King Abdullah of Jordan was tasked by an earlier conference to identify terrorist groups. He threw up his hands in despair because one country's terrorists were another's freedom fighters.

Saudis are in a tizzy on another count: the entire leadership of Jaysh al Islam, the group they had diligently nurtured, was wiped out in one rocket strike three weeks ago. Meanwhile, Damascus has also scored a string of battle victories.

History will measure Secretary of State John Kerry so much more favourbly compared to his predecessor, Hillary Clinton. He has invested everything into a series of diplomatic successes - Cuba, Iran and now possibly Syria. Moscow too has not had a Foreign Minister of Sergei Lavrov's stature - at least not since Andrei Gromyko.

Look at the determination of the two competing statesmen. Riyadh and Ankara would like their proxies in Syria to be in control of more area to be able to play a better hand at Geneva. Towards this end they would like the conflict to drag on.

This dilly dallying had the potential of delaying the January 25 deadline set for the inauguration of the Geneva process. With lightning speed, the Kerry-Lavrov duet turned up in Zurich to plot the journey forward.

Kerry then flew to Davos to announce the scheme. Initially, the meeting in Geneva of the Syrian parties will be "proximity talks". Representatives of the government and the opposition will separately meet the UN Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, who will shuttle between rooms.

"You are not going to have a situation where people are sitting down at the table, staring at each other or shouting at each other," Kerry explained. "You are going to have to build some process here." The idea of this Unity Transitional government was "proposed by the Iranians".

At this particular moment in history, the script is evolving favourably for Iran, Hezbullah, Russia and the Syrian regime. But four million people in Syria remain in peril because of the unpredictability of what a country like Saudi Arabia might do in desperation. Saudis have support even within an incoherent Western camp. Remember, British Prime Minister David Cameron told the House of Commons that there were 70,000 "moderate fighters" in Syria.

Really? Moderates with guns?

(Saeed Naqvi is a senior commentator on political and diplomatic affairs. He can be reached on saeednaqvi@hotmail.com.)
Japan has decided to lift its sanctions on Iran after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed the country had implemented measures promised under the newly-reached deal on its nuclear programme, Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said on Friday.

The minister said Japan would like to further develop its ties with Iran and a pact on investment negotiated between the two sides will be signed soon, Xinhua reported.

Fumio's remarks came after a cabinet meeting on Friday during which the Japanese government agreed to lift its sanctions on Iran's oil and gas sector.

The move by the Japanese government followed some European countries and the US that have lifted part of their economic sanctions against Iran and companies from the countries are making efforts to enter the market.

Iran and other six powers including Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the US, reached an agreement over the Iranian nuclear issue as the deal would secure that Iran would not obtain a nuclear weapon under international monitor and, in exchange, the countries will relieve their sanctions on Iran.
Filmmakers Imtiaz Ali and Aditya Vikram Sengupta on Friday questioned the need for superhero films in Hindi, specifically when India has its rich mythology to draw from.

"Children in India are relating to it (films like 'The Incredible Hulk' and 'Avengers'). Why do they need to see it in Hindi? Are they getting dissatisfied because of the language," Ali countered a query from an audience member at the Tata Steel Kolkata Literary Meet here on Friday.

He was asked whether there is a gap between Hollywood and Hindi films in the genre of superhero films for kids.

Ali explained that though Bollywood films like "Krrish" have been successful, Hollywood keeps churning out enough superhero entertainers.

"For the audience of superheroes in India, do we need to make films in Hindi specifically or is Hollywood doing the job already? So why do we try to fit into that slot," he asked.

The "Tamasha" maker expressed his desire to "make a superhero type of movie which perhaps could be from Indian mythology".

The National Award winner Sengupta added to the discussion by saying that Indian mythology is replete with superheroes like Hanuman.

"I heard from someone that the US doesn't have a rich mythology as we have and so they have the superheroes to make up for it," observed Sengupta.
The Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) is expected to feed power to the southern grid from its 1,000 MW unit at Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu in five days, according to a senior official.

The unit which was under annual maintenance shutdown for nearly seven months restarted fission on January 21.

The first unit will be connected to the southern grid in another five days after completing tests, R.S.Sundar, site director, Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KNPP), told IANS on Friday.

According to Power System Operation Corporation Ltd (POSOCO), the Kudankulam nuclear power plant is expected to be connected to the grid on January 24.

"A unit of this size (1,000 MW) after a long shut down takes some time to come back," a senior official at Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) told IANS on Friday.

He said nod is given to restart the fission process only after checking all the parameters of the reactor and other systems.

NPCIL is setting up two 1,000 MW atomic power plants at Kudankulam in Tirunelvelli district, around 650 km from here, at an outlay of around Rs.17,000 crore.

The first unit attained criticality, which is the beginning of the fission process, in July 2013.

Subsequently it was connected to the southern grid in October 2013.

However, commercial power generation began only December 31, 2014.

The unit also experienced breakdowns after commercial production started.

The unit was shut down in June 2015 for 60 days for refuelling and annual maintenance in June 2015 for 60 days for refuelling and maintenance.

Operating at full capacity, the unit supplies power to Tamil Nadu (562.5 MW), Puducherry (33.5 MW), Kerala (133 MW), Karnataka (221 MW) and Andhra Pradesh (50 MW).

The NPCIL skipped several deadlines in restarting the first unit and finally on January 21 the reactor restarted the fission process.

The second 1,000 MW unit at Kudankulam is expected to go critical, or start the fission process, for the first time sometime this year.

The fuel has to be loaded into the second reactor.

According to AERB official, the results of second unit's commissioning and inspection reports are being studied.

"After the reports are studied, AERB might lay down some conditions which have to be completed before NPCIL applies for the permission to load the fuel," he said.

India will be signing the remaining agreements with Russia for the third and fourth units at Kudankulam, estimated to cost around Rs.40,000 crore. The site work is expected to begin for these two units sometime this year.

Negotiations are on with Russia for fifth and sixth units.
The Meghalaya BJP unit on Friday demanded a central inquiry into smuggling of cattle to Bangladesh.

Butchers and cattle traders under the banner of Khasi Jaintia Butchers Welfare Association have stopped selling beef since January 18 to protest against the unabated cattle smuggling into Bangladesh. The protest will continue until February 3.

"We are also concerned with the smuggling of cattle to Bangladesh as this has affected our local butchers and traders. The Border Security Force and the Meghalaya police have failed to tackle this crime," BJP President Shibun Lyngdoh told journalists.

Border Security Force (BSF) figures revealed that in 2015 alone, at least 2,079 cows worth nearly Rs.3 crore were seized. Also, 18 cow smugglers were arrested along the India-Bangladesh border in the state.

Cow smuggling to Bangladesh has been going on for decades along the border in Meghalaya with illegal cattle traders from Bangladesh and those from Assam and Meghalaya making huge profits.

Meghalaya shares a 443 km border with Bangladesh, part of which is porous, hilly and unfenced and prone to frequent infiltration.
BIRDING MONGOLIA covers any topic concerning wild birds in Mongolia: conservation, migration, observations, identification, projects, events etc. Contributions on other aspects of Mongolias natural heritage, as well as information from regions bordering Mongolia, are also featured from time to time.

Axel Braunlich

I have been birding in Mongolia since 1995. Birding Mongolia was originally set up in March 2007, providing information on the fabulous birdlife (especially migration) at my local patch in Khovd, near the Altai Mountains in the west of the country, where I lived from 2005 to 2007. The blog grew rapidly, with contributions coming from more and more observers, and covering other parts of Mongolia, too.

Andreas Buchheim

I have been visiting Mongolia since 2004. It all started with gull research trips, but I now come to Mongolia at least twice a year, staying for about 6 months annually since 2010, not only for the continuing gull research but now mainly to be with my Mongolian wife and our son and to go birding. As a quasi resident of Ulaanbaatar, I do most of my birding around the city during winter but, luckily, I can visit the even more fascinating rural regions of this rapidly changing country during the warmer seasons.

Contributions (observations, photos, news etc) are very welcome! Any material contributed will be acknowledged and the copyright will remain with the author(s).
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said he was deeply saddened by the suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula and added that corruption had fallen since he took office in May 2014.

In a speech at the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University in Lucknow, Modi choked while referring to Vemula's death on January 17 in Hyderabad University after being suspended for allegedly assaulting an ABVP leader.

After a pause, Modi said, tears welling up in his eyes: "I am not going into the reasons, the of the issue. But I empathise with the family which has lost so much."

Youngsters should not take such drastic steps, he said.

Just before the prime minister began his speech, two students shouted slogans such as "Go back Modi". Police officers quickly whisked them away.

This is the first time Modi has publicly spoken about Vemula's suicide, which has triggered widespread anger. The research scholar - son of a farm worker - was one of five Dalit students suspended by the university for the alleged assault on an ABVP leader.

The suicide has led to a police complaint against Modi's ministerial colleague Bandaru Dattatreya and the university's vice chancellor, P. Appa Rao, among others.

Speaking earlier in Varanasi, his Lok Sabha constituency, the prime minister said corruption had come down considerably since he took office in May 2014 as his government had "tightened nuts and bolts".

He said he had also eliminated middlemen from government work, and that welfare schemes were being implemented faster and other projects too were being fast-tracked.

Modi's comments came after he gave away 15,746 special aid equipment to 9,296 differently abled people at the DLW grounds. These included tri-cycles, crutches, wheelchairs, digital hearing kits and artificial limbs, an official told IANS.

Modi called for a new mindset towards the differently abled, saying the Hindi word 'viklang' (disabled) should be replaced with 'divyang' (endowed with special faculties).

He added that his government had been working for the betterment of the poor.

"We are constantly thinking about how development will reach the poor and how the lives of the poor will be transformed."

Ahead of the meeting, the prime minister flagged off the Mahamana Superfast Express train which will link Varanasi and New Delhi thrice a week. The train will start plying from January 25.

Modi also paid glowing tributes to Babasaheb Ambedkar, a Dalit icon who is widely seen as a key architect of the Indian constitution.

In his Lucknow address, the prime minister said that Ambedkar's life was a lesson in how education could be a tool for empowerment.

Ambedkar, Modi said, suffered a lot of humiliation in his formative years but used that experience to overcome the many hurdles he faced.

"While he was the first Indian to do a doctorate in economics abroad, he chose the country, the welfare of its people over his self-promotion and gave India so much," he said to applause.

Modi said the key to Ambedkar's success was that he did not waste time complaining but rather used the challenges he faced to strengthen his will to succeed.
With Nepal Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli and his party CPN-UML hardening their stance, a resolution to the more than five-month-old Madhesi agitation in the Himalayan nation's southern Terai region receded even farther as three protestors died in police firing on Thursday in the south-eastern Morang district.

Since early morning on Friday, incensed Madhesi activists forced markets to shut down and indulged in arson besides clashing with the police in several parts of the Terai as the protest assumed a form more violent than earlier.

The killings in police firing came even as Deputy Prime Minister Kamal Thapa -- who is also Minister for Federal Affairs and Local Development

besides holding charge of the Foreign Affairs portfolio -- on Thursday inaugurated an ambitious NRs.5 billion Border Area Development Programme (BADP) in Mahottari district, barely 200 km away.

The five-year development programme shall initially target the development of proposed province number 2 -- the heartland of the ongoing Madhesi agitation -- and will seek to create physical and social infrastructures in the region that borders southern neighbour India.

BADP is targeted at one sub-metropolis, six municipalities and 109 Village Development Committees in Mahottari, Saptari, Siraha, Dhanusha, Sarlahi, Rautahat, Bara and Parsa districts which have been lagging behind in life expectancy, literacy and per capita income values as compared to other regions of the country.

The region chosen for the programme has villages and towns bordering India. It has been lagging behind in life expectancy, literacy and per capita income values as compared to other regions of the country.

Mentioning the objectives behind the programme, Thapa said: "Though the Terai is a plains area and accessible, it is backward in human development indices."

Thapa's statement was a frank admission of the discrimination that the region has traditionally suffered at the hands of the Kathmandu-centric ruling elite.

The Madhesis have been protesting against the perpetuation of this very discrimination in the new Constitution, adopted on September 20 last year.

Pressing for a more representative constitution, the Madhesi protestors are demanding, among other things, a redrawing of the boundaries of the provinces in Nepal as proposed in the new Constitution -- promulgated on September 20 last year; and representation in Parliament on the basis of population. Significantly, the Nepal Terai has almost 51 percent of the country's population and yet gets only one-third of seats in Parliament.

The Madhesis also seek proportional representation in government jobs and restoration of rights granted to them in the interim constitution of 2007 which the new charter has snatched away.

With Thursday's three deaths in police firing, the toll in the agitation has risen to 59, including 11 police personnel, and the chances of an immediate political solution receded farther.

Several parts of the Terai saw protests and demonstrations by the protestors with reports coming in of clashes with the police at places. There were no immediate reports of casualty, if any.

The Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha (SLMM) -- or the Madhesi Morcha, as it is more commonly known -- has been spearheading the agitation in the country's terai region. It comprises four Madhes-based parties -- Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party led by Mahanta Thakur; Sadbhawana Party, headed by Rajendra Mahto; Sanghiya Samajwadi Forum-Nepal, led by Upendra Yadav; and the Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party-Nepal headed by Mahendra Yadav.

The Madhesi Morcha, condemning the three deaths in Thursday's police firing, has called for an immediate stop to "the state-sponsored terrorism" let loose in the Terai.

India has expressed concern over the repeated violent incidents in the Nepal Terai and urged the political parties in the Himalayan nation to seek a political solution to the ongoing unrest and the political standoff.

India's External Affairs Ministry's spokesperson Vikas Swarup said India was deeply concerned at the loss of three lives in police firing in Morang district in the Nepal Terai. "Political problems require political solutions," he tweeted on Thursday.

The escalation in the agitation intensity follows an attempt by Prime Minister Oli's CPN-UML to try to take the Madhesi protestors head-on.

Tension flared up in the southern Nepali town of Biratnagar, bordering India, after Morcha cadres attempted to disturb a programme organised by the Youth Association of Nepal (YAN), the militant youth wing of Oli's CPN-UML [Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist)].

Oli, who is also CPN-UML chairman, was scheduled to address the programme but cancelled it later, sensing the mood of the protestors.

A government-sponsored amendment to the less-than-four-month-old statute is, meanwhile, slated to come up for discussion and voting on Saturday -- but observers see little chance of it finding approval among the aggrieved Madhesis.

The government and the Madhesi Morcha leaders have so far held more than a score of meetings in Kathmandu aimed at finding a solution to the prolonged agitation -- but without success.

Morcha leaders have affirmed that they were not ready to accept the amending bill unless their rightful concerns were addressed.

"This government cannot address the demands of indigenous Janajati and Madhesi people," said Upendra Yadav, chairman of Sanghiya Samajbadi Forum-Nepal. "The major parties need to show flexibility and seriousness."

"The major three parties are just doing drama in the name of negotiations... the government is ignoring the demands raised by Madhesis despite our having presented the demands to the government in written and oral forms time and again," said Mahanta Thakur, who leads the Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party.

"I don't know how many times we will have to say that the bottom-line demand of the Madhesi Morcha is demarcation of states... we need two federal states in the Terai region from Jhapa till Kanchapur, but this government acts like it knows nothing about it," Thakur said.

Nepal's Terai region stretches from the Mechi river in the east to the Mahakali river in the west and comprises Madhes in its eastern part and the tribal-dominated Tharuhat in the western region. It has traditionally suffered immense discrimination from the Kathmandu-centric ruling elite that predominantly comprises the Brahmins (Bahuns) and Chhetris of the Nepal hills.

One of the major agitation demands is for the formation of two provinces in the Nepali Terai -- the Madhes extending from the Mechi river in the east to the Narayani river in mid-western Nepal and Tharuhat pradesh from the Narayani to the Mahakali river in the west.
With Nepal Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli and his party CPN-UML hardening their stance against the more than five-month-old Madhesi agitation in the Himalyan nation's southern terai region for a more representative constitution, a resolution receded even farther as three protestors died in police firing on Thursday in the south-eastern Morang district.

Since early morning on Friday, incensed Madhesi protestors forced markets to shut down and indulged in arson besides clashing with the police in several parts of the Terai as the protests assumed a more violent form than earlier.

The Madhesi protestors are demanding, among other things, a redrawing of the boundaries of the provinces in Nepal as proposed in the new Constitution -- promulgated on September 20 last year; and representation in Parliament on the basis of population. Significantly, the Nepal Terai has almost 51 percent of the country's population and yet gets only one-third of seats in Parliament.

The Madhesis also seek proportional representation in government jobs and restoration of rights granted to them in the interim constitution of 2007 which the new charter has snatched away.

With Thursday's three deaths in police firing, the toll in the agitation has risen to 59, including 11 police personnel, and the chances of an immediate political solution receded farther.

Several parts of the Terai saw protests and demonstrations by the protestors with reports coming in of clashes with the police at places. There were no immediate reports of casualty, if any.

The Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha (SLMM) -- or the Madhesi Morcha, as it is more commonly known -- has been spearheading the Agitation in the country's terai region. It comprises four Madhes-based parties -- Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party led by Mahanta Thakur; Sadbhawana Party, headed by Rajendra Mahto; Sanghiya Samajwadi Forum-Nepal, led by Upendra Yadav; and the Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party-Nepal headed by Mahendra Yadav.

The Madhesi Morcha, condemning the three deaths in Thursday's police firing, has called for an immediate stop to "the state-sponsored terrorism" let loose in the Terai.

A concerned southern neighbour India has expressed concern over the repeated violent incidents in the Nepal Terai and urged the political parties in the Himalayan nation to seek a political solution to the ongoing unrest and the political standoff.

Vikas Swarup, spokesperson of India's External Affairs Ministry said India was deeply concerned at the loss of three lives in police firing in Morang district in the Nepal Terai. "Political problems require political solutions," he tweeted on Thursday.

The escalation in the agitation intensity follows an attempt by Prime Minister Oli's CPN-UML to try to take head-on the Madhesi protestors.

Tension flared up in the southern Nepali town of Biratnagar, bordering India, after Morcha cadres attempted to disturb a programme organised by the Youth Association of Nepal (YAN), the militant youth wing of Oli's CPN-UML [Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist)].

Oli, who is also CPN-UML chairman, was scheduled to address the programme but cancelled it later, sensing the mood of the protestors.

The government and the Madhesi Morcha leaders have so far held more than a score of meetings in Kathmandu aimed at finding a solution to the prolonged agitation -- but without success

A government-sponsored amendment to the less-than-four-month-old statute is slated to come up for discussion and voting on Saturday -- but observers see little chance of it finding approval among the aggrieved Madhesis.

Morcha leaders have affirmed that they were not ready to accept the amending bill unless their rightful concerns were addressed.

"This government cannot address the demands of indigenous Janajati and Madhesi people," said Upendra Yadav, chairman of Sanghiya Samajbadi Forum-Nepal. "The major parties need to show flexibility and seriousness."

"The major three parties are just doing drama in the name of negotiations... the government is ignoring the demands raised by Madhesis despite our having presented the demands to the government in written and oral forms time and again," said Mahanta Thakur, who leads the Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party.

"I don't know how many times we will have to say that the bottom-line demand of the Madhesi Morcha is demarcation of states... we need two federal states in the Terai region from Jhapa till Kanchapur, but this government acts like it knows nothing about it," Thakur said.
A resolution to the ongoing agitation in Nepal's Terai region receded even farther with three protestors killed in police firing on Thursday in the south-eastern Morang district as Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli and his CPN-UML hardened their stance on the more than five-month-old Madhesi agitation.

Since early morning on Friday, incensed Madhesi activists forced markets to shut down and indulged in arson besides clashing with the police in several parts of the Terai as the protest assumed a form more violent than earlier.

The killings in police firing came even as Deputy Prime Minister Kamal Thapa -- who is also Minister for Federal Affairs and Local Development

besides holding charge of the Foreign Affairs portfolio -- on Thursday inaugurated an ambitious NRs.5 billion Border Area Development Programme (BADP) in Mahottari district, barely 200 km away.

The five-year development programme shall initially target the development of proposed province number 2 -- the heartland of the ongoing Madhesi agitation -- and will seek to create physical and social infrastructures in the region that borders southern neighbour India.

BADP is targeted at one sub-metropolis, six municipalities and 109 Village Development Committees in Mahottari, Saptari, Siraha, Dhanusha, Sarlahi, Rautahat, Bara and Parsa districts which have been lagging behind in life expectancy, literacy and per capita income values as compared to other regions of the country.

The region chosen for the programme has villages and towns bordering India. It has been lagging behind in life expectancy, literacy and per capita income values as compared to other regions of the country.

Mentioning the objectives behind the programme, Thapa said: "Though the Terai is a plains area and accessible, it is backward in human development indices."

Thapa's statement was a frank admission of the discrimination that the region has traditionally suffered at the hands of the Kathmandu-centric ruling elite.

The Madhesis have been protesting against the perpetuation of this very discrimination in the new Constitution, adopted on September 20 last year.

Pressing for a more representative constitution, the Madhesi protestors are demanding, among other things, a redrawing of the boundaries of the provinces in Nepal as proposed in the new Constitution -- promulgated on September 20 last year; and representation in Parliament on the basis of population. Significantly, the Nepal Terai has almost 51 percent of the country's population and yet gets only one-third of seats in Parliament.

The Madhesis also seek proportional representation in government jobs and restoration of rights granted to them in the interim constitution of 2007 which the new charter has snatched away.

With Thursday's three deaths in police firing, the toll in the agitation has risen to 59, including 11 police personnel, and the chances of an immediate political solution receded farther.

Several parts of the Terai saw protests and demonstrations by the protestors with reports coming in of clashes with the police at places. There were no immediate reports of casualty, if any.

The Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha (SLMM) -- or the Madhesi Morcha, as it is more commonly known -- has been spearheading the agitation in the country's terai region. It comprises four Madhes-based parties -- Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party led by Mahanta Thakur; Sadbhawana Party, headed by Rajendra Mahto; Sanghiya Samajwadi Forum-Nepal, led by Upendra Yadav; and the Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party-Nepal headed by Mahendra Yadav.

The Madhesi Morcha, condemning the three deaths in Thursday's police firing, has called for an immediate stop to "the state-sponsored terrorism" let loose in the Terai.

India has expressed concern over the repeated violent incidents in the Nepal Terai and urged the political parties in the Himalayan nation to seek a political solution to the ongoing unrest and the political standoff.

India's External Affairs Ministry's spokesperson Vikas Swarup said India was deeply concerned at the loss of three lives in police firing in Morang district in the Nepal Terai. "Political problems require political solutions," he tweeted on Thursday.

The escalation in the agitation intensity follows an attempt by Prime Minister Oli's CPN-UML to try to take the Madhesi protestors head-on.

Tension flared up in the southern Nepali town of Biratnagar, bordering India, after Morcha cadres attempted to disturb a programme organised by the Youth Association of Nepal (YAN), the militant youth wing of Oli's CPN-UML [Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist)].

Oli, who is also CPN-UML chairman, was scheduled to address the programme but cancelled it later, sensing the mood of the protestors.

A government-sponsored amendment to the less-than-four-month-old statute is, meanwhile, slated to come up for discussion and voting on Saturday -- but observers see little chance of it finding approval among the aggrieved Madhesis.

The government and the Madhesi Morcha leaders have so far held more than a score of meetings in Kathmandu aimed at finding a solution to the prolonged agitation -- but without success.

Morcha leaders have affirmed that they were not ready to accept the amending bill unless their rightful concerns were addressed.

"This government cannot address the demands of indigenous Janajati and Madhesi people," said Upendra Yadav, chairman of Sanghiya Samajbadi Forum-Nepal. "The major parties need to show flexibility and seriousness."

"The major three parties are just doing drama in the name of negotiations... the government is ignoring the demands raised by Madhesis despite our having presented the demands to the government in written and oral forms time and again," said Mahanta Thakur, who leads the Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party.

"I don't know how many times we will have to say that the bottom-line demand of the Madhesi Morcha is demarcation of states... we need two federal states in the Terai region from Jhapa till Kanchapur, but this government acts like it knows nothing about it," Thakur said.

Nepal's Terai region stretches from the Mechi river in the east to the Mahakali river in the west and comprises Madhes in its eastern part and the tribal-dominated Tharuhat in the western region. It has traditionally suffered immense discrimination from the Kathmandu-centric ruling elite that predominantly comprises the Brahmins (Bahuns) and Chhetris of the Nepal hills.

One of the major agitation demands is for the formation of two provinces in the Nepali Terai -- the Madhes extending from the Mechi river in the east to the Narayani river in mid-western Nepal and Tharuhat pradesh from the Narayani to the Mahakali river in the west.
French Ambassador to India Francois Richier on Friday said there was no evidence to suggest that a threat letter warning President Francois Hollande against his India visit was real.

Bengaluru Police on Thursday said a case was registered after the French consulate in Bengaluru handed over a letter allegedly conveying Al Qaeda's warning to the French president not to participate in the Republic Day celebrations as chief guest.

Hollande will participate in the Republic Day parade in Delhi on January 26.

"It's sad the letter has been leaked. We're looking into the issue even though we are accustomed to receiving leaflets like this one. Nothing new to us...we receive a plenty of them. Generally, these seek to create disorder or attract media attention. They never prove to be true," the French ambassador told reporters here.

"There is nothing at the moment that leads us to believe it is a 'real threat'. It may be just another excited sentiment," Richier said.

"It is not a specific threat. It's a specific paper that claim to be (sent) on behalf of a terror organisation. I cannot say there is a threat here. It may simply be the kind of paper we receive regularly from people who just want to create media attention. This is why these papers are leaked," he added.
The Himachal Pradesh Police on Friday ruled out the possibility of a terror angle to the murder of a car driver hired by three people for travel to Pathankot in Punjab.

A police officer said there could be a drug angle to the crime.

However, the police said an alert had been sounded in the hill state after driver Vijay Kumar's murder. His body was found near a bridge on January 20, three days after he went missing.

"Our investigations have not shown any terror link so far to the murder. We are on the job to identify and trace the three accused and recover the vehicle," Director General Sanjay Kumar told reporters in Shimla.

The Delhi Police had earlier on Friday issued an alert after the taxi driver was found dead in Himachal.

Through its official Twitter handle, the Delhi Police released the photographs of three suspects and the details of the Maruti Alto car, bearing registration number HP- 01D-2440.

The car was hired on January 17 from Gaggal town on the outskirts of Dharamsala, some 250 km from state capital Shimla, in Kangra district.

Kangra Superintendent of Police Abhishek Dular told IANS that Vijay Kumar was strangulated.

"We have got some clues from the CCTV footage of the suspects. Our investigations don't suggest any terrorist angle. There could be a drug angle as the victim was in jail for 18 months in a drug case," he said.

He said information about the crime was shared with the neighbouring states.

Six Pakistani terrorists attacked the Indian Air Force base in Pathankot on January 2, killing seven security personnel. Prior to the attack, they had killed a taxi driver Ikagar Singh and allegedly kidnapped a Punjab Police superintendent of police and two others accompanying him.
ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) said on Friday it has signed an agreement with Equatorial Guinea for cooperation in oil and gas exploration in the African republic.

The pact was signed on January 20 "to cooperate in the upstream hydrocarbon sector in Equatorial Guinea", said a statement issued by OVL, the overseas arm of state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC).

The MoU was signed on the sidelines of the ongoing 4th India-Africa Hydrocarbons Summit here.

"Under the MOU, Equatorial Guinea will cooperate with ONGC Videsh to explore the potential investment opportunities within the upstream hydrocarbons sector in Equatorial Guinea, as may be of interest to ONGC Videsh," it added.

OVL, which currently has a stake in 36 projects in 17 countries, is alread present in Africa through participation in projects in Mozambique, Sudan and South Sudan.

Inaugurating the two-day hydrocarbons summit here on Thursday, Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that with the global economic situation at a critical phase, it was imperative that India and Africa forge deeper collaboration, particularly in the energy field.

"The global situation makes our collaboration more critical. The fourth India-Africa Hydrocarbons Conference looks to align and initiate future collaborations between India and Africa in hydrocarbons," he said.

India imports around 16 percent of its oil needs from Africa at 32 million tonnes last year, he added.

As many as 25 African nations are taking part in the conference. Nine are represented by their ministers.

Crude accounts for two-thirds of Indian imports from Africa. Petroleum products account for a third of India's exports to Africa.
Vatican City, Jan 22 (IANS/AKI) Pope Francis celebrated the feast of St Agnes in the Vatican with the centuries-old rite of blessing of the lambs, Vatican Radio reported.

The two lambs were blessed by Pope Francis in the Urban VIII Chapel on Thursday, the radio station said.

To symbolise St Agnes's purity, when being blessed by the Pope, one of the lambs wears a crown of white flowers, while the other wears a red floral wreath to recall her faithful witness even unto death.

Agnes means "lamb" in Latin. St. Agnes, a martyr of the early fourth century known for her consecrated virginity, was killed as a young girl for refusing to worship pagan gods. She is buried in the Basilica named for her, located on Rome's Via Nomentana.

During the summer months, the lambs, which have been blessed by the pontiff when less than a year old, are shorn and their wool used to make Palliums.

These are white wool stoles, decorated with six black crosses worn by Metropolitan Archbishops around their necks as a symbol of their authority and unity with the Pope.

Once woven, the Palliums are guarded in an urn at the tomb of St. Peter until the Pope blesses them on June 29, the feast of St Peter and Paul, Vatican Radio said.

--IANS/AKI

py/dg
President Pranab Mukherjee on Friday hosted a lunch for 100 women achievers at Rashtrapati Bhavan on the occasion of first anniversary of 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' scheme.

The achievers were selected by the ministry of women and child development in collaboration with Facebook through a nationwide contest and public nominations.

The contest namely #100Women was announced on the Facebook page of the ministry on Ju1y 15 last year through which nominations were invited in 20 categories.

Of the 474 nominations received across various categories, initially 200 women nominees were shortlisted by a jury.

The 200 shortlisted women nominees then went for public voting from December 3 to 20 and finally 100 women were selected.

These categories included access to justice protecting women and their rights; arts and culture; literature; media; commerce, industry and entrepreneurship; community mobilisation; healthcare and wellness; hygiene and sanitation; and innovation, science and technology.

The other categories included nutrition; sports; women in public life; women empowerment; agriculture and animal husbandry; animal welfare; disability and disadvantage; education; environment, forests and wildlife; globalising India and improving child sex ratio.
French Ambassador Francois Richier on Friday said he could not comment on the outcome of the ongoing talks on the Rafale fighter plane deal with India, and added it was a "complex negotiation".

"Discussions are taking place at present. I cannot say what the outcome will be. It is a complex negotiation indeed. I don't know what is going to happen," Richier told the media here on the issue of the multi-billion dollar warplane deal that was finalised during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Paris in April last year.

"Of course, I am hopeful. But hopeful does not mean we have certitude. Work is being conducted with a lot of energy," the French ambassador to India said.

His comment comes two days ahead of French President Francois Hollande's official visit to India. Hollande will be the chief guest at the Republic Day parade in Delhi on January 26.

Asked if an inter-governmental agreement is expected to be signed during Hollande's visit on the deal, he said: "In any case, there will be an inter-governmental agreement because it is a government-to-government negotiation. Everything will be within this IGA and its annexure. I can confirm this because this is no surprise."

Air Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria is heading the price negotiations for the Indian side. The final contract for the 36 aircraft, including its missile system and others, for which an agreement was arrived at during Modi's visit, is expected to cost around Rs.60,000 crore.

The ambassador said: "There is no commercial contract in the Rafale deal. It is an issue between the French and the Indian government. There is no private contract involved in this deal."

Countering the contention that the French defence deal was expensive, Richier said: "I don't agree... otherwise, there will not be any business. If you look at it with a bit of precision, you'll discover it is not very expensive. In most cases, in India, there is a lot of competition. We may win, we may lose. If we win, it is (given) that we are not expensive."

Asked about the short-range surface-to-air missile (SR-SAM) project between India's Defence Research and Development Organisation and MBDA of France, he said, "We are working on it. Of course, we expect a decision on this by the Indian side. May be not now, but in the future," he said.
Major fashion retailer H&M is making Bismarck home to its first North Dakota location.

"H&M always strives to find the best location in an area where there is a strong customer base," a company representative said in an email. "Kirkwood Mall in Bismarck, North Dakota, is an important market to the brand, and we plan to continue strategic expansion within the state."

The Swedish retail chain, which prides itself in offering fashion and quality at the best price in a sustainable way, will open a 22,000-square-foot store in the Kirkwood Mall in the fall.

We are excited to bring H&M to Kirkwood Mall to further solidify our status as the premier shopping destination in Bismarck and demonstrate our commitment to investing in the malls continued growth," said CBL's Joe Duperre, general manager of the Kirkwood Mall. "H&M will be a great addition to the many exciting changes already taking place at the center, and we are thrilled to officially confirm they will be opening their doors at Kirkwood Mall."

The store will be located on the south end of the mall, Duperre said, taking space next door to JC Penney, which included the former Arby's location; HotSpring Spas, which is building a store near the south Walmart; and Mid Dakota Clinic. Renovations will begin March 1.

Offerings will include clothing for men and women, as well as separate store within a store sections for accessories and beauty. The location will carry H&Ms childrens collection, for newborns through the age of 14.

"Obviously it's a good thing," said commercial Realtor Kyle Holwagner of Daniel Companies.

Holwagner said many people will drive to Fargo to shop for increased variety. Having H&M brings some of that to Bismarck and helps draw consumers in from the surrounding area.

"It brings a category (of retail) into the market that we currently don't have; I think it will be well received," he said.

Matt Reichert, commercial Realtor with the Aspen Group, said CBL being able to attract H&M to Bismarck says a lot about the company.

"They invest in the property. They invest in the community. They get the right tenants," Reichert said. "I'm impressed with them as mall owners."

H&M said it will be adding jobs to the area with its new location, though the company was unable to confirm how many employees it would hire at this time. For available job opportunities, go online to career.hm.com.

In 2015, H&M was ranked 21st on Interbrands list of 100 Best Global Brands and was selected by Great Place to Work as a top 25 Best Multinational Workplace, the company said in a statement.

The retailer opened the doors to its first U.S. store on New Yorks Fifth Avenue 15 years ago and has since opened 417 locations across the country.
Describing the current level of economic reforms in India moving in the right direction but inadequate, Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan has said that business in the country needs a better environment.

"Let me put it this way... the direction is the right one. The level is wrong. We have too much of the wrong kind of regulation and too little of the right kind of regulation," Rajan told Bloomberg TV in an interview on Thursday.

The RBI chief is here to attend the World Economic Forum.

"We do need to hack away at this, and it will take time; it doesn't happen overnight. We are doing it. We do recognise that we over-regulate... that business needs a better environment," he said.

He spoke of the regime for businesses sought to be dismantled.

"For example, last week, the prime minister inaugurated a programme called Start-up India, which is about eliminating bureaucratic hurdles in starting new business. New business had to register with 10, 15, 20 different authorities, including the pension fund," Rajan said.

"You have one employee, why do you need a pension fund at this point? So the idea here is to make it simpler to start, but also remove the inspections. For three years, no inspectors would show up. You self-certify what you did," he added.

India's central bank governor said the reforms have to take into account the entry of new kinds of businesses in the marketplace.

"At the same time there are a whole set of new businesses coming in... we have to find ways to deal with. For example, online lending; How do we do with what happens in a downturn?" he said.

In response to a question, Rajan said he is not too worried about China's economic slowdown.

"In terms of the quantity of growth, there's still a lot of growth coming from China in terms of dollars. Of course, percentages are falling all the time. That is naturally to be expected of an economy which is growing richer and therefore going to slow," he said.

"So I'm not excessively worried about the Chinese growth," he added.
South Korea on Friday vowed to respond to North Korea's nuclear programme sternly in 2016 after Pyongyang's nuclear test earlier this month.

President Park Geun-hye was briefed by foreign, defence and unification ministers about their respective policy directions in 2016, which focused on resolving Pyongyang's nuclear issue through stronger sanctions and pressure rather than dialogue and consultations, Xinhua reported.

It was a sharp turn from last year's policy reports to Park, which were centred on ending the era of the divided Korean peninsula and preparing for a new era of a reunified Korea.

The turn into a tougher stance came as Pyongyang claimed on January 6 that it had tested its first hydrogen bomb.

It marked the fourth nuclear test in North Korea and the second since the country's top leader Kim Jong Un took power in 2011.

The South Korean foreign ministry submitted its plan to Park that will place its top priority on resolving North Korea's nuclear issue by diplomatically pressuring Pyongyang to give up its nuclear weapons programme.

Seoul will pursue the strongest ever resolution at the UN Security Council, while increasing the trilateral dialogue channels with Washington, Beijing and Tokyo.

The country will also call on China and Russia to play constructive roles in resolving the nuclear issue on the Korean peninsula.
Six youths, including four from Bengaluru, have been arrested in Karnataka for alleged links with the Islamic State, Home Minister G. Parameshwara said on Friday.

"Four people were arrested in Bengaluru and one each in Mangaluru and Tumakuru," he told the media on the margins of an event here. Those nabbed in Bengaluru are Asif, Afzal, Sayed and Ahad.

Suspect Nazmul Huda, arrested from Bajpe suburb in Mangalore, is also accused of encouraging youths to join the Islamic State terrorist outfit. He is a dropout from a private engineering college in Bengaluru.

Arrested in Tumakuru was Syed Mujahid Husain, 25.

Mangaluru and Tumakuru are located about 350 km 70 km respectively from Bengaluru.

"The suspects are being interrogated by NIA (National Investigation Team) about their roles and links," Parameshwara said.

The arrests followed raids by NIA teams on the rented houses and hideouts of the suspects in the city.

Huge quantities of arms and ammunition were recovered and seized from the rented house of two of the suspects.

Earlier, Karnataka Director General of Police Om Prakash told IANS that the Anti-Terrorist Squad was not informed and its help was not sought by the central security agencies which made the arrests.

"Central agencies have the judicial powers to arrest any suspect in the country," Prakash said.

Informed sources said raids were conducted on a tip off that the Islamic State sympathizers were planning bomb attacks on Republic Day (January 26) in the city or any other place in the state.
One hundred and nineteen years ago, on January 23, was born one of India's most iconic political figures - Subhas Chandra Bose. Forty four years later, in 1941, he left the country never to return, dying in a controversial aircrash on August 18, 1945. Many enquiries later, and with ample historical evidence available, the controversy refuses to die down. So obssessed have some people, including a few of Netaji's relatives, become with the mystery and INA saga that Netaji's contribution to the Mahatma Gandhi- led freedom struggle has been completely forgotten.

This article breifly recaptulates the events from the time Bose came under the spell of the Mahatma as a youth leader of the Indian National Congress(INC) till he fell out with him in his second term as President INC culminating in his 'great escape' ,this month, exactly 75 years ago.

By the late 20s Bose, alongwith Jawaharlal Nehru, had become a youth icon. So popular were they that even revolutionaries like Bhagat Singh, Chandrasekhar Azad and Jatin Das were inspired by them.

After the death of C.R. Das in 1925, Bose gradually became the most popular leader of Bengal. He represented the rebellious tendency in the state, not just against the British but against the Copngress central leadership as well. He was elected mayor of Calcutta (now Kolkata) defeating J.M. Sen Gupta, the nominee of the Congress high command.

While Bose was idelogically opposed to the rightist Vallabhbhai Patel, he was personally and politically close to the latter's elder brother Vithalbhai Patel, a leader of Swaraj party founded by Motitlal Nehru and C.R. Das. Vithalbhai and Bose had met in a sanatorium in Vienna where both were convalescing in 1933. When Gandhiji suspended the civil disobedience movement, they issued a strong-worded joint statement, the Patel-Bose manifesto, calling for a new radical leadership of the independence movement.

So fond of Bose had Vithalbhai become that he willed a portion of his fortune to him to be spent for the "political uplift of India and for publicity work on behalf of India's cause in other countries". But the will was challenged by Vithalbhai's sibiling, Vallabhbhai Patel as a consequence of which Bose didn't receive a penny.

Meanwhile, relations between Bose and Jawaharlal Nehru were going stronger by the day. While Nehru was in prison in India, Bose travelled from Vienna to Badenweiler to be with Kamala Nehru, who was suffering from TB. He remained there till Nehru arrived after being released from prison. When Kamala Nehru died Bose was there to help Nehru and his daughter Indira (then 19) with the funeral arrangements. When Nehru told Bose that he was intending to set up a foreign affairs department in the Congress the latter was mighty pleased as that was entirely in consonance with his own views.

Bose returned to India in May 1936 and was soon arrested. Nehru, who was the Congress president, gave a country wide-call to observe a protest on May 10, 1936 to put pressure on the British authorities to release him.

Nehru's second consecutive term was coming to end in 1937 and a suitable successor had to be found. As the masses were solidly behind the Nehru-Bose duo, Gandhiji with his foresight, decided to back the candidature of Bose. Though the rightist lobby led by Sardar Patel opposed him tooth and nail, the Mahatma declared that "there really was no one other than Subhas who deserved to become the 'rashtrapati' (as the INC president was addressed in those days).

The first term of Bose was a smooth affair with many activites aimed at setting up goals to see that "everybody - man, woman and child - is better clothed, better educated and has sufficient leisure for recreation and cultural activity". Though Bose reassured Gandhians that he firmly believed in encouraging cottage industries, he felt, like Nehru, the need to embrace the idea of heavy industrialisation. Nehru was away to Europe in 1938 but Bose wanted him back to take over as the chairman of the National Planning Committee he proposed to set up for socio-economic reconstruction of the country when it became free.

In envisioning the future of India, both Nehru and Bose placed considerable importance on the position of women and sought to initiate measures by which they could be brought into the mainstream of the development process. One of the most comprehensive reports prepared under the aegis of the National Planning Committee was on women and their future in the planned economy of India. Proceeding along the guidelines suggested in the Fundamental Rights Resolution adopted by the Karachi Congress in 1931, the women's report in the National Planning Committee spelt out in detail the existing social, economic and legal obstacles to the achievement of equal status and opportunity and advocated ameliorative measures, which were surprisingly modern and advanced. While Nehru, as Chairman of the National Planning Committee, was actively involved in its preparation, Bose shared most of its recommendations, without, however, being directly involved because of his preoccupations as Congress president.

The need to forge national unity on the basis of the advances made by scientific progress was a constant preoccupation with Bose. With a restless zeal and inspired by the example of Russia, which in a short while had progressed from "being a country of half-starved peasants to well-clothed industrial workers", Bose envisaged an India where industrial progress could improve "the standard of living of the people at large".

However, despite the enourmous work he had undertaken in his first term, Bose was opposed for a re-election by the right wing of the Congress comprising Patel, Rajaji, Rajendra Prasad and G.B. Pant. Their choice was Abul Kalam Azad. But the maulana considered discretion the better part of valour and refused to enter the fray. This pitted Patabhi Sitaramayya of Andhra against Bose. In a keenly fought contest, Bose polled 1,580 votes against Sitaramayya's 1,375.

The re-election of Bose was a big blow to the right wing of the Congress, which had earlier stated: "Bose's re-election is held to be harmful to country's cause." The Mahatma however, admitted to his defeat but, with his characteristic humility, added: "After all, Subhas babu is not an enemy of his country. He has suffered for it."

All this, and more later, would, however, not heal the wounds and prevent Bose from charting an independent course and, ultimately, sacrificing his life to realise his dream of Azad Hind.

(Praveen Davar, a former Indian Army officer, is a member of the National Commission for minorities. The views expressed are personal. He can be contacted at praveendavar@gmail.com)
At least three ethnic Madhesi protesters were killed and eight injured during violent clashes with the police in Morang district of Nepal bordering India, officials said on Friday.

The police acted as the agitating Madhesi protesters tried to attack a political rally organised by the ruling Communist Party of Nepal in Rangeli of Morang district on thursday, Xinhua quoted Deputy Superintendent of Police Tarini Prasad Lamshal as saying.

According to Lamshal, the police personnel made attempts to stop the attackers with batons and tear gas before firing live rounds into the crowd.

"However, we were forced to open fire as the protesters turned violent and attacked us," the police said.

According to the media, two protesters were killed in Rangeli and another in nearby Dainiya of Morang district.

Meanwhile, crucial talks between the Nepali government and the Madhesis could not yield any positive result on Thursday in addressing 11-point demands raised by the Madhesis which include redefining the seven provincial boundaries adopted through the new constitution.

The Madhesis have also continued blocking the major border points with India. The ethnic minority Madhesis have been launching agitation for the past five months claiming that Nepal's new constitution was not broad-based and some of the provisions would politically marginalise them.

According to the police, at least 50 protesters were killed in police firing in the Terai region of Nepal bordering India.
Just ten days before the first critical nominating contests, Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump has taken a commanding lead in Iowa while Bernie Sanders has overtaken Hillary Clinton in the Democratic race.

Real estate mogul Trump led Texas Senator Ted Cruz 37 per cent to 26 per cent in a new CNN/ORC poll Thursday in Iowa, where both parties hold their cacuses on February 1. Florida Senator Marco Rubio in third place at 14 per cent was the only other Republican in double digits.

Self styled Democratic Socialist Sanders, meanwhile, opened up an eight-point lead over former Secretary of State Clinton, leading her in Iowa 51 per cent to 43 per cent among likely Democratic presidential caucus-goers.

In December, Clinton led Sanders in Iowa by 18 points in CNN/ORC's polling, 54 per cent to 36 per cent.

As Sanders shot into the lead Clinton sought to turn his "establishment" attack right back on him-saying he served in Washington much longer than she did.

In a CNN interview, she also attacked his experience and fitness to lead the country, criticising his call during the last Democratic debate to "move as aggressively as we can to normalise relations with Iran."

Earlier at a rally in Indianola, Iowa, Clinton repeatedly referenced Sanders by name and questioned whether his ideas could ever become reality.

"I am not interested in ideas that sound good on paper but will never make it in the real world," Clinton said. "I care about making a real difference in your life and that gets to the choice you have to make in this caucus."

Sanders, on his part, told Time magazine that in national polls "we are defeating Donald Trump, the Republican's leading candidate, by far more than Hillary Clinton is."

"So if the question is, can a Bernie Sanders and what he stands for, and the fight for economic and social justice carry over to the general election and millions of working people? I think the evidence is that it can," he asserted.

Meanwhile, Trump ripped Cruz as a strident and unlikeable figure lacking the skills to negotiate and lead on behalf of the US.

"He had his moment and he blew it," Trump said at an event in a casino in Las Vegas Thursday after a reading a series of polls showing him surging in states around the country.

"He looks like a nervous wreck," he added. "He's going down." Trump also trashed former Florida Governor Jeb Bush as a "lost soul" and "a maniac."

"We've got a bunch of real dummies, I tell ya," he said adding, "Jeb is down the toilet and Ted is starting to go down."

He assured the crowd that if Bush halted his attacks on Trump, he would leave him alone.
Two members of a family with ties to West Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress were killed when a bomb they were making exploded in Birbhum district, police said on Friday.

The incident happened on Thursday night or possibly just after midnight inside the house of Sheikh Jabir Hussain in Ahmedpur, some 180 km from Kolkata, a police officer said.

"Two people have died. Prima facie it appears a bomb was being made in the house when it exploded," said the officer.

The victims were identified as Sheikh Hafizul and Tariq Hussain, brothers of Sheikh Jabir Hussain, a Panchayat member from the Trinamool Congress.

Residents insisted that some bodies were removed before police reached the scene.
Two members of a family were killed when a bomb exploded inside their house in West Bengal's Birbhum district, police said on Friday.

The incident happened in the house of Sheikh Jabir Hussain in Ahmedpur, some 180 km from Kolkata.

"Two people have been killed. Prima facie it appears a bomb was being made in the house when it exploded," said a police officer.

The victims have been identified as Sheikh Hafizul and Tariq Hussain, both brothers of Sheikh Jabir Hussain, gram panchayat member from the state's ruling Trinamool Congress.

Residents claimed that some bodies were removed before the police reached the spot.
US East Coast braced Friday for a winter blizzard of epic proportions with about 75 million people in the storm's path and the American capital right in the bull's eye. Preparing for what people are calling "Snowmaggedon 2016" that could bring up to 30 inches of snow to Washington starting Friday afternoon and into Saturday night, schools and colleges across the region announced closures.

Fearful of the coming blizzard, lawmakers took early flights out of town and the region's mass transit system took the rare step of announcing it would shut down for the weekend.

The governors of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina and Georgia declared states of emergency Thursday, as did the Mayor of Washington.

All urged people to stay off the roads and stock up on food and emergency supplies as a relatively light dusting Wednesday left an unprepared Washington metro area a slippery mess along mostly untreated roads Thursday morning.

Even President Barack Obama's motorcade was caught in the gridlock as his motorcade using hazard lights Wednesday made its slippery way from Joint Base Andrews to the White House.

"Heavy snow and blowing snow will cause dangerous conditions and will be a threat to life and property," the National Weather Service warned.

"Travel is expected to be severely limited if not impossible during the height of the storm Friday night and Saturday."

With 7 to 15 inches of snow forecast by the end of the weekend in New York, the city's mayor Bill de Blasio has ordered some 4,800 sanitation workers charged with clearing streets to go on to 12-hour shifts Friday.

Ahead of the expected storm, airlines have begun to cancel flights from Washington area's three airports.

Nearly 2 feet of snow fell in February 2010's "Snowmageddon" storm, which cut power to hundreds of thousands in the region.

But it still fell short of the calamitous "Knickerbocker Storm" of 1922, which dumped 28 inches and killed nearly 100 people when the roof of a theatre by that name collapsed under the weight of snow, according to CNN.

(Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in)
Narendra Modi will be in Lucknow on Friday, becoming the first prime minister to visit this Uttar Pradesh capital in 11 years and help revive memories of the time when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the prime minister.

When Modi's special Indian Air Force (IAF) plane lands at the tarmac on the Chaudhary Charan Singh airport at Amausi in the state capital, it would be after 11 long years that a prime minister will set foot on the soil of Lucknow.

For a city that was once the parliamentary constituency of then prime minister and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) stalwart Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the four-hour-long trip of Modi has many firsts.

This would be for the first time that Modi will be visiting the state capital as prime minister, and it is also for the first time after Vajpayee's famous 2004 drive through Hazratganj for his nomination, that a prime minister's cavalcade would drive through the busy and famous thoroughfare.

Old timers are looking forward to Modi's visit and say that it gives a feeling of deja vu.

"After the sun set on Vajpayee's political career, Lucknow seemed to have lost its political prominence but today it seems that it will be salvaged some bit," said Sharad Mishra, a resident of Hazratganj.

Modi has earlier been to Lucknow on March 2, 2014 for an election rally at the outskirts of the state capital.

Manmohan Singh visited the city as prime minister on September 1, 2005 for the inauguration of an insurance scheme.

Vajpayee last visited Lucknow on April 27, 2007 when he came to canvas for the party in the state assembly polls. He had then predicted that his age might bar him from any future trips to the city he loved so much.

But while every visit of Vajpayee drew smiles on the faces of food lovers, Modi's trip won't be so.

For Vajpayee loved his food and special thandai from Raja Thandai outlet would be taken for him in a thermos flask and the chaat - tikki, dahi bhalla - and some of the non-vegetarian fare was picked up for the octagenarian every time he landed in Lucknow, says an old associate.

In contrast, for Modi, the food is simple - Gujarati thepla, Khandvi and some south-Indian dishes like Uttapam, Idli and paper dosa, washed down with butter milk, after he attends the convocation of Bhim Rao Ambedkar university.
Library offers help to job-seekers

New classes are being offered at the Bismarck Public Library to help unemployed people navigate difficult terrain when it comes to finding a job.

Sarah Matthews, the librarys adult programming director, said the library received a $5,000 grant through the city's Housing and Urban Development to start the Job Club, which held its first classes on Monday and Tuesday.

The Job Club offers two-hour classes to help with resume and cover letter writing, in addition to navigating online job sites, such as jobsnd.com.

Earlier this month, Job Service North Dakota announced that 60 positions across the state were being cut, including 34 full-time and temporary jobs.

Classes will be held on the third Monday and Tuesday of each month until October. The next classes will be Feb. 15-16. Classes are offered during the afternoon and evening. To reserve a spot, call the library's information desk at 701-355-1480.

Copper wire stolen from work site

Copper wire, valued at $7,200 was stolen from a construction site at the 4600 block of 19th Street between 7 p.m. Monday and 9 a.m. Tuesday.

Several spools of copper wire were stolen from Mayer Electric, according to Bismarck Police.

Man killed in crash identified

The North Dakota Highway Patrol on Thursday released the name of a man who was killed Wednesday morning in an accident on Highway 1804, at milepost 334.

Robert Schieno, 43, of Williston, died after his Buick entered into another car's lane. The other car attempted to avoid the collision and drove off the road into a ditch.

Schieno's Buick sideswiped the driver's side of the other car. Schieno died at the scene. He was not wearing a seat belt.

Woman arrested for hitting girl

Ladean Lockwood, 48, was arrested Wednesday by Bismarck police officers and charged Thursday with felony child abuse or neglect and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

According to an affidavit, Lockwood was drinking alcohol with a 17-year-old girl and admitted to striking her, causing injury.

Bismarck police officers responded to a call Wednesday evening at a residence in the 3000 block of East Rosser Avenue, where they found a 17-year-old Bismarck girl bleeding with a swollen lip and a puffy, swollen eye. She was taken to CHI St. Alexius Health.

Winter Wonderland scheduled

Gateway to Science's annual Winter Wonderland, a free drop-in family event, will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday at the Frances Leach High Prairie Arts & Science Complex, 1810 Schafer St. in Bismarck.

Winter Wonderland will feature hands-on discovery stations and live science demonstrations that explore the winter season. Hot chocolate and cookies will be served.

Couple charged with child neglect

Bond was set for a couple charged with child neglect for allegedly exposing two children younger than 2 to marijuana smoke in an area that was intentionally blocked of ventilation.

Jenna Marie Byzewski, 25, and Philip Christian Bendickson, 28, each had bond set at $1,000.

On Monday, Bismarck police officers arrived at the 1700 block of East Rosser Avenue and entered a bedroom that smelled of marijuana.

The affidavit indicated the window was closed and a towel was stuffed at the bottom of the door and no fan. There was no ventilation present in the room in which two children were present.

A 1:30 p. m. Feb. 22 preliminary hearing has been set for Byzewski. Her $1,000 bond was unsecured.

A court date is still pending for Bendickson, who was ordered to pay 10 percent of the $1,000 bond.

Clark won't seek another term

Former North Dakota Public Service Commissioner Tony Clark announced Thursday that he wont be seeking another term on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Clark was nominated by President Barack Obama for the position on the five-member commission. He was sworn in on June 15, 2012.

Clark, 44, announced his decision at the commissions meeting Thursday in Washington, D.C. His term ends on June 30.

The five-member commission is appointed to staggered terms by the president, and no more than three members can be from one political party.

Clark previously served 12 years on the North Dakota PSC and was first elected in 2000. Prior to his time with the PSC, he served as North Dakota Labor Commissioner.

From 1994-97, he served in the North Dakota House of Representatives, representing District 44 in Fargo.

Clark is married and has three children.
Considering the virtual popularity of the Bollywood talent hunt show, acting portal Bombaycasting.com, which launched an online audition round on January 6, has extended the last date for entries from January 21 to February 14.

The online portal, which is the brainchild of producer Sunil Bohra, embarked on an endeavour to turn people's Bollywood dream into a reality with a online talent show, which garnered attention from foreign shores as well.

People from Britain, the US and UAE have sent in their entries. The portal also hired spots on a news channel to provide an impetus to its popularity.

The site visit is said to have crossed the 100,000 mark and is drawing traffic from across India, including from Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

According to an official statement from the platform's founder, the last date of the contest was January 21. But looking at the requests pouring in from all quarters the deadline has been extended.

The team decided that "life gives us many a chances and so should we also give chances to the contestants."

"Hence, the deadline has now been pushed to February 14. The management is also contemplating hiring extra manpower to tide over the sea of applicants that will log in due to the deadline being pushed," the statement read.

Bollywood directors Aanand L.Rai, Hansal Mehta and Tigmanshu Dhulia have taken charge to spot three stars in the making.

The aspirants have to just log on to the site and record their audition online. As many as three aspirants will be discovered from the talent hunt, and the winner will get Rs.11 lakh and an acting contract with a leading filmmaker. The first and second runners-up will get cash prize of Rs.500,000 and Rs.200,000 respectively.

All the winners will get 100 days of work on various projects, such as movies, documentaries and advertisements.
The Delhi Waqf Board on Friday told the Delhi High Court that it was suffering in getting its 990 properties vacated from illegal and unauthorised encroachers as the Waqf tribunal has not been constituted.

A division bench of Chief Justice G. Rohini and Justice Jayant Nath asked the Waqf board and the Delhi government about the actions they had taken to constitute the tribunal.

The bench asked Rahul Mehra, senior standing counsel of the Delhi government to take instruction from the government on constitution of tribunal. The court posted the matter for February 17.

The board in its affidavit filed in 2015 had said that since 2014 it has written three letters to the Delhi government for issuing notification for constitution of tribunal but nothing has been done.

The court was hearing a PIL seeking set up of tribunal and direction to enforce eviction orders, already passed and awaiting enforcement for last several years, regarding 990 Waqf properties here.

Advocate Shahid Ali had filed an affidavit in respect of 990 Waqf properties which have already been ordered to be vacated under section 54 of Wakf Act 1995 (Old Act) across Delhi but the concerned SDMs have not been enforcing such orders of vacation of Waqf properties despite there is a clear commandment of Section 55 of the Wakf Act 1995.

The plea said that between 2006 and 2013, on different dates, the SDMs were requested to get the properties vacated through police circle officers (COs).

It added that previously these officers had the power to get properties vacated, but through an amendment in 2013 in the Waqf Act, this right has been transferred to the Waqf.
The western intervention in Afghanistan was flawed from the very start in its rationale, goals and implementation, which accounts for why their over a decade long military involvement ended without securing peace in the country, and may have made it more dangerous, says British journalist Christina Lamb who has been covering the region for nearly three decades.

"The Western powers never knew what they wanted to do in Afghanistan. The problems started when they focussed on elections and gender rights, when the people wanted security and livelihoods," she said at a session titled "Farewell Kabul: From Afghanistan to a More Dangerous World" at the Jaipur Literature Festival on Thursday evening.

But the whole premise for the intervention was flawed, contends Lamb whose book of the same name covers Afghanistan from the exultation seen at the end of the Taliban rule in 2001 to the withdrawal of NATO forces in end-2014.

"After 9/11, they wanted to uproot the Taliban and find (Al Qaeda chief Osama) Bin Laden but what people didn't know what was what Afghanistan had to do with 9/11, which was masterminded by Pakistani Khalid Sheikh Mohammad, in Karachi," she said.

"It was a mistake fighting Taliban, for even after defeating it militarily then, there was no focus on completing the job," she said, adding she met had two Taliban ex-ministers living in Quetta in early 2002 and when she told this to an American commander in Kabul, he had replied that he was not interested, since the Taliban was not the enemy, but the Al Qaeda was.

The choice of Hamid Karzai as Afghanistan's new leader at the Bonn conference was also wrong, said Lamb, who had first met him in the end 1980s when he was the spokesman for one of the two smallest parties in the seven-member Mujahideen coalition fighting the Soviet forces.

"Karzai was a wrong person. Delegates had already voted for Uzbek leader Ustad Sattar, but the Americans persuaded them to revoke it and vote again, and Karzai was brought in, addressing the gathering via a video link, and was duly chosen despite his own uncle declining to vote for him on the grounds that he couldn't run the country. He was supported by all the outside powers and the Americans liked him because he was fluent in English, could be charming, and was not seen as a warlord," she said, adding his problems were his lack of experience and that he was not a manager.

Still he managed to keep the country together, but on the other hand, corruption rose dramatically which made the regime unpopular.

Lamb also said there is a tendency to see Pakistan as a villain, but maintained they did what they did on the grounds of what was beneficial to them.

"When the Russians left Afghanistan, the entire apparatus of diplomats, spies, journalists, aid workers and others across the border in Pakistan also left and the country was left with the refugees and no aid, and soon its nuclear plans were 'discovered'," she said, adding the Pakistani establishment never wanted to be in a situation again.

"What the West doesn't appreciate is that other countries have interests too," she said.

Lamb, who also mentioned meeting a certain "Col Imam" who was one of Pakistani soldiers who had continued guiding the Taliban even after then Pakistani president, Gen Pervez Musharraf said all links had been cut, said the former were not always seen positively by their "allies".

She recalled that after the Mujahideen attack on Jalalabad in 1989 failed, an angry Mujahideen commander had berated the Pakistani officer directing the battle as to "how dare people like you who have never won a war teach us who have never lost a war".

On the future, Lamb says that Barack Obama, who had maintained Afghanistan was a "good war" as opposed to Iraq, did change his mind after becoming president, but his policy was "of hope, and no experience" and the use of drones was "to cover an absence of policy".

She cautioned the world against treating Afghanistan as yesterday's war since it was still on, fleeing Afghans were the most numerous refugees following the Syrians, and the IS was gaining presence in the embattled country.
Sometimes I feel The Universe hates me. On the morning of writing this, I found my Fitbit step-counter hadn't re-charged, which meant that I was trapped in bed for an hour.

But even more cursed by destiny, I reckon, are the folk at the World Taekwondo Federation, known as WTF. For years, everything was fine and then along came the Internet and now everything they do sounds ridiculous.

Trophies emblazoned with WTF make people laugh, cheerleading chants ("Yay, WTF!") sound absurd, and any kind of slogan looks silly: "Don't say Taekwondo, say WTF!"

Now WTF boss Hoss Rafaty is giving up the battle and urging members to ditch the acronym and just say "World Taekwondo". I heard about this from sports-mad reader Allen Chiang, so I canvassed regular contributors to share tales of other innocent organizations with names that were overtaken by circumstances.

First up was Grexit, a US software company who were proud they had invented a new word. But "Grexit" became a political term in Europe and the nerds were soon driven mad by people wanting to discuss Greek politics. Nerds know a lot about computers but almost nothing about complex issues of Real Life, such as politics, society, putting buttons in the right holes, etc.

Then there were the many firms who have been harmed by the inability of Internet addresses to include spaces, punctuation or capital letters. Experts Exchange had a clear enough name, but its web address, expertsexchange, was read differently. The same thing happened when Pen Island became penisland, KeePass became keepass, Who Represents? became whorepresents, and Old Man's Haven became oldmanshaven. A company which recycles old information technology hardware called itself IT Scrap, but it became itscrap in the web version.

Web-surfers' preference for short forms was a problem, too, as was discovered by the South Korean pottery training company which found their web name constantly misunderstood: enjoypot.co.kr.

Perhaps the most ironic case of events overtaking honest intentions was the story of ISIS, which long stood for the International Society for Islamic Secularization, a group of people who are like most Muslims: modern, intelligent, lovely people. But now it's hard for members to even introduce themselves. "Hi, I'm from a Muslim group called ISIS and I-wait! I won't hurt you!"

Name changes can be awkward, too. Staff at Lakeview Typewriters in the US were happy with their business cards until the firm was bought by Allan Boring and they now work for Boring Business Systems (not a joke).

Office equipment makers in Sweden learned that their boss had decided to name their company after the Swedish word for "logic", which is "stolen", which is why tourists now stop in Stockholm to take pictures of the Stolen office goods store.

A financial reporter friend tells me that staff at the Third National Bank and the Fifth National Bank in the US had ordinary business cards until the two banks merged: "Now they work for the bizarrely named Fifth Third, which just sounds like bad math."

But there are occasional bright spots in this record of gloom. The European electricity firm PowerGen Italia became powergenitalia in the internet age. The reporter said: "I expect most of the male employees, anyway, think it is rather a nice thing to have on their business cards."

(Nury Vittachi is an Asia-based frequent traveller. Send comments and ideas via his Facebook page)
Volatility - and not just of the market variety - is on the minds of the chief executives, financial titans and world leaders wrapping up their World Economic Forum chats in Davos, Switzerland. While it's true that swinging stocks, bonds and commodities are front of mind at the elite gathering, the temporary denizens of Davos are themselves something of a living display in human volatility.

Consider the fortunes of the bank bosses who hosted receptions in the Alpine town's posh hotels and spent time in the closely guarded congress center a year ago. Anshu Jain is no longer the boss of Deutsche Bank. Nor do Peter Sands, Antony Jenkins or Brady Dougan lead Standard Chartered, Barclays and Credit Suisse, respectively.

The European bankers, at least, left under less worrisome circumstances than Andre Esteves. One of last year's hottest tickets was an audience with the Brazilian banker extraordinaire. Not so much this year: The BTG Pactual boss was arrested in November for allegedly obstructing an investigation into oil giant Petrobras.

Brazil's wild ride also claimed other high-profile Davos scalps. A year ago, President Dilma Rousseff dispatched her new finance minister, Joaquim Levy, on whom many pinned hopes for Brazil's recovery. He lost his job - and presumably his invite, when he bowed out in December. His replacement is doing the rounds this year.

Some other regulars are conspicuously absent. Alan Clark, the gregarious head of SABMiller, is probably too busy prepping the sale to AB InBev to host the Italian-themed Peroni party of years past. Yahoo's Marissa Mayer also appears to have taken a break from Davos. Her duties as a new mother of twins may be more a factor than readers predicting her most likely CEO to be out of a job in 2016.

Each departure ushers in debutantes, of course. The replacements at Barclays, StanChart and Deutsche, Jes Staley, Bill Winters and John Cryan, respectively - made the trip in their new guises. Even BTG is represented. And Tidjane Thiam co-hosted a glittering dinner for Melinda Gates in the Credit Suisse pavilion where Dougan last year held court. This year's list will include many taking a Davos bow, unwittingly or not. US Vice President Joe Biden is one. Others like Ivan Glasenberg, the boss of embattled Glencore, may be more the result of distress. The good news, as former Barclays-boss-turned-African-entrepreneur Bob Diamond can attest, is you can sometimes return.
When I bumped into Om Prakash after a long time, I asked how his son was. When I had met him last, his bright-eyed intelligence had left an impression on me. "He's just dropped out of school after completing Class X," he said proudly. "Now I have enrolled him in an English-speaking course." I asked him why he had done so, and he told me an interesting story.

It all started four years ago when their neighbour's son dropped out of school after Class X to work in a multinational pizza chain as a waiter. "Initially, we all thought it was a big mistake," he said. But the younger generation felt differently. They talked amongst themselves, wondering what opportunities they were missing out on by spending their days in the government school in west Delhi. The elders were proven somewhat wrong when the boy managed to make a success of his job. He was smart, spoke English well and hard-working too. Soon he caught the attention of the manager of the establishment and within two years, was made a supervisor.

However the boy wasn't quite satisfied yet, for he knew he couldn't rise any further, thanks to his lack of education. Elders advised him to complete schooling through open school, but instead, he got together with two other staffers in the pizza joint, found a small investor, and opened a cafe in his neighbourhood. Their speciality was, unsurprisingly, pizza.

Unwittingly, the boy had given the neighbourhood much to think about, even question, about things they took for granted in their own lives. Prakash, who completed his education from a Panipat school, recalled that when he passed out, the only job he could easily find was that of a driver. "So that's what I've been for the last 20 years. And with little scope for career advancement, that's what I'll continue to be till the end of my career," he said. In comparison, today's generation, he said, simply wanted more. So when his son asked him what good it would do for him to complete Class XII, Prakash had no credible arguments in favour of education - especially when the neighbour's son seemed so happy with his own business.

In fact, he'd sparked off a craze for studying spoken English in the neighbourhood. Today, Prakash's son is pursuing a course in car mechanics and learning spoken English on the side. His eventual aim is to sell cars online. "With some friends, he is already working on a business model and website," said the proud but clearly worried parent.

If nothing else, I said, completing his education would have given his son a back-up plan. "Given the standards of teaching in government schools, my son felt he was simply wasting the best years of his life carrying on there," countered Prakash. Life was hard, he said, for those emerging into adulthood from straitened financial circumstances. On the one hand, their aspirations were higher than those of their parents. Their schooling was not comprehensive enough to equip them with skills that could help them compete for good jobs. "Even if they graduate from a Delhi college, if they don't speak English well, they'll get the same jobs they'd get after completing school," he said, in parting.

The conversation got me thinking about the oft-ignored significance of role models, especially for people on the cusp of adulthood. It remains to be seen whether the neighbour's son has actually inspired a generation of successful school dropout entrepreneurs. But wittingly or not, he has forced them to question the established order of things, and perhaps that's good thing.
Social fronts and students organisation members take part in a candle march protest over the death of Rohit Vemula in Nagpur of Maharashtra. Photo: PTI

Rohith Vemulas suicide has sent our politics into convulsion and has once again brought to fore the deep social fault-lines that criss-cross our society. Often masked, these divisions have always existed deep under. Through constitutionally mandated means -- aided by political participation -- the Indian Republic has sought to paper over the rumbling of these tectonic plates. Whether it has succeeded or failed depends on how you look at it.

The governments response has been to brush aside the casteist underpinnings of this issue. HRD minister, Smriti Irani, was at pains to deflect attention by suggesting that it was not a Dalits versus non-Dalits issue. A report in the Indian Express today highlights, how her deputies in the ministry -- one of whom is a Dalit -- have gone silent on the matter. This has only highlighted how important conversations around Dalit issues are ignored in attempts to tide over a crisis.

The old debates of merit versus reservations, upper caste versus lower caste, privilege versus social justice have once again surfaced. What is at the heart of such breakdowns in our society, especially in our schools, colleges and universities? Why is our youth taking such pitched positions on these matters?

What causes these conflagrations in educational institutes and among the youth now?

At the heart of it, these disputes among our youth in our educational institutions represent a questioning of the status-quo. It represents how Dalit or Tribal youth question the status-quo they have inherited in the form of a rigid, discriminatory social order. It represents a pushing of existing boundaries by every new generation. It represents an assertion of their equality and a consciousness of their rights.

This in itself represents a success of the republic that in 1950 decided to enshrine equality in the constitution in its attempt to fix centuries of oppression. To remove social stigma, to ensure equitable growth, to ensure the new Republics sustenance and to reform the society, reservations for Scheduled Castes and Tribes were introduced. This important feature continues till this day as Indian society has not reformed at the pace at which it was expected to, as Rohith Vemulas suicide clearly demonstrates.

On the other hand, we have a questioning of the status-quo by those from privileged castes. It represents a curious mix of casteism and entitlement but it also represents a questioning of the social order that has been bequeathed to them by the republics founders. It partly represents a lack of awareness and therefore understanding of the reasons this order was created in 1950. This questioning of the status-quo should also be welcomed.

This mutual resistance coupled with entrenched power equations that are clearly tilted against the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes leads to social flare-ups.

The fuse that leads to these flare-ups is made up of multiple layers, each different from the other and each requiring careful parsing

The challenge here is to understand that broad-brushing all questioning as assertion of caste superiority or entitlement is useless and lazy while the broad-brushing of assertion of rights by Dalits as usurpation of merit is disingenuous and lacks comprehension of dalit or tribal victimisation.

What do these conflagrations lead to?

Pitched battles with no common ground for frank, free and civil conversations is now the norm when it comes to public discourse and battles over reservations in jobs and educational institutions are no different.

On one hand we have a side which is rightly asserting its right to equality and claiming its rightful place in the society and on the other we have a side whose new generations wallow in victimhood and deprivation, unaware of the roots of the debate.

A distinct lack of awareness of how sections of a society we live in have been deprived of opportunity and life (often a bullheaded and vicious lack of acknowledgement of such deprivation) is then met by an equally obstinate lack of acknowledgement of this grouse.

To acknowledge the existence of this grouse itself becomes a reason for another pitched battle. Hectoring activism speaks to strong victimhood and no honest conversation is held that can help one side even acknowledge the others point of view.

How to reduce the scope of these flare-ups?

The solution to these flare-ups is then found in the age old Indian method of letting the issue die, biding time till the next one arrives on the scene.

Rohith Vemulas case is not an exception, it is rather the norm but despite so many battles being fought, solutions or even discussions are hard to come by. Why is it so hard for the so-called upper castes to understand the legitimacy of the social justice mechanism?

A 20 year old born in 1995 in a privileged caste or class or gender who has neither been exposed to the Constituent Assembly debates, nor the discourse centred around Mandal commission and whose idea of merit is the percentage of marks scored in an exam, will find it hard to comprehend the concept of social justice.

In his political consciousness, reservations are electoral sops often extricated through collective agitation, sometimes even by the undeserving. Reservations then become a cart in which everyone tries to get a stake but nobody wants to question.

With no window into dalit history either at school or college and no portrayal of dalit struggles in popular culture, this exposure to the realities of caste oppression is completely absent.

For political or social activists, it would be useful to understand that reservations or the existing mechanisms of social justice are not holy cows to not be questioned. The status-quo, as created over decades since 1950, will be questioned; by every generation and more strongly than before. This questioning needs to be countered through conversations and often accommodation rather than through hectoring and self-righteousness.

While the republic has a responsibility to ensure social reforms and equality, it also has a need to ensure generations dont get alienated by feeling ignored and uncared for, however improbable the cause. For this young republics sake, it is important that we dont ignore these conversations and dont create any more holy cows.
When there is blood on trading screens, and holes in investors' pockets, it may be time for relief in the form of some dark humourby looking at the market forecasts that pundits had made. For instance, no one would want to be in the shoes of Nomuras chief equity strategist who forecast as recently as October that the Sensex would be at 33,500 in early 2016. Or in the shoes of the almost equally optimistic forecasters in Citibank, Deutsche Bank and Morgan Stanley who, caught up in the upbeat mood that prevailed during the early stages of the Modi government, forecast that the Sensex would be at 32,500-33,000 by December 2015.

Outlandish as these forecasts seem now, in the light of disillusioning reality, they were not the outliers; indeed, they represented the mainstream view. A Reuters poll last March had equity analysts forecasting a Sensex level of 32,000 at the end of 2015. It is not that Chinas structural problems werent known at the time, or that monetary policies in the leading economies were not potential sources of instabilityfactors that had foreign portfolio investors begin to pull out their money and head for safe harbour elsewhere. Three months later, in June, these issues had begun to register more clearly and the forecasters whom Reuters polled dropped their December number to 27,500. As we now know, even that was too optimistic. Still, it is an old rule that as the target date for the forecast moves further into the future, optimism climbs; so the poll had analysts looking at a Sensex level of 29,000 by June 2016. From the perspective of about 24,400 this week-end, that seems like a leap of faith.

In contrast, two stalwarts who feature regularly on the business channels made room for caution, though both have been generally upbeat in a down market. Raamdeo Agrawal, speaking after the market shocks of August, said that the Nifty (which fell by about 900 points in the course of August, to 7,655) was not likely to fall much further. The second pundit, Ramesh Damani, spoke in June about the second phase of a bull market, but hedged by saying that you could have a 15-20 per cent correction even in a bull market. He noted that there had already been a 10-12 per cent correction, leaving room for a further small correction. Eventually, the market drop has been somewhat more than either would have expected.

You could argue that many pundits have a vested interest in boosterism, given that asset managers benefit when investors flock in. But take a look at that other priesthood, in the International Monetary Fund: the people who make forecasts every quarter about the world economy and individual countries. Year after year in recent years, the forecasts have proved too optimistic. In January 2010, the growth forecast for 2011 was 4.3 per cent; the year eventually delivered 3.8 per cent. A year later, the forecast for 2012 was an even more optimistic 4.5 per cent; reality went the other way and delivered a weaker 3.2 per cent. And so on; for the past five years, IMFs average growth forecast for the year following the one just begun was 4.1 per cent; the reality has been 3.3 per cent. Five times bitten and finally a little shy, the hardy optimists in Washington have become more careful, though the tendency still is to be progressively optimistic: the forecast for 2016 is a small uptick to 3.4 per cent (from 3.1 per cent in 2015), and for 2017 a more upbeat 3.6 per cent. This at a time when China, which accounts for close to one-seventh of world gross domestic product or GDP, is slowing dramatically. Any bets on whether our street-side parrots would do better?
Addressing the 78th All India Speakers' Conference at Gandhinagar, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan said it is speaker's responsibility to build trust in public representatives and democratic institutions.

Western state of Gujarat is hosting the conference in Gandhinagar. Over 350 delegates, including 70 speakers and their deputies are attending it. Mahajan inauguated the event on Friday at Gujarat assembly house. It is the third time Gujarat is hosting Speakers' Conference.

Earlier, the state hosted the event in 1973 and 1992.

Commenting on the role of a speaker Mahajan said, "Speakers have to play very important role which is very important to create faith in democratic institutions among the citizens. The role of legislators in strengthening public faith in democratic institutions is very important and it is our responsibility to build trust." The two main topics of this conference are the role of MPs and MLAs in strengthening people's faith in democratic institutes and importance of Speakers' research measures to help MLAs; and remedies to ensure presence of MPs and MLAs during the sessions of legislative bodies and to hold discussion over improving quality of House debates.

She said, "Debates in the House is necessary for the House and we need to work on improve quality of debate or discussions." The inauguration ceremony was attended by Gujarat Governor O P Kohli and Chief Minster Anandiben Patel.

Today, a similar event would be hosted by Sumitra Mahajan at Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad. While on Saturday, Anandiben Patel will host a cultural event at Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar. Participants of the conferences on January 24 will visit to different places in Gujarat, including Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, the Sun temple in Modhera, Ran ki Vav in Patan, Ambaji, Dudhsagar Dairy in Mehsana, and Siddhpur and Kirti Toran in Vadnagar.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday his governments aim was not only to make India the fastest growing economy but also to transform the lives of the poor wherein the youth would have employment and stand on their own feet. He said schemes such as Jan-Dhan Yojana, Mudra Yojana and Atal Pension Yojana were aimed at this.

He also broke his silence on the suicide of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula of Hyderabad University. When there is news that a youth of my country, Rohith, was forced to commit suicide, what his family must have gone through. Mother India has lost a son. There will be reasons, there will be (surrounding it) but the fact remains that a mother has lost her son. I feel the pain very well, a visibly emotional Modi said.

He was speaking as the chief guest at the convocation ceremony of the B R Ambedkar University in Lucknow, where a couple of students shouted slogans as he began his speech. The two students, who were donning blue stole, meant for Masters degree scholars, were evicted by police and detained.

Modi first arrived in Varanasi, his Parliamentary constituency, on Friday morning. After distributing devices to the differently-abled people and flagging off a train connecting Varanasi with Delhi, he left for Lucknow.

At the Lucknow airport, he was received by UP governor Ram Naik and chief minister Akhilesh Yadav. This was Modis first visit to the state capital after becoming PM in May 2014.

This past week, two ministers in the Modi Cabinet  Bandaru Dattatreya and Smriti Irani  had come under intense attack from the Opposition parties over the suicide of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula following his suspension from the varsity.

Taking a swipe at the opposition, he said: It appears the whole world is trying to corner me Their only aim is to make Modi deflect from his path and entangle him in controversies.



During his tour of the state, Modi coined a new term divyang (divine organ) in place of viklang (handicapped) for the differently-abled. He said God had bestowed special powers to such persons rather than making them less-perfect.

The Mahamana Superfast Express, flagged off by Modi in the presence of minister of state for railways Manoj Sinha, would run thrice a week.

At the Colvin Taluqdars College ground in Lucknow, Modi distributed e-rickshaws at a function organised by microfinance institution Bharatiya Micro Credit (BMC). Banking payment solutions provider India Transact Services has tied up with BMC for the mobile e-payment application for e-rickshaw.

Modi said his government would boost the countrys economic pace to tackle poverty and providing ample job opportunities to the youth. The world is facing the economic slowdown and even the advanced nations are not untouched. During such headwinds, India stands as the country which continues to progress at a fast pace, he said while referring to the testimonies of the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and global rating agencies.

The PM paid homage to Ambedkar at the Ambedkar Mahasabha in Lucknow before flying back to Delhi in the evening.
Bismarck State College presents its second program in its series at 3 p.m. Jan. 31 on the fourth floor Bavendick Stateroom of BSC's National Energy Center of Excellence, with a look at English history through the works of William Shakespeare and Sir Thomas More.

Clay Jenkinson, BSC's distinguished scholar of humanities, and BSC President Larry Skogen will discuss "Richard III: Shakespeare, Sir Thomas More and the Guy in the British Parking Lot." Questions and comments from the audience will complete the conversation.

The discussion revolves around Richard's disputed Machiavellian caricature in Shakespeare's historic play, "The Tragedy of King Richard III," the recent revived interest in Shakespeare and the discovery of Richard's bones at Leicester in 2012.

Clips of Richard III films will accompany the discussion.
With the assembly elections in Punjab only one year away, todays announcement by the Swaraj Abhiyan leaders on giving a serious thought to graduating into a political outfit and contesting the polls may give anxious moments to political parties in the state.

If it is seriously considering entering the political arena, Swaraj Abhiyan has hardly any time.

Talking to Business Standard, Anupam Singh, the media-in-charge of Swaraj Abhiyan, said that the Jai Kisan movement of the outfit was kicked off from Barnala in Punjab and they have been fighting for the rights of farmers and employment under MNREGA in Punjab. They are connected to voters at the grass root level and have sufficient support of rural Punjab.

People in Punjab are fed up not only with the Badal familys rule but are also waiting for a political party that can deliver transparency and good governance. During the election campaigns in the state, other parties have also been exposed, as the development of the Punjab is not on their agenda. AAP could not deliver what it promised in Delhi, so voters do not expect much from them. There is room for a political outfit with action and not mere rhetoric, he added.

Swaraj Abhiyan has teams at the block and village levels, he said, but refused to share information on the number of volunteers in the state.

The convenor of Aam Aadmi Party in Punjab, Succha Singh Chottepur, told Business Standard that breakaway factions are only a flash in the pan and referred to the attempts made by leaders in the past, who later merged with other entities. The leaders of Swaraj Abhiyan could not adhere to the discipline in the party and floated their own outfit. Kejriwal is honest and has a vision, and Punjab voters have faith in him.



He added that members of Swaraj Abhiyan should return to the party.

A crowded political battlefield may be a mega spoiler, because multi-cornered elections only lead to higher election spending having a little impact on welfare of voters.
At least 10 persons, including seven policemen, were killed and 20 others injured in Egypt when militants linked with Islamic State group exploded bombs in a booby-trapped apartment near the iconic pyramids of Giza during a raid by security forces.

The bomb blast in the capital's Al-Haram district, near the pyramids, took place yesterday when police raided a flat suspected to be a militant hideout.

Ten people, including seven policemen and three civilians, were killed in the explosion, prosecutor Ahmed El-Tamawy was quoted as saying by Al Ahram.

An Egyptian affiliate of the Islamic State group, Ansar Beit el-Maqdes, today claimed responsibility for the blast in a statement posted on jihadist websites.

The Sinai-based militant group claimed that it lured the officers to the apartment, which was "rigged with bombs".

"When the infidels entered, the bomb-rigged house was blown up," the terror group said in the statement.

The interior ministry, however, had earlier blamed the banned Muslim Brotherhood movement of ousted president Mohamed Morsi for the blast.

It said a group of Muslim Brotherhood members was using the apartment to manufacture explosives.

A civilian who lived in the building was killed in the explosion, and two charred bodies were found inside the apartment, according to the ministry's statement.

A Lieutenant of the Central Security Forces was among the deceased.

The blast took place ahead of the fifth anniversary of the 2011 revolution on Monday that ousted former strongman Hosni Mubarak. Sisi has warned against any form of demonstration on that day.

Al-Haram has witnessed several attacks and gunfights since the army ousted Islamist Morsi in July 2013.

Militants have regularly attacked policemen and soldiers since the army toppled Morsi.

Jihadists claim their attacks are in retaliation for a government crackdown targeting Morsi's supporters that has left hundreds dead and thousands imprisoned.

Morsi was Egypt's first freely elected president and succeeded Mubarak, who was driven from power after an 18-day popular uprising.

IS has claimed responsibility for multiple suicide bombings and attacks targeting the Egyptian army and police in the past year.

In recent months, Egyptian security forces have carried out several raids on apartments where suspected or fugitive Islamists militants were reportedly either hiding or preparing for "terrorist operations".
At least 10 persons, including seven policemen, have been killed and 20 injured in Egypt in a powerful bomb blast during a raid near the iconic pyramids of Giza.

Ten people, including seven policemen and three civilians, were killed in the explosion when they attempted to defuse a time-bomb during a raid, prosecutor Ahmed El-Tamawy was quoted as saying by Al Ahram.

The blast took place ahead of Monday's anniversary of the 2011 revolution that ousted former strongman Hosni Mubarak.

A civilian who lived in the building was killed in the explosion, and two charred bodies were found inside the apartment, according to the ministry's statement.

It is yet unclear whether any of the those reportedly hiding in the apartment were injured, killed or captured.

A Lieutenant of the Central Security Forces has been killed.

In recent months, Egyptian security forces have carried out several raids on apartments where suspected or fugitive Islamists militants were reportedly either hiding or preparing for "terrorist operations".

These raids have often ended with suspects killed by police, who say they were met with gunfire upon arrival at the hideouts.
There was drama at the Collectorate office here as three youths tried to set themselves on fire, police said.

The incident occurred yesterday when the District Magistrate was not in his office, they said, adding that the trio have been admitted to hospital with minor burns.

The three youths, identified as Sunil, Anil and Raj Kumar are employed with a private agency where they are tasked with replenishing cash in bank ATMs, police said.

The trio told police that they had given Rs 74 lakh from the ATM cash to a youth who, however, later refused to return the same.

Meanwhile, the bank branch concerned submitted a complaint in the matter against them who were thereupon summoned by police.

However, instead of reporting to police, the three youths went to the Collectorate and attempted self-immolation, officials said.

Police personnel and some people present at the scene foiled their bid, they said, adding an inquiry is on into the matter.
45 people drowned when three refugee boats sank today off Greece, as Turkey pledged to "do everything" to stop record numbers of migrants heading to Europe.

Despite wintry conditions, thousands of people fleeing war and misery are still embarking on the dangerous sea journey to seek a better life in Europe.

In a stark illustration of the high cost of the voyage, Greek and Turkish coastguards recovered the bodies of 45 migrants -- including 20 children -- whose boats capsized on their way to Greece, officials said today.

Greek rescuers pulled 74 people to safety after two boats ran into trouble off the Aegean islands of Farmakonisi and Kalolimnos in the early hours.

But the toll could rise as rescuers were still scouring the waters for people missing from the boat that capsized off Kalolimnos.

Of the survivors, "most are in a state of shock. There were families on board and in some cases only the father survived," UNCHR official Marco Procaccini told AFP.

Charity Doctors without Borders (MSF in its French acronym), which is providing psychological care to survivors of the Kalolimnos shipwreck, described the horror on its Twitter account, saying "one man lost his pregnant wife and two kids, a 17-year-old lost his brother, an entire family was swallowed by the sea."



Separately, the Turkish coastguard found the bodies of three children today after a third boat sank near the seaside resort of Didim, the Dogan agency reported.

The UN refugee agency said smugglers were offering desperate migrants discounts to lure them out.

"Newly arriving refugees told UNHCR that the smuggling rates had halved in recent days. This discount acts as a grim enticement to take extraordinary risks given worsening weather," the agency said.

Despite deteriorating weather, the Greek islands were witnessing a surge with more than 3,000 people arriving daily in the last 48 hours, it said.

Europe has been battling to resolve its biggest migration crisis since World War II, but member states are split on what action needs to be taken.

Meanwhile UN figures showed 149 people perished or are feared dead in their sea journey to Europe in January alone.

"These deaths highlight both the heartlessness and the futility of the growing chorus demanding greater restrictions on refugee access to Europe," said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International's Europe and Central Asia Programme Director.
Over a month after the murder of a 27-year-old Dalit man in Abohar, liquor baron and ruling Akali Dal leader Shiv Lal Doda, the main accused in the case, surrendered before the Punjab police here today.

"Shiv Lal Doda today surrendered before the Fazilka SSP office here," DIG Ferozepur Range, Amar Singh Chahal said today.

"He will be presented before the court tomorrow," Chahal said.

The DIG said that with his arrest, a total of 24 accused have been arrested in this case.

Doda surrendered before the police after Punjab and Haryana Court dismissed his anticipatory bail petition yesterday.

Doda was booked for criminal conspiracy in connection with the murder of Bhim Sain, whose limbs were reportedly chopped off at a farmhouse in Abohar on December 11.

Despite police raids at Doda's possible hideouts in parts of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Rajasthan, the Akali leader Akali leader had remained elusive.

Punjab police had even issued a Look Out Circular (LOC) against him to prevent the accused from leaving the country.

Meanwhile, Doda's nephew Amit Doda had turned himself into police on December 20, 2015.

Suspected henchmen of Doda had allegedly chopped off Sain's limbs, in the attack led by one Harpreet Harry after a heated exchange broke out between the two at Doda's farm house in Abohar sub division area.

Ruling Akalis came under fire over the murder, with Congress accusing SAD of patronising Doda.

The investigation by Punjab police had also come under severe criticism in the case as the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) had accused the police of carrying out a shoddy investigation into the brutal murder of Sain.
The Afghan Taliban will send representatives to a conference organised by an international crisis group that will discuss resolving the war in Afghanistan, the group said in a statement today.

Representatives of the Taliban's "political office" will attend the conference in Qatar's capital, Doha, organised by Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, a Nobel peace prize-winning group focused on resolving conflict. The conference is "aimed at finding a solution to the conflict in Afghanistan," now in its 15th year.

It is not part of the official peace process, which recently restarted after being derailed in July when the Afghan government announced that the Taliban's founder and leader, Mullah Mohammad Omar, had been dead since early 2013.

The official, four-country initiative, involving Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and the United States, is due to hold its third meeting in Islamabad on February 6. The meetings do not include Taliban representatives, but aim to lay the groundwork for an eventual dialogue between militants and the Kabul government.

Referring to itself as the "Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan," the Taliban said the group sought to take "healthy advantage" of the Pugwash initiative to "relay the legal demands of our nation and our just policy to the world directly."



The conference was "purely for research purposes with academic debates," it said.

Javid Faisal, deputy spokesman for Afghanistan's Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, told The Associated Press that no government representatives would attend the Pugwash gathering.

Last year, a similar event organized by Pugwash was attended by Afghan officials, though they came in a personal capacity and didn't represent the government.

Political analyst Waheed Muzhda, who was an official in the Taliban's 1996-2001 administration, said the conference would not discuss the peace process but would instead focus on "current circumstances in Afghanistan.
Ahead of the one-day visit here of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Francois Hollande, the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) today asked Haryana police to submit crime status report for Gurgaon, Faridabad and other adjoining districts as part of efforts to ensure proper security arrangements.

The two leaders have a programme scheduled on January 25 at Institute of Solar Energy situated on the Gurgaon- Faridabad Expressway where the foundation stone for the interim secretariat of the international solar alliance will be laid.

As France is a friendly nation of the US, CIA is involving itself in the security measures for the Hollande visit.

The agency has specifically asked the Gurgaon and Faridabad district administrations to provide action-taken report, especially in the vicinity of the Aravalli mountain range, which is known for illegal mining and other criminal activities.

Hawa Singh, ACP (PRO) of Gurgaon police, said that the spy agency has been focusing on Mewat district, where different security agencies have arrested four or five terrorists in the past three years.

A suspected Al-Qaeda operative was nabbed by the Special Cell of Delhi Police from Mewat district last week.

CIA has asked the police in Gurgaon, Faridabad and adjoining districts to submit data on all criminal activities reported in their respective areas.

The district administrations of Gurgaon and Faridabad have already imposed Section 144 in a radius of 2 km from the venue with SWAT teams also in place. Section 144 will also be imposed at prominent malls, shopping centres, strategic locations and crowded places between January 24 and 26.
Three Al-Jazeera journalists working in war-ravaged Yemen who went missing this week likely have been kidnapped, the satellite network says, the latest reporters targeted in the civil war gripping the Arab world's poorest country.

Reporter Hamdi al-Bokari and crew members Abdulaziz al-Sabri and Moneer al-Sabai were last seen Monday night in Taiz, a city in southern Yemen that's been the scene of heavy fighting for months now, the Qatari broadcaster said.

The network said it was "in contact with related parties in Taiz" to find the men and ensure their safety.

In a statement late yesterday night, Al-Jazeera's acting director-general Mostefa Souag called for the men's immediate release.

"Our colleagues were simply doing their job of reporting the story and informing the world on what is taking place in Yemen," Souag said. "It is tragic to see that in times of conflict, organizations continue to be targeted.

Journalists should have the freedom to do their work without the fear of intimidation, abduction or unlawful arrest."



The network said al-Bokari, a Yemeni national, has worked for Al-Jazeera's Arabic channel since 2006. Al-Sabri is also a reporter for Al-Masdar newspaper, while al-Sabai works as a driver, according to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists.

Yemen's civil war began when Shiite rebels known as Houthis took control of the capital, Sanaa, in September 2014. In March, a coalition of countries led by Saudi Arabia began airstrikes and later, a ground operation to retake the country from the Houthis, who are allied with forces loyal to Yemen's former president and have received support from Iran.

Taiz, Yemen's third-largest city prior to the war, sits in the country's rugged interior mountains. It is of strategic importance because it lies along a main route from the port city of Aden, which Saudi-led forces hold, leading to the rebel-held Sanaa.

For months, residents and aid groups say the Houthis have been indiscriminately shelling Taiz and blocking the delivery of humanitarian aid there.

Yemen's conflict has killed some 5,800 people since March and left over 80 percent of the country's population in dire need of food, water and other aid, according to the United Nations.

Journalists also have been targeted in the conflict. Houthis have detained reporters while at least four journalists have been killed in airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
North Dakota suffered its worst revenue shortfall of the current biennium so far in December, with tax revenues arriving more than $63 million below forecast and further darkening the states budget picture as an advisory group prepares to meet Friday to discuss a new forecast.

Last months shortfall brought the total gap for the first six months of the biennium to $215 million below the forecast that state lawmakers had when they adjourned in late April.

Office of Management and Budget Director Pam Sharp said that makes it very, very likely that state agencies will see across-the-board budget cuts and that the states $572 million Budget Stabilization Fund will be tapped to cover any remaining shortfall.

Sharp said it also affirms her decision last month to request a new revenue forecast from Moodys Analytics.

The states Advisory Council on Revenue Forecasting will meet with Moodys officials at 9:30 a.m. Friday at the Capitol to discuss factors for the new forecast, including taxable sales and purchases and the price of crude oil, which has dropped by more than half since lawmakers adjourned.

If the new forecast predicts that state revenues will be $400 million to $500 million below projections, it will trigger automatic budget cuts for most state agencies of up to 2.5 percent, or about $105 million, Sharp has said. State law allows the governor to use the Budget Stabilization Fund to cover any shortfall beyond the 2.5 percent.

The last widespread cuts occurred in 2002, when then-Gov. John Hoeven ordered a 1 percent budget cut.

House Majority Leader Al Carlson, R-Fargo, said Wednesday that he would like to see deeper agency cuts of up to 5 percent, rather than spending down reserves.

I think theres enough excess in most of the departments, he said. Most of them should be able to deal with that.

Sharp said its difficult to predict what share of the shortfall will fall onto agencies.

Well make the call once we know what the actual forecast is, she said.

She hopes to have the new revenue forecast by Feb. 1, but noted it could take longer depending on what happens at Fridays meeting.

Our goal is to get it out ASAP so that agencies can begin dealing with whatever the ramifications are, she said.

Decembers $63 million shortfall was the biggest of the biennium so far, surpassing the $49 million shortfall in October.

Sales tax revenues continue to come in well below forecast because of the ripple effects of reduced oil activity in western North Dakota and lower farm commodity prices, Sharp said. Sales tax collections were $30 million below forecast in December and are $193 million, or 27 percent, short for the biennium to date.

Corporate and individual income taxes also fell well below projections last month, respectively, but Sharp said thats partly because the state tax office moved some of the revenues into its refund reserve in anticipation of some big tax refunds. Officials wont know how income tax revenues shake out until after the filing season that began this week ends in April, she said.

Carlson, who sits on the revenue advisory council, noted that House lawmakers last spring unsuccessfully urged Moodys to lower its forecast for sales and income tax revenues.

Still, the sky isnt falling, he said, pointing out that oil production has held steady at between 1.1 million and 1.2 million barrels per day.

Is it going to be long-term? Nobody knows, he said of the downturn. We could see this coming. We just didnt anticipate it being as bad as it is.

(Reach Nowatzki at 701-255-5607 or by email at mnowatzki@forumcomm.com.)
Several members of the US-led coalition attacking the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria are doing "nothing at all" to help destroy the jihadists, US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said today.

His comments mark a departure from the Pentagon's typical depiction of the 65-member coalition, which carries the slogan "One mission, many nations," and is frequently touted to highlight global resolve in the predominantly US effort to defeat the IS group.

"Many of them are not doing enough, or are doing nothing at all," Carter said in an interview with CNBC on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. "We can do a lot ourselves ... (but) we are looking for other people to play their part."



In a separate interview with Bloomberg TV, Carter called the anti-IS alliance a "so-called" coalition, highlighting frustrations the Pentagon has with partners -- particularly Arab and Gulf nations -- not doing enough.

"We need others to carry their weight, there should be no free riders," he said.

Carter has spent the past week in Europe, primarily in Paris, where he sought to persuade allies to step up their efforts against the IS group.

Today, he reiterated calls for one of these partners, Turkey, to bolster its fight against the jihadists.

Turkey is allowing the United States to use Incirlik, a geographically vital air base in the south, to strike IS targets in Iraq and Syria, but Carter said Ankara needs to do much more to secure its lengthy border with Syria.

"Turkey is a long-time friend of ours," he said during a question-and-answer session in Davos.

But "the reality is, it has a porous border for foreign fighters going in both directions. So I think the Turks could do more."



Some Arab and Gulf countries including Saudi Arabia are nominally part of the coalition, but are now more focused on fighting Iran-backed forces in Yemen.

Carter's exasperation perhaps reflects pressure from Washington, where hawkish critics say the Obama administration is moving too slowly to defeat the IS group.

The coalition has been bombing the jihadists since August 2014 but despite killing thousands of their fighters and reclaiming large areas they once held, the IS group is still launching attacks around the world, including in Jakarta, Afghanistan and Paris.

"Since no country is immune from an ISIL attack, no country can afford to ride free," Carter said in an opinion piece on Politico.Com, using an alternative name for the IS group.
AIADMK today said any poll alliance would be decided by its supremo Jayalalithaa after a CPI-M MLA questioned the ruling party in the Tamil Nadu assembly whether it was eying a tie-up with BJP.

CPI(M) legislator A Soundararajan took a swipe at the Centre over "non-release" of further rain relief financial aid and the fishermen issue, saying the BJP-led NDA government had discriminated against Tamil Nadu.

Against such a background, he queried why a condemnatory shade against the Centre could not be found in the Governor's address.

"What is the politics behind this, what is the need? Is it to join hands with BJP for election," he asked.

This prompted Leader of the House and Finance Minister O Panneerselvam to retort: "You cannot say anything by dreaming...Alliance will be decided by our party chief and Chief Minister Jayalalithaa."



MMK MLA MH Jawahirullah said condemnatory references against the Centre could be found in the Governor's address.

Panneerselvam also said the four-party People's Welfare Front (PWF), of which the Left parties are constituents, would draw a blank in the coming assembly elections.

Vaiko's MDMK, CPI (M), CPI and VCK are the constituents of the PWF.

Earlier in the day also, AIADMK made light of the Vaiko-led combine with two other ministers poohpoohing its ambitions of capturing power in the coming state elections.

Higher Education Minister P Palaniappan described as "the biggest joke of 2016" the assertion by senior CPI(M) leader and MLA K Balabarathy that the bloc will wrest power in the assembly elections, due in a few months.

"Balabarathy's assertion is the biggest joke of 2016," he said during a discussion where the CPI(M) MLA expressed confidence that PWF will sweep the polls.

Later, Handloom Minister S Gokular Indira wondered if "PWF will even exist till the polls".

AIADMK and CPI(M) had contested the 2011 elections as allies but later parted ways.
At least 39 people have died of swine flu in Russia since last month, according to AFP calculations based on official data, with more than half the cases announced in the last week.

Health authorities in the southern region of Volgograd told state agency RIA Novosti on Friday that 11 people had died from the virus and that nearly 50 schools had declared a quarantine.

One deadly swine flu case was also reported in Moscow, local authorities said today.

Six swine flu-related deaths have also been recorded in the southern region of Rostov and five deaths were reported in Saint Petersburg.

These latest cases follow the deaths of four adults and one child from the virus in the North Caucasus region of Dagestan, and the deaths of two infected patients in Yekaterinburg in the Urals and the southern region of Adygea.

Swine flu deaths have also been reported in the Kostroma, Tambov and Kaliningrad regions, among others.

The country's top doctor, Anna Popova, told Russian agencies this week that "all necessary measures" were being taken to prevent the virus from spreading.

In post-Soviet Armenia, 18 people have died of swine flu since the start of the year, the South Caucasus country's health ministry said this week.

Authorities in neighbouring Georgia told AFP on Friday that three deadly cases of the virus had been reported.

In nearby Iran, swine flu has left 112 dead and forced the hospitalisation of more than 1,000 since mid-November, authorities said late last month.

A major H1N1 outbreak sparked a World Health Organization pandemic alert in June 2009, after the virus emerged from Mexico and the United States.

The outbreak killed around 18,500 people in 214 countries. The alert was lifted in August 2010.
AyurVAID Hospitals here today announced its tie up with the University School of Continuing Education in Ayurveda (USCE), Gujarat Ayurved University, Jamnagar (GAU), to make two Certificate Courses in Panchakarma accessible to Ayurveda professionals at Bengaluru.

Simultaneously, an MoU signed with the University also envisages the roll out of unique and innovative Ayurveda based personal health empowerment programs, successfully conducted by USCE in Gujarat, to the local community here and elsewhere in South India, AyurVAID Hospitals said in a release.

GAU is the first statutory University of its kind exclusively devoted to Ayurvedic studies and Research. GAU has tied up with various institutions of excellence in more than 18 countries apart from some selected few within India.

AyurVAID Hospitals is India's 1st National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Health care Providers (NABH) accredited Ayurveda Hospital, it was noted.

(Reopens MES4)



The cabinet also decided to set up 3 regional quality control labs and a new investigation units at regional level, the release added.

Cabinet also accorded administrative sanction for construction of feeder roads, drainages and acquisition of land for lighting purposes.

About rs 49 crore has been sanctioned for works including construction of protection walls.

The works have to completed before the coming monsoon, the release added.
A Belgian judge today charged an 11th person with terrorism-related offences over the deadly Paris attacks, two days after the suspect was arrested in a raid in Brussels.

The man identified as Zakaria J "has been charged with terrorist murders and participation in the activities of a terrorist group", the prosecutor's office said in a statement.

The Belgian national, who was arrested in the troubled immigrant neighbourhood of Molenbeek on Wednesday, is being kept in police custody, it added.

Zakaria, who was born in 1986, was arrested Wednesday, a day before police carrying out another raid in Molenbeek detained Mustafa E., a Moroccan national who was born in 1981.

Mustafa E. Was released yesterday, the statement said.

No weapons or explosives were found in the raids in Molenbeek, an area dubbed a hotbed of jihadists which has seen a string of raids since the November 13 Paris attacks.

French President Francois Hollande has said that the Paris attacks were planned in Syria but prepared and organised in Belgium. The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the attacks.

Last week Belgium said it had identified three safe houses used by key suspects including presumed ringleader Abdelhamid Abaaoud, a Molenbeek resident who was killed in a French police raid days after the Paris attacks.

The premises include a flat in Charleroi, a town south of the capital Brussels where a major airport is located, a house in the rural village of Auvelais near the French border, and a flat in Brussels.

Four suspects remain at large, including Salah Abdeslam who allegedly drove suicide bombers to the French national stadium outside Paris, as well as Mohamed Abrini, suspected of having helped scout out the attack sites. Both are from Molenbeek.
Cairn India today reported a steep 99 per cent drop in its third quarter net profit as it suffered double blow of falling oil prices and high taxes.

Consolidated net profit of Rs 8.69 crore, or Rs 0.05 per share, in October-December was 99.3 per cent lower than Rs 1.349/64 crore, or Rs 7.20 per share, in the same period a year ago, the company said in a statement.

Cairn got USD 34.5 per barrel price for the oil it produced from its flagship Rajasthan fields as compared to about USD 68 per barrel in the third quarter of previous fiscal.

The rate in October-December was 21 per cent lower than the prevailing Brent price due to the discount to international rate that have been provided in the pricing formula approved by the Government. Of this price, Cairn paid USD 9.6 per barrel in oil cess alone. Other statutory levies like royalty and profit petroleum were separate.

Companies like Cairn and ONGC have to pay Rs 4,500 per ton cess on domestic crude oil produced. They have been demanding that the rate be made ad valorem so that it falls when oil prices dip.

Cairn India said revenue dipped 42 per cent to Rs 2,039.49 crore in October-December.

The Mangala enhanced oil recovery (EOR) programme, which aims to boost output by injecting polymers in the field, has yielded 19,000 barrels per day of additional production.

"To ensure timely investment decision in Rajasthan block and realise fair price for our crude, we have approached the High Court to expedite the PSC extension process and allow us to export the crude. The matters are subjudice," the statement said.

The High Court has directed the parties to exchange the requisite information/documents and to communicate, in a time bound manner.

"In an encouraging development, Government has also supported the industry's view on rationalising the Cess charges given prevailing low oil prices," it said.

Cairn India's exploration and production licence for the Rajasthan block expires in 2019 and the company is seeking a 10 year extension. The government is considering its request for extension of the Production Sharing Contract (PSC).

Chief executive Mayank Ashar said, "We maintain our strategic objective of generating healthy free cash flow which has been successfully guiding us through the constantly deteriorating oil pricing scenario.

"Our unwavering commitment to improve cost efficiency continues to help us to navigate through the weak oil price situation and to generate free cash flow."



He said the world's largest EOR project at Mangala field in Rajasthan is yielding results. "We continue to pursue pre-development activities for our growth projects to make them future ready for rapid development on oil prices rebound.

Cairn said gross production from Rajasthan block was



170,444 barrels of oil and oil equivalent gas, up 1.4 per cent over previous quarter due to ramp-up in Mangala EOR and additional volumes from new infill wells coming online at Aishwariya field.

During the quarter, a total of 15.1 million barrels of oil was sold, at an average rate of 163,869 barrels per day. Raageshwari field continued the gas production at an average of 28 million standard cubic feet per day in the third quarter of 2015-16.

During the quarter, Salaya Bhogat Pipeline (SBPL), storage terminal and marine export facilities at Bhogat were commissioned and consequently first cargo of Rajasthan crude oil was successfully loaded through the terminal for Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemical Ltd (MRPL).

"We are generating superior realisation through this sale," the statement said.

Cairn said it had a cash and cash equivalents of Rs 18,470 crore (USD 2.8 billion) at the end of the third quarter.

On merger of the company with its parent Vedanta Ltd, the statement said, "the company is seeking directions of the Bombay High Court for convening meeting of all our relevant stakeholders."



"Cairn India continues to remain committed to creating long term shareholder value. Planned net capital investment for FY16 is USD 300 million; 62 per cent in core Mangala, Bhagyam and Aishwariya (MBA) fields (in Rajasthan)," the statement said.
Canadian Pacific will eliminate about 1,000 positions this year as the volume of goods it transports slumps, the railway has announced.

The downsizing will be primarily through attrition and will include managers and railroad workers alike, chief executive Hunter Harrison told a conference call after releasing its latest financial results.

Since embarking on a restructuring of its operations in 2012, CP has shed 6,000 to 7,000 positions. Most of them were simply not filled after the employees retired.

"There's probably 1,000 additional heads to come out potentially in 2016," Harrison said yesterday.

CP president Keith Creel blamed a "weak economy" for the job cuts, saying freight volumes fell 3% in 2015.

Canada, the world's fifth largest oil producer, has seen its economy hit hard by falling prices for oil and other commodities normally exported by rail.

"We've seen the last three quarters of 2015 economic headwinds across all business segments except for a couple of bright spots in forest products and Canadian grain," Creel said.

Canadian Pacific reported a profit of 1.35 billion Canadian dollars in 2015, down 8% year-over-year, while revenues rose 1.4% to 6.7 billion dollars.
Debutant Stephen Cook and Hashim Amla shared a double century partnership for South Africa before England fought back on the first day of the fourth and final Test at SuperSport Park on Friday.

Cook made 115 and Amla hit 109 in a South Africa total of 329 for five at the close of play.

The pair put on 202 for the second wicket before Amla's dismissal sparked a collapse in which four wickets, including that of Cook, fell for 36 runs.

Temba Bavuma and Quinton de Kock restored South Africa's advantage with an unbeaten sixth wicket stand of 56.

Cook, called up at the age of 33 when the South African selectors finally opted for a specialist opening batsman to partner Dean Elgar, was calm and organised from the start of his 218-ball innings during which he hit 14 boundaries.

Amla, four months younger than Cook but 91 matches richer in Test experience, was back to his fluent best as he reached his century off 131 deliveries with 18 fours.

He hit one more four before he was bowled off an inside edge by Ben Stokes.

Cook was on 97 when Amla was dismissed and was still two short of his century when AB de Villiers was caught at second slip off Stuart Broad for his second duck in three innings since being appointed captain.

Cook went to his century off 187 balls when he tucked Stokes through midwicket for two and added 15 more runs before edging a ball from Chris Woakes into his stumps.

JP Duminy followed soon afterwards when he missed a pull shot against Ali and was leg before wicket on 16.

In contrast to his father, Jimmy, who was dismissed first ball on his Test debut against India in 1992/93, Stephen Cook scored four off the first ball he faced, a leg side half volley from James Anderson.

Jimmy Cook, who was in the crowd on Friday, had to wait until the age of 39 to make his official Test debut after being a prolific scorer for South Africa in 19 unofficial "rebel" Tests during South Africa's political isolation, including a hundred on debut against an English team in 1981/82.
Thirty-five restaurants across China, including a popular Beijing hot pot chain, have been found illegally using opium poppies as seasoning, one of the more unusual practices bedeviling the country's food regulators.

Five restaurants are being prosecuted while 30 others, ranging from Shanghai dumpling joints to noodle shops in southwestern Chongqing, are under investigation, said the China Food and Drug Administration.

Cases of cooks sprinkling ground poppy powder, which contains low amounts of opiates like morphine and codeine, in soup and seafood are not new in China, though it is unclear whether they can effectively hook a customer or deliver a noticeable buzz.

Shaanxi provincial police busted a noodle seller in 2014 after being tipped off by a failed drug test. Seven restaurants were closed in Ningxia province in 2012 for using the additive and Guizhou province shut down 215 restaurants in 2004.

Hu Ling, the general manager of Hu Da, a popular chain with several adjacent locations on the raucous Beijing nightlife strip known as "Ghost Street," confirmed Friday the company was under investigation, saying it may have unknowingly sourced seasoning containing opiates. She declined further comment.

Poppy powder, made from capsules and shells that contain higher opiate content than the seeds commonly seen on bagels, can be easily purchased in markets in western China for about USD 60 a kilogram, according to a 2014 report by the official Xinhua agency. The additives were commonly mixed with chili oil and powders, making detection difficult without laboratory equipment.

Despite pledges from the government to improve enforcement, Chinese consumers perennially face high-profile food scares, ranging from tainted baby milk to fake meat and fruits to seafood pumped with gelatin.
Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived today in Iran on the third leg of a Middle East tour aimed at boosting economic ties with the region.

State agency IRNA said Xi, accompanied by three deputy premiers and six ministers as well as a high-ranking business delegation, was greeted at Tehran airport by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

The president, who has already visited Egypt and Saudi Arabia, was to meet tomorrow with his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani and the Islamic republic's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khamenei, according to local media.

Beijing is Tehran's top customer for oil exports and trade between the two countries was worth USD 52 billion in 2014.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Ebrahim Rahimpour has told state television that 16 accords including a strategic cooperation agreement are to be signed during Xi's visit.
A state audit says the North Dakota Health Department stored thousands of COVID-19 vaccine doses at incorrect temperatures or without temperature data over the past two years  and that some of the vaccine was administered to patients. The health department disputed the audit released Tuesday. Tim Wiedrich, who heads the agencys virus response, says no non-viable vaccines were given to patients. The state analysis said nearly 2,000 Moderna doses were stored at incorrect temperatures and were administered to patients. The audit also found nearly 13,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccines were issued from storage with missing temperature data. Neither the Health Department nor the auditor's office is recommending revaccination.
Carnatic music continues to draw music lovers in Kerala, renowned musician T V Sankaranayrayanan said even as he said that he was not keen on 'jugalbandies'.

With a keen ear for music, Malayalis make encouraging audiences for classical music concerts in the state, the maestro told reporters here.

"In fact, Kerala is my second home," the septuagenarian vocalist said as he fielded questions with famed Violin 'LN Sisters' - young Dr M Lalitha and M Nandini, who are here to participate in the ongoing Nishagandhi festival, being conducted by Kerala Tourism in the state capital.

Recalling that his concerts in Kerala date to more than 50 years, Sankaranarayanan said, "There is hardly a temple where I have not performed."



One of his initial performances in the state was at Sree Krishna Swamy temple in Mavelikkara of central Travancore.

On Nishagandhi festival, the Padma Bhushan awardee said it was 'one of the most prestigious' in the country. "The high attendance here shows that Carnatic music has not seen a reduction in its passionate audience," he noted.

At 71 years, Sankaranarayanan will perform this time at Nishagandhi- aided by his son, Mahadevan Sankaranarayanan, an up and coming vocalist.

"I would not compromise on quality of music delivered," said the veteran, a disciple and nephew of celebrated 20th centry musician Madurai Mani Iyer.

"It is another matter I am open to changes. I do allow freedom within my traditional values," he said.

He said he was not interested in Jugalbandhis, which has caught on as a trend as he may have to compromise on Carnatic music to fit into the scheme of Hindustani or any other sort of music. "All the same, I do not mind anyone performing it," he said.

Sankaranarayanan has won many prestigious awards, including Kendra Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and Sangita Kalanidhi. He will soon receive Purandaradasa award at Bengaluru.

On the recent 'award wapsi', he said personally he does not believe in returning awards as it would be unfair to the organisation which presented them.

The Chennai-based violin sisters, who will stage an instrumental fusion tomorrow, spoke of their roots in Kerala, with their grandparents hailing from Alappuzha and Tripunithura near Kochi.

They said Kerala has an overwhelming presence of music lovers and the audience response is fantastic, they said.

The duo hails from a family of musicians and they are trained under iconic Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer.

"Music - be it Carnatic, Western or global fusion - is ultimately God. It has its energy focused in spirituality. We will have our Lana Band being performed at Nishagandhi fest, which includes artists from Germany, Italy and Kerala," they said.

There will also be performances by Pandit Sugato Bhaduri, Ileana Citarisi, Hema Malini and Ustad Zakir Husain on the following days.
Colin Firth has paid a heartfelt tribute to his late "Love Actually" co-star Alan Rickman, revealing he has always been "in awe" of the actor.

Rickman lost his battle with cancer last week and his peers, friends and castmates have been offering up fond farewells for days.

"I've always been a little bit in awe of Alan because he's always been incredibly solicitous of me," he said in a statement.

"I wasn't long out of drama school when I first met him. I was quite green and unsure of myself. He seemed to have an instinct for people who were in need of guidance of some kind. This is something I noticed in him in all the contact I've had with him over 30 years. He looked out for people."



"We would run into each other at friends' houses. It just kept happening. I actually found myself calling him for advice for things. I just felt he was the right person to ask for those sort of things.
Congress today dismissed as "crocodile tears" Prime Minister Narendra Modi voicing his grief over the suicide of Rohith Vemula, saying he has failed to utter a word on any action against Union ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya.

"We all respect the Prime Minister. We humbly want to say that shedding crocodile tears will not return Rohith Vemula or do justice" to the situation arising out of the suicide of the dalit scholar in Hyderabad University, party's chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala told reporters.

Dubbing the HRD minister as the "biggest culprit" in the matter, he said that the Prime Minister has "disappointed" the whole country by "not uttering a word about any disciplinary action, any legal action" against Irani and Dattatreya.

"The Prime Minister has poured cold water on hopes of a concrete action by not sacking Irani, Dattatreya and the Vice Chancellor," he said adding that "shedding crocodile tears or turning sentimental" do not help in addressing the problem of injustice against Dalits.

Singling out Irani for attack, he lamented that the "person who is herself guilty has not found time to go the University and meet mother and family members of Rohith".

Alleging that the government was shielding those in the ABVP and others known for their anti-Dalit attitude, he wanted Prime Minister to apologise to dalit youths for failing to protect them.

Surjewala's sharp reaction came close on the heels of Prime Minister breaking his silence on the issue in Lucknow and voicing his grief over the suicide.

The Congress leader also dismissed HRD Ministry's decision to constitute a judicial commission and orientation programmes.

"It is a shoddy attempt to brush aside the fundamental issues leading to the suicide of Rohith Vemula in Hyderabad Central University," he said.

Another senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal took to Twitter to attack the Prime Minister on the issue.

"Too little too late Mr Modi. If you feel the mother's pain show how you will make amends considering the conduct of your Ministers," he tweeted.

At the Congress briefing earlier, party General Secretary Mukul Wasnik lambasted the government for its conduct in the matter.

"To add fuel to the fire and belittle the memory of Rohith, Vice-Chancellor Appa Rao, instead of being sacked, is additionally appointed as Acting Chairperson of 'National Council of Rural Institutes' by HRD Ministry," he said.

Wasnik regretted that "all this is done despite fresh



evidence suggesting that the letter dated December 18, 2015, written by Rohith to Vice-Chancellor, had been duly received by the Vice-Chancellor, who chose to take no action whatsoever".

Apart from Congress, even BJP's own Dalit leaders, MPs and allies are putting the blame squarely at its doorsteps and demanding a fair probe, he added.

Surjewala insisted that the "first pre-condition for a fair, independent and impartial probe by a sitting high court judge is sacking of Irani and Dattatreya; sacking of VC Apparao, action against BJP MLC Shri Ramchandra Rao and ABVP activists".

Arrests should be made of all accused named in the FIR, he said, adding that it is only thereafter, that an "equitable and trustworthy" probe can be held that will inspire confidence of the entire student community including the dalit and underprivileged sections.

"Tragically, HRD Minister Smriti Irani has belatedly remembered to offer telephonic condolences only on January 22 i.E, 6 long days after the tragic death of Rohith," he added.

The suicide by Rohith has kicked up a major row with Irani and Dattatreya coming under intense attack from political rivals, who have blamed them for the incident and demanded their removal.

Speaking as the chief guest at the convocation ceremony of the B R Ambedkar University in Lucknow, Modi said, "...When there is that a youth of my country, Rohith, was compelled to commit suicide, what his family must have gone through. Mother India has lost a son. There will be reasons, there will be politics (surrounding it) but the fact remains that a mother has lost her son. I feel the pain very well."



His speech was marred by protest by two students who were evicted by police as they shouted slogans like "Modi murdabad" and "Modi go back, Modi go back".

(Reopens DEL 60)



Wasnik did not attach much importance to a question that Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has not uttered a word on the Rohith suicide issue.

He said that it must be understood that the Hyderabad police, who registered an FIR in the matter, functions under the Telangana government.
Confident of stronger bilateral and trade ties with India, Switzerland has said its cooperation on tax matters in terms of sharing information on suspected black money cases would continue at a good level.

It has also invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi on a state visit to bolster relationship between the two countries, Swiss Finance Minister Ueli Maurer told PTI in Davos.

Maurer, who last night met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, said Switzerland is also keen to expand the relationship between industries of the two countries.

Asked whether there could be greater cooperation on information exchange in tax matters, he said: "We have already agreed on more cooperation and this is working well and should continue. We will continue the cooperation at a good level, the head of Swiss Federal Department of Finance said. Over the past few months, both countries have been working closely on mutual administrative assistance.

In recent months, Switzerland has disclosed names of more than a dozen Indians about whom information has been sought by the Indian government amid suspicion that their accounts in Swiss banks were being used for stashing illicit money.

Swiss banks, known for their banking secrecy practices, have come under global pressure as countries, including India, are ramping up efforts to crack down on the black money menace.

About the issues discussed with Jaitley, Maurer said, "We have good relations with India and we discussed our trade ties. It is normal to speak to each other to discuss what are the issues, what are we doing. During the meeting, we also invited Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Switzerland on a state visit to further strengthen the relationship, he said.

"I hope that there is a good possibility for his visit, he added. Stating that the Indian economy is growing well, Maurer said: We also expect good relations between the industries of the two countries. India is a country with the largest growth rate and we expect that to continue.



When asked whether he expected the India Prime Minister's visit this year itself, he said, "We hope so. It will be a great honour for us."



India and Switzerland have been cooperating on diverse areas. Many bilateral agreements, including in the areas of trade, education, air traffic, finance, taxation, and cooperation in science and technology, are there between the two sides.
A Delhi court has directed SEBI to respond to a plea by Pearls Group CMD Nirmal Singh Bhangoo seeking stay on the proceedings in a case in which his firm has allegedly collected Rs 49,100 crore from investors in the name of investment schemes violating the law.

Additional Sessions Judge Arvind Kumar issued notice to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for February 11 on Bhangoo's plea which claimed that the regulator's complaint was based on the same allegations as that of a CBI FIR and he cannot be tried twice for the same alleged offence.

"Put up on February 11 for reply and arguments on the application filed by counsel for accused no. 6 (Bhangoo)," the court said.

The court had earlier taken cognizance of the SEBI's complaint and summoned as accused Pearl Agrotech Corporation Ltd (PACL), its promoters and directors, Nirmal Singh Bhangoo, Tarlochan Singh, Sukhdev Singh, Gurmeet Singh, Subrata Bhattacharya, Joginder Tyger, Gurnam Singh, Anand Gurwant Singh and Devinder Kumar Uppal.

Bhangoo, Sukhdev, Gurmeet and Bhattacharya did not appear in person and were represented through counsel as they are in CBI custody till tomorrow in the other case, while summons could not be served on Tarlochan, Tyger, Gurnam, Anand and Uppal. The firm was also represented through its counsel.

The court has issued fresh summons against Tarlochan, Tyger, Gurnam, Anand and Uppal.

SEBI's counsel Sanjay Mann said he will move an application for issuance of production warrant once the four accused are sent to judicial custody in the CBI case.

The court had on December 16, 2015 summoned the accused, saying prima facie violation under the provisions of SEBI Act and regulations of SEBI (CIS) Regulations, SEBI(Prohibition of Fraudulent and Unfair Trade Practices Relating to Securities Market) is made out in the alleged ponzi case.

In the plea seeking stay on proceedings, Bhangoo's counsel Vijay Aggarwal and Manish Jain also sought court's direction to call for a status report to probe whether investigation was continuing on the same offences as alleged in SEBI's case and that of CBI's FIR registered in 2014.

According to the regulator's complaint filed in the court in November 2015, PACL had allegedly illegally mobilised Rs 49,100 crore and SEBI had directed it to refund the money to over five crore investors.

The firm challenged SEBI's recovery proceedings to



collect funds due to investors before Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT), the SEBI complaint said.

It claimed that the firm, which had assets worth only Rs 11,000 crore, had allegedly siphoned of a huge amount of money which was untraceable.

The regulator had also imposed a penalty of over Rs 7,269 crore on the firm and its directors, it said.

It said SEBI has found that PACL has collected money from crores of investors through unauthorised collective investment schemes in the name of real estate projects. It is also said to have been involved in agricultural land-related schemes.

It said raising of money by the firm from general public without complying with the provisions of SEBI Act, CIS Regulations and PFUTP Regulations was done with the consent and connivance of the other nine accused.

Bhangoo, CMD of Pearls Golden Forest Ltd (PGF) and ex-Chairman of Pearls Australasia Pty Limited, Sukhdev Singh, MD and Promoter-Director of Pearls Agrotech Corporation Ltd (PACL), Gurmeet Singh, Executive Director(Finance) and Subrata Bhattacharya, ED in the PGF/PACL were arrested by the CBI on January 8 in connection with alleged swindling of Rs 45,000 crore from over five crore investors.

In its FIR, CBI has claimed PACL and PGF were running the schemes illegally and both companies were allegedly engaged in fraudulent activities including forgery in their day-to-day operations.
The Department of Atomic Energy and the Maharashtra Government today sought time to furnish additional information in the Bombay High Court on the causes of death of nuclear scientists in the last two decades.

The authorities had earlier filed an affidavit in this regard in connection with a PIL filed by RTI activist seeking information on the death of several nuclear scientists in institutions including the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) here.

The bench of justices V M Kanade and Reveti Mohite-Dere, hearing the PIL seeking formation of a special investigating team (SIT) to probe the matter, gave two weeks' time to the respondents to file additional affidavits.

The HC had earlier sought to know from the state government whether proper security measures have been provided to nuclear scientists at their workplace in the city.

"Several decades back many scientists had died because they were not provided suits. Does exposure to nuclear radiation cause cancer which then leads to death? We would like to know if proper security measures have been provided to the scientists," the High Court had asked.

Kothari, in his PIL, claimed that India is turning out to be a dangerous place to work for nuclear scientists.

The court had also said that if something untoward were to happen in the BARC in suburban Trombay then it would impact all the people of Mumbai.

Kothari had sought information under the RTI in 2010 from police and Public Information Office seeking list of scientists and employees in Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), who had committed suicide during the last 15 years. He said he was informed that five employees committed suicide.

The petitioner said he had sought similar information from Institute of Mathematical Science, Heavy Water Plant, Baroda and other important departments. He said that from the data collected he is of the view that Indian nuclear scientists had not had an easy time in the past.

The petitioner also mentioned media reports and also a few incidents where bodies of scientists were found under suspicious circumstances in 2009 and 2010 but they were tagged as suicides and the matter was closed.
Based on the report by a fact- finding team, the HRD Ministry today decided to set up a Judicial Commission to look into the sequence of events leading to the suicide of Rohith Vemula, a dalit scholar at the Hyderabad Central University.

The Judicial Commission will submit its report within three months, a Human Resource Development Ministry statement said.

It said in order to prevent such incidents future, all VCs and senior administrators would be sensitised to reach out to students and there will be "zero tolerance" for any acts of discrimination on campus.

"The fact finding committee constituted by HRD Ministry in the wake of the chain of unfortunate events at the Central University Hyderabad submitted its report to the Ministry on January 22, 2016.

"Based on its observations and findings, the Ministry has decided to constitute a Judicial Commission to review the entire sequence of events and the circumstances and to establish the facts and correctives in the context of the University," the statement said.

Rohith's body was found hanging in the varsity's hostel room on Sunday, which sparked massive protests across the country.

While Rohith in his letter expressed disillusionment with life, the suicide has snowballed into a major political storm with parties demanding the ouster of Union Minister Bandaru Dattatreya and HRD Minister Smriti Irani.

The Hyderabad University had suspended Rohith and four other students after they allegedly assaulted an ABVP leader. The suspension came after Dattatreya shot off a letter to the HRD ministry in August last year, asking it to look into the matter. Students have alleged that his suspension led to Rohith's depression and his eventual suicide.

Meanwhile, HRD Minister Smriti Irani also spoke to Vemula's mother today and expressed her condolences.

In order to address the issues faced by the students from disadvantaged social economic and education background in higher educational institutions "comprehensively" and to prevent such unfortunate incidents in future, the Ministry has also chalked out a series of measures.

The Ministry has decided to set up a special mechanism for receiving and taking expeditious action on the grievances from these students.

At the same time, all VCs and senior administrators would be sensitised to reach out to such students and there will be "zero tolerance" for any acts of discrimination on campus. "A special charter will be issued to all the higher educational institutions in this regard," the statement said.

The Ministry said that Peer group assisted Learning (PAL)



of IIT Gandhinagar would be extended to all the HEIs.

Under this, mentors would be arranged for the socially, economically and educationally disadvantaged students not only to assist them in education but to support them to face challenges.
On a tough day for the Indian paddlers, all three in the fray, including national champion Siddhesh Pandey, suffered defeats on the opening day of the ITTF World Junior Circuit Finals here today.

Competing in junior boys Group 2, 15th seed Pandey suffered a tame 4-11 9-11 5-11 3-11 defeat against eighth seed Helshan Weerasinghe of England.

Mudit Dani met a similar fate in Group 1 as he lost 3-11 5-11 9-11 4-11 to seventh seed American Zhang Kai.

In the girls event, Archana Girish Kamat lost 2-4 (11-3 1-11, 8-11, 3-11, 7-11, 5-11) to Romanian rival Andreea Dragoman.

The Romanian was a tricky player and she seized the opportunity quickly to go up.

Though Archana tried to win the fifth game, it proved to be very difficult for the Indian as she failed to counter her flicks when returned short and those powerful forehands.

Meanwhile, 12th seed Korean Seri Park surprised third seed Zhu Chengzhu of Hong Kong with a 4-2 win in group 3 while in another match in the same group, 14th seed Angela Guan shocked sixth-seeded Brazilian Bruna Takahashi by a similar margin of triumph.
Hitting out at critics of the Delhi government's free water scheme, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today said the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) has earned Rs 178 crore more than last financial year despite providing 20,000 litres of water for free to Delhiites every month.

"When we had announced the free water scheme, the critics said DJB finances will drown. But the DJB earned Rs 178 crore in 2015-16 which is more than its last year revenue," he said after launching DJB's 'm-Sewa' app for online water bill generation and payment.

"Everyone kept saying that providing 20,000 litres of free water will destroy DJB, but now it seems that these big economists will need to revise their theories to explain this increase in revenue," Kejriwal added.

Asserting that the reservation expressed over wastage of water has also been proved wrong, the Chief Minister said, "Data shows that people have been saving water due to the scheme as they have restricted their usage to ensure they do not have pay much."



Attributing the increase in DJB's revenue to the AAP government's faith in people, he said, "We believed in Delhi's public which has led to this miracle of increased revenue along with saved water."



"The AAP government's mantra is empowering the people," he said while also citing the success of Odd-Even scheme.

Kejriwal said his government was trying to provide water to areas which had poor supply as well as slums and other areas inhabited by poor in the next two years.

The 'm-Sewa' app will allow one-tap online payments, instant self-bill generation, option to view previous bills and water consumption graph.

Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Water minister Kapil Mishra, Food and Supplies Minister Imran Hussain and senior government officials, including Chief Secretary K K Sharma and DJB CEO Kesav Chandra, were also present on the occasion.
As money coming into the state's coffers continues its downward trend, North Dakota officials said Friday they will be ordering state agencies to cut their budgets after an updated revenue forecast is released next month.

For the biennium which began July 1, general fund revenues are $215.5 million below projections, or 11.3 percent. A large portion of the shortfall comes from lower-than-expected sales tax collections.

Members of the Advisory Council on Revenue Forecasting met in the Harvest Room of the state Capitol Friday morning and agreed to reduce projections for oil prices, production and rig counts for the updated forecast.

The group recommended using 1 million barrels of day of oil production for fiscal year 2016 and 900,000 barrels per day in fiscal year 2017 as a basis for the new forecast.

The group recommended setting projected North Dakota oil prices at between $30 per barrel and rising to $43 by June 30, 2017. It also projected the state to average 50 rigs for the rest of the biennium.

The new forecast is tentatively expected to be released Feb. 1.

By comparison, the states March 2015 forecast used 1.1 million barrels per day with North Dakota oil prices between $43 and just shy of $53 for 2015-17.

Its obvious there will be an allotment. How much  we dont know, said Pam Sharp, the director of the Office of Management and Budget.

Agencies funded by state general fund dollars are required to make up to 2.5 percent cuts before reserves can be tapped. Any additional general fund shortfall can be made up by a transfer from the budget stabilization fund, which is at $572 million.

Cuts determined by the governor would immediately go into effect. Lawmakers could later choose to order cuts beyond the 2.5 percent.

Funding for K-12 education is not expected to be impacted due to dollars being available in the foundation aid stabilization fund, which is currently at $643 million.

The last time a budget cut occurred was in 2002, when then-Gov. John Hoeven ordered a cut of 1 percent.

A rough year

North Dakota Petroleum Council President Ron Ness underscored that industry leaders dont see much good news in the near term.

The markets not real bullish on what oils going to do. I think productions going to drop quite rapidly, Ness said. Its going to be a really rough 2016.

Ness and others said the states drilling rig count could drop to as low as 30; on Friday, the rig count was at 47.

The price for West Texas Intermediate, a U.S. benchmark for oil, was below $32 per barrel Friday.

Things cant get much worse, but weve been wrong for a year, Ness said.

Sharp said most of the few hundred thousand dollars in sales tax revenue from drilling oil well comes from completing the well by hydraulic fracturing. As of November, the most recent numbers available, there were an estimated 969 wells in the state waiting on completion.

Thats a couple hundred million right there. It explains a lot, Sharp said.

Some Republican lawmakers have called for deeper cuts than 2.5 percent, among them Rep. Jeff Delzer, R-Underwood.

I would hope were real cautious, Delzer said.

Despite the drop in oil prices as well as agriculture prices, the state is still in strong economic shape, according to the Rick Clayburgh, president of the North Dakota Bankers Association.

Clayburgh summed up the economic impact on residents by referring to what a banker told him in a recent conversation.

Instead of buying a $70,000 pickup, theyre buying a $30,000 to $40,000 pickup, Clayburgh said.
At a time when the government is still undecided on international flying norms for domestic carriers, Union Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju today wondered whether the "5/20" rule has any "scientific meaning".

Under the 5/20 regulation, only those local airlines having five years operational experience and a minimum of 20 aircraft can fly overseas.

While the proposed civil aviation policy has suggested three options on 5/20, including retaining it or scrapping it, the airlines industry is sharply divided over the issue.

"5/20 is obviously something that is pulling Indians down... Does it have any scientific meaning?" Raju, who is the Civil Aviation Minister, said on the sidelines of an aviation conference here.

His remarks also come at a time when his Ministry is in advanced stages of finalising the new civil aviation policy.

Raju said he had an interaction with airlines to understand their concerns about 5/20 norm.

"Basically, they had rough (time) in the past. Their books are not good... When the new players come in, their books will be clear. So, we will be at a disadvantage," the Minister said citing concerns raised by various airlines over the issue.

According to Raju, airlines are reporting profit.

When asked whether it has been only due to fall in fuel prices, he said oil prices have been a contributing factor and many of the carriers' books are okay.

On the issue of "effective control," reportedly raised by the established players at a meeting with the Minister of State for Civil Aviation, Mahesh Sharma, Raju said that it was out of the ambit of his ministry.

"Effective control is there on all industries. These are the things that come from finance (ministry)... I don't think it is a correct argument. Effective control is in the realm of finance ministry," he said.

The Federation of Indian Airlines had during the meeting reportedly raised its concerns citing the "substantial ownership and effective control (SOEC)" norms being flouted by foreign partners of Indian carriers and sought continuation of the 5/20 norm as long as the SOEC issue was not addressed.

The issue of SOEC norms reflects in the Schedule XI of the Aircraft Rules.

The FIA, which comprises Jet Airways, IndiGo, SpiceJet and GoAir, had raised the issue in 2014 also when aviation regulator DGCA had invited comments prior to issuing flying permit to the Tata-SIA joint venture airline Vistara, which has 51 per cent holding of Tata Group and rest 49 per cent of the Singapore Airlines.
Voicing concern over people being cheated by agents promising to take them to Australia, a diplomat from the Oceanic country here today cautioned those undertaking such journeys to not trust such agents as they "lie" and leave them stranded mid-sea.

"It is a very very long journey. Australia is about 3,000 nautical miles, while New Zealand is 6,000 nautical miles. Agents who promise people to take them to Australia in illegal boat rides (from India) only lie," Australian Consul General for South India, Sean Kelly told reporters here.

"After getting the money, either they take them to some other place or leave them in the middle of ocean," he said.

Elaborating, Kelly said, "Between 2009 and 2013 alone, about 1,200 people have lost their lives in the middle of ocean".

Responding to a query on how Australia was handling the issue, he said, "Australian government do accept refugees and as of September, 2015 it was about 14,000 people (from various countries). But not those who take illegal boat journeys".

According to Deputy Consul-General for South India, Jon Bonnar, his government has taken up "tough border protection measures" under the Operation Sovereign Borders initiative.

"Under the operation, anyone who comes to Australia illegally by boat without a visa will never be settled in the country," he told PTI.

"This policy applies to families, children and unaccompanied children. There are no exceptions to this policy," he said.

For those who still take up illegal boat journey to Australia, he said, "Either they (refugees) will be intercepted and safely removed from Australian waters or they will be sent to another country for regional processing".

"Processing and resettlement in Australia will never be an option," he added.
Delhi Police today issued an alert after the driver of a taxi hired by three unidentified persons from Pathankot was found dead in Kangra district in Himachal Pradesh, in the aftermath of the airbase attack.

The taxi driver, identified as Vijay Kumar, a resident of Gaggal village in Kangra district, was found dead on Wednesday at the Kalta bridge in Kangra and his taxi missing, police said.

"A white colour Alto taxi no. HP 01D 2440 was hired from Pathankot by three unknown people. The driver of the taxi, Vijay Kumar from Gaggal, Kangada was found dead on 20 Jan 2016 at the Kalta Bridge, Dist. Kangada. The Alto car is missing. Search operations are on. Stay Alert!" the pinned tweet on Delhi Police's official handle read.

Asked on the threat perception, Delhi police Commissioner B S Bassi urged people in the city to remain alert without disclosing any further details citing security concerns.

The alert was issued in the backdrop of the attack on IAF base in Pathankot where terrorists had first killed a cab driver and robbed his car before launching the strike.

Delhi Police has approached media houses in helping it find the car and spread the alert message through retweets.
Five suspected smugglers, allegedly carrying drugs imported from Afghanistan, were detained in Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh in a joint operation conducted by a central investigative agency and local police, police, police sources said toady.

The value of the 'high-quality' drugs weighing one kg, whose details are not yet known, is estimated to be Rs five crore in international market, police sources said.

The five accused, two of whom hail from Kerala and the rest from Kadapa district, were taken into police custody on Wednesday and are being interrogated, a police official told PTI, adding that they have not been formally arrested yet.

According to police, the accused worked in Kuwait earlier and had come to India recently.

The operation was carried out by Rayachoty police on information provided by the central investigative agency under the supervision of Pulivendula Additional SP Anbu Rajan, sources said.

Police suspect that the drugs were smuggled from Afghanistan and the samples have been sent to experts to ascertain their details.

Local police are tight-lipped about the development.

The report said that none of the samples drawn from



airports or seaports were found to be NSQ or spurious.

"All the samples were subjected to test/analysis as per pharmacopoeial requirements in the Central and State Drug Testing Laboratories that have been accredited by NABL.

"This is the largest ever scientifically designed and professionally executed drug survey undertaken in the world for determining the quality of drugs," the health ministry statement said.

A nationwide training in drugs survey methodology was imparted at 28 centres across the country to over 1,800 Sample Drawing Officers (SDOs) and representatives of civil society and Pharmacy Council of India (PCI).

The role of civil society and PCI representatives was to observe that the drugs samples are drawn in accordance with the sampling methodology and the highest degree of transparency and objectivity is maintained in the process to eliminate any bias.

A budgetary allocation of Rs 8.5 crores was given by the Health Ministry.

"The methodology of the study covered all major therapeutic categories, highest ever number of drug molecules in any study, entire range of dosage forms dispensed through government as well as retail sources, sampled from the length and breadth of the country using a statistically designed three-stage sampling plan prepared by Indian Statistical Institute, Hyderabad," the study said.
Public health officials in El Salvador are advising women to put off pregnancies for the next two years to avoid passing on complications from the mosquito-borne Zika virus.

Vice-minister of public health Eduardo Espinoza said yesterday women who are already pregnant should stay covered outdoors to reduce the risk of mosquito bites. There are 96 suspected cases of pregnant women with the virus in El Salvador.

Some countries with Zika, such as Brazil, have seen spikes in the number of cases of microcephaly, a rare brain defect in babies. The infants tend to have smaller than normal heads and their brains do not fully develop.

The announcement in El Salvador came at the launch of an anti-mosquito campaign. The same mosquito also transmits the fever-inducing dengue and chikungunya viruses.
The EU has highlighted the need to address human rights issues in Sri Lanka as the two sides discussed the full-implementation of the UNHRC resolution on alleged rights abuses during the final phase of the civil war with Tamil rebels.

In a meeting of the Working Group on Governance, Rule of Law and Human Rights under the European Union-Sri Lanka Joint Commission here yesterday, the two sides recognised the full implementation of the UN Human Rights Council resolution of October 2015 as a priority.

Senior officials from Sri Lanka and the EU exchanged views on ongoing consultations on the establishment of domestic reconciliation and accountability mechanisms, the ministry of foreign affairs said.

Sponsored by the US, the UK and other countries, including Sri Lanka, the resolution calls upon Colombo to establish a credible judicial process, with the participation of Commonwealth and other foreign judges, defence lawyers and authorised prosecutors and investigators, to go into the alleged rights abuses.

Both the Lankan army and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam are accused of atrocities in the civil war that ended in 2009.

The 28-member EU also highlighted the importance of addressing human rights issues, including sexual and gender based violence, torture and the protection of persons belonging to minority groups as well as the need to combat corruption.

The Joint Commission provides a forum for regular and structured bilateral engagement under the EU-Sri Lanka Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development of 1995.

The next Working Group meeting would be held in Brussels within the next one year.
The EU has highlighted the need to address human rights issues in Sri Lanka as the two sides discussed the full-implementation of the UNHRC resolution on alleged rights abuses during the final phase of the civil war with Tamil rebels.

In a meeting of the Working Group on Governance, Rule of Law and Human Rights under the European Union-Sri Lanka Joint Commission here yesterday, the two sides recognised the full implementation of the UN Human Rights Council resolution of October 2015 as a priority.

Senior officials from Sri Lanka and the EU exchanged viewson ongoing consultations on the establishment of domestic reconciliation and accountability mechanisms, the ministry of foreign affairs said.

Sponsored by the US, the UK and other countries, including Sri Lanka, the resolution calls upon Colombo to establish a credible judicial process, with the participation of Commonwealth and other foreign judges, defence lawyers and authorised prosecutors and investigators, to go into the alleged rights abuses.

Both the Lankan army and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam are accused of atrocities in the civil war that ended in 2009.

The 28-member EU also highlighted the importance of addressing human rights issues, including sexual and gender based violence, torture and the protection of persons belonging to minority groups as well as the need to combat corruption.

The Joint Commission provides a forum for regular and structured bilateral engagement under the EU-Sri Lanka Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development of 1995.

The next Working Group meeting would be held in Brussels within the next one year.
Former members of an elite presidential security unit which staged a short-lived coup in Burkina Faso last year raided an arms depot today near the capital, the army said.

The attack did not claim any victims and the depot at Yimdi, 20 kilometres west of Ouagadougou, is now under the control of the army, a statement said.

"Security has been tightened," it said, adding: "The perpetrators of this attempt have been identified as elements from the RSP" unit, which in September seized power and briefly took Burkina Faso's interim president hostage.

The crack troops were loyal to Blaise Compaore, the west African country's long-serving leader who was ousted in a popular uprising 2014 after 27 years of iron-fisted rule.

September's coup was thwarted by street protesters and support from the army, which attacked the plotters' barracks. At least 11 people were killed and 271 were injured in the demonstrations.

An army source said Friday's 3:00 am attack on the weapons depot was staged by about 20 men.

"They made off with some weapons after tying up some of the men who were manning the depot. One soldier has been injured," the source added.

The raid follows a brazen jihadist attack on Friday in Ouagadougou where 30 people were killed after gunmen stormed a leading hotel and cafe in the city.
The chief minister of Pakistan's restive northwestern Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province was today left red-faced when the family of a professor who was killed fighting with militants in the recent university attack demanded his resignation if he could not stop terror assaults.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak had visited slain chemistry professor Hamid Hussain's residence in Swabi district to express condolence to his family members over his death.

The family members asked Khattak to quit if he could not provide security.

Hussain, 34, was killed in the Wednesday terror attack on Bacha Khan University in Charsadda while trying to protect students using his licensed pistol against armed Taliban militants who stormed the university, and has been hailed as a "martyr".
National Conference president Farooq Abdullah today visited the residence of Peoples Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti here to offer condolence over her father Mufti Mohammad Sayeed's death.

Abdullah, who arrived here this morning from Jammu, visited Mehbooba's Fairview residence at Gupkar here after Friday prayers, a National Conference (NC) leader said.

Abdullah, accompanied by party general secretary Ali Mohammad Sagar, met Mehbooba and offered condolence to her, he said, adding that politics was not discussed.

"There was no political discussion during the meeting. It was purely to offer condolences to Mehbooba ji on her father's death," he said.

Sayeed, 79, died at AIIMS in New Delhi on January 7.
Former North Dakota Public Service Commissioner Tony Clark announced Thursday he wont be seeking another term on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Clark was nominated by President Barack Obama for the position on the five-member commission. He was sworn in on June 15, 2012.

Clark, 44, announced his decision at the commissions meeting Thursday in Washington, D.C. His term ends on June 30.

The five-member commission is appointed to staggered terms by the president, and no more than three members can be from one political party.

Clark previously served 12 years on the North Dakota PSC and was first elected in 2000. Prior to his time with the PSC, he served as North Dakota Labor Commissioner.

From 1994-97, he served in the North Dakota House of Representatives, representing District 44 in Fargo.

Clark is married and has three children.
Film-maker Mahmood Farooqui, accused of raping a US researcher, today questioned before a Delhi court the woman's version about the incident saying she did not resist the alleged assault and remained in his house for a long time, reflecting her comfort level.

Refuting the woman's claim that she had not resisted Farooqui's act as she feared meeting the same fate as the December 16 gangrape victim, the defence counsel said if she was under such threat, then why did she remain at his house for over 30 minutes even after the alleged incident.

"After the alleged assault, she had booked a cab but cancelled it before her ride was slated to begin. She also waited in the house on being asked by Ashish (Farooqui's friend). Why did she listen to him?



"The fact that she did not leave the house immediately and cancelled the cab booked by her, shows the level of her comfort in the house," advocate Nitya Ramakrishnan, appearing for 'Peepli Live' co-director, told Additional Sessions Judge Sanjiv Jain.

Commencing final arguments, the defence counsel denied the charges levelled against the film-maker and also refuted the sequence of events narrated by the woman before the court.

The arguments of the defence remained inconclusive and would continue tomorrow.

The prosecution had yesterday concluded its arguments in the case, which is being heard on a daily basis, saying all the evidence on record proved that Farooqui had raped the 30-year-old US native.

Farooqui had earlier denied the allegations levelled against him saying he was falsely implicated in the case.

The court had commenced hearing final arguments last week when the police had said the testimony of the alleged victim, who had trusted Farooqui and considered him a friend, showed that she was sexually assaulted.

The trial in the case had commenced on September 9 last year when the woman had recorded her statement.

The American research scholar from Columbia University, during in-camera proceedings, had alleged that Farooqui had raped her at his Sukhdev Vihar residence here on March 28 last year and later apologised to her in several e-mails exchanged between them.

The court had started trial in the case after framing charges of rape under section 376 (rape) of IPC against him.

The police had on June 19 lodged an FIR against Farooqui on the complaint of the woman after which he was arrested. The charge sheet was filed against him on July 29.
Swiss great Roger Federer was delighted to become the first man to reach 300 Grand Slam match wins today as he swept past Grigor Dimitrov to reach the Australian Open fourth round.

Federer said it was "very exciting" to reach 300 wins, a total that leaves him just six away from Martina Navtratilova's record of 306 and moves him closer to a fifth Australian Open title.

The 17-time major winner and third seed won 6-4 3-6 6-1 6-4 in two hours, 40 minutes under the closed roof on Rod Laver Arena and will face Belgium's 15th seed David Goffin in the next round.

"It's very exciting, I must tell you," Federer said of his 300th Grand Slam win, a sequence that also started at the Australian Open when he beat Michael Chang in the first round in 1999.

"Like when I reached 1,000 (career wins) last year, it was a big deal for me. Not something I ever aimed for or looked for, but when it happens, it's very special. You look deeper into it, I guess, where it's all happened and how. So it's very nice, I'm very happy."



With the landmark win, Federer also extends his record over Bulgarian 27th seed Dimitrov, dubbed "Baby Fed" because of the similarity in their playing styles, to 5-0.

Last year Federer was ambushed in the third round by Italian Andreas Seppi, but he made no mistake this time at the same stage.

However, it wasn't an entirely convincing display from the four-time Australian Open winner who committed an uncharacteristic 55 unforced efforts, much more than Dimitrov's 44.

"It was a difficult position for me after losing the second set and Grigor was playing well. I thought I was struggling a little bit," Federer said.

"I didn't feel it was really happening out there and it was an important start for me to the third set.

"Thankfully I got the early break and I was able to stay in the lead and everything started to come back, the serve, my footwork. It was complicated, but those matches are even nicer to win, I must say."



Federer only lost his serve once in 18 service games and broke the Bulgarian's serve four times, twice in the third set, with Dimitrov troubled by a sore right elbow and losing serving power.

He sought courtside treatment from the trainer several times during the match.

Dimitrov was bidding to reach the round of 16 at the Open for the third straight year including making the quarterfinals in 2014, where he lost to Rafael Nadal.
A 37-year-old German tourist managed to escape an alleged rape attempt by a man at the famous Kovalam Beach resort here, following which the culprit was arrested, police said today.

28-year-old Nizar, hailing from Kasaragod in north Kerala, was in an inebriated condition at the time of his arrest soon after the incident yesterday, they said.

He had entered the tourist's room posing as a mechanic and tried to rape her, police said.

Hearing the woman shout, tourists staying in nearby rooms broke open the room door and rescued her.

Though the accused fled the scene, he was arrested shortly by the police based on the foreigner's complaint.

A case has been registered against him under various sections of IPC including376 (punishment for rape), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) and 511 (punishment for attempting to commit offences punishable with life imprisonment), they added.
After bagging a Geographical Indication, Goa's 'Feni' is now getting ready to stand out among country liquors and to be tagged as 'heritage brew', a senior official said here today.

"Goa government has already initiated a process to tag Feni as heritage brew outside the state. With this, Feni will get a opening in markets outside Goa," Mac Vaz, President, Goa Cashew Feni Distillers and Bottlers Association told PTI ahead of a conference of stakeholders scheduled to be held here tomorrow.

Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar will inaugurate the meeting tomorrow morning.

"Because of the negativity attached to country liquor, people perceive this (feni) too as one of those country liquors. Now we want to give it a different tag and classification," Vaz said.

He said we need to realize that Feni is the 'Kohinoor' among alcoholic beverages. It attained the GI mark in 2010.

After receiving the GI mark, the perception of Feni has gone up globally, he said.

"We Indians look down at our own assets, only when white men acknowledge it then we wake up and realize the essence of our assets," Vaz commented.

"India has a USP globally, anything that comes from India has a natural pull," he said.

For the makers of this liquor, getting GI sign has helped financially.

Vaz said post GI mark, sales have also soared four times. Goa has 28 units which bottle Feni across the state.

Talking about the stakeholders' meet, Vaz said, "there was a need for celebrating Goan spirit as a proud alcoholic beverage from India.

"Just like Americans celebrate their Mustang horses we must celebrate our Marwari horses. Similarly, just like the West is taking their own spirits to the world like Scotch, Champagne and they are coming to India, we should feel proud to takeswadeshi spirits from India to the world," he commented.

"Feniis an example of Made in India. For me Make in India is little diluted version of Made in India. Feni is the produce of India and we have been motivated with this emotion for over a decade," he said.

Referring to world famous Cartoonist late Mario Miranda,



Vaz said, "Mario had coined a phrase for 'Feni' terming Goa is a land of Feni and Harmony.. Feni like harmony in Goa should be protected," he said.

Vaz said the attempts to have odourless 'Feni' produced in the state is unwanted one.

"Scientifically it is not rocket science to get aroma out of any beverage. We have done it through technical experiments in our laboratory. But we believe something of that kind is not necessary...Feni's flavour is its character. If we remove it would be like any other spirit," he said.
Goa Investment Promotion Board (GIPB) has granted in-principle approval to various proposals by Vedanta Limited for expansion of existing capacities at its pig iron plant (PIP).

The companyhad put up a proposal forenhancement of its pig iron, coke, sinter and power plant at Navelim village, about 30 km from here, a senior GIPB member told PTI.

The company has sought expansion of its pig iron capacity by 0.45 MTPA from existing 0.74 TPA.

When commissioned, the company will achieve additional 61% increase in the pig iron capacity of the plant at its existing facility, he said.

GIPB, which met under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, last evening granted approval to various proposals by Vedanta along with several other projects, including starred hotels and industrial expansions.

Vedanta has also proposed the expansion of sinter plant at its PIP facility to cater to the requirement of sinter feed for the new blast furnaces which will result in 50% of capacity increase.

The company also plans to increase its power generation by 30 MW capacity (addition of 33% to existing capacity) after expansion of non-recovery coke oven plant which is a raw material to generate electricity, the official said.

In another proposal, Vedanta has also sought an in-principle approval for diversification of operations by installing 0.3 MTPA ductile iron pipe plant at the existing location at Navelim.

The plant will use inputs from the existing pig iron production capacity to create high value output and spur future growth.

According to the company, there will not be any increase in hot metal production, the official said.

Only 3,00,000 tonnes of hot metal shall be converted to ductile iron pipe.

The proposed investment in this project is worth Rs 445 crore with employment capacity of 300 people.
Virtually anointing himself as the chief ministerial candidate for the fourth straight term, Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi today said the coming Assembly election would be a direct fight between him and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and ruled out any alliance.

"Everyone's face will be there. But I will be the captain. I am the General of the party and Modi is the General of BJP," he said at a press conference.

Gogoi was replying to a question on whether he would be the chief ministerial candidate of Congress or not in the state Assembly polls expected to be held in April-May.

The 79-year-old Congress veteran also ruled out any alliance with any political party saying Congress is more interested for electoral "understanding" with "secular" parties to defeat BJP.

"I am going alone. There will be no seat sharing. There will be no 'mahajoth'. Only 'maha-understanding' with some secular parties to ensure BJP's defeat. Understanding means vote for Congress but not BJP. Vote for AGP but not for BJP," he said.

He said Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi has left it to him and the party's state unit to decide on the issue of alliance.

Gogoi, who has been Chief Minister of Assam for last 15 years, however, admitted that the coming polls would be a tough one for Congress but he likes such challenges.

"BJP is eyeing Assam. It will be an interesting election. Every election is tough. I welcome tough election. A tough election makes us tougher," he said.

The Chief Minister said there is little anti-incumbency in Assam as such things come if there is a failure in implementing promises.

"Whatever little anti-incumbency is there, it will be overcome by our development work," he said.

Launching a direct attack on Prime Minister, Gogoi said



Modi is "not a dignified" Prime Minister as no Prime Minister in the independent India had criticised his or her predecessor the way Modi did recently.

"I have never met any Prime Minister blaming his predecessor. It is a great departure from precedent. Besides, whatever statement he made, it was not correct. He is not a dignified Prime Minister. I have not seen any Prime Minister condemning his predecessor," he said.

Modi, in a recent rally in Assam, had said that despite former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh being a Rajya Sabha member from the state, it has not seen the kind of development it would have come across.

"He made allegations against Manmohan Singh. I want to ask have all problems in Gujarat solved when he was Chief Minister for three consecutive terms. I know that 30,000 small and medium enterprises in Gujarat are sick. Farmers of Gujarat are in distressed state, they are unhappy," he said.

The Chief Minister said people of India had high hope when Modi was elected as Prime Minister and thought that he was the only man who can bring drastic change.

"But instead of concentrating on internal affairs, instead of solving country's problems, he is more interested on foreign affairs. No other Prime Minister has spent so much time in meeting NRIs than farmers. He enjoys the company of NRIs and CEOs," he said.

Gogoi also claimed that Modi is losing control over his ministers as different minister was making different statement on the same issue.

"I don't know whether he has hold over them or allow them to speak like that," he said.

Asked about former Congress leader Himanta Biswa Sarma's joining of BJP, Gogoi said his departure had helped the Congress and brought resentment in BJP.

He also ruled out taking help of poll strategist Prashant Kishor, who was widely credited for the victory of Nitish Kumar in Bihar polls last year and helping Modi during 2014 Lok Sabha polls.
The Department of Atomic Energy and the Maharashtra Government today sought time to give additional information on the causes of death of nuclear scientists in the last two decades.

Earlier, the authorities had filed an affidavit in this regard but today they sought time to file additional information.

Accordingly, the bench of justices V M Kanade and Reveti Mohite-Dere gave two weeks time to the respondents to file additional affidavits.

The Court was hearing a public interest litigation seeking formation of a special investigating team (SIT) to probe the deaths of several nuclear scientists.

The HC had earlier sought to know from the State Government whether proper security measures have been provided to nuclear scientists at their workplace in the city.

"Several decades back many scientists had died because they were not provided suits. Does exposure to nuclear radiation cause cancer which then leads to death ? We would like to know if proper security measures have been provided to the scientists," the High Court had asked.

The court had also said that if something untoward were to happen in the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre in suburban Trombay then it would impact all the people of Mumbai.

Kothari had sought information under the RTI in 2010 from police and public information office seeking list of scientists and employees in Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), who had committed suicide during the last 15 years. He said he was informed that five employees committed suicide.

The PIL, filed by activist Chetan Kothari, claimed that India is turning out to be a dangerous place to work for nuclear scientists.

The petitioner said he had sought similar information from Institute of Mathematical Science, Heavy Water Plant, Baroda and other important departments. He said that from the data collected he is of the view that Indian nuclear scientists had not had an easy time in the past.

The petitioner also pointed out to a few media reports and also a few incidents where bodies of scientists were found in suspicious circumstances in 2009 and 2010 but they were tagged as suicides and the matter was closed.
City-based GSFC University has signed an MoU with Mahatma Gandhi Labour Institute (MGLI) Ahmedabad, for setting up a National Institute for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship at the varsity here.

The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by GSFC university president Sudeep Kumar Nanda and MGLI Director General Sanjay Prasad yesterday.

The proposed institute will receive technical and academic cooperation from expert organisations in China for its activities and projects, Nanda said.

The institute shall support the ongoing programmes under national initiatives like 'Skill India', 'Make in India' and 'Startup India'.

The proposed institute will provide training programmes, joint research and teaching programmes in skill development and entrepreneurship.

Besides, it will offer special skill development programmes in "on demand" subjects for industries and other sectors.
Haryana government today extended Rs 20 lakh to the family of Gursewak Singh, the Commando who was martyred in the Pathankot terror attack.

State Health Minister Anil Vij handed over a cheque for Rs 10 lakh to Jaspreet Kaur, the widow of Singh, and cheques for Rs 5 lakh each to the father and mother of the slain soldier at his native village of Garnala here on behalf of Haryana government.

The minister also said that the process for offering a government job to a member of the martyred soldier's family has already begun.

Vij said he will soon meet the Defence Minister in Delhi so that benefits that are given to martyrs by the Union government could also be extended to Singh's family.

The parents and wife of Singh and another Garud Commando, Shailabh Gaur, a resident of Ambala cantonment who was injured in the Pathankot terror attack, would be honoured at a district-level function on Republic Day at Ambala, he added.
Haryana is expecting a spike in foreign investments from China after eight MoUs were signed today with top companies to set up a USD 10 billion industrial park and smart cities in the state during Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar's trip to woo investors here.

These MoUs were signed with top Chinese companies like Wanda Group, China Land Development Company Private Limited, and ZTE Corporation.

The MoUs were signed during the Investment Roadshow organised here, attended by representatives of more than 100 top notch Chinese companies.

Khattar made a strong pitch for Haryana as an ideal investment destination based on its strategic location, excellent infrastructure and supportive administrative system.

The chief minister also highlighted the changes introduced by his government through various policy reforms in the governance mechanism through Ease of Doing Business, On Line approval system under single roof and Incentives to the industry.

He also invited the attendees to participate in the Haryana Global Investors Summmit schedule for March 7 and 8, in Gurgaon.

The chief minister met Wanda Group Chairman Wang Jianlin and a MoU was signed for development of a World Class Comprehensive Industrial Park at Kharkhoda district in Sonipat.

Wanda Group will invest a total of USD 10 billion to develop "Wanda Industrial New City" over an area of approximately 13 square kilometers.

The government also signed a MoU with ZTE Corporation for the development of smart cities in Haryana.

Another MoU was signed with China Fortune Land Development Company Private Limited (CFLD) for development of large format Industrial Parks in Haryana.

CFLD would set up Industrial Park(s) in the state either at Madina in Rohtak district or at Bidhal Lath Gohana in Sonipat district over an area of more than 300 acres.

An MoU was also signed with Inspur Group, which plans to invest USD 100 million in IDC, CDN and cable-box manufacture plant.

The Chief Minister is leading an official and business delegation to Japan and China to invite foreign direct investment to the state.

Khattar has curtailed his visit to China due to the Indo-



French business summit on January 24 in Chandigarh, which will be attended by Prime Minsiter Narendra Modi and French President Francois Hollande.
Doesnt it seem like almost every other week President Barack Obama does something affecting North Dakota citizens in a negative way either through executive order or via directive from one of the government agencies?

First it was the Keystone XL pipeline veto, then it was the order by the Environmental Protection Agency to reduce carbon emissions by a ridiculous number (45 percent), followed by the executive order on gun licensing, and Jan. 14 the order from the Department of the Interior halting new coal leases on federal land.

Each of them will cause consumer price increases for energy, loss of high-paying jobs or restrictions on liberties for North Dakotans.

Each of them with the sole purpose of ingratiating Obamas party to a special-interest group during an election year or to build a legacy for himself as the president who took down the fossil fuel industry.

The latest of the unilateral decisions to come out was the news last week that coal leases were being suspended on federal land. The directive suspended at least 30 applications from companies seeking to mine hundreds of millions of tons of coal. Included are projects in nine states including North Dakota, Wyoming, and Montana.

To some the restriction of leases on federal land might seem as no big deal, but when you consider 41 percent of all coal in the United States is located on federal land it becomes a big deal.

The goal of the suspension is to give the federal government a timeout to evaluate the current royalty rates coal mining companies are paying to the federal government, which the president and his team feel are too low. Coal industry groups counter that any increase in royalty rates will hurt consumers and threaten high-paying jobs.

Reaction from Republicans in Washington was harsh:

 Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell called the announcement just the latest front in an ideological war on coal that has contributed to the loss of thousands of jobs in coal states.

 Rep. Rob Bishop, chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, said, Unfortunately, the presidents bid to solidify his legacy with the extreme left will come at the expense of Americas energy needs and will make the lives of people more expensive and more uncomfortable.

 House Speaker Paul Ryan said Obamas policies have already ravaged coal country, destroying jobs and peoples way of life, and this will increase that suffering.

According to a 2013 North Dakota State University study, the lignite industry, directly and indirectly, employs about 15,500 people in North Dakota, with many high-paying jobs at the mines and power plants. The same study indicated the lignite industry contributes about $3.3 billion in total business activity per year, along with generating about $97 million in taxes paid to the state.

The order has a potential to be a major blow to our economy.

It is our regular opinion that we do not like action taken through executive order and it is our belief the marketplace will dictate the future of coal without executive action and it will do it at a pace that allows the economy to adapt to the change. The action by the president was executive overreach.
The Patna High Court today dismissed a petition filed by opposition BJP against the Patna Divisional Commissioner for 'denying' an auditorium to the party on January 24 to celebrate the birth anniversary of socialist leader Karpoori Thakur but giving it to ruling JD(U) on that date.

Justice K K Mandal dismissed the petition filed on behalf of state BJP leader Mangal Pandey challenging the Commissioner's order alloting S K Memorial Hall on January 24 to JD(U) and not the petitioner.

S K Memorial Hall is an auditorium, stated to be the largest one in Bihar, which was established in honour of the state's first Chief Minister Sri Krishna Sinha.

Despite accepting application as well booking money from BJP, the petitioner said the Commissioner's office did not allot it to the party.

Government counsel argued in the court that JD(U) had given the application for the venue on January 24 much earlier than BJP and had also deposited money for it.

The counsel said the Commissioner's office gave BJP only receipt of the money they had deposited of the venue and not any allotment letter.

The court questioned the petitioner as to why it did not make JD(U) a party in its writ and why it challenged the order (non-allotment of the venue) close to date of the birth anniversary and not earlier when its application was rejected.

The judge then dismissed the petition.
The Madras High Court today dismissed a contempt petition filed against Tamil lyricist Vairamuthu by a film financier.

A division bench comprising justices R Sudhakar and P N Prakash dismissed the petition filed by Mukanchand Bothra as not maintainable.

Bothra submitted that Vairamuthu in his speech at a function here on September 12 last year had "raised doubts about the faith, integrity and purity of judges among the public, especially about judges who are on the verge of retirement", and sought to initiate suo motu contempt proceedings against the lyricist.

(Reopens LGM1)



The bench, in its order, said it "has not taken suo motu proceedings and in the absence of consent of the Advocate General, which is a condition precedent for entertaining such a petition as had been held by the Supreme Court in a catena of judgements, we have no hesitation in holding that the contempt petition is not maintainable."



It also quoted an apex court observation in a judgement that "the dignity of the ocean lies not in its fury capable of causing destruction, but in its vast expanse and depth with enormous tolerance."



The bench took note of Vairamuthu's apology.

In its order, the bench said, "The respondent has clearly stated that he has absolute respect for the judiciary and an apology has also been tendered by him for the unintended hurt that his words may have caused, which shows that he has no disrespect for the institution as such he holds the institution in high respect. The said apology is also taken on record.
The Madras High Court today ordered issue of notices to Tamil Nadu Home Secretary, Chennai Corporation Commissioner and Superintendent of Storm Water and Canals on a petition by social activist "Traffic" Ramaswamy seeking a direction for compensation to his son-in-law, whose vehicles were damaged in the recent floods.

While rejecting the objection raised by Special Government Pleader R Rajeswaran regarding the locus standi of Ramaswamy to file the petition, Justice T S Sivagnanam in his order said, "in the instant case, the petitioner is the father-in-law of the aggrieved person. Therefore the objection rose with regard to the petitioner's locus standi to file the present writ petition stands rejected."



Ramaswamy submitted that the Chennai Corporation had laid road on the water canals, particularly in Thyagaraya Nagar, which leads to Teynampet which has resulted in the flooding and damaging the vehicles of his son-in-law.

He claimed a total loss Rs 4,36,700 including for damages to the car and two wheeler of his son-in-law.

He contended that he had given a representation to the authorities on December 26 last year but no action was taken.

"The grievance of the petitioner is that a canal which was running in the backside of his property has been closed and authorities had laid road which has resulted in flooding. The question is as to whether the state can be held liable to compensate the petitioner's family for the loss suffered by them", the said and posted the matter for further hearing to February 12.
Citing the Dadri lynching incident, the Shiv Sena today cautioned senior ally BJP against the statements by some of its leaders on the suicide by a Dalit student in Hyderabad "boomeranging" on the party.

The Sena, however, gave a clean chit to Union ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya who are under attack over the suicide of Rohith Vemula and whose resignations have been demanded by Congress and other opposition parties, saying they are victims of "politicisation" of the incident.

"BJP General Secretary P Muralidhar Rao has said that Rohit's mental condition was not stable and he supported terrorism. There is a high chance that such statements will boomerang (on the party)" the Sena said in an editorial in party mouthpiece 'Saamana.'



"The BJP has experienced this during the Dadri incident. Some comments made by their leaders to defend the incident boomeranged on the party. Finally, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had to intervene," the Sena said.

Some BJP leaders including Union Minister Mahesh Sharma and UP MLA Sangeet Som had made controversial remarks over the lynching of a Muslim man on September 28 in Dadri in Uttar Pradesh's Greater Noida, a Delhi suburb, on suspicion of eating beef. The remarks came ahead of the Bihar Assembly polls which BJP lost.

The Sena said the death of Rohith Vemula has taken a political turn, more so, because it involves a Dalit.

"Seeking Union ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya's resignation is part of politics being played around the issue," the Sena said.

"We believe that there should be a detailed investigation into the incident at the Hyderabad Central University which made Rohith take the extreme step and the perpetrators should punished," it added.

Training its guns on Rahul Gandhi, the Sena said that Congress Vice President is one of those politicians who is milking the issue for political gains and warned that the issue may take a turn for the worse if leaders do not stop politicising the issue.
Pakistan today decided to form a high-level committee to investigate security arrangements made on the day of the deadly terror attack on Bacha Khan University in which 21 people, mostly students, were killed.

The probe committee will identify elements responsible for any negligence in security of the university and was directed to submit its report within five days.

The high-level panel would be led by Commissioner Peshawar division.

The decision was taken during an extraordinary meeting of the Apex Committee with Governor Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Sardar Mehtab Ahmed Khan held at the Governor House here in the wake of the Wednesday attack that also injured several people.

The meeting was attended by senior officials including Chief Minister Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Pervez Khattak and Corps Commander Lt Gen Hidayatur Rehman.

The Apex Committee reviewed the development and progress made in the investigation of the terror attack on the university in Charsadda, some 50 kms southwest of Peshawar, in a grim reminder of the army school carnage in 2014.

The Committee was told that on credible information, effective action has been taken against the gang and facilitators involved in the horrific attack.

The political and military leadership reiterated their strong commitment and firm resolve to bring the killers of innocent children and citizens to justice and that they would be dealt with iron hands.

The meeting also reviewed progress on National Action Plan (NAP) to combat terrorism, besides reviewing the law and order situation in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and FATA (Federally Administered Tribal Areas).

The committee decided to review protective measures put in place for all educational institutes of the province and said action would be taken against those who did not take mandatory security measures for safety of their schools.

The committee stressed the need for effective measures for solution of problems related to border management to counter the menace of terrorism.
The Meghalaya BJP today demanded the resignation of Urban Affairs Minister Ampareen Lyngdoh for her alleged role in granting permission to illegal high-rise in the state.

"The Congress government should remove the minister to allow a free and fair probe in the scam," BJP state president Shibun Lyngdoh said.

He said the minister should have stepped down on her own after being named in the CBI findings on the high rise scam.

The Opposition United Democratic Party (UDP) has also demanded her removal for her alleged role in the scam.

"It is your prerogative, to immediately drop her (Lyngdoh) from the cabinet, considering the fact that till date, the minister has not taken any position on this matter," party general secretary A F Dkhar said in a letter to the Chief Minister.

In its January 7 order, the Meghalaya High Court had granted the CBI permission to register an FIR at New Delhi against the minister and 21 others including MUDA officials and high-rise building owners.
Noting that both India and Israel face the challenge of state-sponsored terrorism and cross border semi-military activities, Israeli envoy here Daniel Carmon said the partnership is not just another option but almost a necessity today.

Pitching Israel as a partner for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Make in India' initiative, he said the first focus should be to develop adaptive capabilities to counter terrorism.

He said Indo-Israel ties are based on three basic foundations - shared values, joint interests and common challenges.

"Most relevant today is our similar security and defence challenges, including the global and local war on terror. This partnership with India is not just another option, it is almost a necessity today," he said.

He underlined that overcoming challenges together is needed also because of the changing nature of the battlefield and because of the new global world we live in.

"Terror groups operate simultaneously in different places around the globe, sometimes learning from other terror groups. States promote terror more than ever, supporting cross border semi-military activities, sometime in third countries. We both face similar challenges that require similar solutions," he said.

On 'Make in India', Carmon said Israel has been following Indian government's initiative.

"Our Defence Minister was in India last year and held extensive talks on the matter and said that we are interested in taking part in Make In India and have proven more than once in the past that we are open to the concept of transfer of advanced high technology and joint development.

"As a matter of fact, we're already practically engaged in very specific projects of Make in India. There are already a number of examples of successful joints initiatives between Israel and India in the fields of defence. Barak 8 is only one of them. We should strive to develop even further this unique partnership in defence," he said.

He said Israel was willing to create more platforms of joint R&D to pinpoint shared challenges, discuss and plan solutions together and manufacture them together.

Both sides have a lot to gain from this collaboration. Both sides have already gained from this kind of partnership, he said.

On global terrorism, he said developing indigenous and local capabilities to confront these challenges is a first step.

The challenges we are facing today are not about to vanish but rather they will transform and reshape. Our response, based on cooperation, should aim first and foremost to develop adaptive capabilities suitable for these times and these challenges. Our main focus was, is and will be to create mutual benefit through real and equal partnership," he said.
Throwing of ink on Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was a "clear-cut case of security lapse" and Delhi Police did not behave responsibly in protecting him, a city court said today while granting bail to the woman accused in the recent incident.

Noting that Kejriwal was "fortunate enough that liquid contained in the bottle was simply ink", Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Sanjay Kumar Aggarwal said "one may imagine what would have been the situation in case, god forbid, the bottle could have contained some corrosive substance like acid etc, mixed with ink."



"If Chief Minister of Delhi is not safe, one may wonder as to what will be the fate of ordinary prudent citizens of Delhi," he wondered.

"I fail to understand as to how a bottle containing ink could not be detected during frisking. This is a clear-cut case of security lapses on part of police, especially in the circumstances when the public gathering was addressed in a walled stadium and not in an unfenced ground," the judge said.

He, however, enlarged 26-year-old Bhawna Arora on bail on furnishing a personal bond of Rs 10,000 with one surety of the like amount, saying "no useful purpose shall be served by keeping the applicant behind bars".

The police, "it appears, has not taken any lesson from the past. It is highly regrettable that even despite having earlier experiences of such incidents, the police could not behave responsibly to take effective steps for the protection of the Chief Minister and others present at the stage," the court said.

It noted that "security of constitutional authorities is the responsibility of the State and the police should re-look and revisit its system of providing security to them after learning from bad experiences in the past."



The court also said the police should "strengthen and train itself" to tackle such incidents and expressed its displeasure as to "how the bottle containing ink could not be detected during frisking."



During arguments on bail, Arora's counsel Pradeep Rana said it was not right to throw ink on the head of State but it was the sentiment of his client, "a young woman, who despite continuous efforts for bringing to light certain scam before the CM, was not afforded any opportunity by him or his cabinet colleagues."



"She has already got lesson, more than she deserved in the matter and no purpose would be served by keeping her in jail," Rana said while alleging that record has been manipulated by the police only to send her to jail.

The police opposed Arora's bail plea saying the accused



has committed an offence against the head of the State and matter was still under investigation. It said that the conspiracy angle was also being probed.

The police also termed the attack on the Chief Minister as an "attack on the democracy" and sought dismissal of her plea saying a deterrent was required to curb such incidents.

In its order, the court also had a word of caution for the accused saying, "the practice adopted by applicant (Arora) for raising her grievances is insalubrious and she could have opted for some legal platform for the same, rather than by adopting and resorting to such type of condemnable acts."



"In a developed democracy, it is the duty of the persons who have got mandate to redress the grievances of the public and also in order to highlight and apprise their achievements to the public so as to keep the citizens abreast of all development programmes undertaken by them. Such type of incidents no doubt are shameful and against the very system of administration," the court said.

Arora, who was in judicial custody, had allegedly thrown ink at Kejriwal at a 'thanksgiving' rally held at Chhatrasal Stadium on January 17 to celebrate the successful completion of the odd-even car rationing scheme in Delhi.

The woman, who had claimed to be a member of the Punjab unit of Aam Aadmi Sena, a splinter group of Delhi's ruling AAP, was later whisked away by police and questioned at the Model Town police station.

Arora had claimed she had "proof in the form of a CD" on the CNG scam. A resident of Rama Vihar in outer Delhi's Rohini sub-city, she was booked for alleged offences under sections 186 (obstructing public servant in discharge of duty) and 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) of the IPC.
Investment through Participatory Notes (P-Notes) into India's capital markets has hit a 15-month low of Rs 2.35 lakh crore at the end of December.

P-Notes, mostly used by overseas HNIs (High Net Worth Individuals), hedge funds and other foreign institutions, allow investors to invest in Indian markets through registered foreign institutional investors (FIIs).

This saves time and cost for them, but the flip side is that the route can also be used for round-tripping of black money.

According to Sebi data, total value of P-Notes investment in Indian markets (equity, debt and derivatives) declined to Rs 2,35,534 crore at the end of December from Rs 2,54,600 crore in the previous month.

This is the lowest level since September 2014, when the cumulative value of such investments stood at Rs 2.22 lakh crore.

In October, investment was at Rs 2.58 lakh crore through this route.

The total outstanding value of P-Notes witnessed a steady rise since January and the momentum continued till March.

However, investments through this route registered a drop in April, but hit a seven-year high in May. The inflows slipped in the subsequent three months (June-August) but marginally rose in September and October and again fell in November as well as in December.

The drop in investment via P-Notes during June-August came when Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) on black money asked Sebi to review its regulations on participatory notes to help identify the end users of these instruments.

However, the government later said it had no intention of banning this financial instrument overnight.

The quantum (percentage) of FII investments via P-Notes fell to 10.1 per cent from 11 per cent.

Till a few years ago, P-Notes used to account for more than 50 per cent of total FII investment, but their share has fallen over the years after Sebi tightened disclosure norms and other related regulations.

As things stand, P-Notes make up around 15-20 per cent of the total FII investment in India since 2009. While it used to be much higher, 25-40 per cent in 2008, the reading was as high as over 50 per cent at the peak of stock market bull run in 2007.

In absolute terms, the value of P-Notes investment rose to a record of Rs 4.5 lakh crore in October 2007, but dropped to Rs 3.22 lakh crore in February 2008 and Rs 60,948 crore in February 2009.

Of these 37 ODI-issuing FPIs, the top-ten accounted for



nearly 73 per cent of the total outstanding ODIs, which stood at Rs 2,23,077 crore as on March 31, 2016 or about 10 per cent of the total asset under custody of all FPIs registered in India.

This ratio has come down significantly from over 55 per cent at the peak of bull run in Indian stock market in 2007.

Top on the list was Morgan Stanley Asia (Singapore) Pte with nearly 14 per cent share in the total outstanding ODIs, followed by Copthall Mauritius Investment Ltd (nearly 12 per cent), Goldman Sachs (Singapore) Pte (over 9 per cent), Credit Suisse (Singapore) Ltd (nearly 7 per cent) and HSBC Bank (Mauritius) Ltd (over 6 per cent).

Also in the top-ten were Merrill Lynch Capital Markets Espana of Spain, Citigroup Global Markets Mauritius, Swiss Financial Corp (Mauritius), JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association (USA) and Citicorp Investment Bank of Singapore with 4-6 per cent share each.

While there are apprehensions that the stricter set of norms will make it costlier to invest in India through P-Notes as one of the major attractions of such instrument is cost-effectiveness and easier access, most of the ODI issuers consulted by Sebi have agreed to a majority of new measures being put in place to check any misuse.

Apart from the requirement of reporting about positions of ODIs, the issuers would be now required to provide further details about the end beneficial owner and comply with onshore KYC norms.

The latest changes would make the regulatory framework in India more stringent than many developed and developing nations.

Rules have been tightened several times in recent years to check any misuse of this route, but P-Notes have still continued to court controversies.

These instruments are in vogue in various other markets by different names such as Equity Linked Notes, Capped Return Notes, Total Return Swaps, Participating Return Swaps, Credit Linked Loan, Equity Linked Certificates.

ODIs are issued by an FPI overseas as market access products against securities held by it that are listed or are proposed to be listed on a stock exchange in India, as its underlying. These underlying securities can be equity, debt, derivatives, index, a basket of securities from different jurisdictions with a portion being Indian securities or indices, or a basket of Indian securities.

The ODIs include over-the-counter derivatives documented through a bilateral contract, as also the securitised instruments such as notes, certificates or warrants.
Iran accused the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation today of bowing to Riyadh's agenda after the world Muslim body condemned Tehran over the attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in the country.

The statement issued at the end of an OIC meeting yesterday at its headquarters in the Saudi city of Jeddah "ignored the reality over the incident at the Saudi embassy and the rapid actions of the Islamic republic... To calm the situation", said foreign ministry spokesman Hossein Jaber Ansari.

Ansari, quoted by state agency IRNA, said the OIC had "in effect put itself at the service of the objectives of a single country" by raising the issue although it was not on the agenda of the Jeddah meeting.

A final statement, issued after a meeting of foreign ministers of the 57-member grouping, said the OIC "condemns the aggressions against the missions of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Tehran and Mashhad".

It followed an extraordinary meeting requested by Saudi Arabia after protesters in Iran in early January set fire to the embassy in Tehran and a consulate in the second city of Mashhad.

Such "aggressions" contravene international law as well as the OIC charter, said the communique, which member state Iran rejected.

The violence against Riyadh's missions occurred after Saudi Arabia executed dissident Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr, a driving force behind anti-government protests in the kingdom.

Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia and some of its allies cut diplomatic ties with Shiite-dominated Iran as a result of the attacks on its missions.
Schools in Bismarck-Mandan ballooned with students as the oil industry brought newcomers to the state, and so far the slowdown in the patch isnt stopping new ones from enrolling.

Mandan Public Schools gained 136 K-12 students this year, bringing the school districts total enrollment to 3,586. Its projected to hit 4,151 by the 2019-20 school year.

Mandan Superintendent Mike Bitz knows the numbers will continue to climb. He pointed to Morton Countys birth rate, which spiked in 2015. The year marked the largest increase in births since at least 1997.

In five years, todays infants will be kindergartners.

Bitz said elementary space is adequate now, though the six schools are expected to grow by 300 students to nearly 2,100 in four years. If that happens, the district may need to consider a new school down the road, he said.

The school district could build on 24.5 acres of land it owns in the Lakewood area north of McKenzie Drive.

A more pressing issue is Mandan Middle School, which is at capacity now with 839 students and is slated to increase by 100 students in three years.

Most of the concern would be classroom space, Assistant Superintendent Jeff Lind said.

An addition to the middle school might be doable without going for a bond, though its up to the school board to decide how to move forward, Bitz said.

Enrollment in Mandan has mirrored the growth in Bismarck Public Schools.

We would expect what happens to Bismarck is going to happen here, Superintendent Mike Bitz said.

Bismarck

Bismarck Public Schools, which started the school year with 12,400 students, is slated to exceed 14,200 students in four years, according to the most recent projections from RSP and Associates, the planning firm that contracts with the school district.

But as the oil slowdown persists, those with an eye on enrollment wonder whether the district will hit 14,200 students by the 2019-20 school year.

Superintendent Tamara Uselman pointed to elementary enrollment as an indication of what may be to come.

Its less frantic now, she said.

The number of students attending Bismarck elementary schools increased by roughly 250 each of the past three school years through 2014-15. When the current school year started, the schools welcomed only 154 more students than the previous year.

Nevertheless, the district is still growing. Uselman doesnt anticipate that to reverse any time soon.

There are still jobs, and there are still kids moving in, she said.

Rob Schwarz, CEO of RSP, keeps a close eye on factors that drive population in Bismarck. He also contracts with school districts in the Bakken and elsewhere in North Dakota.

He presented enrollment projections to the Bismarck School Board in February 2015 and said he anticipates producing updated numbers next year.

A possible slowdown in growth will reveal itself in time.

Were waiting for some of the data sets that become available in the spring, said Schwarz, adding that kindergarten enrollment and new development projects will indicate how fast the district may grow.

Growth, at whatever rate, is relatively certain for Bismarck-Mandan schools. The region is slated for expansion in sectors such as the medical industry, Schwarz said. With a larger workforce comes more children needing an education.

Assistant Superintendent Fran Rodenburg updates a chart weekly with enrollment numbers at each of Bismarcks elementary schools. The district already has opened two new elementary schools in the past two years as the student population soared.

Its still significant, she said. Its just that were slowing at the elementary level. That growth is bubbling up to the middle school level.

Assistant Superintendent Ben Johnson, who oversees secondary education, anticipates a big jump in middle school enrollment as elementary students new to the district over the past few years age.

Without taking into consideration any new students who move to the district, he said Bismarcks middle and high schools will be filled with 500 additional students in three years. That estimate is based on the current number of third-, fourth- and fifth-graders.

Horizon and Simle middle schools are already over capacity, and Wachter Middle School is expected to join them in two years, Johnson said.

Expanding facilities

Bismarck school officials have launched an effort to gather community input on how to best accommodate the ongoing influx of students.

A group of 75 parents has met three times this school year to discuss the growth, and members have toured schools to better understand needs at various facilities. RSP is guiding that process and will convene two public forums this month to get feedback from the community.

Uselman said theyre discussing the merits of building more schools such as another elementary or a fourth middle school. The district also could build additions at each of the existing three middle schools.

Bismarck Public Schools recently purchased more than 70 acres of land in the northern part of the city, which could provide the site of a new school down the road.

The group is also identifying options including repurposing an elementary school to house district services, such as the new English language learner Welcome Center or Bismarck Early Childhood Education Program, Uselman said.

At the end of March, the school board is slated to review the information gleaned from those public forums and another in early March. Its then up to the board to adopt a plan.

We want to see if we can do something without raising taxes from what they are today, Uselman said.
The Islamic State seems to have inadvertently saved a fleet of A-10 US Air Force jets from being mothballed as the ground attack aircraft have been useful in the military campaign against the terror group in Iraq and Syria.

"When we made the decision on retiring the A-10, we made those decisions prior to ISIL, we were not in Iraq, we were coming out of Afghanistan to a large extent, we didn't have a resurgent Russia," the US Air Force's vice chief of staff General David Goldfein said.

Goldfein told Defense that the rise of the Islamic State and the US air campaign to fight it has prompted the service to reconsider plans to retire the A-10 jets.

Nicknamed "Warthog", the jets first joined the US Air Force fleet in 1975.

The Air Force's version of the F-35 will eventually replace the A-10 Thunderbolt, but those new jets are just coming online and are not battle tested like the A-10, which has seen combat in Iraq, Afghanistan and recently in Syria against Islamic State terrorists, CNN reported.

Earlier this month, media reports, quoting unnamed Pentagon officials, said retirement of the A-10 would not be part of the Pentagon budget request that will be submitted to Congress next month.

The report about pushing back the A-10's retirement drew praise from Republican Senator John McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

"I welcome reports that the Air Force has decided to keep the A-10 aircraft flying through fiscal year 2017, ensuring our troops have the vital close air support they need for missions around the world.

Today, the A-10 fleet is playing an indispensable role in the fight against ISIL in Iraq and assisting NATO's efforts to deter Russian aggression in Eastern Europe," he said.

"With growing global chaos and turmoil on the rise, we simply cannot afford to prematurely retire the best close air support weapon in our arsenal without fielding a proper replacement," McCain said in a statement.

The A-10s can circle over a target for long periods and is maneuverable at low speeds and altitudes.

When ground troops find themselves in trouble, A-10 pilots can accurately engage ground targets with its powerful 30 mm, seven-barrel Gatling gun, which fires depleted uranium bullets at 3,900 rounds per minute.

The A-10's role in the fight against ISIS was highlighted in November, when A-10s combined with AC-130 gunships to destroy 116 ISIS fuel tanker trucks.
Israeli security forces evicted dozens of Jewish settlers from two homes in the heart of the West Bank city of Hebron today, a day after they had moved in.

Dozens of settlers left the house on the morning, carrying their possessions and accompanied by Israeli border police, an AFP photographer on the scene said.

Police later welded the doors of the homes shut, the photographer said.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld confirmed 80 people had been removed from the homes, with the evacuation occurring without incident.

The buildings stand near a religious site known to Jews as the Cave of the Patriarchs and to Muslims as the Ibrahimi Mosque in the heart of the flashpoint southern West Bank city.

The families had moved in yesterday after buying the homes from Palestinian families, the settlers said.

Shlomo Levinger, a settler in one of the buildings, said the properties were vacant when they moved in.

However, the move had not been coordinated with the Israeli security forces ahead of time.

In Hebron, where 500 Jewish settlers live protected by Israeli forces in a city of around 200,000 Palestinians, the expansion of the Jewish enclave is a fiercely contested matter.

Under Palestinian law, it is illegal to sell homes to Israelis in the West Bank but a very small number still do so.

Israeli Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon would have to approve the settlers' move, which would in effect expand the boundaries of the Jewish area in Hebron.

Three members of parliament from ruling parties announced on today they would not vote with the government again on any matters until the settlers were returned to the homes.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government has a majority of just one in Israel's Knesset, or parliament.

Jewish settlements in the West Bank, which Israel seized in 1967, have been declared illegal by the international community.
Diversified group ITC Ltd today posted a marginal rise in stand-alone net profit at Rs 2,652.8 crore for the third quarter ended December as its cigarette business continued to be under pressure, coupled with a demand slowdown in FMCG segment.

The Kolkata-based company, which had posted a net profit of Rs 2,635 crore during the same period of 2014-15, also said lack of trading opportunities in agri-commodities also impacted its performance.

Net sales in the period under review were up 3.43 per cent to Rs 9,102.7 crore as against Rs 8,800.2 crore of October-December of the previous fiscal, ITC said in a statement.

"The company's performance during the quarter remained subdued, reflecting severe pressure on legal cigarette industry volumes, lack of trading opportunities in agri-commodities and sluggish demand environment prevailing in the FMCG industry," ITC said in a statement.

Revenue from the total FMCG business, including cigarettes, increased 6.21 per cent to Rs 6,857.5 crore, from Rs 6,456.1 crore in the corresponding quarter of 2014-15.

During the quarter, revenue from cigarettes increased 5.74 per cent to Rs 4,379.9 crore, from Rs 4,141.9 crore in the year-ago period.

"The performance of the cigarettes business remained muted during the quarter due to taxation and regulatory headwinds facing the legal cigarette industry in India," the company said.

Similarly, revenue from the other FMCG segment was up 7.06 per cent to Rs 2,477.7 crore during October-December as against Rs 2,314.1 crore last fiscal.

"Weak demand - particularly in rural markets - coupled with a price deflationary environment and supply chain disruption caused by heavy rainfall and floods in Chennai impacted revenue growth," said ITC.

ITC's other FMCG segment includes branded packaged foods business such as staples, snacks and meals, dairy and beverages and confectionery; apparel, education and stationary products, personal care products, safety matches and aggarbattis.

Revenue from hotel business grew 4.54 per cent to Rs 345.3 crore, compared with Rs 330.3 crore in the same period last year.

"Despite a challenging operating environment, the segment revenue recorded a growth of 4.5 per cent driven by improvement in room occupancy and good growth in the food and beverage segment," the company said.

It further said during the quarter, ITC's hotels in Chennai also had to contend with business disruption due to heavy rainfall and floods in the city.

ITC's revenue from agri business segment fell 7.31 per



cent to Rs 1,481 crore, from Rs 1,597.9 crore in the same period last year.

"Segment revenue and profits for the quarter were impacted by lack of export opportunities in wheat, soya and coffee, besides subdued demand for Indian leaf tobacco exports," said ITC.

Besides this, a steep currency depreciation in competing geographies also weighed on the prospects of agri-commodity exports from India, it added.

Revenue from paperboards, paper and packaging business was up 5.11 per cent at Rs 1,260 crore, compared with Rs 1,198.8 crore in the same period last year.

"The muted demand environment prevailing in the FMCG and cigarette industry weighed on the performance of the paperboards, paper and packaging segment," it said.

"Reduction of import duties under various free trade agreements, especially with ASEAN (which became effective January 1, 2014), coupled with cheap imports from China continued to adversely impact the domestic paper and paperboard industry".

Meanwhile, ITC in a separate filing said its Chief Financial Officer Rajiv Tandon has been appointed its director on the board. "He is responsible for finance, accounting, internal audit and investment subsidiaries of the company," said ITC.

The stock today settled at Rs 308.65, up 0.69 per cent, on BSE.

When one of the shareholders pointed out that ITC was



sitting on a huge pile of cash and bank balance, Deveshwar said, "We want to consume every penny, but the main problem is getting approvals. It takes a long time to get permission which is delaying our investment plans".

Referring to Patanjali, he said, "I am proud that it has built an Indian brand...We must salute that".

He said competition was good for the customers and ITC would compete.

"Even that is true for Amul. One will like these brands to prosper. It is our aspiration to make ITC an Indian MNC. But charity begins at home. ITC will first focus on the domestic market," he said.

Regarding investments in West Bengal, he said that two new plants would be ready by September and early next year. Besides, ITC was already coming up with a 1.6 million-square-foot hotel property next to the existing ITC Sonar in Kolkata.

Yesterday, ITC launched the 'Fabelle' premium chocolate lounge at ITC Sonar.
Janata Dal (U) leaders K C Tyagi and Pawan Verma, and CPI (M) Rajya Sabha MP T N Seema were among prominent leaders who called upon Hyderabad Central University (HCU) students here today who are protesting over the suicide of dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula.

Seema, a member of the Court of HCU, said she has written to the President, the Visitor of the university, stating it's difficult for her to continue on the post unless a meeting of the body is called.

Being a member of the university's Court, Semma said, she will try to meet the officials of the varsity as she is visiting the institution.

Hitting out at the NDA government at the Centre, the RS MP alleged it is trying to keep dalits away from institutions of higher education.

"I think this is a systematic way of eradicating dalit students from higher education institutions...They are using ABVP and others...," she charged.

JD (U) leader Tyagi said his party would bring the ongoing row to the notice of the President.

He said a free and fair investigation into the matter would not be possible if Union ministers Smriti Irani, Bandaru Dattatreya, and Vice-Chancellor Appa Rao Podile continued in their posts.

Meanwhile, some students said internet connection in the campus was not available, while others said they cannot confirm it.
Actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt has been named Harvard University's Hasty Pudding's Man of the Year.

It was announced on January 21 that the "Inception" star would be honoured by the university's Hasty Pudding Theatricals organisation, reported Female First.

Every year, the company chooses one actor and one actress to 'roast' in a hilarious ceremony at Harvard Square.

On February 5, Joseph will take home his pudding pot.

Hasty Pudding Theatricals said in a statement, "The Pudding is excited to honour a performer who is not only a talented actor but also a visionary entrepreneur who developed a revolutionary platform for artistic content creation and distribution."



Previous winners of the award include Robert De Niro, Harrison Ford and Clint Eastwood, with Chris Pratt receiving the honour in 2015.

"Perusing the impressive list of past Hasty Pudding Men Of The Year, I'm simultaneously struck with intense delusions of grandeur and mild waves of humility," Joseph, 34, said in a statement.

The "3rd Rock from the Sun" actor first shot to fame when he starred in 1992 movie "A River Runs Through It", before the sitcom transformed him into a household name.

He has since starred in films such as "(500) Days of Summer", "Looper" and "The Walk", with his next project seeing him star as Edward Snowden in Oliver Stone's "Snowden".

Kerry Washington is the Hasty Pudding's Woman of the Year, it was previously announced.
Engineering and construction giant Larsen & Toubro (L&T) today said its consortium with Sojitz Corp of Japan has won a Rs 1,213 crore project from Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Ltd (DFCCIL).

"The Railways Unit, a part of the transportation infrastructure business of L&T Construction, has won a major order worth Rs 1,213 crore from the DFCCIL," it said in a statement.

The order has been secured by a consortium of Larsen & Toubro Ltd and Sojitz Corp, Japan.

The design and build order involves electrification works for a 422 kms section of the western dedicated freight corridor from Vadodara in Gujarat to JNPT (near Mumbai) in Maharashtra, it said.

The section spanning across two states is in continuation to the Rewari - Vadodara Section (915 km) for which L&T Construction is already executing the electrification works with similar design.

"Both these projects put together make it one of the largest railway electrification projects in the world, covering 1,337 route kms with over 3,000 track kms of highrise railway electrification," the company said.

This section will be designed for 2x25 kV traction power systems with high-rise Overhead Equipment (OHE) suitable for double stack containers dedicated for freight transport, it added.

The scope of work includes construction of seven traction substations (TSS) out of which one TSS will be GIS based, 40 switching stations, 897 track kms of OHE, works at 12 stations and an operational control centre along with the supply of all associated equipment, the statement said.

Traction power transformers, auto transformers and copper conductors will be imported from Japan for this project, it added.

"The project is scheduled to be completed in 42 months. It will be executed using mechanized means of OHE installation using the latest technology in railway construction. This will be a one-of-its-kind energy efficient system to be implemented for India's rail sector," L&T said.

DFCCIL is a special purpose vehicle of the Indian Railways, mandated to build dedicated freight corridors.

This project is funded by Japan International Cooperation Agency and is part of the 1,490 kms western corridor proposed between Dadri (near Delhi) and Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (near Mumbai).

L&T is an Indian multinational engaged in technology, engineering, construction, manufacturing and financial services with over $15 billion in revenue.
A 25-year-old newly-recruited woman constable of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police was stabbed to death allegedly by her boyfriend in Haldwani today, police said.

Vimla Bisht, a resident of Dharchula area in Pithoragarh was stabbed to death by her boyfriend, Navin Singh (25), with a knife in Bhotia Parao area, police said.

According to Ram Singh Mehta, Incharge of Haldwani police station,Navin took the alleged step due to a "change in Vimla's behaviour" after she was recruited into ITBP.

The accused escaped from his rented house where he had called the victim, after the neighbours informed the police after hearing screams emanating from the lodging, Mehta said, adding Navin was later arrested from the Haldwani bus stand.

On interrogation, Navin confessed that he was in a relationship with Vimla and the couple had secretly married in a temple, the police official said.

The accused also suspected that Vimla was having an affair with someone else, Mehta added.
A development officer of LIC was today arrested here on charges of cheating by allegedly creating fake and forged documents of Telangana Rifle Association, police said.

Based on a tip-off, the Central Crime Station, a wing of Hyderabad police arrested Y Venkat Shiva Kumar.

According to a release from Hyderabad Police, Kumar started as a development officer in LIC in Hyderabad and he had joined also as member/shooter in Rifle Association of Andhra Pradesh in 2005.

He was later inducted as executive committee member in 2012 of the association. During his tenure as the member, the accused was also nominated as technical official of National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), it said.

"Taking advantage of this post, the accused used to lure participants and demand money from them to increase their scores in the events they participated," it said.

"After receiving several complaints from various participants, the association accordingly removed the accused from the position of executive committee member of the association," it said.

After the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in June 2014, the AP Rifle Association was divided into two units-- Rifle Association of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana Rifle Association.

Prior to bifurcation, Amith Sanghi was acting President for Rifle Association of Andhra Pradesh. At the time of bifurcation of both the association, the accused requested Sanghi to recommend him for the post of President or General Secretary in Rifle Association of Andhra Pradesh. However, since Sanghi refused to accept his request, Shiva Kumar bore grudge against Sanghi, police said.

"In order to create hurdles and inconvenience in smooth functioning of Telangana Rifle Association and to malign the image of the Association, the accused Shiva Kumar created fake and forged document i.E. Minutes of general body meeting which was held on May 10, 2014, by suppressing the real facts," police said.

Based on a complaint by Telangana Rifle Association, Kumar was arrested.
Asaduddin Owaisi's Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) has decided to field a Dalit candidate from Muslim-dominated Bikapur constituency of Faizabad for the February 13 Assembly bypoll.

Pradeep Kori,a Dalit youth, is the MIM candidate from Bikapur constituency. He is also the state president of Kori Society, an influential group among Dalit community members in the area.

The Assembly bypoll has been necessitated due to the death of sitting SP MLA Mitrasen Yadav.

Experimenting with his plan of Dalit-Muslim unity ahead of the 2017 UP assembly elections, Owaisi is all set to hold a series of public meetings in this area in the first week of February to drum up support for his party.

"We are concentrating our strength in this constituency as there are more than one lakh Muslim voters and Dalits also in equal numbers," State president of MIM Shauqat Ali told reporters.

A special team of MIM from Hyderabad, Bombay and Lucknow is camping in the area ahead of the polls.

"We have a lot to convince the Muslim community as they have traditionally supported the SP," said Ali.
Under pressure from agitation by students and associations of differently-abled people, Mizoram government today revoked the order for extension of service of Commissioner for People with Disabilities (PwD) B Sairengpuii.

Social Welfare Minister P C Lalthanliana said the government has revoked the order for extension of service of B Sairengpuii as PwD Commissioner.

Lalthanliana showed the government order in this regard to the leaders of the Mizo Students Union (MSU), spearheading the agitation demanding removal of Sairengpuii, younger sister of the Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla's wife Lal Riliani.

Thousands of students assembled near Vanapa Hall, a noted auditorium in the city, dispersed after hearing the but not before adopting three resolutions seeking immediate appointment of a qualified person in the post of the PwD Commissioner, drafting of recruitment rules for the PwD Commissioner and compensation for students injured in clashes with the police yesterday.

At least eight people including six policemen were injured when the police tried to disperse agitating students in front of the office of the PwD Commissioner yesterday.

The Mizo Students' Union (MSU), the Aizawl City College Joint Students Union (ACCJSU) and the Mizoram Blind Society have been protesting against the appointment and extension of the service of Sairengpuii.

They alleged that Sairengpuii, a retired state secretariat service officer, was appointed as PwD Commissioner though she did not have qualification to become one.
Comentarios y reflexiones sobre la actualidad politica y economica de Espana y del mundo
Criticising the recent killings of eminent scholars and writers and the 'inability' of the administration to prevent such hooliganism, noted historian Ramchandra Guha said Modi government was the "most anti-intellectual" dispensation the country ever had.

Expressing concerns over increasing threats to freedom of expression, Guha came down heavily on the BJP-led government for being "hostile" to the writers community.

"This government is arguably the most anti-intellectual (administration) we ever had," Guha said while delivering the first Vijay Tendulkar Memorial lecture at the Mumbai University here last evening.

Guha, however, said this kind of behaviour was not peculiar to the Modi government alone but across the board.

"All three (rationalist Narendra Dabholkar, CPI leader Govind Pansare and writer and scholar MM Kalburgi) were killed by rightwing Hindu groups for expressing their views," he alleged.

"Both the Congress and BJP could have prevented these murders as these killings happened when either the Congress or the BJP was in power in the state or the Centre," he said.

Talking about the rising culture of banning anything and everything at the drop of a hat, the historian warned that the nation was "slipping down to anarchy", while describing the present-day India as a 40:60 democracy.

Guha blamed former PM Rajiv Gandhi banning Slaman Rushdie's Satanic Verses in the late 1980s as the root cause of the 'ban culture' in the country.

He was quick to add that people today are eliminated for expressing their views and not just getting them exiled or their word banned.

Recalling his description of India as 50:50 democracy after his book 'India After Gandhi' in 2007, he said, "I have always believed that India is a 50:50 democracy. Here elections are held in a fair manner and we also have free movement of people but we lag in freedom of expression."



"But sadly and regrettably now it is a 40:60 democracy with the way intellectuals are eliminated or suppressed," he lamented.

Listing out eight major threats to freedom of expression in today's India, Guha admitted that such threats existed since the Independence but the last three-four years saw the intensity of such threats increasing manifold.

He said the first threat to freedom of expression lies in Indian law books in the form of retention of archaic colonial laws dealing with sedition, imperfection in our judicial system, over-dominance of identity politics, behaviour of police force, pusillanimous politicians, dependence of media on government and commercial advertisements and ideologically-driven writers.

Guha, however, also asserted that "though we lag behind many countries when it comes to freedom of expression we are ahead of many others."



"In respect of freedom of expression we are better than China and Russia but worse than Sweden, Canada and Australia. But I am happy to be born in India as no other country offers so much diversity and evolution at the same time as we get in here," he said.

Late Vijay Tendulkar was a towering Marathi writer, playwright and intellectual who never held back his opinion on issues concerning the society at large. He was also the brother of noted economist Suresh Tendulkar.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today thanked his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe for sharing with people of Japan the experiences he had had during their joint visit to this ancient temple town last month, and described the gesture as a "matter of pride for all Indians".

"I recently read a news report on the Internet about a speech delivered by Abe at a Buddhist conference. I was amazed to see that he had spoken at length about the wonderful experiences he had had when he visited Kashi, along with me, on December 12 and watched the 'Ganga Arti'", Modi said while addressing a function here.

"I deeply thank the Japanese PM for his kind words. I had felt grateful when he came to Kashi, which I have made my home, on my request, and took part in all the functions with great interest.

His wonderful remarks made before his own countrymen are a matter of pride not only for me but for all the residents of Varanasi, indeed all the countrymen", said Modi, who represents Varanasi in the Lok Sabha.

Varanasi has a special place in the religious consciousness of the Japanese as it is situated close to Sarnath where the Buddha is believed to have delivered his first sermon after attaining Enlightenment.

Abe's visit to this ancient temple town had come a year after he and Modi had inked the 'Kyoto-Kashi' pact in Japan.

Modi, during his recent visit to Japan, had sought its cooperation for modifying Varanasi into a smart city on the lines of Kyoto.

As part of Sister City Partnership Agreement, Varanasi is supposed to be developed while keeping its heritage intact.
Moody's Investors Service today placed the ratings of state-run oil producers ONGC and its subsidiary ONGC Videsh "on review for downgrade" on slumping oil prices, weakening demand and prolonged period of oversupply.

Besides Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) and ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL), Moody's placed the ratings of Oil India Ltd amongst 120 global exploration and production firms on review for downgrade.

"These reviews reflect a mix of declining prices that are near multi-year lows, weakening demand and a prolonged period of oversupply that will continue to significantly stress the credit profiles of companies in the oil and gas sector," it said.

The action, Moody's said, reflected the rating agency's effort to recalibrate the ratings in the oil and gas portfolios to align with the fundamental shifts in credit conditions.

Of the 120 companies, seven are from south and southeast Asia. These include Pertamina of Indonesia, Malaysia's Petroliam Nasional Berhad or Petronas and PTT Exploration & Production of Thailand.

Moody's said it is placing local currency issuer rating of Baa1 of ONGC on review for downgrade. The same has been done for the foreign currency issuer rating of Baa2 of ONGC Videsh and Oil India's Baa2 Backed Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture rating.

"Oil prices have deteriorated substantially in the past few weeks and have reached nominal price lows not seen in more than a decade," Moody's said.

Stating that it has adjusted its view downward for the likely range of prices, the rating agency said it saw "a substantial risk that prices may recover much more slowly over the medium term than many companies expect, as well as a risk that prices might fall further."



"Even under a scenario with a modest recovery from current prices, producing companies and the drillers and service companies that support them will experience rising financial stress with much lower cash flows," it said.

As part of its ongoing assessment of energy markets, Moody's sharply reduced its oil price assumptions in light of continuing oversupply in the global oil markets and demand growth that remains tepid.

"Iran is poised to add more than 500,000 barrels per day to global supply while OPEC and many non-OPEC oil producers continue to produce without restraint as they battle for market share.

"The addition of Iranian oil to the market this year will offset or exceed expected declines in US production of about 500,000 bpd," it said.

The increased production vastly exceeds growth in oil consumption, given modest growth in consumption from major consumers such as China, India and the US.

"Production now exceeds demand by about 2 million barrels per day, adding to already high global oil stocks," Moody's said, projecting crude oil price to average USD 33 per barrel in 2016, USD 10 lower than its previous estimate.
NATO member states are discussing a request to use the alliance's AWACS air surveillance aircraft in the battle against the jihadist Islamic State group, an official said today.

Any AWACS commitment would mark a departure for the alliance which up to now has had no direct role in combatting IS but is increasingly concerned by the threat it poses on its southern flank.

"We can confirm there has been a request for concrete support from NATO to the anti-ISIL effort in the form of NATO AWACS surveillance planes," a NATO official said.

"This request is under discussion by allies," the official said.

"Any decision would be in line with the Wales summit declaration which indicates NATO's readiness to support the bilateral efforts of allies," the official said, referring to a 2014 meeting of alliance leaders.

Diplomatic sources said the request came from the United States which leads an anti-IS coalition of more than 60 countries, including most of NATO's 28 member states.

NATO declined to comment on the source of the request.

US officials at NATO were not immediately available to comment.

NATO has few military assets of its own, providing the umbrella command structure for the 28 allies, but in the 1980s they agreed to establish an AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) unit to counter the then Soviet threat.

The AWACS unit comprises more than 20 planes capable of monitoring activity, principally in the air but also on the ground, within a radius of some 400 kilometres (260 miles) to warn of threats and coordinate a response.
Describing its relationship with India and China as a "complicated dance", Australian envoy Patrick Suckling today stressed on the need to have a "balance of power" in the Indo-Pacific region.

Suckling called the region, which marks the confluence of Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, a strategic domain of "maximum priority" for Australia where he said a lot of "realist" foreign policy was at play.

The outgoing High Commissioner said that it was imperative that Australia works with India to develop multilateral institutional "architecture" along the lines of the European Union in the region.

When asked about Australia's ties with India and China, he said, "It's a complicated dance. But for us, it should not be seen as a binary choice. We should be able to manage both relationships. We should be able to work with those complex elements."



"Yes there are strategic issues between India and China. But you have to work relationships on their merits. In terms of China, it is our largest trade partner and we work as hard as we can," Suckling said.

He was addressing students at an event, organised by the Australia India Institute, at Lady Shri Ram College for Women here. The college has a student exchange programme with Melbourne-based La Trobe University.

Suckling, who took charge as High Commissioner to India in 2013, said that the ties between the two countries that suffered from a "stop-start" syndrome in the past, "has never been better".

He identified areas of energy, mining, skills & education, geo-strategic interests as a few of the working domains between the two countries.

Suckling said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has invited Australian mining companies to invest in India in order to modernise India's mining sector and also in the areas of skills and education.

"We have significantly improved intelligence relationship and military cooperation also. All sorts of dialogues have proliferated. People to people contact is also building a very strong fabric. People are driving the relationship forward," he said.
Nepal government today formed a panel to probe the death of three protesters in police firing in a town bordering India amid continued protests by Madhesis over the new Constitution that has already claimed more than 50 lives.

An all-party meeting decided to form the 10-member committee under the CPN-UML lawmaker Shiva Kumar Mandal to probe the violence in Rangeli Municipality of southern Morang district.

Over 50 people have died the last five months in the agitation by Madhesi people demanding more representation.

According to Chief District Officer of Morang District Toyam Raya the committee will find out the reasons behind the incident.

"The committee will make a field-based study and come up with solution to the problem," he said.

Violence erupted in Rangeli after hundreds of activists of Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha (SLMM) armed with batons, knives and petrol bombs tried to disrupt an event hosted by Youth Association of Nepal (YAN) to honour the Prime Minister.

Madhesi Morcha leaders dubbed the probe committee as "pretentious" one. Morcha leaders refused to recognise the committee formed under the leaders of the ruling parties excluding the Morcha.

Meanwhile, the situation remained tense in Rangeli. The markets in Morang remained shut to protest the killings. As a result, transportation on the Rangeli-Biratnagar road has come to a halt. A large number of security forces have been deployed in the area.

The irate cadres of the United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) vandalised under-construction Armed Police Base Camp at Rangelli Chokraha.

Sadbhawana Party Chairman Rajendra Mahato during a rally said that the government is provoking the agitating Madhesi Morcha to turn their peaceful protest into a violent one.

Mahato hinted at yesterday's Rangeli incident and said, "Why should the police open shots targeting to kill the people during Morcha's peaceful protest? The government is bent on harassing the protesters."



Madhesis, largely of Indian-origin, are opposed to the new Constitution that divides the country into six federal provinces, claiming the federal structure incorporated in the new charter does not satisfy their demands.

The talks between the protesting Madhesi groups and the government have not yielded any results.

Madhesis, who share strong cultural and family bonds with Indians, demand demarcation of provinces, fixing of electoral constituencies on the basis of population and proportional representation.
Myanmar pardoned more than 100 prisoners today, including a New Zealander and at least 34 others jailed on political charges, officials said, days before a historic political transition that will see Aung San Suu Kyi's pro-democracy party take power.

The move comes after a US envoy urged the quasi-civilian government last week to free all remaining political prisoners before the new parliament convenes next month.

"Altogether 102 prisoners including a foreign prisoner, a New Zealand national who was serving his sentence, were released," presidential spokesperson Zaw Htay wrote on his official Facebook account.

Outgoing President Thein Sein, a former general, has overseen Myanmar's transition from the nearly five decades of junta rule that ended in 2011, releasing political prisoners at key moments in the reform process.

That transition culminated with landmark elections held in November which saw the party of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi -- who was kept under house arrest by the junta for 15 years -- win a thumping majority.

Today's pardon included at least 34 prisoners of conscience, said Ye Aung, a representative of the Former Political Prisoners Support Group.

Though many of Myanmar's hundreds of political dissidents were jailed during repressive junta rule, scores of activists have also been thrown behind bars under Thein Sein's watch.
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued a notice to Kerala government over reported denial of relief committed to victims of endosulfan insecticide and sought reports on the matter within two weeks.

The Commission has taken suo motu cognisance of a media report that there are many endosulfan victims in Kerala and that the relief, which was supposed to be given, in terms of the directions of the Commission dated December 31, 2010, was not being extended to the victims.

"The contents of the press report, if true, raise a serious issue of violation of right to health of the victims," said the Commission while issuing the notice to the Chief Secretary, Government of Kerala, District Collectors of Kasaragod and Palakkad calling for reports on the matter within two weeks.

The Commission has also observed that the government of Kerala is bound to compensate and rehabilitate the victims. The state government had issued an order on May 26, 2012 notifying that the recommendations of the NHRC were to be implemented and also laid down the method by which the compensation was to be paid to various categories of victims of endosulfan.

"If the victims of endosulfan are not being compensated in terms of the government of Kerala order dated May 26, 2012, it amounts to violation of their human rights," the Commission said in a statement.

The report, carried on January 18, 2016, refers to an unofficial survey that 613 children below the age of 14 continue to suffer from the illness caused by the aerial spraying of the pesticide in mango plantation of Muthalamada in Palakkad district of Kerala.

The report cites case of a girl, who, despite having born after two years of global ban on the pesticide endusulfan, suffers from physical illness because of the residuary effect of the pesticide.

The report further states that the families of the victims are demanding an expert study at Muthalamada, Velanthavalam, Vadakarapathi, Eruthempathy, Nenmara and Nelliyampathy gram Panchayats.

Endosulfan, a pesticide, which is not easily degradable, after its spraying several years ago contaminated the soil and water and found its way into the food chain affecting lower and higher forms of life including humans, in parts of Kerala.
Alleged ISIS member Mudabbir Mustaq Sheikh, arrested from neighbouring Thane district, was today produced before a court here which granted NIA his transit remand for three days so that he could be produced before a court in Delhi.

Sheikh (40) was arrested last night from Amrit Nagar area of Thane district in a joint operation of Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad and the National Investigation Agency.

NIA lawyer told the court that a case was registered at its headquarters in Delhi after the agency came to know that the middle-east terror group ISIS was recruiting some Indians and foreign nationals for terror activities.

"During the investigation, the role of the accused was revealed. We have got some incriminating material and some documents were recovered from him," the probe agency informed.

Special NIA court's judge N K More then granted the agency Sheikh's 3-day transit remand.
Despite a peak power shortage of about 500 MW, Odisha government has said there will be no load shedding in the state till April.

"There will be no power cut till April this year. The next course of action will be decided after reviewing the situation after April," Energy Minister Pranab Prakash Das said after a meeting yesterday.

Stating that the state will meet its deficit through conserved hydro power and power banking, the minister said Odisha has been planning to avail 400 MW power from Delhi and Punjab through the power banking mode.

Though known to be a power surplus state, Odisha faced a peak power shortage of 500 MW last year due to deficient rainfall during monsoons.

The present peak load of 3600 MW is likely to increase to 4,300s MW during summer, officials said.
Christians continually struggle to find the right approach, balance, and tone in their political witness, either co-opting the Gospel for the sake of political ends or retreating altogether out of fear of the same.

In their new book, One Nation Under God: A Christian Hope for American Politics, Bruce Ashford and Chris Pappalardo pave a fresh way forward. Though I havent quite finished it, thus far the book offers a refreshingly rich assessment of political ideology as it relates (or doesnt) to the Gospel and Christian mission.

In a piece for Canon and Culture, Ashford whets our appetites on this same topic, providing a clear overview of how Christianity differs from conservatism and progressivism, as well as where and how we might engage or abandon each.

From my own experience, Christians seem to have an easier time discerning these distinctions with progressivism, most likely due to its overt rejection of or disregard for permanent truths. With conservatism, however, we tend to forget that without a particular focus on transcendence, conservatism languishes in its own shortsightedness and folly.

On this, Ashfords observations are particularly acute:

Conservatives, despite their high opinion of the past, cannot merely accept all of it uncritically. So when conservatives do criticize their own tradition, as they must, they are forced to rummage around for some norms that transcend history (e.g. opposing slavery). Pure conservatives, therefore, often find themselves in tactical alliance with Christians, even if they cannot stomach a long-term strategic alliance with them. Conservatism pairs well with Christianity whenand only whenconservatives are using Christians as a means to an end. But being a means to someone elses end is tricky business. Evangelicals in the United States, for instance, might be surprised to learn that many of the powerful conservatives in the United States view evangelicals as useful idiots. Evangelicals may fancy that political conservatives stand with them ideologically and strategically, when in fact many conservatives would reject many of the deeply-held convictions of evangelicals. The alliance is more temporary and tactical, perhaps, than it is long-term or strategic. In upcoming years, as evangelical Christianity looks more and more strange to American society, evangelicals may no longer be viewed as useful idiots. We may be seen merely as idiots.

As for how we might view this more broadly, Ashford warns Christians against idolatrous political ideologies of any kind, reminding us to set our sights first on the transcendent truths of the Gospel:

Christians throughout history have been alternately conservative and progressive. For us, we must decide what in our culture is worth conserving and what needs to be rejected so that we can progress beyond it. These sort of decisions must be made based upon Christian worldview convictions. In other words, standing alone, conservatism and progressivism are both insufficient and even idolatrous. They are both indebted far more to culture than to anything transcendent. Conservatism treats history, rather than God, as the source of social and moral norms. It seeks to conserve the past, but does not have within its own resources the transcendent norms necessary to critique the past even as it is conserving the past. It locates evil (falsely) in progressivism rather than locating it in the human heart and identifying it wherever it is found, whether in conservative or progressive norms. To pursue politics in a robustly Christian manner, we must not embrace American versions of conservatism and progressivism en toto. Instead, we want to pair our preferred political ideology with the transcendent truths of Christianity, allowing those truths to reform our ideology.

Read the whole piece here, and buy One Nation Under God: A Christian Hope for American Politics.
North Korea said today that it had arrested an American university student for alleged anti-state acts.

Pyongyang's Korean Central Agency reported that authorities are investigating the student who it says entered the North as a tourist with a plot to undermine a unity among the North Koreans. It said the student has links to the US government.

KCNA identified the person as Warmbier Otto Frederick, a student at Virginia University. North Korea has sometimes listed English-language surnames first.

The announcement came as Washington, Seoul and others are pushing hard to slap North Korea with tougher sanctions for its recent nuclear test. In the past, North Korea often announced the arrests of foreign detainees in times of tension with the outside world in an apparent attempt to wrest concessions.

Earlier this month, CNN reported that North Korea had detained another US citizen on suspicion of spying. It said a man identified as Kim Dong Chul was being held by the Pyongyang government and said authorities had accused him of engaging in spying and stealing state secrets.

The US State Department said it could not confirm the CNN report. It declined to discuss the issue further or confirm whether the US was consulting with Sweden, which handles U.S. consular issues in North Korea because Washington and Pyongyang do not have diplomatic relations.

The United States and North Korea are in a technical state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea.
North Korea today announced the arrest of a US university student for what it called a "hostile act" orchestrated by the American government to undermine the authoritarian nation.

In language that mirrors past North Korean claims of outside conspiracies, Pyongyang's state media said the University of Virginia student entered the country under the guise of a tourist and plotted to destroy North Korean unity with "the tacit connivance of the US government and under its manipulation."



The North's official Korean Central Agency said in a short report that the student, whom it identified as Warmbier Otto Frederick, was "arrested while perpetrating a hostile act," but didn't say when he was detained or explain the nature of the act.

North Korea has sometimes listed English-language surnames first, in the Korean style. The University of Virginia's online student directory lists someone named Otto Frederick Warmbier as an undergraduate commerce student.

A China-based tour company specializing in travel to North Korea, Young Pioneer Tours, confirmed that one of its customers, identified only as "Otto," had been detained in Pyongyang, the North's capital, but provided no other details. Social media accounts for Warmbier show interests in finance, travel and rap music; he was on the University of Virginia's dean's list and attended high school in the Cincinnati, Ohio, area.

The US State Department said in a statement that it was "aware of media reports that a US citizen was detained in North Korea," but had "no further information to share due to privacy considerations."



North Korea's announcement comes amid a diplomatic push by Washington, Seoul and their allies to slap Pyongyang with tough sanctions for its recent nuclear test.

In the past, North Korea has occasionally announced the arrests of foreign detainees in times of tension with the outside world in an apparent attempt to wrest concessions or diplomatic maneuvering room.

North Korea also regularly accuses Washington and Seoul of sending "spies" to overthrow its government to enable the US-backed South Korean government to control the entire Korean Peninsula.

Some foreigners previously arrested have read statements of guilt that they later said were coerced.

A few thousand Westerners are thought to visit North Korea each year, and Pyongyang is pushing for more tourists as a way to help its dismal economy.
Newly appointed NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant today said he was not in favour of banning beef exports, stating that the government should instead stay out of such areas and act as a catalyst for growth.

Kant said this during his session at the ongoing Jaipur Literature Festival with journalist and author John Elliott.

"Personally, I am not a believer in banning beef exports at all. I believe that government should not get into these areas at all. It should just push for exports in these areas," Kant said.

Kant also said he believed everybody must have the freedom to act according to their "wish and will."



"I grew up in Kerala cadre where every Hindu eats beef, every single Nair, every single Brahmin eats beef. I am a great believer in everybody doing according to their wish and will," he said.

The senior bureaucrat, who had been the key driver of the 'Incredible India' campaign, said it was the government's duty to create more jobs, adding that it must facilitate the growth of the economy.

"The government's job is to create more jobs. Our job is to become a facilitator, to become a catalyst and to allow economy to grow," he said.

In his session with Elliot, Kant was optimistic about 'Start-up India' initiative in helping bring about "disruption" in the world economy, saying the future lies in start-ups.

"You need to bring about a disruption in the world economy and the only people who can do it are the young people. Start-Up India has the maximum potential because India is really hungry for growth. The ambition is to grow at 9 to 10 per cent over a long period of time."



Kant, who is set to take over charge of the NITI Aayog in March, said that the institution needs to be transformational in nature and must bring in radical changes.

"NITI Aayog needs to be a transformational institution, You need an institution which will converge and integrate several departments of the government. It needs to bring in radical changes and usher a completely new thought process. You need a good think tank in India and that is what the job of NITI Aayog is," he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had set up the NITI Ayog replacing and restructuring the previous Planning Commission (Yojana Bhawan).
An NRI in the Czech Republic is seeking to ameliorate the lot of the 'marginalised' Roma community believed to be having roots in India, by supporting initiatives to integrate them into mainstream society in that country's industrial city of Ostrava.

"They (Romas) are a severely stigmatised and marginalised ethnic minority in Europe," Kumar Vishwanathan who landed in the Schengen country, then Czechoslovakia in the early 1990s, told PTI during a visit here.

His commitment led to the formation of unique housing project, now known as the "Vesnicka souziti" or "Coexistence Village" where the Romas and non-Romas co-exist. There are also poor elderly white families in the village.

After a Masters' degree in physics from the Patrice Lumumba People's Friendly University in Moscow, Viswanathan settled down there and married art student Ladislava Universalova, a Czech national.

Though he began his career there as a physics teacher in the 'historic' city of Olomouc, he noticed the plight of the Romas when the country was ravaged by floods in 1997.

He took cognisance of the suffering of the Romas or gypsies as they are addressed derogatorily in Europe, in a neighbouring industrial city of Ostrava.

He claims the Romas have their roots in India "often sharing features from the sub-continent".

According to him, the Romas probably are an ancient Indian diaspora but later on, gradually mixed with other groups. "It is said they left India in the middle ages..."



There are about 20,000 Roma people in Ostrava, which is about 120 km from Olomouc and about 250,000 Roma of a total 10.3 million Czech population.

Deciding to turn human rights activist, he quit his teaching job to float the 'Vzajemne souziti' or 'Life Together' along with some students of Ostrava University and Roma community members in 1997.
Scores of NSUI activists today marched towards the HRD Ministry, continuing with their protests over the suicide of a Dalit PhD scholar, and demanded the resignation of Union Ministers Smriti Irani, Bandaru Dattatreya and Hyderabad University Vice Chancellor.

Stating that "revocation" of suspension of the four expelled students was never their demand, workers of the Congress' youth wing were stopped at Raisina Road here by the police when the protestors were on their way to the HRD minister's residence and detained.

"Revocation of suspension is not the demand of students. We want the immediate resignation of Smriti Irani, Dattatreya and Vice Chancellor Appa Rao," National Student Union of India (NSUI) President Roji John said.

Accusing the Union government and the BJP leadership of "politicising" the matter, John said the protests would be "intensified" across the country. Congress leader Randeep Surjewala joined the protesters and demanded an "apology" from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"This protest is for justice, which can be attained with the resignation of Union Ministers Smriti Irani, Bandaru Dattatreya and the VC," he said.

According to police, the protesters were detained as they tried to push the barricades and that the situation could have gone out of hands subsequently.

"Around 60 persons have been detained, under provisions of law, following the protest today," DCP (New Delhi) Jatin Narwal said.

(REOPENS DES 40)



Meanwhile, the activists of Ambedkar Sena Punjab today took out a protest march at Phagwara demanding the resignations of Union Ministers Irani and Dattatreya and dismissal of the University V-C for the suicide.

They burnt the effigy of Irani and raised slogans against the Central government terming it "anti-dalit".

(Reopens NRG22)



Demanding the removal of Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani and Labour minister Bandaru Dattatreya over the suicide of a Dalit research scholar in Hyderabad Central University, the activists of Congress' Youth and women wing today burnt effigies of the two ministers in Jammu.

"We are demanding the resignation of union HRD minister Smriti Irani and Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya for their role in the circumstances leading to the suicide of the Dalit scholar of Hyderabad University," president of Pradesh Youth Congress Pranav Shagotra said.
US President Barack Obama has called German Chancellor Angela Merkel to discuss the ongoing Syrian refugee crisis as part of his efforts to garner support for hosting a high-level summit on refugees at the UN later this year.

"The two leaders discussed the European response to the refugee crisis, including the upcoming Syria donors conference in London on February 4," the White House said in a statement.

Both leaders agreed that the London conference presents an important opportunity to galvanise global efforts to address the Syrian humanitarian crisis, it said.

During the call, Obama expressed support for the Chancellor's leadership on the refugee crisis, and discussed with her his plan to host a leader-level Global Refugees Summit on the margins of the UN General Assembly in September to secure new and concrete commitments to expand opportunities for refugees worldwide and support to frontline states.

"The two leaders committed to working together over the coming months to help protect and provide for the millions of people whose lives have been upturned by war," the White House said.

On Ukraine, the President and the Chancellor underscored their firm commitment to accelerate the full implementation of the Minsk agreements by all sides.

They also discussed ways to further bolster the robust economic relationship between Europe and the US, the White House said.
Aiming to achieve 10 per cent ethanol blending with petrol, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan today favoured inclusion of ethanol in priority sector lending of banks to boost production and said he would take up this issue with the Finance Ministry.

Pradhan said the country is likely to achieve 5 per cent ethanol blending with petrol this year and the government is ready to create additional storage capacity to achieve the target of 10 per cent blending.

The Minister also asked the sugar industry to transfer cane payments directly into farmers' bank account.

"Industry has demanded inclusion of ethanol in the priority sector lending of banks. I am going to take up this issue with the Finance Ministry," Pradhan said, addressing a workshop on ethanol, organised by industry body ISMA.

More investments are required for setting up new distilleries and expanding ethanol manufacturing capacity from the current level of 224 crore litres, he said.

Besides increasing ethanol production, the Minister said there is a need to increase storage capacity as at present oil marketing companies have space to keep ethanol required for five per cent blending.

For achieving 10 per cent blending, the minister said there is a need to create awareness among states about the programme in view of higher state taxes and inter-state movement curbs imposed by various state governments.

Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked state governments to end the "license raj" to make the ethanol blending programme a big success, he added.

The Minister also made it clear that the NDA government is promoting ethanol blending, keeping farmers' interest in mind, even as ethanol buying by OMCs has become a costlier affair in the wake of fall in global crude oil prices.

The government has fixed ethanol price at Rs 48.50-49.50 per litre (ex-factory), without linking it to crude oil price, and removed excise duty on ethanol.

The Minister also noted that the NDA government has taken several steps to revive the cash-starved sugar industry to ensure they clear cane arrears.

"Now, the industry has started moving forward. We want to see it reaches the next level," he said.

ISMA President Tarun Sawhney said, "This will be the first year, we will be achieving very close to 5 per cent blending, against 3.5 per cent last year."



The industry has contracted to supply 120 crore litres of ethanol, which will not only help reduce crude oil imports by Rs 5,500-6,000 crore but also bring down emissions, thereby addressing pollution.

He also demanded the government to look at flexi-fuel car technology and suggested adopting models of the US, Brazil and Thailand.

(REOPENS DCM 65)



"My ministry is actively considering creation of storage for ethanol to accommodate 10 per cent blending," Pradhan said on the sidelines of the event.

Ethanol is being purchased at much higher price than the current crude oil rates to ensure sugar mills make cane payment to farmers, he added.

Asked when will the government achieve 10 per cent blending, the Minister said, "We are ready to buy ethanol, it is for industry to create capacity and supply the required quantity."



On whether the government is increasing crude oil stock, taking advantage of falling global prices, Pradhan said, "We are planning how to leverage the new price. Nobody knows how long it will continue. The Ministry is planning how to utilise this window in India's advantage. We have many options before us. It is at a concept level."



The government is utilising the existing crude oil stocks, which were purchased at old price of USD 35-40 per barrel, he added.
Pakistan and Afghanistan need to work together to effectively overcome the Taliban challenge, the White House said, a day after the militant group massacred 21 people, mostly students, at a popular Pakistani university.

"The conclusion that we've drawn here is...That the Taliban poses a security threat to both countries, and that the nations of Afghanistan and Pakistan are going to be able to more effectively confront that threat if they're able to more effectively cooperate," White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest told reporters yesterday.

Earnest said the US has long been supportive of the reconciliation process between the Afghan government and the Taliban.

He said the US is hoping to facilitate better co-operation between the two South Asian neighbours.

As part of that role, US Vice President Joe Biden held a tri-lateral meeting with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Davos yesterday to discuss the recent reconciliation efforts.

During the meeting, Biden reaffirmed US support for reconciliation and improved bilateral ties between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

"Any sort of decisions about how the continuation of those talks and any sort of agreement that could be produced by those talks about whether or not that's in the interest of those countries to pursue -- those are decisions that will be made by the leaders in those two countries, as it should be," he said.

But the US will continue to play the role that it has played for some time now in supporting reconciliation talks that are led by those individual countries, he added.

Pakistan, Afghanistan, China and the US have called on all Afghan Taliban groups to start talks with Kabul to find a political solution to the long-running conflict in the war-torn country.

On Wednesday, heavily-armed Taliban militants stormed the Bacha Khan University, named after the iconic Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, in Pakistan's Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province and opened fire on students and teachers, killing 21 people.
Pakistan's Supreme Court today lifted a ban on hunting of a rare bird, houbara bustard, whose meat is prized among Arab sheikhs as an aphrodisiac.

The ban was imposed by former chief justice Jawwad S Khawaja on August 20, who also ordered the cancellation of all existing permits issued by government to Arab rulers.

The federal and provincial governments in October had challenged the ban, pleading that sustainable hunting should be allowed.

A five-member larger bench headed by Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali lifted the ban in a verdict on the review petitions.

Though the decision was not unanimous and there was one dissenting note by Justice Qazi Faez Isa who opposed the bench's order.

The petitioners had pleaded that issuing hunting permits to Arabs dignitaries was part of foreign policy.

The attorney general (AG) Salman Butt asked the Supreme Court to allow "sustainable hunting" of the bird.

Pakistan enjoys good ties with Arab rulers who love hunting houbara. Its meat is considered having aphrodisiac value.

People from the Gulf travel to Balochistan province every winter to kill the houbara bustard using hunting falcons.

The issue of hunting came into limelight after a report in 2014 showed Saudi prince Fahd bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud killed over 2,100 houbara bustard in a cruel 21-day campaign in clear violation of his permit to hunt only 100 birds.

Houbara bustard is listed in the Convention on Migratory Species of Wild Animals, also known as the Bonn Convention, and is declared as an endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

The meat of houbara bustard is considered as having aphrodisiac qualities by the Arabs.
The mastermind of Pakistan's deadly attack on Bacha Khan University today threatened to target more educational institutions, which he said were "nurseries that produced apostates".

In a video message, Taliban leader Umar Mansoor condemned the prevailing educational system which he alleged was foundation of the political, justice, defence and democratic institutions.

"We have started the process of attacking educational institutions," he said in about 10-minute video posted on Facebook.

The video is in Pushto with Urdu sub-titles, showing Mansoor flanked by armed men. With his long flowing beard, the rebel spoke with confidence as he denounced Pakistan's rulers.

"Pakistan's entire system is that of infidels... We will change it.

"We will continue to attack schools, colleges and universities across Pakistan as these are the foundations that produce apostates. We will target and demolish the foundations," he said.

Mansoor said that instead of targeting professional soldiers, "we will target the nurseries that produce these people".

The location of the shooting of video is not known but most probably it was produced in Afghanistan where most of Pakistani militants live after being expelled from the country through military operations.

The university attack killed 21 people, mostly students, while four attackers were gunned by the security forces.
By Tracy Gatewood

Keller Williams Realty, Inc.

Ten years ago this fall, in Chicago, I accepted an ICSC MAXI Award in the category of Public Relations for Welcome Home Taylor Hicks, the homecoming concert for American Idol contestant then winner, Taylor Hicks.

A national audience, along with 12,000 in attendance, watched the concert - aired on FOX - from Riverchase Galleria. The regional shopping destination garnered 16 million PR impressions while only spending $1,600 to host and promote the event.

Tracy Gatewood

A strong public relations presence is an invaluable component of any organization's overall marketing strategy. The value of well-placed PR almost always exceeds the value of advertising dollars. Both prongs of approach are important to the success of business but to strike a bullseye on a targeted PR campaign can mean many thousands of dollars in free publicity and exponential awareness.

Every individual professional and every organization has a story that should be told to build connection with consumers and clients.

Mark Twain once said, "I like a good story well-told. That is the reason I am sometimes forced to tell them myself."

You, the business owner or organization CEO, are the best person to tell the story of your enterprise, cast vision and get your message to the masses. Here are a few useful tips to get a good start:

Shoot While the Ducks are Flying

Although this sounds like a Mark Twain-ism, this great piece of advice actually came to me from a brilliant businessman, master promoter and the developer of Riverchase Galleria, Jim Wilson, Jr.

Spend your money on promotion when people are out spending theirs. Natural seasons of spending in the retail sector are Christmas, Mother's Day and Easter and your city may have tourism seasons where there is a noticeable surge in visitors (i.e. Gameday Weekends).

Focus your promotional efforts on these natural seasons when people are inclined to be thinking about you: your products and merchandise, rather than try to convince them to leave their homes and places of businesses during seasons your product and merchandise and spending their money are not naturally occurring. This principle applies to planning public relations as well as advertising strategy.

As a simple example, if I owned a Haagen-Daz franchise, I would spend very little, if any, on promoting my ice cream in January or February even if sales had come to a screeching halt. Rather, I would wait to blow the trumpet often in spring through early fall.

One notable cold weather exception would be ice cream cakes for Valentine's Day when everyone in town would know (1) what they look like (2) how much they cost (3) what the deadline to order was and (4) my location. Then I would introduce what is called a PR "hook" which is a unique angle that would set apart my Valentine's cake sales efforts from any others. All police officers to receive a long stemmed red rose for their wives and a free Valentine's cake. BOOM. Media Hooked by a Feel Good Story.

During the event, if it was successful, I would take photos and file a post-event story as a follow up. Remember, "a good story well-told" is best told by you, the leader of the organization.

Play Your Strongest Card

This applies to a person, an organization or even a city. Every person, place or thing has something that it does very well and better than the majority.

Whatever that is should lay the foundation for the awareness, letting all the other good benefits serve as support beams to the primary platform of that strongest card. The strong card is the drawing card that piques the interest and (hopefully) the sale, the vote, the decision to visit, etc. After using the strongest card as the vehicle to gain access to a consumer or client or even the media, the leader has the ability to introduce the advantages of other products and services or show the consumer other merchandise.

Insure people know what you offer best and with excellence and where they should go to receive an exceptional experience over any other person, place or company offering what you do. Have a laser focus on promoting what you do very well.

Engagement - much more than a ring

When you or your organization does something that is exceptional - let people know. Keep clients and consumers engaged. Engagement bonds relationships and sustains that top of mind recall for your service or merchandise. There are a number of good fee-based PR news distribution services available that will allow you to target your message locally or send it out over a broad base. PR Newswire and PR Web are two of the best.

Collect contact information for your local and state news service agencies (local newspapers) and affiliated associations that should be recipients of your information and build a PR database. Place calls to these people, introduce yourself and make sure they know what you have to offer their readership, viewership, or member affiliates. It is imperative that you understand the audience that will be receiving your information.

A newspaper audience would be different than a release going to an industry tabloid which may require more industry specific language. Tailor your release to the audience.

When not to promote: if your organization and brand has been weakened by events that have tarnished its reputation - it should not be business as usual in promoting your services.

Step away from engaging the public to rebuild and restore the necessary infrastructure and / or functionality of your organization. Only you, the leader, will know when your business has returned to its normal operations.

Multi-channel PR should never feel remote

In this dizzying age of social media, and print and digital options for the release of your content, choose options from each sector; social, print, digital.

If your press releases are written on the Wordpress platform (wordpress.com), buttons are available for your articles that will upload your content to most primary platforms of social media; Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr. Blogging is a very successful way to build relationships with large numbers of people who can also share your articles, promoting your brand without you having to do anything more than write the post.

If you wish to engage Millennials in promoting your brand, social media is how they communicate, therefore, knowledge in social media is power with Millennials.

MOMENTUM, MOMENTUM, MOMENTUM

In real estate we all understand "location, location, location."

If you personally have had a great business success, or currently have the opportunity to "draft" behind the vehicle of one of your company's recent successes, or can capitalize on any chain of related events pertaining to your organization - Carpe Diem.

Seize those days of opportunity by sending missiles of communication to your database and related networks. Don't let up and beat the brand drum fast and furious across all platforms as long as you can ride the wave of momentum.

Content marketing is the best way to showcase a depth of expertise and is lightning fast compared to waiting on a reporter to contact you for a story - a scenario of which most mere mortals only dream.

Keep the coals of engagement red hot by fanning the flame of interest through releasing articles and utilizing strong social media talking points for yourself and your organization.

If you remain focused on this practice for several weeks you will see the result. Capitalizing on momentum is like compound interest in your account. Don't forsake the deposits and over time you will reap exponential rewards.

Tracy Gatewood is a Senior Member of the ACRE Leadership Council and a Commercial Realtor with Keller Williams Realty, Inc specializing in site selection for retail and restaurants as well as land sales for development in the Tuscaloosa County market. As Marketing Manager at Riverchase Galleria in 2006 she won the International Council of Shopping Center's most prestigious award, the MAXI for Welcome Home Taylor Hicks (Public Relations), and a MAXI Merit for the black Friday event - Rockin' Shoppin' Eve (Sales and Promotions). tgatewood@KW.com
A man who tried to attack a police station in Paris this month had no links to Islamist networks, German authorities said today after carrying out new raids in a refugee shelter where the attacker lived.

Investigations "over the past two weeks have brought no indications of any Islamist network" connected to the man, said Uwe Jacob, police chief of North Rhine-Westphalia state.

The attacker, identified as Tarek Belgacem by Tunisian authorities, was shot dead by French police as he attempted his assault on January 7 - the one-year anniversary of the jihadist attack on satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo in Paris.
Dutch electronics giant Philips said today a planned USD 2.8-billion majority share sale of its Lumileds lighting unit to Beijing-based GO Scale Capital has been cancelled because of US regulatory concerns.

Both companies failed to convince the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to clear the deal, Philips said, adding it is seeking another buyer.

"We will now engage with other parties that have expressed an interest in exploring strategic options for Lumileds," Philips chief executive Frans van Houten said in a statement.

"I am very disappointed about this outcome as this was a very good deal for both Lumileds and the Go Scale Capital-led consortium," Van Houten said.

Philips and GO Scale have now withdrawn their CFIUS filing, the Dutch company said, calling the US regulatory concerns "unforeseen".

Lumileds has research and development and production facilities in California's Silicon Valley.

Philips will continue to report the Lumileds business as "discontinued operations", the company added.

Amsterdam-based Philips in October announced that the sale of an 80.1 majority share stake was in doubt because of unspecified CFIUS concerns, but at the time it said they would be addressed.

GO Scale Capital said had the transaction gone through it "would have combined Lumileds' world-leading technology and know-how with the highly competitive LED manufacturing industrial base in China."



"Unfortunately all such efforts fell short of addressing unexplained (US) government concerns," it said in a statement.

"The decision by the CFIUS is a pure piece of trade politics," said Jos Versteeg, analyst at the Amsterdam-based Theodoor Gilissen private bank.

"It's clear that the Americans don't want the technology to go to China," said Versteeg.

"However, the deal will eventually go through, but with another buyer," he told AFP, adding the setback was unlikely to impact on Philips' strategy of moving away from lighting in the healthcare-lifestyle sector.

"It's unlikely though that Philips will get the same price as was offered by GO Scale Capital," he added.

Philips in 2014 announced it would split in two, separating its healthcare-lifestyle arm from its historic lighting section in a move to streamline operations.

The split is expected to be completed some time this year, with analysts predicting that Philips could eventually sell off Lighting, one of its core businesses for many years.
The United Planters' Association of Southern India (UPASI), apex body of planters in the region, and Association of Kerala Planters today made a strong plea for a ban on import of natural rubber through all channels to help farmers facing a crisis due to fall in domestic prices.

UPASI President N Dharmaraj drew the attention of the central government to the plight of rubber growers who are "in grave distress" due the record low current price levels of Rs 98 per kg for the prime grade RSS IV, which is far below the cost of production.

APK Chairman Vinayaraghavan said rubber import should be banned. "There is no other way to save farmers who are reeling under crisis," he said in a statement here.

Dharmaraj in a release said the low prices were forcing the farmers to stop tapping or even abandon rubber cultivation and UPASI was seriously concerned about their plight.

Quoting Rubber Board statistics, he said production during April-December last year was 4.28 lakh tonnes compared to 5.10 tonnes during the corresponding period a year earlier.

On the contrary, the imports touched a figure of 3.27 lakh tonnes during April-December 2015.

"The unrestricted imports are the primary reason for the price crash affecting the lives of more than a million growers and their families, mostly in Kerala," he said.

While appreciating the government's decision to impose port restrictions in imports and ban duty-free imports till March this year, UPASI said they would have been more effective if imports were allowed only through the ports of Kolkata and Visakhapatanam as earlier.

"Further the percentage of duty-free imports is only to an extent of 15-20 per cent of total imports," he said.

The APK said the Centre's recent decision to restrict rubber import under advance license system till March 31 would not provide much relief to rubber growers.

The price of natural rubber in domestic market has touched Rs 95 per kg. On the other hand, the production cost was Rs 150 per kg, he pointed out.

Stating that rubber production in the state had come down in 2015, he pointed out that production which was 5.10 lakh tonne in April-December 2014, has touched a low of 4.28 lakh tonne in the same period last year.

The unrestricted import of rubber would push state's economy into a danger zone',he added.

"Import of natural rubber should be banned at least for one year to save the farmers from the present crisis',he said adding 'price of rubber should be fixed at Rs 150 per kg'.

He also suggested that 'Safeguard Duty' levied on steel import should be made applicable to rubber and it should be included in the 'Make in India' programme.
The police today served notice to JD(U) MLA Sarfaraz Alam, who was booked for allegedly abusing a couple inside Rajdhani Express, to appear before it by tomorrow evening for questioning.

"We have served a notice to the MLA to appear in GRP Patna by 5 PM tomorrow for questioning in the matter," Railway Superintendent of Police P N Mishra told PTI.

"A summon notice has been sent to the MLA on WhatsApp and also through Jokihaat police station in his native place," the SP said.

He said a probe team, which had gone to Mughalsarai and New Delhi for recording statements of the complainant and the train superintendent of Dibrugarh-New Delhi Rajdhani Express, has returned.

According to the complaint, the incident occurred on January 17 when Alam, third time JD(U) MLA and son of RJD MP Mohammad Taslimuddin, misbehaved with the couple on board the train. An FIR was registered against him with GRP Patna the next day.

The MLA was alleged to have been travelling without ticket and was drunk.

Train Superintendent Saheb Singh, in his statement, said Alam was travelling in the Rajdhani Express on that day without ticket, the SP said.

Alam, however, told PTI he has not got any notice so far in this regard. Stating that he is a law abiding citizen and respects judiciary, the JD(U) MLA said there was a "high level conspiracy" behind the allegation.

Without clarifying who was conspiring against him and why, he said he would unravel the conspiracy once this complaint episode was over.

Meanwhile, ruling JD(U) and RJD have distanced themselves from the MLA.

State JD(U) president Basistha Narayan Singh said the party was also looking into the issue and would initiate action if the complaint against him was found true.

RJD president Lalu Prasad said, "If the Jokihaat MLA is found guilty in the probe, the JD(U) should take action against him."



The MLA's father Mohammad Taslimuddin is a RJD Lok Sabha member from Araria.

Prasad's elder son and Health Minister Tej Pratap Yadav was, however, more critical. "Such a person should be put behind the bars," he told reporters.
President Pranab Mukherjee today hosted a lunch for 100 women achievers at Rashtrapati Bhavan on the occasion of first anniversary of 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' scheme.

"These 100 women achievers were selected by the Ministry of Women and Child Development in collaboration with Facebook through a nationwide contest and public nominations," a press release issued by Rashtrapati Bhavan said.

The ministry had launched the contest on July 15, last year, to select 100 women achievers of India under various categories through public nominations.

Rashida Bi from Madhya Pradesh has been selected in the Environment and Forests and Wildlife category for working towards the welfare of Bhopal Gas Tragedy victims for the last 30 years.

The list of nominees include Patiala-based Harshinder Kaur, a paediatric doctor who has been awarded by numerous governments across the globe for her work in eradicating discrimination against female child, and Lalita Nijhawan from Delhi for her commendable work in the field of education for women and children, especially the girl child.
Three persons, including a Police Sub-Inspector (PSI), were arrested for allegedly murdering a man after he developed friendship with the wife of one of the accused.

The accused have been identified as PSI Mohan Saxena (59) posted in Police Lines, Shajapur, his son Nitin Saxena (29), and an occultist Sanjay Vyas (48), police said.

The victim, identified as Ankit Chourasia (25) was working as a driver with the Saxena family and had befriended Nitin Saxena's wife, which came to the notice of the father-son duo, Superintendent of Police (SP) North, Arvind Saxena told reporters.

After this, Chourasia was removed from the job. However, he would still visit their house on some or the other pretext, the SP said.

When the woman's family members warned him, Chourasia threatened to "expose" them with some photos he had with them and started blackmailing them, he said.

Following this, the accused contacted Sanjay Vyas, an occultist and gave him Rs 15,000 and hatched a plan to kill Chourasia, the police official said.

Later, Vyas called Chourasia to a secluded place and took him in his car to Bhojapura forest area under Berasia police station in Bhopal district, he said.

The trio killed him there by attacking him with an iron rod and stones on January 14, he said.

The cars owned by Vyas and Saxena, and the iron rods, clothes and stones used in the crime have been seized, he said, adding further investigation is on.
Police in Punjab and Delhi today sounded an alert after the driver of a taxi hired by three unidentified persons was found dead in Himachal Pradesh's Kangra, in the aftermath of the terror attack on Pathankot air base.

"We have sounded an alert in our area (Pathankot). We are taking this matter very seriously and we are making efforts to locate the missing taxi," Senior Superintendent of Police, Pathnakot, R K Bakshi said today.

The taxi driver, identified as Vijay Kumar, a resident of Gaggal village in Kangra district, was found dead on Wednesday at the Kalta bridge in Kangra and his taxi missing, police said.

However, the SSP said the white-colour Alto taxi with registration number HP 01D 2440 was not hired from Pathankot. "Neither the taxi was hired from Pathankot nor the incident (recovery of body) has happened here (Pathankot)," he said.

Noting that he had got the matter inquired, Bakshi said three Punjabi-speaking persons had hired the taxi from Gaggal in Kangra district for Pathankot.

"Three Punjabi-speaking people had hired the taxi from Gaggal at 8 pm on January 14. But on Wednesday, the body of the driver was recovered from the subdivision Jawali in HP which is about 40-50 kms from Pathankot," he said.

Police in the national capital also sounded an alert and asked citizens to stay vigilant.

"The Alto car is missing. Search operations are on. Stay Alert!" the pinned tweet on Delhi Police's official handle read.

Asked on the threat perception, Delhi Police Commissioner B S Bassi urged people in the city to remain alert without disclosing any further details citing security concerns.

The alert was issued in the backdrop of the attack on IAF base in Pathankot where terrorists had first killed a cab driver and robbed his car before launching the strike on January 2.

Seven security personnel were killed and several others injured in the terror strike carried out by militants suspected to be belonging to Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed. All six terrorists were also killed in the gun fight that continued for three days.




RailTel, the telecom arm of the Indian Railways, today launched free public Wi-Fi service at Mumbai Central station in collaboration with Google and plans to roll out this project to 100 stations across the country by this year-end.

"Affordable smartphones have made it possible for the common man to experience the power of Internet. With our partnership with Google, we are very confident of rolling out a robust, scalable service at railway stations in the near future," Railtel Chairman and Managing Director R K Bahuguna said in a statement.

The project was announced last September by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Google headquarters in Mountain View.

"We are delighted to launch India's first high speed public Wi-Fi service in partnership with Indian Railways. By end of this year over 10 million people will be able to enjoy this experience at 100 stations spread across the country," Google South East Asia and India VP & Managing Director Rajan Anandan said.

Under the project, Google has committed to work with Indian Railways' and RailTel to expand the network quickly to cover 100 of the busiest stations by end of this year and will eventually roll out the service in 400 railway stations across India, the statement said.

"This network will extend to cover both long distance train station and the local train station in Mumbai Central. The next four stations we'll bring online will be Allahabad, Patna, Jaipur and Ranchi and others will follow very shortly," Google India Head of Access Project Gulzar Azad said.
Rays Power Experts has bagged a contract from Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) for setting up 10 MW of rooftop solar systems.

"The company signed a contract with SECI for 10 MW of Rooftop Solar PV system under 50 MW Rooftop Grid Connected scheme of CPWD in the states of India. It is a 25 year long tariff agreement on RESCO (Renewable energy service company) model," Rays Power Experts said in a statement.

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NSE gets its 12th SME listing



* Leading stock exchange NSE's platform for small and medium enterprises today got its 12th company with the listing of IT infrastructure firm Fourth Dimension Solutions Ltd (FDSL).

Shares of FDSL opened at Rs 31.80 and closed at Rs 36 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE).

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Bank of India gets best performance award under Mudra Yojana * State-run Bank of India has received award for the best performance under the Mudra loan from Coal and Power Minister Piyush Goyal.

"Bank of India received the MSME Banking Excellence Awards 2015 for Best performance in Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency (MUDRA) loan under large bank category from Minister Piyush Goyal", the bank said in a statement.

The award is given by Chamber of Indian Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (CIMSME).

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IICB incubation hub draws interest from global companies * The proposed incubation hub on life sciences by CSIR-affiliated Indian Institute of Chemical Biology (IICB) in the city has drawn interest from both domestic and international companies.

"We have received interest from companies from both domestic and overseas for space at the incubation hub. We cannot disclose the details till it is finalised. Industry will help in collaborative research and translating our knowledge into public use products," IICB senior principal scientist and head business development G Suresh Kumar said.

Siemens bags order worth Rs 112 crore



* Siemens Ltd today said that it has bagged Rs 112 crore order from power transmission utility Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Prasaran Nigam Ltd.

"Siemens Ltd, announced that it has won a crucial order approximately worth Rs 112 crore from Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Prasaran Nigam Limited, a State Power Transmission Utility owned by Government of Rajasthan and headquartered in Jaipur," the company said in a statement.

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Yes Bank, Zaggle tie up for prepaid instrument on MasterCard * Yes Bank today said it has tied up with gifting card firm Zaggle to offer prepaid instrument on the MasterCard platform for corporate customers across India.

"Yes Bank announced collaboration with Zaggle for issuance of its prepaid instrument on the MasterCard Platform for corporate consumers across India," the bank said in a statement.

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SLCM inks pact with Myanmar's Global Treasure Bank * SLCM Group (Sohan Lal Commodity Management) today said its wholly-owned subsidiary SLCM has signed an agreement with Myanmar's Global Treasure Bank for collateral financing.

The partnership is aligned with SLCM's strategy to facilitate trade by giving collateral financing options to small and medium sized traders, processors, farmers, importers, exporters among others, the company said in a statement.

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Associated Alcohols to issue bonus share in 1:1 * Associated Alcohols & Breweries Ltd, which owns liquor brands as Royal House, James James Bond, Bombay Special today said that it would issue bonus shares to its shareholders in 1:1 ratio.

The board of the company in a meeting held today "decided to issue bonus shares in the ratio of one equity share for every one equity share held (1:1) to all equity shareholders of Rs 10/- each fully paid up," the company said in a BSE filing.

HCL partners Symantec for cloud security, forensics



* HCL Technologies (HCL) and Symantec today announced their plan to expand their current partnership to help enterprises in areas of cloud security, cyber threats and forensic solutions.

"As 21st century enterprises adopt digitisation in today's hyper-competitive world, a need for new solutions has emerged in order to secure businesses in the digital world. We are seeing movement of critical workloads to cloud and clients expect enterprise grade security aligned with it," HCL Technologies SVP and Chief Technologist (ITO) Kalyan Kumar said.

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Fashion app Styledotme gets funding from Indian Angel Network * Delhi-based startup Styledotme has raised undisclosed funding from Indian Angel Network.

The investment, made under the 'Small Ticket Funding programme' announced by IAN last year, was led by Ajay Gupta.

He will also mentor the company.

The investment will be used to build the company's technical team, adding new features to make the app more intuitive and marketing.

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Kraftly ropes in ex-Amazon executive Akshay Ghulati as CBO * Kraftly, a mobile marketplace, has appointed Akshay Ghulati as its Chief Business Officer.

Previously, Ghulati served as the Head of Trade-In at Amazon, UK. He has also worked as a management consultant with The Parthenon Group and AT Kearney.

"With his expertise in accelerating business growth and managing strategic products, he will help us in scaling the Kraftly business and identifying new areas for expansion," Kraftly co-founder and CEO Saahil Goel said.

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Nasscom sets up data security task force for BPM industry * IT industry body Nasscom today said it has set up a Consumer Interest Protection Task Force to detail an action plan on data security for the Indian BPM industry.

Formed under BPM Council Chairman, Keshav R Murugesh, the task force aims to protect consumer interests globally from fraudulent acts perpetrated by unscrupulous elements, including those using the internet as a medium.

Data Security Council of India (DSCI) will work in close partnership with the BPM Council for the task force deliberations and recommendations, Nasscom said in a statement.

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JSW steel recommissions two blast furnaces * JSW Steel Limited has recommissioned two of its blast furnaces that were shut down in August and November, 2015 at Vijayanagar and Salem Works for relining and modification.

"JSW Steel Limited is happy to place on record that two of its blast furnaces, which were shut down in Augustand November 2015 at Vijayanagar and Salem Works, respectively for relining and modification have since been re-commissioned," the company said in a statement today.

ICRA upgrades RCom rating



* Telecom major Reliance Communications today said ratings agency ICRA has upgraded its outlook to 'stable' from negative on the Long Term rating 'BBB+' of the company.

It has also reaffirmed rating of A2+ for Short-Term Fund Based/Non Fund Based Limits and Commercial Papers of the company, it said in a BSE filing.

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Focussed on growing govt, education segments in India: Adobe * Software major Adobe today said it is focussing on growing its business from verticals like education and government in India, which is a strategic market for the US-based firm.

"India is a very strategic market for us and has been growing at a strong pace... There is a lot of stress being given by the government on Digital India and we see a lot of scope in segments like education and government," Adobe MD (Designate) South Asia Kulmeet Bawa said.

He added that the company is seeing good traction from sectors like financial services, media, eCommerce and travel and hospitality.

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Infibeam invests Rs 60 cr in payment gateway CCAvenue * Infibeam, which raised Rs 450 crore in an initial public offering earlier this year, said it has invested Rs 60 crore in Avenues India.

"We have been informed by NSI Infinium Global that the definitive agreement has been executed for investment of Rs 600 million with Avenues (CC Avenue) on June 22, 2016," it said in a filing.

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GIPCL bags e-Reverse auction bid for 40 MW solar power project * Gujarat Industries Power Co Ltd (GIPCL) today announced that it has emerged as successful bidder for 40 MW solar Power Project in Gujarat Solar Park, under National Solar Mission Phase-II.

"GIPCL has emerged as successful Bidder in the e-Reverse auction for selection of bidder for 40 MW Solar Power Project in Gujarat Solar Park, Village Charanka under National Solar Mission Phase-II, Batch IV," the company said in a statement.

Shree Cement completes expansion of grinding unit in Bihar



* Shree Cement has completed the expansion of grinding unit in Aurangabad district of Bihar.

"Shree Cement Ltd has completed the expansion of grinding unit at Aurangabad (Bihar) from 2 Million Tons Per Annum (MTPA) to 3.60 MTPA on June 22, 2016," it said in a regulatory filing today.

The cement maker, last month, had announced that it will set up a clinker plant with 2.8 MTPA capacity at its integrated cement plant in Raipur, Chhattisgarh.

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Mangalam Seeds to issue 11.88 lakh shares to raise Rs 8.55 cr * Mangalam Seeds today said the company will issue 11.88 lakh shares to promoters and non-promoters to raise more than Rs 8.55 crore.

"Allotment of 11,88,000 equity shares at the face value of Rs 10 each at an issue price of Rs 72 each (including premium of Rs 62 each) on preferential basis to promoters and non-promoters pursuant to the approval of members of the company in general meeting and in-principle approval from the stock exchange," Mangalam Seeds said in a regulatory filing.

As on March 31, promoters had 73.50 per cent stake in the company while remaining was with the public.

The Ahmedabad based seed company has seed production and processing facility in Gujarat, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh. The company deals in seeds of cotton, ground nut, pulses, and vegetables among other crops.

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CIL signs agreement with two companies



* Coal India today entered a tripartite agreement with Alankit Assignments Ltd and Karvy Computershare Pvt Ltd.

"Tripartite agreement was entered into among Coal India Limited, Alankit Assignments Limited- New RTA & Karvy Computershare Pvt. Limited- Previous RTA on June 16, 2016," Coal India said in a BSE filing.

Alankit Assignments Ltd had taken over as the Regsitrar and Share Transfer Agents of Coal India Ltd w.E.F May 1, 2016, the filing said.
Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) would build a hospital in Jamnagar district, Group President - RIL and Rajya Sabha MP from Jharkhand, Parimal Nathwani said today.

"Jamnagar Collector has recently cleared a land to develop 40,000 sq ft medical center (hospital) at Moti Khavdi village in Khambhalia area mainly to serve the victims of accidents in this region. Reliance team will develop this hospital," Nathwani said.

"RIL will build, maintain and operate a modern hospital spread over 40,000 sq feet, for the villagers of the surrounding area," he said.

He thanked the Gujarat government for allowing this project to be executed by Reliance Group.

Nathwani apprised that the Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel yesterday inaugurated a veterinary hospital set up by RIL at Jamnagar's Padana village.

Asserting that animal husbandry is one of the most important sources of livelihood for the people of Gujarat, he said that RIL has patronized many Gaushalas (cow sheds) in the villages situated near its refinery located in Jamnagar district.

The hospital is located on Sir P N Road from Padana Patia to Changa Patia in proximity of State Highway-25 and Padana village, and is spread over 13,456 sq ft of land, he said.

"The facility consists of main hospital building, cattle shed, stable, bio-medical waste room, fodder storage and staff quarters equipped with modern amenities. Besides, residential quarters have been constructed for doctors and paramedical staff. The services are being made available 24x7," he said.

A mobile veterinary van will also be made available by the hospital soon, he said, adding the veterinary clinic built by RIL under Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is the first one in the area.
A robust proprietary channel is necessary for sustained growth of the insurance sector, a BCG report said today.

While multi-partnership bancassurance architecture will open up opportunities for insurers, health of the agency channel cannot be neglected, said the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) report, which was released here during a FICCI insurance summit.

Agency channel economics are difficult to sustain for most insurers, the report said, adding that it is likely that India is the only large country in the world with a fixed cost agency channel.

Not enough insurers have truly attempted to design the agency of the future and hence this is an opportunity to innovate and take the lead in this space, it said.

"At BCG, we have identified major trends such as digitisation, changing consumer needs and ageing changes that are expected to impact the sector in its next phase. However, the challenge lies in sustaining profitable growth," said Alpesh Shah, BCG India Senior Partner and Director, and Head - Insurance Practice in Asia.

"In the report, we have defined a 14-point action agenda for Indian insurers that could lead to achieving this target," he added.

Some of the other challenges as defined by the report include realising the full value of third party channels, going directly to consumers, claims excellence and next generation leadership.

The report has also asked insurers to go for right pricing of their products.
Amid a raging row over the suicide by a Dalit research scholar at Hyderabad Central University, city-based students associated with left wing organisations will hold a protest march against "atrocities" on Dalit community members here on February 1.

These organisations have been demanding resignation of Union Ministers Smriti Irani, Bandaru Dattatreya and the Vice- Chancellor of Hyderabad Central University over the suicide by Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula.

Student groups from various colleges, including Tata Institute of Social Services (TISS), Tata Fundamental Research Institute (TFIR) and IIT-Bombay, have planned the march to protest "atrocities" on Dalits.

They have gathered under the banner of 'Justice for Rohith - Joint Action Committee'. The march will be led by Bharipa Bahujan Mahasangh leader Prakash Ambedkar, the grandson of social reformer Babasaheb Ambedkar.

"Students of University of Hyderabad are fighting against casteist and fascist forces. This is not a fight between Dalits and non-Dalits, but between Vedic Hindu philosophy and anti-caste philosophy," said Harshali Poddar, a student, at a press meet called to announce the agitation.

She demanded the arrest of those responsible for Rohith's death, which she termed as a "political murder".

Meanwhile, Prakash Ambedkar, who was not present at the press conference held at his office, later said he is with student organisations and will lead the march.
Ten major cities in Maharashtra, including Mumbai, have submitted their estimated proposals worth Rs 29,647.45 crore for the Central government-funded 'Smart City' project.

However, the Mumbai proposal estimate of just Rs 1,118 crore is the lowest among all the ten cities.

The Thane Municipal Corporation's proposal with an estimate of Rs 6,630 crore tops the list, followed by Amravati worth Rs 5,305 crore and Nagpur - Rs 3,409 crore.

The estimated proposal of Mumbai has raised eyebrows as the Shiv Sena, which is in power in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), has already red-flagged the Centre's move accusing it of trying to get back-door access to controlling the city.

It is also likely to become an issue during the BMC elections due to be held in early 2017.

The 'Smart City' proposal submitted by BMC has far lower estimate even than that of Aurangabad city, which is around Rs 1,595.5 crore.

The other cities to submit their estimated proposals include Pune - Rs 2,932 crore, Solapur - Rs 2,921 crore, Kalyan-Dombivali - Rs 2,057 crore, Nashik - Rs 1,945 crore and Navi Mumbai - Rs 1,734 crore.

During the Winter session of the state Legislature held at Nagpur in December last year, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had rejected Shiv Sena's contention that the move was Centre's ploy to gain back-door control of the city.

He had said that a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) would be set up to implement the project that will be dominated by civic officials.

Even Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) president Raj Thackeray had questioned the belated opposition of the Sena to the project pointing out that the Sena-ruled BMC had approved the proposal in July 2015.

Fadnavis, without taking names, had recently said that all parties (including the Sena) in the Pune Municipal Corporation had approved the 'Smart City' project there.

He had said that the scheme no way takes away powers of the civic bodies, and instead it is the civic bodies which will decide on their priorities, on who should be awarded the contracts and allocation of funds.

An editorial in Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' had recently termed the Prime Minister's flagship 'Smart City' project as "illegal" and "unconstitutional" and a ploy to gain back-door control over Mumbai.
South Korea's president questioned the role of long-dormant North Korean nuclear disarmament talks, saying today that regional powers should meet without the North in the wake its recent nuclear test.

The so-called six-nation talks aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear program in return for aid have been stalled since they were last held in December 2008. Pyongyang has since conducted three nuclear tests, including the latest on January 6, sparking worries the country has made progress in its bomb program.

The six countries are the two Koreas, the United States, China, Russia and Japan.

In a meeting with top officials, South Korean President Park Geun-hye said it was time to look for "diverse, creative" ways to try to resolve the nuclear standoff, such as a five-nation meeting without North Korea. She did not offer specifics.

"In the past, the six-party talks were useful as a tool to try to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue through dialogue. But the question about their effectiveness cannot help being raised if the current situation no talks continues or they aren't helpful for the North's denuclearization even if they are held," Park said, according to her office.

The six-party talks have taken place in fits and starts in Beijing since 2003. The talks once led North Korea to take major disarmament steps, but they have eventually failed to halt the North's nuclear ambitions.

Pyongyang walked away from the negotiations in April 2009 to protest international condemnation over its long-range rocket launch.

The North later said it was willing to rejoin the talks in what outside analysts said was an attempt to win aid and revive its struggling economy. But US and South Korean officials responded coolly to the overture, saying they first wanted to see North Korea taking some concrete actions and showing how serious it is about disarmament before the talks can resume.

It was not known if Park's push for a five-nation meeting would happen soon. North Korea would likely respond angrily to any such meeting, and it is unlikely China, the North's last major ally and biggest aid provider, and Russia, also a traditional ally, would quickly embrace Park's proposal.

Park on Friday urged China to take unspecified "effective" measures to make North Korea follow in the footsteps of Iran, which last year agreed to curb its nuclear activities in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions.
Marathi literary meet chief Sripal Sabnis today criticised the Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Mahamandal for not publishing his presidential speech while describing it as "intolerant".

Sabnis, president of 89th 'Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan'- the annual Marathi literary meet, said the apex literary body should publish and distribute the presidential speech before the President delivers it in the meet.

Notably, Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Mahamandal organises the annual Marathi literary meet.

"However it seems that the content in the speech irked the Mahamandal as it touched on issues of Muslims, farmers and dalits," he alleged.

"The Mahamandal was supposed to publish my speech. However till date, they have been buying time for no reason and it shows that they are intolerant and I have been subjected to injustice," he told PTI.

Miffed, Sabnis has now given an ultimatum till January 26 and warned to sit on a fast along with his wife outside the Mahamandal office here on January 27 if his speech is not published.

The Sammelan was held here from January 16-18 amid a huge row over Sabnis' remarks about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's surprise visit to Pakistan. He, however, tendered an apology later.

Sabnis said he himself bore the expense of publishing 2000 copies of his own speech which was distributed during the literary meet.

He has also demanded a refund for the expenses from the literary body.

He said the reason cited for not publishing the speech saying that its "too lengthy" holds no water.

In his controversial remarks, Sabnis, an eminent writer, had said Modi could have fallen to a bullet or a bomb explosion at the Lahore airport during his surprise visit to Pakistan on December 25 and that a condolence meeting would have been organised first for the prime minister instead of the Marathi poet Mangesh Padgaonkar, who died recently.

Mahamandal chief Madhavi Vaidya could not be reached for comment.
VHP leader Sadhvi Prachi has demanded that the accused in the rape case of a 40-year-old health worker at Chapra village, be booked under the stringent National Security Act.

Rape accused should be booked under National Security Act, and the women health workers (ASHA) should be safeguarded, she said yesterday.

Prachi visited the the Chapra village where the rape victim had committed suicide. She met the deceased's family and paid condolences to them yesterday.

She also said that if police failed to book the culprits under NSA, people would start an agitation to demand security for women.

The 40-year-old married ASHA health worker at Chapra village was allegedly raped by four persons, who also spread her objectionable video through social media, leading her to commit suicide on January 13.

One of the accused, identified as Shahid, has been arrested. A hunt is on to nab the other three, police said.
Vermont senator Bernie Sanders' popularity has surged ahead of Democratic favourite Hillary Clinton, while outspoken real estate tycoon Donald Trump has consolidated his lead over nearest Republican rivals in Iowa, where the first vote for the presidential primary polls would be cast in just over a week from now.

Populist Trump, who has surprised all political pundits in the US with a sustained campaign he has run so far, has been leading all opinion polls since he announced his candidature last summer.

He was topping the Iowa polls with 37 per cent, according to CNN/ORC poll. His nearest rival 49-year-old Ted Cruz, from Texas and a Tea Party favourite, is trailing behind at 26 per cent.

Florida senator Marco Rubio, 44, is the only other candidate with double digit popularity at 14 per cent.

With all eyes on Iowa Caucus on February 1, which would formally kick off the 2016 presidential elections, followed by New Hampshire primary a week later, candidates from both the Democratic and Republican parties have virtually stormed the two crucial states, fanning to small villages and cities in their last-minute efforts to convince voters to support them.

Trump, 69, is leading considerably in both the states, but this is not the case with 68-year-old Clinton, who is eyeing to create history in the November 2016 presidential elections by becoming the first woman to be elected as the US president.

The former first lady, former New York senator and former secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, who enjoys a worldwide following, started as a Democratic favourite when she announced her candidature last spring.

She had a commanding lead over her nearest Democratic rival Sanders in Iowa until December. As per the CNN/ORC poll, Clinton led Sanders by 18 points in December.

But as per the latest opinion poll released by the same agency, Sanders now leads Clinton by eight points.

In her second presidential bid, a defeat in Iowa could be considered a major setback for the Clinton campaign, as this is traditionally expected to set the pace and tone of the rest of the presidential season.

But she can always bounce back by winning in other States.

Nationally, Clinton still has a considerable lead over Sanders, 74.

As per RealClearPolitics, which aggregates all the national polls, Clinton has a 13-point lead over the Senator from Vermont.
The Supreme Court today ordered a CBI probe into the murder of Bahujan Samaj Party leader Raju Pal in 2005 in Uttar Pradesh.

A bench comprising Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose and Justice Amitava Roy, while allowing the plea of the Pooja Pal, wife of slain leader, asked the probe agency to conclude the probe in the case preferably within six months.

On February 3, 2006, the apex court had issued notice to the then Mulayam Singh Yadav government and CBI in connection with the murder of the BSP legislator who represented Allahabad West constituency in the UP assembly.

The court had also issued notice to then Samajwadi Party MP Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf Ahmed, who were arrested by the police on charge of murder.

In her plea, Pooja Pal had sought a probe into the case by an independent agency citing threat to her life as well as to Raju's mother from the Samajwadi Party.

The court had then directed the Uttar Pradesh Police to provide security to the two.

The petitioner had alleged that it was a political murder carried out at the behest of the Samajwadi Party and claimed that the investigation carried out by the state police had not been fair and impartial and was shrouded in mystery.

The controversial BSP MLA Raju Pal and two others were shot dead and his wife and another person seriously injured by unidentified assailants in Allahabad on January 25, 2005.

The apex court on April 4, 2006, had stayed the trial of the case before a Fast Track Court in Allahabad.

Later, Atiq Ahmed and his brother was arrested and a charge sheet was filed against them for allegedly conspiring to eliminate Raju Pal.
The Supreme Court today refused to stay a criminal contempt notice issued by the Bombay High Court against author Arundhati Roy for her article in a weekly magazine questioning the continued incarceration of Delhi University professor G N Saibaba.

The apex court also did not give her any relief from personal exemption from appearance before a single judge of the Nagpur Bench of the high court on January 25.

While asking her to appear on Monday, the bench issued notice to the respondents on her petition challenging the high court's order.

When senior advocate Chander Uday Singh, appearing for the writer, sought stay on her personal appearance, contending that the passion has beefed up and effigies are burnt, the court said it was passing the order after carefully considering the matter.

"You should have no fear in appearing in court. You go and appear. We are here. We have issued the process and we are looking into it. We have thought about it carefully," the bench comprising Justice J S Khehar and Justice C Nagappan said.

When the counsel once again sought for personal exemption on Monday, the bench said, "We don't want to grant you or deny you."



The Bombay High Court had on December 23, 2015, issued the contempt notice against the author, for her views on the arrest of Saibaba and the rejection of his bail plea early last year.

Gadchiroli Police had arrested Saibaba in 2014 for his alleged links with Maoists. He has been on bail since June last year.

Roy had expressed her views on the arrest in an article published in a weekly magazine last year.
The world must act quickly to avert a future in which autonomous robots with artificial intelligence roam the battlefields killing humans, scientists and arms experts warned at an elite gathering in the Swiss Alps.

Rules must be agreed to prevent the development of such weapons, they said at a January 19-23 meeting of billionaires, scientists and political leaders in the snow-covered ski resort of Davos.

Angela Kane, the German UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs from 2012-2015, said the world had been slow to take pre-emptive measures to protect humanity from the lethal .

"It may be too late," she told a debate in Davos.

"There are many countries and many representatives in the community that really do not understand what is involved. This development is something that is limited to a certain number of advanced countries," Kane said.

The deployment of autonomous weapons would represent a dangerous new era in warfare, scientists said.

"We are not talking about drones, where a human pilot is controlling the drone," said Stuart Russell, professor of computer science at University of California, Berkeley.

"We are talking about autonomous weapons, which means that there is no one behind it. AI: artificial intelligence weapons," he told a forum in Davos. "Very precisely, weapons that can locate and attack targets without human intervention."



Russell said he did not foresee a day in which robots fight the wars for humans and at the end of the day one side says: "OK you won, so you can have all our women."



But some 1,000 science and chiefs including British physicist Stephen Hawking, said in an open letter last July that the development of weapons with a degree of autonomous decision-making capacity could be feasible within years, not decades.

They called for a ban on offensive autonomous weapons that are beyond meaningful human control, warning that the world risked sliding into an artificial intelligence arms race and raising alarm over the risks of such weapons falling into the hands of violent extremists.

"The question is can these machines follow the rules of war?" Russell said.

How, for an example, could an autonomous weapon differentiate between civilians, soldiers, resistance fighters and rebels? How could it know that it should not kill a pilot who has ejected from a plane and is parachuting to the ground?



"I am against robots for ethical reasons but I do not believe ethical arguments will win the day. I believe strategic arguments will win the day," Russell said.

The United States had renounced biological weapons because of the risk that one day they could deployed by "almost anybody", he said. "I hope this will happen with robots."



Alan Winfield, professor of electronic engineering at the University of the West of England, warned that removing humans from battlefield decision-making would have grave consequences.

"It means that humans are deprived from moral responsibility," Winfield said.

Moreover, the reaction of the robots may be hard to predict, he said: "When you put a robot in a chaotic environment, it behaves chaotically.
Seven naxals, three of them carrying reward of varying amounts on their heads, were arrested from insurgency-hit Sukma district today, police said.

"The cadres were apprehended by a joint team of security forces near Chingavaram village under Gadiras police station limits," Sukma Additional Superintendent of Police Santosh Singh told PTI.

As a part of the ongoing anti-naxal operations in the region, a joint squad of CRPF's 230th battalion, District Reserve Group (DRG) and district forces were carrying out a search operation towards Matemarka, Munga and Chingavaram villages, located around 500 kms away from the state capital Raipur, he said.

On reaching near Chingavarm, they rounded up seven suspects who during interrogation admitted to their involvement with the outlawed naxal movement, the officer said.

The ultras have been identified as Madvi Bapu (30), Madvi Linga (30), Madvi Hidma (35), Podiyami Kosa, Madvi Handa (40), Madvi Muda (35) and Madvi Hadma (23).

While Hidma was carrying a reward of Rs 1,000, Handa and Kosa Rs 2,000 each.

According to police, the naxals were allegedly involved in activities like damaging roads, torching vehicles, and dropping Maoist pamphlets in the region.


Australia captain Steve Smith is



disappointed with the uncharacteristically flat pitches in the ongoing series against India and wants the tracks to have their original pace and bounce to ensure a fair contest.

All four matches in the current series against India have been high-scoring affairs with tracks giving hardly any assistance to the bowlers. Similar was the case in Australia's recent series against New Zealand and West Indies.

"It'd be nice if the wickets that traditionally have a little bit more pace and bounce in them, the WACA and Gabba, were able to bring back those characteristics," Smith said.

"I've been a little bit disappointed with the way they've played throughout the whole summer in the two Test matches against New Zealand on those respective pitches."



Smith wants to see an even contest between bat and ball.

"The wickets didn't have a great deal of pace and bounce to them which we naturally see. It'd be great if that was brought back. I think that'll make it a little bit more even between bat and ball," he added.
Retail-technology firm Snapbizz has raised $7.2 million (about 48 crore) from Jungle Ventures, Taurus Value Creation, Konly Venture and Blume Ventures.

The funds raised will be used to continue the firm's growth and spur market expansion across key cities, Snapbizz said in a statement here.

Set up in 2013, SnapBizz works with traditional retail outlets in Mumbai, Pune, New Delhi, Bengaluru and Hyderabad through a technology solution addressing the key business challenges faced by them.

The company also connects stakeholders of the fragmented retail ecosystem of India.

The cost-effective, end-to-end solution is an Android-based, cloud-connected business platform comprising a tablet, barcode scanner, printer and an intelligent consumer-facing LED display for consumer engagement.

"All ecosystem players have shown confidence in our solution and that our existing investors have reiterated their support to us. Large retail and online players account for only 10-15% of any brand's business. The remaining 90% happens through traditional trade and there is zero or minimal last mile connectivity between brands, consumers and retailers," SnapBizz founder and CEO Prem Kumar said.

"We are on a mission to address this big gap while addressing the pain points of the kirana stores," he said.

Despite stiff competition, kirana stores are still considered as the most trusted retail format in our country. In-line with the changing business environment and consumer expectations, kirana stores have realised the need to transform the business through advanced technology solutions, he added.

The company had earlier received a seed fund of $1.7 million from Qualcomm, Jungle Ventures, National Research Foundation of Singapore, Taurus Value creation and Blume Ventures.
The US today said China is taking some steps that are "self-isolating" with regard to the South China Sea and the US will "fly, sail and operate" whatever international law permits there.

"I am not one of those people who believe that conflict between China and the US is inevitable. It is certainly not desirable and I don't think it is likely. The US will fly, sail and operate whatever international law permits in the South China Sea.

"China is taking some steps which I fear are self-isolating, driving towards a result that none of us want," US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter said here.

Speaking here at the WEF Summit on the issue of global security, Carter said he expects "the security problem of few against the many will be with us for a long time."



Participating in the session, Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani said, "We need to understand that we are dealing with medium, not short term challenges. We must understand terrorism as an ecology with both competition and cooperation."



According to him, terrorism is directed towards theatre and to call into question the relationship between the state and the citizen.

NATO Secretary Gerneral Jens Stoltenberg said more and more states are today in a state blurred between war and peace and NATO's challenge is to respond to a more fragile and more dangerous security environment.

On the other hand, Carter said there is a new playbook for NATO.

Ghani also said the private sector can be great partners in the mission to create stability.

"As long as we're having exclusion of women, we will never have stability," he added.

Political will is not an abstraction, it is a concrete sort of steps to make choices between difficult options, Ghani said, adding that there is need to come out with plans that are deliverable in Afghanistan.

Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shammugaratnam said China is a dominant trading partner country for virtually every East Asian nation.

About Singapore, he said it is the most religiously diverse nation in the world.

"We are living with a legacy of decades of segregation and a culture of exclusion...," he noted.

Mixed neighbourhoods, workplaces and classrooms are critical for stability, he emphasised.
Police today filed a chargesheet against Samajwadi Party leader Sudheer Goel and his son Amit Goel for their alleged involvement in the murder of a property dealer.

According to senior prosecutor D C Shrivastave, property dealer Aamir Alam was shot dead at Khatoli town in the district on October 22, last year.

A Muzaffarnagar court on Wednesday had rejected their bail plea. District Judge B S Kakkar had rejected the plea of Goel, saying, "There is no case of bail here", according to government counsel Dushyant Tyagi.
Government is likely to conduct next round of spectrum auction around May-June period this year, a top official said today.

"We will put all available spectrum for auction in which ecosystem is available that industry is demanding. The auctions will be held sometime in May June," Telecom Secretary Rakesh Garg said at FICCI-WBA Vision Forum.

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has put out a consultation paper on a reference made by the government to suggest the base or floor price for all available airwaves for mobile services.

The government has pegged revenue from communication services for the current fiscal at Rs 42,865 crore including upfront realisation from spectrum sale and licence fee.

Garg said the government has given prime importance to Digital India project and expanding connectivity across India.

He said the Telecom Ministry will place BharatNet programme before Cabinet for approval.

The programme envisages use of all technology available for broadband network to connect all village panchayats with an outlay of about Rs 72,000 crore.

The government has set a target to connect 2.5 lakh village panchayat with optical fibre network for high speed broadband service by end of 2016.

Garg, however, said that connectivity to the panchayats is expected to get completed by 2018.

"The duct to lay optical fibre has reached about 45,000 village panchayats, around 37,000 have been connected with optical fibre," Garg said.

He said the government is not happy with the pace of the project and is working on to resolve the problems.

Garg said the government is open for all kind of technical solutions and idea that does not have any adverse effect on public and national security.

"Government has given permission for testing TV white space for broadband service. It is being tested in 3-4 places. If results of tests are successful, we will see how we can translate it in to reality," he said.

IT major Microsoft has been advocating for use of white space technology for broadband services. Similarly, he said the government is working for Google's Loon project technology to deliver wireless broadband using balloon at 18-20 km height.

"Our (Telecom) Minister has been trying very hard. He has said we should be open for experimentation. This includes consultation with other ministries," Garg said. The Loon project is learnt to have hit a hurdle, with a committee examining it.

Google wants to experiment its Loon project in premium spectrum bands of 700 Mhz or 800 Mhz. However, the committee under IT secretary JS Deepak has asked the company to reconsider its request for these premium bands because of availability issues.
A spurt in ammonia level in Yamuna has left its water beyond treatment forcing the closure of Wazirabad and Chandrawal plants, and severely affecting areas falling under NDMC including Lutyens' zone.

The development has prompted the Delhi government to take up the matter with Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti.

"Both plants closed again due to again high levels of ammonia. I have called a high-level emergency DJB meeting at Wazirabad plant at 8:30 PM," Delhi Water Minister Kapil Mishra tweeted.

The plants, which serve water to large parts of the capital, were made partially functional yesterday. Authorities were forced to close them first on the evening of January 19.

"The level of ammonia is between 2-2.5 ppm (parts per million). I have spoken to Uma Bharti ji and she has promised to take up the matter with Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar," Mishra said.

Earlier, Delhi Chief Secretary K K Sharma had written to his Haryana counterpart apprising him of the "deteriorating" water quality and sought his intervention for taking necessary steps to prevent entry of pollutants in downstream Yamuna.

Water supply will be severely affected in New Delhi Municipal Corporation areas which includes the Lutyens' zone, North Delhi, North West Delhi, Central Delhi and parts of West and South Delhi.

Water tankers will be available at telephone nos, 29941825 (Sarita Vihar), 26100644 (R K Puram), 29234746, 29234747 (Greater Kailash I), 23814338, 23810930 (Chandrawal Water Emergency), 27304656 (Ashok Vihar Water Emergency), 27700789, 27700474 (Holambi Kalan), 25274679, 25275259, 25275260 (Paschim Vihar), and 1916, 23538495, 23527679 (Central Control Room).
Criticising the 'Mukhyamantri Teerth Yatra Yojana', Punjab traders associations today charged that the state government is securing votes by sending people on pilgrimage for free by using the VAT paid by the traders.

"This is tragic. Industrial trade is falling in the state. The government has collected crores of rupees as VAT but do not have enough to repay our outstanding amount," Chiranjeet Singh Mangi, Jalandhar Chamber of Industry and Commerce general secretary said.

Punjab Vyapar Sena President Ravinder Dhir said that state government's decision is "laughable"



"They are not returning traders' outstanding VAT and sending people on pilgrimage for free. I have no issue with the introduction of train for pilgrims but they should also return traders' VAT," Dhir said.

Foundation of Jalandhar Traders Association president Gurusharan Singh said that they don't know what the government wants.

"It is tragic that people who are behind the decline of trade are running the government. History stands witness that a government cannot run without trade and traders," Singh said.

The three leaders said that by introducing a train for pilgrimage during the election year, government is buying votes through traders' VAT.

They said that if the government really wanted to do start such an initiative for pilgrims, they could have done it three-four years back.

But they deliberately did it during the election year because they wanted to secure their votes, Mangi and Singh said.

The government is not working on any other plan. People are not getting old age pension. Electricity and water bill are forcibly been implicated on people. And to evade any opposition in this regard, the government has initiated this train, Dhir said.

Recently the Punjab and Haryana high court had questioned the government regarding the budget of Teerth Yatra Yojana.

Earlier senior BJP leader Laxmikanta Chawla had written twice to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and questioned why the old age pension was not being given when the government has enough finances to start a train.
The Steel Ministry will appoint external consultants to evaluate the parameters for selecting Integrated Steel Plants (ISPs) for the Prime Minister's Trophy based on their overall performance.

The ministry has put up a notice inviting tenders to engage consultants as independent agency for the assessment and evaluation of enabling parameters for the ISPs.

It has also invited tender to engage consultants for the customer satisfaction survey of ISPs.

A total of ten Integrated Steel Plants are eligible to participate in the PM's Trophy Scheme.

Since 1992, the government has been presenting the Prime Minister's Trophy and a cash award of Rs 1 crore each year to the best performing ISP in a bid to generate a sense of competition and improve their performance.

The performance of the plants is judged by a panel headed by the Steel Secretary with members selected from technologists, management experts, trade union leaders, economists and consumers of iron and steel.

Till 2012-13, India's largest steelmaker SAIL's Bhilai plant has taken home the trophy a record 11 times followed by Tata Steel (7), RINL's Vizag Steel plant (2) and JSW Steel (1).
Two students, who shouted slogans during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's convocation address at Babasaheb Bhimrao Amebdakar University (BBAU) today, were arrested and released later on personal bonds.

Ram Karan, resident of Kaushambi and Amrendra Kumar Arya of Sant Kabir Nagar, both student of BBAU invited for LLM degree, were arrested under 151 CrPC (preventive arrest for breach of peace), Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Rajesh Kumar Pandey said.

Both of them were later released on personal bonds, the SSP added.

As soon as the Prime Minister started his convocation speech, the two students stood up and started raising slogans like "Modi Go Back" and "Inqualab Zindabad", apparently protesting over the suicide of student Rohith Vemula in Hyderabad a few days back.

The security personnel immediately escorted them out of the auditorium and were taken to the police station.
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Former Union Minister and BJP leader Subramanian Swamy today recalled his encounter with the then US Ambassador to get India USD 2 billion loan from International Monetary Fund (IMF) to save the country from a "grave economic crisis" in 1991.

Swamy, who was Law and Justice Minister in Chandra Sekhar government in 1991, said a decision to allow American war planes to refuel at Indian airports during the first Iraq war was taken after the US agreed to arrange USD 2 billion IMF loan for India.

Speaking on 'responsible capitalism' at the annual conference of Kerala Management Association here, Swamy said India faced severe financial crisis in 1991 due to some steps taken by the previous government regarding providing bank loans to industries.

Swamy, who commended Rajiv Gandhi for liberalising India's economy, however, said Gandhi, during his 1984-89 tenure did not prescribe that industrialists must only get long term loans.

"So, they (industrialists) got short-term loans", but in the process, in five years, the payments became due and there was a financial crisis, he said.

"The Prime Minister (Chandra Sekhar) asked me what we can do? Fortunately the American Ambassador came to see me for a political matter.

"He wanted to know whether we would help Americans in their war against Iraq.

"At that time, Iraq had conquered Kuwait. I asked what kind of help you want. He said he wants that their (war) planes from the Philippines be allowed to land in India, refuel in India and they are ready to pay three times more (than the landing rate for refuelling a commercial airline).

"I told him that we don't want to change our landing policy for peanuts," Swamy said without naming the US ambassador.

"He asked... What do you want? I said we want USD 2 billion because we are on the verge of becoming bankrupt. He asked 'you want it from the United States?' I said no... From the IMF and without conditions.

"He said 'how can I get you money from IMF'. I said, you have 87 per cent voting right in IMF. So, if you want landing rights, then on Monday I want USD 2 billion," Swamy revealed.

"He (the ambassador) said today is already Friday... I said in Washington it is still Thursday night.

"So, they gave us USD 2 billion... And they were given landing rights... We changed our landing policy," Swamy said.

(REOPENS DEL10)



Swamy also referred to Subramanian's public criticism of Narendra Modi when he was the Gujarat Chief Minister.

"Who said: 'What about Gujarat? Mr Modi stands indicted as a mediocre performer (judged by tax collection & social outcomes)'...AS in BS 23/1/13," he tweeted.

Swamy said Subramanian's view changed "within a year after getting plum job in the Indian government especially since out of 1.25 billion we could not find any equal or better".

(REOPENS DEL25)



Swamy claimed Subramanian has given statements earlier asking the US Congress to pressurise India.

"He was working with Pfizer's research institute and was batting for the US drug companies earlier," he said.

Asked about Jaitley's remarks supporting Subramanian, he said, "What Jaitley says or not, I have nothing to do with it. I can talk to party president or can talk to the Prime Minister."



Prodded further on when he would do that, he said, "When the need arises. There is no need now."



"If Government made him (CEA) knowing all this, then what can I do?...I have put across my point of view and I am told that all this was known earlier. So I said then you have done everything knowingly and have pardoned him, then I have no objection," he said.

To his earlier attacks against RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, he merely said it is an "old issue" and "he has gone" and why the issue should be raised now.

To another question on the Ram Temple construction this year, he said, "Yes, I have said that the temple has to be made".
Eminent tabla player Pandit Shankar Ghosh passed away tonight at a private city hospital here, his family said.

He was 80.

Ghosh leaves behind his wife - Hindustani classical vocalist of Patiala gharana Sanjukta Ghosh - his famed percussionist son Pt Bickram Ghosh, daughter-in-law Jaya Seal Ghosh and two grandsons.

Ghosh, who had been admitted to the hospital following heart ailment, was in coma since past 40 days and died at 9 PM today, Jaya Seal Ghosh told PTI.

The legendary classical exponent, who is the mentor of Bickram Ghosh, had been admitted in the ICU of a super- speciality hospital on E M Bypass, since mid December and underwent angioplasty on December 14.

"He was in an unconscious state for about one-and-half months and left for his heavenly abode at 9 PM. The condition further worsened since Wednesday last. We will keep the body at a mortuary and are planning to take it to our ancestral residence and then to Rabindra Sadan complex tomorrow morning," Jaya, an acclaimed dancer and actor, said.

After being initially admitted with cardiac problems, Ghosh had developed symptoms of pneumonia and geriatric complications and had multi-organ failure in the last few hours, the bereaved family said.

"He had been suffering from pneumonia with a background of ischaemic heart disease. Old age, diabetes and hypertension had added to the problems," a statement released by the hospital said.

"Lost him, The Emperor of Tabla. My beloved father," Bickram tweeted on Facebook tonight.

The 80-year-old, amongst the most well-known tabla players in the country, was awarded the prestigious Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in the year 2000.

Ghosh trained mainly with legendary Pandit Gyan Prakash Ghosh. Ustad Feroz Khan, Pandit Anath Nath Bose and Pandit Sudarshan Adhikari were his other teachers and he followed the Farukhabad gharana of Hindustani classical music.

He had taught tabla to a large number of students not only in Kolkata but also in Europe. He also received the ITC Sangeet Research Academy award and the Ustad Hafiz Ali Khan award.

At various points, Ghosh performed with vocalists such as Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, Pandit Omkarnath Thakur, Pandit Vinayakrao Patwardhan, Girija Devi and Akhtari Bai.

Away from India, he collaborated with artists like Greg Ellis, Pete Lockett and John Bergamo.

He had also done 'jugalbandi' with celebrated classical musicians like sitarists Pandit Ravi Shankar and Ustad Vilayat Khan and violinist Pandit VG Jog and earned rave reviews.

A pall of gloom descended over the city's music fraternity as of his death spread and many prominent personalities from the art and culture world rushed to the hospital.
Ex-Soviet Tajikistan is reinforcing the most most dangerous sections of its border with Afghanistan with more than 1,000 extra troops, military sources told AFP today.

Tajikistan, an impoverished central Asian ally of Moscow, shares a 1,344-kilometre (835-mile) border with Afghanistan, including areas controlled by the Taliban jihadist insurgency.

"Taking into account the complex situation on the border, a special unit has been created of border guards who are contract soldiers," said the commander of Tajik border forces Radzhabali Rakhmonali in parliament today.

Military sources told AFP more than 1,000 troops were serving in the new unit and the numbers could grow, amid fears of jihadist violence spreading into Central Asia.

Rakhmonali called the situation on the border "complex," with "Taliban fighters controlling a significant part of the Afghan border region."



"Afghan government forces are carrying out operations close to the border to push back and destroy the Taliban fighters," he added.

Last year Tajik border guards took part in 30 armed skirmishes with drug smugglers from Afghanistan, killing 16 smugglers.

Afghanistan has long been the world's largest producer of opium and heroin, with profits from the illicit trade helping fund Taliban insurgents who have been waging a deadly insurgency against the Western-backed government.
There is a need for convergence of important business laws in Asia as variation in legislations pose significant hurdles in cross-border investment decisions, Tata Sons, the holding company for India's Tata group, has said.

"What we need is an Asia-Pacific treaty for convergence of important commercial laws," said Bharat Vasani, chief legal and group general counsel of Tata Sons.

"While it is well-understood that harmonisation of all the laws is an impossible dream, and to some extent is not even desirable, however, I firmly believe that convergence in the areas of corporate laws, commercial laws, competition laws and investment laws is feasible and achievable," Vasani said.

Speaking before some 500 delegates from 40 countries at a conference on 'Doing Businesses Across Asia: Legal Convergence In An Asian Century' here yesterday, Vasani said it was impractical to strive for uniformity in all areas of law, but "we need to be cognizant of the ground reality in Asia."



He said differences in labelling laws in Asian countries inhibit growth in international trade and commerce in food and pharmaceutical products.

"We need to have clarity on which laws need to be converged and the laws which are difficult to converge."



Switching to larger corporate law issues, divergent provisions in national company law legislations with regard to raising of capital by way of debt or equity and merger & acquisition transactions have posed significant hurdles in cross-border investment decisions, Vasani said.

Similarly, he said, there's a strong case for aligning competition law regime of Asian countries on the lines of the European Union merger control regulations, which would significantly benefit cross-border M&A activity in the region.

He shared Tata's experience of cross-border acquisitions in Asia, saying a major part of the time in due-diligence was spent in identifying legal and regulatory risks associated with the jurisdiction in which the target company is based.

"I have come across several instances were despite attractive commercial benefits, our group had to forego some acquisition targets due to uncertain legal regime and serious regulatory risk associated with the acquisition," said Vasani.

As the global economy goes through a challenging phase, it is significantly impacting economies in the region.

"In such an environment, all that can help and facilitate promotion of trade and commerce and reduce transaction costs needs to be encouraged," Vasani stressed.

"I believe it is a historic opportunity for Asian countries to seriously explore and implement legal convergence," he added.

Vasani also welcomed the ABLI in Singapore, saying its setting up is a step in the right direction for Asian businesses. ABLI was launched by chief justices and justices from Australia, China, India and Singapore.
Staffing firm TeamLease Services will hit the capital market early next month to raise an estimated Rs 450-500 crore through an initial public offering.

The IPO comprises fresh issue of shares worth Rs 150 crore and an offer for sale of up to 32.2 lakh shares by existing shareholders, as per the Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP).

The existing investors include Gaja Capital, India Advantage, HR Offshoring Ventures and GPE (India).

A total of 10,000 shares have been reserved for the company's employees in the public issue.

According to sources, the firm's IPO will open in early February.

The proceeds of the IPO will be used for acquisitions and other strategic initiatives, upgradation of the existing IT infrastructure, working capital requirements and other general corporate purposes.

The company, which had filed draft papers with Sebi in September, for the proposed public offer, had received the regulator's approval last month.

TeamLease Services, which was established in 2002 with four offices, 20 clients and 40 employees, is now India's largest and foremost people supply chain company with eight regional offices and 1,200 employees, according to the company's website.

Shares of the company are proposed to be listed on BSE and NSE. The issue is being managed by IDFC Securities, ICICI Securities and Credit Suisse Securities (India) Pvt.

As of September 2015, the company's total revenues stood at Rs 1,215.8 crore and profit after tax was at Rs 10.97 crore.
Telangana government today requested the Railway Ministry for extending rail network to the pilgrim centre of Yadagirigutta (Yadadri) in Nalgonda district of the state, as part of the ongoing phase-II works of Multi Modal Transportation System (MMTS).

The Telangana government also offered to bear two-thirds of the estimated project worth Rs 330 crore.

In a letter addressed to Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao requested him to include extension of MMTS services from Ghatkesar to Raigir (Yadadri) on a cost sharing basis (state government will bear two-thirds of the cost and the railways the rest) in the Railway budget for the year 2016-17.

Chief Minister informed that the government of Telangana is in the process of developing Yadadri, a holy hill shrine located at about 60 km from Hyderabad, as a mega pilgrimage and spiritual hub.

The CM mentioned that the government has acquired more than 2,000 acres of land for developing the whole area on the lines of Tirupati with very good amenities for the devotees, an official release said.

Explaining the need for extension of MMTS, the CM wrote that, Yadadri temple has a railway line passing nearby with a halt station called Raigir on Secunderabad - Kazipet Section.

Rao said that the MMTS services in and around Hyderabad city have become very popular and currently phase-II of MMTS is under implementation.

One of the stretches of MMTS phase-II is between Secunderabad station and Ghatkesar (21 KM) and this is expected to be completed in financial year 2016-17.

The phase-II MMTS can further be extended from Ghatkesar to Raigir (32 KM) by laying a third Railway line with attendant signaling works etc. And Raigir station can be renamed and developed as 'Yadadri' station, the release said.

Detailing about the pilgrim strength at Yadadri, CM mentioned that, at the current initial stage of implementation of Yadadri Temple Development Authority's Master Plan, daily about 20,000 people are visiting Yadadri from Hyderabad during week days and between 40,000 to 50,000 persons during weekends.

Once the Master Plan is fully implemented in the next few



years, the pilgrim passengers going to Yadadri from Hyderabad are expected to cross over a lakh per day.

Since already severe traffic congestion is being experienced on the highway between Hyderabad and Yadadri, Rao said that it is felt extension of MMTS services to Yadadri is an urgent necessity to cater to the travel needs of pilgrims and to reduce pollution levels.

An estimate has been prepared for extension of MMTS services for about 32 km from Ghatkesar to Raigir (Yadadri), which is working out to about Rs 330 crores.

The proposed extension will also be beneficial for Indian Railways, since laying of an additional rail line will substantially augment the line capacity and help the Railways to run more passenger and goods trains on this important Secunderabad-Kazipet section of Secunderabad-New Delhi rail corridor, the release added.
India's telecom sector, which is growing at 15 per cent annually, will require 4.16 million skilled workforce by 2022, Communications and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said today.

Stressing on the need to train people, he said India should develop an architecture whereby it becomes the supplier of skilled workforce everywhere.

To train people, the Department of Telecom (DoT) and Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) today signed an MoU to develop and implement National Action Plan for Skill Development in telecom sector.

Prasad said the growth rate of telecom sector between 2013-2017 would be around 15 per cent and currently, the sector contributes 3 per cent of the country's GDP.

"The requirement of workforce in this field was about 2.8 million in 2013, it will reach 4.16 million by 2022. So you require a minimum 20 lakh trained manpower," Prasad said.

The minister also announced that an audit will be done to check spare space in public sector units (PSUs) under DoT, that can be utilised to a skill development centres.

MSDE and DoT together have agreed to make concerted joint efforts towards skill development by facilitating mobilisation of financial support for various activities for development of telecom skills.

Under the partnership, the two ministries will also make coordinated efforts to utilise old telephone exchanges of PSUs under DoT which are no longer in use or exchanges which have ceased to occupy major space in telecom sector, for skill development initiatives and upgrade the same on need basis.

PSUs under DoT will also utilise at least 20 per cent of their CSR funds for skilling purposes.

Prasad also asked private telecom operators to play a role in skill development. "You (private players) also have an obligation to skill Indians," Prasad said.

Speaking during the occasion, Union Minister for Skills Development and Entrepreneurship Rajiv Pratap Rudy said the government is trying to strengthen the sector skills councils and efforts are being made to integrate the skilling system.

"In next 6-12 months we will expand the Kaushal Vikas Yojana to provide training to unskilled Indians in remote areas," Rudy said.

On the mobile skill vans launch, Rudy said: "The pilot demonstration of mobile training labs for hard skills has been launched and based on its success we will take the campaign forward".

Telecom Secretary Rakesh Garg said there is special thrust on telecom sector in 'Make in India' programme as every section of the economy need telecom services.

Garg said PSUs under DoT including BSNL, MTNL and ITI will



train people.

Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Secretary Rohit Nandan said: "We have been assigned the task to skilling 40 crore in the next few years, people this task requires huge resources. It cannot be done by one department in isolation.

"We are very hopeful that our MoU with Telecom Ministry will extend our reach to those areas where otherwise we have got no access."



He further elaborated on the progress under the MoUs signed earlier with Railways and Defence Ministries.

"Training centres have been established at Benaras and Lucknow railway stations. Besides, we have been able to access infrastructure of defence PSUs. We will also be provided some share of their CSR funds which will be used for skilling".
In a major anti-terror swoop across the country ahead of Republic Day, the NIA today took into custody 14 people suspected to be ISIS sympathisers for plotting attacks in different parts of the country.

Of the 14 suspects, six have been arrested while eight have been detained for further questioning, the National Investigation Agency said tonight.

A possible attack may have been averted with the crackdown that came at a time when the country was in a state of heightened alert, as investigators questioned the arrested people. Some of them were stated to be software engineers.

The arrests were made following simultaneous searches and raids conducted at 12 locations in six cities--Bangalore, Tumkur, Mangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Lucknow with the support of local police forces. ATS, Maharashtra also conducted raids/ reaches at 2 other locations.

In a press statement, the NIA said that certain incriminating articles, including but not limited to mobile phones, laptops, unaccounted cash, jihadi literature and videos and certain material for preparation of bombs were recovered from these places.

"These individuals were planning and making efforts to establish a channel of procurement of explosives/weapons, identify locations to organize training camps including training of firearms, motivate new recruits to target police officers, foreigners in India and to carry out terrorist activities in various parts of India," it said.

The NIA said it received information that certain individuals from different cities in the country were in the process of organizing themselves to commit terrorist acts in different parts of the country.

NIA gave the names of those arrested as Muttabir Mustaq Sheikh(33) from Thane district near Mumbai, Mohammad Nafees Khan(24) of Hyderabad, Mohammad Shareef Moinuddin Khan(54) of Hyderabad, Najmul Huda(25) of Mangalore and Mohammad Afzal(35) of Bangalore. The name of the sixth arrested person was not yet known.

Family members of some of the arrested people claimed they have nothing to do with any terror plot and that they were innocent.

The verification of the background of the 14 people picked up is in progress, the NIA said.

According to sources, the arrested people were part of a group named 'Janood-ul-Khalifa-e-Hind' (Army of Caliph of India), a terror group which has almost similar ideologies that of ISIS.

Sheikh had designated himself as 'Ameer' (Chief) of the group and Huda as 'Ameer-e-Wyulat' (finance) and they were in touch on Internet with some persons believed to be from ISIS based in Syria, the sources said.

They said the suspects had been under surveillance for quite sometime and the decision to arrest them was taken as the group received 'instructions' for carrying out 'some sensational' attacks in the country.

The group had started receiving money through 'hawala' route and according to Home Ministry spokesman "Sheikh also received funds to the tune of Rs 6 lakh."



All the arrested suspects were being brought to the national capital for detailed interrogation as preliminary enquiry indicated that they were working on evolving a terror outfit with ideologies similar to ISIS.
Member of the Central Board of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Nachiket Mor today suggested Odisha's young ministers and bureaucrats to think before acting on any project.

"Nothing will change unless you have some ideas. Learn from the failures and move forward. Only action and no thinking cannot be the answer," Mor told the audience, while addressing the Odisha Knowledge Hub (OKH) lecture series here.

Noting that thinking was very important for ideas, the noted banker said only working hard would not bring success. "One has to think over ideas and implement them with mission mode in order to get success. You have to work out in advance on how to implement things," he said.

Besides about half-a-dozen ministers, Mor spoke to IAS officers including Chief Secretary A P Padhi, OAS officers and district collectors.

The district collectors participated in the OKH lecture through video conferencing.

"I had to reply very good questions from the assembled audience. Even the district collectors sitting in remote areas were involved and asked very practical questions," Mor told reporters after delivering the lecture.

The first lecture of the series delivered by Mor mostly focused on financial and health service transformations in India.

Sharing of new ideas helps in initiation of innovative practices and Odisha has been a forerunner in this field, Mor said.

He also focused on the national and international scenarios on financial inclusion and health service delivery.

Talking to reporters after the lecturer, Chief Secretary Padhi said "The objective of the lecture series is to bring outside expert input to the government system. Such lectures will be organised at regular intervals. New inputs from outside will be customised as per Odisha's context to enhance performance level and service delivery in the coming years."



Development Commissioner R Balakrishnan said lessons about new ideas and best practices can be gathered from various quarters and the present initiative has been started with this objective.

Themes and Subject matters for such lectures would be selected as per priorities of the state government, he said.

The initiative was taken by the state planning and coordination department.

OKH would provide a platform to facilitate knowledge sharing among multi-stake holders and to capture the best practices for strengthening the good governance in Odisha, Balakrishnan added.
Thousands of Nigerian refugees, who fled to neighbouring Cameroon in 2014 to escape Boko Harm militants, have returned to the liberated northeastern town of Gamboru only to find their homes and their livelihoods destroyed, residents and officials have said.

Over the past three days more than 15,000 Nigerians have crossed the 300-metre (yard) river bridge that forms the border with Cameroon, following calls by military and local leaders for residents to return, an official in Gamboru told AFP yeterday.

"More are coming in everyday," he added.

Boko Haram fighters seized Gamboru in violence-wracked Borno state in August 2014, forcing thousands to flee across the border to the town of Fotokol on the other bank of the river in northern Cameroon.

Chadian forces reclaimed Gamboru in February last year, after intense fighting that left hundreds of insurgents dead, as part of a regional military coalition put together to crush the Islamist group which has become a threat to regional security.

"We found a looted and burnt out town which is shadow of its former self," said Abacha Mari, one of those who returned to Gamboru on Wednesday.

"More than nine-tenths of the buildings in the town have been damaged by fire while the rest have been washed away by the rains," he added.

"Everything was looted and the streets are barely recognisable."



Gamboru has been repeatedly targeted in the Boko Haram insurrection which has cost the lives of 17,000 people in Nigeria and made over 2.5 million homeless since 2009.

Although Boko Haram were forced out of Gamboru 11 months ago, the refugees say there are only now beginning to feel confident enough to return because the Nigerian army has sent a large contingent to the town.

The return of the refugees is being coordinated by Cameroonian soldiers and local officials in Gamboru, the returning residents said.

The Nigerian refugees and their belongings were screened at the Cameroonian side of the bridge by soldiers using sniffer dogs to detect explosives before they were allowed cross back into Nigeria where officials were ready to welcome them and provided them with the necessary papers for their return.

Returning residents scoured their empty homes in the vain hope of finding any personal effects neglected by Boko Haram.

"Nobody found anything in their homes which have been looted and burnt," said returnee Ibrahim Wanzan.
John Kasich

In this photo taken Jan. 20, 2016, Republican presidential candidate, Ohio Gov. John Kasich answers a question during an interview on his campaign bus in Bow, N.H. Kasich isn't angry. And he's betting his presidential aspirations that voters aren't, either, despite the sustained political strength of leading Republicans he says are taking the country "into the dark."

(Charles Krupa/The Associated Press)

BOW, New Hampshire -- John Kasich isn't angry.

And he's betting his presidential aspirations that voters aren't, either -- despite the sustained political strength of leading Republicans he says are taking the country "into the dark."

The second-term Ohio governor, trekking through New Hampshire, preferred not to go after his GOP rivals during an extended interview with The Associated Press. He didn't even want to attack the Democratic president he hopes to replace. No, this man is trying to win the presidency on his terms, which run counter to fundamental assumptions about the mood of voters.

"Contrary to what we hear, they're not angry, I don't think they're angry at all," Kasich says. "I think they're upset things are not going well for them. Their wages are stuck, a lot of things like that. But they really want to hear answers. And they want to be hopeful. Look, when people leave my town halls, a lot of them say, I'm hopeful again. Because these problems are not that hard. It's all political mumbo-jumbo that's screwing everything up."

More than anything, the tell-it-like-he-sees-it governor condemned the angry politics that have shaped the 2016 Republican primary election. This, during an AP Conversation, the latest in a series of interviews with the presidential candidates. Kasich spoke to the AP aboard his campaign bus in New Hampshire, the unofficial staging ground for his underdog candidacy.

He is far less than known than some of his Republican competitors nationwide, but in New Hampshire at least, Kasich appears to be surging.

___

In the year of the outsider, and as his competitors run from their political experience, Kasich embraces his 18 years in Congress and five years leading one of the nation's most important swing states. In tone, message and experience, he occupies a unique political space in the packed 2016 Republican primary.

"I'm in my own lane. You cannot put me in anybody else's lane," he said. "That's why we're rising."

Despite his outlook, the 63-year-old Republican is fighting to stand out among other candidates from the GOP's mainstream wing: Jeb Bush, Chris Christie and Marco Rubio. They are all looking up at Donald Trump, who has tapped into a deep sense of frustration with Iowa's leadoff caucuses less than two weeks away.

"I will gladly accept the mantle of anger," Trump declared in last week's Republican debate.

Says Kasich: "70 percent of the people (are) not for him," an approximation of polls that find him leading nonetheless.

For now, however, people who don't support Trump or conservative firebrand Ted Cruz are divided among those candidates, Kasich among them, who are working to appeal to the party's centrist wing. Like Kasich, Bush and Christie are trying to launch their campaigns with strong performances in New Hampshire, which typically rewards moderation over party ideology.

Kasich laughed in disbelief when asked whether he might drop out of the race before New Hampshire's Feb. 9 primary. That's just what some party leaders would like, fearing there are too many candidates dividing the electorate and thereby allowing Trump and Cruz to grow stronger.

"I'm 19 days from New Hampshire, I'm in second place, and you're asking me if I'm thinking about getting out?" Kasich asked. "Are you kidding me?" He added: "When they ask me the most ridiculous thing I've ever been asked, I'm going to remember this moment."

Kasich said he's providing a style of leadership that's needed this election season.

"A leader doesn't lead people down some dark alley," Kasich said. "A leader says, 'Hey, look at the road ahead.' Lewis and Clark did not get to the Pacific by spending their time looking backwards, or talking about how hard it was. Lewis and Clark got to the Pacific because they had their eyes on the horizon. We didn't get to the moon by looking at bad things that happened. We got to the moon by looking at the future."

"That's who I am," he said. "And it's all part of a contagious movement to make people feel as though they're involved in something bigger than themselves."

___

Kasich has achieved strong approval ratings in Ohio, in part by often refusing to criticize rivals in either party. That doesn't mean he's satisfied with President Barack Obama's leadership -- especially on the economy and executive actions on immigration and background checks for guns.

"I think it's appropriate to be really angry with some of the policies," he said. "I think the problem with executive orders is that the president just basically thumbed his nose at the legislature and said, 'I'll just do this myself.' Well, we don't elect kings, we elect presidents."

On the economy -- Kasich's campaign focus -- he calls the nation's economic growth under Obama "the weakest recovery we've had out of a serious recession since World War II."

Yet he suggests Republicans have gone too far in trying to tear down Obama.

"To disrespect the office of the president? I saw the Democrats do it to George Bush and it was ugly. I think in our country, we need to respect presidents, teachers, ministers, rabbis, our elders. I'm a big person who believes in respect. And when you begin to disrespect a person, when you begin to disrespect what they're doing, it just degrades it for everybody coming down the road and I don't like that."

It's an important message for the Republican Party's presidential nominee in Ohio, he said, noting that no Republican has claimed the presidency without carrying the state in the general election.

"You've got to be sort of a uniter," he said. "People have to be hopeful about you.

"If you come in there angry, you're not going to win. You probably wouldn't win New Hampshire if you came in angry, because people don't want that."

He said he's not sure yet whether all the GOP candidates have what it takes to carry Ohio in November. But he's planning to uphold the party loyalty pledge he signed last year promising to support the ultimate nominee regardless of who it is.

"When I make a pledge, I try to keep it," he said. "We'll see what happens. But since I'm going to be the nominee, I don't need to worry about that."

___

Despite the optimistic tone, Kasich's team hasn't always shied away from hardball.

The Ohio governor's campaign called Trump divisive and insulting, and described his plan to ban Muslims from the United States as "dangerous rhetoric" in online ads. The pro-Kasich super PAC has repeatedly attacked Trump as well.

"I have not seen any of our ads," Kasich said. "I don't run the media in my campaign." He said he's "happier being positive. If they run something like that, I don't get worked up about it."

He declined to comment directly on Trump or Cruz when pressed repeatedly, saying he wanted to avoid "going down that rabbit hole."

As he sees it, his New Hampshire meetings are anger-free zones.

"Why is there no anger when I'm there, can you explain that?" he asked. "It's because we are thinking something is there that isn't there, or we have people who lead them down the path into the dark. It's easy to get people feeling bad. It's easy to get ourselves in a bad mood and thinking that the glass is half empty than half full."

Recent polls find strong majority of Americans believe the country is headed in the wrong direction, but far fewer report feeling outright anger.

A CBS/New York Times poll in December found roughly a third of Americans were angry about how things were going in Washington. Among Republican primary voters, that number ticked up to 44 percent, while more than half of Trump supporters said they were angry at Washington.

But Kasich has "never had a better time in politics."

"I'm very proud of the campaign we've run," he said. "Win or lose, I'm moving on feeling that boy, we really did great. We really made a mark. And this is going to be something that's gonna be remembered up here."
Three bombs were recovered from an old building at Kirketia village in Bihar's Araria district today, a police officer said.

After getting a tip-off, a team of Sahastra Seema Bal (SSB) and local police raided an old building at Kirketia village and recovered three bombs hidden there, Superintendent of police, Araria, Sudhir Kumar Parika said.

The bombs were kept in a water container, he said.

Police investigation is on, the SP said.
Mass cross-border migration is an "unavoidable reality" and it is "impossible to stop" the flow of refugees in need of sanctuary, the United Nations' top official in charge of migration said during a visit to Bangladesh.

In an interview with AFP in Dhaka, Peter Sutherland, the UN's special representative for migration, said the world needed to accept millions of people fleeing conflicts in Syria and elsewhere and find ways to live together.

Sutherland is visiting Bangladesh for the Global Forum on Migration and Development in Dhaka where he said he would discuss the plight of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.

The refugees, fleeing ongoing persecution in Myanmar -- which Naypyidaw denies -- have been living in Bangladeshi camps or jungle hideouts, some for generations, often without access to basic food or shelter.

The forum in Dhaka takes place as Europe is facing its biggest migration crisis since World War II, with more than a million asylum seekers arriving in Germany alone in 2015 -- triggereing a fierce backlash.

"We must find ways to be living together. Today (migration) is an unavoidable reality, we are living in the era of globalisation," Sutherland said in the Bangladeshi capital late yesterday.

"It is impossible to stop. Those who believe in some way that we can erect fences and stop migration are living in Cloud Cuckoo Land," he said.

Turkey is currently hosting 2.2 million Syrian refugees, while between 2,000 and 3,000 people arrive daily in the main European landing point of Greece, although many die making the journey.

Sutherland criticised world leaders who stoke xenophobia for political gain and link refugees with a heightened terror threat.

"They represent the world of yesterday, a world of conflict and not a world of consensus. They represent a world which creates division rather than harmony," he said.

"Humanity demands responsibility and care for those who need sanctuary."



The European Union's passport-free Schengen area has come under huge strain from the migrant influx, with wealthier countries including Denmark and Sweden introducing border controls to deal with the flow of people.

Czech President Milos Zeman in December called the wave an "organised invasion" while US presidential candidate Donald Trump has said Muslims should be barred from entering the United States.
Police today arrested the chairman and the examination controller of Jodhpur National University for allegedly selling degrees of undergraduate courses and admissions to medicine course.

According to Special Operations Group sources, Chairman Kamal Mehta and examination controller Lalchand Gehlot were arrested after the charges against them found to be substantiated in a preliminary investigation.

"They have sold nearly 300 degrees for different undergraduate courses from the university besides running some courses like engineering without any recognition," an official said, adding that they would be taken to Jaipur for further investigation.

Mehta was first arrested by SOG last January for allegedly selling fake degrees. He was sent to judicial custody but he obtained bail later.

Recently, a fresh FIR was lodged against him pertaining to selling of about 300 degrees for various undergraduate courses.

The government had lately barred operations of the university, except for the regular courses and had appointed a commissioner to take control and look after its affairs.
Shots rang out at a high school in Canada's western plains province of Saskatchewan, police said, reportedly leaving two people dead and others injured.

The school in La Loche was on lockdown, and Royal Canadian Mounted Police urged parents yesterday to stay away while they responded to the "ongoing incident.
A British Muslim mother on trial for taking her 14-month-old baby to Syria to join the Islamic State (ISIS)claims she was unaware of the terroristgroup's true nature and had travelled to the war-torn country only to live under Sharia law.

Tareena Shakil, 26, has told the Birmingham Crown Court jury that she only wanted to live under Sharia law and feared she would go to hell if she lived in England.

The court was told before she left the UK she had talked on Facebook to a man named Fabio Pocas, whose online profile showed an armed man posing with the black flag of ISIS.

He warned her of the perils of "living in the land of non-believers", telling her she could not live in a country not ruled by Sharia because it was forbidden.

She said: "He told me 'You cannot live in a state that is not under Sharia'.

He said 'Look sister, by staying in England, you're hanging over the gates of hell. If you die that's where you're going'.

"The impact on me was fear - any Muslim would want to save themselves from hell, it's just how you go about it."



She flew out of the UK in October 2014 with her child, telling her family she was going on a package holiday to Turkey.

Instead she travelled to Syria, where she remained for several months before returning to Britain in February 2015.

Shakil, who claims she escaped from Syria, was repeatedly asked about tweets she had sent in the weeks before setting off.

In September, she tweeted Sally Ann Jones, who travelled to Syria and is thought to have married British extremist Junaid Hussain, who was killed in a US drone strike last year.

Shakil claims she thought Jones was just "an ordinary woman".

"I didn't know who this woman was nor had I read any of the disgusting things she said online. It was only after, when interviewed by police, that I found out who she was and what she had said," she said.

The former University of Wolverhampton student denies charges encouraging terrorism on social media and travelling to the northern Syrian city of Raqqa to join ISIS.

The trial is ongoing and expected to last a few weeks.
Ukraine today stepped up its economic warfare with Russia by demanding a mult-billion-dollar payment from the Gazprom gas giant for allegedly underpaying Kiev for its fuel transits to European states.

The gesture is largely symbolic because Russia has dismissed similar Ukrainian claims.

But it underscores the severe tensions between the two neighbours and potentially complicates the solution of a litany of existing trade disputes.

The westward-leaning former Soviet country's Anti-Monopoly Committee said Gazprom had two months to pay USD 3.5 billion for abusing the "monopoly status" it enjoys on gas transits through Ukraine.

The committee's deputy chief Mariya Nyzhnyk said the sum represented 30 per cent of the price for natural gas that passed through the country over the past five years.

The Russian firm expressed "extreme surprise" at the announcement and stressed that it would have no impact on its future operations in Ukraine.

"Gazprom intends to defends its rights and legitimate interests by all legal means at its disposal," it said in a statement.

Ukraine's decades-old pipelines account for about 15 per cent of all gas imported by the European Union -- its members rely on Russia for about a third if their outside supplies.

Some of Gazprom's EU clients saw their deliveries limited in 2006 and 2010 when the state-run behemoth - long accused of raising the rates of neighbours who want to ease their dependence on Moscow - halted supplies to Ukraine over price disputes.

Kiev's announcement came just three days after Gazprom itself demanded the payment of a previously-undisclosed USD 2.55 billion bill for the July to September period of 2015.

Ukraine has been weening itself off Russian energy imports and purchased almost no gas from its eastern neighbour in the period mentioned by Gazprom.

But the Russian firm said the amount it was after fell under the take-or-pay scheme that requires clients to reimburse Gazprom for any contracted gas they failed to purchase in a specific timeframe.

Russia's latest charge brings to nearly USD 32 billion the bill it claims is due by Kiev.

Ukraine's Naftogaz state energy company is itself seeking nearly USD 26 billion from Gazprom in a Stockholm arbitration court.

Kiev authorities have vowed repeatedly not to halt shipments to Europe despite its multiplying disputes with Gazprom.
North Korea's leadership should be held criminally responsible for egregious human rights abuses, a UN envoy said today.

The United Nations has slammed the isolated nation for rights violations, detailing what it described as horrific abuses, including state-sponsored abductions, in a 2014 report.

Marzuki Darusman, the UN special envoy for human rights in North Korea, told reporters it is "imperative to pursue criminal responsibility" of the country's leaders to improve rights.

But Darusman added that he could not currently say who among the country's top officials bears such responsibility.

"I'd refrain from mentioning any name as we need to build up the basis for proper prosecution," he said, adding various institutions, including governments and the UN, are now in the process of identifying the officials.

But Darusman did cite the country's leader Kim Jong-Un as being what he described as "politically responsible" for the dire human rights situation.

The envoy will report his findings and recommendations to the UN Human Rights Council in March, before the end of his tenure in July.

Darusman was involved in the 2014 report, which prompted the UN Security Council to formally take up the human rights situation there.

The special envoy also criticised state-sponsored abductions of Japanese nationals by North Korea, saying solving the issue is "a matter of urgency."



"Abduction, as a form of enforced disappearance, is a continuous crime, which does not end until the victim's family learns of the whereabouts of their loved one and, where possible, the survivors are immediately returned to their families," said Darusman.

During his five-day mission, which ended Friday, the envoy met with members of Japanese families whose children and siblings were kidnapped by North Koreans.

North Korea admitted in 2002 that it had dispatched agents to kidnap 13 Japanese in the 1970s and 1980s who were tasked with training its spies in Japanese language and customs.

Five of the abductees were allowed to return to Japan but Pyongyang has insisted, without producing solid evidence, the eight others are dead.

Suspicions persist in Japan that many more of its citizens have been abducted than officially recognised.

The lack of diplomatic relations between the two countries, along with Pyongyang's pariah status internationally over its nuclear and missile programme, have hampered progress on the issue.
An undertrial prisoner who was brought to the district court for a hearing escaped from the police custody, police said today.

Sub-inspector of Thane Nagar police station SK KAdam said undertrial Muzam Azam Ali Khan, 19, a resident of Vasai here, was arrested by Valiv police in connection with a molestation and assault case.

Khan was brought to the court yesterday for the hearing. He managed to flee while being taken to the civil hospital handcuffed by a policeman.

Police said a hunt has been launched to nab the undertrial and an offence under Section 224 (resistance or obstruction by a person to his lawful apprehension) of IPC has been registered against the accused, he said.
The United States is aware of reports that a US citizen has been detained in North Korea, the State Department said today, after Pyongyang declared it had arrested an American student for an unspecified "hostile act".

"The welfare of US citizens is one of the department's highest priorities," US State Department spokesman John Kirby said in Davos, Switzerland.

When US citizens are reported detained in North Korea, the United States works closely with the Swedish embassy in Pyongyang which assists Washington in the country, Kirby said.

The United States would release no further information beyond its acknowledgement of the media reports, he said, citing "privacy considerations".

North Korea's official KCNA agency said today the country's authorities had arrested a US student who, under orders from Washington, had engaged in an unspecified "hostile act" after entering the country on a tourist visa.

The student, identified as Otto Frederick Warmbier from the University of Virginia, had come to North Korea "for the purpose of bringing down the foundation of its single-minded unity at the tacit connivance of the US government and under its manipulation," KCNA said.

He was detained "while perpetrating a hostile act against the DPRK", it added, using the official acronym for North Korea. The report did not specify when the arrest was actually made or when Warmbier entered the country.

The US Strategic Command said it detected and tracked what



in their assessment were two North Korean missiles.

"The launch of two presumed Musudan intermediate range ballistic missiles occurred at Wonsan. The missiles were tracked over the Sea of Japan, where initial indications are they fell," it said, adding the missile launches from North Korea did not pose a threat to North America.
The US has voiced concern over reports that an increasing number of people in China including Europeans were being apparently coerced to "confess" alleged crimes on state media even before the commencement of trial.

"The United States is concerned about the growing number of people in China recently - also including European citizens - who appear to have been coerced to confess to alleged crimes on state media, often before the commencement of any trial or the announcement of any charges," State Department deputy spokesman Mark Toner said.

"Some of these people have not been afforded legal or consular representation, and there are also instances in which foreign nationals appear to have been brought to mainland China against their will and by extra-legal means," he said.

"These actions undermine China's claim to be a rule of law society and run contrary China's human rights commitments and hinder its attempts to build a more transparent and effective justice system," Toner told reporters yesterday.

China's state-run China Central Television (CCTV) last week aired separate footage that showed Swedish national Gui Minhai and Swedish activist Peter Dahlin "confessing" their guilt.

Gui is a co-owner of a publisher with links to a Hong Kong store that sells books critical of China's ruling Communist Party. Dahlin is involved in a group working to improve the human rights situation in China.

State-run TV said Gui is suspected of fleeing China after receiving a suspended prison sentence for causing a fatal traffic accident in 2003.

It said Dahlin is accused of supporting activities that threaten China's national security.
collage.jpg

Ocean Springs burglary suspects Bradley Cherry (left) and Chad Brewster.

(OSPD photo)

Police say this image taken from a surveillance video shows Chad Brewster inside the offices of Papa John's in Ocean Springs during a robbery.

OCEAN SPRINGS, Mississippi -- Ocean Springs police have arrested a former Papa John's employee and charged him with commercial burglary after he admitted to police that he and another man had conspired to rob the pizza restaurant.

The restaurant notified the Ocean Springs Police Department Thursday that it had been burglarized. Police viewed surveillance footage which showed a white male entering the business with a key and also appearing to gain access to the safe with the combination.

Police identified the suspect in the video as 45-year-old Chad Michael Brewster -- a homeless man with whom police have had prior dealings, according to Ocean Springs Capt. Chuck Jackson.

Additional investigation revealed that Brewster was known to associate with 20-year-old Bradley Paul Randle Cherry, a former Papa John's employee who had been terminated earlier this month.

Cherry was located staying a the Studio 6 motel on U.S. 90 and taken into custody. Under questioning, he admitted he and Brewster had planned burglarizing Papa John's. Cherry was arrested and charged with commercial burglary and is currently in the Ocean Springs Municipal Jail under a $20,000 bond set by Judge Matthew Mestayer.

Brewster remains at-large and a warrant has been issued for his arrest. He is described as 45 years of age, 5-8 in height, 150 pounds, with a thin build. Anyone with information on his location is asked to contact the OSPD at 228-875-2211 or Crime Stoppers at 877-787-5898.
Police said today they will investigate a white Atlanta-area officer who shot a naked, unarmed, mentally ill black veteran and has been indicted on felony murder and other charges.

Officer Robert Olsen fatally shot Anthony Hill on March 9 while responding to a call of a naked man behaving erratically outside an apartment complex. Olsen was indicted yesterday.

Tensions between police and minorities have risen across the US after a series of shootings mostly involving white law enforcement officers and unarmed African-American males.

Critics in Hill's case, including his family, have focused more on his mental health and whether force should have been used because he was unarmed.

The family of the 27-year-old Hill says he was a US Air Force veteran who struggled with mental health problems.

The DeKalb County Police Department will begin its own administrative investigation to determine what action, if any, it should take against Olsen, department spokesman Maj. Stephen Fore said in an email today.

Olsen was released today from jail on USD 110,200 bond, sheriff's office spokeswoman Cynthia Williams said.

Olsen's attorney, Don Samuel, said they are disappointed in the grand jury's decision, but he noted the defense was not allowed to present any witnesses, experts or evidence and was not allowed to challenge any of the prosecution's evidence.

Georgia law allows police officers to be present during grand jury proceedings when they are being accused of crimes in the course of their official duties and to make a statement at the end of the proceedings that the prosecution cannot question or challenge. Samuel said Olsen spoke before the grand jury for about 20 minutes.

Hill's family in November filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the DeKalb County Police Department, Olsen, the county and its board of commissioners.
India believes that the US, despite its pivot towards Asia-Pacific region, remains an important player for stability in West Asia in the fight against ISIS and security of Israel, a senior Indian diplomat said today.

Anil Wadhwa, Secretary (East) in the Ministry of External Affairs, said that while India has been asked to play a more active role in the Middle East, the country needs to assess this based on its strategic leverages and realistic consideration of strengths and limitations.

Speaking at the 2nd annual West Asia conference organised by think-tank IDSA, he noted that after almost five years of 'Arab Spring' in the region, the "earlier exaggerated expectations of progress towards democracy have turned out to be misplaced".

On the whole, developments over the last few years have exacerbated the regional fault lines, accentuated regional rivalries with competing ideologies and skewed the regional balance of power, he said.

Talking about the problems in the region, he said that India acknowledges that the future political discourse taking into account popular aspirations in the countries has to be determined from within and without any external interference or influence.

"While India is not in the business of exporting democracy, promotion of democratic values may be in alignment with India's belief in these principles.

"This requires tactful approach in pursuing our interests and avoiding negative fallout of conflict in our own country," he said.

Talking about external players, he said that India believes that US, despite its pivot towards Asia-Pacific region, remains an important player for regional stability (i.E. Fight against ISIS, security of Israel)," a written copy of his speech released by the Ministry said.

He added that other countries have attempted to re-engage and may have gained in appeal as a counterweight to the West in the region.

"The Russian entry in Syria militarily has boosted prospects of the regime in Damascus and focussed on war against ISIS," he said.

Wadhwa said that the year has begun with an escalation of rivalry in the Gulf region with Saudi Arabia and Iran severing diplomatic ties.

"It has further sharpened sectarian divide with a few Gulf monarchies openly taking sides in the conflict," he said.

The Secretary stressed that India remains cautious that



its approach towards the region should not be misconstrued as being partisan or sectarian, as India has stayed out of any regional alliance based on sectarian or other similar considerations.

"We need to be sensitive to the perceptions of our own religious and ethnic mix in the population. At the same time, given the sectarian volatility in the region, we should remain prepared for any fundamental/sectarian backlash emanating from the region," he said.

He added that the recent set of events involving escalation of tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran and the ensuing diplomatic brinkmanship being carried out by the allies of each side, represents a new high in the escalation of regional tensions, which does not augur well for the region as a whole.

"It requires careful monitoring and continuous assessment of the situation for preserving our vital stakes and interests while avoiding the risk of entanglement," he said.

Talking about ISIS, he said that it is a new type of virulent terrorist manifestation with global ramifications.

India believes that the only solution to this threat can be through a larger political approach requiring a consolidated, rather than fragmented perspective, including intelligence sharing, counter-terrorism, cyber-space cooperation for containment of outbound flow of foreign fighters into Iraq and Syria, he said.

Other measures include developing a legal framework for fighting terrorism at national and international level including early adoption of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism, tracking of financial flows and humanitarian assistance.

"So far, the efforts of ISIS to gain recruits from India has met with limited success largely owing to our own pluralist society and inclusive democratic experience.

"There are reported to be a small number of Indian jihadi fighters in Iraqi-Syrian war zones, but the Government is taking measures to control this through immigration controls, intelligence sharing, and liaison with state Governments," he said.

On the Palestine issue, he said that India's policy is that of extending strong support to the Palestinian cause, while maintaining good relations with Israel.
In a bid to keep ISIS supporters out, the US has tightened its visa waiver programme for nationals of certain countries, making it harder for them to enter America if they had dual citizenship of Iran, Iraq, Sudan or Syria or visited one of them in the last five years.

Citizens of the 38 countries, which are part of the visa waiver programme, would no longer be able to get an automatic entry into the United States if they have visited these four countries - Iran, Iraq, Sudan and Syria - after March 2011, the State Department said.

The State Department said any traveller who receives notification that they are no longer eligible to travel under the Visa Waiver Programme (VWP) are still eligible to travel to the US with a valid nonimmigrant visa issued by a US embassy or consulate.

"Such travellers will be required to appear for an interview and obtain a visa in their passports at a US embassy or consulate before travelling to the United States," the State Department said.

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the goal here is to improve and tighten the screening measures that were in place for those individuals that had recently travelled to countries that were the state sponsor of terrorism.

"We want to make sure that we are doing everything that is necessary to keep the country safe. That is the top priority. But we also don't want to unnecessarily disadvantage American businesses that are trying to do business overseas, because ultimately that's good for our economy, it's good for creating jobs here in the United States," he said in response to a question.

"The goal here is to, number one, make sure that the country is safe and that we have in place appropriate screening for those individuals that have recently travelled to



the nations of Iran, Iraq, Sudan and Syria," Earnest said.

The restrictions that have been put in place do not prevent individuals from travelling to the United States.

"What they do is they subject individuals that have recently travelled to these countries to more screening. And that's an important thing for people to understand," he said.

Currently, the Visa Waiver Programme allows citizens of participating countries to travel to the US without obtaining a visa. Thirty-one of the 38 countries in the programme are European nations, with some Asian countries included as well, according to the State Department.

The adjustment was mandated by legislation passed in the wake of November's deadly ISIS-linked terrorist attacks in Paris and a deadly shooting in California in December.

The vast majority of foreign fighters who have joined ISIS or other terrorist groups and then returned to the West have gone to Iraq and Syria. Syria, Iran and Sudan are also designated as state sponsors of terrorism, according to the State Department.
Venezuelan opposition lawmakers have rejected President Nicolas Maduro's bid to decree a state of economic emergency, deepening a political crisis in the oil-rich nation.

In a vote in the National Assembly yesterday, a large majority of lawmakers rejected the decree, which would have given Maduro heightened powers for two months to intervene in the recession-stricken economy.

"We reject this decree because it means just more of the same," said Jose Guerra, head of the congressional commission that examined the decree before the vote.

"The cause of the problem is a failed economic model."



Lawmakers voted by 107 votes to 53 to reject the measure.

Yesterday was the deadline for the opposition-controlled assembly to vote on it.

The refusal by Maduro's rivals to pass the decree prolongs a tense political standoff in the volatile South American state, where citizens are suffering shortages of basic food and goods.

The emergency measure would have allowed for the administration to commandeer private companies' resources, impose currency controls and take "other social, economic or political measures deemed fitting."



The opposition, as well as some businesses and unions, warned it was a threat to free enterprise and jobs.

It wants to scrap government's price and currency controls.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has said he and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have agreed to work together to fight falling oil prices that have hit their economies.

"Without doubt we are going to defend the market. We have agreed with President Vladimir Putin to carry on working on a common vision and plan," Maduro told business leaders yesterday.

He said he spoke to Putin by phone yesterday about "the situation in the oil market."



Venezuela has the world's biggest known crude reserves but the price of oil has slumped over the past year and a half, slashing its revenues.

Yesterday, Venezuela's oil price fell to USD 21.50 a barrel. In mid-2014 in contrast, world prices were over USD 100 a barrel.

Venezuela has called on fellow members of the OPEC major oil producers' group to hold an extraordinary meeting in February to discuss reining in prices.

Maduro said he would keep pressuring them "until we clear the way for a stabilisation and a recovery of the market."



Russia is the world's second biggest crude oil producer after Saudi Arabia, according to the International Energy Agency, but is not a member of OPEC.

An economic crisis sparked by the falling oil price has led to a political crisis in Venezuela.

Socialist leader Maduro is in a standoff with the center-right opposition, which has won control of the legislature.
Villagers of a tiny hamlet near the Indo-Bangladesh border in Meghalaya's East Khasi Hills district today supported cement giant LafargeHolcim's plan to upscale production and export of limestone from two to five million tonnes per annum from its mines here.

"The village council has unanimously welcomed the expansion project of the company. The company is paying royalty to the council besides supporting agriculture, education and other livelihood programmes," village headman B Lyngdoh said while addressing the public meeting.

Urging neighbouring villages to support the company at the hearing, he said they were also reaping benefits from the Special Purpose Vehicle through which funds were routed for their overall development.

The public hearing was organised by the Meghalaya State Pollution Control Board (PCB) and district deputy commissioner Peter S Dhkar chaired the meeting.

Village secretary K P Wahlang in his address, said the urban migration of people from the village has almost stopped after the company started mining.

"Youths need not travel to the city for employment avenues. The company, through its CSR activities, supports them and since then there is no migration to other places," he said.

The only opposition came from the Shella village council when they submitted a written presentation to the PCB seeking the company to resolve the issues raised by them.

Village secretary B Ora, said the company should resolve ground vibration during blasting of mines that could have an adverse impact on the houses adjacent to the mines.

The village council has also expressed its reservation with regards to the company releasing water into River Umiam, which was the primary drinking water source for the village.

The parent company, Lafarge Umiam Mining Pvt Ltd, is currently exporting two million tonnes of limestone to its cement factory at Chattak in Bangladesh through a 17 km long cross-border conveyor belt.

The company had applied for prior Environmental Clearance from the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change in 2009 and a summary environmental impact assessment report of the new project was also prepared.

The parent company was paying about Rs 18 crore annually to the SPV for undertaking various developmental activities in an area of about 50 km radius from here.
Western military intervention in Afghanistan has left it "far poorer and deplorable" and the onus now lay with the west to create jobs in the country to stem the movement of youths towards extremist groups, according to British journalist Christina Lamb.

"People of Afghanistan need jobs and security and the two things are closely linked. The country has a very young population, most of whom are under the age of 30 years, and these people have nothing to do. You go to any Afghan village it's full of people hanging around," Lamb said.

"They either have the option of growing poppy since Afghanistan is the world's biggest producer, or to go to the Taliban or even the ISIS which is now paying lots of money," she told PTI in an interview.

Earlier participating in a discussion on her new book titled "Farewell Kabul: From Afghanistan to a More Dangerous World," the author drew from her three-decades experience of reporting in Afghanistan.

Lamb, who began reporting in Peshawar in 1988, marched up to the areas of Afghanistan where the 'mujahedeen' was fighting Russian troops.

Through her book, Lamb argues that the US military intervention to out power the Taliban in Afghanistan by fighting a long war, although well-intentioned, has turned into a defeat despite their victory because it left the country in a far poorer and deplorable condition than before.

"I want people to think more carefully before intervening in a country. Afghanistan shouldn't be forgotten. More people are dying there than any time in all the years of fighting. We should not forget that and in particular the situation of women," she said.

The winner of Prix Bayeux, Europe's most prestigious award for war correspondents, the author said the many promises made to the women in Afghanistan by the Western countries have not come to fruition till date.

"A lot of promises were made after the Taliban government was removed in 2001. The West told the women of Afghanistan that they would be free and they would be able to run for office, or hold jobs and be able to speak at international conferences.

"So I think we have great responsibility to stand up to those women today. I think a lot of women are in fear of their lives, and the west should be doing something to protect them," she said.

The author has written seven books including "The Africa



House", "Small Wars Permitting" and also co-authored "I am Malala" with Nobel prize winner Malala Yousafzai.

"I am Malala," which went on to bag the Non-fiction book of the year award in Britain, was Lamb's way of telling people what was happening in Pakistan during the late 90's, but through the voice of young Malala.

"It was actually a way of telling people what was happening in Pakistan, but reaching out to a much bigger audience.

"If I had written a book about my views of what had happened to Pakistan during that period, it would have sold not many copies. But this book sold millions. It was a way of bringing alive the situation and making people realise what was going on," Lamb said.

The author had interviewed Malala's father Ziauddin Yousafzai 2007, at the time the Taliban had entered Swat region, where Malala lived with her family.

"He had read my book on Pakistan, 'Waiting for Allah' and quite liked that. They wanted somebody who knew Pakistan, knew the west and was preferably a woman and had been in Swat. That's how the book on Malala clicked," Lamb said.
Asserting that the world is not witnessing a global gridlock, US Secretary of State John Kerry today said the fight against violent extremism is the "challenge of our generation".

It would be a long struggle against extremism, but "we are heading in the right direction", Kerry said at the World Economic Forum (WEF) here.

He was clear that the US will strengthen its fight against corruption, which is used by extremist groups as a recruitment tool.

"The fact is there is nothing, absolutely nothing, more demoralising and disempowering to any citizen of any nation than the belief that the system is rigged against them...," he said, adding that corruption complicates every single security, diplomatic and social initiative.

Hailing efforts of citizens around the world to increase inter-faith and inter-sectarian understanding, Kerry cited examples of Sunnis helping Shiites rebuild after terror attacks in the Middle-East, Muslims shielding Christians from terrorists in Africa, and Jews protecting Muslims in the United Kingdom.

"The world is not witnessing global gridlock. We are not frozen in a nightmare we cannot wake up from... If we stay serious and work in good faith, we can make progress," Kerry said.

Calling for providing opportunities to the youth, Kerry said there are 700 million people under 30 years and all of them are seeking opportunity, dignity and respect and are aware of what they don't have in a world where everyone is connected 24/7.

"We are staring at extraordinary opportunities wherever we look in the world," he said.

According to him, a coalition of countries has come together to fight Da'esh (ISIS) and praised the military successes achieved by the joint action of coalition air power and local ground forces.

"In the end, mark my words, Da'esh (ISIS) will be defeated, and the progress we have made towards that goal has been remarkable," Kerry said.

Da'esh has already lost over 30 per cent of the territory it once held and much of its financing, the secretary added.

About the conflict in Syria, Kerry said key steps have been taken to resolve it and all the countries involved have agreed on a list of principles for a post-war Syria.

Direct negotiations between the government and the Opposition are now planned and would hopefully start soon in Geneva, he noted.

"Nothing would do more to end the threat of Da'esh than to negotiate an end to the war in Syria," the secretary said.
25-year-old Yogesh Tiwari, a resident of Yavatmal in Vidarbha, who was stranded in Malaysia after being duped by an agent who promised him a job there, returned here today.

An official in the Chief Minister's Office said Devendra Fadnavis had stepped in to ensure his safe return.

"I am very much thankful to Fadnavis sir. We are feeling proud that we have a politician and CM like him," Tiwari said.

Fadnavis said he was happy that Yogesh is back in his home state. "You are welcome! Glad to know you've reached India safely," the Chief Minister tweeted.

Fadnavis also thanked Union ministers Sushma Swaraj and Gen V K Singh for their support in the youth's return to India.

Tiwari had on Sunday tweeted to Fadnavis describing his plight and seeking help immediately. He told Fadnavis that he was promised a job in Malaysia by a Chandigarh-based agent.

But when he landed in Malyasia, he realised that all of it was a hoax and that the agent was not even there to help him figure out about his work visa.

Tiwari, who had given away Rs 1.5 lakh, almost all the money that he had, to the agent as fee, had to resort to doing menial work to survive in the foreign city for the week.

Soon after receiving the tweet, the Chief Minister responded to him and assured him of all possible help. Fadnavis then got in touch with the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi, which, in turn, contacted the Indian Embassy in Malaysia to sort the problem out.

(REOPENS BES 15)



"I will file a police case against the agent who duped



me," Tiwari told
A youth was arrested for allegedly stealing confidential information of a UK-based client from a company where he was earlier employed, Bidhannagar Police said today.

Rahul Seth (23), who hails from Bihar, was arrested yesterday from his rented accommodation at Baguiati in the city by cyber crime section of Bidhannagar Police for the alleged act, a senior police officer said.

He had quit the company in December last year after working for six months.

Two of Seth's allies, who were also employees of the same company at Sector V of Salt Lake - Mazharuddin Ahmed and Manish Ghosh - were apprehended earlier, he added.

While Ahmed was arrested on January 12, Ghosh was held on Sunday last, he said, adding that the duo was working under Seth's instructions.

The company had lodged a complaint with the cyber crime section of Bidhannagar Police on January 11 that one of its UK clients had written to it saying that records of their consumers had been compromised.

On the modus operandi, the police officer said Ahmed and Ghosh used to store data in a cloud address and later downloaded them into pen drives to pass it on to Seth.

Then Seth, pretending to be an official of the company, used to speak to the clients asking them to deposit the fees for technical support in his account since the company's account number had changed, the officer said.

The customers trusting Seth used to transfer funds to his account, the police officer.

The money was then divided among the three with Seth getting the maximum share.

A cell phone, an ATM card, a bank passbook and Rs 22,900 have been recovered from Seth, who has been booked under various sections of the IPC and the IT act, he said adding that the man has been sent to four days' police custody.
collage.jpg

Gulfport shooting suspects (left to right): Derrick Bowie, Trinity Copp, Noah Favre and Thomas Shaw.

(Gulfport Police Department)

GULFPORT, Mississippi -- Four suspects have been arrested in connection with a drive-by shooting in Gulfport earlier this month.

According to Gulfport Police Sgt. Damon McDaniel, the Gulfport Police Department arrested Noah James Favre, 18; Thomas James Shaw, 21; Trinity Sally-Jade Copp, 18; and Derrick Rashawn Bowie, 17; on Wednesday and charged them with drive-by shooting.

The incident occurred on Jan. 6, when officers were called to a residence in the 14200 block of Creekwood Cove around 12:30 a.m. The victim told police his residence and vehicles had been struck by gunshots, but he could not provide any information on the suspects.

Follow-up investigation led to Favre, Shaw, Copp and Bowie as primary suspects. Based on the information obtained, warrants were issued for their arrests. The were all apprehended in different locations in and around Gulfport Wednesday.

After booking, the four suspects were transported to the Harrison County Adult Detention Center under $100,000 bonds set by Justice Court Judges Melvin Ray and Louise Ladner.

The investigation remains open.
The All Jammu and Kashmir Displaced Youth Forum (AJKDYF) today sought the intervention of Governor N N Vohra for release of the names of Kashmiri Pandit youths who have been selected for employment under the Prime Minister's special package.

"We urge the Governor to intervene and get the pending list of the community members who have been selected for appointment under the Prime Ministers employment package released at the earliest," AJKDYF chairman Sanjay Koul told reporters here.

The list has been pending for more than six years, Koul said, adding that a large number of Kashmiri Pandit youths have crossed the age limit for employment while waiting for the list to come out.

"The delay in releasing the list has caused more harm for the community. There are some self-styled leaders who have delayed the release of the list because of their vested interests," he said.

Koul said that in 2010, 3,000 posts in various departments were announced but only 1,440 were filled whereas the appointment on 1,560 posts remained pending.

"We request the Governor who is heading the state administration to look into the issue and help redress the problems being faced by the youth of the displaced Kashmiri Pandit community who have been suffering due to the undue delay in the release of the list," he said.
By Jonathan Leff

- World oil markets quietly breached an important barrier as they crashed nearly 30 percent to below $30 a barrel in the opening weeks of 2016, crossing the fuzzy line separating a rational response to fundamentals from an irrational fear where the only way forward is down, down, down.

Animal spirits have taken over the futures markets of New York and London, with momentum-driven algorithmic traders and big hedge funds driving oil prices far beyond the point that even once-bearish analysts say is justified - at least in the medium-term - by supply and demand.

That marks a change from most of the past 18 months, when oil's long descent from $100 a barrel was broadly viewed as an often painful, sometimes lumpy adjustment to a fundamentally "new normal" in which OPEC would no longer restrain its supply, leaving U.S. shale drillers to balance the market.

The process has taken far longer than expected as shale firms proved remarkably agile, slashing costs and drilling in sweet spots to keep the oil flowing. As they did so, prices lurched lower, first in the summer and again this month.

But now things have gone too far, many say. Data due on Friday are likely to show that big funds and speculators in the U.S. oil market added to short positions that had doubled to a record 200 million barrels over the past three months.

"The price itself is irrational if you ask me," Khalid al-Falih, the new chairman of the Saudi state oil company Aramco and one of the Kingdom's most influential energy figures, said at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos.

"Prices are supposed to be set by the marginal barrel. The marginal barrel is certainly way higher than $30 a barrel."

Few traders expect a quick recovery from this year's slump amid pressure from the deep supply glut and signs of economic weakness in China - the world's No. 2 oil consumer.

Still, the evidence of oil's unsustainable future at below $30 is mounting. U.S. shale drillers are teetering on the brink of bankruptcy; Canadian oil sands producers are losing money with every barrel as their crude trades at $15; heavy oil from Venezuela and Colombia is also underwater. Some $380 billion in oil and gas projects have been postponed or canceled since 2014, according to consultants Wood Mackenzie.

"It's not just the price, it's the incessant selling, every day. That surprised me," says Amrita Sen Chief Oil Analyst at Energy Aspects. "We are really in the realm of irrationality."

Not that the market has lacked excuses to sell: the rising U.S. dollar; China's stock market meltdown; a vague worry that the diplomatic breakdown between Saudi Arabia and Iran had eliminated the already wafer-thin chance of an OPEC deal.

Some of them have been fundamental in nature - such as the warmest December weather on record and easing of sanctions on Iran - though neither should have been to traders.

More likely is that much of the selloff is driven by commodity funds who use algorithms to detect profitable trends - and often accelerate those trends at the extreme. Many programmatic traders fared far better than human fund managers last year, industry sources have said.

A MONKEY'S GAME

After a series of false plateaus since oil began falling from $100 a barrel in mid-2014, potential bulls have been so badly burned that they have stopped trying to pick a bottom.

Until recently most OPEC officials had generally addressed the rout as a painful but necessary measure to shut down high-cost competitors who were taking market share.

The fact that analysts and executives are now publicly calling out the market's 'irrationality' - many of them doing so for the first time since the surprisingly deep and prolonged downturn began 18 months ago - may yet influence prices.

If oil prices are now viewed as detached from fundamentals, they must surely rebound to higher ground, the thinking goes. By that logic, distressed oil producers may choose to hold out just a little longer rather than throw in the towel - postponing the point of maximum pain that bearish traders are waiting for.

In early January, top executives from major shale drillers told a private Goldman Sachs conference in Florida that they were planning on the basis of $50 oil this year, an optimistic view that contributed to the price slide.

OVERREACTION

To be sure, overreaction in oil markets tends to be the norm rather than the exception, and the view that oil is now far oversold does not mean that a recovery is imminent.

One of the more bullish banks, Standard Chartered, said last week that relentless selling could push oil as low as $10 a barrel. John Maynard Keynes' warning that a market "can stay irrational longer than you can stay solvent" is well heeded.

There is no indication that Saudi Arabia, the driving force behind of OPEC's decision to quit supporting the oil price, is ready to consider abandoning its shock therapy.

And not everyone agrees that markets have overshot. Consultants Rapidan Group told clients this week they cut their Brent crude 2016 forecast from $38 to $30 a barrel, among the lowest of major banks, citing weaker economic growth and a quicker recovery in Iran's exports.

"This is what an authentic boom-bust is like - perfectly rational," said President Bob McNally.

Irrationality can also cut both ways. On Thursday, prices surged more than 6 percent to back above $30 a barrel - despite the fact that U.S. crude and gasoline stockpiles reached a record high. Brokers said short-covering was to blame.

The best advice for now, according to some, is to stay out of the way and wait for some of the smoke to clear, says Citigroup's global head of commodities research Ed Morse, who had warned last August that U.S. crude could drop to the then-unthinkable level of $30 a barrel early this year.s

"What one does, rationally, is abstain," he said.

(Reporting by Jonathan Leff; Editing by Alan Crosby)
By David Shepardson and Bernie Woodall

(Reuters) - U.S. safety regulators and major automakers are expected on Friday to announce a new recall of about 5 million vehicles with potentially defective Takata Corp <7312.T> air bags, sources familiar with the matter said.

The new recall was prompted in part by the death of a driver of a Ford pickup truck last month.

The Dec. 22 death of a Georgia man in South Carolina was the 10th worldwide associated with Takata's air bag inflators, and the first to occur in a vehicle that was not made by Honda Motor Co <7267.T>.

A Ford Motor Co spokesman said the automaker is aware of the reported death.

Twelve major automakers have previously recalled more than 23 million Takata air bag inflators in more than 19 million vehicles in one of the biggest and most complex safety recalls in U.S. automotive history.

It is not clear how many of the 5 million vehicles being recalled Friday may have been covered by previous recalls.

Several automakers are expected to take part in the new recall for two separate types of Takata air bag inflators, the sources said, including people at Ford and Honda.

A spokesman for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Gordon Trowbridge, said the agency would brief reporters later on Friday on Takata developments, declining to elaborate.

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Tom Brown)
By Nate Raymond and David Ingram

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is investigating Turing Pharmaceuticals for possible antitrust violations in connection with the company's decision to hike the price of a life-saving drug by more than 5,000 percent, a lawyer for former Chief Executive Officer Martin Shkreli wrote on Friday.

The probe was disclosed in a letter to the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Oversight and Government Reform from Baruch Weiss, Shkreli's lawyer, as grounds for why his client would not answer questions about drug prices at a Jan. 26 hearing.

The committee had subpoenaed Shkreli, who has been indicted separately on securities fraud charges, to appear to discuss why, as Turing's CEO, he decided to raise the price of Daraprim to $750 a tablet from $13.50.

The drug, which was acquired by the company, is used to treat toxoplasmosis, a parasitic infection especially dangerous to AIDS patients and others with compromised immune systems.

In a letter seen by Reuters, Weiss said Shkreli would "gladly cooperate" with the committee and produce documents if it granted immunity to the controversial 32-year-old former drug executive.

But even if that happened, it would not occur before Tuesday's hearing, "so there is no reason on that account for Mr. Shkreli to appear" at it, Weiss wrote in the letter.

In light of government probes involving Shkreli, Weiss said his client would otherwise refuse to answer questions under his constitutional right not to incriminate himself.

The probes include a FTC investigation concerning Daraprim that had not been previously public. It mirrors another antitrust investigation cited by Weiss by the New York state attorney general.

Weiss wrote that the "same facts that would support liability under civil antitrust violations would support criminal antitrust charges," and that as a result, any statements by Shkreli about Daraprim could be used against him.

FTC spokesman Peter Kaplan had no comment on Friday.

A spokesman for Turing had no immediate comment. The company later issued a separate statement confirming that its chief commercial officer, Nancy Retzlaff, would testify at the hearing.

In his letter, Weiss cited her existence as a witness for why the committee "will obtain the information it needs."

But in a letter in response issued later on Friday, U.S. Representative Jason Chaffetz, the committee's chair, said the panel "rejects the notion that Mr. Shkreli is unable to comply with the subpoena."

If he did not comply, Chaffetz, a Republican from Utah, said the committee would move to enforce the subpoena under the federal law that makes it a crime to fail to testify before Congress when asked.

Representative Elijah Cummings of Maryland, the committee's top Democrat, in a separate statement said: "We honestly have no idea what he will do on Tuesday, but his problems are going from bad to worse very quickly."

Shkreli was separately indicted in a federal court in Brooklyn, New York, on securities fraud charges stemming from his prior management of hedge fund MSMB Capital Management and biopharmaceutical company Retrophin Inc .

Prosecutors said Shkreli engaged in a Ponzi-like scheme, defrauding hedge fund investors and then misappropriating $11 million in assets from Retrophin to repay them. Shkreli has pleaded not guilty.

While those charges are unrelated to Daraprim, Weiss said "the prosecutors have advised us that the government's criminal investigation is ongoing," leaving it unclear if the case could involve issues that would be before the Congressional panel.

(Reporting by Nate Raymond and David Ingram in New York; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Marguerita Choy)
By Michel Rose and Andrew Callus

PARIS/DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - Christine Lagarde launched her campaign for a second term as managing director of the International Monetary Fund on Friday with ringing endorsements from a host of major economies that looked past a court case against her in her native France.

The former French finance minister who trained as a lawyer has no obvious challengers and has long been open to serving another five-year term. Britain and France backed her publicly on Thursday. Others, including Germany, joined in after her announcement.

"I am candidate for a new mandate. I was honoured to receive from the start of the process the backing of France, Britain, Germany, China, Korea," Lagarde, 60, told France 2 television in an interview from the World Economic Forum in Davos.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew stopped short of a formal endorsement, but appeared to suggest Washington wanted her to stay in the role.

"I have a very close working relationship with Christine Lagarde," Lew said. "I have the highest regard for her. I think she's done a great job. I look forward to continuing working with her."

The early endorsements from such powerful economies may act as a disincentive for others to apply and mute any talk of her legal difficulties disqualifying her.

Lagarde has been dogged off-and-on since her initial appointment in 2011 for her role in a long-running business scandal while she was France's finance minister.

Last month, a French judge ordered her to face trial for negligence in a special ministerial court over the 2008 payout of some 400 million euros ($430 million) to businessman Bernard Tapie.

Tapie himself was ordered last year to repay the money, which he received as state compensation for a business transaction in which he later claimed he had been defrauded.

Lagarde has said she will appeal the judge's order and repeated on Friday that she had acted within the law.

EUROPEAN MONOPOLY

Aside for the legal problems, her candidacy is likely to raise questions among some emerging countries about whether a European should still lead the Washington-based institution.

Although there is no formal requirement that the leader of the IMF come from Europe, it has been the practice ever since the institution was set up after World War Two, while the World Bank has always been led by an American.

French candidates in particular have held the post for almost 40 of the last 70 years. Lagarde's predecessor, Dominique Strauss-Khan, was forced to resign over a sex scandal in 2011.

The IMF's first deputy managing director David Lipton told the BBC last year that the next appointment could come from a non-European country and would be "strictly merit-based".

But Lagarde was praised for winning U.S. Congress approval of a landmark reform program that shifted more voting power to China and other key emerging market countries and has generally been considered a skillful, charming negotiator.

Some emerging countries were quick to offer their support.

"I think she has done well in restoring confidence in the leadership after the scandal that plagued the institution," Philippines finance minister Cesar Purisima told .

"She is also quite vocal in talking about issues that face the world - vocal but not threatening, which is a very good way to engage countries."

During her tenure, Lagarde also had to deal with the most acute bout of the euro zone debt crisis in tandem with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, head of the currency bloc's biggest economy.

"I think she has been a very substantial force in avoiding big, big, big damages during the euro crisis," Andrea Illy, CEO of Italian coffee company Illycaffe told . "The two women, Lagarde and Merkel, they did a good job together."

Dutch finance minister and head of euro zone finance ministers Jeroen Dijsselbloem seemed to sum up the mood in Europe: "Great. Let's get that done," he told TV.

A synchronised swimmer in her youth, Lagarde, the first woman to hold the IMF post, once said in an interview it was that sport which taught her the maxim "grit your teeth and smile" in the man's world she moves in.

She joined the international law firm Baker & McKenzie in Paris aged 25 after completing a master's degree in English and labour law, and quickly rose to the top of the Chicago-based firm before entering politics.

As finance minister under former President Nicolas Sarkozy, she attracted criticism early in her tenure by suggesting that the French had become work-shy and that navel-gazing hindered reform.

Born in Paris and raised in the northern port city of Le Havre, Lagarde is a vocal proponent of women as senior executives, once noting dryly that if Lehman Brothers had been Lehman Sisters, it might have survived.

Lagarde's first term ends on July 4 and the IMF has said it wants to wrap up the selection process by March 3.

(Additional reporting by Michel Rose in Paris, Paul Carrel in Berlin, Axel Threlfall, Ben Hirschler, Paul Taylor and Martinne Geller in Davos; Editing by Geert De Clercq/Jeremy Gaunt)
By Sanjeev Miglani

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Indian and French negotiators were haggling on Friday over the price of 36 combat planes for the ageing Indian air force, officials of the two nations said, just days before President Francois Hollande visits New Delhi to cement commercial ties.

The fighter jet deal is part of a $150-billion military modernisation drive India has launched, drawing global arms makers into one of the world's biggest markets.

Hollande and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stepped into the estimated $9-billion deal last year, ordering government-to-government talks after commercial negotiations with the plane maker, Dassault Aviation , collapsed.

The leaders agreed to scale back the original plan for 126 Rafale planes to just 36 in flyaway condition, to meet the Indian Air Force's urgent needs, as it faces China and Pakistan.

But even the smaller deal ran into problems over the unit price of the planes and other contract terms.

France's envoy to India, Francois Richier, said the two sides were holding talks in New Delhi but he could not say for sure if they would strike a deal ahead of, or during, Hollande's visit, which begins on Sunday.

"Discussions are taking place, can't say what will be the outcome," he told reporters. "It's not finalised yet. It's a complex negotiation. I am hopeful, but hopeful does not mean certitude."

An Indian foreign ministry spokesman said the deal for the 36 planes was in an advanced stage.

Hollande will be the guest of honour at India's Republic Day parade on Jan. 26, in a sign of deepening political and commercial ties. U.S. President Barack Obama was given that honour last year.

Modi will welcome Hollande in Chandigarh, designed in the 1950s by the French architect Le Corbusier. It is one of 100 "smart cities" Modi has designated for rapid development, in which the French will be partners.

The two sides are also discussing a plan by French nuclear company Areva to build six reactors in western India, as part of Modi's push to ramp up nuclear capacity.

But negotiations have been stuck over the price, and French utility EDF's recent takeover of Areva's reactor business has slowed progress.

"EDF will be in the lead now, that is creating a change in the way nuclear negotiations will be conducted," Richier said.

A French diplomatic source said Rafale was far from being the main reason for Hollande's visit, but it would provide an opportunity to move the deal towards completion.

(Additional reporting by Krista Mahr in New Delhi and Elizabeth Pineau in PARIS; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
By David Shepardson and Bernie Woodall

(Reuters) - U.S. regulators on Friday announced a new recall of about 5 million vehicles with potentially defective Takata Corp <7312.T> air bags, covering some automakers not previously affected by one of the biggest auto safety recalls in U.S. history.

The new action brings to 28 million the number of Takata air bag inflators recalled and increases the number of vehicles affected in the United States to as many as 24 million, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said.

Friday's move was prompted in part by the death of the driver of a Ford Motor Co pickup truck last month, as well as new tests conducted on suspected faulty air bags.

Automakers affected for the first time include Volkswagen AG and its Audi unit and Daimler's Mercedes-Benz unit.

"This is a massive safety crisis," NHTSA spokesman Gordon Trowbridge told reporters.

NHTSA in November said tens of millions of additional vehicles with inflators containing ammonium nitrate will be recalled by 2018 unless Takata can prove that they are safe.

The Dec. 22 death of a Georgia man in South Carolina was the 10th worldwide linked with Takata's air bag inflators, NHTSA said. It was also the first to occur in a vehicle that was not made by Honda Motor Co <7267.T>.

The 5 million vehicles covered by the new recall include about 1 million with inflators similar to those installed on the Ford Ranger pickup, NHTSA said.

About 4 million other vehicles will be recalled due to additional testing on Takata air bags, including vehicles from Honda, VW and other automakers, the safety agency said.

Twelve major automakers have previously recalled more than 23 million Takata air bag inflators in more than 19 million vehicles in one of the largest and most complex safety recalls in U.S. automotive history.

NHTSA did not immediately say how many of the 5 million vehicles being recalled Friday may have been covered by previous recalls.

Takata's inflators can explode with too much force and spray metal shrapnel into vehicle passenger compartments and are linked to more than 100 U.S. injuries.

A South Carolina attorney said in a complaint filed with NHTSA that his client was killed when "metal from the inflator canister exploded penetrating my client's neck resulting in death."

The attorney, Andrew Creech, said in the complaint, "There is no doubt airbag shrap (shrapnel) metal killed my client, as this has been confirmed by death certificate and autopsy report."

The man killed in the 2006 Ford Ranger struck a cow that was in the road, Creech's report to NHTSA said.

Creech was not available for comment on Friday.

In November, Takata agreed to pay a $70 million fine for safety violations and could face deferred penalties of up to $130 million under a NHTSA settlement.

NHTSA in December named a former Justice Department official as a monitor to help regulators oversee the massive recalls.

The Ford death is the first reported since the July crash of a 2001 Honda Accord coupe that killed a 13-year-old near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Tom Brown)
By Steve Trousdale

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Google's Android operating system has generated revenue of about $31 billion and profit of $22 billion since its release, an Oracle Corp lawyer told a U.S. court hearing the software company's copyright lawsuit against Google.

A lawyer for Google did not discuss the figure, according to a transcript of the hearing in a Northern California federal court last week. But he said the Alphabet Inc unit might be willing to disclose more information about the revenue produced by Android as part of the court proceedings, the transcript reviewed by showed.

The Android mobile operating system began with the release of the Android alpha in November 2007. The first commercial version, Android 1.0, was released in September 2008.

Oracle is accusing Google of using its Java software without paying for it to develop Android.

Google said in a court filing on Wednesday that the Android disclosures should not have been made public, and asked the court to place it under seal.

The document, which had been available electronically at a San Francisco courthouse, was removed from the publicly accessible portion of the court's computer system while a reporter was reviewing it on Thursday afternoon.

It is not clear what occurred or whether the document would become available again.

Google was not immediately available for comment. Oracle declined to comment.

The closely watched case involves how much copyright protection should extend to the Java programming language, which Google used to design the operating system. Oracle is seeking royalties for Google's use of some of the Java language, while Google argues it should be able to use Java without paying a fee.

Bloomberg previously reported the Oracle lawyer's comment. (http://bloom.bg/1ZF9Ao2)

(Additional reporting by Anya George Tharakan in Bengaluru; Editing by Richard Chang and Lisa Shumaker)
MUMBAI (Reuters) - Indian telecoms company Reliance Communications Ltd posted a 14.9 percent drop in quarterly profit on Friday, as cut-throat competition for customers in a crowded mobile phone market squeezed margins.

India is the world's second-biggest market for mobile phone users behind China, but tough competition has resulted in wafer-thin profit margins for carriers in a market that has one of the cheapest call rates in the world.

Debt-burdened Reliance Communications (RCom), controlled by billionaire CEO Anil Ambani, undertook a series of deals during the December quarter to raise money and expand coverage. These included a spectrum swap with elder brother Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Jio for high-speed 4G services.

RCom, India's fourth-biggest wireless telecommunications carrier, also signed a non-binding pact in December to sell its mobile phone masts business to a group of companies led by buyout firm TPG Capital Management LP.

For its fiscal third quarter ended Dec. 31, the company reported a net profit of 1.71 billion rupees ($25.29 million) against 2.01 billion rupees a year earlier. That beat analysts' average forecast of 1.65 billion rupees.

Third-quarter revenue fell 3.1 percent year-on-year to 52.98 billion rupees.

In November, RCom agreed to buy Sistema's Indian mobile phone business with a view to getting access to the Russian conglomerate's precious bandwidth that services the high-speed 4G network.

($1 = 67.6150 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Himank Sharma; Editing by David Goodman and Mark Potter)
The agreement to sell an 80 percent stake in the Lumileds division based in California ran into opposition from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), Philips said in a statement.

The breakdown of the deal leaves the Dutch company under pressure as it tries to carry out several strategic operations at once. It has been trying to spin off its lighting and lighting components businesses since 2014 to focus on its core businesses of medical scanners and healthcare technology.

"I am very disappointed about this outcome as this was a very good deal for both Lumileds and the GO Scale Capital-led consortium," Philips CEO Frans van Houten said.

Philips said it was not permitted to disclose the nature of the concerns raised by the U.S. committee, which vets deals for any national security issues.

The frustrated buyer, GO Scale Capital, is made up of GSR Ventures, Oak Investment Partners, Asia Pacific Resource Development and Nanchang Industrial Group.

The exact reason why the United States has blocked a Dutch company from selling a lighting division to Asian investors on national security grounds is not clear.

The involvement of Chinese firms in the consortium - and the fact that LEDs (light-emitting diodes) are semiconductors, an industry the U.S. considers part of its critical infrastructure - may have played a role.

ALTERNATIVE DEALS

Lumileds makes lighting components used mostly in cars but also LEDs used for backlighting in consumer electronics such as smartphones and televisions. The technology used by Lumileds is considered relatively mature and Philips was surprised by the U.S. committee's initial opposition in October.

The final rejection came "despite the extensive efforts of Philips and GO Scale Capital to mitigate" the committee's concerns, Philips said.

In a separate statement, GO Scale Capital said it tried "to make the case for the Lumileds transaction under principles of openness and fairness, unfortunately all such efforts fell short of addressing unexplained government concerns."

GO Scale Capital chairman Sonny Wu said he was undeterred and would now seek other large LED industry acquisitions to combine with China's manufacturing base.

"China will inevitably become the leader of the global LED industry because of its industrial ecosystem and competitive advantages in scale and cost," he said.

Philips shares closed 0.1 percent lower at 22.70 euros in Amsterdam.

Two CFIUS experts in Washington, hired by companies to shepherd deals through the process, said the deal may have troubled the U.S. government because of the prospect of a Chinese company acquiring advanced technologies to make the LED lights. One pointed to Lumiled's expertise with a method for developing semiconductor materials for LED lights called a metal-organic chemical vapour deposition system.

"CFIUS has been looking very closely at the semiconductor space," said one expert, who noted that it was fairly unusual for CFIUS to stop a deal.

LIGHTING SALE

Philips spokesman Steve Klink said the company was reviving talks with alternative buyers for the division, which had sales of $2 billion in 2015.

Morningstar analyst Jeffrey Vonk said in a note Philips was likely to have to accept a price closer to 2 billion euros ($2.2 billion) for Lumileds, given current market conditions.

Philips will press ahead with separate plans to spin off its main lighting division by June.

Earlier this month, reported the company was soliciting bids for the main Philips Lighting business at a price of roughly 5 billion euros.

Philips Lighting's carve-out as an independent company within the overall group is due to be completed by Feb. 1, with a decision to be taken shortly afterwards on whether to sell it, or go for a stock market listing.

($1 = 0.9246 euros)

(Additional reporting by Diane Bartz in Washington; Editing by David Clarke and Mark Potter)
20160122-037.jpg

Edmond Hughes, Vice President of Human Resources and Administratior (left), speaks with Resurrection Elementary School teachers Kellea Newton (right) and Laura Hudson about their school's STEM project during Friday's STEM awards program at the Pascagoula shipyard.

(Andrew Young/Ingalls Shipbuilding)

PASCAGOULA, Mississippi -- In a March 2015 speech, President Barack Obama noted that science is "an approach to the world, a critical way to understand and explore and engage with the world and then have the capacity to change that world."

Ingalls Shipbuilding has not only done its part in the effort to support and encourage studies in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics -- or STEM -- but continues to lead the pack in the state of Mississippi as they have handed out nearly $100,000 in STEM grants to 25 local schools and organizations.

The 2016 Stem Awards were held at Ingalls Shipbuilding on Friday where a total of $99,931 dollars were handed out in checks to Mississippi and Alabama schools and organizations. Last year, Ingalls Shipbuilding gave out $102,286 dollars to 28 schools and organizations -- bringing the eight-year total to $709,818 in STEM grants.

Investing in STEM is important to Edmond E. Hughes, who is Ingalls' Vice President of Human Resources and Administration.

"Given the fact that we are a organization that does many engineering related items, having students interested in STEM gives us the workforce for the future," Hughes said. "While it is an early investment, we hope it will pay off down the road."

Students from St. Martin Upper Elementary School will use their grant money to build smart classrooms, implement steam, and will learn coding. Their teacher, Shannon Wilson, agrees that STEM related fields are the future and that kids should take a look at what STEM has to offer.

"I think it will open up doors to fields they have not been exposed to and provide them with goals to reach those careers."

According to the US Department of Education, employment in STEM related fields will increase by 2020. Ingalls has held the STEM awards for eight years and plans to be around for many more to come.

"It is a business decision to invest in the schools that will help us in the future. We sit back and set aside the budget that will allow us to give back to the schools."
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Sontchi said he realized he went too far in trying to protect a confidential mediation process by ordering last week that 123 people disclose their communications with Bloomberg regarding Molycorp.

"I think that this order as currently drafted is overly broad and needs to be narrowed," Sontchi said after a hearing in Wilmington, Delaware.

The original order required declarations describing all contacts with Bloomberg reporters over the prior 60 days. Sontchi said that should be narrowed to require people to disclose what they know about leaks reported in three articles.

In addition, the declarations should be limited to information provided to Jodi Xu Klein, Steven Church and Fion Li, who reported the articles published on Dec. 11 and Dec. 15 in 2015 and Jan. 5.

"We are encouraged by today's ruling - it goes a long way in allowing the press to do its job," said John Micklethwait, Bloomberg's editor in chief, in a statement. He said when reporters cannot talk to sources confidentially, the public is deprived of on matters of significant interest.

The articles reported on the failure of a confidential mediation ordered by Sontchi, and on bidding interest in Molycorp's assets, including an idled mine in Mountain Pass, California.

The mine was once among the world's largest for rare earths, which are chemical elements used in cell phones and military equipment.

Sontchi also appeared to suggest the original order covered too lawyers, bankers and advisers. "Not every one of the 123 has to submit a declaration."

Sontchi acknowledged that last week he was too focused on the threat posed by the leaks to the integrity of the court process and readily accepted the order because no party opposed it.

He directed the parties to work out a new process for submitting declarations about the leaks. Declarations that were submitted to the court earlier this week should be destroyed without being unsealed, he said.

The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press had written Sontchi, expressing concerns about the original order. Gregg Leslie, the group's legal defense director, said judges typically look into leaks only if they jeopardize the integrity of a trial or a defendant's constitutional rights.

(Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe, Bernard Orr)
Filing articles of incorporation is legally required to structure a new or established company as a professional corporation, nonprofit corporation, or other classification.

Each state has various paperwork requirements and other rules for filing articles of incorporation.

State officials review applications for articles of incorporation; if the filer follows the regulations and pays the appropriate fees, officials will notify the company of its corporation status.

This article is for small business owners looking to register their company as a corporation.

Starting your own business is a big step, and the legal issues involved can be confusing. Thinking of a great business idea is hard enough, but its often more challenging to handle the countless legal documents and technicalities involved, especially if you want to become a corporation.

Heres what you need to know about one of the first and most crucial steps of incorporating your business: filing your articles of incorporation.

What are articles of incorporation?

Articles of incorporation, sometimes called a certification of formation or a charter, are a set of documents filed with a government body to legally document a corporations creation. These legal documents contain general information about the corporation, including the business name and business location.

Articles of incorporation are easy to confuse with bylaws, which lay out the rules and regulations governing a corporation and help establish the roles and duties of the companys directors and officers. Bylaws work in conjunction with the articles of incorporation to form the businesss legal backbone.

Did you know?: Bylaws often include succession planning agreements to prevent business closure when a founder dies or an owner leaves the company.

Why are articles of incorporation important?

Articles of incorporation are crucial because they establish a company within its home state, informing the state of essential aspects of the business. When filing, the business owner lets the state know the following:

The corporations purpose

Name and address of the registered agent

Number of authorized shares and amounts of common stock

Names of any incorporators

Some states also request a copy of the company bylaws. The bylaws help keep a corporation running smoothly by outlining the rights and responsibilities of the shareholders and board of directors.

As a business owner, you can benefit from articles of incorporation in two main ways.

Protection from debt: By making your business a legal corporation, business owners protect themselves from the companys debts.

By making your business a legal corporation, business owners protect themselves from the companys debts. Ability to sell stock: After incorporation, you can raise capital quickly through the sale of stock. You can outline how youll sell stock to raise capital in your companys business plan.

What is in the articles of incorporation?

Articles of incorporation include the following information, with some variations by state:

The name of your business or corporation

The name and address of your corporations registered agent (the person or company to whom the state government will direct all vital legal and state documents and communications)

The type of corporate legal structure (which may include a designation of your business as a nonprofit corporation, non-stock corporation or other category)

The names and addresses of all members of your companys board of directors

The type and amount of authorized shares available to your company (authorized shares means the maximum number of shares that your corporation may issue and may include common stock and preferred stock)

The duration of the business (if its not permanent)

Your name, signature and address; if you are not the businesss incorporator, you will provide this information for the incorporator instead

Some companies may wish to amend their articles of incorporation after their business status is established. You can do this with a restatement, also known as restated articles of incorporation.

How do articles of incorporation differ for a foreign corporation?

Articles of incorporation are intended for American corporations. A foreign corporation operating in the U.S. must instead file a certificate of registration. This legal document also varies in content and application process by state.

Are articles of incorporation the same as articles of organization?

Articles of incorporation and articles of organization are similar filings, with one primary difference: Articles of incorporation are for companies looking to form a corporation, while articles of organization are for limited liability companies (LLCs)  an entirely different business classification under the Internal Revenue Code.

Establishing a business as an LLC provides legal and financial protections to the business owner. LLCs are usually preferred to corporations for companies that plan to have real estate holdings or other assets that change in value.

Like corporations, LLCs provide tax and liability benefits according to the stipulations of the Internal Revenue Code. Unlike corporations, LLCs cannot easily transfer holdings and arent a good choice for those looking to have outside investors.

Before filing either legal document, you should review your states rules and regulations. In some states, the terms articles of incorporation and articles of organization are used interchangeably.

Did you know?: If you establish an LLC, you need to keep unique LLC business tax considerations in mind. For example, LLC members are considered self-employed, so theyre responsible for the full amount of Social Security and Medicare taxes.

Are articles of incorporation the same as an LLC operating agreement?

If youre planning to register your company as an LLC, youll need articles of organization alongside an LLC operating agreement. The latter is a legally binding document that clearly defines the LLCs structure, management, operations and finances. It states each LLC members roles, responsibilities, relationships and rights. It also lists each members ownership percentage and share of profits and losses.

LLC operating agreements can clear up confusion when allocating profits and losses or distributing ownership shares. Formal guidelines in your operating agreement can help you avoid the conflicts that often come with trying to sort out these matters verbally in real time.

Did you know?: Only California, New York, Missouri, Maine and Delaware require LLC operating agreements, but your LLC should create one regardless of your state. This agreement can be the backbone of your operations and conflict-resolution process.

What does an LLC operating agreement include?

You should include the following information in your companys LLC operating agreement (your state may require additional information):

Percentages of each LLC members ownership

Each LLC members voting rights and responsibilities

Each LLC members duties and powers

Rules for holding board meetings

Capital contributions of all LLC members

Protocol for distributing the LLCs profits and losses among members

Protocol for transferring interest in the company, such as buy-sell provisions, buyout provisions, and ownership transfers upon an LLC members death

LLC dissolution protocol

How to create an LLC operating agreement

With an attorneys help, you should build an LLC operating agreement with the following sections as your backbone.

Organization: Here, youll write your LLCs official name and address. Youll also detail the LLCs purpose, business type and member ownership percentages. Capital contribution: Detail which LLC members contributed initial capital and how youll raise additional money. Management and voting: Describe your management structure and set up your members voting rights and procedures. Distributions: Explain how youll distribute your LLCs profits and losses among your members. Membership changes: Show how youll add and remove LLC members. Detail the transfer process for membership interest alongside your companys buyout and buy-sell provisions. Dissolution: Write out the steps involved in dissolving your company.

What are the benefits of an LLC?

Personal asset protection: Your personal assets are protected if your company is sued. The only exception would be if youve committed fraud or a criminal act as an LLC member.

Your personal assets are protected if your company is sued. The only exception would be if youve committed fraud or a criminal act as an LLC member. Pass-through taxation: LLC earnings are recorded as members personal income rather than business income. That means you can avoid double taxation (taxes on both business and personal income).

LLC earnings are recorded as members personal income rather than business income. That means you can avoid double taxation (taxes on both business and personal income). Simplicity: LLCs require less paperwork and fewer formalities (such as regular board meetings) than corporations.

LLCs require less paperwork and fewer formalities (such as regular board meetings) than corporations. Flexibility: LLCs are mostly free to set up their ownership, taxation and management structures however they please. That means your company can be a single- or multi-member LLC, a member-managed LLC, or a manager-managed LLC.

LLCs are mostly free to set up their ownership, taxation and management structures however they please. That means your company can be a single- or multi-member LLC, a member-managed LLC, or a manager-managed LLC. Credibility: Registering as an LLC adds an air of professionalism to your company. LLCs are widely recognized as a sign of serious business, and that alone can help you bring in new customers and clients.

Registering as an LLC adds an air of professionalism to your company. LLCs are widely recognized as a sign of serious business, and that alone can help you bring in new customers and clients. Flexible profit distribution: LLCs can decide how to distribute profits to the owners. These distributions dont have to reflect ownership percentages or be equal for each LLC member.

LLCs can decide how to distribute profits to the owners. These distributions dont have to reflect ownership percentages or be equal for each LLC member. Access to business loans: LLCs can build credit histories, so once you start your LLC, you can gradually qualify for small business loans to help your company grow.

Tip: If youre forming your LLC to access business loans more easily, check out reviews of the best business loans.

What to do after starting an LLC

Register for taxes. You must register your LLC for state taxes. If you sell products, you must also register for sales tax. If you hire employees, you must register for payroll taxes and unemployment insurance.

You must register your LLC for state taxes. If you sell products, you must also register for sales tax. If you hire employees, you must register for payroll taxes and unemployment insurance. Hire an accountant. Although finding a small business accountant for your LLC can be tricky, its not nearly as challenging as doing your own LLC taxes. Finding the right person or firm is among the most critical early steps of launching your LLC.

Although finding a small business accountant for your LLC can be tricky, its not nearly as challenging as doing your own LLC taxes. Finding the right person or firm is among the most critical early steps of launching your LLC. Register for business permits. Your LLC likely requires additional permits besides articles of incorporation. Your industry may determine these requirements  for example, selling alcohol requires additional permits. Your branding may also require additional permits if you want to register a DBA name.

Your LLC likely requires additional permits besides articles of incorporation. Your industry may determine these requirements  for example, selling alcohol requires additional permits. Your branding may also require additional permits if you want to register a DBA name. Obtain business insurance. There are several dozen types of business insurance your LLC may need. Take the time to learn about each, and sign up for any policies that work for your budget and circumstances.

There are several dozen types of business insurance your LLC may need. Take the time to learn about each, and sign up for any policies that work for your budget and circumstances. Adhere to labor laws. Your LLC must follow several labor laws pertaining to employee citizenship, wages, workers compensation and more. You may want to consult an attorney as you get started to ensure youre compliant.

What is an S corporation, and must it file articles of incorporation?

Yes, an S corporation must file articles of incorporation. That said, an S corporation differs substantially from a C corporation, which more closely resembles the traditional idea of a corporation. Learn more below.

What is an S corporation?

An S corporation combines a C corporations limited liability with the tax advantages you would get as a partnership or LLC. The primary tax advantage in question here is pass-through taxation  namely, S corporation income is taxed as personal income. That means your corporate profits and losses appear on your and your shareholders personal tax returns.

This arrangement was highly advantageous for the many decades during which federal personal income tax rates were lower than their corporate counterparts. However, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has lowered corporate tax rates enough to negate this benefit somewhat. That said, S corporation taxation structures still avoid the double taxation of paying taxes on corporate income and then again on personal income.

What are the benefits of an S corporation?

Potentially lower taxes: S corporation owners can avoid double taxation and thus keep more of their revenue.

S corporation owners can avoid double taxation and thus keep more of their revenue. Liability protection: As with C corporations, S corporations grant their owners liability protection. That means lawsuits against your business wont affect your personal assets. The same isnt true for sole proprietorships or partnerships.

As with C corporations, S corporations grant their owners liability protection. That means lawsuits against your business wont affect your personal assets. The same isnt true for sole proprietorships or partnerships. Easy business structure changes: An S corporation is among the easiest business structures from which to change to another structure. Other transitions can come with unfavorable tax consequences.

An S corporation is among the easiest business structures from which to change to another structure. Other transitions can come with unfavorable tax consequences. Salary and dividend payments: S corporation structures enable shareholders to receive both a salary and dividends from the company. Youll pay lower taxes on dividends, and you can deduct the wages youve paid when calculating taxes on the money youve paid shareholders.

How do you start an S corporation?

To start an S corporation, youll file articles of incorporation per the instructions in this guide. Youll also file IRS Form 2553 to receive S corporation status at the federal level. Thats important because articles of incorporation are effective at the state level only, whereas business entity types exist at the federal level.

What is a B corporation?

Unlike other corporation types, B corporations are not official tax or government structures. Instead, a B corporation is a certificate your business can earn while being an S corporation, an LLC or another type of business. It signifies that your company meets certain rigorous social standards that the nonprofit B Lab has set. These are the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose.

You might want to obtain B corporation status since 85% of consumers have attempted to live more sustainable lifestyles in recent years. If your company obtains B corporation status, consumers would know that your products can empower their sustainable lifestyles.

Tip: Consumers want sustainable products and packaging, so catering to this audience could drive your sales.

How to start a B corporation

To gain B corporation status, you must ensure that your state acknowledges this classification. If not, you can consider incorporating in a nearby state. You must then apply for a thorough audit through B Lab, which will survey factors such as how you treat your employees, environment and community. If you score high enough, youll become a B corporation, and you should expect random audits in the future.

After qualifying, you must share your scores on the B corporation website and legally commit to prioritizing your stakeholders. But before any of this, youll need to have incorporated your business.

When can I use articles of incorporation?

Articles of incorporation separate the business owner from the business by creating a separate legal entity for the business. Incorporating reduces a business owners personal risk because the business becomes financially responsible for its debts and legally responsible in the case of lawsuits.

Any business type can file articles of incorporation. A new business may launch as a corporation, or a business structured as a sole proprietorship can later become a corporation. Smaller businesses typically become S corporations and pay taxes only on dividends, while large businesses often become C corporations, which pay corporate taxes and must have a board of directors to operate.

How do I fill out the forms?

The first step is to structure the business as a corporation. The specific documents vary by state, but each includes several questions about the business and its owners. The forms are easily found online, but dont be alarmed if they are called something other than articles of incorporation.

Despite variations by state, the forms all ask similar questions and use a fill-in-the-blank format. The crucial information includes the following:

The business or corporation name

The recipient of all legal notices and official mailings

The purpose and duration of the business

The incorporator

The directors

How many authorized shares of stock can be issued

How many classes of stock the corporation will be allowed to issue

Where do I submit the forms, and how much is the filing fee?

Once youve filled out the proper documents, you can submit them by mail, in person at the secretary of states office or electronically on the secretary of states website, depending on your state.

The filing fee also varies by state, but it generally runs between $50 and $300. Other charges may apply at the time of the filing, again depending on the state.

After youve filled out all of the forms and paid all fees, the secretary of states office will review the forms to ensure the name isnt already in use and that all other information meets the states requirements. If everything is correct, the state files the forms, making the business a legal corporation.

Where do I find the forms?

Every state is different, so here are links to each states form. You can fill them in online or print them out, complete them and send them to the secretary of states office.

Chad Brooks contributed to the writing and research in this article.
Ultimate Ears, a Logitech brand, has announced the launch of a new Bluetooth speaker UE Roll.

Waterproof and shockproof, the speaker has a circular frisbee like design and connects with smartphones over Bluetooth. UE Roll has an iPS and Android app that can be used to remotely turn on the speaker, control the sound or even play the tracks. Using the app, it can even be paired with other UE speakers.

"Music is made for sharing, connecting and enjoying. It transforms moments into something special and we designed UE Roll to be part of those moments," says Ashok Jangra, Cluster Category Manager India and South West Asia.

The Roll comes with an attached marine-grade bungee cord and weighs 340 gm. It is priced at Rs 8,495 and will be available in four colours.

The company claims that a full charge of close to five hours can provide up to nine hours of music playback. It can be paired with multiple devices over Bluetooth but can play music with only two source devices at a time.
OBrien Fine Foods yesterday announced a 14m development at its Co Kildare facility. The expansion will create 40 jobs, with a further 150 jobs created during construction.

This will bring the total number of jobs at Timahoe from 270 to 310 over the next two years.



The announcement was officially welcomed by Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney TD, at the Co Kildare facility yesterday.



The Timahoe facility produces both Brady Family and own label cooked meats for the delicatessen and pre-packed markets. Construction at the facility has commenced, with work expected to be completed in June 2016.



Managing Director at OBrien Fine Foods, John OBrien said, "It is our ambition to become the leading producer in the cooked meats sector and todays announcement is an important step in this process.



"Not only will the investment in our facility significantly increase our operational capacity, but it will also improve our efficiency, expand our production capabilities to other proteins and positively impact our sustainability credentials. Most importantly, this is all underpinned by important job creation in the local area."

Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney added, "Brady Family Ham has been in business for almost 40 years, and produced on this site in Co Kildare for over 30. The company is an important part of the local community, as well as a significant employer in the local area.

"I welcome the additional employment that this development will create, and am delighted to see the business go from strength to strength.

Source: www.businessworld.ie

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Small, highly globalised economies like Ireland's are especially vulnerable to negative shocks, and rules to curb pro-cyclical dynamics and excessive leverage are essential, the Irish central bank's governor said on Friday.

In his first major policy speech, Philip Lane defended his predecessor's introduction of loan-to-value limits on mortgage lending last year and said the bank should be proactive in implementing macroprudential policies.

"Small, highly globalised countries such as Ireland are inherently more volatile than larger economies: we can grow strongly for extended periods but are also especially vulnerable to negative shocks," Lane said.

"For this reason, it is essential that the Central Bank is proactive in the deployment of macroprudential policies that can improve resilience and mitigate the pro-cyclical dynamics associated with excessive leverage," he said.

Economic and financial conditions are the main global risk factor now, Lane said, but the Irish Central Bank will also be "keeping a watchful eye" on risks related to Britain's planned referendum on whether to leave the European Union.

Lane, who took over from fellow university professor Patrick Honohan in November, said he expected the country's gross domestic product to grow 6.5 to 7 percent in 2015, then slow to around 5 percent this year, in line with government forecasts.

The Central Bank is due to officially update its forecasts in its quarterly economic outlook next week. (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie
French private sector activity picked up slightly in January, with the services sector returning to growth following the Nov. 13 attacks in Paris while manufacturing stalled, a survey showed on Friday.

The Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) compiled by research firm Markit swung back into positive territory in the dominant services sector, with the early "flash" estimate coming in at a better-than-expected 50.6, after a contraction in December.

With 50 the dividing line between growth and contraction, that suggested only a modest level of growth and remained below the levels seen before the attacks that killed 130 people in cafes, a stadium and a concert hall.

The manufacturing sector stagnated, with the PMI index falling to 50.0 in January after showing growth in the previous four months, below expectations for a reading of 51.3.

Overall, the composite PMI index, which combines services and manufacturing, rose to 50.5 in January from 50.1 a month earlier.

"January's French PMI figures signalled an uneventful start to the year, with the private sector economy eking out marginal activity growth, shrugging off the recent volatility in financial markets," Markit economist Jack Kennedy said.

In an encouraging sign for the euro zone's second-largest economy, where unemployment remains near record highs above 10 percent, Markit said firms had raised staff levels for the first time since June 2015, with the sub-index coming in at 50.5.

Companies in the services sector also proved more positive about the future, with their business expectations rising to 60.8, a five-month high. (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie

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It was announced today that for the first time Dublin has ranked in the Top 10 Global City Momentum Index (CMI) released by JLL.

Dublin has moved from 14th place in 2014 to 3rd Place in 2015. The CMI, which tracks the speed of change of a citys economic base and its commercial real estate market, compares 120 major established and emerging business hubs across the globe. This means that Dublin is one of the fastest changing cities in the world.



Dublin appears in the top 10 alongside global super-cities such as Shanghai, New York, Sydney, Beijing, and San Francisco. Dublin and London are the only two European cities to feature in the top 20 list.

The index captures the dynamics of a citys real estate market  its rates of construction and absorption, price movement and the attraction of a citys built environment for cross border capital.

The CMI goes beyond traditional static economic rankings by delving into the underlying drivers that keep cities competitive and dynamic, as well as identifying signals for change that will impact their future.

Managing Director & Head of Investment at JLL Ireland, John Moran commented, "Dublin has registered the strongest real estate momentum in the CMI in the last 12 months, with accelerating economic growth and an impressive innovation ecosystem of global IT headquarters and a high concentration of tech start-ups generating significant demand for commercial property.

"As a magnet for FDI and with high levels of capital spending, the citys economy is on a sound footing and Dublin is taking steps to provide the new forms of urban infrastructure needed to maintain its competitiveness and cement its position as one of Europes most dynamic cities with projects such as the regeneration of the Docklands, where up to 350,000 sq m of commercial space is set to be built."



Source: www.businessworld.ie

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Seventy nine Conference Ambassadors were honoured by Failte Ireland yesterday at their inaugural Conference Ambassador Recognition Awards ceremony at the Royal Hospital, Kilmainham.



Failte Irelands Conference Ambassador Programme was developed to support individuals deliver international conferences to Ireland.

The programme provides relevant impartial assistance and financial support to anyone seeking to bring an international conference to Ireland, from the initial bidding stage all the way through to the marketing and promotion of the event.



The recipients, from a variety of professional and academic backgrounds, were given the awards for bidding and hosting an international conference or event in Dublin.



The Ambassadors, nominated by the Irish conference and meetings industry, had delivered a collective total of almost 73,000 international delegates to Dublin between 2011 and 2014, injecting over 101m into the economy.

This news comes as the World Congress of the World Institute of Pain (WIP) have confirmed that they will hold their 2018 conference in Dublin attracting 2,500 delegates and valued at 3.5m.



The Conference Ambassador of the Year Award was presented to Brian Stapleton, Managing Director of Periploi Aviation, for his significant contribution to Irelands business tourism sector.

Brian has been instrumental in delivering a total of seven International Air Transport Association (IATA) conferences to Dublin valued at 5.6m to Irish economy, with another five future conferences in the pipeline with an estimated value of 5.4m.

Failte Ireland CEO, Shaun Quinn commented, "More than half of all international conferences in Dublin would not have been won without Conference Ambassadors.

"Therefore, we are recognising them today not only for their significant contribution to the local economy but also for the part they have played in building Irelands reputation as a compelling and attractive destination to do business.

"Last year was a very successful year with Failte Ireland supporting international conferences and events worth a total of 128m and bringing 91,000 international delegates to our shores. This year, we are already pushing harder to win even more conferences and we will invest 5m in the sector this year with to target 140m worth of business and deliver 100,000 future delegates to our shores."

Source: www.businessworld.ie

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It was announced today that the Passage East Ferry Company is up for sale.

The company operates the car ferry between Passage East in Co Waterford and Ballyhack in Co Wexford, and includes a 28-vehicle ferry and a commercial premises with offices, stores and a storage yard covering 242m at Barrack Street, Passage East, Co Waterford.



The company accounts show consistently strong revenue levels over the past five years, with turnover in the region of 1.6 million per annum. Revenue grew by almost 5% in 2015 with an additional 2.5% expected growth this year.

The sale is expected to generate significant interest from domestic and international markets



Furthermore, this growth comes as passenger volumes increased by 5.4% in 2015 with strong tourism and commercial activities in the South East.



The sale process is being managed by business advisory specialists, Crowe Horwath.

Managing Partner at Crowe Horwath, Naoise Cosgrove commented, "This sale will generate significant interest, both in the domestic and international markets, and represents a unique opportunity to acquire a long-established business.

"Passage East Ferry Company boasts a strong trading history, solid revenues, growing EBITDA and clear potential for further growth fuelled by economic and tourism activity in the region, which remains on an upward trajectory.

"This will interest investors seeking a profitable and cash generative investment."

Source: www.businessworld.ie

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Terrilee Young 006.jpg

Terrilee Young retired last week after nearly a quarter-century working for the City of Ocean Springs -- most of it with the Ocean Springs Police Department.

(Warren Kulo/Gulflive.com)

Terrilee Young at her desk inside the Ocean Springs Police Department on her last day after 24 years with the City of Ocean Springs. The sight of Young at her desk inside the glass partition in the OSPD lobby was a fixture for visitors and staff alike.

OCEAN SPRINGS, Mississippi -- After nearly a quarter-century working for the City -- most of it with the Ocean Springs Police Department -- Terrilee Young has called it a career.

Young worked her last day at the OSPD last Friday. She has been a fixture there for more than two decades -- a familiar site to visitors and OSPD staff alike sitting at her desk inside the glass partition in the main lobby.

"She's an icon here," said Capt. Mike Ducote, who has worked alongside Young the entire time. "She's been here it seems like forever. Anything I ever needed, all I had to do was ask her and it was done. It will be strange coming in and she's not here. I'm going to miss her."

That was the common sentiment expressed by Young's co-workers.

"She's a great lady. We're going to miss her," said Mark Dunston, the last of the four police chiefs Young has worked for. "She's going to leave a lasting impression on us."

Young, a native of New Orleans, La., came to Ocean Springs when she was in the third grade. She and her husband, Glenn Young, moved around a few times over the course of 12 years for his work, but they returned to Ocean Springs permanently in 1985.

In 1992, she took her first job with the City, serving as the secretary/assistant to City Engineer Gary Toribio. But when Toribio left in 1998, the City eliminated the full-time engineer's position and Young's job along with it.

She was unemployed for about three months when she was offered a job working in the OSPD office. She was hired by then-chief Mike Ezell, now the Jackson County Sheriff. She also worked for chiefs Kerry Belk, Lionel Cothern and Dunston.

Over the years, Young has been something of a jack-of-all-trades -- answering phones, greeting visitors, filing reports, compiling the daily police log which is distributed within the department, to city officials and the media.

She admits to fretting over the officers out on the streets. She describes them -- some of whom are the same age as her own daughter -- as "my kids."

"They all seem so young now," said Young, who turned 65 in December as was the oldest person at the OSPD. "I always worried about them, because they're like kids to me."

"She's a mother hen," Ducote said. "She takes care of us, worries about us. She's always been there."

Sgt. Brian Kestner agreed.

"She's stays on top of things," he said. "When we don't do what we're supposed to do, she let's us know. Not having her here is going to be very strange for a while."

Unsurprisingly, Young said it's the people she will miss the most.

"I've seen so many people over the years -- inside the window and outside the window -- I've worked with so many different people over the years. I think that's what I'll miss the most. It's like a family."

Capt. Terry Harris, who worked with Young for 15 years, said she will be difficult to replace.

"When you stay somewhere long enough, it's no longer about the job, it's about the people," he said. "She's a terrific lady with a wonderful disposition. She always kept plugging away no mater what happens. She's been a valuable resource and her experience is going to be missed."
Fear of a severe weakening of the European Union is the hot topic in the corridors and executive suites of Davos this year with business leaders and politicians at the World Economic Forum alarmed at closing borders and the risk of a British exit.

For three years from 2010 to 2012, bankers and corporate chiefs fretted about the danger of a break-up of the single currency at the heart of the 28-nation bloc, until the European Central Bank said it would do whatever it took to preserve the euro.

Now it is the European Union itself that is seen at risk, buffeted by a sea of crises over migration, security, rising anti-European populism, illiberal trends in central Europe and a highly uncertain British referendum on continued membership.

Four years after it was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in the midst of the euro crisis for its role in peace and reconciliation in Europe, the EU is the sick man of Europe.

While some politicians and economists from countries like China and Turkey say the EU should get over its funk and have more confidence in its gradual economic recovery and its rules-based model of governance, the Europeans themselves are among the most worried.

"A 'Brexit' would be a turning point in EU integration, which has, so far, been seen as largely irreversible," said former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt, who chairs the WEF's Global Agenda Council on Europe.

"Other European governments would come under pressure to offer their voters a vote on EU membership too, and the resulting calls for national 'special deals' might handicap EU policy-making for years to come," he said.

He cited four threats to the EU's cohesion this year from the problems in absorbing more than a million migrants while preserving the Schengen open-border area, a possible British vote to leave the bloc, keeping free trade alive and the Internet and digital commerce open.

BREXIT FEARS

"If Britons vote to leave the EU in 2016 or 2017, the UK will probably disintegrate and the entire European integration project will suffer a possibly irreversible setback," a WEF report released on Thursday said.

Prime Minister David Cameron sought to scotch such talk with a resolutely upbeat speech, saying he was determined to secure Britain's future in a reformed EU and inviting the business community to explain the benefits of membership to the public.

European leaders from Socialist French Prime Minister Manuel Valls to conservative German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble lined up on the same platform to warn that a British departure - which current opinion polls suggest is as likely as a vote to stay - would be a "tragedy" and a "disaster" for both sides.

Senior executives asked whether Cameron had the situation under control and how he was going to turn Eurosceptic public opinion around, notably in his own Conservative party.

"If there is uncertainty around things business is at its worst," said Unilever CEO Paul Polman told Reuters.

"So I'm very much into how can we maintain the spirit of Europe, how can we make Europe work even better."

The Dutch and Swedish prime ministers added urgency to the sense of gloom around the EU by telling WEF audiences that Europe has just 6-8 weeks to save the 26-nation Schengen zone of passport-free travel from collapse.

This week alone, Austria has announced more border controls and put a reduced ceiling on the number of refugees it will admit this year, precisely the commitment that German Chancellor Angela Merkel is trying to avoid.

German President Joachim Gauck, a former pastor in communist East Germany who is widely respected as a voice of conscience, told the Davos audience there would be nothing immoral about putting a limit on the number of asylum-seekers a country could absorb.

European governments have failed to live up to promises to relocate some 160,000 refugees who arrived in Greece and Italy last year by national quota. Fewer than 300 Syrians have been relocated under the scheme, half of them to snowy Finland.

BORDER CLOSURES

Business leaders warned in closed sessions of serious damage to the economy if border controls are reintroduced for citizens, with dangerous knock-on effects for the free movement of goods in the EU's single market.

"The EU is on the verge of collapse," billionaire U.S. investor and philanthropist George Soros said in an interview published just before the WEF meeting.

"The Greek crisis taught the European authorities the art of muddling through one crisis after another... The EU now is confronted with not one but five or six crises at the same time."

As European countries raise border barriers to stop refugees flooding in, the prospect of delays for EU citizens and bottlenecks for the transport of goods around its single market is worrying businesses.

Several countries including Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Austria and France have reinstated temporary border controls.

"It's a bad precedent," said Mark Weinberger, chairman and chief executive of consultancy firm EY.

"If the belief is that we're going to move further in that direction, as opposed to moving back toward open borders, that would have a significant effect on the ability to staff projects, the ability for businesses to be able to hire folks, to get talent in the right position. All things that are necessary for growth in the European economy."

Beyond those immediate dangers, former Swedish Finance Minister Anders Borg, now a WEF official, pointed to growing pressures that both right-wing and left-wing populist political forces are applying on political systems around Europe.

"These (west European) countries need deep structural reforms of their economic and social systems but there is such an underlying lack of trust in governments and business that these forces will restrict what can be achieved," Borg said. (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie

About us
Google Inc paid Apple Inc $1 billion in 2014 to keep its search bar on the iPhone, Bloomberg reported, citing a transcript of court proceedings related to a copyright lawsuit filed by Oracle Corp against the search giant.

Google, a unit of Alphabet Inc, gives Apple a percentage of the revenue it generates through the iPhone but details of the arrangment have never been made public.

Bloomberg, citing a transcript of the Oracle-Google pretrial last week, reported on Thursday that a Google witness had revealed that the revenue share was 34 percent at one point.

However, it was not clear whether that percentage represented the amount kept by Google or paid to Apple, the report said. (http://bloom.bg/1nqaj0w)

The court transcript that was the source of the Bloomberg report is no longer available online.

In its lawsuit, Oracle is accusing Google of using its Java software without paying for it to develop Android.

An Oracle lawyer had told a court hearing that Android had generated revenue of about $31 billion and profit of $22 billion since its release in 2008.

Google said in a court filing on Wednesday that the Android disclosures should not have been made public, and asked the court to place them under seal.

Google and Apple could not be reached immediately for comment on Friday. (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie
International Monetary Fund managing director Christine Lagarde launched her campaign for a second term on Friday with ringing endorsements from a host of major economies - and a court case against her looming in her native France.

The former French finance minister who trained as a lawyer has no obvious challengers and has long been open to serving another five-year term. The prime ministers of Britain and France backed her publicly on Thursday.

"I am candidate to a new mandate. I was honoured to receive from the start of the process the backing of France, Britain, Germany, China, Korea," the 60 year-old told France 2 television in an interview from Davos.

Germany's finance ministry weighed in with its own endorsement on Friday.

"Germany welcomes the renewed candidacy of Christine Lagarde for a further term as managing director of the IMF. Ms Lagarde was a prudent and successful crisis manager in the difficult times after the financial crisis," the finance ministry said in a statement.

The first woman to head the fund on her appointment in 2011, Lagarde has been dogged off-and-on since then for her role in a long-running business scandal while she was France's finance minister.

Last month, a French judge ordered her to face trial for negligence in a special ministerial court over the 2008 payout of some 400 million euros ($430 million) to businessman Bernard Tapie.

Tapie himself was ordered last year to repay the money, which he received as state compensation for a business transaction in which he later claimed he had been defrauded.

Lagarde has said she will appeal that decision.

"I feel that I always acted in the state's interest and within the law. I have my conscience for me in this affair. I hope the courts .... will agree with that," she told France 2 on Friday.

A synchronised swimmer in her youth, Lagarde once said in an interview it was that sport which taught her the maxim "grit your teeth and smile" in the man's world she moves in and where her designer clothes stand out in a sea of dark suits.

She joined the international law firm Baker & McKenzie in Paris aged 25 after completing a master's degree in English and labour law, and quickly rose to the top of the Chicago-based firm before entering politics.

As finance minister under former President Nicolas Sarkozy, she attracted criticism early in her tenure by suggesting that the French had become work-shy and that navel-gazing hindered reform.

Born in Paris and raised in the northern port city of Le Havre, Lagarde is a vocal proponent of women as senior executives, once noting drily that if Lehman Brothers had been Lehman Sisters, it might have survived. (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie
Oil soared nearly 8 percent on Friday as a cold snap boosted demand for heating oil and investors took advantage of the lowest prices since 2003 to close out some of their more profitable bets on price declines.

Short covering, the practice of buying back an asset sold previously at a higher price, has been enough of a catalyst to lift oil prices by 12 percent in just two days.

But it has stopped the oil price heading towards a near-17 percent drop in January, the largest slide in the first month of the year in at least a quarter of a century.

The world is still producing some two million barrels of oil a day more than it uses, and one of the warmest winters on record has destroyed typically heavy demand, leading to inventories of unwanted oil and oil products ballooning.

Money managers have racked up record-breaking bets against oil over the past few months. The price slide to its lowest since late 2003 this week provided a chance for them to book a profit on some of those positions, analysts said.

Brent was up $2.05 at $31.30 a barrel by 1450 GMT, set for its biggest one-day rise since August 2015 and well above this week's low of $27.10, while U.S. crude rose $1.75 to $31.28.

But few in the market believe oil will be able to extend its gains much further, given the overwhelming bearishness of investors and the fact that oversupply looks set to persist.

"There is no fundamental justification whatsoever to think that the current downtrend is changing," said PVM Oil Associates analyst Tamas Varga.

The IEA warned that the oil market risked "drowning in oversupply".

Freezing weather conditions and snowstorms have gripped the U.S. East Coast and parts of continental Europe, but in the longer run this may not be quite the boon oil bulls were hoping for. (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie
LOGAN  A judge has refused to release Anthony Charles Murphy again on probation, saying the Smithfield man is a substantial danger to the community. The 51-year-old is awaiting trial in the brutal assault of a woman in 2009.

Murphy is accused of raping the alleged victim after getting into an argument with her over text messages. During previous hearings, the woman said she went to bed after the argument and was later awakened by the defendant who brutally assaulted her physically and sexually. The assault lasted several hours during which he reportedly threatened to kill her as she begged him to stop.

Murphy was later arrested and charged with aggravated sexual assault and kidnapping, both first-degree felonies, along with other felony and misdemeanor charges.

In September 2009, Murphys bail was reduced from $75,000 to $35,000, allowing him to be released on pre-trial supervision. At that time, Judge Thomas Willmore ordered him to have no contact with the alleged victim and not to consume any alcohol.

Four years later, days before his trial was to begin, Murphy was arrested and charged with patronizing a prostitute and assaulting the woman in a Salt Lake motel room. He was later sentenced to serve six-months in jail and transferred back to the Cache County Jail to await his earlier trail.

During Thursdays bail hearing in 1st District Court, Judge Willmore ruled that Murphey had violated the terms of his pre-trial release while out on bail previously. He ordered him to remain in jail in preparation for his 12-day trial, scheduled to begin April 26.

<hr /><p style=text-align: center;>will@cvradio.com
On December 18, the European Commission (EC) issued the Fourth progress report on Georgias implementation of the action plan on visa liberalization approving the countrys progress in fulfilling legislative and policy reforms, and meeting institutional and organizational principles and procedures in line with European and international standards. The ECs positive assessment entitles Georgia to visa-free travel with the Schengen area. However, the EC legislative proposal, slated to be submitted in early 2016, still needs to be approved by EU member states and the European Parliament.

The process could be completed by mid-2016, and will allow holders of biometric passports to enter the Schengen area multiple times, without visa, for 90 days in any 180-day period. Currently, 776,000 Georgian citizens hold a biometric passport and this prospect will likely encourage a larger share of the population to obtain one.

The visa-free regime will include all EU member states except the United Kingdom and Ireland. It will also apply to Cyprus, Croatia, Romania and Bulgaria  which are not yet part of the Schengen zone; and to non-EU member states such as Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.

The EU-Georgia Visa Liberalization Dialogue was launched in June 2012, under Georgias previous government, and continued after the Georgian Dream (GD) coalitions ascent to power. In 2013, the EC presented Georgian authorities with a visa liberalization action plan (VLAP) enclosing precise benchmarks outlined in four separate blocks. The VLAP envisaged two phases, starting with the adoption of a legislative, policy and institutional framework and continuing with ensuring its effective and sustainable implementation.

The appraisal of the implementation of all four blocks started in December 2014 and was completed in October 2015. It was headed by the EC, with participation of the EU Delegation to Georgia, experts from EU Member States and the European External Action Service (EEAS).

The Commissions fourth report acknowledges that Georgia has allocated considerable financial and human resources to ensure the sustainability of its new achievements. It also appreciates the diligence through which the country has implemented the diverse reforms and terms the attained progress steady and effective.

The visa-free regime with the EU will have various political repercussions for Georgia. First, the far-reaching and difficult reforms in the Justice and Home Affairs area will advance the countrys institutional setup in terms of rule of law and democracy. It is indicative that despite the shift in government, integration with the Euro-Atlantic community has remained a top national priority, demonstrating Georgias consistent efforts and strong commitment to this objective.

Second, the achieved success could increase support for EU integration in Georgia and at the same time curb the recently emerging and growing Euro-skepticism in the country.

Although the signing of the Association Agreement had a remarkably positive impact in this regard, the visa-free regime could yield more tangible benefits and have a more direct effect on Georgias integration with the EU. The possibility of unrestricted travel throughout the Schengen area might encourage Abkhazians and Ossetians to obtain Georgian biometric passports, which could help facilitating the reintegration of the occupied regions.

For the same reason, the decision risks annoying the Kremlin, especially given Russias long-lasting efforts to secure visa liberalization with the EU and Brussels reluctance to grant it in light of the Ukraine crisis. Another irritating factor for Moscow is Georgias steady integration with European institutions to the detriment of Russias influence in its former periphery. On December 17, Russias President Vladimir Putin expressed readiness to lift visa requirements for Georgian citizens. Despite all the difficulties  we see signals from the current leadership of Georgia and those signals are received, Putin said. It should be noted that Moscow initially rebuffed canceling the visa regime until diplomatic relations between the two countries, severed after the August 2008 war, have been restored.

Shortly before leaving office, Georgias Prime Minister Irakli Gharibashvili welcomed Putins statement, calling it a step in the right direction. Gharibashvili asserted that the Georgian Dream governments reasonable and prudent foreign policy, pursuing constructive dialogue with Russia, is now achieving palpable results.

As shown by Gharibashvilis stance, the ruling coalition seems keen to attract both pro-European and pro-Russian voters to improve its declining popularity ahead of the parliamentary elections scheduled for October 2016.

Image attribution: www.agenda.ge, accessed on Jan 19, 2016
Even if Anthony had a year to analyze and dissect each piece...(he couldn't tell if it would)... stand the harsh light of public exposure.

WUWT insider Willis Eschenbach tells you all you need to know about Anthony Watts and his blog, WattsUpWithThat (WUWT). As part of his scathing commentary , Wondering Willis accuses Anthony Watts of being clueless about the blog articles he posts. To paraphrase: Click here to read more.
The barbaric killing of Cecil the lion (above) generated a hue and cry among so many Americans who had been long unaware of the globe-trotting expeditions of American trophy hunters, in search of slaying the biggest and rarest African animals. Photo by Brent Stapelkamp/500px Prime

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Cecil may be roaring from heaven that other lions throughout Africa, including members of his former pride, may not experience his horrible fate, thanks to a federal rule that goes into effect today. The rule stipulates that American hunters who travel to Africa to hunt down lions can no longer freely bring their trophies back home. It is expected to produce a dramatic decline in the number of lion trophies imported into the country each year  from 727 in 2014 to perhaps fewer than 20 this year. We hope it will also put the lid on the cruel canned lion hunting industry in South Africa that largely serves U.S. trophy hunters.

The federal rule, which lists African lions as threatened or endangered, has been in the works for years, but had a spotlight thrown on it when a Minnesota dentist killed Cecil last year after baiting him out of the confines of a national park. The barbaric killing generated a hue and cry among so many Americans who had been long unaware of the globe-trotting expeditions of American trophy hunters out to slay the biggest and rarest African animals. Over the past 10 years, American hunters have killed 5,552 African lions and imported their parts as trophies.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announced the rule on December 21, but it takes formal effect today. Anyone wanting to import lion parts has to first get a permit from the FWS, which will only grant one if it finds that the killing enhances the survival of wild lions  a standard the agency has said will be tough to meet. FWS has also indicated that killing captive-bred lions does nothing to enhance the survival of wild lions  a move that we hope will forever end the South African canned lion hunting industry because Americans make up about 90 percent of their clientele. In 2014 alone, trophies of 367 captive lions were imported to the United States.

There has been good progress in recent years against trophy hunting of rare animals: in addition to the new lion rule, the United States has suspended elephant trophy imports from Tanzania and Zimbabwe. Last year, Australia and France banned all lion trophy imports. Forty-five major airlines have banned the transport of some or all types of hunting trophies. Hotels set to host trophy-hunting conventions and musicians scheduled to perform at these conventions have pulled out.

Yet lions and elephants are but two of the hundreds of different kinds of animals that Americas trophy hunters covet. Our research shows that between 2005 and 2014, more than 1.2 million trophies of over 1,200 different kinds of animals were imported into the United States. Trophy hunting advocacy organizations like Safari Club International (SCI) continue to offer opportunities for their members to compete with other hunters to earn awards for killing the largest or most types of animals, and American hunters cover the globe to track down and slaughter the worlds most magnificent animals, from lions to elephants to rhinos to bears. The rarer, the better.

This week, a key U.S. Senate committee passed legislation to benefit SCI, with provisions to allow their members to import polar bear trophies into the United States and to slay hundreds of wolves in the Great Lakes region and Wyoming. The bill also contains a provision to block a final rulemaking action by FWS to stop the baiting of brown bears and the slaying of wolves on National Wildlife Refuges in Alaska.

In February, at the SCIs annual convention in Las Vegas, hundreds of hunts will be auctioned off. These include hunts of rare animals throughout the world and hunts of wild animals in fenced enclosures. The celebration of killing, and commercial gathering place for the vendors of this shadowy subculture, is SCIs largest fundraiser, earning the group $14.7 million in 2014  money it uses to fight animal protection measures around the world.

Last week, I wrote to the Nevada Department of Tourism and Cultural Affairs to urge them to make the humane and profitable decision to publicly oppose Las Vegas hosting this and future SCI conventions. Its time everywhere to raise the decibel level and to close out the era of trophy hunting of the worlds most magnificent creatures.
Contributed The Blue on Tour film festival is this weekend at the American Bank Center. Information: www.harteresearchinstitute.org/blue-gulf-film-comp

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FRIDAY

PERFORMING ARTS: Presidio Brass presents a show of Hollywood's greatest hits, "Sounds of the Cinema," at 7:30 p.m. at the Performing Arts Center on the campus of Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. Cost: $25, adults; $10, students with ID. Information: 361-980-1949 or www.corpuschristilive.com.

PERFORMING ARTS: The Corpus Christi Chamber Music Society presents The Gryphon Trio at 7 p.m. at Havana, 500 N. Water St. Cost: $25 per couple; $15 single. Information: jallison3@stx.rr.com.

SATURDAY

FILM FESTIVAL: Blue on Tour, a traveling film festival, begins at 5 p.m. at the American Bank Center's Henry Garrett Ballroom, 1901 N. Shoreline Blvd. The festival also will allow local filmmakers to screen works alongside acclaimed filmmakers. Cost: Free. Information: blueontourcc.org.

HEALTH & WELLNESS: Texas A&M Healthy South Texas will host its first Renew Event from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Congressman Solomon P. Ortiz International Center, 402 Harbor Drive. Cost: $25 in advance; $40 at the door. Information: 361-561-8589.

For more events check Caller.com/vivacc.
Contributed The Gryphon Trio will perform during two events this weekend. Information: www.corpuschristichambermusic.org

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By Lauren Hernandez of the Caller-Times

For 33 seasons, the Corpus Christi Chamber Music Society have provided the community with an up close and personal experience with some of the world's most talented musicians in classical music.

"Chamber music is music that is written for a few instruments and intended to be played in a small 'chamber' or room rather than in a large concert hall," said a member of the chamber's board Carol Domasco. "The artists we bring to Corpus Christi are internationally renowned musicians, whose expertise, experience, and excellence will exceed the expectations of even the most critical of listeners."

The concert series will present the Gryphon Trio this weekend.

"Because the (music society) has a very good reputation amongst musicians, we receive a lot of communications from ensembles who hope to be presented here," said Joan Allison, program director of the society. "It's an embarrassment of riches to choose from for every season of concerts."

One of the world's preeminent piano groups, the Gryphon Trio, will be performing this weekend.

The Gryphon Trio's intense interpretations of the great piano trios of French composers Debussy, Ravel and Lalo will provide an exciting evening of music during their visit to Corpus Christi.

According to the Corpus Christi Chamber Music Society's website, "the Trio's highly refined, dynamic performances have firmly established this ensemble as one of the world's preeminent piano trios."

The Gryphon Trio is the Ensemble-in-Residence at MusicToronto, and each member is an artist-in-residence at the University of Toronto.

IF YOU GO

When: 7 p.m. Friday

Where: Havana, 500 N. Water St.

Cost: $25 per couple, $15 single

What: The Gryphon Trio

When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday

Where: Wolfe Recital Hall, Del Mar College East

Cost: adults, $25; students, $10

Information: www.corpuschristichambermusic.org
Contributed Presidio Brass performs Friday, Jan. 22, at the Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi Performing Arts Center. Information: corpuschristilive.com

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By Bob Copes

Presidio Brass brings its flawless musicianship and unique arrangements to the Texas A&M University  Corpus Christi Performing Arts Center to celebrate the "Sounds of the Cinema."

The San Diego quintet is playing to enthusiastic crowds in the U.S. and Europe with its tour showcasing music made famous in film. Featuring works by Gershwin, Mancini, Bernstein and more, the playlist presents familiar songs in an unexpected and dazzling way. Scott Sutherland, the ensemble's tubist, pianist and primary arranger, has a simple explanation for the program's popularity.

"Who doesn't love movies? They are ubiquitous in our world, and everyone has their favorite film score. Music for movies is likely the most popular genre of instrumental music today, and we love how it connects with people in the U.S. and around the world."

In addition to Sutherland, Presidio Brass includes trumpeters Steve O'Connor and Miles McAllister, with Geoff Durbin and Josh Bledsoe on trombone and euphonium. All began their music careers by joining their schools' band programs, and the group emphasizes music education and appreciation through educational outreach programs and master classes when schedules permit. It has also made practice sheet music available for download free from its website, www.presidiobrass.com.

Individually, each musician enjoys a successful career in studio session work, as part of traditional orchestras, and in teaching others. Members of Presidio Brass have performed with major symphony orchestras, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Las Vegas Philharmonic, Pacific Symphony and San Diego Symphony, and have shared the stage with commercial and pop artists that include Stevie Wonder, Natalie Cole, Quincy Jones and Kanye West. Presidio Brass is also part of the larger ensemble, Millennia Consort, which commissions, performs and records exciting and appealing new music in addition to arrangements of music spanning the ages.

Despite their hectic schedules, all are drawn to this special ensemble, performing more than 75 times a year.

"Performing in a chamber ensemble gives you a level of artistic freedom that is unlike an orchestra or academic setting," Sutherland said. "The chance to shine as the star of the show for thousands of people is one that is rare or nonexistent in an orchestra, studio work or teaching environment."

Presidio Brass has released four recordings: Stolen Moments, a collection of popular classical and jazz selections; Christmas Day, an assortment of well-loved holiday favorites; Sounds of the Cinema, which includes pieces from their signature stage performance; and their newest release, Rhapsody in Brass, featuring popular American music influenced by classical and jazz idioms.

IF YOU GO

What: Presidio Brass

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday

Where: Performing Arts Center at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi

Cost: Season tickets range from $50-160; single event tickets start at $25 for adults and $10 for students with valid ID

Information: 361-980-1949 or corpuschristilive.com
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By Elizabeth Riggle

Yearning for one of Sugarbakers Bistro and Cafe's unique brunch creations? Now you can have your favorites any Saturday of the month.

Beginning tomorrow, Sugarbakers will start serving brunch every Saturday. This gem of a restaurant has an array of delectable entrees, pastries, coffees and tea selections.

Brunch choices include thick cut French baguette Fresh toast or the lox and bagel plate which is a bagel topped with cream cheese, sliced tomato, red onion, sliced cucumber and capers.

Hearty appetites will love the steak and eggs created with two large eggs served with a beef tenderloin medallion.

Open six days a week, Sugarbakers features breakfast, lunch and early dinner options. In addition, this venue has a coffee bar and lounge area with an assortment of French press coffee, espresso, infused teas and cold brew.

Try the Austin Coffee Roasters house blend or the Costa Rica Tarrazu dark roast coffees.

Cold winter days call for hot Americano or cafe au lait. Add in homemade syrups and sauces such as Mexican vanilla, sugar free hazelnut and cinnamon dolce.

Teas are a relaxing alternative to coffee. Relish the caffeine-free peach tranquility or the mildly caffeinated jasmine green pearl teas. Pastries are a perfect complement to coffee or tea.

Made fresh each day, enjoy a sweet jumbo cinnamon roll or a chocolate turnover. No need to hurry off to work. The lounge area is equipped with WiFi and power outlets.

Any meal is a culinary adventure. Daily breakfast specials range from berry-stuffed crepes on Tuesday to chicken and waffles on Wednesday. Lunch selections include soups, salads, sandwiches, quiches and seafood entrees.

Combine a love of salad and seafood and dig into the samurai salad made with seared, spice-rubbed Ahi tuna atop a pile of spring greens, fresh sliced strawberries and mango, cucumber, edamame peas and avocado dressed with sweet ginger sesame dressing topped with rice noodles.

Sugarbakers Bistro and Cafe is available for onsite private events, off-site catering, take out and custom baked good and cakes. Call for details and booking information.
SHARE Caller-Times file Port of Corpus Christi commissioners will get their first formal look at a plan to offer buyouts and relocation assistance to residents of Hillcrest. The historically black neighborhood lies in the path of where the Texas Department of Transportation intends to build a new Harbor Bridge.

By Chris Ramirez of the Caller-Times

Residents living near where a new Harbor Bridge is planned can learn details about a relocation and property-buyout plan connected to the project.

The Citizens Alliance for Fairness and Progress, an advocacy group for the historically black Hillcrest and Washington-Coles neighborhoods, will hold its "Hillcrest Relocation Workshop" on Jan. 30. Organizers say the event is intended to inform residents, homeowners, renters and others in the area of their options.

The workshop will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Oveal Williams Senior Center, 1414 Martin Luther King Drive. Officers of the advocacy group will be joined by representatives from Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, the University of Texas Environmental Clinic, the Texas Low Income Housing Information Service and the Federal Highway Administration's Office of Civil Rights.

The highway administration gave its final approval earlier this month to the state's plan to replace the aging bowstring Harbor Bridge with a cable-stayed bridge with higher elevation.

The Port of Corpus Christi intends to pay as much as $20 million to purchase properties in Hillcrest, which is bounded by West Broadway Street, Floral Street, Martin Luther King Drive and the right of way of the proposed bridge.

State officials say the bridge needs to be replaced for safety reasons and to allow larger vessels access to the Corpus Christi Ship Channel.

Twitter: @Caller_ChrisRam
Beatriz Alvarado/Caller-Times Coastal Bend College President Beatriz Trevino Espinoza cuts a ceremonial ribbon on Thursday for the opening of the Womens Shelter of South Texas new office at the colleges Beeville campus.

SHARE Beatriz Alvarado/Caller-Times Chief operating officer of the Womens Shelter of South Texas, Susan Trevino, speaks at a ribbon-cutting on Thursday establishing the shelters presence at the Beeville Coastal Bend College campus.

By Beatriz Alvarado of the Caller-Times

BEEVILLE  Police Chief Joe R. Trevino already knows where his 12-year-old daughter will attend college.

She's yet to decide on a major, but Trevino said an event Thursday that ceremonially united the Women's Shelter of South Texas and Coastal Bend College reinforced the decision.

"It's comforting knowing the office is here, and the college and shelter have combined," he said. "It's a good feeling."

The college is the first to adopt the shelter's Safe Campus Project, which through partnerships with institution leaders establishes office space for shelter staff to provide free services to victims of sexual assault. A victim advocate will be available at regularly scheduled times at three of the college's locations  Beeville, Alice and Kingsville. Ribbon cutting ceremonies were hosted at each site Thursday.

Beeville's campus office will be in room 106 of the R. W. Dirks Student Services Building.

Susan Trevino, the shelter's chief operating officer, stressed the new space is not an isolated initiative to combat sexual violence in each city. She said the shelter's violence prevention work with Beeville ISD to educate 7th and 8th grade students on bullying, respect, consent and dating violence in February will expand their footprint to service the demographic most vulnerable to sexual violence.

Having a campus presence also will aid in preventing re-victimization, shelter spokeswoman Kellie Addison said.

Victims often report an incident to someone they trust, which is not always someone who can help. This usually leads to victims having to retell their story to each agency involved in the case, which is damaging, she explained.

"We want to equip the faculty and staff to be able to handle being the first to hear about an assault," Addison said. "(We are here to teach them to say) 'I believe you, we're going to address it, let's get you to the person who can help you with this piece.'"

Coastal Bend College President Beatriz Trevino Espinoza said because almost half the college's student body are dual credit high school students, the partnership will play a key part in guiding the youth as they mature into roles in the community's workforce.

"It is very critical for us to continue to leverage and use resources that help support our community. Our students are our community," she said. "(The shelter's) expertise in working with law enforcement, hospitals and families ... we're going to leverage that to support our students. Before it becomes an issue at (Coastal Bend College campuses), we're ahead of it and educating every student about their safety not just at a campus, but in their community."

Twitter: @CallerBetty
GABE HERNANDEZ/CALLER-TIMES Dshon Simmons displays his teams Lego robot to parents Thursday, Jan. 22, 2016, at West Oso Elementary School in Corpus Christi as they prepare to compete in the First Lego League on Saturday in San Antonio.

SHARE GABE HERNANDEZ/CALLER-TIMES Dshon Simmons turns off a Lego robot Thursday, Jan. 22, 2016, at West Oso Elementary School in Corpus Christi as his team prepare to compete in the First Lego League on Saturday in San Antonio. GABE HERNANDEZ/CALLER-TIMES Alyssa Rios watches her teams Lego robot Thursday, Jan. 22, 2016, at West Oso Elementary School in Corpus Christi as they prepare to compete in the First Lego League on Saturday in San Antonio. GABE HERNANDEZ/CALLER-TIMES Brendan Cantu gives his part of a presentation Thursday, Jan. 22, 2016, at West Oso Elementary School in Corpus Christi as his team prepares to compete in the First Lego League on Saturday in San Antonio. GABE HERNANDEZ/CALLER-TIMES Students from West Oso Elementary School prepare to test their Lego robot Thursday, Jan. 22, 2016, at West Oso Elementary School in Corpus Christi as they prepare to compete in the First Lego League on Saturday in San Antonio.

By Beatriz Alvarado of the Caller-Times

Christian Arredondo said he wants to be a programmer.

Although he is only 10, he's taken the first step in the right direction.

"I helped program a robot," the West Oso Elementary School fourth grader said proudly. "It was fun."

Christian and a group of nine West Oso fourth- and fifth-grade students showcased the work of a semester for their parents Thursday at the school's cafeteria. The group will compete in the "First Lego League" qualifier competition Saturday in San Antonio for a chance at a regionals competition. They will compete against 23 elementary, middle and high schools from San Antonio, Uvalde and Helotes. The team is the first of its kind at West Oso, school Principal Belinda Gamez said.

"I don't know of any elementary school in the Corpus Christi area that is doing this," she said. "It provides them the opportunity to think critically, enhance math and science skills, collaborate with their classmates and understand the overall team concept: that they need one another for this to be successful."

A robotics course started being offered to third-, fourth- and fifth-grade West Oso Elementary students this school year. A group of 10 were selected to compete. They attend the course during the school day and have met after school since November to prepare for the competition, Gamez said. The class is led by Gregorio Garza and fills a fine arts credit.

The students, clad in robot bear team shirts, rehearsed together Thursday to build a Lego robot and program its actions for the "Trash Trek Robot Game" portion of the competition. Each were delegated tasks as technicians, programmers and team and project leaders.

Using drag and drop programming software purchased by the district in August, they input measurements and speeds for the robot's course on a table designed to introduce the children to environmental-friendly concepts.

The robot executes actions such as plucking Lego plastic bags from a portion of the table designated as the ocean.

The students also researched an environmentally friendly topic to present to judges for the project portion of the competition.

They took turns to explain the damaging effects of disposed plastic bottles on the environment and the concept of using the trash as filament for 3-D printing.

"What we are proposing is nothing new. What we are hoping to do is bring awareness ... and spur change," said 9-year-old Dashawn Trimble.

His grandfather, Rudy Llamas, stood back and admiringly said, "You can see the work they put into it."

Twitter: @CallerBetty
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Dr. Hector P. Garcia

SHARE CALLER-TIMES FILE The faded sign on the Central Pharmacy is still visible Aug. 13, 2014 on the building once owned by Dr. Hector P. Garcia. The National Archives and Historical Foundation plans to gift the clinic and an adjoining lot to the American GI Forum of Texas, which may sell the properties.

By Natalia Contreras of the Caller-Times

Dreams of restoring the site where Dr. Hector P. Garcia's civil rights work once thrived are unlikely to ever become a reality. His clinic on Bright Street  the one time hub of the American GI Forum founder  has long been in disrepair and likely will be sold off.

Years long attempts to revamp the clinic, built in 1966, have failed prompting the organization that owns it to make plans to give it to the American GI Forum of Texas. Forum officials told the Caller-Times it would likely be sold because it is among several of the group's unused buildings across the state.

Officials with the Corpus Christi-based National Archives & Historical Foundation, which has owned it since 2002, had long hoped to raise the funding needed to preserve it. In 2014, one of Garcia's daughters, Wanda Garcia, announced with other foundation supporters plans to raise $100,000 to restore it and work toward a Veterans' and Family Outreach Center.

But this week the foundation president Amador Garcia, the late leader's cousin, wrote to board members saying the funds couldn't be raised and that the GI Forum was interested in taking the property, possibly selling it and paying to have the foundation's nonprofit status reestablished.

One of the reasons he cites for the failed attempts is an injunction secured by Cecilia Garcia Akers, the late leader's other daughter, that prevents the GI Forum from using his name and likeness to raise funds without permission.

Amador Garcia said Thursday he has drafted the paperwork for the transfer and intends to sign it.

"I have not signed it yet. But it's coming," he said. "The problem is exacerbated because once the building is rehabbed, there has to be monies in place to continue to maintain it."

Wanda Garcia told the Caller-Times she wasn't included in the decision and doesn't think the transfer would be legal because of the foundation's lapsed nonprofit status. She said she learned of the plan via email from Amador Garcia.

"I was not made aware of any meetings. This is not what my father would have wanted," Wanda Garcia said. "They can't give away the building."

She said the building should be preserved to continue her father's legacy.

G.I. Forum of Texas executive director Gil Rodriguez said the forum is discussing plans to sell the property along with other unoccupied properties the organization owns state-wide.

"It's up to the G.I. Forum to do what they want with the building," Rodriguez said. "Our biggest concern has always been getting the resources to restore it and it belonged to Dr. Garcia at one time. We are only discussing it at this time."

Garcia Akers said she was saddened by the news about the clinic but long ago realized there wasn't much she could do to save it.

"For many, many years my mother and I tried very hard to get that building back," Garcia Akers said. "There is nothing more I can do. They won't be able to do anything with it. They will have to tear it down and my father's legacy is not in that place. His legacy is in us, in the veterans and in the patients he helped."

Her focus will remain on current work with the Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Foundation and plans for a library at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.

Twitter: @CallerNatalia
COURTNEY SACCO/CALLER-TIMES Local and federal agencies gathered for the 2016 Maritime Awareness Security Terrorism Training Cybersecurity Symposium at the Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairgrounds in Robstown, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016.

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By Natalia Contreras of the Caller-Times

Members of local, state, and federal agencies gathered Thursday in Robstown to learn about cyber security during a training symposium.

About 230 people attended the Maritime Awareness Security Terrorism Training Cyber security symposium at the Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairgrounds that focused on IT security and critical infrastructure protection.

"New technology continues to evolve and we want to show the agencies which issues are out there and what the best practices are to prevent these issues," symposium organizer and U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Brent Kenny said. "Any cyber hacks and cyber intrusions we want the agencies to be aware of and to know what to look for," he said.

Kenny said any time the agencies' security systems are compromised, the community's security becomes compromised as well.

Del Mar College computer science professor David Abarca, a featured speaker at the symposium, talked about how easy it is for someone to hack a corporate network.

"Everyone uses Fitbits these days and they are so vulnerable," Abarca said. "They are connected to our phones, if you do corporate work on your phone, I hack your Fitbit and I have access to your phone and I can log in to your corporate network."

The agencies attending the symposium included U.S. Coast Guard Sector Corpus Christi; Federal Bureau of Investigation; U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas; Texas Department of Public Safety; Coastal Bend Council of Governments; Nueces County; Port of Corpus Christi; Port of Brownsville; Calhoun Port Authority; Citgo; Brownsville & Rio Grande International Railway; NuStar Energy, Cheniere, Buckeye Partners, Seadrift Coke, RTW Terminals, GulfMark Energy, Valero and Deep South Texas Terminals.

Symposium organizers said the MASTT committee has hosted training events every year since 2002 and every year the topic different.

Alice Police department officer Julian Cavazos attended the symposium to be more knowledgeable of the possible threats and ways to prevent them.

"It's always good to have the training because you never know when you are going to need it," Cavazos said. "We do have the railroad that runs through Alice. If that system gets compromised that would affect everyone. We need to be ready," he said.

Twitter: @CallerNatalia
Magill is accused of shooting two police officers.

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By Krista M. Torralva of the Caller-Times

A man accused in a shootout with two Corpus Christi police officers refused an offer of 50 years in prison.

During a hearing Thursday for Travis Magill, District Attorney Mark Skurka said prosecutors offered the plea deal. Magill, 24, went a step further and said he also would refuse 40 years, court officials said.

Attorneys are scheduled to begin jury selection next week in the attempted capital murder charge for Magill related to a March 20, 2014 shooting in the Country Club neighborhood that left Magill and two Corpus Christi police officers injured. Magill's lawyer, Mark Stolley, filed a motion asking 347th District Judge Missy Medary to bar officers who attend the trial from wearing their police uniforms. Medary said she would rule Monday to give prosecutors time to file a response.

Magill has been in the Nueces County Jail more than a year and five months awaiting trial.

He also is charged with unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, possession of a controlled substance and theft of a firearm.

Police have said Magill shot the officers and they returned fire before he fled in a vehicle and crashed.

Twitter: @CallerKMT
GABE HERNANDEZ/CALLER-TIMES Madison Goodwyn (left) and Kelly Emmons from Kaufer High School prepare to sand for aquatic organisms found in one of their sites on Baffin Bay Jan. 8 at Kaufer-Hubert Park in Riviera. Information collected, filed and sometimes analyzed by the students becomes part of an ongoing ecological study being conducted by Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.

SHARE GABE HERNANDEZ/CALLER-TIMES Jacob Mosley from Kaufer High School checks the wind direction and air temperature around Baffin Bay Jan. 8 at Kaufer-Hubert Park in Riviera. GABE HERNANDEZ/CALLER-TIMES Cameron Kirk from Kaufer High School collects water samples from Baffin Bay Jan. 8 at Kaufer-Hubert Park in Riviera. GABE HERNANDEZ/CALLER-TIMES Cameron Kirk from Kaufer High School inspects for organisms that were caught from Baffin Bay Jan. 8 at Kaufer-Hubert Park in Riviera. GABE HERNANDEZ/CALLER-TIMES Kelly Emmons from Kaufer High School sands for aquatic organisms found in one of their site on Baffin Bay Jan. 8 at Kaufer-Hubert Park in Riviera.

By David Sikes of the Caller-Times

RIVIERA  Each month, a group of students at Kaufer High School visit nearby Baffin Bay armed with sophisticated instruments and a thirst for knowledge.

The students are enrolled in the Aquatic Science/Scientific Research & Design class under the direction of teacher Rosana Ryan. They collect water samples and measure the bay's salinity, pH, dissolved oxygen levels and densities of phytoplankton, while seining for fish and recording information on weather, water temperature and turbidity.

This is not simply a class exercise or mock research project. Information collected, filed and sometimes analyzed by the students becomes part of an ongoing ecological study being conducted by Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. The goal of this Baffin Bay Water Quality Study, which began more than three years ago, is to collect baseline data that can be compared over time to determine biological and environmental trends.

Student Cameron Kirk, 17, said the biological research has helped him become more observant and precise, traits he believes will be useful in his future music career as a band director. Being part of bigger research team is satisfying for him.

"This is a big leap from what I expected or could have imagined," Cameron said. "I thought I'd be in the classroom all day."

Cameron and his classmate, Madison Goodwyn, 16, said they knew little about the estuary in their backyard before taking the class. Now they can list common species of fish and invertebrates they'd never seen before and discuss the relationship between oceans and streams.

Madison plans to be an environmental engineer, so she's taken a special interest in how the research is conducted and said she's particularly eager to see whether the class can draw any conclusions from their research.

"I can't wait to see the results, knowing that I was a part of it," she said. "This has been a wonderful experience and I can definitely say it's made us more aware of the natural environment. And it's made me want to know more about the causes of red and brown tide."

The students are helping to fill many informational gaps regarding this remote bay, said Mike Wetz, a marine biology professor at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, who oversees Baffin Bay water sampling and analysis. This year, Wetz's grad students began working directly with the students, guiding them in proper collection techniques and in the use of instruments.

In the beginning, Ryan's students conducted research on their own. Wetz said their work was impressive, despite limited resources.

"This is really the first academic year we've been involved with the Riviera students," Wetz said. "Until recently, Ms. Ryan has been a one woman army. But we've had extensive discussions about developing a mentoring or buddy system that partners our graduate students with her students, so the high schoolers can get timely feedback, motivation and exposure to the issues of relevance."

Ryan's students send the information collected to Wetz and to Lari Jo Johnston, director of Environmental Education at the Coastal Bend Bays & Estuaries Program. Both Wetz and Johnston have visited the Riviera class to provide context for the study and to explain the relevance of their efforts.

In the end, the students will compile their data into a scientific report and present it to Wetz and Johnston. This process meets the state-mandated requirements for course curriculum, Ryan said. Their presentation must include a display board with graphs and a summary report. Johnston and Wetz will advise the class on whether any conclusions can be drawn from the data, Ryan said.

The Baffin Bay study was prompted in 2012 by a brief die-off of black drum in the Upper Laguna Madre during a brown tide algal bloom. A group of anglers became concerned the two were somehow connected, though brown tide was not considered toxic at the time.

The fishermen formed a committee and began campaigning for research and funding. Soon, they had a host of partners, including the university, the Bays & Estuaries Program and the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department. Texas Sea Grant gave $280,000, the Coastal Conservation Association and Saltwater-fisheries Enhancement Association each contributed $10,000. Another $11,500 came from Kleberg County.

The Celanese plant in Bishop gave $150,000. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Coastal Management Program, which is administered by the Texas General Land Office, provided additional funds.

This is a first for Baffin Bay, allowing researchers to learn more about how rainfall and nutrient runoff might effect algae growth and overall health of the system.

Dense algal blooms are capable of wiping out seagrass by limiting sunlight necessary for photosynthesis. New information suggests in high enough densities a bloom can out-compete populations of other microorganisms, which could impact surf clams, a major food source for black drum. So, indirectly brown tide may kill fish by limiting food supplies.

Since the study began, researchers have discovered evidence brown tide in high densities may harm newborn fish. The main challenge is to determine whether these dynamics are influenced by nature or man.

"Basically, these students are part of the next generation of stewards for Baffin Bay," Wetz said. "And we want to support their learning about the system in any way we can."

Twitter: @DavidOutdoors
SHARE Hunter

By Matt Woolbright of the Caller-Times

Corpus Christi's ambassador to the Texas House of Representatives is being honored for advocating for animal rights during the 2015 legislative session.

The Texas Humane Legislation Network South Texas Chapter named State Rep. Todd Hunter, R-Corpus Christi "Legislator of the Year" on Thursday for his support of animal laws in Austin last year.

The award was presented by Cheryl Martinez, the local chapter president for the network, at the People Assisting Animal Control facility on Ayers Street.

"He helped with laws that will impact thousands and thousands of animals," she said. "We're lucky to have him in our area."

Hunter serves as the chairman of the Calendars Committee at the statehouse, which is responsible for selecting which bills go before the entire House of Representatives for consideration and when  a role Martinez said he used to help the cause.

Twitter: @reportermatt
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Each year, nearly 9,500 moms-to-be in South Texas attend Driscoll Health System-sponsored Cadena de Madres (Network of Mothers) community baby showers. The free showers are open to any pregnant woman. We provide essential health information on how to prevent premature births, which can lead to infant deaths or long-term, costly care, in a fun, supportive environment.

Since 2009, Cadena de Madres and other innovative Medicaid programs in South Texas have helped Driscoll Health System reduce the premature birthrate by a remarkable 29 percent. The Texas premature birthrate is 10.4 percent (2013 data). In Nueces County, the premature birthrate  including for mothers with private health insurance  is 13 percent. In contrast, the premature birthrate for higher-risk Medicaid women enrolled in the Driscoll Health System is 10.2 percent. Our goal is to bring that rate down to 6 percent, far below the current national rate of 9.6 percent.

Nearly 10 years ago, 1 in 5 local babies required treatment in a neonatal intensive care unit. To change that, medical leaders from Driscoll Health System went into the community to meet with obstetricians and pregnant women, spreading the word about the importance of regular prenatal medical exams and full-term pregnancy (at least 39 weeks) for the health of the baby as well as the mother. A baby's brain, lungs, and other important organs are not completely developed until 39 weeks. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that C-sections and induced labor be performed only when medically necessary  never for convenience.

In addition, Driscoll Health System offers nutritional counseling for pregnant women; resources to help pregnant women stop using tobacco, alcohol, and illicit drugs; and health counseling for pregnant women who have chronic health conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity that can cause miscarriage, early birth, or other serious complications.

Driscoll Health System has maternal-fetal medicine specialists that provide care to low-income women enrolled in Medicaid. We hired five of these specialized physicians who travel throughout South Texas, often treating 30 to 40 pregnant women a day. They concentrate on high-risk pregnancies to control early labor, prevent miscarriages, and manage other health problems. The five circuit-riding doctors collaborate with obstetricians, pediatric cardiologists, geneticists, nurses, and ultrasound professionals, among others.

The community baby showers sponsored by Driscoll Health System complement the efforts of medical teams. The mother-to-mother peer network created at these prenatal education events is a powerful force for behavioral change. Pregnant women listen and learn from other pregnant women who understand the importance of healthy habits. At one recent shower, a young pregnant woman said she saw no danger in drinking. "My mother drank alcohol when she was pregnant with me, so I don't know why that would cause any problems," she said. The other expectant moms disagreed. A health care educator explained that alcohol can pass from a pregnant mother to her baby and cause brain damage as well as other permanent disabilities and developmental problems.

The health of mothers and babies is a priority for Driscoll Health System. We focus not only on medical needs, but also on social, educational, and support network needs. We also partner with Texas A&M Health Science Center's Coastal Bend Health Education Center in Corpus Christi to help pregnant women manage their diabetes.

Women with stable support systems have healthier pregnancies and healthier babies, making our communities stronger and more economically sound. Our Medicaid-supported programs have a significant and positive impact on the health of South Texans. We are proud of that achievement. Healthy babies mean a healthy future for us all.

We continue to work with beneficial Medicaid programs and educational opportunities to improve the health of mothers and babies. We've learned that even a baby shower can help provide the best baby gift of all: good health.
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Ronald L. Nash

Democrats beware

A warning message to fellow Democrats. Nomination of Bernie Sanders, a self-proclaimed socialist, will result in a Trump/Palin White House. Is that what you really want? The USA will not elect a socialist president. Think about what your zeal is producing. Please consider a more moderate approach like Clinton. At least she has a chance of being elected. Your choice is important, so please think who you would prefer to see as president, the tea party or a reasonable Democrat. My goodness, please think and vote for your families future.
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Robert Joubert

RTA has many issues

On Nov. 27, in a half-page ad, the CEO of the RTA said that the RTA should not be in the real estate business and then went on to say how excited he was about the "Staples Street Center." He then said that "In addition to transportation, people will have direct access to veteran's services, human services, counseling, and other services that are vital to maintaining a healthy mobile community." The RTA mission statement, which you can find if you dig long enough on their website, does not list any of these additional services nor does it say the RTA should be a landlord.

On Jan. 10, the RTA board chairman, Curtis Rock, said "The RTA is one of those agencies that really needs a turnaround." Amen to that.

Now a HOORAY to County Commissioner Brent Chesney who referring to the Staples Street Center said "I think that's way past the scope of what the RTA should be spending its money on." Since there has also been a problem in getting a detailed budget released, you should publish it.

Maybe things aren't so dark after all. Well maybe not. The RTA has darkly tinted the big bus windows to give privacy to the riders. All 3 of 'em.
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Richard Bowers

Trump shouldn't be nominee

I don't want Donald Trump as the presidential nominee of my party. Why? It may not be as you think. I see in "The Donald" the aspect of Barack Obama that I most dislike.

An overweening ego, a certainty that he is "right" on every issue and a disdain for our constitutional process. I believe that Mr. Trump, as president, would act as Mr. Obama has and legislate from the Oval Office. The sole difference being that Obama understands what he is doing and Trump would not.

Mr. Trump's positions on issues are crudely stated and often offensive. He represents, in the worst way, the frustration of many of us with Washington gridlock and political correctness. While the President refuses to call a spade a spade "The Donald" offends the billion Muslims that are not Islamic terrorists. Sure, take great care at our border. But don't give our friends cause to dislike us.

Finally, having said my piece, I must tell you that if Mr. Trump is the Republican nominee for president and Mrs. Clinton is the Democratic nominee  I will vote for Mr. Trump.
Grey's Eric Leong () (pictured) has moved client-side to Dream Cruises in November 2015 as vice president of brand marketing and communications. He was planning director and director of client services at the agency where his clients included HSBC (Commercial Banking), P&G, GSK, Volvo and Hong Kong Tourism Board.

The same agency's Beijing office has hired One Chang () as ECD. He reports to Oliver Xu (), chief integration officer of Grey China and MD of Grey Beijing, and is tasked to beef up the quality of creative output, especially in digital, for key accounts like Mengniu and GSK.

Flynn Chen () is now the marketing director of Geely Automobile's Compact Modular Architecture (CMA) platform, based in Hangzhou. He has 15 years experience in marketing in the automotive industry, out of which four years were spent at Changan Peugeot Citroen as DS brand advertising manager.

Keen Yim () currently heads up global marketing and communications at MCM Worldwide. Previously he oversaw media, digital and e-commerce for Burberry Asia Pacific where he launched initiatives such as the launch of the brand's Tmall store, and collaborations with the Shinsegae Group, Line and Kakao Talk.

PHD China has appointed Mark Bowling as new head of strategy and communications planning. He began his career at Ogilvy & Mather in London before working across Asia Pacific since 2004 in regional roles for Starcom MediaVest Group, Digitas and IPG Mediabrands. Most recently, Bowling served as Asia lead at pitch consultancy TrinityP3.
Small and medium businesses (SMBs) have a big target painted on their back, and ad platforms and social media firms are fighting for a piece of their future.

Asia is especially critical, accounting for half of all internet, mobile and social media users worldwide.

Diana Vincent, head of digital and performance marketing for SMV Group Singapore, says platforms believe the bulk of the opportunity lies with SMB segment. Theres an opportunity to grow media spending with the platform. They understand this and they are building strong SMB sales teams, she said.

She and other marketers agree the introduction of self-service ads and Gross Rate Point (GRP)-style media buying have helped level the playing field for SMBs. Emily Huo, head of SMB sales for Twitter Southeast Asia, says the rollout of the self-service Twitter Ads across the world this year is aimed at SMBs. The platform requires no minimum spend and can be accessed with just a credit card and a Twitter account. In Asia, Huo says Indonesia is already one of Twitters top markets worldwide and has 55 million SMBs, while India is one of the fastest-growing and has 51 million SMBs.

Facebook is also working the region. Andy Hwang, director of SMB Asia-Pacific, says the next billion people connected will be in Asia.

More than 45 million SMBs worldwide have Facebook pages and 1.5 million are posting videos each month. Earlier this year, Facebook launched the Ads Manager app and some creative and educational resources for SMB marketers. For emerging market users on slower connections, it has rolled out a product called Slideshow, a lightweight video ad created from still images intended to aid SMB campaigns. Hwang cites a report from Milward Brown suggesting that in developing markets with slower network speeds people are even more receptive to video ads. Facebook is also optimising ads on feature phones and smartphones and using bandwidth targeting.

Yet despite these efforts, many SMBs arent equipped to take advantage of ad platforms. Prantik Mazumdar, partner at Happy Marketer in Singapore, says small firms often have very little understanding of the potential of digital. They typically come to us with something very specific. For example, I want to do something on Facebook or Twitter. They dont know why. Or they say, I have $20K, I want to run ad.

So education is important. Happy Marketer, a Google-accredited SEO firm, offers digital strategy and execution-focused training for senior executives and marketers.

SMV offers something similar, Vincent says. With so many self-service, real-time platforms in the market today, she says agencies play a crucial role helping SMB clients understand the channels and impact of specific campaigns.

While many believe the rise of self-service platforms will shrink the role of media agencies, she says SMBs will still come to agencies both for buying and consultancy.

They will have media agencies for analytics, measurement and to scale and drive efficiencies through volumes, she said. So audience buys are still directed through agencies, but also [we play] a more consulting role to help them evaluate what works and what doesnt work.

So what questions do SMBs have? Vinny Vijeyakumaar, managing partner & founder of Singapore-based Sparkline, sees a growing demand for understanding the social ecosystem and what data to look at. The main focus is on Facebook and Instagram, although theres also a strong demand for analytics to optimise paid marketing campaigns on search. Paid search is great for capturing demand at the moment of relevance, he said. Social media can be effective for branding and social proof.

CASE STUDY

Balloon business takes off with SEO

Thai entrepreneur Poomjai Lohaprom was motivated to start a balloon decoration business after a trip to Japan over 20 years ago.

Starting up her business, Balloon Art 2Go,at home, she promoted it through traditional print, broadcast and radio ads. She also made sales by approaching shopping malls and event organisers directly.

However, growth was slow and brand recognition was limited, until she tried the Google AdWords and Google Analytics.

Spending 450 baht (US$11) per day, she was able to better target customers who were genuinely interested in her balloon decorations. Whereas previously she had typically one or two orders for balloon bouquets a week, she was now receiving 10 leads per day and her revenue virtually doubled. A Valentines Day campaign brought in 300-500 orders a day.

In the past we spent a lot of time and effort, but only got maybe one or two customers, Lohaprom said. Using Google AdWords brings us new customers all the time, all of whom came to us on their own.

She added, this online approach is measurable. We can get clear feedback, and we can learn about our target customers and how to better serve them.

Since beginning her search marketing campaign, Lohaprom has taken her business nationwide, opening another ten stores around the country.

Our View: The expansion of self-service tools will benefit under resourced SMBs.
Leo Burnett China will be responsible for EBGs new branding strategy and creative work with the aim of building it into a strong and reliable global brand.

The EBG is one of the key business units within the Huawei group, offering ICT solutions for enterprises across Asia, Europe and Africa in the government and public services, finance, transportation, and energy industries.

Its portfolio covers enterprise networking, unified communications and collaboration (UC&C), cloud computing and data centers, enterprise wireless networks, network energy and infrastructure services.

There is a major difference between marketing for B2C and B2B enterprises," said Jeff Peng, director of branding, marketing and solution sales for the Enterprise Business Group at Huawei. "The agency needs to understand this and provide strategic creative marketing communications for our B2B needs."

The target audience for a B2B business could be anything from a company, a city, or even a country, which Matthew Cheng, director of client services at Leo Burnett Shanghai, described as an "exceptional challenge" for communications. "We are very excited about taking it on."

Prior to this AOR relationship, Leo Burnett China and Huawei have been working together for a few years on a project basis, such as for Huawei's anti-DDos product and cloud fabric data centre network.
| BY Ricki Green |

In a break from product-based advertising, this weekend KFC is set to launch its first-ever major brand campaign in Australia, developed by Ogilvy Sydney, aimed at bringing its values to life and connecting customers to the ethos of its founder, Colonel Sanders.

Based on a saying from the Colonel that life should always be finger lickin good, the new campaign is about conveying a philosophy that life is to be lived. And that its best lived when people are being true to themselves.

To help celebrate the concept, Australian television personality Plucka Duck returns to the small screen starring in the campaigns launch TVC; a character that exemplifies the brands confident, and completely original characteristics. Plucka has not been seen on Australian television since Hey Hey Its Saturday ceased broadcasting .

Says Shaun Branagan, group creative director, Ogilvy Sydney: We realise that many people might see the creative and think  What? A duck on a skateboard for KFC?.

But for a brand that traditionally has focussed on its food, and a company with a history of being original, it was important KFCs first foray into brand advertising was designed to provoke. As a result, the first element of the campaign is a deliberate mashup of pop culture icons; the mischievous Plucka Duck, who was always up for a stunt no matter how madcap, and longboard skateboarding which encapsulates sheer exhilaration and freedom. All set to a legendary surf punk music track that was a smash hit in its day and more recently on Family Guy, with the lyrics the bird is the word which of course is Aussie slang for KFC. It all represents the unique and original that is the KFC brand.

Nikki Lawson, chief marketing and development Officer KFC SOPAC said the new campaign was the first time that KFC has clearly stated its brand purpose in Australia, and launched work that did not focus on its chicken as a visual centrepoint.

Says Lawson: We know that Australians love KFCs chicken, but we wanted to ensure that affection extended to the KFC brand itself. So we looked to its founder, Colonel Sanders to get to the heart of what the KFC brand stands for. It was his original recipe, values and life embracing approach that continue to shine today.

Life moves at a fast pace and there seems to be a greater need to fit-in, and conform with everyone else, and sometimes a bit of our uniqueness, what makes us special, can get suppressed. We want everyone to celebrate their originality. The new campaign explores this concept, clearly connecting it back to the KFC brand.

Ogilvy Sydney was responsible for developing the strategy and all executions including TVCs, cinema, website, digital display, social and digital content. The digital elements and TVCs are live from this weekend, and cinema goes live next week (January 28).

Strategy and creative  Ogilvy Sydney

Shaun Branagan  Creative Director

Scott Sparks  Senior Art Director

Jenny Mak  Senior Copywriter

Ryan OConnell  Deputy Head of Strategy

Executive Business Director  Leigh Bignell

Group Account Director  Katie Dally

Account Director -Elaine Arthur

Account Manager  Anna Michael

Media planning and buying  Mediacom

PR  Edelman

Production Company  Interrogate

Director  Ash Bolland

Executive Producer  Tara Riddell

DOP  Lachlan Milne

Editorial  The Editors

Online  Cutting Edge

VFX Artist  Jonathan Hairman

Producer  Aaron Dexter

Audio Post  Rumble Studios

Sound Engineer  Nat Joyce

Producer  Jessica Hamilton

Agency Producer  Amanda Bennie

Online  Cutting Edge Sydney

Post Production Executive Producer  Samantha Daley

Post Producer  Aaron Dexter
| BY Lynchy |

The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has named Australias Emad Tahtouh, director of applied technology at Finch and Tash Whitmey, CEO, Havas helia as jury presidents at this years Lions Innovation, the specialist event that explores data and tech as catalysts for creativity.

Tahtouh (pictured), president of the Innovation Lions jury, said that he was looking forward to Cannes this year with a nervous anticipation and excitement as to how the creative world has either further developed or utilised technologies.

While technology continues to grow at an exponential rate, so too do the creative executions that either support or utilise them. In the last 12 months we have witnessed yet another technology explosion in various areas. VR/360 Film, Wearables, Biotech, Electric Vehicles, amongst many more, continue to boom and become more and more powerful each day. I am confident that this year the jury will set a new benchmark for what our industry considers true innovation.

The Creative Data Lions have evolved for 2016. New categories have been included to recognise smart problem-solving through the creative use of data, including Data-Driven Targeting and Business-to-Business Data Solution.

Says Tash Whitmey (left): As the role of data in marketing becomes more widely known and accepted, welcomed even, we need to celebrate but also provide guidance to an industry that begins to understand how data can effectively help as part of the creative process. Its clear to me that data is the future of marketing. As such, the jury need to look for brilliant examples of how data has been used to inform and inspire creativity in a way that delivers insightful and helpful solutions, with business changing results.

Lions Innovation takes place across 21-22 June 2016. A two day Festival of technology, data and start-up focused content will be drawn to a close by the Awards Ceremony which will see both presidents reveal and honour this years winners.
| BY Ricki Green |

Sundance has given double honours to Curious Film director, Taiki Waititi, this year.

Waititis fourth film, Hunt for the Wilderpeople, will premiere tonight (Australian time) at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, in the Eccles Theatre.

It has been given the prestigious Friday night slot of the opening weekend and has been listed in the 30 Must See Films of Sundance 2016 by two top film blog sites, Film School Rejects and Slash Films.

On Saturday January 30, Waititi will also host the Sundance Feature Film Awards Ceremony, which will be live streamed at sundance.org.

Waititi, who won a 2015 Cannes Gold Lion, a D&AD Pencil and Best Ads Best Interactive for the NZTA Snapchat campaign, Tinnyvision, in 2015, will direct Thor 3 for Marvel Studios next.

Hunt for the Wilderpeople is Waititis dramatisation of Barry Crumps 1986 novel, Wild Pork and Watercress, the story of a misfit kid who runs away with his grumpy uncle following the death of his aunt, in order to evade child services.

Equal parts road comedy and coming-of-age drama, director Taika Waititi masterfully weaves lively humor with emotionally honest performances by Sam Neill and Julian Dennison. Never short on laughs, this touching story reminds us about the journey that growing up is (at any age) and those who help us along the way, Sundance states in its introduction.

Says Waititi: We want this to be a film for all ages that families can go to. A film where theres something for everyone. We want to spin a good yarn and have an adventurestart a resurgence of entertaining New Zealand films. Adventure films like Came a Hot Friday and Goodbye Pork Pie  films in which people are fighting against the system in a funny and touching way.

Hunt for the Wilderpeople stars Julian Dennison, the lead in Waititis Blazed produced by Curious, and Sam Neill. Curious executive producer and managing partner, Matt Noonan, co-produced the film and Curious Film post produced it. It is due for release in the new few months.
| BY Ricki Green |

The Tasmania Advertising & Design Awards (TADA) has announced that the jury chairman will be Tim Evill, former CEO of DDB Singapore and Hong Kong.

The judging will take place in Hobart on Monday February 22nd and the awards presentation night will follow swiftly afterwards on Thursday 25th February at The Salamanca Arts Centre.

Having grown up in Africa, briefly schooled in England and spent time in the Merchant Navy, Evill sailed into a career in the advertising industry that resulted in him spending the past thirty years in Asia. Over that time he was global creative director for Singapore Airlines and executive creative director at Singapores Batey Ads. Executive creative director and CEO of DDB in Singapore and Hong Kong and vice chairman of DDB Asia, all the time building a variety of international brands. His last stint was six years in Beijing as brand strategist and creative head for Mercedes Benz.

Over the course of his career Evill has won numerous awards including D&AD, Cannes, One Show and Clio and many Effies whilst serving as a regular judge on award juries in Australasia and the USA. He headed the DDB Rising Tide creative initiative and was a member of the DDB Global Creative Council for several years with Bob Scarpelli. He was a frequent keynote speaker at creative and marketing conferences throughout Asia, and voted Singapore Advertising Man of the Year. Now a nomadic strategic brand building and creative consultant with a passion for making new and exciting brands famous and famous brands new again. Owner of Lawsons Dry Hills, one of New Zealands most awarded wine makers. Living between Waiheke Island, NZ and Bali Island, Indonesia.

Says Mark Ringer, founder, TADA: Tim was ECD at Batey Ads when there was no better agency in Asia. He ran a star-studded creative department that included talent like current global creative director of Ogilvy Tham Khai Meng, author Malcolm Pryce, Kash Sree and Andy Fackrel. He then went on to run DDB in Singapore and Hong Kong. We are very delighted that he has chosen to chair the judging.

He will spend the week in Tasmania chairing the judging and speaking on presentation night.

Joining Evill will be Pippa Dickson CEO of GASP!, who will be bring fresh and considered eyes to our industry awards, future creative leaders Sam Dobie of Clemenger and Mat Wearne of Before Creative and Chris Rees who exemplifies the skilled sole practitioner.

In keeping with the goal of nurturing a uniquely Tasmanian vernacular, it is vital that the majority of the jury is familiar with the circumstances in which the work was created, and therefore locally-based.

The Tasmania Advertising & Design Awards is a biennial show that aims to establish and nurture a uniquely Tasmanian commercial creative vernacular; to raise standards in commercial creativity, and to celebrate the very best.
| BY Ricki Green |

Following a busy 2015 that saw a new website and rebranding; online experience retailer RedBalloon.com.au is now ramping up its effort across the Tasman, aiming to take advantage of New Zealands ever growing tourism market and reputation for incredible experiences.

RedBalloon has had a presence in New Zealand for 12 years, launching the redballoon.co.nz business in December 2003, only two years after Founding Directors Naomi Simson and Peter Simson established the Australian business.

As Australias leading online experience retailer, RedBalloon works with more than 1000 suppliers, lists more than 3000 experiences and gifts, boasts a multi-million dollar marketing spend and sees website traffic of over 7.5 million annually.

Yet up until now, the business has really only dipped its toes in the kiwi market. Thats all about to change in 2016 according to CEO Nick Baker.

Baker was appointed in March last year, and hasnt wasted any time setting some major changes in motion: Launching a new website, undertaking a full re-brand, and signing major corporate partners including Velocity and Accor Hotels.

According to Baker, now is the right time to make a strategic move into New Zealand.

Says Baker: Were now in a position where RedBalloon is moving towards live availability, so we want to appeal to the 1.3 million Aussies who arrive in New Zealand every year.

This time we have a clear strategy and weve employed a local professional with a great depth of experience with New Zealand trade and tourism. Having looked at the market from a fresh perspective and scoped out the opportunity, were much better positioned to have a go at bringing New Zealand to life.

Former Tourism New Zealand employee Adam Hughes has been appointed regional product and partnerships manager and will be based in Rotorua for the first six months while he grows the local experience portfolio.

Says Hughes: Im thrilled to join the RedBalloon team and to be working with great kiwi businesses  big and small  to increase the profile of this established brand locally.

The New Zealand travel, tourism and experiences market is incredibly diverse and offers a range of options which many tourists to the north and south islands are probably unaware.

We want to open their eyes to the possibilities available as part of an New Zealand holiday, as well as experiences locals can enjoy in their own hometowns. The opportunities are seemingly endless.

Well-known tourism industry leader and Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) chairman Denis Piercehas been assisting RedBalloon with its New Zealand efforts and future strategy.

A New Zealander by birth, Pierce has a wealth of hands-on tourism experience, which he put to work touring Baker through the Queenstown/Wanaka area recently.

Says Pierce: I have spent my whole career selling the excitement of visitor experiences to both the New Zealand and Australian markets.

This is an overdue and exciting progression for RedBalloon that will bring exciting and valuable new business to New Zealand shores. RedBalloon will quite quickly have an unparalleled range of compelling and unique experiences based on what weve seen.

I couldnt be happier to be working alongside a great brand as they take their next step into a great country.

The RedBalloon New Zealand site currently features 207 local products, with the aim of doubling this in the next six months.

Says Baker: We were really lucky to have Denis expertise on hand to help us with strategy, and equally lucky to have Adam join us as he really knows the lay of the land.

Were looking for great New Zealand suppliers to come on board. RedBalloon take a great deal of effort choosing, curating and on-boarding new suppliers to ensure they become part of the RedBalloon family.

From gourmet food and wine to health and wellbeing opportunities, as well as some of the worlds most exhilarating experiences New Zealand has an exceptional offering for visitors, and locals to enjoy.

Its important to note that were not just after the big operators. We also want to talk to the smaller organisations who cater for specialist experiences or passion areas. We have the ability to raise the profiles of smaller organisations to an audience that wouldnt have otherwise seen them.
News and articles from New Zealand Fine Prints - NZ's art print experts since 1966.
Thursday, January 21, 2016 at 10:34PM

One of the top virtual reality researchers in the U.S. has reportedly joined Apple, perhaps to speed up the companys development in that arena. Doug Bowman was recently a computer science professor at Virginia Tech and he was also director of Virginia Techs human-computer interaction center for about five years. His focus was said to be on three-dimensional user interface design and the benefits of immersion in virtual environments. Hes had experience in fully immersive virtual reality (like those of HTCs Vive and Google Cardboard) and augmented reality like Google Glass. The video above shows what Bowman has been doing at Virginia Tech.

Some say Apple is lagging behind in virtual and augmented reality software development so hires like Bowman and recent acquisitions in the virtual reality market might be what Apple needs to catch up.

Source: 9to5Mac
By Jackie Mader. This post originally appeared on the Rural Education blog.

Families that live far from schools in Alaska are increasingly enrolling in distance-learning home-school programs , especially in the midst of winter when traveling to school can be challenging, according to a story by Alaskas Peninsula Clarion.

The Interior Distance Education of Alaska (IDEA), a home-school program based out of the Galena City School District in west Alaska, has seen its statewide enrollment rise by about 5 percent each year for the past five years. There is no mandated curriculum, so parents can choose what to teach their children. Students are still required to take state assessments.

Suzanne Alioto, a field representative for the program, told the Peninsula Clarion that the program eases travel challenges for rural students and also provides families with more control over education.

Parents want a more active part in their childrens education, and at IDEA it is a public school but we are still giving parents all their rights and all their own curriculum they want to use, she said.

Experts have called for a new model for the 62 percent of Alaskas schools that are rural, which is one of the highest percentages in the country . In 2014, Diane Hirshberg, director of the Center for Alaska Education Policy Research , said that Alaskas rural schools should create an engaging and hands-on Alaska specific curriculum. She also said that schools need to offer vocational, technical, and college prep programs to prepare students for post-high school opportunities, including such options as attending college or taking over a family business.

More than 28 percent of students in Alaska attend rural schools. In the past few years, several small, rural schools in Alaska have closed due to shrinking enrollments, which means some students have to travel even longer distances to attend another school.

Nationwide, rural students represent the highest percentage of the home-schooled population , although that number has decreased since 2007. In 2012, 3.6 percent of rural students were home-schooled, compared to 2.3 percent of students living in towns, and 1.6 percent of suburban students. In 2007, nearly 5 percent of rural students were home-schooled.

Related stories:

Photo: A pedestrian makes his way through snow-covered streets in Barrow, Alaska, in October, 2014. Gregory Bull/AP-File
With much of the East Coast and mid-Atlantic hunkering down before Winter Storm Jonas, Education Week decided to round up some recent coverage of how K-12 schools are using technology and online resources to change the way learning happens on snow days.

1. Snow Days Turn Into E-Learning Days for Some Schools

Of course, Education Week has taken a thorough and comprehensive look at this issue: During the big snows and deep freeze of 2014, we reviewed a couple of big research studies about the impact that snow days have on students academic achievement (different studies came to different conclusions); looked at how states such as Ohio were trying new laws to promote e-learning on calamity days; and examined how some Michigan teachers tried posting student assignments online.

2. E-Learning on Snow Days Now an Option for Pennsylvania Schools

3. E-Learning on Snow Days in Pennsylvania, Kentucky Raises Concerns

That same year, Education Week took a look at new policies in two states: Kentucky, which planned to let 13 districts replace snow days with home-based Internet instruction, and Pennsylvania, which approved a plan to let districts submit proposals for flexible instructional days in the event of inclement weather.

While many hailed the moves as a step into the 21st century, the lack of adequate Internet connectivity in many parts of both states was raised a major challenge that might lead to barriers for some students, particularly those living in poor and rural districts.

4. Snow Makeup Days Could Soon Be Absent From School Schedules

More recently (as in earlier this week), The Courier-Times of New Castle, Ind., and other news outlets in the state covered the Indiana Department of Educations newly introduced virtual option for instructors to teach online during snow days rather than add days to the school year. With many schools in the New Castle district on their way to being 1-to-1, in which a school-issued device given to every student, superintendent Steve Fisher told the Courier-Times the new policy was a win-win.

5. West Chicago High School Named E-Learning Day Pilot School

Also this year, the Illinois Board of Education selected three districts to take part in a three-year pilot program in which schools can use e-learning strategies in lieu of snow days, reported West Chicago Suburban Life. Among the districts participating: District 94 in Illinois, which will be leveraging its recent deployment of Chromebooks to students to make the initiative work.

6. School Systems Replacing Snow Days With Online Learning

7. E-days - Web-powered, At-home Schooling - Here to Stay for Alabama Students

Dealing with snow days isnt just a challenge for districts north of the Mason-Dixon line.

In 2015, the Atlanta-Journal Constitution reported on the efforts of district such as Georgias Forsyth County, then in its second year of using a new online learning management system, to offer online classes and assignments during snow days. Also quoted by the AJC was Matt Arkin of Georgias online Cyber Academy:

If you are just throwing this out as a one-off when students are home, it's going to be a challenge ... Just slapping some Powerpoints online and a multiple-choice question test is not going to work."

Similarly, AL.com reported that year Alabama districts such as Jefferson County and Mountain Brook had begun building e-days into their calendars to get students and parents used to completing assignments electronically so that in the event of an inclement weather day or other sudden school closure, they can seamlessly complete their work and not have to make up the missed school day.

Now, if there were just some way we could get those mobile e-learning technologies safely attached to our sleds, so the joy of the old-school snow day isnt lost forever...

Photo: Marshall Hahn parks his snowmobile at Warrod High School in northern Minnesota last week. Although the senior had no trouble getting to campus, recent bouts of very cold and snowy weather in many states have kept students out of school, often for days at a time.--Tim Gruber for Education Week

Library intern Maya Riser-Kositsky contributed to this story.
Washington State educators may have to wait another year for a new school funding formula, the states budget director said Thursday .

The state is under pressure by the Supreme Court to come up with a new funding formula after it ruled the existing one inadequate and unconstitutional. Its fining the state $100,000 a day until it comes up with a new one.

Budget director David Schumacher told the Associated Press Thursday that his staff and lawmakers will likely not be able to come up with a new funding formula and get it to the governors desk by the end of this session. The high court has set a deadline of 2018. Lawmakers and Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat are attempting to tackle how to pay their fair share of transportation, all-day kindergarten and other things, Schumacher said.

We are not waiting until then to get started, Schumacher said. Just because there are no public discussions, doesnt mean we arent working on this.

Lawmakers have proposed a funding formula but it doesnt specify where the money would come from, according to the Associated Press.
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Modified On Jan 22, 2016 12:55 PM By Sumit for Land Rover Range Rover 2014-2022

Jaguar Land Rover has now become the United Kingdoms largest carmaker, removing Nissan from the top spot. The company under Tata Motors' leadership built 489,923 cars as compared to 476,589 units of Nissan in 2015.

"Britain is the beating heart of our business, so becoming the country's largest vehicle manufacturer is a remarkable achievement, demonstrating our steadfast commitment to the UK manufacturing sector," said Wolfgang Stadler, Jaguar Land Rover's executive director of manufacturing. He added, "2015 was a challenging year for the industry against a backdrop of socio-economic instability, but it is a testament to our strong product range and dedicated team of employees that JLR has delivered year-on-year growth, with more exciting products come."

The good news for JLR coincides with a recent declaration made by the UK's Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. They recently announced that 2015 was the best year in last decade for the automobile industry, as there was a total production of 1,587,677 vehicles. Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: "Despite export challenges in some key markets such as Russia and China, foreign demand for British-built cars has been strong, reaching record export levels in the past year."

Land Rover recently topped sales chart in the United States with a stunning growth of 37%. The carmaker was able to sell 70,582 units in the North American country for 2015 and the company insists that they do not focus on large numbers, rather they want their products to be prestigious.

Also Read: Land Rover will bring new petrol engines to India

Read More on : Land Rover Range Rover
Modified On Jan 22, 2016 07:17 PM By Nabeel for Mahindra XUV500

As it has been reported earlier that Mahindra is working on a smaller engine for its flagship SUVs, the updated cars have finally arrived. Mahindra has introduced diesel variants with engine capacity just shy of 2.0-litre for XUV500 and Scorpio. The main reason behind this downsize remains the ban on 2.0 litres or heavier diesel engines in Delhi. Initially, these engine options will only be sold at the National Capital. It is a well thought out move because Mahindra lost the sales of almost their entire SUV lineup as a result of the ban. The list of affected models included Bolero, Thar, Scorpio, XUV500, and Xylo.

These engines are 1,990cc units which belong to Mahindras mHawk family. They are rated at 140bhp for XUV500 and 120bhp for Scorpio. No further details have been revealed by Mahindra but, they had started working on these engines in August 2014. On this Delhi diesel ban, Mahindra has some strong reactions. Pawan Goenka, director of Mahindra & Mahindra said, "We do not know why diesel is made to look like a culprit even though the vehicles are meeting stipulated government norm." Mr. Goenka added, "When a product is meeting all the laws of the land, how can there be a ban? There was no consultation with representatives of the auto industry before this kind of a move. We do not know what to do with the cars parked at dealerships and hope there is a clarification on this very soon."

Chairman of the Group Mr. Anand Mahindra too did not approve of the ban. He said We thrive on challenges and rise above them. We'll surprise everyone with our resilience, just as we have done for decades. At the core of Mahindra's DNA is the unshakeable belief that 'When the going gets tough, Mahindra gets going. So even if we believe the decision on diesel vehicles isn't optimal, we'll honour it and develop vehicles that comply with their stipulations. I have always believed that the Supreme Court is an institution that sustains our faith in social justice and democracy in India.

Also Read: Delhi Diesel Ban Receives Reaction From Automotive Industry

Read More on : Mahindra XUV500 review
Our Promise: Welcome to Care2, the world's largest community for good. Here, you'll find over 45 million like-minded people working towards progress, kindness, and lasting impact.

Care2 Stands Against: bigots, racists, bullies, science deniers, misogynists, gun lobbyists, xenophobes, the willfully ignorant, animal abusers, frackers, and other mean people. If you find yourself aligning with any of those folks, you can move along, nothing to see here.

Care2 Stands With: humanitarians, animal lovers, feminists, rabble-rousers, nature-buffs, creatives, the naturally curious, and people who really love to do the right thing.

You are our people. You Care. We Care2.
Are Forced Pregnancy Tests Legal?

We already know the rights of those arrested and charged with a crime are limited. DUI suspects must submit to blood and breath tests. And the police can collect DNA samples from anyone they arrest. But what about jails forcing women inmates to submit to pregnancy tests?

This somewhat unusual practice was allegedly commonplace in Alameda County jails for several years, until the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit against the county over the practice. While the county has agreed to discontinue mandatory testing, whether it's legal in other jurisdictions remains to be seen.

Peremptory Pregnancy Testing Policies

According to Prison Legal News, just getting confirmation of the mandatory pregnancy test policy was difficult. Alameda County head sheriff Gregory Ahern told the ACLU in 2010 that "every female prisoner is required to submit to a pregnancy test through urinalysis." But sheriffs also told reporter and arrestee Susie Cagle that it was the private health-care company overseeing medical needs in the county's jails conducting the tests. "That's Corizon's policy. That's not us. You should talk to them."

Official policy or not, a multitude of women came forward claiming they were compelled to submit to pregnancy tests against their will. This included women who were infertile or even menstruating at the time. As one former female detainee claimed, "Deputies at the Glenn Dyer jail wouldn't give me a pad, but still made me take a pregnancy test."

Getting Into Legal Trouble, or Trying to Stay out of It?

Alameda officials had claimed that they are using the tests to protect women and provide them with the proper medical care while incarcerated. The sheriffs department pointed to a 1989 settlement agreement that was the result of a class action lawsuit against the county for its mistreatment of pregnant inmates. So Corizon and Alameda County could have been trying to avoid further litigation by ensuring pregnant women got the treatment they need. (The county recently paid $8.3 million to the family of a man who had been Tased to death in a Corizon-run facility)

Regardless of the county's motivations, the ACLU alleged the forced pregnancy tests violated the women's Fourth Amendment rights against unreasonable searches. Whether these tests are reasonable could depend on an inmate's expectation of privacy, which is generally greatly diminished in jail. The ACLU and Alameda County reached a settlement in October 2015 under which pregnancy tests will be optional, unless there is a court order or the woman is incapable of giving consent to the test.

But a recent report from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health indicates this practice may not be unique to Alameda County. So a definitive court ruling on the matter may be necessary. If you've been forced to submit to a pregnancy test against your will, you should contact a criminal defense attorney as soon as possible.

Related Resources:
Can Facebook Contact Violate a Restraining Order?

You're online and your social network serves up a profile. It's someone you know and loathe: that person who also has a restraining order against you. Can you tag or comment or contact them in any way?

No. It is far better to be safe than sorry when it come to no-contact orders. Contact via social media is most definitely contact. A judge in New York last week ruled that commenting on a Facebook page can violate a protective order even if the post has no profanity or threats, the American Bar Association reports.

The Ruling

In the case at hand, the judge was ruling on a motion to dismiss a criminal contempt case, a claim that a protective order was violated with a posting on Facebook. The accused posted in a link to the protected woman's profile, "You and your family are sad ... You guys have to come stronger than that!! I'm way over you guys but I guess not in ya agenda."

Her lawyer argued that the court order didn't specifically ban contact via the social network. But the argument failed, and the ruling is instructive.

Contact IRL

In real life, violation of a restraining order can result in severe consequences, including jail. The circumstances that led to the order will dictate terms of contact or lack thereof, so there is no way to say what every person should do to stay within bounds. But just as you should avoid contact in town or out generally, you should do so online.

We are relentlessly warned that our online activities can and do bleed into our "real lives." Young people hear that colleges will see what they post. Prospective employees are reminded to be careful online for fear loose lips will hurt their chances of finding work.

The same certainly goes for a person with a no-contact order. Do not replace real crimes with virtual ones and assume you will get away with it. We live in the hyper-real, a time when there is little distinction between the world and the web. The virtual is real and you can feel the consequences of your online activity everywhere.

Related Resources:
Liberal Politics from the Heart of Bluegrass Country
Remember when classic car specialists once said that Japanese cars could never be considered collectibles? I bet they are eating their shoes now.



The-Lowdown is selling a very special R34 Nissan Skyline GT-R Nismo Z-Tune build #001 to the highest bidder. More specifically, this model is the very first Nismo R34 GT-R of just 20 ever made.

The special edition Z-Tune celebrates the 20th anniversary of NISMO and defines the ultimate R34 GT-R to come from the factory. However, the Z-Tune GT-Rs were built in 2005, years after the R34 model had already ceased production. Instead, NISMO had purchased 20 used R34 GT-R V-spec platforms. Each example must have less than 30,000 km on the odometer and must meet strict body and mechanical condition evaluations by NISMO before approval.

Only 12 examples of the 20 were handpicked and purchased by NISMO. The remaining examples from number 13 through 20 were donated by personal owners that wished to convert their V-Spec to Z-tune cars.

The R34 GT-R Z-Tune features extensive aero modifications including larger openings on the bumper, as well as a striking vented hood and vented front fenders. Beyond the exterior, each Z-Tune boasts new forged and fillet-rolled camshafts, forged pistons, IHI turbocharger, new exhaust manifold, and a redesigned intake plenum. All these modifications equal to more than 493 hp and 398 lb.-ft. of torque. According to NISMO, the Z-Tune was capable of rocketing to a quarter-mile in a staggering 10.06 seconds. In comparison, the standard 2013 R35 Nissan GT-R finishes a quarter mile in 10.8 seconds.

For the GT-R diehards, the R34 GT-R Z-Tune represents the ultimate model of the greatest generation of the GT-R. According to THE-LOWDOWN, this specific Z-Tune Silver R34 Nissan Skyline GT-R Nismo Z-Tune build #001 has already received offers exceeding $750,000 AUD, or $575,000 USD.

Is a ten-year-old Japanese tuner supercar worth more than half a million dollars? Its a difficult number to rationalize, especially since there are body kits as well as aftermarket performance parts that are designed to make a standard R34 GT-Rs look and perform virtually identical to, if not better than, a Z-Tune. Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below!

Danny Choy

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California assemblyman Jim Cooper (D-9th) has copy-pasted New York assemblyman Matthew Titone's (D-61st) insane, reality-denying bill that bans companies from selling smartphones with working crypto on them, introducing nearly identical measures in the California legislature.

Under Bill 1681, all smartphones manufactured "on or after January 1, 2017 and sold in California"  home to Apple and Google  "after that date" must be "capable of being decrypted and unlocked by its manufacturer or its operating system provider."

Manufacturers would have to pay a fine of $2500 for each device sold that does not comply with the rule.

This is either political grandstanding or unforgivable ignorance. "Bad guys" who wanted to get around the rule would just install and use third-party software, made by groups or companies outside of New York and California, and the rule will have no effect. Meanwhile, anyone who didn't take this step would be liable to having their confidential data stolen by anyone  spies, crooks, etc  who learns the secret to access the device's backdoor.

Whether the lawmakers involved are cynical or stupid doesn't really matter. In the 21st century, not understanding (or denying) the fundamental truths of the devices that connect us to family, employment, financial services, education, and news  automatically disqualifies you for political office.

It's sad, but not surprising, to see these attacks on crypto emanating from Democrats. The Democratic Party has a shameful history when it comes to information policy, starting with Bill Clinton's Clipper Chip and DMCA.

The bill echoes the sentiments of the New York senate, which last week introduced almost the exact same word-for-word legislation. The bills come at a time as lawmakers and Silicon Valley tech giants are figuring out how compromise on device encryption without handing over the keys to the government, or giving its law enforcement and intelligence agencies unfettered access. At least in the case of New York's bill, the senate's new website comes with a set of virtual voting buttons, which give state residents the ability to register their views on a bill with "aye" or "nay" buttons. The aim is when a senator comes to vote, they can see from their website's dashboards which way their constituents want their lawmaker to vote.

Now California state wants to ban sale of encrypted smartphones

[Zack Whittaker/Zdnet]





(Image: Jim Cooper (D-9th))
Nissan is mulling the idea of adding its upcoming, Brazilian-made Kicks CUV to its US portfolio, as a more affordable and conventional-looking proposal than the similarly sized Juke.



No official decision has been taken so far, but the Japanese firms new Vice President for Product Planning, Michael Bunce, told WardsAuto that the company sees a future for the small crossover.

Certainly we see the opportunity for more mainstream crossovers that are less niche, and we see Honda and others in that space and are taking it very seriously, said Bunce.

The Nissan North America official says that the Kicks will be less powerful, but more affordable than the current Juke, which starts from $20,250, placing it more directly against the mainstream Honda HR-V and Chevy Trax.

The report says it is unclear whether the Kicks will outright replace the Juke or if it will be an additional model in Nissans U.S. lineup, as Bunce says the automaker is studying if the B-CUV remains in the (U.S.) market or not.

Nissan trademarked the Kicks name with the Patent and Trademark Office in the States, in late 2014, and Carlos Ghosn traveled to Brazil earlier this month to announce a production version, based on a concept shown at the 2014 Sao Paulo Motor Show.

The Kicks will be built in Rio de Janeiro, at the manufacturers Resende plant, and it will be sold globally (aside from U.S.), this year, kicking off with Latin American markets.

Note: Nissan Kicks Concept pictured

PHOTO GALLERY
We kind of figured Nissans plan to bite off a chunk out of the truck segment in North America after the Titan XD was officially unveiled, but it seems that the Japanese car manufacturer has an even bigger plan.



The Titan Warrior Concept  the vehicle that debuted not so long ago at the Detroit Auto Show  might just hold the answer to the brands future, as Nissan could go up against Americas best high-performance trucks in a battle for glory.

Speaking to Automotive News, Rich Miller, senior manager of Nissan truck and SUV product planning, described the Warrior concept as more than a design exercise, continuing stating:

Were making a big commitment to the pickup segment with the new Titan, and were also looking at where else we might take it now.

The Warrior Concept is a true road beast, sporting 18-inch wheels wrapped in 37-inch tires on a chassis that has been widened by 6 inches, carbon-fiber exterior bits and pieces, a raised suspension (following the same basic recipe made known by the Ford F150 Raptor), and even a raised instrument panel with special engine gauges  which could indicate a heft oomph in power, as Miller continued:

If we were to go ahead with it, we would also have to look at an engine enhancement for it.

Interesting point of view, especially as the concept was powered by the 5.0-liter Cummins diesel V8 with 310 horsepower and 555 pound-feet (752 Nm) of torque on tap.

PHOTO GALLERY
The Hyundai group is moving forward at a frantic pace these days, with the Koreans now readying a replacement for the Azera sedan, also known as the Grandeur in markets outside North America.



Captured here by a member of Bobaedream forums, is a prototype of what we believe to be the redesigned Korean market Azera. While one could be tempted to think its the KDM Hyundai Genesis that was re-launched in Detroit as the Genesis G80, there are several c(l)ues that say otherwise.

Among these are the headlamps (notice the shape of the light fixtures) on the fascia, and the different tail lamps, exhaust tips and bumper detailing on the tail.

From what we can decipher, the new Azera will have a more dynamic appearance than the current car, especially up front, though, we must say, it doesnt sound like a wise choice for Hyundai to continue sharing similar faces and grilles with their Genesis lineup.

Last year, Autonews reported that Hyundai will discontinue the Azera in the USA because of low sales and the fact that the gap between the Sonata and the then, Hyundai-branded, Genesis sedan was awfully small. While the sales factor remains, theres clearly room for the Azera in their lineup now that the Koreans reassigned the Genesis sedan to their newly launched standalone luxury brand, as the G80, so well have to wait and see if it will get another chance in life in the States.

In its current form, the 2016 Azera uses a 293hp 3.3-liter V6, but its replacement may employ one of Hyundais newer V6s with over 300hp paired to an 8-speed automatic.

Photo Gallery
One of the most impressive movie cars in the recent years, the Bond-only Aston Martin DB10 was never meant to reach a private buyers hands, but one unit has managed to find its way into an auction.



Built in just 10 units specifically for the latest film of the James Bond franchise, Spectre, the specific Aston Martin DB10 is one of the only two working show cars which were left unmodified and used for display purposes.

Based on the V8 Vantage chassis, the DB10 features a unique all-carbon bodywork and a bespoke, handmade cabin. The purists will be happy to know that the 4.7-litre V8 engine is mated to a six-speed manual gearbox because apparently our favorite secret agent prefers to change gears the traditional way.

The car will be the only DB10 to be offered to private owners and will come -for the first time- with Aston Martins platinum authentication award. This certificate means that the DB10 has undergone a digital scan for future reference and that -surprise- it is the real deal.

In case the certificate is not enough, the car will also bear the autograph of James Bond himself, Daniel Craig. The Aston Martin DB10 will be auctioned on February 18, at Christies King Street auction house in London with the proceeds donated to Medecins Sans Frontieres.

PHOTO GALLERY
Photo: Contributed - Thinkstock.com

Okanagan Clinical Trials is looking for people who suffer from migraine headaches to participate in a research study.

Many people suffer from debilitating migraine headaches, and we are always looking for promising medications to help them, said Dr. Sally Godsell, general practitioner and investigator for the company.

The experimental drug would be given by injection once per month.

To qualify, participants must be 19 to 65 years of age and must suffer from episodic or chronic migraines. Volunteers meeting these and other criteria will be asked to undergo a screening visit to determine eligibility.

Approximately 825 subjects with episodic migraine headaches and 825 subjects with chronic migraines will participate, said Godsell.

The Kelowna firm is one of six firms in selected to participate in the study, which is expected to last 10 to 12 months.



All office visits and medical evaluations related to the study will be provided at no charge.



Okanagan Clinical Trials can be reached at 250-862-8141.
On Tuesday, January 19th 2016, at approximately 5:20 pm on Gordon, south of Casorso, I was rear ended by a black/dark sedan, possibly a Ford (recovered emblem on scene). The driver was a male, black short hair, I only saw him briefly as I remained in my vehicle. He suggested that I go around the corner onto Casorso as to get out of traffic, I did so. The driver, after a couple minutes came around the corner and sped off, motioning from inside the vehicle as to suggest he'd be right back.

The driver left the scene and did not return. My vehicle sustained irreparable damage and is a total loss. I am injured and quite upset with this situation as the driver initially came to my vehicle and asked if I was alright. I said no and he just left.

I am appealing to the public or anyone with information. Someone that may have witnessed the collision, or knows of someone with a similar vehicle that has significant damage to the front, more so on the passenger side as the damage on my vehicle would indicate that is where his vehicle struck mine.

Basically, a hit and run situation has left me without a vehicle and I would greatly appreciate any help you may be able to offer me in tracking down the driver or vehicle involved. I am hopeful that the young man will actually do the right thing and take responsibility for his actions, or someone in the community hears of this and can help.

I thank you for your time and appreciate your help in trying to resolve this matter. I am very fortunate and realize it could have been worse. And who knows, maybe someone has a good used car they're looking to sell as well. I am truly blessed, God takes good care of me and hasn't let me down yet.

James Patrick Gero
Photo: Contributed

A First Nations chief from British Columbia is calling for urgent efforts to revive indigenous languages, saying their extinction is going unnoticed while the world focuses on the preservation of cultural heritage sites.

Grand Chief Edward John, a member of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, told a news conference that ancient wonders are important but indigenous languages are "the essential component of cultural heritage" and should get international attention and support to ensure their survival.

John spoke Thursday at the end of a three-day meeting of indigenous language experts at UN headquarters on revitalizing many of the estimated 6,000 to 7,000 languages spoken by native peoples around the world.

"The priority focus that I hear from all of the experts is, create fluent speakers," he said. "That's what you need to do. How do you do it? That's the discussion taking place."

"There's been a large focus on literacy, developing books and calendars and dictionaries" in indigenous languages, John said, "but not as much of an effort in fluency."

John pointed to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's address in May 2011 to the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues where he said: "Today, one indigenous language dies every two weeks. Indigenous cultures are threatened with extinction."

What's needed urgently is a commitment from every government to identify the indigenous languages in their country and the number and age of speakers so that a global map of where they are can be drawn up for the first time, he said. Then, the focus must be on revitalizing those with fewer speakers and finding the resources to keep languages from becoming extinct.

"We know there are some languages where there are less than a handful of speakers left, and when they're gone that language is gone and everything  everything about that culture and that heritage is gone as well," John said.

Tatjana Degai, an ethnic Itelman from Kamchatka on Russia's Pacific coast, said her people's language "is severely endangered."

"There are only five elderly speakers left, all of them female speakers, about 70 years old," she said. "There are about 10 to 15 middle-aged speakers who grew up hearing the language but don't consider themselves speakers."

Degai, who is trying to help keep the language alive, said Itelman is taught in only one school, and for just 40 minutes a week.

"We appreciate that Russia is developing legislation in relation to indigenous language but we also think that it is not enough for our language to survive," she said.

Degai said Itelman is not the only language in trouble  40 of the 47 recognized indigenous peoples in Russia are from the north, Siberia and the Far East, and most of their languages "are at the brink of extinction."

Amy Kalili, a native Hawaiian who heads an education organization promoting fluency in the Hawaiian language, said that in middle of the last century there were perhaps 30 speakers under the age of 18. But she said there was "a cultural renaissance" in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and now schools are educating 3,000 students a year in Hawaiian.

"People are passionate about not letting language die," Kalili said, and not just in Hawaii.

She said the Maoris in New Zealand not only get education in their own language but they have government-funded Maori language radio and television channels.

John, who is grand chief of the Tl'azt'en Nation in British Columbia, said he attended a residential school for aboriginal Canadians and was banned from speaking Dene, a language also spoken in Alaska and the northwestern and southwestern United States by native Americans.

He said smart phones and technology should become tools to help teach young people today their native languages.
Photo: Contributed

UPDATE: 2: 16 p.m.

Scott Crescent in West Kelowna has been reopened after a slope failure this morning forced its short-term closure.

The cause of the rock slide in the West Kelowna Estates neighbourhood has yet to be determined.

ORIGINAL

A small rock slide has forced the closure of Scott Crescent in West Kelowna Estates.

The City of West Kelowna says a geotechnical analysis will be undertaken shortly of the slope failure to determine when the road can be reopened.

Motorists are asked to avoid the area.

Residents of the Diamond View subdivision will be allowed access to their properties.

Further updates on the road closure will be provided once more information is known.
Photo: Contributed

A violent sex assault attempt has police on alert in East Vancouver.

A 26-year-old woman was getting into her car on East 7th Avenue near Windermere Street about 5 a.m. when a man in dark clothing approached her.

Police say the attacker grabbed the woman, punched her and tried to remove her clothes.

The woman fought back and screamed, which drew the attention of people in the area and scared off the assailant.

Police have been gathering evidence at the scene and are seeking for any surveillance video in the neighbourhood.

Anyone who witnessed the attack or saw suspicious activity in the area is asked to call the Vancouver Police Department Sex Crimes Unit at 604-717-0600. To remain anonymous, call CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
UK Conservative MP Crispin Blunt, former Minister for Justice, has "outed" himself as a user of poppers  alkyl nitrites, a psychoactive inhalant often taken before sex  and decried his party's plan to class poppers as an illegal drug.



Crispin said that he and many other gay men were "astonished" by the proposal to ban a commonly used substance he considers essentially harmless, and warned the ban "serves to bring the whole law into disrepute." He called the law "foolish" and warned that it would put the distribution of poppers into "the hands of criminals." He added that the plan was "manifestly stupid" and would make current popper uses susceptible to blackmail.

Crispin should be applauded for his call for evidence-based drugs policy, but I have to wonder why he's a Tory if that's what he values. His party, after all, presided over the politicized firing of a top scientist, David Nutt, who, as UK Drugs Czar, refused to redact his scientific judgment that alcohol was more dangerous than marijuana.

"So I'm pleading with the House to then make sure I don't find myself caught in this particular situation. "But given it relates to my own personal experience, and my experience as a minister for justice with a responsibility for offenders and offender management, I implore my colleagues to, at the very least, if they don't want to be seen to be voting against the Government, please don't be associated with putting this on the statute book. "It's a real mistake and anything that can be done to accept amendment five would be the sensible thing for us to do and have a look at it again in due and considered time." Amendment five calls for poppers to be exempted from the Bill.

MP Crispin Blunt admits using poppers while attacking proposed ban

[Richard Wheeler and Jack Maidment/MSN]





(via Metafilter)





(Image: UK Ministry of Justice)
One wonders what was going through the mind of Edmonson County High School Principal Tommy Hodges when he ordered a teenage girl to get on her knees so he could measure her dress length. The Kentucky school has a dress code requiring skirts to end no more than six inches above the knee.

Amanda said she felt "embarrassed" and "humiliated" by having to kneel on the ground, especially with her mom and dad watching.

"I didn't really appreciate having to get down on my knees, especially while I was in a dress," she said.

She said the first time Hodges measured her, she was in dress code, with 5 inches. However, she said Hodges then made her walk across the room with her hands up and kneel back down, to check if her dress would ride up.

She said her dress was then 8 inches above the knee, and she went home because she was "technically" out of code.
Through the band's official website, complete with heart-felt messages from family and past co-workers, the Glenn Frey's death was confirmed. The Eagle's beloved guitarist departed aged 67 on Monday, January 18. Supporters of the musician send their last goodbyes to their music idol.

Frey's family and fellow band members spoke about the immense love and respect they have for this great soul who has always been extremely supportive to everyone around him. It's not shocking, though still overwhelming, how many people are sending their warmth and love to the musician and his family.

For the record, the Eagles had been the most successful band that came of power during the 1970s. All the hits from the band are still known, recognized and very much popular to this generation. One of which is the "Hotel California" that came in the year 1976 according to the Huffington Post.

In the year 1971, Frey co-founded the band together with Don Henley, Bernie Leadon and Randy Meisner. He shared a piece of his composition and co-wrote the legendary song "Hotel California" together with Henley and Felder, which basically kick started their career.

BBC says, the Eagles managed to sell across more than 150 million albums across the globe, whereas "Hotel California" was one of their best-selling albums. Frey also composed several of the band's hit songs like "Heartache Tonight" and "Lyin' Eyes" and took people to hum on these tunes for years.

There were many posts on the band's website from different people in the industry, mourning for the rock icon, expressing their condolences and extending their concern to the family of the bereaved guitarist. The crowd also reminisced about the artist's stints and great passion for music.

The statement of Frey's family and friends can be seen on the band's website. Prior to his death, Frey struggled for life, combating with multiple complications like Rheumatoid Arthritis, Acute Ulcerative Colitis and Pneumonia. Frey also battled against numerous intestinal disorders.

In November 2015, due to his serious health condition, the band suspended their show on December 6 which was supposed be held at the Kennedy Center Honors. The show was rescheduled for this year, but this tragic news happened. No further updates yet on the status of this certain concert.
Janet Hubert is not done dissing Jada Pinkett-Smith for suggesting that Black stars boycott the Oscars. "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" star thinks Pinkett-Smith and her husband, Will Smith, are just a bunch of "pretenders."

Hubert does not care if she has worked with Smith before. She thinks his wife was out of line when she decided to and called for others to boycott Oscars 2016. She told Los Angeles Times that to boycott the show is not "deep." For the Smiths to complain about the all-white Oscar nominations for her is "ridiculous." Asked to elaborate, she said they (including herself) are just entertainers. Among actors, she said that for Smith to cry foul is the most nonsensical thing she has seen. "Someone like Will Smith has not come up through the ranks like most actors, so for him to be complaining the most is the most ridiculous thing I have ever seen."

She is not in any way claiming there is no diversity issue in Hollywood, even if she does not agree with Pinkett-Smith's call for boycott. For her, actors should not be waiting for awards in the first place. "If you are waiting for an award of a little...gold statue and that's supposed to validate you, then you're not in this business for the right reasons," the TV star shared. She added that the Oscars was never meant for the Black community of Hollywood. She added that if the Smiths really want to help the Black community of Hollywood, they should be doing more, especially since they have the means to do so. She suggested putting up a mentoring programme for newbies and screenwriters.

This is not the first time that Hubert dissed Pinkett-Smith. After Pinkett-Smith talked of being done with the Oscars through a Facebook video, Hubert made a countering video. In her video, Hubert said it is "ironic" that Pinkett-Smith will diss the Oscars when they are making millions from the very people that she wants to boycott. She said Pinkett-Smith only feels disappointed not because no Blacks were nominated but because her husband did not get a nomination.

ET Online reported Pinkett-Smith replying to this diss, saying the whole controversy is so much larger than the Oscars. She also said she wishes that the whole Black community could cooperate on this instead of fighting each other.
An honest essay has numerous characteristics: original thinking, a good structure, balanced arguments, and plenty more.

But one aspect often overlooked is that an honest essay should be interesting. It should spark the readers curiosity, keep them absorbed, make them want to stay reading and learn more. An uneventful article risks losing the readers attention; whether or not the points you create are excellent, a flat style, or poor handling of a dry subject material can undermine the positive aspects of the essay. The matter is that a lot of students think that essays should be like this: they believe that a flat, dry style is suited to the needs of educational writing and dont even consider that the teacher reading their essay wants to search out the essay interesting. You might want to have online essay editor service to boost your confidence in writing with an error-free output. Academic writing doesnt need to be  and shouldnt be  bland. The excellent news is that there is much stuff you can do to create your essay more attractive, while youll be able only to do such a lot while remaining within the formal confines of educational writing. Lets study what theyre.

Have an interest in what youre writing about

Dont go overboard, but youll be able to let your passion for your subject show.

If theres one thing bound to inject interest into your writing, its being fascinated by what youre writing about. Passion for a subject matter comes across naturally in your essay, typically making it more lively and fascinating and infusing an infectious enthusiasm into your words  within the same way that its easy to talk knowledgeably to someone about something you discover fascinating.

Include fascinating details

Another factor that may make an essay boring maybe a dry material. Some topic areas are naturally dry, and it falls to you to form the article more interesting through your written style and by trying to seek out fascinating snippets of knowledge to incorporate, which will liven it up a small amount and make the data easier to relate to. A way of doing this with a dry subject is to create what youre talking about that seems relevant to the critical world, as this is often easier for the reader to relate to.

Emulate the fashion of writers you discover interesting

When you read lots, you subconsciously start emulating the fashion of the writers you have read. Reading benefits you a lot, as this exposes you to a spread of designs, and youll start to require the characteristics of these you discover interesting to read.

Borrow some creative writing techniques

Theres a limit to the quantity of actual story-telling youll do when youre writing an essay; in the end, essays should be objective, factual and balanced, which doesnt, initially glance, feel considerably like story-telling. However, youll apply a number of the principles of story-telling to create your writing more interesting.

consider your own opinion

Take the time to figure out what its that you think instead of regurgitating the opinions of others.

Cut the waffle

Rambling on and on is dull and almost bound to lose the interest of your reader. Youre in danger of waffling if youre not completely clear about what you wish to mention or havent thought carefully about how youre visiting structure your argument. Doing all your research correctly and writing an essay plan before you begin will help prevent this problem.

Editing is a vital part of the essay-writing process, so edit the waffle once youve done a primary draft. Read through your essay objectively and eliminate the bits that arent relevant to the argument or labor the purpose.

employing a thesaurus isnt always a decent thing

Avoid using unfamiliar words in an essay; theres too great a likelihood that youre misusing them.

You may think that employing a thesaurus to seek out more complicated words will make your writing more exciting or sound more academic, but using overly high-brow language can have the incorrect effect.

Avoid repetitive phrasing

Please avoid using the identical phrase structure again and again: its a recipe for dullness! Instead, use a variety of syntax that demonstrates your writing capabilities and makes your writing more interesting. Mix simple, compound, and complicated sentences to avoid your paper becoming predictable.

Use some figurative language

Using analogies with nature can often make concepts more accessible for readers to know.

As weve already seen, its easy to finish up rambling when youre explaining complex concepts  mainly after you dont know it yourself. One way of forcing yourself to think about a couple of pictures, present it more simply and engagingly is to form figurative language. This implies explaining something by comparing it with something else, as in an analogy.

Employ rhetorical questions

Anticipate the questions your reader might ask.

One of the ways ancient orators held the eye of their audiences and increased the dramatic effect of their speeches was by using the statement. A decent place to use a statement is at the top of a paragraph, to steer into the following one, or at the start of a replacement section to introduce a brand new area for exploration.

Proofread

Finally, you may write the top interesting essay an instructor has ever read. Still, youll undermine your good work if its plagued by errors, which distract the reader from the particular content and can probably annoy them.
The Autism Society of East Tennessee has launched a fully-featured autism directory through www.asdhub.org. The new site has over 300 different autism-related listings for families and individuals to view, with more to be added over the coming months.

There are many ways to search the directory, making ASDhub a site to use not only for those families and individuals affected by autism, but also for businesses who have an autism related service to provide.

ASDhub is designed to connect individuals, families, and educators in East Tennessee with services and resources based on their needs. The directory sorts information based on category and location, giving those in East Tennessee the opportunity to identify local resources. In addition, ASDhub provides information on events and support groups to assist in networking and relationship building. For companies looking to add their listing, ASDhub makes that process possible in four steps.

After acknowledging the variety and growing number of resources East Tennessee offers, the Autism Society teamed up with Autism Site Knoxville to develop the expanding directory. These groups are working to add as many autism related services as possible to maximize the use of ASDhub for individuals, families and professionals.

For more information contact the Autism Society of East Tennessee at 865.247-5082 or info@asaetc.org.




Whereas many counties are trying to bring in jobs, Hamilton County is blessed with the challenge of filling jobs, said Chattanooga 2.0 Project Leader Dr. Jared Bingham on Thursday.

During the Rotary Club meeting, Dr. Bingham explained the next steps in the big initiative to improve student success in Hamilton County and prepare students for current and future jobs.

Over the next 100 days four workgroups made up of community leaders will create three to five strategies each in terms of providing quality education and connecting students to jobs that pay a living wage.

The workgroups will focus on early childhood development, K-12, and postsecondary education.

According to recent studies, 83 percent of jobs that pay a living wage in Hamilton County require a postsecondary certificate or degree. But only 38 percent of Hamilton County residents hold these credentials.

Dr. Bingham defined a living wage as $35,000 a year.

He said the Chattanooga 2.0 report that came out in December took weeks to put together and served as a snapshot of where we are as a community.

Commissioned by the Benwood Foundation, the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce, the Hamilton County Department of Education, and the Public Education Foundation, the report focused on education opportunities in the county in light of growing workforce challenges.

Dr. Bingham said Chattanooga 2.0 is a wonderful challenge for us to connect more with our community, as the purpose is to support and uplift local talent to meet economical expectations.

The initiative aims to ensure 75 percent of Hamilton County residents obtain a college degree or technical certification by 2025.

With thousands of jobs on the horizon, he spoke on both the economical and moral imperatives to see this through.

Because four out of 10 students in Hamilton County reportedly live in poverty, support is needed for their academic success. Dr. Bingham asked the audience to imagine a student coming from poverty receiving a 12-month postsecondary certification and tripling his yearly income.

The Chattanooga 2.0 vision is to reimagine how students are educated, and to equip students from early childhood on with skillsets that will enable them to obtain entry-level jobs.

It was stated that Hamilton County schools, grades K-12, are below the state average in literacy and math, and only trending down.

Furthermore, only 43 percent of Hamilton County students entering kindergarten have been in some kind of early childhood program, leaving approximately 60 percent of kindergartners who are starting out behind.

Dr. Bingham shed light on the studies showing African Americans are 33 times more likely to attend a low performing school than a white student in Tennessee; and that six high schools in Hamilton County have an average ACT score of 16 or below.

All of these studies and statistics he shared to emphasize how Hamilton County needs Chattanooga 2.0. It might not be about working harder, but about working more efficiently, he said.

He asked what the community at large should do to help bring a positive change to Hamilton County students and graduates. He then asked what would happen if the community did nothing.

Because if its not us, then who? If its not now, then when?

Dr. Bingham said many pastors are fired up about the endeavor and not pointing their fingers at anyone. As a result, a faith-based group will serve in the mix of groups that will develop action plans for early childhood, K-12, and postsecondary students over the next 100 days.

It will take hundreds of small programs pushing towards one outcome, Dr. Bingham said.

However, at the close of his speech he assured, I wake up every morning with fierce optimism for graduates.
Governor Bill Haslam closed all state offices on Friday in anticipation of "blizzard-like" conditions sweeping across parts of the state.

The governor's office said, "Tennessee will experience inclement weather moving across the state with blizzard like conditions to include freezing rain and heavy snow fall. This winter weather event is forecasted to move across the state Thursday through Friday. As a result of the severe weather conditions, Governor Haslam has made a declaration to close state offices on Friday."



Some agencies have facilities/offices staffed with mission critical employees who have life, health and/or safety responsibilities that may need to report to work or remain at workers In anticipation of more wintry weather later Friday, there are some school delays and early dismissals.

Georgia state offices will close Friday at noon.

Governor Deal said, In order to prepare for the second round of storms, Ive directed state agency heads to encourage employees to telecommute where appropriate. Capitol Hill agencies and other state government offices will close at 12:00 p.m. on Friday to allow time for roads and bridges to be treated in advance of possible freezing rain and snow. I encourage municipal governments and private businesses in metro Atlanta and other affected areas to follow suit. I will continue to monitor those counties under a winter storm advisory and revise my executive order as needed."
The specialty chemicals group ALTANA invests 3.5 million US Dollar in Melior Innovations, Inc. This technology company headquartered in Houston, TX, specializes in the development of high-performance materials with unique performance characteristics such as specialty ceramics for a broad range of applications. ALTANA will contribute its know-how in the optimization of surfaces. Together the companies expect to develop a wide range of new products for their key markets.

We want to boost our overall innovation strength through cooperation with promising new companies, says Dr. Christoph Schlunken, Member of the ALTANA Management Board. With the investment in Melior Innovations we continue to implement this strategy.
If youve ever experienced a bad sunburn, you know the damage that ultraviolet (UV) light can cause to living cells (like your skin). Out in space, where the level of radiation from the sun can be even higher, it can damage sensitive electronics aboard in-flight spacecraft.

The dangers of UV light have prompted scientists to search for versatile materials that block UV and can withstand long radiation exposure times without falling apart. Now a group of researchers in China has developed a new method to create transparent, glass-based materials with UVabsorbing power and long lifetimes. The team demonstrated that the new glass effectively protects living cells and organic dyes, and believe it could also be developed as a transparent shield to protect electronics in space.

The researchers used cerium (IV) oxide (CeO 2 ), well-known for its ability to absorb UV photons, to craft the composite glass-based UV absorber.

Other key features of the final composite material are the optical transparency of the glass and the materials ability to suppress the separation of photo-generated electrons and holes. The later feature slows down a light-induced reaction that would lead to the ultimate breakdown of the material under prolonged exposure to UV radiation.

The method the team developed is based on the self-limited nanocrystallization of glass.

Self-limited nanocrystallization of glass can be achieved by taking advantage of the rigid environment of the solid-state matrix, rather than the conventional solution and vapor conditions to modulate the ionic migration kinetics, explained Shifeng Zhou, School of Materials Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, China . It allows us to create glass-ceramics embedded with a CeO 2 : fluorine (F) nanostructure.

The viscous glass matrix involved poses a considerable constraint for oxide (O 2 -) and F- ion diffusion, so the group gradually etches trifluorocerium (CeF 3 ) by O 2 - ions within an oxide matrix until F- - doped CeO 2 is generated in a controllable manner. Its important to note that this technology is also routinely used to prepare other UV absorbers such as zinc oxide (ZnO) and titanium oxide (TiO 2 ).

This work establishes an effective approach for the functionalization of glass, said Zhou. And it allowed us to demonstrate the construction of a novel glass-based UV absorber.

The groups innovative approach for fabricating the UV absorber has important implications for the construction of novel glass materials with new functions via microstructure engineering, he added.

Among the groups key discoveries was finding that the self-limited nanocrystallization of glass is indeed an effective way to functionalize it. The special glass they created suppresses photocatalytic and catalytic activity, while boasting an extremely high UV-absorbing capacity.

Our glass shows excellent optical quality, and it can be easily fabricated either in bulk form or as a film, said Zhou. It effectively protects organic dye and living cells from UV radiation damage.

Potential applications for the groups work include radiation hardening of electronic devices, serving as a biological shield, and preserving cultural artifacts and relics.

In space, the high-energy radiation environment encountered by electronic equipment aboard spacecraft can be quite damaging, noted Zhou. Fortunately, in the future, if you add a radiation-blocking coating onto the surface of the package  a transparent glass/polymer material  the device would be well protected, and its service lifetime may be prolonged.

In terms of applications as biological shields and to preserve cultural artifacts and relics, the special glass can protect cells from UV-induced damage, he added.

Going forward, the group plans to focus their efforts on developing other novel and effective glass-based UV absorbers, using the self-limited nanocrystallization method.

Well explore ways for large-scale fabrication of this type of film, which is extremely important for practical applications, said Zhou. Our group will also further study the functionalization of glass based on its microstructure engineering, because we believe this fundamental research may have great significance for the glass industry.
3M today that it has entered into an agreement to sell to Innovative Chemical Products Group (ICP Group), a portfolio company of Audax Private Equity, the assets of 3Ms Pressurized Polyurethane Foam Adhesives business (formerly known as Polyfoam), which is part of 3Ms Industrial Adhesives and Tapes Division. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

3Ms Pressurized Polyurethane Foam Adhesives business is a provider of pressurized polyurethane foam adhesive formulations and systems into the residential roofing, commercial roofing and insulation and industrial foam segments in the United States, with annual sales of approximately $20 million. The product offering includes a two-component roof tile adhesive that professional roofers use to attach concrete or clay roof tile. The business also offers a polyurethane foam adhesive used for adhering the fleece back roofing membrane and insulation board in low-slope roofing applications.

After strategic portfolio review, we decided to exit this business and focus on our core adhesives, sealants, and tapes businesses, said Ty Silberhorn, vice president and general manager, 3M Industrial Adhesives and Tapes Division. 3M applies its adhesive technology to solutions for bonding, protecting, masking, enhancing, shielding, damping, splicing, reinforcing, color coding, and case sealing applications.

The Pressurized Polyurethane Foam Adhesives business will be a new, strategic business unit within ICP Group, focused on industrial and construction applications. This acquisition further extends the market, technology, and customer base of our business and gives us a foothold into polyurethane technologies. We welcome the entire Pressurized Polyurethane Foam Adhesives team and look forward to working with them to accelerate growth of the business through investments in products, sales and marketing, and acquisitions, said Doug Mattscheck, president and chief executive officer of ICP Group.

ICP Group plans to maintain the Pressurized Polyurethane Foam Adhesives business existing operations in Tomball, Texas, and Coral Springs, Fla., as a stand-alone business unit within the specialty chemicals platform.

The transaction is expected to close during the first quarter of 2016, subject to customary closing conditions. Approximately 20 3M employees that support the business are expected to join ICP Group in conjunction with the sale.
Jose Gomez, a Chicago maintenance worker, was part of a class-action lawsuit that made it all the way to the Supreme Court. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)

At age 40, Jose Gomez says, he wasn't likely to be shipshape.

So he was surprised  and perhaps a little annoyed  when a quiet day in May 2006 was rudely interrupted by an unsolicited text message from the U.S. Navy.

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"DESTINED FOR SOMETHING BIG? DO IT IN THE NAVY," read the recruitment text that buzzed his cellphone as he sat on the couch at home near Midway Airport. "GET A CAREER. AN EDUCATION. AND A CHANCE TO SERVE A GREATER CAUSE."

Gomez, now 49, declined the offer that was supposed to be sent only to 100,000 potential recruits age 18 to 24 who had signed up to get such messages. "I was too old for all that, I was an old man already," said the South Side maintenance worker.

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But the text message did presage something big for Gomez: a class-action lawsuit that made it all the way to the Supreme Court.

And on Wednesday  nearly a decade after he got the offending text  the nation's highest court handed Gomez a victory not just for himself and other citizens who resent being illegally interrupted by unsolicited sales calls and messages, but also for class-action plaintiffs and their lawyers in general.

Voting 6 to 3 in Gomez's favor, the Supreme Court found that the advertising agency that mistakenly sent Gomez the U.S. Navy text could not cheaply defeat the class-action lawsuit filed in his name by simply offering to pay him the statutory maximum of $1,500 to which he was entitled.

Since Gomez in 2011 rejected the offer of $1,500 from the Campbell-Ewald agency, it was "off the table" and "had no force," Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote in the majority opinion, ordering the case to proceed in U.S. District Court in California.

Such small payments are frequently offered by corporate defendants who try to quickly "pick off" named plaintiffs in class-action cases before a class is certified, avoiding the risk that they will eventually have to send tens of thousands of similar checks to other wronged households.

Gomez's attorney, Evan Meyers, of the Chicago law firm McGuire Law, said it's possible that Gomez could eventually get an "incentive award" from the court in California for acting as the named plaintiff in the case. But he said it was more important that the Supreme Court put a stop to a move that "permits class actions to be cut off at the knees."

Other class action lawyers also welcomed the ruling. While they can ultimately earn millions from bringing class action cases, they typically take the cases on contingency, which can mean investing years of work before they discover if a court will order the claims to be paid. Early forced settlements discouraged lawyers from bringing cases.

"The reason for class actions is that it's much easier to rip off two million people for a dollar each than to find one person to take $2 million from," said Clint Krislov, a Chicago attorney who has brought many such cases. "If you let defendants pick off plaintiffs one at a time for a dollar each, there's no incentive for them to stop ripping people off."

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Dan Edelman, another Chicago attorney who specializes in class-action cases, including those targeting companies that make unsolicited phone calls to households, added that "it's only by banding these large classes together that you can attract lawyers to pursue them in the first place."

The Supreme Court case leaves class-action defendants a potential loophole in that they may still be able to beat cases by simply paying a settlement into the plaintiff's bank account without his agreement, Edelman said. The court's ruling explicitly ignored that question as "hypothetical."

But Gomez was thrilled to learn of his victory Thursday. He said that he had rejected the $1,500 payment four years ago because, "the other 100,000 people that got this message wouldn't have got anything, and that seemed selfish."

kjanssen@tribpub.com

Twitter @kimjnews
Martin Shkreli leaves the courthouse after his arraignment in New York. House lawmakers have issued a subpoena to compel former Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO Shkreli, reviled for price-gouging, to appear at a congressional hearing on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2016. (Seth Wenig / AP)

WASHINGTON  Former Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO Martin Shkreli, reviled for hiking the price of a life-saving drug, would decline to answer questions if forced to appear before Congress, according to correspondence with lawmakers.

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has subpoenaed Shkreli to appear at a hearing on exorbitant drug pricing next Tuesday. But the 32-year-old's lawyer informed the committee that his client plans to remain silent, invoking his Fifth Amendment right, according to a letter from committee chairman Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah.

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Shkreli became the public face of pharmaceutical-industry greed last fall, after hiking the price of a 60-year-old drug for a rare infection by 5,000 percent.

Last month, the former hedge-fund manager was indicted on securities fraud charges stemming from an earlier, unrelated drug company. He has pleaded not guilty and was released on $5 million bail. He subsequently resigned as Turing CEO.

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Questions emerged Thursday about whether Shkreli would even attend the hearing, in spite of the congressional subpoena.

Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Maryland, said Shkreli has apparently not made any legal arrangements to travel to Washington, based on conversations with his attorney.

Under the terms of his bail, Shkreli is required to remain in New York state. However, a judge could grant an exception to travel.

"If he plans on trying to use his own intentional inaction as some kind of bogus excuse for not showing up at Tuesday's hearing, people will see right through such a juvenile tactic," Cummings said in statement.

Shkreli, a relentless self-promoter who often livestreams his daily life, has repeatedly bashed Cummings and other politicians through social media.

In a Twitter message Thursday directed at the lawmaker, Shkreli wrote: "Your attempt to subvert my constitutional right to the 5th amendment are disgusting and insulting to all Americans."

A day earlier he posted a photo of the subpoena with the caption, "Found this letter. Looks important."

The committee is also scheduled to hear testimony from current Turing executives and Valeant Pharmaceuticals, another drugmaker besieged by criticism about drug pricing.

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Shkreli has also drawn the ire of Senate lawmakers.

On Wednesday, Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said Shkreli had refused to turn over documents sought in a Dec. 24 subpoena from her Special Committee on Aging. There too, Shkreli invoked his Fifth Amendment right to avoid self-incrimination, citing the criminal case in New York.

Associated Press
Gary Common Council President Ronald Brewer said Tuesday he was upset with changes that have occurred in recent weeks to the proposal to develop a new truck stop at Burr Street and Interstate 80/94.

Those changes include replacing a proposed full-service restaurant with a Wendy's hamburger franchise and the demolition, rather than relocation, of seven houses currently on the property. Brewer said he thought the proposed restaurant -- Golden Corral  as well as the retention of the homes, were among the highlights of the project.

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"I feel like we have been hijacked," Brewer said. "I don't like that we went through this process and things are changing now.

"What we had hoped to get for the community is now not going to happen," he said.

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Despite those concerns, Brewer was among five of the nine Common Council members who on voted Tuesday to approve a measure that officially vacates Gerry Street south of the interstate highway to make room for the project, a Flying J Travel Center.

It will be owned by Missouri-based Aerogas, which already operates a Mr. Fuel gas station near the site.

Gary Radtke, an engineer for the project, could not explain why Golden Corral pulled out of the project. He said the homes will not be relocated because of Gary officials refused to sign off on building permits by Jan. 1, which he said makes their demolition the only possible option if construction is to begin later this year.

Four council members voted against the measure --- at-large Councilman Kyle Allen, 5th Ward Councilwoman Linda Barnes-Caldwell, 2nd Ward Councilman Michael Protho and 4th Ward Councilwoman Carolyn Rogers.

But the others followed the lead of 3rd Ward Councilwoman Mary Brown, who said Tuesday's vote was merely to vacate Gerry Street  and not to approve the project as a whole.

Radtke agreed, noting the council would still have to sign off on a site plan before the project could advance. He said he expected a request by developers for such a hearing would be made during the next two weeks and a hearing would be held within a month.

Developers want to build the first phase of the proposed truck stop later this year. It would include the restaurant and multiple gas pumps. A second phase is not yet definite, but Radtke said a truck wash facility and a maintenance center are in preliminary plans. .

In other business, the Common Council voted 9-0 to approve a measure closing off an alley along Monroe to Madison streets and 11th to 12th avenues. Officials at the Sojourner Truth House want to build a structure on that block providing 40 apartment-style housing units for abused women and their children who would otherwise be homeless.

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Sister Peg Spindler told the council the effort was one of several projects the Sojourner Truth House is overseeing to reduce homelessness in Gary. Past efforts have focused on military veterans and homeless families.

Gregory Tejeda is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
The baby boomers have seemed especially mortal in recent days, with the headlines full of rockers not making it into the fullness of the retirement years. Some of us had been counting on these guys to change the culture of the retirement homes that await us  ensuring that we could at least enjoy the irony of sitting there and dozing off to "Hotel California." But, symbolically at least, these deaths also seemed to raise the specter that boomers were never meant to retire at all.
A 17-year-old Guatemalan is removed from a U.S. Border Patrol vehicle south of McAllen, Texas. Although immigration from Central America has increased, the overall number of immigrants living in the U.S. illegally is at its lowest in more than a decade. (Michael Robinson Chavez / Los Angeles Times)

The number of immigrants living in the U.S. illegally is at its lowest in more than a decade and, for the first time in years, has probably dropped below 11 million.

A new study by the Center for Migration Studies estimates that 10.9 million immigrants are living in the country without authorization. That is the lowest level since 2003 and the first time the number has dipped below 11 million since 2004.

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The decline, which has been documented by previous studies as well, runs counter to the widespread image on the Republican presidential campaign trail of a rise in illegal immigration.

Join the conversation on Facebook >>

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GOP front-runner Donald Trump has said illegal immigration rates are "beyond belief" and has claimed that immigrants bringing crime and disease are "just pouring across the border." Trump has pledged mass deportations and a giant border wall, while criticizing as weak his more moderate rivals, including Jeb Bush, who has proposed giving immigrants already in the country a path to legal status.

According to the report, written by a prominent former government demographics expert, illegal immigration has dropped steadily since 2008, driven in part by a large number of immigrants from Mexico returning home.

Since 2010, the number of Mexicans living in the U.S. illegally declined by about 612,000, or 9%, the report says.

The population of such Mexicans in California shrunk by about 250,000 from 2010 to 2014, the study found. The state's total population of immigrants here illegally fell by 318,000 during that time.

See the most-read stories this hour >>

Although the study found declines in the number of such immigrants from South America, the Caribbean and Europe, it reported an increase in the number of immigrants crossing illegally from Central America, which has been gripped with rising violence in recent years.

Manuel Pastor, a sociology professor at USC, said the decline in the numbers of immigrants living in the country illegally can be linked to a decline in the U.S. economy and other factors. For example, lower birthrates in Mexico mean there is less competition for jobs there and less pressure to head north to find work.

Pastor said Trump's heated rhetoric about the growing threat of illegal immigration is "detached from reality" and partly the product of a presidential primary system in which Republican candidates must appeal to their party's most conservative -- and mostly white -- voters.

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Pastor cited "growing demographic anxieties" among white Americans about the country's rapidly changing racial and ethnic makeup, and said Trump's anti-immigrant rhetoric plays into that.

"This is a very racialized debate," he said.

For more immigration news, follow me on Twitter: @katelinthicum

ALSO

Donald Trump's crossover appeal? Most Democrats say he'd be 'terrible'

The Latino vote is bigger and better educated than ever before, a new report finds

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Chris Christie, stumping for votes in Iowa, makes himself the center of his pitch
Surveys show older Americans prefer receiving health care services at home instead of in institutional settings, but Medicare managed long-term care programs have achieved mixed results, with some beneficiaries being forced to find new health care providers. And some states report saving money while others are spending more. (Terry Vine / Blend Images)

The national move to home and community-based care away from nursing homes has been widely supported by senior citizen, consumer and disability rights communities. Surveys show older Americans prefer receiving health care services at home instead of in institutional settings.

In recent years nearly a million people with disabilities or conditions severe enough to qualify for nursing home admission have been enrolled in Medicaid-managed long-term care programs, which operate like HMOs. In theory, the care for those very ill beneficiaries should improve with better coordination and lower costs. In Medicaid-managed long-term care, states pay private health plans monthly fixed rates to provide eligible beneficiaries' health care and services like transportation, home health nurses and personal aides for dressing, cooking and other activities of daily living. Plans only make money if they provide care for less than the monthly fixed fees. But most of the 26 states involved are new to providing managed long-term supports and services for this population.

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It's been a rocky transition for many beneficiaries and their families, who have seen cuts in services to parents and loved ones. Many have scrambled to find new doctors, hospitals and personal attendants. And while states like Texas and Wisconsin have seen costs drop, others such as Florida have seen hikes in health care spending.

New York allowed its health plan contractors to assess eligibility for the long-term care program and the number of enrollees and program costs rose significantly. The Visiting Nurse Services New York paid the U.S. attorney in New York City $35 million in 2014 to settle fraud allegations for enrolling ineligible beneficiaries.

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And Connecticut and Oklahoma abandoned their managed long-term supports and services programs.

This population uses many more health care and support services  services previously delivered mostly in nursing homes. States, which struggle with rising Medicaid costs, have learned that providing those services at home costs far less than nursing home stays. But politically savvy nursing home lobbies successfully fought those efforts for decades. In most states, however, the tide is changing.

Many experts agree that managed long-term care holds promise for the sickest and frailest of patients. A two-year Massachusetts program saved the state $40,000 per year for each of the 2,000 patients treated in their homes rather than nursing homes. Those programs improved care, reduced hospital readmissions and ER visits and increased mammography screenings and flu vaccinations.

Renee Markus Hodin, deputy director of the Boston-based Community Catalyst's Center for Consumer Engagement in Health Innovation, a not-for-profit that helps consumer advocacy groups working to expand access to health care, said the challenge is in replicating those small regional successes into statewide programs serving many more people. Hodin said a 1999 Supreme Court decision required the government to pay for long-term care in the least restrictive setting for people with disabilities and said the Affordable Care Act offered state Medicaid programs more flexibility. Fifteen states now spend more on home-based care than on nursing homes and that number is growing.

States embrace managed care because it offers predictable costs. But the harsh reality of state budgets has compelled some Medicaid programs to cut spending. Patient advocates claim that states have changed eligibility requirements to reduce the number of new recipients and implemented service cuts that put vulnerable people at risk.

In 2013 Kansas' Medicaid program, KanCare, adopted long-term managed care for 20,000 people with disabilities like Finn Bullers. In 2009 Bullers, 51, quit his reporting job at the Kansas City Star. He was born with degenerative muscular dystrophy that progressively destroys his muscle tissue and organs. By 2013 he was mostly bedridden. His doctors prescribed around-the-clock care. A KanCare health plan team re-evaluated Bullers to assess his needs, measuring how long it took him to perform daily activities.

"I have a ventilator that needs continuous monitoring. I have Type 1 diabetes. I am a high maintenance guy," he admitted. "They crunched their numbers and concluded I only needed 25 percent of the time they had previously allotted me and cut my weekly care hours from 168 to 40, even though all my medical doctors told them I needed 24 hours per day or I would die."

Bullers publicly protested. "I knew if I lost that fight, everyone else would lose, too," he said.

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But he appealed and won, never facing the proposed service cuts. "Had I not prevailed, I would have died. Unless you're a squeaky wheel, your voice isn't heard."

(After he was interviewed for this article, Bullers died Jan. 31 of heart failure brought about by pneumonia, his family told The Kansas City Star.)

Angela de Rocha, spokeswoman for the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services, said KanCare's goal was never to cut expenses, but to slow the rate of growth in health care costs. De Rocha said hospital ER usage is down more than 27 percent for the home-based care population from the pre-KanCare rate. And that group saw significantly fewer hospitalizations, while many more now see primary care doctors, resulting in better outcomes.

Other states sought similar results. Amber Smock, director of advocacy for Chicago-based Access Living, said Illinois overestimated what managed care plans could do. "There was an assumption that these plans knew how to move people out of nursing homes and into community settings," Smock said. "But they had no experience with that. Many patients were shocked to learn that physician specialists they'd depended on for years were no longer in their networks. This caused major life problems for many beneficiaries."

Gordon Bonnyman Jr., a staff attorney with the Tennessee Justice Center, said managed care plans have incentives to cut provider rates because they share those savings.

"I've been doing this for more than 25 years and regardless of what they claim about improving care and keeping people healthy, it's mostly about managing costs and bargaining for prices," Bonnyman said.

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Elizabeth Priaulx, senior disability legal specialist with the National Health Law Project, said patient advocates still report program problems, such as inaccessible doctor offices.

"It's the responsibility of the managed care company to insure that its providers are accessible," she said. "But the bottom line is that states must police their contractors to make sure they are meeting the requirements."

James Sheehan, the chief of the charities bureau for the New York attorney general, said the universal truth is everyone wonders how many good years they have left. Sheehan said most people will experience a time when they can no longer perform common daily activities.

"The reality is this is what's going to happen to all of us at the end of our lives," Sheehan said, "and we need to be more conscious of how we care for each other now, because we're next."

This story was supported by the Journalists in Aging Fellowships, a program of New America Media and the Gerontological Society of America, sponsored by the Silver Century Foundation.

Mark Taylor is a freelance reporter.

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An earlier version of this story had an incorrect first name for Finn Bullers, who died Jan. 31.
The Chicago Police Department offers good Crisis Intervention Team training, to teach officers how to respond to mental health crises, but the program is "starved" for funds, says Amy Watson, an associate professor at the Jane Addams College of Social Work at the University of Illinois at Chicago. (Raymond Boyd / Getty Images 2012)

The teen was physically imposing  5-foot-10 and 240 pounds  and Houston police Officer Randy Crowder had been warned to expect a fight.

But on that day five years ago when Crowder responded to a call from the young man's concerned mother, he didn't see a criminal, or even a troublemaker.

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There's something else going on, Crowder recalls thinking. He suspected a mental health crisis. He asked the other officers to leave the room and introduced himself to the young man, using his first name, making eye contact and keeping a respectful distance.

"We talked about it a little bit, and he calmed down," Crowder says. "I was able to get him to walk to my car, and we went to the (psychiatric hospital), and his mother went with us."

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At a time when police departments across the country are under fire for the alleged use of excessive force against African-Americans, better police response to people in mental health crisis is often cited as part of the solution. In Chicago, where police fatally shot college student Quintonio LeGrier and a 55-year-old bystander after LeGrier allegedly became combative, Mayor Rahm Emanuel has called for a review of the Police Department's Crisis Intervention Team, or CIT, program, which provides mental health training.

But what does a state-of-the-art emergency response to a mental health crisis even look like? The answer is emerging, experts say, in cities such as Houston, which has been offering specialized mental health training to police since the early 1990s, as well as in studies that show positive results for the popular CIT model of officer training.

"The research suggests that (CIT programs) can work in terms of improving officers' knowledge, their attitudes, their skill sets for responding," says Amy Watson, an associate professor at the Jane Addams College of Social Work at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

"There's some evidence that they can reduce use of force and injuries. There's some evidence that they can reduce arrests of people with mental illness, and they can increase linkage to mental health services."

In keeping with the CIT philosophy that "special people deserve special officers," departments typically seek volunteers who are highly motivated and have excellent people skills, but some departments require all officers to participate.

Training lasts 40 hours, and officers learn the signs and symptoms of mental illness as well as skills for de-escalating conflict. Ideally, they also meet people with mental illnesses and their family members.

"It's really 180 degrees different from traditional police training  and I'm not saying anything against traditional police training," says Houston police Senior Officer Frank Webb, the senior trainer in the department's mental health division.

"If someone's psychotic, they may be having a very hard time hearing you, because they may have three or four voices in their head, in addition to your voice, so you have to be very patient. You may have to repeat yourself, talk in a calm tone of voice. Don't assume that they're just being obstinate if they don't respond right away."

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Houston is one of six police departments nationwide singled out for their model mental health programs by the Council of State Governments Justice Center in partnership with the Department of Justice. The other departments are in Los Angeles; Madison, Wis.; Portland, Maine; Salt Lake City; and at the University of Florida.

Great police training is important, but it's not enough, says Jerry Murphy, director of the law enforcement program at the Justice Center. There has to be a systemwide approach, with call-takers and dispatchers who are trained to flag mental health issues and strong partnerships with community mental health providers.

Chicago offers good CIT training to the officers who receive it, but the program is "starved" for funds, Watson says. Chicago mental health advocates have voiced similar concerns.

Crowder, the Houston police officer, grew up with an uncle who had brain damage due to childhood encephalitis and who sometimes seemed drunk or disoriented, due to his disability. Once, his uncle was mistakenly arrested for public intoxication.

"They handcuffed him, took him to jail  he was scared to death," Crowder says. "And I remember thinking, man, I wish police had more education and could recognize mental illness."

Crowder says he's dealt with many people with mental illnesses over the years, but the young man with the concerned mother stands out.

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During two previous confrontations with the police who weren't CIT-trained, the teen had been arrested and handcuffed, Crowder says. Once he had been shocked with a stun gun. He had bipolar disorder and had been prescribed medication, but he didn't like to take it because it made him lethargic. Angry and frustrated, he would lash out by punching holes in the wall or putting his fist through the television set.

On that first visit, Crowder was able to take him to the hospital, where a doctor made some changes in his medication.

Several days later, the teen's mother called again, and asked for Crowder specifically. Over time, he built a relationship with the young man, responding to about 10 police calls from his mom, accompanying mother and son to a meeting with a school counselor, and helping them connect with their local chapter of the nonprofit National Alliance on Mental Illness (www.nami.org).

Crowder, who has horses and cattle, recalls fielding a call from the mother on his day off: "I remember sitting on my tractor in the middle of the pasture, talking to this lady on the phone," he says with a chuckle.

The teen started taking his medication and, after that first visit, Crowder never had to take him to the hospital again. The last time Crowder heard from his mom was a year and a half ago. The young man had a job and his mom said he was doing well.

"We don't have that kind of time (for) every single call, but CIT has helped me a lot," Crowder says. "I can tell the difference between a situation where I need to be a hardcore police officer and where I need to be a little more compassionate and understanding."

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nschoenberg@tribpub.com

Twitter @nschoenberg
"So when I heard the hate coming from people like (Donald) Trump, and saw the news about the shooting in (San Bernardino) California, I wanted to let my friends and neighbors know again how much we really, truly love them," she said. "I saw a group in California who sent love letters to their local mosque and I was inspired to do the same."
Anyone who doesn't understand the fuss over the Academy Award nominations this year should watch the trailer for "Beasts of No Nation."

It's a sampling of the fine work by Hollywood veteran Idris Elba and his 15-year-old Ghanaian co-star Abraham Attah. Both black actors were overlooked as the Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences, for the second year in a row, released an all-white slate of nominees for the coveted awards.

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That's what happens when the decision-makers are 90 percent white and 70 percent male. With a membership consisting primarily of people with the same background, the same life experiences and the same points of view, it is easy for the academy to ignore films depicting the lives of blacks and Hispanics.

It is likely that many in Hollywood never bothered to watch the brutal tale of a warlord and his army of boys during a civil war in Africa. To their peers in the film industry, Elba and Attah's work was invisible.

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The apparent slight of Elba's and other stellar performances by blacks and Hispanics has generated a heated national debate about diversity in Hollywood. Several celebrities, including actors Will Smith and his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, and directors Spike Lee and Michael Moore, have said they will boycott the awards ceremony next month.

Regular people also are expressing disgust over the all-white Oscars. Like me, most moviegoers probably have a few favorites of their own who weren't nominated. But let's not get sidetracked talking about who should have gotten an Oscar nod. Let's talk about the real issue  how diversity is sidelined, not just in Hollywood but in almost every corner of America.

Think about it. How is the lack of minority representation in Hollywood any different from what most of us experience every day in our own workplace?

In corporate America, blacks and other minorities are as invisible as black actors are in Hollywood. We rarely see an African-American in a top-level job at a high-tech firm. Increasingly, minorities are becoming invisible in the newsrooms of daily newspapers and TV stations. On major college campuses, the number of African-American professors lags far behind whites. Even the military, once a threshold to the middle class, has seen declining numbers of African-Americans in its ranks. And we all know the problems that have resulted from a shortage of minorities in our police departments.

Let's face it. America has long had a problem with diversity and it didn't begin in Hollywood.

After the civil rights movement, many corporations latched on to the new idea of diversifying the workforce. More African-Americans were earning college degrees in the late 1970s and early 1980s as the country became more diverse. It made good business sense for corporate leaders to tap into the emerging market of minority consumers by creating a workforce that was representative of the public. Minorities were heavily recruited and made to feel included so that they would stay.

My college friend, Deborah Williams, who used to train executives about the importance of diversity, explained it like this: White men at the top began to realize that a salad made with just lettuce could be a lot better if they added tomatoes, cucumbers and a few nuts.

Diversity in the workplace allows the flow of unique ideas, creativity and solutions. It breaks down stereotypes and opens the door to better communication. People are more productive when their voices are being heard. They want to see the company succeed when they are included as part of the team. And co-workers who think they have nothing in common find that they aren't so different after all.

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But even in those glory days, things never were perfect. Blacks often carried the pressure of being a company's first minority hire and languished for years as one of only a handful of black people on the staff. Rarely were African-Americans in positions of power.

While the numbers of black employees and managers rose sharply in the late 1980s and 1990s, they are again headed downward. Many corporate offices have regressed to the way they looked a half-century ago.

Somehow, the term diversity got tangled up with affirmative action and became a racial buzzword. Offering a seat at the decision-making table to a minority was translated into jerking it away from a capable white person.

With budget cuts and staff reductions hovering overhead, diversity is the last thing on the minds of most corporate executives these days. It is no longer fashionable to seek out ideas from those with different life experiences. It's all right once again to shut out the voices of minorities who might upset the status quo. It's fine to relegate minorities to stereotypical roles that offer no chance of advancement.

In other words, leaders have decided that a plain iceberg lettuce salad isn't so bad as long as you pour a little dressing on top.

On Friday, academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs, an African-American, announced that the board of governors would take steps to address its diversity issues. The group pledged to double the number of female and minority members by 2020. Officials said they will immediately diversify the academy's leadership by adding three new seats to its board of governors.

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That's a good start. But it won't solve all of the problems caused by decades of invisibility.

It's a shame that we seem to notice problems concerning diversity only when it slaps us in the face. We wait until the Oscar nominations are released or until something else flares up, and we ask, why are no minorities represented?

But for minorities, the issue of diversity always is front and center. Often, we're the only ones thinking about it. One of the privileges of being in the majority is that you don't have to think about what it means to be in the majority. It means you don't have to worry about whether your point of view is being represented.

Being in the majority also means that you get to choose the kind of salad you want. If you don't care for tomatoes, cucumbers or nuts, you can simply leave them out. And you can still have your salad.

No one is saying that a homogenous salad doesn't serve its purpose. But it's just common sense that adding other ingredients creates a richer, more fulfilling dining experience.

dglanton@tribpub.com
"A far better idea is to stay safely in space and push a couple of dozen half-mile-wide asteroids into the Pacific and Atlantic oceans," Plait was quoted in Blastr, an online sci-fi magazine. "There's nothing like wave after wave of thousand-foot-high tsunamis scouring the coasts of all the continents clean to demoralize or entirely wipe out your enemy."
We all use the same bathroom on an airplane with no discussion of gender politics. Years ago, when I first went to France as a college student, I was vaguely surprised to discover that cafe toilets, with no sign except the one that said "WC," were for all comers; I learned to take that for granted even before I learned that "WC" stood for "water closet."
Karen Lewis, president of the Chicago Teachers Union, voiced optimism Thursday about the progress of contract negotiations with the school board and acknowledged her members could be in line to "lose certain things."

Lewis said those losses could include the end of the city's practice of picking up the bulk of teachers' required contributions to their pensions. But Lewis said the union would not bend on another key issue, incremental pay increases known as "step and lane" bumps that are doled out based on seniority and experience.

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"I think that people understand the dire straits that CPS is in and that we are willing to make certain sacrifices," Lewis told reporters after delivering the keynote address at a Northeastern Illinois University event dedicated to Martin Luther King Jr.

"But not (on) something that is so part and parcel of the way we do business," said Lewis, who described the step-and-lane pay bumps as the "bedrock of our professionalism."

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Lewis also blasted Gov. Bruce Rauner for a proposal to put CPS under the control of a state board and make the district eligible for bankruptcy. Mayor Rahm Emanuel and other Democratic leaders have voiced similar opposition, and Lewis said the effort stood no chance of getting through the Democrat-controlled General Assembly.

"First of all, it's not going to happen," Lewis said, "A, he's delusional. B, I would say he's crazy, but you all always cut the good stuff I say about him. How are you going to go somewhere else and put your nose in somebody else's business when your own is raggedy?

"He needs to clean up his own house first and move on. But he really needs to let grown folks do what grown folks do, and he needs to sit down before he breaks something."

Contract talks between Chicago Public Schools and CTU have been dragging on for more than a year and on Feb. 1 are set to enter a final phase that will involve a representative from CTU, the schools and an impartial party.

The pension issue has been one point of contention. CPS has long picked up 7 percentage points of the 9 percent pension contribution required of much of its staff, as well as teachers. That practice is expected to cost the district more than $170 million this budget year.

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The district last year ended the practice for its nonunion workers, and district CEO Forrest Claypool has made clear he would ask for a similar concession from teachers. Lewis has described eliminating the pension pickup as "strike-worthy," though she tried Thursday to downplay and dangle the possibility of a walkout.

"People always worry about that strike  that's what happens when you don't get to an agreement. So at this point that's not the way things are looking but I'm not going to rule it out either," Lewis said. "I think people need to be prepared either way."

Lewis said talks to replace a pact that expired June 30 were "going well."

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"We are working on trying to deal with the noneconomic things so that we can find together a package that works for our members," she said.

"It's just that simple, it's not rocket science, it's negotiations. Nobody's going to be happy, completely happy, with the outcome," she said. "They're going to have to give a little, we have to give a little. That's what contract negotiations are, but we're doing fairly well."

jjperez@tribpub.com

Twitter @PerezJr
Three men were killed and seven other people were wounded in Chicago on Thursday through early Friday as the number of shooting victims in the city passed 200 three weeks into the new year.

The tally so far is already higher than the totals for the entire month of January over each of the the last four years.

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As of Friday, at least 202 people had been shot in the city this year, 34 of them fatally, according to data kept by the Chicago Tribune.

In January of 2015, 144 people were shot, 28 of them fatally, according to police statistics. In January of 2014, 106 were shot, 20 fatally. In January 2013, 190 were shot, 40 fatally. And in January 2012, 167 were shot, 38 fatally.



Juan C. Gonzalez, 19, was killed around 10:20 p.m. in the Back of the Yards on the South Side, said Officer Hector Alfaro, a Chicago police spokesman.



Police responded to a call of a person shot in the 1700 block of West 47th Street and found Gonzalez lying face down in an alley next to a silver SUV, Alfaro said



Gonzalez, of 5100 block of South Bishop Street, suffered a gunshot wound to his chest, according to police and the Cook County medical examiner's office. He was pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital at 11:20 p.m.



At least three yellow evidence markers lay on the ground next to the SUV, marking shell casings. About half a dozen neighbors stood on the sidewalk on Wood Street, some taking photos of the crime scene with their cellphones.



One neighbor said he saw the man next to a nearby ATM moments before he was shot. Police said the shooting was being investigated as a possible robbery.



Ten minutes earlier, a 20-year-old man was killed in the North Austin neighborhood on the West Side, Alfaro said.



Deante Dale, of the 1700 block of North Menard Avenue was sitting in the front passenger seat of a parked light blue sedan on the same block where he lived when someone fired shots from a passing black SUV, Alfaro said.



Dale was shot in the left shoulder and was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, Alfaro said.



In the third fatal shooting Thursday, a 23-year-old man was dropped off at Stroger Hospital around 7:20 p.m. after getting shot in the 4600 block of West Huron Street in the West Garfield Park neighborhood, police said. He had a gunshot wound to the abdomen and was pronounced dead. Authorities identified the man as Martel Howard of the 1500 block of South Manchester Avenue in Westchester.

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A second victim from the shooting, a 21-year-old man, also was dropped off at Stroger, police said. He was shot in both legs and was expected to survive, police said.



Other shootings:



 A 25-year-old man was wounded during a robbery around 3:35 a.m. Friday in the Homan Square neighborhood on the West Side, said Officer Ron Gaines, a police spokesman.



The man was getting something out of a friend's car in the 3300 block of West Lexington Street when someone walked up and announced a robbery, Gaines said. The robber fired and hit the man in the buttocks. The gunman stole the man's cellphone and wallet, he said.



The man was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was listed in good condition, Gaines said.



 About 7:40 p.m. Thursday, a 33-year-old was shot in the buttocks in the West Englewood neighborhood. He was standing next to a parked car in the 5900 block of South Paulina Street when someone in a passing car fired, hitting him at least once. The man was taken to Stroger in good condition, police said.



 About 4:15 p.m., a 32-year-old man was shot in the buttocks in the 6100 block of South Carpenter Street in the Englewood neighborhood, said Officer Thomas Sweeney, a police spokesman. The man was taken in good condition to Northwestern Memorial Hospital.



 Shortly after 4 p.m., a 17-year-old boy suffered a graze wound to the ankle in the Lawndale neighborhood. The shooting happened in the 900 block of South Western Avenue, Sweeney said. The boy was walking when someone fired shots from a passing white van, police said. The teen was treated at the scene, police said.



 Earlier Thursday, two 17-year-old boys were shot in the Little Village neighborhood. The shooting happened about 11:50 a.m. in the 4100 block of West 25th Street, said Officer Ana Pacheco, a police spokeswoman, citing preliminary reports.

Chicago police investigate a multiple shooting near the 2500 block of South Keeler Avenue in the Little Village neighborhood on Jan. 21, 2016. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)





One of the boys was shot in the neck and the other suffered a wound to the back. Both were taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where their conditions were stabilized, Pacheco said.



No one was in custody for any of the attacks.
Attendees pass up a gender-neutral restroom at the Hilton Chicago hotel in Chicago during the National LGBTQ Task Force conference on Jan. 21, 2016. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)

Tara Crockett feels uncomfortable entering a women's restroom. It reminds the Oregon State University student activist, who does not identify as male or female, that the world often doesn't recognize everyone.

Standing in front of two gender-neutral bathrooms Thursday at a National LGBTQ Task Force conference in Chicago, Crockett, who uses the pronouns they/them, said gendered restrooms are unwelcoming.

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"It doesn't feel good," they said. "I'm reminded of the gender-binary that enforces the erasure of me."

For many transgender and gender-nonconforming people, finding and using public restrooms is less a relief than an anxious task. They fear harassment or attack for their appearance. Many use apps like Refuge Restrooms, an online database of gender-neutral bathrooms, to find a safe place to go.

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Mickey Mahoney, founder of the Chicago Restroom Access Project, has a simple solution to provide safe facilities to people who need them: Convert any single-occupancy restroom in Chicago to gender-neutral by changing the sign on the door.

That's why at this year's Creating Change Conference at the Hilton Chicago on South Michigan Avenue, each tote bag that the thousands of attendees from across the country receive at registration will include a survey with four proposed designs for a new sign. The designs are a toilet, a man and woman, and head and shoulder silhouettes with the phrases "for all restroom" and "for all toilet." All of the signs include changing table and disability access logos.

A workshop on bathroom access will also be held at the conference at 6:30 p.m. Saturday.

Anyone not attending the conference can visit the Pride Action Tank Facebook page, with which the restroom project is affiliated, to pick their favorite sign. Once selected, the activist group will offer the signs to local businesses, schools, nonprofits and government offices in Chicago. The survey will be open until March 1.

"In general, this is to have a safer space for everyone," Mahoney said.

A growing movement of LGBTQ advocates for gender-neutral restrooms, or all-gender restrooms, is challenging perceptions about how public bathrooms are used.

A group is pushing for more access to gender-neutral public restrooms in Chicago. Here, the four choices of signs the group is asking people to vote on. (Chicago Restroom Access Project)

Earlier this year, New York joined Washington, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Austin, Texas, and a number of other U.S. cities that have passed bills that make all single-occupancy city bathrooms gender neutral. Some require new buildings and renovations to include gender-neutral bathrooms. Last fall, Evanston's City Council passed an ordinance requiring gender-neutral bathrooms in public spaces in some instances, such as when a facility has only a single-occupancy restroom. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has added gender-neutral restrooms to its list of best practices. In April, the White House added a gender-neutral bathroom.

Mahoney said that eventually he would like to see a similar policy in Chicago.

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Sasha Buchert, an attorney at the Transgender Law Center whose firm helped develop the San Francisco bill, said that gender-neutral restrooms are for more than just transgender or gender-nonconforming people. They also are for parents of small children of a different gender and caretakers of the elderly and disabled who may have to assist someone using the restroom.

"It's a common sense, no-cost solution to a common problem," she said.

Stacey Long Simmons, director of public policy and government affairs at the LGBTQ task force, said the absence of dignity and safety for transgender and gender-nonconforming people is an issue. She said that transgender men and women often cannot use the bathroom of the gender they identify with and also are turned away from the restrooms they are allowed to use.

"Trans women wanting to access a female restroom are told, 'No, you don't look like the kind of female we want in our restrooms,' " she said.

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A Washington-based study from the Williams Institute found that transgender people's negative experiences in public restrooms have a negative impact on their education, employment, health and participation in public life. In that study, 58 percent of respondents said they had avoided going out in public because of the lack of safe restroom facilities and 54 percent reported health problems related to avoiding public restrooms such as dehydration and infections.

Some bills have targeted transgender people. In December, Jim Tomes, a Republican state senator from Indiana, proposed a bill that would prohibit transgender people from using bathrooms and locker rooms that do not conform to their gender at birth. The bill would send offenders to jail for a year and fine them as much as $5,000.

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The Houston Equal Rights Ordinance, which protected transgender people from discrimination, was rejected by voters last year. Houston Mayor Annise Parker, who is gay, blamed the rejection on a campaign with the slogan "No Men in Women's Bathrooms."

Gina Olson, a member of the restroom project and associate director at the Center for the Study of Gender and Sexuality at University of Chicago, said there are other practical reasons for gender-neutral restrooms: Sometimes the line for one bathroom is long, while there's no line for the other, creating a circumstance where people are waiting for no reason.

"The biological sex of someone is no longer a measure of whether they should use a bathroom," she said. "It's a basic issue of belonging, safety and equality."

mmccall@tribpub.com

Twitter @MatthewMcCall_
The mother of Sandra Bland angrily addressed a meeting of the Chicago Police Board Thursday night, accusing law enforcement officials of withholding information from the families of victims of possible police misconduct and prolonging their pain.



"Let's stop criminalizing the victim," Geneva Reed-Veal told the eight board members and interim Police Superintendent John Escalante.



Reed-Veal said she still has questions about her daughter's death in police custody last summer in Texas. "There's still no answers six months later," she said in a sharp tone. "What you all see here is pain. That's what this is. Pain."



Sandra Bland, who had lived in Naperville, died July 13 in the Waller County Jail near Houston, three days after she was arrested during a traffic stop that turned confrontational.



She was later found hanging from a plastic trash bag in her cell and her death was ruled a suicide. The case has attracted national attention, fueling the controversy about how African-Americans are treated by police.



Family members have questioned the arresting officer's actions and have said they don't believe Bland killed herself. They have also been critical of prosecutors for not sharing evidence in the case.



The Texas state trooper who arrested Bland has been charged with misdemeanor perjury, an offense her family has called a slap on the wrist.

The mother of Sandra Bland, Geneva Reed-Veal, spoke at Thursday night's Chicago Police Board meeting. (Jeremy Gorner / Chicago Tribune)

"We're dealing with this lifelong pain that you can't take a picture of," Reed-Veal said. "You can't record it. You can't send it off to the side and put it in the sunlight and snapshot it.



"But we're asked to be patient," she said. "We're asked to wait for years, months ... while (the police) are allowed to do all what they want to do. They're on administrative leave. Our people aren't on administrative leave. They are gone."



The meeting initially drew a crowd of more than 100 people at Chicago Public Safety Headquarters, but shrunk as the 90-minute meeting progressed. Reed-Veal spoke for a little over three minutes shortly before the meeting ended, flanked by her lawyer Cannon Lambert.



Reed-Veal called for authorities to be more transparent with families.



"If you talk about peace in the community, keeping the peace in the neighborhood, you have to understand that there can be no peace if we can't even get the pieces of information that we need to find out what happened to our family members," she said.



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Lambert noted that board members are seeking public comment on what kind of candidates should be considered for the next police superintendent.

He recommended that the new top cop make it clear that officers will be prosecuted for lying about a case.



"What happens in our city ... when there is a lie that is told in court, it is overlooked and there is no charge that's issued," he said. "So in the event that you change that and make it a felony, those things will change. Because no officer is going to want to step to the plate for a person they know did wrong."





jgorner@tribpub.com

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A handful of Wheaton College professors elected by their faculty peers have called on the west suburban school to vacate the administrative leave and proposed termination of their colleague who said Muslims and Christians worship the same God.

In a letter sent Wednesday, the college's faculty council told its peers that it had unanimously recommended withdrawing the suspension and halting termination proceedings of tenured professor Larycia Hawkins "due to grave concerns about the process."

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"The only way forward is to go back to the beginning where this whole thing started with Larycia," said Gary Burge, a professor and New Testament scholar, and member of the faculty council. "My own feeling is that the college will find the courage to rescind the leave of absence."

But at a listening session for faculty convened by college President Philip Ryken on Thursday, faculty said they did most of the listening and heard mostly talking points from administrators.

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"There was a lot of frustration," said psychology professor Michael Mangis. "It was really us listening to them and their statements of how they hoped that their relationships and trust could be restored. But they didn't choose to follow the faculty council's admonition to reverse their decision."

The agenda, set by the faculty council, included a discussion of whether the college has a position on what can be said regarding whether Christians and Muslims worship the same God, and a process for determining acceptable interpretations of the statement of faith, 12 evangelical beliefs that all Wheaton professors must sign and live out. Ryken and Provost Stanton Jones also were asked to address how faculty will know in the future whether their statements could be deemed unacceptable by administration.

Although the council has not sought a facultywide endorsement of its recommendation, tenured professors who want a vote could call for one Tuesday during a regularly scheduled faculty meeting.

Hawkins said she continues to pursue reconciliation "for the sake of both my students and my colleagues, and the latter especially because they could be subjected to the same lack of due process that I have been subjected to."

"I feel strengthened by the fact that the recommendation itself was unanimous from the faculty council," Hawkins said Thursday. "There appears to be some clarity among the faculty that the college has abrogated its own procedures."

Earlier this month, before students returned to campus from winter break, Jones took the first step toward firing Hawkins, a political science professor who expressed her support for Muslims unfairly targeted after the Paris terrorist attacks by wearing a Muslim headscarf until Christmas. The college said it took issue with her explanation on social media, not the gesture itself.

"I stand in religious solidarity with Muslims because they, like me, a Christian, are people of the book," she posted on Facebook, along with a photograph of herself in a hijab. "And as Pope Francis stated  we worship the same God."

According to the private evangelical college, not clarifying what makes Christianity distinct from Islam put Hawkins in conflict with Wheaton's statement of faith.

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As part of the termination process, Hawkins is expected to attend a Feb. 11 hearing with the college's faculty personnel committee, an elected body made up of nine tenured faculty members. The committee will hear testimony and evidence from both sides and make a recommendation to Ryken regarding Hawkins' tenure. Ryken then will make a recommendation to the Wheaton College board of trustees.

Neither the faculty council resolution nor a potential faculty vote would be binding. In fact, the college said in a statement Thursday that the administration "respects the viewpoints of its Faculty Council" but stopped short of saying it would consider its recommendation.

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"President Ryken and the Faculty Council have discussed a review of current policies and processes, with a view to addressing or clarifying areas of concern," the statement said. "However, Dr. Ryken has also asked Faculty Council to understand that the Faculty Personnel Committee hearing is the method through which the particulars of Dr. Hawkins' personnel matter will be addressed."

Mangis said he left the faculty forum Thursday feeling discouraged.

"The whole thing was administration-speak," he said. "I felt kind of handled."

Burge said he sincerely believes everyone came to the gathering with good intentions, but the administration "could have gone further to alleviate grave faculty concerns."

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"I've known the leaders of this college for 22 years," Burge said. "They are people of good will. We faced a theological question we had never seen and we responded too quickly. Now everybody is simply trying to find a way out. I don't hear language of recrimination. I hear language of reconciliation."

mbrachear@tribpub.com

Twitter @TribSeeker
Welcome to Clout Street: Morning Spin, our weekday feature to catch you up with what's going on in government and politics from Chicago to Springfield.

Topspin

It's Friday, Jan. 22, the day Chicago Public Schools is expected to provide more details about layoffs.

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Word first surfaced Thursday in an unorthodox fashion.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel's press shop is known for trying to keep tight control on information, especially when and how bad news is released. But rarely do you get a firsthand glimpse of how they do it.

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A Chicago Tribune reporter ended up with an email that provided a primer on how it works. A CPS spokeswoman sent an email to district CEO Forrest Claypool and other top staffers about the layoff news would be rolled out. Here's what it said:

Attached you'll find the first draft of materials we'll use to communicate publicly about the layoffs Friday. They include:

PUBLIC STATEMENTS

------ statement for Thursday night when news leaks about the Fri morning meetings

------ statement for release Friday morning with broad overview of layoffs

------ description of materials to be released Friday EOD (Editor's note: End of Day)

Here's the short version of what that means: Leak to reporters Thursday night. Offer broad strokes Friday morning. Don't provide actual details until late Friday. That, of course, would give journalists less time to report on the story, and by late Friday afternoon, many of the sources they need become harder to reach headed into the weekend.

What's on tap

*Mayor Rahm Emanuel will give a speech at the Illinois Mentoring Partnerships awards breakfast. Looks like he'll take reporters questions afterward.

*Gov. Bruce Rauner has no public schedule.

What we're writing

*What's going on with the revamped Rauner this week, anyway?

*CPS layoffs coming Friday.

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*New Blackhawks practice facility clears hurdle.

*Ex-Redflex CEO on the stand again, says she had no direct proof of cash bribes.

*A look at CPS' finances and how the district might muddle through.

*Judge tosses civil case against one of two Chicago cops sued in police shooting.

*CTU's Karen Lewis hints at economic concessions in contract talks.

What we're reading

*Would gladly trade higher gas prices for some of our 401(k) back.

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*What's on the new Illinois quarter?

*The higher purpose of Drake's "Hotline Bling" has been found.

From the notebook

*Madigan beats Cullerton to the punch: House Speaker Michael Madigan got to send a subtle message to his counterpart on the other side of the Capitol as Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner declared he had struck a pension deal with Senate President John Cullerton. In the aftermath of Rauner's Thursday morning news conference, it was not immediately clear whether the governor was correct that an agreement had been reached. As reporters waited for Cullerton's office to put out a statement to clarify things, Speaker Madigan's team went ahead and did so. And offered a helpful bit of advice on how the Senate president should feel on the issue.

"The governor said today that in exchange for negotiating on pension reform, he will continue to demand changes that will drive down the wages and standard of living of middle-class families. Despite the Governor's desire to drive a wedge between Democrats in the House and Senate, neither President Cullerton nor I will agree to make changes proposed by the Governor that will hurt the middle-class families of our state."

There's always been some natural tension between the House Democrats and the Senate Democrats, and Cullerton has had to battle perceptions in his caucus that he's beholden to Madigan. Cullerton used to serve on Madigan's House leadership team before moving over to the Senate and working his way up. Madigan's statement probably doesn't help Cullerton on that front. Rauner has been trying to pit the leading Democrats against each other in an attempt to push his so-called Turnaround Agenda.

*Quinn resurfaces for Noland in IL-8: Former Gov. Pat Quinn endorsed the nomination of state Sen. Mike Noland of Elgin in the March 15 Democratic primary for the 8th Congressional District.

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"Mike is one of the good guys. I've known Mike Noland for a long time, and he has always had a strong moral compass. That's the kind of leader we need in Congress," said Quinn, who was defeated in 2014 by Rauner.

Noland, in a statement, said, "Having Gov. Quinn's support means the world me."

The endorsement at a VFW Hall in Elk Grove Village was an attempt to garner support from progressives for Noland. He faces Schaumburg businessman Raja Krishnamoorthi and Villa Park Village President Deb Bullwinkel in the west and northwest suburban race.

The current congresswoman, Democratic Rep. Tammy Duckworth of Hoffman Estates, gave up the seat to seek the party's nomination for the U.S. Senate. (Rick Pearson)



*Rotering backing in IL-10: Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering has gotten the endorsements of the Democratic organizations in Moraine, New Trier and Northfield townships in the 10th Congressional District Democratic race.

"I am honored to have the strong support from these three critical organizations within the 10th Congressional District. Their endorsements are very much appreciated and show significant momentum in our people-powered campaign," Rotering said.

Rotering and former U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider of Deerfield are seeking the March 15 nomination to take on Republican U.S. Rep. Bob Dold of Kenilworth in the North Shore congressional district. (Rick Pearson)

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*Equality Illinois CEO stepping down: Bernard Cherkasov, who joined Equality Illinois in 2009, will be leaving as chief executive officer later this year.

Equality Illinois is an advocacy group for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Illinoisans and is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.

Cherkasov played a major role in the campaigns to legalize civil unions and marriage equality in Illinois. He will remain as the group's CEO while a search for a successor is launched, the organization said. (Rick Pearson)

*The Sunday Spin: On this week's show, Tribune political reporter Rick Pearson will discuss Gov. Rauner's CPS proposals with Democratic state Rep. Rob Martwick of Chicago, an advocate of an elected school board. Also on the show, Tribune reporters John Chase and David Heinzmann will discuss their reporting on Mayor Emanuel, the Chicago Police Department, the Laquan McDonald video and the U.S. Department of Justice investigation. The "Sunday Spin" airs from 7 to 9 a.m. on WGN-AM 720.

Follow the money

*The Illinois Education Association's political arm gave $40,400 to Democratic state Sen. Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant of Shorewood. The three-year lawmaker is running against Republican Michelle Smith of Plainfield in November.

*Track campaign contribution reports in real time with this Tribune Twitter account: https://twitter.com/ILCampaignCash

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Beyond Chicago

*Presidential race, Republican side: Bush blame game begins.

*Presidential race, Democratic side: The former president asserts himself in Clinton campaign strategy.

*Check out NYT's poll graphic for Iowa and New Hampshire.

*Putin "probably approved" spy's death by radiation.

*Panic on the streets of D.C. (snow).
Days after Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner called him out as a "failure" on critical issues, Mayor Rahm Emanuel said his onetime ally should show as much energy in finding solutions to problems facing the state as he has in name-calling.

Emanuel's comments came Friday as he was out publicly for the first time since returning from a Washington, D.C., trip to a national mayors conference.

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On Wednesday, Rauner said Emanuel was a failure on public safety, job creation and other serious difficulties in Chicago, as the governor amps up his rhetoric in the lead-up to his State of the State address next week. On Thursday, the governor also said he had a deal worked out with Senate President John Cullerton, D-Chicago, on pension reforms, a claim Cullerton denied.

"I wish he had as much energy in challenging the problems that face the state as he does use in challenging people and calling them names," Emanuel said Friday. "Look, the governor can be his own worst enemy, and can't seem to get out of his own way as yesterday showed and as relates to the pension issue. ... I think yesterday illustrated that when it comes to trying to build the relationships, the trust to work on a serious issue  and I compliment him for trying to take the issue on  he has become and becomes his own worst enemy and can't get out of his own way."

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The public name-calling between the two old friends who vacationed and did business together has intensified this month as the Springfield budget stalemate drags on and the financial problems at Chicago Public Schools worsen without the state assistance that Emanuel needs to plug giant budget holes there. As he has in the past, Emanuel on Friday tried to paint himself as the political realist with an understanding of how negotiations work, and to contrast that with what he says is Rauner's counterproductive focus on ideological attacks.

"I don't think calling people names, attacking them  my one recommendation, if he wants one is, rather than attack people, attack the problems," Emanuel said while talking to reporters after a breakfast with a mentoring organization. "And don't do it in a way that destroys the ability, because these are big challenges and tough enough, that makes it tougher for people to try to work with you and try to reach an agreement."

jebyrne@tribpub.com

Twitter @_johnbyrne
Greek Coast guard officers stand outside their vessel at the port of Kalymnos island on Jan. 22, 2016. A wooden sailboat earlier sank off the islet of Kalolimnos near Kalymnos. (Dimitris Drosos/Kalymnos-News.gr via AP)

ATHENS, Greece  The death toll in Europe's migration crisis rose Friday when two overcrowded smuggling boats foundered off Greece and at least 46 people drowned  more than a third of them children  as European officials remained deeply divided on how to handle the influx.

More than 70 people survived, and a large air and sea search-and-rescue effort was underway off the eastern islet of Kalolimnos, the site of the worst accident. It was unclear how many people were aboard the wooden sailboat that sank there in deep water, leaving at least 35 dead.

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Coast guard divers were due to descend to the sunken wreck early Saturday, amid fears that more people had been trapped below deck.

At least 800 people have died or vanished in the Aegean Sea since the start of 2015, as a record of more than 1 million refugees and economic migrants entered Europe. About 85 percent of them crossed to the Greek islands from nearby Turkey, paying large sums to smuggling gangs for berths in unseaworthy boats.

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Rights groups said the deaths highlight the need for Europe to provide those desperate to reach the prosperous continent's shores with a better alternative to smuggling boats.

European policy toward its worst immigration crisis since World War II has diverged wildly so far. Germany  where most are heading  has welcomed those it considers refugees. Other countries, led by Hungary, have blocked or restricted them from entering and resisted plans to share the burden of refugees.

"These deaths highlight both the heartlessness and the futility of the growing chorus demanding greater restrictions on refugee access to Europe," said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International's Europe and Central Asia program director.

"A manageable crisis has become a moral test that Europe is in danger of failing dismally," he said.

The U.N. refugee agency said daily arrivals on the Greek islands have surged to more than 3,000 in the past two days, and it cited refugee testimony that smugglers have recently halved their rates amid deteriorating weather conditions.

"It is tragic that refugees, including families with young children, feel compelled to entrust their lives to unscrupulous smugglers in view of lack of safe and legal ways for refugees to find protection," said Philippe Leclerc of UNHCR Greece.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel met Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Berlin and pledged to continue to work intensively together not only to stem the flow of people but to improve conditions in camps in Turkey and to try to bring about a peace deal in Syria.

"The refugee crisis is not Germany's crisis, it is not Europe's crisis, it is not Turkey's crisis," Davutoglu said in a news conference with Merkel. "It is a crisis that was born out of the crisis in Syria. If we cooperate, we can bring this crisis under control. If we throw the issue at each other, solving this issue will become more difficult."

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Germany saw an unprecedented 1.1 million asylum-seekers arrive last year, many of them fleeing conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Turkey hosts more than 2.2 million Syrian refugees from a nearly five-year civil war that has killed a quarter of a million people and displaced half the country. Peace talks are scheduled to begin Sunday in Geneva, although officials say they might be delayed by a few days.

Davutoglu praised Merkel for her open-door stance, saying the steps she took "will go down in history. The people of Syria will never forget this humanitarian stance."

European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini warned that the 28-nation bloc faces big economic risks if its members start putting up walls that restrict borderless travel.

"We are doing studies of that, and it is impressive," she said, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

But Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who last year built fences on his nation's borders with Serbia and Croatia, praised Austria for setting a cap this week on the numbers of refugees it will take.

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"Common sense has prevailed," Orban said on state radio, calling the Austrian decision "the most important news of the past months."

"Europe can't take in huge masses of foreign people in an unlimited, uncontrolled manner," he said, adding that for Hungary, "the best migrant is the migrant who does not come."

Greek authorities say neighboring Macedonia has again stopped letting in refugees heading north from Greece, leaving about 750 people stranded on the border. There was no official explanation for the move late Friday, and Macedonian authorities were not immediately available for comment.

In the first sinking before dawn Friday in the eastern Aegean, a wooden boat carrying 49 people went down off Farmakonissi islet. Forty people managed to make it to shore, while authorities rescued one girl and recovered the bodies of six children and two women.

A few hours later, a sailboat sank off Kalolimnos, south of Farmakonissi. The coast guard rescued 22 men and four women, and recovered 35 bodies: 17 women, seven men and 11 children.

One survivor told APTN that the vessel's engine failed about 3 a.m., five hours after they left Izmir, Turkey. Speaking at a reception center on the nearby island of Kalymnos, he said about 80 people on board had paid $2,500 each for a berth, with half that sum for children.

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Later, Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency said the Turkish coast guard rescued six survivors from the area of the two accidents and found another three bodies.

Associated Press
No, no, no. These noisy implosions weren't supposed to happen. Conspirators of both major parties figured their costly Illinois model of government would lurch along forever, enabled by doe-eyed taxpayers oblivious to such a marvelous, self-serving scheme.

Now, though, reality has intruded. As a result you hear the percussive boom, boom, boom of public entities that politicians unwittingly set up to fail. The state government in Springfield, rocked by decades of financial bumbling. Chicago Public Schools and Chicago City Hall, ditto. Public pension funds, perhaps none more imperiled than those for Chicago police and firefighters. Drowsy suburban and downstate local governments still awakening to their astonishing debts and retirement obligations. Universities unaccustomed to balancing costs and productivity. School districts whose boards often are elected by, and serve at the pleasure of, their own employees.

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The Illinois model lies broke and broken. But for decade upon decade, running Chicago and Illinois must have been sweet. Mayors, legislative leaders and go-along governors  the R or D behind their names meant little  rarely made trouble for one another. To this day aging members of that incestuous Illinois political class describe one another as "someone you could work with." Of course you could. When everyone's profiteering except chumped taxpayers and needy people doomed to shabby services  or, in CPS' notorious case, to shabby educations  why would anybody make strange?

And if a few politicians ruffled an occasional feather  Gov. Dan Walker or, until he got his nose realigned by a certain House speaker, Gov. Jim Edgar  Illinois never had a chief executive who rebuked the Illinois model. Rebuked the quasi-Ponzi scheme in which politicians used rising revenue for their new spending rather than to reduce taxpayers' debts.

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At the rotten core of Illinois governance lurked this big lie: If you ran a city or a school system or a statehouse, you perpetually could force Tomorrow to pay for Yesterday and Today. Each mini-generation  a new mayor or governor, a new cohort of legislators, a new county board  could spend and borrow and force their children to pay for it all.

The most egregious example was the pension legislation that today's top legislative leaders, House Speaker Michael Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton, and many others helped enact. In return, they got campaign labor and money from public sector union leaders.

We've written that, over the past four-plus decades, many of the folks who run our state and local governments signed suicide pacts, spectacularly unaffordable retirement deals that left too little money for the services those governments provide. Often when these deals were cut, the public officials and the union leaders were, in effect, seated on the same side of the negotiating table, holding hands. The pols knew they were creating someone else's problems. When the devastating costs came due they would be gone, out of office, retired. Collecting fat pensions.

As a result, Illinois government is a massive retirement system that, during work hours, also offers some services. In the past we've synthesized the infuriating Illinois model into one tidy parable:

This page complained when then-Gov. James Thompson, his successors and state legislators gave pension sweeteners to public workers. One 1991 editorial reported that after years of pension fund erosion, Thompson and lawmakers had agreed to a new funding formula to put the retirement plans on firmer footing. Then they simply ignored the plan, failed to appropriate enough money to back up their pledge  and also increased benefits for retired state workers. To quote the editorial: "Thompson, meanwhile, got a deal that doubled his own pension."

Madigan, Cullerton, Edgar, Thompson, Mayor Richard M. Daley and all the rest  they don't confess their complicity in the financial ruination of Chicago and Illinois. They don't confess that they overplayed their hand. In their plot twist on "Groundhog Day," the magic is that history starts anew every morning: They want no consequences for their sorry decisions over decades of yesterdays.

The one consequence of their decisions that the architects of the Illinois model most strenuously reject is a first-term governor named Bruce Rauner. Angry voters sent him to repudiate much of what they've done in long political careers.

The architects fool no one. Employers wise to Illinois' tax and debt burdens go elsewhere. Rating agencies question whether this city and state can cash-flow such massive pension and other obligations. The pols watch, helpless, as credit downgrades extort taxpayers by raising the interest costs of all this borrowing.

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Who knows, maybe Rauner someday will go native. But for now he's forcing politicians to confront a notion those angry voters endorse: Illinois governments, overspent Springfield and overborrowed CPS included, won't get more moolah until they help shape a new Illinois model. Rauner plainly wants a greater return on investment for taxpayers  and less access to levers of power for the cozy insiders who profit from the dereliction of both parties.

We understand why the pols who resist reforms are in denial. Why they want no consequences for their broke and broken Illinois model. Why they pretend history starts anew every morning.

But it doesn't. The implosions of Illinois governments have become too numerous, too costly for taxpayers to ignore. Building a new Illinois model will take years. It barely started when fed-up citizens chose their new governor in 2014.

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @Trib_Ed_Board and on Facebook.
Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, left, pauses as he delivers his State of the State address on Jan. 19, 2016. (Al Goldis / Associated Press)

A year ago, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder chose an unfortunate metaphor to launch his second term in office. During his state of the state address in January 2015, the Republican governor shared his vision for bringing all Michigan residents into a "river of opportunity."

Clearly, he didn't mean the Flint River, which was the source of a health emergency that has grown over the past 21 months and turned into an appalling political scandal that reaches the governor. Call it Snyder's "river of failure."

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By the time the embattled governor delivered his 2016 State of the State address Tuesday evening, he had already admitted that the crisis in Flint, where contaminated tap water from the river has caused widespread lead poisoning and possibly an outbreak of Legionnaires disease that has killed 10 people, was a failure of his leadership.

For many of the 99,000 residents of Flint, a struggling industrial town about 70 miles northwest of Detroit, the state's slow response to the crisis has sparked outrage and calls for the governor's resignation.

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Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 27 Former Michigan State Police Inspector Ellis Stafford, left, and Jeff Seipenko, special agent for the Michigan attorney general, sit in court with arrest warrants in their hands on April 20, 2016. (Rachel Woolf / The Flint Journal)

The troubles began in 2014, when Flint, under the leadership of a state-mandated emergency manager, opted to switch the city's water source to the Flint River from a Detroit-operated pipeline from Lake Huron, a move that would save an estimated $5 million over two years while the city waited to connect to another, new pipeline back to Lake Huron.

The switch sparked immediate complaints from residents who were alarmed by the brown, smelly water flowing from their kitchen faucets. Soon after, local doctors noticed a spike in children coming in with unexplained rashes and hair loss. After more than a year of complaints  and repeated reassurances from local and state officials  a Flint pediatrician presented blood tests that revealed an alarming increase in the number of toddlers with high levels of lead in their systems, which can cause permanent brain damage, since the water source switch.

The city was being poisoned.

It turns out that state regulators had failed to require Flint to properly treat the river water, which was more corrosive than the Lake Huron water the city used to pipe in. The corrosive water running through Flint's aging lead pipes caused the metal to leach into the city's tap water. Growing evidence of toxic water was ignored  some allege it was covered up  by state and local officials, as well as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

There has been plenty of blame to go around. In Michigan, it has stretched from the governor to the Genesee County drain commissioner.

Lead-contaminated water flowed for more than a year in Flint, which finally stopped sourcing its water from the river in October. The water flowing through the city's lead-leaching pipes is still considered undrinkable, though.

So much damage has been done it's difficult to determine which piece of this man-made disaster is most egregious.

Is it the original decision to tap the Flint River? Well, yes. That's what started this mess. As the Detroit News reported Thursday, emails released by the governor's office show a former state treasurer made "the ultimate decision" to let Flint leave the Detroit water system, acting on a request from Flint officials.

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But the cascade of red flags, bad decisions and government inaction since then has endangered tens of thousands of people and is expected to cost the state more than $1.5 billion to fix.

Angry residents say Snyder should've acted sooner to address health concerns and ensure Flint had safe water. The governor didn't publicly acknowledge the problem until October, more than a year after the first complaints.

Relief is coming, slowly, to the people of Flint, who have become dependent on bottled and filtered water for bathing, cooking and drinking  an unheard-of way of life in the United States, where clean, potable water is expected. In recent weeks, the state has stepped up efforts to help Flint. The National Guard is distributing clean water. The Obama administration granted $5 million in federal emergency funding, but denied the governor's request for a more sweeping federal disaster declaration.

The most damning lesson from the emails released by the governor is that for months no one at any level of government owned this disaster. No one created a sense of urgency to save Flint. It was too convenient to think of it as someone else's responsibility, until it was too late. Until the adults and children of Flint had lead coursing through their bodies.

"I'm sorry most of all that I let you down," Snyder said Tuesday, so heartfelt, and so appallingly late.

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @Trib_Ed_Board and on Facebook.
Sarah Palin, former Republican vice presidential candidate and former Alaska governor, endorses Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Jan. 19, 2016, during a rally at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. (Mary Altaffer / AP)

Can this presidential election year get any weirder?

Reality seems to have run off the rails. Let me count the ways:

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In the "How Can We Miss You If You Won't Go Away" Department: Sarah Palin is back, much to the delight of comedy writers everywhere. (I'm talking about you, Tina Fey.) And she's stumping for  who else?  Republican front-runner and fellow former reality TV star Donald Trump.

Yes, this is the Grand Old Party's former vice presidential candidate, who endorsed Trump's closest opponent, Sen. Ted Cruz, in 2012 in Cruz's runoff as a tea party-backed insurgent against establishment-backed Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst.

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Now Palin is treating Cruz in much the same way she treated Alaska in 2009 when she walked away from the governorship after serving three years of her four-year term.

Cynics immediately speculated as to how much the billionaire Trump paid Palin for her endorsement. I think it was plenty reward enough for her to be back on the national stage where, as she put it in her rambling announcement speech in Ames, Iowa, "media heads are spinning."

Actually, media heads that I know sound delighted by the boost that Palin and Trump, love 'em or hate 'em, give to the size of our audiences.

And those Democrats who are not petrified by the thought of a "President Trump" are delighted to let him and his pal Palin take attention away from their own heated divisions over self-described "democratic socialist" Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont catching up to centrist front-runner Hillary Clinton in early state polling.

I told you this was a weird election year. But, wait, there's more:

In the "Chickens Come Home to Roost" Department, we find Palin's "spinning heads" rising in the deep thinkers of the GOP and the conservative movement.

As Palin was talking in Iowa, the conservative National Review magazine published a special issue headlined "Against Trump" and featuring more than 20 conservative thinkers, leaders and commentators, including David Boaz of the libertarian Cato Institute, editor William Kristol of the Weekly Standard and David McIntosh, president of the Club for Growth, all calling for the GOP to nominate someone other than Trump.

"The (party's) establishment is AWOL, or even worse," said National Review editor Rich Lowry, "so it's up to people who really believe in these ideas and principles, for whom they're not just talking points or positions of convenience, to set out the marker."

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The irony for those of us who have long memories is in the magazine's famously deep-thinking founder William F. Buckley's immortal quote that he would rather be "governed by the first 2,000 names in the Boston telephone directory than  the 2,000 faculty members of Harvard University."

Be careful what you wish for. Buckley's sarcasm has manifested itself in the rise over the past half-century of a right-wing populism  from George Wallace in the 1960s to Pat Buchanan in the 1990s and today's tea party movement in the Age of Obama  born out of backlash against not only liberals but also moderation within the GOP itself.

In the "Hooray for Our Tribe" Department, the Republican Party that usually decries "identity politics" by the left struggles in the grip of its own tribal divisions. Identity politics is more than race, gender or ethnicity politics. It is in defense of a way of life and a way of viewing the world that has Trump's brigades banding together as an alliance of the angry and aggrieved.

Ever since Trump entered the race, he has been called a Conservative-In-Name-Only by George Will and other prominent thinkers on the right  and they've been right. The same is true of Palin, whose identity as a small-town "real American" always has been more cultural than political or intellectual.

So what if she handles speeches as though English were her second  or maybe third  language? Like a jazz musician or rap star, she knows how to connect with her audience, which she described in her rambling speech as "right-wingin', bitter clingin', proud clingers of our guns, our God, and our religions, and our Constitution."

She gives voice to others who, like her, feel persecuted, disrespected and exploited by the GOP and other "establishments." Trump and Palin are only letting their audiences have what the establishmentarians failed to think was important.

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Clarence Page, a member of the Chicago Tribune Editorial Board, blogs at chicagotribune.com/pagespage.

cpage@tribpub.com

Twitter @cptime
Students Collette Vacha, Katherine Swerbenski and Jennifer Rosauer work in class at the Illinois Math and Science Academy in Aurora earlier this school year. (Sarah Freishtat / The Beacon-News)

The state-funded Illinois Math and Science Academy in Aurora has spent nearly seven months eyeing its expenses and stretching the limited amount of money it can access while the state has no budget.

But by the end of March, IMSA President Jose Torres said, the selective, residential high school might owe more money to the companies that provide it supplies and services than it has in its accounts if money doesn't start flowing again from the state.

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Though Torres said the school will likely weather the budget stalemate in the immediate term, the school will "be really in deeper trouble" by the end of March.

"We are at a critical, critical point," he said.

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The school, based in Aurora, draws applicants from across Illinois and receives most of its funding from the state, which has had no approved budget since the fiscal year began in July.

Because of the way it's funded, it is in a similar situation to the state universities that recently painted dire pictures of their futures without a state budget, said state Rep. Linda Chapa LaVia, D-Aurora, a member of the state higher education appropriations committee and a candidate for Aurora mayor. But unlike the universities, she said, IMSA cannot charge full tuition but instead assesses fees that vary based on the student's situation.

The school is "a totally different" kind of high school, and the state is known for IMSA and the caliber of students it produces, she said.

"This is the livelihood of these children," she said.

Torres said the school receives about 80 percent of its funding from the state, while universities often get less. The school has about $2.5 million  much of that raised through student and program fees  in other pots of money it can access even without a state budget, he said. Some of that was only made available in December.

The largest of those pots of money is going toward paying the school's bills, which Torres said the school has been putting off until they are overdue and the vendors threaten to stop providing services. The school asks the companies to be patient, Torres said.

School teachers, staff and administrators are classified as state employees and are getting paid by the state. But the uncertainty affects morale, he said.

The school has had a hard time filling vacancies that Torres described as "critical." The executive directors for facilities and fundraising and a position for corporate giving remain vacant. New people have been hired, only to leave days or months later for more certain jobs, he said. An applicant for one position had agreed to take the job, but then backed out.

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Though Torres said the school has tried to protect student programs, some students have come to his office worried about rumors they've heard, which he tries to dispel.

The school had already increased some class sizes and cut about 15 positions, mostly outside the classroom, in preparation for the expected budget, which was to include cuts from the previous year.

Still, he said, students are applying to come to IMSA next year, and he expects a competitive class about the same size as previous years.

"Our students have been resilient," Torres said. "Our staff have been resilient."

Some IMSA parents, such as Oswego residents Monica and Herb Crum, said that though a shutdown doesn't seem imminent, they are concerned about what might happen in the future. Their daughter, Monique, is a sophomore at the school, the first year students are generally accepted.

Her decision to attend the school was carefully thought out and affected the entire family, Monica Crum said. If the school shut down, she said, she doesn't know how she would explain to her daughter why she can't return.

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"It would break my heart if she couldn't go back," she said.

In that worst-case scenario, students would have to return to their home schools, where the math and science courses offered might only be at a level they've already passed, Torres said. Seniors' college application status would be affected, as would the school's reputation, he said.

He tries not to think about that scenario, he said.

sfreishtat@tribpub.com

Twitter @srfreish
Trainer Tanya Mikolajcyzk works with a dog Jan. 19, 2016, during a Superdog Obedience class offered through the Frankfort Square Park District and taught in a converted Lincoln-Way North High School barn in Frankfort. (Allen Cunningham / Daily Southtown)

Without board approval, Lincoln-Way Community High School District 210 spent nearly $45,000 on renovations to house a Superdog training program that the current superintendent acknowledges has "no student benefit," records and interviews show.

School officials transformed a barn on the district's North campus into a space fit for a dog training center in late 2011 and 2012, invoice records show. The Superdog Obedience school, led by a trainer who has worked with former Superintendent Lawrence Wyllie and his Australian shepherds, still holds classes at the barn.

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Current Superintendent Scott Tingley said the school board didn't know about the expenses or approve them, and distanced himself from the decision to renovate the barn for Superdog by saying "it's not something I would've done as a superintendent."

"Some things that were wrong, we are trying to correct. The dog facility has no student benefit," Tingley said. "It's a community program.  We are making the best of a difficult situation and are recouping the money that was initially invested."

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Wyllie, who led the district from 1989 until he retired in 2013, signed off on at least two of the invoices involved in the project, records show.

To critics, the school district's Superdog renovation represents a broader trend of questionable financial management that contributed to District 210 landing on the state's financial watch list. In an attempt to fix its financial woes, the school district announced last year that it's closing Lincoln-Way North this summer.

"The absurdity of the Superdog situation is that dogs will still be able to attend class at Lincoln-Way North, but children will not," said Steve Eberhardt, the attorney representing the community group.

The controversial Superdog program is still housed at Lincoln-Way North, but it is now run by the Frankfort Square Park District, which took over the 2-year-old dog training program in May 2014 at Tingley's request, according to Park District Executive Director Jim Randall.

Since then, Superdog has brought in about $76,165 in revenue, split mostly between the trainer and the school district, records show. Randall said he doesn't know if the program will remain at North once the school closes but praised the program as being positive for the community.

I am under the superintendent's authority ... and if the superintendent says this is what you're doing, this is what you're doing.  Paul Gonzalez, former building and grounds director

Superintendent's authority

The barn that houses Superdog is across the road from the North field house, tucked in a spot that seems unlikely for a dog training facility. About half the space in the large, brown metal pole barn is dedicated to the dogs; the other half is used for storage by the district.

There are small, welcoming touches in the barn, with numerous photos of dogs and sayings  "Love, Laugh, Wag" and "My Dog is my Heart."

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In 2011 and 2012, District 210 spent $16,000 on an air regulation and ventilation system, $23,240 on a bathroom trailer and $5,530 buying floor mats for the facility, records show.

The bathroom trailer serves not only program participants but also maintenance staff, and anyone using the high school, officials said.

Former Superintendent Wyllie signed two of three invoices related to the barn renovation, while another was signed by former building and grounds director Paul Gonzalez, who said Wyllie told him to get quotes related to the project.

"I am under the superintendent's authority  and if the superintendent says this is what you're doing, this is what you're doing," Gonzalez said in an interview. "You don't ask questions  too many questions, anyway."

Lawrence Wyllie, then superintendent of Lincoln-Way Community High School District 210, sits inside the chapel at St. Francis Woods in late 2002 in Frankfort. (John Dziekan / Chicago Tribune)

On the Superdog website, Wyllie is shown with his Australian shepherd, Duke, on a page honoring "Canine Good Citizen Superstars" from 2012, when Wyllie was still superintendent.

Wyllie also receives numerous mentions on the school's "New Brags" page.

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Lincoln-Way North's principal at the time of the renovations, Michael Gardner, said he doesn't know how the project came about and wasn't consulted.

"That's all I knew about it, is the fact it was a program that existed after school hours at night, they were at the back part of the pole barn, out in back somewhere," Gardner said. "I didn't get involved with that."

Superdog's instructor, Tanya Mikolajczyk, declined to be interviewed and referred questions about the program's history to the Park District. Randall, the Park District's executive director, said he can answer questions only about the program since the district got involved in 2014.

'Hugely popular'

The dog training classes, which run three evenings a week, are "hugely popular," according to Randall.

From May 2014 through December 2015, the program has generated about $76,165 in revenue, records the Park District released show.

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Of that, $46,788 went to Superdog's instructor, about $20,608 went to District 210, about $4,210 went to the Park District's scholarship program for graduating seniors, and about $4,558 went to maintenance, according to the Park District.

Randall said the Park District has paid $20,000 to Lincoln-Way because the district built the facility.

"This facility will be paid for in a couple of years. There were costs upfront, but in the long term, it will pay for itself," Randall said "It was unused space that is now making money for the district."

When the facility "first opened in 2012," Randall said, the Park District discussed running the program but "Lincoln-Way staff decided they could handle it."

The Park District is better equipped to deal with the registration, staffing, insurance and maintenance, and "we can reach more people," Randall said.

Critics of the dog training center have seized on a letter Randall sent to Superdog trainer Mikolajczyk. In the letter, Randall wrote, "the facility is available for your private training and will always be available for Dr. Wyllie's use. As of the park district assuming responsibility/liability for this offering  any other dog utilizing the school facility would need to be a paid program participant."

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Wyllie has "always paid for his programs," Randall said.

Daily Southtown Twice-weekly News updates from the south suburbs delivered every Monday and Wednesday >

Randall defended Wyllie and the facility from critics and said Wyllie "did not build it as a place for his pets."

"A lot of things Wyllie did was for the benefit of the community," Randall said, citing the use of the North auditorium for the Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra and the senior concert series. The public also is allowed to use all of the high school pools, fitness rooms and tracks.

"The dog facility fits in with all of that. He saw this as a resource to the community, like the IPO," Randall said. "The school district has operated as a resource for everyone. That's what everyone loved about Lincoln-Way. People who would normally never visit the high schools are using them."

Gregory Pratt and Susan DeMar Lafferty are Daily Southtown reporters. Alicia Fabbre is a freelance reporter.

gpratt@tribpub.com

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An Elgin woman is headed to prison for 13 years after pleading guilty to two counts of felony aggravated driving under the influence, according to a Kane County state's attorney's news release.

Cheri L. Bookman, 48, on Thursday agreed to the sentence in the Illinois Department of Corrections in exchange for a guilty plea on two separate DUI cases  her fifth and sixth, the release stated.

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Prosecutors said Bookman struck a vehicle while driving in the 1500 block of Mark Avenue, Elgin, on Jan. 4, 2015. The driver of the car she struck spoke with Bookman and noted that she appeared intoxicated, the release stated. Bookman then fled the scene, and the other driver called 911. Bookman was later found by Elgin police at a home where she was staying, according to the release.

Police noted that Bookman continued to drink vodka during their conversation, and she acknowledged she had been drinking vodka all day, prosecutors said. The other driver identified Bookman as the driver of the car that struck his car, prosecutors said. Bookman was arrested and charged with DUI and was released on bond after serving one day in jail.

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On Aug, 2, 2015, Elgin police saw Bookman driving the wrong way on Chicago Street, which is a one-way street, the release stated. Police stopped her and noted a strong odor of alcohol on her breath. When the officer returned to his vehicle to seek more information about Bookman, she fled in her vehicle, prosecutors said. She soon crashed into a guardrail at Chicago and State streets, crawled through the passenger-side window of her car and fled on foot into a wooded area, according to prosecutors. Police immediately found her and charged her with DUI. Her blood alcohol content was 0.247, the release stated.

Bookman's four prior DUI offenses were in 2001 (twice), 2002 and 2008 in Jefferson and Cook counties, the release stated.

According to Illinois law, Bookman is eligible for day-for-day sentencing. She receives credit for at least 172 days served in the Kane County Jail, where she has been held in lieu of $75,000 bail, prosecutors said.
Breakthroughs will be made in steel and coal sectors in reforms of traditional industries, along with China's efforts to cultivate new growth engines, the Chinese premier said on Wednesday.

It is crucial to make a good start for the 13th Five-Year Plan period, according to a statement released after a symposium of the State Council, chaired by Premier Li Keqiang, to discuss key work for this year.

"Steel and coal sectors should take the lead in cutting overcapacity, digest unreasonable inventories, reduce costs and improve efficiency," he said.

China must fully assess current challenges and risks, as prices of international commodities continues dropping, economic performances in key economies are growing different and adjustments of macro-policies have brought new uncertainties, he said.

On the other hand, China's economic fundamentals are still healthy, and new dynamics from new industries and new businesses keep growing stronger, said Li, calling for enhanced confidence to promote development.

He urged boosting structural reforms, especially supply-side structural reforms, and innovate the ways of adjustment to ensure the economy operates within a reasonable sphere. China will accelerate the cultivation of new growth engines -- a key aspect of supply-side structural reforms -- and encourage entrepreneurship and innovation, according to Li.

He expected the creation of new and effective supply to better adapt to structural upgrade of demand.

China will repair "short slabs" in sectors such as agriculture, service, infrastructure, environmental protection and social undertakings, according to Li.

Transfers between new and old growth engines are of "dialectical unity," as new growth engines, if fully grown, can create a lot of jobs to help receive employees in the traditional sectors and upgrade the traditional sectors, while reforms of traditional sectors can invigorate dormant resources to provide space for the development of new engines, Li said.

Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli also attended the meeting.
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This file photo shows mainland tourists in Taiwan. (Photo/Xinhua)

Taiwan has become one of the most popular travel destinations for mainland residents during the winter holiday season thanks to an increase in the quota allowed for tour groups.

The island's tourism authority has raised the daily quota from 5,000 a day to 8,000 between Nov 21 last year and Feb 19 to cope with the growing demand for travel during Spring Festival, which falls on Feb 8.

The authority raised the quota for tour groups several times in 2014 and allowed visits by tourists from more mainland regions. Residents in 47 mainland cities can now visit Taiwan as individual tourists.

As cooperation has strengthened between the two sides, cross-Straits tourism has boomed in recent years.

Zhang Hui, public relations representative at online travel agency Ctrip, said the raised quotas had led to a 50 percent increase in customers to Taiwan so far this year compared with last year.

In 2015, more than 4 million mainland tourists visited Taiwan, surpassing those from Japan to become the biggest spenders.

Taiwan's Economic Daily News reported on Jan 10 that each mainland traveler spent on average $232.15 a day in the first three quarters of last year, higher than the average of $221.45 spent by Japanese.

It is the first time that mainland tourists have taken the top spot since Taiwan opened up its group tourism to these visitors in 2008, and to individual mainland tourists in 2011.

Taiwan and mainland residents need visa-like entry permits for cross-Straits visits.

Ni Yongjie, deputy director of the Shanghai Institute of Taiwan Studies, referring to Taiwan's leadership election last weekend, said, "The mainland has always encouraged cross-Straits exchanges and cooperation, before or after the island's political transition."

"I hope the new (Taiwan) government can consider the traveling demands of people from both sides and continue to launch favorable policies."
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Chinese Premier Li Keqiang held a telephone conversation Thursday with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on further strengthening bilateral ties and seeking solutions to the ongoing Syrian crisis.

After exchanging New Year greetings with Merkel, Li spoke highly of the progress made in strengthening Sino-German ties last year, vowing to maintain high-level exchanges with the country and enhance pragmatic cooperation in various areas.

In particular, China will strive to achieve tangible results in the conjoining of China's "Made in China 2025" and Germany's Industry 4.0 strategies, and actively build partnerships with markets in third-party countries, he said.

The premier noted that the two countries will continue to closely cooperate and coordinate in international affairs. He said the fourth round of China-Germany inter-governmental consultations to be held later this year would inject fresh impetus into the deepening of Sino-German ties and cooperation.

Li also urged Germany to push for the European Union (EU) to fulfill as scheduled the commitments reached in China's WTO Accession Protocol signed in 2001 to properly settle trade disputes between China and the EU. He expressed the hope that Germany would continue playing an active role in pushing forward the negotiations in China-EU investment agreements.

Merkel agreed that notable progress have been made in Sino-German ties and cooperation in various fields last year. Germany is ready to work with China on better conjoining the development strategies of the two countries and enhancing pragmatic cooperation in various fields including exploring third-party markets.

The German chancellor said she was looking forward to her upcoming China visit for the fourth inter-governmental consultation, which she will co-host with Li. Germany is ready to do its part to push forward China-EU relations and cooperation, Merkel said.

On the humanitarian situation in Syria, Premier Li said China has been closely watching Syria and has been delivering as much humanitarian assistance as possible to the country.

It is a common responsibility of the international community to ease Syria's humanitarian situation, Li said, urging the international community to work closely together to find a fundamental solution for Syria through a political settlement with multi-pronged approaches.

The premier also called for support from various sides for the United Nations in its leading role in mediating and pushing for peace talks among relevant parties, so as to end the crisis in Syria and allow Syrian refugees to return to their homeland as early as possible.

Merkel said the international community highly values and appreciates China's efforts to help alleviate Syria's humanitarian situation. She expressed the hope that China would maintain its constructive role on the issue. Germany is willing to strengthen cooperation with China to seek solutions to the Syrian crisis, the chancellor said.
 Flash

Kenya's military said Thursday its soldiers who are pursuing Islamist militants after last week's attack in southern Somalia have killed the militants' senior commander.

Chief of Defence Forces General Samson Mwathethe told journalists in Nairobi that Maalim Janow was killed in a Kenya Defence Force (KDF) airstrike.

Mwathethe also said the insurgents who are allied to Al-Qaida network used sophisticated weapons loaded with explosives and suicide bombers to attack military bases belonging to the Somali National Army and the KDF, killing an unknown number of troops and captured others.

He said the force of the explosion was three times more than the August 7, 1998 terrorist bombing in Nairobi which killed over 200 people and left more than 5,000 others maimed.

Mwathethe stated that, despite the intensity of the attack, KDF soldiers stood ground and tried to repel the Al-Shabaab, who attacked in three waves.

Al-Shabaab claimed to have killed 100 KDF soldiers and captured 12 of them who are being used as human shield.

The militant group frequently exaggerates the number of troops/civilians they massacre, while African Union mission (AMISOM) rarely gives exact tolls.

Reports from Somalia indicate that the military elite squad, who are highly trained to handle explosives, had to go slow on the mission owing to the danger it posed.

"The safest option was to send in ground troops, we mobilised troops from Mandera, Elwak and Wajir who embarked on a 10-hour movement to reach the concentration area in Damasa. The anti-aircraft guns were positioned at a school in El-Adde and this posed danger to our response teams," Mwathethe said.

The military chief said the insurgents who have been waging daring attacks on the AU peacekeeping mission in the Horn of Africa nation has been receiving funding and logistical support from other international terrorist organisations to carry out the Friday attack.

Mwathethe who has constituted a board of inquiry to investigate the circumstances leading to the attack said the first reinforcement to rescue the injured soldiers arrived at the camp three days after the incident.

"The investigations teams are in full control of the area and would finish the search and rescue mission later today," he said, noting that attempts to provide reinforcement to the soldiers using aircrafts was rendered impossible since the militia had two anti-aircraft guns situated near a school.

He dismissed media reports that the soldiers had prior intelligence on the Al-Shabaab attack at El Adde in Somalia.

"We received the first report of the attack at 06:13hrs on Jan. 15. Attempts to contact the Sector Two commander were futile since the enemy had probably destroyed communication," Mwathethe said.

Kenya has more than 4,000 troops in the 22,000-strong AU force in Somalia helping the UN-backed government battle Al-Shabaab, which is part of the Al-Qaida allied terror network.

Kenya is currently engaged in the fight against the militia group in southern Somalia where it has been registering impressive gains and extending humanitarian assistance to the local population.

Al-Shabaab has however, vowed reprisal attacks in the country, mainly targeting security forces in border towns of northern Kenya where dozens of people have been killed in landmine and grenade attacks blamed on the militant group.
Associated Press

By Didi Tang

Jan. 22, 2016 11:32 AM EST

 Beijing (AP)  A Chinese journalist who said he was fed up with a life as a government informant and fled China last year has been missing from Thailand since Jan. 11, his wife said Friday, raising concerns he might have been abducted by Chinese agents.

He Fangmei said she last spoke to her husband, Li Xin, when he was riding a train from Bangkok to Nong Khai in northeastern Thailand. She said she fears the journalist was taken back to China.

Li, formerly a website editor for a Chinese media group, fled last October to India, where he told The Associated Press that he could no longer bear working as a secret informant for the Chinese government. He later traveled to Thailand.

Lis wife said he was planning to seek asylum before he went missing.

The journalists vanishing is the latest in a string of disappearances of China-related activists in Southeast Asia that have raised suspicions of Chinese government involvement.

Last October, Hong Kong publisher Gui Minhai suddenly disappeared from his apartment in Pattaya, a Thai beach resort. Gui reappeared this week on Chinese state TV, where he said he returned to China to turn himself in for an old crime. His friends insist Gui was forcibly taken away.

Four other people connected to the same Hong Kong publishing company, which sells books banned in China about Chinese politics and politicians, have disappeared.

One of them, Lee Bo, said he returned voluntarily to mainland China in notes to his wife, but supporters believe he was kidnapped and smuggled to the mainland.

Beijing also took back the teenage son of a detained rights lawyer after he fled from China to Myanmar.

After arriving in India, Li, 37, revealed that he was an informant for the government. He said he was coerced into gathering information about fellow activists and journalists after the government detained him for sharing information with the rival Taiwanese government and threatened to imprison him.

In this photo taken on Friday, Nov. 20, 2015,

Chinese journalist Li Xin poses for a picture in

New Delhi, India. A Chinese journalist who fled

the country last year has been missing from

Thailand since Jan. 11, his wife said Friday, Jan.

22, 2016, raising concerns that he might have

been abducted by Beijing. He Fangmei said she

last spoke to her husband, Li Xin, around 7:40

a.m., Jan. 11, when he was riding a train from

Bangkok to Nong Khai in northeast Thailand.

She said she fears the journalist was taken back

to China by Chinese security forces.

(AP Photo/Saurabh Das)

Li began his activism when he set up a website devoted to building civil society in 2007. The next year, he signed the 08 Charter, a pro-democracy document written by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo. The document landed Liu an 11-year prison sentence on a conviction of inciting to overturn the state, and many signees went on the governments blacklist.

An active member of Chinas circle of activists, Li worked as an opinion editor for the website of the influential newspaper Southern Metropolis.

Compelled by a desire to change China, Li said he fed information to the Taiwanese government about Chinas control of the Internet, although Taiwans foreign ministry declined to verify Lis claim.

Li said he attracted the attention of state security, who asked him to be an informant. After he provided no useful information, Li said he was detained in June 2013 for involvement with Taiwan and had to cave in or risk going to jail.

But he said he was still reluctant to report on other activists and journalists.

I was very fearful. They could drag me back (to jail) anytime, Li said in an interview in New Delhi. I did not want to work for them, but I felt I had no choice.

I believe there are many people like me who are working on behalf of the authoritarian government. But I cannot be one of them, Li said.

Untold numbers of informants help Chinas government keep tabs on anyone who may pose a threat to the regime, a task authorities have pursued more intensely under President Xi Jinping than they have in decades.

Last year, six Canadian citizens who are members of the Chinese ethnic Uighur Muslim minority told the Globe and Mail newspaper that they were detained while visiting China, blackmailed and bribed by Chinese authorities to spy on activists sympathetic to the Uighur cause in Canada. Uighurs in China have long complained of discrimination and suppression of their religion and culture.

___

Associated Press writer Muneeza Naqvi in New Delhi contributed to this report.
China Aid

By Brynne Lawrence

(Hangzhou, ZhejiangJan. 22, 2016) The local Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM) and China Christian Council (CCC) in Chinas coastal Zhejiang province released a notice detailing the forced removal of a pastor from his position at Chinas largest government-approved church on Jan. 18.

So as to move one step closer towards the proper self-construction and management of church locations by the two Christian organizations in Hangzhou [], promote the normal circulation of the principal Christians in charge of churches and sort out the interpersonal relationship between the province and [the local TSPM and CCC].

The TSPM and CCC stated in the notice that their reasons for dismissing Gu Yuese, the senior pastor of Chongyi Church in Hangzhou and chairman of the Hangzhou Municipal CCC, were: 

The notice can be read in full below, along with a personal statement from Gu and his wife, Zhou Lianmei, who teaches Bible-based classes at Chongyi Church.

China Aid exposes religious freedom abuses, such as those experienced by Gu Yuese, in order to promote religious freedom and rule of law in China.







Hangzhou Municipal Chinese Christian Three-Self Patriotic Movement Committee

Hangzhou Municipal Chinese Christian Council





Notice Regarding the Personnel Change of the Senior Pastor of Hangzhous Chongyi Church

Two Christian organizations in Hangzhou [2016] No.1

Municipal churches:

The routine meeting of the two Christian organizations chair committees [has reached] a researched decision that the following personnel changes will be effective from this day forward, so as to move one step closer towards the proper self-establishment and management of church locations by the two Christian organizations in Hangzhou, promote the normal rotation of the principal Christians in charge of churches and sort out the interpersonal relationship between the province and the two municipal [Christian] organizations, as is according to the requirements of the relevant provincial and municipal [government] departments:

The chairman of the provincial Chinese Christian Council, Gu Yuese, will no longer work as the senior pastor of Chongyi Church in Hangzhou.

The vice-chairman and temporary secretary-general of the Hangzhou Chinese Christian Three-Self Patriotic Movement Committee, Pastor Zhang Zhongcheng, will serve as the senior pastor of Chongyi Church and take charge of all the work.

Sincerely,

Hangzhou Municipal Chinese Christian Three-Self Patriotic Movement Committee

Hangzhou Municipal Chinese Christian Council

















A Message from Pastor Gu Yuese and Zhou Lian Mei [Gus wife]

Peace to the beloved [Christians] of Chongyi Church! Soon, a rare freezing, cold will befall Hangzhou; please, everyone must rely on the Lords grace to be healthy. Chongyi Church is also experiencing unprecedented, chilling trials. Everyone must equally rely on the Lords grace to confront [this hardship] and triumph over it. Thank you for the deep, loving concern you have showed to the two of us recently as a married couple! We are so touched and will engrave this on our hearts. Through prayer, we decided to cancel all [events in which we] go out to do ministry in the coming days in order to pray, try to understand Gods decrees and draw from his grace. We will go through thick and thin with Chongyi Church! Regardless of how the situation will be after this, we will inevitably continue serving at Chongyi Church if there is no other guidance from the Lord himself! Of course, the manner [of service] may change, but our love of the Lord and his flock will never change, because we are the Lords servants! Thank God! Increasingly, we feel Gods good intentions in this storm. It will refine every impurity in our ministry team to the greatest extent and compel us to love the Lord and people more purely. People in Chongyi Church will worship the only true God! Christians from Chongyi Church must, by all means possible, adhere to a pure faith! Those in charge must [ensure] that the many Christians [at Chongyi Church] comply with the [legal] statutes! Pray for each other! Jehovah Nissi [Editors Note: This is a Hebrew expression, meaning, The Lord is my banner]! Jesus lives forever!

Servants of the Lord, who love and are loved by you,

Gu Yuese and Zhou Lianmei
Radio Free Asia

2016-01-21

 Authorities in the northwestern Chinese region of Xinjiang have jailed a Han Chinese rights activist for 19 years on subversion and spying charges after he openly criticized government policy in the troubled region.

Zhang Haitao was handed a 15-year prison term for incitement to subvert state power and five years for providing intelligence overseas by the Intermediate Peoples Court in Xinjiangs regional capital, Urumqi.

He will serve 19 years in total in a sentence that one overseas rights group described as extraordinarily harsh.

His wife Li Aijie, who was informed on Jan. 18 of the courts decision and had just given birth to the couples baby son, told RFA she was stunned by the sentence.

I am really just in a state of shock right now, Li said. I just went and kicked up a huge fuss at the court, calling them shameless.

Even shameless people should have some limits, she said.

Li said she had expected a sentence of perhaps 2-3 years, based on the jail terms of six years handed down to prominent rights lawyers Pu Zhiqiang and Guo Feixiong.

Now they have sentenced my husband to 19 years in prison, she said. This government acts without reason. Is it just because he is in Xinjiang?

Do they hand out heavier sentences in Xinjiang?





Critical articles online

Zhang was accused of incitement to subvert state power after he posted articles online that were critical of Beijings record in Xinjiang, home to the mostly Muslim Uyghur ethnic group, and where hundreds have died in a string of violent incidents in recent years.

Xinjiang-based rights activist Zhang Haitao is shown in an

undated photo.

Photo courtesy of an RFA listener

The court said it had handed down a longer jail term because Zhang had colluded with overseas organizations.

According to the Chinese Human Rights Defenders (CHRD) network, which collates reports from rights groups inside China, such a lengthy jail term is usually only used in cases where the defendant is the ringleader of a subversive group.

By comparison, jailed Nobel peace laureate Liu Xiaobo is service an 11-year sentence, while other prominent dissidents have received sentences of between seven and 10 years on the same charge, CHRD said in a statement on its website.





Weak evidence

Zhang was initially detained on June 26, 2015 on suspicion of picking quarrels and stirring up trouble, but the charges against him were later changed to the more serious subversion and spying charges.

[This] suggests weak evidence against the activist and even the possibility of a coerced confession, CHRD said.

It said Zhang had frequently posted online his opinions critical of government policies and comments on current events, and gave interviews to overseas media, as well as writing articles for a human rights website.

These activities have been cited in the court verdict as evidence for providing intelligence overseas, which stipulates a sentence of not more than five years if the circumstances are minor, CHRD said.

Heavy sentences

Zhangs lawyer Li Dunyong said he too was shaken by the length of the sentence.

I had guessed maybe 11 or 12 years, Li Dunyong said. But here in Xinjiang, a lot of things are unpredictable.

Its like an independent kingdom out here, not like the rest of China, and  they hand down heavy sentences to Uyghurs and Han Chinese alike here.

The charges were basically based on stuff he wrote online; there wasnt much evidence otherwise, he said, rejecting the spying charges.

Hes just a regular guy, Li Dunyong said. Where would he get his intelligence reports from?

He said he had advised Zhang to lodge an appeal.

Reported by Lin Jing for RFAs Cantonese Service, and by Xin Lin for the Mandarin Service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie.

China Aid Media Team

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Radio Free Asia

2016-12-19

 Detained rights activist Wu Gan, known by his online nickname The Butcher, has suffered torture while being held under investigation in a police detention center in the northern port city of Tianjin, his lawyers have complained after visiting him last week.

Wu Gan, 42, was initially detained in the eastern province of Jiangxi last year and handed a 10-day administrative sentence before being placed under criminal detention on suspicion of picking quarrels and stirring up trouble, libel, and incitement to subvert state power.

The libel charge was later dropped and his case transferred to Tianjin, making it likely that he is being treated as part of a nationwide crackdown on lawyers and rights activists that began July 9, 2015 with a raid on the Beijing Fengrui law firm.

Wu Gan stages protest outside Jiangxi High Court, May 19,

2015. Photo courtesy of Boxun

His lawyers Ge Yongxi and Yan Xin said he had been tortured following a meeting with Wu at the Tianjin No. 2 Detention Center.

In a complaint filed to the Tianjin municipal state prosecutors office, Yan wrote that Wu had been interrogated more than 300 times since his incarceration began.

Wu Gan has been subjected to illegal treatment during his detention, the complaint said.

It said Wu had been repeatedly and illegally held in solitary confinement, tortured, and deprived of his right to complai and to access legal advice.

The complaint called on the prosecutors office to investigation the allegations, to find out which departments and individuals are responsible.

Nothing to add

Ge declined to comment when contacted by RFA recently, however.

I have already released the information I am able to release, and I have nothing else to add, he said.

Calls to Yan Xins phone rang unanswered on Sunday.

A friend of Wus, who asked to remain anonymous, said his treatment was in line with that meted out to other detainees in the crackdown on lawyers, including rights attorneys Li Heping and Wang Quanzhang.

He said the fact that Wu had finally been allowed a visit from his lawyers suggests the authorities may have run out of ways to stall his case.

His case has been sent back for further investigation on a number of occasions, probably because he refuses to confess to the charges against him, the friend said.

They have now exhausted all the procedural options open to them under Chinese law, and on top of that, there is the pressure of international public opinion, he said.

Torture widespread

Guangdong-based rights activist Ye Du said the use of torture and other forms of mistreatment to elicit confessions from political detainees has become widespread for dissenting voices in China in recent years.

Pretty much all of the big political cases now use these methods on the victims, Ye said. They have already had the trials of several others who were forced into making confessions.

Its easy to imagine the sorts of torment they must have been put through in order to [confess], he said.

It says a lot that Wu Gan has been able to withstand it, and he deserves our respect for that, Ye said.

Fellow rights activist Zhuang Lei said many people have been deeply angered by the reports of Wus mistreatment in detention.

Civil society is very angry about this torture, which is a serious violation of someones fundamental human rights, Zhuang said.

Performance protest

Wang was initially detained by police during a performance protest he titled Selling my Body to Raise Funds in Nanchang city in eastern Jiangxi province.

He was trying to help finance a legal defense for Huang Zhiqiang, Fang Chunping, Cheng Fagen, and Cheng Lihe, who were jailed in Jiangxis Leping city for robbery, rape, and dismembering a corpse.

The four received suspended death sentences in 2000 that were later commuted to jail terms, but their lawyers and rights activists say their confessions were obtained through torture, and that the men are victims of a miscarriage of justice.

Meanwhile, the official media has hit out at Wu for his criticism of the police shooting of a man at a railway station in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang in May 2015.

Wu likely drew the ire of authorities by expressing doubts online over the credibility of the governments investigation of the killing, rights groups have said.





Reported by Hai Nan for RFAs Cantonese Service, and by Xin Lin for the Mandarin Service. Translated and written in English by Luisetta Mudie.

ChinaAid Media Team

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By Megha Rajagopalan and Sui-Lee Wee

Fri Jan 22, 2016 5:35 am EST

 A Chinese court has jailed a well-known rights activist for 19 years on state security charges, including supplying intelligence abroad, as the leadership widens a crackdown on rights lawyers that has triggered international condemnation.

Zhang Haitao, a rights activist based in the troubled western region of Xinjiang who wrote online postings critical of the ruling Communist Party, was jailed for inciting subversion of state power and illegally supplying intelligence abroad, said his lawyer, Li Dunyong, by phone.

Li added that the evidence for the latter charge might amount to nothing more than accepting phone interviews with foreign journalists.

The sentence was very severe, but its normal for that region of the country, he said.

The court could not be reached for comment.

Human rights lawyer Wang Yu talks during an interview with

Reuters in Beijing in this March 1, 2014 photo.

Reuters/Kim Kyung-Hoon/Files

A second rights activist, Li Xin, has been missing for 10 days after leaving Thailand for Laos with the hope of returning to Thailand to apply for political asylum, said his wife, Shi Sanmei.

Li, a former writer for the Southern Metropolis Daily, a respected semi-independent newspaper, arrived in Thailand from India on Jan.1 and boarded a train to the northeastern border town of Nong Khai where he tried to enter Laos, said Shi.

When I heard he had gone missing, I was very shocked, said Lis friend, Liu Xuehong, a Thailand-based activist. I think hes in danger now and has probably been arrested.

Shi said Thai police refused to accept her report of her husbands disappearance, asking her to contact the Chinese embassy.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei, asked about Lis disappearance, said he did not understand anything about him or about the relevant situation. He did not elaborate.

Police General Dechnarong Sutticharnbancha, Thailands national police spokesman, said he had no knowledge of Lis case.

Public concern has risen in Hong Kong in recent weeks that a Hong Kong-based bookseller, Gui Minhai, has been abducted in the Thai seaside town in Pattaya. Gui, who worked for a publisher specializing in gossipy political books on Chinese Communist Party leaders, went missing along with four other associates.

Gui and a Swedish NGO worker named Peter Dahlin both appeared on Chinese state television this week confessing to crimes. The confessions have sparked criticism from western governments and rights groups, who have said the confessions were likely forced.

Chinese authorities have detained Dahlin, the 35-year-old co-founder of the Chinese Urgent Action Working Group, on suspicion of endangering state security. The organization worked with Chinese human rights lawyers.

Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom told Swedish news agency TT on Friday it was unacceptable to put Dahlin and Gui on television.

It is an unacceptable behavior and we are using all our diplomatic contacts to try to get as much information as possible, Wallstrom told TT.

The U.S. Department of State also expressed concern about the coerced confessions on Thursday.

Asked about the State Department criticism, Chinese spokesman Hong said foreign countries have no right to interfere on the relevant issue.

(Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard, Jessica Macy Yu and Michael Martina in Beijing, Panarat Thepgumpanat in Bangkok and Daniel Dickson in Stockholm)

China Aid Media Team

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BANGKOK - Thailand would like to see more Chinese investment in the kingdom's high-tech industries, including automotives, electronics, biofuels and petrochemicals, which are also the Thai government's target industries, Thailand's Minister of Industry says.

A lot of opportunities await Chinese enterprises here in Thailand, especially in the Special Economic Development Zones (SEZs) as Industrial Clusters, which focus on value-added activities and less labor-intensive industries, Atchaka Sibunruang said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua.

Incentives like corporate income tax exemption and income tax reduction for certain periods are granted to projects in these SEZs.

Recent years have seen numerous large Chinese companies investing in automotive, rubber tiers and renewable energy, which are considered to be high-tech industries in Thailand, the minister said, citing Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation, Linglong Tires (Thailand) Co Ltd and Zhongli Talesun Solar (Thailand) Co Ltd as examples.

"We would like to see more Chinese investment in these areas," Atchaka said, adding that many Chinese companies currently have advanced technologies in some of Thailand's target industries.

Given the zero-percent tariff rate among ASEAN members, which results from the building of the ASEAN Economic Community, Chinese companies can use Thailand as a base to sell products to other ASEAN countries, she added.

Chinese investment in Thailand has increased obviously over the past few years, which is spread in many kinds of businesses, including agricultural products, mineral and ceramics, light industry and textiles, metal products and machinery, electronics and electrical appliances, and infrastructure construction, according to the minister.

In the first 10 months of 2015, investment capital from China exceeded 12 billion baht ($335 million), making China the fourth largest source of foreign direct investment for Thailand, after Japan, Singapore and Indonesia, official figures showed.

The next target businesses to stimulate investment from China to Thailand consist of machinery and equipment, medical equipment and parts, rail and mass transit, bio-technology, software and other related industries, Atchaka said.

Thailand has planned to upgrade its infrastructure and improve connectivity with other ASEAN countries, which creates opportunities for Chinese investment, the minister said.

Development of railways, ports and roads, she stressed, will better connect Thailand with neighboring countries and help facilitate investment and trade between China and ASEAN.

Last December, China and Thailand kicked off a railway project in central Thailand's Ayutthaya province, which will be Thailand's first standard-gauge double-track railway line.

The 845-km line, which will use 1.435-meter standard gauge with trains operating at top speeds of 160-180 kph, will pass through 10 Thai provinces and link with the China-Laos railway.

The railway project will help facilitate investment in the SEZs, improve transportation of goods between Thailand and China, and enhance connectivity among China, Thailand and other ASEAN members, the minister commented.

She also spoke approvingly of China's Belt and Road Initiative, saying it would "complement Thailand's industrial development policies," and bring direct and indirect benefits to Thailand, a country advantageously located at the center of ASEAN.

The China-spearheaded Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, she added, could provide financial support for the upgrading and development of infrastructure both in Thailand and the region as a whole, which would contribute to the sustainability of economic development.

Given the great relationship between China and Thailand, and supportive economic policies of both governments, the trade and investment cooperation between the two countries "will certainly be strengthened in the future," Atchaka noted.

Moreover, she stressed the need to build platforms for small companies from China to align with Thailand's small and medium-sized enterprises.

"It's easier for Chinese investors to settle down here if they partner with Thai companies. Meanwhile, Chinese companies enjoy technological advantages, which could also benefit their Thai partners," she said.

She suggested newcomers from China study Thai laws and consult Thai government officials before making investment decisions, and learn from the successes of experienced Chinese investors in Thailand.
A crew member speaks on a radio as new vehicles are unloaded from the Topeka vehicle carrier at the car terminal in the Port of Piraeus, operated by Piraeus Port Authority SA, in Piraeus, Greece. [Photo/Agencies]

Greece agrees to sell 67% of Piraeus port to COSCO Shipping for $402 million

Though Chinese companies have been stepping up the pace of mergers and acquisitions in global markets, they need to have a clear strategy, effective implementation procedure and the necessary capabilities to handle big-ticket deals, experts said on Thursday.

The comments came close on the heels of Chinese conglomerate China COSCO Shipping Co Ltd's decision to pay 368.5 million euros ($402 million) for a 67 percent stake in the Greek port of Piraeus. The deal, long in the works, got bogged down due to the political problems in Greece.

COSCO Shipping will pay 22 euros a share for the Piraeus stake, according to the Athens-based Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund, a privatization agency owned by the Greek government. The Chinese firm was asked to sweeten its offer last week after it emerged as the sole candidate for the stake.

COSCO Shipping already runs container operations at two piers in the Piraeus port. International firms like APM Terminals, owned by Danish shipping conglomerate AP Moller-Maersk A/S and Philippines-based port operator International Container Terminal Services Inc were also in the fray, but dropped out of the race due to the inordinate delays.

COSCO Shipping officials in Beijing did not comment on the deal and said that it was conducted by its unit China COSCO Holdings Co.

Wang Zhile, a senior researcher at the Beijing-based Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, said the biggest issue with deals like the Piraeus one is the cumbersome nature of the business.

"Operating ports in foreign countries is not an easy task and Chinese shipping and port operators must deploy more resources and manpower to understand overseas commercial, political and legal environment, as well as profitability models," he said.

Global consultancy Boston Consulting Group said the biggest challenge for Chinese firms pursuing M&A deals is poor communication and coordination. Since decision-making power in many Chinese companies is concentrated at the headquarters, the due diligence team in the field faces challenges in communication and coordination of internal and external resources.

Chen Yingming, executive vice-president of the Shanghai-based China Ports and Harbors Association, said despite the difficulties and the uncertain global economic environment, COSCO Shipping's investment in Piraeus port will bolster China's Belt and Road Initiative.

The initiative, proposed by President Xi Jinping in 2013, includes the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, and covers about 4.4 billion people in more than 60 countries and regions.

"The deal will help attain the goal of building Piraeus port into a bigger port of call for the China-Europe shipping route," said Chen.

With a capacity of handling more than 3.7 million 20-foot-equivalent container units in 2014, Piraeus port has become an important partner for multinational giants such as US electronics company Hewlett-Packard Co and Chinese networking major Huawei Technologies Co and ZTE Corp in Europe, Northern Africa and the Middle East.

COSCO Shipping will invest another 300 million euros once the deal is sealed within five years to improve and upgrade infrastructure facilities at the Piraeus port.

Outbound M&A deals rise in 2015

Outbound merger and acquisition activities were the main investment option for Chinese companies in overseas markets last year, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

Companies from China conducted 593 M&A deals worth $40.1 billion in 2015. This included the purchase of a nearly 60 percent stake in Italian tire producer Pirelli & C SpA by China National Tire and Rubber Co Ltd, the biggest outbound acquisition by a Chinese firm in 2015.

Shen Danyang, spokesman for the ministry, said the surge in outbound M&A deals can be attributed to a host of developments that have taken place both outside and inside China.

Within the country, a relaxed policy environment, abundant cash reserves and a rising private sector have spurred Chinese companies to learn from their foreign rivals and seek bargains overseas via M&A.

With China's business influence rising, a growing number of foreign companies in developed countries are now keen to partner or work with Chinese companies.

Shen said the focus of China's outbound M&A activities has shifted from State-owned enterprises seeking natural resources to deals with an eye on growing market share and core capabilities.

There has been fewer deals in energy and resources, and more in industrial and consumer goods, finance, technology and telecommunications last year, data from the ministry show.

"Outbound M&A deals are a practical way for Chinese companies to pursue new profit drivers, gain new market access, cutting-edge technologies and even prestigious global companies," said Zhao Zhongxiu, a professor who researches overseas investment at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing.
TORONTO -- Negotiating a Canada-China free trade agreement (FTA) would increase investment, spur exports and create high-value Canadian jobs, according to a new study released in Toronto this week.

The report -- "Chasing China: Why an economic agreement with China is necessary for Canada's continued prosperity" - estimates that a free trade deal would generate Canadian $7.8 billion, or $5.5 billion, in additional economic activity within 15 years, supporting 25,000 new Canadian jobs.

Canada has a huge trade imbalance with China. Total bilateral trade was 63 billion Canadian dollars in the first nine months of 2015, but nearly 49 billion of that came from Chinese imports.

China is rapidly developing an urban middle class of consumers with a taste for fish, wine, pork and other goods produced in Canada. Canadian seafood exports to China alone jumped by 16.2 percent between 2012 and 2013. Demand will only increase, as the Chinese middle class is projected to reach 854 million by 2030.

"If there is an FTA arrangement between China and Canada, you can see a flooding of potash, agricultural products and energy products from Canada to the market of China," a visiting senior Chinese official said in Ottawa.

Tentative trade talks with the previous Canadian government collapsed almost overnight when Ottawa imposed stricter investment rules in 2012 after China National Offshore Oil Corp agreed to purchase Nexen Inc for $15 billion.

Beyond advocating trade negotiations, the study recommends a number of ways to strengthen Canada's relationship with China, including deepening bilateral ties in energy, agriculture and economic sectors.

The study suggests that Canada should join Australia, the United Kingdom, France and other leading economies in signing on to the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, which was initiated by China to help finance infrastructure projects across Asia.

It encourages companies to take advantage of Canada's RMB trading hub, which decreases the cost of doing business between the two countries by directly converting Canadian dollars into Chinese currency.

The study also recommends to launch a bilateral green technology project to link sustainable energy and environmental objectives.

The study points out that Australia, which has a resource-based economy similar to Canada's, launched free trade talks with China in 2005, culminating in an agreement that took effect just in December 2015. The pact will eliminate 95 percent of tariffs between the two countries over the next decade and is projected to generate 18 billion Australian dollars ($12.6 billion) in additional economic activity in Australia.

According to a soon-to-be published survey by Abacus Data, a Canadian polling and market research firm based in Ottawa, most Canadians support building stronger ties to China, with the majority expecting that the bilateral economic and trade relationship will expand over the next 10 to 20 years.

Commissioned by the Canadian Council of Chief Executives and the Canada-China Business Council, the report was written by Laura Dawson and Dan Ciuriak. A specialist in trade policy, Dawson is director of the Canada Institute at the Washington D.C.-based Wilson Center. Ciuriak is former Deputy Chief Economist at the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

"There is no better time to begin crafting an economic engagement strategy that will serve Canadian interests for the next several decades," Dawson and Ciuriak write in their report.

The Canada China Business Council (CCBC) is the country's leading bilateral business and trade organization between the People's Republic of China and Canada and has six offices in both countries. Founded in 1978, CCBC has been the leading voice of Canadian businesses in China for over 37 years and provides the knowledge and connections our members need to succeed in China and Canada.
A police officer pulls over a traffic violator in Beijing recently.[Photo/China Daily]

When they become available, smog-hit Beijing might like to review them. Beijing and New Delhi, besides being national capitals, are comparable in terms of population (22 million and 16 million) and the number of motor vehicles (9 million and 7.5 million).

One-third of Delhi's 3 million cars were off the roads during the trial. Cars with license plates ending in an even number were allowed on even dates, and cars with odd-number plates on odd dates. Vehicles of the emergency services, security and police forces, VIPs, single women and cab services were exempted.

Media reports suggested that, during the trial, hazardous PM2.5 particulates hovered between "very poor" and "severe", well above the World Health Organization-prescribed safe limit. But Delhi claimed pollution eased and the roads were decongested.

Delhi will first study the results of the trial before deciding on its extension. But some media reports suggested a second trial may be conducted any time between March and June, once concerns related to school children's commuting and people buying a second car (like Beijingers did before the 2008Olympics) to circumvent the curbs are addressed.

During the recent Beijing car bans, 112,800 100-yuan ($15) tickets were issued for violations in just four days. In Delhi, offenders were fined 2,000 rupees ($30) each day, earning the local government 4 million rupees by Jan 5. Car owners, it seems, are happy to pay up and get on with life.

Alongside Beijing and Delhi, smog-hit cities in Italy are also restricting car use. But not everyone is applauding. For, just like excessive pollution, strong measures to combat it could entail economic consequences, logistics challenges, popular resentment, even ridicule (Delhi's trial sparked several jokes online).

Carmakers worry any long-term curbs on private cars could hurt an incipient sales recovery. Every day, an average of 1,400 new cars roll on to Delhi's roads.

"Let's not convince ourselves wrongly that a simple odd-even policy will solve the over-all air pollution issue," Arunabha Ghosh, head of the New Delhi-based Council on Energy, Environment and Water, told Agence France-Presse during the trial.

AFP also spoke to Pankaj Mehta, a Delhi resident who drives 45 kilometers to work daily but was forced to adopt a new commute drill. "Rickshaw (three-wheeler taxi), then metro (subway), then feeder bus, then walk, back and forth. A travel nightmare."

Others complained they had to call several cab providers as there were not enough taxis. They reported late for work, canceled scheduled meetings, and complained that their lifestyle was changed thoughtlessly.

To be fair, the Delhi trial saw some 80,000 gasoline or diesel cars converting to clean compressed natural gas, 6.4 million people riding city buses and more using the subway, which is expected to lead to their expansion and modernization.

Yet, given a choice, most car owners, be it in Delhi, Beijing or Rome, would likely prefer their own vehicles to public transport. What then could be a mutually acceptable trade-off for clean air?

How about a new tax on polluting cars, including taxis? Encourage owners of gasoline or diesel vehicles to upgrade to green ones. Until they do, use the tax proceeds to produce long-term solutions to air pollution.

Measures like a pollution tax, driving license auctions and higher parking fees may not be the best or universally acceptable solutions. But bans and fines could spark resentment and jeopardize economic activity.

For instance, civil defense volunteers who implemented the Delhi car ban had to endure abuse, petty altercations and even assaults. An auto industry crisis could erupt due to car bans, during which drops will likely affect employee productivity (due to commute-related stress and delays), fuel sales (down 30 percent in Delhi during the trial), consumer sales (no time for shopping, picnics, weekend getaways) and sales tax revenue.

But vehicles are not the only culprits. In Beijing, coal-burning power plants also pollute. Nearby hills exacerbate the problem by acting as a natural windbreak. Delhi's air is filthy because nearby agricultural fields burn farm waste, massive construction projects produce dust, the western Thar desert spews pollutants, and weather and seasonal changes wreak havoc.

Until cities have adequate public transport and efficient last-mile connectivity, tax, not odd-even bans, might be a preferable solution.
The night view of Royal Philips NV' headquarters in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Dutch electronics giant Philips NV plans to expand its research and development efforts to China, with Shanghai playing a major role in the multinational's global R&D network, especially in the innovation of its car air purifier products.

With the severe smog in Chinese major cities recently, Philips saw phenomenal growth in the sales of its car air purifiers, with its products running out of stock several times. In the past five years, the company witnessed an annual sales growth of about 50 percent for its air purifier products in China.

Now Chinese engineers are playing key roles in the creation of its air purifier products, and the company plans to develop the products where the markets are.

"China is a leading country in many aspects. Ten years ago, a lot of core innovations were developed in Europe. We have turned it around right now, we do the core innovations in China," said Albrecht Kraus, mobility accessories business manager for Philips in China.

"China in particular is an attractive market for growth. Chinese consumers are more and more hungry for meaningful innovations with the right quality and the latest technology," he said.

Air purifier products developed in China are exported to Western markets such as the United States and the United Kingdom, and other Asian markets including India.

As the poor air quality in many Chinese cities has become an even more serious problem, the company created car air purifiers that can indicate the Air Quality Index outside and inside the vehicle, as more consumers are well aware of what the index actually means.

China's air purifier market penetration rate is less than 2 percent, which is far behind the global average. The figure is 40 percent in Europe and the US, 70 percent in South Korea, and 27 percent in Japan, according to China Market Monitor Co Ltd, a leading household appliances market research agency.

By 2020, the market scale of air purifiers in China is expected to reach 150 billion yuan ($22.8 billion), with significant market growth potential.

"Many Chinese are not aware that even when the AQI is 80, we still need air purifiers," Kraus said.

Philips has also released innovative technology to integrate car air purifiers with a smartphone app. With the pre-programmed app, consumers can freely control their air purifiers before they get in their car.

Meanwhile, the firm also unveiled its new vehicle headlight products with the latest LED technology.

China has about 170 million private cars, and about one-third of the vehicles in China have Philips products. The replacement rate for these headlights has reached 30 million annually, the company said.

"The trend in automotive lighting will be a transition toward LED lighting and no decrease in their light over their lifespan, in addition to no maintenance, a better beam and better vision," said Jean-Paul Jacobs, general manager of mobility at Philips China.

Philips' latest LED headlight, which is 150 percent brighter than the traditional standard halogen light, will have white beam that is not dazzling, and it will become the brightest LED headlight in the current automotive aftermarket.
A worker welds at a construction site in Yiliang, Yunnan province, February 28, 2015.[Photo/Agencies]

The fear of continuous slowdown of economy and its reverberations on the capital market are increasingly impacting the world. While many are wondering what is happening in China, some claim that the Chinese economy is too difficult to understand.

China is undergoing economic transformation from an unsustainable mode supported by government investment and export to a sustainable one mainly backed by innovation and domestic demand.

The faster the transition process, the more destruction it will bring to the old sectors representing the old growth model and provide more space to the new sectors representing the new growth model. For some Chinese, it is the winter of despairs; for many others, it is the spring of hopes.

Economists had been calling for and discussing transition for many years but not much happened. Although exports fell after the subprime crisis, government investments rose to smooth the impact of the decline in global demand. The transition finally began in 2015.

According to official statistics released on Tuesday, China's GDP growth rate was 6.9 percent in 2015. Though the figure is much higher compared with mature economies, it is the slowest since 1990.

With such a slow growth, which may just be the start of a continual slowdown, people may worry about China's many problems that were expected to be solved in longer term during fast economic growth, such as overcapacity, possible burst of real estate bubble, possible massive default of local government debt and possible capital flight.

But with the pressure of possible crises, the transition can happen faster. In 2015, the tertiary industry contribution to GDP was 57.70 percent, 7.1 percent higher than 2014's and the consumer spending contribution to GDP was 66.4 percent, astonishingly 15.2 percent higher than 2014's.

The service sector is increasingly becoming the main driver of growth. Moreover, from the third quarter, besides the financial department, a broad category called "other services" -- which include healthcare, education, law, and accounting among others -- unexpectedly became a strong boost of the economic growth.

Since the problems of the old growth mode can occur in a short time and on a big scale, the advantages of a new growth mode only comes slowly, it is a necessary price for the transition that GDP growth rate will gradually slow down.

For 2015, with such an improvement in its economic growth structure, a 6.9 growth rate along with a stable price index and a stable employment rate are well acceptable. In the future, it will be difficult to post double-digit growth in GDP.

There are two reasons for that: on the one hand, the demographic dividend is exhausting, the land resources are becoming expensive and the tolerance to environmental pollution is becoming lower; on the other hand, the contributions of institutional reform and people's innovation increase slowly.

China is also facing middle-income trap. The trap can become true when there is a corrupt government and big difference between rich and poor. But China is different from most other developing countries in both the social system and their people.

China's society is huge and uniform, which can support a big market and nurture great innovations and huge companies. China is lucky to have a strong government to lead the country through the transition, especially when the government's policy is now on the right track - the government on the one hand takes great efforts to combat corruption and on the other hand promote supply-side reform. Chinese, who put more importance on their family, can tolerate a bigger difference between rich and poor, too.

However, China may still maintain a reasonable fast growth in the future years for three reasons. First, China's GDP per capita is still low, which was about $8,000 in 2015. Second, with most people educated, good infrastructure, increasing application of science and technology and an efficient strong government, China is accelerating the transition towards a modern society. Third, Chinese are hard-working people who are eagerly fighting for their better future.

The 2015's data may mean that China is doing a good job in solving its most important problem for China's economic transition -- to remove excess capacity while keeping employment stable.

The government's supply-side reform captures the core of China's economic problems. To remove excess capacity is the first step. In the long run, China needs to find a way to makes enterprise provide products according to the demand of markets. By such a way, enterprises can earn profits, people can find jobs and investors can secure their assets.

While China's old model is driven by government investment and export, the supply-side reform is, as the heart of the new growth mode, a free-market reform.

The essence of well-functioning free market is that enterprises can freely choose their products, prices and customers and compete with each other equally, which means that government needs to withdraw from production activities and focus on providing services such as protecting property rights and curbing illegalcompetitive activities.

It seems that there is still a long way to go for China. China's future is neither much optimistic in the short run nor much pessimistic in the long run. After some rough weather, a bright future will gradually emerge.

The author is a lecturer at the Management School of the Shanghai University and a research fellow at the China Europe International Business School Lujiazui International Finance Research Center. The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
Sinosteel Corporation of China won the bid for the mining rights of the Empresa Siderurgica del Mutun (ESM) in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, on Jan 19.

The ESM is the world's largest iron-ore resource situated 2,000 kilometers (1,243 miles) southeast of La Paz, capital of Bolivia, with gross reserves at 40 billion tons.

Winning six out of seven votes in the last round of bidding, Sinosteel beat its rival, another Chinese enterprise Henan Complant Mechanical & Electrical Equipment Group Co. Ltd (HCME), with overwhelming odds.

According to the steel project carried out by ESM, ore-dressing plants, granulation workshops and plants for direct reduction will be set up in Bolivia, stated Saisaer Nawaluo, Mining Minister of Bolivia.

He added that a steel mill with continuous casting technology will also be established to satisfy 60 percent of domestic steel demand.

Sinosteel will invest $450 million in the project and initiate the construction in 100 days as prescribed under the supervision of another international corporation.

In 2007, the government of Bolivia collaborated with Jindal South West Group of India to develop ESM but failed five years later. Many corporations from Russia, Australia, Venezuela and China thereafter expressed their interest in the project.

"We have to choose a corporation rich in experience and funds as our powerful support. Sinosteel is our best choice", said Nawaluo in a news conference.
BEIJING - Chinese tourists have grabbed global attention for their frenzied shopping overseas in recent years, bringing home goods from designer outfits to quality life necessities, electric cookers for instance.

While domestic consumption is slack, enthusiasm for haitao (buying overseas goods online) is running high. The scenario is a perfect opportunity to explain "supply-side structural reform" in layman's term.

The current scenario is a result from a structural imbalance of domestic supply, meaning Chinese consumers can't find a supply of quality goods they particularly want.

Fixing the problem through reforms is the key to China's economy.

At a symposium attended by ministers and provincial officials on Monday, President Xi Jinping said supply-side structural reform will advance economic restructuring by reducing noneffective and low-end supply, and boost productivity by expanding medium-to-high-end supply.

Supply-side reform, a buzzword used by Chinese leaders and economists, focuses on better provisions for high-quality goods and services, lower costs for businesses and stronger consumption.

The phrase is created against the backdrop of a slowing economy. China's economy grew by 6.9 percent year on year in 2016, its slowest annual expansion in a quarter of a century.

However, a V-shaped rebound is beyond the reach of short-term stimulation. The root causes of the slowing economy must be addressed.

China has been transforming from an export- and investment-powered model to one based on stronger consumer spending, innovation and the service sector.

After decades of economic reform, the growth model and consumption demand have changed fundamentally, from a universal short of supply to oversupply in some sectors, and from an emphasis of quantity to a preference for quality.

The root cause of the slowing economy appears to be lack of consumption demand, but the actual cause is an imbalanced supply structure and mismatch between supply and demand.

That explains why China imports a large amount of fine steel, while crude steel domestically mass produced is priced "as cheap as cabbage", and the buying overseas frenzy against sluggish domestic consumption.

Future growth will rely on a balance between supply and demand, a requirement for adapting to the economic "new normal".

At present, the priority should be dissolving industrial overcapacity, phasing out "zombie enterprises", lowering business costs, developing strategic and emerging industries as well as service sectors, and expanding supply of public goods and services.

Statistically, China is accelerating its pace in optimizing economic structure.

For instance, the share of the value added of the service sector in the total GDP increased by 2.4 percentage points year on year in 2015.

The contribution of end-user consumption, including resident and government spending, to the national GDP growth in 2015 jumped by 15.4 percentage points from 2014, according to latest official data.

Moving in the same direction, the supply-side structural reform is expected to inject renewed vitality into Chinese economy.
Russia's leading bank, VTB is now the foreign exchange provider for e-commerce transactions carried out in Russia on the Alibaba business-to-consumer website Aliexpress.com. The strategic partnership between the two parties was signed on Thursday during the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Riccardo Orcel, deputy CEO of VTB Group, said that VTB formed a strategic alliance with Ant Financial Services Group for the Russian market, and both companies will work closely on payment and banking services in Russia, to provide a comprehensive and reliable shopping experience for Russian consumers. However, there are more potential opportunities in emerging economies for cooperation in the future between the two companies.

The ceremony was attended by VTB Group President and Chairman Andrey Kostin, Founder and Executive Chairman of Alibaba Group, Jack Ma and Chief Executive Officer of Ant Financial Services Group, Lucy Peng. Ant Financial is a New York Stock Exchange listed company, and was founded as the financial service provider of Alibaba.

"Alibaba is not just an e-commerce company, they have impressive financial services technology that they are already deploying, with recent investments in The Post Office of Singapore for example. And they are of course a leader in e-commerce, supported by their significant logistics network that delivers products to their growing client base," Orcel said.

Orcel explained that it is not only through competitive pricing that e-commerce gaining ground against competitors, but also through providing a high quality, broad product base and ensuring reliable and speedy delivery. Alibaba has a demonstrated track record and this is ensuring quick success in Russia.

VTB is partnering with China's largest e-commerce company and the landmark agreement will help to ensure that Ant Financial's and Alibaba's business potential is maximized by providing best price of the transactions, settlement services and best choice of financial instruments.

Orcel said he is impressed with Alibaba's growth in Russia through its business-to-consumer platform Aliexpress.com.

Although the platform is only two years old in Russia, it is one of the fastest growing e-commerce platforms in the country, and ranks around seventh in terms of the number of website visitors.

"Alibaba is number one in the world, and Russian consumers will benefit from the company's growth plans in the country. E-commerce continues to grow and this is a secular trend that goes beyond economic cycles, Orcel said.

His team is also looking for opportunities to work with Ant Financial in other countries, using VTB's international operations and experience to help Ant Financial with commercial, corporate and investment banking services.

VTB Group's investment banking operations for China operate from Hong Kong, and the bank has a fully licensed branch in Shanghai. It is the only Russian bank on the Chinese mainland and represents a priority for VTB's international growth plans.

Orcel said, he believes Russia-China trade and investment relationships have great potential to grow, and VTB hopes to play a significant role in financing these opportunities.



He said key sectors for cooperation include energy, power, and infrastructure, where Chinese investors are keen to invest in Russian projects with good returns. Russian companies are turning towards Chinese products in several sectors including for example technology and telephone equipment provided by global leaders in the sector such as Huawei.

To contact the reporter: cecily.liu@mail.chinadailyuk.com
China has the ability to take a global leadership role in improving public health by sharing some of its vaccines with other developing counties that suffer from the same diseases, said Joanne Liu, international president of the public health non-government organization Medecins Sans Frontieres.

Although China has developed vaccines like Hepatitis E for its domestic market, the difference it can make in other developing countries is huge and MSF is keen to be a partner in expanding these vaccines' international reach, Liu told China Daily in an interview on Wednesday at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

"To develop a good relationship with China is very important for us, we see a lot of opportunities that can be harnessed," said Liu, who returned from a visit to China in December, during which she met with representatives from China's Ministry of Health, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and some think tanks.

Although MSF has run projects in China since 1989, Liu said the December trip was the first visit her team has been invited by the Chinese government officially and she hopes it will be followed with many more visits to allow the two sides to discuss cooperation opportunities.

Liu said in particular the scale and affordability that China's research and development strength has made some vaccines very useful for other developing countries with large populations.

She said another area of potential cooperation is for MSF to share with the Chinese government its experiences on security in conflict zones such as Sudan, where it also needs to work as a part of its international aid efforts.

MSF had a presence in China since 1989, working in different public health projects. One example of a MSF project in China is its cooperation with the Chinese NGO Aids Care China (ACC) to support a clinic near the Chinese border with Myanmar in mother and pre-and-antenatal care.

In September 2013, an MSF team began providing technical assistance to ACC to improve the clinical management of HIV/AIDS patients. The aim was to demonstrate that a new model of comprehensive care, incorporating patient counselling, could deliver better treatment outcomes.

MSF also supported the development of ACC by reinforcing its medical expertise in HIV/AIDS management. This collaboration finished in April 2014.

To contact the reporter: cecily.liu@mail.chinadailyuk.com
Ericsson's Chief Executive Hans Vestberg speaks during a presentation event at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona March 2, 2015. [Photo/Agencies]

Ericsson to leverage its rich heritage with growing demand for data services, says top official

Swedish mobile telecom gear maker Ericsson is confident that its strong research and development capabilities will help it weather the ongoing market challenges in China.

Hans Vestberg, the president and chief executive of Ericsson, admits that despite the challenges, there is enough room for sustained growth in China as the country is on the cusp of a data revolution.

Ericsson, which traces its China roots to 1894, will continue to build on the rich legacy and look to be an integral part of the ongoing industrial transformation.

"We will continue to support China in its transformation and upgrade process as it strives to be a leader in technology and services. We are happy to share our world-class technologies and practices with the country," said Vestberg.

According to Vestberg, data traffic in China will grow at a high 65 percent every year from 2014 to 2020. "What this means is strong market demand," he said.

To tap the potential, Ericsson plans to increase its more than 2 billion yuan ($305 million) annual investment so that it can support its customers in the country and stay ahead of the competition.

Vestberg spoke about the company's strategies in China during an interview with China Daily. Following are the edited excerpts of the interview.

What are your business strategies as you readjust to new Chinese economic initiatives and realities?

By 2020 we envisage a world with about 26 billion connected devices. Anything that can benefit from a connection will eventually have one, to the advantage of people at work, at home and during their free time. We call it the Networked Society.

We are delighted to see that the Chinese government has identified infrastructure connectivity as a priority for the Belt and Road Initiative. This is very much in line with our strategies and vision to be the driving force behind the Networked Society.

As a world leader in information and communications technology and services, we believe in the power of ICT, which not only serves as the backbone of the all-connecting infrastructure, but also enables people in other industries to innovate, collaborate and communicate.

That is exactly what we are doing in China. We are the strategic partner to all three telecom operators, vigorously providing industry-leading mobile networks and services to support our customers in improving user experience for individuals and enterprises alike.

And we are also expanding into new areas, innovating technologies and business models for other industries such as transportation, utilities and public safety.

How do you assess the prospects of your business in China in conjunction with the market?

We expect long-term evolution subscribers in China to exceed 1.1 billion by the end of 2020. That will account for about 30 percent of the total global LTE subscriptions.

It is a tremendous number. Chinese consumers are also rapidly changing to 4G technologies, with more than 70 percent of devices sold now being 4G capable.

Ericsson has been in China for more than 120 years. We have confidence in Ericsson's business prospects in this market as we have the best technologies, best experiences and best talents here.

We have forged excellent partnerships with Chinese telecom majors. We see a continuous demand for better ICT infrastructure and advanced services and solutions.

What's your biggest achievement in China as the CEO?

First of all, we should never rest upon achievements made in the past. But we are definitely proud of being part of every important milestone in the history of China's telecom industry.

In the past three years, we are particularly proud to be supporting all the three operators in China to build up the world's largest 4G LTE network at a record speed.

We are proud that since 1892 when Ericsson received its first order from China for 2,000 Ericsson telephone sets, the cooperation has withstood the test of time. Over the past decades, especially since the opening up and reform policy, Ericsson has made active contributions to economic development and the rapid growth of the Chinese telecom industry with our advanced products and solutions.
Jiang Jianqing, chairman of the board, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Christine Lagarde, managing director, International Monetary Fund (IMF), Fang Xinghai, director-general, International Economic Department, Office of the Central Leading Group for Financial and Economic Affairs of China and Gary D. Cohn (L-R), president and chief operating officer, Goldman Sachs, arrive for the session 'Where Is the Chinese Economy Heading?' of the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland January 21, 2016. [Photo/Agenicies]

DAVOS, Switzerland - China's economy is going through a series of historic transitions, and recent short-term market volatility will prove temporary, experts attending the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting 2016 here said on Thursday.

The Chinese government is implementing wrenching reforms trying to shift its growth driven from investment and manufacturing to services and consumption. Experts warned that the uncertainty during the process will lead to periodic market disruptions.

China witnessed a turbulent year in 2015. Growth in the world's second largest economy hit a quarter-century low of 6.9 percent, compared with 7.3 percent a year earlier.
Obstetric nurses in the Central Hospital of Enshi, Hubei province, take care of newborns at the hospital. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Buried deep in the latest official statistics about China's economic and social development in 2015 is the fact that the number of the country's newborns decreased to 16.55 million last year, 320,000 fewer than 2014.

That dip may look trivial in a country of 1.37 billion people. But it contrasts sharply with the general belief that the effect of the change to the family planning policy in 2013, that allowed couples with either the husband or the wife being an only child to have a second child, should have kicked in by now to alleviate the downward trend of the population.

The unexpected dip should, at least, warrant an immediate and careful review of the implemented policy because the stakes cannot be higher given the rapidly aging Chinese population.

As the world's most populous country, China has benefited tremendously from the ample supply of labor during its economic take-off over the past three decades. But that demographic windfall is morphing into a headwind as the number of people aged 60 and older has soared to 222 million while the decline of the working age population between 16 and 59 has accelerated, falling by 4.87 million people in 2015, about 1 million more than the previous year.

Nevertheless, the prompt explanation the National Health and Family Commission offered for the reduction in the number of newborns in 2015 sounds farfetched rather than a sincere attempt to recognize the pressing demographic challenges.

Besides the decreasing number of women of childbearing age, the health authorities blamed the Year of the Goat, believed to be an inauspicious birth sign by some people, for the decline. And it projected that China will welcome 17.5-to-21 million newborns annually in the five years after the passing of the Year of the Goat.

It may indeed be difficult for the health authorities to come up with a scientific and well-supported explanation so soon after the release of latest statistics on demographic changes.

But such a creative use of superstition neither helps understand the real demographic challenges nor adds credibility to the estimate for population growth, which is crucial to the design of a functioning social security and healthcare system in the long run.

A more thorough and serious review of the latest population changes is needed to allow the country to respond appropriately to prevent a demographic crisis from happening.
A student at a primary school in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, displays a plastic snowflake. Schools in the provincial capital have closed for a week. HU GUOLIN/LONG WEI/CHINA DAILY

Many parts of China are forecast to experience their lowest temperatures in decades over the weekend, with heavy snowstorms expected to persist in eastern and central areas.

Blizzards are expected to affect parts of Shanghai and Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Hubei and Hunan provinces.

Snowfalls will be as deep as 20 to 25 centimeters in some areas, the National Meteorological Center said on Thursday. Chilly weather is also expected in many other areas.

Parts of Anhui, Zhejiang and Fujian provinces and Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong, are expected to experience record-low temperatures, the center said.

Zhang Tao, the center's chief forecaster, said, "The last time the country experienced a similar cold snap was in 1991, but the temperature drop will not be so sharp this time as we are already in midwinter."

In Beijing, the temperature is expected to plunge to-17 C on Saturday morning, close to the lowest recorded for 30 years, according to the municipal meteorological service.

Shanghai is also expected to experience its lowest temperatures for 30 years on Sunday and Monday morning, with-5 C to-7 C forecast in urban areas.

The warning of blizzards by forecasters has forced local authorities to close schools temporarily.

Schools in Hefei, Changsha and Changzhou have been told to start the winter holiday a few days early, while education authorities in Hangzhou had already halted lessons, local media reported.

The blizzard warning also triggered a run on supermarkets in parts of Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces as people rushed to buy daily necessities.

Some vegetable and meat vendors in Hangzhou sold all their stock for a single day within hours, news portal cztv.com reported.

Zhang Xiaolan, a 34-year-old worker at an Internet company in Hangzhou, said she started to store daily supplies on Monday.

She bought enough vegetables, fruit and pastries to last her family for four days.

Wang Ying in Shanghai contributed to this story.
The Supreme People's Court holds a public hearing over the environmental public interest case on the afternoon of Jan 21, 2016. [Photo provided by the Supreme People's Court]

China's top court rejected on Thursday an application for a new hearing of an environmental public interest case, upholding the original ruling.

The applicant, the Jinhui company in Taizhou, Jiangsu province, appealed the initial ruling that ordered the company and five others to pay more than 160 million yuan ($26 million) in compensation for discharging waste acids into two rivers.

It was the biggest environmental penalty imposed in China arising from a public interest case concerning polluters. It was also the first time that the Supreme People's Court had heard such litigation.

In August 2014, the Taizhou City Environmental Protection Association, a public interest group, sued the six companies in the local intermediate people's court.

The association said the companies sold 25,000 metric tons of waste acids to a firm that did not have the authority to discharge the acids into the rivers. The discharge resulted in serious environmental pollution.

A month later, the intermediate people's court ordered the six defendants to pay more than 160 million yuan to restore the environment.

In December 2014, Jiangsu Provincial High People's Court upheld the verdict.

The Jinhui company's lawyer, Zhao Bing, said during Thursday's application hearing that the rivers were able to purify the pollutants naturally, and that such a large amount of money was not needed to restore the environment.

"My client just sold the acids under a contract signed with the Jiangzhong company that was in charge of dealing with the waste, and did not discharge the acids itself," Zhao said.

But the association said that the Jiangzhong company was not qualified to handle the acids under national discharge regulations, adding that the acids were still dangerous to the environment.

The top court said after hearing arguments from the two sides that the Jinhui company "should be obligated to pay attention to such a contract involving dangerous acids and also has responsibility for the discharge".

Lin Wenxue, the judge responsible for the case, said, "Although the rivers can self-purify such a discharge, it still damaged the surrounding environment."

Zhou Ke, a law professor at Renmin University of China, said, "The case heard by the top court will guide grassroots courts on how to deal with such litigation."

Wang Shuyi, an environmental law professor at Wuhan University, said the public hearing also showed that Chinese judicial bodies have played their role in environmental protection.
The number of the military facilities China builds on its South China Sea islands will depend on the level of threat it faces, the nation's Navy chief told his US counterpart on Wednesday, stressing that Beijing does not seek militarization.

This month, Beijing landed three commercial airplanes on Yongshu Jiao in the Nansha Islands. Vietnam, the Philippines and the United States protested, but Beijing said its sovereignty over the region is indisputable.

Earlier in January, the Foreign Ministry confirmed that China had completed an airfield on Yongshu Jiao, its southernmost airfield.

Chinese Naval Commander Wu Shengli told US Chief of Naval Operations Admiral John Richardson during a teleconference that the landings were made to see whether the airport was up to civilian airline standards, Xinhua reported, quoting a People's Liberation Army news release.

This would better help China meet its international obligations and provide more public service to other countries, Wu said.

"Our necessary defensive step of building on islands and reefs in the Nansha Islands is not militarization, but that interpretation has been maliciously hyped up by certain countries and media," Wu said.

Any militarization would depend on the purpose of the construction and how the facilities are used once they are completed, he said.

"We will certainly not seek the militarization of the islands and reefs, but we won't neglect to set up defenses. How many defenses completely depends on the level of threat we face," Wu said.

lixiaokun@chinadaily.com.cn
With the strongest cold wave in decades headed across China, local governments are sending 24-hour patrols to the streets to help homeless people.

A rescue station at Bengbu, Anhui province, prepared 200 quilts and 100 sets of heavy clothes, along with some food items, and planned to look for needy people on the streets over the weekend.

"We will take homeless people and beggars to the rescue station," said Yu Guo, deputy director of the station. "For those who don't want to stay at the rescue station, we'll give them a quilt and clothes to protect against the deadly cold."

The Civil Affairs Bureau in Hefei, Anhui province, is also making preparations to help the homeless.

"We found two homeless people living under a road crossing on Wednesday night," said Zhan Shaobo, and official at the civil affairs bureau of Hefei's Luyang district. "One is about 50 years old and from Sichuan province - a garbage collector; another is about 40 years old and from Jiangxi province. We have checked their identities and sent them back to their hometowns."

"We have prepared 300 quilts, 300 sets of clothes and 100 hats for homeless people," Zhan said.

Shanghai has also set up temporary shelters, signs, clothes and other ways of helping homeless people through the weather. Teams from civil affairs, public security and city administration branches have joined the hunt for the homeless.

The city has also informed the general public about the rescue stations.

Wang Ying in Shanghai contributed to this story.

Contact the writers at suzhou@chinadaily.com.cn
Huda Restaurant in Beijing is being investigated for using opium poppies as a seasoning in its dishes. Wei Xiaohao / China Daily

Thirty-five restaurants selling popular dishes and snacks were found to have used opium poppies as a seasoning, China's top food safety regulator said on Thursday.

Owners of 25 of the restaurants have been transferred to public security departments for criminal investigation, the China Food and Drug Administration said. The other 10 are under investigation by the administration.

The restaurants include some that are locally famous, including Huda Restaurant in Beijing, which specializes in spicy crayfish.

Adding opium poppies to dishes violates China's Food Safety Law, which forbids businesses to sell food made with nonfood materials or chemicals, except for food additives. Violations could result in fines or criminal penalties, according to the law.

The administration called on local food and drug authorities to punish those involved and to cooperate with public security departments to find the sources of the poppies.

It also required food and drug authorities to intensify supervision and inspection of restaurants that sell food such as hotpots, fried chicken and noodles.

Luo Yunbo, a professor of food safety and nutrition at China Agricultural University, said opium is a drug and causes addiction and serious harm to health if overused, and it is banned from use in food in China, although it is allowed in some countries.

"There are so many restaurants in China and it is very difficult to effectively inspect every one of them to ensure they all follow the law," he said.

Opium poppies are added to dishes, such as meat soup, to improve the taste in some restaurants, but they can cause addiction, according to media reports.

In July 2014, a man, surnamed Qiu, in Shanghai, was arrested for buying poppies and adding them to the crayfish and crab dishes he sold in his restaurants, according to ThePaper.cn.

Every part of society, including regulators, the food industry and consumers play a part in improving food safety, Luo said.

"Overall food safety is closely linked to the development and education of a nation," he said. "It requires a long period to improve food safety."

wangxiaodong@chinadaily.com.cn
Scientists have begun calibrating China's first dark matter probe in order to produce more accurate data, more than a month after the detector started to search for signals of the invisible material. The Dark Matter Particle Explorer Satellite, dubbed Wukong after the Monkey King character from the Chinese classic legend Journey to the West, was launched on Dec 17.

Like the Monkey King, who can see through objects with his sharp eyes, the satellite has the most sensitive and accurate detectors designed for dark matter.

Dark matter does not emit light or reflect electromagnetic radiation, but its existence can be inferred from its effects of measurements such as gravity and mass. It is one of the big mysteries of modern science. Exploration of dark matter could give scientists a clearer understanding of the past and future of galaxies and the universe.

Chang Jin, DAMPE chief scientist and deputy director of the Purple Mountain Observatory, said Wukong has already collected more than 100 million high-energy particles, including protons, alpha and cosmic-ray particles and nuclides. Scientists will look for high-energy electrons and gamma rays among them, which could be the residue of dark matter's annihilation or decay.

"Now the payload looks perfect, but it's not enough. If the calibration goes well, the signs we seek will pop out from the data," Chang said.

The payload has four major parts - a plastic scintillator array detector, a silicon array detector, a BGO calorimeter and a neutron detector - together comprising about 76,000 minor detectors. DAMPE scientific application chief designer Wu Jian said the payload was designed with very high accuracy, but colliding with cosmic rays will change the detectors' performance, so they need constant calibration.

Wukong is sending back about 20 GB of data a day. DAMPE advanced data process subsystem designer Zang Jingjing said all the data will be analyzed by a special computer equipped with 128 10-core CPUs.

"After calibration, the detectors will collect more useful data and screen out signal noise. That will save us a lot of time," Zang said.
Liu Fang with her students at No 3 Middle School in Guiyang, Guizhou province. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Despite being blind, she found a way to continue helping her students

Writer Liu Fang's first novel, about the life of a teacher at a rural school in the mountainous province of Guizhou in the 1990s, greatly resembles her own early years - before she lost her sight and struggled to find a full life in the darkness.

Liu, 44, was a Chinese language teacher at No 3 Middle School in the Baiyun district of Guiyang until 2006, when she could no longer see the characters printed in the textbooks.

Diagnosed with incurable retinosis, a degenerative eye disease, in 1997, Liu was told she would gradually lose her eyesight over 10 years, and the sense of light slowly after that.

"That it took me 20 years to walk into darkness qualifies me to tell you the difference between the two worlds," Liu said. "I spent the first 10 years adjusting myself to accept the agonizing reality, and the second decade facing the cruelty with smiles. I think I am a brave person."

Now a mental health worker at the middle school, she is quick to laugh and tell interesting stories about her life.

"I am a happy and forgiving person now," she said. "But 10 years ago, I was like a hysteric hedgehog, vigilant and aggressive to all signs and people that I thought would harm me or look down on me."

Liu had many people at her side. Her family and friends helped her overcome the most difficult period of her life. And her own kindness served her well.

"She likes giving me some little gifts, from snacks to daily necessities. I thought I should not accept her things anymore after she became blind, even though my salary is low," said Ma Xuezhong, a janitor who has worked in the school for 24 years.

"But she would swing the things in the air until I took them."

Liu praised the school's headmaster, who assigned her a new post as a psychological consultant for students, and arranged for professional training for her new role.

Many schools set up a required mental health office, but staff it part-time with teachers. Liu, on the other hand, truly embodies the job. Her office is a cozy nook, decorated with hand-drawn student pictures, one where children can thoughtfully talk about their problems.

"Liu takes her job seriously," said her colleague, Tang Mingrong. "She donated 5,000 yuan ($760) from her income from the novel to five poor students. After she became famous, all she asked from society was help for the "left-behind" children, instead of herself."

Yang Hui, a student who often quarrelled with her parents, said Liu feels like a mother to the students. "She would listen to me patiently, and she helped me find the reason I couldn't get along well with my parents," Yang said.

In this regard, Liu said, her blindness is an asset. "I guess they trust me because I cannot see them, and they feel I am more concentrated and careful than others while listening to them."

During the breaks between classes and at noon, students come to talk to her. Many are left-behind children from nearby villages, and she said their trust is the best reward for her commitment to her job.

Liu once liked reading, calligraphy, singing and dancing. She gave up these hobbies one after another as her eyesight declined. Writing took their place.

Last year, she published her first novel, Shiliu Qingqing, or Green Pomegranate, a fictional account of her early years. She now is writing a second book about the life of workers, like her father, who volunteered to help develop rural southwestern China.

"What came into darkness were my eyes, and what came into brightness was my soul," she wrote in the book's preface.

Contact the writers through liyang@chinadaily.com.cn
A German expert has devoted 15 years of his prime to protecting ecology and helping locals plant cash crops to get out of poverty in the hometown of Chinese pandas, West China Metropolis Daily reported on Wednesday.

Dr. Holger Perner, a 55-year-old PhD in ecology, gave up his job at National Science Academy in Germany in 2001, and stayed in his wife Yu Wenqing's hometown in Sichuan province, China ever since.

"Sichuan is the paradise of any ecologist. Kiwi fruits did not originate in New Zealand, but in Sichuan province," said Dr. Holger Perner.

Instead of Chengdu city, a common choice for foreigners seeking a leisurely life in Sichuan province, Dr. Perner chose to work as a senior counselor at Huanglong Scenic and Historic Interest Area in Songpan county, Aba prefecture, which is home to many nature reserves such as Jiuzhaigou and Woolong Nature Reserve.

"Only two of the world's 34 biodiversity hotspots are in China, and Woolong Panda base is one of them," said Perner.

Besides contributing to the sustainable usage of natural resources and the cultivation of orchids, Perner came up with ideas to help locals improve their living conditions.

The ecologist says it's urgent to let farmers change current production methods, which caused great ecological destruction by overly relying on natural resources.

In 2007, he found the blueberry suitable to plant in mountainous areas of Songpan county after researching different cash crops.

The expert enthusiastically taught locals to plant blueberry seedlings, which originate in Europe, with the help of his wife's translation, as she can speak four languages.

The blueberry proved to be a success as 0.06 of a hectare of blueberries can earn more than 10,000 yuan ($1,520) while 0.06 of a hectare of potatoes or corn can only earn 700 or 800 yuan.

Perner continues to help local farmers live a better life and has been trying to plant cloned blueberries in areas of higher altitude.

He also plans to plant another five crash crops, such as blackberries, in next three years in the alpine region of Aba.

Perner and his wife travel between Chengdu and Songpan county 15 times a year, with a single trip of around 350 kilometers. In the past 15 years, they have travelled 180,000 kilometers, half the distance between the Earth and the Moon.

"I have become used to living here, and the biggest change is that I am especially fond of spicy food nowadays. If possible, I will live in Sichuan till my life ends," said Perner.
BEIJING -- The registered unemployment rate in Chinese cities held steady at 4.05 percent at the end of 2015, unchanged from three months earlier, official data showed Friday.

China created 13.12 million new jobs for urban residents last year, exceeding the official target, Li Zhong, spokesman for the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, told a press conference.

The government wanted to create at least 10 million new jobs and hold the unemployment rate below 4.5 percent in 2015.
A screen capture of Yin's post on Weibo announcing his candidacy for Washington's lieutenant governor.

Phillip Yin, a former anchor and journalist with China's national television station announced on his Weibo account Friday that he is running for Washington's lieutenant governor, sparking heated debate among Chinese Internet users.

Yin, a republican born in Yakima, Washington State, joined China Central Television (CCTV) in 2011 and left in December after helping launch CCTV America and reporting the 2012 US presidential election.

"I'm excited and honored to announce my candidacy for Lieutenant Governor of the great state of Washington," said Yin on his Weibo.

"With the support of numerous state officials, private sector executives and the many great workers of the state, I know we can make Washington the most family-friendly, job-creating and innovative state in the country."

Yin will speak at the Washington State Republican Party State Committee Meeting in Yakima on Saturday.

The graduate from Georgetown University also served as an anchor/reporter for Bloomberg Television covering economic and market developments.

In the banking community, Yin was a senior portfolio advisor at Unifund, a Swiss-based investment company. He provided institutional strategy services for their global portfolio of private and public assets.

"My private sector experience will ensure workers and businesses have the fairest playing field," said Yin.

Yin's post was widely commented by Chinese Internet users. Some say US-born Chinese people will bring more diversified voices to US political field while others compared him to former US ambassador Gary Locke who also served as governor of the state of Washington.
Beijing has categorically denied involvement in cyber espionage and said allegations leveled against Chinese citizens are "ungrounded and serve an ulterior purpose".

The government and military are against and are not involved in cyber espionage and allegations that People's Liberation Army officers had engaged in it are "purely ungrounded and serve an ulterior purpose," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said at a regular press conference on Friday.

Hong made the remarks in answer to questions regarding a Chinese resident of Canada named Su Bin who was, allegedly, part of a hacking conspiracy, along with two "co-conspirators", alleged to be Chinese soldiers, to steal secrets relating to components of the F-35 and other American warplanes.

The government will keep a close eye on Su's case, Hong said, and "we demand that the Canadian government ensure the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens'', he added.
The Fourth Ring Road in Beijing in a morning rush hour. City authorities are working on solutions to ease the pressures on traffic in the city. Zhuo Ensen / For China Daily

Beijing, bogged down in severe traffic congestion like many densely populated metropolitans around the world, has made a five-year plan from 2016 to 2020 in an aim to resolve the problem.

The commission of transport for the city, which has more than 21 million people and 5 million vehicles, announced last month a series of efforts to ease traffic pressures, including a pilot plan to collect a congestion fee, impose restrictions on the use and purchase of vehicles and to promote environmentally conscious traveling.

The measures will be implemented over the course of the city's five-year plan.

On Dec 28, 16 subway stations began offering a 30-percent discount on each ride for passengers who take the subway before 7 am on weekdays in one of the city's first moves to ease traffic congestion during rush hours.

The commission has set a number of goals to meet by 2020, including keeping the population below 23 million, operating 1,000 kilometers of rail transit and 1,000 km of bus routes, and encouraging 75 percent of its residents travel by public transport, bicycle or on foot.

Currently only 46 percent of Beijingers use the public transit system, bike or walk, although the capital has taken measures in recent years to prioritize public transit.

In many major cities around the world, the proportion of people who travel by public transport is between 60 and 80 percent.

The Beijing transportation research center said that in 2013, heavy traffic on a weekday lasted for a total duration of 1 hour and 55 minutes a day, 25 minutes more than in 2012 and 45 minutes more than in 2011.

Taking action

Zhou Zhengyu, head of the commission of transport, said last month that Beijing will unveil new policies this year to limit the number of cars on roads and promote public transportation, according to People.cn.

Zhou said the commission will evaluate the possibility of collecting a congestion fee sometime this year and discuss collection methods and which areas of the city should be charged.

This is not the first time Beijing has proposed a congestion fee plan - authorities discussed the issue in 2010 and 2013 but did not take action.

Currently, no city in China charges a congestion fee. Some cosmopolitan cities such as London and Milan impose a charging plan.

Britain's capital introduced the plan in 2003 to charge drivers in congestion zones from 7am to 6pm on weekdays. The initial daily fee of five pounds has been raised to the current fee of 11 pounds and 50 pence per day.

Some vehicles are exempted from the fee, such as electric cars, those that meet Euro V emission standards, and vehicles that emit below 75 gram of carbon emissions per kilometer.

Debate in the capital

In Beijing, industry experts have been grappling with the city's traffic problems.

Liu Yunfeng, an associate professor at the Beijing University of Technology, in an article he wrote for the China Academic Journal in April 2015, urged authorities to focus on the application and innovation of new technology and equipment to allow public transportation systems to carry more people.

The majority of companies in the public transportation industry are State-owned, Liu wrote, and explained that these companies need to improve their level of operational management.

Liu said the functions of the city center should be limited and that the city layout should be better organized to cut down on commute times.

Lu Weifang, professor of humanities and communication at Shanghai Normal University, said the congestion fee is a sound solution for a big city to ease its traffic pressures and control the rapidly rising number of vehicle owners.

Lu said big cities should increase parking fees in key areas and limit the number of vehicles on roads during rush hours.

duxiaoying1@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 01/04/2016 page18)
Jailed former Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed left for the UK on Thursday following a stopover in Sri Lanka after the islands' government granted him prison leave for urgent surgery, his party said.

Nasheed, whose conviction last March on terror-related charges has been widely criticized, left the Maldives on Monday after resolving a last-minute legal dispute with the government over his 30-day release for spinal cord surgery in the United Kingdom.

"He left Colombo early this morning," Maldivian Democratic Party spokesman Hamid Abdul Ghafoor said after a two-day stop in the Sri Lankan capital. "He was under strict instructions from his lawyers not to speak to journalists while in Colombo."
Chinese and Egyptian artists practice for the performance at the Luxor Temple, Jan 21, 2016. [Photo/GuangMing Daily]

Red Chinese lanterns suspended between the ancient stone pillars greeted Chinese President Xi Jinping on Jan 21 (local time) when he visited the Luxor Temple in Egypt.

Located on the east bank of the Nile River, the temple is one of the most famous historic places in Egypt and was built in the 14th century BC. It was decorated in Chinese style to welcome Xi's visit.

The ceremony of the Chinese Culture Year in Egypt and a performance to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Sino-Egyptian diplomatic relations were held at Luxor on Jan 21 (local time).

More than 200 elite performers from both countries staged a cultural dialogue between the two countries; both have deep roots in their ancient civilizations. The sound of traditional Egyptian musical instruments echoed those of traditional Chinese instruments in the 3,000-year-old temple.

China will stage 40 cultural activities in Egypt in 2016, among which are exhibitions on film and TV, books, cultural industry, modern arts and communication among cultural institutions in the two countries.
Year 2015 witnessed many fabulous exhibitions and art events. In 2016, what art enjoyments can we expect? The Paper selected a batch of most representative exhibitions worldwide that are going to feast our eyes in 2016, which covers fields of photography, archaeology, fashion and others.

1. A genius' visions

Triptych altar art The Haywain, will be on display in Bosch's hometown for the first time. [Photo/Het Noordbrabants Museum]

Address: Stedelijk Museum, Den Bosch, Holland

Time: Feb 13 - May 8, 2016

On the occasion of the 500th anniversary of the Dutch artist Hieronymus Bosch's (1450  1516) death, his born city - Den Bosch, Holland - is putting on the largest retrospective works from the artist ever.

Considered to be one of the pioneers of 20th century surrealism, Hieronymus Bosch has a unique style of painting. Bosch's works mostly depicted diabolical figures which reflect the moral perversity and evil sides of humans.

Bosch - The centenary exhibition

Address: Prado Museum, Madrid, Spain

Time: May 31 - Sep 11, 2016

The Prado Museum in Spain is also preparing to welcome the largest monographic exhibition on the Dutch artist Hieronymus Bosch in the new year.
Learning the hard way Updated: 2016-01-22 09:50 By Ming Yeung in Hong Kong(HK Edition)

One of Malaysia's youngest CEOs, Dianna Lee, says she worked her way to the top battling gender issues that, in many ways, she has faced all her life.

Since earning the top job as group chief executive officer of Country Heights Holding Berhad, in June 2011 at the age of 25, she has been battling ageism as well.

Lee, who worked as a housekeeper at the group's hotel in a summer break from university, is the second daughter of property tycoon Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew.

Her mother wanted a son and shed tears of disappointment when Lee arrived as a second girl.

Lee recalled childhood as a rite of passage much more difficult than most people might expect of the daughter of a traditional, wealthy Chinese family with a strong preference for producing male offspring.

"In a way I grew up as a boy, so gender didn't come as an issue when I was growing up, because everything that boys do I had to do. The first job my dad got me to do was as a housekeeper. He asked me to line up behind the hotel together with all the foreign labor to get my own job," she said at the 2016 Asian Women Leadership Awards and Roundtable on Jan 19.

Once Lee had mastered that position, she was promoted to cleaning guest rooms. She recalls that her trials through menial, low-class duties, working from the bottom up, earned her respect within the company.

"I believe that experience is really important but exposure is also important and so is common sense," Lee told China Daily.

"Nowadays I feel there's a lot of knowledge, and a lot of information, but people aren't applying it. I'm just doing what's right and what's close to my conscience. This is how I handle all the challenges I have."

To get to the top, she avoided trying to play the Iron Lady. She didn't fight with men but embraced her femininity. That is her advice to other women as well.

Women, she says, are more attentive to certain issues that complement the work of male colleagues. "I don't think women can do what men do and I don't think men can do what women do," she noted.

In keeping with her company's motto, "ever-searching for better living", Lee is well on her way to changing the standards by which company employees are judged. In the old days, she observed, people were viewed as productive when they put in long hours. She evaluates her staff on performance and female staff still have an equal chance to shine, even when on maternity leave.

Lee treats every task as a learning curve and she enjoys learning through work. "I don't see work as very stressful because I take it as my university, I have to learn and there is an exam I have to pass," she stressed.

The biggest challenge for her now is to balance work and time with her two precious daughters. She said: "As women, we are all equal until you need to have babies. That's why time is not equal for you anymore. That's just very unfair but that is something we have to learn and deal with."

mingyeung@chinadailyhk.com

(HK Edition 01/22/2016 page7)
Inborn skills are what give ladies the winning touch Updated: 2016-01-22 09:50 By Zhou Mo in Hong Kong(HK Edition)

Detail and collaboration are the two most important elements in managing a retail firm well and women have a distinct advantage in that, believes Chadatip Chutrakul, chief executive officer of Siam Piwat Company Ltd, a leading retail property developer in Thailand.

"Retail is detail. It is about selling merchandise and services," Chutrakul, one of the recipients of the 2016 Asian Women Leadership Award, told China Daily. She said heads of retail organizations in Thailand are all women. "That's because women are more into details."

She also highlighted the importance of collaboration. "The winning strategy in retail is collaboration. This means that (if) I am the owner of a shopping mall, I cannot be successful without the success of my tenants. We have to work hand in hand, to support them, to take their business as our own and help them to change," said Chutrakul, who became head of the company in 2009.

Chutrakul said women have a natural advantage in collaboration, as they are more empathetic and patient."The nature of women is that we always listen, we are patient and we are very concerned about people's feelings," she said.

To manage and deal with people and get their support, which could be the most difficult step in one's career, Chutrakul believes utilizing women's natural advantages is an efficient approach.

"I try to deal with them with patience and empathy. Being a woman it is easier to convince people," she said.

During the 1997 Asian financial crisis, Chutrakul took the bold step of closing down some hotels of the company and investing in another major project. "It was really a very difficult decision as the Asian economy was in its worst situation," she recalled.

But she believed that it was essential for the company to change its strategy amid the crisis, as construction costs were lower and the company would be the first to be ready after the economy picked up.

By investing $600 million in the project, her company managed to build the upscale Siam Paragon mall in Bangkok, now one of the largest and most popular shopping malls across the region. "You have to have the courage to change," she said.

Women's participation in the workforce has been increasing on a global scale, thanks to rapid social development among economies across the world. But in some less developed countries, lack of access to education and work, as well as the proverbial glass ceiling, are still preventing women from taking on a more a constructive role.

Thai women are "lucky" in this respect, Chutrakul said, as they can do whatever they want and get promoted the same as men. "We had a lady prime minister, and have female heads of banks and head of government institutions," she noted.

She urged women to stand up for themselves, be more educated and try to express their talents in society.

sally@chinadailyhk.com

(HK Edition 01/22/2016 page7)
Klaus Filter instructs Chinese workers at Sino Eagle Group, a leading manufacturer of rowing shells in Fuyang, Zhejiang province. The German designer is a witnessand a major contributorto the company's growth over the past two decades.[Photo by Liu Xiangrui/China Daily]

Klaus Filter, 83, a German designer of rowing shells, helped transform a local workshop into a global company. Liu Xiangrui reports in Fuyang, Zhejiang province.

Klaus Filter's romance with China began more than two decades ago, thanks to a dispute.

In 1994, when a world rowing competition was being held in the United States, a European company that makes rowing shells accused a Chinese boat builder of copying their designs.

Filter, now 83, a German designer of racing shells, was chairman of the materials commission of the International Rowing Federationaka FISAat the time. He was asked to inspect the issue.

Although impressed by the craftsmanship of the Chinese boats, Filter brought the European manufacturer's concerns to the Chinese builder, Xiong Zhangyou.

"He (Xiong) confessed to me he had no experience and could only make copies," Filter recalls during a recent visit to Fuyang city in East China's Zhejiang province.

Xiong also told Filter the mistake was unintended as the industry had just started in China and that boat makers had little knowledge of intellectual property rights back then.

It was also a time when the FISA was trying to bring lightweight rowing into the Olympic Games to encourage more people to participate in the sport. So, Filter suggested that Xiong should seize the opportunity.

Xiong agreed but jokingly asked Filter to come to China to help him. Filter immediately said "yes".

"That was also the beginning of our friendship," Filter says.

The following year, Filter paid a visit to Xiong's factory in Fuyang and was shocked to find that it was a home-based workshop with a few inexperienced workers.

Then, for one week, Filter worked 16 hours a day with Xiong and his employees to successfully make molds for the factory. Until then Xiong didn't have them.

When Xiong wanted to thank him for his generosity, Filter asked Xiong if he could donate his used boats to help promote the sport in developing countries that saw scanty participation in international contests mostly because boats were costly back then, Filter says.

Filter and Xiong's ties have moved to a different level since.

He accepted the invitation to be the chief expert and technical director of Xiong's factory after his retirement from the FISA commission in 2000.

Since then, Filter has visited Fuyang almost every year, playing a crucial role in the factory's transformation from a local workshop, established by Xiong in 1985, to one of the world's biggest manufacturers of rowing boats under the name Sino Eagle Group.

The group, which also has a yacht plant, currently has more than 400 employees.
What Are You Busy With? by Sodargye.[Photo provided to China Daily]

It was already 8 pm on Jan 3 when Sodargye, a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, returned to his hotel from AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong, where he had just finished two days of delivering dharma lectures to more than 11,000 people.

Dharmacosmic law and order in Buddhismis applied to the teachings of Buddha and is the form of spiritual education to which Sodargye has dedicated his life.

"Between 70 and 80 percent of the audience were Buddhists, with some from other religions, and some without a religion," the 52-year-old says in a low voice in heavily accented Mandarin. His left thumb moved slowly along his prayer beads throughout the interview.

Sodargye, from the mountainous Garze county in Southwest China's Sichuan province, has traveled the globe to talk about dharma. His first trip abroad was to the United States in 1993. Since then, he has been invited to talk all over the world, mainly to university students and faculties.

His speeches vary, but they always include some sort of spiritual education.

"The lack of a spiritual education has led to problems of unfairness and insecurity, and some solutions can be found in Buddhism. This is the theme of my talks," he says.

"Development of the spirit cannot match the pace of the growth of material life," he adds, saying that this is a common issue in many countries.

He recalls that he was once asked for his views on terrorism and responded that he supports Islam.

"I've studied Islam, and its doctrine does not bring any harm to the world," Sodargye says. "It has been manipulated by some people in the name of religion."

In 2015, he visited Namibia, South Africa and Lesotho, where he offered advice to young people on how to face hardship with the right attitude. He visited orphanages and saw famine up close.

He recalls how he was told that the average life expectancy in Namibia is just 37 to 42 because of HIV and malaria. A lack of jobs for young people, including university graduates, is also a problem.

"The feeling is that local people have little hope for the future," he says. "So the theme of my lecture was never lose confidence ... The locals are actually very intelligent and energetic. It's worth considering how to boost their potential."
A policewoman attends to a boy in Xinxiang, Henan province, after he was rescued in March from a child trafficking gang. [Photo/China Daily]

Police in southwest China's Sichuan province and East China's Shandong province rescued 15 babies from gangs that planned to sell them. Among the 78 suspects detained, are some of the babies' biological parents. Beijing News says on Thursday:

The cruel reality is that the number of child trafficking cases has declined, while the trade by birth parents is surging.

Xide county in Liangshan Yi autonomous prefecture, Sichuan province, is among the poorest counties nationwide, and selling a baby is seen as a way to obtain a large sum of money by some couples. Another large case of baby trading uncovered in North China's Hebei province in 2012 also involved babies from Xide county. It seems the harsh living conditions have distorted people's minds there.

Compared to developed areas where overall fertility is reduced, many poor areas have high birth rates. Living in extreme poverty, the parents do not have much ability to give their children proper care. The children often grow up fending for themselves, and do not complete compulsory education. In such circumstances, some parents will even sell a child to another family in the hope that it may mean the child has a better future.

Besides severely punishing the parents involved in the present case to deter others, more efforts are needed to lift people in these poor counties out of poverty. Until that is achieved, aid needs to be given to parents so they don't sell or abandon their children.
A warship sails in South China Sea during a Chinese navy drill in South China Sea, July 28, 2015. [Photo/CFP]

The Asia-Pacific Rebalance 2025 report unveiled by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) on Wednesday reads like a call to prepare for a war with China.

The report, commissioned by the US Congress under the National Defense Authorization Act, calls for strengthening the US' capabilities, presence and partnerships in the Asia-Pacific, as if it wasn't the case, as Obama acknowledged in his State of the Union address on Jan 12, that the US is the most powerful nation on Earth, spending more on its military than the next eight nations combined.

Every suggestion the report makes is aimed mainly at China.

For example, China is the target when it calls for strengthening the capability, capacity, resilience and interoperability of the US' alliances and partnerships, forming a standing US joint task force for the Western Pacific, and encouraging Japan to establish a joint operations command. And China is the target when it calls for increasing the US' surface fleet presence, improving its undersea capabilities, continuing the diversifying of its air operating locations, bolstering regional missile defense, stockpiling critical precision munitions, developing advanced long-range missiles and augmenting its space, cyber and electronic warfare capabilities ... the list goes on.

China's growing anti-access/area denial capability, which is defensive in nature, is cited by the report as a major argument for the US to advance these capabilities. To justify its argument, China is described as a nation of "coercion" and a "potential adversary" despite the fact that China has not engaged in any military conflict for decades, except for a brief border conflict with Vietnam in 1979. The US on the other hand, has not only been constantly engaged in threat and coercion but also engaged in incessant wars.

The unpublished classified part of the report is probably even more heinous in its warmongering.

The report's short section on expanding confidence building and crisis management with China looks like an attempt at providing cover for a spokesperson for the Pentagon and the US military industry complex, given the CSIS has close ties with both.

The US' rebalancing to Asia-Pacific strategy, especially the military component, has been perceived negatively in China largely because it is believed to be aimed at China. Over the years, it has worsened the fragile strategic trust between the two nations.

If the next US Congress and administration adopt the CSIS report, it will only mean deeper distrust and more likelihood of a miscalculation, not to mention the report is likely to fuel an arms race in the region. And if fully implemented, it will make the Asia-Pacific region the most militarized in the world, with US weaponry.

One Chinese journalist who was at the release of the report on Wednesday said bluntly: "It should be called a China containment report."

It is just one of several reports by the US in recent years calling for a tougher stance on China.

Jeffrey Bader, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and a former Obama administration official for Asia, refuted such thinking last June in his article "Changing China Policy: Are we in search of enemies?" He hoped the next president will not discard the play book used by the American statesmen who built and nurtured the US-China relationship and built a generation of peace in Asia.

On Wednesday at the Council on Foreign Relations, former US defense secretary Robert Gates also called for a careful management of the relationship and said the US should acknowledge China's influence and role in the world.

But, unless they are doing marketing for the US military complex, it is the idea that the US should dominate the world that is clearly behind the CSIS report.

The author is deputy editor of China Daily USA. chenweihua@chinadailyusa.com
Tourists ride camels on the Mingsha Sand Dunes during a visit to Crescent Moon Spring on the outskirts of Dunhuang county. [Photo/China Daily]

Since its introduction by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative (the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road) - an ambitious plan to revitalize the ancient Silk Road overland and maritime trade routes linking East and West - has attracted considerable attention. And for good reason: The project, which involves more than 60 countries and quite a few international organizations, implies unprecedented opportunities - and challenges.

From China's perspective, the logic behind the strategy is clear. With its sources of GDP growth coming under increasing strain, China must continue to make progress in opening-up the economy. That means building mutually beneficial relationships with neighboring countries, which can benefit by taking over some of China's lower-value-added activities. That promises to boost their own growth while creating space for the Chinese economy to move up the value chain, where productivity and wages - important determinants of consumption - are higher.

China's comparative advantages, including a global financial center in Hong Kong and a regional financial center in Shanghai, reinforce its leadership role. Add to that the recent surge in fast-growing, innovative companies - such as Huawei, Alibaba, and Wanda - and China is well placed to implement Xi's grand vision.

But it will not be smooth sailing. Like any cross-border initiative, the Belt and Road Initiative will require wise diplomacy to manage relationships with diverse countries and careful planning to scale up effectively.

Each country along the "Belt and Road" faces a unique combination of risks and challenges. Many face macroeconomic risks, owing to exchange-rate volatility, large debt burdens, and non-diversified, unsustainable economic structures. On the microeconomic level, risks include, for example, weak banking sectors.

Governance failures, ranging from corruption to inefficient implementation of reforms, also pose a serious challenge, as do social and political tensions (and, in some areas, the threat of terrorism). And one must not forget the ever-present risk of natural disasters, exacerbated by climate change.

Then there are the complex and varied laws, rules and regulations shaping the business environment in each country. Of course, it is virtually impossible for Chinese enterprises to understand fully each environment before entering it. But any violation could put a company's entire operation and investment at risk.

The challenges may be complex, but the formula for navigating them is simple. First and foremost, there can be no corruption, which would not only hurt the Belt and Road Initiative, but would also undermine China's ability to pursue other cross-border initiatives in the future. Second, no infrastructure project should be pursued without careful consideration of both its financial costs and benefits and its ecological impact, such as air pollution and destruction of ecosystems. Finally, all projects must be transparent and include effective checks and balances.

To reinforce this approach, the provision of financing for "Belt and Road" projects must adhere strictly to market rules. Given the scale of most investments, project finance - which is based on projected cash flows, rather than sponsors' balance sheets - will prove highly useful, as will effective risk-sharing mechanisms.

Furthermore, sponsors should look beyond a project's construction to the achievement of its long-term objectives, such as ensuring profitability and managing its lasting impact on the local community and the environment. Consultants, lawyers, auditors, NGOs, and other entities with international experience can play a vital role in all of these efforts.

There are also practical steps that can be taken to mitigate specific risks. For example, to minimize the risks associated with operating in an unfamiliar regulatory and legislative environment, businesses should establish links in advance with a local entity to guide their activities.

Realizing the Belt and Road Initiative will not be easy. But China has all of the tools it needs to succeed. As long as it uses them in a way that is clean, green, and transparent, China and its neighbors will reap vast rewards.

Liu Mingkang is a former chairman of the China Banking Regulatory Commission.

Lu Wenzhi is a research assistant at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

Project Syndicate
Photo credit Peter Wayne Lewis at The Oasis, 2015, Courtesy of the artist. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Jamaican-born artist Peter Wayne Lewis is one cool cat who youll really dig. Not the feline variety but, in the slang called "jive", associated with African-American jazz artists and which Lewis frequently uses, you just know that he is really hip. His uplifting artistry in vivid colors, using acrylic paint, reflecting his life-long association with jazz and jive, can be seen at 798s Ullens Center for Contemporary Art until March 13.

Lewis exhibition, Booster, is twinned with a parallel exhibit of the works of the late American artist Frederick J. Brown. Both are truly soul brothers from the African diaspora whose expressive paintings draw inspiration from their respective cultural backgrounds and shared interest in jazz and spirituality. Exploring distinct modes of abstraction, the two groupings of works create a dialogue through vibrant collisions of brushwork and color, rhythm and melody.

Both artists have a strong bond with Beijing. For the past decade Lewis has created most of his work in his Beijing studio, called "Oasis". Brown' s connection, although more fleeting, was a ground-breaker: in 1988 he was the first American artist to show at what is now the National Museum of China on Tiananmen Square. As UCCA Director Philip Tinari said, "to make an exhibition with an American artist in China in 1988 was no small feat."

Lewis' exhibit centers on two major suites, Monk Time Suite, (2013) and Buddha Plays Monk, (2012-2015), each comprising 15 paintings, in which his particular language of abstraction takes new and unexpected turns, inspired by sources as varied as quantum physics and the music of jazz legend Thelonious Monk.

There is an idea in string theory that all matter exists as vibrating strings moving in multiple dimensions. This idea links physics to my great love, music. The vibration of the strings creates harmony the universe is a symphony of color and light and different time signatures, Lewis has said.

They are complemented by further recent works, particularly a cycle of six paintings titled, False Vacuum, (2015) inspired by the ideas of MIT physicist Alan Guth. All thats missing is a jazz saxophone to complement the paintings.

Brown worked in a loft in New Yorks SoHo during the artistic renaissance of the 1970s and 1980s. He collaborated with jazz musicians like Ornette Coleman, Thelonious Monk and Anthony Braxton, as well as abstract expressionist painter Willem de Kooning. This grouping of works presents a range of painted investigations embodying religious themes with early childhood memories. When Brown exhibited in China in the spring of 1988, his works were eagerly received and debated by Chinese artists and students for their vivid expressionistic sensibility. Reviving these works in the same city nearly three decades later helps to shed light on a little-known moment of exchange during the artistic awakening of the Chinese in the 1980s.

My favorite work, both for the title' s sly play on words and its brilliant coloring and energetic strokes, is the 15 canvas suite, Buddha Plays Monk,. Lewis muses that if Buddha were alive today hed dig both the paintings and Monk' s jazz. He says that like Beethoven' s Ninth Symphony, from which he also drew inspiration, the various components have their thematic content as well as ebbs and flows. And he added that he will have failed if the viewer, having moved through all 15 paintings, hasn' t been changed by the journey.

Take this journey yourself and see if you were changed by this lyrical riot of shapes and colors.

The author is a senior adviser to Tsinghua University and former director and vice-president of ABC Television in New York.

The opinions expressed here are those of the writer and don't represent views of China Daily website.
Chinese tea. [File photo]

Chinese influence in Britain is notable from the late 17th century onwards as wealthy Britons and a growing middle class provided a demand for Chinese goods such as porcelain and commodities such as tea.

Chinese culture travelled to Britain, as it did to other parts of Europe, through trade. Europe's first Chinatown was set up in the northern port city of Liverpool in the early 19th century, and reasonably large and successful Chinatowns are now features of many larger British cities such as Birmingham, Glasgow, Manchester, London, and Leeds.

Their success over the decades since the World War II, which has been the period of strongest growth for these Chinatowns, is built on the skill of native Chinese in identifying and meeting an apparently non-existent market for Chinese things, and developing it.

These uniquely Chinese characteristics which draw Britons to Chinatowns include, of course, food - ranging from cheap and cheerful noodle houses to expensive and luxurious restaurants.

They also include martial arts, calligraphy, foodstuffs such as tea and dry noodles, literature in translation and in recent years movies, particularly martial arts films, traditional Chinese clothing, and Chinese health remedies such as acupuncture and massage.

Dr Lu Xiaoning, a lecturer in modern Chinese culture and language at SOAS, University of London, told Xinhua on Monday, "Chinese culture has permeated the fabric of our daily lives in the UK to an extent which is more than we are aware of. We are not only interested in being exposed to Chinese culture (trying Chinese cuisine, travelling to China, and so on) but also are serious about learning Chinese culture."
Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a speech at the Arab League headquarters in Cairo, Egypt, Jan 21, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

CAIRO - Visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday prescribed his remedies to restore peace in the Middle East and promote development in the Arab world.

While delivering a speech at the headquarters of the Arab League, Xi described the Middle East region, which in many's eyes is almost an equivalent to wars and tumult, as a "land of abundance."

PATH TO PEACE

The Chinese leader concluded in the remarks that dialogues and development are the key factors that can help bring peace and stability back in this part of the world.

He said use of force offers no solution to problems, neither will zero-sum mentality bring enduring peace, adding that for the success of talks, there is need for utmost patience and flexibility.

Speaking of the Syrian crisis, he said there will be no winner out of a conflict, and to address the hot-spots, what is the most urgent, is to bring about cease-fire and start political talks.

Xi also believed that turmoil in the Middle East stems from the lack of development, while the ultimate solution will depend on development, saying that only when young people are able to live a fulfilled life with dignity can hope prevail in their heart. Only then will they voluntarily reject violence, extremist ideologies and terrorism.

Mahmoud Allam, former Egyptian ambassador to China, admitted that many of the deep-rooted problems the Arab world is grappling with have been the result of failures to achieve a successful development model, saying development is no doubt the most viable path of mobilizing people toward achieving their common interests and overcoming disagreements.
Egypt was the first Arabic and African country to establish diplomatic relations with China and has maintained its traditional friendship for 60 years.

In 2014, the two countries elevated their relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership. Today, Sino-Egyptian bilateral trade and economic ties are growing rapidly.

China became Egypt's largest trading partner in 2013. Last year, trade between the two countries grew by two digits and reached $12 billion.

An increasing number of Chinese companies are investing in Egypt and developing local markets. The ongoing construction of the China-Egypt Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone, located near the Suez Canal, is progressing smoothly.

Last year, construction contracts for Chinese companies skyrocketed in the competitive Egyptian market, with signed contracts worth a total of $2.55 billion from January to September, an increase of 90 percent from the same period of 2014.

Last September, China and Egypt signed a cooperation agreement that covered 15 projects in electric power, transportation and other industries.

Egypt's strong desire for economic growth is highly consistent with China's implementation of economic reforms. There is great potential for the further development of economic and trade ties between China and Egypt. There is also huge potential for cooperation in business investments, energy, rail transportation, port logistics and aerospace technologies.

China and Egypt provide important development opportunities for each other and have shared their experiences in governance to achieve mutual benefits and win-win results.

China's ongoing Belt and Road Initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping in 2013 has offered new areas and impetus for Sino-Egyptian cooperation. Egypt is important to the implementation of the strategy because it is located at the meeting point of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.

At the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in December, China announced a series of new initiatives to strengthen ties with Africa in industrialization, modernizing agriculture, constructing infrastructure and developing human resources.

Egypt is attracting foreign investments for Suez Canal projects and hopes that more Chinese companies can invest and develop in the region.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (1st L) meets with Ali Abdelaal (1st R), speaker of Egypt's newly-elected parliament, in Cairo, Egypt, Jan 21, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

CAIRO - Visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping said Thursday that China and Egypt should conduct parliamentary exchanges to make positive contribution to the development of bilateral relations.

Xi made the remarks when meeting with Ali Abdelaal, speaker of Egypt's newly-elected parliament, which he said signals the smooth political transition in the North African nation.

The Chinese president expressed his belief that the Egyptian people will realize long-term stability and prosperity and make more contribution to safeguarding regional peace and stability.

Noting that the two countries have always respected and supported each other over the past 60 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, he said China has always regarded and advanced the bilateral ties from a strategic height.

China is willing to strengthen high-level visits, maintain and expand exchanges and cooperation between governments, legislatures, political parties and civil groups, and deepen cooperation and coordination in international affairs with Egypt, he said.

Xi said China's Belt and Road Initiative should be dovetailed with Egypt's national development plans.

He called on the two countries to advance production capacity cooperation and enhance cooperation in such areas as infrastructure construction, investment and financing, transport, energy, culture, education, tourism and security, so as to further substantiate the bilateral ties.

For his part, Abdelaal hailed the sound exchanges between the two countries' parliaments, saying the Egyptian parliament is willing to deepen exchanges and cooperation with China's National People's Congress.

Xi is paying his first state visit to the most populous Arab nation. Before Egypt, he paid a state visit to Saudi Arabia. His Middle East tour, his first overseas visit in 2016, will also take him to Iran.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) holds talks with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi at Quba Palace in Cairo, Egypt, Jan 21, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

CAIRO - China and Egypt agreed on Thursday to expand cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative during Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to the North African country.

During their talks at the Quba Palace in the morning, Xi, who first proposed the initiative in 2013, and his Egyptian counterpart, Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, reached extensive consensus on jointly carrying out the Belt and Road Initiative.

Xi proposed that the two countries work together to build the Arab nation into a pivot of the Belt and Road, which comprises the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.

To that end, Xi suggested, China and Egypt should conjoin their development strategies and visions and focus on cooperation on infrastructure construction and production capacity.

Meanwhile, China is willing to participate in Egypt's key projects including the development of the Suez Canal Corridor and the construction of a new administrative capital, said Xi.

He added that Beijing is also ready to expand bilateral cooperation in trade, finance, space technology, energy, human resources development and security.

According to a five-year outline document signed on Thursday, the two sides will "double their efforts" to develop the China-Egypt Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone. The document is aimed to cement the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two nations.

The two sides will continue to encourage Chinese companies to invest in the zone and other places, especially those from China's competitive sectors such as textile and steel, said the document.

Xi attended an inauguration ceremony of the second phase of the zone on Thursday. He said the project will bring to Egypt over 100 companies in such sectors as textile, garment, oil equipment, motorcycle and solar energy, and create more than 10,000 jobs for Egypt.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (2nd R) meets with Nabil al-Arabi (1st R), secretary general of the Arab League (AL), in Cairo, Egypt, Jan 21, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

CAIRO - Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Thursday that China supports the Arab world to solve its problems on its own.

Xi made the remarks while meeting with Nabil al-Arabi, secretary general of the Arab League (AL) which is based in the Egyptian capital of Cairo.

The Chinese leader is on his first state visit to the North African nation, also the most populous Arab country.

He said, as an important regional organization, the AL has made unrelenting efforts to help realize the independence of the Arab people, and plays a unique role in regional and international affairs.

Xi hoped that the AL can continue to serve as a champion for advocating China-Arab friendship.

China has always been a strong supporter for the just cause of the Arab nations as well as their efforts to handle regional crises on their own, Xi said.

He urged the two sides not only to step up their mutual trust, coordination in major issues in the region and around the world, but also join hands in carrying out the "belt and road initiative," and promote mutually-beneficial cooperation.

For his part, Arabi said China has always stood with the developing world, adding that the Arab world appreciates the publication of China's policy paper on Arab countries, and would like to work closely with China in political, economic as well as other sectors for mutual benefits.

After Xi's meeting with the AL chief, he delivered a speech at the organization's headquarters.
Children cheer as Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi walks with President Xi Jinping at the presidential palace in Cairo on Thursday. [Photo/Agencies]

Observers said concrete aide measures proposed in President Xi Jinping's latest Middle East policy speech are "pragmatic and effective" in addressing the region's thirst for stability and economic re-invigoration.

When addressing the Arab League at its headquarters in Cairo on Thursday afternoon, Xi stressed the need to "advance industrialization in the Middle East" and carry out production capacity cooperation.

"China's competitive production capacity and the human resources in the Middle East, when combined, will deliver more and better job opportunities for the region," Xi, who is on a three-nation trip to the Middle East, said.

Xi announced that China will set up a $15 billion special loan for industrialization in the region to be used on production capacity cooperation and infrastructure projects in regional countries.

China will launch a $20 billion joint investment fund with the UAE and Qatar to primarily invest in traditional energy, infrastructure development and high-end manufacturing industries in the region, Xi said.

China and the Middle East "need to make good use of the coming five years", the crucial period to jointly build the Belt and Road Initiative, Xi said.

Li Guofu, a researcher of Middle East studies at the China Institute of International Studies, said Xi had set the target of realizing the measures proposed in the upcoming five years "in order to make sure benefits are delivered faster to people of both China and the Middle East".

Xi's speech displayed China's latest philosophy that will help address regional hotspot issues, and has reaffirmed China's commitment to not interfering in domestic affairs of regional countries, Li said.

Wang Yiwei, director of the Institute of International Affairs at Renmin University of China, said: "China's successful experience in the process of modernizing itself has greatly inspired and encouraged the Arab countries to explore their own developing pathways that adapt to their respective national conditions."
CAIRO - Chinese President Xi Jinping left Egypt for Iran on Friday afternoon, wrapping up his first state visit to the most populous Arab country in the Middle East.

Xi's Egypt trip is the first visit of a Chinese president in 12 years.

During his stay in Cairo, Xi held talks Thursday morning with his Egyptian counterpart, Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, during which they agreed to expand cooperation within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative.

After their talks at the Quba Palace, the two presidents witnessed the signing of a slew of cooperation agreements, including a five-year outline document to cement their comprehensive strategic partnership.

Xi arrived in Cairo Wednesday afternoon and was received by President al-Sisi himself at the airport.

Shortly after his arrival, Xi met with Egyptian Prime Minister Sherif Ismail and the two jointly visited a China science and technology exhibition on the same day.

Xi met on Thursday with Egyptian parliament speaker Ali Abdelaal and Arab League (AL) secretary general Nabil al-Arabi respectively. The Chinese president delivered a speech at the AL headquarters in Cairo.

After his stay in the capital, Xi visited the southern Egyptian city of Luxor, where he attended the opening ceremony of the Sino-Egyptian Culture Year in 2016 together with al-Sisi at the Luxor Temple on Thursday night.

Egypt was the second stop of Xi's three-nation Middle East trip, which has already taken him to Saudi Arabia.
On January 20, Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Cairo for a state visit to the Arab Republic of Egypt, after visiting Saudi Arabia. Egypt sent eight fighter jets to escort Xi's plane.

Xi was warmly welcomed by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al Sisi and senior officials at the airport.

Despite weariness, Xi held talks with Egyptian counterpart President al Sisi, Prime Minister Sherif Ismai and other Egyptian leaders to discuss the traditional friendship, as well as the bright prospects for bilateral ties.

Egypt was the first Arab and African country to establish diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China. Beijing and Cairo are true friends and good brothers. Both sides have maintained stable and healthy relations through mutual understanding, respect, trust and support for the past six decades.

Xi's visit reflects that Beijing attaches great importance to its ties with Egypt. His visit is expected to draw a roadmap for future relations between the two countries.

Under the "Belt and Road" initiative, Beijing and Cairo hope to conjoin their development strategies, deepen cooperation on infrastructure construction and industrial capacity in concerted efforts to enhance their comprehensive strategic partnership.

The Sino-Egyptian friendship will develop like the rush of the Nile River to boost a revival for the Chinese and Egyptian people.

Comments by Xu Xiujun, associate researcher with the Institute of World Economy and Politics at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences; comics drawn by Chi Ying
Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) meets with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in New York, the United States, Sept 28, 2015. [Photo/Xinhua]

At the invitation of Iran President Hassan Rouhani, Chinese President Xi Jinping pays a state visit to the Islamic Republic of Iran on January 22-23.

Xi will deepen a traditional friendship that can be traced back to more than 2000 years ago, and both sides anticipate even better future exchanges ahead.

Historically, the ancient Silk Road had traversed through Iran, by land and by sea, which created prosperity for the nation.

China on the other side of the ancient Silk Road had also enjoyed social prosperity through two-way materials and spiritual exchanges. Both nations have embarked on the path of independent development, starting from the second half of the 20th century.

Iran had chosen to become an Islamic Republic, while China began its reform and opening up. Bilateral political, economic and cultural exchanges have gotten increasingly closer.

The two sides hold similar views on many regional and international issues.

Both sides advocate for non-interference in international affairs, oppose hegemony and terrorism, and seek to resolve differences between states through political dialogues.

Economically, both countries offer complementary advantages.

They have extensive cooperation in the fields of energy, automotive, transportation, water conservancy projects, mining, mobile communication and agricultural science and technology.

Bilateral trade volume had risen rapidly, from US$118 million in 1978 to US$51.85 billion, last year.

Beijing has provided strong support to Iran's economy in its difficult development process. Tehran also provided stable energy security for China's economic development.

The two countries have renewed their appreciation for each other's history and culture; recognizing the diverse richness of human cultures. In 2013, Xi proposed the "Belt and Road" initiative that would help economies at home and abroad.

Iranian President Rouhani had proposed the "Silk Road Revival" development mode. International sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear issue have been repealed, creating more win-win cooperation for both countries.

Xi's visit is the second time for Chinese top leaders to come to the country in 14 years, which holds landmark significance for long-term bilateral relations.

Meanwhile, it will have a far-reaching impact on the Middle East and the world. The visit will upgrade relations to a strategic cooperative level, while they expect to boost trade and financial ties.

They will deepen cooperation in petroleum and natural gas fields. They will sign agreements on industry, railways, ports, science and technology. The projects would promote economic development in the Middle East.

Xi hopes to impress Iranians. Iran could have a better understanding of contemporary China. Xi will encourage stability and development in the region. The Middle East remains in a period of upheaval.

In recent years, terrorism, extremism, political and sectarian conflicts have intensified. The regional development outlook does not appear promising.

Xi's ongoing Middle East visit would consolidate relationships between China and major Middle east nations for mutual benefits and win-win purposes. Beijing advocates resolving disputes through dialogue in new historical situations.

Overcoming difficulties with common development, playing a positive role in international affairs, allows Beijing to inject new vigor to achieve its "Belt and Road" vision for the common progress of all countries.

By Cheng Tong, Director, Oriental Institute, Shanghai International Studies University
China and Iran have enjoyed close-knit relations, since China's Han Dynasty (207 BC - 220 AD) welcomed merchants from Central Asia, India and Persia (Iran) to trade goods in the country, which was known as the ancient Silk Road.

The old Silk Road had vanished, but in 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinping had introduced the new "Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Maritime Silk Road" (Belt & Road) initiative to connect stronger logistics networks with Asia, Africa and Europe by building more roads, railways and airports.

Beijing has launched the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) - $US100bn. in capital and the $US40bn. New Silk Road Fund to fund major infrastructure projects in the region.

Tehran has already pledged to support the initiative with an investment of $US6bn. for the next six years.

Helping hand to overcome challenges

The United States and European Union had imposed sanctions against Iran, but they signed a nuclear accord, which ends sanctions. Tehran can revitalize its economy, and Xi's state visit to Iran this week comes at an opportune time.

Despite sanctions, China and Iran had maintained close trade ties. Statistics show that in 2015, Iran had exported 500,000 to 600,000 barrels of crude oil per day to China.

Chinese oil & gas companies - Sinopec and CNPC - had commissioned projects to lease equipment and provide technical support for Iranian firms to develop LNG (liquefied natural gas) in South Pars Fields and oil in Yadavarian and North Azadeyan regions.

Rebuilding Iran, strength-for-strength

Iran holds substantial reserves of oil and gas, while the world's second-largest economy continues to experience higher than global average Gross Domestic Product (GDP) annual growth rates; which means strong energy demand from China.

Iran is strategically-located in the Middle East, sharing land borders with 15 nations, and sea channels on its northern and southwestern coasts. The country is expected to play a crucial role in the "Belt & Road" as an energy hub and access to extensive delivery routes connecting to the Middle East and Eurasia.

Iran can become a regional economic powerhouse. Iran's Minister of Industry, Mining & Trade Reza Netmatzadels announced that the country would build more railways; Chinese companies will supply the trains, rails, equipment, along with technical expertise, while Iranian contractors will construct the rail networks.

Persian tourism holds allure

There's more to Iran than its oil & gas. The nation holds a long and rich cultural history. Some of its traditions and artifacts still flourish today and have drawn many foreign tourists, including those from China.

Globe-trotting Chinese tourists, who wish to purchase exotic items including persian rugs and porcelain, are flocking to Iran.

ECNS (English-language China News Service) reports that in the northern Iran village, Ardebil, the mausoleum of Sheikh Safi-din, has on display dozens of porcelain, dating back to the 13th Century, which have dazzling images of animals and plants painted in blue, emblazoned on white china.

The porcelain had arrived from China, but Persian artisans used home-grown blue painting materials to design them. This could one of the reasons why modern-day Iranians take tremendous pride over their historic ties with China.

"Everybody in Iran knows about the Silk Road and that ancient Persia and China were two hubs of the trade route," said Sadeq Zibakalam, professor of Tehran University.

New Silk Road, a game-changer for Iran

For years, Tehran had struggled under sanctions, but Beijing did not forsake them. Accordingly, the "Belt & Road" is expected to rejuvenate Iran's economy and the shared benefits can boost global logistics networks that would spur more trade and investments for the region.
BEIJING -- China has offered billions of U.S. dollars in loans and investment as well as political and security support to help the Middle East, during President Xi Jinping's first overseas visit of the year.

Xi unveiled a package of measures in his Cairo speech to the Arab League, including industrial and anti-terrorism cooperation to promote peace and development in the Arab world.

Growing interest in the middle east

Marred by decades of conflict, the Middle East has suffered another spate of turbulence and bloodshed since 2011, including civil wars in Syria and Yemen, the fight against the Islamic State (IS) and the great exodus of refugees.

Setting foot in the region for the first time as president, Xi called for "the utmost patience and flexibility" for dialogue, describing development as the solution to turmoil.

"China has a growing stake in energy, security and trade in the region, so it hopes for a stable and peaceful Middle East, otherwise our domestic development will be affected," said Li Guofu, an expert on Middle East affairs at the China Institute of International Studies.

Xi's speech defused speculation that China will fill the vacuum left by the strategic U.S. "pivot" from the Middle East to the Asia Pacific. He said China will not attempt to fill in the void in the region but promote peace talks and seek win-win cooperation through the Belt and Road Initiative.

Greater player in regional peace

Xi said China understands the aspirations of Palestine to integrate into the international community as a state. He announced 50 million yuan of assistance to the Palestinians and support for a solar power station in Palestine.

"China has grasped the root cause for the conflicts in the Middle East and is willing to contribute more to regional peace," said Hua Liming, former ambassador to Iran, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the Netherlands.

Stressing political dialogue as solution to any crisis, Xi promised 230 million yuan of additional humanitarian assistance this year to the people of Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya and Yemen.

"Since President Xi took office, China has worked to play a bigger and more effective role in regional and international affairs. China's diplomacy in the Middle East is no exception," said Tang Zhichao, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Instead of being a bystander in Middle Eastern affairs, China has put great effort into the Palestinian issue, the Syrian crisis and the Iranian nuclear issue, Tang said.

Xi expressed opposition to linking terrorism with any specific ethnic group or religion, noting doing that will only create ethnic and religious tensions.

Xi also offered in his speech 300 million dollars for law enforcement cooperation, police training so as to help build up the abilities of the regional countries to maintain stability.

Promote middle east industrialization

China's competitive production capacity and the Middle East's human resources, when combined, will deliver more and better job opportunities for the region, Xi said.

In comparison with an aging Chinese population, over 60 percent of the population in the Middle East are young people, but many are without jobs, Tang said, believing "the two sides are highly complementary in terms of production capacity cooperation."

To promote the industrialization of the Middle East, Xi announced a 15 billion U.S. dollar special loan for production capacity cooperation and infrastructure construction, 10 billion U.S. dollars of commercial loan to support production capacity cooperation, and 10 billion U.S. dollars of concessional loans.

China will also launch a 20 billion U.S. dollars joint investment fund with the UAE and Qatar primarily to invest in traditional energy, infrastructure development and high-end manufacturing industries in the Middle East.

"This shows that China is not a so-called 'free rider' in the Middle East or just a buyer of oil, but is committed to helping the Middle East to develop." Tang said.

"Only when young people are able to live with dignity through development can hope prevail in their hearts. Only then will they voluntarily reject violence, extremist ideology and terrorism," Xi said.
CAIRO -- Chinese President Xi Jinping wrapped up his first state visit to Egypt on Friday afternoon, injecting fresh impetus to the development of the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

During his stay in Cairo, Xi also visited the Arab League (AL) headquarters on Thursday, where he said enhancing dialogue is the key to addressing differences in the Middle East, pledging further aid for regional development.

New starting point for china-egypt partnership

Xi's Egypt tour is the first by a Chinese head of state in 12 years which came as the two countries celebrate the 60th anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic ties.

In a gesture of hospitality, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi sent eight fighter jets to escort Xi's plane when it entered the Arab country's airspace. The president himself was also at the airport to receive Xi.

Egypt is the second stop of Xi's three-nation Middle East tour, which also covers Saudi Arabia and Iran.

"China attaches great importance to the development of its relationship with Egypt," Xi said during his talks with al-Sisi on Thursday, saying that the friendly ties between the two countries have weathered the changing international landscapes and domestic ups and downs over the past six decades.

China and Egypt established diplomatic relations in May 1956 and upgraded their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership in December 2014.

During Xi's visit, the two sides signed a five-year outline document to further advance their relationship.

According to the 18-page document, the two countries will boost their cooperation in political, trade and economic, military and security, science and technology, cultural, environmental and agricultural, energy, medical and law-enforcement domains as well as global and regional affairs.

"China will continue to view and develop its relations with Egypt from a strategic and long-term perspective," Xi said in an article published on the Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram ahead of his visit.

The Chinese president said he will work together with his Egyptian counterpart to comprehensively deepen political trust and strategic cooperation for common development and progress and strengthen the exemplary role of China-Egypt relations in South-South cooperation.

Liu Baolai, a former Chinese diplomat, hailed Xi's visit as a "milestone" for the relationship between China and Egypt.

"Egypt is an important country in the Middle East, and the new government led by President al-Sisi has taken measures to better people's livelihood," Liu said, adding that Xi's visit will strongly bolster the partnership and friendly cooperation between the two nations.

Egypt as pivot along silk roads

During their talks, the two leaders reached extensive consensus on jointly implementing the Belt and Road Initiative, a vision put forward by Xi in 2013 to promote common development along the historical land and maritime Silk Roads.

Xi suggested that the two countries work together to build the Arab nation into a pivot along the Belt and Road.

To that end, Xi said, China and Egypt should align their development plans and focus on cooperation in infrastructure and production capacity.

Egypt stands ready to connect its own development plans with the Belt and Road Initiative and expand infrastructure cooperation with China within the framework of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, al-Sisi said, calling for more Chinese investment in his country.

Xi pledged that China will participate in Egypt's key projects including the development of the Suez Canal Corridor and the construction of a new administrative capital.

According to the five-year outline document, the two sides will "double their efforts" to develop the China-Egypt Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone.

The two sides will continue to encourage Chinese companies, especially those from China's competitive sectors such as textile and steel, to invest in the zone and other places, said the document.

The cooperation zone is located near the Suez Canal. The first phase of the zone, covering an area of 1.34 square km, has been basically completed, while a second phase is expected to draw an investment of about 500 million U.S. dollars for development and construction, according to a joint venture operator of the zone.

Xi attended an inauguration ceremony of the second phase of the zone on Thursday, saying that the project will bring to Egypt over 100 companies in such sectors as textile, garment, oil equipment, motorcycle and solar energy, and create more than 10,000 jobs for Egypt.

The document said that China will, within its capacity, conduct financing cooperation with Egypt in support of Belt and Road projects.

During Xi's visit, China and Egypt signed a memorandum of understanding on jointly implementing the Belt and Road Initiative as well as a number of other cooperation agreements covering areas such as electricity, space, infrastructure, trade, energy, finance, culture, media, technology and climate change.

The deals are worth 15 billion dollars, said Egyptian media Al-Ahram online, quoting Minister of International Cooperation Sahar Nasr.

"(President Xi's) visit is historic for many reasons, especially on the economic side," said Alaa Hayder, head of Egypt's official news agency MENA.

"There should be integration between the Suez corridor and the Silk Roads," Hayder added.

"China's participation in the construction of the Suez Canal Corridor and the new administrative capital will help spur the Egyptian economy and shore up international confidence in Egypt," said Li Guofu, director of Middle East studies at the China Institute of International Studies.

Peace through dialogue, aid to arab development

On Thursday, Xi delivered a speech at the AL headquarters in Cairo, stressing the importance of enhancing dialogue to restore peace in the Middle East while announcing further aid to the Arab world.

"The key to addressing differences is to enhance dialogue," Xi said, adding that use of force offers no solution to problems, neither will zero-sum mentality bring enduring peace.

"The international community should respect the will and role of those directly involved, the neighboring countries and regional organizations, instead of imposing a solution from outside," Xi said, noting that there is a need for utmost patience and flexibility for dialogue to succeed.

The Chinese president announced further aid to the Arab world, saying that promoting development is the key to overcome difficulties.

According to Xi, China is going to offer a number of loan programs, including 15 billion dollars of exclusive loans in support of industrialization in the Middle East through industrial capacity and infrastructure cooperation. It will also offer 10 billion dollars of commercial lending to facilitate production capacity cooperation with Middle East countries.

China will also provide 10 billion dollars of concessional loans with even more favorable terms for regional countries and launch joint investment funds with the United Arab Emirates and Qatar worth a total of 20 billion dollars to primarily invest in traditional energy, infrastructure and high-end manufacturing in the Middle East, said Xi in his speech.

"China is an important economic partner to Arab states and Xi's speech shows China's keenness on achieving security and stability in the Arab world," said Mahmoud Allam, former Egyptian Ambassador to China.

"His speech is totally different from those we used to hear from the West," said Ahmed Eliba, a researcher at the Regional Center for Strategic Studies.

"Now China is offering a third way that seeks peace and security through development and balanced political relationships that are based on common interests," Eliba said.
KHARTOUM -- Chinese President Xi Jinping's ongoing Middle East tour inaugurates a new phase in Sino-Arab ties featuring "community of common destiny," Sudanese political analysts said Friday.

The "community of common destiny" is an initiative earlier called for by President Xi as a major idea to tackle international relations and establish a humanitarian community free of war and conflict to achieve development and common prosperity for all mankind.

"The importance of this visit emanates from the fact that it is the first of its kind for the Chinese president to the Middle East region since he assumed his post three years ago," said Dr. Mohamed Hassan Saeed, a Sudanese political analyst and lecturer of political science at a number of Sudanese universities.

"The visit comes in culmination of a growing Chinese concern with the relations with the Arab countries, besides the issuing of the first China Arab Policy paper which set a number of major directives that are likely to create a new reality for these historical ties," he added.

The initiative of a community of common destiny was called for by the Chinese president about two years ago. It addresses the shortcomings in international relations and is aimed at creating a peaceful human community.

"President Xi's historical visit to the Middle East is likely to lay down the base for that initiative, considering what it means for the Arab region which is witnessing disturbances, political transformations and armed conflicts," Dr. Saeed said.

He reiterated China's ability to play a positive role in creating a state of stability in the disturbed Middle East region through sustaining the peace, achieving development and enhancing common interests and exchanged benefits.

"The Middle East region, which is witnessing great transformations, needs the Chinese wisdom and policy which stands on the principle of non-intervention in other countries' internal affairs," he noted.

Abdul-Khaliq Sheikh Iddris, a Sudanese political analyst, regarded President Xi's visit to the Middle East as an enhancement to the opportunities of success for China's "Belt and Road" initiative, proposed by the Chinese president in 2013.

"The Middle East region constitutes a crossroads center for the 'Belt and Road' initiative, where the Arab countries are the most enthusiastic to implement this initiative which is likely to bring together the economies of the countries of the region, increase their growth rates and enhance their ability to face risks," he noted.

He added that "historically, China was connected to the Arab countries by the 'Silk Road' where the two sides exchanged commercial benefits and helped in disseminating the different cultures. Reviving that initiative will create new opportunities of communication between the two sides in a manner that serve the entire humanity."

President Xi's is an opportunity to "explain his cooperation pattern, titled (1+2+3), which was declared in 2014, particularly that the Chinese and Arab sides enjoy potentialities that qualify them to achieve great successes relating to cooperation in fields of technology, particularly the domain of Nuclear power, satellites and alternative energies," Iddris said.

On Tuesday President Xi started his a five-day tour to the Middle East that includes Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Iran.
CAIRO -- China and Egypt announced Thursday that they both agree to comprehensively reform the UN system and increase the representation of developing nations within the world body.

To achieve a comprehensive reform of the UN Security Council, all five aspects of the reform should be handled as a whole, they said in a document outlining their joint actions in the next five years to strengthen the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership.

In the outline, issued during Chinese President Xi Jinping's first state visit to the North African nation, the two countries stressed that the overhaul should be aimed at establishing an open, multilateral and just system featuring democratic international decision-making.




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President Xi Jinping addresses the Arab League at its headquarters in Cairo on Thursday, stressing the need to advance industrialization in the Middle East. PANG XINGLEI / XINHUA

President Xi Jinping stressed the need to "advance industrialization in the Middle East", a statement backed up with pledges of billions of dollars in loans and investments to help make that happen, in a speech to the Arab League at its headquarters in Cairo on Thursday afternoon.

"China's competitive production capacity and the human resources in the Middle East, when combined, will deliver more and better job opportunities for the region," said Xi, who is on a three-nation trip to the Middle East. Xi left Egypt on Friday for Iran, the third and last stop on his visit.

Xi announced that China will set up a $15 billion special loan for industrialization in the region to be used on production capacity cooperation and infrastructure projects.

China also will launch a $20 billion joint investment fund with the United Arab Emirates and Qatar to primarily invest in traditional energy, infrastructure development and high-end manufacturing industries in the region, Xi said.

The president said China and the Middle East "need to make good use of the coming five years", a crucial period to jointly build the Belt and Road Initiative, China's plan to link Asia, Africa and Europe via trade and infrastructure investment.

Observers called the concrete measures proposed in the president's latest Middle East policy speech pragmatic and effective in addressing the region's thirst for stability and economic reinvigoration.

Li Guofu, a researcher in Middle East studies at the China Institute of International Studies, said Xi had set the target of realizing the measures proposed in the upcoming five years "in order to make sure benefits are delivered faster to the people of both China and the Middle East".

Xi's speech displayed China's latest philosophy in how to help address regional hot spot issues, and has reaffirmed China's commitment to not interfering in the domestic affairs of other countries, Li said.

Wang Yiwei, director of the Institute of International Affairs at Renmin University of China, said, "China's successful experience in the process of modernizing itself has greatly inspired and encouraged the Arab countries to explore their own developing pathways that adapt to their respective national conditions."

In regard to promoting stability in the region, Xi said China will "set up a China-Arab research center on reform and development". To boost structural adjustments, Xi said China may sign more currency swap and mutual investment agreements, expand renminbi settlement services and accelerate investment facilitation.
President Xi Jinping attended the opening of Paris Climate Change Conference and delivered and important speech on Nov. 30,2015. [Photo/Xinhua]

China's commitment to building green generating capacity is real but it needs the support of technologically mature economies to make sure that it invests in the right projects and that the most advanced solutions are rolled out, a leading UK industrial expert says.

"There are too many examples where compromise solutions have been implemented which don't provide the necessary plant life or environmental benefit because quality standards are too low or previous generation technology has been used," says Chris Rudd, professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Nottingham.

Rudd adds the situation is improving, but due to the scale of China's demand, any mistakes can be huge expensive and time-consuming to rectify.

China's state-owned enterprises are facing a major challenge in reinventing themselves to support China's ecological endeavours and its new role in the world economy.

A recent Beijing Youth Daily report shows that about 21 percent of the country's listed SOEs register losses in the first three quarters, with the worst ten losing a total of about 13.5 billion yuan ($2.1 billion, 1.38 billion pounds, 1.91 billion euros).

In order to enhance productivity and to further eliminate outdated procurement and management practices, Rudd suggests the pace of change will need to accelerate.

"No single measure will rescue this major part of the national infrastructure but a combination of mixed ownership, management changes, business spinoffs and overseas partnerships will help to refresh the portfolio and enhance their readiness to embrace change, new technologies and market responsiveness," Rudd says.

As major providers and consumers of energy and other natural resources, Rudd believes the SOEs are critical in delivering a green future, and accelerating reform in the sector is of paramount importance.

"It should also be borne in mind that these are huge employers in China, both directly and via their supply chains - safeguarding a major segment of the Chinese labour market is a further consideration that makes their upgrading and longevity a top national priority," adds Rudd.

Europe and UK in particular have a thriving green-tech industry and there is already a strong collaboration platform with China, based on both technology developments in R&D partnerships, manufacturing facilities and design services,

"The availability of private and sovereign capital in China means that win-win partnerships can be formed, with investment into capital-starved overseas businesses and projects while western technology can be deployed economically in China's huge domestic market," says Rudd, adds there are great examples of this with UK's next-generation green energy projects in Nuclear and Tidal Power schemes.

During the Paris climate summit, President Xi Jinping pledged to reduce CO2 per unit of GDP by 60-65% over the 2005 level, and raise the share of non-fossil fuels in primary energy consumption to about 20% by 2030.

Xi said China will adopt new policy measures to improve industrial mix, build low-carbon energy systems, and develop green building and low-carbon transportation on the basis of technological and institutional innovation.

As a direct result, innovation and green development have been put forward as two of China's major themes in its 13th Five Year Plan proposal. China's re-focus on its development strategy brings about great potential opportunities to the UK and European businesses.

The UK has particular strengths in engineering and design consultancy, and it has outstanding R&D capabilities, which will be relevant as China upgrades the energy efficiency of its buildings and implements smart city' concepts for the future, says Neil Hirst, Senior Policy Fellow for Climate Change and the Environment at Grantham Institute, Imperial College London.

"Imperial College, where I work, collaborates with many Chinese research institutions and trains many Chinese students in science and technology," Hirst adds.

Hirst believes that the scale of China's adaptation to a lower carbon future will certainly offer widespread opportunities to businesses in the UK and in Europe, which are following the same route.

China is now the world's largest manufacturer of photovoltaic modules and of wind turbines, says Hirst, adding in some areas it has the most advanced technology but there are also many technologies where Europe is at the cutting edge.

"There will be major opportunities in renewables, including wind and solar, but also in the modernisation, including efficiency improvements, of a wide range of manufacturing industries, and conventional power plant," Hirst adds.

To contact the reporter: wangmingjie@mail.chinadailyuk.com
(Photo : YouTube Screenshot) Because folk masters are in their older years, experts are attempting to digitally store the intangible cultural heritage of the Tibet ethnic group including folk literature, social practices, performing arts and festive events.

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Experts from Tibet Autonomous Region in China are competing against time to digitize some of the region's intangible cultural customs and traditions as most folk masters are already in their older years.



According to Ngawang Dainzin, the chairperson of the Protection Center for Intangible Cultural Heritage in Tibet, officials in the autonomous region started gathering data in 2006 and the digital database now has a collection of over 100,000 stories, 1,500 videos and 40,000 pictures.



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The database has various multimedia content including 114 Tibetan operas, data on 89 intangible cultural heritage programs, instruction on the 68 state-level descendants, and over fifty percent of the programs and successors on the regional level.



"The masters are a 'living dictionary' of intangible cultural heritage," Ngawang said. He added this computerization process will help preserve the legacy of the Tibetan ethnic group.



In the past years, many folk masters, who have passed away, did not have the chance to transfer their special knowledge or were too sick to train successors. Traditional music, performing arts, rituals and medicines, and folk literature are just among the 10 different categories the current digitizing process is conserving for the succeeding generation.



Meanwhile, a museum featuring the Tibet Tubo Kingdom is set to open in May this year. The upcoming Tubo Museum will be located in the county of Qonggyai. According to Dawa, the head of the Tibet Cultural Tourism Ltd., the museum will showcase the various aspects of the Tubo period. It will cover an area of up to 12,000 square meters and the number of items to be featured will increase from 2,000 in the first phase to 10,000 in the second phase.



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TagsCulture, tradition, Tibetan ethnic group, digital, Protection Center for Intangible Cultural Heritage
(Photo : U.S. Navy/Specialist 2nd Class Daniel Barker) The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) helicopter destroyer JS Kurama performs maneuvers during training in the above photo taken in Pacific waters. The Japanese cabinet has approved a record $42 billion budget for Japan's military forces in 2016.

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Japan is girding to match China's military muscle as Tokyo -- the seat of power in a nation that has sworn to renounce war forever -- recently approved a national military budget roughly equivalent to the size of Libya's gross domestic product (GDP).



The Japanese cabinet has assented to a record $42 billion budget for Japan's military forces in 2016. The amount represents a 2.8 percent increase over Tokyo's defense spending in the previous fiscal year, and marks four straight years of increased military expenditures for the pacifist country.



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The budget still requires the approval of the Japanese parliament; but with both houses dominated by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), legislative consent is largely a matter of formality.



Japan's newly-appointed defense minister, Gen Nakatani, says Tokyo's 2016 defense budget indicates the "changing situation" around the country.



"The level of defense spending reflects the amount necessary to protect Japan's air, sea and land, and guard the lives and property of our citizens," Nakatani told the BBC.



Simmering Dispute



Beijing and Tokyo are in the midst of a simmering dispute in the East China Sea over a small group of islands known as Senkaku in Japan and Daioyu in China.



The island group is under Japanese control, Tokyo having purchased three of the islands from their private owners in 2012. They nevertheless remain at the center of a long-standing -- and often rancorous -- territorial dispute with China.



Nakatani has said that Chinese naval vessels have begun to appear more frequently in Japanese waters, and insists that jet fighters of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force have on occasion flown dangerously close to Japanese aircraft.



The Japanese defense minister's remarks have earned heated criticism from Beijing, which has asserted that its maritime activities in the East China Sea are "completely legitimate."



The Wall Street Journal reports that Japan is preparing to deploy more forces and radar on the disputed islands, where it intends to establish an amphibious fighting force similar to the US Marine Corps to counter Chinese military presence in the area.



The Japanese government likewise plans to use part of its new defense budget to acquire F-35 jet fighters, E-2D airborne early warning aircraft, 30 amphibious vehicles with tank guns, and an AEGIS destroyer.



Wrong Message



The increase in Japan's military spending follows the ratification in September of security laws that expand the country's capability to fight overseas alongside the US and other allies.



The laws were widely criticized, but passed legislative scrutiny behind the urging of Abe, who heads the ruling LDP.



Japanese lawmaker Soichi Kondo of the Democratic Party of Japan, has expressed his opposition to the budget, which he says could send the wrong message to China, and provoke an arms race in the region.



"The Abe government has been inciting a sense of impending crisis," Kondo says. "The money would be better spent on social security and education."



Kondo's sentiment is shared by Professor Koichi Nakano of Tokyo's Sophia University, who laments the apparently fading appeal of pacifism among decison-makers in the Japanese government.



"The government is trying to put an end to post-war pacifism as we know it," Nakano told the BBC in September, just as parliament approved the controversial security laws. "And that is worrying, because nobody signed up to this idea of Japan becoming 'normal'."



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TagsChina-Japan relations, Diaoyu, China-Japan Dispute
(Photo : Reuters) China has reportedly conducted live-fire military exercises near the Taiwan island and analysts say it could be in preparation for possible outbreak of hostilities between the two sides.

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Days after the recent elections in Taiwan, Chinese military forces had conducted live-fire landing on a coast near Taiwan, according to the military's official television network CCTV7.



CCTV7 reported on Thursday that live fire exercises were staged by soldiers of the 31st Group Army headquartered in Xiamen near the Taiwanese-controlled island of Kinmen.



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PLA Frontline Units



The television network said the location where the military drills were conducted is not far from the coastline of the Kinmen island, which is one of the 'frontline units' for the People's Liberation Army (PLA) for any action they will take against Taiwan should hostilities erupt between the two sides.



The military-run television channel reported that the PLA conducted the landing exercises 'recently' but did not say the exact date.



The channel gave only sketchy details about the military exercise such as the arms, equipment, and other weaponry used during the drills. It did not specify, however, the number of troops who participated and the number of equipment used in the live-fire landing.



Military equipment



The military exercise involved various equipment such as self-propelled howitzers, long-range rockets, amphibious tanks, and helicopters.



China's Defense Ministry refused to answer queries on whether the military drills are related to the overwhelming victory of pro-independence candidate Tsai Lng-wen in the Taiwanese elections.



Tsai, a pro-independence candidate of the Democratic Progressive Party, will be the first female President of Taiwan. Tsai assumes the presidency after the eight-year rule of outgoing pro-China President Ma Ying-jeou



China usually says that it stages its military drills periodically and they are not conducted in response to a particular event such as the Taiwan elections.



Taiwan independence separatist forces



But military analysts say the military exercise in an area similar to the Taiwanese coastline and the number of troops and units involved in the exercise may point to a hypothetical scenario of an eruption of military hostilities between the two sides.



"Given the certain amount of risk the two sides are facing today, the hypothetical target of the 31st Group Army's exercises might be those 'Taiwan independence' separatist forces," said military analysts.



Analysts claim the 31st Army Group involved in the exercise is the same group responsible for any Taiwan eventualities.



Breakaway province



Time and again, China has declared Taiwan as a breakaway province and has publicly announced that it will use force the moment Taiwan pushes for independence.



China has always said that China and Taiwan will be reunited in the future and any Taiwanese actions that will counter that will be dealt with militarily.



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TagsChina live-fire landing exercises, CCTV7, China's 31st Army Group, Chinese military troops, PLA Frontline Units
(Photo : Reuters) In 2015, China experienced the steepest decline of its working-age population in its entire modern history, plunging from 4.87 million to 911 million.

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In 2015, China experienced the deepest plunge in its working-age population in the country's modern history. The downward trend is getting demographers and economists anxious.



According to the latest figures from the National Bureau of Statistics of China, the working-age population, those aged between 16 and 60 years, drastically dropped by a record 4.87 million to 911 million in 2015. This is in comparison with the 3.17 million downturn in 2014.



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The trend is consistent with the country's economic slowdown and also with the reduction of its migrant workers. The migrant population, those who usually seek jobs in other places and leave their hometowns, cutback from 5.68 million to 247 million at the end of 2015, the steepest trend the country has experienced in three decades.



Experts have warned China about its strict population control, suggesting that its one-child policy would eventually weigh on growth prospects. With the risk that the elderly population will soon outnumber the working group, China would more likely get old before it gets rich. In 2011, the working population, defined before as those between 16 and 59 years old, comprised 69.8 percent of the population. Last year, the figure dwindled at 66.3 percent.



Meanwhile, as the work force becomes scarce, it has also become more demanding -- seeking for higher compensation and more benefits. In fact, China Labour Bulletin, a Hong Kong advocacy organization, claims that labor protest incidents skyrocketed to almost 450 instances last December alone. Also, based on the American Chamber of Commerce's survey, more than half of the US establishments claim that the cost of labor is one of the problems they face while operating in China.



With the aim of providing a solution to the problem, China ended its one-child policy after 40 years and now allows each family to have two children. However, according to Wang Pei'an, deputy head of the National Health and Family Planning Commission, the dilemma of the country is not of the quantity but of the quality of workers. Experts say for most couples in the country, having a second child is expensive.



Currently, China, with 1.37 billion people, is the most populous country in the world. Based on the United Nations prediction, the Chinese population aged 65 years will jump to 243 million (85%) in 2030, up from this year's 131 million.



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Tagschina, working population, second-child policy, economic slowdown
(Photo : Reuters) Pro-China netizens have flooded the Facebook account of Taiwan president-elect Tsai with spams and posts calling on her to bring Taiwan under China's control.

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Tens of thousands of pro-China posts and spams have inundated the Facebook account of Taiwan president-elect Tsai lng-wen despite the existing ban of the social network on the mainland.



As of Thursday afternoon, more than 42,000 people had posted comments on the President-elect's Facebook page calling on her to bring the island under China's jurisdiction and control.



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Most of the pro-China posts were written in simple Chinese characters while the Taiwanese and Hong Kong posts were in traditional characters.



Embrace the motherland



Many of the posts included a refrain from a Communist Party song about embracing the motherland and how shameful it is to hurt China.



Pro-Taiwanese independence netizens countered the Chinese tirades by sarcastically congratulating mainlanders for being able to evade government internet censors and post their barbs against President-elect Tsai on Facebook.



The Taiwanese commenters pointed out to the mainlanders that they don't have the freedom that the people in Taiwan enjoy.



Freedom of speech



Members of the pro-independence Taiwan Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) say the newly-elected President wasn't at all angry about the deluge of Pro-China posts on her Facebook page, adding that the Chinese internet users were just 'exercising their freedom of speech.'



"As long as the comments are not extreme and below the belt, we have only respect for them,' one DPP member said.



President-elect Tsai herself commended the Chinese netizens for being able to express their sentiments freely despite the existing ban on Facebook in China.



"The greatness of this country is that everyone has their own rights," the president-elect posted.



Taiwan province governor



Many of the posts were written in an attempt to annoy Tsai following the recently concluded Taiwan elections.



Some posts referred to Tsai as the "Taiwan province governor", while the other posts reiterated that Taiwan is part of China and that should be followed and respected.



China's Taiwan Affairs Office, which leads cross-strait negotiations for the mainland, did not respond to a request for comment.



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TagsFacebook, Taiwan President-elect Tsai lng-wen, Social network, mainlanders, Communist Party
(Photo : Reuters) Donning a Spiderman mask, the whistleblower who, helped police bust a major international drug-trafficking ring, showed up in Guangzhou city to receive his 450,000 yuan cash reward - the largest amount of its kind the province of Guangdong has given so far.

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A freight company employee on Thursday wore a Spiderman mask while claiming his 450,000 yuan ($68,400) cash reward in Guangzhou city for giving a lead to the police about a major international drug trafficking ring. The amount received is the biggest of its kind in Guangdong province.



The informant, who was working as the freight company's examiner in Shunde district, Foshan city, discovered a number of watch boxes, which contained drugs, headed for Malaysia. He immediately reported the incident to the local police.



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The evidence helped law enforcement officers from the cities of Foshan, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Donggua to seize 630 kilograms of drugs and 600 kilograms of raw drug-making materials. They also nabbed 20 suspects, including seven individuals from Hong Kong and discovered three manufacturing and store house station between Dec. 29 2015 and Jan. 14, 2016.



The prize came from the Guangdong Provincial Public Security Bureau (300,000) and Public Security Bureaus of Shunde District, Foshan City (150,000). The awarded money was based on a law announced by Guangdong Province's Department of Finance and the Provincial Public Security which states that monetary incentives will be offered to those who can tip off crimes related to illegal drugs, according to Provincial Public Security Bureau's drug enforcement director, Deng Jianwei.



A total of 24.81 million yuan has been awarded to more than 3,500 informants across the Guangdong province. Because of these informants, over 14,500 illegal drug cases have been solved, about 19,000 detained and 8.32 tons of drugs seized. All these cases comprise nearly 20 percent of the drug-related incident since 2013.



As of now, Deng claims that there are 14 cities in Guangdong province currently implementing the scheme.



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Tagsillegal drugs, Spiderman, informant, cash prize, Guangdong Province, Foshan City
(Photo : Getty Images) People wrapped up in winter jackets in famous Houhai area as temperatures plummet to minus 10 degrees on January 18, 2016.

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A cold wave is set to sweep 90 percent of China from north to south, according to a warning issued by the National Meteorological Center on Thursday.



For some weeks now, China has been battling one of the worst cold waves in its recent history - plunging temperatures to freezing levels in almost all part of the country.



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On Friday morning, unprecedented cold waves brought life across China to grinding halt; leading to the shut down of many highways and disrupting airport traffic across the country. Schools and colleges in many cities also remained close.



Municipalities and government agencies in many important cities like Shanghai, Fujian, Guangdong and Jiangxi have elevated their critical facilities to emergency level to deal with any incidents caused by the cold waves.



Government authorities have already started taking precaution to deal with power failures, traffic jams and train/flight delays.



Temperature to dip -17 degree Celsius in Beijing



As per the Municipal Meteorological Service, temperature in capital city of China is expected to freeze down to minus 17 degree Celsius by Saturday morning. This will be lowest temperature that Beijing will endure in 30 years.



The Municipal Meteorological Service further warned that strong winds can plunge temperatures in mountainous areas of the city to as low as minus 23 degree Celsius.



Shanghai To Witness Record Breaking Cold Temperature



As Beijing is set to experience its coldest days in 30 years, the financial capital Shanghai is also bracing for record breaking cold temperature. As per Municipal Meteorological Service Forecast, temperature on Sunday and Monday in Shanghai may inch closer towards or even break the coldest temperature set in 1981.



The commercial city has been experiencing heavy sleet and rainfall since Wednesday.



Extreme conditions like winter storms of 2008 are highly unlikely



Although China is going through unprecedented cold waves, meteorological experts believe that this time conditions and causalities would not be as severe as winter storms of 2008. This is presumably because this time cold period will be much shorter.



In January and February 2008, China, especially Southern China, experienced its worst snowstorm in five decades. Leading to deaths of 129 people and economic losses valued at 150 billion yuan.



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TagsCold in China, Cold Weather in China
(Photo : Getty Images) Chefs sitting outside a restaurant in Beijing city. Several Chinese restaurants have come under investigation for using opiates in their food.

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In a shocking revelation, China Food and Drug Administration has announced that it has prosecuted five restaurants and other 30 restaurants are still under investigation for using 'opium poppies' in their dishes.



These 35 restaurants were reported to be using Poppy powder, which contains low amounts of opiates, as seasoning. Poppy powder is banned as a food additive across China.



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One of the restaurants that was hit by this crackdown is popular Huda Restaurant chain, based in Beijing city.



General Manager of Huda 'Hu Ling' has confirmed to Chinese media that the restaurant chains is indeed under investigation by China Food and Drug Administration.



Huda's General Manager, however, claimed 'innocence' and stated that workers may have unknowingly bought seasoning contaminated with 'opiates'.



Meanwhile, officials from China Food and Drug Administration have urged local authorities to help them nail the actual source of these poppies.



Chinese Restaurants have been hit by opium scandal in past





This is not the first time that Chinese restaurants have faced prosecution or come under the spotlight for using opium poppies in their dishes.



In 2012, seven local restaurants in Ningxia province had to close down after investigations revealed that they had used opium poppies in their dishes. But the worst case of opium poppies surfaced in 2004, when as many as 215 restaurants in Guizhou province had to shut down after they were found guilty of similar charges.



In recent years, Chinese restaurant industry has also been rocked by other types of scandals.



In 2014, a Shanghai based food supplier was accused of supplying unsanitary and expired chicken meat to food chains across China, including high profile restaurant chains like KFC, Starbucks and MacDonald's.



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(Photo : Kevin Frayer/Getty Images) A Chinese man died from jumping off the ninth floor of a building. Firefighters were hindered from rescuing him by an illegally parked car.

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A Chinese man, who committed suicide, plunged to his death after firefighters were unable to rescue him from falling.



The man reportedly jumped down from the ninth floor of the building he was on and fell flat on the pavement. Firefighters, who came to the rescue, failed to catch him because the airbag that they prepared did not fit in the space where the man fell  thanks to an illegally parked Mazda car.



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The man landed right in the space created by the illegally parked car, between the building and the rescue airbag, reports the Beijing Times. The incident reportedly happened on Wednesday in Beijing's Xicheng District.



According to a security guard, a crowd had gathered outside to witness the tragic event, watching as firefighters were quickly inflated the airbag.



The guard said that the airbag was already inflated when the man jumped down from the building.



But he missed the airbag and landed on the ground right in front of the car, he said.



The incident has sparked online debates, with varying views about whether the owner of the illegally parked car will be held accountable for the man's death.



Suicide Rate in China Declining



This new report of suicide by a Chinese national is surprising, as earlier reports revealed that China's suicide rate has dwindled compared to the past decade.



The Economist reported in 2014 that in the years 1995-1999, for every 100,000 people in China, an average of 23.2 suicides happen annually. In the years 2009-2011, however, suicide rate dropped to an average of 9.8 yearly. In 2012, the official national suicide rate reported was even lower, at 6.9 suicides per 100,000 people.



Women in rural areas saw the most dramatic decrease in suicides, dropping by as much as 90%.



A more recent report, however, showed that according to a Wuhan University lecturer, the suicide rate among the elderly in rural, impoverished areas is rising, despite the overall decline.



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(Photo : ChinaFotoPress/Getty Images) A Chinese robber failed in his attempt to steal a bag of money from a bank in Huludao City, Liaoning province.

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A Chinese robber was caught minutes after attempting to steal a bag of cash, simply because the money bag was too heavy for him to carry.



CCTVs captured the scene on March 2014 showing as the robber, 29-year-old Luan Liming, unsuccessfully tried multiple times to lift the bag of money onto his getaway motorcycle. But before he could even make his getaway, he was caught by security guards.



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The bag of money that he stole from a bank in Huludao City, Liaoning province, contained about 1.7 million yuan, and weighed almost 90 kilograms.



Luan wore a helmet with a mask inside as he waited for an armored van to arrive. He reportedly stole the bag from a bank worker who was carrying it from the van and into the bank.



As the bank worker  and an armed escort  made their way through the bank's revolving doors, Luan sprayed gasoline into the escort's eyes, kicked the bank worker, who was holding the money bag, then shot him in the leg with an air gun before making his way with the loot.



The bumbling robber, however, was apparently unable to handle the heavy bag of money on his own, and struggled to flee in his getaway motorcycle.



Meanwhile, the armed escort recovered from the attack, and shot Luan in the leg before catching him.



Police said that Luan owned a shoe repair shop in the city, and attempted to rob the bank in order to pay for his mortgage.



He reportedly bought the gun that he used from a man in Sichuan province. He then returned to Liaoning via a motorbike because he was unable to ride the train, due to the security check.



He was convicted of robbery and illegal possession of a firearm, and was given a suspended death sentence.



The robber said that he hates himself for doing such a thing, adding that he will treat his parents and wife kindly if ever he gets out of prison.



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TagsLiaoning, Bank robber, Luan Liming, failed robbery
Churches 'show love' in midst of Flint water crisis 22 January, 2016 by Tobin Perry , |

FLINT, Mich. (Christian Examiner)As churches nationwide hear riveting stories of how the contaminated water system in Flint, Michigan has endangered its citizens -- even to the point of causing children to potentially become infected with lead poisoning -- members are pitching in with plans to collect and distribute clean water.

I think this is a great time for us to show love and that we care.

For example, one inner-city Detroit church has been collecting water bottles for Flint and plans to distribute them to the city later this month. They are also planning an evangelistically focused distribution of water next month.

Stephen Murphy, who serves as an associate pastor at Victory Fellowship Community Church in Detroit, says the idea first came to him because he had a good friend who lived in Flint. One day, he says, God laid it on his heart to help by mobilizing his church to gather water bottles.

"Bottled water is pretty cheap," Murphy said to the Christian Examiner. "We have easy access to it. I challenged my college ministry to start raising funds as well as bringing in water donations in preparation for our first trip of what we expect to be two or three to Flint to share in ministry with them and be a blessing to the residents of Flint."

Murphy challenged each member of his college ministry to provide two boxes of bottled water. He later extended the challenge to the whole church. He expects to take the first trip to Flint on Jan. 29 and continue with a subsequent trip sometime in February, probably two weeks later. The second trip will have more of an evangelistic emphasis as they prepare to share the Gospel as they distribute the collected water.

Victory Fellowship Community Church took on this effort despite the fact they're in the middle of a low-income inner-city neighborhood where typical household incomes are under $20,000 a year, Murphy says.

"I think this is a great time for us to show love and that we care," Murphy said. "It makes no sense for us to meet every Sunday and Wednesday night and come together within the four walls of our sanctuary and not get out into the streets to evangelize and share the Gospel. Jesus said he came to serve so we have to have a servant's heart, a missional heart, in order for the Gospel to spread and increase."

The water crisis in Flint is nearly three years in the making. According to a timeline provided by NBC News, an April 2013 decision to save the beleaguered city millions of dollars by joining a new water authority that got water from Lake Huron instead of Detroit initiated the problem. Because it would take three years before water from the new source would be available, the city began getting water from the Flint River while it waited.

Over the next few years, the water garnered from the Flint River demonstrated numerous problems. Most significantly, the river water is highly corrosive and eroded the water pipes that the city's households use.

USA Today reported that every person who drank out of the Flint water supply has been exposed to lead. Children, the article adds, are most susceptible to lead poisoning from that exposure. An infographic in the USA Today article showed that 90 percent of Flint homes had water with lead exposure more than five times what would be cause for concern.

Earlier this month the state's governor, Rick Snyder, declared a state of emergency in the city and called on the National Guard to distribute bottled water and filters in the city. President Obama also signed an emergency declaration for the city and ordered federal aid for the city.

Numerous churches have pitched in to help. Southern Baptist Disaster Relief delivered a truckload of water to the city last Saturday. Local SBC churches distributed the water earlier this week.

A Huntsville, Alabama television station reported that churches throughout the Tennessee Valley are coming together to collect water and will distribute it starting Jan. 31. The churches are collecting water during the two weeks prior to their planned trip to Flint.

"Water is a necessity. It's a necessity and so we want to be able to do our little part, just a little part, to make a difference in the lives of these people in Flint," Gresha Lewis of Body Ministry told WHNT-19 News.

Churches in the Lansing, Michigan area are donating 24,000 bottles of water for their Flint neighbors, too. Numerous other churches throughout Michigan and around the country have also pitched in.

Flint-area churches are serving as key distribution points for the collected water, too. People's World says that First Trinity Baptist Church is a hub for other churches to distribute water to their congregations and beyond. The church has used social media to connect with congregations elsewhere who want to help the Flint area by providing clean water.
COMMENTARY: Tithing as a qualification for office? Nonsense 22 January, 2016 by Dr. Gregory Tomlin , |

FORT WORTH, Texas (Christian Examiner)  As if the irreligious and people of other faiths in America needed another reason for lampooning religious conservatives, this week several Christian politicians (and even a denominational leader or two) served one up by weighing in on how tithing illustrates the Christian character and spiritual maturity  or lack thereof  of a particular presidential candidate: Ted Cruz.

The timing couldn't have been more perfect for Cruz's opponents.

Now surging in the polls and with less than two weeks to go before the nation's first presidential primary, Cruz was sucker punched by a blistering attack ad in stalwartly conservative Iowa. In it, two women discuss how Cruz folded his conservative ideals and tucked them neatly into his pocket in order to raise money among wealthy New York liberals.

In the advert, the ladies  who sound like the sisters Emma and Ima Betterthanyou gossiping at a quilting bee  talk about how Cruz said he wouldn't fight against gay marriage if president. Pardon me, ladies, but why would he now that the ship has sailed and is out in open water?

Grace is that simple. God doesn't need Ted Cruz's money. He wants his heart, the same as he wants Mike Huckabee's, Donald Trump's and Ted Cruz's. I think listening to what Cruz has said indicates he is well acquainted with the Gospel (even his pastor and former pastor have said so).

The Supreme Court makes decisions. Those decisions we abide by, even if we don't like them, insofar as they do not require us to violate the principles of the Christian faith. That's what we do as Americans. As Christians, we focus our energy on changing hearts.

Certainly, the high court sometimes gets it wrong (think Plessy v. Ferguson or Korematsu v. U.S.). Cruz believes they did, in fact, get it wrong because five justices departed from the originalist method of interpreting the U.S. Constitution to reach their decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, an action which created the right to same-sex marriage nationwide. He also believes, and has stated so repeatedly, that states should have been able to define marriage individually  a record which even Politico recognizes.

So Cruz has now shifted his focus to religious liberty, to protecting those who don't want to violate their consciences by officiating, catering, photographing or spinning the turn tables at same-sex weddings. He sees what is the next great question to be answered: can the government compel a financial, transactional relationship that crosses religious and ethical boundaries?

Answering the question in the negative, for those who have been listening, has helped Cruz gain traction among evangelicals who feel like the government has its boot on their throats. For Cruz to gain, someone else has to lose. In this case, it is Donald Trump, Rand Paul, Mike Huckabee and others.

And that is why Americans United for Values  whose ad campaign is being run by Republican strategist Nick Everhart, recently charged and convicted of illegally accessing the computers of the employer that fired him in 2015  dropped $125,000 on the ad buy. They're trying to knock down the up-and-comer, playing a game of political "king of the mountain."

If I was to continue arguing from Cruz's record, you might logically assume that I am stumping for the candidate. I am not. I am interested in the truth of the matter, and truth both political and spiritual. I find the ad and the response of some Christians so incongruous with my own political and spiritual beliefs, and for many reasons.

First, I can't recall a time when so many have piled on to declare the lifelong faith of a conservative Christian politician bogus (or, ________________, insert your adjective here) for his lack of tithing while ignoring the frontrunner's inability to articulate the idea that faith should move one toward repentance, or his inability to quote a single Bible verse  with the exception of the one from "Two Corinthians."

Consider the words of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, whom I have met, interviewed and once hosted as a guest speaker at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He echoed the ad which criticized Cruz for his millionaire status and 1 percent donation to charity and church from 2006-2010.

"I just think it's hard to say God is first in your life if he's last in your budget," Huckabee said of Cruz. "If I can't trust God with a dime out of each dollar that I earn, then I'm not sure how I can tell him that I trust him with my whole life ... To me, it's a validation of a person's stewardship and whether they put God first in their life, not just in their political endeavors."

To this Huckabee added that he has faithfully tithed his entire life (proven by his tax records). He stopped short, however, of overtly pressing any further into Cruz's political wound. Without mentioning Cruz by name, he said tithing was a "matter of authenticity."

"If I say I'm a vegan but you look at me eating hamburgers and ribeye every night you're going to say, 'I don't think this guy's really a vegan.'"

Really, governor? Really? There are grounds to question a candidate's faith based on the number of zeros on the check placed in the offering plate?

At least Frank Page, president and CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention's executive committee, tempered his response. Page said the manner in which a candidate prioritizes his finances indicates "their caring for people and sensitivity to the commands and dictates of the Lord."

"But unfortunately, those who do tithe are in the distinct minority, and because of that most people don't bring it up," Page said.

American Evangelicals are good at many things. They feed the poor. They clothe the naked. They fight for the unborn and run adoption centers. They provide free health care. They do any number of things to show the love of Christ daily. But they are inept when it comes to talking about money and God and, I fear, prove they just don't understand the Gospel and grace at all when they speak like this.

What is on display in this spiritual argument being waged in the very public political realm, and in front of non-believers, is outright legalism. It is the result of an internally-imposed class system where many have come to believe the time spent writing tithe checks elevates a believer's level of spiritual maturity and acceptance by God. Even if this is an unintentional consequence of American church life with its massive buildings and theater seats, it is wrong and it is thoroughly unbiblical.

If something we "do" is to be evaluated as the measure of a Christian's sincerity or devotion to God, then we've failed to understand the most basic principle of the testimony of Scripture  Jesus paid it all, so I no longer owe.

Grace is that simple. God doesn't need Ted Cruz's money. He wants his heart, the same as he wants Mike Huckabee's, Donald Trump's and yours. I think listening to what Cruz has said indicates he is well acquainted with the Gospel (even his pastor and former pastor have said so).

Some would argue, as did the Puritan John Owen, that tithing is not a New Testament command. I agree with that sentiment, but I still believe a workman is worth his wages. To support ministers and ministries, we should give, but the amount given should never be used to measure spiritual authenticity or the qualifications for public office. If so, there are any number of widows more qualified for the position than those currently running for the nation's highest office.

If anything, our approach to tithing should be like that of the great Baptist preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon, who demonstrated in his preaching a fine grasp of Old Testament tithing for the New Testament Christian.

"I do not, however, like to lay down any rules for God's people, for the Lord's New Testament is not a great book of rules; it is not a book of the letter, for that killeth," Spurgeon said.

"[I]t is the book of the Spirit, which teacheth us rather the soul of liberality than the body of it, and instead of writing laws upon stones or paper, it writes laws upon the heart. Give, dear friends, as you have purposed in your heart, and give proportionately, as the Lord hath prospered you, and do not make your estimate of what you ought to give by what will appear respectable from you, or by what is expected from you by other people, but as in the sight of the Lord, as He loveth a cheerful giver; and as a cheerful giver is a proportionate giver, take care that you, like a good steward, keep just accounts towards the great King."

Gentlemen Republicans, there it is so eloquent for all to see. Give liberally as the Lord has purposed in your heart, but make no claim about what another has or has not given, for you are not the Judge.

Besides, on Judgment Day the King of Heaven won't be asking any of you what office you achieved or how much you gave. He will ask only if you accepted what He gave and acknowledged that what He gave could not be achieved on your own.

Dr. Gregory Tomlin covers the intersection of politics, culture and religion for Christian Examiner. He is also Assistant Professor of Church History and a faculty instructional mentor for Liberty University Divinity School. Tomlin earned his Ph.D. at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and also studied at Baylor University and Boston University's summer Institute on Culture, Religion and World Affairs. He wrote his dissertation on Southern Baptists and their influence on military-foreign policy in Vietnam from 1965-1973.
COMMENTARY: Is Joel Rosenberg on target about Iran's Apocalyptic Muslims? Guest Columnist | 22 January, 2016 by Todd Starnes / Fox News

NEW YORK (Christian Examiner)  It's a hybrid of Islamic radicalism that even scares Al Qaeda.

The New York Times best-selling author Joel Rosenberg calls it "Apocalyptic Islam."

PODCAST: Listen to Joel Rosenberg's shocking explanation of Apocalyptic Islam

"Apocalyptic Islam doesn't want to simply attack us, it wants to annihilate us," Rosenberg told me during an interview broadcast on my podcast. "Apocalyptic Muslims like the leaders of Iran and the leaders of the Islamic State believe that we are living in the End Times and that it's their mission from Allah to bring about the end of the world as we know it."

Rosenberg describes Apocalyptic Islam as a subset of Radical Islam.

"We're not talking about 1.6 billion Muslims," he said. "We're talking about ten percent or less who are radicals."

But ten percent of 1.6 billion is still a mighty big number  and they want to destroy Christians, Jews anyone else they consider to be an infidel.

READ THE FULL STORY AT FOXNEWS.COM!

Todd Starnes is host of Fox News & Commentary, heard on hundreds of radio stations. Sign up for his American Dispatch newsletter, be sure to join his Facebook page, and follow him onTwitter. His latest book is "God Less America."
The March for Life, an annual pro-life march which is taking place Friday in Washington, D.C., has largely been endorsed by and known as a Catholic event. However, this year's March for Life has seen much more promotion and endorsement from evangelical leaders. Hundreds of individuals identifying as evangelicals gathered on Thursday night before the march to join in the rally, reports say.

"The evangelical community needs to recognize what the Catholic community has been doing for four decades," said Jim Daily, the president of Focus on the Family, during the two day 'Evangelicals for Life' conference that started the night before the march on Friday. "It's critical for evangelicals to wake up to that commitment ... It's unfortunate it's taken 40 years for us to do that."

Daly and Russell Moore, the president of the the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Comission, two prominently known evangelical leaders, are featured as speakers at this year's march.

"There's no tension between evangelicals and Catholics on this issue," Moore told the Religion News Service.

Presidential candidate Carly Fiorina, and Iowa Senator Joni Ernst, are also on the list of speakers at the Friday event.

Individuals who have undergone abortion or have been affected by abortion will also be sharing their testimonies.

The March for Life has been held annually on January 22 since 1974 to oppose the Roe v. Wade ruling.
Marist Poll: 57% Say Limit Abortion to Cases of Rape, Incest, or Saving a Mother's Life Survey shows majority of "pro-choice" supporters now favor a number of abortion restrictions



Contact: Andrew Walther, Knights of Columbus, 203-824-5412, andrew.walther@kofc.org



WASHINGTON, Jan. 22, 2016 /Christian Newswire/ -- Nearly 6 in 10 Americans (57 percent) say abortion should be limited to  at most  cases of rape, incest or to save the life of the mother. Even a quarter of those who identify as "pro-choice" agree. The data was included in the results of a survey by The Marist Poll released this week in Washington.



The survey also found that majorities of pro-choice Americans support substantial restrictions on abortion. Americans as a whole  and pro-life Americans support restrictions at even higher rates.



Two-thirds of pro-choice Americans would support limiting abortion to  at most  the first three months of pregnancy. The view is shared by 8 in 10 Americans overall (81 percent). More than 6 in 10 pro-choice Americans (62 percent) and a similar number of Americans overall (61 percent) would ban abortion after 20 weeks, except to save the life of the mother. And more than half of those who identify as pro-choice would ban taxpayer funding of abortion, a view shared by 68 percent of Americans overall.



"The idea that those who say they are pro-choice believe abortion should not be substantially restricted simply doesn't match reality. The data clearly show that there is a consensus in this country in favor of significant abortion restrictions, and that this consensus includes a majority of those who say they are pro-choice," said Knights of Columbus CEO Carl Anderson. "We need a conversation that reflects the reality of this unity instead of the fiction that the label means something it does not."



Additionally, 77 percent of Americans, including 71 percent of those who are pro-choice, say that laws can protect both a mother and her unborn child.



By a 25-point margin, Americans (55 to 30 percent) say abortion ultimately does a woman more harm than good. Even about 1 in 4 who identify as pro-choice (27 percent) also share this view.



Six in 10 Americans (60 percent), say abortion is "morally wrong." One-third of pro-choice Americans agree (33 percent).



There was almost no difference in the responses between women and men.



The survey of 1,686 adults was conducted Nov. 15-22, 2015, by the Marist Institute for Public Opinion and sponsored by the Knights of Columbus. Adults 18 years of age and older residing in the continental United States were interviewed in English and Spanish by telephone using live interviewers. Results for adults are statistically significant within 2.4 percentage points. The error margin increases for cross-tabulations.



For more details about the survey results and methodology, visit kofc.org/polls.

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Christian Scouting-Alternative Affirms Pro-Life Stance, Heads to National March for Life Contact: Jennifer Troutman,



CINCINNATI, Ohio, Jan. 22, 2016 /



Prior to the march, AHG will also join the Life is Very Good Rally sponsored by the Catholic Diocese of Arlington in Virginia, further keeping in line with the AHG vision of developing young women that embrace Christian values and family involvement.



AHG also expands the organization's commitment to pro-life by serving as a sponsor and exhibitor during the two-day event hosted by the March for Life Education and Defense Fund.



"The American Heritage Girls believes each person is created in the image of God. As an organization based on love for God, AHG values life from conception to natural death," says AHG Founder and Executive Director, Patti Garibay.



In 2014, the faith-based character development program launched its Respect Life Patch. The Patch is to be worn on the girl's uniform. It is the fastest selling Patch in AHG's 20-year history. One way to earn the Respect Life Patch is to participate in an event that brings attention to honoring life.



American Heritage Girls is celebrating 20 years of ministry. AHG membership has grown 30-50 percent in the last four years and has over 40,000 members globally. For more information, visit



Founded in 1995 in Cincinnati, Ohio, AHG is a faith-based character development program dedicated to the mission of building women of integrity through service to God, family, community and country. AHG girls across the nation and the globe participate in badge programs, service projects, leadership opportunities and outdoor experiences.



To schedule an interview with AHG Founder and Executive Director Patti Garibay, contact Jennifer Troutman at

Share Tweet Contact: Jennifer Troutman, American Heritage Girls , 513-771-2025, news@ahgonline.org CINCINNATI, Ohio, Jan. 22, 2016 / Christian Newswire / -- Members from American Heritage Girls (AHG) Troops representing more than 40,000 AHG members globally will gather with thousands of others to demonstrate the rights of the unborn at the Nation's Capital on January 22 for the 2016 March for Life.Prior to the march, AHG will also join the Life is Very Good Rally sponsored by the Catholic Diocese of Arlington in Virginia, further keeping in line with the AHG vision of developing young women that embrace Christian values and family involvement.AHG also expands the organization's commitment to pro-life by serving as a sponsor and exhibitor during the two-day event hosted by the March for Life Education and Defense Fund."The American Heritage Girls believes each person is created in the image of God. As an organization based on love for God, AHG values life from conception to natural death," says AHG Founder and Executive Director, Patti Garibay.In 2014, the faith-based character development program launched its Respect Life Patch. The Patch is to be worn on the girl's uniform. It is the fastest selling Patch in AHG's 20-year history. One way to earn the Respect Life Patch is to participate in an event that brings attention to honoring life.American Heritage Girls is celebrating 20 years of ministry. AHG membership has grown 30-50 percent in the last four years and has over 40,000 members globally. For more information, visit www.americanheritagegirls.org . Follow AHG on Instagram @ahgfun or Facebook facebook.com/AmericanHeritageGirls Founded in 1995 in Cincinnati, Ohio, AHG is a faith-based character development program dedicated to the mission of building women of integrity through service to God, family, community and country. AHG girls across the nation and the globe participate in badge programs, service projects, leadership opportunities and outdoor experiences.To schedule an interview with AHG Founder and Executive Director Patti Garibay, contact Jennifer Troutman at news@ahgonline.org or (513) 771-2025.
'Apocalyptic Islam' wants to annihilate Christians, bring about end of the world, best-selling author warns

What will bring about the end of the world? Some scientists think doomsday may result from a massive asteroid strike, an ultra powerful earthquake, or even artificial intelligence gone wild.

However, best-selling evangelical Christian author Joel Rosenberg believes that the Apocalypse will be caused by a particular group of people: Muslims.

In an interview with Fox News' Todd Starnes, Rosenberg, who authored the "Last Jihad" series, described the so-called "Apocalyptic Islam," which is a small part of radical Islam.

"We're not talking about 1.6 billion Muslims," he said in the Fox News interview. "We're talking about 10 percent or less who are radicals."

That may sound like just a small percentage, but in reality, apocalyptic Muslims constitute 16 million peoplestill a potent force that is out to destroy Christians and Jews.

"They want to establish their global Islamic kingdom where everybody has to follow Islam. And that is a substantively, significantly different and much more dangerous form of radical Islam than even Al Qaeda and Hamas and the Taliban," Rosenberg said.

The Christian author further warned that apocalyptic Muslims are not just contented in harming Christians.

"This is not just about attacking us," Rosenberg warned. "This is about annihilating us."

"Apocalyptic Muslims like the leaders of Iran and the leaders of the Islamic State believe that we are living in the End Times and that it's their mission from Allah to bring about the end of the world as we know it," he explained.

Apocalyptic Muslims are so savage that even terror groups like the al-Qaeda have denounced them, according to Rosenberg.

"When Al Qaeda thinks you're crazy, you're really crazy," he said. "And these people are not just crazy  they're demonic."

The best-selling author also questioned why U.S. President Barack Obama seems to be tolerating apocalyptic Muslims, particularly by consenting to the nuclear agreement with Iran.

"Once you understand Apocalyptic Islam, you understand just how dangerous it is to give Iran not just one path to nuclear weapons, but two," Rosenberg said. "This president doesn't understand the threat of radical Islam. He won't even define that  much less Apocalyptic Islam."
Can a dead man pray? How the Catholic Church makes saints

The Vatican is investigating reports that the Blessed Cardinal John Henry Newman has been responsible for another miracle. If it is proved to the investigators' satisfaction it may lead to his being declared a saint. The file has now been passed to the Congregation for the Causes of Sainthood; if Vatican theologians and doctors conclude the healing is a divine sign of Newman's sanctity the Pope will be invited to canonise him.

I'm confused. I thought he was dead?

He is. John Henry Newman (1801-1890) was arguably the greatest English theologian the Catholic Church ever produced, though the Church of England has to take a good deal of credit too; he was only received into the Roman Catholic Church when he was 44. As an Anglican he helped restore the High Church tradition and as a Catholic he produced very significant works on Church-state relations, education and the philosophy of religion. He wrote the hymns Lead, kindly light and Praise to the holiest in the height, the latter from his poem The Dream of Gerontius, which was set to music by Elgar.

My point is, what's all this about?

I beg your pardon, I got quite carried away. The Roman Catholic Church nowadays sets quite a high bar to sainthood. There are strict criteria instituted by Pope John Paul II in 1982: a diocese decides on a likely candidate and an intensive survey of his or her life and works begins. The candidate passes through the stages of being recognised as a Servant of God, Venerable, Blessed and finally Saint. One of the criteria is that you have to have been responsible for at least two miracles, usually of the healing variety. Newman was declared "Blessed" in 2010 at a mass in Birmingham after his first, the healing of Deacon Jack Sullivan from a serious spinal disorder. Now there's another, the otherwise inexplicable healing of a young American mother who prayed for his intercession when she became afflicted by a "life-threatening pregnancy".

I don't mean to be picky, but may I return to my original question?

You need to be clear what the Church means when it ascribes a miracle to a saint. Protestants tend to teach that once a Christian's dead, they're in heaven and that's that. Catholics have a much more developed idea of the Communion of Saints. Just as you might ask a friend to pray for you, Catholics believe you can ask a deceased saint to pray for you; and "the prayer of a righteous person is powerful" (James 5:16). In Revelation the saints in heaven are depicted as praying, presumbably for the saints on earth.

So this good lady prayed to Newman?

No. Catholics do not pray to saints as such, though it sometimes looks like that (and is one of the reasons Protestants reacted against the practice). They talk of praying "with the saints", not "to" them. All prayers are directed to God. So Deacon Jack and (possibly) the American lady have been healed by God, having asked Newman to pray for them. The answer to prayer is a sign of Newman's sanctity.

I think I believe in healing. They talk a lot about it in my church.

Many churches do, and most Christians would say that God does heal today. However, the Catholic Church is far more rigorous than many Protestant churches would be in claiming miraculous healings. It wants to be absolutely sure that it's ruled out every other explanation and takes advice from highly-qualified doctors.

That seems sensible enough.

The charismatic-type churches and healing practitioners that claim healing miracles in their services are generally unwilling to put their claims to a similar level of testing, which tends to undermine their credibility. Whatever you think of the Catholic system, they take the view that they would rather have no miracles than ones that have a perfectly rational explanation.

So, two miracles and then you're a saint? It sounds a bit like an exam.

There's rather more to it than that. A saint is someone who has lived a life of extraordinary or heroic virtue. The formal process is just a way of recognising that. Catholics believe acknowledging the saint's saintliness is a way of honouring this and of giving the faithful confidence to pray for their intercession. Protestants find the whole thing a bit odd, but there's nothing intrinsically weird about it.

Follow Mark Woods on Twitter: @RevMarkWoods
Divine intervention: 'Invisible force' knocks down man about to stab priest inside church in Colombia

A hooded man armed with a large knife suddenly leapt from his seat inside a church, rushed at the priest and was about to stab the man of God when he suddenly froze as if gripped by an "invisible force" and fell to the ground convulsing as churchgoers quickly disarmed the assailant.

The astonishing incident was caught on camera inside the Pentecostal IPUC Bosa church in Bogota, Colombia, the Mirror UK reported.

As the knife-wielding man attacked, the video footage showed the priest, Pedro Pablo Martin, calmly saying, "There is power in the name of Jesus," repeating this several times.

Just inches away from the priest, the attacker then took his hood down and then appeared to lose his balance as he collapsed to the floor.

As the worshippers were disarming the assailant some were heard castigating him and repeating the words just spoken by their parish priest. At this point, the knife-wielder began to convulse on the floor.

The church later posted the video footage of the drama on its website. The video footage was uploaded with the caption: "Hooded man attacks a priest but he is overcome by the power of the Holy One's name."

The church said what the worshippers just witnessed was God directly intervening to stop evil from harming a man of God. "We have a powerful God and his name is Jesus Christ. There is power in the name of Jesus," a church spokesman said.

A witness, who declined to be named, described the event as a "miracle."

However, some people who viewed the video footage raised questions on its authenticity, alleging that the church faked the incident just to increase church attendance.

Interviewed on radio, Fr. Martin said the video was authentic. "What happened was a display of the power of God protecting us from Evil," he said.

The priest said before the foiled attack, the knifeman approached and told him, "I'm here to kill you."

In response, "I told him to calm down, sit down and listen to the rest of my sermon because I didn't really take him seriously," Fr. Martin said.

"I only realised how serious it was when I saw him come at me with the knife. I invoked the Lord's name as an instinctive reaction and He demonstrated His power by removing the fury he felt so the man fell to the floor," the priest said.

After the attacker was disarmed by the parishioners, Fr. Martin said the man told him he hated priests and had tried to attack them before and that he had already spent time in prison.

When the police came to the church to arrest the man, Fr. Martin said he told them to let him go, saying he would not press charges against his would-be assailant.

"I'm confident he won't try this again. I thought about making a formal complaint but I've decided to leave his fate in the hands of God," the priest said.
Faith leaders to hold conference on rights of religious minorities in Muslim countries

Christian leaders are set to attend a Muslim-led summit in Morocco seeking to reaffirm the rights of minority religious groups living in Muslim-majority countries, according to RNS.

Over three hundred Islamic scholars and jurists, muftis, and government ministers of religion from Muslim-majority nations  including Egypt, Turkey, Iraq, Pakistan and Iran  are expected to attend the forum. It will aim to issue a declaration insisting that the protection of religious minorities, including Christians, is deeply rooted in traditional Islamic law.

Organisers have claimed the summit will be the first of its kind on Islamic law and religious minorities in the 1,400 year history of the religion.

The meeting plans to promote the "Charter of Medina" issued by the Prophet Muhammad in 622 AD, which ensured the protection of religious freedom. Included in this charter, for example, is Article 17: "No Jew will be wronged for being a Jew."

"The prophet was religiously persecuted, so he knew first hand what it was to experience religious persecution," said Shaykh Hamza Yusuf, co-founder of Zaytuna College, the first Muslim liberal arts college in America.

"His religion ensured the rights of religious minorities."

The conference will seek to counter "the idea that Muslims and non-Muslims can't live together," Yusuf added. "This is not who we are or who we want to be."

While the 24-27 January conference will be led by Muslim scholars, representatives from the Christian, Jewish, Hindu and Sikh religions have been invited, including representatives from the Vatican.

Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, a retired archbishop of Washington DC, Palestinian Bishop Munib Younan, elected president of the Lutheran World Federation and the Evangelical Lutheran Church Bishop of Palestine, and Rabbi Burt Visotzky from the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York are all expected to attend.

That the summit will be Muslim-led is significant, however, as the issue of religious freedom will be addressed "from within the tradition of Islam," said Imam Mohamed Magid, executive director of the All Dulles Area Muslim Society, an influential mosque in Virginia.

That the declaration would be drawn from the Muslim faith lends weight to Magid's hope that it would be used when political policies and school curricula are designed in Muslim-majority countries.

The conference is being hosted by the Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies alongside the Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs of the Kingdom of Morocco.
Franklin Graham says radical Islamists are causing the 'demise' of Iraq

Reverend Franklin Graham believes that the Islamic State (ISIS) would be the downfall of Iraq. If the ISIS jihadists are not neutralised, Graham worries that the same atrocities they are implementing in the country would expand to other nations.

"Some horrific numbers have just been released about Iraq. Almost 19,000 civilians  yes just civilians  have been killed in Iraq in the past 21 months, with another 36,000 being injured," he wrote on his Facebook page. "And that's not all. About 3.2 million people had to leave their homes within the country  including a million school-aged children."

ISIS also holds around 3,500 slaves and "continues to subject women and children to sexual violence and slavery," Graham said. "Unbelievable atrocities are revealed in the report including the Islamic State killing child soldiers who flee and killing women who refuse to be forced into sex with their fighters."

The same report also revealed that ISIS holds a "Quran recitation contest" in Baghdad, then rewards winners with sex slaves as prizes. Because of what is happening in Iraq, Graham said the future of the country looks bleak.

"We are witnessing the demise of a country at the hands of Islamists. I agree with the U.N.  this is 'staggering.' The U.S. and other nations should take note and not let this tragedy continue or be repeated elsewhere," he stressed.

Earlier, Graham expressed concern that America might be the next target of terrorists. He said leaders must be very careful in letting refugees in, adding that the simultaneous terror attacks that occurred in Paris last November should serve as a wake-up call to them.

"We have cause to be alarmed at these stories and at the number of potential terrorists and jihadists we having living inside our borders right here on American soil. It's not a secret  their goal is to kill all those who do not follow Islam and expand the territory of the Islamic State to the entire world," he said.
Justin Welby challenges Davos elite: Materialism will not help fight extremists

The Archbishop of Canterbury has given a stern warning to the world's elite gathered in Davos, saying materialism will not help in the fight against extremist ideologies.

Justin Welby spoke during a panel discussion on "a common stance against extremism" at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss Alps today, and challenged world leaders to recover "theological language".

"What we have lost the capacity to do  and here Muslims and Christians are at one on this  we have the lost the capacity in Europe to use theological values to discuss our difference in society generally," he said.

"It has become isolated to the religious world. This means we no longer have any way of answering the challenge of extremists."

Welby was on a panel alongside the Grand Mufti of Egypt and the president of the Centre for the Study of Islam and Middle East. He urged some of the wealthiest individuals and businesses in the world to move beyond the "vocabulary of materialism".

"We no longer have the vocabulary," he told those gathered. "We say better materialism will help us."

"Nobody goes to Syria because they think they will get a better car next year," he added, in a direct challenge to Western consumerist culture.

"It just isn't the way they're thinking. It is a theological and ideological problem. Until we in Europe regain the capacity to use theological and ideological vocabulary we will not be able to counter extremism effectively.

"We have lost our roots."

Welby's comments will be seen as an undisguised challenge to the wealthiest people in the world that materialism will not solve global security concerns.

However, he did say progress has been made in the inter-faith discussion on countering extremism.

"There is a great deal more honesty coming into the conversation than in the past when the debate was quite often at the rather banal level of 'wouldn't it be nice if we were all nice'," the Archbishop said.

"I think we're making progress into addressing the issues that affect us."
Lutherans receive Holy Communion at the Vatican despite ban on intercommunion

A group of Lutherans have received Holy Communion at the Vatican after meeting Pope Francis, according to reports coming out of Rome.

The Lutherans from Finland, led by Bishop Samuel Salmi of Oulu, indicated by the traditional method of crossing their arms over their chests that they should not be offered the sacrament at Mass in the Basilica. But the priests went ahead and gave it to them regardless, Edward Pentin in Rome reported for NCRegister.

A youth choir from Finland also sang at the Mass.

The report first emerged via the Finnish Finnish news agency Kotimaa, in Estonian.

"Catholics shared the Eucharist. I also got to be part of it," said Bishop Salmi, who made it clear the Catholic priests had known who the Lutherans were so they had not been invited to partake by mistake. He also spoke of the Pope's opponents who oppose any move towards relaxing the rules on who can receive Communion.

Bishop Salmi has previously challenged Catholic tradition. In 2011 he argued for gay people to have "full rights" in the Lutheran Church.

The Mass took place during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, being celebrated this week by churches around the world. In his address at his weekly audience, Pope Francis referred to these celebrations and said: "This Week of Prayer invites us to reflect on, and bear witness to, our unity in Christ as God's People. All the baptised, reborn to new life in Christ, are brothers and sisters, despite our divisions. Through Baptism we have been charged, as Saint Peter tells us, 'to proclaim the mighty works of the one who has called us out of darkness into his marvellous light.' During this Week of Prayer, let us ask the Lord to help all Christians to grow in that unity which is greater than what divides us. Together, may we respond to his call to share with others, especially with the poor and forgotten of our world, the gift of divine mercy which we ourselves have received."

The Pope said last year a Lutheran woman married to a Catholic should "talk to the Lord" before receiving Holy Communion. Cardinal Gerhard Muller, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, later countered suggestions that this meant the Pope approved of intercommunion with Lutherans.

Under Canon 844 of the Catholic Church's Code of Canon Law, the Eucharist is to be given to Catholics in a state of grace. Non-Catholics who request Communion and are from Churches approved by the Catholic Church as holding the same faith on the Eucharist, such as the Orthodox, are allowed to receive. Lutherans, along with members of the Church of England and wider Anglican Communion, are not in this group because they do not as a Church believe in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist.

In 2003, the then-Prime Minister Tony Blair, at the time a member of the Church of England, received Communion from Pope John Paul II in Rome. Also in 2003, Pope John Paul II said in his encyclical Ecclesia De Eucharistia: "While it is never legitimate to concelebrate in the absence of full Communion, the same is not true with respect to the administration of the Eucharist under special circumstances, to individual persons belonging to Churches or Ecclesial Communities not in full communion with the Catholic Church. In this case, in fact, the intention is to meet a grave spiritual need for the eternal salvation of an individual believer, not to bring about an intercommunion which remains impossible until the visible bonds of ecclesial communion are fully re-established."

After leaving Downing Street, Blair converted to Catholicism, uniting the family in one Church. His wife Cherie is a cradle Catholic and their children have been raised Catholic.
Money raised for family of Muslim hero who died after defending Christians in al-Shabaab attack

Kenyan Muslims and Christians have joined in honouring the Muslim man who died from wounds incurred when he shielded Christians on a bus from an attack by Islamic extremists.

#HeroSalah became a trending topic on Twitter as hundreds of pounds were donated to an account set up to raise funds for his wife and the five children left behind by Salah Farah.

Writer Harun Maruf tweeted:

Wow! Salah Farah is the Kenyan Muslim who shielded the Christians on Mandera bus. He died of his injuries this week. https://t.co/jIo2XQDytv  Harun Maruf (@HarunMaruf) January 20, 2016

Interpeace tweeted:

Kenyans are using hashtag #HeroSalah to honour Salah Sabdow Farah, the Muslim teacher who shielded Christians in Al-Shabaab attack  InterpeaceECAfrica (@InterpeaceECA) January 21, 2016

Joseph Boinnet, of the Kenyan police, said: "He was a true hero. He died while protecting innocent Kenyans from terrorists."

Farah, a teacher in Malindi on the Kenyan coast, was taking a bus from Mandera to Nairobi just before Christmas when it came under fire from gunmen from Al-Shabaab, the militant jihadist group that is affiliated to Al Qaeda. The passengers were ordered to separate according to their religion and he refused, for which he was shot.

He died earlier this week in hospital.

Kenyans united behind the campaign to honour him on social media at a time when their country is under growing threat from Islamist extremism.

Donations are being handled by Abdullahi Derow on Twitter:

God bless Kangethe, Warioko, Ahmed, & Nasra 4 contributing towards the donations for orphaned children #HeroSalah pic.twitter.com/ve3c8v8hkh  Abdullahi Derow (@AbdullahiDerow) January 22, 2016

After the shooting, Salah said: "We asked them to kill all of us or leave us alone. As we argued, they shot me and the boy. One man who also came out of the bus and tried to escape to the bush was shot. We are brothers. It's only the religion that is the difference, so I ask my brother Muslims to take care of the Christians so that the Christians also take care of us... and let us help one another."

Al-Shabaab recently claimed to have killed 100 Kenyans in an attack on a peacemaker camp in Somalia. This week alone, as many as 20 people were murdered by a suicide-bombing and gun attack on a beachside restaurant in the Somali capital Mogadishu.
Russian Orthodox Church head blames rise of Islamic State to world's acceptance of homosexuality

For the head of the Russian Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill, the rise of the radical jihadist group Islamic State (ISIS) can be attributed to the world's acceptance of homosexuality.

In an article in The Independent UK, the 69-year-old religious leader expressed the belief that Muslims are now flocking to join ISIS because they want to escape the "godless civilisation" that highlights immorality such as the gay pride parade.

"(ISIS) is creating a civilisation that is new by comparison to the established one that is godless, secular, and even radical in its secularism," he said.

Kirill said the Western world has turned topsy turvy regarding its views on morality, since it supports things the Bible says are wrong, such as homosexuality and abortion.

"We can have parades for the sexual minoritiesthat is supportedbut a million French Christian protestors defending family values are broken up by police," he said. "Look how they (the West) build the worldan unholy worldbut we invite you to build God's world... and they (ISIS supporters) respond to that; it is for this they give their lives."

"If you call non-traditional relationships a sin, as the Bible teaches and you are a priest or pastor, then you risk not only your ability to serve but you may be sent to prison," he added.

Kirill claimed that he can "offer more simply frightening examples of how the godless civilisation is growing," but the sad reality is that ISIS is now converting young people into being extremists because of the world's views on sin.

Because there are some people who want to restore order and uphold religious views, they turn to ISIS, thinking erroneously that the terror group can make things right again.

"You become a fighter for the Caliphate. So what's a Caliphate?" he questioned. "It is a society centred around faith and God where people follow religious laws."
Should Christians get tattoos?

Should Christians get tattoos?

In a world that sometimes seems to be falling to pieces around our ears, it's probably fair to say that's not the most burning question of the day. At the same time, it's definitely a thing. We want to know how to live in the world in a way that's distinctively Christian. In the UK, around a fifth of British adults have at least one tattoo. In the US it's nearly a quarter. The chances are that many Christians are among them. So why does it make some people so uncomfortable?

For some Christians, the "clobber text" that rules tattoos out completely is found in Leviticus 19:28, which says: "Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord."

However, scholars believe this is a way of distinguishing the Israelite people from the tribes and religions around them. Egyptian women would have their breasts and thighs tattooed with the image of the fertility goddess, Bes, while Canaanites would slash their bodies for ritualistic purposes (Elijah's encounter with the prophets of Baal in 1 Kings 18:28 is an example). It appears that it was also a mourning ritual, perhaps aimed at honouring the gods and ensuring a peaceful transition to the afterlife for the person who had died.

On this way of reading it, the prohibition against tattooing is linked to the prohibition of self-mutilation for religious reasons. Some scholars even argue that they were the same thing: the word for "tattoo" means "print marks", which might refer to the scars left by cutting or scratching and have nothing to do with inking designs on the flesh at all.

Either way, it seems very unlikely that the prohibition in Leviticus has anything to do with modern tattooing. It's a command addressed specifically to the Israelite people in the religious and cultural context of their day. Many of the laws in Leviticus are aimed at establishing their separateness from the people around them: they are a people holy to the Lord. Today, most Christians would accept that tattoos are just art, with no religious overtones. Some still insist they are the Mark of the Beast in Revelation, though serious scholars do not accept this.

So what can we usefully say to people in our congregations who might be thinking about getting a tattoo? On a practical level, we might offer some common-sense advice. Think before you ink  don't get a tattoo on a theme or in a place where you're likely to regret it. Count the cost, as well: some tattoos by expert practitioners can cost hundreds or thousands of pounds. And it's not just the money, either: be prepared for the social cost of potentially losing out on jobs and having people misjudge you based on what you look like.

But there's another way of looking at tattoos altogether.

Why not, instead of at best tolerating them, acknowledge their status as art and celebrate them?

Full disclosure: I've never had one, never wanted one. As a middle-aged man, I associate it with the same mid-life crisis that leads my contemporaries to get their ears pierced and trade in the family Volvo to buy a motorbike. (I find it a bit galling that one of my friends who's done all three has never been happier  doesn't he know how ridiculous he's supposed to be?)

Of course there are some terrible examples of tattooing out there. Some of it's just badly done, some of it's tasteless or obscene and some of it's boring. All art is like that: for every Paul Klee or Henri Matisse there are hundreds of people doodling on their lecture notes or writing on lavatory walls.

But some of it's wonderful. It's skilful, original and creative. Having a design on their bodies lets people say something about how they feel, who they are and who they want to be.

There's a risk that will change over time. But even if it does, it's not necessarily a cause for regret. The tattoo is a permanent record of what we used to be, and so it's still a marker of where we are.

For Christians, tattoo art could serve another function, too  not just as art for art's sake, but as art with a spiritual purpose. A design with Christian overtones can not only be a talking point with others but a permanent reminder to ourselves of something precious. One friend of mine, for instance, has large tattoos reading 'grace' and 'truth' on his inner forearms in Greek  exquisitely painful, but deeply meaningful.

And here's another thing. In the book of Isaiah, the prophet speaks of God's eternal care for Jerusalem, using the startling image of  a tattoo. "I have written you on the palms of my hands," God says (49:16); "your walls are ever before me."

I'm still not tempted, frankly; apart from anything else, I have a deep aversion to pain. But if you want one, I'm genuinely happy for you.

Follow Mark Woods on Twitter: @RevMarkWoods
Winter Storm Jonas 2016 update, DC, New York, New Jersey latest news: Snow blizzard to bury Washington D.C.

The storm front of a monster snowstorm arrived on Friday afternoon in Washington, D.C., threatening to dump as many as 30 inches (76 cm) of snow on parts of the Middle Atlantic region and bring record accumulations to the U.S. capital.

After days of planning by emergency officials and a scramble by residents to stock up on supplies, the blizzard got underway in the nation's capital at about 1 p.m. The storm, expected to end late on Saturday afternoon, could leave 2 to 2.5 feet (61 to 76 cm) on the ground and bring winds of 30 to 50 mph (48 to 80 kph), according to the National Weather Service.

The western suburbs of the capital were expecting up to 3 feet of snow. In Virginia, the National Guard planned to bring in up to 300 troops to deal with emergencies.

"I want to be very clear with everybody. This is a major storm," Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said as the nation's capital braced for what could turn out to be one of the worst storms in its history.

"This has life-and-death implications and all the residents of the District of Columbia should treat it that way."

The Weather Channel said more than 85 million people in at least 20 states were covered by either a blizzard warning, winter storm watch, winter storm warning, winter weather advisory, or freezing rain advisory.

Airlines canceled nearly 6,300 flights for Friday and Saturday, most of them at airports in the New York and Philadelphia areas, according to FlightAware.com. Philadelphia's airport said it would cancel all flights scheduled for Saturday.

But the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said it had no plans to shut its airports.

AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said Washington's snowfall could eclipse the "Snowmageddon" storm of 2010 that dropped 17.8 inches (45.2 cm). If forecasts prove accurate, the storm could rival the 1922 Knickerbocker storm, which dumped a record 28 inches (71 cm) on the city.

"I think it's going to be a nightmare, the rates of snow we're talking about," said Marisa Kritikson, 27, a nursing student at George Washington University in Washington.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, who declared a winter weather emergency for the largest U.S. city, asked people to limit travel to "absolute emergencies."

"There will be white out conditions, meaning the driver cannot see what's happening before them," de Blasio said.

After the storm arrives late Friday in New York City, snow accumulation could reach up to 18 inches (30 cm), with winds gusting to 50 miles per hour (80 kph), creating blizzard conditions. Southeastern Pennsylvania, including Philadelphia, was expecting 10 to 18 inches (25 to 45 cm) of snow.

The approaching storm led New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie to announce he was returning to his home state from New Hampshire, where he is vying for the Republican presidential nomination.

Earlier he insisted he would stay on the campaign trial but on Friday afternoon he tweeted: "I want to make sure the people of my state feel safe and secure."

Residents along New Jersey's coastline were preparing for potential flooding during high tides on Saturday and Sunday. In the beach community of Ocean City, emergency management officials warned of forecasts calling for the highest flood levels since Superstorm Sandy brought heavy damage in 2012.

High winds and a full moon could combine to create a high tide of nearly 8 feet (2.4 meters) in Atlantic City, officials said, still shy of the 10 feet (3 meters) that Sandy caused in Ocean City.

In New York City, the NWS issued coastal flood warning for the boroughs of Staten Island, Brooklyn and Queens as the city officials prepared for possible evacuations from low-lying areas.

SCRAMBLE FOR SUPPLIES

The storm arrived in Washington after pushing across Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky. It dropped 5 inches (13 cm) of snow in Arkansas and a wintry mess of snow, sleet and freezing rain in parts of Tennessee and Kentucky.

In addition to several inches of snow, the Charlotte, North Carolina, area could get up to a half inch of ice, causing concerns about power outages and dangerous driving conditions, officials said. Other parts of the state could get a foot of snow.

In the Washington area, home to about 6 million people, residents scrambled to prepare, picking stores clean of bottled water, food and other supplies.

"I have nine cases of wine, half and half and coffee, firewood and all my devices are charged. All I need now is a wing and a prayer," said Liz Scherer, 54, who works out of her home in the Washington suburb of Silver Spring, Maryland.

Federal employees in the Washington area were told their offices would close at noon on Friday to allow them to get home before the snow began piling up. City officials said everyone except emergency workers should stay off the streets.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which includes the second-busiest U.S. subway system, took the rare step of suspending operations from late Friday through Sunday.
My amiable prince

An Ingres portrait of the Duke of Orleans with outstanding provenance will be offered as part of Classic Art at Christies, taking place this April in New York

Prince Ferdinand Philippe of Orleans (1810-1842) was the eldest son of Louis Philippe dOrleans, Duke of Orleans and future King Louis Philippe I. As the eldest son, he was the heir to the title of Duke of Orleans.

A courageous military man, astute diplomat and visionary politician, as well as an art lover and patron, the Duke commissioned Jean-August Dominique Ingres , who was among his favourite artists, to paint his portrait in 1840  the prototype of the picture being offered for sale this April in New York.

Ingres was immensely proud of this commission, and there were numerous subsequent sittings for the portrait, which brought the two men closer and led to a mutual admiration developing.

When the Duke died in a carriage accident in July 1842, just three months after the painting was completed, Ingres was shocked and saddened. He wrote to his friends: I am annihilated and almost discouraged! I do nothing but cry and I will cry for a long time, and The death of my prince, who was so amiable, has shattered my heart.

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres (1780-1867), Portrait of Ferdinand-Philippe-Louis-Charles-Henri of Bourbon Orleans, Duke of Orleans, 1844. Oil on canvas. 29 x 23 in. (74.5 x 60.5 cm.) Estimate: $400,000-600,000

This picture, commissioned in 1843 by his widow, the Duchess of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, was to be the modello for the full-length portrait commissioned later that year by the French state for the chapel built in commemoration of the Dukes death.

The work acquired the status of national icon and, in the following years, numerous copies were commission from Ingres and his studio. Yet, according to Ingres account book, there exist a total of only five versions by Ingres of the Portrait of the Duke, of which one is the present work.

The quality of the execution of a number of details  the gaze of the prince, the elongated neck, the stars of the divisional general  demonstrate the hand of the master, while the contribution of the studio remains uncertain.

On her death in 1859 the Duchess of Orleans possessed not one but two works considered by her to be by Ingres. One  the version now in the Louvre  she left to her eldest son; the other, went to her youngest son, the Duke of Chartes. It is this version which has since remained in the family, miraculously escaping destruction at the hands of the Nazis in 1944, and which is offered for sale at Christies in April.

The well-documented work, which is being sold by the direct descendants of the family, will be included in the curated cross-category sale Revolution. Highlights of Classic Art at Christies, which includes Old Master Paintings, Antiquities, Sculpture, Decorative Arts, and this new cross-category sale, will be on show at the Rockefeller Center in New York from 23 January to 7 February.
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Former Disney kid Zendaya told the world Wednesday that she is easy, breezy, and beautiful with CoverGirl.

Through an Instagram video post, the 19-year-old actress officially announced she has been named the new face of the mega-makeup brand. Zendaya has joined the likes of Rihanna, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, Queen Latifah and Ellen DeGeneres.

"I am so honored to join the company of a roster as celebrated and diverse as CoverGirl's," the "K.C. Undercover" actress said in a press release. "I can't wait to share some of my own beauty tips with fans, and work alongside CoverGirl to continue empowering girls and women to celebrate their individuality."

See Zendaya's style: Star is on trend at the 2016 Golden Globe Awards

That same excitement is shared by the team at CoverGirl.

"Watching Zendaya's work and authentic conversation with fans in social media was truly inspiring to us at CoverGirl," EsiEggleston Bracey, executive vice president, Global Color Cosmetics, P&G, told Huffington Post.

"She is not afraid to stand up for what she believes, and makes no apologies for who she is - we love her energy, confidence, and willingness to experiment and express herself with makeup. I know that together, we will do big things and help evolve the perception of beauty today."

She truly is brave in her style choices. She was criticized with racist remarks after wearing dreadlocks to the 2015 Academy Awards, but she was praised in the aftermath for handling the controversy in stride.

Zendaya responds to haters: Actress blasts critics over deadlock hairstyle

"Wearing my hair in locs on (the) Oscars red carpet was to showcase them in a positive light, to remind people of color that our hair is good enough," she wrote in an Instagram post that went viral.

See this look and Zendaya's many others in the gallery above.
Senior architects from the Houston office of Gensler stepped aside this week while the firm's younger contingent presented their visions on how to recreate some of Houston's abandoned structures and high-profile tracts of land.

Their designs ranged from high-rise residential towers to repurposing old aggregate silos into cylindrical spaces for artists, boaters and adventurers.
"The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time," the 2015 Tony winner as best play, and Lincoln Center Theater's definitive revival of the classic "The King and I," 2015's Tony winner as best musical revival, will highlight Broadway at the Hobby Center's 2016-17 series of touring shows.

Other highlights include the Houston premieres of "Something Rotten" and "Finding Neverland," both new musicals that premiered on Broadway in spring 2015 and continue to play there to enthusiastic houses.

The upcoming season also includes the Houston premiere of the London-born stage version of the movie, "The Bodyguard."

"Curious Incident" is playwright Simon Stephens' dramatization of Mark Haddon's best-selling novel about a 15-year-old math genius named Christopher whose autism makes it difficult for him to deal with everyday life - for instance, he can't stand being touched. When Christopher finds himself accused in the death of a neighbor's dog, he sets out to solve the mystery, embarking on an elaborate adventure that leads to unexpected discoveries about his own family. As directed by Marianne Elliott, the immersive production enables the audience to experience the action as Christopher does, including moments of sensory overload. "Curious Incident" was a hit with critics and audiences alike from its premiere at London's Royal National Theatre in 2012. The Broadway production opened in fall 2014, won five Tonys including best play and direction, and continues.

Rodgers and Hammerstein's "The King and I" premiered in 1951, won that season's best musical Tony, and became one of the cornerstones of the musical theater repertoire. Based on fact, the show centers on Anna Leonowens, an English widow who travels to 1860s Siam (now Thailand) to work as tutor to the King's many children and finds herself in a turbulent relationship with the monarch. Director Bartlett Sher, who brought a revelatory power to his 2008 Lincoln Center revival of the team's "South Pacific," achieves the same feat with his magnificent, epic-scale "The King and I." The new production won four 2015 Tonys, including best musical revival.

"Finding Neverland," based on the 2004 film, tells the story behind J.M. Barrie's creation of the fantasy classic "Peter Pan," as the author's friendship with a young widow and her four impressionable sons sparks his imagination to new heights. James Graham wrote the book; Gary Barlow and Eliot Kennedy, the score. Visionary Tony-winning director Diane Paulus, the force behind recent hit revivals of "Pippin" and "Porgy and Bess," gives the show a strong visual profile and moments of potent stage magic.

"Something Rotten!" is that rarity, a wholly original musical - new songs, new book, new everything, not based on any existing work. In Elizabethan England, brothers Nick and Nigel Botttom aspire to theatrical success, but can't compete with the superstar playwright of the day, glory-hogging William Shakespeare. Guided by a seer who looks into the future, the Bottoms decide to try something completely different and set out to create the world's first musical. The show's book is by John O'Farrell and Karey Kirkpatrick, the songs by Karey and Wayne Kirkpatrick, and Casey Nicholaw ("Book of Mormon," "The Drowsy Chaperone") supplied the lively direction and choreography. Most critics praised this zany, irreverent and uproarious romp as one of the funniest shows in ages - in the opinion of Time Out New York, "the funniest musical comedy in at least 400 years."

"The Bodyguard" is based on the 1992 movie that starred Whitney Houston as a pop diva being threatened by a stalker and Kevin Costner as the ex-Secret Serviceman she hires to protect her. The stage version of the musical ran in London's West End from December 2013 through August 2014. With Lawrence Kasdan's screenplay adapted for the stage by Alexander Dinelaris, the show retains the songs Houston sang in the film, and fills out the stage score by adding many more of her hits. The U.S. tour will showcase pop star Deborah Cox.

Rounding out the subscription season will be the return of "Jersey Boys," the Tony-winning jukebox musical built around the career and songs of the The Four Seasons, last seen here in 2013.

Available as season extras will be two more returning megahits: family-friendly "The Lion King," last at Hobby Center in 2012; and ultra-irreverent "The Book of Mormon," last seen here in 2015.

Information is available by phone at 800-952-6560 and online at www.BroadwayAtTheHobbyCenter.com.

The 2016-2017 season:

Jersey Boys, Nov. 15-20

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Jan. 24-29

The King and I, March 14-19

Finding Neverland, April 25-30

Something Rotten!, June 6-11

The Bodyguard, Aug. 15-20

Season extras:

The Book of Mormon, Jan. 3-15

The Lion King, June 27-July 23
Mayra Beltran/Staff

A year after Harris Health officials were warned that Ben Taub General Hospital could lose its status as a Level 1 trauma center, the hospital has completed the recertification process, maintaining its trauma designation through March 2018.

The trauma center, which serves some 10,000 patients a year, is one of only two Level 1 trauma centers in Houston. Trauma experts have long warned the region is undersupplied for trauma care.
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A 4-year-old Harris County boy died Thursday from a firearm wound  the second leading cause of injury death for children in Harris County.

Of the 1,074 minors who died in Harris County from 2011 to 2014, about 1 in 8 was killed by a gun, a fraction exceeded only by motor vehicle crashes, according to data from the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences.

That's an average of 27 child fatalities by guns every year. Among those for 2016 is Bryson Hernandez, who shot himself in the head at his grandparents' Cypress-area home early Tuesday in an incident described by authorities as accidental.

In addition to Bryson's death, two other children have been unintentionally injured by firearms already in 2016: a toddler shot himself in the hand and a 15-year-old was killed last weekend by an older brother.

On Jan. 3, a Montgomery County man who had been cleaning his handgun got distracted and laid the weapon within reach of his son, authorities said. That's when the 2-year-old injured himself. The teen died on Jan. 16 in southwest Houston in what police described as an accidental shooting.

The 2015 count includes six children, ages 6 to 13, whose father is charged with fatally shooting them last August in a massacre that also claimed two adults. Those child deaths will go into the homicide column. Last year, at least four children also died in Harris County as a result of accidental shootings.

According to the Texas Department of State Health Services statistics, about a dozen minors statewide die annually because of the accidental discharge of firearms. Ten children ages 0 to 17 perished in 2013, the latest year of complete data available. In 2012, 13 died and 10 were fatally wounded in 2011.

Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun control coalition funded by former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg as part of his crusade against firearm violence and to politically challenge the National Rifle Association, tracks media reports about accidental shootings by children. Recently released data compiled by the organization shows that at least 265 minors unintentionally shot themselves or someone else in 2015 and 17 of those incidents were in Texas.

The group found that improper gun storage led to most of the unintended deaths. Two-thirds happened in a home or vehicle belonging to the victim's family and most often with legally owned guns that were not secured.

Relatives confirmed Bryson's death on Thursday in a statement released through Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital that also commented on gun safety.

Child Protective Services officials are looking into how the child gained access to the firearm.

Bryson's grandparents were "cooperating with investigators fully," according to the Harris County Sheriff's Office. Those findings will be forwarded to a Harris County grand jury.

Adults can be prosecuted for making a firearm accessible to a child, a misdemeanor charge.

The family statement said relatives hoped Bryson's death would spur people with firearms in the home to take more precautions.

"Always check to make sure you know where your guns are and that they are safely out of reach of children, not loaded and locked away," the statement said.

Bryson, who was enthralled with the fearless and beneficent superhero Iron Man, will save the lives of other children as an organ donor. He will be laid to rest in his Iron Man costume.

Houston-area CPS spokeswoman Tiffani Butler said children should be taught not to touch guns. If minors encounter a weapon, they should know to leave the area and alert an adult.

She also provided these tips from the agency's Office of Child Safety as ways to prevent children from accessing a loaded gun:

Keep guns unloaded when not in use.

Don't store bullets and guns in the same place.

Use cable locks or trigger locks.

Use gun locks with combination, magnetic or electronic security, but not keys.

Store guns in a lock box, vault or safe.

Bryson's autopsy was scheduled to be performed on Friday.
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It's the time of year to pick up some bait, grab a fishing pole and snag a few rainbow trout right in your own backyard.

On Friday morning, Jan. 15, Texas Parks & Wildlife loaded up trucks from its hatcheries and brought a total of 9,300 trout to select lakes in Harris County Precinct 4's parks.

In Spring, Meyer Park, 7700 Cypresswood Drive; Dennis Johnston Park, 709 Riley Fuzzel Road; and Pundt Park, 4129 Spring Creek Drive were stocked. In Tomball, Burroughs Park, 9738 Hufsmith Road, was also stocked with rainbow trout.

The precinct's park director Dennis Johnston said anglers eagerly anticipate this annual effort.

"The fishermen watch for the announcement of when and where they will deliver the fish," he said. "People are always waiting for them when they get here."

Johnston said everyone has their own favorite lures ranging from corn and marshmallows to spinners and salmon eggs.

He anticipates that the banks of the lakes will be fairly busy for the next two months, as fishermen catch what they can.

"It's now or never for the rainbow trout," he said. "Fish them by January and February, because come March, they'll be gone. Fresh trout, you can't get any better than that."

The daily limit is five trout per angler, with no minimum length. There is no charge to fish at Precinct 4 parks, but anglers age 17 and older are required to purchase a valid Texas fishing license with a freshwater stamp endorsement.

Carl Kittel, fish hatchery program director for Texas Parks and Wildlife, said that the trout program started in 1966.

He explained that the trout are cold-water fish. "This is the only time of year that they do well," he said. "From late November to early March, we'll stock 150 different sites this year in Texas."

Kittel said that the local effort is completed in a partnership between Texas Parks and Wildlife and Precinct 4.

The precinct contributes the needed funds, while Texas Parks and Wildlife purchases the fish from contractors, which are delivered temporarily to the organization's hatcheries before they are stocked around the state.

"We get them just in time to distribute them," Kittel said. "It's a big deal. It's a great opportunity, when the water is cold, for fishermen to catch something different. We want to provide a diversity of opportunities for anglers."

He added that local anglers enjoy the chance to catch a few rainbow trout. "These are fish that you can catch with different bait, spinners and flies," he said. "It's a great way to practice fishing whatever way you want  and you're allowed to take them home to eat."

Johnston said that there are ample opportunities to fish in Precinct 4 year-round.

"All of our lakes are pretty well-stocked and managed," he said. "We get some pretty big fish."

He said fishermen can find black bass, catfish, crappie and sunfish once the trout are gone.

"I took my grandson out a year ago, and he caught 24 sunfish," Johnston said. "He just had a ball, because he was steadily catching something. He was just beaming."

Johnston said that Burroughs Park was drained and drudged around 2009. "We built a peninsula, so you can walk out and fish on the banks," he said.

He added that Cypress Creek also offers opportunities for fishermen who want to stay close to home.

"They're elbow-to-elbow fishing for white bass from now until the second weekend in March," Johnston said.

Johnston advises individuals and families with children to come out and try catching trout in January and February.

"There's nothing like being a kid and bringing home the bacon, providing the fish for dinner," he said. "That's a great feeling for a kid. This is a great family activity, and a great way to get kids hooked on fishing."

Want to fish?

Meyer Park, 7700 Cypresswood Drive in Spring. Open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.

Burroughs Park, 9738 Hufsmith Road in Tomball. Open 7 a.m. to dark daily.

Dennis Johnston Park, 709 Riley Fuzzel Road in Spring. Open 8 a.m. until dusk daily.

Pundt Park, 4129 Spring Creek Drive in Spring. Open 8 a.m. until dusk daily.

For more information, visit www.hcp4.net/community/parks.
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For the past several months, Amera Collins' eight-mile commute to work has taken her at least 40 minutes. It takes her 15 minutes to drive to the H-E-B less than a quarter of a mile from her house.

She lives near the intersection of Rayford and Riley Fuzzel Roads, where construction on the Grand Parkway and routine traffic on the severely over-capacity Rayford Road create one of the most dire congestion situations in Montgomery County.

"I have to leave earlier every day. I definitely run about three red lights a week (because the lights aren't synchronized)," Collins said. "When I get home, I just don't want to leave."

Collins has lived in the Rayford area for 18 months and says that the traffic over the last few months has been consistently terrible.

"There are so many people that live over here," she said. "It's a completely different world."

Relief in sight

Nearly three months after Montgomery County voters passed a $280 million road bond, the wheels are beginning to turn on the widening of Rayford Road - the project given the highest priority and biggest chunk of cash.

The $60 million project will widen the road from four to six lanes on a three-mile stretch, from Richard Road to Riley Fuzzel Road - which will soon be the Grand Parkway - and construct a six-lane bridge over the Union Pacific train tracks.

As one of the only arteries channeling thousands of residents from the Imperial Oaks subdivision in southeastern Montgomery County to Interstate 45, Rayford Road has become infamous for its paralyzing congestion and safety hazards. A study on mobility in south Montgomery County conducted by the Houston-Galveston Area Council found that Rayford Road was the most congested road in the study area. Texas Department of Transportation traffic counts found that the four-lane road carried an average of more than 37,000 cars a day in 2012, classifying it as "severely over capacity." From 2007 to 2013, nearly 900 accidents were reported on Rayford Road, according to Precinct 3 Commissioner James Noack's office.

In addition to widening the road to help with congestion, the project will include installation of new, synchronized traffic lights and additional traffic lights at neighborhood entrances, new street signage, improved drainage and a raised median to make left turns safer for motorists.

In early December, the county Commissioners Court approved $1.9 million to hire RPS Klotz Associates engineering firm to conduct the final design phase for the project. The phase is expected to stretch through the end of 2016.

Officials will begin meeting with businesses and property owners along the Rayford Road corridor in February to discuss impact and right- of-way acquisition, and expect to complete acquiring the necessary land for the widening by the end of 2016. Construction is set to begin in early 2017 and last through early 2019.

Growing pains

Noack plans to conduct two public meetings to keep residents informed as the project moves forward: one in March or April and another before construction begins in 2017.

"Working closely with property owners, residents, local business owners and the community throughout the project is a priority for Montgomery County and Commissioner Noack," Noack's office wrote on the Precinct 3 website. "Both the county and project engineer will work with the community to collect input, identify opportunities to reduce impacts, and provide updates on the project as they become available."

And while Collins looks forward to the relief the widening of Rayford Road will bring, she can't help but dread the additional traffic that she believes will come with even more construction. So, until 2019, she'll have to get used to staying in.
MINNEOLA, Fla. (WESH-TV) A Lake County mom is outraged over what one teacher tried explaining to her students during what she called a "lesson in racism."

Lychelle Bland wants her daughter to learn black history, but not by being discriminated against.

"It's the craziest thing I've ever heard that a teacher did to teach a child something," Bland said.

The principal of Minneola Elementary Charter School said that Tuesday after Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a first-grade teacher conducted an unapproved classroom experiment without notifying the school or parents. Kids, ages 7 and 8, were separated by eye color, then discriminated against for several hours.

Related gallery: Race and racism in the news

Eight-year-old Aniyah Rodriguez was in the class. She said students with blue eyes got hugs, candy and toys; students with brown eyes like her got nothing.

"She only wanted the white people that had blue eyes to get hugs. And she said she didn't want any of our cooties," Rodriguez said. "Everybody in the class was crying."

The teacher did send a letter home to parents explaining the lesson the next day, but the school's principal said that letter also wasn't approved.

While the teacher declined to talk with WESH 2 News, in the letter, she described it as a "tough lesson" meant to highlight the importance of equality, letting kids "feel what it was like to have been people back about 50 years ago."

Bland wishes her daughter could have opted out.

"They're too young to even comprehend what's actually going on. You shouldn't make a child upset to teach them a lesson like that," Bland said.

Principal Sherry Watts said the teacher is under investigation and calls this lesson in discrimination inappropriate.

"She felt like it was just an opportunity to show them how important it is for us to be treated equally. Again, not an appropriate lesson for first grade," Watts said. "I can tell you this will not happen again."

It's unclear whether that teacher will face any disciplinary action.

Story originally published on WESH-TV.
Q: I recently flew from Seattle to Wichita, Kan., on United Airlines, with a stopover in Denver. My first flight was delayed, which caused me to miss my connection in Denver.

I called United, and a representative offered me two options: I could stay overnight and fly home the next evening at 5:30 p.m., or I could rent a car, and United would reimburse me.

I asked for a confirmation number or an e-mail in regard to this promise, and the agent reassured me that it was not necessary. She transferred me directly to Hertz to make the arrangements, and said that all I needed to do was fax the car rental expense to United and I would be reimbursed.

I decided to rent a car and drive home. When I sent United my bill, the company refused to pay it, saying that its very sorry, but its not Uniteds policy to reimburse for car rental expenses. Can you help me persuade United to do the right thing?

Linda Oliver, Cheney, Kan.

A: If United promised that it would refund your car rental, it should have refunded the rental  regardless of its policy.

According to Rule 24, Section E of Uniteds contract of carriage, it may, at its sole discretion, arrange for you to travel on another carrier. United may also, at its sole discretion, and if acceptable to the passenger, arrange for the passenger to travel via ground transportation.

You followed all the correct steps, first by e-mailing your bill to United through its site, and then appealing its decision to one of Uniteds executive contacts, which I list on my website: http://elliott.org/company-contacts/united. Unfortunately, that didnt work, either.

United is trying harder to fix its badly damaged relationship with customers, and this would have been an excellent opportunity to deliver on a promise. Im disappointed that it didnt come through for you.

For future reference, its very unusual for an airline to pay for alternate transportation, although its not unprecedented. These assurances had been given to you in a phone conversation, and as you probably know, these calls are recorded for quality assurance purposes. All United needed to do was review the recordings, and it could figure out what was said.

I contacted United on your behalf and urged it to review its records. United cut you a check for the car rental bill.

Christopher Elliott is the ombudsman for National Geographic Traveler magazine. Find travel tips at www.elliott.org. E-mail: chris@elliott.org Twitter: @elliottdotorg
The summers final Live on the Waterfront concert was held Wednesday evening at Prince Arthurs Landing. The popular series in Thunder Bay has completed nine weekly shows that began on July 13. Wednesdays concert was unique as it was held one hour later in the evening to mesh with the 10 p.
Alberta to Begin Accepting new Applications for Immigration to Canada CIC News Aa Accessibility Font Style Serif

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The Canadian province of Alberta will soon reopen its doors to newcomers who wish to settle in one of Canadas most beautiful and vibrant provinces. The Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP), one of Canadas Provincial Nominee Programs, will begin accepting new applications from January 27, 2016.

Alberta has not been accepting new applications to the AINP since August 27, 2015.

The AINP is split into three streams: the Employer-Driven Stream, the Strategic Recruitment Stream, and the Self-Employed Farmer Stream. All streams of the AINP are base streams, meaning that they are not aligned with the federal Express Entry system.

Potential applicants should note that, in addition to seeking skilled new immigrants, Alberta is also looking for applicants in certain semi-skilled occupations. Furthermore, while a job offer is required for a number of AINP categories, candidates with prior work experience in Alberta and who have a valid trade certificate in a Compulsory or Optional Trade, as well as those in certain engineering occupations, may be eligible to apply.

The AINP is also beneficial to individuals who have completed their studies in Canada.

The AINP Employer-Driven Stream

The Employer-Driven Stream aims to attract candidates with a permanent, full-time job offer from an employer in Alberta. The stream is divided into three categories:

Skilled Worker Category

This category is for candidates with a permanent, full-time job offer from an employer in Alberta in a skilled occupation (NOC skill level 0, A, or B).

International Graduate Category

This category is for candidates who have recently graduated from a Canadian post-secondary institution and have a permanent, full-time job offer from an employer in Alberta in a NOC skill level O, A, B, or C occupation. Note that this category is open to candidates with job offers in semi-skilled, as well as skilled, occupations.

Semi-Skilled Worker Category

This category is for candidates who have a permanent, full-time job offer from an employer in Alberta in a semi-skilled occupation (NOC C or D) that is eligible under the AINP.

The AINP Strategic Recruitment Stream

The Strategic Recruitment Stream allows Alberta to attract newcomers who may benefit the provincial labour market over the long term. The stream is divided into three categories:

Compulsory or Optional Trades Category

This category is for candidates who have a valid trade certificate in a Compulsory or Optional Trade in Alberta issued or recognized by Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Training ( AIT ).

Engineering Occupations Category

This category is for candidates who have credentials as an engineer, designer, or drafter and work experience in Alberta in an eligible engineering occupation, listed below:

Engineering Managers (NOC 0211)

Civil Engineers (2131)

Mechanical Engineers (2132)

Electrical and Electronics Engineers (2133)

Chemical Engineers (2134)

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineers (2141)

Mining Engineers (2143)

Geological Engineers (2144)

Petroleum Engineers (2145)

Post-Graduate Worker Category

This category is for candidates who have graduated from a recognized post-secondary institution in Alberta, are currently working in Alberta in an eligible occupation, and have a valid Post-Graduation Work Permit.

The AINP Self-Employed Farmer Stream

Given that one of the major industries in Alberta is agriculture and that Alberta is traditionally a province that promotes small- and medium-sized business activity, it is only natural that the AINP also has a Self-Employed Farmer Stream. Candidates for this stream must prove prior farm management skills, invest a minimum of CDN $500,000 of equity in a primary production farming business in Alberta, and submit a proposed business plan.

To learn more about the AINP Self-Employed Farmer Stream, click here.

Destination Alberta

Alberta is variously known as the energy province, the sunshine province, and Wild Rose country. It is all of these, and more. It is no accident that it is one of the most visited provinces of Canada, says Attorney David Cohen.

It is also noteworthy that projections show Alberta will continue to be one of the fastest growing regions of North America, with more and more people likely to settle there over the coming years and decades.

In terms of immigration opportunities, the reopening of the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program is an exciting moment early in the new year. The government of Alberta has shown that it is seeking a broad range of newcomers with the knowledge and motivation to succeed. The government has also proven that it is willing to invest in the economy and diversify the range of industries with sustainable employment opportunities over the long term. I encourage individuals, both those eligible for Express Entry and those who may not be, to consider their Canadian immigration options through the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program.

Alberta quick facts

Provincial capital: Edmonton

Largest city: Calgary

Other major cities with population over 50,000: Red Deer, Lethbridge, St. Albert, Medicine Hat, Grande Prairie

Population: 4.2 million

Languages: The predominant language in Alberta is English, followed by Chinese languages, German, and French.

Climate: Most of Alberta enjoys a continental climate, with warm summers and cold winters. The province extends for over 1,200 km (750 miles) north to south, and the southern areas, particularly the dry prairies in the southeast, are noticeably warmer.

Major industries: Conventional crude and synthetic crude oil, natural gas, mining, agriculture, forestry, finance, banking, information technology (IT), tourism, tertiary services. Alberta also employs many people in the public sector, particularly in healthcare.

Employment rate: 93%

Major attractions: Rocky Mountains, Banff National Park, Jasper National Park, Elk Island National Park, the Calgary Stampede, Edmonton  Canadas Festival City

To learn more about your Canadian immigration options through the AINP, or any of over 60 Canadian immigration programs, please fill out a free online assessment today.

 2016 CICnews All Rights Reserved
In summer 2012, with Chicago schools confronted with a frightening $600 million deficit, Mayor Rahm Emanuel asked the teachers union for concessions to help bolster the budget and improve students academic performance. Instead, teachers went on strike for seven days. Emanuel capitulated to most of their demands, including approximately $100 million in pay increases. Though critics warned that the school systems finances were dangerously out of balance, neither Chicago officials nor state leaders in Springfield did much to address the crisis, and things have grown steadily worse. Now Chicago teachers are threatening to shut the system down again unless the state kicks in funding for raises.

On Wednesday, Illinois governor Bruce Rauner startled observers when he proposed a state takeover of the flailing system. He noted that part of the problem was that Emanuel had caved in the teachers strike four and a half years ago, and hes sending the message right now (in contract talks that), hes going to give them what they want again, and ask the state to pay for it. The schools already face a $480 million deficit that could leave the system out of cash before the school year ends. Next years shortfall is projected at $1 billion on revenues of just $5.5 billion. On Wednesday, Fitch Credit ratingsnoting that the system had spent virtually all its reserveshit Chicago schools with a triple credit-rating downgrade, to junk-bond status that reflects the limited progress Chicago Public Schools has made in addressing a structural budget gap.

Rauners critics, both in Illinois Democratic circles and in the press, are characterizing the takeover proposal as part of the Republican governors anti-union agenda. Politico suggested that Rauners desire is to prove himself as a Scott Walker-style conservative. The accusation ignores how Democratic governors have also moved to take over sinking school districts in the face of union opposition. In 2009, then-Michigan governor Jennifer Granholm put the Detroit school district under state control. The schools had used hundreds of millions in borrowed money to fund day-to-day operations rather than make budget cuts as enrollment declined. In 1993, New Jersey Democratic governor Jim Florio launched an investigation of mismanagement and poor performance in the Newark school system that eventually led to a state takeover under his successor, Republican Christine Whitman. Newark schools have remained under state control for 20 years, through the administrations of six governors, three of whom were Democrats. Under Florio, the state also seized the Paterson school district in 1991.

No doubt, the antagonistic and radicalized Chicago Teachers Union presents a major obstacle to school reform. But challenging the CTU hardly represents an anti-union agenda, especially in a city where Democratic leaders have frequently clashed with the union, too. The CTU turned especially confrontational after activists led by Karen Lewis captured control of the union in 2010. Before launching their 2012 strike, union leaders visited a national teachers convention, where they urged delegates from other cities to resist education-reform efforts. In the ensuing Chicago strike, teachers fought Emanuel over his plans to change the teacher-evaluation system and give principals more hiring authority. Now theyre demanding up to $450 million in state aid to bail out the entire system.

Illinois Democratic state legislature would have to approve Rauners takeover plan, including a change in state law that would let the Chicago system file for bankruptcy protection and reorganize its finances. Democrats termed Rauners proposals a sideshow and mean-spirited. But the Chicago Tribune pointed out that Democrats have no fresh ideas on fixing the school system and oppose the bankruptcy idea only because it would be a political embarrassment to the party that had controlled the schools for years.

Indeed, Democrats in Springfield have played a part in the crisis. In 2010, at union urging, they passed legislation requiring municipalities and school districts gradually to increase their pension contributionsbut they crafted the law to put the burden of increasing payments entirely on property-tax payers. Chicagos chief financial officer back then, Dana Levenson, noted in an op-ed that union leaders hadnt ruled out the idea of shared sacrifice to fix the problem, but no state official had asked for any sacrifice from workers. Chicago and other municipalities warned that the new legislation would create a fiscal cliff for budgets starting in 2016.

Now that cliff is here. Chicagos own pension payments are nearly doubling this year to $1 billion, and the city is raising property taxes by hundreds of millions in response. Chicago Public Schools borrowed money to make a $684 million pension payment last June; CPS faces a $700 million payment next year. Rauner says that hed consider providing aidthough the states budget is hardly robustbut only if the schools agree to something in return, namely, reforms that would improve educational quality and stabilize the systems finances. Those are concessions that the union, the schools, and the legislature have resisted for years.

As the Tribune noted, The GOP proposals recognize reality: The Chicago school financial crisis is here. And it wasnt Rauner who created the crisis.

Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images
For 30, Alana Massey looks neither haggard nor old.This was my first thought upon meeting her in a Brooklyn cafe, near the apartment she shares with her cat. Its hard not to privately log such crass details, having read years of Masseys strikingly frank mental notes about herself.

Since she began freelancing for digital magazines nearly three years ago, Massey has written about how online harassment made her wonder if I was the haggard old witch on the outside that Ive always kind of felt like on the inside; about body dysmorphia and her resulting insecurity during sex; about a towering and abusive ex-boyfriend who threatened all 52 and 108 pounds of me; about the physical anxiety she felt working at a Manhattan strip club; about the fear of aging that led her to dye her brown hair blonde; and much more on topics many of us whisper about to confidants, if at all.

Such candor is expected in the familiar hazing ritual that many women go through when we arent ushered into media through more respectable channels, as Massey once put it. Personal essays are in vogue online, especially for aspiring journalists willing to spill about sex, dating, and body image. The former Gawker editor Emily Gould made waves in 2008 with her confessions about confessional writing. By todays standards, though, Goulds indiscreet blogging was rather tame. The First-Person Industrial Complex, Laura Bennett explained last fall in Slate, commodifies private lives for easy clicks. These pieces dont require polished prose or much reporting; their value can derive from salaciousness, not substance. And while personal essays offer a backdoor into journalism, that often leads to a dead end. The challenge is to convert that hazing ritual into a career while maintaining some privacy and enduring the harassment that this sort of writing tends to invite, particularly toward women.

After a trying start in that space, 2015 was a breakout year for Massey. She still specializes in womens issues, but her writing opportunities now better reflect her interests, which extend far beyond her love life. Shes a worthy exemplar of someone who didnt just overcome the so-called pink ghetto of personal essay writing, but who utilized the virtues of that form to develop a dynamic, engaging style of writing. She describes her work as writing and reporting that acknowledges the origins of a story for the journalist and the stakes involved in their writing it. It is a way of acknowledging a passion or pain point in their experience and letting that play a role in the narrative arc of a story.

Of course, thats not her invention, but she practices it with distinct millennial flare. Her writing voiceconfessional, unpretentious, sharp-witted, and forcefulcan make readers feel like they know her. She politely insists that they dont.

Single articles are not biographies. Single articles are not histories. Single articles are not data or DNA. pic.twitter.com/LYwEJQGg1w Sign up for CJR 's daily email  Alana Massey (@AlanaMassey) January 6, 2016

Nevertheless, readers familiar with her writing across dozens of publications, who follow her delightfully eccentric social media accounts and read her blog, could give a rough sketch of Masseys 20s. The thing about candidness, she notes, is you cant really tell how candid something is unless you know whats being omitted.

For example, Massey almost never writes about other people in her life (with the exception of Keith, the cat). She went to high school in San Diego, where her father was a Navy captain, then graduated from NYU in 2007. Life post-college was a struggle with alcohol, drugs, bipolar disorder, and unsatisfying jobsPR mostly, plus stripping and fetish work to cover the bills.

Really impulsively, Massey, who wasnt raised in a religious household, decided to attend Yale Divinity School at age 25. It was an escape from New York, she says, but I was really scared to go any farther than Princeton, New Jersey, or New Haven, Connecticut. She graduated with a masters in religion in 2012. It did prompt an awakening of sorts: not to disavow aspects of her past, but to be less ashamed of them.

Seven months after graduating and returning to New York City, a friend suggested Massey write about a life experience theyd discussed for xoJane, a website that calls itself a place where women go to be their unabashed selves. The essay, written under the byline Alana M., was headlined: Ive Never Had an Orgasm and Im the Only Person That Doesnt Care.

It was a modest attempt at anonymity, but she failed to realize that Alana M. would lead Web searchers to her various online profiles. When I dove in and people were like, You just ruined your Google results, I was like, Ok. It was kind of a manic, compulsive decision.

Soon, she was writing under her full name. If you are going to ruin your Google results, she advises, ruin them for like 20 pages.

For many, risque personal anecdotes are less terrifying in the hands of strangers than under the eyes of mom and dad. While some details in her early writing did come as news to her parents, like that Alana wasnt having sex in high school but was smoking weed, I havent done anything that I think would violate their concepts of morality, she says. I havent written anything thats cruel. And I think theyd be much more upset by something that was cruel to others or myself than something embarrassing.

Ultra-candid writing can engender devotion and resentment. Emails from readers whove experienced similar adversitybe it suicidal ideation, disordered eating, or abusive relationshipscan be overwhelming. Its unsustainable to maintain those correspondences, she explained to me. Much as she wants to help, were not penpals now.

On the other hand, anti-feminist vitriol has a chilling effect. There are situations that have been very formative that I never want put on trial by internet commentators, she says. Theres some stuff going to the grave with me.

The training wheels of personal essay writing, as she describes it, led to freelance gigs at a variety of outlets, with an emerging specialization in faith. In 2014, Massey applied to more than 700 jobs, she told Pacific Standard. Many applications featured ridiculously extravagant tryouts, like this one at a womens magazine seeking a sex and relationships Web editor:

Candidates are instead asked to produce three sex tips, five observant listicle ideas, five news stories I would blog about, two ideas for trend pieces or newsy reported features, two personal essays ideas, two ideas that lend themselves to visual treatments, five sex or relationship experts Id use as sources, two new franchises for the brand, three [one-to-three] paragraph blogs about news articles from that day, and a complete listicle about sex problems faced by women. I refrain from buying their print magazine to confirm with certainty that they are actually requesting that I write them a full magazine before I even interview.

She never heard back on that one, she says. But she did land a full-time job writing lists at BuzzFeed at the end of 2014, with the opportunity to contribute reported pieces and longform essays. Her breakthrough was Being Winona in a World Made for Gwyneths, about the relatability of Winona Ryder compared to the stiff superficiality of Gwyneth Paltrow. But the piece also became the most important time when Massey broke her rule of not writing about people in her life. She urgently needed to describe an ex, James.

Months earlier, when she discovered he had another girlfriend in California and was hiding Massey from her, she dumped James and alerted the woman. He responded by repeatedly threatening to kill her, and by revealing to his new girlfriend that Massey had once been a stripper. That woman grew skeptical of Masseys motives for communicating.

The change in tone made it clear in real time how easy it is to dress down a real woman to the vulgar trope of a delusional whore, Massey writes.

She decided to finally announce in writing that she had worked in the sex industry. James was plotting to tell all sorts of people in her life, even the church where theyd met.

No one is telling my secrets but me, Massey remembers thinking. No one is profiting off of my humiliation but me.

When her parents read her Winona essay online, they learned of her experience as a stripper for the first time. She got an email from her dad: I never knew you were so prolific, which Massey read as code for having been through a lot. Im really proud youre my daughter.

Massey would be disappointed but unsurprised if other journalists overplayed her time as a stripper. She notes that plenty of people in pop culture have been stigmatized and pigeonholed that way. You sort of feel bad for people who are so obtuse.

She has blossomed into a generalist, though her commentary off the news can lose some of its liveliness. Her best writing weaves anecdotes into argument, as with a defense of porn for Pacific Standard and an explanation of being a cultural Christian for The Washington Post. Shes fearlessly graphicshes compared despicable men to taint sweat and a rectal blisterbut not gratuitously vulgar. When addressing tumultuous moments in her life, she doesnt suggest that these are novel experiences, nor does she use platitudes to belabor their universality.

In first-person writing, overexposure is not an express lane to standing out. Alanas earnestness really sets her apart, says Arianna Rebolini, the editor of Masseys list-writing team at BuzzFeed. Its not just the act of confessing that makes something good and worthwhile.

Within 24 hours of the Winona essay being published, a literary agent offered to represent her. Massey left BuzzFeed last summer after selling a book proposal to Grand Central Publishing, a Hachette imprint.

She drafted the book in just five months. Shes the fastest writer Ive ever met in my entire life, says Mark Lotto, editor in chief of Matter, where Massey began contributing last year. In April, for Matter, she wrote Against Chill, her most-shared piece to date. It evokes Against Irony, a New York Times Magazine article in 1999 about backlash in response to a perceived culture war against earnestness. Masseys piece resonated with todays disenchanted daters.

Chill is a sinister refashioning of Calm down! from an enraging and highly gendered command into an admirable attitude. Chill suggests that young love is best expressed as competitive ambivalence. Chill demands that you see a Read receipt followed by a Hey, was asleep text three hours later and not proceed to throw your phone into the nearest volcano. Chill asks you to be like, LOL, what volcano?

There is a magnetic intensity to Masseys writing. Its self-effacing but unapologetic. As Lotto puts it, Theres something really dangerous about it.

There are a lot of writers who can get reduced to their anecdotes, he adds. Writers like Alana expose themselves but also try to elevate it into something much more intellectual and universal.

When we spoke, Massey recoiled at the notion of being an intellectual. When I hear that, I hear competitive. And I hear inaccessible knowledge as virtuous.

She rejects highbrow/lowbrow distinctions and celebrates celebrity. Her forthcoming book, All the Lives I Want, examines women in pop culture and how their public personas relate to Masseys self-perception. One essay will be about Amber Rose, the stripper-turned-feminist firebrand whom Massey reveres. Publication is scheduled for 2017.

@DaRealAmberRose All the  back! Cant wait to see what you conquer next.  Alana Massey (@AlanaMassey) October 30, 2015

While continuing to write for places like The Cut on nymag.com and The Guardian, Massey is drafting a novel and shopping a script for a TV pilot. Last fall, she wrote copy for a Gucci campaign. She writes less about sex work and cutesy dating stuff now, she says, because she isnt as close to those experiences.

In whatever writing shes doing, her goal is to build a world. Women arent trusted to build a world or know a world beyond their own experience, and even their own experience is questioned all the time, she tells CJR. Massey doesnt want to be confined to first-person narratives, but she doesnt disparage them, either. The goal at the start of her career was to underscore that writing about womens experiences has value. Its drawn a range of reactions, including many readers, mostly women, who comment under her essays, thank you.

Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today

Danny Funt is a senior editor at The Week and a former CJR Delacorte Fellow. Follow him on Twitter at @dannyfunt
When reporters in Florida are faced with government officials who refuse to turn over records the way the law requireswithin a reasonable time frame and for a reasonable chargethey have two good options. The first is to expose the officials, as Nicole Rodriguez of the Treasure Coast Newspapers did with an article last week pointing out that employees in the city of Port St. Lucie take far longer to turn over routine records, and often charge more, than neighboring governments.

Rodriguez told me she decided to pursue the story after seeing emails to the city manager from regular citizensnon-reporterswho shared her experience of getting the run-around from the city. She rightly included private citizens complaints in her article. While Florida reporters often take a certain pride of ownership in the states unusually strong public records law, it is not ours alone.

Once residents were having issues as well, we felt it was an important story, she said. They really dont have an outlet to speak out about their hassles.

Port St. Lucie officials would do well to listen to the concerns of citizens, because the second option Florida reporters and regular citizens havegoing to courtcan get very expensive.

One of the things that makes Floridas public records laws so strong is very specific language that forces agencies who lose public records lawsuits to pay the attorneys fees of the people who sued. At the moment, this is not optional. When a public agency loses, the statute says, a judge shall award attorneys fees to the plaintiff in Florida.

This is why independent journalist Gina Edwards, who writes about Naples news on the website WatchdogCity.com, was able to sue the clerk of Collier County for charging more than is allowed by statute to give her records.

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Edwards attorneys agreed to take the case on a contingency basis, meaning they didnt charge her anything and expected to get their fee paid for by the clerk once they won. And they did win at trial, with a circuit judge ruling the clerk could not charge $350 for a CD with a bunch of emails on it. Instead, the clerk could charge $2the cost of the CD.

The clerk, using taxpayer money, chose to appeal the decision. Last week, the Second District Court of Appeal ruled that the trial judge was right. The price was $2. The Naples Daily News reported that the clerks office had spent $67,000 on the case by February of last year, before the appeal had been argued.

And now Edwards attorneys are going to petition a judge to order that their fee be paid by the taxpayers of Collier County.

There is no possible way I could challenge the clerk, who has unlimited taxpayer money available to him, if my attorneys hadnt agreed to take the case on a contingency basis, Edwards said. Going after these issues in a civil suit is the only recourse citizens have to get some sort of relief.

Edwards lead attorney, Marrett Hanna, told me she wouldnt have been able to take the case, or many other public records cases, without the fee provision in the law.

I dont know how the average American could afford to pay for this, she said. Its going to be upwards of $30,000 or $40,000, probably more.

The prospect of paying those fees is a strong incentive for government officials to play by the rules, so that litigation is unnecessary. Unfortunately, the provision in state law that creates this incentive is now in danger. The legislature is currently considering a measure to weaken the states public records law by changing one little wordshall award attorneys fees would become may. In other words, plaintiffs attorneys in public records suits could never be guaranteedno matter how egregious the behavior of government officialsthat they would be paid for their work. That would make litigation less likely, and the threat of a suit a less effective deterrent to misbehavior.

Barbara Petersen, of the First Amendment Foundation, said she was told the proposed measure had been prompted by abuse of the public records law, through requests designed to lead to judgments against government contractors (my colleague Jonathan Peters wrote about the issue in 2014). But the legislature already addressed that problem last year, making government employees responsible for answering public records requests. This further proposed change isnt targeted to the concerns, and risks hiding government business from the publicleaving more outcomes to the whim of a bureaucrat and the mood of a judge

There may be a handful of people who are scamming, but 99 percent of the public records requests that are made are because people want the public records, Petersen said. Youre going to take our only recourse to force public officials to comply with the law. The anti-Sunshine attitude, it really does shock me. I dont know that Ive ever seen it this bad before.

So now, its time for Florida media outlets to use the other weapon theyve got in the battle to keep government records open: exposure. Fortunately, theyve been doing just that.

Soon after the bill was introduced, news outlets began to raise the alarm, with warnings like this op-ed in the Columbia News Journal by a former state official, this editorial in The St. Augustine Record, and this opinion piece in Context Florida. The Tampa Bay Times columnist John Romano weighed in. Noah Pransky, of the Tampa TV station WTSP, alerted his viewers.

The first vote on the measure this week prompted more coverage around the state. As The Bradenton Herald noted in a strong editorial Thursday, this is a misguided effort aimed at a non-problem.

More coverage like this is needed. While the public records law does not belong to journalists alone, we have a special responsibility to defend it.

Has America ever needed a media watchdog more than now? Help us by joining CJR today

Susannah Nesmith is CJRs correspondent for Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. She is a freelance writer based in Miami with more than 25 years working for regional and national outlets. Follow her on Twitter @susannahnesmith.
Byrne-Jones Appointed Director, Casualty Specialty Risks for Crawford & Company

Crawford & Company appointed Rowena Byrne-Jones as a director of Casualty Specialist Risks. Byrne-Jones is regularly involved in multi-million pound losses involving multiple claimants, often in the glare of media attention and has a strong reputation in the market.

She reports to John Buckle, liability managing director for the UK, and will work closely with experts in Crawfords recently launched European financial lines claims service.

The Crawford European financial lines service includes highly skilled lawyers, accountants and engineers with expertise that has been built up over many years. The financial lines service offers extensive experience in multi-insurer, multi-layer, reinsured and captive-led covers across the UK and Europe. Claims of any size or complexity are handled by this recently launched service.

Verisk Appoints Churney President, AIR Worldwide

Verisk Analytics, a data analytics provider, announced that the appointment of Bill Churney to the position of president of its AIR Worldwide business. Former AIR President Ming Lee retired effective January 1, 2016. He will continue at AIR until June 2016 in a non-executive role.

Churney will have immediate responsibility for setting global strategy and overseeing worldwide operations at AIR.

Churney joined AIR in 2002 and most recently served as chief operating officer. In that role, he was responsible for overseeing strategic direction and company operations for product management, software product development, global business development, marketing, consulting, and client service activities. He has extensive experience working directly with companies to better understand their catastrophe risk management processes and to identify ways to implement analytics to improve risk management.

Before joining AIR, Churney worked in product management and operations management.

JLT Specialty USA Appoints Robert Robideaux as Executive Vice President

JLT Specialty USA, a U.S. subsidiary of Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group plc., a global specialty provider of insurer, reinsurance and employee benefits related advice, brokerage and associated services, announced the appointment of Robert Robideaux as the executive vice president and regional head of Client Development, focusing on private equity and alternative investment funds.

Robideaux joins as a member of JLTs Private Equity Executive Committee. His responsibilities will include client development, recruitment and management of a team focused on delivering JLTs specialty risk solutions to the alternative investment community.

With over two decades of experience in the risk and insurance industry, Robideaux comes to JLT following his role at Marsh as managing director of the Global Private Equity and Mergers & Acquisitions Practice. Previously, Robideaux managed AIGs West Coast Mergers & Acquisitions Insurance Group, where he developed transactional insurance and financial products. He also practiced as a lawyer and tax advisor with Deloitte and KPMG.

Spreemo Names New Leader of its Healthcare Analytics Team

Daniel Elgort, Ph.D., has been named vice president of Healthcare Analytics at Spreemo, a healthcare platform that provides evidence-based metrics and predictive analytics to facilitate high-quality and collaborative patient care.

Most recently, he served as director and global lead of Healthcare Big Data Analytics Research at Philips. In his new role, Dr. Elgort will oversee the continued expansion of Spreemos data analytics initiatives in radiology, as well as other medical disciplines.

Dr. Elgort has conducted extensive healthcare research and is the primary author of over 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and conference abstracts. He holds over 40 pending or granted patents and was the recipient of Phase I and II DARPA grants. He has a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from Case Western Reserve University.

Nationwide Names Clark New President of Excess and Surplus lines Business

Nationwide announced today that Tom Clark has been elected president of Nationwides Excess & Surplus lines business. In a planned leadership transition the company announced in 2014, Clark succeeds Mike Miller, who remains with Nationwide.

Prior to joining the Excess & Surplus team as executive vice president in 2014, Clark served as senior vice president for Allied Field Operations. In addition, Clark led field operations for Harleysville Insurance and played a key role in the integration of Harleysville into the Nationwide family. He has more than 25 years of technical and leadership experience in the insurance industry.

Miller is now president of Nationwide Ventures. In his new role, Miller will work to successfully source, execute and manage strategic investments for the company.
Within minutes, the revelry of New Years Eve in Dubai turned to horror as those gathered for fireworks downtown watched flames race up the side of one of the glistening citys most prominent luxury hotels.

But the fire at the 63-story The Address Downtown Dubai wasnt the first, second or even third blaze to spread swiftly along the exterior of skyscrapers that have risen from the desert at a torrid pace in and around Dubai over the past two decades.

It was at least the eighth such fire in the Emirates alone, and similar blazes have struck major cities across the world, killing dozens of people, according to an Associated Press survey.

The reason, building and safety experts say, is the material used for the buildings sidings, called aluminum composite panel cladding. While types of cladding can be made with fire-resistant material, experts say those that have caught fire in Dubai and elsewhere werent designed to meet stricter safety standards and often were put onto buildings without any breaks to slow or halt a possible blaze.

While new regulations are now in place for construction in Dubai and other cities, experts acknowledge they have no idea how many skyscrapers have the potentially combustible paneling and are at risk of similar fast-moving fires.

Its like a wildfire going up the sides of the building, said Thom Bohlen, chief technical officer at the Middle East Center for Sustainable Development in Dubai. Its very difficult to control and its very fast. It happens extremely fast.

Cladding came into vogue over a decade ago, as Dubais building boom was well underway. Developers use it because it offers a modern finish to buildings, allows dust to wash off during rains, and is relatively simple and cheap to install.

Dubai has since burgeoned into a cosmopolitan business hub of more than 2 million people. As in other Emirati cities, foreign residents far outnumber the local population. Expatriate professionals in particular are drawn to the ear-popping apartments the citys hundreds of high-rises offer, and skyscraper hotels accommodate millions of guests each year. The city-state aims to attract 20 million visitors annually by the time it hosts the World Expo in 2020.

That means the risk of high-rise fires touches people from all over the world.

Typically, the cladding is a half-millimeter (0.02-inch) thick piece of aluminum attached to a foam core that is sandwiched to another similar skin. The panels are then affixed to the side of a building, one piece after another.

The biggest problem lies with panel cores that are all or mostly polyethylene, a common type of plastic, said Andy Dean, the Mideast head of facades at the engineering consultancy WSP Global.

The ones with 100-percent polyethylene core can burn quite readily, Dean said. Some of the older, even fire-rated materials, still have quite a lot of polymer in them.

The panels themselves dont spark the fires, and the risks can be lessened if they are installed with breaks between them to curb a fires spread. The panels flammability can be significantly reduced by replacing some of the plastic inside the panels with material that doesnt burn so easily.

However, when installed uninterrupted row after row, more flammable types of cladding provide a straight line of kindling up the side of a tower.

That was the case in 2012 when a spate of fires struck Dubai and the neighboring emirate of Sharjah. Blaze after blaze, though some ignited differently, behaved the same way: fire rushed up and down the sides of the buildings, fueled by the external panels.

The day after an April 2012 fire at a 40-story building in Sharjah, Dubai issued new building regulations barring the use of cladding constructed with flammable material. Officials elsewhere in the United Arab Emirates followed suit, though by that time, the building boom had subsided in the wake of a global recession.

But the rules did not call for retrofitting buildings with flammable cladding already installed  nor is there any clear idea of how many of these buildings stand in Dubai or the UAEs other six emirates.

Local experts have suggested as many as 70 percent of the towers in the Dubai may contain the material, though they acknowledge the figure is only an estimate as there are apparently no official records.

Theres an exposure because theres a lot of them and unfortunately they dont come with an X on the building to know which ones they are, said Sami Sayegh, global property executive in the Middle East and North Africa for insurance giant American International Group, Inc.

Emaar Properties, which developed The Address Downtown and nearby properties including the Burj Khalifa, the worlds tallest building, said authorities are still investigating the New Years Eve fire. It has hired an outside contractor to assess and restore the damaged tower, and it plans to reopen the hotel, based on orders from Dubais ruler himself. It has not released specific details about the type of cladding used.

However, The National, a state-owned newspaper in Abu Dhabi, has reported that the cladding used on The Address Downtown was the fire-prone type seen in other blazes.

Lt. Col. Jamal Ahmed Ibrahim, director of preventive safety for Dubai Civil Defense, said authorities take the issue of cladding fires seriously and are committed to finding solutions and stopping these accidents from happening.

A nationwide survey of existing buildings has been ordered in the wake of The Address fire, and additional guidelines will be put in place in March to ensure new buildings are constructed to a higher standard, he said.

However, Ibrahim insisted that the type of cladding that was involved in previous tower fires appears to have been used on only a small number of all buildings in the emirate _ a figure he suggested could be as little as 5 percent. But he acknowledged that officials dont know how many buildings are at risk.

Without (doing) the survey or something, we cant say the number exactly, he said.

The problem is not Dubais alone  cladding fires have struck elsewhere in the world.

In 2010, a similar fire at a Shanghai high-rise killed at least 58 people. An apartment fire in May in Azerbaijans capital, Baku, killed 16. Another dramatic blaze hit Beijings TV Cultural Center in February 2009, killing a firefighter.

All bore similarities to the Dubai fires, with flames racing up the sides of the building, and experts attributed each fires speed to the cladding.

Peter Rau, the chief officer of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade in Melbourne, Australia, knows firsthand how dangerous such fires can be. In November 2014, a fire erupted at a 23-story apartment building in Melbourne and raced up more than 20 stories in just six minutes as flaming debris rained down below. While no one was injured, the fast-moving blaze did millions of dollars worth of damage to the building.

In the aftermath of the blaze, fire officials discovered some 50 other buildings in the city  and 1,700 in the surrounding state of Victoria  had similar, flammable siding, Rau said.

You know youve only got to step back a little bit further and say: What does it mean for Australia and what does it mean (when) youre talking to me from Dubai? Rau said. This is a significant issue worldwide, I would suggest There is no question this is a game changer.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Oklahoma residents concerned with a dramatic increase in the number of earthquakes called for more regulations on the oil and gas industry last week and urged state leaders to take action to stop the quakes.

About 200 people tried to pack into standing room-only committee rooms at the Oklahoma Capitol, sat on the floor and spilled into the rotunda, prompting legislators to move the forum into the House chamber.

Several Edmond-area residents said their homes have been damaged and their children frightened after a swarm of quakes rattled the Oklahoma City suburb in recent weeks, including a 4.3-magnitude temblor last month.

Emily Pope, a Maryland native who moved to Edmond four months ago after her husband got a job here, said she is shocked at the number of quakes that have rattled her home.

We had no idea we were moving into a huge earthquake zone, she said while holding a four-month-old toddler. If we had known that, we probably wouldnt have accepted the job out here.

Edmond resident Julie Allison, who lives about 2 miles from the epicenter of two recent quakes, said she believes oil and gas companies should be forced to subsidize the cost of earthquake insurance premiums and claims of damages.

People cant afford to pay the deductibles, Allison said. If I sound like an unhappy citizen, its because I am.

Its time for everyone to wake up.

Despite growing concerns from the public, a spokesman for Gov. Mary Fallin said Friday there is no need for the governor to intervene at this time. Fallin formed a coordinating council to address the issue, but has deferred mostly to the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, which regulates the oil and gas industry and has directed some wells to shut down or reduce disposal volumes. Fallin spokesman Michael McNutt said the governors secretary of energy and environment also is working on the issue.

The lawmaker who organized the forum, Rep. Richard Morrissette, D-Oklahoma City, said he intends to push legislation in the upcoming session to establish a reparation fund to help residents impacted by wastewater injection that would be based on a new fluid disposal fee. He also wants to impose mandatory reductions in injection amounts in the ten Oklahoma counties where most of the earthquakes are occurring.

Any attempt to impose new restrictions or fees on the oil and gas industry is likely to face fierce resistance from industry lobbyists, a powerful force at the Capitol.

Rep. Cory Williams, D-Stillwater, said hes not optimistic lawmakers will take steps to address the quakes because theyre afraid of harming an industry that is a key economic driver in the state.

Unfortunately, I think weve chosen the industry over our constituents, and weve gotten things out of balance, Williams said.

I need people to engage on a much grander level even than were seeing today.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Federal accident investigators have released a report saying that ice is to blame for a fatal medical helicopter crash in Oklahoma City three years ago.

The Oklahoman reports that the National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday that the EagleMed helicopter lost power because undetected ice got into the engine during the initial climb after takeoff from an Oklahoma City hospital Feb. 22, 2013.

The board says the aircraft had been parked outside and exposed to freezing temperatures before the accident, and that the pilots preflight inspection was inadequate, noting that surveillance video of the helipad showed that most of the helipads lights were off at the time of inspection.

It also said the helicopters air intake design had been modified to accommodate a different engine, leaving a gap where water or snow could pass through a screen and onto a blanking plate.

According to the safety board, Shortly after takeoff, the ice detached from the blanking plate, slid into the air inlet and was subsequently ingested by the engine, resulting in an in-flight loss of engine power.

Due to the accident, EagleMed LLC has painted the blanking plate on its helicopters matte black to enhance detection of moisture and modified its preflight inspection requirements.

The pilot and a nurse aboard the helicopter were killed, and a paramedic was severely injured.

Timothy A. Loranger, an attorney for the pilot Mark Montgomerys widow and children, was critical about the reports comments.

We believe that his ability to see accumulation of ice was diminished because of the design issue, Loranger said.

Montgomerys wife, EagleMed and an insurance company have sued the helicopter manufacturer, the engine manufacturer and the designer of the engine modification package. The lawsuit is now before the Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals.

Lawsuits on behalf of the nurse and the paramedic have been settled.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Berklee & The Boston Conservatory Prepare for Merger?

After opening its doors 149-years ago, The Boston Conservatory will soon be merging with Berklee College. Once the new school completes the necessary regulatory and accreditation review and approval process, later this summer, the combined institution will be known as Berklee with the Conservatory becoming The Boston Conservatory at Berklee. The hope is that by combining forces, Berklee and The Boston Conservatory will be able to lead the way in establishing new and original music genres and art forms for years to come.

Following a six-month process that gathered information from faculty, staff, students, parents, alumni, and industry leaders, the formal merger of The Boston Conservatory and Berklee College of Music's facilities, faculty and programs has been announced.

In a recent press release, Berklee explains that the motivation behind the merger is to put the new combined institution at the absolute forefront of performing arts education:

"The strategic underpinning of the merger is the belief that music, movement, and digital technology are converging to give artists powerful new means of creative expression in the theater, on the concert stage, and through established and emerging platforms.

"To become the leader in exploring new and original art forms, breaking down boundaries that isolate genres, and unleashing the tremendous creative potential of the global arts community."

In a recent interview with The Boston Globe, chairman of Berklee's board, Jeff Shames, echoed those same sentiments -- explaining that together the two schools will be able to accomplish far more than if they remained apart:

"We intend to collectively invest in the new Berklee -- regardless of discipline, program, or genre -- and hope to create significant artistic breakthroughs."

What do you think of Boston Conservatory's merging with Berklee?

Is it a shame to see a school with as long a history as the Conservatory's give up its well established identity?

Or, is it nice to see the two colleges joining forcing for the betterment of education and the arts as a whole?

Let us hear what you have to say about the merger in the comment field below.

 2016 The Classical Art, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.

TagsBerklee, Berklee College of Music, Berklee College, Boston Conservatory, New School, New College, Merger, Boston Conservatory at Berklee
Ballroom Thieves to Tour with Maine Youth Rock Orchestra

After collaborating with Youth Maine Rock Orchestra back in 2014, The Ballroom Thieves are going on tour with the Portland based student ensemble later this spring. The bluegrass trio and 25-piece string orchestra comprised of students ages 12-18 will be teaming up for an 8-date tour of the east coast in support of the band 2015 critically acclaimed debut album, A Wolf in the Doorway. The collaboration will also include an EP that will reportedly be released early 2016.

Being that The Ballroom Thieves are known for their out of the box take on bluegrass -- often infusing their brand of folk with elements of rock and blues -- their reportedly joining forces with the Maine Youth Rock Orchestra really isn't all that out of character.

According to the official press release, the genre bending trio and the student group will be teaming up for a limited tour later this year (via Ardmore Music):

"The Ballroom Thieves will be accompanied by Maine Youth Rock Orchestra for an 8-date east coast tour in April, and will be performing together at select summer festival dates.

"Maine Youth Rock Orchestra is an organization that provides orchestral string students ages 12-18 the opportunity to work alongside and perform with professional bands and artists in an alternative setting, creating a positive environment for students to be creative and to explore their musical abilities."

In a recent interview, Thieves co-founder, Devin Mauch, recently explained that the success of their 2015 debut album, A Wolf in the Doorway, had to do as much with luck as it did their musical vision (via BaxterBulletin):

"It's the right time for it. There has been a movement in alternative, folk, indie rock world in the last 5 years or so and we happen to be riding the right wave at the right time."

To get your tickets to The Ballroom Thieves accompanied by Maine Youth Orchestra be sure to head over to Ardmore Music Hall's official website before it's too late.

 2016 The Classical Art, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.

TagsBallroom Thieves, Tour, Youth Maine Rock Orchestra, Wolf in the Doorway, Ballroom Thieves Youth Maine Rock Orchestra, EP
AKRON, Ohio -- A Barberton man was sentenced Friday to life in prison for the rape of a 6-year-old girl.

Justin Ramirez, 25, will be first be eligible for parole in 15 years. He was also classified as a Tier III sex offender, which requires him to register his address with the Summit County Sheriff every three months for the rest of his life.

Summit County Judge Tammy O'Brien handed down the sentence. Ramirez pleaded guilty to rape last week.

A relative of the girl reported in February that the girl was sexually assaulted at Ramirez's Barberton home.

Barberton police investigated the case and eventually questioned Ramirez. He admitted to investigators that he raped the girl in 2013.

Assistant Summit County Prosecutor Jenni Shuki noted during the hearing that a background check found Ramirez to be at a high risk to re-offend if he is let out of prison.

The girl's mother attended the hearing but did not make a statement. The girl wrote a short letter to the judge for the sentencing.

Ramirez declined to address the judge. Defense attorney Diane Dougherty said Ramirez had a difficult childhood. She said he took responsibility for the rape as soon as he was questioned by Barberton detectives.

"He has consistently expressed remorse and is sorry for his actions," Dougherty said.
credit card skimmer

Macedonia Police posted a warning on their Facebook page about credit card skimmers that have been reported at gas stations in seven Ohio counties.

(Macedonia Police Department)

MACEDONIA, Ohio -- Macedonia Police are warning residents about credit card skimmers detected in seven Ohio counties and are advising caution when paying at the pump.

"According to the Ohio State Highway Patrol, a crime ring from Cuba is responsible for installing electronic credit card skimmers at gas stations," the department wrote in a Facebook post Thursday. "The thieves have targeted Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky. The credit card skimmers were found in seven (7) Ohio counties, including Montgomery, Butler, Fayette, Hamilton, Union and Washington."

The department says that state police found two types of skimmers, one that is installed on the inside of the card reader and one that is placed over the outside. Many gas stations put red or yellow security tape on the outside of card readers that breaks whenever the card reader is opened.

SKIMMERS..We have talked about skimmers in previous posts but have never shown you what actual skimmers look like. The... Posted by Macedonia Police Department - Ohio on Thursday, January 21, 2016

New downtown Akron restaurant, El Gato, expanding to 100 seats: After less than two months in business, El Gato owner Danny Basone tells Crain's that he is in the process of adding 60 more seats and a full bar to his Mexican eatery at 209 S. Main Street.

Bassone opened the restaurant in December. He told the newspaper that the design and short, eight-item menu were inspired by time spent in Los Angeles.

Akron-Canton Food Bank sends water to Flint: The Akron Canton Food Bank is pitching in to help alleviate the state of emergency in Flint, Michigan, where high led levels in the municipal water supply have led to a federal state of emergency.

The food bank sent a truck with 40,000 cases of bottled water to the southeast Michigan town earlier this week, WAKR reports. Flint's residents started complaining about water quality over a year ago, after the city switched from using Detroit's municipal water to the polluted Flint River.

The caustic river water has eroded pipes and led to lead problems in local children.

Longtime Goodyear advertising mastermind dies at 95: Robert Fleming, who headed Akron Advertising Art up until 1985, died in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, last week, the Beacon Journal reports.

Fleming, among other accomplishments, secured the Goodyear account with the advertising agency, which in turn produced many of the tire company's famed commercials of the last century. Fleming eventually served as CEO of Advertising Art until his 1985 retirement.
Beachwood city hall - Copy.JPG

Beachwood City Council went into executive session to discuss electing Martin Horwitz as its new president, a move a media law professor and good government advocate say was illegal and poor practice.

(Jeff Piorkowski, Special to cleveland.com)

BEACHWOOD, Ohio -- Beachwood City Council this month held a private executive session to choose its president, a move a media law professor and good government advocate said is illegal and poor practice.

New council President Martin Horwitz, a lawyer, said the city commonly meets in private to determine its leaders. He, like Beachwood Law Director Brian Reali, says the state law that permits discussing personnel in executive session includes the promotion of public officials.

"It allows people to speak more freely about certain issues than they would if there was a recording of it; and that's not a bad thing," Horwitz said. "We were trying to make a very important decision."

Beachwood's government has been under scrutiny for nearly three years, as residents have criticized Mayor Merle Gorden's $175,000 salary and vacation payouts, his practice of pocketing gratuities for weddings and council's practice of giving away pool passes. Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy J. McGinty's Office last year served the city with subpoenas seeking records. And the city paid $15,000 to hire Washington D.C. public relations firm kglobal to deal with the negative press.

Tim Smith, a professor emeritus in journalism and media law at Kent State University, agrees the law permits council to go into executive session to consider the appointment or promotion of a public official. But Smith says an election is different.

"A personnel matter is a promotion or demotion of a public employee; not an election," said Smith, a 30-year professor and former managing editor of the Akron Beacon Journal. "Going into executive session to discuss the election of an official is a violation of the statute."

What happened?

City Council has three new members this year. Voters elected newcomer Barbara Bellin Janovitz in November, along with former council members Brian Linick and Justin Berns.

Longtime Councilman Mark Wachter lost his reelection bid, while former council President Fred Goodman and Mark Mintz did not run.

The new council spent about an hour in executive session on Jan. 11 to discuss the future path of council, Councilman James Pasch said.

After reconvening in public session, council voted unanimously, without public discussion to elect Horwitz president. The body has not yet chosen a vice president.

Janovitz said said of the lengthy executive session last week: "We have to get to know each other. We're a new group."

Beachwood Law Director Brian Reali says the city followed the law.

"Any reasonable interpretation of the term 'personnel' can only lead one to conclude that public employee or official are personnel of the organization," Reali wrote in an email. "Clearly council president and vice president are 'officials.'"

Is it good policy?

Linick, a lawyer and former councilman elected after losing to Gorden for mayor in 2013, said the discussion was helpful.

"We certainly made an effort to do what was right; and if we fell short, we need to figure out what we did wrong and make sure it doesn't happen again," Linick said.

Regardless, Catherine Turcer, a policy analyst with Common Cause Ohio, said meeting in private about the leader of a public body is not a good procedure.

"The people of Beachwood have a right to see the process that led up to the step of choosing the city council president," Turcer said. "It's a public vote and the deliberation should go on in public as well. City council is obligated to make sure the public understands why council voted one way or another."

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BROOK PARK, Ohio -- Brook Park Memorial School paused Friday morning to remember the reason for the school's name.

"It's pretty tragic," said fourth-grader Austin Hilderbrand, but "it's good to remember things."

Principal Mike Kostyack agrees. He retells the story on the public address system every year on Jan. 22 or as close as possible. Then he asks for a moment of silence.

Kostyack also puts an old-time chair and desk in the hallway for a few days with a bouquet of flowers on top. He hopes the story reminds children to ride school buses calmly and safely.

Eighty-six years ago today, a bus with chattering children, frosty windows and an experienced driver was bound for the old Brook Park School, which stood at Riverside Drive and Five Points Road. The bus came rumbling down Sheldon Road, which separates Brook Park and Berea.

At the New York Central tracks, the driver stopped and let a freight train pass, then headed onto the tracks. A mail train rushed up, killing him and nine of the 10 children. The 10th survived with a broken leg.

Kostyack told the children, "Some good things did come from the accident." It helped inspire safety laws requiring yellow school buses and flashing lights at crossings.

In the 1950s, Brook Park School was sold to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. Memorial School arose on the site of the old Walter farm, whose family had lost two children in the crash. The family asked for the school to be named in the victims' memory.

The victims are also remembered in a plaque in the school lobby and a memorial stone surrounded by sculpted rabbits in the courtyard.

Today, each side of the grade-level crossing on Sheldon Road has flashing lights and a gate, and trains have to honk as they approach. Brook Park City Council is considering a bill to commission preliminary plans for double gates and lane dividers on each side, freeing the trains from honking. If state and federal agencies approve the project, Brook Park and Berea would split the cost, estimated at $200,000 to 250,000.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Cleveland Hopkins Airport worker who drove an SUV across an active runway Sunday was leading a team of snowplow operators - some of whom followed him onto the runway as a commercial flight was taking off.

Cleveland Director of Port Control Fred Szabo said in an interview Friday that the SUV driver was heading up a pack of snowplows clearing a parallel runway that had been shut down at about 12:30 a.m.

When the worker drove his SUV across the active airfield -- ignoring a series of lights and barriers alerting him to the danger of departing flights -- some of the other drivers followed "before they recognized what had taken place," Szabo said.

The director declined to say how many plows were involved in the "incursion," citing an ongoing internal investigation of the incident. (Click on the video above to hear an audio recording of the air traffic control chatter of the incident.)

On Thursday, Szabo said the SUV passed below an aircraft - now known to have been a Spirit Airlines Airbus A320 -- as it became airborne. That model aircraft can hold up to 150 passengers, according to Airbus' website. Cleveland.com is still trying to determine how many passengers were on board the Spirit flight in question.

Szabo said Friday that one Southwest Airlines flight was delayed on its descent while the airport ensured that no further runway hazards remained.

Szabo maintains that the runway incursion was an isolated incident -- boiling down to the "judgment of one person." He said the driver in question, a 13-year veteran of the airport staff, was immediately ordered off his shift and remains on administrative leave. Szabo added that the traveling public should have no reason to doubt the safety of the airport's runways.

A spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration on Friday said the agency is investigating the matter and still has not determined how close the SUV came to the departing flight.
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Saudi Arabia has described the collapse in oil prices to below $30 as "irrational" and expects the market to recover in 2016 even as the country continues to keep production high.

Khalid al-Falih, chairman of state oil company Saudi Aramco, told the World Economic Forum in Davos that current prices would not last, with many smaller producers facing financial difficulties. "The market has overshot on the low side and it is inevitable that it will start turning up," said Mr Falih, predicting higher prices by the end of the year. He reiterated that Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, would not cut supplies unilaterally or make way for rival producers. A surge in US shale output over the past five years has contributed to a global supply glut that has pushed oil prices down 75 per cent in 18 months. The sell-off has accelerated this year, with crude dropping 30 per cent as Iran, Saudi Arabia's regional rival, prepares to re-enter the market after the lifting of sanctions.

The latest downward lurch in oil prices comes as fears of a wider global economic slowdown have rattled financial markets and placed further strain on the budgets of Opec's financially weaker members. While he called the short-term oil outlook "bleak", Mr Falih said Saudi Arabia, which is considering a stock market flotation of part of Saudi Aramco, would weather the downturn better than many of its rivals. US shale producers are pumping flat out in an attempt to generate enough cash to pay down large debts built up during rapid expansion, as prices averaged near $100 a barrel between 2010 and 2014. Many are predicted to go bankrupt this year if prices do not rise above $30 a barrel. Saudi Aramco has little debt and pumps almost one in every nine barrels of oil in the world. "If prices stay low we will be able to withstand [it] for a long time," said Mr Falih. "Obviously we don't hope for it." Several Opec members  including Venezuela and Iraq  are keen to see action to support prices. On the panel Emmanuel Kachikwu, head of Nigeria's state oil company, called for an emergency meeting of Opec ministers. "The price today is not the right price," he said.

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On days like Thursday when there is a nice bounce in the averages, Jim Cramer reminded investors that sometimes it simply doesn't pay to get too negative.

"In fact, there are times when being excessively skeptical can really hurt you," the "Mad Money" host said.

An example of this was Burlington Stores , the off-price retailer with 540 stores predominantly known as Burlington Coat Factory; it pulled off an amazing feat last week.

While the rest of the apparel group has been in pain due to an unseasonably warm winter, Burlington pre-announced its fourth- quarter results and reported the low end of what analysts were expecting.

Yet, instead of the stock getting crushed, it surged 14 percent in a single session!
China's enormous, complex economic transition will keep emerging markets under pressure for the next five years, Goldman Sachs has warned.

In report setting out its forecasts on China, the bank told clients to "adjust their exposures" to EM assets.

"The country is trying to shift its economy away from an export-driven and investment-led one to a more balanced, consumption-oriented economy," Goldman said in the report, headlined "Walled In: China's Great Dilemma."

"A complex and interconnected reform agenda has never been achieved on this scale. The transition, if accomplished, is unlikely to be smooth."

That means China will spur market volatility not just this year, but for the next five years, with emerging markets likely to bear the brunt of the hit, Goldman said.

"We therefore recommend clients adjust their exposures to emerging market assets," it said.

"Developed economies will not be immune from any volatility emanating from China, but the direct and indirect economic impacts will be lower for them; still, we expect that financial markets in developed countries will overreact as they did in August 2015 and again in early 2016."
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Southeast Asian art has been enjoying greater recognition in recent years but is it a worthwhile investment? The answer depends on who you ask. That Southeast Asian art is making waves globally is not in doubt. There has been greater exposure at art exhibitions and international art fairs among other platforms. Some artworks have been sold at dizzying prices, notably the 2014 sale of "Pasukan Kita Yang Dipimpin Pangeran Diponegoro" (Our Soldiers Led Under Prince Diponegoro) by modern Indonesian artist S. Sudjojono. It went under the hammer for $7.48 million (HK$58.36 million) in Hong Kong. However, whether the market is ripe for investors to step in is another matter altogether. Low Sze Wee, director of curatorial & collections at the National Gallery Singapore, is one of the doubters. The National Gallery Singapore, which opened in November last year, has one of the world's largest collections of modern Southeast Asian art and presents regional exhibits that help viewers understand more about the Southeast Asian art and culture. Low's message: "nobody knows" which artwork will appreciate in value, if at all. "I would actually urge people not to think of art as an investment, there are more rational ways of investing your money than in art," says Low in a CNBC interview.

"The appreciation of Southeast Asian art in financial terms is so hard to predict, that you would be assured that you wouldn't lose too much money only if you buy art at the higher-end," he adds. Major auction houses such as Christie's and Sotheby's appear to disagree with the National Gallery Singapore director's observations, noting that the region's arts have reported price growth in the past few years. Art in Southeast Asia has seen almost "20-30 percent growth over the last five to ten years but it still depends on factors such as the rarity, provenance, and condition of the piece," says Dexter How, Southeast Asian art specialist at the London-based auction house Christie's. Southeast Asian art had generally contributed around 15-17 percent of total sales for Christie's auctions, but last year, this category accounted for 25 percent of total Asian art sales in November. "The demand is coming from [within] the region, but we've also seen demand growth from greater Asia, Europe and U.S. collectors," says How.

'Chua Ek Kay: After the Rain' special exhibition at the National Gallery Singapore. National Gallery Singapore

The highest amount paid for a single Southeast Asian artwork sold by Christie's was Singaporean artist Lee Man Fong's "Bali Life" which sold for $3.24 million in 2010. Mok Kim Chuan, head of modern and contemporary Southeast Asian Art at Sotheby's, which sold the Sudjojono artwork, notes that many collectors are looking at Southeast Asian art more seriously, which should help in its internationalization. "Prices for Southeast Asian Art are getting stronger and sales are going from strength to strength," Mok says. One thing that the auction houses and National Gallery Singapore can all agree on is that art from Indonesia and Philippines make up the bulk of the region's demand. The experts say that this is because both Indonesia and Philippines have an older art history and practice of art collection.

Understanding Southeast Asian art

As a whole, Southeast Asian art is still young as it is less than 200-years old, according to Low from the National Gallery Singapore.

"The art history is still being written, and we're still developing the scholarship," says Low. The National Gallery Singapore director also explains that geopolitics is another reason why Southeast Asian art has some way to go before gaining international prominence. "Southeast Asia doesn't generate as much headlines as the Middle East, and there are also far larger countries in Asia, both economically and politically," he says, adding that most people might not know the difference between Malaysia and Indonesia. Low advises museum-goers or art lovers to "always look at art with a greater amount of sensitivity," said Low.

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Pakistanis light candles during a vigil for victims of the Bacha Khan university attack in Islamabad, Pakistan. Metin Aktas | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images

Stuck with 15 of his students on a third floor balcony of a campus building as gunmen came up the stairs, university director Mohammad Shakil urged Pakistani police arriving at the scene to toss him up a gun so he could shoot back. "We were hiding ... but were unarmed," Shakil told Reuters, speaking after four Islamist militants attacked Bacha Khan University in Pakistan's troubled northwest on Wednesday, killing more than 20 people. "I was worried about the students, and then one of the militants came after us," Shakil added. "After repeated requests, the police threw me a pistol and I fired some shots at the terrorists." As more details of Wednesday's assault emerged, attention focused on at least two members of staff who took up arms to resist attackers bent on killing them and their students. Some hailed them as heroes, as the country digested an attack which bore similarities to the massacre, in late 2014, of 134 pupils at an army-run school in Peshawar, about 30 km (19 miles) from where this week's violence occurred.

Others questioned whether teachers should be armed, as many are, because it goes against the ideals of the profession. Such a dilemma may have been far from the mind of chemistry professor Hamid Hussain, as he locked himself inside a room with colleagues after gunmen stormed an accommodation block on the university campus. When the assailants broke down the door, Hussain fired several rounds from his pistol, according to Shabir Ahmad Khan, an English department lecturer taking cover in an adjacent washroom. "They carried on heavy shooting and I was preparing myself for death, but then they did not enter the washroom and left," Khan recalled. Later on in the same building, Hussain fired again at the militants to allow some of his students to get away, surviving pupils told local media. Hussain was subsequently shot and later died from his wounds. "Kudos to professor Dr Hamid Hussain. Our hero fought bravely n saved many," Asma Shirazi, a popular talk show host, said on Twitter. Teachers' dilemma Others, too, have credited the actions of Hussain and Shakil with helping to prevent the gunmen, armed with assault rifles and hand grenades, from spilling more blood. Bacha Khan University also employed around 50 of its own guards who, witnesses said, fought for close to an hour to keep the gunmen isolated and prevent them from entering the girl's hostel as the police and army arrived.

Pakistan army spokesman General Asim Bajwa said the security guards responded "very well" to the attack before reinforcements reached them. In the wake of the 2014 school massacre, teachers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where Peshawar is located, were offered weapons training. Yet some are wary of arming teachers and encouraging them to engage in battle. Gun ownership is common in Pakistan, owing to liberal licensing laws, and particularly so in the semi-autonomous tribal belt near the Afghan border where the threat of militant violence is high. Jamil Chitrali, president of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa University Teaching Staff Association, said more teachers were now carrying personal weapons, as security had worsened. "Arms are against the norms of my profession," he said. "I am teaching principles and morality in the class. How I can carry a gun?" Who is to blame? Four gunmen, all since killed, were involved in Wednesday's attack, officials said. They used the cover of thick fog to scale the campus' rear walls, before storming student dormitories and classrooms and executing people at will. Some 3,000 students were enrolled at the university, many living on campus, while hundreds of visitors had arrived to hear a poetry recital to commemorate the life of local Pashtun nationalist hero and pacifist Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, after whom the university is named.

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Any default on term loan payments triggers a virtually irreparable hard credit default, so many commercial bank revolvers remain in place when credit stats would not warrant. Postponing the conversion to term-out helps obviate a likely tidal wave of loan portfolio charge-offs. Several sources indicate that the Fed may "exempt" revolver credits from stress tests against a bank's capital base. That practice allows a continuance of a non-performing collateral-deficient revolver, which is not charged against bank capital as it is not yet a term loan. Here's how that happens: In an effort to defer the bank's problem, a regulator questions the senior credit officer as to why the loan has not yet been termed out. The credit officer tries to explain using reasons that may include:

"The company is reducing general and administrative (overhead) costs and lowering lease-operating expenses to get back into compliance."

"The company has a number of capital-expenditure projects on low-hanging fruit that will increase its collateral value."

"They have been a long-term and highly regarded borrower of ours for years and they are working on a plan to increase collateral values"

"The company has a series of assets on the block for sale that will generate cash to reduce our exposure and bring them into compliance."

And, the last-resort explanation:



"There is no question prices are going back up very soon as a result of lower producing supply, so let's give them a little time."

In all those cases  save the last in my opinion  there may be some merit. Most importantly, though, they may be acceptable to a regulator (who may have been given an election-year imperative) to "cut the energy banks some slack  it's a cyclical commodity."


Canadians reported prices higher than $8.00 CAD per head ($5.65) via social media in recent weeks, making headlines across the country and sparking what many have called Canada's first  and possibly only  "cauliflower crisis."

One of the most understated vegetables is turning heads in Canada, where a sinking dollar, high demand and bad weather have sent cauliflower prices soaring.

"There are typically some weekly spikes during any given year, but not to this level," Roland J. Fumasi, the vice president and senior analyst for food and agribusiness research at Rabobank told CNBC via email.

The price hikes are down to a combination of a weak Canadian dollar which has plunged thanks in part to low oil prices that have left the oil exporter hard-hit  and weather conditions that ended the California growing season early, disrupting supply. That happened just as Canada entered into the winter months when it tends to rely more heavily on U.S. produce exports.

However, Fumasi was quick to clarify that prices weren't linked to a California drought as many news organizations have reported.

That, along with Canadians' growing appetite for cauliflower  amid food trends that replace carbs like rice and dough for cauliflower  helped create a supply gap that sent prices to levels that were nearly double what they were a year earlier.

U.S. first-handler, or shipping, prices for cauliflower jumped roughly 140 percent at their peak between September and December, Fumasi explained. But once those costs started translating to higher shelf prices, and restaurant tabs, Canadians took to Twitter to share the shock:

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It's been a volatile start to the year for markets and David Solomon, co-head of the Investment Banking Division at Goldman Sachs, told CNBC that he was watching markets day-to-day to see how the situation pans out.

"Everybody is watching (markets) and trying to understand what's going on. I'd like to watch the market a little bit more and watch how things develop and unfold before making a stronger statement," he told CNBC on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos on Friday. Current market volatility has been largely attributed to concerns over low oil prices, the U.S. outlook and a possible China hard landing. Asked whether markets were over-reacting to these concerns, Solomon was cautious.

"I wouldn't necessarily say it's an over-reaction  markets are pretty smart  but at the same point I think we've had a few weeks of volatility and I think you want to be cautious in terms of determining exactly what's causing that." "But... people are little bit more risk-off and that's affecting confidence and that will have some impact on decisions over time if it continues this way."
Following are excerpts from the transcript of a CNBC interview in Davos by Hadley Gamble with Giorgi Kvirikashvili, Prime Minister of Georgia.

HG: Your Excellency, thank you so much for joining CNBC. Now, the World Bank is projecting that you guys are going to grow your economy over the next three years, and you're telling me that this low energy price environment is going to be really good for Georgia. Explain that.

GK: Well I would say there is a full spectrum of reasons why we should believe that South Caucasus, and particularly Georgia, will be the place of very strong economic growth in the nearest years, I would say decade, because Georgia is strategically located in between Europe and Asia. This is a gateway for Europe to Asia, and vice versa. There are important projects such as Silk Road reconstruction, One Belt, One Road initiative, that brings new dynamics from Asia to Europe and vice versa. Europe needs new drivers for growth, and Georgia is definitely the place that could link Europe with Asia, and there are a lot of important projects going on in Georgia, such as infrastructure modernisation, this is railway modernisation, this is a new Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway project, which would link Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, this is a new deep-sea port construction on the Black Sea shore, and also a lot of large investment projects such as hydropower projects, and Georgia is a place, again, with excellent geographic location, the most liberal and open economy, which is most important driver for our growth. We have free trade agreements with all our neighbours, we have recently signed an agreement with the European Union on launching the free trade relations, this is called Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area agreement, which brings not only liberalisation of the tariffs but also institutional and regulatory reform of Georgia. So Georgia will position itself as a European country with a relatively lighter regulatory framework, and which is a place with relatively low energy costs, relatively low labour cost, excellent business environment, and we are further liberalising the environment. This year we will be abolishing profit tax, and we will be moving to the Estonian model and we will tax only distributed earnings. So this is a place which opens itself to the world economy, and recently we launched the free trade negotiations with China. So particularly I can tell you that in the nearest two years we will have free trade relations with almost all the countries on the Eurasian continent. We have excellent relations with the United States, there are a lot of US investors in our country, so everything that I listed gives us a strong reason to believe that Georgia will be a place for strong economic growth. I would say that the falling of the oil prices here has a double impact on Georgia. On the one hand, we have FDI providers, oil countries, and it decreases investment appetite in those countries. On the other hand, as we industrialise the country further, of course it has some positive impacts, but overall I think that we can find internal engines of growth including opening up our economy for all the investments in the region that would bring strong economic growth for Georgia.

HG: Talk to me a little bit more about that relationship with Europe. Your predecessor said, just a year ago, here in Davos, that the goal was really to transform Georgia into a European state, but given the fact that so many people today feel that the EU is facing what really amounts to an existential crisis, you have the migration crisis, you also have security concerns, you also have border concerns, as well, really, for the first time, does that change the equation for you in terms of your goals for Georgia?

GK: First of all, I would like to cheer up Europeans. I see that the mood in Davos this year is not the best, but I think there are more reasons for optimism for Europe than pessimism, because I think Europe achieved a lot, and people are taking many things for granted. So I think we need to tell, and European leaders should tell European populations more about the positive sides of the European Union, and we believe that there are more reasons to believe that Europe will be a place for economic growth than the opposite, because even the migration crisis, I think we need to look for the positive side. I think the issue is integration of these people into the European societies. The issue is giving them necessary skills, language skills, the work skills, to integrate them into the European economies. I think these people are willing to give more than take, so we believe that in the medium run, and in the longer run, this will be a significant source for economic growth for Europe. Of course this is a sensitive issue and we understand the cultural sensitivities, but we think that in the medium run this will be a positive event for Europe. As for Georgia, we think that Europe is the historic place for Georgia. Culturally, Georgians, we are Europeans. We are a European country, and after signing our association agreement, this is another incentive for us to open up European perspective for Georgia. For this, we need to transform our political system, our economy, into the European economy and European political system, and there is a huge progress going on in Georgia, so we believe that, again, this will be, we will stay very consistent on the European path, this is a strategic goal for us, and we believe that by transforming Georgia into a truly European state, it will bring new dynamics to South Caucasus and particularly to Georgia.

HG: Another country that's really re-entering the global community is Iran, and you're right there on the Silk Road. You're very well placed to take advantage of what's going to happen next. Give me a sense of what kind of investments we're going to see between Georgia and Iran.

GK: We perceive the process of opening Iran to the entire world very positively. We think that this is a big success, that the deal was reached. We are no longer cautiously, and we are already optimistic, about the future relations with Iran. Culturally we have a tradition of trade and investment relations with Iran, and we think that this will be another source of economic growth and cooperation in Europe, and not only Europe, and especially for Georgia, it brings very good opportunities, because Georgia is the closest European country for Iran, which means that we can be a gateway for Iran to trade with Europe and vice versa, of course. Georgia has free trade relations with Europe, it can be a place for Iranian manufacturing investors to invest there in manufacturing facilities, to export goods further to Europe. So I think this is a very good driver for the future economic growth.

HG: Talk to me a little bit about the geopolitical picture, because you say that, geographically at least, Georgia is very well placed to take advantage of both Europe and also trade with Asia and Iran. When you look at what's happened with Russia over the last couple of years, we've seen major economic sanctions really hitting their economy, but it hasn't stopped their expansion as to foreign policy, and if you look at it a different way, the United States and Europe are even trying to get on board with the Russians in terms of taking care of the crisis, for example, in Syria, as well. Is this the definition of realpolitik? I mean, because if you look at what Georgia's relationship has evolved to, essentially you never stopped trade, did you, with Russia, even amidst all these foreign policy differences?

GK: We stopped trading in-, actually, Russia stopped trading with Georgia-,

HG: But not at the time-,

GK: In 2006, and we had several years of absence of trade between us. Today we have several formats of dialogue with Russia. The official format is Geneva Discussion Format, where we discuss our bilateral relations, and another informal format is a Special Representative of Georgian Prime Minister to talk with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia. We have some positive dynamics in the economy and in trade, we trade now with Russia, although we no longer depend on the single Russian market and we are quite diversified today, we have 30% of our trade turnover goes to Europe, and Russia counts for about 10% of our trade turnover, but we are still quite dependent in agriculture on the Russian market. There are some positive dynamics. We are trying to decrease the tensions with Russia in order to allow ourselves to attract investments, because stability and security is the main prerequisites for any investment, but on the other hand there is little dynamics in the political dimensions. Russia still signs agreements with Abkhazia, South Ossetia, against all logic, but this is where we are, we will continue a pragmatic approach, we will continue from our side to decrease the tensions, and we welcome, of course, the recent decision of the Russian government to ease the visa regulation for Georgian citizens. This was a positive step, and it is appreciated by Georgian government and people. So I think we need to increase the dialogue with Russia, and we need to somehow come out of this crisis that we have been in for so many recent years. Again, from our side, we will try to stay consistent in our constructive approach. Let's see.

HG: What would your message, then, be, for President Putin?

GK: Well, I think that first of all, Russia should honour Georgia's territorial integrity and sovereignty. This is the main entry condition to be met by the Russian side in order to start normal relations with Russia. Honestly, we don't see enough political will today in Russian leadership to resolve this crisis, but despite all that, we have longstanding tradition of the relations with Russia, and I don't think that we need to scratch out everything. So we believe that with our constructive approach, there will be a time where Russia will change its approach, but we don't see signs of that in the nearest future, unfortunately, but again we will try to ensure enough stability for Georgia to allow ourselves to grow and to attract investments, including from Russia.

HG: Your Excellency, thank you so much for joining CNBC.

GK: Thank you very much for having me here.
Following are excerpts from the transcript of a CNBC interview in Davos by Steve Sedgwick with Nicos Anastasiades, President of Cyprus.



SS: This is massive news, if it happens, so let's ask Nicos Anastasiades, who is the President of Cyprus, just how close we are sir, to this accord. I mean, it's not something that seems to have been on the agenda for a long time. What's changed?

NA: The most important is that for the time being we are doing progress, and this is the most important. How it happens. The time this is running is changing the elements of the solution, so everyone is realising that the soonest we can reach a settlement, it's going to be much more fair for everyone. At the same time, the new leaders, I mean, I myself, as President of the Republic, but as well, as leader of the Greek Cypriot community, and Mustafa Aknc, the Turkish Cypriot leader, we are pro-solution politicians, and we were together since ages, and we were working through that. Now when we are leading our communities, we thought that it is high time to engage in an intensive dialogue in order to see how we can reach this-,

SS: And this is something, sir, that needs Greece and Turkey to be fully signed up on, as well, or is it purely a Cypriot issue?

NA: It's a Cypriot issue, but not just simply a Cypriot issue, because you have to bear in mind that in Cyprus there are still 40,000 Turkish troops. So Turkey could play a great role towards this end. There is, for the time being, an expression of good will rhetoric which is in favour of finding a solution, but what we need on the crucial issues is the practical means, and the real acts on the ground to see how we can face the problems with the presence of troops, security guarantees and all these kinds of things.

GC: Just briefly on the economy, I mean, it does look as though the country is going to complete its bailout process, and it will get the latest tranche by March. How does it feel in the country right now? Are you through the worst? Are things starting to get better? Can you just give us a sense of how your countrymen feel about life economically?

NA: As you have already mentioned, we've come through the worst, but of course we have to be quite careful. We could not abandon the policies of discipline and of reforms, therefore we are warning the people that yes, we have done a lot, we are getting out of the programme, but we have to stick on policies.

SS: And how so, sir? Because the economy was seen as a glorified offshore centre for Russian money and other offshore money at one stage, and it was an outsized banking economy. Now that's been stripped back quite significantly, what are the growth areas? Is it going to be oil, which has been talked about for a long time?

NA: It's one of the possibilities, but until the moment we can explore and exploit it, all the dynamics we are having in our exclusive economic zone, I have to underline that we continue to have the trust of those companies based in Cyprus, I mean, having their head offices in Cyprus, is the shipping sector, is the tourist sector, which is increasing, therefore there are so many other sectors we have, and of course we have industry, but at the same time we are getting the advantage of the geographical position, of our tax regime, of our legal system, of our expertise, of our climate, of our geographical position. There are so many reasons to invest in Cyprus.

SS: Sir, we're very glad that things are on the up, and it's very nice of you to find the time to come and talk to us here on CNBC.

NA: Thank you very much.

SS: That's President Nicos Anastasiades, who is the President of Cyprus, and very interesting looking at those latest political developments and what that could do for the country as a whole.
HG: Your Excellency, thank you so much for joining CNBC. I want to kick off this conversation by talking about what we're seeing in the oil markets. A lot of people here at Davos say that OPEC is pretty much irrelevant. Would you say that that's the case?



SM: No, I disagree. I think OPEC still plays a key role, and what we are seeing in the market is definitely an oversupply, but it's not-, I mean, all of the signs say it's going to get better, and I can give you some figures, but what's important in the slow cycle of oil prices, the reforms that happened in the Arab world and especially in the Gulf states, and that's what we need to continue doing. So we are-, I'm happy, actually, that this is happening and we are doing something about it. We all know that the current prices are not sustainable, and I think if I ever see both the producers and the consumers agreeing on something related to the price, all of them, they will tell you today those are low prices, which means that they are not sustainable. The market will balance itself, ultimately, and the timing is not going to be way far from either-, there are two camps, there are optimistic people and there are pessimistic, and I am with the first camp, and I think this is a year of correction. The first half of the year is definitely not going to be easy, but on balance I don't see this year as hugely different than the year 2015 pricewise, therefore we are going to see correction in my view in the second half, because I cannot see from where additional oil is going to come from, except from Iran, and their announcement, and that is not going to offset the growth in demand, so I am optimistic.



HG: Give me a little bit of insight here, because obviously you're the representative for the UAE at OPEC, and a lot of people, especially in the United States, were incredibly surprised that when oil went below $30, there wasn't an emergency meeting called. Can you give us a little insight into that kind of decision?



SM: Well, first of all, let's go back, if you want an answer, let's go back and look at the situation. So what happened in 2014? OPEC produces around one third, and two thirds comes from the rest of the world. The rest of the world introduce 2.7 million barrels of additional capacity, so they've basically flooded the market, and this is not a million, or a 500,000 oversupply, they created a big glut back in 2014, and OPEC, between 2013 and 2014, the growth was almost zero, so we did not contribute anything of this oversupply. So it's not logical, it's not fair, it's not whatever you want to put it, for OPEC to step in and correct the market, 100% of the market, of this oversupply, by itself. So we started talking to other major producers and no one was willing to do anything, so I think it was obvious for OPEC not to do anything on a glut that it did not create, so this is part of the issue, but that glut is going to be taken out by the market itself, if we just wait a reasonable time for that glut to be removed from the market. So what happened in 2015, that's why I'm telling you I'm optimistic, those who produced 2.7 million, they were only able to produce 260,000, so there is a drop on that contribution by almost 88% or 90%, and that gives me hope that we are moving towards correction, but because the size of the glut was so huge, it takes time for it to dissipate from the market and to be removed. Now, what's the relevance of OPEC? OPEC still represents 30% of the lowest producers in the world, and it's relevant for them at least to coordinate with each other to agree on their relative contribution for the market. They cannot correct, and I can say this ten times, they cannot correct the whole market, but they, I think, are still ready to contribute in the correction of whenever, in the future, needed. I think we are discussing always between ourselves our role among the bigger players. Yes, we are having some political tensions among ourselves sometimes-,



HG: Between Saudi Arabia and Iran, specifically?



SM: Yes, but that's not going to change the fact that we need to coordinate with each other. We are neighbours, we are producing from the same region. I think we are eligible for a market share in the future. you cannot eliminate OPEC and say we will give you zero growth potential, and that's what happened in the past four years when the price was 100, OPEC growth contribution was zero, and that was not fair, but we were willing to take zero growth because we wanted the share revolution to contribute, because we could see that alone we could not balance the market. We need newcomers, and we were very happy to work with the newcomers, but it cannot continue, because it's not sustainable, for those newcomers to take 100% of the world demand growth, and that was the correction was needed for the benefit of the consumers and for the benefit of the market.



HG: So you're saying that you think we're going to have a correction by the second half of this year.



SM: Starting to have a correction. Not fully recovery, but you will start to see a reasonable correction that makes this year closer to, in terms of price, to 2015, even if it's a little bit less. It's not going to be significantly less, in my opinion.



HG: Talk to me a little bit about the impact that this low price environment is having on investors in the region. We've seen regional markets really tumbling off the back of these lower oil prices, people are worried, people are scared to put their money out there. Give me a sense of what the UAE has planned in terms of diversification, in terms of sustainable energy. I mean, you guys, sort of, saw this coming from a long way off, and there were plans, were there not?



SM: Actually, in the energy sector, because I am representing also the electricity sector, in that sector, this is good news, because we are buying 50% of our requirements, gas requirements, from abroad, so it's partially good news for those who are in the power generation business, because they are buying a commodity at a lower-, gas prices have dropped also from $14, $15 and higher to $6 and lower, so partially it's good news, but collectively, UAE is moving away from just depending on gas to become 30% dependent on zero emission or greener sources of energy ,whether they are solar, or, to a greater extent, nuclear. By 2020, or by 2017, we will start the contribution of the nuclear power plants, and by 2020 we will have around 25% of our energy mix coming from that lower, relatively lower cost of energy. So UAE is doing its share, and this is going to reduce significant impact, significant reduction in the CO2 emissions, so we are moving toward zero emission sources of energy, and we are reducing the percentage, not the absolute dependency, on gas imports. In the UAE we are diversifying the sources of energy, as I have just mentioned, and also we are diversifying the sources of income. We are developing our economy, and we are-, year on year we are seeing that the non-oil economy's contribution is growing, and as a matter of fact, in a week we will have a ministerial retreat on discussing how we can develop our economy so in the future the impact of the oil prices' fluctuation is not going to impact the budget of the United Arab Emirates and all of its states, and I think it's doable. We are also investing a lot outside Emirates, and I think collectively we can manage that transition to have the revenues from the oil industry as a luxury, or as an additional profit that's going to be reinvested and not to have it as a major contributor in our budget.



HG: So you feel pretty confident about where the UAE is. Talk to me a little bit about Saudi Arabia. We understand in the coming days they're going to be announcing some major reforms, they're going to be trying to revitalise that economy and to essentially move it away from being dependent on the oil sector. Do you think that it's possible? Do you think that they're going to be able to do it in the timeframe that they're hoping for, and how does that impact the rest of the region?



SM: I think let's talk about the whole GCC states and the region, rather than talking about the biggest country which is the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. I think it's relevant for us now to be transparent and talk about major reforms and I was part of our session this morning just talking about that with my colleague from Kuwait, the minister who is responsible for energy. It's relevant and it's an opportunity. The difference now in the reform, the removal of the subsidy from gasoline and diesel that we did in the summer of 2015 in United Arab Emirates-,



HG: That's a pretty big shift.



SM: It created everyone to think about the same lines, because everyone was preparing studies, and they know that it needs to happen. Actually, we started in 2010 when we removed the subsidy from diesel, and diesel was sold at a relatively very expensive, compared to any of the neighbouring states, in United Arab Emirates, and as you know, diesel is affecting the economy much more than gasoline, and we did that, and when we did it people were saying people and ex-pats are going to go out of the Emirates because it's going to-,



HG: There would be an exodus.



SM: Actually what happened? More people came, and more industry came. When you have a liberal economic system, people know that they are not going to be sleeping fearing when they are going to remove it. They will manage it and they will grow their businesses on that prospective, and that's what creates healthy and vibrant economies, and that's the plan that we are having in the UAE. I think if you look at the electricity prices, as well, we are not subsidising this except for small percentages of the whole population.



HG: And it's not driving businesses away?



SM: No, but the challenge is going to be to have more gas imports and more LNG coming into the system, and I think one day we'll need to charge the reasonable international prices for electricity, that even when that happened, we are going to bridge the difference in increase by higher efficiencies, more wise consumers, we're talking to them today, we're introducing changes. We are actually doing. We are stepping to your house, if you are a resident there, and introducing changes into your house, if you will let us do so, and that will drop your electricity and water bills by 20-30%. So if there is an increase, you will not see it, nothing, the efficiency improvements that we are adopting into the consumers around the country, and then the companies.



HG: Covering the Middle East, and Africa, as well, there have been years of studies and years of reports about what to do when that day finally arrives, that oil isn't going to be able to carry these countries for the longer term. It's interesting to note that you are the youngest member of OPEC, and we now understand that the Deputy Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, who is in charge of not just the defence portfolio, but also the economic portfolio, as well, is about to implement some major changes to that economy. Do you think that this is the younger generation really stepping to the fore? And what kind of changes are we going to see going forward?



SM: I think age, first of all, I'm glad that I am in a government in the UAE that they don't discriminate against you because-,



HG: It's just a number.



SM: It's just a number, and it's what you add as an individual. We don't discriminate if it's a female or a male, and we wouldn't discriminate if you are older or younger. It depends how much you can benefit and deliver, and I think this younger generation is more realistic on the challenges. We have challenges. Let's not delay the solution, we need to talk about them. Something else that is happening also is the information age. Today we need to speak to the people, so we cannot, as ministers, hide behind our offices and not talk to the people. I had a very interesting experience when we did the reform on the gasoline and diesel prices. I went to the people, and I spoke to the people on the social media and to different stations, and we worked with the media to deliver that message, because that message needs to be convincing. If I cannot convince you as a user, or as a consumer, then I will not be successful, and if I can convince you on the reform, then you will work with me instead of working against me, and that's what we are hoping for, and the people are changing, and the demographic of the ages of the population is very important, and we need to look at that and we need to capitalise on it.



HG: So making the government even more user friendly, very important.



SM: Yes. We are an e-government now, and we are a smart government, so if we are a smart government then your view and your voice is going to be the measurement of how good we are. We are a servant, we are public servants as government officials, and if we are not doing the job of convincing you to work with us, well then we will fail. Our rating, and making you happy, because that's the measurement, anyway. I have to make you happy, and if you are not happy and if you are complaining, then I need to work harder to make you happy. If I didn't deliver that, then I have to be out, then I have to exit, I have to go out, someone else needs to come and measure your happiness, because that's what's going to keep me serving you. If I cannot serve you and make you happy, and make your life easier through the use of technology and all of the services that we provide to the individuals, then we're not doing our job.



HG: Your Excellency, thank you so much for joining CNBC.



SM: Thank you.


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The oil price slump is hitting home with layoffs and spending cuts but there may be one positive development amid the rash of bad news: companies are tightening their belts more swiftly. "The silver lining is the velocity--how fast all of these companies have moved to cut cost and build efficiencies. It's measured in weeks and months while in previous cycles it would take much longer," said Thomas McNulty, a director at consultancy Navigant Capital Advisors, . This should enable companies with healthy balance sheets to stay in the green, he told CNBC's The Rundown.

Oilfield services giant Schlumberger was the latest casualty from the oil crash, posting its first quarterly loss in 12 years, prompting the company to cut another 10,000 jobs and initiate share buybacks, the company said on Thursday. Oil prices have slumped 70 percent since they started their extended decline in the summer of 2014 with both U.S. WTI light sweet crude and European Brent moving just below $30 a barrel in Asian hours on Friday after hitting 12-year lows recently. The persistently low price is due to a supply surplus with the boom in shale oil contributing to the glut exacerbated by the refusal of producing group OPEC to cut its 30-million-barrel-a-day production ceiling. Saudi Arabia, the most influential member of OPEC is sticking to its strategy of low-cost production to squeeze out higher-cost producers elsewhere. The strategy however is taking longer than Saudi expected, contributing to its record high deficit in 2015 and spurring the country to introduce austerity measures such as cutting energy subsidies.



"Some of the players in the Middle East may have the ability to produce at lower cost but they are also paying for everybody's education, they are paying for infrastructure, they are basically national companies and that allows a lot of the free market competitors in North American to find a way to make money at lower prices for longer and to compete. They are built to compete head to head every day and it's very different with the national oil companies," said Navigant's McNulty. The rout is prompting a flurry of price downgrade with ratings agency Moody's the latest to cut its 2016 price estimates for crude-oil prices, to an average of $33 a barrel this year for both WTI and Brent, $7 lower than its forecast for WTI and $10 lower than its previous forecast for Brent. "Today's large global inventories will still take time to unwind and will continue to drag on prices even as demand picks up," said Terry Marshall, a Moody's Senior Vice President

The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported Thursday that nationwide crude stocks rose by 4 million barrels, more than the forecast 2.8 million barrels. In a confused market, there are contrasting price forecasts.


Despite its problems, Twitter is one of the "most significant companies of the century," said Ted Bailey, chief executive of real-time information discovery firm Dataminr, whose business relies on the proliferation of social media.

"You have a company that's revolutionized real-time communication, something that's connected the world and created a new sensor network out there, experiencing everything, the eyes and ears of the world," Bailey told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Friday from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

"I think social media is only in the second inning," he said. "I may be biased, but I think essentially we're just in the beginning of the revolution that social media is bringing about."

Despite Bailey's confidence, Twitter has been struggling. The stock, as of Thursday's close, was down 23 percent year to date and off 54 percent in the past 12 months.

Investors have been questioning Twitter's business model at time when Facebook has been surging. Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey recently returned as chief executive to try to turn things around. Dorsey is also CEO of payments startup Square.

Dataminr, chosen as No. 13 on the 2014 CNBC Disruptor 50 list, transforms real-time data from Twitter and other public sources into actionable alerts for clients in finance, news, and corporate security, among other industries.
Check out which companies are making headlines before the bell:

General Electric  The company reported adjusted quarterly profit of 52 cents per share, 3 cents above estimates, but revenue came in short of forecasts due to a strong dollar and some shipments in power and renewables pushed into 2016 from 2015.

CVS Health , Walgreens Boots Alliance  Baird began coverage on both drug store operators with "outperform" ratings. It cited a broad, flexible platform and crisp execution for its opinion on CVS, while noting the synergies Walgreens will achieve from its purchase of Rite Aid and last year's combination between Walgreens and Alliance Boots.

Apple  Piper Jaffray is recommending investors buy Apple ahead of next week's quarterly earnings report, saying the stock could jump 50 percent by the time of the presumed iPhone 7 launch in September.

SunTrust  The regional bank beat estimates by 4 cents with adjusted quarterly profit of 91 cents per share, with revenue also beating forecasts. Those upbeat results came in spite of a decline in wealth management revenue.

Rockwell Collins  The aviation electronics maker reported quarterly profit of $1.02 per share, beating estimates by 2 cents. Revenue was short, but Rockwell also raised its full-year outlook, predicting a recovery in government systems sales after a slow start to the fiscal year.

Starbucks  The coffee chain's shares are under pressure on a softer-than-expected current quarter outlook. Starbucks did beat estimates by 1 cent with quarterly profit of 46 cents per share, with its revenue roughly in line.

American Express  American Express reported quarterly earnings of $1.23 per share, 11 cents above estimates, with revenue slightly above forecasts. The credit card issuer did say  as many other companies have  the a stronger dollar impacted its overall results. Amex also announced plans to cut $1 billion in costs by the end of 2017.

Schlumberger  Schlumberger beat Street forecasts by 2 cents with adjusted quarterly earnings of 65 cents per share, with the oilfield services company's revenue essentially in line with forecasts. Schlumberger was helped by cost cuts that helped it deal with slumping oil prices. The company also announced a $10 billion stock buyback program.

Boeing  The jet maker will cut production of its 747-8 models in half later this year, as it deals with a declining air freight market. Boeing will cut its production rate to six per year in September.

JPMorgan Chase  Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon earned $27 million in 2015, up 35 percent from a year earlier.

Intuitive Surgical  The company earned an adjusted $5.89 per share for its latest quarter, beating consensus estimates of $5.04, with revenue in line. The maker of surgical instruments saw higher profit margins and increased use of its da Vinci robotic surgical systems.

Philips Electronics  Philips saw a $3.3 billion sale of its lighting business fail due to national security objections by the United States. Philips did not disclose exactly what those objections were.

Wal-Mart Stores  Wal-Mart unlawfully retaliated against workers who struck the retail giant in 2013, according to a ruling from a National Labor Relations Board judge. The judge ruled that Wal-Mart must offer to reinstate the 16 fired employees.

Johnson & Johnson  J&J has halted trials of a depression drug that falls in the same class as one made by Portuguese drug company Bial. Testing of the Bial drug in France left one patient brain dead and five others hospitalized. J&J plans to evaluate its next move regarding its drug when it gathers more information.

Yahoo  Yahoo plans to decide on its next strategic moves following the release of its quarterly earnings on February 2, according to Reuters. Yahoo is said to have rebuffed several possible buyers for its core internet business. (Disclosure: CNBC has a content-sharing partnership with Yahoo's finance site.)
Several states that are dependent on energy revenue are facing strained budgets due to low oil prices, and at least three  Alaska, Louisiana and New Mexico  are at risk having their credit ratings lowered, according to a report from Standard & Poor's Ratings Services.



Pump jacks stand idle in DeWitt County, Texas, on Jan. 13, 2016. Anna Driver | Reuters

"In short, the more aggressive a state was with regard to its assumptions and use of oil-related revenues during the oil boom, the more acute its fiscal pressures now, in the oil price bust," according to S&P. "For states with greater budgetary reliance on oil-related revenue, the unrelenting decline in prices places a larger budget on state lawmakers to identify and enact corrective fiscal measures." The report, entitled "Collapsing Oil Prices Seep Into State Credit Profiles," suggests that as state lawmakers head into session in the next budget season, their true fiscal situation "could be more intense than what their official forecasts currently anticipate." The report surveys the situation in eight major oil-producing states: Alaska, Louisiana, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Texas and Wyoming. S&P pointed out that all of the states in the survey forecast a higher price for oil than what the ratings agency expects in 2016 ($40 per barrel). For example, Alaska has a fiscal 2016 price assumption of $49.58 per barrel, according to S&P, while Louisiana's is $48.02 per barrel and Texas is $49.48 per barrel. Looking ahead to fiscal 2017, just one state (North Dakota) is identified as having a forecast in line with S&P ($45 per barrel). West Texas Intermediate crude, the U.S. pricing benchmark, was trading above $31 a barrel on Friday, or about 7 percent higher than the previous session.

Oil prices mess with Texas

Another alarming point: Job growth from the oil-producing states (Texas, North Dakota, Louisiana and Oklahoma) is now lagging the rest of the nation as a whole, and hard times in Texas mean public assistance expenditures in fiscal 2016 are running ahead of what was previously forecast. At the same time, tax collections are lagging prior-year trends. Taxable income from the oil and gas industries for the first four months of fiscal 2016 was nearly 50 percent lower than collections during the like period in 2015, according to the Texas Comptroller's Office. Sales tax collections in fiscal 2016 through December were a little more than 2 percent less than collections for the same period in fiscal 2015.

That said, the Texas economy has a lot more going for it than just oil, and there's been job growth in technology, health care and construction since the oil bust of the 1980s. But even with the state's business diversity helping to mitigate the downturn in oil prices, S&P believes there's still credit risk ahead for Texas. "You can only segregate the effects of falling oil for so long," said Gabriel Petek, a credit analyst for S&P and one of the authors of the report. "What's starting to happen is these oil producers are reigning in their operations and reducing their workforces, which sort of has a negative multiplier effect (throughout the broader economy)." Three states  Alaska, Louisiana and New Mexico  are listed as having credit quality under negative pressure, according to S&P. (Neither of the two states with the dubious distinction of having the worst credit ratings in the nation  Illinois and New Jersey  are oil states.) "North Dakota and Oklahoma are feeling some of the effects" of the oil decline, Petek said, who noted that "at this time it hasn't translated into an outright ratings action."

An oil state that isn't hit: California

California is also a major oil-producing state, but its budget isn't dependent on oil revenue The analyst noted that California doesn't levy an oil severance tax. "Where it shows up in government finances is at the local level, because the falling oil prices lead to lower property values among the companies that own the oil fields. Kern County and the city of Bakersfield are some local governments in California that are currently much more directly affected by it." As for Louisiana, revenue related to oil and gas represents about 8 percent of the state's forecast general fund revenue. That is sharply below the 1980s, when around half of Louisiana's budget was financed by energy industry revenue. Regardless, the pain today is evident. Louisiana "has significant offshore drilling activity, which is less sensitive to short-term drops in oil prices than that of shale plays, but prolonged declining oil prices are likely to impact the state's mineral-dependent employment base," according to the S&P report. "Additionally, falling energy prices could benefit Louisiana's petrochemical industry, which somewhat helps to mitigate the negative effects of the oil price shock."

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Even with Louisiana's petrochemical industry benefiting from low oil, the state still faces difficulties, with the state facing a nearly $2 billion budget shortfall for the next fiscal year.

As for New Mexico, the state is facing a slight decline in general fund revenue due partly to oil and natural gas revenue. State lawmakers are also considering a plan to delay proposed pay raises for state workers due to the oil crunch impacting general funds. "Oil production in New Mexico has been increasing, despite recent price drops, which has somewhat cushioned revenue losses," said S&P. New Mexico projects its recurring energy-related general fund revenue will grow from $791 million in fiscal 2016 to $808 million in fiscal 2017.



Alaska in 'the most difficult position'
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From small solar power companies to regional hospitals in California, there's cautious preparation ahead of forecasts for El Nino-related weather this year, including heavy rain, mudslides and more. "So far it's not the worst weather I've seen," said Gary Gerber, president and chief executive of Sun Light & Power, a solar energy equipment supplier based in Berkeley. Given solar work often happens outside on roofs, stretches of nice weather are key to its business. "It feels like a normal, nondrought year," Gerber said.

Gary Gerber is president and chief executive of Sun Light & Power, a design/build solar installation company based in Berkeley, Calif. Source: Sun Light and Power

Across the bay in San Francisco, Julia Strzesieski works for Cole Hardware, which has been selling goods like tarps and modern sandbags in advance of severe weather. "We've been stocking up on supplies that people need for El Nino," she said. From the San Francisco Bay Area down into the Central Valley and Southern California, businesses are shoring up supplies and disaster relief plans in case a weather trend known as El Nino delivers a forecast punch. "A strong El Nino is expected to gradually weaken through spring 2016," according to an update released last week from the National Weather Service's Climate Prediction Center.

For now, much of the weather news is focused on the U.S. East Coast. Forecasts are calling for a "potentially paralyzing storm" headed for that region this weekend. Read MoreNOAA explains what to expect from winter storm

Focus on barren land

Across industries, California businesses are monitoring weather, rainfall, rising river levels  and especially burned areas that are barren and susceptible to mudslides with excessive rainfall. "Where we have the biggest concern is the burn areas," said Cheri Hummel, vice president of emergency management and facilities for the California Hospital Association. The trade group represents about 400 hospitals in the state. And while regional hospitals have been preparing for El Nino for months, California often seems to have its share of natural disasters, including earthquakes, wildfires, floods and droughts. Disaster preparedness efforts for hospitals include ensuring emergency backup supplies of power, fuel and water. "A few months ago it was drought, and now we're preparing for El Nino," said Jan Emerson-Shea, a spokeswoman for the hospital association. "It's feast or famine." Down in the Central Valley, in the middle of California, farmers are also tidying agricultural properties in advance of severe weather. Farmers are doing things like ensuring drains and creeks are cleaned and open. Read MoreCalifornia farmers shore up for El Nino

For agricultural regions, a big concern is four consecutive years of a drought that have created extremely parched land. When land is that dry, vast amounts of furious rainfall can only be absorbed at a certain pace with the remaining water leaving the land quickly susceptible to mudslides and cascading land. "The land has been so dry for so long, it's almost impermeable," said Mary Simms, a spokeswoman for the Federal Emergency Management Agency or FEMA. And like burned land, fallowed farm acres left to idle amid lack of water raises flash flooding concerns, Simms said. The California drought in 2015 alone was forecast to result in the fallowing of 542,000 irrigated acres, according to an update last year from the University of California at Davis. Nearly all of that fallowed land was in the Central Valley.

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Individual homeowners, of course, are also prepping for El Nino's reach. California residents bought 28,000 new National Flood Insurance Program policies in advance of El Nino's risk, according to FEMA data released earlier this month. The agency is working with 80 private insurance companies to offer flood insurance to business owners, homeowners and renters. "The major increase in flood policies show Californians are taking the threat seriously," said Robert Fenton, a FEMA administrator, in prepared remarks. Read MoreCalifornia's El Nino floods keep roofers, insurers busy

Meanwhile, scientists this week said 2015 was the warmest year in recorded history. And the strong El Nino has continued into 2016, raising the possibility that this year will also set a global temperature record. At least in California, all eyes now are on rainfall and El Nino's path.



A man stands at the edge of a road flooded by the San Diego river after heavy rains in San Diego on Jan. 7, 2016. Bill Wechter | AFP | Getty Images
Shares fell 1.7 percent to $28.10 in premarket trading. (Get the latest quote here.)

Adjusted earnings of 52 cents a share beat the average analyst estimates of 49 cents a share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Total profit jumped 22 percent to $6.28 billion, or 64 cents per share, from $5.15 billion, or 51 cents per share. Total revenue rose 1.4 percent to $33.89 billion.

General Electric reported that industrial profits fell 8 percent in the fourth quarter, hurt by weakness in divisions catering to the oil and gas industries.

Revenue for the quarter came in at $33.9 billion, against the comparable year-ago figure of $42 billion.



Analysts had expected GE to report earnings of about 49 cents per share on $35.92 billion in revenue, according to a consensus estimate from Thomson Reuters.

The results showed the impact of falling energy prices on GE's large oil and gas business. Total industrial revenue fell 1 percent in the quarter, pulled down by a 16 percent drop in oil and gas revenue. That was offset by 5 percent growth in aviation revenue and a 20 percent rise in energy management revenue, GE said.

The results also were colored by a host of one-time factors including closing the purchase of Alstom SA's power business, separating GE's renewable energy business from the power segment, a break-up fee for the failed sale of its appliance business to Electrolux AB and other restructuring costs, GE said.

GE announced several weeks ago that it will move its global headquarters to Boston and sell its offices in Fairfield, Connecticut, and Rockefeller Plaza in New York City. The decision caps a search that began last summer as Connecticut lawmakers passed a budget that increased taxes by $1.2 billion over two years, drawing protests from some of the state's biggest corporations.



GE is restructuring to emphasize its digital and industrial capabilities, making a move to a high-tech intellectual center such as Boston attractive.

Last June, GE CEO Jeff Immelt said in an email to employees that he asked a team to examine the company's options to relocate the headquarters to a state with a "more pro-business environment."

GE has also said it would cut up to 6,500 jobs in Europe over the next two years, including 765 in France and 1,300 in Switzerland, as it restructures and integrates its acquisition of Alstom's energy business.

 Reuters contributed to this report.
It's probably no coincidence that Google is the default search engine on iOS devices.

The Internet search giant shelled out $1 billion in 2014 to keep its dominant place as a search option on Apple 's mobile products, according to a recent report by Bloomberg.

Apple did not immediately return CNBC's request for comment. Google declined to comment on the report.
Melprmenem | Getty Images

The ETF.com "Inside ETF" conference, the biggest exchange-traded fund conference in the world, kicks off Sunday night with north of 2,000 participants and four days of packed events. Despite higher volatility and lower returns, 2015 was another record year for ETF flows, with roughly $242 billion in net inflows, an increase of about 10 percent. By comparison, mutual funds had $125 billion in outflows. That's $2.1 trillion in assets under management, and while it is still small in comparison to the roughly $11 trillion in assets under management at mutual funds, the mutual funds have been steadily losing assets for years. That was enough money to attract a lot of new providers. Jeff Gundlach of DoubleLine Capital. John Hancock. Goldman Sachs. Eaton Vance. Even Kevin O'Leary of "Shark Tank" got into the ETF act last year. There are now north of 1,600 ETFs, and more than 70 ETF providers. I'll be reporting Monday and Tuesday from the conference. Here's an early peak at the hot topics everyone is talking about.

ETFs are cheap, and getting cheaper

How much lower can ETF charges go, and who's going to throw in the towel? It's a race to the bottom. iShares cut fees on its "Core" ETFs last year. The iShares Core S&P Total Stock Market ETF now has a 0.03 expense ratio (that's 30 cents for every $1,000 invested). Charles Schwab immediately followed suit. Read More Buy these two ETFs for 2016: Traders

What's it all mean? There's a serious price war going on, and investors are the winners. It means lower revenue for ETF providers, but they are hoping to make it up with more volume. It's a risky strategy. When the price wars are over, who will still be standing? And it's going to get even cheaper. John Hyland, who used to run the U.S. Oil Fund , has founded a new company, PointBreak ETFs, designed to introduce lower-cost ETFs in areas that are still relatively expensive, like country funds (India or China), commodity funds, and thematic ETFs like HACK (cybersecurity), which charges 75 basis points.

Smart beta funds keep growing

"Smart beta" is the hot buzzword right now. What's smart beta? It's weighting an ETF index to anything that is not market-cap weighted. Jeff Gundlach made a splash last year when he entered the ETF business with a smart beta bond fund. The biggest hit last year was the WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity , which combined currency hedging with a smart beta strategy, where the stock selection tracks a dividend weighted European index. But is smart beta really better than plain old market-cap weighted indexes? I have my doubts. Most of these funds haven't been around long enough to make a judgment. Let's face it, smart beta is just a variation of active management, and we know what that's done. Read More Beware these costly ETF & mutual fund mistakes

Regardless. We're going to see a lot of smart beta this year because it's a relatively new product, and providers can charge a little bit more for them. Or they hope they can charge more. Goldman Sachs entered the ETF business last year with an interesting product, the ActiveBeta U.S. large Cap Equity ETF , which tracks an index that uses four "factors" (value, momentum, quality, and low volatility) and costs only 9 basis points, well below the cost of other so-called smart beta funds, which usually charge 50 basis points or more.

Active management is comingfor better or worse

While active management has long been a big part of the mutual fund business, it is still a tiny part of the ETF business. But that is changing. Jeff Gundlach did well last year with his actively managed bond fund. AdvisorShares, which runs several active management strategies that mimic a slew of different strategies, has not fared so well. But this year, more active management will be coming, and in a different format. Eaton Vance will be coming with a "nontransparent" active ETF, that is, the investors will not know what the fund is investing in until many months later. Wasn't that an advantage of ETFs, that you always knew what the fund was holding? I think so, but apparently the industry  most of which come from the mutual fund business  believe there is a market for this. Read More The answer for investors tired of trying to time oil rebound

Personally, I think more active management is confusing for ETF investors, and for registered investment advisers who invest client money in ETFs. Why does active management persist, despite the growing popularity of passive investments that track indices? Because: 1) there is a huge industry that insists they are smarter than the market; and 2) there's more money in it than passive management. The only good news is that active management ETFs will drive down the cost of active management. Whether that justifies the mediocre returns that active management has posted is another question.

Regulation of ETFs: Will the SEC kill the party?

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The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is poking its nose into the ETF business. It recently announced it would begin looking into ETF sales strategies and disclosures and the suitability for investors of complex ETFs like leveraged and inverse ETFs. Regulators are, for example, considering limiting the amount of leverage that could be used in an ETF portfolio. The SEC is also concerned about trading in products that have limited liquidity, like junk bonds and bank loans. It is considering proposals to limit the amount of illiquid asset an ETF or mutual fund could hold. Here's an example: The SEC may require that a fund's portfolio consist of at least 15 percent liquid assets, or assets that could be sold immediately. The other 85 percent must be able to be sold within seven days without affecting the price. Read More There's an ETF for that: Industry sets record

That may sound reasonable, but it would make it very difficult to run, for example, a high-yield fund or a fund with bank loans. It may even limit some corporate bonds. I'm ambivalent about this. I have never been a big fan of leveraged and inverse ETFs and do not think they are suitable for most investors. That's one reason I do not talk about them. But investors who want to play in areas of the market with limited liquidity  like bank loans  should expect volatility and should not whine when there are market meltups or meltdowns in their asset class. I'm with the SEC on the whole "suitability" issue. On the other hand, I'm not sure about banning them outright. Leverated and inverse ETFs are a tiny fraction of the ETF business. I also do not see a lot of evidence that these type of ETFs are a "cause" of market volatility.

Market structure: What role do ETFs play in market volatility?
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The modern day space race doesn't pit country against country. It's a game of thrones of sorts among three billionaires: Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Richard Branson. Under the guise of "we compete in a friendly way," Branson engaged in a little trash-talk at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. "Our spaceship comes back and lands on wheels. Theirs don't," he told CNBC's "Squawk Box" in an interview that aired Friday. "Because ours is shaped like an airplane, we hope to do point-to-point air travel one day. Theirs is not." To be fair, he said that Musk, founder of SpaceX,, and Bezos, founder of Blue Origin, would probably give reasons why theirs are better than Branson's Virgin Galactic effort.



Read more 'Squawk Box' in Davos

Branson, who said he's friends with Musk but does not know Bezos well, stressed that competition is good. "You need competition. And the public will benefit from the three of us getting out there and competing." Besides space, Branson's Virgin conglomerate runs branded businesses worldwide in industries including mobile phones, airlines, financial services, music, as well as health and wellness. Musk, also a serial entrepreneur, is the founder and chief of electric automaker Tesla . He's also chairman of energy company, SolarCity . Bezos is founder and chief of Amazon and the owner of The Washington Post.

During his CNBC interview, Branson also addressed the most pressing concern for financial markets: the depressed price of oil that's seen somewhat of a bounce recently. He said he sees oil prices likely staying low for a long time, but he believes that's a good thing for the global economy. "There's no need to try to make up a recession [case]," he said. "This is going to be the greatest boost to the economy you could imagine. And everyone is going to have money in their pockets to spend," because of cheaper gasoline prices. Depressed oil, which also translates into lower jet fuel prices, has been a boon to the airline industry and passengers. When the oil hedges that many carriers engage in to lock-in steady costs come off, "they can afford to reduce fares," Branson said. "And that will stimulate demand on planes. And they can also afford to make some decent profits." "I remember $149 a barrel," he recalled, with U.S. and global crude around $31 per barrel early Friday. "If you can't make money today, you can't make money ever in the airline industry."
Kaiser Permanente CEO Bernard Tyson said on Friday he does not believe a free market for prescription drugs truly exists in the United States.



"I cannot rationalize how much we're paying for drugs," Tyson told CNBC's "Squawk Box" at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Tyson said his view is the government has its hands tied on whether or not it can negotiate prices for Medicare.



Medicare is prohibited from negotiating with drugmakers to secure lower prescription prices. That stipulation is built into the government's program to subsidize drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries.

"When the prices are established with the government, it therefore becomes the ceiling, if you will, and so I can't go in and negotiate a lower price because then they'll have to give that price to the government and everyone else," he said.


BlackRock Chairman and CEO Larry Fink said Friday he's more bullish on stocks than he was a week ago, but he believes crude hasn't hit bottom despite the recent rally in depressed oil prices.

"I think China has been acting a little more sensibly. They've been more rational. They've been more consistent. I think that's really stabilized the [stock] market," Fink told CNBC's "Squawk Box" at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

"In the first few weeks [of 2016], we saw ... some very large financial institutions selling. This week we saw buyers, starting on Wednesday," he said.

Exactly one week ago, Fink told "Squawk Box" that U.S. stocks could fall another 10 percent before all the market carnage was done.

Since then, the initially dropped about 6 percent, before cutting that decline in half as of Thursday's session, which saw a powerful rally that was continuing in the premarket Friday.

Fink seemed to be on the fence Friday about whether stocks overall need to see another 4 percent drop from last week's lows before the market can really shake the new year slump. "I do believe the market will be higher by year end," he said.

"For most people ... stay in equities. Be there in equities," he advised. "These are just corrections. As Warren Buffett says, 'It's a long race.' I think too many people are panicking over these corrections that are necessary."
VIDEO: https://www.facebook.com/cnbc/videos/10154024898489369/?theater

TRANSCRIPT:

Becky Quick: To somebody who wasn't paying attention, maybe the casual observer, you two might seem like strange bedfellows. So how did you two get to know each other?

Bono: Yeah, no it wasn't like we met them after the U2 show. No, we care about the same things, and I was very excited to meet them. Bill had already changed the world once with, you know, the digital revolution, and we wanted to be with him when he changed the world twice. That's probably it.

Bill Gates: A mutual friend had been saying we should get together and I was really blown away when we first had the meeting. And we've been partners and pushing these causes ever since.

Becky Quick: What are causes that you both are kind of targeting in areas that you can work together?

Bono: So we invented RED as a sort of gateway drug to activism, really simple, you know? People were very upset about what they were seeing with this AIDS crisis. And whole countries, you'd have a third of the people in the country HIV positive. And I witnessed that up close and I realized that this problem is so big that we need to use everything. The United States is now leading the greatest intervention in the history of medicine, it is the remarkable  and I don't think Americans know just what you've done.

Bill Gates: So that organization is really telling the story about the progress, are people meeting their commitments. It's making sure we get people out to see the work firsthand, which is really a powerful thing, and speaking out. The creativity about these people who are far away and often it's told just as a sad story, but it's really a very positive story, that requires creativity. And Bono has been the best at figuring out how we make that work.

Becky Quick: Gentlemen, we have some questions from the Facebook community. And I'll throw a few of them at you. Fred King writes in. He says, "so many causes, how do you narrow your focus?"

Bill Gates: Well, there are basic things. Parents want their children to survive, they want them to be well fed, so that when they get a chance to learn, that their brain is fully developed. These are really basic needs. So those are things that, you know, the greatest inequity in the world, it's how you lift countries up so they can take care of themselves.

Bono: RED is example of being just clearly taking on one fight, a fight that we know we could win. It was madness that an accident of longitude and latitude, you know, where you live decided whether you would live. You've got this disease, AIDS, somewhere around where we live, you just took two pills. You've got this disease over there, you died. The Gates Foundation is investing in a vaccine, we hope there will be a vaccine in 10, 15 years. I don't know if you're optimistic?

Bill Gates: Yes.

Bono: Yes!

Becky Quick: We have a question from Mary Leahy who says, "Who was the one person in your life who inspired you the most to care about others?"

Bill Gates: Well, I spend a lot of time with philanthropists, and one of the things we do is have people go around and talk about where they came to giving. You know, often the parents had limited resources, but they were giving to things they cared about. So when you have these people who get lots of resources, that habit, you know, scales up. It's incredible, you know, we are seeing a positive move towards philanthropy. But in my case, my parents were probably the biggest influence.

Bono: But I think, you know, it might be my faith  and I don't talk about my faith a lot because I find people who do a pain the arse.

Becky Quick: Well gentlemen, I just want to say thank you to both of you. We really appreciate your time and everything that you all are working on.

Bono: Thank you, Becky, for being interested.

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Nigeria, one of the world's most populous Muslim-majority countries, has called on the Islamic world to condemn the so-called Islamic State terrorist organization. The country's vice-president told CNBC that in the long-run, the ideological battle against the Islamic State (also known as ISIS or Daesh) was more important than the military one.

Yemi Osinbajo with CNBC's Julia Chatterley in Davos, Switzerland.

"Of course we must contain them militarily, that's absolutely important because they are a military force. But I think more important, and going forward, is ideological. We have to deal with the ideological issues and (Nigeria's) President Buhari has simply called on Muslim leaders all over the world to speak out against the Islamic State and fundamentally attack that evil ideology," Yemi Osinbajo told CNBC on Friday from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Nigeria's population is split fairly evenly between Christians and Muslims, although the Islamic populace is seen becoming proportionately larger over time. The country faces a major struggle against Islamist terrorists, with the Boko Haram group claiming allegiance to ISIS and operating mainly in Nigeria. In the first nine months of 2015, Boko Haram killed 3,500 civilians across Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad and Niger, according to Amnesty International.

Stringer | AFP | Getty Images
The Ocean Vanguard offshore drill rig, operated by Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc., stands anchored in the Cromarty Firth in Cromarty, U.K., on Wednesday, Aug. 6, 2014. Simon Dawson | Bloomberg | Getty Images

A remote harbor near Inverness might seem an unlikely gauge for the oil price crash but the freezing waters of the Cromarty Firth have become a worrying barometer for energy veterans. More than a dozen offshore oil rigs, each weighing thousands of tonnes, have been quietly parked in the Scottish firth, the highest number in more than a decade, after a plunge in crude prices that has nearly killed North Sea exploration.

Two rigs have been towed away to be scrapped in Turkey, while more are expected to arrive in the coming weeks and months, threatening to fill the inlet to capacity. The port itself, normally filled with cruise ships from spring to autumn, is considering a move into oil and gas decommissioning. Brent crude has plummeted from a summer 2014 peak of more than $115 a barrel to less than $30, hit by a US supply glut and weaker Chinese demand. "In previous oil crashes there has been a sense that it will come good again  maybe in 18 months the price will bounce back," says Bob Buskie, chief executive of the Cromarty Firth Port Authority. "But people have lost sight of the dynamic between Saudi [Arabia] not adjusting output and America still throwing money at the fracking game. We have ended up awash with oil."

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The North Sea "doesn't work at $30 a barrel", he says. Indeed, the number of operational rigs, having gone from 57 to 27, is now thought likely to fall to just 19 by the summer. "One by one, the operators are looking at this and saying, 'this is just not happening for us'." Increasing numbers of idled rigs anchored in the firth, some crewed and kept ready to go to sea  "hot stacked"  and others shut down completely  "cold stacked"  are part of a wider global decline. Oil companies have delayed almost $400bn of investment, according to the consultancy Wood Mackenzie, a halt in spending that has sent the prices charged by rig operators tumbling. Data from IHS Energy show that daily rates for hiring ultra-deepwater rigs, used in areas such as the Gulf of Mexico and offshore Angola, have fallen sharply over the past two years. The average new fixture rate for drillships fell to just $321,000 a day in December, more than $100,000 below levels a year ago and $200,000 less than at the start of 2014. Utilisation rates for such rigs have also slumped, to an all-time low of 77 per cent. Shipbrokers add that average usage of all rigs has declined heavily in north-west Europe, a fall that reflects a collapse in activity in the UK North Sea, one of the most expensive regions in which to produce oil.

Rig operators such as Transocean, Seadrill and Maersk park rigs when drilling contracts come to an end or clients  an oil major, say, such as BP or Royal Dutch Shell  decide not to take up the option of an extension. A hot-stacked rig typically costs the customer half the daily rate: a skeleton crew stays on board. The next stage is to remove the workforce and turn off the power, leaving the port authorities to keep a watchful eye. Six cold-stacked rigs are in the firth. More from the Financial Times :

Schlumberger cuts 10,000 jobs amid oil price rout

Apple hires leading virtual reality researcher

Aston Martin's 1m licence to thrill Another half dozen are kept running, while a further two are moored alongside quays. Space is available for up to 19 rigs. The biggest at anchor, the 35,568 tonne West Phoenix, owned by North Atlantic Drilling, a subsidiary of Seadrill, is a deepwater vessel able to withstand Atlantic storms and powered by thrusters. It is expected to head to the west of Shetlands, where it will resume work for France's Total in March.
Temporary changes in consumer behavior following the Nov. 13 terror attacks in Paris had a big negative impact on Starbucks ' business, according to the company.

In its earnings report for the prior quarter, the coffee behemoth reported that in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region, revenues dropped by 6 percent from the same quarter in the year prior. Same-store sales in the region increased, but by just 1 percent, widely missing analysts' expectations.

In the earnings report itself, Starbucks wrote that the revenue decrease "was primarily due to unfavorable foreign currency translation and the shift in the portfolio toward more licensed stores."

But in later commentary, the company offered an additional explanation for the weak numbers.

"EMEA's performance was particularly strong given the impact of foreign exchange and challenges to topline growth following the tragic terror attacks in Paris," chief financial officer Scott Maw said in introductory comments on the company's Tuesday evening earnings call.

When an analyst asked for more details, Maw added: "October looked like a really good month to us, and it looked like we were right on track to what we expected for the year. And then after what happened in Paris, we've seen some softening, and now it's coming back."

In an interview Friday on CNBC, CEO Howard Schultz amped up the drama: "We were on track to have a record quarter in Europe, and that unfortunately came to a screeching halt as a result of the act of terror in Paris."

Read More Starbucks' Schultz: We're no longer just a morning business


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In the winter of 2012, after a major snow blast to Syracuse, New York, Wills Mahoney's mother got stuck in her driveway. As she sat, she watched several plows go by, but couldn't get one to her property. And there it was, the inspiration for Plowz & Mowz, an on-demand, residential plowing and mowing company, founded by 33-year-old Mahoney and college friend Andrew Englander. "We are truly the only on-demand snow plowing app on the market today. You can go with other websites, but their turnaround time is about 48 hours, and they're going to have to give you an estimate," claimed Mahoney, whose company now serves 30 markets, including Boston, Cleveland, Chicago, Minneapolis and Milwaukee.

Customers download the app, type in their information, get an exact price on a snowplow and then that request is dispatched to drivers who contract with the company. Generally, those drivers are already out on their routes. They can accept or reject the job, depending on distance and schedules.

"It's very similar to the Uber model," said Mahoney.

Residential snowplowing is actually a growing business, as harsher storms hit the nation with increased frequency. There are approximately 30,000 residential plowing companies and three times as many who plow commercial properties, like malls and offices.

"The vast majority of the residential market is single contractors. It is highly fragmented," said Martin Tirado, CEO of the Snow and Ice Management Association, who calls the app a "disruptor." "Some of the bigger companies that do this," he added, "like Brightview, [formerly Rockville, Maryland-based Brickman] they only comprise 3 to 4 percent of market share, and they're the biggest one out there."

Jeff DeLine, a Plowz & Mowz provider for three years, said he has seen demand for snowplows surge dramatically.

"Easily hundreds more requests for each event," said DeLine, owner of J&R Lawns and Landscapes in Syracuse.
The flow of refugees is hitting decade-highs and the pressure on wealthy nations seen as a haven from conflict will intensify further, Mogens Lykketoft, president of the 70th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), warned on Friday.

"Right now, we have more conflicts and more displaced persons and refugees from these conflicts then there has [been] at any time since World War II  there will be a continued pressure of people wanting to migrate from poor countries where [there's] not many future opportunities to the richer parts of the world," Lykketoft, who has served both as Denmark's Foreign and Finance Minister, told CNBC at the World Economic Forum in Davos.



Lykketoft, who was unanimously elected as UNGA president in June 2015, said he was "moderately" optimistic that a resolution to the conflict in Syria can be found. He believes "there's a good chance finally to end this long, bloody conflict and the humanitarian crisis [and] catastrophes associated with it."


Russia needs to honor the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Georgia so that the region can be attractive to investment and business, the country's prime minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili told CNBC on Friday.



Tensions have remained high between the two countries following a short conflict in 2008. Hundreds died in clashes over the sovereignty of South Ossetia and Abkhazia -- two breakaway Georgian regions which Russia recognizes as independent countries.

Kvirikashvili said that several formats of dialog now existed between the two countries, and that there were positive dynamics in terms of trade.

"We are trying to decrease the tensions with Russia in order to allow ourselves to attract investments, because stability and security (are)... the main prerequisites for any investor," Kvirikashvili told CNBC's Hadley Gamble at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

There were still issues, however. Russia was still signing agreements with both South Ossetia and Abkhazia, Kvirikashvili said, something he described as "against all logic."

"But this is where we are," he said. "We will continue a pragmatic approach, we will continue from our side to decrease the tensions, and we welcome, of course, the recent decision of the Russian government to ease the visa regulations for Georgian citizens," he added.

"This was a positive step, and it is appreciated by (the) Georgian government and people."

Asked if he had a message for Vladimir Putin, Kvirikashvili said that, "Russia should honor Georgia's territorial integrity and sovereignty."

"This is the main entry condition to be met by the Russian side in order to start normal relations with Russia," he said.

"Honestly, we don't see enough political will today in (the) Russian leadership to resolve this crisis, but despite all that, we have (a) longstanding tradition of relations with Russia, and I don't think that we need to scratch out everything," Kvirikashvili added.

"Culturally, Georgians, we are Europeans, we are a European country," Kvirikashvili also said during the interview.

On Friday the Georgian government announced that Kvirikashvili had met with NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg while at Davos. The two parties discussed issues relating to Georgia becoming a NATO member, according to the prime minister's press office.

A former foreign minister, Kvirikashvili assumed his role as Georgia's prime minister at the end of last year, after the sudden resignation of Irakly Garibashvili.

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In an interview with "Squawk Box" at the World Economic Forum, Carter said the United States' active allies in the fight are doing a lot, but can do more. Specifically, he said he wants to defeat ISIS in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul and its home base in Raqqa, Syria.

"We're doing more, because we need to do more because we need to defeat ISIL. he said, referring to the terrorist group. " I'm confident we will, but I want to accelerate that process,"

Defense Secretary Ash Carter told CNBC on Friday he wants to speed up the battle to defeat ISIS.

In two weeks, Carter will meet with a broad group of defense ministers where he said he will press those who are in the fight "on paper" but are not doing enough.

"We're prepared to do a great deal because we have the finest fighting force the world has ever seen. We can do a lot ourselves," Carter said. "The United States does not ask people for favors, but we don't grant favors either, and so we're looking for other people to play their part."



To get those players on board, Carter said he would share U.S. operations plans with defense ministers.

Carter said the United States would continue to keep boots on the ground, but would remain focused on advising and assisting Iraqi, Kurdish and Syrian Arab forces to take and hold territory.

"I don't think we or anybody else can substitute for them, but there's a lot we can do to enable them, including being on the ground with them," he said.

"We're looking for opportunities to do more, and there will be boots on the ground  I want to be clear about that  but it's a strategic question, whether you are enabling local forces to take and hold, rather than trying to substitute for them."
Smartbe, a self-propelling stroller Source: Smartbe

They say there's an app for everything, and soon there's going to be one to control your stroller.

Designers are working on a self-propelling stroller called the Smartbe with all the bells and whistles parents could possibly dream of: an electric engine to make going uphill easier, a bottle warmer, built-in music and a rocker, internal and external cameras, plus three different retractable canopies. (You never know when it's going to rain!) The team behind Smartbe says their own experience as parents is what inspired the idea. More from TODAY:

Women in El Salvador told to postpone pregnancy

Shark-attack survivor opens up about motherhood

Retire comfortably! 6 tips to investing, saving for your future "I'm the father of two girls and I've had that problem when one wants to be in your arms and the other wants to be pushed," Mark Ramondt, Smartbe's Argentina-based CFO, told TODAY. "The simple addition of technology to a stroller is really beneficial," he added. But it's not cheap. Early supporters who buy through Smartbe's recently launched Indiegogo page will pay $399 for a stroller without the self-propelling technology, and $2,750 for a self-propelling stroller. The price will probably be around $3,000 when the self-propelling stroller officially launches next year.

"It's an expensive product, there's no doubt about it," Ramondt said. "But think of it as a first. Having new technology is expensive at first. I think in the U.S. a Tesla will run you about $80,000. Think of the first iPhones  they were expensive." For moms and dads who can spare the cash, he thinks the costs is worth it, and points out that many high-end strollers are already going for upwards of $1,000, and that's without any smart technology. Smartbe isn't the first to consider a stroller that moves on its own. Volkswagen engineers also recently invented a stroller they describe as "self-propelled, self-steering and self-driving, in addition to being self-stopping," although the company doesn't expect it to hit the market anytime soon. And a few years ago, a Seattle dad created a mechanized stroller that kids steer themselves. The self-propelling component could come in handy for parents who want to go for a jog with their baby, or need to be hands-free to juggle other bags at the airport or supermarket, for example. The Smartbe stroller works with a wearable sensor (possibly a wristband, but the designers are still figuring that out) to know where to move.
Spain's acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has been duped by a prank caller pretending to be Carles Puigdemont, the premier of Catalonia, according to a report from El Pais in English.



A presenter from Catalan station Radio Flaixback rang Rajoy's office claiming to be a Catalan government aide, and was then put directly through to Rajoy.

An impressionist took over from there and spoke to Rajoy, a staunch opponent of Catalan independence, pretending to be Puigdemont.

During the conversation, Rajoy said he was open to setting a date for a meeting with Puigdemont.

El Pais reported that when he found out he was being taken for a ride, Rajoy angrily replied, "This is not serious; you can do whatever you want, but this is not serious."

Spain finds itself in a state of flux after elections at the end of last year which saw Rajoy's Partido Popular lose its majority.

On Friday, Reuters reported that Pablo Iglesias, leader of the left wing and anti-austerity Podemos party, stated that he was ready to form a coalition government with the socialist PSOE and other left wing parties.
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As oil prices continue to wallow at lows not seen for more than decade, petroleum exporting countries in the Middle East are looking to reform their economies so that they can weather the shock of far lower oil revenues  and prepare for a future after fossil fuels. Oil prices rose as much as 7 percent on Friday to above $31 in their largest weekly rally in three months, as a cold front sweeping the U.S. and Europe supported prices. But that's cold comfort for the oil producers, however, which have seen prices fall from $114 a barrel in June 2014 to current levels. As such, the question of diversifying traditionally-oil based economies and reducing the reliance on oil has become a key issue in the Middle East. Suhail Bin Mohammed Al Mazrouei, energy minister of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) told CNBC on Friday that the Emirates were moving away from its dependence on oil. "In the UAE we are diversifying the sources of energyand also we are diversifying the sources of income. We are developing our economy, and year on year we are seeing that the non-oil economy's contribution is growing," he told CNBC on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.

An employee of the Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) looks at 25 January 2005 the Gathering Center No.15 of al-Rawdatain field, 100 kms north of Kuwait City. YASSER AL-ZAYYAT/AFP/Getty Images

He said that the UAE's government was about to go on a ministerial retreat to discuss developing the economy so that " the impact of the oil prices' fluctuation is not going to impact the budget of the United Arab Emirates and all of its states, and I think it's doable." "We are also investing a lot outside Emirates, and I think collectively we can manage that transition to have the revenues from the oil industry as a luxury, or as an additional profit that's going to be reinvested and not to have it as a major contributor in our budget," he said.

Blame close to home?

Saudi Arabia, the de facto leader of oil producing group OPEC, has been largely blamed for the continued fall in prices given the group's decision not to cut production amid a glut in supply as part of a strategy to pressure non-OPEC rivals who have higher production costs. The policy has hurt producers closer to home though. Six Gulf oil-producing countries (Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates) are planning on introducing a sales tax for the first time amid the drop in prices and as they see budget surpluses turn into deficits as oil revenues drop. In addition, countries like the UAE have removed long-standing fuel subsidies. Al Mazrouei said OPEC was not to blame for the glut in oil supply that was hurting the Middle East's domestic economies. "OPEC produces around one third, and two thirds comes from the rest of the world. The rest of the world introduced 2.7 million barrels of additional capacity, so they've basically flooded the market," he said. There has been much speculation that OPEC could change course as its strategy bites at home but Al Mazrouei was optimistic that there would be a correction in oil prices without OPEC intervention, saying it was anyway unfair for OPEC to "step in and correct the market, 100 percent of the market, of this oversupply, by itself." "The market will balance itself, ultimately, and the timing is not going to be way far from either. There are two camps, there are optimistic people and there are pessimistic, and I am with the first camp, and I think this is a year of correction. The first half of the year is definitely not going to be easy, but (I think) we are going to see correction in my view in the second half, because I cannot see from where additional oil is going to come from, except from Iran, and their announcement, and that is not going to offset the growth in demand, so I am optimistic."

A 'blessing in disguise'?
Turkey could play a "great role" in ending the conflict between Greek and Turkish communities on Cyprus as Ankara still has 40,000 troops in Cyprus, the President of the divided island told CNBC.

Cyprus has been split since 1974 when Turkey invaded the north. There is a partition in place and the north is inhabited by Turkish Cypriots and the south by Greek Cypriots.

But hopes of a reunification of Cyprus have risen following a meeting between the two leaders representing each community. At the World Economic Forum in Davos Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish-Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci met with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to discuss the situation.

"Everyone is realizing that the soonest we can reach a settlement it is going to be much more fair for everyone," Anastasiades told CNBC in a TV interview at Davos.
Cisco has upped its investment in cybersecurity as governments and business worry more about the threat of data breaches, its global sales chief told CNBC.

"Security is the number one thing. You go and meet government leaders, you go and meet business leaders, the one thing that's on their mind is security," Chris Dedicoat, executive vice president for worldwide sales at Cisco, told CNBC in an interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

"'Help us in this world where everything in this world is connected.' So that's a big investment area for us and we think a great opportunity."

The comments come amid a rising threat of state-backed attackers and some high-profile data breaches. Cybercrime will cost businesses $2.1 trillion globally by 2019, up four times from the estimated cost in 2015.

Last year saw a number of high-profile hacking attacks from adultery website Ashley Madison to telecoms company TalkTalk.
Syracuse University (SU) on Wednesday announced the three finalists in the competition to design the upcoming National Veterans Resource Complex (NVRC). SU says the western portion of the Waverly block is tentatively planned as the site of the NVRC. Streets that border the block include Waverly Avenue, South Crouse Avenue, Marshall Street, and University Avenue. (Eric Reinhardt / BJNN file photo)

SYRACUSE, N.Y.  A Syracuse University (SU) committee has selected three finalists in its competition to choose the designer for the upcoming National Veterans Resource Complex (NVRC).

The finalists include United Kingdombased Adjaye Associates, New York Cityheadquartered SHoP, and Oslo, Norwaybased Snohetta.

Each firm is also among the seven finalists to design the Obama Presidential Library in Chicago, SU said in a news release issued Wednesday.

The selection committee recently reviewed the qualifications of 28 architecture firms from around the globe.

The committee includes faculty, staff, students, and design professionals, the school said.

The NVRC is a physical testament to Syracuse Universitys commitment to supporting veterans and their families. I am confident the selection committee will find the right partner to bring this unique vision to life, SU Chancellor Kent Syverud said in the schools news release.

Representatives from the selected firms will travel to Syracuse in the coming weeks to view the site and to speak with members of the campus community about the history, goals, vision, and timeline for the new facility.

The firms will then return to the SU campus in April to present their final proposals to the selection committee.

The school will announce the winning firm in May.

SU says the western portion of the Waverly block is tentatively planned as the site of the upcoming National Veterans Resource Complex (NVRC). Streets that border the block include Waverly Avenue, South Crouse Avenue, Marshall Street, and University Avenue.

The NVRC is one of the signature initiatives of the Central New York (CNY) regional economic-development councils winning proposal titled Central New York: Rising from the Ground Up.

New York in December selected the CNY, Southern Tier, and Finger Lakes regions to receive $500 million as part of Gov. Cuomos $1.5 billion business competition.

The NVRC will house the SU and Regional Student Veteran Resource Center, the Army Reserve Officer Training Corps, the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Vet-Success on Campus, the National Center of Excellence for Veteran Business Ownership, Veteran Business Outreach Center and Accelerator, and SUs Office of Veteran and Military Affairs, according to the news release.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com
ALBANY, N.Y.  A SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) professor will use a grant of $1.2 million for a research and development project on next-generation computer systems.

Nathaniel Cady, professor of nanobioscience, will use the Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) funding. It is part of a $2.4 million grant in collaboration with the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

The funding seeks to enable the fabrication and testing of an adaptive neural network array based on memristors.

SUNY Poly describes memristors as technology which could one day lead to faster, more energy efficient and powerful computer capabilities.

The three-year AFRL award enables the development of a memristor-based dynamic adaptive neural network array (mrDANNA).

As part of the collaboration, researchers will design the mrDANNA at Tennessee and will leverage SUNY Polys Albany NanoTech Complex to create chip prototypes.

The project will test and refine the chip prototypes to address contemporary application challenges and enable continued computer-chip performance scaling, especially as researchers expect Moores Law to approach physical limitations.

Moores Law says that processor speeds, or overall processing power for computers will double every two years, according to mooreslaw.org, a website that seeks to explain the law.

As the acronym indicates, the mrDANNA research is based on memristors, technology that can take the 1s and 0s of transistor-based computing to the next level by utilizing more than the binary on/off states that are used in todays computers.

Memristors are able to change their resistance values incrementally; the greater the number of resistance levels, the more bits of information that each memristor can store.

Placing them in an adaptable, neuromorphic array opens the door to computers that would more closely resemble neurons and synapses, or the complex hardware of the human brain.

As part of this new effort, the team of SUNY Poly researchers plans to optimize memristor electrical characteristics to achieve peak performance of the neuromorphic array so that it offers the best real-time dynamic adaptability, configurability, and scalability.

In addition, with tightly packed memristors, they offer greater device density, which enables increased energy efficiency as well, according to the news release.

Reaction

The Air Force Research Lab grant underscores the fact that Gov. Cuomos strategy catalyzing a high-tech research and development ecosystem in New York state, pioneered by SUNY Poly, is driving development of technologies which have the potential to revolutionize computing in the years ahead, Michael Liehr, executive VP of innovation and technology and VP of research at SUNY Poly, contended.

We are grateful to the AFRL for recognizing this trailblazing work, and we look forward to collaborating with the research team at the University of Tennessee to substantially improve computer memory. Another key benefit is that SUNY Poly students will observe and be a part of this research, providing a truly one-of-a-kind educational opportunity, Cady said in the release.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com
Diane Nash will be in Columbia on Wednesday to share her memories during the University of Missouri Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration Service at the Missouri Theatre. It couldnt have come at a better time.
Visit these 9 enduring favorites over Homecoming weekend

Here are just nine of Columbia's true cultural and culinary institutions, all worth visiting this weekend.
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By Sara K. Clarke of The Commercial Appeal

The Mississippi Development Authority will lead a delegation of companies and economic developers on a business mission from April 25-29 to Hannover Messe, a massive industrial trade show in Germany.

The event features more than 6,500 exhibitors and more than 220,000 visitors from 70 countries.

The deadline for companies to register is Feb. 19. The U.S. Small Business Administration-funded Mississippi State Trade Export Promotion program reimburses eligible businesses up to 50 percent of travel costs. Participation also includes minimal booth space fees, and advertising, media exposure and networking events at no cost.

For more information, contact Aggie Sikora at (601) 359-2952.
January 22, 2016 - Susanna Flack, 5, does her best to make a snow angel in the light dusting on the ground at Audubon Park. (Brandon Dill/Special to The Commercial Appeal)

Settle in, kids. Your old granddad wants to tell you about the Great Near-Blizzard of 2016.

"Was there 16 inches of snow, granddad?"

Not quite, darlin'. But it felt like twice that much. It was even worse out in Germangate and Smithville and Ikealett. The entire area was socked in.

"Did everyone have to wear extra socks?"

Some people even had to wear boots, kiddo. Just about everyone had to walk through the snow just to get to their cars.

If the zoo hadn't closed that day, the people who went there would have had to park on their own grass and walk.

"Why wouldn't they just park in the Overton Parking Complex?"

It wasn't there then. There were a lot of trees in the way, but the trees got so heavy with snow that day they all fell. At least that's what the zoo told us.

That turned out to be a blessing, though. The parents who were camped out at the school board needed extra fire wood to keep warm.

"Why were they camped out, granddad? Wouldn't the schools let them in?"

Not until they proved how much they really wanted to get in. Back in those days, kids, some schools were free.

That was before the legislature sold all the schools to Bill Gates. Didn't matter that day. All the schools were closed.

"Kid didn't have to go to school?"

That's right. They called it a Snow Day. It was sort of like a Burn Day, except it was too cold instead of too hot.

"Was it snowing when they closed the schools?"

No, it was raining. But it felt really cold outside.

"Why doesn't it snow anymore here, granddad?"

After President Donald Trump banned science, no one paid attention to how the climate was changing until it was too late.

It still snowed a lot back then, but thankfully not as much as they always predicted it would. They were still using old 20th-Century meteorological methods.

In fact, according to the forecasters, the Great Blizzard of '16 was even worse before it started snowing.

The governor declared a state of emergency before the first snowflake fell.

People listened to the news and started to worry. They spent hours in line buying gas and milk and bread and lottery tickets.

"Why didn't they just have Uber-Mart bring it to them?"

You had to get your own groceries back then, angel. And your own lottery tickets. The state didn't have its own Amazon account like it does now.

Of course, that was before the governor privatized the government.

"Where did they put all the snow, granddad?"

It melted pretty quick. 2015 was the hottest year on record, and 2016 turned out to be even hotter.

That was before President Barack Obama banned heat and the city had to put those giant heat deflectors on the old Bass Pro pyramid.

"Did it snow when you were a kid, granddad?"

All the time, but not as much as it did during the Great Blizzard of '16. It was a mess. It took me several hours just to dig through the snow to find the newspaper that morning.

"What's a newspaper, granddad?"

Time for bed, kids. I want to iWatch the Grizzlies. They're playing Barcelona and Marc Gasol's daughter is leading the world in scoring.

Don't forget to brush your teeth. Use the retention sink. Your grandma will have my hide if you don't recycle that Martian water.
Gov. Bill Haslam told reporters last week that his administration is carefully considering the ramifications of a bill passed by the Senate that would allow people to carry weapons openly in public without a state-issued permit.(AP Photo/Erik Schelzig)

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By Richard Locker of The Commercial Appeal

NASHVILLE  Gov. Bill Haslam released his top legislative priorities for the year Thursday, including previously announced plans to break up the Tennessee Board of Regents system and revise criminal sentencing, plus new ones regulating fetal tissue and for-profit higher education institutions.

The governor's office said the "Fetal Remains Act" seeks to address concerns raised by anti-abortion activists last year regarding Planned Parenthood and the selling of human fetal tissue. The bill requires increased reporting on the disposition of aborted fetal remains, prohibits reimbursement of costs associated with shipping fetal remains and establishes a mandatory inspection process for ambulatory surgical treatment centers performing more than 50 abortions annually.

The governor's administration met Thursday's bill-filing deadline for the 2016 state legislative session by sending 42 bills to Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris (R-Collierville) and House Majority Leader Gerald McCormick (R-Chattanooga) for filing. Six were listed as priorities of the governor; the others are sought by executive branch departments and agencies. All must go through the General Assembly's regular committee review process and be approved by both the House and Senate before becoming law.

"A major focus this session will be on the next step in the 'Drive to 55': making sure our colleges and universities are organized and empowered in the best way to increase student success and the number of Tennesseans with a postsecondary degree or credential," Haslam said. "Drive to 55" is his effort to increase the percentage of Tennesseans with some post-high-school degree or credential to 55 percent by 2025.

"You'll also see a focus on public safety with legislation that makes smarter use of prison bed space and stiffens penalties for the most serious offenses driving Tennessee's violent crime rate, including continuing to address domestic violence in Tennessee," he said.

In addition to the Fetal Remains Act (House Bill 2577), the governor's bills include:

- "Focus On College and University Success (FOCUS) Act," (HB2578) creating new governing boards for the six Board of Regents universities and leaving the Board with a tighter focus on its 13 community colleges and 27 technical colleges.

- "Higher Education Authorization Act" (HB2573), revising the regulatory framework for for-profit higher education and "fast-track" authorization for accredited schools. It directs the Tennessee Higher Education Commission to redesign regulation for non-accredited institutions and provide performance data so students can evaluate institutional outcomes such as graduation rates, employment figures, costs of attendance, loan default rates and transferability of credits/degrees for institutions.

- "Public Safety Act" (HB2576), the first step in implementing recommendations made last fall by the Governor's Task Force on Sentencing and Recidivism. It retools community supervision to reduce the number of people returning to prison for probation and parole violations when their violation does not rise to the level of a new criminal offense. It creates higher mandatory minimum sentences for people convicted of three or more charges of aggravated burglary, especially aggravated burglary, or drug trafficking. It increases the penalty for three or more domestic violence convictions and allows police to seek a court order of protection on behalf of a victim of domestic violence.

- "Efficiency in Handgun Permitting Act," (HB2575) extends the five-year handgun-carry permit to eight years, lowers the initial permit fee from $115 for five years to $100 for eight years, and expands the renewal cycle from six months to eight years after the expiration of a permit before a person must reapply as a "new" applicant. Background checks will continue to be conducted with initial issuance and at renewal, and a new internal background check will be conducted in the fourth year of the eight-year permit.

- A budget-related initiative (HB2574) on the Basic Education Program, which funds public K-12 schools, details of which are still being drafted.

More information on the governor's bills are available online at www.tn.gov/governor/topic/2016-legislation.
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By From Staff And Wire Reports

Noah Chamberlin, the 2-year-old West Tennessee boy who had been missing since Jan. 14, was found dead Thursday.

No foul play was suspected and an autopsy was pending, according to The Jackson Sun.

Authorities have said Noah's grandmother lost sight of him in the woods as she walked with him and his 4-year-old sister.

Noah's body was found not far from the family home near Pinson, about 100 miles northeast of Memphis. Hundreds had searched for him.

"We have found Noah Chamberlin," Chester County Sheriff Blair Weaver announced at a news conference Thursday afternoon. "He was located about a half mile from his home where he went missing from."

Speaking through tears, Weaver called the boy's death a tragic accident.

Finding Noah's body was "not the outcome we wanted, but we felt like we got some peace by bringing him home," Weaver said.

Madison County Fire Chief Eric Turner said Noah's body was found on the outskirts of the search area, an area that had only previously been searched one time, The Jackson Sun reported.

Noah's disappearance had sparked a massive hunt by law enforcement agents from multiple state and local agencies and hundreds of volunteers.

The family wants Noah to be remembered as a boy who brought a community together, said Andy Morris, pastor of The Highlands Church in Henderson.

"And they're asking right now that they have time to mourn and to love on each other as they go through this time of loss," Morris said.

On Wednesday, about 200 people gathered in a high school gym to pray for Noah's safe return.

The prayer vigil was called to lift up a family in need, said Brad Patterson, minister at First Baptist Church in Henderson.

Morris told those gathered at the vigil, "don't speculate, just pray."

Before Morris participated in the prayer vigil, he said he spent about an hour in conversation and prayer with Noah's grandmother.

"She is overwhelmed with the presence of the support," Morris said, "And I still see the same grandmother, father and mother searching for hope."
January 15, 2016  Michael Wilson, 38, holds his wife, Jan, 36, as they sit on his bed at Methodist University Hospital where Mr. Wilson is undergoing chemotherapy treatment for his cancer. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)

SHARE Jan and Michael Wilson at Methodist University Hospital when Mr. Wilson was starting his first round of chemotherapy on Nov. 24, 2015. (Photo courtesy of Jan and Michael Wilson) January 15, 2016  Collierville High School band director Michael Wilson, 38, lies in bed as he undergoes chemotherapy treatment for his cancer at Methodist University Hospital. One of his goals is to finish chemo to reunite with his young family at home. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal) January 15, 2016  Collierville High School band director Michael Wilson, 38, has been undergoing chemotherapy treatment for his cancer at Methodist University Hospital. One of his goals is to finish chemo to reunite with his young family at home. (Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal)

By Daniel Connolly of The Commercial Appeal

One day in September, the band director at Collierville High School noticed a swelling on one side of his neck. He was prescribed antibiotics and steroids and the swelling went away. Then the swelling returned, this time on both sides of the neck, making it hard to swallow.

In early November, the band director, 38-year-old Michael Wilson, was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a potentially deadly cancer of the blood and bone marrow.

He needed to go to the hospital immediately, and spent weeks there. Treatment would include chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. His sister wasn't a match for the transplant, so he turned to a registry organized by National Marrow Donor Program.

The registry found a match. Sometime around March 1, a donor somewhere in the continental U.S. is expected to give up cells that will be rushed to Memphis, where they may save Michael Wilson's life. Now he and his wife Jan, age 36, are backing an event aimed at getting more people to register for the database that found his transplant match.

"If somebody registers (at the event) and one day they're called and they're able to donate and help somebody else, then it's like maybe this was all worth it," Jan Wilson said.

The event had been scheduled for Saturday but has been postponed because of the weather. It will be rescheduled, said Peggy SteeleBardes, a band parent who took the lead in organizing the event. She said she survived breast cancer and she feels a need to help, plus Michael Wilson taught her son Ian, who's now in college and wants to become a band director himself. Her youngest son, Simon, is now a freshman and is in band, too. "And we're anxiously awaiting Michael's return."

The event has received promotional support from Collierville Schools Superintendent John S. Aitken and others. "The Superintendent and district leaders certainly encourage all that can attend to do so," schools chief of staff Russell Dyer wrote in an email Thursday, shortly before the decision was made to postpone the event.

Jan and Michael Wilson spoke with The Commercial Appeal earlier this month at Methodist University Hospital. Both sat on the edge of Michael Wilson's hospital bed. Michael Wilson wore street clothes as yellow liquid dripped into an intravenous line in his arm  methotrexate, one of the drugs that doctors are using to control the cancer before the bone marrow transplant. He was thin, and he'd lost his hair from the chemotherapy.

He and his wife met during a band camp at Delta State University. Years later, they married and they now have two children, son Kaiden, age 7, and daughter Eden, age 3.

Michael Wilson runs the band and an array of other music programs at the high school, and his wife says he's dedicated to the craft  sometimes extremely so. Jan Wilson tells the story of how she was about to deliver their second child when her husband's phone rang. It was the day before he was to start teaching band camp and the man calling had been hired to plan the marching drill for the students. With Jan Wilson about to start pushing the baby into the world, Michael Wilson took the call and spoke with the man briefly.

"Legs in the stirrups and everything!" his wife recalled. "And he answers."

They joke about it now and she told the story with laughter. In seriousness, though, she's worked tirelessly to help her husband cope with his illness.

Sometimes the cancer has made Michael Wilson depressed and he'll have what he calls a "why me?" day. Jan Wilson is a nurse and she wants her husband to get up and move around. He said that at times he doesn't want to. "Some days I'm like 'Get out of here, I am just not going to do this today,'" he said. "And those are some rough days. But those are fairly few and far between."

Michael Wilson said he sees some upside to the illness, though. He said he's been told that if the transplant works, his chances of a cure are good. He says he's looked for a reason for the experience. "One of things that I have come up with is the Lord has wanted me to be a more spiritual person and have a better connection with him." He's not a member of a church, but said he's now praying far more than he did before.
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Residents of Tennessee and Mississippi may soon have the opportunity to register to vote online, a significant improvement in the current system that would bring these two states up to speed on a growing national trend.

In Tennessee, the legislative push for online registration is being led by House Majority Leader Gerald McCormick, R-Chattanooga, and Sen. Ken Yager, R-Kingston, with the support of Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett, a former Republican legislator from Bartlett.

Hargett argued persuasively in a guest column published on these pages this week that an online system would streamline the process of registering voters and improve accuracy and efficiency.

Anyone with a Tennessee driver's license could participate. The state Department of Safety and Homeland Security would check information submitted by registrants against its database.

The system, Hargett wrote, would "help ensure forms are filled out correctly and completely before being submitted to the county level. In addition, voter information would get to the local county offices more quickly."

Almost simultaneously, Mississippi Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann, a Republican, rolled out several proposed changes in that state's election laws, including the introduction of online voter registration, expansion of the state's early-voting system, tighter requirements for campaign spending by candidates and moving the presidential primary to "Super Tuesday" in early March to coincide with most other Southern states.

While online voter registration probably would not have a major impact on the registration of poor or elderly voters and others without access to the Internet, it could be especially helpful in bringing more young voters to the polls.

And it would fall in line with a lot of other changes in the lifestyles of those of us who have become more dependent on the Internet for a wide variety of transactions.

Approval in Tennessee and Mississippi would raise the number of states that allow online registration to 31.

As Yager pointed out, allowing people to register online "reflects the digital generation."

The Republican-backed initiative stands in contrast with stricter voter identification regulations at the polls and other measures promoted by the GOP that have been seen as primarily partisan and as impediments to voting.

Republicans were the driving force behind recent decisions by legislators in Tennessee, Arkansas and Mississippi to enact laws requiring voters in federal elections to produce photographic evidence of their identity.

Tennessee's 2011 voter ID law was approved by GOP majorities in the House and Senate following earlier efforts that had died in committees controlled by then-majority Democrats.

Mississippi's photo ID measure was approved by 62 percent of the voters as a constitutional amendment in 2011, failing in 11 majority-black and largely Democratic counties.

Both parties should see online voter registration as an improvement to the electoral system. Its effect on election outcomes would be minimal, and it would give more citizens a sense of ownership in the government that serves them.
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By Josh Rogin

Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign Wednesday accused the intelligence community's top oversight official of conspiring with Republicans in the Senate to leak sensitive information about her personal email server. That's a risky move, considering that it has produced no hard evidence of a conspiracy and the accused parties are denying it.

The public dispute between the former secretary of state and the inspector general of the intelligence community reached new heights following Tuesday's report by Fox News on a letter sent by Inspector General I. Charles McCullough to Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn.

In the letter, McCullough stated that he had received sworn declarations from two separate intelligence agencies that cover "several dozen emails" on Clinton's private server. These emails were determined by these agencies to contain information that should have been treated as secret, top secret and "SAP," an abbreviation that refers to "special access programs," which are among the most sensitive in the government.

Clinton campaign spokesman Brian Fallon told me in an interview Wednesday that the campaign believes that McCullough and the Republican senators worked behind the scenes to orchestrate a series of events that would lead to the disclosure of those declarations.

"It is suspect from the beginning that the intelligence community inspector general is continuing to reveal materials and surface allegations while the Justice Department review is going on," Fallon said. "It's completely fair to suspect that the intelligence community inspector general is not operating in good faith." He provided no hard evidence to support these assumptions, however.

Now that the FBI is investigating the handling of information found on Clinton's server, Fallon said, the intelligence community inspector general should stay out of it and let the Justice Department do its work. But McCullough's letter shows he intends to keep trying to influence the outcome.

According to the Clinton campaign, the inspector general and the Republican senators have separate agendas in wanting to influence the public debate over whether Clinton's email server contained highly classified information. The Republicans simply want to hurt Clinton's political aspirations, Fallon said. But the inspector general's move, Fallon said, is part of a campaign to influence a bureaucratic battle between the intelligence community and the State Department.

The State Department and intelligence agencies disagreed last August over whether two emails found on Clinton's server should have been treated as "top secret." The State Department said the information in the emails was not classified when the messages were sent, but the intelligence agencies said the information was always classified and should have been treated as such. The State Department asked James Clapper, the director of national intelligence, to adjudicate that dispute.

In November, a Politico report stated that intelligence officials reviewing those two emails were leaning toward the State Department's opinion. Following that report, Burr and Corker wrote to McCullough to ask for an update and McCullough responded. Fallon alleges that the timing of the letters is evidence enough of a conspiracy to leak the information.

"It looks like Clapper's office will undercut McCullough," Fallon said. "McCullough is trying to litigate this with Clapper and have his own view of these two emails upheld."

Burr told me in a short interview Wednesday that his committee was just following up with the intelligence community inspector general about his progress in getting information from the intelligence agencies. He denied leaking McCullough's letter or working with McCullough behind the scenes in any way.

"I can tell you there's no conspiracy or collusion between Bob Corker and I and the inspector general," Burr said. "The Clinton campaign would be wrong."

Deb Chapman, spokesperson for the intelligence community inspector general's office, declined to comment on the Clinton campaign's allegations, but said that McCullough stands by the information contained in his letter to Burr and Corker, a copy of which Fox News obtained.

"Catherine Herridge's article was spot on," she said, referring to Fox News' intelligence correspondent. "It's all accurate."

For a major political candidate and former Cabinet official to publicly accuse an inspector general of the intelligence community of intentional leaking and collusion with their political opponents is remarkable, if not unprecedented. McCullough, an attorney and former FBI agent, was unanimously confirmed for his position in 2011 and received praise from senators on both sides of the aisle.

"No one should make such an accusation without evidence," Steven Aftergood, who directs the project on government secrecy at the Federation of American Scientists, told me. "If there is evidence of collusion or partisanship, it should be presented. If there is no such evidence, the accusation should not be made."

Whether or not the information in the emails is really top secret is unknowable because the emails are not public, Aftergood said. Several reports Wednesday quoted anonymous officials saying the information in question was not particularly sensitive because it referred to public news reports about the U.S. drone program. That program is highly classified, but is often discussed in the press.

"CIA considers everything about the targeted killing program to be highly classified covert action," Aftergood said. "But the State Department can consider information in the press to be unclassified."

Even passing on news clippings about a classified program can be considered mishandling of classified information, but it's a case-by-case evaluation and the lines are murky, said Aftergood. Usually, deference is given to the agency that originated the information, in this case the CIA and another as yet unnamed agency.

For Fallon and the Clinton team, their inability to publicly discuss the content of the emails is key to their grievance: How can Clinton defend herself from leaks without talking about what was on her server? The intelligence community inspector general's office has a corresponding problem: It can't fend off Clinton's accusations of partisanship and collusion because it is enjoined from commenting on political matters.

Clinton's calculation seems clear: By framing the controversy over the private email server as a good-faith dispute between two government bureaucracies, she can divert attention from her own culpability in placing so much sensitive information in her own house. But that strategy depends on the State Department standing by her.

That may be changing, at least in public. Whereas in August, department officials said they were confident their own review of the emails revealed no information marked classified at the time it was sent, their public line is now less definitive.

"Our FOIA review process is still ongoing. Once that process is complete, if it is determined that information should be classified as Top Secret we will do so," State Department spokesman John Kirby told me in a statement.

Intelligence officials, even inspectors general, are not immune from politics, both internal and partisan. But Clinton's team simply cannot prove that McCullough is leaking against them. Her campaign can only muddy the waters and delay until the FBI finishes its work. If the Clinton campaign decides then to go after the FBI, it will be picking a fight with an even more formidable opponent.

Josh Rogin is a Bloomberg View columnist.
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By Marc Champion

It isn't often that a judge in one country accuses the president of another  a superpower, no less  of participating in murder. Thursday, however, the chairman of a lengthy U.K. inquiry into the 2006 poisoning of a former Russian intelligence operative, Alexander Litvinenko, did just that.

The words that Sir Robert Owen used to conclude his report are so extraordinary they're worth quoting:

"Taking full account of all the evidence and analysis available to me, I find that the FSB operation to kill Mr. Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr. Patrushev and also by President Putin."

Owen was referring, of course, to Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as to Nikolai Patrushev, then head of the Federal Security Service (FSB) and now secretary of the Russian security council. The judge also said he was "sure" Litvinenko was killed by the radioactive polonium-210 isotope found in his body, and that this was administered by two ex-FSB colleagues he met for tea in London's ritzy Mayfair district.

Litvinenko's murder is one of the most publicly investigated in history, so much of what is in the report isn't new. But to have a recently retired British High Court judge say he is "sure" (for which read "beyond a reasonable doubt") about the guilt of Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun is a sobering moment for Britain  and should be just as serious for Russia. Since the murder, Putin has personally honored Lugovoi, who has been turned into a national hero and senior member of the Russian parliament.

Just as widely accepted outside Russia is the finding that the two men were working on the orders of the FSB. But to say the hit was "probably" ordered by Putin takes quite a leap. It's a finding that Owen based on testimony from witnesses he acknowledges to have been biased, and from the historian Robert Service, about the way in which Russia's hierarchy works.

There are two things to say on this. The first is that Owen seems to have been more willing than he should to believe everything told him by Litvinenko's shady circle of ex-FSB friends. He relies in part on their accounts to establish the Kremlin's motive for murder. These include a book about a series of 1999 apartment bombings around Russia that triggered the second Chechen War and helped propel Putin to the presidency. Litvinenko and his friends maintain these weren't carried out by Chechen terrorists, as generally believed, but by the FSB. Much remains unexplained about those bombings, but the case has hardly been proved to a level that could be used in any court of law. Even so, Owen says:

"On the evidence I heard, the book was more than a political tract  it was the product of careful research. Professor Service's view was that the two men had 'credibly investigated' the issue and, although their contentions about it had not been 'proved 100 percent,' he considered they were more likely than not to be accurate. He said that: 'the Felshtinsky and Litvinenko book piled up the evidence pointing a very damaging finger at the FSB and its involvement in those explosions.' "

The second thing to say is that most people outside Russia will, like the judge, conclude in their gut that Putin approved Litvinenko's assassination. It has come to fit their expectations of what Russia and its leader do.

Already, Russia has dismissed the findings as politically motivated and warned of "serious consequences" to its relations with the U.K. Yet the only way Putin will persuade the rest of the world to accept his word over Owen's is to send Lugovoi and Kovtun to face trial in the U.K. Nothing else will do  and nothing is less likely to happen.

Equally, although U.K. Home Secretary Theresa May told parliament Thursday that Russia would face a tough response, it won't. May at first resisted holding an independent inquiry, precisely because it would highlight the U.K.'s inability to punish Russia for committing murder in the streets of London.

Putin shouldn't be too smug, though. The story of the last years has been one of his steady descent from a leader welcomed and even feted around the world, to one whose hand is shaken only reluctantly. The belief is that he is a man who orders assassinations in supposedly friendly nations, sends troops to invade supposedly fraternal neighbors and denies everything when those troops shoot down a passenger airliner.

These concerns probably won't hurt Putin domestically. Yet they are forcing him ever further into the defensive crouch of an ordinary dictator, one who may be popular for now but will never be able to afford the risk of genuine elections because of the retribution he might face on losing office. It is a sad story considering the possibilities Putin had  and for a while seemed to grasp  when he came to power 16 years ago.

Marc Champion writes editorials on international affairs for Bloomberg View.
Utility trucks are staged near Goodman Road and I-55 in DeSoto County in the event of additional snow and ice that may damage power lines.



SHARE Jose Lopez, with L&T Environmental Services, loads a 300-pound hopper with an environment-friendly non-sodium de-icer to spread on the parking lot and walkways of Tanger Outlets in Southaven, Mississippi. The mall will open around 2 p.m. on Friday. Related Photos Snow Day Gallery

By From Staff Reports

Despite the weather falling short of the maximum prediction of a half-foot of snow and blizzard-like conditions, our reporters have filed dispatches about what they are seeing across the area.

10:55 a.m.

The Memphis Light Gas & Water Division map was quiet most of the morning with nothing more than a few spot outages.

Mid-morning a pocket of problems appeared in the Bartlett and Lakeland areas. According to the map, the most significant spot was between U.S. 70 and Interstate 40 on either side of the Brunswick Road corridor.

About 1,700 customers appeared to be affected.

About 11 a.m. the map cleared and was back to six outages and 33 customers impacted, indicating the problem was resolved.

And the problems shifted from Bartlett-Lakeland to isolated spots in Germantown and Cordova. -- Staff

10 a.m.

Winter weather forced some delays in planes leaving FedEx's world hub in Memphis overnight, and the company said Friday customers could experience delays because of the storm.

"With this wintry weather, some customers may experience service delays, but we are working hard to move and deliver customer shipments," a FedEx statement said.

The company said shipment status is available at fedex.com or by calling 1-800-GO-FEDEX.

"In the meantime, our staff of meteorologists and operations people are continuing to monitor this weather system as it moves through Memphis," the statement said.

Spokesman Jim McCluskey said contingency plans put in place included adjusting aircraft departure times, re-routing some flights to the Indianapolis hub and enlisting additional trucks. -- Wayne Risher

9:40 a.m.

Evidence that the weather predictions fell short of expectations, a couple of entites changed their minds Friday about closing.

"When we made the decision (Thursday) night to close Lifeblood donor centers (Friday), we were anticpating a more significant weather impact," Danny Garrick, Lifeblood's executive director, said. "It was a difficult call to make as we are critically low on blood and platelets."

The shortage, coupled with less-than-treacherous driving conditions led LifeBlood to open its Bartlett, Desoto and Germantown locations from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in order to address the ongoing blood shortage.

In addition to Lifeblood, the Children's Museum of Memphis announced it will open at noon.

"Due to the fantastic job of the Memphis city crews on the streets and the (museum) staff clearing the parking lot in the early morning hours, we are able to open for business at noon (Friday)," Richard Hackett, the museum's chief executive officer, said.-- Staff

8:44 a.m.

Hoping to get ahead of the push, Germantown Hardware put in an order for 300-400 sleds and snow disks Monday, bigger than normal, when it looked like the region was in for a wallop.

It was a great idea, except for one thing -- the truck delivering them is snowbound in Sikeston, Missouri, right now, said Rodney Strop, an old, retired, clerk around here.

We sold out yesterday morning of everything we had around here, Strop said, which was about 100 pieces of sledding equipment.

Strops not worried in the least about having a bunch of seasonal inventory left over.

Well be ready for February when that truck gets here. Well have another bad weather outlook before its over. -- Jane Roberts

8:10 a.m.

Memphis Public Works sent out 16 vehicles to salt and sand the city's bridges and streets early Friday, but idled its snow clearing vehicles.

"Due to not getting much accumulation, we are not putting out snow plows at this time," said Public Works spokeswoman Arlenia Cole.

She added: "So far, the roads seem to be OK."

She said snow was still falling in parts of Memphis, and that the city will continue to monitor the weather.

Oh, and one other thing: City of Memphis offices remain open, per its policy not to close for inclement weather, according to Mayor Jim Strickland's office.

--Ryan Poe



7:57 a.m.

The state announced Friday morning that offices statewide are closed. Officials announced Thursday night that state offices in Memphis and West Tennessee were closed. -- Richard Locker



7:45 a.m.

DeSoto County Environmental Services Manager Ray Laughter said Waste Connections will continue to run garbage routes in unincorporated areas of DeSoto County as scheduled Friday. However, the county rubbish pit on Sandidge Road will be closed. -- Ron Maxey

7:30 a.m.

One minor fender bender involving two cars was reported in Germantown -- on Poplar east of Germantown Road. Streets were quiet and city salt trucks have been working for hours. -- Jane Roberts

7:20 a.m.

In the early hours Friday morning, the aisles of Kroger in Poplar Plaza were filled with restocking activity. That included a wide selection of bread. -- Tom Bailey Jr.

7 a.m.

Wolf River Boulevard through Collierville and Germantown was clear with traffic moving slightly slower than normal. Bridges are slick, but otherwise roads were not icy or slippery. -- Mark Russell

6:55 a.m.

After delays of some FedEx and passenger flights earlier in the morning, cancellations started rolling in. Nine cancellations of scheduled arrivals were noted before 1 p.m. at Memphis International Airport. -- Wayne Risher
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I first wrote about the hype surrounding the Internet of Things in 2004. Back then, industry analysts predicted that tens of billions of things would be connected to the Internet within five years. It didnt happen.

Now the hype is back. The 50 billion things that were supposed to be connected by 2010 were merely postponed. The new projected arrival date is 2020.

Dont get me wrong. The Internet of Things (IoT) is an exciting growth opportunity. (Its also a misnomer, but that's a discussion for a future post.) The problem is that it is really many different opportunities, each of which will grow at its own pace. A few markets, such as asset tracking and automatic meter reading, have achieved considerable traction. Others, such as connected cars and smart homes, show great promise. And we all look forward to the day when sensors embedded in our clothing detect health problems in their earliest and most treatable stages.

We still have to learn how to find the value in oceans of data. As Francis daCosta suggests in his free Kindle book, Rethinking the Internet of Things, if we deploy enough wind speed, wind direction, barometric pressure and temperature sensors then we may learn to predict precisely where the next tornado will form. The Internet of Things has many unknown unknowns.

Significant progress has been made over the past decade. We now have low-cost sensors, cloud-based services with global reach and big data analytics. What stands in the way of many promising applications (such as supply-chain management) is the dearth of ubiquitous, low-cost connectivity.

Expanding wireless options

Todays wireless landscape presents a dilemma. Mobile and satellite networks have great coverage, but they werent designed for the IoT. New networks were designed from the ground up for IoT, but they dont yet provide enough coverage.

One way around the problem is to adapt existing mobile phone and satellite networks to IoT needs. Based in North America, Aeris Communications and Kore serve as intermediaries between enterprises requiring broad geographical coverage and mobile operators. The two companies purchase wholesale data service from operators all over the world so that their customers only have to deal with one service provider. Aeris Communications platform provides 2G, 3G, and 4G connectivity, device management (such as provisioning and billing), and sensor data analytics. (Aeriss CTO Syed Z. Hosain has also written a free e-book that provides an excellent introduction to the Internet of Things for business.) Kore pioneered M2M service rate plans, provides unified management of cellular and satellite network services in more than 180 countries, and serves customers using its PRiSMPro platform with redundant data centers in Atlanta and Las Vegas.

Mobile phone and satellite services are a good fit for monitoring critical assets. In some cases, a critical asset (such as an 18-wheeler) may be equipped with multiple sensors and actuators. These can be networked locally using short-range technologies such as ZigBee, Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. The data can be aggregated by a router or gateway and forwarded over the mobile phone or satellite connection.

However, there are many applications that call for communicating intermittently with simple, inexpensive devices that are dispersed around a city or the countryside. These devices could be installed on street lamps, fire hydrants and traffic signals. Or they could be deployed by farmers to monitor soil moisture. They are too scattered to use short-range wireless technologies, and too numerous and cost-sensitive to use satellite or mobile phone service.

Fortunately, a new generation of low power wide area (LPWA) networks are being built that are specifically designed for such IoT applications. These networks can usually cover a city for an order of magnitude lower cost than a mobile phone network, and they are typically optimized to handle many short messages from large numbers of battery-powered devices.

San Diego-based Ingenu (formerly On-Ramp Wireless) bring[s] connectivity exclusively to machines. The company says that its proprietary random phase multiple access (RPMA) technology enables wide area connectivity using unlicensed devices in the globally-available 2.4 GHz band. An RPMA access point can cover 30 to 200 square miles, depending on terrain, communicating with devices that can run for years without having to replace their batteries. Ingenu says it can serve devices that individually consume less than 3 MB of data per month. The company claims 38 private networks operational in 20 countries. Ingenu provides the technology -- operators build their own networks and choose their own business models.

Based in Frances IoT Valley, Sigfox competes for similar business using a different approach. The firm sees itself lowering the barriers to Internet of Things connectivity by providing simple, economical, energy-efficient two-way transmission of small quantities of data over long distances. Using ultra narrow band (UNB) technology at frequencies below 1 GHz (such as the unlicensed 900 MHz band in the U.S.), Sigfox sells base stations that can cover areas with a radius of a few kilometers (in urban centers) to 50 kilometers (in rural settings). Operators must share a small percentage of their revenue with Sigfox. Sigfox claims 7 million connections in 12 countries (four of which have built out nationwide networks). In addition to familiar applications, creative solutions inspired by Sigfox include a smart button that hotels and restaurants use to call taxis and a sensor for detecting when a fire hydrant has been opened.

Based in San Jose, California, Silver Spring Networks uses a mesh network architecture based on the 802.11.15.4g standard (also known as Wi-SUN) supporting speeds up to about 1 mbps. The company focuses on utility networks and smart cities -- what CEO Mike Bell calls the Internet of critical Things. One advantage of a mesh network is that its easy to extend coverage a little further (in a cellular network, a new base station may be required). Silver Spring claims 22 million devices connected. Customers include the city of Glasgow, Scotland and Oklahoma Gas & Electric.

Cellular fights back

Given the huge market forecasts, the mobile phone industry is busy developing IoT standards for 4G and 5G. The industrys answer to radically different architectures (LPWA and mesh) is an assortment of network, protocol, and device enhancements. This includes LTE-M, which will enable devices that use less bandwidth, consume less power and are less expensive. Whats still missing is the motivation to weigh down networks that are expensive to build and operate with things that, individually, generate very little revenue.

Likewise, there are reasons to be skeptical about the role of IoT in 5G. The mobile phone industry has its hands full trying to deliver greater capacity, lower latency, and higher speeds. At some point you have to ask whether it wouldnt make more sense to build separate networks for IoT.

The Internet of Things will require a range of technologies and business models. Its good to see more connectivity options from companies with real customers starting to emerge. Because growing the IoT market will continue to take time.
Charts and graphs may be some of the most commonly used tools for bringing data sets to life, but Narrative Science wants you to consider another one: stories.

The company already helps enterprises put data-driven stories to work through its flagship Quill natural language generation platform, and on Wednesday it debuted a new option in the form of an extension designed specifically for users of visual analytics tools from business intelligence software vendor Qlik.

Companies that use Qlik Sense data-visualization software can now download the free Narratives for Qlik extension and automatically create stories that explain what's most interesting and important about their graphs and charts.

Narratives for Qlik automatically identifies what is most relevant in a chart or graph and generates an accompanying narrative. It also dynamically responds as the user refines the analysis, Narrative Science says.

Insights are described in natural, easily understood language, with personalization available to reflect the desired level of story detail, composition, format and language style.

"We've been talking in the business-intelligence world for many years now about making your data tell a story," said Seth Grimes, an analyst with IT consultancy Alta Plana. "This does that. It turns your data into a story in words."

That, in turn, can facilitate understanding of the data, Grimes added.

"What we're talking about here is really a new twist on reporting," he explained. "Instead of a bar chart or pie chart, the software will generate in words what you'd see in the picture."

By offering a new access point for understanding data, the tool could be particularly useful for people with visual disabilities, or as a "crutch" for business users during presentations, he suggested.

In short, "it's a mechanism for simplifying the interpretation of data for a broad set of users," Grimes said. "I'm expecting we'll see something similar from competitors."
A HUNTER has been brought in to shoot and destroy asian hornet nests in a bid to protect the honey-producing bee population.

The move by the Alpes-Maritimes departmental council has already seen hunter Didier Calcagno destroy about 40 nests.

Nests are easily visible as large rugby-ball shaped masses in leafless trees at the moment and Nice Matin said that a couple of shots with a 12mm shotgun made short work of them.

The commune of Sospel has seen local honey production fall from about 45kg per hive to 4kg due to the predation by the frelon asiatique, which hover outside the hive and grab bees in midair as they fly in or out.

First seen in the south-west of France in 2004, the asian hornet has rapidly spread across the country and they were first seen in Brittany capital Rennes in 2011 where three nests destroyed in 2012, 11 in 2013 and 70 in 2014.

However, there are doubts as to whether destroying the nests at this time of year is worthwhile as the queens have already left to spend winter underground where it is warmer. They build new nests each year and each colony can have up to 5,000 hornets.

Destroying them or their nests in spring or summer is difficult and dangerous  with several people having been killed due to frelon stings  and the best option is to contact your mairie.

Asian hornet nest photo: Fredciel
THE number of people visiting thermal baths for medical treatments is rising, but doctors remain sceptical about their effectiveness.

In 2015 more than 560,000 people visited 89 thermal baths in France, up 2.5% on the previous year according to figures by the Conseil national des etablissements thermaux (CNETh).

It says the baths can help with rheumatism, asthma or eczema, sleeping problems and depression - and the State will give a 65% reimbursement of a set tariff for such treatments

CNETh is currently holding its annual salon in Paris and executive officer, Claude-Eugene Bouvier, said the figures were the sixth annual consecutive rise.

He added that one of the key reasons was an ageing population with older people seeing the baths as an alternative to medicinal gavage where they are stuffed with drugs.

While the president of the scientific council for the Association francaise pour la recherche thermale said that 150 studies over 25 years had shown the effectiveness of thermal baths, other medical institutions are not convinced.

The former president of the nation union of junior doctors,Theo Combes, said he remained sceptical over allegations of therapeutic effectiveness.

I see patients who, sometimes come back on better form, sometimes more tired, this contrasts with the publicity for these baths, he said.

If it was as miraculous as that, we would know it, he added.

Thermal baths needed to be examined as to whether they were an effective use of public money, said Dr Combes.

Doctors can prescribe a treatment at thermal baths and the state reimburses 65% of a set tariff for these visits. It is estimated that 43% of the baths 500 million turnover gets ploughed back into the state in the form of social charges and tax.

Photo: Flickr/David
Zac Goldsmith MP is MP for Richmond Park and the Conservative candidate for Mayor of London.

Its been a busy week for Back Zac 2016, heres a quick update on the campaign.

On Monday morning commuters were greeted with leaflets spelling out my commitment to protect London from unnecessary tube strikes. For some time Ive been fighting for TfL to be classified as an essential public service, so a strike can only go ahead if it has clear support from union members.

This week the Government agreed to my proposal. Its another result for the people of Greater London, and one that Khan, Corbyn and the unions have worked hand-in-glove to oppose.

The big event of the week was on Tuesday in Croydon, where I launched my Action Plan for Greater London. Its a plan to deliver on the issues that matter most to Londoners: more homes, better transport, cleaner air and safer streets.

My plan on tackling housing got a lot of pick-up. In particular, my Londoners First rule, where any new housing built on mayoral land will only be sold to Londoners for the first year that the homes are on sale. Its all part of a wider plan designed to drive up homeownership and double house-building to 50,000 a year by the end of the mayoral term.

I also set out the clear choice at this election: between a strong Mayor who can work with government to get things done, or a deeply partisan politician in debt to the Corbyn machine. With London depending on the Chancellor for 93 percent of its funding, the next Mayor has to be able to work with this Government. Yet Khan has no record of working with other parties and no interest in doing so now.

Thursday brought another example of what this choice means. The Government has now agreed to put suburban rail services under mayoral control, so we can offer an Overground level of service to South London. Its something Ive long campaigned for, as an MP and a mayoral candidate, so Im delighted my campaign has delivered. Khan, by contrast, was nowhere to be seen on this issue when he was a transport minister. He hasnt even raised it with this Government, either as an MP or a candidate.

I spent the rest of the week getting the message out. Media attention is vital, but theres no substitute for a face to face with voters. Its why Ive been hitting the streets in Chingford and Wood Green, in Orpington with our brilliant GLA leader Gareth Bacon, and in Croydon and Sutton with our formidable GLA candidate Steve O Connell.

I know we have a tough battle ahead. Labour, the unions, and Corbyns Momentum are all determined to get their man into City Hall.

Its our civic duty to stop them. London is too important to be used as a test bed for Corbyns radical policies. Its why Im counting on your support to win this fight.

So if you agree with me that London needs a mayor who can work with Government to get things done, sign up here.
Todays Daily Telegraph editorial calls for the MPs Code of Conduct to be scrapped, and replaced with truly independent scrutiny. It is mistaken.

This should not be mistaken for a defence of the bizarre decision by the standards commissioner that Jack Straw and Sir Malcolm Rifkind, both of whom were found touting their services to a fictitious Chinese firm, hadnt breached the code.

But in a Parliamentary system is it unrealistic to demand that MPs be prevented from marking their own homework.

MPs sit at the pinnacle of our constitution, and compose the dominant element of our sovereign Parliament. They will sit in judgement over any regulator, no matter how nominally independent it is.

The best, most practical way to ensure that the privileges of office are fairly and honourably used in the present system is what we have at the moment: transparency and an enquiring media.

It was journalists from the Telegraph, in conjunction with Channel 4, who set up the sting which caught Straw and Rifkind. Rather than demanding a quango, that paper should celebrate the proper role of the press in our organic, flexible constitution.

The alternative, of course, would be to bar MPs from having outside interests at all. Make them full-time legislators and give them a substantial pay rise. There are several strong arguments against this.

Not least is that it would mark the end of the idea of politics as a vocation, and MPs as citizen-representatives who served in Parliament as part of a broader, independent life.

Not unrelated to that, it would make MPs entirely dependent on the Government for their material advancement. The only route to a pay rise  which all of us want  would be through loyalty to the executive and a place on the payroll vote.

Such a route might eventually conclude with the actual separation of the legislature and the executive  after all, being a minister has nothing to do with representing ones constituents either. In pre-war politics, MPs actually had to face a by-election to join the Government.

Nor should the prospect of a Commons filled only with people who want only to be legislators please anybody even marginally sceptical of the ambitions of the modern state.

Outside interests broaden the range of people politics can accommodate, give MPs more exposure to life outside Westminster, and increase their independence from Government patronage.

If the modern Commons has a shortcoming it is that too few MPs have such a hinterland, not too many. Not for nothing to voters complain that modern politicians are all the same.

Yet the members of a sovereign Parliament are always going to be their own highest authority, at least in strictly legal terms. Thank goodness we have a diligent press corps to keep them honest.
Of the various complexities floating around the EU referendum, one seems to inspire more head-scratching than most. The question of whether Britain should have two referendums rather than one has been around for a while  even George Osborne was forced to reject it on Newsnight last week. Dominic Cummings, Vote Leaves campaign director, was advocating a second referendum in a Bloomberg interview only yesterday, while Leave.EUs Arron Banks dismissed it as a cheap trick on Monday. But where does the idea come from, why is it being suggested and would it be a good idea?

The genesis of a second referendum lies in the fundamental question which inhabits every polling booth: security or risk? Thats a key dividing line in any election, and arguably even more so in a referendum. Do you stick with Gordon Brown, whos held high office for years, or do you think its time for a change and back Cameron? Do you want to keep First Past The Post, which has served us for so long, or do you want AV, to shake up a malfunctioning political system? Should Scots stay in the good old Union, or cut themselves free of broken Westminster politics?

Both Leave and Remain campaigns are already racing to paint their opponents as offering the true risky option in the EU referendum. Pro-EU campaigners seek to conjure up fears that Brexit would be a leap in the dark, while their anti-EU opponents argue that staying in thrall to Brussels puts us on a road to less democracy and a withering economy.

The conventional wisdom is that those pressing for change are most vulnerable to the electorates fear of risk. Better the devil you know is believe to be a compelling mantra for previously undecided voters. Certainly the AV and Scottish independence ballots would seem to bear that out  though of course the same electorate regularly opt for change when it comes to elections, and the pro-change side do win sometimes, so evidently it isnt a strict rule.

The second referendum concept is born of that strategic challenge. If your opponents intend to raise endless fears about change being too risky, then giving people another vote further down the line could function to blunt their argument. And when it does come to a second vote, by that time people might already in the mindset of considering the proposed change to be a real, plausible future.

Downing Street reportedly feared that Salmond would pursue such an approach on Scottish independence for all these reasons  so it isnt that surprising that it has come to mind among some of those thinking about the EU referendum. In a speech hosted by ConservativeHome in 2012, David Davis proposed a double referendum on the EU, which we reported as follows:

First, a Mandate referendum would take place, to give a Conservative Prime Minister a mandate to get as close as possible to the trading alliance, the common market we all voted for in 1975. If passed, voters would have made it clear that they want to leave the EU as it presently stands. Next, if the people had voted Yes, there would be a renegotiation with the aim of getting as close as possible to that trading alliance. And finally, there would be a second referendum  a Decision Referendum  which would give voters the option of accepting the renegotiation terms. Mr Davis wants the Mandate Referendum as well as the Act to take place in this Parliament.

Of course, that didnt happen  the Prime Minister decided to hold a renegotiation first, followed by a referendum to either stay in on the renegotiated terms (whatever they may prove to be) or to leave.

Cummings version of the concept, which he mulled in a blogpost last June, is that the forthcoming referendum would be on whether to Remain in the EU on Camerons renegotiated terms or to Leave. After that referendum, the Government would enter negotiations to Leave the EU  as laid out in Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty  and a second referendum could take place on the outcome of those negotiations. Brussels could, perhaps, offer better terms during those negotiations, rendering the process one from which Britain would gain either way.

The idea has its pros and cons. On the plus side:

The blunting of the risk argument  on the basis that it wouldnt be a completely final decision  would likely provide some reassurance about voting Leave. If you want to leave the EU, then this could be a route to reassure undecided voters, win the first referendum and then win the second by virtue of people becoming accustomed to the idea. As Cummings put it to Bloomberg, the plan seeks to make the initial referendum a free hit.

If you do want to stay in a sizeably reformed EU, then an initial referendum to put the frighteners on Brussels could deliver better terms than Camerons renegotiation. According to the Sunday Times, Boris has reportedly told friends that an initial vote to Leave would constitute playing hardball, generating a more productive renegotiation before the second referendum.

And on the down side:

EU law may stand in the way. Over at the UCL Constitution Unit, Alan Renwick recites the specific requirement of Article 50  which makes no provision for the idea of a Member State starting negotiations to leave but then deciding to stay on improved terms. It [the second referendum] would require a negotiation for revised membership terms, when what Article 50 provides for is a negotiation to cease membership, he writes. Thats arguably deliberate  the EU designing the rules of its own club precisely in order to make leaving look like a daunting task, and providing limited scope for using a threat to leave as a stick with which to demand a renegotiated relationship (indeed, such behaviour is a good argument for why this is not a desirable club to be in). This element shouldnt be overstated, though: details of the Treaty matter, but only to a degree; ultimately, Parliament and the Government can do what they like and vote to leave treaties however they might wish.

While a dual referendum approach might reassure wavering voters, it might simultaneously lose the enthusiasm of voters who definitely, absolutely want to leave the EU. After all, if the first referendum didnt necessarily mean getting to leave the EU after all, how safe is it to assume that nailed-on Leave voters will come out and vote in it?

The whole proposal is more than a little confusing. A referendum is meant to present a straightforward choice on a topic  as a matter of fact, that is often the criticism levelled at the concept of referendums by their opponents. Given the large task of debating our relationship with the EU lies ahead, is it necessarily wise to add the challenge of explaining a further ballot, more negotiations and the dry material of articles of the Lisbon Treaty?

Finally, it must be said that the idea raises the hackles of some hardcore eurosceptics. Holding a second referendum is not a concept which has an honourable history in EU politics  in the past the Dutch, the Danes and the Irish have at one time or another rejected EU treaties by means of a referendum, only to be made to vote again, at which point the rejections were reversed. This instance might be different, a second referendum demanded by eurosceptics rather than by the Eurocrats, but the taint of that memory will be hard to shake off. For some elements in UKIP, in particular, who already claim that Vote Leave is an elaborate con trick to keep Britain in the EU, the appearance of such a tactic is fuel to their conspiracy theory fire.

The second referendum is an elegant strategic solution to a strategic challenge  the Chancellors eagerness to reject it out of hand suggests that he knows that it could pose a serious problem for the Remain campaign. But as well as its benefits it also has attendant risks.

More importantly, though, even if it were a perfect idea the question remains: how could it actually come about? The single referendum is already laid down in statute, and thus far the Government shows no inclination to change that. For Cummings, the moment when it might be feasible is when Cameron comes back with his renegotiation  and it would need a Cabinet heavyweight to stick their neck out and demand it, on the basis that the Prime Ministers deal is insufficient. Thats a very big ask, and he only has a very narrow window in which to get an answer.
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From Florida and Illinois, new cases of the Zika virus infection have been reported. The three cases from Florida include two from Miami-Dade County, who visited Colombia in December. The third case was a resident from Hillsborough County, who visited Venezuela in December.

Health Department officials told Florida residents to "protect themselves from all mosquito-borne illnesses by draining standing water; covering their skin with repellent and clothing; covering windows with screens and other basic precautions," according to the Examiner.

Also, in Illinois, two pregnant women were said to have contracted the infection. Nirav Shah, director of the Department of Public Health of Illinois said: "Two pregnant Illinois residents who recently traveled to countries where Zika virus is found have tested positive for the virus. Physicians are monitoring their health and pregnancies. There is virtually no risk to Illinois residents since you cannot contract Zika virus from another person, but only through the bite of an infected mosquito," according to Central Illinois Proud.

The Centers for Disease Control has issued a travel alert (Level 2 - Practice Enhanced Precautions) for anyone who plans to visit places where the virus is alive, including places such as El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay, Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, French Guiana, Suriname, Haiti, Martinique, Puerto Rico and Mexico.

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As the mosquito-transmitted Zika virus sweeps through a number of countries in Caribbean and Latin America, US health officials fear a similar outbreak on American soil. So far, five people in the US have been reportedly known to have contracted the disease after arriving back from health-risk countries where the number of recorded infections is particularly high.

In response to a surge of Zika cases abroad, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released interim guidelines for pregnant women.

The said guidelines recommend the caring procedures for pregnant women with potential exposure to the virus linked to neurological birth defects. The recommendations are intended to handle cases of pregnant women who have recently traveled to Zika-hit areas.

The rolling out of interim guidelines subsequently followed the recent decision of CDC to issue a travel alert advising pregnant women to avoid, delay, or postpone any travel plans to countries where Zika infections are widespread.

According to Fox News, women coming back from countries and territories covered under the CDC-issued travel advisory who manifested Zika-associated symptoms should be given the recommended tests under the new guidelines.

Recently, health officials in Hawaii confirmed the first ever US case of baby born with microcephaly linked to Zika virus infection. The mother reportedly contracted the virus and fell ill while staying in Brazil last year.

So far, no viable treatment or vaccine is currently available for infected patients. Health officials hoped that the new recommendations would prevent future outbreaks.

"I think this is likely to be increasing awareness on part of both the public [and] for women who are pregnant," remarked Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University Medical Center as quoted by ABC News.

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In the last three decades, America's club of centenarians is steadily burgeoning according to a recently published report released by the government.

The centenarian segment of the population used to be extremely small. However, experts estimate that the global population of 100-year-olds will climb to 6 million by 2050 as stated in a published article by US News and World Report. This significant demographic change will certainly redefine the current notions of middle and old age.

According to new population data from the Census Bureau, America's population of 100-year-olds has seen a five-fold increase or 65.8% growth since the 1980's. Of all US states, California has the largest share of centenarians- 5, 921- owing to its large population.

Another government report from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also supports the Census Bureau data. The CDC report on mortality among centenarians shows a 43% climb from 50, 281 in 2000 to 72,197 in 2014.

"It's really a sign of continued increase in life expectancy and longevity and a sign of public health efforts and modern medicine over the last two centuries that have contributed to this," remarked Dr. Maria Torroella Carney who heads Northwell Health's geriatric and palliative medicine in New Hyde Park, New York as quoted saying by CBS News.

The growth can be attributed to a number of factors. Post-war changes have seen enormous improvements in healthcare and overall quality of life.

Furthermore, it has been observed that only 35% of American centenarians are receiving elderly care in nursing homes. Majority of them are living independently or with family members.

The burgeoning population of the centenarians and seniors present quite a lot of issues and concerns that will surely affect public spending in the future. Also, as baby boomers begin to surge the ranks of elderly sector, keeping government-funding for them will be difficult.

"Keeping Medicare and Social Security solvent are going to be huge issues. A lot of people have value in their houses, and will use that, but they will go through that money very quickly," said Hans Johnson of Public Policy Institute of California as mentioned in a report by San Francisco Gate.

See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare
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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has headed a new campaign to increase awareness about prediabetes.

The CDC along with the American Medical Association, the American Diabetes Association and the Ad Council have launched the first ever national public service advertising (PSA) campaign for prediabetes, a condition that is characterized by higher than normal blood sugar levels that can lead to a type 2 diabetes diagnosis if left unchecked.

"Eighty-six million people have prediabetes and only 10 percent know they have it," CDC Diabetes Translation Director Ann Albright told CBS News. "No one is excused from prediabetes."

She added, "Fifteen to 30 percent of the people with prediabetes will develop type 2 diabetes within five years if they don't take action and get involved with lifestyle changes."

In the PSA campaign, the medical experts used a little bit of humor to attract people's attention. In the clip below, a comical doctor teaches people how to quickly determine whether or not they most likely have prediabetes.

In the other clips, the doctor sarcastically tells different groups of people such as busy moms that they are not exempt from a having prediabetes, reiterating the fact that anyone have the condition (Watch the clips below).

Albright stated that their decision to use humor was based on a ton of research into how they can effectively reach at-risk groups, which are mainly people in their 40s to 60s.

"This campaign, after a lot of focus testing and research with Ogilvy and Mather, the ad agency, and the Ad Council, we decided that humor was the way to go. It's lighter but it does grab peoples' attention," said Albright. "It's a clever way of helping people see themselves."

Albright and the other experts involved with the campaign hope that people who see these PSA will try and change their lifestyle habits for the better.

"Our hope is that this online test and other campaign materials make it easy for people to know where they stand and will motivate them to take steps to reverse their condition," Lisa Sherman, president and CEO of the Ad Council, said in a statement.

People can take the one-minute long quiz online here or text "RISKTEST" to 97779. If you believe that you could have prediabetes, get tested with primary care doctor.

See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare
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Dennis Crowley, co-founder of Foursquare has announced his resignation from the post of chief executive of the company, that started as a local social check-in tool, as it attempts to regain the old buzz. Jeff Glueck, COO of Foursquare will be taking over as the company's CEO as Crowley steps down and take the position of an executive chairman. However, what hurt the company most was its valuation. Union Square Ventures who released a new funding round of $45 million today also indicated that the company has lost almost half its value since 2013, dropping from $650 million, according to The New York Times.

The situation came up as a moment of truth for Crowley who said that it was impossible to turn Foursquare into the next multi-billion-dollar social network. "Everyone thought we were going to be the company that toppled Facebook, which is crazy talk," Crowley told The New York Times in an interview. There is hope, he says. "We're building a really amazing, very scalable business around the many successful products we've built that people love." For now, Foursquare boasts 50 million users monthly and more than 100,000 developers who are happy to pay for that treasure trove of data, as reported by The Verge

The strongest effort made by Crowley to kick start Foursquare came in 2014 when the company split its check-in feature and made it available exclusively on an app, Swarm. The idea was to position Foursquare as a Yelp contender centered around finding new places nearby while Swarm also had the core social features offered by the original app. The launch didn't click with the users and the company has been struggling ever since to grow their business. It is uncertain what Glueck plans for the company, but according to Crowley "it's important for Foursquare to be run by executives who have previous experience scaling companies," says Business Insider

See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare
Aligarh Muslim University Students Pay Respect To Rohit Vemula

By People for People (AMU)

22 January, 2016

Countercurrents.org

The students of Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh today organized a Candle March Protest on 21 January, from Maulana Azad Library to Baab-e-Syed in solidarity with the ongoing nationwide protests against the state motivated murder of a research scholar of Hyderabad Central University (HCU), Rohith Vemula.

The student fraternity of Aligarh Muslim University strongly condemns the shameless & irresponsible attitude of MHRD, union ministers Bandaru Dattatraya, Smriti Z. Irani and Vice Chancellor & administration of HCU and demands the stringent and quick action against the culprits responsible for the tragic and untimed death of the dalit research scholar cum activist Mr. Rohith Vemula.

This is very unfortunate that instead of uplifting the students from oppressed and weaker sections of society, highest constitutional offices in India like MHRD are indulge in weakening the oppressed classes.

The students of Aligarh Muslim University demands immediate resignation of V.C. of HCU, union labor minister Bangaru Dattatraya and union HRD minister Smriti Z. Irani, directly responsible for the abetment of suicide by Mr. Rohith Vemula

We, the students of Aligarh Muslim University also submits our deep condolences to the family and friends of our brother Mr. Rohith Vemula and demands to stop fabricating the false charges against the SC/ST and minorities of this country as motivated from the RSS and its affiliate organizations like ABVP.








Turkish Invasion Threat Escalates Syrian Conflict

By Bill Van Auken

22 January, 2016

WSWS.org

The Syrian government has formally appealed to the United Nations over incursions into its territory by Turkish troops. The protest at the UN came amid reports that Turkish soldiers have crossed the border and entered the Syrian town of Jarablus on the western bank of the Euphrates River.

Turkish military action inside Syria threatens to escalate the internal conflict in that country and increase the threat of a confrontation between Turkey and Russia. Relations between Ankara and Moscow have remained tense since the November 24 Turkish shoot-down of a Russian warplane over Syrian territory.

Jarablus is under the control of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), but has come under increasing pressure from forces of the Syrian Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG), which have received backing from Washington in its so-called war on ISIS.

Turkey, a NATO ally of the US, is supposedly part of the anti-ISIS coalition. But there is extensive evidence that the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has facilitated the flow of fighters, arms and money to the Islamist militia and tacitly sanctioned the smuggling into Turkey of oil produced by ISIS-controlled installations in Syria.

The primary Turkish interest in Syria has been to block the consolidation of an autonomous Kurdish region on Turkeys southern border. The government in Ankara has declared that any attempt by the YPG to cross to the western bank of the Euphrates and link up the two Kurdish cantons of Kobane and Afrin would be a red line that would trigger Turkish military intervention.

ISIS fighters have reportedly offered no resistance to the Turkish incursion, underscoring the barely concealed collaboration between the Islamists and the Turkish state.

The Syrian Kurdish ARA News service reported that the Turkish army carried out an artillery attack on Tuesday against the YPG headquarters in the Syrian border town of Tel Abyad, wounding at least two Kurdish fighters and destroying three armored vehicles.

The city, which is north of the de facto ISIS capital of Raqqa, was retaken by YPG units in fighting with the Salafist jihadi militia last June.

Turkeys warmongering in Syria is bound up with its bloody campaign of repression against the Kurdish population within Turkey itself. Amnesty International on Wednesday condemned the Turkish government for carrying out collective punishment against its Kurdish population through round-the-clock curfews and other arbitrary measures which have left residents without access to emergency health care, food, water and electricity for extended periods.

The repression has escalated steadily since the collapse last July of a two-year peace process between the government and the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). More than 300 civilians have been killed in the Turkish campaign, including at least 61 children. Just in the period of December 11, 2015 to January 8, 2016, 162 civilians lost their lives.

US Vice President Joe Biden arrived in Istanbul Thursday night for talks with Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu that will likely center on the twisted and multisided relationship between the Kurdish question, the campaign against ISIS and the Western-orchestrated war for regime-change in Syria.

Washington and Ankara both seek the toppling of the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and both are hostile to Russian interests in the region. There are, however, major tactical differences between them.

While the US has voiced support for Erdogans crackdown against the PKK and the Kurdish population inside Turkey, the Pentagon has dispatched advisors to aid the Kurdish fighters of the YPG on the Syrian side of the border, using them as ground troops to seize territory in the US-led bombing campaign against ISIS.

Erdogan has allowed the US to use the Incirlik air base in Turkey to carry out airstrikes against ISIS positions in Syria, but his military has centered its own strikes on Kurdish forces there as well as in Iraq, where the government in Baghdad has denounced Turkish intervention as a violation of the countrys sovereignty.

Biden is expected to press for Turkey to seal off a 60-mile unsecured stretch of its border with Syria that serves as the principal supply line for ISIS. The Turkish government, however, far prefers ISIS control of the border zone over control by the Kurdish YPG.

Any move to secure the border will inevitably be accompanied by a Turkish intervention to halt a Kurdish advance, either through direct Turkish military occupation or through control over the area by other Al Qaeda-linked militias such as the al-Nusra Front, Ahrar al-Sham or Jaish al-Islam, all of which have enjoyed Turkish support.

The mounting conflicts threaten to upend talks scheduled in Geneva next Monday for the ostensible purpose of achieving a negotiated end to the nearly five-year-old civil war that has claimed the lives of roughly a quarter of a million Syrians and turned millions more into refugees.

US Secretary of State John Kerry allowed on Thursday that the talks could be put off for a day or two. Asked by reporters at the World Economic Forum in Davos whether there would be a delay, Kerry responded, When you say a delay, it may be a day or two for invitations, but there is not going to be a fundamental delay.

The delay, however, concerns precisely the issue of which parties are to receive invitations to attend. Washington and Moscow have agreed that both ISIS and the al-Nusra Front will not be included in any peace talks. However, the Obama administration is insisting that Salafist jihadi outfits such as Ahrar al-Sham and Jaish al-Islam, which share Al Qaedas essential outlook and methods, should be included as moderate rebels. The Russian government has insisted that they be excluded as terrorists.

Moscow, in turn, has called for the Syrian Kurdish YPG to be included in the talks, while Turkey has declared that it sees both it and ISIS as equally terrorist.

According to a report on the Foreign Policy web site, the United Nations special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, reported to the UN Security Council that Saudi Arabia was sabotaging his attempt to bring a broad range of Syrian opposition groups to the Geneva talks.

He said that the so-called High Negotiations Committee (HNC), cobbled together in Riyadh by the Saudi monarchy and dominated by Islamist militias, had rejected the participation of any other groups in the talks. He told the Security Council that the HNC and its sponsors insist on the primacy and exclusivity of their role as THE opposition delegation.

These sponsors include not only the Saudi regime, but also Qatar, Turkey and the US itself. In a briefing Tuesday, State Department spokesman John Kirby said, As we said after Riyadh, the opposition will be represented at that meeting by delegates chosen from the High Negotiating Committee and only from the High Negotiating Committee.

Washingtons aim remains to secure through a combination of negotiations and continuing support for Islamist sectarian militias in Syria what it has so far been unable to achieve: the toppling of Assad and the imposition of a more pliant puppet regime. In continuing to press for this end, it has unleashed a series of bitter regional and international conflicts that threaten to escalate into a far wider war with devastating consequences for the region and the entire world.




Second Most Biased Source Possible Alleges Putin Involved In Assassination

By Robert Barsocchini

22 January, 2016

Countercurrents.org

An inquiry from the second most biased source possible, the UK, (which comes in second to the US), a country completely hostile towards Russia, has speculated that Putin was probably involved in the assassination via poisoning of an ex-spy.

There are several key points to bear in mind when considering such allegations.

First, thanks to xenophobia, ethnocentrism, and racism, it is predictable for most Westerners to think that Putin, or any other political leader not under Western hegemony, (the main qualification for being nefarious), is probably guilty of any villainous act he could possibly be involved in, and, as leading US propaganda outlet NYT has demonstrated, many acts in which he could not be involved.

Second, if we regard inquiries from from hostile parties known to conduct psychological and propaganda warfare as worthwhile, we should be consistent. As I.F. Stone award-winning journalist Robert Parry points out, the Republican right in the US has all kinds of allegations and evidence about assassinations carried out by Bill Clinton of members of his own cabinet, opposition members, and a range of other people. Those on what in the US is called the left dismiss these as conspiracy theories, or at best dubious and fundamentally biased allegations made by a hostile party with massive conflicts of interest, and which is known to rely heavily on propaganda.

However, when identical conspiracy theories are peddled by the West about countries and people the West wants to conquer, such as Russia and Putin, the theories are given credence in the West generally, just like the conspiracy theories about Bill Clinton are given credence within the US Republican right.

When it comes to foreign countries targeted for conquest, Westerners of the left and right join together to do exactly what the US right does to Bill Clinton (and others).

For example, NYT recently printed:

In all likelihood no one in the Kremlin actually ordered the killing [of Nemtsov] The Kremlin has recently created a loose army of avengers who believe they are acting in the countrys best interests, without receiving any explicit instructions.

Imagine an article in Pravda claiming Obama, without orders, has created a loose army of avengers to assassinate journalists like Michael Hastings, and other people around whom assassination theories circulate. The amount of credence a US citizen would give to such allegations from within Russia is the same amount of credence a US citizen attempting to be objective and non-ethnocentric should give to the same conspiratorial allegations when they are made by the US, or its lieutenant countries like the UK, against Russia.

Next, if someone attempting to prove that Putin is the new Hitler, worse than all the mass-slaughtering regimes of the West combined, etc., points to the new UK allegations as a reason to further pressure or sanction Russia, ask whether the person supports those measures being applied to the US government and its allies, which constantly assassinate, torture, and kill people en masse.

As Bill Moyers reports, the US government recently sentenced 59-year old US woman Mary Anne Grady Flores to six months in jail for mildly opposing the US global assassination campaign being run by Obama.

Finally, if we are aiming for true consistency, there is another inquiry to which we must pay heed.

As Parry reports, Almaz-Antey, the Russian arms manufacturer of the Buk systems, conducted its own experiments to determine the likely firing location of the missile that brought down flight MH-17 in Ukraine. His inquiry placed it in an area under Ukrainian government control.

So a Russian inquiry finds that it was probably the Ukrainian junta government, installed with major backing from the US, and which the US continues to support, that brought down the civilian plane, killing almost three hundred people.

When the MH-17 downing was being blamed on Russia, before this report came out, it was a key argument for Western sanctions against that country and major condemnation of Putin.

But now that we know it was carried out by the US side, desperate US/Western calls for immediate sanctions against the gangster Ukrainian government and its dark, nefarious US/Western supporters are surely forthcoming. Any day, now.

Robert Barsocchini is an internationally published author who focuses on force dynamics, national and global, and also writes professionally for the film industry. Updates on Twitter. Authors review of the historical background to the Black Lives Matter movement.






Rohith Vemula Is Alive

By Adv.Rahul S Gade

22 January, 2016

Countercurrents.org

The world's largest democratic nation has once again shown its despicable fangs of inhumanity. The story of Rohith is no different from those who committed suicides in past. Every year at least 4 Dalit students suicides are reported from premier educational institutes of IIT, MBBS, Engineering, etc due to caste discrimination from upper caste Hindus. The real culprits are not the right-wing government alone but the governments in past and those all who are against the principles of equality and liberty enshrined in our constitution, of which we all are equal heirs. The right to life and personal liberty are denied to the dalits overtly at rural parts and subtly at urban parts, by the Hindu upper caste religious orthodoxy. Those like Rohith suffer death if tried to assert these basic rights and proclaimed as Anti-nationalist, Castiest and "Extremist". There is no escape for the dalits running from rural to urban India from the caste Hindus, it should not come as surprise that dalits who managed to leave India for elite nations like UK and the US found Hindu caste orthodoxy poison spreading oversees too.

The Hindu orthodoxy of caste eminence is not restricted to any particular government, institutes, organization including charitable but has infected even other religions. Religions such as Sikh, Christian, and Muslim, whose fundamental belief though different from Hinduism are however influenced by Hindu caste orthodoxy, have evolved into practicing and professing caste within. The dalit students since loathed by the high caste Hindus also suffer the indifference from Muslims, Sikhs, and Christians in presence of caste Hindus, as it would be ignominy for those belonging to other religions to befriend dalits and support them.

The only silver line amongst the caste ridden Indian society are those with truly liberal thoughts who believes in positive change and keep humanity before religion or at par with pious religious beliefs.

BJP or Congress Government- Two sides of same coin.

While people from all caste and religion showed sympathy and condemned the tragic death of the promising research scholar rising from rages to riches academically if not for his democratic activism. It is disheartening to note, the ruling party BJP Government of India along with its sister organizations RSS/ABVP vigorously attempting to portrait the young research scholar, Rohith Vemula, as an Anti-nationalist, Castiest and "Extremist" as a threat to the nation, definitely are politically blind and compelled.

One cannot ignore, the highhanded manner by which the Union Ministers handled the situation, allegedly naming Rohith and his four friends as anti-social elements and pressurizing an autonomous educational institute to penalize the students. Such allegations are but the only reason that led to the death of Rohith, who saw no end to this injustice meted out to them for voicing human rights of freedom of expression (screening of Muzaffarrnagar), freedom of life, against capital punishment (hanging of Yakub Memon), etc. These are the same freedom for which the liberal society word wide raises concern and fight for, and India needs to lead as largest democracy and land of Buddha. It would be unfair and unjust to find any other reason that demoralized and sealed the faith of Rohith, a true nationalist, aspirant social engineer, who dreamt of a society that respects and promotes human values embodied in the principals of constitutionally guaranteed freedoms. Rohiths caste was secondary concern for him, as evident from his successful struggle with his dalit identity, which he in fact successfully maneuvered through reaching to the highest academic level. However, Rohith never would have thought that his voice would be stifled and nipped in bud by pack of wolves positioned at highest level of government authority portraying him as as an Anti-nationalist, Castiest and "Extremist" as a threat to the nation. It was naive of Rohith to underestimate his nemesis in the established organization like RSS/ABVP overtly supported by the Government itself.

The dalit suicides, murders, rape and torture has been prevalent even in the Congress regime. If Rohith would have got murdered inboard day light during Congress regime probably even then there would not have been so much hue and cry. However the way it is flared up during the BJP regime is nothing but politics. Whatever the politics, it is wake-up call for dalits to be united and stand their ground to assert their constitutional rights as citizen of India first and last.

Educational Institutes- biased

Many believe that Rohith was radical enough to be part of such prime educational institute University of Hyderabad however the varsity fail to realize that he truly served his educational institute by upholding the principals of life, and personal liberty, as should be embodied in any educational institutes. Educational institutes that restrict these core principals are nothing but breeding grounds for fanatics, whose objective is to restrict any debates or changes in a democratic ambiance. Rohith rightfully agitated against such fanatic voices that has unabatedly going berserk since the right-wing government came to power at the Center.

In any democratic society, voicing concern within the constitutionally provided parameters no matter against the decision of Government in power should not be a concerned but a healthy sign of difference of opinion. Moreover, demonstration, debates and unions by students within an educational institute campus has far reaching benefits in building the able and ready future leaders of the nation. If this right of students to protest and exchange idea through healthy debate are curbed, it will grow frustration within the students, with wider implications affecting the society at large and the nation itself. While groups like ABVP, NSUI, or others politically motivated groups may have adverse affect on the institutional campus, however impartial reasonable restrictions without any external influence can always promote desirable results. Rohith and such other like-minded were within their constitutional rights to voice their concern against the capital punishment, screening of films or protesting against saffronization.

If the educational institute fail to support and protect the liberal voices, peaceful protest and maintain the impartiality, it would be catastrophic to the nation. If educational institutes served only the fanatic caste-Hindus who laminate every opinion against them as anti-social, would harm the budding intelligentsia leading to many more youths to commit suicide unrestricted to particular caste, gender and our national interest. The youth of India would never dare to question the berserk saffronization of Hindu fanatics or in that cases any fanatic status quo, decisive to the diverse fabric of this country. Such politically motivated actions that tend to destroy the very essence of educational institutes to promote democratic values through open debates and ideas albeit the intricacies of social diversity and conflicts are aptly Anti-nationalist, Castiest and "Extremist".

Judiciary- Mute Spectator

We conveniently blame the Government for their inaction to protect the democratic principles and human rights (Dalits). The legislative branch and the executive branch has shown time and again their incompetence and unwillingness to pass the laws more stringent to curb the caste atrocities, recent example been the pending Scheduled Caste and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Bill 2014. In fact the Executive branch has been radically using the state machinery to serve narrow right wing interest, and Rohtih is its recent victim. Supreme Court of India should feel equally guilty and ashamed about the turns of events that took away a life of a Student, in midst of blatant violation of fundamental rights of life and liberty, within a prime educational institute. The Constitution has enshrined the duty to protect the democracy to the tier of branches Legislative, Executive, and the Judiciary. Each branch has the duty to protect the fundamental rights of the citizens of the India, and question the other for any blatant violation these rights. In case of Rohiths death, his belief in securing justice and having constitutional assigned safe guards were absolutely diminished. Particularly, after what he believed was a difference of opinion with other Student Union, to his disbelief escalated to the extent that Union Ministers personally with unprecedented haste branded him as Anti-national, Castiest and Extremist dangerous to the society. It was definitely, these false allegations and the entire state machinery against him, with no hope for justice, that he was pressurized to kill himself. It was not just the murder of Rohith, but also of the principles of democracy, that the Judiciary is duty bound to guard.

Today, the youth particularly Dalits are in precarious situation whether justice will ever be meant to Rohith. In the larger interest of the public and the nation proud of its largest democracy, for the future of the nation the youth, justice must be done. The entire world has witnessed how the ruling government tortured a young promising Research Scholar to death and is watching whether justice would be served. Any lack of judicial activism at this point of time would be detrimental for the future of the nation, the Judiciary cannot be a mute spectator to such an institutional death; and absolve its duties as one of the guardian of the Indian Constitution. The Supreme Court of India as the symbol of hope should Suo moto take action to bring the perpetrators of Rohiths death to justice, before many more Rohiths succumb to the bias Government.

Dalits- their own enemies

It is time for the Dalits to be their own saviors, and owe the responsibility for Rohiths death and many others. It is high time to realize our unity to seek the advantage of our valuable cumulative vote, and fight the real culprits behind the death of Rohith Vemula and such others in past. It is worth to refer the final words of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, to educate, agitate and organize and have faith in yourself, and let others have no doubt that our battle is in fullest sense spiritual and not for wealth or for power, it is for freedom for reclamation of the human personality (emphasis added). Such golden words, if followed dutifully, we would even garner support from like-minded Hindus, Muslims, Christians or any other religion.

Rohith is just a recent case that has ignited the lost flame of unity amongst dalit brotherhood. Unfortunately, there would be many more such incidences but only time will decide how we are going to face this injustice? and for how long? and at what consequence? definitely remaining fragmented would lead to losing the little breathing space hard fought by Dr. Ambedkar for us. There is no escape how educated you are, or how wealthy you be, or at which part of the world you are, if you shy away from the reality of dalit struggle, unless you confront it as a united force. Need of the hour is to reinforce fragmented dalits into one party, one voice, one demand equality!

As a tribute to Rohith Vemula, it would be befitting to quote the greatest social reformer of all time Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, The question is not whether a community lives or dies, the question is on what plane does it live. There are different modes of survival. But all are not equally honorable. For an individual as well as a society, there is a gulf between merely living and living worthily. To fight in a battle and live in a glory is one mode. To beat a retreat to surrender and to live the life of a captive is also a mode of survival.

KEEP THE FLAME OF ROHITH ALIVE!

At age of 26, Rohith Vemula

Died, cold murdered, homicide

Left his legacy of fight

Against atrocious tide

Of mislaid humanity

Death too wonders,

What killed him tender?

Injustice if condemned,

I too would have delayed

Avoided brazen condolences



Perpetrators of this heinous act

Unfazed by a scholars death

Like Vultures on corpse

Alas! they dont realize

His thoughts will survive eternity



Transcending all forms of inequality

In the sea of inhumanity

Guiding light for many

"Rohith" a new star is born, for world to see

And salute its immortality



Adv.Rahul S Gade LL.M.,USA Legal practitioner, social activist, poet http://www.poetrysoup.com/me/rahulgade15004, and ardent Buddhist Email: adv.rahulgade@gmail.com




Horrendous Case Of Atrocity Inflicted On A Dalit Child In UP



By Vidya Bhushan Rawat



22 January, 2016

Countercurrents.org

It was 9 am in the morning of December 28th. Jamuna Devi and her husband Mahendra Gautam had gone out for their usual daily wage work in Maharajganj block of district Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh. Eight years old Shivam did not go to his school that day. His five years old sister was with him at their nondescript residence. The family belonged to Chamar community, one of the biggest communities among Dalits in UP, and is absolutely landless with no way to survive except working as agricultural labourers at various places.



Jaunpur is very violent zone in terms of violence against Dalits with Brahmin, Rajputs and Yadavs dominating the region and are the main landowning communities here. Dalits work as agricultural workers here. There are brick kiln as well as carpet industry of Varanasi and Bhadohi in the nearby region hence child and bonded labor are quite common here. Any resistance is met with life threatening violent oppression. Varanasi is merely 50 kilometer from Jaunpur while Allahabad is nearly 60 kilometer but Maharajganj is much closure to district Pratapgarh and the feudalism is still prevalent in the entire belt.



At around 9 am in the morning Radhey Shaym Tiwari and Vijay Nath Tiwari s/o Ganga Prasad Tiwari, village Gaura Khurd, Maharajganj, Jaunpur Uttar Pradesh came along with Sudhansu and Ankit all from Tiwari family and picked up Shivam alias Photo to work at their sugarcane crusher machine. Shivam did not want to go there but he was slapped and abused. He remained there for a few minutes and ran away to the nearby locality of barbar community as soon as he got the opportunity but the Tiwari goons were running after him and traced him there. They again beat up the boy, abused him in the filthiest caste abuses threatening him with dire consequences if he did not work. The innocent child was not interested hence got beaten up for his reluctance. They threatened him again saying if he did not work they would throw him into the machine. When the little boy did not budge the Tiwaris forcibly threw him on the crusher machine which resulted in his hand getting caught in it. He cried in pain but there was no one to support. But the brave heart somehow tried to run screaming in pain but fell unconscious. Some people heard the noise and scream of the innocent child and informed the family. When the family got intimation of this, they rushed to the house of Radheyshyam Tiwari .The Tiwaris ran away from the spot. The family then took the child and went straight to the Maharajganj police station where the police officers refused to file an FIR and just contemptuously rebuked the family. Frightened and worried they had no hope left hence their major focus shifted to save their child.



There was no government hospital available to do such an serious injury hence the only option for the family was to look for some private clinic to save the life of their child. Finally, the family found a private clinic in Machhlishahar where the doctor informed them that the the hand is so damaged that it had to be cut. For the child and the family it was most traumatic thing but we know the family cant even express her pains and agonies. If this case were in any urban area and with any caste family, our TV channels would have been repeatedly showing it and the brutality of the culprit but here nothing happened except for a few local papers who carried the story in their local edition like any other crime news. Sadly, there is none to support this family. The Tiwaris have made it difficult for the family to even move out of their little home. They dont have any resource to even run here and there leave alone spending so much of money on treatment of the innocent child.



It is shameful that the administration did not take note of this incident despite request which shows how difficult is it for a Dalit family which is absolutely landless and no political connection to get justice in India. The family which struggle for their daily earning is paying the price of standing with honor in front of the caste oppression which the Indian caste Hindus feel their fundamental right and duty.



After much efforts of two hard working social activists from Jaunpur Ms Shobhna Smriti and Renu Singh, the Maharaj Ganj police registered the FIR on January 19th, 2016. The police registered criminal cases section 326/323/504 of the IPC and 3(1)X SC-ST act but so far no arrest has been made.



This case is a typical example of how the police administration in this country work where the police does not file FIR of a landless Dalit family whose child has lost his left hand in the sugarcane crusher of the Tiwari family who is influential and use bonded labor to further their work. There is no history of Shivam working there but as a rule in the villages, these feudal lords come to the Dalit bastees and ask for any child to be taken to do work at their crushers. Because the families of Dalits too go to work as agricultural labourers in their fields the owners feel that they can take any one from their families at their whims and fancies.



While the case is filed under various sections and SC-ST Prevention of Atrocities Act, we need to ask as what punishment should the police officials get for delaying this case. We know that in the absence of a medical report from the government hospital ( the child is being treated at a private nursing home) the case may fall flat. The police do this deliberately so that later when the case comes there would be no conviction. The brahmanical mindset in Indian administration are doing everything to foil the modern constitution of Baba Saheb Ambedakr so that the poor, helpless dont get any justice.



It is important therefore that Uttar Pradesh government suspend the police officials of Maharajganj police station for not filing FIR on time and helping the poor family which does not have money to survive. We dont know how long will the case take and what happens to the child ? Who will take care of his expenses? Can we give hope to his family ? If yes, how ?



The National Human Rights Commission and National Scheduled Castes Commission must take suo moti notice of of it and ask the Uttar Pradesh government to explain its glaring lack of duty towards such families. Why should not such officials be dismissed outrightly for dereliction of their duty.



Shivam is just 8 years old. He has a younger sister who is five years of age. Can we imagine, how much pain he could have gone through at this age. The bold boy is fighting but the parents have no resources on their own. The state and its apparatus have failed to protect them. It has even failed to provide them any justice on time resulting in loss of his left hand.



Who will compensate Shivam for his loss? How long India will tolerate such caste brutalities? How long we continue to sing hosannas for our tolerance and great culture. We need answer to these quarries. In the meanwhile, I request friends to file case based on it so that the family get justice. The biggest focus should be severe punishment to the Tiwaris who were responsible for inflicting this inhuman crime on the innocent child. We hope police will investigate the matter in good faith and will not try to shield the culprit and for that the entire police station need to be suspended or transferred. How will the same police people investigate the matter impartially who they did not record at the first place.



The second and perhaps more important is the rehabilitation and treatment of the child. His family needs to be compensated fully and child must be taken care of properly so that he could go to school and study without any prejudices.



Political parties as usual have not spoken on the issue. They dont speak unless it become a media event. We request friends to make petition based on this article and do write to NHRC and other such bodies including UP Chief Minister Mr Akhilesh Yadav to act fast on the issue.

Vidya Bhushan Rawat is a social and human rights activist. He blogs at www.manukhsi.blogspot.com twitter @freetohumanity Email: vbrawat@gmail.com






The daily quotes its lawyer Ariane Wilkinson, who said, This was an important omission in checking Adanis environmental history, something that must take place before approvals are given. Properly considering a companys environmental history should inform whether or not you give an approval in the first place, and what kind of conditions you apply.

The departments weak response is disappointing, but also unsurprising. Its a good example of why the Australian community needs access to the law to hold decision-makers and corporations to account, and to protect our environment, Wilkinson added.

Reports had appeared in the Australian media that, prior to approving Adanis proposed $16bn Carmichael mine in Queensland, the federal environment department wrote to Adanis Australian head, Jeyakumar Janakaraj, seeking information about any executive officer who had been the subject of any civil or criminal penalties or compliance-related findings, for breaches of, or noncompliance with environmental laws ... [and] information about his or her roles both in Australia and in other countries.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) had

Under section 489 of the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, providing false or misleading information could be an offence, The Guardian said, adding, The Zambian mine was owned by Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), for which Janakaraj was head of operations.

The daily said, KCM was convicted on four charges, including wilfully failing to report the pollution in the Kafue River, the ABC reported. Janakaraj himself was not charged over the contamination.

The federal environment minister, Greg Hunt, approved Adanis Carmichael mine with the limited information, the daily said, adding, A month later ABC revealed KCMs convictions. The federal environment department then approached Adani to ask why it had not provided this information. The department decided the omission was a mistake and did not warrant further action. Top green NGO Environmental Justice Australia, strongly protesting against the federal government move, said, Whether or not Adanis omission to the department caused environmental harm completely misses the point.The daily quotes its lawyer Ariane Wilkinson, who said, This was an important omission in checking Adanis environmental history, something that must take place before approvals are given. Properly considering a companys environmental history should inform whether or not you give an approval in the first place, and what kind of conditions you apply.The departments weak response is disappointing, but also unsurprising. Its a good example of why the Australian community needs access to the law to hold decision-makers and corporations to account, and to protect our environment, Wilkinson added.Reports had appeared in the Australian media that, prior to approving Adanis proposed $16bn Carmichael mine in Queensland, the federal environment department wrote to Adanis Australian head, Jeyakumar Janakaraj, seeking information about any executive officer who had been the subject of any civil or criminal penalties or compliance-related findings, for breaches of, or noncompliance with environmental laws ... [and] information about his or her roles both in Australia and in other countries.The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) had said , in its response, the company failed to mention that Janakaraj himself had been in charge of a copper mine in Zambia that had polluted a major river with dangerous contaminants in 2010.Under section 489 of the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act, providing false or misleading information could be an offence, The Guardian said, adding, The Zambian mine was owned by Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), for which Janakaraj was head of operations.The daily said, KCM was convicted on four charges, including wilfully failing to report the pollution in the Kafue River, the ABC reported. Janakaraj himself was not charged over the contamination.The federal environment minister, Greg Hunt, approved Adanis Carmichael mine with the limited information, the daily said, adding, A month later ABC revealed KCMs convictions. The federal environment department then approached Adani to ask why it had not provided this information. The department decided the omission was a mistake and did not warrant further action.

In an important relief to the Adani Group, which has taken up one of the worlds biggest coal-mining projects in the Queensland province of Australia, the top business house will not be facing any action for its Australian CEOs alleged links to polluting a Zambian mine. The Adani Group is known to be closest to Prime Minister Narendra Modi compared to all other industrial houses. US edition of The Guardian reports , the Australian federal government has decided not to pursue action against owners of Carmichael mine over its failure to declare that Jeyakumar Janakaraj was in charge of a copper mine that leaked toxic water into a river.The daily reports, Australias Department of Environment has completed its inquiries into the omission of a component of the environmental history of one of the executive officers of Adani Mining Pty Ltd,, adding, It was found that the omission did not result in environmental harm.The enquiry by the Department of Environment also revealed that Janakarajs omission was likely due to a mistake, the daily said, quoting the departments spokesperson as saying, In this instance and having due regard to the available responses within the Compliance and Enforcement Policy: Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, the department elected to not take further compliance action on this matter.
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The Port of Indiana at Mount Vernon set a record in 2015 by handling more than 6.6 million tons for the first time in its 40-year history.

This was a 36 percent increase over 2014 and 30 percent higher than the previous record set in 1994. It was also the highest annual increase in total tons handled at the port.

"The credit for the record volume rightfully goes to our world-class port companies, without them we would not be enjoying the success we have today," said Port Director Phil Wilzbacher in a news release. "By using our port's multimodal connections, these companies can choose the most cost-effective logistics routes, grow their business and create commerce that extends well beyond Southwestern Indiana and the Midwest."

Shipments of coal, agricultural products, steel as well as other bulk commodities helped drive the year's significant increase in cargo volume. The port handled its highest steel shipments ever in 2015 by nearly doubling the tonnage from 2014, while salt shipments resulted in a fivefold increase. The year also saw increases in the following commodities: ethanol (up 105 percent), coal (up 82 percent), dried distillers grain (up 64 percent), cement (up 17 percent) and limestone (up 52 percent).

For the year, the port handled approximately 3,600 barges, 37,000 rail cars and 160,000 trucks.

"This port is one of the busiest transportation hubs in this part of the country," said Wilzbacher. "To put this into perspective, if all of the barges, rail cars and trucks handled at the port were placed end-to-end, they would stretch 2,300 miles, which is approximately the straight-line distance between Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles."

The Port of Indiana-Mount Vernon contributes over $1 billion in total economic activity per year and supports 7,200 total jobs. Port companies ship cargo to or from 44 states and 20 countries.

Mount Vernon is ranked as the seventh largest port district on the Inland Waterways System. Located in Southwestern Indiana approximately 15 miles west of Evansville, the port connects the Midwest to the world with year-round barge access to the Gulf of Mexico and Great Lakes through the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. The port offers potential connections to five Class I railroads and has 600 acres available for development by companies that would benefit from its multimodal connections.
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By Richard Gootee of the Courier and Press

The 28-year-old man jailed Tuesday night after police reportedly found more than $11,000 in his car was arrested again Wednesday evening  this time with more than $7,000 in cash.

Police officials said Jamon I. Randolph was arrested about 6:30 p.m. and now faces weapon and drug dealing charges from his second arrest in less than 24 hours.

According to an Evansville Police Department news release, police stopped a vehicle Randolph was in for committing a traffic violation near the intersection of Menards and Theatre drives.

Though Randolph is officially listed as a Tennessee resident in records documenting the two arrests, previous court records indicate he has also had at least two Evansville addresses in the past.

During a search of the vehicle  in which Randolph was a passenger, police said  investigators reportedly found about one pound of suspected marijuana, as well as prescription drugs, a handgun and digital scales.

He now face new preliminary charges of possession of a handgun without a permit, dealing and possessing marijuana, and possession of a prescription drug.

The gun and cash seized on Wednesday were different than the items seized on Tuesday following Randolph's first arrest. In that case, Randolph is accused of initially fleeing a traffic stop and discarding a weapon before surrendering to police. Officers who made the Tuesday arrest reported smelling marijuana in the vehicle but did not locate any drugs at that time, department officials said. Randolph faces preliminary charges of possession of a handgun without a permit, resisting law enforcement and reckless driving stemming from that arrest.

Court records indicate that Randolph made his initial court hearing for Tuesday's arrest at 1 p.m. on Wednesday in Vanderburgh County Circuit Court. During that hearing, magistrate Kelli Fink set the bond at $30,000 surety or $3,000 cash, which was posted later that day. A jail employee told the Courier & Press that Randolph was released from jail about 4 p.m. He was arrested less than three hours later.

During another Circuit Court hearing Thursday afternoon, Randolph's new bond was set at $250,000 surety or $25,000 cash, according to court records.

Randolph reportedly told police he was unemployed after his Tuesday arrest.
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By James Vaughn of the Courier and Press

St. Mary's Medical Center has been included on a list of the best hospitals in the country.

The hospital received the Healthgrades Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical Excellence this week for the third year in a row.

The distinction puts St. Mary's in the top-five percent of hospitals in the country for clinical performance. It is one of just 260 hospitals to receive the designation.

"There's certainly recognition," said Randy Capehart, a spokesman for St. Mary's. "Healthgrades is a very recognizable name. It's a source that people go to to discover what health systems are performing well in their area, so just being on that list is an award in and of itself."

Four other hospitals in Indiana earned the distinction, three of which are in Indianapolis. No hospitals in Kentucky received the award. About 260 out of 1,486 hospitals earned the award.

"To find out we're the only one in the area was truly a great honor," Capehart said.

He said the hospital staff has continued to improve over the past three years and will continue to improve.

"This is just another recognition of the work that we are doing everyday," he said.

President Keith Jewell said in a news release that hospital is honored to be recognized among some of the top facilities in the country.
SHARE Judge Richard D'Amour

By Mark Wilson of the Courier and Press

Vanderburgh Superior Court Judge Richard D'Amour will be one of six Indiana judges presiding over a commercial court pilot project beginning in June.

The state's specialized trial courts are designed to handle complicated business cases more efficiently, freeing more court resources for other cases, said Kathryn Dolan, spokeswoman for the Indiana Supreme Court, which issued the order authorizing the pilot project.

The project will last three years.

"These cases are corporations versus corporations, generally, and not persons," D'Amour said. "They are designed to use what I would call aggressive case management. The judge is a lot more involved in directing the progress of the case."

He said studies have shown that commercial courts can resolve such business litigation in about half the time of a normal court. Being able to expect that kind of efficiency for resolving cases could benefit businesses by allowing them to plan and make operational decisions with more certainty.

D'Amour, who is chief judge of Vanderburgh Superior Court, will oversee a commercial court for a Southwestern Indiana area likely to also include Posey, Gibson and Warrick counties.

"We don't know the impact yet of how many cases this will bring to Vanderburgh County," he said.

However, he said a commercial court in Fulton County, Georgia  principal county of the Atlanta metropolitan area  averages less than 100 cases a year.

In addition to the business-versus-business nature of the cases, another factor that may limit caseloads is that to utilize commercial courts, both sides must agree to it, D'Amour said.

Other participating judges include: Judge Craig Bobay, Allen Superior Court  Civil Division; Judge Stephen Bowers, Elkhart Superior Court 2; Judge Maria Granger, Floyd Superior Court 3; Judge John Sedia, Lake Superior Court and Judge Heather Welch, Marion Superior Court, Civil Division 1.
DENNY SIMMONS / COURIER & PRESS U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Kenneth L. Cunninghams remains are transported to Little Prairie Cemetery in Albion, Ill., accompanied by an Army honor guard Wednesday afternoon. Cunningham had been missing in action since Oct. 3, 1969, while serving in the U.S. Army.

SHARE U.S. Army Sgt. First Class Jeffrey Schultz presents Ruth Barnett of Albion, Ill., with the flag which draped her brother, Staff Sgt. Kenneth L. Cunninghams casket at his burial service at Little Prairie Cemetery in Albion, Ill., Thursday afternoon. Cunningham had been missing in action since Oct. 3, 1969, while serving in the U.S. Army, and his remains were returned to the United States this month after they were finally identified 46 years later. DENNY SIMMONS / COURIER & PRESS A procession to Little Prairie Cemetery in Albion, Ill., carries Staff Sgt. Kenneth L. Cunningham's remains Thursday afternoon. More than three miles of highways leading into and out of Albion were lined with 2,400 American flags. DENNY SIMMONS / COURIER & PRESS U.S. Army Sgt. Christopher Lawless (center) finalizes the loading of Staff Sgt. Kenneth L. Cunningham's remains into a hearse after his funeral service at Little Prairie Christian Church in Albion, Ill., Thursday afternoon. Cunningham had been missing in action since Oct. 3, 1969, while serving in the U.S. Army, and his remains were returned to the United States this month after they were finally identified 46 years later. DENNY SIMMONS / COURIER & PRESS Taps are played at the burial service for Staff Sgt. Kenneth L. Cunningham at the Little Prairie Cemetery in Albion, Ill., Thursday afternoon. Cunningham had been missing in action since Oct. 3, 1969, while serving in the U.S. Army, and his remains were returned to the United States this month after they were finally identified 46 years later.

By Len Wells of the Courier and Press

ALBION, Ill.  Staff Sergeant Kenneth Leroy Cunningham was born Jan. 21, 1948. He enlisted in the U.S. Army on Jan. 21, 1969. And he was laid to rest next to his parents on Jan. 21, 2016.

The journey took more than 46 years, but Sgt. Cunningham returned to his hometown of Albion, Illinois, on Thursday.

Only 21 years old, Sgt. Cunningham was an observer aboard a Mohawk aircraft during an early evening surveillance mission over Vietnam on Oct. 3, 1969, when his plane crashed on a mountaintop near Kon Tum Province, Vietnam.

He and the pilot were declared missing in action just a few days after the crash. Cunningham's remains were not found until a few years ago, and not positively identified until last month.

The Little Prairie Christian Church was filled to capacity Thursday afternoon for his funeral. Sgt. Cunningham's brothers, Junior and David Cunningham, his sister, Ruth Barnett and their families filled the front row. Veterans who flew missions in Vietnam aboard Mohawk aircraft were also seated at the front, followed by dozens of members of the Albion VFW and members of the Patriot Guard. Members of the Edwards County High School Class of 1966 as well as friends, filled the church to capacity.

Before the service, U.S. Congressman John Shimkus presented the Cunningham family with an American Flag that flew over the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday  the day that Sgt. Cunningham's remains were returned home as hundreds of Albion residents lined the streets and waved American flags.

The featured speaker at the funeral was a classmate and neighbor of Sgt. Cunningham's: Don Green, president of Lincoln Christian University in Lincoln, Illinois.

"We grew up in similar circumstances a few miles apart," Green said. "We attended school together, were in the FFA, and always sat on the back row at church  often getting into trouble.

"... Of all the badges of honor and distinctions he rightly deserves, we recognize him as a devoted son, a faithful brother, friend and brave decorated fallen soldier," Green said. "But the only title that matters in any of this is that Kenneth is a Christ follower."

U.S. Army Major Delia Daue, of Indianapolis, presented the Cunningham family with Kenneth's Purple Heart and Vietnam Service Medal.

"When I was first told of this mission  accompanying a soldier home who died in 1969  I said to myself, how difficult can this be?" Major Daue said. "Then I met Sgt. Cunningham's family and I cried. Then, as we returned his body to his hometown and saw the amazing outpouring of support and patriotism, all the people who lined the streets to welcome him home, I cried again."

In his closing remarks, Green said, "Although after 46 years, Kenneth's body has made the long journey home  perhaps we are the ones who are really on a long journey. Kenneth experienced his homecoming 46 years ago. He's waiting for us now to finish our long journey home."

Green reminded the audience that it was 55 years ago that President John F. Kennedy gave his famous inaugural address with the phrase, "Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country."

"Kenneth and I were only 12 years old when those words were spoken," Green said. "But what may have been lost in the inaugural address was something else Kennedy said  something that Kennedy died for. He said, 'Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty.'

"Thank you Kenneth Leroy Cunningham for doing that for us, for your country, for your family and for generations to come. I pray that we will never forget."
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By Zach Osowski

INDIANAPOLIS  The list of candidates for Rep. Gail Riecken's District 77 seat has grown to four, with Evansville native Brandon Ferguson officially filing this week.

Ferguson, a union tradesman and part-time student, will run on the Democratic ticket, setting up a May primary battle with deputy prosecutor Ryan Hatfield, who filed earlier this month.

Ferguson, a father of three, said he doesn't have much political experience but thinks as a member of the working class, he is best suited to represent the people of Evansville.

"Time and time again, the working class is either forgotten or being taken advantage of," Ferguson said. "I understand the struggles and frustration of working hard and continuing to make ends meet, and this is why I am running for office."

Ferguson said, if elected, he wants to continue to bring jobs to the Evansville area and promote more youth-centered programs to cut down on crime and violence.

Riecken decided not to run for re-election after losing the race for Evansville mayor to Lloyd Winnecke. The race for the vacated seat is one of the more competitive races in Indiana early on with four candidates already filing. On the Republican side, Rev. Billy Garrett will be facing Henrietta Jenkins in May's primary. The filing deadline for major party candidates is Feb. 5.
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Kevin Ledbetter

Valparaiso, Indiana

The mission of Indiana's Division of State Parks and Reservoirs is to manage and interpret our properties' unique natural, wildlife, and cultural resources using the principles of multiple use and preservation, while sustaining the integrity of these resources for current and future generations. Somebody please tell me, how does building a private for-profit banquet center that serves alcohol on State Park property help further that mission?

This is exactly what some politically connected investors are attempting to do at the Indiana Dunes State Park. Without any public input the DNR has signed a contract with Pavilion Partners build a large, private for-profit banquet center on the beach of Lake Michigan.

Alcohol has been banned at the park since 1990 due to the negative impact it was having on the family-friendly environment. When Pavilion Partners applied for a liquor license for the facility; hundreds of Hoosiers objected to the license at a public forum. Because of overwhelming opposition, local and state ATC rejected the license.

This however, did not deter Pavilion Partners, who through their political connections have introduced legislation which bypasses the ATC and allows liquor to be served at state parks throughout the state without the normal oversight.

I am asking all Hoosiers to contact their state legislators and insist they oppose SB188 and HB1247. Please help us defend our State Parks against private interests which intend to exploit our natural treasures for private profit.
For reference, this is what that character wound up looking like in the finished film:

New Line Cinema Like a "faces of meth" Panthro.

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So, rather than del Toro's trademark visceral style of bone-gore monsters, we were given the most antiseptic version of a cartoon fantasy creature that somehow looked worse than any single orc in the original Lord Of The Rings trilogy.

Del Toro set the bar as high as he possibly could for Smaug, the villainous dragon that was originally the climax of The Hobbit until the movie inexplicably decided to make it about a dwarf war. He declared that Smaug would be the first character they'd start designing and the last one to be approved. Del Toro reasoned that the dragon's design should reflect its ability to speak -- its mouth should be able to make the sounds that human mouths do. That style of dramatically outside-the-box thinking resulted in a weirdly awesome beast that was truly unlike any dragon that had ever appeared in a movie before:

New Line Cinema But somehow still looking kind of like Benedict Cumberbatch.

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Again, compare del Toro's design to what wound up in the finished film -- in this case, a very traditional dragon improbably speaking with the voice of Benedict Cumberbatch, complete with weirdly incongruous lip movements that del Toro decided would be the make-or-break line for audience believability:
Microsoft is set to commence a mass recall of Microsoft Surface power cords, reportedly due to fire concerns.

As a result of damage caused by AC power cords being wound too tightly, twisted or pinched over an extended period of time, a very small proportion of Surface Pro customers have reported issues with their AC power cord, said a Microsoft Australia spokesperson.

We will be releasing details of how customers can obtain a free replacement cable shortly.

Channelnomics Europe reported that tightly bent cords pose a fire hazard due to a risk of overheating, and that Microsoft is poised to announce a voluntary recall at 1am Saturday Australian eastern time.

The recall will reportedly include AC power supply units for all Surface Pro, Surface Pro 2 and Surface Pro 3 devices sold before 15 July 2015.

Affected customers will be directed to a microsite to order replacement units, according to Channelnomics Europe, and will be instructed to dispose of or recycle their defective power cords.

The original Surface Pro, aimed at business users as opposed to the consumer-focused Surface RT, was released in 2013. Surface Pro 2 followed later in 2013, but the tablet-notebook hybrid didnt truly capture the markets attention until the third edition came along in mid-2014.

Surface Pro 4, expected to be unaffected by the power supply recall, was released late last year but has been suffering from stock shortages in the Australian channel, as reported by CRN in December.
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and President Obama promised to increase their team effort to combat the ISIS online threat.

The two leaders conducted a sit-down on Jan. 19 and discussed a range of topics to include closer cooperation on the cyberfront in a joint battle against ISIS, which Turnbull said is an area where the two countries must lift their game.

Archaic and barbaric they may be, but their use of the Internet is very sophisticated and I am pleased we are going to be on an even closer collaboration there, Turnbull said.

The Pentagon has of late zeroed in on ISIS hackers killing several over the last few months with drone strikes. ISIS's cyber fighters have launched several attacks against U.S. targets, including grabbing control of Central Command's social media pages and releasing the names of American service personnel.

This article originally appeared at scmagazineus.com
Dick Smith administrators will apply to delay the second creditors meetings until 2 August, leaving creditors in doubt of the companys future until then.

During the first creditors meeting last week, administrator Joe Hayes of McGrath Nicol said that due to the size and complexity of Dick Smith, the administrators would not be able to meet the initial scheduled date for the second meeting by February.

In companies of this nature where complex sales transactions need to be consummated, its actually reasonably routine to request lengthy extensions, said Hayes at the time.

Its important that the environment remains stable and an administration is a stable environment for the company whereby we have time to unravel our investigation and equally for the receivers should they achieve a going concern sale have the time to make that transaction take place.

A similar application will be made for Dick Smiths New Zealand business, which is also in administration.

Dick Smith was placed in voluntary administration on 5 January owing $390 million in debt. The administrators will continue to look accept offers of an acquisition until 27 January.
Channel programs News

NetatWork Boosts eCommerce Capabilities With Pixafy Acquisition

Jimmy Sheridan and Rick Whiting

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Net@Work has acquired the ecommerce practice of Pixafy in a move that the New York solution provider said will expand Net@Work's portfolio of ecommerce services -- especially in building B2B and B2C websites based on the Magento open-source ecommerce platform.

Net@Work will operate Pixafy Services LLC as a separate business unit and merge it with its existing ecommerce offerings, according to the solution provider. And those services will be integrated with Net@Work's other Web development, ERP, CRM, enterprise content management and system integration services.

Pixafy "has always been one of the strongest brands in the Magento market," said Alex Solomon, Net@Work co-president and co-owner, in an interview with CRN. "We're well on our way to growing our ecommerce practice to be the strongest in the market."

[Related: 10 Massive M&A Deals Reshaping The Channel: December 2015]

Pixafy is the latest in a string of acquisitions by Net@Work in recent years that have greatly expanded the scope of its services portfolio, especially around products from software vendor Sage.

In November, it bought the Peoria, Ill.-based Sage practice of CliftonLarsonAllen, a national professional services firm, and in July acquired Axis Integrated Solutions, a consultant and reseller of Sage 300 and Sage CRM applications in the Midwest.

The company said its strategy has been to partner with, and in some cases acquire, companies with business and technology practices that extend its offerings and integrate those with the broader Net@Work technology stack. That has allowed the company, founded in 1996, to grow beyond its original network support focus into a provider of a full range of IT services and solutions.

Last year, Net@Work, No. 366 on the CRN 2015 Solution Provider 500, also added cloud application provider NetSuite to the roster of IT vendors it works with.

Solomon said additional acquisitions are in the works -- some of them in the infrastructure managed services business. "It's all about making sure we have a comprehensive set of technology solutions for our customers," Solomon said.

Net@Work has been in the ecommerce space for a long time, Solomon said. But the demand for ecommerce IT services has been growing, because more companies -- particularly small and midsize companies -- need ecommerce strategy and technology services to accommodate more business conducted online.

The solution provider is buying the agency and development operations of Pixafy, bringing 43 employees to Net@Work. It has hired Ross Glick, a digital marketing expert and former CEO of Indelible Media, to be managing director of Pixafy Services.

The company that previously owned Pixafy will continue to operate as Zoey Inc., selling its Magento-based ecommerce platform. Other terms of the acquisition weren't disclosed.

PUBLISHED JAN. 21, 2016
Skylake For Enterprises

Intel on Tuesday cut the ribbon on its sixth-generation Core i7 vPro processors -- Skylake chips targeted toward the enterprise. Intel's vPro brand bakes features for business users into the hardware, so these Skylake processors, unlike those meant for consumers, will be enterprise-focused.

The processors flaunt new features for the enterprise, including higher performance, better graphics and tighter security measures than 5-year-old PCs, Intel said. According to Intel, a range of devices built for businesses, including 2-in-1s, will be available with the processors. Companies such as Acer, Asus, Dell, Lenovo, HP and Panasonic will release enterprise-ready devices featuring the new processors.

Following are five ways that Intel's new Skylake chips will transform the workplace.
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings today confirmed it was dropping all calls to Turkish ports for its three cruise brands.

Statement:

At Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises, our primary concern is to ensure the safety and security of our guests and crew. Due to recent events in Turkey, we are suspending all calls to the country through 2016 across all NCLH brands. We will continue to closely monitor the situation and make future itinerary adjustments as appropriate. We have begun the process of informing guests booked on the affected cruises of the itinerary changes and will update the respective brand websites with revised voyage information.
Strategic planning, carried out by senior members of a company's leadership team, is typically used to reaffirm corporate objectives and establish new ones, set goals, align resources and articulate in detail the direction, tactics and activities that the entire organization will engage in.

Related: A SWOT Analysis Provides a Full Picture When Looking at a Product and a Brand

The strategic plans that result are common to established organizations with a few years under their belts; they differ from the business plans startups use as they work to get off the ground.

Indeed, strategic plans draw on their companies' historical data, institutional knowledge and their employees' collective experience. In the end, these factors result in a robust and clear vision for how the upcoming year will play out.

If you yourself have completed a strategic plan of your own, one of two things likely happened. Either the plan was completed, with everyone seemingly buying into it before it was stored somewhere in the depths of your company where it collected dust.

Or else the plan became a living document and was referred to at monthly and quarterly meetings, then at year's end, when it was revisited during another annual strategic review.

Its the latter kind of plan that is obviously more effective. To achieve it, here are four exercises you can engage your leadership team in, and if appropriate, loop in more members from the rest of your organization.

1. SWOT analysis, on a department-by-department basis

Time: 30 minutes x number of departments

Who: executive team

Its possible that you got your own first exposure to business management tools with the SWOT framework (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats), a two-by-two grid where strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats are put under the microscope.

In order to not miss vital details, you should conduct a SWOT analysis for each department. For instance, a SWOT analysis, seen through the lens of the finance department will differ greatly than that of the IT group. As you can imagine, the opportunities available to your sales department vary from those being explored by your customer service people.

By engaging the entire executive team, you'll create a venue for a healthy dialogue about every individual department.

Related: Add This Dimension to a Traditional Business Analysis for a Fuller Marketing Plan

2. Start, stop, continue

Time: 60 minutes x number of departments

Who: Small groups in each department

In most organizations, theres an intuitive sense of whats working and what isnt. To capture this sentiment in a safe environment, try a Start, Stop and Continue session. This session is best kept to an hour, with 20 minutes dedicated to each section.

Begin with the "Start," a brainstorm of all those activities you should start doing, and add the tools and technologies that you should at least start investigating. Youll likely hear requests for upgraded technology, cutting-edge software tools and new positions. All suggestions are valid.

Since time is finite, you'll need to make room for these new initiatives, which leads to "Stop," a list of those activities, bad habits and other issues that everyone agrees should stop immediately. This can even include declaring that a project once and for all is dead and that everyone will stop wasting time discussing it. End the session on a brighter note by identifying those activities that people are actively engaged in and are most meaningful.

During the "Continue" portion of the working session, management should express appreciation for all the great things everyone is doing, but put out the challenge for all staffers to raise their game.

At our company, weve identified excellence as a core value, and as such have embraced the notion of continuous improvement. Its this idea that encourages us to strive for greater heights.

3. Employee engagement survey

Time: 60 minutes per person

Who: entire company

Each year, we request feedback across the entire company in an anonymous employee engagement survey. This CORE Strategy assessment (CORE = climate, organization, relationships, employees) was developed to facilitate a strategic-planning process.

This particular survey includes more than 100 questions, asking participants to rate how likely they agree or disagree with a statement. Questions are grouped by themes, such as training, equipment, management, financial health, career opportunities and more.

Knowing the perceptions of the employees and leadership team will provide incredible insight to your company's operations. It's also imperative that you discuss the findings, summarize the key takeaways and commit to improving those issues clearly identified by all those who completed the survey.

Never be afraid to discuss a matter revealed in the survey, especially if it comes up multiple times. Your employees know youre struggling in that area because it was their words that identified it in the first place.

So, acknowledge the issue and set about making positive change.

4. Updating of your plan

Finally, its time to launch your strategic plan, whether this occurs by way of a Word document, Google Doc or Apple Pages file. Go to the source document and start typing. Expect to dedicate 40 to 100 hours to do it correctly. What's crucial is that you put your ideas down in writing.

Own your organizations strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities. Commit to starting new initiatives, stopping others and renewing efforts in well-performing areas. All the while, consider vital input from employees.

By repeating these processes annually, youll transform your organization from one where the status quo is acceptable to one that involves everyone and embraces the change that has been presented, discussed and committed to.

Related: Use These 3 Analysis Tools to Prepare a Killer Business Plan

Related:



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DERBY  The popular executive director of the citys senior citizen center has been removed from her position.

And the firing of Sarah Dalton Muoio comes at a difficult time for her. Friday is the funeral of her father, Michael Dalton, a longtime teacher and administrator in Ansonia schools, where he served as principal of Mead School for many years. After retiring, he worked as an adjunct supervisor at Sacred Heart Universitys School of Education.

Mayor Anita Dugatto declined to comment on Muoios termination Thursday. Muoio, who was appointed to the post in December 2011 by then-Mayor Anthony Staffieri, could not be reached for comment.

I think the timing stinks, said Stan Muzyk, a Derby resident and senior citizen center member. I found Sarah was very caring and served her post very professionally. She was highly respected by the seniors she served and I know they are going to miss her.

Joseph Romano, a former employee and a current member of the center, said Muoio was adored by the members ... Shed work until 9 and 10 at night.

The 30-year-old Muoio has weathered numerous storms in recent years. Her husband, Robert Muoio, suffers from heart problems. In 2014, their 5-month-old son, Anthony, underwent a successful nine-hour operation at Yale-New Haven Childrens Hospital to remove a brain tumor.

His plight galvanized the community into organizing Anthonys Army, which offered support to the family. A year after the operation, the Muoios delivered 32 hope bags and gift cards, most of them donated by Anthonys Army, to other families facing medical crises at the hospital.

More recently, Romano said, Muoio opened her home to two orphans from Ukraine. The children have since returned to Ukraine.

Muoio also drew national attention to herself in July, 2012 when she canceled a Derby senior citizen trip to Foxwoods and boycotted the casino. That happened after Scott Butera, then Foxwoods chief executive officer, was quoted in The Boston Globe saying those darn elders dont gamble away enough of their money to help Foxwoods reach its goal, which at this point is basic survival.

Services for Michael Dalton will begin at 10:30 a.m. Friday, at the Church of Assumption, 91 North Cliff Street, Ansonia, with burial at Pine Grove Cemetery.
Before going, all I knew about the Russian & Turkish Baths was that its preserved in its authentic, no-frills 19th century glory and its a stomping ground for trendy New York City millennials.

I had never been to a bathhouse, so I was hesitant when I reached the steep steps in front of the unassuming building tucked into quiet 10th Street. The sign read since 1892.

Upon entering, I was greeted by harsh lighting and chatter (in both English and Russian) from a restaurant area to the left of the entrance. There were people in bathing suits and towels walking right past the door  many young and fit and one older, Russian and sporting a full belly.

We get a lot of hipsters in their 20s and 30s, general manager Dimitry Shapiro said. Its old-school New York; a glimpse into a century ago. It was a social club back in the day.

To an extent, it still felt like a social club as one girl approached a young shirtless man and asked, What was your name again?

A friendly front-desk attendant checked me in. I paid $35 for regular admission, which gets you access to the saunas and steam rooms, rooftop and pool. For additional prices, the Baths offers massages and body scrubs.

More Information Russian & Turkish Baths 268 E 10th St, New York, NY 10009 Website See More Collapse

The idea is to get really hot in the rooms and then dip in the pool. I usually just go up to the roof to cool off, though, she said.

I bypassed the sandal station because I had brought my own, grabbed a robe and a towel and went into a curtained-off area to change into my bathing suit.

The robe wasnt a typical spa robe. It was sleeveless with deep arm holes that, when cinched at the waist, came forward on my torso and actually created a flattering silhouette  something I would imagine wearing in ancient Greece.

Downstairs, beneath the bustle of the East Village, I found myself in a humid, dimly lit, tiled foyer of sorts with the pool in the center. The pool is small, four-feet and a cool 46 degrees. People sat around the edge of it relaxing.

I sat next to a man in his late 20s with long hair and tattoos. He told me he comes all the time to detox after a long weekend of drinking and partying. Its a party-boy spot, he said. I usually spend about 30 minutes in the Russian Sauna, jump in the pool and Im all set.

The Russian Sauna is the hottest of the five rooms, and is one of the only saunas of its kind in the United States. Its warmed by radiant heat given off by rocks that are cooked overnight.

I decided to give that room a try first. It was a bit intimidating; I felt like I was barging into an intimate gathering of naked people.

When I stepped in, I was blasted by intense heat. The stone walls were lined with people sitting and one woman lying face down on the highest bench. Someone was brushing her back with leaves. I learned later from Shapiro that the woman was receiving a Platza Oak Leaf treatment. During a Russian platza, a specialist brushes your back with an oak leaf broom that has been soaked in olive oil soap. It scrapes off dead skin, removes toxins and opens up the pores.

Theres an art to it, Shapiro said.

The Russian Sauna  like the Turkish Room, which is a tile room heated by radiators  has been at the Baths forever, said Shapiro whose family took over 30 years ago.

In more recent years, newer rooms like the Redwood Sauna (a modern-looking, cherry-wood sauna warmed by an electric heater) and the Aroma Therapy Room have been added.

I pushed open the heavy door to the Aroma Therapy Room, a white-tiled space lit in a blue hue, which matched the cool eucalyptus scent that permeated. I would highly recommend this room to anyone suffering from nasal congestion: It was just like being inside a jar of Vicks VapoRub.

At first, the minty aroma was so intense it stung my eyes, but once I sat down and got used to it, the combination of the heat and the cooling sensation of the scent lulled me into relaxation. This was my favorite room because it wasnt as hot as the Russian Sauna, and it was less crowded than the other rooms. I was also comfortable being surrounded by mostly women.

I had gone during a coed time slot, but there is a women-only time slot on Wednesdays and men-only time slots on Thursdays and Sundays.

Once I was done heating up, I took the front-desk attendants advice and went up to the roof to cool off instead of getting into the cold pool, which I had watched a couple of men dip into, unflinching. The roof is lined with lounge chairs and welcomes sunbathers in warmer months.

When I was back in my clothes, I headed toward the restaurant. The menu at the Baths consists of healthy Russian foods and a selection of European beers.

The cooks, two women with thick Russian accents, recommended the borscht, a traditional beet and cabbage soup that sells out every day.

Traditionally, borscht is made with meat, but since most customers are vegetarians the meat is left out, one cook explained as she prepared a Styrofoam cup of raw, sliced carrots.

A hipster with a mustache and a Bill Cosby sweater came to retrieve the carrots. He nodded at her in camaraderie and said, Thanks, Ill bring these to Larry.

I went home and thoroughly enjoyed my vegetarian borscht  which, though hot, made me feel fresh and healthy after sweating out toxins  and thought about how in one of New York Citys trendiest neighborhoods, one of the coolest things to do is to strip down and mingle, half nude, with people from all walks of life.

Lidia Ryan is a freelance writer and New York City explorer.
Provided photo / Milford police

MILFORD  A 15 year-old girl, reported missing and endangered in another state, was rescued by police Wednesday from a room at the Howard Johnson Motel.

The man with her, Keontrae Lawrence, 27, of Maplewood, N.J., was taken into custody and is being held on a $250,000 bond as the investigation continues, said Officer Joseph Dempsey, the department spokesman.
The rejoinder, when talk has turned over the years to the money that has dribbled through the hands of Bridgeport public school officials  salaries for assistants to assistants, to furniture companies, construction companies, to salaries for custodians who are nephews of Bridgeport Democratic Town Committee members, to consultants, for studies, land acquisition, and on and on  has always been that the spending is for the children.

A thirty-thousand dollar change order here, a ten-thousand change order there; here a change order, there a change order, everywhere a change order, theres hundreds of millions of dollars floating around for school construction, all overseen by a tight little group of school building committee people.

Theres lots of money connected to public schools in Bridgeport.

But at the end of the day, where the rubber meets the road, the 21,000 kids who make up that for the children group and the teachers who work their butts off to help them, are still struggling to make ends meet.

So a trial is going on now in Hartford and the plaintiffs are an alliance of school officials, parents, municipal leaders, teachers and other concerned parties allies under the name Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education.

Their contention is that the state of Connecticut doesnt spend enough to meet the needs of students, particularly in districts like Bridgeport, Danbury and New London.

Key testimony for the plaintiffs came last week from Bridgeports interim Schools Supt. Fran Rabinowitz.

Rabinowitz is a person who can confidently and truly claim that she is in this game for the children.

A year ago she was one of three finalists under consideration by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and his team for the position of state commissioner of Education.

I want to stay here and do the work here, she said last March. It says much about her that she chose to stay in the cauldron of Bridgeport, where the rancorous, excoriating atmosphere created by an out-of-control school board and a handful of abrasive, militant parents could easily have distract someone from their mission.

She hung tough.

In her testimony the other day, she said I dont believe poverty has to be a predictor of where students are going to go. But they do need help.

And she is right: poverty is not necessarily a predictor of where a student is going to go. There are plenty of stories of Bridgeport high school graduates who have gone on to the Ivy League and other fine schools.

Poverty may not be a predictor, but its a hurdle. Lets just say its not likely that many kids in Fairfield or Greenwich are showing up in the morning hungry. Almost all of Bridgeports students qualify for a free or reduced-price lunch.

Or anxious about safety. In the last two months, Rabinowitz has attended the funerals of two children shot on city streets.

In December, some Harding high school students went public with their complaint that some 200 students at the school were not getting math instruction because there were no math teachers. The problem, Rabinowitz said, is that math teachers are hard to hold onto in Bridgeport because qualified teachers are lured away to nearby districts that pay much better.

The bottom line is that the 21,000 children who go to Bridgeport public schools, from the bright-eyed kindergartners with their lives stretching ahead of them, way beyond the horizon, to the high school kids who are dreaming of going to college or getting a decent job, are depending on the adults who run things to get it right.

Its a complicated issue, and more money may not, in fact, be the answer. But its part of the answer. Another challenge, though, is that there are few people in power in Hartford who do not have second thoughts about turning large amounts of money over to the city of Bridgeport.

For decades, the place has been something of a dark pool. Money gets dropped in the pool and it sinks slowly and often it seems no one is quite sure where it went.

Bottoms up

Also, as noted in this space last week, a move is afoot in Bridgeport for a zoning change that would reduce from 1,500 feet to 750 feet the distance that has to exist between liquor stores and houses of worship, schools, hospitals or commercial day care centers.

A hearing on this proposal is scheduled for Monday at 6:45 p.m. in the Bridgeport City Hall Common Council chambers at 45 Lyon Terrace.

Michael J. Daly is editor of the editorial page of the Connecticut Post. Email: mdaly@ctpost.com.
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HARTFORD  In the last two months, Bridgeport Interim School Superintendent Fran Rabinowitz has attended the funerals of two children who were shot on city streets.

Our children suffer a lot of trauma, she told a Superior Court judge who is trying to determine whether state funding for public education is adequate, particularly in poor urban districts like Bridgeport.

Rabinowitz, who spent an entire day Thursday on the stand and is expected to return Friday, used the story to illustrate why she needs more funding than a district like Greenwich, not less.

Bridgeport has psychologists, social workers and guidance counselors, just not enough for a 21,500-student population who may have fathers in jail, who have witnessed traumatic events or simply have no one at home to talk to, Rabinowitz testified.

They need someone to sit down and figure out alternative strategies that they might use when they are angry or depressed, Rabinowitz said.

Rabinowitz is rounding out the second week of testimony in what is expected to be a five-month trial brought by a group called the Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education.

Made up of school officials, parents, municipal leaders, teachers and associations from around the state, the coalition is out to prove that Connecticut doesnt spend enough to satisfy the needs of students, particularly in districts like Bridgeport, Danbury, New London or Windham.

The state, meanwhile, contends that what is spent is more than adequate, and that additional funding wont buy better results.

Perhaps the best example of an underfunded district in the state, Bridgeport has a growing population. Some 14 percent of its students come from homes where English is not the first language, and nearly all students qualify for a free or reduced-price lunch.

Rabinowitz spent a great deal of time Thursday explaining her school systems current budget crisis  brought on largely by an increase in students requiring special education  and about losing teachers to other districts that can pay more and have smaller class sizes.

About 200 teachers out of about 1,500 certified staff leave the district every year. Rabinowitz said salary matters Bridgeports average salary is the lowest in Fairfield County  but so do working conditions.

I know. Ive taught with 20 (kids in a classroom). Ive taught with 32 children, said Rabinowitz, who added that she understands the frustration of not being able to meet the needs of all students.

Some 60 percent of students in the district, she said, are performing under grade level.

Rabinowitz started her teaching career as a third-grade teacher in the district, she said. She would go on to work for the state and then as Hamdens school superintendent before returning to Bridgeport. Last year, she was in the running for the state commissioner of education job, but decided to remain in Bridgeport.

Rabinowitz told Superior Court Judge Thomas Moukawsher that she also knows what works best to counteract students who are born into poverty,

I dont believe poverty has to be a predictor of where students are going to go, Rabinowitz said. But they do need help.

To her, a difference would be made if more students in her district had access to effective preschools, smaller class sizes, and effective teachers to help them learn to read at grade level by third grade. She also would like to offer more programs to help parents and to offer a more robust curriculum.

With the states help, the district has added some 300 new preschool slots in recent years. Some remain unfilled, because there are no funds for transportation to get the children to the facilities.

And instead of adding more interesting courses, Rabinowitz said, the district has been forced to cut electives, clubs and other things that keep students interested in school.

The kids who love art and music and forensic  those have all been cut back, Rabinowitz said. That leads to drop outs.

Rabinowitz said she also does not have the resources to meet the needs of the districts growing special education population. Non-compliance has led to complaints filed with the state.

I am fighting daily to be in compliance, Rabinowitz said.

How much of your budget goes to special education costs? David Nolan, an attorney for the plaintiffs, asked.

Out of a $280 million budget, Rabinowitz said some $90 million goes to some 3,000 special education students.
File photo / File photo

New year, same pay grade for the employees topping Westports public payroll in 2015: Educators and police personnel again dominated the list of those taking home the largest compensation, according to data released by school district and municipal finance officials.

Superintendent of Schools Elliott Landon, as he has been for many years, was the highest paid among all public employees with compensation of $282,226 last year. Landon, who will retire at the end of the academic year, was paid $87,278 more than the next highest-paid school district employee, Elio Longo, the director of business operations and third on the overall pay list, with a salary of $194,948.
Double murder trial day 4: A star witness for the prosecution backed out in the courtroom
State Board of Education lays down law on race, gender teachings

School boards will have to follow new requirements for notifying parents about policies involving access to bathrooms and locker rooms.
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As countless people clamour for a recipe they think might bag them a mate, others are starting to wonder: do we need to worry if our partner leaves the house with cookware?

by Samantha Selinger-Morris
After a passionate Mail campaign, the Government pledges tough action against grasping lawyers who mercilessly hound our soldiers with spurious allegations of misconduct in Iraq.

Recognising the outrage over this appalling witch-hunt, the Prime Minister has announced a series of measures designed to deter bogus claimants AND hit the ambulance-chasers where it hurts  in their grubby pockets.

They include a clampdown on the vast sums lawyers make by taking no win, no fee cases, which should discourage them from scouring Iraq for new claimants and promising pots of taxpayers money.

The Government has pledged tough action against grasping lawyers who mercilessly hound our soldiers with spurious allegations of misconduct in Iraq. Prime Minister David Cameron (pictured) announced measures designed to deter bogus claimants and hit the ambulance-chasers in the pocket

Legal aid will be restricted to those who have lived in Britain for at least a year (which means accusers will have to meet their costs) and new penalties will be imposed on firms who abuse the system.

The Government is even preparing to sue Leigh Day, which in the notorious Al-Sweady case failed to disclose that its clients were not the innocent civilians they made themselves out to be, but members of the militant Mahdi army.

This wont solve the problem overnight and some soldiers may still be dragged through a tortuous legal process.

But Mr Cameron has laid down a marker for future claimants and lawyers  pay your own way and bring vexatious claims at your peril. For that we applaud him.

Conspiracy of silence

For decades the grotesque sexual predator Jimmy Savile used BBC premises around the country as his hunting ground.

In studios, dressing rooms, canteens, staircases and even corridors, the vile DJ raped and assaulted dozens of girls and boys  some as young as nine  with complete impunity.

So why wasnt he stopped sooner?

Theres no doubt that rumours of his proclivities had been rife for years within the Corporation.

For decades the grotesque sexual predator Jimmy Savile used BBC premises around the country as his hunting ground. In studios, dressing rooms, canteens, staircases and even corridors, the vile DJ raped and assaulted dozens of girls and boys with complete impunity. So why wasnt he stopped sooner?

We report today that 107 witnesses told the ongoing official inquiry  headed by former Appeal Court judge Dame Janet Smith  that they had long suspected Savile of being an abuser and some reported their suspicions.

Indeed there was even a crude joke doing the rounds in the 1980s identifying him as a paedophile.

Yet every senior manager of the time claims to have known nothing. And perhaps even more astonishingly, Dame Janet appears to believe them.

In a leaked draft of her report she says: I do not think the BBC can be criticised for its failure to uncover Saviles sexual deviancy.

Is it any wonder that the victims lawyer now brands the inquiry a whitewash?

Really? What an insult to all those innocent young victims to whom the Corporation owed a clear duty of care.

Is it plausible that no one in authority had any idea what was happening  or were they so concerned with the Corporations reputation that they turned a blind eye to avoid a scandal?

Is it any wonder that the victims lawyer now brands the inquiry a whitewash?

What is blindingly obvious is that Savile had untouchable status at the BBC. His crimes were swept under the carpet and potential whistleblowers cowed into silence. When one victim complained, she was thrown out of the building.

True, we have seen only a draft and the final report may lay blame where it truly belongs  at the top. But unless those who allowed this grotesque monster to prowl the BBC unimpeded for so long are held to account, whats to stop it happening again?

Dame Janet says there remains a culture of secrecy and intimidation of whistleblowers and, chillingly, that the national broadcaster could still harbour a child abuser.
Might Justin Welby be the last British Archbishop of Canterbury?

Some overseas bishops are pressing for their next leader to reflect the diverse nature of the worldwide church.

My source says: The next archbishop could come from another part of the world. Instead of being selected by a clandestine secret committee of the Church of England, he could be elected by all Anglican bishops.

'There is a working precedent. Although the Pope is Bishop of Rome, Italians dont always have one of their own as Pope. The last three have been a Pole, a German and an Argentinian.

EPHRAIM HARDCASTLE: Some overseas bishops are pressing for their next leader to reflect the diverse nature of the worldwide church. A source suggests the next Welby could be elected by the bishops

Jeremy Corbyns Winchester and Oxford-educated communications chief, Seumas Milne, 57, controversially refused to answer questions about the IS terrorist Jihadi John unless reporters used his real name, Mohammed Emwazi. The late murderers IS comrades have no such qualms. Their magazine Dabiqs two-page eulogy refers to him as the mujahid who made headlines around the world as Jihadi John.

TV narcissist Robert Its all about me Peston, 55, jumped ship from the BBC to ITV on director of television Peter Finchams watch, with the promise of a Sunday interview show. Now Fincham, 59  like Peston, an ex-BBC man  is leaving his post. Hell be succeeded by Kevin Lygo, 58, the former managing director of ITV Studios. Kevin is considered to be less enamoured of Peston than Fincham was, according to an ITV source. Will he green light Peston on Sunday? Obviously hes under pressure to do so, but no one knows.

TV narcissist Robert Its all about me Peston, 55, pictured, jumped ship from the BBC to ITV on director of television Peter Finchams watch, with the promise of a Sunday interview show

Foxy writer Kathy Lette, 57, observes: Sarah Palin endorsing Donald Trump is like toxic waste endorsing the bubonic plague. Who is writing this script?

Ms Lettes own script usually has a Leftist perspective, as befits the wife of human rights lawyer Geoffrey Robertson QC, but the always-lively turn of phrase is her own.

Foxy writer Kathy Lette, 57, (pictured) observes: Sarah Palin endorsing Donald Trump is like toxic waste endorsing the bubonic plague. Who is writing this script?'

The Hokey Cokey row rumbles on. To recap: Entertainer Gyles Brandreth suggested the ditty should become Englands new national anthem. Former royal broadcaster Michael Cole says this would be problematic since the Hokey Cokey began as a parody of the Roman Catholic rite of holy communion, meaning this expression of religious intolerance and hatred makes it hardly suitable for uniting our nation. Brandreth fires back: Any link between the Hokey Cokey and left-foot anti-Popery mumbo-jumbo is at best tenuous. Its a fun dance, a fine affirmation of life! The Hokey Cokeys potential as Englands new national anthem is beginning to be realised.
See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. Not just the motto of the Three Wise Monkeys. Its the blueprint for official investigations into incompetence, stupidity and abuse of power.

The police, social services, Jimmy Savile, you name it. Nothing to see here. Cock-up is always followed by cover-up.

When can you ever remember anyone in authority taking responsibility for anything, or falling on their sword voluntarily the moment their culpability is exposed? In fact, they will go to extraordinary lengths to distance themselves from the scene of the crime, often using public money to suppress the truth.

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See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil appears to be the blueprint for official investigations into incompetence, stupidity and abuse of power. Whether that be related to Jimmy Savile (left) or the innocent Lord Bramall (right)

Even when theres a dead baby involved, they run a mile, covering their tracks with an ocean of whitewash. Take the ghastly case of 13-month-old Poppi Worthington. A judge has ruled she must have died after being sexually assaulted by her father. He said there could be no other explanation.

But because of bungling and indifference at every level, from the initial examination by a doctor to the dereliction of police duty, Paul Worthington has thus far evaded prosecution. Nobody has been disciplined or sacked. Cumbria County Council hired lawyers in an attempt to prevent the facts being made public.

It took a determined 18-month fight by the Daily Mail and other media organisations to smash this outrageous wall of silence.

Meanwhile, Cumbrias elected Police Commissioner remained silent on the matter until now, although three whistleblowers were arrested after a full-scale inquiry into who leaked details of his expenses to the local paper.

Finding out who supplied some embarrassing information to the Press was far more important than establishing who murdered and sexually assaulted a 13-month-old child. Thats what weve come to expect. Never mind shoot-to-kill, standard operating procedure is always to shoot the messenger  even when the paying public has a right to know.

Scotland Yard and the CPS have spent the past few years prosecuting (largely unsuccessfully) journalists for paying whistleblowers for information. They even dredged up an obscure, centuries-old statute dealing with misconduct in a public office in a desperate attempt to make something stick.

But when it comes to their own bad behaviour, the guilty are never brought to book. If those police officers and other assorted officials responsible for screwing up the Poppi Worthington inquiry arent guilty of misconduct in a public office, then I dont know who is.

The same goes for whoever decided to send 20 officers to ransack the home of 92-year-old war hero Lord Bramall and interview him under caution in relation to ludicrous sex abuse charges.

Contrast the non-investigation and subsequent cover-up of Poppi Worthingtons death with the deranged witch-hunt into allegations of historic sex crimes.

Poppi Worthington (pictured) died aged 13 months in suspicious circumstances after suffering serious injuries at her home in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria

Ultimately, the buck for Bramalls cruel persecution should stop with Met Commissioner Bernard Hyphen-Howe, a man who makes his lame, Labour-stooge predecessor Ian Blair look like Sir Robert Peel. But it wont.

Even when it was patently apparent there wasnt a shred of credible evidence against Lord Bramall, Hyphen-Howe still didnt have the decency to apologise. Once again, he did his famous Wheres Wally? disappearing act  just as he had when the Mets similarly deranged efforts to fit up former Home Secretary Leon Brittan on similar charges blew up in his face.

This time it was his hapless sidekick Fat Pat Gallen who had to sign a worthless, weasel letter of regret  and only then after a sustained campaign from the Press and Bramalls well-placed supporters.

But where were the Great and the Good when blameless entertainers such as Jimmy Tarbuck, Jim Davidson and Paul Gambaccini were being subjected to the same Gestapo tactics by Hyphen-Howes heavy mob?

Nowhere to be seen, thats where. It was only when the Yards celebrity nonce squad started targeting prominent Tory politicians and a nonagenarian war hero that they woke up to this scandalous and systematic abuse of police powers of arrest, search, seizure and bail.

In the Bramall letter, Gallen tried to justify the Yards actions by claiming they had a public duty to follow the evidence  even though there wasnt any evidence, save for the word of an anonymous witness produced out of a hat by a dubious news agency and the self-appointed Nonce Finder General Tom Watson.

Translation: we were only obeying orders. Now where have we heard that before?

Some might consider it unfair to single out the police for a bucketload of ordure, but when did that ever stop me? And for the record, I dont blame the rank and file, I blame the top brass who gave the orders.

But the same could be levelled at all those who run what pass for our world class public services. None of them seems to be accountable to anyone.

The head of the Environment Agency had to resign  not because hed presided over the worst, man-made flooding in living memory, but because hed misled the media about why he spent Christmas in Barbados.

If and when theres a proper inquiry into the flooding, nobody of significance will be held to account. There will be platitudes about lessons learned and assurances that it will never happen again. But it will. It always does.

Before Poppi Worthington, there was Baby P and Victoria Climbie, and after Poppi there will be some other unfortunate child victim of parental abuse under the noses of the relevant authorities.

But you can be sure that the buck will be passed from pillar to post and if anyone is offered up as a human sacrifice, they will leave with a parachute bag full of used notes and be ushered straight into another lucrative public sector sinecure.

Before Poppi Worthington, there was Baby P (left) and Victoria Climbie (right), and after Poppi there will be some other unfortunate child victim of parental abuse under the noses of the relevant authorities

These apparatchiks always take care of their own. They may look a bit like real people, but they are all from Planet Guardian.

You can spot them by the way they speak in a curious managerial gobbledegook  designed deliberately to exclude the paying public, whom they hold in contempt.

Listen to them drone on about best practice when they are trying to defend their lax and appalling conduct. Their concept of public service is self-service, lining their pockets with fat salaries, superglue job security and gold-plated pensions.

They began crawling into the woodwork about 30 years ago, in the wake of the failure of Arthur Scargills miners strike/violent revolution. After that historic defeat, the Left realised they could never win by force, so they decided to take over the country by stealth.

Under the public sector jobs bonanza unleashed by Gordon Brown, their long march through the institutions was completed in the New Labour years.

They now control everything from the NHS and the legal system to the police and even the military. Look at the way the leaders of the Armed Forces have stood back as soldiers have been subjected to vexatious and politically motivated prosecutions for alleged war crimes.

Yet its always poor Tommy Atkins in the frame. When was the last time you saw Phil Shiners spivs accusing a general of mistreating prisoners or shooting innocent civilians?

Our new ruling class have imposed their own, warped vision of the world on a reluctant and often unsuspecting public, backed with the full force of the law intended to criminalise dissent. After they gave up on nationalised industries, they set about nationalising behaviour, in thought, speech and deed.

A few years ago, racism  real or imagined  was all the rage. Now its paedophilia, historic or otherwise, which excites them.

Their concept of public service is self-service - lining their pockets with fat salaries and gold-plated pensions

Thats how you end up with this weeks story about a cab driver in North Yorkshire who had his licence suspended because he was suspected of child sex abuse.

He was grassed up to the council by a nark who saw him giving two girls a kiss at the school gate. They were his daughters, but no one bothered to ask.

In the current climate, any allegation of child abuse, however fantastic or malicious, is automatically considered to be true. I wouldnt have thought hell get a proper apology, either.

The fall-out from Savile sparked a demented trawl for other celebrity sex offenders, as the police sought to over-compensate for their own negligence in not stopping him.

To be fair, some disgusting creatures such as Rolf Harris and Stuart Hall were convicted. But far too many other innocent individuals had their lives turned upside down.

Yet, while all this was going on, those who either failed to prevent, or actively facilitated, Saviles crimes have so far escaped unscathed. Someone gave him the keys to paediatric wards or turned a blind eye as he was assaulting girls in his dressing room.

But they havent been the focus of any criminal investigation.

And the BBCs inquiry, parts of which were leaked yesterday, is unlikely to pin the blame on any named individuals. Such inquiries never do. The establishment, with a capital E or a small e, always closes ranks.

Thats why a new investigation into Poppi Worthingtons horrible death wont ever reveal the truth about the role of police, doctors or social workers  even if her father is put on trial for her murder.
She also listed where women can undergo an abortion in Asia

Ms Nettleingham hopes to address social taboos and help others

A travel blogger who found herself pregnant while backpacking in Asia and had to negotiate the minefield of social taboos and laws in order to get an abortion has shared her experience in the hopes of helping other women.

She shared her experience in a blog post titled Pregnant: Where to get an abortion in Asia and told Daily Mail Australia the topic was not spoken about enough.

The British 31-year-old said that most were quick to assume she'd had a reckless one-night-stand, but despite people's assumptions, she wanted to educate women on the difficulties they may face while travelling solo.

Sharing her story: Alice Nettleingham, of England, got pregnant while travelling solo through Thailand

Helping others: She wrote a blog post about her experience titled 'Pregnant: Where to get an abortion in Asia'

I wrote that post at the start of my blog, and I think Im the kind of woman who is very honest, she said.

I kind of woke up one day and thought I need to write about this, people dont talk about this enough.

It happens, its out there.

Ms Nettleingham, 31, from Brighton, got pregnant when she had been in Thailand for about three months.

Breaking social barriers: She said abortion remained a taboo topic and was not spoken about enough

Jumping to conclusions: When I wrote the article people assumed I was drunk, they assumed I didnt know the guy, that it was a random encounter, she said

She said while people assumed her pregnancy was the result of a one-night stand, that was not the case.

When I wrote the article people assumed I was drunk, they assumed I didnt know the guy, that it was a random encounter, she said.

But actually me and this guy had been seeing each other for about six weeks.

We spent a lot of time together and when it happened we were both shocked, we dont know what went wrong, we were using protection.

PREGNANT: WHERE TO GET AN ABORTION IN ASIA COUNTRY Bangladesh IS IT LEGAL? Technically no but MR is permitted up to 9 weeks of pregnancy ANY EXCEPTIONS? Yes: to save the woman's life and MR is available WHERE TO GO Women on Waves Cambodia Yes / Women on Waves China Yes / Women on Waves Japan Yes but there are some problems: surgical abortion procedures can be outdated and Mifepristone is not registered in Japan Misoprostol is available in the pharmacy Women on Waves Malaysia No Yes: to save the woman's life and preserve her physical and mental health. www.womenonweb.org to obtain abortion pills Mongolia Yes / Women on Waves Nepal Yes / Women on Waves Philippines No Yes: to save the woman's life but law does not state this explicitly. Misoprostol is registered but difficult to obtain www.womenonweb.org to obtain abortion pills Sri Lanka No Yes: to save the woman's life. Misoprostol is available under the brand name Keshimiso but difficult to get. www.womenonweb.org to obtain abortion pills Thailand No (but there is help in Bangkok) Yes: in the case of rape, to preserve mental health and if there is fetal impairment. In Bangkok, abortion is available for all situations Cabbages and Condoms Vietnam Yes Misoprostol is under the brand names Alsoben and Misoprostol Strada. Mifespristone is available as Mifestad 200 and Nopreg pil http://www.mariestopes.org.vn The main abortion services in Asia are Marie Stopes, Women on Waves and Women on Web. Source: www.teacaketravels.com Advertisement

Unplanned pregnancy: She fell pregnant to a man she had been seeing for about six weeks, despite using protection

As Thailand does not have the medical or sexual health support that is readily available elsewhere, Ms Nettleingham had to travel to Chiang Mai city before she could even buy a pregnancy test.

When the results came back positive, Ms Nettleingham said she went in to robot mode.

I didnt even consider for one minute that I actually wanted to keep that child, she said.

My gut instinct was I do not want this, its not at the right time in my life to do this, travel is number one for me.

Making the decision: When she found out she was pregnant she went in to 'robot mode'

Not an option: I didnt even consider for one minute that I actually wanted to keep that child, she said

She spoke with the man she had been seeing who said he supported whatever decision she made, and went online to Google her options.

I was in Thailand at the time  and when I did internet research it came up that abortion is illegal in Thailand, she said.

Thats a big problem, I really wish I had access to more resources.

I Googled quite a few places in Asia  I sent them emails from Thailand and the nearest place I could go to was Cambodia.

Seeking help: Ms Nettleingham Googled her options and discovered abortion is illegal in Thailand

About two years later I found out theres a brilliant restaurant called Cabbage and Condoms [in Thailand], and they run this restaurant but above the restaurant they have sexual health services.

She got in touch with a service called Marie Stopes in Cambodia where she had a medical abortion.

I had to have an ultrasound and hear the nurse "congratulate" me, she wrote on her blog.

I opted for a medical abortion as I was luckily only three weeks pregnant.

I swallowed those pills and just waited. I had heard horror stories of the process being extremely painful but it wasnt.

I swallowed those pills and just waited': She travelled to Cambodia where she underwent a medical abortion

Learning to cope: She sought medical help from Marie Stopes in Cambodia and said it was not until two months later that she started to address her decision on an emotional level

Ms Nettleingham said she continued to travel afterwards, and it was not until two months later that it hit her what had happened.

She took some time out and travelled home to England, but said when she told friends and family what had happened she was often met with a negative response.

She said before she even had a chance to explain her situation, both men and women would jump to conclusions thinking she had unprotected sex and risked her sexual health.

Breaking taboos: She hopes by sharing her story other women will know it's okay, it happens and not to feel ashamed

She shared her personal story on her blog as well as a guide to where women can get an abortion in Asia.

The information lists the services available in each country and whether or not abortion is legal there.
When getting ready to pick out the perfect engagement ring, most men make a trip to a jeweler, or perhaps even seek advice from a designer. But not Missouri man Paul Jarvis.

Instead, the Columbia-based boyfriend-of-the year went to his workshop and made his girlfriend a stunning engagement ring with his own two hands.

Jarvis, who hadn't dabbled in small metal artistry since he attended college over ten years ago, spent two hours a night over the course of several months making the bespoke ring while his girlfriend was at night school.

The happy couple: Jarvis and his bride-to-be pose in Columbia, Missouri, where the couple resides

Shine bright like a diamond: The finished product, set with a moissanite stone, cost Jarvis just $300

He shared details about his labor-intensive process on Reddit and Imgur last week where the posts have racked up 590 comments and 800,000 views.

To sharpen his skills, Jarvis mocked up a handful of test rings before diving into the real thing, noting on his Reddit thread that 'patience and attention to detail' were key to ensuring the perfectly-crafted piece of jewelry.

And it wasn't just during the jewelry-making process that Jarvis put his craftiness to the test.

In order to figure out his girlfriend's ring size, he explained that he waited until she forgot to wear her favorite ring one day and then seized upon the opportunity to use it as a measuring tool.

The workshop: This is where Jarvis spent most of his evenings for several months crafting the perfect ring

The process: When all was said and done, Jarvis said he had made ten draft rings before settling on the 'one'

Sneaking around: To keep the project a secret, Jarvis had to figure out his girlfriend's ring size by measuring her favorite ring (pictured) when she wasn't home

After he shaped the sterling silver band, he added a six-prong setting and for the finishing touch, he brought the ring to a jeweler to insert the stone.

Because the couple is on a budget, Jarvis chose a half carat moissanite stone instead of a diamond, though by the looks of the pictures the rock is no less dazzling.

Including materials, tools and jeweler fees, the one-of-a-kind ring cost a grand total of $300.

And that wasn't all that the romantic had to sacrifice.

Decisions, Decisions: Jarvis created several different styles and ultimately chose the ring on the far right

She said yes: 'She digs it', Jarvis wrote on Imgur

On Reddit Jarvis wrote that during the time he made the engagement ring, he and his girlfriend rarely saw each other due to her busy schedule.

'It was emotionally and physically exhausting but I knew that I wanted to get this finished before the new year,' he wrote.

'We hadn't even discussed rings, we were just going to get married and that's what this ring exemplifies to me; one of the toughest periods we've been through as a couple that we came out of without a scratch.'
Retta, Amy Brenneman, Mercedes Mason, and Mary McCormack also appear in videos for the project

Reasons include having a health condition, getting pregnant by an abuser, and simply not being ready

They each recite a true story about a woman who got an abortion, from her point of view

The actresses joined the Center for Reproductive Rights Draw the Line campaign, which is

Elizabeth Banks, Scandal's Bellamy Young, and Orange is the New Black's Dascha Polanco are telling real-life stories of abortion to raise awareness for a new pro-choice campaign.

The three actresses  who are also joined by comedian Retta, and fellow screen stars Amy Brenneman, Mercedes Mason, and Mary McCormack  have joined the Center for Reproductive Rights Draw the Line initiative, which is standing up against political attacks on reproductive healthcare.

In a new series of videos, each of the women tell a story from the point of a view of a real American woman who has had an abortion, each for a different reason.

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Taking a stand: Elizabeth Banks has joined a new campaign by the Center of Reproductive Rights

Speaking out: The 41-year-old star is helping the organization combat attacks on reproductive rights

In one clip, mother-of-two Elizabeth, 41, tells the story of Rebecca, a woman who was beaten by her boyfriend. Rebecca's best friend, who'd been there for her through thick and thin, helped her move out of their shared apartment.

But when Rebecca thought she was finally free, she found out her birth control had failed and she was pregnant.

'One of the worst things about getting an abortion was actually having to say the word "abortion",' Elizabeth says in the video, speaking from Rebecca's point of view.

Reasons: She tells the story of a real woman named Rebecca, who aborted the baby of a man who abused her; Rebecca was glad the people who loved her stepped up to support her

Mom: Elizabeth, who appeared in the film What to Expect When You're Expecting, has two kids of her own

'With my best friend, no topic had ever been off-limits, which is why I already knew she was against abortion. I couldn't imagine losing her over this. I told her that I could not have my abuser's baby. I did not want to create a life with such a hateful man. And then I waited for her judgement.

'But it never came. She even drove me to the clinic, made me call my mom as I took the pills in my dorm.

'What I remember most about my experience is that the women I love stepped up to support the decision I was choosing to make. Because the life they were most concerned about was mine.'

She concludes: 'When you love someone, you want the best for them. And that means you would do anything to protect them from being forced to do something against their will. I think most women feel that way, but when it comes to abortion, it can be hard to say the words.'

Elizabeth then demonstrates that she 'draws the line' for Rebecca, painting a streak across the bottom of the screen.

Tougher laws: The campaign supports women's reproductive rights, which have been facing more and more restrictions in the past few years

The seven videos were all released just ahead of Friday's forty-third anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision that protected a woman's right to privacy in getting an abortion and bans states from placing an undue burden on women seeking one.

However, since then reproductive rights have become more limited, with more and more restrictions being proposed in states across the Southern and Midwestern US.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, between January and April of 2015 alone, lawmakers had proposed 332 new provisions reducing abortions.

And on March 2, another major case spotlighting reproductive rights will reach the Supreme Court. In Whole Womans Health v. Cole, the lawfulness of some of Texas' abortion restrictions are being challenged.

Touching tale: Bellamy Young, 45, told the story of Faith, who knew her unborn baby's health was at risk because she was epileptic

Advocate: Bellamy plays Senator Mellie Grant on the popular ABC show Scandal; this season, her character defended Planned Parenthood

Girl power: She is also a defender of the organization in real life and has tweeted her support

Bellamy Young, 45, also recorded a video for the campaign. The Scandal actress has spoken out about abortion before  in fact, her character, Senator Mellie Grant, recently filibustered to prevent the Senate from voting to defund Planned Parenthood on the show.

'So proud to speak on ur behalf [tonight],' she tweeted the night the episode aired. [And] for all women who deserve access to basic health care. [Thank you] for all you do.'

During the same season, Olivia Pope, played by Kerry Washington, gets an abortion, a shocking twist that made real-life headlines.

For the campaign, Bellamy tells the story of Faith, a mother and nurse suffering from epilepsy. She says that that being pregnant put her job and health at risk, since there was a 40 per cent chance that she would have a seizure during pregnancy.

In need of healthcare: Faith, whom Bellamy speaks for, said she was made to feel like a criminal instead of a patient

Putting it in the spotlight: Also on this season of Scandal, Kerry Washington's character Olivia gets an abortion

When her birth control failed, she knew she needed to have an abortion. Because the pregnancy had been unplanned, she hadn't taken necessary measures to ensure it would be safe. But external pressure made the decision difficult.

'I felt the shame and stigma attached to having an abortion, because those who disagree with your choice will want to make you feel guilty,' Bellamy, as Faith, says sadly. 'When people hear "abortion" they think "mistake". They think "irresponsible". They think everything except, "I hope she's gonna be OK."'

She had to wait until she was 17 weeks along, when she could finally get time off from work, and she kept the procedure a secret from others.

'I was made to feel like a criminal, instead of a patient in need of care,' she says. 'I hope my girls grow up in a world that protects the healthcare they need, regardless of how another might feel about why they need it.'

Owning her body: Dascha Polanco tells the story of Kayleigh, who said abortion was the best choice for her

True story: The 33-year-old voiced Kayleigh's concerns about the obstacles put in the way of women in Texas seeking abortions

Dascha Polanco, 33, filmed a third clip. Her character on the Netflix series Orange is the New Black, Daya, got pregnant while in prison and decided to keep it  unlike Kayleigh, the woman whose story she gives a voice in the new video.

Many women are made to feel shame... I'm proud. I had the guts to make the right choice for myself

When Kayleigh found out she was pregnant, she made a pro-con list. But thinking about the fact that she was a full time student with full time job made her decision simple.

'I barely had time to juggle my current responsibilities,' Dascha says, as Kayleigh. 'I was not ready to raise a child with the care and attention they deserved. So I made the best decision possible for me. I scheduled an abortion.

'But in Texas, once I'd made my decision, there were a whole bunch of obstacles that others put in my way,' she says, likely referring to 2013's HB2 measure in the state, which mandates that doctors who provide abortions have admitting privileges at hospitals within 30 miles of their clinic.

The law also requires all clinics that offer abortions to become ambulatory surgical centers  which has limited the number of abortion-providing clinics in the state.

On TV: Dascha's character on Orange is the New Black got pregnant but decided to keep her baby

Scary stuff: Parks and Recreation actress Retta told the story of a woman with a dangerous ectopic pregnancy, in which the baby was unlikely to survive

'I was not about to let anyone bully me,' she says. 'I was surprised to find that the process actually made me feel braver. It was an active choice.

'My choice, that I made. I knew I was strong, but many women are made to feel shame and spend much of their lives pretending it didn't happen. I'm proud. I had the guts to make the right choice for myself.'

In yet another clip, Parks and Recreation actress Retta, 45, tells story of Rosario, a woman who had an ectopic pregnancy  a dangerous condition in which the egg implants outside the uterus  after years of trying to conceive.

Most babies of ectopic pregnancies don't survive, and Rosario made the painful decision to terminate, even though she desperately wanted a child.

'I had a doctor that was protecting my body and my rights,' she says. 'It hurts when I think of the women out there who are fighting to get treatment because there home doesn't come with the health care services that I had.'

Too sad: Private Practice star Amy Brenneman's story is about a woman who found out she would likely miscarry but have to deliver the dead baby

Star-studded campaign: Fear the Walking Dead's Mercedes Mason (left) and In Plain Sight's Mary McCormack (right) also appear

Private Practice star Amy Brenneman, 51, tells Whitney's story. Whitney's unborn baby had chromosomal abnormalities that were 'not compatible with life'  which meant Whitney would likely have a miscarriage, and be force to deliver her dead baby in a hospital.

Instead, she got an abortion.

Fear the Walking Dead's Mercedes Mason, 33, and In Plain Sight's Mary McCormack, 46, also speak out in videos of their own, telling more real stories of women who chose to terminate their pregnancies.
An Australian couple touched the hearts of thousands after sharing a video of their premature twins - who weighed just 900 grams each - holding hands in their father's arms.

Despite Anthea Jackson-Rushford going into labour at just 29 weeks on January 4th, the twins, Kristian and Kristiana, defied the odds and were 'doing fine'.

Since, the proud couple have been sharing the progress of their twins on Facebook, often posting heartwarming videos and photos of the pair and statuses thanking their supporters.

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Heartwarming: Earlier this week an Australian couple touched the hearts of thousands after sharing a video of their premature twins, Kristian and Kristiana, holding hands

Proud mother: Mrs Jackson-Rushford (pictured), 40, appeared on The Today Show on Friday morning to discuss the twins and reveal how they are doing almost three weeks on from their birth

Defying the odds: Despite Anthea Jackson-Rushford going into labour at just 29 weeks on January 4th, the twins, Kristian and Kristiana, defied the odds and were 'doing fine'

Mrs Jackson-Rushford, 40, appeared on The Today Show on Friday morning to discuss the twins and reveal how they are doing almost three weeks on from their birth.

'It has all been a bit surreal actually, she said, 'Kristiana is on me now...she made it to the one kilo club yesterday.'

'They're both over a kilo now.'

'They're both over a kilo now': Mrs Jackson-Rushford said both her babies were growing and doing well

Amazing: Mrs Jackson-Rushford posted the touching clip showing her newborn babies, Kristian and Kristiana, holding hands while they slept on their father Glen's chest

Mrs Jackson-Rushford said that she and her husband Glen's wish to raise awareness and offer hope to parents had been achieved with their viral video.

'All we wanted was for parents to have hope if they ever had premature babies, so mission accomplished,' Mrs Jackson-Rushford said, speaking from the Monash Children's Hospital in Clayton, Victoria.

'We have received a lot of love from everyone and there's not been one negative comment so I'm pretty grateful and relieved that what we wanted has happened.'

Spreading a message: All we wanted was for parents to have hope if they ever had premature babies, so mission accomplished,' Mrs Jackson-Rushford said, speaking from the Monash Children's Hospital in Clayton, Victoria

Mrs Jackson-Rushford revealed that after finding out at 23 weeks that she may give birth early, she had gone home and researched it - an experience that drove her to spread the message in the first place.

'I looked up photos and videos of babies that were premature and whether they were going to be okay and it's a bit scary and daunting for parents - I wanted to show people now that they will be okay,' she said.

After the video of the twins holding hands went viral, many were amazed by their deep bond.

'They're not even identical, they're fraternal, so they had different placentas...but even in scans they were showing up close each other,' Mrs Jackson-Rushford said, proudly holding the twins on her chest.

Proud parents: The couple welcomed twins Kristian and Kristiana into the world on January 4th

In the one-minute viral video, Anthea can be heard in the background saying: 'He actually holds her hand. How is that possible? That's just unbelievable.'

Her husband replies: 'It's like he's going, "I've got you". He's moving his fingers up and down.'

Mrs Jackson-Rushford initially announced the news of her twins' arrival on her Facebook page on January 5th, writing: 'Just informing our dear friends and family that Glen and I delivered our two little cherubs last night and they are doing fine!

Deep bond: 'They're not even identical, they're fraternal, so they had different placentas...but even in scans they were showing up close each other,' Mrs Jackson-Rushford said

'They were eager to get here quite before their due date and they did exactly that!'

'I could be discharged tonight or tom but will be a daily visit to see our angels till they can come home with us, god willing in a few weeks. Confident their Grandpa is cuddling them all the way [sic].'

'Attached pics of Kristian Ian Rushford and Kristiana Micaela Rushford. Weighed in at just under a kilo each!'

The proud mother has also posted a series of photos of the twins sleeping, yawning, holding hands and being cuddled by their proud parents.

A bond: The premature twins, Kristian and Kristiana, held each others' hands as they cuddled on their father's chest

Mrs Jackson-Rushford explained on her Facebook page that she was sharing the images of the tiny infants to give other parents of premature babies hope.

She said: 'We realise it may be a tad bit disturbing seeing our twins with tubes but they are premie babies so it is understandable and normal.'

'I'm sharing photos and videos for the simple reason that it gives hope to all parents out there that even they do just fine! I googled like crazy looking for hope when we told we might be Prem.'
A Kentucky family is up in arms after their 17-year-old daughter revealed that she was forced to get on her knees so her male principal could measure the length of her dress with a ruler in order to assess whether she had violated the school's strict dress codes.

Amanda Durbin, 17, a senior at Edmonson County High School, went to class on Monday in a nearly-knee-length dress that is a regular part of her wardrobe - and a dress that her mother Alexandria insists is 'appropriate for you to go to church in'.

Yet when she arrived at school in the dress, which she had paired with opaque black tights, she was told she would have to prove that her dress was long enough to be deemed 'appropriate'.

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The offending outfit: Amanda Durbin, 17, a senior at Edmonson County High School, has revealed how she was told by teachers to get on her knees so that a male principal could measure the length of her dress

Making a stand: Amanda measured the dress to be five inches above the knee; the dress code dictates that the maximum distance between the hem and floor is six

The school's method of working this out? Forcing the teenage girl to get on her knees so that a male principal could use a ruler to measure the distance from her hemline to the ground.

Amanda told Buzzfeed that the school had been cracking down on the dress code since last week, particularly over wearing leggings as pants.

In response, she and several other girls came to the school wearing tights along with dresses to show they could wear leggings and still be within the code.

Amanda measured her dress before going to school, finding it was five inches above the knee. However, during her third class she was send to the office when a teacher deemed the dress too short.

There, she was told to kneel on the ground so her hem could be measured. Understandably uncomfortable with the request, she asked that her parents be present.

A wasted day: Amanda subsequently missed most of her day after she requested her parents be present when she was asked to kneel

The scene: The high schooler's parents are outraged at the school's behavior, with Amanda's mother insisting that the dress was entirely appropriate

The teen subsequently missed the majority of her classes that day as she and the administrators, including principal Tommy Hodges waited until her parents arrived so she could kneel on the ground.

When they finally did, Amanda got on her knees for the measuring, and said she felt 'humiliated' and 'embarrassed'.

'I didnt really appreciate having to get down on my knees especially while I was in a dress,' she added.

Although the measurement proved the dress was indeed five inches above the knee, the teen was then made to walk across the room with her arms in the air so they could watch and see if the dress would ride up. Once it did, the young girl was sent home for the violation.

Amanda's mother was less than impressed with the decision, telling WKBO: 'I've had people saying that's something they would wear to church. If it's appropriate for you to go to church in, why isn't it appropriate for you to go to school in?'

Unimpressed: The teenager said she felt 'humiliated' and 'embarrassed' about having to get on her knees

At a loss: Though the dress was found to be five inches above the knee, Amanda was sent home after being made to walk with her hands raised to show that the dress would ride up

Also speaking to WKBO on Monday, the principal of the school Tommy Hodges defended the code, saying that it has been in effect for three years, but they recently made a decision to enforce it more strongly.

The dress code, which is included in handbooks sent home with students at the start of each year, is apparently created by the site base council and the school system told WKBO that they were open to 'professional' discussion over changes.

'We're not a church, we're not a business, we're a school. It's where kids are learning and we're trying to educate them everyday,' said Tommy. 'Whether the dress code is a little more strict or a little more relaxed, we're a different entity than everything that has been mentioned.'

Boys have also been sent home from the school for violations such as wearing ripped jeans.
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Clinging to the body of a woman over 40  a woman who may also have given birth a couple of times  a white bikini speaks volumes. It tells of body confidence, hours in the gym . . . or, perhaps, self-delusion and sheer sartorial recklessness.

For sadly, this is one of the hardest of all fashion items to get right.

Take Gwyneth Paltrow. Frolicking in the Mexican surf this week, in a white two-piece by designer swimwear brand Mikoh  her body honed by workouts with celebrity trainer Tracy Anderson  youd think nothing could go wrong.

Clinging to the body of a woman over 40  a woman who may also have given birth a couple of times  a white bikini speaks volumes. Gwyneth Paltrow, on the beach in Mexico, appears to be in her teen bra and knickers  and from behind her rear looks plump

As one of the original supermodels, Carla Bruni (left) has always been blessed with long limbs and a lissome silhouette. The former First Lady of France uses ring details to detract from the sheer fabric of her very revealing string bikini. Myleene Klass caused a storm showering in a waterfall in TVs celebrity jungle in 2006 (right). But this, strappy two-piece she wore in 2014 is too fussy and looks clumsy. For Myleene, simple works better

After Myleene, every wannabe packs their white bikini for Im A Celeb. Coronation Streets Helen Flanagans (left) halter style stays just this side of decent. Uma Thurman (right) accessorises her skimpy top and big briefs with a plaster cast on her wrist, but it fails to detract from the lack of lining  and subsequent lack of dignity

Its a tale of two halves for Naomi Campbell (left), with the flirty ruffled briefs adding curves and a playful feminine touch, while the sad-looking bandeau top does nothing for her famously lean torso. This shapeless, strapless top fails to flatter supermodel Kate Mosss (right) small bust, and starchy white is probably the least flattering colour for her English Rose complexion

Yet the 43-year-old lifestyle guru looked like shed been caught out in a teenage starter bra and knickers that have seen too many hot spin cycles. But the biggest surprise was when she turned round. With her slightly prepubescent silhouette, the last thing youd expect is for her to look like gravity has taken its toll.

Yet those unflattering cutaway briefs actually succeed in the impossible  making Gwynnies pert rear look plump. But that just shows how problematic a white bikini can be.

An unforgiving colour, which has to work hard to get away from its associations with schoolgirl underwear, white can become a beachwear car crash in an instant. And it has little to do with the shape youre in.

Looking good in a white bikini is all down to appropriate support  and the tiny details which stop it looking too much like underwear.

Model mum Lara Stone (left) is clearly body confident, but the bandeau top offers little support and looks like she wrapped a roll of Andrex around her bosom. Bronzed Geri Halliwell (right) chooses a structured, ruched top to lift her voluptuous bosom, with a low-cut brief to show off her trim abs

Rihanna (left) is famed for flaunting her flesh, so this bandeau is surprisingly demure, though the delicate string detail adds a typical dash of daring. OK, so The Body looks good in anything  even at 50  but Elle Macpherson (right) shows a few well-chosen accessories add style to a simple string bikini that flatters her physique to perfection

Take Kate Moss and Lara Stone, whove both made a lucrative living out of their supermodel looks, but whose choice of a bandeau bikini for their beach attire failed to flatter their enviable figures.

Perhaps they should have taken their cue from Ursula Andress, whose ruched and underwired bikini made her name when she emerged from the sea as Honey Ryder in the 1962 James Bond film Dr No.
James Norton, Tuppence Middleton and Lily James play delicious fictional characters caught up in the blood-spattered, gold-brocaded, bare-shouldered, spread-eagled, high-booted magnificence of the battlefields, balls and bedrooms of the Russia of the Napoleonic Wars in War And Peace.

But they also rub shoulders with real historical titans in the story. Among them are Napoleon, Tsar Alexander of Russia, Generals Kutuzov and Bagration and so many others that viewers may wonder which are real and which are Tolstoy's creations.

Some of Tolstoy's characters are among the greatest in literature. The writer himself frequented the highest echelons of Russian society. He collected the gossip of the Tsars, the nobility and his own family and diligently researched the history of 1812 and the Battle of Borodino, that murderous draw between Napoleon and Kutuzov. Tolstoy made it the climactic showpiece of Russian heroism in his 1,300-page novel.

War & Peace's Helene Kuragin, played by Tuppence Middleton, is typical of the high society vamps of the time

For me the BBC's lavish drama is especially fun since I have just spent three years writing my new book The Romanovs, about the dynasty that ruled Russia from 1613 until the Revolution in 1917. It's the family story of the Tsars, a chronicle of passion, power and pleasure, murder and mayhem on an epic scale with the drama of 1812 at its centre, and the duel between the French Emperor and Tsar Alexander is my book's climax too.

My main characters are the Emperor and the Tsar, their generals and courtiers, their wives, mothers and mistresses, many of whom appear in Tolstoy's novel either under their own names or as recognisable combinations of real people.

I feel I've lived among these people for years and for me, watching War And Peace on TV is like seeing the Romanovs brought to life. So what was the real story - and was it even more scandalous than Andrew Davies's dramatic version?

The Romanovs 1613-1918 by Simon Sebag Montefiore is published by Weidenfeld on 28 January. War And Peace is on Sunday at 9pm on BBC1.

The general with a taste for hussies

Of all the real-life characters, the most important is General Mikhail Kutuzov (right), played by Brian Cox (left)

Of all the real-life characters, the most important is General Mikhail Kutuzov, played by Brian Cox: he was indeed very old, very fat and very lazy. He was one-eyed and fell asleep at vital moments. Tolstoy portrays him as a sort of personification of Russian soul and genius, but he was none of these things.

His eye wound came from a Turkish bullet in Catherine the Great's Ottoman wars which had amazingly entered through his temple and come out of his eye without killing him. He was happily married but notoriously debauched, always accompanied by an entourage of gorgeous peasant mistresses, and it was said that even at the Battle of Borodino, where he was nearly decrepit, he was still accompanied by two young hussies disguised as soldiers!

Guess who inspired loveable Pierre...

Tolstoy (right) was nicknamed the Bear - and can be found in Pierre Bezukhov, played by Paul Dano

Every novelist plants fragments of himself in many of his characters, but two in particular contain aspects of the novelist. One is Prince Andrei Bolkonsky. He is Tolstoy's aristocratic cold and reticent self.

His other half - the boorish young Tolstoy who was nicknamed the Bear, and the Troglodyte - can be found in Pierre Bezukhov, played by Paul Dano, an awkward debauchee like Tolstoy. The novelist despised himself as a fornicator who seduced whenever possible the serfgirls he owned, just as Pierre loved the whores he enjoys at the Dolokhov/Kuragin orgies.

Yet simultaneously like Tolstoy, Pierre is a man of authentic emotions and morals who deplores Russian backwardness, serfdom and Romanov autocracy, longing for the freedoms of the French Revolution and the equalities of socialism. Pierre too is an outsider; honest, and loving, and incapable of court sycophancy. Pierre, more than anyone, is Tolstoy.

The prince exiled to Siberia

Major General Prince Sergei Volkonsky 1788 1865, a hero of the 1812 campaign against Napoleon

War & Peace's Prince Andrei (JAMES NORTON), and Natasha Rostov (LILY JAMES)

The dashing Prince Andrei Bolkonsky, played by James Norton, was based on Prince Sergei Volkonsky, Tolstoy's cousin and hero in real life. Volkonsky was a handsome, clever liberal who believed that autocracy and serfdom were evil, views shared by Tolstoy himself.

Hence the novel's hero contains part of Tolstoy himself too. Sergei was an adjutant to Tsar Alexander, but after the wars he joined the 1825 Decembrist revolt when Russian officers led a protest against Nicholas I's assumption of the throne.

The plot failed and Volkonsky was exiled to Siberia for 30 years, losing everything. His beautiful wife Maria accompanied him and became known as the Princess of Siberia. Volkonsky was allowed to return when Alexander II took the throne in 1855, just as Tolstoy was planning a novel based on his life story.

But to understand the Decembrist uprising, Tolstoy thought he needed to start the novel during the Napoleonic Wars and gradually his novel about Prince Sergei Volkonsky became War And Peace.

Natasha Rostova, played by Lily James, is based on Tolstoy's sister-in-law Tanya Behrs (pictured)

A girl adored

In the TV series the Rostov house rings with laughter and love. The father Ilya, played by Adrian Edmondson, who loves to dance, was partly based on Tolstoy's free-spending grandfather, Count Ilya Tolstoy. But the most joyful household belonged to a Moscow family the novelist also knew well: that of his father-in-law, Dr Andrei Behrs, physician to the Tsars.

Playful and passionate Natasha Rostova, played by Lily James, is based on Tolstoy's sister-in-law Tanya Behrs (inset) who like Natasha was adored for her ebullience and charm. Like Natasha, whose innocence is tainted by dastardly suitors, Tanya had a flirtation and semi-engagement with Tolstoy's older and more dashing brother Sergei who was entangled with a gypsy-girl with whom he had children. In the end Tanya broke it off and attempted suicide by swallowing disinfectant.

Incest and two voracious vamps

Helene and Anatole's family, the Kuragins, and their father Prince Vassily, the scheming, craven courtier played brilliantly by Stephen Rea, are inspired by the real-life noble court clan the Kurakins led by the veteran minister Prince Alexander Kurakin who, famed for his wealth, greed and ostentation, was known as the Diamond Prince: like Kuragin he was obsessed with every detail of rank and court status.

Helene, played by Tuppence Middleton, the voracious princess, is typical of the high society vamps of the time, and like many she becomes very close to the Tsar. She is clearly based on a compilation of the Tsar's real-life mistresses, but if anything her behaviour is somewhat circumspect compared to the most notorious, Princess Katya Bagration (inset), the gorgeous and lubricious wife of ferocious general Prince Bagration, hero of Borodino, who is played by Pip Torrens in the TV series.

A curvaceous, blue-eyed blonde, Princess Katya was nicknamed The Naked Angel or Nude Venus because she favoured see-through dresses to show off her remarkable body, and she was also known as The White Pussycat because of her sexual skill and enthusiasm.

She had affairs with both Tsar Alexander and Austrian Chancellor Prince Metternich and at the Congress of Vienna in 1814 - a peace conference that took place two years after the events in War And Peace - Austrian police reports described her apartment as the world's most exclusive royal and aristocratic bordello.

Helene also has a partly Romanov basis. For those in the know about Russian society in 1812, the intimacy between Helene and her brother Prince Anatole - presented as incestuous in the TV adaptation but not actually stated as such in the book - would have recalled one very rarefied real-life relationship that Tolstoy would never dare specify even when he was writing his novel 50 years later.

Tsar Alexander I's closest and most passionate relationship was not with his many mistresses but with his own forceful, intelligent and conspiratorial sister Grand Duchess Catherine - known as Catiche. She was full-lipped, haughty and seductive with lustrous long hair, and her close intimacy with her brother was notorious.

As she was much younger than him they had not grown up together, and there is no doubt he was very attracted to her. He loved kissing her feet, hands, nose and lips, calling her 'the most delicious thing that ever existed' and praising 'your nose on which I press the tenderest of kisses'. Hot stuff for a sister!

Mistresses and mistakes

Tsar Alexander, played by Ben Lloyd-Hughes (left) is much maligned in War And Peace by being treated as a vain but weak and showy non-entity who favoured German popinjays over real Russian heroes. Unlike the dark, weaselly tsar of the BBC series, the real tall, blonde, blue-eyed emperor (right) had dazzling good looks and his affairs were legion. His father was the demented Tsar Paul. Alexander had taken the decision to back the overthrow of his father but Paul was viciously murdered so that the young Tsar was forever haunted by his role in the killing of his own father.

Alexander made appalling mistakes overruling Kutuzov at Austerlitz, as shown in episode two of the TV series, but, in fact, his preparations for Napoleon's invasion ultimately created the army that fought at Borodino. He was not as brilliant as his ancestor Peter the Great or his grandmother Catherine the Great, but as the tsar who conquered Paris and destroyed Napoleon, he was one of the greatest Romanovs.

Dolokhov, played by Tom Burke (left) is the psychopathic wild man, gambler, seducer, duellist and soldier. He is based on Count Fyodor Tolstoy (left), one of the most extraordinary characters of the 1812 era

A truly dangerous seducer

Dolokhov, played by Tom Burke is the psychopathic wild man, gambler, seducer, duellist and soldier in the TV series. He's the leader of the crazily debauched set that includes the Kuragins and Pierre Bezukhov. When he seduces Pierre's wife Helene, Pierre challenges him to a duel. Dolokhov is actually based on Tolstoy's fascinating cousin, Count Fyodor Tolstoy, known as 'Americansky' - the American - one of the most extraordinary characters of the 1812 era.

Brilliantly intelligent, bizarrely eccentric and truly dangerous, he killed 13 men in duels, travelled on a voyage to the Sandwich Islands in the Pacific, where he seduced many women including the local Queen, and then sailed to America (hence his nickname) and returned with a pet ape.
We ask a celebrity a set of devilishly probing questions - and only accept THE definitive answer.

This week: writer and actress Arabella Weir.

Writer and actress Arabella Weir regrets not going to university

The prized possession you value above all others... My late grandmother She-She's [Sheila] ruby engagement ring. She had a huge generosity of spirit and was a role model for me. She left me the ring when she died aged 79 from a heart attack in 1983 and I wear it all the time.

The biggest regret you wish you could amend... Not going to university. I went to Middlesex Poly to study drama and it was a complete waste of two years.

The temptation you wish you could resist... Alcohol. I should stop after two glasses, but I have a very inefficient OFF button. I'm the same with chocolate.

'The temptation you wish I could resist? Alcohol. I should stop after two glasses, but I have a very inefficient OFF button. I'm the same with chocolate'

The book that holds an everlasting resonance... Staying On by Paul Scott, about a British couple clinging onto their old life in India after Independence. It evokes India beautifully and is so moving.

The person who's influenced you most... Helen Scott Lidgett, who died from cancer aged just 63 in 2012. She was my art teacher when I was 16 and we became lifelong best friends. She taught me that you can achieve anything if you put in the work.

The unending quest that drives you on... I love what I do, so I just want to always carry on writing and acting.

The pet hate that makes your hackles rise... So-called socialists who send their kids to private school. They should send them to state school. I'm a socialist and that's what I've done with my kids Isabella, 18, and Archie, 16.

The film you can watch time and time again... It's A Wonderful Life always makes me sob. It reminds you of what matters in life.

The figure from history for whom you'd most like to buy a pie and a pint... Hitler. I'm vain enough to think I could charm him into telling me what made him so full of hate.

I'm vain enough to think I could charm Hitler into telling me what made him so full of hate

The piece of wisdom you would pass on to a child... Know what you want in life so you can go out and get it.

The unlikely interest that engages your curiosity... The word game Bananagrams. It's an easier version of Scrabble, but my children refuse to play with me - they think it's only for old people!

The treasured item you lost and wish you could have again... A gold charm bracelet my ex-husband Jeremy gave me on our wedding day in 2002. I lost it six years ago during a trip to Scotland.

The poem that touches your soul... Philip Larkin's This Be The Verse for its priceless opening line, 'They f*** you up, your mum and dad.' He couldn't have been more accurate about my life if he'd tried! My parents did whatever suited them best, but oddly their attitude taught me to turn misfortune into comedy.

Just because my name's Arabella and my dad was a diplomat, it doesn't mean I'm posh. I'm middle class

The song that means most to you... I Say A Little Prayer by Aretha Franklin. It was played at Helen's funeral and it always makes me cry.

The priority activity if you were the Invisible Woman for a day... I'm terrified of sharks, so I'd swim with Great Whites to finally conquer my fear.

The event that altered the course of your life and character... The publication of Does My Bum Look Big In This? in 1997. The book was a bestseller and it put me on the map.

The crime you would commit knowing you could get away with it... I'd kill all the despicable despots in Africa.

The misapprehension about yourself you wish you could erase... That I'm posh just because my name is Arabella and my dad Michael was a diplomat. Dad was only knighted at the end of his career, when I was in my 20s. He wasn't an aristocrat. I'm middle class.

'I'm terrified of sharks, so I'd swim with Great Whites to finally conquer my fear' (if invisible)

The way you would spend your fantasy 24 hours, with no travel restrictions... Helen would still be alive and we'd wake up in the swanky Four Seasons hotel in Florence. I'd have a pastry and a strong coffee for breakfast, then we'd wander around the city. Later we'd view Paris from the roof terrace of the Pompidou Centre, then head to New York: we'd hang out in the achingly trendy Ace Hotel, eat salmon with scrambled eggs at the Brunswick Cafe, and shop at Anthropologie, my favourite clothes shop. Then we'd have Sundowner cocktails on the banks of the Nile at the Winter Palace Hotel in Luxor, Egypt, where my kids would join us. We'd have lamb tagine for dinner with a Cotes du Rhone red wine, followed by oum ali - the Egyptian version of bread and butter pudding. We'd all end the day at the Banyan Tree Hotel in the Seychelles.

The happiest moment you will cherish forever... When the BBC told me they were commissioning my comedy series Posh Nosh in 2002. I was so excited I thought I was going to explode.

The saddest time that shook your world... Helen dying on 31 July 2012. We spoke at least four times a day and our friendship was like being in love, but with a friend. I miss her hugely.

The unfulfilled ambition that continues to haunt you... To be thin and look great in jeans! One day...

The philosophy that underpins your life... Regret nothing.

The order of service at your funeral I want every useable bit of me to go to medical science, then they can have a service with what's left. I want it in a field, but nothing religious. A bagpiper can play something cheerful and then I want everyone to have a big party.

The way you want to be remembered... As a good person and a best friend who was always true to her word.
When former supermodel Christina Estrada discovered that her billionaire husband had secretly married another woman, the stage was set for one of the biggest divorce battles in British history.

But, judging by her court wardrobe, it's turning into one of the most glamorous, too.

Ms Estrada, an American-born Pirelli calendar girl and a long-time friend of Prince Andrew, launched proceedings in the High Court, laying claim to a share of Sheik Walid Juffalis 4 billion fortune, which includes an estate in Windsor and a seven-bedroom home in a converted church in Knightsbridge.

As well as contesting his use of diplomatic immunity to shield him in the divorce battle, Christina has been using her court appearances as quite the catwalk.

Christina Estrada launched proceedings in the High Court, laying claim to a share of Sheik Walid Juffalis 4 billion fortune, which includes an estate in Windsor and a seven-bedroom home in a converted church in Knightsbridge. FEMAIL charts her incredibly stylish court wardrobe

On Monday, Christina arrived at Family Division of the High Court at The Law Courts The Strand in a chic black and white dress and matching coat. She accessorised the outfit with Chanel pearls and carried a quilted Chanel bag.

The former model also appeared to have had a glossy blow-dry and a pale pink manicure and her make-up was glossy but understated.

Speaking about her chic style, Stylist Naomi Isted said: 'Christina Estrada has a love for luxury but in a refined and ladylike style. She may like quality but isnt flash or OTT.

'Her handbags will set her back in excess of 2,000 each. Her outfits show that she likes class and quality. Sophisticated yet expensive is her key look. Black is a staple in her wardrobe along with rich blue colours.'

On Monday, Christina arrived at Family Division of the High Court at The Law Courts The Strand in a chic black and white dress and matching coat. She accessorised the outfit with Chanel pearls and carried a quilted Chanel bag

For Tuesday's outing, it was a chic purple tweed Chanel blazer, which she wore with a ruffled black shirt and tailored black trousers

She wore her hair up in a sleek pony and wore a slick of berry on her lips. 'This look says "I mean business,' said stylist Naomi

This Monochrome duo is classic and safe teamed with a classic Chanel so the look will be in the region of 5,000.'

For Tuesday's outing, it was a chic purple tweed Chanel blazer, which she wore with a ruffled black shirt and tailored black trousers.

She wore her hair up in a sleek pony and wore a slick of berry on her lips. 'This look says "I mean business,' said Naomi.

'A classic black trouser, hair up teamed with a tweed jacket is ladylike but means business.'

On Wednesday, she wrapped up warm in an oversized grey wrap coat, a white polo neck and blue boots from Russell and Bromley. Along with the Louis Vuitton bag this look would be in the region of 4-5,000

Judging by her court wardrobe, it's turning into one of the most glamorous legal battles ever

On Wednesday, she wrapped up warm in an oversized grey wrap coat, a white polo neck and blue trousers.

In one hand she carried the court documents and, in the other, she toted a Louis Vuitton handbag.

'The cashmere grey overcoat is stylish and teamed with the Russel and Bromley navy suede boots shows her love for darker colours. Along with the Louis Vuitton bag this look would be in the region of 4-5,000,' said Naomi.

Thursday's outfit was a burgundy fur-trimmed dress worn with a blue applique coat and wine hued heeled boots.

'Wearing the fur underneath not over her coat gives a more demure look to this outfit, again teamed gorgeously with rich colours. This look probably set her back in excess of 5,000,' commented Naomi.

Teodosia Lloyd the Creative Director of luxury fashion line Teo Lloyd and the Dolly Lloyd London boutique, echoed her sentiments adding: Christinas style is glamorous but still effortlessly elegant. I adore her use of colour with rich plums mixed with classic navy, timeless monochrome and subtle greys.

'But most of all, I think she is an expert at mixing structured tailoring with softer silhouettes - she definitely proves that divorcees dont need to hide away in the shadows!

Fashion expert Simon Glazin added: 'Freshly blow-dried locks, smile on her face, and lots of designer outfits and bags... divorce definitely becomes Christina!

'She's keeping it conservative - her take on power dressing, showing her ex who is boss - which is a move away from what a quick Google image search throws up.

'Chic coats and jackets are obviously her thing, this grey belted style screams Olivia Pope style, and dress lengths hit just above the knee, always with a flash of tights.

'For an ex-supermodel, this is a bit too lawyer-heading-to-court, but she is trying to show she deserves all those millions in the settlement after all. And it's working!'

Thursday's outfit was a burgundy fur-trimmed dress worn with a blue applique coat and wine hued heeled boots

On Friday she wore a chic chevron

International businessman Sheikh Walid Juffali, 60, divorced former Pirelli calendar girl Christina Estrada in Saudi Arabia but says he has made 'generous' provision for her since their split.

Denying he is seeking to evade his responsibilities to his former partner and their teenage daughter, he claims he pays her around 70,000 a month and has acquired her a property in Beverly Hills, California.

Ms Estrada, 53, says Dr Juffali, who has an estimated fortune of 4billion, obtained the divorce without her knowledge and it is not possible for her to bring any financial claims against him in his Saudi homeland.

She has obtained leave under Part III of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings Act 1984, which relates to overseas divorces, to make an application for financial relief against the tycoon at the High Court Family Division in London.

Dispute: The High Court in London is considering whether Walid Juffali, who is worth 4billion, genuinely has legal immunity that would defeat former supermodel Christina Estrada's claim to a share of his wealth

According to papers before the court  which have now made public for the first time - London-based Ms Estrada's claim, if successful, could potentially be worth 'many millions of pounds'.

She has said she is 'unsure' of the legal ownership of the Beverly Hills property.

Dr Juffali says he already pays Ms Estrada 100,000 US dollars (70,700) per month and meets all the expenses of their 13-year-old daughter and intends to make further provision for her 'at the appropriate time'.

He is asking family judge Mr Justice Hayden to strike out his ex-wife's claim on the basis that he is protected from legal action in the UK by diplomatic immunity obtained when he was appointed a permanent representative to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) by the Caribbean island of Saint Lucia in April 2014.

Lawyers for Ms Estrada are arguing in a court hearing that his immunity is limited to his official, diplomatic functions and does not extend to the family court proceedings because he is 'a permanent resident' of the UK with strong and enduring ties to the country, including those with his ex-wife and his daughter, who was born in England.

They also say he acquired from his mother Bishopsgate House, a 10-bedroom property set in 40 acres adjoining Windsor Great Park which was the matrimonial home and valued in the region of 100million.

They state in written submissions before the court that he also acquired a 41million property in Walton Place, Kensington and Chelsea, south-west London, and a substantial property in Devon.

Ms Estrada says it is not possible for her to bring any financial claims against Mr Juffali in his Saudi homeland

It is argued that, although the properties are now subject to trust and corporate structures, they are clear indications of his very close ties to England.

Disagreeing, Dr Juffali's legal team say the former husband has substantial property elsewhere, including in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and does not permanently reside in the UK.

Thus, they submit, he enjoys 'general immunity' from being sued in the UK courts, including by his ex-wife, under Article 15 of the International Maritime Organisation (Immunities and Privileges) Order 2015.

Last Friday, the Saint Lucia government told the Foreign and Commonwealth Office that it intends to 'uphold the principle of diplomatic immunity' by allowing Dr Juffali to invoke his diplomatic immunity in court.

The government has issued a statement saying: 'The government of Saint Lucia has been assured by the FCO that Dr Juffali has not abused the privileges and immunities afforded to him, nor is the decision of the government of Saint Lucia to uphold the principle of diplomatic immunity an abuse of these privileges or immunities in any way.

'While the government of Saint Lucia fully respects the decision of the FCO to make such a request, it is not satisfied, based on its own examination of the facts, that a compelling case has been made out to grant a waiver of the diplomatic immunity of Dr Juffali.'

Expensive: Mr Juffali owns Bishopsgate House (pictured), a country estate in Egham, Surrey, which includes a maze and tennis court. The estate is next to Windsor Great Park and is just four miles from Windsor Castle

The statement added that Saint Lucia had maintained its position 'that the parties should be allowed to settle their matrimonial dispute through negotiations and failing that, the courts should decide if immunity can be waived in this matter'.

The court also heard that Dr Juffali is seriously ill with cancer'.

Former supermodel Christina Estrada claims Walid Juffali's immunity is void because he is unable to carry out his diplomatic duties, meaning the post has now come to an end under Article 39 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.

Lawyers for Walid Juffali, who was appointed as St Lucias permanent representative to the International Maritime Organisation in April 2014, had sought to prevent Ms Estradas claims about the businessman's health being made public.

However, Mr Justice Hayden lifted restrictions on the claims being reported during a hearing at the High Court in London on Thursday.

Mr Justice Hayden told the court that claims Mr Juffali is currently in hospital in Switzerland were 'plainly relevant to my future case management.

He added: In many respects, transparency is one of the central aspects of this case. To assert immunity from a transparent legal process whilst at the same time seeking to inhibit the publication of assets of the wifes claim seems to me to raise a question of fairness.
Anushka Dasgupta, a high school senior from Kolkata, India, shared a picture of her stained pants on Facebook along with an insightful

A young woman who accidentally stained her pants with blood during her period has penned a powerful response to the men and women who shamed her because she was menstruating, sharing a photo of her splotched trousers to prove there is nothing to be embarrassed of.

Anushka Dasgupta, a high school senior from Kolkata, India, explained that she was was commuting home on Sunday when women started telling her to pull her shirt down, while men were very obviously 'ogling' her. It wasn't until a woman offered her a sanitary napkin that she realized she had bled through her trousers.

'So here I was, well past eight, standing alone at Esplanade [a metro station] with a massive red stain across my butt and a rather artistic red dot under the zipper of my pants,' she wrote on Facebook.

Taking a stand: Anushka Dasgupta, from India, shared this photo of pants covered in menstruation blood after she was shamed for accidentally staining her pants during her commute home

Center of attention: The young woman said she couldn't understand why people were staring at her until a woman discretely offered her a sanitary napkin

'Multiple women walked up to me on my way home and asked me to pull my tee shirt down, most men ogled, all the kids I met didn't notice/care,' she wrote of her late-night commute, which consisted of walking, a trip on the metro, and a 10-minute bus ride.

'I came to know why I was the center of attention for the better part of my journey when a woman (well meaning, I'm sure) offered me a sanitary napkin.

'I had stained my pants.'

Anushka took to Facebook to share her story along with a photo of her bloody pants on the floor next to a pad.

'This post is for all the women who offered to help me hide my womanhood, I AM NOT ASHAMED,' she wrote.

'I bleed every 28-35 days, it is painful at times, I get moody at times, but I walk into the kitchen and get myself some chocolate biscuits and I'm good to go for the next eight hours come hell or high water because I AM NOT ASHAMED.'

Anushka then moved onto the male onlookers who stared at her and made her feel judged.

This is for you: Along with her picture, Anushka penned a powerful response to the women who tried to help her 'hide her womanhood' and the men who 'ogled' her

'Check out the big red blotch on my pants all you want, check out my butt, check out the way I move, come touch me if you dare, and I will show you that I AM NOT ASHAMED,' she continued.

'I will take out a sanitary napkin and show you how it works while you can teach me how to pee in public (because clearly you're not ashamed, and neither am I).

Anushka ended her post with a message to the kids who didn't think twice about the stain on her pants.

'To all the children who didn't give a damn, DO NOT BE ASHAMED. There will be many bloodstains on pants, on skirts, on bedsheets, on cushion covers, on chairs, on tables, against the wall, and on the battlefield where YOU fight the stigma by NOT BEING ASHAMED,' she said.

Anushka advised them to never whisper when they say the word 'periods' or subtly offer a woman a sanitary napkin or clean clothes.

'ASK her if she needs one, TELL her she has stained her clothes, DO NOT HELP HER HIDE IT,' she reiterated.

Judgement free: The high school senior that children were the only people who didn't give her a second glance

Spreading her word: Anushka's post has been viewed more than 7,000 times, and many people left her comments of praise

Making an effort: This Facebook user said he reactivated his account just so he could thank Anushka for her message

Support system: A Facebook user known as Luan C noted that periods shouldn't be considered 'taboo' because every woman menstruates

'I AM NOT ASHAMED. I AM NOT ON MY *period*. I AM ON MY PERIOD [sic],' she ended her message.

More than 7,000 Facebook users have read Anushka's post since it was shared on Sunday, and many praised her for her bravery and candid honesty.

'Reactivated my Facebook account for this one comment,' Soham Chakraborty wrote. 'Keep making sensible stuff. Go viral on the social media. [It] helps balance the bulls**t equation online. I don't need to say more, you know what I feel.'

Shravan Kaul added: 'Becoming quite the phenomenon. Keep writing. Brutal honesty was always your thing.'

Meanwhile, a Facebook user known as Luan C noted that 'periods have been considered "taboo", something that must be kept hidden from others because it is unclean and shameful'.

'I bleed; so does every woman,' she continued. 'I really dont see what the problem is. Its just a part of human biology. I'm not ashamed and neither you should be.'

Major critic: Not all comments were positive, however. Criss Wylde said he doesn't see any reason why Anushka should be 'boasting' about the blood stains on her pants

Ignoring her haters: Anushka returned to her post to thank everyone who has supported her and her message

No shame: Anushka encouraged young women to resist the urge to be embarrassed about their periods

However, others criticized Anushka by claiming she was flaunting her period for attention.

One of her critics, Criss Wylde, shared her post and wrote: 'Oh OK you have periods, and you have blood stains on your clothes, so what is there to be proud of ???? Is it some kind of trophy ? Or some possessions you are proud of ?

'First she says "men are oogling", which would meant she is uncomfortable with the situation, then again she denies the women who tried to help her . are you special kind of stupid ?

'I'm not asking you to hide it or be ashamed of it but what's there to be giving proud of ? OK maybe it's OK to be proud of, but I don't see a damn reason to be boasting of the blood stains.

'Stupid woman. Probably a feminist. Don't be stupid. [sic]'

After receiving multiple negative comments, Anushka returned to her post to show that she is grateful for those who are supportive of her message and are continuing to spread it.

Inspiring change: She also noted that women should never feel like they have to whisper the word 'period' because there shouldn't be a stigma attached to menstruation

Eye-opening: Anushka said the only reason she posted the photo was because she wanted to start a conversation about menstrual stigma

'Thank you, all of you, for all the support and for just being rational, thinking individuals who understand what this post means and what that bloodstain stands for,' she wrote. 'The haters and their hilarity pale in comparison to the way we're taking this fight forward.'

Anuskha told Buzzfeed that many people, both friends and strangers, have contacted her and thanked her for sharing her post.

'The only thing I wanted to do by putting it up was to start constructive discussion around menstrual stigma, and thats been happening,' she explained.

Anuskha's story also inspired her grandmother to talk to her about the stigma surrounding menstruation when she was a young woman and how traumatic her experiences were.
A serious birth defect in which a baby's intestines protrude from its stomach wall is on the rise, according to health experts.

Cases of the defect  called gastroschisis  more than doubled in the US over the past 18 years, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in a report.

Instances of gastroschisis in babies born to black mothers age 20 or younger increased by 263 per cent from 1995 to 2012, the report warned.

However, health experts say they do not know what is causing the increase.

Dr Coleen Boyle, director of the CDCs National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, said: It concerns us that we dont know why more babies are being born with this serious defect.

Public health research is urgently needed to figure out the cause and why certain women are at higher risk of having a baby born with gastroschisis.

Cases of a serious birth defect called gastroschisis (pictured) - in which a baby's intestines extrude from its stomach wall - have 'more than doubled' over the past 18 years, according to the CDC

Nearly 2,000 babies in the US are born each year with gastroschisis.

The birth defect causes a babys intestines to extrude from their body through an opening in the abdominal wall.

In some cases, other organs  such as the stomach and liver  can also be involved.

The defect requires surgery to return the organs into the babys body  in addition to repairing the abdominal wall.

Infants with gastroschisis may have problems eating or digesting food even after surgery.

Additionally, the defect can be life-threatening for infants.

The CDC examined data from 14 states  Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Texas and Utah.

The agency compared the prevalence of gastroschisis among babies born to mothers of different ages from 1995-2005 to those born in 2006-2012.

The CDC found the largest increase in the defect was among black non-Hispanic teenage mothers.

The researchers also concluded that most cases of gastroschisis occurred in mothers under the age of 20.

Gastroschisis has experienced the biggest increase in babies born to teenage black mothers. There was a 263 per cent increase in the defects in those babies from 1995 to 2012, the CDC report found

Furthermore, the increase in gastroschisis births among teenage mothers has no correlation to the number of live births from teenage mothers  which declined during the same period.

And, from 1995 to 2013, the number of babies born with the defect increased among mothers of every age and racial or ethnic group.

Dr Peggy Honein, chief of the CDCs Birth Defects Branch, said: While gastroschisis has become more common among non-Hispanic mothers and Hispanic mothers, this study shows the greatest increases were among younger, non-Hispanic black mothers.

We must continue to monitor changes in this birth defect to identify risk factors contributing to these increases and hopefully start to reverse the trend.
Many teenagers are so attached to their phones  they dont go to bed without it.

And so, they frequently stay up late into the night, texting at all hours.

Thus, many of them end up yawning and struggling at school the next day  absolutely exhausted from their nightlong chatting.

As a result, teenagers who text late into the night have poorer academic performance and are sleepier at school, a new study revealed.

Dr Xue Ming, of Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, said: We need to be aware that teenagers are using electronic devices excessively and have a unique physiology.

They tend to go to sleep late and get up late.

When we go against that natural rhythm, students become less efficient.

Teenagers who stay up late at night texting tend are less likely to succeed academically - and are sleepier at school the next day, according to a new study

Media use among children of all ages has increased exponentially', according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Furthermore, previous studies have found that children ages eight to 18 use electronic devices nearly seven and a half hours each day.

The current study is one of the few to focus specifically on instant messaging.

Dr Ming said: During the last few years I have noticed an increased use of smartphones by my patients with sleep problems.

I wanted to isolate how messaging alone  especially after the lights are out  contributes to sleep-related problems and academic performance.

For the study, surveys were distributed to three New Jersey high schools.

The schools included a suburban and an urban public school, as well as a private school.

A team of researchers evaluated the 1,537 responses  contrasting grades, sexes, messaging duration and if the texting occurred before or after lights out.

Students who turned off their devices or who messaged for less than 30 minutes after their lights were turned out performed significantly better in school, the study found.

Sleep is not a luxury; its a biological necessity. Adolescents are not receiving the optimal amount of sleep; they should be getting eight-and-a-half hours a night Dr Xue Ming, of Rutgers New Jersey Medical School

And, students who texted longer in the dark were found to sleep fewer hours and were more exhausted during the day than those who stopped messaging when they went to bed.

Additionally, texting before lights out did not have an effect on academic performance.

By and large, females reported more messaging and sleepiness  but they had better academic performance than males.

Dr Ming said: I attribute this to the fact that the girls texted primarily before turning off the light.

The blue light that emits from smartphones and tables are intensified when viewed in a dark room, according to the study.

That light can have a strong impact on daytime sleepiness symptoms  as it delays melatonin release, which makes it more difficult to sleep.

That effect was also observed through closed eyelids, according to the study.

Dr Ming said: When we turn the lights off, it should be to make a gradual transition from wakefulness to sleep.

If a person keeps getting text messages with alerts and light emission, that also can disrupt his circadian rhythm.

Rapid Eye Movement sleep is the period during sleep most important to learning, memory consolidation and social adjustment in adolescents.

Adolescents need to be getting eight-and-a-half hours of sleep each night, scientists warned

When falling asleep is delayed but rising time is not, REM sleep will be cut short, which can affect learning and memory.

However, Dr Ming noted that early-evening media can be used to facilitate school projects, provide resources for tutoring, increase school readiness and potentially offer emotional support system.

The study recommends educators recognize the sleep needs of teenagers  and incorporate sleep education into their curriculum.

Dr Ming said: Sleep is not a luxury; its a biological necessity.

Adolescents are not receiving the optimal amount of sleep; they should be getting eight-and-a-half hours a night.

Sleep deprivation is a strong argument in favor of later start times for high schools  like 9 a.m.
Health authorities in El Salvador have urged women to avoid getting pregnant until 2018 amid growing fears of birth defects linked to the Zika virus.

The mosquito-borne Zika virus has recently rampaged through the Caribbean and Latin America.

Zika has been linked to microcephaly, a birth defect in which the head is smaller than normal  and the brain may not have developed properly.

Deputy Health Minister Eduardo Espinoza, of El Salvador, said: Wed like to suggest to all the women of fertile age that they take steps to plan their pregnancies, and avoid getting pregnant between this year and next.

The government of El Salvador advised women in the country to avoid getting pregnant until 2018 amid fears that the mosquito-borne Zika virus causes microcephaly - a birth defect in which the head is smaller than normal and the brain may not have developed properly

Zika virus is common in parts of Africa and South East Asia, but since 2007 there have been various outbreaks outside of the disease's comfort zone. It spread to South America in 2014, before reaching Mexico and the Caribbean last year. The first US case was reported in Texas at the start of January

Mr Espinoza added that the government decided to make the announcement because 5,397 cases of the Zika virus had been detected in El Salvador in 2015, as well as the beginning of this year.

The news comes in wake of a decision from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to extend its travel warning to another eight countries or territories that pose risk of Zika infection.

The warning adds Barbados, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Cape Verde, Samoa and the island of Saint Martin to a list of 14 countries and territories.

So far, official figures show 96 pregnant women in El Salvador are suspected of having contracted the virus.

However, at this time, none have had babies born with microcephaly.

The government of Colombia has also recommended that women in delay becoming pregnant.

Colombia has the second-highest Zika infection rate after Brazil.

But, in contrast to El Salvador, Colombia has only advised women wait six to eight months before trying to get pregnant.

ZIKA VIRUS AND ITS SYMPTOMS No vaccine or medications are available to prevent or treat Zika infections. A cousin of fellow mosquito-borne virus dengue fever, Zika was believed to have milder symptoms. About 1 in 5 people infected become ill and can develop fever, rash, joint pain, or conjunctivitis. Other common symptoms include muscle pain and headache. The illness can last anywhere from several days to a week and rarely results in death or hospitalization. Scientists are now investigating potential links between Zika and microcephaly - a congenital condition which causes abnormal brain growth. During the first week of infection, Zika virus can be passed from an infected person to another via mosquito bites. Source: CDC Advertisement

There is currently no vaccine for the virus  and health authorities are unsure why it has been spreading so rapidly.

Microcephaly is usually rare - but more than 3,500 babies with the condition have been reported in Brazil since October.

Officials are still investigating the connection to Zika.

The defect can also be caused by genetics, as well as exposure during pregnancy to alcohol and certain germs and toxic chemicals, health officials caution.

Yet, in the Brazil cases, most of the mothers appeared to have been infected during their first trimester.

However, CDC officials have said that there is some evidence the birth defect can occur later in pregnancy.

The CDC said doctors should ask pregnant women about their travel and certain symptoms.

If there are signs of infection or reason to believe the fetus may be affected, the woman should be tested and ultrasounds should monitor the baby's development, the CDC recommended.

The CDC issued guidance last week that women should consider postponing trips to 14 destinations.

Those places include Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Suriname and Venezuela.

Women who are trying to get pregnant - or thinking of getting pregnant - were also advised to talk to their doctors before traveling to those areas.

The CDC had previously advised women to avoid traveling to 14 Latin American countries for fear of being infected with the virus, but added eight more countries to the list

CDC director Dr Tom Frieden disclosed the agency's priority was to alert pregnant women to the situations, though there are a lot of lingering questions.

Dr Frieden said: 'There's a lot we don't know.'

He added that health officials are still trying to determine how much Zika is in the affected areas - or how likely it is that Zika infection in pregnant women can lead to the defect.
The French president will be the chief guest at the Republic Day parade

Though it wont be the only issue on the agenda of his talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, French President Francois Hollande comes to India first and foremost to take the next (and final?) step in the Rafale deal.

Terrorism will be another topic that will be hotly discussed, as both India and France have been victims of terror attacks.

Terrorism

As France started to recover from the November 13 attacks and was commemorating last years killings of several Charlie Hebdo journalists, attackers from the other side of the Indian border slipped into the Pathankot airbase and created havoc for nearly three days.

On January 4, France condemned the attack perpetrated against the Indian military base in Pathankot, adding: France stands alongside India in the fight against terrorism.

For the French president, this visit to India is also significant at a time his popularity is again tumbling (12 points in one month, according to Le Figaro), despite a surge following November 13.

While terrorism and the Rafale deal will be the plat de resistance (the main dish), the hors-doeuvre (appetiser) will be Hollandes visit to Chandigarh, one of townships selected by the Indian government to be a smart city.

But contrary to other Indian cities, Chandigarh was born smart. In the Indian publics mind, the city remains synonymous with Le Courbusier, the Franco-Swiss architect who had the vision of a city with a difference.

Several letters of Le Corbusier recently published by the Nehru Memorial Fund give us an idea of the architects long march towards the fulfilment of his mission and the difficulty to match his dream with Indias reality. It was the beginning of a long, though at times painful, odyssey.

The architect, as well as the Indian government, soon learnt that smartness does not come in one day - and without intense labour pains. Will it be different 60 years later?

During Chandigarhs painful delivery, Le Corbusier was often discouraged, as strident critics kept appearing and obstructions accumulated.

In October 1957, C.P.N. Singh, the dynamic Governor of Punjab, wrote to Nehru that he found Le Corbusier uncharitable and particularly to the people who have been doing their very best to carry out his plans He forgets that every inch of Chandigarh has been allowed to be conceived and constructed as he planned and designed.

Singh added that Partap Singh Kairon, the Punjab Chief Minister, was very zealous about the project and had been treating its (Corbusiers) every demand in a generous way in spite of financial stringency.

Architecture

It was indeed not easy to match Le Corbusiers plans with the states finances; as a result, things moved too slowly for the architect. A year later, Nehru told the Governor of Le Corbusiers deep frustration; he had written to the prime minister that this was caused not only by the failure of human beings, but by cattle and goats and other animals having a free run at Chandigah.

Take the proposal of The Open Hand, a symbolic sculpture designed by Le Corbusier to convey the message of receiving and redistributing wealth. In June 1958, Nehru had to tell the artist: At present we are in such a difficult financial position that we have stopped any kind of work that is not considered inescapable. I can very well understand your enthusiasm and your disappointment at any delay in realising your conception.

Collaboration

The Open Hand was finally installed in 1985, even though Indira Gandhi had sanctioned funds for the art piece in December 1972. The moral of the story: everything takes time in India, even smart projects.

Hollandes first stop will be in Chandigarh, where he will be received by the prime minister. India would like to make Chandigarh smart according to todays norms, and France is ready to help.

Paris has already informed Delhi of its willingness to participate in the smartisation of three cities - Puducherry, Nagpur and Chandigarh. France is ready to offer a line of credit of 2 billion euros through its Agence francaise de Developpement (French Development Agency) and to bring in French creativity and expertise.

Nehru once told a gathering of town planners: There is no doubt that Le Corbusier is a man (with) a powerful and creative mind, he may become extravagant occasionally, he may produce extravagances occasionally, but it is better to have that than have a person with no mind at all.

If not extravagant heads, creative heads will be required to make Modis pet project a success. France will hopefully be by Indias side. A telling symbol of the closeness between India and France is the fact that for the first time since Independence, foreign troops will participate in the Republic Day parade and the soldiers will be French, belonging to the crack 35th Infantry Regiment, based in Belfort in Eastern France.

A train a grande vitesse (bullet train) between the city of Le Corbusier and New Delhi, as well as some mega solar energy collaboration, are also on the cards. That would be very smart.
Akshay Kumar has come up with a few really innovative ploys to promote his new film, Airlift.

After his spoof of Delhis odd-even scheme, based on the trailer of the film, went viral, the superstar took to nobler ideas recently. These have included selfless service for the greater good, inspired by his character in Airlift.

For an episode of the show Mission Sapne, to be telecast over the weekend, Akshay took to the streets of Jodhpur to prepare and sell sugarcane juice. The money he raised, it was decided, would be donated to three farmers' widows.

Akshay made Rs 10,000 by selling juice. But he wasnt satisfied with that, and took on an impromptu game of volleyball to raise more funds.

As the superstar took to the streets with his mission sugarcane, news travelled fast. Very soon a regular road in the sleepy town of Jodhpur was buzzing with excitement. By the end of the day, Akshay had managed to garner Rs 10,000.

The actor, however, was not satisfied. He took to playing an impromptu game of volleyball nearby, to raise some extra money outside his commitment. Reason: the three women - Yogita, Yamuna and Kavita - spoke to him of their desire to educate their children. Akshay promptly moved beyond the shows script to raise double the amount for the cause.

Mission Sapne is a show that sees celebrities engage in odd jobs to raise money for a noble cause.

The Airlift actor gave the money raised to three farmers' widows

For Akshay, participation on the show could not be better-timed considering his new film Airlift is slated for a release this weekend.

Being on Mission Sapne absolutely suits the role Akshay plays in Airlift, too. The film sees him play a rich Indian businessman based in Kuwait, who helped authorities evacuate over a lakh Indians who were stranded in that country when Iraq invaded in 1990.

The film features Nimrat Kaur alongside Akshay. Nimrat makes a comeback to Hindi films for the first time since her defining act in The Lunchbox.
There is a new Sharia-compliant halal sex shop in the UK, focusing particularly on Muslim women.

The shop, according to news website Broadly, intends to differentiate itself in the market by being more discreet while catering to its female customers, who the shop owner claims are often intimidated by a sex shops overt pornographic focus.

Yet, the image of a sexually adventurous hijab-wearing Muslim woman hunting for a sex toy, as portrayed by writer Salma Haidrani, makes for a curious juxtaposition at a time when the religion itself is under attack in much of Europe for allegedly inciting sexism, misogyny and violence among its adherents.

Sex shops are not uncommon in the Muslim world. (Above) a view of the first sex shop in Bahrain.

Does this mean Islam in Britain is distinct from its counterparts in India and other parts of the world, including the version practised by the now much-disparaged people of Arab and North African origin?

Or is this yet another attempt by the Western media to exotify Muslims as a community that doesnt integrate with the rest of society?

There were reports of a similar halal sex shop opening in Mecca last year. Though it never opened, the story made headlines around the world, because the idea of a Muslim sex shop - and that too in Mecca - runs contrary to what many people today equate Islam with: prudery and repression, making the news sensational.

But Islam, unlike Christianity, is not an anti-sex religion. (Sex shops, incidentally, are not uncommon in the Muslim world.) There is nothing un-Islamic about sexuality for Muslims, though scholarship is divided on how liberal the faith is when it comes to the act.

Anti-Islamic protesters seem oblivious to Christianitys own dark and gory past

While there are scholars who quote the Prophet Mohammed extolling the pleasures of sex, there are others who staunchly deny this, saying that the Quran is completely neutral on the subject.

The reason for this discrepancy is that understanding Islam is a more complex task than Christianity, with which it not only shares common religious and cultural history, but also grievances. (Remember the jihadists reference to crusades after the Paris attacks.)

Islam ought to be viewed at three different, yet inter-linked levels, suggests Palestinian author Edward Said in Covering Islam.

First comes the Quran itself.

Second is the huge corpus of Quranic commentaries (tafsir), the various biographies of the Prophet (sira), and the collection of reports that claim to quote Prophet Mohammed verbatim (hadith).

The third is the practical level at which the ideologies have been lived and followed in various parts of the world.

This makes any reductionist generalisations of Islam pointless, as the way in which it is lived and practised often vary, depending on the cultural context. This phenomenon is also applicable to modern Christianity in the Indian context, albeit to a lesser extent - more on that later.

Scholars like A. Faizur Rahman, secretary-general, Islamic Forum for the Promotion of Moderate Thought, dismisses hadiths that quote Prophet Mohammed on sex, saying that the Quran neither extols nor condemns sex, let alone mentioning anything about sex toys.

The Quran doesnt say anything on autoerotic toys or sexual stimulation except that it strictly prohibits sex outside marriage, says Rahman.

Similarly, it is also unfair to blame Islam alone for inciting misogyny, sexism and violence in the world, any more than Christianity, though many Christians today remain blissfully ignorant about their own faiths dark and gory past.

The 300-year long witch-hunt by Orthodox Christians, which led to sexual mutilation, torture and killings of hundreds of women in Europe, in the name of devil worship, till the 18th century is regarded by historians as the deepest shame of the Western civilisation.

The fear of female sexuality during this period saw Christian preachers denouncing women for the lascivious and carnal provocation of their garments.

If Christianity appears mild and rational today, it is not because the faith has suddenly turned tolerant, but due to generations of free thinkers who from the Renaissance to the present day, have made Christians ashamed of their traditional beliefs, as put by the British philosopher Bertrand Russell.

A residue of Christian misogyny can still be traced in the attitudes of several Syrian Christians in Kerala, a community that boasts of a religious history as old, if not older than that of Continental Europe, but berates women for showing too much fringe, going out in the company of unrelated male and invoke morality to keep them in line, even to this day.

Just as there were Christians who fought the tyranny and brutality of orthodox beliefs throughout history, a vast majority of Muslims also reject the ISIS brand of Islam.

The point is that sexual assaults, like terrorism, in a modern secular society, should be regarded as a crime independent of religion and dealt with the strictest of punishments.

Coming back to the halal sex shop, Rahman for one is convinced that the shop is nothing more than a clever marketing ploy to reach out to an untapped Muslim audience.
The Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party government could be in an embarrassing situation as a file - related to the constitution of a Special Investigation Team to probe the 1984 anti-Sikh carnage - has reportedly been missing from the Delhi governments home department for the last 10 months.

The file was last marked to then Delhi home minister Jitender Singh Tomar, but has been untraceable since then.

This could jeopardise the SIT investigation into the riots and result in a further delay in the crucial probe.

Pictured: AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal. The case of a missing file comes at a crucial time for the party, which recently kicked off its campaign for the 2017 Punjab Assembly polls.

After attempts to find the missing file failed, deputy secretary (Home) Ashish Kumar issued a circular to all departments on January 8, asking all the concerned officers to kindly look into their respective departments and see if the file could be found and kindly returned to the home department.

The circular, signed by Kumar on January 7, specified that the same was being issued with prior approval of the competent authority.

According to a copy of the circular in possession of Mail Today, it says: It is to bring to the notice of all those concerned that a file (no. 10/R- 68/01/2014/HP-II bearing CD no. 001315833) regarding the constitution of Special Investigation Team (1984 Riots), pertaining to Home-II Branch, was marked to then home minister on March 16, 2015, after which the said file is not traceable.

The file was last marked to then Delhi home minister Jitender Singh Tomar

When Mail Today contacted Home Minister Satyendra Jain over the missing file, he denied the report and dismissed it as a rumour. The AAP government has repeatedly raised the issue of the 1984 riot victims.

It recently gave out an additional Rs 5 lakh compensation to the families of riot victims. It has also promised fast-track justice to the riot victims, who have been waiting for more than 31 years after the carnage on the Capitals streets.

The SIT was constituted for re-investigation into the 1984 riot cases, mainly in Delhi and other states, by the Union home ministry in February last year.

The newly-constituted three-member SIT was also empowered to examine fresh evidence in cases which had been closed.

The SIT had been given powers to look into all serious criminal cases relating to the riots, examine evidence, and even re-open cases and file charge-sheets in the courts concerned.

A senior home ministry official had then said that the SIT had been given six months to complete its work, including filing charge-sheets in nearly three-decade-old cases.

The SIT is headed by Pramod Asthana, an IPS officer of the 1986 batch, and has Rakesh Kapoor, a retired district and sessions judge and Kumar Gyanesh, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Delhi Police as its members.

As the BJP-led NDA governments move to set up the SIT into the riots came at a time when Assembly polls were scheduled to be held in the Capital, the Aam Aadmi Party, which swept the elections, had then termed it a poll gimmick by the saffron party.

The issue of the missing file has surfaced at a crucial time for the AAP when the party is putting all its force behind the 2017 Punjab Assembly elections.
International fast food chain McDonalds has been accused of not taking orders for food delivery in the minority-dominated Okhla neighbourhood (Picture for representation only)

International fast food chain McDonalds has been accused of not taking orders for food delivery in the minority-dominated Okhla neighbourhood.

An Okhla resident has recently approached the Delhi Minorities Commission alleging discrimination by the food chains New Friends Colony outlet.

The Delhi Minority Commission has sought a reply from McDonalds. Tariq Khan, a resident of Ghaffar Manzil in Okhla, filed a complaint with the Delhi Minorities Commission on January 4.

In the complaint, Khan said he ordered food from the outlet for his family and some guests. After waiting for an hour, he called again.

The executive told me they cannot deliver food in our area as it is on their negative list. We feel the reason behind this is the area is mostly occupied by the minority population, Khan said in his complaint to the commission.

Khan has now asked the commission to intervene in the matter.

I request you to please intervene in the matter and find out the reason behind this (discrimination). The fast food outlet is giving us bizarre reasons for non-delivery. They also said that people living in the area do not pay for the food they order. How is that possible? he said in his complaint letter.

The commission has taken cognisance of his complaint.

We have issued notice to the headquarters of the food company and asked them to explain the reasons for non-delivery. The complainant has accused the company of discrimination, Qamar Ahmad, Chairman of Delhi Minorities Commission told Mail Today.

Ghaffar Manzil, along with other areas in Okhla like Batla House, Okhla Vihar, Zakir Nagar, Zakir Bagh, Jamia Nagar, Abul Fazal Enclave and Shaheen Bagh, has a population of around 2 lakh, of which 70 per cent is Muslim.

The commission is now waiting for the food chain to respond.

We are waiting for them to reply to our notice. We need to know what the company has to say, said Ahmad.

When Mail Today contacted McDonalds, they agreed that they do not deliver to a lot of areas in Okhla, as a matter of policy.

They also claimed they were yet to receive any notice in this regard.

Responding to the queries, McD said delivery of food in several areas including Okhla and its vicinity was stopped since 2009-10 after a realignment of delivery area parameters.

The company, however, maintained that Okhla was not the only area where food delivery was unavailable.

We have not received any communication from the Minorities Commission so far we do not discriminate between our customers at all. We are not able to deliver to a lot of areas in Okhla (and its vicinity) because they exceed our delivery area parameters which were realigned in 2009-10: and because of which a lot of areas that we were earlier delivering to are now not being covered. Unfortunately, we cannot deliver to a lot of areas in Delhi as the optimum and required standards cannot be met while delivering, Official Spokesperson, McDonalds India (North & East) said.

Emphasising on the food quality, the company said that another reason for not delivering in Okhla is to maintain the food safety and quality norms.

We lay greater emphasis on food quality and food safety; and look to ensure that the food is delivered to our customers at benchmarked standards following stringent food safety & quality norms, with low or negligible nutritional loss during transit.
Even as it grapples with the row over some Facebook users copying pictures of unsuspecting girls and misusing them by morphing the images, the popular social networking site could be in for more trouble.

The Ministry of Law and Justice has forwarded to the Secretary General of the Supreme Court and Registrar General of the Delhi High Court for further appropriate action a complaint that pages opened by Facebook in the name of these courts were hosting posts with comments insulting various judges that were highly defamatory and contemptuous.

They also carried critical reviews of judgments showing the judiciary, and the judges who authored it, in poor light. Legal experts say Facebook is prima facie in clear violation of IT Act and can be hauled up under Contempt of Courts Act.

As it grapples with the row over some Facebook users copying pictures of unsuspecting girls and misusing them by morphing the images, the popular social networking site could be in for more trouble

Though the complaint by a Delhi-based filmmaker Ulhas PR was forwarded to the courts as early as on November 23, the highly-defamatory posts could still be seen on Facebook.

Ulhass complaint to the Ministry of Law and Justice said: This is about Facebook. It has started a page on its own by the name of Supreme Court of India and Delhi High Court. In these pages insulting reviews of judgments are posted.

In its reply, the ministry said: This has been forwarded to the secretary general of Supreme Court and registrar general for further appropriate action.

While questions are being raised if social networking sites can at all be allowed to open pages in the name of courts and allow users to post any comment when the country has a stringent contempt of court law, Facebook has written on the page that this page is created based on what people who use Facebook are interested in.

Lawyer and cyber expert Pavan Duggal (left) said 'This amounts to clear lowering of stature of judiciary in the mind of the people'; Pictured right, complainant Ulhas PR

'Serious offence'

This amounts to clear lowering of stature of judiciary in the mind of the people and once the complaint is brought to the notice of the service provider, that is Facebook, it has to exercise due diligence. The identity of the people who have posted such messages can be given by Facebook and they can be prosecuted, noted lawyer and cyber expert Pavan Duggal said.

The offence is a prima facie violation of Section 66A of Information Technology Act (Punishment for sending offensive messages through communication service), Section 67 of IT Act (Punishment for publishing or transmitting obscene material in electronic form.

Five year jail or Rs 10 lakh fine), Section 499 of Indian Penal Code (defamation) and Section 500 of IPC (two years jail with fine or both) and Contempt of Courts Act, Duggal said.

If these sites are also named Supreme Court of India and High Court of Delhi, its a violation of the Intellectual Property Rights of these institutions and therefore it is an unfair use. It is a chance to act tough and an opportunity to send a strong message to the cyberspace that you cannot take liberty with judicial institutions. This is hitting the judiciary below the belt using the cyberspace, he added.

Contempts act

So whats an offence under Contempts of Courts Act?
Terming Rohith Vemulas suicide a loss to the country, a visibly moved Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday he could feel the pain which his parents are going through.

PMs speech comes even as fresh protests rocked the Hyderabad Central University campus on Friday with students seeking unconditional revocation of suspension of four dalit students and action against those responsible for the alleged suicide.

The university has announced Rs 8 lakh ex-gratia to Vemulas family. Modi, who was in Lucknow on Friday to attend the convocation of the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University, said, Whatever may be the reason that forced Rohith to commit suicide, I could well understand and feel the grief and pain of his parents. The reasons behind the incident and the ongoing politics on the incident are two different issues but the fact is that mother India has lost a son.

National Students Union of India members protest over the death of Rohith Vemula in New Delhi on Friday

While mentioning Rohith in his speech, Modis emotions were quite visible.

Also, based on the report by a fact-finding team, the HRD Ministry on Friday decided to set up a Judicial Commission to look into the sequence of events leading to the suicide.

The Judicial Commission will submit its report within three months. The Opposition was not the one to keep quiet over PMs expression of grief.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he could feel the pain which Rohith Vemula's parents are going through

The Congress dismissed Modis voicing his grief over the suicide of Rohith Vemula as crocodile tears, saying he has failed to utter a word on any action against Union ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya.

We all respect the PM. We humbly want to say that shedding crocodile tears will not return Rohith Vemula or do justice to the situation arising out of the suicide of the dalit scholar in Hyderabad University, partys chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala told reporters.

CPI-M leader Md Saleem also targeted the PM, questioning why he took so much time to respond.

It took so many days and so many protests nationwide to make the PM feel the pain of the family. It is the height of irresponsibleness, he said.

As soon as Modi began his speech, a group of students started raising anti-Modi slogans.

Shouting Modi go back, the students were protesting against the Rohith suicide case. However, they were stopped by the security personnel and other students.

Sources say two students were detained and were moved to an undisclosed location.

A source says some groups discussing the Hyderabad suicide issue had come up on various social networking platforms in the recent past and looking into the sensitivity of the issue, only 519 students who had to be given medals and degrees were issued passes and allowed to enter the campus during the convocation.
Fresh light on the events before the demolition of the old mosque built over the Ram Janmabhumi temple has surfaced in the then superintendent archaeologist KK Mohammads recent memoirs, Me, the Bharatiyan, written in Malayalam.

I have only seen the news report of the release of the book brought out by a prestigious Kerala newspaper.

An English rendering of the book, one hopes, will soon be out.

Youths clamour atop the 16th century Muslim Babri Mosque five hours before the structure was completely demolished in December 1992

Distortion

Mohammad, who was in charge of the excavations in Ayodhya, has revealed two important things: one, the Left historians of the day led by Prof Irfan Habib ensured that the proposal to hand over the site to the Hindu community did not succeed.

They encouraged the extremist view among Muslims against any peaceful transfer. Such an agreed transfer was one of the solutions being considered between 1989 and 1991.

The second revelation is the conclusion of the excavation team of the Archeological Survey of India that the disputed mosque in Ayodhya was indeed built over  and with the parts of  the temple that existed prior to being destroyed by Mughal emperor Babars commander, Mir Baqi.

The conclusion was based on the evidence of, among other things, basalt stone pillars with the Hindu symbol of Poorna Kalasha in the construction of the mosque structure and underneath it.

This matter has been discussed so often and in so detail that we need not go into it. What is evident in Mohammads revelation is his intense devotion to truth, a trait alien to most of the secularists. It is the Left historians role in distorting truth that should be a matter of public concern.

Under the successive Congress governments at the Centre, distortion of Indian history through the ancient technique of suppressio vary, suggestio falsy, has been turned into a fine art by the so-called secularists.

The Left historians have done much damage to Indian history in many other ways.

They have invented apologies for Aurangzebs anti-Hindu and anti-Sikh measures by picking up a few donations the emperor made for some temples.

They have sought to obfuscate the terrible pain inflicted by successive Muslim invaders on the majority population of the country and the choice these invaders placed before the people: convert or be killed.

Ideology

Nobody in his senses would suggest that the present-day followers of the religion should pay for the sins of their ancestors.

But at least a seeker of truth would agree that what academicians should present is the fact and leave the interpretation to others.

One readily agrees that the present values should not be applied to the past generation.

For the left movement, ideology is supreme, while truth and facts are secondary.

Interpretation of ideology is obviously the prerogative of the leadership.

Needless to say, the caucus of the day controlling the organisation constitutes the leadership.

Understanding of history, economics, human relations, international affairs, in short all aspects of life, becomes subordinate to the whims of those at the helm.

As a result, there is usually an ocean of difference between what the Left preaches and practises.

Communists claim to be fighters against imperialism.

But during the 1942 Quit India movement, they abused national leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi and Subhas Chandra Bose and worked as spies for the British.

After India got Independence, they launched an armed rebellion against the state.

However, the worst sin Communists committed was to work for the vivisection of the country and join hands with Mohammed Ali Jinnah and the British for the creation of a theocratic Pakistan.

And now they claim to be the flagbearers of secularism!

As for the second trend, of Islamists running amok, the phenomenon isnt confined to India alone, as seen in the emergence of terrorist outfits like the Islamic State.

The global response is not apt either.

Anathema

US President Barack Obama, for instance, in his State of the Union message to the US Congress mentioned the need for the religious community to look inward and find out why the call for violence and the appeal of forcing their religion over the whole world through brutality are finding response within the community.

He wanted an internal movement to scotch such beliefs.

This is a wishful thinking.

Also, its ironical that Saudi Arabia has joined other nations in an international effort to eradicate organisations like ISIS and Al Qaeda.

After all, the same royalty funds a vast network of religious schools among Muslims that exclusively plant and promote the militant Wahaabism across the world. Same is true for Pakistan.

Both the nations are close allies of the US in its fight against terror!

The world can hardly hope to vanquish terror with such double-standards.

As for KK Mohammad, he is a practising Muslim who proudly calls himself a Bharatiya in his memoir.

He is a shining example of academic honesty, a trait anathema to the Left.

One hopes others follow the suit.
This weeks big release Airlift has Akshay Kumar playing Ranjit Katyal, an influential businessman of Indian origin in Kuwait of the nineties.

Katyal, the film shows, was instrumental in the evacuation of over a lakh Indians stranded in Kuwait when Iraq attacked that nation.

Katyal is an enigmatic character, not just because of the daredevil operation the film associates him with but also because his very existence is shrouded in mystery.

Bollywood is finally getting serious about highlighting people and incidents that do not automatically qualify as famous. Pictured, Akshay Kumar in Airlift.

The 1990 evacuation mission involving nearly 500 Air India flights has found its way into Guinness Book of Records, as historys largest civilian evacuation.

Officially, the government has never confirmed or denied the existence of anyone fitting Katyals description.

Perhaps Katyal was a deep asset for India in Kuwait, in which case his identity is never to be officially acknowledged.

Or, going by the fact that Airlift is after all a Bollywood flick, the character is perhaps altogether fictitious  merely created to accommodate superstar Akshay within the frame of a real-life thriller incident.

Any which way Airlift, despite that question mark, brings to focus an important aspect of modern Indian history.

Assuming someone like Katyal, who helped authorities during the operation, did exist, the film accounts a fascinating life. If biopics caught on in Bollywood a while back, Airlift is an unusual idea within that genre.

The film tries working in a different space as a biopic than the safer options narrating lives of famous people.

From Gandhi and Bose to Bhagat Singh, from Milkha Singh to Mary Kom, and from Dawood Ibrahim to Charles Sobhraj, Bollywood has mostly preferred capturing life stories of people everyone already knew. Normally films such as Manjhi: The Mountain Man and Paan Singh Tomar, which tried highlighting uncommon lives of common people, have been in the minority.

Airlift seems like a big-budget boost to the idea. The story of an unknown Indian, who risked his life to help over a lakh Indians flee war-torn Kuwait, deserves to be told as much as any famous freedom fighter or sportstar.

If the film shows Bollywood is finally getting serious about highlighting lives less ordinary, coming up later this year are a few other such attempts. Watch out for Neerja.

The film stars Sonam Kapoor as the brave flight attendant Neerja Bhanot, who was slain trying to save passengers from terrorists on board a Pan Am flight in 1986.

Neerja went on to become Indias youngest recipient of the Ashok Chakra, the highest peacetime military award for bravery. It will also be interesting to see how Omung Kumar treats Sarbjit Singhs story.

Randeep Hooda plays Singh in Sarbjit, a film that treads controversy domain. It recounts the story of the man who claimed to be a farmer in a border village, whom Pakistan arrested as an Indian spy. Sarbjit finally died in prison, allegedly after a brutal attack by some Pakistani inmates.

Like the story of the unknown Indian in Airlift, Neerja and Sarbjit will take cinematic liberties. These films will tweak facts to suit box-office demands.

But then all biopics do that. Importantly, beyond the hagiographic slant these films will make their subjects a little more celebrated and revered.

Guess who must be bristling after Mandana Karimis sex kitten romp in Kya Kool Hain Hum 3

Mandana is hot on the Sunny trail!

Guess who must be bristling after Mandana Karimis sex kitten romp in Kya Kool Hain Hum 3.

The darling of Bigg Boss 9 has clearly opted not to chase the Katrina/ Jacqueline/ Nargispatented firangi glam doll space.

She seems to be eyeing Baby Dolls cosy sleazy corner. Bollywoods sizzling Iranian import is obviously out to pip Sunny Leone on the loud lewd trail, going by her starring role in KKHH3.

You spot a bit of film distribution mischief in the fact that Sunnys equally bawdy Mastizaade is lined up for release within a week of KKHH3, which unleashed Mandana this Friday.

May the hottest cat win. Right now, Sunnys PR team has worked wonders in the way they smartly turned a messed-up news channel interview into headline-hogging advantage.

Mandana on her part has done better on Bigg Boss. If Sunny managed to bear some of the good ol Bigg Boss rub in season five, Mandana has turned surviving the shows grime into a personalised art. Not to forget, Sallu Bhai dotes on her, too.

Oscars in black and white

Another Oscars do coming up, and it brings a fresh round of racist protests.

Every year, substantial print and television space is allotted to debate if the Oscars have turned racist, with coloured talent constantly clamouring they have been ignored.

The scene has gone wholly over the top this year with a complete whitewash across nominations.

Every year, substantial print and television space is allotted to debate if the Oscars have turned racist. Straight Outta Compton is among the ignored films

As protestors threaten to boycott the all-white Oscars this year, heres an awful truth that cruelly underlines reason.

A Los Angeles Times study published a while back stated on an average around 94 percent Oscar voters are whites.

The scene has not changed over the years. Does the key lie in changing voting patterns, then?
After monitoring cyber activities of 14 youth inspired by the ISIS and in contact with a former member of Indian Mujahideen (IM), who happens to be the brother of a slain Indian ISIS recruit, a manhunt was launched in four states by security agencies on Friday.

Among the 14 persons under watch, five have been arrested and handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) after intelligence agencies learnt that they were making efforts to procure firearms and material for putting together an improvised explosive device to carry out terror strikes after receiving instructions from their handlers.

Sources said the others were detained and are being questioned.

After monitoring cyber activities of 14 youth inspired by the ISIS and in contact with a former member of Indian Mujahideen, a manhunt was launched in four states by security agencies

Sources said most of them were in touch with Shafi Armar, the brother of Maulana Abdul Qadir Sultan Armar, a former IM member who joined ISIS and was identified as a handler for the group before he was reportedly killed in the battlefields of Syria.

His name figures among the six Indians who have died fighting for ISIS, according to intelligence reports.

Mail Today after speaking to ISIS-bound Indian youth in July had reported that IM members who fled the country following a crackdown ended up fighting on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border or the Af-Pak region before joining ISIS and were in touch with Indians inspired by the Sunni terror group.

Four youths (three of whom are pictured above and below), allegedly fled India and joined the Islamic State in Syria

The government downplayed the Islamic State link of those arrested stating that those arrested were self radicalised and were influenced by the idea of jihad.

The location of Shafi Armar and his affiliation to ISIS is still not known but he is a former IM member, said a home ministry official.

Among the 14 persons under watch, five have been arrested and handed over to the National Investigation Agency

The raids on Friday were carried out simultaneously in four states of Karnataka, Telangana Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh leading to the arrests and detentions. The module had formed Janood-ul-Khalifa-e-Hind, with similar ideologies to that of ISIS.

Mumbai resident Munabeer Mushtaq had allegedly designated himself as amir or head of the organisation which was tasked to carry out blasts at various installations in the country besides attacking some foreigners, ministry sources said.

Other than Mushtaq among those arrested include Mohammad Nafees Khan of Mohammad Shareef Mounuddin Khan from Hyderabad, Najmul Huda of Mangalore and Mohammad Afzal of Bengaluru. NIA and central agency sleuths seized 42 mobile phones, including eight from amir, sources said.

Explosive material, detonators, wires, batteries and hydrogen peroxide besides 'jihadi literature' was also seized from those arrested.

The home ministry convened a meeting of top officials of central intelligence and investigative agencies and police of 13 states last week to discuss the strategy to combat the ISIS threat.
Ramchandra Guha joined the chorus of scholars and artists speaking about the issue of intolerance

Film maker Karan Johar is not the only one to hyperventilate over intolerance and lack of freedom of expression in India on Friday as noted historian and author Ramchandra Guha too joined the chorus.

Though Guha dubbed the Modi regime as arguably the most anti-intellectual we ever had, he also targeted the Congress. Guha blamed former PM Rajiv Gandhi banning Slaman Rushdies Satanic Verses in the late 1980s as the root cause of the ban culture in the country.

Guha described India as a 40:60 democracy.

Faultlines in NDA visible again

The internal tensions within NDA have once again opened up to the public glare.

BJPs junior ally Shiv Sena warned its leaders against making statements on Dalit students Rohith Vemula suicide in Hyderabad as they might boomerang on the party just as the Dadri case which cost the party Bihar elections.

Coming as part of an editorial in party mouthpiece Saamana, it was an obvious reference to BJP general secretary P Muralidhar Raos claim that Rohiths mental condition was not stable and he supported terrorism.

Shatrughan gets into FTII politics

BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha has once again embarrassed the party and the government

BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha has once again embarrassed the party and the government.

Sinha said he had requested Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) chairman Gajendra Chauhan to step down to end the stalemate with students.

The former FTII alumnus said he is willing to accept the post of FTII's interim chairman. The issue had become a prestige issue for the government, he said.

Energy ministry to make R-Day debut

Yet another debutant in the Republic Day Parade this year is the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy.

The Theme of tableau is Mega Watt To Giga Watt  Making The Sun Brighter, Even At Night. The display highlights the ministrys ambitious project of renewable energy capacity target of 175 GW to be achieved by 2022.

The tableau is going to be powered by solar panels and energy stored in a device called Eco grid.

The AYUSH Ministry will also take part for the first time.

Sarabhai hits out at Modi on FB

While PM Modi tried to assuage Dalit sentiments by condoling the death of Rohith Vemula, danseuse Mallika Sarabhai hit out at him for failing to pay tribute to her mother Mrinalini on her death.
Tasty: Peroni maker SABMiller reported a 7 per cent rise in underlying third-quarter sales

A growing taste for beer across Europe, Africa and Latin America offset troubles caused by the strong dollar and a trading slowdown in north America for beer giant SABMiller.

The Peroni maker, which is in the process of being bought by Anheuser-Busch InBev in a 75billion deal, reported a better-than-expected 7 per cent rise in underlying third-quarter sales and volumes grew by 4 per cent.

Chief executive Alan Clark, who is expected to receive a 48million share windfall when the deal completes, said the period to the end of December was a very strong quarter citing revenue growth up 12 per cent in Africa and 8 per cent in Latin America  led by Colombia. However US revenues fell 1 per cent.

Mild weather prior to Christmas helped its sales in Europe with revenues up 6 per cent where its performance in Poland had improved.

Analysts at Credit Suisse said it was fighting back in Poland where it had underperformed.

Beer brands Peroni and Grolsch and Londons Meantime brewery are expected to be sold as Anheuser-Busch InBev tries to avoid competition concerns.

A number of beer groups and private equity investors are reported to be interested.

Analysts at Citi said SABs shares trade at a 6.5 per cent discount to the offer price made by InBev, which represents an attractive return for investors on a six to 12 months view in the current environment.
Support: IMF chief Christine Lagarde

Christine Lagarde has won the backing of Britain, Germany and France for a second term as International Monetary Fund head  even though she faces a criminal trial in France.

George Osborne formally put Lagarde forward just seconds after the Fund kicked off a three week nomination period for candidates yesterday

The Chancellor added: At a time when the world faces what Ive called a dangerous cocktail of risks, I believe Christine has the vision, energy and acumen to help steer the global economy through the years ahead.

France and Germany added their support despite calls for the IMF to be led by someone from the developing world.
The mystery beauty who caught Justin Bieber's eye has admitted she feels like she is 'living a fairytale' after she went from being a 3 an hour babysitter to being a catwalk model.

The Canadian pop sensation thrust Irina Shayk lookalike Cindy Kimberly into the world spotlight by posting her picture on Instagram and asking: 'OMG who is this!'

She was revealed to be a 17-year-old shy student from Denia, near Benidorm, Spain, who earned 2.90 an hour babysitting, by MailOnline in December.

Dream: Cindy Kimberly, who rose to fame after Justin Bieber shared her photo with more than 50million followers, says her life has been a 'fairytale' since

Model: Cindy, who is still at school, is now preparing to make her catwalk debut at a prestigious fashion show in Madrid next month

Now Cindy, 17, has revealed how chart topper Bieber's attention has changed her life.

The stunning teenager, who is still at school, told how she has been plucked from obscurity to be a model and will be making her catwalk debut at Madrid Fashion Week next month.

Cindy's lookalike Cristiano Ronaldo's ex, Russian model Shayk turned heads in a figure-hugging dress and six-inch high heels at the event a few years ago.

It has not yet been revealed who has asked Cindy to model for them at Spain's premier fashion show.

Cindy, who was born in Holland, said: 'When I saw Justin was asking about me I got very emotional because I've been a fan of his for more than six years.

Star: She says Bieber (pictured) noticing her was even more special because she had been 'a fan of his for more than six years'

Big fan: 'When I saw Justin was asking about me I got very emotional because I've been a fan of his for more than six years,' said Cindy (pictured), who is still in school

'It seems like a fairytale. A friend of mine often used to joke that one day I'd be one of the girls he talked about and I didn't believe her.

'My life's changed positively since Justin appeared in my life. At the beginning I felt completely overwhelmed and didn't know how to deal with it but now I'm getting used to it.'

The teenager gained hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram after Bieber said he's a fan.

She has gone from being an unknown to being followed by 668,000 fans on social media.

But she insisted she intends keeping her feet on the ground and concentrating on her studies despite all the attention she is receiving.

She said: 'I've had a lot of job offers since all this happened. I'm constantly receiving calls offering me things, but I'm focused on my studies and fashion commitments I'd already made.'

Flattered: Aspiring model and artist Cindy was 'delighted' to have been compared with the likes of Irina Shayk and Angelina Jolie

Brains and beauty: Cindy (pictured) wants to study Fine Arts at university after finishing secondary school

Claiming she was 'delighted' to have been compared with the likes of Shayk or Angelina Jolie, she said: 'I love both of them.'

She added: 'My mum's happy for me with everything new that's happening in my life.

'She already knew I was a fan of Justin's. She's always urging me though to stay focused on my responsibilities with my studies and keep my feet on the ground.'

Cindy joked this week she was sad that Bieber isn't following her on Twitter.

Cindy, who goes by the nickname 'Wolfiecindy', has opened a new social media account.

She closed her old one in December when Bieber shared her picture with the world to escape unwanted attention.

Serious: Cindy (pictured) joked this week she was sad that Bieber isn't following her on Twitter

Loved: Cindy (pictured), who was born in Holland, now has more than 680,000 Instagram followers and that number grows each day

The pretty student admitted on Twitter to being only half-Spanish, going some way to confirming suggestions by fans who follow her on Instagram that one of her parents is Indonesian.

It was revealed last month Cindy was offering babysitting services for just four to 6 (2.90 to 4.35 an hour) - a far cry from the millions Justin makes every year.

She described herself in a CV resume, posted before she turned 17 along the same photo which attracted Justin's attention: 'My name is Cindy Kimberly and I am 16.

'I can do the shopping and help with homework. If you are looking for a baby sitter and you would like to know more about me, contact me. I love children and I can help them with English as I have a good command of English.'

Her name also appears on the Internet alongside an alcohol misdemeanor.

Town hall chiefs in Villajoyosa, a 40 minute drive of Denia, published her name on a December 2013 official bulletin, warning her she had 15 days to appeal against an administrative proceeding for breaching a by-law banning drinking in the street.

Future: Despite the overwhelming attention Cindy's (pictured) been getting, she insists her life is normal and she still wants to study Fine Arts in the future

Fame: Bieber put Cindy Kimberly on the map after posting this picture to his 47.5million Instagram followers, saying: 'OMG who is this!'

The public notice was published on the internet after the council was unable to inform Cindy Kimberly at her home address.

She insisted last night she had only babysat once for family friends.
Human remains most likely belonging to a former gangland figure who vanished more than a decade ago have been found hidden under three metres of dirt and rubbish at a former dump.

Police began digging in a remote industrial area of Thomastown, a northern suburb of Melbourne, on Monday after receiving information that the remains of career criminal Terrence Blewitt were buried there.

On Thursday, after four days of digging, forensic investigators were able to completely remove the skeleton from beneath three metres of dirt and a metre and a half layer of rubbish.

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Gangland figure Terrence Blewitt was last seen getting into a green Hyundai Excel sedan on April 12, 2004

The remains have been taken to the coroner for further forensic testing.

Notorious gangland identity Blewitt, 53, disappeared on April 12, 2004, after a friend dropped him off in Melton, north-west of Melbourne's CBD, and he got into an unknown car.

His partner reported him missing the following day but police said they believed he had met with foul play.

They searched for his remains in a shed located in the border town of Yarrawonga in 2013 but were unsuccessful.

Detectives believed his body was buried somewhere in northern Victoria, but after a two-day search, they were unable to locate anything of interest to the investigation.

Police forensics go through human remains located during the search of a property in Thomastown as part of an investigation into the disappearance of Terrence Blewitt

Victoria police found what is likely to be the remains of Blewitt after excavating vacant land in Thomastown, Melbourne

The former rubbish dumping ground was situated in this industrial estate in Thomastown

There was finally a development in the missing persons investigation when police found what they believe to be Blewitt's remains at a former dumping site.

After days of digging, a skeleton was found buried under three metres of dirt and a metre and a half layer of rubbish.

Detective Inspector Andrew Gustke said the searching the barren site had been difficult.

'We've had a 30-tonne excavator here for three days, we've removed 4000 cubic metres and we've gone down three metres,' he told reporters on Thursday morning.

He said it took 1.5 metres of digging to get to 'true ground', because the site, which was cleaned up in 2006, originally operated as an unofficial tip.

Police have been investigating the disappearance of Blewitt for 12 years alongside an investigation that relates to the 2003 murder of another underworld figure, Graham 'The Munster' Kinniburgh.

Blewitt may have been involved in the murder of Graham 'The Munster' Kinniburgh (pictured) who was shot dead in 2009

Police released a photo in August 2008 of the green Hyundai Excel sedan (pictured) that Blewitt was last seen getting into

Kinninburgh was shot dead outside his home in Kew by professionals who police said ambushed and executed the prominent gangland identity in front of members of his family, ABC News reported.

A 55-year-old man was charged over his murder in November last year but police have always believed there was a second person involved.

That person may have been Blewitt.

Det Insp Gustke refused to comment on Kinniburgh's murder but police have indicated that the discovery of Blewitt's remains could lead to further evidence into his death.

Blewitt's remains were found in Thomastown, a northern suburb of Melbourne

The current owners of the tip are not under suspicion, but police will investigate who owned the land between 2003 and 2004

The current owners of the tip are not under suspicion, but police will investigate who owned the land between 2003 and 2004.

The excavation process was expected to take some time, with archaeologists, police and other experts digging by hand after the majority of the dirt was removed by machinery.

Det Insp Gustke said police would keep an open mind until the remains were formally identified.

Despite this years of evidence, clues and interviews with hundreds of people had led police to believe there was a strong possibility the remains were those of Blewitt, he said.
Retail experts say Bunnings is only one with market power to buy Masters

He also said the ACCC should prevent Bunnings from expanding its reach

John Dahlsen says merger would encourage more competition in hardware

Former Woolworths chairman wants to see a Mitre 10 and Home merger

A Mitre 10 and Home merger would be a more beneficial move for shoppers than a Bunnings takeover of failed joint venture Masters.

Retail experts say Bunnings buying out hardware chain Masters would stifle competition within the home improvement industry.

Former Woolworths chairman John Dahlsen told Daily Mail Australia he would like to see the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) give the green light if a Mitre 10 and Home merger was proposed, and prevent Bunnings from expanding its reach.

A Mitre 10 and Home merger would be a more beneficial move for shoppers than a Bunnings takeover of failed joint venture Masters

Mr Dahlsen, who runs Australia's largest chain of independent hardware stores Dahlsens, said Bunnings was the only player on the market who had the power to purchase Masters after supermarket giant Woolworths pulled the plug on the chain earlier this week.

'With Masters falling over it's unlikely anyone can acquire the business in whole or part, which means that the Bunnings market share will increase and put them in an absolutely dominant position in the marketplace,' he said.

'Given their dominance it's important there's some countervailing operator. Danks [which owns Home Timber and Hardware] in its own right and Mitre 10 in its own right is not sufficient it's better off if both companies combined their resources so they can be more effective competitors of Bunnings.'

Mr Dahlsen said the market would be kept competitive by combining the two hardware chains.

Former Woolworths chairman John Dahlsen (above) said he would like to see the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission give the green light if a Mitre 10 and Home merger was proposed

He said Mitre 10 joining up with Home Timber and Hardware would encourage competition

Mr Dahlsen said it would increase both hardware chains' buying power. Above is a stock image of Home Timber and Hardware

'I believe the ACCC would see it see as anti-competitive but on deeper analysis it would come to the conclusion it would be pro-competitive,' he said.

'Bunnings have a huge share and to keep it competitive it's much better to combine the next two biggest players. The suppliers should like that because as far as the suppliers are concerned they should be concerned with the long-term viability of the independents.'

International business expert Gary Mortimer said he agreed with Mr Dahlsen's analysis.

'It does make logical sense. Obviously if you're going to have a player [Bunnings] that will have 75 per cent of the market, it would stifle the competition,' Mr Mortimer told Daily Mail Australia.

'It gives consumers only one choice of one retailer to shop with. When it comes to 'big box hardware', there would be less encouragement to reduce prices and be competitive when you don't have a competitor that you're pitted against.

International business expert Gary Mortimer said if Bunnings was to buy out Masters it would then have 75 per cent of the market

Earlier this week, Woolworths announced it would be selling off its Masters hardware business

'I think with the current state with the 60-odd Masters stores, unless there is another big buyer that would be willing to pick up all 60, ultimately they would be broken up between only those business who can afford to buy them.

'It is expected with Bunnings they would be looking at those [Masters] sites where they are not in competition with those stores.

'Metcash or Mitre10 would look at a smaller number of their stores to expand.'

Dr Mortimer said the Masters closure would also encourage global businesses to expands or break into the Australian market.

'There are 60 very large 'big box' stores, and this may signal an opportunity for a another global retailer to move into the Australian market, not just hardware,' he said.

ACCC chairman Rod Sims told The Sydney Morning Herald the commission would keep a close eye on any move by Bunnings to expand by buying up Masters stores.

He said the commission would also keep an 'open mind' about Mitre 10 and Home joining forces.

'Obviously we'd prefer they [Woolworths] sold Masters to a new entrant - that would be the preferable outcome,' Mr Sims said.

'We'd be concerned if these stores were sold to Bunnings.
Julie Mott, 25, died in August from cystic fibrosis

The parents of a woman whose body was stolen from a casket following her funeral service last year is now suing the Texas funeral home.

Julie Mott passed away 'peacefully' on August 8, 2015 from cystic fibrosis but the 25-year-old's body was stolen after her funeral service at the Mission Park North Funeral Chapel in San Antonio.

Her remains have not been found, despite months of searching and begging the public for information.

The woman's family have filed a suit against the funeral home for reportedly misplacing her body.

'After the memorial service, but before the body was transferred to the crematorium, Mission lost possession of Julie Mott's body, and to this day has been unable to explain how they lost the body,' the lawsuit filed this month states.

They are seeking nearly $1million in damages from Mission Park Funeral Chapel for 'gross negligence,' KYTX reported.

Mission Park officials and volunteers searched parks and wooded areas for clues in an attempt to find her body, but were unsuccessful.

In October, Julie's parents Charlotte and Tim Mott held a press conference begging for their daughter's body to be returned.

'We ask that you please, please return our Julie to us,' Charlotte Mott said tearfully at the time.

'I was her caregiver, the one who drove her to her doctor's visits, stayed with her throughout her many hospital stays and, in her later years, her best friend.

'Without a doubt, she loved me as much as I loved her.

'This selfish person who took her could not have loved her any more than I do.'

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Her parents, Tim and Charlotte Mott (above) are suing the Mission Park North Funeral Chapel in San Antonio for 'gross negligence' and are seeking nearly $1million

Julie's body was stolen after her funeral service at the Mission Park North Funeral Chapel in San Antonio (above) before it could be cremated

Family members and authorities said they had an idea of who stole her body, but no arrests have been made. A suspect hasn't been publicly named either.

There were reports that the last person seen leaving the funeral home was a man who was obsessed with the young woman.

Police had identified a potential suspect who was reportedly obsessively texting and calling her before her death. He is said to be aged in his twenties, according to an incident report obtained by My San Antonio.

Her mother directly addressed the person who stole her beloved daughter's body, begging for them to come forward.

Tim Mott said that he's angry and that the individual who stole her body has a sick mind.

'What else could it be,' Tim Mott said during the October press conference. 'The person's got to be sick.'

Julie Mott (pictured in Facebook snaps) had requested she be cremated after her death, her mother said

Charlotte Mott added that she can't fulfill her daughter's final wishes of being cremated.

'I did everything in my power to fulfill her wishes,' the heartbroken mother said. 'The fact that I cannot fulfill her final wishes is unbearable. It is breaking my heart each and every day.'

Julie's funeral was held on what would have been her 26th birthday.

Staff members at the funeral home discovered that her body was missing the day after the service as they prepared to transfer it to the crematorium.

Police believe that it was taken within a three-hour window between the conclusion of the service and the end of the business day at the establishment, the New York Daily News reported.

There were no signs of forced entry and no alarms were set off at the funeral home.

There are no surveillance cameras there.

Anyone with information is asked to call 210-225-8477.
Donald Trump opened up a new can of insults against two of his Republican presidential rivals on Thursday, saying the Iowa Caucus results are a foregone conclusion because Texas Sen. Ted Cruz 'has had his moment and blew it.'

Speaking to a room-bursting and boisterous audience at the South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa on a highway south of the famed Las Vegas Strip, The Donald mocked Cruz and the low-performing former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush as his crowd  all but a lone protester  cheered.

'Jeb is down the toilet,' Trump barked, and 'Ted is getting very nervous.'

MORE MUD: 'Jeb is down the toilet,' Trump barked Thursday in Las Vegas, and 'Ted is getting very nervous'

FEELING THE HEAT: Ted Cruz is running neck-and-neck with The Donald in some Iowa polls, bringing Trump to hurl insults: 'When he talks he talks like he's debating. He can't talk!'

Trump spent the day in Sin City, where a gleaming hotel bears his name, with two events on his schedule after the midday casino rally.

Late at night he will make a guest appearance at the Outdoor Sportsman Group Networks annual awards festivities, held at the Venetian Hotel & Casino.

The third event, a private happening, is such a secret that Trump's handlers wouldn't discuss it and only a few photographers were invited to cover it.

But The Donald was accessible to everyone in the afternoon, descending from his stage after a 45-minute speech to mingle with Nevadans, sign autographs and pose for photos.

Some in the audience let out boos at the mention of Cruz's name

'I heard he was a great debater,' Trump teased, 'but I beat him in the last debate.'

And then his tongue turned more acidic.

'The problem is he's a great debater  but when he talks he talks like he's debating. He can't talk!' the billionaire claimed.

'So he can debate but he can't talk. You've got to be able to talk.'

'Cruz is going down. He's like a nervous wreck. He's going down,' he added moments later.

'He's had his moment. He had his moment. He had his moment and he blew it.'

LOOK OUT DONALD  HE COULD HURT YOU: Trump said Thursday that Jeb Bush 'is in the toilet'

FAMILY AFFAIR: Trump brought sons Eric (center) and DOnald Jr. (right) to his rally at the South Point Casino

Trump also blasted the tea party favorite for his reputation as a go-it-alone maverick who has sneered at coalition-building on Capitol Hill.

'You've got to be able to get along with people, right? You can't be so strident,' Trump said.

Cruz 'doesn't have the support of one other Republican senator. There's something wrong,' he added.

'And I can tell you, they like me, those guys. And there's nothing wrong with that, folks. We've got to make deals. We don't want to sign executive orders.'

He also took a shot at Amanda Carpenter, a CNN political analyst who was Cruz's communications director in the Senate until July 2015.

She had made an on-air argument about the expectations game candidates play before major electoral tests  saying that Trump needed to win the Feb. 1 Iowa Caucuses by ten or more percentage points in order to avoid being seen as a disappointment.

Trump is ahead of Cruz in some polls by wide margins, but in others the two are running even.

CONTRARIAN: Amanda Carpenter was Ted Cruz's communications director until last July, and framed the Iowa Caucuses as a must-win-by-a-lot contest for Trump  drawing the billionaire's ire

HIGH ROAD: Carpenter said she's just one of the 'dozens, maybe hundreds, or even thousands of people who have been personally insulted by Donald Trump'  tweeting that 'this is how he rolls'

'I had this jokester on who represents Cruz, somebody named Amanda Carpenter,' Trump boomed on Thursday.

'She said, "If he doesn't win by double-digits it will be a loss".'

'I'll take a win by one vote!' Trump exclaimed, bringing a gush of cheers.

'Give me a break, okay? Give me two or three votes just in case there's a recount.'

Carpenter swung back Thursday afternoon, telling DailyMail.com that she had officially 'joined dozens, maybe hundreds, or even thousands of people who have been personally insulted by Donald Trump.'

'I've often said I have a love-hate relationship with Trump, but we're seeing that the more we hear from Trump, the less there is to like.'

She had initially vented on Twitter, The Donald's favorite political mud-pit.
The White House pushed back on Thursday against former Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin's comments on domestic violence, saying the issues she raised on the campaign trail are some that the Obama administration takes 'quite seriously'.

Palin's son, Track Palin, was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a woman and carrying a gun while intoxicated, police in the family's Alaska hometown said on Tuesday.

In a speech she made Wednesday to support leading Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, Palin linked her son's charges to his experience in the US military and blamed the Obama administration for not doing enough to support its veterans.

White House press secretary Josh Earnest pushed back on Thursday against former Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin's comments on domestic violence

Palin blamed her son Track's recent arrest for domestic violence on PTSD during a speech supporting Donald Trump in Tulsa, Oklahoma on Wednesday (pictured above)

'I can certainly relate to the families who feel these ramifications of PTSD,' she said according to media reports, using an acronym referring to post-traumatic stress disorder.

'And it makes me realize more than ever it is now or never for the sake of America's finest that we have a commander in chief who will respect them.'

White House spokesman Josh Earnest, asked about the comments at a news briefing on Thursday, said the instinct of many people is to 'make light' of some of the rhetoric on the campaign trail, particularly from Palin.

'The fact is domestic violence is not a joke. Gun violence is not a joke. Problems with addiction are not a joke and the... sacrifices that many of our men and women in uniform make, for our safety and security, are not a joke.'

Track Palin (pictured left in recent months) was arrested on Monday after allegedly hitting his girlfriend and threatening to shoot himself. Track Palin pictured right coming home to Alaska and being greeted by his daughter Kyla

Earnest said while the fodder may come easy, 'in this case, the issues that she's talking about are quite serious and are certainly issues that we take quite seriously here'.

He did not know if the president had seen the remarks, Earnest added.

Some veterans groups quickly lashed out at Palin for her remarks.

'PTSD is a serious subject and should not be politicized,' Paul Rieckhoff, who founded the group Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, said on Twitter on Thursday.

'The idea that Palin can pin this on Obama is absurd,' Nate Bethea, a veteran from the war in Afghanistan who said he also suffers from PTSD, posted on the social media site late Wednesday.
It is not illegal to burn the Australian flag but

A Facebook event combining two quintessential Australia Day traditions  barbecues and the Aussie flag - has triggered threats of violence and a whirlwind of outrage.

Artist Jim Coad has promoted the 'Chuck another flag on the barbie?' event to be held on Australia Day at Victoria park in Castlemaine, Central Victoria. The description reads, 'Bring along your kids, kick back and throw another flag on the barbie.'

The event page  which is emblazoned with an image of the Australian flag engulfed in flames - has attracted thinly veiled threats from notorious far-right groups such as the United Patriots Front.

But Mr Coad has defended against the controversy claiming he just wants to facilitate debates about the true meaning of Australia Day and what the national flag represents.

The controversial Facebook event has been met with fierce hostility and threats of violence

Artist Jim Coad said he wants to facilitate debates about the true meaning of Australia Day and the national flag

'I want to bring two iconic Australian traditions together, and I think the event name has a real ring to it' Mr Coad told Daily Mail Australia.

'The fact we celebrate the failed invasion of a sovereign country  there's something schizophrenic about it' he said, referencing the Union Jack and in turn challenging the significance of World War I for Australia's national fabric.

'Soldiers of Gallipoli actually had the Union Jack draped over their coffin. There's a lot of myths surrounding the true meaning of the Australian flag. I think it's time we question what it means.'

When asked if he planned to actually burn any flags on the day, Mr Coad said 'we will be proceeding with the event.'

The event has been met with fierce hostility, including threats of violence and also a counter-protest proposal from the United Patriots Front, whose members were caught bringing firearms to an anti-Muslim protest last year.

But Mr Coud said he is not concerned about the chances it could spiral out of control, taking the chance to extend the olive branch to his opposition.

'I'm happy UPF have expressed their interest. This is an event of inclusion and freedom - we can only only gain from open discussion and being open to others views.'

Mr Coad, an artist from Victoria, would not directly answer if he planned to actually burn the flag at the event

The event has been met with thinly-veiled threats from notorious far-right groups such as the United Patriots Front

The event page has also amassed a long list of violent threats from commenters

Many of those opposed to the event claim to be former ADF servicemen

Mr Coud said he is not concerned about the chances it could spiral out of control

He said having opposition on the day will mean the event will 'gain from open discussion and being open to others views'

When asked if he planned to actually burn any flags on the day, Mr Coad said 'we will be proceeding with the event'

Some commenters have raised concerns over the legality of the proposed event.

It is not currently illegal to burn the Australian flag but several groups such as the Shooters and Fishers Party are lobbying have it made into an offence.

A 26-year-old woman was issued two infringement notices after set an Australian flag ablaze during a counter rally to a United Patriots Front protest in August against the building of a mosque in Bendigo.

The $607 dollar infringements were issued for 'behaving in a riotous manner' and 'depositing burning litter'.
A regional director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has resigned in connection with the drinking water crisis in Flint, Michigan.

Susan Hedman, the head of the agency's regional office in Chicago whose jurisdiction includes the state, will step down on February 1 so the government can focus solely on the crisis in the city.

High levels of lead have been detected in the impoverished city's water since officials switched from the Detroit municipal system and began drawing from the Flint River as a cost-saving measure in April 2014.

Some children's blood has tested positive for lead, a potent neurotoxin linked to learning disabilities, lower IQ and behavioral problems.

Susan Hedman, the head of the agency's regional office in Chicago whose jurisdiction includes the state, will step down on February 1 so the government can focus solely on the crisis in the city

While much of the blame has been directed at Gov. Rick Snyder and state officials, particularly the Department of Environmental Quality, some have faulted the EPA's Region 5 office for not acting more forcefully.

The order issued Thursday acknowledges the state notified EPA officials in April 2015 that Flint was not treating the river water with additives to prevent corrosion from pipes.

It says Hedman and others in the regional EPA office voiced concern to state and city officials over the next few months. But it wasn't until October 16 that EPA established a task force to provide technical help  the day Flint switched back to the Detroit water system.

'Mismanagement has plagued the region for far too long and Ms. Hedman's resignation is way overdue,' said U.S. Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah, chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

The EPA said McCarthy had sent a memo to all staff members establishing a policy assessing and responding to 'critical public health issues.'

The agency also released a letter from McCarthy to Snyder outlining terms of the emergency order, which says that city and state responses to the water crisis have failed.

The EPA 'is deeply concerned by continuing delays and lack of transparency,' the letter said, describing the measures as 'essential to ensuring the safe operation of Flint's drinking water system and the protection of public health.'

High levels of lead have been detected in the impoverished city's water since officials switched from the Detroit municipal system and began drawing from the Flint River as a cost-saving measure in April 2014

Among them: submitting plans for ensuring that Flint's water has adequate treatment, including corrosion controls; making sure city personnel are qualified to operate the water system in a way that meets federal quality standards; and creating a website where citizens can get information.

The agency also said it would begin sampling and analyzing lead levels and would make the results public.

Snyder's office released a statement saying the state would cooperate with EPA.

'As Gov. Snyder said in his State of the State Address earlier this week, government at all levels failed the people of Flint. He accepted accountability for that, and noted that federal, state, and local leaders broke the trust of the people,' it said.

President Barack Obama said during a U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting Thursday that about $80 million in federal funding would be sent to Michigan next week  part of a nationwide investment in water system upgrades. It wasn't immediately clear how much would go to Flint. Obama met earlier this week with Flint Mayor Karen Weaver.

Also Thursday, Michigan officials said they still aren't certain whether there's a link between a drinking water crisis in Flint and an increase in local cases of Legionnaires' Disease.

A report by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services says nine people died of the bacterial illness between June 2014 and October 2015 in Genesee County, which includes Flint. That's down from the 10 fatal cases reported earlier this month. Officials say the number was changed after they found some deaths weren't considered to have been caused by Legionnaires.

Eighty-seven Legionnaires' disease cases were confirmed between June 2014 and November 2015. About one-third of the infected people's homes received Flint water, which was found to have elevated lead levels after the city began drawing from the Flint River.

Residents in the former auto-making hub feel their complaints about lead-tainted water flowing through their taps have been slighted by the government or ignored altogether
Christopher Eugene Brooks, 43, was executed on Thursday for the rape and murder of Jo Deann Campbell

A man who raped and bludgeoned a 23-year-old woman to death with a dumbbell in Alabama was executed on Thursday evening.

Christopher Eugene Brooks died at 6.38pm local time after the Supreme Court denied a stay of execution at 6.02pm.

In the hours leading up to his death, no one had attended a vigil area to support the prisoner before his death.

'I hope this brings closure to everybody,' Brooks said as the drugs began to overcome him.

'I will take you with me in my heart,' he said to friends who witnessed the execution, according to AL.com. 'I'll see you soon. Bye. I love you.'

Brooks was the first prisoner executed in Alabama for two years and the first in the state to use a new lethal drug combination including the sedative midazolam.

Brooks, now 43, sexually assaulted Jo Deann Campbell in her own apartment in Homewood on December 30, 1992, before killing her with an eight-pound dumbbell.

The pair had met working at a nearby summer camp but were not romantically involved, her sister Corinne told WWLP.

Miss Campbell let Brooks and his friend Robert Leeper stay at her place for the night, but the next day she did not show up for work.

Police found the young woman's body, naked from the waist down, stashed under her bed.

Brooks and Leeper were caught days later after they were tracked down using Miss Campbell's credit card.

A bloody fingerprint belonging to Brooks was found on the doorknob in Mrs Campbell's bedroom, his palm print was discovered on her ankle and semen found on her body matched his DNA.

Brooks was found guilty of murder, rape and robbery whereas Leeper was only found guilty of robbery as DNA did not link him to Miss Campbell's body.

Brooks (left) sexually assaulted Jo Deann Campbell (right) before killing her with an eight-pound dumbbell

Miss Campbell's (pictured with her mother) body was found shoved underneath her bed and was naked from the waist down

Miss Campbell (left, and right with her father Joe Campbell) let Brooks and his friend Robert Leeper stay at her place for the night, but the next day she did not show up for work

Brooks' execution began at 6.06pm CST (7pm EST) in the Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore. His victim's family were in attendance.

Brooks had appealed to the Supreme Court but was denied after a federal appeals court also turned him down.

The request for the stay of execution was made to Justice Clarence Thomas, according to AL.com.

Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg agreed with Thomas's decision to deny the stay.

The nation's highest court issued a brief statement on Thursday evening that it had denied the request by an attorney for Brooks. It did not elaborate.

But Justice Stephen Breyer dissented from the ruling.

'Christopher Eugene Brooks was sentenced to death in accordance with Alabama's procedures, which allow a jury to render an "advisory verdict" that "is not binding on the court",' the dissent states.

'Moreover, we have recognized that Alabama's sentencing scheme is 'much like' and 'based on Florida's sentencing scheme,' Breyer wrote.

Local Birmingham CBS reporter Jamie Ostroff tweeted that his final meal request was two peanut butter cups and a Dr Pepper, after Brooks did not eat breakfast.

The lethal injection used was the first in Alabama to use midazolam as a sedative. It was the first of three drugs administered before the murderer's lungs and then heart were then stopped.

In their appeal to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, Brooks' attorneys said: 'Alabama intends to use an execution protocol on Brooks that has never been used in Alabama and that is the subject of two pending federal court cases.

'Brooks should not be the subject of Alabama's experiment to see if it can carry out an execution using this protocol while the very validity of the protocol is at issue in ongoing federal court proceedings.

'Brooks would suffer the most irreparable harm imaginable if Alabama was permitted to carry out his execution. This Court should grant a stay of execution.'

The death was the third lethal injection in the U.S. this year, following the executions of Oscar Ray Bolin Jr in Florida and Richard Masterson in Texas.

Before Brooks, the last death row inmate executed in Alabama was Andrew Lackey, who broke into the home of 80-year-old Second World War veteran Charles Newman before stabbing him to death.
An ex-student at a $30,000 per year private school has been accused of stabbing his father and injuring his mother while allegedly high on ice.

Police believe David Anderson, 21, stabbed his father, Andrew, 55, and injured his mother, Patricia, 53, during a violent rampage about 4am on Friday.

Witnesses in the leafy Sydney suburb of Oatlands said they were woken by terrified screams from a woman, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

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David Anderson (pictured), an ex-student at a $30,000 per year private school, has been accused of stabbing his father and injuring his mother while allegedly high on ice, police will allege

'She was screaming so hard, saying, 'Somebody help! David, stop! Somebody help us, he's trying to kill us,' a neighbour said, according to the newspaper.

Neighbours also reportedly heard the 21-year-old making strange 'animal' noises inside the two-storey mansion.

Mr Anderson's father reportedly suffered multiple stab wounds and his mother received facial injuries.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, a neighbour found Ms Anderson screaming and covered in blood on her front lawn after she managed to escape the house and run down the street.

A man, 21, was arrested about 4am on Friday for allegedly stabbing his father, 55, a number of times

Police believe David Anderson, 21, stabbed his father, Andrew, and mother, Patricia, during a violent rampage about 4am on Friday

David Anderson was a student at the lavish King's School, located about 500 metres from his parents home

Mr Anderson graduated from The King's School, located about 500 metres from his parents home, in 2013.

According to the school's website, tuition fees at the college cost between $28,896 and $31,581 for high school students.

Pupils who live on the campus face fees of about $50,000.

Mr Anderson appears shirtless in a number of photographs posted to a social media page believed to belong to him, and also lists himself as a KFC employee.

His 53-year-old mother suffered facial injuries during the altercation at their home in Sydney's west

It comes after paramedics were called to the family home on Blairgowie Place on Friday morning.

Police arrested the 21-year-old inside the house and he was then taken from the scene shirtless and in handcuffs to Parramatta police station for questioning.

His parents were both rushed to Westmead Hospital where his mother is in a stable condition and his father in a serious but stable condition.

'A crime scene has been established at the home, which will be forensically examined,' NSW Police said in a statement.
A Miami woman who was filmed attacking an Uber driver and throwing the man's belongings into the street before walking away has been identified as a local doctor.

Anjali Ramkissoon, who is a fourth-year neurology resident with Jackson Health System, reportedly got into an Uber without a reservation on Sunday night. When the driver asked her to leave, she became angry and belligerent.

The video shows her punching and kicking the man, who eventually walks away, and then getting into the passenger seat of the vehicle and throwing his mail, cell phone, electronics and other devices and possessions out into the street.

At one point she also yells at him; 'Get the f*** in the car, you piece of f***ing disgusting s***.'

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Caught: The young woman filmed attacking an Uber driver (above) and throwing his belongings out of his car has been identified as Anjali Ramkissoon

A video shows her throwing his mail, cell phone, electronics and other devices and possessions into the street

Repercussions: Jackson Health System said in statement that the fourth-year neurology resident has been placed on leave and that it has launched an investigation into the incident

The Miami Herald reports that Ramkissoon has now been 'removed from all clinical duties'.

Her employer said in a statement; 'Jackson has launched an internal investigation.

'The outcome of the investigation will determine whether any disciplinary action will be taken, up to and including termination.'

The video footage was taken by Juan Cinco, who had ordered the car to take him home from the Mary Brickell Village in Miami, Florida, on Sunday night. He later uploaded the clip to YouTube.

Information posted with the clip explains Ramkissoon, who was dressed in tight white shorts and a red top, came 'out of nowhere' and climbed into the backseat of the Uber.

When she refused to get out, Mr Cinco and his friend told the driver to cancel their ride and offered to book another ride home.

He said the driver pretended to phone the police, asking them to remove the woman from his car, which prompted Ramkissoon to reach into the front seat, grab his keys and start to walk away.

This was the point at which Cinco started filming, he said.

Among the disciplinary actions Ramkissoon (pictured on Facebook) faces at the end of the investigation according to Jackson Health is 'termination'

Then, Ramkissoon climbs into the front passenger seat and starts to throw items off the dashboard on to the street while ordering the driver to 'get in the f***ing car'.

He refuses and Ramkissoon shouts: 'Get the f*** in the car you piece of f***ing disgusting s***'.

Ramkissoon continues to throw items on to the ground, including the driver's iPhone, cash and dozens of pieces of paper and receipts.

At one point she hurls a pair of scissors that lands just inches away from Mr Cinco.

The driver phones the police and tells them he has 'bruises' from the Ramkissoon's attack as she mocks his pleas, saying 'I'm a 5ft tall girl who weighs 100lbs and I am getting really belligerent right now'.

She then throws even more paperwork out the window and Mr Cinco tells her she has 'lost her mind'. One of the items strikes the wing mirror of a car parked nearby.

Off the hook: Miami police officers responded to the scene but a spokesman said there was no report and there will be no investigation (Ramkissoon above)

In his YouTube post, Mr Cinco writes that the police arrived and had to remove Ramkissoon from a taxi she had hailed in an attempt to leave.

He continued: 'Once in handcuffs, she then tried kicking some of the police officers on the scene.

'It was only when they put her in the police car that she started crying, apologizing, and claiming that she would lose her medical license (she claimed to be a neurologist) if she got arrested.'

Mr Cinco said the Uber driver was 'too good of a person' and decided to take a cash settlement - 'only enough to pay his cellphone bill and maybe his cable bill' - rather than take legal action.

Miami police spokeswoman Frederica Burden confirmed officers had responded to the scene but said there was no report and there would be no investigation.

Uber also released a statement after the incident, saying; 'Uber expects everyone associated with the platform  both drivers and riders  to conduct themselves with a shared level of respect and common courtesy, and all forms of harassment and abuse are not tolerated.
U-turn: Sudanese migrant Abdul Rahman Haroun will now face trial after walking through the Channel Tunnel in August last year

A 40-year-old Sudanese migrant who walked through the Channel Tunnel before being granted asylum will now face a trial later this year in a significant U-turn.

The decision to continue with the prosecution of Abdul Rahman Haroun came after a judge told him earlier this month that the case against him could be dropped following a decision to grant him the right to stay in Britain.

Prosecutors announcement that he will in fact be pursued through the courts was praised by both Eurotunnel and Damian Collins, the Conservative MP for Folkestone and Hythe.

The Crown Prosecution Services earlier consideration of whether to proceed with the case against the migrant had sparked heated criticism.

Haroun walked the 31 miles through the tunnel on August 4 last year, dodging passing trains travelling at 100mph.

However, once in Folkestone and after being arrested, he successfully applied for the right to stay in Britain and was granted asylum on December 24 last year.

At the time of his last court appearance on January 4, Judge Adele Williams granted him asylum and was told that prosecutors would be considering whether to proceed with a prosecution.

Yesterday when he appeared again at Canterbury Crown Court it emerged that the CPS had asked for the case to be listed on March 3 for further legal argument.

Judge Adele Williams then set a provisional trial date for June 20 before releasing Haroun  who denies the charge of causing an obstruction to an engine or carriage - on bail at the end of the five-minute hearing.

Haroun was greeted at the court by several members of the Kent Refugee Help group, who chanted his name and those of two Iranian men who followed him through the tunnel in October last year.

The pair face a trial in April for coming through the Channel Tunnel illegally just two months after Haroun walked to Britain.

Having been granted asylum, Haroun is now living in state-subsidised accommodation and is able to collect 36.95 from his local post office each week.

But Judge Williams told him: You next need to be back at this court on Thursday, March 3, for further consideration of your case. Failure to attend when required to do so is a criminal offence.

Last night a spokesman for Eurotunnel welcomed the news that the Sudanese migrant will now face a trial.

He said: That is very good news. We believe that where a criminal act has been committed that the law should be adhered to following such an act.

Daring: The 40-year-old avoided trains travelling at 100mph as he walked the 31-miles through the Channel Tunnel to reach the UK. Pictured, the perimeter fence of the Eurotunnel site at Coquelles in Calais, France

The decision to continue with a prosecution also sends a strong message being sent by the justice system that it is not alright to break into the UK by any means.

We considered the message given at the last hearing to be ambiguous. If the law is going to prosecute this fully then we support that position.

Tory MP Mr Collins added: This is the right decision to continue with this mans prosecution. If we are going to defend the border and also we are going to stop people doing what he did we need to send a strong message.

We are now doing that and if you are going to break into our country through the Channel Tunnel and endanger not only your life but the lives of others - either travelling through or working in the tunnel - then you will face prosecution and face the full weight of the law.

I still also believe that this man should not have been granted asylum after clearly breaking into the country in the way he did.

Immediately after Haroun had left the court the two Iranian men who also breached the tunnel to come to Britain were brought up from the cells.
Five people have been charged with trying to steal cancer research secrets from a British drugs firm in a bid to sell them to the Chinese.

Confidential research data was allegedly downloaded from computers in the US, belonging to UK pharmaceutical firm GlaxoSmithKline.

Two of the accused are scientists who have worked for GSK in Pennsylvania.

Confidential cancer research data was allegedly downloaded from computers in the US, belonging to UK pharmaceutical firm GlaxoSmithKline (headquarters of the UK operation in Brentford, London are pictured)

The indictment, which includes charges such as conspiracy to steal trade secrets and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering, said many of the products allegedly targeted were designed to treat cancer or other serious diseases.

The US attorney's office alleges that GlaxoSmithKline scientist Yu Xue, 45, emailed and downloaded confidential information and worked with other defendants to set up three corporations to sell the stolen intellectual property.

They also allege that former company scientist Lucy Xi, 38, also emailed confidential information.

Prosecutors said Xue, who they said is regarded as one of the top protein biochemists in the world, worked primarily to develop anti-cancer drugs.

These types of anti-cancer drugs typically cost pharmaceutical corporations more than $1 billion (700million) and many years to develop before they can be turned into a commercially successful product, prosecutors said in the indictment.

Authorities alleged that Xue, of Pennsylvania, stole more than a dozen specific products.

The indictment, which includes charges such as conspiracy to steal trade secrets from office computers, said many of the products allegedly targeted were designed to treat cancer or other serious diseases (file picture)

Lawyer Peter Zeidenberg said that Xue had pleaded not guilty and would contest the charges.

Attorneys for 42-year-old Tao Li, of Nanjing, China; 45-year-old Tian Xue, of North Carolina; and Xi, of California, declined comment.

It is not clear how Yan Mei, 36, of Nanjing, intends to plead.

Pharmaceuticals is one of the key areas that China is targeting for growth.

Chinese drug firms have been growing strongly, but mainly through the sale of generic medicines. The country has so far struggled to make a mark in the discovery of new drugs.
A young mother has shared the inspiring story of her son's fight for survival, and how he ended up with three kidneys.

Kiera, 23, from Queensland, spoke about how her son, Lucas, was born with a debilitating condition that caused his kidneys to fail and required him to eat through a tube for the first two years of his life.

Lucas, 3, was born with bilateral cystic dysplastic kidneys, meaning the internal structures of his kidneys failed to develop properly. According to medical experts, he overcame the odds by surviving birth.

A young mother has shared the inspiring story of her son, Lucas' (pictured) fight for survival and how he ended up with three kidneys

Due to how intense the surgery was, Lucas' doctors decided to leave his two damaged kidneys in place, while adding a third at the front right of his little body.

In his short life so far, the tenacious three-year-old has had seven surgeries, more than 300 blood tests and been admitted to hospital dozens of times, his mother told Daily Mail Australia.

'The hardest part early on was he ended up having to be fed from a tube from six months,' Kiera said.

'He was always in hospital, it was really a constant battle.

'We used to call the hospital our second home, we were in and out of there all the time... we were sort of like frequent flyers.

'It was so very tough living with the unknown - I'd literally wake up every morning wondering if that was the day he was going to leave, if that was the last one.'

Lucas (pictured in the intensive care unit of a Brisbane hospital) was born with bilateral cystic dysplastic kidneys, meaning the internal structures of his kidneys failed to develop properly

A three-month-old Lucas smiles as a family member plays with him. Doctors had warned Kiera he may not survive that long

After two years, Kiera's hopes were answered when Lucas was able to receive a new kidney from his grandmother, Grace.

Now, almost exactly one year on from his transplant, Lucas and Kiera are still fighting, but the uncertainty is gone.

'Post-transplant, he can still get sick very easily and we have to get him off his tube entirely, but he is doing well so far,' Kiera told DMA.

'He has had to learn how to eat basically from scratch, because before he always used the tube.

'He was always in hospital, it was really a constant battle,' his mother said of Lucas (pictured in hospital as a one-month-old)

For the majority of his first two years, Lucas had to be fed using a tube (pictured)

'We have a much more relaxed life now - it's great to be able to take Lucas to visit family, or to go away without having to plan around where the nearest hospital was in case he would end up there.'

'It's still stressful and chaotic, but it's better.'

As a result of her experience, Kiera has become a passionate advocate for increased organ donations.

Australia is currently ranked 22nd in the world for organ donations and transplants, a number that fell two spots last year.

Lucas (pictured as a three-year-old) has battled through his diagnosis and is fighting to live a normal life

'We have a much more relaxed life now - it's great to be able to take Lucas to visit family, or to go away without having to plan around where the nearest hospital was,' Kiera said

The number of donors in Australia in 2014 was 16 for every one million people, according to The Council of Europe Transplant Newsletter figures analysed by ShareLife.

Spain and the US, two of the world's leaders in donations, had more than double that number.

Kiera said more needs to be done to help save lives for all Australians.

'People just need to be aware of how important and life-saving this can be... we were lucky, his specialists were incredible and really bent over backwards, but some people aren't that lucky,' she said.

'Post-transplant, he can still get sick very easily and we have to get him off his tube entirely, but he is doing well so far,' Kiera told DMA

'If you become an organ donor, that should be the final say. It's not right some families have to be asked as they are grieving.'

'Anyone can help anyone else, and give them another chance at life, that's the thing people need to be aware of.'
More than a quarter of a million children are languishing in schools that fail to meet basic targets, official figures show.

Hundreds of state secondaries fell below the Governments floor standards by failing to ensure enough pupils got five good GCSE grades and made sufficient progress.

However, while there are 250,955 pupils in under-performing schools, this represents a reduction of 23,000 since last year.

Troubled areas: 329 schools are below the secondary school floor standard - with London having the lowest proportion of schools in this bracket, with 3.8 per cent, and East Midlands having the highest, with 18.3 per cent

ENGLAND'S TOP 10 ACADEMY SCHOOLS FOR GCSE AND EBACC RESULTS SCHOOL LOCAL AUTHORITY GCSE EBACC AVERAGE PUPIL SCORE The Henrietta Barnett School Barnet (London) 100 100 631.7 Dartford Grammar School Kent 100 98 553.2 Altrincham Grammar School for Girls Trafford 100 97 512.9 The Blue Coat School Liverpool 100 96 696.1 Colchester County High School for Girls Essex 100 96 624.3 Lawrence Sheriff School Warwickshire 100 96 618 Dr Challoner's High School Buckinghamshire 100 96 514.7 Reading School Reading 100 92 622 Kendrick School Reading 100 91 653 St Michael's Catholic Grammar School Barnet (London) 100 91 580.2

The improvement comes after Ofsted began a regime of tougher inspections to pinpoint problem areas in schools.

Yesterdays figures also show only 48  less than half  of the top 100 schools for A-level results were private. The best performing institutions included 44 selective state schools and six comprehensives.

Commenting on the GCSE figures, based on last summers grades, schools minister Nick Gibb said: The results show how far we have come in raising standards, but they also highlight where some pupils are still at risk of falling behind. We will tackle those pockets of persistent under-performance.

Pupils attending under-performing schools make up around 7 per cent of the total secondary population.

Overall, 329 state secondary schools in England did not meet the minimum benchmarks.

Of these, 312 failed to ensure that at least 40 per cent of their pupils got at least five C grades at GCSE, including English and maths.

The other 17 schools were among 327 that opted in to a new Progress 8 performance measure, which looks at the progress of pupils across eight subjects, and fell below a certain threshold for this target.

On the rise: The figures released today show that 88,000 more youngsters are taking the EBacc subjects of English, maths, science, a language and either history or geography, compared with 2010

ENGLAND'S TOP 10 ACADEMY SCHOOLS FOR GCSE AND EBACC RESULTS SCHOOL LOCAL AUTHORITY GCSE EBACC AVERAGE PUPIL SCORE The Henrietta Barnett School Barnet (London) 100 100 631.7 Dartford Grammar School Kent 100 98 553.2 Altrincham Grammar School for Girls Trafford 100 97 512.9 The Blue Coat School Liverpool 100 96 696.1 Colchester County High School for Girls Essex 100 96 624.3 Lawrence Sheriff School Warwickshire 100 96 618 Dr Challoner's High School Buckinghamshire 100 96 514.7 Reading School Reading 100 92 622 Kendrick School Reading 100 91 653 St Michael's Catholic Grammar School Barnet (London) 100 91 580.2

Five areas have at least ten under-performing schools  Kent, Birmingham, Lancashire, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire.

Blackpool had the highest proportion of pupils at an under-performing school, with 48.6 per cent of youngsters not getting a decent education.

At the other end of the scale, there were 41 areas with no failing schools.

The top school for GCSE results was the Blue Coat School, an academy in Liverpool, where all 124 students gained at least five C grades.

The A-level results, which are similar to last years, suggest many top state schools now out-perform fee-paying schools.

The best performing was Colyton Grammar School, followed by three other grammars and then the independent King Edward VI High School for Girls in Birmingham in fifth place.

However, private school head teachers say government data show only part of the picture as some pupils at state schools take softer subjects that boost average points.

MIGRANTS CHILDREN ARE OUTPERFORMING THEIR PEERS BY THE AGE OF 16 Migrant children are outperforming their peers in many parts of the country by the age of 16, according to government figures. Pupils with English as a second language got better GCSE results this year than native speakers in London, the South East and the North East. Their performance was particularly strong in pockets of the country including Thurrock, Tower Hamlets, Southampton and Manchester. Overall in England, 56.5 per cent of migrant pupils got five or more A*-C grades, including English and maths, at GCSE, slightly less than the 57.5 per cent of non-migrant pupils. But in the North East, 56 per cent of migrants achieved this compared with 55.5 per cent of natives. In London it was 61.3 per cent against 60.7 per cent. Advertisement

The Liverpool Blue Coat School (pictured) was the fourth best performing school for GCSE and EBacc results

Every girl at The Henrietta Barnett School in North London (pictured) achieved at least five A to C grades including English and maths last year, while it also had a 100 per cent pass rate for the English Baccalaureate
Fifteen experts have urged David Cameron to put a 20 per cent tax on sugary soft drinks

Ministers must impose a sugar tax on fizzy drinks before it is too late, say experts.

They have written to David Cameron urging him to introduce the controversial levy as part of a major anti-obesity strategy.

The letter has been signed by 15 professional bodies and charities including Action on Sugar, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health and the National Obesity Forum.

It states: The Government has a unique opportunity to produce a coherent, structured evidence-based plan to prevent obesity, type 2 diabetes and tooth decay  conditions which are preventable if the food environment is changed.

Current policies are ineffective and we urgently require policies that work. Sugar tax must be put back on the table before its too late.

The Government, which is due to publish a new obesity strategy next month, faces claims that it has been failing to address the crisis. A third of 11-year-olds and almost two thirds of adults are overweight or obese.

Mr Cameron has so far resisted calls to impose a sugar tax, amid fears that it could be unpopular with the public and penalise poorer families.

But earlier this week, Simon Stevens, the head of the NHS, announced that hospitals would impose their own levy in canteens and vending machines. By 2020, he wants all hospitals to charge more for sugary drinks and snacks to discourage patients and staff from buying them.

Last month the Prime Minister hinted that he might be considering a sugar tax after research showed that it could lower obesity rates significantly. A study in Mexico, where a tax has been imposed on fizzy drinks since 2014, found that sales had been reduced by 12 per cent.

Mr Cameron said: I dont really want to put new taxes on anything but we do have to recognise that we face something of an obesity crisis.

We do need to have a fully-worked-up programme to deal with this problem and address these issues in Britain and we will be making announcements later in the year.

They say it will curb preventable problems like obesity, type 2 diabetes and tooth decay

Experts say the Government should start with a 20 per cent tax on sugary soft drinks. This would increase the price of a 68p can of cola to 82p. It could be extended to sweets, chocolate and cakes if it proved successful.
The dual national has been living off an Australian pension of $100 a month

Mrs Zlatic lives in a mud hut on the outskirts of

A Serbian recluse has become a multi-millionaire overnight after she was granted almost $1 million in cash and a portfolio of Australian properties believed to be worth up to $4 million.

Mary Zlatic, 86, has spent decades living in a tiny mud hut on the outskirts of eastern Serbia with only her dogs for company, surviving on her Australian pension of $100-a-month, Serbian website Vecernje novosti reported.

Her husband, Momcilo Zlatic died in Australia in 2011, but it took four years to collect the right documents and track down Mrs Zlatic in Serbia before the NSW Supreme Court could clear her husbands will, granting her $940,000 and the deed to a portfolio of properties in December.

Mary Zlatic (pictured), 86, has become a millionaire overnight after she was granted her Australian inheritance

Mary Zlatic, 86 lives in a mud hut (pictured) on the outskirts of eastern Serbia, and has spent years surviving on her Australian pension of $100 per month

Mrs Zlatic and her husband moved from Serbia to Australia in 1956 before gaining citizenship.

'I remember like it was yesterday. Momcilo and I bought a one way ticket to Australia. My husband was working as a carpenter in a factory, and I took care of the household,' Mary told Vecernje Novosti.

However Mrs Zlatic later retuned to her home town of Boljevac in Serbia to look after her sick mother until she died.

Mrs Zlatic's trip home was only meant to be temporary, but she has not been back to Australia since.

Her husband stayed in Australia and re-married.

'Momcilo occasionally wrote. And, yes, he would send me money,' said Mary, who does not often talk to reporters, for fears that they will try to take her money.

However the couple lost contact. Years passed and Mrs Zlatic had not heard from her husband.

A neighbour who had heard word that Mrs Zlatic's husband had died offered to help. The neighbour, who wishes to remain unnamed told Vecernje Novosti that she managed to get in touch with the NSW Trustee and Guardian department in 2015 who confirmed that Mr Zlatic had died.

A bank in Boljevac contacted Mrs Zlatic soon after and informed her that she would receive the inheritance of close to $1 million, the newspaper reported.

Despite her new found wealth, neighbours told the newspaper Mrs Zlatic is likely to stay living in her simple mud hit.

A home in Guildford, Sydney, that Mary Zlatic, 86, now owns
David Cameron angered Brexit campaigners after saying he feels deeply European from the bottom of his heart in an interview with French TV

David Cameron said last night he feels deeply European from the bottom of his heart, angering Brexit campaigners who claimed his comments proved he will campaign to stay in the EU regardless.

In an interview with French TV, the Prime Minister said Britain was a country with a European destiny and that it was important to stay in a European Union that works for us.

And he invoked Britains heroic struggle against Adolf Hitler to bolster his claim that the country should stay in a reformed Europe. His comments angered campaigners lobbying for Britain to leave the EU who said they were proof that Mr Cameron was going to accept any old deal.

The interview came as the Prime Ministers hopes of holding his EU referendum in June suffered a blow when his fellow leaders said an agreement was still some way off.

The French prime minister said a deal on reforms to Britains relationship with Brussels was unlikely to be struck at a meeting of the blocs leaders next month.

In that case, the referendum vote could be put off until September  which would be after an expected upsurge in the number of migrants coming from the Middle East.

Mr Cameron is at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where yesterday he urged business leaders to campaign in favour of an In vote. Interviewed on French channel TF1, the Prime Minister was asked: From the bottom of your heart, Mr Prime Minister, do you feel deeply European?

Mr Cameron replied: Of course. Britain is a European country, and I feel very much part of that.

Britain and France together, twice in the last century, have suffered enormous casualties and loss to prevent the domination of our continent, and in the Second World War to stop fascism and Nazism. Britain and France are European countries with European destinies, but its important for both of us that we fulfil those destinies in an organisation, the European Union, that works for both of us.

I want a Europe that works for France, just as I want a Europe that works for Britain, but were both proud European nations with, I think, a lot to be proud of.

DAVE PICKS PRO-EU PAL TO QUIZ HIM Pro-EU: Roland Rudd There is no shortage of Eurosceptics who would love the chance to grill David Cameron  but when he took questions after his speech yesterday, the Prime Minister managed to find a friendly face in the packed hall. By pure chance  or perhaps not  when Mr Cameron invited the gentleman right at the back to begin a question-and-answer session, he had in fact selected arch-Europhile Roland Rudd. The City PR executive first claimed most people completely agree about your reform agenda, then urged the Prime Minister to stress the common values Britain shares with Europe. Even less surprisingly, Mr Cameron wasted no time in hailing Britains incredible connections and relations with other European countries. Mr Rudd, the founder and chairman of leading PR firm Finsbury, might have been surprised Mr Cameron did not recognise him. The two have known each other since the 1990s and the Prime Minister was a guest at his wedding. Mr Rudds sister Amber is Energy and Climate Change Secretary in Mr Camerons Cabinet. Advertisement

The Prime Minister also said he hoped he would not have to campaign for Brexit.

Thats not what I hope for, he said. What I hope and my aim in all this is to secure Britains place in a reformed EU.

I think that would be good for Britain and good for Europe. But of course, if we cant achieve the things we have set out, Ive always said I rule nothing out, because its important we solve this issue.

Last night Matthew Elliott, chief executive of Vote Leave, said: It is now clear that David Cameron is going to campaign for us to stay in the EU regardless.

Instead of battling for Britain he is going to take any old deal that EU politicians offer him. We believe Britains destiny is to be outside of this cosy Brussels club. We need to take back control and Vote Leave.

Downing Street has been keen to hold the PMs referendum in June, before an expected summer upsurge in migration from the Middle East.

But Manuel Valls, the French prime minister, speaking yesterday morning in Davos, said he did not believe a deal would be struck next month: No, I think we will need more time. The discussions only started a short time ago.

Mr Cameron told an audience of businessmen that although he remained hopeful of reaching a deal in February, he was in no hurry if the deal was not right: I very much hope that we can, with the goodwill that is clearly there, reach an agreement at the February European Council.

I can hold my referendum at any time up until the end of 2017, and it is much more important to get this right than to rush it.

Mr Cameron admitted that even after the referendum, there will be work to be done. He said: There will be many things that will be imperfect about the European Union even after this negotiation. The reform will not be finished.
Sarah Palin's implication that her son's recent arrest for domestic abuse following an incident in which he allegedly punched his girlfriend in the face was the result of PTSD has upset some veterans.

Palin said on Wednesday during a speech at a Donald Trump rally that it was post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) coupled with the 'disrespectful' treatment of veterans by President Obama which caused the alleged incident that landed her son Track, 26, in jail on Monday night.

Soon after, many veterans began to come out against these statements on social media, including a Twitter user by the name of DKey who wrote: 'As a combat vet, EXTREMELY disgusted by #SarahPalin blaming PTSD 4 domestic abuse.

'Fragile male ego & compulsive masculinity did it NOT PTSD.'

He then added; 'I've deployed twice had more combat vets in my units than I can count. NOT ONE has laid hands on another because of PTSD.'

Another combat veteran, Jason Kirell, wrote on Twitter; 'Speaking as a combat vet who literally slept in the same barracks as Track Palin, his mother is wrong and her son is not a victim.'

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Speaking out: Veterans have come out against Sarah Palin after she said in a speech on Wednesday (pictured) that PTSD caused her son Track's alleged domestic abuse

Some veterans, including the ones above, used Twitter to express their outrage at Palin's comments

'Palin is using PTSD as an excuse to shift blame away from her son's domestic violence,' Brandon Friedman, the former digital media director for the Department of Veterans Affairs, said in an interview with Huffington Post.

'She never mentioned the actual victim. She portrayed her son as the victim, but never talked about his girlfriend, apparently crying and hiding under a bed because he beat her.'

Friedman also said; 'The fact is, veterans who have PTSD are far, far more likely to harm themselves than they are to harm others.'

As for Palin's comment about President Obama, Friedman said; 'It's ironic that people like Sarah Palin are in the party of "personal responsibility" but as soon as someone in her family is arrested for domestic violence, it's Obama's fault.'

Paul Rieckhoff, who heads Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, seemed to reiterate this statement, telling NBC News; 'It's not President Obama's fault that Sarah Palin's son has PTSD.

'PTSD is a very serious problem, a complicated mental health injury, and I would be extremely reluctant to blame any one person in particular.'

He also said that he hopes Palin does not turn this into 'a political chew toy in a political campaign'.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest was also asked about the comments on Thursday and said; 'The fact is domestic violence is not a joke. Gun violence is not a joke. Problems with addiction are not a joke and the... sacrifices that many of our men and women in uniform make, for our safety and security, are not a joke.'

Earnest said he did not know whether or not President Obama had heard Palin's comments.

Trouble: Track Palin (above) was arrested Monday night after he allegedly punched his girlfriend

Palin said during her speech on Wednesday; 'I guess its kind of the elephant in the room - because my own family, going through what were going through today with my son, a combat vet having served in a Stryker brigade, fighting for you all, America, in the war zone. But my son, like so many others, they come back a bit different. They come back hardened.

'They come back wondering if there is that respect for what their fellow soldiers and airmen and every other member of the military have given so sacrificially to this country, and that starts at the top.'

She went on to say later in her speech; 'So when my own son is going through what he goes through coming back, I can certainly relate with other families who kind of feel these ramifications of PTSD and some of the woundedness that our soldiers do return with, and it makes me realize more than ever, it is now or never for the sake of Americas finest that well have that commander in chief who will respect them and honor them.'

Track, 26, an Iraq combat veteran, was taken into custody by police in Wasilla, Alaska at 10pm Monday night after officers arrived and found his girlfriend cowering under a bed.

The police report from Wasilla, Alaska describes a shambolic scene when police arrived and found the female victim with 'bruising and swelling around her left eye' claiming that Track had thrown her phone away when she tried to call 911.

This all happened at Sarah's Wasilla home according to court documents, and Track had a 0.189 blood alcohol level according to police.

'I observed that the male had a visible injury to his right eye and the area around his eye,' Officer Andrew Kappler wrote.

'His eyes were bloodshot and I detected a strong odor of alcohol on his breath and person. Upon contacting Palin, he was uncooperative, belligerent, and evasive with my initial line of questions.'

Officers tried to ask the veteran why 911 was dialled by the woman and where she was.

'Palin stated that he didn't know where she was and denied that there was a firearm involved, but did state that there were several spread throughout the residence,' Kappler wrote in his report.

'Due to Palin's escalating hostility, the unknown whereabouts of the female 911 caller, and Officer safety, Palin was placed into handcuffs.'

Charges: Track was released the next day after her posted $1,500 bail and is due in court on February 19

The woman told police that while she had not yet called 911, she had lied to Track and said she had to scare him off.

Apparently this did not work.

'Palin approached (his girlfriend) and struck her on the left side of her head near her eye with a closed fist,' wrote Kappler in the report.

The argument got out of control and Track allegedly reached for his AR-15 rifle and began threatening suicide.

Track's girlfriend ran out of the house after the young man started 'holding onto a gun, yelling 'do you think I'm a p***y?' and 'do you think I won't do it?'

'(She) stated Palin 'cocked the gun' and was holding the rifle out next to him with his right hand near the trigger and his left hand near the barrel, with the barrel just away from his face pointed to the side,' states the detailed police report.

'(She) was concerned that he would shoot himself and ran outside and around the house. She didn't see where Palin went, so she went inside and up the stairs, where she hid under a bed.'

Police reported that (she) had bruising around her left eye and appeared to have an injury on her knee.
Damning assessment: Scotland Yard has come under further pressure to apologise to Lord Bramall (pictured) after former chief constable Lord Dear branded its investigation into him disastrous

Scotland Yard came under further pressure to apologise to Lord Bramall yesterday after a former chief constable branded its investigation into him disastrous.

Lord Dear, a former head of West Midlands Police and an ex Her Majestys Inspector of Constabulary, gave a damning assessment of the Mets handling of the case.

The respected peer is the latest senior public figure to lambast the Mets shambolic inquiry into Lord Bramall, who spent ten months under investigation over baseless child sex allegations made by a suspected serial fantasist called Nick.

But Met boss Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe is defiantly refusing to say sorry to the D-Day hero. Lord Bramall, 92, was belatedly cleared a week ago  but Britains biggest force continues to resist calls to express sorrow for its allegedly disproportionate investigation.

Lord Dear said the letter informing Lord Bramall of the inquirys end was a demonstration of back-covering. The investigation into Lord Bramall is, as much as anything, about dignity. That shown by Lord Bramall  and the lack of it displayed by the Metropolitan Police, he said in a letter to The Times.

He added: Throughout, Lord Bramall maintained a dignity and restraint that typified the best of his generation, in the face of intolerable innuendo and supposition.

In contrast the police investigation lurched from over-reaction to torpidity. On the basis of a complaint from one uncorroborated individual, citing events of 40 or more years ago, the police raided Lord Bramalls house with a 20-strong search team, and in a blaze of publicity. What could have been the purpose of that?

The ensuing inquiry moved for months at a snails pace. The letter to Lord Bramalls solicitor declaring no further action was appalling.

Grudging and mealy-mouthed, it was a clear demonstration of back-covering when a simple message of We had to do it, we took too long, we hope your life can now continue unblemished would have been appropriate and the very least he could have expected.

His letter went on to say: All of this raises an obvious comparison: between the quality of the man hitherto under suspicion, and the quality of those who so disastrously mishandled the process.

Criticism: Lord Dear (pictured left), a former head of West Midlands Police and an ex Her Majestys Inspector of Constabulary, gave a damning assessment of the Mets handling of the case (right)

On Wednesday the Met issued an 891-word statement on the case  with no apology for their heavy-handed investigation into the hotly contested child sex allegations. Lord Bramall attacked the forces move as self-serving and purely police justifying themselves.

Britains most decorated living soldier had his home raided by police last March in the presence of his dying wife after Nick accused the peer of abusing him at a military base more than 30 years ago.
She has also now reconnected with her extended family

An Australian woman has managed to track down her older brother and sister, who didn't even know she existed, in just 36 hours after a a post asking for help went viral.

Renee Jones, 39, from Wollongong, NSW, found her siblings, as well as extended family members after posting a heart-warming plea on Facebook.

Hi everyone. I am on a mission, albeit somewhat of a difficult one, to find a long lost brother and sister in New Zealand who are unaware of the existence of a little sister they have in Australia, the post read.

Renee Jones (pictured with her own family in Wollongong, NSW) went looking for her siblings on social media

Ms Jones says her mum Anne (left) has been her rock as she has looked for answers to her hidden family

The post which went viral included pictures of her father (pictured) as a young man

I would be eternally grateful for any information no matter how big or small that may lead me to my New Zealand family.

Please help me in my search by sharing this post with all of your whanau and friends after you've read it.

Ms Jones located her siblings after 36 hours when her post went viral and was shared 13,000 times she told Daily Mail Australia.

It was crazy I really wasnt prepared for the response I got, she said.

Pictures of him as a child, visiting Santa were also part of the post

Shared more than 13,000 times the post enabled Ms Jones to find her brother and sister in less than 36 hours

She has made contact with them, however says they need to adjust to the news that their father went on to have another child when he disappeared from their lives

I have had in excess of 200 messages from people who thought they may be related or know someone who may be.

I was glued to the Mac and my phone for days.

The post described the womans father, and names he may have been known by, and photos of him as a child and a young man.

His children in New Zealand had not seen him since he disappeared in the 70s when they were both under two and are still adjusting to the idea of having a younger sister.

Ms Jones admits that her relationship with her father wasn't always good and that he and her mother broke up when she was just two

Theyre going through a myriad of feelings right now, Ms Jones said.

There are some unresolved issues there, he left their mother when my brother was six weeks old, and my sister was two.

They had no contact with dad when they were growing up, they didnt even know he left country, or that they had a little sister and theyre finding hard to process atm.

I am just waiting, hoping that they can come to terms with it.

Ms Jones has exchanged messages with her brother, 42, and found that he has two children, but she is still waiting for her sister, 44, to respond to her request to reconnect.

She says she now knows that this was because of the abandonment he felt as a child when he was adopted to a white family

He always believed he was given up, however Ms Jones now believes it was a forced adoption and his mother looked for him for the rest of her life

The Facebook also post managed to reach her fathers relatives, people he never met after he was adopted to a white family as a baby.

My dad believed he was given away willingly and never looked for his family, and forbid me from doing the same.

I now know that his mother, and later his four sisters had searched tirelessly for him.

His mother was one of 17 children who all lived in the same house along with their extended family, authorities raided the house and deemed that there were too many people, too many children living there.

They took my father, who was the youngest, an infant.

This answers a lot of questions I had about who my father was.

These Santa photos are rare reminders of her father's time in New Zealand, before he moved to Australia and changed his name

Ms Jones brother and sister were born just 120kms south of where their father was born.

I have let my brother know that a family want to welcome him back into the fold. He has a lot of relatives that would love to have him in their lives.

Ms Jones mum has been her rock in her quest to find her New Zealand family.

She has always known that I have had a void there and has supported me through it all, Ms Jones said.

This passport photo shows what her father looked like when he left New Zealand for Australia

The Facebook post was made on the spur of the moment but Ms Jones doesnt regret reaching out.

She says she is looking forward to meeting her new-found family, and she hopes her brother and sister decide they would like to meet her and her children one day too.

She admits she had a rocky relationship with her father until she 'forced him' to notice her when she was a teenager, but puts that down to his feeling of abandonment as a child.

She said that their relationship was strong in the final years.

He passed away in 2008 and she plans to bury his ashes with his biological mother in New Zealand.
Carr's Table Water biscuits, a favourite of cheese-lovers for more than a century, look like being in short supply after production was hit by flooding.

The factory in Carlisle that has made the biscuits since 1837 has stopped production and the company warns that its products are likely to be missing from stores for the next two months.

The brick oven at Carrs factory in Caldewgate was swamped in five feet of water when Storm Desmond left a trail of devastation across Cumbria last month.

The factory in Carlisle has stopped production and the company warns that its products are likely to be missing from stores for the next two months

In a customer advertisement headed Oh the irony, the company explains: Heavy rain has taken its toll on our community in Carlisle. And like many we have experienced significant damage.

'Weve scoured the country but have been unable to find a brick oven that delivers the same unique Carrs taste you love.

Unfortunately this means that for the next couple of months our water biscuits will be missing from dinner parties and absent from your cheese boards.

Wed like to thanks our teams, who are working tirelessly to get your favourite water biscuits back on the table.

An insurance claim for the factory is estimated to be as high as 50 million, including compensation for lost production and repairs.

The factory was flooded after the storm overwhelmed new multimillion-pound barriers and left a trail of devastation across Cumbria.

It is a heavy blow to the Carrs brand, which can trace its history back to 1831 when Jonathan Dodgson Carr founded what was to become one of Britains biggest bakery businesses.

Mr Carr moved the business to Caldewgate in 1837 and built a flour mill, bread and biscuit bakery, with two further factories opening in 1890 and 1900.

In 1841, a Royal Warrant was granted by Queen Victoria, making Carrs the first biscuit maker to receive the accolade.

The technique of using water instead of fat to blend the dry ingredients together was developed at the end of the 1800s to keep the biscuits fresh on long ship voyages.

Carrs Table Water was originally eaten by sailors but as word spread, they were enjoyed by many others as well.

It is a heavy blow to the Carrs brand, which can trace its history back to 1831 when Jonathan Dodgson Carr founded what was to become one of Britains biggest bakery businesses

United Bisicuits and its McVities brand acquired Carrs and the factory in 1972 and it has since developed the range to Table Water flavoured crackers, Carrs Melts and a Carrs Selection pack.

The factory is one of the citys biggest employers with 640 permanent staff plus up to 300 seasonal workers.

It is the second time in 11 years that the buildings have been flooded.

In 2005 it was out of action for two months, and only reopened thanks to a 1m government grant.

The sites general manager, Mike Heaney, insisted production, which normally takes place around the clock, will resume as soon as possible.

We are under a lot of pressure from our customers to get back up and running, but we need to make sure we recover the site properly and safely before we start back up again, he said.
Oral sex dramatically increases the risk of throat cancer, a new study has found (file photo)

Oral sex dramatically increases the risk of head and neck cancers, a new study has claimed.

The disease has traditionally been considered to be one that affects smokers and heavy drinkers in later life.

But over recent years, as cases have been rising, it has been linked with the common human papillomavirus (HPV).

It is believed oral sex may be the main way HPV - more usually associated with cervical cancer - ends up in the mouth.

The group of viruses affect the skin and moist membranes which line the body, including the anus, cervix and mouth and throat.

HPV-16 is a well-known cause of oropharyngeal tumours - those which affect the middle part of the throat including the soft palate, the base of the tongue and the tonsils.

While HPV does not directly trigger cancer, it causes changes in the cells it has infected (for example, in the throat or cervix), and these cells can then become cancerous.

Men are twice as likely to get oropharyngeal cancer as women, according to NHS choices, because performing cunnilingus is more risky than fellatio.

It is the 11th most common cancer worldwide, according to World Health Organisation figures.

Worldwide almost half-a-million patients a year will be diagnosed with oral and oropharyngeal cancer.

More than two thirds of cases are diagnosed in advanced stages where the cancer has already spread to regional lymph nodes or beyond, the global oral cancer forum reports.

Approximately 150,000 patients die each year and many more suffer from the complications of treatment.

While girls in the UK aged 12-13 are offered a vaccination to help protect them against types of HPV that can cause cervical cancer, there is no immunisation programme for boys.

An official recommendation on whether to offer the HPV vaccine to all adolescent boys is expected in early 2017.

This new study, published in the journal JAMA Oncology, is the first to show conclusively that HPV-16's presence in the mouth leads to the development of oropharyngeal cancer.

This follows a study in The New England Journal of Medicine which showed that those infected with HPV were 32 times more likely to develop oral or throat cancers.

WHY MEN ARE MOST LIKELY TO GET OROPHARYNGEAL CANCER? Oropharyngeal cancer is twice as common in men than in women, according to NHS Choices. It is most common in heterosexual men in their 40s and 50s (compared to the rates in homosexual men). This indicates that performing cunnilingus (oral sex on a woman) is more risky that performing fellatio (oral sex on a man). The concentration of HPV in the thinner, moist skin of the vulva is much higher than the amounts of virus shed from the thicker, dry skin of the penis, and this affects how easy it is to pass the virus on. Other research indicates that HPV can be present in semen and passed on at ejaculation. Advertisement

And previous research published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology found HPV now accounts for more head and neck cancers than tobacco or alcohol.

Spread by skin-to-skin contact, not just by sex, HPV affects almost everyone at some stage in their life.

In most people, the immune system fights it off and it does no harm.

But on rare occasions, the virus takes hold, leading to a chain of events that ends in cancer of the cervix, penis, anus, vagina or mouth.

Around 15 strains can cause cervical cancer - and HPV-16 is the most common.

The most dangerous HPV's, 16 and 18, which are transmitted through sexual contact are known to cause up to 95 per cent of cervical cancers.

Now these two HPV's are also being linked to oral cancer.

A different study done by Dr No-Hee Park, a leading expert in head and neck cancers at UCLA, showed that the mouth was, at the cellular level, structurally very similar to the vagina and cervix.

Both organs have the same type of epithelial cells that are the target of HPV 16 and HPV 18.

The majority of oral cancers are cancers of epithelial cells, primarily squamous cell carcinomas, not unlike the cancers that affect the cervix.

Dr Park's study also showed that smoking and drinking alcohol help promote HPV invasion.

Actor Michael Douglas (left with wife Catherine Zeta Jones), the star of Basic Instinct and Fatal Attraction, was diagnosed with oropharyngeal cancer in 2013

Combine tobacco and alcohol with HPV, and the epithelial cells in the mouth, and you may have the formula for the development of an oral cancer.

The new research, carried out at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, suggested people carrying the virus in their mouth were an alarming 22 times more likely to develop a potentially lethal tumour.

The finding was based on almost 97,000 people who provided mouthwash samples and were cancer-free at the beginning of the project.

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF ORAL CANCER? Mouth ulcers which do not heal within three weeks Red or white patches in the mouth A lump or thickening on the lip A lump in the mouth or throat Unusual bleeding or numbness in the mouth Loose teeth for no apparent reason Difficulty moving the jaw Difficulty in swallowing Speech problems A lump in the neck. Be aware that a hot, red, painful lump usually means an infection, rather than a cancer. Lumps that come and go are not usually due to cancer either. Cancer usually forms a lump that slowly gets bigger. Dr Nigel Carter, chief executive of the British Dental Health Foundation, added: 'Your dentist will check for signs of mouth cancer during your regular check-up so it's important to attend regularly to catch any signs you may miss yourself.' Advertisement

They were followed for an average of four years, during which time a total of 132 cases of head and neck cancer were identified.

The study participants were compared with 396 healthy people who acted as controls.

Mouthwash samples were analysed for the presence of several types of oral HPVs in both groups.

These revealed people with HPV-16 in their mouthwash were 22 times more likely to develop oropharyngeal cancer (oropharynx is the part of the throat directly behind the mouth) than were those with no detectable trace of the virus HPV-16 in their samples.

In addition, the researchers found for the first time that the presence of other types of oral HPVs, known as beta and gamma, which are usually detected in the skin, were also associated with the development of head and neck cancers.

This indicated a broader role for HPVs in causing these cancers than has been recognised to date.

Dr Ilir Agalliu, of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York, said: 'This study shows using easily collected oral mouthwash samples may help in predicting people's risk for developing head and neck cancers.'

Cases of oral cancer have increased over the past 30 years.

Oropharyngeal cancer is the type that affected actor Michael Douglas.

In a June 2013, the Fatal Attraction star seemed to indicate his disease was brought on by human papillomavirus (HPV), contracted through cunnilingus.

His rep later denied that he was pinpointing the cause of his own cancer and merely stating one of the many causes of oral cancer, which include smoking and drinking.

However he beat the odds by recovering from a tumour categorised as stage 4, which often is terminal.

Commenting on the new study, Dr Nigel Carter, chief executive of the British Dental Health Foundation, said: 'HPV-related cancers have rapidly increased over the last few years.

Girls in the UK have been getting the HPV vaccination since 2008 while the latest research is certain to reignite calls for boys to be given it as well

'Early detection of mouth cancer dramatically improves the chances of survival from 50 to 90 per cent - so it's extremely important to be on the lookout for any signs and symptoms which could be related to the disease.'

He added: 'Be alert to mouth ulcers which do not heal within three weeks, red or white patches in the mouth and any unusual swellings or lumps in the head or neck area, and if you spot anything unusual to get examined straight away.

'Your dentist will check for signs of mouth cancer during your regular check-up so it is important that you visit your dentist regularly to catch any signs which you may miss yourself.'

Dr Jana Witt, Cancer Research UK's health information officer, said the work added to a growing body of evidence but said it was important to stress the risk was low.

'It's already established that the human papillomavirus (HPV) is linked to some types of mouth and throat cancer and this research adds an important part to that evidence - showing that having an HPV infection leads to a higher risk of developing one of these cancers later on in life,' she said.

'But the study wasn't able to give a very accurate estimate for how much the risk of oropharyngeal cancer, which affects part of the throat, was increased and it's far from certain that the risk would be 22 times higher.

'Previous research has shown that oral sex can raise the risk of mouth and throat cancers because it can spread HPV, but it's important to remember that the chance of developing cancer if you have oral sex is still low.

'Not smoking, cutting down on alcohol and getting plenty of fruit and veg are all good ways to cut the risk of these cancers.'
Denise Richards is claiming her ex-husband Charlie Sheen had her evicted from a home he purchased for her and their family - and is now cutting off the former couple's two children.

The actress alleges in court documents obtained by TMZ that Sheen sold the home he had promised to their daughters Sami, 11, and Lola, 10, in a trust after forcing Richards and the girls to move last September and not finding them a new residence.

Richards is asking a judge for $1.2million to purchase a new home in a court case Sheen says is 'a desperate attempt to get more money'.

And on Friday morning, the Wild Things star attacked her ex-husband's high powered lawyer, Marty Singer - demanding that he guarantee her children's trust fund is maintained by Sheen.

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Back at it: Denise Richards is claiming Charlie Sheen (pictured together in 2012) cut off their two daughters in recently filed court documents

Allegations: Richards claims Sheen purchased a home for the girls (Sami and Lola above with their parents last March) in Mulholland Hills near his own and asked that they move in

Evicted: The actress claims Sheen promised to never evict them but then did so last September before selling the home he promised the girls (above)

Attack: Denise Richards took to Twitter on Friday to launch a fierce assault on Charlie Sheen's high powered lawer, Marty Singer

Where is my money? Denise Richards demanded that Singer get his client to ensure the trust fund remains for her children

Richards, 44, claims in court documents that Sheen asked her to move into the home he purchased near his own in Mulholland Estates, saying that he 'wanted to repair his relationship with his children'.

She says she was hesitant to make the move as she knew about his HIV diagnosis at the time but agreed to do so for their children, being told by Sheen that he would not evict them from the home.

The 9,000 square-foot home - which has seven bedrooms, eight-and-a-half bathrooms and a pool - was purchased by Sheen for Richards in 2011 for around $7million, though she did not immediately move into the residence.

Over the past few years however Richards said that Sheen's behavior became erratic, alleging that he threatened to give their daughters' Christmas gifts to the homeless in 2013, around the same time he first began to threaten to evict his ex from the home.

Richards also claims that Sheen once called their daughter Lola 'a f***ing pig w***e' in a conversation she overheard while also telling the child 'I'm going to kill you and I'm going to kill your mom.'

Sheen, 50, also allegedly texted Lola in 2013, when she was just eight years old: 'Have a merry Xmas with your loser f***s**t mom... your dad is a rock star genius ... your mom is a p*** wart.'

The actor claims that he believed Richards had been texting him from their daughter's phone and that is why he responded in such a profane manner.

Demands: Richards is now asking a judge for $1.2million to purchase a new home (couple above in 2003)

Revelation: The court documents also show that Richards was aware of Sheen's HIV diagnosis long before he appeared on Today last November (above)

Sheen's lawyer told TMZ; 'In addition to what Charlie has been paying Denise, he also pays for school, all expenses and it's still not enough for her. He intends to fight this and believes he will prevail.'

He did not comment on the home however, which Sheen sold in December for $6.6 million according to the Los Angeles Times, at a loss of around $300,000 from the purchase price.

As part of their divorce agreement, Richards receives $55,000 a month in child support for their two daughters.

Sheen and Richards have long had a tumultuous relationship, attacking one another both in public and in court before making up soon after and acting as if there was never any bad blood between them.

Richards was surprisingly silent however last year when Sheen went on Today to reveal he was HIV positive - something that according to her recently filed legal documents she has been aware of for years.

The most recent photo of Richards and Sheen with the girls was posted on the actress's Instagram last March and showed the four at a birthday dinner for daughter Sami.

A lawyer for Richards said of her decision to take legal action over the trust; 'Denise is fighting for her children. This has nothing to do with her, the money is for her kids. This is about him providing for the children as he agreed to do.'
The wife of a police officer shot in the leg with his own gun by an alleged ice addict in a western Sydney hospital has revealed her husband's first words after recovering were: 'I'm so lucky to be alive.'

NSW Police Senior Constable Luke Warburton was shot when a 39-year-old patient at the Nepean Hospital managed to grab his gun during a scuffle with a security guard last week.

'As you can imagine, this past week has been almost surreal. While I knew every time Luke left for work he could be injured while helping someone else, I guess I never really thought it would happen,' Sandra Warburton said in a statement.

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The wife of a police officer shot in the leg with his own gun by an alleged ice addict in a western Sydney hospital has spoken out for the first time since the incident

'It is difficult to put into words how I felt on Tuesday night  there was so much rushing through my head, so many emotions  but knowing Luke was being cared for by the amazing staff at Nepean Hospital, I knew he was in great hands.

'The first few days were extremely difficult, not just for Luke and our family, but also for the staff at the hospital and I cannot thank them enough for their expert care, attention, and professionalism.

'We are incredibly grateful Luke's condition has improved; the children and I can't wait to have him home.'

Senior Costable Warburton received emergency surgery as a result of the shooting, which hit his femoral artery and reportedly caused him to lose half his blood.

NSW Police Senior Constable Luke Warburton was shot when a 39-year-old patient at the Nepean Hospital managed to grab his gun during a scuffle with a security guard last week

Senior Constable Warburton, who is a member of the dog squad, reportedly lost half of his blood after being shot in the femoral artery

Ms Warburton thanked NSW Police for its 'overwhelming' support and assistance, describing the force as 'a truly wonderful family'.

'I need to make a special thank you to all of the officers who have been to visit Luke, and his many friends and colleagues at the Dog Unit who'd probably never leave if they weren't being kicked out so Luke can rest,' she said.

'The staff members at Nepean Hospital were kind enough to help us organise a safe visit from PD Chuck this week, which is yet another example of how they go above and beyond.

The police officer who was shot has been identified as Luke Warburton (above) who works with the NSW Police Dog Squad

Police rushed to the scene after an officer and a security guard were shot at Nepean Hospital, in Kingswood - a suburb west of Sydney - just before 10:30pm on Tuesday

'The most incredible part of this experience has been the support Luke and our family has received from the community.

'When times are tough, you know your family will be there, and you expect to be able to count on your friends, colleagues or neighbours; but I would never have expected this kind of support and encouragement from complete strangers.'

The statement comes after it was revealed a security guard heroically dragged Senior Constable Warburton clear of the gunman.

Snr Const Warburton was called to the scene as he was the closest officer in the area when emergency services received a triple-zero call about the former nurse attacking a doctor

Another guard named Allan Andrews has been hailed a hero after he dragged Snr Const Warburton clear of the gunman, leaving a trail of blood behind him

Allan Andrews as among the first to tend to Snr Const Warburton's wound, pressing on his leg to try and stem the blood flow.

Senior Constable Warburton was called to the scene after emergency services received a triple-zero call about a former nurse attacking a doctor 10.30pm on Tuesday, 9News reported.

When he arrived the 39-year-old man - who was admitted to the hospital earlier in the night - was holding a pair of scissors against the throat of a paediatric doctor in the hospital's emergency department.

The 39-year-old man has been charged with shooting with an intent to murder, discharging a firearm with intent to resist arrest, and detaining a person for advantage after he was arrested at the scene

Barry Jennings is being comforted by his wife Belinda (right) and two sons after he underwent almost five hours of surgery to remove a bullet from his leg

The man was 'making threats and demands' and the doctor was 'hysterical', 7News reported.

The senior constable tried to use capsicum spray to bring down the drug affected patient but it was ineffective and he was forced to reach for his gun, causing the scuffle to break out.

Security guard Barry Jennings, 48, was also hit in the leg with a bullet, and underwent five hours of surgery to have it removed.

The 48-year-old guard, who was one of four on duty at the complex, has worked at Nepean Hospital in western Sydney for more than five years

It is understood the man, who works as a nurse at Westmead Hospital, was undergoing treatment for his drug addiction at Nepean Hospital when he held a pair of scissors to a female doctor's throat

Mr Jennings was comforted by his wife, Belinda, and two sons as he recovered.

The guman, who it is believed worked as a nurse at Westmead Hospital, had been undergoing treatment for a drug addiction at the Nepean Hospital.

The 39-year-old was charged with shooting with an intent to murder, discharging a firearm with intent to resist arrest, and detaining a person for advantage after he was arrested at the scene.

At least 13 police cars were dispatched to the area following reports of the incident

Paramedics make their way into Nepean Hospital after the incident. A witness said the nurse was holding a pair of scissors to the throat of a female doctor
Flood victims are to be offered homes originally earmarked for refugees from the Middle East.

Cumbria County Council is believed to be the first local authority in Britain to be granted a Government exemption from the requirement to house Syrian families.

It will mean those forced to abandon their homes after last months storms in northern England will have priority over refugees from Syria, the Daily Express reported last night.

Rescue workers help a lady and her dog in Carlisle, after heavy rain from Storm Desmond tore through Britain, bringing strong winds and heavy rain which caused Cumbria, on December 6, 2015

Flooded roads in Appleby in Cumbria, as Storm Desmond hits the UK on December 5, 2015

Cumbria County Council announced in November that 30 families fleeing the civil war in the Middle East country had been selected for re-housing in the Lake District.

They had been chosen from camps in Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon. But since then dozens of families in Kendal, Cumbria, have been left homeless by the flooding caused by Storm Desmond.

Now the council insists it needs all its available homes for those affected by the floods.

The decision to put the needs of British families first was praised last night by politicians and local residents.

Former Conservative minister Ann Widdecombe praised the council for putting its struggling residents first, and told the Daily Express: This is a positive and perfectly sensible move by the Government to help victims of the terrible floods in the Lake District.

It is right and proper that Cumbria County Council be given exemption from the refugee quota because of the pressing needs of the people made homeless by the floods.

It is good to see that the Government recognises their needs and is prepared to act.

Kendal resident Gareth Hooper, 43, also welcomed the plan, saying: Many of my friends have been hit by the flooding and it will scar the area for a long time. I think it is right that we should welcome the genuinely needy refugees from Syria but the Lakes is facing its own crisis too.

A scene of the rescue teams carrying two young women to safety through the flood water as they continue to evacuate homes after Storm Desmond caused flooding in Carlisle, on December 7, 2015

A county council spokesman told the Express: Before the floods Cumbria was among the first to offer assistance to Syrian refugees.

To date, all the refugees that have come to the UK have been successfully allocated to other parts of the country.

We will keep this situation under review but obviously our focus has to be on supporting our own communities through these difficult times.

More than 2,200 residential properties were affected by flooding in South Lakeland  with an estimated 1,800 of them in Kendal.

It is thought that on average people waiting for houses to dry out and to have building work done will be out of their homes for six months.

Families have been turning to South Lakeland District Council for help to find accommodation while their homes are repaired but there are no suitable properties.

Former Conservative minister Ann Widdecombe praised the council for putting its struggling residents first

The council has issued a plea for more offers of affordable rented accommodation in the area. It has offers of temporary accommodation in places such as Ambleside and Grasmere, about 15 miles away.

But Methodist community worker Jonny Gios said the families in greatest need have no transport and must stay in Kendal to get to work and get their children to school. These are people who have lost virtually everything, he said.

We have upwards of 30 families on our database who need help and for various reasons they need to stay in the Kendal area.

Chief fire officer Jim Onions, who is co-ordinating Cumbrias response to the crisis, said: We cannot accept refugees for the foreseeable future.

We are going to review the position again in March but we are not likely to see any refugees in Cumbria before July.
A British drug courier whose mother warned him he would 'end up in prison' if he did not change his ways has been ordered to serve a maximum of six years in jail.

Ben Asadollahi Zoje, 31, was caught importing nearly 1.5kg of MDMA into Australia concealed in tins of bath salts after he stepped off a business class flight from London to Sydney in May 2014.

The UK national has been behind bars since then and with time served, he will be eligible for parole in August next year.

Ben Asadollahi Zoje, 31, has been ordered to serve a maximum of six years in jail for smuggling MDMA to Australia

Dressed in a sharp suit and spectacles, Zoje appeared impassive as Sydney District Court judge Stephen Hanley handed down his sentence.

His mother Suzanne Cowper-Smith, who had flown from England for her son's court case, sobbed as she left the courthouse.

The court heard during a sentencing hearing earlier this week that Zoje had once enjoyed an international career as a jumps riding jockey.

But he moved to the infamous Spanish party island of Ibiza after suffering a career-ending injury and Ms Cowper-Smith said her polite and respectful son returned to London a changed man.

'He wasn't in a good place,' she said on Wednesday.

'He was a bit out of control.'

Customs officers who pulled Zoje aside were said to have found the drugs - in a brown crystallised substance - hidden in five tins of bath salts (pictured)

His mother Suzanne Cowper-Smith warned him prior to the crime he would 'end up in prison' if he did not change his ways

Ms Cowper-Smith said before the crime, Zoje had been living beyond his means and was regularly asking his parents for money.

When Ms Cowper-Smith refused yet another request for more cash, Judge Hanley said on Friday, 'somewhat presciently, she told him if he did not change he would end up in prison'.

Judge Hanley said that although Zoje was a 'mere courier' in the drug scheme, 'he played an important and essential role in carrying out the importation'.

He arrived in Australia in May 2014 with just under two kilograms of a crystalline substance sealed inside bath product tins, containing MDMA - ecstasy - with a pure weight of just under 1.5kg.

Mr Zoje reoprtedly appeared impassive as the Sydney District Court judge handed down his sentence on Friday

Though he initially pleaded not guilty to a charge of importing a border-controlled drug into Australia and faced trial last year, that trial was aborted and Zoje changed his plea to guilty earlier this week.

Ms Cowper-Smith told the court she had watched her son transform during his time behind bars.

'It's wonderful to see him change back,' she said.
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Friends and family members gathered on Thursday for the funeral of a beloved doctor just a day after she was stabbed to death inside the $2.5million home she shared with her husband in an exclusive New York suburb.

The husband of Robin Goldman, 58, has been charged with second-degree murder.

Jules Reich appeared before a judge in Scarsdale Village Court for his arraignment on Wednesday night and was ordered held without bail in connection to the slaying of his wife in their 6,400 sq ft house.

Two young women react as they approach the hearse carrying the casket of Dr. Robin Goldman, a 58 year-old pediatrician found slain Wednesday inside her multimillion-dollar Scarsdale home, during Goldman's funeral on Thursday

Family members gather behind a hearse carrying the body of Goldman at Young Israel of Scarsdale synagogue in New Rochelle, New York

Family members leave the funeral for Goldman, just a day after she was found stabbed to death in the Scarsdale home she shared with her husband, Jules Reich

Mourners embrace as others chat on the steps of Young Israel of Scarsdale synagogue on Thursday following Goldman's funeral

Reich (left) was arrested Wednesday after Goldman (right) was stabbed to death inside their $2.5million home in Scarsdale, New York

Funeral attendees hugged and mourned together on Thursday after the ceremony at Young Israel of Scarsdale synagogue in New Rochelle, New York.

As friends and family members celebrated Goldman's life, Reich's attorney, Kerry Lawrence, said a bail hearing had been scheduled for Friday, but he declined additional comment.

A police source told the Journal-News that Reich called police at around 10am Wednesday to report that a woman was seriously injured inside their residence in Scarsdale.

A law enforcement source told the New York Daily News that the killing occurred during a domestic dispute.

'This is not a random act, this was an isolated incident,' Scarsdale Police Captain Thomas Alpizio said.

Court records show that after their daughter's wedding last summer, Reich filed for a divorce from Goldman, according to CBS New York.

The details of the August divorce petition are still pending, Heavy reported.

Two men embrace on the steps of the Young Israel of Scarsdale synagogue at Goldman's funeral in New Rochelle, New York on Thursday

An unidentified mourner stands at the rear of the hearse carrying the body Goldman during her funeral on Thursday, just a day after she was found dead

Unidentified mourners gather at the rear of the hearse carrying Goldman's body on Thursday

A hearse carrying the casket of Goldman pulls out of Young Israel of Scarsdale synagogue in New Rochelle on Thursday

A group of people arrive at Young Israel of Scarsdale synagogue on Thursday for Goldman's funeral. Goldman's husband Jules Reich, 61, a tax specialist at a New York City firm, has been arrested in connection to the murder

Reich was taken into custody and booked into the Westchester County Jail following his arraignment. Sources told the New York Post that the man had 'defensive wounds' on his arms.

An autopsy was planned for Goldman, but the prosecutor's office said she suffered multiple stab wounds.

The couple's five-bedroom, four-bath home, on Lincoln Road, was built in 1947 and includes a bath house, swimming pool and greenhouse on 1.3 acres of land.

Records show that financial consultant at WeiserMazars LLP Reich, 61, and Goldman, a pediatrician at the Comprehensive Family Care Center in the Bronx, New York, lived on the property.

The victim was also affiliated with Montefiore Medical Center and was an assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics at Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

'Robin was a dedicated physician cherished by her colleagues as a positive and compassionate presence,' Montefiore hospital said. 'Her passion for medicine was an inspiration to those who worked with her. Her passing is a great loss for all of us, and we extend our heartfelt sympathy to her family, friends, patients, colleagues and students.'

Financial adviser and attorney Jules Reich, 61, is pictured above in a booking photo following his arraignment on a second-degree murder charge. Reich, pictured right in a second booking photo, was being held in jail without bail Thursday pending his bail hearing Friday

Investigators were searching the house hours after Goldman's body was found stabbed in the Scarsdale home

According to Reich's biography on WeiserMazars' website, the 61-year-old is a partner at the firm, 'advising corporations, startups, venture capital and private-equity firms in a broad range of industries on critical topics including mergers and acquisitions'.

Reich received his law degree from Benjamin N. Cordozo School and Law and his Master of Law degree from New York University Law School.

Over the course of his 20-year career in the financial industry, he has been involved in transactions totaling more than $45million, according to his bio.

The couple are believed to have four children who are all in their 20s.

Their son Adam Reich was overcome with emotion as he told the New York Post that his mother was a wonderful woman.

'She was great, a great person, amazing,' he said.

Both Reich and Goodman are said to be Jewish and both sat on a gala committee for Westchester Jewish Council.

A statement from the Modern Orthodox Young Israel of Scarsdale, the synagogue Goldman attended, read: 'As a community, we are grief stricken and our hearts are filled with pain to know that Robin, who was so good, so sweet and so pious has so suddenly been taken from us.'

Police investigators were spotted circling the home after the horrifying incident in the upscale New York neighborhood

The couple's the five-bedroom, four-bath home, on Lincoln Road, was built in 1947 and includes a bath house, swimming pool and greenhouse on 1.3 acres of land

Reich, pictured far left at a corporate event in 2013, is a Manhattan attorney and veteran mergers and acquisitions expert

Neighbor Judy Raphael said: 'I'm living here 34 years - nothing like this has ever happened.

'It's a very safe neighborhood,' she added.

'This is very sad,' neighbor Martin Molot, 85, told the Daily News. Reich 'is a nice guy. He seemed so level-headed.'

A security guard who worked at the hospital where Goldman was an employee said that her death will 'bring pain' to a lot of people.

'She was a very pleasant lady. She always smiled and said hello to everyone. Nobody ever said or felt anything bad about her. Not with that smile,' Kassim Ray, a security guard at the medical center, told The Post.

'Ive worked here for three years and she was always very nice to me. I need to spread this news. Her dying is really going to bring pain to a lot of people,' Ray added.

The last recorded homicide in Scarsdale was in 1977, when 23-year-old Yale graduate Richard Hrrin killed 20-year-old ex-girlfriend Bonnie Garland by smashing her head with a hammer as she slept in her parents' home, according to authorities.

Herrin served 17 years in prison after he was convicted of manslaughter, according to court documents. He was released in 1995.

Scarsdale police also blocked off part of the road on which the couple lived while they were investigating

Records show that financial consultant Reich, 61, and Goldman, a pediatrician at the Comprehensive Family Care Center in the Bronx, New York, live in the property
A HIV-positiveman who was jailed for eight years after having unprotected sex with three women has been paid thousands of dollars in damages by the South Australian Government after he was left shackled to a bed for 18 days in hospital.

The ABC reports that Andre Parenzee was jailed for eight years in 2007 for endangering the lives of his victims. But on April 2, 2011, he was admitted for treatment at Royal Adelaide Hospital.

However, he claimed that while being treated here - after choking on food while in custody - he was left shackled to his bed for 18 days.

An artist's court sketch shows Andre Parenzee, who was awarded thousands of dollars in damages by the South Australian Government after being shackled to a bed for 18 days in hospital

Parenzee was awarded an out-of-court settlement of more than $10,000. The Department of Correctional Services would not reveal the exact figure.

He will not be able to get his hands on the money yet as it has been quarantined for at least 12 months, while Parenzee's victims will have an opportunity to claim compensation from it.

The Adelaide Advertiser reports that Parenzee had also been taken to hospital to be treated for pneumonia and 'the management of an HIV condition', he was shackled to his bed with handcuffs on his wrists and chains on his ankles.

In his claim statement he states on April 9, 2011 extra shackles were placed on his legs 'and an additional handcuff to the bedrail without a chain'. Visitors and visiting times were also restricted.

On April 2, 2011, he was admitted for treatment at Royal Adelaide Hospital (stock image)




Germany has begun taking cash and sentimental jewellery from wealthier refugees in return for aid.

The measure has been introduced to pay for the more than 1.1million migrants who have entered the European country last year.

It is a move that was initiated in Denmark and Switzerland, where assets worth more than 1,300 euros (992) and 900 euros (687), respectively, are taken from those coming into the countries seeking refuge.

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Germany has begun taking cash and sentimental jewellery from wealthier refugees in return for aid. Pictured are migrants arriving in Dortmund last year

The measure has been introduced to pay for the more than 1.1million migrants who have entered the European country last year

In Bavaria, Germany, refugees are now only allowed to keep cash and items worth 750 euros (578), according to The Times.

Tougher measures are in place in Baden-Wurttemberg, were authorities will take any over 350 euros (270), the Daily Express reports.

Bavarian interior minister Joachim Herrman said: 'The practice in Bavaria and the federal rules set out in law correspond in substance with the process already in place in Switzerland.

Aydan Ozoguz, the federal government's integration commissioner, said: 'If you apply for asylum here, you must use up your income and wealth before receiving aid.

'That includes, for example, family jewellery. Even if some prejudices persist - you don't have it any better as an asylum seeker as someone on unemployment benefit.'

The move, which is strikingly similar to Germany in 1939 during World War II, has even been backed by opposition Green Party MP, Volker Beck, who said: 'Of course asylum seekers aren't in a better position than those on unemployment benefits.

'Asylum seekers must repay the costs of accommodation and care to the state.'

Migrants enter a train to Copenhagen, Denmark, on November 12, 2015 at the railway station in Flensburg, northern Germany. In Denmark, refugees are reportedly allowed to keep wedding rings and other sentimental assets

In Denmark, refugees are reportedly allowed to keep wedding rings and other sentimental assets, but the UN High Commission for Refugees has criticised the move due, saying it will 'fuel fear and xenophobia'.

Ulla Jelpke of Germany's Left party said: 'Those who apply for asylum are exercising their basic rights (under the German constitution).

'That must not, even if they are rejected, be tied up with costs.'

And Steve Symonds, Amnesty International UK's refugee and migrant rights expert, told Express.co.uk: 'These plans appear to be yet another disturbing step in a Europe-wide race to the bottom on refugee rights.

'It is reasonable to expect those who can support themselves to do so. But simply confiscating what little people fleeing persecution may have left in the world is a cruel and unjustified response to their plight.'

Glum: Angela Merkel has come under increasing pressure over her open-doors migrant policy as it emerged more than 200 migrants were suing her government for taking too long to process their asylum applications. Pictured right: Migrants walk in the so-called 'Mahgreb Quarter' in Duesseldorf, Germany

Meanwhile, the MailOnline revealed that the German government is unable to say where more than half of the one million asylum seekers allowed into the country have ended up.

Government statistics show that Germany registered 1.1million applications by the end of last year under its EASY system, which does not record much more than an applicant's country of origin.

German Interior Ministry spokesman Dr Harald Neymanns admitted that delays in the processing of asylum seeker applications would account for some of those missing.

But he also said that in some cases refugees may not have stayed in Germany but instead gone on to a different country elsewhere in the EU.

A third explanation is that the refugees may not have existed in the first place - because some asylum seekers have been found to apply multiple times in an attempt to get sent to the city of their choice.

Asylum-seekers walk in to a refugee reception facility in Dortmund, Germany, on August 13, 2015

It is the responsibility of the location and state where they are assigned to care for them, and provide accommodation.

North Rhine Westphalia, which includes Cologne, takes far more of the immigrants than any other part of Germany with 21 per cent, whereas Bremen takes the least with less than 1 per cent. In the capital Berlin it is just over 5 per cent.

The asylum seeker is then expected to make their application for asylum once they arrive at the end state destination.

But of those refugees, only 476,649 - 326,529 men and 50,120 women - have so far gone through with the process and registered for asylum.

That means more than 600,000 are unaccounted for.
Oscar nominee William H Macy addressed the absence of non-white acting nominees at this year's Academy Awards on Thursday night, saying the problem is the lack of diversity within the Academy.

Macy, who is one of the stars of this year's Best Picture nominee Room, also claimed some Academy voters dont even watch the films in contention - and instead vote for actors they personally favor.

Oscar winner Danny Boyle also spoke about the controversy on Thursday and said that ceremonies and cinemagoers should not judge talent on skin color.

The lack of diversity among this year's Oscar nominees has prompted some stars to boycott the ceremony and a call for changes in the nomination process, including possible quotas.

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Speaking out: William H. Macy, who is a member of the Academy, said the Oscars have a diversity issue

Big night: The Oscar nominee is one of the stars of Room, which has been nominated for Best Picture this year (above l-r with Room director Lenny Abrahamson, Brie Larson, Joan Allen, Jacob Tremblay, and writer Emma Donoghue)

Macy and Boyle were joined by other big names from the movies and TV industry in the ongoing Hollywood race debate at the 31st Annual Artios Awards, organized by the Casting Society Of America, at the Beverly Hilton.

The on and off-screen talent spoke exclusively to Mail Online at the event on Thursday night.

Macy, who is a member of the Academy, voiced his support for stars like Spike Lee, Ricky Gervais and George Clooney, who have criticized the lack of diversity in the nominations.

He told Mail Online: 'My take on this story is that there is no conspiracy, it is the Academy. It is mostly a bunch of white guys.

And I am guilty of it too. We gravitate to our own.

'The only thing that the Academy needs to fix is that a lot of people that vote for it dont see all of the movies, so you vote for the guy you liked last year... "I didn't see this film - but I always liked that guy, or I liked that woman!"

'I think we need we need more diversity in the Academy is the way to fix this.'

When asked about the possibility of quotas being introduced to award nominations though, Macy said: 'That is a stupid idea.'

He then reiterated: 'That is stupid idea to have quotas, because what if there arent seven white guys that didn't do a good job?

'You have to have four white guys, four black guys - no. It is all about the work.

'The problem is the Academy. One of the things I get about the award shows when I go in is that I know these people, some of them owe me money it is real.

'If you win one of these years it is your peers, they really voted for you. So it is the make-up of the Academy that is the only problem.'

Oscar winner Danny Boyle (right) also weighed in on the controversy, saying that he believes the scandal will change things moving forward (he is pictured at the 2009 Academy Awards with Dev Patel and Freida Pinto)

Boyle won Best Director at the 2009 Academy Awards for his work on Slumdog Millionaire (above with stars Dev Patel and Freida Pinto)

Boyle meanwhile said that the actors in his films 'play human beings. There is only race..the human race.'

He also added that he believes this scandal will change matters moving forward.

'I think everybody acknowledges that everything evolves and changes. It is going to evolve and change more, you can see that coming. It obviously is going to do.

'I have been very lucky to work in my career with a lot of actors from many different backgrounds and ethnicities and I am really proud of that.'

Boyle expressed his surprise at Creed not receiving attention from the Academy for its black director Ryan Coogler or actor Michael B. Jordan and just a nomination for the film's white star, Sylvester Stallone.

'I thought that Ryan Coogler did a wonderful job in Creed, which is wonderful, really enjoyable movie and I was very impressed.

'There is wonderful shining lights out there which will find their way through.'

Boyle also addressed why he believes his leading cast members Dev Patel and Frieda Pinto in Slumdog Millionaire were overlooked for nominations in 2009 while he bagged Oscars for Best Picture and Director and the film's white screenwriters won for Best Screenplay.

'They were played by three different actors or three different age ranges, but that means in terms of nominations you may not get enough screen time,' said Boyle.

'We certainly did very well but the actors did very well - they got a SAG ensemble award.'
Betting companies that target young Triple J listeners to gamble on the Hottest 100 have been slammed by the station's manager.

Triple J's Chris Scaddan says many of the station's young listeners are in a financially vulnerable position and should not be baited to gamble.

The final votes were cast midday on Friday and the top 100 for 2015 will air on Australia Day, January 26 this year.

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Betting companies in Australia that target young Triple J listeners to gamble on the Hottest 100 have been slammed by the station's manager Chris Scaddan

As voters go online to cast votes for favourites such as Kendrick Lamar's (pictured) King Kunta, Mr Scaddan has commented his listeners are mostly in 'financially vulnerable' positions and should not be baited to gamble

Mr Scaddan told Triple J radio program Hack 'it is concerning that gambling companies are aiming directly at Triple J listeners.

'We cater to a young audience, an audience that is at a very vulnerable point of their lives financially.

'Ultimately you're giving the betting company your money. That's all they're interested in. They want your money, they want you signed up to their app,' he added.

Betting companies Sportsbet, Tom Waterhouse and Ladbrokes are all offering odds on the Hottest 100.

Sportsbet posting to their Facebook page: Join now for the Hottest 100 and make a $25 first deposit to get a $75 bonus bet!

They added that terms and conditions on all bets apply.

Betting companies Sportsbet, Tom Waterhouse and Ladbrokes are all offering odds on the Hottest 100 for songs by major players, such as Major Lazer (pictured) for their song with DJ Snake Lean On

Mr Scaddan told Triple J radio program Hack 'it is concerning that gambling companies are aiming directly at Triple J listeners (stock photo)

In response to the stations outrage Sportsbet told Hack: The Triple J advertisement would not have been seen by persons under the age of 18.

It would not have been displayed in a non-logged in environment, they added.

Mr Scaddan said: We dont encourage people to bet on the Hottest 100. If youve got some spare money you should donate it to our partner charity, the Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience.

Ultimately youre giving the betting company your money, he added.

Mr Scaddan finished by saying that he had faith in the stations listeners who he said were smart enough to see through campaigns like this.

Accompanied with Major Lazer, DJ Snake (pictured) may also go into the running and bets up to $25 each have been advertised on Sportsbet a company said to be involved in baiting Triple J listeners

CEO of the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation, Serge Sardo told Triple J, 'about 20 per cent of people with a gambling problem, based on research, started gambling before they were 18' (stock photo)

CEO of the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation, Serge Sardo told Triple J, promotions targeted at young people are pandering to a vulnerable audience.

About 20 per cent of people with a gambling problem, based on research, started gambling before they were 18.

So what we know, is the younger you start gambling, the more likely you are to develop problems with gambling.

Triple Js Hottest 100 for 2015 is set to air on Australia day and has marked its current favourites as Kendrick Lamar's King Kunta, Major Lazer and DJ Snake's Lean On.

Last year Talk Is Cheap by Chet Faker took first place while number 100 to make the cut was Switch Lanes (Prod. Paces) by Tkay Maidza.
Donald Trump said Thursday night that the only reason he's attacking former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush so intensely and so often is that he 'deserves' it.

'Oh, he's terrible. He's terrible,' Trump told reporters at the Venetian Hotel and Casino before taking the stage at the annual Outdoor Sportsman Awards.

Trump has savaged Bush as a 'low-energy candidate' and 'a stiff' whose poll numbers are 'in the basement.' At a separate rally on Thursday, he summed up the low-polling pol in five words: 'Jeb is in the toilet.'

Hours later, he explained himself.

'I hit him for one reason: He deserves to be hit!' Trump said.

HE 'DESERVES' IT: Trump channeled his inner Ultimate Fighting Champion on Thursday night in Las Vegas, saying that when he attacks Jeb Bush, the former Florida governor has it coming

'HE'S SCARED OF ME': Bush insists The Donald's insecurity explains his sustained attack on a candidate whose electoral support is one-seventh of his own

'He takes out commercials about me. He's spending millions of dollars. He's always doing commercials about me,' the billionaire complained.

'What he should do is focus  first of all, use his last name, instead of saying "Jeb." Use his last name. He's ashamed of his last name.'

Trump also said Bush has no business castigating him in TV ads since he's so far back in national polls. The Donald averages about 35 per cent support among Republicans, according to an average maintained by Real Clear Politics; Bush is hovering at about 5 per cent.

'He should focus on the other seven people that are ahead of him before he gets to me,' Trump said, adding that 'Jeb's a loser.'

Bush said Wednesday on CNN that Trump's vicious verbal assaults on him betray a fear that he's not addressing publicly.

TWEET STORM: Trump called the former Florida governor 'low energy' on Thursday and mocked him for spending millions on a so-far unsuccessful White House bid

RUN, TED, RUN? Trump also hammered Sen. Ted Cruz over his Canadian birth and renewed his concerns that the second-place-polling tea partier might be ineligible to run for president

(NOT) BORN IN THE U.S.A.: Cruz is Trump's closest competitor and is running near-even with him in some Iowa polls, earning him a regular tongue-lashing from the real estate tycoon

'The reason why he attacks me is hes scared of me,' Bush told anchor Wolf Blitzer. 'Hes insecure. He doesnt believe that he can take me on, and while Im doing worse than him in the polls, the simple fact is, why would he spend his time tearing down someone whos so low compared to him?'

'This is because were moving up, and I believe that he believes that were the real challenge for his winning the nomination.'

Trump also had choice words for Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who is running in a middle-distance second place.

'He's a very strident person. Nobody likes him,' he said of Cruz, before returning to a now-famous riff about whether the tea party senator's foreign birth makes him ineligible to serve in the Oval Office.

He 'wasn't born in this country. It's a big problem. It's a huge overhang,' he said.
A mother was shot in the chest at a hotel near John F Kennedy Airport after she tried to fight off two men who robbed her daughter at gunpoint on Thursday, police said.

The 53-year-old woman was inside the Hampton Inn on 135th Avenue in South Ozone Park at about 8.30pm, according to PIX11.

Her daughter was waiting in the passenger seat of a car in the parking lot in front of the hotel when when one of the robbers opened the driver's side door, pistol whipped her and took her jewelry.

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A 53-year-old woman was shot outside the Hampton Inn on 135th Avenue in South Ozone Park near JFK Airport on Thursday at about 8.30pm

Her daughter was waiting in the passenger seat of a car in the parking lot in front of the hotel when when one of the robbers opened the driver's side door, pistol whipped her and took her jewelry. The mother saw the men fleeing when she walked out of the hotel and confronted them. One of them then shot her in the chest

The mother, whose name has not been released, was walking out of the hotel as she saw the thieves fleeing.

She confronted the robbers, one of whom shot her in the chest during a struggle before they made their getaway, police told New York Daily News.

Residents who live across the street from the hotel said they heard a single gunshot on Thursday night.

'We heard screaming and heard a gunshot, then the ambulances showed up,' a neighbor told the Daily News. 'We didn't know what it was then we heard the shot.'

The woman was taken to the hospital in critical condition. The age and condition of her daughter is unknown. Pictured above, officials investigate the scene after the shooting

An FDNY spokesman said the woman was taken to Elmhurst Hospital in Queens in critical condition.

'They took her out. Then everyone started coming,' the neighbor told the Daily News about the incident. 'We just heard a shot and somebody was screaming. We didn't know what it was then we heard the shot.'

The age of the daughter and her condition was not immediately available.

The investigation into the robbery and shooting is ongoing and the thieves have yet to be found.
An American conservative magazine found itself disinvited from co-sponsoring a presidential primary debate Thursday night after it published an entire issue devoted to tearing down Republican front-runner Donald Trump.

Speaking to DailyMail.com during a press conference in Las Vegas, Trump dismissed the 60-year-old publication, National Review, as washed-up and irrelevant.

'Its circulation is way down. Not very many people read it anymore,' he said at the Venetian Hotel and Casino before making an appearance on stage at the Outdoor Sportsman Awards, where he accepted the endorsement of 'Duck Dynasty' star Willie Robertson.

'I mean, people don't even think about the National Review,' Trump said. 'So I guess they want to get a little publicity. But you know, it's a dying paper. It's pretty much  I've gotta tell you David, it's pretty much of a dead paper.'

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'A DYING PAPER': Donald Trump hammered the storied conservative National Review magazine on Thursday after it published an entire issue devoted to tearing him down

WORTH IT? Editor Rich Lowry (right) told DailyMail.com after the Republican National Committee disinvited his publication from co-sponsoring a February debate: 'We knew we'd raise hackles ... It's not unexpected'

National Review publisher Jack Fowler broke the news on Twitter that the Republican Party was punishing the magazine for taking sides against its presidential front-runner

PART I: WHAT CONSERVATIVES WROTE ABOUT DONALD TRUMP GLENN BECK, BROADCASTER: 'Sure, Trumps potential primary victory would provide Hillary Clinton with the easiest imaginable path to the White House. But its far worse than that. If Donald Trump wins the Republican nomination, there will once again be no opposition to an ever-expanding government.' BRENT BOZELL, CONSERVATIVE MEDIA CRITIC: 'The GOP base is clearly disgusted and looking for new leadership. Enter Donald Trump, not just with policy prescriptions that challenge the cynical GOP leadership but with an attitude of disdain for that leadershipprecisely in line with the sentiment of the base. Many conservatives are relishing this, but ah, the rub. Trump might be the greatest charlatan of them all. DANA LOESCH, SYNDICATED RADIO HOST: Just a few years ago, I and many others were receiving threats for promoting conservative policies and conservative principles  neither of which Donald Trump seems to care about. Yet hes leading. Popularity over principle  is this the new Right? EDWIN MEESE III, FORMER U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: 'Questionable assertions that an opponent is not eligible to run, or that another cannot be elected, or that still another lacks enthusiasm or energy, are a poor substitute for addressing the real issues that should be the basis for a positive campaign: restoring economic growth, strengthening national security, eliminating cronyism and corruption, and improving the lives of all Americans.' Advertisement

Rich Lowry, the magazine's editor-in-chief, said via email that the move by the Republican National Committee to ban it from participating in a February 25 debate in Houston, Texas, was a price he was willing to pay for an editorial that branded The Donald as 'a philosophically unmoored political opportunist.'

'We knew we'd raise hackles,' Lowry told DailyMail.com, 'but it's what we've been doing for 60 years. It's not unexpected.'

Sean Spicer, the RNC's communications director, explained the decision in a statement to DailyMail.com, saying that 'debate partners can't have a predisposition towards or against any candidate''

Lowry appeared Thursday night on the Fox News Channel to break the news of his publication's special-purpose issue, giving the exclusive to anchor Megyn Kelly  who has crossed swords with The Donald in the past.

'if you truly are conservative, you believe in ideas and principles. It's not just attitudes,' Lowry said during the broadcast. 'It's not just who you dislike.'

'It's limited government. It's the Constitution. It's liberty. Those are the things that truly make this country special. And they are basically afterthoughts to Donald Trump.'

National Review publisher Jack Fowler wrote on the magazine's blog that being banned from participating in a high-profile debate is a 'small price to pay for speaking the truth about The Donald.'

The magazine, founded in 1955 by the right-wing intellectual William F. Buckley, Jr., recruited 22 conservative writers and commentators to vent their spleens about Trump for its February 15 issue, released Thursday night.

The cover, done up in royal blue and gold, proclaims the magazine's position in regal metallic letters: 'Against Trump.'

Inside, the editorial blames Trump for cheapening conservative politics with promises that right-wing traditionalists find galling and a lack of experience that will ultimately lead voters astray.

'Trump can try to make his blankness a virtue by calling it a kind of innocence,' it reads. 'But he is like a man with no credit history applying for a mortgage  or, in this case, applying to manage a $3.8 trillion budget and the most fearsome military on earth.'

'Some conservatives have made it their business to make excuses for Trump and duly get pats on the head from him. Count us out,' the editorial ends.

'Donald Trump is a menace to American conservatism who would take the work of generations and trample it underfoot in behalf of a populism as heedless and crude as the Donald himself.'

STORIED FRANCHISE: Conservative intellectual William F. Buckley Jr. founded National Review in 1955

PART II: WHAT CONSERVATIVES WROTE ABOUT DONALD TRUMP MICHAEL MUKASEY, FORMER U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: 'We have already suffered seven years of feckless leadership that has invited the contempt of our enemies and the distrust of our friends. We remain the worlds strongest power and can recover; but to inspire the respect that creates fear and trust when and where each is necessary, we will need a president who summons our strength with a reality-based strategic vision, not one who summons applause with tantrums and homicidal fantasies.' KATIE PAVLICH, AUTHOR, FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: 'Trump has made a living out of preying on and bullying societys most vulnerable, with the help of government. He isnt an outsider, but rather an unelected politician of the worst kind. He admits that hes bought off elected officials in order get his way and to openly abuse the system. The rabid defense he gets from some quarters is astonishing. Trumps liberal positions arent in the distant pasthe has openly promoted them on the campaign trail. Trump isnt fighting for anyone but himself, which has been his pattern for decades.' THOMAS SOWELL, ECONOMIST: 'In a country with more than 300 million people, it is remarkable how obsessed the media have become with just oneDonald Trump. What is even more remarkable is that, after seven years of repeated disasters, both domestically and internationally, under a glib egomaniac in the White House, so many potential voters are turning to another glib egomaniac to be his successor.' Advertisement

The rest of the magazine's issue is devoted to a series of short essays by conservatives who support other candidates for president  in many cases, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.

Broadcasters Glenn Beck and Dana Loesch made the cut, as did former U.S. Attorneys General Michael Mukasey and Edwin Meese, columnist Cal Thomas, Economist Thomas Sowell and Fox News contributor Katie Pavlich.

Loesch, Pavlich and Media Research Center president Brent Bozell joined Lowry on Megyn Kelley's program Thursday night, explaining why they don't see Trump as conservative enough to win their support.

The result was an instant controversy that forced the Republican National Committee into a corner and risking anointing a publication as a debate co-sponsor after it had trashed the leading candidate scheduled to appear on stage.

It may be a tempest in a teapot for Trump, who is winning accolades from conservative leaders whose names are better known than any of the National Review writers who took Trump to the woodshed.

As the magazine released its long critique, The Washington Post published a story exploring how the Republican establishment is beginning to embrace The Donald.

'If it came down to Trump or Cruz, there is no question I'd vote for Trump,' former New York City mayor and 2008 presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani told the Post.

'As a party, we'd have a better chance of winning with him, and I think a lot of Republicans look at it that way.'

'Between Trump and Cruz, its not even close,' New York GOP Rep. Peter King agreed. 'Cruz isn't a good guy, and he'd be impossible as president.'

'People dont trust him. And regardless of what your concern is with Trump, he's pragmatic enough to get something done.'

Former Sen. Bob Dole, the Republican nominee for president in 1996, said of Cruz earlier in the week that 'Nobody likes him,' and predicted a 'cataclysmic' loss for the Republican Party if the Texan were to win its national nod.

Trump said Thursday night that mainstream Republicans are 'warming up' to him.

'I have received so many phone calls from people that would you call "establishment",' he said, 'from people generally speaking, conservatives, Republicans, that want to come onto our team.'
Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach has been appointed the new Chief of the Defence Staff

Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach has been appointed the new Chief of the Defence Staff, despite reportedly being considered a longshot for the powerful position.

His appointment to the British militarys top position was confirmed by David Cameron and the Queen within the last few days, The Times reported.

The officer who lead Britains intervention in Libya appears to have beaten the dual favourites to assume the role, joint forces commander General Sir Richard Barrons and First Sea Lord Admiral Sir George Zambellas.

A Whitehall source told The Times: If anyone has had his nose put out of joint it will be Barrons.

Air Chief Marshal Peach will take over from General Sir Nicholas Houghton, who controversially appeared to dabble in politics as he voiced concerns about Jeremy Corbyns attitude to Trident on The Andrew Marr Show last year.

He has served in Iraq and Kosovo and was chief of defence intelligence, as well as deputy chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee for three years.

The MoD declined to comment.

The married father-of-two was born in 1956 in the West Midlands and went Aldridge Grammar School, before achieving a BA at the University of Sheffield and an MPhil at the University of Cambridge.

As well as his own personal academic achievements, he now hold doctorates from Kingston University and the University of Sheffield.

When he joined the RAF in 1977, he flew Canberras before three successive tours on Tornado GR1 in the UK and Germnay, where he qualified as a weapons and electronic warfare instructor.

His operational service includes working in Belize, Hong Kong and Germany in the 1980s.

He was Deputy Commander British Forces in Turkey on Operation Warden, UK Head Military Coordination Centre Zakho in Iraq, Detachment Commander in Saudi Arabia for Op Jural, Commander British Forces in Italy for Op Engadine,

Air Commander in Kosovo and Deputy Senior British Military Adviser in US HQ Central Command between 2001 and 2002.

When he joined the RAF in 1977, he flew Canberras (pictured) before three successive tours on Tornado GR1 in the UK and Germnay, where he qualified as a weapons and electronic warfare instructor

He commanded the Air Warfare Centre at RAF Waddington from 2000 to 2003, was Director General Intelligence Collection in the Ministry of Defence between 2003 and 2006 and Chief of Defence Intelligence and Deputy Chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee 2006-2009.

He held the appointment of Chief of Joint Operations at PJHQ(UK) from March 2009 to December 2011 before becoming the first Commander of the UK Joint Forces Command from December 2011 to April 2013. He was appointed as Vice Chief of Defence Staff in May 2013.
See more news on North Korea at

The news of arrest comes as the United States ramps up pressure over North Korea's 'H-bomb' test

The 21-year-old, from Wyoming, Ohio, is a member of Theta Chi fraternity

State news agency says he entered NK with 'aim to destroy country's unity'

Detained: This is believed to be U.S. student Otto Frederick Warmbier from Virginia University who was arrested in North Korea for allegedly committing a 'hostile act' against Pynongyang, according to posts on social media

The American student arrested in North Korea for allegedly committing a 'hostile act under orders from Washington has been identified as a former prom king and member of Theta Chi fraternity at the University of Virginia.

Otto Frederick Warmbier was in North Korea for a five-day New Year trip and was detained at Pyongyang airport on January 2 ahead of a flight back to China.

Kim Jong Un's state-run KCNA news agency said Warmbier entered North Korea as a tourist 'in order to destroy the country's unity under the direction of the U.S. government'.

It said the 21-year-old has links to Washington, but did not elaborate.

News of the arrest comes as Washington stepped up pressure on world leaders to impose further sanctions on North Korea over Pyongyang's claimed hydrogen bomb test two weeks ago.

Warmbier is an undergraduate at the University of Virginia, according to the university's website.

He is a member of Theta Chi fraternity at the school, were he serves as alumnus chair, according to Cincinnati.com.

Gareth Johnson, of China-based Young Pioneer Tours, confirmed Warmbier was on one of its tours and said he had been detained before a flight back to China.

Warmbier was on Young Pioneer's 'New Year's Party Tour', which, according to the itinerary on the company's website, was to include watching fireworks in Kim Il Sung Square in the heart of Pyongyang and an optional helicopter ride.

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According to his social media profiles, Warmbier is from Cincinnati and is an Echols Scholar, awarded to the top seven per cent of incoming first year students at the University of Virginia, where he majors in economics with a minor in global sustainability

Johnson said Young Pioneer Tours was in touch with Warmbier's family and US officials.

'We are in touch with Otto's family, the U.S. State Department and the Embassy of Sweden in Pyongyang and doing all we can to secure his release,' Johnson added.

The organization appears to be continuing tours through North Korea , with the next one starting on February 5.

The Swedish Embassy represents US interests in North Korea.

An official at the US embassy in the South Korean capital Seoul said it was aware of the reported arrest. The US State Department in Washington had no immediate comment.

According to his social media profiles, Warmbier is from Cincinnati and is an Echols Scholar, awarded to the top seven per cent of incoming first-year students at the University of Virginia, where he majors in economics with a minor in global sustainability.

His LinkedIn page says he also studied at the London School of Economics where he took an advanced level econometrics course last year.

He also lists in his current experience that he is a managing director for an alternative investment fund.

In previous years, Warmbier visited countries including Cuba, Ireland and Israel, according to his Facebook profile.

Warmbier was detained four days before North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in violation of UN sanctions, which drew condemnation from its neighbors and the United States.

Otto Frederick Warmbier, from the University of Virginia, was in North Korea for a five-day New Year trip and was detained at Pyongyang airport on January 2 ahead of a flight back to China

Warmbier (center) was detained four days before North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in violation of UN sanctions

Kim Jong Un speaks during an award ceremony for scientists and other officials who contributed to what North Korea said was a successful hydrogen bomb test earlier this month. North Korea today announced that it had arrested US student Otto Frederick Warmbier for committing a 'hostile act' against the country

North Koreans walk past a new showcase development in the capital Pyongyang

A friend and former high-school classmate of Warmbier, who wished to remain anonymous, told Reuters: Otto is a wonderful, warm person who should never have to go through anything like this... The idea that any of this happened is crazy.

In his younger years, Warmbier attended Wyoming High School in Wyoming, Ohio, where he was named prom king in 2012.

Warmbiers high school soccer coach, Steve Thomas, said the news of the 21-year-olds arrest is shocking.

He is a great kid, really smart, Thomas told Cincinnati.com. He was an outstanding player and student and a good leader on and off the field.

The last time Thomas saw Warmbier was at an alumni soccer game about a year or two ago.

"This is really shocking news," Thomas added. "I have no idea why he would be over there. I certainly hope he is alright."

Warmbier was named student of the year before graduating from Wyoming High School, and he was awarded a scholarship from the Parent Student Association.

Ohio Governor and Republican presidential candidate John Kasich said the arrest was inexcusable and wrote a letter to President Barack Obama requesting that he make every effort to secure Mr. Warmbiers immediate release.

He said that North Korea should provide proof of Warmbiers alleged anti-state activities or set him free.

Otto Frederick Warmbier is an undergraduate at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville (above, file image)

Warmbier is a member of Theta Chi fraternity (pictured) at University of Virginia. He serves as alumnus chair for the fraternity

The exterior of the of the Warmbier family home in Wyoming, Ohio, on Friday, after Warmbier's arrest was announced

Kasich says in his letter released Friday afternoon that North Korea arrests U.S. citizens for diplomatic negotiation motives or to antagonize the United States.

American citizens must be allowed to travel abroad without the risk of being arrested arbitrarily and then held hostage for the purposes of ransom, the forced reopening of diplomatic negotiations or acts designed to antagonize the United States, Kasich wrote in his letter.

The term 'hostile act' is a catch-all accusation that has been levelled at numerous foreigners in the past, covering a range of possible charges from espionage to illicit missionary work.

Warmbier is the third western citizen known to be currently held in the isolated state.

A South Korean-born Canadian pastor was arrested in North Korea last year and given a life sentence for subversion.

Earlier this month, a Korean-American man told CNN in Pyongyang that he was being held by the state for spying.

In 2014, Pyongyang released three detained Americans.

Last October, it freed a South Korean national with a U.S. green card after holding him for six months.

South Korea warned that the United States and its allies were working on further sanctions to inflict 'bone-numbing pain' on North Korea after its latest nuclear test this month, in contravention of U.N. Security Council resolutions.

Seoul also urged China to do its part to rein in its neighbor.

Small American flags were placed in the trees in front of the Warmbier family home in Wyoming, Ohio on Friday
The Taliban splinter group behind the Pakistan university massacre that left 21 dead today threatened to carry out more attacks across the country.

Islamist militants stormed the Bacha Khan university in the town of Charsadda, gunning down students and teachers in latest atrocity targeting educational institutions.

The leader of the splinter Taliban group that claimed responsibility for the attack, Khalifa Umar Mansoor, said in a video released on social media today that the assault was just the start and promised his followers would hit the 'evil democratic system' at its base.

An image taken from a video released by a faction within the Pakistani Taliban shows their leader Khalifa Umar Mansoor (centre) with militants delivering a statement vowing to target more schools throughout the country after claiming responsibility for the massacre at Bacha Khan university that left 21 people dead

Scene of horror: Pakistani students look at a blood-soaked room inside a hostel after the attack at Bacha Khan University in Charsadda on Wednesday

Mansoor said Pakistan's educational institutions provide the future workforce for the military and the government  all of which work against the 'will of God.'

He added: 'Pakistan's evil democratic system, its military and political leadership have these educational institutions as their nurseries.

'It is from there they get their people, these institutions bear them fruit.'

The assault echoed the horrifying 2014 attack by the Taliban on an army-run school in the nearby city of Peshawar that left 150 dead, 144 of them children, and raised more questions about whether Pakistan's security forces are able to protect the country's educational institutions from extremists.

Security guards stand alert around schools and colleges following an attack on Bacha Khan University in which 21 people were killed by militants

The assault echoed the horrifying 2014 attack by the Taliban on an army-run school in the nearby city of Peshawar that left 150 dead, 144 of them children, and raised more questions about whether Pakistan's security forces are able to protect the country's educational institutions from extremists

Pakistani civil society activists condemn the attack on Bacha Khan University in Islamabad, Pakistan

Along with Mansoor's threats, the video shows a presumably older segment of the four gunmen from the Charsadda assault practicing with assault rifles at an undisclosed location.

The authenticity of the video could not be independently verified but it was similar to previous messages released by the group.

Although Mansoor's group quickly took responsibility for the university attack, a spokesman for the larger Taliban organisation, led by Mullah Fazlullah, denied having anything to do with it and called it 'un-Islamic.'

Muhammad Khorasani, the Tehrik-e-Taliban spokesman, said they also disown Mansoor's group.

Pakistani relatives offer funeral prayers for victims of the Bacha Khan university attack in Charsadda, about 50 kilometres from Peshawar

'The Protector': Chemistry lecturer Syed Hamid Husain (left) allowed his students to escape a Taliban massacre by opening fire on militants who attacked at the Bacha Khan university in Pakistan. Blood stains and flak jackets used by the attackers are seen in a dormitory (right)

After the 2014 Peshawar school massacre, Taliban militants were united in taking responsibility for the violence.

Some analysts say the divisions now in the Taliban over Wednesday's attack probably have more to do with a fear of retribution than a reflection of a deeply fractured and split militant movement.

Pakistan yesterday observed a day of national mourning for the 21 people killed in the Bacha Khan university attack.

Flags on official buildings and the parliament are flying at half-mast, while children held candlelight vigils and prayed in schools across the country.
Natu Patel, 64, who runs Ambleside News in the suburb of Warndon on the outskirts of the city, is rumoured to have sold the jackpot ticket

The hunt for the lucky winner of the 33 million Lotto jackpot intensified as a shop keeper in Worcester revealed he believed he may have sold the all-important ticket.

Natu Patel, 64, who runs Ambleside News in the suburb of Warndon on the outskirts of the city, is rumoured to have sold the jackpot ticket.

He confirmed that lottery operators Camelot had called him today, warning him of press interest in his shop as it emerged the winner could could still be eligible to claim their prize - even if they have lost their ticket.

'It was completely out the blue and it sounded quite mysterious,' Mr Patel said when recalling the phone call from Camelot. 'We sell a lot of tickets so I hope the winning ticket was bought here.'

Mr Patel revealed that he would have to wait for the winner to come forward as he has no way of checking if the winning ticket was bought at his shop unless I scan it.

'We have sold many winning tickets before, but only for 25,000 or 20,000. A few people have won 1,000 over the years too.'

'In the 27 years that my wife and I have run this shop, we have done quite well and we've made a lot of people happy with their lottery wins.

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Mr Patel said it would be 'wonderful' if the ticket had been bought at his and his wife's shop. Camelot is urging people to check their tickets (pictured, winning numbers) as a jackpot of 33,035,323 has yet to be claimed

It is thought the winning ticket may have been bought at Ambleside News in the suburb of Warndon

'It would be wonderful if it was bought here. I would be very, very happy. It would be great for the community. The winners are very lucky.'

Camelot say the ticket holder has 16 days to convince bosses they are telling the truth if they think they have misplaced it.

No one has come forward to claim half of the UK's biggest-ever Lotto jackpot and the National Lottery held a press conference in a bid to jog memories and unite the life-changing prize with its owner.

Camelot has previously said it is 'highly unusual' that no one has come forward following the level of hype and excitement around this particular draw.

Andy Carter, the winners adviser for Camelot, appealed to the public to check their tickets after it was revealed the winning ticket was bought in Worcester

There is no obligation on the part of the National Lottery to pay any prize the lost ticket might have won.

However, for a claim to be considered, the ticket holder must lodge an appeal within 30 days of the draw for which the ticket was purchased.

They must tell Lottery officials where they bought the ticket, which draw it was for, the location of the shop, how many lines they played and the numbers they chose - all information Camelot knows.

The National Lottery will investigate these claims at its discretion, and could choose to pay the prize money out.

Camelot's senior winners' adviser Andy Carter visited Worcester today after the lottery operator confirmed that the winning ticket was bought in the area.

Mr Carter said: 'We have got to the 14-day stage after the draw now, when we release the area.

'We want the people of Worcester to check their tickets.

'We want them to check down the side of sofas, in pockets, in gloves compartments, on shelves - just anything that can help them find the winning ticket.'

The winning-ticket holder had 180 days to claim the massive sum - giving him or her a deadline of July 7.

If it remains unclaimed, the 33million will go to National Lottery projects.

A lottery spokesman said: 'We're urging everyone to try checking in the pockets of clothing, in wallets, bags, down the back of the sofa and anywhere a missing ticket could be hiding  someone out there could literally be sitting on a fortune!

'We have the champagne on ice and our fingers crossed that the lucky winner comes forward to claim their win.'

REASONS WHY THE JACKPOT PRIZE COULD HAVE GONE UNCLAIMED 1) Player has lost the ticket 2) Ticket has been stolen 3) Winner hasn't claimed the prize in fear the cash will ruin their lives 4) Ticket has been washed in the washing machine 5) It's down the back of the sofa! Advertisement

The jackpot wouldn't be the biggest amount to go unclaimed. In June 2012, a winning Euromillions ticket bought in the Stevenage and Hitchen area of Hertfordshire went unclaimed. The jackpot had been 63.8million.

And there are a collection of 1million prizes waiting to be claimed in Preston, Staffordshire, Hull, Swansea, Rochdale, Lancashire, Liverpool and Durham.

Just last week a missing millionaire from Worcester stepped forward to claim their Lotto Millionaire Raffle prize from the Saturday, October 10 draw caused a stir in the city as people rushed to double check their tickets.

The winning numbers for this month's biggest ever jackpot draw were 26, 27, 46, 47, 52 and 58. The total jackpot of just over 66 million was the result of 14 rollovers.

If tickets have been lost, destroyed or stolen Camelot has the discretion to still pay the prizes if the player has submitted a claim in writing within 30 days of the draw.

They say the player must provide sufficient evidence before the lottery will investigate.

Only a 'very small' number of people within the company know where the ticket was bought, a Camelot spokesman said.

They have only announced broader area of Worcester, identified to include at least 100,000 people, to ensure the ticket-holder can maintain anonymity if they so wish.

Nothing more about the lucky ticket, including whether it was bought by an individual or a syndicate, is known, the spokesman added.

David and Carol Martin, from the Scottish borders, won the other half of the record 66million Lotto jackpot

She said the purpose of the Worcester announcement is to 'raise awareness in that area' that will hopefully lead to the ticket-holder realising they have won and coming forward to make a claim.

Mr Carter said: 'It's a huge amount of money - the biggest Lotto jackpot ever - and actually it means you could do an awful lot of good with it.

'You could set your family up - not just your children but generations to come. If good causes are close to your heart, you can do that.

'We just need to reunite the winnings with their rightful owner.'

Players around the country have been astonished that - despite having beaten odds of around 45 million to one - the winners seem to be unwilling to claim their prize.

David and Carol Martin, both 54, from Hawick in the Scottish Borders, celebrated winning the other half of the jackpot amid a flurry of media attention last week.

The couple were tucking into bacon and black pudding rolls when they discovered they had won half of the historic 66million prize money - catapulting them to the top of the Lotto rich list.

Camelot have revealed the winner is from Worcester and is holding a press conference to try and find them

The Martins have joked about how they had to dash out to a local supermarket to pick up a 5 set of champagne flutes because they didn't have any when their friends arrived with a bottle of bubbly at their 176,000 semi-detached house in Hawick.

As well as unveiling details of some initial spending plans, and their hopes for an early retirement, they hinted they may look to help some of those affected by the floods which hit the UK recently.

In October, it was feared four Lottery winners may have torn up million-pound tickets after wrongly thinking they had lost because of a draw blunder.

Camelot put the wrong Millionaire Raffle codes on its website for 40 minutes until bosses noticed and corrected the error.
A landmark legal case has resulted in child refugees arriving in Britain as France is pushing for a 'significant' amount more to cross the Channel.

Four Syrians have arrived in London after their lawyers used human rights legislation to argue they should be immediately taken out of the 'intolerable' conditions of 'The Jungle' in Calais.

They will stay in the country with relatives while their asylum applications are being processed.

It comes as documents have revealed the French Government is aiming to help more refugees reach the United Kingdom.

Four Syrians have arrived in London after their lawyers used human rights legislation to argue they should be immediately taken out of the 'intolerable' conditions of 'The Jungle' in Calais (pictured)

A migrant stands among dismantled shelters of the camp known as 'The Jungle', a squalid sprawling camp in Calais, northern France,

The file, dated December 7, 2015, wants to identify migrants who have a connection to the UK to allow a legal transfer, according to The Times.

Under the Dublin III rule, refugees are able to claim asylum in any European country where they have immediate family.

Added to yesterday's ruling on the four Syrians, hundreds more migrants can use the legal loopholes as a way into Britain.

But the Home Office plans to appeal against any French pleas.

A spokesman said: 'We stand by the well-established principle that those seeking protection should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach.

'The court still requires these individuals to claim asylum in France before they can come to the UK.'

Lawyers for the four Syrians who arrived in Britain said it was the French authorities who in fact held up the legal process for them to make the transfer to the UK.

One of the boys was a 17-year-old who made an emotional reunion with his older brother, after 18 months apart, at St Pancras station was thankful to those who have helped him make the switch.

The boy cannot be named for legal reasons, but has been called Muhammad for reporting purposes.

He said: 'I feel so thankful because I would never have imagined I would be reunited with my brother.'

'I want to thank the lawyers who went that extra mile to reunite me and my brother. I feel so thankful.'

An Afghan migrant walks among a dismantled aera of the camp. French authorities have asked migrants living in makeshift shelters to respect an unoccupied 100 metre zone from the fence barrier which protects the road that leads to the ferry terminal

An Afghan migrant rides his bike past a burnt dismantled shelter in the camp known as the 'The Jungle'

His brother said: 'I thank the British people who have helped and I want to thank the Government and the British press who have shed a lot of light on this issue.

'I thank every person who was part of this process - they have saved lives. They have saved people from death.

'They have saved lives and we will never forget all the hard work that went into it. I thank Britain as a whole.'

Muhammad said conditions in 'The Jungle' were so bad that no human should have to live there.

He said: 'Very little is provided there. There is no proper hygiene and no proper safety from illnesses.

'So many people have become ill, so many people are just waiting to be able to go to another place that is safe.

'It is a place not fit for humans. Humans should not be living in those conditions.

'Everyone is really helpless over there. Everyone is really depressed, there is a great sense of depression because they have been there so long. It is just awful.'

Asked what he hopes to do now in Britain, Muhammad said: 'My main hope and aspiration was to be reunited with my brother and that has been achieved.

'Looking ahead to the future I would like to continue with my education and I have hopes of becoming a lawyer. I want to help people like lawyers have helped me.

'I feel so grateful, I would never have imagined I would be reunited with my brother.'

Muhammad said conditions in 'The Jungle' were so bad that no human should have to live there

His words were echoed by his older brother who said: 'My main aspiration is to serve the people here as they have served me, and to help the country as the country has helped me.

'I just want to give back because I have received so much. I feel so grateful and so lucky.'

Asked what it was like to finally be reunited after more than 18 months apart, he said: 'It felt so unreal and so surreal because we left Syria at different times, we both left because of the war but at very different times.

'It just felt so unreal that having left the war we managed to see each other again.'

Bombarded by barrel bombs and relentless fighting, he decided to flee his family's home town of Daraa in 2014.

He travelled with his wife and young daughter to Lebanon where he temporarily left them before carrying on to Europe.

He made the final perilous leg of his journey from Calais to Dover smuggled in the back of a refrigerated lorry of tomatoes.

Muhammad said: 'Everyone is really helpless over there. Everyone is really depressed, there is a great sense of depression because they have been there so long. It is just awful'

Muhammad said it was hard to watch his older brother leave and have to stay with his family in his town as fighting continued.

He said: 'It was really, really difficult to see my brother leave because I felt a great sense of loneliness. I did not imagine that my brother would leave and go away from the family.'

He made the same treacherous journey across Europe last year, arriving in Calais in October.

As he joined the several thousand refugees in the makeshift camp Muhammad said there were times when he was close to losing hope that he would ever get refuge in Britain.

He said: 'At the very beginning I didn't have much hope that this would work and I would be reunited with my family.

'But then slowly slowly because of the conviction of my brother and the lawyers I slowly started to have faith and began to become hopeful I would be reunited with my families.'

Asked if he had a message for those who remain in camps in France desperate to find safety elsewhere, Muhammad said: 'I want to say may God help you.

'I really want them to have the same experience as me and be able to come here through a legal and safe way.
PARISIANS PREPARE FOR NEXT TERROR ATROCITY BY LEARNING FIRST AID

Paris (AFP) - Marielle wobbles on her high heels as she practices dragging an injured friend out of danger and stemming a gushing wound -- part of her preparation for Paris's next terror attack.

Like many Parisians, the 30-year-old lawyer believes it is only a matter of time before the city sees a repeat of the devastating November attack in which jihadists targeted several nightspots, killing 130 and injuring hundreds.

Next time she wants to be prepared.

Parisians are taking first aid classes so they are prepared for any future terror attack

Many French people believe it is only a matter of time before their country is hit by terrorists again

French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve, second right, observed the Paris training session

Marielle Tyranowicz has joined a special first aid training session developed by Paris firefighters after a rush of requests from citizens who stood by helplessly as their city was engulfed in terror.

'I think we will have more and more situations like the ones we have experienced, either mass attacks or individuals who attack, shoot... I don't see the future very positively,' she told AFP.

Two months on from the attacks, several cafes targeted by gunmen and suicide bombers have re-opened and the towering shrines of flowers and candles cleared away as the city tries to move on from the horrors of that Friday night.

But they also want to be ready, whether that means learning how to tie a tourniquet, or by coming up with new technological solutions to help overwhelmed emergency services during a disaster.

As some practice chest compressions on a dummy, elsewhere in the city about 400 tech developers, computing experts and graphic designers are holding a 'hackathon' to come up with innovative ways to handle a crisis.

Among the ideas to emerge from the young creatives: a messaging system in which the ambient noise, stress in the caller's voice and other markers are analysed to allow responders to prioritise calls.

Another suggests an automated texting system in which citizens can log an incident without tying up human operators.

Firefighters demonstrated how to place a tourniquet in the event of an emergency to save a life

The conference is the brainchild of French web designer and businessman Jean-Francois Pillou who has called for the 'Uberisation' of the anti-terrorism fight, using technology to sharpen the response of security and emergency services.

Many people reported difficulties in alerting authorities during November's attack -- the fire service alone took 700 calls in 30 minutes -- not helped by France's system of multiple contact numbers that dates back to the 1920s and is a frequent source of criticism.

'Start-ups are revolutionising industry, why not the fight against terrorism?' Pillou asked in a Facebook post shared over 100,000 times in the week after the attack.

The hackers also look at possible tech solutions to radicalisation, and ways to block false rumours spreading online during an attack.

'It is a world-first, it is the first time authorities and especially the police agree to ask the public for help... admitting they don't have all the solutions,' Pillou tells AFP.

Police promise to implement some of the ideas in the coming months.

- 'If you do nothing, someone will die' -

Back at the fire station in Montmartre, Marielle is among the first to receive the free pared-down first aid course from the firefighters, who hope to train an initial 8,000 people with a few useful gestures that can save lives.

The course opens with a video of a chillingly familiar scenario: gunmen have attacked a sidewalk cafe and victims lie writhing in their own blood amid tables and chairs.

A woman goes from victim to victim, seeing how she can help: one is pulled out from under a table, another is dead -- nothing can be done -- and another requires a tourniquet.

'I think we have all understood,' instructor Guillaume says grimly. 'This reminds us of what happened on November 13.'

The idea is to equip bystanders with the skills to help in the crucial minutes before emergency services arrive.

'If you do nothing, the person will die. If you do something, even badly, he still has a chance' said General Philippe Boutinaud, who came up with the idea.

They get a quick lesson on wound compression, but are told that in 'a situation with many victims, like an attack' where others may need help, they should rather use a tourniquet to stop blood flow.

'Use what you have available, a scarf, a piece of material,' says Guillaume as he teaches them to tightly wind the material above a wound.

'And it even applies to yourself, if you have been shot or stabbed,' he says.

Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo said the course and hackathon showed 'a massive will from citizens in Paris to engage' in their community.
CCTV from Manchester Piccadilly station shows the mystery man the day he lay down on a hill to die

Detectives stumped by the death of a pensioner who lay down on the Moors murder mountain have released CCTV footage in a bid for answers.

Mystery surrounds the death of the smartly-dressed pensioner who took the train from London to Manchester and climbed a large hill in atrocious weather.

The man - thought to be around 70 - was wearing slip on shoes and had 130 in cash in his pockets and three train tickets he purchased the day before.

Despite numerous appeals, police have been unable to identify the man, whose death is not being treated as suspicious.

Footage taken from December 11 shows the man walking through Manchester Piccadilly Station.

Sgt John Coleman from Greater Manchester Police said: 'I've been doing this job for a long, long time and I have never known anything like it.

'It's sad really. There might be a family who don't know he's dead.

'Maybe he lived in the area as a younger man and was re-visiting. What drew him to the area is another line of enquiry.'

The body of the man thought to be was found on a track close to the summit of Indian's Head above Dovestone reservoir close to the Peak District on December 12.

He is believed to have started his journey in London, before taking the train to Manchester and heading to the village of Greenfield in the borough of Oldham the day before.

Detectives are unclear whether he was a Londoner, or had just taken to a visit to the capital.

Officers identified the man in footage through Ealing walking 'backwards and forwards' and he made his way to the train station at 9am.

He arrived in Manchester shortly after midday where he walked around the shops at the station where he bought some food.

He then headed to the city centre before making his way to Saddleworth and visited a pub at 2pm, where he asked how to get to the top of a nearby mountain - a 450 metre peak above Dovestone reservoir known as Indian's Head.

The landlord said he spoke with a northern accent but didn't sound as if he was local to the area.

Footage captured on December 11 shows the man walking through Manchester Piccadilly Station

The man seen on CCTV in Manchester went to a peak overlooking the moor where Ian Brady (left) and Myra Hindley (right) buried their victims

Murderers Hindley and Brady buried their victims on Saddleworth Moor, (pictured) near Manchester

The concerned landlord told him he wouldn't be able to climb the mountain in the dark or in heavy rain but he did anyway.

Witnesses saw him about a mile up the hill at around 4.30pm and again about three-quarters of the way up.

He was wearing black slip-on shoes, a blue coat and a white shirt with a collar.

GET IN TOUCH Do you know this man? Email katie.l.davies@mailonline.co.uk or call 02036150314 Advertisement

His body was found the next morning, lying face-up on a boggy section of track, with head pointing towards the mountain summit, his legs together and arms by his side.

Police are not treating the death as suspicious and believe he lay down on the spot and died.

Despite numerous appeals, officers have been unable to identify the man, who was carrying no documentation or had any scars, marks or tattoos on his body

Searches of DNA databases have found no matches.

Detective Inspector Ian Harratt said: 'We have previously released images from Ealing Tube station and now we are issuing moving CCTV footage from Manchester Piccadilly train station in a bid to try and identify this man.

Officers are appealing for anyone who recognises the man - seen on CCTV at Ealing Broadway station - to get in touch

'We do not know if this man is local or if he was visiting the area, but we are hoping that at this festive time of year, when families come together, that someone will realise this man is missing and contact police.

'Although we have had several phone calls from people with possible identifications for the deceased man from missing people around the country, which we are very grateful for, we have been able to rule these out as they are not the same person.'

Anyone with information about the man is asked to call police on 0161 856 8972 or phone Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Figures reveal residents living in some of London's most affluent areas are more likely to be burgled than homeowners anywhere else in the country.

And Britain's burglary capital is Dulwich in south London - where homes are 87 times more likely to be broken into than the safest village, Harbury near Leamington Spa.

London is the UK's burglary claims capital, home to 16 of the top 20 hotspots, according to MoneySuperMarket's annual Burglary Claims Tracker.

In an analysis of two million home insurance quotes over the past two years, figures show Tulse Hill and Dulwich in the south London SE21 post code have the highest crime rate at 61.2 claims per 1,000 quotes.

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London is the UK's burglary claims capital, home to 16 of the top 20 hotspots, according to MoneySuperMarket's annual Burglary Claims Tracker

The capital dominates the top ten in the study, including east London areas Clayhall, Redbridge and Gants Hill.

Affluent North Kensington (W10) also appears in the top 20 with 44.9 claims per 1,000 quotes, as do North London suburbs Whetstone (N20), Cockfosters (EN4) and New Southgate (N11).

Manchester (M21), Leeds (LS5) and Milton Keynes postcodes (MK46) also feature in the top 20.

Outside London, West Bromwich (B70) takes eleventh spot, with a rate of 45.5 burglary claims per 1,000 quotes.

Hawksworth and Kirkstall in Leeds (LS5) also features in the top 20, with 43.5 burglary claims per 1,000 quotes made for burglary, alongside Chorlton-cum-Hardy in Manchester (M21), which has a rate of 44 burglary claims per 1,000 quotes.

The study found there were 83 postal districts with no recorded claims for theft from the home over the last five years.

Wiltshire's Amesbury and Durrington, famous for the heritage site Stonehenge, also features, with a rate of 1.2 claims per 1,000 quotes, alongside the Welsh university town Aberystwyth and rural Abercraf.

The study found there were 83 postal districts with no recorded claims for theft from the home over the last five years. This map shows the areas least likely to be targeted by thieves

Kevin Pratt, consumer affairs expert at MoneySuperMarket, said leafy suburbs were 'heavily targeted' with burglars 'following the money'

He added: 'Burglars have two thoughts uppermost in their minds: where am I most likely to find something worth stealing and where am I least likely to get caught?'

THE UK'S BURGLARY HOTSPOTS REVEALED SE21 South Tulse Hill and Dulwich IG5 Clayhall IG4 Redbridge IG2 Gants Hill, Newbury Park, Aldborough Hatch N20 Whetstone district TW5 Heston, Cranford (north), Osterley (west) EN4 Hadley Wood, Cockfosters, East Barnet, New Barnet N11 New Southgate district IG6 Barkingside, Hainault (south) TW11 Teddington B70 West Bromwich W10 North Kensington district SE24 Herne Hill & North Tulse Hill SW14 Mortlake district M21 Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Barlow Moor LS5 Hawksworth, Kirkstall IG3 Seven Kings, Goodmayes HA7 Stanmore, Queensbury, Belmont RM11 Hornchurch, Emerson Park, Ardleigh Green MK46 Olney Advertisement

POSTCODES WITH THE FEWEST THEFT CLAIMS CV33 Harbury BT48 Derry SA3 South Wales SO22 Winchester SP4 Amesbury & Durrington BL6 Bolton OX10 Dorchester DD10 Montrose NG20 Shirebrook, Market Warsop CA13 Cockermouth, Lorton & Buttermere IP33 Westley SY23 Aberystwyth, Llanbadarn Fawr, Penparcau DL17 Ferryhill, Chilton, Cornforth & Bishop Middleham EX32 Barnstaple NR18 Wymondham DT2 Dorchester DT9 Sherborne KA6 Ayrshire KY5 Lochgelly SA9 Abercraf, Cefnbrynbrain, Cwmllynfell, Cwmtwrch, Lower Cwmtwrch, Rhiwfawr, Upper Cwmtwrch, Ystalyfera Advertisement

Mr Pratt added: 'Our findings suggest thieves favour busy urban areas where strangers are unlikely to be spotted and it's easy to make a quick getaway.

'But leafy suburbs are also heavily targeted, with burglars following the money to affluent areas.

'The best way to avoid the emotional turmoil and financial distress associated with a burglary is to be vigilant, make a concerted effort to secure your home and put in place the safety net of appropriate contents insurance in case the worst should happen.

'Householders can also now check the MoneySuperMarket Burglary Claims calculator to see whether they live in a high risk area.'

Kevin Pratt, consumer affairs expert at MoneySuperMarket, said leafy suburbs were 'heavily targeted' with burglars 'following the money'

Jim Maddan, chairman of the Neighbourhood and Home Watch Network, added: 'If you live in an urban area, it's well worth exchanging a few friendly words with your neighbours, especially those who overlook your property or access points.

'If everyone makes a small amount of effort to be aware of what's going on around them and reports any suspicious activity, it helps keep the whole community safer.

'Criminals certainly don't want to operate where they think they might be seen.'
An angry wife lashed out at a work colleague of her husband after he invited her back to their home after a night out, a court heard.

Kay Sealy, 35, assaulted Charlotte Akomfrah by throwing her own shoes at her as she walked out of her bathroom in her underwear following a work do in Dublin with Sealy's husband Ciaran.

Ms Akomfrah told Tallaght district court in Dublin that Mr Sealy had invited her back to his home, claiming he was in an 'open relationship'.

The Irish Mirror said the pair shared a taxi after leaving the city centre and began kissing, which continued at the house up until Ms Akomfrah, 27, went to the bathroom.

Kay Sealy, left, assaulted Charlotte Akomfrah, right, by throwing her own shoes at her as she walked out of her bathroom in her underwear following a work do in Dublin with Sealy's husband Ciaran

She explained how while she was in the room, someone started tugging at the door handle.

'I said I would be out in a minute,' she added. 'When I came out I heard a woman screaming, calling me names, calling me a b****.

'She started hitting me with my shoes. I saw my head was pumping blood.'

She added that she could see a man standing nearby, who when she asked to help her simply shook his head.

Sealy, left, said she discovered Ms Akomfrah, right, in her underwear and repeatedly asked her to leave the premises, which she refused

Sealy said she had heard noise coming from the house's living room, believing it to be a burglar.

She said she discovered Ms Akomfrah in her underwear and repeatedly asked her to leave the premises, which she refused.

Christopher Merriman, a lodger living at the house at the time, told the court how the complainant was 'standing nude' and that Sealy had pushed her out of the door.

Sealy's defence said she did not deny throwing the shoes, but added: 'In terms of recklessness, once she discovered the truth no wife in Ireland would have acted differently.

'The villain of the piece was not before the court.'
Germany needs to ban alcohol if it wants to prevent further sexual violence and to help North African migrants integrate into society, a Muslim pressure group has claimed.

Commenting on the Cologne sex-attack controversy, MuslimStern, which has 20,000 followers on Facebook, said its mission was to 'highlight the way the media was using the incidents to promote racism against minorities'.

The group complained that the female victims had brought the unwanted attention to themselves by dressing in a manner that North African men were not accustomed to.

Large groups of Muslim men who congregated around the cathedral in Cologne on New Year's Eve are believed to be responsible for more than 520 sexual assaults and at least three rapes on women in the city

The MuslimStern Facebook page has called on German authorities to ban alcohol claiming that Cologne women were responsible for their own attacks by comparing them to a naked antelope thrown in front of a lion

The group claimed: 'The government should ban the consumption of alcohol because it leads to traffic accidents, violence and rapes, and is extremely damaging to health. But for capitalist societies, this is too much to expect. So long as alcohol is not prohibited there will be no discernible decline in these cases'

The group claimed: 'You cannot expect to chuck a naked antelope in front of a lion and not expect it to react. It is mind boggling that with so much time spent teaching children about sex at school, they completely forget to pass on this basic biological fact.'

As a consequence of the attacks, they urged the German government to introduce a ban across the country on the consumption of alcohol.

The group also blamed women for getting attacked by inciting the young men.

In one section of the Facebook post, which has since been deleted, the group claims: 'Some women should think about whether it is wise to lightly dressed and drunk, to go between hordes of drunken men.

'In general, the woman wearing due to their nature have a responsibility when it goes out of the house.

'You can not throw a naked antelope from a lion and expect that at the lion stirs nothing.

'It is amazing that is taught in biology class so much about the mating and sexual behavior of living things, but these rules are completely ignored in everyday life.

'And because many non-Muslims constantly emphasise that we live in a Christian country, we call on you, in this country that women should dress Christian.

'Mary, Mother of Jesus, lived out as a Christian woman has to dress. So it would be highly recommended for some women to take Mary as a role model and not Lady Gaga.'

Searching for a home: Refugees walk along a street as they cross the Slovenian-Austrian border today

More than 520 women have reported assaults from New Year's Eve with at least three rapes which have been blamed on Muslim migrants who congregated around Cologne's cathedral during the night.

Cologne's Muslim preacher Imam Sami Abu-Yusuf, who blamed women wearing perfume for the fact they were assaulted over the New Year, went on to justify it by saying that alcohol had taken away the restrictions of 'men from North Africa'.

He also added that the sex attackers were 'from North Africa', unlike Salafists like himself who are mostly from India and the Middle East.

Mr Yusuf had earlier told Russian TV women only had themselves to blame for being assaulted because of the way they dressed. When asked why the attacks had happened he told REN TV: 'One of the reasons is the way the women were dressed. If they just wear light clothing and put on perfume, then things like this will happen.'

After the comments local Green MP Volker Beck complained to police about the comments saying it was incitement to carry out crime.

As the controversy raged over the remarks, a reporter from the Cologne Express asked him to qualify his statements, and reported that he laughed when asked if he really believed that women were responsible for the attacks they suffered.

He told the Express: 'My reply was taken out of context. What I said was that we have a real problem with men from North Africa living in Cologne. These young men take tablets and drugs, and over New Year they took alcohol which took away all the barriers.'

Cologne Imam Sami Abu-Yusuf, pictured, suggested the women were attacked because they 'wore perfume'

The number of sexual assaults has prompted numerous demonstrations in Germany and caused significant political problems for chancellor Angela Merkel who is seeking to resolve the issue of uncontrolled migration

Cologne police were heavily criticised for their failure to protect women from the men who had gathered

Asked if that was the reason he was saying the women were attacked, he said: 'No, that is of course forbidden and not only for Muslims. But there were women with very open clothing and they were wearing perfume, and at the same time while walking through the drunken masses, of course for these North African men, that was an excuse to grope them. That doesn't mean to say that I believe women cannot be dressed like this. Everyone has to accept that.'

However as the controversy grows, German security experts have admitted that they had the mosque where he preaches under surveillance for more than a decade, including a raid in 2004 over suspicions that it was at the heart of a secret network of Arabic mujahedeen.

However they failed to come up with any concrete evidence of terrorist attacks that were planned. It has also been confirmed that he is regarded as Salafist extremist orientated on Wahhabism, which is the stricter Saudi Arabian form of Islam.

German FDP-Politician Tobias said: 'His statements are typical thinking for a Salafist. Not just he but other Salafists and Salafists on online platforms have justified the rape of women in the same way.'
A Jetstar flight heading from Perth, Western Australia, to Bali on Saturday was cancelled at the last minute when a flight attendant became ill.

At 6.20am  the same time the flight was scheduled to depart  it was announced over loud speaker to passengers that the flight was cancelled, according to WA Today.

A a Jetstar spokesman said a flight attendant became sick shortly before take-off and left the A320 flight with only a crew of three  one less than necessary as stated in the Australian aviation regulations.

A Jetstar flight from Perth to Bali was cancelled on Saturday morning after a cabin crew member became ill (stock photo)

The airline has apologised for the cancellation and offered passengers accommodation and food and drink vouchers (stock photo)

About 10 people were able to get on another flight in the following hour but the rest of the passengers had to go downstairs and collect their bags, a female passenger said.

'When we asked why [the flight was cancelled], they said a staff member didn't turn up. We saw the pilots on the plane so assumed it was a flight attendant,' she said.

'[Afterwards] the lines were huge and going nowhere at the Jetstar counter.'

The passenger was offered an alternative Jetstar flight at 8pm but decided to book a flight with another airline, citing that she had only a short stay in Bali.

About 10 people were able to get on a second flight to Bali within an hour but the rest had to collect their bags (stock photo)

A Jetstar spokesman apologised for the cancellation and said that passengers were given accommodation and food and drink vouchers.

'While these types of cancellations are very rare, we understand it would have been extremely frustrating and our team worked to get passengers to their destination as quickly as possible on alternative flights,' he said.

Most passengers flew to Bali later that day on alternative Jetstar flights but some were forced to wait until Sunday morning to fly out,' the spokesman said.
New York City has agreed to pay two Occupy Wall Street protesters $52,000 after they were arrested for giving the middle finger to police officers on the subway.

Nicholas Thommen, 31, and Channing Creager, 26, were arrested on 27 June 2013 for flipping off NYPD cops Diane Bowman and John Harrigan on a Queens subway train.

The officers got out of the car and arrested them on charges of disorderly conduct. The protesters argued that the cops falsely claimed that they shouted 'F**k these cops' and yelled all police are 'f**king rapists'.

Nicholas Thommen, 31, and Channing Creager, 26, were arrested on 27 June 2013 for flipping off NYPD cops Diane Bowman and John Harrigan on a Queens subway train (file picture)

The officers got out of the car and arrested them on charges of disorderly conduct (file picture)

The protesters argued that cops falsely claimed that they shouted 'F**k these cops' and yelled all police are 'f**king rapists' (file picture)

Thommen and Creager spent the night in jail and the charges were dismissed after the pair stayed out of trouble for six months.

They eventually sued the city for violating their constitutional right to express themselves freely, protected by the First Amendment.

'Thommen and Creager gestured toward Bowman and Harrigan with their middle finger raised, an internationally recognized symbol of dislike and displeasure, and in doing so exercised their constitutional right, guaranteed under the state and federal constitutions, to freely express themselves,' the suit states.

After the settlement, their lawyers Jason Leventhal and Edward Donlon said in a statement:

'Our clients are pleased with the city's acknowledgement of their First Amendment right to express themselves even when those expressions may be considered offensive, controversial, or unpopular.'

A spokesman for the city Law Department said the settlement was in the best interest of the city.

Thommen, of Michigan, had also been arrested in 2012 for taking part in a window-breaking incident at a Starbucks coffee shop in the East Village, New York City.
Daniel Smith, pictured, was found dead in a burning tent under a railway arch in Manchester

Detectives have launched a murder inquiry after a 23-year-old homeless man was found in a burning tent under a railway arch in Manchester.

Daniel Smith was discovered when fire crews were called to the blaze at 1.20am on Wednesday, close to Salford Central Station, near Manchester city centre.

Mr Smith, who is originally from Ashton-under-Lyne but had been homeless for some time, died from multiple injuries to the head and body.

It is understood that blood splatters were found in the tent and police believe he had been attacked before the fire was started deliberately.

Detectives have also failed to rule out that the attackers were children after fellow rough sleepers claimed youngsters were to blame. It is thought the fire could have been a prank gone wrong.

One homeless man David Palmer said he thought Mr Smith had been attacked before being set alight.

In an interview with the BBC, he said: 'I heard that kids beat him up and set him on fire. I was going to go there last night [Tuesday evening], it could have been me.'

Det Ch Insp Chris Walker, from Greater Manchester Police, said officers had been yet to verify Mr Palmer's claims and that they were 'investigating all possibilities'.

Two crews from Manchester Central station were called to the fire and when they arrived they extinguished the burning tent and discovered Mr Smith inside.

Alex Lewis, 20, who is also homeless has slept under the arches.

Police and forensic experts at the scene where Mr Smith was found inside a tent, under a railway arch, near Salford Central railway

Investigation continues: Officers discuss their next move as they look for clues to find those responsible

In an interview with The Independent he said: 'I've stayed there a few times. It's grim, but it's out of the way and seemed to be safe, but I wouldn't go there again. It's horrible to think this has happened.

'I wouldn't wish that on anyone. I don't know how whoever did this can think they can get away with it.'

Another homeless man, a 29-year-old former soldier who asked not to be named, said he had been sleeping near where Mr Smith had died, but had left the area shortly before it happened.

He added people had rushed to help Mr Smith and that he now wanted to leave the area after the fire.

Forensic officers at the scene of Mr Smith's murder. Fellow rough sleepers are concerned for their welfare following the attack

Police say Mr Smith was found with multiple injuries to the head and body inside the tent underneath the railway arch, close to Manchester city centre

Chief Supt Mary Doyle, head of Salford Police, said: 'Our inquiries over the past 24 hours have found that this man suffered a number of injuries before his body was discovered in the early hours of Wednesday in a tent following a fire.

'We have been carrying out a joint investigation with the fire service to establish the cause of this fire which is now being treated as a deliberate ignition.

'We believe the answers to our questions about what happened to this man lie in the community, particularly other members of the homeless community who may have been nearby at the time.

'Someone must have seen or heard something so we are appealing to anyone with even the smallest bit of information to come and tell us what they know.

'Our thoughts are with Daniel's family and friends at this terrible time. We are determined to find out who is responsible and bring them to justice.'

Chief Supt Doyle said it is believed Mr Smith had been homeless for a number of years.

His tent was found in an archway close to the derelict Riverside building where a number of other homeless people had been staying.

In the wake of the tragedy emergency crews have been carrying out a detailed search of the area and action has been taken to seal a nearby building that was being used by the homeless as shelter.

A fire investigation team has been at the scene trying to establish the cause of the blaze.

Campaigners have urged for more support for Manchester's rough sleepers - with new figures showing there are around 70 homeless people in the city each night  believed to be the highest figure outside the capital.

The figure is nearly double last year's figure of 43 and ten times the number in 2010

Forty extra beds were created by Manchester City Council in September - with plans underway to set up a 'homeless charter' supported by the police, charities, doctors and the Bishop of Manchester, the Right Reverend Dr David Walker.
Police in Cologne are investigating a staggering 359 sexual assaults and a total of 821 complaints after a migrant mob went on the rampage in the city on New Year's Eve.

In figures released by the state government in North Rhine-Westphalia, the full extent of crimes ranging from pick pocketing to gang rape, police are investigating is laid bare in what has been dubbed a 'list of shame'.

It shows that a total of 359 sexual assaults have been reported to German police and that 659 women are recorded as having been victims of the mob.

Police in Cologne are investigating a staggering 359 sexual assaults and a total of 821 complaints after a migrant mob went on the rampage in the city on New Year's Eve close to the cathedral, pictured

The report also reveals that when the number of complaints in Cologne is added to those elsewhere in North Rhine-Westphalia in cities such as Dortmund and Dusseldorf, a total of 1,049 crimes are being investigated.

The new shocking figures come as Cologne Police said they were investigating 30 people from North African countries in connection with the New Years Eve attacks for robbery, theft and trafficking stolen goods.

Eight suspects are currently in detention, with one of them is accused of sexual assault for allegedly groping a woman.

The report also reveals that when the number of complaints in Cologne is added to those elsewhere in North Rhine-Westphalia in cities such as Dortmund and Dusseldorf, a total of 1,049 crimes are being investigated

Women were said to have been attacked during a fireworks display in the square by the cathedral in front of Cologne's train station

The figures were released by state government minister Ralf Jaeger who said all of the suspects were of North African descent and 15 of them did not have paperwork to prove they were given indefinite leave to remain in Germany.

The figures were released by state government minister Ralf Jaeger who said all of the suspects were of North African descent

He said another two were under the age of 18.

The figures come after police logs from the night, released yesterday showed the full horror the women experienced when they were set upon by the out-of-control mob of men on the steps of the city's historic cathedral.

The notes reveal how women complained they were surrounded by men who tried to put their hands inside their underwear.

One woman told police she was surrounded by 20 men of North African appearance before they attacked her, while another said hands were 'all over her breasts and buttocks'.

Thieves rifled through a woman's handbag while others distracted her by shoving their hands underneath her clothes.

In an appalling catalogue of complaints, the women who were attacked during a fireworks display in the square by the cathedral in front of Cologne's train station told how they had mobile phones, bank cards and cash stolen.

It has since emerged that similar 'mob sex assaults' have been carried out in other German cities and other European countries, including Sweden, Finland and Austria.

After reports that the attacks were carried out by 'mainly Arabic and North African men', protests have been held all over Europe to limit migration into the EU.
A pair of Algerian asylum seekers living in Germany and suspected of robbing an elderly woman's handbag used multiple identities to claim asylum and hide previous arrests.

The pair, aged 17 and 31 told police in Essen, western Germany they had fled war-torn Syria after they were arrested on suspicion of stealing the 63-year-old woman's handbag.

However, police soon discovered that both men, whose names have not been released, had been arrested on a number of previous occasions using different identities.

The two migrants are accused of trying to steal this handbag from a 63-year-old woman in Essen, Germany

German police confirmed the men were armed with a pair of scissors, pictured, and a can of pepper spray

When searched, one of the men was armed with a pair of scissors and the other was carrying a cannister of CS gas.

The pair were spotted by suspicious staff and customers who alerted the police who arrested the men at the scene and took them to the police station.

While at the police station, the suspects mocked officers, with the 31-year-old Algerian claiming: 'I am not worried, tomorrow will back on the streets for a bit of zapzarap (stealing).'

Earlier in the week police warned that of many of those questioned during a probe, 150 people in two asylum homes in North Rhine-Westphalia claimed to be from Syria but were really from North Africa, and in addition every second person had registered at least twice giving them an alternative identity, and sometimes as many as four or five times.

One of the suspects, who was armed with a can of pepper spray, pictured, laughed at German police claiming he would be back stealing the following day

A police spokesman said: 'Having multiple identities makes it very difficult to identify serial criminals as their crimes are spread among different aliases.'

A fingerprinting system is being introduced for asylum seekers, but it will reportedly not start to take effect until summer of this year at the earliest.

The duo have been charged with illegal possession of weapons, serial theft and resisting arrest.

German chancellor Angela Merkel is facing increasing unrest over the level of refugees arriving in the country every day.

A poll by state broadcaster ZDF found that a majority of people cannot cope with the influx of refugees over the past 12 months.

Events such as the mass sex attacks on New Year's Eve in Cologne have prompted some Germans to arm themselves with air pistols and CS gas.

Pavel Svedlov, manager of Berlin's Soldier of Fortune weapon shop told the BBC: 'You can buy these items legally in Germany. Though they are illegal to use against other people. But our clients are more concerned about protecting themselves. That is their priority.

'People are coming to Germany with fake IDs or no papers at all, saying they are refugees. We have no idea who they really are. Many Germans feel it's a ticking time bomb.

'The people who came to our shop used to be young men but now we have a lot of female customers and older people too. We normally offer a choice of 15 different types of pepper sprays for example. Now we've sold out and so have our suppliers.'

Chancellor Angela Merkel will press Ankara to help stem the flow of migrants to Europe in talks with Turkey's prime minister.

Germany and Turkey have emerged as key players in the biggest migration crisis to rock Europe since World War II, and both Merkel and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu will seek to drive a hard bargain at the meeting between the two countries' cabinets.

German police have launched major operation in Dusseldorf, pictured, targeting a gang of north African men believed to be involved in an organised theft ring based in the so-called 'Mahgreb Quarter'

Chancellor Angela Merkel, right, is coming under increasing political pressure over the ongoing migrant crisis

German public opinion has shifted dramatically as a result of the constant flow of migrants heading north

The outcome of today's talks are not only important for Merkel, who faces intense pressure at home to impose a cap on Germany's refugee intake, but it will also have resonance across Europe where public opinion is hardening against a record asylum seeker influx.

Despite wintry conditions, thousands of people fleeing war and misery are still embarking on the dangerous journey across the Mediterranean to seek a better life in Europe.

Another two boats carrying dozens of migrants sank, killing 21 people, Greece's coastguard said today.

EU member states have been split about how to resolve the crisis, with Austria the latest to draw fire when it decided to impose a limit on its asylum seeker intake.

Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz said his country's measure serves as a 'wake-up call' to push Europe to find a joint solution.

Merkel has so far faced down demands for a quota, after nearly 1.1 million asylum seekers arrived in Germany in 2015.

She has instead promised a 'tangible reduction' in new arrivals, and is counting on international efforts to deliver.
George Galloway has been branded an 'apologist' for Russia after saying a public inquiry blaming Vladimir Putin for the murder of Alexander Litvinenko was a 'show trial' and a 'farce'.

The former MP called the Russian President 'the most popular politician on the planet' and said he did not accept Mr Putin would order Mr Litvinenko's assassination in Mayfair in 2006.

Sir Robert Owen's explosive report published yesterday came to the conclusion that Putin 'probably' ordered two KGB agents to kill him on UK soil in an act of 'nuclear terrorism'.

Defence: George Galloway last night branded a report blaming Vladimir Putin for Alexander Litvinenko's death a 'farce' - and praised the Russian President

Assassination: Alexander Litvinenko was murdered two assassins slipped radioactive polonium 210 into his cup of tea in a London hotel in October 2006

Definition: Mr Galloway compared it to claims that a dossier on Saddam Hussein's supposed weapons of mass destruction had been 'sexed up' ahead of the Iraq War

In a bizarre interview on Newsnight last night Mr Galloway, who presents a show on Russia Today, compared the damning ruling to a famous lager advert and said: 'Carlsberg is probably the best lager in the world. But perhaps not.'

He said that 'Britain needs Russia and Putin' and accused critics of the country of pursuing a 'Cold War agenda', adding that spies may have lied about what happened when the murder happened.

He said: 'The reality is we need Russia. Russia was very popular in the West when a drunkard who was handing over Russia's wealth to the oligarchs was in power. It's not so popular now that Russia has a strong President that's trying to restore a lot of the lost prestige'.

Sir Robert's report was 'riddled with imperfection' because it was based on 'secret evidence' and hinted it was a cover-up, comparing it to the inquest into Sir David Kelly's death.

The controversial politician added: 'I no longer believe automatically - nor do many people in Britain - what the security services say.

'The tragedy of this foul murder has been followed by another Whitehall farce. This is the Hutton Inquiry (which looked at David Kelly's death) all over again.

'Secret evidence, closed sessions. Large sections of this process were closed to the public and the media.'

MPs criticised his remarks last night and said he was not fit to stand for Mayor of London this year while ignoring 'Nuclear terrorism' on the city's streets in 2006.

The report found the plot to kill Mr Litvinenko began in 2004 after he accused Russian security services of links to organised crime and deliberately carrying out the 1999 bombings in Moscow that killed 307.

Slammed: MPs said Mr Galloway was an 'apologist' for Putin and 'unfit for public office'

Criticism: Mr Galloway's appearance on Newsnight began trending on Twitter with many confused and angry about his words

Sir Robert's inquiry named Andrei Lugovoi, left, and Dmitri Kovtun, right, as the two men responsible for carrying out the orders to kill Litvinenko by slipping radioactive polonium into a teapot

He also claimed in 2006 that Mr Putin destroyed videotapes in the FSB archive of himself having sex with underage boys.

Mr Litvinenko was given green tea laced with polonium-210 at the Millennium hotel in London in November 2006, the report concluded. His killers survived as the radioactive material has to be ingested to kill.

A month earlier they had failed to get Litvinenko to consume a drink which had been similarly laced. Tests found British airports and flights to Europe and Russia were also contaminated. Sir Robert found the use of polonium was a strong indicator of state involvement as it had to be made at a nuclear reactor.

Russia has refused to extradite the two suspects, instead showering them with honours. Lugovoi is now a prominent Russian MP.

David Cameron said the reports findings were shocking but refused to take tough action against Russia, saying Britain could not afford to lose Moscows help in Syria.

Mr Litvinenko, who took British citizenship after seeking asylum in 2000, was an outspoken critic of the Kremlin and also worked as an adviser for MI6.

His familys lawyers said it would be craven for the Government to do nothing in response to an act of nuclear terrorism on British soil.
Resembling post-apocalyptic scenes, video footage has emerged showing tents burning through the night after violent protests at The Jungle migrant camp.

As fires raged, refugees shouted 'f*** you' and let off fireworks towards police while fighting eviction from the Calais squat.

Tear gas and baton charges were used by officers as they tried to restore order.

Around 300 migrants refuse to be moved from the camp to a purpose-built shelter because it would force them to be fingerprinted in France and therefore prevent them applying for asylum in Britain.

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Apocalyptic scenes: Video footage has emerged showing burning tents after violent protests at The Jungle

Fury: Refugees shouted 'f*** you' and let off fireworks at police while fighting eviction from the Calais squat

The footage was posted on Facebook on Wednesday by the French group Calais Libre with the comment: 'Here are the expelled migrants in action last night, and you can hear the pretty words that they use (f***, f***, f*** you)'.

Meanwhile, a lorry driver was reportedly hospitalised after being robbed by a gang of migrants at knifepoint and sprayed with tear gas.

The Lithuanian trucker was allegedly attacked by three refugees at a garage in the French port.

The attackers made off his wallet and mobile phone, it was reported by The Daily Express which cited local media.

Police are studying CCTV as part of their investigation.

Tensions have erupted all week after the Pas de Calais prefecture handed the migrants an ultimatum to get out of a stretch of the Jungle before it was demolished.

Riot: A refugee dodges tear gas as he runs through the Junge today as migrants clashed with police

Gassed: Migrants run for cover as French riot police throw tear gas after hundreds of migrants tried to board trucks bound for Britain near the A16 motorway near the site of the Eurotunnel in Coquelles, near Calais

Duck and run: Around 300 migrants tried to board trucks protected by French police, according to witnesses

Bulldozers moved in this week to clear sections of the camp, which currently contains more than 5,000 people who want to start a new life in Britain.

Hundreds of migrants yesterday also clashed with French riot police while trying to jump on trucks bound for Britain.

Officers again used tear gas to break up around 300 refugees gathering near the Eurotunnel entrance.

The migrants had a deadline of yesterday afternoon to move. If they did not, they will be forcibly evicted, according to the terms of the official order.

Smokescreen: A migrant runs near clouds of tear gas in a field near Calais as migrants gather in the hope of attempting to board lorries making their way across the Channel to Britain

Face off: A French riot police officer guarding trucks keeps watch over migrants trying to sneak into Britain

A French riot police officer gestures next to migrants near the A16 motorway near the site of the Eurotunnel

The prefecture has proposed giving those displaced priority in new containers opened a week ago to shelter up to 1,500 migrants, but thousands more will have nowhere to go.

Many of the migrants view the makeshift containers  which contain electricity plugs and heating  as prisons and want to stay in their tents and bivouacs.

Some migrants have began blocking the port road or throwing stones to slow down UK-bound traffic so they can jump aboard.

Police fear there will be more trouble as the attempts to evict the migrants intensify.

Migrants look on as French riot police stand guard after migrants tried to mount several trucks on the A16 motorway near the site of the Eurotunnel in Coquelles, near Calais

On patrol: French riot police officers walk in front of a fence with the lettering 'Calais' near the A16 motorway

Run: Young refugees run from police during the chaotic scenes today as police descended en masse

It came as British MPs and HGV drivers warned that EU plans to force Britain to accept 90,000 refugees in the next year as part a quota will make Calais 'even more of a magnet' to migrants.

There has been widespread fury at the plans from Brussels but a failure to agree a quota could see the UK denied the right to deport asylum seekers to their country of arrival.

Number 10 last night vowed to fight the proposal, which is a major blow to David Cameron's EU referendum ambitions.

The European Commission wants a new quota system under which member states share out the estimated 1.3million people expected to arrive in Europe this year.

French riot police monitor The Jungle migrant camp in Calais after a night of rioting by hundreds of refugees

French riot police officers stand at the entrance of the Calais migrant camp. Tear gas and baton charges were used by officers as they tried to restore order next to the so-called 'Jungle' refugee camp in the port town

Keeping watch: French police officers stand on their van at the entrance of the Calais migrant camp

Britain, which would be expected to take around 90,000, has been warned that  if it refuses  it will lose its right to send home migrants who should have made their claims elsewhere.

MPs and hauliers warned this would make Calais even more of a magnet for asylum seekers. Richard Burnett of the Road Haulage Association said: 'The floodgates would open.

'The migrants that are already there don't want to be in France, they want to get to the UK, and this would just make the problem far far worse.'

Tory backbencher Peter Bone said: 'This is absolutely absurd. It is typical of the European Union to want to change the rules to penalise Britain.'

French police detain migrants (seen in the background) in The Jungle. Bulldozers moved in this week to clear part of the Jungle, which currently contains more than 5,000 people who want to start a new life in Britain
She ripped Ghazunfer Ali's glasses off before throwing them out window

A single mother slashed a taxi driver's face with a wine glass during a drunken rampage after she admitted she had no money to pay her fare.

Kelly Battye, 24, who had sipping red from a glass in the back seat, attacked 49-year old cabbie Ghazunfer Ali after he refused to take her any further having been directed to the wrong address.

During the assault, Battye ripped Mr Ali's glasses from his face - scratching him in the process - before throwing them out of the open car window.

Then as the driver got out of the vehicle and scrabbled around on the floor looking for his spectacles, Battye jumped out and smashed the wine glass across the side of his head, causing a deep wound to the cheek.

Kelly Battye, 24, who had sipping red from a glass in the back seat, attacked 49-year old cabbie Ghazunfer Ali after he refused to take her any further having been directed to the wrong address

She then chased the petrified driver around his own car screaming and shouting before he ran to a nearby taxi rank for safety.

Factory worker Battye was detained at the scene in Oldham, Greater Manchester, by a passing taxi driver who witnessed the attack.

Police found her virtually 'unable to walk' through drink. She later falsely claimed she lashed out the driver because she was 'locked in' the car.

It emerged Battye, from Oldham, had hired a babysitter for the night to look after her five-month old daughter so she could go out drinking.

She was attempting to travel to a friend's house having already downed wine at home.

Mr Ali was off work for six weeks following the attack and required a number of stitches to the cut to his face.

He said he still suffered pain in his face and is now intimidated when picking up groups of two or more in his private hire taxi.

At Minshull Street Crown Court, Manchester, prosecutor Nicola Wells said the incident occurred on February 20 when Battye ordered a taxi through a local minicab firm at 6.30pm.

A driver from the firm arrived to collect her but initially refused to let her in as she was holding a full glass of wine - only to relent when he realised she was a regular customer.

Miss Wells said: 'She began to behave oddly and was asking to be taken to an address, but when taken there she said it was the wrong address.

As the driver got out of the vehicle and scrabbled around on the floor looking for his spectacles, Battye jumped out of the cab and smashed the wine glass across the side of his head, causing a deep wound to the cheek

'The driver felt intimidated by her and the fact she had the glass and was shouting demands.'

Battye was taken to the cab office where Mr Ali who was also on duty. He agreed to take the fare to Spencer Street, which he believed to be nearby - only to be directed to the wrong Spencer Street.

Miss Wells added: 'She said she wanted to go to the other one, however Mr Ali explained he couldn't take her further because she indicated she had no money.

'With this he faced Miss Battye and she pulled his glasses off his face, while doing this she caused a scratch.

'She then threw his glasses out of the open window. He got out of the vehicle to find them and she got out at the same time and while he was looking on the floor he felt something smash against the left side of his face. He put his hands up and realised he was bleeding.

'Miss Battye was screaming and shouting and she chased him around the vehicle so he ran to the taxi office.'

Mr Ali was treated in Royal Oldham Hospital but has now been left scarred for life.

He told police: 'It took me more than six weeks to return to my job. I feel like I needed counselling but was never offered any and being a man I felt too embarrassed to ask.'

In mitigation, defence lawyer Caroline Patrick said her client had recently split from her long-term partner and had been caring for her poorly mother.

She said Battye had panicked after Mr Ali dropped her off 'in the middle of nowhere'.

Miss Patrick added: 'She was allowed to get in his taxi with a wine glass full of wine.

Factory worker Battye was detained at the scene in Oldham, Greater Manchester, by a passing taxi driver who witnessed the attack

'You may have gathered from interviews and her recollection of events, she was clearly hindered by the amount of alcohol.

'She feels utter disbelief why she acted as she did because she doesn't believe it's her. She has let her daughter and mother down. She didn't feel she could actually react in the way she has.'

Passing sentence, Judge Leslie Hull said: 'On this particular night you were worse for drink and you caused these taxi drivers a great deal of aggravation.

'Your victim came along and he, doing you a favour because he would have been entitled to refuse you, came to your assistance and offered to take you.

'But you didn't have any money and all of that led to an argument between you and he and you lashed out at him.

'There are powerful arguments in favour of sending you immediately to prison.

;It involved a weapon and injury was inflicted but in your case exceptionally I have to take into account that you are a full-time carer for your five-year-old daughter and also you are a carer for your mother who is ill.

'You will probably never realise just how close you came to going to prison.'

Battye pleading guilty to unlawful wounding and criminal damage and was given a 13-month prison sentence, suspended for a year.
Two fraudsters used the spoils of a credit card scam to go on a drinking binge worthy of the characters in Hollywood movie The Hangover.

Jamie Abernathy and Brian Darroch ordered three kitchen stoves, bought almost 500 kilos of fish worth 35,000 and even chartered a private jet for 3,600.

The two Scotsmen, who were on a visit to the Lancashire seaside resort of Blackpool, also treated themselves to meals, hotel rooms and vast quantities of alcohol after stealing credit card details from five members of a gym.

Brian Darroch (left) and Jamie Abernathy (right) went on a spending spree using stolen credit card details, bizarrely ordering kitchen stoves, buying 500 kilos of fish and even chartering a private jet

A court heard it is not known what happened to the huge cargo of fish - comprising Dover sole, halibut, lobster and king scallops - which the pair bought from a seafood wholesaler in Fleetwood, Lancashire.

Also unknown is why the pair had ordered three stoves for 4,000 and why they had hired the jet to fly them from Blackpool to the Hertfordshire village of Elstree - home of the famous TV and movie studios.

In the 2009 American comedy movie The Hangover, starring Bradley Cooper, a group of friends try to piece together their series of scrapes after a drunken stag night in Las Vegas.

The pair's drunken antics have been compared to the plot of the film The Hangover

Details of the antics of railway worker Abernathy, 46, and jobless 35-year-old Darroch emerged at Burnley Crown Court, where a judge exclaimed: 'Good Heavens' when told of their extravagant spending spree.

It took place in 2013 when Abernathy and Darroch, both from Ayr, joined the Bannatyne's health club in Blackpool, 200 miles from home, using false names and dates of birth.

Prosecutor Jonathan Dickinson said both claimed to live at an address in the seaside resort, which turned out to be vacant. They also falsely said they were construction workers, the court heard.

Mr Dickinson said: 'Staff became suspicious and after they had left, staff had checked the lockers in the changing room and discovered 12 lockers were locked, keys had been removed but there was no property inside the lockers.

'In the days after the defendants joined a number of members of the club had their credit card details stolen. Their credit cards were amongst their property locked in the club lockers.

'The credit card details were then used fraudulently in order to purchase hotel accommodation, copious amounts of alcohol, meals and a private jet flight from Blackpool airport to Elstree in North London, costing 3,600.

'A little unusually, the credit card details were also used to buy seafood at just under 35,000 - namely 80 kilos of Dover Sole, 80 kilos of halibut, 150 kilos of lobster and 150 kilos of king scallops.'

The pair were arrested after Bannatynes staff contacted police when they returned to the health club. Abernathy had a bag with him, containing 11 keys, which were copies of changing room locker keys.

The pair strangely hired a private jet from Blackpool to Elstree in Hertfordshire, costing 3,600. File photo

It emerged they used copies of changing room locker keys. Abernathy got the information from bank cards in the wallets of their five victims, whilst Darroch kept look-out.

They were bailed but later carried out a similar scam at a Bannatyne's Gym in Burton-upon-Trent, Staffs, whereupon the three stoves worth 4,000 were ordered after the pair used stolen credit card details to buy more food, drink and hotel accommodation.

The victims of all the scams were unaware of the frauds until their credit card statements came through.

Abernathy and Darroch both admitted conspiracy to commit fraud. Abernathy was given 20 months in custody, suspended for two years and was ordered to complete 150 hours unpaid work. He was ordered to pay 5,000 compensation to M and J Seafood wholesalers.

Darroch was given 10 months jail suspended for 18 months, with supervision for a year and 100 hours unpaid work.

They also bought 35,000-worth of seafood - including 150 kilos of lobster and 150 kilos of scallops. File photo

In mitigation Steve Rudge, for Abernathy, said his client had an issue with alcohol and added : ' His wife left him and that led to him living in a bedsit, with too much time on his hands and he turned to alcohol.

'They are now reconciled and he is back in the family unit. The position now is greatly different. Mr Abernathy is indeed remorseful. He is ashamed of his behaviour.

'He is now back in the category of a respectable person, rather than the absolute rogue that he presented before.'

For Darroch, Anthony Parkinson said his client had since abstained from alcohol. The solicitor added: ' The defendant who sits in the dock today in January 2016 is a very different individual to the one who committed this unpleasant offence back in 2013.'

Sentencing, Judge Ian Leeming, QC told the two men: 'Your joining of Bannatyne's Health Club was not to lift weights or go on the machines, although you could have done, as for all I know you might have done that occasionally as part of your cover.'

The judge had commented: 'Good heavens,' when told about the private jet and added: 'It seems incredibly cheeky and arrogant.'
Alexander Litvinenko claimed that Vladimir Putin had been caught on camera having sex with young boys, according to the inquiry into the spy's murder.

When the future Russian president was a student, he was filmed abusing children in a flat where another top politician had a threesome with prostitutes, Litvinenko wrote in a sensational web post.

The wild claim is recorded in Sir Robert Owen's inquiry report as part of a long list of allegations made by the assassinated spy against Mr Putin after he fled Russia and settled in Britain.Litvinenko made the accusation after the president was pictured kissing the stomach of a five-year-old boy during a walkabout in the Kremlin in June 2006.

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Claims: Alexander Litvinenko, left, accused Vladimir Putin of being a paedophile after he was pictured kissing the stomach of a five-year-old boy, right

Scandal: Litvinenko claimed that Mr Putin abused children in the same flat where Yuri Skuratov had sex with two prostitutes, pictured

The inquiry report describes how the dissident claimed Mr Putin was a 'paedophile', adding that videos existed of him 'making sex with some underage boys'.

Litvinenko said that Mr Putin destroyed the footage, which allegedly saw him sent away from Russia for a while when he was a student, after becoming head of the FSB secret service.

Sir Robert quotes Litvinenko's blog in response to the Kremlin incident, which made the inflammatory allegations in broken English.

Litvinenko wrote: 'The world public is shocked. Nobody can understand why the Russian president did such a strange thing as kissing the stomach of an unfamiliar small boy.

'The explanation may be found if we look carefully at the so-called "blank spots" in Putin's biography.

'After graduating from the Andropov Institute, which prepares officers for the KGB intelligence service, Putin was not accepted into the foreign intelligence. Instead, he was sent to a junior position in KGB Leningrad Directorate.

Meeting: Mr Putin's encounter with Nikita Konkin, pictured, came during a walkabout in the Kremlin

Family: Litvinenko's son Anatoly and wife Marina after the publication of the report into his death

President: Mr Putin is alleged to have ordered Litvinenko's killing after the ex-spy fled Russia became one of his fiercest critics

'This was a very unusual twist for a career of an Andropov Institute's graduate with fluent German. Why did that happen with Putin?

'Because, shortly before his graduation, his bosses learned that Putin was a pedophile [sic]. So say some people who knew Putin as a student at the Institute.

Inquiry: Litvinenko's allegations were reproduced in the report released yesterday by retired High Court judge Sir Robert Owen, pictured

'The Institute officials feared to report this to their own superiors, which would cause an unpleasant investigation. They decided it was easier just to avoid sending Putin abroad under some pretext. Such a solution is not unusual for the secret services.

'Many years later, when Putin became the FSB director and was preparing for the presidency, he began to seek and destroy any compromising materials collected against him by the secret services over earlier years. It was not difficult, provided he himself was the FSB director.

'Among other things, Putin found videotapes in the FSB Internal Security directorate, which showed him making sex with some underage boys.'

Litvinenko went on to connect Putin's alleged paedophile past to the case of Yuri Skuratov, a senior politician in Russia who was caught on camera having sex with two prostitutes.

In the next section of the blog post quoted by Sir Robert, he wrote: 'Interestingly, the video was recorded in the same conspiratorial flat in Polyanka Street in Moscow where Russian Prosecutor-General Yuri Skuratov was secretly video-taped with two prostitutes.

'Later, in the famous scandal, Putin (on Roman Abramovich's instructions) blackmailed Skuratov with these tapes and tried to persuade the Prosecutor-General to resign.

'In that conversation, Putin mentioned to Skuratov that he himself was also secretly video-taped making sex at the same bed. (But of course, he did not tell it was pedophilia [sic] rather than normal sex.)'

Sir Robert wrote in his report: 'It hardly needs saying that the allegations made by Mr Litvinenko against President Putin in this article were of the most serious nature. Could they have had any connection with his death?'

Affair: Skuratov quit as prosecutor-general after his dalliance with prostitutes was revealed

Killer: Sir Robert's inquiry named Andrei Lugovoi, left, and Dmitri Kovtun, right, as the two men responsible for carrying out the orders to kill Litvinenko by slipping radioactive polonium into a teapot

The Kremlin has never commented directly on the allegations made by Litvinenko, but yesterday the Russian government dismissed the whole inquiry report as 'Western propaganda'.

Giving evidence to the inquiry last year, Litvinenko's widow Marina said she had 'no idea' whether or not the paedophile claims were true.

Sir Robert concluded that Mr Putin had 'probably' approved the dissident's assassination himself, along with the current head of the FSB.

Litvinenko died in November 2006 after drinking tea laced with radioactive polonium during a meeting with Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun at a London hotel.

Mr Putin's encounter with the five-year-old boy a few months earlier made global headlines, as the Russian president insisted it was nothing more than a gesture of affection.

'People came up and I began talking to them, among them this little boy,' Mr Putin said afterwards. 'He seemed to me very independent, sure of himself and at the same time defenceless so to speak, an innocent boy and a very nice little boy.

'I tell you honestly, I just wanted to stroke him like a kitten and it came out in this gesture. There is nothing behind it.'

The child, named by Russian media as Nikita Konkin, said that he had refused to wash after Mr Putin had kissed his stomach.

'I just liked him and he liked me very much,' Nikita said. 'I want to be president myself.'

Speaking six years later, Nikita said: 'My grandma and me were at Red Square. I was talking to a friend, I didn't even see Putin. And then grandma told me: "Look, the president's coming!"

'I turned, he was walking with bodyguards. He waved his hand to me as if he called me. I went to him. Putin asked who I am - and then kissed me. That was it. I was surprised a lot.
A global advertising agency is under fire for allowing a strip tease featuring woman wearing bondage-style lingerie and dancing with bags on their heads, to be performed at a work party.

M&C Saatchi celebrated the agencys 21 years in Australia by hosting 600 staff and clients at the exclusive Beresford Hotel in Sydneys Surry Hills.

It wouldnt be a 21st, however, without a cake. Ladies and gentlemen, happy birthday, Saatchi CEO James Leggett said before a woman jumped out from inside the cake to perform a striptease, reported Mumbrella.

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M&C Saatchi celebrated the agencys 21 years in Australia by hosting 600 staff and clients at the exclusive Beresford Hotel in Sydneys Surry Hills

A second striptease performance featured several woman who took off their shirts to reveal bondage-style underwear

A second striptease performance featured several woman who took off their shirts to reveal bondage-style underwear and ended with the dancers lifting Louis Vuitton bags over their heads, hiding their entire face.

Video of both striptease performances where shared on YouTube where guests of the party can be heard cheering and whistling during the show.

The advertising party was also criticised for harking back to the chauvinistic era of advertising of the 1960s, depicted in the TV drama Mad Men.

Strip: The advertising party was also criticised for harking back to the chauvinistic era of advertising of the 1960s, depicted in the TV drama Mad Men

The second striptease performance ended with the dancers lifting Louis Vuitton bags over their heads, hiding their entire face

'If Mad Men taught us anything it's that this is not a good idea,' Dr Lauren Rosewarne, senior lecturer in the school of Social and Political Sciences at the University of Melbourne, told Sydney Morning Herald.

Social media users also joined in condemning the ad agency, telling M&C Saatchi to grow up.

We're so cool and creative. F**ks sake #m&csaatchi get a clue. #21stcentury #darkages #misogyny, Katie Duncan wrote on Twitter.

Social backlash: Social media users condemned of the ad agency, telling M&C Saatchi to grow up'

It's just awkward. The whole thing. Wrote Joseph Merz. Check this for sexism. Admittedly, Australia, but still incredible, wrote Danielle Welton

Hiring strippers to dance with bags over their faces at a corporate function is an awesome idea in 2016, wrote Simon Garlick.

M&C Saatchi defended the striptease performance in a statement from regional creative director Tom McFarlane.

'Our party was a celebration of 21 years of creativity... Throughout the evening there were a diverse repertoire of acts.'
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Former US Marine Amir Hekmati has finally returned home after being held captive in a cramped Iranian cell for more than four years.

Amir Hekmati, from Michigan, who was freed in a prisoner exchange with Iran last week, arrived at Flint's Bishop international airport alongside his sisters and brother-in-law.

He was greeted on the tarmac by his young nephew and niece, a group of veterans and a media scrum.

Speaking after his emotional homecoming, he said: 'Happy to be home. It's been a very long road. It's been a very long journey, and unfortunately many people have traveled this road with me.'

He added that he was 'healthy, tall and with my head held high.'

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Amir Hekmati, a former US Marine, arrives home after being released from Iran, where he was held as a prisoner for more than four years

Amir Hekmati hugs Mike Kildee, brother of US Representative Dan Kildee (left) after touching down at Flint's Bishop international airport

Hekmati told the scrum of reporters: 'Happy to be home. It's been a very long road. It's been a very long journey'

Hekmati was arrested in August 2011 while in Iran to visit his ailing grandmother, and was accused of being a spy for the CIA.

Iran's security and intelligence apparatus are generally suspicious of dual citizens like Hekmati.

He was sentenced to death the following year, but that was downgraded to a 10-year prison term.

He spent the next four years in jail, where his family say he was tortured, drugged and kept in solitary confinement for a year.

At one point, he was even falsely told his own mother had died.

Describing the ordeal, his sister said: 'The Marine's torture was both physical and psychological. Amir's feet were beaten with cables. His kidneys were shocked with a Taser.

'He was drugged by his interrogators, who then forced him to suffer through withdrawal. Amir was also kept in solitary confinement for months on end and held in a cell so small for the first year of his imprisonment that he could not fully extend his legs.

'He was allowed to walk outside his cell once a week.'

She added: 'His jailers took advantage of this and falsely told him his mother had been killed in a car accident.'

The former US Marine walks with Mitchell Rivard and his nephew Ramy Kurdi after arriving at Bishop International Airport in Flint

Hekmati, 32, was the longest-held American among those released by Iran in the past week

Hekmati thanked everyone who fought for his release, from the president to local citizens to his brothers in arms

Hekmati, a Marine held in Iran, is greeted after returning home, more than four years after he was imprisoned

Before landing in the US, Hekmati was taken to Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany for treatment.

Asked how he managed to stay strong in the face of such cruelty, he told reporters: 'I didn't want to let my fellow Marines down and the reputation of the Marine Corps, so I tried my best to keep my head up and withstand all the pressures that were put upon me, some of which were very inhumane and unjust.'

He also admitted he started to feel nervous before boarding the plane to leave Iran.

He said: 'I was worried that maybe the Iranian side was going to make new demands at the last minute or that the deal wasn't going to work out, so up until the last second we were all worried and concerned.'

He also revealed his release from prison was like being 'born again' and that he and the three other prisoners celebrated as soon as they left Iranian airspace.

'That's when we knew we were leaving,' said Hekmati.

'As soon as we got out of Iranian air space, champagne bottles were popped.'

He was reunited with his family earlier this week in Germany (pictured left-to right are his brother-in-law Dr Ramy Kurdi , sister Sarah Hekmati, Congressman Kildee, Amir and sister Leila Hekmati)

The Evin prison in Tehran, at the foot of the Elburs mountains, where Hekmati was held for years

Hekmati, 32, is a former Marine from Michigan who was released from an Iranian prison last week after more than four years

Hekmati was one of five Americans released to coincide with the implementation of a nuclear deal under which international economic sanctions against Iran were lifted in return for curbs on Tehran's atomic program.

He was set free with Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian, Christian minister Saeed Abedini and Nosratollah Khosravi-Roodsari.

A fifth American, a language student, Matt Trevithick, was also released but was not part of the exchange deal.
Awards season is in full swing but Hollywood star Mark Wahlberg was less than impressed with a tribute he received from a London burger vendor.

Ben Denner names all his burgers after film stars without problem but he was shocked to receive a letter from the legal team of the Departed actor because of his 'Mark Wahlberger' sandwich.

Mr Denner, who runs pop-up restaurant Lucky Chip from the Old Queen's Head pub in Islington, north London, was accused of exploiting Wahlberg's name to sell burgers.

The Wahlberger: Ben Denner was accused of exploiting Mark Wahlberg's name by selling his burger, pictured

The 44-year-old actor's legal entourage took issue with the burger because his family own their own burger business, appropriately named 'Wahlburgers'.

They asked Mr Denner to stop using Wahlberg's name because they claimed his product was breaching the star's moral rights and his right of publicity as well as creating the false impression that the actor endorsed the burger.

Mr Denner, who has previously sold burgers named after Goldie Hawn, Antonio Banderas and Kevin Bacon, admitted he thought the wordy legal correspondence was a wind up at first.

Wahlberg's team took issue with the name because the atcor, pictured, has his own firm called Wahlbergers

He said: 'It was called Mark Wahlberg just because he's a cool actor - so we thought we'd give him his own burger.

'Naming our burgers after actors is just something we've always done since we started four years ago - it's just a bit of fun.

'I think it's a slight over reaction - I thought it was a joke at first, until I saw it was such a long, detailed letter.'
The world's oldest Holocaust survivor could be poised to move into the record books as the world's oldest man.

Former Auschwitz prisoner Yisrael Kristal is now 112 and the planet's oldest individual following the death of Japanese man Yasutaro Koide this week.

But getting acknowledged may be difficult. The Guinness Book of World Records requires birth or school certificates and Mr Kristal has neither.

Former Auschwitz prisoner Yisrael Kristal is now 112 and the planet's oldest individual following the death of Japanese man Yasutaro Koide this week

He only has his Polish marriage certificate from 1929 and documents relating to his time spent in the Lodz ghetto and Auschwitz.

Mr Kristal, who lives in Haifa, Israel, said he would 'like very much' to see his name in print as the world's oldest living man.

He was born on September 15, 1903 in Zarnow in Poland and remembers the face of the last Austrian emperor Franz Josef when he rode through his town in a car.

'I remember us children throwing sweets at him,' he said.

In the First World War his mother died and his father was captured by the Russians.

Mr Kristal, who lives in Haifa, Israel, said he would 'like very much' to see his name in print as the world's oldest living man

Mr Kristal's claim to be the world's oldest man comes after the death of Yasutaro Koide, who formerly held the title

As a 17-year old orphan boy he moved to the Polish city of Lodz where he found work in a sweet factory.

In 1940 the Nazis moved him to the medieval style Jewish ghetto they built in the city along with his wife.

In 1944 they were deported to Auschwitz. She was murdered, he managed to live on until the liberation by the Russians in 1945.

Mr Kristal is helped in his wheelchair by his daughter Shula. In 1944, he was deported to Auschwitz, with his first wife who died there

Next week, January 27 - the date on which Auschwitz was liberated by the Red Army - the world will honour the event with World Holocaust Day.

In 1950 Mr Kristal emigrated to Israel with his second wife and son, settled in Haifa and built himself a new life.

'Too much of anything is no good,' has been his motto for a healthy life.
A Scandinavian Airlines plane carrying 72 people from London to Stockholm was forced to make an emergency landing after a bomb threat.

The plane was parked at a remote area of the Landvetter airport in Gothenburg, on Sweden's west coast, where it was met by a bomb squad to search the aircraft.

All passengers and crew were evacuated and later issued with free meal voucher which gave the terrifyingly blunt reason for their diversion as: 'Bomb'.

The drama was relayed on Twitter by British professional racing driver Tom Onslow-Cole while stranded on the plane on the tarmac.

'No sugar coating': Mr Onslow-Cole later tweeted this picture of his meal voucher given to him while he waits at Gothenburg airport which rather bluntly states the reason for it being issued was a 'bomb'

A Scandinavian Airlines plane (pictured) carrying 72 people from London to Stockholm was diverted to Gothenburg after a bomb threat. Passengers were evacuated while a bomb squad searched the aircraft

He tweeted a selfie while pulling a worried face, saying: 'Took off for Stockholm, just landed in Gothenburg... this could get interesting. Anyone know what's happening?

'Plane came down quickly, parked straight up at the end of the runway. Crew and captain is on the bus with us #Iffy.'

He later posted: 'Soooo, it was a bomb threat/scare.

'We are all safe and off the plane, big shout out to the pilot and crew for keeping their cool!'

After disembarking, Mr Onslow-Cole tweeted a picture of his meal voucher given to him while he waits at Gothenburg airport which rather bluntly stated the reason for it being issued was a 'bomb'.

British professional racing driver Tom Onslow-Cole relayed the drama on Twitter while sitting on the plane after landing at Gothenburg. He tweeted this selfie, saying: 'Anyone know what's happening?'

Gustafsson said the bomb technicians were preparing to search the plane.

He said the bomb threat was called in to air traffic controllers while the plane was in the air.

The flight landed at Landvetter around 10am (9am GMT).

All air traffic to and from the airport was initially interrupted because of the bomb scare, but departing flights were later resumed, a spokeswoman for Landvetter said.

Arriving flights will be blocked as long as the police operation is underway, she said.

Landvetter is Sweden's second-biggest airport, registering around six million passengers last year.

An information board showing delayed departures at Landvetter airport in Gothenburg after the bomb threat
A picture of a young woman in a short skirt sitting with her legs apart is being used to show migrant men that revealing clothing isnt an invitation for sex.

The photograph, obtained by MailOnline, is being used in rape prevention classes in Norway to teach asylum seekers appropriate sexual behaviour following the recent attacks in Cologne and elsewhere in Europe.

In classes which may be replicated across the continent, male pupils, mostly of Arab and North African origin, are taught that skimpy clothes do not provide an excuse for rape or abuse.

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Provocative? Migrant men attending rape prevention classes in Norway are shown this photo of an attractive woman sitting in a short skirt to teach them this is not an invitation to have sex with her

Instruction: Linda Hagen address Syrian and Sudanese asylum seekers during a courses to prevent violence against women in Ha, near Stavanger, Norway. The headline reads: 'perception of women and cultural codes'

Speaking exclusively to MailOnline, Linda Hagen, the leader of the course, has revealed the challenges she faces in trying to change the mindset of migrant men who have perpetrated sexual assault.

We can't change men who are violent, as they often have complex problems Linda Hagen, Sex education leader

'I often use a picture to explain what we do,' she said.

'Everyone has experienced [this method of teaching] in school.'

Participants in the course often make comments like 'she kissed him, it's an invitation to have sex', and 'if she wants come to my place, that means she's consenting.'

In response, Ms Hagen explains that Western standards are different to those found in some Islamic countries.

Norway has been offering these courses for several years, but in the wake of the New Year's Eve mass sex attacks in Cologne, Germany, other countries affected have expressed an interest in them.

In Cologne, 766 police reports were made, including 497 for sexual assault that police have blamed on Arab and North African men.

Covered: In addition to a woman dressed provocatively in a short skirt, the group is also shown this picture of a woman covered in a hajib head scarf. They are asked what messages this picture communicates to them

Challenging: Norway offers courses in 'cultural understanding' for newly arrived asylum seekers, the headline on the presentation reads;' what is sexual violence and rape'

Ms Hagen believes that the mass sexual assaults occurred because a hardcore of violent migrants instigated the abuse, and crowds of others - who are not naturally aggressive - followed their lead.

'We can't change men who are violent, as they often have complex problems,' she said, adding that if violent men can be removed from mass groups such attacks can be stopped.

The New Year's Eve sex attacks in Cologne and elsewhere sent shockwaves through Europe.

Gang-rape and group sex attacks, known as 'taharrush gamea' in the Arab world, took place across German cities in January and are spreading to other countries.

The Arabic term translates as 'collective harassment'. It is carried out by large gangs of men who crowd around a woman and commit a group sexual assault, either by groping or raping her.

The gang surrounds the victim in circles. While some members take part in the abuse, others may either look on or divert outsiders' attention to what is occurring.

The practice is carried out in public, normally in crowded places where the attackers can find safety in numbers and chaos.

It first came to the attention of the Western world when the South African CBS reporter Lara Logan was set upon by a large group of men while reporting from Tahrir Square, Egypt, in 2011.

Fear: In the wake of the New Year's Eve mass sex attacks in Cologne, Germany (pictured), other countries have expressed an interest in Norway's 'rape prevention courses' for newly arrived migrants and refugees

Cultural difference: The phenomenon 'taharrush gamea' in the Arab world where men gang-rape women as happened in Cologne on New Year (pictured) is explained to be wrong to men in the classes in Norway

'Taharrush gamea' has not just occurred in Germany. On New Years Eve, coordinated gang rapes were reported in France, Belgium, Sweden, Finland and Norway, where Ms Hagen teaches.

It has led authorities in a number of other European countries expressing an interest in setting up similar classes across the continent.

Ms Hagen compared educating migrants to controlling an unruly class at school.

When pupils are behaving like 'a single noisy mass', she explained, the situation can be defused by giving attention to 'two students with behavioural problems'. After that, the class can become 'completely normal'.

'Asylum seekers stand together with us in the fight against violence and rape in the community. They are concerned about their own reputation and would like to contribute in their new country,' she told MailOnline.

On 27 January, Ms Hagen is leading a conference in Oslo to teach international delegates how they can set up similar courses in their home countries.

Sessions, she said, will be led by 'researchers within fields such as violence, communication, and interpretation of social codes and signs'.

'The idea behind these courses is to talk about risk situations that can arise when it comes to rapes and sexual assaults,' Ms Hagen said.

The group is asked questions such as: 'What is the difference between love and sex?' 'What do these pictures of women projected on a screen bring to mind, one with bare shoulders and the other veiled?' 'Can the use of violence be legitimate?' And 'how do you know if a woman is consenting to sex?'

The participants brainstorm scenarios where cultural differences may cause misunderstandings.

Assaulted: One of the first Cologne victims to speak of her ordeal was Michelle, 18 (pictured). She described being surrounded by a group of 30 'angry' men who groped her and her friends then stole their belongings

'Scarred': 'Jenny' (pictured) was also groped in Cologne. She was burned on the shoulder when a firework was shoved into the hoodie she was wearing and went off

Lawless: In Cologne, 766 police reports were made on New Year's Eve, including 497 for sexual assault that police have blamed on Arab and North African men

The classes, which are organised by Hero, a private company that runs 40 percent of Norway's reception centres, also make use of a video normally shown to secondary school students.

In the clip, a party is in full swing. Two teens are shown flirting and then kissing. The boy pulls the girl, visibly tipsy, upstairs to a room and locks the door behind them.

He becomes increasingly physical with her, despite the signs of resistance she is displaying. 'No means no,' concludes the video.

Ms Hagen explains the video's message to the migrants: 'In Norway, it's quite common to hug, to entwine, to dance very closely without it necessarily leading to a sexual encounter,' she says.

'Everyone is in agreement that rape is bad,' she adds. 'But there are all these grey zones, these situations that are a little difficult to grasp... The problem can arise with any of us.'

 Slide me  Context: The group are asked questions such as: 'What do these pictures of women projected on a screen bring to mind, one with bare shoulders and the other veiled?'

Hero launched the course after a series of rapes committed by foreigners in the southwestern town of Stavanger between 2009 and 2011.

'We invite the residents, both women and men, to have a dialogue about cultural norms and to take responsibility if they see something,' says the organisation's director Tor Brekke.
A man who caused social media outrage and a police investigation by getting a homeless man to pour coffee over his head in exchange for $5 has apologized to him.

A bystander, Carlos Mejia, saw a man who looked to be in his early 20s approach Ronald Leggatt, 65, a longtime New Jersey homeless man, on Monday, and offer him five dollars, according to the Asbury Park Press.

At first, Mejia said he thought the man offering the money was being kind. But then he said he was shocked at what he heard next - if Leggatt would pour hot coffee on his head while the stranger videotaped it, in exchange for the money.

Leggatt said that although he sensed he was being made fun of, he wanted the money too badly to turn down the offer.

He poured the coffee on his head - and when the man made the offer again - he did it again.

Leggatt now has burns on his face from the hot liquid.

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The man who offered $10 for a homeless man to pour coffee over himself - twice- hugs him in an apology

Members of the Hasidic community brought homeless man Ronald Leggatt to a barbershop to get a trim (right)

Horrified by what he was seeing, Mejia said he confronted the man - and claims the man, who is an Orthodox Jew, told him that nothing would happen to him since 'we run the town.'

Outraged, Mejia posted an account of what happened on Facebook.

No charges will be filed after a stranger paid Leggatt $5 to pour coffee on himself twice because he consented even though he was embarrassed

'What are you doing? Do you think its funny to do this to this guy?' Mejia said he demanded.

'The guy got nervous and scared. he said, Whats the problem? Theres many others who are doing this. Theres this website and videos on YouTube of other people paying the homeless to do things like that,' Mejia recounted the man as saying.

Equally outraged readers bombarded the Lakewood Police Department with complaints.

Soon, cops had located not only Leggatt, but the man who offered him the sick deal as well.

However, police decided that since Leggatt voluntarily poured the coffee on his head, no charges would be filed.

'After further investigation it was determined that although the incident occurred in poor judgement, it did not rise to a criminal act. Evidence in the case revealed that both parties were willing participants and no one was injured,' the department wrote on Facebook.

But people in the community are still horrified by what happened.

'Its just something that you dont do to other human beings,' said the Rev. Steve Brigham, a homeless advocate who is familiar with Leggatt.

The Hasidic community too decided to rally around Leggatt.

At least two people, identified by The Lakewood Scoop as Ari Boyer and Jerry B., brought the man who perpetuated the incident back to Leggatt and videotaped as he apologized to him.

After learning of Leggatt's humiliation, the community bought him clothes, a motel for the weekend, and has set up a fundraiser for him

'I'm sorry about what happened,' he said, hugging the homeless man, but kept his back to the camera. He also gave him $20. 'If you want to get me back and pour the coffee on my head, you can do that.'

Leggart looked embarrassed at the offer and turned him down.

'You look beautiful with that haircut,' the man told Leggart. (The unidentified man is referred to as a 'boy' in the Lakewood article, however, in the video he sounds and looks like an adult.)

'Oh my goodness, I feel three or four years younger,' Leggart replied. 'I appreciate your apologies, I really do.'

The men also paid for Leggart to get a beard trim and haircut, bought him clothes at Walmart, and are planning to put him up in a hotel for the weekend so he'll be warm during blizzard Jonas.
A man who had been mentored by the failed charity Kids Company in a bid to appear respectable was involved in a gun gang that armed criminals with automatic weapons.

Aaron 'Mad Max' Murray ran the operation alongside Ishmael Brown, 26, who was in Rochester Prison serving nine years for kidnap.

Murray, 28, who is having psychiatric treatment in hospital, will be sentenced in March for his role in the operation after five gang members were jailed for a total of 45 years for their parts in the enterprise.

The former boxer told a newspaper in 2014 he was going straight and had worked with Kids Company to refine his plans for a gym to help steer young people away from gangs.

He said: 'Yes, I am Mad Max and I have a notorious reputation. Now I want to be notorious for good.'

Aaron Murray, who recieved business advice from Kids Company, was pictured posing with rifle

Caitlin Adams posed for selfies with an AK-47, whose sale her boyfriend directed from his jail cell

Adams organised the delivery of the arsenal of firearms reactivated by her boyfriend's gang

The group included gangster's moll Caitlin Adams, 25, who the judge said was seduced by the glamour of the illegal gun trade and posed for a provocative selfie with an AK-47. She was jailed for ten years.

The judge said that Adams, 25, was 'attracted to the glamour' of the gang, run by her boyfriend Brown, 26, from his cell in HMP Rochester Kent

Adams, the mother of Brown's six-year-old child, was even pictured squatting in a balaclava and a revealing outfit with one of the guns, which she bought for her boyfriend.

She would arrive at antiques shops with thousands of pounds in cash and buy deactivated weapons, then smuggle to a workshop where they were turned into functioning guns.

Adams also delivered the guns and stored cash for the gang, which sourced around 40 'lethal' weapons - including the AK-47 assault rifle - in the six months leading up to June 2015.

Today, Judge Graham Arran jailed her for a decade, and she was one of five members of the gang to be given a total of 45 years at Harrow Crown Court. Another will appear for sentencing in March.

Judge Arran rejected her defence that she was intimidated into participation in the operation, saying: 'It seems that you are attracted by the apparent glamour of firearms and their illegality.'

He added: 'You Caitlin Adams became involved because you are the partner of Brown and the mother of his child, now six years old.

'Your role was to acquire de-activated firearms sometimes using false stories about the purpose of their acquisition.'

Judge Arron also noted that she made up stories about her grandfather being a collector of firearms when buying the weapons.

Outlining the case, prosecutor Joel Smith said scheme involved the 'large scale manufacture of lethal firearms, and their subsequent onward sale'.

He said: 'The offending related to an agreement to source de-activated guns which had previously been made safe, to reactivate them in a metal workshop and, once they were capable of discharging bullets - of killing - to sell them to criminals.'

Ringleader Brown organised the network with a secret mobile phone in his cell, where he was serving seven years for kidnapping, sourcing weapons from antiques dealers and military shops

His fellow inmate, 19-year-old drug dealer Ehsen Abdul-Razak, helped make sales on the outside.

The gang recruited former Polish soldier Bart Pawlowski, 43, to manufacture ammunition and reactivate the weapons at his workshop in Wandsworth.

Adams bought three deactivated guns from Drop Zone Military in Pullborough, West Sussex, last May 19, paying 1500 cash for a Browning semi-automatic pistol, a colt 45 pistol and another semi-automatic pistol.

The mother-of-one made similar trips as she built up a stockpile of weapons to be reactivated and sold on to criminals.

In a photo posted on Facebook months before he was arrested, Murray was shown holding a wad of cash

Mr Smith said that the weapons were tested at the home address of Angela McKinlay and Josephine O'Neill, both of whom were acquitted at trial, and video footage recorded of guns being test fired.

But police initiated a 'painstaking' investigation after associate Aaron 'Mad Max' Murray was caught selling 28-year-old Uzair Patel a 9mm automatic pistol in a minicab at Bishops Avenue, Plaistow.

Officers from the Trident and Area Crime Command stopped the car then found the re-activated weapon in the footwell and arrested both men.

When police interviewed Adams last July 14 at her home in Campshill Road, Lewisham, she admitted to having guns, saying: 'Yeah, deactivated guns though.'

She added: 'I bought them for my partner Ishmael Brown.'

Five guns were found in a cupboard in a Nike box wrapped in bubble wrap.

'She said they had nothing to do with Max, aka Murray,' said Mr Smith.

Police also recovered four deactivation certificates, drill bits, a driving license in Brown's name.

The operation was directed by Ishmael Brown (right) while he was serving time in HMP Rochester in Kent

HOW THE ORGANISED GANG UNRAVELED AFTER MINICAB DISCOVERY Aaron 'Mad Max' Murray, who also posed for pictures with guns and cash, was not present because a psychiatric report is being prepared ahead of his next appearance 4 March Police initiated a 'painstaking' investigation after Murray was caught selling 28-year-old Uzair Patel a 9mm automatic pistol in a minicab at Bishops Avenue, Plaistow. Murray, now 29, was nicknamed 'Mad Max' during his youth as he became involved in gang violence and shoot-outs in Croydon, south London. But in 2014 he claimed he had turned over a new leaf and attempted to start a martial arts gym and was given advice on how to produce a business plan by Kids Company, fronted by Camila Batmanghelidjh. A year later, he was arrested by police after a firearm was found in a car he was travelling in Newham, east London. Police began tracking the gang after pulling over the minicab in June last year and finding a reactivated 9mm self-loading pistol inside. One of the men travelling the car, Aaron Shane Murray, was later found to be buying and reactivating guns with the help of Bart Pawlowski, a metalworker and former soldier in the Polish army. Upon investigating, police discovered the group was being directed from Brown's jail cell and that of another HMP Rochester inmate, Ehsen Abdul-Razak. In the six-month period between January and June 2015, in excess of 40 firearms, including an AK47 style assault rifle, were sourced by the group, police said. To date, eight reactivated firearms linked to this group have been recovered, officers are attempting to recover the remaining weapons. Advertisement

Adams admitted having bought 15 deactivated guns in the past year.

She bought an AK47 on behalf of Brown which was delivered to her address, and unsuccessfully attempted to buy a further six handguns.

Mr Smith also revealed how Brown had tried to get a new gas piston for an AK-47 but when he discovered it was a controlled part, tried to source it from overseas.

Today, Brown and Adams were jailed for 12 and 10 years respectively for conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons. Abdul-Razak will serve five years in a young offenders' institution.

Pawlowski received no reduction due to his not guilty plea and was jailed for 13 years for the same charge.

Patel was jailed for five years for possession of a prohibited weapon, and received a concurrent eight-month sentence for possession of ammonia.

Murray, who also posed for pictures with guns and cash, was not present because a psychiatric report is being prepared ahead of his next appearance 4 March.

Prisoners Ishmael Brown (left) and Ehsen Abdul-Razak (right) directed the sales on phones smuggled into jail

Polish metalworker Bart Pawlowski helped reactivate the guns and was jailed for 13 years. Uzair Patel (right), who was buying one of the gunswas also jailed for five years

DC Claire Gentles from the Trident and Area Crime Command, said: 'The firearms and ammunition this gang converted had the potential to cause great harm on the streets of London and there is no doubt that the Capital is a safer place as a result of the network being dismantled.

'The sentencing of Caitlin Adams should serve as a warning to others of the grave consequences of storing and transporting guns for others.'

Deactivated guns are sold legally but have usually been altered so that they cannot fire. Criminals can illegally reactivate them in workshops.

Police say the investigation, which involved close work with the prison wardens, has made London safer by taking dangerous firearms off the streets.
Daria Gavrilova had an embarrassing slip of the tongue while discussing her comeback win on Friday night, leaving the Australian Open crowd roaring with laughter.

'I just yeah.. I am good from behind. Oh..' she said of her third-round victory over French player Kristina Mladenovic before realising the connotation of her comment.

Ms Gavrilova, 21, looked shocked and covered her mouth with her hand as she blushed while talking to 7 News reporters.

The former Russian, who became an Australian citizen in December, panned the crowd as the entire arena burst into laughter at her gaffe.

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I just yeah.. I am good from behind. Oh..' Australia's Daria Gavrilova (pictured) said of her comeback win before realising her slip of the tongue

The fan-favourite blushed as she realised her mistake and panned the crowd as she covered her mouth with her hand

The Australian Open crowd on Friday night in Melbourne (pictured) burst out laughing

Fan-favourite Gavrilova will continue her dream summer and head into the Australian Open fourth round at Melbourne Park.

She beat Frenchwoman Mladenovic 6-4 4-6 11-9 in the Friday night thriller to reach the second week of a grand slam for the first time.

Gavrilova backed up her stunning second-round win over dual Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova to take out Mladenovic, the tournament's 28th seed, in a rollercoaster encounter at Hisense Arena that featured no less than 13 service breaks.

Ms Gavrilova (pictured) beat French player Kristina Mladenovic in a third-round victory

She reached the second week of a grand slam for the first time and will continue on to the fourth round

Ms Gavrilova (pictured) will next face Spanish 10th seed Carla Suarez Navarro on Sunday in her audacious quest to end Australia's 38-year women's title drought

Ms Gavrilova will next face Spanish 10th seed Carla Suarez Navarro on Sunday in her audacious quest to end Australia's 38-year women's title drought.

The bubbly youngster was unable to contain her excitement after wowing fans at the so-called people's court for almost three hours.

'I've got nothing in my head. I'm just really excited and I want to hug the whole stadium,' Ms Gavrilova beamed.

'I just want to play again. I want to play again on Sunday. I'm just really happy. I can't explain it.'

Australia's Hopman Cup winner led by a set and a break before rebounding from a mid-match meltdown to advance to the last 16 in two hours and 51 tense minutes.

The bubbly 21-year-old (pictured) was unable to contain her excitement after wowing fans at the so-called people's court for almost three hours

The former Russian (pictured) became an Australian citizen in December

The watershed win not only guaranteed Ms Gavrilova a $200,000 pay day - the biggest cheque of her fledging career - and the possibility of more, but also a fresh career-high ranking inside the world's top 30.

Such lofty status would give the Melbourne-based former US Open junior champion a grand slam seeding for the first time come the French Open in May.

But first things first - and that's a crack at Suarez Navarro for a coveted quarter-final spot in front of her adoring home fans.

After smashing her racquet into the court after dropping the second set Ms Gavrilova regained the ascendancy in the third set to serve for the match at 5-4.

'I just want to play again. I want to play again on Sunday. I'm just really happy. I can't explain it'

'I just rushed and I really wanted it way too much,' she said after blowing her big chance and then having to wait another 10 games for the chance to close it out.

'I tried too hard. Obviously serving for it the second time, I wanted it just as much.'

Suarez Navarro advanced to the last 16 when her Russian opponent Elizaveta Kulichkova retired when trailing the 2009 quarter-finalist 6-4 2-0.
A New Zealand bar manager jailed in Myanmar for two and a half years for using a Buddha image to promote a cheap drinks night will be released.

Philip Blackwood was jailed in March last year for 'insulting Buddha' under the Myanmar Penal Code, along with two local men.

The ad that landed the 32-year-old in prison featured an image of Buddha wearing DJ headphones and was posted on Facebook in December 2014.

Philip Blackwood was jailed in March last year for 'insulting Buddha' under the Myanmar Penal Code, along with two local men

The image caused a stir of outrage in the former junta-ruled country, where surging Buddhist nationalism and religious violence has sparked international concern. He was found guilty of insulting religion along with the bar's Myanmar owner and manager

Mr Blackwood is joined by over 100 other prisoners who were pardoned by the incoming pro-democracy NLD government.

The case was watched closely by international observers amid fears that the Buddhist-majority country, which has seen a surge in foreign investment since it began emerging from the grip of the military in 2011, is seeing its much-lauded reforms stalling.

Mr Blackwood leaves court after being sentenced to two and half years in prison in March 2015. He was found guilty of insulting Buddhism

Blackwood, the manager of VGastro Bar in Yangon, was arrested after posting a promotional image of a psychedelic Buddha wearing headphones to the bar's Facebook page

The bar staff, who all denied the charges, were sentenced to two years in jail for insulting religion through written word or pictures and a further six months for breaching local authority regulations. Both offences carry the punishment of hard labour.

They were also held responsible for protests that erupted outside the bar over the image.

Judge Ye Lwin said that while Blackwood, 32, had posted an apology, he had 'intentionally plotted to insult religious belief' when he uploaded the photo.

He added that although the New Zealander had admitted to posting the picture without intending to offend, it was also 'unreasonable only to blame the foreigner' when explaining the guilty verdicts for the Myanmar defendants.

A Buddhist monk tries to take a photo of New Zealander Philip Blackwood as he gets into a police vehicle outside the court

VGastro Bar employee Htut Ko Ko Lwin is escorted to a police vehicle after appearing in court in Yangon in 2015

Htut Ko Ko Lwin's mother screamed at a group of monks taking photos with smartphones outside the court after the sentencing.

The wife of bar owner Tun Thurein said she would consult her lawyer about appealing.

'They just decided everybody is guilty so I'm very shocked. This is very unfair,' Myat Nandar said.

Blackwood made no comment as he was bundled into the back of a police truck through a scrum of media cameras.

Myanmar has been rocked by several deadly outbreaks of religious violence in recent years, mainly targeting the Muslim minority.

The bloodshed has coincided with the rising influence of hardline monks, who have advocated controversial new laws. Rights groups say these would severely curb the freedom of religious minorities and women.

V Gastro bar, which opened just two weeks before the incident, swiftly deleted the offending image and posted this apology on its Facebook page
Apple boss Tim Cook flew into Brussels to lobby the European Commission's anti-trust boss Margrethe Vestager over a probe into the company's tax relationship with Ireland.

The technology giant, which has a European base in Cork, in the Irish Republic, is facing a possible $8billion in fines and back taxes as a result of the investigation.

Following his arrival in Brussels, Cook tweeted his 1.9 million followers claiming the company supports approximately 1.4 million jobs across Europe.

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Apple CEO Tim Cook, left, lobbied the European Commission yesterday over the company's tax arrangements in Ireland, while today he met with a higher power, exchanging gifts with Pope Francis, right, in the Vatican

Mr Cook, right had a private audience with the pontiff, left, during a trip to Italy where Apple are launching a new iOS App development centre in Naples to train young people how to create new software for their products

Mr Cook met with European Commissioner for Competition Margrethe Vestager in what her spokesman described as a 'private meeting'. The spokesman would not reveal the contents or subject of the meeting

The European Commission announced in June 2014 that it was investigating Apple's Irish arm over its tax treatment.

Ms Vestager's press spokesman Ricardo Cardoso told MailOnline: 'Commissioner Vestager met yesterday with Mr Tim Cook, Chief Executive Officer of Apple, for a private meeting.'

The Commission refused to discuss the contents or subject of the meeting.

Speaking at the time, Commission Vice President in charge of competition policy Joaquin Almunia said: 'In the current context of tight public budgets, it is particularly important that large multinationals pay their fair share of taxes. Under the EU's state aid rules, national authorities cannot take measures allowing certain companies to pay less tax than they should if the tax rules of the Member State were applied in a fair and non-discriminatory way.'

According to the Commission: 'In the case of Ireland, the authorities have been fully cooperative in providing comprehensive replies in response to Commission's requests.

'The Commission notes that although the transfer pricing rules have been tightened over the years, the tax administration had a significant degree of discretion in the past. The Commission has concerns that such discretion has been used in the case of Apple to grant a selective advantage to that company, reducing its tax burden below the level it should pay based on a correct application of the tax rules.

'The Commission notes however that the number of tax rulings issued in Ireland relating to transfer pricing arrangements is limited.'

Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny, pictured, suggested his administration was blameless. He said: 'From our point of view we defend 100 per cent the authenticity of the way we do business with international companies'

The investigation is expected to report in March, which could see Apple handed an $8billion tax bill.

According to Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Matt Larson, Apple generates approximately 60 per cent of its sales outside the United States, but pays tax at a rate of 1.8 per cent.

Ireland has a low corporation tax rate of 12.5 per cent, so if the European Commission rules the company has been receiving an unfair competitive advantage, it could be forced to pay an additional ten per cent of tax on sales of more than $100 billion.

Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny, who is facing a re-election campaign within weeks, strongly defended Apple's relationship with his country.

Speaking in Davos, Switzerland, Mr Kenny described claims that US companies had been using Ireland as a tax haven as 'completely false, baseless and untrue'.

He denied there had been any special deals between his administration and any companies.

He added: 'From our point of view we defend 100 per cent the authenticity of the way we do business with international companies.'

Apple have been asked for a comment concerning yesterday's meeting with Commissioner Vestager and the company's tax arrangements in Ireland.

Today, Mr Cook met with Pope Francis in the Vatican before going to Naples to launch a new iOS App Development Centre.

Marking the Roman Catholic Church's World Day of Communications, Pope Francis said: 'Emails, text messages, social networks and chats can also be fully human forms of communication. It is not technology which determines whether or not communication is authentic, but rather the human heart and our capacity to use wisely the means at our disposal.'

Last year the 79-year-old pontiff admitted to a young girl that he was a complete 'disaster' when it came to modern technology.

He also criticised families for allowing children to bring electronic devices to the dinner table.

However, in his meeting with Mr Cook today, Pope Francis added: 'The Internet could be used to build a society which is healthy and open to sharing.

'Social networks can facilitate relationships and promote the good of society, but they can also lead to further polarization and division between individuals and groups," he said.
Islamic State has reportedly issued a chilling threat to launch terror attacks in Spain, declaring: 'We will recover our land from the invaders.'

The jihadists have long made it their goal to expand their boundaries beyond Muslim-majority countries in the Middle East.

As well as plans to expand the caliphate in Iraq, Syria, North Africa and large parts of western Asia, they have previously released a map marking out plans to seize parts of Europe.

Spain, which was ruled by Muslims for 700 years until 1492, is marked out as a territory the caliphate plans to have under its control by 2020.

Islamic State has issued a chilling threat to launch terror attacks in Spain, declaring: 'We will recover our land from the invaders'

The militants issued the warning in a video that shows an ancient map of the Iberian peninsula turning red, it was reported by The Daily Express.

Europe's worst attack by Islamic militants occurred in Spain in 2004 when bombs on Madrid commuter trains killed 191 people.

The warning comes three weeks after Spanish security officials said they had arrested more than 90 suspected Islamic extremists in 2015.

One of those held was an inmate at a prison near Madrid who allegedly tried to recruit jihadi fighters for ISIS and threatened to bomb major Spanish cities including the capital.

Caliphate: This map purportedly showing the areas ISIS plans to have under its control within five years was shared widely online in 2014. As well as the Middle East, North Africa and large areas of Asia, it also reveals ISIS' ambition to extend into Europe. Spain, which was Muslim-ruled until the late 15th Century, would form part of the caliphate, as would the Balkan states and eastern Europe, up to and including Austria

A wheelchair-bound Islamic extremist also confessed last year to sending more than 200 jihadists to Syria and Iraq to fight for the terror group.

Belgian-born former drug addict Mustafa Maya, 52, made the admission during questioning by a Spanish prosecutor, respected newspaper El Pais reported.

Maya was arrested last year in the Spanish enclave of Melilla on suspicion of heading an Islamic State recruitment network and is currently awaiting trial.
The 25-year prison sentence for a Florida mother of an 8-week-old boy who was found buried in a shallow grave near their home is not strong enough, the baby's grandmother said Wednesday.

Kristen Bury, 32, pleaded no contest Wednesday to aggravated manslaughter in the September 16 death of her son Chance Walsh.

As part of a plea deal she must now testify against the child's father, 36-year-old Joseph Walsh, who faces second-degree murder and child neglect charges.

Bury's mother Sally Susino told local media: 'I can't say that I'm pleased with today's outcome.

'Understand I will always love my daughter. She was my flesh and blood, as Chance was to her.

'And fortunately I do have the mother instinct, so this is extremely difficult, but justice needs to be done and we don't feel the sentence was strong enough.

'Mothers are supposed to protect their child at all cost and that wasn't done.'

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'Monster': Kristin Bury's own family called the 32-year-old a 'monster' in court on Wednesday after the woman was sentenced to 25 years in the death of her infant son

Harsh words: Chance's grandmother, Sally Susino, said her daughter lacks the 'mother's instinct to love and protect her young'

Chance Walsh (left and right) was eight weeks old when police say his father beat and choked him to death in September. The boy's body was then left to decompose in his crib for a week before his parents buried him

'The past few months have been horrible, very difficult,' Susino told Fox 13.

Chance's other maternal grandparent, John Murawski, told the television station: 'Grandparents in this state have no rights.

'If we would have had the right, we would have used that right, and this baby would be alive.'

Investigators say Chance was buried near their home in Sarasota before his parents left Florida to start a new life together.

After Bury was sentenced, Susino tearfully told the judge her daughter lacks the 'mother's instinct to love and protect her young.'

Murawski called Bury a 'monster,' and said the child and his parents 'slipped through society's cracks,' reported ABC Action News.

Chance Walsh was last seen alive on September 9. Authorities said they became involved in the disappearance when Sally Susino called them October 4, concerned about the baby's well-being.

Bury's mother told officers she had tried and failed to locate the baby and that his parents told relatives contradicting stories that the boy was dead, and that they had given him away.

Police from the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office appealed for help in finding the boy, though a later search of the couple's home revealed blood spatter and evidence of a body.

Bury, 32, pleaded no contest Wednesday to aggravated manslaughter. Her husband, 36-year-old Joseph Walsh (right), faces second-degree murder and child neglect charges

Officials said Bury, pictured in court in October, did nothing to stop her husband from killing their son and then helped him dispose of his body in the woods

Bury and Walsh were arrested in Ridgeport, South Carolina, on October 6 on child neglect charges after the pair got into a car accident. Chance was not with them at the time.

According to a probable cause affidavit, the couple revealed to detectives that Chance died in the early hours of September 16.

Walsh is accused of beating his infant son inside their Sarasota home and shoving a baby wipe down his throat until he choked to death after several hours of gasping for breath.

The boys body was then left to decompose in his crib for more than a week before his parents buried Chance in the woods in North Port, Florida.

Bury eventually led police to Chance's grave, where the infant was found wearing only a diaper.

By watching him decompose, she showed a total disregard for life and that day that she helped bury him amongst garbage in the shallow grave of a homeless camp, with nothing more than a diaper, as if his life had no value, Sally Susino told the court in her victim impact statement.

Bury is seen being led out of the courtroom after collapsing in tears during her plea hearing

Listening to her mothers words, Bury collapsed to the floor in whimpers and sobs next to her attorney.

Susino also revealed that her daughter had three children and that she traded her firstborn son in exchange for money, a car and an apartment. The fate of that child remains unknown.

Her second son, Duane, died in 2014 two weeks after his birth from a suspected kidney infection stemming from a botched circumcision, according to a family friend.

Susino told the court her daughter deserved a harsher sentence and panned the plea deal as a miscarriage of justice.

I hope she enjoys her new life, Susino concluded.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is out with his first political attack ad aimed squarely at rival Ted Cruz.

The ad, entitled 'Clear Difference,' paints the Texas senator as a 'flip-flopping' politician who once supported allowing the millions of people living in the country illegally to remain.

It features footage of Cruz stumbling on his words when asked about the issue in December on Fox News while the phrases 'Pro immigration' and 'Pro Amnesty' flashed across the screen.

As part of the immigration reform debate in 2013, Cruz introduced an amendment that proposed stripping the option of citizenship but granting eventual legal status for millions.

He has since changed his tune.

WAR OF WORDS: Donald Trump has a new ad that paints Ted Cruz as a 'pro amnesty' hypocrite on the question of how to treat illegal immigrants

BOLD PROMISE: Trump says in the ad that he will end illegal immigration and secure America's borders

Trump and Cruz have been engaged in an increasingly hostile war of words as they battle for a win in first-to-vote Iowa, where polls show an increasingly narrow race.

The kick-off caucuses will be held on Feb. 1.

The ad includes Trump discussing his own plan for mass deportations, which he described as being the more humane approach.

'Donald trump is simply trying to distract voters from his own support of amnesty,' Cruz spokeswoman Catherine Frazier said in a statement.

Cruz's team also released its own attack ad Friday targeting Trump's support for eminent domain laws, which allow the government to seize private property.

Trump has voiced support for using the law to build infrastructure like roads and pipelines, as well as expand companies.

BROMANCE INTERRUPTED: Trump and Cruz were once allies but are now at each other's throats as their poll numbers tighten in Iowa

The ad describes the process as 'a fancy term for politicians seizing private property to enrich the fat cats who bankroll them.'

It concludes declaring, 'Trump won't change the system. He's what's wrong with it.'

Trump has also come under attack by The National Review.

The conservative magazine's latest issue features a compilation of essays from prominent conservative thinkers denouncing the billionaire businessman.

Trump responded Thursday night by calling the magazine a dying publication in search of publicity.

The magazine also announced in a blog post that the Republican National Committee had disinvited it from participating in an upcoming Republican presidential primary debate next month.

It's the latest instance of a media partner being dismissed from a Republican debate because of its editorial content.

New Hampshire's largest newspaper, the Union Leader, was dropped as a co-sponsor of another debate after it published a series of front-page editorials criticizing Trump and endorsed New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
Discovery was made in a conifer tree outside of Bower Park Academy

The body of Peter Usher is thought to have been found in a tree outside a Romford school

The body of a man who has been missing for nearly four weeks has been found hidden in a tree in school grounds just yards from the front gate.

The man, believed to be missing person Peter Usher, 39, was discovered in a conifer tree at Bower Park Academy yesterday after police spent weeks searching for him.

Hundreds of children at the secondary school, near Romford, east London, are believed to have passed the body every day without noticing it.

The Met Police are thought to have known he was in the area for weeks but were unable to find him despite the use of sniffer dogs, according to a source.

At around 2pm on Thursday they made the grim discovery in the 'dense' 25ft-tall fir tree but waited until the academy's 700 pupils had gone for the day until they removed it.

Head teacher Mary Morrison said: 'The body has probably been there for weeks.

'It's gone now. I'm really sorry for the family. It must be terribly sad for them.

'He was found about 2pm while all the children were in the school.

'He was in the tree right at the front of the school.

'I'm shocked none of us saw him. There's over a thousand people on the site and no one saw anything.

'Thank god no children saw anything. It's quite a dense tree but it's bizarre that none of us saw anything.

'I'm glad no child is affected by all of this. The school is running as normal this morning.'

Forensic gloves were still at the base of the tree, which had been heavily cut away at, on Friday morning.

The body was discovered after police asked to see the school's CCTV on Thursday, according to a source close to the school.

Pictured is the tree outside of Bower Park Academy, the inside of which a body has been discovered, thought to be that of Mr Usher

He said: 'They have done a bit of a search of the school over the Christmas break because I think the police had tracked him back to the area through CCTV on buses.

'They knew he was near the school. They have been looking for him for weeks now. They came and asked to look at the school's CCTV.

'From looking at the CCTV and doing another sweep of the grounds, apparently a dead body was find up a tree in the branches and within the foliage of the conifer tree.

'It is right in front of the school, right by the front gate; 800 people a day would have walked past the those gates.

'They found it in the afternoon and left the body up there until the evening. They wanted everyone out of the school rather than bringing in the full shebang to remove the body.'

Peter Usher was last seen by friends at around 8am on December 29 at his home in Romford. He is believed to have visited The Goose pub in Romford at 12.30pm that day.

A Met Police spokesman confirmed a body has been found in relation to the missing person appeal.

He said: 'A body has been found in Bowers Park Academy on Havering Road. We believe we know the identity of the deceased but the family has not yet been informed.

'At this stage it is being treated as non-suspicious but inquiries are ongoing.'
Duck Dynasty's Phil and Willie Robertson may be cut from the same cloth, namely, camo, but when it comes to presidential politics, the father-and-son reality stars do not see eye to eye.

On Thursday, the younger Mr Robertson officially endorsed Republican frontrunner Donald Trump for president, calling him 'a real leader' during the 16th annual Outdoor Sportsman Awards in Las Vegas.

'Hes not very politically correct. Hes very bold. He loves his country. And he firmly stands behind the 2nd Amendment,' the 43-year-old CEO of the Louisiana-based company Duck Commander told the audience at The Venetian Las Vegas.

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Willie and The Donald: Duck Dynasty star Willie Robertson on Thursday officially endorsed Donald Trump for president

Pun-tastic dig: A week after Willie's father, Phil Robertson, threw his support behind Ted Cruz, the CEO of Duck Commander joked that his dad 'had to cruise on back to Louisiana'

His candidate of choice: Robertson, 43, called the real estate mogul a 'real leader' while introducing him at the the 16th annual Outdoor Sportsman Awards in Las Vegas

A week earlier, Robertson's father, Phil, threw his support behind Trump's chief rival, Senator Ted Cruz, from Texas.

The Cruz campaign released a video that shows the outspoken Robertson patriarch describing what he is looking for in a president, and then explaining why Cruz has all those attributes.

The 69-year-old founder of the Duck Commander brand agreed to back Cruz's candidacy for the White House after the two went on a hunting trip together.

'My qualifications for president of the United States are rather narrow: Is he or she Godly, does he or she love us, can he or she do the job, and finally would they kill a duck and put him in a pot and make him a good duck gumbo?' asks Robertson at the beginning of the endorsement video.

He then goes on to say that Cruz is the only person running for president 'that fits the bill.'

Thumbs up: Trump said in a press release he was 'truly honored' to accept the younger Robertson's endorsement

Biggest supporters: Trump was joined in Las Vegas by his sons Donald Jr (left) and Eric (center)

At Thursday's event in Las Vegas, Willie Robertson, dressed in a plaid shirt and a star-spangled bandanna, couldn't pass up the opportunity to take a dig at his dad for his endorsement.

'Im not talkin about my father. Phils not here, he had to cruise on back to Louisiana. So hes unfortunately missing this event,' Willie quipped, according to the Independent Journal Review.

Trump, who according to the latest CNN poll leads Cruz in first-to-vote Iowa 37 per cent to 26 per cent, said he was 'truly honored' to accept the younger Robertson's endorsement.

'He is a great person, has had tremendous success and a really terrific family,' the real estate mogul said in a press release. 'He believes in my message and knows that I am the only one who will Make America Great Again!'

Fun times: Senator Ted Cruz accepted Phil Robertson's endorsement after going duck hunting with the family last week (above)

Both Robertson and Trump later tweeted out a photo of the two of them shaking hands and grinning for the cameras at the Outdoor Sportsman Awards, which were also attended by the candidates sons Eric and Donald Jr.

The Robertson family, whose reality show Duck Dynasty is currently in its ninth season on A&E, have been known to throw their support behind conservative politicians.
Felix Peltier (pictured) is alleged to have hit Maria Asmussen repeatedly over the head with a champagne bottle when she told him to leave

A property developer accused of a champagne bottle attack on a woman said he was defending himself when S&M foreplay got out of hand, the Old Bailey heard.

Felix Peltier, 27, is accused of battering Maria Asmussen repeatedly over the head at her Knightsbridge flat when she told him to leave.

She told the court he stripped half-naked and tried to throttle her when she said he could not stay the night.

But Peltier claims he refused to have sex with her when she bit erotically on his finger and refused to let go.

He says she had stripped to just a thong to lure him into her bedroom, then clawed at his neck during foreplay and came at him with a steak knife when he tried to flee.

'You were touching each other and that touching was sexual', said Duncan Jones, defending Peltier.

'At one point you put his finger in your mouth and what you did next was you bit down on his finger in an erotic way.

'Then you started behaving pretty strangely, you continued to bite on his finger very hard, he was trying to make you stop but you wouldn't let go.

'You were hurting him and it was clear you were hurting him.'

Ms Asmussen, giving evidence from behind a screen, denied getting into bed with Peltier and said she did not bite his finger erotically.

Mr Jones continued: 'After a few minutes he bit down on your shoulder, and that caused you eventually to release his finger.

'Mr Peltier got up from the bed and at that point it was quite clear he wasn't up for it.

'He had rejected you.'

She replied: 'I never did this, I never tried to do anything with him.'

Property developer, Peltier (pictured here), claims he picked up the champagne bottle to take away from the flat

A file picture of Raffles in London - Peltier met Ms Asmussen outside the private membersclub when he got into her cab

Mr Jones told her: 'You were kissing each other and this was going in the way you hoped, but then you bit his finger and you started scratching his throat and he was asking what's wrong with you.'

Ms Asmussen had met Peltier on September 21, 2014, after a night out at exclusive Kings Road private members club Raffles, when he hopped into her taxi.

They shared a ride home, and Peltier is accused of talking his way into her flat in Walton Street, Knightsbridge, pretending he wanted water.

Ms Asmussen told the court Peltier tried to take one of her bottles of champagne on his way out of the flat, and he attacked her when she told him to put it back.

But Mr Jones said: 'He went and picked up a bottle of champagne in the kitchen and he headed for the door.

'He had rejected you and on his way out - he picked up a bottle of champagne he was clearly going to take away with him.

'You reacted by picking up a knife.

'There was no threat to you at all and you picked up the knife.'

He added: 'You were behaving completely irrationally, if anyone was acting crazy it was you.

'You attacked so ferociously it took three blows with a bottle of champagne to get you to drop the knife.'

Ms Asmussen denied being the aggressor, and said she picked up the knife in self-defence.

Mr Jones said Peltier claims she lured him into the bedroom by stripping to just a thong.

'You appeared in the doorway of the living room and you had removed almost all your clothing', he said.

'You were standing there in the doorway in your underwear.

'You appeared in the doorway as if you were waiting for Mr Peltier. You went back to the bedroom and Mr Peltier came and joined you in the bedroom.

'You were laid down on the bed waiting for him in just your knickers.

'It was quite clear you wanted to have sex with him.'

Ms Asmussen said she had a boyfriend at the time, and denied that Peltier had stripped to his boxers to join her in bed.

'I wish he had instead of battering me', she added.

Peltier, who holds dual US and French citizenship, has worked for the property development firm Bouygues Group since 2013, according to his Linkedin profile, and was educated at ESTP - one of the top engineering colleges in France.

He was arrested outside Ms Asmussen's flat immediately after the alleged attack, which left her home smeared with blood.

Peltier, of Portsea Place, Marble Arch, central London, denies assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

The alleged champagne bottle attack by Peltier, who holds dual US and French citizenship, took place in Walton Street, Knightsbridge (pictured)

Giving evidence this afternoon, Peltier said he was just seconds from being stabbed in the back by Ms Peltier who came at him with a steak knife while dressed just in a thong.

He said he was saved by her friend Cynthia, who called out 'no Maria no' and grabbed her hand before she could plunge the knife into him.

Peltier admitted he had 'stupidly' tried to steal one of Ms Asmussen's bottles of champagne, but he only used it as a weapon to force her to drop the knife.

'I turned around and see Maria just behind. I did not hear her coming with the steak knife', he said.

'Cynthia managed to catch up and grab her hand with the knife.

'Her hand was ready to stab me in the back.'

Peltier said the three of them tussled for control of the knife, as Ms Asmussen held it aloft trying to stab him.

He said she then went for the champagne bottle, trying to wrestle it back from him.

'I asked her several times to let go of the knife', he said.

'She was saying that she wanted to kill me.

'I hit her three times in total, the first time to make her aware I had this bottle in my hand and if she didn't let go of the knife I could make her.

'I hit her very gently on the top of her head like a slap on the wrist.

'But she was still trying to go for me with the knife.'

Peltier said he momentarily lost control of the knife, cutting his finger as he grabbed it again, and hit her for a second and third time when she continued to try and stab him.

'I could still feel the strength of her hand trying to go for me, so I hit her straight away a third time', he said.

He went and picked up a bottle of champagne in the kitchen and he headed for the door. He had rejected you and on his way out he picked up a bottle of champagne he was clearly going to take away with him Duncan Jones, defending Peltier

'Then I could feel she wasn't going for me anymore.

'During the incident in the hallway, she was still naked, in a thong and nothing else.'

He said violence flared after Ms Asmussen erotically bit down his finger in the bedroom but refused to let go.

Peltier said she had lured him into her room by walking half naked past the living room door, and he assumed they were about to have sex.

'When I arrived to the room, she was lying on top of the bed still naked with her thong', he told the court.

'I took off my shirt and trousers and went on top of her and we started making out.

'I was expecting that we would have sex.'

He said after some kissing and touching: 'I have my left index in her mouth and now she bit me - I think in a sexual way which I didn't like.

'She scratched me, I pushed her head and she wouldn't let go - she started to bite harder.

'That is when I bit her.'

Peltier said he bit down on her shoulder to make her let go of his finger and then he went to get dressed and leave the flat.

'I had sobered up, I decided to leave, not angry but a bit annoyed', he said.

Peltier said Ms Asmussen used a remote control to set off the panic alarm in her flat, adding: 'I asked what was wrong with her because I couldn't understand what she was up to.'

The view outside Raffles private members club - the case at the Old Bailey will continue on Monday when more evidence will be heard

When the pair met at the private members club he admitted to being 'fairly drunk', having attended a birthday dinner with friends earlier in the evening.

Peltier, who moved to the UK four years ago to take up a job in developing student accommodation, said Ms Asmussen had suggested they go back to her flat.

'She entered the taxi, took me by the hand and when the taxi driver asked is this man with you she confirm yes', he said.

'She invited me to come back to her flat, and when you offer a man you don't know after going to a club to go back to yours after a night out, I assumed it was for sex.'

He denied following her to her home uninvited, and said Ms Asmussen had paid for the taxi fare.

Asked why he had taken the bottle of champagne as he left the flat, Peltier said he wanted to take it to a friend's house to continue partying.

'I stupidly took the bottle thinking I would leave with it', he said.

'It was stupid, it was wrong of me, I just saw the bottle.'
Authorities say a firefighter was shot to death while responding to a medical emergency call at a rural home near Little Rock.

Pulaski County Sheriff's Office Capt. Carl Minden says 29-year-old Ronald Jason Adams of the East Pulaski Volunteer Fire Department was responding to a call of a person having a seizure at about 5am Friday when he was shot by a man at the home.

Minden says Adams later died at a North Little Rock hospital.

Lt. Ronald Jason Adams, a 29-year-old Sherwood, Ark., firefighter, died while serving with a volunteer fire department Friday morning, police said

Officials in the department invited firefighters to one of its stations to visit and share stories about Adams

Adams, right, responded to the medical emergency around 5 a.m. in the middle of an overnight snowstorm in the rural area near North Little Rock, Arkansas

Mouring: The Sherwood Fire Deparment is inviting members of the community to share their stories about Lt. Adams

Adams also worked as a full-time firefighter with the nearby Sherwood Fire Department.

A suspect in the shooting is being questioned by police.

The fatal shooting happened as heavy snow was falling in the area, and Minden says the weather has slowed the investigation so far.

Police have a person in custody being questioned by officers, but no arrests have been made, Minden said.

Another person inside the home who was not the shooter called in to report the seizure victim, Minden said.

THV11 also interviewed Adams in October. When asked about being a volunteer firefighter, he told them, 'That to me is why I do it more than anything. Somebody has to protect this community.'

In addition to being a volunteer firefighter, Adams was also a full-time firefighter with the Sherwood Fire Department.

'It is with heavy heart that we announce the loss of our brother Lt. Jason Adams,' a post oh the Sherwood Fire Department Facebook page read.

'Jason had a witty sense of humor and could make everyone laugh. He will be greatly missed. Please keep his family and friends in your prayers as we go through this hard time.'

A post on the Sherwood Fire Department's Facebook page said. 'Jason had a witty sense of humor and could make everyone laugh. He will be greatly missed'
Ex-spy claimed in blog film existed of Putin having sex with young boys

But image led Alexander Litvinenko to accuse Putin of being a paedophile

It was the uncomfortable image that ended with a Russian dissident being poisoned with a cup of tea laced with polonium in a London hotel, claims an explosive new report.

Vladimir Putin knelt in Moscows Red Square and kissed the tummy of a five-year-old boy.

Struck by the bizarre encounter with the Kremlin chief, Nikita Konkin, the boy in the photo said: 'I wasn't ticklish at all. I felt something good.'

Claims: Deceased Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko accused Vladimir Putin of being a paedophile after he was pictured kissing the stomach of five-year-old boy Nikita Konkin (pictured in 2006)

Elated: Nikita (pictured in 2015) was so proud of the encounter that he refused to wash the part of his stomach kissed by the president

At the time it seemed nothing more than a slightly ill-judged publicity stunt.

But months later it would be the catalyst for a bizarre sequence of events that led to exiled former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko and Putin enemy allegedly signing his death warrant by accusing his nemesis of being a paedophile.

Today ten years on from their awkward encounter in Red Square Nikita looks back on it fondly.

At the time he had been on a day trip with his Kolomensk kindergarten when his grandmother, Valentina, had shoved him to the front of a group of crowded boys and in front of the president.

Valentina said he was so star struck from that kiss, Nikita refused to wash his stomach afterwards.

Recalling the moment his gran shouted, look, the president is coming!, he said: 'I turned, he was walking with bodyguards. He waved his hand to me as if he called me.

'I went to him. Putin asked who I am - and then kissed me. That was it. I was surprised a lot.'

'I just liked him and he liked me very much... I want to be president myself.'

Valentina went on: 'Everyone around us was so excited, starting to wave their hands, and screaming... As if they saw an alien.'

'Afterwards Nikita even refused to have a shower. I suggested to him I could put a plaster on that place [where he was kissed] but my grandson even got scared.

'He agreed to bathe only if we go to the village river. We must go. We're actually getting ready to go right now.'

Meeting: Putin (right) said after the incident with Nikita (centre) that he 'wanted to stroke him like a kitten and it came out in this gesture'

Shock: Nikita (pictured with his father in 2012) told of how Putin said he was surprised when Putin waved him over during a walkabout at the Kremlin

She said the President was very highly regarded in their family, who often watch him on TV.

She said Nikita even rehearsed and recited his sentences and speeches to the family.

Putin said after the incident that he 'wanted to stroke him like a kitten and it came out in this gesture. There is nothing behind it'.

He added: 'He seemed to me very independent, sure of himself and at the same time defenceless so to speak, an innocent boy and a very nice little boy.'

But little did anyone know at that time the incident would allegedly lead to Litvinenkos death.

Months after that picture in 2006, Litvinenko wrote a blog alleging that before he became president, Putin was filmed abusing children in a flat where another top politician had a threesome with prostitutes.

The report into the dissident death claimed Mr Putin was a 'paedophile', adding that videos existed of him 'making sex with some underage boys'.

Litvinenko said that Mr Putin destroyed the footage, which allegedly saw him sent away from Russia for a while when he was a student, after becoming head of the FSB secret service.

Sir Robert quotes Litvinenko's blog in response to the Kremlin incident, which made the inflammatory allegations in broken English.

Litvinenko wrote: 'The world public is shocked. Nobody can understand why the Russian president did such a strange thing as kissing the stomach of an unfamiliar small boy.'

Surprise: Nikita (pictured in 2012) was standing in the Red Square with a group of children from the Kolomensk kindergarten when his grandmother Valentina yelled: 'Look, the president's coming!'

The 2006 incident in Red Square has been shrouded in scandal but it remained special for Nikita (pictured in 2014) who once said: 'I just liked him and he liked me very much... I want to be president myself'

He claimed that Putin was not accepted into Russia's foreign intelligence, and given a junior position in the KGB instead, because investigations would bring up the fact that he was a paedophile.

He added: 'Many years later, when Putin became the FSB director and was preparing for the presidency, he began to seek and destroy any compromising materials collected against him.

'Among other things, Putin found videotapes in the FSB Internal Security directorate, which showed him making sex with some underage boys.'

On November 1 of the same year, Litvinenko would meet former KGB agents Dmitry Kovtun and Andrei Lugovoy at a hotel in central London, where they had tea.

The exiled Russian dissident spent the evening vomiting. It would later be revealed the tea was laced with radioactive polonium.

It would take him another three weeks to die  enough time to name the men he believed were his assassins, and Putin as the man pulling the strings in the background.

For years, it was thought his killing was due to his outspoken criticism of the Kremlin, and accusations which included accusing the Russian secret service of being behind the Moscow theatre attack.

But this is the first time the blog and its very particular accusation has come to light as a possible final straw.

Claims: Litvinenko (pictured) also claimed in an explosive blog post that Putin was filmed having sex with underage boys

Killer: Sir Robert's inquiry named Andrei Lugovoi, left, and Dmitri Kovtun, right, as the two men responsible for carrying out the orders to kill Litvinenko by slipping radioactive polonium into a teapot

President: Mr Putin is alleged to have ordered Litvinenko's killing after the ex-spy fled Russia became one of his fiercest critics

The wild claim is recorded in Sir Robert Owen's inquiry report as part of a long list of allegations made by the assassinated spy against Mr Putin after he fled Russia and settled in Britain.

Sir Robert wrote in his report: 'It hardly needs saying that the allegations made by Mr Litvinenko against President Putin in this article were of the most serious nature. Could they have had any connection with his death?'

Sir Robert concluded that Mr Putin had 'probably' approved the dissident's assassination himself, along with the current head of the FSB. Giving evidence to the inquiry last year, Litvinenko's widow Marina said she had 'no idea' whether or not the paedophile claims were true.
Murdered: Bijan Ebrahimi, 44, was punched and kicked to death and his body set on fire by neighbour

A police officer and a community support officer have been sacked over their failure to stop the murder of a disabled man who was beaten to death and set alight by a neighbour.

PC Kevin Duffy, 52, and PCSO Andrew Passmore, 56, were found guilty of misconduct in a public office in connection with the death of Bijan Ebrahimi in Bristol three years ago.

Mr Ebrahimi, 44, was punched and kicked to death and his body set on fire by Lee James, who wrongly believed he was a paedophile.

And Avon and Somerset Police announced this afternoon that both PC Duffy and PCSO Passmore have been dismissed from the force following misconduct hearings.

PC Duffy and PCSO Passmore are two of 18 officers and staff facing misconduct proceedings within the force. Of those, nine are accused of gross misconduct.

PCs Leanne Winter, 38, and Helen Harris, 40, were each acquitted of a charge of misconduct in a public office following the seven-week trial.

Mr Ebrahimi's sister, Manizhah Moores, previously called on Avon and Somerset Police to remove PC Duffy and PCSO Passmore from the force.

Judge Neil Ford QC, the Recorder of Bristol, has said that all options are open when he sentences the men on a date to be fixed.

Sacked: PC Kevin Duffy (left) and PCSO Andrew Passmore (right) were have been dismissed from the force following misconduct hearings, having earlier been found guilty of misconduct in a public office

A police spokesman said: It was alleged that PC Duffy breached the standards of professional behaviour in relation to his dealings with Bijan Ebrahimi between July 10 and 15, 2013.

PC Duffy knew that, or ought to have known that, Mr Ebrahimi was at risk of harm. He failed to visit or otherwise make contact with Mr Ebrahimi and refused to speak to him on the telephone.

As a result, PC Duffy was convicted of misconduct in a public office on December 21, which has brought discredit to the constabulary. The allegations were upheld by the misconduct panel and, as a result, PC Duffy was found guilty of gross misconduct.

The ruling of the panel was that PC Duffy be dismissed from Avon and Somerset police without notice. At a separate hearing earlier this week, PCSO Andrew Passmore was also dismissed in relation to this matter.

Jurors heard Mr Ebrahimi dialled 999 to report that James had come into his flat and headbutted him on July 11.

Cleared: PCs Leanne Winter (left), 38, and Helen Harris (right), 40, were each acquitted of a charge of misconduct in a public office following the seven-week trial

James wrongly believed Mr Ebrahimi, an Iranian national, had filmed his young children.

TIMELINE WHICH LEAD TO TRAGEDY July 11: Bijan Ebrahimi dialled 999 and reported that neighbour Lee James had come into his flat and head-butted him. When PCs Leanne Winter, and Helen Harris arrived, James was crying with anger and frothing at the mouth. PCs Winter and Harris arrested Mr Ebrahimi for an alleged breach of the peace. As he was led away from his home, the crowd cheered, clapped and shouted 'paedophile'. July 12: Mr Ebrahimi was released from custody. He made 12 calls to police non-emergency number 101. PC Winter told the operator to tell him she was 'busy' at a job when she was 'stuffing her face' with a Pot Noodle, the jury was told. He was informed that PC Kevin Duffy, his local beat manager, would visit him. PC Duffy refused to speak to him and said he would call Mr Ebrahimi back at his own convenience. The officer asked PCSO Passmore to conduct a 'bit of a foot patrol' around the area, which went on for about three to four minutes. July 13: Mr Ebrahimi tried to contact PCs Duffy and Winter numerous times. PC Winter said she was 'not interested' in talking with him. July 14: Just after 1am, witnesses saw James repeatedly stamp on Mr Ebrahimi's head with his right foot. His body was later burned. Advertisement

PCs Winter and Harris arrived at the scene in Brislington to find James crying with anger and frothing at the mouth.

A mob had formed outside and James was heard shouting: Paedo! I'm going to f***ing kill you.

PCs Winter and Harris arrested Mr Ebrahimi, who was not visibly injured, for allegedly breaching the peace.

As Mr Ebrahimi was led away, the crowd outside cheered and shouted paedophile.

While in custody, PC Harris told him: All you are doing is upsetting the residents... and antagonising them. I'm a police officer and you're a pain in the ass. Don't speak to me.

He was released from custody the following day, July 12, and made 12 calls to police non-emergency number 101.

Mr Ebrahimi was informed that PC Duffy, his local beat manager, would visit but the officer refused to speak to him.

My life is in danger. Right now a few of my neighbours are outside and shouting and calling me a paedophile. I need to see PC Duffy, Mr Ebrahimi told one operator.

PC Duffy told a supervisor: He should be told in no uncertain terms that I will speak to him at my convenience, it's Mr Bijan Ebrahimi, he's well known to me and I won't be taking any calls from him.

He asked PCSO Passmore to conduct a bit of a foot patrol around his home road.

PCSO Passmore was found not guilty of failing to patrol there but was convicted of later falsely telling murder detectives he had spent an hour in the area.

On July 13, Mr Ebrahimi tried to contact Duffy and Winter. He phoned police at 00.12am on July 14 - about an hour before his murder - asking for Winter.

Chilling: The charred piece of grass outside Mr Ebrahimi's property in Brislington, Bristol, after he was killed

The officer told a call operator: I'm absolutely not interested in speaking to him ever.

All you are doing is upsetting the residents... and antagonising them. I'm a police officer and you're a pain in the ass. Don't speak to me PC Helen Harris, to Bijan Ebrahimi

Witnesses saw James repeatedly stamp on Mr Ebrahimi's head before setting him alight at 1.35am.

A post-mortem examination found Mr Ebrahimi, who had problems with mobility and suffered from depression, died before he was set alight.

James was jailed for life for the murder, while Stephen Norley, who lived next door, was sentenced to four years in prison for assisting an offender.

Tony Murphy, of Bhatt Murphy, the solicitor of Mr Ebrahimi's family, said: 'The family hopes that this outcome means that the police will protect victims of race hate crime in future, so that others do not lose their lives.

Neighbours: Lee James (left) was jailed for life for the murder, while Stephen Norley (right), who lived next door, was sentenced to four years in prison for assisting an offender

'It is important to remember that Bristol City Council also failed to protect Bijan, so the family's search for justice continues.'

I am deeply disappointed by these individuals who have not only let themselves down but they have also let the Constabulary down Avon and Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner Sue Mountstevens

Avon and Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner Sue Mountstevens said she was deeply disappointed in PC Duffy and PCSO Passmore.

Once again my heart goes out to Mr Ebrahimi's family who continue to endure protracted legal and misconduct proceedings with dignity and courage, she said.

I am deeply disappointed by these individuals who have not only let themselves down but they have also let the Constabulary down and many of their hard-working and dedicated colleagues.

I hope that today's verdict gives local people confidence that the officers and staff involved in the events leading up to Mr Ebrahimi's tragic murder are being dealt with openly, justly and robustly by the police misconduct system.

The Independent Police Complaints Commissionis expected to publish its investigation findings into Mr Ebrahimi's death at the conclusion of all disciplinary proceedings.

The family hopes that this outcome means that the police will protect victims of race hate crime in future Tony Murphy, of Bhatt Murphy, the solicitor of Bijan Ebrahimi's family

Jan Williams, IPCC commissioner, said: We carried out a thorough and detailed investigation into the Constabulary's dealings with Mr Ebrahimi during the weekend before his murder.

The evidence we gathered was put before a jury at criminal trial who convicted PC Duffy and PCSO Passmore of misconduct in public office.

Following the convictions, Avon and Somerset Constabulary has held misconduct hearings and has dismissed them both for discreditable conduct.

The dismissals of the constable and community support officer reflect the seriousness of the failings in their response to Mr Ebrahimi at a time of urgent need.
A schoolboy has admitted killing a father of five by stabbing him over 100 times and a PhD student by stabbing her 16 times in two random attacks.

The 17-year-old pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of James Attfield, 33, and Nahid Almanea, 31, in the same area of Colchester, in Essex.

The boy, who was 16 at the time and cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty on the basis of diminished responsibility, at the Old Bailey.

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Saudi student Nahid Almanea (pictured on CCTV) was killed just months after moving to Britain for her PhD

Police described the stabbing of James Attfield, pictured, as one of the most brutal attacks they had ever seen

However, the Crown are still to accede to the pleas and may yet seek a trial for murder. A decision which will be made by March.

Mr Attfield was killed while walking along a riverside path in what police described as one of the most brutal attacks they had ever seen, with his attacker stabbing him 102 times, on March 29, 2014. .

Ms Almanea, a PhD student from Saudi Arabia, was walking on a footpath in the Salary Brook area of Colchester when she was stabbed in the head and body, three months later on June 17.

Dressed in a grey suit and black leather jacket, the bespectacled defendant admitted the killings while surrounded by security staff and nurses in the dock.

When asked to confirm his identity, he replied: 'Yeah.'

Adjourning the case and addressing the youth, Justice Spencer said: 'I am sure your barristers will explain to you what has been happening and what is being proposed.

'We can't deal with your case completely today, but the prosecution will consider whether your pleas to manslaughter are acceptable or whether there should be a trial to determine whether you are guilty of murder.'

A tearful couple, believed to be the boy's parents, sat in the well of the court and blew him a kiss as he sat down.

Ms Almanea was found lying in a pool of blood just six months after she had moved to the UK to study at the University of Essex.

Tragically Mr Attfield and Ms Almanea were stabbed to death in Colchester (pictured) just three months apart

Painstaking: Detectives drained two lakes near the scene of Ms Almanea's death in the search for a weapon

After the second killing, police warned people not to 'go out alone in isolated places' why they hunted the killer. Pictured, a police investigation tent at the scene of Ms Almanea's death in Colchester, Essex

The 'quiet, considerate' student was wearing a dark blue robe called an Abaya, as well as a multi-coloured hijab scarf, leading police to believe she may have been targeted for religious reasons.

COLCHESTER KILLINGS TIMELINE March 29, 2014 - 10:09pm: James Attfield leaves River Lodge pub in Colchester. March 30 - 5:45am: Mr Attfield is found clinging onto life in Lower Castle Park with 102 stab wounds. He later dies in hospital. June 13, 2014 - 10am: Nahid Almanea , wearing a burka, leaves her home in Colchester to walk to the University of Essex. 10:20am: Ms Almanea is seen on CCTV on Hunwicke road, just a few minutes away from Salary Brook Trail in Colchester. 10:40am: Saudi student is found bleeding to death on the path with 16 stab wounds. May 26, 2015 - 11am: Boy, 16, arrested on Salary Brook Trail on suspicion of possessing an offensive weapon. May 29: Detectives arrest same teenager on suspicion of murdering Ms Almanea and Mr Attfield. May 30: 16-year-old is charged with both murders and possessing an offensive weapon - namely a lock knife. Advertisement

Speaking of her death last June, Det Chief Supt Worron said: 'She suffered at least two knife wounds which would have proved fatal on their own, but in total she was stabbed 16 times to her body, neck, head and arms.

'She also suffered an injury to the back of her head but that is believed to have been caused when she fell to the ground during the attack.'

Her death prompted The University of Essex, where she studied, to issue a warning to its students.

In an email to students, the university said: 'When travelling to and from campus don't walk alone if possible, don't take short cuts and keep to well-lit areas.

'Stay vigilant and be aware of your surroundings.'

Ms Almanea was taking a language course at Essex University ahead of starting a life sciences PhD.

Paramedics tried to save her but she died at the scene from head and body injuries.

Thousands turned out for Ms Almanea's funeral after her body was flown back to Saudi Arabia for a ceremonial burial.

Friends said Mr Attfield had steered clear of confrontation after suffering a brain injury in a road accident four years earlier.

Final moments: Police released these CCTV images of Mr Attfield drinking alone in the River Lodge pub

Police said Mr Attfield, 33, left most of his pint behind when he left and headed towards his home in Colchester

Mr Attfield was found dying after he was repeatedly stabbed as he walked through Colchester's Castle Park

Investigation: Forensics (in 2014) scale the path where the Ms Almanea, a student, was attacked and killed

Pictured: Police search for evidence through thick grass after the death of Ms Almanea in summer 2014

Thousands turned out for Ms Almanea's funeral after her body was flown back to Saudi Arabia for burial

Investigators took eight-and-a-half hours to complete a post-mortem examination on Mr Attfield's body due to the number of wounds he had sustained. He was stabbed on his arms, hands, back, neck and head.

As many as 11 people were arrested in connection with his death before the defendant was arrested in May last year, almost a year after Ms Almanea's death.

Officers initially picked up the teen on suspicion of possessing a lock knife but later charged him with the double murders.

Following the hearing, Detective Chief Inspector Morgan Cronin, of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said: 'We hope that today's guilty plea will provide the families of James Attfield and Nahid Almanea with some comfort by finally establishing who carried out their atrocious killings.

'The brutal manner in which they both died sent shockwaves through the community in Colchester and far beyond.

'At its height more than 100 detectives, uniformed officers, PCSOs and civilian staff were involved in these investigations and the response of Essex Police to keep people safe.

'Detectives worked tirelessly to piece together the evidence of how they died and to establish whether there was any connection between their deaths.
David Cameron today stepped closer to dropping his key demand for a four-year ban on benefits for migrants in his fight to stay in the EU.

The Prime Minister is in Prague for talks with Czech leader Bohuslav Sobotka who revealed the pair had been discussing an 'emergency brake' instead.

Mr Cameron believes he needs to secure a 'win' on limiting migrant benefits if he is to keep the UK in the EU in a referendum to be held as early as June.

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Compromise: Czech leader Bohuslav Sobotka has revealed that he talked over an 'emergency brake' on migrant benefits as the Prime Minister took a step closer to dropping his four-year ban proposal

Pressure: A line of migrants snakes along a street as they cross the Slovenian-Austrian border as European leaders admitted the EU's porous borders could cause it to collapse under the pressure

But the Czech leader admitted the four-year benefits ban may not fair on EU citizens but hinted he could back the 'emergency brake'.

The policy would allow Britain and other EU states to cut off the flow of benefits to migrants if there was 'immense pressure on its social welfare system', he said.

He added: 'The UK has introduced their proposal... we discussed other possible alternatives to meet the same objective... make it possible for the UK government to respond to the mass influx of workers'.

He said: 'It is very important for us that any solution that is adopted on a European level does not discriminate.'

The brake would be controversial Britain would probably have to prove there were difficulties in its labour market or economy before Brussels would allow the brake to be applied.

A blanket four-year ban would give Mr Cameron the control he wants over benefits.

No hurry: Mr Cameron said he would not rush an agreement if it was not 'available' in time for the Brussels summit on February 18 - and said he would not hurry a referendum either

At a joint press conference Mr Cameron said he had not dumped his four-year rule - a key plank of his renogiation - but admitted he was a 'practical man' and 'welcomed' alternatives.

He said any other deal would have to have the same effect.

Last month his four-year wish looked dead in the water after EU President Donald Tusk said the four-year plan 'seems unacceptable' - and Commission boss Jean-Claude Juncker sai: 'The commission is ready to look for other options.'

Today Mr Cameron said he would not rush an agreement if it was not 'available' in time for the Brussels summit on February 18.

But he indicated he still thought a deal was possible by then, pointing to the 'goodwill' of other states.

'I firmly believe there is a pathway to an agreement. I am confident that with the help of European partners and with goodwill we will be able to get there and find mutually satisfactory conclusions,' he said.

It came as French prime minister Manuel Valls warned the huge influx of migrants from Syria and Iraq is putting the future of the European Union in 'grave danger'.

Speaking in Prague David Cameron acknowledged that Europe was experiencing 'very great' pressure from migration, which could a security threat.

He said the UK was 'happy to do more' to strengthen external EU border controls, even though it is not part of the Schengen border-free zone which covers most of the continent.

Schengen is a cornerstone of the European project and allows people to pass through the inner EU countries without showing a passport.

Mission: David Cameron needs to strike a deal with every EU leader and is likely to visit each one before the referendum

He said: 'We are not in Schengen, so let's be clear Britain has its own border controls and we are going to maintain those border controls whatever anyone else in Europe decides to do.

'Since I've been Prime Minister, we've prevented 96,000 people coming into our country, including well over 6,000 EU citizens. We have borders, we use our borders and we will continue to use our borders.

'What I would say to European colleagues and Schengen members is that you have to have a strong external border if you are not going to have internal borders. Britain recognises that, even outside Schengen, clearly it's in our interests that we have this situation brought rapidly under control.

'That's why we already make contributions to the external border that Europe has and we are happy to do more - not just in terms of controlling numbers, but also the systems that we are members of (which) make sure we know about criminals crossing borders, so we know before they even get to Britain, make sure we know about terrorists crossing borders, so we know that even before they get to Britain.'

European Union ministers will on Monday discuss whether to further extend emergency border controls within the Schengen free-travel zone, which is cracking as a wave of migrants arrive from the Middle East, Africa and beyond.

Asked if the EU could survive the migration crisis, Mr Blair told Fox Business: 'It can survive it, but it's going to be a big challenge. And if you did get terrorist activity coming in on the back of it, it would be a huge political problem.'

The former PM said there was 'a genuine desire to be generous' to refugees, but Europe needed to respond to public concern about security.

'There's an issue of numbers - how many people can Europe absorb? - but there's also an issue of security - can we be sure exactly who is coming in?' he said. 'Those two issues combined make it a very, very tough political challenge.'

Mr Blair said the EU needs to 'up its game in defence terms' in response to the turmoil in Syria and potentially in Libya.
Senior Islamic State militants are holed up inside Syria's largest dam with high-value prisoners in the knowledge they can't be bombed by the U.S.-led coalition, it has been reported.

The Tabqa Dam, around 25 miles from the ISIS stronghold of Raqqa, would unleash a huge flood that would devastate much of Iraq and Syria if it was ruptured.

Coalition forces conducting airstrikes are acutely aware of the potential humanitarian disaster they face if they targeted the plant on the Euphrates River.

As such, the structure is being used to shelter 'very important prisoners' who are wanted by the U.S. and other governments, according to an official at Sound and Picture, an umbrella group of anti-ISIS activists in Syria.

Senior Islamic State militants are holed up inside the Tabqa Dam, Syria's largest, with high-value prisoners in the knowledge they can't be bombed by the U.S.-led coalition because it would unleash a devastating flood

The structure is being used to shelter 'very important prisoners' who are wanted by the U.S. and other governments, according to an official at Sound and Picture, an umbrella group of anti-ISIS activists in Syria

Experts say the dam, which is 200 feet tall and roughly three miles long, would destroy large parts of Iraq and cut power to much of eastern Syria.

'That's an ecological disaster for Iraq and a humanitarian catastrophe for Syria,' Ariel Ahram, an associate professor at Virginia Tech who has studied Middle East dams, told the Wall Street Journal.

Middle East analysts and U.S. officials also fear the group could blow the dam up themselves as a last resort if they lose their grip on power.

Aaron Wolf, a specialist in water-resources policy, conflict resolution and Middle East geopolitics at Oregon State University, told the WSJ: 'Of course you worry.

'These arent the people you want controlling basically the arteries of the region.'

Experts say the dam, which is 200 feet tall and roughly three miles long, would flood large parts of Iraq and cut power to much of eastern Syria with a tide from the Euphrates River if it was breached

ISIS lost the smaller Tishreen Dam, located downstream from Tabqa, in December after an alliance of Kurdish People's Protection Units and Arab fighters carried out major operations in the area.

The Tsihreen dam, held by ISIS since 2014, helps generate electricity for large parts of the northern Aleppo province.

ISIS still controls swathes of territory on the western bank of the Euphrates river from Raqqa to Jarablus on the border with Turkey.

Similar fears about flooding were voiced over the Mosul Dam in Iraq earlier this month, with U.S. State Department officials warning that up to 500,000 people could be killed and more than a million left homeless if collapsed due to poor maintenance.

Rising water levels in spring, when the Tigris is swollen by rain and melting snow, could lead to the breach of the 2.2-mile long Mosul dam, which was retaken from the Islamic State by Iraqi and Kurdish forces more than 16 months ago.
But school officials have stood by decision, saying it was well-intentioned

Parents say the exercise has simply given the bullies more ammunition

Eighth graders asked to stand in circle if they agreed with statements

Parents have reacted with outrage after middle school students were asked whether they were gay, poor, or an immigrant as part of an anti-bullying workshop.

Eighth grade students at West Allegheny Middle School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, were given the questions during a bizarre 'kindness workshop' held by teachers last Wednesday.

Staff at the school have defended the exercise, saying it was intended to stop bullying, but parents say it has simply opened their children up to abuse and reduced some pupils to tears.

Parents have reacted with outrage after pupils at West Allegheny Middle School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, were asked to identify if they were gay, poor or an immigrant during an anti-bullying exercise

Students were asked to don masks and stand inside a circle if they agreed with certain statements, including: 'You or someone close to you identifies as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender'

According to CBS Pittsburgh and Action 4 News, students as young as 13 were given masks to wear before being asked to stand inside a circle if they agreed with certain statements.

These included : 'You or someone close to you identifies as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender', 'you or your family has ever worried about not having enough money and 'you or someone in your family is from another country.'

Others identified students whose family members had been in jail and had a problem with drugs or alcohol, singled out religious affiliations and asked about disabilities.

School supervisors said that a letter had been sent to parents explaining the workshop beforehand, and that students were told they did not have to participate.

However, officials admitted that the letter did not contain a list of questions students would be asked, and said they had not consulted with parents about the topics to be covered beforehand.

A three-hour meeting was held with parents yesterday to discuss their concerns, though reporters were not allowed to go inside

Speaking after the meeting, Marie-Noelle Briggs, whose son took part in the exercise, told reporters: 'The damage theyve done to our kids.

'How do you fix it? How do you fix whats already been done? All theyre doing is covering themselves.

Pam Brosovic (pictured), who has a nephew at the school, accused staff of simply giving bullies ammunition - while a local attorney said he has been approached about a lawsuit against officials

Debbie Mirich (pictured), the school board president, said she stood behind 'the intentions of our workshop' though staff admitted that it had unintended consequences

'I never would expect a middle school to ask 13-year-old kids if their parent was in jail, if theyre same-sex, if they're having financial issues.'

Pam Brosovic, who has a nephew at the school, added: 'I asked them to do the same thing they asked the kids to do: Stand in a circle, put a mask on and say all your problems.

'Your mom's in jail, your dad's a drunk - good Lord she gave the bullies ammo.'

Local attorney Robert Mielnicki confirmed that several parents had contacted him intending to sue the school, saying the workshop violated the right to privacy.

School board president Debbie Mirich said: 'We do stand behind the intentions of our workshop and we look forward [to] continuing our work with parents to address this very serious issue of bullying and the unintentional acts that continue to marginalize different groups of students.'

Authorities also contested that similar programs had been run in nearby schools, and that it was based on a workshop created by local non-profit Public Allies Pittsburgh.
Sen. Mitch Holmes' 11-point code of conduct does not include any restrictions on men, who he said needed no instruction on how to look professional

A dress code imposed by a Kansas Senate committee chairman that prohibits women testifying on bills from wearing low-cut necklines and miniskirts is drawing bipartisan ridicule from female legislators.

Sen. Mitch Holmes' 11-point code of conduct does not include any restrictions on men, who he said needed no instruction on how to look professional, The Topeka Capital-Journal reported.

'Oh, for crying out loud, what century is this?' Sen. Laura Kelly, a Topeka Democrat, said Thursday.

Holmes, a 53-year-old Republican from St. John who is chairman of the Senate Ethics and Elections Committee, said he wrote the instruction because provocatively dressed women are a distraction. The guidelines don't detail a minimum skirt length or a permissible neckline for blouses.

'It's one of those things that's hard to define,' Holmes said. 'Put it out there and let people know we're really looking for you to be addressing the issue rather than trying to distract or bring eyes to yourself.'

Holmes said he considered requiring men to wear suits and ties during testimony but decided males didn't need any guidance. He expects lobbyists to understand the rules when interacting with his committee, although he acknowledged infrequent visitors to the Statehouse might be unaware.

Female senators said no one should impose gender-specific demands on those testifying before committees.

'Who's going to define low-cut?' said Sen. Vicki Schmidt, a Topeka Republican. 'Does it apply to senators?'

Outrage: Sen. Laura Kelly (left) said: 'Oh, for crying out loud, what century is this?' Sen. Vicki Schmidt (right) said: ''Who's going to define low-cut? Does it apply to senators?'

Sen. Carolyn McGinn, a Sedgwick Republican, said people who don't have clothes that meet Holmes' standards might be deterred from testifying.

'I am more interested in what they have to say about the direction our state should go than what they're wearing that day,' McGinn said.

Wichita Sen. Oletha Faust-Goudeau, the ranking Democrat on the Senate's elections and ethics committee, said people testifying before committees ought to present themselves in a professional way but she was put off by the lack of consistency for men and women.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has caused outrage over claims that the best migrant is one that does not come.

The controversial politician has faced criticism from human rights groups over his decision to erect a fence across his nation's southern border to prevent Syrian refugees from crossing.

His government said they were prepared to build a fence along the Romanian border if refugees attempted to use that as a potential route.

Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban, pictured, claimed that as far as his country was concerned, 'the best migrant is the migrant who does not come' as Europe struggles with its response to the ongoing crisis

Mr Orban praised Austrian authorities for restricting the number of migrants, pictured here trying to cross today from Slovenia near the village of Sentilj. Austria will only accept a maximum of 37,000 migrants in 2016

Mr Orban praised a decision by Austria to place a cap on the number of migrants it is allowing into its country.

Speaking to Hungarian state radio, Mr Orban claimed: 'Common sense has prevailed.' He said the Austrian decision was 'the most important news of the past months'.

'Europe can't take in huge masses of foreign people in an unlimited, uncontrolled manner.'

He added: 'The best migrant is the migrant who does not come.'

Mr Orban's comments come as at least 42 people including 17 children drowned after two smuggling boats floundered off the coast of Greece.

Some 70 people were plucked from the water by the Greek coast guard.

However, migrants, pictured here being rescued today from the sea near Didim after their boat capsized

European Union officials have complained about the lack of a co-ordinated response by the 28 member states.

Kate O'Sullivan, a member of the Save the Children charity team on the island of Lesbos, expressed horror at Friday's drownings and urged the EU to secure safe, legal passage for refugees.

Criticising the Hungarian response, she said: 'Instead of focusing on building fences and tightening border controls, we are calling on European leaders to take action to ensure no more children lose their lives senselessly.'

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said Friday the 28-nation bloc faces big economic risks if its member countries start putting up walls between each other, due to the refugee crisis, that restrict borderless travel.

David Miliband, head of the International Rescue Committee charity, said it's important that migrants who don't qualify for refugee status are returned home - a policy often hard to implement as emigrant-producing countries such as Pakistan resist repatriations.

In the first sinking Friday in the eastern Aegean Sea, a wooden boat carrying 49 people foundered in the early hours off the small islet of Farmakonissi. Forty people managed to make it to shore, while authorities rescued one girl and recovered eight bodies from the sea - those of six children and two women, the coast guard said.

A few hours later, a wooden sailboat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the islet of Kalolimnos, south of Farmakonissi. The coast guard rescued 22 men and four women, and recovered 34 bodies - those of 16 women, seven men and 11 children.
She walked away from her late-night talk show, Chelsea Lately, after seven years, supposedly sick of interviewing celebrities and in search of something more serious.

Now Chelsea Handler appears to have found her new shtick - drugs.

The shoot-from-the-hip comedian releases her new documentary series, Chelsea Does, in-full on Netflix this weekend, exploring four topics - racism, marriage, Silicon Valley and drugs.

In the latter episode, she travels to Peru to experiment with the controversial psychedelic Ayahuasca - a plant drug found in the Amazon that is taken as a tea and supposed to induce an out-of-body experience - and promptly vomits on camera from its effects.

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Here goes nothing: Chelsea Handler is seen taking the controversial plant drug Ayahuasca for the first time in her new Netflix documentary series, Chelsea Does, which premieres this weekend

Ceremony: Ayahuasca retreats have become incredibly popular in Peru, where visitors can experience the drug in a ceremony overseen by a shaman (left)

'Its supposed to be one of those transformative experiences; people say it changes their life,' Handler said

Unpleasant: The 40-year-old explains in the show that most people vomit straight after ingesting the tea, and she was no different

As part of the episode, Handler, 40, openly discusses her 'close relationship with drugs' and how she has 'experienced so many'.

However she had never tried Ayahuasca, and found its mysticism attractive.

'It's supposed to be like this spiritual awakening drug, transformative, transcendent in certain ways,' she said on Jimmy Fallon this week while promoting the show.

WHAT IS AYAHUASCA? Ayahuasca, or yage, contains Dimethyltryptamine, known as DMT. Used in South America, especially in the Amazon basin, Ayahuasca is a drink produced from the stem bark of the vines Banisteriopsis caapi and B. inebrians. It is said to have healing properties and bring inner peace by purging toxins and can produce reactions including vomiting. Psychedelic experiences last six to 10 hours and are guided by experienced shamans in the South American countries where ayahuasca is legal and native to consume. Advertisement

'I want to show people what happens when you get f--ked up.

'We went down to Peru and we did it. You vomit out of your mouth and out of...' she trailed off, gesturing behind her, before adding: 'And Netflix paid for it, thank you guys.'

As the drug has grown in popularity, many retreats have popped up in Peru, where tourists can pay to try Ayahuasca in a 'safe environment'.

The brew - made from the Banisteriopsis vine mixed with the leaves of plants that contain dimethyltryptamine (DMT) - is typically taken in a ceremony overseen by a shaman, with users sitting on mattresses and under close watch by staff.

'Its supposed to be one of those transformative experiences; people say it changes their life,' Handler said.

'You drink it, its like a tea, you do it with some guy who's yelling at you in Spanish. He's got trees, and if you're not focusing he'll hit you on the head.

'I'm like "I'm trying to get high too! Why are you yelling at me?"

Chelsea Handler traveled to Peru to experiment with the with the controversial psychedelic Ayahuasca

Handler further explained to The New York Post: 'I didnt feel anything the first night  so of course I had to take [the Ayahuasca] a second night with a shaman.'

'There was a lot of chanting and vomiting on camera for me, which of course I was very excited to do.'

Also talking to Ellen about the experience this week, Handler said she did indeed have the hallucinations, or visions, many claim to when taking Ayahuasca.

'I had all these beautiful imageries of my childhood and me and my sister laughing on a kayak, and all these beautiful things with me and my sister,' she said.

'So (my experience) was very much about opening my mind to loving my sister, and not being so hard on her.'

However the drug- which is illegal in the United States, has been linked to the deaths of many tourists in South America.

There have also been reports of molestation, rape and negligence at the hands of some shamans.

Late last year, a Canadian man killed a British banker who attacked him during a bad hallucination on Ayahuasca in Peru.

Joshua Stevens, 29, from Canada, stabbed Cambridge graduate Unais Gomes after Gomes, 26, after taking the drug at a spiritual retreat in December.

British banker Unais Gomes (left) was stabbed to death at an Ayahuasca retreat in Peru in December by Canadian man Joshua Stevens (right), who said Gomes first attacked him with a knife during a hallucination

Stevens said Gomes had taken a 'double dose' of the hallucinogenic brew and attacked him with a knife.

Stevens then managed to get to the knife after a struggle.

He told Winniepeg CTV News: 'What I was saying to myself is, 'if he gets this knife back, he's either going to kill me or the other two men here. That's when I made the decision to stab him.'

'I really thought I was going to die.'

Stevens was taken into custody but later released without charge.

Local police said he acted in self defense, and that there was no evidence suggesting he had taken any drugs at the retreat.

Handler's exploration of drugs did not stop in the Amazon - she took the sleeping pill Ambien while drinking, under the supervision of doctors, to 'show people the effects'.

She also took Athe DHD medication Adderall - often called the 'smart drug' - hosted a dinner where each course was infused with marijuana, and smoked weed with Willie Nelson.

'I was so stoned': Also in the episode, Handler sits down with Willie Nelson to smoke weed and interview the country music legend about his love of pot

'Oh my God, I was high for two days! I literally couldn't open one of my eyes,' Handler told Fallon of her interview with the 82-year-old country legend.

'He has his own line of weed, for those of you who like weed. I was in a trailer with him - I think he lives in a trailer... he was so stoned he probably didn't even know I was there.'

However it wasn't all fun and games. After all, Handler was supposed to be working.

'The worst part was, as an interviewer I'm supposed to be interviewing him,' she said.

'I'm talking to him and I didn't take into account that I was going to be completely disabled,' she said.

'So as we're talking I am like "Oh my God - what am I going to say next?"

'I was like: just keep talking!... looking at him, and he's not a big talker... so I was just like "I hope he keeps talking"... I'm so stoned.

Chelsea Handler is seen out in New York on Tuesday night. The comedian is on a promotional tour for her new Netflix show

Sign here: She signed autographs for waiting fans as she made her way to a taping of Jimmy Fallon

Handler also discussed the marriage episode of her series, explaining why she's never tied the knot.

'I've never been married and I think that's a victory,' she said.

'I feel like now that I'm 40, I can see getting married. I mean, I've no viable options at all. But now that I'm passed the hump of people saying "when are you going to get married?" - 'cause I was so rebellious I was like "I'm not gonna marry anybody!"

'And no that no one is asking me I'm like "watch me get married! I'll get married, I'll get divorced and then I'll get married again - booyah!'

Chelsea Does debuted at the Sundance Film Festival this week, and will hit Netflix January 24.
A shocking video has been released showing a pain-wracked wolf being tortured in Kazakhstan.

The film shows men in a jeep pursuing the creature across the landscape before running it over with their 4x4.

They also hurl objects at it, including what appears to be a spanner, as it howls in pain and fear.

The driver of the 4x4 traps the wolf by running over it, and then shockingly one man launches a spanner at the animal's head

The distressed animal is then kicked in the head as it lies trapped under one of the vehicle's wheels.

The horrifying footage ends with one of the men going to tie up the wolf, and chillingly, another moves towards it with what looks like a spanner.

It is not known what happened in the end but the fear is that things ended badly for the creature.

It is the third known case of cruelty towards a wolf in the country in recent weeks.

The horrifying scene plays out as if the men are enjoying some kind of game, as the torturing of the wolf continues

Earlier this year a hunter hit and wounded a wolf with his rifle.

A video clip of the incident, filmed in Kazakhstan, shows the man hitting the animal on the head as it tries in vain to defend itself, despite both its back legs appearing to be broken.

His companion is heard in the background of the video shouting in Kazakh: 'Hit it on the head, on the head'.

Local reports stated the man seen in the video had not yet been identified, though his actions provoked outrage after the footage surfaced online.

Although wolf populations are strongly protected in Europe, no such legislation exists in Kazakhstan, where wolf cubs are sometimes bought and used to protect land and property.

And another video surfaced showing a Kazakh hunter torturing a wolf with his bare hands.

Social media users are overwhelmingly apprehensive about the trend, although a few accuse the government of failing to cull wolves in the first place.

Wildlife experts believe Kazakhstan has more wolves than any country in the world  about 90,000.

With that many, and natural food such as saiga antelope in increasingly short supply, wolves are attacking more farm animals such as cattle and sheep  and occasionally people.
Now he faces jail after conviction following trial at Old Bailey

Ibrahim Anderson, pictured, 38, helped set up a stall in Oxford Street, London, where he and others tried to drum-up support for ISIS

A ginger-bearded extremist is facing jail after setting up a stall on Oxford Street in London to drum-up support for ISIS and then telling Muslim women to die when they challenged him.

Ibrahim Anderson, 38, and Shah Jahan Kahn, 63, were among a group which set up a stall near Topshop in August 2014, the Old Bailey was told.

The pair, from Luton, Bedfordshire, denied inviting support for a proscribed organisation and Anderson also denied possessing information likely to be useful to a terrorist.

The jury deliberated for eight hours before finding them guilty.

Prosecutor Mark Seymour had told jurors the defendants spent two-and-a-half hours speaking to passers-by and distributing a leaflet on the 'so-called Caliphate' which had been re-established earlier that summer.

He said: 'These defendants, who both played their part as members of the group which invited support for IS in Oxford Street on August 9, 2014, would have been well aware that this is what they were doing.'

Anderson's home was later searched and a mini notebook computer was seized which contained three images that 'formed part of a set of instructions for travel to Syria to support jihad', the prosecutor said.

The father-of-five, who represented himself in court, appealed to jurors to 'see past his beard' and 'see who I really am - a devoted father to my family'.

He said he only wanted to practise his religion and exercise his freedom of speech and denied knowing the other people who had gone to Oxford Street that day for dawah (call to Islam) - and said he only 'glanced' at a leaflet he was given.

The motor mechanic only decided to go on the spur of the moment, he said.

'I know there is a group of Muslims who go there quite regularly and I was supposed to go to work but I got a cancellation and, as my wife had gone to see her mum for the day, I decided to jump on a train.'

Anderson also spoke to documentary film maker Greg Ward and gave him a leaflet.

It referred to seven great responsibilities of Muslims to pledge an oath of allegiance to the Caliph, obey the Caliph according to Shariah law, migrate and resettle in the caliphate, educate people about the caliphate and expose any lies and fabrications made against the Islamic state.

The leaflet continued: After many attempts and many great sacrifices from the Uma of Islam throughout the world the Muslims with the help of Allah have announced the re-establishment of the Khilafah (caliphate) and appointed an Imam as Khaleef (Muslim leader).

Shah Jahan Kahn, 63, of Luton, pictured, was also found guilty of gathering support for ISIS in Oxford Street

Mr Seymour said this referred to ISIS and its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

The Crown say it is perfectly obviously a leaflet talking about the establishment of an Islamic State by ISIS.

Anderson told the court he did not understand most of the leaflet he was handing out and said he only travelled into London from Luton to dispel some myths about Islam.

I ask you all to see past what is instilled in our minds on a daily basis in the newspapers and on TV, he said in his closing speech to the jury.

See past my beard and gown to see a loving and devoted father of a family.

I wish to practice the religion of Islam but this is simply my freedom of speech.

I have been brave enough to come here and do this alone and fight my corner because I know Im innocent and have done nothing wrong.

Isabelle Gillard, defending Khan, said her client had a very very fundamental view of Islam, but added: It does not extend to support for ISIS, he does not support ISIS and would not invite support.

Mr Khans case is his version of Islam is followed by two different types of people.

Those who follow the fundamental approach lawfully and peacefully, and those attached to it who use violence and have a warped approach.

The jury at the Old Bailey, pictured, unanimously found the pair guilty and they will be sentenced next week

He says we should reject the wrong people, you can be a deeply conservative Muslim wanting the Khalifah and Sharia Law without supporting terrorism.

You may want similar ends but you dont agree with their means, and theres anger at being counted among them.

However the jury rejected his explanation and unanimously found the defendants guilty. Anderson was found guilty by a majority on the second charge.

The two men made no reaction and sat in the dock as the verdict was delivered.

They were remanded in custody to be sentenced on Friday, January 29.

The court heard that the pair were arrested in December 2014 after two members of the public took photographs of them in Oxford Street and reported their behaviour to police.

When the witnesses challenged their point of view, they were told to 'go and die'.

Following their convictions, Commander Dean Haydon, of SO15, said: 'These men were openly supporting a terrorist organisation whose behaviour is abhorrent to the majority of people across the world.

'Their actions on a busy London street were challenged by members of the public, appalled by what they observed.
Kim Jong-un and his dictatorial regime should face a crimes against humanity probe over 'Nazi-style atrocities' committed two years ago, a UN investigator has claimed.

An investigation, commissioned in 2014 has concluded that North Korean security chiefs and possibly leader Kim Jong-un should face international justice for ordering systematic torture, starvation and killings.

Marzuki Darusman, the UN's special rapporteur on North Korea said: 'In addition to continuing political pressure to exhort the DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) to improve human rights, it is also now imperative to pursue criminal responsibility of the DPRK leadership.'

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Kim Jong-un should be prosecuted for crimes against humanity according to a UN human rights expert

Kim, pictured, and his senior leadership ordered the systematic torture starvation and killing of its citizens according to Marzuki Darusman, the UN's special rapporteur on North Korean human rights

His comments came as the hermit state said it had detained an American university student for committing a 'hostile act# and wanting to 'destroy the country's unity'.

The 2014 report prompted the U.N. General Assembly to urge the UN Security Council to consider referring North Korea to the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity.

Only the 15-member Security Council can refer the situation in North Korea to the ICC, but diplomats say China, North Korea's main benefactor, would likely veto such a move.

In February last year, North Korea's ambassador to the UN said his country was not concerned about the threat because it was not guilty of any crime.

Darusman, a co-author of the 2014 report, was speaking at the end of a trip to Tokyo, having been repeatedly refused access to North Korea. During his five days in Japan, he met family members of people allegedly abducted by North Korea.

Pyongyang admitted in 2002 to kidnapping 13 Japanese citizens to help train spies. Five abductees and their families later returned to Japan.

But Darusman has said North Korean agents abducted hundreds more foreign nationals between the 1960s and 1990s and Japan's national police agency is looking into 881 possible abduction cases blamed on North Korea over the years.

He said: 'I am disappointed that there has been no concrete progress since Japan and the DPRK signed a bilateral agreement almost two years ago to work towards a resolution of this issue.'
Switzerland made a secret deal with the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) almost five decades ago to prevent terrorist attacks on home soil, a new book has claimed.

The pact between the Swiss government and the PLO allegedly came after a series of attacks by Palestinian groups, including the downing of a Swissair flight to Tel Aviv in 1970, which killed 47 people on board.

The book, by Swiss journalist Marcel Gy, claims that Switzerland offered diplomatic support to the PLO as part of the agreement.

In 1970, a Swissair flight en route to New York was hijacked, alongside others, and landed on an airstrip in Jordan, where passengers were held hostage. Pictured: The empty planes being blown up

The PLO was created in the 1960s to bring various Palestinian groups together under one organisation.

It engaged in a protracted guerrilla war against Israel during the '60s, '70s and '80s before peace negotiations in the 1990s.

In 1969, a Palestinian gunman opened fire on an El Al plane - an Israeli airline - at Zurich airport, killing a pilot.

And the following year a Swissair flight en route to New York was hijacked, alongside others, and landed on an airstrip in Jordan, where passengers were held hostage.

It was while the passengers were held hostage, the Swiss foreign minister contacted the PLO, information published in the book indicates, according to the BBC.

The hijacked planes landed on an airstrip in Jordan, where passengers (pictured) were held hostage

The minister, Pierre Graber, agreed to release the people charged for the El Al plane attack in exchange for freeing the hostages, the book suggests.

He allegedly did not tell other ministers about the deal, which also stated the Swissair flight downing investigation would be shelved and the government would push for international recognition of the PLO, the BBC reports.
A former police officer accused of six months of incestuous sex attacks on a 15-year-old girl allegedly gave her herpes and made her believe they were boyfriend and girlfriend.

Troy Estree, 46, allegedly repeatedly sexually assaulted his young relative in 2014, including while he was on duty.

Estree, who was a cop in Emmett Township, Michigan, could face life in prison if he is convicted.

Troy Estree, 46, is accused of six months of incestuous sex attacks on a 15-year-old girl that allegedly gave her herpes and made her believe they were boyfriend and girlfriend

His alleged victim, who is now 17, gave testimony for five hours as she detailed the horrific abuse she claims to have suffered at the hands of the police officer.

She said that her relationship with Estree started out as meetings in public but soon she was invited round to spend time at his house, which he shared with his wife and two children.

She told the court the alleged abuse started awhile she was sat on a sofa with Estree, watching an episode of the comedy cartoon show Family Guy, KHOU reported.

'It started with him touching me up my leg and closer to my thighs and then my private areas,' she told assistant prosecutor Michael Stein.

'I didn't know what to do. He started rubbing my thighs and up to my vagina. I didn't know what to expect, and I didn't want to let him down,' the teenager said.

Estree is said to have given the girl a cell phone and they began messaging each other. The girl started staying overnight at the house and the former cop would give her alcohol, the court heard.

They were watching another episode of Family Guy on another night when Estree pulled down her shorts and had anal intercourse with her, the girl said.

She said: 'I don't remember what he said, but he was probably kissing my neck. I said I didn't want to do it anymore. I felt like trash. He said OK.'

The teenager said they had oral sex a few weeks later and she 'blocked out' her thoughts to get through it.

However, she began to 'enjoy' the relationship, which she considered dating rather than a sexual relationship between relatives, the jury heard.

Estree, who was a cop in Emmett Township, Michigan, could face life in prison if he is convicted

The girl described several more alleged sexual assaults, including on the trunk of his squad car while he was on patrol.

She also detailed further assaults on a park bench, on a construction site and in his basement.

'I thought it was normal,' she said. 'It was like a relationship thing. Now I know I had sex with (him), and it destroyed a whole family. It felt good. I had not had sex before and it felt good. I saw him more as a friend,' she told the court.

'We both gave each other a look and then there was caressing and kissing and touching each other. It felt more like a boyfriend. I called him "Bro".'

When she was questioned by police six months after the alleged assaults began, she tried to 'protect' Estree 'because I loved him', she said.

She lied to investigators to start with, but Michigan State Detective Sergeant Heather Johnson, who was interviewing her, refused to believe her.

Det Johnson told the girl that she would phone everyone in her address book and tell them that she had herpes unless she admitted having sex with Estree, the girl said during questioning by defense attorney Keeley Heath.

The then 15-year-old had earlier been to a doctor and was diagnosed with type 1 herpes, which is often transmitted sexually, the court heard.

The jury was told that Estree has type 1 and type 2 herpes.

The girl said she started to cry during the intense police interview. 'I guessed she already knew. I knew she knew I was having anal sex with [Estree],' she said in court.

She had earlier said she was having sex with a man called Brock, but told the court she 'made it up because I didn't know what else to do to cover up for [Estree]'.

Estree pulled down the girl's shorts and had anal intercourse with her while they watched an episode of Family Guy, the girl said

Two friends of the girl, Katherine Reed and Timothy Annarino, told the court on Thursday that they were told the girl was being sexually assaulted by Estree before police became involved.

Miss Reed, 17, said she was a close friend of the girl and that she was told the jury how he 'would do things to her', the Battle Creek Enquirer reported.

'He would kiss her. She was very confused about that,' the friend said.

Miss Reed said the girl told her that Estree kissed her but it escalated to anal sex.

'It became more than kissing,' she said. 'They were taking off clothes. She said he helped her unhook her bra and get her pants down and then she said he put his penis in her butt.'

Miss Reed said the girl 'enjoyed' spending time with Estree and told her she was not allowed to tell anyone about them.

The friend also told the court that the girl told her she was washing dishes when Estree pulled down her pants and had anal sex with her.

She also spoke of another assault on park bench when he was in police uniform.

The girl told the court she thought of Estree (pictured) as her boyfriend, rather than a relative

Miss Reed told the court that the girl said Estree sent a naked photograph of himself to her.

The friend said she felt 'foolish' for not telling the police but did not want to lose a friend.

Mr Annarino did not know the girl personally but was friends with a fake Facebook account she had set up under a different name.

He told the court that he advised her to go the police after she told him Estree 'was doing bad things to her'.

'She told me how he touched her vagina and she told me he was a cop in the Battle Creek area. I told her she should contact police,' he said.

Detective Sergeant Paul Gonyeau, from Michigan State Police, told the court that he inspected cell phones seized from the girl and Estree.

He said Estree's phone had been wiped of text messages but records given to police by the network provider showed 1,900 text messages were sent between the former cop's phone and the girl between May and August 2014.

Det Sgt Gonyeau read some of the texts and Facebook messages to the court.

One, from Estree, said: 'I failed you and you make it feel like it's your fault.'

The girl replied: 'I am used to this. This is filth. It is wrong on so many levels.'

Another message read to the court showed the girl saying: 'When you first touching me I said OK. I didn't know what to do. Now I am used to it. I think it is normal. I feel like filth for the longest time. We are screwed up and this will never be normal again.'

She is later said to have added: 'I kind of feel like filth and am kind of afraid of you.

According to the Battle Creek Enquirer, Defense attorney Ms Heath told the court earlier this week that the girl 'is crazy'.

'She was brought to a mental health facility with magical thinking and odd thoughts and short-term memory loss and she might not be oriented to reality,' Ms Heath said.

Ms Heath added that many of the sexual assaults the girl described were 'unbelievable' because they were 'high-risk situations'.

Prosecutor Stein told the court the deleted texts messages and both Estree and the girl having herpes were evidence that the assaults did happen.

Estree was fired from the police after his arrest. He is charged with nine counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct with the girl, who was underage and is related to him. He denies the allegations.

In a separate case, Estree is also accused of raping his adult niece in hot tub.

According to Fox 17, he allegedly asked her to show him her breasts while he was naked in the hot tub before forcing her to have sex with him.
An Ohio school district canceled classes Friday after officials issued an advisory that said children and pregnant women shouldn't drink tap water from a village system because of elevated levels of lead and copper found during tests at a handful of homes connected to the system.

Sebring city manager Richard Giroux issued the advisory Thursday night after seven of 20 homes where tap water is routinely tested showed levels of lead and copper that exceeded U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standards.

The Sebring water system serves around 8,100 customers in the Mahoning County communities of Sebring, Beloit and Maple Ridge. Sebring is about 60 miles southeast of Cleveland.

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The Sebring water system serves around 8,100 customers in the Mahoning County communities of Sebring, Beloit and Maple Ridge. Sebring, seen here, is about 60 miles southeast of Cleveland

Classes were canceled for the Sebring school district's 650 students as a precaution, Giroux said Friday. The Sebring schools superintendent did not immediately return an email message seeking comment sent on Friday afternoon.

Tests showed lead levels at 21 parts per billion at the seven homes. The EPA standard is 15 parts per billion. Lead can cause serious health problems for infants and young children.

Giroux said the elevated levels were detected in older homes with pipes that possibly leached lead and copper because water from the plant might have been slightly acidic. Tests have shown that water leaving the plant and in the system's distribution pipes is safe, Giroux said.

More tests were being done on Friday. Chemicals will be added at the plant to reduce the water's acidity if necessary, Giroux said. The village has spent $5 million improvements in recent months to make the water plant 'state of the art,' Giroux said.

Tests showed lead levels at 21 parts per billion at the seven homes. The EPA standard is 15 parts per billion. Lead can cause serious health problems for infants and young children (file photograph)

'I want to make sure we're delivering a good product,' Giroux said. 'It's better to err on the side of caution until we know what's happening.'

WKBN obtained a Friday letter from State Rep. John Boccieri and State Sen. Joe Schiavoni that was addressed to the director of the Ohio EPA.

It said: 'Although the tests revealing lead contamination were conducted in August and September of 2015, this information was just recently made public and brought to our attention.'

It said December 10 was 'The deadline for the water system to have completed the notification and public education required by rule 3745-81-85.'

An Ohio EPA spokeswoman did not immediately return an email message seeking comment sent on Friday afternoon.

Toni Viscounte, superintendent of Sebring Local Schools, later said in an email Friday: 'The Sebring Local Schools is cooperating with the EPA, Village of Sebring's Water Department and the Mahoning County Health Department.

'Water samples have been taken throughout the day at both schools.

'I have had numerous discussions with my head custodian today to make sure we are ready for students next week.

'We have purchased bottled water, shut off the drinking fountains, and placed warning signs throughout the building in regards to not drinking the water.

'I have discussed lunch options for next week with my food service director that do not utilize water.
An Irish groom-to-be had a rather embarrassing end to his stag do when he had to be rescued by firefighters - while dressed in a tutu.

The unknown man found himself locked in a Barcelona bar after the owner closed up, without realising he was still in the toilet.

His drunken friends were also apparently blithely unaware of his misfortune, and only realised he was missing when they woke up later that morning.

The Irish groom-to-be was locked in a bar overnight after his friends forgot he was in the toilet

Confused, they retraced their steps to the bar, only to discover he was still inside.

But the owner was nowhere to be seen and firefighters had to free him after forcing the door.

A neighbour living near the small nightspot, a cocktail bar in the old town, told a local Catalan paper: 'The groom-to-be must have fallen asleep inside the toilet because the bar is only tiny.

'He would have been spotted in any other place.'

The owner of the bar, which has not been named, ordered the stag party out at 5am on Sunday after they had been boozing for a couple of hours.

But it took until midday for the groom to finally be rescued.

Catalan daily La Vanguardia reported his friends discovered him poking his fingers through a gap in holes in the metal shutters when they returned to the bar to see if he was there.

The group is understood to have been drinking around the popular La Rambla area earlier in the evening.

The group - who had been drinking in the popular La Rambla area earlier on - only realised he was missing later that morning, and had to call the firefighters to free him for inside the locked bar

Barcelona is now one of Europe's most popular stag do and hen night venues.

City residents complain tourism is overwhelming parts of Barcelona.

There have been several protests during the last couple of years over mass tourism.

Residents in working-class neighbourhood La Barceloneta have organised demos against drunken-style Magaluf holidaymakers and illegal tourist flats.
Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian headed home to the United States on Friday, days after being freed from 18 months in prison in Iran as part of a historic prisoner exchange.

The Post's owner and Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos accompanied the Iranian-American journalist and his family on the flight to the United States on a private jet, the Post reported.

The newspaper printed a picture of Bezos with his arm around Rezaian's shoulder and both men smiling aboard an aircraft.

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Jason Rezaian, the Washington Post Tehran bureau chief, is flying back to America today alongside the paper's owner and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos after being imprisoned by Iran

Rezaian (right, pictured with Bezos and his wife Yeganeh Salehi) began working for the Post in 2012 before being imprisoned for espionage in 2014 while in Tehran

Rezaian spent 18 months detained in Iran, eight months of which was in solitary confinement, and reportedly suffered both physical and mental health difficulties

The caption said it showed the two men before taking off for the United States from Saarbruecken, Germany, on Friday.

Rezaian, who had been staying at a medical center in Germany after leaving Iran on Sunday, said he was grateful for his newfound freedom but was not yet ready to talk about his imprisonment.

'At some point, I will be ready to discuss my ordeal but for now, I just want to express my profound appreciation for the tremendous support I have received,' he said in a statement.

'Today, I am incredibly thankful for my family, my fellow journalists, my colleagues at the Washington Post, and everyone else who fought for my freedom,' he said.

The prisoner swap was announced as world powers, including the United States, implemented a landmark nuclear deal with Iran that eased tensions between Tehran and the West.

Rezaian was among four Americans released last Saturday as part of an historic swap deal with Iran, and has spent the last week at a medical center in Germany before boarding a plane home today

While he has not said exactly what his future plans are, Rezaian said previously that he wants to 'get back to writing the Iran-U.S. story' (pictured with brother Ali, far left, and mother Mary, far right, earlier this week)

In exchange for the release of five Americans from Iran, the White House offered clemency to seven Iranians who were convicted or facing trial in the United States.

Two other Americans freed by Iran, a Christian minister and a former U.S. Marine, returned to the United States on Thursday.

Rezaian, who was born in California and holds dual U.S. and Iranian citizenship, was accused of espionage by Iran.

He and his wife Yeganeh Salehi, who is Iranian, were arrested in July 2014 and accused of espionage, although she was later freed.

Rezaian today committed to writing about his experience sometime today, but said for now he just wants to get home and be with his family (pictured outside the medical center in Germany this week)

Rezaian's brother Ali along with executives at the Post had led the effort to seek their release, urging the Obama administration to press the issue with Iran.

After his release, Rezaian spent several days at the U.S. military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany.

Rezaian and his family had dinner with Bezos on the base on Thursday, the Post said.
Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump used his Twitter page Friday morning to re-tweet a neo-Nazi message insulting GOP rival Jeb Bush, accelerating the acidic social media attacks by the billionaire.

Trump re-posted at 10:51 a.m. a Photo-shopped image of Bush, the former governor of Florida, holding a sign that says 'Vote Trump' outside Trump Tower in Manhattan.

The profile of the original sender, @WhiteGenocideTM, features a black-and-red photo with the words, 'Get the f--- out of my country.' The name of the profiler says 'Donald Trumpovitz,' and the location is 'Jewmerica.' There is also a link to a page promoting a pro-Adolf Hitler documentary.

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GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump posted this message on his official Twitter account Friday morning

Trump has either blamed interns for his most-criticized tweets, or has simply had them deleted

Trump's campaign said the candidate himself posted this anti-Bush, Nazi-themed message in November

The tweet was still on Trump's Twitter page as of mid-Friday afternoon.

Neither Trump spokeswoman Hope Hicks nor Bush spokeswoman Kristy Campbell immediately answered invitations to comment, although Campbell addressed it in her own tweet Friday, calling it 'Trump's latest classy tweet attack' on Bush.

Another Bush spokesman, Tim Miller, tweeted Friday: 'Trump's anti-Jeb retweets now include one from a Nazi's account and another calling Jeb a Nazi.'

The 'white genocide' term is a common phrase of white supremacists who suggest that demographic changes or political correctness are threatening the Caucasian race.

Trump has repeatedly criticized political correctness on the campaign trail, and that, combined with his attacks on Mexican immigrants and his proposal to ban all Muslim immigrants into the U.S. have made him a favorite of white supremacy groups.

Just this month, one prominent white supremacist began promoting Trump in robocalls to registered voters in Iowa, as reported by the Daily Mail.

Jared Taylor, publisher of the white nationalist Web site American Renaissance, identifies himself in the call and goes on to say, 'We need smart, well-educated white people who will assimilate to our culture. Vote Trump.'

Trump and his staff have sent out repeated tweets with Nazi imagery.

Last July, one month into his campaign, he posted an image of marching Nazi soldiers from World War II.

Another time he posted a picture that included a swastika.

In November, he posted a photo collage that included a picture of Bush next to yet another swastika.

His Twitter page has even taken aim at Iowa voters - in September, Trump retweeted a message implying that voters in the Hawkeye State had 'issues in the brain' for supporting GOP rival Ben Carson instead of him.

Trump has usually blamed the tweets on interns - except for the Bush-and-swastika tweet, which Hicks said he posted himself - and has removed them from his page.

Trump tweeted this Photo-shopped image of Bush in December

Trump in Las Vegas on Thursday

Bush seems to be Trump's favorite target, despite the massive gap between them in the polls means that the former governor seems to be no real threat to the front-runner. Trump explained his attacks on Bush this week by saying simply, 'he deserves it.'

Bush and his campaign have usually ignored the tweets or tried to take the high road. Bush said in November that the real estate tycoon 'should stop tweeting at night,' and said his interns 'must drink at night or something.'

Bush also suggested an 8 p.m. curfew on tweets among GOP candidates, and in December Campbell tweeted a message calling Trump 'twitter-drunk.' That was after Trump's Twitter page posted a Photo-shopped image of Bush picking his nose.




Conrad Hilton is heading back to court in his criminal case next week.

He will go before Federal Court Judge Suzanne Segal and be compelled to explain why he should not be thrown behind bars for violating the court's order over his probation

The brother of Paris and newly pregnant Nicky Hilton could end up in prison for up to six months as prosecutor filed a 'secret' petition asking that Hilton's probation be revoked.

Hilton was arrested in July, 2014 after his drug-fueled meltdown aboard a flight from London to LA.. The hotel heir threw a epic tantrum by screaming and threatening the flight attendants and shouting, 'If you wanna square up to me bro, then bring it and I will f**king fight you.' along with 'I will f**king own anyone on this flight; they are f**king peasants.'

During the flight he also was accused of smoking weed in the bathroom of the plane. Hilton became so erratic that the flight crew had to restrain him to his seat after he had passed out.

Conrad Hilton, here with his father Richard, was arrested in July, 2014 after his drug-fueled meltdown aboard a flight from London to LA.

The hard-partying hotel heir threw a epic tantrum by screaming and threatening the flight attendants and shouting, 'If you wanna square up to me bro, then bring it and I will f**king fight you.' Last year he was sentenced to community service and three years of probation

According to court documents ... Hilton admitted taking a sleeping bill during the flight and even admitted he said about the crew, 'I told all of them I could get all of their jobs taken away in less than 30 seconds.'

Hilton was charged with a felony for threatening the flight attendants and interfering with the crew.

Months later Hilton reached a plea deal with the prosecution that the felony charge would be dropped to a misdemeanor assault charge. The prosecution agreed to recommend to the judge Hilton get probation, not jail time.

Last June the hotel heir was arrested for allegedly breaking into the home of Hunter Salomon

The initial felony charge carried a maximum jail time of 20 years but the misdemeanor charge only carried jail time up to six months.

Hilton was ordered to obey all laws per his plea deal until he was sentenced by the court.

According to documents filed on April 30, Hilton violated the terms of his plea deal by failing a drug test.

The Feds were informed by Hilton's pretrial officer that the 21-year-old admitted to smoking marijuana after signing the plea agreement. The judge instructed him to enroll in outpatient substance abuse treatment immediately.

Because the the feds did not believe Hilton was a flight risk, they did not ask that for his bond be revoked but they requested the judge order a condition be added to his bond. They wanted Hilton to have a curfew every night where he must be home at 10pm until 5am

The federal court judge granted the request and ordered Hilton to be at his residence every night by 10pm until 5 in the morning.

Conrad was ultimately sentenced to 750 hours of community service, ordered to pay a $5,000 fine along with undergo mental and substance abuse treatment and be put on probation for 3 years.

The terms of his probation demanded that Hilton is not to use any controlled substances, drink alcohol or abuse prescription medication.

Further, he was also ordered to not commit any other crimes, report to his probation officer when directed, obtain a job or be enrolled in school, stay away from locations where drugs are sold or used, not associate with drug users or criminals, allow his probation officer to come inside his home and search his belongings and not possess or purchase any firearms

Famous family: Hotel heir Conrad is the youngest sibling of Paris Hilton

But today Conrad's lawyer, Robert Shapiro, along with the prosecution met with the judge presiding over Hilton's case. The meeting took place in the judge's chambers and they discussed the petition for revocation of supervision.

The documents don't specify the violation that Conrad committed but the prosecution is clearly coming for him for not following the rules put in place by the judge.

The judge set a hearing to take place next week to determine whether she will grant the petition for revocation of supervision.

Hilton violating the terms of his parole when he was arrested back in June for he allegedly breaking into the home of his ex-girlfriend, Hunter Salomon, after she broke off their relationship.

Conrad Hilton, here with parents Kathy and Rick

Hunter is the daughter Rick Salomon  Conrad's sister Paris' co-star in her infamous sex tape and actress E.G. Daily.

Prior to Hilton breaking into her home, Hunter filed for a restraining order explaining she had dated Conrad for several years but they broke up.

She claimed that Conrad became obsessive calling her the love of his life and threatened to commit suicide. She claimed he would show up to her house at all hours, would cry to her mother saying he wanted to marry her daughter and had recently showed up to her home refusing to leave and telling her to get a restraining order because he can't stop himself.

Hunter was granted a temporary restraining order by a Los Angeles judge, who ordered Hilton to stay 100 yards away from her at all times.

The restraining order didn't stop Conrad and he was arrested in June for breaking into his ex's home after helicopters and police swarmed the house.
It was a sex scandal that shook Michigan's political establishment to its core, and it had all the making of a Hollywood movie: a steamy affair between two married elected officials, a ludicrous cover-up plot, and ultimately, career-ending public humiliation for the star-crossed lovers.

Michigan State Representatives Cindy Gamrat and Todd Courser were ousted from office in September after it was revealed that the two Tea Party leaders who espoused traditional family values and Christian beliefs were having a tryst together.

Now, the lovers' downfall is getting the prime-time treatment as the subject of an hour-long investigative report by 20/20, which airs Friday night at 10pm Eastern Time on ABC.

The Affair: In this January 14, 2015 file photo, then-Reps Cindy Gamrat and Todd Courser wave to reporters in the House of Representatives. Both have since been ousted after the exposure of their affair and cover-up

In a preview for the bombshell expose, a tearful Cindy Gamrat says: 'Im sorry, its not how I wanted it to go.'

The tawdry affair between Gamrat, a married mother-of-three, and Courser, who has four children with his wife of 18 years, Fon, first came to light in August 2015 when The Detroit News published a front-page story revealing that Courser sent a sexually explicit phony email to GOP activists and reporters saying he had been caught having sex with a male prostitute behind a Lansing nightclub.

The self-smear email called Courser a 'bi-sexual porn addicted sex deviant' and 'gun toting Bible thumping ... freak' and Gamrat a 'tramp.'

Courser later explained that he thought his improbable tale would make the affair with Gamrat less plausible in case it was revealed by an anonymous extortionist who sent him text messages demanding that he resign.

In a wild twist to the already-complicated story, the bogus extortionist was ultimately revealed to be Gamrat's own husband, Joe, who asked a friend from work to send Courser several threatening texts in an attempt to end his relationship with his wife.

In a candid sit-down interview with 20/20, Courser said he got the first message in May. The anonymous blackmailer told him he was prepared to expose his affair with Gamrat, unless courser resigns.

Gamrat and Courser's tryst continued until May 2015, when he began receiving texts from an anonymous sender threatening to expose the affair, unless he agrees to step down

Gamrat and Courser were Tea Party darlings espousing traditional family values and Christian beliefs

The married Tea Party lawmaker said he was on the verge of a mental breakdown. Before long, he began venting his anger and frustration on his staffers, among them Ben Graham, who noticed the dramatic shift in their boss demeanor.

Todd is usually very chipper and sarcastic and fun, Graham told 20/20. But there would be times where he would take things out on us with a great deal of anger that I felt was inappropriate.

Things came to a head on May 19, 2015, when Graham got an alarming phone call from Courser summoning him to his office after-hours.

In a very, the most serious tone I've ever heard from him, he said, Ben, I need you to destroy me," Graham recalled. And I paused for a second and I said, Todd, what do you mean?"

He's like, I need you to destroy me. Can you come to my office?"

Graham knew that his boss was spinning out of control, and that he had a loaded gun in his office desk, so before heading out to meet Courser, the aide reached out to two of his colleagues to let them know where he was going.

Fellow aide Keith Allard advised Graham to record his conversation with Courser, which ultimately would spell Courser's downfall.

With Graham's cellphone picking up on every word uttered in Courser's office that night, the lawmaker explained that he wanted his assistant to send out an anonymous email to his GOP colleagues at the State Capitol claiming that he had hired a male prostitute for sex, and also that he was addicted to drugs and alcohol.

'I need it to be over the top, ' Courser told Graham on the tape.

Whistle-blowers: Courser's former aides, Keith Allard (left) and Ben Graham (right), went to the press in July claiming that the married lawmaker's gay-sex scandal was a cover-up - and they had the audio recording to prove it

Graham, pictured above with his wife, was the one to whom Courser turned in May, asking him to send the smear email labeling him a sexual deviant, but the aide refused to cooperate

When the aide pointed out that no one was going to believe these allegations, Courser said that was the point.

Stuff's going to come out, Benjamin, Courser said. And they're going to implicate myself and Cindy Gamrat.

He then continued: The way to handle it is to do a controlled burn of me. It's so over the top that people will see it and they'll be like, holy s***, what is that?" Courser is heard telling Graham on the recording. And anything that comes after that will be wild by comparison.

After leaving his boss' office, Graham sent him a text message refusing to take part in the plot. In the end, Courser decided to send out the smear email himself, which caused a stir in Michigans political circles and soon made national headlines.

Then in July, Ben Graham and Keith Allard, who both had been fired for poor performance, went public with allegations that Courser had concocted the bogus gay-sex scandal to cover up his real affair with Gamrat.

I felt that it was important for people to know the truth about these people, and what they were doing, Graham told ABC.

Both former aides have since filed whistleblower and libel/slander lawsuits against Courser, Gamrat, and the Michigan House claiming wrongful termination in retaliation for reporting misconduct and abuse.

Disgraced: In September, Gamrat was ousted by the Republican-led House

Flanked by her husband Joe, Gamrat said at a press conference in August that she was innocent of charges she misused state funds and her office staff to cover up an affair she had with Courser

After the scandal broke in August, the philandering freshmen legislators asked to be censured. But the Republican-led House pursued expulsion.

In September, Courser resigned from office and Gamrat was ousted by the Republican-led House for the affair and cover-up email.

An apologetic Gamrat admitted to official misconduct and misuse of state resources but said she did not know the email's content.

'I have done everything I can to redeem this situation.' Gamrat said on the day of her expulsion, 'I am sincerely sorry for what its caused. I dont know what else I could have done more.'

In November, both Gamrat and Courser sought the Republican nominations in special primary elections - and lost.

Gamrat gained 9 per cent of the vote, finishing third overall, while Courser had 415 votes, less than 4 per cent - coming in fifth in an 11-candidate primary.

After losing his re-election bid, Courser threw himself into finding the anonymous blackmailer whose threatening texts had set the disastrous cover-up plot in motion.

A criminal investigation by the State Police eventually determined that the person behind the threatening missives demanding that Course resign was David Horr, a co-worker of Cindy Gamrat's husband, Joe Gamrat.

Still together: While Gamrat's marriage is headed for divorce, Courser and his wife of 18 years, Fon (right), plan to stay together

It was Gamrat, according to police, who had given Horr money to buy a 'burner' phone so he could anonymously send messages to Courser threatening to expose his and Cindy's affair.

'I was devastated to see the police report,' Cindy Gamrat told ABC. 'I remember reading the report and just shaking and not wanting to believe what I was reading.'

In November, Lapeer County Prosecutor Tim Turkelson declined to charge Mr Gamrat with extortion.

'The motivation behind the text messages ... was to assist Joe Gamrat in ending the extramarital affair,' Turkelson said in a statement. 'The messages therefore do not rise to the level of criminal extortion.'

Investigators also were able to uncover that Mr Gamrat, a chemical salesman by trade, was obsessed with spying on his wife and keeping tabs on her movements, which he accomplished by planting 'bugs' in her purse and car.

Five months after the scandal first broke, Cindy Gamrat plans to divorce her husband, saying that she no longer feels with him around. She revealed that whenever he returns home from his business trips, she sleeps in her SUV in a supermarket parking lot.
The U.S. has denied taking control of a formerly derelict airstrip in northeastern Syria, after satellite images appeared to show a massive expansion project underway.

Images released by Texas-based security analyst Stratfor show the runway near the town of Rmeilan, in the Kurdish-controlled province of al-Hasakah, being extended from 700m to 1.3km.

The low-resolution images, taken on December 28, appear to confirm the rumours of U.S. activity in the region, where Kurdish rebels are battling against ISIS.

Construction: A low-resolution image taken on December 28 appears to show the Rmeilan airstrip being expanded by nearly double its length from 700m to 1.3km. The U.S. denies reports that it has 'taken control of any airfield in Syria'

According to Stratfor, the 'construction underway...would prepare the site to accommodate larger aircraft'.

It added: 'Rumours of the U.S. arrival at Rmeilan originally surfaced in early January; the images confirm that at least some of those rumours are true.'

The expansion of the airstrip would help the Syrian Democratic Forces 'conduct offensive operations' against ISIS.

The company said the fight to drive ISIS from its de-facto capital Raqqa would require a greater logistical effort than that of present.

It said expanding the airstrip would make this possible, as it would allow U.S. airplanes to land and drop off supplies instead of relying on airdrops.

The U.S. has already carried out two weapons airdrops to the rebel Syrian Arab Coalition, a faction of the SDF.

The SDF would be significantly better supported by U.S. troops if the U.S. had gained control of the airstrip, which would make it the first U.S.-controlled airstrip in Syria.

On Wednesday, the SDF claimed the U.S. had taken control of the airstrip.

Region: Reports claim the U.S. has launched an expansion of an airstrip near Rmeilan, which it is claimed would help it to better support the Kurdish rebels who are fighting ISIS in the northeastern region of Syria

Reports by the Syrian Local Coordination Committees and the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also both claimed the U.S. has taken control.

But the U.S. denies the claims.

Cmdr. Kyle Raines, spokesman for the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), told MailOnline that the military has not taken control of any airfield in Syria.

He added: Our location and troop strength remains small and in keeping with what was previously briefed by the U.S. Secretary of Defense.

This being said, U.S. forces in Syria are consistently looking for ways to increase efficiency for logistics and personnel recovery support. There has been no change to the size or mission of the U.S. troops in Syria.

When asked whether the U.S. was behind the expansion of the airstrip, the spokesman said he had no further comment. He added that he could not offer a comment on what the satellite images do show.

The formerly disused airstrip, which is close to Syria's borders with both Iraq and Turkey, has been controlled by the U.S.-backed Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) for the past two years.

Support: Stratfor and Syrian observers have been reporting rumours of U.S. activity in the northeastern Syrian province for weeks. Pictured, ISIS militants holding up their weapons near the Syrian-Iraqi border between the Iraqi Nineveh province and the Syrian town of Al-Hasakah

Push: Security analysts said the fight to drive ISIS from its de-facto capital Raqqa would require a greater logistical effort than that of present. Pictured, ISIS militants take position at a Iraqi border post on the Syrian-Iraqi border between the Iraqi Nineveh province and the Syrian town of Al-Hasakah

The strategic airstrip is also close to several oil bases - including one of the largest in the area.

It was previously used for agricultural purposes by the Syrian government.

Despite recent attempts to learn of more recent construction activity at the airstrip, cloud cover has prevented it.

It comes as Russia similarly builds up its own military presence in the area.

A Russian detachment composed of logisitics personnel and military intelligence officers reportedly arrived in Qamishli airport, an airfield in al-Hasakah controlled by forces loyal to the Syrian government.
A Chinese nanny has been handed a 20-year jail term after she admitted in a Paris court to killing and dismembering the parents of a two-month-old baby who had died in her care.

'It's true, I killed them, and I will regret it for the rest of my life,' said Hui Zhang, 34, revealing how she killed Ying Wang and Liangsi Xui.

Hui, 34, said she merely acted in self-defence as the furious parents of the dead newborn attacked her and her boyfriend Te Lu with a butcher's knife. Te, a co-defendant in the case, was acquitted.

A Chinese couple accused of killing and dismembering the parents of a baby that had died in the babysitter's care, are pictured in a court sketch during their trial in Paris on January 19, 2016

The first floor of the apartment lived in by the two victims Ying Wang and Liangsi Xui

The case first came to light in June 2012 after two joggers came upon a leg, cut off at the ankle, in the Vincennes forest on the edge of the French capital.

Several days later, a guide dog found a human torso in the same area, but the hunt for further remains was fruitless.

Police knew the victims were Asian and initially thought the murders could be the work of the Chinese mafia, or of Luka Rocco Magnotta, a Canadian convicted of killing and dismembering a Chinese student who spent time in Paris.

But before the bodies could even be identified, Hui and Te turned themselves in. Hui told police she had been babysitting a two-month-old baby who died in his sleep.

She and her partner decided to offer the child's parents money to try to get them not to report the boy's death.

Hui invited the parents to their home, but said their plans quickly went awry faced with the fury of the grieving couple.

A lawyer for the family of the child's mother, Chloe Arnoux, (pictured) argued that the defendants prepared for the meeting by equipping themselves with the sharp weapons

A French policeman carries out investigations at the Bois de Vincennes in Paris on June 18, 2012, after a second human torso was discovered in the woods and a leg was found by two female joggers a few days before

'My client maintains she was acting in self-defence,' said the nanny's lawyer Alexis Guedj.

A lawyer for the family of the child's mother, Chloe Arnoux, argued that the defendants prepared for the meeting by equipping themselves with the sharp weapons.

She said Hui 'was not able to tell them to their faces that their child was dead, so she brought the baby's body into the sitting room.'

Hui then chopped up the two bodies in the bathroom with an electric saw, using the washing machine to cover the noise. She wrapped the body parts in bags and cleaned her apartment.

A reconstruction of the crime scene showed that Hui, despite her small size, could drag the two bodies and lift them into the bathtub.

Te confirmed her version of events. He said he fell unconscious during the fight and remained so while Hui cut up the bodies.

'He was violently hit, it has been medically recorded,' said Te's lawyer Eric Dupond-Moretti, arguing that his client was not complicit in the murder.

Te later helped her get rid of the remains, transporting them 'by foot or public transport' to the forest of Vincennes east of Paris, a policeman said.

After the couple turned themselves in, they directed police to the locations of more body parts around the forest.

However they did not find the baby's body, which Hui said she had thrown in rubbish bins along with some of the other remains.

In his closing arguments, Julien Eyraud had told the court: 'When I learned of this case I was overcome by the horror of what happened, imagining the smell of blood, this butchery in the bathroom, this violence.'

Eyraud cast doubt on Hui's claim of self-defence and said there was no proof Te had taken part in the murders.

Police say there were no indications that Hui and Te, who arrived in France in 2004, were predisposed to this sort of grisly crime.
A 28-year-old man who slashed the face of an innocent bystander in New York at the weekend boasted about the attack in his diary, which helped cops charge him with the crime.

Francis Salud is charged with cutting the cheek of Anthony Christopher-Smith, 30, along East 6th Street in the East Village, around 4.30 p.m. on Sunday.

Police say that he wrote a message in his phone after the attack that said he 'did a buck fifty on somebody near Third Ave. [ON E. 6TH ST.]', with 'buck fifty' being slang for causing a wound that requires 150 stiches.

'He actually made an entry in his own planner, that he had committed this crime,' Assistant District Attorney Gregory Sangermano said in Manhattan Supreme Court, The New York Daily News reported.

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Francis Salud, 28, is charged with cutting the cheek of Anthony Christopher-Smith, 30, along East 6th Street in the East Village, around 4.30 p.m. on Sunday. Prosecutors say he mad a diary note about the attack

Anthony Christopher-Smith was walking down East 6th Street near Cooper Square with headphones on around 4:30 p.m. when he was knocked to the ground and slashed across the face

His face was swollen from 8-hours of surgery and 150-stitches. It will be nine months before he can smile

Salud has also been charged for a similar attack on E. 23rd St. in October.

That case remains opened.

Prosecutors this week described Salud as a dangerous menace who should not be granted bail.

'He is a danger to quite literally anyone he happens to pass on the street,' Sangermano said.

The judge subsequently denied bail.

The victim, Mr Smith, gave an interview about the attack after leaving Bellevue Hospital, and explained how he wasn't able to call 911 for help because of the amount of blood gushing from his face.

He was slashed from his ear to his jawline.

'My hands were covered (in blood), my phone was covered,' he told NBC News.

He added of the suspect: 'I got a decent look, I've never seen the person before. He looked like he was of an Asian background, little guy, he looked like he had a blade in his hand.'

After eight hours of surgery, doctors managed to patch up the Newark social worker's face although it remains partially paralyzed on the right side after several nerves were severed.

Police released these photos of the suspect wanted in relation to the slashing. Salud was later arrested

Doctors have said he should make a full recovery, but it will be between six and nine months before he is able to smile again.

'I hope somebody gets him,' he said to NBC4. 'He needs to be either in the psych ward or at Rikers, or somewhere, but you know, there's someone who's clearly deranged on the streets and I hope they get him.'

Mr Smith says he couldn't understand why his assailant didn't try to rob him during the attack, instead just casually walking away.

'He just walked off. He was deranged,' he told the Daily News.

Victim: Nikki Pagliaro, 28, was just 20 yards from her front door on January 1 when she was approached by a man who said 'don't worry, I won't hurt you', when slashed her across the cheek. The suspect has been caught

Amanda Morris was viciously slashed in the face on her daily commute to work in the Chelsea area of NY

Mr Smith is the latest victim in the city to be slashed since the new year.

Two weeks ago, a 28-year-old New York woman was slashed in the face on New Years day in the Bronx, and then another lady was attacked while walking to work in Chelsea.

On both those occasions, a 41-year-old man was arrested and charged with the attack. He was also linked to several similar attacks across the city in recent months.

Nicole Pagliaro, a 28-year-old graphic designer, believes she was the first of 41-year-old Kari Bazemore's two victims.

Pagliaro was in her Bronx neighborhood after having dinner with her cousin and his girlfriend when she was attacked.

Her attacker's family said that Bazemore's had a 15-year history of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, and had been off his medication since last being released from psychiatric care.

Nikki told Daily Mail Online: 'I know that the system is messed up. I really hope they start paying attention more to what happens when you don't deal with something straight away. I hope they can make an example out of this.

'He's not mentally stable and hasn't been for a very long time. I guess he did this to me but am I going to get angry about it?

'What's that going to do for me? I just want to get better and stay positive.'

She continued: 'For now there is relief that he's not in my neighborhood but I'm concerned this could happen again. If it's not him it could be somebody else.'

Caught: Police in New York City have arrested the man (right) responsible for slashing a 24-year-old woman's (left) face on Wednesday. He has been identified as 41-year-old Kari Bazemore
A valet lost control while parking a Jeep and crashed into the indoor pool of a luxurious Massachusetts apartment complex on Thursday.

The valet was attempting to park the vehicle at the Regatta Riverview Residences in Cambridge around 11.15pm when a rug got stuck underneath the Jeeps' gas pedal, he told police.

That's when he lost control of the vehicle, which traveled 100 feet at a high rate of speed before it crashed into the building and fell into the indoor pool on the side of the wall, authorities said.

A valet lost control while parking a Jeep and crashed into the indoor pool at the Regatta Riverview Residences in Cambridge, Massachusetts on Thursday night

The valet was attempting to park the vehicle at the Regatta Riverview Residences in Cambridge around 11.15pm when a rug got stuck underneath the Jeeps' gas pedal, he told police

The valet, who works for the Regatta Riverview Residences, was able to escape the Jeep and get out of the pool on his own.

He was taken to a local hospital and treated for minor injuries to his leg, according to ABC.

No one was inside the pool or in the Jeep's path at the time of the crash.

The Jeep was removed from the pool around 1am and that the car's owner has since been informed of the accident.

Police said the crash has been ruled an accident, according to WCVB.

No charges have been filed against the valet driver.

That's when he lost control of the vehicle, which traveled 100 feet at a high rate of speed before it crashed into the building and fell into the indoor pool on the side of the wall, authorities said
State Department officials want to wait a month before releasing the last batch of Hillary Clinton's emails as secretary of state, delaying a potential bombshell until after the first four presidential primary contests.

Instead of releasing the documents on Jan. 31, the department wants permission to release them on Feb. 29.

The final release of emails is considered the largest in terms of pages, as well as the most complex because they require reviewing by other agencies besides State. They are also considered the emails to be most sensitive for release.

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The last batch of Hillary Clinton's emails as secretary of state may not now be released until Feb. 29 - after the first four presidential primary contests

Clinton was secretary of state from 2009 to 2013 and is now the Democratic presidential front-runner for 2016

In response to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, a federal judge had ordered the department to release Clinton's 30,000 emails from 2009 to 2013 on a monthly basis, which was supposed to end next weekend.

'[T]he Department asked the court for a one month extension, to February 29th, to finish our production of former Secretary Clintons emails,' State deputy spokesperson Mark Toner said in an emailed statement to Politico.

'State Department staff have been working extremely hard to process these emails and we are committed to getting them out. The courts goal for this months production represented the largest number of pages to date.'

Toner emphasized that the agency will still produce as many of the emails as possible next Friday, but won't likely be able to release them all.

Friday's request is ripe with presidential politics. The email scandal is considered perhaps the most damaging prospect to Clinton's front-running presidential primary campaign, since she could be indicted for mishandling classified information.

If the one-month delay is granted, the documents won't be released until after the first four Democratic contests - the Iowa caucuses on Feb. 1, the New Hampshire primary on Feb. 9, the Nevada caucuses on Feb. 20 and the South Carolina primary on Feb. 27.

The campaign of Clinton's closest primary rival, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, did not respond to an invitation to comment Friday, but the potential for politics behind the request did not escape the notice of the Republican National Committee.

Clinton's closest rival is Vermont socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders. The two are shown here at Sunday night's Democratic debate in South Carolina

RNC Chairman Reince Priebus released a statement that said: 'Its clear that the State Departments delay is all about ensuring any further damaging developments in Hillary Clintons email scandal are revealed only after the votes are counted in the early nominating states.'

'The American people should be outraged at the Obama Administrations gamesmanship to protect someone who recklessly exposed classified information on more than 1,300 occasions, including highly sensitive Top Secret intelligence.'

'A ruling in favor of this blatant attempt to shield Hillary Clinton from accountability would further erode trust in our political system. Hillary Clinton has already violated the public trust by putting our national security at risk in order to skirt transparency laws. Lets hope her friends at the State Department arent allowed to continue doing the same.'

The department's request also comes only a few days after an inspector general notified a group of congressmen that a number of messages on Clinton's secret, home-based email server were classified above 'top secret' - supposedly the highest classification possible.

That undercuts Clinton's longstanding claim that none of the messages were marked as classified when she processed them.

There has also been a long-running dispute between the State Department and other agencies over the level of classification that should be assigned to some of the messages. The remaining unreleased emails are likely to include some of those.

However, Toner told Politico on Friday that while the remaining emails are 'the most complex to process as they contain a large amount of material that required interagency review,' the delay is not due to the disputes.

Instead, Justice Department lawyers representing the State Department said an 'oversight' triggered the discovery of 7,254 pages of documents that had not yet been reviewed by other agencies.

Clinton campaigning in Burlington, Iowa, on Wednesday

This weekend's winter storm even played a role in the potential delay, as employees who planned to work through the weekend to review documents now may not be able to.

'During the week of January 11, 2016, States FOIA office discovered that a number of pages of the Clinton emails that had been identified during the period June through October 2015 as requiring interagency consultation had not in fact been sent to all the agencies for which consultation was required,' said Friday afternoon's filing.

'This oversight was not detected until the push to meet the final deadline. The processing of the documents for sending is finished and delivery to some of the agencies has been completed. Delivery of the remaining documents has been interrupted by the storm and is anticipated to be completed next week.'
A gunman in Canada shot his two brothers at his home before embarking in a shooting spree at his school in an aboriginal community on Friday that left a 23-year-old teacher dead.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said from Davos, Switzerland that a suspect was in custody. Trudeau initially said five died, but police later corrected that to four.

'This is every parent's worst nightmare,' he said. 'The community is reeling.'

Kevin Janvier told The Associated Press that his 23-year old daughter Marie, a teacher in the Saskatchewan community, was shot dead by the gunman. He said police told him that the gunman first shot two of his siblings before killing his daughter at La Loche Community School.

Tragedy: Kevin Janvier told The Associated Press that his 23-year old daughter Marie (pictured), a teacher, was shot dead by the gunman

Marie (pictured in Facebook snaps) was Janvier's only child. He didn't know if the shooter knew his daughter

'He shot two of his brothers at his home and made his way to the school,' he said.

'I'm just so sad.'

Marie was Janvier's only child. He said he didn't know if the shooter knew his daughter.

A family friend of the teenaged suspect said that the gunman shot his two younger brothers before going to the school and shooting a teacher and an assistant, according to The Australian.

'After he shot his two brothers, he walked back to school and he shot ... a teacher and a girl. They're both dead. Four of them died,' said Joe Lemaigre.

'I know the family. Their mother worked in Fort McMurray and his grandfather went to Meadow Lake to do some shopping. That's when he shot them.'

Royal Canadian Mounted Police Chief Supt. Maureen Levy said the gunman was arrested outside the school but declined to release details about him.

Levy said she wasn't sure how many suffered injuries. The prime minister earlier described two injuries as critical.

'At the present time there are four individuals deceased,' Levy said.

Levy declined to release more details, saying the investigation is in its early stages. She declined to give the sex or ages of the others deceased.

Candles and flowers placed as a memorial lay near the La Loche, Saskatchewan, junior and senior high school as police investigate the shooting

A man holds a rosary on Saturday as police investigate the scene of the shooting at the community school

Police at the school early on Saturday. The gunman was arrested outside the school but no details have been released about him

Royal Canadian Mounted Police Chief Supt. Maureen Levy said the gunman was arrested outside the school but declined to release details about him. Pictured is Marie, the teacher shot dead by the gunman

The scene: The outside of La Loche Community School is shown on Friday following a school shooting

A student who was just returning from lunch when shots were fired said his friends ran past him urging him to get out.

"'Run, bro, run!'" Noel Desjarlais-Thomas, 16, recalled his friends saying to him as they fled La Loche's junior and senior high school.

'There's a shotgun! There's a shotgun! They were just yelling to me. And then I was hearing those shots, too, so of course I started running.'

Police confirmed an 'active and ongoing' incident at La Loche Community School in the province of Saskatchewan earlier in the afternoon and were warning people to stay away.

The neighboring elementary school was also placed into lockdown as a precautionary measure, but it now appears that the shooter has been taken into custody.

Update: Canadas Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the incident was 'every parent's worst nightmare'

'Im not 100 percent sure whats actually happened but it started at home and ended at the school,' La Loche Acting Mayor Kevin Janvier said earlier on Friday.

A hospital nurse said a number of people were being treated for gunshot wounds, CBC reported.

The La Loche Health Centre and Hospital declined to comment when contacted by Reuters.

CBC spoke with 10th grader Noel Desjarlais who said that he heard screams as he darted away from the school.

'I ran outside the school,' Desjarlais said.

'There was lots of screaming, there was about six, seven shots before I got outside. I believe there was more shots by the time I did get out.'

A cellphone video taken by one resident and broadcast by the CBC showed students walking away from the school through the snow-covered ground and emergency personal moving in.

John Baglieri of CTV said on Twitter that he spoke to a student at the school who told him they saw a staff member shot.

Teddy Clark, the leader of the Clearwater River Dene Nation, a branch of aboriginal government, told Saskatoon Star Phoenix: 'The community usually pulls together really strong in times like this.

A Facebook post on the school's page revealed there was an emergency occurring at the Dene Building

The grade 7 through 12 La Loche Community School (pictured here after the shooting) is in the remote aboriginal community of La Loche, Saskatchewan

At least four people are reported to have died and another person taken into custody at La Loche Community School in Saskatchewan province, Canada (pictured on map)

'Right now, La Loche is devastated. Both Clearwater and La Loche, a lot of people are in shock. This is something that you only see on TV most of the time.'

According to earlier reports the shooting happened inside the Dene building which usually holds classes for approximately 900 students aged between 12 and 18.

The provincial government confirmed that there has been 'a very serious incident but the information is unclear,' saying the 'situation is dynamic and still unfolding at this time.'

Opposition Leader Cam Broten said on Twitter that he was 'shocked and saddened by news of a school shooting in La Loche. My thoughts are with all students, staff and families affected.'

A Facebook post on the school's page said there was an emergency occurring at the Dene Building of the school.

Detained: RCMP officers later detained a suspect after reports of a gunman inside the school (pictured)

10th grader Noel Desjarlais said that he heard screams as he darted away from the school (pictured)

Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall also issued the following statement to the community: 'Words cannot express my shock and sorrow at the horrific events today in La Loche.

'My thoughts and prayers are with all the victims, their families and friends and all the people of the community. Thank you to the RCMP and all the emergency personnel who responded quickly to the shootings. Saskatchewan Education and Social Services will be available to provide all necessary crisis support and counselling services to the school and the community.'

In 2014, a teacher expressed concern about violence at the La Loche school, citing an incident where a student who had tried to stab her was put back in her classroom after serving his sentence, and another attacked her at her home.

'That student got 10 months,' Janice Wilson told the CBC of the student who tried to stab her in class. 'And when he was released he was returned to the school and was put in my classroom.'
He may even be offered a place at the Queen's side in a show of support

Former Army chief, who has been cleared, will also attend this year's lunch

The Queen showed extraordinary support for Lord Bramall while he was being hounded over false child abuse claims, the Daily Mail can reveal.

The monarch made a point of warmly welcoming the former Army chief to a lunch at Windsor Castle at the height of the doomed investigation.

He attended the annual Order of the Garter event just weeks after he and his dying wife were subjected to a dawn raid by 20 police officers and questioned over the spurious allegations.

Support: The Queen cannot be overt in her support of Lord Bramall, but she made a point of welcoming him warmly to last year's Order of the Garter lunch, which took place weeks after his home was raided by police

Continued: It is thought the Queen, pictured with Lord Bramall in 1986, may seat him next to her at this year's gala, as a public sign of support for the D-Day veteran who she has know for more than 40 years

Lord Bramall  formally cleared over the claims last week  will also be welcomed at this years gala, one of the most prestigious events in the royal calendar.

It is understood the Queen may even offer the 92-year-old a place at her side as a public sign of support for the D-Day veteran she has known for more than four decades.

A source with close ties to the event revealed last night: Interestingly, she was planning to do so whether or not the war hero had been cleared by that time.

The Queen cant overtly support him but there are more subtle ways that she can express her feelings on the issue. Seating him next to her is a significant way of doing that.

The revelation will heap further pressure on Metropolitan Police boss Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe to offer an formal public apology to Lord Bramall after Scotland Yards bungled ten-month probe into the baseless claims made by a suspected serial fantasist known only as Nick.

The investigation began in March but the peer, Britains most decorated living soldier, was only told by letter last week that it was being dropped because of insufficient evidence.

The claims were so weak that a file wasnt even sent to the Crown Prosecution Service. Lord Bramalls wife of 66 years passed away last July never knowing that her husband had been cleared. Met Commissioner Sir Bernard has since refused to bow to pressure and apologise to the Field Marshal. Instead, his force issued an 891-word statement that failed to say sorry.

Hero: Lord Bramall (left in 2000) is the country's most decorated war hero, but was falsely accused of historic sex offences, leading to a 10 month probe. Right: Receiving his MC from Field Marshall Montgomery in 1945

The Order of the Garter, of which Lord Bramall was made a member in 1990, is the most senior and the oldest British order of chivalry.

Its companions  who are awarded the title of knight or lady  are personally chosen by the sovereign for their outstanding contribution to national life or service to the monarchy.

Each June recipients gather at Windsor for lunch followed by a procession through the castle precinct and a service at St Georges Chapel.

According to sources present last year, Lord Bramall proudly attended with his head held high.

Cleared: The investigation was finally dropped last week, months after his wife died, not knowing whether or not he would be cleared

He was warmly welcomed by the Queen and other members of the Royal Family including Prince Philip, Prince Charles and Prince William as well as Prince Andrew, Prince Edward and Princess Anne.

This was taken by many to be a sign of their support  even though he was publicly under investigation as part of Operation Midland, Scotland Yards historic VIP sex abuse unit.

Although he was too frail to take part in the procession itself, he was driven in one of the Queens cars to her chapel and stayed for the service.

This year, say sources, the monarch plans to go one step further and may seat him next to her at the dining table.

A close friend of Lord Bramall said last night: In terms of the Royal Family, it was never their view that there was any substance to the allegations.

He was never isolated by the Royal Family and that means a lot to him. One of Lord Bramalls fellow Knights of the Garter said the peer, who has attended every lunch since 1990, would attend this year, health permitting.

The unnamed source said the Queen thinks very carefully indeed about the seating plan at the event, adding: What I can tell you is that if Lord Bramall is sitting next to her it wont be an accident.

When he attended last year people absolutely did not shun him, in fact quite the opposite. Everyone voiced their support. Another Knight of the Garter, Sir William Gladstone, said it was obvious the Queen felt a sense of injustice over his friends plight.

Sir William, a former Eton schoolmate of Lord Bramall, described the treatment of the peer as a disgrace and said the D-Day hero would proudly take his seat at the annual Windsor lunch. Buckingham Palace said it would not comment on a private lunch.

A royal source added that a seating plan would not be considered until nearer the June event, a date for which has not yet been fixed.

Belief: The Royal family never thought there was any substance to the allegations, a source told the Daily Mail. Pictured: The Duke of Edinburgh (second right, seated) and Lord Bramall (left, seated) at the Army Benevolent Fund 60th Anniversary dinner at The Royal Hospital, Chelsea

Lord Bramalls ordeal started after he was named by an accuser known only as Nick  who also alleged other public figures had taken part in child abuse and murder, including the late prime minister Ted Heath and former Home Secretary Lord Brittan. The Army chiefs country home was raided at dawn in March, leaving his wife, who was suffering from Alzheimers, deeply distressed. He described the allegations against him as grotesque but only found out last week the probe was over.

A friend told the Mail the Field Marshal still has a shadow over him, adding: I am sure what has happened over the last week has been an immediate weight off his mind, but, as he has written, he is still very upset that he hasnt been absolved completely.
Internet giant Google has been attacked by Labour MPs over its 'derisory' 130million deal with the government

The U.S. online search firm, which has faced severe criticism of its UK financial arrangements, said the payment will cover back taxes from 2005 to 2015.

It also agreed to make changes so that future payments to HM Revenue and Customs will 'reflect the size and scope of our UK business'.

Payback: Internet giant Google has agreed to pay back taxes of 130million to the government, following a years-long probe into its international financial arrangements (file image)

'We have agreed with HMRC a new approach for our UK taxes and will pay 130million, covering taxes since 2005,' said a spokeswoman for Google.

'We will now pay tax based on revenue from UK-based advertisers, which reflects the size and scope of our UK business.

'The way multinational companies are taxed has been debated for many years and the international tax system is changing as a result. This settlement reflects that shift and is in line with recent OECD guidance.'

But shadow chancellor John McDonnell said the public would be 'sceptical' about the settlement and called for the public spending watchdog - the National Audit Office - to investigate the deal.

He also criticised the HMRC for agreeing to strike a deal on a 'relatively small amount'.

'It looks to me from all the independent analysis that this is relatively trivial in comparison with what should have been paid,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

McDonnell added that he would be demanding details of the deal from Chancellor George Osborne in parliament on Monday.

The change and payment follows an 'open audit' of Google's accounts by the HMRC, after it was accused of 'not paying its fair share' of tax.

The probe was investigating whether Google sidestepped tax for over a decade by allocating profits to Ireland, where its European operations are based.

The firm came under fire after it paid just 20.4million in taxes in 2013, following a year of sales in Britain which was valued at 3.8billion.

Although its complex international tax structures have been criticised, Google says it has always abided by international tax rules.

But critics said the company  which has yearly UK revenues of almost 4billion  would be laughing all the way to the bank.

Last night, Richard Murphy, an economist and director of Tax Research UK, blasted the deal, saying it was a 'tiny amount of money'.

'Google must be laughing all the way to their bank in Bermuda with this one to be totally honest,' he told BBC Newsnight. 'This is a settlement that seems minuscule in proportion to the amount of tax that they have saved and if future tax is paid by them in proportion to this, then they are getting a settlement that is extraordinarily small.'

However, HMRC claimed that the deal was a 'substantial result'. A spokesman said: 'Multinational companies must pay the tax that is due and we do not accept less.'

Moving forward: It also agreed to make changes so that future payments to HM Revenue and Customs will 'reflect the size and scope of our UK business', after coming under fire for paying just 20.4million in taxes in 2013, following a year of sales in Britain which was valued at 3.8billion (file image of Google HQ)

Senior figures from Google and HMRC will be called before the Common's Public Accounts Committee, its chairman Meg Hillier said last night.

The Labour MP said: 'The news that Google is paying ten years' back tax vindicates the Public Accounts Committee's vigorous pursuit of international companies that were running rings around tax officials.

'We were shocked to learn of work-arounds of the tax system that were considered normal behaviour by big corporations but which appalled the individual taxpayer.

'HMRC now needs to assure taxpayers it will keep up the pressure to tackle whatever the next emerging issue is in real time, rather than years later.

Google must be laughing all the way to their bank in Bermuda with this one to be totally honest. Richard Murphy, an economist and director of Tax Research UK

'It is effectively admitting it pulled in too little tax from Google for nine out of ten years. This is not a great success rate and the Public Accounts Committee will be calling in HMRC and Google to explain.'

The firm has its European base in Ireland, which has a lower corporation tax rate that the UK. It also pays the majority of its taxes in the U.S. The California-based firm employs 2,400 staff in the UK  its biggest overseas operation.

The Head of Google Europe, Matt Brittin, told the BBC that from today, Google will be paying more tax in the UK.

'We want to ensure that we pay the right amount of tax,' he added.

An HMRC spokesman said: 'The successful conclusion of HMRC enquiries has secured a substantial result, which means that Google will pay the full tax due in law on profits that belong in the UK.

'Multinational companies must pay the tax that is due and we do not accept less.'

Other companies, including Facebook, Amazon and Starbucks, have come under fire for allegedly avoiding paying tax.
A former high-rolling banker who is suing ANZ for $30million has claimed it has been a difficult time since he was marched for sending hundreds of lewd and obscene messages.

Etienne Alexiou said his employer advocated a toxic culture of narcotics, alcohol and sex, shortly after he was sacked for sending 'explicit messages' about strip clubs and drugs.

Tracked down in Sydney by a Current Affair, the disgraced teller declined to comment on the banks allegations he made 'obscene and disparaging' comments in emails and Bloomberg.

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Etienne Alexious said it has been a 'difficult time' since was was sacked from ANZ for sending lewd messages

Its not something I want to ventilate through the press. I wouldnt like to comment, youve got the contact details of my lawyer, he said.

He later conceded its been a difficult time since he was marched from the multi billion dollar company.

Mr Alexiou is suing the bank along with senior bond salesman, Patrick O'Connor, who was fired for running up $37,000 of expenses including spending $18,000 on rare coins, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

But lawyer David Galbally told ACA says the pair will have a long road ahead of them in the courts before a decision is reached on the multi-million dollar case..

Plenty of people over the course of time have said I did what I did because I was told I could do it. Or alternatively I did what I did because I was made to do it.

Thats no excuse to break the law or the terms of your employment, he said.

The senior ANZ trader claims the bank condoned a toxic culture of narcotics, alcohol and sex

Etienne Alexiou claimed that when a 'white substance' was found in the toilets on the bank's dealing floor one trader said: 'What a waste, it should have been sprinkled on a birthday cake.'

He also alleged in his court statement that he raised concerns about the bank's conduct towards investors and clients on three occasions and claimed drunk traders damaged property at a retreat.

Mr Alexiou and Mr O'Connor are both separately suing ANZ in the Federal Court for lost bonuses, damages and the loss of future income as a result of his sacking.

Mr Alexiou, who helped oversee a portfolio worth more than $120 billion, was one of seven traders suspended in mid-November.

They were stood down during an investigation by the corporate watchdog into possible manipulation of the bank bill swap rate.

His letter, which has been seen by the Sydney Morning Herald, cited 400 internal and external communications of concern from 2011 until September 2013.

Mr Alexiou was forced to put up his Point Piper mansion (pictured) for sale in November 2015 for more than $8 million, just 18 months after he bought it

But he has now claimed, according to court documents, that there was 'no proper reason' to fire him.

He has also claimed that the culture on the trading floor conflicted with the conduct levels demanded by the bank.

Mr Alexiou was forced to put up his Point Piper mansion (pictured) for sale in November 2015 for more than $8 million, just 18 months after he bought it.

But ANZ has insisted the staff were dismissed for 'serious breaches' of its code and the bank said it would 'be vigorously defending both their court applications'.

ANZ's chief risk officer, Nigel Williams, said: 'Mr OConnors dismissal related to abuse of a company-issued credit card and both Mr OConnors and Mr Alexious dismissals related to highly inappropriate and offensive electronic communication.

Mr Williams said the bank is 'committed' to investigating all cases that are bought to its attention.

'Mr OConnor and Mr Alexiou have also made allegations about some existing and former staff at ANZ,' he said.
A finance big wig burst into the suburban New York home he formerly shared with his wife on Wednesday and stabbed her 21 times in the shower, before pausing to smoke a cigarette and finally calling 911, prosecutors alleged Friday.

Robin Goldman was home alone on Wednesday morning in her $2.5million Scarsdale home and was getting ready for work when her husband, Julius Reich, made his way into the residence.

Though Goldman, 58, had recently changed the locks of the 6,400 sq ft house, Reich managed to get inside and allegedly 'ambushed' the victim in the shower in a knife attack reminiscent of the 1960 Hitchcock slasher film Psycho, prosecutors said according to the New York Daily News.

'He ambushed his wife as she got ready for work,' said O'Rourke. 'He grabbed her from behind in the shower and stabbed her' said Assistant District Attorney John O'Rourke according to the Daily News.

Allegedly, Reich then walked into the kitchen, 'leaving a trail of blood,' and smoked a cigarette before dialing 911 to alert emergency services that his wife lay dying, prosecutors said.

Accused killer Julius Reich, left, stands with his attorney Kerry Lawrence during his appearance at the Westchester County Courthouse in White Plains, New York, Friday

Reich (left) was arrested Wednesday after Goldman (right) was stabbed to death inside their $2.5million home in Scarsdale, New York

When first responders arrived at the sprawling residence, they found Reich, 61, with bruises on his face and injuries to both hands. He was arrested on the spot, charged with second-degree murder, and is being held without bail after an arraignment on Wednesday night in Scarsdale Village Court.

Only a day after her brutal slaying, funeral services were held for Goldman, who worked as a pediatrician at the Comprehensive Family Care Center in the Bronx, New York.

Funeral attendees hugged and mourned together after the ceremony at Young Israel of Scarsdale synagogue in New Rochelle, New York.

Goldman was also affiliated with Montefiore Medical Center and was an assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics at Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

'Robin was a dedicated physician cherished by her colleagues as a positive and compassionate presence,' Montefiore hospital said. 'Her passion for medicine was an inspiration to those who worked with her. Her passing is a great loss for all of us, and we extend our heartfelt sympathy to her family, friends, patients, colleagues and students.'

Two young women react as they approach the hearse carrying the casket of Dr. Robin Goldman, a 58 year-old pediatrician found slain Wednesday inside her multimillion-dollar Scarsdale home, during Goldman's funeral on Thursday

'This is not a random act, this was an isolated incident,' Scarsdale Police Captain Thomas Alpizio said.

Court records show that after their daughter's wedding last summer, Reich filed for a divorce from Goldman, according to CBS New York.

The details of the August divorce petition are still pending, Heavy reported.

An autopsy was planned for Goldman.

The couple's five-bedroom, four-bath home, on Lincoln Road, was built in 1947 and includes a bath house, swimming pool and greenhouse on 1.3 acres of land.

Records show that Reich, a financial consultant at the firm WeiserMazars, and Goldman lived on the property.

Financial adviser and attorney Julius Reich, 61, is pictured above in a booking photo following his arraignment on a second-degree murder charge. Reich is pictured right in a second booking photo

Investigators were searching the house hours after Goldman's body was found stabbed in the Scarsdale home

According to Reich's biography on WeiserMazars' website, the 61-year-old is a partner at the firm, 'advising corporations, startups, venture capital and private-equity firms in a broad range of industries on critical topics including mergers and acquisitions'.

A woman who answered the phone at the financial services firm told Daily Mail Online that Reich has not been let go from the firm, although his profile appears to have been taken down from its website.

Reich received his law degree from Benjamin N. Cordozo School and Law and his Master of Law degree from New York University Law School.

Over the course of his 20-year career in the financial industry, he has been involved in transactions totaling more than $45million, according to his bio.

The couple are believed to have four children who are all in their 20s.

Their son Adam Reich was overcome with emotion as he told the New York Post that his mother was a wonderful woman.

'She was great, a great person, amazing,' he said.

Both Reich and Goodman are said to be Jewish and both sat on a gala committee for Westchester Jewish Council.

A statement from the Modern Orthodox Young Israel of Scarsdale, the synagogue Goldman attended, read: 'As a community, we are grief stricken and our hearts are filled with pain to know that Robin, who was so good, so sweet and so pious has so suddenly been taken from us.'

Police investigators were spotted circling the home after the horrifying incident in the upscale New York neighborhood

The couple's the five-bedroom, four-bath home, on Lincoln Road, was built in 1947 and includes a bath house, swimming pool and greenhouse on 1.3 acres of land

Neighbor Judy Raphael said: 'I'm living here 34 years - nothing like this has ever happened.

'It's a very safe neighborhood,' she added.

'This is very sad,' neighbor Martin Molot, 85, told the Daily News. Reich 'is a nice guy. He seemed so level-headed.'

A security guard who worked at the hospital where Goldman was an employee said that her death will 'bring pain' to a lot of people.

'She was a very pleasant lady. She always smiled and said hello to everyone. Nobody ever said or felt anything bad about her. Not with that smile,' Kassim Ray, a security guard at the medical center, told the Post.

'I've worked here for three years and she was always very nice to me. I need to spread this news. Her dying is really going to bring pain to a lot of people,' Ray added.

The last recorded homicide in Scarsdale was in 1977, when 23-year-old Yale graduate Richard Hrrin killed 20-year-old ex-girlfriend Bonnie Garland by smashing her head with a hammer as she slept in her parents' home, according to officials.

Herrin served 17 years in prison after he was convicted of manslaughter, according to court documents. He was released in 1995.

Scarsdale police also blocked off part of the road on which the couple lived while they were investigating

Records show that financial consultant Reich, 61, and Goldman, a pediatrician at the Comprehensive Family Care Center in the Bronx, New York, live in the property
It was supposed to be the happiest day of their lives, but it almost ended in disaster when a couple from China got stuck in a lift on their way to their wedding.

Along with 10 wedding guests, the bride and groom were trapped in a tiny lift inside their apartment block when they set out for their ceremony in Emeishan city, Sichuan Province, reports the Peoples Daily Online.

Luckily rescuers arrived to the scene shortly after and managed to get them out before the wedding was scheduled.

Unlucky: The bride did not look happy as she is removed from the lift after getting trapped on her wedding day

Awkward: Next came the groom who almost missed his wedding along with 11 guests after becoming trapped

Incident took place inside a 17-storey apartment building where bride-to-be lives.

According to Chinese customs tradition, the groom and guests arrived at the woman's apartment, which situated on the 14th floor, to pick her up for the nuptials.

Friends and family of the bride-to-be, who remains unnamed, got to her flat in the morning and the groom arrived at 9am.

The party of 12 got in the lift together an hour later in their best dresses - including the the bride with her wedding gown on - to set out for their 'grand' wedding ceremony and lunch banquet, as the Chinese media described.

However as the lift went down, it suddenly jammed with the whole wedding party inside between the sixth and seventh floors, including bridesmaids and the best man.

Firefighters were quickly called to the scene. It took them ten minutes to rescue everyone from inside the lift with a crow bar.

Luckily, the couple were able to make it to the lunch wedding banquet on time.

According to the report, at present, the reason for the lift failure is unclear and an investigation is ongoing.
The College Board, the company in charge of the American university entrance examination, yesterday cancelled their scheduled assessments in 45 centers across China.

The American organisation claimed many of the applicants in China may have seen the exam paper for the upcoming SAT, or Scholastic Assessment Test, which was set to be held this weekend, according to Huanqiu, in affiliation with the People's Daily Online.

However, the College Board says it is unclear how many students have been affected.

Tough examination: Students take a test in Yinchuan, north west China's Shaanxi province (File photo)

Testing outdoors: Students take part in an examination in Fengqiu county, China

The College Board sent a message to the affected test centers informing them of the cancellation.

The company says that many students gained access to the test paper in advance of the examination which was set for this weekend.

This weekend's exams were set to be the last versions of the current paper. A newer test was set to be introduced following this exam.

SAT exams are required to gain entry into US universities and analyse students' academic ability.

According to Stacy Caldwell, the firm's vice president for college readiness assessments, students will be told next week when they can take the test.

Taking the test: This weekend's exams were set to be the last version of this current paper

It's not unusual for some students to go to extreme measures to ensure a place at a US university.

For many families in China, they see their child going to a US university as a status symbol and a way out of poverty.

Last year, federal prosecutors in Pittsburgh charged 15 Chinese citizens in a conspiracy to have impostors take the SAT and other entrance tests in Pennsylvania since 2011.

A former University of Pittsburgh student, Han Tong, 24, has pleaded guilty to being the go-between for Chinese students who paid up to $6,000 to have impostors take the tests for them. He is due to be sentenced on April 21 this year.

The last time the College Board cancelled the SAT was back in 2013, when examinations were halted in South Korea amid similar fears that students had already seen the paper.
The most probable is the eruption of a supervolcano and a super-eruption is said to occur once every 100,000 years

They include an asteroid smashing into Earth, a nuclear winter, global pandemic and the sun dying

scenarios that could result in the end of the world

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The apocalypse may be a popular subject of sci-fi films, but there are some very real scientific theories in danger of becoming reality.

These include being blown to smithereens as an asteroid smashes into Earth and a highly infectious pandemic that wipes out huge swathes of the global population within days.

However, the most probable is the eruption of a supervolcano, according to a feature in How It Works magazine, which details seven of the most devastating scenarios and threats facing mankind.

The apocalypse may be a popular subject of sci-fi films, but there are some very real scientific theories that are in danger of becoming reality. The most probable is the eruption of a supervolcano - a thousand times larger than the 1980 Mount Saint Helens eruption  the most destructive volcanic eruption in recorded US history (a stock image is shown)

A SUPERVOLCANO BLOWS

Supervolcanoes are the leviathans of volcanism.

Defined by their ability to blast more than 240 cubic miles (1,000 cubic kilometres) of material into the air, they are a thousand times larger than the 1980 Mount Saint Helens eruption  the most destructive volcanic eruption in recorded US history.

MOUNT SAINT HELENS ERUPTION The earthquake took place in the morning of 18 May, 1980. It created a large landslide that exposed the partly molten rock in the volcano to lower pressures. This caused an explosion that sent hot lava and rock 80,000ft (24,385 metres) into the air. It deposited ash across 11 American states and caused snow, ice and glaciers on the volcano to melt. Around 57 people were killed directly. Advertisement

Geologists have never witnessed a supervolcanic eruption, but by looking at remnants of previous cataclysms, they can piece together alarming details.

These eruptions could rain debris and fiery destruction on a geographical region as large as Europe, but it would be the gases they inject into the stratosphere that could spell disaster for humanity.

During a super-eruption, a scalding plume of gas would belch almost to the edge of space.

Levelling off, it would spread out around the globe, forming a veil of sulphate aerosols that would persist for several years and trigger a volcanic winter.

The veil would reflect and absorb incoming solar radiation, warming the upper atmosphere and preventing heat from reaching the surface.

The result would be extreme instability in the climate system.

Surface temperatures would tumble rapidly, leading to agricultural collapse and famine and some even speculate these conditions could lead to the onset of an Ice Age.

Thankfully, such catastrophic super-eruptions are rare.

The last we know of occurred 27,000 years ago in New Zealand.

But they are inevitable and critically, we have no idea when the next one will strike and absolutely no way to prevent it.

Scientists warn a supervolcano eruption could cause a volcanic winter (illustrated). These eruptions rain debris and fiery destruction on a geographical region as large as Europe, but it's the gases they inject into the stratosphere that could spell disaster for humanity

How It Work magazine (shown) details seven apocalyptic scenarios

NUCLEAR WINTER

With the power to demolish entire cities in seconds, nuclear bombs are the most devastating weapons on the planet.

In many ways, the people annihilated in the first moments of a blast could be considered the lucky ones.

In the 1980s, prominent scientists including Carl Sagan warned that a nuclear war between the US and the Soviet Union could drive the globe into a catastrophic nuclear winter.

Incinerated cities and forests would send heaving clouds of sun-blocking ash into the stratosphere and it could take years for particles to be rained out.

In a worst-case scenario, it is predicted that 99 per cent of the sun's light would be blocked for several months, resulting in noon-time twilight and the halting of photosynthesis, meaning food could become scarce.

Surface temperatures could additionally plummet tens of degrees below normal levels for years or even decades, bringing crippling arctic conditions to the entire globe.

Plants, animals and humans would then perish in the darkness.

ASTEROID IMPACT

Asteroids are hunks of rocky space debris, left over from the creation of the planets, which whizz around our solar system, orbiting the sun.

From time to time they cross paths with us and, while impacts on the scale of the infamous 6.2-mile (10km) 'dinosaur-destroyer' are rare, an asteroid a fifth the size could spell disaster for civilisation.

With energy greater than 10 million Hiroshima bombs, the impact shock would flatten everything within a 186-mile (300km) radius.

Dust and debris would cause an 'impact winter' and most living things would perish.

Alternatively, an ocean strike would trigger monumental tsunamis, obliterate entire coastlines and inject seawater into the atmosphere, destroying huge swathes of the ozone layer and exposing survivors to devastating levels of UV radiation.

RUNAWAY GREENHOUSE EFFECT

The greenhouse effect is essential to life as we know it.

Just like a glass greenhouse lets in light but traps heat, insulating gases in our atmosphere protect us from the deathly cold of space.

But since the Industrial Revolution, humans have been blamed for upsetting the delicate balance of the atmosphere.

Concentrations of carbon dioxide, released when fossil fuels are burned, as well as other 'greenhouse gases', have risen at an alarming rate, forming a thick blanket around Earth, trapping excess heat and nudging global temperatures upwards.

While warmer weather might be welcome in some places, 'feedback loops' complicate the effects of higher temperatures.

In a worst-case scenario of a nuclear winter, it is predicted that 99 per cent of the sun's light would be blocked for several months, resulting in noontime twilight and the halting of photosynthesis, meaning food could become scarce. This file image shows a mushroom cloud during an atomic weapons test in the 1950s

In the 1980s, prominent scientists including Carl Sagan warned that a nuclear war between the US and the Soviet Union could drive the globe into a catastrophic nuclear winter (illustrated above)

Increased evaporation will cause denser cloud cover, exacerbating the warming effect because clouds themselves are strong insulators.

Longstanding carbon 'sinks' - rocks and oceans that pull carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere - are predicted to become unstable and release their stores, accelerating the problem still further.

Scientists warn of a tipping point  a temperature beyond which the problem can no longer be dialled back.

If we reach this point, a runaway greenhouse effect would cause temperatures to soar to several hundred degrees Celsius, boiling the oceans and making life on Earth impossible.

From time to time they cross paths with us and, while impacts on the scale of the infamous 6.2-mile (10km) dinosaur-destroyer are rare, an asteroid a fifth the size could spell disaster for civilisation. Options of how to tackle the scenario are discussed above

THE DEATH OF THE SUN

The sun supplies the energy for almost all of life on Earth, but all good things come to an end.

When the sun's time comes and it starts to run out of fuel, its core will collapse as the outward force  due to fusion  can no longer balance the strong inward force of gravity.

At the same time, its outer envelope will inflate, expanding the star into a red giant, and engulfing the orbits of Mercury, Venus, and potentially, Earth.

Eventually, the dying sun will transform into a dense white dwarf surrounded by a dazzling planetary nebula.

Humans won't be around to see this; the sun's fuel supply will start to run low about five billion years from now, but Earth will be inhospitable long before.

Since the Industrial Revolution, humans have upset the delicate balance of the atmosphere. Concentrations of carbon dioxide, released when fossil fuels are burned, as well as other 'greenhouse gases', have risen at an alarming rate, forming a thick blanket around Earth, trapping excess heat and nudging global temperatures upwards. The possible consequences are illustrated above

GAMMA-RAY BURST

Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are the brightest events in the universe.

Produced by the explosion of massive stars, they emit focused beams of intense gamma radiation.

They can last anywhere from a fraction of a second to several hours, and can release as much energy in ten seconds as the Sun will produce in its entire lifetime.

If the Earth were unlucky enough to get caught in a GRB's almighty death beam, the effects would be catastrophic.

It would trigger atmospheric chemistry that would destroy the ozone layer  leaving life on the surface exposed to deadly ultraviolet radiation.

When the sun's time comes and it starts to run out of fuel, its core will collapse as the outward force  due to fusion  can no longer balance the strong inward force of gravity. At the same time, its outer envelope will inflate, expanding the star into a red giant, and engulfing the orbits of Mercury, Venus and  potentially  Earth. A fictional view from Earth

GLOBAL PANDEMIC

A pandemic is an outbreak of infectious disease that spreads throughout much of the globe.

Human history is punctuated by debilitating pandemics and, despite medical advances, it's only a matter of time before we see another.

Today's standards of sanitation and medical research help us stay one step ahead of most infectious agents, but widespread international travel and increased population densities make it much easier for a global pandemic to threaten us all.

In 2003, Sars (severe acute respiratory syndrome)  a serious form of pneumonia  spread to six of the world's seven continents within months, infecting an estimated 8,000 people and killing 750.

More recently, Ebola  a grisly disease ravaging West Africa with a death toll over 11,000  threatened to go pandemic in late 2014 after cases seen in travellers arriving back in North America and Europe.

Emerging diseases pose the biggest problem, since they involve unknown pathogens with no existing vaccinations.

The most dangerous are highly contagious but have delayed symptom onset, meaning that infected people unwittingly spread the disease to many others before realising they are sick.

Shape-shifting diseases that mutate fast are almost impossible to vaccinate against. In today's hyper-mobile, city-dominated world, a deadly disease combining these three features could spell doom for the human race.

Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are the brightest events in the universe. Produced by the explosion of massive stars, they emit focused beams of intense gamma radiation. Their anatomy is described in the infographic above. If the Earth were unlucky enough to get caught in a GRB's almighty death beam, the effects would be catastrophic

As to which of these doomsday scenarios will become a world-ending reality, it is anyone's guess.

Optimists would assure you that humanity will avoid foolish nuclear wars, begin to behave responsibly in response to climate change, and stay one step ahead of emerging diseases.

These things, at least, are feasibly within our control. Beyond that, we are at the mercy of the laws of physics

Recently, Ebola  a grisly disease ravaging West Africa with a death toll over 11,000  threatened to go pandemic in late 2014 after cases seen in travellers arriving back in North America and Europe. This artificially-coloured microscope image shows Ebola virus particles in blue, budding from a chronically-infected cell

A pandemic is an outbreak of infectious disease that spreads throughout much of the globe. Human history is punctuated by debilitating pandemics and, despite medical advances, it's only a matter of time before we see another. The deadliest in history are shown above

Statistically, a supervolcano is most likely to hit first.

A devastating super-eruption is thought to occur about once every 100,000 years, whereas world-threatening GRBs and asteroids rear their heads perhaps only once in every 500,000.

In truth, it's likely that a combination of catastrophic events - and a chaotic human response to them - will secure our demise. If they don't  the Sun will be hot on our heels in a billion years' time.
The B-52 had long been one of the Air Force's key weapons, being the first aircraft to attack Baghdad during the Persian Gulf War.

But over the past two decades, half of the military's B-52s have been scrapped due to budget constraints, leading several companies to come up with suggestions for a replacement.

One of these groups was Boeing, who came up with a plan in the 1980s to turn a 747 into a launcher capable of carrying 70 cruise missiles.

Boeing came up with a plan in the 1980s to turn a 747 into a launcher capable of carrying 70 cruise missiles. The aim was to create a low-cost bomber, at 15 per cent the price of the B-2, but able to carry 50 more missiles than its predecessor

THE CMCA: KEY DESIGN FEATURES The design was based on the 747-200C, a cargo version of the Boeing 747. Nine launchers would be mounted on tracks inside of the cabin. Each launcher would hold eight missiles that could be hidden in the rear right side of the aircraft. An ejector system would push the missiles into the air stream from a door on the right side of the 747's tail cone. The area where first class passengers would usually sit would instead house a command and control center. Advertisement

The aim was to create a low-cost bomber, at 15 per cent the price of the B-2, but able to carry 50 more missiles than its predecessor.

A major benefit of the plan, according to Boeing, was that the enemy would find it difficult to separate B-747s from civilian 747s.

This would also make it flexible enough to land at civilian airports without raising alarm among nearby residents.

The plane  which remained a concept - was named the Cruise Missile Carrier Aircraft, or CMCA for short.

The design was based on the 747-200C, a cargo version of the plane, with nine launchers mounted on tracks inside of the cabin.

Each launcher would hold eight missiles that could be hidden in the rear right side of the aircraft, according to an in-depth report in Foxtrot Alpha.

An ejector system would push the missiles into the air stream from a door on the right side of the 747's tail cone.

The area where first class passengers would usually sit at the front of the plane would instead house a command and control center.

The craft  which remained a concept - was named the Cruise Missile Carrier Aircraft, or CMCA for short. The design was based on the 747-200C, a cargo version of the plane, with nine launchers mounted on tracks inside of the cabin. Each launcher would hold eight missiles that could be hidden in the rear right side of the aircraft

The B-52 had long been one of the Air Force's key weapons, being the first aircraft to attack Baghdad during the Persian Gulf War. But over the past two decades, half of the military's B-52s have been scrapped due to budget constraints, leading several companies to come up with suggestions for a replacement

But despite these, the USAF didn't ask Boeing to pursue the project after the B-1 given more funding under President Reagan, alongside a number of upgrades to its B-52 fleet.

'In retrospect it would seem that choosing not to develop the CMCA was a poor move,' said Tyler Rogoway writing for Foxtrot Alpha.

'Such an aircraft, especially if it were eventually upgraded to carry smaller GPS guided munitions, would have been an extremely effective weapon system to have orbiting high over Afghanistan and Iraq.'

'When it comes to the loitering weapons platform mission, the CMCAs could have operated at much lower cost than the B-1 or B-52 force during both those wars.

'Additionally, the arsenal ship concept was really ahead of its time when the CMCA was put forward, as smart munitions, especially those guided by GPS, were some twenty years from being fielded operationally.'
Virtual reality headsets can transport you to a different world without ever having to leave your home.

Now, researchers around the world are tapping into these technologies to explore how virtual escapes can help patients take strides in physical and mental health.

By recreating a village on the south coast of the UK, a team of scientists is bringing the calming effects of the ocean into rehabilitation centres and the most isolated location in the world, to improve focus and reduce stress.

Scroll down for video

Studies have shown that beautiful scenery can have mental health benefits, but getting away to an ocean paradise, like the UK village of Wembury (pictured above) isn't always an option.

By recreating a village on the south coast of the UK, (VR Wembury pictured above) a team of scientists is bringing the calming effects of the ocean into rehabilitation centres and the most isolated location in the world, to improve focus and reduce stress

VIRTUAL REALITY IS THERAPEUTIC In 2014, a team of psychologists and computer scientists from University College London (UCL), the University of Barcelona and University of Derby experimented with the therapeutic benefits of virtual reality. They created a 'self-to-self' situation using avatars and computer game technology. In the trials, 43 healthy, self-critical women experienced a life-size virtual body substituting their own. They were then trained to show compassion towards a distressed virtual child, who responded positively. Some participants saw themselves being compassionate through the eyes of the virtual child, while others saw a third person view of. Experts found that the self-to-self situation was the most effective. The scientists said people who are self-compassionate tend to have lower levels of self-criticism and are more able to cope with negative life events because they are more able to cultivate a positive mood. Advertisement

Studies have shown that beautiful scenery can have mental health benefits, according to New Scientist.

But, getting away to an ocean paradise isn't always an option.

To work around this, Robert Stone from the University of Birmingham built a virtual recreation of the UK village of Wembury, complete with the beach, trees, and bunnies hopping through the brush.

The researchers used aerial photos and 3D topographical maps to build the scene, which a person can take a 40 minute 'walk' through with a VR headset.

It even syncs to match the current time of day.

Stone tested the virtual scene on 30 patients in a hospital intensive care unit, New Scientist writes, to examine the effects it would have on their recovery.

Some patients with moderate mobility wore a VR headset while walking on an exercise machine, while others watched a video.

The researchers are now working through the data, to determine if the system stimulated the patients to help eliminate boredom.

A team from the US has also turned to Virtual Wembury to relieve feelings of isolation in military personnel based at the Canadian Forces Station Alert (CFS Alert), the northernmost inhabited location in the world.

Virtual reality headsets can transport you to a different world without ever having to leave your home. Now, researchers around the world are tapping into these technologies to explore how virtual escapes can help patients take strides in physical and mental health

According to New Scientist, Jay Buckey and Allison Anderson of Dartmouth College are testing how virtual reality can improve focus and the distress of isolation, and facilitate relaxation.

'Virtual reality gives you a mental, visual, and auditory break,' Anderson told New Scientist.

In the study, volunteers at the CFS Alert base will take a 20-minute 'walk' through the beachside simulation, and record their feelings.

At Ellesmere Island where CFS Alert is stationed, staff is away from home for months at a time and lives in 24 hour darkness in winter, and temperatures hovering around -40 C.

In such remote conditions, people are at heightened risk for mental illness, New Scientist explains.

'When you drive to the end of the runway here, you know you're the northernmost person on the planet,' Walter Michalchuk, one of the first CFS Alert volunteers to take the VR test, told New Scientist.

The virtual recreation of Wembury is complete with the beach, trees, and bunnies hopping through the brush. Researchers used aerial photos and 3D topographical maps to build the scene, which a person can take a 40 minute 'walk' through with a VR headset. It even syncs to match the current time of day

In remote conditions, people are at heightened risk for mental illness. As developments in this area of treatment progress, researchers are discussing its applications in many mental health situations, like the management of phobias or even astronaut isolation in space

'The second you step out the door and see nothing, and it's completely dark, you feel very isolated.'

For Michalchuk, the virtual trips to Wembury have already had emotional benefits.
Amidst hours sitting daily at a desk or in front of the TV, humans voluntarily seek out exercise to combat a sedentary lifestyle and stay fit  but are we the only creatures that do this?

Scientists dont quite know the answer yet.

In a recent study, a researcher from Roehampton University examines the idea, finding that some animals get fit in preparation for planned events.

And, to the ire of humans, they may be able to do so with little to no voluntary exercise at all.

Amidst hours sitting daily at a desk or in front of the TV, humans voluntarily seek out exercise to combat a sedentary lifestyle and stay fit  but are we the only animals that do this? Scientists dont quite know the answer yet. In a recent study, a researcher says that some animals get fit in preparation for planned events

DO ANIMALS EXERCISE? The eco-physiologist points to the example of laboratory animals who pack on weight in captivity, but also acknowledges that rats and mice will run on a wheel if its provided. And he discusses the opposite  giant pandas who walk just 27 meters in an hour because they are unthreatened by predators. For some animals, maintaining fitness comes at little to no effort. Polar bears and penguins burn different tissues while fasting, the researcher points out, not from doing voluntary exercise. Polar bears maintain their muscles even during hibernation, so they will be strong enough when they awaken, and while king penguins may lost muscle during a fast, they quickly regain it once they return to sea. Some animals are even more adept. Barnacle geese migrate 2,500 km each autumn from Svalbard to Scotland, but beforehand, they only fly a few minutes each day. The researcher likens this to the modern high-intensity training (HIT) that humans athletes use to optimize aerobics. Advertisement

Humans spend much of the day eating energy-rich foods and barely moving, which necessitates our voluntary fitness initiatives.

An eco-physiologist from Roehampton University is among the first to examine whether this behaviour extends to other animals.

Animals need energy for all life functions, from locomotion and growth, to defense, hunting, and reproduction, and they get it through intermittent foraging.

It made me think about my own biology and ecology. If I dont get exercise I get less fit, and am less able to do highly active things, says Dr. Lewis Halsey.

So I wondered if some animals need to spend time and energy on voluntary exercise so that they are fit enough to out-run predators, win over mates or hunt down prey.

The researcher found few studies on the subject, but suggests that this behaviour could be dependent on an animals ecology.

Researchers havent contemplated the idea that some animals may not do enough exercise during their general activities to be suitably fit for infrequent, high-intensity activities such as fleeing from predators. This needs to change, Halsey says.

The eco-physiologist points to the example of laboratory animals who pack on weight in captivity, but also acknowledges that rats and mice will run on a wheel if its provided.

And he discusses the opposite  giant pandas who walk just 27 meters in an hour because they are unthreatened by predators.

We know that animals change their body condition in response to environmental conditions, Halsey says.

Songbirds may put on some weight to survive the winter, but not too much if predators are around lest they become slow at escaping.

And harbour porpoises, if regularly preyed on by dolphins, become much sleeker and carry less body fat so that they can out-swim their attackers.

The eco-physiologist points to the example of laboratory animals who pack on weight in captivity, but also acknowledges that rats and mice will run on a wheel if its provided. And he discusses the opposite  giant pandas who walk just 27 meters in an hour because they are unthreatened by predators

For some animals, maintaining fitness comes at little to no effort.

Polar bears and penguins burn different tissues while fasting, the researcher points out, not from doing voluntary exercise.

Polar bears maintain their muscles even during hibernation, so they will be strong enough when they awaken, and while king penguins may lost muscle during a fast, they quickly regain it once they return to sea.

Some animals are even more adept.

Barnacle geese appear to get fit for certain predictable, planned events such as migration and yet miraculously seem able to do so with little or no voluntary exercise, Halsey says.

So their bodies seem to trigger increased fitness from within  they get fit automatically when they need to  enough to make any human with a waning new years resolution to get fit very jealous.

These geese migrate 2,500 km each autumn from Svalbard to Scotland, but beforehand, they only fly a few minutes each day.

The researcher likens this to the modern high-intensity training (HIT) that humans athletes use to optimize aerobics.

If animals are voluntarily working to keep fit, this would burn energy reserves, having implications for the understanding of animals optimality, where they maximise energy for the short and long-term.

If animals are undertaking activities solely or partly to keep fit, this opens up a significant new facet to our understanding and interpretation of animal behaviour, Halsey says.
on figure, but asked judge to strike the number form the record, Google saying it could prevent future deals

Google paid Apple $1 billion in 2014 to provide the search function on the iPhone (screenshot shown), according to a court transcript

Rumours about how much Google pays Apple to provide the search function on the iPhone have been circulating for years.

Now, court papers have revealed that the search giant seemingly shelled out $1 billion for the privilege in 2014.

The information was exposed in a transcript of court proceedings between Oracle and Google, but neither the search giant nor Apple are commenting on the reports.

Annette Hurst, attorney for Oracle said at the hearing in federal court on 14 January that Google has an agreement with Apple that gives Apple a percentage of the revenue generated by iPhone users using Google.

She suggested that at one point it was as high as 34 per cent, but it's not clear whether Google or Apple had the larger share of revenue, Bloomberg reported.

Both Google and Apple have told MailOnline they have no comment on the matter.

An attorney for Google reportedly objected to the information being disclosed and asked the judge to omit the 34 per cent detail from the record.

But they refused the request, despite the search company saying the disclosure of this sensitive information could affect its ability to negotiate revenue sharing deals with other companies.

Apple joined Google in a separate filing, saying the financial terms of their agreement are 'highly sensitive to both Google and Apple.

The filing said: 'Both Apple and Google have always treated this information as extremely confidential.'

Bloomberg added that the transcript of the Oracle court proceedings has disappeared from electronic court records, but it is not known whether Google was granted its request to seal it.

Whatever the case, the revenue-sharing deal arguably sheds light on how Google remains a dominant force in search and how Apple cashes in from Google's ad-based business model.

Apple's boss Tim Cook has previously criticised advert-impregnated services as an invasion of privacy.

At a dinner hosted by the Electronic Privacy Information Centre last June, The Verge reported he said: 'Our privacy is being attacked on multiple fronts'.

This revenue-sharing deal arguably sheds light on how Google remains a dominant force in search, and how Apple cashes in from Google's ad-based business model. Apple's boss Tim Cook, (stock image) has previously criticised advert-impregnated services as an invasion of privacy

'I'm speaking to you from Silicon Valley, where some of the most prominent and successful companies have built their businesses by lulling their customers into complacency about their personal information.

'They're gobbling up everything they can learn about you and trying to monetise it.

'We think that's wrong and it's not the kind of company that Apple wants to be.'

Oracle has been battling Google over claims it used Java software to develop Android, without paying for it.

The fight has been going on since 2010 and Oracle is now seeking $1 billion (701million) in damages.
No matter how hard we try, many of us struggle to learn from our mistakes, often making the same errors and choices time and time again.

Scientists have long known such mistakes cause our brains to pause and take stock, but they have now discovered this pause leads to conflicting advice when it comes to making future decisions.

During this pause, the brain gathers more information to prevent repeating the same mistake, while at the same time reducing the quality of what it obtains in its desire to collect as much as possible.

These two actions cancel each other out and decreases the likelihood of making the best choice next time.

Scientists have long known mistakes cause our brains to pause, but they have now discovered this pause leads to conflicting advice. Researchers found that during this pause, the brain gathers information to prevent repeating the mistake, while reducing the quality of information it obtains. These actions cancel each other out

It has been long established humans often slow down after mistakes, a phenomenon called post-error slowing - or PES.

But until now the neurological processes that occur under PES were unknown.

During a series of tests, groups of monkeys and humans watched dots moving on a computer screen and decided which direction they would end up travelling by gazing in that direction.

For example, a large proportion of dots moving to the right caused the group to look to the right.

The researchers from New York University (NYU) controlled the movements of made the movements more erratic to make it more difficult to determine a direction.

MIXED EMOTIONS IS NOT A SIGN OF INDECISION A recent study has found that experiencing mixed emotions shows emotional complexity, and is not a sign of indecision as was previously thought. A project from the University of Waterloo examined how people across 16 cultures vary in their tendency to see situations as either all good or all bad, or in a more complex fashion by seeing a little of both. Previous studies have linked lower emotional complexity with a reduced ability to control one's emotions, and higher incidence of depression. The study found that people in many western countries see mixed feelings as undesirable - as if to suggest someone experiencing mixed feelings is 'wishy-washy'. However, both westerners and non-westerners who show mixed feelings are better able to differentiate their emotions and experience their lives in an emotionally rich and balanced fashion, the researchers concluded. Advertisement

Humans and monkeys showed strikingly similar behaviour.

After errors, both slowed down the decision-making process, but the pattern of slowing depended on the difficulty of the decision.

For instance, they slowed down more when dealing with a difficult decision, suggesting they were spending longer accumulating information.

However, the overall accuracy of their choices didn't change, indicating the quality of accumulated sensory information was lower.

Brain activity seen in the monkeys while they performed the task shed light on what was happening in the brain during these tests.

Specifically, the researchers analysed neural responses from a region of parietal cortex involved in gathering information.

During decision making, the activity in these neurons increased at a rate that depended on the quality of evidence they could collect.

After mistakes, the exact same motion stimulus produced neural activity that moved slower -consistent with impaired quality of sensory evidence.

Critically, however, the neurons showed significant increase in how much evidence was accumulated before a decision, preventing a reduction in the overall accuracy.

Researcher Dr Braden Purcell said: 'Our research reveals that a combination of changes in the brain slow us down after mistakes.

'One gathers more information for the decision to prevent repeating the same mistake again.

'A second change reduces the quality of evidence we obtain, which decreases the likelihood we will make an accurate choice.'

The researchers explained that because the two processes cancel each other out, the deliberative approach we take to avoid repeating a mistake neither enhances nor diminishes the likelihood we'll repeat it. The findings could help shed light on Alzheimer's Disease and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Assistant professor Roozbeh Kiani from NYU added: 'In the end, these two processes cancel each other out, meaning that the deliberative approach we take to avoid repeating a mistake neither enhances nor diminishes the likelihood we'll repeat it.'

The findings could help shed light on afflictions that impair judgements, such as Alzheimer's Disease and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

'Patients with ADHD or schizophrenia often do not slow down after errors and this has been interpreted as an impaired ability to monitor one's own behaviour,' explained Purcell.

'Our results suggest that this absence of slowing may reflect much more fundamental changes in the underlying decision making brain networks.

By better understanding the neural mechanisms at work after we make a mistake, we can begin to see how these afflictions impair this process.'
Pope Francis, who has acknowledged being 'a disaster' when it comes to technology, said on Friday that the Internet, social networks and text messages were 'a gift of God' if used wisely.

'Emails, text messages, social networks and chats can also be fully human forms of communication,' the pope said in his message for the Roman Catholic Church's World Day of Communications.

'It is not technology which determines whether or not communication is authentic, but rather the human heart and our capacity to use wisely the means at our disposal,' he said.

Francis' message was released as he was meeting with the head of a company whose brand is synonymous with those products - Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook.

COOK'S EUROPEAN TOUR Cook also flew into Brussels yesterday to lobby the European Commission's anti-trust boss Margrethe Vestager over a probe into the company's tax relationship with Ireland. The technology giant, which has a European base in Cork, in the Irish Republic, is facing a possible $8billion in fines and back taxes as a result of the investigation. Following his arrival in Brussels, Cook tweeted his 1.9 million followers claiming the company supports approximately 1.4 million jobs across Europe. Advertisement

Last year, the 79-year-old Francis told a young girl he was embarrassed to admit that he did not know how to use computers and was an overall 'disaster' with technology.

He has also said smartphones should be banned from the family dinner and children should not have computers in their rooms.

Whether by divine providence or human coincidence, Francis' message was released as he was meeting with the head of a company whose brand is synonymous with those products - Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook.

In his message, the pope appeared to take a more conciliatory stand towards modern technology than in the past, saying 'the Internet could be used to build a society which is healthy and open to sharing'.

'Social networks can facilitate relationships and promote the good of society, but they can also lead to further polarization and division between individuals and groups,' he said.

Modern communications were 'a gift of God which involves a great responsibility,' he said.

'Social networks can facilitate relationships and promote the good of society, but they can also lead to further polarization and division between individuals and groups,' Francis said.

Cook also flew into Brussels yesterday to lobby the European Commission's anti-trust boss Margrethe Vestager over a probe into the company's tax relationship with Ireland.

The technology giant, which has a European base in Cork, in the Irish Republic, is facing a possible $8billion in fines and back taxes as a result of the investigation.

Following his arrival in Brussels, Cook tweeted his 1.9 million followers claiming the company supports approximately 1.4 million jobs across Europe.

The European Commission announced in June 2014 that it was investigating Apple's Irish arm over its tax treatment.

Ms Vestager's press spokesman Ricardo Cardoso told MailOnline: 'Commissioner Vestager met yesterday with Mr Tim Cook, Chief Executive Officer of Apple, for a private meeting.'
Google said project serves as a digital record of Mont Blanc, with its

Videos and photos are embedded on the map, and

View Trekker up the Gouter Route to capture views from the summit

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Poet Lord Byron described it as 'the monarch of mountains' and you now can scale the inspiration for his romantic words by exploring Mont Blanc massif's snowy slopes from the comfort of your home or office.

Google Street View has mapped the majestic mountain with the help of famed adventurers to document features, such as glaciers, and provide 360-degree views from the summit.

It brings the wild terrain of one of Europe's highest peaks to a new audience who do not want to brave the snow or climb rocky ridges.

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Google Street View has mapped majestic mountain Mont Blanc, which lies on the border of France and Italy, with the help of famed adventures to document features such as glaciers and provide 360-degree views. This image shows Catherine Destivelle ascending the massif near the Aiguille du Midi - a mountain within Mont Blanc

Google partnered with alpine photographers, skiers, mountaineers, climbers, and runners to create a Street view map of western Europe's highest peak.

Mont Blanc, or 'white mountain' is the the highest mountain in the Alps, rising 15,777ft (4,809 metres) above sea level.

The mountain lies in a range called the Graian Alps, between the regions of Aosta Valley in Italy and Haute-Savoie in France.

Users can explore Street View as usual by clicking and dragging to walk along different parts of the mountains, but they can also follow routes chosen by experts, Sandy Russell, project lead, Mont Blanc Street View explained in a blog post.

Google partnered with alpine photographers, skiers, mountaineers, climbers, and runners to collect Street View of western Europe's highest peak. This impressive snowy view is just one of hundreds in the new Street View collection

This GIF gives users a sense of climbing the entire Gouter Route of the Mont Blanc massif. The Gouter Route is one of the most popular, starting at in Saint-Gervais with an overnight stop at the Dome du Gouter for most novices, before they climb the summit

Users can explore Street View as usual by clicking and dragging to walk along, but they can also follow routes chosen by experts, Sandy Russell, project lead, Mont Blanc Street View wrote in a blog post. This screenshot shows options on a map

MONT BLANC FACTS Mont Blanc, or Monte Bianco, means 'white mountain'. It is the highest mountain in the Alps and the highest peak in Europe outside of the Caucasus range. It rises 15,777ft (4,809 metres) above sea level. Advertisement

Users can 'run' on the summit with Kilian Jornet, who holds the speed record for ascending and descending Mont Blanc in just four hours 57 minutes, or ice climb up a column of ice called a serac, with alpine climber Ueli Steck.

They can additionally choose to wade through powdery snow with 14-time ski mountaineering champion Laetitia Roux alongside famed guide Patrick Gabarrou to see beautiful views from the summit in the clouds.

'You can also join French climbing legend Catherine Destivelle on the imposing yet beautiful Aiguille du Midi, the 3,842-meter peak near the Mont Blanc,' Ms Russel continued.

'Or, crouch below innovative filmmaker and free skier Candide Thovex as he soars through the air.'

Users can choose to wade through powdery snow with 14-time ski mountaineering champion Laetitia Roux and famed guide Patrick Gabarrou (pictured) with fluffy clouds in the background

Users can 'run' on the summit with Kilian Jornet, who holds the speed record for ascending and descending Mont Blanc in just four hours 57 minutes, or ice climb up a column of ice called a serac, with alpine climber Ueli Steck (shown above)

Mont Blanc, or 'white mountain' is the the highest mountain in the Alps, rising 15,777ft (4,809 metres) above sea level. This view, from the bottom of the massif shows its icy hills and rugged terrain

Elsewhere, users can pick destinations and choose from videos by looking at an aerial view of the massif.

A guide named Korra Pesce carried a Street View Trekker up and down the Gouter Route of Mont Blanc to give viewers a first-person perspective of the trail.

The Gouter Route is one of the most popular, starting at Saint-Gervais with an overnight stop at the Dome du Gouter for most novices, before they climb the summit.

Renan Ozturk, acclaimed cinematographer and National Geographic Adventurer of the Year, alpine photographer Jonathan Griffith, and Sender Films joined Google on Mont Blanc as part of the team. They are pictured on a shoot above

Kilian Jornet (pictured) holds the speed record for ascending and descending Mont Blanc in just four hours 57 minutes

The mer de glace glacier is shown above. Research has shown that Mont Blanc's glaciers are receding due to climate change. Patrick Gabarrou describes the glacial melt in a video pinned to the map

The route is sometimes closed, due to melting snow causing rocks to fall, and this claimed several lives in the summer.

Research has shown that Mont Blanc's glaciers are receding due to climate change and as part of the project, Patrick Gabarrou, describes the glacial melt on the Mer de Glace in a video marked on the map.

Ms Russell wrote: 'This Street View imagery also serves as a digital record of Mont Blanc as it appears today, so future outdoor enthusiasts and scientists can look back at this time capsule to see how the mountain has changed.'

Google said the Street view imagery serves as a digital record of Mont Blanc as it appears today, so future outdoor enthusiasts and scientists can look back at this time capsule to see how the mountain has changed. A snowy view is shown above
Can capture images of microbes at 1 micron, or a millionth of a meter

The microscope can show 3D detailed videos and focus automatically

It hopes to use it on a mission to Jupiter's moon Europa in mid-2020s

Our first ever glimpse of alien life could be through a hologram.

This is according to Nasa, who has created a microscope capable of capturing images of extra-terrestrial microbes smaller than a micron, or 1 millionth of a meter.

The images are then fed into a computer which can create a realistic, holographic image of the alien beings back on Earth.

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Nasa has created a microscope capable of capturing images of microbes smaller than a micron (left). The black arrows in the image show the direction of movement. Researchers have already successfully tested the system, known as digital holographic microscopy (DHM), in Greenland (right)

Nasa is hoping the device  which is about the size of a piece of carryon luggage  will be flown on a mission to Jupiter's moon Europa in the mid-2020s.

'This was designed from the beginning to have a path to flight,' Chris Lindensmith of Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory told Space.com.

Researchers have already successfully used the system, known as digital holographic microscopy (DHM), to detect microbes in Greenland's ice.

DHM is different from traditional microscopy in that the illuminating light is split into a sample beam and a reference beam.

Compiled from Nasa's Galileo spacecraft data, this surface image of Europa shows the blue-white terrains which suggest relatively pure water ice. Scientists are very interested in these features because they may offer a way to investigate the habitability of the moon's interior ocean

After the beam has illuminated the sample, it is combined with the reference and the data fed into a computer to create a hologram.

'The thing that makes it magic is, we don't have to do any focusing,' Lindensmith told Space.com. 'We can reconstruct any image in the object field.'

As well as its ability to capture 3D details and focus automatically, the DHM can record videos, which can let scientists know how microbes move.

The team tested the system in March in three sites near Nuuk in Greenland.

According to Space.com, the DHM was able to detect eukaryotes  tiny organisms with a membrane-bound nucleus  in every sample studied.

On future space missions, scientists are likely to release chemicals or change the temperature of the alien environment to any living cells to move.

THE 'MOST LIKELY PLACE IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM TO SUPPORT LIFE' Europa has very few craters on its surface Europa is the sixth closest moon to Jupiter and the smallest of the four Galilean satellites that belong to the planet. It was discovered by Galileo Galilei in January 1610 and is named after a Phoenician noblewoman in Greek mythology who was courted by Zeus and became the Queen of Crete. Europa orbits Jupiter in around three-and-a-half days with an orbital radius of 670,900km. It is slightly smaller than the Earth's moon, but at 3,100km in diameter it is the sixth largest moon and 15th largest object in the entire solar system. It is likely to have an outer layer of water, some 100km thick. The outer layer of the water is believed to be frozen with a liquid ocean underneath. It is one of the smoothest objects in the solar system with few craters on its surface, which is tectonically active and relatively young. Advertisement

For instance, samples could be heated or the lighting changed to 'wake up' any living organisms.

Jupiter's moon, Europa, has been described by Nasa as 'the most likely place in the solar system to harbour alien life'.

The agency has set aside $25 million to design probes that could reveal whether Europa is, in fact, habitable.

While it has yet to decide on a spacecraft. the mission it takes on is designed to characterise the extent of Europa's ocean and its relation to the deeper interior.

It will also look at the ice shell and determine global surface, compositions and chemistry, especially related to whether life could survive in that environment.

Previous scientific findings point to the existence of a liquid water ocean located under the moon's icy crust.

This ocean covers Europa entirely and contains more liquid water than all of Earth's oceans combined.

Although Europa and Jupiter's other moons have been visited by other spacecraft, they were each limited to a single distant flyby of these satellites.

Nasa's Galileo spacecraft, launched in 1989 by the space shuttle, was the only mission to make repeated visits to Europa, passing close by the moon fewer than a dozen times.
land the craft on other planets - even Mars

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SpaceX has revealed new footage of its Dragon capsule hovering it above the desert in its latest test.

The manned capsule will be used to ferry astronauts to the International Space Station - and could one day even take man to Mars.

As the footage shows, the thrusters all fire up together to raise the spacecraft for a five-second hover, 'generating approximately 33,000 lbs of thrust before returning the vehicle to its resting position.' SpaceX said.

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the thrusters all fire up together to raise the spacecraft for a five-second hover, 'generating approximately 33,000 lbs of thrust before returning the vehicle to its resting position.' SpaceX said.

A SOFT LANDING The Dragon 2 capsule is designed to land on any surface in the solar system, SpaceX says. It uses jets to land itself, the same system SpaceX is developing for its booster rockets. Once the rockets bring the craft close to Earth, four extendable legs allow it to land. Advertisement

The unmanned version of the spacecraft, which is currently used to take supplies to the International Space Station, always returns to Earth with a splash, dropping into the ocean with its descent slowed by parachutes.

But SpaceX wants it to land on hard ground using thrusters, like it's been trying with varying degrees of success with its Falcon 9 rocket.

'On November 24, SpaceX's Dragon 2, powered by eight SuperDraco engines, executed a picture-perfect propulsive hover test at the company's rocket development facility in McGregor, Texas,' it said.

'Eight SuperDraco thrusters, positioned around the perimeter of the vehicle in pairs called 'jet packs', fired up simultaneously to raise the Crew Dragon spacecraft for a five-second hover, generating approximately 33,000 lbs of thrust before returning the vehicle to its resting position.'

This test was the second of a two-part milestone under Nasa's Commercial Crew Program.

The first testa short firing of the engines intended to verify a healthy propulsion systemwas completed November 22, and the longer burn two-days later demonstrated vehicle control while hovering.

However, Nasa said propulsive landing will not be used initially for missions with Nasa astronauts to the International Space Station.

The Crew Dragon will splash down safely in the ocean under parachutes as its passengers return from the space station.

'SpaceX recently tested its ability to fire engines that will be used to land a human-rated spacecraft safely on the ground with the accuracy of a helicopter at the companys test facility in McGregor, Texas,' Nasa said.

'SpaceX envisions returning people to Earth from space on the power of thrust instead of beneath parachutes.'

The company conducted two tethered tests of a full-size Crew Dragon mock-up attached to a crane so engineers could refine the landing software and systems on the spacecraft.

The Crew Dragon spacecraft will be equipped with eight SuperDraco thrusters that would be used to slow the vehicles return to Earth through the atmosphere and ultimately set the spacecraft and its crew down gently.

The company conducted two tethered tests of a full-size Crew Dragon mock-up attached to a crane so engineers could refine the landing software and systems on the spacecraft.

Nasa employees have previously revealed details of a 'budget' plan to send a SpaceX capsule to the red planet in 2020 to return samples.

Elon Musk has backed the idea - and even tweeted images of what the mission would look like.

A Dragon on Mars: The mission would grab samples collected by Nasa's 2020 rover and return them to Earth.

The 'Red Dragon' project was developed by a team at Nasa.

It would grab samples collected by the space agency's 202 rover and return them to Earth.

The sample-return effort would keep costs and complexity down by using SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket and a modified version of the company's robotic Dragon cargo capsule, the concept's developers say.

Red Dragon is 'technically feasible with the use of these emerging commercial technologies, coupled with technologies that already exist,' Andy Gonzales, of NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, California, said during a presentation with the space agency's Future In-Space Operations (FISO) working group.

The Red Dragon team has developed the concept independently, without any involvement or endorsement by SpaceX, Gonzales said.

Inside the Dragon: Crew Dragon will ultimately be capable of taking up to seven astronauts to and from orbit - such as the ISS - and SpaceX also has plans to use it on their proposed missions to Mars. Shown here is the cockpit, with futuristic digital displays used to monitor the spacecraft during launch

The adapted Red Dragon would include a robotic arm, extra fuel tanks and a central tube that houses a rocket-powered Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) and an Earth Return Vehicle (ERV).

However, Musk took to social media to back the project - even releasing these images showing what the mission would look like.

'Dragon 2 is designed to land on any surface (liquid or solid) in the solar system. Am glad to see people thinking about applications!,' he tweeted.

'In expendable mode, Falcon Heavy can send a fully loaded Dragon to Mars or a light Dragon to Jupiter's moons. Europa mission wd be cool,' he said.

Musk, one of the world's best-known entrepreneurs believes the technology could be used to make Mars more hospitable.

Elon Musk has hypothesised Mars could be heated up quickly by dropping nuclear weapons over its poles and said he would like to visit the red planet one day.

The Tesla and SpaceX CEO agrees that Mars would be an inhospitable place to call home in its current state.

The adapted Red Dragon would include a robotic arm, extra fuel tanks and a central tube that houses a rocket-powered Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) and an Earth Return Vehicle (ERV).

Mars' atmosphere is 96 per cent carbon dioxide and less than one per cent oxygen, meaning any human who steps foot on the planet will have to wear a suit at all times.

They will also have to cope with its gravity, which is 63 per cent weaker than on Earth so that someone who weighs 100lbs (45kg) here, would only weigh 38lbs (17kg) on Mars.

The average temperature on Mars is -62C (-81F), with lows reaching -176C (284F).

Despite these harsh conditions, Musk told CBS' new Late Show with Stephen Colbert that Mars is 'a fixer upper of a planet' that could be made by Earth-like if it were warmer, USA Today reported.

CONDITIONS ON MARS Mars' atmosphere is 96 per cent carbon dioxide and less than one per cent oxygen, meaning any human who steps foot on the planet will have to wear a suit at all times. This compares to Earth, where 21 per cent of the atmosphere is oxygen and less than 1 per cent carbon dioxide. The average temperature on Mars is -62C (-81F), with lows reaching -176C (284F). By comparison, Earth's average temperature is 14C (57F), with the coldest temperature ever on record being minus -87C (-126F). Mars' gravity is 63 per cent weaker than on Earth so that someone who weighs 100lbs (45kg) here, would only weigh 38lbs (17kg) on Mars. Advertisement

He also said his rocket firm, Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, will be capable of ferrying astronauts to the International Space Station in two or three years. At present, SpaceX' Falcon rockets deliver cargo to the ISS.

He explained that this could be achieved slowly  with the gradual release of greenhouse gases, to make a process like global warming on Earth  or quickly, using nuclear bombs.

Nuclear weapons emit large amounts of thermal radiation as visible, infrared and ultraviolet light, known as 'flash'.

On Earth, they can cause burns, eye injuries and fires, but the effects may be different on Mars.

Heat accounts for between 35 and 45 per cent of the energy released by the explosion, meaning a huge amount of heat is generated incredibly quickly, which could potentially be harnessed to heat up the Martian atmosphere, according to Musk's fledgling theory.

The race is on to send a man on a 140 million mile (225 million km) trip to Mars and to potentially colonise the red planet.

Nasa Administrator Charles Bolden believes that colonising Mars is essential to ensure the survival of our species.

'It's important for the preservation of the species, and I want to make sure that my grand-daughters, and great-great-grandaughters, have the opportunity to go there,' he said.

President Barack Obama predicted in 2010 that a manned Mars mission will happen in the mid-2030s.

Currently, no-one else has suggested as audacious-a-move as using nuclear weapons to geo-engineer a planet, and the Mars One mission slated to launch in 2016, would rely on small pods or 'habitats'.

A privately funded, nonprofit project, Mars One was set up by Dutch energy entrepreneur Bas Lansdorp and European Space Agency scientist Arno Wielders, but its ambitious aims have been criticised by others.

It aims to create a permanent human settlement on Mars starting in 2027.

Under the plans, a new four-person crew will depart every two years on a one-way trip.

'ALIEN NUCLEAR WARS COULD BE SEEN FROM EARTH' EXPERTS CLAIM The theory goes that if there is intelligent across the universe, aliens will probably have developed the same technology as us, including nuclear weapons. So like on Earth, they could use them to bring about their own demise. Now a group of physicists has studied the various ways in which such alien civilisations could destroy themselves and established that signs of this destruction would be visible using telescopes on Earth. For each scenario, physicists from The Open University, University of Edinburgh, University of St Andrews, and Cornell University detailed the types of signals that would be emitted into the atmosphere and the likelihood of these signals being picked up with technology on Earth. They think the approach is the best chance of finding any evidence of intelligent life beyond Earth. For example, the researchers explained that nuclear weapons produce a short, intense burst of gamma radiation with a characteristic 'double peak'. These flashes could be detected using the same techniques used to detect gamma ray bursts from other stellar events. When gamma-rays smash into Earth's upper atmosphere, they emit a faint, blue light and astronomers use this to trace the rays back to their source. Advertisement

Mars One has yet to select an aerospace company to build the spacecraft, but says it will be built using existing technology.

Colonists would live in pods and have 538 square feet (50 square metres) each and a total of more than 2153 square feet (200 square metres) combined interior space, according to Mars One.

It says: 'Within the settlement are inflatable components which contain bedrooms, working areas, a living room and a 'plant production unit', where they will grow greenery.

'They will also be able to shower as normal, prepare fresh food in the kitchen, wear regular clothes, and, in essence, lead typical day-to-day lives'
Bowalley Road Rules



The blogosphere tends to be a very noisy, and all-too-often a very abusive, place. I intend Bowalley Road to be a much quieter, and certainly a more respectful, place.

So, if you wish your comments to survive the moderation process, you will have to follow the Bowalley Road Rules.

These are based on two very simple principles:

Courtesy and Respect.

Comments which are defamatory, vituperative, snide or hurtful will be removed, and the commentators responsible permanently banned.

Anonymous comments will not be published. Real names are preferred. If this is not possible, however, commentators are asked to use a consistent pseudonym.

Comments which are thoughtful, witty, creative and stimulating will be most welcome, becoming a permanent part of the Bowalley Road discourse.

However, I do add this warning. If the blog seems in danger of being over-run by the usual far-Right suspects, I reserve the right to simply disable the Comments function, and will keep it that way until the perpetrators find somewhere more appropriate to vent their collective spleen.


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The Mayflower will cross the Atlantic in 2020, but this time it won't be carrying any passengers.

The Mayflower Autonomous Researcher Ship (MARS) will be the world's first full-sized, fully autonomous unmanned ship to make the 3,220 mile trip that aims to gather data about the ocean's conditions.

The vessel will take the same route the original Mayflower did 400 years ago, but using only solar and wind technology for the journey.

The Mayflower Autonomous Researcher Ship (MARS) will be the world's first full-sized, fully autonomous unmanned ship to make the 3,220 mile trip that aims to gather data about the condition of the ocean. The vessel will take the same route the original Mayflower 400 years ago, but use only solar and wind technology for the journey

The sail date will mark the 400th anniversary of the original Mayflower from Plymouth, England to Plymouth Massachusetts and MARS is a combined venture with Plymouth University, MSubs and Shuttleworth Design.

'Our approach to developing the concept was to fully explore and take advantage of the opportunities that arise from not having to carry crew, and to create a vessel that is capable of using only renewable energy,' John Shuttleworth, who runs Shuttleworth Design with his brother Orion, wrote in a statement.

'Working within the limitations of renewable energy sources has given a clear direction to the developing form of the vessel.'

At first the solar cell area was causing a problem, as it was too large for sailing and was unsafe when the boat hit big waves, but the team developed a folding wing system that increased the solar cell area by 40% in calm conditions.

WHAT RESEARCH WILL MARS BE USED FOR? The project will confront current regulations governing autonomous craft at sea. The vessel will conduct all manner of meteorological, oceanographic and climate data gathering and research. It is intended to house one or more modular payload bays, much like a Space Shuttle, into which a diverse range of mission equipment will be fitted to support the various research tasks. The team will be conducting research on renewable energy and propulsion systems for marine vessels, research on the software for automated and autonomous operations for extended duration, advanced satellite communications and co-operative behaviour between nested automated and autonomous vehicles operating below, on and above the water simultaneously. They will also be looking at data harvesting issues - how to know when something is significant enough to alert the scientists at mission control in Plymouth (UK) and Plymouth (USA) and perhaps 'goal oriented programming' to create dynamic mission plans that better serves the scientific goals of a specific mission without significant human intervention through direct operation of the Mayflower Autonomous Research Ship. Advertisement

The ship will also launch drones to gather meteorological, oceanographic and climate data, with the hopes of gaining knowledge about the current condition of the ocean, reported Tech Insider.

The vessel is intended to house one or more modular payload bays, much like a Space Shuttle, into which a diverse range of mission equipment will be fitted to support the various research tasks.

The sail date will mark the 400th anniversary of the original Mayflower from Plymouth, England to Plymouth Massachusetts. Project MARS is a combined venture with Plymouth University, MSubs and Shuttleworth Design. The ship will also launch drones to gather meteorological, oceanographic and climate data

Researchers will be investigating renewable energy and propulstion systems for ships and other marine vessels, research on the software for automated and autonomous operations for extended duration, advanced satellite communications and co-operative behavior between nested automated and autonomous vehicles operating below, on and above the water simultaneously.

'We'll also be looking at data harvesting issues - how to know when something is significant enough to alert the scientists at mission control in Plymouth (UK) and Plymouth (USA) and perhaps 'goal oriented programming' to create dynamic mission plans that better serves the scientific goals of a specific mission without significant human intervention through direct operation of the Mayflower Autonomous Research Ship,' explained Brett Phaneuf, managing director of MSubs.

THE ORIGINAL MAYFLOWER The Mayflower was a three-masted ship, most likely between 90 and 110 feet long, that carried the people who came to be known a Pilgrims from England to Plymouth in 1620. Ship was hired in London, and sailed from London to Southampton in July 1620 to begin loading food and supplies for the voyage--much of which was purchased at Southampton. The Mayflower left Holland on 31 July 1620, joining the Speedwell in Southampton, England, for the voyage to America. The two ships sailed on 15 August but returned because of the leaky condition of the Speedwell. The Speedwell was eventually abandoned, and on 16 September, 102 passengers and crew aboard the Mayflower finally sailed from England. The voyage itself across the Atlantic Ocean took 66 days, from their departure on September 6, until Cape Cod was sighted on 9 November 1620. The Mayflower followed the land-exploring party and sailed into Plymouth, Massachusetts, harbor on 26 December, where it remained until houses could be built for the new settlement. Source: Encyclopedia.com Advertisement

The ship is more than 100 feet long and will reach speeds of 12.5 knots with the electric motor and 20 knots with sails, basically 23 miles per hour in not very windy conditions.

MARS will endure a yearlong testing phase before sailing the Atlantic to Plymouth, Massachusetts.

A trimaran boat design is being used, which is a multi-hull boat consisting of a mail hull with two small outrigger hulls attached.

Trimarans are common sail driven yachts that are for both recreational use and racing. 'A trimaran was chosen because it provides the most efficient hull form for low speed motoring,' explained Shuttleworth. 'The hull configuration developed from a requirement to reduce windage, while keeping the solar array sufficiently high above the water to reduce wave impact'

Trimarans are common sail driven yachts that are for both recreational use and racing.

'A trimaran was chosen because it provides the most efficient hull form for low speed motoring,' explained Shuttleworth.

'The hull configuration developed from a requirement to reduce windage, while keeping the solar array sufficiently high above the water to reduce wave impact.'

With the way the outer hulls are designed to skin the water, resistance is reduced by 8 percent. 'An Atlantic crossing could take as little as seven to 10 days with optimal wind conditions but what's important is that it could take seven to 10 months if we so choose, so that the ship could collect voluminous data for ongoing analysis by shore based teams of scientists and not worry about refueling, or re-provisioning, or illness.....or loneliness,' said Phaneuf

With the way the outer hulls are designed to skin the water, resistance is reduced by 8 percent.

'An Atlantic crossing could take as little as seven to 10 days with optimal wind conditions but what's important is that it could take seven to 10 months if we so choose, so that the ship could collect voluminous data for ongoing analysis by shore based teams of scientists and not worry about refueling, or re-provisioning, or illness.....or loneliness,' said Phaneuf.

Researchers will closely monitor MARS throughout its journey, to watch for any structual, mechanical, electrical, corrosion and software issues.

The team will also keep an eye out for vandalism and piracy, although these aren't major concerns.
The dream of flying from New York to London in just one hour has come a step closer to reality.

Orbital ATK has successfully tested a 3D printed hypersonic engine combustor at Nasa Langley Research Centre in Virginia.

The breakthrough could lead to planes that can travel 3,425mph (5,500km/h) - 4.5 times the speed of sound.

The dream of flying from New York to London in just one hour has come a step closer to reality. Orbital ATK has tested a 3D printed hypersonic engine combustor at Nasa Langley Research Centre in Virginia. Pictured is an image of a concept hypersonic plane shown in design software that models its aerodynamics

The combustor was created through a manufacturing process known as powder bed fusion (PBF).

In this, a layer of metal alloy powder is printed and a laser fuses areas of together based on the pattern fed into the machine by a software program.

As each layer is fused, a second is printed until the final product is complete. Any additional powder is removed and the product is polished.

The combustor was successfully put through a range of hypersonic flight conditions over the course of 20 days, including one of the longest duration propulsion wind tunnel tests ever recorded.

Orbital says one of the most challenging parts of the propulsion system, a scramjet combustion. This houses and maintains stable combustion within an extremely volatile environment. It would be used in future supersonic planes such as Nasa's future versions of X-43, an unmanned experimental hypersonic aircraft

SCRAMJET PROPULSION Scramjets are 'airbreathing' aircraft because rather than carrying both fuel and the oxygen needed to provide acceleration, they carry only hydrogen fuel and 'pull' the oxygen needed to burn it from the atmosphere. Air is forced into the front of the engine and as hydrogen is injected into the airstream, the gases are compressed causing the temperature to rise and ignition to occur. This generates huge amounts of thrust and enables the jet to travel at speeds far in excess of the 1,350mph top speed of Concorde, Advertisement

Orbital says one of the most challenging parts of the propulsion system, a scramjet combustion.

This houses and maintains stable combustion within an extremely volatile environment.

The tests were, in part, to ensure that the PBF-produced part would be robust enough to be used in an aircraft.

'Additive manufacturing opens up new possibilities for our designers and engineers,' said Pat Nolan, Vice President and General Manager of Orbital ATK's Missile Products division of the Defense Systems Group.

'This combustor is a great example of a component that was impossible to build just a few years ago.

The tests, at Nasa Langley Research Centre in Virginia. could lead to planes that can travel 3,425mph (5,500km/h) - 4.5 times the speed of sound

'This successful test will encourage our engineers to continue to explore new designs and use these innovative tools to lower costs and decrease manufacturing time.'

The test at Langley was an important opportunity to challenge Orbital ATK's new combustor design, made possible only through 3D printing.

Complex geometries that once required multiple components can be simplified to a single, more cost-effective assembly.

But, since the components are built one layer at a time, it is now possible to design features and integrated components that could not be easily cast or otherwise machined.

The company could also someday used this technique on rocket parts.

Earlier this month, ATK was awarded a $47 million contract from the US Air Force to develop a solid rocket propulsion system prototype to support the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program.
An animated map of the Western Hemisphere shows the paths of more than 100 bird populations as they migrate throughout the year.

The map was created by researchers at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, who plotted the routes of these groups to understand their paths across land and the open ocean.

As revealed in the moving map, the team found wide similarities in the migration routes of different groups of species.

Colour-coded dots show the trajectories of these birds as they head southward in the fall. Dark blue dots show the birds during January, with light green representing June-July, and red showing December.

The team used data from eBird to track the movements of 118 species of birds from January to December, according to Cornells online hub for bird enthusiasts, All About Birds.

In the map, colour-coded dots show the trajectories of these birds as they head southward in the fall.

Dark blue dots show the birds during January, with light green representing June-July, and red showing December.

We used millions of observations from the eBird citizen-science database, lead author Frank La Sorte, a research associate at the Cornell Lab, told All About Birds.

After tracing the migration routes of all these species and comparing them, we concluded that a combination of geographic features and broad-scale atmospheric conditions influence the choice of routes used during spring and fall migration.

Over 118 species were tracked, including the Cape May Warbler (left) and Spotted flycatcher (right)

According to the researcher, birds that fly out over the Atlantic Ocean are likely to spend the winter months in the Carribbean and South America, and return in the spring on an inland path, sticking to a clockwise loop.

Species including Bobolinks, Yellow and Black-billed cuckoos, and Connecticut and Cape May warblers follow this route.

These looped pathways help the birds take advantage of conditions in the atmosphere, said La Sorte.

According to the researcher, birds that fly out over the Atlantic Ocean are likely to spend the winter months in the Carribbean and South America, and return in the spring on an inland path, sticking to a clockwise loop

Some birds dont fly over the open ocean, the map reveals, and they instead rely on the same migration routes during the fall and spring. These birds traverse mountain chains and isthmuses. Strong tailwinds, the study found, help birds move more quickly during their spring migration back north

Weaker headwinds and a push from the northeast trade winds as they move farther south make the fall journey a bit easier. The birds take this shorter, more direct route despite the dangers of flying over open-ocean.

Strong tailwinds, the study found, help birds move more quickly during their spring migration back north.

Some birds dont fly over the open ocean, the map reveals, and they instead rely on the same migration routes during the fall and spring. These birds traverse mountain chains and isthmuses.

The researchers have also plotted the data using numbers to represent each species group included in the study.

This, along with a list of all 118 birds observed can be found on a second map, also on All About Birds.

Its an exciting new area of research, La Sorte told All About Birds.

By using eBird data and other forms of migration tracking information, were getting a more detailed picture than ever before about where and when birds migrate.

Thats the kind of information we need to make smart conservation decisions for species that live in vastly different regions during the year.

Citizen science makes it possible to do this for populations across an entire hemisphere.

MIGRATORY PATTERNS OF BIRDS ACROSS THE AMERICAS An animated map of the Western Hemisphere shows the paths of more than 100 bird populations as they migrate throughout the year. The team used data from eBird to track the movements of 118 species of birds from January to December, according to Cornells online hub for bird enthusiasts, All About Birds. The birds, listed below, can be tracked on the animated map using their designated numbers. 1. Acadian Flycatcher 2. Alder Flycatcher 3. American Golden-Plover 4. American Redstart 5. Bairds Sandpiper 6. Bairds Sparrow 7. Baltimore Oriole 8. Bay-breasted Warbler 9. Bicknells Thrush 10. Black Turnstone 11. Black-and-white Warbler 12. Black-billed Cuckoo 13. Blackburnian Warbler 14. Black-headed Grosbeak 15. Blackpoll Warbler 16. Black-throated Blue Warbler 17. Black-throated Green Warbler 18. Blue-headed Vireo 19. Blue-winged Warbler 20. Bobolink 21. Brown-chested Martin 22. Brown-crested Flycatcher 23. Buff-breasted Sandpiper 24. Bullocks Oriole 25. Calliope Hummingbird 26. Canada Warbler 27. Cape May Warbler 28. Cassins Vireo 29. Cerulean Warbler 30. Chestnut-collared Longspur 31. Chestnut-sided Warbler 32. Chimney Swift 33. Cinnamon-bellied Ground-Tyrant 34. Clay-colored Sparrow 35. Common Nighthawk 36. Connecticut Warbler 37. Crowned Slaty Flycatcher 38. Dark-faced Ground-Tyrant 39. Dusky Flycatcher 40. Eastern Kingbird 41. Eastern Wood-Pewee 42. Fork-tailed Flycatcher 43. Golden-crowned Sparrow 44. Golden-winged Warbler 45. Gray-cheeked Thrush 46. Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch 47. Great Crested Flycatcher 48. Hammonds Flycatcher 49. Harriss Sparrow 50. Hermit Thrush 51. Hermit Warbler 52. Indigo Bunting 53. Kentucky Warbler 54. Lapland Longspur 55. Lazuli Bunting 56. Le Contes Sparrow 57. Least Flycatcher 58. Least Seedsnipe 59. Louisiana Waterthrush 60. MacGillivrays Warbler 61. Magnolia Warbler 62. Mourning Warbler 63. Nashville Warbler 64. Nelsons Sparrow 65. Northern Parula 66. Northern Waterthrush 67. Ochre-naped Ground-Tyrant 68. Olive-sided Flycatcher 69. Orange-crowned Warbler 70. Orchard Oriole 71. Ovenbird 72. Pacific-slope Flycatcher 73. Palm Warbler 74. Pectoral Sandpiper 75. Philadelphia Vireo 76. Prothonotary Warbler 77. Purple Martin 78. Purple Sandpiper 79. Red-eyed Vireo 80. Rose-breasted Grosbeak 81. Ruby-throated Hummingbird 82. Rufous Hummingbird 83. Rusty Blackbird 84. Scarlet Tanager 85. Scissor-tailed Flycatcher 86. Small-billed Elaenia 87. Smiths Longspur 88. Solitary Sandpiper 89. Southern Martin 90. Spot-billed Ground-Tyrant 91. Spragues Pipit 92. Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher 93. Summer Tanager 94. Swainsons Thrush 95. Tennessee Warbler 96. Townsends Warbler 97. Veery 98. Violet-green Swallow 99. Virginias Warbler 100. Warbling Vireo 101. Western Kingbird 102. Western Tanager 103. Western Wood-Pewee 104. White-browed Ground-Tyrant 105. White-crested Elaenia 106. White-rumped Sandpiper 107. Willow Flycatcher 108. Wilsons Phalarope 109. Wilsons Warbler 110. Wood Thrush 111. Worm-eating Warbler 112. Yellow Warbler 113. Yellow-bellied Flycatcher 114. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 115. Yellow-billed Cuckoo 116. Yellow-green Vireo 117. Yellow-rumped Siskin 118. Yellow-throated Vireo Advertisement




Black Death, a mid-fourteenth century plague, killed 30 to 50 per cent of the European population in just five years.

The pandemic was caused by the Yersinia pestis bacteria with millions dying from the disease in two major outbreaks.

Thousands of years before it wreaked havoc in the second wave of deaths, the bacteria may have been passed around as a harmless microbe.

Black Death, a mid-fourteenth century plague, killed 30 to 50 per cent of the European population in just five years. The pandemic was caused by the Yersinia pestis bacteria with millions dying from the disease in two major outbreaks. This image is of a plague pit in Marseille, France

This is the conclusion of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Germany who reconstructed complete pathogen genomes from victims of the Great Plague of Marseille,

This plague raged from 1720 to 1722 and is conventionally assumed to be the last outbreak of medieval plague in Europe.

Scientists used teeth from plague pits in Marseille to get hold of preserved DNA samples.

'We faced a significant challenge in reconstructing these ancient genomes,' comments computational analyst Alexander Herbig.

'To our surprise, the 18th century plague seems to be a form that is no longer circulating, and it descends directly from the disease that entered Europe during the Black Death, several centuries earlier'.

Within only five years, the plague killed 30-50 per cent of the European population. Unfortunately it didnt stop there. Plague resurged throughout Europe leading to continued high mortality and social unrest

A new study indicates bacteria responsible for the plagues of the 14th and 17th centuries may have laid low in an unknown reservoir for 300 years. Analysis of DNA from skeletons, excavated from two different burial sites in Germany (pictured) and spanning more than 300 years, tested positive for the same strain of Y. pestis

Being distinct from all modern forms of plague, the scientists believe they have identified an extinct form of the disease, according to their study reported yesterday in the online journal eLife.

Kirsten Bos, a lead author of the publication, cautions that the geographical source of the disease cannot be identified yet.

Marseille was a big hub of trade in the Mediterranean, so the Great Plague of Marseille could have been imported from any number of places by ship and cargo.

But she concedes that it equally could have been close to home.

'Our results suggest that the disease was hiding somewhere in Europe for several hundred years'.

'It's a chilling thought that plague might have once been hiding right around the corner throughout Europe, living in a host which is not known to us yet' explains Johannes Krause, director of the Department of Archaeogenetics at the MPI in Jena.

He adds: 'Future work might help us to identify the mysterious host species, its range and the reason for its disappearance'.

DID FAMINE MAKE THINGS WORSE? Life in the 14th century could not have been easy. In addition to the deadly plague spreading like wildfire across Europe (see right), people also had to deal with widespread famine. Historians at Harvard University think that a extended spell of cool, wet weather would have led to crop failures and prolonged food shortages. The lack of food would have meant a more susceptible host, potentially maximising the impact of the disease. Researchers used ice core samples to estimate temperatures in the early 1300s as well as historical records. Their findings suggest a much wider region of Northern Europe may have been affected than previously thought. The group believe that by the time plague hit the shores of Europe, the population may have already been weakened from decades of food shortages. Advertisement

Scientists think that Yersinia pestis (pictured), the bacteria believed to be responsible for bubonic plague, hid in an unknown reservoir since the time of the Black Death in the 14th century, three centuries earlier

The study follows a research published in the journal PLOS ONE earlier this month in which, researchers recovered and analysed ancient DNA from plague victims in Germany.

Excavated from two different burial sites in Germany, and their remains spanned more than 300 years.

AN 'UNKNOWN RESERVOIR' In a separate study, German researchers recovered and analysed ancient DNA from the remains of 30 plague victims of the second plague pandemic. They were excavated from two different burial sites in Germany, spanning more than 300 years. Of 30 skeletons tested, eight were positive for Y. pestis DNA. The genetic material was 'highly similar' to that previously sampled from plague victims from other European countries. Along with the reintroduction of the virus from Asia, the researchers believe the bacteria lived on in an unidentified group of animals, possibly rats. Advertisement

Lisa Seifert, a researcher from Ludwig Maximilian University in Germany, said: 'Of 30 skeletons tested, eight were positive for Y. pestis-specific nucleic acid.

'All positive individuals' genetic material were highly similar to previously investigated plague victims from other European countries and had identical Y. pestis genotype.'

Scientists and historians have long believed the plague originated in Asia and was reintroduced to Europe a number of times.

But the findings from the German remains indicate it may have never left Europe's shores.

Instead, it lay relatively dormant in the host - suspected to be rodents - until an unknown event caused it to jump to humans again, like it had done three centuries earlier.

Alternatively, the persistence of the disease may be down to a combination of the two.

Miss Seifert suggests that as well as the assumed continuous reintroduction of Y. pestis from central Asia in multiple waves during the second pandemic, it is also possible that Y. pestis persisted long-term in Europe in a yet unknown reservoir host, most likely rodents.

However, it remains unclear if the 17th century pandemic started from a wave of bacteria from Asia or from the unidentified host reservoir in Europe at the time.

Historians and scientists believe the spread of the plague was facilitated by rodents - presumably rats - which came to Europe aboard ships from Asia. These rats were carriers for fleas (pictured right) infected with the Y. pestis bacteria. The bacteria most likely infected humans through flea bites

The Great Plague of Marseille was the last of the significant European outbreaks of bubonic plague. Arriving in Marseille, France in 1720, the disease killed 100,000 people in the city

In the paper, the authors wrote that bacterial DNA taken from the German plague victims is consistent with microbes obtained from three bodies from Smithfield cemetery in London, and Saint-Laurent-de-la-Cabrerisse in the south of France.

They indicate that the bacteria may have persisted in a rodent - which could point the finger at black rats, historically blamed for the spread of the disease as hosts for fleas which spread the disease.

The findings may also have implications for modern diseases which are also spread by animals, known as zoonosis.

Many pathogens are known to hide in animal reservoirs, where they persist until the come into contact with humans.

The Ebola virus, which has caused thousands of deaths in Western Africa since its most recent major outbreak in 2013, is believed to live in fruit bats.

According to the World Health Organization , the virus is then introduced into humans through close contact with the animals' secretions and body fluids, such as blood or droppings.

Camels have been identified as the reservoir for the Middle East respiratory virus (MERS), which has been responsible for a spate of deaths in Saudi Arabia since 2012.

And strains of the influenza virus, which have been responsible for millions of deaths in just a few short outbreaks in modern history, are believed to persist in birds and pigs.
One of the newcomers is China's Banyan Tree Ringha, located in a secluded valley near fabled Shangri-La

Over the last few months there have been seven new additions including offerings in the Seychelles and Canada

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For a truly one-of-a-kind stay in a spectacular location, intrepid travellers can cast away at National Geographic's Unique Lodges of the World.

And since its launch last year, the number of properties in the collection have nearly doubled - from 24 to 45.

Whether you're keen to explore diverse coral reefs in the Bahamas, see beluga whales or polar bears up close, these lodges are as diverse as they are picturesque.

Fregate is part tropical paradise, part wild islea place where beaches are inhabited by creatures seemingly plucked from the Galapagos

Over the last few months there have been seven new extraordinary properties added to the collection.

The most recent additions, which include locations from the Seychelles to northern Canada, were selected due to their outstanding guest service and experiences on offer, as well as their leadership role in promoting sustainable tourism and protecting cultural heritage.

Among those is Churchill Wild  Seal River Heritage Lodge in Canada, where guests often wake up to the sight of polar bears ambling around outside and at Winterlake Lodge in Alaska's backcountry, cooking classes with a well-known chef are a normal part of a traveller's itinerary.

Another newcomer is China's Banyan Tree Ringha, located in a secluded valley near fabled Shangri-La. It's the perfect place to experience ethnic Tibetan culture and stay in suites inspired by Tibetan farmhouse design.

The stunning Fregate Island Private Lodge in the Seychelles is made up thatched villas that appear hidden away from the island's shores. Not only that, but the Fregates owners have worked diligently to restore the islands natural habitats, meaning you're nearly guaranteed a wildlife spotting along the pristine beaches.

Perched above the town of Aristi, the lodges traditional stone exteriors reflect the character of the region, while the elegant interiors provide a soothing sanctuary after a day of adventuring

Another newcomer is China's Banyan Tree Ringha, located in a secluded valley near fabled Shangri-La. It's the perfect place to experience ethnic Tibetan culture

And if you are are keen to embark on a Greek odyssey, travel high in the Pindos Mountains, far from the sun-baked shores of the Aegean Sea, to witness leafy and sparkling alpine lakes at the Aristi Mountain Resort & Villas.

On the other side of the pond, Tiamo Resort in the Bahamas is located in an unspoiled spot that offers a gateway to extraordinary coral reefs, a place where ecosystems are rich and healthy and wildlife thrives.

Guests can check into thatched-roof villas, tucked on a sandy stretch of shoreline only accessible from the sea.

On the other end of the scale, those seeking a little piece of Montana's history and to explore the great wilderness of the West should explore Lone Mountain Ranch.

Finally, the lush Atlantic Forest meets a wild collection of caves and canyons at Reserva do Ibitipoca, where a restored 18-century farmhouse celebrates age-old Brazilian culture.

THE SEVEN LODGES ACCEPTED INTO THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC COLLECTION OVER THE PAST FEW MONTHS Fregate Island Private, Seychelles Churchill Wild  Seal River Heritage Lodge, Canada Aristi Mountain Resort and Villas, Greece Tiamo Resort, Bahamas Reserva do Ibitipoca, Brazil Banyan Tree Ringha, China Lone Mountain Ranch, Montana, U.S. Advertisement

Just north of Yellowstone National Park, in the mountains near Big Sky, a cluster of charming cabins, Lone Mountain Ranch, hewn from lodgepole pine provide a cozy retreat

At Churchill Wild  Seal River Heritage Lodge in Canada, guests often wake up to the sight of polar bears ambling around outside

On the other side of the pond, Tiamo Resort in the Bahamas is located in an unspoiled spot that offers a gateway to extraordinary coral reefs, a place where ecosystems are rich and healthy and wildlife thrives

The lush Atlantic Forest meets a wild collection of caves and canyons at Reserva do Ibitipoca, where a restored 18-century farmhouse celebrates age-old Brazilian culture

UNIQUE LODGE CRITERIA TO BE PART OF THE INCREDIBLE COLLECTION The Property  The design and character are unique and authentic, and the property provides guests with a true sense of place by celebrating the surrounding landscape and cultural heritage. Guest Experience and Quality of Service  Guests are offered top-quality service and exceptional and inspiring experiences  from activities that enable them to engage with local people to wildlife encounters with seasoned naturalists. Sustainable Tourism Best Practices  The property demonstrates a commitment to conservation and green operations; it actively supports the protection of cultural heritage; and it provides tangible benefits to local communities. Advertisement

What is also vital for the collection is that the hotels not only defy the imagination in their design and detail, but that they also demonstrate that they are founded on a deep desire to protect the cultures and precious ecosystems that surround them.

An onsite inspection is undertaken by an expert to assess hotel operations, to meet staff and to evaluate the lodge's sustainable tourism practices.

'We built National Geographic Unique Lodges of the World to serve as a shining example of sustainable tourism around the world, and we are thrilled to see the remarkable growth of the collection this past year,' said Lynn Cutter, National Geographic's executive vice president for Travel.

'By providing such fantastic guest experiences while demonstrating how travel can be a force for good, we hope to elevate sustainable tourism and inspire others to join us.

'We look forward to providing travellers with an even broader array of unique opportunities around the world as we continue to expand our collection in the years to come.'
The countries making up the top 17 include the Seychelles,

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More and more people are expanding their horizons and exploring the world, new statistics show, but some locations are creating more of a buzz than others.

The United Nations World Travel Organization has released its latest Travel Barometer, featuring the countries where arrivals rose fastest in 2015.

Leading the pack was Paraguay where tourism grew a whopping 97 per cent in 2015, making it the fastest growing travel destination of last year, closely followed by Tajikistan which saw 94 per cent more visitors than the previous year.

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1. Paraguay (up 97 per cent to 1.28m)

Paraguay is home to 6.8million people as well as subtropical forests and beautiful rivers - including the Paraguay River (above)

The country stealing the title for the fastest growing destination when comparing tourism rates was awarded to Paraguay, which saw an estimated 1.28million visitors arrive - almost double the figures welcomed in 2014.

As well as receiving the fastest grower status for its 97 per cent increase, Paraguay became South America's eighth most visited country, falling slightly behind neighbours, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Uruguay.

The large country, which has an estimated population of around 6.8million people, is located between Argentina, Brazil and Bolivia, and is home to large areas of swampland, subtropical forests and beautiful rivers - including the Paraguay River.

2. Tajikistan (up 94 per cent to 414,000)

Known for its luscious green landscapes and rugged mountains used by hikers and climbers, the central Asian country took home the second spot

Off the beaten track, Tajikistan became better known in 2015, with 414,000 tourists flocking to the country in Asia.

The home to 8.2million people, which borders Afghanistan, China, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, saw a 94 per cent increase in the amount of visitors it received in 2015.

Known for its luscious green landscapes and rugged mountains used by hikers and climbers, the central Asian country took home the second spot for this year's fastest risers.

3. Niue (up 62.9 per cent to 10,000)

Niue is often referred to as 'The Rock' by local people - a spin off nickname from its traditional title 'Rock of Polynesia'

Tiny island country, Niue, saw 62.9 per cent more visitors heading to its sands in the South Pacific Ocean in 2015.

Despite the increase only amounting to 3,000 people, this is more than double the population of people residing there - as only 1,109 were recorded living there when last check in 2014.

Niue, which is situated Northwest of New Zealand, is often referred to as 'The Rock' by local people - a spin off nickname from its traditional title 'Rock of Polynesia'.

4. Japan (up 47.5 per cent to 20million)

Japan is packed up with high-rise buildings, imperial palaces and mountainous national parks - making it an obvious contender for one of the most popular destinations to visit

Filled with Buddhist temples, Shinto shrines and cherry blossoms, Japan's popularity levels hit the roof in 2015 when they reached a 47.5 increase, seeing the amount of tourists visiting the country hit figures of around 20million people.

The large country, which has an estimated population of 127million people, is packed with high-rise buildings, imperial palaces and mountainous national parks - making it an obvious contender for one of the most popular destinations to visit.

The crowded capital lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, the East China Sea, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia.

5. Iceland (up 29.8 per cent to 1.3millon)

Iceland, the home place of mountains, hot springs, black-sand beaches and glaciers, was visited by 1.3million people over the year

WHERE ARRIVALS ROSE FASTEST Hungary, which came in eleventh place with a 19.1 per cent increase and 14.5million visitors is a country in Central Europe 1. Paraguay (up 97 per cent to 1.28m) 2. Tajikistan (up 94 per cent to 414,000) 3. Niue (up 62.9 per cent to 10,000) 4. Japan (up 47.5 per cent to 20million) 5. Iceland (up 29.8 per cent to 1.3millon) 6. Bosnia and Herzegovina (up 28.2 per cent to 687,000) 7. Panama (up 22.4 per cent to 2.13million) 8. Thailand (up 22.3 per cent to 30.3million) 9. Chile (up 20.4 per cent to 4.5million) 10. Palau (up 19.2 per cent to 168,000) 11. Hungary (up 19.1 per cent to 14.5million) 12. Seychelles (up 18.7 per cent to 318,000) 13. Sri Lanka (up 17.8 per cent to 2.12million) 14. Cuba (up 17.3 per cent to 3.48million) 15. Colombia (up 17.2 per cent to 3million) 16. Oman (up 17 per cent to 1.78million) 17. Romania (up 16.9 per cent to 2.24million) Advertisement

Iceland's starring role in the latest Star Wars film - The Force Awakens - may have helped it slide into fifth place of the countries that welcomed extra tourists to their country in 2015.

The home place of mountains, hot springs, black-sand beaches and glaciers, was visited by 1.3million people over the year. As well as it's breathtaking beauty, the Nordic country, which is home to 323,002 people, also offers a renowned nightlife scene.

Ireland, another country to feature in the latest movie alongside Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford, saw a 14 per cent increase in arrivals.

Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is made up of mountainous terrain, medieval villages and Muslim and Christian landmarks, placed sixth

The stunning white sand and clear sea country of Panama, which links Central and South America, saw 2.13million people visit

Eighth place was awarded to Thailand which received a 22.3 per cent increase, taking its 2015 visitor total to 30.3 million

Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is made up of mountainous terrain, medieval villages and Muslim and Christian landmarks, was placed sixth for a 28.2 per cent increase, taking its overall visitation figures for the year to 687,000 people.

Coming in seventh was Panama. The stunning white sands and clear sea country which links Central and South America saw 2.13million people explore its modern skyscrapers, casinos and nightclubs in 2015 - a 22.4 per cent increase from 2014.

Eighth and ninth places were awarded to Thailand - from a 22.3 per cent increase, taking its 2015 visitor total to 30.3 million - and Chile welcomed 4.5million guests in the 12 month period - a 20.4 per cent boost.

Chile welcomed 4.5million guests in the 12 month period was placed in ninth place with a 20.4 per cent boost on tourism

The tiny island of Palau, which is home to just 27,000 people, was visited by 168,000 travellers - more than six times its population and a 19.2 per cent rise

The Seychelles is an archipelago of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean off East Africa and was placed in twelfth place for 2015

South-east Asia experienced a good year for figures. Not only did Thailand, a traveller favourite, welcome an additional five million visitors, but Laos saw a 14.2 per cent increase, Burma 13.3 per cent and the Philippines 11.1 per cent.

The mesmerising Palau in the South Pacific took home tenth place. The tiny island, which is home to just 27,000 people, was visited by 168,000 travellers - more than six times its population and a 19.2 per cent rise.

Making up the rest of the top 17 countries to earn a tourism increase of more than 15 per cent, was Hungary, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, Cuba, Colombia, Oman and Romania.

Sri Lanka is a rugged land of rainforest, diverse wildlife and endless beaches - and last year it was visited by a huge 2.12million people
This shocking video shows the moment a tiger is punched in the face by a worker at a popular animal sanctuary in Thailand.

More than 100 tigers are housed at the Luangtamahabua Buddhist temple, and only last year Wildlife protection officers carried out a three-hour inspection, after allegations of mistreatment.

No evidence was discovered at that time at the site just outside Bangkok.

This still from the footage taken at the famous Thai tiger temple shows the moment one of the workers punches a tiger in the head

The man was filmed dragging the big cat around, and trying to turn it over to face the tourists

Four tigers, who had chains around their necks, were put on show for tourists to pose with and take photos of

However this footage that has been shared on Facebook shows a male keeper dragging and then delivering a right-hand punch into the face of the big cat.

The video begins by showing four relatively docile tigers with chains wrapped around their necks put on show for groups of tourists.

One of the workers is then filmed dragging one of the big cats before delivering a fierce right hook into the side of the tiger's head.

The man then walks to the front of the tiger and acts as though nothing has happened.

After sharing the footage on social media, Pranay Dalmia writes: 'I visited Tiger Temple Thailand a few days ago. It was really depressing to see the tigers being treated poorly.

'I saw some of the tigers being dragged by the tail and one of the tigers being punched in the face.'

Last year the temple was threatened with closure after it was discovered many of the animals there didn't have a permit

It's very much a show for the tourists, as workers dance around and move the big cats into the right positions

Commenting on the video, Toey Dee says: 'Boycott tiger temple Thailand. This is not a way to treat the tigers. Tiger should be in the wild.'

And Jennifer Jennings adds: 'You say it's a sanctuary, I'm sorry it's hell. You should be ashamed.'

Interestingly, the person who runs the Facebook account for the temple replied back on the video posting, saying: 'I will be taking this to the management as we discussed on the day and hopefully this sort of behaviour will be stopped completely.

'Thank you for your help in this.'

Last year the temple was threatened with closure after it was discovered many of the animals there didn't have a permit.

Workers were told at the time that their 147 tigers must be handed over to the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation.

The investigation was launched following multiple complaints of trafficking endangered species, illegally selling animals and possible mistreatment of the animals.

However, that threat has not been followed up and the temple continues to market as a tourist stop-off.

The man pulls and drags the tiger at the Luangtamahabua Buddhist temple

The video begins by showing four relatively docile tigers with chains wrapped around their necks

In February last year around 50 officials from the wildlife department and local religious affairs office, as well as soldiers, inspected the premises of the popular attraction after allegations that the animals were being drugged.

The so-called 'Tiger Temple' is famous for its tame-looking big cats which live alongside Buddhist monks.

The monks and the veterinarian who takes care of the animals denied allegations of drugging the creatures to keep them tame, and no evidence was discovered.

The temple began keeping tigers in 2001 when it agreed to take care of seven Bengal tigers seized in a wildlife bust nearby.

It now houses 143 tigers and cubs.

Temples are traditional sanctuaries for stray dogs, but the presence of the tigers raised concerns after photographs emerged showing monks riding the animals.

Buddhist monks are supposed to act modestly in all aspects of their lives - but they still come out to play with the animals in what has come to be a show for visitors.
As the third week in the Celebrity Big Brother house draws to a close it seems it isn't taking much to set off this year's house mates.

Tensions in Thursday night's show were well and truly running high as Stephanie Davis' attempts to keep herself entertained were a step too far for Danniella Westbrook, who lost her rag after the former Hollyoaks star planted one of Jeremy McConnell's shoes beneath her pillow.

Worried about the effect the germs would have on her bed, she seethed: 'Why is one of Jeremy's shoes under one of my pillows. It's not nice. I've got to sleep in it.'

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Kicking off: Tensions in Thursday night's Celebrity Big Brother were well and truly running high as Stephanie Davis' attempts to keep herself entertained were a step too far for Danniella Westbrook

After hearing a mischievous Stephanie had been on the prowl, Gemma then feared for her own belongings, worrying that the former Hollyoaks star's hands had been on a pair of shoes from her footwear collection worth 'thousands of pounds'.

'They better not have touched any of my s**t. My shoes are thousands of pounds,' she raged.

'Oh my God, they've nicked my Dolce and Gabbana smoking pumps. They're f**king expensive.'

See Celebrity Big Brother updates as Danniella Westbrook rants at Stephanie Davis

Worried: After hearing a mischievous Stephanie had been on the prowl, Gemma Collins then feared for her own belongings

Furious: 'They better not have touched any of my s**t. My shoes are thousands of pounds,' she raged

When the former TOWIE star asked where Stephanie was located, Danniella replied: 'She'll be wherever he is - up his a*s,' referring to her close male pal, Jeremy.

Still fuming, Danniella raved: 'I feel to pull all of the stuff off of her bed and p**s in it.

'It's not f**king funny. Does she want me to go and hock a f**king greeny up all over her bed? She's getting a way with f**king murder in this gaff.

'She's got two fellas running around after her and she's getting away with doing nothing. I'm f**king steaming Chris, steaming.'

Denial: Stephanie denied touching Gemma's Dolce and Gabbana pumps though apologised for putting a shoe beneath Jeremy's pillow

She's had enough! Later venting in the Diary Room, Danniella opened up: 'There's dirty knickers on the floor. I can't live like this. Because I've nominated her? I've been homeless and I don't live like that!'

Later venting in the Diary Room, Danniella opened up: 'There's dirty knickers on the floor. I can't live like this. Because I've nominated her? I've been homeless and I don't live like that!

'Jez is walking around p**sy-whipped. If I speak to her right now I'm liable to lose it.'

The show got off to a fairly volatile start as the house was woken up for a group spinning session as part of their first challenge to win this week's 200 shopping budget.

Not keen to play along, however, was Gemma who opted to stay in bed following yet another bad night's sleep.

Of course the former TOWIE star's decision cost the rest of the house the task and prompted the blonde to vent her frustrations in the Diary Room.

Not having it: The show got off to a fairly volatile start as the house was woken up for a group spinning session as part of their first challenge to win this week's 200 shopping budget

Carrying on without her: Not keen to play along, however, was Gemma who opted to stay in bed following yet another bad night's sleep as the rest of her house mates took part

'I don't want to play another f**king task. I hate them. I just want my normal life,' she raged, before adding: 'You're taking the p**s out of me.'

'My hair is frazzled because you've only got hair straighteners.I need heated rollers.'

But that wasn't the end of Gemma's outbursts as the star later hit out at former X Factor contestant Christopher Maloney after he used her name to describe the show's most 'shallow' housemate during their second task, The Beasts of the Big Brother House.

Having a moment: The former TOWIE star's lack of participation cost the rest of the house the task and prompted the blonde to vent her frustrations in the Diary Room

Boiling over: But that wasn't the end of Gemma's outbursts as the star later hit out at former X Factor contestant Christopher Maloney after he used her name to describe the show's most 'shallow' housemate during their second task

Wild things! The challenge saw Tiffany Pollard and Christopher forced to host their own live animal show which saw them get up close and personal with some creepy crawlies

So GC! After hearing Chris describe her as the most shallow housemate, Gemma - who is watching from a screen inside the house - raged: 'No, he can f**k himself. He's got to get some balls.' before storming off'

The challenge saw Tiffany Pollard and Christopher forced to host their own live animal show which saw them get up close and personal with some creepy crawlies.

But when Chris and the American reality star were introduced to a sizeable snake, which prompted Tiffany to walk off after insisting the only snakes she touches are 'those in her man's pants', things take a sour turn.

After hearing Chris describe her as the most shallow housemate, Gemma - who is watching from a screen inside the house - rages: 'No, he can f**k himself. He's got to get some balls.' before storming off'.

The two later managed to sort things out with a quiet chat in the toilet but the raucous rows continued in the house as Megan blasted Stephanie for borrowing her tracksuit and leaving it crumpled on the floor in the bedroom.

Seething: The raucous rows continued in the house as Megan blasted Stephanie for borrowing her tracksuit and leaving it crumpled on the floor in the bedroom

Keeping it real: 'It's been slung in the corner - I'm sick of it. It's disrespectful to my s**t. I said she can borrow it but it's disrespectful - I knew I was going to flip,' Megan screamed

Flying into an instant rage, she gathers the grey joggers as she screams: 'Steph are you taking the p**s?!

'It's been slung in the corner - I'm sick of it. It's disrespectful to my s**t. I said she can borrow it but it's disrespectful - I knew I was going to flip.

'No one's to touch my stuff anymore, no one's borrowing anything.'

Later raging in the Diary Room, Megan seethed: ''The whole Jeremy s**t which is a load of b*****ks. He's running around after her like a lost puppy dog.

'She's going to run out of here and go back to her boyfriend. She's told me that.

'It is b*****ks. It is f**king me off. I just want time on my own without people irritating me,' she added.

Love triangle: Megan's words seemingly foreshadowed the events that took place later evening as things boiled over between Stephanie and Jeremy after he branded her a 'mind f**k' for gushing about how she wanted to marry boyfriend Sam Reece

Confused: Jeremy was consoled by the rest of his housemates after Stephanie claimed she was madly in love with Sam, despite cosying up to the Irish model

And Megan's words seemingly foreshadowed the events that took place later evening as things boiled over between Stephanie and Jeremy after he branded her a 'mind f**k' for gushing about how she wanted to marry boyfriend Sam Reece.

After talking to some of the housemates about Steph's game playing, Jeremy retreats to the diary room, where he rants about his messy situation.

'I hate drama. I know it's a game,' he says. 'I am so over it and bored of it. I'm sure you've heard her say "what are we gonna do on the outside? Are you gonna wait?" What the f**k does that mean? If she didn't have any intentions with me and she has a boyfriend, would she say that? Cos I wouldn't. It's too much!'

Telling it like it is: Megan candidly told Jeremy that Stephanie was planning to drop him for her boyfriend when she left the house

Opening up: After talking to some of the housemates about Steph's game playing, Jeremy retreated to the diary room, where he ranted about his messy situation
She just got the lavender dye job on Wednesday.

And it seems Hilary Duff is quite smitten with her striking new look, as she ventured out on Thursday sporting a racier ensemble than usual.

The 28-year-old former Disney star turned up the heat in a sky blue semi-sheer top, which revealed only a bra underneath.

More exposure: it seems Hilary Duff is quite smitten with her striking new look, as she ventured out on Thursday sporting a racier ensemble than usual

Her jeans hugged her hips closely before morphing into a straight leg affair under the knee, emphasizing her lengthy legs.

A pair of pointed toe heels in tan matched her large, stylish Givenchy tote, which she carried on her right arm.

Some eye catching cat-eye style shades with an exotic teal frame set off the singer's new lavender locks, which were down and flowing freely.

Sex appeal: The 28-year-old former Disney star turned up the heat in a sky blue semi-sheer top, which revealed only a bra underneath

Perfect fit: Her jeans hugged her hips closely before morphing into a straight leg affair under the knee, emphasizing her lengthy legs

Retro: Some eye catching cat-eye style shades with an exotic teal frame set off the singer's new lavender locks, which were down and flowing freely

The star of Younger apparently can't get enough of her new hair style, as she posted an Instagram earlier on Thursday which showcased her new look.

Her caption for the snap simply read 'Good morning,' and shows the star toying with a few strands of her lilac tresses.

She also decided to don some sizable diamond stud earrings to add a bit of bling to the simple selfie.

New favorite style? The star of Younger apparently can't get enough of her new hair style, as she posted an Instagram earlier on Thursday which showcased her new look

Though the former Lizzie McGuire superstar recently lost her beloved dog Beau, she looked to be in decent spirits, even briefly smiling to herself.

Hilary took to Instagram last Tuesday to share the sad news about her adorable pup.

'It's really true that we never know what the day will bring us,' she began. 'I am shattered in a million pieces today because my baby Frenchie Beau has gone to doggy heaven this afternoon [sad face emoji].'
Kit Harington, the Game of Thrones star, is willingly going to hell.

The actor will mark his return to the stage by playing the titular role in Christopher Marlowes Doctor Faustus in April at the Duke of Yorks Theatre. He will be directed by Jamie Lloyd.

Harington, who has played the heroic and long-suffering Jon Snow in five seasons of the HBO drama Game Of Thrones, was last on stage in the original company of Laura Wades play Posh at the Royal Court six years ago.

Kit Harington, the Game of Thrones star, will mark his return to the stage by playing the titular role in Christopher Marlowes Doctor Faustus

Game of Thrones hurled Harington into the global spotlight when the HBO series was screened on TV for the first time in 2011

His only other professional stage work was playing Albert Narracott in War Horse. Before that, he studied at the Central School of Speech and Drama in Swiss Cottage.

He has been wanting to return to the boards for some time  I remember chatting to him at Harvey Weinsteins pre-BAFTA party 12 months ago and he said he was actively looking for stage work.

Doctor Faustus is about a physician who makes a pact, in blood, with the devil.

Lucifer gets the Doctors soul. But for 24 years, Faustus gets infinite knowledge and the chance to indulge in any and every fantasy he desires.

He becomes well acquainted with the Seven Deadly Sins in the process.

Game of Thrones hurled Harington into the global spotlight when the HBO series, based on George R.R. Martins novels, was screened on TV for the first time in 2011 and became an international sensation.

Kit Harington's Game of Thrones character, Jon Snow was apparently assassinated in the final episode of season five

His character, the bastard of Winterfell, rises through the course of the saga to become Lord Commander of the Nights Watch  despite being told repeatedly: You know nothing, Jon Snow.

He was apparently assassinated in the final episode of season five. But there has been sprawling global debate on social media about whether or not hes really dead.

Harington says he is (dead); as do executives on the show. But theres still a lot of chatter claiming Snow will return in Season 6, which will begin broadcasts here at the end of April. I suggest that fans of Mr Harington should tune in!

Rehearsals for Doctor Faustus begin in March. Tickets go on sale from Tuesday, and the production is part of director Lloyds long-term production deal with the Ambassador Theatre Group.

Lloyd and ATG currently have an electrifying revival of Harold Pinters The Homecoming on at the Trafalgar Studios (the Jamie Lloyd Companys regular home), which will be followed by The Maids, from February 20, starring Uzo Aduba (Suzanne Crazy Eyes Warren in Orange Is The New Black), Zawe Ashton and Laura Carmichael.

Newsman Keaton shines in Spotlight

When I met Michael Keaton this week I gave him a little gift: A copy of the New York Times.

Whered you get it? he beamed, as we proceeded to trash Donald Trump (on the front page with Sarah Palin).

Its so weird, he said, shaking his head and criticising both the liberal and the conservative media for being lazy and not taking Trump to task for his often questionable stances.

I knew he liked the paper because at last years Telluride Film Festival in Colorado, he (along with Meryl Streep and me) were about the only people to be seen reading the paper for real.

Michael Keaton accepted director Tom McCarthys offer to be part of the crack ensemble for his film Spotlight

Keaton has always been a news junkie. Probably more so since the star accepted director Tom McCarthys offer to be part of the crack ensemble for his film Spotlight.

It tells how the Boston Globes investigative unit  Spotlight  broke the story that Catholic priests in Boston had been molesting children for years; and getting away with it, because high-ranking members of the church didnt want the priests to be caught.

Its such a terrific film  one of the best  and I keep watching it again and again, because Im fascinated by how Keaton and co-stars Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams, Brian dArcy James and Liev Schreiber get under the skin of the Spotlight team and the Globes editor Marty Baron.

Keaton portrays Walter Robby Robinson, the Spotlight editor.

Theres something easy-going about him, but very strong. And sly, Keaton said. You get the feeling from Robby that he could drop the hammer when he needed to.

The actor, enjoying a renaissance thanks to his award-winning portrait of a stage actor drowning in his own ego in director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritus Oscar winning film Birdman, was raised a nice Catholic boy.

I liked being an altar boy and all that, he told me. My mom went to Mass every day, unless she was really, really sick  and my mom never really had a legal driving licence. She was breaking the law every morning on her way to Mass, he recalled, when we met in London.

But even after the scandal, he hasnt turned against the church. I admire good strong Catholics, he said. And he noted that Spotlight isnt so much about religion as the institution of the church; and how the Catholic hierarchy wielded power over the establishment in Boston  until the Spotlight gang got wise to what was going on.
Alicia Vikander knew exactly who to speak to when she received a script for the film The Danish Girl.

She sent the screenplay on to her father, Svante Vikander, a psychiatrist based in Alicias homeland, Sweden.

I received such expert feedback, and with it came the message: "You have to do this!"' the actress told me when we bumped into each other in Los Angeles recently.

Alicia Vikander sent the screenplay on to her father, Svante Vikander, a psychiatrist based in Sweden

At one reception, thrown by Bafta LA, Alicias father was explaining to Danish Girl director Tom Hooper that he had worked with people in Sweden on transgender issues.

Both Alicia and leading man Eddie Redmayne have a sensitive understanding of the matters explored by The Danish Girl, and I think its beautiful and moving that her character stands by her husband as he transitions (her performance has garnered nominations from the Screen Actors Guild, the Oscars and the Baftas).

She has been in Las Vegas working on the new Bourne film with Matt Damon and director Paul Greengrass. Then the production heads to London for several weeks of filming.

I predict we will hear a lot more about this particular Swedish girl all the way through awards season - to the Cannes Film Festival, and beyond.

Watch out for...

 Claire van Kampen, who is adapting her stage play Farinelli And The King, which starred her husband Mark Rylance, into a film.

Ms van Kampen told me that Steven Spielberg saw the play and hes mentoring me on the screenplay.

Claire van Kampen (left) is adapting her stage play Farinelli And The King, which starred her husband Mark Rylance (right), into a film

She added that she would love to see the movie version made within the next two to three years.

She met the film-maker on the set of The BFG, where Spielberg was directing the movie in which Rylance plays the main character.

Ms van Kampen says the stage play of Farinelli, which originated at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at Shakespeares Globe, would be opening in New York in November, with Rylance again playing the Spanish king Philippe V who cannot sleep until he is soothed by the voice of castrato Carlo Broschi, who was known as Farinelli.

 Gary Barlow, who will join the cast of The Girls musical at the Lowry Theatre in Salford for the shows final performance on January 30.

Barlow, who wrote songs for The Girls with Tim Firth, is currently working in the U.S. but will return for the last night at the Lowry, where he will sing Dare  one of my favourite songs from the production.

The Girls is based on the Calendar Girls story of how members of the Rylstone Womens Institute raised funds for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research by posing nude for a calendar.
She has had a busy promotional schedule over the past few weeks as she connects with her fans all over Australia.

And Nigella Lawson proved shes very much on a roll as she attended the Sydney Business Chicks breakfast on Friday, held at the Westin Hotel.

The celebrity chef cut a chic figure in her simple but stylish black ensemble as she did her guest speak duties and was interviewed by host, Natasha Belling.

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Black to basics: Nigella Lawson proved shes very much on a roll as she attended the Sydney Business Chicks breakfast on Friday, held at the Westin Hotel

Nigella, 56, teamed a flare sleeved black blazer with a matching top and trousers, while she complete the look with black boots.

Her brunette locks were styled into loose waves and she sported her favoured winged eyeliner and nude lip make-up look.

The British cooking queen was happy to meet fans and sign copies of her latest book, Simply Nigella, as she enjoyed yet another busy day in the city.

Taking the stage: The celebrity chef cut a chic figure in her simple but stylish black ensemble as she did her guest speak duties and was interviewed by host, Natasha Belling

Simple style: Nigella, 56, teamed a flare sleeved black blazer with a matching top and trousers

Speaking during an event on Wednesday, Nigella revealed she keeps an emergency stash of condiments by her bedside for late night snacking too.

Nigella was in conversation with Annabel Crabb as she admitted: One of my luxuries is that I like very expensive bed linen, and then I ruin it by dumping soy sauce on it. 'I have learned to keep condiments by the side of my bed. 'Maldon salt, English mustard, Tabasco, a thicker Chilli sauce, and soy sauce.'

Despite the admission, Lawson said she was amused by most people's assumption that she 'lies around eating chocolate cake' all the time.

Sharing her tips: Nigella has had a busy promotional schedule over the past few weeks as she connects with her fans all over Australia

Classic beauty: Her brunette locks were styled into loose waves and she sported her favoured winged eyeliner and nude lip make-up look

Thursday morning saw Nigella whip up a batch of dairy-free and gluten-free chocolate and peanut butter cookies during her appearance on Sunrise, but she found herself giving a lesson on healthy eating.

The TV chef scolded David Kochie Koch saying: Dont assume something is healthy just because its gluten-free.'

She admitted: I enjoy doing gluten-free and dairy-free cooking because I kept finding that whenever I had people round for supper there was always someone with that requirement.

Gorgeous in green: Natashe Belling looked stunning in a lace dress as she posed alongside Nigella

Full attendance: The event was packed to the brim with fans and business women

Nigella revealed her favourite Australian items to add to her pantry would be salt as she said: Ive adored the salt here. I always like the Pink Murray River salt, Ive also got in my suitcase now some Tasmanian salt and two packets of Tim Tams.

She continued: 'I would really love to come back and rent somewhere with a kitchen because it is so tantalising to see all this produce and not have a proper kitchen to cook it in.'

Nigella had previously been in Melbourne since the start of January filming the latest series of MasterChef Australia.
She turned heads at a glamorous Playboy party in Semmering, Austria, on Wednesday night.

And jet-setter Pamela Anderson no doubt made the same impact when she attended the Amelie Pichard X Pamela Anderson Shoe Collection launch at Tom Greyhound Concept Store during Paris Fashion Week - Menswear on Thursday evening.

The 48-year-old star wrapped up in the chilly Parisian weather in a beige trench coat which highlighted her svelte waist with its belted detailing.

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Time to shine! Pamela Anderson wrapped up in a statement jacket as she attended the Amelie Pichard X Pamela Anderson Shoe Collection launch at Tom Greyhound Concept Store during Paris Fashion Week - Menswear on Thursday evening

Ensuring the garment wasn't too placid, Pamela bedecked the coat, beneath which she appeared to be wearing a black mini dress, with an array of buttons which showcased her philanthropic side.

Keen to make a statement, the buttons were branded with a series of political messages, which read 'Save our rainforest' and 'Climate revolution,' among other messages advocated by the activist.

Pamela carried her essentials in a small black clutch bag, which tied together with the pointed black espadrille stilettos she sported, perfect for elongating her shapely bronzed pins.

Button it! Ensuring the outerwear wasn't too placid, Pamela bedecked the coat, beneath which she appeared to be wearing a black mini dress, with an array of badges which showcased her philanthropic side

Wearing what she thinks! Making a statement, the buttons were branded with a series of political messages, which read 'Save our rainforest' and 'Climate revolution,' among other messages advocated by the activist

Her signature blonde locks had been styled into voluminous curls, while her make-up look was typically dramatic with a black smokey shadow and over-lined nude lip.

Pamela looked in good spirits as she exited her vehicle and made her way into the event, which showcased her collaboration with designer Amelie.

The line prides itself on being a leather-free line that raises awareness of the ethical treatment of animals.

The collection is sold online proceeds will go to the PETA-approved Pamela Anderson Foundation.

Meanwhile, the former Baywatch star set pulses racing as she confidently showed off her slender limbs and ample assets in a sexy ensemble.

Bombshell: Pamela's signature blonde locks had been styled into voluminous curls, while her make-up look was typically dramatic with a black smokey shadow and over-lined nude lip

Star of the night! Pamela ensured all eyes were on her when she attended a glamorous Playboy party in Semmering, Austria on Wednesday

The satin-like number, which boasted a plunging neckline and a tight waistline with ruched detail, highlighted her toned curves and sun-kissed complexion perfectly.

With her blonde tresses left loose in glossy curls, the Baywatch bombshell accentuated her pretty facial features with well-defined eyes, peachy lips and tinted cheeks.

As she mingled with fellow guests, Pamela cut a relaxed and content figure while downing a few glasses of champagne.

Party time: The 48-year-old confidently showed off her slender frame in a sexy ensemble

Not alone: The model was also joined by Bambi Nina Bruckner on the night

She's a knockout! The satin-like number, which boasted a plunging neckline and a tight waistline with ruched detail, highlighted her toned curves and sun-kissed complexion perfectly

The night on the town also no doubt gave the star and fellow party attendees the opportunity to raise a glass to Pamela's naked shoot for the last ever edition of nude Playboy.

The January/February issue - which was released at the end of last year - marks the model's 13th time gracing the cover of the iconic adult mag.

The racy shots show Pamela sprawled out on what looks to be the floor of the Playboy mansion alongside a slab from the Hollywood Walk of Fame, brandished with Hugh Hefner's name.

Looking fine: Earlier on, she slipped her toned curves into a figure-hugging black number

A beauty: With her blonde tresses left loose in glossy curls, the Baywatch bombshell accentuated her pretty facial features with well-defined eyes, peachy lips and tinted cheeks

Speaking about her decision to front the publication one final time, she told ET: 'I got a call from (Hugh Hefner's) attorney who said, "We don't want anybody else. There's nobody else, could you do the last cover of Playboy?"

Anderson then revealed that she had to ask permission from her two teenage sons before agreeing to pose nude one last time.

She said the boys - now 19 and 17 - 'were teased, and made fun of, and had a few fist fights over their mom" when they were growing up.'

Doing the rounds: The pretty star also arrived for an apres-ski party at Austrian ski resort Zauberberg Semmering in Steinhaus

Keeping it chic: She cut a stylish figure in an off-white overcoat and black pumps
Private Lives (Churchill Theatre Bromley/touring)

Rating:

Such an efficient playwright, Noel Coward. With Private Lives, you are out in two hours  including interval  heading home confident that you have heard a masters lines, no matter how they were acted.

This is theatre at its most crisp; yet maybe there are times in this new production when it could be slowed down just a beat or two.

You may almost wonder if the cast is taking it at a lick in order to catch the 9.50pm Victoria train from Bromley South railway station.

Stretching out: Laura Rogers (right) makes a good - i.e. wicked - Amanda, but Tom Chambers' (left) Elyot needs to be posher, more loftily cruel, perhaps a little older

Private Lives (first seen in 1930) is the one where Elyot Chase is honeymooning at a Deauville hotel with his young second wife, Sybil. They are dressing for dinner on their first night when Elyot discovers that the woman on the neighbouring balcony is his ex-wife Amanda. And Amanda is there on honeymoon with her own second spouse, priggish Victor.

Elyot and Amanda, divorced for five years, still love each other. The attraction reignites. They elope to Paris.

Laura Rogers makes a good  i.e. wicked  Amanda. You can believe that this one is a gambler, that she enjoys the sensation of sun oil on her skin, that she is mad and prone to the sort of flip exaggeration that describes three smallish measures of brandy as gallons.

This is an Amanda who, reclining on a sofa, stretches out her bare toes like a cat exercising its claws.

Richard Teverson is admirable, too, as rampaging gasbag Victor, judiciously milking the pomposity. In places, he reminded me of the late Richard Wattis.

Sibyl is not much of a part, being a doormat with a flappers hemline, but Charlotte Ritchie does as she ought.

And they manage all of this despite the lack of intimacy that blights Bromleys Churchill Theatre.

Tom Chambers two-dimensional Elyot is more problematic. He needs to be posher, more loftily cruel, perhaps a little older. Elyot is meant to be 11 years Sybils senior. An older man would not gabble quite so.

Mr Chambers rushes some of the plays celebrated lines, such as the one about how women should be struck regularly, like gongs. The slightest of pauses before the simile is surely required to make the most of it. Yet Mr Chambers just canters through it.

Director Tom Attenborough, one of the younger members of that celebrated theatre clan, could attend more tightly to detail. Elyot and Amanda would surely not have said San Moritz but St Moritz, biting down on the first part of that Alpine resorts name.

Lucy Osbornes set, in Act One strikingly reminiscent of a recent West End production, is a bit wobbly when doors start being slammed. But as Elyot says: Dont quibble, Sybil. This is a watchable show, not least for Miss Rogers delectable, feline tootsies.
Billy Connolly has been happily married to sex therapist Pamela Stephenson for almost three decades so there were a few raised eyebrows at the National Television Awards, when the 73-year-old arrived with three young lovelies on his arm.

Fortunately they were only his daughters, Scarlett, Cara and Amy. Cara, 41, and her brother Jamie, 45, are the product of Connollys first marriage to Iris Pressagh, which lasted 12 years before ending in divorce.

He went on to have three daughters with Pamela: Amy, 29, Scarlett, 26, and Daisy, 31.

Connolly, who received a Special Recognition prize, explained his wife couldnt make it to the show because of work commitments in Brazil.

Last week the Scottish comedian said Pamela has been so supportive in his battle against Parkinsons disease she has become my mother.

Billy Connolly arrived at the National Television Awards with his daughters Scarlett, Cara and Amy (pictured)

Is Oona King, the ex-Labour MP now Channel 4s head of diversity, soft on sexist stereotyping?

Baroness King says Aidan Turner, the Poldark star in the famous topless scything scene, couldnt be considered a victim of sexism.

She says: When a man does a scene like that, it doesnt put him in a box . . . When a woman comes across like that, she is labelled: Shes got her kit off  shes that type of woman. So the increasing objectification we have, impacts women worse than men. If you fancy Aidan, Oona, why not just say so?

My bungled bid to woo Iman, by playboy Taki

Far from mourning David Bowie, Greek playboy Taki is hoping  rather insensitively, some might think  for a second chance to woo the pop stars widow, Iman.

He recounts meeting the Somali-born model in New York in 1985, seven years before she wed Bowie, and inviting her back to his house for a drink after dinner with friends.

We walked over to my house and when we got there I realised, to my horror, that I had not taken my keys out with me... The terror mounted after I failed to break the door down by kicking it hard on the lock. As I became more and more desperate, Iman started to get scared. I found a crowbar nearby and began to chop away at the damn door whereupon she ran off and jumped into a passing taxi . . . Will she give me a second chance before I die?

Greek playboy Taki is hoping - rather insensitively, some might think - for a chance to woo David Bowie's widow, Iman. He recounts meeting the Somali-born model in New York in 1985, seven years before she wed

Saatchi's art of making money

Taxpayers are forced to subsidise our great galleries to the tune of tens of millions of pounds, but Nigella Lawsons ex-husband, Charles Saatchi, has shown that art can be made to pay.

Latest accounts for the former advertising moguls firm, Marchill Investments, which runs his Saatchi Gallery in Chelsea, show that it raked in 5.45 million last year.

The turnover was up roughly 1.8 million on the previous year, according to figures filed at Companies House. Marchill was left with a 1.4 million profit for the year to March 31, 2015  a turnaround from the previous loss of 91,000.

But despite the success, Saatchi did not receive any windfall as a member of the firm. With a reputed fortune of 145 million, he hardly needs the money.

Cara, the clown in the Oval Office

She is one of the highest paid models in the world, but Cara Delevingne chose to dress down and wear trainers for her visit to the White House in Washington this week.

She posted a series of pictures online in which she strikes irreverent poses, including this one of her outside the Oval Office. Lets see how you feel about climate change in ten years, Mr Trump! Cara 23, writes. It is painfully real.

In a dark coat that reveals her slim bare legs and balancing on one foot, she adds: Also, can Donald Trump do this?

Surely a career in politics beckons . . .
She graces the cover of Maxim Australia's latest issue, with the glossy magazine hailing her as the nation's hottest model.

And Robyn Lawley, 26, certainly lived up to the reputation on Friday when she took to Instagram with a sizzling behind-the-scenes snap of herself on the set of her Maxim spread.

Posing in a marble-walled bathroom for the slightly blurred selfie, Robyn can be seen flaunting her curvaceous frame in a black lace bra, underwear and garter, while a jaunty sailor's hat sat on the crown of her head.

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Red hot! Robyn Lawley, 26, shared a sizzling behind-the-scenes Instagram snap of herself on the set of her Maxim spread on Thursday

Heavily made-up for the shoot, the mother-of-one's lips were painted with a cherry red lipstick and her cheeks were pronounced with a brush bright blush.

'#bts wearing the sexiest @chantelle_paris lingerie for @maxim_aus' wrote the chestnut-haired beauty in the caption, before adding the hashtag #fitting #modellife.

Robyn appears topless on the cover of the latest issue of Maxim Australia, as she poses looking over her shoulder while giving the camera a seductive stare.

Nothing to hide: Robyn Lawley bares all on the latest cover of Maxim Australia

In the accompanying interview with the publication, the mother-of one says she lives a healthy lifestyle, but due to her height it is near-impossible for her to trim her figure down further.

'Most models I know are so fit and healthy but we are also really tall so it's impossible to be a smaller size,' she told the men's magazine.

She went on to explain that many people tend to believe she and fellow curve models are 'overweight', which she insists is 'not true'.

Robyn added that it disappoints her that she misses out on being booked for high-end fashion outlets to do 'a big campaign for Prada or Givency' because of her curves.

The model became a mother for the first time last February after welcoming her first daughter Ripley.
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Mariah Carey and billionaire James Packer are engaged after a whirlwind romance.

Representatives for the 46-year-old singer confirmed the news to Daily Mail Australia saying: 'Yes, the couple were engaged tonight in New York.'

The musician flashed her new, diamond engagement rock, which has an estimated value of $7.5 million USD, on Thursday after the 47-year-old casino billionaire got down on one knee that evening, following less than a year of dating.

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Fairytale of New York: Mariah Carey and James Packer, seen here leaving Eleven Madison Park, got engaged on Thursday evening after the Australian businessman popped the question in New York

Pictured: The musician flashed her diamond engagement rock almost straight away

Mariah couldn't hide her delight as she arrived at their engagement party at Eleven Madison Park that night with a huge smile on her face and an even bigger rock on her left hand.

British Fine Jeweller, David Marshall of David Marshall London told MailOnline on Friday that the ring could be worth as much as $7.5m.

Marshall explained: 'The stone appears to be an Emerald cut and if it is a D Flawless (the highest colour grading and without flaws) it will be in the region of $5m just for the stone at cost price.

'I would say that the retail value of the ring could be in the region of $7.5m.'

A second expert confirmed that the ring would be in excess of five million dollars.

David Allen, Creative Director 77Diamonds, had this to say: 'This emerald cut diamond engagement ring looks to be around 30 carats and given Mariahs penchant for perfection it will no doubt be of the top colour and clarity quality.

'Something like this would be valued in excess of $1.7m, the wholesale value of a diamond D flawless would be around $4.5m and retail we would sell for around $5m.'

Finally, Sonia Menezes, Head of Brand Development, at Clogau also added: 'Its a show-stopper, particularly appropriate for Mariah Carey. It reminds me of Beyonces fabulous 18ct flawless diamond engagement ring by Lorraine Schwartz.

'Beyonces ring was valued around $5m and I would estimate Mariahs ring in excess of that amount. The Emerald cut is definitely a style favoured by Hollywood royalty, with similar styles being worn by Kate Hudson, Angelina Jolie and Amal Clooney'

It is believed that the pair, whose combined estimated fortune is around $3.4billion USD (AU$4.89billion) have no wedding date has been set just yet.

The marriage will be Mariah's third shot at happiness, having previously spent seven years with Nick Cannon, with whom she has two children, and five years with music executive Tommy Mottola.

James, meanwhile, is also anticipating a third marriage, thanks to his 2013 separation from Erica Packer after six years and three-year union with Jodhi Meares.

I'm engaged! She couldn't hide her delight as she flashed the rock on the way out of the restaurant

Glowing: The blonde couldn't stop smiling following the romantic proposal

Excitable: Mariah was sparkling in a glittering dress to match the oversized rock

THE ENGAGEMENT RING British Fine Jeweller, David Marshall of David Marshall London said of Mariah's engagement ring: 'The stone appears to be an Emerald cut and if it is a D Flawless (the highest colour grading and without flaws) it will be in the region of $5m just for the stone at cost price. 'I would say that the retail value of the ring could be in the region of $7.5m.' Sonia Menezes, Head of Brand Development, Clogau also added: 'Its a show-stopper, particularly appropriate for Mariah Carey. It reminds me of Beyonces fabulous 18ct flawless diamond engagement ring by Lorraine Schwartz. 'Beyonces ring was valued around $5m and I would estimate Mariahs ring in excess of that amount. The Emerald cut is definitely a style favoured by Hollywood royalty, with similar styles being worn by Kate Hudson, Angelina Jolie and Amal Clooney' David Allen, Creative Director 77Diamonds, had this to say: 'This emerald cut diamond engagement ring looks to be around 30 carats and given Mariahs penchant for perfection it will no doubt be of the top colour and clarity quality. 'Something like this would be valued in excess of $1.7m, the wholesale value of a diamond D flawless would be around $4.5m and retail we would sell for around $5m. Impressive: The star had her nails manicured perfectly, ready to show off the rock Advertisement

Dazzling: It's yet to be confirmed how much the star's ring is worth

Holding hands: The duo emerged holding hands, Mariah's hand placed strategically on top

Big rock: She used her left hand to subtly navigate her way out of the vehicle

She said yes! The duo have been virtually inseparable since going public with the romance last year

He has three children, Indigo, seven; Jackson, five; and Emmanuelle, three, from his marriage to Erica.

Describing the night of James' latest romantic proposal,TMZ claims that the billionaire organised a private dinner at Eleven Madison Park in New York with a group of Mariah's closest friends so the special moment could take place 'in front of the most special people in her life'.

Mariah was seen shopping at fine ateliers Van Cleef & Arpels on Rodeo Drive just last week, finally back in LA after spending 56 days of their six-month romance on holiday, jetting to Italy, Southern France, Ibiza, New York, Aspen and Australia - to name but a few - during their short time together.

The news of their impending nuptials follows the gushing declaration that Mariah made about her now fiance on New Year's Eve in Melbourne, Australia.

Revealing her feelings at a concert in her beau's casino, Sydney Morning Herald claims she told the crowd: 'Spectacular, handsome... I don't even have words for the man who introduced me tonight. We'll just say the amazing Mr. James Packer.'

Speaking on The Steve Harvey Show in November 2015, Mariah revealed when the romance began saying: 'We first met in Aspen [Colorado]. We were at the Hercules premiere. We were talking and laughing, and people were getting mad at us and stuff like that. So we hit it off.'

In June last year Mariah and Packer were first spotted holding hands on the Italian island of Capri in what was their first public outing as a couple and, seeming relaxed in one another's company, prompted speculation they had been dating for some months before taking the trip.

Happy couple: It will be the musician's second shot at newly-wedded happiness

Glowing: Mariah could not stop smiling, making strides to their engagement party at 11 Madison Park

Cute duo: The happy couple arrived with arms draped around each other

Loved-up: Representatives for the singer confirmed the news to Daily Mail Australia saying, 'Yes, the couple were engaged tonight in New York'

Sun-soaked vacation: The couple pictured as they prepared to go jet skiing in the ocean off St. Barts on January 11

Cooler climes: Before heading Down Under and on to the Caribbean, Mariah and the twins, along with James (right), spent Christmas in Aspen, Colorado, where they were joined by the kids' dad and Mariah's ex-husband Nick Cannon (left)

It's official: Mariah and the Australian mogul were first pictured together on June 19 in Capri

Going public: The pair made their debut as hey sailed around Portofino and Capri on board his yacht

Classy couple: The pair enjoyed time in Italy before sailing on to Antibes in the South of France (above)

Party time: The pair were later seen in Ibiza, with Mariah flaunting her figure in an array of colourful swimsuits

James and Mariah's gap year: The couple have spent over 56 days on holiday since they began their romance

They were joined by Mariah's four-year-old twins, Moroccan and Monroe, with the gang venturing on to Portofino from Capri.

After hitting it off in Capri and Portofino, Packer sailed Mariah and her children on to the South of France, and spent time in Antibes, where the casino mogul married his second wife Erica in 2007, before moving on to Cannes.

Once there they were seen flitting between glamorous boutiques and enjoying time on board Packer's yacht, Arctic P.

After making their debut as a couple in spectacular style in Italy, Packer and his squeeze journeyed on to Israel, where Mariah performed her very first gig.

The crooner reportedly banked a cool half a million dollars having sold tickets at $65 a pop.

At the time it was claimed the pair planned to meet a spiritual leader in a 'pre-engagement' meeting, but it is not known whether such an encounter took place.

In August, after she had wrapped up a residency in Las Vegas, it was clear Mariah and Packer were keen to let their hair down.

The natural choice was Ibiza where they were seen looking happy and relaxed in one another's company in their third month of public dating.

Unlike other party goers the pair were again joined by Mariah's twins and James's children from his marriage to his second wife Erica.

Red carpet duties: After sailing around Europe in summer, the pair flew to New York to attend the premiere of The Intern in September

Off the cuff: Speaking a month later to Entertainment Tonight about the public outing, Mariah said it wasn't a conscious decision to confirm their romance at the event

Fine dining: Mariah and James pictured after they enjoyed a date night at Nobu in Midtown New York on September 24

A TIMELINE OF MARIAH AND JAMES'S WHIRLWIND ROMANCE JULY 2014: The pair reportedly first met at the premiere of Hercules in Aspen and immediately 'hit it off'. She later told US chat show host Steve Harvey: 'We were talking and laughing and people were getting mad at us.' JUNE 2015: The couple went public after being photographed together on holiday on the Italian island of Capri. They made no attempt to hide their feelings for each other, openly kissing in front of paparazzi JUNE /JULY 2015: James and Mariah enjoyed a marathon series of exotic holidays together - sailing to the South of France before spending time in the Mediterranean resort town of Antibes, then moving on to Cannes. There, they were seen flitting between glamorous boutiques and enjoying time on board Packer's yacht, Arctic P. A trip to Israel shortly followed. AUGUST 2015: The pair were spotted looking happy and relaxed in one another's company in Ibiza for yet another family trip, which included James's children from his marriage to second wife Erica. SEPTEMBER 2015: They returned to Italy together to enjoy more fun in the sun. Mariah and James also made their red carpet debut together at the premier of The Intern, starring Robert De Niro and Anne Hathaway. OCTOBER 2015: The couple travelled to Macau for the launch of James's casino, Studio City. Mariah performed at the official launch of the complex - marking the couple's EIGHTH trip together after just three months of dating. NOVEMBER 2015: Maria showed off a $500,000 diamond necklace by Van Cleef & Arpels - a gift from billionaire James - during a US television interview. DECEMBER 2015: They met in New York for a family holiday, joined by Mariah's children, before returning to Aspen to celebrate Christmas in the snow. They subsequently flew to James' native Australia in a private jet to ring in the New Year. NEW YEAR'S EVE 2015: Mariah gushed about her relationship with James during a concert at his Melbourne Crown casino, saying: 'Spectacular, handsome... I don't even have words for the man who introduced me tonight. We'll just say the amazing Mr James Packer.' JANUARY 2016: James, Mariah and her kids jet to Sydney to relax at his estate in the Hunter Valley, before flying to Antigua with her children to enjoy the Caribbean tropics. 21 JANUARY 2016: Representatives confirm Mariah and James were 'engaged tonight in New York' Advertisement

They returned to the holiday destination the following month. In September the loved-up duo returned to Italy to enjoy more fun in the sun on board Arctic P.

Later that month Packer joined Mariah on the red carpet at what was their first official appearance together.

The pair were among guests at the premiere of Robert De Niro's film, The Intern, with Packer putting on an uncomfortable display as he walked the red carpet with his superstar girlfriend.

Speaking a month later to Entertainment Tonight about the public outing, Mariah said it wasn't a conscious decision to confirm their romance at the event.

'I don't think either one of us thought, 'Here we are, making a debut,'' she said. 'He's not that guy. It was a lot for him. I just automatically pose. I can't help it!'

Enlisting the talent: In October Packer brought Mariah to Macau for the opening of his newest casino

Trick and treat: The couple showed off their fun side during Halloween celebrations as the singer dressed up as a witch, while James donned a mask

Mariah had already gushed over James after receiving a $500,000 heart-shaped diamond pendant from the businessman which she wore at a concert in Las Vegas.

She joked to Steve Harvey: 'Oh, this old thing? This is a Van Cleef [& Arpels] piece that my new beau got for me recently.'

In October the pair travelled to Macau for the launch of Packer's casino, Studio City.

Mariah sang at the official launch of the complex which also drew stars De Niro and Leonardo Di Caprio for its opening.

Mariah and Packer then embarked on an extraordinary marathon holiday together in December.

Meeting up in New York, the pair spent a short amount of time together there before jetting to Aspen to celebrate Christmas in the snow.

They were joined as always by her children and her former husband Nick Cannon, with the group playing happy families over the festive period.

'I can't ski': Despite being flown to the exclusive resort to enjoy the holidays, Mariah confessed she would not be taking to the slopes (left) and she was more at home when they spent time on the beach (right)

Hands-on mom: The Hero hitmaker also shared a photo on Instagram showing her in the water carrying son Moroccan on her back as she wore a low-cut wet suit in January

December 31st was spent at Packer's Crown casino in Melbourne before the group jetted to New South Wales to enjoy time in Sydney and at his estate in the Hunter Valley.

After their time in Australia Mariah and Packer flew to Antigua with her children to enjoy the Caribbean tropics.

They followed the trip with a visit to St Barts where they enjoyed a romantic fireworks display on the beach, with Mariah sharing photographs of the occasion on social media.

The happy couple are now in New York together and have not yet been seen since confirming their happy news.

Mariah will be returning to Las Vegas in February to begin the third leg of her residency at Caesars Palace.

The busy singer will then head off on a world tour and her billionaire beau is expected to join her for most of the dates.

Onlooker: Mariah appeared to be in command as she coordinated the activities of Packer and the rest of the group during their trip to the Caribbean in January 2016

Sunshine getaway: The Caribbean trip came after the singer, 45, performed at Packer's Melbourne casino on New Year's Eve

All smiles: The pop diva last made a red carpet appearance at the UNICEF Ball honouring David Beckham in Los Angeles on January 12

Mariah has an estimated fortune of AU$290M ($US203M) while James boasts an eye-watering AU$4.6B (US$3.23B).

And besides their combined sizable fortune of AU$4.89B ($US3.4B), it seems Australian casino magnate James and pop diva Mariah have a lot more in common than remains to be seen.

Packer, 47, who has a penchant for busty brunette models, has indeed found love with the pneumatic singer, 46, who, like her new fiance, has suffered a few failed romances herself.

The seemingly unlikely couple first set tongues wagging in June last year when images emerged of them holding hands strolling around the romantic island of Capri in Italy.

The sighting prompted observers to remark that twice-married Packer - estimated to be Australia's wealthiest executive - had tired of his usual type, embodied by second wife Erica, with whom he shares three children.

Indeed, less than a year of dating, James and Mariah are now engaged and are set to tie the knot in a fairytale wedding.

Learning lessons: The kind of women Packer finds attractive nowadays may have something to do with learning a few lessons in love, or mellowing, as he sails through his forties

Both James and Mariah have learned a few lessons in love over the years with the pair having pieced together broken hearts from failed past romances.

Mariah fell out of love with her rapper husband Nick Cannon in 2014, but has since dusted herself off and seems to have found stability with Packer.

The singer and America's Got Talent host Nick married in the Bahamas in April 2008 after just six weeks of dating and a 10 year age difference.

Marriage to Nick changed Mariah's mind about starting a family after she had previously declared no interest in having kids, with the singer now a doting mother.

She and Nick, with whom she shares four-year-old twins, Monroe and Moroccan, confirmed their split in April 2014 after months of speculation.

Mariah took the marriage breakdown hard and, during a Christmas concert in New York that year, broke down in tears as she attempted to sing Hero.

He has since reportedly signed a deal to write a tell-all book about his marriage to the singer after she rejected his repeated demands for a $30million divorce settlement.

However, now the dust has settled they remain close for the sake of their two children.

Glowing: Mariah, seen performing at Packer's Crown Casino in Melbourne on New Year's in 2015, has spent much of last year with her Australian beau

Happier times: After being single for a decade following her split from record executive Tommy Mottola, the pop star settled down with TV host Nick Cannon, with the couple marrying in 2008 (Pictured in 2014)

Family ties: Mariah and Nick share four-year-old twins Monroe and Moroccan

She was previously married to music executive Tommy Mottola - 20 years her senior - when she was 23.

The Without You singer previously described their four year marriage as a 'private hell' and said the music supremo abused her 'mentally and emotionally' before their 1998 divorce.

The former head of Sony Music hit back at claims he was a controlling tyrant during their marriage, writing in his memoir that the singer should be grateful he made her a star.

For his part,the son of erstwhile Australian media mogul Kerry seems to have opted for a completely different type of women to he has previously romanced.

In 2013 he shocked the business community with the news that his second marriage to Erica, considered stable and loving, had collapsed.

They parted ways on amicable terms for the sake of their three children; Indigo, six; Jackson, five; and Emmanuelle, two; with the entrepreneur telling Forbes magazine: 'Business is good but my personal life is a disaster.'

Love of music: The singer was married to former Sony Music executive Tommy Mottola in 1997 but the pair separated five years later

A joint statement read: 'It is with great sadness that Erica and James Packer announce their separation.

'We remain deeply close friends and incredibly proud parents and our children are our priority going forward.'

The split spelled the end of a 10-year romance with the Gunnedah, New South Wales-born model, whom he married in 2007 after an on-off romance for three years.

Their lavish wedding on France's Cote d'Azur was attended by Tom Cruise and his then-wife Katie Holmes, broadcaster Alan Jones and members of the Murdoch family.

After a quiet spell he was linked to Australian model Miranda Kerr, also from Gunnedah, although the pair never confirmed they were romantically linked after spending copious amounts of time sailing around Spain on his yacht in 2014.

Another striking brunette model who has played an intricate role in Packer's life was his first wife Jodhi Meares.

The way it was: Model and daughter of politician Kate Fischer was left a Bondi pad and a rumoured $10million settlement after her five-year relationship and two-year engagement

He married the striking bikini model in 1999 but their marriage lasted only until 2002, with sources saying he wanted children, whilst she did not.

The pair remain on good terms after their separation and Jodhi, 44, has since gone on to marry photographer Nicholas Finn, 28.

Before that, he was engaged to another model, Kate Fischer, but they, too, called time on their romance and she was left a smart Bondi pad and a rumoured $10million settlement after their five-year relationship and two-year engagement.

For years the hotelier has been associated with shapely ladies, including American model Jennifer Flavin (now wed to Sylvester Stallone) and UK-based blonde weather girl, Ulrika Jonsson.

In June, sources told showbiz website TMZ that Sydney-born Packer had been 'aggressively' pursuing Mariah for months.

They are said to have been friends for years amid reports the singer originally met Packer through American filmmaker, Brett Ratner.
She's spent the last week enjoying the VIP treatment in England and Paris.

And blogger Natasha Oakley lived up to her glamourous reputation by attending an exclusive dinner party in London this week.

The 25-year-old beauty displayed plenty of cleavage in a low-cut suede dress at the invite-only event at Sexy Fish in West London on Thursday.

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Friends in high places: Natasha Oakley cosied up to British socialite Millie Mackintosh as they attended the opening of Sexy Fish in London on Thursday

Natasha, known for her popular blog A Bikini A Day, finished off her look with a pair of sheer tights and knee-high black boots.

She also gave her fans a glimpse into the high-end restaurant's exotic offerings by posting an image of the menu on Instagram.

Ever the social butterfly, the Sydney-born model also posed for a selfie with British socialite Millie Mackintosh, which she shared with her 1.6 million social media followers.

Natasha captioned the image: 'Dinner with my lovely'.

In good company: The 25-year-old and her new friend were among guests at the plush event in West London

Sitting pretty: Natasha, who writes the blog A Bikini A Day, wore a low-cut swede dress with sheer tights and knee-high boots, while reality star Millie opted for a rust red satin gown

The former Made In Chelsea star, 26, opted for a vintage glamour look in an elegant, rust red satin gown during her night out.

She also flashed plenty of skin in her plunging kimono gown which featured a thigh high split and belt detail.

Later that night, Millie could barely take her eyes off Natasha as they posed in front of a large fish tank.

Strike a pose: Millie could barely take her eyes off Natasha as they posed in front of a large fish tank at the launch party this week

The glamorous pair were both attending a private soiree hosted by luxury skincare brand Creme de la Mer to mark the launch of a new product exclusive to the London department store Harrods.

The venue, Sexy Fish in Berkeley Square, has earned a reputation as one of London's hottest celebrity nightspots since opening its doors last year.

The high-end eatery is the latest venture by Conservative Party donor Richard Caring, described by The Spectator as 'Asian fusions very own Bond villain'.

Style: Millie flashed plenty of skin in her plunging kimono gown which featured a thigh high split and belt detail

Meanwhile, Natasha has been enjoying a break in Europe after flying out to London from her home in Los Angeles earlier this month.

However, she admits the chilly British winter came as shock after her recent bikini-clad antics.

The buxom blonde - who launched her blog A Bikini A Day with pal Devin Brugman in 2012 - usually prefers more exotic holiday locations, such as Fiji and Hawaii.

After arriving at Gatwick Airport, she posted a sunny throwback picture with the caption: 'Landing in the opposite to bikini weather'.

Having funL Natasha later took to Instagram to share a photograph from the event with folowers

In the photo, the sultry model offers a glimpse of her sun-kissed cleavage in a white one-piece.

Flicking her beach blonde hair to one side, the busty blogger sported a prominent red pout and seductive, darkly lined eyes.

Last Wednesday, Natasha to her Instagram followers she was enjoying her 'last day' in Los Angeles.

She flaunted her ample cleavage in a low-cut, burnt orange coloured dress from SWF boutique, with the caption: 'Last day in L.A. Time to dive into my 2016 travels'.

She subsequently jetted to London, and later spent several days in Paris before returning to England for Thursday night's glitzy event.
It's the show that sees celebrities munch animal body parts and fight off beastly creatures to win prizes.

But the drama has already begun on the set of I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here, with a crew member being hit in the eye by a venom-spitting snake.

Dr Chris Brown, one of the show's hosts, took to Twitter on Friday to post a graphic photograph of the team member's injuries, asking followers: 'Will our celebs be safe?'.

Warning: graphic content

Ouch! Dr Chris Brown shared this snap from the I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here camp where a crew member was hit in the eye by a venom-spitting snake on Friday

Captioning the photograph, the 37-year-old wrote: 'One of our crew just got hit in the eye by a spitting cobra in the camp.'

Quickly, many of his 89,000 followers voiced their concerns, including one person noting: 'and people ask me why I have a fear of snakes.....that's going to hurt for a while!'.

Producers have kept quiet over who will appear in the series which is due to begin later this month.

No celebrities have been announced as yet, and the speculation as to who will be entering the jungle next is the subject of great speculation.

Risky business: Dr Chris will present the show alongside co-host comedienne Julia Morris

Africa bound? Kris Smith teased his Instagram followers with the possibility that he will be a contestant on the show

Getting wild! Julia has been eager to keep fans updated with photographs from the show, sharing snaps of her promotional outfits on social media

On Friday model Kris Smith cheekily teasing fans on Instagram that he was 'Africa bound'.

'I will miss these summer days in Sydney for the next 3 1/2 weeks,' he told fans, adding: 'Adventure calls' next to the hash-tags 'Africa bound' and 'wilderness'.

Previously, Dr Chris's co-host, comedian Julia Morris, shared photos on social media of the pair's flight from Melbourne to Sydney, and then their 11,000 kilometre journey to South Africa.

In one snap, Sydney-born Julia pulls a funny face while waiting for their flight in the departure lounge - as a moody-looking Chris is sat some distance away from her.

'Just so obsessed with me': Julia often posts on her social media with jestingly flirtatious comments

She added the caption: 'Just so obsessed with me'.

The ex-Full Frontal star also shared a photo of herself enjoying a glass of white wine while Dr Chris avoids the camera's gaze and checks his phone.

Next to the image, she wrote: 'Honestly... He won't leave me alone #obsessedwithme'.

The show begins on Sunday January 31 with Network Ten.

Having a laugh: Julia's 'crush' on her handsome co-star is part of their comedy act on the reality show which starts on January 31




The old saying tends to go 'like father like son.'

But it was more a case of like daddy like daughter as Danny DeVito walked arm-in-arm with his daughter Lucy on a chilly day in New York on Thursday.

The happy bond between the pair was obvious as they enjoyed the fresh air together as they got their blood pumping by padding the pavements of the Big Apple.

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Term Of Endearment: Danny DeVito was spotted walking arm-in-arm with daughter Lucy in New York on Thursday

Twins star Danny, 71, was looking great for his age in a puffy jacket, blue trousers and black boots, though he added a splash of Hollywood glamour to his look by wearing sunglasses.

His 32-year-old actress daughter meanwhile looked in fine form in a anorak, leggings and pixie boots. She also kept her head wrapped up warm in a woollen hat.

But the dynamic duo were not the only big names out and about in the Big Apple on Thursday, for at one point they bumped into Leslie Mann, who gave the Taxi star a meaty hug before bidding him farewell.

Lucy is father-of-three Danny's eldest child with wife and former Cheers actress Rhea Perlman, who he has been married to since 1982.

Wrapped up like The Penguin: The Batman Returns star made sure he was warmly dressed on his outing

Oh Mann: Leslie gave the pint-sized comic a giant hug when they bumped into each other

And off they go: The dynamic duo were soon once again continuing on their hike

Danny was recently mocked by Khloe Kardashian after they appeared on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon last week.

Khloe, 31, shared an hilarious snap of the two arriving for their stint on the show on Instagram, joking that they resembled the actor and his famous co-star Arnold Schwarzenegger from their 1988 movie Twins.

'Have you seen the movie Twins?!?! With Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito?! I'm Arnold.... Danny plays himself. #JimmyFallon,' she quipped

The comedy film tells the tale of two long-lost twin brothers who find each other again, but it's a typically hilarious scenario as Arnold's character Julian is about three times the size of Danny's Vincent.

Upwardly mobile: The actor was also spotted speaking on his phone as their adventure continued

Daddy cool: Danny with wife Rhea Perlman, son Jacob, and daughters Lucy and Grace in 2011
She is at turns edgy and glamorous.

And on Thursday night Olivia Wilde showed off her wild side in a leather biker jacket as she attended a live reading of Dr. Strangelove starring Fiona Apple.

The 31-year-old sported black booties and tight black jeans to the Los Angeles Contemporary Museum of Art.

Biker girl: On Thursday night Olivia Wilde showed off her wild side in a leather biker jacket as she attended a live reading of Dr. Strangelove starring Fiona Apple

Singer Fiona performed at the industry event and looked to have been slimed in a piece of performance art.

The 38-year-old artist sported a strapless black dress, which was ruined by the goo used as a prop.

Meanwhile, Wilde recently confessed to The Advocate that woman do not hesitate to chat her up, adding: 'Its more of an honour when a woman hits on me.

Gorgeous: The 31-year-old wore dramatic make-up as she sported black booties to the Los Angeles Contemporary Museum of Art

'With a man, its like, yeah, you have a penis you cant control and you were built to hit on everything that breathes.

'When its a woman, I always blush a little harder.'

Before she became a silver screen temptress Olivia, who is engaged to Horrible Bosses hunk Jason Sudeikis, was television's go-to girl for bisexual roles.

She first played Mischa Barton's character Marissa Cooper's love interest Alex Kelly. In the same season her saucy character also had a relationship with Marissa's friend Seth Cohen.

Singer Fiona performed at the industry event and looked to have been slimed in a piece of performance art

Talking about her landmark role, Olivia, who changed her surname from Cockburn in honour of flamboyant Irish writer Oscar Wilde, said: 'Nothing about it scared or shocked me.

'I was just surprised by the enormity of the response. I still have women coming up to tell me they started discovering their own sexuality because of The OC.'

While she changed character, she never changed sexuality when she joined hit medical procedural show House, where she played Dr Remy 'Thirteen' Hadley.

Special guest: Fiona is shown before getting covered

In fact her sexuality was often the butt of Hugh Laurie's eponymous character's jokes and innuendos until it was finally confirmed in the episode Lucky Thirteen.

Speaking about that turn, she said: 'We actually had lesbian writers who asked me, "Are you OK with this? Arent you afraid this is going to fuck up your career?" That seemed crazy to me.

'Other people said, "If you always play gay, people will think youre gay. You should be careful." Careful of what? Evolution?'

Fan favourite: Sir Patrick Stewart also took part in the Dr. Strangelove live reading

And Olivia, whose son Otis is eight-months-old, said she hopes by the time he is grown up the very ideal of sexual labels will be a thing of the past.

She said: 'Why do we insist on labels that hold us back? My hope is that my son, by the time hes my age, doesnt recognize a world in which were stuck in definitions others put upon us.'

Olivia, who was promoting her new 70s rock drama show Vinyl, in which she plays Devon Finestra, the wife of a record executive, at the HBO TCA event in Pasadena on Thursday, also touched upon her new show.

Funny guys: Seth Rogen and Josh Gad also took part in the event

She said: 'Well, it was a time of sexual revolution, when people were liberating themselves from their conservative 50s childhoods. Devon is on this journey of self-discovery.

'Shes a real romantic whod love to leave her rich life in Greenwich, Conn., to live a more honest life back in the downtown artist scene, and her sexuality is a big part of that.'

Vinyl scheduled to premiere on HBO on February 14, and the pilot was directed by Martin Scorsese
She never fails to add a touch of class to London's glitziest soirees.

And Donna Air ensured she cut an elegant figure as she attended the Creme de la Mer party in Mayfair hotspot Sexy Fish on Thursday.

Rubbing shoulders with the likes of Yasmin Le Bon and Kelly Hoppen, the 36-year-old was in good company as she enjoyed the swanky dinner put on by the luxury face care brand.

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Creme de la creme! Donna Air ensured she cut an elegant figure as she attended the Creme de la Mer party in London's celebrity hotspot Sexy Fish on Thursday

Dazzling in jewel tones, Donna slipped into a full-length jade gown, with the form-fitting fabric making the most of her enviable figure.

Cinching in her tiny waist with a slim white belt, contrasting colours also appeared on the Peter Pan collar and rolled sleeves.

Giving her statuesque frame some extra height, she opted for a pair of cream court heels with a pointed toe.

Gem of the ball: Donning a full length jade coloured gown, the form-fitting fabric was demure, and eye-catching, whilse still showcasing her figure underneath

Pearl about town! Cinching in her tiny waist with a slim white belt with a pearl buckle, while contrasting colours also appeared on the Peter Pan collar and rolled sleeves

Blonde beauty! Looking glossy and bouncy, her trademark honey-coloured tresses fell in loose waves around her shoulders, framing her heart shaped face

Behind these emerald eyes: Sporting minimal make-up to accentuate her stunning features, she swept mascara over the lashes and added a slick of rosy gloss on her lips

Every detail counts! Giving her model frame some extra height, she opted for a pair of cream court heels with a pointed toe that complemented the two-tone colour scheme she had opted for

Looking glossy and bouncy, her honey-coloured tresses fell in loose waves around her shoulders, perfectly framing her heart shaped face.

Sporting minimal make-up to accentuate her stunning features, she swept mascara over her lashes alongside a slick of rosy gloss on her lips.

And keeping warm as she arrived at the venue, she donned a navy bishop sleeved coat, slinging a small taupe saddle bag over her shoulder.

A regular on the London social scene, Donna was amongst friends - chatting to supermodel Yasmin and interior designer to the stars, Kelly.

The glam trio posed for several snaps together, with Yasmin stunning in a sheer-detailed polka dot dress, while Dragon's Den star Kelly opting for a strapless black number with a waterfall front.

Famous friends: Rubbing shoulders with the likes of Yasmin Le Bon (L) and Kelly Hoppen (centre), Donna was in good company and seemongly in good spirits as she enjoyed the swanky dinner

Power couple: Donning a strapless black gown that gave a glimpse at her impressive cleavage, Kelly held her own in the style stakes as she cosied up to Donna

Picture perfect: With Donna and photographer Elisabeth Hoff together, it came as no surprise that the pair knew how to take a good snap

VIP: It came as no surprise to see Donna at the event as she is a frequent name on the London social scene and regularly attends the capital's glitziest parties

Leggy lady! Even in a full length gown it was clear to see that Donna has enviably long legs, and they clung to the fabric of the dress as she walked into the Mayfair based restaurant

Donna attended the glamorous bash without her boyfriend, James Middleton, who she has been dating for three years.

In October, the couple put on an united front in the midst of split rumours, confirming that they were still a couple.

In a joint statement they said: 'Mark Twain once complained that reports of his death were exaggerated.

'A few days ago we were equally amazed to read the obituaries of our relationship splashed across the national press.'

Happy couple: Donna attended the event without her boyfriend of three years, James Middleton. Last year the pair released a joint statement confirming they were still dating after rumours emerged of their split

Curvaceous: There was nowhere to hide in the clingy gown that clung to her every enviable curve

They continued: 'Happily, we can report that our relationship is not over. We are still very much a couple and have not parted ways.

'These stories are completely untrue and without merit.'

Donna reiterated their sentiments when she exclusively told the Mail On Sunday that her boyfriend - whose sister is the Duchess of Cambridge - was 'pretty awesome'.

Leopard lady: She donned a navy bishop sleeved coat as she ventured outside, and seemed to be enjoying a chat with her friend who was sporting an eye-catching leopard print jacket

Cheerful: Donna seemed to be in good spirits as she headed home after the swanky dinner

Look of love? Donna was spotted on the phone as she left the party, perhaps talking to her beau James
She may be turning 40 years old, but Emma Bunton will always be Baby to The Spice Girls.

Former bandmate Victoria Beckham, once better known as Posh Spice, shared a fittingly baby-faced picture for fans on Thursday, feeling nostalgic as she paid tribute to her old friend.

The Nineties snapshot sees the 41-year-old fashion mogul sporting of-the-moment double denim and pulling her signature pout as she grips wide-smiling Emma with a protective hand.

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Flashback: Baby-faced Victoria Beckham (left) and Emma Bunton (right) looked youthful in a flashback picture posted by Victoria on Thursday to mark Emma's 40th birthday

Victoria wrote beside the Instagram picture: 'Happy Birthday Baby X I love u x  X #ilovemyspicegirls x vb @emmaleebunton'

Naturally, Victoria was sporting the key trends of that era, with distressed denim jeans matching her collar-up, cropped denim jacket.

Her hair was cut into her distinctive dark crop, while Emma's featured a youthful fringe and a bright, platinum colour.

See Victoria Beckham updates as she posts a throwback photo with Emma Bunton

I love u: She penned a sweet birthday message to her old friend on Thursday via Instagram

Feeling the love: Victoria, here in June 2007, has been apart from her bandmates (from left) Melanie Chisholm, Geri Halliwell, Emma Bunton and Melanie Brown since their split again in 2008

Emma wore roll up jeans, no doubt the envy of their many million pre-teen followers, and a retro leather jacket.

It was confirmed just last week that a forthcoming reunion for the girl group - who were together for six years and reunited as a five piece to tour in 2007 - would not include Victoria.

Geri Horner, the artist formerly known as Ginger Spice, confirmed to Vanity Fair that any impending comeback would be 'just the four of us'.

Just the four of us: Despite her nostalgia, it was confirmed last week that a Spice Girls reunion would go ahead without Victoria

Though Victoria, now an international fashion mogul and businesswoman, did nothing to dispel rumours that she's been pining for her four former bandmates Emma, Geri, Melanie C and Mel B with the latest 'i love my spice girls' dedication.

Victoria also praised Adele recently for mentioning just how much she loved The Spice Girls when she was growing up.

During a Carpool Karaoke feature with James Corden, the chart topping musician said she'd experienced her first heartbroken when the girl band split in 2000.

She shared the clip, saying: 'HUGE Adele fan!! This is GENIUS!!! Thank u @adele and @jkcorden #ilovemyspicegirls X posh'

I love my Spice Girls: Victoria recently shared the moment musician Adele confessed her love for the girlband, using the tag 'i love my spice girls' once again




She's no stranger to period drama having earned acclaim for her role in Downton Abbey.

But Joanne Froggatt turned her attention to an historic film with a twist on Thursday night when she supported her former Downton co-star Lily James at the Pride And Prejudice And Zombies premiere at the Harmony Gold Theatre in Los Angeles.

The actress, 36, was joined by her husband James Cannon on the red carpet for the event, and the pair put on an affectionate display for the cameras.

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Black magic: Joanne Froggatt, 36, turned her attention to a period drama with a twist on Thursday, when she supported her Downton co-star Lily James at the Pride And Prejudice And Zombies premiere

Joanne rocked gothic chic for the occasion, wearing a classy SUNO LBD with cut out panels revealing her toned torso.

The diminutive star wore a modest pair of black heels to give her a slight boost, however hubby James still towered above.

In a departure from her Downton character, Joanne allowed her long blonde locks to tumble down her front in waves.

Little and large: The actress, 36, was joined by her husband James Cannon on the red carpet for the event and the pair put on an affectionate display for the cameras

She applied a heavy coating of dark eye make-up, while opting for subtlety in her remaining facial application.

James looked dapper in a navy suit with an unbuttoned white shirt giving him a carefree edge. He tucked a silver pocket square into his breast pocket and finished his outfit off with well-polished black shoes.

He ensured his dark beard was finely groomed while styling his fringe in a sweeping wave.

Elegant: Joanne rocked gothic chic for the vent, wearing a classy SUNO LBD with cut out panels revealing her toned torso

Smile! She applied a heavy coating of dark eye make-up, while opting for subtlety in her remaining facial application

Lily James plays heroine Elizabeth Bennet, who is ready to fight the undead along with her sisters in the film.

The horror/romance spoof is a parody of the 1813 British novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.

Pride, Prejudice and Zombies is based on the 2009 novel of the same name by Seth Grahame-Smith and transforms Austen's most famous heroine Elizabeth Bennet into a master of martial arts and weaponry.

When a plague falls upon 19th century England, she unites with Mr. Darcy (Sam Riley) to rid the country of the terrifying zombie menace.

No fear: Lily James plays heroine Elizabeth Bennet, who is ready to fight the undead along with her sisters in the film

Shining stars! Lena Headey plays plays Lady Catherine de Bourgh and posed with James at the film's premiere

And Lily's not the only one taking on a project with a darker edge.

Joanne is swapping her role as sweet Anna Bates in Downton to become notorious real-life killer Mary Ann Cotton in the upcoming two-part drama Dark Angel.

Cotton, known as Britain's first serial killer, pulled herself out of poverty by marrying and poisoning a series of husbands and children in the 1800s. She got away with it for decades because Victorian society didn't believe women could be devious killers.

The total number of Cotton's victims is unknown, but she killed at least 21 people in the mid-1800s, including three of her four husbands, 11 of her 13 children, and several of her stepchildren.

After poisoning her many victims, she'd collect the insurance money and move on to the next wealthy target for years, before she was caught, convicted and hanged in 1873.
Gigi Hadid and her model BFF Kendall Jenner were channeling Paris vibes on Friday afternoon, looking ahead to a chic weekend in the French capital.

Having joined the blonde bombshell from LA, Kendall was making a late arrival in the stylish city for Men's Fashion Week.

Both girls were suitably well-dressed for the occasion, paring down their California staples and plumping for sophisticated day time outfits, with Kendall celebrating the girls' reunion by wearing a cute 'KenGi' necklace.

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Parisian chic: Gigi Hadid was showing off her style credentials as she made another outing in Paris on Friday

The new style uniform appeared to be long coats - for Gigi simple and black while for Kendall silk and floaty - with a little calf on show.

Gigi was wearing a mustard-coloured skirt that was kept in place with some rocky safety pins, all the while just flashing enough of her supermodel pins.

She added to the image with some flat ankle boots and a sexy midriff-bearing Bossa body suit.

See the latest updates on Gigi Hadid as she reunites with BFF Kendall Jenner

Making her arrival: Gigi was joined by Kendall, who had just flown in that afternoon

Understated: Her image was understated with a long black coat over her bodysuit by label Bossa

KenGi! Gigi marked her reunion with her BFF by sporting a cute custom necklace

Her counterpart had changed since her airport arrival that morning and hit the streets of Paris in a midi-length dress.

She softened her look with comfortable trainers, essential for darting around the city, and some sunglasses, despite the rainy conditions.

Gigi was obviously delighted to see her best friend and marked the occasion with a sweet jewellery tribute.

The blonde proudly displayed her gold name pendant, customised with the besties' names merged together.

Kendall and Gigi were both kept covered by large umbrellas; faithfully following them in the hands of their many trusty aides.

After all, appearances had to be kept up while in the city, where they're joining stars including Bella Hadid, Lewis Hamilton and Georgia May Jagger during another important style week.

Looking leggy: The blonde put her best foot forward in a racy thigh split skirt

Making her exit: Gigi left her hotel looking style-savvy in her mustard-coloured skirt

Easy does it: The skirt was only held together by strategically placed safety pins

Through the crowd: There was quite a following already gathered outside her hotel

Dressed down: She dressed down a midi dress with a pair of trainers

New outfit: Kendall had changed her outfit since arriving in the fashion capital that afternoon

Protected: She was protected from the rain with an umbrella to avoid ruining her silk coat

Busy bee: Having only been back in Paris for a brief amount of time, she had places to be and people to see

Boy drama: Kendall was proving that her new flame with Harry Styles wouldn't keep her away from Zayn Malik's girlfriend Gigi

Head down: She cowered from the rain, hoping to dart across the city without a blemish

Now reunited, Gigi and Kendall no doubt had plenty of boy talk to check off their catch up list, subsequently proving that their new famous flames will not keep them apart.

Kendall recently ignited speculation that she is dating Harry Styles, incidentally the ex-bandmate of Gigi's boyfriend Zayn Malik.

VS Angel Kendall spent time yachting in St Barts with Harry, who is thought to have lost contact with Zayn since his departure from One Direction in March 2015.

From day to night: Kendall later emerged, looking just as fresh faced as before

Natural beauty: The starlet was sporting barely-there make-up for the occasion

Keeping it casual: Kendall completed her ensemble with a pair of white trainers

Finishing touches: Gigi layered her KenGI necklace with a long statement pendant

Keeping a low profile: Gigi cut a sombre figure as she stepped out in the dark, rocking round sunglasses
Nathaniel Marston tragically passed away aged 40 in November after he was thrown from his pickup truck during a car accident.

And two months on from his death, his mother Elizabeth Jackson remembered the 'kind' and 'smart' One Life To Live star, following a memorial service in his honour at New York City's Cathedral of Saint John the Divine.

Gone too soon: Nathaniel Marston's mother has remembered him in a touching new interveiw

Elizabeth was just 16 years old when she gave birth to Nathaniel, and spoke to People magazine about raising him as a single mother.

'I did the best I could do,' she shared. 'I was a little kid. I was a baby. He was my best friend, he was my pal, he was my buddy. He taught me everything I know about love, responsibility, kindness, compassion, empathy.'

Nathaniel starred as Dr. Michael McBain on One Life To Live from 2001 until 2007.

His final role was in 2011 comedy Walk A Mile In My Pradas, and prior to that he had also appeared in episodes of Castle, White Collar and Law And Order: Special Victims Unit.

He struggled with drug addiction in the past but his mother revealed that he had put his demons behind him and was preparing to get back to auditions when he died.

Nathaniel, who died in Reno, moved to Nevada to be close to his mother after completing treatment in a New York rehab facility.

Jackson told People: 'He struggled, as many of us do, with demons, He went into a treatment program, and he came out to me, and he was doing really good. The moment of redemption for Nat happened just before he died.'

She added: 'I think the hardest thing for Nathaniel was that he didn't know how much he was loved. I think because he was an empath that he felt other people's pain, and that caused him pain. ... I think he felt people's spiritual pain, and I think that's where his demons came from.'

Nathaniel was believed to be under the influence of drugs when he was arrested in 2007 following an altercation with three people, and he admitted to punching a police officer. He had to complete a three-month anger management course.

The soap star had previously been arrested in 1999 for attacking an ATM machine, and Jackson said: 'He was a generous, kind, sweet, gentle soul who was larger than life  and had a big temper, he got in trouble. Who doesn't?'

Nathaniel's mother explained how he had turned his life around shortly before the tragic accident, and he was hoping to get his career back on track too.

'He was on track, and he was ready to roll,' she said. 'He was ready to go back to pilot season. He said, "Mom, I'm gonna buy you a ranch and we're going to raise the most beautiful cattle that you've seen in your life. I finally found something that I love to do beside acting."

Finding fame: The actor is best known for starring as Dr Michael McBain on One Life To Live from 2001 to 2007

'And he said, "And we're going to get some foster kids and we're gonna mentor them, and we're gonna pay it forward because Father God has been so good to us. I finally get it."'

Jackson also spoke to People about the harrowing moment she realised her son had been in a terrible accident.

Nathaniel was not wearing his seatbelt and was thrown from his pickup truck after it slipped several times. No drugs or alcohol were found in his system.

'I saw all this stuff out in the desert and I thought, that looks like Nat's sleeping bag,' Jackson said. 'I was like no, and I got home and there were these two calls. It was horrible.'

Hoping to get his career back on track: The 40-year-old had recently completed treatment for drug addiciton and was planning to get back to auditions when he died. Here he is seen in a 2010 episode of Castle

Nathaniel's mother said that he 'wanted to fight', but after surgery to relieve pressure on his brain failed, the ventilator which was helping him to breathe was removed on his wishes and he died two weeks following the accident.

Doctors had said that if the actor did survive, he would likely have been a quadriplegic.

'It was a very sad story, and I'm grateful I had those two weeks with him, that I could tell him how much I loved him and ask for any forgiveness,' Jackson recalled.

After he died, doctors discovered that Nathaniel's heart was reversed due to a condition called situs inversus, and it rested on the right side of his body.

Tragic loss: Nathaniel, seen here in 2003, was thrown from his pickup truck when it flipped over several times during a car accident. He died two weeks later, on November 11

'So when he was hugging you, it was directly heart-to-heart,' Jackson told People. 'That's why his hugs were so special.'

Nathaniel's mother additionally revealed the touching last conversation they had on the phone, when he apologised for not meeting her when he was supposed to and said he never wanted to hurt her again.

She in turn told him that she was proud of him and his sobriety and couldn't wait until their next family dinner.

Jackson added to People: 'We don't have a lot of time on this earth and we never know when our last moments are going to happen. Nathaniel was always kind to people. Take that time to be kind to all the people that you love.'
Earlier this week she faced criticism from French politicians in a argument which saw her branded a 'turkey stuffed with silicon'.

But putting the situation behind her, Pamela Anderson was all smiles on Friday as she journeyed through Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris to catch a flight.

Dressed comfy for the plane ride, the 48-year-old looked chic as she put on a leggy display as she strutted through the terminal.

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Behind Enemy Lines: Pamela Anderson beamed as she left Paris on Friday following a row with politicians over ban on force-feeding ducks and geese to make foie gras earlier in the week

Chic: The 48-year-old wore a stylish trench coat as she journeyed through Charles de Gaulle Airport

Flashing her pearly whites as she greeted waiting photographers, Pamela appeared to be in good spirits as she was accompanied by her entourage.

With her hair tied up, Anderson hid her eyes behind a pair of sunglasses as she waved at passerbys inside the busy airport.

The mother-of-two covered up with a trendy trench coat as she wore a contrast blue dress with flat black ballet pumps.

Happy days: Anderson waved at passers-by as she walked along with members of her entourage

Pins on parade: Pamela wore a contrast mini dress under her coat as she opted for black ballet pumps

Low key: The mother-of-two hid behind a pair of sunglasses as she wore her blonde hair up in one

Anderson's jolly exit from the capital comes after she was described as a 'turkey stuffed with silicon' as the French launched a vicious attack on celebrity politics on Wednesday.

The former Baywatch actress angered some MPs when she appeared in the National Assembly in Paris to support a ban on force-feeding ducks and geese to make foie gras.

Foie gras - which means fattened liver - is a traditional delicacy enjoyed by millions around the world, particularly in France.

Many thought it was inappropriate for an unelected Canadian-American known for appearing nude in Playboy to be interfering in the democratic process.

Keeping up to date: Pamela was seen clutching onto her smartphone as she scanned through updates

And she's off! Anderson kept her head down as she made her way to the terminal for her flight

Hugues Fourage, spokesman for the ruling Socialist Party, said: 'Pamela Anderson's visit gets on my nerves and I am fed up with it. It is political theatre.'

A spokesman for the CPNT pressure group (Hunting, Fishing, Nature and Traditions) meanwhile attacked Laurence Abeille, the ecologist deputy who invited Ms Anderson.

The group said Ms Abeille 'preferred turkeys stuffed with silicon' to 'good geese stuffed with maize from the Landes and Perigord' - both regions of France.

In retaliation, Abeille attacked the 'particularly shocking, sexist, chauvinist, misogynistic comments', and added that Anderson was 'strongly committed to us continuing to eat well, without inflicting harm on animals'.
There were shocking scenes in EastEnders.

No, not poor Stacey being sectioned and separated from her baby  the boy she refers to as 'the Son of God' but the rest of us call Arthur. As her Postpartum Psychosis has worsened, the trauma of her hospitalisation has been on the cards for some time unfortunately (for us).

The previously unimaginable footage concerned her cousin Kat who was seen using a COMPUTER  the sort of image that makes viewers cry: 'EastEnders has really lost touch with reality this time.'

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Heartbreaking! Lacey Turner gave an emotional portrayal of Post-partum Psychosis as Stacey Slater in EastEnders on Friday evening

Touching: Scenes in tonight's episode saw Stacey sectioned and separated from her baby Arthur

This was as she began the hunt for Luke her long-lost son  a search that comes to everyone who lives in Walford eventually.

In fact, missing relatives are more common than laptops in Albert Square.Mind you, this is hardly surprising considering that, judging by the amount of time the residents spend in the caff and the launderette, most of them don't even own a kettle, a frying pan, or a washing machine, let alone a Mac.

Women and their children continued to be the main theme.

As usual it wasn't exactly a great advert for having them or for the joys of motherhood, particularly for the Slater family.

Besides being sectioned wasn't bad enough for Stacey, Arthur was left being looked after by Martin Fowler who Stacey regarded as 'a demon.'

'I can smell the devil on him,' she trembled to Shabnam although it transpired this was only Martin's Lynx.

To be fair to Stacey in his black funeral garb, Martin did look like a gormless giant version of the priest in The Exorcist.

Turbulent times: Stacey gave birth to Arthur just before Christmas as the Square gathered for the Nativity play

Harrowing: Since welcoming her son, viewers have seen Slater battling Post-partum Psychosis

The prospect of Arthur being raised by an evangelical psychotic and Martin Fowler could only mean one thing: it was just a matter of time before Arthur's biological father Kush would apply for custody and take Arthur away from Stace' for good. (For the good of Arthur.)

Stacey's daughter Lily was now facing the same fate. Whitney was so alarmed by the effect of Stacey's breakdown on Lily that her half-bruvver Ryan (Lily's dad) was back in the square to look after her. Lily, that is. Not Stacey. Or Whitney.

Stacey didn't even know about the threat of losing Lily yet. After all Ryan hadn't been in the series for six years and only turned up for the 'dum-dums' at the finale of Friday's episode - just as Stacey was being sectioned and separated from Arthur.

'God won't let you do this !' Stacey raged. 'He'll send a hundred angels and they'll blind you with the light! The demons are everywhere and they want to kill my baby. You are going to kill my baby!'

She had explained to the psychiatric doctor assessing her that she had gone to Walford General, after much persuasion from Martin, desperate for 'somewhere safe.'

An NHS hospital in London on a Friday night? What could be safer than that?

'There's no safer place for you right now,' the doctor soothed - lying basically and having Stacey sectioned.

Devastating: Last Friday, Stacey caused quite the fright as she stood on the roof of the Queen Vic clutching baby Arthur waiting for God to save him from the devil

Sad scenes: Slater currently believes that her baby boy is the Son of God

Getting the help she needs: As Stacey raged she was restrained by members of hospital staff

The doc had gradually realised what they were dealing with here: a full-blown EastEnders ISSUE, in which Kat, Martin and the viewers learnt that women who are bi-polar like Stacey have an increased risk of Post-partum Psychosis.

'Her last manic episode was 2009,' the doctor noted although they're mostly manic episodes with EastEnders.

Martin, Kush, Kat, and everyone else in the square had taken their time before getting Stacey any help, even though she had spend the previous Friday on the roof of the Queen Vic clutching baby Arthur, waiting for God to save him from the devil, the devil's demons, and Big Fat Mo.

You know you're in trouble when even Jean thinks you're unhinged.

'You should have called me!' she cried to Martin, emphasising her daughter had to see a doctor - a crazy notion admittedly.

'No!' Martin disagreed, insisting any medical intervention would 'send her over the edge!'

To be honest Stacey had arguably gone over the edge already  specifically by standing on the edge of the roof.

Left to him: Martin Fowler sobbed as he tried to get his head around all that had transpired

Here to help? Kush Kazemi, who is Arthur's real father, was on hand to support Martin in his time of need

At times with this storyline Lacey Turner's performance has been somewhat over-wrought but it was heartbreakingly plaintive when Stacey's explanation didn't make her situation better but better.

'I wanted to get closer to heaven. My baby is the Son of God. He's come again. He's going to save the weld and the Lord chose me to be his muvver,' she told the psychiatric doctor matter-of-factly before fretting: 'But the devil wants him. He wants to kill him. And it's really hard to keep him safe.'

'When did God start speaking to you Stacey?' the doctor asked.

'After Arthur was born, at Christmas,' she said. 'It was in the stable with the Wise Men and the shepherds.'

This was actually true (long story).

No doubt we were all meant to feel sorry for Stace' as she was promptly sectioned. But on the other hand, at least it gave Arthur a break from all that rocking and wailing and saved him from spending Friday nights on the roof.

Trying to make things right: Fowler gushed over his son as he tried to make plans for the future

More drama: Ryan returned to the soap to get custody of his daughter Lily following Stacey's breakdown

Martin sobbed about breaking his promises, complaining that Arthur should be with his mother - even when they explained none of London's four mother-and-baby units in had a bed.

'How hard can it be?! Arthur's tiny. He'll fit anywhere !' he raged, suggesting he was more suited to selling vegetables than pursuing a new career in psychology  no matter how much of an expert he thought he was after reading about being Bi-polar on the internet.

When Kush popped in at the Vic to see about taking Stacey a blanket, Kat showed the same signs of even considering going to the hospital as Stacey's mum Jean: i.e. none.

'Give her a big kiss from me and tell her I'll see her in the morning!' she chirped to Kush merrily.

'He's a good bloke isn't he, Kush?' cheered Alfie.

'Probably the same age as Luke,' sulked Kat, wallowing in her own problems. Never mind that Stacey had been SECTIONED.

Shocking scenes: Viewers witnessed Kat conduct an internet search to find her long lost son

All Kat cared about was the recent revelation that when she was 14, besides her daughter Zoe the Bionic Woman, she had also given birth to a boy that Kat's mother had taken and given away without ever telling her.

Mums eh? What are they like?

Now she was going to try and track him down, poor thing (Luke that is).

She duly looked up Redwater on the internet  the village in Ireland she had as Luke's address. Mind you this was 32 years ago when the baby-snatchers nabbed him. (What with Kat's mum and Aunt Babe Walford has a virtual ring of people trading in babies.)

Kat seemed to be convinced that Ireland was like Hotel California: you could check out any time you liked but you could never leave.

'He might be married and might have kids of his own,' she mused. Or after three decades he might have moved out of Redwater/Ireland/Europe.

Of course  much like Sharon tracking down her long-lost father (Whispering Paul Nicholas) - we know she will find him in the end (quite soon). Otherwise, the storyline has no point.

How pleased Luke will be is another matter.

After all, would you want Kat Slater as your muvver?

On the hunt: Kat duly looked up Redwater on the internet, the village in Ireland she had as Luke's address
US F-16 jet crashes in Arizona, status of pilot unknown

An F-16 fighter jet crashed Thursday in the southwestern state of Arizona, the US Air Force said, adding a search and rescue mission for the pilot was ongoing.

"The cause of the crash is unknown at this time," the Air Force said in a statement, adding the incident had occurred at 8:45 am (1645 GMT) north of Luke Air Force Base near the small town of Bagdad, Arizona.

"Luke AFB officials are working closely with local authorities in a search and rescue operation. Due to the remote location and rugged terrain, the status of the pilot is unknown."

A Lockheed Martin F-16 jet on June 16, 2005 at the Paris Air Show Pierre Verdy (AFP/File)
Al-Jazeera says journalist likely kidnapped in Yemen

Pan-Arab television network Al-Jazeera said on Thursday that one of its journalists had gone missing in the battleground Yemeni city of Taez and that it suspects he was kidnapped.

The Doha-based channel said it had not been able to contact Hamdi al-Bokari since Monday night, when the correspondent was covering fighting between loyalist and rebel forces in the central city.

It said in a statement that there were indications that the Yemeni reporter had been "kidnapped by unknown persons".

The city of Taez is under the control of Yemen's internationally recognised government, but it has been besieged by Iran-backed rebels for months Mohammed Huwais (AFP/File)

Al-Jazeera Media Network director general Mostefa Souag called for Bokari's immediate release, saying it was the kidnappers' responsibility to ensure his safety.

Other circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the journalist were unknown.

The city of Taez is under the control of Yemen's internationally recognised government, but it has been besieged by Iran-backed rebels for months.

The Huthi Shiite rebels overran Sanaa more than a year ago, forcing the government of President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi to flee the capital for second city Aden and then abroad.

Hadi loyalists backed by a Saudi-led coalition have been fighting back, and for weeks they have been trying to retake Taez province and pave the way towards the rebel-held capital.

More than 5,800 people have been killed in Yemen since March, about half of them civilians, according to the UN.

Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders says at least five journalists were killed in Yemen last year.
Gerrans on track for fourth Tour Down Under win

Australian Simon Gerrans won a feisty sprint finish to claim Friday's 138-kilometre fourth stage of the Tour Down Under, setting himself up for his fourth overall victory in the event.

Gerrans, who also won Thursday's third stage in a sprint, has the advantage going into the fifth stage, a 151.5-kilometre stretch from McLaren Vale to Willunga Hill on Saturday.

"I'm absolutely thrilled with that," the 35-year-old said while thanking his team for making his run "as easy as possible".

Australia's Simon Gerrans (L) from the Orica Greenedge celebrates as he wins stage four from Norwood to Victor Harbor in Adelaide, ahead of Britain's Ben Swift from Sky, during the Tour Down Under cycling race, on January 22, 2016 David Mariuz (AFP)

Gerrans, the overall winner of the Tour Down Under in 2006, 2012 and 2014, will be hoping experience pays off when it comes to Willunga Hill.

But the Orica GreenEdge leader is taking nothing for granted, having been caught in a mass pile-up inside the final kilometre of Wednesday's stage just after putting himself in a perfect position to take the stage win.

"I still have to be very, very attentive going into Willunga tomorrow. We have a nice little buffer there, but there's still a heck of a lot of work to be done," he said.

Gerrans crossed the line Friday in three hours, 13 minutes and 59 seconds ahead of English Sky rider Ben Swift and Italian Giacomo Nizzolo (Trek-Segafrefo) who were both credited with the same time.
Super Serena, Djokovic soar into Australian Open fourth round

Novak Djokovic underlined his supremacy in men's tennis on Friday as he marched unstoppably into the Australian Open fourth round -- along with Serena Williams, who raced through in just 44 minutes.

As Roger Federer reached a landmark 300th Grand Slam win, Djokovic still looked like the man to beat as he weathered a strong challenge from Andreas Seppi to reach the first weekend without dropping a set.

The top seed and defending champion saved two third-set points against Seppi before reeling off the next four points to clinch it 6-1, 7-5, 7-6 (8/6), his 33rd straight victory over Italian opposition.

Serbia's Novak Djokovic celebrates after victory against Italy's Andreas Seppi in the third round of the Australian Open on January 22, 2016 Paul Crock (AFP)

It was a moment that once again demonstrated the mental strength of the Serbian 10-time Grand Slam winner -- against an awkward opponent who beat Federer at the same stage last year.

Federer earlier went through 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 against Grigor "Baby Fed" Dimitrov, a man whose game is so similar to his own that he admitted it was like playing a mirror.

It wasn't all plain-sailing for Federer, but with the win he became the first man to reach 300 Grand Slam victories and lies six away from Martina Navratilova's record of 306.

"It's very exciting, I must tell you," said the Swiss, who also became the oldest man to reach the round of 16 since Andre Agassi in 2005.

"Not something I ever aimed for or looked for, but when it happens, it's very special."

- Sharapova win -

Maria Sharapova also weathered a fightback when she beat pint-sized American Lauren Davis 6-1, 6-7 (5/7), 6-0, helped by a strategic break and change of dress, for her 600th career win.

Sharapova left the court after she lost the second-set tiebreak but after she came back refreshed and revitalised, she raced to victory to set up a clash with Switzerland's Belinda Bencic.

Williams had no such problems as she crushed overawed Russian teenager Daria Kasatkina 6-1, 6-1 in 44 minutes, the shortest match of the tournament so far.

"I definitely think I played better today. Everything I've been trying to work on was kind of clicking today," said the buoyant world number one, who is seeking a record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam title.

The busy day of action helped take the focus off corruption claims which have overshadowed the year's first Grand Slam after a report said players had been suspected of fixing matches but never faced action.

Belgium's David Goffin awaits Federer in round four, after he beat Dominic Thiem 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (7/2), 7-5 in a match which included a generous act of sportsmanship from the Austrian.

Thiem, leading in the second set, told the umpire to give a point to Goffin rather than replay it after a Hawk-Eye challenge found a shot from the Belgian had landed in.

Elsewhere, fourth seed Agnieszka Radwanska reeled off nine straight games to floor Monica Puig 6-4, 6-0, despite continuing pain from a left-leg injury which stopped her competing in Sydney last week.

And Roberta Vinci was knocked out by Germany's Anna-Lena Friedsam in three sets, meaning there will be no rematch of last year's US Open semi-final when she halted Williams' bid for a calendar-year Grand Slam.

In other matches, Japan's Kei Nishikori beat Guillermo Garcia-Lopez 7-5, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga ousted fellow Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert 6-4, 7-6 (9/7), 7-6 (7/4).

Serena Williams brushed aside Daria Kasatkina at the Australian Open in just 44 minutes Greg Wood (AFP)

Switzerland's Roger Federer celebrates after victory in his Australian Open third round match against Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov in Melbourne on January 22, 2016 Greg Wood (AFP)

Roger Federer's victory against Grigor Dimitrov at the Australian Open means he becomes the first man to notch 300 Grand Slam wins Saeed Khan (AFP)

Russia's Maria Sharapova celebrates victory against Lauren Davis of the United States at the Australian Open on January 22, 2016 Greg Wood (AFP)
IS claims killing Egyptian police in Cairo raid

An Egyptian affiliate of the jihadist Islamic State group claimed responsibility Friday for a bomb blast during a police raid on a Cairo apartment that killed seven people, including five policemen.

Thursday's explosion in the Al-Haram district, near the pyramids, came as police raided a flat suspected to be a militant hideout and tried to defuse an explosive device, the interior ministry said on its Facebook page.

The ministry blamed the banned Muslim Brotherhood movement of ousted president Mohamed Morsi for the blast.

Egyptian policemen stand guard in al-Haram street in Cairo on August 14, 2014 Mohamed El-Shahed (AFP/File)

However, an Egyptian affiliate of IS said it lured the officers to the apartment, which was "rigged with bombs".

"When the infidels entered, the bomb-rigged house was blown up," the Islamic State Egypt group said in a statement posted on jihadist websites.

The interior ministry said a group of Brotherhood members had been using the apartment to manufacture explosives.

The blast killed five policemen, one civilian and an unidentified man, a police official said on Friday, updating an earlier toll.

The interior ministry posted pictures of the five dead policemen on its Facebook page.

Thirteen other people were wounded in the blast, it added.

Al-Haram has witnessed several attacks and gunfights since the army ousted Islamist leader Morsi in July 2013.

The neighbourhood is known to house many Morsi sympathisers and has been the scene of clashes between his supporters and security forces in the aftermath of his ouster by then army chief and now President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

It also houses several hotels used by tourists visiting Cairo because of its proximity to the world-famous pyramids.

Militants have regularly attacked policemen and soldiers since the army toppled Morsi.

Jihadists say their attacks are in retaliation for a brutal government crackdown targeting Morsi's supporters that has left hundreds dead and thousands imprisoned.

Morsi was Egypt's first freely elected president and succeeded longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak, who was driven from power after an 18-day popular uprising.
Serena schools Russian teen at Australian Open - in 44 minutes

World number one Serena Williams Friday showed no mercy to Daria Kasatkina in a straight-sets demolition at the Australian Open on Friday, but then offered words of encouragement to the overawed teenager.

The six-time Melbourne Park winner and defending champion easily out-muscled the young Russian 6-1, 6-1 on Rod Laver Arena in just 44 minutes, the shortest match of the tournament so far.

It sets her up with a fourth-round clash against another Russian, Margarita Gasparyan, with a quarter-final beckoning against old foe Maria Sharapova -- a showdown Williams would be confident of winning.

Serena Williams of the United States in action against Russia's Daria Kasatkina at the Australian Open on January 22, 2016 Greg Wood (AFP)

She has beaten Sharapova in every match they have played since 2004.

"I definitely think I played better today. Everything I've been trying to work on was kind of clicking today," she said.

"I thought I played pretty well in the other matches. My first match I thought I gave a great effort. My second match I thought, under the circumstances, I thought I played well. Hopefully with each match I can just do better."

Playing on centre court against the top seed at a Grand Slam was a huge occasion for the 18-year-old Kasatkina, who was not just making her debut at the tournament but is on her first ever trip to Australia.

- 'Bright future' -

"She has such a bright future. She's so young and she's headed in the right direction," she said, adding that she felt it was important for older players to help nurture the younger generation.

"I think it's important. We definitely want to encourage each other. This is our sport. We want to see it grow,' she said.

"Ultimately you want to see it be the best sport for women and continue to be the best sport and biggest sport for women.

"Hopefully we can all encourage and just hope for the best."

Kasatkina came into the event as the world's 69th-ranked player but was no match for the composed and massively experienced American, who is gunning to equal Steffi Graf's Open-era record of 22 Grand Slam titles.

The powerful Williams wasted little time in laying down the law, winning a break for a 2-0 lead with the Russian barely getting her racquet on the ball as she was pushed around the court.

Kasatkina managed to get on the scoreboard in holding serve for 1-3 but she had no answers to Williams' serve as she rattled through the set in just 22 minutes.

After her second-round win, Williams said she was pleased by her consistency and lack of errors, and it was a similar story on Friday.

She made few mistakes in a dominant display and broke in the first game of the second set with outgunned Kasatkina struggling against the Williams weaponry.

Kasatkina didn't give up and won a service game to be 1-2, but that was as good as it got as Williams cantered to the finish line.

Despite her impressive performance, Williams said she could be better.

"I never think I'm playing fantastic ... I'm always very hard on myself," she said. "I always feel like there's room for improvement."

Williams won three majors -- the Australian and French Opens and Wimbledon -- last year which took her to within one of Graf's long-time record of 22.

She claimed her first Australian Open title in 2003, beating sister Venus in the final, and reached her sixth last year when she toppled Sharapova.

Serena Williams of the United States serves during her Australian Open third round match against Russia's Daria Kasatkina on January 22, 2016 Saeed Khan (AFP)

Serena Williams brushed aside Daria Kasatkina at the Australian Open in just 44 minutes Greg Wood (AFP)
Japan's 'rigid' atomic inspections need freedom: IAEA

Japan should free up its "complex and rigid" reactor inspection regime, a global nuclear watchdog said Thursday, as the country restarts more atomic plants five years after the disaster at Fukushima.

A team of experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Tokyo must boost the number of trained nuclear officials and foster "distance" between them and the utilities they regulate.

The calls came as Japan readied to mark the March 11 anniversary of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that caused disastrous meltdowns at the Fukushima nuclear power plant.

Journalists are guided by TEPCO officers looking at Unit 2 (L) and Unit 4 (R) nuclear reactor buildings at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Okuma, Fukushima prefecture on October 9, 2015 Toshifumi Kitamura (AFP/File)

Japan's entire array of reactors was forced offline over the following months amid mounting public suspicion over nuclear technology and growing fears of radiation exposure.

The Japanese government says nuclear power is a necessity for the resource-poor country and a small number of reactors have gone back online since the crisis, with more expected to follow.

But the public has remained widely divided on the subject.

"What we found is the... framework for inspection is very, very complex and rigid," Philippe Jamet, a French Nuclear Safety Authority commissioner, who led the IAEA team, told reporters.

He said inspectors should be allowed to conduct surveys when and where they want.

"There is a comprehensive framework for inspections, but in Japan, it doesn't give enough freedom for inspectors to react immediately" when an abnormality occurs, he added.

Jamet also said that there should be "distance" between inspectors and utility companies, an apparent reference to the cosy ties and clubby nature of Japan's nuclear industry that critics said was a contributing factor to the magnitude of the disaster.

Japan invited the IAEA to conduct a 12-day review of its regulatory and policy issues.
China jails Xinjiang democracy activist for 19 years: lawyer

China has jailed an activist in its volatile northwestern Xinjiang region for 19 years over online posts criticising the ruling Communist Party and interviews with overseas media, his lawyer said Friday.

A court in the regional capital Urumqi found Zhang Haitao guilty of "incitement to subvert state power" and "illegally providing intelligence overseas", his lawyer Li Dunyong told AFP.

China regularly jails dissidents who have spoken out against the Communist Party, but observers said the sentence handed down on Sunday was unusually harsh.

Xinjiang, home to the mainly Muslim Uighur minority, has in recent years seen a security crackdown prompted by clashes in the region that have killed hundreds. Goh Chai Hin (AFP/File)

Xinjiang, home to the mainly Muslim Uighur minority, has in recent years seen a security crackdown prompted by clashes in the region that have killed hundreds.

China says it faces a terrorist threat, while rights groups say restrictions on Islam have created ethnic tensions and that police violence often goes unreported.

China tightly limits domestic media from publishing information about Xinjiang, and foreign journalists are regularly obstructed while reporting there.

The 15 year sentence for "inciting subversion" -- the maximum possible for the charge -- was "about some postings (Zhang) made online... they were about government policies, mainly in Xinjiang," Li said.

"The postings advocated democracy, and opposed dictatorship," he added. "The things he did don't constitute a crime".

Zhang received an additional four-year sentence on a charge of "illegally providing information to outsiders", Li said, adding: "He provided information to foreign media about events in Xinjiang".

Maya Wang, a China researcher at Human Rights Watch, told AFP: "It's quite unusual to have that maximum sentence".

The verdict is more than the 11-year jailing given to writer Liu Xiaobo in 2009 on the same charge, over a petition calling for democratic reforms. Liu was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize a year later.

The Communist Party does not tolerate open challenges to its right to rule, and President Xi Jinping has overseen a crackdown on activists since coming to power in 2012.

A court in Urumqi jailed Uighur academic Ilham Tohti for life for "separatism" in 2104 over a website he ran that was often critical of official ethnic policies.

Zhang's sentence comes in the same month that China formally arrested more than 10 human rights lawyers and legal staff on "state-subversion" related charges.

The Xinjiang court declined to comment when contacted by AFP.

Zhang's lawyer Li added: "The sentence is very heavy. But in Xinjiang verdicts are always stronger than in the rest of the country".
IMF's Lagarde: trailblazer with a knack for straight talking

Five years ago Christine Lagarde smashed through the glass ceiling at one of the world's leading institutions, becoming the first woman to head the International Monetary Fund.

The French lawyer and former finance minister, who was last year named the world's sixth most powerful woman by Forbes magazine, has seen her popularity in France hit a peak and some see hints of further political ambitions despite legal woes.

Lagarde, 60, has brushed aside the chatter and announced Friday she would run for a second five-year term as IMF managing director when her current one expires in July.

Christine Lagarde is the first woman to head the International Monetary Fund Fabrice Coffrini (AFP/File)

She has already won strong European backing for another stint, as well as glowing praise from top US officials, after steering the global lender through one of its most difficult challenges -- rescuing the eurozone from meltdown.

But she now faces a potential hurdle in her stellar career: an order in December to stand trial in a French court, accused of negligence when she was France's finance chief in a massive government payment to French tycoon Bernard Tapie to settle a 2008 business dispute.

It will not be her first headwind at the 188-nation IMF. After taking the helm in July 2011, she patiently worked to restore the institution's luster after the ouster of predecessor Dominique Strauss-Kahn amid a sex scandal.

The IMF move gave her a powerful seat inside the closed circle of the world's leaders -- where women are notable by their absence -- but also responsibility for handling Greece's debt crisis that threatened the whole European economy.

Less than a year after her arrival, the initial rescue plan for Greece crumbled and the IMF was forced to join an expanded second bailout operation, taking the cost to a massive 240 billion euros ($270 billion).

Yet Greece kept bleeding, and now has a third bailout that the IMF supports but has not contributed to financially.

- Straight-talker -

A tough negotiator and determined consensus-builder, Lagarde did not hesitate to cross swords with the very officials she worked closely with in her previous job, even criticizing her successor as finance minister, Pierre Moscovici, of being asleep during one crisis meeting.

"There are many instances of Ms. Lagarde's courageous truth-telling," said economist Desmond Lachman, a former IMF official.

At the same time, she skillfully managed the shifting currents of power in the Fund, where emerging giants like China are challenging the Europe-US-dominated status quo.

Lagarde recently scored two major successes at the IMF: the addition of the Chinese yuan to the Fund's basket of reserve currencies and the passage by the US Congress of long-stalled IMF reforms, for which she had joked she would "do belly-dancing" if needed to get US ratification.

The silver-haired mother of two sons, whose chic wardrobe has also grabbed media attention -- she was once listed among the "best-dressed" personalities in Vanity Fair magazine -- also has fashioned herself as an icon to talented women fighting male dominance in large organizations like the IMF.

A steady career climb to the top of global finance has long made Lagarde a French stand-out.

Born in Paris, her parents were teachers and she was brought up in the port city of Le Havre.

As a teenager she was a synchronized swimming champion and learned to speak nearly flawless English.

After earning a law degree, she skipped a French establishment career and instead joined the Paris office of prestigious US legal consulting giant Baker & McKenzie.

She pushed her way up to become chairwoman of the company's global executive committee in 1999, a first for the firm, and then of its global strategy committee in 2004.

She then embraced politics, joining the government of president Jacques Chirac as trade minister in June 2005.

Two years later, Chirac's successor Nicolas Sarkozy named her agriculture minister, and shortly after switched her to the finance portfolio in 2007, making her the first woman named to the post which she held 2011, a record longevity.

Though not formally an economist, she proved deft at dealing with the financial crisis that would threaten eurozone unity.

During a job interview at a major French law firm at the start of her career, Lagarde recalled in an NPR radio interview how she was told there was no way to break through the glass ceiling.

"'You can join us tomorrow and be an associate, be given great tasks and great files and great clients to work on, but don't ever expect to make partnership' And I said, 'Why would that be?' They said, 'Because you're a woman.'"

"And I just left....," she said.

Christine Lagarde has announced she will run for a second term as the head of the International Monetary Fund Fabrice Coffrini (AFP)

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde was named the world's sixth most powerful woman by Forbes magazine Nicholas Kamm (AFP/File)

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde attends the G20 leaders summit in Antalya, Turkey, in November 2015 Ozan Kose (AFP/File)
Jobless Tunisian's death fuels anger at 'broken promises'

The father of an unemployed Tunisian protester whose death has sparked a new wave of unrest says his son was a victim of corruption and "broken promises" five years after the revolution.

Demonstrators are once again taking to the streets of impoverished central Tunisia, the birthplace of the "Arab Spring", triggering clashes with security forces in which hundreds have been injured.

The unrest has echoes of the public anger unleashed by the death of a street vendor who set himself on fire in a nearby town in December 2010 in protest at unemployment and police harassment.

Demonstrators are once again taking to the streets of impoverished central Tunisia, the birthplace of the "Arab Spring", triggering clashes with security forces in which hundreds have been injured Fathi Nasri (AFP)

That desperate act of defiance provided the spark for the uprising that overthrew longtime leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and inspired revolutions around the region.

Tunisia has been hailed as a beacon of hope compared with other chaos-hit countries like Libya and Egypt, where popular revolts also toppled veteran autocrats.

But its transition has been tested by social unrest over poverty and joblessness as well as by a growing jihadist threat.

Othman Yahyaoui's unemployed son Ridha, 28, was electrocuted on Saturday when he climbed an electricity pole in the town of Kasserine while protesting at the removal of his name from a list of public sector recruits.

"My son is a victim of corruption, marginalisation and broken promises," Yahyaoui told AFP.

"If there was no corruption, the name of my son would never have been removed and he would still be alive. As long as nepotism continues, others will die young like him," the 65-year-old said.

- 'Prime target for terrorists' -

In recent days security forces have used tear gas and water cannon against crowds of hundreds of demonstrators, some of whom burned tyres and threw stones.

The unrest has spread to other parts of the country -- including the capital where authorities reported "sacking and pillaging" in one suburb -- prompting them to declare a nationwide nighttime curfew.

In the town of Feriana, a policeman died Wednesday during an operation to disperse protesters, the interior ministry said, apparently when his vehicle overturned although the circumstances were unclear.

Yahyaoui wants his son, a graduate in electromechanics, to be recognised by the authorities as a "martyr", like the 338 victims of a bloody crackdown on the uprising that led to the overthrow of Ben Ali.

"If I don't get the recognition of my son's rights, I am ready to sacrifice other members of my family," said the father of six other boys and two girls.

Since Saturday, Yahyaoui has joined hundreds of others protesting each day in front of the heavily guarded government headquarters in Kasserine, a town of more than 80,000 near the border with Algeria.

One of his other sons, Mehrez, also came holding a picture of his brother, whose death he blamed on "the state's lack of interest in this region that has been marginalised for decades".

"The social situation is very difficult," said the unemployed 36-year-old.

He warned the authorities were driving youths "to the drug trade and terrorism," alluding to the thousands of Tunisians who have joined jihadist groups in Syria, Iraq and neighbouring Libya.

Such sentiment is widely shared among the youth of Kasserine, where poverty stalks the poorly maintained streets, crowded neighbourhoods and decrepit housing.

"We are a prime target for terrorist groups. We are in such a state of pessimism, disgust and despair that we might even follow the devil to leave this misery," joked Ibrahim, 24, wearing worn-out shoes.

Tunisia is confronted with rising jihadist violence that saw a string of attacks last year including at the National Bardo Museum in Tunis and the Mediterranean resort of Sousse.

Claimed by the Islamic State group, those two attacks killed a total of 60 people, all but one of them foreign tourists.

Tunisia has held two general elections since the revolution, and staged its first free presidential polls in December 2014, won by Beji Caid Essebsi.

But Slim, his face half-covered with a scarf as he and dozens of others blocked a road in the city with burning tyres, said Tunisian politicians "have not understood".

"It's time to make them understand," the 27-year-old said.

In recent days security forces have used tear gas and water cannon against crowds of hundreds of demonstrators, some of whom burned tyres and threw stones Mohamed Khalil (AFP)
US 'aware' of reports of citizen detained in N. Korea

The United States is aware of reports that a US citizen has been detained in North Korea, the State Department said Friday, after Pyongyang declared it had arrested an American student for an unspecified "hostile act".

"The welfare of US citizens is one of the department's highest priorities," US State Department spokesman John Kirby said in Davos, Switzerland.

When US citizens are reported detained in North Korea, the United States works closely with the Swedish embassy in Pyongyang which assists Washington in the country, Kirby said.

North Korea's official news agency says that a student from the University of Virginia has been detained Mark Ralston (AFP/File)

The United States would release no further information beyond its acknowledgement of the media reports, he said, citing "privacy considerations".

North Korea's official KCNA news agency said Friday the country's authorities had arrested a US student who, under orders from Washington, had engaged in an unspecified "hostile act" after entering the country on a tourist visa.

The student, identified as Otto Frederick Warmbier from the University of Virginia, had come to North Korea "for the purpose of bringing down the foundation of its single-minded unity at the tacit connivance of the US government and under its manipulation," KCNA said.
Firefighters battle Libya oil facility blaze

Firefighters on Friday battled a blaze at an oil facility in northern Libya for a second day, an official said, after an assault by jihadists aiming to seize export terminals.

Libya's internationally-recognised government, meanwhile, called for Western air strikes to repel the jihadists.

"Four storage tanks together containing around two million barrels of crude oil are on fire," said a security official in the Ras Lanouf region along Libya's northern coast.

Libyan oil workers try to extinguish flames at an oil facility in northern Libya's Ras Lanouf region after it was set ablaze following fresh attacks launched by Islamic State (IS) group jihadists to seize key port terminals, on January 21, 2016 STRINGER (AFP)

The blaze in one of the tanks is beyond control "and we expect it to collapse at any moment", he said. "We are now working on putting out the fires in the other three tanks."

"The disaster exceeds our capacities," added the official, asking not to be named.

Fighting broke out at dawn on Thursday in Ras Lanouf, the National Oil Corporation (NOC) said.

It said storage tanks filled with crude had caught fire, causing clouds of dense smoke.

It called the situation "catastrophic for the enviroment" and said that nearby high-voltage power lines and electrical towers had also been downed.

State news agency LANA said Islamic State (IS) group jihadists were behind the attack and that the storage tanks belonged to Harouge Oil Operations.

The company has 13 storage tanks with a combined capacity of 6.5 million barrels at its site, nine kilometres (six miles) from Ras Lanouf port.

An NOC official told AFP a committee has been formed to evaluate the damage.

The attack came two days after a national unity government was formed under a UN-brokered deal aimed at ending political divisions that have seen Libya torn between rival administrations.

A spokesman for Libya's recognised government in the east told AFP it was requesting a "limited intervention" by the international community to "protect oil fields from IS attacks".

Hatem el-Ouraybi said the government wanted "air strikes against IS positions" in Libya.

The government has previously called for an air campaign against IS, like in Iraq and Syria, but world powers are first waiting for rival sides to endorse the unity government.

IS has in recent weeks launched repeated attacks from its stronghold in the city of Sirte on facilities in the "oil crescent" along the country's northern coast.

Libya sits atop estimated oil reserves of 48 billion barrels, the largest in Africa.
Flagging in polls, Jeb drafts mom into campaign

Once the golden hope of the 2016 Republican ticket for the White House but now the butt of frontrunner Donald Trump's mockery, Jeb Bush has called on his mother to help him win.

The 90-year-old former first lady, whose husband and eldest son have already served as US president, famously advised her second son Jeb against running for the White House.

But it seems she has changed her mind.

2016 Republican Presidential hopeful Jeb Bush speaks at the Council on Foreign Relations on January 19, 2016 in New York Don Emmert (AFP/File)

"Jeb has been a very good father, a wonderful son, a hard worker -- his heart is big," she says, elegantly coiffed and turned out in blouse and pearls for the 34-second video released by his campaign on Friday.

"When push comes to shove people are going to realize Jeb has real solutions, rather than talking about how popular they are, or how great they are.

"He's doing it because he sees a huge need and it's not being filled by anybody. Of all the people running, he seems to be the one who could solve the problems. I think he'll be a great president," she adds.

The 62-year-old former Florida governor raised vast sums of money but struggled to retain voter interest in a campaign dominated by the brash, insult-dishing billionaire and TV celebrity Trump.

To ram the message home, Bush's campaign also released a copy of a hand-written letter by the former first lady in which he explains her change of heart.

"People ask me if I wanted Jeb to run. The answer was no as the sacrifice for his family was huge. I changed my mind as it became clear that he is needed. I admit to being prejudiced as I am his mother," says the letter.

Barbara made headlines in April 2013 by announcing in an interview that she did not want to see Jeb follow his father and older brother into the White House.

"There are other people out there that are very qualified and we've had enough Bushes," she said on NBC television.
Guantanamo Bay inmate refuses to leave

A Yemeni prisoner who had been cleared to leave Guantanamo Bay after nearly 14 years has opted to stay in the military prison for now, a Pentagon spokesman said Friday.

Mohammed Ali Abdullah Bwazir had been due to be transferred on Wednesday, but changed his mind at the last minute, Lieutenant Commander Gary Ross said.

"We cannot discuss the details of a detainee's decision not to accept resettlement in a third country, other than to note that he declined to accept the offer for resettlement," he added.

A Yemeni prisoner who had been cleared to leave Guantanamo Bay after nearly 14 years has opted to stay in the military prison for now, a Pentagon spokesman said Mladen Antonov (AFP/File)

The detainee remained on the Pentagon's list of men approved for transfer, and officials would continue trying to move him, according to Ross.

"We are starting again with trying to negotiate with different countries to try to accept him," he said.

The Pentagon did not disclose to which country Bwazir had declined to go.

Bwazir's lawyer, John Chandler, told the Miami Herald that his client had become like a character in the prison movie "The Shawshank Redemption," who couldn't handle life outside of captivity.

"He's been in Guantanamo so long that he was terrified about going to a country other than one where he had family," Chandler said.

A defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Bwazir had wanted to go to an Arabic-speaking country.

According to his leaked prison files, Bwazir allegedly fought in Osama Bin Laden's 55th Arab Brigade.

He had previously participated in hunger strikes to protest his lengthy imprisonment, the Herald reported.

The Pentagon on Thursday announced the transfer of another two inmates from Guantanamo Bay, bringing the facility's remaining population down to 91.
UN council makes little headway in Burundi crisis talks

UN Security Council ambassadors met for two hours with Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza on Friday, but said they had made little headway in efforts to bring peace to the troubled central African nation.

The ambassadors met the president at his residence outside the capital during their second trip to the country in less than a year, appealing for him to take urgent action to stop the violence sparked by his re-election.

Council envoys have pushed for the government to hold talks with the opposition and agree to the presence of international troops -- such as a proposed 5,000-strong African Union force -- to restore stability.

Burundian soldiers in Bujumbura after a police operation on July 1, 2015 Marco Longari (AFP/File)

But United States Ambassador Samantha Power said after the talks the envoys "didn't achieve as much, frankly, as I think we would have liked".

"There is a 'cri de coeur' from many, many people in Burundi for outside help and for urgent, urgent mediation to get a solution," Power added.

Burundi has been gripped by violence since April, when Nkurunziza announced his intention to run for a controversial third term, which he went on to win in July elections.

More than 400 people have died since then and at least 230,000 have fled the country, but Burundi's government insists there is no need for foreign troops and has branded AU peacekeepers an "invasion force".

Nkurunziza took a hard line during the meeting at his hilltop residence in Gitega, some two hours outside of Bujumbura, where he rejected calls for inclusive dialogue, renewed mediation efforts and an international intervention force.

He once again accused neighbouring Rwanda of backing armed opposition groups, and denied international warnings that the violence could turn into ethnic killings.

Relations between Rwanda and neighbouring Burundi are tense, with Bujumbura accusing Kigali of backing armed rebels and political opponents of Nkurunziza. Rwanda has denied all the claims.

"I can guarantee that there will not be a genocide in Burundi," Nkurunziza said, adding that Burundi is "99 percent secure".

- Nightly violence -

Nkurunziza's refusal to compromise has raised the prospect of tougher measures ahead to stop almost nightly outbreaks of violence.

Clashes in Bujumbura Thursday evening left three people dead, police said, including one youth who was shot dead by police after a grenade went off. Explosions and gunfire were heard in several places across the capital.

French Deputy UN ambassador Alexis Lamek said talks with the opposition will stand a better chance of succeeding if backed by international mediation.

But Angolan Ambassador Ismael Gaspar Martins said there was hope for a possible agreement on deploying more AU observers.

The 15 council members were greeted on arrival Thursday by pro-government demonstrators telling them to stop meddling.

Hundreds lined the road leading from the airport to greet the envoys with signs that read "genocide will not happen" and "stop interfering in Burundian affairs".

AU Commission chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has expressed "fervent hope" that the UN ambassadors would work towards achieving the rapid deployment of peacekeepers and restart stalled talks between the government and opposition.

The US and France support the AU proposal, but other UN Security Council members such as Russia, Angola and Egypt are reluctant to put too much pressure on the government.

- 'Stop this bloodletting' -

Nkurunziza is also balking at AU plans to deploy more rights monitors in Burundi while the United Nations is beefing up its presence in Bujumbura.

Council envoys travel to Addis Ababa on Saturday to meet with AU officials about the proposal, which is expected to be a key element of talks at an AU summit in Ethiopia on January 30-31.

On Thursday, two former Burundian presidents appealed to the council ambassadors to take action and pleaded for an AU force to be sent.

"We really need that force," said Domitien Ndayizeye, who led the landlocked nation from 2003-2005.

Jean-Baptiste Bagaza, in power from 1976 to 1987, urged the council envoys to "stop this bloodletting that is making our young people disappear".

Bagaza warned that without urgent international action, Burundi could "become another Rwanda", referring to the neighbouring country's 1994 genocide.

Hours before the UN diplomats arrived, Burundian rebels named a fugitive ex-general who fled after leading a failed coup bid in May as their leader.

The rebel force, which announced its formation in December, calls itself the Republican Forces of Burundi, or "Forebu" after its French acronym.

Samantha Power (R), US ambassador to the United Nations, shakes hands with Albert Shingiro, Burundi's permanent representative to the United Nations, upon her arrival at Bujumbura airport on January 21, 2016 Griff Tapper (AFP)

Burundian protesters hold banners as the US ambassador to the United Nations (not seen) arrives at Bujumbura airport on January 21, 2016 Griff Tapper (AFP)

Military personnel sit aboard a vehicle driving through the Musaga neighbourhood of the city of Bujumbura on December 11, 2015
New Sierra Leone Ebola case responding to treatment

A second new case of Ebola in Sierra Leone since west Africa celebrated the apparent end of the epidemic last week is responding well to treatment, an official said Friday.

The patient, the 38-year-old aunt of 22-year-old Marie Jalloh, who died of the disease on January 12, is "responding well to treatment" in a Freetown clinic, a ministry of health disease control official, Doctor Foday Dafai, said.

The official added authorities had yet to determine the origin of the new outbreak.

An MSF medical worker, wearing protective clothing, relays patient details and updates to a colleague in Kailahun, Sierra Leone on August 15, 2014 Carl de Souza (AFP/File)

Dafai said the latest sufferer, who the World Health Organization told AFP on Thursday had been Jalloh's "primary caregiver," was in quarantine in the northern city of Magburaka when she tested positive and was transferred to the capital.

After visiting the woman, Dafai indicated that "121 contacts have been identified to have been exposed to the index case and 47 of them have been classified as high risk contacts" and so were under observation.

Given the potential for further infection he added "it is therefore very important that we quickly locate and isolate" anyone who may have had contact with the latest sufferer.

Dafai said a vaccination program for known contacts and overseen by chief medical officer Brima Kargbo was progressing satisfactorily," but urged anybody who may have been exposed to the virus to come forward.

"At the moment, we still don't know the source of infection in the first index case involving Marie Jalloh," Dafai said.

WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic told AFP on Thursday that 150 of Jalloh's contacts had been identified, "of which 42 are high risk."

Local people expressed concern over the potential further spread of a tropical virus which is at its most infectious as people are dying or in the bodies of those who have died from a virus which emerged in 2013 in southern Guinea.

"We never envisaged that the virus will return so soon just we were about to settle down after 18 months of enslavement," said 25-year-old taxi driver Osman Sesay.

A week ago, the WHO had announced transmission of the virus that killed 11,315 people and triggered a global health alert had ended, with Liberia the last country to get the all-clear.

Sierra Leone was declared free of Ebola transmission on November 7 last year and Guinea on December 29.

But officials warned that a recurrence remained possible and stressed the importance of a quick, effective response to potential new cases.

"Even though the cases occurred many miles away from the capital, we still cannot say we are safe because of the mode of human transmission," said Ibrahim Jallo, a timber merchant.

Traders say they fear the effect the latest cases may have on the economy.
US acknowledges two more civilian deaths in Syria strikes

Two civilians were "likely" killed in US-led coalition strikes last year near Raqa, the stronghold in Syria of the Islamic State group, and four others were injured in separate incidents, the Pentagon announced Friday.

US Central Command (CENTCOM), which oversees operations in the Middle East, said the deaths came during four strikes in Syria and one in Iraq, bringing to 16 the total number of civilians the US-led coalition has acknowledged killing in the two countries since operations against IS jihadists began in August 2014.

In a statement, CENTCOM said "the preponderance of evidence" indicated the five separate US strikes in July had "likely resulted in the death of two civilians" and injuries to four more.

Syrians inspect the damage following a reported US-led coalition air strike in the town of Harem in the northwestern province of Idlib, bordering Turkey, on November 19, 2014 Mohamad Zeen (AFP/File)

Three of the strikes occurred near Raqa, the jihadists' de facto Syrian capital. One was near the Syrian town of Sarmada, and the fifth was near Mosul in Iraq.

The two civilians were assessed as having been killed in separate attacks near Raqa, one on July 4 and the other on July 11. The first hit a truck and trailer, the second a vehicle crossing a bridge.

The Sarmada strike, which injured two civilians on a motorcycle, was against Khorasan Group leader Muhsin al-Fadhli, CENTCOM said. According to the Pentagon, Khorasan is a group of Al-Qaeda veterans alleged to be plotting attacks against the West.

CENTCOM spokesman Colonel Pat Ryder said the United States regretted the loss of life, but said the IS group bore responsibility.

"It's worth mentioning ISIL's culpability as they continue to operate and hide among innocent civilians and populated areas in an attempt to avoid being targeted," Ryder said, using an alternative acronym for the IS group.

He called the ongoing aerial bombardment the "most precise air campaign in history," and noted that since August 8, 2014, the US-led coalition has dropped some 35,000 guided bombs in Iraq and Syria in nearly 9,800 air strikes.

"While we do our best to minimize civilian casualties through our careful targeting process and our use of precise weapons systems, we also operate in a dynamic environment and unfortunately we cannot guarantee zero civilian casualties in an armed conflict such as this one," he said.

The United States has received 120 allegations of civilian casualties as a result of coalition strikes. Ryder said 87 of these were deemed "not credible." Fourteen allegations remain under review.

The Pentagon last week announced the deaths of eight civilians in Iraq and Syria.

Critics claim coalition strikes are killing far more civilians than the United States has acknowledged.
Christie promises to let allies vent about Obama

MEREDITH, N.H. (AP)  Chris Christie said Thursday that if wins the White House he'll invite the leaders of six U.S. allies to complain about President Barack Obama.

The New Jersey governor told voters in New Hampshire that he'd invite the leaders of six U.S. allies  Israel, Mexico, Canada, Great Britain, France and Germany  to the Camp David presidential retreat for separate meetings during his first months in office. The first hour of each visit, he said, would be spent "venting" about how Obama treated them during his presidency.

"Maybe two hours for Netanyahu," he quipped, referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Republican presidential candidate, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie shakes hands with Tom Carr during a campaign stop at Globe Manufacturing, a family owned business that makes suits for firefighters, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Pittsfield, N.H (AP Photo/Jim Cole)

After the airing of grievances, Christie said he'd talk with each of the leaders about their visions for the world in the next four years. He said it's critical for the next president to build stronger partnerships to defeat the Islamic State group and pursue other global initiatives.

"America cannot carry the burden of the world by itself," Christie said.

Christie outlined the meetings as one of the first three things he would do if elected. The other two include repealing a number of Obama's executive orders and initiating tax and regulatory reform, he said.

Christie, like his fellow Republican presidential candidates, says Obama has hurt America's standing in the world. Many of the candidates list improving the U.S. relationship with Israel as a key priority.

National security has become a major focus of Christie's campaign, and he points to his time as a federal prosecutor after Sept. 11, 2001, to make the case that he knows what it takes to fight terrorism.

Christie is one of nearly half a dozen GOP candidates fighting to emerge from New Hampshire's Feb. 9 primary as an establishment alternative to Donald Trump and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.
College's faculty council opposes effort to fire professor

WHEATON, Ill. (AP)  The faculty council of a suburban Chicago Christian college has recommended the school end its effort to fire a tenured professor who asserted while wearing a headscarf that Christians and Muslims worship the same God.

In a letter to her colleagues Wednesday, Wheaton College Faculty Council chairman Lynn Cohick said the group unanimously agreed the termination effort against Larycia (lah-REE'-shuh) Hawkins should "be withdrawn due to grave concerns about the process." College officials say they began the effort because Hawkins refused to participate in "clarifying conversations" about theological issues, something she denies.

In a statement Thursday, Wheaton said its administration respects the viewpoints of the faculty council. It added it is following the college's established process for handling employment decisions pertaining to tenured faculty members.
Remains of Vietnam War soldier buried in southern Illinois

ALBION, Ill. (AP)  A staff sergeant from Illinois who served in the U.S. Army and was killed during a mission in Vietnam has been laid to rest next to his parents 46 years after his death.

Kenneth Leroy Cunningham was aboard a Mohawk aircraft during a surveillance mission on Oct. 3, 1969, when the plane crashed on a mountaintop near Kon Tum Province. Cunningham, then 21, and the plane's pilot were declared missing in action.

Cunningham's remains weren't found until a few years ago and not positively identified until last month.

A procession to Little Prairie Cemetery in Albion, Ill., carries Pfc. Kenneth L. Cunningham's remains Thursday afternoon, Jan. 21, 2016. Hundreds of people lined the streets as a hearse went through the southern Illinois city of Albion carrying the remains of Cunningham, an airman listed as missing in action during the Vietnam War. (Denny Simmons/Evansville Courier & Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT

The Evansville Courier & Press reports an Albion, Illinois, church was filled to capacity Thursday for Cunningham's funeral.

Before the service, U.S. Congressman John Shimkus presented the Cunningham family with an American flag that flew over the U.S. Capitol. The family also received Cunningham's Purple Heart and Vietnam Service Medal.

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Information from: Evansville Courier & Press, http://www.courierpress.com

U.S. Army Pfc. Kenneth L. Cunningham's remains are transported to Little Prairie Cemetery in Albion, Ill., accompanied by an Army honor guard Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. Cunningham had been missing in action since Oct. 3, 1969, while serving in the U.S. Army, and his remains were returned to the United States this month after being identified some 46 years later. (Denny Simmons/Evansville Courier & Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT

Taps are played at the burial service for Pfc. Kenneth L. Cunningham at the Little Prairie Cemetery in Albion, Ill., Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. Cunningham had been missing in action since Oct. 3, 1969, while serving in the U.S. Army, and his remains were returned to the United States this month after being identified some 46 years later. (Denny Simmons/Evansville Courier & Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT

Charlie Simmons of Centralia, Ill., a veteran of the U.S. Army, who now rides with the Illinois Patriot Guard Riders and attended Pfc. Kenneth L. Cunningham's funeral service stands with an American flag at the Little prairie Christian Church in Albion, Ill., Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. Cunningham had been missing in action since Oct. 3, 1969, while serving in the U.S. Army, and his remains were returned to the United States this month after being identified some 46 years later. (Denny Simmons/Evansville Courier & Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT

U.S. Army Sgt. First Class Jeffrey Schultz presents Ruth Barnett of Albion, Ill., with the flag which draped her brother, Pfc. Kenneth L. Cunningham's casket at his burial service at Little Prairie Cemetery in Albion, Ill., Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. Cunningham had been missing in action since Oct. 3, 1969, while serving in the U.S. Army, and his remains were returned to the United States this month after being identified some 46 years later. (Denny Simmons/Evansville Courier & Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT

U.S. Army Sgt. First Class Jeffrey Schultz awaits the arrival of Pfc. Kenneth L. Cunnningham's remains at Little Prairie Cemetery in Albion, Ill., Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. Cunningham had been missing in action since Oct. 3, 1969, while serving in the U.S. Army, and his remains were returned to the United States this month after being identified some 46 years later. (Denny Simmons/Evansville Courier & Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT

Pfc. Kenneth L. Cunningham's remains are placed in a waiting hearse after his funeral service at Little Prairie Christian Church in Albion, Ill., Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. Hundreds of people lined the streets as a hearse went through the southern Illinois city of Albion carrying the remains of Cunningham, an airman listed as missing in action during the Vietnam War. (Denny Simmons/Evansville Courier & Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT
Eco-warrior Tompkins' widow to deepen conservation work

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP)  The widow of American conservationist Doug Tompkins, who died last month while kayaking in South America's Patagonia region, says she'll build on her husband's legacy of protecting threatened ecosystems in Argentina and Chile.

Kristine McDivitt Tompkins said in a telephone interview from Puerto Varas in southern Chile that since her husband died at age 72, she has been working non-stop to permanently protect from development the millions of acres they acquired over a quarter-century.

McDivitt Tompkins met with Chile's President Michelle Bachelet on Thursday to discuss the proposed handover of pristine properties to create a string of national parks in Patagonia. In December, she met with new Argentine President Mauricio Macri to donate to the country 150,000 hectares (370,000 acres) of threatened wetlands near the border with Brazil to create Ibera National Park.

Kristine McDivitt Tompkins, widow of late American conservationist Doug Tompkins, waves the photographers after meeting with Chile's President Michelle Bachelet at La Moneda Palace in Santiago, Chile, Thursday Jan. 21, 2016. McDivitt Tompkins said that since her husband died last month while kayaking in South Americas Patagonia region at age 72, she has been working non-stop to permanently protect from future development the millions of acres they acquired over a quarter-century. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

"It's very hard to imagine a life without Doug as my husband, but I know that the work that we started we're going to finish," McDivitt Tompkins, a former CEO of outdoor clothing company Patagonia Inc., told The Associated Press on Tuesday in her first interview since her husband's death. "The idea of stopping, slowing down or changing our plans never occurred to me."

In conservation circles, the high-school dropout Tompkins is revered as a kind of environmental messiah. A globe-trotting rock climber and skier in his youth, in the early 1990s he got divorced, abandoned the corporate fast lane and moved to the Chilean wilds after cashing out shares in two major retail clothiers he founded: The North Face and Esprit.

Shortly after, he and McDivitt Tompkins, his second wife, started quietly gobbling up large tracts of land to protect a 3,000-year-old forest in Patagonia. Along the way they earned the opposition of loggers, power companies and nationalist Chileans who fueled rumors that the "gringo" millionaire was trying to steal Chile's water resources or perhaps was a CIA spy.

True to his adventurer's roots, Tompkins was out on a lake with longtime friends including Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard when their kayaks capsized in freezing waters on Dec. 8 and he died hours later from hypothermia.

Over the years, he and his wife had invested more than $375 million in conservation, donating part of their land holdings in the two South American countries to create four national parks protecting upward of 1.2 million hectares (3 million acres)  an area three times the size of Rhode Island.

Lately, they were engaged in their most-ambitious deal yet: donating land to Chile to create or expand eight more parks in Patagonia totaling 4.5 million hectares (11 million acres), or about 15 times the size of California's Yosemite National Park. Those properties include a former sheep ranch, Estancia Valle Chacabuco, where Tomkins was buried.

A memorial gathering for Tompkins is planned later this month in San Francisco, where he developed his business career.

McDivitt Tompkins said she now plans to continue dividing her time between Argentina and Chile.

She said that once-harsh views about the couple's suspected motives have now eased, meanwhile South Americans are more aware of the value of keeping land off limits to extractive industries. Case in point: Chile's Senate, which years ago threatened to strip Tompkins of his holdings, has unanimously agreed to grant him honorary citizenship posthumously.

"Ideas that are new take time to simmer and be accepted and that's probably a good thing," said McDivitt Tompkins. "But I think over time, Doug will be seen not only as one of the great conservationists but an extraordinary individual."

"Whatever he undertook," she added, her voice breaking, "he did with 100 percent commitment."

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Goodman reported from Bogota, Colombia.

Follow Goodman on Twitter: https://twitter.com/apjoshgoodman

Kristine McDivitt Tompkins, widow of late American conservationist Doug Tompkins, left, listens to Chile's President Michelle Bachelet during a meeting at La Moneda Palace in Santiago, Chile, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. McDivitt Tompkins said that since her husband died last month while kayaking in South Americas Patagonia region at age 72, she has been working non-stop to permanently protect from future development the millions of acres they acquired over a quarter-century. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

Kristine McDivitt Tompkins, widow of late American conservationist Doug Tompkins, leaves La Moneda Palace after a meeting with Chile's President Michelle Bachelet in Santiago, Chile, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. McDivitt Tompkins said that since her husband died last month while kayaking in South Americas Patagonia region at age 72, she has been working non-stop to permanently protect from future development the millions of acres they acquired over a quarter-century. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)
S. Korea says time to consider nuclear talks without North

SEOUL, South Korea (AP)  South Korea's president questioned the role of long-dormant North Korean nuclear disarmament talks, saying Friday that regional powers should meet without the North in the wake its recent nuclear test.

The so-called six-nation talks aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear program in return for aid have been stalled since they were last held in December 2008. Pyongyang has since conducted three nuclear tests, including the latest on Jan. 6, sparking worries the country has made progress in its bomb program.

The six countries are the two Koreas, the United States, China, Russia and Japan.

South Korean President Park Geun-hye speaks during a joint briefing from the foreign, unification and defense ministries at the presidential house in Seoul, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. President Park questioned the role of long-dormant North Korean nuclear disarmament talks, saying Friday it's time that regional powers meet without the North in the wake its recent nuclear test. (Baek Seung-ryul/Yonhap via AP) KOREA OUT

In a meeting with top officials, South Korean President Park Geun-hye said it was time to look for "diverse, creative" ways to try to resolve the nuclear standoff, such as a five-nation meeting without North Korea. She did not offer specifics.

"In the past, the six-party talks were useful as a tool to try to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue through dialogue. But the question about their effectiveness cannot help being raised if the current situation  no talks  continues or they aren't helpful for the North's denuclearization even if they are held," Park said, according to her office.

The six-party talks have taken place in fits and starts in Beijing since 2003. The talks once led North Korea to take major disarmament steps, but they have eventually failed to halt the North's nuclear ambitions.

Pyongyang walked away from the negotiations in April 2009 to protest international condemnation over its long-range rocket launch. The North later said it was willing to rejoin the talks in what outside analysts said was an attempt to win aid and revive its struggling economy. But U.S. and South Korean officials responded coolly to the overture, saying they first wanted to see North Korea taking some concrete actions and showing how serious it is about disarmament before the talks can resume.

It was not known if Park's push for a five-nation meeting would happen soon. North Korea would likely respond angrily to any such meeting, and it is unlikely China, the North's last major ally and biggest aid provider, and Russia, also a traditional ally, would quickly embrace Park's proposal.

Park on Friday urged China to take unspecified "effective" measures to make North Korea follow in the footsteps of Iran, which last year agreed to curb its nuclear activities in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions.

North Korea says it conducted a hydrogen bomb test on Jan. 6. Many governments and experts remain highly skeptical about the North's claim, but whatever device North Korea detonated will likely push the country a step closer toward its goal of manufacturing a miniaturized warhead to place on a missile that can threaten the U.S. mainland.
The Latest: Macedonia shuts border with Greece to refugees

ATHENS, Greece (AP)  The latest developments in Europe's immigration crisis (all times local):

8:00 p.m.

Greek authorities say neighboring Macedonia has again stopped letting in refugees heading north from Greece to wealthier European countries, leaving hundreds stranded on the border.

People check bodies of migrants that were drowned as they were trying to reach Greece, at a port near Izmir, Turkey, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. Turkey's coast guard says 12 migrants have drowned after a boat taking them to the Greek islands capsized in rough weather. About 40 migrants have died so far this year off Turkey's coast while trying to cross into Greece, the coast guard says. (IHA via AP) TURKEY OUT

There was no official explanation for the move late Friday, and Macedonian authorities were not immediately available for comment.

About 750 people are on the Greek side of the border near the village of Idomeni, waiting for the crossing to reopen. While about 200 are in a heated shelter, the rest are in buses parked near the border.

Macedonia briefly closed the border to refugees earlier Friday but soon re-opened it. The country is only letting in people from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, whom it considers refugees. It rejects all others as economic migrants.

The border was also closed for two days earlier this week.

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4:45 p.m.

A migrant who came to Sweden last year and was labeled a terror suspect by police has demanded 1 million kronor ($116,420) in damages from the Swedish state.

Moder Mothama Magid was arrested Nov. 20 at a refugee center in a remote village in Arctic Sweden following a nationwide manhunt days after the Paris attacks, which caused tensions throughout Europe. Shortly after, he was freed and is no longer suspected of any crime.

Lawyer Peter Ataseven told local media his 22-year-old client had sought compensation because he had been "suspected of a particularly serious crime" and had been portrayed in media as a terrorist. Ataseven could not immediately be reached for further comments.

In November, Sweden raised its terror alert, saying it was looking for a suspected terrorist. No explanation was ever provided.

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3:05 p.m.

Slovenian authorities say they have sent back to Croatia 15 migrants who weren't going to seek asylum in the Alpine country or in Austria or Germany.

Police said Friday the group was rejected according to new rules applied this week along the so-called Balkan corridor for migrants from the Middle East and Africa who wish to reach Europe.

Macedonia, Serbia and Croatia have said they are imposing the new limitations after the Austrian government said it would do the same. Austria is seeking to cap the number of migrants coming into the country.

More than 1 million people have entered Europe last year in the biggest migration to the continent since World War II. They mostly went to Germany and other wealthy EU nations.

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2:30 p.m.

Greece's coast guard says one more body has been recovered Friday from the sinking of a wooden smuggling boat off the island of Farmakonissi in the Aegean Sea, bringing the death toll in that sinking to eight.

In all, at least 42 people have drowned in two separate smuggling boat sinkings Friday, one in Farmakonissi and one off the coast of Kalolimnos to the south, where at least 34 bodies were recovered.

Greece is the main entry point for hundreds of thousands of people seeking safety or a better life in Europe.

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1:50 p.m.

Greece's coast guard says 34 people have drowned when a wooden sailing boat carrying migrants sank off the coast of the small islet of Kalolimnos.

The coast guard said Friday it had recovered the bodies of 16 women, 11 children and seven men, while at least 26 people had been rescued. It was unclear how many people had originally been on the boat. Coast guard vessels, a helicopter and private boats are still searching the area.

The sinking came hours after seven people  six children and one woman  drowned when another boat carrying 48 people sank off the island of Farmakonissi to the north.

Greece is the main entry point for hundreds of thousands of people seeking safety or a better life in Europe.

1 p.m.

Norwegian police have halted deportations of asylum-seekers to Russia via a border crossing in the Arctic for the second consecutive day, citing a lack of buses in Norway.

Police spokesman Daniel Drageset says 82 people have, however, been formally arrested inside a camp for refuges facing deportation in Kirkenes, a Norwegian town close to the Russian border, for fear they might flee.

Drageset said Friday about 30 people saw their deportation suspended Thursday "because of lack of staff on the Russian side of the border."

Norway plans to return many of the 5,500 people who rode on bicycles across the Storskog crossing that is closed to pedestrians. Some of the migrants had permits to stay in Russia where they had been living for years and did not qualify for asylum.

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10:45 a.m.

Hungary's prime minister has praised Austria for setting a cap on the number of migrants it will take in, saying "common sense has prevailed."

Viktor Orban said Friday on state radio that the Austrian decision to accept 37,500 refugees this year and a total of 127,500 through 2019 was "the most important news of the past months" and showed that "Europe can't take in huge masses of foreign people in an unlimited, uncontrolled manner."

Orban, who last year built fences on the borders with Serbia and Croatia to stop the migrant flow, said that for Hungary "the best migrant is the migrant who does not come. The best number is zero."

Orban also said that Hungary had exported hundreds of kilometers of its razor wire fence  many of its elements built by convicts in workshops  to Macedonia, Slovenia and Bulgaria.

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8:55 a.m.

Greece's coast guard says at least 21 people have died in two separate sinkings of boats smuggling migrants off two Greek islands overnight. Dozens have survived, and a search and rescue operation is underway for more potential survivors.

The coast guard says a wooden boat carrying 48 people sank in the early hours of Friday off the small island of Farmakonissi in the eastern Aegean. Forty of the passengers managed to make it to shore, while authorities rescued one girl and recovered seven bodies from the sea.

In a separate incident, a wooden sailboat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the island of Kalolimnos.

The coast guard rescued 26 people and recovered 14 bodies. Coast guard vessels, a helicopter and private boats are searching for survivors.

Turkish coast guard officers arrive with bodies of migrants that were drowned as they were trying to reach Greece, at a port near Izmir, Turkey, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. Turkey's coast guard says 12 migrants have drowned after a boat taking them to the Greek islands capsized in rough weather. About 40 migrants have died so far this year off Turkey's coast while trying to cross into Greece, the coast guard says. (IHA via AP) TURKEY OUT

In this photo taken on Friday, Jan. 15, 2016, An Afghan mother holds her baby as she sits on a bench after their arrival , from Turkey to the shores of the Greek island of Chios, on an dinghy crammed with refugees and migrants on Friday, Jan. 15, 2016. Even during the winter, overloaded dinghies have continued to reach Greek islands in droves, halting only when the sea is too rough. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

In this photo taken on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, refugees looks on their smart phone inside the Souda camp for refugees and migrants in front of the stone wall of the castle of Chios island, Greece . Chios, an island of 50,000 residents, saw the second-largest number of arrivals in 2015, behind its northern neighbor Lesbos, where about half of all asylum-seekers landed. Although the islands of the eastern Aegean have been on the migrant-smuggling route for more than a decade, numbers were minimal until recently. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
Europe's migration crisis claims another 46 lives in Aegean

ATHENS, Greece (AP)  The death toll in Europe's migration crisis rose Friday when two overcrowded smuggling boats foundered off Greece and at least 46 people drowned  more than a third of them children  as European officials remained deeply divided on how to handle the influx.

More than 70 people survived, and a large air and sea search-and-rescue effort was underway off the eastern islet of Kalolimnos, the site of the worst accident. It was unclear how many people were aboard the wooden sailboat that sank there in deep water, leaving at least 35 dead.

Coast guard divers were due to descend to the sunken wreck early Saturday, amid fears that more people had been trapped below deck.

Greek Coast guard officers prepare for a rescue mission at the port of Kalymnos island on Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. A wooden sailboat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the islet of Kalolimnos near the Greek southeastern island of Kalymnos. A number of people died in two separate incidents of boats smuggling migrants or refugees sinking off two Greek islands overnight into Friday. Dozens survived, and a search and rescue operation was underway for more potential survivors. (Dimitris Drosos/Kalymnos-News.gr via AP)

At least 800 people have died or vanished in the Aegean Sea since the start of 2015, as a record of more than 1 million refugees and economic migrants entered Europe. About 85 percent of them crossed to the Greek islands from nearby Turkey, paying large sums to smuggling gangs for berths in unseaworthy boats.

Rights groups said the deaths highlight the need for Europe to provide those desperate to reach the prosperous continent's shores with a better alternative to smuggling boats.

European policy toward its worst immigration crisis since World War II has diverged wildly so far. Germany  where most are heading  has welcomed those it considers refugees. Other countries, led by Hungary, have blocked or restricted them from entering and resisted plans to share the burden of refugees.

"These deaths highlight both the heartlessness and the futility of the growing chorus demanding greater restrictions on refugee access to Europe," said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International's Europe and Central Asia program director.

"A manageable crisis has become a moral test that Europe is in danger of failing dismally," he said.

The U.N. refugee agency said daily arrivals on the Greek islands have surged to more than 3,000 in the past two days, and it cited refugee testimony that smugglers have recently halved their rates amid deteriorating weather conditions.

"It is tragic that refugees, including families with young children, feel compelled to entrust their lives to unscrupulous smugglers in view of lack of safe and legal ways for refugees to find protection," said Philippe Leclerc of UNHCR Greece.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel met Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Berlin and pledged to continue to work intensively together not only to stem the flow of people but to improve conditions in camps in Turkey and to try to bring about a peace deal in Syria.

"The refugee crisis is not Germany's crisis, it is not Europe's crisis, it is not Turkey's crisis," Davutoglu said in a news conference with Merkel. "It is a crisis that was born out of the crisis in Syria. If we cooperate, we can bring this crisis under control. If we throw the issue at each other, solving this issue will become more difficult."

Germany saw an unprecedented 1.1 million asylum-seekers arrive last year, many of them fleeing conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Turkey hosts more than 2.2 million Syrian refugees from a nearly five-year civil war that has killed a quarter of a million people and displaced half the country. Peace talks are scheduled to begin Sunday in Geneva, although officials say they might be delayed by a few days.

Davutoglu praised Merkel for her open-door stance, saying the steps she took "will go down in history. The people of Syria will never forget this humanitarian stance."

European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini warned that the 28-nation bloc faces big economic risks if its members start putting up walls that restrict borderless travel.

"We are doing studies of that, and it is impressive," she said, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

But Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who last year built fences on his nation's borders with Serbia and Croatia, praised Austria for setting a cap this week on the numbers of refugees it will take.

"Common sense has prevailed," Orban said on state radio, calling the Austrian decision "the most important news of the past months."

"Europe can't take in huge masses of foreign people in an unlimited, uncontrolled manner," he said, adding that for Hungary, "the best migrant is the migrant who does not come."

Greek authorities say neighboring Macedonia has again stopped letting in refugees heading north from Greece, leaving about 750 people stranded on the border. There was no official explanation for the move late Friday, and Macedonian authorities were not immediately available for comment.

In the first sinking before dawn Friday in the eastern Aegean, a wooden boat carrying 49 people went down off Farmakonissi islet. Forty people managed to make it to shore, while authorities rescued one girl and recovered the bodies of six children and two women.

A few hours later, a sailboat sank off Kalolimnos, south of Farmakonissi. The coast guard rescued 22 men and four women, and recovered 35 bodies: 17 women, seven men and 11 children.

One survivor told The Associated Press that the vessel's engine failed about 3 a.m., five hours after they left Izmir, Turkey. Speaking at a reception center on the nearby island of Kalymnos, he said about 80 people on board had paid $2,500 each for a berth, with half that sum for children.

Later, Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency said the Turkish coast guard rescued six survivors from the area of the two accidents and found another three bodies.

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Associated Press writer David Rising in Berlin contributed to this report.

A man walks past Greek Coast guard officers standing near their vessel at the port of Kalymnos island on Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. A wooden sailboat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the islet of Kalolimnos near the Greek southeastern island of Kalymnos. A number of people died in two separate incidents of boats smuggling migrants or refugees sinking off two Greek islands overnight into Friday. Dozens survived, and a search and rescue operation was underway for more potential survivors. (Dimitris Drosos/Kalymnos-News.gr via AP)

Greek Coast guard officers stand outside their vessel at the port of Kalymnos island on Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. A wooden sailboat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the islet of Kalolimnos near the Greek southeastern island of Kalymnos. A number of people died in two separate incidents of boats smuggling migrants or refugees sinking off two Greek islands overnight into Friday. Dozens survived, and a search and rescue operation was underway for more potential survivors. (Dimitris Drosos/Kalymnos-News.gr via AP)

Survivors change clothes at Kalymnos island after a rescue operation by the coast guard Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. A wooden sailboat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the islet of Kalolimnos near the Greek southeastern island of Kalymnos. A number of people died in two separate incidents of boats smuggling migrants or refugees sinking off two Greek islands overnight into Friday. Dozens survived, and a search and rescue operation was underway for more potential survivors. (Giorgos Drosos/Kalymnos-News.gr via AP)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left, and the Prime Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoglu arrive for a news conference after German-Turkish government consultations at the chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Survivors try to warm up at Kalymnos island after a rescue operation by the coast guard Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. A wooden sailboat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the islet of Kalolimnos near the Greek southeastern island of Kalymnos. A number of people died in two separate incidents of boats smuggling migrants or refugees sinking off two Greek islands overnight into Friday. Dozens survived, and a search and rescue operation was underway for more potential survivors. (Giorgos Drosos/Kalymnos-News.gr via AP)

People form a line as they wait to receive food distributed by non-governmental organizations at a refugee camp in the northern Greek village of Idomeni Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. About 1,000 refugees from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq are stranded at Greece's northern border with Macedonia, after Macedonian authorities stopped letting them through citing problems with transit flows further north on the Balkan route which have caused a chain reaction. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

In this photo taken on Friday, Jan. 15, 2016, an Afghan woman wait her turn at the Tabakika registration center, Chios island, Greece. Even during the winter, overloaded dinghies continue to arrive in droves on Greeces eastern Aegean islands bordering Turkey, halting only when the sea is too rough. The crossing is brief but perilous, and hundreds have died. Six bodies were recovered off the coast of nearby Samos island earlier this month. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

Survivors try to warm up at Kalymnos island after a rescue operation by the coast guard Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. A wooden sailboat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the islet of Kalolimnos near the Greek southeastern island of Kalymnos. A number of people died in two separate incidents of boats smuggling migrants or refugees sinking off two Greek islands overnight into Friday. Dozens survived, and a search and rescue operation was underway for more potential survivors. (Giorgos Drosos/Kalymnos-News.gr via AP)

A woman hugs a migrant after giving a flower to her outside of a refugee home in Cologne, Germany, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. Following the New Year's Eve attacks in Cologne, refugees handed out flowers to women in different cities as sign of good will. Several dozen women visited Cologne's biggest refugee center to return the favor. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

A migrant returns from shopping at the refugee home in Cologne, Germany, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)

Migrants walk from the Macedonian border into Serbia, near the village of Miratovac, Serbia, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. Macedonia briefly closed the border to refugees earlier Friday but soon re-opened it. The country is only letting in people from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, whom it considers refugees. It rejects all others as economic migrants. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Migrants walk from the Macedonian border into Serbia, near the village of Miratovac, Serbia, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. Macedonia briefly closed the border to refugees earlier Friday but soon re-opened it. The country is only letting in people from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, whom it considers refugees. It rejects all others as economic migrants. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Prime Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoglu attends a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel after German-Turkish government consultations at the chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, right, and the Prime Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoglu brief the media after German-Turkish government consultations at the chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
Presidential race shows evolving gender roles in politics

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP)  Carly Fiorina has a husband who quit his career to further hers. Chris Christie boasts of his wife being the family's top earner. Hillary Clinton is looking to get back into the White House, but this time as president.

In the 2016 presidential campaign, a modern take on gender roles is increasingly on display in both parties.

With two women running for president, a number of high-powered career spouses in the mix and an increased focus on policies to support two-income families, 2016 is shaping up as a different kind of election, said Anne Marie Slaughter, who four years ago wrote a popular essay in The Atlantic on why she left a job in the State Department to spend more time with her family.

FILE - In this May 8, 2015 file photo, Frank Fiorina, husband of Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina, listens as she speaks with a guest in Manchester, N.H. While former President Bill Clinton campaigns for his wife wife, Frank Fiorina is pitching voters on the candidacy of his wife on the Republican side. Carly Fiorina has a husband who quit his career to further hers. In the 2016 presidential campaign, a modern take on gender roles is increasingly on display in both parties. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)

"I think what is changing is, this is the year of the family," said Slaughter, now president and CEO of New America, a Washington-based nonprofit. And that means more attention on "how you support the family with policies for women and men."

While more women have been running at a state and local level, this is the first time both parties have a woman running in a serious way. This gives former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm reason to hope decisions about running for office are no longer just being made "based on one's plumbing."

Compared with her 2008 run, heavy on national security, Clinton this time has heavily stressed issues that are meant to appeal to women and families: health care, pay equality, education, child care, family leave. She says "these aren't just women's issues, they are economic issues that drive growth and affect all Americans."

This is murky territory for Clinton. She has a long record as an advocate of women's advancement and speaks often and passionately about her baby granddaughter. But her potential Republican rivals have raised questions not only about her husband's past infidelities but about how she might have contributed to efforts to discredit some of the women known or alleged to have been involved with him. Donald Trump flatly accused her of enabling Bill Clinton's philandering.

Among Republicans, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio has proposed increasing the child tax credit and creating a tax credit for employers that provide family leave. Rep. Paul Ryan asserted his need for family time when agreeing to become House speaker.

Christie says voters are meeting a new generation of candidates with "different types of marriages and different types of relationships than people in the generation before. It really is necessitated by the increasing role and prominence of women in the workforce and by necessity, too."

Dianne Bystrom, director of the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics at Iowa State University, said that in recent years there has been a shift in both how female candidates talk about their personal lives and family-oriented policies.

The political reasons are clear.

"The Democrats have to mobilize the base and the Republicans have to whittle away at the women's vote," said Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University.

Support from women, who typically lean toward Democrats, was vital for President Barack Obama, who won re-election in 2012 with 55 percent of female voters, while Republican opponent Mitt Romney won 52 percent of men, according to exit polls analyzed by Walsh's center. Obama won about the same percentage of women in 2008 as he did in 2012.

The two-career marriages on display in the campaign are in keeping with the rise of women in the workforce. About 58 percent of working-age women were employed in 2012, compared with 38 percent in 1963, federal statistics show. Mothers work at even higher rates  with about 70 percent of women with children under 18 working.

Christie's wife, Mary Pat Christie, was a former Wall Street executive who out-earned him for most of their marriage. Heidi Cruz, wife of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, is on leave from her job at Goldman Sachs. Jane Sanders is a key adviser to husband Bernie Sanders. And Fiorina's husband, Frank, was a corporate executive until he retired early to support her high-powered career.

With a more diverse group campaigning, the role of political spouse may get a reboot.

Ex-President Bill Clinton and Frank Fiorina are campaigning in Iowa as potential "first gentlemen." Many of the other spouses are out on the trail.

The campaign has also gone beyond the usual (and still ubiquitous) sugar-coating of family life of the candidates, as Fiorina discussed the stepdaughter she lost to drug and alcohol addiction, Jeb Bush opened up about the daughter who's struggled with drug abuse and Christie acknowledged a complicated marital history.

Still, stereotypes tend to die hard. During a recent Republican debate, Christie seemed caught in a time warp back to the 1950s when talking about Los Angeles families dealing with a terrorist scare.

"Think about the mothers who will take those children tomorrow morning to the bus stop wondering whether their children will arrive back on that bus safe and sound," he said. "Think about the fathers of Los Angeles, who tomorrow will head off to work and wonder about the safety of their wives and their children."

And then there's Trump, who has tossed various sexist insults at certain women  saying at one point that a debate moderator had "blood coming out of her wherever"  yet insists at rallies that he would "cherish women" as president.
The Latest: US top lawyer says tough to halt IS recruitment

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP)  The latest developments from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where top executives and world leaders are meeting this week. All times local.

8:50 p.m.

U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch acknowledges preventing the Islamic State group from recruiting online is difficult, but so is stopping any group from spreading its messages via the Internet.

A general view of Davos with hotel Belevedere in the foreground where business leaders and heads of States meet at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Lynch says Europe and the U.S. are working to counter IS' message and empower local communities where "troubled youth" who join the group come from, such as by flagging content to help "break that chain."

The top U.S. law enforcement official spoke Friday at a news conference on cybercrime at the World Economic Forum.

Joining her, Interpol Secretary-General Juergen Stock suggested that crime fighters can get snowed under with electronic data in investigations. He compared his early career as a policeman poring over paperwork, while today going over "a terabyte and even more of data as evidence ... is a challenge."

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7:40 p.m.

Amina Mohamed, Kenya's foreign minister, warned Europe against turning inwards in response to the refugee and migrant crisis.

Instead, she said the arrival of people from conflict zones such as Syria should be seen as "good" for the economically stagnant region.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum on Friday, Mohamed said Europe should follow the lead of other regions, where refugees and migrants contribute to an opening up of societies and an acceptance of diversity.

She laid out her hope that the current experience in Europe "does not lead to protectionism" and said it "underlines the urgency for economic growth."

She said it "is only when societies become stagnant and do not grow as fast as they have been growing for a while that they begin to look inward and close others out."

The 28-country European Union is trying to come up with a strategy to deal with the crisis, which saw at least another 42 people drown Friday in the sinking of two smuggling boat in the Aegean Sea.

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6:40 p.m.

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto says he's ordering officials to accelerate the extradition of drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman to the United States.

He says he told his Attorney General's Office to get Guzman into U.S. hands "as soon as possible."

Pena Nieto spoke Friday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Mexican marines captured Guzman on Jan. 8, two months after his second escape from a top-security Mexican prison.

The Sinaloa Cartel chief is wanted on multiple charges in both Mexico and the U.S. Mexico had balked at extraditing him after his previous capture in 2014.

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5:20 p.m.

Michael Froman, the U.S. Trade Representative, says progress on a trans-Atlantic free trade pact has "accelerated" over the past few months despite growing reticence in many parts of Europe, notably in Germany.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum on Friday, Froman heaped praise on his counterpart at the European Union, Cecilia Malmstrom, for travelling widely to "address misinformation and mythologies" over the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.

Concerns over an agreement between the world's two biggest economies are widespread, from fears of a lowering in food safety standards and the undermining of local regulation by giving international arbitration panels the power to rule over disputes. The most visible opposition to the deal was seen in Berlin last October, when some 150,000 demonstrated against the deal.

Froman said neither side has any interest in lowering standards, whether it be in regulatory protections, safety or the environment.

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3:50 p.m.

U2 front man Bono took to the stage in Davos, Switzerland, not to sing one of his band's hits but to bring attention to the Red charity, which he helped start 10 years ago after meeting business leaders in this Alpine town.

Bono said that the idea for the fund, which raises money to fight diseases in poor countries, came about because "We were mad as hell that where you lived determined whether you lived."

The charity, officially called Product Red, is a brand that gets licensed to global companies, from Starbucks to Apple. A part of the profits generated by the sale of the products with the brand is donated to a fund that fights diseases such as AIDS and malaria.

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3:30 p.m.

U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter has told the Iraqi prime minister that the U.S. will intensify the fight against the Islamic State group.

Carter, at a meeting Friday with Haider al-Abadi in the Swiss resort of Davos, emphasized the need for training local police forces, according to Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, also in Davos, said IS has lost ground. "Each day, we learn more about what works and each day, we are intensifying the pressure on Daesh. We've known from the moment we formed our international coalition that success would take years," he said.

The extremists still hold key power centers in both Iraq and Syria  and put up a major fight for the city of Ramadi, which Iraqi forces are still trying to clear.

Carter met with defense officials from six mainly European nations this week, laying out a broad campaign plan for the coming year. He has said he wants to continue talking to leaders from the coalition nations to seek additional support for the anti-Islamic State campaign.

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2:30 p.m.

Kevin Spacey says his character Frank Underwood, the ruthless politician he plays in the TV show "House of Cards," would find the U.S. electoral campaign "amusing."

Bringing his star power to the CEO-packed World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Spacey told participants: "I think in the first place that Donald Trump.... uh, sorry, that Frank Underwood..." before getting drowned out in laughs.

He then added: "I think Frank Underwood would look at this particular year and find it as amusing as I do."

The American actor's appearance drew some of the largest interest so far at the Davos event, with long queues of high-power business executives hoping to attend his closed-door event, which focused on the theatricality of American politics and his career.

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1:20 p.m.

David Miliband, president and CEO of the International Rescue Committee, says it's important that those migrants who don't qualify for refugee status are sent back to where they came from.

He said it's "right" that those who don't qualify for refugee status should be sent home. He said Friday that it's "absolutely vital" for the integrity of the system that the distinction between a refugee fleeing persecution and someone who is an economic immigrant is "maintained."

Miliband, a former British foreign secretary, also said that Germany has been showing "extraordinary leadership" in the migrants crisis that has engulfed Europe over the past year and that it "needs to be supported." German Chancellor Angela Merkel has faced increased criticism for her policy on refugees, which saw almost 1.1 million asylum-seekers arrive in the country last year.

Europe, Miliband said, is playing catch-up and "we all know it's much harder to play catch-up to solve a problem than it is to anticipate the problem."

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12:30 p.m.

Iraq's prime minister is appealing to Turkey to pull its troops out of Iraqi territory and help better fight the radical Islamic State group.

Haider al-Abadi told The Associated Press that he's "very keen" to have good ties with Turkey but that Ankara hasn't responded to his government's question about why Turkish troops are in Iraq. "We have to have an answer," he said.

Turkey has had troops near the IS-controlled city of Mosul in northern Iraq since 2014. The arrival of additional troops last month sparked an uproar, and Ankara subsequently halted new deployments.

The Iraqi leader also spoke Friday in a World Economic Forum panel discussion in Davos, Switzerland about efforts to stabilize the Middle East.

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12:00 p.m.

The European Union's top foreign policy official says the bloc faces big economic risks if its member countries start putting up walls between each other that restrict borderless travel.

Federica Mogherini warned about what would happen to trade and business if the so-called Schengen agreement, which allows free movement of people and goods across 26 countries, gets steadily disbanded due to concerns over migration and security. She said: "We are doing studies of that and it is impressive."

Mogherini, who was speaking at a panel at the World Economic Forum, said that if you add "the cost of the fragmentation of the European Union" to Europe's economic difficulties "then we really risk something much bigger than the protection of the welcoming of refugees."

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10:45 a.m.

A top Russian official says his country needs to work fast to diversify the oil-dependent economy, amid new trouble for the ruble and a bleak outlook for the year.

Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Trutnev also expressed hope for greater understanding from the West.

"This is the responsibility of the government to enact reforms quickly to diversify the Russian economy and to replace the diminishing income from oil prices," Trutnev said Friday at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos. He said he hopes Russia boosts domestic production and builds "the foundation for a new economy" in the coming two or three years.

Despite current East-West tensions, former Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said Russia should be a part of Western institutions such as the Group of Seven and the OECD.

He said low oil prices "reshaped our reality" and predicted a risky 2016 for the Russian economy.

Russia's Central Bank chief was supposed to head the Russian delegation at the Davos gathering of business and political leaders, but pulled out at the last minute as the ruble hit historic lows.

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9:45 a.m.

Christine Lagarde, the French woman who is head of the International Monetary Fund, says she wants another term.

Lagarde told France-2 television on Friday that she wanted to continue at the helm of the organization, which has coordinated bailouts for countries and monitors economic reforms globally. Britain and Germany gave key backing Thursday, and Lagarde said she had also received support from China, South Korea and Mexico.

Developing countries have increasingly opposed an informal arrangement by which a European heads the IMF. The sister organization, the World Bank, has until recently typically been led by an American.

Lagarde spoke from Davos, Switzerland on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum of business leaders and public figures, amid turmoil in global markets.

U2 singer Bono, right, waves to participants with President and Founder of the World Economic Forum Klaus Schwab, center, and his wife Hilde Schwab at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. U2 front man Bono took to the stage in Davos, not to sing one of his bands hits but to bring attention to the Red charity, which he helped start 10 years ago after meeting business leaders in this Alpine town. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau gestures as he speaks during a panel "Progress toward Parity" at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, left, meets with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi at the 2016 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. Kerrys trip is expected to last nine days and to encompass stops in Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, Laos, Cambodia, and China. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool)

Ashraf Ghani, President of Afghanistan, speaks during a panel session at the 46th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum, WEF, in Davos, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP)

The President of the European Central Bank Mario Draghi speaks during a panel "The Year Ahead: They Economic Outlook for the Eurozone" at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, left, meets with Carlos Ghosm, chairman and CEO of Renault-Nissan Alliance, in Davos, Switzerland on Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. Trudeau is attending the World Economic Forum where political, business and social leaders gather to discuss world agendas. (Andrew Vaughan/The Canadian Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT
France, India to focus talks on defense deal, clean energy

NEW DELHI (AP)  Amid the pomp of a military parade, the leaders of France and India are planning ambitious discussions next week in New Delhi that could end with a multibillion-dollar deal for combat airplanes and closer cooperation on counterterrorism and clean energy.

French President Francois Hollande arrives Sunday to tour the northern city of Chandigarh before traveling to the Indian capital for meetings with officials and a place as guest of honor on Tuesday at India's Republic Day parade, celebrating 66 years since the country adopted its constitution.

High on the agenda will be India's desire to purchase 36 Rafale combat planes for its air force, which Modi had announced during a visit to Paris in April, touching off several rounds of negotiations over pricing, offsets and servicing.

Commandos of National Security Group (NSG) take positions during a mock terror attack drill ahead of Republic Day in New Delhi, India, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. India is tightening security with extra paramilitary soldiers and police deployed across the capital after a French consulate in southern India received a letter warning against the visit of French President Francois Hollande. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar said last week that the deal was "close to completion," and another Indian official said this week that the two sides hoped to sign a deal during Hollande's visit. That official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak with media.

India and France have shared close ties for decades, holding high-level meetings every year since signing a strategic partnership agreement in 1998. They share concerns over terrorism, climate change, space exploration and military cooperation.

India first began talking to France four years ago about buying 126 Rafales  a deal that would have cost roughly $12 billion, with a majority of the planes to be made in India. New Delhi has since pared that order down to 36 "ready to fly" planes, to be built in France.

France has also promised support for India's clean-energy quest, including a solar energy alliance launched last month during the global climate talks held in Paris.

Hollande and his French officials are also likely to press India about ongoing delays in building a six-reactor nuclear power plant complex in the town of Jaitapur in the west Indian state of Maharashtra. French nuclear giant Areva SA and the Nuclear Power Corporation of India agreed in 2010 to build the 9,900-megawatt facility, but progress has been slow amid disputes over land rights and Indian laws on accident liability.

Paris has said it could help India upgrade its crumbling railway infrastructure, especially with its expertise in high-speed trains. Japan also said recently that it would fund a "bullet train" connecting the Indian financial capital of Mumbai with the western city of Ahmadabad.

Indian officials said France and India were working hard on an agreement for another high-speed link in northern India, but would not immediately say which cities might be along the route.

Hollande begins his trip Sunday by visiting Chandigarh, which stands as the capital of both Punjab and Haryana states. Designed in the 1950s by Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier, Chandigarh is one of three cities that France has pledged to help develop as so-called "smart cities"  with clean water supplies, efficient sewage disposal and public transportation, among other programs. The other two cities adopted by France are the central city of Nagpur and the former French colony of Pondicherry in the south.

Hollande will be accompanied by a high-profile delegation including the ministers of defense, foreign affairs, economy and culture and dozens of top corporate leaders.

In Chandigarh, Hollande and French business leaders will meet with Indian counterparts eager to boost bilateral trade, which in 2014 stood at $8.6 billion. New Delhi is also trying to encourage French companies to tap into India's economic boom.

On Monday, Hollande will hold talks in New Delhi with Modi and other Indian officials. The two leaders are expected to touch on anti-terrorism efforts including speeding up extradition requests and cracking down on money laundering used to fund militant activities.

Vikas Swarup, spokesman for India's foreign ministry, noted that both countries had been hit by militants recently, with 130 people killed across Paris on Nov. 13 and a four-day siege against the north Indian air force base of Pathankot that left seven Indian soldiers dead earlier this month.

"Following the horrendous attack in Paris and the recent terrorist attack at the Pathankot air base, it would be worth highlighting that cooperation between France and India on matters related to counterterrorism has acquired a very significant dimension," Swarup said at a media briefing Thursday. "Both India and France are victims of terrorism and we can expect a lot of discussions on this particular issue."

Hollande caps his visit on Tuesday by attending a two-hour parade displaying India's military hardware and marching bands. He would be the fifth French president invited as the guest of honor at the ceremony. Last year, U.S. President Barack Obama joined Modi at the parade.

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Commandos of National Security Group (NSG) take positions during a mock terror attack drill ahead of Republic Day in New Delhi, India, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. India is tightening security with extra paramilitary soldiers and police deployed across the capital after a French consulate in southern India received a letter warning against the visit of French President Francois Hollande. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)
EU experts meet top Thai official to discuss fishing fix

BANGKOK (AP)  European Union inspectors met Friday with Thailand's government to discuss what the Southeast Asian nation has done to overhaul its fishing industry and avoid an EU ban on imports of Thai seafood.

The EU last April issued a "yellow card" warning to Thailand after finding its fishing industry flouted the EU's rules on illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing.

Thailand is the world's third-largest exporter of seafood. A ban from the EU, which is the world's biggest importer of seafood, would be a severe blow to Thailand's already struggling economy.

FILE - In this June 20, 2014 file photo, migrant workers unload frozen fish from a boat at a fish market in Samut Sakhon Province, west of Bangkok, Thailand. European Union inspectors met Friday, Jan. 22, 2016 with Thailand's government to discuss what the Southeast Asian nation has done to overhaul its fishing industry and avoid an EU ban on imports of Thai seafood. The EU last April issued a "yellow card" warning to Thailand after finding its fishing industry flouted the EU's rules on illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit, File)

Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan told reporters Friday that Thailand had done all it could to comply with the EU's demands, which include closer regulation and inspection of fishing vessels.

"I'm not worried, we have done everything to our best. All the advice they have given us, we have coordinated and followed," he said. "It's up to them what they choose to do."

EU experts inspected Thai facilities this week and will take at least a month to announce their evaluation.

Thailand is already under pressure for other abuses in its fishing industry, particularly the use of slave labor on some vessels. That contributed to the United States issuing its own warning of trade sanctions unless Thailand makes significant progress in combating human trafficking.

The EU's rules were put in place in 2010 to try to ensure that fishing in the world's oceans is sustainable. It estimates that at least 15 percent of world catches are netted illegally.

European Union delegation chief Cesar Deben gives a Thai traditional "wai" greeting before meeting Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Prawit Wongsuwan at the Defense Ministry in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. The EU inspectors met Friday with Thailand's government to discuss what the Southeast Asian nation has done to overhaul its fishing industry and avoid an EU ban on imports of Thai seafood. The EU last April issued a "yellow card" warning to Thailand after finding its fishing industry flouted the EU's rules on illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Tunisia imposes nationwide curfew amid growing unrest

KASSERINE, Tunisia (AP)  Tunisia's president vowed Friday to end the cycle of unrest that has pummeled towns across the country as authorities imposed a nationwide curfew  five years after the nation, convulsed by protests, overthrew its longtime ruler and moved onto the road to democracy.

President Beji Caid Essebsi warned that Tunisia could fall prey to Islamic State group militants in neighboring Libya profiting from the instability.

The violent demonstrations over unemployment opened a new front of concern for Tunisia, already struggling from a foundering economy and the threat of terrorism after three major attacks last year.

Protesters face police forces in the city of Ennour, near Kasserine, Tunisia, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016. Tunisia has declared a curfew in the western city after clashes between police and more than 1,000 young protesters demonstrating for jobs. Tensions have risen in Kasserine since Sunday when an unemployed youth killed himself by scaling an electricity transmission tower to protest his rejection for a government job. (AP Photo/Moncef Tajouri)

The week of increasingly violent demonstrations was triggered Sunday when a young man who was turned down for a government job climbed a transmission tower in protest and was electrocuted.

His death had unsettling resonance: The suicide five years ago of another unemployed youth set off the popular uprising that overthrew Tunisia's autocratic leader, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, and gave rise to the "Arab Spring" uprisings. This North African country has been the only Arab Spring nation to avoid a chaotic aftermath and take the road to democracy.

"We will get out of this ordeal," the president said in his first address to the nation since the crisis erupted. He pressed the government to put in place a program to address unemployment. About one in three young people remains without work.

"One cannot speak of dignity without a job," he said. "You can't tell people who are hungry ... to be patient."

Tunisia's prime minister, Habib Essid, cut short a visit to France to preside over an extraordinary Cabinet meeting on Saturday.

A curfew from 8 p.m. until 5 a.m. was declared because the attacks on public and private property "represent a danger to the country and its citizens," the Interior Ministry said. Weekend sports events were canceled.

A tense calm reigned.

The unrest began Sunday in the town of Kasserine in central Tunisia where the young man electrocuted himself  not far from the town of Sidi Bouzid where a vegetable seller set himself afire in 2011, triggering Tunisia's revolution.

Tunisia's unemployment stands around 15 percent, but is 30 percent among youth and in the Tunisian heartland that has long felt ignored by the powers-that-be in the capital  despite government promises of change.

On Friday, hundreds of unemployed graduates filed into Kasserine's main administrative office demanding jobs. Others screamed from the top of the building before being escorted out by police, and still more held a sit-in inside the lobby.

"We want work, nothing less, nothing more," said one of the unemployed youths, Rafik Nasri. "You see all these people are unemployed, the well-read, the intellectual, the non-intellectual, the peasant or not, they're all demanding work."

The overnight curfew was imposed after the violence in Kasserine, about 300 kilometers (185 miles) southwest of Tunis, began spreading to other towns this week. On Friday, roving groups pillaged a bank and looted stores and a warehouse in the working class neighborhood of Ettadhamen outside the capital. Security forces arrested 16 people.

Security forces used tear gas to repel the protesters attacking police stations and other official buildings with stones and Molotov cocktails. A day earlier, a police officer was killed after protesters in the town of Feriana, near Kasserine, flipped over his car, the government said.

Tunisia has been under a state of emergency since a suicide bombing in November killed 12 members of the presidential guard in the heart of Tunis  an attack that capped an unusually violent year for the country. That bombing, along with deadly attacks against the Bardo museum in Tunis and the resort of Sousse, were claimed by the Islamic State group.

"Daesh, which is present in Libya at our borders, finds that the moment is opportune to act in Tunisia," the president said, using an Arabic acronym for IS.

On Thursday, Tunisian authorities said they intercepted four cars with armed men coming from Libya and chased them back across the border. On Friday, a Tunisian man was killed in an exchange of fire between Tunisian soldiers guarding a border post and a group of Libyans and Tunisians the Defense Ministry said were smugglers.

The unrest bred concern that Tunisia's bid to become a full-fledged democracy may be at risk.

In Paris just before leaving for home, Essid, the prime minister, said the problem was not with democracy, but with the economy.

"We have a set of policies to try to solve this issue, which is one of this government's main challenges," he said after meeting with French President Francois Hollande. "We don't have a magic wand. We can't solve the problem of unemployment in one go."

France promised aid worth 1 billion euros, much of it dedicated to inland regions far from the capital and coastal areas like Sousse, a tourist magnate on the Mediterranean. But tourism, a key element of Tunisia's economy, plummeted after last year's attacks, aggravating unemployment.

"It has been five years since the revolution," said Marouane M'daini, a college graduate from Kasserine who is among a quarter-million Tunisian young people who are educated but unemployed.

"I'd love to work, that's all I think about. It's exhausting," he said.

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Ben Bouazza reported from Tunis. Associated Press writers Elaine Ganley and Lori Hinnant contributed to this report from Paris.

Police forces face protesters in the city of Ennour, near Kasserine, Tunisia, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016. Tunisia has declared a curfew in the western city after clashes between police and more than 1,000 young protesters demonstrating for jobs. Tensions have risen in Kasserine since Sunday when an unemployed youth killed himself by scaling an electricity transmission tower to protest his rejection for a government job. (AP Photo/Moncef Tajouri)

French President Francois Hollande, right, greets Tunisian Prime Minister Habib Essid before a meeting at the Elysee Palace, in Paris, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)
Portugal to pick a new president but govt calls the shots

LISBON, Portugal (AP)  A record 10 candidates are running for president of Portugal on Sunday, but voters don't appear to share their enthusiasm for a job that holds no executive power in Western Europe's poorest country.

An unmemorable election campaign and an apparent runaway favorite have combined to bore the electorate.

"Turnout will undoubtedly be lower than usual," said Antonio Costa Pinto of Lisbon University's Institute of Social Sciences.

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa waves while boarding a train to Porto at Lisbon's Santa Apolonia station during his presidential election campaign Wednesday, Jan. 20 2016. Polls suggest that the center-right candidate Rebelo de Sousa could get more than 50 percent of votes against nine rivals in the Jan. 24 Portuguese presidential election. In Portugal the president has no executive power, which is held by the government, but is an influential voice. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)

An alliance of anti-austerity parties is in charge in Portugal after a parliamentary election three months ago produced a Socialist minority government supported by the Communist Party and radical Left Bloc. The president's role is largely ceremonial, though the head of state can be an influential voice.

Polls in recent weeks have consistently indicated that Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, a veteran center-right politician who became a popular television personality, will collect more than 50 percent of the vote.

A poll published Friday in daily Publico suggested Rebelo de Sousa will collect 52 percent of the vote. The poll by Intercampus was conducted Jan. 14-20, with 1,043 people interviewed in person and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Rebelo de Sousa says he wants to be a discreet "facilitator" for consensus between the country's political parties.

His two closest rivals  Antonio Sampaio da Novoa, a former university dean, and former Socialist health minister Maria de Belem  would get 17 and 10 percent of the vote, respectively, the poll indicated. Both of them are close to the Socialist government.

If no candidate gets more than 50 percent of the vote, the first- and second-place candidates compete in a runoff on Feb. 14.

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa applauds after addressing supporters at Lisbon's Santa Apolonia train station during his presidential election campaign Wednesday, Jan. 20 2016. Polls suggest that the center-right candidate Rebelo de Sousa could get more than 50 percent of votes against nine rivals in the Jan. 24 Portuguese presidential election. In Portugal the president has no executive power, which is held by the government, but is an influential voice. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)
Splinter Taliban group threatens more school attacks

DERA ISAMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (AP)  The head of a breakaway Taliban faction behind this week's attack at a northwestern Pakistani university that killed 21 people, most of them students, threatened on Friday to carry out more attacks on schools and universities across the country.

On Wednesday, Islamic militants stormed the campus of the Bacha Khan university in the town of Charsadda, gunning down students and teachers, and triggering a gunbattle that lasted for hours before the four gunmen were slain and the military declared an end to the siege.

The assault echoed the horrifying 2014 attack by the Taliban on an army-run school in the nearby city of Peshawar that left 150 dead, 144 of them children, and raised yet again questions about whether Pakistan's security forces are able to protect the country's educational institutions from extremists.

Security guards stand alert around schools and colleges following an attack on Bacha Khan University, in Peshawar, Pakistan, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. Pakistanis buried their dead and observed a day of nationwide mourning Thursday following the brazen attack by Islamic militants who stormed a northwestern university the previous day, gunning down students and teachers and spreading terror before the four gunmen were slain by the military. (AP Photo/Mohammad Sajjad)

The leader of the splinter Taliban group that claimed responsibility for the attack, Khalifa Umar Mansoor, said in a video released Friday on social media that the Charsadda assault was just the start and promised his followers would hit the "evil democratic system" at its base.

Mansoor said Pakistan's educational institutions provide the future workforce for the military and the government  all of which work against the "will of God."

"Pakistan's evil democratic system, its military and political leadership have these educational institutions as their nurseries," Mansoor said. "It is from there they get their people, these institutions bear them fruit."

"We have decided to target schools, colleges and universities from now on," he said. "We will demolish the foundation of this evil system."

Along with Mansoor's threats, the video shows a presumably older segment, depicting the four gunmen from the Charsadda assault practicing with assault rifles at an undisclosed location. The authenticity of the video could not be independently verified but it was similar to previous messages released by the group.

In the video, Mansour says Pakistan's rulers are challenging the "will of God, instead of bowing before him despite repeated warning from Allah in the form of earthquakes, floods and tornadoes."

Although his group quickly took responsibility for the university attack, a spokesman for the larger Taliban organization, led by Mullah Fazlullah, denied having anything to do with it and called it "un-Islamic." Muhammad Khorasani, the Tehrik-e-Taliban spokesman, said they also disown Mansoor's group.

Islamabad-based analyst Imtiaz Gul said the Charsadda attack showed that the objective of Mansoor's group is to create instability. The biggest danger it poses it to the Pakistani youth, Gul said.

"Such groups can easily indoctrinate frustrated youth and exploit their energy for their own agenda," he said.

While the number of Mansoor's followers may not be clear at the present, they obviously "have enough to create mayhem," he added.

After the 2014 Peshawar school massacre, Taliban militants were united in taking responsibility for the violence and some analysts say that the divisions now in the Taliban over Wednesday's attack probably have more to do with a fear of retribution than a reflection of a deeply fractured and split militant movement.

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Associated Press Writer Zarar Khan in Islamabad contributed to this report.

Pakistani civil society activists condemn the attack on Bacha Khan University, in Islamabad, Pakistan, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. Pakistanis buried their dead and observed a day of nationwide mourning Thursday following the brazen attack by Islamic militants who stormed a northwestern university the previous day, gunning down students and teachers and spreading terror before the four gunmen were slain by the military. (AP Photo/B.K. Bangash)
Iraqi PM: 3 Americans were abducted by 'criminal gangs'

BAGHDAD (AP)  Iraq's prime minister said Friday that there appears to be no political motivation behind the recent abduction of three Americans in Baghdad, saying the men seem to have been taken by "criminal gangs."

Speaking from Davos, Switzerland, where he is attending the World Economic Forum, Haider al-Abadi said that no ransom demand have been received and that authorities were looking for the men.

"I don't believe there's any political thing out of this because what political gain would anybody get," al-Abadi said. "I think it's mainly ... criminal gangs, unfortunately, but we are going to find out."

The Americans were abducted in Dora, a mixed neighborhood that is home to both Shiites and Sunnis, on Saturday. Baghdad authorities said the Americans were kidnapped from a "suspicious apartment," and provided no other details. There has been no claim of responsibility. The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad has confirmed only that an unspecified number of Americans are missing.

Separately, Iraqi and Western security officials claimed two powerful Shiite militias  Asaib Ahl al-Haq and Saraya al-Salam  are the top suspects in the abduction. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to reporters.

If a Shiite militia does prove to be responsible for the abductions, it could fuel longstanding accusations that al-Abadi's government is unable to control these state-sanctioned paramilitary squads  which have grown in strength as Iraqi security forces battle the Islamic State group.

Following the dramatic collapse of the Iraqi security forces in the summer of 2014, Shiite militias filled the vacuum, growing more powerful militarily than the country's own security forces. They are some of the most effective forces on the ground combatting the Islamic State group in Iraq, and also run security in many Baghdad neighborhoods.

The Iraqi government-allied militias are now officially sanctioned and known as Popular Mobilization Committees.

But many trace their roots to the armed groups that battled U.S. troops after the 2003 invasion and kidnapped and killed Sunnis at the height of Iraq's sectarian bloodletting in 2006 and 2007. In the fight against IS, human rights groups have accused them of abuses targeting Sunni civilians  charges denied by militia leaders.

Asaib Ahl al-Haq, Iranian-backed and one of the most powerful Shiite militias operating in Iraq, has repeatedly spoken out against the presence of U.S. forces in Iraq in the fight against IS. Saraya al-Salam is run by Iraq's influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr whose Mahdi militia often battled with U.S. forces between 2003 and 2011.

Since taking office in 2014 just months after Mosul fell to IS, Abadi has struggled to balance the growing power of Shiite militia groups with his government's dependence on the U.S.-led coalition in the fight against the Islamic State group.

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Iraqi PM wants Turkey to pull out troops

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP)  Iraq's prime minister appealed Friday to Turkey to pull its troops out of Iraqi territory and instead provide training and equipment to fight the Islamic State group, which he and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry insisted is losing ground.

Leaders at the World Economic Forum are focusing Friday on concerns about global security, with Syria's civil war and other geopolitical troubles weighing on an already wobbly global economy.

U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter met with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and other officials at the forum in Davos, Switzerland, trying to drum up additional support for the anti-Islamic State military campaign.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry shakes hands with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi at the 2016 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. Kerrys trip is expected to last nine days and to encompass stops in Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, Laos, Cambodia, and China. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool)

Abadi met with several officials in Davos, calling for more help.

"We in Iraq want very good neighborly relations with Turkey, we hope Turkey will help us to fight Daesh," Abadi said, using another name for the radical group. "Daesh is killing our own citizens, occupying our own cities. We have 4 million internal refugees because of that, and Turkey should help us with that. And I appeal to the Turkish government to help us, and withdraw their forces."

He said Ankara hasn't responded to his government's question about why Turkish troops are in Iraq, adding: "We have to have an answer."

Turkey has had troops near the IS-controlled city of Mosul in northern Iraq since 2014. The arrival of additional troops last month sparked an uproar, and Ankara subsequently halted new deployments.

Turkey has not been clear about the exact number of troops it has deployed in Iraq, but the issue was one of several that U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, in Istanbul on Friday, was expected to bring up in Saturday meetings with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.

"I don't know what their aim is. Is it an expansionist plot to control part of Ninevah?" Abadi said, referring to Mosul's region. "I hope not. ... If they truly want to fight against Daesh, well, they can train our forces. We have asked them to do that. They can supply us with equipment and weapons. We have asked for that. They didn't send it."

He said IS is "on the retreat."

Kerry made similar comments in a Davos speech moments later.

"Each day, we learn more about what works and each day, we are intensifying the pressure on Daesh. We've known from the moment we formed our international coalition that success would take years," he said. "But in the end, mark my words, Daesh will be defeated  and the progress we have already made toward that end is undeniable."

The U.S. military has said the group has lost ground, yet it still holds key power centers in both Iraq and Syria  and put up a major fight for the city of Ramadi, which Iraqi forces are still trying to clear.

Carter, at his meeting with Abadi in Davos, emphasized the need for training local police forces, according to Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook. Carter pledged the United States would intensify the fight against IS, and noted tough fighting ahead despite the success of Iraqi forces in Ramadi, west of Baghdad.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg met Friday with Abadi to discuss NATO plans to start training Iraqi officers in the coming weeks, likely in neighboring Jordan. That would mark the first time that the Atlantic alliance has carried out such a training mission for Iraq since the end of another training mission there in 2011, said NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu.

Leaders meeting at Davos are also looking at how to deal with the refugee crisis prompted by Syria's civil war.

Kerry said the Obama administration will seek a major boost in funding for refugee support this year and press for at least 10 new countries to offer resettlement programs.

The European Union's top foreign policy official says trade and business would suffer if its member countries start putting up walls between each other that restrict borderless travel. Federica Mogherini said that if you add "the cost of the fragmentation of the European Union" to Europe's economic difficulties "then we really risk something much bigger than the protection of the welcoming of refugees."

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Lolita Baldor, Matthew Lee and Pan Pylas in Davos contributed to this report.

US Secretary of State John Kerry speaks during a panel session at the 46th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum, WEF, in Davos, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. Kerry took aim Friday at government corruption, saying it fuels crime, violent extremism and disillusionment with society that contributes to the global refugee crisis. (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP)

Frances Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron, left, and European Union High Representative Federica Mogherini smile as they arrives for a TV debate "Europe at a Tipping Point" at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
US presidential race shows evolving gender roles in politics

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP)  Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina has a husband who quit his career to further hers. Fellow candidate Chris Christie boasts of his wife being the family's top earner. Leading Democratic contender Hillary Clinton is looking to get back into the White House, but this time as president.

In the 2016 campaign, a modern take on gender roles is increasingly on display in both main political parties.

With two women running for president and an increased focus on policies to support two-income families, this is shaping up as a different kind of election, said Anne Marie Slaughter, who four years ago wrote a popular essay in The Atlantic magazine on why she left a job in the State Department to spend more time with her family.

FILE - In this May 8, 2015 file photo, Frank Fiorina, husband of Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina, listens as she speaks with a guest in Manchester, N.H. While former President Bill Clinton campaigns for his wife wife, Frank Fiorina is pitching voters on the candidacy of his wife on the Republican side. Carly Fiorina has a husband who quit his career to further hers. In the 2016 presidential campaign, a modern take on gender roles is increasingly on display in both parties. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)

"I think what is changing is, this is the year of the family," said Slaughter, now president and CEO of New America, a Washington-based nonprofit.

Compared with her 2008 presidential campaign, which was heavy on national security, Clinton this time has heavily stressed issues that are meant to appeal to women and families: health care, pay equality, education, child care, family leave. She says "these aren't just women's issues, they are economic issues that drive growth and affect all Americans."

Clinton has a long record as an advocate of women's advancement and speaks often and passionately about her baby granddaughter. But her potential Republican rivals have raised questions about her husband's past infidelities and about how she might have contributed to efforts to discredit some of the women known or alleged to have been involved with him. Donald Trump has flatly accused her of enabling Bill Clinton's philandering.

Among Republicans, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio has proposed increasing the child tax credit and creating a tax credit for employers that provide family leave.

Christie says voters are meeting a new generation of candidates with "different types of marriages and different types of relationships than people in the generation before. It really is necessitated by the increasing role and prominence of women in the workforce and by necessity, too."

Christie's wife, Mary Pat Christie, was a former Wall Street executive who out-earned him for most of their marriage. Heidi Cruz, wife of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, is on leave from her job at Goldman Sachs. Jane Sanders is a key adviser to husband Bernie Sanders. And Fiorina's husband, Frank, was a corporate executive until he retired early to support her high-powered career.

Ex-President Bill Clinton and Frank Fiorina are campaigning in Iowa as potential "first gentlemen." Many of the other spouses are out on the trail.

The two-career marriages on display in the campaign are in keeping with the rise of women in the workforce. About 58 percent of working-age women were employed in 2012, compared with 38 percent in 1963, federal statistics show. About 70 percent of women with children under 18 are working.

The political reasons for the shift in how candidates talk about their personal lives and family-oriented policies are clear.

"The Democrats have to mobilize the base and the Republicans have to whittle away at the women's vote," said Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University.

Support from women, who typically lean toward Democrats, was vital for President Barack Obama, who won re-election in 2012 with 55 percent of female voters, while Republican opponent Mitt Romney won 52 percent of men, according to exit polls analyzed by Walsh's center.
Ogier goes into lead at Monte Carlo rally after Meeke battle

GAP, France (AP)  Defending world champion Sebastien Ogier claimed the Monte Carlo rally lead following a tense battle with overnight leader Kris Meeke throughout the second day of the race on Friday.

Ogier moved past his British rival after the morning special stages held on narrow French Alps roads but relinquished his lead after seven of the 16 stages. Meeke posted the fastest time in Friday's longest run to move back to the top with his Citroen DS 3 before Ogier hit back in the final stage to lead by 9.5 seconds overall.

"A great battle with Kris today," said the Frenchman, who drives for Volkswagen. "Some small mistakes here and there, and now I think I have a slow puncture on the left rear. I'm happy though. A good day."

2015 World champion Sebastien Ogier of France waves prior to the start of the 84th Rally of Monte Carlo, from Monaco, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. The Rally of Monte Carlo is the first event of the 2016 FIA World Rally Championship calendar. (AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau)

Andreas Mikkelsen was in third until a spin in the penultimate stage as Jari-Matti Latvala climbed to the provisional podium before Saturday's stages - 1 minute, 8.1 seconds behind.

"There must be something in this stage that Seb knows," Meeke said. "I think he lives about three kilometers from here, so I'm happy to give him this one. I have no answer to his time. Still a long way to go on this rally."

Ogier, a three-time world champion, got off to a strong start to claim the first special stage of the day ahead of Meeke and Latvala. Meeke was then 0.7 seconds faster than his French rival, who damaged the rear left suspension of his Volkswagen, to lead by 6.7 seconds after four stages.

Ogier recovered in the next stage to the Chaillol ski resort, using his driving skills on tricky roads to grab the lead by 1.55 seconds.

Robert Kubica and Hayden Paddon retired in the day's opening stage after losing control of their cars on icy patches and hitting a tree.

"We did two corners on the ice and it felt quite okay," Kubica said. "Then we arrived at the right-hander and I was just a passenger."

The opening race of the world rally championship finishes on Sunday.

Left to right, Volkswagen team with Andreas Mikkelsen of Norway, 2015 World champion Sebastien Ogier of France and Jari Matti Latvala of Finland, pose during the official WRC drivers photo before the start of the 84th Rally of Monte Carlo, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Monaco. The Rally of Monte Carlo is the first event of the 2016 FIA World Rally Championship calendar. (AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau)

2015 World champion, Volkswagen's Sebastien Ogier of France, poses during the official WRC drivers photo before the start of the 84th Rally of Monte Carlo, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Monaco. The Rally of Monte Carlo is the first event of the 2016 FIA World Rally Championship calendar. (AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau)
Internal army spat threatens to derail Libya peace process

BENGHAZI, Libya (AP)  New divisions have emerged in Libya's eastern army after a military spokesman accused its top commander of corruption and treachery, calling into question the country's ability to reach a lasting peace settlement following the recent announcement of a new unity government.

In an angry TV interview late Thursday, spokesman Mohammed Hegazy accused General Khalifa Hifter of corruption. He said Hifter had seized funds and deposited them in his sons' bank accounts in neighboring countries.

He also alleged that Hifter was a traitor, who had deliberately postponed victory in the city of Benghazi, where army units and loyalist militia have been battling Islamic militants for nearly two years.

He even accused Hifter of selling weapons to rival groups, including local al-Qaida affiliate Ansar al-Shariah. The U.S. has accused the group of killing its ambassador, Christopher Stevens, as well as three other Americans in a 2012 attack on the U.S. mission in Benghazi.

Saqr al-Joroushi, an aide to Hifter and Libya's air force commander, said there was no truth to the spokesman's allegations. He said the sons were entrusted by Hifter to use the funds to buy weapons, and added that Hifter had given the orders for a swift crackdown on any group found to have sold weapons to rival militias.

In a televised interview on Friday, Al-Joroushi also lashed out at Hegazy, saying he should have sent his reports to prosecutors rather than go public with his accusations. He said the spokesman holds no real position in the air force.

Libya's eastern parliament, the House of Representatives, says it has launched an investigation into the claims.

The internal fall-out comes at a critical time for Libya. In recent months, the international community has been pushing political rivals to unite against the rising threat of militants affiliated with the Islamic State group, who have seized the central city of Sirte and have waged attacks across the country.

Since 2014 the country has had two rival governments. The internationally recognized government sits in the east, backed by Hifter's army and other loyalist militias. An Islamist-dominated parliament sits in the capital, Tripoli, in the west, and is also backed by a loose-knit coalition of militia.

The unity government, which was announced Tuesday, has not yet been endorsed by the eastern parliament but is seen as a tentative first step to end the civil war.

Libya has fallen into chaos since the 2011 toppling and killing of longtime dictator, Moammar Gadhafi.
California eyes 1-drug executions amid death penalty debate

SACRAMENTO, California (AP)  Californians are preparing to decide whether to resume executions that stopped a decade ago or end them entirely.

While advocates jockey to put both choices before voters this fall, officials overseeing the state's 746 condemned inmates are pushing ahead with plans to use a single lethal drug to meet legal requirements amid a nationwide shortage of execution drugs.

Supporters said at a public hearing on Friday that crime victims have waited too long for justice as the state dragged its heels in adopting a new method of execution.

"The family members of the victims are dying before the murderers," said Michele Hanisee, vice president of the Association of Deputy District Attorneys of Los Angeles County. "Meanwhile, ironically, the state of California moves ahead with an assisted suicide law that would allow doctors to prescribe the same drugs for suicide that death penalty opponents will call inhumane when used for executions."

Opponents said at the hearing that the state risks botching death sentences if it moves too quickly in making the change.

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation will consider the 20 comments made during the 90-minute hearing and written comments from about 12,000 people as it develops its final regulations.

The state is proposing to let corrections officials choose from four types of powerful barbiturates to execute prisoners. A choice would be made for each execution, depending on which drug is available.

The single injection would replace the series of three drugs used in 2006 to execute 76-year-old Clarence Ray Allen for ordering a triple murder.

Two of the four drugs have never before been used in executions, and it's not clear whether the state has enough safeguards in place to obtain safe, effective drugs, said Ana Zamora, criminal justice policy director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California.

"Some of these executions using drugs obtained from questionable sources have resulted in gruesome, botched executions" in other states, she warned.

The corrections department also failed to properly consider that ending executions entirely could save state and local governments $150 million a year, she said, referring to the estimate involving one of the pending ballot measures.

A recent Field Poll showed an almost even split among voters on the death penalty, with 48 percent wanting to speed up the legal process leading to executions and 47 percent seeking to replace executions with life sentences without the possibility of parole.
George Takei's 'Allegiance' plots a life away from Broadway

NEW YORK (AP)  Theatergoers' allegiance to "Allegiance" on Broadway may not have been strong, but its creators vow to get their musical seen elsewhere.

"I know it has a life," said George Takei, who helped turn his childhood memories of being forced into a Wyoming internment camp into the show, which he also stars in.

Producers, who have announced the show will close on Feb. 14, are looking into potential touring productions and investigating whether it might fit in schools. A version also is been looked at on the West Coast, where Takei senses "a magnetic pull."

This image provided by The O & M Company shows actress Lea Salonga, right, with George Takei during a performance of "Allegiance," in New York. Producers, who have announced the show will close on Feb. 14, are looking into potential touring productions and investigating whether it might fit in schools. (Matthew Murphy/The O & M Company via AP)

"This is just a jumping-off point for the story to continue to be told," said Lorenzo Thione, a producer and co-book writer. "Obviously we're disappointed that we can't continue to tell this story on Broadway but the reasons are so external to the show itself."

"Allegiance" is a multigenerational tale with two love stories that's framed by a Japanese-American war veteran looking back on his family's time in a camp. It co-stars Lea Salonga and Telly Leung.

The show had a premiere in 2012 at the Old Globe in San Diego and, when it opened in New York on Oct. 6, marked the first Asian-led cast of a musical on Broadway in more than a decade.

"For the first time for a long time, we see Asian-Americans portraying an Asian-American story in roles that do not feel stereotypical Asian-American," said Thione.

But the show has struggled to grow an audience and has lately been making only 40 percent of its potential box-office haul, despite some good reviews. It will close after some 150 performances, but may fare better in San Francisco or Seattle, where there is memory of the camps.

Takei and Thione said it was inevitable that their depiction of a searing moment in U.S. history would be a hard sell, but once people came, they said it was loved.

"It's not that the material doesn't work for the people that come, it's that not enough people believe it's a story that they would connect with," said Thione.

The arrival of "Allegiance" was cheered as part of a wave of shows featuring non-white stories told by either non-white actors or ones who rarely get to shine on Broadway.

It joined the Cuban immigrant story "On Your Feet!" as well as the hit retelling of first Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton's life by a young African-American and Latino cast.

A revival of "Spring Awakening" also mixed hearing and deaf performers, featured the first Broadway actor in a wheelchair and became the first show on Broadway to conduct its ticket lottery in American Sign Language.

"Allegiance" can boast of attracting Asian-Americans to Broadway  the usual 7 percent average leapt to 37 percent at the Longacre Theatre  and it increased the number of actors of Asian descent who got a break on the stage.

"There's a lot that we feel proud of and some of the smallest things are the ones that I actually feel proudest of, including the fact that this production has given its Broadway debut to several people," said Thione.

The show's depiction of events more than 70 years ago never seemed ancient thanks to a U.S. presidential election that kicked up questions of refugees, loyalty and citizenship. (The show now reserves a seat for Donald Trump for every performance.)

When it closes, some 120,000 people will have seen it on Broadway  the same number of Japanese-Americans incarcerated during World War II.

Takei, of "Star Trek" fame, said he's been gratified to see blond, blue-eyed people in tears after his show, stunned to learn that such inhumanity could have happened to U.S. citizens.

"This is an American story. We may look different from what is popularly conceived of as American, but we are Americans," he said.

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Tensions between Cruz, Bushes underscore deeper party divide

AUSTIN, Texas (AP)  Ted Cruz once proudly wore a belt buckle borrowed from George H.W. Bush that said "President of the United States."

He campaigned and worked for that former president's son, former President George W. Bush. And the endorsement of George P. Bush, the family's latest rising political star and son of Jeb Bush, lent credibility to Cruz's 2012 Senate campaign.

Now, though, Cruz is a top Republican candidate for president, ahead of fellow contender Jeb Bush, the former governor of Florida.

FILE - In this Dec. 15, 2015 file photo, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, right, makes a point as Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas listens on during the Republican presidential debate in Las Vegas. Ted Cruz once proudly wore a belt buckle reading President of the United States borrowed from George H.W. Bush. He campaigned and worked for, and helped write a book lavishing praise on, that former presidents son, Dubya. And the endorsement of George P. Bush, the familys latest rising political star, lent credibility to Cruzs then little-known 2012 Senate campaign. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)

The rise of Cruz highlights a deeper Republican Party struggle between insurgent conservative outsiders and the old guard establishment in which the Bushes, one of the nation's pre-eminent political families, play a major role.

"There is this question of, 'When are the adults going to come in and change the race?' I think the adults are at the table. I certainly consider myself one," said Mica Mosbacher, a prominent Cruz fundraiser whose late husband, Robert, was secretary of commerce under George H.W. Bush. "Some people are still in denial."

Cruz supporters point to October, when George W. Bush said of Cruz to a roomful of donors: "I just don't like that guy."

"I think it hurt him," Mosbacher said of the former president. "He failed to have his finger on the pulse."

Ray Sullivan, who was national spokesman for George W. Bush's 2000 campaign, conceded that it was somewhat unusual for George W. Bush to openly criticize a fellow Republican. But he also said the comment "underscores a highly competitive, multicandidate race and different segments of the Republican Party."

Cruz hasn't retaliated, but being criticized by George W. Bush delighted his tea party base. Since then, Cruz's candidacy has risen in the polls, while Jeb Bush's bid has struggled.

Clay Johnson III, a friend of George W. Bush and former top budget official in his administration, said he recently spent time with the former president and they discussed how many of the crowded field of Republican candidates "have no idea at all about what's involved in being president."

Cruz held jobs in the Bush administration in the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission and, on the verge of the 2004 Republican National Convention, wrote a chapter in "Thank You, President Bush," a book meant to answer "Bush-haters." In it, Cruz likened George W. Bush to Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan and wrote that some fiscal conservatives decried Bush for increased government spending, but "those concerns are often overstated."

In his own autobiography published last year, however, Cruz made it clear his views had changed, criticizing Bush for excessive federal spending.

Before his 2012 Senate bid, Cruz explored running for Texas attorney general. In the autobiography, he detailed how George H.W. Bush agreed to endorse that campaign. But Cruz wrote that Karl Rove, a top strategist for George W. Bush, pressured him not to publicize that.

Rove disputed the book's assertion last year, prompting the Cruz campaign to release 2009 emails from Rove that it said backed up Cruz's account.

Cruz wrote that George H.W. Bush had wanted to call him "the future of the Republican Party." Three years later, Bush's grandson, George P., used those same words to praise Cruz during his Senate run.

Through his office as Texas land commissioner, George P. Bush declined to comment, but he has said he still considers Cruz a friend, even if he's now campaigning for his father instead.

Brendan Steinhauser, a Republican strategist, called the falling-out between Cruz and the Bushes "a good example of the battle for the heart and soul" of the Republican Party.
The Latest: GM ignition switch trial dismissed

NEW YORK (AP)  The latest on a New York trial over General Motors' faulty ignition switches (all times local):

10 a.m.

The first trial aimed at aiding settlement of hundreds of lawsuit stemming from General Motors' faulty ignition switches has been dismissed because of questions about the plaintiff's story.

The claims of an Oklahoma man whose air bags didn't inflate when his car crashed in 2014 unraveled during the Manhattan federal court trial.

At the request of lawyers on both sides, a judge dismissed the case Friday.

U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman had asked the parties to discuss dropping the case a day earlier after he concluded there was merit to GM's claims that a document was doctored and injuries were exaggerated.

GM says it is pleased the case is ending without any payment to the plaintiffs. A lawyer for plaintiff Robert Scheuer said he is disappointed but that other litigation against the automaker will continue.

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9:10 a.m.

Both sides say they'll seek the dismissal of a trial aimed at defining settlement options for hundreds of lawsuits stemming from General Motors' faulty ignition switches.

Attorney Robert C. Hilliard said the action being taken Friday will mark a "disappointing" end to the trial from the plaintiffs' point of view.

General Motors Co. spokesman James R. Cain said the Manhattan case was unmerited.

It involved an Oklahoma man whose air bags didn't inflate when his car crashed in 2014.
Police officer indicted in shooting of unarmed black man

DECATUR, Ga. (AP)  A white Atlanta-area police officer who shot a naked, mentally ill black veteran who was unarmed has been indicted on felony murder and other charges.

The decision came Thursday after DeKalb County prosecutors presented their case against Officer Robert Olsen, who fatally shot Anthony Hill on March 9 while responding to a call of a naked man behaving erratically outside a suburban Atlanta apartment complex.

The family of the 27-year-old Hill says he was a U.S. Air Force veteran who struggled with mental health problems. Tensions between police and minorities have risen across the country in the aftermath of a series of shootings mostly involving white law enforcement officers and unarmed African-American males. However, critics in Hill's case, including his family, have focused more on his mental health and whether force should have been used at all because he was unarmed.

Protesters react outside the Dekalb County, Ga., courthouse after it was announced that a grand jury decided to indict a Dekalb County police offer accused of shooting an unarmed naked man in March, on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Decatur, Ga. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

After announcing the indictment, DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James said prosecutors presented evidence for eight hours but declined to give many other details.

Olsen was indicted on two counts each of felony murder and violating oath of office and one count each of aggravated assault and making a false statement.

The felony murder counts do not indicate malice, but rather that Olsen killed someone during the commission of another felony, in this case aggravated assault or violation of his oath of office, James said. Olsen violated the department's use of force policy and lied during the investigation, falsely saying Hill hit him in the chest before the shooting, James said.

Now that the district attorney's investigation is complete and the grand jury has returned an indictment, the DeKalb County Police Department will begin its own administrative investigation to determine what action, if any, it should take against Olsen, department spokesman Maj. Stephen Fore said in an email Friday.

Olsen was released Friday from the DeKalb County jail on $110,200 bond, sheriff's office spokeswoman Cynthia Williams said.

Olsen's attorney, Don Samuel, said they are disappointed in the grand jury's decision, but he noted the defense was not allowed to present any witnesses, experts or evidence and was not allowed to challenge any of the prosecution's evidence.

"The prosecutors chose not to present all the witnesses who clearly observed what occurred, including the one witness who told the police that Mr. Hill was 'attacking' and 'charging' at Officer Olsen," Samuel wrote in an email. "When this case is presented in a fair manner to a jury in an open courtroom, Officer Olsen will be fully exonerated."

Georgia law allows police officers to be present during grand jury proceedings when they are being accused of crimes in the course of their official duties and to make a statement at the end of the proceedings that the prosecution cannot question or challenge. Samuel said Olsen spoke before the grand jury for about 20 minutes.

Christopher Chestnut, an attorney for Hill's family, said it was a historic day and that he hopes the indictment in this case sets a precedent.

A crowd of several dozen outside the courthouse burst into cheers upon hearing the decision and repeatedly chanted, "All six counts."

Hill's mother, Carolyn Giummo, thanked the crowd, some of whom had camped on a patch of grass outside the courthouse for several days to show their support. She said she's grateful the grand jury reached the decision it did.

"The message is that you have to be accountable for your own actions," Giummo said. "When you decide to do something, if it's not right, there are consequences and you have to be held accountable for it."

Hill's family in November filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the DeKalb County Police Department, Olsen, the county and its board of commissioners.

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This story has been corrected to show the officer's bond amount was $110,200, not $100,000.

Protesters react after it was announced that a grand jury decided to indict a Dekalb County, Ga., police offer accused of shooting an unarmed naked man in March, on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Decatur, Ga. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

A man looks at signage in a camp outside the Dekalb County Courthouse in Decatur, Ga., Thursday, Jan., 21, 2016, as people await the decision by a grand jury considering whether a police officer is to be indicted after the shooting death of an unarmed naked man. DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James announced earlier this month he would seek an indictment against Officer Robert Olsen. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

A woman walks through a camp outside the Dekalb County Courthouse in Decatur, Ga., Thursday, Jan., 21, 2016, as people await the decision by a grand jury considering whether a police officer is to be indicted after the shooting death of an unarmed naked man. DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James announced earlier this month he would seek an indictment against Officer Robert Olsen. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

A protester yells outside the Dekalb County, Ga., Courthouse, where a grand jury indicted a Dekalb County police offer accused of shooting an unarmed naked man in March, on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Decatur, Ga. The police officer was indicted on six counts. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Protesters react outside the Dekalb County, Ga., courthouse after it was announced that a grand jury decided to indict a Dekalb County police offer accused of shooting an unarmed naked man in March, on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Decatur, Ga. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
GOP lawmakers want exemptions for gay marriage opponents

ATLANTA (AP)  Months after the Supreme Court effectively legalized same-sex marriage, lawmakers across the U.S. are pushing bills that would give businesses and some public employees the right to refuse serving gay couples because of their religious beliefs.

The American Civil Liberties Union opposes such bills and says variations have been proposed in 22 states  mostly by Republicans, though they aren't universally backed in the GOP. Top employers, including Delta Air Lines, Home Depot, Porsche and UPS in Georgia, warn the proposals are unwelcoming and bad for business.

Even so, Georgia lawmakers have pressed on with a bill to allow business owners to refuse products or services for same-sex couples planning a wedding, and another that protects state employees who have religious objections to the marriages.

FILE - In this March 17, 2015, file photo, protesters hold up signs as the dome of the Capitol stands in the background during a rally against a contentious "religious freedom" bill in Atlanta. Months after the Supreme Court effectively legalized same-sex marriage, lawmakers in Georgia and across the U.S. are proposing laws that would give businesses and some public employees the right to refuse service for gay couples based on their religious beliefs. The bills, proposed mostly by Republicans, arent universally backed in the party and top employers, including Delta Air Lines, Home Depot, Porsche and UPS warn the proposals are unwelcoming and bad for business. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)

Republican state Rep. Kevin Tanner, sponsor of a bill allowing bakers or other business owners to deny wedding-related services for gay couples, said he's not sure the measure has enough support to pass this year but called for a "non-emotional argument."

"I don't think anyone really fundamentally wants to prohibit the free exercise of religion and the ability of people to raise their children and still be able to make a living just because they have a different belief system than someone who is their customer," he said.

The odds of passage nationwide vary dramatically. Several bills are filed in states with legislatures dominated by Democrats or with a Democratic governor's veto standing in the way, such as Virginia. In Tennessee, lawmakers swiftly rejected a measure barring the state from abiding by the Supreme Court's gay marriage decision after legislative analysts projected it could jeopardize $8.5 billion in federal funding.

Elsewhere, the measures have backing from top officials supported by conservative voters demanding a response to the Supreme Court ruling. In Kentucky  home to Kim Davis, the county clerk jailed when she refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples because of her religious beliefs  lawmakers have proposed a bill allowing clerks to remove their name from licenses. The bill matches an executive order issued by Republican Gov. Matt Bevin.

Legal experts said any bills that become law are bound to be challenged in court. But how judges may rule depends on the specific issue.

Alexander Volokh, an Emory University law professor, said courts may rule against exemptions for public employees. But laws covering private businesses in states without specific civil rights protections for gay residents could stand, he said.

"Private individuals don't have any constitutional duty to participate in gay marriage," Volokh said.

Charles Haynes, founding director of the Religious Freedom Center of the Newseum Institute, said states should be looking for ways to protect gay rights and religious belief, citing Utah's 2015 anti-discrimination law backed by the Mormon church and LGBT activists. The law protects LGBT residents from discrimination in housing and employment but makes exemptions for religious organizations and religious speech at work unless it harasses someone.

"This should not be a zero-sum game where everybody wins on one side and everybody loses on the other," Haynes said.

The divide isn't new in Georgia. The last two years included discussion of a bill forbidding government from infringing on religious beliefs without a compelling interest. The "Religious Freedom Restoration Act" from Republican state Sen. Josh McKoon remains in a House committee, where supporters tabled it last year following the addition of anti-discrimination language they said would gut the bill's purpose.

McKoon frequently cites a student group accused of violating hazing policies with a foot-washing ceremony on a public college campus and a middle school student denied space at his public school to hold a religious student club. McKoon and other supporters say similar laws in other states have never been used to successfully defend discrimination, such as a baker or florist refusing to provide services for a same-sex wedding.

Gay rights advocates remain concerned the religious freedom bill could act as a shield for such discrimination without a statewide civil rights law. More than 200 Georgia religious leaders opposed to McKoon's bill bought full-page ads in four newspapers this month that said: "Dangerous. Divisive. Bad for Georgia."

Georgia's business community has forcefully opposed the measures. The Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce has warned that the state could lose $600 million or more in tourism dollars.

In Indiana, opponents called for boycotts and protests after a religious freedom law passed last year. That provided a real-world example of the risk to Georgia, said Marshall Guest, vice president of business climate at the Atlanta chamber.

"Indiana was the last state to really take up this issue in a meaningful way," Guest said. "It's hard to think we wouldn't face something similar here in Georgia."

That hasn't stopped lawmakers from trying. Georgia Sen. Greg Kirk, a Republican former Southern Baptist Minister, said his bill would allow religious adoption agencies, schools and nonprofits to refuse same-sex couples. Government employees would not be exempt from performing duties requires of their jobs, including clerks issuing marriage license, but could not be punished for only believing in marriage between a man and a woman.

And the state's top House Republican has said his priority is passing a bill to ensure religious leaders aren't required to perform same-sex marriage ceremonies.

"I think it's important that we find a measure that addresses the concerns of Georgians but also may give us an opportunity to come together and reach some broad agreement on a measure," House Speaker David Ralston said this month.

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Associated Press writers Adam Beam in Frankfort, Kentucky; David Lieb in Jefferson City, Missouri; Alan Suderman in Richmond, Virginia; Erik Schelzig in Nashville, Tenn. contributed to this report.

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Follow Kathleen Foody at http://twitter.com/katiefoody. Her work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/journalist/kathleen-foody.

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This story has been corrected to show that the Metro Atlanta Chamber study focused on the loss to state tourism dollars, not only the city.

FILE - In this March 17, 2015, file photo, the dome of the Capitol stands in the background as Stephen Saras, of Atlanta, holds a rainbow-colored flag during a rally against a contentious "religious freedom" bill in Atlanta. Months after the Supreme Court effectively legalized same-sex marriage, lawmakers in Georgia and across the U.S. are proposing laws that would give businesses and some public employees the right to refuse service for gay couples based on their religious beliefs. The bills, proposed mostly by Republicans, arent universally backed in the party and top employers, including Delta Air Lines, Home Depot, Porsche and UPS warn the proposals are unwelcoming and bad for business. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)

FILE - In this Sept. 1, 2015, file photo, Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis, right, talks with David Moore following her office's refusal to issue marriage licenses at the Rowan County Courthouse in Morehead, Ky. Months after the Supreme Court effectively legalized same-sex marriage, some lawmakers across the U.S. are proposing laws that would give businesses and some public employees the right to refuse service for gay couples based on their religious beliefs. The bills, proposed mostly by Republicans, arent universally backed in the party and top employers, including Delta Air Lines, Home Depot, Porsche and UPS warn the proposals are unwelcoming and bad for business. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley, File)

FILE - In this March 25, 2015, file photo, a window sticker on a downtown Indianapolis florist shows its objection to the Religious Freedom bill passed by the Indiana legislature. Months after the Supreme Court effectively legalized same-sex marriage, some lawmakers across the U.S. are proposing laws that would give businesses and some public employees the right to refuse service for gay couples based on their religious beliefs. The bills, proposed mostly by Republicans, arent universally backed in the party and top employers, including Delta Air Lines, Home Depot, Porsche and UPS warn the proposals are unwelcoming and bad for business. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, File)

State Sen. Greg Kirk, R-Americus, speaks on a bill he plans to introduce that provides religious exemptions in the wake of last year's U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Atlanta. Months after the court's decision, lawmakers in Georgia and across the U.S. are proposing laws that would give businesses and some public employees the right to refuse service for gay couples based on their religious beliefs. The bills, proposed mostly by Republicans, arent universally backed in the party and top employers, including Delta Air Lines, Home Depot, Porsche and UPS warn the proposals are unwelcoming and bad for business. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
Charges dropped against 6 Ferguson protesters

FERGUSON, Mo. (AP)  Charges have been dropped against six activists who were arrested during a protest in Ferguson, just as their trial was about to begin. The case was expected to include allegations of police brutality, claims of missing evidence and discussions about the shortcomings of body cameras.

The charges had included property damage, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct and third-degree assault. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (http://bit.ly/1nD9Isk ) reports that Ferguson prosecutor Stephanie Karr dismissed the charges Thursday without explanation.

Later Thursday, the defendants filed a federal lawsuit alleging that Ferguson destroyed evidence and violated the constitution.

In this Feb. 9, 2015 photo, protester Heather De Mian, who uses a motorized wheelchair, is arrested by Ferguson police duirng a protest outside the Ferguson, Mo., police station marking the six-month anniversary of Michael Brown's death. Prosecutors, on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, dropped charges against six activists arrested during the protest just as their trial was about to begin. The circumstances of the arrests were highlighted in the Justice Department report as an example of how Ferguson officers routinely violated First Amendment rights. (Robert Cohen/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP) EDWARDSVILLE INTELLIGENCER OUT; THE ALTON TELEGRAPH OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT

Protests were common in Ferguson after the August 2014 fatal shooting by a white police officer of 18-year-old Michael Brown, who was black and unarmed. Officer Darren Wilson was not charged in his death, but the unrest prompted a U.S. Department of Justice report in March criticizing police and municipal court practices.

The Feb. 9 protest outside the Ferguson police station marked the six-month anniversary of Brown's death. Police said about 40 people participated in the protest, but video by protesters showed fewer than a dozen. The circumstances of the arrests were highlighted in the Justice Department report as an example of how Ferguson officers routinely violated First Amendment rights.

Heather De Mian, who uses a motorized wheelchair and was active in live streaming several protests, faced the most serious allegation, an assault charge. Ferguson officials said De Mian, 46, blinded an officer with a light on her phone and struck him with it when he tried to push the phone away.

De Mian said the officer knocked her out of her chair without provocation. In a video taken by another activist, she is on the ground shouting, "They hit me in the face and knocked my glasses off."

Ferguson outfitted officers with body cameras after the Michael Brown case, and city policy calls for officers to wear them while on duty and retain the video in criminal cases. But months ago, in response to a public records request from the Post-Dispatch, the city said it did not have video from the camera worn by the officer who arrested De Mian.

City spokesman Jeff Small said the body cameras worn at the time had numerous technical problems.

"They just didn't work half the time," Small said. "We have since upgraded our cameras."

Also arrested at the February protest was independent filmmaker Christopher Phillips. His camera, valued at $20,000, was seized. When the device was returned, the connection pins on the memory card had been damaged, Phillips said.

Karr's notice that the charges were being dropped was handwritten, and it said the charges could be refiled.

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Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, http://www.stltoday.com
Charlotte Rampling clarifies controversial diversity remarks

LONDON (AP)  Academy Award-nominated actress Charlotte Rampling said her comments that an Oscars' boycott is "racist to white people" were misinterpreted. In a statement to CBS News' "Sunday Morning" on Friday, Rampling said she wished every performance were given equal opportunity for consideration.

All this year's acting nominees are white. Rampling, 69, previously told France's Europe 1 radio Friday that, while it's impossible to know for sure, "maybe the black actors didn't deserve to be in the final stretch." She told "Sunday Morning" that "I regret that my comments could have been misinterpreted."

Asked if there should be quotas  not a suggestion made by most boycott supporters  Rampling said we live "in countries nowadays where everyone is more or less accepted," but there would always be problems with people being judged "not handsome enough," ''too black" or "too white."

FILE - In this Saturday, Feb. 14, 2015 file photo, Charlotte Rampling holds the Silver Bear for Best Actress for her role in 45 years after the award ceremony at the 2015 Berlinale Film Festival in Berlin, Germany. Academy Award-nominated actress Charlotte Rampling has entered the debate over a lack of diversity at the Oscars, saying the calls for a boycott are "racist to white people." All this years acting nominees are white. Rampling told France's Europe 1 radio Friday, Jan. 22, 2016 that sometimes "maybe black actors didn't deserve to be in the final stretch." (AP Photo/Axel Schmidt, file)

Speaking in French, she asked if the goal was to classify everybody and have "thousands of little minorities everywhere."

Rampling, who has starred in both English and French films, is nominated for a best-actress Academy Award for Andrew Haigh's portrait of a marriage, "45 Years."

Veteran British actor Michael Caine, meanwhile, urged black actors to "be patient" and said recognition would come.

He told the BBC there are plenty of strong performances by non-white actors this year, including Idris Elba's "wonderful" work in "Beasts of No Nation"  which did not receive an Oscar nomination.
Kansas court rejects state's ban on common abortion method

WICHITA, Kansas (AP)  The Kansas Court of Appeals refused Friday to allow the state's first-in-the-nation ban on a common second-trimester abortion method to take effect, saying the state Constitution protects abortion rights independent of the U.S. Constitution.

The decision is expected to be appealed to the Kansas Supreme Court.

The law prohibits doctors from using forceps or similar instruments on a live fetus to remove it from the womb in pieces. Such instruments are commonly used in dilation and evacuation procedures, which the Center for Reproductive Rights has said is the safest and most common abortion procedure in the U.S. in the second trimester.

The ruling relates to a lawsuit filed by two abortion providers who said the 2015 law is an unconstitutional burden on women seeking to end their pregnancies. The legal fight is being closely watched for its potential to affect the state's other restrictive abortion laws.

"The rights of Kansas women in 2016 are not limited to those specifically intended by the men who drafted our state's constitution in 1859," the appeals court wrote.

A finding that the Kansas Constitution protects abortion rights independently of the U.S. Constitution would allow the state's courts to protect those rights more than the federal courts have done. Abortion opponents fear that state courts could then invalidate restrictions in Kansas that the federal courts might allow.

A similar Oklahoma law was blocked by a state court judge, while lawmakers in Nebraska have considered similar measures.

At issue in Kansas is whether broad legal language about individual liberty protects abortion rights. The state Constitution says that residents have "natural rights" and that "free governments" were created for their residents' "equal protection and benefit."

Kansas Senate Majority Leader Terry Bruce said he can't imagine a scenario where the framers of the Kansas Constitution meant to legalize abortion.

"How much worse can you get?" said David Gittrich, a leader with Kansans for Life. "If any type of abortion should be banned, it's that one."

The state law at issue seeks to prevent doctors from using their medical judgment to provide the best care for their patients, said Julie Burkhart, founder and CEO of Trust Women and South Wind Women's Center, which provides abortion services.

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At least 9 killed in snowstorm-related deaths

At least nine people have been killed in accidents as a snowstorm pounds the eastern part of the U.S. Some details of the deaths:

KENTUCKY

 A man died in southeastern Kentucky when his car collided with a salt truck Thursday, state police said. Billy R. Stevens, 59, of Williamsburg was pronounced dead at the scene on state Route 92 in Whitley County. Two passengers were being treated at a hospital.

A snow plow truck makes its way down Electric Road in southwest Roanoke County past Tanglewood Mall on Friday morning, Jan. 22, 2016, in Roanoke, Va. A blizzard menacing the Eastern United States started dumping snow in Virginia, Tennessee and other parts of the South on Friday as millions of people in the storm's path prepared for icy roads, possible power outages and other treacherous conditions. (Erica Yoon/The Roanoke Times via AP)

NORTH CAROLINA

__ Gov. Pat McCrory said one person injured in an accident in Wilkes County on Wednesday evening has died, and another motorist was killed Friday in a crash on Interstate 95 in Johnston County.

 A 60-year-old woman driving her car in Stokes County near her home about 5:45 p.m. Wednesday hit an "extremely icy" patch, went down an embankment and turned over in a creek, the state Highway Patrol said. Mary Williams was killed in the accident.

 In neighboring Forsyth County, 55-year-old Rosa McCollough-Leake was killed when she slid on an icy roadway, crossed into oncoming traffic and hit a pickup truck head-on. Three people had minor injuries.

__ A 4-year-old boy died Friday afternoon after the pickup truck carrying his family on Interstate 77 near Troutman spun out of control and crashed, said State Highway Patrol Sgt. Michael Baker. The Ford pickup carrying two adults and their three children all under 8 years old slammed into a tow truck working to haul out a vehicle that had run off the highway earlier, Baker said. Troopers say the boy was restrained in a child seat and died as a result of the impact.

TENNESSEE

 A car slid off the roadway due to speed and slick conditions, killing the driver and injuring a passenger, the Knox County sheriff's department said.

 A couple was in a vehicle that slid off an icy road and plummeted down a 300-foot embankment Wednesday night, killing the woman who was driving, said Carter County Sheriff Dexter Lunceford. Stacy Sherrill's husband, a passenger in the car, survived the crash. It took him several hours to climb the embankment and report the accident.

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VIRGINIA

 A man was killed in the City of Chesapeake, Virginia, on Friday after his car went off the snowy George Washington highway and hit a tree, said Officer Leo Kosinski.

A snowplows clears US 220 South of Clearbrook as snow falls early Friday morning, Jan. 22, 2016 in Roanoke, Va.. A blizzard menacing the Eastern United States started dumping snow in Virginia, Tennessee and other parts of the South on Friday as millions of people in the storm's path prepared for icy roads, possible power outages and other treacherous conditions. (Stephanie Klein-Davis/The Roanoke Times via AP) LOCAL TELEVISION OUT; SALEM TIMES REGISTER OUT; FINCASTLE HERALD OUT; CHRISTIANBURG NEWS MESSENGER OUT; RADFORD NEWS JOURNAL OUT; ROANOKE STAR SENTINEL OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT
Q&A: What the EU is doing about the migrant crisis

BRUSSELS (AP)  Following the death of more than 40 people off the Greek islands Friday, here are some questions and answers about the migrant crisis and what Europe is doing to respond to it.

More than a million people entered the bloc in 2015 and around 3,700 died or went missing on the way. Already in the first three weeks of this year, another 37,000 people have entered the EU, according to the International Organization for Migration.

WHY ARE PEOPLE DYING?

Greek Coast guard officers prepare for a rescue mission at the port of Kalymnos island on Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. A wooden sailboat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the islet of Kalolimnos near the Greek southeastern island of Kalymnos. A number of people died in two separate incidents of boats smuggling migrants or refugees sinking off two Greek islands overnight into Friday. Dozens survived, and a search and rescue operation was underway for more potential survivors. (Dimitris Drosos/Kalymnos-News.gr via AP)

Most people are arriving in Greece after a 6 or 7 mile hop from the Turkish coast, though some still cross the Mediterranean from Libya to Italy. Often their boats are unseaworthy, and few have reliable lifejackets, if they have any flotation device at all. Also, the EU has no active search and rescue mission. Coastguards and rescue ships react to mayday calls as they are required to under international law, but this takes time. EU countries so far refuse to share sovereignty over their waters with other countries, so the bloc cannot legally establish a search and rescue mission. A new beefed-up European border agency scheme is to be announced in March, but the agency will not have proactive search and rescue powers.

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WHAT HAS THE EU DONE TO HELP?

The EU has beefed up the current Frontex border agency and launched a naval operation to hunt human traffickers. To ease the number of arrivals and prevent dangerous journeys across the sea, EU nations agreed to resettle at least 20,000 refugees by bringing them in directly from countries outside Europe.

Twenty-three nations also accepted to share 160,000 refugees arriving in Greece and Italy over two years to lighten the two countries' burden. However, as of Jan. 21, fewer than 400 of the 160,000 potential refugees had moved on to new homes. This is partly because only four expert teams have been set up of the total 11 that had been planned in Greece and Italy to determine who qualifies for asylum.

On top of that, the EU is to provide more than $3 billion plus assistance and assets to Turkey, as well as to countries neighboring Libya that migrants leave or travel across to get to Europe. It hopes its investment will encourage more border police action in those countries.

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WHAT MORE IS PLANNED?

The EU's executive Commission has demanded that the expert teams should be working within a month. To better control the Turkey-Greece maritime border, the EU will look to endorse before July a European border and coast guard.

In March, the Commission will introduce policy proposals to control entry and exit more tightly, better register travelers and change the rules governing the Schengen passport-free zone that allows people to travel without border checks or visas through 26 countries in Europe. Currently the rules oblige people seeking refuge to apply for asylum in the country they first arrive in, which would mostly mean Greece and Italy. Those two are overwhelmed and they, along with many others, want this system modified.

People check bodies of migrants that were drowned as they were trying to reach Greece, at a port near Izmir, Turkey, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. Turkey's coast guard says 12 migrants have drowned after a boat taking them to the Greek islands capsized in rough weather. About 40 migrants have died so far this year off Turkey's coast while trying to cross into Greece, the coast guard says. (IHA via AP) TURKEY OUT

Survivors try to warm up at Kalymnos island after a rescue operation by the coast guard Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. A wooden sailboat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the islet of Kalolimnos near the Greek southeastern island of Kalymnos. A number of people died in two separate incidents of boats smuggling migrants or refugees sinking off two Greek islands overnight into Friday. Dozens survived, and a search and rescue operation was underway for more potential survivors. (Giorgos Drosos/Kalymnos-News.gr via AP)

Greek Coast guard officers stand outside their vessel at the port of Kalymnos island on Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. A wooden sailboat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the islet of Kalolimnos near the Greek southeastern island of Kalymnos. A number of people died in two separate incidents of boats smuggling migrants or refugees sinking off two Greek islands overnight into Friday. Dozens survived, and a search and rescue operation was underway for more potential survivors. (Dimitris Drosos/Kalymnos-News.gr via AP)

Migrants hold flowers behing the fence of a refugee home in Cologne, Germany, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. Following the New Year's Eve attacks in Cologne, refugees handed out flowers to women in different cities as sign of good will. Several dozen women visited Cologne's biggest refugee center to return the favor. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
Republicans want legal exemptions for gay marriage opponents

ATLANTA (AP)  Months after the Supreme Court effectively legalized same-sex marriage, lawmakers across the U.S. are pushing bills that would give businesses and some public employees the right to refuse serving gay couples because of their religious beliefs.

The American Civil Liberties Union opposes such bills and says variations have been proposed in 22 states, mostly by Republicans. Top employers, including Delta Air Lines, Home Depot, Porsche and UPS, warn the proposals are unwelcoming and bad for business.

Even so, Georgia lawmakers have pressed on with a bill that would allow business owners to refuse products or services for same-sex couples planning a wedding, and another that protects state employees who have religious objections to the marriages.

State Sen. Greg Kirk, R-Americus, shows signatures of fellow lawmakers on a bill he plans to introduce that provides religious exemptions in the wake of last year's U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Atlanta. Kirk says religious adoption agencies, schools and other nonprofits should be able to refuse service to same-sex couples. But Kirk says government employees still would have to carry out duties of their job, including clerks issuing marriage licenses. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

Republican state Rep. Kevin Tanner is sponsoring a bill allowing business owners to deny wedding-related services for gay couples.

"I don't think anyone really fundamentally wants to prohibit the free exercise of religion and the ability of people to raise their children and still be able to make a living just because they have a different belief system than someone who is their customer," he said.

The odds of passage nationwide vary dramatically. Several bills are filed in states with legislatures dominated by Democrats or with a Democratic governor's veto standing in the way, such as Virginia. In Tennessee, lawmakers swiftly rejected a measure barring the state from abiding by the Supreme Court's gay marriage decision after legislative analysts projected it could jeopardize $8.5 billion in federal funding.

Elsewhere, the measures have backing from top officials supported by conservative voters. In Kentucky  home to Kim Davis, the county clerk jailed when she refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples because of her religious beliefs  lawmakers have proposed a bill allowing clerks to remove their name from licenses. The bill matches an executive order issued by Republican Gov. Matt Bevin.

Legal experts said any bills that become law are bound to be challenged in court. How judges may rule depends on the specific issue.

Alexander Volokh, an Emory University law professor, said courts may rule against exemptions for public employees. But laws covering private businesses in states without specific civil rights protections for gay residents could stand, he said.

"Private individuals don't have any constitutional duty to participate in gay marriage," Volokh said.

Charles Haynes, founding director of the Religious Freedom Center of the Newseum Institute, said states should be looking for ways to protect gay rights and religious belief, citing Utah's 2015 anti-discrimination law backed by the Mormon church and LGBT activists. The law protects LGBT residents from discrimination in housing and employment but makes exemptions for religious organizations and religious speech at work unless it harasses someone.

"This should not be a zero-sum game where everybody wins on one side and everybody loses on the other," Haynes said.

Georgia's business community has forcefully opposed the proposed measures. The Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce has warned that the state could lose $600 million or more in tourism dollars.

In Indiana, opponents called for boycotts and protests after a religious freedom law passed last year.

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Associated Press writers Adam Beam in Frankfort, Kentucky; David Lieb in Jefferson City, Missouri; Alan Suderman in Richmond, Virginia; Erik Schelzig in Nashville, Tennessee contributed to this report.

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Follow Kathleen Foody at http://twitter.com/katiefoody. Her work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/journalist/kathleen-foody.

State Sen. Greg Kirk, R-Americus, puts away a bill he plans to introduce that provides religious exemptions in the wake of last year's U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage after showing it to the media Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Atlanta. Kirk says religious adoption agencies, schools and other nonprofits should be able to refuse service to same-sex couples. But Kirk says government employees still would have to carry out duties of their job, including clerks issuing marriage licenses. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
Analysis: Russia's tone familiar after spy poisoning report

MOSCOW (AP)  President Vladimir Putin has made no public comment on the sensational report by a British judge that concluded the Kremlin leader probably approved a 2006 plan to kill a Russian dissident in London. Instead, his subordinates went before reporters and portrayed it as a groundless accusation concocted by a relentlessly hostile West.

Moscow apparently believes that Western leaders' eagerness to stem the tide of Syrian refugees will make them hesitant to push Russia too strongly in the murder case, fearful of hindering peace talks on Syria that are scheduled to begin next week.

Russia's reaction to Thursday's report on the poisoning death of Alexander Litvinenko  a former security operative who became a fierce Kremlin critic  is a familiar one in the Putin era: a denial of any wrongdoing amid aggrieved contentions that foreign puppeteers are aiming to push Putin from power and weaken Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a government meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (Alexei Nikolsky/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

In recent years, Russia has denied claims that it sent troops into eastern Ukraine to fight with rebels, that it supplied a missile that shot down a Malaysian airliner over Ukraine, and that its warplanes were bombing Syrian civilians and supporting the troops of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

The tactic works well at home, feeding Russians' strong appetite for perceiving their nation as ever-besieged. This kind of appeal has helped keep Putin's personal approval ratings high even as the economy deteriorated sharply in the past two years.

In the West, it only reinforces Russia's image as truculent and obstructive. A series of sanctions were imposed on Russia over its actions in Ukraine, and Moscow's relations with Washington and many European countries are at best strongly troubled.

But Russia also has wedges it can employ with the Western world, particularly regarding Syria.

Assad is Moscow's longtime ally, and Russia can wield more influence with him than the countries that overtly seek his ouster. Despite occasional signs that Russia is less than fully comfortable with Assad, it firmly resists making regime change a mandatory condition for ending the civil war.

Russia also is a key factor on the Syrian battlefield, launching thousands of airstrikes since late September. Although claims differ sharply on how hard those airstrikes are hurting the Islamic State group and other extremists, the sheer demonstration of military might means the West cannot afford to alienate Russia.

Moscow, in turn, would not want to push disagreements with the West too far; it needs a resolution in Syria, both with regard to retaining its only military base in the Middle East, as well as suppressing the Islamic militants that Moscow fears have their eyes on Russia.

In that light, it appears that the British's judge's allegations in the Litvinenko case may have little  if any  blowback.

"If U.S. and British political circles remain interested in joint efforts with Russia in the struggle against international terrorism, the Litvinenko case will soon be forgotten," Andrei Kilmov, deputy head of the foreign affairs committee of Russia's upper house of parliament, told the state news agency Tass on Friday.

Even as Prime Minister David Cameron said Britain would toughen its stance with Russia in the wake of the Litvinenko findings, he acknowledged that London needs Moscow.

"Do we at some level have to go on having some sort of relationship with them because we need a solution to the Syria crisis? Yes we do  but we do it with clear eyes and a very cold heart," he said.

One analyst cast doubt on that strategy.

"That may not be sensible because the U.K.'s influence on what Russia does in Syria is minimal," said Keir Giles, a Russian analyst at Britain's Chatham House institute.

After the report by Judge Robert Owen came out, Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it could "further poison the atmosphere of our bilateral relations." But Russia has not announced any retaliatory measures.

"I am sad to say relations have already been frigid for a long time," said Viktor Ivanov, a Putin ally who heads Russia's anti-narcotics agency. Litvinenko's claim of Ivanov's ties to organized crime was mentioned in the report as a possible reason Moscow may have wanted the dissident eliminated.

Russia has another interest in preventing relations with the West from worsening: the conflict in Ukraine. Although fighting there has diminished notably in recent months, the tensions between Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed rebels remain unresolved. In addition, Western sanctions connected to the conflict are still in force, and those are contributing factors in Russia's economic troubles.

Moscow recently has shown heightened interest in bringing about a resolution, appointing influential Putin ally Boris Gryzlov as an envoy to the group trying to implement a solution.

Russian officials indicate the strategy for dealing with the Litvinenko allegations will be to hew tightly to denials and hope the controversy will go away.

"I want to say that this is not news that is discussed widely in Russia," Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Trutnev told The Associated Press on Friday at the international economic forum in Davos, Switzerland.

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Jim Heintz, an Associated Press newsman in Moscow, has covered Russian politics since 1999.

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A previous version of this story misidentified Russia's envoy to the Ukraine Contact Group as Sergei Naryshkin. It is Boris Gryzlov.

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Iuliia Subbotovska in Moscow and Gregory Katz and Jill Lawless in London contributed to this story.
US police to probe officer who shot naked, unarmed black man

DECATUR, Georgia (AP)  Police said Friday they will investigate a white Atlanta-area officer who shot a naked, unarmed, mentally ill black veteran and has been indicted on felony murder and other charges.

Officer Robert Olsen fatally shot Anthony Hill on March 9 while responding to a call of a naked man behaving erratically outside an apartment complex. Olsen was indicted Thursday.

Tensions between police and minorities have risen across the U.S. after a series of shootings mostly involving white law enforcement officers and unarmed African-American males. Critics in Hill's case, including his family, have focused more on his mental health and whether force should have been used because he was unarmed.

Protesters react outside the Dekalb County, Ga., courthouse after it was announced that a grand jury decided to indict a Dekalb County police offer accused of shooting an unarmed naked man in March, on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Decatur, Ga. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

The family of the 27-year-old Hill says he was a U.S. Air Force veteran who struggled with mental health problems.

The DeKalb County Police Department will begin its own administrative investigation to determine what action, if any, it should take against Olsen, department spokesman Maj. Stephen Fore said in an email Friday.

Olsen was released Friday from jail on $110,200 bond, sheriff's office spokeswoman Cynthia Williams said.

Olsen's attorney, Don Samuel, said they are disappointed in the grand jury's decision, but he noted the defense was not allowed to present any witnesses, experts or evidence and was not allowed to challenge any of the prosecution's evidence.

Georgia law allows police officers to be present during grand jury proceedings when they are being accused of crimes in the course of their official duties and to make a statement at the end of the proceedings that the prosecution cannot question or challenge. Samuel said Olsen spoke before the grand jury for about 20 minutes.

Hill's family in November filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the DeKalb County Police Department, Olsen, the county and its board of commissioners.

District Attorney Robert James reads through the charges Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016 after a grand jury indicted Officer Robert Olsen in the shooting death of Anthony Hill. An Atlanta area grand jury indicted Olsen, who fatally shot an unarmed naked man on charges including felony murder, aggravated assault and violation of oath of office. (Ben Gray/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

Protesters react after it was announced that a grand jury decided to indict a Dekalb County, Ga., police offer accused of shooting an unarmed naked man in March, on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Decatur, Ga. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Bridget Anderson, right, wipes away a tear as DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James announces Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, that a grand jury indicted DeKalb County Police Officer Robert Olsen for shooting and killing of her boyfriend Anthony Hill. An Atlanta area grand jury indicted Olsen, who fatally shot an unarmed naked man on charges including felony murder, aggravated assault and violation of oath of office. (Ben Gray/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

A man looks at signage in a camp outside the Dekalb County Courthouse in Decatur, Ga., Thursday, Jan., 21, 2016, as people await the decision by a grand jury considering whether a police officer is to be indicted after the shooting death of an unarmed naked man. DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James announced earlier this month he would seek an indictment against Officer Robert Olsen. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

A woman walks through a camp outside the Dekalb County Courthouse in Decatur, Ga., Thursday, Jan., 21, 2016, as people await the decision by a grand jury considering whether a police officer is to be indicted after the shooting death of an unarmed naked man. DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James announced earlier this month he would seek an indictment against Officer Robert Olsen. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

A protester yells outside the Dekalb County, Ga., Courthouse, where a grand jury indicted a Dekalb County police offer accused of shooting an unarmed naked man in March, on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Decatur, Ga. The police officer was indicted on six counts. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Protesters react outside the Dekalb County, Ga., courthouse after it was announced that a grand jury decided to indict a Dekalb County police offer accused of shooting an unarmed naked man in March, on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Decatur, Ga. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
US, New Mexico sign settlements over nuclear radiation leak

ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico (AP)  New Mexico and the U.S. Department of Energy signed $74 million in settlements over dozens of permit violations stemming from a radiation leak that forced the closure of the only underground nuclear waste repository in the U.S.

The settlements are the largest ever negotiated between a state and the Energy Department and come after months of negotiations. The agreements were first outlined last spring, but their signing was delayed by disagreements over some of the details.

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in southern New Mexico has been closed since February 2014, when a container of waste burst and released radiation in the underground facility. Twenty-two workers were exposed, and monitors at the surface recorded low levels of radiological contamination, but officials said nearby communities were not at risk.

Investigators determined that the container had been improperly packed at Los Alamos National Laboratory, and experts have said the incident could have been avoided.

The settlements call for the Energy Department to funnel millions of dollars toward road improvements and environmental projects in New Mexico. The state initially proposed more than $54 million in penalties against the federal agency and its contractors for numerous violations at the lab and waste dump.

New Mexico Environment Department Secretary Ryan Flynn called the settlements unprecedented and said they represent a "good deal" for the state.

"We're here because of problems that occurred at WIPP and were caused in large part due to failures up at (Los Alamos)," Flynn said. "I prefer to have avoided this entire situation altogether and focus on other things related to these facilities, but they had some major problems and we're finally on the path to recovery."

Flynn said his staff has been working with the Energy Department and its contractors, poring over the findings of the numerous investigations and inspections done over the past two years to ensure a similar incident does not happen again.

The state agency's work also includes revamping a cleanup order and setting new deadlines for Los Alamos to remove barrels of radioactive waste from its property in northern New Mexico.

Los Alamos has faced its own delays in trying to clean up waste like contaminated gloves, tools and clothing from decades of bomb-making. The closure of the dump has complicated the matter, but it also has halted shipments of waste from across the federal government's nuclear complex.

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Online:

Los Alamos settlement: http://bit.ly/1VeiDuN
UAW union hopes for 'reset' on Volkswagen labor relations

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP)  The United Auto Workers union is hoping a management overhaul at Volkswagen in the aftermath of its diesel emissions cheating scandal will help ease an impasse over collective bargaining at the German automaker's lone U.S. plant.

But on a visit to Chattanooga last week, new Volkswagen CEO Matthias Mueller said he hasn't yet made up his mind about politically sensitive labor issues at the factory.

"My agenda of course has been heavily dominated by the diesel issue so far," Mueller told The Associated Press after a speech to workers on the factory floor.

"Surely we must take a few weeks to understand and relate to this very complex topic," he said about the unsettled union issues at the plant.

Volkswagen was forced to admit last year that about 600,000 diesel vehicles  including 90,000 Passat sedans made at the Chattanooga plant  were sold with illegal software designed to trick government emissions tests. Efforts to find a fix have failed so far.

Gary Casteel, secretary-treasurer of the UAW and head of the union's efforts to organize foreign automakers, acknowledged that "Volkswagen is under new management and that company officials have a lot on their plate right now."

Casteel nevertheless expressed hope that the new leadership "will provide an opportunity, soon, to reset the dialogue."

The UAW has been thwarted for decades in its attempts to organize foreign automakers in the South amid heavy opposition from manufacturers and Republican politicians wary of seeing the union gaining a foothold in the region.

Volkswagen is seen as the UAW's best chance to make inroads with a foreign automaker in the South because of the strong labor presence on the company's supervisory board in Germany. Those leaders chafe at the Chattanooga plant being alone among company's worldwide facilities without formal labor representation.

In the run-up to a 2014 union vote at the plant, the UAW agreed with Volkswagen to pursue a German-style "works council" that would represent both salaried and hourly employees at the plant. Despite the close working relationship between the company and union, the UAW lost that election on a 712-626 vote amid heavy opposition from anti-labor groups and Republicans like U.S. Sen. Bob Corker.

The UAW changed tactics last year by seeking a new election covering only the roughly 160 skilled-trades workers specializing in the repair and maintenance of machinery and robots at the plant, and not the remaining 1,250 hourly production workers.

The union won that election last month on a 108-44 vote despite public opposition from Volkswagen management. But the celebration was short-lived, as Volkswagen filed an appeal to the National Labor Relations Board and has refused to engage in collective bargaining with the union. The challenge is still pending with the federal panel.

Volkswagen's hardball approach may please longtime Republican critics about the company's labor stance, but doesn't play as well among the worker representatives who wield considerable clout back in Germany.

But like Mueller, much of Volkswagen management has been focused on the fallout from the emissions cheating scandal, which has dealt a severe blow to the company's reputation.

The UAW's Casteel said he hopes labor issues don't fall by the wayside.
Haiti delays presidential runoff again in electoral dispute

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP)  A presidential runoff that had already been delayed once and faced deep public skepticism was put on hold indefinitely Friday, as Haiti's leaders sought to negotiate a resolution to what threatens to become a constitutional crisis.

The Provisional Electoral Council decided to postpone Sunday's vote because there is "too much violence throughout the country," council president Pierre-Louis Opont said at a news conference. In recent days, a number of election offices across the impoverished nation have been burned and the capital has been rocked by violent opposition protests calling for a halt to the runoff.

The council did not set a new date for the vote. It also did not say whether an interim government would take power after Feb. 7, when President Michel Martelly is required to leave office under the Constitution, or if he would remain until a replacement is elected.

A national police officer fires birdshot at demonstrators during a street protest after it was announced that the runoff Jan. 24, presidential election had been postponed, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. The Provisional Electoral Council in Haiti has postponed the election amid escalating protests by the opposition, which claims the first round was marred by fraud in favor of a government-backed candidate. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

Martelly had been expected to address the issue in a speech to the nation Friday evening, but he canceled his address as thousands of protesters erected flaming barricades, smashed car windows and hurled rocks at police in Port-au-Prince. Instead an extraordinary council of ministers was convened to discuss public order and security.

Government opponents have insisted that the first round of presidential balloting Oct. 25 was marred by massive fraud in favor of the president's hand-picked successor, businessman Jovenel Moise. The runoff was originally supposed to be held Dec. 27, then rescheduled for Sunday.

Jude Celestin, also a businessman and the other candidate in the runoff, said he would boycott the vote, though his name remained on the ballot.

Neither candidate immediately returned phone messages seeking response to the electoral council's decision. In a statement, Celestin's "Group of Eight" opposition alliance welcomed the "fighting spirit of the Haitian people."

Protests have grown increasingly violent in recent days, prompting the council to conclude it was too risky to try to hold the vote. Haiti has only a shaky handle on security even with the assistance of troops and police from a U.N. peacekeeping force that has been in the country since a 2004 uprising ousted then-President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.

Schools that serve as election centers and voting stations in various towns have been attacked and set on fire in recent days, and election materials in a border town were hijacked by gunmen, Opont said.

Recent opposition-stoked protests in Port-au-Prince have ramped up the tension with rock-throwing partisans and burning street barricades.

Thousands of demonstrators cheered in celebration Friday after hearing the vote would be postponed. Groups of mostly young men then proceeded to Petionville, a hillside district that is home to some of Haiti's wealthiest citizens, where they smashed windows, set vehicles alight and threw rocks at riot police. Security guards fired into the air.

In the evening, the smoldering remnants of scores of flaming barricades could be seen in downtown Port-au-Prince. Motorists were forced to swerve around burnt tires, shattered glass and piles of rocks, but roadside eateries began to reopen.

There has been growing concern that a flawed runoff might push the perennially volatile country of 10 million people to the edge of tumult, rolling back a decade of relative political stability and putting the brakes on foreign investment.

Elections are always a struggle in Haiti. It saw its first genuinely democratic election in 1990, closely followed by a coup d'etat. While there have been no shortage of opposition boycotts since, this is the first time that a presidential candidate is boycotting a runoff after qualifying for it.

Celestin recently told The Associated Press that Haiti was "moving toward a selection, not an election." He said the U.S. and other foreign governments that monitor Haiti were complicit for supporting flawed elections.

Haiti's Senate and various religious, business and civil-society groups had called for a halt to Sunday's runoff due to public suspicion of fraud and concerns about instability.

Martelly had said the runoff would go on as scheduled and accused the opposition of trying to derail the vote with bogus accusations so a transitional government they would dominate could be set up.

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David McFadden is on Twitter: http://twitter.com/dmcfadd

A protester carries a tire to burn during a street protest after it was announced that the runoff Jan. 24, presidential election had been postponed, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. The Provisional Electoral Council in Haiti has postponed the election amid escalating protests by the opposition, which claims the first round was marred by fraud in favor of a government-backed candidate. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

A demonstator is taken to hospital after he was wounded by a shotgun blast during a street protest after it was announced that the runoff Jan. 24, presidential election had been postponed, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. The Provisional Electoral Council in Haiti has postponed the election amid escalating protests by the opposition, which claims the first round was marred by fraud in favor of a government-backed candidate. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

A protester is taken to hospital after he was wounded by birdshot during a street protest after it was announced that the runoff Jan. 24, presidential election had been postponed, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. The Provisional Electoral Council in Haiti has postponed the election amid escalating protests by the opposition, which claims the first round was marred by fraud in favor of a government-backed candidate. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

Demosntrators run past a burning car during a street protest after it was announced that the runoff Jan. 24, presidential election had been postponed, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. The Provisional Electoral Council in Haiti has postponed the election amid escalating protests by the opposition, which claims the first round was marred by fraud in favor of a government-backed candidate. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

A masked demosntrator chants anti-government slogans during a street protest after it was announced that the runoff Jan. 24, presidential election had been postponed, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. The Provisional Electoral Council in Haiti has postponed the election amid escalating protests by the opposition, which claims the first round was marred by fraud in favor of a government-backed candidate. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

Demonstrators run away from tear gas grenade during a street protest after it was announced that the runoff Jan. 24, presidential election had been postponed, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. The Provisional Electoral Council in Haiti has postponed the election amid escalating protests by the opposition, which claims the first round was marred by fraud in favor of a government-backed candidate. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

A protester holds a ready to throw empty bottle, during a street protest after it was announced that the runoff Jan. 24, presidential election had been postponed, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. The Provisional Electoral Council in Haiti has postponed the election amid escalating protests by the opposition, which claims the first round was marred by fraud in favor of a government-backed candidate. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

Demonstrators walk past a burning barricade during a street protest after it was announced that the runoff Jan. 24, presidential election had been postponed, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. The Provisional Electoral Council in Haiti has postponed the election amid escalating protests by the opposition, which claims the first round was marred by fraud in favor of a government-backed candidate. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

A demosntrator kicks a canister of tear gas during a street protest after it was announced that the runoff Jan. 24, presidential election had been postponed, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. The Provisional Electoral Council in Haiti has postponed the election amid escalating protests by the opposition, which claims the first round was marred by fraud in favor of a government-backed candidate. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

Demonstrators march during a street protest after it was announced that the runoff Jan. 24, presidential election had been postponed, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. The Provisional Electoral Council in Haiti has postponed the election amid escalating protests by the opposition, which claims the first round was marred by fraud in favor of a government-backed candidate. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

Demonstrators burn tires under campaign poster of presidential candidate Jovenel Moise of the PHTK political party during a street protest after it was announced that the runoff Jan. 24, presidential election had been postponed, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. The Provisional Electoral Council in Haiti has postponed the election amid escalating protests by the opposition, which claims the first round was marred by fraud in favor of a government-backed candidate. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)
Hollywood reax swift, positive to Oscar diversity measures

The Academy's proposed changes to increase diversity in the Oscars prompted swift and positive reaction in Hollywood, with many praising the moves while still noting that the Academy Awards are only part of the problem, and only part of the solution.

Saying that "We need to step this up," president Cheryl Boone Isaacs announced Friday that the academy aims to double the number of female and minority members by 2020, and will immediately diversify its leadership by adding three new seats to its board of governors. The academy now aims for women to comprise 48 percent of its membership and "diverse groups" at least 14 percent as an initial step.

The announcement came amid widespread dismay over a second straight year of all-white acting nominees, a development that has turned this year's awards into a referendum on diversity in the movie industry.

FILE - In this Jan. 12, 2016 file photo, actress Lupita Nyong'o poses at the Marie Claire Image Maker Awards in Los Angeles. Following a second straight year of all-white acting Oscar nominees, Nyongo said Tuesday, Jan. 19, on Instagram she was joining in calling for change in expanding the stories that are told and recognition of the people who tell them. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, FIle)

Here are some reactions to the academy's announcement, followed by some highlights on the broader diversity question.

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"I applaud their attempts to do something about it, which is great. But again, this is dealing with the symptom, not starting at the root cause of how we even get to results like this, which has to do with inclusion and access and the ability for people of color, women and minorities to get at entry-level positions where you can become someone who can green-light a movie. "  Don Cheadle, a best-actor nominee in 2005 for "Hotel Rwanda," in an interview.

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The changes are "one good step in a long, complicated journey for people of color and women artists. Shame is a helluva motivator ... Marginalized artists have advocated for Academy change for DECADES. Actual campaigns. Calls voiced FROM THE STAGE. Deaf ears. Closed minds."  Ava DuVernay, director of last year's Oscar-nominated civil rights drama "Selma" who was passed over herself for a nomination, on Twitter.

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"The Academy is certainly getting to work. They are sincere in their efforts. I think this is going to have a really good outcome for the Academy AND the industry. Because the Academy is just a small part of the system. Those who have been frustrated with the procedures need to be patient ... rather than tweet, maybe they can reach out to the Academy and find out how they can assist in the process. Once the dust settles, calmer heads will prevail." Gil Robertson, president of the African-American Film Critics Association, in an interview.

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"Diversity is our greatest strength. I am encouraged that, under the bold leadership of President Cheryl Boone Isaacs, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is taking important steps to ensure that its voting membership better reflects the range of experiences and perspectives that make cinema such a powerful and indispensable art form." Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, in a statement.

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ON DIVERSITY ISSUE (comments came before announced changes)

"Diversity is the American superpower. That's why we're great."  Will Smith, who said he would not attend the Oscars.

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"It goes further than the Academy Awards. It has to go back to the gatekeepers. The people who have the green-light vote. ... We're not in the room. The executives, when they have these green-light meetings quarterly where they look at the scripts, they look who's in it and they decide what we're making and what we're not making."  Spike Lee, one of this year's honorary Oscar recipients, who said he would go to a Knicks game instead of the ceremony.

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"Begging for acknowledgement, or even asking, diminishes dignity and diminishes power. And we are a dignified people and we are powerful."  Jada Pinkett Smith, who said she would not attend or watch the Oscars.

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"Diversity in the modern world is more than just skin color. It's gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, social background and  most important of all, as far as I'm concerned  diversity of thought. Because if you have genuine diversity of thought among people making TV and film, then you won't accidentally shut out any of the groups I just mentioned."  Idris Elba, speaking before Parliament in London.

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"There should be 20 or 30 or 40 films of the quality that people would consider for the Oscars. By the way, we're talking about African-Americans. For Hispanics, it's even worse. We need to get better at this. We used to be better at it."  George Clooney.

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"I am disappointed by the lack of inclusion in this year's Academy Awards nominations. It has me thinking about unconscious prejudice and what merits prestige in our culture. The Awards should not dictate the terms of art in our modern society, but rather be a diverse reflection of the best of what our art has to offer today. I stand with my peers who are calling for change in expanding the stories that are told and recognition of the people who tell them."  Lupita Nyong'o.

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"This institution doesn't reflect its president and it doesn't reflect this room. I am an academy member and it doesn't reflect me and it doesn't reflect this nation."  David Oyelowo, star of "Selma," at an event honoring academy president Isaacs.

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"We must do a better job of cultivating and recognizing diversity. The film community is better served when a wider array of voices is celebrated."  Chris Dodd, Motion Picture Association of America chairman.

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"Be patient. Of course it will come. It took me years to get an Oscar, years."  Michael Caine.

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"Maybe the black actors didn't deserve to be in the final stretch."  Current nominee Charlotte Rampling, referring to this year's list.

FILE - In this Feb. 20, 2015 file photo, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Cheryl Boone Isaacs arrives at the 52nd Annual ICG Publicists Awards, in Beverly Hills, Calif. Since becoming the academys first African-American president, Boone Isaacs has prioritized diversifying the academy by inducting a higher rate of minorities in recent years and unveiling a five-year initiative to promote diversity in the industry. But Boone Isaacs is now promising even bigger changes: We need to do more, and better and more quickly, she said in a statement on Monday, Jan. 18, 2016. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)

FILE - In this Saturday, Feb. 14, 2015 file photo, Charlotte Rampling holds the Silver Bear for Best Actress for her role in 45 years after the award ceremony at the 2015 Berlinale Film Festival in Berlin, Germany. Academy Award-nominated actress Charlotte Rampling has entered the debate over a lack of diversity at the Oscars, saying the calls for a boycott are "racist to white people." All this years acting nominees are white. Rampling told France's Europe 1 radio Friday, Jan. 22, 2016 that sometimes "maybe black actors didn't deserve to be in the final stretch." (AP Photo/Axel Schmidt, file)
Hawaii telescope official: Fate of project rests with state

HONOLULU (AP)  The executive director of the embattled Thirty Meter Telescope said Friday he wants to move forward with the project but is waiting to hear from state agencies about how to proceed after the Hawaii Supreme Court invalidated a key construction permit.

The $1.4 billion project has been in limbo since April, when throngs of protesters opposed to building the telescope atop Mauna Kea held sacred by many Native Hawaiians  blocked construction crews. Protesters showed up in force again in June during an attempt to resume construction. Last month, the state Supreme Court ruled that the state Board of Land and Natural Resources should not have issued the permit before a hearings officer reviewed a petition by a group challenging the project's approval. The court sent the matter back for a new contested case hearing.

Since then, telescope officials have been largely silent on what they planned to do next. But Ed Stone, the project's executive director, said telescope officials don't have enough information to decide.

Thirty Meter Telescope Executive Director Ed Stone talks to reporters in Honolulu on Friday, Jan. 22, 2016 after participating in a Chamber of Commerce Hawaii panel on the future of Mauna Kea. The executive director of the embattled Thirty Meter Telescope says he wants to move forward with the project but is waiting to hear from state officials about how to proceed after the Hawaii Supreme Court invalidated a key construction permit.(AP Photo/Jennifer Sinco Kelleher)

"We're waiting now for the instructions from the courts through the Department of Land and Natural Resources ... which they can convey to us what this new process needs to be, what the schedule is and then we can take it into account in deciding what we do next," he said. "So we can't really do anything until we have an idea what it is the state's requiring to see if that's going to be consistent with what we can do."

State officials are not holding up the process, state Attorney General Doug Chin said in a statement. "On Dec. 29, the Supreme Court remanded the case to the circuit court to further remand to the Board of Land and Natural Resources so that a contested case hearing can be conducted," he said. "As of today, the circuit court has not remanded the case. BLNR cannot take action or provide instructions to anyone until this happens."

Stone was on a Chamber of Commerce Hawaii panel Friday to discuss the future of Mauna Kea. Panelists urged telescope supporters to be more vocal.

There's a "tremendous intimidation factor," when protesters invoke the word "sacred," said panelist Peter Apo, who is an Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustee.

Supporters tend to be silent, while opponents are much more vocal.

"You gotta rise up and get out there and engage," Apo told attendees gathered at downtown Honolulu's Plaza Club.

Attendee Kirstin Kahaloa, executive director of the Kona-Kohala Chamber of Commerce, agreed, noting that there's a "fear factor" among those who support the project. She described "personal attacks," when she expressed her support publicly.

The fervent protests have been surprising, Stone said after the panel discussion.

"Those voices were not there and then they appeared in October of 2014 and surprised not only us but I think essentially all our supporters," he said, reflecting back to the project's groundbreaking ceremony that was disrupted by protesters.

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Follow Jennifer Sinco Kelleher at http://www.twitter.com/JenHapa. Her work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/jennifer-sinco-kelleher.
Chicago Public Schools announces 227 administrative layoffs

CHICAGO (AP)  More than 200 administrative employees with Chicago Public Schools are being laid off and another 180 already-vacant positions will be closed, changes that officials on Friday said will help save the nation's third-largest district $45.1 million a year as it grapples with deep financial problems.

The school district, as of August, had 1,821 positions that were classified as administrative. The 227 layoffs are in the central office and officials say 57 of the workers affected will be eligible to reapply for 35 jobs. After the changes, the district will have cut 433 central office jobs overall since August through layoffs or closings of positions.

"There's no doubt that these cuts are painful," schools CEO Forrest Claypool said in a statement Friday. "However, with limited resources and a budget crisis not just this year but into the foreseeable future, we had no choice."

FILE - In this July 16, 2015, file photo, Chicago Public Schools District CEO Forrest Claypool listens to Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel during a news conference in Chicago. Claypool said Thursday Jan. 21, 2016, that layoffs would be announced Friday as the district deals with its precarious financial state. Claypool's announcement comes the same week top Illinois Republicans called for a state takeover of the school district. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, File)

The changes will affect the district's purchasing, law, information technology, facilities and payroll departments as well as its office for special education services, district officials said. They come at a difficult time for the district, which has roughly 400,000 students and faces a $1.1 billion budget deficit and the potential of midyear teacher layoffs.

Tough contract negotiations with the Chicago Teachers Union, which went on strike in 2012, are ongoing. Earlier this week, top Illinois Republicans called for a state takeover of the district because of the fiscal crisis, a plan Democrats and Chicago school officials blasted.

Claypool continued his criticism of the state's school funding formula, saying Friday that it's unfair to CPS. Attempts to get legislative help for the budget crisis have faltered.
Trump, Republican leaders realizing they may need each other

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP)  Donald Trump and some mainstream U.S. Republicans are engaged in a long-distance flirtation. Both sides are coming to the realization that they'll need each other if the billionaire businessman becomes the party's presidential nominee.

The Republican establishment is no fonder of Trump than when he first roiled the campaign last summer with his controversial comments about immigrants and women. But with voting beginning in just over a week, his durability atop preference polls has pushed some donors, strategists and party elders to grudgingly accept the prospect of his winning the nomination.

"We'd better stop hoping for something else and accept the possibility that he's our nominee and be prepared to rally around him if that's the case," said Fred Malek, a top Republican presidential fundraiser.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during the Outdoor Channel and Sportsman Channel's 16th annual Outdoor Sportsman Awards on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Isaac Brekken)

Bob Dole, the 1996 Republican nominee who represented Kansas in the House and Senate for decades, said of Trump: "He's got this personality where I do believe he could work with Congress."

Trump, too, has started to suggest that he'd look for ways to work with Republican leaders if he wins.

"I'm a dealmaker who will get things done," he said Thursday during an event in Las Vegas. "There's a point at which  let's get to be a little establishment. We got to get things done, folks, OK?"

However, the establishment's growing acceptance of Trump's electoral prospects so far hasn't manifested itself in tangible support for his campaign. The real estate mogul has not been endorsed by any congressional lawmakers or governors, nor are there any indications of a big wave of major donors planning to get involved with his campaign, despite Trump's assertion that he's received "so many calls" from wealthy and influential Republicans.

If anything, the most visible signs of support for Trump's campaign in recent days have come from those who see themselves as outside the Republican establishment. Sarah Palin, the former Alaska governor and a favorite of the tea party insurgency, announced her support for him on Tuesday.

Much of the mainstream Republican reckoning with Trump is rooted in deep disdain for Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, the businessman's closest rival. Cruz is seen as more likely to try to upend the web of lobbyists, donors and other powerbrokers who have long wielded enormous influence in the Republican Party.

Liz Mair, a communications operative who is running one of the Republicans' few anti-Trump efforts, said donors affiliated with other candidates would rather let Trump beat Cruz in the early voting states than let their least-favorite senator gain momentum.

"They'd rather that he kills Cruz by winning in Iowa and New Hampshire and then try to take him down," Mair said.

Even as he's taken up the anti-establishment mantle, Trump has made some quiet overtures to Republican powerbrokers. He met with Republican mega-donor Sheldon Adelson last year and has also reached out to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, though he hasn't spoken directly with House Speaker Paul Ryan.

There are still big swaths of establishment-minded Republican voters and officials who staunchly oppose Trump's candidacy and believe both he and Cruz are unelectable in November. They say there's still plenty of time for a more mainstream candidate to mount a serious challenge.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush are all seeking to beat expectations in Iowa, then be a top finisher in New Hampshire. Ohio Gov. John Kasich is also in the mix in New Hampshire.

On the Democratic side, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is facing an unexpectedly strong challenge from liberal insurgent Sen. Bernie Sanders.

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AP writer Julie Bykowitz in Washington contributed to this report.

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A judge on Friday ordered a medical examination of Sumner Redstone as part of an ongoing court fight over the media mogul's health and mental capacity.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David J. Cowan said Friday that a doctor hired by the billionaire mogul's ex-girlfriend Manuela Herzer should evaluate Redstone's health and mental health.

He based the ruling on the depositions of two doctors who have evaluated Redstone and believe he could undergo a short examination from another doctor.

Cowan says the evaluation should last up to an hour and cannot be attended by Redstone's regular physician or attorneys handling the case.

Redstone's ex-girlfriend and longtime companion Herzer has raised issues about the 92-year-old's health and decision-making capacity after she was suddenly expelled from his house in October.

Redstone parted ways with Herzer after 20 years together, a woman who he briefly dated but then became one his closest friends and confidantes.

She soon filed a suit asking to be restored as his caretaker arguing that he was 'mentally incompetent' describing him as a 'living ghost' and 'tragic figure.'

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Victory: Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David J. Cowan said Friday that Sumner Redstone should undergo a medical examination by a doctor selected by his ex Manuela Herzer (couple above in 2012)

New plan: Herzer, 51, had previously been in charge of the 92-year-old's care, but now his family is doing that led by his oldest daughter Shari (above in 2012)

Herzer's attorney, Pierce O'Donnell, praised the ruling. 'Sumner asked Manuela, and she promised, to care for and protect him for the rest of his life,' O'Donnell wrote in a statement.

'Today's victory is a major milestone in honoring her commitment.'

His lawyers have opposed Herzer's efforts and say Redstone receives frequent visits from a doctor and tests have shown no signs of impairment.

Cowan has previously rejected attempts to have Herzer's expert physician meet with Redstone, citing privacy concerns.

He changed his mind after Herzer's lawyers submitted a new request earlier this week and depositions from Redstone's physicians.

One of the doctors testified that he had difficulty understanding Redstone and had to have a nurse interpret the businessman for him.

Cowan however rejected a request by Herzer's attorneys to have Redstone undergo a deposition in his home. The judge said that would be invasive and probably beyond Redstone's ability.

'We are gratified that the Court continues to reject Ms. Herzer's increasingly desperate and disingenuous attempts to depose Mr. Redstone,' Redstone's attorney Gabrielle Vidal said after the hearing.

Claims: An associate close to Herzer claims that Redstone (above with Megan Fox in 2014) is in a 'twilight mentality,' and was not of sound mind when he had her kicked out

Herzer, 51, was banned from the billionaire media mogul's Beverly Park mansion in October for reasons that remain unclear.

She began dating the Viacom and CBS CEO - who is worth an estimated $6.4billion - in the 90s, and remained a close friend and confidante after the two split, moving to a house just down the street from him.

Six weeks prior, Redstone had kicked out his live-in lover of four years Sydney Holland, 44, after learning she was having an affair.

At the same, Redstone appeared to be getting closer to his family, with whom he has long had a tumultuous relationship.

Vanity Fair spoke with a source who said at the time: 'All of a sudden on Monday there were a bunch of lawyers and house staff standing around, and she walked back in the house and it was communicated to her that Sumner doesnt want her there anymore.'

The source then added that Herzer was shocked when she got the news, and quickly grew concerned as to who would care for the 92-year-old mogul.

'She doesnt know why shes not there anymore, and theres no one around. No family. Nobody responsible. Theres a driver and a nurse supposedly running the show,' they said.

Redstone's daughter Shari disputed these claims however, and said there is nothing to worry about.

'Two of Sharis three children [Brandon and Tyler Korff] visited Sumner immediately; the third [Kimberlee Korff] called from the East Coast and is seeing him next week,' said Shari's spokesperson Nancy Sterling.

'Shari also flew out to see her father [last Wednesday] and everyone was excited to be able to spend time together again as a family.'

Theme: Herzer was removed from his life six weeks after Redstone split with his girlfriend of four years, 44-year-old Sydney Holland (above with Herzer in 2014)

Moving on: Holland (above in 2014) was told to vacate Redstone's home in late August after the two had been dating for years

In an interview with Vanity Fair earlier this year, Herzer said of meeting Redstone: 'I was so enamored. I could do no wrong. He was just for me the greatest thing since sliced bread. There was no age at that point.'

She then added; 'This is the nicest guy Ive ever met... I felt a connection to him that was really like - I cant explain. It was this chemistry.'

Redstone meanwhile said of Herzer: 'I have known Manuela for over 20 years. She and her children are family to me. Her house in LA is five minutes away from my house and I get to see her frequently. Manuela is one of the smartest women I have ever met.'

Herzer's teenage daughter Kathrine currently stars on the show Madam Secretary - which airs on CBS.

The sudden departure of Herzer echoes what happened last month to Holland, with whom Herzer was incredibly close.

The Hollywood Reporter spoke with Holland's attorney Brad Rose at the time who said: 'Sydney Holland and Sumner Redstone have had a caring and wonderful relationship for over five years.

'While Sydney would have liked the relationship to have lasted for many more years to come, relationships are dynamic and ever-changing and for a whole host of circumstances, the couple has parted ways.'

He then added: 'While rumor and innuendo will undoubtedly surface as a consequence of this breakup, at this time, Ms. Holland is very upset and has no further comment.'

Redstone controls CBS and Viacom through National Amusements Inc., which holds nearly 80 percent of the voting stock in both media companies.

He hasn't joined an investor conference call since November 2014. His longtime attorney Philippe Dauman, now Viacom's CEO, has authority to make medical decisions if Redstone is deemed incapacitated by his physician, but that has not yet happened.

Herzer contends that Redstone is unable to speak and cannot meaningfully engage in decision-making about his medical care or other topics.

The allegations, which Redstone's lawyers have vehemently contested, prompted a lawsuit Tuesday by a Viacom shareholder. The suit contends that company directors breached their fiduciary duties to shareholders by allowing millions of dollars to be paid to Redstone while he was physically and mentally incapacitated and unable to carry out his duties as chairman.

Viacom said Wednesday that Redstone's compensation in fiscal 2015 declined 85 percent to $2 million from $13 million in fiscal 2014.

A key securities filing ahead of Viacom's annual shareholders meeting issued Friday did not include a signature from Redstone, as previous years have.
Marijuana group wins free speech lawsuit against Iowa State

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP)  A federal judge ruled Friday that Iowa State University administrators violated the constitutional free speech rights of student members of a pro-marijuana group by barring them from using the university logos on T-shirts.

U.S. District Judge James Gritzner issued an order granting members of the ISU chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws a permanent injunction which means university administrators cannot use a trademark policy to prevent the organization from printing shirts depicting a marijuana leaf.

"In this case, plaintiffs have shown injuries by demonstrating that they were not allowed to produce, wear, and sell their desired T-shirts for raising awareness of their cause and that ISU administrators put unique burdens on both their and the group's political expression," Gritzner wrote.

Students Erin Furleigh and Paul Gerlich, former presidents of the group, sued in July 2014 alleging ISU withdrew its approval of one of the group's marijuana-themed T-shirts featuring the school's Cy mascot under pressure from donors and a group of conservative Republican lawmakers.

The school later rewrote its trademark guidelines to bar their logos in products that promote illegal drugs.

Although it means the group can design a university T-shirt with the marijuana leaf logo, the real victory is much larger, said the students' attorney Robert Corn-Revere.

"It reaffirms the principle that students at state universities are protected by the First Amendment and the restrictions of those rights can come in many different forms and in this case it was by attempts to manipulate the school's trademark policy," he said.

He said the decision clearly shows Gritzner understood "this was a politically motivated decision that targeted this specific group and put special burdens on them because the administration had issues with their political message."

Gritzner found that a reasonable person would understand that the university administrators' actions treaded on the students' First Amendment rights of political expression and association.

University spokeswoman Annette Hacker said the opinion is disappointing.

"Iowa State University will consult with the Iowa Attorney General's Office to determine if the order will be appealed," she said in a statement.

A spokesman for the attorney general's office, which defended the university, says options are under review including an appeal to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The students may now file a lawsuit pursuing monetary damages against university administrators and recover their attorney fees and costs, Corn-Revere said.
Syrian refugee 'so thankful' to be in UK after landmark legal case

A Syrian refugee who has been brought to Britain from "The Jungle" in Calais in a landmark case said he feels "so thankful" to be in the UK.

The 17-year-old urged the thousands of refugees waiting to enter Britain to "have faith" and see his case as proof there is a way to reach the UK "legally and safely".

The teenager, who cannot be identified for legal reasons but the Press Association is calling Muhammad, was allowed to enter Britain along with three other refugees who will stay in Britain while their asylum applications are processed.

Four Syrian refugees who won a landmark legal case to come to Britain from Calais, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, have arrived in London

There were emotional scenes at London's St Pancras station as he was reunited with his older brother, who he last saw in war-torn Syria and who was smuggled into the country in a tomato lorry.

Describing the moment Muhammad said: "I feel so thankful because I would never have imagined I would be reunited with my brother."

The teen also thanked his legal team, who used human rights legislation to argue they should be immediately taken out of the "intolerable" conditions of "The Jungle".

He said: "I thank every person who was part of this process - they have saved lives. They have saved people from death ... I thank Britain as a whole."

The group of three teenagers and a 26-year-old man with severe mental health issues will live with their relatives in the UK while their claims for asylum are considered.

The landmark case could pave the way for many other refugees in the Calais camp to be brought to Britain.

Asked if he had a message for those who remain in camps in France desperate to find safety elsewhere, Muhammad said: "Have faith. There is a way to come here legally and safely."

The refugees' legal team successfully argued that bureaucratic delays in France meant their cases should be handed over to the UK, where they all have relatives legally living. At least one of the group is expected to join relatives in Scotland.

Muhammad's brother described their reunion after spending more than 18 months apart as "so surreal".

Bombarded by barrel bombs and relentless fighting, he decided to flee his family's home town of Daraa in 2014, travelling to Lebanon with his wife and young daughter and on to Europe alone.

He made the final perilous leg of his journey from Calais to Dover smuggled in the back of a refrigerated lorry of tomatoes.

Muhammad made the same treacherous journey across Europe last year and arrived in Calais in October.

He said there had been times when he was close to losing hope that he would ever get refuge in Britain.

"But then slowly slowly because of the conviction of my brother and the lawyers I slowly started to have faith and began to become hopeful I would be reunited with my families."

The teenager said conditions in "The Jungle" were so bad that it was "not fit for humans".

Poor sanitation meant sickness was rife among many in the camp and its inhabitants felt helpless and shared a "great sense of depression" over the length of time they had spent there.

"It is just awful," he said.

Muhammad said he had achieved his "main hope and aspiration" by finally being reunited with his brother and now wanted to continue his education and achieve his dream of becoming a lawyer.
Closing up to a fifth of maternity units 'could improve care'

Closing up to one in five hospital maternity units could improve care for mothers in labour, a doctors' leader has said.

Dr David Richmond, president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) told the Guardian that a shortage of maternity doctors had led to staff being stretched across units, meaning they spend too little time with expectant mothers.

Acknowledging that many would find the claim controversial, he told the newspaper: "I think we need a public debate about the sustainability of the service as we know it, matching patient expectations with the desires to improve the quality and safety of the pregnant mums we deal with.

Closing up to one in five hospital maternity units could improve care for mothers in labour

"Are there enough obstetric doctors? In practice, no, to run all obstetric units in the country.

"We may need to consider the configuration of units which traditionally have had medical staff. If we work with the numbers of bodies that we've got at the moment it makes common sense to maximise your expertise ... in a smaller number of units. But I suspect that's probably only reducing them by 10%, maybe 20% in total."

The suggested cut would mean reducing the number of units from 147 to around 118.

Dr Richmond said: "There is an opportunity to focus the number of delivery units where you need medical expertise, or you think might need expertise, in a smaller number of premises.
Litvinenko's state-sponsored assassination horrific, says Boris

Boris Johnson has condemned the state-sponsored assassination of Alexander Litvinenko, branding the murder "horrific".

The London Mayor said there should be the "strongest possible diplomatic response" against those behind the killing.

His comments come after a public inquiry found that the radioactive poisoning of the former KGB officer in 2006 was "probably" sanctioned by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Andrei Lugovoi dismissed as nonsense a judge's finding that he was involved in the assassination of Alexander Litvinenko

Mr Johnson told the Press Association: "I think that the idea you could have state-sponsored assassinations on the streets of London is absolutely repugnant, horrific.

"You have got to have the strongest possible diplomatic response and move against those who have been responsible for that murder."

Britain responded to the report by announcing financial sanctions against Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun, who allegedly carried out the killing. Both deny involvement.

The Treasury has officially issued a "freezing order" in relation to funds owned, held or controlled by the pair under the Anti-Terroism, Crime and Security Act 2001.

It was laid before Parliament on Friday morning and came into force from midday.

The order states: "The Treasury believe that action constituting a threat to the life of one or more nationals and residents of the United Kingdom has been taken by certain persons who are residents of a country or territory outside the United Kingdom."

Britain came under pressure to confront Russia after the inquiry's findings were published on Thursday.

The barrister for Mr Litvinenko's widow warned it would be "craven" if the Government avoided substantial reprisals, while the Russian ambassador hit out at a "gross provocation".

The fall-out continued on Friday as Lugovoi rejected the inquiry as "nonsense".

Speaking to the BBC, he said: "I've seen the nonsense conclusions of your judge, who has clearly gone mad.

"I saw nothing new there. I am very sorry that, 10 years on, nothing new has been presented, only invention, supposition, rumours.

"And the fact that such words as 'possibly' and 'probably' were used in the report, means there is no proof, nothing concrete against us."

Mr Litvinenko died aged 43 in November 2006, sparking an extraordinary murder investigation.

A 2.2 million inquiry into his death was finally held last year following a long battle by his widow Marina.

In a 300-page report, the probe's chairman, Sir Robert Owen, found that Lugovoi and Kovtun were "probably" acting under the direction of Moscow's FSB intelligence service when they laced Mr Litvinenko's tea with polonium at the Millennium Hotel in London's Mayfair.

Singling out then-FSB chief Nikolai Patrushev alongside Mr Putin, the former judge wrote: "Taking full account of all the evidence and analysis available to me, I find that the FSB operation to kill Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr Patrushev and also by President Putin."
Andy Murray says he can get better after his perfect start at Australian Open

Andy Murray is not getting carried away by his perfect start at the Australian Open and insists he can play even better.

The British number one has barely broken sweat in his opening two rounds in Melbourne after sailing past Germany's Alexander Zverev 6-1 6-2 6-3 and then thrashing Australian Sam Groth 6-0 6-4 6-1 to make round three.

Two assertive displays - and just over three-and-a-half hours spent on court - stand Murray in good stead as he prepares for Saturday's test against Joao Sousa, the 32nd seed from Portugal.

Andy Murray is confident ahead of his next match in Australia

"It's been a very good start, for sure. But I can still get better," Murray said.

"I've had days, not just in slams, but in any tournaments, where I felt great, practised really well, and then gone on the court and felt horrible.

"Then sometimes, beforehand you might feel nervous, have a lot of doubts, and then you go out and play extremely well.

"It's difficult to know as a player whether you're going to go out there and hit the ball great or not, you just have to try to trust all of the preparation and practice that you've done."

There will be tougher opponents to come for Murray, including Sousa, but the world number two has found his rhythm early, particularly against Groth, when he won all of the first nine games.

"I think he's played great," said Greg Rusedski, former British number one and now a pundit for Eurosport.

"We always talk about that Davis Cup win for Djokovic, when he went on to have his best year in 2011, the same thing's kind of happening for Murray at the moment.

"He's growing in confidence, he's growing in stature. If you look at his game, everything is firing."

Murray should have few problems against Sousa, having beaten the world number 33 in all of their past six meetings, most recently in the French Open second round last year.

Sousa took a set and temporarily flustered Murray at Roland Garros but the Briton recovered his composure to seal a comfortable victory.

"He's almost the opposite to Groth really," Murray said.

"He plays predominantly from the back of the court. Very solid from the baseline, doesn't obviously serve so big but makes a lot of returns.

"So if I play well, I've got a good chance obviously. But he's the sort of player that if your level's not quite there, he'll make it very tough for you, as he did when I played him at the French Open.

"I was in a bit of trouble against him there."

Rusedski is not convinced.

"The question you ask yourself is how is Sousa going to hurt Murray?" Rusedski said.

"Does he have a big serve? No. Can he beat him from the back of the court? No. Does he have the feel of Murray?

"Unfortunately for Sousa he's a solid player out there but solid players don't get it done against the big four, you have to have something big.

"It's going to happen for Andy Murray in straight sets."

Sousa, however, has been gaining in confidence after spending his off-season training with the notoriously relentless Rafael Nadal and seeing instant benefits, with two convincing opening wins against Colombian Santiago Giraldo and Kazakhstan's Mikhail Kukushkin.

He has already played Murray twice at the Australian Open - in 2013 and last year - and lost in straight sets on each occasion.

"I am playing very good actually. I played much better in the second round than the first. I felt unbelievable on court," Sousa said.

"I played Murray last time in Roland Garros and I took a set off him which was very good. I think I played well and I have been playing better and better against him.
European Union in 'grave danger' from migrant influx - French PM Manuel Valls

The huge influx of migrants from Syria and Iraq is putting the future of the European Union in "grave danger", French prime minister Manuel Valls has warned.

Mr Valls said that European societies could be "totally destabilised" unless the EU imposes tighter controls at its external borders and makes clear it will not accept all of the refugees seeking to enter the continent.

If the EU cannot control its external borders, the Schengen arrangement of border-free travel between most of the 28 member-states - but not the UK - will be thrown into doubt, he said.

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls stressed the importance of EU border controls

But he made clear that the threat from the migration crisis runs much deeper, telling the BBC: "It's Europe that could die, not the Schengen area. If Europe can't protect its own borders, it's the very idea of Europe that could be thrown into doubt.

"It could disappear, of course - the European project, not Europe itself, not our values, but the concept we have of Europe, that the founding fathers had of Europe.

"Yes, that is in very grave danger. That's why you need border guards, border controls on the external borders of the European Union."

In an interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Mr Valls said that German Chancellor Angela Merkel had shown "courage" in announcing last year that her country would welcome thousands of refugees.

But he left little doubt that he believed her message was wrong, and had played a role in encouraging refugees to travel to Europe in the hope of a new life.

He made a pointed reference to the New Year's Eve sex attacks in the city of Cologne, which have been blamed on recent migrants, as he said that the arrival of thousands of migrants presented "a major challenge" to Germany.

"We need to help Germany," said the French PM. "But the main message we must send now with the greatest of firmness is to say that we will not take in all the refugees in Europe.

"A message that says 'Come, you will be welcome' provokes major shifts of population. If you say anything in Europe today, a few seconds later it is on the smartphones of people in refugee camps near Libya.

"Angela Merkel showed courage. She explained why she wanted to welcome the refugees in the name of values, and also because Germany needs these refugees.

"But we know clearly that after the Cologne incidents that with the continuous flow, not only to Germany but other countries of Northern Europe, Austria and the Balkans are confronted with this influx, that's why we need to find practical solutions for our borders."

Mr Valls said that ending the migration crisis would have to involve solutions to the wars raging in Syria and Iraq, the destruction of the Islamic State terror group - also known as Daesh, Isil or Isis - and the establishment of a new political process in Syria.

But he said that these processes will "take time", and that there was an urgent need for tighter border controls, as well as more reception centres for migrants arriving in Greece and Italy and assistance for refugee camps in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey.

"We cannot say nor can we accept that Europe can take in all the refugees, all of those fleeing these terrible wars in Iraq or Syria," said Mr Valls.

"Otherwise our societies will be totally destabilised ...

"We need border controls at the external borders of the European Union, because Europe has forgotten that it needs borders."

He added: "Sometimes we had the idea that borders did not exist. But, no, borders do exist. We must protect our borders. If they are not protected, then we will reimpose - as we have done - internal European border controls, and then the Schengen area is thrown into doubt.
Another milestone for Roger Federer as he reaches Australian Open fourth round

Roger Federer became the first man in history to win 300 grand slam matches as the Swiss beat Grigor Dimitrov to reach the Australian Open fourth round.

Dimitrov was once dubbed Federer's apprentice for his talent and elegant style of play but it was the 34-year-old who proved himself the master on Rod Laver Arena, winning 6-4 3-6 6-1 6-4.

Federer was far from his free-flowing best and even looked flustered when Dimitrov clinched the second set but an early break in the third quickly turned the tide.

Roger Federer has won the Australian Open on four occasions

It was one-way traffic thereafter as Federer sealed victory in two hours and 40 minutes to set up a fourth-round meeting with Belgium's David Goffin.

"Today didn't come automatically, I had to push myself, remind myself what to do," Federer said.

"These are the great matches to win, I tell you that, because you're not going to feel 100 per cent great every single time when you go out there.

"But it's important to win those matches maybe where you felt a little off almost sometimes."

Federer and Dimitrov are good friends off the court and a video quickly circulated on the internet of the pair before the match, relaxing together as they waited to go on.

They were watching Maria Sharapova playing American Lauren Davis and one rally particularly excited Federer, who yelled and leapt out of his seat.

"We know each other quite well and we were pretty chilled going into the match," Federer said.

"Sometimes you don't look much at the other guy but with Grigor it's different, like with other guys on tour. There are many guys I would speak to before a match. That was the situation today.

"I'm happy it still exists. We're not that far down the road where it's so professional where you can't even look at the guy before you walk on court."

Federer's 300 grand slam wins include 17 major successes, while he has reached 27 finals and 38 semi-finals. This year's Australian Open is his 65th consecutive appearance at a major tournament.

"It's very exciting, I must tell you," Federer said.

"Like when I reached 1,000 (career wins) last year, it was a big deal for me. It's not something I ever aimed for or looked for, but when it happens, it's very special.
Man appeals after Gallipoli badge 'lost' in bag mix-up

A man who was presented with a pin badge to commemorate his grandfather's service in the Gallipoli campaign has appealed to rail users to check their suitbags after his was mistakenly taken.

Ian Domingo had been visiting London to take part in the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli campaign in which his grandfather was killed before departing on the 12.30pm Virgin service from Euston on November 10.

Mr Domingo's suitbag, which contained items of sentimental value including a suit with pin badges commemorating service in the Gallipoli campaign, was mistakenly picked up by a man accompanied by a woman who got off the train at Lancaster around 2.55pm.

Ian Domingo wearing a pin badge presented to him to commemorate his grandfather's service in the Gallipoli campaign (British Transport Police/PA)

The bag also contained tartan trousers and a blazer.

Mr Domingo had been travelling home to Dumfries, Scotland.

He said: "I had travelled down to London for the commemorations in remembrance of my grandfather who served with the King's Own Scottish Borders Regiment. He was killed in action on the 4th June 1915 at Gallipoli. The blazer had various badges attached which will be almost impossible to replace as part of the legacy to my grandson."

The bag left behind contained dresses, a jacket and a coat.

British Transport Police's investigating officer Pc Gez Cooper said: "The person who has picked up Mr Domingo's bag is likely to have just hung it back in the wardrobe, without checking the contents and won't realise their mistake until they need to wear the items again.

"I would appeal to anyone reading this who travelled on the same service and took home a suitbag, to check the contents - hopefully we can reunite Mr Domingo with his suits and pin badge and return the dresses and other items to their rightful owner."

The Gallipoli land campaign against Turkey was one of the major engagements of the First World War, involving more than 400,000 British and around 140,000 Commonwealth and Irish servicemen.

At dawn on April 25 1915, waves of Allied troops launched an amphibious attack on the strategically important peninsula, which was key to controlling the Dardanelles straits, the crucial route to the Black Sea and Russia.

But the plan backed by Winston Churchill, then First Lord of the Admiralty, was flawed and the campaign, which faced a heroic defence by the Turks, led to stalemate and withdrawal eight months later.

Around 58,000 Allied troops died, including 29,500 from Britain and Ireland, over 12,000 from France, 11,000 from Australia and New Zealand and 1,500 from India.
Judge authorises abortion for woman who suffered brain damage in attack

A judge has given doctors permission to perform an abortion on a woman who suffered brain damage as a result of being attacked.

Mr Justice Baker ruled on Friday that specialists could lawfully terminate the pregnancy after concluding that the woman had not wanted to keep the baby.

The judge analysed the case at a public hearing in the specialist Court of Protection - where issues relating to sick and vulnerable people are considered - in London.

The judge authorised the abortion

He had decided that the woman lacked the mental capacity to make decisions about medical treatment.

The judge said the woman - who is in her early 30s - could not be identified.

He said bosses at a hospital trust based in the east of England had asked for a ruling.

Mr Justice Baker heard the woman, who has two children, had allegedly been assaulted by her former partner.

The man had been arrested and was in custody.

Their relationship had become "characterised" by domestic violence - allegedly perpetrated by the man, the judge heard.

She had become pregnant by him late last year and b efore being hurt, she had told a number of people she did not want to keep the baby.

She had said she did not want a baby by the man in the "current circumstances" and had intended to have an abortion, Mr Justice Baker was told.

The judge said the evidence was clear.

And he said he was "quite satisfied" a termination was in the woman's best interests.

Mr Justice Baker heard evidence from the woman's mother and sister.

Her mother said she was keen for her injured daughter's "voice to be heard".

She told the judge her daughter "would want a termination", and the s ister echoed that view.

She said the woman had told her shortly before the attack that she was planning an abortion and had said she "cannot keep" the baby.

Mr Justice Baker was also told the woman had undergone an abortion before and would have understood the physical and emotional implications.

"(The woman) told a number of people she didn't intend to keep the baby," he said.

"She said she didn't want to have (the baby) by her current partner in the circumstances."

The judge added: "In my view the evidence is clear and all one way... She expressed her wish to have her pregnancy bought to an end.

"I am quite satisfied that (her) best interests are in authorising termination of her pregnancy by surgery."

The judge said she had expressed a "clear wish" before being hurt and losing the mental capacity to make decisions.

He also said an abortion was in the best interests of her "overall health and welfare".
Don't overlook longer-term needs of war-hit Syrians - UN

By Megan Rowling

BARCELONA, Jan 21 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Despite the huge demand for emergency aid stemming from the conflict in Syria, the building blocks for its people's future should be put in place at the same time as the provision of humanitarian relief, senior U.N. officials said on Thursday.

Stephen O'Brien, the United Nations' Emergency Relief Coordinator, said a major international conference on the Syria crisis, scheduled for Feb. 4 in London, will not only try to raise significant new funding to help conflict-hit Syrians inside and outside the country right now.

It will also aim to help those affected in the longer term, by finding ways to provide jobs and education, and boost the ability of local authorities to support them, he said.

A key goal will be to start putting in place "the context which gives people hope for the future", he added.

Aid agencies say some 13.5 million people inside Syria need humanitarian assistance, including 6.5 million displaced from their homes. The war has also pushed 4.6 million people to flee to neighbouring countries and beyond.

O'Brien said it was time to break down the decades-old divide between emergency aid and longer-term recovery after conflicts and natural disasters - a problem that will be tackled at an international humanitarian summit in May.

"Once a life is saved, once a life is protected, it is no point leaving that life in vulnerability," he told journalists at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and via webcast.

A longstanding criticism of aid is that once people's basic needs are taken care of, little attention is paid to helping them cope with future shocks by building their assets and reducing risks.

"If you're not continuing very active efforts on recovery, it is disturbing how often countries and communities lapse back into crisis because there wasn't the long-term perspective," Helen Clark, head of the United Nations Development Programme, said in Davos.

In protracted crises like Syria - which is nearing the end of its fifth year - the key question is how to do both humanitarian and development work at the same time, she added.

Practical things can be achieved to improve people's prospects even inside Syria, she said, adding that there are many areas where war is not raging and "life is going on".

In such places, there is a need to keep micro-businesses going, train young people, empower women and keep children in school, she said.

"Getting this mix right is going to be absolutely critical to trying to stabilise people where that's possible in Syria, in their communities," she said. The same must be done for those living outside their country as refugees, she added.

One way to shrink the growing needs for humanitarian funding, with the United Nations now asking for around $20 billion per year, is to coordinate the two types of aid, even though that may be hard in violent, unstable places, she said.
Iran clerics criticise mass disqualification of candidates - website

By Parisa Hafezi

ANKARA, Jan 21 (Reuters) - Several Iranian clerics and politicians have strongly criticised the mass disqualification of moderate aspirants to run in parliamentary elections in February, the opposition website Kaleme said on Thursday.

Preventing pro-reform hopefuls from entering the race by Iran's hardline watchdog body, the Guardian Council, is expected to deepen political infighting between hardliners and President Hassan Rouhani's allies in Iran.

Moderate politicians believe the mass rejections via a vetting process are aimed at helping hardline candidates keep control of the 290-seat parliament, which could hinder political and social reforms promised by Rouhani during his 2013 election campaign.

The lifting of international sanctions on Iran on Saturday has bolstered the popularity of Rouhani.

The council, an unelected body of 12 Islamic jurists and hardline clerics, can veto election candidates for reasons such as lack of commitment to Islam and the constitution.

"Disqualification of those who believe in the Islamic Republic, Islam and the pillars of our system ... will create a deep rift between real believers of our system and the establishment," Kaleme quoted Ayatollah Kazem Nourmofidi as saying.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday that "those who don't have faith in the clerical establishment, should not be allowed to perform a duty".

Some 12,000 hopefuls registered to run in the parliamentary elections, but more than 7,000 were disqualified by the Council, which is now reviewing complaints from them. Some of those disqualified were hardliners.

"This is the biggest number of disqualifications in the history of the Islamic republic," the semi-official ILNA news agency quoted moderate politician Hossein Marashi as saying.

Nine pro-reform political parties issued a statement on Wednesday, saying the Council had qualified only 30 of the 3,000 registered moderate hopefuls, urging top leaders for a thorough revision of the disqualifications.

Head of the Council Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati said "pressure will have no effect", hinting that the revision will be limited.

"You have acknowledged the right of only 30 percent of our voters, ignoring rights of others," said Grand Ayatollah Ali Mohammad Dastgheyb in a letter to the Guardian Council, published by the Kaleme.

"Don't you think it will create a huge rift between the people and the leadership?"
U.S. weighs making Hawaii missile test site operational-sources

By Andrea Shalal

WASHINGTON, Jan 21 (Reuters) - The U.S. military has stepped up discussions on converting its Aegis missile defense test site in Hawaii into a combat-ready facility that would bolster American defenses against ballistic missile attacks, according to sources familiar with the discussions.

The proposal, which has been discussed sporadically for several years, was given fresh impetus by North Korea's fourth nuclear test on Jan. 6 and by recent strides in China's missile technology capabilities, said current and former U.S. military officials, congressional aides and other sources.

A Chinese official in Washington suggested that Beijing would see such a U.S. move as counter-productive to relations.

Aegis, developed by Lockheed Martin Corp for use on U.S. Navy destroyers, is among the most advanced U.S. missile defense systems, integrating radars, software, displays, weapons launchers and missiles.

Setting up its land version -- Aegis Ashore -- in Hawaii and linking it with Aegis destroyers would add a permanent missile defense site to the Pacific, providing an extra layer of protection for the U.S. islands and the West Coast at a time when North Korea is improving its missile capabilities.

Ground-based interceptors in Alaska and California provide the current defense for Hawaii and the continental United States against missile attacks.

The Navy also relies on deploying Aegis-equipped destroyers based on U.S. intelligence warnings about imminent threats. North Korea's development of mobile missile launchers has made it more difficult to predict launches in advance.

To make the test site combat-ready, the U.S. military would need to add personnel, stockpile live missiles and beef up security, at an estimated cost of around $41 million, said the sources, who were not authorized to speak publicly.

It would also need to integrate the site into the larger U.S. ballistic missile defense system, with control likely shifting from the Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency to the U.S. Navy, the sources said.

U.S. Navy Admiral Harry Harris, commander of U.S. Pacific Command, has been engaged in high-level discussions about ways to protect Hawaii, Guam and the continental United States from threats like North Korea, his spokesman, Captain Darryn James told Reuters.

James said no decisions had been made, but the Aegis Ashore site in Hawaii had a "proven test capability."

"Admiral Harris is always exploring options to forward deploy and operationalize the latest advancements in ballistic missile defense technologies in the Pacific, where we face increasingly sophisticated threats to the homeland," James said.

It remains unclear when the U.S. administration could reach a decision, but implementing the changes could be done swiftly, the sources said.

STRENGTHENING THE SHIELD

North Korea's nuclear test in January underscored U.S. concerns that the secretive state has the ability to place a bomb on a long-range ballistic missile that could reach the U.S. West Coast.

Any moves to boost missile defenses could inflame growing military rivalry between China and Washington and its allies.

Converting the site on Hawaii's Kauai island into combat use could rankle China at a time of heightened tensions with Washington over the disputed South China Sea. Beijing has already expressed concern about the possible deployment of the mobile U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system to South Korea.

Zhu Haiquan, spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, said Beijing believed the nuclear proliferation issue would be best resolved diplomatically.

"All measures seeking to increase military capacities will only intensify antagonism and will not help to solve the problem," he said when asked about the possible U.S. move.

"China hopes the relevant country will proceed on the basis of regional peace and stability, adopt a responsible attitude and act prudently in regard to the anti-missile issue."

Russia, meanwhile, has repeatedly objected to the U.S. Aegis Ashore site in Romania, which is due to become operational in the coming weeks. A similar site is due to open in Poland in 2018.

The Missile Defense Agency explored the prospect of putting the Hawaii test site into full operation in a classified report to Congress in September 2014, according to one of the sources.

Congress requires the agency to update its estimate of the cost, feasibility and effectiveness of adding more Aegis Ashore sites this spring.

The Aegis Ashore test site in Hawaii completed its first intercept test in December, using a Raytheon Co Standard Missile-3 Block 1B to destroy a target that replicated an Iranian Ghadr-110 medium-range missile.

Riki Ellison, who heads the non-profit Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance, said the new Aegis installation would in effect give the U.S. military three chances to shoot down a missile aimed at Hawaii, up from one currently.

"If you have the assets on the island, why not use them to protect against possible missile attacks from North Korea?" Ellison said.

The December test proved the Aegis Ashore system could fire two different Raytheon Co missiles -- one inside the earth's atmosphere and one outside -- at an enemy missile.

Expansion of military operations in Hawaii have sparked protests by residents in the past.
Haiti's Martelly says presidential vote set for Jan. 24 despite protests

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Jan 21 (Reuters) - Haitian President Michel Martelly said a runoff election to choose the Caribbean nation's next leader will take place on Sunday despite opposition protests, in a sign that talks to postpone the controversial vote had failed.

In a recorded message on state television, Martelly said a small group of people were trying to destroy the democratic process, and that he had ordered the police to make sure citizens could cast their vote without intimidation.
Haiti's Martelly says presidential vote set for Jan. 24 despite protests

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Jan 21 (Reuters) - Haitian President Michel Martelly said a runoff election to choose the impoverished Caribbean nation's next leader will take place on Sunday despite opposition protests, in a sign that talks to postpone the vote had failed.

Opposition candidate Jude Celestin has vowed to boycott the election over fraud allegations in the first round, held in October, although he has not formally withdrawn. His supporters and other government critics plan a series of street protests starting on Friday.

Celestin came second behind ruling party candidate Jovenel Moise in the Oct. 25 round, in a field that included a record 54 presidential candidates.

In a recorded message on state television, Martelly said a small group of people were trying to destroy the democratic process, and that he had ordered the police to make sure citizens could cast their vote without intimidation.

"Haitian brothers and sisters, it is through elections that we can advance, that is why we ask the police and justice system to take all measures to protect life and property," he said.

The country of about 10 million people has struggled to build a stable democracy since the overthrow of the 1957-1986 dictatorship of the Duvalier family and ensuing military coups and election fraud.

The latest round of political volatility has distracted from the reconstruction after a devastating earthquake six years ago.

Thousands of people took to the streets in downtown Port-Au-Prince for two days earlier this week in a protest against the government. Some threw rocks and burned vehicles, actions that have left many Haitians reluctant to go out and vote.

The government had said earlier it would be willing to meet the opposition's demand of delaying the vote, which has already been postponed twice, but demanded Celestin commit to taking part at a later date.
Japan econ min Amari says he has done nothing illegal

TOKYO, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Japanese Economy Minister Akira Amari, a close ally of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, said on Friday that he had done nothing illegal.

He said it would take about a week before he gave a fuller explanation after a media report that he and his aides took money from a construction firm in return for doing the company favours.

Amari said on Thursday that he would investigate accusations reported by magazine Shukan Bunshun that he and his aides accepted money from a construction company in exchange for helping that company receive government compensation for disputes over land ownership and waste removal at a public works site, but that he was confident he had not done anything wrong.
Myanmar to release political prisoners before power transfer

YANGON, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Myanmar's outgoing administration of President Thein Sein will free about 15 political prisoners on Friday, and may release scores more, an official from the President's Office and activists from Assistance Association for Political Prisoners told Reuters.
Twelve Marines declared dead after helicopter crash off Hawaii

Jan 21 (Reuters) - Twelve U.S. Marines missing after two military helicopters collided last week off Hawaii's Oahu island have been listed as deceased, the military said on Thursday.

The Coast Guard called off the search for the missing Marines on Tuesday after five days of search and rescue efforts across some 40,000 square nautical miles of ocean, along with shorelines.

The Marines were officially classified as deceased on Wednesday and Marine Corps officers personally notified each family, a statement from the Marines said.

The victims ranged in age from 21 to 41, the statement said.

The two CH-53E helicopters belonging to the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing from the Marine Corps Air Station at Kaneohe Bay were on a routine training mission when they were reported to have collided just before midnight on Jan. 14, according to the Coast Guard.

The search was hampered by storms.

A Coast Guard helicopter crew spotted debris in the water off the town of Haleiwa on the north shore of Oahu but no passengers were found. The debris field spanned more than 7 miles (11 km) off the coast, the Coast Guard said.
Islamist gunmen kill 17 in Somalia beach restaurant attack

MOGADISHU, Jan 22 (Reuters) - At least 17 people were killed in the Somali capital of Mogadishu when five Islamist gunmen set off bombs and stormed a popular beach-front restaurant late on Thursday, Somali police said.

Al Shabaab, a militant group aligned with al Qaeda, said its fighters set off two car bombs at the Beach View Cafe on Mogadishu's popular Lido beach, and engaged in a gun battle for hours with government troops trying to flush them out.

"The operation ended at 3 a.m. last night and at least 17 civilians were killed," police officer Osman Nur told Reuters on Friday.

Somalia's security minister, Abdirizak Omar Mohamed, said four of the gunmen were killed and one was captured alive.

"The government forces rescued hundreds of civilians who were dining there," he told state-run Radio Muqdisho.

Police said al Shabaab fighters set off the first car bomb at dusk. A huge second blast, which witnesses said echoed around the city centre, struck about an hour later as government soldiers laid siege to the restaurant.

Al Shabaab, which regularly targets hotels and restaurants in the capital, seeks to topple the Western-backed government and impose a strict version of Islamic law across Somalia, a nation racked by conflict since the outbreak of civil war in 1991.

The group at one point controlled most of Somalia, including the capital Mogadishu, but in recent years an African Union peacekeeping force has wrestled most of that territory away from the group.

Somalia's prime minister urged the public to remains calm and called the attack on a civilian target was a desperate move by a group facing annihilation.

"Let it remain clear that (the attack) will not hamper the commitment of my government and that of our people to resurrect Somalia," Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke said in a statement.
Romania - Factors to watch on Jan 22

BUCHAREST, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Here are news stories, press reports and events to watch which may affect Romanian financial markets on Friday.

DEBT TENDER

Romania sold a slightly more than planned 220 million lei ($52.96 million) of July 2027 treasury bonds on Thursday, with the average accepted yield at 4.02 percent, central bank data showed.

Debt managers last issued the paper in November at an average yield of 4.21 percent.

BUDGET DATA

The finance ministry might release 2015 budget balance data.

Romania ran a consolidated budget surplus of 0.8 percent of gross domestic product at the end of November, slightly smaller than the 1.3 percent 10-month surplus.

CEE MARKETS

Central European assets firmed on Thursday, with the zloty rebounding from four-year lows against the euro as European Central Bank President Mario Draghi signalled further monetary easing in the euro zone.

POWER

Central and southeastern European prompt prices fell on Thursday due to falling consumption and increased renewable supply, although freezing temperatures limited the drop, traders said.

For the long-term Romanian diary, click on

For emerging markets economic events, click on

For an index of all diaries, click on
North Korea detains U.S. student on New Year trip for "hostile act"

By James Pearson and Ju-min Park

SEOUL, Jan 22 (Reuters) - North Korea has detained a U.S. university student, the third western citizen known to be held in the isolated state, for committing a "hostile act" and wanting to "destroy the country's unity", it said on Friday.

Otto Frederick Warmbier, 21, of the University of Virginia, was in North Korea for a five-day New Year trip and was detained at Pyongyang airport on Jan. 2 ahead of a flight back to China, said Gareth Johnson of Young Pioneer Tours, which organized the visit.

According to the North's official KCNA news agency, Warmbier entered North Korea as a tourist and "was caught committing a hostile act against the state", which it said was "tolerated and manipulated by the U.S. government".

The U.S. State Department, in a statement, said it was aware of reports that a U.S. citizen had been detained in North Korea but gave no other details, citing privacy concerns.

U.S. Rep. Brad Wenstrup, whose district includes the area where Warmbier went to high school, tweeted on Friday that his office was asking the State Department "to assist however possible in getting Mr. Warmbier home."

Further official comment was not immediately available as U.S. government offices were closed ahead of an impending blizzard.

Johnson said China-based Young Pioneer Tours was in contact with Warmbier's family and U.S. officials.

"We are in touch with Otto's family, the U.S. State Department and the Embassy of Sweden in Pyongyang and doing all we can to secure his release," Johnson told Reuters.

The Swedish Embassy represents U.S. interests in North Korea.

KCNA said Warmbier had entered the country with an "aim to destroy the country's unity". It did not elaborate.

According to his social media profiles, Warmbier is from Cincinnati and is an Echols Scholar, awarded to the top 7 percent of incoming first-year students at the University of Virginia, where he majors in economics with a minor in global sustainability.

Warmbier has also visited Cuba, Ireland and Israel, according to his Facebook profile.

Warmbier was detained four days before North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in violation of UN sanctions, which drew condemnation from its neighbors and the United States.

A friend and former high-school classmate of Warmbier, who wished to remain anonymous, told Reuters: "Otto is a wonderful, warm person who should never have to go through anything like this. ... The idea that any of this happened is crazy."

Calls to the Warmbier home in Cincinnati, Ohio, were not immediately answered on Friday and nobody answered when a Reuters reporter knocked on the door of the house.

South Korea warned that the United States and its allies were working on further sanctions to inflict "bone-numbing pain" on North Korea after its latest nuclear test, and urged China to do its part to rein in its neighbor.

North Korea has a long history of detaining foreigners, and the U.S. and Canadian governments advise against travel there.

Pyongyang has in the past used detained U.S. citizens to extract high-profile visits from the United States, with which it has no formal diplomatic relations.

While the vast majority of tourists to North Korea are from China, roughly 6,000 westerners visit the country annually. Most are adventure-seekers curious about life behind the last sliver of the iron curtain, and ignore critics who say their dollars prop up a repressive regime.

Warmbier was on Young Pioneer's "New Year's Party Tour," which, according to the itinerary on the company's website, was to include watching fireworks in Kim Il Sung Square in the heart of Pyongyang, and an optional helicopter ride.

A South Korean-born Canadian pastor was arrested in North Korea last year and given a life sentence for subversion. This month, a Korean-American told CNN in Pyongyang he was being held by the state for spying.
Poland - Factors to Watch Jan 22

Following are news stories, press reports and events to watch that may affect Poland's financial markets on Friday. ALL TIMES GMT (Poland: GMT + 1 hour):

ZLOTY

Poland would like to see the zloty within a 4.1 to 4.4 range versus the euro, but does not plan any market intervention to defend its currency, economy and deputy prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Thursday evening.

PZU

Standard and Poor's (S&P) has downgraded the financial strength rating of Polish state-run insurer PZU to "A-" from "A", upholding a negative rating outlook, PZU said on Thursday evening.

RAIFFEISEN

Raiffeisen Bank International plans to comply with Polish banking regulator KNF requirement and float on the Warsaw bourse its Polish unit Polbank, Puls Biznesu daily quoted Raiffeisen spokesman as saying.

The daily also quoted its Raiffeisen's unnamed source as saying that Polbank is currently "unsellable".

PEKAO

Pekao's CEO, Luigi Lovaglio, said in an interview for Puls Biznesu daily that he cannot imagine that anyone could think about selling the bank.

Lovaglio also said that Pekao would like to buy a bank without a Swiss-franc denominated mortgage portfolio at a price that would not exceed it book value.

COAL

The level of coal extraction is optimal in Poland, with a surplus of about 4 percent not being a problem, energy minister Krzysztof Tchorzewski told Rzeczpospolita daily.

COMPETITION WATCHDOG

The Polish prime minister has dismissed Adam Jasser from head of competition watchdog UOKiK, government spokesman Rafal Bochenek told Rzeczpospolita daily. Jasser will remain in the position until his successor is chosen.

BUDIMEX

Budimex plans to sell 1,500 flats this year, the chief executive of Budimex's developer unit, Henryk Urbanski, told Rzeczpospolita daily.

****Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.****
World Islamic body backs Saudi stance in Iran spat

JEDDAH, Jan 22 (Reuters) - The world's largest Muslim body backed Saudi Arabia in its weeks-long diplomatic spat with Iran in a statement issued on Thursday night, accusing Tehran of backing terrorism and meddling in other countries' affairs.

The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), based in the Saudi city of Jeddah, had gathered for an exceptional meeting called by Riyadh over the storming of its embassy and consulate by Iranian protesters on Jan. 2.

The crisis started when Saudi Arabia executed Shi'ite cleric Nimr al-Nimr earlier that day, triggering outrage among Shi'ites across the region and deepening the political and sectarian rift between the conservative Sunni kingdom and the Islamic republic.

In its final statement, the OIC condemned the attacks on Saudi missions and criticised "inflammatory Iranian statements on the implementation of court rulings against a number of perpetrators of terrorist crimes in Saudi Arabia".

"(The OIC) condemns Iran's interference in the internal affairs of countries in the region and other countries, including members (Bahrain, Yemen, Syria and Somalia) and the continuation of its support for terrorism," the body added.

Riyadh cut its diplomatic ties with Tehran in response. Other Gulf countries took varying measures to downgrade ties with Iran.

Analysts say the dispute may dampen chances for peace talks to end wars in Yemen and Syria, where the two regional archrivals back opposing sides.
PRESS DIGEST - Bulgaria - Jan 22

SOFIA, Jan 22 (Reuters) - These are some of the main stories in Bulgarian newspapers on Friday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

-- Two people died in an avalanche in Vitosha Mountain, close to the capital Sofia, mountain rescue officials said. (24 Chasa, Trud, Monitor, Standart, Duma)

-- The electronic voting can actually be introduced in 5 to 10 years, when there will be enough technical guarantees that the vote cannot be rigged, politicians said. (Trud, Sega, Standart, Monitor, Duma)
Laos PM, party boss set for political exit after congress vote

By Martin Petty

Jan 22 (Reuters) - Laos's secretive Communist Party unveiled a new central committee on Friday from which the prime minister and incumbent party chief were absent, signalling their political exits after they opted out of re-election at a party congress.

Party general secretary and president Choummaly Sayasone, 79, who has held both posts since 2006, and Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong, 71, were among four politburo members who did not apply to join the top committee, according to a state media announcement.

That puts them out of contention for elite politburo and party chief posts, say experts. The new 77-member central committee was due to choose those positions on Friday.

The top name on the central committee list was 78-year-old Bounnhang Vorachit, the current vice president, who has been tipped to become the next chief of a party that has run Laos for four decades.

Second on the list was National Assembly chairwoman and former central bank governor Pany Yathotu, a development that suggests a bumping-up in the party hierarchy to be a possible prime minister, according to Martin Stuart-Fox, a retired professor and expert on Laos at the University of Queensland.

"The most significant promotion has been Madame Pany," he said, adding she was now "a very powerful figure".

Analysts have anticipated a continuation of a status quo that has seen power tightly controlled by the party while pursuing strong economic expansion, which has averaged 7.8 percent since 2011.

All 39 central committee members who applied to run again were chosen for another term, state media said.

Laos has close political ties to communist Vietnam and mirrors its political system. Both countries are holding their five-yearly congresses this week.

Communist neighbour China has been vying aggressively for influence on Laos, however, providing scholarships, aid, loans and infrastructure investment into a fledgling $12 billion economy 862 times smaller than its own.

Growth in Laos has been driven by investment, mining and sales abroad of most its growing hydropower output, largely to Thailand, which has boosted incomes and access to electricity, telecommunications and healthcare for its 6.8 million mostly rural population.

State media did not state why Thongsing and Choummaly, who have been politburo members since 1991, did not contest re-election to the central committee.
India, France haggle over $9-bln warplane deal in run-up to Hollande visit

By Sanjeev Miglani

NEW DELHI, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Indian and French negotiators were haggling on Friday over the price of 36 combat planes for the ageing Indian air force, officials of the two nations said, just days before President Francois Hollande visits New Delhi to cement commercial ties.

The fighter jet deal is part of a $150-billion military modernisation drive India has launched, drawing global arms makers into one of the world's biggest markets.

Hollande and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stepped into the estimated $9-billion deal last year, ordering government-to-government talks after commercial negotiations with the plane maker, Dassault Aviation, collapsed.

The leaders agreed to scale back the original plan for 126 Rafale planes to just 36 in flyaway condition, to meet the Indian Air Force's urgent needs, as it faces China and Pakistan.

But even the smaller deal ran into problems over the unit price of the planes and other contract terms.

France's envoy to India, Francois Richier, said the two sides were holding talks in New Delhi but he could not say for sure if they would strike a deal ahead of, or during, Hollande's visit, which begins on Sunday.

"Discussions are taking place, can't say what will be the outcome," he told reporters. "It's not finalised yet. It's a complex negotiation. I am hopeful, but hopeful does not mean certitude."

An Indian foreign ministry spokesman said the deal for the 36 planes was in an advanced stage.

Hollande will be the guest of honour at India's Republic Day parade on Jan. 26, in a sign of deepening political and commercial ties. U.S. President Barack Obama was given that honour last year.

Modi will welcome Hollande in the northern city of Chandigarh, designed in the 1950s by the French architect Le Corbusier. It is one of 100 "smart cities" Modi has designated for rapid development, in which the French will be partners.

The two sides are also discussing a plan by French nuclear company Areva to build six reactors in western India, as part of Modi's push to ramp up nuclear capacity.

But negotiations have been stuck over the price, and French utility EDF's recent takeover of Areva's reactor business has slowed progress.

"EDF will be in the lead now, that is creating a change in the way nuclear negotiations will be conducted," Richier said.
Syrian Kurds say must be represented at Geneva talks

By John Irish

PARIS, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Syrian Kurds must be represented at peace talks in Geneva or they will fail, a Syrian Kurdish leader said on Friday.

Saleh Muslim, co-chair of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), also said one of the opposition groups involved, Jaysh al-Islam, had the "same mentality" as al Qaeda and Islamic State.

The negotiations, due to begin on Jan. 25 in Geneva, look increasingly uncertain for reasons including a dispute over the composition of the opposition delegation.

"If there are some parties that are effective in this Syria issue who are not at the table, it will be the same as what happened in Geneva 2," Muslim told Reuters, referring to failed negotiations in 2014.

"The negotiations and political solution will fail so we are keen to have everyone at the table."

Russia wants the opposition negotiating team expanded to include other figures that could be deemed closer to its own thinking as well as the main Syrian Kurdish party, the PYD, and the affiliated YPG militia.

The YPG has meanwhile established close ties with the United States and is an important partner in the fight it is leading against Islamic State militants in Syria.

The Saudi-backed opposition council has said it will boycott the Geneva negotiations if Russia insists on such a shake-up.

Its chief negotiator Mohamad Alloush said on Thursday the PYD's "natural place" was with the government delegation and the opposition has accused the Kurds of fighting rebel groups.

Muslim dismissed those suggestions as propaganda, saying Kurdish groups were not cooperating with the Syrian government and were defending themselves against groups that one day were affiliated to radical Islamists and another day calling themselves moderates.

'NOT ACCEPTABLE'

When asked whether the Riyadh opposition platform set up in December was a step forward compared to previous opposition delegations, Muslim took aim at Alloush's Jaysh al-Islam group, which Russia has called a terrorist group.

"Their mentality is the same as the Nusra Front and Daesh. They clearly want to establish an Islamic state," he said.

"The Riyadh platform is accepting to establish an Islamic caliphate. It's not acceptable."

In an interview in May last year, the late leader of Jaysh al-Islam, Zahran Alloush, backed away from previous hardline rhetoric, saying the Syrian people would be free to choose the type of state they want and calling Alawites - President Bashar al-Assad's minority sect - part of the Syrian people.

A French diplomatic source said it was clear that at the end of the process the PYD and its affiliates would have to be associated to a definitive accord, but in the short-term it would be problematic.

"We can't risk exploding the (Riyadh) opposition platform. The opposition considers that the PYD is not opposed to the regime and has no place being on its side of the table," the source said.

"They have set parameters for talks and the first is that Bashar al-Assad goes. As far as I can tell that's not the PYD's position."

The YPG militia has seized swathes of Syria from Islamic State with the help of U.S.-led strikes.

The Syrian Kurds have declared an autonomous administration across parts of northern Syria along the Turkish border, rankling Ankara, which has fought a decades-long insurgency against Kurdish PKK separatists.
Jordan under pressure over stranded Syrian refugees

By Suleiman Al-Khalidi

HADALAT, Jordan, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Syrian refugees who have trekked across the desert fleeing expanding Russian air strikes are receiving a less-than-warm welcome in Jordan, which is keeping them penned up miles from anywhere on the grounds some of them may be militants.

Some 17,000 Syrians are now stranded in a de facto no-man's land at the only crossing where Jordan still receives refugees, in sparsely populated desert where the borders of Syria, Jordan and Iraq meet some 330 km (200 miles) northeast of Amman.

Abu Talaat Nejm, among a handful of refugees allowed in last week, said he fled with his wife and four children from Islamic State-held Qaryatain, a town in the desert east of Homs that the Syrian government and its allies are trying to recapture.

"I fled for safety with my children from the raids," he told Reuters during a media visit to the area organised by the Jordanian army. "I don't understand why they have to shell markets and homes and kill innocent people."

Human Rights Watch (HRW) published satellite imagery of the areas last June showing hundreds of people already crowded at the border. It said those let in were then forcibly deported back to Syria.

But the situation has become much worse since Russia started air strikes on Sept. 30 in its effort to support President Bashar al-Assad, at first concentrated on the north and since December expanded toward Islamic State-held areas in central and eastern Syria.

"When Russia entered the crisis there was a much bigger inflow of refugees and wounded," Brigadier General Saber al-Mahayreh, commander of Jordan's Border Guard, told reporters on the visit.

Part of the U.S.-led coalition that is bombing Syria, Jordan has long been praised for helping refugees and been a big beneficiary of foreign aid as a result.

But it is now drawing criticism from Western allies as well as the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees and other aid agencies for over the situation at Hadalat.

The UNHCR in December said Jordan should accept the refugees and move them on to established camps closer to the capital, Amman. U.S. President Barack Obama raised the issue with King Abdullah last year.

But Jordan, which has already accepted more than 600,000 U.N. registered Syrian refugees, is resisting and says it believes that Islamic State militants may have infiltrated their ranks.

"Security for me is the most important thing," Jordanian government spokesman Mohammad al-Momani told reporters.

THROWN INTO THE DESERT

The crossing at Hadalat, a military zone far from any inhabited area in either Syria or Jordan, is a three-kilometre (two-mile) stretch of berms built a decade ago to combat smuggling. The rest of the border is heavily guarded by patrols and drones.

The refugees, most of them families, women and children, walked for days and now inhabit the area between two berms - technically part of Jordan - devoid of water, vegetation or shade, housed in tents woven from blankets and cloth.

Relief workers who declined to be identified due to the sensitivities of the situation said there have been reports of fatalities due to the conditions, without giving details.

When reporters visited the area, a border guard was beseeching an elderly Syrian woman to be patient as she jostled with others trying to get through the barrier that would bring her into Jordan proper.

"We are widows, we have no-one," she called to the guard. "We are thrown in the middle of the desert! Have mercy for God's sake."

Earlier waves of Syrian refugees had a much easier time, some walking just a few hundred metres to cross into Jordan from the main population centres.

Seeking to stem the flow, Jordan sealed those border crossings in 2013.

Donors suspect Jordan is just trying keep refugees away from its cities and under the observation of its security forces, and are hesitant to provide aid to any place that would be construed as legitimising its presence as a camp.

They say the cost of trucking water and food is prohibitive in such a remote area, and many times higher than providing aid for refugees closer to Amman.

They also insist the only solution is to allow refugees entry and travel to Azraq, a camp 100 km (60 miles) east of the capital Amman which was opened with tens of millions of dollars of aid but which remains virtually empty, and the current Zaatari camp, which houses around 80,000 people.

With aid groups and Jordan at loggerheads, most of the relief at Hadalat is being delivered by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

The situation will be discussed at a Syrian donor conference scheduled for February in London, diplomats and officials say.

"The challenge is ... to address the security concerns of the government so that people can be brought in," said Andrew Harper, head of the UNHCR's Jordan mission. "But we will not set up a camp in an insecure environment."

UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi met King Abdullah on Monday and told a news conference afterward refugees should be admitted as soon as possible.
Danish cbank confirms hiring governor's neighbour at higher salary than PM

COPENHAGEN, Jan 22 (Reuters) - The Danish central bank acknowledged on Friday it had hired its governor's neighbour to a consultancy position with a salary higher than the Danish prime minister's, but said the relationship played no role in the appointment.

Financial website Finans said on Friday, the bank had hired Central Bank Governor Lars Rohde's neighbour as consultant with a monthly paycheck of 173,913 Danish crowns ($25,000) -- 30 percent higher than the pay of the premier.

Critics said the position had not been advertised.

All Danish public institutions are obliged to advertise jobs, but as a self-governing, independent institution, it can be argued that the central bank was not bound to that.

The central bank confirmed the appointment and the paycheck. "That she is my neighbour was not part of the considerations when she was hired," Rohde said in a statement.

Social Science Professor Bent Greve from the University of Roskilde told Reuters: "It is not illegal what they have done but management has put themselves into a position where they can be easily criticised."

Denmark, an EU member but euro zone outsider, is the least corrupt country in the world according to The Corruption Perceptions Index made by Transparency International.
Stylish Amla leads strong start for South Africa

By Mark Gleeson

PRETORIA, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Hashim Amla scored an unbeaten century and Stephen Cook was 91 not out to lead South Africa to 224 for one at tea on the first day of the final test against England as the hosts bid to salvage pride in a lost series.

Amla's 25th test century came off 131 balls in a confident display which brought him 18 fours while Cook was nine runs short of a debut test century at Centurion Park on Friday.

Amla, who gave up the captaincy after the second test to concentrate on his batting, looked effortless as he raced to three figures to cheers South Africa who lost two of the first three tests and the series. He was 102 not out at the interval.

Cook, handed his debut at the age of 33 in one of five South Africa changes after defeat in Johannesburg last week, offered a straightforward chance after lunch when he got a healthy edge to a Stuart Broad delivery but was dropped by wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow on 47.

There was another more difficult opportunity for Bairstow down the leg side when Cook was on 76.

But Cook, whose father Jimmy was dismissed first ball when he made his debut for South Africa in 1992 at the age of 39, looked organised at the crease as he brought to the test arena his dominant form in domestic competition.

He hit a four off the first ball of the match when James Anderson's delivery strayed down leg side.

Yet another freakish catch by James Taylor at short leg was the only positive moment of the day for England as Dean Elgar was dismissed for 20 in unusual circumstances before lunch.

Taylor showed a sharp presence of mind to grasp a catch after Elgar's stinging shot hit him in the leg and the ball somehow got stuck around his calf, allowing him to snatch it up before it dropped to the ground.

Elgar had danced down to wicket to Moeen Ali, hitting with some power, and will count himself exceedingly unlucky to have been dismissed after a lengthy review of the television evidence by the third umpire.

It was the third extraordinary catch in the last two tests for the diminutive Taylor, thriving in the most dangerous position on the field.

South Africa won the toss and had no hesitation in electing to take first use of a good batting wicket.
Argentina President Macri seeks 'pragmatic' relationship with U.S.

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Argentina's President, Mauricio Macri, said on Friday he had told U.S. Vice President Joe Biden that his recently installed government was ready to build a "pragmatic, intelligent" relationship with Washington.

Relations between Argentina and the United States soured under the South American country's former leader, Cristina Fernandez, who frequently railed against what she called bullying by greedy capitalist powers in her fight against U.S. creditors.

"We are ready to build a pragmatic, intelligent and productive relationship among our countries," Macri told a news conference at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

"We are ready to work together against climate change, drug trafficking, terrorism and corruption," added Macri, who was elected last November on a center-right platform.

Asked if he was concerned by the presidential bid of U.S. Senator Marco Rubio, who has in the past opposed World Bank loans to Argentina over the country's unpaid debt, Macri said: "Rubio's position is related to past relations with the United States."

Flanking Macri, Finance Minister Alfonso Prat-Gay said he and Argentina's central bank governor had met with the International Monetary Fund's head Christine Lagarde to discuss an Article 4 review of Argentina this year.

Prat-Gay said the government would publish all the required economic data to enable a review. The last such review took place in 2006, during the presidency of Nestor Kirchner, Fernandez's late husband.

Macri, who took office on Dec. 10, also said that both he and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff wanted free trade negotiations between regional bloc Mercosur and the European Union to advance.

The talks have languished for years, in part because Argentina has dragged its heels over which goods it wants included. More recently they have been snagged over when each side makes its proposals.
2-East Coast blizzard may dump record snow on Washington

By Ian Simpson

WASHINGTON, Jan 22 (Reuters) - A winter storm that could bury parts of the U.S. Middle Atlantic region under 3 feet (90 cm) of snow slammed into Washington on Friday, threatening the nation's capital with record accumulations as it barreled up the East Coast.

The blizzard started to blanket the Washington area during the early afternoon. Six people had died in car crashes as a wintry mix spread across Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky.

The storm could dump 2 to 3 feet of snow on Baltimore and the capital and bring winds of 30 to 50 miles per hour (48 to 80 km per hour) before winding down on Saturday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.

Philadelphia and New York were expected to get 12 to 18 inches (30 to 46 cm) of snow before the storm abates.

In Falls Church, Virginia, about 8 miles (13 km) west of the capital, a thick curtain of snow was already piling up on deserted streets on Friday evening, creating a peaceful tableau that disguised dangerous driving conditions.

"I want to be very clear with everybody. This is a major storm," Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said as the city braced for what could turn out to be one of the worst storms in its history. "This has life-and-death implications and all the residents of the District of Columbia should treat it that way."

The Weather Channel said more than 85 million people in at least 20 states were covered by a winter weather warning, watch or advisory and residents up and down the East Coast scrambled to stock up on supplies.

Airlines canceled more than 7,100 flights in the U.S. for Friday and Saturday, according to flight tracking website FlightAware.com. An additional 7,000 flights were delayed on Friday alone, reverberating to airports across the country.

Washington's snowfall could eclipse the "Snowmageddon" storm of 2010 that dropped 17.8 inches (45.2 cm), AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said. If forecasts prove accurate, the storm could rival the 1922 Knickerbocker storm, which dumped a record 28 inches (71 cm) on the city.

'IT'S GOING TO BE A NIGHTMARE'

"I think it's going to be a nightmare, the rates of snow we're talking about," said Marisa Kritikson, 27, a George Washington University nursing student who bought a snow shovel to dig out from her basement apartment.

Southeastern Pennsylvania, including Philadelphia, was expecting 10 to 18 inches (25 to 46 cm)

The approaching storm led New Jersey Governor Chris Christie to return home from New Hampshire, where he was campaigning for the Republican presidential nomination. Christie declared a state of emergency as well.

"The smartest thing for you all to do is stay home, stay where you are," Christie told an evening press conference.

New Jersey Transit said all bus, rail and light rail service would be shut down at 2 a.m. local time on Saturday. Service would be restored as "conditions permit," the agency said.

Residents along New Jersey's coast prepared for potential flooding during high tides on Saturday and Sunday. In Ocean City, emergency management officials warned of forecasts calling for the highest flood levels since Superstorm Sandy brought heavy damage in 2012.

High winds and a full moon could combine to create a high tide of nearly 8 feet (2.4 meters) in Atlantic City, officials said, still shy of the 10 feet (3 meters) Sandy caused in Ocean City.

In New York City, the National Weather Service issued coastal flood warnings for the boroughs of Staten Island, Brooklyn and Queens. Officials prepared for possible evacuations from low-lying areas.

Post-Sandy reconstruction has put the area in a stronger position to face the storm, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said.

The storm arrived in the Washington area, home to about 6 million people, after dropping 5 inches (13 cm) of snow in Arkansas and spreading a wintry mess of snow, sleet and freezing rain in parts of Tennessee and Kentucky.

Duke Energy reported that more than 112,000 people were without power in North and South Carolina on Friday evening. In addition to snow, the Charlotte, North Carolina, area could get up to a half inch (1.3 cm) of ice, making roads dangerous.

Federal offices in the Washington area closed at noon to allow employees to get home ahead of the storm.

"I have nine cases of wine, half and half and coffee, firewood and all my devices are charged. All I need now is a wing and a prayer," said Liz Scherer, 54, of Silver Spring, Maryland.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which includes the second-busiest U.S. subway system, took the rare step of suspending operations from late Friday through Sunday.
Syria opposition rules out talks before end to Russian air raids

By Tom Perry

BEIRUT, Jan 22 (Reuters) - The Saudi-backed Syrian opposition ruled out even indirect negotiations with Damascus before steps including a halt to Russian air strikes, contradicting U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's insistence that talks will begin next week.

With the five-year-old Syrian war showing no signs of ending, it looks increasingly uncertain that peace talks will begin as planned on Jan. 25 in Geneva, partly because of a dispute over the composition of the opposition delegation.

Peace efforts face huge underlying challenges, among them disagreements over President Bashar al-Assad's future and tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran. Russia on Friday denied a report that President Vladimir Putin had asked Assad to step down last year.

The Syrian government has said it is ready to take part in the Geneva talks on time. The office of U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura said he was still aiming "at rolling out the talks" on Jan. 25, and would be "assessing progress over the weekend".

Russia said the talks could be delayed until Jan. 27 or 28 because of the disagreement over who would represent the opposition.

George Sabra, a senior opposition official, said the obstacles to the talks were still there, reiterating demands for the lifting of blockades on populated areas and the release of detainees, measures set out in a Dec. 18 Security Council resolution that endorsed the peace process.

"There must be a halt to the bombardment of civilians by Russian planes, and sieges of blockaded areas must be lifted," said Sabra, who was this week named as a senior member of the opposition delegation to any talks. "The form of the talks does not concern us, but the conditions must be appropriate for the negotiations," he told Reuters.

Sabra's opposition council, the High Negotiations Committee (HNC), was formed in Saudi Arabia last month. It groups Assad's political and armed opponents, including rebel factions fighting Damascus in western Syria.

The west is the main theatre of the war between rebels and Damascus, whose military position has been bolstered since September by Russian warplanes and Iranian ground forces.

Russian warplanes continued to bomb many parts of western and northern Syria on Friday, particularly Latakia province, where the government is pressing an offensive against rebels, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.

Pro-government forces captured a dam 10 km (6 miles) from the town of Salma, seized last week in one of the most significant gains since Russia intervened. "They've tightened their stranglehold on (rebel) fighters in the Latakia countryside," Observatory director Rami Abdulrahman said.

Later in the day they recaptured another five villages, all in hills overlooking insurgent positions, he said, describing it as a "strategic advance" towards the Turkish border.

Air strikes also hit areas in the east near where government forces have been fighting against Islamic State, which controls most of the province. Raids believed to be either Russian or Syrian killed 30 civilians near Deir al-Zor city, the Observatory said.

HIJAB TO MEET KERRY

While rebels have received military support from Assad's foreign enemies, states including Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar and the United States, their calls for more effective weapons including anti-aircraft missiles have gone unanswered.

One of the biggest rebel factions in the HNC, Jaysh al-Islam, said the opposition was facing "many pressures" to make concessions but credited Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar for helping it to "overcome these pressures".

The lead negotiator picked by the HNC for the hoped-for negotiations is a Jaysh al-Islam member, another potential complication facing the talks because Russia says it is a terrorist group.

HNC chair Riad Hijab is due to meet Kerry on Saturday and "all the matters will be tabled clearly", Sabra said.

A senior U.S. State Department official confirmed Kerry was likely to meet Hijab to "check the tyres on the way forward (on talks)... that will hopefully kick off next week."

Russia views the HNC as a Saudi attempt to dictate who represents the opposition. The HNC has said it will not join any negotiations if a third party attends, rejecting Russia's bid to expand the opposition delegation to include the Kurdish PYD and others.

The Kurds control vast areas of northern and northeastern Syria where they have set up an autonomous administration which they say should be a model for settling the Syrian conflict.

The opposition accuses the Kurds of cooperating with Damascus, a charge they deny. One opposition official said on Thursday the Kurds should attend on the government side.

Syrian Kurdish leader Saleh Muslim told Reuters that the Syrian Kurds must be represented at peace talks or they will fail. He also accused Jaysh al-Islam of fostering the "same mentality" as al Qaeda and Islamic State.

"If there are some parties that are effective in this Syria issue who are not at the table, it will be the same as what happened in Geneva 2," Muslim, co-chair of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) told Reuters, referring to failed negotiations in 2014.

Jaysh al-Islam last year backed away from hardline Islamist rhetoric heard from it earlier in the conflict, saying Syrians should be free to pick their form of government and Alawites were part of the Syrian nation.

The Kremlin on Friday rejected a report that an envoy for Putin asked Assad to step down last year, TASS news agency reported.

The Financial Times had earlier reported that the head of Russian military intelligence agency travelled to Damascus at the end of last year to ask Assad to step down only to be angrily rebuffed.
Russia says open to good-faith talks with Ukraine on debt

MOSCOW, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Russia's Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said on Friday Moscow was open to "talks in good-faith" with Ukraine over the debt it owed to Russia.

He also said Ukraine's position was inconsistent as long as it insisted the debt it owed to Russia was equivalent to the debt owed to private creditors.
EU countries failing to back frontline states in migrant crisis-Italy

By Steve Scherer

ROME, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Italy is doing its part to identify and manage migrants but many European Union countries are failing to show solidarity with frontline states, its top immigration official said on Friday.

Italy has taken in more than 320,000 migrants in the past two years and expects the overcrowded and unsafe boats to continue to arrive from North Africa this year. Coastguards rescued 359 people on Friday.

Mario Morcone, who implements immigration policy at the Interior Ministry, told Reuters Italy was struggling to implement a European Commission programme to relocate asylum seekers around the EU and relieve pressure on frontline states.

In exchange for relocation, Italy and Greece have pledged to funnel arriving migrants into "hotspots" where they are detained until they agree to be identified.

Some EU leaders have said migrants should be detained even after they have been identified to keep them from making the journey north to countries like Germany, which took in more than a million asylum seekers last year.

Austria and Slovenia this week said they would intensify border controls to keep migrants from travelling north to Germany, raising concern that Europe's biggest immigration crisis since World War Two could lead to the end of the free movement of people in the EU, one of the bloc's cornerstones.

"When it comes to hotspots and identification, Italy is absolutely doing its part," Morcone said. "No one can ask us for concentration camps because we don't build concentration camps. Nobody should think Italy and Greece alone can resolve the problems that belong to all of Europe's 28 countries."

With more than 100,000 people in its immigration centres, Italy has been able to relocate only 257 asylum seekers to other EU countries. According to the programme, up to 40,000 can be relocated over two years.

Only Syrians, Eritreans and Iraqis qualify for the programme. Syrians tend to go through Greece, but Italy has between 700-800 Eritreans who qualify, Morcone said. He also said Afghans should be allowed to be relocated.

The process "needs to be dramatically simplified. Some security controls could be done in the destination country. There needs to be more generosity by some countries," he said.

A few of the EU's 28 countries, including Sweden, have been generous, he said, but added: "Where are the other 20?"

"The Paris attacks have further complicated this situation because there's been a slowdown of destination countries that are understandably, for security reasons, late to respond to us," Morcone said.
Zika virus spreads rapidly through Latin America, Caribbean

By Anastasia Moloney

BOGOTA, Jan 22 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - An outbreak of the mosquito-borne virus Zika is affecting large parts of Latin America and the Caribbean and spreading quickly through the region.

So far 21 countries and territories in the region have reported cases of Zika, more than double the number only one month ago, according to Jan. 21 figures cited by an expert from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the regional arm of the World Health Organization (WHO).

"The disease is expected to spread across all of Latin America and the Caribbean," Marcos Espinal, head of PAHO/WHO's communicable diseases department, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in a telephone interview.

The virus was first identified in Uganda in 1947 and was unknown in the Americas until 2014.

The disease is usually relatively mild but PAHO says it may be linked to cases of brain damage in newborn babies in Brazil.

"There is strong and growing evidence that Zika has a role in this. However, concluding cause and effect is more difficult to prove," PAHO's Espinal said.

Here are some facts about Zika:

* The Zika virus is spread to people through the bite of an infected mosquito, the same mosquito that transmits dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever. There is no vaccine for Zika.

* The Zika virus is usually relatively mild, with symptoms such as skin rash, fever, muscle and joint pain, lasting up to seven days. It is uncommon for people infected with Zika to need hospital treatment.

* In the Americas, there is no evidence that the Zika virus can cause death, PAHO says, but sporadic cases have been reported of more serious complications in people with preexisting diseases or conditions, causing death.

* Researchers in Brazil and PAHO say there is growing evidence that links Zika to microcephaly, a neurological disorder in which babies are born with smaller than normal heads and brains.

* In northeast Brazil, there has been a marked increase in cases of newborn babies with microcephaly. Brazil's health ministry has said the number of suspected cases of microcephaly in newborns increased by about 360 in the 10 days to Jan. 16 to 3,893.

* Research is under way into the effects of the Zika virus on pregnant women and newborn babies; information about the possible transmission of Zika from infected mothers to babies during pregnancy or childbirth is "very limited", PAHO says.

* Brazil has the highest rate of infection, followed by Colombia. Zika outbreaks have also been reported in Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Suriname and Venezuela, among other countries.

* Colombia's health ministry says Zika has already infected 13,500 people across the country and there could be as many as 700,000 cases this year.

* Colombia's health ministry has advised women to delay becoming pregnant for six to eight months to avoid possible risks related to the Zika virus.

* Jamaica has not reported any confirmed cases of Zika, but the health ministry has recommended women delay becoming pregnant for the next six to 12 months. El Salvador has advised women to avoid getting pregnant until 2018.

* Earlier this month, the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention warned pregnant women to avoid travel to 14 countries and territories in Latin America and the Caribbean affected by the virus.
Hungary's Orban urges fence between Greece and Macedonia, Bulgaria

By Marja Novak

BRDO PRI KRANJU, Slovenia, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban said that a fence should be erected on the Macedonian and Bulgarian borders with Greece to curb the inflow of migrants into Europe.

"If we cannot secure the outer border (of the EU), regardless of how costly or demanding that is, we will destroy the Schengen regime by ourselves," Orban said, referring to Europe's free-travel area.

He was speaking during a one-day visit to Slovenia.

Slovenian Prime Minister Miro Cerar told the same news conference the European Union needed a joint solution within weeks to the migrant crisis to avoid possible conflicts between countries.

"We do not have time until spring to find a solution. We need a solution within weeks ... if not, we can expect conflicts between countries," Cerar said.

"The (migrant) situation is entirely out of control and has nothing to do with humanitarianism, integration and help," Cerar added.

Over 411,000 migrants have entered Slovenia since Hungary fenced off its borders in October and pushed the migrant flow to the west through Slovenia. Almost all of them continued on their way to Austria and further north to Germany and other EU states.

Slovenia on Thursday followed Austria with an announcement that it will reject all migrants apart from the ones seeking asylum in Austria or Germany.

Over the past months Slovenia, too, has erected about 156 kilometers of fence on its southern border with Croatia to ensure that migrants can only enter the country through official border crossings.

Cerar said Slovenia would pull the fence down as soon as a joint EU solution to the migrant crisis is found.
Russia says open to good-faith talks with Ukraine on debt

MOSCOW, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Russia's finance minister said on Friday that Moscow was open to "talks in good faith" with Ukraine over the $3 billion debt it owes.

But the minister, Anton Siluanov, added that said Ukraine's position was inconsistent as long as it insisted the debt it owed to Russia was of similar nature to that owed to private creditors.

Russia says the $3 billion, owed from a two-year eurobond issued in December 2013, is bilateral, country-to-country debt and is not up for restructuring along the lines of Ukraine's commercial debt to private creditors.

"Ukraine cannot claim that it is ready in good faith to negotiate and at the same time insist that they will only consider the variant which was already offered to private creditors," Siluanov said.

Russian Deputy Finance Minister Sergei Storchak said talks mediated by the German Finance Ministry had enabled "an informal exchange of views" but Ukraine had not changed its position.
United Nations must act to end sex abuse 'cover-ups' - whistleblower

By Tom Esslemont

LONDON, Jan 22 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - The United Nations is guilty of covering up dozens of cases of sexual abuse against women and children by its global workforce and needs to break an unspoken culture of silence, according to a senior U.N. human rights official and whistleblower.

Anders Kompass, director of field operations for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), was suspended briefly last April after raising the alarm over child sex abuse by French soldiers in Central African Republic and passing on confidential documents when no action was taken.

He was exonerated completely this month after two panel hearings but, in one of his first interviews since being cleared, said the U.N. urgently needed to address concerns that staff fear losing their jobs if they speak out about sex abuse.

Kompass, who is Swedish, said he had received more than 100 messages from colleagues in the first three days after his name was cleared, some saying they had been "similarly mistreated".

"I am receiving 30 or 40 messages per day from people in U.N. peace missions," said Kompass, whose exposure of the abuse involving boys as young as nine prompted a criminal investigation in France that is ongoing.

"Many refer to having experienced reprisals or even dismissals after witnessing sexual exploitation and abuse within the U.N.," he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

The revelations in Central African Republic, along with similar complaints from other countries, have put pressure on U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to reform the way the world body handles misconduct by peacekeepers and civilian staff.

U.N. peacekeeping officials said the organisation's leadership had been making "intensive efforts" to ensure greater accountability and transparency among its 120,000-strong workforce, including speeding up the process of investigation.

"U.N. Peacekeeping does not and will never accept a 'culture of tolerance' with regard to both misconduct and the reporting of misconduct," a New York-based spokesman said.

FEARS OVER SPEAKING OUT

But Kompass said the emails he received - dictated to the Thomson Reuters Foundation over the phone - showed this was a problem entrenched throughout the global organisation that last year had 94,000 troops and military peacekeepers on its books.

One U.N. worker wrote to him saying he "considered suicide" after feeling "completely neglected" by his superiors when he tried to expose sex abuse in the country he was working in.

Another U.N. civilian staffer said he was one of the few in his team not to engage in sexual practices with local women, although this is banned by U.N. protocol.

"This is sexual exploitation. It is prohibited," said Kompass, who remains in his post at OHCHR but is considering his options for the future.

Kompass said sex abuse was "basically tolerated" in countries like Central African Republic where U.N. workers were protected by a culture of impunity.

"In these societies where you don't have rule of law there's an ambiguous culture that sex abuse is just a form of collateral damage," said the veteran U.N. worker, who previously headed OHCHR offices in Colombia, Mexico and Guatemala.

A slew of allegations against peacekeepers and civilian staff at the U.N. mission in Central African Republic, known as MINUSCA, have come to light since Kompass first raised the alarm about cases dating back to 2013 and 2014.

The troops who allegedly committed the abuses he raised were not under United Nations command at the time.

But MINUSCA officials earlier this month said they were investigating four new allegations of sexual abuse by U.N. peacekeepers in the conflict-torn African nation.

An independent review panel cleared Kompass in December, instead criticising the U.N. and its agencies for the way it had handled the alleged abuse.

Earlier this month the U.N.'s internal justice body, the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), also cleared him, saying in an email to the Thomson Reuters Foundation that their findings "did not support any claim of wrongdoing".

The U.N. has acknowledged the problem of exploitation, with fraternisation between staff and local populations common.

Last June a U.N. report found peacekeepers often pay for sex with cash or gifts despite a ban on such relationships.

The study found 480 allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse between 2008 and 2013 with one-third involving children with missions in Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Haiti and South Sudan accounting for the largest numbers.

But the final responsibility for interrogating those accused rests with the 128 countries contributing police and troops to U.N. missions and this slows the process, officials say.

Kompass said he was speaking out in the hope that other people would come forward and not be treated as he was.
Fires still raging at major Libyan oil terminal after attack

By Ayman al-Warfalli

BENGHAZI, Libya, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Fires at oil storage tanks in the major Libyan terminal of Ras Lanuf were still raging on Friday more than 24 hours after an attack by Islamic State militants, a firefighting official said.

Mustafa Moussi said fires were burning at five of the terminal's 13 storage tanks, one of which was close to collapse.

"Even with the best efforts of the firefighters we are expecting the worst in the coming hours," he told Reuters. "The scale of the disaster will increase further."

Libya remains plagued by violence and political turmoil almost five years after the uprising that overthrew Muammar Gaddafi. Rival governments backed by armed factions in Tripoli and the east have battled for power and a share of the country's oil wealth.

Islamic State militants have taken advantage of a security vacuum to establish themselves in the city of Sirte, about 200 km (125 miles) along the coast to the west of Ras Lanuf and the nearby terminal of Es Sider.

This month they have staged several attacks against the ports, which have a combined export capacity of 600,000 barrels per day. They were processing about half of that before both were closed amid fighting in December 2014.

At least seven storage tanks had already been damaged by fires earlier this month. After Thursday's attack, a spokesman for the National Oil Corporation (NOC) said up to 3 million barrels of oil could now be lost.

Libya's oil production has dropped to under 400,000 barrels per day, less than a quarter of a 2011 high of 1.6 million bpd, though some oil fields and terminals have been relatively sheltered from the chaos.

A spokesman at the Brega terminal, about 120 km (75 miles) east from Ras Lanuf, said the port was working normally and the Greek tanker Nissos Paros had docked there on Friday to pick up 600,000 barrels of oil.

Separately, a resident and a security source said three Libyan guards working for a Turkish company building a road near the town of Madanah, about 160 km (100 miles) southeast of Ras Lanuf, had been killed by suspected Islamic State militants who kidnapped them last week. A fourth guard had been released, they said.
Davos optimists see a new era of trade reform at hand

By Martinne Geller and Tom Miles

DAVOS/GENEVA, Jan 22 (Reuters) - A rare note of optimism at Davos this year comes from the trade ministers, who will gather on Saturday for the first time since the World Trade Organization (WTO) closed the lid on 14 years of increasingly toxic stalemate.

About 30 governments will be represented, forming a potential coalition willing to forge new WTO deals and move on from deadlocked talks that grew from a meeting in Doha in 2001.

The WTO's 162 members, meeting last month in Nairobi, agreed to disagree about the Doha round, effectively giving licence to any country that wants to get the ball rolling on new reforms.

"That negotiation was an intense process, but the results provide an excellent base for future work," European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom wrote in an op-ed published by Politico this week. "It allows us to start reflecting on new issues for the future in a positive, forward-looking spirit."

The Doha round originally aimed to bolster developing countries, but the economic rise of China, India and Brazil, and the deepening negotiating quagmire led to Washington and Brussels losing interest and all but giving up on meeting the demands of Beijing and New Delhi.

None of the "BRIC" economies' trade ministers will take part in Saturday's meeting, which is to be hosted by Switzerland.

In the end, the Doha round went out with a whimper rather than a bang, the WTO acknowledging "different views on how to address the negotiations".

That admission turned the tables on India and others who hoped to veto any move away from Doha, and gave the advantage to the U.S.-led camp who favour new avenues of trade reform.

"(Doha) may be a zombie, but the WTO negotiating arm, in its new dress, is alive and well," wrote Gary Clyde Hufbauer, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute thinktank.

After 14 years of being stuck, nobody is rushing back into grand negotiations, but there is scope for a subset of members to pursue smaller deals in areas that are not covered by the original 1995 WTO rulebook, diplomats say.

Davos is a first chance to sound out such ideas.

"Anybody who has an issue that they are seeking a solution for should start having conversations and testing ideas and reaching out to potential allies and beginning to understand the concerns of opponents," said U.S. Ambassador to the WTO Michael Punke.

"Those conversations will unfold for a period of several months, and then I think it will begin to become clear which conversations have the potential to be more formal."

Ideas floated by the EU and others range from competition policy to investment rules, small businesses, fishing regulations, and beyond.

"(What) I'd support wholeheartedly -- because of the nature of what we're dealing with on the continent, especially Kenya -- would be creation of a working group on digital commerce," said Kenyan Foreign Minister Amina Mohamed.

"Another one is the establishment of a global value chain partnership. It's something we've been discussing."
Two Colombians accused of running an international drug smuggling operation on board a Spanish Navy ship were arrested on Thursday in Colombia, New York prosecutors said Friday.

The two men allegedly ran the smuggling ring out of Cartagena and supplied New York City-based dealers, said the office of New York's special narcotics prosecutor, Bridget Brennan.

Prosecutors said the two men, identified as Jorge Luis Hoayeck and Jorge Alberto Siado-Alvarez, paid thousands of dollars to midshipmen on the vessel, which belongs to the Royal Spanish Navy.

The Juan Sebastian de Elcano passes through New York Harbor in a file photo from May, 2012

The Juan Sebastian Elcano was used by Colombian smugglers to ferry drugs around the world

Nearly 300 lbs of cocaine were found by Spanish and U.S. authorities aboard the Juan Sebastian Elcano

In 2014, the two men paid $32,000 in bribes to Spanish midshipmen serving on the ship Juan Sebastian Elcano, authorities said. The four-masted vessel is the third largest tall ship in the world at 371 feet.

The sailors picked up drugs in Cartagena during a six-month international voyage and delivered them to New York traffickers in April 2014, when the Juan Sebastian de Elcano was docked on Manhattan's West Side, near the U.S.S. Intrepid aircraft carrier and museum.

The Juan Sebastian de Elcano was built in 1924 and frequently travels around the world. Authorities in Spain recovered nearly 280 pounds of cocaine from the ship after it returned from its trip to New York.

Authorities in Spain discovered almost 280 pounds of cocaine aboard the historic ship when it returned to its country of origin

An official from the Spanish Guardia Civil examines some of the drugs found aboard the Juan Sebastian Elcano

'A tourist attraction wherever it anchors, the ship served as the perfect cover for traffickers as it hopscotched across the Atlantic Ocean and back carrying its illicit cargo,' Brennan said in a statement.

The charges against the two men center on a single shipment of approximately 17 pounds of heroin and cocaine. Authorities in New York expect the men, identified as Jorge Luis Hoayeck and Jorge Alberto Siado-Alvarez, to be extradited to the United States.

In 2014, seven other people were charged in the same smuggling ring, prosecutors said.
U.S. military urges "decisive action" against Islamic State in Libya

PARIS, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Decisive military action is needed to halt the spread of Islamic State in Libya, the top U.S. military officer said on Friday, saying the group wanted to use the north African nation as a platform to coordinate activity across the continent.

"Unchecked, I am concerned about the spread of ISIL in Libya ... So I believe that military leaders owe the secretary of defense and the president a way ahead for dealing with the expansion of ISIL in Libya," said chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Joseph Dunford, using an acronym for Islamic State.

Speaking to a small group of reporters during a trip to Paris, he added: "You want to take decisive military action to check ISIL's expansion and at the same time you want to do it such a way that's supportive of a long-term political process."
U.N. rights office tells Malawi: halt "worse than dogs" anti-gay rhetoric

LONDON, Jan 22 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - The U.N. rights office urged Malawi on Friday to protect LGBTI people after it quoted a Malawian political party spokesman as saying gay and lesbian people were "worse than dogs" and should be killed.

Kenneth Msonda, a spokesman for the People's Party, one of Malawi's main parties, made the statement earlier this month on his personal Facebook page and repeated it in media interviews, the office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said.

It said it was concerned both by Msonda's remarks and by the authorities' "alarming" failure to prosecute him.

"We are concerned that the failure to prosecute this case sends a dangerous message that inciting others to kill gay people is legitimate and will be tolerated by the authorities - in effect encouraging violent threats and attacks on the gay and lesbian community in Malawi," the rights office said in a statement.

Msonda was charged with inciting others to break the law after two civil society organisations initiated a criminal case against him over his remarks, and was due to appear in court on Friday.

On Thursday the Director of Public Prosecutions informed the Chief Magistrate's Court that it was discontinuing the case.

"It's pretty alarming because essentially people will see that you can incite people to kill someone simply because they belong to a particular group," U.N. rights office spokesman Rupert Colville told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

"It's broader really than simply awful discrimination and incitement to hatred of gay and lesbians, it undermines the role of law in general," he said by phone from Geneva.

The U.N. rights office said Malawi had a responsibility under international human rights law to protect people from hatred and violence based on their sexual orientation and gender identity.

In May the country accepted a United Nations' recommendation that it 'take effective measures' to protect LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex) people from violence and prosecute perpetrators of attacks.

Anti-gay sentiment and the persecution of homosexuals is rife in much of sub-Saharan Africa, and the rights group ILGA says that in Malawi sex between men is a crime carrying a maximum prison sentence of 14 years.
Just before 10:30 a.m. Friday, the snowflakes began to come down on Charlottesville. And, according to records, it could be a historic snowfall when it's finally done.

The National Weather Service office in Sterling predicted the Charlottesville area could see anywhere from 19 to 31 inches of snow on Friday and Saturday. The record for a major snow event, kept by the McCormick Observatory at the University of Virginia, is 24 inches, accumulated over two days in January 1922.

In 2014, on Feb. 13 and 14, the observatory recorded the ninth-highest recorded snowfall event, at 15.4 inches.

As of 5 p.m. Friday, the city of Charlottesville had 3.5 inches of snow on the ground, according to the weather service. Meteorologist Isha Renta said Charlottesville could get 4 to 8 inches on Friday, with another 12 to 18 inches on Friday night. As of 5 p.m., Albemarle County had 3 inches of snow.

Renta also said windy conditions will pick up overnight with winds at 15 to 25 mph and gusting up to 35 mph.

As of Friday afternoon, Dominion Virginia Power was reporting no outages in the Charlottesville area.

As of 5 p.m., West High Street from McIntire, the 800 block of Old Lynchburg Road, as well as Mountainwood Road and Lockesley Terrace were closed to traffic, according to the local Emergency Communications Center.

Monticello High School is currently open as a shelter for anyone in need, but people will need to bring their own supplies, including food, pillows, blankets and diapers. No pets are allowed.

Residents can call (434) 979-4636 for non-emergency questions or needs. The line will be open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday.

Shut down

Much of Charlottesville area shut down in anticipation of the heavy snow, including government offices in Charlottesville and Albemarle.

Weather-related closings and postponements Events affected by this weekend's snowstorm.

All schools in the area, including UVa and Piedmont Virginia Community College, canceled classes. SAT assessments scheduled for Saturday at Charlottesville High School were canceled.

UVa Grounds were mostly empty Friday morning. The universitys dining halls and the Aquatic and Fitness Center remained open. Only one university library, Clemons, was open Friday.

Police and city officials were diverting drivers hoping to park on University Avenue to surrounding streets. Buses were operating on modified routes designated by the city.

Some students headed to the Corner, where a few bars and restaurants were open for business.

Emily Cox and Natalie Beam, both second-year students, were filling out internship applications on their laptops at Grit Coffee Bar and Cafe on Elliewood Avenue.

Its nice to be able to cozy up somewhere and focus, Cox said.

There were few customers at the cafe, but Gina Harris, an employee, said she expected business to pick up later in the day, whenever the snow stops falling.

A lot of people like to stop in for hot drinks, especially if theyve lost power at their place, Harris said. But its really unpredictable.

Tyler Hutcherson, a fourth-year student, said he had a difficult time buying supplies to prepare for the storm. Lines at the Harris Teeter grocery store at the Barracks Road Shopping Center wrapped almost around the back of the building, he said.

But Hutcherson said he was ready for a relaxing day to start the weekend.

Its coming at the perfect time, he said. Im probably going outside to enjoy the snow [later].

In addition, the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control said it would keep as many stores open as it could through the winter weather. A spokeswoman for the ABC said most stores around Charlottesville were setting their own hours.

Transportation

By 5 p.m., all flights in and out of the Charlottesville Albemarle Airport on Friday and Saturday were canceled. The airport urged people to check with their airlines for more information. Delta, American and United are encouraging all passengers to take advantage of travel waivers that will be good through Jan. 27.

Were not going to close the terminal and well still be here at the airport, but everything is dictated by the airlines and they are looking at their schedules to determine if they can operate in this weather, said Jason Burch, airport spokesman. I think the airlines are looking at the weather maps and seeing that Charlottesville is near the center of the storm.

Information for all three airlines can be found at gocho.com.

According to Greyhound spokeswoman Lanesha Gipson, all scheduled travel in and out of Charlottesville was suspended Friday. They are working with local police and monitoring weather reports to determine when they will resume routes after it is deemed safe to travel.

Charlottesville Area Transit route updates Charlottesville Area Transit has resumed limited service.

Amtrak will be operating trains on a modified schedule over the weekend, according to a statement on its website. Passengers holding reservations are strongly encouraged to keep a close eye on conditions and make any necessary changes in advance of their scheduled departure using amtrak.com to check their train status. Passengers who have reservations on affected services are being contacted and accommodated on other trains with similar departure times or offered alternate travel dates.

Road safety

As of 5 p.m. Friday, the Virginia State Police said it had responded to 49 crashes and 25 disabled vehicles in the Appomattox district, which includes Charlottesville, Waynesboro, Staunton, Lynchburg, South Boston and South Hill, since midnight Friday. Statewide, they had responded to 516 crashes and 395 disabled vehicles from midnight through 3 p.m. Friday.

On Wednesday, Virginia Department of Transportation crews began applying a salt solution on highways throughout the region. As the snow accumulates, crews will work in 12-hour shifts to plow and treat roads with salt and sand. The goal is to have all state-maintained roads passable within 48 hours after the storm ends, VDOT said.

In Charlottesville, snow emergency routes went in effect at 6 a.m. Friday on streets such as Market, High and Water in the downtown area and the West Main corridor. On-street parking will be suspended along those routes during the snow emergency.

Vehicles parked on the snow emergency routes will be subject to towing. This enforcement will remain in effect until the declaration is lifted. Any vehicles towed by the city can be claimed at Tommy Shull's Wrecker & Repair at 1815 Avon St. Extended.

The public also will be allowed to park for free in the Market Street and Water Street parking garages until 1 p.m. Sunday. The move was made to allow more people to park off-street and to improve emergency response times, according to the office.
RICHMOND  The U.S. Forest Service has rejected the latest proposed route of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline because of the 42-inch natural gas pipelines potential damage to the habitat of sensitive animal species protected by two national forests in Virginia and West Virginia.

In a letter to the Dominion-led pipeline company on Tuesday, the forest service said the proposed route is inconsistent with forest service plans and commitments to protect the habitats of the Cow Knob salamander, Cheat Mountain salamander and West Virginia northern flying squirrel, as well as the red spruce forest ecosystem in which they live.

Consequently, the pipeline project does not meet the agencys minimum requirements for a special-use permit to cross the George Washington and Monongahela national forests, said Kathleen Atkinson, regional forester for the Eastern Region, and Tony Tocke, regional forester for the Southern Region. Therefore, alternatives must be developed to facilitate further processing of the application.

Alternatives must avoid the Cheat Mountain and Cow Knob salamanders and their habitats, the West Virginia northern flying squirrel and spruce ecosystem restoration areas, they said in the letter, filed Thursday at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which is reviewing the application for the proposed 550-mile natural gas pipeline.

The decision is the second time the forest service has blocked a proposed route for the pipeline because of its likely effect on endangered species, but Dominion, the Richmond-based energy company that leads the pipeline partnership, said it remains optimistic that it would find a route that would satisfy the forest services concerns.

Todays letter is part of the permitting process as we work cooperatively to find the best route with the least impact, Dominion spokesman Jim Norvelle said Thursday. We appreciate the [forest services] examination of this option and remain confident we will find an acceptable route.

However, the forest service also raised concerns about the pipeline companys plan to drill under the Blue Ridge Parkway and Appalachian Trail in the Blue Ridge Mountains between Augusta and Nelson counties. The proposed use of horizontal directional drilling would tunnel through the mountain and emerge next to the entrance to Wintergreen Resort in Nelson.

The regional foresters informed the company that the forest service would review the technical feasibility of the drilling proposal and any contingency plans in case the technology doesnt work. They also cautioned that the agency could require the company to complete the proposed drilling successfully before allowing construction of the pipeline to proceed through the national forests.

I think the forest service is skeptical about the drilling, said Greg Buppert, senior attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center in Charlottesville.

The law center is among 44 organizations in Virginia and West Virginia that formed the Allegheny-Blue Ridge Alliance to oppose the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, as well as the Mountain Valley Pipeline proposed to extend from West Virginia through the Roanoke Valley to Pittsylvania County and other potential natural gas pipeline projects through western Virginia.

The alliance and other opponents cheered the forest services decision to block the route that the Atlantic Coast Pipeline proposed in late October as a way to satisfy forest service concerns about harm to Cow Knob salamander habitat on Shenandoah Mountain, between Highland and Augusta counties in the George Washington National Forest, and the Cheat Mountain salamander in the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia.

Dominion has persistently tried to force its pipeline through two national forests while ignoring calls to fully analyze less destructive options, the alliance said in a statement on Thursday. The rejection of the preferred route by the forest service underscores how shallow Dominions analysis has been.

The forest services concerns about the proposed alternative prompted FERC staff to direct the pipeline company in early December to evaluate a different route that would avoid the sensitive wilderness areas and ensure that it comply with forest service management plans. The staff said then it could not issue a schedule for completing an environmental assessment of the project until the evaluation is done.

Ben Luckett, staff attorney at Appalachian Mountain Advocates, said the proposed 125-foot-wide construction right-of-way and 75-foot-wide permanent right-of-way for the pipeline would result in clear-cutting through the national forests, causing dramatic forest fragmentation through some of the most high-quality forest habitat in our region.

Buppert, at the Southern Environmental Law Center, called on Dominion to step back and truly reconsider the need for this pipeline at all.

The decision I think represents a significant delay in Dominions plans, he said.

Dominion and its partners in the pipeline company say the $5 billion project is essential to transporting low-priced natural gas from the Marcellus shale field in northern West Virginia to power plants and under-served markets on the Atlantic Coast of Virginia and North Carolina. They say it would lower electricity costs for consumers, provide a cheap and reliable source of fuel for manufacturers and gas distributors, and help utilities retire dirtier coal-fired power units.

The project was announced by Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe and Dominion CEO Thomas F. Farrell III more than a year ago. After a year of preliminary work, the company filed a formal application last fall.

Opposition has been fiercest in Nelson and Augusta among the 10 jurisdictions in Virginia that the pipeline would cross, but concerns also have been raised in Highland and Buckingham counties.

Rick Webb, coordinator of the Dominion Pipeline Monitoring Coalition and a longtime environmental scientist at the University of Virginia, said he was pleased and gratified by the forest services action.

Theyve pretty much drawn a firm line that [the pipeline is] not going to cross Shenandoah Mountain and Cheat Mountain, which is very good news, said Webb, who lives in Highland.

Michael Martz reports for the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
RICHMOND  Gov. Terry McAuliffe said Friday that he shares Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's dislike for the oath the Republican Party of Virginia plans to require voters to take before participating in the GOP's presidential primary.

In an interview with conservative talk-radio host John Fredericks, who supports Trump, McAuliffe said politics should be about "addition" regardless of party.

"Instinctively, I don't like the idea of loyalty oaths," McAuliffe said. "It smacks me the wrong way. I agree with Donald Trump."

Trump has blasted the so-called Statement of Affiliation the Republican Party has enacted to ensure that participants in its primary are indeed Republicans.

Last month the State Board of Elections approved the requirement at the request of the Republican State Central Committee. Before casting a vote in the GOP primary, voters must fill out a form that says: "My signature below indicates that I am a Republican."

Trump has characterized it as an attempt to keep out independents and first-time voters, but party officials have said the statement will ensure the Republican nominee is selected by Republicans. A federal judge and an appeals court have denied an attempt by Trump supporters to block the oath.

Virginia, which will hold its primary March 1, does not register voters by party.

McAuliffe also said he'd sign emergency legislation to block loyalty oaths if the bill makes it to his desk. That outcome is unlikely. The bill was filed by Democratic Sen. J. Chapman Chap Petersen of Fairfax, and would need to pass a legislature controlled by Republicans. A bill with an emergency clause takes effect immediately upon the governor's signature, but the legislation requires the support of 80 percent of lawmakers in each chamber.

Fredericks also asked McAuliffe, an avid supporter of Democrat Hillary Clinton, if he'd consider serving as secretary of commerce in a Trump administration.

McAuliffe said he knows Trump "very well," adding that the real estate mogul wrote him a "big check" during one of his gubernatorial campaigns.

(In 2009 Trump donated $25,000 each to Republican Bob McDonnell's campaign for governor and to McAuliffe's unsuccessful bid for the Democratic nomination, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.)

"I'm always open to doing whatever I can, John, to help this great country," McAuliffe said. "But you know what, I'm here as governor. I love this job. And I'm not leaving early for anything."
RICHMOND  Attorney General Mark Herring is asking the U.S. Supreme Court not to put a new congressional map for the state on hold and allow the 2016 elections to proceed under the new boundaries.

A three-judge panel earlier this month ordered the state to impose a new redistricting plan crafted by a court-appointed expert. The panel had previously ruled that lawmakers in 2012 illegally packed black voters into the 3rd Congressional District, represented by Democrat Bobby Scott, to make surrounding districts safer for GOP incumbents.

The new map could help Democrats win the 4th Congressional District, represented by Republican Rep. Randy Forbes. The state's Republican members of Congress have asked the Supreme Court to hold off implementation of the new map. The court likely will hear arguments in March.
Right now, Virginians pay financially and socially for a broken juvenile justice system that costs too much, produces poor outcomes and fails to make our communities safer. Weve reached a tipping point for our juvenile justice system and its time for Virginians to decide if they are comfortable with the status quo of large, ineffective and costly juvenile prisons, or demand a better juvenile justice system for Virginias youth and communities.

As an advocate for change to our states juvenile justice system, Ive seen firsthand that oftentimes the most important factors in a young persons rehabilitation are the connections he or she has with surrounding adults, such as the teachers, mentors and probation officers who have taken the time to get to know the individuals caught up in the system. Those types of bonds are just not possible in a large juvenile justice facility.

Currently, Virginia has two large juvenile prisons in the Richmond area for youth committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice. In 2014, it cost more than $150,000 to incarcerate one youth for one year in these facilities  three times the average yearly income of a household in Virginia that same year. Despite the costs, theres little evidence that the high spending is leading to positive outcomes. In fact, three out of four youth released from these prisons are convicted of another offense within three years. According to the Department of Juvenile Justices own analysis, controlling for offense and risk and protective factors, the probability of re-arrest increased by 32.7% for every additional year that a youth remained in a juvenile prison in Virginia. By any measure, its impossible to call a system with those results a success.

Even for youth with difficult history and track records, Ive seen real and substantive turnarounds. At the heart of change and accountability is often a bond with another human being. I have seen young people who are lost, isolated and hopeless in a larger environment, but in a small, more intimate environment, they are able to make good progress. Relationships matter, especially for teenagers, and for this reason, it is crucial that we fund small, supportive environments where kids have the opportunity to be known and to make a turnaround. We have the opportunity in the 2016 legislative session to put youth back on track  not just behind bars.

One way to ensure that our juvenile justice system improves is to adopt a budget that puts the state on a more sustainable path. The foundation for a successful juvenile justice system is a true continuum of community-based alternatives to incarceration and Governor McAuliffe should be commended for prioritizing the need for this continuum in his recent budget proposal. His proposal provides for the full reinvestment of savings from the elimination of units and entire juvenile prisons in the Department of Juvenile Justice. The department should use these savings to develop proven programs that will keep youth in their homes and communities with appropriate supervision and supports.

But while the governors budget includes some promising provisions, other elements of the proposal will need a critical eye from policymakers. For example, McAuliffe made a $90.5 million budget request for new capital funding for the Department of Juvenile Justice. For the few young people who pose a risk to public safety and require a secure setting, Virginias leaders should strive to create a system that will provide the best outcomes for these youth and our communities.

Based on the latest research and the experiences of other states, we know what works to put youth on track and give them the best chance possible to contribute in their communities. Facilities need to be small enough that the facility director knows the youths name, family circumstances and trauma history. Fewer than 24 beds is the ideal size.

Facilities should also be regionally based so that families do not have to travel more than an hour to stay connected to their children. On the whole, our system should be developed with the input of impacted youth, and families, and advocates. It should focus on positive youth development by emphasizing therapy, support, accountability and relationship-building. Individual therapeutic treatment needs should be prioritized and receive oversight of an independent ombudsman.

While these reforms constitute a significant change to our states current system, they are also realistic and achievable  and adopting a budget that adheres to such a vision should be a goal for lawmakers. As members of the General Assembly begin the difficult process of charting the course forward, they should keep these guiding principles in mind so that taxpayer money effectively gives Virginias youth a chance to succeed.

Theresa Wilson is a resident of Falls Church and member of RISE for Youth, a bipartisan campaign in support of community alternatives to youth incarceration. Contact her at Theresa@RiseForYouth.org.
Otto Frederick Warmbier, entered North Korea as a tourist and 'was caught committing a hostile act against the state', which it said was 'tolerated and manipulated by the US government'. (Photo: YouTube Video Grab)

Seoul: North Korea said on Friday it had detained a US university student for committing a "hostile act" and wanting to "destroy the country's unity", the third western citizen known to be held in the isolated state.

The North's state-run KCNA news agency said the student, Otto Frederick Warmbier, entered North Korea as a tourist and "was caught committing a hostile act against the state", which it said was "tolerated and manipulated by the US government".

KCNA said Warmbier had entered the country with an "aim to destroy the country's unity". It did not elaborate.

Warmbier is an undergraduate at the University of Virginia, according to the university's website. Gareth Johnson of China-based Young Pioneer Tours confirmed Warmbier was on one of its tours and said he had been detained in North Korea on January 2.

An official at the US embassy in the South Korean capital Seoul said it was aware of the reported arrest.

Johnson said Young Pioneer Tours was in touch with Warmbier's family and US officials.

"We are in touch with Otto's family, the US State Department and the Embassy of Sweden in Pyongyang and doing all we can to secure his release," Johnson said.

The Swedish Embassy represents US interests in North Korea.

A South Korean-born Canadian pastor was arrested in North Korea last year and given a life sentence for subversion. Earlier this month, a Korean-American man told CNN in Pyongyang that he was being held by the state for spying.

In 2014, Pyongyang released three detained Americans. Last October, it freed a South Korean national with a US green card after holding him for six months.

South Korea warned that the United States and its allies were working on further sanctions to inflict "bone-numbing pain" on North Korea after its latest nuclear test this month, in contravention of UN Security Council resolutions, and urged China to do its part to rein in its neighbor.
New Delhi: Ace Indian shuttlers P.V. Sindhu and Kidambi Srikanth sailed into the semifinals of their respective events at the $120,000 Grand Prix Gold Malaysia Masters in Penang on Friday.

Third seed Sindhu had come into the quarter-finals with a 7-2 record against her opponent and hardly broke any sweat as she brushed aside Indonesias Lindaweni Fanetri 21-10, 21-10 in the womens singles.

Sindhu will face off either top seed Sung Ji Hyun of Korea or fifth seed Sayaka Sato of Japan in her next match at the Spice Stadium.

Second seed Srikanth too brought his best to the table as he saw off Chinas Huang Yuxiang 21-15, 21-14 without much ado in a mens singles contest that lasted 33 minutes.

The World No.9 will take on Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin on Saturday. Srikanth had beaten the local player in a gruelling three-match contest during the Syed Modi Grand Prix Gold last year.

Sindhu opened up a 5-1 lead early on but Fanetri clawed back at 7-7 before the Indian zoomed ahead to pocket the first game.

Things didnt change in the second game as well as Sindhu brought more aggression in her game and dominated the proceedings completely.

In the mens singles, Srikanth showed his prowess as he ran away with the opening game without any fight from Huang. In the second game, the Chinese opened up a 8-4 lead but Srikanth drew parity with four consequtive points and engaged in a hard battle with the Chinese till 15-14. He then shut the door on Huang.
New Delhi: Amid the pomp of a military parade, the leaders of France and India are planning ambitious discussions next week in New Delhi that could end with a multi billion-dollar deal for combat airplanes and closer cooperation on counter terrorism and clean energy.

French President Francois Hollande arrives Sunday to tour Chandigarh before traveling to New Delhi for meetings with officials and a place as guest of honour on Tuesday at Republic Day parade.

High on the agenda will be India's desire to purchase 36 Rafale combat planes for its air force, which Modi had announced during a visit to Paris in April, touching off several rounds of negotiations over pricing, offsets and servicing.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said last week that the deal was "close to completion," and another official said this week that the two sides hoped to sign a deal during Hollande's visit. That official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak with media.

India and France have shared close ties for decades, holding high-level meetings every year since signing a strategic partnership agreement in 1998. They share concerns over terrorism, climate change, space exploration and military cooperation.

India first began talking to France four years ago about buying 126 Rafales, a deal that would have cost roughly $12 billion, with a majority of the planes to be made in India. New Delhi has since pared that order down to 36 "ready to fly" planes, to be built in France.

France has also promised support for India's clean-energy quest, including a solar energy alliance launched last month during the global climate talks held in Paris.

Hollande and his French officials are also likely to press India about ongoing delays in building a six-reactor nuclear power plant complex in Jaitapur, Maharashtra. French nuclear giant Areva SA and the Nuclear Power Corporation of India agreed in 2010 to build the 9,900-megawatt facility, but progress has been slow amid disputes over land rights and Indian laws on accident liability.

Paris has said it could help India upgrade its crumbling railway infrastructure, especially with its expertise in high-speed trains. Japan also said recently that it would fund a "bullet train" connecting the Indian financial capital of Mumbai with Ahmadabad.

Officials said France and India were working hard on an agreement for another high-speed link in northern India, but would not immediately say which cities might be along the route.

Hollande begins his trip Sunday by visiting Chandigarh. Designed in the 1950s by Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier, Chandigarh is one of three cities that France has pledged to help develop as so-called "smart cities" - with clean water supplies, efficient sewage disposal and public transportation, among other programs. The other two cities adopted by France are Nagpur and the former French colony of Puducherry.

Hollande will be accompanied by a high-profile delegation including the ministers of defence, foreign affairs, economy and culture and dozens of top corporate leaders.

In Chandigarh, Hollande and French business leaders will meet with Indian counterparts eager to boost bilateral trade, which in 2014 stood at $8.6 billion. New Delhi is also trying to encourage French companies to tap into India's economic boom.

On Monday, Hollande will hold talks in New Delhi with Modi and other Indian officials. The two leaders are expected to touch on anti-terrorism efforts including speeding up extradition requests and cracking down on money laundering used to fund militant activities.

Vikas Swarup, spokesman for foreign ministry, noted that both countries had been hit by militants recently, with 130 people killed across Paris on November 13 and a four-day siege against the Pathankot Air Force base that left seven soldiers dead earlier this month.

"Following the horrendous attack in Paris and the recent terrorist attack at the Pathankot air base, it would be worth highlighting that cooperation between France and India on matters related to counter terrorism has acquired a very significant dimension," Swarup said at a media briefing Thursday. "Both India and France are victims of terrorism and we can expect a lot of discussions on this particular issue."

Hollande caps his visit on Tuesday by attending a two-hour parade displaying India's military hardware and marching bands. He would be the fifth French President invited as the guest of honour at the ceremony. Last year, US President Barack Obama joined Modi at the parade.
An inquiry has also been ordered into another case where a contract employee of the radiology department sexually exploited. (Representational images)

Vijayawada: Health Minister Kamineni Srinivas has ordered an inquiry into the issue of an assistant professor misbehaving with a patient in the surgery ward two days ago. An inquiry has also been ordered into another case where a contract employee of the radiology department sexually exploited a patient who came for tests. The two incidents took place on Tuesday on the premises of the Government General Hospital.

A 17-year-old girl with her mother and sister approached doctors at GGH as she had stomachache. A doctor who is also an assistant professor at the Dr NTR University of Health Sciences in the guise of checking the girl misbehaved with her. This forced the girl to run out of the surgery department and complain to her mother.

The doctor who is in his twenties managed to settle the issue with the help of other staffers.

In another case, a contract employee at the radiology department, K. Ratnakar, tried to sexually exploit a woman who came to him to pay the amount he had demanded. Ratnakar was then warned by GGH authorities.

However, the issues came to notice of the health minister on Thursday. He ordered a departmental inquiry into both the cases. Ratnakar was terminated on Thursday. The doctor would be suspended if guilty. GGH head U. Surya Kumari failed to respond despite attempts to contact her.
London: Former Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed landed in Britain on Thursday, his aide said, after the Indian Ocean islands' government granted him prison leave for urgent surgery.

"We have just landed," said Sabra Noordeen, who was travelling with Nasheed, whose conviction last March on terror-related charges has been widely criticised.

Nasheed arrived at Heathrow Airport, where he is due to meet his lawyer Amal Clooney, wife of Hollywood star George Clooney.

He left the Maldives on Monday for Sri Lanka after resolving a last-minute legal dispute with the government over his 30-day release for the spinal cord surgery in the UK.

He then left for Britain on Thursday.

The Maldives government said Nasheed was travelling under what diplomatic sources described as a deal brokered by India, Sri Lanka and Britain.

But Nasheed refused a government request to leave a relative behind to act as a guarantor liable to prosecution if he failed to return to serve the rest of his sentence.

After a tense back and forth over conditions, the government finally agreed late Monday to let him leave.

His aides said he had held extensive meetings with Western ambassadors in Colombo to discuss the political turmoil on the upmarket holiday island nation.

Nasheed, 48, became the first democratically elected president of the Maldives in 2008 and served for four years before he was toppled in what he called a coup backed by the military and police.

He was sentenced to 13 years in jail on terrorism charges relating to the arrest of an allegedly corrupt judge in 2012, when he was still in power.

The UN has said his trial was seriously flawed and he should be released and compensated for wrongful detention.

But hardline President Abdulla Yameen has refused to accept the UN ruling and has been resisting international pressure to release Nasheed.

Yameen is a half-brother of former strongman Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who ruled for 30 years until his defeat by Nasheed in the country's first multi-party elections in 2008.
Geneva: A new case of Ebola has been confirmed in Sierra Leone, the second since west Africa last week declared an end to the epidemic, the country and the World Health Organization said Thursday.

"There was a new confirmed case," WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic told AFP in an email, adding that the new case was the aunt of 22-year-old student Marie Jalloh, who was determined to have died of the virus on January 12.

The 38-year-old woman "was a primary caregiver during the young woman's illness," he said, adding that she had developed symptoms of the deadly virus on Wednesday while she was being monitored at a quarantine facility.

Read: Sierra Leone vaccinates people quarantined after Ebola death

"The patient is being treated now," Jasarevic said.

Sierra Leone health ministry spokesman Sidi Yahyah Tunis also confirmed the new case, saying the aunt had helped wash Jalloh's body to prepare it for an Islamic burial.

"We are expecting other cases particularly from those who washed the body before the burial of Marie," he told reporters.

Ebola is spread among humans via the bodily fluids of recently deceased victims and carriers showing symptoms, including vomiting, diarrhoea and -- in the worst cases -- massive internal and external bleeding.

Ebola is at its most infectious as people are dying or in the bodies of those who have died from the virus.

"We are monitoring other people now quarantined to see whether they would manifest signs and symptoms of the disease during the 21-day incubation period," Tunis said.

The Ebola outbreak, which began in Guinea in December 2013, has killed more than 11,300 people, mainly in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, marking the deadliest outbreak of the virus yet.

The resurgence of new cases in Sierra Leone comes after west Africa a week ago celebrated the end of the outbreak after Liberia became the last of the three worst-hit countries in the region to be declared Ebola-free.

Sierra Leone had received the all-clear last November, and Guinea in December.
London: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will be questioned by Swedish authorities at his Ecuadorean embassy hideout in London, where he is holed up since June 2012 after being wanted in Sweden over allegations of rape and sexual assault.

Ecuador's President Rafael Correa confirmed that a deal has been struck with Swedish prosecutors that will see Mr Assange face questions over allegations he sexually assaulted two women, without having to leave the diplomatic building.

President Correa said the Swedish authorities will submit questions to Ecuadorian officials, who will then quiz Mr Assange about them, UK media reports said.

Mr Assange, an Australian national, sought political asylum at the embassy in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden as he feared being transported to the US to be quizzed over the activities of WikiLeaks that caused considerable harm to the US foreign policy interests.

Mr Assange, 44, is wanted for questioning in Sweden over sex assault allegations against two women, which he has always denied.

Negotiations began in June last year between Ecuador's acting foreign minister Xavier Lasso and the Swedish justice ministry's international affairs chief Anna-Carin Svensson.

An Ecuadorian government statement had indicated a deal in December 2015: "The agreement, without any doubt, is a tool that strengthens bilateral relations and facilitates, for example, the execution of such legal actions as the questioning of Assange, isolated in the Ecuadorian embassy in London."
Hassan Rouhani has vowed to use all his constitutional powers to reinstate those barred. (Photo: AFP)

Tehran: Iran's president lobbied on Thursday for more free and fair elections in Iran, saying moderate and reformist political factions should also be allowed to run in next month's parliamentary elections.

Hassan Rouhani's speech, which was broadcast on state TV, was a stab at Iran's constitutional watchdog, which has disqualified large numbers of moderates and reformists from running in the Feb. 26 vote.

Rouhani said that "the Parliament is the house of the people, not a particular faction."

Rouhani, who took office on a pledge to bring about reforms, said elections are pointless if there are "no competitors" and that the upcoming balloting will be "the most important job ahead" that will reflect on his administration.

He said that while religious and other minorities - such as Jews, Christians and Zoroastrians whose combined population in Iran numbers less than 500,000 - have four members in parliament in total, larger groups should also be represented.

"What about a faction that has up to 10 million supporters," Rouhani asked in a reference to estimated number of supporters to moderates and reformists.

"We hope all factions will be able to send their representatives to the parliament," he added.

Rouhani spoke a day after Iran's reformist political factions called on the constitutional watchdog to reverse its decision to disqualify the in large numbers. From over 12,000 hopefuls who had applied to run, around 4,700 have been approved by the Guardian Council that vets candidates.

While some hard-liners and conservatives have also been barred, reformists have been most affected. Many were disqualified because they were not seen to be sufficiently loyal to the ruling system, as defined by hard-line council members.

Rouhani has vowed to use all his constitutional powers to reinstate those barred, but it's not clear how he will be able to influence the process.

He said Thursday that he assigned Vice President Eshagh Jahangiri to consult with the Guardian Council over the case because "talks and consultations are the best way" to settle the dispute.

The disqualification of reformist and moderate candidates could dash hopes that Rouhani's allies would dominate the next parliament. The 290-seat house is currently dominated by conservatives.

The barring of moderates and reformists is seen as a tactic by hard-liners worried that Rouhani's success in lifting sanctions under a landmark nuclear deal with world powers would boost the moderates' chances at the polls.

The council is now studying complaints from those barred.
London: Women in Iran are protesting laws that require them to wear full hijab while driving by filming themselves laughing as they throw off the visible symbol of oppression.

Since May 2014, Iranian journalist Masih Alinejad has been encouraging women to share pictures of themselves flouting strict rules requiring women to remain covered up in public.

Her Facebook page My Stealthy Freedom has since ballooned to near a million followers, and from her exile in New York she told The Independent the use of new laws to impound cars exposed just how big the issue of the hijab remains.

She shared one video of a group of women in a car throwing off their full hair coverings and laughing.


Dushanbe, Tajikistan: Police in Tajikistan have shaved the beards of nearly 13,000 people last year as a part of the countrys fight against foreign influences. The police have also shut down more than 160 shops that sold traditional Muslim clothing.

At a press conference on Wednesday, Bahrom Sharifzoda, head of Khathlon region's police said that more than 1,700 women were convinced by the law enforcement services to stop wearing headscarves, especially in Muslim-majority central Asian country.

This move is seen as a part of curing radicalisation. Tajikistans secular leadership has always tried to maintain a distance from its neighboring Afghanistan. Last week, the countrys parliament had voted to ban Arabic-sounding names as well as marriages between first cousins. It is soon expected to be approved by President Emomali Rahmon.

Emomali Rahmon is known for taking steps to promote and protect Tajikistans stability, says Radio Liberty, a broadcasting organisation.

Emomali Rahmon has been the President of Tajikistan since 1994. His current term is expected to end in the year 2020.

Earlier in September, the Supreme Court of Tajikistan had banned Radio Liberty, the countrys only Muslim political party.
Kathmandu: Police fired on ethnic protesters in southern Nepal on Thursday, killing at least three and wounding eight, in fresh violence likely to trigger more trouble in the Himalayan nation facing severe shortages of fuel and other supplies because of the protests.

Government administrator Devi Bahadur Bhandari said the police acted as the ethnic Madhesi protesters tried to attack a political rally organized by the ruling Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist) in Rangeli, near the border with India. Police tried to stop the attackers with batons, tear gas and blank shots before firing live rounds into the crowd killing two protesters.

Police said another protester was also killed by police in nearby Dainiya. Further details on the circumstances there were not available.

The protesters have been demonstrating and imposing a general strike in much of southern Nepal for months and have blocked a key border crossing through which Nepal gets much of its fuel and other supplies from India. At least 50 people have been killed since August in protest-related violence, but no major violence had been reported in the last month until the deaths Thursday.

The Madhesis say the constitution carved Nepal's seven states unfairly with borders that cut through their ancestral homeland. They want a larger state, more government representation and more local autonomy.

Talks between the protesting groups and the government have continued. Madhesi leaders and Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli met Thursday in Kathmandu but reached no agreements.

Upendra Yadav of the United Democratic Madhesi Front, the main group leading the protests, told reporters after the meeting that the two sides were at the same position they were four months earlier and no progress was made.
The Afghan Taliban said they were searching for a man who cut off his wife's nose (Photo: Pixabay)

Maimana (Afghanistan): The Afghan Taliban said Wednesday they were searching for a man who cut off his wife's nose, condemning the attack as "un-Islamic", after online images of the young woman sparked widespread outrage.

Mohammad Khan has been on the run since he attacked his wife Reza Gul, 20, with a pocket knife on Sunday, severely disfiguring her face.

The couple lived in restive Ghormach district in the northwestern province of Faryab, which is largely under Taliban control. Khan is believed to have fled to an area near the border with Turkmenistan, local residents told AFP.

"We are searching for the husband and want to find out what made him take such action," Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told AFP, rejecting local media reports that Khan had joined the militant group.

Local Taliban official Noor Mohammad branded the attack as "un-Islamic". He said the group, who deprived women of many of their basic rights during their five-year rule, were "outraged by this incident".

"We are trying to find the husband," Mohammad added, without elaborating on what the militant group, known for their brutal justice, would do to Khan if they found him.

The incident is yet another example of the endemic violence against women in Afghan society, despite reforms since the hardline Taliban Islamist regime was ousted in a 2001 US-led invasion.

The Afghan government has vowed to protect women's rights but failed to prevented violent attacks.

In areas under Taliban control, the militant group often act as arbitrators of justice, and they had previously intervened in Gul's case to stop the persistent domestic abuse.

Gul was married off five years ago as a teenager and was regularly beaten by her husband, forcing her to flee to her parents' home in a Taliban-controlled area, she previously told AFP.

While there, she said, the insurgents made her unemployed husband swear on the Koran that he would not hurt her again.

But soon after she returned to him, he sliced off her nose.

Gul is currently in hospital in Faryab along with her two-month-old daughter.

Provincial authorities in Faryab are making arrangements to send Gul to Turkey for reconstructive surgery, which is not available in Afghanistan.

"The Turkish officials have promised that they will help in sending her to Turkey for treatment," Mohammad Marouf Samar, the province's acting health director, told AFP.

"We are trying to get her national identification card and passport so she can travel," said Ahamad Javed Bedar, spokesman for the provincial governor.
A day before the deadline for filling nursery applications ends, NGOs helping Delhi government with the process are seeing a huge rush of people applying for their wards in the EWS category.



Government sources said the Department of Education is likely to extend the process for admitting students from the Economically Weaker Section (EWS). A circular on this may be issued on Friday.



Since the online system had encountered some problems in the initial days, which were resolved only later, the volunteers are also hoping for an extension of a few more days.

The volunteers say that filling forms for the underprivileged kids is a time-consuming process as there are a lot of discrepancies in their documents. They had earlier urged the government to extend the process to cater to more people.



On an average, we are filling 100-150 forms per day. One form takes 45 minutes to one hour as there are many discrepancies in their documents. For example, the birth certificate wrongly identifies the child as female, when he is male. Names of parents are wrongly filled. So, we have to minutely check each and every detail and then submit the form, volunteer Ritu Arora, working with Pardarshita NGO, told Deccan Herald.



The organisation has two centres  at Sundarnagri and Seemapuri -- to help parents fill up the forms.



EWS parents need support because they cant fill details on their own. We still have pendency of at least 150 forms. Even if try and fill those by sitting overnight, more parents will approach tomorrow morning which is the last day, Arora said.



NGOs like Pardarshita and IndusAction had earlier written to Education Minister Manish Sisodia to extend the deadline to give more time to parents to familiarise themselves with the online system.



The Education Department had not launched any helpline or centres at the level of district education officers to help the parents who are not tech savvy. An education official said that camps have been set up at the offices of MLAs.



The government had for the first time launched an online centralised system for admissions to EWS category to check malpractices by school management and harassment of parents, but the process was marred by glitches like software flaws.



Also, since the computerised lottery is only for schools recognised under Delhi School Education Act Rules, 1973 and those under RTE Act continue to follow the offline process, confusion prevailed among parents who thought they have a choice between both.



Since it was made online for the first time, most of the time the server was down. So, spreading accurate information and doing away with the glitches took some time and finally the parents have been able to understand the process. But we need time for filling the forms as more and more parents are coming, another volunteer said.

We are hoping that the date is extended.



The government has so far received around 50,000 online applications against 25,000 seats for nursery admission under the EWS category.
An Afghan Member of Parliament became a victim of theft by his translator at a hotel in southeast Delhis Lajpat Nagar. Syed Ghulam Farooq Mirranay is in the capital for medical treatment.





Among the items stolen were three arms licences, including one of an AK-47 assault rifle, police said on Thursday.



Police were alarmed due to the possibility of the arms license being misused by anti-social elements and terrorists in view of the upcoming Republic Day celebrations.



The accused, identified as 21-year-old Afghan national Noorullah Arab, was arrested within nine hours of filing an FIR at Lajpat Nagar police station. He was living in a rented house at southeast Delhis Bhogal.



Noorullah claims to be a translator and a boxer, who went to a school in Pakistan. He was staying with his mother, brother and sister, said Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Ravindra Yadav.



Mirranay is a senior member of the Afghan Social Democratic Party (Afghan Mellat). He arrived in Delhi on January 17 and was contacted by Noorullah, who introduced himself as a translator.



Noorullah accompanied Mirranay from Indira Gandhi International Airport to Amar Hotel in Lajpat Nagar. Noorullah also stayed with Mirranay at his hotel room for some time.



Noorullah fled with the valuables when Mirranay went to use the washroom, Yadav added. Apart from the three arms licences, Mirranay told police that Noorullah took his wallet, iPhone, 4,600 US dollars, passport, ID cards and debit cards.



The Crime Branch of Delhi Police was also informed that an Afghan national posing as translator was stealing from Afghan tourists.



The call data record of Noorullahs mobile phone was analysed and police received a tip-off regarding his presence at Kasturba Niketan in Lajpat Nagar. He was arrested within hours along with some of the stolen articles.



On being questioned, Noorullah told police that he introduced himself as a translator to tourists from Afghanistan and arranged their accommodation at hotels in Delhi. He used to steal their valuables on getting a suitable opportunity.



Being foreign nationals, the victims usually did not lodge any complaint with police and preferred to return to their country to avoid legal hassles, Yadav added.



In this case, Noorullah was arrested as Mirranay approached the Afghanistan embassy. He was advised to lodge a police complaint.



The details of other victims are being verified through the analysis of the call data record of Noorullahs mobile phone.


Two Delhi Police apps, Delhi Traffic Police and Lost Report, will receive national e-Governance awards on Friday.

The 19th National Conference on e-Governance is being held in Nagpur.

Delhi Police Commissioner Bhim Sain Bassi told the media that they will continue to adopt technology to reduce public inconvenience.



Bassi said the initiatives are aimed at eliminating corruption and citizens harassment.

The Delhi Traffic Police app was launched in September 2015. According to Google, the app saw 50,000 to one lakh installs.



It provides traffic alerts and advisories, apart from facility to lodge complaints against autos and taxi in case of harassment, overcharging and misbehaviour.



The app aims at increasing public engagement and providing them with easy access to information about the traffic situation in Delhi, said a police officer.



Police have also lodged about 20 lakh Lost Reports since the app for complaints of lost and misplaced articles was launched in February 2014.



Lodging a complaint no longer requires going to police stations and spending hours there.



However, false complaints are punishable.

A complaint can be lodged from anywhere and a printable digitally signed Lost Report is instantantly sent back on the complainants mobile phone and email address

.

The report bears a unique Lost Report Number (LRN), which can be used for future search and retrieval of a copy of the report.



According to police, the app has significantly reduced the burden on staff.

Police also have several community services oriented apps. They include Police Clearance Certificate, Himmat SOS, Motor Vehicle Theft and Character Verification Report.

There is also a Beat Book app for beat constables.



The applications are available on Android and Apple smartphones, and on the Delhi Police website www.delhipolice.nic.in


Amid the clamour for funds by the municipal corporations, the Delhi government on Thursday set up a committee to inspect and scrutinise the records of the three municipalities to analyse their performance.



The AAP government directed the fact-finding committee to submit its report within a week.



On Wednesday, the three mayors and Delhi BJP chief Satish Upadhayay met President Pranab Mukherjee and asked him to direct the city government to release funds to civic agencies.



Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia informed that the committee will be headed by a Senior Secretary (Revenue)-cum-Divisional Commissioner A Anbarasu and Additional Secretary (Urban), Sandeep Kumar Mishra will be its member.



Officials with the corporations said that the city government has set up the committee to inspect whether civic agencies have been performing their obligatory functions as mandated under section 42 of Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957.



North Delhi Mayor Ravinder Gupta said that the civic agency is ready for any audit, but the inquiry should be done by an independent agency.



He asked how could an impartial inquiry be expected from the Chief Ministers subordinate officer A Anbarasu who will head the committee when there is already an example of inquiry headed by Chetan B Sanghi, who had said in a letter to Home Ministry that he was pressurised to name a VIP in the report.



The North Corporation is not afraid of any kind of scrutiny as it has always functioned with complete transparency and accountability.



He said that the decision of setting up an inquiry committee has been taken with a cruel and malafide intentions as the Comptroller and Auditor General already scrutinises the accounts of the municipal corporations from time to time.



The Delhi government has double standards when it comes to scrutiny and accountability. It has bias attitude towards the municipal corporations as it is only politicising the issue (shortage of funds) to hide its own corruption.



Despite the High Courts order, the Delhi government is not releasing funds under Third Finance Commission and implementing the recommendations of Fourth Finance Commission, said Gupta.



Had it released the funds on time, the corporations would not have faced such serious financial crunch. But instead of cooperating with the corporations in performing development functions, the Delhi government is setting up committee to hide its own weaknesses.



He added that it is a conspiracy to keep citizens busy in useless issues so that the corruption and scams which are happening in various departments of the Delhi government stay under the wraps.



The Delhi government so far has not set up any committee to probe charges against its own departments. CNG scam is a recent example. It has given a clean chit to itself on its own. I request the Chief Minister to stop this petty politics as citizens of Delhi are suffering, added Gupta said.


In a push to impart vocational training to disabled people, the Delhi government is considering a proposal to send teachers from technical institutes and polytechnics for a training programme outside the city.





The proposed course would help them provide training to disabled students.

It will be conducted by the National Institute of Technical Teachers Training and Research, Chandigarh.



Job fairs for disabled people, employment opportunities for the disabled in government and public sector undertakings and corporate social responsibility initiatives would also be a part of the training, said an official.



The course is likely to give a push to the Arvind Kejriwal governments insitutions to frequently conduct projects for the disabled students admitted under the physically handicapped quota.



The February 29-March 4 orientation programme in Chandigarh would also look at generating self-employment opportunities for the disabled, said an official.

Through regular job summits, Labour Minister Gopal Rai has been trying to generate job and self-employment opportunities for the disabled.



We have been regularly holding job fairs for the disabled, said Rai.

In August, hundreds of disabled job seekers were shortlisted for jobs with multi-national companies.



In November-December, an 11-day job summit was organised by the Delhi government.

The shortlisted differently abled youths were selected by MNCs for jobs like financial planning adviser, housekeeping, tele-caller, data entry operator, security guard, attendant, helper, driver and peon.



In the last one year, over 15,000 job seekers have got appointment letters through job summits conducted by labour department.



A special job fair was held in October at Karkardooma by the Delhi government in association with the Vocational Rehabilitation Centre For Handicapped.



Rai said all job summits culminate with counselling session for applicants in which they are provided offer letters after verifying their documents and qualifications.
The Delhi government has urged the central government to reconsider its decision of opting out of the race for getting a Heritage City tag from Unesco.





In a letter to Union Minister of State for Culture Mahesh Sharma, Delhi Tourism Minister Kapil Mishra requested that a fresh dossier on Delhis Imperial Capital Cities be sent for the next Unesco meet in Istanbul in July.



Mishra pointed out that just before the 39th Session of the World Heritage Committee in Bonn in June 2015 the nomination of Delhis Imperial Capital Cities was either withdrawn by the Government of India or deferred.



We need to pursue this matter vigourously so that Delhis Imperial Capital Cities become a World Heritage City in the near future, he said in his letter written on Wednesday.



The Delhi Tourism Minister said: I am writing to you now to request that the dossier of Delhis Imperial Capital Cities may be sent for the next nomination cycle at the 40th Session of the World Heritage Committee, scheduled to be held in Istanbul in July 2016.



Referring to the aborted attempt to get the coveted tag, Mishra said: It may be relevant to highlight that the Government of NCT of Delhi had spent a considerable amount of time and resources on the nomination process and proceeded with the nomination only after the Ministry of Urban Development, GoI, gave its consent.



After the withdrawal of nomination from the process for World Heritage City tag, Mishra said there has been no formal communication to the GNCT of Delhi in this regard.

The Chief Secretary, GNCT, earlier sent a note to the Culture Ministry in August 2015 but so far no reply has been received, said Mishra.



Officials said Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is keen on the city getting the heritage tag.

Soon after the central government pulled out of the nomination race last year, the Chief Minister expressed surprise over the Modi governments move.



After the Chief Ministers briefing, letters were written by the Chief Secretary to External Affairs and Culture ministers to know the way forward.
The Canberra ODI saw the second part of the now famous Virat Kohli-James Faulkner good humoured banter bordering a sledge with the Indian superstar trying to upset the Australian all-rounder during another of his superlative innings.







During the Melbourne match, when Faulkner tried to instigate Kohli, the Indian batsman's classic retort was "I have smashed you enough in my life. Go and bowl."





In Canberra, Kohli started from where he left at MCG belting the left-armer for 29 runs off 16 deliveries that included four boundaries.





But according to Australian newspaper 'Perth Now', when Faulkner missed a chance to run Kohli out, the Indian vice-captain did not miss an opportunity to ask the Aussie as to why was he "fast asleep".





Two days back, Kohli while interacting with fans on Indian team's Facebook page said:"The opposition has every right to use that as long as it doesn't cross the line. And you have every right to reply as long as it doesn't cross the line again.





"I think there have been a lot of smart comments over the years and mine turned out to be a perfectly timed one. I didn't intend to do that, I just said what came to mind, which was actually not far off from the truth. That banter is enjoyable on the field but at the same time you need to focus on your game. That was a fun moment, I guess."
Powerful writing has been shedding light on darkness, be it darkness of regimes, poverty, discrimination of certain sections or atrocities against women, according to Man Booker Prize winning Canadian author and poet Margaret Atwood.



The 76-year-old prolific author spoke about the "many darkness" in the "very optimistic act of writing" and on other issues in her keynote address at the inauguration of the Jaipur Literature Festival (JLF) here today.



She termed the annual jamboree as a service to readers and also writers.

"For what do the authors get? They get you, his/her other half, the dear reader, the musician of the book. As every musician plays his or her own interpretation of the music," she said.



For her, a positive of attending a literary festival in a different country is getting a sliver of another nation.



"This festival is a feast of words and books, and it is a happy beginning," she said and called India's literature as both huge and complicated.



"Here we all are to celebrate books, authors, writing and reading. For writers and readers are joined at the hip."



Apart from 15 novels, Atwood has also published 17 books of poetry and 10 non fiction books.



Many of her poems have been inspired by myths and fairy tales, which have been interests of hers from an early age.



"In an age that persecutes deviance, you can enrich your mind by being the possessor of a dangerous story. Words are powerful which means that words can also be fatal. Sounds a little dark for this occasion," Atwood said.



She said there are two more optimistic things about this optimistic art.

"It is the primary way through which the unknown, the obscure can become known. Not much money is needed to write, only time and determination.



"All over the world, writing has been the means whereby light has been shed on darkness, whether it was the darkness of regimes, the darkness of poverty or the darkness of the discrimination of certain sections or atrocities against women. There have many darknesses, but there are also many voices.



"The second is that reading is increasing, though the platforms may be changing with the advent of Internet, people are able to access work which they couldn't have earlier. In places where people can't afford books, there is a cellphone."



In a session that was filled with her characteristic humour, Atwood also recalled her last trip to India.



"The last time I came to India was 27 years ago. There were no (literary) festivals at that time. Amazing changes in short space of time," she said.



Atwood, who won the Booker for "The Blind Assassin" in 2000, said JLF had an amazing achievement of starting off as a very small festival to become the "largest free book festival in the entire world". Atwood, whose latest book has been described as a comically fearful dystopian fiction written in a serialised form for her digital publisher, spoke about writing as an "optimistic" act.



"If you have publication in mind, you are looking at the great unknown -- sea, the ocean, the vast universal reader into which you plan to throw your tiny bottle of a book with your poetry or story enclosed within it. Will anyone ever find it, will anyone ever read it? Writing is a very optimistic act," she said.



Atwood, who has also has published short stories and collections of unclassifiable short prose works, pointed out that due to multiple platforms, readership has increased and books have become more accessible to common people.
Asaduddin Owaisi's MIM has decided to field a Dalit candidate from Muslim-dominated Bikapur constituency of Faizabad for the February 13 Assembly bypoll.





Pradeep Kori, a Dalit youth, is the Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) candidate from Bikapur constituency. He is also the state president of 'Kori Society', an influential group among Dalit community members in the area.



The Assembly bypoll has been necessitated due to the death of sitting SP MLA Mitrasen Yadav.



Experimenting with his plan of 'Dalit-Muslim unity' ahead of the 2017 UP assembly elections, Owaisi is all set to hold a series of public meetings in this area in the first week of February to drum up support for his party.



"We are concentrating our strength in this constituency as there are more than one lakh Muslim voters and Dalits also in equal numbers," State president of MIM Shauqat Ali told reporters.



A special team of MIM from Hyderabad, Bombay and Lucknow is camping in the area ahead of the polls.



"We have a lot to convince the Muslim community as they have traditionally supported the SP," said Ali.
Delhi Police today issued an alert after the driver of a taxi hired by three unidentified persons from Pathankot was found dead in Kangra district in Himachal Pradesh, in the aftermath of the airbase attack.





The taxi driver, identified as Vijay Kumar, a resident of Gaggal village in Kangra district, was found dead on Wednesday at the Kalta bridge in Kangra and his taxi missing, police said.



"A white colour Alto taxi no. HP 01D 2440 was hired from Pathankot by three unknown people. The driver of the taxi, Vijay Kumar from Gaggal, Kangada was found dead on 20 Jan 2016 at the Kalta Bridge, Dist. Kangada. The Alto car is missing. Search operations are on. Stay Alert!" the pinned tweet on Delhi Police's official handle read.



Asked on the threat perception, Delhi police Commissioner B S Bassi urged people in the city to remain alert without disclosing any further details citing security concerns.



The alert was issued in the backdrop of the attack on IAF base in Pathankot where terrorists had first killed a cab driver and robbed his car before launching the strike.



Delhi Police has approached media houses in helping it find the car and spread the alert message through retweets.


Director: Raja Krishna Menon



Cast: Akshay Kumar, Nimrat Kaur, Purab Kohli, Feryna Wazheir, Prakash Belawady, Kumud Mishra





Action hero Akshay Kumar may be the lead actor of Raja Krishna Menon's Airlift, but the real star of this riveting and rousing thriller is undoubtedly the near-perfect screenplay.

Based on true events masterminded by an unsung hero, Airlift tells, with controlled flair, the story of the biggest human evacuation in history.



Filmed primarily in Ral al-Khaimah, which is passed off as Kuwait City, the film follows an Indian business tycoon whose world comes crashing down when Saddam Hussein's army invades Kuwait in August 1990.



The entrepreneur, Ranjit Katyal (Kumar), has the all the wealth and the connections to be able to flee the conflict zone with his wife Amrita (Nimrat Kaur) and his little daughter.

But despite the fact that he does not have much love lost for the country of his birth, he chooses to stay back and use his clout to help the 1.7 lakh Indians stranded in Kuwait survive the ordeal.



Katyal inevitably faces many daunting obstacles, not the least of which is the bureaucratic sloth back in New Delhi, but he refuses to give up until he has achieved his end.



His long distance telephonic exchanges with an MEA joint secretary (played by Kumud Mishra), constitute an import component of the tale and proffers an illuminating commentary of how things work in India.



Airlift narrates the dramatic story of an evacuation carried out over a period of two months and with the help of as many as 488 flights  a glorious chapter in India's civil aviation history.



But director Raja Krishna Menon does not take recourse to conventional narrative methods and keeps the flow of the narrative on a tight leash.



His approach enhances the emotional impact of the struggles of Katyal and his wife to ward off the huge challenges that they and the people in their charge are up against.

Airlift remains a thoroughly real and believable story all the way through. It is helped along by the quality of Kumar's impressive star turn.



The lead actor receives outstanding support from the rest of the cast, especially from Nimrat, who delivers a phenomenally impactful performance.



Airlift is particularly special because it is not a typical chest-thumping tribute to the valour of the great Indians who pulled off the impossible in the face of great adversity.



The director informs his immersive recreation of the saga with moving doses of humanity, which ensures that the film achieves far more than merely the effect of filling Indians with pride.



One of the victims of the Iraqi invasion that Katyal, with assistance from accomplice Ibrahim Durrani (Purab Kohli), saves is Tasneem (Feryna Wazheir), a Kuwaiti woman surreptitiously sheltered in the refugee camp set up by him. Moments like these bring out the protagonist's innate humanism, rather than just his accidental heroism.



Airlift is anything but an average Bollywood films about a virile patriot seeking immortality by felling evil enemies.



Katyal's greatness lies in his ability to conquer his own fears, doubts and weaknesses and push the limits of endurance. He is a true hero and Airlift does full justice to him.




Eight Opposition parties, including Congress, Trinamool Congress and Left today joined hands to corner the government over its alleged "sinister" move to "strip" Aligarh Muslim University and Jamia Millia Islamia University of their minority status and slammed Attorney General Mukul Rohtagi on the issue.





MPs from the eight parties also declared that they will launch a signature campaign, approach President Pranab Mukherjee on the issue and will also raise the matter in Parliament in the upcoming Budget session.



In a joint statement, MPs from Congress, Trinamool Congress, JD(U), RJD, NCP, CPI, CPI(M) and AAP, said that they "strongly condemn" and express their displeasure and deep concern against the "nasty" move of the central government to "strip" AMU and JMI of their minority status.



The MPs also condemned the statement of the Attorney General Mukhul Rohtagi over his view that the two institutions are not minority institutions.



"We condemn the statement of the Attorney General of India, who has blatantly tried to outrage the rich tradition of Ganga Jamuni Tehzeeb by mentioning before the Supreme Court that these two institutions are not minority institutions," the MPs said.



Signatories to the joint statement are Pramod Tiwari (Congress), K C Tyagi (JD-U), Sukhendu Sekhar Roy (Trinamool Congress), D P Tripathi (NCP), D Raja (CPI), Jay Prakash Yadav (RJD), Bhagwant Mann (AAP) and Ritabrata Banerjee (CPI-M), according to a press release issued by Tyagi.



The Attorney General has told the government that Delhi-based Jamia Milia Islamia is not a minority institution as it was created by an Act of Parliament, days after he told the Supreme Court that the legislature never intended the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) to be a minority institution.



In his opinion to the HRD Ministry, Rohatgi is understood to have also quoted a 1967 Supreme Court judgement which had said that AMU is technically not a minority institution and the same principle applied to Jamia Milia Islamia.



The HRD Ministry had approached the Law Ministry seeking an opinion on the issue. The Law Ministry had then asked the AG for his legal opinion.



Rohatgi had told the apex court over a week ago that in the opinion of the government, AMU is not a minority institution. He said as the executive government at the Centre, it can't be seen as setting up a minority institution in a secular state.



Slamming the AG, the MPs alleged that Rohtagi tried to "undermine" the apex body of democratic India by making a "flimsy" claim that the legilsature never intended AMU and JMI to be minority institutions.



The MPs said that they believe that this is a "sinister move" to promote an "unholy agenda" and "dilute" the special character of these two premier seats of learning.





The MPs noted that these two institutions have made an unparallelled contribution towards independence and have contributed to the field of social science, the betterment of minorities and Indian society.



Slamming Rohtagi, they said the "insolent remarks" made (by him) "hurt the secular fabric" of our country, which has pledged to protect the identities of different minorities in multi-cultural India.



"Our next step would be to launch a signature campaign on the issue, which will request the President of India to intervene" into what they said was the "whip of communal forces".



"We also pledge to raise the issue in the forthcoming session of Parliament and fight for the basic rights of minorties as enshrined and guaranteed in the Constitution of India," the MPs said reaching out to "all secular minded political parties".



"We appeal to eminent intellectuals, civil society and all secular-minded political parties to condemn this and expose the hidden agenda to sabotage the very idea of India," the MPs said.


Pakistan's Supreme Court today lifted a ban on hunting of a rare bird, houbara bustard, whose meat is prized among Arab sheikhs as an aphrodisiac.





The ban was imposed by former chief justice Jawwad S Khawaja on August 20, who also ordered the cancellation of all existing permits issued by government to Arab rulers.



The federal and provincial governments in October had challenged the ban, pleading that sustainable hunting should be allowed.



A five-member larger bench headed by Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali lifted the ban in a verdict on the review petitions.



Though the decision was not unanimous and there was one dissenting note by Justice Qazi Faez Isa who opposed the bench's order.



The petitioners had pleaded that issuing hunting permits to Arabs dignitaries was part of foreign policy.



The attorney general (AG) Salman Butt asked the Supreme Court to allow "sustainable hunting" of the bird.



Pakistan enjoys good ties with Arab rulers who love hunting houbara. Its meat is considered having aphrodisiac value.



People from the Gulf travel to Balochistan province every winter to kill the houbara bustard using hunting falcons.



The issue of hunting came into limelight after a report in 2014 showed Saudi prince Fahd bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud killed over 2,100 houbara bustard in a cruel 21-day campaign in clear violation of his permit to hunt only 100 birds.



Houbara bustard is listed in the Convention on Migratory Species of Wild Animals, also known as the Bonn Convention, and is declared as an endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.



The meat of houbara bustard is considered as having aphrodisiac qualities by the Arabs.
In a bid to keep ISIS supporters out, the US has tightened its visa waiver programme for nationals of certain countries, making it harder for them to enter America if they had dual citizenship of Iran, Iraq, Sudan or Syria or visited one of them in the last five years.





Citizens of the 38 countries, which are part of the visa waiver programme, would no longer be able to get an automatic entry into the United States if they have visited these four countries  Iran, Iraq, Sudan and Syria  after March 2011, the State Department said.



The State Department said any traveller who receives notification that they are no longer eligible to travel under the Visa Waiver Programme (VWP) are still eligible to travel to the US with a valid nonimmigrant visa issued by a US embassy or consulate.



"Such travellers will be required to appear for an interview and obtain a visa in their passports at a US embassy or consulate before travelling to the United States," the State Department said.



White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the goal here is to improve and tighten the screening measures that were in place for those individuals that had recently travelled to countries that were the state sponsor of terrorism.



"We want to make sure that we are doing everything that is necessary to keep the country safe. That is the top priority. But we also don't want to unnecessarily disadvantage American businesses that are trying to do business overseas, because ultimately that's good for our economy, it's good for creating jobs here in the United States," he said in response to a question.



"The goal here is to, number one, make sure that the country is safe and that we have in place appropriate screening for those individuals that have recently travelled to the nations of Iran, Iraq, Sudan and Syria," Earnest said.



The restrictions that have been put in place do not prevent individuals from travelling to the United States.



"What they do is they subject individuals that have recently travelled to these countries to more screening. And that's an important thing for people to understand," he said.

Currently, the Visa Waiver Programme allows citizens of participating countries to travel to the US without obtaining a visa. Thirty-one of the 38 countries in the programme are European nations, with some Asian countries included as well, according to the State Department.



The adjustment was mandated by legislation passed in the wake of November's deadly ISIS-linked terrorist attacks in Paris and a deadly shooting in California in December.



The vast majority of foreign fighters who have joined ISIS or other terrorist groups and then returned to the West have gone to Iraq and Syria. Syria, Iran and Sudan are also designated as state sponsors of terrorism, according to the State Department.
Another new year has begun full of renewed hope, enthusiasm and with a definite appetite for ushering in positive change. For young, committed feminists focused on arresting climate change and its devastating impact on communities, this is not a time for celebration.





And thats because in the post-2020 global climate agreement, the outcome of the 21st Conference of Parties (COP21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) gender equality and womens empowerment remains only in the Preamble of the Agreement.



Two weeks of hard work and battle came to an end I guess we lost in terms of justice, tweeted Reem Al Mealla, a fiery young climate scientist from Bahrain after 195 countries formally adopted the climate agreement. We need to be able to claim climate compensation. How can an international agreement limit a country from claiming its climate debt? questioned Anjali Appadurai, a collegiate from Canada in her tweet, on the heels of the Paris conference.



Anjali was among 16 climate justice advocates from 15 countries across six continents to send an open letter at the start of COP21 to Christiana Figueres, executive secretary to the UNFCCC, Laurent Fabius, president of COP21, and the delegates to COP21.



Sustainable future



The letter called for centering gender, indigenous rights and resource distribution so that humanity [can] enjoy a low-carbon, sustainable and deeply democratic future. Sarah Hurtes, a young French communication professional working with UN Women at COP21 explains why climate justice and gender equality are necessary: Floods, extreme weather and reduced food and water security affect women and men differently, with the poorest being the most vulnerable.



When 70 per cent of the worlds poor are women, it makes much sense to look at the impacts of climate change from a gender perspective. Women are predominantly responsible for food production, household water supply and energy for heating and cooking. As climate change impacts increase, these tasks are becoming more difficult.



Like Sarah, Saket Mani from India, too, believes in the gender-just approach. Describing himself as a wannabe tech enthusiast, a feminist, a voracious reader, foodie and cultural explorer, Saket had led an interactive event on Strengthening intergenerational dialogue and partnership on gender equality and climate change on the side of the official negotiations at COP21. He was joined by Kundan Saun, 23, who created quite a stir as he sang Azaadi, a Hindi composition on gender equality.



Todays generation of young people is the largest that the world has ever known  and they represent one of the greatest assets that countries have, observes Saket. Nearly 90 per cent of the worlds youth live in developing countries and it is here that their energy, enthusiasm and innovation can be channelled to accelerate sustainable development. The reality is that climate change affects all humanity. But women and girls, because of the roles they play in society, are impacted in a heightened manner. So, we cannot create a gender-blind utopia and expect climate change to be resolved. 



Sarah is forthright about the failure of the Paris Agreement  and indeed the UNFCCC secretariat itself  to be inclusive at various levels. The COP21 Agreement does not fundamentally address the needs of the most vulnerable countries, communities and people of the world, she says, adding although progress has been made under this Convention in understanding and responding to the gendered impacts of climate change over the last few years, the decision-making processes in Paris did not include equal numbers of men and women at all levels  neither among the civil society observer groups, nor in Party delegations or within the official UNFCCC bodies. Executive bodies established under the Convention are mandated to achieve gender equality. Yet, these remained predominantly male.



Partnering with women



In early December 2015, the Women and Gender Constituency, a platform of civil society organisations working to mainstream gender within the UNFCCC process and outcomes, had hosted the first-ever Young Feminist Day during their Women and Gender Caucus. This was two days after the visiting heads of States had made a show of political will to bring in an ambitious, fair and just climate agreement. Majandra Rodriguez, a young anthropologist from Peru and Feminist Fellow at Womens Environment and Development Organisation (WEDO) who had coordinated the event, later tweeted: If not us, then who and if not now then when?



The events panelists came from different countries but were unanimous on the need to make women partners in climate policies and climate solutions. There was Reem Al Mealla, representing the Arab Youth Climate Movement; Eleanor Deeley came from United Kingdom, while Ale Salas hailed from Costa Rica. Alina Saba was from Thailand and Marina Flevotomas from Greece. The young feminists in the group wanted the climate change negotiations to keep in mind inter-generational equity as part of their thrust for climate justice.



The young are impatient. Even as the Arab world continues to rely on oil and Saudi Arabia was a blocker on getting gender equality and rights of indigenous people in the Purpose (Article 2) of the Paris Agreement, Reem and her fellow-travellers have started the Arab Youth Climate Movement (AYCM).



This is the first platform for youth to address climate change issues for the Middle East and North Africa (MINA) region  and with a strong ask for gender equality. Across the world, women like Reem and her compatriots have made up their mind to be at the vanguard of gender-just climate solutions. As Alina Saba remarks, Living with climate change is a reality, it keeps us awake at night.






Maharashtra Government today moved the Supreme Court challenging the Bombay High Court's verdict acquitting Bollywood superstar Salman Khan in the 2002 hit-and-run case in which one person was killed and four others were injured.



The petition was filed in the apex court against the high court's judgement acquitting Salman of "all charges", overturning trial court's order sentencing him for five years.

"The Bombay High Court has erred in not appreciating the prosecution evidence. The trial court's order convicting Salman Khan was correct and should be upheld," Sandeep Shinde, the public prosecutor who has been associated with the case, said about the contents of the special leave petition (SLP).



The high court, in its verdict passed on December 10 last year, had held that prosecution had failed to prove "beyond reasonable doubt" that the actor was driving the vehicle at the time of the accident and was drunk.



The judgement by the high court had come on an appeal by the superstar, seven months after he was pronounced guilty by trial court of running over five people sleeping on a pavement outside a laundry in suburban Bandra with his Toyota Land Cruiser, killing one and causing injury to four others on October 28, 2002.



The high court had rejected as "wholly unreliable" the statement of eyewitness Ravindra Patil, former police bodyguard of Salman, recorded by a magistrate in which he had accused the actor of driving under the influence of liquor.



The judge had said that Patil was a "wholly unreliable" witness because he had subsequently made "improvements" in his statement to the magistrate.



Patil, the first informant in the case, in the FIR filed soon after the accident had not accused Salman of having consumed liquor but only said he was "speeding" against his advice.

The prosecution's case during the trial had firmly rested on the statement of Patil, who died in 2007, much before the case was tried afresh under more serious charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder.



The magistrate's court had conducted the trial for a much lesser offence of causing death by rash and negligent driving. On May 6 last year, a sessions court had convicted Salman in the case in which one person was killed and four others were injured when his vehicle had crushed them when they were asleep on a pavement outside a laundry.
India and France are trying hard to conclude the complex negotiation over proposed supply of 36 Rafale fighter jets to Indian Air Force (IAF), with only two days left before Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Francois Hollande meet in New Delhi.





Though the multi-billion dollar deal for supply of 36 Rafale multi-role combat aircraft  manufactured by Dassault Aviation of France  for IAF was expected to be one of the most prominent outcomes of French Presidents visit to New Delhi, the negotiators could not narrow differences, particularly on the issue of price of each aircraft along with its weapon system.



The discussions are taking place at present. So I cannot say what will be the outcome of this. They are not finalised. It is indeed a complex negotiation, Frances ambassador to India, Francois Richier, told journalists on Friday.



Hollande, who is going to be the chief guest on the occasion of Republic Day in New Delhi, will land in Chandigarh on Sunday to commence his second visit to India.



Modi will receive him in Chandigarh, where the two leaders will address a meeting of the top business leaders of India and France.



A number of business deals are expected to be signed by Indian and French companies on the sideline of the event in Chandigarh.



Prime minister and French president will meet in New Delhi on Monday where they will review bilateral cooperation between India and France and will also exchange views on national and international issues.



The government had in 2011 short-listed Rafale and Eurofighter Typhoon out of six biddings for the contract for supply of 126 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft for the IAF.

The Dassault Aviation finally won the contract in 2012.



But in view of the critical operational necessity for Multirole Combat Aircraft for the IAF, prime minister, during his visit to Paris in April last year, conveyed to French president that India would like to acquire 36 Rafale jets in fly-away condition as quickly as possible under an inter-governmental agreement to be negotiated by the two nations.



New Delhi and Paris have since long been negotiating the proposed inter-governmental negotiation, but could not make a breakthrough on critical issues of pricing and offset obligation. I will share with you that I am hopeful (that the inter-governmental agreement will be signed during French Presidents visit to India). But (being) hopeful does not mean we have certitude. Work is being conducted with a lot of energy, said Frances envoy to India.



Officials said Modi and Hollande might call for early conclusion of the deal on 36 Rafale jets after their meeting in New Delhi on Monday.



New Delhi and Paris are also discussing possibilities of supply of Rafale aircraft for Indian Navy as well as another project for co-development of Short Range Surface-to-Air Missiles or SR-SAM by Indias Defence Research and Development Organisation with European missile system manufacturer MBDA.


Japanese electric fan and lighting major Hayashi Electric on Friday announced its debut in India, with specific plans to tap the demand for luxury decorative fans  an area it considers as its forte.





Fans are considered functional items, especially those that are reasonable in pricing (in India). But, now, a segment exists in the country that is tech-savvy, wealthy, and aware, among which, there is demand for decorative fans, Hayashi Electric Chief Operation Officer (India, South East and MENA) Ashish Narang told Deccan Herald.



The companys range of decorative fans include snazzy innovations with Bluetooth connectivity, internet, USB port, speakers, and even those without blades. Apart from the technological features, the fans boast of superior aesthetics and styling. We are especially keen to tap those markets in India, where people are exposed to such breakthrough concepts. By the end of this year, we will be opening four of our own showrooms  in Bengaluru, Pune, Gurgaon, and Chandigarh  to showcase our decorative fan range, Narang said.



The said showrooms, in the 1,000-1,500 sq feet area, will be high-street standalone stores. The company is also eyeing established retail and lifestyle channels to sell its decorative fans.



The decorative fans, which will hit the market in the first week of March, will be largely imported from China and Taiwan, with some assembly taking place here. In the beginning, Hayashi plans to launch 15-20 models, compared with around 100 sold worldwide.



Meanwhile, the company will also bring its economic range of fans to India on February 1, beginning with 12 models. We will be the first organised company with a premium fan range in the market, a large part of which is unorganised. By 2018, we see an annual sales potential of 5,00,000 fans, of which, over 3,00,000 units will belong to the decorative range, he said.



The fans will be priced between Rs 1,200 and Rs 1,20,000, with decorative ones being priced from Rs 5,000 onwards. Hayashi will be setting up a fan manufacturing facility in South India, as part of its Make in India push, which will come up by the end of this year, and will serve both domestic and export markets in future. The company is investing Rs 30 crore from internal accruals towards the facility, and other related business activities.




Former minister S Suresh Kumar said various popular programmes implemented by the previous BJP government in the State have been discontinued by the present Congress-led government.





Speaking at a BJP workers convention in Bantwal on Thursday, Suresh Kumar said the Siddaramaiah-led State government is in a deep slumber and the people have to wake it by electing BJP in the upcoming Taluk and Zilla Panchayat elections.



He said the chief minister has been protecting cattle thieves, poachers and sand mafia in the State. He has not removed Social Welfare Minister Anjaneya, who is involved in a bribery case, from the Cabinet. The negligence by the government towards the appointment of Upalokayukta has tarnished the image of the State, he alleged.



He ridiculed the governments move to impose tax on patients in hospitals. District BJP unit President Prathap Simha Nayak said Congress will possibly follow negative tactics to attract voters during elections and hence, the BJP workers have to be careful.



MP Nalin Kumar Kateel said the government has failed to provide a package to farmers like the one Kerala state government has implemented. Even though the people of Dakshina Kannada and Kolar have been protesting against the Yettinahole project, the government is batting for the project and Rs 13,000 crore has been misappropriated, he said.



The MP said massive protests will be staged from next week to provide justice to the farmers with regard to Kumki land rights.



The entire world is looking at India. Leaders like Barack Obama have been appreciating the administration of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. But, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi and others are trying to divert the attention of people towards other issues, he charged.



MLC Kota Srinivas Poojary said there are seven MLAs, including three ministers in the district. But they have been silent over the murder of innocent like Prashant Poojary.



Pushparaj Belthangadi joined the party on the occasion. Zilla Panchayat President Asha Timmappa Gowda, former Zilla Panchayat President Koragappa Naika, K T Shailaja Bhat, former vice president Dhanalakshmi Janardhan, Nithesh Shetty, Sathish Kumpala and others were felicitated.



Former minister Krishna Palemar, MLA Angara, former MLA A Rukmaya Poojary, N Yogish Bhat, K Padmanabha Kottari, Kumble Sundar Rao, K Jayaram Shetty, Balakrishna Bhat, K Prabhakar Bangera, K Monappa Bhandary, Mallika R Prasad, Sulochana G K Bhat, Ganesh Rao, Prabha Malini and others were present.
The Supreme Court on Friday asked author Arundhati Roy to appear before the Bombay High Court in a contempt proceedings initiated against her for an article questioning denial of bail to a Delhi University professor, who was arrested for allegedly sympathising with Maoists.





A bench of Justices J S Khehar and C Nagappan, however, assured her counsel that she would not be denied any right if she appeared before the Nagpur bench of the high court on Monday, January 25.



What is the big deal in appearing before the court. This is just a process. Dont worry. Nobody should fear from appearing in the court, the bench told Roys counsel senior advocate Chander Uday Singh.



The court, however, sought a response from the Maharashtra government and the high courts registrar general within two weeks admitting her petition for consideration. Roy challenged the contempt proceedings instituted by the high court on December 23, 2015 for her article published in a news magazine on May 9, last.



The bench also issued notice to the Maharashtra government on a special leave petition filed by professor G N Saibaba, challenging rejection of his bail by the HC on December 23.



Wheelchair-bound Saibaba, who is lecturer at Ramlal College here, was arrested by the Maharashtra police on May 9, 2014 in a case registered under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act.



Senior advocate R S Cheema, appearing for Saibaba, submitted that the petitioner was in poor health. He claimed that the single judge, taking a subjective view, cancelled his interim bail and asked him to surrender within 48 hours.



Roys article had said that Saibaba suffered from 90 per cent disability from childhood and undergone heart surgery about 10 years ago. The projection made him, Roy or social activist Purnima Upadhyay, the so-called human rights champions, on account of his arrest and detention in jail in such a serious crime, or absence of medical facilities and his deteriorating health the HC said.
The Sahitya Akademi on Friday faced a fresh round of confrontation with writers as after its president Vishwanath Prasad Tiwari claimed that eminent author Nayantara Sahgal has taken back her award.





Nayantara, niece of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and author of more than nine novels, returned her award in protest against what she described as the rising attacks on those questioning the ugly and dangerous distortion of Hinduism in wake of the murder of rationalist M M Kalburgi and the lynching of Mohammed Akhtaq in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh, last year.



Hours after Tiwaris remaks to mediapersons, Sahgal refuted Tiwaris claim in a statement, posted on a website of Indian Cultural Forum.



I have just been informed by the Sahitya Akademi that their policy does not allow them to keep returned awards, and that they are returning the cheque I sent them in October 2015. The cheque is now invalid. It has taken the Akademi three months to inform their awardees of such a policy, Sahgal said in her statement, titled  Writers Fight is On!



Let me make it clear: I am not taking back either the award or the cheque, which is now invalid anyway. My protest against the crushing of dissent stands, and I shall continue to speak and act for the freedom of expression, she added.



Her rebuttal came even as a section of media published a news item over return of Sahitya Akademi award to Sahgal quoted her as saying on Thursday: The Akademi wrote a letter to me saying it is against their policy to receive returned award and therefore they are sending back the award.



I will use the money for a worthwhile cause and welfare schemes. She also questioned the silence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi over such reign of terror. Scores of writers, authors, artists and filmmakers subsequently joined the protest, triggering a countrywide debate over intolerance, ahead of Bihar state assembly polls.


The controversy surrounding Rohith Vemulas caste got further entangled in trouble after his elusive father surfaced before the media here on Friday and claimed that his son belonged to the Backward Community (BC) and not the Scheduled Caste (SC).





Rohiths estranged father, Vemula Mani Kumar, said his son obtained a SC certificate without his knowledge.



Kumar arrived here almost five days after his elder sons death and said that he is not aware why his sons caste was mentioned as SC in the caste certificate, as Vadderas come under the BC-A category in Andhra Pradesh.



I have not spoken to my son in the past 8 months. He never told me that he was suspended nor he was depressed. Rohits younger brother Raja Chaitanya who used to work in Bengaluru recently shifted to Uppal here and my wife Radhika alias Baby is now living with him, said Kumar, a native of Gurajala of Guntur district.



He also said that till Class X, Rohiths name was Mallik Chakravarthy. I dont know why and when his name was changed to Rohith. We used to call him Mallayya, said Kumar.

Kumar also said that he has no money and reached Hyderabad by hitchhiking and will go to the university if someone offers him a lift.



I came here to collect my sons ashes, which I want to immerse in river Krishna near Amaravati. I will go to university to offer tributes at the Amar Stupa erected by the students at the Dalit Ghetto, he said. I am proud of my son. He is very strong.



People die for their own benefit but my son died for the benefit of people. I was hoping that my son will send me money so that I can construct a house in Gurajala. But I was informed about his death a day after his suicide. I believe that Rohith was murdered. I want an enquiry on the circumstances that led to his death, Kumar added.



He also urged the government to let the Vadderas continue under the BC category. If you want to change it then accord the status of SC/ST in both Telugu-speaking states, he said. The ABVP has released the caste certificate of Rohits younger brother which states that he is a BC and that Rohith was misleading everyone by claiming the Dalit tag.



However, the Ambedkar Students Association countered this by distributing copies of Rohiths caste certificate which clearly mentions that he is a SC. Rohiths mother is a SC (Mala) and Rohith has every right to choose his lineage, they said.




Five days after a Dalit research scholar committed suicide at the University of Hyderabad, an emotional Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday broke his silence over Rohith Vemulas death.





Modi referred to Rohiths suicide during his speech at the convocation ceremony of the Ambedkar University here where a large number of Dalit students were present. A group of students even protested and raised slogans. Rohith was forced to commit suicide.....his family must be in great pain, said Modi, adding after a long pause, Reasons and politics aside, the fact remains that a mother has lost her son...I feel her pain. Modi, however, did not go into the reasons behind Rohiths death.



Modis remarks came while he was mentioning the fact that India is the youngest country in the world. At the beginning of his address, a few students, who had worn blue stoles signifying that they were there to receive medals, began shouting Modi Murdabad (down with Modi) and Modi go back.



The security personnel evicted the slogan shouting students from the hall. Sources said that two students were detained by the police and they were being interrogated at Ashiana police station.



Other Dalit students who were present in the auditorium said it was a spontaneous outburst. We wanted to register our protest and draw Modis attention..we succeeded in doing that, said Surendra Nigam, a LL.M (masters in law) graduate.



Some students decried the sloganeering and said the protesters only wanted media attention. The varsity officials, who were shocked by the disruption, said that action would be taken against slogan shouting students in accordance with the rules.


Election campaign strategist Prashant Kishore, who played a pivotal role in the victory of Nitish Kumar-led alliance in November 2015 Assembly elections, has been appointed adviser to the Bihar chief minister.





A notification issued in this regard by the Cabinet Coordination Department says Prashant will be accorded the rank of a Cabinet minister.



Born in Bihars Buxar district, Prashant earlier worked with the United Nations. He, however, left the job and returned to India. In 2011, he formed a team of experts from IITs and IIMs to work as election campaign strategist. Initially, he is believed to have approached the Congress party but when Rahul Gandhi reportedly showed little interest, he held parleys with Narendra Modi in 2012. In 2013, he shifted to Modis residence in Gujarat, worked from his official bungalow and drew an enviable poll strategy which helped BJP sweep the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.



Prashant, however, did not receive the praise for Modis landslide as much of credit went to Modi himself, followed by Amit Shah. Miffed over shabby treatment by the BJP mandarins, Prashant vowed to teach the saffron camp a lesson.



A chance meeting with JD(U) Rajya Sabha member Pawan Verma in 2014-end paved his way to return to Bihar and work for Nitish.


Ruling Janata Dal-United (JD-U) MLA Girdhari Yadav has been accused of kidnapping a 24-year-old youth from Deoghar in Jharkhand.





Yadav, who is a legislator from Belhar in Bihars Banka district, has been named an accused by the victims father Mahendra Prasad Verma.



Incidentally, Banka shares borders with Deoghar. Verma has charged Yadav, his brother Laldhari and eight others with abducting his son earlier this month.



Deoghar SP A Vijaya Laxmi said an FIR has been lodged in this connection. The police are looking into the case with all angles as initial reports suggest old enmity between the two families, the SP said.



Another MLA in soup



Meanwhile, the Railway SP, P N Mishra, in Patna issued summons to controversial JD(U) MLA Sarfaraz Alam, who was charged with sexual harassment of a woman passenger in Guwahati-New Delhi Rajdhani Express. Alam, who earlier maintained that he never travelled in the said train, was found boarding Rajdhani in the CCTV footage.


Fridays pan-India arrests of terror suspects by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) again point to the coastal town of Bhatkal in Uttara Kannada.





Sources in the NIA said Shafi Armar, brother of Abdul Sultan Armar, both natives of Bhatkal, was behind the radicalising and recruiting youths arrested and detained on Friday.



According to sources, Shafi Armar heads the Ansar-ul-Tawhid (AuT), a group comprising IS, IM and Tehrik-e-Taliban, and was in touch with youths across the country. Sources suspect that Shafi was in touch with almost all the 14 youths, taken into custody in Bengaluru, Mumbai, Lucknow, Hyderabad, Tumakuru and Mangaluru. He had been urging them to do something spectacular.



Sources said Shafi was more into online radicalisation and recruitment and had various twitter handles. Sources also said Shafi has Facebook accounts and interacts with youths on various social networking sites. Security agencies are however not sure about Shafi's whereabouts.



Shafis elder brother Sultan, also known as Sult, Mulla and Moulana, had been a close associate of Indian Mujahideen (IM) leader Yasin Bhatkal. Shafi is said to be the second of three children, who all grew up at Haji Manzil at Nawayat Colony in Bhatkal.



Armar's name had come up during the interrogation of Yasin Bhatkal and it was revealed that Sultan Armar had undergone training in North Waziristan in Pakistan. After Yasin's arrest in 2014, some active IM operatives severed connections with Pakistans Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Armar and other IM associates joined the Islamic State (IS).



One crucial evidence of this was IS chief Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi's video declaring Sultan Armar as the leader of the Ansar-ul-Tawhid (AuT). The video that appeared on the social media in 2014, had showed Baghdadi announcing Sultan as the Emir (leader).



Intelligence agencies were on their toes after reports about Armar actively interacting with youths to recruit them for IS operations emerged. Subsequently, Bengaluru City Police busted a terror module by arresting three youths from Bhatkal in January 2015.



The accused, Syed Ismail Afaq, Saddam Hussein and Abdus Subur, were said to be in touch with Sultan Armar. The case is being probed by the Bengaluru City police. A few months after these arrests, intelligence agencies suspected that Armar had died and his younger brother Shafi had taken over the responsibility of leading the AuT.



Sources: Shafi was more into online radicalisation and recruitment and had various Twitter handles...

He has Facebook accounts and was interacting with youths on various social

networking sites.
Twenty-six-year-old Najmul Huda, arrested by the National Investigation Agency at Permude near Mangaluru, was being tracked for the past six months.





According to sources, Huda was motivating youth to join the Islamic State and was sharing the details related to the outfit on his Facebook account. He had also created a WhatsApp group to share details.



The operation to arrest Huda began at 3 am on Friday with the police swooping down on his house. A police officer, who was part of the raiding party, said Huda tried to flee through the backdoor when they entered the house. He had hid his smartphone in the kitchen.



Five mobilephones, including a smartphone, a laptop, two pen drives, a few CDs and DVDs were seized from the house. He had photos of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in different angles.



Huda was planning to go abroad and had applied for passport. The application had come to the Bajpe police station for verification. He had no cases pending against him. The police had issued a notice to him to visit the police station for verification three days ago, but he did not turn up. When the NIA team picked him up, we realised he had applied for passport, said a police officer.



Son of Saiful Huda, a cleric at the local Usmaniya Mohammedi Masjid, Huda holds a diploma in polymer technology. He had joined RV College of Engineering in Bengaluru in 2011 to study chemical engineering, but did not complete the course. A source said he stayed in a paying guest accommodation in Kengeri and did not mingle with others. He is the eldest of four siblings and the family, which hails from Uttar Pradesh, settled in Mangaluru 25 years ago.



Saiful said his son was innocent. He would have only shared the photos of the IS on Facebook. But it is not right to claim that he has links with the IS, he said.




Prime Minister Narendra Modi will fulfil a key promise when he places 100 classified files related to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in public domain on Saturday, on the legendary freedom fighters birth anniversary.





All declassified documents will be released to the public on a special website created for the purpose from the second half of the day.



A culture ministry official said the government will be releasing 25 documents each month on the website until it exhausts all files considered for declassification.



On December 4 last year, the Prime Ministers Office released 33 files on Bose to the National Archives of India (NAI), assuring that the remaining 15 files in its possession will also be cleared for declassification and handed to NAI for public availability on January 23.



As a first step, the National Archives of India is placing 100 files relating to Netaji in public domain after preliminary conservation treatment and digitization, the Culture Ministry said in a statement.



ON Netajis birth anniversary (Saturday), the Prime Minister will release the digital copies of these files in public domain, it said, adding that the declassification will meet the long standing demand to access them and help scholars research more about the freedom fighter.



The Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, in his meeting with a delegation of members of Netajis family at his residence in New Delhi on October 14 2015 had announced that the Government of India would declassify the files relating to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and make them accessible to public, the Ministry recalled.



After the PMOs declassification of 33 files, the Home and External Affairs ministries also began the process to declassify files in their possession.



These and a few more files from the PMO were later transferred to NAI, a Culture Ministry official said. After placing 100 declassified files in public domain on Saturday, NAI will keep releasing digital copies of 25 declassified files each month.



NAI received about 990 declassified files relating to the Indian National Army (Azad Hind Fauj) from the Ministry of Defence. In 2012, it acquired 1,030 files/items relating to the Khosla Commission (271 files/ items)and Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry (750 files/items) from Ministry of Home Affairs.



All the files/ items are already open to the public under the Public Records Rules, the official said.




As a letter to Consulate General of France in Bengaluru ahead of French President Francois Hollandes visit to India renewed focus on the threat terrorism poses to both the nations, New Delhi and Paris are set to announce new measures for bilateral cooperation in combating the menace.





Terrorism will be high on the agenda when Hollande and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet in New Delhi on Monday.



Highlight will be terrorism in view of the situation we are in at present  military operations in Syria, Iraq and in Africa, as well as situation in India, Frances ambassador to India, Francois Richier, said on Friday. He was briefing journalists on the French presidents upcoming visit.



The letter to Consulate General was printed on a paper that had on the background a map of India and a picture of slain Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. It stated that French President should not visit India.



I think it is sad that it has leaked. We are looking into this, Pariss envoy to New Delhi said on Thursday. We receive plenty of them. Generally, it is to create disorder, to raise the attention of the media. They have never proved to be true threats, added Richier.



Ever since at least 129 people were killed in a series of coordinated attacks by the Islamic State terrorists in and around Paris on November 13, 2015, France and India have been exploring ways to augment bilateral cooperation to fight terror.



Richier said that both France and India were committed to defend common interests and values against the menace of terrorism.



This is an occasion not only to remind everybody but to pull certain number of steps in this direction of combating terrorism and this will be high on the agenda (of Hollande-Modi meeting), he said.



French Air Force stepped up strikes on Islamic State facilities in Syria in response to the terror attacks in Paris.



India and France already have very strong security cooperation and both nations are keen to support endeavours to strengthen international frameworks to forge closer cooperation to dismantle terrorist infrastructure, deny safe havens to terrorists and to bring perpetrators of attacks and conspirators to justice, officials said in New Delhi.



During Modis visit to Paris in April 2015, he and Hollande agreed to step up bilateral cooperation within the framework of the Joint Working Group, focussing more on sharing of information and intelligence sharing on terror networks and work together to share experiences on dealing with the growing phenomenon of radicalisation.


Mallika Sarabhai, daughter of noted dancer late Mrinalini Sarabhai who passed away on Thursday, expressed resentment against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not paying tributes to her mother.





Our prime minister, it behoves you to recognise her contribution, you have not, shame on you, Mallika, a social activist and dancer herself, wrote in her post on social media.



She hit out at Modi for not paying respects to her mother, even as many across the world had paid their tributes on Mrinalini Sarabhais death. Mrinalini has been residing in Gujarat since 1942, when she married one of India's leading scientist Vikram Sarabhai.



Mallika posted her views on her social network page on Friday morning, wondering that Modi, who hails from Gujarat, has not bothered to condole Mrinalini Sarabhais death.



My dear prime minister. You hate my politics and I hate yours, that has nothing to do with what Mrinalini Sarabhai did to promote the culture of this country to the world over 60 years. She blazed a trailer for our culture in the world. That her death sees no word from you shows your mentality. However much you hate me, as our prime minister, it behoves you to recognise her contribution. You have not. Shame on you, Mallika wrote.



Mallika Sarabhai has in the past attacked Modi as chief minister of Gujarat and his policies.
The BJP on Friday attacked Congress president Sonia Gandhi for changing stand on Aligarh Muslim Universitys minority status and said that all previous Congress Prime Ministers, starting from Jawaharlal Nehru, had held it as a central public institution since it was born out of an Act of Parliament.





The AMU was established as a school sometime in 1872-73 by noted academician Sir Sayeed but post Independence it became a central government funded university through a legislation passed by Parliament, said the BJP.



All prime ministers starting from Jawahar Lal Nehru to Lal Bahadur Shastri to Indira Gandhi did not allow it to happen, saying that it was against national interest and it would not help Muslims either. The dilution came during Sonia Gandhis time, BJP MP M J Akbar charged at a press conference. BJP leader Shahnawaj Hussain too addressed the media.


The Centre on Friday told the Supreme Court that it would bring out tougher norms for the real estate companies to ensure if they will have to pay heavily for violating the green norms.





The apex court asked the Union government to bring out a comprehensive chart, showing if the seven builders from Tamil Nadu had complied with the norms for carrying out their projects in Chennai.



A bench of Chief Justice T S Thakur and R Banumathi directed those construction companies, which did not deposit five per cent of the project cost, imposed as fine by the National Green Tribunal, to do so, for not complying with environment norms.



Additional Solicitor General N K Kaul, appearing for the Ministry of Environment and Forest, told the court that the government was coming out with fresh notification putting in far more stringent norms for building projects. The bench, on its part, asked the law officer, The fresh notification will deal with future projects but what about the past violations.



He responded by saying those builders would slapped with damage cost to the environment in accordance with polluter pays principle. The court said it would consider the issue and directed him to prepare a chart showing how many projects had complied with the directions for fine.



A battery of senior advocates including Kapil Sibal, C A Sundaram, Rajiv Dutta and S Guru Krishna Kumar, appeared for different project proponents Y Pondurai, M/s Ruby Manoharan Property Developers Pvt. Ltd, M/s Jones Foundations Pvt. Ltd, M/s SSM Builders and Promoters, M/s SPR and RG Construction Pvt Ltd, M/s Dugar Housing Ltd and M/s SAS Realtors Pvt Ltd.



The NGT had earlier quashed the office memoranda, relating to environment clearance and prohibited the MoEF and the SEIAA (State Environment Impact Assessment Authority) in the entire country from giving effect to these circular in any manner.
The government has issued separate, tailor-made guidelines for pre-nursery schools in Karnataka, fulfilling one of their long-pending demands. Until now, these schools were guided by the same regulations prescribed for primary educational institutions.





The old guidelines threatened the very existence of pre-nursery schools, setting unrealistic demands for them on infrastructure and registration fees.



The Department of Public Instruction issued a notification on January 18, relaxing infrastructure guidelines for independent pre-nursery schools and reducing their registration fees.



Earlier, the proprietor of a pre-nursery school had to pay Rs 25,000 as registration fee and an additional Rs 10,000 as processing fee. In the new notification, the processing fee has been done away with and a school in Bengaluru has to pay only Rs 10,000 for registration. The registration fee has been fixed based on the location of the school.

For schools outside Bengaluru, the fee is Rs 5,000 and for schools in rural areas, it is Rs 2,000.



Since pre-nursery schools have fewer students than primary ones, the new guidelines do not specify the number of classrooms required for them. But it has been stipulated that each child must have one square metre of space.



For a student strength above 30, a separate classroom is required.

The government amended the guidelines following a memorandum by the Karnataka Council for Pre-Nursery Schools in March last year.



The managements had pointed out that the size and number of classrooms, for instance, prescribed for primary schools were not required for pre-nursery schools and were creating hurdles for them. The council had also urged the government to simplify the registration process.



No to proprietorship



While so far pre-nursery schools could be run by individual proprietors, they are now required to register either as a society or trust or under the Companies Act. This has been brought in to ensure a monitoring mechanism for schools.



Aruna Prasad, president of the council, told Deccan Herald, We are very happy with the new guidelines. It might be a bit of a problem for some schools to register as a society or trust as they would be required to bring in more people on the board of management.



We, however, understand that the government had to take this step to monitor schools.

Under the new guidelines, a society or trust can open a pre-nursery school at any time of the year by applying three months before, without having to wait for the beginning of the academic year.




An employee of Falcon Tyres attempted suicide here on Friday, condemning the indifferent attitude of the factory management in paying salaries on time.





According to sources, Gopalakrishna (48) had reportedly consumed poison and took ill near J K Grounds, here. Passersby rushed him to a private hospital in Gokulam. He is being treated at the intensive care unit and is said to be out of danger. Gopalakrishna, a native of Hassan district, was an employee of the factory for the past 24 years.



Other employees, who learnt about his suicide attempt, gathered at the hospital and raised slogans against the factory management. After the government intervened, the factory management opened the units for a brief period before stalling its operations, citing various reasons, the employees complained.



The employees are given work only for a week in a month. The salaries are paid only after two months. This has put the employees into a lot of inconvenience, the workers complained.




A software engineer from Bengaluru is among 14 youths suspected to have been radicalised by a former Indian Mujahideen operative, who were picked up by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) from four states on Friday.





Security agencies, meanwhile, warned against hastily linking them to the Islamic State (IS). The NIAs coordinated operation with the states police to nab the youths, came ahead of Republic Day celebrations next week with officials saying it was necessitated by intercepted online messages that indicated that they were actively trying to procure weapons and IED materials.



These individuals were planning to establish a channel for procurement of explosives, weapons, identify locations to organise training camps, including training in firearms, motivate new recruits to target police officers, foreigners in India and carry out terrorist activities in various parts of India, NIA said.



Of the 14, a Home Ministry spokesperson said, six are from Karnataka, four from Hyderabad, three from Mumbai and one from Lucknow.



Five of them have been placed under arrest  two from Hyderabad and one each from Bengaluru, Mangaluru and Mumbai  while the rest were being interrogated to ascertain their role in terror plans. The arrested included an engineering dropout Najmul Huda (Mangaluru), software professional Mohammed Afzal (Bengaluru) and Mudabbir Mushtaq Shaikh (Mumbai).



Security sources said eight others would be arrested soon while one could be freed, as it appears that he was not involved in any illegal activities.



Searches were conducted at 12 locations in six cities  Bengaluru, Tumakuru, Mangaluru, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Lucknow. Anti-Terrorist Squad of Maharashtra also conducted searches at two other locations.



Most of the 14 youths were in touch with one person going with an online identity 'Yusuf', whom security agencies suspect is Shafi Armar of Bhatkal.



Shafi and his elder brother had quit the IM in protest against its leader Iqbal Bhatkal's activities and moved to Gulf. These youth appeared to be under pressure from their handler 'Yusuf' to do something. "There was some urgency on their part to do something. There was exhortation from their handler (Yusuf)," the spokesperson said.



There were unverified reports that the youth were part of terror outfit 'Janood-ul-Khalifa-e-Hind' (Army of Caliph of India) and Shaikh was the leader while Huda handled finance. Investigators said Shaikh received around Rs six lakh for buying weapons.



However, the source of funding was not immediately clear. Officials said Yusuf was in touch with four youths arrested by Delhi Police in Hardwar earlier this week but the 14 youths have no links with the latter. Security agencies are yet to locate Shafi.



Though there were reports that the brothers had joined either al-Qaeda or the IS, security agencies are downplaying a possible IS link to the youth, saying it has to be established after investigation.



"It could be just online radicalisation. Don't give much traction to IS at this point of time. What we can say now is that they were radicalised by a former IM operative. Any link with IS has to be investigated, a senior official said, adding these youths were under surveillance for the past 4-6 months.
Taking forward the Citizens for Change initiative that was started ahead of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) elections, Deccan Herald and Prajavani have been arranging interactive sessions between residents/Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs) and elected representatives in all the Assembly constituencies of the City.





One such session in the series will be held in the Malleswaram Assembly constituency on Saturday. Ahead of the BBMP elections that were held on August 22, 2015, Deccan Herald and Prajavani had asked residents to pose their questions on the many civic problems they face including drinking water shortage, garbage disposal, cleanliness, bad roads and footpaths, streetlights, road safety, stray dog/cattle menace, parks and lakes, to the candidates contesting from their respective wards.



Many RWAs/residents responded, getting signed undertakings from the candidates that they would address the listed grievances once elected. It is now time for the residents of the Malleswaram Assembly constituency to directly connect with their corporators, many of whom are first-time corporators.



Interactive session



The interactive session will provide residents an opportunity to know and partner with their corporator and collectively develop their ward and build a better Bengaluru.



Malleswaram MLA Dr C N Ashwath Narayan will be present at the interactive session, along with the corporators representing the seven wards in the constituency  Aramanenagar, Mathikere, Malleswaram, Rajmahal Nagar, Kadumalleshwara, Subramanyanagar and Gaythrinagar. Officials from the BBMP and other government departments will also be present.



RWAs/residents can email the top 10 problems/grievances related to their wards to dhpvcitizensforchange@deccanherald.co.in ahead of the session.For clarifications/details, contact: Chandrashekar G G (9448528998) or Prathap E L (9845171343).


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Dylan McGrath, Contributing Editor

EETimes (1/21/2016 02:50 AM EST)

Microchip's proposed acquisition of Atmel would shake up the top three microcontroller vendors for the second time in a matter of months.

An unprecedented level of merger and acquisition activity over the past two years has dramatically redrawn the competitive landscape of the semiconductor industry. Perhaps nowhere has this upheaval been more acute than in microcontrollers, where another proposed acquisition would result in the second shakeup of the top three vendors in a matter of months.

Microchip Technology Inc.s pending $3.8 billion acquisition of Atmel Corp. would move Microchip into the No. 3 position among microcontroller vendors less than two months after NXP Semiconductors NV moved into the No. 2 spot with the acquisition of Freescale Semiconductor Inc.

Click here to read more ...








MTN has stated that it is not and has never been implicated in corruption related actions in Cameroon after being implicated in fraud by the countrys National Anti-Corruption Commission (Conac).

Conac has accused three operators  MTN, Orange and state-owned CamTel  of costing the state as much as $289 million through tax and royalty evasion, as well as illegal tax rebates. MTN has refuted these claims, stating that its interactions with the government of Cameroon and its representatives have always been transparent, and in conformity with the laws of the Republic of Cameroon.

MTN went on to note that with regard to taxes and custom duties, it is in the top 2 contributors to the Cameroonian state. The operator added that it is up to date with regard to its fiscal obligations to the relevant authorities in Cameroon, in accordance with all applicable rules and regulations.

Conacs accusations cover a period between 2010 and 2014, during which time it claims that the three implicated operators conspired to receive illegal tax rebates from both the ministry of finance and the ministry of post & telecommunications. It also denounces the regulator for failing to respond to this collusion.

It is unclear whether MTN has received a copy of Conacs report. For its part, Conac Vice President Garga Haman Adji has stated that operators should expect a legal investigation into these allegations. This would be a further blow to MTN, which is currently embroiled in a dispute in Nigeria over a $3.9 billion fine issued to the operator after it failed to disconnect unused SIMs to comply with security regulation.

Orange and CamTel have not yet responded to the allegations.
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by Kathleen Gilbert BEIJING, September 7, 2012, (LifeSiteNews.com)  Escaped Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng is leading international opponents of forced abortion in calling upon the worlds largest company to end compliance with the Chinas one-child policy. Family planning police have targeted employees (569)

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Church Militant, we need to band together to protect our religious liberties and win the culture war!
Reports suggest that Foxconn may have made a 625 billion yen bid to purchase Sharp, but Japanese officials may be concerned about letting the company come under foreign control

Foxconn may have made a 625 billion Yen bid to purchase Sharp, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal. However, Sharp is also reviewing a competing offer of about 300 billion Yen from Innovation Network Corp. of Japan (INCJ), which is a government backed investment fund. Japanese officials have reportedly expressed their concern about letting Sharp come under foreign control, due to its expertise in display manufacturing technology. INCJ already owns a controlling stake in Japan Display Inc.

Sources told the Wall Street Journal, that while Tokyo officials prefer INCJ to buy Sharp, Foxconn is offering more than double the money offered by the investment fund. Not only that, but Foxconn is also willing to shoulder all of Sharps debts. This could sway creditors into making a decision based on economics rather than politics

The report states that Foxconn does not have any plans to replace Sharps top management, a move meant to reassure Japanese officials. It also states that Sharp and its lenders hope to reach a decision by February 4, which is when Sharp is scheduled to announce its latest quarterly results. According to Standard and Poors, an American financial services company, Sharp has to repay a total of of 510 billion yen in borrowings. Sharp has said that its main creditors are the banking units, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Mizuho Financial Group.

Sharp manufactures a number of different products ranging from televisions, solar panels, to display panels for Apple iPhones. The company turned to its two banks in May last for assistance for the second time in three years. In the fiscal year that ended in March 2015, sharp suffered a net loss of 22 billion yen. Despite this, Sharps expertise and knowledge must have attracted Foxconn. Last year, Sharp unveiled the worlds first television with an 8K resolution, which was priced at 16 million yen. In addition, they also unveiled RoBoHon, an Android powered smartphone that is a robot as well.
Google and RailTel will now expand the service to cover 100 railway stations by the end of the year with Allahabad, Patna, Jaipur, and Ranchi stations to come next

RailTel and Google have launched free high-speed public Wi-Fi services in the Mumbai Central railway station. The project was announced last September during Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modis visit to Google headquarters in Mountain View. The company will be working with the Indian Railways and RailTel to expand the service further and cover 100 of the busiest railway stations in India by the end of 2016. Eventually, the service will be rolled out to 400 railway stations across the country. The next four stations to get high-speed public Wi-Fi services will be Allahabad, Patna, Jaipur, and Ranchi.

Railwire Wi-Fi will be available to any user with a working mobile connection on a smartphones. This will allow them to stream videos, research their destination, save videos for offline viewing, and more as they wait. Gulzar Azad, Head of Access Project, Google India said that the company was focussing in developing a network that would be at par with the high-speed public Wi-Fi network available in developed countries. He added that the network is built for wide coverage and high capacity usage.

The Chairman and Managing Director of RailTel, R. K. Bahuguna said, Our intent was to fulfill Indian Railways vision of providing Railway passengers access to high speed Internet through our Optical fiber communication network. Affordable smartphones have made it possible for the common men to experience the power of Internet. With our partnership with Google, we are very confident of rolling out a robust, scalable service at Railway stations in the near future.

In order to use the service, users would have to first connect to the Railwire network via the device's Wi-Fi settings. They will then have to open railwire.co.in on their devices browser and enter their phone number in the Wi-Fi login screen. Users will then receive a four digit OTP code via SMS, which they will have to enter in the Wi-Fi login screen. A blue checkmark will appear to let users know that they have connected to Railwires network.
Google has stated that it was not a partner member of Free Basics, and was only included in the trial run of Free Basics, which was initially rolled out in Zambia.

Google has withdrawn itself from the Free Basics platform in Zambia. While a specific strategy has not been declared by Google, it may be majorly owing to the negative stance that Free Basics has found itself in, amidst the Net Neutrality debates. In an interaction with the Times of India, Google has stated that it was never a partner in Free Basics, and was only a member during its trial period in Zambia. Google has also clarified that it had not partnered with Free Basics elsewhere.

Free Basics by Facebook has recently come under massive criticism and negative feedback in India, with Net Neutrality activists blaming Facebook for promoting Free Basics as a preferential platform for services on the Internet and effectively holding the power to curate and control Internet access that one can do via Free Basics. While Free Basics is marketing itself as an essential Internet provider for rural areas where data access is limited, supporters of Net Neutrality and protesters of differential service pricing have stated that Free Basics is attempting to throttle the openness of the Internet, in pretence of providing very basic internet access to a certain section of the nation.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) held an open house discussion yesterday, where it heard telecom operators, union bodies, Facebook, startups and others on opinions of Free Basics. It will keep processing feedback till January 25, after which it will pass a judgement on whether differential pricing of services will aid the Indian internet consumers, and also take a call on Free Basics and its future in India.

Source
"The backdoor entry of telecom sector into the content space should not be allowed"- Star India

"If I as a Telecom want to offer my content for free, I should be able to do so." - Tata Communications

"Price differentiation happens in the airline industry also and the industry has expanded because of it."- Telenor

"What people are saying about differential pricing is Bullshit!" - IAMAI

The above quotes can be best described as just an excerpt from the Open House on Differential Pricing organised by the Telecom regulatory Authority of India.

Yes, the internet divide exists. It cannot have gone unnoticed by most of you who are reading this right now, that our country stands at the brink of the next level of the Internet. The evolution of online startups, the mushrooming smartphone industry and the Government's push for a digital society, have all led to this moment, right here. The turning point of internet services in India and India, as of now, stands divided.

Free Basics, the free but selective internet access service by Facebook, has sparked a debate that may just have been a problem that we would anyway have had to face in the future- The problem of putting a price on the internet.

The crucial decision on differential pricing for data services still looms under a cloud of uncertainity, followed by the larger issue of India's digital future. TRAI's open house was a glimpse into how we as Indians would access the Internet in future. As of now, the house as well as its people stand utterly perplexed (or so it seems) about the future of our internet services. This is what they had to say-

Facebook

The centre of attention, the one to watch out for, the initiator of this whole debate - Facebook took the clean way out when asked to speak at the open house for differential pricing. One would expect another push for the cause from the company, but at the event, Facebook seemed content with its earlier submission to TRAI, and a company spokesperson said, "As a company we are committed to Free Basics." Whatever the reason may be for Facebook to stay mum, it surely creates an unsettling feeling that the decision on Free Basics in India might have already been taken, and that a citizen opinion poll might just be the soft cushion before the big blow. Nevertheless, what heated up the atmosphere on that cold winter day was the collective plea by telecom operators for a nod on differential pricing.

Telecom Industry

In the airline industry also, same seats are sold on different prices depending on the consumer demand, said, Pankaj Sharma, Senior VP and Head of Corporate Affairs, Telenor India.

This was Sharma's attempt at comparing the airline indutry to the telecom industry. Although, if one was to actually compare the both, consumers have an option of not taking a flight and can take a train, or a bus, instead. But, in case of the telecom industry, one really has two options - to have a mobile connection, or not to have one. Sharma went on to say, Data growth is happening in India becuase the telecom industry's attractive service offerings.

With that start, the telecom industry presented a united front with almost coordinated answers. Idea Cellular said, Differential pricing is neccessary and if not implemented, it will hamper innovation and customised solutions in the telecom industry. Systema Shyam Teleservices was also in support of differential pricing for data. Tata Communications argued that if telecom operators want to provide free content, where is the question of differential pricing? It went on to defend differential pricing by comparing existent special recharge services to Free Basics-like services, and said, If differential pricing is not implemented, then existing special services will also get discredited.

Other telcos like Airtel, Vodafone and Videocon were also seen in support of differential pricing for data services. Industry bodies COAI and AUSPI, which had made a joint submission to TRAI's consultation paper, were also (obviously) in line with the telcos. Next up, it was time for the Net Neutrality supporters to speak up, and that's exactly what they did.

Internet Activists

Save the Internet and Medianama have been two prominent organisations defending Net Neutrality in this ongoing debate for differential pricing.

The internet is not a two-sided marketplace. Amazon and Uber are marketplaces, but the internet is not. On the internet, everyone is a producer and everyone is a consumer. Telcos think they are a single entity and are acting exactly like one. This was the opening statement by representatives of Save the Internet. The organisation went on to describe a study done in European markets, which found that Zero rating plans actually push up the cost of data services rather than reducing them. This was a direct jab at the telcos push to create another avenue for added revenue thorugh differently-priced services.

The Centre for Internet & Society pointed out a larger problem that globally, internet service providers have divided the internet, and undocumented experiences of users suggest that preferential treatment is given to certain websites when it comes to browsing speeds.

Osama Manzar, Founder & Director of the Digital Empowerment Organisation, stressed on the fact that it is a national emergency to provide last mile connectivity to Indians. He pointed out the lack of connectivity in rural areas, and challenged telecom operators to expand their reach to each and every Indian. Manzar also raised another important point that if consumers are already paying to access the internet, why should they pay more to access selective services? Something for TRAI to think about, for sure.

Content Providers

If differential pricing for data services is allowed, one of the biggest impact on revenues will be felt by the content providers, becuase naturally, telecom operators will want to push out their own content on their own services. This would create a content divide in the Internet, and the content providers wouldn't have it. Star India argued that this could create a backdoor entry for telcos to enter the content space. Times Internet Limited was of a similar view and argued that innovation is not the mandate of telecom operators but that of content providers.

What can be gathered from the above statements is that, if passed, differential pricing could create a serious barrier between content providers and the telecom industry, resulting in a loss for the consumer.

Startups & Entrepreneurs

Paytm's Vijay Shekhar Sharma was one of the prominent voices speaking on behalf of the startup space. He, along with a handful of other enterpreneurs present at the open house, strongly opposed to the idea of differential pricing. It is a collective opinion of the startup industry that they don't want ISPs and telcos to become the gatekeepers of the Internet, and alternative methods should be used instead of creating market players for the web. It should be noted that India has a large number of startups that depend on the Internet to offer services. If preferential treatment is given to established players like Flipkart or Snapdeal, smaller startups will suffer from a consumer outage.

Developers

Developers who have already registered for Free Basics in India were almost absent at the open house on differential pricing, except for one. Mathew De Beer, Program Manager at Operation Red Alert, was in attendance and in favour of differential pricing for services like Free Basics. De Beer's organisation focuses on upliftment of women and children and at the event, he told Digit, Our websites on Free Basics is called My Rights, and is there to empower women. Free Basics should be able to continue as a free service since women in villages don't have access to data. Mathew might have been a minority in the house, but he did have a strong point to make. If free educational services want a free internet platform for dissemination of information, they have no choice but to sign up with services like Free Basics. We don't know how serious TRAI was while listning to his comments, but such initiatives do need a platform to expand their reach.

With that, we came to an end of the TRAI Open House on Differential Pricing. The regulatory body had absolutely nothing to add to these comments, except for the fact that the deadline to submit additional comments is now extended till January 25. TRAI is expected to come out with its recommendations by the end of this month, and clearly, they have a big task in front of them.
BHP Billiton may need to raise between $5bn and $10bn to keep hold of its solid A credit rating, Liberum analyst Richard Knights said.

Slashing capital expenditure and even cutting its dividend to zero are not sufficient for BHP to realistically retain a 'solid A' credit rating, if spot commodity prices and currencies persist, Knights argued.

Given the company continues to be married to the idea of a solid A rating throughout the cycle, a rights issue looks likely.

He added that the threat of a capital call is likely to weigh on the shares, but its resolution, along with self-help measures of tighter capital spend and a dividend cut, would close the value gap to Rio Tinto.

Further capex cuts and more capital would put BHP in a strong position versus its peer group from both a valuation and balance sheet perspective, Knights said.

In December, Moodys placed BHP Billitons credit rating under review for a potential downgrade, pointing to the steep decline and persistent weakness in commodity prices.

Meanwhile, last week, BHP Billiton said it expects to book a $7.2bn impairment charge on the value of its onshore US assets in its half-year results on the back of sliding oil prices.

In addition, it said it would cut the number of operated rigs in its onshore US business to five from seven in the March quarter.

Oil and gas markets have been significantly weaker than the industry expected. We responded quickly by dramatically cutting our operating and capital costs, and reducing the number of operated rigs in the onshore US business from 26 a year ago to five by the end of the current quarter," the company said.

Earlier this week, the miner announced that it will cut iron ore production by 10m tonnes due to the dam disaster at Brazil's Samarco.

Liberum rates BHP at sell with a 550p price target.
Oil futures headed higher for a second session in a row on Friday, with a torrid week ending on a positive note in Europe.

Overnight, US commercial crude oil inventories increased by 4m barrels during the week ending 15 January, according to the Energy Information Administration, the statistical arm of the country's Department of Energy.

Despite the increase, traders were encouraged that stockpiles at the oil delivery hub of Cushing, Oklahoma, rose by only 191,000 barrels; a figure below levels many market commentators had feared.

Gasoline stockpiles jumped by another 4.6m barrels, although those of other products such as distillates slipped by 1m barrels. Imports of oil fell by 409,000 barrels a day in the latest week, the EIA added. Hopes of further stimulus measures in Europe, China and Japan also strengthened oil prices.

At 1722 GMT, the Brent front-month contract was up 6.74% or $1.97 to $31.22 per barrel, while WTI rose 6.64% or $1.96 to $31.49 per barrel.

Ahead of the latest intraday uptick, Moodys lowered its 2016 price estimate for both Brent and WTI crude to $33 per barrel. For Brent, this marks a $10 per barrel reduction from the rating agency's previous estimate, and for WTI, a $7 per barrel reduction.

Moody's expects that both prices will rise by $5 barrel on average in 2017 and 2018.

Terry Marshall, Senior Vice President at the ratings agency, said, OPEC countries continue high levels of production in the battle for market share, contributing to the current oil glut despite moderate consumption growth by key consumers such as China, India and the US. In addition, we expect the rise in Iranian oil output this year to offset or exceed production cuts in the US."

Elsewhere, base metals headed higher on the London Metal Exchange. At 1635 GMT, three-month delivery futures contracts of primary aluminium (up 1.8%), copper (up 1.4%), lead (up 1.5%), nickel (up 1.2%) and zinc (up 2.0%) headed higher. However, tin futures (broadly flat), benefitting from production cutbacks in China earlier in the week, remained lacklustre.

Analysts at Macquarie Research opined base metals will face major challenges in 2016 with their survey pointing to a further deterioration in the Chinese copper market, even though seasonality is coming into play.

Looking forward, sentiment on the copper market remains weak across the industry chain, especially from buyers, as they expect demand to continue its seasonal slowing into next month. We begin to see some supply response from medium- and small-sized smelters, but the larger ones are sustaining high utilisation rates, Macquarie analysts added.

Meanwhile, precious metals climbed back to Wednesdays highs. On the COMEX, the front-month gold futures contract posted an uptick of 0.26% or $2.90 to $1,101.10 an ounce. However, spot gold was down 0.15% or $1.65 at $1,099.55 an ounce.

COMEX silver rose 1.43% or 20 cents to $14.30 an ounce, while spot platinum rose 1.95% or $15.98 to $834.43 an ounce.

Finally, agricultural commodity futures remained in positive territory. CBOT corn (up 0.54%), wheat (up 0.53%), ICE cocoa (up 0.60%), cotton (up 0.89%) and CME live cattle (down 1.28%) headed higher in early trading calls stateside.
Action Hotels founder and chairman, Mubarak Al-Sabah, purchased 1.5m shares in the Middle East and Australian hotel operator at 48p each from development director Rawaf Bourisli.

Following the deal, Al-Sabah has 97m shares, or a 65.74% stake in the company, while Bourisli now has a 0.77% stake.

Elsewhere, Adrian Collins, a non-executive at City Natural Resources High Yield Trust, picked up some shares in the company this week.

He bought 25,000 shares at 67.25p each, bringing his total holding to 100,000.

Back in December, Action Hotels agreed a joint venture with Action Group Holdings to buy a leasehold interest in a building in Ras Al Khaimah in the UAE from Action Real Estate Co.

The company said at the time the deal would have a positive impact on its income statement and balance sheet. Return on equity and cash on cash returns are expected to be significantly higher at 13.2% and 10.6% respectively at year three of operations.

Top Director Buys

Action Hotels (AHCG)

Director name: Sheikh Mubarak A M Al-Sabah

Amount purchased: 1,476,662 @ 48.00p

Value: 708,798

7Digital Group (7DIG)

Director name: Sir Donald Cruickshank

Amount purchased: 653,000 @ 6.12p

Value: 39,964

City Natural Resources High Yield Trust (CYN)

Director name: Mr Adrian John Reginald Collins

Amount purchased: 25,000 @ 67.25p

Value: 16,812

Top Director Sells

Action Hotels (AHCG)

Director name: Mr Rawaf Bourisli

Amount sold: 1,476,662 @ 48.00p

Value: 708,798

Rotala (ROL)

Director name: Mr John Gunn

Amount sold: 120,000 @ 75.50p

Value: 90,600

Rotala (ROL)

Director name: Mr Frank Geoffrey Flight

Amount sold: 80,000 @ 75.00p

Value: 60,000
Apples boss made a surprise visit to Brussels on Thursday in a bid to front-run a possible antitrust verdict that could cost the Cupertino, California-based tech giant several billion dollars in underpaid taxes allegedly owed to Dublin, the Financial Times reported.

The European Unions competition authorities are expected to hand down a ruling on Apples tax arrangements in Ireland in coming weeks, possibly after the next Irish elections are held in February.

A spokesman for EU competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager confirmed to the FT that Cook and the commissioner had held a private meeting, without providing any further details.

Whereas Irish tax authorities stand to gain in the immediate short-term, on a longer time-horizon a negative decision could hurt investment in Ireland by foreign multinationals.

MNCs tax arrangements in Ireland have long been a source of tensions between Ireland and some other European governments, who have frequently complained that Dublin undercut their tax rates and steals investment from their countries.

Indeed, even in the midst of the Great Financial Crisis some European governments even supported making financial aid to Dublin contingent on the country raising its corporate tax rates.

Mr.Cooks personal visit might have been triggered by a recent ruling by the EU against Luxembourg and the Netherlands that they had provided improper tax benefits to Italian carmaker Fiat and US coffee chain Starbucks.

Vestagers expanding probe into corporate taxes also came at a time of fierce criticism in Europe of multinational companies ability to pay much lower taxes than even so-called SMEs, not to mention the average citizen.

The FT cited research from Bloomberg Intelligence estimating that Apple could be left about $8bn out of pocket, with JP Morgan having put the worst-case scenario at $19bn.
Chinas economy was already experiencing a hard landing, billionaire investor George Soros said on Friday in remarks to Bloomberg TV.

Speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Soros said that scenario was practically unavoidable.

"Im not expecting it, Im observing it, he said.

The investor, who said he had been shorting the S&P 500 and betting against commodity exporting countries and Asian currencies, said Chinas hard landing would worsen deflationary forces across the globe.

Soross main claim to fame was his gambit in 1992 to force the United Kingdom to devalue the pound, forcing it out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism.

That netted him 1bn in profits.

Nonetheless, in 2011 Soros also said the Greece-induced European debt crunch was more serious the crisis of 2008.

In the opinion of Soros, Chinas economy is in fact now expanding at a rate closer to 3.5% and its levels od debt were unsustainable.

For him, the US Federal Reserve would not raise rates again in 2016 and should not have done so in December 2015.
The managing director of International Monetary Fund - Christine Lagarde - whose official term in office ends on 5 July, has confirmed she will put herself forward for a second term in office.

The incumbent MD already has the backing of China, France, Germany, UK and South Korea, and there appear to be no obvious challengers for the post. Nomination proceedings for the appointment commenced on Wednesday.

Last month, Lagarde was ordered to stand trial in France for alleged "negligence" over a compensation payment to a local businessman Bernard Tapie. She approved the payment in 2008 when she was French finance minister.

The IMF boss has said she would appeal against the move.
Advanced economies in Europe and the US have not been derailed by the wave of volatility that has washed over commodities and financial markets recently, the Governor of the Bank of England told a newspaper on Friday.

Their banking systems continued to be well-capitalised and the outlook was for a slow but steady pace of expansion, Mark Carney told The Wall Street Journal.

It is a pretty modest world. Recent events are just reinforcing that. I dont think they have fundamentally changed that trajectory, the BoEs chief told the journal on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Recent events in markets werent a sure sign of changes in the fundamental prospects for those economies.

Downside risks are still there to emerging economies, but I dont think weve learned anything dramatically new that brings us to another level down in terms of the pace of emerging market growth, he said.

The UK economy is still tracking quite well and the underlying fundamentals are solid. This isnt a debt-fuelled recovery. People are consuming out of income. Consumer confidence is at the highest level in a decade and investment confidence is right up there.
Google paid Apple $1bn to keep its search bar as the default option on its iPhone range, according to court documents as part of Oracle's case against Google over alleged infringement of patents for programming in the Android operating system.

In addition to the $1bn payment it was also disclosed that Apple and Google shared a portion of the revenue Google received from showing advertisements to users of the Apple's iOS.

Google's lawyers objected to the figures being revealed, and the relevant documents were removed from the court website, Bloomberg reported.

It cited Annette Hurst, the Oracle attorney who disclosed details of the Google-Apple agreement at last weeks court hearing, as saying that a Google witness questioned during pretrial information said that at one point in time the revenue share was 34%, although it was not clear who was paying who from the transcript.
Saudi Arabia has described the collapse in oil prices to below $30 as irrational and expects the market to recover in 2016 even as the country continues to keep production high. Khalid al-Falih, chairman of state oil company Saudi Aramco, told the World Economic Forum in Davos that current prices would not last, with many smaller producers facing financial difficulties. The market has overshot on the low side and it is inevitable that it will start turning up, said Mr Falih, predicting higher prices by the end of the year.  Financial Times

Big business has rallied around David Camerons plea for support in the campaign to keep Britain in the EU, with US banks donating hundreds of thousands of pounds and senior chief executives publicly endorsing the prime ministers stance. Goldman Sachs, which has its European head office in London, is leading the way financially, paying 500,000 to the Britain Stronger in Europe campaign. JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley and Bank of America also plan to donate six-figure sums.  Financial Times

British high streets and factories will be transformed over the next two decades as millions of jobs are replaced by robots, a new report warns. Eleven million jobs across the UK economy are at high risk of being automated by 2036, with the retail and transport sectors most vulnerable, according to Deloitte.  Telegraph

Britains auto industry has posted its best manufacturing figures in a decade  but the stellar performance could be the final strong showing if the UK votes to leave the EU. A total of 1,587,677 cars rolled off British production lines last year, an increase of 3.9pc on the previous year and the highest in recent history, according to official data from industry body the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).  Telegraph

VW has dismissed a call from the EUs industry chief to pay compensation to European drivers who bought cars with emissions test-cheating software. Elzbieta Bienkowska, the European commissioner for industry, urged the German carmaker to pay compensation to 8.5 million European drivers who had bought cars fitted with defeat devices when she met VWs chief executive, Matthias Muller, in Brussels on Thursday.  Guardian

The privatisation of the taxpayer stakes in Lloyds Banking Group and Royal Bank of Scotland has ground to a halt after shares in the lenders slumped to their lowest in more than three years. In a blow to George Osborne just weeks before the budget, the sale of billions of pounds of Lloyds shares at a profit has stalled, with insiders saying that a much vaunted retail offer might have to be delayed.  The Times

Employees could be empowered to buy shares in their company if it is sold, dissolved or floated on the stock exchange, John McDonnell said yesterday. The shadow chancellor unveiled the Right to Own proposal for workers to purchase shares in their company, which echoes the Conservatives Right to Buy policy for social housing tenants who want to buy their home.  The Times
Londons FTSE 100 was up 2.3% to 5,903.53 at 1435 GMT, as investors welcomed signs that more monetary stimulus from the European Central Bank may be on the cards and amid stronger oil prices.

Energy stocks put in a stellar performance on Friday as oil prices rallied, trading comfortably above $30 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate was up 4.9% to $30.98 while Brent crude was 6% higher at $31.00.

Meanwhile, Chile-based copper miner Antofagasta was firmly in the black after Citigroup resumed coverage on the stock after a restriction period, upgrading it to buy from sell, having been a seller since 2012.

The bank noted the stock has lost around 75% of its value over the past three years and is relatively unique within the mining sector on account of its strong balance sheet, ability to self-fund at spot prices, and pure exposure to a structurally deficit commodity.

On the downside, education publisher Pearson was under pressure following bumper gains in the previous session, which saw the stock end up just over 11% as investors welcomed its new restructuring plan.

Although the company warned on profits, investors were relieved that it appeared to be getting its house in order.

"With this three-year plan supported by the full board, and, in our view, offering a realistic prospect of a return to growth, we think the share price should steadily recover some of its lost ground on improved confidence, Societe Generale said.

Elsewhere, Marks & Spencer was a touch weaker after Exane BNP Paribas downgraded the stock to neutral from outperform and cut the price target to 465p from 580p.

Exane said the revolution of the M&S supply chain, logistics and technology has driven two yeas of P&L stabilisation, with margins improved and market share sacrificed.

It said while there is more margin to go for, gains are likely to slow, and this part of the investment case now looks better understood.

That leaves M&S more reliant on revenue momentum, and with structural trends accelerating, and real estate flexibility still limited, we (admittedly six months too late) move to the sidelines to await news of the next phase under new management.

Risers

Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 1,387.50p 5.23%

Royal Dutch Shell 'A' (RDSA) 1,384.50p 5.17%

BG Group (BG.) 980.00p 5.07%

Sports Direct International (SPD) 417.20p 4.88%

Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,986.00p 4.36%

Antofagasta (ANTO) 381.00p 4.27%

Wolseley (WOS) 3,489.00p 3.72%

BP (BP.) 354.65p 3.62%

Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 66.93p 3.45%

Aberdeen Asset Management (ADN) 233.00p 3.23%

Fallers

Pearson (PSON) 742.00p -3.89%

Anglo American (AAL) 240.10p -3.19%

Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 415.50p -0.48%

Persimmon (PSN) 1,899.00p -0.26%

Carnival (CCL) 3,614.00p -0.14%

Barratt Developments (BDEV) 566.00p 0.00%

Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 179.50p 0.06%

Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 1,368.00p 0.15%

United Utilities Group (UU.) 912.50p 0.16%

easyJet (EZJ) 1,634.00p 0.25%
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Ohio statewide, congressional candidates disputed 2020 election

U.S. Senate candidate J.D. Vance is among a slate of Ohio officials who cast doubt on the 2020 election results amid false claims of systemic fraud.
Social Entrepreneurs Ireland (SEI) has launched their 2013 Awards programme, sponsored by DCC plc, inviting applications from Donegals brightest and most ambitious entrepreneurs with game changing ideas to solve the social problems facing Ireland.

Social Entrepreneurs Ireland (SEI) has launched their 2013 Awards programme, sponsored by DCC plc, inviting applications from Donegals brightest and most ambitious entrepreneurs with game changing ideas to solve the social problems facing Ireland.

In 2012 SEI received five applications from Donegal entrepreneurs and hopes are that 2013 will see an increase in applications for funding from the county.

Social Entrepreneurs Ireland are providing 500,000 in funding to eight social entrepreneurs as well as a further 250,000 in professional consultation and support ensuring they are equipped to scale and grow their businesses in order to impact as many people as possible, as quickly as possible.

Three Social Entrepreneurs will be awarded the top level Impact Award and 130,000 in direct funding with over 70,000 worth of support over two years. A further five will receive the Elevator Award and 22,000 in direct funding with over 10,000 worth of support over one year.

Applications for the 2013 Awards Programme must be made online at www.socialentrepreneurs.ie where full details on the application process, eligibility criteria and Awards Programmes can be found.
Opinionated Commentary on Law, Politics, Economics, and More from Michael Dorf, Neil Buchanan, Eric Segall, Sherry Colb, Matthew Tokson, Diane Klein, and (Occasionally) Others
The Dundalk Local Policing Forum is ready to back a countywide text alert network.

At last weeks meeting of the forum, there were calls to link up the different text networks in the county.

Matthew McGreehan, chairman of Louth IFA, and representative of the farming sector on the forum, said it is now time for such a system.

We need to bring all the communities and the gardai together and see how we can roll that out, he said.

Fianna Fail general election candidate Declan Breathnach also backed the idea.

The forum had been given a presentation of a new community safety strategy for the county and was told that there are 13 community text alert areas in mid-Louth, which are all linked together, and the network is proving to be very successful.

Louth has one Joint Policing Committee and each municipal area has a local policing forum.

The new safety strategy is a guideline for the different forums and would help them set out targets over a six-year period which would improve community safety and quality of life.

Among the subjects being looked at are: alcohol abuse, anti-social behaviour, street crime, and support for crime victims.

Matthew McGreehan believes a county text alert system should be at the top of the agenda.

Cllr Breathnach said older people are afraid to open the doors at any time of the day or night and there is a need for more gardai to be out there visible in the community.

There is a need for the texting system to be made countywide, Cllr Breathnach said. And not only that, it should be linked up to other counties.

There should also be a call centre available for people who dont use texting.

Cllr Jim Loughran, chair of the forum, fully supported a countywide texting network. He said Cooley has a very successful system and it is vital that all of the systems in the county are linked.

Dromiskin and Darver just recently launched a community text alert system and already it is proving its worth.

Just recently, a text went out to everyone in the parish, on the system, at 4am telling them about an unsuccessful break-in at a local pub by men in a silver VW Passat and people were told to be vigilant. In the same week Castlebellingham gardai used the system to alert people about criminals who are phoning to get bank account details.

At the Dromiskin launch Supt Andrew Watters, head of the Ardee and mid-Louth Garda Division, said: If we in An Garda Siochana do not have the public on board we cannot successfully investigate crime. This system encourages neighbours to work together and develops garda and community cooperation.

It helps create a community where people can live, work, and visit each other in safety and it promotes sporting and recreational activities.

It brings in younger people and improves life for older or more vulnerable members of the community.

He said text messages can be vital in trying to trace somebody who has gone missing. It can also help with something precious, such as a lost dog owned by an elderly person or indeed a disabled person.

Superintendent Andrew Watters also warned people not to take on criminals.

This is not a vigilante scheme, he said.

Criminal gangs are operating out of Dublin and targeting rural areas and gardai are advising shopkeepers and homeowners not to take them on as they are highly dangerous.

The text alert system is to notify gardai of suspicious behavior. But for crime situations or fires ring 999, the Supt said.

Text alert is a fantastic element to help us. There are 13 text alert areas in the Ardee division and these will all be linked up.

Each scheme has its own garda liaison officer. He said a recent text alert message about the occupants in a car acting suspiciously, had been sent to Ardee garda station. This information was shared with Drogheda gardai who knew of them.

Community text alert is working. If the whole county is linked up, then a good days work will have been done by the Local Policing Forum.

And this will be an excellent opportunity for the Dundalk Local Policing forum to show everyone it can get things done.
Fridays, I use to love this day as a day to go out in the city and relax and unwind. But now because of the crazy traffic even on weekends, I rather stay home watch a series because I dont want to get caught in the middle of a carmageddon.

This Friday, yes today, January 22, 2015, we all can enjoy the showing of two wonderful TV series. One we can watch online via HOOQ and the other on Warner TV. Mad Dogs and Legends of Tomorrow!

MAD DOGS on HOOQ

Reunions, we love them, we hate them. It depends on how the situation turns out.

Lets say a friend you havent seen in awhile, invited you for a vacation to his place at to a tropical island in Central America with your plane ticket , accommodation in a nice villa and everything else you need paid for already. Will you come? It seems a great offer but when situation gets worst I think you will wish you didnt!

Such was the plot of this highly acclaimed series of 2015, Mad Dog, starring Steve Zahn and Michael Imprerioli with Billy Zane as Milo (the owner of the villa). It is aremake of a British TV series from 2011 where a group of friends gathered for the early retirement of their friend Milo in a gorgeous villa in Belize only to find out they will be caught in a world of deception, murder and lies. The ultimate test of friendship ever!

This crazy cat who walked in the house is someone we all should watch out for! Creepy but cute character lol! Insane! Watch it on HOOQ starting January 22, 2016 with a worldwide premiere on January 23, 2016 . You can also get your free 30 day trial of your first use, visit https://www.facebook.com/HOOQ.phfor more details.

Legends of Tomorrow on Warner TV

Comic book nerds and super heroes fans alike would want to stay home this Friday night and just catch the premiere of Legends of Tomorrow on Warner TV in the Philippines tonight January 22, 9PM , same day as the US release. A 30 minute special of the DC Comics Universe will also be featured during the premiere so I suggest to stay at home for this!

From the makers of Arrow and The Flash, it spins off from the crossover series which introduces the heroes Rip Hunter (Arthur Darvill) , The Atom (Brandon Routh), White Canary (Caity Lotz), Firestorm (Victor Garber as Professor Martin Stein and Franz Drameh as Jefferson Jax Jackson), Hawkman (Falk Hentschel), and Hawkgirl (Ciara Renee). They are also joined by former Villains Captain Cold (Wentworth Miller) and Heatwave (Dominic Purcell).

Warner TV is available on SKYcable Channel 77, SKYcable HD Channel 197, Cignal HD Channel 119, Destiny Cable (Digital) Channel 77, Destiny Cable (Analog) Channel 80, and Cable Link Channel 30. For more updates on the best in action, comedy and drama, follow on Facebook.com/WarnerTVAsia

Stock up on popcorn, do your errands now and be home, Stay Home Watch A Series Weekend

Stay gorgeous everyone!
Town of Tonawanda Police are looking for this man who they say robbed a Key Bank this morning. (PHOTO COURTESY ToTPD)



Check out East Niagara Post videos on YouTube, Vine and Periscope.



TOWN OF TONAWANDA -- Town of Tonawanda Police are searching for a man who robbed a Key Bank on Niagara Falls Boulevard this morning.According to Tonawanda PD, the male entered the Key Bank, 1930 Niagara Falls Boulevard, at approximately 11:30 a.m. and demanded money. The suspect implied to bank employees that he had a bomb.The Town of Amherst Police Department assisted in the search of the suspect with their K9 Unit. The Niagara Frontier Transit Authority K9 Unit cleared the bank of any possible bomb.The suspect is still at large.Anyone with any information or who recognizes the individual in the accompanying photo is asked to call (716) 879-6613.A bank was also robbed Wednesday in the Town of Niagara. It's currently unknown if the two incidents are related.
Dear Governor Snyder,

I hate to break it to you, but its over. You had a good run, sir, but the time has come. You need to resign the office of the governor immediately and ride off into the sunset.

I understand your side of the argument, even if I dont agree with it. I understand the hubris that goes into thinking you can ride this out. I understand not wanting to go down in history as the guy who poisoned an American city and resigned in disgrace. I understand that youd be letting down the Republican Party, who have supported you tirelessly and who count on you to champion their agenda. Im willing to give you the benefit of the doubt in assuming that you had good intentions when you were elected, and that you planned on enacting a recovery plan for Michigan. I understand feeling like you failed, and like you let everyone down.

You did let everyone down.

Because Im a cynic, I also understand that, initially, the people calling for you to resign sounded like the cheapest and least credible of political hacks, hoping to score points off your resignation and hold you up as the embodiment of their worst fears of what a Republican administration would be. I held out for quite a while. Unlike a certain celebrity, I dont want to see you put in front of a firing squad. Unless it becomes clear you did something actually illegal, I dont even want to see you arrested.

But its become clear youve lost control of this crisis. A few months ago it looked like the City of Flint and the Mott Foundation were going to bail you out and everything would be back to normal. That hasnt happened. The Flint Water Crisis has ballooned to the point where it has made Michigan a source of nationwide pity and scorn.

Your bailout does appear to be coming now, in the form of $80 million in assistance from the federal government. What started as a ploy to be cheap and save a few bucks on water conditioning chemicals has now turned into a full-fledged disaster with a hefty price tag, both in dollars and in human lives. So far the administrator and spokesman for MDEQ and the regional administrator for the EPA have taken the fall for you, but as you said the other night, the buck stops with you.

At the risk of speaking to you like a five-year old, the concept of government itself is pretty simple. There are some things that its impractical or infeasible for the people to do on their own, so we band together in this thing called government to do those things together. Together we all pool our resources, and in return we get things like police protection, a fire department, and yes, clean, drinkable water. You failed at the most basic task of a governor: ensuring the safe and efficient delivery of government services to the people of Flint. It is unconscionable that, in the year 2016, the people of Genesee County cannot rely on their government to provide clean, safe drinking water that they paid for. As much as you try to deny it, thats on you.

Youll have some cover Friday afternoon as all eyes will be on the blizzard bearing down on the Eastern Seaboard. Im sure I dont need to explain the concept of the Friday Afternoon News Dump to you. Around 4:00 p.m. you have an opportunity to slip your resignation letter under the door and grab a flight out for a long vacation with your family.

I suggest you take it.

[Caricature by DonkeyHotey from photos by Anne C. Savage for Eclectablog]
Yesterday, I wrote about evidence obtained by Progress Michigan that, despite his assurances otherwise, Gov. Rick Snyder has NOT, in fact, released all of his emails relating to the poisoning of Flints drinking water by his administration. Today, theres more evidence.

In January of 2015, Democratic State Rep. Sheldon Neeley sent Gov. Snyder a letter asking for full or, at least, partial forgiveness of Flints water fund loan balance of almost $21 million. Neeley asked the governor to do this through executive decision so that Flint could effectively apply those funds to rebuilding the citys infrastructure, to competitively obtain highly qualified personnel and provide a more cost effective water delivery system.

He continued, With a cost-effective water delivery system, we will be able to improve our system in the following ways: upgrade wastewater treatment processes, improve safe drinking water upgrades, and maintain and sustain a water system that provides a better quality of water product to the citizens of Flint.

He finished his letter with this heartfelt plea:

Community health could be on the decline as citizens become afraid to even shower or bathe in their homes. The people of Flint bring bottles of brown water full of sediment and other foreign substances to community meetings, asking only to be treated human beings. That is all I am asking of you  to see the suffering and anger from people in one of Michigans municipalities and understand that there is a need to react and respond to this crisis.

You can read the entire letter HERE.

Rep. Neeley never received a response and, more importantly, Gov. Snyder did not include this correspondence in the emails related to Flints water crisis that were publicly released this week. Rochelle Riley of the Detroit Free Press reached out to Gov. Snyders office to ask about it. The conversation that ensued shows that the level of disinterest and the patronizing attitude of the people in Gov. Snyders administration has not abated since last summer when they derisively attempted to discredit whistleblowers who were bringing the situation in Flint to light, despite the national and international scrutiny they are currently facing:

the governors spokesman, David Murray, chuckled about the letter. On the telephone Thursday, Oh, I remember seeing that, he said. He said he didnt want to embarrass Neeley by pointing out that the letter  which was titled Letter of Appeal for Flint and was cced to then Lt. Gov. Dick Posthumus, chief of staff Dennis Muchmore, Clyde Edwards and Kiersha Speech  went to the wrong address. You see, Neeley sent the letter to [email protected], an e-mail address for constituents  regular people  that gets, Murray said, thousands and thousands of letters from, well constituents  the people who pay taxes, the people who include some who may have helped elect the governor, people with concerns.

Despite the fact that the letter had been emailed to the wrong address, Mr. Murray clearly saw it and remembered it since the letter from an elected state legislator was just so damned funny to him. Since the letter was not released with Gov. Snyders other emails this week, were left to surmise that one of three things occurred: (a) Gov. Snyder is lying and has not, in fact, released all his emails, something for which we already have evidence, (b) Mr. Murray didnt deem a legitimate and serious request from an elected State Representative worthy of sharing with its intended recipient, Gov. Snyder, or (c) Mr. Murray was laughing so hard at the knee-slappingly hilarious plight of Flint residents that he plumb forgot to send the email along to Gov. Snyder, to whom the letter was addressed.

No matter which of these three things transpired, its disgusting and simply confirms what we already know: Snyder administration officials were detached from Flints problem at best and derisively dismissive of it at worst. And all along the way, they saw the problem as public relations issue, not a serious health and safety crisis.

Rep. Neeley released the following statement regarding his letter to Gov. Snyder:

More than a year ago, we knew something was wrong when the residents of Flint began seeing their water come from the taps in their homes cloudy and brown. We didnt know it at the time, but this was the first indication that lead was leaching into the water supply for the entire community, causing a health hazard that has spurred Flint into the national spotlight and caused decades of health problems for our citizens. It has been almost exactly a year since I began writing Gov. Snyder and his administration to address the problems Flint was facing, both in the safety of its water and the cost needed to make sure the new water system was functioning to a level fit for human consumption. In that year, we have seen our children poisoned with lead-laced water with no cure available, while truckloads of bottled water rush into the community along with water filters to try and maintain some level of humanity for the people of Flint. If this problem was addressed a year ago when this letter was sent with the utmost importance, I believe corrective action could have been in place long before we reached this point.

I would suggest that David Murray be ashamed. However, given his disgusting flippancy in this matter, its clear that he has no shame. No shame at all.
New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman on Thursday announced a deal that would require Uber to encrypt geolocation information about its riders, as well as enhance its data security practices.

The AG opened an investigation into Uber in 2014, in response to allegations that the service had tracked riders and displayed their locations in an aerial format, known internally as the God View.

The AGs office opened another investigation early last year, after Uber notified it that an unauthorized third-party had accessed the names and drivers license information of Uber drivers as early as May 2014, although the company did not discover it until the following September, according to legal documents obtained by the E-Commerce Times.

We are committed to protecting the privacy of consumers and customers of any product in New York State, as well as that of any employee of any company operating here, Schneiderman said.

New Data Rules

The settlement requires that Uber encrypt rider geolocation information, adopt multifactor authentication before any Uber employee can access sensitive rider information, and engage in other protection practices, according to the AGs office.

The settlement also requires Uber to pay a US$20,000 penalty for failing to provide timely notice to drivers and to the AGs office regarding the September 2014 data breach.

We are deeply committed to protecting the privacy and personal data of riders and drivers, Uber said in a statement provided to the E-Commerce Times by spokesperson Matt Wing. We are pleased to have reached an agreement with the New York Attorney General that resolves these questions and makes it clear our commitment to best practices that put our community first.

Weve Been Expecting You

Buzzfeed reporter Johana Bhuiyan in 2014 discovered that her Uber ride had been tracked as she traveled to the companys Long Island City headquarters while on assignment to interview its New York general manager.

She had not given prior consent to the tracking, and it was against company policy to do such a thing, according to a Buzzfeed exclusive report.

The AGs office mentioned the Buzzfeed article in its announcement of the settlement; however, Wing declined to comment on the incident.

Uber last year posted a privacy policy that mentioned the hiring of law firm Hogan Lovells to review the companys privacy practices.

Uber conducts annual privacy and security training, has an employee designated to supervise it, and takes other steps that already comply with the AG agreement, it said.

Companies often fail to protect sensitive customer data, according to Charles Duan, staff attorney at Public Knowledge, who pointed to the AT&T breach in which call center employees had access to customer data, including 280,000 Social Security numbers.

I expect that many consumers will now start to think twice before hitting that Uber request button, he told the E-Commerce Times. Ubers ride service is largely based on the idea that its better than taxis, and now theyve shown that taxis are actually superior in at least one respect  namely, privacy and anonymity.
Obama administration officials last week met with senior executives from several leading Silicon Valley firms in a summit on how to combat the proliferation of terrorist communications on social media networks.

Attorney General Loretta Lynch, FBI Director James Comey, and John Carlin, assistant attorney general for national security, represented the DoJ.

The meeting was part of a larger strategy the administration announced last week, geared toward cracking down on violent extremism, both from overseas organizations like ISIS and from domestic sources.

Todays developments reflect President Obamas commitment to take every possible action to confront and interdict terrorist activities wherever they occur, including online. said National Security Council spokesperson Ned Price.

New Task Force

As part of that effort, the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice announced the launch of the Countering Violent Extremism Task Force, which will integrate and harmonize those efforts in the U.S., according to the NSC.

The CVE Task Force is designed to combine various elements from law enforcement, homeland security, and other agencies within the executive branch. Its expected to coordinate its efforts with those of local communities, and to identify potential threats and counter messages put forth by violent extremist groups, according to the DoJ.

The effort is designed to discourage violent extremism and undercut terrorist narratives, as well as build relationships and promote trust with various communities across the country, said Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson.

Global Engagement Center

As part of the overall effort, the State Department announced the establishment of the Global Engagement Center. It will tap international government and nongovernmental agencies to counter messages of hate and violence, shifting away from direct messaging from the U.S.

The administration intends to revamp its social outreach strategy, which largely has failed to anticipate sophisticated social media campaigns launched by ISIS and other groups to recruit militants and inspire violent attacks overseas.

The State Department named Michael D. Lumpkin as the new director of the Global Engagement Center. Lumpkin had been assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low intensity conflict since 2013, a position confirmed by Senate vote.

At this critical stage in the fight against Daesh  and in this global effort to counter violent extremism  the GEC will lead the effort to synchronize messaging to foreign audiences that will counter the destructive messages of violent extremist groups, Secretary of State John Kerry said.

Tech Firms Step Up

This meeting confirmed that we are united in our goal to keep terrorists and terror-promoting material off the Internet, a Facebook spokesperson said in a statement provided to TechNewsWorld by company rep Samantha Spielman.

We explained our policies and how we enforce them  Facebook does not tolerate terrorists or terror propaganda and we work aggressively to remove it as soon as we become aware of it, the Facebook spokesperson continued. This is an ever-evolving landscape, and we will continue to engage regularly with NGOs, industry partners, academics, and government officials on how to keep Facebook, and other Internet services, free of this material.

Google and Dropbox also participated in the summit; however, they declined to comment on what was discussed.

Apple CEO Tim Cook reportedly was scheduled to attend, as were executives of other tech companies, including Twitter.

Privacy Concerns Rage

The efforts to solicit the cooperation of Silicon Valley executives are fraught with controversy. Some proposed plans to combat terrorism could put technology companies in the position of policing their own customers on the Web, privacy and security experts have warned.

Hopefully, government will work with social media companies to develop constructive educational strategies to combat terrorist messages, Adam Thierer, a senior research fellow with the Technology Policy Program at GWUs Mercatus Center, told TechNewsWorld. That would be preferable to attempting censoral efforts that could raise free speech issues and probably wouldnt work in practice anyway.
(Photo: REUTERS / Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah)South Sudanese worshipers attend Sunday prayers in Baraka Parish church at Hajj Yusuf, on the outskirts of Khartoum, February 10, 2013. Sudan's President Omar Hassan al-Bashir has said he wants to adopt a "100 percent" Islamic constitution now that the South has split off. The government says the new constitution will guarantee religious freedom, but many Christians are wary. They say authorities started a crackdown in December and it has been getting worse.

The conflict in Africa's newest country, South Sudan, continues to rage with Pope Francis meeting bishops from there the same day a U.N. report documented widespread human rights violation by all parties to the conflict.

Widespread human rights violations and abuses have been committed in South Sudan by all parties to the conflict since December 2013, the U.N. report said.

These include hundreds of extra-judicial killings, enforced disappearances, sexual violence, forced recruitment and indiscriminate attacks against civilians.

Pope Francis met with the bishops of Sudan and South Sudan Jan. 20 while they were in Rome for a meeting organized by the Vatican's Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.

South Sudan achieved independence from Sudan in 2011, after decades of a civil war which killed more than two million people.

Despite a peaceful start, a civil conflict broke out in 2013 between factions in South Sudan. The new civil war has killed thousands of people and displaced over one million others.

"Without peace, religion has difficulties," Archbishop Paulino Lukudu Loro, of the Archdiocese of Juba said Vatican Radio reported.

The bishops invited Pope Francis to visit South Sudan.

"He said: I am ready. I want to. I want to. I want to. But we have to leave everything in the hands of the Lord," said Loro.

Loro told Vatican Radio's 105Live the "issue of peace" is still a priority in both countries, especially South Sudan, "because we are at war."

Meanwhile the U.N. report documents at least 280 cases of conflict-related sexual violence, including gang-rape, sexual slavery and forced abortion.

There has also been a sharp increase in child recruitment, with at least 13,000 to 15,000 child soldiers, recruited mainly, but not solely, by opposition forces, as of December 2015.

"Despite the severity of the human rights and humanitarian law violations perpetrated by both sides to the conflict, there are no tangible accountability mechanisms beyond the rhetoric of the main belligerents," says the report.

The Catholic Church in South Sudan has one archdiocese, and six suffragan dioceses. The bishops are members of the Sudan Catholic Bishops' Conference, which includes the bishops from Sudan.

Catholics make up more than third of the 12 million population in South Sudan, Vatican Raadio said. In Sudan, Catholics make up just over 3 percent of the population, while the vast majority of the people are Sunni Muslims.
To build the largest and most complete Amateur Radio community site on the Internet - a "portal" that hams think of as the first place to go for information, to exchange ideas, and be part of whats happening with ham radio on the Internet. eHam.net provides recognition and enjoyment to the people who use, contribute, and build the site. This project involves a management team of volunteers who each take a topic of interest and manage it with passion. The site will stand above all other ham radio sites by employing the latest technology and professional design/programming standards, developed by a team of community programmers who contribute their skills to the effort. The site will be something of which everyone involved can be proud to say they were a part. We welcome your comments. The eHam.net Team, Revision 07/2020.
Continuing their longstanding cooperation, AB Lietuvos Gelezinkeliai (LitRail) and the European Investment Bank (EIB) have signed a EUR 68 million loan in support of the modernisation of rail infrastructure and rolling stock in Lithuania.

The EIB first worked with LitRail in 1996 and has since supported the company in modernising its locomotives and other rolling stock as well as upgrading its infrastructure. The current project consists of several railway infrastructure upgrading and renewal schemes throughout Lithuania and renewal of the rolling stock for passenger services in the country.

Albertas Simenas, Deputy Director General of Lithuanian Railways said: Modernisation of railway infrastructure is one of our top priorities. Our long-lasting cooperation with the EIB contributes to the implementation of a variety of projects that are significant not only for Lithuania, but for the whole of Europe too.

The infrastructure schemes include track duplication, renewal and electrification on several sections of the Kena  Vilnius  Kaisiadorys  Radviliskis  Klaipeda line. The project will also address the renewal and extension of the Klaipeda railway hub and some complementary traffic safety and noise abatement measures. Upon completion, it will help to remove bottlenecks and increase the capacity of the lines, so that 1 050 m long 6 000t freight trains can use these tracks.

EIB Vice-President Jan Vapaavuori, responsible for operations in the Baltic countries, added: Lietuvos Gelezinkeliai is a key chain link in the Lithuanian economy and the EIB is glad it can contribute to this important modernisation programme, which will benefit all Lithuanians who use the railways on a daily basis. Sustainable forms of transport have long been an EIB priority and will continue to be so in the coming years.

The rolling stock component concerns the acquisition of seven three-car diesel multiple units for passenger railway services. These new units will replace existing obsolete rolling stock thus improving commercial attractiveness, efficiency, environmental performance, availability and reliability of the fleet.
Amardeep Singh, Professor of English at Lehigh UniversityMy book, Diaspora Verite: The Films of Mira Nair, published by the University Press of Mississippi in 2018, is available on Amazon I have been working on several digital projects in Scalar. Here are a few of them: The Kiplings and India. Tagore in America (Sepia Mutiny)Intro to Said Being Sikh in America (NYT)
President Vladimir Putin probably approved a 2006 Russian intelligence operation to murder ex-KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko with radioactive polonium-210 in London, a British inquiry concluded on Thursday, prompting a row with Moscow.

Russia, which had declined to cooperate in the inquiry, described Britain's handling of the case as opaque and biased.

Litvinenko, 43, an outspoken critic of Putin who fled Russia for Britain exactly six years to the day before he was poisoned, died after drinking green tea laced with the rare radioactive isotope at London's Millennium Hotel.

An inquiry led by senior British judge Robert Owen found that former KGB bodyguard Andrei Lugovoy and another Russian, Dmitry Kovtun, carried out the killing as part of an operation probably directed by Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB), the main heir to the Soviet-era KGB.

"The FSB operation to kill Mr Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr Patrushev, then head of the FSB, and also by President Putin," Owen said.

"I have concluded that there is a strong probability that when Mr Lugovoy poisoned Mr Litvinenko, he did so under the direction of the FSB. I have further concluded that Mr Kovtun was also acting under FSB direction," he said.

The death of Litvinenko marked a post-Cold War low point in Anglo-Russian relations, and ties have never recovered, marred further by Russia's annexation of Crimea and its support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The British government said it would summon Russia's ambassador.

"The conclusion that the Russian state was probably involved in the murder of Mr Litvinenko is deeply disturbing," interior minister Theresa May told parliament.

"This was a blatant and unacceptable breach of the most fundamental tenets of international law and of civilized behavior."
Mexico and other American countries approved a plan on Wednesday for more flights that would allow thousands of Cubans stranded in Costa Rica to continue on to the United States.

Regional governments meeting in Guatemala deemed as a "success" the first pilot trip last week, when 180 Cubans flew to El Salvador, took a bus to Mexico and received transit visas to go to the U.S. border.

"This allows us to pass to the second stage, with two weekly flights following the same route," said Manuel Gonzalez, Costa Rica's foreign minister.

The authorities, who did not specify how many people would leave on each flight, plan to give priority to pregnant women, children and families among the 7,800 Cubans trapped in Costa Rica since mid-November when Nicaragua closed its borders.

The flights will begin on Feb. 4, and regional governments will meet again in mid-February to evaluate the plan.

Thousands of Cubans have turned to the Latin American route to try to reach the United States, spurred by fears that a recent detente between Havana and Washington will end preferential U.S. asylum rights for Cubans that allow them to enter the United States by land without a visa. Those found at sea are deported.
Ely, Cambridgeshire is best known for its majestic cathedral dubbed the 'Ship of the Fens' because it dominates the flat landscape. The city, which is the second smallest in England, is about 14 miles north-northeast of Cambridge and about 80 miles by road from London.

17:55, 17 OCT 2022
Manx National Heritage slams tram decision

Manx National Heritage says its extremely disappointed at todays announcement to scrap the horse trams.

It says the decision to scrap the tramway is contrary to reassurances its had previously from Douglas Council about safeguarding it.

It says whilst it recognises the difficult financial conditions its disappointed the council isnt seeing the opportunities presented in the new Destination Management Plan.

MNH says the tramway  which has been running for 139 years  remains an important part of the visitor economy.
Re: Refugees Quote: Patsycat Switzerland does have other languages other than German to be taught. You lot up there in your German cocoon should perhaps accept that.



Or expect it. French or Italian may be easier to learn and speak than German. Life does not revolve around Zurich and german.



Even on this English Forum, loads of you post things that we cannot understand. In German. Like us others didn't exist.



Perhaps us Francophones should speak up. And then you shall see how difficult it is to translate anything into the supposedly English Speaking Forum.



I lose out sometimes on some witty comments. And don't tell me i should learn German. Why should I? Same as you learning French.

It used to be a strict rule, that kids hat do learn German, French or Italian (the Romanch language has always been deprived) in school as an additional language to the one in their part. Sadly some get away with replacing that with English now .... not a Swiss language really.

Should you not know about the Rostigragen yet, there's more information in English LOL, I see you discovered the "Rostigraben" sorry, sorry, sorry, the "hash browned potatoes ditch" and your arguments too are like a true Swiss'sIt used to be a strict rule, that kids hat do learn German, French or Italian (the Romanch language has always been deprived) in school as an additional language to the one in their part. Sadly some get away with replacing that with English now .... not a Swiss language really.Should you not know about the Rostigragen yet, there's more information in English here
Re: Drug/alcohol Rehab in Switzerland



Australia, New Zealand and South Africa each have a luxury rehab industry, sometimes in remote settings, with a lot of extras such as sports, massage, etc., to help the person get through withdrawal, and probably more psychotherapy to try to deal with the underlying issues.



One of the disadvantages, so I was told, of such treatment in Switzerland (whether state or private) is the geography and the infrastructure. More or less, there is a bus-stop within walking distance of the gate of the treatment facility, which potentially takes one to access to drugs or alcohol. One has to bring a determination to try to avoid that.



I think ongoing support afterwards is essential. It is illusory to imagine that one can check in for the 6 weeks or 3 months, get clean, do some introspection, talk to those who're on the same road, and then step back out into Real Life and be just fine. I mention this because a friend who did a rehab said he had had exactly that notion when he entered the clinic, and indeed, had only agreed to go because he had thought along those lines.



He said he was shocked to learn that some of his co-patients were in for a second or third time. As he spoke to them, he realised that the single, destroying factor was that they had gotten clean, gone home, and let everything get back to normal.... and crashed because they did not know how to navigate "normal" differently, when their home and especially their social environment had gone on just the same while they were away.



He said one of the hardest things to accept was that, after he had gotten clean and gone home, he would need to actively seek out and participate in a support group, perhaps several groups, one each evening if need be, on an ongoing basis, perhaps even for life, to help keep him on the right road.



He did so, though, because he really, really knew that persisting in his addiction would mean certain death. He also knew that family members had paid for the rehab, and that they would not be able to do so for a second round.



He found a 12-step programme. He told me that while some people there are nice, he doesn't even like most of the people who attend, but seeing them once a week (or more) to share experiences and on account of that coping clean for the whole time, is soooo much better than crashing. He also finds comfort in being able to encourage others to stay clean.



6 years now, all good!



Here's quite a good outline of what is actually done in a rehab clinic.

https://www.addictioncenter.com/reha...cal-day-rehab/ Presumably a lot depends on whether the person is looking for state-run rehab covered by their medical insurance, or seeks and can afford a high level of comfort.Australia, New Zealand and South Africa each have a luxury rehab industry, sometimes in remote settings, with a lot of extras such as sports, massage, etc., to help the person get through withdrawal, and probably more psychotherapy to try to deal with the underlying issues.One of the disadvantages, so I was told, of such treatment in Switzerland (whether state or private) is the geography and the infrastructure. More or less, there is a bus-stop within walking distance of the gate of the treatment facility, which potentially takes one to access to drugs or alcohol. One has to bring a determination to try to avoid that.I think ongoing support afterwards is essential. It is illusory to imagine that one can check in for the 6 weeks or 3 months, get clean, do some introspection, talk to those who're on the same road, and then step back out into Real Life and be just fine. I mention this because a friend who did a rehab said he had had exactly that notion when he entered the clinic, and indeed, had only agreed to gohe had thought along those lines.He said he was shocked to learn that some of his co-patients were in for a second or third time. As he spoke to them, he realised that the single, destroying factor was that they had gotten clean, gone home, and let everything get back to normal.... and crashed because they did not know how to navigate "normal", when their home and especially their social environment had gone on just the same while they were away.He said one of the hardest things to accept was that, after he had gotten clean and gone home, he would need to actively seek out and participate in a support group, perhaps several groups, one each evening if need be,, to help keep him on the right road.He did so, though, because he really, really knew that persisting in his addiction would mean certain death. He also knew that family members had paid for the rehab, and that they would not be able to do so for a second round.He found a 12-step programme. He told me that while some people there are nice, he doesn't even like most of the people who attend, but seeing them once a week (or more) to share experiences and on account of that coping clean for the whole time, is soooo much better than crashing. He also finds comfort in being able to encourage others to stay clean.6 years now, all good!Here's quite a good outline of what is actually done in a rehab clinic. Last edited by doropfiz; 19.08.2018 at 02:46 .
Re: Do you believe in Merkel? Quote: Treverus No need to reform, just do what you did the last century and nobody will vote AfD. The difference between the greens and AfD is that the greens actually had some points that were not covered by the other parties:

- pacifism (The US were installing new rockets against the SU in Germany at the time and hundred thousands demonstrated against them).

- ecology (The SPD was at that time about jobs and the CDU about the economy...)

- feminism



The AfD has:

- everything the CSU and the conservative wing of the CDU says but Merkel suppresses



The greens had loyal voters that identified themselves with the ideals. This means you will stick to the party even if there are some internal crisis or some other parties are changing their position to accomodate you. The AfD is going to get probably around 10%-15% "protest voters" who would probably elect an idiot like Seehofer if Merkel would give him a bit more space... and is already splitting in pieces even before they get any seats anywhere.



I agree the greens were more a movement than a party and so voters had a lot of patience when the party fought its internal battles. This was their great strength.



I still think the AfD is to the the CDU what the Greens are to the SPD. Had the SPD been more awake in the 1970s and 1980s they could have taken the leadership of the pacifist and feminist movement and there wouldn't be any greens today. They didn't because they failed to predict where it was heading and because they weren't flexible enough to change their course.



I don't know to what extent the CDU is still behind Merkel, or whether they will happily ditch her at the first opportunity and select a different leadership. This is the type of game you typically get one shot at. If say, they ditch Merkel and replace her by Schauble or somebody like that who continues doing much the same, the right wing of the party will lose patience and there will be a huge exodus to the likes of AfD. I don't know if the CDU leadership is smart enough to see that.



You are right that the AfD is divided and has a direction problem, which is ultimately a leadersip problem. But good leaders (as in effective leaders, not necessarily in terms of doing what's right) can step up remarkably quickly when vacuums open up and demand it. The Greens caused immense damage to the SPD. maybe they also attracted some voters from the CDU and FDP, but I think most of their growth was at the expense of the SPD and the SPD was forced to try and accomodate some of their points to stem the further loss.I agree the greens were more a movement than a party and so voters had a lot of patience when the party fought its internal battles. This was their great strength.I still think the AfD is to the the CDU what the Greens are to the SPD. Had the SPD been more awake in the 1970s and 1980s they could have taken the leadership of the pacifist and feminist movement and there wouldn't be any greens today. They didn't because they failed to predict where it was heading and because they weren't flexible enough to change their course.I don't know to what extent the CDU is still behind Merkel, or whether they will happily ditch her at the first opportunity and select a different leadership. This is the type of game you typically get one shot at. If say, they ditch Merkel and replace her by Schauble or somebody like that who continues doing much the same, the right wing of the party will lose patience and there will be a huge exodus to the likes of AfD. I don't know if the CDU leadership is smart enough to see that.You are right that the AfD is divided and has a direction problem, which is ultimately a leadersip problem. But good leaders (as in effective leaders, not necessarily in terms of doing what's right) can step up remarkably quickly when vacuums open up and demand it.
In December Harvey shocked the world when he accidentally announced that Gutierrez had been crowned Miss Universe when in fact the winner was Miss Philippines Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach.

"How do you feel about the way I handled the situation?" the host asked Miss Colombia in a sneak peek of part two of his interview, airing tomorrow.

After her quip, Gutierrez admitted: "I was laughing. If you see the videos, I was laughing, because I thought you were about to make a joke."

In a more emotional segment, Harvey fought back tears while apologizing for the grief he caused Gutierrez, who admitted she thought Harvey was joking when he announced his mistake.

Gutierrez says the experience felt like a "nightmare" and revealed that several lawyers contacted her, suggesting that she sue. She says she isn't even going to sue him, as some lawyers have suggested.

"That's not me," she said. "That's not who I am." "This is our destiny," she said.
This is one of those environmental issues where economics is not very helpful:

If Flint were rich and mostly white, would Michigans state government have responded more quickly and aggressively to complaints about its lead-polluted water? The 274 pages of emails released by Gov. Rick Snyder this week on Flints water crisis included no discussion of race. Instead, they focused on costs relating to the citys water supply, questions about scientific data showing lead contamination and uncertainty about the responsibilities of state and local health officials. But it is indisputable that in Flint, the majority of residents are black and many are poor. So whether or not race and class were factors in the states agonizingly slow and often antagonistic response, the result was the same: Thousands of Flints residents, black and white, have been exposed to lead in their drinking water. And the long-term health effects of that poisoning may not be fully understood for years. For civil rights advocates, the health crisis in Flint smacks of what has become known as environmental racism. Coined in the 1980s, the term refers to the disproportionate exposure of blacks to polluted air, water and soil. It is considered the result of poverty and segregation that has relegated many blacks and other racial minorities to some of the most industrialized or dilapidated environments.

via www.nytimes.com

Legitimate concerns about water quality appear to have been ignored in Flint. I can think of two reasons other than race why they may be. First, political ideology. Environmental issues don't rise to the top of the agendas of Republican Governors. Second, Flint is a depressed city and it is relatively easy to ignore the concerns of relatively poor voters. I might be wrong but I don't think this is an environmental Kuznets issue since drinking water quality is one of the more basic environmental goods in the U.S. (although I think there are drinking water quality environmental Kuznets curve studies in developing countries).

I did a Google Scholar search of environmental+racism+economics from 2011 to 2015 and didn't find much. On the third page of search results is this paper:

Wu, Xiaoyu, and Bowman Cutter. "Who votes for public environmental goods in California?: Evidence from a spatial analysis of voting for environmental ballot measures." Ecological Economics 70, no. 3 (2011): 554-563. Abstract. Voting referenda provide direct evidence of the demand for public goods. A number of previous studies have used referenda to analyze the support for public environmental goods. These studies have used aggregate data from large jurisdictional units (usually counties) and summary income measures such as the mean or median, and have usually found that higher income areas offer greater support for environmental propositions. We examine environmental referenda voting in California using census block group data, spatial dependence controls, and detailed income distribution data. We find that household income has a negative marginal effect on environmental referenda voting for most of the income range when using census block data. In addition, controls for spatial dependence significantly reduce the magnitude of most coefficients. This suggests that OLS estimates of referenda determinants are biased. We also show that county level data may be subject to severe aggregation bias and might not be appropriate for referenda studies.

There is no mention of race (I'm sure it was a control variable but I'm stuck at home with Jonas so I can't get the entire paper from my library) and none of the 21 papers that cite this one appears to be a environmental racism papers.
The Indian Government is spending large amounts of political and financial capital to whitewash the use of Indian soldiers as cannon-fodder by the colonial British Indian Army in World War I. An exploration of the possible reasons for this about turn in understanding the role of Indian soldiers in the colonial wars.

Hundred years ago colonialists and nationalists worked in tandem to recruit Indians to dig trenches and offer themselves as cannon fodder in the imperialist war in Europe. Today, once again, the erstwhile colonialists and present-day nationalists have conjoined to commemorate the centenary of the so-called Great War.

Both President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi are keen to celebrate Indian contributions in World War I and publicise them among the youth of the country. On 10 March 2015, the government launched a four-year-long programme to showcase gallantry through exhibitions, seminars and other commemorative events.
Leaders of the Syrian-American Medical Society describe their efforts in bolstering what remains of the Syrian healthcare system and the health care context in which those efforts take place in their article, "War is the Enemy of Health: Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine in War-torn Syria." The article is published online ahead of print in the American Thoracic Society journal Annals of the American Thoracic Society.

The Syrian-American Medical Society was formed shortly after the war began to help Syrian refugees in Turkey. Since then, it has grown into a $25-million enterprise that has helped more than two million people, according to lead author Mohammed Z. Sahloul, MD, a pulmonologist and critical care physician in Oak Lawn, IL, who served as its president for four years.

The Society provides 24/7 telemedicine consulting to nine Syrian ICUs. It has conducted 17 "train-the-trainer" webinars for 850 doctors, nurses, paramedics and technicians on such topics as how to resuscitate trauma patients, the fundamentals of critical care and triaging surgery patients. And in classrooms in Turkey and Lebanon, it has trained Syrian doctors in the use of, and equipped them with, portable ultrasound to diagnose bodily injuries. Powered by rechargeable batteries, this technology has proved especially helpful in the war-torn region prone to power outages.

By all accounts, the health care situation in Syria is grim. The authors cite statistics that they and other organizations have compiled:

In the first four years of the conflict, 75,000 civilians died from war injuries; 25 percent of those killed were women and children.

More than twice that number have died from chronic and infectious disease because of inadequate medical care.

There is growing incidence of TB among Syrian refugees in Lebanon. 2014 British Medical Journal article found a 27 percent increase in TB.

By 2013, 70 percent of the health care workforce had left the country. In Syria's largest city, Aleppo, only 70 of the 6,000 physicians who once practiced there remain.

Syrian life expectancy has plummeted by 20 years since war broke out.

Responding to this health care crisis has been made much more difficult by the targeting of hospitals and health care workers, primarily by the government but also by the rebels, according to the authors.

"The Syrian conflict is unprecedented in the scale and gravity of the attacks on medical neutrality, which was something that was agreed upon 150 years ago in Geneva," Dr. Sahloul said. "Nearly 700 medical workers have been killed in this war, and more than 300 hospitals attacked, according to Physicians for Human Rights."

Dr. Sahloul decried the absence of a forceful response to these war crimes by physicians and international medical organizations. Medical neutrality, which is designed to protect civilians and the health care professionals who treat them during a war, is something "sacred among medical professionals," he added.

"The medical community is very late in responding to the situation in Syria," Dr. Sahloul said. "As physicians, we not only have an obligation, we have a powerful voice to insist that policy makers ensure that populations under siege have access to care."

The Syrian-American Medical Society has also documented the use of chemical weapons, another war crime, by the Syrian armed forces. Since December 2012, the group reports that there have been 152 attacks using toxic gases, including 8 using sarin, which paralyzes respiratory muscles, and 92 with chlorine gas, which dissolves lung tissue.

Dr. Sahloul said that most people have only heard of the 2013 sarin attack that killed 1,400 people and injured 10,000 others. The Syrian-American Medical Society has trained Syrian health care workers in how to treat patients exposed to chemical agents.

Despite the makeshift conditions under which medical care is provided in Syria, the authors argue that the efforts of the Syrian-American Medical Society and other groups supporting the health care workers remaining in the country should be subject to evaluation and measurement. "A retrospective survey of 527 health care workers trained in portable ultrasound found that 87 percent had incorporated the technology into the daily management of violent conflict," Sahloul said. "This technology should be studied in areas of war. It has the potential to save thousands of lives."

Sahloul's observation captures the animating principle of the Syrian-American Medical Society implicit in the journal article: even in humankind's darkest moments, caring and rational people can provide light.

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About the Annals of the American Thoracic Society (AnnalsATS):

The AnnalsATS is a peer-reviewed journal published by the American Thoracic Society. The Journal delivers up-to-date and authoritative coverage of adult and pediatric pulmonary and respiratory sleep medicine and adult critical care. The scope of the Journal encompasses content that is applicable to clinical practice, the formative and continuing education of clinical specialists and the advancement of public health. Editor: John Hansen-Flaschen, MD, the Paul F. Harron Jr. Family Professor of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

About the American Thoracic Society:

Founded in 1905, the American Thoracic Society is the world's leading medical association dedicated to advancing pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine. The Society's 15,000 members prevent and fight respiratory disease around the globe through research, education, patient care and advocacy. The ATS publishes three journals, the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, the American Journal of Respiratory Cell and Molecular Biology and the Annals of the American Thoracic Society.
Many different diseases and insults can injure kidneys, resulting in kidney failure. Some autoimmune diseases damage glomeruli (the 'filtering units' of the kidney), while problems with the tubules (for example, impaired blood flow to the kidney at the time of renal transplantation, radio-contrast dye or drugs) can cause acute kidney injury (AKI). A common outcome in either type of injury is that immune cells infiltrate the kidney and this inflammation can result in permanent scarring.

Since the discovery of the proinflammatory cytokines, interleukin (IL)-17A and IL-17F in the early 1990s, many immune cells have proven to be a source of these cytokines, including some T helper cells, now called Th17 cells. Recent human trials of biological therapies targeting IL-17A, components of its receptor or precursor cytokines, have significantly improved clinical disease in some conditions where Th17 cells are implicated -- particularly psoriasis.

We have reviewed the research that indicates that IL-17A/F and Th17 cells contribute to renal injury. Animal studies of diseases damaging glomeruli suggest that they are involved in the initial inflammatory response within the kidney. In studies of patients with autoimmune diseases, such as systemic lupus erythematosus, elevated IL-17A levels and higher proportions of Th17 cells in circulating blood have been found, correlating with disease severity. Animal models of AKI have demonstrated that administration of an antibody against IL-17A reduces renal injury. Therefore, blockade of IL-17A/F signaling may be a promising avenue to explore in clinical trials as a novel therapy for the treatment and prevention of immune mediated renal diseases.

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Joanna R. Ghali, Stephen R. Holdsworth and A Richard Kitching.

Centre for Inflammatory Diseases, Department of Medicine, Monash University, Victoria, Australia.
Carnivorous plants such as the Venus flytrap depend on meals of insects to survive in nutrient-poor soil. They sense the arrival of juicy insects, lured by the plants' fruity scent, with the aid of sensitive trigger hairs on the inner surfaces of their traps. Now, researchers reporting in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on January 21 have looked more closely at exactly how the plants decide when to keep their traps shut and begin producing their acidic, prey-decomposing cocktail of enzymes. The short answer is: they count.

"The carnivorous plant Dionaea muscipula, also known as Venus flytrap, can count how often it has been touched by an insect visiting its capture organ in order to trap and consume the animal prey," says Rainer Hedrich of Universitat Wurzburg in Germany.

To find out whether Venus flytraps record touches, in the new study Hedrich and his colleagues fooled the plants into thinking they'd landed an insect by applying increasing numbers of mechano-electric stimuli to their trap and monitoring their responses. The studies show that a single touch to the trigger hair is enough to generate a response, setting the trap into a "ready-to-go" mode. In other words, the plants make note but don't snap just yet. It might be a false alarm, after all.

With the second stroke, the trap closes around the prey to form what Hedrich and his colleagues liken to a green stomach. As the prey attempt to escape, they wind up touching the mechano-sensitive trigger hairs again and again, which serves only to excite the plant further.

At this stage, the plant begins to produce a special touch hormone. After five triggers, glands on the inner surface of the trap also produce digestive enzymes and transporters to take up nutrients. Hedrich calls it a "deadly spiral of capture and disintegration." This input also allows the plant to scale its production of costly ingredients to the size of the meal.

"The number of action potentials informs [the plant] about the size and nutrient content of the struggling prey," Hedrich said. "This allows the Venus flytrap to balance the cost and benefit of hunting."

Interestingly, the plants show a particularly marked increase in production of a transporter that allows them to take up sodium. It's not clear exactly what the salt does for the plant, but the researchers suggest that it may have something to do with how Venus flytraps maintain the right balance of water inside their cell walls.

Hedrich and his colleagues are now sequencing the Venus flytrap genome. In those sequences, they expect to find additional clues about the plants' sensory systems and chemistry needed to support a carnivorous lifestyle and how those traits have evolved over time.

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This work was supported by the European Research Council; MINECO; the International Research Group Program; the Deanship of Scientific Research, King Saud University; the Australian Research Council; and the Grain Research and Development Corporation.

Current Biology, Bohm and Scherzer et al.: "The Venus Flytrap Dionaea muscipula Counts Prey-Induced Action Potentials to Induce Sodium Uptake" http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2015.11.057

Current Biology (@CurrentBiology), published by Cell Press, is a bimonthly journal that features papers across all areas of biology. Current Biology strives to foster communication across fields of biology, both by publishing important findings of general interest and through highly accessible front matter for non-specialists. For more information please visit http://www.cell.com/current-biology. To receive Cell Press media alerts, contact press@cell.com.
Harnessing bionic silkworms for super-hard fibres, new treatment for chronic wounds based on medical inhalants, reverse-engineering of mediaeval building processes for restoration of Europe's architectural heritage. These are just some of the inventions made by ERC grantees who received additional funding to explore the innovation potential of their research.

The ERC has announced today the results of the third round of its 2015 Proof of Concept grant competition. Overall in three rounds of the competition, 135 ERC grantees benefited from this top-up funding scheme. The Proof of Concept grants, worth EUR 150,000 each, can be used, for example, to establish intellectual property rights, investigate business opportunities or conduct technical validation.

EU Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science Carlos Moedas said: "There can be no sustainable environment for European innovation without scientific excellence. Proof of Concept grants help researchers bridge the divide between academia and the market. They support the frontier science that leads to innovation with real-life applications, creating new opportunities for European jobs and products."

ERC President Prof. Jean-Pierre Bourguignon said: "We know that ERC grants stir the entrepreneurial spirit in the teams they support. This is exemplified by the interest shown by our grantees in the Proof of Concept funding, which the ERC Scientific Council has introduced to help develop innovative ideas into viable solutions dealing with societal and market needs. This adds one dimension to the ERC philosophy based on trust in researchers driven by scientific curiosity."

The awarded projects come from research covering wide range of topics in physical sciences and engineering, life sciences and social sciences and humanities. In 2015 the ERC received 339 applications for this additional funding and awarded grants worth EUR 20 million.

The researchers selected in the competition are based in 17 countries across the Europe: United Kingdom (22), Spain (20), Netherlands (17), Germany (15), France (10), Sweden (9), Israel (8), Switzerland (8), Italy (7), Belgium (5), Austria (3), Denmark (3), Portugal (3), Greece (2), Cyprus (1), Finland (1), and Poland (1).

Background

Since its launch in 2011, the ERC Proof of Concept funding scheme has helped more than 400 researchers find a way to get their ERC-funded research results to market and to tackle societal challenges. The competitions are reserved to researchers benefitting from an ongoing, or recently completed, ERC grant. The funded projects can take up to 18 months.

The European Research Council, set up by the European Union in 2007, is the first European funding organisation for excellent frontier research. Every year, it selects and funds creative researchers of any nationality and age, to run ambitious projects based in Europe. The ERC strives to attract top researchers from anywhere in the world to come to Europe. To date, the ERC has funded more than 5,000 top researchers at various stages of their careers.

The ERC is led by an independent governing body, the Scientific Council. Since January 2014, the ERC President is Professor Jean-Pierre Bourguignon. The ERC has a budget of over EUR13 billion for the years 2014-2020. It is part of the EU research and innovation programme, Horizon 2020, for which European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science Carlos Moedas is responsible.

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This news release is available in German.

Bacteria and other prokaryotes have been around for billions of years because they managed to develop successful evolutionary strategies for survival. For instance, they possess defense mechanisms that allow them to discriminate between self and non-self DNA in the event of a virus infection. These defense mechanisms are called restriction-modification systems and are based on the balance between the two enzymes M (methyltransferase) and R (restriction endonuclease). M tags endogenous DNA as self by methylating short specific DNA sequences--called restriction sites, and R recognizes unmethylated restriction sites as non-self and cleaves the DNA to render it harmless.

It has been suspected that the discrimination mechanism of restriction-modification systems may be imperfect and that also bacteria may experience autoimmunity issues because the number of restriction sites in many bacterial genomes is lower than expected. On the upside of potential mistakes, occasional cleavage of self-DNA could promote DNA recombination and contribute to genetic variation in microbial populations, thus facilitating adaptive evolution. On the downside however, it might lead to cell death and thus impose a fitness cost on bacterial populations. Despite these potential implications, autoimmunity in bacteria has not been directly observed so far.

Maros Pleska, a graduate student in the laboratory of C?lin Guet, an Assistant Professor at IST Austria, together with the teams of their colleagues Edo Kussell of New York University and Yuichi Wakamoto of Tokyo University, as well as IST Austria postdoc Tobias Bergmiller examine this scenario in their paper published on January 21, 2016, in Current Biology.

The authors studied two different restriction-modification systems originating from the bacterium Escherichia coli, named EcoRI and EcoRV (pronounced as "eco R one" and "eco R five"). Pleska and his colleagues analyzed populations as well as single cells carrying these restriction-modification systems and found that EcoRI is indeed prone to erroneously cleave self DNA while EcoRV is not. These autoimmune events are very rare and easily masked by the majority of unaffected cells, which is why, up until now, detection of bacterial autoimmunity was a major experimental challenge.

The authors managed to spot the rare events of bacterial autoimmunity and show that when they occur, the SOS response is triggered and specific proteins disengage to repair the damaged DNA. By comparing and counting nearly one hundred thousand bacterial colonies (see picture), the authors found out that under standard conditions, everything works just fine, but the ability to fix the damage is decreased in conditions where resources are scarce.

But why are some restriction-modification systems more likely to cause autoimmunity than others? Guet and his team found that the probability of cleaving self DNA is higher for more efficient restriction-modification systems--in this case EcoRI. It almost seems as if these systems are overeager at times in their attempt to protect the cell from harm. The result suggests the existence of an evolutionary tradeoff between enhanced protection against exogenous DNA and increased autoimmunity.

The autoimmunity work would not have been possible without the highly interdisciplinary team from Austria, Japan and USA, which was supported by a Young Investigator Human Frontier Science Grant to Guet, Kussell and Wakamoto that specifically supports high risk interdisciplinary projects, as well as a DOC OeAW Fellowship awarded to Pleska.

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The product is the result of collaboration between Kazan Federal University and Human Cell Stem Institute

This will become the first GMP-certified line of such type in the country.

The necessary equipment is up and running, and the first lab samples have been produced.

Professor Albert Rizvanov eliminates, We will be able to manufacture genetic medicines for preclinical and clinical trials and then -- for the general market. Our products can be used to treat peripheral nerves, ischemia, locomotor impairments, neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimer's, lateral sclerosis), cirrhosis, spinal injuries. We also plan to tackle strokes and heart attacks.

Kazan University started working on genetic medications back in 2007. After that, another boost was given by the cooperation between KFU and Human Stem Cell Institute -- the sides are now planning to establish a joint venture.

Professor Rizvanov informed us that there are currently three preclinical trials being held at the University, and hopefully this one can become the fourth.

Speaking about genetic drugs, there are now only four of them certified in the world. Two of them (of Chinese origin) were designed to battle oncological diseases, the third one (by the Human Stem Cell Institute) -- against leg ischemia, and the fourth one (from Europe) -- to treat a rare lipoprotein deficiency.

Our interviewee explains the medication mechanism, We can treat cells outside of the body and then return them into the organism, we can administer the medication internally as well. This is basically the same process. The medication contains a fragment of genetic material that is essentially a programming language for cells. So by providing this information we can make cells produce the necessary substance.

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Snowshoe hares that camouflage themselves by changing their coats from brown in summer to white in winter face serious threats from climate change, and it's uncertain whether hare populations will be able to adapt in time, according to a North Carolina State University study.

Based on field research with radio-collared snowshoe hares in Montana, mismatched snowshoe hares suffer a 7 percent drop in their weekly survival rate when snow comes late or leaves early and white hares stand out to predators like "light bulbs" against their snowless backgrounds.

"This is one of the most direct demonstrations of mortality costs for a wild species facing climate change," says L. Scott Mills, professor at NC State's College of Natural Resources and study co-author. "In previous research we showed that climate change is causing snow duration to decrease, and that hares have little ability to adjust their molt timing or behaviors to compensate for the mismatch. Here we take the next step of showing that mismatch does indeed kill."

"This paper shows that the mismatch costs are severe enough to cause hare populations to steeply decline in the future unless they can adapt to the change," says Marketa Zimova, lead author of the journal article in Ecology Letters and doctoral student with Mills at NC State.

The good news for snowshoe hares is the finding that different individuals molt at different times, enabling natural selection to favor those better suited for the changing snow conditions. However, whether evolution through natural selection can save hares quickly enough is uncertain, especially given the rapid rate of change.

"Ultimately, to promote species persistence in the face of climate change induced mismatch, the reduction of its cause is essential and must be done via climate change mitigation," Zimova says. "But in the meantime, we should maintain large and connected populations to foster evolutionary rescue and its ability to allow wild animals to adapt to the changing conditions."

Camouflage mismatch has the potential to impact at least 14 species worldwide that change coat colors seasonally, Mills says. His team of researchers is expanding the coat color research to other species globally, including mountain hares, white-tailed jackrabbits, weasels and arctic foxes.

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Mills received funding for this research from the National Science Foundation's Division of Environmental Biology (Grant 0841884), the U.S. Geological Survey National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center, and the Bureau of Land Management (Missoula Field Office). Zimova received funding from the U.S. Department of the Interior's Southeast Climate Center and NC State University. Co-author Josh Nowak is a research scientist at the University of Montana.

Note: An abstract of the paper follows.

"High Fitness Costs of Climate Change Induced Camouflage Mismatch"

Authors: Marketa Zimova and L. Scott Mills, NC State University, and J. Nowak, University of Montana

Online publication date: Jan. 22, 2016, Ecology Letters

Abstract: Anthropogenic climate change has created myriad stressors that threaten to cause local extinctions if wild populations fail to adapt to novel conditions. We studied individual and population-level fitness costs of a climate change-induced stressor: camouflage mismatch in seasonally colour molting species confronting decreasing snow cover duration. Based on field measurements of radiocollared snowshoe hares, we found strong selection on coat colour molt phenology, such that animals mismatched with the colour of their background experienced weekly survival decreases up to 7%. In the absence of adaptive response, we show that these mortality costs would result in strong population-level declines by the end of the century. However, natural selection acting on wide individual variation in molt phenology might enable evolutionary adaptation to camouflage mismatch. We conclude that evolutionary rescue will be critical for hares and other colour molting species to keep up with climate change.
Successfully accounting for gaps in data could help scientists understand how to develop better treatment strategies that can be initiated shortly after birth

PHILADELPHIA--(Jan. 22, 2016) -- Recent clinical trials conducted in South Africa have established that babies born with HIV should be treated with antiretroviral therapy (ART) as early as possible, since earlier treatment significantly decreases their mortality and morbidity rates. However, scientists were unsure whether infants treated with ART eventually develop a "normal" immune system. Knowing how an infant reacts to ART could help determine how to design curative strategies, but studying these infants can prove challenging due to inconsistent adherence to the study's schedule and the difficulty of collecting sufficient specimens in infants.

Now, scientists from The Wistar Institute, in collaboration with the Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS at Yale University, have demonstrated that the issue of missing data can be successfully overcome using appropriate statistical methods, and as a result, they were able to show how early initiation of ART in infants preserves an expansion of naive T-cells and allows the infant's immune system to be properly reconstructed.

The results of the study were published in the journal PLOS ONE.

Children born with HIV who do not receive treatment with ART experience progressive immunodeficiency that can lead to death, and if they do survive, their immune cell levels can be permanently offset. These children have low levels of naive CD4+ T-cells and other immune effectors. Studying the levels of immune cells in these infected infants could help scientists develop better treatment strategies.

Scientists struggle with the frequent issue of missing data when it comes to studying these infants. Blood samples taken from these infants are routinely used for monitoring their health and response to treatment. However, it is often difficult to collect larger volumes of blood for immunological studies. Additionally, in resource-constrained settings, many infants miss visits because their caregivers may be unable to get them to a central location where samples can be routinely taken.

"Despite the best efforts of pediatricians and pediatric nurses, insufficient samples and missed visits have been the norm for pediatric studies in developing countries," said Luis J. Montaner, D.V.M., D.Phil., Director of the HIV-1 Immunopathogenesis Laboratory and Herbert Kean, M.D., Family Professor at The Wistar Institute. "Loss of data lead to loss of statistical power, so it's extremely important to develop methods that allow us to analyze data sets where data are randomly missing."

To solve this issue, Dr. Montaner teamed with Dr. Russell Barbour from the Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS at Yale University and an international team of scientists to determine which methods could successfully overcome data missingness in a dataset collected in the course of a study on HIV-infected infants. While numerous methods have been suggested to address this issue, many have intrinsic problems like not being able to anticipate change over time and artificially reducing standard error. The team settled on two approaches that they believed would effectively address missing data. The first, called the Multiple Imputation (MI) method, uses the observed values as well as different imputations - values that are substituted for missing data - to fill in these gaps while not changing anything else about the data. The second approach was based on a Bayesian model, which was used to create 5,000 "alternative" instances of the dataset based on the observed data.

A total of 66 HIV-infected or seronegative infants born of HIV-infected mothers were recruited at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto, South Africa. These infants were enrolled in the Children with HIV Early Antiretroviral Therapy (CHER) trial and randomized to receive ART either as soon as they were enrolled or when their CD4+ T-cell count dropped below 20 percent. Blood samples were taken once every six months.

The use of these statistical methods allowed Dr. Montaner and his collaborators to demonstrate that early ART treatment results in higher CD4+ T-cell frequency, lower cellular activation, and had higher proportions of naive T-cells. These results suggest that in infants with perinatal HIV infection early treatment may improve the chances of developing a functional immune system.

"Our study offers a field-based proof of concept that certain type of data missingness can be tolerated without affecting the integrity of a study," Montaner said. "We hope this will encourage other scientists to target hard-to-reach populations, particularly in resource-constrained settings."

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This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health grant AI062512. Additional support was provided by The Philadelphia Foundation (Robert I. Jacobs Fund), the Stengel-Miller family, and AIDS funds from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the Commonwealth Universal Research Enhancement (CURE) Program.

Other co-authors of this study from The Wistar Institute include Livio Azzoni and Emmanouil Papasavvas. Other co-authors of this study include Deborah Glencross and Wendy Stevens from the University of the Witwatersrand and National Health Laboratory Service in Johannesburg, South Africa; Mark Cotton from the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health at Stellenbosch University in Cape Town, South Africa; and Avy Violari from the Perinatal HIV Research Unit at the University of the Witwatersrand.

The Wistar Institute is an international leader in biomedical research with special expertise in cancer research and vaccine development. Founded in 1892 as the first independent nonprofit biomedical research institute in the country, Wistar has held the prestigious Cancer Center designation from the National Cancer Institute since 1972. The Institute works actively to ensure that research advances move from the laboratory to the clinic as quickly as possible. On the Web at http://www.wistar.org.
University of California, Berkeley, researchers have made a major improvement in CRISPR-Cas9 technology that achieves an unprecedented success rate of 60 percent when replacing a short stretch of DNA with another.

The improved technique is especially useful when trying to repair genetic mutations that cause hereditary diseases, such as sickle cell disease or severe combined immune deficiency. The technique allows researchers to patch an abnormal section of DNA with the normal sequence and potentially correct the defect and is already working in cell culture to improve ongoing efforts to repair defective genes.

"The exciting thing about CRISPR-Cas9 is the promise of fixing genes in place in our genome, but the efficiency for that can be very low," said Jacob Corn, scientific director of the Innovative Genomics Initiative at UC Berkeley, a group that focuses on next-generation genome editing and gene regulation for lab and clinical application. "If you think of gene editing as a word processor, we know how to cut, but we need a more efficient way to paste and glue a new piece of DNA where we make the cut."

"In cases where you want to change very small regions of DNA, up to 30 base pairs, this technique would be extremely effective," said first author Christopher Richardson, an IGI postdoc.

Problems in short sections of DNA, including single base-pair mutations, are typical of many genetic diseases. Base pairs are the individual building blocks of DNA, strung end-to-end in a strand that coils around a complementary strand to make the well-known helical, double-stranded DNA molecule.

Richardson, Corn and their IGI colleagues describe the new technique in the Jan. 21 issue of the journal Nature Biotechnology.

Grabbing onto a loose strand

Richardson invented the new approach after finding that the Cas9 protein, which does the actual DNA cutting, remains attached to the chromosome for up to six hours, long after it has sliced through the double-stranded DNA. Richardson looked closely at the Cas9 protein bound to the two strands of DNA and discovered that while the protein hangs onto three of the cut ends, one of the ends remains free.

When Cas9 cuts DNA, repair systems in the cell can grab a piece of complementary DNA, called a template, to repair the cut. Researchers can add templates containing changes that alter existing sequences in the genome -- for example, correcting a disease-causing mutation.

Richardson reasoned that bringing the substitute template directly to the site of the cut would improve the patching efficiency, and constructed a piece of DNA that matches the free DNA end and carries the genetic sequence to be inserted at the other end. The technique worked extremely well, allowing successful repair of a mutation with up to 60 percent efficiency.

"Our data indicate that Cas9 breaks could be different at a molecular level from breaks generated by other targeted nucleases, such as TALENS and zinc-finger nucleases, which suggests that strategies like the ones we are using can give you more efficient repair of Cas9 breaks," Richardson said.

The researchers also showed that variants of the Cas9 protein that bind DNA but do not cut also can successfully paste a new DNA sequence at the binding site, possibly by forming a "bubble" structure on the target DNA that also acts to attract the repair template. Gene editing using Cas9 without genome cutting could be safer than typical gene editing by removing the danger of off-target cutting in the genome, Corn said.

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Co-authors with Richardson and Corn are IGI researchers Jordan Ray, Mark DeWitt and Gemma Curie. The work was funded by the Li Ka Shing Foundation.
MIAMI, JANUARY 22, 2016 -- Researchers from Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine (Sylvester) today published a study showing that African-American pediatric Hodgkin lymphoma patients have inferior overall survival to their white and Hispanic peers. The findings, published in the journal Pediatric Blood & Cancer, are the largest study yet on racial and ethnic disparity in the pediatric Hodgkin lymphoma population.

"Little was known about the association between race, ethnicity and survival in the pediatric Hodgkin lymphoma population," said Joseph Panoff, M.D., a radiation oncologist at Sylvester and lead author of the study. "Our study showed that African-American children and teenagers had worse overall survival than whites and Hispanics at 25 years after diagnosis. We also found that Hispanic males had inferior disease-specific survival compared to white males."

In the United States, lymphoma - cancer of the lymphatic system - is the third most common malignancy in children and adolescents. Hodgkin lymphoma comprises roughly half of all lymphoma diagnoses. National outcomes for children with Hodgkin lymphoma are relatively favorable and have improved over the last few decades, with current five-year survival rates averaging 95 percent for patients 0 to 19 years of age.

Panoff and his colleagues analyzed Florida-specific data as well as national data from more than 7,800 patients, 0.1 to 21 years of age (average: 17 years), who were listed in the Florida Cancer Data System (FCDS) and the National Institutes of Health's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program (SEER). All Hispanics, non-Hispanic whites and non-Hispanic African-Americans were included in the analysis.

In the Florida (FCDS) cohort, which was significantly smaller than the SEER cohort (1,778 vs. 6,027), African-Americans had a 33 percent overall survival rate at 25 years compared to 49.2 percent for whites and 44.7 percent for Hispanics. Overall, patients in the FCDS cohort seemed to have worse overall survival than patients in the SEER cohort, indicating patients treated in Florida have worse outcomes when compared to the rest of the nation.

"Clearly, racial and ethnic disparities persist in the pediatric Hodgkin lymphoma population despite modern treatment, particularly in Florida," Panoff added. "The underlying causes of these disparities are complex and need further explanation."

As a next step, Panoff suggests identifying flaws within the diagnostic and treatment process with regard to African-American and Hispanic patients. He adds, "It is important to identify sociocultural factors and health behaviors that negatively affect overall survival in African-American patients and disease-free survival in Hispanic males. The fact that the entire Florida cohort seems to have worse overall survival than patients in the rest of the country is a new finding that requires further research."

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The research was partly funded by the Miami Clinical and Translational Science Institute at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

The study was co-authored by W.R. Grubb, H.J. Neboori, and A.D. Diaz, all at the Department of Radiation Oncology, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center; H. Li, Department of Public Health Sciences at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine; and D. Kwon, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center.

About Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of UHealth - the University of Miami Health System and the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, is among the nation's leading cancer centers, and South Florida's only Cancer Center of Excellence. With the combined strength of more than 115 cancer researchers and 130 cancer specialists, Sylvester discovers, develops and delivers more targeted therapies leading to better outcomes - providing the next generation of cancer clinical care - precision cancer medicine - to each patient. Our comprehensive diagnostics coupled with teams of scientific and clinical experts who specialize in just one type of cancer, enable us to better understand each patient's individual cancer and develop treatments that target the cells and genes driving the cancer's growth and survival. At Sylvester, patients have access to more treatment options and more cancer clinical trials than most hospitals in the southeastern United States. To better serve current and future patients, Sylvester has a network of conveniently located outpatient treatment facilities in Miami, Kendall, Hollywood, Plantation, Deerfield Beach and Coral Springs, with plans to open in Coral Gables in 2016. For more information, visit sylvester.org.

Paper cited Joseph Panoff, M.D., et al. Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Pediatric Hodgkin Lymphoma Population. Pediatric Blood & Cancer. DOI: 10.1002/pbc.25802

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Cancer disparities continue to impact Oklahoma disproportionately as a direct result of continued tobacco use. With two, four-year grants totaling $1.5 million from the National Institutes of Health, a University of Oklahoma-led collaborative with the Cherokee Nation is addressing tobacco-related cancer disparities through a program of research, training and education for American Indian students and investigators.

Paul Spicer, professor in the Department of Anthropology, OU College of Arts and Sciences, and Sohail-Khan, director of health research at the Cherokee Nation, are developing research, training and education programs with Dr. Mark Doescher, OU Health Sciences Center, and program leader of the Cancer Health Disparities Program at the Stephenson Cancer Center. The OU and Cherokee Nation team are building on an established relationship to address persistent cancer disparities that result from tobacco use.

"The collaboration is especially exciting because it links undergraduate and graduate students from the Norman campus to an emerging tribal research program. OU leads the nation in the number of American Indian students at a Carnegie I research institution. There is real opportunity here in Oklahoma to grow tribal research as a key component of economic development," said Spicer.

The collaborative builds upon tobacco as a shared priority for both the Cherokee Nation and the Stephenson Cancer Center creating a durable affiliation with authentic tribal capacity for cancer disparities research through a broad-based program of community engagement, pilot research and training for American Indian students and new investigators who can begin to address the persistent cancer disparities that result from tobacco use.

"American Indians are diagnosed with higher rates of cancer, many associated with tobacco use, and it's a significant concern for the Cherokee Nation and tribal leadership, Khan said. "This collaboration is capable of shaping the future of health disparities research in our Native population by offering research, training and educational opportunities for Cherokee researchers involved in the project. We believe our efforts will lead to very valuable tribally-initiated, community-engaged and self-sustaining cancer research that will benefit not only our tribe, but others in the field working to understand cancer and its impacts."

The purpose of this collaboration is developing cancer disparities research capacity in Indian Country. The Cherokee Nation is the first tribe to develop a surveillance, epidemiology and end results registry and has strong anti-tobacco programs. New pilot research will provide a richer training ground for American Indian undergraduate and graduate students and new investigators committed to the Cherokee Nation training and education program developed with the Stephenson Cancer Center to collect the research.

"Our current research project provides an excellent example of how our affiliation is building collaboration between the Cherokee Nation and the Stephenson Cancer Center," said Doescher. "This study will characterize how the dual use of cigarettes and electronic cigarettes affect patterns of smoking, markers of nicotine addiction and toxicant exposure in a sample of patients receiving health care at Cherokee Nation Health Services locations. The study is led by Dr. Ashley Comiford, a Cherokee tribal member and epidemiologist; and Dr. Dorothy Rhoades, a Kiowa tribal member and Stephenson Cancer Center faculty member.

The collaborative is developing an infrastructure capable of shaping multiple research, training and education efforts between the Cherokee Nation and the Stephenson Cancer Center; conducting pilot research in tobacco use and cancer risk capable of seeding large-scale research projects at the Cherokee Nation; training the next generation of cancer researchers for the Cherokee Nation in the context of this research; and building upon these efforts to achieve sustainability for the collaboration and its efforts to address tobacco-related cancer disparities.

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For more information about the "Cherokee Nation and Stephenson Cancer Center Collaborative on Cancer Disparities," contact paul.spicer@ou.edu or sohail-khan@cherokee.org. At the OU Health Sciences Center, contact Dr. Doescher at Mark-Doescher@ouhsc.ou.edu.
University of South Florida and international scientists find influx of freshwater could disrupt the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, an important component of global ocean circulation

TAMPA, Fla. (Jan. 22, 2016) - Scientists from the University of South Florida, along with colleagues in Canada and the Netherlands, have determined that the influx of fresh water from the Greenland ice sheet is "freshening" the North Atlantic Ocean and could disrupt the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), an important component of global ocean circulation that could have a global effect. Researchers say it could impact the future climate in places such as portions of Europe and North America.

Their study on the influence of freshwater influx on Labrador Sea convection and Atlantic circulation is published in a new issue of the journal Nature Communications.

"We derived a new estimate of recent freshwater flux from Greenland using updated GRACE satellite data," said USF professor Tim Dixon. "The data suggest that the influx of freshwater from Greenland is accelerating, and has changed the Labrador Sea in ways that could lead to a weakening of the AMOC."

Freshwater flux from Greenland is composed of melt runoff from ice and tundra runoff as well as ice discharge ("calving" of icebergs). The amount of freshwater flux from Greenland was relatively stable from the late 1970's to the mid 1990's, and then began to increase. Increased freshwater flux could weaken the AMOC, resulting in a number of consequences, both local and global, said the researchers.

"Focused freshwater flux into the Labrador Sea has the potential to increase the buoyancy of surface waters and reduce formation of dense, deep water that helps drive the overturning circulation," said co-author Don Chambers , USF College of Marine Science associate professor.

How much of the enhanced freshwater flux actually winds up in the Labrador Sea?

Because of the clockwise nature of ocean circulation around Greenland, most of the freshwater increase, up to 70 percent, is being driven toward the Labrador Sea, magnifying its impact and increasing the possibility of significant effects on the AMOC, said Qian Yang, the paper's first author and a PhD student at USF whose dissertation, in part, includes this research.

According to the researchers, not only are changes in the AMOC difficult to measure, it's also difficult to separate natural climatic variation from climate changes induced by human activity.

The potential consequences of a weakened AMOC include changes in climate.

"The AMOC transports a large amount of heat into the North Atlantic where it is given up to the atmosphere and helps regulate the climate in Europe and North America. The major effect of a slowing AMOC is expected to be cooler winters and summers around the North Atlantic, and small regional increases in sea level on the North American coast," explained Chambers.

According to Dixon, the global impacts are less certain, but potentially more consequential.

"The AMOC and Gulf Stream are part of a complex global ocean circulation system that is still not completely understood," said Dixon. "If human activities are starting to impact this system, it is a worrying sign that the scale of human impacts on the climate system may be reaching a critical point."

Continued long-term observation is required to understand the impact of the freshwater influx.

"This shows the need to continue to look at different components of the climate system, including the ice sheets and oceans, in an integrated sense," concluded Paul Myers, study co-author and Professor of Oceanography at the University of Alberta.

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Post-financial crisis, notional pooling was one of the tools that received increased interest as companies looked to optimize their internal cash sources.

However, higher bank equity requirements and demands of the liquidity coverage ratio under Basel III have raised questions on the future of the product.



Benoit Desserre,

Societe Generale

Notional pooling differs from physical cash pooling in that the funds are not moved between the various locations where a company is based. It has been preferred by large companies as it creates a single funding pool while allowing each organization to retain its own cash position. Notional pooling also removes the expense of conducting FX transactions, and the need to conduct inter-company loans.

The requirements under Basel III mean outstanding balances within a pool will be netted, leaving the ratios to be calculated on the gross balances. Because of this, banks will need liquidity to cover the pool. Overdraft balances, which see greater scrutiny under Basel III, also require an increase in regulatory capital being held by the banks.

The rising costs have forced a number of banks to reconsider offering the product, and raised questions on its viability as a cash-management tool. However, rather than seeing the death of notional pooling, the banks committed to the product are likely to reassess their criteria.

Benoit Desserre, global head of payments and cash management at Societe Generale, explains the product's challenges.

Under previous rules, notional pooling was profitable from the first cent," he says. "But in the future, to continue offering the product, banks will need to meet the new regulatory requirements, like allocating a minimum of equity and applying leverage ratio. They will need to be able to put a lot of equity into something which in the past cost nothing.

Notional pooling could be seen as being a victim of its success, being implemented for a greater number of companies than it was potentially suitable for, by banks without the full capabilities to manage it.

Notional pooling is very niche, says Desserre. Not many banks can offer it as it is a very technical product. And the customers that are large enough to need it and have good enough treasury functions to support it are rare.

The product requires considerable legal and tax resources relating to each jurisdiction it is implemented.



Suzanne Janse van

Rensburg, BAML

Suzanne Janse van Rensburg, regional head of liquidity, GTS EMEA, at Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML), says: Pooling is a complex product offering. Banks need to apply a high level of due diligence to ensure it is the right solution for a client and that it meets a client's objectives, but also make sure that it fits within the bank's parameters.

Mark Smith, head of global liquidity, GTS, at BAML, adds: The notional-pooling proposition needs to be strong and future-proofed. There needs to be a stringent legal and account framework underpinning the offering to ensure it meets the necessary requirements and to deal with complexities.

The banks that continue to use notional pooling are also likely to apply stricter rules on which companies they will offer the product to.

By the time the Basel rules are implemented in 2018, I would be surprised if there are not some important changes from the banks on who they offer it to  either with them being more picky, more restrictive or more expensive, says SocGen's Desserre.

In particular, banks are likely to move towards their best credit-rated clients, and the ones with the most sophisticated treasury structures.

Whatever the reason for the withdrawal, the corporate that had been used to the notional pool will be faced with finding an alternative.

BAML's Janse van Rensburg says: If notional pooling is no longer a viable solution for a corporate, whether this is a provider or a company-driven solution, this can be challenging for a corporate.

"It is important for them to work with their banking providers to assess suitable alternatives to ensure they can continue to meet their liquidity management objectives. This may involve considering other providers or pooling product alternatives.

In some circumstances, corporate treasurers will choose to issue a request for proposal, but might still realize they cannot find another bank that will be willing to provide them with the service.

One alternative is to shift from notional to physical pooling, such as cash concentration, when money is physically relocated to one account. This gives greater oversight over cash and enough control to allow the identification of excess cash for use in investment.

Some corporates are already organically making this switch away in response to pricing changes.



Thomas Schickler, HSBC

Thomas Schickler, global head of product management, global payments and cash management, HSBC, says: Notional pooling and cash concentration can both serve a client's need to self-fund. Increasingly, we are observing a slight bias towards cash concentration as the need to increase the frequency of settlement of notional pool positions has increased the costs to manage the pool.

The treasurers themselves need to be prepared for the additional workload such a complex structure creates.

Schickler adds: Whether a customer chooses notional pooling or cash concentration, there are extensive internal documentation and operational considerations. For the former, a client will need to manage a set of cross-guarantees, as well as take measures to ensure that short positions in the pool are settled on a periodic basis.

Although notional pooling faces a substantial increase in cost, and increasing restrictions, it still remains an essential part of cash management for a number of corporate treasurers.

Therefore, banks might be willing to take the financial hit on continuing to offer the service, even if for a reduced number of customers.

Desserre says: It is possible the banks will not pass on the higher cost to the corporate. If they have a profitable relationship, they may not want to jeopardize it by increasing the price.
In the two decades following the end of the Cold War the notion of a Greater Europe, an integrated space stretching from Lisbon to Vladivostok, attracted a great deal of support. You only need read Russian President Vladimir Putins 2010 commentary in Seuddeutsche Zeitung to understand just how powerful this idea once was. Today however the long-standing supporters of a cooperative and integrated continent, like former Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov, are coming to terms with the Sunset of Greater Europe. Some political circles in Moscow have their sights set instead on a Greater Asia, from St Petersburg to Shanghai. Massive deals with China, like an estimated $2 billion to supply Beijing with advanced SU-35 fighter jets, are illustrative of this broader shift in Russias outlook, away from Europe and towards Asia.

Russias about-face is largely a response to the breakdown in relations with the West in the wake of the Ukraine crisis. A short-term tactical decision to shore up some international support, has arguably resulted in a long-term strategic shift. There is little point in arguing for a return to the idea of Greater Europe. The collapse of Russias relationships with its fellow European states has made this dream impossible to pursue. But it is clear that some people in Russia want to go a step further: they no longer believe cooperation with the EU is necessary or beneficial, and that Asia is the answer to Russias problems. Those people are wrong.

Upbeat rhetoric covers several huge cracks in Russias pivot to Asia. The first is uncertainty over how Russia will accommodate increasing Chinese influence in Central Asia. After all, Moscows aggression in Eastern Europe shows how it feels about others meddling in its sphere of influence.

The second problem is how to benefit from integration into Asia while growth in the region slows and political tensions, for example in the South China Sea, flare. The third, and perhaps biggest crack, is how Russia can reorient its economy towards Asia. Lack of capital is already delaying the development of its pipelines in the region, and the anticipated period of low global commodities prices will make things even more difficult.

This is symptomatic of a wider problem facing Russia, namely that it cannot replace Europe with non-Western partnerships. China serves here as a perfect example, despite Russian claims that bilateral trade with China would hit $100bn in 2015, the figure actually fell by 27.8% to $64.2bn, largely due to the impact of sanctions and falling oil prices. Relatively modest trade with its other BRICS partners, and concerns about slowing global growth and falling commodities prices, demonstrate that Russias alternatives to Europe arent quite as safe a bet as Moscow might have hoped.

Economic concerns in Russia are severe, both in the short and long-term. By Vladimir Putins own admission, Russian GDP contracted by 3.8% in 2015, with the ruble tumbling to an all time low. While this economic crisis is only part caused by European sanctions, the other cause  the global collapse in oil prices  points to a greater problem that Asia cannot be a remedy for. Russias one-dimensional economy is reliant on energy exports, which fuelled its recent economic boom. The primary direction of exports is still Westbound. In 2013 the EU accounted for approximately 71% of Russias gas exports, and it will be some time before Asia represents a real alternative. Moreover, if and when Russia does diversify its economy it will need a place to sell its high tech products and services. There is no better direction than the largest wealthy consumer market on the planet, which is the EU area. To write off development of relations with nearly 24% of the worlds economy, a source of potentially vital technology cooperation, and your biggest source of investment, all in the hope of a potential windfall of Greater Asia, simply does not make sense.

In terms of Russias national security, turning its back to Europe is equally puzzling. Three regions of critical concern to Russia in the coming decades are regions in which Europe has significant influence. Both sides have currently wildly diverging approaches, but Russia can ill-afford to antagonize its European partners.

The Middle East is the preeminent source of global terrorism. The downing of a Russian airliner in October 2015 was the latest in a long history of terrorist attacks on Russian citizens. Russia shares a concern with this threat with its European neighbours. With Europeans playing an increasingly important role in Syria and the wider region, dialogue may bring more results than ignoring Europes role.

In Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus, the European Union has already shown its ability to influence states Moscow believes are part of its sphere of influence. Russia can of course continue to obstruct the EU actions in the region, and continue its pressure on Ukraine, but it can arguably gain far more from cooperation, both economically and strategically. This could result in the development of stable and productive relations between the EU and Russias Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), strengthening the latter after what has been a very weak start.

To the North, Moscow sees the Arctic as one of Russias greatest economic opportunities in the coming decades. Melting ice-caps will give access to previous impenetrable resources and the elusive Northern Sea Route. Russias Arctic Zone holds a majority of the regions gas and a sizeable portion of its oil, and should oil prices recover to the point where extraction becomes economically viable, Moscow will need a stable environment for investment, and better technology and more capital to overcome the technical challenges and higher costs associated with the regions development. Stability in the region will itself be best ensured by cooperation with fellow Arctic Council members, of which five are members of the EU or European members of NATO.

Russia is right to pursue closer relations with Asia, as the rest of the world must too. The 21st century will be increasingly multipolar, and Moscow in many respects stands to benefit from its geography and position in the international system but will do so only if it positions itself as an essential bridge between east and West rather than seeking to choose between them. 80% of Russians live in Europe and it is in Europe that a great number of the critical issues facing Russia will be decided upon and influenced. Europe can offer the tools Russia needs to grow its economy and secure many of its interests. Strong ties with Asia will leave Russia in a stronger position in Europe, but so too will stronger ties with Europe give Russia more weight in Asia and in the 21st century.

This article will be followed by an article on the 26th of January explaining Why the West, especially Europe, Needs Russia, and is part of a wider project assessing the strategic rationale for cooperation between Russia and the European Union generously funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York. A wide-ranging policy brief will be released in March/April.

The opinions articulated above represent the views of the author(s), and do not necessarily reflect the position of the European Leadership Network or any of its members. The ELNs aim is to encourage debates that will help develop Europes capacity to address the pressing foreign, defence, and security policy challenges of our time.


Take action now: Contact United Methodist officials and urge them to overturn their ban on Discovery Institute.

I thought you might want to see just what has top officials at the United Methodist Church running scared. Above is a photo of the dreaded Discovery Institute information table from which the UMC hierarchy felt bound to protect attendees at the upcoming General Conference. There you see our colleague Donald McLaughlin, a United Methodist himself, manning the table at a recent event and chatting with passerby as they wait to have a book signed by Stephen Meyer.

From a different angle:

And here for a double threat is Dr. Meyer signing a copy of Darwins Doubt. This is the book table as distinct from the information table:

Whats so scary? World Magazines Dick Peterson reports that the United Methodist Church refused to respond to a request for an explanation. Of course we know what theyve said already, and none of it makes much sense. However, World quotes Discovery Institutes John West and Michael Flannery, another United Methodist.

It seems to me that you are applying your vetting standard simply to exclude an idea you apparently dislike, not to fairly apply the standards you espouse, John West, Discovery Institutes vice president, wrote in a letter to the UMC. West notes the irony that a denomination with the slogan Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors would reject Discoverys application solely on the basis that it supports intelligent design. The denominations slogan should be Closed Hearts, Closed Minds, Closed Doors, he said. Preventing United Methodist leaders from even hearing about intelligent design isnt open-minded. Its intolerant and exclusionary, West said. Michael Flannery, a university professor and Discovery Institute fellow, said he was disheartened and appalled that officials representing his denomination would try to stop discussion before it starts. [They] certainly dont speak for me or for many other United Methodists in the pews, Flannery said.

Why do we care? First, because were interested in reaching thoughtful adults of all faiths or none. Perhaps more importantly because censorship begets more censorship. Allowed to stand, one seemingly small attempt to silence discussion on a vital issue is an encouragement to other censors.

On the flipside, free speech and critical thought are an incitement to more free speech and more critical thought. That, I think, is the threat posed by our humble information table.
Take action now: Contact United Methodist officials and urge them to overturn their ban on Discovery Institute.

United Methodist Bishop Michael Coyner, based in Indiana, has published an online missive chastising the many United Methodists and others who have been contacting him over the United Methodist Church (UMC) decision to ban Discovery Institute from sponsoring an information table at the UMC General Conference in May.

Bishop Coyner complains that his in-box is being filled with angry messages from people accusing him of all sorts of misdeeds. He professes that he initially didnt know what the heck people were talking about. He asserts that he had nothing to do with the decision to ban Discovery Institute, although he goes on to defend the decision and spread inaccurate information about it. He accuses those who contacted him of having spammed him. He ends by admonishing his correspondents to follow James 1:19: be quick to listen, slow to speak, and even slower to get angry.

Whew. Its clear that the many communications from people protesting the UMCs decision to ban Discovery Institute are having an effect. UMC officials have moved from ignoring the issue to becoming defensive and lashing out.

Bishop Coyner appears to claim that he initially didnt know what the fuss was about when he started to be deluged with emails. (It took a while for me to understand the source of all this angerand ironically it is for a decision that I did not make or know about until the last few days.) Coyners claim surprises me. As Chair of the UMCs General Council on Finance and Administration, he was one of three officials to whom I sent a letter on January 6 via email asking for the ban on Discovery Institute to be overturned. To be blunt, my letter was received by Bishop Coyner many days before Discovery Institute went public with what had happened, and well before Bishop Coyner would have received any emails from others. If Bishop Coyner truly didnt know what people were complaining to him about, it can only be because he ignored the letter sent to him on January 6.

As for why Bishop Coyner is now receiving emails along with other UMC officials: Weve made clear that the decision to ban Discovery Institute was officially made by an entity called the Commission on the General Conference, and weve named the chair of that group (Judi Kenaston) as the first person people should contact. But Bishop Coyner is being less than candid when he implies that this controversy has nothing to do with him. The decision to ban Discovery Institute was implemented and communicated by an employee working for the General Council on Finance and Administration  the very group that Bishop Coyner chairs!

Thats why Bishop Coyner was one of the people addressed in our appeal filed earlier in January. And thats why we listed him among the parties people could contact to protest the decision. Bishop Coyners accusation that those writing him have spammed him is completely unjustified. As the official head of the group that implemented the decision in question, he certainly is one of the relevant parties. Coyner is also a Bishop in the United Methodist Church, and as such, he is an official representative of his church. So even if the General Council on Finance and Administration had played no role in carrying out this decision, it still would be appropriate for concerned individuals to contact him. One of the most basic functions of a church leader is to listen to those who have concerns. When leaders of a church start to claim it is illegitimate for others to contact them with their complaints, its a sign there is something unhealthy going on in the leadership culture.

Another sign of unhealthy leadership is when a leader chooses to demonize and dismiss those who express concerns rather than seriously responding to them. Yet that is precisely the tactic adopted by Bishop Coyner. He basically smears all who have written him as angry people who spammed him with false and mean-spirited accusations without knowing the facts. Of course, I dont have access to every single message Bishop Coyner has received. Some of the communications may have been inappropriate. However, I have received copies of many messages people have sent to Bishop Coyner as well as other UMN officials. I have been struck by how thoughtful many of the messages were. They raised concerns that deserve to be heard, not dismissed.

Although Bishop Coyner disclaims any responsibility for the decision to ban Discovery Institute, this doesnt stop him from defending the decision, albeit by spreading false information. Coyner asserts that the General Conference Commission turned down [Discovery Institutes] request for a variety of reasons, mostly because they are not a UM group or a mission project, nor does the concept of intelligent design fully correspond to our UM faith in the God of Creation. (Emphasis added.)

In truth, the UMC never told us it had rejected our request mostly because [we] are not a UM group or a mission project. Indeed, the UMC never raised this issue with us at all, and the UMCs own vendor information clearly didnt limit vendors to just UMC ministries. Bishop Coyner is correct on one point: There was an effort to claim (wrongly) that allowing an information table about intelligent design would somehow violate United Methodist policies or beliefs. But if Bishop Coyner really wants people to take seriously these offered justifications, he should address some inconvenient facts. For example, if the UMC is so concerned about limiting participation to Methodist groups as well as enforcing doctrinal purity, Bishop Coyner should explain why the UMC accepted as sponsors of the General Conference two large corporations (not known as Methodist ministries, surely!) who advocate positions explicitly contrary to the UMCs stated standards on marriage.

Bishop concludes his online missive by challenging his critics to listen before they speak and to engage in genuine discussion:

And so I am reminded that our Christian response to this age of everyone feeling offended is to LISTEN before speaking, to UNDERSTAND before jumping to conclusions, and to ENGAGE in meaningful discussion rather than one-way messages.

I certainly agree with Bishop Coyners advice, but Coyner doesnt seem to understand the irony in it. Coyners own missive is a good example of someone not listening to others, jumping to conclusions, and avoiding meaningful discussion rather than one-way messages. Indeed, when it comes to intelligent design, Bishop Coyner defends the decision of UMC officials to prevent meaningful discussion rather than one-way messages about intelligent design at the UMCs General Conference.

The many wonderful members and pastors of the United Methodist Church around the world deserve better than this from their Bishops.

Image: Statue of John Wesley, Melbourne, Australia, by Paul Raphael Montford [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.
Unfortunately, its typical for advocates of inquiry-based science teaching to apply their good ideas to everything but evolution. Case in point: here is physician Danielle Teller writing over at Quartz to suggest that teaching science as a collection of facts, rather than a process, has contributed to a lack of science savvy. Yet in the same article she denounces the publics doubts on evolution  as if Darwinian theory were one fact that they ought to have simply swallowed whole.

Dr. Teller laments that [a]bout a third of Americans think there is no sound evidence for the existence of evolution. She wrongly lumps doubt over the scientific accuracy of evolution with vaccine and climate skepticism, and she is certainly mistaken in dismissing questions about Darwinian theory as a sign of scientific illiteracy. However, Teller is correct in describing science as a process of inquiry rather than the mere gathering of data.

She notes:

Most importantly, if we want future generations to be truly scientifically literate, we should teach our children that science is not a collection of immutable facts but a method for temporarily setting aside some of our ubiquitous human frailties, our biases and irrationality, our longing to confirm our most comforting beliefs, our mental laziness.

One reason science should be taught as a process, Teller says, is because facts change. Or rather, the body of facts we know expands. This is well recognized. Indeed, one of the precursors to modern national science standards, Project 2061, focused on scientific inquiry rather than facts. Developed in the 1980s, it aimed to prepare a scientifically knowledgeable population in time for the return of Halleys comet in 2061. The projects director, Jo Ellen Roseman, told Ars Technica: While we had no idea what the world would be like, we could guarantee that it would be shaped by science, mathematics, and technology.

But macroevolutionary theory has run into trouble precisely because it is a 19th-century idea in a world where the body of known facts has broadened dramatically. Consider Darwins explanation of the evolution of the eye. He thought that one could go from a light-sensitive spot to our complex human eyes. But that was understandable. In his era, no one recognized the eyes intricacies as we do now. Or take the case of so-called vestigial organs. To cite two examples, much of what we thought we knew about the appendix and tonsils as vestigial by-products of evolution has been falsified as scientists find important immune and other functions.

Yet neo-Darwinisms defenders hang on because humans have a tendency to reject ideas that challenge preconceived notions. As Thomas Kuhn wrote in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, when faced with an anomaly, a theorys defenders will devise numerous articulations and ad hoc modifications of their theory in order to eliminate any apparent conflict.

The result in the context of origins science is a sort of fundamentalist evolutionary thinking that rejects counterevidence and dismisses any suggestion that evolution might have weaknesses. Teller writes of her own experience in learning to follow the evidence instead of what she had been taught, noting, my own personal coda is that I never rejected out-of-hand a theory that challenged my preconceived notions again. Why the exception, then, for neo-Darwinism?

Science, finally, should be taught as a process because the interpretation of data requires critical thinking. Science education theorists agree. In a joint issue on the theme of reform in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) education, Nature and Scientific American noted, [S]tudents gain a much deeper understanding of science when they actively grapple with questions than when they passively listen to answers.

Nevertheless, in public school science classrooms, evolution is often presented in a one-sided, dogmatic manner. At Discovery Institute, we support education that promotes critical thinking by teaching the evolution controversy. What would that look like in the classroom? Teachers could engage their biology students on such questions as: Do Galapagos finches provide evidence for macro-, or only micro-evolution? Are vertebrate embryos really similar in their earliest stages? How likely is it that the Miller-Urey experiment represents conditions present on early earth? Such analysis makes students confront the data before them and look at it from multiple angles, considering a variety of possible interpretations. That, after all, is what the scientific method is all about.

In fact, you dont have to be a student, a teacher, or a scientist to engage in scientific inquiry. Thinking critically is for adults, all adults, too. Teller notes:

Its not possible for everyone  or anyone  to be sufficiently well trained in science to analyze data from multiple fields and come up with sound, independent interpretations. I spent decades in medical research, but I will never understand particle physics, and Ive forgotten almost everything I ever learned about inorganic chemistry. It is possible, however, to learn enough about the powers and limitations of the scientific method to intelligently determine which claims made by scientists are likely to be true and which deserve skepticism. [Emphasis added.]

Yes, exactly! It is possible. Although Teller goes on to echo the medias normal neo-Darwinian rhetoric  extol inquiry, but affirm the validity of dogmatic belief in evolution  what she says there could not be more right.

Image credit:  hd3dsh / Dollar Photo Club.
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LONDON  A high-profile British inquiry into the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko, a former KGB officer turned critic of the Kremlin, concluded in a report released Thursday that his murder was probably approved by Russian President Vladimir Putin and the head of the countrys spy service.

The finding by Robert Owen, a retired High Court judge, represented by far the most damning official link between Litvinenkos death Nov. 23, 2006, and the highest levels of the Kremlin.

Litvenenkos death plunged relations between Britain and Russia into a chill reminiscent of the Cold War. But British officials suggested that they would seek to safeguard the countrys broader relationship with Moscow, even as both sides engaged in verbal sparring.

Owen did not provide direct evidence linking Putin or any other high-level Russian officials to the killing, and he acknowledged that he had based his findings on strong circumstantial evidence of Russian state responsibility. That included the likely origin of the polonium that was used to poison Litvinenko being a Russian reactor and that there were powerful motives for organizations and individuals within the Russian state to take action against him.

We regret that the strictly criminal case has been politicized and has darkened the general atmosphere of bilateral relations, said Maria Zakharova, a Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, the news agency Interfax reported. Certainly, we need some time to thoroughly analyze the contents of this document, after which we will issue our detailed review.

Speaking after the release of the report, Litvinenkos widow, Marina, called for the expulsion of Russian intelligence officers from London and the imposition of targeted economic sanctions against individuals including Putin and his former spy chief, Nikolai Patrushev.

Litvinenkos lawyer, Ben Emmerson, said it would be craven of British Prime Minister David Cameron to fail to respond to what he called nuclear terrorism on the streets of London.

In Parliament, Home Secretary Theresa May called Litvinenkos death a blatant and unacceptable breach of the most fundamental tenets of international law and civilized behavior, while also noting that Russias apparent role does not come as a surprise.

She said the British assets of the two Russian men suspected in the killing, Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun, would be frozen and that the Russian ambassador would be summoned to be told of Britains response.

Litvinenko died 22 days after ingesting tea from a pot laced with polonium 210  a rare and highly toxic isotope  in the company of Lugovoi and Kovtun. He was 43. The three men had met in the Pine Bar of the Millennium Hotel in London.

Lugovoi, now a member of Russias parliament, said the accusation that he murdered Litvinenko was absurd, Interfax reported. A Kremlin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said the Litvinenko case is not among the topics that interest us.
WASHINGTON  In celebration of its 40th anniversary, the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress (AFC) launched a year-long campaign asking Americans to share photos of their folk traditions. The campaign kicks off a year of events that will commemorate AFCs four decades as the institution of record for American folk traditions and ensure that it remains the countrys most vibrant folklife archive and research center well into the future.

Photos

The photo campaign asks people all over the United States and beyond to submit photos of a folk tradition in which they themselves participate, creating a collective snapshot of folklife in 2016. Photo subjects can include performances; artworks; cuisine; handmade objects such as baskets, textiles or furniture making; or customs observed, such as anniversaries, holidays or other traditions.

The campaign asks participants to share the photos to Flickr with the tag MyTradition and a Creative Commons license. The campaign will last throughout 2016, and at the end of the year the Library of Congress will harvest photos that have both the tag and a license and add them to the AFCs collections.

AFC will issue a 2016 edition of its classic fieldwork manual Folklife and Fieldwork, as well as other print and online publications. The centers blog, Folklife Today, will make regular postings throughout the year highlighting AFCs contributions and collections, and noting AFCs events. To learn how to submit a photo, visit http://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/.
SALEM, Ohio  Equipment, equipment and more equipment. Thats what Power Show organizers want you to remember when you plan your trip this year to the 46th annual Power Show Ohio in Columbus.

The show is held at the Ohio Expo Center. It will open its doors, Jan. 28, Jan. 29 and Jan. 30. That means it will open Thursday again this year.

We are trying to get the new to be the new normal now, said Dennis Alford, Power Show Ohio manager.

The show opens at 9 a.m. and closes at 4 p.m., all three days.

Thursday

Alford said the decision to start the show Thursday was easy because of the attendance last year on the day. He said there was significant attendance that day.

Alford said the uptick in attendance showed that folks who usually cant get there, had the chance to get there by opening Thursday.

The change was instituted after a survey showed that exhibitors desired to reserve Sundays for family and church services.

Kiddie pull

The Kiddie Tractor Pull will be held Jan. 30.

We love to have the kiddie tractor pull; it gives the youth the chance to enter and be involved, said Alford.

Layout

This is the second year of a new layout in the exhibitor area.

Alford said the new floor plans make it easier to find things and help attendees see where they need to go.

The revised floor plan also helps to highlight the newest innovations in power equipment at the indoor equipment show.

It gives everyone the opportunity to see what new technology and efficiencies can be found. It shows the exhibitors latest and greatest equipment, said Alford.

The floor plans encompass 212,000 square feet using the Bricker Building and Celeste Center. The same amount of exhibit space has been maintained by narrowing the aisles and making more efficient use of the exhibit floor.

Having all exhibits in two buildings that are in close proximity to each other reduces the amount of walking for attendees allowing them more time to talk with exhibitors.

Power equipment

Power Show Ohio is not like any other equipment show. It brings together, all in one place, three segments of the power equipment industry: agriculture, construction and outdoor power equipment.

Power Show Ohio features more than 500 brands of equipment, including tractors, skid steer loaders, commercial mowing equipment, all terrain vehicles, grain handling, fencing, hay equipment, buildings, backhoes, firewood equipment, compact tractors, livestock equipment and a number of lifestyle items.

The show also includes daily educational seminars.

Admission costs

Discount coupons are available from equipment dealers throughout Ohio. The discount coupons give attendees a $2 discount on the $10 carload admission, and parking is fee.

Power Show Ohio is sponsored by the Ohio-Michigan Equipment Dealers Association and held at the Ohio Expo Center just off Interstate 71 at Exit 111 in Columbus.

For more details, go to PowerShowOhio.com.
Reduced meat consumption might not lower greenhouse gas emissions from one of the worlds biggest beef producing regions, new research has found. The finding may seem incongruous, as intensive agriculture is responsible for such a large proportion of global greenhouse gas emissions.

According to research by University of Edinburgh, Scotlands Rural College (SRUC) and Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa), reducing beef production in the Brazilian Cerrado could actually increase global greenhouse gas emissions. The findings were published this week in the journal Nature Climate Change.

Lead author Rafael Silva, of the University of Edinburghs School of Mathematics, explains: Much of Brazils grassland is in poor condition, leading to low beef productivity and high greenhouse gas emissions from cattle. However, increasing demand for meat provides an incentive for farmers to recover degraded pastures. This would boost the amount of carbon stored in the soil and increase cattle productivity. It would require less land for grazing and reduce deforestation, potentially lowering emissions.

While grasslands are not as effective as forests at storing carbon, Brazilian grass  mostly Brachiaria genus  has a greater capacity to do so than grass found in Europe, due to its long roots. High quality grasslands will cause more carbon to be stored in the soil, which will lead to a decrease in CO2 emissions. Grassland improvement involves chemical and mechanical treatment of the soil, and use of better adapted seeds along with calcium, limestone and nitrogen fertilisers. Most Brazilian grassland soils are acidic, requiring little nitrogen.

In the case of the Brazilian Cerrado, reduced meat consumption could remove the incentive for grassland improvement and therefore lead to higher emissions. The researchers worked out that if demand for beef is 30% higher by 2030 compared with current estimates, net emissions would decrease by 10%. Reducing demand by 30% would lead to 9% higher emissions, provided the deforestation rates are not altered by a higher demand. However, if deforestation rates increase along with demand, emissions could increase by as much as 60%.

Professor Dominic Moran, of SRUC's Land Economy, Environment and Society Group, says: The message of our research is to beware of unintended consequences. In some production regions, shifting to less meat-dependent diets would help curb climate change, but it is important to understand the nature of different production systems before concluding that reduced consumption will have the same effects in all systems.
World class small-wind turbine manufacturer Gaia-Wind has sold its first turbines to Japan just weeks after establishing own local subsidiary. With an initial two turbines already in country, the local team at Gaia-Wind KK, in Tokyo, has just won a contract for a further eight machines.

YBM Japan Inc. located in Ishikawa prefecture, will sell and distribute them in a value added resale operation across the country. Gaia-Wind expect to export more than 100 turbines to Japan over the next year.

Following the establishment of Gaia-Wind KK the company has built a network of resellers including YBM Japan Inc., LOOOP Inc. and the Green-Power Corporation, to deliver its world class GW133 turbine to the Japanese market. The company is also looking to develop a long term commercial relationship with others.

Gaia-Wind CEO Johnnie Andringa said: This contract gets our Japanese venture off to a flying start. It is we believe, the first of many. Japan has a market size 1.6 times that of the UK and the most attractive feed in tariff in the world. Our Japanese reselling partners are gearing up to help deliver what Japanese Consul General in Scotland Mr Kitaoka described as: The conversion from atomic power to renewable energy after the Tsunami disaster in 2011.

We confidently expect to sell over 100 turbines into japan over 2016 and in time to achieve double that amount annually. Following the disastrous effects of botched UK support mechanisms, our export strategy will see us reducing our exposure to the UK domestic market to around 15% of our total sales. This will protect and indeed generate new jobs in a tough farm scale renewables environment.





Mr Kitaoka said: I was most pleased by the splendid news that GAIA Wind has succeeded in selling wind turbines to Japan. For me, especially after the tsunami in 2011, I believe Scotland is an important teacher in the promotion of renewable energy. Just like Scotland taught Japan for modernisation in the 19th Century.

Last year I was privileged to meet CEO Mr Johnnie Andringa and together with his Japanese customers, now this has borne fruit. I sincerely hope that with this contract, this is the time for the step forward for the GAIA - Wind Turbine  which I am convinced is the worlds most advanced wind turbine".

Some 1200 Gaia-Wind turbines have now been running for a combined operational time of more than 20 million hours. That's almost 2,500 years of dependable, renewable energy generation: In Denmark, almost 100 Gaia-Wind turbines have been running for more than 10 years. These turbines have contributed more than 30,000MWhrs of green electricity, delivering energy independence for their owners and that much less strain on the grid.
Producers still losing 18-20 per pig, new estimates show
A fatal Tuesday in Fayetteville: Two killed in two separate shootings
The U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania filed an indictment Wednesday charging five people in an alleged scheme to steal trade secrets from pharma giant GlaxoSmithKline.

The defendants are:

Yu Xue, 45, of Wayne, Pennsylvania

Tao Li, 42, of Nanjing, China

Yan Mei, 36, of Nanjing, China

Tian Xue, 45, of Charlotte, North Carolina, and

Lucy Xi, 38, of West Lake Village, California.

The indictment includes charges of conspiracy to steal trade secrets, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, theft of trade secrets, and wire fraud.

Yu Xue and Lucy Xi were scientists working at GSKs research facility in Upper Merion, Pennsylvania. The pharma is based in the UK.

According to the indictment, the defendants engaged in a scheme to steal trade secrets related to GSK research data, procedures, and manufacturing processes for biopharmaceutical products.

Many of the biopharmaceutical products targeted were designed to treat cancer or other serious diseases, the DOJ said.

Yu Xue, Tao Li, and Yan Mei formed a corporation in China called Renopharma allegedly to market and sell the stolen trade secret information.

To hide the crime, Yu Xue, Tao Li, and Yan Mei agreed to put money earned from the stolen trade secrets in the name of Yu Xues sister, Tian Xue, and other family members, according to the indictment.

The defendants face up to ten years in prison for the trade secrets-related offenses, and up to twenty years in prison for the money laundering and wire fraud-related counts. Individuals convicted of conspiracy or substantive money laundering counts can also be fined $500,000 or the value of the property involved, whichever is more.

* * *

In September 2014, a court in Changsha, China fined GSK $490 million following a conviction for bribery.
This May, Seth Rogen, Rose Byrne, and Zac Efron are set to reunite for comedy Bad Neighbours 2.

Bad Neighbours 2

It was back in 2014 when we were introduced to the characters of Mac & Kelly Radner and Teddy Sanders for the first time... two years on and Mac & Kelly find themselves facing more sorority problems.

The first trailer for the film has arrived and we have it for you to take a look at:

Bad Neighbours 2 marks the return of Nicholas Stoller to the director's chair for the first time since the success of the first movie - it is great to see him sticking with this comedy franchise.

Alongside Rogen, Byrne, and Efron, Dave Franco is another of the familiar faces to return to the cast list second time around. However, there are some big new additions as Chloe Grace Moretz, Selena Gomez, and Lisa Kudrow are all also set to star.

Now that Mac (Rogen) and Kelly Radner (Byrne) have a second baby on the way, they are ready to make the final move into adulthood: the suburbs. But just as they thought they'd reclaimed the neighbourhood and were safe to sell, they learn that the new occupants next door are a sorority even more out of control than Teddy (Efron) and his brothers ever dreamed of being.

Tired of their school's sexist, restrictive system, the unorthodox ladies of Kappa Nu have decided to start a house where they can do whatever the hell they want. When Shelby (Moretz) and her sisters, Beth (Kiersey Clemons) and Nora (Beanie Feldstein), find the perfect place just off campus, they won't let the fact that it's located on a quiet street stand in their way of parties as epic as the guys throw. Forced to turn to the one ex-neighbour with the skills to bring down the new Greeks next door, the Radners - alongside best friends Jimmy (Ike Barinholtz) and Paula (Carla Gallo) - bring in charismatic Teddy as their secret weapon.

If he can infiltrate the sorority and charm his way through it, the thirtysomethings will shutter the Kappas' home. But if they think that their neighbours are going down without a fight, they have severely underestimated the power of youthful ingenuity and straight-up crazy.

Bad Neighbours 2 is released 6th May.

by Helen Earnshaw for www.femalefirst.co.uk

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Starring: Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling, Steve Carell, Brad Pitt

The Big Short

Director: Adam McKay

Rating: 4/5

January has been a terrific month for great ensemble casts and The Big Short boasts another impressive line-up as Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling, Steve Carell, and Brad Pitt join forces in the new film from writer and director Adam McKay.

McKay has brought us films such as Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy and Step Brothers, but The Big Short shows off a very different side to him as a filmmaker. The movie has already picked up Golden Globe and Oscar nominations and it has finally hit the big screen here in the UK.

Based on the true story and best-selling book by Michael Lewis, the movie follows four outsiders who saw what the big banks, media and government refused to, the global collapse of the economy, they had an idea: The Big Short.

Their bold investment leads them into the dark underbelly of modern banking where they must question everyone and everything.

On paper, shining a light on the financial crisis does sound a little boring, but McKay and Charles Randolph have penned a screenplay that is smart, entertaining and far funnier than you ever expect it to be.

What is love about The Big Short is the fact that you don't have to be interesting or know anything about economics of the financial crisis to be engaged and entertained by the witty script, sharp direction and terrific performances from the central cast.

McKay has assembled a terrific list of stars and Bale, Gosling, Carell and Pitt are on fine form and I love the banter between them.

Bale is terrific as Michael Burry and really captures the eccentric nature of a man who worked hard to find as much fraud as possible. Bale really does shine and it is no surprise that he has been recognised with a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination.

While Carell, Gosling, and Pitt are also fantastic, for me, it was Bale that truly did shine from start to finish and I always love watching him on the big screen.

I have not been a big fan of McKay over the years and can take or leave movies such as Anchorman and The Other Guys, but The Big Short really does show off his writing and directing skills in a much better light and I hope he continues down this path and moves away from those daft comedies.

He has done a great job in breaking down the industry jargon and it is brave to see him breaking the fourth wall to explain certain aspects that we may struggle to understand - however, he never treats the audience in a condescending way.

I must admit, I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I sat down to watch The Big Short but it is a movie that was as stylish as it was funny and it is my favourite film from McKay.

This is an absurd story that you wouldn't believe if you didn't know it was true and it is horrifying to see the practices that went on in this industry at that time. This is a story that really should make your blood boil but you cannot help but laugh.

The Big Short is out now.

by Helen Earnshaw for www.femalefirst.co.uk

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Lord Frederick Windsor has welcomed his second daughter.

Lord Frederick Windsor and Sophie Winkleman

The 36-year-old financial analyst - who is the only son of the Prince and Princess Michael of Kent - and his wife, actress Sophie Winkleman, have confirmed the arrival of Isabella Alexandra May Windsor.

In a statement, they said: "Lord and Lady Frederick Windsor have announced the birth of their second daughter, Isabella Alexandra May Windsor.

"The baby was safely delivered at 11.59pm on 16th January 2016 at Chelsea & Westminster Hospital."

The couple - who already have daughter Maud Elizabeth Daphne Marina Windsor together - returned from the United States to the UK ahead of the birth and to celebrate Christmas in their home country.

Meanwhile, Princess Michael previously expressed her excitement for the new arrival.

She gushed: "My granddaughter was two in August and I can't wait to play with her. I'm besotted and there will be lots of games. I'm sure I'll be just as besotted with the second one."

If Isabella is anything like her father, she will be causing "chaos" in her younger days as Queen Elizabeth's grandson Peter Phillips previously revealed about Frederick.

He said: "We had a lot of fun and there was a lot of space for kids to run around in, and it wasn't just us - it was the Wales' (William and Harry), Freddie and Ella Windsor, and the Gloucesters.

"So there was quite a gang of us growing up in that age and it was a lot of fun. We caused quite a bit of mayhem and chaos but fortunately I don't think we broke too much!"
Georgia May Foote and Giovanni Pernice are planning to move in together.

Georgia May Foote

The 24-year-old actress has confirmed she and her 'Strictly Come Dancing' professional partner, whom she's been dating for a month, are keen to take their relationship to the next level by getting a flat together in London later this year.

Speaking to the Daily Mirror newspaper, she said: "I'm going to move to London because I'm just at that age now."

Asked if she and Giovanni will live together in the capital, they both replied straight away with: "Yes."

However, until they find their perfect abode, Georgia - who currently lives in Manchester - will get to spend a lot of time with the hunky Italian as they are taking part in 'Strictly Come Dancing Live!' following the series finale last month.

She explained: "It's so nice to be able to spend this time together. We had such an amazing experience on 'Strictly' it's nice to be able to go on tour together now and experience this together now. It's the full journey it's been amazing."

The former 'Coronation Street' actress developed a strong bond with Giovanni after she was paired up with him for the BBC One Ballroom and Latin show last year.

However, the chemistry between the duo reportedly led to Georgia splitting from her boyfriend Sean Ward in December.
Ludhianas famed hosiery industry is facing an onslaught from its Chinese counterpart with winterwear from Asias largest economy flooding the local market. Chinese sweaters, caps, mufflers, and blankets have become the rage in and around Ludhiana, according to a newspaper report The key markets for hosiery industry are Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir and some North Eastern states.

Ludhiana's famed hosiery industry is facing an onslaught from its Chinese counterpart with winterwear from Asia's largest economy flooding the local#

Ludhiana is one of the oldest hosiery clusters in the country and is famous for winter garments like jackets, sweaters, thermals, pullovers, inners, shawls etc.Businessmen say that better look and material quality of Chinese products, a large variety of designs and cheap prices which are around 15 to 20 per cent less than locally made products have meant that Chinese hosiery items have occupied around 20 per cent of the Ludhiana market.Upkar Singh Ahuja, General Secretary of Chamber of Industrial and Commercial Undertakings (CICU) said, There are many reasons for the increasing share of such items in the market. First, they are of better quality due to high-class machinery. Then, the Chinese government promotes technological advancements. If local industrialists want to install high-tech machines, they have to pay an interest of 10-13 per cent, whereas in Japan, it is 3 per cent, and in China, the loan is interest-free. If Made in China goods have occupied a sizeable share in the local market, one expects that it could be much higher in the markets of coastal cities like Chennai, due to less freight charges."He also said the government must promote hosiery industry and make impressive schemes for them to make it world-class.But the Chinese goods arent the only headache for Ludhianas hosiery industry. Ahead of the current cold wave in north India, above-normal temperature in Punjab hit the hosiery and shawl industry badly with lower offtake of winter garments.Despite 20-25 per cent lesser production this year by Ludhiana's hosiery industry on the back of old stock, sales have been lukewarm up to the middle of January when winter temperatures were above normal.Ahead of the cold wave, lower demand for winter garments forced retailers to offer heavy discounts on hosiery items much earlier to clear their stocks, adding to industry's woes which have complained of not getting repeat orders from wholesale agencies and retailers. (SH)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk - India
Textiles Minister Santosh Gangwar has said that eight garment units in the north-eastern states will be dedicated to the nation in another month by Prime Minister Narendra Modi."Works for the units, each of which is being set up at a cost of Rs 18.18 crore, is going in full swing. These will become operational in another one month and will be dedicated to the nation by Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he said while addressing an event - the 'Make in India-Textile Industry- Strategy for Growth', organised by Indian Texpreneurs Federation ((ITF) in Coimbatore.

Textiles Minister Santosh Gangwar has said that eight garment units in the north-eastern states will be dedicated to the nation in another month by#

Responding to the ITF's grievances, Gangwar said he would depute officials or he himself would visit the city once in three months to learn and solve the problems faced by the textiles industry, which plays a major role in the Indian economy.He said his ministry has already taken up the issue of rationalisation of duty on Man Made Fibre, abolition of Hank yarn Obligation and signing of Free Trade Agreements with European Union and emerging markets with the Commerce and Finance Ministries.The ITF also raised the issue of Zero Liquid Discharge for textiles factories announced by the Ministry of Environment and Forests. Gangwar said he would consult the MOEF and give feedback of the industry. (SH))

Fibre2Fashion News Desk - India
In the wake of widespread destruction of Bt cotton crop due to pink bollworm attack in Karnataka, the state government has issued notices to companies which sold Bt cotton seeds to farmers this year while ordering an expert panel to estimate the extent and cause of damage.Minister of State for Agriculture Krishna Byre Gowda told reporters in Raichur recently that the government is aware that Bt cotton crop cultivated on vast tracts of lands in the state has been destroyed in pink bollworm attack. He said the government has issued notices to companies which had sold seeds to farmers this year.

In the wake of widespread destruction of Bt cotton crop due to pink bollworm attack in Karnataka, the state government has issued notices to companies#

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said that the state government is awaiting a comprehensive report by an expert panel on the crop loss suffered by Bt cotton growers due to pink bollworm attack. After receiving the report the government would decide whether Bt cotton seed companies should be held responsible for the loss and how much should be released as compensation to farmers, he added.To a question on the compensation to affected farmers, Byre Gowda said although the affected farmers can move the consumer court claiming compensation directly from seed companies because their crop was destroyed despite claims of pest resistance, the government would also think as to how the affected farmers could be compensated. (SH)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk - India
Silk cultivation is expected to receive a major boost in Odisha's mineral-rich Keonjhar district, after a Central Silk Board (CSB) team visited various pockets in the district recently and assured farmers of all help and insurance coverage.The five-member Central team along with three local officials accompanied by silk growers visited several plantation sites under Ghatagaon, Patana and Harichandanpur blocks. The members met scores of farmers and leant the techniques the latter adopt to grow plants on which silkworms live on. They also inspected the methods used to extract thread from silk cocoons and spin yarns.

Silk cultivation is expected to receive a major boost in Odisha's mineral-rich Keonjhar district, after a Central Silk Board (CSB) team visited#

The team assured the farmers of providing technical knowhow to increase yield of cocoons and yarns.Silk farmers told the Central team that they suffer losses when silkworms die of various diseases, leading to low production of cocoons. The officials said steps would be taken for an insurance cover for silk farmers.Following the visit of the Central team, farmers are pinning their hope on the Union government to take steps to ensure increase in silk production and prevention of loss in case of damages caused by cyclones and diseases to silkworms. (SH)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk - India
Fijis Ambassador to Belgium and Permanent Representative to the European Union, Mr Deo Saran recently held bilateral meetings with the Secretary General of Portugals Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ms Ana Martinho and Director of Services for Asia and Oceania, Jose Pedro Machado Viera.



During the meeting the Secretary General expressed the Government of Portugals appreciation to Fijis support, and its desire to strengthen bilateral relations in addition to the already strong multilateral relations enjoyed through the European Union.



Ambassador Saran briefed the two officials on Fijis developments and also sought Portugals understanding, cooperation and assistance in Fijis political reform program, in particular assisting in addressing issues raised in the Universal Periodic Review by the United Nations, Political Dialogue with the European Union and Labour reform issues raised by the ILO.



Ambassador Saran said that Fiji is keen to look at all areas of interest in deepening bilateral cooperation with Portugal and will work closely with the relevant Government agencies.



In welcoming Ambassador Sarans statements, the Secretary General suggested a number of areas of possible cooperation and opportunities such as tourism, surfing, sports, student exchange, education and winery.



The Director of Services of Asia and Oceania said that Portugal is also keen to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding that will set out the framework for closer cooperation between the countries. Ambassador Saran welcomed this and advised that Fiji is keen to appoint an Honorary Consul in Portugal this year.



Ambassador Saran during his stay also visited the Fijian students studying under scholarships in Portugal.
The Attorney-General and Minister for Civil Service Hon. Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum met with members of the Confederation of Public Sector Unions today to discuss reforms in the civil service which will strengthen the Public Sector and modernise the civil service.



They held constructive and cordial discussions surrounding the civil service and issues pertaining to the terms and conditions of employment of civil servants.



They also discussed the key role Permanent Secretaries play in order to mitigate issues faced by the civil servants.



He said a pro-active approach must be taken by the Government and the union to better serve the interest of all Fijians.



He also said that the Ministry of Civil Service will proactively address and respond in a timely manner to any lapses by the respective ministries and Permanent Secretaries which do not fulfill the agreed and legal terms and conditions of employment.



The Confederation consists of members from the Fijian Teachers Association, Fiji Public Service Association, Fiji Teachers Union, Fiji Nurses Association and Viti Civil Servants Association.
We had told you about stars who believe in ghosts. Today, we will take you through Hollywood celebrities who believe in aliens or extra terrestrial lives!

These celebrities have their own reasons to justify their belief in living beings from the outer space. Some are funny and the rest are extremely convincing.

Katy Perry Katy Perry once said, 'I see everything through a spiritual lens. I believe in a lot of astrology. I believe in aliens.' Will Smith According to Will Smith 'It'd be just as ridiculous to say that there aren't [aliens] as it would to say that there are. I have a very open mind.' Megan Fox Megan Fox not only believes in aliens, but she's also a huge fan of the show 'Ancient Aliens' Dwayne Johnson The Rock said, 'If I had to describe myself to an alien I'd say I was bigger than the average human, enjoy a drink or two with a good meal and have a bigger head than most. I'd also say I'm really handsome - especially if they were a female alien.' Victoria Beckham Reportedly, the Spice Girl has witnessed an UFO, hence she believes in aliens! Tom Cruise The actor says, 'Are you really so arrogant as to believe we are alone in this universe? Millions of stars, and we're supposed to be the only living creatures? No, there are many things out there. We just don't know.' Halle Berry Halle Berry once told in an interview, 'I don't believe we are the only species in existence.' Steven Spielberg The famous film-maker believes, 'Even though I have devoted a generous percentage of my movies to extraterrestrial related themes, I for one have never seen a UFO. That is so unfair!' Demi Lovato The Confident singer confidently said, 'I know that they're real... How self-centered would we be as humans to believe that we are the only living things in the universe?' John F. Kennedy Oh, poor, Kennedy! 'I'd like to tell the public about the alien situation, but my hands are tied'

Alicia Keys once said, 'Haven't all of us seen something flying in the sky, and its at some random time of night that doesn't make sense, and its not the shape of a plane?'

And actor William Shatner had this to say about aliens, 'I don't think there is any doubt there is life in the universe, yes. I don't think there is any question.'

Other celebrities like the boxer Muhammad Ali believe in Aliens because they say they've witnessed the UFO. This is exactly what Victoria Beckham and Kennedy said.

It isn't just the common minds that think there is something beyond the life on earth. Many scientific minds too have put across their opinion about this.

For instance, the great genius man ever, Stephen Hawking too believed in extraterrestrial activities. He might be the face and brain behind many scientific inventions, but, he feels,

'I believe alien life is quite common in the universe, although intelligent life is less so. Some say it has yet to appear on planet Earth.'

Even Richard Nixon said, 'I'm not at liberty to discuss the government's knowledge of extraterrestrial UFO's at this time. I am still personally being briefed on the subject.'

Well, believing in a thing such as an alien could be both subjective and objective. It varies from person to person, despite huge number of inventions and witnesses with regard to the subject.

Do you think there is life beyond earth? Leave your comments below to let us know what you feel about it.

Hollywood Actors Who Surprisingly Never Won An Oscar Or Emmy!
Here is a great news for Kannadigas. We all know that, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, who is an international celebrity originally hails from Mangalore, Karnataka.

Wondering why we are speaking about Aishwarya Rai here? Wait, let us tell you in brief. According the speculations in Gandhinagara, Aaradhya Bachchan, daughter of Aishwarya-Abhishek will debut in Kannada film industry through Ramesh Aravind starrer Pushpaka Vimana.

The movie is directed by Ravidranath and the closest reports say that, the film-maker is interested to cast Aaradhya in his upcoming movie Pushpaka Vimana.

Earlier, Big B Amitabh Bachchan had played a cameo role in Ramya and Sameer Dattani starrer Amrithadhare.

Also Read: Pushpaka Vimana Teaser Talk: Ramesh Aravind's Best Performance Ever!

However, Pushpaka Vimana has earned positive appreciations in KFI for Ramesh Aravind and child artist Yuvina Parthavi's best performance, seen in the recently released teaser of the movie.

Will Aaradhya cast in Ramesh Aravind's Pushpaka Vimana? Let's wait to know official updates about this.
Devoted to the discussion of film expression
Global private equity firm KKR has teamed up with state-owned enterprise China Orient Asset Management to tap into the growing number of distressed real estate opportunities in China.

Bankruptcy filings are rising as the worlds second-largest economy slows and Beijing has become more relaxed about allowing companies to fail as it seeks to reform its financial markets.

However, investors have struggled to navigate Chinas unpredictable court system, hampered by the lack of transparent resolution processes as bankruptcy law evolves and by interference from local government officials concerned about protecting jobs.

Critical to successful investing in distressed companies in China is securing the right position in the companys capital structure. Most foreigners invest via offshore bonds, rendering their rights to onshore collateral tenuous.

Onshore lenders are often first in line when dividing up a companys assets after a default. In the case of Kaisa, the Chinese property developer owes around $2.5 billion to offshore creditors out of almost $11 billion worth of debt, and offshore bond holders are struggling to get a settlement.

KKR is seeking to invest alongside a local partner that is already plugged into the flow of deals and who knows their way around the legal system.

China Orient is one of four licensed wholesalers of non-performing loans in China, known widely as bad banks.

The joint venture also includes local investment manager China Orient Summit Capital, which is itself a JV between Orient AM and a group of investment professionals.

Rich pickings

Chinas real estate market has $3.1 trillion of outstanding debt, making up about 16% of the total lending market in China, mostly in the form of commercial bank loans, trust schemes and wealth management plans, according to the Peoples Bank of China.

Amongst the commercial banks in China, PBoC statistics show that total non-performing loans amount to over $180 billion. According to KPMG, the majority of the collateral underpinning these non-performing loans is real estate.

Growing understanding

The courts do exercise wide discretion in resolving bankruptcies but one distressed debt professional said that over the last couple of years he had witnessed a growing understanding and sophistication among Chinas judges in disputes, especially along the eastern seaboard.

He said some discussion among lawyers about setting up specialist bankruptcy courts was particularly encouraging.

However, even investing directly onshore with a partner has not always worked out.

Oaktree Capital Management said in November that its joint venture with another of Chinas banks, China Cinda Asset Management, had yet to make an investment almost two years after agreeing the partnership and earmarking $1 billion for distressed debt purchases.

KKR also said the joint venture partners would be exploring strategic initiatives for broader collaboration.

China Orient is preparing to go public by selling a stake to the National Social Security Fund by March. That will pave the way for it to sell a 15% to 20% stake to domestic and foreign investors ahead of an initial public offering by the end of 2017.

Oaktree made a pre-IPO investment in China Cinda Asset Management in 2013.
Industry veteran Zhao Huan is to take the helm at underperforming Agricultural Bank of China, filling a role left vacant last year in the wake of the government's anti-graft drive, just as a new scandal breaks over the countrys third-largest lender by assets.

The appointment as president of Zhao to replace Zhang Yun, who formally left the bank in December after becoming the focus of a corruption probe, is still to be approved by the China Banking Regulatory Commission, ABC said in a filing with the Shanghai Stock Exchange late on Thursday.

But one of his first tasks could be to deal with the potential fallout following news on Friday of an embezzlement scam involving staff at the bank who allegedly used bank drafts to bet on shares and subsequently lost some of the money.

Caixin, a respected Chinese media outlet, reported that two junior employees at the banks Beijing branch were being investigated for allegedly cashing bank acceptance bills and investing some of the proceeds in the stock market. The report, which relied on unidentified sources, said some of the embezzled cash was subsequently not returned due to the losses sustained as Chinese stock markets plunged since last summer.

The bank said in a separate exchange filing later on Friday that the bills involved in the incident were worth about Rmb3.92 billion ($596 million) and that it is cooperating with the police investigation to ensure the safety of the funds to the greatest extent.

ABC could not be immediately reached for further comment.

Presidents past and present

Zhao, 52, worked for more than a decade at China Construction Bank, the countrys second-largest bank. He served as vice president of CCB from 2011 to 2014 before being assigned to lead Shanghai-listed China Everbright Bank, prior to his appointment at ABC.

He was a promising rising star at CCB. He knew well what he was doing and was promoted quickly here, one person in a senior position at CCB told FinanceAsia.

Zhao is taking the helm at ABC at a challenging time in general for Chinese banks in view of the country's economic slowdown, rising bad loans, falling interest margins, and stiffer competition as banking services are liberalised and disrupted by new technology.

ABC saw its profits up barely 0.57% year-on-year in the first three quarters of last year, the slowest pace among Chinas so called Big Four state-owned lenders. Its NPL ratio reached 2.02% as of the end of September compared with around 1.45% for the three other banks.

Zhaos predecessor Zhang, who also served as vice chairman and deputy Communist party chief at ABC, was detained in November as part of an investigation, making him the most senior banking official ensnared in President Xi Jinpings broad anti-graft campaign, according to domestic media reports.

Caixin reported at the time that Zhang was demoted from his party rank and placed under two years probation in October due to investigations over a series of corruption cases.

The bank announced his resignation in December, citing personal reasons. Zhang had worked at ABC for more than three decades and had held the top positions since 2009.

The resignation of the 56-year-old career banker came as Xi expanded his anti-graft drive into the countrys financial industry last year. A number of high-ranking regulators and executives at big brokers have since also come under scrutiny.

In September, Citic Securities president Cheng Boming, along with other executives at the countrys largest brokerage, was taken away by police for alleged insider trading and for leaking inside information.
The proliferation of social media websites and search engines have made it possible for niche financial advisors to succeed like never before, simply by creating content that demonstrates their expertise and allows prospects to find them.

Yet this strategy works only if an advisor actually creates the content.

For many, the ultimate challenge is thinking up topics to write about, and yet there is a remarkably easy way to do this. Similarly, once advisors do have a topic, there are some simple ways to construct an outline to give organization to their presentation.

But if, even with these tips, writing is still a blocking point, there may be another option: not writing at all. Instead, a video, podcast or hired writer might be a better way to go. Ultimately, the key is to commit to a regular schedule of content, whether its writing one article a month or penning a rotating series of articles every week.

Creating a blog may seem daunting at first. But by following some straightforward guidance, many advisors will find it both easy and rewarding.

FINDING IDEAS

Coming up with content is one of the greatest challenges for advisors looking to start or grow a blog. Yet finding inspiration for content can be simple: Just write about the questions your top clients are asking you, or the issues they are facing.

If, for instance, many of your clients work for a particular company and have questions about their employee benefits or stock options, write an article that highlights their questions (without disclosing the companys name), and then give your analysis of how you would answer them.

If you have a lot of older retired clients who are asking questions about how to evaluate a continuing-care community, write an article about how you helped them analyze this particular situation.

If your clients want to know what they should do about charitable giving from their IRA, given that the rules for qualified charitable distributions have lapsed, write an article to reflect the advice you would give.

The point is that, if your best clients have a question, then other people who are not your clients probably have this question as well, and they might be searching online for an answer.

The goal is simple: You want your answers to come up as the response they find in Google. If you achieve that, youre demonstrating yourself to be a valuable and relevant source of information.

Any time clients ask you a question, recognize that its an opportunity not only to answer them directly, but also to craft an article about it. I maintain an ongoing note in Evernote that is just a list of blog ideas, based solely on questions asked to me by the people I do business with. By keeping this content in Evernote, I can access it from my smartphone wherever I am.

Once youve written some articles for your website, the next opportunity for finding blog ideas is to look at your websites Google Analytics results to see which articles are already popular and producing results. Then, write content that tackles other issues that might be relevant to a similar audience.

OVERCOMING WRITERS BLOCK

For some advisors, the only thing more terrifying than coming up with a topic for a blog article is actually starting to write it. Theres nothing quite like the looming fear of tackling a blank page.

As a person who faces this challenge regularly, Ive formulated what I like to call the 3x3x3 style of blog writing. The idea is to break down an entire article into a series of smaller steps.

The starting point is simply to come up with three key points you want to make about your topic.

If youre writing about long-term investing, for instance, you might talk about the power of compounding, the tendency of volatility to smooth out in the long run and the virtues of long-term equity returns.

If youre giving end-of-year tax advice, your three points might be about doing end-of-year Roth conversions, capital-loss harvesting and IRA contributions.

Once youve got your three key points, come up with three concepts to explain each issue. For the tax advice article about Roth retirement account conversions, your three key concepts might be the tax treatment of conversions, the end-of-year deadline to complete them and the steps to take for executing a trustee-to-trustee transfer of the assets.

Your three key concepts for capital-loss harvesting might be explaining wash sales, the cost to execute the loss harvesting and an estimate of how much its worth.

Ultimately, each of the three key concepts will become a paragraph. Youll have three key points, and each of the key points will have three paragraphs explaining the key concepts. And, in truth, all you really need to formulate a paragraph is three sentences. Your ultimate goal is just to write three sentences about each concept.

Once youre finished, you can round your blog post out by adding one more set of three  an executive summary at the top, consisting of three paragraphs to briefly explain each of the three key points.

The 3x3x3 financial advisor blog template is a sample outline you can use for yourself. Just fill in the main subject, the three key points and the three key concepts in each area. Then all that remains is for you to write three sentences about each of the nine key concepts youve listed in the outline.

OTHER FORMS

Its important to note that the key part of blogging is not the writing, but the content. And content has many forms.

For instance, if you would rather make a presentation to a group of people than write an article for them, consider recording yourself in front of a camera talking through key concepts. YouTube is now arguably the second-largest search engine, and, as educational video content becomes more popular, the frequency of how to searches on YouTube are up over 70% in the past year alone, according to a recent report by Google, which owns YouTube.

If you are more comfortable standing in front of an audience to deliver content, then do that, and YouTube can help the audience find their way to you.

If youre not one for standing in front of a video camera but are happy to talk and be recorded, consider creating a podcast instead. Podcasting is on the rise, and over one-third of all Americans have now listened to a podcast, according to Pew Research. Yet podcasting remains a relatively untapped realm for advisors.

If you arent interested in podcasting or video and would like to be an author, but the writing remains the challenge, there are other steps you can take. For instance, you can record yourself talking through the key points and concepts you want to convey, then hire a writer to turn your ideas into a written article demonstrating your depth and expertise.

There are a growing number of outsourced content-creation services for advisors. This can be very cost-effective if you can record an article idea in just 15 minutes that would require many hours if you were writing it yourself.

Or you can hire an editor inexpensively and have that person take a rough draft that you created quickly and refine it into something thats ready to be viewed by the world (pending your review).

Another alternative is to use a recording transcription service, such as Rev or Speechpad, to turn your audio recordings into text, and then just edit the content yourself.

MAKE IT A HABIT

Once youve figured out your strategy for producing blog content, the last key is to produce it regularly and consistently. Blogging has to be something you do more than just when the mood strikes. Instead, you have to make it a habit.

The easiest way to make this happen is to commit in advance to a regular schedule of creating content. It doesnt necessarily have to be done very often; a consistent habit is more important than a high-frequency one. If its daunting to produce blog content any more often than once a month, commit to doing it just once a month. But you must follow through on the commitment.

To further tackle the fear of writers block, a related strategy is not only to commit to blog content on a regular basis, but to plan in advance what kind of topic or content youll produce.

For instance, if you were going to blog monthly, you might decide that, in even months, youll do an article about a technical planning question your client asked, and in odd months youll do an interview with a center of influence.

If you blog weekly, you might decide that youll do three articles on issues raised by client questions every month, and on the last week of each month, youll produce a mailbag-type article, in which you invite readers to submit questions and you respond to one of them.

CONTENT CALENDAR

Regular readers of my blog, Nerds Eye View, might have noticed that I operate my own editorial content calendar.

On Mondays, I always write about an issue related to practice management, personal/career development or industry issues. On Wednesdays, I cover technical planning topics, which might range from investments to retirement to tax-planning issues. On Fridays, I offer weekend reading columns. And occasionally, on the intervening Tuesdays or Thursdays, Ill fill in with a mailbag article or a guest post.

Ultimately, the goal of creating your own editorial content calendar is to create an accountability mechanism for yourself. If you just plan to create content whenever you have a moment, youll never find the time to do it.

A content calendar creates a deadline, which in turn helps to make it a priority, ensuring that you actually get it done on a regular basis.

And, notably, you may find that, once you have regular readers, knowing they are awaiting your content can be the greatest accountability mechanism of all.

Michael Kitces, CFP, is a Financial Planning contributing writer and a partner and director of research at Pinnacle Advisory Group in Columbia, Md. Hes also publisher of the planning industry blog Nerds Eye View. Follow him on Twitter at @MichaelKitces.

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MONTREAL, QUEBEC -- (Marketwired) -- 01/21/16 -- Today, the Canadian Council of Fisheries and Aquaculture Ministers (CCFAM) met in Montreal to exchange views on a broad range of priorities, including marine protected areas, the Fisheries Act, market access for Canadian fish and seafood, and sustainable aquaculture development. The meeting was co-chaired by the Honourable Hunter Tootoo, Federal Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, and the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry. Attendees included Ministers responsible for fisheries from New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Prince Edward Island, and Nunavut, along with representatives from Alberta, Manitoba, Yukon and Quebec.

There was a spirit of collaboration and partnership at the first meeting of the Ministers with the new federal government. Ministers shared their priorities and discussed ways to work together to advance their common goals of economic growth, strengthening global market access and protecting Canada's oceans, coasts, waterways and fisheries.

The Ministers exchanged views on key priorities such as: increasing the proportion of Canada's marine and coastal areas that are protected, restoring funding to support federal ocean and freshwater science and monitoring programs, and reviewing the Fisheries Act, to improve protection for fish and fish habitat.

Market access for Canada's fish and seafood exports was also discussed. Talks focused on fish and seafood trade opportunities associated with Canada's trade agreements. Ministers also discussed Canada's access initiatives for Indigenous communities and the sealing industry to market their seal products to the EU and other markets. Ministers also discussed challenges with labour availability in Canada's fish and seafood sector.

Another key discussion was the economic value and potential of Canada's aquaculture sector. The Ministers recognized that aquaculture represents significant opportunities for employment, economic growth and prosperity in remote, rural, coastal and Indigenous communities across Canada. They acknowledged that further development of the sector can be done in a sustainable manner while respecting the environment and commercial, recreational and Indigenous fisheries.

The Ministers also discussed the damaging impact of aquatic invasive species on our fisheries, infrastructure, and the environment. They acknowledged the importance of working together to explore ways to lessen the impact and reduce the threat of further spread of aquatic invasive species already in Canada.

As the meeting concluded, officials in federal, provincial and territorial governments agreed to work together to identify approaches to advance common goals and priorities in the coming months.

Quick Facts

-- In 2014, Canada exported $4.9 billion of fish and seafood products, an increase of 11 percent from 2013. -- The European Union (EU) has been the world's largest importer of fish and seafood. These imports account for 60 percent of total EU fish and seafood consumption. -- Aquaculture accounts for nearly 50 percent of seafood consumed worldwide. By 2030, it is estimated that demand will exceed supply by 40 million tonnes. -- Aquatic invasive species (AIS) have significantly reduced or entirely eliminated certain indigenous fish stocks in Canada. In addition to the environmental damage, invasive species cost billions of dollars every year due to lost revenue, infrastructure damage, and the implementation of control measures.

Quote

"This is an exciting time for federal, provincial and territorial relationships. I look forward to working with my counterparts and building partnerships based on collaboration, trust and inclusion, as we work together to fulfill our joint commitment to Canadians. It is my hope to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with these partners as well as our Indigenous partners to expand access to global markets and protect Canada's fisheries and oceans."

The Honourable Hunter Tootoo, Federal Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard

Follow us on Twitter! www.Twitter.com/DFO_MPO

Contacts:

Media Relations

Fisheries and Oceans Canada

613-990-7537

Media.xncr@dfo-mpo.gc.ca

www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca




The reduction in house construction in China has resulted in a substantial decline in the importation of forest products during 2015, reports the Wood Resource Quarterly. The total value of imported softwood logs and lumber has fallen 25% and import prices have declined almost 30% that past 12 months.

China imported softwood logs and lumber valued at 498 million dollars during the month of November in 2015. This was 26% lower than the same month in 2014 and the third lowest monthly level in three years. As recently as April 2014, the import value was at an all-time high of almost 900 million dollars, reports the Wood Resource Quarterly (WRQ).

The reduced demand for both overseas and domestic wood products in 2015 has been a consequence of the slowdown in the Chinese economy, which has not only reduced construction activities but also consumer spending on home remodeling and furniture.

Not only have log and lumber imports plummeted the past year, but so has the price paid for imported products. In November 2015, the average costs of imported softwood logs were down 30% from their peak in April of 2014 to reach their lowest level since early 2009. The biggest price drops during 2015 were for logs from New Zealand, Australia and Russia. According to the WRQ (woodprices.com), domestic log prices have fallen much less than import prices during 2015, with Chinese fir sawlog prices declining less than six percent from the 1Q/15 to the 4Q/15.

Lumber import prices to China have also fallen during 2014 and 2015, but the decline has been slightly lower than for that of logs. In November of 2015, average lumber import prices were 27% lower than their peak in September 2014. The biggest price declines have been for lumber imported from Canada, Sweden, Chile and Russia, while the price fall for hemlock and Douglas-fir from the US has been quite moderate.

It is interesting to note that the Swedish and Finnish sawmills, which are selling into the high-end market in China, actually increased their shipments to China during 2015 as compared to 2014. This is in contrast to the US, Canada and Chile, which reduced their sales to China in 2015 by over 20%. The market share for the Nordic sawmills in November 2015 was almost nine percent of the total import value as compared to less than seven percent in November of 2014.

Global lumber, sawlog and pulpwood market reporting is included in the 52-page quarterly publication Wood Resource Quarterly (WRQ). The report, which was established in 1988 and has subscribers in over 30 countries, tracks sawlog, pulpwood, lumber and pellet prices, trade and market developments in most key regions around the world. To subscribe to the WRQ, please go to www.woodprices.com

Wood Resources International LLC (WRI), an internationally recognized forest industry-consulting firm established in 1987, publishes two quarterly timber price reports and have subscribers in over 30 countries. The Wood Resource Quarterly, established in 1988, is a 52-page market report and includes sawlog prices, pulpwood and wood chip price and market commentary to developments in global timber, biomass and forest industry. The other report, the North American Wood Fiber Review, tracks prices of sawlogs, pulpwood, wood chips and biomass in most regions of Canada and the US.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160121006549/en/

Contacts:

Wood Resources International LLC

Hakan Ekstrom

info@wri-ltd.com

www.woodprices.com
OLATHE, KS--(Marketwired - January 21, 2016) - A new state-of-the-art health care option in Olathe is now available for those in need of rehabilitation and therapy. Mainstreet  is celebrating the opening of its latest transitional care center in Kansas, The Healthcare Resort of Olathe.

The property, located at 21250 W. 151 st St. in Olathe, provides transitional care (short-stay rehabilitation and therapy) and assisted living in a service-rich environment. The property hosted a grand opening celebration this evening.

"Our best-in-class properties are designed to get people well and get them back to work," said Zeke Turner, founder and CEO of Mainstreet. "We remain steadfast in our mission to transform the way health care is delivered nationwide. The Healthcare Resort of Olathe ultimately gives aging Americans what they want -- more services, more amenities and more attention."

Construction started on The Healthcare Resort of Olathe in July 2014 and was completed in October 2015. Mainstreet developed The Healthcare Resort of Olathe and The Ensign Group, Inc. operates it.

With 100 beds and 68,353 square feet, The Healthcare Resort of Olathe boasts hospitality-oriented care with amenities such as a large therapy gym, an outdoor rehabilitation courtyard, a putting green, a spa, a movie theatre, an on-site chef and more. The project represents a total community investment of $16.4 million and created 350 construction jobs and 90 permanent jobs at the property itself.

For interviews or photos, please contact Ashley Mattox at 317.452.9466.

About Mainstreet

Mainstreet is a national company specializing in real estate development, value investments and health care. As the nation's largest developer of transitional care properties, Mainstreet has been recognized by Senior Housing News, winning the Architecture & Design Award in 2013, 2014 and 2015, and has been named to the Inc. 500l5000 five times since 2010. For additional information, visit www.mainstreetinvestment.com.

CONTACTS:

Ashley Mattox

Mainstreet

317.452.9466

amattox@maininvest.com
NEW YORK CITY (dpa-AFX) - JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) disclosed in a regulatory filing that its Chief Executive James Dimon will receive $27 million in total compensation for 2015, up $7 million from the prior year. The chairman and chief executive's pay package includes $20.5 million of Performance Share Units and $5 million in cash, along with his base salary of $1.5 million, according to the filing. The total compensation is up from his 2014 pay package of $20 million though includes less cash and more in restricted stock. On January 19, 2016, the Board of Directors of JPMorgan Chase & Co. approved the grant of Performance Share Units to Operating Committee members under the Firm's variable compensation program for performance year 2015. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
The second edition of the FPG Awards, the most important European award for best fund distribution platform, was held Thursday, January 21 in Paris. During an exceptional evening on the Seine and in the presence of 100 personalities from the sector, the Fund Platform Group (FPG) association presented seven different winners with the 11 trophies awarded this year.

This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160121006582/en/

FGP Awards Ceremony 2015 Paris 21 January 2016 (Photo: Jean-Pierre Ruelle)

Launched in 2014, these awards were devised by FPG to motivate major industry players to constantly compete in improving the quality of their services. This meeting of key industry players was also an opportunity for the FPG to present its annual report on the distribution of funds.

The fund distribution platforms were judged on various criteria given in a questionnaire distributed to their major customers and counterparts (fund managers, institutional investors, transfer agents and fund distributors). Seven winners shared the 11 FPG prizes awarded. The biggest winner is the French group Axeltis with the highest number of mentions for excellence among the responses (21): judged "outstanding" by 11 fund managers and by 10 fund distributors. Fund Channel wins second place in the standings with 19 mentions of excellence. It was deemed "outstanding" by11 fund managers and "commended" by 8 fund distributors. Considered excellent by both distributors (6) and fund managers (7), the Swedish group MFEX got third place. Next came BNP Paribas Securities Services with 12 mentions of excellence, UBS Fund Center (10) Attrax (9) and Swiss Canto with 6 mentions.

Another highlight of the evening: the publication, exclusively to those attending, of the annual report of the FPG on the fund distribution sector. Developed in collaboration with SWIFT, the global leader in the secure exchange of financial information, the report was highly anticipated by those in the industry. Completed over a six-week period between September and October 2015, the study on which the report is based was conducted with 49 of the most influential people in European fund platforms and buyers and sellers of funds. It managed to get their views on the development, the constraints and the prospects for growth in the funds platform industry.

Download the full press release, press kit, annual survey

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160121006582/en/

Contacts:

Takaneo Consulting

Patrick Lesage, tel. +352-27-91-92-92-201

p.lesage@takaneo.com / www.takaneo.com
Regulatory News:

Capio AB (STO:CAPIO)

Following the listing of Capio in June 30, 2015, Capio has appointed Kristina Ekeblad as Investor relations manager for Capio AB (publ.).

Kristina Ekeblad will be responsible for Capio's Investor Relations contacts and related projects. Kristina reports to the Group CFO, Olof Bengtsson, and will work in close cooperation with Group Finance and Corporate Communications.

Kristina Ekeblad has a long experience in Capio. Joining the Group in 2008, Kristina has been working in various positions within financial control and reporting. Prior to joining Capio Kristina worked as an auditor at the auditing company EY.

Kristina has been working with IR matters since the listing process of Capio started but will take up her formal position as of today.

For information, please contact:

Olof Bengtsson, CFO

Telephone: +46 761 18 74 69

Capio AB (publ) is a leading, pan-European healthcare provider offering a broad range of high quality medical, surgical and psychiatric healthcare services in four countries through its hospitals, specialist clinics and primary care units. In 2014, Capio's 12,357 employees provided healthcare services during 4.6 million patient visits across the Group's facilities in Sweden, Norway, France and Germany, generating net sales of MSEK 13,200. Capio operates across three geographic segments: Nordic (54 percent of Group net sales 2014), France (37 percent of Group net sales 2014) and Germany (9 percent of Group net sales 2014). For more information about Capio, please see www.capio.com.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160121006635/en/

Contacts:

Capio

Kristina Ekeblad

Investor relations manager

E-mail: kristina.ekeblad@capio.com

Telephone: +46 708 31 19 40
HANNOVER, Germany, Jan. 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Huawei has announced plans to showcase innovative ICT products and solutions at the 2016 edition of the world's largest annual IT trade fair, CeBIT, to be held in Hannover, Germany, this March. Speaking at the CeBIT Press Preview, in the same location on January 20, the company said it would introduce new offerings to help businesses transform their ICT operations by driving agile innovation, faster service delivery and the development of a new ecosystem.

This year will mark Huawei's sixth consecutive and most significant appearance at CeBIT to date. Its exhibition area at the show will span 2,500 square meters-- twice the size of its space the year preceding.

Also during the announcement, Huawei said it would present its new marketing slogan for its Enterprise Business Group (BG) at CeBIT. The slogan, "Leading New ICT, Building a Better Connected World", was created to better reflect how the BG is uniquely positioned to help enterprises succeed in today's digital era.

In line with that positioning, Huawei believes that digital transformation will become a reality in every industry in the next five to ten years. ICT systems will shift from business support systems to production systems to enable this digital transformation, and enterprises will embrace Cloud Computing, Internet of Things (IoT), and Big Data to evolve their operations in a bid to deliver superior user experiences.

To help support these transitions, Huawei is committed to collaborating and innovating with partners to build business-driven ICT infrastructure, providing customers with agile, innovative, one-stop ICT products and solutions.

In line with its strategy of "being integrated", Huawei will continue to create an open ecosystem based on open technologies and platforms to accelerate leading new ICT and build a better connected world.

"Huawei plays an active role in the European enterprise market, helping customers in Germany and across Europe transform to become more efficient and meet evolving user expectations," Joerg Karpinski, Sales Director of Huawei Enterprise Germany, said during the press preview session. "By collaborating with partners and customers, Huawei delivers agile and innovative solutions focused on game-changing areas such as cloud, big data, IoT and mobility to help them take advantage of the tremendous opportunities in the new ICT era."

In 2015, Huawei's ICT products and solutions were widely deployed across different industries in Europe to solve their toughest challenges and help them thrive in the now digitized world.

For example, in financial services, Huawei's ICT products have been adopted by a number of leading banks in Spain, Italy, and France. In transportation, Huawei has worked with Siemens CVC to provide Deutsche Bahn, a German railway company, with a GSM-R solution, leading the development of IP- and broadband-based railway communications. In the media sector, Huawei's data center solutions have been deployed by companies such as Criteo, a French performance marketing technology company. In education, Huawei's Smart Campus Solution has assisted Newcastle University in developing ICT-enabled teaching and scientific research. In addition, Huawei has cooperated with European telecom operators to develop enterprise products and solutions. For example, Huawei teamed up with Deutsche Telekom to develop private and public cloud services. In line with these efforts, Huawei will announce the commercial use of its public cloud services at CeBIT 2016.

At CeBIT 2016, Huawei together with its partners will showcase innovative ICT products and solutions leveraging cloud computing, big data, and IoT technologies and share the best practices in various industries, including government and public sectors, financial services, transportation, manufacturing, and education. Huawei will also host and participate in a series of events (see the table below) with global guests to explore ways of keeping pace in the new ICT era.

Event Date and Time Location Huawei Enterprise BG Press Conference 15:00-16:30, March 14 NordLB Room 004/005 Keynote Speech at CeBIT Global Conference 2016 11:15-11:45, March 15 Centre Stage, Hall 8 Huawei Internet Service Provider (ISP) Summit 09:30-12:00, March 15 NordLB Room 004/005 Huawei Global Safe City Summit 14:00-18:00, March 15 NordLB Room 004/005 Huawei Global Financial Service Industry Summit 09:30-18:00, March 16 NordLB Room 004/005

To learn more about Huawei at CeBIT 2016, please refer to Huawei's dedicated microsite here: http://enterprise.huawei.com/topic/2016Cebit/index.html

About Huawei
BERLIN (dpa-AFX) - Germany's private sector grew at the slowest pace in three months in January, flash data from Markit showed Friday. The composite output index fell to 54.5 in January from 55.5 in December. A reading above 50 indicates expansion in the sector. Service providers reported a further solid, albeit weaker increase in business activity. The services Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 55.4 from 56 in December. It was forecast to drop to 55.5. Meanwhile, manufacturing output rose at the slowest pace for eight months. Some goods producers blamed a struggling oil industry for the slowdown. The manufacturing PMI came in at 52.1 in January, down from 53.2 in December. The expected score was 53. 'Germany's private sector economy was largely unaffected by the recent stock market turmoil and intensifying uncertainty stemming from the so-called migrant crisis at the beginning of the year,' Oliver Kolodseike, an economist at Markit, said. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
PALO ALTO, CA and MANCHESTER, UNITED KINGDOM--(Marketwired - January 22, 2016) - Intapp, a global leader in legal software, today announced the acquisition of Rekoop, a time entry software provider based in the UK. Intapp will continue to support Rekoop's cloud-based software and customers, in parallel with its ongoing R&D investment in Intapp Time. Intapp Time is the most widely used time recording software in Am Law 200 and UK 200 law firms, with over 150,000 users across more than 325 firms.

Rekoop co-founder Phil Wedgwood has joined Intapp and will head the company's Time Practice Group, joined by the Rekoop engineering, support and services teams. Intapp will maintain the Rekoop office in Manchester, further expanding the company's footprint in the UK to more than 40 employees.

"I'm proud of the success we've achieved over the past six years in building a market-leading, cloud-based timekeeping solution, and our traction, particularly among mid-tier law firms. As we looked toward the future, we wanted to find a partner that shared our vision," said Phil Wedgwood, CEO, Rekoop. "Intapp is committed to driving innovation in time recording and ensuring that our customers continue to receive the support and service they've come to expect, and I'm excited to be joining the team."

"The addition of Rekoop technology to the Intapp portfolio will extend our support for firms adopting cloud-based solutions," said Dan Tacone, President, Intapp. "We're very excited to welcome Phil and the Rekoop team to Intapp, and are confident that our growing customer community will benefit from the time entry, capture and analytics software we offer to the market."

About Intapp

Intapp provides software that enables law firms and other professional services firms to thrive in an increasingly competitive marketplace by improving operational efficiency and driving client success. Intapp's three practice groups (Revenue, Risk and Integration) focus on understanding existing pressures and emerging trends, and translate this knowledge into products and best practices. Intapp products allow firms to align business operations with business strategy, and are recognised as the most advanced in their respective categories -- time entry and recording, application integration, information security, new business intake, and conflicts management.

Serving more than 570 customers, including 92% of the Am Law 100 and 84% of the Global 200, Intapp has cultivated an unparalleled record of customer success and collaborative partner relationships. Headquartered in Silicon Valley, with business operations in New York, Atlanta, London, and Sydney, Intapp offers a unique combination of legal industry expertise, technical innovation, consumer-friendly design and customer-focused business philosophy. For more information, visit www.intapp.com.

Eureka Endo

Intapp

+44 795 828 7483

eureka.endo@intapp.com


VIENNA (dpa-AFX) - Eurozone private sector growth slowed more-than-expected at the start of the year to its weakest level in eleven months, as expansion in both manufacturing and services sectors eased, preliminary data from Markit Economics showed Friday.



The Composite Purchasing Managers' Index, which combines manufacturing and services, fell to 53.5 from 54.3 in December. Economists had forecast a modest decline to 54.2.



A PMI reading above 50 suggests expansion in activity.



The manufacturing PMI dropped to 52.3 from 53.2, which was also worse then the 53 reading economists had expected. The latest score was the lowest in three months.



The services PMI decreased to 53.6 from 54.2, defying the stability economists were looking for. The reading was the weakest in a year.



Despite the sluggishness, private sector business confidence improved and employment held steady at a four-and-a-half year high due to a rise in backlogs of uncompleted work, the survey said.



Further, firms also enjoyed cost savings due to the oil price decline, passing these on to customers, Markit said.



'The cooling in the pace of growth in euro area business activity at the start of 2016 is a disappointment but not surprising given the uncertainty caused by the financial market volatility seen so far this year,' Markit Chief Economist Chris Williamson said.



'It would be wrong to get too worried. The survey data are consistent with GDP rising at a steady quarterly rate of 0.3-0.4 percent at the start of the year.'



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

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VIENNA (dpa-AFX) - German shares extended Thursday's gains as crude oil prices continued to climb, yuan worries receded and U.S. bigwigs American Express, E*Trade and Starbucks reported earnings that topped expectations. Oil prices surged past $30 a barrel today as global equities rallied and freezing weather conditions in the U.S. and Europe gave traders reason to cash in on record short positions. In economic releases, Eurozone private sector growth slowed more-than-expected at the start of the year to its weakest level in eleven months, as expansion in both manufacturing and services sectors eased, preliminary data from Markit Economics showed. The composite output index for Germany fell to 54.5 in January from 55.5 in December. The German DAX was up 200 points or 2.10 percent at 9,774. The benchmark index rose about 2 percent on Thursday after ECB President Mario Draghi signaled that the governing council may provide more stimulus at its next meeting in March. Volkswagen shares rose 2.5 percent. Yonhap News Agency reported that South Korea's antitrust watchdog has opened a formal investigation into suspicions that the company misled consumers with false ads by claiming its cars met the European Union's strict Euro 5 emissions norms. Lenders Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank gained about 2 percent each. Thyssenkrupp gained half a percent on reports the steelmaker will build two new automotive part plants in Mexico. SAP shares fell around 1 percent. The business software provider raised its 2017 outlook for revenue and profit after reporting a 2 percent decline in fourth-quarter net profit. Elsewhere, Asian shares rose across the board, thanks to a rebound on Wall Street overnight following an uptick in oil prices and dovish comments from the European Central Bank. Investor sentiment was also supported by speculation that the Bank of Japan would unveil further stimulus at its January 28-29 policy meeting. U.S. stock futures pointed to a gap-up opening after modest gains the previous day. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
NEW DELHI, January 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

In the news release, "The Oberoi Group Promises Unparalleled Luxury on the Nile Onboard" issued on 19 Jan 2016 06:23 GMT, by The Oberoi Group over PR Newswire, we are advised by a representative of the company that the headline of the release was incorrectly transmitted by PR Newswire and should read 'The Oberoi Group Promises Unparalleled Luxury on the Nile Onboard The Oberoi Philae'. Complete, corrected release follows:

The Oberoi Group Promises Unparalleled Luxury on the Nile Onboard The Oberoi Philae

The Oberoi Group announced that The Oberoi Philae, Luxury Nile Cruiser, Egypt will sail between Aswan and Luxor, offering a four and six night itinerary. The Group already operates another luxury cruiser, The Oberoi Zahra, and will be increasing its presence on the Nile with The Oberoi Philae.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160119/786463)

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160119/786463-a)

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160119/786463-b)

Adding to the luxury provided by The Oberoi Zahra, The Oberoi Philae will offer guests unrivalled views of the River Nile, as they experience the legendary Oberoi service and explore 5,000 years of Egyptian culture.

Mr. P.R.S. Oberoi, Executive Chairman, The Oberoi Group said, "We are pleased to present The Oberoi Philae, Luxury Nile Cruiser which offers the highest standards of luxury and hospitality. The Oberoi Group has been consistently recognised as amongst the best in the world, and I am confident that The Oberoi Philae, Luxury Nile Cruiser will continue this tradition and offer travellers an unparalleled experience on the Nile".

Mr. Mahmoud Nourelden, Boat Manager, The Oberoi Philae, Luxury Nile Cruiser added, "The luxury Nile cruiserwill offer the discerning traveller an oasis of tranquility with service which is warm, intuitive and personalised. We are confident that the cruiser will add tangible value to the hospitality sector in the Egypt."

The luxury cruiser will feature some of the most spacious accommodation on the Nile. The 22 luxuriously appointed Cabins and Suites feature large French windows that offer picturesque views of the River Nile. The cruiser also incorporates the latest technology including high speed WiFi.

The restaurant offers extraordinary culinary options ofWestern, Asian and Middle Eastern cuisine with uninterrupted views of the Nile. At the Upper Deck, home to a temperature-controlled swimming pool, guests can enjoy lunch, light meals and snacks at the poolside restaurant. The cruiser is also home to a chic bar and cigar lounge which is furnished with intimate tables, a dance floor and a state-of-the-art movie theatre.

The 24-hour gymnasium offers stunning views to accompany a workout, as does The Oberoi Spa.

The Oberoi Philae, luxury Nile Cruiser gives travellers the added opportunity to experience the group's award-winning hospitality, making it the preferred choice for discerning leisure travellers.

For booking information and further information, please visit http://www.oberoihotels.com.

For further information, please contact:

Silki Sehgal

Director - Corporate Communications

The Oberoi Group

Telephone:+91-11-2389 0505

Email:silki.sehgal@oberoigroup.com


Progressing on turnaround journey, group also reaches 100,000 rooms milestone

The Rezidor Hotel Group has concluded 2015 with 41 hotel signings totalling 7,900 purely fee-based rooms and the opening of 24 hotels with 4,000 rooms - surpassing 2014 results and further fuelling the long-term strategy of asset-light and sustainable growth in Europe, the Middle East & Africa (EMEA) with a particular focus on emerging markets and selected key countries. During the past year, Rezidor has also reached the milestone of 100,000 rooms in operation or under development.

A successful year for signings

"2015 was a successful year for us and an important stage on our journey towards increased profitability. Building on our achievements, using the momentum in many markets and rigorously pursuing our strategy, we grew the number of hotel signings by almost 30% compared to 2014", said Elie Younes, Executive Vice President & Chief Development Officer of Rezidor.

In the course of last year, Rezidor signed projects in seven new countries (Armenia, Congo, Cyprus, Iraq (Kurdistan), Mauritius, Slovenia and Togo) and is now present in 80 countries across EMEA. The signings also included one new Quorvus Collection member in Oman/Muscat and three Radisson RED hotels in Cape Town/South Africa, Glasgow/UK and Brussels/Belgium. "We are particularly excited about our RED roll-out. This lifestyle select brand ideally complements our portfolio and unlocks commercial and shareholder value by capturing the growing guest segment of the millennial travellers. It is all set for future ambitious development in urban destinations", commented Younes.

An accelerated plan for openings

In 2015, Rezidor opened 24 hotels with 4,000 rooms - an increase by 30% compared to 2014. Despite the challenging external environment, Rezidor opened four properties in Russia - clearly strengthening its position as the leading international operator in the area - and three hotels in Saudi-Arabia where the group has a country development agreement with the regional company Al Hokair. In Turkey, Rezidor cemented Radisson Blu as the largest upper-upscale brand in Istanbul - and launched the very first mid-scale Park Inn by Radisson in the city.

100,000 rooms

The speed of strategic signings and an accelerated openings plan made Rezidor reach the milestone of 100,000 rooms in operation or under development in 2015. "Our total portfolio continues to feature a solid pipeline of 20,000 rooms. 85% are located in developing markets which are often high RevPAR markets where we operate with fee-based contract models generating high EBITDA margins. While we continue to lead the upper-upscale segment in Europe with Radisson Blu, we remain committed to these emerging regions and mitigate market-inherent risks through our asset-light business model, a focused geographic execution and increased security measures", ended Younes.

For further media information, please contact:

Christiane Reiter, Senior Director Corporate Communication, Christiane.Reiter@rezidor.com (mailto:Christiane.Reiter@rezidor.com)

Renu Snehi, Senior Director PR, Brand & Marketing Communication, Renu.Snehi@rezidor.com (mailto:Renu.Snehi@rezidor.com)

About Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group

Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group is one of the world's largest and most dynamic hotel groups and includes more than 1,370 hotels in operation and under development with 220,000 rooms and a footprint spanning 110 countries and territories. The Carlson Rezidor portfolio includes a powerful set of global brands: Quorvus Collection, Radisson Blu, Radisson, Radisson RED, Park Plaza, Park Inn by Radisson and Country Inns & Suites By CarlsonSM. In most hotels, guests can benefit from Club CarlsonSM, one of the 2015 - 2016 "Top Three Hotel Rewards Programs" as recently ranked by U.S. News and World Report. Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group and its brands employ 85,000 people worldwide and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minn., and Brussels, Belgium. For more information, visit www.carlsonrezidor.com (http://www.carlsonrezidor.com). Connect with Carlson Rezidor on social media: @CarlsonRezidor on Twitter and linkedin.com/company/2364.

Press release (PDF) (http://hugin.info/142138/R/1980624/725599.pdf)



This announcement is distributed by NASDAQ OMX Corporate Solutions on behalf of NASDAQ OMX Corporate Solutions clients.

The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein.

Source: Rezidor Hotel Group via Globenewswire



HUG#1980624


Gramercy Property Trust (NYSE:GPT), a real estate investment trust, announced today that Gramercy Property Europe plc (the Fund), a Europe-focused real estate investment fund sponsored and managed by the Company, acquired an office asset in Rotterdam, Netherlands, for a purchase price of approximately 13.2 million. The building, totaling 60,290 square feet (5,601 square meters), is leased through November 2027 to Cofely Nederland N.V., a subsidiary of ENGIE, an international supplier of integrated building services including energy, technical and facilities management services.

The transaction is the Fund's sixth in the Netherlands and is in line with the Company's strategy to build within the Fund a pan-European portfolio of single-tenant properties. Since inception in April 2105, the Fund has completed nine transactions amassing a portfolio totaling 256 million and spanning over 3.5 million square feet (330,000 square meters) in Germany, the Netherlands and Poland.

About Gramercy Property Europe plc

Gramercy Property Europe plc is an investment fund that targets single-tenant net leased assets and sale-leaseback transactions across Europe. The Fund has initial equity commitments of 350 million and will invest predominantly in industrial, office and specialty retail assets in Germany, the Netherlands, the Nordic region, the United Kingdom and other targeted European countries. Further information is available at www.gptreit.com/europe.

About Gramercy Property Trust

Gramercy Property Trust is a leading global investor and asset manager of commercial real estate. The Company specializes in acquiring and managing single-tenant, net-leased industrial and office properties purchased through sale-leaseback transactions or directly from property developers and owners. The Company focuses on income producing properties leased to high quality tenants in major markets in the United States and Europe.

To review the Company's latest news releases and other corporate documents, please visit the Company's website at www.gptreit.com or contact Investor Relations at 212-297-1000.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160122005107/en/

Contacts:

For Gramercy Property Trust

Brittany A. Sanders, 212-297-1000

Investor Relations
BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - Latvia's producer prices continued to decline in December, figures from the Central Bureau of Statistics showed Friday. The producer price index fell 1.6 percent year-over-year in December, slightly slower than previous month's 1.7 percent decrease in the previous month. Prices have been falling since January 2015. Both domestic and foreign market prices dropped by 2.6 percent and 0.5 percent,respectively in December from a year ago. Prices in the utility sector dipped 3.7 percent and that for manufacturing sector slid by 1.1 percent. At the same time, mining and quarrying prices grew 6.2 percent. On a monthly basis, producer prices edged down 0.2 percent in December, reversing a 0.3 percent rise in the preceding month. In 2015 as a whole, the average level of producer prices in Latvian industry dropped 1.0 percent compared with the previous year. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.


WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Legg Mason Inc. (LM) announced that it has agreed to acquire a majority equity interest in Clarion Partners, a diversified real estate investment firm based in New York. One of the largest independent real estate investors, Clarion Partners manages about $40 billion across the real estate risk/return spectrum. Clarion Partners will operate as the primary independent real estate investment affiliate for Legg Mason.



As per the terms of the transaction, Legg Mason will acquire an 83% ownership stake in Clarion Partners for $585 million. In addition, Legg Mason will pay for its portion of certain co-investments on a dollar for dollar basis, estimated at $16 million as of December 31, 2015. The management team will retain 17% of the outstanding equity in Clarion Partners.



The firm's previous majority partner, Lightyear Capital, will sell its entire ownership stake in the transaction. The deal is expected to close in the second calendar quarter of 2016, and is expected to be modestly accretive to earnings in the first year after the closing, excluding one-time deal-related charges of $10-$15 million.



In a separate press release, Legg Mason said that it has acquired a minority equity position in Precidian Investments, a firm specializing in creating innovative products and solutions and solving market structure issues, particularly with regard to the ETF marketplace.



Under the terms of the transaction, Legg Mason purchased a new class of preferred equity, entitling Legg Mason to the rights of a holder of 19.9% of common equity, with the option to acquire a majority interest in the common equity. Other terms of the transactions were not disclosed.



In addition, Legg Mason said it reached a definitive agreement to combine Permal, Legg Mason's existing hedge fund platform, with EnTrust Capital.



EnTrustPermal will be led by Mr. Hymowitz, who will become the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of EnTrustPermal.



The combination is expected to close in mid-2016. The transaction is expected to be modestly accretive to Legg Mason's earnings in the first year, after giving effect to estimated cost savings achieved that year and excluding restructuring and transition charges. Legg Mason expects EnTrustPermal to achieve cost savings of approximately $35-$40 million per year.



In connection with the combination of the businesses, Legg Mason expects to incur restructuring and transition costs of approximately $100 million, beginning in the Company's 4th Fiscal Quarter of 2016 and continuing throughout Fiscal Year 2017.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

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NEW YORK, NEW YORK -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- Catalyst announced today that it will give the Right Honorable Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, a special commendation for his leadership in advancing diversity and gender equality. Prime Minister Trudeau, whose historic first cabinet includes equal numbers of women and men, has inspired leaders around the world by championing women's rights and bringing women into the broader political dialogue. His simple explanation for his actions, "because it's 2015," has become a mantra even as we move into a new year.

Prime Minister Trudeau will be formally recognized at the gala 2016 Catalyst Awards Dinner, on March 16, 2016, at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City, an annual event that celebrates breakthrough corporate initiatives that accelerate inclusion in the workplace and the world. More than 1,600 guests, including CEOs, leading executives from top global corporations, professional firms, governments, NGOs, and educational institutions will be in attendance.

"Prime Minister Trudeau, through his intentional leadership and commitment to inclusion, sets an example that shows leaders throughout the world what is possible when they deliberately build diverse teams that reflect the marketplace and the communities they serve," says Deborah Gillis, President & CEO, Catalyst. "In today's rapidly changing global economy, it is vital that leaders in all sectors focus on developing all available talent to drive innovation and productivity. The business case for inclusion is well established: what's good for women is also good for business, families, communities, economies, and society as a whole. We commend Prime Minister Trudeau for leading by example. His actions are game changing, setting a new standard for others to follow."

About Catalyst

Founded in 1962, Catalyst is the leading nonprofit organization accelerating progress for women through workplace inclusion. With operations in the United States, Canada, Europe, India, Australia, and Japan, and more than 800 supporting organizations, Catalyst is the trusted resource for research, information, and advice about women at work. Catalyst annually honors exemplary organizational initiatives that promote women's advancement with the Catalyst Award.

Contacts:

Media Contacts

US and Australia:

Ellen Parlapiano

+1 646 388 7778

eparlapiano@catalyst.org



Canada:

Francine Beck

FB Strategies Group

+1 416 725 3710

francine@fbstrategiesgroup.com



Europe:

Frances Knox

Frankly PR

+44 7850 470123

frances@frankly-pr.co.uk



India:

Shilpa Mathapati

Gutenberg Communications

+91 22 3057 9113

shilpa@gutenbergpr.com



Japan:

Natsuko Mochizuki

Moonlight Wave Corporation

+81 3 3440 1550

catalyst@moonlightwave.com




SAINT-LAURENT, QUEBEC -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- IntelGenx Corp. (TSX VENTURE: IGX)(OTCQX: IGXT), today announced that it has strengthened its management team with the appointment of Mr. Robert Bechard to the position of Vice President, Corporate Development, the appointment of Ms. Nadine Paiement to Vice President, Research and Development and the appointment of Mr. Edward Miller to the position of Director, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications.

Appointment of Robert Bechard, Vice President, Corporate Development

Mr. Bechard brings more than 20 years' experience in the biopharmaceutical industry having worked for two lifescience venture capital funds, a pharmaceutical R&D management company and as a consultant to the biotech industry.

During his tenure at RBC Lifesciences Funds I&II, Mr. Bechard was a member of the Senior Management team that delivered top quartile returns in two separate funds. RBC Lifesciences Fund II, where he held the position of Managing Partner, returned more than 250% of its capital. During his 12 year term as a venture capitalist Mr. Bechard sat on the boards of more than 25 lifescience companies and was involved in the negotiation of numerous strategic alliances, partnerships, and outright sales to both pharmaceutical and biotech companies. In his role as Vice President, Corporate Development at IntelGenx, Mr. Bechard will be contributing to the development of the overall corporate strategy including product and business development.

"We are most pleased to welcome Robert to the management team as we begin 2016 with a key goal of transforming IntelGenx into one of the leading oral thin films business globally," said Dr. Horst G. Zerbe, President and CEO of IntelGenx. "A special congratulations to Nadine on her promotion who has been doing an outstanding job in leading our R&D team as they continue to advance our robust product pipeline addressing significant market opportunities. And finally we are pleased to appoint Edward as Director of our investor relations program as we are working closely with him in building an aggressive outreach plan to raise the visibility of the corporation in the capital markets."

Appointment of Nadine Paeiment, Vice President, Research and Development

Ms. Paiement has been with IntelGenx since 2005, where she grew into different positions including her most recent position as Senior Director, Research and Development. She is the co-inventor of IntelGenx' three platform technologies. As Vice President of Research and Development she is responsible for managing the company's research and development efforts necessary to meet the corporate goals. She is also responsible for advancing the company's current and emerging product pipeline through early to late stage development and regulatory filing. Her strong background in the pharmaceutical industry encompasses all areas from the laboratory level through to manufacturing scale-up, and during her more than 14 years' experience she has developed a highly creative approach to the development of new methods and resolving technical issues. She is the co-inventor of four patents and multiple pending applications, and has published articles in various recognized journals.

Appointment of Edward Miller, Director, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications

Mr. Miller began his career in 1999 working as an associate broker at Merrill Lynch. He then joined Paladin Labs in 2001 where he held various positions including Manager, Investor Relations where he successfully built their investor relations program. Following his tenure at Paladin Labs he moved into the role as an investor relations consultant working for Christensen IR, heading their lifescience practice and as an independent where he has built award winning investor relations programs. Mr. Miller is the Past President of CIRI (Canadian Investor Relations Institute) Quebec Chapter where he served two terms (2009 - 2012) and (2005 - 2007). Mr. Miller will be contributing to improving the company's visibility in the capital markets and leveraging his international experience at broadening its shareholder base.

Insider Stock Purchase

The Corporation announced that members of the Executive Management team and members of the Board of Directors have been actively purchasing shares on the open market the past month.

Stock Option Grants

The Company's Board of Directors granted options to acquire a total of 475,000 common shares under the 2006 Stock Option Plan, as amended.

Of the total stock options granted, 50,000 were granted to each of the following non-employee Directors Bernard Boudreau, John Marinucci, Ian Troup, Bernd Melchers and Ian Troup as part of their annual compensation. The options have an exercise price of US$0.41 (CAD$0.60), vest immediately, and expire on January 19, 2021. In addition, 150,000 options to acquire common shares were granted to Robert Bechard, Vice President, Corporate Development of IntelGenx Corp. and 75,000 options to acquire common shares were granted to Nadine Paiement, Vice President, Research and Development. The options have an exercise price of US$0.41 (CAD$0.60), vest over a period of two years at the rate of 25% every six months, and expire on January 19, 2021.

About IntelGenx:

IntelGenx is a leading drug delivery company focused on the development of innovative products based on its proprietary oral drug delivery technologies.

Established in 2003, the Montreal-based company, listed on the TSX-V and OTC-QX, develops innovative oral drug delivery solutions based on its proprietary platform technologies, VersaFilm, VersaTab and AdVersa.

IntelGenx has developed a broad and diverse product portfolio addressing unmet market needs and offering lifecycle management opportunities. FORFIVO XL, launched in 2012, is the first and only FDA approved once-daily bupropion HCI 450mg dose in a single tablet for the treatment of major depressive disorder.

IntelGenx highly skilled team provides comprehensive pharmaceuticals services to pharmaceutical partners, including R&D, clinical monitoring, IP protection, analytical method development and regulatory services. IntelGenx state-of-the art manufacturing facility, established for the VersaFilm technology platform, supports lab-scale to pilot and commercial-scale production, offering full service capabilities to our clients. More information is available about the company at: www.intelgenx.com.

Forward Looking Statements:

This document may contain forward-looking information about IntelGenx' operating results and business prospects that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Statements that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements about IntelGenx' plans, objectives, expectations, strategies, intentions or other characterizations of future events or circumstances and are generally identified by the words "may," "expects," "anticipates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "could," "would," and similar expressions. All forward looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. Because these forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, IntelGenx' actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, those discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in IntelGenx' annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2014, filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and available at www.sec.gov, and also filed with Canadian securities regulatory authorities and www.sedar.com. IntelGenx assumes no obligation to update any such forward-looking statements.

Each of the TSX Venture Exchange and OTCQX has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release.

Contacts:

IntelGenx Corp.

Edward Miller

Director, IR and Corporate Communications

+1 514-331-7440 (ext. 217)

edward@intelgenx.com




HONG KONG, CHINA -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- Harbour City, the largest shopping and dining destination in Hong Kong, will host its annual mega event "Chocolate Trail" and bring nearly 30 internationally-renowned chocolate brands to all Chocolate fans From January 21 to February 21, 2016,. BLACK As Chocolate from Taiwan, Domori from Italy, Homie Cookies from HK, Sift from HK, "Taste of Nic" from HK will be launched in Harbour City for the first time.

This year Harbour City will open the first-ever "Chocolate Trail Cafe" for customers to taste various premium chocolates and perfectly matching drinks. Harbour City will also organize the "Artistic CreationChocolate Sculpture" Exhibition, showcasing meticulously hand-crafted sculptures by two award-winning chocolate masters -- Marijn Coertjens from Belgium and Roger Fok from Hong Kong. Both chocolatiers participated in the prestigious World Chocolate Masters competition, which took place at the Salon du Chocolat in Paris last year, and received exceptional results.

On the other hand, Harbour City will organize various chocolate workshops and live demonstrations. A number of restaurants in Harbour City will also launch "Chocolate Trail" pairing menus. Moreover, Gallery by the Harbour will host the "Ferrero Gallery" art exhibition.

Download More Photos: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ox4k4bir1lqso2t/AABQyhpgBmdDRnDORSw8aj7Wa?dl=0

1. Chocolate Trail Cafe @ Harbour City

The decoration concept of Chocolate Trail this year is "European Train Station". Atrium II of Gateway Arcade of Harbour City will transform into a train station lobby with the first-ever Chocolate Trail Cafe from 21 Jan to 21 Feb, 2016. The cafe offers passengers a series of unique chocolate tasting menus with a wide selection of quality chocolates from all over the world and corresponding perfectly matching drinks. Passengers can choose their favourite menu at the cafe with designated donations to "Hong Kong Blood Cancer Foundation."

The main highlight of the cafe is the giant English High-tea set placed at the centre of the cafe. Passengers can sit on the chocolate-shaped chairs and enjoy their tasting menu. Many "European Train Station" thematic photo taking spots will be also set up along the Gateway Arcade Corridor.

2. "Artistic CreationChocolate Sculpture"Exhibition

Aside from satisfying their sweet tooth, chocolate fans will also be able to feast their eyes on chocolate sculptures created by world-class chocolate masters. Harbour City is organizing "Artistic CreationChocolate Sculpture" Exhibition at Gateway Arcade Corridor from 21 Jan to 21 Feb, 2016. The exhibition will showcase meticulously hand-crafted sculptures by two award-winning chocolate masters -- Marijn Coertjens from Belgium and Roger Fok from Hong Kong. Both chocolatiers' exceptional talents were recognised at the prestigious World Chocolate Masters competition, which took place at the Salon du Chocolat in Paris last year.

Mr Roger Fok, the pastry chef of JW Marriott Hotel Hong Kong, is the first representative of Hong Kong who was in the top 10 finalists of the 2015 World Chocolate Masters competition. He will create 3 art pieces for this exhibition, including his winning art piece in the competition "Avian Inspiration," other 2 art pieces are based on the concepts of "Journey to the Cocoa Land" and "Purple Fantasy."

Hailing from Belgium, the spiritual home of chocolate, The Peninsula Hong Kong's Maitre Chocolatier Marijn Coertjens, who was named in the top three at the 2015 World Chocolate Masters competition, will be hand-crafting 2 art pieces, "Welcome to the Jungle" & "Blue Jeans," for this exhibition.

3. Harbour City x The Artist "Personalized Chocolate Experience Zone"

Harbour City has a special collaboration with The Artist to launch "Personalized Chocolate Experience Zone" at Atrium I of Gateway Arcade from 21 Jan to 21 Feb, 2016. Customers can personalize the chocolates and boxes with their own photos, creating a unique gift or personal treat! During the weekends of the promotional period, upon a donation of HK$120 to "Hong Kong Blood Cancer Foundation", customers can get a limited edition 2-piece chocolate charity box set that you can print your photo on the chocolate. On the other hand, The Artist will donate HK$30 to "Hong Kong Blood Cancer Foundation" for each box of chocolate sold.

4. Ferrero Gallery Art Exhibition

In correlation with the Chocolate Trail at Harbour City, Italian chocolate brand "Ferrero Rocher" will be brought to life in the "Ferrero Gallery" Art Exhibition at Gallery by the Harbour. "Ferrero Gallery" tells the story of Italian creation and craftsmanship through artistry, and will be presented through a live chef demonstration and unprecedented cross-category collaboration with Asia's most creative and celebrated makeup artist, Zing.

5. Chocolate brands at Harbour City

There will be close to 30 international renowned chocolate brands in Harbour City during the Chocolate Trail period.

Existing Chocolate Shops in Harbour City:

1. agnes b. DELICES (France) 2. BVLGARI IL CIOCCOLATO (Italy) - [Only store in HK] 3. COVA Pasticceria & Confetteria (Italy) 4. DALLOYAU (France) 5. Fauchon (France) 6. GODIVA (Belgium) 7. Jean-Paul Hevin (France) 8. Laduree (France) 9. Leonidas Pralines (Belgium) 10. LE CAFE de Joel Robuchon (France) 11. Pierre Herme Paris (France) 12. ROYCE' (Japan) 13. The Library Cafe - Melt Chocolates (UK) 14. The Royal Touch (UK) 15. Venchi (Italy) 16. chakeli by ye shanghai (Hong Kong)

Chocolate Pop-up Stores in Harbour City:

1. BLACK As Chocolate (Taiwan) - [First launched in Harbour City] 2. Chapon (France) - [Only store in HK] 3. Domori (Italy) - [Only store in HK & First launched in Harbour City] 4. Frederic Blondeel (Belgium) - [Only store in HK] 5. Homie Cookies (Hong Kong) - [First launched in Harbour City] 6. MiO MiKO (Belgium) 7. The Peninsula Boutique (Hong Kong) 8. Sift (Hong Kong) - [First launched in Harbour City] 9. twelve cupcakes (Singapore) 10. YOKU MOKU (Japan) 11. zChocolat (France) - [Only store in HK] 12. "Taste of Nic" (Hong Kong) - [First launched in Harbour City]

Customer Enquiry: (852) 2118 8666 Website: www.harbourcity.com.hk

Company Logo

http://release.media-outreach.com/i/Download/4195

Image

Harbour City Chocolate Trail Cafe

http://release.media-outreach.com/i/Download/4236

Chocolate Tasting Menu and Personalized Chocolate Box at Harbour City Chocolate Trail 2016

http://release.media-outreach.com/i/Download/4237

"Artistic CreationChocolate Sculpture" Exhibition showcasing meticulously hand-crafted sculptures by two award-winning chocolate masters -- Marijn Coertjens from Belgium and Roger Fok from Hong Kong

http://release.media-outreach.com/i/Download/4238

Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=2953622

Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=2953625

Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=2953629



Media Enquiry:



Harbour City Estates Limited

Andrew Yeung

(852) 2118 8674

Email Contact



Florence Man

(852) 2118 8623

Email Contact




VIENNA, January 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Top Austrian companies honoured as National Champions forAustria in the European Business Awards 2015/16

Now we know which companies are the most successful and innovative in Austria: at a ceremony held in Vienna on Thursday evening, they were officially honoured as National Champions forAustria by Stefan Walter, Managing Partner of RSM Austria, and Adrian Tripp, CEO of the European Business Awards. In the next round, the public will choose between the companies in an online vote.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160120/324014 )

"We are proud that there are so many innovative companies in Austria. It is a pleasure to offer them an international platform with the European Business Awards, and to support them in the competition," said Stefan Walter, Managing Partner of RSM Austria, in his opening speech for the event.

Austria's economic power

A total of 13 domestic companies from a diverse range of different industries were selected by a panel of international experts and honoured as National Champions forAustria yesterday. They are: AirborneHydroMapping GmbH (Innsbruck), atempo GmbH (Graz), bellaflora Gartencenter GmbH (Leonding), Berger Feinste Confiserie (Lofer), Brau Union Osterreich (Linz), CROMA-Pharma (Korneuburg), Fabasoft (Linz), New Frontier Group (Vienna), Schachinger Logistik (Horsching), SIMPLON Fahrrad GmbH (Hard), Sonnenerde (Riedlingsdorf), Umdasch AG (Amstetten), UNIQA Insurance Group AG (Vienna). By participating in the European Business Awards, these companies get the opportunity both to present their own commercial achievements and to showcase Austria at the European level.

RSM - long-standing sponsor of the European Business Awards

RSM is the seventh-largest network of audit, tax and consulting firms in the world. It has been the lead sponsor and corporate champion of the European Business Awards for many years. The announcement of the National Champions is a milestone on the way to the international grand final, and the companies will be supported in the competition by RSM Austria. In June, the category winners selected by the panel and the European Public Champion selected by online voting will be honoured at a large and prestigious gala event in London. To find out more about the vote, visit: http://www.businessawardseurope.com

The European Business Awards

The European Business Awards are the largest cross-industry corporate awards in Europe. The purpose of the multi-level competition is to support the development of a stronger and more successful business community in Europe. In particular, the online vote gives outstanding companies the opportunity to present themselves to a Europe-wide audience. This year, 32,000 companies from 33 countries took this opportunity and competed in 13 winner categories.

About RSM International

RSM International is the seventh-largest network of independent audit, tax and consulting firms, encompassing over 110 countries, 730 offices and more than 37,500 people internationally. The network's total fee income is 4.4 billion US dollars (approx. 4.2 billion euros).

In September 2014, at the annual International Accounting Bulletin Awards, RSM received the prestigious "Network of the Year 2014 award". This award recognises networks that have demonstrated strong growth and operational excellence over the past 12 months.

RSM International is a member of the Forum of Firms, the purpose of which is to promote consistent and high quality standards of financial and auditing practices worldwide.

RSM is the brand used by a network of independent audit and consulting companies, each of which practises in its own right. RSM International Limited does not itself provide any audit or consulting services. Member firms are driven by a common vision of providing high-quality professional services, both in their domestic markets and in meeting the international service needs of their client base.

http://www.rsm.at

http://www.rsm.global

Photo material:

http://bit.ly/1V26yZC

Copyright: RSM/Tanzer. Can be reprinted free of charge.
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- On Monday, January 25, the Fraser Institute will release a new study examining the changing levels of poverty in Canada since 1996.

The study, An Introduction to the State of Poverty in Canada, spotlights and distinguishes between those Canadians trapped in low-income versus those that are experiencing low-income for a short-term transitory period.

A news release with additional information will be issued via Marketwired on January 25 at 5:30 a.m. (Eastern).

Follow the Fraser Institute on Twitter

Like us on Facebook

The Fraser Institute is an independent Canadian public policy research and educational organization with offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal and ties to a global network of think-tanks in 87 countries. Its mission is to improve the quality of life for Canadians, their families and future generations by studying, measuring and broadly communicating the effects of government policies, entrepreneurship and choice on their well-being. To protect the Institute's independence, it does not accept grants from governments or contracts for research. Visit www.fraserinstitute.org

Contacts:

Media Contact:

Charles Lammam

Director of Tax and Fiscal Policy, Fraser Institute



For interviews with Mr. Lammam, please contact:

Aanand Radia

Media Relations Specialist, Fraser Institute

(416) 363-6575 ext. 238

aanand.radia@fraserinstitute.org

@FraserInstitute



For further information, contact:

Aanand Radia

Media Relations Specialist, Fraser Institute

(416) 363-6575 ext. 238

aanand.radia@fraserinstitute.org




Lund, Sweden, 2016-01-22 14:45 CET (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Tribona has extended current lease agreement with PostNord in the property Jordbromalm 4:41, Haninge, with just over 6 years covering 32.000 sq.m. After the extension the lease agreement matures 31 December 2025, compared to a prior maturity 31 August 2019. In conjunction with the extension, the rent has been renegotiated. The renegotiated rent began to apply 1 January 2016. It has also been agreed to expand the existing property by approximately 7.000 s.qm. as part of the renegotiated lease agreement. The extension is conditional upon the obtaining of necessary permits. Move-in date in the extended area is planned to 1 July 2017. After move-in, the property has an area of approximately 39.000 sq.m. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION Per Johansson, CEO: +46 708 17 1363, e-mail: per.johansson@tribona.se This information is such that Tribona AB (publ) is obliged to disclose under the Securities Market Act and/or the Financial Instruments Trading Act. The information was made available for publication on 22 January 2016, 14:45 CET. ABOUT TRIBONA Tribona AB (publ) is one of Sweden's largest listed pure-play logistic property company. The property portfolio consists of modern and strategically located logistic properties, 36 in Sweden and one in Denmark, with a total lettable area of about 708.000 square meters. For more information, please visit www.tribona.se Attachment: https://cns.omxgroup.com/cds/DisclosureAttachmentServlet?messageAttachmentId=543866

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
ANNAPOLIS, MD -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- iJET International, Inc., a leading provider of integrated risk management solutions, announces today the appointment of a new chairman to its Security Intelligence Advisory Board, Robert "Bob" Oatman. Oatman has served on iJET's Advisory Board since 2002, and will now assume the role of chairman, where he will oversee the operations of the 14-member group. The announcement comes on the heels of Oatman also being named chair of the Executive Protection Council for ASIS International.

"Bob is an outstanding member of the iJET team. His counsel and leadership over the years have proven to be an invaluable asset to the board," said iJET CEO, Bruce McIndoe. "This, combined with his wealth of expertise and industry-leading knowledge in the field of executive protection and security made him the natural choice for the position, and we are thrilled to have him at the helm as we continue to grow and strengthen our global footprint."

Comprised of seasoned security, intelligence and health advisors with an abundance of senior and executive leadership experience in both the public and private sectors, iJET's 14-member Advisory Board provides insight into evolving security and health threats and situations around the world as well as counsel to clients, the iJET executive team and more.

"It's truly an honor to be named chairman of iJET's Advisory Board, which includes some of the most distinguished and accomplished individuals I've had the opportunity to work with over the course my career," said Oatman. "It has been an incredible experience to serve as a member of the board for almost 14 years, and I look forward to leading the board as we work together to support iJET's strategic development and growth now and in the future."

About Robert "Bob" Oatman

Robert L. Oatman, a Certified Protection Professional (CPP) is one of the preeminent providers of executive protection. His firm, R.L. Oatman & Associates, Inc., has provided executive protection risk assessments, consultation, operations, and training around the world since 1989. The firm specializes in developing detailed protection plans for the top executives of Fortune 500 companies in addition to private families, and operates an executive protection school near its headquarters in Towson, MD.

His experience includes overseas executive protection service to NBC during the Olympics in 1988, 1992, 1996 and 2000. He served as director of Protective Operations at Limited Brands, Inc. from1992-1997, and continued to serve that company as a protective consultant until 2004. Previously, he served with the Baltimore County P.D. retiring as a Major, Chief of Detectives.

Oatman is also the author of Executive Protection: Smarter.Faster.Better (American Literary Press 2015), Executive Protection: Rising to the Challenge, (ASIS Inter. 2009), Executive Protection: New Solutions for a New Era, (Noble House 2006), The Art of Executive Protection, (Noble House 1997).

He holds a B.S. Degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Baltimore and is a graduate of the FBI National Academy and the Federal Executive Institute. In 2003, he received the FBI Director's Award for Exceptional Service in the Public Interest and in 2010, was presented the ASIS International President's Award of Merit at the ASIS International Convention in Dallas, Texas.

For more information about iJET International, Inc. please visit www.ijet.com or click to watch iJET's Global Integrated Operations Center video.

About iJET International

iJET International (iJET) provides intelligence-driven, integrated risk management solutions that enable multinational organizations to operate globally with confidence. iJET's end-to-end, tailored solutions integrate world-class threat intelligence, innovative technology, and response services to help organizations avoid threats, mitigate risk and protect their people, assets, and reputation. Founded in 1999, iJET is a privately held company headquartered in Annapolis, U.S. with regional offices in London and Singapore and country offices in Japan, India and Germany. For more information, please visit www.iJET.com.

iJET Media Contacts:

iJET International

Amy Mininger

Email Contact

410.573.3860



DBC PR+Social Media

Ryan Vaughan

Email Contact

202.292.4575




CALGARY, ALBERTA -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- Eguana Technologies Inc. (TSX VENTURE: EGT)(OTC PINK: STGYF), is pleased to announce that its AC Battery is the first energy storage device to be approved by the Hawaiian Electric Company under their new advanced interconnection requirements. When paired with the E-Gear Energy Management Controller as part of the E-Gear BESS, the integrated system now supports residential PV interconnection under Hawaii's new Customer Self-Supply tariff.

"The Customer Self-Supply program is the first step in reestablishing Hawaii's residential PV market in a sustainable way and we are proud to be suppliers of the first storage system to support this market evolution," said Brent Harris, Chief Technology Officer at Eguana Technologies. "In the coming weeks the 25 megawatts allocated under the transitional Grid Supply program will be fully subscribed and beyond that, solar installers will need to package their PV systems with an approved storage system for interconnection to the grid" added Harris. With the Hawaiian certification Eguana's power control system continues to lead the industry in global certifications and market readiness.

"We have spent 2015 developing and testing our BESS energy storage solution and are very pleased to start 2016 by having our solution included on the Hawaiian Electric list of qualified Customer Self-Supply equipment," said Chris DeBone, Managing Partner at E-Gear LLC. "There has been a lot of talk about storage systems and what they can do to support higher utilization of rooftop solar, and we are now ready to be the first to start demonstrating those solutions," said Steve Godmere, Managing Partner at E-Gear, LLC.

E-Gear has started building BESS inventory in Honolulu with deliveries scheduled to ramp through the first quarter.

About E-Gear, LLC

E-Gear, LLC is a renewable energy innovation company offering proprietary patented and patent pending edge-of-grid energy management and storage solutions. These systems provide intelligent real-time adaptive control, flexibility, visibility, predictability and support to energy generating customers, renewable energy solution providers, energy service companies (ESCO's) and Utilities.

About The AC Battery:

The Eguana AC Battery is a certified, grid ready power control solution pre-integrated with industry leading Li-Ion batteries. Our solution can be seamlessly integrated with a local energy management system or a distributed fleet control network using open communication protocols to provide a fully functional energy storage installation. The AC Battery provides maximum flexibility for system aggregators which want to deploy it as a standalone product, as part of new solar storage installations, or as a retrofit to solar PV installations already in place.

About Eguana Technologies Inc.

Eguana Technologies Inc. (TSX VENTURE: EGT) designs and manufactures high performance power controls for residential and commercial energy storage systems. Eguana has more than 15 years' experience delivering grid edge power electronics for fuel cell, photovoltaic and battery applications and delivers proven, durable, high quality solutions from its high capacity manufacturing facilities in Europe and North America.

With thousands of its proprietary energy storage inverters deployed in the European and North American markets, Eguana is the leading supplier of power controls for solar self-consumption, grid services and demand charge applications at the grid edge.

To learn more, visit www.EguanaTech.com or follow us on Twitter @EguanaTech.

Forward Looking Information

The reader is advised that some of the information herein may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning assigned by National Instruments 51-102 and other relevant securities legislation. In particular, we include: statements pertaining to the value of our power controls to the energy storage market and statements concerning the use of proceeds and the Company's ability to obtain necessary approvals from the TSX Venture Exchange.

Forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and involves a number of risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements, or future events or developments, to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information, which speaks only as of the date hereof. Readers are also directed to the Risk Factors section of the Company's most recent audited Financial Statements which may be found on its website or at sedar.com The Company does not undertake any obligation to release publicly any revisions to forward-looking information contained herein to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Contacts:

Eguana Technologies Inc.

Justin Holland

CEO

+1.416.728.7635

Justin.Holland@EguanaTech.com

www.EguanaTech.com




OTTAWA, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada

Actua, a national charity that promotes science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) learning in youth, found an ally in the Government of Canada today as Minister of Science Kirsty Duncan addressed delegates at their annual conference in Ottawa. Minister Duncan, who since taking office has become a national champion for STEM promotion, told the group of about 70 delegates that she looks forward to working with Actua and similar organizations. She highlighted the need to mobilize a wide range of partners to deliver youth outreach and public engagement activities. She emphasized the vital need for inspiring science literacy and critical thinking and said that, as a teacher, a scientist and a politician, she has seen first-hand the benefits of promoting science dialogue in order to inform public policy.

Quick facts

-- Actua is a leading science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) outreach organization. Together with its network of university- and college-based members, it engages and inspires over 225,000 youth per year in transformational STEM experiences. -- Actua reaches students in every province and territory in Canada through the delivery of summer camps, classroom workshops, clubs and community outreach activities. -- The Government of Canada supports Actua through its PromoScience Program, which is administered by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council. -- The Minister of Science will work with the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour to help employers create more STEM co- op placements. -- The Government of Canada works to promote a STEM culture through programs such as PromoScience and Let's Talk Science. Support for science is an essential pillar of the government's strategy and will help create sustainable economic growth.

Quote

"We want to help create a vibrant science culture in Canada and to do that, our young people need a solid STEM foundation so they can take on the knowledge-based jobs of the future. I look forward to working with organizations like Actua to help our young people get excited about science and research and to encourage them to pursue careers in STEM fields and take on these challenges for the betterment of all Canadians."

- The Honourable Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science

Associated links

actua.ca

science.gc.ca

Follow the Minister on Twitter: @ScienceMin

Contacts:

Media Relations

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada

343-291-1777

ic.mediarelations-mediasrelations.ic@canada.ca




Regulatory News:

Scania's Year-end-report, January-December 2015 will be released at around 09:30 CET, Wednesday 27 January 2016.

Telephone conference and audio webcast at 14:00 CET

Henrik Henriksson, President and CEO and Johan Haeggman, CFO will make a short presentation of the report, followed by a Q&A session.

To listen to the live audio webcast, please visit www.scania.com/ir.Here you will also find the presentation material. A recording of the conference will be available afterwards.

To participate in the telephone conference, please call one of the numbers below a few minutes before the start of the conference to connect via an operator.

Participants in the US and Canada: +1 334 323 6203 Participants in Sweden: +46 (0)8 5052 0114 Other participants: +46 (0)8 5050 1011 To listen to the replay of the conference, call one of the following numbers: US replay number: +1 954 334 0342, access code: 957016 Sweden replay number: +46 (0)8 5052 0333, access code: 957016 UK replay number: +44 (0)20 7031 4064, access code: 957016

We look forward to your participation. If you have any questions regarding the above, please do not hesitate to contact Susanna Berlin, susanna.berlin@scania.com.

Best regards,

Susanna Berlin Hans-Ake Danielsson Investor Relations Manager Press Manager

Scania is one of the world's leading manufacturers of trucks and buses for heavy transport applications, and of industrial and marine engines. Service-related products account for a growing proportion of the company's operations, assuring Scania customers of cost-effective transport solutions and maximum uptime. Scania also offers financial services. Employing some 42,000 people, the company operates in about 100 countries. Research and development activities are concentrated in Sweden, while production takes place in Europe and South America, with facilities for global interchange of both components and complete vehicles. In 2014, net sales totalled SEK 92.1 billion and net income amounted to SEK 6 billion. Scania's press releases are available on www.scania.com (http://www.scania.com/se)

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160122005622/en/

Contacts:

Scania

Susanna Berlin,

susanna.berlin@scania.com

+46 8 55 38 10 00
WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Piedmont Natural Gas Co. Inc. (PNY) said its shareholders have voted to approve the company's acquisition by Duke Energy Corp. (DUK) during a specially called meeting of shareholders at Piedmont's corporate offices in Charlotte. The proposal to approve the acquisition was supported by 66.8 percent of the company's outstanding shares entitled to vote. The two companies filed for approval of the proposed acquisition with the North Carolina Utilities Commission and filed with the Tennessee Regulatory Authority to transfer Piedmont's Tennessee operating license on January 15, 2016. The Federal Trade Commission has granted early termination of the 30-day waiting period under the federal Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act with regard to the acquisition. Duke Energy and Piedmont Natural Gas are targeting to close the transaction by the end of 2016. In late October 2015, Duke Energy agreed to acquire Piedmont Natural Gas for about $4.9 billion in cash. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
WASHINGTON, DC--(Marketwired - January 22, 2016) - Morocco was named among the 50 most innovative economies in the world and one of just two such economies in Africa by the 2016 Bloomberg Innovation Index released this week. The Index scores economies using seven "factors including research and development spending and concentration of high-tech public companies" as well as patent activity and manufacturing value-added, and evaluated over 200 world economies before trimming the list to 84 with data on at least six of the seven factors.

The Index's results echo the findings of many industry reports of recent years. In 2014, the Wall Street Journal's Frontiers/FSG Frontier Markets Sentiment Index reported that Morocco is among the top ten frontier markets -- and the only one in the Maghreb-most favored by foreign corporations. KPMG International and Oxford Economics' 2015 Change Readiness Index (CRI) ranked Morocco as the most "change-ready" country in the Maghreb, with particularly positive results in the category of "enterprise capability." The World Bank's Doing Business 2016 report ranked Morocco first out of 20 MENA countries in terms of "ease of starting a business" and placed it sixth overall in the region for "ease of doing business."

In 2014, CNN named Casablanca a "finance hub of the future," and media reports have recognized the small waterfront town of Taghazout in Morocco as a "start-up haven" for entrepreneurs the world over, rated by Virgin "alongside Seattle and London as one of the world's best start-up hubs." This weekend, Casablanca will host the inaugural "StartUp Maroc" conference, bringing together entrepreneurs, investors, and other key players for three days of networking and mentoring.

The trend among investors and entrepreneurs can be attributed in part to Morocco's geographic location, political stability, and modern infrastructure, as well as reforms undertaken by the government to attract businesses and develop new markets. In 2013, Morocco became the second biggest destination for foreign direct investment in Africa, and is itself the second largest African investor on the continent.

"Morocco has made amazing progress in little more than a decade to become such a destination for global investors and business people, including start-ups and entrepreneurs," said former US Ambassador to Morocco Edward M. Gabriel. "Not too long ago, the country's economy relied largely on phosphates, tourism, and textiles. Now, Morocco boasts a strong automotive sector, aeronautics sector, and its overall economy is being more diversified and industrialized."

The Moroccan American Center for Policy (MACP) is a non-profit organization whose principal mission is to inform opinion makers, government officials, and interested publics in the United States about political and social developments in Morocco and the role being played by the Kingdom of Morocco in broader strategic developments in North Africa, the Mediterranean, and the Middle East.

This material is distributed by the Moroccan American Center for Policy on behalf of the Government of Morocco. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice in Washington, DC.

Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/1/22/11G079779/Images/Mbarka_Bouaida_at_women_s_entrepreneurship_day-d9a6eb77ae309a65a6bda1da3750d7c1.jpg

CONTACT:

Jordana Merran

202.470.2049

jmerran@moroccanamericancenter.com
BOSTON, MA--(Marketwired - January 22, 2016) - VMTurbo, the only real-time application performance control system for the software-defined data center, today announced the launch of their Hybrid Cloud Control solution for Arista networked environments, enabling network-aware control for workloads bursting to and from the public cloud. This announcement follows the launch of the next phase of Arista EOS, providing customers with greater scalability, network visibility and support for real-time migration to private, public and hybrid clouds.

"Our integration with Arista empowers joint customers to guarantee application Quality of Service on any cloud," said Endre Sara, VP, Advanced Solutions at VMTurbo. "At enterprise scale, deciding what workloads to run where and when is complex beyond human control. Our solution not only improves workload mobility but enables customers to guarantee performance in their private data center and the public cloud."

VMTurbo seamlessly integrates with Arista and major public cloud providers to add network-aware placement decisions and the intelligence of which workloads to burst to the public cloud and when to bring them back. With Arista and VMTurbo, enterprises are empowered to guarantee application Quality of Service across any cloud.

"VMTurbo and Arista Networks are key partners in the build-out of our next generation hybrid cloud architecture," said Ian Penny, Managing Director, CTO & Head of Infrastructure-as-a-Service at Barclays. "Our collaboration with Arista and VMTurbo assures performance of any workload, whether running on private or public cloud, and helps to accelerate delivery of new applications at scale."

Additional benefits include:

Streamlined management of network and virtualized environments allowing fewer system administrators to provide better management of larger environments

Accelerated migration to new virtualization and cloud architectures including OpenStack, Docker and Hybrid Cloud deployment models

Rapid time to value: deploy and scale to production in hours, see and realize value in days

To learn more about how Arista and VMTurbo are enabling enterprises to guarantee application Quality of Service at scale on any cloud, visit our joint solutions page.

About VMTurbo

VMTurbo's Application Performance Control system is trusted by nearly 1300 enterprises to guarantee Quality of Service for any application while maximizing resource utilization in cloud and virtualized environments, including OpenStack. VMTurbo's patented decision-engine technology dynamically analyzes workload demand and automatically matches it to infrastructure supply, taking into consideration application priority and any business or technical constraint.

The VMTurbo platform first launched in August 2010, and users today include many of the world's leading financial institutions, social and e-commerce sites, carriers and service providers. Leveraging VMTurbo, our customers, including PNC, Travelport and Thomson Reuters, assure that applications get the resources they need to operate reliably, while utilizing their most valuable infrastructure and human resources most efficiently. To learn more, visit vmturbo.com.

Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/1/21/11G079724/Images/aristavmt-150fc18e2e4f9b5ca85bc0b19f6a8388.jpg

Embedded Video Available: http://vmturbo.com/company/technology-partners/arista-vmturbo-alliance/

Media Contacts:

Eric Senunas

617.669.3676

Eric.senunas@vmturbo.com



Catherine Kellogg

781.418.5280

Catherine.Kellogg@vmturbo.com
CALGARY, ALBERTA -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- Mart Resources, Inc. (TSX: MMT) ("Mart" or the "Company") announces that it has entered into an arrangement agreement (the "Arrangement Agreement") with Midwestern Oil & Gas Company Limited ("Midwestern"), San Leon Energy Plc ("San Leon") and 1038221 B.C. Ltd. ("Acquireco"). Under the terms of the Arrangement Agreement, Acquireco, a wholly owned subsidiary of Midwestern, will acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Mart by way of a plan of arrangement under the Business Corporations Act (Alberta) (the "Arrangement"). Each Mart shareholder will receive CAD$0.25 in exchange for each Mart common share held (the "Per Share Consideration") for aggregate consideration of all Mart shares of approximately CAD$89.2 million. At closing, Mart and its subsidiaries are expected to have approximately US$200.5 million of outstanding bank debt resulting in an overall transaction value of approximately US$263 million. The Arrangement is subject to customary terms and conditions, including a Financing Condition.

The Per Share Consideration represents a 194% premium to the closing price and a 191% premium to the 20 day VWAP price of Mart's common shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange ("TSX") on January 21, 2016, the last trading day for Mart's common shares prior to the date of this announcement.

The board of directors of Mart, following receipt of a unanimous recommendation by a special committee of independent directors of Mart constituted to review strategic alternatives (the "Special Committee"), has unanimously determined that the Arrangement is fair to Mart shareholders and optionholders and that the Arrangement is in the best interests of the Company and its securityholders and recommends that shareholders and optionholders vote in favour of the Arrangement. FirstEnergy Capital LLP has provided the Special Committee with a verbal opinion that the Per Share Consideration under the Arrangement is fair, from a financial point of view, to Mart shareholders.

While the offer price of CAD$0.25 to be paid to Mart shareholders pursuant to the Arrangement is lower than the price offered to shareholders under the two previously terminated transactions, it is considered to be fair by the board of directors of Mart because of (i) the continued and significant worsening of the broader macro-environment for emerging market exploration and development companies, including forecast oil prices being US$15 to US$40 per barrel lower than when the previous offers were made; (ii) increased volatility and significant reduction of net cash flows from Mart's current operations; and (iii) significant constraints on available cash and working capital due to Mart's ongoing obligations to service the Company's significant level of debt.

The Arrangement Agreement

The Arrangement is subject to customary conditions for a transaction of this nature, which include court approvals, applicable third party approvals, including consent of Mart's lenders to the change of control, applicable regulatory and stock exchange approvals, the approval of 66 2/3% of Mart shareholders and 66 2/3% of Mart shareholders and optionholders (voting together as a single class) represented in person or by proxy at a special meeting of Mart shareholders and optionholders to be called to consider the Arrangement.

The Arrangement Agreement includes customary non-solicitation covenants by Mart and provides Mart with the ability to respond to unsolicited proposals considered superior to the Arrangement in accordance with the terms of the Arrangement Agreement. In the event Mart accepts a superior proposal, Mart will be required to pay a break fee of US$2.2 million to Acquireco. Acquireco has a right to match any such superior proposal.

The Arrangement is subject to a financing condition (the "Financing Condition"). San Leon has agreed to complete a financing and advance sufficient funds to Acquireco in order for Acquireco to deposit the aggregate Per Share Consideration and certain amounts relating to Mart's transaction costs with a depository on or before February 17, 2016. Acquireco has agreed to use commercial reasonable efforts to satisfy the Financing Condition on or before February 17, 2016 and to keep Mart informed as to the status and timing of the satisfaction of the Financing Condition. If the Financing Condition is not met, Acquireco shall have the right to terminate the Arrangement Agreement upon the payment by San Leon to Mart of a reverse break fee of US$2.2 million ("San Leon Reverse Break Fee"). If the aggregate Per Share Consideration and amounts relating to Mart's transactions costs are not paid to the depository on or before February 17, 2016, Mart shall have the right to terminate the Arrangement Agreement and San Leon will be required to pay to Mart the San Leon Reverse Break Fee.

An information circular regarding the Arrangement is expected to be mailed to Mart securityholders in early February for a special meeting of the holders of common shares and options to consider the Arrangement currently anticipated to take place in early March, with closing expected to occur shortly thereafter.

A copy of the Arrangement Agreement will be made available under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

All of the members of Mart's board of directors and certain senior officers, who collectively own approximately 1.6% of the outstanding Mart common shares and 73.7% of the outstanding Mart options have agreed to vote their shares and options in favour of the Arrangement.

About Acquireco

Acquireco is a corporation subsisting under the laws of British Columbia, Canada. Acquireco is a newly formed entity with no significant assets, other than its rights under the Arrangement Agreement. Acquireco is a wholly owned subsidiary of Midwestern and was formed for the purpose of completing the Arrangement. Midwestern and San Leon have agreed to jointly and severally guarantee all of Acquireco's obligations under the Arrangement Agreement.

About Midwestern

Midwestern is a private corporation existing under the laws of Nigeria. Midwestern is the operator of the Umusadege field and holds an indirect participating interest in OML 18.

About San Leon

San Leon is a corporation subsisting under the laws of Ireland. San Leon, a public corporation, has been listed on the London Alternative Investment Market since September 2008. San Leon is focused on oil and gas exploration in, and has a portfolio of assets across, Europe and North Africa. Its main focus is currently on Polish conventional and unconventional oil and gas reserves, and assets in Albania and Morocco. San Leon is an arms-length company to Midwestern. For further information about San Leon and its shareholders, see www.sanleonenergy.com.

Financial Advisor and Fairness Opinion

FirstEnergy Capital LLP is acting as financial advisor to the Special Committee. A copy of FirstEnergy Capital LLP's fairness opinion will be included in the information circular to be sent to Mart's securityholders for the special meeting to be called to consider the Arrangement.

Additional information regarding Mart is available on the Company's website at www.martresources.com and under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Forward Looking Statements and Risks

Certain statements contained in this press release constitute "forward-looking statements" as such term is used in applicable Canadian securities laws. Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or are not statements of historical fact and should be viewed as "forward-looking statements". There are "forward-looking statements" included in this press release that relate to the timing of the mailing of the information circular regarding the Arrangement, the meeting date and the closing date. Such forward looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.

There can be no assurance that such forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could vary or differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements contained in this news release. The forward-looking statements contained herein are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. In particular, there is no assurance that the conditions set out in the Arrangement Agreement, including Financing Condition will be satisfied. There is also no assurance that the Arrangement will be completed on the timelines indicated or at all. Accordingly, because of the risks, uncertainties and assumptions contained herein, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The foregoing statements expressly qualify any forward-looking information contained herein.

Forward-looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date the statements are made and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements and if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change, except as required by applicable law.

Contacts:

Mart Resources, Inc. - London, England

Dmitri Tsvetkov

Interim CEO and CFO

+44 207 351 7937

dmitri.tsvetkov@martresources.com



Mart Resources, Inc. - Canada

Sam Grier

403-270-1841

sam.grier@martresources.com

www.martresources.com




TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- Serafino Iacono, Executive Co-chairman of Gran Colombia Gold Corp. ("Gran Colombia") acquired approximately 16,195,615 common shares of Gran Colombia (the "Common Shares") pursuant to the debt restructuring completed by Gran Colombia on January 20, 2016 through a Plan of Arrangement under the Business Corporations Act (British Columbia) (the "Arrangement").

The Common Shares were acquired as Mr. Iacono elected to exchange his previously beneficially owned or controlled US$2,002,000 principal amount of 5% Senior Unsecured Notes (the "Silver Notes"), together with all corresponding accrued and unpaid interest and restructuring fees, into Common Shares at a conversion price of US$0.13 per share (equal to approximately CA$0.19 as of January 20, 2016), in accordance with the Arrangement. Furthermore, as a result of the Arrangement the US$5,000,000 principal amount of 10% Secured Gold-Linked Notes (the "Gold Notes") previously held by Mr. Iacono has been exchanged for approximately US$5,207,429 principal amount of Senior Secured Convertible debentures due 2020 (the "2020 Debentures"), convertible for approximately 40,057,144 Common Shares.

Prior to completion of the Arrangement, Mr. Iacono beneficially owned or controlled 599,897 Common Shares. This represented approximately 2.53% of the then issued and outstanding common shares of Gran Colombia. In addition, Mr. Iacono then beneficially owned or controlled US$5,000,000 principal amount of Gold Notes and US$2,002,000 principal amount of Silver Notes.

Following completion of the Arrangement, Mr. Iacono beneficially owns or controls approximately 16,795,512 Common Shares representing, on an undiluted basis, 14.79% of the issued and outstanding Common Shares and approximately US$5,207,429 principal amount of 2020 Debentures representing 5% of the principal amount of 2020 Debentures. In addition, Mr. Iacono beneficially owns or controls 50,000 Common Share purchase warrants, 90,000 Gran Colombia employee stock options representing approximately 1% and 10% respectively, which amounts have not changed as a result of the Arrangement.

The acquisition was a private transaction outside of any market or facility.

Mr. Iacono's election to convert Silver Notes to Common Shares was done for investment purposes. Mr. Iacono may, in the future, increase or decrease his ownership of securities in the Gran Colombia, directly or indirectly, from time to time depending upon the business and prospects of the Gran Colombia and future market conditions

An early warning report will also be filed by Mr. Iacono in connection with the acquisition above, pursuant to NI 62-103, a copy of which will be available on Gran Colombia's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.

Contacts:

Serafino Iacono

333 Bay Street, Suite 1100

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

M5H 2R2






BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - The Swiss stock market ended Friday's session with a strong increase, adding to the gains of the previous session. The market finished the overall trading week with a gain, which was the first positive week since 2016 began.



The market got off to a positive start Friday and continued to gain ground for much of the session. However, the market did give back some of its gains in late trade. Dovish comments from ECB President Mario Draghi yesterday continued to influence trading activity today. A strong recovery in crude oil prices also contributed to the positive mood among investors.



The Swiss Market Index increased 2.94 percent Friday and finished at 8,271.11. The SMI ended the trading week with an overall gain of 2.0 percent. The Swiss Leader Index climbed 2.83 percent Friday and the Swiss Performance Index gained 2.81 percent.



Cyclical stocks were among the strongest performing stocks at the end of the trading week. LafargeHolcim surged 5.9 percent, Lonza rose 3.7 percent and ABB added 3.4 percent.



Defensive stocks such as Swisscom were also in demand. Swisscomm increased 3.9 percent. Novartis and Roche both finished higher by 3.4 percent.



The luxury goods companies were also among the gainers. Richemont advanced 3.1 percent and Swatch added 2.7 percent.



Geberit closed higher by 3.1 percent. The company announced that Robert Spoerry will step down from its Board of Directors in early April.



Credit Suisse finished up by 2.9 percent, regaining some of yesterday's losses. There were rumors that new CEO Tidjane Thiam may soon depart his position.



Transocean gained 1.3 percent as crude oil prices continued to recover.



In the broad market, BB Biotech leaped 5.6 percent after it announced a dividend increase and a stock split in the ratio of 1:5.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de
DUBLIN, January 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Research and Markets(http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/w2v2vl/biotechnology_for) has announced the addition of the"Biotechnology for the Non-Biotechnologist (Nice, France - April 27-29, 2016)"conference to their offering.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130307/600769 )



Biotechnology for the Non-Biotechnologist, ideal for non-Scientists and Scientists needing to understand the basic theory, principles, techniques and potential of biotechnology.



Why you should attend:



- Gain an introduction to the fundamental principles of biotechnology

- Improve your understanding of the key techniques used by biotechnologists

- Understand the importance of meeting regulatory requirements and hear about the advances being made

- Learn how to identify potential patents, and why and how they must be protected

- Share knowledge and experiences with fellow attendees from across Europe

Speakers



Mark Richardson



Pharmaceutical/Biotech Drug Development Regulatory Affairs Consultant



Director, Richardson Associates Regulatory Affairs Ltd



After postdoctoral research in molecular biology at the Universities of Dundee and California at Berkeley, Mark joined British Biotech in 1988 to work on recombinant vaccines before becoming Head of Assay Development, then Biopharmaceutical Development Manager and subsequently moving into Regulatory Affairs with responsibility for rDNA products in preclinical and clinical development.



In 1997 he moved to Groupe Fournier as Head of the Gene Therapy Development Unit to lead a European oncology clinical development programme. Joining the CRO sector in 1999, first with Orion Clinical Services and later with i3 Research, Mark headed the Regulatory Affairs departments providing advisory and regulatory support for global development and clinical investigation of gene and cell therapy products, recombinant proteins and monoclonal antibodies, as well as for small molecule drugs.



In September 2008 Mark established the consultancy Richardson Associates Regulatory Affairs Ltd.



Philip Webber



European Patent Attorney



UK Chartered Patent Attorney



Partner - Dehns, Patent & Trade Mark Attorneys (London and Oxford, UK)



Dr. Webber obtained his first degree from Cambridge University, UK (Natural Sciences, Genetics) and then carried out research on the regulation of brain-specific genes at Warwick University, UK, where he obtained his PhD.



He qualified as a UK Chartered Patent Attorney and European Patent Attorney with Dehns (formerly Frank B. Dehn & Co.) and is now a partner in their Life Sciences Group. He has a worldwide client-base including clients from the UK, Scandinavia, the US and Japan. Amongst other things, his work involves the preparation and filing of patent applications in Europe and throughout the world; acting for his clients in opposition procedures at the European Patent Office; and searching for and advising his clients on the relevance of competitors' patents.



He is an active member of the Life Sciences Committee of the UK Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA). He has spoken at a number of European conferences and on BBC Radio on the patenting of biotech inventions, as well as publishing a number of papers in this area.



Kate Smith



Kate Smith is currently Principal Scientist, Development Services, at BioReliance, UK. In this position she is responsible for managing the team of scientists involved in the preparation of cell banks (master and working), viral seed stocks (master and working) and production of clinical lots of virus.



She was until recently a Principal Group Leader in the Purification Development Group at Lonza Biologics, plc. She has more than 18 years experience in the development, scale-up, transfer and validation of purification processes for monoclonal antibodies and recombinant proteins from mammalian cell cultures. Her area of expertise is the design and management of Viral and DNA reduction studies used to support product safety.



Alison Sykes



Alison Sykes is Associate Director Physico-Chem Analytics, Biosimilars, at Merck Serono, Geneva, a post she took up early in 2015.



She had formerly Biosimilar Technical Director within Analytical Services at Lonza Biologics plc responsible for oversight and definition of all analytical activities relating to pre-clinical and clinical development of Biosimilars derived from mammalian and microbial cell culture.



Alison had worked for Lonza for 25 years, responsible for running various different analytical teams and functions including cell culture support, method development and validation, stability and formulation and protein characterisation. She has been responsible for set-up and establishing FDA and MHRA approved laboratories and providing technical and advisory support for CMC development of biopharmaceuticals from pre-clinical through to clinical phases, including several successful BLA licence applications.



A biochemist by training Alison started her career working for the National Health Service and then moved to NIBSC. Her experience here on the human side of the drug industry and the need for global standards in protein drug development helped drive her enthusiasm for detailed analysis and characterisation of safe and efficacious biopharmaceuticals.



Adekunle Onadipe



Dr Adekunle Onadipe is an Associate Research Fellow in Bioprocess R&D, Cell Line Development at Pfizer Inc. USA. He leads a group of scientists responsible for the construction, development and characterization of mammalian and microbial cell lines for biotherapeutics and vaccines production. His group is also involved in the scale-up of bioprocesses from bench top to pilot scale bioreactors and process development for the establishment of cell banks to support the manufacture of biopharmaceutical products for early phase clinical trials. Kunle joined Pfizer Limited in the UK in 2005 in Discovery Biology with responsibility for optimizing cell culture processes for the production of cell-based assay reagents. Prior to this he worked for 15 years at Lonza Biologics plc., in Slough UK where, as a Principal Group Leader in cell culture process development, he was responsible for constructing and developing production mammalian cell lines and culture processes, subsequently transferring them to full-scale production for clinical trials.



A microbiologist by training, Kunle has been involved in the production of biopharmaceuticals for more than 27 years and has a broad experience of microbial and mammalian cell culture methods. He obtained his PhD in Microbiology from the University of Surrey, Guildford UK.



Adrian Haines



Dr Adrian Haines is the Section Head of Process Development Sciences at Novimmune SA, Switzerland. Adrian leads teams of upstream and downstream development scientists who work within a CMC environment to develop, evaluate and characterize processes for the production of monoclonal antibodies and novel ??-bodies. He has extensive experience in generating mammalian cell lines suitable for the GMP production of biologics.



Adrian joined Novimmune in 2015 and prior to this he worked at Lonza Biologics in the UK working on projects to develop new technologies and processes for generating manufacturing cell lines. Before that he worked for ML Laboratories/Cobra Research developing UCOE technologies for the expression of proteins in mammalian cells and at Therexsys Ltd, developing antibody targeted gene therapies. Prior to this he worked at Celltech Research Ltd, generating radiolabelling and cross-linking technologies for antibodies.



A biochemist by training, Adrian has been involved in the protein chemistry and production of monoclonal antibodies for over 28 years starting with his PhD where he generated monoclonal antibodies (using hybridoma technology) for the diagnosis of prostate cancer. Adrian received his bachelor degree from Imperial College, London, and his PhD from St Thomas' Hospital Medical School, University of London.



Robert Young



Dr Young is the Principal Group Leader of Lonza Biologics New Expression Technologies Group based in Cambridge, UK. He manages a group engaged in developing expression systems for the industrial production of therapeutic recombinant proteins.



He received his PhD in molecular biology (1994) from King's College London (in collaboration with Celltech Ltd, UK (now a part of UCB)), creating glycosylation mutant human IgE-Fc fragments and other components of the IgE system and expressing them in CHO-K1 and NS0 cells (using the GS expression system) for biochemical and structural studies. After extending this work as part of his first post-doctoral appointment, Dr Young embarked on a second post-doctoral position at the Laboratory of Molecular Biology (Division of Structural Studies), Cambridge, UK (1995-1998), working on the structure of the protein components of small nuclear ribonucleoprotein (snRNP) complexes.



In 1998, he joined a biopharmaceutical company, Antisoma plc (London, UK) running the Protein Engineering team engaged in the expression of anti-tumour antibody-enzyme fusion proteins in mammalian cells. Dr Young left Antisoma at the end of 2004 to join Lonza Biologics, where he became a Principal Scientist in the Cell Culture Process Development (CCPD) Department. He remained there until the end of 2010 when the New Expression Technologies Group was established.



For more information visithttp://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/w2v2vl/biotechnology_for

About Research and Markets:

Research and Markets is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

Media Contact:

Laura Wood

+353-1-481-1716

press@researchandmarkets.net
WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Ben Carson's former campaign manager Barry Bennett is now assisting the campaign of rival Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Bennett, who left the Carson campaign last month, confirmed the relationship to several media sources but said his role is unpaid and unofficial. 'I believe Trump is going to win and it's important that his campaign is ready for everything that is coming,' Bennett told the Washington Post. He added, 'I'm here to do what is needed. I'm not being paid and I'm going to be mostly focused on getting my business back up and running.' Bennett indicated he met with Trump's team last week to discuss potential logistical hurdles the campaign could face going forward. Carson confidant Armstrong Williams, who clashed with Bennett while he was a member of the campaign, accused him of betraying Carson in an attempt to curry favor with Trump. While Carson surged into the lead in some polls earlier in the campaign, he has faltered since then and now has support in the single digits. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
NORTH VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA and MUSQUEAM, SQUAMISH AND TSLEIL-WAUTUTH TERRITORY -- (Marketwired) -- 01/22/16 -- This morning, the Attorney General of Canada asked the Federal Court of Appeal to adjourn for three months Tsleil-Waututh's legal challenge of the National Energy Board's (NEB) review of Kinder Morgan's pipeline and tanker expansion proposal. The court granted the motion in part to allow the federal government time to review its litigation strategy and reconcile with Tsleil-Waututh's opposition to the expansion proposal.

The court ordered Canada to advise it by April 22, 2016 whether it will be changing its position in the case, and to file arguments about that position (should it change) by April 29, 2016. This adjournment will allow the new government time to establish a new relationship with Tsleil-Waututh.

Tsleil-Waututh voiced support for the motion before the court. "The government's pledge to engage us on a Nation-to-Nation basis is heartening. We have been asking for this for a very long time," said Tsleil-Waututh Chief Maureen Thomas. "I look forward to sitting down in good faith with the Crown," the Chief added.

The Prime Minister recently directed the Minister of Justice and the Attorney General of Canada to review Canada's current litigation and "take early decisions to end appeals or positions" inconsistent with campaign pledges and the values of Canadians. The motion today represents the first concrete step the new federal government has taken to correct deficiencies in the NEB's review of the Kinder Morgan expansion proposal.

Tsleil-Waututh's case argues that the former government and the NEB failed to consult with them in the design of the review process, which has been widely criticized for limiting public participation, excluding climate change impacts, and failing to meaningfully test evidence. While a delay in the appeal may increase regulatory uncertainty, it will provide time for reconciliation of the two governments' processes and positions.

Tsleil-Waututh also argues that the NEB's failure to review marine shipping activities under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012 is a legal error. "Our own independent assessment of the project concluded that a seven-fold increase in tankers means that a spill is inevitable, that it will be devastating, and that it can't be cleaned up. The NEB is not properly considering the effects of marine shipping, which is a major concern for everyone who lives near the Salish Sea," said Rueben George, a spokesperson for Tsleil-Waututh's Sacred Trust Initiative.

In the meantime, the NEB is continuing with its flawed process, hearing oral arguments from intervenors in Burnaby from Jan. 19-29. Tsleil-Waututh is scheduled to make its final submissions to the NEB on January 26, 2016.

About Tsleil-Waututh Nation

Tsleil-Waututh Nation is a progressive, vibrant Coast Salish community of approximately 500 members. The Nation is located along the shores of Burrard Inlet in North Vancouver, B.C., Canada, across the Inlet from the Burnaby terminus of Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain pipeline.

The Nation's Sacred Trust Initiative is mandated to oppose and stop the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain pipeline and tanker expansion. For more information visit www.twnsacredtrust.ca and follow the Sacred Trust Initiative on Twitter: @TWNSacredTrust.

Contacts:

Tsleil-Waututh Nation

Sarah Thomas

604-358-3371

media@twnation.ca

www.twnsacredtrust.ca




Award marks another milestone in the continued trajectory of Partner Relationship Management, which is emerging as one of 2016's hottest sales technologies

Sales and customer service fastest-growing Stevie Awards category internationally

SILICON SLOPES, Utah, Jan. 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Global SaaS Partner Relationship Management (PRM) leader Impartner was today named a finalist for Best Relationship Management Solution in the 10th annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service. The awards are presented by the Stevie Awards, which organizes several of the world's leading business awards shows, including the International Business Awards and American Business Awards. More than 2,100 nominations from organizations of all sizes and in virtually every industry were evaluated this season.

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150821/260238LOGO

Final award results will be announced Friday, March 4 at this year's awards gala at the Paris Las Vegas Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. The ceremony will be broadcast live via Livestream.

"The Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service continues to be the fastest-growing of our international awards programs," said Michael Gallagher, president and founder of the Stevie Awards. "The sheer number of nominations is matched by the increasing quality of those nominations. We congratulate all of this year's finalists and wish them well in the next phase of judging."

"This recognition is another clear sign that the Golden Age of PRM has absolutely arrived as companies around the world realize that PRM is as critical to their business as CRM in accelerating their indirect sales," said Impartner Vice President of Customer Success Brad Pace. "We're thrilled for the recognition of the value PRM and Impartner bring to customers in enhancing their relationships with partners."

Details about the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service and the list of finalists in all categories are available at www.StevieAwards.com/Sales.

About Impartner

Impartner delivers the industry's most advanced SaaS-based Partner Relationship Management solution, helping companies worldwide manage their partner relationships and accelerate revenue and profitability through indirect sales channels. Impartner PRM is the industry's only turnkey solution that can deploy a world-class Partner Portal in as few as 30 days, using the company's highly engineered, three-step Velocity' onboarding process. For more information on Impartner, which is based in Utah's tech hotbed, the Silicon Slopes, visit www.impartner.com, or in the United States call +1 801 501 7000, for EMEA general call +33 1 40 90 31 20, for London call +44 0 20 3283 4465, and for LATAM call +1 954 364 7883.

Follow Impartner on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.

About the Stevie Awards

Stevie Awards are conferred in six programs: the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards, the German Stevie Awards, The American Business Awards, The International Business Awards, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, and the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service. Stevie Awards competitions receive more than 10,000 entries each year from organizations in more than 60 nations. Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide. See www.StevieAwards.com.

Contact:

Kerry Desberg

Impartner

425-231-9529

kerry.desberg@impartner.com
Technavio has announced the top five leading vendors in their recent global gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) drugs marketreport. This research report also lists 12 other prominent vendors that are expected to impact the market during the forecast period.

According to Technavio's report, gastroesophageal reflux disease is a chronic digestive disorder that affects the lower esophageal sphincter (LES), the ring of muscle between the stomach and esophagus. It occurs when acidic stomach juices, or food and fluids flow back up into the food pipe (esophagus), affecting all ages, from infants to older adults.

The primary symptoms of GERD include difficulty while swallowing (dysphagia), heartburn sensation, regurgitation or acid reflux, dry cough, sore throat, and chest pain.

Vendor competitive landscape

Technavio's analysis has identified AstraZeneca, Eisai, GSK, Johnson Johnson, and Takeda as the leading vendors of the global GERD drugs market. Together, these companies account for the majority of the market. Based on drug class, the majority of the market share is held by proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), although they are reported to have severe adverse effects.

Technavio concludes that a company that manufactures and markets a drug that can treat GERD significantly and also exhibit a high safety and efficacy profile is expected to gain a competitive advantage over other companies.

About the top five global GERD drugs vendors

AstraZeneca

AstraZeneca was formed in 1999 through the merger of Astra and Zeneca Group and is headquartered in London, UK. It is a global biopharmaceutical company, engaged in the R&D, manufacturing, and distribution of medicines for the treatment of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases; oncology diseases; respiratory diseases, inflammation, and autoimmunity disorders and infections; neurological diseases, and gastrointestinal diseases.

The company's principal products are Crestor, Seloken/Toprol-XL, Iressa, Faslodex, and Zoladex. It markets these products to primary care and specialist doctors.

Imran Mushtaq, Technavio's lead research analyst says, "AstraZeneca's continuous investment in R&D is the primary reason for its promising and innovative product pipeline. Its product pipeline includes 99 projects, of which 85 are in the clinical phase of development, including Zinforo, Caprelsa, and Epanova."

Eisai

Eisai was founded in 1941 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. The company manufactures and distributes prescription medicines and OTC products worldwide. As of March 2015, the company had 10,183 employees and generated a revenue of USD 4.99 billion.

GSK

GSK was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in England, UK. It is known for manufacturing and marketing pharmaceutical products that include OTC products, vaccines, and health-related consumer products across the world.

"The company has a global reach in over 150 markets with a network of 84 manufacturing sites across 36 countries and R&D centers in the US, the UK, China, and Belgium," says Imran Mushtaq, Technavio's lead research analyst.

It has approximately 97,921 employees in all its offices across the globe. It had generated a revenue of USD 37.9 billion and recorded R&D expenses at USD 5.68 billion for FY2014.

Johnson Johnson

Johnson Johnson was founded in 1887 and is headquartered in New Jersey, US. It researches, develops, and sells products across various therapy areas including infectious diseases, immunology, oncology, neuroscience, and metabolic and cardiovascular diseases. It also develops and sells medical devices and consumer care products. The company has around 126,500 employees. It recorded a revenue of USD 74.33 billion for FY2014.

Johnson Johnson operates through 265 companies in 60 countries worldwide. It has a total of 134 manufacturing facilities globally, with 42 manufacturing facilities in the US, 41 in Europe, 15 in Western Hemisphere, and 36 in Africa and APAC.

Takeda

Takeda was founded in 1781 and is headquartered in Osaka, Japan. The company primarily undertakes the R&D, manufacture, sales, and import or export of pharmaceutical drugs.

The 12 other prominent vendors listed in Technavio's report includeAhn-Gook Pharmaceutical, Cancer Advances, CJ Cheil Jedang, Daewoong Pharmaceutical, Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, RaQualia Pharma, SFJ Pharmaceuticals Group, Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, Vecta Pharmaceuticals, Wockhardt, Yuhan, and Zeria Pharmaceutical.

Browse Related Reports:

Global Gastrointestinal OTC Drugs Market 2015-2019

Global Irritable Bowel Syndrome Market 2015-2019

Global Respiratory Drugs Market 2016-2020

Purchase these three reports for the price of one by becoming a Technavio subscriber. Subscribing to Technavio's reports allows you to download any three reports per month for the price of one. Contact enquiry@technavio.com with your requirements and a link to our subscription platform.

About Technavio

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. The company develops over 2000 pieces of research every year, covering more than 500 technologies across 80 countries. Technavio has about 300 analysts globally who specialize in customized consulting and business research assignments across the latest leading edge technologies.

Technavio analysts employ primary as well as secondary research techniques to ascertain the size and vendor landscape in a range of markets. Analysts obtain information using a combination of bottom-up and top-down approaches, besides using in-house market modeling tools and proprietary databases. They corroborate this data with the data obtained from various market participants and stakeholders across the value chain, including vendors, service providers, distributors, re-sellers, and end-users.

If you are interested in more information, please contact our media team at media@technavio.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160122005478/en/

Contacts:

Technavio Research

Jesse Maida

Media Marketing Executive

US: +1 630 333 9501

UK: +44 208 123 1770

www.technavio.com
Akili Interactive Labs, Inc., a Boston, MA-based company focused on developing clinically validated digital medicine for cognitive assessment and personalized treatment, raised $30.5m in equity funding.

Backers included JAZZ Venture Partners, Canepa Advanced Healthcare Fund and PureTech Health.

The company intends to use the funds for further clinical development of its late-stage products and building a commercial infrastructure for a potential U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance and product launch in 2017.

Led by Eddie Martucci, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Akili develops mobile software-based treatments and monitors that are designed to function as action video games. The company intends to develop its products in drug markets, starting in pediatric ADHD. Its lead product candidate, Project: EVO, is based on a platform technology exclusively licensed from the lab of Dr. Adam Gazzaley at the University of California, San Francisco.

Akili is currently conducting multiple clinical trials of its digital medicine platform across a variety of patient populations, including pediatric attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (in strategic collaboration with Autism Speaks), depression, Alzheimers disease (in strategic collaboration with Pfizer, Inc.) and traumatic brain injury.

FinSMEs

22/01/2016
D-Eye, a Padua, Italy-based startup that has developed a digital eye into the state of the human body, raised 1.5m in funding.

Backers included Italian Government co-investment fund Invitalia Ventures, venture capital firm Innogest, Fondazione Cottino, current shareholder Si14 and managers of the company.

Founded in 2014 by ophthalmologist Andrea Russo and led by CEO Richard Sill , D-Eye designs and manufactures mobile sensing and examination devices, along with companion applications, that enable mass health screenings and data collection to improve access to vital health examination services. The company also develop and operate a cloud-based system that enables telehealth applications, and aggregates and analyzes health screening data to provide insight into individual conditions as well as trends across patient populations.

The first product is the D-EYE Portable Retinal Imaging System, which focuses on eye care.

D-Eye also has offices in Pasadena, CA, and Boston, MA.

The company intends to use the funds to finalize and launch the cloud technology and complete its offering already including the device and the app, already acquired by over 1,000 physicians globally.

FinSMEs

22/01/2016
Palo Alto, CA-based early stage venture capital firm SoftTech VC is to raise two new funds.

According to documents filed with the S.E.C., the firm is raising a $100m principal fund, called SoftTech VC V, L.P., and a $30m fund to continue to back promising portfolio companies as they mature, called SoftTech VC Breakout Fund I, L.P.

Led by Jeff Clavier, and newly promoted partners Stephanie Palmeri and Andy McLoughlin (read our post here), SoftTech VC focuses on investing in B2B/Saas, Marketplaces, Connected Devices and B2C startups based in Silicon Valley, New York, Southern California, Boulder and Canada.

Founded in 2004, the firm has invested in over 170 companies and started investing its fourth fund, the $85M SoftTech VC IV, in 2013.

FinSMEs

22/01/2016
Synoste, a Dusseldorf, Germany and Helsinki, Finland-based medical technology startup, raised a Series A venture capital funding in the single-digit million euro range.

Backers included Evonik, High-Tech Grunderfonds, Finnvera and Lifeline Ventures as well as Finnish business angels.

The company intends to use the funds to

Founded in 2012 by Harri Hallila, CEO, Synoste is a spin-off of the Aalto University in Espoo (Finland) that has developed a high-tech implant for a minimally invasive treatment of leg length discrepancy, which can lead to chronic back pain and osteoarthritis in the long term.

Have a look at inversion table reviews

The implant, developed together with Orton, a hospital specialized in orthopedics and located in Helsinki, is expected to be launched in the market in 2017 with the name NitinailTM.

Currently, the product is heading to the CE approval procedure that is a prerequisite for the sale of medical technology applications in Europe.

FinSMEs

22/01/2016
For your money and time, Akshay Kumar is the most watchable star in Bollywood today. See Airlift, you will know why.

Unlike the other superstars his growth is constant. Every film  and I include his steady stream of comedy films  finds him touching base with new depths of emotions within himself.

In Airlift, he plays Ranjit Katyal, the unsung, unknown hero who masterminded the evacuation of thousands of Indians stranded in Kuwait in August 1990 when Saddam Hussains army decided to take over. Akshay delivers a performance that is subtle and skilled. He weaves his way around the crisis, looking for centre to his war-torn conscience-stricken character. When he finds that centre, the actor builds a character who uses his negotiating skills as an entrepreneur to rescue innumerable lives from danger.

Its a role clearly inspired by Liam Neeson in Steven Spielbergs Schindlers List. And Akshay is every bit as compelling as Neeson, if not more.

After a look-what-an-affluent-couple-we-are party song (totally unnecessary) the plot straightway takes us thick into the tensions on the war-torn streets of Kuwait. The images of a suddenly-violated landscape are imaginatively mapped.

It comes as surprise that the film is shot by female cinematographer Priya Seth. The images her camera captures are rugged virile and predominantly masculine.

We see the ravaged city swathed in the fire of fear. And the fear tension and anxiety is most palpably manifested on Akshay Kumars face. A handsome , happy face suddenly stricken with panic for his wife Amrita (Nimrat Kaur) and little daughters safety.

Ranjit Katyals self-interest and concern for his familys safety extends itself outwards to include his staff members and their family  theres a brilliant conscience-awakening scene at the outset when Ranjits faithful driver is gunned down my Saddams marauders. Soon, the immediate concerns merge into a larger concern for the safety of all the stranded Indians in Kuwait.

For Ranjit the solution to the crisis is non-negotiable: either the safety of all Indians, or none. The sense of an individual rising to confront a mammoth crisis is placed at a predominant position in the plot. The scriptwriters Suresh Nair, Rahul Nangia, Ritesh Shah and director Menon, have researched Saddams invasion well. But they dont allow the narrative to be bogged down by the politics of history.

Airlift is first and foremost a heart-stopping thriller. Its the story of a man whose heroism is awakened in the hour of crisis. Some of the most engrossing moments in the deviously-scripted political thriller find Ranjit Katyal making contact with an officer in the Minister Of External officers in the slim of getting help from the Indian government.

Actor Kumud Mishra, never known to let down his characters, creates tremendous empathy for the role of a bureaucrat struggling to convince an apathetic Indian administration to send help for the stranded Indians in Kuwait. During times of a crisis the humanism of an otherwise self-centred civilization is known to surface effortlessly. Airlift takes us through that journey of the awakened conscience with exhilarating empathy.

There is a lovely little scene in Sanjeev Kohlis tiny home where his father (Arun Bali), a Partition refugee, reminds his son what the loss of homeland means to an individual. Here, the evacuation of Indians from Kuwait effortlessly acquires a beautiful historical perspective.

The fringe roles of the scared frightened evacuees are played by competent actors, though some of them over-do the anxiety act. Standing-out among the crowds of refugees is Prakash Belawadi as a cantankerous whining old man, the kind of nuisance maker one comes across during any time of crisis. Belawadis farewell hug for Ranjit Katyal is the kind of reluctant salute that makes the hero seem even more heroic.

Nimrat Kaur as the heros wife doesnt have enough space to take her character very far. She has one important outburst sequence where she ticks off Belawadi for questioning and insulting her husbands heroism. Purab Kohli is engaging as a man searching for his missing wife in the mayhem that Saddam created, redeeming his loss by saving a helpless young Kuwaiti woman from sure death. Its yet another part given a lot of heart by the writing and the actor playing the role.

Though Akshay Kumar, and to a much smaller but equally significant extent, Kumud Mishra, tower over the plot, the smaller characters are all etched in vivid shades. Except for a ridiculous Arabic accent sported by an Iraqi general (played by Inaam-ul-Haq) the film doesnt strike one false note as it hurls through events that history buried in a place too deep for tears.

Though the budget constraints show up in the aerial and ground attack scenes (as uncalled-for as the Iraqi generals Arabicaccent) the film wears an urgent and tense look that reaches down to the audience and clutches us by our guts. More importantly Airlift shows us that with resolute authority and underplayed virility, how a hero is a product of the troubles that humanity inherits from its own shortcomings.

Ranjit Katyal is the Baahubali of his crisis.

Sometimes, being human comes naturally to cinema. Thats the moment we need to salute celebrate and sanctify so that we get to see more unsung heroes on screen. We didnt know Ranjit Katyal. But now Akshay Kumar has brought this unclaimed hero out of the rubble of history.

It takes one hero to recognize and acknowledge another.
Fifteen minutes into Airlift, in a very simple, quiet, slow motion sequence, a defeated looking, bearded Indian man drives past the burning city of Kuwait.

Young Iraqi army men, barely in their teens, are out on the streets, guns in their hands, with the power of Saddam Husseins terror in their walk. The torturous sights of a city under siege continue to be seen in the rear view mirror of the car. One of the first thoughts you have as a viewer is that Camerawoman Priya Seths story-centric cinematography is deeply compelling in Airlift.

Just the night before, the Indian chauffeur was driving a man along with his wife to a party. The man is now huddled at the steering wheel, sobbing. His name is Ranjit Katyal.

By now, you have forgotten he is Akshay Kumar, the action hero who was last seen performing a rocking bhangra, with a vibrant turban on his head, in Singh is Bling. Kumar is an ordinary looking Katyal, and this itself is a huge achievement for someone of his star stature, thanks primarily to the smoothest direction by Raja Krishna Menon.

There is no unnecessary dramatic build up of any kind of commercial heroism, despite a few seconds of Kumar breaking into both Bollywood dance steps as well as a tiny fight sequence. Its not just about the way Kumar performs and keeps it subtle and silent. Its also about the way Menon reveals his character without going overboard. The very tone of Airlift is devoid of any drama, right till the last frame. The music supports the subtext, the camera is unobtrusive and the film simply lets the story flow. Right into your heart and your conscience.

This is Menons third film after Bas Yun hi (2003) and Barah Aana (2009). It is also one of the finest films based on a real event, after Shimit Amins Chak De India. If the Indian flag in Chak De India arouses tearful emotions of joy, pride and redemption, the same flag seen in Jordan, at a certain point in Airlift, is bound to bring a similar lump to the throat.

And its not just the big moments that are poignant. Its a given that the main story based on the historic incident of rescue evacuation of Indians from Kuwait during Husseins attack in 1990, has all the makings of the most inspiring piece of cinema. But the scripts charm lies in the smaller stories within the larger picture.

Small subplots like that of Ibrahim (Purab Kohli) looking for a missing newly wedded wife, is made more touching by simple quiet exchanges with Katyal. Another powerful thread pertaining to the Indian political machine and one bureaucrats vital role and its treatment, brings in the right kind of realism to the story. Kumud Misra chews this part with the ease of a hungry dog and meaty bone. Other minor characters play the voice of a common man looking out for their selfish needs in moments of crisis. One such person, George, is played brilliantly by Prakash Belawadi. Inaamulhuq plays the loathful Iraqi villain with conviction and relish, his slim frame notwithstanding.

Nimrat Kaur, who won many hearts in The Lunchbox, is more of a distraction in her glamorous look and is the weakest link in the film despite having a long speech moment.

Ultimately, its the heartwarming story of achieving the impossible and larger human conscience in Airlift that rules. What do you do when, in the words of Katyal, Saddam hamare ghar ghus aaya hai?"

Well, as two real life heroes, Matthew and Vedi did -- you make calls and more calls for days to the passive Delhi Government office, patiently negotiate with frightful people like Iraqi generals and bravely travel to Baghdad. You use your mind as the only weapon and most importantly, your conscience. Then, all it takes are around 500 airlines, a few good men in the ministry to practically airlift around 1, 70,000 Indians from Kuwait to Mumbai.

Kudos to Menon for giving us Akshay Kumars Chak De India.
Could the government have avoided the sticky situation it finds itself in over the disinvestment of its residual shares in Hindustan Zinc Ltd (HZL)? It could, if it had repealed the Metal Corporation (Nationalisation and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1976, before embarking on the disinvestment.

Could it have foreseen that something like this would ever happen? Of course it could.

In October 2014, this writer had started an article on the need to repeal sundry nationalisation laws thus:

So the government is all set to kickstart the disinvestment programme, which was all but stalled during the ten years of United Progressive Alliance (UPA), by offloading its remaining 29.5 percent stake in Hindustan Zinc Ltd (HZL).

But could a legal snag trip it up? It could.

Someone could challenge the disinvestment in court saying the company was incorporated through an Act - the Metal Corporation (Nationalisation and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1976  and so the government needs a green signal from Parliament before going ahead.

This is not to boast about how prescient this writer is. It is just to point out that the government could easily have anticipated this.

After all, finance minister Arun Jaitley (under whose jurisdiction the disinvestment department falls) was an important minister in the first National Democratic Alliance (NDA-1) government, during the tenure of which the strategic sale of HZL took place.

Two other planned privatisations of that government  that of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL)  were scuppered by the Supreme Court in 2003, on the grounds that the relevant nationalisation acts needed to be amended first (the details are there in the earlier article).

The Supreme Court gave this judgement on a public interest litigation (PIL) against disinvestment in the two oil companies filed by the Centre for Public Interest Litigation headed by Prashant Bhushan who, interestingly, is the advocate for National Confederation of Officers' Associations of Central Public Sector Undertakings which has now challenged the HZL disinvestment.

So Bhushan acted upon the wisdom gained in an earlier case (according to news reports, he pointed out to the Court that the earlier strategic sale of HZL was a violation of the law) while the government was caught napping.

The other reason why the government should have anticipated this roadblock was something that happened during the UPA government. The disinvestment department (under P. Chidambaram) too had proposed the minority stake sale in HZL but the mines ministry had raised the same point about the legal backing for this. This had been reported in the newspapers at that time.

Fortunately, some roadblocks to future strategic sales or even piecemeal disinvestment are close to being removed. The Repealing and Amending (Third) Bill, 2015, which has been passed by the Lok Sabha, repeals close to a dozen nationalisation laws, including those relating to BPCL and HPCL.

But the Bill faces the Rajya Sabha hurdle. Its a pity that the government had not put all these nationalisation laws in the first two repealing and amending bills that have been cleared by both Houses of Parliament.

Now that the Supreme Courts stalling of the stake sale has put the government in an awkward position, will the Congress, which has taken an unapologetically socialist turn, allow these nationalisation laws to be axed? Unlikely.

When it is not yielding on an important reform like the goods and services tax (the government has accepted two of its three demands), it is hardly likely to give in on a relatively smaller issue, especially when it knows that this can throw disinvestment receipt targets out of kilter and make the task of fiscal consolidation that much harder.

By not acting fast enough on this matter, the government is caught in a bind. How it manages to overcome this problem will be interesting to watch. But it will need to find a way out. The government needs to get out of a host of public sector undertakings, not just for the sake of raising revenues but because it has to concentrate its energies on other things which businesses cannot do.
TOKYO/SYDNEY The competition for a A$50 billion ($34.55 billion) contract to build Australia's next submarine fleet is narrowing to a race between Japan and France as a bid from Germany's ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) loses ground over technical concerns, multiple sources said.

Australia is expected to decide the winner of one of the world's most lucrative defence contracts within the next six months, ahead of a national election in which the deal and the jobs it will create is expected to be a key issue for the conservative government.

TKMS is proposing to scale up its 2,000-tonne Type 214 class vessel, while Japan is offering a variant of its 4,000-tonne Soryu boats made by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Kawasaki Heavy Industries.

France's state-controlled naval contractor DCNS has proposed a diesel-electric version of its 5,000-tonne Barracuda nuclear-powered submarine.

Australia has said it wants a boat in the 4,000-tonne class.

Scaling a submarine to twice its original size presents exponential technical challenges, experts say.

That puts TKMS furthest from having the experience to offer what Australia wants in a large, long-range, stealthy submarine to replace its ageing Collins-class fleet, said six industrial sources in Asia and Australia with knowledge of the situation.

"The German proposal is an enlarged version of a smaller existing submarine, and that technically is risky," said one source.

TKMS and one of the sources in Australia, who has decades of experience in the global arms industry, cautioned against jumping to conclusions as each side jockeys for the best outcome in what may ultimately be a political decision.

Australia wanted a partner to design and build a new submarine, which neutralises any perceived advantage with existing bigger boats, said TKMS Australia Director Jim Duncan.

"The rumours could well be right. Who knows," Duncan told Reuters when asked to respond to what the industrial sources said. "My only advice, having spent many years in this environment is: believe nothing that you hear and only half of what you see."

Officials at the Future Submarine Program at the Australian Department of Defence did not respond to a request for comment.

DCNS Australia CEO Sean Costello declined to comment on his competitors, but said experience in large submarine design was critical for the Australian project.

LEADERSHIP CHANGE

Tokyo was initially seen as the frontrunner, partly due to close ties between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, who was ousted in a party coup by Malcolm Turnbull last September.

With Turnbull quiet on the matter, Japan is touting its offer as a way to build military ties between two allies in Asia, something U.S. officials have said they want to see as China emerges as a regional power.

But Tokyo, which until two years ago had a decades-long ban on arms exports, has been hobbled throughout the process by a lack of experience in managing overseas defence contracts and the shifting political tide in Canberra.

With Australia facing an economic slowdown, that has put job creation and innovation atop the political agenda.

Japan was slow to commit to build all vessels at South Australian shipyards, a politically significant pledge that both DCNS and TKMS made quickly.

At the same time, DCNS and TKMS pledged to share sensitive technology with the Australian government and promised packages of economic incentives.

Australia's Defence Department is formulating a recommendation based on materials submitted by the bidders late last year and is expected to give that to cabinet as early as March.

(Additional reporting by Nobuhiro Kubo in Tokyo; Editing by Dean Yates)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
NEW DELHI India has asked its oil firms to boost ties with resource-rich Africa as the south Asian nation wants to take advantage of tumbling crude prices to lock in supplies to meet future demand.

India is seen as the most important driver of energy demand growth in the world in the years to come with its oil consumption seen rising by 6 million barrels per day (bpd) to about 10 million bpd by 2040, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year extended $10 billion in credit to African nations and pitched for a broad alliance for global reform.

"We want Indian oil companies to take advantage of the credit line extended for five years and strike deals...we should take advantage of sliding oil prices and take active role in the development of African nations," India's oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan told the India Africa Hydrocarbons Conference, attended by ministers and officials of 22 African nations.

Oil has fallen to 12-year lows this year under pressure from a deepening supply glut and signs of economic weakness in China, the world's second biggest oil consumer.

"India has strategic need for energy security and this is something that Africa can use," said Ron Kapavik, vice president at IHS Energy. "India can be a natural market for African hydrocarbon resource."

India, the world's third biggest oil importer, has stepped up oil imports from Africa in 2015 and New Delhi wants to boost shipments from the region.

Indian Oil Corp, the country's largest refiner, has doubled imports from Nigeria at 60,000 barrels per day (bpd) for 2016-17 while Hindustan Petroleum Corp has sought similar volumes from the African nation.

African nations want Indian investment to boost their oil output and develop infrastructure.

"African nations asked us to invest in developing their infrastructure, upgrading their refineries and be a partner in development of their market, mainly refined products," Pradhan said.

Equatorial Guinea has offered India equity in oil blocks, the minister said, while Algeria is keen on tie-ups with India for exploration and developing petrochemical projects. Algeria wants to boost oil supplies to India.

Sudan has offered three oil and gas blocks for exploration and development to ONGC Videsh, the overseas arm of Oil and Natural Gas Corp.

(Editing by David Evans)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
LONDON Britain's Pearson said it would cut 10 percent of its workforce and restructure once again to tackle the unrelenting pressures hitting markets from North America to South Africa after it decided to focus on educational publishing.

Shares in the former owner of the Financial Times, down more than half since last March, jumped more than 16 percent after it pledged to maintain its dividend, despite forecasting sharp profit falls in 2015 and 2016 before a recovery in 2018.

Chief Executive John Fallon said problems in its markets, such as fewer people in the United States going to college, had been more pronounced and had lasted longer than expected.

"We are taking immediate and decisive action to simplify the company, integrate operations and cut costs, all with the aim of getting Pearson growing again," he told reporters on Thursday, setting out plans for 4,000 job cuts.

The plan could be the last throw of the dice for Fallon, who has issued a series of profit warnings since he took over in 2013, in contrast to the steady growth delivered by his predecessor Marjorie Scardino during her 16 years in charge.

One of Fallon's first moves was reshaping Pearson to try to make it better placed to sell products digitally, which he said at the time would result in an improvement in growth in 2015.

Instead, market problems described as cyclical have stubbornly persisted, and the company has forecast earnings this year of 580 million to 620 million pounds, up to 100 million pounds below market estimates.

Fallon's response is another dose of the same medicine, along with a prognosis of market recovery in another couple of years.

"I am very confident that we've made the right strategic calls and that will show so over time," said Fallon.

DIVIDEND MAINTAINED

Analyst Ian Whittaker at Liberum, who has a sell rating on Pearson, was sceptical.

"Execution risk is extremely high -- the company is essentially asking shareholders to trust them, again, that they can deliver the numbers when many of the factors influencing their numbers are out of their control," he said.

In a bid to keep investors on side, Pearson said it would not cut its dividend, even though the 52 pence payout would be barely covered by earnings per share forecast to be 50-55 pence in 2016 before the costs of restructuring.

Chief Financial Officer Coram Williams said the dividend was underpinned by confidence that earnings would bounce back in 2018, and in the short term by a balance sheet bolstered by 1.1 billion pounds of proceeds from asset sales.

Pearson, which sold the Financial Times and its stake in The Economist last year to concentrate on education, has been wrong-footed by a strong recovery in the U.S. jobs market, which has reduced the number of mature students going to college.

The group has also found itself at the mercy of politics, as governments in Britain and the U.S. modified student testing, while educational spending in countries such as Brazil and South Africa has proved hard to predict.

Fallon said he was confident that U.S. college enrollments would stabilize and changes in British testing would ease by the end of 2017.

He said based on realistic assumptions, adjusted operating profit would rise to more than 800 million pounds in 2018, higher than analysts expected.

The company is spending 320 million pounds in 2016 on the restructuring. Pearson said the restructuring would involve combining divisions such as its school testing and professional testing divisions in North America to reduce back office costs.

Pearson's shares, which on Wednesday hit their lowest level since July 2009, bounced 16 percent to 763 pence by 1520 GMT, as investors welcomed decisive action and the dividend pledge. ($1 = 0.7064 pounds)

(Editing by Keith Weir)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Lucknow: In the midst of a raging legal battle in a Delhi court, the Associated Journals Ltd, the

company that owns now-defunct National Herald, will cease to be a commercial entity and become a non-profit one with its shareholders also deciding to relaunch its newspapers.

These decisions were taken at an Extraordinary General Meeting of shareholders in Lucknow today which was called to seek their approval for turning AJL into a not-for-profit Section 8 company under Companies Act, 2013.

"The members considered and approved a number of resolutions to convert AJL into a not-for-profit company," AJL managing director Motilal Vora told reporters after the nearly thee-hour-long meeting of shareholders for changing the structure of the company.

"We are considering very seriously relaunching the newspapers," he said when asked when the dailies would hit the

stands, including from Lucknow.

"These decisions of the members of the company are in pursuance to the revival plan of the company since 2010 which

includes its conversion into a not-for-profit entity and relaunching the newspapers," he said.

The meeting was held against the backdrop of a criminal case instituted by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy against

Congress president Sonia Gandhi, her son Rahul and five others over the acquisition of AJL by Young Indian, a non profit company under the Companies Act in November, 2010.

The Gandhis are believed to have voted by proxy.

A Sec 8 company is a venture established "for promoting commerce, art, science, sports, education, research, social

welfare, religion, charity, protection of environment or any such other object" and profits from such a company's

activities, as well as any other income earned by it, can be used only for promoting the objectives of the company.

Shareholders of a Section 8 company are not entitled to receive any dividend.

The notice for the Extraordinary General Meeting was issued by Vora, who is one of the seven accused in the

Herald case in Delhi.

The AJL and its office bearers are in the eye of a political and legal storm ever since Vora, along with other

directors in the company, had in December, 2010 transferred its entire equity to a new company Young Indian Limited (YIL), in which Sonia and Rahul hold majority stake.

The YIL is also a non-profit company though under Section 25 of the Companies Act, 1956 it also has to ensure that its profits and all other incomes are utilised only for the purpose of promoting its objects and not for any other

purpose.

In such a company too, profits can't be distributed as dividend among its members.

AJL was founded by Jawaharlal Nehru in 1937 and the company and the newspapers it published -- The National Herald, Qaumi Awaz, and Navjivan -- played an important role during the freedom movement and "functioned historically in

public interest and for social good".

"This decision of the EGM in essence formalises this larger purpose for which the company was founded in the first

place," a press note issued at the end of the meeting said.

When asked about the other item on the agenda--change in the name of the company, Vora said, "As per Companies Act, we have done all these things and it has to be sent to various agencies also after which we will come to know what decision they have taken."

"The resolution has been passed to make it Associated Journal but they have to give approval", Vora said, when asked about the new nomenclature.

The veteran Congress leader said, "the resolution on alteration to the Memorandum of Association ... this is the

Articles of Association and dealing with preferential (shares) which are among the five resolutions which have been passed unanimously in the meeting.

Asked about legal implications of these decisions on the case in the court, he said they are in the court and this has nothing to do with it.

"This is our EGM and when we think of passing any resolution we come. This is our annual general meeting," Vora

said and declined to take any further questions.

The meeting was attended among others by Ghulam Nabi Azad, Sam Pitroda, Oscar Fernandes, Sheila Dikshit, Sandeep Dikshit, Salim Sherwani, Ratna Singh, Jitin Prasada and Syed Sibtey Razi.

PTI
The suicide note written by Rohith Vemula  the Dalit student who recently died at the University of Hyderabad  echoes the discourse Mahatma Gandhi used when he chose to fast 'unto death'. Like Gandhi, Rohiths letter displays a passion for a better world embedded in a Bhagwad Gita-esque detachment. There are several other similarities: Introspection, taking personal responsibility, seeking forgiveness and not blaming anyone.

In both cases, their willingness to die has generally been accepted as an act of self-sacrifice  an intensely personal moral pressure on society and the structures of power.

In Gandhis case, it was an explicitly political tool, an act of resistance. Gandhis fasts helped to mobilise a colonised people into a nation. His most important fast single-handedly forced an end to Partition genocide in Bengal. And he forced the government of newly-independent India to give the nascent Pakistan its share of the countrys finances.

It was one of Gandhis fasts that forced Dr BR Ambedkar to agree to the Poona Pact (under which seats are reserved for scheduled category candidates in a single electorate, but Dalits do not vote separately).

In the context of Rohiths Ambedkarite convictions, his adoption of an essentially Gandhian method of resistance (calculated or not, it was the ultimate non-cooperation!) rather than Ambedkars tireless faith in constitutionalism is striking. One wonders if it signals a shift across a three-generation gap  from seeking the protection of the law to an increased gumption to defy.

Rohiths suicide note has also, willy-nilly, become an act of resistance. By giving glimpses of a bright, aspiring, caring person with great potential, it has forced his university and concerned citizens far beyond its campus to introspect about systematised caste-based discrimination.

His name is already a potent symbol; his suicide could spur further political mobilisation. Top-level politicians of various hues have gone to his home or the university following his suicide. Rahul Gandhi was among the first, and Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal was there on Thursday.

The power of death by fasting

While Gandhis stature ensured that his fasts always succeeded in their objective before he actually died, there is no doubt that he was willing to die each time. His life was repeatedly at grave risk. Other protestors, whose fasts could not bring enough moral pressure to bear while they were alive, galvanised public opinion when they died fasting.

Some of those deaths have shaped India. The violent agitations that followed Potti Sriramulus death as a result of a 1952 fast demanding a separate state for Telugu-speaking people forced a very reluctant Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to agree to language-based states.

A series of suicides by burning in Tamil Nadu against the imposition of Hindi as the exclusive national language rolled back that measure in 1967. The word 'immolation', used to describe those protest suicides, invoked the ritual status of self-sacrifice.

An activist of the Bhagat (erstwhile untouchable) community died while fasting in Jammu and Kashmir. The resultant public anger forced the government to recognise scheduled castes (and later tribes too) in that state, and extend to them the constitutional privileges these categories have in the rest of the country.

In 2008, agitations in Jammu against the revocation of a government order transferring land to the Sri Amarnath Shrine Board got a fillip when a young Jammu resident committed suicide. After reportedly consuming poison, he went to Jammus Parade Ground and gave a fiery speech to agitators before he collapsed.

That suicide became a cause celebre and agitations in the Jammu province took on an explosive vitality thereafter. They were mainly organised by RSS activists, including Dr Jitendra Singh, who is now the minister of state in the Prime Ministers Office.

All these examples show that willingness to die is a most potent political tool. No wonder the state ensures that the Manipuri protestor Irom Sharmila is force-fed intravenously, to ensure that her 15-year fast against the Armed Forces Special Powers Act does not kill her.

Such self-sacrificing methods of political resistance have been favoured by those who faced a strong and entrenched power, particularly the apparatus of a strong state. While nationalist leaders like Gandhi and Aurobindo used 'passive resistance' to resist the colonial power, Rohith and students like him have recently resisted entrenched social oppression  on caste as well as religious and ethnic lines.

Pent-up anger is emerging

Their activism has been vigorous over the past year. Indeed, the huge posthumous sympathy for Rohith must be understood in the context of widespread anger over trends that have come to light during the past year and more.

A minister in the Union government made a remark comparing infant Dalits (who had been killed in arson by upper caste neighbours) to dogs. Similar language has been used to disparage a Dalit teacher at one of the countrys most prestigious colleges (now a university) after he was bitten by a dog on campus. There have been several incidents of stripping, beating and other acts of humiliation. School children have been severely beaten for touching plates 'reserved' for upper caste classmates. Ambedkarite students at institutions like the Tata Institute of Social Sciences and some IITs have suffered casteist persecution.

Rohiths death may not reshape the country as fundamentally as Pottis death did, but already it has put the central government on the back foot far more than any of those other recent humiliations of Dalits did. It has sharply focused caste-based discrimination in the halls of academia, and the Manu-oriented biases of powerful sections of the current ruling establishment.

Apologists for the government have ended up pushing up the levels of anger and reaction. Trying to argue that Rohith was not Dalit in the first place was like salt on a wound  a petty, mealy-mouthed attempt to posthumously deny to a victim even the truth of his life, as he experienced and viewed it. Accusations are flying thick and fast in the political arena over who is playing caste politics: Kejriwal was reported to have accused BJP ministers of trying to turn it into a Dalit versus non-Dalit issue.

Members and leaders of the BJP and its affiliates would do much better to introspect than get drawn into such sparring. They must realize that their party has come a long way over the past three decades by redefining categories and concepts like secularism, but also by normalising the manipulation of facts. ABVP activist Susheel Kumar, whose ego apparently caused Rohiths death, is said to have misrepresented his appendicitis as an injury suffered in an assault by Ambedkarite students such as Rohith.

This sort of cynical misrepresentation has too often been the BJPs style; it has cynically wrapped some of its key agendas in highly emotive issues. Just like 'jihadi' terrorism has come back to bite its promoters, this sort of manipulations can prove costly. The BJP may already be riding a tiger it cannot dismount.

It was in the wake of the implementation of the Mandal Commission report that it quickly pushed the Ramjanmabhoomi movement to a much higher pitch than before. The partys then president, LK Advani, undertook his first 'Rath Yatra' mobilisation drive across the country just a couple of months after the implementation of the Mandal report, which recommended positive discrimination for backward castes. Throughout, the Ayodhya issue has been the shorthand that Uttar Pradeshs upper castes have used to script a pan-Hindu alliance to counter backward and scheduled caste mobilisation.

Now that the party is in power at the Centre, it is hobbled by the prejudices and animosities of a wide phalanx of its leaders. They not only support Hindutva, they have deeply imbibed the principles of Manu. Many of them, and their key supporters, despise some of the lower castes. Whether they realized what they were doing or not, the ABVP activists at the University of Hyderabad and their supporters, in the faculty there and in the corridors of power in New Delhi, have countered social mobility, citizens empowerment and equality.

These attitudes are divisive. They go against the grain of the Constitution. They undermine economic growth, political stability and national security. The ruling party must purge itself of such prejudices if the country is to move ahead cohesively towards a shared future of social justice and dignity.
By Jagdeep S Chhokar

"It is true that we failed to implement the HC order. But we cannot ensure the rights of people always. We had to prevent that procession."

These are the words of the collector of Tamil Nadus Vazhavur district, the senior most officer who heads the civil administration of the district. As reported by The Indian Express, this particular collector admitted that the administration was unable to implement the Madras High Court order to ensure access to the public path because the priority was to prevent caste clashes.

Several questions arise out of this defiance of a high court order.

 Is the Collector the final authority to decide that prevent(ing) caste clashes is reason enough to deprive people of their rights?

 Is depriving people of their rights the only or the most efficacious way of prevent(ing) caste clashes?

 Is it within the powers of a Collector to defy the orders of a high court?

 Is, or should, the approval or clearance of some higher authority be required before a Collector can go on to violate the orders of a high court?

 Shouldnt some higher authorities have the responsibility of violation of the orders of a high court?

 Is anyone accountable for violation of the orders of a high court?

 Does the matter end with the administrative authority, the home secretary of the state, or does the elected wing of the executive have a role?

There could be many more questions such as should the High Court or even the Supreme Court not take suo motu action on this defiance of the orders of a High Court but the list of questions has to stop somewhere. What does all this indicate?

It indicates that rule of law, one of the necessary concomitants of a democratic society, is missing from Indian society.

What happened in Vazhavur is not an isolated or one of a kind case.

Twenty-one Dalits and Muslims, including 20 women and children, was massacred in 1996 in Bathani Tola, a hamlet in Bhojpur district in Bihar, and all the 23 persons accused of perpetrating the massacre are acquitted by the high court in 2012.

The most celebrated incident as it involved a celebrity, is of one person sleeping of a pavement dying and four getting injured by being run over by an automobile, and the only eye witness also dying in the wilderness. The eye witness, a police constable, is disowned by his family and also by the police! The trial court accepts the testimony of the eye witness but the high court finds him to be a wholly unreliable witness. The net result: The so-called law and order machinery is unable to find any proof of who was driving the vehicle! And the celebrity roams free!!

The latest instance, in addition to the tragic suicide of Rohith Vemula, a research scholar of Hyderabad University,is from Mirzapur district and is a deadly cocktail of grassroots democracy and absence of the Rule of Law. It has been reported that the minor daughter of a woman who won the election to the Block Development Council was allegedly gang-raped on 23 December 2015, by two men who belonged to the group of the candidate whom her mother defeated in the election. The woman had, reportedly, been asked to withdraw her candidature from the election and was threatened that she will be taught a lesson if she did not withdraw. The rape was apparently the lesson.

According to reports in the media, the woman went to the police station on 24 December to register a complaint along with her daughter and some other family members but the police did not take down the complaint and sent them back after giving assurances. Reports say that the girl seemed traumatized and humiliated, went into a depression, and hanged herself on the 25 December. It was only after the suicide that the FIR was registered and the two accused arrested. How will this case end is anybodys guess.

The man who filed the petition in the Madras High Court holds a BA in English Literature and recently completed a teachers training programme. When the petitioner was asked if he will file a contempt of court application for the high court judgment was not being implemented, he said, Do you think I will go and waste my money again?

It is a sad day when an aggrieved citizen loses faith in the rule of law!

And that is why the rule of law is missing.

(Jagdeep S Chhokar is a former Professor, Dean, and Director In-charge of IIM, Ahmedabad. Views are personal.)
Yet another case of hit-and-run was reported in Mumbai as a Mercedes car ran over five people on Thursday night at the Masjid Bhandar Mohammed Ali Road.

According to this IBNLive report, the incident took place post midnight when the victims were sleeping on the pavement. The report also said that four women and one child were among the five people who were injured in the incident.

Another NDTV report said that the white Mercedes drove over a pavement and crashed into a Toyota car. "Investigation is happening right know...However, we are not sure of the number of persons inside the car...It can be determined only after thorough investigation," the report quoted senior police officer Ashok Dhude as saying.

Dhude also confirmed that all the injured have been admitted to the JJ hospital.

ANI also reported that the police have arrested the driver of the Mercedes and a case has been registered at Pydhonie police station. The driver had earlier fled the spot after the accident.

This incident is not the first in which a car ran over people sleeping on the pavement in Mumbai.

Arguably the most infamous hit-and-run case in which pavement dwellers lost their lives not only in Mumbai but also in India is the 2002 hit-and-run case. On 28 September 2002, actor Salman Khan had allegedly rammed his Toyota Land Cruiser into American Express Bakery on Hill Road junction in Bandra. He had run over a group of persons who were sleeping in front of the bakery. One person was killed and four others were injured in the incident.

In December 2015, Bombay High Court overturned Salman Khan's conviction in the case, scrapping a lower court's sentence of five years in jail for running over a homeless man.

Another infamous hit-and-run case in which people sleeping on the road were killed was the Alistair Pereira case. In November 2006, Pereira lost control of his Toyota Corolla car on the Carter Road seafront and ran over a group of construction workers who were sleeping on the road. Seven people were killed and eight were injured. Perera was eventually sentenced to prison for three years.

With the alarming frequence of hit-and-run cases reported in Mumbai, perhaps it's time Mumbai Police took some effective measures to tackle this problem.

Of course, in December, Mumbai Police had launched a campaign to curb drunk driving. This involved nakabandis across Mumbai extending beyond 3 am on 25 December and 1 January. But maybe a campaign not just limited to the time during Christmas and New Year's is needed to prevent such incidents from taking place.
London: Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose was cremated in Taihoku, Japanese name for Taipei, as the coffin was too long to be put in plane bound for Tokyo, where the body was originally scheduled to be taken for performing his last rites, a British website claimed, quoting a Taiwanese official present at the cremation.

The website, www.bosefiles.info has been coming out with serialised 'revelations' backing the theory that the Indian revolutionary leader died in a plane cash on 18 August, 1945, in Taiwan.

In its latest post on Thursday, the site created by London-based journalist and Netaji's grand nephew Ashish Roy referred to the evidence provided by Tan Ti-Ti, who was in charge of issuing cremation permits in Taipei, together with that of other local officials, to buttress its claim.

Tan Ti-Ti, in his testimony contained in the British Foreign Office's file number FC1852/6 of 1956, said that he personally attended to Bose's body at the concerned crematorium.

It also transpires from the file that Japanese army officers probably did not issue a death certificate in Bose's name to maintain secrecy about his demise.

Ko Keng Yuan, who was the Director of the Health Centre in Taipei, stated the matter of Bose's death and whether the cremation permit was issued under an assumed name "were important secrets of the Japanese military".

Eleven years after the alleged air crash, British Consul General in Taiwan Albert Franklin wrote to the Taiwanese government requesting an investigation into the death of Bose.

In response, CK Yen, Chairman of the Taiwan Provincial Government, sent a detailed police report dated 27 June, 1956. This included an interview with Tan Ti-Ti, who said the cremation took place on 22 August, 1945.

A Japanese army officer who accompanied the body told Tan Ti-Ti: "The deceased was Bose, the Indian leader who, proceeding to Tokyo on important business, was injured when his plane was involved in an accident."

The previous day - 21 August, 1945 - the same Japanese officer, according to Tan Ti-Ti, "submitted the death certificate of a certain Ichiro Okura".

Yen clarified to Franklin that during World War II in the case of military personnel - Bose was then Supreme Commander of the Indian National Army - without family members in Taiwan, "permission for cremation was granted on the strength of a certificate from a military hospital".

This appears to have occurred in the case of Bose, the website claimed.

The police findings based on a report prepared by Taiwan's Department of Health said: "There is a register of cremations at the Municipal Health Centre and the officers of the Health Centre are of the opinion that the entry was made in the name of Ichiro Okura."

Tan Ti-Ti confirmed that on the day of the cremation, the same Japanese army officer "came to the crematorium in a car in the company of an Indian", said to be Bose's aide-de-camp Colonel Habibur Rehman, who survived the crash.

He went on to say "the Indian, it was said he was Bose's follower, some said he was an aide-de-camp; he was dressed in the white garment of Japanese soldiers under medical care, wore slippers, parts of his face were bandaged; he was tall and swarthy, wept bitterly and seemed extremely sorrowful."

Tan Ti-Ti asserted he and another person called Lin Sui Mu opened the coffin. He added the body had been put into a coffin for conveyance to Tokyo but the coffin was too big for aeroplanes available at the timea. It was, therefore, cremated in Taipei.

The next day (23 August, 1945), the Indian (Col. Rehman) and the same Japanese army officer came to collect the ashes, Tan Ti-Ti further maintained.

Tan Ti-Ti's testimony matches that of Colonel Habibur Rehman.

"I requested the (Japanese) Army authorities to arrange for the early transportation of the body either to Singapore or Tokyo, preferably to Singapore," Rehman testified on August 24, 1945."

He went on: "On 21-8-45 a senior Japanese Staff Officer informed me in the hospital that the length of box (coffin) did not allow the box being put into the plane. He suggested that the body be cremated in Taihoku.

"Seeing no other alternative, I agreed to the suggestion and the body was cremated on 22-8-1945 at Taihoku under the arrangement of the Army authorities. The ashes were collected on 23-8-1945."

IANS
By Rakesh Bhatnagar

Approving the decade-old policy of the union government that public tenders are not required for the purchase of strategically and critically important equipment used in defence equipment, the Supreme Court has ruled that for such defense critical spare parts like submarine batteries, there cannot be any open advertisement inviting tenders.

Advertisements are issued calling for tenders only for common use items which are normally available in the open market with a wide range of sources. Submarine batteries do not fall under this category of common use items," a bench of Chief Justice T S Thakur and Justice R. Banumathi observed while allowing an appeal filed by the union government nine years ago challenging a Delhi High Court judgment that directed it to invite public tenders for submarine batteries, which are a lifeline for the high-cost submersible equipment.

The judgment delivered on Wednesday is a fallout of a dispute raised by one HBL Nife Power System Limited that claimed it had developed heavy duty battery for submarines without the supervision of defense authorities, thus its product ought to have been tested by government.

The government had continued the supply of batteries by M/S Exide Batteries and HBL contested its decision saying the decision was discriminatory.

On its part the High Court in 2005 asked the Union of India to issue an advertisement in leading newspapers having wide circulation inviting tenders for the submarine batteries mentioning the detailed technical specifications and the appellants to consider all the products which meet the technical specifications and then select the best product in accordance with law.

Theres no gainsaying that this judgment by the High Court had hampered the process for refurbishing crucial tool like batteries for submarines.

But the apex courts intervention may speed up purchase of critical equipments.

Seeking the scrapping of the judgment passed by High Court, the union governments lawyer, additional solicitor general, Pinky Anand had argued that the government must ensure that the supplier has the necessary technical qualifications, infrastructure and capacity to develop the product. Pinky Anand also argued that in critical spare parts like submarine batteries, the government cannot put the life of its defence personnel and submarines worth several crores of rupees at risk simply because the respondent (NIFE POWER SYSTEMS LTD) claims to have the capability.

The High Court was not right in directing the government for issuing tenders for critical spare parts like submarine batteries without knowing whether the said product can withstand all the 13 quality tests and render reliable performance on board.

The defense procurement can be classified into two broad heads. First, common use items of generic or commercial specifications and these are available in open market. For example car batteries, spare parts of various vehicles etc. These items are procured by the Ministry of Defense by Open Tender Enquiry (OTE) i.e. by advertisements in the press and website. The second category is those materials which do not fall within the common use category. These spares are mission critical strategic defense products, which are procured only from those firms which are registered with Director General of Quality Assurance (DGQA) which functions under the Ministry of Defense.

Their suppliers must be registered with DGQA for the supply of that specific product. The defense ministry and DGQA have a very stringent procedure before registering any vendor for supplying the product.

Officials of the DGQA are posted at the factory of the supplier to ensure that the goods produced are absolutely in order. The DGQA inspectors examine every stage of production right from the sourcing of the raw materials by the vendor, as it is quite possible that the vendor may purchase inferior quality material which may be difficult to detect in the final product.

The importance of submarine batteries to a submarine cannot be underestimated as it is strategically vital equipment for submarines, the top court asserted.

Power to the submarine is provided by about 240 to 528 batteries, weighing about 800 kgs each, depending on the nature of submarine. The only source of power to a submarine when it dives beyond nine meters into sea is submarine batteries.

If the batteries fail, submarine will be without power and it can have catastrophic consequences on men as also submarine would be lost, judges stressed.

If the country wishes to play a substantial role in the Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea, it must ensure high standards of defense power comparing with the neighboring countries and it should have modernized submarines, the apex court underlined the importance of policy decision by the successive governments that there wouldnt be public tenders for purchase of crucial defense equipment.

The government cannot put the life of its defence personnel and submarine worth crores of rupees to risk simply because the respondent (HBL Nife) claims to have the capability and can supply submarine batteries, the judges said, allowing the governments contention.

The court further said that for such defense critical spare parts like submarine batteries, there cannot be any open advertisement inviting tenders.

It also rejected HBL Nifes claim that it had vested right simply because it has made huge investments to manufacture submarine batteries. Straightway, an RFP (request for proposal) cannot be issued to the respondent by ignoring the procedure for issuing a development indent and testing the batteries.
Nagpur: Two 'Krishi Bhushan' awardee farmers from Vidarbha region returned their awards to the state government on Friday in protest against its "failure" to curb farmers' suicides and due to their "mounting debts".

Moreshwar Zhade, 70, from Wadona and Hemant Shendre, in his 50s, from Sawargaon, both in Chimur taluka in Chandrapur district, returned their awards along with medals and certificates to Additional Divisional Commissioner, Hemant Pawar, at the Commissionerate.

On Wednesday, they had declared their decision to return the awards. They had said they were "taking this step in protest against government's failure to check suicides by agriculturists".

"We had won the prizes for increasing productivity. But over the years our incomes have shrunk leaving us under debt, burden and poverty," they had said.

The Vidarbha region in the eastern Maharashtra has reported a number of suicides by farmers over the years.

According to the state government, as many as 1000 farmers committed suicide in Maharashtra in 2015.

The Joint Director, Agriculture, V N Ghawate and Deputy Commissioner Pradeep Kumar Dange requested them not to return the awards, but in vain.

Zhade, who holds 15 acres of farmland, had received the 'Sheti Nishtha' award for good farming practices. In 2002, he was given 'Krishi Bhushan' award by the state agriculture department.

Shendre had won 'Sheti Nishtha' and 'Krishi Bhushan' awards in 2004 and 2010 respectively.

Shetkari Sanghatana leaders Ram Newale, Srinivas Khandewale, Arun Kedar, Shyam Wagh, Nanda Parate and other activists were present on the occasion.

PTI
Varanasi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday thanked his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe for sharing with the people of Japan the experiences he had had during their joint visit to Kashi last month, and described the gesture as a "matter of pride for all Indians".

"I recently read a news report on the Internet about a speech delivered by Abe at a Buddhist conference. I was amazed to see that he had spoken at length about the wonderful experiences he had had when he visited Kashi, along with me, on 12 December and watched the 'Ganga Arti'", Modi said while addressing a function.

"I deeply thank the Japanese PM for his kind words. I had felt grateful when he came to Kashi, which I have made my home, on my request, and took part in all the functions with great interest.

"His wonderful remarks made before his own countrymen are a matter of pride not only for me but for all the residents of Varanasi, indeed all the countrymen", said Modi, who represents Varanasi in the Lok Sabha.

Varanasi has a special place in the religious consciousness of the Japanese as it is situated close to Sarnath where the Buddha is believed to have delivered his first sermon after attaining Enlightenment.

Abe's visit to this ancient temple town had come a year after he and Modi had inked the 'Kyoto-Kashi' pact in Japan.

Modi, during his recent visit to Japan, had sought its cooperation for modifying Varanasi into a smart city on the lines of Kyoto.

As part of Sister City Partnership Agreement, Varanasi is supposed to be developed while keeping its heritage intact.

PTI
New Delhi: Delhi Police on Friday issued an alert after the driver of a taxi hired by three unidentified persons from Pathankot was found dead in Kangra district in Himachal Pradesh, in the aftermath of the airbase attack.

The taxi driver, identified as Vijay Kumar, a resident of Gaggal village in Kangra district, was found dead on Wednesday at the Kalta bridge in Kangra and his taxi missing, police said.

The Delhi Police tweeted out alerts from their official Twitter handle saying:

ALERT Pathankot Alto Carjacked... Here are the images of the suspects. #SayNoToTerror #SafeTogether pic.twitter.com/VfBC1b5qDY  Delhi Police (@DelhiPolice) January 22, 2016

According to a DNA report, the Delhi Police had been on alert since the blue beacon flashing SUV of a senior IPS officer was stolen.

Asked on the threat perception, Delhi police Commissioner BS Bassi urged people in the city to remain alert without

disclosing any further details citing security concerns.

Meanwhile, speaking to The Hindustan Times, Deputy Commissioner of Police Rajan Bhagat said, "There is no need to panic but we urge people to stay alert. Citizens should inform the police control room if they see any suspicious activity around them."

The alert was issued in the backdrop of the attack on IAF base in Pathankot where terrorists had first killed a cab driver and robbed his car before launching the strike.

Delhi Police has approached media houses in helping it find the car and spread the alert message through retweets.

This alert comes right ahead of the Republic Day parade in the National Capital, for which security was already heightened.

On Monday, Home Minister Rajnath Singh reviewed the security situation in Delhi with Delhi Police Commissioner Bassi and other senior officials from intelligence and security agencies.

As per Home Ministry sources, the security machinery is fully alert to foil any threat by terror groups and possible presence of Islamic State sympathisers is also being factored.

There may make an attempt to undermine the sense of security through small actions such as knife attack on security personnel or snatching of service weapons. But the security agencies are alert and will foil any such attempt, a ministry source said.

The Pathankot terror attack has been weighing heavy on the minds of India's security machinery and all security aspects are being looked into.



With agency inputs
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay a criminal contempt notice issued by the Bombay High Court against author Arundhati Roy for her article in a weekly magazine questioning the continued incarceration of Delhi University professor G N Saibaba.

The apex court also did not give her any relief from personal exemption from appearance before a single judge of the Nagpur bench of the High Court on 25 January.

While asking her to appear on Monday, the bench issued notice to the respondents on her petition challenging the High Court order.

When senior advocate Chander Uday Singh, appearing for the writer, sought stay on her personal appearance, contending that the passion has beefed up and effigies are burnt, the court said it was passing the order after carefully considering the matter.

"You should have no fear in appearing in court. You go and appear. We are here. We have issued the process and we are looking into it. We have thought about it carefully," the bench comprising Justice J S Khehar and Justice C Nagappan said.

When the counsel once again sought for personal exemption on Monday, the bench said, "We don't want to grant you or deny you."

The Bombay High Court had on 23 December, 2015 issued the contempt notice against the author, for her views on the arrest of Saibaba and the rejection of his bail plea early last year.

Gadchiroli Police had arrested Saibaba in 2014 for his alleged links with Maoists. He has been on bail since June last year.

Roy had expressed her views on the arrest in an article published in a weekly magazine last year.

PTI
The Hyderabad Central University (HCU) teachers and officials, predominantly Dalits, who are agitating against the varsity authorities after Rohith Vemulas suicide believe they are "being watched" and have been given enough veiled messages that the names of 50 of those protesting have been sent to New Delhi, reports The Indian Express.

The newspaper reports that the senior-most medical officer Captain Dr Ravindra Kumar was huddled with some university officials at the health centre - all Dalits who are "scared and worried."

Of the 60 Dalit teachers at the university, no one was present at the protest meeting Thursday morning fearing action. Some senior Dalit students also kept to themselves on the fringes.

The university administration has sent us feelers: that names of 50 prominent Dalit teachers, officials and students have been sent to New Delhi, and we are all under watch. So we are basically hiding here instead of standing out there in solidarity with others for Rohith Vemula."We are afraid we might be dubbed anti-national too, Kumar told The Indian Express.

Some senior faculty members willing to speak off the record have alleged that the vice-chancellor and top officials have systematically isolated the Dalit staff. The message is: do not threaten us with resignations and protests.

The other angle being reported from campus is that some mediocre Dalit officers are being used to threaten the other Dalit staff to fall in line. They are scared of talented Dalits who made it on merit, who do not seek favour and are participating in the protest going on in the university against Rohiths death, one of the HCU officials told The Indian Express.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa launched a stinging attack on the Karnataka government for moving the Supreme Court against her acquittal in the disproportionate assets case that comes up for hearing on 2 February, calling Karnataka's involvement in it an interference in the internal affairs of Tamil Nadu and a violation of the federal scheme of the Constitution.

Jayalalithaa unleashed a 6 page document well ahead of the scheduled 2 February hearing in the Supreme Court. The six pager lists out the highlights of her argument defending her acquittal in 2015. In this, Jayalalithaa questions the locus stand of the State of Karnataka to even file a special leave petition or an appeal in the apex court for an alleged offence which took place in the Tamil Nadu.

The Chief Minister invoked Article 162 of the Constitution, which prescribes that the executive power of the State Executive is co-extensive with that of the State Legislature.

Karnataka has no legislative power in respect of the affairs of the State of Tamil Nadu and consequently has no power to prosecute the alleged offender in the Supreme Court for offences committed in Tamil Nadu against the State of Tamil Nadu, Ms. Jayalalithaa contended.

The Chief Minister argued that Karnataka got a role as prosecutor in the case only after the Supreme Court transferred the corruption case to it on November 18, 2004. If not for this transfer order, Karnataka had no involvement in the corruption case. It was neither the de facto complainant nor the de jure aggrieved party. No crime under the Prevention of Corruption Act or the Indian Penal Code has been committed against Karnataka, reports The Hindu.

Karnataka govt files "list of errors" in DA case

The Karnataka government has filed point-by-point highlights of errorsby the Karnataka High Court in deciding the disproportionate assets case in favour of the AIADMK leader and three co-accused, reports The Hindu.

The State government's main point is the value of disproportionate assets held by Jayalalithaa. The State is saying that the acquittal can be set aside by just correcting the totalling mistake to show that the value of disproportionate assets of the accused comes to Rs. 16.32 crore, that is 76.7 per cent of the income, against the 8.12 per cent arrived at by the High Court, reports The Hindu.

The Supreme Court has set 2 February as the date for hearing appeals against the acquittal of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa.

The Hindu reports that the Karnataka government has done the detailing of "errors" in a seven-page document and listed out 16 arguments against the May 2015 judgement of the Justice C.R. Kumaraswamy after which Jayalalithaa, her aide Sasikala Natarajan, V.N. Sudhakaran and J. Elavarasi walked free.

"Principally, the State government asks whether the bare fact that it was neither considered nor ignored as the sole prosecuting agency in the corruption case would not by itself vitiate the High Court judgment," says The Hindu report.

The State wants the Supreme Court to address what would be the effect of not repairing this omission throughout the appeal hearings in the High Court till they were disposed of.

The Karnataka State document, filed by advocate Joseph Aristotle and settled by senior advocate B.V. Acharya, "asks whether the appeals were not vitiated as the duly appointed Public Prosecutor was never given the opportunity of an oral hearing."

A Bench of Justices P.C. Ghose and Amitava Roy have scheduled the hearing on the appeals to start from February 2, 2016.

"We will start the hearing from February 2 and will hear the matter on February 3 and 4 as well," a bench comprising justices P C Ghose and Amitava Roy said.

The bench, meanwhile, asked the counsel for both the parties to file the "issues" highlighting main points to be considered within the next two weeks.

Earlier the apex court had agreed to conduct day-to-day hearing on the appeals filed against the Karnataka High Court verdict acquitting Jayalalithaa and three others in the case.

On July 27, the apex court had issued notices on Karnataka government's appeal seeking stay of the high court judgement, to Jayalalithaa, her close aide Sasikala and two of her relatives, V N Sudhakaran and Elavarasi, and asked them to file their replies within eight weeks.

The apex court had allowed an intervention application by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy in the matter and had asked him to file issues he wished to press before it.

The Karnataka HC had on May 11, 2015 ruled that AIADMK supremo's conviction by special court suffered from infirmity and was not sustainable in law, clearing decks for her return as Tamil Nadu Chief Minister.

Karnataka government, in its plea against the May 11 order, claimed that HC erred in computing disproportionate assets of the AIADMK leader.

The Karnataka government also asked whether the high court had "erred in law" by according benefit of doubt to Jayalalithaa in pursuance of a Supreme Court judgement holding that accused can be acquitted if his or her disproportionate assets were to the extent of ten per cent.

The state government had also claimed that the high court has erred in overruling preliminary objections raised by it and added that the accused had filed their appeals against conviction without impleading Karnataka as a party.

The special court had in 2014 held Jayalalithaa guilty of corruption and sentenced her to four years imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 100 crore.

With Agencies
Every year, the Mumbai Marathon sees participation from several organisations, the members of which sport increasingly stranger costumes. This year was no different. We saw a bunch of men dressed as ATMs demanding their rights.

Around 150 men from the Vaastav Foundation ran the marathon, shouting slogans for men's rights and carried banner saying "Men's rights are human rights" or "Husband is not an ATM."

Amit Deshpande, founder of the Vaastav Foundation told Quartz, "The anti-dowry laws and rape-related laws in India favour women. The idea behind justice is that one is innocent until proven guilty, but our system is such that this primary idea is inverted and such laws are misused by women against men. Male rape and male sexual harassment is not recognised. Laws to deal with such evils should be there. We just want that they be gender neutral."

While women's rights bodies are often seen organising protests and marches, we don't often see men speak against gender biases. The Vaastav Foundation's march was well informed and nuanced. Not the kinds that go for women bashing.

Quartz quotes Deshpande as saying, "A man is forced to be an ATM for his family and if he fails to protect his wife or provide for her, he is immediately accused of mistreating her. More number of boys are being forced to drop out of school to take care of their families because the rules of patriarchy expect them to provide."

Men and women across the world are unfortunately victims of this system. While women are made to abide by forced gender roles of becoming the nurturer, the man has to be the provider  whether they like it or not.

Perhaps such movements and protests can create awareness about the fact that society assigned gender roles  a woman being the sensitive and understanding one, and the man being the stoice provider  need to change.
New Delhi: "I am a fairly decisive defence minister," Arun Jaitley said today against the backdrop of criticism by the opposition parties who have described him as a "part time" Minister.

Jaitley, who is also the Finance Minister, said he was conscious of the fact that people call him a part time defence minister.

"But I am a fairly decisive defence minister," he said in an interview to ET Now channel. Congress spokesperson Shakeel Ahmed had recently questioned why Prime Minister Narendra Modi was not able to find a Defence Minister from his 283 Members of Parliament.

"We all know that Arun Jaitley is a part-time Defence Minister. Could not a person, who used to talk about the country's security and respect so much before becoming the Prime Minister, find any capable Defence Minister?" he had questioned.

Another Congress spokesperson Anand Sharma had said "It is a matter of concern that India does not have a full time defence minister even though the new government is in place for five months".

PTI
If the BJP was looking for one opening in Trinamool Congress's rather impregnable Bengal fort, Malda provided the party that golden chance.

And in a signal that India's single largest party is willing to squeeze every bit of juice from it, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday landed in the state and indulged in a lot of bluster, virtually blowing BJP's poll bugle for the upcoming Assembly elections in April-May.

Seeking to turn around a reversal of fortunes after consecutive drubbing in Delhi and Bihar, the BJP's unofficial No.3 turned on the heat on TMC government, accusing it of not taking proper action against the perpetrators of violence.

"Malda incident was not a small one. The Trinamool Congress government and West Bengal chief minister should make it clear who is responsible for the incident," Rajnath said.

"I assure the people that whoever is responsible for the Malda violence will be exposed. The West Bengal government cannot deny responsibility for Malda incident."

It is interesting to note that just a week earlier, the Home Ministry had ruled out poking its nose in Malda, denying a three-member BJP delegation's request to send a fact-finding team of central officials to Bengal's border district.

Ever since violence broke out on 3 January, Malda has been on the boil. It has emerged as a veritable hotbed for anti-national activities. It is a hub of illegal small arms manufacturing, extensive poppy cultivation and is a nerve centre for fake Indian currency notes. It is also a place where narco mafia's writ rules large, a fact that came to the fore during the recent violence in Kaliachak block.

Rajnath launched a full-frontal attack on Mamata Banerjee for 'failing to establish law and order'.

"Aaj West Bengal mein koi surakshit nahi, na maa, na maati na manush. Yahan tak ki police wale bhi surakshit nahi (No one is safe in Bengal, not even the state police). When policemen feel insecure, how they can provide security to the civilians?" he said.

Try as the BJP might though, and for all the firepower at its disposal in the form of heavyweight central ministers who will be visiting Bengal quite frequently like migratory birds as polls draw near, it seems unlikely that Mamata Banerjee would be even mildly worried.

A fact that is evident from the ever-excitable TMC spokesperson's Derek O'Brien's rather tepid reaction to Rajnath's rally.

"Rajnath Singh must realize that Malda is BJP's creation. As Home Minister, he shouldn't be on a mission to stoke communal tension."

Part of TMC's smugness comes from the belief that opposition is fragmented in Bengal and there is no clarity on who are its principal rivals. There is almost nothing left of the Left as it tries desperately to stitch some sort of a pre-poll alliance with the Congress.

The Congress' state unit and grassroots workers are not averse to the idea but the high command has been cautious in its approach, not ruling out an approach from the ruling TMC.

The BJP is strong only in pockets. It rode the Narendra Modi wave during 2014 to garner 17 percent popular votes but have since been on a downhill, faring poorly in last year's Kolkata Municipal Polls.

Leaders such as Sidharth Nath Singh reckon a 'free and fair election' will be enough to usher in BJP rule. A claim that sounds fantastic and tall.

There is no coherence in the state unit with new president Dilip Ghosh still busy finding his moorings. They do have a firebrand women leader in Roopa Ganguly but the party is still woefully short when it comes to a credible face to be pitted against Mamata Banerjee.

No matter how many rallies Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah or even Narendra Modi hold close to the elections, the BJP will struggle to pose any meaningful challenge to TMC.

Bihar has shown that a strong central leadership isn't enough in taking on powerful local satraps.
News agency Reuters made a monumental prediction. The report quoted sources inside the ministry and said that Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will be moved out of the Finance Ministry and his protege and current Power and Coal Minister Piyush Goel will succeed him.

If that were to happen it would mean that Prime Minister Narendra Modi makes the world know of three things. Firstly, making public his vote of low confidence against one of his senior-most colleague in the Cabinet, secondly an admission to the fact that Jaitley was under performing in the finance ministry and he is the one who is to be blamed for the poor economic growth that has been widely criticised and thirdly a late realisation that Jaitley was a wrong choice in the finance ministry to begin with when he was given charge of this all important ministry in summer of 2014.

Reuters report's prediction that Jaitley will be shifted to the Defence Ministry also then raises the question where will the incumbent Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar be moved.

Parikkar was handpicked by Modi to head this critical ministry. Quick decision-making on external and internal defence matters and several acquisitions which were waiting to be made for the armed forces were a few of the reasons why the choice of Parrikar as the Defence Minister seemed poised. In fact, Parikkar, so far, had performed well and taken bold and tough decisions where needed.

Removal of a performing minister, who is also part of the Cabinet Committee of Security is an idea that can't be speculated at speculators' personal peril. Arun Jaitely is among five ministers at the Centre. Never before a minister who had been part of the CCS, or an occupant of North and South Bloc in Capital has been shifted to less significant ministries located below the majestic Raisina Hill.

Jaitley's move from the finance ministry, as predicted by Reuters, is not a very good idea, unless Modi is deeply frustrated with him. Moreover, given the manner in which DDCA controversy has played out, Jaitley dropping from finance ministry would give a handle to Congress and AAP to browbeat Modi and the BJP. Can Modi afford that?

Changing the Finance Minister after he presents the budget on 29 February is not the best idea for Modi. And the PM could take a few lessons from his predecessors.

In July 2002, Vajpayee swapped the ministries of External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh and Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha. However, Jaswant Singh was always Vajpayee's first choice as the Finance Minister. During the rule of UPA-II, P Chidambaram was shifted from Finance to Home ministry and Pranab Mukherjee was shifted from External Affairs Ministry to Finance Ministry.

While the idea of a Cabinet reshuffle  dropping off under or non-performing ministers and induction of fresh talent  is being massively speculated among the party. Probably BJP needs this reshuffle too after the massive drubbing they received during the Bihar assembly elections.

Under Modi, gone are the days when aspirants used to lobby with various power centres. And so it is risky to speculate on who will get which portfolio in case of a Cabinet reshuffle unless the confirmation comes from the top rungs of the party. However, one cannot squarely reject the Reuters report as there have been talks of a possible reshuffle in the ruling BJP. Whether the decision will be before the Union Budget or after that, has not been taken yet.

The calendar suggests that Amit Shah will be re-elected as BJP president on 24 January and is expected to leave for Howrah to address a public rally on 25 January. Republic Day celebrations starts after that and will continue till 30 January. In case the announcement of reshuffle happens before the Union Budget is presented on the 29 February, there is a small time-frame for the new ministers to understand their ministries.

Whatever be the case, one thing is for sure: BJP's organisational structure needs some better talent and the restructuring of the party and the government may have to go hand in hand.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi may have finally broken his silence on the suicide of Hyderabad-based research scholar Rohith Vemula on Friday afternoon by saying Mother India has lost a son, but the Congress is not ready to relent yet.

The Congress party has demanded nothing less than sacking of the HRD minister Smriti Irani, the Labour minister Bandaru Dattatreya and HCU vice chancellor Appa Rao, and stringent action against the said ABVP leaders.

We all respect PM Narendra Modi ji. We want to humbly tell him that by mere shedding of crocodile tears will neither bring back Rohith Vemula nor justice be meted to him. As he didnt spell out about anything on any action, it has eroded the confidence of the youth and Dalits of this country. Its disappointing. Will Mr Modi remove Smriti Irani, Bandaru Dattatreya and Appa Rao? Will any action be taken against the university VC and the ABVP activists, who first orchestrated circumstances perpetuating anti-Dalit mindset that led to suicide of Rohith on 17 January? What about the compensation to the family of the Vemula? The country wants to know, said Congress leader and in-charge AICC communications, Randeep Surjewala.

First pre-condition for a fair, independent and impartial probe by a sitting High Court judge is sacking of the two Union Ministers and Apparao, and action against BJP MLC Ramchandra Rao and ABVP activists. Arrests should be made of all accused named in the FIR. It is only thereafter, that an equitable and trustworthy probe can be held that will inspire confidence of the entire student community including the Dalit and underprivileged sections, he added.

Congress general secretary Mukul Wasnik added, PM Modi speaks about the Dalits and their welfare, but in true sense, hes silent over any action against those who were instrumental in the abetment of Rohith Vemula's suicide. Weve come to know that the ABVP has given a list of 40 professors, officials and students of Hyderabad Central University to the HRD ministry dubbing them as anti-nationals and has demanded a CBI probe against them. Its nothing sort of persecution of Dalits.

In response to the suicide of Vemula and the suspension of five Dalit students at Hyderabad Central University (HCU), the Congress party has decided to mobilise the teachers, academicians, intellectuals and lawyers across the country against NDA-governments promoting RSS ideology in universities and educational institutions.

Indian universities and academic institutions are under serious attack, as they (BJP) want to take control over what to be taught. The BJP government and the RSS are trying to shape India as a Hindu Rastra through centralised control of the education system. The present government has snatched away the right of the universities to frame the syllabus and imposed common syllabus across the country. With growing centralisation in the higher education through HRD ministrys diktats, the agenda of egalitarian higher education is in jeopardy. Dalits and Minorities are gradually feeling more and more isolated in the system of higher learning. In last 18 months the atrocities against the Dalits have increased manifold, said K Raju, chairman, SC department of AICC.

Debating on Era of intolerance & Atrocities on Dalits in New Delhi on Friday, Raju said there has been a kind of Clash of two ideologies, as the vision of Congress was at loggerhead with divisive and sectarian ideas of BJP-RSS.

The government has been trying to implement the Golwalkars idea of India, where there is no equal rights and liberty of thoughts. Furthermore, BJP talked of Congress-Mukta Bharat during the elections, but what they are trying now is to make Constitution-Mukta Bharat. The suicide of Rohith Vemula has only brought out fatal consequences of such a policy of the BJP government, he remarked.

The Congress party as a part of its strategy has decided to identify Congress-minded people in various academic institutions and universities and take care of them, to safeguard them from the onslaught of right-wing activists and the HRD ministry.

Theres a need to identify Congress minded people in educational institutions and take care of them as they are being targetted and attacked. We oppose the governments approach of taking away the autonomy of the universities and educational institutions. The Rights-based legislations like MNREGA and others brought out by the UPA government are under threat, as the present NDA wants to curtail those schemes, added Raju.

Stating the present NDA regime as an era of intolerance and hostilities to freedom of expression and right to equality, Girija Vyas, chairperson, Vichar Vibhag (Intellectual Cell) of the AICC, said, Dalits and marginalised sections of the society are being persecuted. In the contemporary scenario the government is trying to promote inequality and caste-based society. The idea of democracy is losing out.

Indian universities and academic institutions are under serious attack, as they (BJP) wants to take control over what to be taught. Its not the majoritarian ideology, but that of the RSS. The academic and executive committees have no space as the HRD ministry wants to gag speech. The scientists with true scientific temper have no space in universities and research institutions, like in a fascist state, said Prof Aditya Narayan Misra, vice chairman of the Intellectual Cell.

Prof Ajay Upadhyay, general secretary, Intellectual Cell, added Theres an environment of anarchy in universities. Present governments policy of intolerance has raised question among all religions, sects and castes in India. Both Dalits and minorities are in fear. Congress will mobilise academicians and intellectuals in every state against the RSS agenda to control the academic space.
Cairo: An Egyptian affiliate of the jihadist Islamic State group claimed Friday the killing of six people, including three policemen, in a bomb blast during a Cairo apartment raid.

Thursday's explosion in the capital's Al-Haram district, near the pyramids, came as police raided a flat suspected to be a militant hideout and tried to defuse an explosive device, the interior ministry said on its Facebook page.

It said two unknown individuals were among those killed, and blamed the banned Muslim Brotherhood movement of ousted President Mohamed Morsi for the blast.

However, an Egyptian affiliate of the Islamic State group on Friday said it lured the officers to the apartment, which was "rigged with bombs".

"When the infidels entered, the bomb-rigged house was blown up," the Islamic State Egypt group said in a statement posted on jihadist websites.

The interior ministry said a group of Muslim Brotherhood members had used the apartment to manufacture explosives.

Thirteen other people were wounded in the blast, it added.

Al-Haram has witnessed several attacks and gunfights since the army ousted Islamist Morsi in July 2013.

The neighbourhood is known to house many Morsi sympathisers and has been the scene of clashes between his supporters and security forces in the aftermath of his ouster by then army chief and now President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

It also houses several hotels used by tourists visiting Cairo because of its proximity to the world-famous pyramids.

Militants have regularly attacked policemen and soldiers since the army toppled Morsi.

Jihadists say their attacks are in retaliation for a brutal government crackdown targeting Morsi's supporters that has left hundreds dead and thousands imprisoned.

Morsi was Egypt's first freely elected president and succeeded Hosni Mubarak, who was driven from power after an 18-day popular uprising.

On Monday, Egypt marks the fifth anniversary of the anti-Mubarak revolt, and Sisi has warned against any form of demonstration on that day.

AFP
London, United Kingdom: British newspapers on Friday welcomed an inquiry's finding that Russian President Vladimir Putin "probably approved" the killing of ex-spy Alexander Litvinenko, labelling Putin a "thug".

Litvinenko died of radiation poisoning in 2006 after drinking tea laced with radioactive polonium at a London hotel. The judge-led inquiry into what happened published its long-awaited findings on Thursday.

Many newspapers insisted that Prime Minister David Cameron's government must go further in punishing Russia over the Litvinenko killing, despite ministers' hopes that Putin could help bring an end to the conflict in Syria.

Relations between Britain and Russia were already in deep freeze before the inquiry's findings were published, over a series of issues including the situation in Ukraine and the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 there in 2014.

Britain announced no fresh sanctions over the Litvinenko killing, instead summoning Russia's ambassador to London and imposing asset freezes on the two chief suspects, Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun.

The Times's editorial called these measures "predictable formalities that will have little impact".

It added: "It is not enough for the British government to express its 'profound displeasure' and freeze UK assets of two suspects who probably do not have any."

"It's Just Cowardly Folly To Appease This Thug" was the headline on a Daily Mail column by Edward Lucas.

This said it was "a catastrophically mistaken approach" for Britain to hold back on firmer action in the hope Russia could help over Syria.

"If we want to bring the Assad regime to the negotiating table, we should be increasing pressure on its backers, such as Russia and Iran, not soft-soaping them," Lucas added.

The Guardian's editorial said nothing comparable to Litvinenko's murder had happened in London since 1978, when Bulgarian dissident Georgi Markov was killed with a ricin-tipped umbrella on a bridge over the River Thames.

"The report's credibility is not in doubt," it said. "Stronger measures, and at a European level, are now required."

But the Independent's columnist Mary Dejevsky questioned why the inquiry had heard some parts of the evidence in secret -- a move attributed by officials to national security concerns.

She added: "So bad are UK-Russian relations overall -- and such is the UK interest in improving them, because of Russia's mediating role with Iran and Syria -- that I would hazard there is a strong probability... that bilateral relations will not actually become much worse."

AFP
WASHINGTON A winter storm that could bury parts of the U.S. Middle Atlantic region under nearly three feet of snow slammed into Washington, D.C. on Friday afternoon, threatening the nation's capital with record accumulations as it barrels up the populous East Coast.

After emergency officials planned and residents scrambled for days to stock up on supplies, the blizzard started to blanket the Washington area during the early afternoon after six people had died in car crashes as a wintry mix spread across Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky.

The storm could dump two to two and a half feet (61 to 76 cm) of snow on the capital and bring winds of 30 to 50 mph (48 to 80 kph) before winding down late on Saturday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.

By then it would have moved over Philadelphia and New York, bringing 12 to 18 inches (30 to 46 cm) of snow.

Washington's western suburbs may get up to 3 feet (91 cm), forecasters said. In Falls Church, Virginia, about 8 miles (13 km) west of the capital, a thick curtain of snow was already piling up on the deserted streets on Friday evening, creating a peaceful tableau that may have disguised dangerous conditions to come.

"I want to be very clear with everybody. This is a major storm," Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said as the city braced for what could turn out to be one of the worst storms in its history. "This has life-and-death implications and all the residents of the District of Columbia should treat it that way."

Six fatalities have been reported so far in weather-related car crashes as of Friday afternoon. Four were in North Carolina and one each in Arkansas and Tennessee.

The Weather Channel said more than 85 million people in at least 20 states were covered by a winter weather warning, watch or advisory.

Airlines canceled nearly 6,300 flights for Friday and Saturday, most at airports in the New York and Philadelphia areas, according to flight tracking website FlightAware.com.

Washington's snowfall could eclipse the "Snowmageddon" storm of 2010 that dropped 17.8 inches (45.2 cm), AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said. If forecasts prove accurate, the storm could rival the 1922 Knickerbocker storm, which dumped a record 28 inches (71 cm) on the city.

"I think its going to be a nightmare, the rates of snow were talking about," said Marisa Kritikson, 27, a nursing student at George Washington University in Washington after buying a snow shovel to dig out from her basement apartment.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio asked people to limit travel to "absolute emergencies" as he declared a winter weather emergency for the largest city in the United States.

"There will be white-out conditions," he told a press conference ahead of the storm, which is expected to hit the city after midnight. New York accumulations could reach up to 18 inches (46 cm), with winds gusting to 50 miles per hour (80 kph), whipping up blizzard conditions.

Southeastern Pennsylvania, including Philadelphia, was expecting 10 to 18 inches (25 to 46 cm).

The approaching storm led New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie to come home from New Hampshire, where he is vying for the Republican presidential nomination.

Residents along New Jersey's coast prepared for potential flooding during high tides on Saturday and Sunday. In Ocean City, emergency management officials warned of forecasts calling for the highest flood levels since Superstorm Sandy brought heavy damage in 2012.

High winds and a full moon could combine to create a high tide of nearly 8 feet (2.4 meters) in Atlantic City, officials said, still shy of the 10 feet (3 meters) that Sandy caused in Ocean City.

In New York, the National Weather Service issued coastal flood warnings for the boroughs of Staten Island, Brooklyn and Queens as officials prepared for possible evacuations from low-lying areas.

Post-Sandy reconstruction has put the area in a stronger position to face the storm, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said.

SCRAMBLE FOR SUPPLIESThe storm arrived in the Washington area, home to about 6 million people, after dropping 5 inches (13 cm) of snow in Arkansas and spreading a wintry mess of snow, sleet and freezing rain in parts of Tennessee and Kentucky.

In addition to several inches of snow, the Charlotte, North Carolina, area could get up to a half inch (1.3 cm) of ice, causing concerns about power outages and dangerous driving conditions, officials said. Other parts of the state could get a foot of snow.

Federal offices in the Washington area closed at noon on Friday to allow employees to get home before the snow began piling up. City officials said everyone except emergency workers should stay off the streets.

Many residents had scrambled to prepare ahead of the storm, picking stores clean of bottled water, food and other supplies.

"I have nine cases of wine, half and half and coffee, firewood and all my devices are charged. All I need now is a wing and a prayer, said Liz Scherer, 54, who works out of her home in the Washington suburb of Silver Spring, Maryland.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which includes the second-busiest U.S. subway system, took the rare step of suspending operations from late Friday through Sunday.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which operates New York City subway and commuter rail lines, expected to operate normal service, Cuomo said, as did New Jersey Transit.

The forecast prompted the Virginia National Guard to bring in about 300 troops to deal with emergencies. In New York, 600 National Guard personnel were on standby.

(Additional reporting by Colleen Jenkins in Winston-Salem, N.C., Suzannah Gonzales in Chicago, Barbara Goldberg and Joseph Ax in New York, Susan Heavey in Washington, Lacey Johnson in Silver Spring, Md., Steve Barnes in Little Rock, Ark. and Harriet McLeod in Charleston, S.C.; Writing by Frank McGurty; Editing by Diane Craft and James Dalgleish)

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NEW YORK For the third time in 15 months, a Colombian drug kingpin pleaded guilty on Thursday to U.S. charges that he conspired to manufacture and distribute hundreds of tons of cocaine annually that he trafficked throughout the world.

The plea in Manhattan federal court clears the way for sentencing Daniel Barrera, who authorities say was one of the most prolific drug traffickers of the last two decades before his capture in Venezuela in 2012 following years in hiding.

Barrera, also known as "Loco" (Crazy), was extradited from Colombia in July 2013 to face three indictments filed in federal courts in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Miami, and pleaded guilty in 2014 in the New York cases.

The Miami indictment, along with the Brooklyn one, was later transferred to a federal judge in Manhattan in order to consolidate the cases for sentencing once his final plea was entered.

In court, Barrera pleaded guilty to two counts, admitting that from 1992 to 2010 he agreed with others "to manufacture several tons of cocaine to import into the United States."

Prosecutors and Barrera's lawyer, Ruben Oliva, had been seeking to negotiate a plea agreement to simplify his eventual sentencing on all three indictments.

But Oliva told U.S. District Judge Gregory Woods that no agreement could be reached and that there were "mitigating factors" he wanted to cite at sentencing, set for May 25

Barrera faces a sentence of 10 years to life in prison.

According to U.S. authorities, Barrera, 47, ran a cocaine manufacturing and trafficking syndicate that since 1998 processed about 400 tons of the drug annually.

Prosecutors said Barrera bought raw cocaine paste from the leftist rebel group FARC and processed it in laboratories in areas controlled by a now-demobilized paramilitary group, the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, or AUC.

Barrera was arrested in Venezuela in September 2012 with the help of authorities there as well as British and U.S. intelligence agencies.

Colombian authorities had been closing in on his organization in the weeks prior, detaining 36 suspected members and seizing five tons of cocaine.

(Reporting by Nate Raymond in New York; Editing by Dan Grebler)

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WASHINGTON Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian headed home to the United States on Friday, days after being freed from 18 months in prison in Iran as part of a historic prisoner exchange between Tehran and the United States.

The Post's owner and Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) founder Jeff Bezos accompanied the Iranian-American journalist and his family on the flight to the United States on a private jet, the Post reported.

The newspaper printed a picture of Bezos with his arm around Rezaian's shoulder and both men smiling aboard an aircraft. The caption said it showed the two men before taking off for the United States from Saarbruecken, Germany, on Friday.

Rezaian, who had been staying in Germany after leaving Iran on Sunday, said he was grateful for his newfound freedom but was not yet ready to talk about his imprisonment.

"At some point, I will be ready to discuss my ordeal but for now, I just want to express my profound appreciation for the tremendous support I have received," he said in a statement.

"Today, I am incredibly thankful for my family, my fellow journalists, my colleagues at the Washington Post, and everyone else who fought for my freedom," he said.

The prisoner swap was announced as world powers, including the United States, implemented a landmark nuclear deal with Iran that eased tensions between Tehran and the West. In exchange for the release of five Americans from Iran, the White House offered clemency to seven Iranians who were convicted or facing trial in the United States.

Two other Americans freed by Iran, a Christian minister and a former U.S. Marine, returned to the United States on Thursday.

Rezaian, who was born in California and holds dual U.S. and Iranian citizenship, was accused of espionage by Iran. He and his wife Yeganeh Salehi, who is Iranian, were arrested in July 2014, although she was later freed.

Rezaian's brother Ali along with executives at the Post had led the effort to seek their release, urging the Obama administration to press the issue with Iran.

After his release, Rezaian spent several days at the U.S. military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany. Rezaian and his family had dinner with Bezos on the base on Thursday, the Post said.

"Like all of us, he is incredibly happy they are safe and sound," Post spokeswoman Kristine Coratti Kelly was quoted by the newspaper as saying of Bezos.

(Reporting by Susan Heavey and Mohammad Zargham; Editing by James Dalgleish and Alistair Bell)

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ANKARA Several Iranian clerics and politicians have strongly criticised the mass disqualification of moderate aspirants to run in parliamentary elections in February, the opposition website Kaleme said on Thursday.

Preventing pro-reform hopefuls from entering the race by Iran's hardline watchdog body, the Guardian Council, is expected to deepen political infighting between hardliners and President Hassan Rouhani's allies in Iran.

Moderate politicians believe the mass rejections via a vetting process are aimed at helping hardline candidates keep control of the 290-seat parliament, which could hinder political and social reforms promised by Rouhani during his 2013 election campaign.

The lifting of international sanctions on Iran on Saturday has bolstered the popularity of Rouhani.

The council, an unelected body of 12 Islamic jurists and hardline clerics, can veto election candidates for reasons such as lack of commitment to Islam and the constitution.

"Disqualification of those who believe in the Islamic Republic, Islam and the pillars of our system ... will create a deep rift between real believers of our system and the establishment," Kaleme quoted Ayatollah Kazem Nourmofidi as saying.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday that "those who don't have faith in the clerical establishment, should not be allowed to perform a duty".

Some 12,000 hopefuls registered to run in the parliamentary elections, but more than 7,000 were disqualified by the Council, which is now reviewing complaints from them. Some of those disqualified were hardliners.

"This is the biggest number of disqualifications in the history of the Islamic republic," the semi-official ILNA news agency quoted moderate politician Hossein Marashi as saying.

Nine pro-reform political parties issued a statement on Wednesday, saying the Council had qualified only 30 of the 3,000 registered moderate hopefuls, urging top leaders for a thorough revision of the disqualifications.

Head of the Council Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati said "pressure will have no effect", hinting that the revision will be limited.

"You have acknowledged the right of only 30 percent of our voters, ignoring rights of others," said Grand Ayatollah Ali Mohammad Dastgheyb in a letter to the Guardian Council, published by the Kaleme.

"Don't you think it will create a huge rift between the people and the leadership?"

The council banned 2,000 reformist candidates from running for the 2004 parliamentary election, when conservatives won a landslide.

(Writing by Parisa Hafezi; editing by Andrew Roche)

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Paris: US Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday said the Islamic State group would be "very seriously" weakened in Syria and Iraq this year, as France announced that some 22,000 jihadists have been killed by the US-led coalition.

Air strikes by the alliance that includes Gulf states, France and Britain have been pounding IS positions since August 2014, with Washington claiming major gains against the extremists.

"I think that by the end of 2016, our goal of very seriously denting Daesh in Iraq and Syria and of trying to have an impact on Mosul (in Iraq) and Raqa (in Syria) will be achieved," Kerry told reporters on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, using an alternative name for IS.

"We are on track, we are doing serious damage to Daesh today," he said.

The Pentagon estimates that IS has lost 20-30 percent of the total territory they were in control of in Iraq and Syria, including up to 40 percent in Iraq alone.

Kerry said he would meet the foreign ministers of 24 coalition nations in Rome on February 2 to discuss strategy and possible "additional commitments".

The US has called on allies to contribute special forces as a key part of the efforts to bolster coalition forces fighting the jihadist group.

US special forces are already directly engaged in pinpointing targets and launching raids against the Islamic State group in both Syria and Iraq, US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said Thursday.

"These forces have already established contact with new forces that share our goals, (opening) new lines of communication to local, motivated and capable fighters, and new targets for air strikes and strikes of all kinds," Carter said in Paris.

No nation is providing precise figures on how many of their special forces are operating in the region, but it has become increasingly clear that elite Western troops are providing more than training, and shifting towards more of a frontline role.

In Iraq, "we now have a specialised expeditionary targeting force in place that is preparing to work with the Iraqis to begin mounting sudden, long-range raids, going after ISIL's fighters and commanders, killing or capturing them wherever we find them, along with other key targets," Carter said, using an alternative name for IS.

French President Francois Hollande said the anti-IS coalition would "accelerate" its air strikes.

His comments followed a meeting by the defence ministers of seven countries in the coalition on Wednesday, who said their strategy was to free the IS "power centres" of Raqa and Mosul.

"They also decided to reinforce support to Arab and Kurdish forces fighting Daesh on the ground," the French president said.

Around 22,000 jihadists have been killed by the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State group since mid-2014, France's own defence minister said on Thursday.

"The figure given by the coalition... is about 22,000 dead since the start of operations in Iraq and Syria," Jean-Yves Le Drian told the France24 news channel, adding that the figure was "approximate".

- 'Perfect chaos'

Meanwhile, the EU's counter-terrorism coordinator chief Gilles de Kerchove said IS's military losses in Syria and Iraq may prompt some of its leaders to relocate to strife-torn Libya where they would face less pressure.

"There, for the time being, it's the perfect chaos they like," he told AFP.

The anti-IS coalition's attacks have intensified since November's deadly jihadist attacks in Paris, with oil sites among the main targets in a bid to cut the group's key revenue stream.

Le Drian said the group's finances were "beginning to dry up".

UN-brokered Syrian peace talks had been tentatively set for Monday in Geneva, despite disagreements over who will represent the opposition.

But the United Nations said the talks could be delayed by a few days.

"It is likely the 25th may slip by a few days for practical reasons," Jessy Chahine, a spokeswoman for UN Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura, told AFP in an email on Thursday.

AFP
JERUSALEM Israeli troops forcibly removed Jewish settlers on Friday from homes in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron that they said they had bought from Palestinians, prompting some right-wing lawmakers to threaten to withhold support for the government.

Ministers and members of parliament from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party decried Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon's refusal to sign off on the settlers' occupancy of the homes in a city where tensions between Israelis and Palestinians run high.

The settlers said they had bought the properties legally from Palestinian owners, but to live in the apartments they need Defence Ministry approval.

"To take occupancy of the homes, a number of actions are required, and none were carried out, which is why the trespassers were evicted," Yaalon said in a statement.

A Netanyahu aide, who declined to be named, said that the prime minister backed Yaalon's move, but added:

"In this case, not all the permits have been obtained. Once this happens, the settlers will be able to return, as has happened in past cases."

Two right-wing lawmakers from Likud and another from the ultranationalist Jewish Home party said they would boycott parliamentary votes on Monday in protest at the move.

"It is forbidden to evict Jews from their homes and there will be consequences, we demand the prime minister's involvement in the matter," said Ayoub Kara, a Druze Arab Likud lawmaker.

TENSE CITY

Hebron, a city of about 220,000 Palestinians, has long been a source of tension, fuelled by the presence of around 1,000 Jewish settlers who live in the heart of the city, protected by Israeli troops.

A holy site in the centre is divided between the faiths. One half is known to Jews as the Cave of the Patriarchs, where the biblical figures Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their wives are said to be buried. The other, where the Ibrahimi mosque stands, is known to Muslims as the Sanctuary of Abraham.

Tourism Minister Yariv Levin said Yaalon's move was "scandalous", while Diaspora Affairs Minister Zeev Elkin described it as "wrong".

The settlers moved into the apartments on Thursday and were evicted on Friday morning. Television footage showed scuffles as the police forced them out. Police said about 80 settlers had been removed without major incident.

Israeli settlements in occupied territory, deemed illegal by most countries, are a fundamental issue in the stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace process.

Israel confirmed on Thursday that it was planning to appropriate a large tract of land in the West Bank, drawing condemnation from the U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the United States, Israel's closest ally.

(Writing by Ori Lewis; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

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WASHINGTON A powerful storm barreled toward Washington, D.C., on Friday, threatening to bury parts of the East Coast under as much as 30 inches (76 cm) of snow after coating North Carolina in white and blasting Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky with a wintry mix.

The National Weather Service said the storm had the potential to cripple a broad swath of the Northeast, with about 2 feet (61 cm) of snow due to hit the Baltimore and Washington metro areas starting on Friday afternoon. Western suburbs could get even more snow while the New York area was expected to get a little less.

"I want to be very clear with everybody. This is a major storm," Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said as the nation's capital braced for what could turn out to be one of the worst storms in its history.

"This has life-and-death implications and all the residents of the District of Columbia should treat it that way."

The Weather Channel said more than 85 million people in at least 20 states were covered by either a blizzard warning, winter storm watch, winter storm warning, winter weather advisory, or freezing rain advisory.

Given the extraordinary conditions expected, Washington has been preparing all week for the type of blizzard that Bowser said the city has not seen in 90 years.

AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said the storm could bring Washington one of its biggest snowfalls on record, eclipsing the "Snowmageddon" storm of 2010 that dropped 17.8 inches (45.2 cm).

The largest snowstorm recorded in Washington was the 1922 Knickerbocker storm, which inundated the city under 28 inches (71 cm).

"I think its going to be a nightmare, the rates of snow were talking about," said Marisa Kritikson, 27, a nursing student at George Washington University in Washington.

Weather forecasters were looking for storm to hit the capital between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. on Friday and last until late on Saturday, bringing up to 2 to 2.5 feet (61 to 76 cm) over 36 hours and winds of 30 to 50 mph (48 to 80 kph), the mayor said.

Farther north, a blizzard watch was issued for New York City and parts of its Long Island and New Jersey suburbs starting early Saturday. Snow accumulation could reach 12 inches (30 cm) in the region, forecasters said. Southeastern Pennsylvania, including Philadelphia, was expecting 10 to 16 inches (25 to 42 cm) of snow.

Governors of Arkansas and Tennessee ordered state offices closed on Friday as the storm pushed across their states and Kentucky. It dropped 5 inches (13 cm) of snow in Arkansas and a wintry mess of snow, sleet and freezing rain in parts of Tennessee and Kentucky, Petersen said.

STORM GROWING

"It's expanding and coming east," he said. "It will continue to grow as it crosses the mid-Atlantic states, where Maryland, southeastern Pennsylvania and northern Virginia will get the heaviest snow."

The Virginia National Guard planned to bring in up to 300 troops for help.

Across the Southeast, government offices, schools and universities were shuttered on Friday.

In addition to several inches of snow, the Charlotte, North Carolina, area could get up to a half inch of ice, causing concerns about power outages and dangerous driving conditions, officials said.

State and city officials in North Carolina warned more snow and ice accumulation was expected into Saturday with some areas getting a foot of snow.

The governors office reported four fatalities in weather-related car crashes since Wednesday, including a death Friday morning that caused traffic backups on I-95 in Johnston County.

In the Washington area, home to about 6 million people, residents scrambled to prepare, picking stores clean of bottled water, food and other supplies.

"I have nine cases of wine, half and half and coffee, firewood and all my devices are charged. All I need now is a wing and a prayer, said Liz Scherer, 54, who works out of her home in the Washington suburb of Silver Spring, Maryland.

Federal employees in the Washington area were told their offices would close at noon on Friday to allow them to get home before the snow began piling up. City officials said everyone except emergency workers should stay off the streets.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which includes the second-busiest U.S. subway system, took the rare step of suspending operations from late Friday through Sunday.

Airlines canceled more than 5,000 flights for Friday and Saturday, most of them at airports in North Carolina and Washington, according to FlightAware.com. Philadelphia's airport said it would cancel all flights scheduled for Saturday.

But the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said it had no plans to shut its airports.

Residents along New Jersey's coastline were preparing for potential flooding during high tides on Saturday and Sunday. In the beach community of Ocean City, emergency management officials warned of forecasts calling for the highest flood levels since Superstorm Sandy brought heavy damage in 2012.

High winds and a full moon could combine to create a tide of nearly 8 feet (2.4 meters) in Atlantic City, officials said, still shy of the 10 feet (3 meters) that Sandy caused in Ocean City.

(Additional reporting by Scott Malone in Boston, Colleen Jenkins in Winston-Salem, N.C., Suzannah Gonzales in Chicago, Barbara Goldberg in New York; Writing by Frank McGurty; Editing by Bill Trott)

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Seoul, South Korea: South Korean President Park Geun-Hye on Friday offered a "creative" solution to stalled six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear programme -- cut Pyongyang from the equation and make them five-party negotiations instead.

"We should find various and creative approaches, including attempting to hold five-way talks excluding North Korea," Park said during a policy briefing with top ministers.

The six-party talks, involving the two Koreas, the United States, Japan, Russia and China, began in 2003 as an effort to dismantle North Korea's nuclear programme in exchange for aid.

The North quit the dialogue process in 2009, ostensibly to protest sanctions imposed after a long-range rocket test. The following month it conducted its second nuclear test.

North Korea's main ally, China, has repeatedly pushed for the talks' resumption, but Park said the North's fourth nuclear test on January 6 underlined Pyongyang's rejection of denuclearisation as a bargaining chip.

"Even if the talks are resumed, their effectiveness would certainly be called into question," she said.

South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-Se said excluding North Korea from the dialogue process would serve as a powerful signal of the international community's anger and frustration.

"If this takes place, it will send a very strong message to North Korea both substantially and symbolically," Yun said.

On top of the five-way talks, South Korea's top diplomat said his government was also considering a "diverse dialogue framework" that could kick-off with a "three-way cooperation body" involving South Korea, the US and China.

But when asked about Park's proposal, China's foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei insisted that bringing all parties together, including North Korea, was the only way forward.

"Six-party talks are the key to solving the root of the issues," Hong said.

Pyongyang's latest test triggered a flurry of diplomatic activity between the five non-North Korean members of the defunct talks process, with the US, Japan and South Korea urging China to take the lead in imposing stronger sanctions on its maverick neighbour.

"I expect China to take effective measures to make sure North Korea can recognise that the development of its nuclear programmes serves no purpose, and that it should re-join the international community as Iran did," Park said.

Beijing will have a crucial role to play in the wording of the resolution currently under discussion within the UN Security Council to punish Pyongyang for its latest test.

China is North Korea's chief diplomatic protector and economic benefactor, but Beijing's patience has worn thin with Pyongyang's behaviour and unwillingness to rein in its nuclear weapons ambitions.

However, Beijing's leverage over Pyongyang is mitigated by its overriding fear of a North Korean collapse and the prospect of a reunified, US-allied Korea directly on its border.

AFP
Beirut: The United Nations has said that crucial talks on ending the Syria conflict would likely be delayed by a few days, as a dispute over who will represent the opposition intensified. The talks, scheduled to open in Geneva on Monday, are part of the biggest diplomatic push yet to resolve a civil war that in nearly five years has left more than 260,000 dead and forced millions from their homes.

World powers agreed last year in Vienna on an 18-month road-map that would lead to the peace talks, a transitional government and then elections. But the office of UN Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura, who is hosting the talks, said the January 25 deadline for the start of talks would probably be missed. "It is likely the 25th may slip by a few days for practical reasons," Jessy Chahine, a spokeswoman for de Mistura, told AFP in an email yesterday.

"We are still aiming for that date and we will in any event assess progress over the weekend," she said. US Secretary of State John Kerry said he was confident the talks would go ahead as planned. "It may be a day or two for invitations but there is not going to be a fundamental delay," Kerry said on the sidelines of meetings at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

"The process will begin on the 25th and they will get together and see where we are," he said. Diplomats appeared to be scrambling to resolve the key question of who will represent Syria's fractious opposition at the talks with President Bashar al-Assad's regime.

The main coalition of opposition bodies, the High Negotiations Committee, announced a delegation to the talks on Wednesday but its composition quickly came under fire.

The group named Mohamed Alloush, a political leader of the Saudi-backed Islamist armed group Jaish al-Islam, as its chief negotiator at the talks. The National Coordinating Committee for Democratic Change, a key opposition body still present in Damascus, said it was "not acceptable" for the delegation's chief to come from the armed opposition. "This sends the wrong political message to the Syrian people," it said.

The pro-regime Al-Watan daily called Alloush's appointment "a provocative step with the sole goal of thwarting any possible dialogue". Syria's ally Russia has said it considers Jaish al-Islam as a "terrorist" group.

AFP
NEW YORK (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Academics, economists and top members of business and labor have been tapped by the United Nations to find ways to unleash women's economic potential and promote female leadership in a first-of-its-kind initiative, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Thursday.

The Women's Economic Empowerment Panel will make recommendations to reach gender equality and empower women, one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) the 193 U.N. member nations have approved for implementation by 2030, he said.

"The empowerment of the world's women is a global imperative," said Ban, who spoke at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland. "We need a quantum leap in women's economic empowerment."

The panel will meet in March to seek solutions to persistent women's inequality, he said.

While women's rights have been on the U.N. agenda for decades, with the 1995 World Conference on Women and creation of UN Women in 2010, this will be the first time experts and policy leaders will be brought together in a panel setting focused on tackling economic gender inequality, the U.N said.

"Investing in girls and women isn't just about basic human rights, it's about fully unlocking the potential of half the world's population," said British International Development Secretary Justine Greening, a member of the panel.

The U.N.-led drive comes amid efforts to increase women's representation in corporate boardrooms and government legislatures, said Julie Suk, a professor at Yeshiva University in New York with expertise in antidiscrimination law.

"The real challenge will be whether or not having more women's representation in decision-making positions trickles down to actual on-the-ground economic empowerment for women in all levels of society," she said.

The panel will seek to galvanize political will for action aimed at closing economic gender gap, the U.N. said.

Globally, women are paid 24 cents less than men on average for the same work, it said, and they also bear most of the burden of unpaid care taking and domestic work.

If women in every nation were to play a role identical to men in markets, some $28 trillion could be added to the global economy by 2025, according to the McKinsey Global Institute.

The first report from the panel, to be co-chaired by President Luis Guillermo Solis of Costa Rica and Simona Scarpaleggia, chief executive of IKEA Switzerland, is expected by September.

(Reporting by Sebastien Malo, Editing by Ellen Wulfhorst. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, corruption and climate change. Visit news.trust.org)

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UNITED NATIONS Members of the United Nations Security Council on Thursday received a draft of a resolution that calls for establishing a U.N. mission to oversee disarmament should Colombia's government and leftist FARC rebels reach a final peace deal.

Colombia's government and FARC agreed on Tuesday to ask the 15-nation council to help monitor and verify rebel disarmament should the two sides reach a deal to end their 50-year-old war.

The text, drafted by Britain and seen by Reuters, would have the 15-nation council "establish a political mission to participate for a period of 12 months ... to monitor and verify the definitive bilateral ceasefire and cessation of hostilities, and the laying down of arms."

To begin the process of creating the mission, it would ask Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon "to initiate preparations and to present detailed recommendations to the Security Council for its consideration and approval."

It added that the council would establish "a political mission of unarmed international observers" and welcomed the willingness of members of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States to contribute personnel.

The draft said Ban would submit his recommendation on the size and operational details of the mission within 30 days of the signing of a final ceasefire deal by the Colombian government and FARC.

One council diplomat said on condition of anonymity that he hoped the draft resolution would go to a vote next week.

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said last year he would make such an appeal to the U.N.

The rebels' willingness to make the request jointly with the government is a sign of progress as the two sides aim to reach a comprehensive peace agreement before a March 23 deadline that negotiators set last year.

In addition to verifying a bilateral ceasefire and presiding over the FARC's disarmament, the international monitors would also settle any disputes and make recommendations.

(Reporting by Louis Charbonneau; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)

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JEDDAH The world's largest Muslim body has backed Saudi Arabia in its weeks-long diplomatic spat with Iran, accusing Tehran of backing terrorism and meddling in other countries' affairs.

Tehran rejected the statement by The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) as "unacceptable" on Friday, and in turn accused it of supporting "Saudi state terrorism".

The OIC, based in the Saudi city of Jeddah, gathered for an exceptional meeting called by Riyadh over the storming of its embassy and consulate by Iranian protesters on Jan. 2.

The crisis erupted when Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia executed Shi'ite Muslim cleric Nimr al-Nimr earlier that day, triggering outrage among Shi'ites across the region and deepening the political and sectarian rift between the kingdom and the Islamic republic.

In its final statement on Thursday evening, the OIC condemned the attacks on Saudi missions and criticised "inflammatory Iranian statements on the implementation of court rulings against a number of perpetrators of terrorist crimes in Saudi Arabia".

"(The OIC) condemns Iran's interference in the internal affairs of countries in the region and other countries, including members (Bahrain, Yemen, Syria and Somalia) and the continuation of its support for terrorism," the body added.

Riyadh cut its diplomatic ties with Tehran in response. Other Gulf countries took varying measures to downgrade ties with Iran.

Iran is a member of the OIC and its Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi attended the meeting.

An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman dismissed the OIC statement, Iran's state news agency IRNA reported on Friday.

"The statement has turned a blind eye to the realities of Saudi embassy event and Iranian government's speedy measures in providing security .... restoring calm and detaining those responsible for the event," said Hossein Jaberi Ansari.

"The goal of such meetings is an attempt to provide coverage to the policies of discord, war-mongering and support for state terrorism of Saudi Arabia."

Analysts say the dispute may dampen chances for peace talks to end wars in Yemen and Syria, where the two regional archrivals back opposing sides.

(Reporting by Noah Browning and Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Andrew Roche)

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Motorola posted Android 6.0 update release notes for the Moto G (2nd Gen) earlier this week. Today Motorolas Senior Director of Software Product Management, David Schuster announced that Motorola has started Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) soak test for the 2014 Moto G (2nd Gen) and 2014 Moto G (2nd Gen) 4G in Brazil and India.

The Motorola Moto G (2nd Gen) was launched in India running Android 4.4 (KitKat). It received the Android 5.0 (Lollipop) update back in January last year in India. It got patches for Stagefright exploit back in September last year, but it did not get the Android 5.1 (Lollipop) update, so the smartphone is moving directly to Android 6.0. The Moto G (2nd Gen) 4G launched in India last year running Android 5.1.1 (Lollipop).

Motorola confirmed Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) update for a range of smartphones back in October last year. It recently added the Moto E (2nd Gen) 4G to list and said that it will get the Marshmallow update in some regions.

David Schuster also said that Motorola will monitor the soak test for next week, if it doesnt have any bugs, the roll out will begin for everyone.
Indian Railways, RailTel and Google today launched free WiFi at the Mumbai Central station, as expected. The Wi-Fi will be entirely free to start and the long-term goal will be making this self-sustainable to allow for expansion to more stations and places, with RailTel and other partners, in the future, said Google.

Also, to make sure that a few people spending all day in the station downloading lots of big files dont slow down the network for everyone, users might notice a drop in speed after their first hour on the network. Most people should still be able to do the things theyll want to do online, added Google.

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To access the internet with RailWire, you need to connect to RailWire network from your WiFi settings, go to railwire.co.in from your browser, enter your mobile number in the WiFi login screen and request for OTP SMS. Once you have received the 4-digit OTP code, enter it in the login screen and press Done. You will see a checkmark and will be connected.

Google already said that 100 more stations will be operational by the end of 2016, connecting more than 10 million people who pass through every day. Today it said that Allahabad, Patna, Jaipur and Ranchi will be the next stations that will get free WiFi.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbyjhUdQ9fg

Commenting on the launch, Chairman and Managing Director of Railtel Shri R. K. Bahuguna of Railtel said:

Our intent was to fulfill Indian Railways vision of providing Railway passengers access to high speed Internet through our Optical fiber communication network. Affordable smartphones have made it possible for the common men to experience the power of Internet. With our partnership with Google, we are very confident of rolling out a robust, scalable service at Railway stations in the near future.

Rajan Anandan, VP & Managing Director, Google South East Asia and India said:

Were delighted to launch Indias first high speed public Wi-Fi service in partnership with Indian Railways. Bringing affordable Internet access to millions of people is an important part of making the Internet both easily accessible and useful for more than 300 million Indians who are already online, and the nearly one billion more who are not. By end of this year over 10 million people will be able to enjoy this experience at 100 stations spread across the country. I would like to thank the Indian Railways for their support and vision to provide a world class high speed public Wi-Fi network at the stations.

Gulzar Azad, Head of Access Project, Google India, said:

Weve focussed on delivering a network that is at par with the high speed public Wi-Fi network that is available to users in developed countries. The network is built for wide coverage and high capacity usage unlike a typical Wi-Fi hotspot which offers connectivity in limited area and poor experience. This network will extend to cover both long distance train station and the local train station in Mumbai Central. The next four stations well bring online will be Allahabad, Patna, Jaipur and Ranchi and others will follow very shortly. said, Gulzar Azad, Head of Access Project, Google India.
What happened?

The latest in a slew of big financial companies to report Q4 and 2015 earnings, Morgan Stanley (MS -2.27%) has released its results for the quarter and fiscal year. Q4 saw the company post net revenue of $7.7 billion, a marginal decline from the same quarter of 2014. On the bottom line, Morgan Stanley swung to a profit of $908 million ($0.43 per diluted share), against a year-ago loss of $1.6 billion ($0.91).

Those results exceeded analyst expectations. On average, these were for slightly under $7.6 billion in revenue, and per-share profit of $0.33.

For the full year, Morgan Stanley booked revenue of just less than $35.2 billion, a 3% improvement over the 2014 tally. Net profit rose 80%, to $6.1 billion.

Does it matter?

The violent swing to quarterly profitability was due largely to the fact that Morgan Stanley is not -- at the moment, anyway -- on the hook for a massive legal bill related to its conduct during the crisis. That's what drove the previous Q4 into the red, and what helped bring down fiscal 2014 profitability.

Morgan Stanley isn't the only financial major benefiting from a reduced legal burden. The same dynamic was at work with JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM), which released its Q4 and 2015 figures several days before its peer. JPMorgan Chase also bested analyst expectations, not least because of those cost savings.

Speaking of that, Morgan Stanley is going the expenses-shaving route. It unveiled a two-year plan, known as "Project Streamline." This will see the bank automate certain processes, and shift employees to less-expensive locales like Mumbai and Budapest. The company aims to hit 10% return on equity with these moves; the 2015 figure was not far away, at 8.5%.

Although the recent quarterly and annual figures from big financial companies like Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan Chase are quite encouraging, investors generally aren't too bullish on the banking sector these days. So it's uncertain whether the positive results will help lift the share prices of the affected companies. Nevertheless, it's good news, and stockholders should be optimistic that their banks are well in the black these days.
Only a certain type of investor should consider buying Bank of America's (BAC -2.75%) stock. This isn't because it's a good or bad bank, but rather because its characteristics rule out other investment strategies.

Bank of America is an attractive option for investors that are looking for bank stocks trading below their historical valuation. The price-to-book value ratio is the most common way to value a bank stock. It's calculated by dividing a bank's share price by its book value per share.

Generally speaking, banks are considered cheap if their price-to-book-value ratio is below 1.0. Bank of America satisfies this, as its shares currently trade at only 61% of its book value. This is less than Bank of America's better-heeled peers such as JPMorgan Chase (JPM -1.96%) and Wells Fargo (WFC -2.35%), though it exceeds Citigroup's (C -1.83%) valuation.

Bank Price to Book Value Wells Fargo 1.41 JPMorgan Chase 0.92 Bank of America 0.61 Citigroup 0.58

A frequently cited rule of thumb is that you should buy bank stocks at half of book value and sell them at two times book. This is easier said than done, of course, because investors are typically weary of banks that aren't valued by the market for at least as much as they're ostensibly worth.

Additionally, banks that trade for less than book value tend to be cheap because they don't earn their cost of capital. This is a theoretical concept that reflects the opportunity cost of investing in a specific stock. If a bank doesn't earn enough to exceed the average return of, say, a low-cost exchange traded fund that tracks the S&P 500, then there's no reason an investor shouldn't prefer the latter over the former.

A good benchmark in this regard is that a bank's annual net income must be greater than or equal to 10% of its shareholders' equity. That's a sign that it's exceeding its cost of capital. If a bank's return on equity is less than this, though, it's effectively destroying shareholder value when you consider that investors could be earning a higher return elsewhere.

This explains why Bank of America's share are so cheap. Its return on average common shareholders' equity last year was only 6.26%. That's an improvement over the prior year, when the figure was 1.70%, but it's nevertheless below the $2.1 trillion bank's cost of capital.

Bank Return on Average Common Stockholders' Equity Wells Fargo 12.7% JPMorgan Chase 12% Bank of America 6.3% Citigroup 5.9%

Given this, it's my opinion that the only type of investor who should be interested in buying Bank of America's shares are those who believe a turnaround is imminent. This would result in higher profitability and, thereby, a higher stock valuation, which could be catalyzed by an aggressive buyback campaign, assuming regulators allow Bank of America to conduct one.

I personally believe Bank of America's turnaround is in its final stages. It's thrown off much of the yolk from the financial crisis and has already begun to see its earnings respond in kind. But because this remains speculative, investors on the hunt for a set-it-and-forget-it bank stock would be better off with Wells Fargo or JPMorgan Chase. They earn more money than Bank of America (and Citigroup) and have proved over time to be much safer investments.
This blog covers software patent news and issues with a particular focus on wireless, mobile devices (smartphones, tablet computers, connected cars) as well as select antitrust matters surrounding those devices.
During an interview with the FOX Business Networks Maria Bartiromo, Queen Consort of Jordan Rania Al-Abdullah discussed how to defeat ISIS.

I think to confront them [ISIS], we have to identify the enemy and the enemies are the extremists, they are the collective enemy. But thats not what they want us to think. They want to pit the West against Islam, and Muslims against the rest of the world because for them, the more the world is divided, the more theres a chasm and a distance between us, the more space they have to maneuver and the more ground they gain, she said.

Queen Rania believes they can be defeated through a collective effort.

I think we need to redraw the battle lines and understand that this is a battle amongst all of us: Christians, Muslims, and Jews, against the extremists. All of us moderates who are fighting for our way of life and our values against a group of people, she said.

In addition to military action, Her Majesty believes we have to confront them in every which way.

Although we need to confront them very aggressively, militarily in the battlefield, this is also an ideological war and you cant kill an idea with a bullet -- the only way you can kill an idea is to propose a better one.

She also reiterated the importance of education as a deterrent to vulnerability to recruitment within the young community.

These groups, they exploit hopelessness they live off desperation and division and we cant give them that."
With the Iowa Caucus just 10 days away, the leading 2016 presidential candidates are taking their battles to the television airwaves. GOP frontrunner Donald Trump released his first TV attack ad on Friday aimed directly at his Republican rival Texas Senator Ted Cruz. In a recent CNN/ORC poll, Trump holds a strong lead with 37% in Iowa the first in the nation primary state. Cruz comes in second place with 26% support from Republican caucus voters.

Trumps 60-second ad begins running in the early primary states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. It features Cruz in an interview on Fox News in December, struggling to clarify his sponsorship of an amendment to the 2013 bipartisan immigration reform bill. Cruz appears to show amnesty for legalizing undocumented immigrants. The ad flashes banners, pro-immigration and pro-amnesty over the video suggesting Cruzs immigration stance is unclear.

Ted Cruz is a total hypocrite and, until recently, a Canadian citizen who may not even have a legal right to run for president. He didnt disclose loans, pretending hes Robin Hood, when hes just another all talk, no action politician. Had I not brought up the subject of illegal immigration, an issue which Ted Cruz is very weak on, nobody would even be talking about it. I will build a great wall, and Mexico will pay for it, said Donald Trump, in a campaign statement released with the video.

Ted Cruz fired back at the billionaire businessman releasing a 30-second TV attack ad defining the term eminent domain as, a fancy term for politicians seizing private property to enrich the fat cats who bankroll them, like Trump. The ad features images of Trump on the cover of magazines and includes an interview clip with the real estate mogul saying, I think eminent domain is wonderful. The ad ends with the narrator saying an edlerly widows home was "bulldozed to build a limousine parking lot for one of Trumps casinos.

In the Democratic race, the top two contenders Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are still playing fairly nice at this point. On Wednesday, Clinton released a TV ad highlighting her accomplishments as First lady, Senator of New York and Secretary of State. In the 60-second spot she suggests her experience cannot be matched by any other presidential candidate and is uniquely suited to take on the challenges that the next president will face.

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders had a much different approach to the former secretary of state. He let the phrase, A picture is worth a thousand words embody his TV ad. The 60-second spot unveiled on Thursday shows snap shots of people across America from farmers and small business owners to huge crowds at Sanders rallies. The ad set to the tune of Simon and Garfunkel's "America," has surpassed a million views online in just two days.

Not to be outdone, Hillary Clinton's campaign released another TV ad on Friday making her case for the presidency, she's prepared for it like no other. The 30-second spot shows images of the stock market and terrorists mixed in with pictures of Clinton in her role as Secretary of State. In the ad the narrator says, "The presidency is the toughest job in the world and she's the one leader who has what it takes to get every part of the job done." Clintons ad will run in Iowa leading up to the caucus on February 1. In a recent CNN/ORC poll, the former secretary of state has 43% support from Democratic caucus voters in Iowa while Bernie Sanders is in the lead with 51%.
The family of a 12-year-old girl who died after contracting the flu said her illness progressed like a freight train.

Peggy Lowery, of Kitsap County, Washington, described her daughter Piper as a usually very healthy child, according to Fox 8. On Tuesday, Jan. 12, Piper presented a high fever, and her family took her to the doctor, who prescribed her Tamiflu. Piper would see the doctor two more times before being told to go to the hospital if symptoms did not improve.

She continued to have high fevers just like me; it was horrible, Peggy told Q13Fox.

Pegy told Fox 8 that her daughter began vomiting blood, and as they were on their way to the hospital, Piper collapsed in her arms.

Her legs were spaghetti noodles, Pegy told Q13Fox. It just went that way, and she said, Oh momma, and she collapsed in my arms.

Doctors were unable to revive her. The flu attacked her kidneys, so it caused renal failure, Pegy told Fox 8.

They let me lay there and hold her for hours, and they were so kind to us, she told Q13Fox.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there have been only seven pediatric flu deaths nationwide since Oct. 4, 2015, when the CDC began tracking the flu for this season.

Piper is the second person to die from complications from the flu this season in Kitsap County. Officials are urging others in the community to get vaccinated.

She loved life, Pegy told QFox13.


While breathing fresh, clean air can boost productivity, sleep and overall health, not everyone can live in the great outdoors and its difficult to know just how clean the indoor air in your home or office is.

Since most people spend about 90 percent of their time inside, having poor indoor air quality could affect your health and the health of your family membersespecially during winter.

Low dry humidity in the winter can make asthma worse and children who have dried mucosa can acquire some nasal infections easier, Dr. Robert G. Lahita, chairman of medicine at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center in New Jersey, told FoxNews.com. Heating ducts that have mold and spores in them can make respiratory symptoms worse in the winter when hot air is blowing through them. Dry air can also exacerbate some illnesses and can be a problem as well.

Different sources of air pollution in your home could include paints that release lead or volatile organic compounds (VOCs), carpets that harbor dirt, dust mites, and fungus and even nitrogen dioxide from gas stoves, but these arent the worst culprits, Lahita said.

In the winter the biggest issue is carbon monoxide poisoning, with emergency medical services we see a few of these every year-- it is from faulty heaters, cooking without ventilation or fireplaces, he said.

Every room in your house could be susceptive to some form of an air pollutant, but now there is a new device and app that says it can help you breathe easier by tracking air quality.

Awair is the first smart air quality device that monitors, analyzes and provides feedback to improve the air you breathe. The device collects data such as indoor temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide, fine dust particles and VOCs. It analyzes the data in real-time and gives an Awair score on a 0 to 100 color-coded scale, 0 being the worst air quality.

The goal for the user is to keep five green dots. As soon as you see other colored (amber and red) dots show up on top of the green dots, your environment is getting off the healthy ranges whether it being temperature, humidity, CO2, VOCs, and dust, Ronald Ro, the CEO and co-founder of Bitfinder Inc., the makers of Awair, told FoxNews.com.

Based on your air score, the monitoring gadget will send personalized alerts and advice to the user via its corresponding Awair mobile app. When air conditions are harmful, like when a bedroom has a high carbon dioxide level, it will send a notification to the user and advise them to open up a window through the app. The app also provides Mayo Clinic message cards that give relevant information and recommendations for ways to keep your indoor environment healthy.

If you already have a smart device system for your home, Awair is working on partnerships with several connected devices like Nest thermostat and other smart appliances so you can manage the air quality in your home or office when you're not there.

The Awair app is free to download, but each device costs $199 dollars.

For more information go to GetAwair.com.
In the event of another influenza pandemic, closing select schools or even just certain classrooms might limit social costs while slowing down spread of the disease more effectively than a nationwide shutdown, a new study estimates.

Researchers calculated the potential number of averted flu cases and weeks of school lost per student under several scenarios set in the United Kingdom to see which one might offer the best defense against the spread of influenza with the least disruption to education.

Out of all the options explored, a nationwide school shutdown appeared to be the least effective response to pandemic influenza because it didn't curb the rate of new cases more than targeted closures that start with just a classroom, grade level, single school or single county school system, the analysis found.

"Our results show that targeted school closures can reduce the overall number of cases in the population, decrease the peak number of cases - which is the moment of maximum stress for the healthcare system during an epidemic - and postpone the epidemic peak - thus gaining time, for example, for producing and delivering a vaccine," said lead study author Dr. Laura Fumanelli of the Bruno Kessler Foundation in Trento, Italy.

Nationwide school closures aren't a common response to pandemic influenza for a wide range of logistical, educational and economic reasons, Fumanelli added by email.

The goal of the current analysis published in PLOS Computational Biology was to give decision makers insight into the potential effectiveness of a variety of less aggressive school closure approaches all based on monitoring student absenteeism, Fumanelli said.

School closures can be an important tool for combating pandemic influenza because children are twice as susceptible to infection as adults, the researchers note.

Targeted closures based on monitoring absenteeism might start with school officials ordering an entire class to stay home for a period of time once a set number of kids are home sick at one time.

Then, if multiple classes in the same grade are ordered to stay home, schools might escalate their response by making all students in that grade stay home. When more than two grades are shut down, then the entire school may close.

When a certain number of students are home sick or a certain number of classes or schools are effectively shut down, countywide closures might also occur.

The analysis didn't directly consider the social or economic costs of school closures, but keeping children out of school might require parents to miss work, potentially burdening employers with lost productivity and straining family finances, Fumanelli said.

"The aim of this kind of analysis is precisely to provide policy with quantitative estimates supporting their decisions on whether adopting targeted school closure strategies makes sense or not, and on the most cost-effective options," Fumanelli said.

It's still hard to say how these scenarios would play out in the real world, as a pandemic unfolds in real time, noted Dr. Thomas House, a mathematics researcher at the University of Manchester in the U.K. who wasn't involved in the study.

"The most recent influenza pandemic provided very strong evidence that school-age children are central to the spread of pandemic influenza, and that transmission was substantially reduced during times when schools were closed," House said by email.

Among all the challenges involved in implementing targeted school closures, the biggest difficulty is one of timing, House added.

"Timing closures so that they come just before a peak is the most important determinant of success, but it is hard to estimate exactly where a peak will come in advance," House said.
With a huge winter storm looming over the eastern United States, many of the region's residents will stock up on canned goods, bottled water and - for some - diapers.

The storm, which is expected to pound the Mid-Atlantic states on Friday and Saturday, has mothers-to-be asking a simple, yet vital, question: What do you do if you go into labor and there are two feet of snow on the ground?

"I'm vascillating between thinking this is no big deal and freaking out," Julie Walsh, a former lobbyist living in the Washington, D.C.-area, wrote on a Facebook page for "These Walls," her personal blog. "GOOD LORD, WHAT WILL I DO IF I GO INTO LABOR IN THE MIDDLE OF A BLIZZARD?!"

"So who has a snowplow and truck that's gonna come take me to the hospital when I go into labor during a freaking blizzard?" wrote Facebook user Jillian Hostetter from Churchton, Maryland.

It is not an unfounded concern, according to Chris Strong, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Sterling, Virginia.

"Know that it will be very difficult if not impossible to move around Friday night and Saturday (in the Washington, D.C., area)," Strong said.

The National Weather Service anticipates as much as 24 inches (60 cm) of snow to hit the region during the storm.

Strong suggested that those who have the means and are expecting to give birth in the coming days consider getting a hotel room near a hospital.

States of emergency have already been declared for Maryland and Virginia.

In the event that roads are not clear, women going into labor should call 911, according to Timothy J. Wilson, a spokesperson for the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department.

"We're going to be in service regardless of the weather," he said.

Elsewhere in the Mid-Atlantic region, pregnant women expressed mild horror over the prospect of giving birth in the middle of a snowstorm.

"Finally a snowstorm," tweeted Golden Oreo (@HomeypopBee) on Wednesday. "I betcha I go into labor."

The hashtag #AwwHellSnow was trending on Twitter in the United States on Wednesday.

Posted in reference to the alarming weather forecasts, the hashtag first originated in February 2015, as part of a "hashtag game," hosted by "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon."

"All winter we've had highs of 64 in NYC," tweeted Meredith Frame (@MeredithFrame) from Brooklyn, New York. "Now I'm 9 months pregnant, due any day & here comes a blizzard. Anyone have a sled? #AwwHellSnow."
On January 13th, 15 people were killed and more than 20 injured in a suicide-bomb attack outside a polio vaccination center in Quetta, Pakistan. Most of those killed were police gathered to protect polio workers getting ready to do their vaccination rounds.

The attack increased the rough tally of killings tied to polio vaccination efforts since 2012 to 100, if not more, in Pakistan alone.

Afghanistan has been the scene of similar attacks. Two weeks before the Quetta horrors, a female polio worker was shot and killed in the city of Kandahar.

The last mile of polio eradication is a story of extremism and geo-politics. The global initiative to wipe out the last bastions of the disease is one of the prime targets of the anti-Western, anti-other ideology that finds its expression in terrorism. Yet it is a health effort that has made remarkable progress, against all odds, in some of the worlds most dangerous countries.

It is also a tale of who is travelling where, leaving evidence of their trail by the virus they carry.

The same day as the Quetta attack, India marked five years without a reported case of polio. Just over a decade ago, the country was considered to be one of the most challenging places in the world to battle the crippling virus.

Despite significant logistical challenges and pockets of distrust, India did not face the insecurity and killings of polio workers that have become a regular threat in Pakistan and Afghanistan, the last remaining polio-endemic countries.

But even where extremist passions run high, the anti-polio effort has advanced. Last year, Nigeria was removed from the polio-endemic country list  no case had been reported for more than a year. The success came a decade after an eleven-month polio vaccination boycott in northern Nigeria in 2003-2004, and more recently attacks on polio workers by Boko Haram insurgents.

In 2015, the entire Africa continent also marked a year without a case of polio, the last being reported in Somalia.

But where extremism and chaos dominates, the disease can still make a comeback. In 2013, the Nigeria polio strain was carried to Somalia, where al-Shabab leaders had forbidden polio vaccination. After being polio-free for six previous years, Somalia faced an outbreak affecting nearly 200 people, and then spreading over its borders to Kenya, Ethiopia and South Sudan.

In the same year, Syria had its first polio outbreak since 1999. This eruption was sparked by a strain of the virus, identified as having been brought in from Pakistan  carried by travellers, most likely insurgents -- moving between Pakistan and Syria.

In Syria, health services, including immunization, have been shattered by civil war, leaving many unprotected by vaccination. At least 35 children have been paralyzed.

The polio assaults in Pakistan have been driven by multiple claims, including complaints about U.S. drones, suspicions and anger about the fake house-to-house vaccination campaign used by the CIA in Pakistan to confirm the location of Usama Bin Laden, and overall suspicion and rejection of a global health effort perceived to be inspired and directed by the West.

Should we believe them? In vaccine safety science, when there is an adverse event which is suspected to be related to the vaccination, one of the factors investigated is the background rates. In other words, how do the rates of these symptoms compare among similar populations without vaccination?

In the case of attacks on polio vaccinators, we need to look at the societal and political context and background rates of similar incidents.

Attacks on polio workers are a few among many different attacks in Pakistan, mostly unrelated directly to vaccination. The background rates of targeted killings are high across a variety of situations.

Just two weeks before the Quetta bombing, for example, a suicide bomb at the National Database and Registration Authority, in northwest Pakistan, killed 26 people and injured at 50 others.

This week, the Taliban took credit for an attack on a university near Peshawar that killed at least 20 more. There have been multiple attacks on Shia mosques, buses carrying Shia pilgrims, churches and schools.

In one of the worst incidents, Tehrik-i-Taliban terrorists attacked an Army School in Peshawar, in December 2014, killing 132 school children and nine school staff.

In October 2012, the now celebrated young Pakistani woman named Malala was shot and almost lost her life in Pakistan. She was not shot because she was in the polio eradication campaign. She was shot because she was a young girl determined to go to school.

Attacks on humanitarian aid workers in general have more than doubled in the past decade. The Aid Worker Security Database (AWSD) reports that the number of such victims of killing more than doubled between 2004 (56 victims) and 2014 (121).

In the case of attacks on polio workers, investigating background security issues is increasingly important. But should the knowledge of risks stop the polio effort? Never.

A major legacy of the polio eradication initiative may be its experience at pursuing a vital humanitarian objective in the face of extremist ideology and violence, experience that has become increasingly central to the global polio endgame and may be useful for many other life-saving endeavours.
Its rare that a writer is afforded the opportunity to see one of his or her novels adapted for the big screen. Its a trillion to one shot to enjoy that very moment while sitting in a theater with a former president of the United States.

I am still trying to wrap my head around the dizzying evening spent with President George H.W. Bush and former First Lady Barbara Bush in Houston where they hosted a special advanced screening of Disneys "The Finest Hours," starring Chris Pine and Casey Affleck and based on my 2009 book co-authored by Michael J. Tougias.

The event at the Houston Museum of Natural Science raised money for the construction of Americas first National Coast Guard Museum to be built in New London, Connecticut. In fact, $4 million in pledges from business powerhouses like J.D Power III were announced at the gala.

I was granted a private meet and greet with President and Mrs. Bush before the screening and presented them with signed copies of my book.

Barbara Bush looked at my name on the cover and said, I have to apologize but I dont know your work.

No worries, I replied with a laugh. I certainly know yours.

President Bush, sitting in a wheel chair but still ever the towering statesman, showed great interest when I told him briefly about the real life rescue he was about to watch dramatized on screen in which four young Coast Guardsmen saved 32 stranded sailors during a deadly winter storm in 1952 off Cape Cod. He took a copy of the book in his hand, studied the cover intently and smiled.

The President and Mrs. Bush were escorted into the theater, the former First Lady moving steadily with the assistance of a walker  sporting a big Jeb! bumper sticker, in support for her son, currently struggling in his bid for the GOP nomination.

The crowd of 400 Coast Guardsmen and women and supporters such as Mr. Bushs former Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta, were then treated to a pre-taped introduction to the movie from former President George W. Bush, who praised the mission of the United States Coast Guard and called upon all Americans to discover their their finest hours.

I had the great honor to have known the real Bernie Webber, the humble hero at the center of my book and the new Disney epic. Bernie passed in 2009 but I know he would have taken great pride at this event and the fact that the Coast Guard is finally being recognized for the work its men and women do every day.

Although not one to ever blow his own horn, Bernie was the first to say his story would make for a great film some day. Is Don Knotts still alive? Bernie once asked me. If so, he could play me.

From Barney Fife to blockbuster movie with a presidential seal of approval.

Not a bad legacy for a lifesaver.
On the frozen steps of New York's City Hall last week, Martin Luther King Jr, yes, the late Martin Luther King Jr. Gave me a gift. Yes, I know it's customary to get, not give gifts on your birthday but there it was, clear as day.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center released our Top Ten Worst Anti-Semitic Incidents of the past year. A sobering and frankly frightening snapshot of 2015's scorecard of history's oldest hate. Islamist fundamentalism, ISIS threats, intimidation of Jewish students on our nation's finest campuses...

All of this against the backdrop of FBI hate crimes stats that confirm 70% of race-based hate crimes in America are African American and over 56% of victims of hate crimes based on religion--Jews.

And then it happened--a gift from MLK wrapped in a New York Moment.

Thirteen elected New York State and City elected officials -- one born in Haiti, another in China, plus four children of survivors of the Nazi Holocaust huddled around the frozen podium to draw a red line against hate.

New York State Assemblyman, Walter Mosley, a young African-American legislator put it this way... "As we approach the dawn of Martin Luther King Jr.s birthday we remember that he taught us if men and women fail to speak out, then hatred will never be defeated. Dr. King wasn't just about a dream, but about acts and solidarity."

Walter Mosely represents a district in Brooklyn that includes Bristol Street, where my immigrant grandparents, who fled religious persecution and economic strangulation in Poland and Russia put down roots. My earliest memories are from my first Seder in their home in 1953...

City Council Member Mathieu Eugene, who was born in Haiti, spoke emotionally of his visit to a pediatric ward in Israel, where a critically ill Haitian child was being treated "alongside, Jewish, Arab, and other kids from around the world. This is the true face of Israel, which I will always cherish and seek to protect".

Council Member Chaim Deutsch, who, unlike his co-religionists in Paris publicly wears his Yarmulkas, said this "... As a son of Holocaust survivors, I was raised to respect every human being, whatever their race, nationality, religion, or creed... All New Yorkers must work together and speak out against all hate crimes."

MLK channeled us for a teachable New York moment. His spirit is his gift. Are all Americans ready to claim his birthday present?
Administration officials say new claims that Russian President Vladimir Putin may have ordered the poisoning of his critic and former KGB colleague Alexander Litvinenko in 2006 are serious and will be closely watched, with relevant steps possible by the U.S.

Although he did not say what those steps might be, White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters at his briefing Thursday that the administration is closely following the ongoing British inquiry into the poisoning of Litvinenko, who became sick after drinking tea laced with polonium-210 at a London hotel on Nov. 1, and was dead by Nov. 23. The chairman of that investigation, UK Judge Robert Owen, released his explosive 326-page findings on Friday.

Noting that the details sound like a spy novel, Earnest said the administration was well aware of the charges of threats, intimidation and even death leveled at the Kremlins critics -- even beyond Russias borders. He stopped short of endorsing Owens findings, but said, I think this particular investigation is a reminder of why this is such a serious concern.

Meanwhile, the State Department kept its statements on the matter brief in response to reporters questions Thursday.

We are are deeply troubled by the findings, said spokesman Mark Toner. Of course we are evaluating (them).These are pretty serious charges.

A former member of the KGB and the current Russian secret service, the FSB, Litvinenko became a vocal critic of FSB activities, accusing them of carrying out assassinations of Putins political rivals. He also accused Putin of ordering the October 2006 killing of journalist Anna Politkovskaya.

By that time, Litvinenko, 44, and his family had already fled Russia and were living in London. According to his widow, he was working as a spy for the British MI6 intelligence services.

Not only did Judge Owen say that the poisoning was probably approved by Putin and then-FSB head Nikolai Patrushev, but named two prominent Russians, Andrei Lugovoi (now a Russian member of parliament) and Dmitry Kovtun (former KGB, now a businessman), as the suspects who carried it out and returned to Russia.

They have long been cited as suspects by British authorities, who have nonetheless failed to extradite them.

Owen did not provide direct evidence of the poisoning, but as chairman of the inquiry, asserted that the two men tried to poison Litvinenko a month earlier, and charted the motivations of those involved and strong circumstantial evidence of Russian state responsibility.

In an interview with TASS, Russias state-run news agency, Kovtun called the evidence against him insane and easily refutable." The Russian Foreign Ministry said the case against the Russians was politicized and regrettable and has darkened the overall atmosphere of bilateral relations.

At a time when the U.S and Britain have already been forced into a geopolitical dance with Russia over Syria -- Russia has been engaging in airstrikes outside of coalition efforts to battle ISIS there, the inquiry and further strain could be inconvenient. The UK will have to decide how far to take it amid other priorities on the world stage, particularly as new talks with world powers over Syria begin.

That very fragile and fraught process, wrote Joshua Keating in Slate magazine on Thursday, will require the backing of the various sides in the conflictincluding Britain and Russiato have any hopes of succeeding.


The attacks on the Intelligence Community Inspector General may be Hillary Clintons shoot the watchdog tactic to deflect scrutiny into her use of a private e-mail server, Joseph E. Schmitz, former Inspector General of the Department of Defense, told Fox News Thursday.

As first reported by Fox, an unclassified Jan. 14 letter from Inspector General Charles McCullough III said that he has two sworn declarations "covering several dozen e-mails containing classified information" determined to be at the CONFIDENTIAL, SECRET and TOP SECRET/SAP levels.

The letter was sent to the chairmen of two U.S. Senate Committees and also copied both to the Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper, and to ranking Democratic members of the two Senate committees, Dianne Feinstein and Adam Schiff. It also went to the Inspector General of the State Department, Steve Linick.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE LETTER

The ODNI (Office of the Director of National Intelligence) has an independent duty to shed light on facts, regardless of whether or not the Justice Department decides to prosecute. I do not see anything improper about this letter, said Schmitz.

A new blizzard of scrutiny has descended upon Clintons e-mails contained on her private homebrew server first put into service in 2009. These now include several dozen classified e-mails and among them, intelligence from "SAP," the acronym for special access programs.

Fox reported that senior lawmakers who oversee the State Department could not read SAP e-mails without receiving additional clearance from the intelligence agencies who run the secret programs.

Clinton repeatedly has stated that she did not send or receive material marked classified.

In an interview with NPR, she emphasized that, Im just going to leave it up to the professionals at the Justice Department because nothing that this says changes the fact that I never sent or received material marked classified.

Separately, a high ranking intelligence source told Fox that security clearance is not the same as access and she must have a need to know TS/SCI materials or Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information.

It is unclear what security clearances Clinton still retains and if any of her security clearances have been suspended since she left the State Department in 2013.

Schmitz added, If the ICIG has custody of classified information as part of his IG activity, he not only has the ability to suspend someones access to that classified information, but he arguably has the duty to suspend (or deny) such access whenever he has doubts about either the persons clearance or the persons need to know. 

Neither e-mailed questions or a phone call was returned by Clintons lawyer, David Kendall, about her level of security clearance.

Schmitz emphasized that the Inspector General is not a prosecutor and does not depend on prosecutorial merit  but rather a dogged pursuit of the truth.

The Inspector General Act of 1978 created a system of Inspector Generals within all the major agencies of the Federal Government.
The Environmental Protection Agencys top Midwest official is resigning over the Flint water crisis, the agency announced Thursday, amid criticism over the agencys alleged inaction in preventing the citys water from being contaminated with lead.

Region 5 administrator Susan Hedman offered her resignation and will leave in February after it was accepted by Administrator Gina McCarthy, the EPA said in a statement.

Hedman, the EPAs top Midwest official, had previously told The Detroit News the agency knew about the lack of corrosion control in the water supply as early as April, after an EPA official identified problems with the drinking water, but did not make the information public.

The resignation comes just two days after the EPA admitted its response to the crisis was too slow.

"Our first priority is to make sure the water in Flint is safe, but we also must look at what the agency could have done differently," the agency said in a statement Tuesday. An EPA spokeswoman confirmed the agency believed it did not act fast enough to address the problem, according to Reuters.

The EPA said that McCarthy sent Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder a letter issing a Safe Drinking Water Act Emergency Order, which requires the city and state of Michigan to take a series of "immediate steps" to address the drinking water contamination in Flint.

"EPA has determined the State of Michigan and the City of Flints responses to the drinking water crisis in Flint have been inadequate to protect public health, there are serious, ongoing concerns with delays, lack of adequate transparency, and capacity to safely manage the drinking water system," the agency said in a statement.

Flint's water became contaminated with lead when the city switched its water source in 2014 as a cost-cutting measure while the city was under state financial management. The Flint River water was not properly treated to keep lead from pipes from leaching into the supply. Elevated blood-lead levels were found in two city zip codes.

The community about 75 miles north of Detroit, has about 100,000 residents, with about 40 percent of them living below the poverty line. The population is nearly 60 percent black.

Republican Governor Rick Snyder, who has faced fierce criticism for his role in the crisis, apologized in December and Michigan's top environmental regulator, Dan Wyant, resigned after a task force created by Snyder blamed problems on his agency.

The group said the Department of Environmental Quality erred by not requiring Flint to keep corrosive water from leaching lead from service pipes into residents' homes and belittling concerns from the public.

The lead  which can lead to behavior problems and learning disabilities in children and kidney ailments in adults  has left Flint residents unable to drink unfiltered tap water. The National Guard, state employees, local authorities and volunteers have been distributing lead tests, filters and bottled water. Snyder aides pledged that by the end of the week, officials would visit every household in Flint to ensure they have water filters.

President Obama, meanwhile, designated Flint a federal emergency on Saturday but has refused Snyders request to designate it a disaster zone as it is a man-made incident.

Flint Mayor Karen Weaver refused to call for Snyder's resignation while at a U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting in Washington, D.C., saying investigations should go forward. She said she wants Snyder to give Flint the services and the money needed to address the problem.

"People have said how they want things handled with him," Weaver said Wednesday. "I'm staying focused on what I need to get from him right now."

The U.S. Justice Department is helping the Environmental Protection Agency to investigate, and GOP state Attorney General Bill Schuette has opened his own probe.

The agency said that McCarthy has sent a memo to all staff instating a formal policy, effective immediately, on elevation of critical public health issues, while also requesting the EPA's Office of Inspector General conduct an evaluation of the region's public water system supervision program under the Safe Drinking Water Act.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Defense Secretary Ash Carter said Friday that the U.S.-led coalition will put boots on the ground in its fight against Islamic State terrorists in Syria and Iraq.

Were looking for opportunities to do more and there will be boots on the ground and I want to be clear about that, Carter told CNBC from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. But its a strategic question whether you are enabling local forces to take and hold rather than trying to substitute for them. That is a strategic intention that we have.

Carter also said Americas allies should do more, adding that ISIS needs to be defeated in Mosul and its home base in Raqqa, Syria.

Carter is scheduled to meet with a broad group of defense ministers in two weeks where he is expected to press them to do more.

"The United States does not ask people for favors, but we don't grant favors either, and so we're looking for other people to play their part, he said.

Carter said he plans to get defense ministers to play a bigger role in the fight against ISIS by sharing U.S. operations plans with them.

He also said the U.S. would remain focused on advising and assisting Iraqi and Syrian Arab forces to take and hold territory.

To eliminate the parent tumor in Iraq and Syria, we are enabling local, motivated forces with critical support from a global coalition wielding a suite of capabilitiesranging from airstrikes, special forces, cyber tools, intelligence, equipment, mobility and logistics, training, advice and assistance, Carter said in a separate editorial published Friday in Politico. It must be local forces who deliver (ISIS) a lasting defeat, because only they can secure and govern the territory by building long-term trust within the populations they liberate.
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Buzz Cut:

 The Edge: Cruz booms, but Palin gets Trump mega media

 Conservatives raise alarm, but is it too late?

 Power Play: Heading for a showdown

 Hillary and Bernie fight heats up

 Talk about wasting time

THE EDGE: CRUZ BOOMS, BUT PALIN GETS TRUMP MEGA MEDIA

Ted Cruz is starting to horn in on GOP frontrunner Donald Trumps media monopoly. But just as Cruz was cresting, Trump found a new way to get the press back to wall-to-wall coverage of his campaign.

In this weeks installment of The Edge, a one-of-a-kind measurement of media mentions from the New Analytics Company, Cruz rocketed into second place with by far the biggest gains since last week.

But lest he lose his stranglehold on political coverage, Trump rolled out the one endorsement guaranteed to put the mainstream press into a frenzy: former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. Despite the overwhelmingly negative tone of the coverage, as is often the case with Trump, the sheer volume drowned out other voices. A separate analysis from New Analytics shows that Trump and Palin dominated the discussion on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The Edge scrubs television, radio, print, internet and social media for mentions of the 2016 candidates. The team at New Analytics has built unique tool to measure which candidates are being talked about the most and the data are compiled into a single score and provided to Fox News First.



Here are their rankings for media mentions this week, with their gain or decline from last week in brackets. See the full results here.



Donald Trump, 27.05 [+1.55]; Ted Cruz, 15.68 [+4.24]; Ben Carson, 13.97 [+1.32]; Marco Rubio, 12.12 [+1.68]; Jeb Bush, 9.32 [-2.79]; Chris Christie, 5.83 [-1.37]; Rand Paul, 5.04 [-.23]; Carly Fiorina, 4.69 [-1.88]; John Kasich, 4.38 [-.83]; Mike Huckabee, 3.95 [-1.17]

CONSERVATIVES RAISE ALARM, BUT IS IT TOO LATE?

After a 60-year struggle, the conservative movement seemed to be at the threshold of its long-sought aim of the final takeover of the Republican Party. And then along came Donald Trump.

With increasing signs that the GOP establishment is lining up behind Trump for fear of right-wing favorite Ted Cruz, the conservative movement is belatedly moving to try to save itself.

National Review lowered the boom on Trump Thursday night with an all-star collection of conservative thinkers denouncing Trumps candidacy. The magazine is being joined by other luminaries of the movement, including a searing compilation from Matt Labash.



The audience here includes those in the punditocracy and the world of politics who have been willing to either dismiss or enable Trump as a means to an ideological end, especially on immigration, or exploiting the vacuum he leaves to prop up dead candidacies.



Ten days away from the Iowa caucuses is a little late for conservatives to come to the realization that they are on the brink of disaster. But theres still enough time, if.

The conservative revolt against Trump only really matters if the two thirds of the Republican Party not supporting Trump can unite behind one or even two candidates.



Most Republicans are quite conservative. But if they split their votes between three or even four other candidates, Trump can use his minority share of the party plus the many Democrats who support him for leveraged buyout of the GOP.



This is where the lack of a functional establishment or party hierarchy is really damaging the GOP. There is no check on candidates like Jeb Bush or Chris Christie and no seeming way to divert them from their course. In a world of billionaire PAC men, there are no more power brokers to force rational action.



Trump, Cruz ad war escalates - Donald Trump has unveiled his first attack ad of the cycle, a spot hammering rival Sen. Ted Cruz for what Trump says is weakness on the issue of illegal immigration. But Cruz was ready with an attack of his own. In a new ad, Cruz slams Trump for his use of government eminent domain powers to try to seize private property for his own benefit.



[Daily Mail: Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump has never voted in a Republican presidential primary election in his home state of New York, voter records show.]

Power Play: Heading for a showdown - Iowas caucus-goers can be tough crowd for aspiring candidates, but Donald Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz are determined to take the top spot in the first presidential contest. Yahoo News Meredith Shiner and WashExs Sarah Westwood give their take to Chris Stirewalt. WATCH HERE.

#mediabuzz - The two leading GOP candidates, Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, both sat down with host Howard Kurtz to talk about 2016, with a little over a week until the Iowa caucuses. Watch #mediabuzz Sunday at 11 a.m. ET, with a second airing at 5 p.m.

Rubio shifts cash to South Carolina - Politico: Marco Rubio had long planned an ambitious Iowa advertising assault in the weeks leading up to the caucuses, but his campaign has quietly scaled back its ad buys in the state by more than $860,000, according to a POLITICO analysis of advertising buys. The change appears due partly to a switch from offense to defense, but it also comes at a time when the Florida senator is focusing his hopes for an early state victory in South Carolina, where his campaign is increasing its advertising buys, according to the analysis, compiled for POLITICO by The Tracking Firm.

But keeps up in Iowa, N.H. air assault - Two new ads from Team Rubio are set to air today in Iowa and New Hampshire both focusing on supporters in their respective states titled Marcomentum.

Fox News Sunday - Sen. Marco Rubio joins Chris Wallace ahead of the Iowa caucus, and Jeff Roe, campaign manager for Sen. Ted Cruz is this weeks Power Player. Watch Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. ET on the Fox News Channel. Check local listings for broadcast times in your area.



WITH YOUR SECOND CUP OF COFFEE

History.com: In Russia, the revolution of 1905 begins when czarist troops open fire on a peaceful group of workers marching to the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg to petition their grievances to Czar Nicholas II. Some 500 protestors were massacred on Bloody Sunday, setting off months of protest and disorder throughout Russia. By January 1905, discontent with the czars regime permeated nearly all classes in Russia, especially after the crushing January 2 defeat of the Russian navy at Port Arthur during the Russo-Japanese War. In October 1905, Nicholas, embattled on all sides, was forced to grant basic civil liberties and a representative national body, which would be elected by narrowly limited suffrage. However, this Parliament, known as the Duma, was dissolved after it opposed Nicholas authority, and the remnants of the revolutionary movement were brutally suppressed by czarist troops. A decade later, czarist Russia was bogged down in the mire of World War I, prompting the Bolshevik-led Russian Revolution of 1917, which crushed the czars opposition and proclaimed Russia the worlds first Marxist state.



Got a TIP from the RIGHT or the LEFT? Email FoxNewsFirst@FOXNEWS.COM



POLL CHECK

Real Clear Politics Averages

Republican Nomination  Trump 34.8 percent; Cruz 18.8 percent; Rubio 11.6 percent; Carson 8.8 percent

General Election: Clinton vs. Trump  Clinton +2.5 points

Generic Congressional Vote  Republicans +0.5

HILLARY AND BERNIE FIGHT HEATS UP

The Hill: An aide to Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders said Thursday evening that rival Hillary Clinton should be ashamed of her association with longtime ally David Brock. Brock, who heads several groups supporting Clintons bid, slammed a new ad from Sanders on Thursday and accused the Vermont senator of not caring about black people. Sanders spokesman Michael Briggs issued a scathing statement directed at Brocks comments and stressing that Sanders has "one of the strongest civil rights records in Congress.

Bernies Baby Boomer utopia - In his new ad, Bernie Sanders speaks to his core group of supporters with visions of farmlands and snowy little towns all the while Simon and Garfunkels America plays in the background.



Power Play: Red menace - As Hillary Clinton sees her lead slipping into the hands of Sen. Bernie Sanders, her team has decided to hit Sanders hard on his self-professed socialist beliefs. Yahoos Meredith Shiner and WashExs Sarah Westwood give Chris Stirewalt their thoughts. WATCH HERE.

Bernie keeps gigging Hillary on buckraking - NYT: But the new attacks strike at what even some allies believe may be one of Mrs. Clintons biggest vulnerabilities: not her positions on financial regulation, but her personal relationships with Wall Street executives, along with the millions of dollars Mrs. Clinton, her husband, and their family foundation have accepted in speaking fees or charitable contributions from banks, hedge funds and asset managers. Unlike Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Obama has never earned speaking fees from Wall Street.

Hillary emails so secret that even members of Congress cant see them - Fox News: Some of Hillary Clintons emails on her private server contained information so secret that senior lawmakers who oversee the State Department cannot read them without fulfilling additional security requirements, Fox News has learned. The emails in question, as Fox News first reported earlier this week, contained intelligence classified at a level beyond top secret. Because of this designation, not all the lawmakers on key committees reviewing the case have high enough clearances.



CARLY, HILLARY ON OPPOSITE SIDES ON ROE V. WADE ANNIVERSARY

USA Today: [The March for Life event] which draws hundreds of thousands of participants, is scheduled to kick off shortly before noon on the grounds of the Washington Monument with a rally that will include an appearance by Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina and a dozen elected officials, artists and public figures.

Speaking to her base - Hillary Clinton celebrates todays anniversary of the Roe v. Wade case with a dinner hosted by Naral Pro-Choice New Hampshire. The national organization endorsed the Democratic frontrunner earlier this month.

[The CARLY for America PAC released a new ad in Iowa today focused on Carly Fiorinas economic record. The ad buy will run through Feb. 1 for $140,000 in the Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Council Bluffs, and Davenport markets, according to a release.]

TALK ABOUT WASTING TIME

Wilton (Conn.) Bulletin: A large group of emergency responders  conducted a missing-person search Tuesday evening, Jan. 19, only to find out later that the distress signal they were told about was actually the GPS beacon of a high-end watch. Headquartered in Wilton, Breitling USA is an international supplier of technical watches and chronographs. According to Lt. Stephen Brennan of the Wilton Police Department, it was a watch in the companys 206 Danbury Road location that emitted the signal.  Four Wilton police cruisers and three Wilton fire department units were dispatched, along with 23 CERT members. An additional nine firefighters were called, among them the Wilton Fire Dive, who deployed their boat to search the reservoir. The New Canaan Police Department aided with seven police, including its K-9 unit. A New Canaan fire unit also responded.



AND NOW, A WORD FROM CHARLES

I think were getting to a moment where theres a scenario that one can see. Which is, you get Bob Dole, who represents the old establishment, if you like, essentially choosing Trump over Cruz. Now, if Cruz loses Iowa, Trump wins convincingly, I think all he will need at that point is to have a single current establishment figure. Meaning a sitting governor or a sitting Senator endorse him.  Charles Krauthammer on Special Report with Bret Baier.

Chris Stirewalt is digital politics editor for Fox News. Want FOX News First in your inbox every day? Sign up here.
The Republican presidential nomination race has settled into two distinct tiers.

Four candidates -- Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, and Ben Carson -- command nearly three-quarters of the partys support. The rest are just trying to break through.

Heres how the race stands according to the latest Fox News national poll on the 2016 election:

Trump receives 34 percent among Republican primary voters, Cruz gets 20 percent, Rubio 11 percent, and Carson 8 percent.

Two weeks ago, it was Trump 35 percent, Cruz 20 percent, Rubio 13 percent, and Carson 10 percent.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE POLL RESULTS

Trump hit a record-high 39 percent support in December, and Rubio hit his high-water mark of 14 percent in mid-November. Cruzs current 20 percent is his highest, which he hit for the first time earlier this month. Carson hit 23 percent in October when he briefly flirted with Trump for the top spot.

Cruz tops the list as the second choice among Trump backers -- and vice versa.

The new poll, released Friday, finds that Jeb Bush and John Kasich each receive 4 percent, Chris Christie 3 percent, Mike Huckabee and Rand Paul 2 percent, Carly Fiorina and Jim Gilmore tie at 1 percent support, and Rick Santorum receives less than one percent.

One of the most notable things about the race is that none of the lower tier candidates has been able to get any oxygen," says Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who along with Democratic pollster Chris Anderson conducts the Fox News Poll.

"Carson, Rubio, and Cruz managed some separation last summer, but since then the candidates have been mostly smothered by Trump and coverage of Trump.

The poll also asks GOP primary voters if there is any candidate they just couldnt support against the Democrat in November. Some 15 percent say they would refuse to vote for Trump and 10 percent feel that way about Bush. Another 8 percent would stay home instead of voting for Christie, and 6 percent say the same about Carson, Cruz, and Paul.

Recently Trump began questioning Cruzs eligibility to be president -- because Cruz was born in Canada to an American-citizen mother.

The Constitution says only natural-born citizens can serve as the nations chief executive. While the U.S. Supreme Court has never ruled on the issue, Republican primary voters have an opinion: 76 percent feel Cruz is eligible to be president of the United States. Fifteen percent feel he isnt.

Sixty-one percent of voters overall say Cruz is eligible, while 27 percent disagree.

Almost all GOP voters say the citizenship question wont matter to their vote (88 percent). For 10 percent, birther concerns will make them less likely to support Cruz.

Betrayal, dissatisfaction and anger are whats mainly driving Republican voters.

Fifty-two percent of GOP primary voters feel betrayed by politicians in their party. While thats down from 62 percent in September, its far more than the 37 percent of Democratic primary voters who feel betrayed.

A whopping 88 percent of Republican voters describe themselves as dissatisfied with the way the federal government is working. That includes 40 percent who are flat out angry.

In the January 14 GOP debate on the Fox Business Network, Trump said, Im very, very angry  Im angry because our country is a mess.

Angry Republican voters go for Trump over Cruz by a 49-22 percent margin.

Among those who are just dissatisfied and not angry, Trump (24 percent) and Cruz (20 percent) are more evenly matched.

Nearly three-quarters of voters overall are unhappy with Uncle Sam: 47 percent are dissatisfied with the way the federal government is working and 27 percent say they are angry.

GOP primary voters want a candidate who is a strong leader (24 percent) and is willing to tell it like it is (23 percent). Almost as many want someone who has true conservative values (19 percent). Far fewer say having the right experience (8 percent) or winning in November (7 percent) are top of mind for them when picking a candidate.

The Fox News poll is based on landline and cellphone interviews with 1,009 randomly chosen registered voters nationwide and was conducted under the joint direction of Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R) from January 18-21, 2016. The poll has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points for all registered voters, and 4.5 points for the Republican primary voter sample (405).
The Republican National Committee announced late Thursday that the venerable conservative magazine National Review had been dropped as a debate sponsor after it published an issue devoted to why voters should reject Donald Trump's presidential campaign.

RNC spokesman Sean Spicer confirmed to Buzzfeed News that the magazine had been dropped as a sponsor of the Feb. 25 debate in Houston, saying "a debate moderator can't have a predisposition."

"We expected this was coming," National Review publisher Jack Fowler wrote in a blog post early Friday, calling the RNC move a "small price to pay for speaking the truth about The Donald."

The move by the RNC leaves CNN, Salem Media and Telemundo as the remaining debate sponsors. Earlier this week, the RNC announced that it had severed ties with NBC, the previously scheduled debate host, due to dissatisfaction with the way the network conducted a debate on CNBC this past October.

The National Review issue, described as a "symposium", featured a collection of scathing anti-Trump essays from noted conservatives, underscoring the deep resistance that remains to his unorthodox candidacy, despite his commanding lead in early polls.

Three of the National Review essays came from Fox News contributors Katie Pavlich, Erick Erickson and Cal Thomas.

"Trumps liberal positions arent in the distant pasthe has openly promoted them on the campaign trail," Pavrich wrote. "Trump isnt fighting for anyone but himself, which has been his pattern for decades."

At an event in Las Vegas late Thursday, Trump described the magazine "a dying paper" out for publicity. Ironically, Trump named the magazine's late founder, William F. Buckley Jr., during last week's Republican debate as an example of a conservative who came from New York in response to Sen. Ted Cruz's jibe about Trump representing "New York values".

Trump also claimed Thursday that Republican powerbrokers are "warming up" to his candidacy.

"I want to be honest, I have received so many phone calls from people that you would call establishment, from people  generally speaking ... conservatives, Republicans  that want to come onto our team," Trump told reporters in Las Vegas before an appearance at the Outdoor Sportsman Awards, also announced the endorsement of "Duck Dynasty" star Willie Robertson.

"We are getting calls from everybody that it's actually amazing. I'm actually surprised," he added. He declined to provide names.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Like a zombie, the cultural retail attraction sales tax rebate program keeps rising from the grave.

A development deal for a potential shopping center on land owned by the city of Jackson at the Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport will be partially funded by state taxpayers under a program that expired in 2014.

The state approved the developer, Slidell, La.-based Freedom Real Estate LLC, to receive the sales tax rebate in 2014 just before the deadline for applications expired. The maximum rebate that could be awarded to Freedoms Pinelands Lifestyle Center is more than $48 million, according to data provided by the Mississippi Development Authority.

Under the cultural retail attraction program, Mississippi returns 80 percent of the sales tax revenue to the developer until the total reaches 30 percent of construction costs. Each attraction has to offer either $1 million worth of Mississippi art, historic markers or audio-visual equipment or host space for the MDA for 10 years for tourism promotion purposes. If all of the five projects authorized by the MDA under the program collect their maximum subsidies, state taxpayers could pay more than $230 million.

The Jackson Municipal Airport Authoritys Board of Commissioners voted to approve a deal with Freedom Real Estate LLC in December to lease the land, located north of the airport in the city of Flowood. Freedom would lease the land from the JMAA for 40 years for an amount determined by a property value appraisal that will take place after the contract is exercised.

Click for more from Watchdog.org
Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Germany have taken an important step forward in our understanding of the plague that ravaged Europe hundreds of years ago.

The team successfully reconstructed complete pathogen genomes from victims of the Great Plague of Marseille, which raged from 1720 to 1722. Scientists used teeth from plague pits in Marseille to access tiny fragments of DNA that had been preserved for hundreds of years.

Related: Fossil of duck-billed dinosaur found along Alabama creek

"We faced a significant challenge in reconstructing these ancient genomes," said computational analyst Alexander Herbig, in a press release. "To our surprise, the 18th century plague seems to be a form that is no longer circulating, and it descends directly from the disease that entered Europe during the Black Death, several centuries earlier.

The Great Plague of Marseille is assumed to be the last outbreak of medieval plague in Europe.

The findings are detailed online journal eLife.

Related: Huge titanosaur makes American Museum of Natural History debut

However, the geographical source of the Great Plague of Marseille has not yet been identified, according to Kirsten Bos, a lead author of the publication. Marseille, she notes, was a major hub for European trade, but the plague studied by the Max Planck scientists may actually have been present elsewhere in Europe. "Our results suggest that the disease was hiding somewhere in Europe for several hundred years, she noted.

"It's a chilling thought that plague might have once been hiding right around the corner throughout Europe, living in a host which is not known to us yet" explained Johannes Krause, director of the Department of Archaeogenetics at the Max Planck Institute. "Future work might help us to identify the mysterious host species, its range and the reason for its disappearance".
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Home defense and close quarters capable  two concerns on the minds of many Americans in light of recent events.

SHOT Show featured a range of new options for consumers looking for an answer  and one that meets rigorous law enforcement and military standards.

Designs based on those popular with law enforcement and military professionals are featuring heavily this year.

Related: Starter AR, triple-barreled shotguns, long guns galore at SHOT Show

Developed by Daniel Defense, Springfield Armory and FNH, here are three new guns becoming available for consumers for the first time: a short barreled rifle, tactical rifle and light machine gun.

Daniel Defense DDM4 V4S

Daniel Defenses newest SBR, the DDM4 V4S, was designed to meet law enforcement requirements  and makes the innovations available to civilians. This short-barreled rifle is one of four new rifles introduced by the company for 2016.

Lightweight, this robust SBR is built around a free-floating, cold-hammer-forged 11.5-inch barrel with a standard Daniel Defense buttstock and secure pistol grip.

This rifle makes customizing easy. Theres a lightweight, user-friendly rail system with lots of space to add accessories. For rapid switch outs, there are quick disconnect attachment points incorporated into the rails front and back.

Related: Four concealed carry guns unveiled at SHOT Show

The support hand is protected from heat by three removable high heat-resistant Daniel Defense rail panels.

This rifle is specifically designed to give the user as long as possible sight radius with iron sights.

The DDM4 Rail 10.0 is compatible with a wide range of sound suppressors and muzzle devices. And in keeping with its flexibility, the DDM4 V4S takes a range of ammo.

Springfield SOCOM 16 CQB

Springfield Armory revealed the SOCOM 16 CQB at SHOT Show. A tactical rifle, this gun has been honed for close-quarters defense and is ready to go straight out of the box.

Weighing only 9.3 pounds and more compact at nearly 10 inches shorter than the M1A standard model - this CQB is highly maneuverable and would provide rapid and easy handling when you need to defend yourself at home.

The barrel is 16.25 inches long and the AK-rifle compatible grip is enhanced to ensure firing hand control over the rifle.

Related: Blast an attacker with the new Taser

Providing lots of flexibility, the grip and control components are highly interoperable with a number of aftermarket options.

Allowing further individual tailoring to suit specific needs, the new adjustable buttstock is mounted on a standard AR-type receiver extension tube allowing for a wide range of options to swap in.

What about accessories? The M-Lok compatible system allows for a lot of easy customization of optics, lasers, lights and more.

Need a scout optic? Theres a medium eye relief seven-slot rail well mounted on the barrel, on top and forward of the receiver. For bipods, theres a longer seven-slot rail and there are two three-slot rail segments that can be mounted as well.

The rear sight is an enlarged military Ghost Ring aperture with 135 inch MOA adjustment for both windage and elevation.

Chambered in 7.62 NATO or .308 Winchester, the Springfield SOCOM 16 CQB takes all M1A magazines whether five, 10 or 20-round The rifle comes with a 10-round magazine and a new custom ballistic nylon Springfield Armory Tactical Gear soft case.

FNH USA Military Collector Series- FN M249S

FNH USA launched the FN Military Collector Series at SHOT Show this week  a line that makes popular military designs available in commercial versions for the first time this year.

The first three variants to roll out will be: the FNH USA FN Military Collector Series, The FN 15 Military Collector M4 and M16 as well as the semi-automatic FN M249S. More models will become available down the road.

Related: More than half a million rounds kick off SHOT Show in Las Vegas

A fully automatic light machine gun, the M249 SAW (A.K.A Squad Automatic Weapon) has been in service with the U.S. military for nearly three decades. The semi-automatic FN M249S is a replica of this well-known weapon.

Chambered in 5.56 NATO, it does differ from the fully automatic currently in military service that has an open-bolt configuration. The M249S only operates from a closed-bolt position in semi-auto.

FNH USAs M249S is 40.75 inches long with a 20.5-inch barrel. The barrel is cold-hammer-forged, chrome-lined alloy-steel with a twist rate of 1:7.

The receiver is a formed steel frame with claw extractor design. The cases eject to the side with a fixed, pivoting ejector. To customize, theres a top cover integrated MIL -STD 1913 mounting rail.

The trigger pull is adjustable from 4 to 6.5 pounds. When the gun is empty, it weighs 17 pounds. It takes a linked ammo belt as well as magazines.

It is expected to retail for about $7,999.
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Victory and The American are two handguns new for 2016 and big reveals at SHOT Show.

Handguns are among the best selling firearms in the United States and every year a new innovative crop debuts at the behemoth annual industry event in Las Vegas.

Related: 3 new military-grade home defense guns revealed at SHOT Show

Both Smith & Wesson and Sturm, Ruger & Co (known widely by the abbreviated Ruger) were attracting plenty of attention for the new pistols at SHOT Show. Meet The American and Victory.

Smith & Wesson SW22 Victory

The SW22 Victory had a big debut at SHOT Show drawing a lot of buzz.

The 9.2-inch single action pistol has a frame, bolt and barrel made of stainless steel with a Satin Stainless finish. A Kryptek Highlander camo finish is another option.

Related: Starter AR, triple-barreled shotguns, long guns galore at SHOT Show

Weighing in at 36 ounces, Victory is 5.6 inches high with a width of 1.1 inches.

This gun is designed to be very user friendly and easy to take down. To disassemble, there is a single screw located under the barrel and forward of the trigger guard. Simply remove the screw and the gun easily comes apart to clean or to replace the barrel.

The textured polymer grip has finger cuts to aid magazine removal and theres a user-adjustable trigger stop.

Related: Four concealed carry guns unveiled at SHOT Show

The front sight is green fiber optic while the rear sight is adjustable fiber optic.

To customize, a Picatinny rail is included that easily mounts on the pistol. It takes 10 round magazines and comes with two included.

In addition to the standard model, there is version with a 1/2-28 threaded barrel for adding a sound suppressor, as well as the Kryptek Highlander camouflage pattern version.

Victory is expected to retail for about $409. The two further variants will be priced about $20 to $50 more.

Ruger American Pistol

Ruger unveiled the American Pistol, developed with law enforcement and military experts to meet U.S. military standards. As the companys tagline says Anything else would be un-American.

Related: Blast an attacker with the new Taser

This new striker-fired semi-automatic pistol is available in both 9mm and .45 ACP. The barrel is designed to be recoil reducing. The 9mm weighs 30 ounces and the overall length is 7.5 inches with a 4.2 inch barrel. The 31.5-ounce .45 ACP is eight inches long with a 4.5 inch barrel.

The American has a one-piece precision-machined stainless steel chassis with frame rails and fire controls. To reduce corrosion and friction, the slide is black nitride.

Related: More than half a million rounds kick off SHOT Show in Las Vegas

The American Pistol features a short trigger pull with positive reset. The slide stop and magazine release are ambidextrous.

For mounting lasers, infrared illuminators or other accessories, theres a 1913 Picatinny rail. The American pistol is designed to be easy to take down without tools.

It is expected to retail for $579.00.
While usually seen as competitors, Qualcomm and Samsung are about to embark on a very cozy trip to your smartphones innards. Samsung has just announced mass production of their 14nm LPP(Low-Power Plus) has begun.

As expected, this technology will be embedded right into Samsungs upcoming Exynos 8 Octa processor, but it wont be the only one rocking all the goodies. Samsung is certainly willing and able to partner up with other chip makers, and one of them happens to be Qualcomm.

Also read:

As you can assume (and read in the title), this does mean that the Korean manufacturing will be producing the almighty Snapdragon 820, which is expected to power plenty of flagship handsets in 2016.

We are pleased to start production of our industry-leading, 2nd generation 14nm FinFET process technology that delivers the highest level of performance and power efficiency. -Charlie Bae, Executive Vice President of Sales & Marketing, System LSI Business, Samsung Electronics

Thats right, even if your phone is powered by Qualcomms Snapdragon 820 chipset, it will be a Samsung-made SoC. In the battle of tech, the only winner seems to be that with the most profits, and if it means making money Samsung will definitely get in bed with the San Diego-based chip maker. We even got to see a Samsung demo tablet running a BRITECELL 1.34um camera sensor at CES, which just so happened to be powered by a Snapdragon 820.

And it is no surprise. After all, Samsung has been working very closely with another main competitor  Apple. They also provide screen technology for many other companies, and their manufacturing services are not about to stop.

As always, Qualcomm and Samsung will still battle for your pocket. Both are expected to be great contenders, but we have to mention we did spend some time with the Snapdragon 820 at CES and walked out quite impressed. The LeTV Le Max Pro is the first handset to come with Qualcomms chipset, and its benchmarks reach well over the 130,000 AnTuTu milestone. Insane!
A Los Angeles-bound Alaska Airlines flight was forced to return to Seattle's airport Monday afternoon after an airport worker fell asleep and became trapped in the cargo hold.

Alaska Airlines said the flight had taken off from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport at 2:39 p.m. local time. Fourteen minutes later, the plane's captain and some first-class passengers heard banging coming from beneath the aircraft. The pilot decided to return to the airport and declared an emergency for priority landing.

"I think were hearing a noise from the baggage compartment," the pilot said, according to KCPQ. "Might be a person in there, so were going to have to come back around."

After the plane landed a ramp agent came out from the front cargo hold, which Alaska said is pressurized and temperature-controlled. The area is often where animals are kept during flights.

"Upon exiting, he told authorities he had fallen asleep," the airline said.

The man, an employee of Alaska contractor Menzies Aviation, walked off the plane. He was initially checked by medics at the airport and found to be unhurt, airport spokesman Perry Cooper said.

The man was also checked at a hospital and released, the airline said Monday evening. After his release from the hospital, he passed a drug test, airline spokesman Bryan Zidar said.

The airline did not identify the worker. A Menzies spokesman did not immediately return an email request for comment and details about the employee.

Alaska Airlines said the man started work at 5 a.m. Monday and was due off at 2:30 p.m.. He had been part of a four-person team loading baggage onto the flight.

Before the plane departed, the leader of the man's team noticed he was missing, called into the cargo hold for him and called and texted the man's cellphone but got no answer, the airline said. Co-workers thought he had finished his shift and gone home.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the incident, spokesman Allen Kenitzer confirmed in an e-mail.

All ramp employees undergo full criminal background checks and drug checks before hiring and are subject to random drug tests during their employment, the airline statement said.

The plane carried 170 passengers and six crew members.

The flight departed again at 3:52 p.m. and arrived at a terminal gate in Los Angeles at 6:29 p.m., more than an hour late, the airline said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A former Alaska Airlines pilot was arrested Thursday and charged with piloting a passenger plane while under the influence of alcohol.



David Hans Arnston, 60, of Newport Beach, Calif., allegedly was found to have a blood alcohol concentration of 0.134 percent and 0.142 percent during two random drug and alcohol tests administered by his employer.

By federal law, a person operating a commercial airliner is presumed to be under the influence of alcohol when his or her blood alcohol content is 0.10 percent or higher.

According to a criminal complaint, the tests took place on June 20, 2014, after Arnston had piloted two flights. The first flight was from San Diego International Airport to Portland Oregon, then he flew to John Wayne Airport in Orange County, Calif.

According to the complaint, Arnston noticed the tester after landing at John Wayne Airport and told his co-pilot "I bet it's for me."

Alaska Airlines barred Arnston from all safety-sensitive activities after it was informed of the test results. Arnston retired from the airline soon after.

"Those in command of passenger jets, or any other form of public transportation, have an obligation to serve the public in the safest and most responsible way possible," said U.S. Attorney Eileen M. Decker. "We cannot and will not tolerate those who violate the trust of their passengers by endangering lives."

Arnston faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted. He was released on $25,000 bond. His next court appearance is set for February 10.
A New Yorker who believes cops discriminate against minorities has adopted a police tactic to make his point, handing out his own "summonses" to whites in affluent neighborhoods for infractions he says are selectively enforced.

Riding a bike on the sidewalk, jay-walking or carrying an open beer can bring a costly ticket in some sections of the Big Apple, yet barely register with police in others, according to Robert Gangi, co-founder of the Police Reform Organizing Project.

White people in [the affluent Brooklyn neighborhood of] Park Slope virtually never get ticketed for these kind of activities whereas African-American and Latino people in different neighborhoods in this city will get sanctioned  ticketed and sometimes arrested, he said recently, according to Wagingnonviolence.org.

Gangi's group next plans to hand out its fake summonses in the tony Upper East Side neighborhood near Gracie Mansion, where Mayor Bill de Blasio lives.

We think that that will send him a message loud and clear, Gangi said.

During a PROP ticket blitz in Park Slope last October, Gangi and a group of volunteers handed wrongdoers and scofflaws summonses along with pamphlets explaining their purpose. Recipients were informed they weren't really being penalized, but told, according to The New Yorker, that "you very well might have if you were in a different neighborhood and a person of color.

Gangi said some of those who were stopped signed a petition calling for policing reforms, while others just kept going.

Gangis organization claims, its data reveals an imbalance in policing. In minority neighborhoods like Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, there are, on average 2,000 summonses handed out per year from 2009 to 2011. In Park Slope, a more affluent neighborhood, the statistics show an average of eight are given out.

Gangi claims that city police precincts in low-income neighborhoods have quotas for summonses, which the NYPD has long denied.

The NYPD did not respond to a FoxNews.com request for comment on the issue.

Gangi and other police critics fault the so-called "broken windows" theory, widely credited for bringing down crime in New York and other major cities during the 1990s. The theory holds that enforcement of minor laws creates a climate of order that prevents more serious laws from being flouted.

Gangi said that police officers in certain precincts in low-income, minority areas are given quotas and unfairly target minorities.

The broken windows theory has been criticized as a license for selective enforcement, and has come under increasing fire as tensions between police and minority communities have increased.

George L. Kelling, one of the co-founders of the Broken Windows theory, wrote an op-ed in Politico last summer defending his theory titled, Dont Blame My Broken Windows Theory for Poor Policing.

Despite these and other criticisms, the demand for order remains high in minority and poor communities, he wrote. And I would argue that our theory has been largely misunderstood.

Kelling told FoxNews.com that police respond to demand.

"You go where the problems are," he said. "Once police start ignoring these high-crime areas, that, too, is dicriminatory in another way."

He said summonses should be given out fairly, regardless if the offender is drinking wine during a picnic in Central Park or drinking a beer inside a park in a low-income neighborhood. But bad policing should not reflect poorly for the effectiveness of broken windows.

"At one time, criminal investigation involved torture," he said. "Just because something was wrong, it didn't mean we should do away with criminal investigations all together."

A police officer who patrols a high-crime neighborhood in New York told FoxNews.com that stopping people for seemingly minor crimes such as biking on the sidewalk can prevent more serious crimes, making enforcement a good example of the broken windows theory in action.

Gang members often have young teens transport weapons for them in order to minmize their own exposure to the law. Stopping a youngster for riding on the sidewalk could lead to discover of a gun in a backpack, for instance, he said.

If the kid is stopped with the gun, hes a kid, the police officer said. Its risky for an adult to carry a gun in public.
Human remains have been found at the site where an F-16 fighter jet crashed Thursday in northwestern Arizona.

A statement from Luke Air Force Base said a coroner was expected to determine whether the remains were those of the Taiwanese air force student pilot who was flying the plane when it went down.

However, base commanding officer Brig. Gen. Scott Pleus said he was led to believe the pilot did not survive the Bagdad, Ariz. accident.

"However, until we have 100 percent confirmation of his condition, we will continue our search-and-rescue efforts," Pleus said.

The student was the only person aboard the jet. A U.S. Air Force instructor pilot was flying in another F-16.

Air Force officials said the jet was assigned to the 56th Fighter Wing at Luke Air Force Base. It crashed around 8:45 a.m. local time. The crash site was located at around 12:45 p.m. Officials suggested that the remote location and rugged terrain may have made it harder to reach the scene.

The student pilot was being trained in a high G[-force] maneuver between two aircraft in an air-to-air fight, Pleus said. The pilots instructor was in a separate aircraft.

The pilot was one of a number of foreign airmen who train at Luke, Pleus said. Taiwanese officials have been notified of the accident.

Luke spokeswoman 1st Lt. Tanya Wren said the cause of the crash isn't known and no other information was immediately available.

Bagdad is about 85 miles northwest of the base in Glendale. The 56th Fighter Wing is home to nearly 140 F-16s and 24 squadrons, the largest fighter wing in the Air Force.

Fox News' Jennifer Griffin, Lucas Tomlinson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Click for more from Fox 10.

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A battle is brewing over a $100 million fee submitted by the executors overseeing the estate of Queen of Mean hotel magnate Leona Helmsley.



Lawyers for New Yorks Attorney General Eric Schneiderman asked a judge Thursday to reject the fee as exorbitant, unreasonable and improper, The Wall Street Journal reported.

They argued in court papers that the fee is equivalent to a rate of more than $6,400 an hour, the paper reported.

This extravagant sum bears no factual relationship to the actual value of the work they performed, Assistant Attorney General Carl Distefano said in the court papers, according to The New York Post.

He proposed a more reasonable fee of $10 million.

Helmsley died in 2007 and in her will left $12 million to her dog Trouble. He eventually got $2 million. The bulk of her $4.8 billion estate was left to charity.

She went to prison for tax fraud and had a reputation for mistreating her minions, the Journal reported.

The executors of her estate are two grandchildren, an attorney and a business adviser.

They defended the $100 million bill, the Journal reported. They said Thursday that they administered an extraordinarily complex estatein the face of enormous risks.

Helmsleys vast real estate holding included the iconic Empire State Building.

Click for more from The Wall Street Journal.

Click for more from The New York Post.
The body of a 2-year-old boy who had been missing for a week was found Thursday in a clearing in the woods surrounding his home.

Searchers estimated that Noah Chamberlin was found between a mile and a half and two miles away from where he was last seen Jan. 14.

Chester County Sheriff Blair Weaver called Chamberlin's death a tragic accident.

"We were there, and we stuck to it and looked, and it just wasnt meant to be for some reason, Weaver said of the search effort. We dont know everything, and were not supposed to know everything."

Madison County Fire Chief Eric Turner said the boy's body was found in an area that had only been searched once.

"Ill be honest with you, its further away than I thought, but we had to keep expanding, and thats why we do that," Turner told the Tennessean.

Noah Chamberlin disappeared during a walk in the woods with his grandmother and 4-year-old sister. Turner believes the boy ran away from his grandmother and hid, which he was known to do.

Madison County Sheriff John Mehr suggested to reporters that Noah may have been found alive had temperatures not dropped in recent days.

Authorities said no foul play is suspected in the child's death and there is no criminal investigation. The weeklong search involved hundreds of volunteers and law enforcement officials.

Weaver said finding Noah's body was "not the outcome we wanted, but we felt like we got some peace by bringing him home."
A California ski resort asked the local sheriff this week to arrest a snowboarder it says triggered an avalanche captured on video that went viral.

(Warning: Video contains foul language.)

Christian Mares pulled off the Jan. 15 stunt in an avalanche-prone area that has been closed to the public for five years, the Sugar Bowl Resort claimed in a statement Wednesday. The resort near Norden asked the Placer County Sheriffs Department to charge Mares with trespassing.

But Mares, 29, denied he was trespassing.

He told the San Francisco Chronicle Friday that he was just looking for a nice cliff to drop.

No one wants to try to start an avalanche, he said. Thatd be absolutely crazy.

A 3-minute video showing Mares getting caught in the avalanche has been viewed more than 100,000 times on YouTube.

The video shows snow burying Mares after he snowboards off a cliff and is overtaken by the avalanche.

Well, that just happened, he says to the camera.

Mares told the Chronicle he didnt know the area was off-limits.

Sugar Bowl ski instructor Carson May, 23, vanished the day before Mares allegedly set off the avalanche and was reported missing the same morning. The search for May was called off Tuesday.

Sugar Bowl said the the search for May was a seperate matter.

Click here for more from the New York Post.
The front end of a monster blizzard that's expected to impact more than 70 million people began dumping snow on the nation's capital Friday, as an army of plows fought to keep open major arteries and transportation systems long enough to allow thousands of workers to get home before the worst hit.

Officials say Washington's Metro subway system is set to shut down entirely late Friday night and remain closed through Sunday for the safety of workers and riders. Underground stations usually stay open during major snowstorms. Mayor Muriel Bowser urged government workers to head home by the early afternoon, warning the storm had "life and death implications."

Tens of thousands of people crowded into the airports. Some 2,900 flights were canceled for Friday, most in Charlotte and Raleigh, North Carolina. Thousands more were delayed.

More than 3,300 flights were canceled for Saturday, including all flights into and out of Philadelphia International Airport. All major airlines have issued waivers for travel over the weekend, allowing passengers to rebook onto earlier or later flights to avoid the storms.

The storm is expected to hit areas around the nation's capital the hardest, dropping more than 2 feet of snow. Philadelphia could get 12 to 18 inches and New York 8 to 10, although some forecasts suggest even more, National Weather Service forecaster Daniel Peterson said.

"This is probably going to be one of the top three snowfalls of all-time for Washington," he added.

Train service could be disrupted by frozen switches, the loss of third-rail electric power or trees falling on wires. Across the region, track workers, power company employees, road crew members, firefighters and other first-responders were mobilized for the long weekend. In New York City, 79 subway trains will have "scraper shoes" to reduce icing on rails, the Metropolitan Transit Authority said.

Conditions quickly became treacherous as the storm moved northeast. Arkansas and Tennessee got eight inches; Kentucky got more than a foot, and states across the Deep South grappled with icy, snow-covered roads and power outages. At least eight people died in traffic fatalities in the dangerous weather.

The National Weather Service issued blizzard warnings stretching from northern Virginia to parts of New York's Long Island, where the U.S. Coast Guard warned seas could swell up to 18 feet. The blizzard warnings are scheduled to last until early Sunday.

Data curated by WeatherDB

Gov. Chris Christie declared a state of emergency in New Jersey late Friday and said roadways had been pre-brined but suggested people stay home on Saturday.

Forecasters also warned of "thundersnow," a dangerous type of thunderstorm that drops snow instead of rain.

"The most intense part of the storm will come Saturday morning from around 4 a.m. through 12 p.m," said Fox 5 DC meteorologist Gary McGrady. "We can expect heavy snow, possibly 2 inches per hour, and blizzard conditions with 30 to 35 mph winds creating legitimate whiteout conditions." McGrady added that his forecast called for between 1 and 2 feet of snow to fall in the national capital region before all was said and done.

That same storm system dropped 6 inches of snow in the Little Rock area overnight, breaking a snowfall record set more than 20 years ago. Schools and state government offices in central Arkansas shut down on Friday. The state's largest utility, Entergy Arkansas, said about 12,500 homes and businesses lost power

Timelapse in Sorgho, KY. Moderate to heavy snow still falling #KYwx pic.twitter.com/S8sciFTrSg  Tim Crabtree (@OWB_WXSpotter) January 22, 2016

The Mid-Atlantic region is notorious for struggling to cope with winter weather, and a light dusting on Wednesday night served as an ominous prelude to the massive blizzard.

Less than an inch of snow was enough to immediately turn roadways treacherous in the District, Maryland and northern Virginia, causing hundreds of accidents and leaving drivers gridlocked for hours. President Obama wasn't spared, as his motorcade slowly weaved and skidded along icy streets to the White House.

The U.S. Capitol Police said sledding on Capitol Hill  which only recently became legal after an act of Congress  would be welcome for the first time in decades, as long as conditions are safe.

Data curated by WeatherDB

Even the start of the snowstorm couldn't keep some tourists from visiting the White House.

On Friday afternoon, several groups and couples were walking in the park in front of the mansion, and the fountain in the home's yard was still spraying water.

Newlyweds Stefan Tomic and Cherokee Tomic, both 22, were visiting from New York and had just arrived in the city Friday by bus. They said they didn't want to change their plans because of the weather and that their first stop was the White House.

"We're just going to have fun," Cherokee Tomic said.

As far south as Atlanta, people were urged to go home and stay there to avoid a repeat of the city's "icepocalypse," when a fairly light winter storm in 2014 caused commuter chaos for days.

NWS Director Louis Uccellini warned at a news conference that the snowfall could easily cause more than $1 billion in damage and paralyze the Eastern third of the nation.

"It does have the potential to be an extremely dangerous storm that can affect more than 50 million people," Uccellini said at the service's Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Click for more from Fox 5 DC.
The faculty council at an Illinois Christian college recommended Wednesday that the school end its effort to fire a professor who asserted while wearing a headscarf that Christians and Muslims worship the same God.

Wheaton College Faculty Council chairman Lynn Cohick said in a letter to her colleagues that the council unanimously agreed the termination effort against associate political science professor Larycia Hawkins should "be withdrawn due to grave concerns about the process."

Hawkins drew national attention when she began wearing a headscarf to show soldiarity with Muslims who had experienced what she called "vitriolic" rhetoric following the Paris and San Bernardino terrorist attacks.

"I stand in religious solidarity with Muslims because they, like me, a Christian, are people of the book, Hawkins wrote on social media. And [as] Pope Francis stated ... we worship the same God."

The college placed Hawkins on leave, pending a full review of the "theological implications" of her comments. The college said it had no specific objection to Hawkins wearing a headscarf as a gesture of care and concern. But it also said that "overtures of Christian friendship must be enacted with theological clarity as well as compassion."

Earlier this month, college officials moved to fire Hawkins, claiming that she refused to participate in "clarifying conversations" about the issues raised by her statements. Hawkins denies that particular allegation and has said she continues to pursue reconciliation with college officials.

In a statement Thursday, Wheaton said its administration respects the viewpoints of the faculty council. It added it is following the college's established process for handling employment decisions pertaining to tenured faculty members.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Ten years after an Orlando woman disappeared without a trace in a case that has stumped investigators, police and the family of Jennifer Kesse are pleading with the public for information to help them solve the investigation.



"We will not stop or let up on our efforts to locate Jen and bring her home, the woman's father, Drew Kesse, told Fox News on Friday.

It has been a very long road and quite challenging at times but our hope is still strong and our strength is too until we can end Jennifer's personal hell," Kesse said.

The Orlando Police Department was expected to hold a press conference with the family Friday in the hopes someone will come forward with information.

Known by friends and family simply as "Jenn," the 24-year-old Orlando woman was last seen alive on Jan. 23, 2006.

Kesse, who lived alone, was reported missing by her parents the next day when she failed to show up for her job as a manager at Central Florida Investments.

Kesses car  a black Chevy Malibu  was found by authorities on Jan. 26 approximately one mile from her condominium.

The Orlando Police Department had hoped for a break in the case when it released security footage of a person seen parking Kesses vehicle near a pool at an apartment complex and walking away.

But the suspect  who appears to be between 5-foot-3 and 5-foot-5  has never been identified.

"The cruel hard reality is not one thing has changed in her case, Drew Kesse said. Jennifer remains just as missing today as she was 10 years ago."

"Not one fact has come to light which could end Jennifers hell. Not one solid lead has been given nor generated by authorities. How can that be?" he said of his daughter, a 2003 graduate of the University of Central Florida in Orlando and an Alpha Delta Pi sorority member described by family as driven and outgoing.

In a 2013 interview with FoxNews.com, Drew Kesse said he believed more than one person was responsible for his daughters disappearance. His theory is that Jenn was abducted while leaving her home early on Jan. 24, and that she never made it to her car.

No forensic evidence was obtained from her vehicle  only one latent print, which her father called too minuscule to be useful.

Kesse had suggested his daughter -- 5-foot-8 with blond hair -- may have been taken by human traffickers and may no longer be in the country.

The Kesse case was featured in a 2014 episode of Fox News Channels Greta Investigates, a crime anthology series hosted by Greta Van Susteren.

If you have any information about Jennifer, her father said, however trivial you may think it may be, make the call."

"No names, no ID, just tips and rewards. Call the FBI, a lawyer or your clergy. Be the person who makes the difference. This haunts us every minute of every day.

Anyone with information on Jennifer Kesse is urged to call the Orlando Police Department at 407-246-3982 or Crimeline of Central Florida at 1-800-423-8477.

More information on the Kesse case is also available at www.jenniferkesse.com.

Fox News' Cristina Corbin and Steven Tierney contributed to this report.
Sheriff deputies in central Florida said this week they busted a moonshine operation that was selling the hootch through Facebook.

The Polk County Sheriffs Office arrested three people after an undercover investigation, WFTV reported Wednesday.

The investigation began after a tipster alleged that Alton Trowell, 31, was selling the moonshine on his Facebook page.

An undercover wound up speaking to Trowells girlfriend, Christie Comkowycz, 31.

Deputies said she met the undercover in a parking lot Jan. 12 and sold him 12 pint-sized mason jars of the illegal liquor for $20 a jar.

They said Comkowycz told detectives she was selling the moonshine to bail her boyfriend out of jail following his arrest the previous day on unrelated drug charges.



A search of Trowells home led to the seizure of a 5-gallon container of moonshine, WFTV reported.

The arrests included a man Comkowycz told deputies was her supplier, the station reported.
As a major storm takes aim at the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, government preparing to shutdown today in Washington. DC could get as much as two feet of snow.. along with Baltimore. Heavy snow and blizzard conditions expected in parts of five states. 50 million people in the storms path.

Weve got Fox team coverage including Rick Reichmuth, Maria Molina, Peter Doocy, Jonathan Serrie, Abby Huntsman, Peter Barnes and Douglas Kennedy.

Despite the storms, the campaign flurry continues unabated.

1000EST -- Fmr FL Gov Jeb Bush appears on America's Newsroom from Stratham, NH. LIVE via LiveU

1200EST -- Dr Ben Carson holds a town hall meeting. Ringgold County Hospital, Mt. Ayr, IA. LIVE via LiveU

1240EST -- Carly Fiorina speeks at March for Life. Grounds of the Washington Monument, Washington, DC. LIVE

1240EST -- OH Gov Kasich appears interview on Cavuto Coast to Coast. LIVE via LiveU

1300EST -- OH Gov Kasich holds a town hall meeting. Franklin VFW Post 1698, Franklin, NH. LIVE via LiveU

1000EST -- Sen Sanders holds a town hall meeting. N. Conway Community Center, N. Conway, NH. BABY POOL COVER

1130EST -- The DNC Exec Cmte holds their Spring Executive Cmte meeting via conference call. AUDIO

1130EST -- Hillary Clinton holds a town hall meeting. Rochester Opera House, Rochester, NH. LIVE via LiveU

1300EST -- Sen Sanders holds a meeting with students. Concord High School, Concord, NH. BABY POOL COVER

Senator Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump have opened up solid leads in Iowa according to new CNN/ORC polling released last night. Sanders leads Clinton 51 to 43% among likely caucus goers. On the GOP side, Trump leads Cruz 37% to 26%. Rubio is third at 14%.

The National Review has unveiled a coordinated attack against Donald Trump. 22 major conservatives have come out against Donald Trump.

Meanwhile more establishment Republicans are getting behind Trump considering him better than Ted Cruz.

It looks like stocks could surge today. World markets were higher and oil prices have recovered some after hitting 12 year lows this week.

Somalia forces have ended a terror siege that left at least 20 dead in Mogadishu. Al-Shabab suspected.

A Taliban splinter group that claimed responsibility for a terror attack on a university in Pakistan that left more than 20 dead is vowing more attacks similar to the attack on the college.

Tunisia has declared a curfew after rioting across the country over unemployment. There were reports of vandalism in several Tunisian cities.

North Korea says it has detained an American student in the country as a tourist.
The leader of an armed militia that has occupied a national wildlife refuge in eastern Oregon for nearly three weeks made his first contact with an FBI negotiator Thursday.

The Oregonian reported that Ammon Bundy arrived unannounced at the Burns Municipal Airport, close to where federal officials have set up a staging area. Bundy said that the FBI had begun reaching out to the group two days earlier and claimed to have 14 messages on his phone from the negotiator, whom Bundy knows only as "Chris."

Bundy spoke to the negotiator on a borrowed cell phone as reporters watched.

"I'm a face-to-face kind of guy," Bundy told the negotiator at one point, according to the Oregonian. "You reached out to me ... I'm not sure exactly what you wanted to talk about."

Bundy asked for the release of ranchers Dwight Hammond Jr. and his son, Steven, who reported to prison earlier this month to finish five year prison sentences for arson on federal land. Bundy and his group occupied the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 2 following a protest calling for the Hammonds' release

Bundy said his group is "not going to escalate" the situation, and he agreed to speak with authorities again Friday.

Bundy and the FBI made contact one day after Oregon Gov. Kate Brown expressed frustration with what she described as a lack of action by federal authorities against the group.

In a statement Thursday, the FBI acknowledged the situation has caused "tremendous disruption and hardship" for people in the community and our "response has been deliberate and measured as we seek a peaceful resolution."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Click for more from The Oregonian.
Two Americans freed in a prisoner swap with Iran arrived back on U.S. soil Thursday.

Saeed Abedini, a Christian pastor, was met by his parents and well-wishers in North Carolina, where he will spend time at the Billy Graham Training Center in Asheville. Abedini's wife, Nagmeh, has said that she and the couple's children will see him Monday.

"None of us in America can begin to understand or appreciate what Saeed has endured after being imprisoned in Iran because of his Christian faith," Franklin Graham, president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association said. "We want to provide him a quiet place to rest and visit with family."

Abedini was imprisoned in 2012 on charges of setting up home churches in the Islamic theocracy.

Earlier Thursday, former Marine Amir Hekmati, landed in his home state of Michigan, where he was greeted by a crowd of waiting reporters and well-wishers, including members of the American Legion.

After emerging from the plane, the retired U.S. Marine told the crowd it was great to be back in Flint and hes standing with his head held high. He also expressed appreciation for the "many people" who "traveled this road with me."

"Despite all the difficulties, thank god, thank for everyones support," he said.

Convicted by an Iranian court of spying and sentenced to death in 2012, Hekmati was later retried and given a 10-year sentence on a lesser charge. When asked about his 4 1/2 years in Iranian prison, Hekmati said "it wasn't good," but that his Marine training helped sustain him.

Abedini and Hekmati had been receiving treatment at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany since late Sunday after arriving there from Iran via Switzerland.

A third American, Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian, remains at the hospital. The fourth American who was part of the exchange, Nosratollah Khosravi-Roodsari, opted to remain in Iran, officials said.

A fifth American, Matthew Trevithick, was released separately and arrived in his home state of Massachusetts earlier this week.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Cab drivers have photo IDs to identify themselves. But if youre riding in an Uber in California, you might want to start looking for a mugshot instead.

The popular ride-sharing service just announced an initiative it plans to roll out in the Golden State. It would allow convicted felons whose crimes have been reduced to misdemeanors to work as drivers.

Which raises the question for parents: Is this a car you really want to call? Do you want your child in that car?

Ubers model is pretty simple. A customer hails a car using an app on a smartphone or other device, and a driver using their own car shows up and takes the customer from point A to point B. Scores of people have used Uber and are perfectly satisfied, and some customers rely on the same Uber drivers for continued taxi service. But the fact is that Uber drivers are not regulated by any oversight authority. A driver can receive Uber credentials in 24 hours.

Uber is totally unregulated, said George Fiorenza, owner of taxi company Ambassador Brattle in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Your child is getting in a car with a stranger who answers to no real authority whatsoever.

Under what could be called the everyone-makes-mistakes initiative," San Francisco-based Uber is changing its policy on hiring drivers. Up until now, drivers who committed felonies were automatically disqualified from driving for the company. But a controversial California ballot measure called Proposition 47 that passed in 2014 reclassifies certain felonies as misdemeanors. Uber plans to contact those potential drivers who previously applied about the possibility of having their cases reconsidered in court.

The reclassified crimes include shoplifting, personal use of illegal drugs, writing a bad check, and receiving stolen property.

Uber will also refer applicants to Defy Ventures, an organization that offers employment training to people with criminal records.

In an age of increased security, Uber also offers a giant, and frightening, public safety loophole.

Uber is honestly a perfect vehicle for terrorists, no pun intended, Fiorenza said. We have real worries about that. A terrorist can go anywhere as an Uber driver  its so easy to sign up and be approved as one  and if hes stopped by authorities he can just say, Oh, Im an Uber driver.

One entity is cheering loudly about former criminals being offered work with Uber: the Los Angeles Regional Reentry Partnership, an organization that works with former prisoners to help them re-enter society by connecting with the larger community. Troy Vaughn, the group's chairman, called the move by Uber a game changer.

This relates to helping individuals recover their lives, Vaughn told the Los Angeles Times. Everyone makes mistakes. Are we saying now as a society we will not afford a person an opportunity because he made a mistake when he was still learning how to be a man? I think we want to send a different message.

This move to welcome former criminals may not be purely altruistic. Uber is growing so quickly, it needs drivers in its seats, period. As the company struggles for growth to meet demand, it is broadening its pool of drivers  and apparently, even former felons will do.

Uber has the financial ability and the network to intimidate local government because if you go up against them, they tweet and email-blast their drivers to flood that office with complaint emails, said Fiorenza. Most officials just dont have the time or staff for that, so they fold.

Uber has been in the spotlight in the past for its safety protocols, from cab companies and law enforcement.

Los Angeles and San Francisco district attorneys filed a consumer protection lawsuit against Uber in 2014. They alleged the ride-hailing company misleads consumers about the services safety, overcharges them, and cares nothing for laws.

Uber says it uses an industry-leading background check process,' but (it) does not fingerprint its drivers, San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon said in a news conference about the lawsuit, making the companys criminal checks completely worthless.

The company repeats this misleading statement, giving consumers a false sense of security when deciding whether to get into a strangers car, he said.

One driver  years before Uber was founded  was convicted of second-degree murder in 1982, according to a 62-page amendment to court papers the district attorneys filed against Uber. The murderer spent 26 years in prison, was released in 2008 and applied to Uber. A background report turned up no records relating to his murder conviction, allowing him to give rides to over 1,100 Uber customers.

Another driver was convicted on felony charges for lewd acts with children. He gave over 5,600 rides to Uber customers. Another was convicted of burglary and identity theft.

At the end of the ride, the Uber driver asked me if I had been near Lincoln Center a few hours earlier," wrote one Uber customer, Olivia Nuzzi, in The Daily Beast. "I said I hadn't, since I didn't remember walking past there. Then he took out his iPad. 'Really?' he asked. 'Because you look like this girl.' He turned the iPad around to face the back seat. To my surprise, I saw a full-length, close-up picture of me, wearing the workout clothes I'd had on an hour previously.

Since Uber, we have had more assault charges in Cambridge than we have in the last 50 years combined, said Fiorenza, adding this blunt opinion: An Uber is not a car you ever want to entrust your kids safety to.

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A legendary Al Qaeda explosives expert, whose invention of the shoe-bomb endeared him to Usama bin Laden and who may have known about 9/11 in advance, was freed Thursday from Guantanamo Bay, where he became a highly prolific source of information for the U.S. government even as his health spiraled.

Tariq Mahmoud Ahmed al Sawah, a 58-year-old Egyptian who once taught bomb-making to Al Qaeda members and created a special floating mine used to target U.S. ships, as well as the footwear explosive used by failed bomber Richard Reid, has been transferred to Bosnia, according to the Obama administration.

He has been compliant over the last four years, reads Sawahs Gitmo file, which was made public by Wikileaks. He continues to be a highly prolific source and has provided invaluable intelligence regarding explosives, Al Qaeda, affiliated entities and their activities.

He continues to be a highly prolific source and has provided invaluable intelligence regarding explosives, Al Qaeda, affiliated entities and their activities.  Gitmo file on Tariq Mahmoud Ahmed al Sawah

Officials acknowledge in the file that Al Sawah could revert to his old ways, but note his cooperation with the U.S. government could make him unwelcome in terror circles.

A 2008 entry in the file noted that Al Sawah was morbidly obese, and suffering from diabetes, fatty liver disease and chronic pain from spinal cord compression. Still, Al Sawah, who fought with the Bosnian army in the 1990s war in Yugoslavia before making his way to Afghanistan in 2000, was once part of the Al Qaeda inner circle.

Detainee also associated with the planners and perpetrators of international terrorist attacks and other senior al-Qaida members, and may have had advanced knowledge of the 11 September 2001 attacks, reads his dossier, which Wikileaks posted online along with hundreds of other Gitmo files.

Andrew McCarthy, a former federal prosecutor who helped put blind Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman behind bars for his role in the 1993 World Trade Center attack, blasted both the Obama administration and Republicans for allowing the military prison in Cuba to be emptied of terror suspects.



"There is no more despicable dereliction of duty than a commander-in-chiefs replenishing of enemy forces while the enemy is still attacking our troops and plotting to mass-murder Americans," McCarthy said.

"The Republican Congress has fecklessly signaled that it will take no meaningful action against the presidents subordination of national security to a radical political agenda," he continued. "Not surprisingly, the president is proceeding apace: Since Congress wont close Gitmo, Obama will simply empty it."

The latest releases, which included Al Sawah and Yemeni Abdul Aziz Abdullah Ali al Suadi, 41, brought the number of remaining prisoners at the camp down to 91, the lowest since the first detainees began to arrive at the installation in 2002.

Al Suadi has been described as an explosives trainer for Al Qaeda who in 2008 was still considered a potential high risk to the U.S., but also with high intelligence value. He was recommended for release by prison officials less than two years later. He has been at Gitmo since 2002, and is being transferred to the government of Montenegro.

A third detainee, Muhammad Bawazir, a 35-year-old also from Yemen, refused to board a plane as the others were being flown out for resettlement in the Balkans. Transfer to Yemen is not an option, as the nation is in the midst of a bloody civil war, and Bawazirs lawyer, John Chandler, said he prefers to stay in the military prison for now.

President Obama plans to close the prison and bring the remaining prisoners, who include 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, to American prisons. Last week, 10 Yemeni detainees were released and transferred to Oman.
A Houston-area man has pleaded not guilty to killing his 19-year-old wife more than four decades ago in suburban Chicago.

The (Arlington Heights) Daily Herald reports that 73-year-old Donnie Rudd entered the plea Friday in the death of Noreen Kumeta Rudd.

Rudd is being held on $4 million bond at the Cook County jail. He was arrested last month in Sugar Land, Texas, about 15 miles southwest of Houston.

Prosecutors allege Rudd beat his wife to death in 1973 and made it appear she had died in a car accident to collect $120,000 in life insurance. The case was ruled a homicide after an autopsy of her exhumed remains determined her injuries were consistent with multiple blows to the head, and inconsistent with being thrown from a vehicle.
A British judge's finding that Vladimir Putin was most likely behind the 2006 poisoning of a former Russian spy has added fuel to a London-based money man's quest for justice in another high-profile case.

Hedge fund manager Bill Browder believes the Russian president's cronies stole hundreds of millions of tax dollars paid by his company, Hermitage Capital, several years back, and that the lawyer he hired to solve the case was murdered in jail.

Nobody has ever been tried in connection with the death of Sergei Magnitsky, the lawyer and young father Browder says was beaten and denied medical treatment.

While Magnitsky's case and that of Alexander Litvinenko, the former spy poisoned with plutonium 210, are not directly related, they both remain unsolved and span an arc from Moscow to London.

Litvinenko had been living in exile in London when he fell ill after drinking tea with a couple of fellow Russians in the Milennium Hotel in London in 2006. He died three weeks later, but fingered Putin from his death bed. Browder said the British government did not do enough in the aftermath of his poisoning.



"The only reaction the British government had was to expel four diplomats and suspend cooperation with the Russian (spy agency) FSB," Browder said.

Browder has sought help from the British and U.S. governments in the case involving his lawyer and friend, whose killer has evaded justice in Russia.

Browder pressed the U.S. Congress to pass the Magnitsky Act, which freezes assets and bans visas of 18 people Browder believes were involved in Magniitsky's death. It also paves the way for anyone else deemed by Congress to be a human rights violator to be added to that list. Browder says they may escape punishment at home, but not abroad.

"Previously, anyone who commited human rights abuse in Russia had no risk of consequences," Browder said. "Now, all of a sudden, they have the risk of being put on the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctions list. Effectively, anyone who is on that list can't open a bank account anywhere else in the world."

In a tit-for-tat response to the Magnitsky Act, Russia banned adoptions by U.S. parents of Russian orphans.

Each year, Browder, who can't enter Russia, travels to the World Economic Forum in Davos to confront Russian delegations publicly about the lack of justice for Magnitsky.

While he was unable to pose his questions to Russian officials this year, Browder said he is confident a reeling economy driven by lower oil prices could force Russia to stop harboring criminals from international justice.

British Prime Minister David Cameron, also at Davos, said this week's damning report on Putin confirmed what he suspected all along, that the Russian government was behind Litvinenko's murder.

"We have a pretty difficult relationship with the Russians in any event," Cameron said. "But do we have to go on having some sort of relationship with them, because we need a solution to the Syria situation? Yes, we do. But we do it with clear eyes and a very cold heart."
Rocked by a wave of sexual assaults committed by migrant men, Germany is fighting back with cartoons, in a PC campaign critics say would be comical if it didnt address such a serious issue.

In a national effort already blasted by critics as demonstrating the governments ineptitude in dealing with unruly refugees from the Middle East and North Africa, authorities have distributed anti-sexual harassment cartoon leaflets at public swimming pools and other public facilities. One depicts a hand reaching for a shapely, bikini-clad womans backside, and bears a universal-language slash demonstrating such behavior is forbidden.

No verbal and bodily sexual harassment toward women in any kind of clothing, reads the caption below.

Mass sexual assaults of women by refugees during New Years Eve celebrations sent shockwaves through the nation. The attackers were believed to be among the estimated wave of 1 million Muslims who have poured into Germany in the last year, prompting a culture clash that critics say Berlin has been slow to grasp.

Before and after the New Years Eve attacks, hundreds of which occurred in Cologne, there were widespread reports of male refugees sexually harassing and assaulting women in public. Many of the incidents occurred at the nations popular public swimming halls, where authorities this week posted signs and issued codes of conduct to discourage the violent behavior.

In the East German city of Leipzig, migrants have followed women into restroom and changing facilities, according to the newspaper Mitteldeutche Zeitung. Elsewhere, male refugees have jumped into pools fully clothed or wearing underwear and groped female bathers. Officials in several communities, including the Bavarian capital of Munich, have responded with anti-sexual harassment cartoon leaflets to stop the increasing number of sexual attacks and aggression in public swimming facilities.

These signs are a good step, but they can only be a first initiative of more security measures to come, Saba Farzan, executive director of Foreign Policy Circle, a Berlin strategy think tank, told FoxNews.com. Protecting our women from vicious assaults means to teach refugees as well as migrants about gender equality.

But critics say laws, not leaflets and signs, should be used to protect women from assault.

If our criminal and asylum laws cant discourage perpetrators of sexual harassment and the activity of other offenses, what effect can signs in swimming facilities have? Cologne-based lawyer Stefanie Galla told FoxNews.com.

The codes of conduct and leaflets are being printed in multiple languages, including Arabic and English. The city of Leipzig also plans to rapidly introduce English signs about appropriate conduct and multi-language information pamphlets. Security cameras are set to be installed in the swimming facilities. Berlin, the capital of Germany, announced this week that it will introduce behavioral codes and signs for refugees who enter swimming buildings.

The small western town of Hermeskeil now requires that refugees participate in a 30-minute behavioral class before entering public swimming pools. The city requires that the migrants read 10 rules and sign a pledge that they will follow them before issuing an entry card for swimming.

Swimming is only allowed in swimwear (not in underwear or jeans or T-shirt)! reads one of the rules.

Some communities have found the education approach lacking. Last week, the town of Bornheim began barring adult male refugees from a public swimming facility because of sexual assaults. Bornheim has a population of about 45,000, and has absorbed approximately 800 Muslim refugees.

Sexual assaults also have been reported on public transportation facilities. Christian Janele, a city council representative in the Bavarian city of Regensburg, has suggested pink-colored Lady Zones where women would be separated from men. The bill, which was rejected by the city, was not prompted by the refugees, Janele insisted.

In the wake of the Cologne attacks, a prominent Muslim imam, Sami Abu-Yusuf, told reporters women were to blame because they dress half naked and wear perfume. The outrageous claim prompted Green Party Member of Parliament Volker Beck to file a criminal complaint against the cleric.
It may be cold out, but Homeless Jesus can weather any storm.

A bronze sculpture of Jesus Christ wrapped in a blanket and sleeping on a park bench has been the subject of numerous calls placed to paramedics in Hamilton, Ontario.

Thanks to those who reported someone laying out in the cold, thankfully it's the "Homeless Jesus" statue. #HamOnt pic.twitter.com/8c7QsAep3X  Hamilton Paramedics (@hemsparamedics) January 20, 2016

The confused callers believe the statue, placed outside a church, is an actual homeless man, Hamilton Paramedic Service operations supervisor Edward Harris told the CBC.

Harris says there has been an uptick in the calls after officials issued a plea for citizens to tip off authorities when they see people out in the cold.

"Thanks to those who reported someone (lying) out in the cold, thankfully it's the 'Homeless Jesus' statue, the Hamilton Paramedic Service tweeted on Wednesday.

The sculpture, created by Canadian artist Timothy Schmalz, is in place in cities including Grand Haven, Mich., Phoenix, Washington, Chicago, and Dublin, Ireland, the CBC reports.

Click for more from the CBC.
Kenyans are donating to the family of a Muslim man who was fatally wounded by Islamic extremists while shielding Christians during an attack on a bus.

On Twitter the hashtag HeroSalah has been trending as some Kenyans fundraise for the family of Salah Farah, who died Sunday in a Nairobi hospital. On Tuesday, his body was flown to the northeastern town of Mandera for burial.

"Salah's children and widow appreciate your support but that's not enough, his children need to go to school. Walk the talk," Mohamud Abbas said on Twitter.

Ann McCreath wrote: "Important to support this #HeroSalah is a symbol of the Kenya we want."

"Kenyan police chief Joseph Boinnet said: "He was a true hero. He died while protecting innocent Kenyans from terrorists."

Farah, who was a teacher in the coastal town of Malindi, was among passengers on a bus from Mandera to Nairobi in December when they were attacked by al-Shabab gunmen.

When they were ordered to separate according to religion, he was among the Muslims who refused, to protect the Christians. He was shot in the hip.

Kenyans are praising Farah on social media, saying his example should be emulated in a country facing a growing threat of Islamic extremism as Kenyans with ties to al-Shabab, a Somali group, launch attacks in this country.

In 2011, Kenya's government deployed peacekeepers to Somalia in part to stop al-Shabab members from crossing the border and launching attacks on Kenyan territory. Al-Shabab opposed the deployment and vowed to wage more attacks.

Last week al-Shabab attacked a camp for Kenyan peacekeepers in southwestern Somalia, killing an unknown number of Kenyan soldiers. Al-Shabab claimed it killed about 100 Kenyans in that attack, but Kenyan officials have refused to provide a death toll.


The latest on the detention of an American student in North Korea (all times local):

5:30 p.m.

A China-based tour company has confirmed that one if its clients has been detained in the North Korean capital of Pyongyang.

Young Pioneer Tours, which includes foreigners living in China who travel to North Korea, says the family of the American has been informed and the group has been touch with the Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang, which handles U.S. interests in the country.

The group says they are assisting the U.S. State Department closely in this situation.

They identified the man by his first name Otto, saying, "We would appreciate Otto's and his family's privacy being respected and we hope his release can be secured as soon as possible."

Pyongyang's Korean Central News Agency reported that authorities are investigating the student who it says entered the North as a tourist with a plot to undermine a unity among the North Koreans. It said the student has links to the U.S. government.

KCNA identified the person as Warmbier Otto Frederick, a student at Virginia University. North Korea has sometimes listed English-language surnames first.
Its a stunt so crazy, some people believe Bruce Willis would shy away.

A man in Norway determined to stop a thief from stealing his car jumped onto the roof and held on -- while only wearing his underwear as the temperature hovered near zero degrees Fahrenheit.

Police in Kristiansand say the 25-year-old car owner woke up Wednesday morning to the rumbling of his VW Passat's engine, the BBC reports. He raced out of his home and grabbed onto the bars on the roof of his car as it sped off.

Local police chief Jan Nesland told TV2 News that the thief managed to reach speeds of up to 56 mph. But the man smashed the back window of the car with his knee and was able to grapple with the thief before the vehicle crashed into a safety barrier.

The car owner was left pretty bloody and the suspect has been taken into custody, authorities said.

Bruce Willis wouldn't have managed that, Nesland added.

Click for more from the BBC.


North Korea said Friday that it had arrested a University of Virginia student for allegedly committing "anti-state" acts orchestrated by the U.S. government.

In language that mirrors past North Korean claims of outside conspiracies, state media claimed Otto Frederick Warmbier entered the North as a tourist with a plot to undermine unity among the North Koreans under "manipulation" from the U.S. government.

The report from the Korean Central News Agency said Warmbier was "arrested while perpetrating a hostile act," but didn't say when he was detained or explain the nature of the act.

The University of Virginia's website listed Warmbier as an undergraduate commerce student. A LinkedIn page under Warmbier's name indicated that he was a third-year student at the university.

Wyoming City Schools spokeswoman Susanna Max said Warmbier was the salutatorian of his 2013 graduating class in the highly rated public school north of Cincinnati. He also played soccer for Wyoming High School.

Max said school officials are in communication with Warmbier's family, which includes two sisters in Wyoming schools. She said the school district asks that everyone respect the family's privacy.



Warmbier had been detained on Jan. 2 on a tour provided by the China-based company Young Pioneer Tours, Reuters reported.

The student has also visited Cuba, Ireland and Israel, according to his Facebook page, Reuters reports.



An official at the U.S. embassy in Seoul, South Korea told Reuters it was aware of the reported arrest, but had no further comment.

"We are in touch with Otto's family, the U.S. State Department and the Embassy of Sweden in Pyongyang and doing all we can to secure his release," Gareth Johnson said. Sweden handles U.S. consular issues in North Korea because Washington and Pyongyang do not have diplomatic relations.

Ohio's governor called the detention "inexcusable."

Republican presidential candidate John Kasich said in a message on his Twitter account that the student should be "released & returned immediately."

Kasich has been in New Hampshire campaigning ahead of the state's Feb. 9 primary.

The detention came as Washington, Seoul and others are pushing hard to slap North Korea with tougher sanctions for its recent nuclear test. In the past, North Korea often announced the arrests of foreign detainees in times of tension with the outside world in an apparent attempt to wrest concessions or diplomatic maneuvering room.

North Korea regularly accuses Washington and Seoul of sending "spies" to overthrow its government to enable the U.S.-backed South Korean government to control the entire Korean Peninsula. Some foreigners previously arrested have read statements of guilt that they later said were coerced.

A few thousand Westerners are thought to visit North Korea each year, and Pyongyang is pushing for more tourists as a way to help its dismal economy. The U.S. State Department has warned against travel to the North, however, and visitors, especially those from America, who break the country's sometimes murky rules risk detention, arrest and possible jail sentences, although most have eventually been released.

Warmbier would be the third Westerner known to be held by the secretive Communist state. Last year, South Korean-born Canadian pastor Hyeon Soo Lim was sentenced to life in prison for alleged subversion.

Earlier this month, a Korean-American man told CNN that he was being held by North Korea on suspicion of spying. The U.S. State Department said it could not confirm the CNN report. It declined to discuss the issue further.

North Korea has previously released or deported U.S. detainees after high-profile Americans visited the country. In late 2014, for instance, North Korea released two Americans after a secret mission to the North by James Clapper, the top U.S. intelligence official. Critics say such trips have provided diplomatic credibility to the North.

The United States and North Korea are in a technical state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A reporter freed from Iran almost a week ago in a prisoner swap is now the third and final American to head back to the U.S., The Washington Post revealed Friday.

Jason Rezaian left the U.S. military's Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany Friday, according to the newspaper. His final destination was unclear.

"I appreciate the exceptional care I received from the doctors and medical staff, as well as the hospitality we were shown during our stay on the base," Rezaian said in a statement. Iran had held him for more than 500 days, the longest detention of any Western journalist in the Islamic Republic, the newspaper reports.

Two other Americans, retired Marine Amir Hekmati and pastor Saeed Abedini, returned to the U.S. Thursday. The Boise-based pastor was scheduled to spend time at the Billy Graham Training Center in North Carolina before reuniting with his wife on Monday.

Hekmati, who spent 4 1/2 years in an Iranian prison, arrived in Flint, Mich. to waiting reporters and well-wishers.

"Despite all of the difficulties, thank God, thanks to everyone's support -- everybody from the president, Congressman (Dan) Kildee, everyday Americans -- I'm standing here healthy, tall, and with my head held high," Hekmati said in brief remarks. "I'm glad to be here, and I appreciate everyone's support."

Hekmati kept his comments brief, and said he would share more about his experiences later. Asked about the time in prison, Hekmati said, "it wasn't good," but that his Marine training helped sustain him.

Rezaian was convicted on espionage charges behind closed doors last year. Abedini was imprisoned in 2012 for setting up home churches.

An Iranian-American prisoner, Nosratollah Khosravi-Roodsari, opted to stay in Iran after his release.
The Spanish Foreign Ministry has summoned the Venezuelan ambassador to again protest comments by Venezuela's president against acting Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy.

A ministry statement Friday said the government expressed to Ambassador Mario Isea Bohorquez its rejection of remarks by President Nicolas Maduro on Jan. 20 that Rajoy was a racist and a colonialist who interfered in other countries' affairs.

The ministry said Spain was surprised, especially given new Spanish media reports that representatives of two radical Spanish parties and relatives of prisoners from the outlawed armed Basque group ETA were flown on an official Venezuelan plane to Venezuela in 2014 to take part in a conference about regional self-determination movements in Spain.

Spain summoned the Venezuelan ambassador twice last year for similar reasons.
PizzaRev Announces 30th Restaurant Opening, Prepares to Double Unit Count in 2016

January 22, 2016 // Franchising.com // Los Angeles, CA  PizzaRev announced today that it will open its 30th restaurant next month in Californias Inland Empire. The Buffalo Wild Wings backed fast-casual pizza concept will continue its growth momentum with plans to double its footprint to 60 open locations by the end of 2016. PizzaRev will enter five new states this year, including Massachusetts, Nevada, New York, Ohio, and Tennessee and make its international debut in Mexico.

As the company looks ahead to a year of unit growth and product innovation, the PizzaRev team also celebrates significant milestones achieved in 2015. Named Best Pizza by LA Daily News readers and ranked #15 on the Top 100 Movers and Shakers by FastCasual.com, the 3-year-old brand is changing what consumers think about pizza, one community at a time. PizzaRev entered six new markets last year, including Boulder, CO, San Diego, CA, Sioux Falls, SD, Santa Barbara, CA, Bakersfield, CA and Palmdale, CA and added nine new franchise groups for a total of 150 franchise stores in the development pipeline across the U.S. and Mexico.

We look forward to a year of continued growth through corporate and franchise store development, with a focus on delivering the fastest, most healthful pizza dining experience available, said Rodney Eckerman, CEO and co-founder of PizzaRev. Revolutionary ideas and innovation are the cornerstone of our brand and we will continue to push the envelope in 2016 with new products that elevate our guests dining experience.

In 2015, PizzaRev furthered its commitment to an all-natural, made-from-scratch menu. The company introduced a gluten-free, all-natural meatball made from beef raised without antibiotic and hormones and all-natural hormone-free chicken to its list of 30+ artisanal toppings. Other elevated ingredients include locally sourced produce, when available. Last Summer, PizzaRev also unveiled six custom hot sauces on its Rev It Up counter where guests can choose from a variety of ingredients to put the finishing touches on their custom, personal pizzas.

PizzaRevs culinary innovations and enhancements, as well as its domestic and international expansion, is supported by partner Buffalo Wild Wings, Inc. The company seeks additional franchise partners who share the founders food-forward mission and commitment to giving back to the communities it serves.

About PizzaRev

PizzaRev is a "build-your-own" fast-casual pizza concept that has reinvented the way America eats its favorite food. Guests are empowered to fully customize a personal-sized 11" pizza for one price. Homemade dough options, flavorful sauces, all-natural cheeses, and more than 30+ artisanal toppings, everything is on display at PizzaRev and assembled right before your eyes. The pizzas are then fired in a 900-degree, stone-bed oven which produces a thin and crispy Roman-style pizza in just three minutes. Los Angeles-based PizzaRev was founded in 2012; the executive team possesses a combination of Fortune 500 operating experience and high-profile restaurant management.

PizzaRev is currently franchising and announced a strategic partnership with Buffalo Wild Wings in 2013. The company currently operates 29 locations with more than 150 additional franchises under development across Mexico, Washington, D.C. and 16 states: AZ, CA, CO, GA, MA, MN, NE, NJ, ND, NV, NY, OH, SD, TN, TX and UT.

Visit www.PizzaRev.com for the latest company news and location information. You can also find PizzaRev on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and Instagram.

SOURCE PizzaRev

Media Contact:

Monica Rutkowski

Director of Marketing & PR

(805) 418-5606

Monica.Rutkowski@pizzarev.com

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Scooter's Coffee Expands Nebraska Locations

Newest Location in Lincoln Celebrates Grand Opening

January 22, 2016 // Franchising.com // Lincoln, NE  Scooters Coffee, the Midwest-based coffee franchise that has experienced tremendous growth over the past year, will increase their Nebraska presence with the companys latest Grand Opening in Lincoln (5310 O Street) on Friday, January 22nd. To celebrate the opening, the new location will offer $1 medium drinks all day.

We have enjoyed watching the Scooters Coffee brand grow in the state of Nebraska, said Don Eckles, CEO and co-founder of Scooters Coffee.

This location is owned by Jason and Rita Metcalf. The couple currently owns 12 locations. Jason recalls how it all began. My wife was playing professional volleyball over seas when my Mom contacted us wanting to know if we would like to open a coffee shop. I was accepted into Chiropractic College and planned on that once my wife retired from volleyball. She ended up playing in the Olympics and professionally for 12 seasons. We really enjoy what were doing so I never enrolled in Chiropractic college and never looked back.

The locations grand opening marks the latest move in the companys extraordinary growth. With nearly 130 stores in soon-to-be 14 states, Scooters recently signed a large Area Representative Agreement in Phoenix along with several other Multi-Unit Agreements in Florida, Oklahoma and Arkansas. The company also recently opened its first location in Georgia (Roswell) and plans to build several more stores in the Atlanta area.

About Scooters Coffee

Founded in 1998 by Don and Linda Eckles in Bellevue, Nebraska, Scooters Coffee roasts only the finest coffee beans in the world at its headquarters in Omaha, Nebraska. Scooter's success over 17 years of history is simple: Stay committed to the original business principles and company core values. The Scooter's mantra, often recited to franchisees, customers and employees is: "Amazing People, Serving Amazing Drinks, Amazingly Fast. It represents the company's business origins from 1998 and reflects a steady commitment to providing an unforgettable experience to loyal customers.

For more information, visit scooterscoffee.com or Facebook.com/ScootersCoffee.

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DAVOS, Switzerland  Worries over a British exit from the European Union weighed on participants at the World Economic Forum on Thursday, with Frances prime minister warning that it would be a tragedy that could prove an inspiration to populists around the region at a time when many countries are contending with massive numbers of refugees.

British Prime Minister David Cameron said hes in no hurry to hold a referendum on his countrys future in the EU, if a deal on his reform proposals doesnt emerge at a summit of European leaders in February. But he insisted that his aim is to secure Britains future in a reformed EU, a stance that he says is the best outcome for both sides.

If theres a good deal on the table, I will take it, he told an audience of mainly business leaders in the Swiss ski resort of Davos. But if there isnt the right deal, Im not in a hurry. I can hold my referendum any time up until the end of 2017. And its much more important to get this right than to rush it.

One of the major tenets of the manifesto of Camerons Conservative Party, which won a governing majority in last Mays general election, was a pledge to hold a referendum on Britains future in the EU by the end of 2017 after a renegotiation process.

Britains future in the EU is set to be the main discussion point a summit of the EUs 28 leaders on Feb. 18-19. The thinking until very recently was that an agreement would emerge then, paving the way for a referendum in the summer.

The refugee crisis that has engulfed Europe over the past few months as people leave conflict zones, notably from Syria, has raised worries that a deal may not be achieved in timefor one thing, a referendum date will need time to legislate. Many European issues are up in the air at the moment, including what to do with the Schengen Agreement that allows borderless travel across much of the continent.

Cameron laid out his four reform proposals, which he insisted were not outrageous asks. He said he wants to hard-wire competitiveness into the EUs DNA, make sure non-euro countries like Britain arent discriminated by the 19 EU countries that use the euro currency, get Britain out of the idea of an ever-closer union and curbs on migration and benefits.

Since joining what was then known as the European Economic Community in 1973, Britains membership has often been strained. Over the past few years, a groundswell of opinion in the country thinks exiting the EU is the best option, especially at a time when many of its members are getting closer together, notably with the creation of the euro currency. In last Mays election, the U.K. Independence Party, which aims to get Britain out of the EU, won 4 million, or just under 13 percent of the total.
In language that mirrors past North Korean claims of outside conspiracies, Pyongyang's state media said the University of Virginia student, who attended high school outside Cincinnati, entered the country under the guise of a tourist and plotted to destroy North Korean unity with "the tacit connivance of the U.S. government and under its manipulation." The date of his arrest wasn't clear.

The North's official Korean Central News Agency said in a short report that the student, whom it identified as Warmbier Otto Frederick, was "arrested while perpetrating a hostile act," but it didn't explain the nature of the act. North Korea has sometimes listed English-language surnames first, in the Korean style. The University of Virginia's online student directory lists Otto Frederick Warmbier as an undergraduate commerce student, and Wyoming City Schools near Cincinnati confirmed Otto Warmbier is a 2013 graduate.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich, campaigning in New Hampshire as a Republican presidential candidate, called the arrest "inexcusable." He sent a message via his Twitter account saying the student "should be released & returned immediately."

A China-based tour company specializing in travel to North Korea, Young Pioneer Tours, confirmed that one of its customers, identified only as "Otto," had been detained in Pyongyang, the North's capital, but provided no other details.

Social media accounts for Warmbier show interests in finance, travel and rap music; he was on the University of Virginia's dean's list and attended high school in Wyoming City, a suburb of Cincinnati.

Warmbier was a top student at his high school and was described as a skilled soccer player. Wyoming City Schools spokeswoman Susanna Max said Warmbier was the salutatorian of his graduating class in the highly rated public high school.

The school district "has been in touch with the family of Otto Warmbier and we will have no additional comment at this time," Max said Friday.

The U.S. State Department said in a statement that it was "aware of media reports that a U.S. citizen was detained in North Korea," but had "no further information to share due to privacy considerations."

An attorney who represented a southwest Ohio man detained by North Korea for nearly six months in 2014 advised caution for those involved with the student.

"They (North Korea) kind of trickle information out, but what's actually going on can be very different," said attorney Timothy Tepe of Lebanon, Ohio, adding that he learned that North Korean authorities monitor reports and comments about detainees. "You have to be careful what you say."

He said the 2014 detainee, Jeffrey Fowle, is "doing wonderful" and seems to have adjusted well to life at his home near Dayton. The married father of three attends church regularly with his family and returned to a job in the city of Moraine's street department, Tepe said.

Fowle said in 2014 he had left a Bible in a North Korean nightclub in hopes it would reach underground Christians.

North Korea's announcement Friday comes amid a diplomatic push by Washington, Seoul and their allies to slap Pyongyang with tough sanctions for its recent nuclear test. In the past, North Korea has occasionally announced the arrests of foreign detainees in times of tension with the outside world in an apparent attempt to wrest concessions or diplomatic maneuvering room.

North Korea also regularly accuses Washington and Seoul of sending "spies" to overthrow its government to enable the U.S.-backed South Korean government to control the entire Korean Peninsula. Some foreigners previously arrested have read statements of guilt that they later said were coerced.

A few thousand Westerners visit North Korea each year, and Pyongyang is pushing for more tourists as a way to help its dismal economy. The U.S. State Department has warned against travel to the North, however, and visitors, especially those from America, who break the country's sometimes murky rules risk detention, arrest and possible jail sentences, although most have eventually been released.

Earlier this month, CNN reported that North Korea had detained another U.S. citizen, Kim Dong Chul, on suspicion of spying. North Korea has yet to comment on the report, and the U.S. State Department has said it could not confirm it.

North Korea has previously released or deported U.S. detainees after high-profile Americans visited the country. Critics say such trips have provided diplomatic credibility to the North.

The Korean Peninsula remains in a technical state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea.
Stairlift Company Reviews Encourages Massachusetts Dealers to Sign Up for Free Microsite Offer

Stairlift Company Reviews is pleased to announced that Massachusetts stair lift dealers now have the opportunity to dramatically boost their product sales via individualized mini-websites

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The growing popularity of StairliftCompanyReviews.com is firmly based on its key role as the major source of independent stair lift information on the internet. Dealers are keen to work with them, and the educated stair lift buyers knows that he or she need look no further for the information they seek. For all of these reasons Massachusetts stair lift dealers will be glad to hear that StairliftCompanyReviews.com has decided to offer them the chance to get their own dedicated mini websites free of charge.

These simple one or two page websites are designed to get the visitor to take a real interest in the company's product and follow up their interest with a purchase. They include whatever product information, photographs, installation details and purchasing information the dealer wants to use to bring in sales. For dealers who lack an online presence the value of taking up this offer cannot be overrated. The online market now brings a significant stream of revenue to many stair-lift dealers, and businesses will only lose out if they don't participate.

Yale Lipschik, Co-Founder of StairliftCompanyReviews.com says, "the State of Massachusetts is known as the 'Spirit of America' and we believe our free stairlift dealer microsites remain true to this spirit. By helping stair lift dealers establish new sales platforms we can help local market growth and this will bring real benefits to both these local businesses and the consumer. Integral to this new offering, we commit ourselves to advise participating dealers in best website practices, and help them with the photography required to present their products in the most attractive manner."

Local stair lift dealers have already come to value their links with Stairlift Company and they appreciate the help received to connect them with an educated buying public. Arkansas stair lift dealer Jonathan Brown writes, "Many thanks for your invaluable assistance in setting up our mini-website. I was impressed by your professionalism and willingness to go out of your way to explain what was needed to someone without any prior knowledge of online sales methods. I am certain that other dealers will want to avail themselves of your generous offer.

As the Massachusetts campaign of StairliftCompanyReviews.com continues to attract the support of local dealers, further service/product announcements can certainly be expected over the coming months. For more information please visit www.stairliftcompanyreviews.com.

About StairliftCompanyReviews.com

StairliftCompanyReviews.com is the internet's largest single source of stairlift information. We connect stairlift shoppers with the best local stairlift dealers, installers, and servicers who represent the most popular brands in the industry. Chair lift customers can quickly and easily get price quotes from all major brands on stairlift rentals and on all new and pre-owned models from manufacturers like Acorn, Stannah, Hawle and Bruno. Consumers who use StairliftCompanyReviews.com receive competitive quotes from only prescreened, trusted dealers and service representatives for new, pre-owned, and rental stairlifts.

For more information about us, please visit http://www.stairliftcompanyreviews.com/

Contact Info:

Name: Yale Lipschik

Organization: Stairlift Company Reviews

Address: 500 Mamaroneck Ave Harrison, NY 10528

Phone: 1-888-507-2015

Source: http://marketersmedia.com/stairlift-company-reviews-encourages-massachusetts-dealers-to-sign-up-for-free-microsite-offer/101757

Release ID: 101757

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Pest Defense Solutions Opens Office in El Paso

Pest Defense Solutions - El Paso is a prominent pest control exterminator service company in Texas. It is located at 6425 Boeing Dr, Suite D8, El Paso, TX 79925. For more information, call (915) 591-2847 or go online to http://elpaso.pestdefensesolutions.com/.

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Pest Defense Solutions, the premiere pest control services company, has announced the opening of their office in El Paso, Texas. It is a welcome announcement for many of the residents of the city, as the area is known as an ideal environment for many types of pests.

"Part of the reason why we call El Paso home is that it's a great city with great people, and we love the rich cultural heritage, the abundant sunshine, and the low crime," admits Jacob Hatch, who owns Pest Defense Solutions El Paso. "But at the same time, pests and bugs love the city too, because the warm climate and the sprawling neighborhoods offer a perfect home for these pests."

It is the unmistakable presence of these pests that have already made Pest Control Solutions a well-known brand name among many of the businesses and residents of the city.

"Many of our clients are food facilities such as restaurants, because this is a commercial setting in which routine pest control is crucial," reveals Hatch. "Our pest control methods aren't just effective, but they're also safe for places in which food is prepared for people."

Hospitals and other healthcare facilities also pose a unique challenge for pest control. Although pests can spread disease, application of insecticides is restricted as these substances can contaminate sterile environments and can also pose a health risk to patients.

"For hospitals, we employ what we call Integrated Pest Management, which regards the use of pesticides as a last resort," explains Hatch. "Instead, we start with inspection, monitoring, and communication with clients so that we can improve conditions that are conducive to pest infestations."

The company also handles a lot of pest control problems for many of the offices in El Paso.

"Of course, we also have a lot of clients who want us to take care of their pest problems in the office, because employees don't usually bother with the issue and they may even contribute to the problem," says Hatch. "Many offices also have design features that make it easy for pests to come in and take residence, such as drop ceilings that let pests come in unnoticed, and lots of doors and windows that are kept open during most of the work day."

Pest Defense Solutions also helps out many residents with their pest infestation issues. The company focuses on the exterior so that interior solutions are minimized, they do a "power spray service" at every visit, and they use ERA-registered pesticides.

"We're always concerned about customer satisfaction, which is why we offer a guarantee for our work," Hatch points out. "We offer a 30-day guarantee after a treatment, and for our recurring clients we return and re-treat a pest problem for free when it comes up between regularly scheduled appointments."

For more information about us, please visit http://elpaso.pestdefensesolutions.com

Contact Info:

Name: Jason Hatch

Organization: Pest Defense Solutions El Paso

Address: 6425 Boeing Dr suite D8 El Paso TX 79925

Phone: (915) 591-2847

Release ID: 101785

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WiFiAkamai Reputation Marketing Hits Hawaii Local Businesses, February 1, 2016

WiFiAkamai Local Marketing announced the availability of their new Local Reputation Marketing Service beginning February 1, 2016. More information can be found at http://wifiakamai.com/.

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Customers looking for the latest Local Reputation Marketing Service will soon be able to get involved with WiFiAkamai Local Marketing. Today Martin K Pe'a, Executive Producer at WiFiAkamai Local Marketing releases details of the new Local Reputation Marketing Service's development.

The Local Reputation Marketing Service is designed to appeal specifically to Local Businesses and Professionals and includes:

Manage Business Reputation - This feature was included because it monitors top directories, sends instant review alerts, and provides detailed reputation reporting, monthly marketing analysis, and client feedback customer relationship management (CRM). This is great news for the consumer as it delivers online monitoring, real-time alerts, with management and marketing reports.

Build Business Reputation - This was made part of the service, since it builds staff training center, feedback review and survey pages, custom print media center, mobile review app, and customer sign-in page, with a proprietary posting system. Customers who invest in the service should enjoy this feature because it provides online training and media, real-time feedback and posting, with custom app and pages.

Market Business Reputation - WiFiAkamai Local Marketing made sure to make this part of the Local Reputation Marketing Service's development as it markets reviews and commercials on websites, social media, photo and video sharing sites. Customers of the Local Reputation Marketing Service will likely appreciate this because it gets more business customers by sharing reputation, brand, product and services on a multitude of online sites and media..

Martin K Pe'a, when asked about the Local Reputation Marketing Service said:

"Every local business today is impacted by major game changers in marketing: Now Businesses Must Have Reviews To Compete Online... So Build A Five Star Reputation, And Then Market Your Reputation To Get More Customers... Remember, Buyers Trust Reviews As Much As Family And Personal Recommendations...And, WiFiAkamai Reputation Marketing Strategy Is The Most Effective Way To Market For Local Business Today..."

This is the latest offering from WiFiAkamai Local Marketing and Martin K Pe'a is particularly excited about this launch because WiFiAkamai Local has worked with local marketing and reputation marketing leaders across the country this past year to finally introduce local businesses in Hawaii to this market-changing online service. Hawaii businesses will definitely benefit from learning and applying WiFiAkamai reputation marketing strategies to get more customers and grow their brand..

Those interested in learning more about WiFiAkamai Local Marketing and their Local Reputation Marketing Service can do so on the website at http://wifiakamai.com/

For more information about us, please visit http://wifiakamai.com/

Contact Info:

Name: Martin K Pe'a

Organization: WiFiAkamai Local

Address: 47-531 Halemanu St

Phone: 888-446-2672

Release ID: 101729

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DFW Best Roofing of North Richland Hills Awarded Best Of Houzz 2016

DFW Best Roofing was awarded by the Houzz community which has been doing roofing services in Dallas & Fort Worth Area for almost a decade. Houzz was chosen by more than 35 million users that comprise the Houzz community.

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Over 35 Million Monthly Unique Users Nominated Best Home Building, Remodeling and Design Professionals in North America and Around the World

North Richland Hills, January X, 2016 - DFW Best Roofing of North Richland Hills has won "Best Of Customer Service on Houzz, the leading platform for home remodeling and design. The Roofing Company in DFW Metroplex has been doing roofing services in Dallas & Fort Worth which been doing roofing services for almost a decade was chosen by the more than 35 million monthly unique users that comprise the Houzz community from among more than one million active home building, remodeling and design industry professionals.

The Best Of Houzz is awarded annually in three categories: Design, Customer Service and Photography. Design award winners' work was the most popular among the more than 35 million monthly users on Houzz. Customer Service honors are based on several factors, including the number and quality of client reviews a professional received in 2015. Architecture and interior design photographers whose images were most popular are recognized with the Photography award. A "Best Of Houzz 2016? badge will appear winners' profiles, as a sign of their commitment to excellence. These badges help homeowners identify popular and top-rated home professionals in every metro area in DFW area.

"When we say The Customer is king; we mean it", said Justin Stanfield the CEO of the Company.

"We want to create a culture of service not business", said Omar Baloch, the President of the Company.

"Anyone building, remodeling or decorating looks to Houzz for the most talented and service-oriented professionals'" said Liza Hausman, vice president of Industry Marketing for Houzz. "We're so pleased to recognize DFW Best Roofing, voted one of our "Best Of Houzz" professionals by our enormous community of homeowners and design enthusiasts actively remodeling and decorating their homes."

Follow DFW Best Roofing on Houzz

About DFW Best Roofing

DFW Best Roofing is an expert professional roofing company in the Dallas and Fort Worth area. DFW Best Roofing is uniquely qualified to install roofing systems that can not only last for years, that will add value to the clients home- when installed with the proper ventilation system; will even save clients money on heating and air conditioning bills. DFW Best Roofing is a "full service" DFW Roofing contractor. DFW Best Roofing handles everything from a new roof installation, roof restoration and roof maintenance to re-roofs and roof repairs. All with the assurance that can solely come with years of experience. Every home owner is treated with the "personal touch". DFW Best Roofing understands that to build a successful relationship with clients is just as important as knowing how to build a quality roof. Dedication to customer satisfaction has been the key to DFW Best Roofing's success.

About Houzz

Houzz is the leading platform for home remodeling and design, providing people with everything they need to improve their homes from start to finish - online or from a mobile device. From decorating a small room to building a custom home and everything in between, Houzz connects millions of homeowners, home design enthusiasts and home improvement professionals across the country and around the world. With the largest residential design database in the world and a vibrant community empowered by technology, Houzz is the easiest way for people to find inspiration, get advice, buy products and hire the professionals they need to help turn their ideas into reality. Headquartered in Palo Alto, CA, Houzz also has international offices in London, Berlin, Sydney, Moscow and Tokyo. Houzz and the Houzz logo are registered trademarks of Houzz Inc. worldwide. For more information, visit houzz.com.

For more information about us, please visit http://www.dfwbestroofing.com

Contact Info:

Name: Delana Shatley

Organization: DFW Best Roofing

Address: 6709 Starnes Rd

Phone: 8173816855

Release ID: 101789

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InterServer Introduces Managed WordPress Servers To Make Having A Website Easier Than Ever

InterServer has created a new managed WordPress server service, with packages starting at just $8 a month, to help people get the best performance with the ultimate in service and security.

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Many people, together with businesses of all sizes, think about getting a website, but often get put off when it comes to creating one. While there are powerful blogging tools like WordPress that can help people create amazing websites visually and without the need to know code, the server it is hosted on can still seem like a foreign universe for those who only ever experience front-end IT. That's why InterServer, one of the leading web hosting providers in the world, is now offering managed WordPress hosting from just eight dollars a month.

The basic package comes with an Easy WordPress Installer so individuals can get started right away, Daily Backups to ensure no data is lost, Daily GIT Revisions to keep website history and statistics tracked, Atomic Mod Security for protection from hackers, WordPress Clean-up to restore the site in case of fatal errors, a daily virus scan, and automatic WP updates.

On top of these perks, the InterServer team will make sure the server is fully optimized to offer the fastest possible loading speeds, so that customers and visitors will receive the best experience possible when navigating the website.

A spokesperson for InterServer explained, "We are pleased to be able to offer the best possible service to our clients when it comes to managed servers, which allow people to rest easy knowing all the regular maintenance has been taken care of. The wonderful thing about this managed hosting is that it will enable people to create amazing sites using WordPress, focusing their energy on the creative and expressive front end of their site, without having to get bogged down in the obscure and often intimidating world of servers, security and backups. We offer a wide range of web hosting solutions and services so end users can pick the most appropriate package."

About InterServer: InterServer was one of the first names in web hosting in 1999, and is now one of the biggest institutions in the business. Today, they offer dedicated servers, colocation and other managed services. As a technology and product innovator, InterServer is able to provide their customers with innovative products and services designed to complement their existing businesses. They serve customers ranging from individual freelancers to Fortune 500 companies around the world.

For more information about us, please visit http://www.interserver.net/

Contact Info:

Name: Michael Lavrik

Organization: InterServer Web Hosting

Phone: 201-605-1440

Source: http://marketersmedia.com/interserver-introduces-managed-wordpress-servers-to-make-having-a-website-easier-than-ever/101811

Release ID: 101811

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Popular London Clubs to Pay Tribute to David Bowie

Some of the citys top nightclubs have announced that they will be holding tribute nights in honour of late David Bowie.

January 22, 2016 (FPRC) --



Last week saw the loss of music icon David Bowie. His death from an 18-month battle with liver cancer came as a shock to many, as the renowned artist chose to tell only a handful of people about his health decline.



Following this news, some of Londons top hotspots, including clubs based in Bowies hometown of Brixton, have released dates for upcoming event nights during which fans can dance the night away to his classics and celebrate the work and life of the talented musician.



Furthermore, many venues have announced that 50 per cent of profits from their events will be given to Cancer Research.



The 69-year-old, who was known for his contribution to the music industry with cult hits such as Starman and Ashes to Ashes, left behind a great legacy. Many stars have taken to social media to pay their respects.



Devastated. There will only ever be one David Bowie. A pioneer, a maverick and a visionary. I've been so inspired by him and his intent on doing what he wants without thought of judgement and views of others. RIP to one of the last icons, said Fearne Cotton, Radio DJ.



There have also been reports that British supermodel Kate Moss threw her 42nd birthday party at the weekend in honour of her former friend.



For more information on the variety of David Bowie event nights taking place in London in the coming weeks, please contact Velvet PR directly.



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Velvet PR is a leading London guestlist provider offering exclusive membership packages. The companys experienced team maintains the highest relationships with all of the capitals guest-list only VIP clubs, ensuring Velvet PR is the first port of call for revellers wishing to get on the guestlist or book a table at any top London nightclub. These talented promoters also organise and host a variety of events in the city for elite clientele. Please enquire for more details.



Media Contact:



Velvet PR



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Tel: 0207 2052501



Email: guestlist@velvet-pr.com













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Volatility in Chinese markets has been the dominant theme so far this year. Fund managers with exposure to the country have been worried ever since stocks fell by 7 per cent following the release of weaker than expected manufacturing data.

However, those bullish on the Chinese economy believe the country will slowly stabilise as the government is currently trying move its focus from manufacturing to service.

China is experiencing a slowdown in growth, but not a collapse said Mike Bell, global market strategist, JP Morgan Asset Management. The dominant service sector in China remains healthy and retail sales are growing strongly.

He further added that, despite the expected slowdown in the rate of growth, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) still expects Chinese nominal GDP to expand rapidly, to more than $17tn (11.9tn) by 2020. But recent GDP figures from China point to the slowest rate of growth in 25 years. The countrys economy grew at 6.9 per cent, short of government expectations of 7 per cent and below last years growth of 7.3 per cent.

Market analysts have warned that the slowdown in Chinese markets could have an impact on other developed and emerging markets. But many fund managers believe the developed markets have over-reacted to concerns surrounding China and will continue to recover this year, although investors still remain cautious on emerging markets.

Volatility in China and its subsequent impact on the global markets have left investors and analysts concerned. Some have said that due to the size of its economy and contribution to global GDP, China needs to reform its communication strategy with the markets.

In developed markets, the rate hike from the US Federal Reserve, and strong employment figures have signalled a stronger US economy. Market analysts believe the Fed will raise rates every quarter this year, although it will take into account global uncertainties such as the Chinese economy and oil prices that are now below $30 (21) a barrel.

The focus has now turned away from the Fed and towards the Bank of England. Speculation is mounting over a UK rate hike by the end of the year. The economy is said to be growing at a robust pace and is on its path to recovery. However, some analysts say that if the growth forecast is not met, governor Mark Carney may further delay any hike.

The UK economy is expected to grow at 2.6 per cent, compared with 2.2 per cent over the previous 12 months, according to an Ernst & Young report.

Meanwhile, a number of analysts have predicted that 2016 will continue to be dominated by volatility.

Valuations are stretched in bonds and developed market equities, and GDP and earnings growth will be modestly positive, Alan Mudie, head of investment strategy, Societe Generale Private Banking said.

spriha.srivastava@ft.com
The companys marketing director said the products have proven popular since they were launched earlier in 2015.

Aegon is one of three unit-linked guarantees players prominent in the market in the UK, alongside Metlife and Axa.

Mr Robertson said: I think you could sell this product directly. Selling through advisers is absolutely our strategy at the moment but the product could be restructured a little bit to make it simpler and sold directly.

I think that in reality you should be getting advice on an annuity because it is a once in a lifetime decision that you cannot reverse at the moment.

Aegon will have longer-term plans of going direct to the consumer but at the moment it is all about the adviser.

The guaranteed product, called Secure Retirement Income, was launched in July, and aims to build on the success of Aegons variable annuities in the US, where they generate about 7bn a year of new business.

Aegon Ireland is looking to work with platforms to get variable annuities out to more people and Mr Robertson said this would happen some time this year.

He said: That will be happening at some point in 2016. It is quite an exciting year for us.

Marvin Evans, an adviser with Gloucestershire-based Old Bank Wealth Management, said: There are so many different variables and until you sit down with your client and work out whats important you wont know.

The more tools we have to handle the situations that come before us the better. I think there has got to be demand for a product that combines the guarantee of an annuity with the flexibility of drawdown.
Six companies which promised to recover investment losses for people have been ordered into liquidation by the High Court.

An investigation by The Insolvency Service found that five of the companies were connected.

Between them, they left members of the public with losses of more than 350,000.

The connected companies involved all had registered offices in London and were Claremont Partnerships Ltd, Brookepoint Ltd, Brookcourt Trading Ltd, Cotexx Trading Ltd, and Manor Trade Ltd.

David Hill, chief investigator with The Insolvency Service, said: These companies operated what were effectively scam boiler room operations that had no prospect of retrieving lost investments.

The Insolvency Service will not allow such companies to fleece vulnerable and honest people.

We will investigate these abuses and close down companies if they are found to be operating against the public interest.

The companies targeted individuals who had previously purchased investments such as carbon credits and rare earth metals from other companies, some of which had previously been wound up in the public interest.

Exit strategies were promised and substantial advance fees were required, which were in some instances represented as refundable.

In the case of Claremont, it also claimed that its guarantee which made promises of returns on sale was underwritten by Axa, which was untrue.

The sixth company, Etonstanley Ltd, resulted in at least 51,800 of losses to members of the public.

The company targeted elderly and vulnerable individuals who had already purchased carbon credits from companies that have been wound up in the public interest for trading without commercial probity and making false statements.
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Story Highlights China approval higher than U.S. approval in both Egypt, Iran

U.S. leadership approval nearly twice as high in Iran as in Egypt

More ambiguity surrounds perceptions of Chinese leadership than U.S.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- As Chinese President Xi Jinping visits Egypt and Iran on his Middle East tour this week, based on approval ratings, China is on stronger footing with the publics in these countries than are other major world powers. Ratings of China's leadership in these two countries are statistically tied, with slightly less than one-third of both Egyptians (31%) and Iranians (30%) approving. Still, these ratings are higher than the ones for the U.S., the European Union and Russia.

Xi is expected to use the trip to assert China's role in the region and on Friday will be the first major world leader to visit Iran since the U.S. and the EU lifted sanctions last weekend. This may be a chance for him to further build China's brand. Although their approval ratings are higher, considerable numbers of Egyptians (33%) and Iranians (39%) don't know enough about the leadership of China to answer the question. And about as many Egyptians (36%) and Iranians (32%) affirm that they disapprove of China's leadership.

U.S. Approval Dismal Among Egyptians, Stronger in Iran

Despite decades of close cooperation, significant military aid and choosing Cairo as President Barack Obama's platform from which to speak to the Muslim world, a majority of Egyptians (62%) continue to disapprove of U.S. leadership. And the 10% of Egyptians who approve of U.S. leadership is one of its worst ratings in years. In fact, Egyptians are now less likely than Iranians (19%) to say they approve of U.S. leadership.

While a majority of Iranians (51%) also disapprove of the U.S., ratings have improved considerably since 2011, and disapproval is at its lowest point in years. U.S. approval among Iranians saw an increase of five percentage points after Iran reached a nuclear deal with world powers, and it is at its highest point in years. As with China's leadership, roughly three in 10 Iranians (30%) and Egyptians (28%) don't offer an opinion about U.S. leadership.

Russia's Second Wind in the Region

Since the Soviet era, when it had stronger ties with a number of countries in the Middle East, Russia's presence in the region has been relatively obscure -- until recently. Russia's resurgence is apparent not only in the Syrian civil war theater and in Moscow's support of Iran, but also in strengthening economic and military ties with Arab nations such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

Approval ratings of Russia's leadership in both Egypt and Iran have increased since 2011. After approval ratings in Egypt dropped to an all-time low of 11% in 2012, a revived Cairo-Moscow relationship is apparent in the 27% of Egyptians who now approve of Russia's leadership. While 24% of Iranians share that view, it is important to consider that Russia has been a steadfast ally of Iran, particularly in the latter's policies in the Syrian war. It is also important to note that the Egyptian survey predates the Sharm el-Sheikh terrorist attack that downed a Russian Airbus flight.

Still, many in Egypt (34%) and Iran (39%) don't have an opinion about Russia's leadership. And it's important to point out that residents in each country are more likely to disapprove than approve of the country's leadership. Nearly four in 10 Egyptians (39%) and Iranians (37%) affirm their disapproval of Russian leadership.

EU Leadership Approval on the Rise in Iran

The EU has played a key role in the nuclear deal negotiations that paved the way for the removal of sanctions related to the country's nuclear program. Most Iranians saw these sanctions that the U.S., the United Nations and Western Europe imposed as hurting their livelihood. Since 2011, and as various stages in the nuclear negotiations have unfolded, EU leadership approval has increased steadily among Iranians. Although the agreement was reached in July, in September 2015, Iranians were about as likely to approve of EU leadership (26%) as they were the year before (24%) -- but both ratings are still about twice as high as they were in 2011 and 2012.

Egyptians (19%) were slightly less likely than Iranians to approve of EU leadership in 2015. While 34% of Iranians disapproved of EU leadership in 2015, a plurality of Egyptians (46%) shared that view. However, a considerable amount of ambiguity about EU leadership remains, as many Iranians (39%) as well as Egyptians (35%) don't offer an opinion.

Bottom Line

Xi has set out to increase China's geopolitical footprint throughout the world in 2016. As the country currently holds the leadership seat for the G-20, and sees a shifting landscape in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, various economic opportunities will likely present themselves in the coming years. Despite its decades-long track record of heavy diplomatic and military involvement in the region, the U.S. fares worse than both China and Russia on leadership approval.

However, while strong government-to-government relations do not necessarily manifest positive approval ratings among citizens, some countries such as Russia have perhaps seen their approval ratings improve from strengthening leader-to-leader relations. It is interesting to note that Egyptian perceptions of Russia may be driven more by Moscow's direct relationship with Cairo than by Russia's involvement and alignment with Syria and Iran throughout the broader region.

The current rising tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran present Xi with a unique opportunity to begin wading his feet into the warm waters of Middle East power jostling. Similarly to Pakistan, China finds itself as one of few global actors with strong economic and geopolitical interests in strengthening its relations with both Iran and Saudi Arabia. As China's president tours the region to announce major trade cooperation and infrastructure project initiatives, it is no coincidence that he will arrive in Tehran just days after Implementation Day, when the International Atomic Energy Agency certified that Iran is in compliance with the required restrictions on its nuclear capabilities. This year will likely prove to be one of a balancing act of interests for China in the MENA region, one that requires improved relations with Riyadh, Cairo and Tehran.

These data are available in Gallup Analytics.

Survey Methods

Results in Egypt are based on face-to-face interviews with 1,000 adults, aged 15 and older, conducted Aug. 7-15, 2015. For results based on the total sample of national adults, the margin of sampling error is 3.6 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.

Results in Iran are based on telephone interviews with 1,001 adults, aged 15 and older, conducted Sept. 4-22, 2015. For results based on the total sample of national adults, the margin of sampling error is 3.9 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.

For more complete methodology and specific survey dates, please review Gallup's Country Data Set details.

Learn more about how the Gallup World Poll works.
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The contracts for firefighters and lifeguards each covers a three-year period and provides annual wage increases.
Green Party presidential hopeful Jill Stein spoke to a receptive audience of about 100 people in Corvallis on Thursday night, urging them to quit voting for the lesser evil and cast a ballot for genuine political change.

Stein, a Massachusetts physician who was the partys nominee in 2012 and will seek the nod again at the Green nominating convention in August, gave an hourlong stump speech at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship.

She spent some of that time laying out her platform, which is built around the traditional Green Party values of environmentalism, nonviolence and social justice. But she devoted most of her talk to persuading voters who feel trapped by the two-party system that a third-party candidate like her could actually win  eventually.

Power concedes nothing without a demand  it never has and never will, she said, quoting Frederick Douglass. Thats why I moved from a doctor practicing clinical medicine to a doctor practicing political medicine, because (the political system) is the mother of all illnesses.

Shaking a finger at predatory banks, fossil fuel pirates and war profiteers, Stein said her campaign is about putting people, planet and peace over profit.

Speaking in a cool, measured tone, she called on Greens to be patient and have faith that more and more disaffected Americans would migrate to the party over time.

We have to build to get to the point where we can win office, because you dont get to 51 percent overnight, she said. We have to commit to our values. We have to commit to bring our moral compass to our politics, because politics needs a moral compass.

Stein called on progressive-minded voters to stop supporting Democratic politicians simply because they dislike Republican policies more.

The lesser evil, if you look at the track record, has been paving the way for the greater evil, she said.

She slammed Democratic President Barack Obama for bailing out the big banks after the 2008 economic collapse, continuing the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, deporting migrants, exporting jobs, restricting civil liberties and attacking press freedoms while failing to take decisive action to halt climate change.

According to a recent poll, Stein said, roughly half of American voters already consider themselves political independents or third-party supporters. She also touted two planks of her platform she said would rally large voting blocs to the Green Partys banner: forgiveness of student loans and free college tuition, which should appeal to the 43 million Americans burdened by education debt, and expanded legal protections for immigrants, a move likely to play well with the countrys 25 million Latino voters.

The numbers are there, she said. The question is how well can we mobilize? How well can we get the word out?

Stein laid out a vision for what she called a Green New Deal that would create jobs and combat global warming by shifting America away from its reliance on climate-polluting fossil fuels and converting to all-renewable energy sources by 2030.

By doing that, we revitalize the economy, we turn the tide on climate change and we make wars for oil obsolete, she said in one of the evenings biggest applause lines.

Her platform also includes providing Medicare-style health insurance for all Americans, an end to high-stakes testing in the public schools, a national effort to curb police violence and reduce incarceration rates, a $15-an-hour minimum wage and a foreign policy based on diplomacy and cooperation rather than military and economic domination.

Returning to her opening theme, she urged her audience to stop worrying about wasting votes on a third-party candidate and focus on voting their conscience instead.

We can create the kind of world we want. That is why it is so important that we stand up for a politics of courage and vote for what we want instead of just voting against what we are most afraid of, she said.

Its time to forget the lesser evil and stand up and fight for the greater good, because our lives depend on it.
ROSE (roz) n. One of the most beautiful of all flowers, a symbol of fragrance and loveliness. Often given as a sign of appreciation.

RASPBERRY (razbere) n. A sharp, scornful comment, criticism or rebuke; a derisive, splatting noise, often called the Bronx cheer.

We hereby deliver:

 RASPBERRIES, of course, to the Gazette-Times, for a big-time stumble in this year's coverage of the annual Celebrate Corvallis event. This year, as you might have read in last Saturday's edition, the annual First Citizen award went to Jack Peters, a worthy winner. There was, alas, a problem with the photograph that accompanied our Celebrate Corvallis story on Saturday: The citizen pictured in the photo was not actually Jack Peters.

No, the citizen pictured was George Abele, a worthy fellow in his own right, and a longtime organizer of all of the First Citizen awards  but not actually this year's First Citizen. We could take some time now to elaborate exactly how this particular brain cramp seized the newsroom on Friday night, but it's too painful for us to recall.

Our apologies, of course, to Peters and Abele and everyone else involved in putting on this annual celebration of the people and entities that help make Corvallis special. And congratulations to other Celebrate Corvallis winners  Pat Lampton, owner of The Inkwell Home Store, who earned the Jim and Ruth Howland Award for Special Achievement; Andrea Thornberry of the Heartland Humane Society, the Junior First Citizen; Alice Mills Morrow, the Senior First Citizen; Norah Storniolo, the Future First Citizen; Tim Weber, the Robert C. Ingalls Business Person of the Year; Rich Carter and Mike Standen of Valliscor, the Entrepreneurs of the Year; Cynthia Spencer, Patron of the Arts; Lucidyne, Business of the Year; Corvallis Environmental Center, Nonprofit of the Year; and Seeds for the Sol, Good Steward of the Planet.

And, speaking of planets:

 ROSES to the astronomers who announced this week strong evidence that another planet lurks in the far reaches of our solar system. The so-called "Planet X" would be the ninth planet in our solar system, since the previous ninth planet, Pluto, lost its status as a full-fledged planet a few years back. (We still carry a grudge over that on Pluto's behalf.)

Planet X is thought to be a gas giant, roughly the size of Neptune; the evidence for its existence is based in part on a gravitational signature that appears to be influencing objects in the Kuiper Belt in the outskirts of the solar system. Extra ROSES to the astronomer who summarized that signature in these words: "We have felt a great disturbance in the force." One last thing: When "Planet X" finally is actually observed, can we please officially name it "Planet X?" (Pluto could be "Planet Ex.")

 Speaking of cool astronomical news, ROSES to this season's alignment of the planets: Through about the third week in February, you can rise about an hour before sunrise to see five planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Saturn and Jupiter) all aligned in the predawn sky. (Mercury, which will be hanging closest to the horizon, will be hardest to see, but it's there.) It's the first time in more than a decade that all five will be visible at the same time, but an encore performance is due in August. Now, all we need to complete the picture are clear morning skies in the mid-valley. (Maybe we should mark those August dates on the calendar.)

 RASPBERRIES to the latest scam that caught our attention: Officials say they're seeing cases in Oregon in which crooks are using devices known as "skimmers" to steal information from credit and debit cards used at gas pumps.

Here's how it works: The crooks secretly place the device into the housing unit of a gas pump just long enough to illegally access information from the card as it's inserted into the pump. The information is stored on the skimmer, and at some point, the crooks sneak back and remove the device.

Inspectors from the state Agriculture Department are trained to look for the devices as they go around the state. This may be one of the few advantages of living in a state that limits self-service gas: Attendants in theory can keep an eye on the pumps, but they can't watch them all the time. The best defense is to keep an eye on your bank statements for any untoward charges.

 RASPBERRIES to silly surveys: We refer, of course, to this week's news from the website Zippia that Corvallis is only the sixth-smartest town in Oregon. (The website, which supposedly has something to do with employment and jobs, looked at just two data sets in making its rankings: the percentage of adults with at least a high school education and the percentage of teenagers who are high school dropouts.)

For what it's worth, Lake Oswego topped the list.

And it's not worth much: Zippia identified North Bend as being "just a few minutes away" from Bend. (The two cities are 238 miles apart, so it must depend on your definition of a "few minutes.") Also, Zippia's web story ran a photograph from Ashland and said it was from Happy Valley. Running the wrong photo? Who would have ever thought such a thing was possible?
Its an important position in the community.

The Philomath fire chief must direct career paid staff while maintaining and attracting volunteers.

Its a job that requires good public relations whether talking to a group of school children going on a fire station tour or sitting down for an interview with the media.

And of course, leading an organization that responds to medical emergencies and fires will always be a top priority.

The Philomath Fire & Rescue board of directors Friday decided that Tom Miller of Wimberley, Texas, is the right person to wear those hats by making a contingent job offer to him as the replacement for the retiring Tom Phelps.

I think with the people I met, it seemed like a really neat town, a tight-knit group, Miller said Friday afternoon during a phone interview. It has that small-town feel, which weve really been missing being from an Austin (Texas) suburb.

Ruth Jacobs, board president, said the contingencies to be met include completion of a background check, successful negotiation of a contract and completion of medial and fitness evaluations. No start date for Miller has been set.

When asked about what stood out about the boards top choice, Jacobs used words like knowledge, experience, skills and abilities.

At several times during the interview process, I imagined myself in board meetings and I asked myself, is this the right person to lead this district and into the future? And over and over again, I answered yes, Mr. Millers leading us in that direction, she said.

In a changing world of attracting fire department volunteers, the board paid special attention to that part of the job.

We questioned him quite extensively about that aspect of it  his experience, his abilities  and judged that he will work well for Philomath, Jacobs said. The volunteerism in the United States is changing  thats something we need to be prepared for in the future.

Besides volunteers, Jacobs felt Miller would be a good fit to lead the career paid staff as well.

The district is a combination department for a good reason, she said. Its what works for the assets we have and the services we provide and if thats changing in any way in the future, we want to do it in a way thats done with foresight, vision and strong ideas about what Philomath is and what it needs.  We felt that Tom could not only lead change for what our staffing looks like but for a host of other questions that we have.

Miller and the other candidates went through a challenging job interviewing process that included meeting the public and taking part in panel discussions.

Its not an unusual process that weve followed but its not something were practiced in and thats why we brought in a consulting firm, Jacobs said. Theres a lot we expect from the leader of an organization that rescues people and puts out fires and leads career paid staff and volunteer staff so we put them through a pretty rigorous process.

Matthew Benedict of Pendleton and Mark Sachara of Flagstaff, Arizona, were the other two candidates that reached the final interviewing stage.

Miller agreed it was a challenge.

Its pretty taxing but I think it helps them determine that you can think on your feet and you can just interact with the others in the organization in an effective manner, Miller said. I think its a pretty grueling process but I think you get a better candidate in the end.

Miller most recently worked as chief at North Hays County Emergency Services District No. 6 in Texas, holds an associates degree in fire science and a bachelors degree in vocational education.

We have family in the area and my wife and I are originally from northern California, Miller said, who once live in the Santa Cruz Mountains region. We find it very attractive to head back toward the Coast.

Millers wife has an aunt and her family living in Oregon, along with a grandfather who owns a cherry orchard in the Grants Pass area.
Escaped rapist : Convicted rapist remains on the run

The Brewery Fruh in Cologne. Foto: dpa

Cologne/Aachen. Police are conducting a massive search for the convicted rapist who escaped Wednesday from an eating establishment/brewery in Cologne.

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Convicted rapist, 58-year-old Peter B. remains on the run after having escaped from the Fruh Brauhaus, an eating establishment and brewery near the Cologne Cathedral. He escaped early afternoon on Wednesday when he slipped away from his guards while using the restroom. The guards did not inform the police about his escape until 35 minutes afterwards because they searched for him at first on their own.

Breidenbach served a prison sentence from 1991 until 1999 for rape, robbery and sexual coercion. Authorities decided not to release him in 1999 and instead placed him in preventive detention because he was still deemed as a danger to society. Preventive detention in Germany is seen as a rehabilitation center where convicts are prepared for civilian life through therapy and excursions outside of prison. The German justice system gives detainees the right to at least 4 outside excursions per year, with direct oversight from guards.

Born in Cologne-Meschenich, B. had requested a trip to Cologne to go shopping for clothing. He had 400 euro along for this purpose. Also planned was lunch and possible sightseeing. Such excursions are thought to motivate detainees to participate in their rehabilitation therapy. According to detention center authorities, he had not been very cooperative in his therapy. Previous excursions of his went without incident.

Because there was a delay in notifying police, they fear he either escaped by blending in with the people in Cologne inner city or that he may have taken a train from the nearby central station. Police are conducting a massive search for him and warn that anyone seeing him should not approach him or speak with him but instead call the police emergency number 110.
Himalaya Exhibition : Himalaya Exhibition at Bonn University

Julia Hegewald (left to right), Pratyush Shankar and Sandra Jasmin Schlage.

BONN An exhibition of art and objects from the Himalayas will open at the University in Bonn on Monday. It is in English.

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Public Space & Art in the Himalayas is the name of an exhibition that will begin at Bonn University on Monday. On display will be private photos and art objects from the Himalayas, organized by professors and students from the Department of Asian and Islamic Art History.

The objects come from private collections and include masks from Nepal, items from urban Tibet, traditional clothing from Katmandu, Buddhist shrines and other Hindu and Islamic objects. Feature information about the mountains, history and typical Buddhist architecture, the effects of Islam in Himalaya, efforts toward Tibetan independence, modern politics and the consequences of the earthquake in the past year are displayed.

One of the professors involved is Pratyush Shankar, a guest professor of Architecture from Ahmedabad, India. The exhibition is in English, and is sponsored by the Alexander-von-Humboldt foundation. It is open from Monday through Friday until January 27. Location is the first floor of the main University building. For more info, please visit: aikinfo@uni-bonn.de
Rapist sighting : Jogger says escaped rapist was sighted in Bonn

A jogger reported seeing the convicted rapist Peter Breitenbach in Bonn. Police was operating in the Rheinauen (Rhine River area).

BONN A jogger in Bonn on the Sudbrucke (south bridge) said the convicted rapist who escaped his guards in Cologne was spotted at the Rheinaue (Rhine River area).

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A jogger running on the Sudbrucke (south bridge) reported having seen escaped convict Peter Breitenbach at the Rheinaue (the Rhine River area). Police say the jogger contacted them at 9:30 a.m. this morning and said the escapee was under the bridge. Police are searching the area with the help of a helicopter.

A convicted rapist who escaped his guards in Cologne on Wednesday, the 58-year-old is considered to be highly dangerous. Police say to stay away from him if spotted and call 110.
bayonel3 at 22-01-2016 03:41 PM (6 years ago) (m)

Heres what people want to buy according to their most popular searches.Americans only eat fast food, Germans love beer, and everyone in Australia surfs.

Heres what people want to buy according to their most popular searches.Americans only eat fast food, Germans love beer, and everyone in Australia surfs. Think you know what your countrys stereotype is? Guess again. Earlier this year the cost-estimating site Fixr created a map that shows the most Googled products in every country.

To get their data, the team at Fixr googled a simple question for each country: how much does * cost. Then they used Googles autocomplete tool to see the most searched phrase. While Fixrs experiment is far from being scientific, its certainly interesting to see what specific countries care about.

Nearly every country in Africa is concerned about basic life necessities except for Mauritania and Sierra Leone. The most searched for product are diamonds Sierra Leone, and slaves in Mauritania.



A few interesting findings:

People in Europe are very practical and are concerned about the cost of beer, living, and studying.

In Africa, people most searched for basic necessities: livestock, food, and fuel.

Brazilians like to get down. Their most searched product was prostitutes.

How much does it cost to fly a MiG was the most commonly searched term in Russia. Im not surprised.

Kuwait is quite curious about the cost of a Lamborghini.

Think you know what your countrys stereotype is? Guess again. Earlier this year the cost-estimating site Fixr created a map that shows the most Googled products in every country.To get their data, the team at Fixr googled a simple question for each country: how much does * cost. Then they used Googles autocomplete tool to see the most searched phrase. While Fixrs experiment is far from being scientific, its certainly interesting to see what specific countries care about.Nearly every country in Africa is concerned about basic life necessities except for Mauritania and Sierra Leone. The most searched for product are diamonds Sierra Leone, and slaves in Mauritania.

Post Reply I scour the world wide web to bring you interesting stories from around the globe. +2348055557203 Posted: at 22-01-2016 03:41 PM (6 years ago) | Hero
bohlah at 22-01-2016 09:47 PM (6 years ago) (m)

Reigning World Miss University Nigeria (WMUN) 2015, Miss Anita Asianya, a Final year, Industrial Chemistry student of The University of Benin is currently in China to represent Nigeria at the International World Miss University Contest which will hold on the 27th, of January 2016 at Xiamen international Conference Center, Beijing, China.





since 1986, with an average of about 70 contestants from all over the World.



The contest, a celebration of beauty and intellect, strives to spread the message of love and peace all over the world by annually appointing a public service delegation among outstanding female university students. WMU is among the four most prominent international pageants in scale, alongside Miss Universe, Miss International, and Miss World. Among these, World Miss University is the sole United Nations and International Association of University Presidents pageant dedicated in promoting world peace and the importance of international relationships.

Reigning World Miss University Nigeria (WMUN) 2015, Miss Anita Asianya, a Final year, Industrial Chemistry student of The University of Benin is currently in China to represent Nigeria at the International World Miss University Contest which will hold on the 27th, of January 2016 at Xiamen international Conference Center, Beijing, China.since 1986, with an average of about 70 contestants from all over the World.The contest, a celebration of beauty and intellect, strives to spread the message of love and peace all over the world by annually appointing a public service delegation among outstanding female university students. WMU is among the four most prominent international pageants in scale, alongside Miss Universe, Miss International, and Miss World. Among these, World Miss University is the sole United Nations and International Association of University Presidents pageant dedicated in promoting world peace and the importance of international relationships.

It already promises to be a successful outing for Nigeria as Anita Asianya emerged as the contestant with the best presentation at the World Peace and Economy Forum held in Perking University popularly called Beijing University in China . The presentation was centered around world peace and economic growth- with about 60 contestants from all over the world who participated.

























For more scintillating and juicy stories, follow the official Naijapals accounts On Twitter - https://twitter.com/Naijapals and Facebook - www.facebook.com/naijapals It already promises to be a successful outing for Nigeria as Anita Asianya emerged as the contestant with the best presentation at the World Peace and Economy Forum held in Perking University popularly called Beijing University in China . The presentation was centered around world peace and economic growth- with about 60 contestants from all over the world who participated.

Post Reply I have been reporting on latest news from Nigeria for almost 10 years now. I report on every possible news area I come across, but always ensure my reports are compiled with dignity and fact to uphold my personal values and duty as a journalist Posted: at 22-01-2016 09:47 PM (6 years ago) | Addicted Hero
Google hosts 'Love Your Language' forum at Jaipur lit fest News oi -GizBot Bureau

In an effort to get Indian languages better represented on the internet, Google said it was hosting a "Love Your Language" forum at the five-day Jaipur Literature Festival that commenced here on Thursday.

Google has invited participants of the festival and anyone passionate about Indian languages to contribute to the Google Translate Community. Presently, Google Translate is available for nine out of India's 22 official languages.

SEE ALSO: Sony Expected To Launch Xperia Z6 Smartphone On Feb 22, Here Is What We Expect?

But languages that are "under-represented" on the internet like Bengali, Telugu and Tamil could use a little help, a company statement said. With more input from the community, Google Translate can boost the translation of these languages, making content on the internet more accessible to millions of people.

"By putting Google's tools in the hands of our Indian users, we believe we can help build a web that works for millions around the world," said Sapna Chadha, country marketing manager, Google India.

"The Jaipur Literature Festival brings together people who are passionate about Indian languages and culture, so we can't think of a better place to invite people to contribute to the Translate Community and experience Indian heritage online," she added.

A demo zone has been set up at the Google Mughal Tent at the Jaipur Literature Festival to help people learn more about the Google Translate Community.

SEE ALSO: Lenovo K4 Note Available On Flash Sale Today: 5 Best And Worst Features of The Killer Note

Festival visitors can also view highlights of India's culture and heritage on the Google Cultural Institute. Monuments, art works, crafts and narratives from across India will be on virtual display at a dedicated space at the literary fest.

Source IANS

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Pushkar-Gayathris Vikram Vedha showcases that a film can be made in any language or for any audience, can be told with the premise & outcome without deviating and keeping the narrative tight.
Russian Media Shrugs Off Litvinenko Report

January 21, 2016

by Tom Balmforth

MOSCOW -- Upon receiving long-awaited news related to the assassination of a former Russian security agent in London, the popular Moscow-based radio station Vesti FM was among the few state media outlets not to bury it.

There were, however, some glaring omissions in its reporting on the findings of a British public inquiry into the 2006 poisoning of Aleksandr Litvinenko.

Vesti FM completely missed the bombshell allegation of the day: that none other than Russian Vladimir Putin had 'probably approved' the killing. It also failed to note that British Judge Robert Owen said the poisoning was 'probably' part of an 'FSB operation,' and made no mention of the 'probable' role of then-FSB chief Nikolai Patrushev.

In the West, the report was anxiously awaited as an opportunity to bring closure to a case that left a radioactive trail in London, soured relations with Moscow, and prompted accusations of Kremlin involvement.

Even though the British findings gave credence to the allegations, there were signs even before their release that they would receive scant coverage in Russia's state-dominated media, which closely follows the Kremlin line.

On the eve of the report's publication, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in no uncertain terms that the Russian establishment would not be preoccupied with its conclusions.

'This investigation is under way in Great Britain, and in this case it is not an issue that is interesting for us and on our agenda,' Peskov was quoted as saying on January 20.

Switching Gears

In step, state television networks the next day opened their coverage on political unrest in Moldova, the sharp decline of the ruble, and a meeting of the presidential Council of Science and Education.

When the state television channel Vesti did switch gears, it led with a denial from Andrei Lugovoi, the man accused of carrying out the brazen poisoning involving the use of radioactive polonium-210.

Again, no mention of President Putin's alleged complicity. But there was a follow-up statement from Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, who denounced the report as 'politicized,' 'biased,' and set to 'darken the mood' in bilateral relations.

Back on Vesti FM, the official commentary was just getting going.

State Duma lawmaker Leonid Kalashnikov told listeners that the public inquiry was a politically motivated attack by London on Russia. 'If it hadn't been this, then it would have been something else,' he said, pointing without explanation to the critical response to the jailing of members of the punk group Pussy Riot and to the arrest and death in custody of lawyer Sergei Magnitsky.

Kalashnikov attacked the wording of the report, saying the findings were couched in inconclusive words like 'probably' and 'possibly.'

The radio station then reported that Lugovoi was 'dismayed by the lies' in the report, which he called a 'theatrical farce.'

Federation Council lawmaker Andrei Klimov took the opportunity to float a new conspiracy theory -- that the report was the product of clan wars in British politics, and was initiated by anti-Russian forces trying to sabotage British partnership with the Kremlin over Syria.

'British political life should not be simplified,' Klimov warned on Vesti FM. 'There are a lot of players there. And these players sometimes compete with one another. Therefore, perhaps the party of war, the hawks, and the Russophobes are trying to take advantage of all their opportunities.'

The Perm region representative also compared Litvinenko's killing to the 1963 assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, which he said was erroneously blamed on Moscow amid a Cold War atmosphere.

'Fine British Humor'

Elsewhere in Russian media, parliamentarians widely denounced the British report.

Ivan Melnikov, the deputy speaker of the State Duma, called the report a 'humoristic miniature' in comments carried by Interfax.

'I haven't gone into the details particularly, but I've looked at extracts of the report from this [Judge] Robert Owen,' he told the news agency. 'It reads like a humoristic miniature: it's 'possibly' and 'maybe' from start to finish. Hypotheses and evidence are two different things.'

By late afternoon, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, head of the nationalist Liberal Democrat Party of Russia, had placed blame for Litvinenko's assassination squarely on Boris Berezovsky, the tycoon, Duma member, and Putin critic who left Russia for the United Kingdom, was subsequently stripped of his assets in Russia, and was found hanging dead at his U.K. home in 2013.

In comments carried by Vesti FM, Zhirinovsky claimed that two months before Berezovksy's death, the embattled tycoon told him that he would withdraw his testimony on the Litvinenko investigation so the case would collapse.

'So here the main organizer is Berezovsky, and he also used all of this to somehow take revenge on Russia,' he said.

By day's end, the report even triggered a reaction from Peskov, despite the Kremlin spokesman's previously expressed disinterest. Speaking to reporters in Moscow, he concluded that the findings could most likely be 'attributed to fine British humor.

Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-litvinenko- report-reaction-vesti/27502140.html

Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Russia dismisses UK inquiry into Litvinenko murder

Sputnik News

Thu Jan 21, 2016 1:43PM

Russia's Foreign Ministry has strongly rejected as politicized the conclusion of a British inquiry into the 2006 killing of ex-KGB spy Alexander Litvinenko in London.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova in a statement on Thursday slammed the results of Britain's inquiry into the death of Litvinenko, as biased and vague.

She, however, said that Russia was not expecting the British lead investigator's report on the Litvinenko case to be impartial.

'We regret that a purely criminal case was politicized and darkened the general atmosphere of bilateral relations,' Zakharova said in a statement, adding, 'We had no reason to expect that the final findings of the politically motivated and extremely non-transparent process, which has been skewed to achieve the predetermined, 'needed' result, would suddenly become objective and unbiased.'

The spokeswoman also said London's handling of the case clouded bilateral relations between the two countries.

The inquiry into the 2006 killing concluded that President Vladimir Putin and security chief Nikolai Patrushev probably approved a Russian intelligence operation to kill Litvinenko.

In a lengthy report, Judge Robert Owen claimed that former KGB bodyguard Andrei Lugovoy and lawmaker Dmitry Kovtun carried out the poisoning.

Reacting to the probe, Kovtun has called the charges against him "absurd."

Lugovoy also pointed out that the start of the official British inquiry coincided with the Ukraine crisis and accused London of pursuing the 'polonium scandal' for its own political goals.

'I am hoping that this 'polonium process' will dispel a myth about the impartiality of British justice,' Lugovoy said, adding, 'The results of the inquiry made public today once again confirm London's anti-Russian stance, tunnel thinking and the unwillingness of the British to establish the true cause of Litvinenko's death.'

Britain summons Russian envoy

Meanwhile, Britain on Thursday summoned the Russian ambassador following the report into the radiation poisoning murder of ex-spy.

London has also imposed asset freezes on the two men identified as the perpetrators.

Reacting to the report, Home Secretary Theresa May in an address to parliament told lawmakers that the killing was 'a blatant and unacceptable breach of the most fundamental tenets of international law.'

Litvinenko, an outspoken critic of Putin who fled to Britain in 2000, died after drinking green tea poisoned with radioactive isotope polonium-210 at a London hotel.

 Sputnik

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British report finds Russian leadership behind 2006 killing of ex-KGB agent

Sputnik News

Thu Jan 21, 2016 1:35PM

Britain's Foreign Office has summoned the Russian ambassador to London after a British public inquiry alleged President Vladimir Putin behind the 2006 murder of former KGB agent, Alexander Litvinenko in the UK.

Home Secretary Theresa May told parliament on Thursday that the likely state involvement in the killing was 'a blatant and unacceptable breach of the most fundamental tenets of international law'.

'It is not the way for any state, let alone a permanent member of the UN Security Council, to behave,' a Downing Street spokeswoman said.

Following the report into the murder of Litvinenko, London has imposed asset freezes on the two Russians identified as key perpetrators.

The Russian Foreign Ministry has rejected the report that blames Putin as likely behind signing off the poisoning due to his personal differences with Litvinenko.'We regret that the purely criminal case was politicized and overshadowed the general atmosphere of bilateral relations.'

The ministry added that the inquiry had 'not been transparent' thus unbiased process could not be expected.

Litvinenko worked for Russian intelligence before he fled to Britain in 2000 where he turned a fierce critic of the Russian leadership. He died at the age of 43 in London in 2006 after he took tea that was found with radioactive substance.

The British report has found Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun, two Russians deliberately poisoning the tea, a charge both deny.

Meanwhile, Litvinenko's widow has welcomed the report. 'The words my husband spoke on his deathbed when he accused Putin have been proved by an English court,' she said.

In a statement, Marina Litvinenko also urged London to expel all Russian intelligence operatives and impose economic sanctions on Moscow.

The UK is not expected to punish Russia for fear of damaging relations. But the Home Office has said that international arrest warrants against the two men remained in place.

The British government had originally rejected the idea of an inquiry. It was later set up by the government at the Royal Courts of Justice in London in January 2015, led by Sir Robert Owen.

According to Owen, the two suspects Lugovoi and Kovtun probably acted under the direction of Moscow's FSB intelligence service.

But responding to the report, Lugovoi, who is now a politician in Russia, said the accusations against him were 'absurd'. 'As we expected, there were no surprises,' he was quoted by the Russian news agency Interfax as saying.

 Sputnik

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Cameron: Report Confirms UK's Belief Litvinenko's Death 'State Sponsored'

Sputnik News

19:40 21.01.2016(updated 19:44 21.01.2016)

UK Prime Minister David Cameron said that Thursday's report on the death of ex-FSB agent Alexander Litvinenko confirms both the previous and current UK governments' belief that the murder was state sponsored.

LONDON (Sputnik)  Earlier in the day, the British inquiry blamed Litvinenko's death on Russian authorities but could not conclude that the polonium-210 used to poison the former agent had come from Russia. The Russian Foreign Ministry said that the UK inquiry was politicized.

'What happened was absolutely appalling and this report confirms what we've always believed, and what the last Labour government believed at the time of this dreadful murder, which is it was state sponsored action,' Cameron told ITV.

Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the UK report on Litvinenko's death is based on assumptions, which is unacceptable in Russian legal practice.

'This shocking even was reacted to years ago when it happened and we're toughening our action again today,' the minister said.

Alexander Litvinenko fled from Russia to the United Kingdom in 2000. He died in 2006, three weeks after drinking tea with his former colleagues Dmitry Kovtun and Andrei Lugovoy in central London.

Following his death, the UK authorities claimed that Litvinenko's former colleagues had poisoned him with the radioactive isotope polonium-210. A public inquiry into Litvinenko's death was formally established by the UK government in July 2014.

Earlier, Lugovoy said that he had passed a polygraph test conducted by British experts, that proved he was not guilty of murdering Litvinenko.

 Sputnik

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UK Report Claims Putin to Blame for Litvinenko Death

Sputnik News

12:52 21.01.2016(updated 18:27 21.01.2016)

The killing of former Russian FSB secret service officer Alexander Litvinenko has been laid at the door of President Putin in a widely expected conclusion to a public inquiry.

The so-called public inquiry final report, released Thursday, found that Litvinenko was poisoned using Polonium-210 by former FSB officers Dmitry Kovtun and Andrei Lugovoy, on the orders of Nikolai Patrushev (head of the FSB in 2006) and 'probably' Putin.

There has never been an inquest proper or a criminal trial in the Litvinenko case and both Kovtun and Lugovoy deny the charges.

Litvinenko fled to London in 2000 after making a series of dramatic allegations about the FSB and Putin and being dismissed from the service. Chief among the allegations was that the FSB had been ordered to kill the tycoon Boris Berezovsky.

The public inquiry found that Litvinenko had been paid 2000 a month by the UK intelligence service MI6 for information about Russian organized crime. According to Lugovoy, Litvinenko had tried to recruit him as an MI6 agent.

The report claims Lugovoy and Kovtun poisoned Litvinenko in the Pine Bar in the Millennium Hotel, London in November 2006 in reprisal for his outspoken views on the FSB and Putin himself.

The public inquiry  chaired by Sir Robert Owen  failed to take oral evidence from either of the accused and also heard a 'considerable quantity' of evidence behind closed doors.

UK Home Secretary Theresa May made several attempts to prevent the inquiry taking place and there has never been a criminal trial.

Litvinenko's Death by Radiation Poisoning

Alexander Litvinenko had been an officer of the Russian FSB security service, who, in 1998 accused the Russian authorities of conspiring to assassinate the tycoon Boris Berezovsky (found hanged in his bathroom in March 2013). He also alleged widespread corruption within the FSB.

Litvinenko was arrested on charges of exceeding his authority and acquitted in 1999.

He was rearrested in 2000, but again the charges were dropped. He was dismissed from the FSB and was granted asylum in the UK, where he allegedly worked for the British intelligence services. It was alleged that Litvinenko had been supplying them with somewhat alarmist information about the Russian mafia in Spain. The mafia had extensive contacts with senior Russian politicians.

On November 1, 2006 he met two Russian men, both ex-FSB officers  Dmitry Kovtun and Andrei Lugovoy  in the Millennium Hotel, in Grosvenor Square, London, where he had a cup of tea.

Litvinenko complained of illness that evening and was admitted to hospital. He suffered a slow and agonizing death from radioactive polonium-210 poisoning and died in University College Hospital on November 23, 2006.

The British authorities claimed that Kovtun and Lugovoy poisoned Litvinenko with pololium-210. Evidence of the radioactive substance was found on the aircraft both Russians traveled on, as well as in all the places the three men met. Kovtun and Lugovoy have both totally denied the accusations.

Blocked Inquest

The original inquest into Litvinenko's death had stalled for eight years, because of the UK government's dogged refusal to allow evidence from its security agencies  MI5, MI6 and the police. Sir Robert Owen, who originally acted as Her Majesty's Assistant Coroner for Inner North London, held a series of preliminary hearings, but the inquest never actually got underway in eight years.

In the end, Sir Robert appealed successfully for the inquest to be turned into a public inquiry which would be able to 'hear' the evidence, but not necessarily in public. However, British Home Secretary Theresa May announced that 'the inquiry will not address the question of whether the UK authorities could or should have taken steps which would have prevented the death.'

The Russian Investigative Committee said it would refuse to take part in the public inquiry, as the inquiry would not be 'public at all,' a spokesman for the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement.

'In reality it means that the relevant materials, which the British authorities consider 'classified' would be discussed at closed hearings in London.

'They would be accessible neither to the Russian Investigative Committee nor to the public as a whole,' a statement said.

 Sputnik

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British Judge: Putin 'Probably' OK'd Ex-Spy's Murder

by Luis Ramirez January 21, 2016

A top British government investigator said Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin probably personally approved the assassination of Alexander Litvinenko, a Russian spy-turned-dissident who was exiled in Britain after criticizing Putin and accusing him  among other things  of being a pedophile.

Robert Owen, a retired judge serving as the inquiry's chairman, announced that his yearlong inquiry had confirmed the Russian state was responsible for the November 2006 poisoning of Litvinenko, carried out by two Russian agents at the Millennium hotel in central London just a few meters from the U.S. Embassy.

For nearly nine years since her husband's death, Marina Litvinenko has been demanding answers. Thursday brought some vindication for her. Speaking to reporters outside the Royal Courts in London, she said she was 'of course very pleased' by the outcome. 'The words my husband spoke on his deathbed when he accused Mr. Putin of his murder have been proved true in an English court with a high standard of independence and fairness,"she said.

In Moscow, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zhakarova said, 'We regret that a purely criminal case has been politicized and has darkened the general atmosphere of bilateral relations.''

In Washington, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the case showed Russia's 'willingness to flout basic conventions around human rights and free speech' and that the worrisome 'political environment that currently exists in Russia seems to also extend, at least in some occasions, beyond Russia's borders.'

He said the White House wouldn't rule out 'relevant future steps' to address some of the concerns raised by the findings of the inquiry.

Back story

Litvinenko was an agent of the Russian Federal Security Service, the spy agency that came after the Soviet-era KGB. But after becoming an outspoken critic of Putin in 1998, he fled Russia and sought asylum in Britain.

He continued to anger the Kremlin with criticism of Putin that included personal attacks, such as an article in which he accused the Russian leader of being a pedophile. The Kremlin rejected the accusation.

In early November 2006, Litvinenko agreed to meet with Russian agents Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun, who British officials say laced his tea with radioactive polonium, a substance experts say is made in Russia. Lugovoi and Kovtun returned to Russia.

Litvinenko quickly became ill and died at a hospital 23 days later. Photos of him on his deathbed show him emaciated and having lost his hair. His wife said he asked to be photographed to show 'what Putin had done to him.'

With radioactive contamination spreading from the hotel to the streets of London, investigators described it as a nuclear attack in the heart of England's capital that put its population at risk.

Widow demands expulsion, sanctions

Litvinenko's widow on Thursday called for all Russian intelligence operatives to be expelled from Britain, and she, like some British lawmakers, said she wanted sanctions imposed against individuals named as culprits in the inquiry.

'I received a letter last night from the home secretary promising action. It is unthinkable that the prime minister would do nothing in the face of damaging findings of Sir Robert Owen,' Marina Litvinenko told reporters.

Prime Minister David Cameron's spokeswoman said that he found the findings 'extremely disturbing' and that the government was considering what actions to take.

'It is not the way for any state, let alone a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, to behave,' the spokeswoman said. 'Regrettably, these findings confirm what we and previous governments believed.'

Action by Britain unlikely

Britain has strong economic ties to Russia and is eager to recruit Putin's help in ending the crisis in Syria. Analysts say those factors make it unlikely that leaders here will take any action that will threaten the wider relationship over the killing of one foreign former spy by two others.

London financier Bill Browder, a human rights campaigner and Putin critic, spoke out against what he said was the British government's reluctance to punish the Russian leader for Litvinenko's slaying.

"I can't get inside the minds of the government officials but I can speculate, and what I would speculate is that it comes down to money. There's a lot of Russian money sloshing around London, and I believe that there's a concern among certain members of the government that that money would be less available if Britain took a moral stand on some of these issues," Browder, the CEO and co-founder of investment fund Hermitage Capital Management, told VOA. 'Today's response, as it stands right now from the British government, is a green light for him [Putin] to carry on doing murders, invasions and other atrocities without any consequences.'

One battle has ended for Marina Litvinenko, but another has just begun.

VOA Moscow correspondent Daniel Schearf and Chris Hannas in Washington contributed to this report.

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Military Strikes Hit ISIL Terrorists in Syria, Iraq

From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release

SOUTHWEST ASIA, January 21, 2016  U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strike in Syria

Fighter aircraft conducted a strike near Dayr Ar Zawr, destroying four ISIL cranes.

Strikes in Iraq

Attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 15 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of the Iraqi government:

-- Near Qaim, a strike produced inconclusive results.

-- Near Fallujah, a strike destroyed an ISIL mortar system.

-- Near Kisik, two strikes destroyed an ISIL weapons cache, two ISIL assembly areas, and an ISIL fighting position.

-- Near Mosul, three strikes destroyed nine ISIL assembly areas, an ISIL weapons cache, two ISIL command-and-control nodes, and five ISIL fighting positions.

-- Near Qayyarah, a strike struck an ISIL vehicle bomb factory.

-- Near Ramadi, five strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units, cratered an ISIL-used road, and destroyed an ISIL vehicle bomb, an ISIL home-made bomb cache, an ISIL staging area, an ISIL fighting position, an ISIL building, and an ISIL petroleum truck.

-- Near Sinjar, two strikes destroyed 14 ISIL fighting positions.

Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the group's ability to project terror and conduct operations.

Coalition nations conducting strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations conducting strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, France, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

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Carter Outlines Counter-ISIL Campaign Plan in Paris

By Terri Moon Cronk DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, January 21, 2016  The savage gunmen of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant who opened fire in Paris in November "attacked us all," Defense Secretary Ash Carter said today at the Ecole Militaire in Paris.

Carter met with French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian in the French capital and discussed the U.S.-led military coalition's counter-ISIL campaign plan involving land, sea, air, and cyberspace.

Within hours of the ISIL attacks on Paris, Carter noted, the two defense leaders discussed how to drive their military alliance forward. Both nations later signed a "special instruction" to their military intelligence organizations to share intelligence targeting ISIL's defeat.

"We all must have a common campaign plan that the entire coalition understands and that our enemies cannot survive," he said. "The military actions that the United States, France, and our coalition partners have taken in recent months have allowed the campaign to gather momentum, and to apply pressure to ISIL in Iraq and Syria on more fronts than at any other point in the campaign."

Defeating ISIL

But defeating ISIL won't be easy, Carter said.

"ISIL is a cancer that's threatening to spread. And like all cancers, you can't cure the disease just by cutting out the tumor. You have to eliminate it wherever it has spread, and stop it from coming back," he said.

The secretary outlined the coalition's military campaign plan, which focuses on three military objectives: destroying ISIL in Iraq and Syria by collapsing its power centers in Mosul, Iraq, and Raqqah, Syria; combating emerging ISIL clones worldwide; and protecting other nations from attack.

The coalition is meeting the first goal by enabling motivated, local forces on the ground to defeat ISIL and sustain its defeat by providing a clear military campaign plan and decisive leadership, Carter said. The coalition brings capabilities from airstrikes, special forces, cyber tools, intelligence, equipment, mobility and logistics, training, advice, equipment and assistance from those on the ground, he added.

The campaign will first collapse ISIL's control of Raqqah, Syria, and Mosul, Iraq, and then "engage in elimination operations through other territories ISIL holds in Iraq and Syria," Carter said.

The stepped-up campaign has already produced results from local forces as they take ground back from the enemy, Carter said.

"Our strikes are dismantling ISIL's war-sustaining finances, targeting its oil production and its industrial base," he said. "Together, we will continue these kinds of operations as part of the overall effort to degrade its financing."

The U.S.-led coalition is significantly constraining ISIL's ability to defend and attack, and "we are working with our partners to take advantage of every opportunity this presents," Carter said.

Similarly, in Syria, the coalition is combining the air campaign with local forces' support to isolate and pressure the terrorist group, he said.

Special operators are generating a cycle of actions to help identify and marshal the strength of more local forces, more intelligence, garner new tactical and operational ideas, and flush ISIL out into the open -- shrinking its power base, its finances and its space to maneuver, the secretary said.

ISIL must and will be defeated in Syria and Iraq in a lasting manner to ensure such extremism does not recur and emerge from the same places after the campaign, Carter said. The defeat of ISIL must involve motivated and capable local forces, he said.

"We're giving them training, advice and assistance in modern warfare, including engineering and logistics," Carter said, "And we are prepared to do more where and when we can have an additional strategic effect."

And such training will be critical as the Peshmerga approach Mosul from the north to close with the Iraqi security forces and counterterrorism service approaching from the south, the secretary said.

Reaching and retaking Mosul will not be easy, and it will not be quick, Carter said. But the recent success of the Iraqis taking back Ramadi is evidence that training, advising, and assisting is the right approach.

Global Endeavor

Defeating ISIL is a global undertaking because the terrorist group presents a global threat, Carter said.

"Any nation that cares about the safety of its people or the future of its civilization must know this: The United States and strong partners like France will continue to lead the fight, but there can be no free riders," he said, calling on coalition partners and all nations to accelerate the campaign.

The secretary announced that the full coalition will meet next month in Brussels for its first meeting of defense ministers, "to further align our efforts, including the resources needed for the fight ahead. France is already contributing greatly, as are several other nations. Many other nations can do more."

When the coalition meets, "every nation must come prepared to discuss further contributions to the fight," Carter said. "And I will not hesitate to engage and challenge current and prospective members of the coalition as we go forward."

Russia and Iran, two nations that have been "on the wrong side of this fight," Carter said, can make a difference by "stopping their unending support for [Syrian President] Bashar Assad, a chief instigator of radicalism and terrorism in Syria, and instead support a timely political transition ending that disastrous civil war."

The secretary said he's reached out to more than 40 nations' defense ministers to help enhance the fight with more special operations forces, more strike and reconnaissance aircraft, weapons and munitions, training assistance, and more combat support and combat service support.

"We also need the full involvement of every government, not just every military. That means greater diplomatic, political, and economic engagement. It means development and reconstruction," Carter added.

Muslim-majority nations in particular must step forward and help debunk "ISIL's false claims to religious or ideological excuses for brutality," he said.

The Fight Elsewhere

"As we work to destroy the parent tumor in Iraq and Syria, we must also recognize that ISIL is metastasizing in areas such as North Africa, Afghanistan, and Yemen," Carter said, adding that ISIL and similar extremist groups are continually evolving, changing focus and shifting location. He added that a nimble, flexible response is necessary to counter such threats.

"We are constantly mindful that the fundamental mission of our militaries -- as yours is as well -- is protecting our people at home," Carter said.

In addition to conducting anti-terror operations overseas in fighting ISIL and other terrorist groups, the campaign also requires a strong and active partnership with law enforcement, homeland security, cyber defense, intelligence and more, Carter said.

"Our campaign to deliver ISIL a lasting defeat, at its source and wherever it rears its head, is far from over. But the outcome is certain," the secretary said. "Our campaign will continue to adapt and build on our success, as ISIL's territory decreases, its resources dwindle, and local, capable forces gain the capacity to not only win on the field of battle, but to lay the foundation for lasting security in the region, and a more secure future for the world."

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NATO Chiefs of Defence discussed the Resolute Support Mission, cooperation with Mediterranean Dialogue partners and NATO's adaptation

NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

21 Jan. 2016 - Over the course of the day, the Chiefs of Defence met to review the RESOLUTE SUPPORT Mission in Afghanistan and to discuss NATO's future strategy, posture and adaptation. They also exchanged views on regional security developments and military-to-military cooperation with their Mediterranean Dialogue Partners.

The one-day meeting allowed for the NATO Chiefs of Defence to address and debate issues of contemporary strategic importance to the Alliance ahead of the forthcoming Defence Ministers' meeting in February. 'These frank discussions will provide additional guidance for the months ahead, in light of the challenging security environment and the fast approaching Warsaw Summit in July', General Pavel, Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, emphasised during his press conference.

During the RESOLUTE SUPPORT Session, the 28 Chiefs of Defence took the opportunity to commend and stress their continued support to the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces (ANDSF), review ongoing challenges and lay the groundwork for the way ahead in 2016. General Pavel noted that "2015 was a challenging year for the ANDSF, however they have demonstrated resilience and courage in combating the insurgency across the country. The Chiefs of Defence recommended to pursue the ongoing efforts based on conditions on the ground, thus assuring Afghanistan of our long-term commitment."

The discussions with the Mediterranean partners enabled the NATO Allied Chiefs of Defence to gain first hand insight into the regional security challenges and assess the progress of ongoing cooperation, including Defence Capacity Building. "It is important to gain a better regional understanding and situational awareness, but we also need to further enhance practical military cooperation tailored to the individual needs of the Nations and of NATO", the Chairman highlighted.

NATO's future strategy, posture and adaptation were key topics for the NATO Chiefs of Defence (CHOD). The 28 CHoDs welcomed the progress of the implementation of the Readiness Action Plan and then focused on NATO's continued military adaptation. "The military advice provided today drew on the strength of NATO's unity, capabilities and responsiveness and focused on the essential measures required to further reinforce NATO's Collective Defence," concluded General Pavel.

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Nearly four dozen Yemenis killed in fresh Saudi airstrikes

Iran Press TV

Thu Jan 21, 2016 10:28PM

Almost four dozen civilians have lost their lives in multiple Saudi aerial attacks against a number of regions across Yemen as Riyadh pushes ahead with its military onslaught against its southern neighbor.

On Thursday, Saudi fighter jets launched a series of airstrikes against residential neighborhoods in the Dhahyan district of Yemen's northwestern province of Sa'ada, located 240 kilometers (150 miles) north of the capital, Sana'a, leaving 14 members of a family dead. There was a number of children among the deceased.

The development came only hours after at least 18 medical staffers were killed when Saudi warplanes struck the same region.

Separately, Saudi air raids against an oil facility in the Red Sea port city of Ras Isa claimed the lives of at least 15 people. Medical sources said at least 30 people were also wounded in the airstrikes.

Meanwhile, international humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has announced that at least 10 children and a teacher were killed on January 19, when a Saudi airstrike targeted them as they were walking back home from school in the al-Hurair area of the southwestern city of Ta'izz, situated 346 kilometers (214 miles) south of the capital.

Also on Thursday, Yemeni army soldiers backed by fighters from allied Popular Committees launched a rocket at a military camp in al-Khobe district of Saudi Arabia's southwestern border region of Jizan. There were no immediate reports of casualties and the extent of damage caused.

Additionally, Arabic-language al-Jazeera television news network says three of its journalists have been abducted in Ta'izz.

The Qatar-based channel said its correspondent, Hamdi al-Bokari, and his colleagues, Abdulaziz al-Sabri and Moneer al-Sabai, were last seen late on Monday.

Yemen has been under military attacks by Saudi Arabia since late March last year. The Saudi military strikes were launched to supposedly undermine the Ansarullah movement and bring fugitive former president, Abd Rabbu Mansur Hadi, back to power.

At least 8,278 people, among them 2,236 children, have reportedly been killed and 16,015 others injured, since March. The strikes have also taken a heavy toll on the impoverished country's facilities and infrastructure, destroying many hospitals, schools, and factories.

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US condemns Israel's planned land grab in occupied West Bank

Iran Press TV

Thu Jan 21, 2016 6:58AM

The administration of US President Barack Obama has condemned Israel's planned land grab in the occupied West Bank.

The Tel Aviv regime on Wednesday announced that it approved the expropriation of some 370 acres agricultural land near the Palestinian city of Ariha (Jericho), which is located near the Jordan River in the occupied West Bank.

In response, the US State Department Spokesman said Tel Aviv's decision is against its commitment to the so-called two-state solution.

"We strongly oppose any steps that could accelerate settlement expansion and we believe they're fundamentally incompatible with a two-state solution and call into question frankly the Israeli government's commitment to a two-state solution," State Department spokesman Mark Toner said.

Earlier this week, US ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro slammed Israeli authorities for unjustly treating Palestinians, and grabbing their land.

Shapiro on Monday raised "questions about Israel's long-term intentions" in the occupied West Bank, saying the US administration is "concerned and perplexed" by Tel Aviv's settlement policy in the area.

The United Nations and most countries regard the Israeli settlements in the West Bank as illegal because the territories were captured by Israel in a war in 1967 and are hence subject to the Geneva Conventions, which forbids construction on occupied lands.

The continued expansion of Israeli settlements in occupied Palestine has created a major obstacle for the efforts to establish peace in the Middle East.

More than half a million Israelis live in over 120 illegal settlement colonies built since Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East al-Quds.

The Palestinian Authority wants the West Bank as part of its future independent state, with East al-Quds as its capital.

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A Sea of Troubles: US Burning Millions to Repair Newest Ships

Sputnik News

17:04 21.01.2016

US Navy high-speed transport ships built by Austal Ltd. cannot stand blows by waves in the high seas. The claim was made in a report to the US Congress by Michael Gilmore, the Pentagon's director of operational test and evaluation.

The speedy Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF) catamarans are designed to transport nearly 545 tons of cargo and 312 personnel for 2.2 kilometers at speeds of up to 35 knots (80 kmh). They have been deployed to Africa and the Middle East as well as to Singapore. The US purchased 10 ships of this class, for $217 million each. Five of them are already in service, and the other five are being built, according to Bloomberg.

According to Gilmore, 'the Navy accepted compromise in the bow structure, presumably to save weight, during the building of these ships.' As a result, multiple ships of the class have sustained damage to the bow structure. Nevertheless, even if reinforced the bow still may be damaged by waves in the high seas.

EPF ships should wait out the highest waves or travel at speeds much lower than their maximum, he wrote in the report.

The first catamaran bought in 2012 required $511,000 worth of repair works after it was damaged by waves during deployment. The repair of each of the other three EPF's cost as much as $1.2 million. The fifth ship awaits its bow reinforcement during its nex shipyard visit.

What is more, according to the report, the sea tests were marred by the poor reliability of generators supplying electrical power. Required to operate 8,369 hours, the generators failed as soon as 208 hours.

Meanwhile, this is not the first time that the US' advanced warships are in desperate need of costly repairs.

In December 2015, it was reported that the US Navy combat ship Milwaukee broke down in the open sea while transiting to its home port of San Diego. The ship was commissioned 20 days before the incident. The ship sustained failures of the propulsion plant and then was towed to a base in Virginia.

Senator John McCain described the incident as 'deeply alarming' for the US Navy and pushed for a thorough investigation.

The state of the US fleet has been a concern for many military analysts, especially taking into account the modernization of the Russian navy and China's rising naval power.

For instance, recently Seth Cropsey, former US Assistant Secretary of Defense, wrote that the US Navy needs more new ships and submarines to counter the 'rising global threats.' To ramp up the US' naval power, $24 billion is needed annually, a 45-percent increase in spending, according to him.

 Sputnik

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Al-Shabab Claims Responsibility for Mogadishu Restaurant Attack

by Mohamed Olad January 21, 2016

Militant group Al-Shabab has claimed responsibility for an attack on a restaurant in the Somali capital that a witness says killed at least two people and injured four others.

Attackers stormed the restaurant of the Lido Beach View Hotel Thursday evening, setting off explosions and firing on guests.

A top Somali intelligence official tells VOA's Somali service that security forces are flushing out the militants from the hotel and have captured the leader of the gunmen.

Earlier, a journalist inside the restaurant told VOA by phone that he could see two bodies and four injured people on the floor. He said that he and more than 20 other people were trapped. The intelligence official says most, but not all, of the people have been rescued.

Security officials declined to comment on the casualty figure.

Al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack through a pro-militant radio station in the capital. A spokesman for the group said, 'We are inside and control the hotel. Our operation was successful.'

Mohamud Hared, the owner of the nearby Indian Ocean Restaurant, told VOA's Somali service that he heard gunfire and two separate explosions.

"We heard a heavy gunfire and then explosion followed, gunfire ensued again for 15 minutes and then explosions,' Hared said. 'We do not know exactly what has happened as we are ducking inside our restaurant."

A reporter for VOA in Mogadishu says government security forces have sealed off roads to and from the restaurant. He says ambulances carrying injured people could be seen coming out of the area.

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Former Burundian Presidents Appeal for Peacekeeping Force

by Margaret Besheer January 21, 2016

Two former Burundian presidents have appealed to the U.N. Security Council to press the current government to accept an African Union-led peacekeeping force.

Former presidents Domitien Ndayizeye and Jean-Baptiste Bagaza met Thursday with a council delegation, which is on a quick visit to Bujumbura to try to stem the political violence that has killed at least 439 people since April.

'We really need this force,' said Ndayizeye, who led the country from 2003 to 2005.

'We need to stop this bloodletting in Burundi which is causing our youth to disappear,' Bagaza added.

UNICEF reports that 22 children have been killed by gunfire or grenades since April, and more than 200 have been arbitrarily arrested and detained. In both cases, most are boys.

Bagaza, who ruled the country from 1976 to 1987, urged the council to get 'fully involved.' Otherwise, he warned, 'we risk becoming another Rwanda case.'

Burundi's President, Pierre Nkurunziza, is firmly opposed to a peacekeeping force.

Council mission

The council arrived in Burundi's capital late Thursday afternoon on its second visit in less than a year.

Hundreds of citizens lined the road leading from the airport, waving at and cheering the delegation. Many were pro-government demonstrators.

The delegation is expected to meet with Nkurunziza on Friday. The group also plans to interact with civil society and political party leaders.

Human rights violations

Human rights groups have expressed deepening concern about the situation.

'The ambassadors should use their time in Bujumbura to persuade President Pierre Nkurunziza to accept a strong U.N. political mission with a substantial international police force, and sections on human rights, justice and political analysis,' said Carina Tertsakian, a Burundi expert at Human Rights Watch.

She said the goal of such a mission would be to reduce abuses by both sides and encourage peaceful solutions to the crisis.

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China backs establishment of independent State of Palestine

Iran Press TV

Fri Jan 22, 2016 2:36AM

China has lent its support to the establishment of the State of Palestine with East al-Quds (Jerusalem) as its capital.

Chinese President Xi Jinping made the remarks during an address at the Arab League's headquarters in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, on Thursday.

He said such state should be established based on the 1967 borders and enjoy full sovereignty.

That year saw Israel occupying and then annexing the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East al-Quds during the Six-Day War in a move that has never been recognized by the international community.

Xi's remarks echoed the demands of Palestinians, who are seeking to create an independent state on the occupied territories as well as the Palestinian enclave of the Gaza Strip.

In 2012, the United Nations General Assembly voted to upgrade Palestine's status at the UN from "non-member observer entity" to "non-member observer state" despite strong opposition from Israel and the United States. The Palestinian flag was also raised for the first time at the UN headquarters in New York last September.

The Chinese head of state considered the issue of Palestine to be crucial to peace in the Middle East, and urged the international community to contribute to the resumption of Israel-Palestinian talks, which have been broken off due to Tel Aviv's refusal to put a hold on its expansion of illegal settlements.

'We are in favor of putting in place a new mechanism to promote peace as to the Middle East question, and support efforts made by the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation toward this end,' the Chinese president stated.

He also pledged RMB 50 million (USD 7.53 million) in aid to Palestinians.

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Official: U.S. Delays Retiring Attack Plane Due To Islamic State, 'Resurgent Russia'

January 22, 2016

by RFE/RL

A senior U.S. military official says the rise of the extremist Islamic State (IS) group and a 'resurgent Russia' prompted the U.S. Air Force to reconsider plans to retire a fleet of aging ground-attack jets.

Air Force officials have been trying for the past two years to retire the A-10 Warthog jet fighter, which has been deployed in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, and more recently against IS militants in Syria.

But Air Force Vice Chief of Staff General David Goldfein says plans to shelve the Warthog immediately have been delayed due to the emergence of IS and an emboldened Russia, which annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and has backed armed separatists in eastern Ukraine.

'What happens is that life gets in the way of the perfect plan,' Goldfein told Defense News With Vago Muradian in an interview scheduled for broadcast on January 24, the website Defense News reported.

'So when we made the decision on retiring the A-10, we made those decisions prior to ISIL, we were not in Iraq, we were coming out of Afghanistan to a large extent, we didn't have a resurgent Russia,' Goldfein added, using an alternate acronym for the Islamic State group.

In use by the U.S. Air Force since 1975, the low-flying Warthog is a heavily armored ground-attack aircraft that is capable of withstanding ground-fire for long periods over a battlefield.

Plans to retire the aircraft are aimed at saving money and freeing up personnel for maintenance work on the new F-35 joint strike fighter.

The website Defense One first reported last week about plans to delay the immediate retirement of the Warthogs.

It cited unnamed Pentagon officials as saying that the aircraft would be kept in use due to its effectiveness in combatting IS forces.

U.S. Senator John McCain (Republican-Arizona), a vociferous Kremlin critic, welcomed the decision following the Defense One report.

'Today, the A-10 fleet is playing an indispensable role in the fight against ISIL in Iraq and assisting NATO's efforts to deter Russian aggression in Eastern Europe,' McCain said in a statement after the report was published.

The U.S. Air Force deployed 12 Warthog aircraft in an April 2015 military exercise in Romania that Air Force General Darryl Roberson said was aimed at reassuring eastern European countries concerned about Russia's military role in Ukraine and its aggression in the region.

With reporting by Defense News, CNN, Reuters, and Defense One

Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/us-air-force-delays-retiring- warthog-attack-plane-russia-islamic-state/27502684.html

Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Deported Bangladeshi Migrant Workers Weighed 'Armed Jihad,' Police Say

by Shaikh Azizur Rahman January 21, 2016

One day after Singapore deported 26 Bangladeshi Muslim migrant workers who had been arrested in November for allegedly supporting the ideology of Islamist terrorist groups like al-Qaida and the Islamic State, authorities in the southeast Asian nation said the men were contemplating 'armed jihad' in the Middle East and Bangladesh.

Following a primary investigation, including interrogation of the deportees, Bangladesh police said Thursday that the men were members of Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT)  a banned Bangladeshi hard-line Islamist militant outfit charged in a series of killings of atheist bloggers in the country last year.

'We have got no proof of the men having links with IS or al-Qaida," said Monirul Islam, a joint commissioner of the Detective Branch of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP). "But, we have found that they are the followers of [firebrand Muslim cleric and chief of ABT] Jasimuddin Rahmani, and they were working to get him released from jail.'

Earlier this month, Rahmani was sentenced to five years in jail in connection with the 2013 killing of atheist blogger Rajib Haider.

Bangladesh police have charged 14 of the deported men under the Anti-Terrorism Act.

'We arrested the 14 men after a primary investigation in Bangladesh found that they might have some connection to militancy," Mashrukure Rahman, a deputy commissioner of DMP, told the media. "The other 12 were released because we did not find them linked to militancy. However, they are under our close observation.'

Discreet meetings

Police in Singapore arrested 27 Bangladeshi construction workers between November 16 and December 1 of last year, after keeping them under surveillance for many months.

According to Singapore's Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), 26 of the workers had been members of a closed religious study group since 2013, and they supported the teachings of U.S.-born radical Islamic cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who was killed in a drone strike in Yemen in September 2011.

'The group members took measures to avoid detection by the authorities," according to an MHA statement issued Wednesday. "They shared jihadi-related material discreetly among themselves, and held weekly meetings and gatherings where they discussed armed jihad and conflicts that involved Muslims. They also carefully targeted the recruitment of other Bangladeshi nationals to grow their membership."

Several members of the group admitted to authorities in Singapore that they supported the Bangladeshi militant groups that had killed Shi'ites in Bangladesh in recent months, because they viewed them as 'deviant.'

'Silent killings'

According to the MHA, the men said they were angry with the Bangladeshi government over its actions against the Islamic groups and admitted they had been asked by their leaders to return to their homeland to wage armed jihad against the government.

'They had also sent monetary donations to entities believed to be linked to extremist groups in Bangladesh," the MHA statement said. "A significant amount of radical and jihadi-related material like books and videos, including footage of children undergoing training in what appeared to be terrorist military camps, were recovered from the possession of the group.

'Several members also had a shared document containing graphic images and instruction details on how to conduct 'silent killings' using different methods and weapons.'

Immediately after their arrest in Singapore, the local work passes of the 27 men were revoked.

While 26 of them were deported to Bangladesh, the remaining migrant worker  who, according to police, was not a member of the religious study group but was 'in the process of becoming radicalized'  is serving a 12-week jail term for attempting to flee Singapore illegally. He will be deported to Bangladesh when he finishes his jail term, the MHA said.

Migrant backlash

Though the 27 men had not planned any terror attack targeting Singapore, they posed a threat to the country, according to the MHA.

In a Facebook post, Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong wrote: 'Fortunately they were plotting nefarious activities in Bangladesh, and not in Singapore. But they were still a serious threat to us. We are tightening up our security, and acting to protect our racial and religious harmony. Radicalization and terrorism must never take root in Singapore.'

However, Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam said in an earlier Facebook post that the men 'could have easily changed their minds and attacked Singapore.'

Many Bangladeshi migrant workers said that the Bangladeshi group's activities threatened to put other migrants in trouble.

'Such radical activities by a handful of men have potential to trigger a backlash against all Bangladeshi migrants or even the entire Muslim community in Singapore,' Bangladeshi migrant Mohammad Ismail, who works in a dockyard in Singapore, told VOA.

Parbez Rahman, another migrant construction worker, told Channel News Asia that such radicalized individuals should not be allowed to stay in Singapore.

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Indonesian Terrorism Law Reform Still Faces Opposition

by Brian Padden January 21, 2016

Indonesian President Joko Widodo's call for strengthening the country's national security law could still face resistance in parliament, even after Islamic State-linked militants last week carried out the first serious terrorist attack in Jakarta since 2009.

On Tuesday Widodo voiced support for amending the country's 2003 anti-terrorism law to prohibit citizens from joining terrorist groups operating in conflict-ridden Iraq and Syria, and to ban the return of citizens who went there to fight alongside terrorists.

BNPT, Indonesia's national counterterrorism agency, estimates that about 800 Indonesians have traveled to Middle East to fight for the Islamic State group (IS.)

Close to 30 were killed while fighting for IS. And more than 150 are believed to have returned to the Indonesia, some of whom became combat trained and tested.

Opposition in parliament

In the last two years Indonesian authorities have become increasingly concerned about the growing terrorist threat from IS militants and supporters, but past efforts to reform the country's security laws have stalled in the Indonesian parliament.

"The legislature has been notoriously slow and has a massive backlog on the issues it needs to deal with. So the chances of quickly dealing with this issue are not good," said Greg Barton, director of the Global Terrorism Research Center at Monash University in Australia.

After the Jakarta terrorist attack there is a sense of increased urgency in the parliament to act, but there is still opposition from small but influential Islamic parties in Indonesia that say not all Muslims who join IS become terrorists.

"They were saying you are trying to condemn a bunch of people without sending us strong evidence," said Indonesia political analyst Alexander Arifianto with the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

Andreas Harsono, an Indonesian researcher for Human Rights Watch also objects to expanding the power of the police or security forces to detain citizens without showing clear cause or proof of criminal involvement.

'The concern is they want to have the power to arrest anyone," Harsono said.

Critics worry that increasing police powers could undermine Indonesia's young democracy. During the dictatorship of President Soeharto that ended in 1998, a draconian anti-subversion law was often used to silence political activists and opposition groups.

On Thursday Detik, an Indonesian news organization reported that officials in the House of Representatives are urging President Widodo to unilaterally revise regulations under the existing 2003 terrorism act to include the reforms he wants.

Even though parliament would still have to approve the measure, this legislative procedure could accelerate the process.

Investigation

Bahrun Naim, an Indonesian militant based in Syria with the Islamic State movement, remains the police's prime suspect for organizing the Jakarta attack.

Prior to joining IS in Syria in 2014, he served nearly a 2 years in prison in the central Java city of Solo for illegal possession of firearms and explosives.

Bahrun has reportedly attempted to recruit Indonesians to commit terror attacks in Central Java last year.

Security officials said Bahrun wants to unite radical groups across Southeast Asia that used to be affiliated with al-Qaida but have splintered and declined in the past decade.

Indonesian national police said Wednesday they detained 12 suspects related to the Jakarta terrorist attack and currently have sufficient evidence to charge six of them.

Also, Singapore authorities said Wednesday that in November and December they arrested 27 Bangladeshi construction workers who supported Islamist groups including al-Qaida and Islamic State. Of those arrested, 26 were deported and 12 were subsequently arrested in Bangladesh on terror charges.

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Vice President Upbeat on China's Economy

People's Daily Online

(CRI Online) 10:51, January 22, 2016

Chinese president issued an upbeat assessment of the country's economic prospects while attending the World Economic Forum in Switzerland on Thursday. His remarks were made shortly after lower growth figures for China in 2015 triggered global concern.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Chinese Vice President Li Yuanchao described growth in 2015 as 'steady' and said China is still an economic force.

'China remains a major driving force for global economic growth. This is my first point. Second, China has the confidence and capability to maintain medium to high growth. As the world is yet to shrug off the deep impact of the global financial crisis, its economy is still in the period of profound adjustment. The Chinese economy, closely connected with the world economy, has entered a new normal, shifting from fast, quantitative expansion, to a stage of pursuing higher quality and efficiency.'

Investor concerns mounted over the health of China's economy with official figures showing that GDP growth expanded at an annual grow rate of 6.9 percent in 2015, its weakest rate in the past 25 years.

The Vice President stressed that in the past five years, China's GDP grew from over 7 trillion US dollars to over 10 trillion , forming a solid material foundation for future development.

The fiscal revenue for China for 2015 is expected to grow by more than five percent and by the end of 2015, China's foreign exchange reserve surpassed 3.3 trillion US dollars, being the world's biggest.

Li says China will improve cooperation with the rest of the world and take steps to facilitate foreign investment.

'We will speed up negotiations on investment agreements and tear down all kinds of trade barriers, continue to improve the environment for foreign investors in China, and to participate actively in global economic governance.'

The vice president says China's development priority in the coming years is to maintain medium to high growth, and provide new driving forces for the economy.

World Bank Vice President and Chief Economist Kaushik Basu says China's GDP growth rate, compared to the rest of the world, remains quite remarkable.

He says China's structural reform is moving in the right direction and suggested that China should take the opportunity of the fourth industrial revolution to achieve economic restructuring.

'China, actually in some areas of digital technology, China is already in a leadership role. Retail trading, the retail business in China is extremely advanced. So China should take the model of its own success in the retail sector. For other kinds of digital connectivity that links up its people, that has some negative fallouts and dangers, but to stay away from a new technology which has arrived in the word is going to disadvantage you hugely.'

Basu also says the highest risk for the global economy this year will come from emerging economies.

The economic performance of emerging economies differs greatly, as the economies of China and India are quite stable while Brazil and South Africa are in recession.

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US to continue using sanctions against Iran, says Kerry

Iran Press TV

Thu Jan 21, 2016 7:7PM

US Secretary of State John Kerry has rejected Iran's criticism of new sanctions against the country, saying Washington is determined to impose more sanctions against Tehran when "appropriate."

'We have made it very clear that we use sanctions when we think they are appropriate in order to counter behavior that we believe has broken the law or has challenged the United Nations Security Council or threatened the United States and we stand by our sanctions,' Kerry told reporters on the sideline of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

The top US diploamt further claimed that the sanctions against Iran and other nations have been "used judiciously and effectively."

Kerry made the remarks in response to Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who blasted the US government for imposing new sanctions over Tehran's ballistic missile program, denouncing the move as an "addiction to coercion."

'It shows that the United States has an addiction which has been very difficult for it to overcome,' Zarif told the Associated Press on Wednesday.

Last week, the US Treasury Department blacklisted five Iranian citizens and a network of companies based in the United Arab Emirates and China, only a day after the landmark Iran nuclear, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), came into effect.

Under the agreement, limits are put on Iran's nuclear activities in exchange for, among other things, the removal of all nuclear-related economic and financial bans against the Islamic Republic.

'Unfrozen Iran assets to end up in terrorist hands'

Elsewhere in his remarks, the top US diplomat repeated US accusations that Iran is a supporter of terrorism, saying it is likely that some of the billions of dollars in sanctions relief granted to Iran under the nuclear deal will go to groups Washington believes are terrorists.

'I think that some of it will end up in the hands of the IRGC or other entities, some of which are labeled terrorists,' Kerry said.

On October 11, Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) successfully test-fired its first guided ballistic missile dubbed Emad (pictured below).

Washington slammed the test, claiming the projectile is capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. It vowed to respond with more sanctions.

Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan said the Emad missile was a conventional weapon.

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New Iran Sanctions Sought on Capitol Hill

by Michael Bowman January 21, 2016

Days after President Barack Obama hailed the fruits of diplomacy with Iran, Republican lawmakers pressed for tougher sanctions on Tehran for recent missile tests and other actions.

'We need to stand up to this Iranian regime  their illegal testing of ballistic missiles, their continued support for hostage-taking,' said Senator Kelly Ayotte at a news conference at the Capitol. 'We're going to impose tougher sanctions.'

'This president and this secretary of state [John Kerry] have pandered to the Iranians, no matter what they have done, no matter what offense they have committed,' said fellow-Republican Senator John McCain. 'They won't do a damn thing. And we will have to try to act as a Congress.'

The lawmakers did not spell out the punitive measures they had in mind, but voiced blistering criticism of the Obama administration's engagement with Iran.

'Our president and our secretary of state have negotiated the worst deal since Munich,' said Senator Lindsey Graham, referring to the short-lived accord between Britain and Germany before World War II. 'There is no requirement for the Iranians to change their behavior. They have a pathway to a bomb, a missile to deliver it, and money to pay for it.'

On Sunday, Obama hailed implementation of last year's nuclear pact with Iran.

'Under the nuclear deal that we, our allies and partners reached with Iran last year, Iran will not get its hands on a nuclear bomb,' the president said. 'We've achieved this historic progress through diplomacy, without resorting to another war in the Middle East.'

Obama and sanctions

While noting that Iran is now entitled to billions of dollars in sanctions relief, Obama noted that differences remain between Washington and Tehran and announced new sanctions for Iranian missile tests.

'We still have sanctions on Iran for its violations of human rights, for its support of terrorism, and for its ballistic missile program,' Obama said. 'And we will continue to enforce these sanctions, vigorously. Iran's recent missile test, for example, was a violation of its international obligations. And as a result, the United States is imposing sanctions on individuals and companies working to advance Iran's ballistic missile program. And we are going to remain vigilant about it.'

Republicans view the new sanctions as a mere slap on the wrist, and argue that stronger measures are required to curb Iranian behavior. In particular, they slammed Iran's brief detention of U.S. sailors last week, and expressed dismay that Kerry thanked Tehran after their release.

For any sanctions bill to pass Congress, a handful of Democratic senators would have to join Republicans in backing the legislation. Congressional rejection of the nuclear pact was blocked last year when minority Democrats prevented Republicans from getting a three-fifths vote required to advance the resolution.

Not all Democrats supported the deal and, among those who did, some are voicing concerns about recent Iranian behavior, including missile tests.

'I'm a strong supporter of the deal,' Senator Tim Kaine told VOA. 'But the deal only works if there is tough implementation, and includes not only the four corners of the deal, but in other areas that are subject to international law.

'If Iran cheats and gets away with it, then that will likely affect how they treat this deal.'

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Israel needs more US military aid after Iran deal: Netanyahu

Iran Press TV

Thu Jan 21, 2016 9:21PM

Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu says Tel Aviv needs more US military aid following the nuclear agreement between Iran and the P5+1 group of countries.

He told the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday that Washington and Tel Aviv are finalizing details of a 10-year military aid package that will be larger than the $3.1 billion US package Israel received this year.

Speaking to CNN journalist Fareed Zakaria in Davos, Netanyahu hailed the billions of dollars the administration of US President Barack Obama has provided to Israel.

He added that US military aid to Israel is even more important following the Iran nuclear deal, under which Tehran will receive tens of billions of dollars.

Netanyahu was referring to Iranian assets in many international banks that were frozen after illegal sanctions were imposed against the country in 2011 and 2012 based on unfounded accusations that Iran was seeking to develop nuclear weapons.

Iran's frozen assets were probably about $100 billion or more, but according to US Secretary of State John Kerry, Tehran would receive about $55 billion, because large chunks of these funds are obligated to satisfy foreign debt.

Israel seeks 60% increase

According to reports, Israeli officials have asked the US to increase its annual military assistance by 60 percent to an average of $5 billion a year over the 2018-2028 period.

Under the existing agreement that was signed in 2007 and expires in 2017, annual military aid to Israel grew to more than $3 billion a year. That deal was negotiated during the George W. Bush administration.

Netanyahu says that Israel wants more money to counter threats that will arise as a result of the Iran nuclear agreement, which the Zionist regime has fiercely opposed.

US President Barack Obama had reportedly agreed in principle with Netanyahu in one meeting to increase the aid package to between $4.2 billion and $4.5 billion.

The money is separate from the nearly $500 million in annual US funding for Israel's missile system programs in recent years. It is also on top of the US warfighting material held in Israel, which is valued at $1.2 billion.

US military assistance to Israel has amounted to $124.3 billion since it began in 1962, according to a recent congressional report.

US annual aid to Israel has held steady despite cuts to a wide range of domestic and military programs in the United States, including reducing the size of the US Army to its lowest level since before World War Two.

The US government is pressured to serve Israel's interests due to the influence of the powerful Zionist lobby in the United States. The pro-Israel pressure groups actively work to steer US foreign policy in favor of Israel.



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The First E-2D Advanced Hawkeye AEW Aircraft Ordered by Japan to Begin Manufacture

People's Daily Online

By Zou Luxiao (People's Daily Online) 01:01, January 22, 2016

The first E-2D Advanced Hawkeye AEW Aircraft Japan ordered from the U.S. is to begin manufacture, thepaper.cn reported on January 21.

As the most advanced carrier-capable tactical aircraft in the Northrop Grumman E-2 series, E-2D is an all-weather, airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft. It will meet the Japanese Defense Ministry's requirements for a future airborne early warning platform.

The U.S. Department of Defense has awarded Northrop Grumman the contract for its planned foreign military sale of the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye to Japan at 285 million USD on January 5, 2016.

The E-2D Aircraft is part of a $1.7 billion Japan-U.S. deal inked in June, 2015, in which Japan is to acquire 4 E-2D aircrafts, 10 T56-A-427A engines, 4 AN/APY-9 radars, relevant spare parts, and also the maintenance services.

As the very first E-2D aircraft customer for the U.S., Japan will include one E-2D aircraft per year in its yearly budget in four consecutive years.

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Tokyo Goes All In to Save US Base in Okinawa Despite Local Resentment

Sputnik News

03:45 22.01.2016(updated 05:13 22.01.2016)

With mayoral elections coming up in Okinawa, the Japanese government is working to ensure that a candidate in the ruling party wins. Dangling financial benefits to voters, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wants to ensure that a US airbase remains on the island.

Since the end of World War II, the United States has maintained a strong military presence in Japan, with multiple bases spread across the nation's islands. Okinawa, a small island of roughly 450 square miles, hosts 32 American military facilities, enough to cover approximately 20% of the island's total landmass.

While a key element of US-Japanese relations, the bases are enormously unpopular with local residents. Protesters have demonstrated against a proposed relocation of the Futenma air base, demanding that the facility be removed from Okinawa altogether.

With local elections approaching, the Japanese government is working to ensure that Atsushi Sakima, the pro-government, Liberal Democratic Party incumbent, wins the Ginowan mayoral election.

'The central government always just talks about security and the US-Japan alliance, giving the sense they aren't thinking seriously about Okinawa's benefit,' said Tomoaki Iwai, a law professor at Nihon University in Tokyo.

'There is a sense of money being used as a sweetener.'

That money comes in many forms. In December, the government in Tokyo promised to increase Okinawa's spending budget by $8.5 million in the upcoming fiscal year. The budget had been cut after the island elected Takeshi Onaga, a governor who opposed the presence of the Futenma base.

Onaga was sued by the Japanese Minister of Land Keiichi Ishii over the former's refusal to follow Tokyo's relocation recommendations for the airbase.

The administration of Prime Minister Abe has also indicated that it would back a Disney resort for the island, and pledged more aid for impoverished local children.

To campaign, the Liberal Democratic Party has dispatched lawmaker Shinjiro Koizumi to Okinawa, a popular figure among swing voters.

For now, the effectiveness of Tokyo's strategy is unclear.

'The incumbent appears in the lead, but his opponent is catching up,' said Katsuhiko Nakamura, executive director at Asia Forum Japan. 'There is some doubt about whether the government offered 'services' are helping.'

Even if Sakima holds on to his position, it doesn't mean that Abe will have an easy time relocating the American base.

'I don't think if the incumbent wins that it is a vote of support for the Henoko relocation, it is just a vote in favor of getting rid of the base and getting a Disneyland in its place,' said Gerry Curtis of Columbia University.

'But if the opposition wins it is a huge defeat for Abe.'

 Sputnik

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Pakistan: Afghan Territory Used for Deadly University Raid

by Ayaz Gul January 21, 2016

Pakistan says a deadly assault on a university in a northwestern city on Wednesday was "being controlled from a location in Afghanistan through an Afghan cell phone" by a fugitive member of the Pakistani Taliban.

Army spokesman Asim Bajwa released details of Pakistan's investigation into the attack Thursday. He said Pakistan's military chief, General Raheel Sharif telephoned the Afghan leadership and the commander of NATO's Afghan mission and "asked for their cooperation in locating and targeting those responsible for this heinous act and bring them to justice."

Pakistan alleges that leaders and commanders of the anti-state Taliban militants have taken refuge on the Afghan side of the border after fleeing army-led counterinsurgency operations. Officials have previously also blamed these fugitives for planning cross-border attacks in Pakistan.

But Afghan Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Seddiqi on Thursday dismissed allegations that there are terrorist bases in Afghanistan being used against Pakistan. He strongly condemned the Bacha Khan University attack in Charsadda and reiterated Kabul's allegations that terrorist sanctuaries are located in Pakistan and are causing instability in the region.

Mourning period

Meanwhile, Pakistan observed a day of mourning Thursday following the gun and bomb attack on the university in which 21 people were killed and dozens more wounded.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif declared the mourning period to show solidarity with those who died when a group of four terrorists stormed the Bacha Khan University in Charsadda.

Military spokesman Asim Bajwa said that troops, including army commandos gunned down the four attackers and conducted a 'block by block' clearing operation before securing the entire campus.

Taliban denies involvement

The spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban, Mohammad Khorasani, said Wednesday the group had nothing to do with the university attack, adding that non-military institutions are not on its list of targets. In a statement sent to VOA, Khorasani declared Wednesday's attack against 'Islamic Sharia.'

Earlier, a local Taliban commander had said he sent the four attackers to the university. There was no explanation for the conflicting claims.

Chris Hannas contributed to this report from Washington.

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Russia to Lay Down Two New Generation Corvettes in 2016

Sputnik News

15:52 21.01.2016(updated 16:01 21.01.2016)

Russia plans to lay down 15 warships, boats and vessels in 2016.

ST. PETERSBURG (Sputnik)  Two Russian Navy's next-generation Project 22800 corvettes will be laid down in 2016, Deputy Navy Commander Vice Adm. Alexander Fedotenkov told reporters on Thursday.

'In 2016, we plan to lay down 15 warships, boats and vessels. Among them there will be another two small-size missile ships of the Project 22800 [series], Project 20380 corvettes, Project 22160 patrol crafts,' he said.

Fedotenkov added that the fundamentally new ice-class patrol boat of the Project 23550 series would be laid down in 2016 as well. The ship will combine the capabilities of a tug-boat, an icebreaker and a patrol boat.

The first two Project 22800 corvettes, dubbed the Uragan and the Taifun, were laid down at the Pella shipyard in St. Petersburg on December 24 and are expected to join the Navy in 2017-2018. The warships will be equipped with high-precision missiles and advanced artillery systems. They will have a displacement of 800 metric tons and a maximum speed of over 30 knots.

 Sputnik

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Russia to Float Out Two New Submarines for Black Sea Fleet in Spring 2016

Sputnik News

12:57 21.01.2016(updated 15:11 21.01.2016)

The launch of two new Russian diesel-electric submarines of the Project 636.3 is scheduled for the spring of 2016, Deputy Navy Commander Vice Adm. Alexander Fedotenkov told reporters.

ST. PETERSBURG (Sputnik)  Russia is currently carrying out a large-scale rearmament program, announced in 2010, to achieve a 70-percent modernization of its military hardware by 2020.

'The launch of the submarines is scheduled for the spring of 2016. Both boats after outfitting works and tests will be handed over to the Navy until the end of the year,' he said.

The Veliky Novgorod and the Kolpino, being built at the St. Petersburg Shipyard, will become the fifth and sixth in the project. They feature advanced stealth technology, extended combat range and the ability to strike land, surface and underwater targets.

 Sputnik

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Syrian Army Airstrikes Cut Daesh Raqqa-Aleppo Supply Route

Sputnik News

14:07 21.01.2016(updated 16:55 21.01.2016)

The Syrian forces together with units of the people's militia cut off Daesh communication routes from al-Mansur al-Miass and al- Karyateyn areas, destroying a large number of terrorists, official representative of the Syrian Armed Forces Brigadier General Ali Mayhub said on Wednesday.

The Syrian Armed Forces in cooperation with the national militia killed more than 40 terrorists in areas of Jabhurin and Tallaff, Mayhub added.

"Syrian Armed Forces in conjunction with the forces of the national militia took control of two mountains, Mhin Al-Kabir and Mhin Al Sagyr, district warehouses, settlements Mhin, villages Hauvarin and Al Hadas, commanding heights along the road Al Mhassa  Al Karyateyn cutting the most important communication of Daesh in the direction of Al-Mankura- Al Mhassa  Al Karyateyn. During the fighting a large number of terrorists, weapons and military equipment were destroyed," Mayhub elaborated.

Similarly, military sources in the Northern battlefields said on Wednesday that the Syrian warplanes heavily bombed one of the main supply lines of Daesh used for transferring weapons, medical equipment and foodstuff to Aleppo from Raqqa.

"The Syrian army also targeted the positions and movements of Jeish al-Fatah terrorist group near al-Zerbeh, which inflicted a heavy death toll on the militants," the army further added.

 Sputnik

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Run for the Hills: Syrian Army Kills Dozens of Terrorists in Major Advance

Sputnik News

09:41 21.01.2016(updated 12:41 21.01.2016)

Daesh terrorists have confirmed the death of at least 70 of their own as the Syrian Army and popular forces continue their advance on the militants' positions west of Deir ez-Zor city, Iran's news agency Fars reported on Wednesday.

A number of terrorists were killed or injured and many of their machinegun trucks were destroyed in airstrikes, while army units pounded the terrorists near Deir ez-Zor airport, inflicting heavy losses upon them in personnel and equipment.

In the past 24 hours the Army's warplanes targeted positions of al-Nusra Front-linked terrorist groups south of Hama city destroying a number of enemy facilities and leaving many terrorists dead, the agency wrote, citing sources on the ground.

In the neighboring Idlib province, meanwhile, an Army unit carried out a special operation targeting terrorist forces in the south and killing eight militants.

More hideouts and positions for Jabhat al-Nusra terrorists were destroyed in Teir Maala, west of Talbiseh and in Um Sharshouh, 18 kilometers north of Homs city.

In Aleppo, the Army's air force launched a series of airstrikes against Daesh positions in the eastern countryside, Fars News reported.

 Sputnik

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UK Defense Chief Criticizes Corbyn's Plan to Send New Subs on Duty Unarmed

Sputnik News

20:59 21.01.2016(updated 21:01 21.01.2016)

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn's plan to build new Trident submarines but send them on duty without nuclear warheads is pointless and even dangerous, UK Defense Secretary Michael Fallon said Thursday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik)  Corbyn, opposing nuclear weapons, suggested the plan last week as a compromise between his position and need to protect jobs of the shipbuilding industry workers.

'If you are going to have a deterrent, you have to be prepared to use it,' Fallon said as quoted by The Guardian.

He compared the plan to producing 'imitation rifles' and noted that if Labour leadership maintained this position, they would represent a threat to the UK security.

The UK parliament is expected to vote on a successor to the Trident program with an estimated cost of some 31 billion British pounds (almost $44 billion at the current exchange rate) later in the year.

The Trident system is deployed at the UK Royal Navy's Faslane naval base in Scotland, the United Kingdom's only facility capable of hosting the four Vanguard-class ballistic missile-equipped submarines.

 Sputnik

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Ukraine Contact Group Brings No Results, Minsk Deal Implementation Stalled

Sputnik News

07:43 22.01.2016(updated 08:28 22.01.2016)

There is no progress in the implementation of the Minsk agreements and the most recent Contact Group meeting on Ukraine did not yield any significant results, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko told RIA Novosti.

DAVOS (Sputnik)  The latest Contact Group meeting on Ukrainian reconciliation took place on Wednesday.

'Unfortunately, it was not very effective,' Poroshenko told RIA Novosti on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.

According to the Ukrainian President, 'severe shelling' continues in Ukraine's southeast and 'a security situation allowing for the start of the political stage [of the peace process] has not been created yet.'

Kiev launched a special military operation in Ukraine's southeastern Donetsk and Lugansk regions in April 2014, after local residents refused to recognize the new Ukrainian authorities, which came to power as a result of a coup.

In February 2015, a peace agreement was signed between the two sides in the Belarusian capital, Minsk. The deal stipulates a full ceasefire, a weapons withdrawal from the line of contact in eastern Ukraine, an all-for-all prisoner exchange and constitutional reforms, which would give a special status to DPR and LPR.

Under the deal, constitutional reforms aimed at decentralizing power in Ukraine and the initiation of local elections in Donbass should have been concluded before the end of 2015.

The country's regions of Donetsk and Lugansk agreed to postpone their local elections until 2016. Before elections in those regions can take place, Ukrainian authorities must fulfill all their obligations under the Minsk peace agreement.

Despite the Minsk peace deal, sporadic shelling has continued in Ukraine's southeast.

 Sputnik

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Pittsylvania County got an A grade this week following its annual audit that took place during the summer.

Representatives from Blacksburg firm Robinson, Farmer, Cox, Associates presented the audit results to the Pittsylvania County Board of Supervisors Finance Committee on Tuesday afternoon.

The high marks came following a few years when county staff had difficulty entering transactions into its landfill fund, said Scott Wickham, the firms audit manager. County Finance Director Kim Van Der Hyde worked diligently to understand how to handle that fund, Wickham said Thursday.

Theres been a learning curve to get entries in the landfill fund correct and Kim worked hard to get them right this year, Wickham said.

The annual audit is conducted to make sure the countys financial statements accurately reflect revenues and expenditures, and that the county is compliant with state standards.

Staunton River Supervisor Elton Blackstock, who chairs the finance committee, said he was pleased the county received a clean audit.

I think it reflects well on the staff, especially Mrs. Van Der Hyde, Blackstock said, adding that County School Division Finance Director Tracey Worley deserves credit as well.

Van Der Hyde said the county had been treating the landfill as a business since the board passed a $60 per-year solid waste fee about four years ago. For government purposes, it was an enterprise fund, she said. Solid waste fee revenues were kept separate and recorded in a way similar to that of a private business, Van Der Hyde said.

The county had to account for those transactions differently than in the past (before the fee), Van Der Hyde said. During past audits since 2012, the auditors would enter the transactions for the county because staff was not used to the enterprise fund method of recording them, she said.

It has taken us a while to grasp exactly how we need to make those transactions work, Van Der Hyde said.

This year, however, Van Der Hyde and county staff made sure to have those transaction entries already prepared when auditors arrived, she said.

Shes done a really good job to prepare us for the audit, Wickham said.

The board of supervisors voted last fall to eliminate the solid waste fee, so the landfill item will be moved back to the general fund with transactions again recorded the old way, Van Der Hyde said.

The firm gave the county an A- last year due to clerical errors, but there were no major issues, Wickham said.

A lot of Virginia counties hire certified public accountants to prepare entries, but Pittsylvania County doesnt need to because staff can do it themselves, Wickham said.

The countys new A grade will enable Pittsylvania to apply for a certificate of recognition from the Governmental Financial Officers Association, Van Der Hyde said. County officials will consider applying for the certificate, Van Der Hyde said.

Blackstock said thats definitely something we want to explore doing.

In other audit findings, the county had about $198 million in assets including money, buildings, vehicles and other items, Wickham said.

The county had a compounded annual growth rate of 2 percent for its general fund, which was about $63 million in 2014-15, Wickham said. Thats about the average rate from other localities in the commonwealth, he said.

Net government expenditures were about $132 million, with about $62 million spent by the county and $86 million spent by the school division. About $16 million of $62 million spent by the county was local funding for the school board, Wickham said.
A University of Virginia student has been arrested over an alleged hostile act, North Korea state media reported Friday.

Pyongyangs Korean Central News Agency said that authorities detained Otto Frederick Warmbier, 21, a third-year student.

The State Department was not immediately available to comment on the report.

U.Va. spokesman Anthony P. de Bruyn said the university has been in touch with Warmbiers family, but declined to comment further or say whether he was in the region during winter break on a university-affiliated program.

According to Reuters, Warmbier has been detained since Jan. 2 and had been traveling with Young Pioneer Tours, a travel agency that provides tours to North Korea.

U.Va.s student newspaper, The Cavalier Daily, reported that Warmbier is a third-year student, an Echols scholar and a member of Theta Chi Fraternity.

KCNA said the student was under investigation for perpetrating a hostile act against the DPRK after entering it under the guise of tourist for the purpose of bringing down the foundation of its single-minded unity at the tacit connivance of the U.S. government and under its manipulation.

Warmbier was in North Korea for a five-day New Year trip and was detained at Pyongyang airport on Jan. 2 ahead of a flight back to China, according to a Reuters report.

Gareth Johnson of Young Pioneer Tours, which organized the visit, said the company was in contact with Warmbier's family and U.S. officials.

"We are in touch with Otto's family, the U.S. State Department and the Embassy of Sweden in Pyongyang and doing all we can to secure his release," Johnson told Reuters.

In October, North Korea released a New York University student holding a U.S. green card six months after capturing him crossing into the country from China.

Warmbier grew up in Cincinnati and attended Wyoming High School from 2009-2013.

Joo Won-moon, 21, a South Korean national, was freed days before Pyongyang celebrated the 70th anniversary of the ruling Workers Party.

Korean-American missionary, Kenneth Bae, was freed in 2014 after serving two years of a hard labor sentence.

However, in December it reportedly sentenced a South Korea-born Canadian pastor to hard labor for life for subversion. Hyeon Soo Lim, the head pastor at a Toronto church that is one of Canadas largest, had been held in North Korea since February.

The United States and North Korea are still officially at war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea.
New U.K. Treasury chief Jeremy Hunt has reversed most of an economic package announced by the government just weeks ago, including a planned cut in income taxes. Hunt said Monday he was scrapping almost all the tax cuts announced last month by the Conservative government of Prime Minister Liz Truss, and also signaled that public spending cuts are on the way. It was a bid to soothe turbulent financial markets spooked by fears of excessive government borrowing. The move raises questions about how long the beleaguered prime minister can stay in office, though Truss insisted she has no plans to quit. She vowed to lead the Conservatives into the next general election, but many in the party want her gone.
ST HELIER, Jersey, January 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Consolidated Minerals advises that as a direct result of the current record low price for manganese ore the Board has taken the difficult decision to suspend operations at Woodie Woodie and commence a transition into care and maintenance. Despite relentless cost-cutting and marketing efforts to remain competitive, the price for manganese ore is now so low that in the Board's view continuing to operate at Woodie Woodie is no longer economically viable

This decision means that all operations will cease at the Woodie Woodie mine site by the 2nd February 2016 and most positions there and in West Perth will be made redundant by or at that time. Approximately 330 direct employees and 50 contractors will be impacted. A small team will be maintained for a short period beyond this date to complete a number of activities that are necessary to transition Woodie Woodie into care and maintenance. Beyond this transition, a smaller caretaking and support team will be retained.

The Company intends to sell existing ore stockpiles as and when satisfactory prices can be achieved.

Consolidated Minerals would like to take this opportunity to thank all employees for their dedication, hard work and support.
Whittle Consulting's Optimisation Study Significantly Enhances Economics

LONDON, ENGLAND--(Marketwired - Jan 22, 2016) - Condor (AIM:CNR) ("Condor" or "the Company") is pleased to announce, further to its announcement of 20 October 2015, the full results, including Net Present Value ("NPV") and Internal Rate of Return ("IRR") figures, contained in the Whittle Consulting Limited's ("Whittle") Enterprise Optimisation study on La India Project, Nicaragua (the "Study"). The Company was in an Offer Period as defined by the Takeover Code at that point in time and was unable to publish the NPV and IRR figures derived from the independent optimisation study during the Offer Period, even though the purpose of the study was to optimise the mine schedules to NPV. One of the reasons that the Formal Sales Process was terminated on 18th January 2016 is to provide shareholders with the full details of the optimisation study. However, as the Company is now out of an Offer Period it is pleased to update investors with these improved NPV and IRR results which significantly increase the La India Project economics.

The Study involves the application of advanced analytical techniques to construct a model of the operation from the ore bodies through mining and ore treatment processes to products sold to the market with a view to maximising a project's NPV. The study used the reserves/resources and technical studies used in the NI 43-101 compliant Pre-Feasibility Study ("PFS") and Preliminary Economic Assessments ("PEA") produced by independent mineral resource and mining consultants SRK Consulting Limited ("SRK") in December 2014.

Highlights:

NPV increases on average 56% across three production scenarios and 78% for the PFS case.

Average NPV US$196M compared to the current market capitalisation US$12m highlights significant undervaluation with a price-to-book ratio 0.06 times

IRR averages 30% across three production scenarios

29% increase to 866k oz gold from 674k oz gold of contained gold of Indicated ounces only in the base case La India open pit, as the pit pushes deeper

29% increase to 1,066k oz gold from 827k oz gold contained gold of Indicated and Inferred ounces within La India open pit + two feeder pits

18% increase to 1,544k oz gold from 1,313 oz gold of contained gold of Indicated and Inferred within all pits and underground

22% increase in average gold production for the first 5 years, ranging from 91,000 oz to 165,000 oz gold per annum across three production scenarios

The recovered gold over life of mine ranges from 796,000 oz to 1,437,000 oz gold across the 3 production scenarios

All in sustaining cash costs remain under US$700 per oz gold for all production scenarios

Mark Child CEO comments:

"We are very pleased to now be able to release the materially improved NPV and IRR figures contained within the optimisation study. The NPV of the PFS case of Indicated ounces gold only, increased 78%. The average NPV increases 56% for three production scenarios compared to the production scenarios within the PFS and PEAs announced in December 2014. The average NPV is US$196M compared to the current market capitalisation of US$12M, valuing the Company at a price-to-book ratio of 0.06 times, highlighting the material undervaluation of the Company's shares. The IRRs increase to an average of 30%. Indicated ounces of gold within the main La India open pit increase by 29% to 866k oz gold and also by 29% for the main pit + feeder pits to 1,066k oz gold as the pit pushed deeper. The annual gold production for the first 5 years increases on average 22% and ranges from 91,000 oz gold to 165,000 oz gold per annum versus the PFS and PEA studies. The recovered gold over life of mine ranges from 796,000 oz to 1,437,000 oz gold. The average pay back of upfront capital costs is between two and three production years highlighting the outstanding economics and versatility of La India Project."

Background

Whittle Consulting's (WCL) Enterprise Optimisation is an integrated approach to maximising the Net Present Value (NPV) of a mining business by simultaneously optimizing 10 different mechanisms across the mining value chain. Condor commissioned the independent optimisation study in May 2015 to investigate strategic options to improve project economics. The Study is a strategic planning tool and is not NI 43-101 compliant. However, WCL is the recognised world leader in a specialist field of maximising the economics of a mine and has completed work for major mining companies: Rio Tinto, Anglo American, Kinross, AngloGold Ashanti, Barrick, Xstrata, Vale. The report presents the findings from the Enterprise Optimisation Study for La India Project. An oil price of US$100 was used in the PFS and PEAs.

Four production scenarios were assessed, based on the study methodology employed by SRK and Condor.

The PFS case includes measured and indicated material only from the La India open pit, with a processing capacity of 0.8 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) or 2,200 tonnes per day (tpd).

The PEA 1.0 case also includes the La India open pit inferred material, with a process capacity of 1.0 mtpa or 2,800tpd

The PEA 1.2 case includes all of the La India open pit material, and also includes material from two nearby smaller pits, America and Central Breccia. The processing capacity for this case is 1.2 mtpa or 3,300tpd. This is known as scenario "A" in the SRK reports.

The PEA 1.6 case adds underground mining from La India and America, over and above the material in PEA 1.2. The processing capacity for this case is 1.6 mtpa or 4,400tpd. This is known as scenario "B" in the SRK reports.

Validation runs for each case were produced. Optimised runs were generated using multi-mine scheduling, fully variable cut-off grade and stockpiling. Reduced capacity cases were run, also optimised for schedule, cut-off grade and stockpiling. Grind-throughput-recovery relationships were developed for the La India open pit material, and this methodology was used to further optimize the schedule for all cases. Pit and Phase optimisation was completed on the La India pit using the Enterprise Optimisation economics, which improved NPV.

The optimised cases were developed from work done from May 2015 through to September 2015. The gold price for this work is $1,250 per troy ounce, and the silver price is $19.75/troz in order to have a like for like comparison with the PFS and PEAs. Metal recoveries were based on the PFS and PEA work completed in late 2014.

Post-tax results are indicated in Table 1 for the four production scenarios. The Enterprise Optimisation methodology improved NPV in all cases, with decreasing improvements across the larger plant / open pit scenarios. This is due to the Grind-Throughput-recovery (GTR) work being isolated to La India Vein Set only due to limited metallurgical data on the America and Central Breccia. Similar results may be recognized when data is collected and assessed for the America and Central Breccia open pit and underground material. It is important to note that the 1.0 mtpa case does not have a PFS/PEA study equivalent, nor corresponding pit designs, so there is no comparison data. In these cases, improvements are measured against the initial Enterprise Optimisation calibration runs.

To view Table 1, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122table1.jpg.

Table 2. Comparison of production scenarios to PFS and PEAs

La India - PFS



Open Pit - PFS

IND Only La India



Open Pit

IND+INF All Open Pits



PEA-A

IND+INF All Open Pits + UG



PEA-B

IND+INF PFS Whittle

EO Whittle

EO PEA A Whittle

EO PEA A Whittle

EO Nominal Processing Plant capacity tpd 2,200 2,800 3,300 4,400 Nom. Capacity in M-tpa 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.6 Contained gold koz 674 866 955 827 1,066 1,313 1,554 Recovered gold koz 614 796 882 752 985 1,203 1,437 1st 5 years avg. production gold p.a. koz 76 91 101 94 118 138 165 Production improvement 1st 5 years 20 % n/a 25 % 20 %

Figure 1 presents a waterfall summary of the value contributions for the PFS 0.8 ktpa / 2200 tpd case. The initial optimised schedule, utilizing fully variable cut-off grade and a maximum of 1.5 mt of stockpiling, adds 3.8% to the base NPV. The grind-throughput-recovery methodology improves NPV by another 25.7% over the prior case due to faster/coarser grinding and reduced costs. The Enterprise Optimisation net value economics generate a larger pit and higher early value phases, improving NPV by an additional 48.2%. This exercise did generate a larger pit with more ounces - it should be stressed that this is not at a PFS level of study. The overall value improvement in the PFS 0.8 case with the Enterprise Optimisation methodology is 78% at a gold price of US$1,250. The bold numbers in the graph are the total NPV at 5%, and the italicized numbers are the increment value and percent change over the base.

To view Figure 1 - La India PFS Value Contributions, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122fig1.jpg.

Figure 2 provides a similar presentation of the value contributions for the PEA 1.2 "A" case, which includes all Measured, Indicated &Inferred material from all three pits, with a nominal processing capacity of 1.2 mtpa (3300 tpd). There are two cut-off grade and stockpile optimised Prober schedules for reduced processing rates presented in this graph, both of which exceed the initial study NPV. The run at the nominal throughput of 1.2 mtpa has a better NPV than the 1.0 mtpa case, but only by about 1%, which may mean that the optimal processing capacity for this case may be less than the nominal 1.2mpta level. Cut-off grade and stockpiling improves NPV by 13% over the base, and GTR adds 17.9% to the NPV. The Enterprise Optimisation-generated pit and phase optimisation added 16.4% over the base. Overall, the Enterprise Optimisation methodology improved NPV for the PEA "A" 1.2 case by over 50%.

To view Figure 2 - La India PEA 1.2 "A" Value Contributions, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122fig2.jpg.

Figure 3 presents the value contributions for the PEA 1.6 "B" case. This case has all of the open pit material available, plus a conceptual view of underground resource from the La India and America deposits, with a nominal processing capacity of 1.6 mtpa / 4400 tpd.

For the PEA 1.6 "B" case, the reduced processing runs all have increasing values commensurate with increasing processing rates, meaning that the mine fleet size is not a mismatch for the higher production cases. However, it may be the mining fleet is over-sized for the lower production rates, which, if recapitalized, could improve NPVs for the lower production cases. This was not tested in this study, since contractor mining is the baseline assumption.

The cut-off grade and stockpile schedule improves NPV by 17.6% over the base, and the GTR case adds 2.6%. The GTR approach had less impact in this case as only the La India material has sufficient information for GTR analysis. With the addition of the Central Breccia (CBZ) material, the America pit material, and the higher grade underground material, there is proportionally less material eligible for this methodology. The Enterprise Optimised economics-base pit and phase optimisation generated significant value for the PEA 1.6 "B" case, 17% over the base. The total value gain for the PEA 1.6 "B" case is 40% over the base.

To view Figure 3 - PEA 1.6 "B" Value Contributions, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122fig3.jpg.

Outcomes

This Enterprise Optimisation Study developed the NPV-optimised schedules through variable cut-off grade, stockpile capacity, grind-throughput-recovery, multi-mine scheduling, and optimised pit and phasing. Significant outcomes of this process include:

An optimised schedule utilizing fully variable cut-off grade with stockpiling adds significantly to the project NPV in all cases. The permitted maximum stockpile capacity of 1.5Mt should be utilized, and additional stockpile capacity may add value.

The grind size-throughput-recovery (GTR) methodology adds significant value to the project in all cases where it can be utilized.

Modification of the ultimate pit and phase selection based on the methodology presented here increases NPV significantly in all cases, partially due to incorporating additional tonnes and ounces.

The theory of constraints indicates using US Dollar per kilowatt hour as the limiting factor in the business system will improve value. The Enterprise Optimised pit and phase optimisation based on this, combined with cut-off and GTR optimisation adds significantly to project NPV.

When additional mining material is added, processing capacity may not necessarily need to be increased, and may not yield the optimal NPV.



The Enterprise Optimisation methodology as applied in this study was able to pull cash flow forward as indicated in Figure 4 through Figure 6. These three figures represent the PFS 0.8 mtpa case, the PEA 1.2 mtpa case, and the PEA 1.6 mtpa case.

To view Figure 4 - La India PFS 0.8 Optimised Net Cash Flow, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122fig4.jpg.

To view Figure 5 - La India, America, CBZ PEA 1.2 Net Cash Flow, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122fig5.jpg.

To view Figure 6 - La India, America, CBZ, Underground PEA 1.6 Net Cash Flow, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122fig6.jpg.

Conclusion

Overall, the independent optimisation analysis conducted by WCL clearly demonstrates the potential to unlock substantial additional value from the La India Project. Across 3 production scenarios, NPV increases over 50%, IRRs average 30%, the payback on upfront capital costs is between two to three production years, and gold production increases on average 22% for the first 5 years. WCL's study is a strategic planning tool, which is used to maximise the economics, particularly the NPV, ahead of a "build decision" and can often form part of a more detailed Definitive/Bankable Feasibility Study. It should be noted that WCL's study is not NI 43-101 compliant and would require re-generation of the PFS and PEAs to confirm the improvements. Phase 2 of the study will consist of optimisation of the underground potential for the project, as well as sensitivities to accommodate the impact of lower metal and oil prices.

Whittle Consulting Limited

Whittle Consulting's (www.whittleconsulting.com.au) approach to Enterprise Optimisation involves the application of advanced analytical techniques to construct a model of the operation from the ore bodies through mining and ore treatment processes to products sold to the market. Once modelled, a powerful mathematical optimiser is applied to manipulate the variables which are regarded as "negotiable", to develop long-term plans that excel in terms of a wide range of economic and other operational and business criteria.

Modelling techniques and facilities are comprehensive, capturing and harnessing the client's information on geology, geotechnical, mining engineering, process engineering and metallurgy, finance and marketing, to combine into an integrated Enterprise Optimisation Model that contains the details of all development options under consideration. The model is used to direct underground mine design or as a basis for pit and phase optimisation and to develop life-of-mine business plans which identify the optimal operating configuration for the scenario presented. The result is a unique capability that can resolve planning issues beyond the scope of available packaged planning software and conventional techniques.

It is common for Whittle Consulting to interface with diverse commercial and in-house software packages during an Enterprise Optimisation exercise. These may be limited to mine planning and scheduling packages or financial reporting, or may for example already incorporate 2 or 3 of the twelve Enterprise Optimisation steps or could even utilise highly technical plant optimisation routines. It is typical for the Enterprise Optimisation work to use the output of any of these packages as input to overall optimisation of an operation or project. The Enterprise Optimisation results provide conceptual guidance for the detailed operational plans which will be developed by the client or their engineering and cost study consultants in most cases using their existing software.

All the mechanisms required for this study have been implemented before - most of them on a routine basis.

Whittle's Enterprise Optimisation study on Condor was prepared by Richard Peevers (B.A. (Geology), MBA (Finance), M.Eng. (Civil), Registered Professional Civil Engineer California). Richard holds degrees in geology, engineering, and business administration and has managed copper, gold, borate, and nickel optimisation studies for Whittle Consulting.

Competent Person's Declaration

Information in this announcement that relates to the project evaluation, Preliminary Feasibility Study, engineering and mine planning is based on information compiled and/or reviewed by Gerald David Crawford, the Chief Operating Officer, who is a Registered Professional Engineer in the states of Colorado and Nevada and member of the Society of Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration, and a mining engineer with 38 years of experience in the design and evaluation of precious and base metal mineral resources. Mr. Crawford is a full-time employee of Condor Gold plc and has sufficient experience which is relevant to the mining method and type of deposit under consideration, and to the type of activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Qualified Person as defined under Canadian NI 43-101. Mr. Crawford consents to the inclusion in the announcement of the matters based on their information in the form and context in which it appears and confirms that this information is accurate and not false or misleading.

Technical Glossary

$/kWhr Dollars per kilowatt-hour, one means of optimizing mill throughput. Mills are frequently a bottleneck / constraint in improvement of net present value CBZ Central Breccia deposit, a near surface inferred resource located bout 2km to the northeast of the La India Pit CDR Whittle's abbreviation for the Condor project COG Cut-off Grade - a grade of gold in ore that segregates ore from waste or stockpile material. One of the variables that Prober manipulates to improve NPV Constraint A term from Linear Programming, any attribute of a cash flow and operating cost model that serves to limit increases in the net present value of the system Enterprise Optimisation Enterprise Optimisation - Whittle terminology for 'Whole Mine' optimisation GTR Grind-Throughput-Recovery - Prober optimisation of the grind size, gold recovery and mill throughput variables in the EO process LP Linear Programming - A mathematical technique used to optimize a process subject to a set of constraints mtpa Million tonnes per annum (metric tonnes) NPV Net Present Value - standard financial tool for determining the present value of a series of cash flows in the future at a given discount rate. Unless otherwise noted, the discount rate in the Whittle study is 5%. NPV is the basis by which Prober decides the 'best' option. P&P Pit and Phase - Whittle optimisation of the ultimate pit shell and all contained phases to achieve maximum NPV using EO net value economics PEA Preliminary Economic Assessment - A conceptual-level study used to demonstrate basic economic viability under Canadian National Instrument 43-101 PFS Preliminary Feasibility Study - Overall economic accuracy of +/- 25% Prober The proprietary software package used by Whittle Consulting Ltd. to implement Enterprise Optimisation Stockpile A means of controlling the grade of material sent through the mill, whereby higher grades are given preferential treatment, particularly when a surplus of ore is available within any mining period. Theory of Constraints All production processes are limited by any number of factors, such as advance rate within the mine, truck capacity, or power that can be applied through the SAG mill (for example). Prober uses these constraints to eliminate unworkable scenarios, solving for the maximum NPV achievable within the constraints tr.oz Troy Ounce, standard transaction unit for gold and silver sales, at 31.1031 grams per troy ounce. UG Underground Mining Validation Run The initial test of the Whittle cash flow model and fixed-mining Prober run that ensures that pre-optimisation economics calculated by Whittle agree with existing PFS and PEA results

For further information please visit www.condorgold.com.

About Condor Gold plc:

Condor Gold plc was admitted to AIM on 31st May 2006. The Company is a gold exploration and development company with a focus on Central America.

Condor completed a Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) and two Preliminary Economic Assessments (PEA) on La India Project in Nicaragua in December 2014. The PFS details an open pit gold mineral reserve of 6.9M tonnes at 3.0g/t gold for 675,000 oz gold producing 80,000 oz gold p.a. for 7 years. The PEA for the open pit only scenario details 100,000 oz gold production p.a. for 8 years whereas the PEA for a combination of open pit and underground details 140,000 oz gold production p.a. for 8 years. La India Project contains a total attributable mineral resource of 18.4Mt at 3.9g/t for 2.33M oz gold and 2.68M oz silver at 6.2g/t to the CIM Code.

In El Salvador, Condor has an attributable 1,004,000 oz gold equivalent at 2.6g/t JORC compliant resource. The resource calculations are compiled by independent geologists SRK Consulting (UK) Limited for Nicaragua and Ravensgate and Geosure for El Salvador.

Consent by Whittle Consulting

Whittle Consulting hereby accepts responsibility for the accuracy of the NPV and IRR calculations based on the data and assumptions provided by Condor and SRK, extracted from the Enterprise Optimisation study prepared for the Company dated September 2015 as contained in this announcement. Furthermore, Whittle Consulting consents to the use of its name in this announcement.

Disclaimer

Neither the contents of the Company's website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Company's website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.

Whittle Consulting is acting exclusively for Condor Gold plc and no one else in connection with the Enterprise Optimisation study and will not be responsible to anyone other than Condor Gold plc for providing the protections afforded to clients of Whittle Consulting. Neither Whittle Consulting nor any of its affiliates owes or accepts any duty, liability or responsibility whatsoever (whether direct or indirect, whether in contract, in tort, under statute or otherwise) to any person who is not a client of Whittle Consulting in connection with this Announcement, any statement contained herein, or otherwise.
Vancouver - Alta Vista Ventures Ltd. (Alta Vista or the Company) (AVV-CSE, YRLLF-OTC) announces that Mr. George Smitherman has joined its Board of Directors and that Mr. Kim Derry has joined the Company as Senior Advisor  Safety and Security.Mr. Smitherman had a long successful political career until 2010 when he returned to his pre politics roots as an entrepreneur. He is the founder of three companies and is an advisor to several others. Most recently a candidate for the Mayor of Toronto, Mr. Smitherman has previously been elected three times as a Member of the Provincial Parliament where he served as Ontarios Deputy Premier, Health Minister, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure as well as many other roles. Over a career spanning almost 25 years Mr. Smitherman has been active in all three levels of government.Mr. Smithermans interest in Medical Marijuana started when he was Ontarios Health Minister. He has since become a vocal advocate of Medical Marijuana and the legalization of recreational marijuana nationally.Mr. Kim Derry has had a long distinguished career in law enforcement. Over his 38 year career Mr. Derry has performed uniform, undercover and investigative duties. At the peak of his law enforcement career Mr. Derry was appointed the Deputy Chief of Police for the City of Toronto. He has been responsible for the policing operations in Toronto for 17 divisions, managed in excess of 4,000 personnel and oversaw divisional policing budgets of $490 million.Mr. Derrys wide ranging experience in safety and security is a natural fit for the Marijuana for Medical Purposes Regulations (MMPR) environment. He is motivated by the opportunity to reduce the influence of gangs and organized crime through a sensible regulatory regime.In addition, the Company would like to announce that Mr. Don Shaxon is also joining as Senior Advisor. Mr. Shaxon brings 20 years experience in the capital markets including and in the Medical Marijuana sector since 2007. As Corporate development Manager with Cannabis Science Inc., the first public company in North America dedicated to the marijuana industry he helped build the company from a small cap company into an industry leader with a market cap that topped $100 million. Since then he has been involved in a number of public companies and was instrumental in bringing the RedeCan Pharm opportunity to the Company.The purchase of Redecan Pharm is a critical step in Alta Vistas goal of becoming a significant player in Canadas medical marijuana marketplace. Under the terms of the LOI, subject to satisfactory due diligence and the signing of a definitive agreement, Alta Vista Ventures can purchase a 100% undivided interest in RedeCan Pharm by paying $7,000,000 in cash and issuing a total of 7,575,757 shares. In addition to the purchase price Alta Vista will pay a 10% royalty of the gross revenues of RedeCan on a quarterly basis to be paid 50% in cash and 50% in shares of Alta Vista.In addition to the right to purchase RedeCan, Alta Vista has the right to purchase Thor Pharma, an early stage MMPR applicant that could add up to 75,000 square feet of growing space. Alta Vista cannot guarantee nor estimate the timing for the issuance of an MMPR license to Thor Pharma.As part of its ongoing efforts to expand in the sector Alta Vista continues to evaluate additional opportunities.On behalf of the Board,Ian ForemanIan Foreman, PresidentFor information on Thor Pharma and RedeCan please contact Mr. Don Shaxon at 289-697-8625.For additional information on Alta Vista Ventures please call the Company at 604-678-2531.Neither Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.Statements in this press release, other than purely historical information, including statements relating to the Companys future plans and objectives or expected results, may include forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on numerous assumptions and are subject to all of the risks and uncertainties inherent in such statements. As a result, actual results may vary materially from those described in the forward-looking statements.Copyright  2016 Filing Services Canada Inc.
Winter pastures, small grains in good shape

It's a typical January in West Texas as ranchers make daily supplemental feed rounds and break ice on water troughs for livestock. Otherwise, the winter grazing outlook is mainly good as temperatures begin to warm and wheat pasture continues to develop and improve.

"We have tall winter grass, thanks to good moisture received last fall and in early January," said Schleicher County rancher Sarah Lipsett.

Schleicher County is on the divide and edge of the Edwards Plateau. It is broken by the Devils, Concho and San Saba tributaries and considered great ranch country.

According to the weekly report from the National Agricultural Statistics Service, wheat and oats in areas of the Edwards Plateau, Upper Coast and South Texas have been experiencing good progress with 94 percent emerged.

Although winter wheat is under great stress throughout the upper Midwest because of below normal weather conditions, the small grain crops overall are progressing well across Texas except the High Plains where wheat is primarily at a dormant stage and in areas of the Blacklands where wheat and oats experienced damage because of wet field conditions.

Other crops in the Lone Star State are making slow progress, according to the report. Corn producers in the Blacklands have begun field preparations by applying fertilizer to fields. The vegetable harvest was active in areas of the Lower Valley and onion producers began field preparations in areas of North East Texas.

The cotton harvest was at 95 percent complete last Friday, according to the NASS report.

On the South Plains, where 40 percent of the nation's cotton is grown within 200 miles of Lubbock, growers are projected to produce approximately 4,000,000 bales of cotton when the final numbers for the 2015 crop is complete.

The NASS January estimate is down 30,000 bales from the December report, said Mary Jane Buerkle, with Lubbock-based Plains Cotton Growers.

"Of the 4,000,000 bales of cotton, 640,000 will come from the Northern High Plains which is up 30,000 from December and 3,360,000 from the Southern High Plains, down 60,000," she said. "Yield per acre for the Northern High Plains is 749 pounds, up from 714 in December and 645 for the Southern High Plains, down slightly from 657."

Buerkle said harvested acres remain at 410,000 in the NHP and 2,500,000 in the SHP and the abandonment rate still stands at 7.4 percent.

Meanwhile, fields across the region are still drying out following the historic blizzard that dumped up to 20 inches of snow on some parts of the PCG service area in late December, she said.

"Based on reports from growers and ginners, cotton on the stalk and modules in the field could make up about 350,000 remaining bales," Buerkle said. "Some gins already have completed operations for the year."

Statewide, the production number dropped slightly from 5.8 million bales in December to 5,750,000 bales in January. The nationwide estimate for upland cotton dropped slightly to 12.5 million bales, down from an estimated 12.6 million in the December report.

Even as the South Plains cotton farmers are coming off a production year that is reported to be the best since 2010, the low demand for cotton is concerning many of them as they face hard decisions for the 2016 crop year.

As for the 2016 crop, Reuters and Cotton Grower magazine released results from their respective acreage surveys. The Reuters poll of primarily traders and economists showed that growers in the United States would plant 9.7 million acres this year, up 13 percent from 2015. Their poll also took the Cotton Grower survey number into consideration, which was 9.085 million acres.

Jerry Lackey is the agriculture editor emeritus. Contact him at jlackey@wcc.net or 325-949-2291.
Adam Sauceda/Standard-Times Mike Boyd receives the Citizen of the Year award Thursday at the 100th San Angelo Chamber of Commerce Banquet.

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By Michael Kelly

Behind the unpretentious, typically relaxed West Texas exterior is the acute mind of a banker, the heart of a dedicated servant and the spirit of a warrior.

His record of public service in San Angelo goes back decades, and his current commitments alone include membership on the boards of the Shannon Trustees and Shannon Hospital, chairman of the San Angelo Health Foundation, chairman of the Howard College Foundation, vice president of the San Angelo Stock Show & Rodeo Association, chairman of the Water Advisory Board for the city of San Angelo and a prominent organizing role for San Angelo Support for Veterans, Inc.

Mike Boyd as of Thursday night is also Citizen of the Year for 2015.

The award was conferred at the San Angelo Chamber of Commerce annual banquet, attended by hundreds of people at the McNease Convention Center.

Presenter Carol Ann Bonds, former superintendent of the San Angelo Independent School District and the Citizen of the Year for 2014, detailed Boyd's accomplishments.

Bonds described him as "the epitome of a citizen-soldier" and "a model for the rest of us of duty and service."

Boyd, she said, grew up in Lamesa, a farming community of about 10,000 on the flat prairie halfway between Midland and Lubbock, becoming a standout high school athlete and graduating with honors in 1970. In eighth grade he met the girl who eventually would become his wife. Summers were taken up working on his grandfather's farm.

Boyd went on to a parallel career path after high school, studying finance and economics at Texas A&M while rising through the cadet corps. After graduation he was commissioned as an officer in the Texas National Guard and became a graduate of both the Southwestern School of Banking and the Command and General Staff College.

For the next 29 years, he successfully pursued a banking career while simultaneously earning promotions in the guard. He landed a job as a cashier for a newly chartered bank in San Angelo in 1976. Boyd is now president of First Financial Bank of San Angelo, the apex of a career that spans 39 years.

His military service included command positions in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. He retired with the rank of colonel, and his concern about, advocacy for and generosity toward veterans and active-duty military personnel have become legendary in San Angelo.

"Associates from his banking and military careers tell common stories of our honoree that illustrate his essential character traits of hard work and attention to details, humility and civility shown by putting the needs of others before self, integrity as shown through his often repeated statement, 'Let's do what is right,' " Bonds told the crowd Thursday night.

Boyd's history of public service in San Angelo includes Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce; Chairman of Rio Concho, Inc.; President of the National Guard Association of Texas; President of San Angelo Industries; Chairman of Baptist Memorial Board; Chairman of West Texas Rehabilitation Center Board; and Chairman of Southland Baptist Finance Committee and Personnel Committee.

"The colonel has modeled for the rest of us duty and service to God, family, employer and vast involvement in making his community better," Bonds said.

After listening to Bonds, Boyd stepped forward to accept the award and with typical humility quipped, "I'd like to meet that guy she was talking about."

Boyd recalled a saying from his father, another military man, who told him: "Take care of your men and they will take care of you." His sons, who are a doctor and a military helicopter pilot, came from Miami, Florida, and Austin to attend the event, along with his mother and his wife, Treva.

"Treva and I chose San Angelo 40 years ago because we wanted to raise our family here and have a career," he said. "Thank you for accepting us."

Urging those in the audience to public service, he said, "I challenge you to come participate."
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Economist predicts tough industry times

By Max B. Baker

FORT WORTH  Plummeting oil prices may result in 20,000 additional oil field-related job losses in Texas by the middle of the year, double what an economist predicted earlier.

Karr Ingham, an economist who works for the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers, originally forecast that 10,000 jobs would be eliminated during the first six months of 2016.

But with oil trading below $30 a barrel, Ingham said Wednesday, an additional 10,000 jobs will be lost.

"It is not pretty at all. It wouldn't have been pretty if (oil prices) had stabilized at $30. Now we are worse than that," Ingham said. "For the first half of 2016, we will continue to suffer job losses in the industry and 10,000 per quarter is not unthinkable."

In November, Ingham said that job losses in Texas would hit 60,000 by the end of 2015 and 70,000 by mid-2016 if oil prices rose to the mid-$40 range, which he said would stop the rig count and job declines.

But oil closed Wednesday at $26.55 a barrel.

So the oil and gas field and its related industries will lose 80,000 jobs from January 2015 to June 2016, if Ingham's crystal ball is accurate.

Ingham bases his forecasts on two sets of data from the Texas Workforce Commission: monthly employment statistics along with the agency's quarterly census of employment and wages. He is currently working on his final report for 2015, which will include a forecast for this year.

It didn't look good throughout 2015. In November, he said, monthly employment stats put job losses at 30,000 for the first 10 months of the year. But when you take into account what the census shows, which is calculated at a county level, the industry had actually slashed about 48,000 jobs between December and June, he said. By the end of October, job losses hit 56,000.

The energy industry now employs 240,000 to 250,000, far from its peak of 306,000 in December 2014, he said.

"It is safe to say at this point, moving into 2016, that we're not anywhere near done with job losses," Ingham said. "Oil at $20 a barrel doesn't need as many employees."

Earlier this month, for example, the state workforce commission issued a warning notice that U.S. Steel had announced that it was eliminating about 700 jobs near Lone Star, a small town in East Texas, at a pipe-making plant for the oil and gas industry.
Lake View Chiefs feeling sense of urgency to get in playoff chase

The Lake View High School football team hopes to get its first District 2-4A win of the season on the road against Big Spring on Friday night.
When R/UDAT first came to San Angelo in February 1992, San Angelo changed.

The American Institute of Architects, through its Urban Planning and Design Committee, offered the services of a Regional/Urban Design Assistance Team.

What's that?

It's a group of team members who perform their services voluntarily. The volunteers came from across the nation and ranged from experts in historic preservation to urban art designer.

What did they leave?

"A plan for planning."

The plan urged the city to put downtown back on its feet.

Some people said it would never work.

But, from the comeback of the Cactus Hotel to the birth of Celebration Bridge, the "plan for planning" showed the way.

San Angelo isn't the only city to receive help from R/UDAT. In the last 50 years R/UDAT volunteers have traveled to hundreds of communities, from Corpus Christi, Texas, to Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, to help others.

Wednesday, two R/UDAT members visited San Angelo.

Joel Mills and Erin Simmons were here from Washington, D.C., on a whirlwind tour of cities that R/UDAT has helped. They were also spreading the news of a celebration for the 50th anniversary of R/UDAT and asking for stories of how cities have been helped by others and helped themselves.

The two visitors and a small group of San Angeloans gathered at the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, including museum director Howard Taylor, former city manager Stephen Brown, San Angelo architect Henry Schmidt and businessman Lee Pfluger.

The four men were part of putting the R/UDAT plan to work in 1992.

At Wednesday's gathering, the San Angeloans told stories about the R/UDAT days.

Some San Angeloans had been skeptical about putting money into a dying downtown.

Then there was a suggestion of building a foot bridge across the North Concho River.

"Celebration Bridge," was called the "kickoff project."

By the end of the bridge construction, the community saw how the R/UDAT process of making the downtown better worked.

But the "plan for planning" wasn't going to happen overnight

"It's like a Christmas present," someone explained.

"There's some assembly required."

And San Angelo's assembly goes on.
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By Staff Report

A Tom Green County judge sentenced a San Angelo man to 20 years in prison Thursday for drug possession with intent to deliver, according to a news release from the 119th District Attorney's Office.

On Dec. 6, 2014, San Angelo Police Officer Bruce Stewart reported seeing Daniel Rivera, 44, riding a bicycle against the flow of traffic on the city's north side, according to the release.

Stewart made a traffic stop and got consent from Rivera to pat him down, the release stated, but Rivera broke free and fled on foot before Stewart could search him. Police found 17 grams of methamphetamine and several small bags for drug packaging in River's pants pocket after he was captured, according to the release.

Rivera pleaded guilty and asked the court to grant probation, the release stated. Prosecutors, however, presented evidence showing that Rivera had two prior convictions for possession of methamphetamine, 1 to 4 grams, and had served four years in prison, according to the release.

Hank Hethcock, of SAPD, also testified that the quantity and the packaging indicated that the value of the seized methamphetamine was about $1,700 and that it was intended for resale.

Rivera's charge was a first-degree felony, punishable by five to 99 years in prison and fines up to $10,000.

119th District Judge Ben Woodward was the presiding judge and Bryan Clayton prosecuted.
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Debate rises over officials for opposition

By Patrick J. Mcdonnell

BEIRUT  Diplomats are expressing confidence that Syrian peace talks scheduled to begin in Geneva next week will proceed, though the start could be delayed amid a dispute about who will represent the fractured Syrian opposition.

The United Nations-sponsored negotiations between the Syrian government and opposition delegates are slated to begin Monday. But various officials have signaled that the process may be pushed back, albeit only for a short period.

Secretary of State John F. Kerry said Thursday in Davos, Switzerland, that the talks could be delayed by "a day or two" while invitations went out but that there would not be a "fundamental delay."

He met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Zurich on Wednesday and was going to talk to Saudi officials this weekend, all aimed at finding agreement on what groups should be allowed at the negotiating table.

The U.S. and Russian governments  on opposite sides of Syria's almost five-year conflict  both strongly support the Geneva initiative.

"We have no intention to postpone the talks from January to February," Lavrov said in Zurich.

The Obama administration policy in Syria has evolved considerably since January 2014, when a round of Syrian peace negotiations took place in Switzerland.

During those talks, U.S. officials maintained that Syrian President Bashar Assad must relinquish power as part of any peace process. The 2014 talks ended in acrimony.

This time around, Washington has softened its "Assad must go" stance, saying the Syrian leader could remain for an unspecified transition period, though he should eventually step down. In December, Kerry declared in Moscow that the United States and its allies "are not seeking so-called regime change" in Syria.

For the last 18 months, the chief focus of the administration's Syria policy has shifted from ousting Assad to destroying the extremist Islamic State group. The al-Qaida offshoot has overrun vast stretches of territory in Syria and neighboring Iraq, while claiming responsibility for terrorist attacks in Paris and Beirut and for downing a Russian airliner.

Washington is also under pressure from allies in Europe to take measures to end Syria's destabilizing conflict, which has left more than 200,000 dead and caused multitudes of Syrians to flee to Europe. The continent's greatest refugee crisis since World War II has caused economic, social and political strains in much of Europe.

A major obstacle for United Nations officials organizing the upcoming Geneva talks is deciding who will represent the fragmented Syrian opposition, which includes radical Islamist fighters and peaceful and secular opponents of Assad's government.

There is agreement that two of the major armed opposition factions  Islamic State group and Nusra Front, the official al-Qaida franchise in Syria  will be excluded from the talks.

But the participation of other radical Islamist groups, such as Ahrar al Sham, co-founded by an al-Qaida operative, have not been ruled out. Militant Sunni Islamist factions dominate the armed opposition on the ground in Syria.

The dispute about who will represent the opposition in Geneva is playing out against a backdrop of foreign powers' deep involvement in the complex, multisided Syrian conflict.

Russia and Iran have been staunch supporters of Assad's government. A Russian aerial bombing campaign launched in September has helped pro-government forces turn the tide of battle in their favor across several fronts. Iranian advisers and Iranian-backed Shiite Muslim militias have bolstered the severely overstretched Syrian military.

Many in Washington hoped Iran might prove more cooperative in Syria talks as a byproduct of its compliance with a historic nuclear arms control deal that was fulfilled Saturday. The deal led to the removal of key sanctions that have hurt the Islamic Republic's economy and signaled a small thaw in U.S.-Iranian relations.

But several analysts said Iran may see the talks as a way to lock in the government ahead of any cease-fire that would then in effect force much of Assad's opposition to stop fighting.

"There's no reason Iran's behavior on Syria would change now," said Kenneth M. Pollack, a former government intelligence analyst who is now a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. In fact, he said, Iran, depending on its internal struggle between moderates and hard-liners after the nuclear deal, may strike an even more recalcitrant position.

"They may need to compensate for the deal" among domestic opponents, Pollack said. "Whenever a sop is given to one side, they have to give a sop to the other  and prove that regional policy goes full steam ahead."
Ngan Ho/Standard-Times Sheriff David Jones examines the first Tom Green County Sheriffs Office patrol vehicle to receive an In God We Trust decal. He said the decals will last as long as the vehicles do.

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By Ngan Ho of the San Angelo Standard-Times

The Tom Green County Sheriff's Office has joined law enforcement agencies in Texas and across the nation in putting "In God We Trust" decals on its patrol vehicles.

The first patrol unit was labeled Thursday morning with a sticker on its back end, unveiled outside of a local sign shop in northwest San Angelo in the presence of Sheriff David Jones and a few deputies.

One hundred decals have been made and will be given to the Sheriff's Office, said Peggy McElrath, owner of Adobe Signs & T-shirts.

"I thought I'll just donate them," McElrath said after the Sheriff's Office contacted her business inquiring about pricing for the decals. "We hadn't done anything for the Sheriff's department, and this gave me an opportunity to be able to tell them thank you also for what they do."

McElrath said she has provided product donations to the San Angelo Police Department before, so now it was simply opportune to support the Sheriff's Office. She said her business will make more decals if necessary, all free of charge.

"They have a very thankless job, and they need to be told thank you," she said. McElrath said she did not check the total cost for producing all the decals but guessed it was several hundred dollars.

"To me, having it on there tells the general public that they are a good person because usually if it says God, you can 9 out 10 times bet they are a good person. It tells people a little bit of a stance of where you're at," she said. "I think they (the community) are going to love it. I really do. I think we're ready to hear God more."

First patrol vehicle from the Tom Green County Sheriff's Office to receive "In God We Trust" decal. pic.twitter.com/buQcA7m25N  Ngan Ho (@Ngany) January 22, 2016

"In God We Trust" decals placed on law enforcement vehicles became controversial in recent months when the Freedom From Religion Foundation complained to the Childress Police Department about the agency using decals with those words on its official vehicles. Childress Police Chief Adrian Garcia responded by telling the foundation to "go fly a kite." A co-president of the Wisconsin-based foundation said the foundation was acting on behalf of a local complaint.

In early November, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in an opinion that law enforcement agencies that have "In God We Trust" decals on their vehicles are not in violation of the U.S. Constitution. State Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, and state Rep. Drew Springer, R-Muenster, had asked for his opinion because of the Freedom From Religion Foundation's complaint.

" 'In God We Trust' is our national motto, and we are very proud to display that on our cars," Sheriff Jones said. "It's something that we would like to do. It's something that we support, and I certainly support the sign. Like I said, it's displayed on many different things in the country, so I would like to display our national motto."

Other law enforcement agencies in Texas that use "In God We Trust" decals cover small areas with populations of less than 100,000: San Jaun Police Department, Seagraves Police Department, The Fort Stockton Police Department, Van Alstyne Police Department, Childress Police Department and The Liberty County Sheriff's Office.

Jones said his department is grateful for the gift because it was money the department did not have to spend. Patrol vehicles were to be labeled as deputies trickled in at the end of their shifts or at other opportunities, Jones said.

"It's just a donation. It wasn't something that at this time we were going to take out of our budget to do," Jones said. "So this is a very nice offer from a local business here that wanted to support us and say thank you for what we do, so we're very grateful to them for their expression of thankfulness to our department and to the guys that serve each day."
The sun sets over Colorado City, Ariz., which, along with neighboring Hildale, Utah, was home to Warren Jeffs' Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. (Damon Winter/Los Angeles Times/TNS)

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FLDS sought to oust others, complaint says

By Nigel Duara

PHOENIX  Isolated and framed by the raw beauty of the rugged high desert, the tiny twin towns along the Utah-Arizona border were different from most places.

Men had multiple wives, strangers were ostracized, and spiritual leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints displayed a particular fondness for banishing those who failed to heed the commands of the religious sect.

When the sect's leader was running from the law  wanted on suspicion of sexually assaulting underage girls he considered his wives  authorities came to believe that even the police departments in Hildale, Utah, and neighboring Colorado City, Arizona, were running interference for Warren Jeffs.

"Dear Uncle Warren," began one letter from Fred Barlow, then police chief for both towns, to Jeffs while the spiritual leader was on the move. "I rejoice in the peace that comes over me when I follow the directives you sent to me."

He signed it, "Your servant."

With Jeffs long ago behind bars, the government now is bearing down on Hildale and Colorado City.

In its most aggressive move yet, the government has taken the border towns to court, alleging that sect leaders traded in their Old Testament brand of justice for something more polished, but just as exclusionary.

A Justice Department suit, which went to trial Wednesday in a Phoenix courtroom, alleged that leaders of the towns  which make up the 10,000-person FLDS stronghold known as Short Creek  discriminated against nonbelievers by denying them water service and delaying police response to emergencies.

If the government prevails, police and government services could be handed over to a receivership that answers to the federal government, but the government hasn't said yet what relief it would seek if it wins the case.

"The evidence will show the control that these men have over city officials and police officers to achieve their own objectives, the objectives of the FLDS church," Justice Department prosecutor Jessica Clarke told jurors Wednesday. "Their plan was to deny basic rights and freedoms to those non-FLDS families so they pack up and move away."

In response, attorneys representing the cities say Hildale and Colorado City are victims of a deep-seated desire by the U.S. government to extinguish their religion and way of life. The cities and their shared water utility deny the allegations of discrimination, and say they have distanced themselves from Jeffs.

During turbulent times last decade, when Jeffs was tracked down, tried and convicted, the cities had different leadership, including a different chief of police.

After investigations into their conduct, town police officers were decertified by the Arizona and Utah police registry agencies, then given government or church positions.

But since 2007, defense attorney Blake Hamilton said, no officers have lost their certification, and the current leadership of the towns' collective police department is not accused of having done anything improper.

Hamilton told the jury of five women and seven men that the government's case rests on two faulty assumptions: that deeply religious people shouldn't hold public office and that all civic employees in the border towns are FLDS members.

Though the Justice Department has not made such broad allegations, Hamilton said, the nature of its prosecution will lead in that direction.

"It's tempting to lump them all into a category as brainwashed cultists," said Hamilton, a Salt Lake City attorney. "I believe (the government) is targeting people because they're different."
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CHICAGO  New research confirms that many Hispanics, blacks and other minorities perceive that doctors just don't care about them and that their medical care isn't as good as it could be.

According to University of Pennsylvania research fellow Abigail Sewell, compared with whites, Latinos and blacks are less likely to trust the technical judgment and interpersonal competence of doctors. Latinos also are less likely to trust the fiduciary ethic of their physicians. And the differences between black and Hispanic levels of trust have to do with whether a patient's parents are U.S.-born or not.

"Most people who are immigrants or have some immigrant connection feel more disenfranchised from the health care system," Sewell said in a University of Pennsylvania press release announcing her study, which was published in the November issue of the journal Social Science Research.

Though her paper notes that past research has produced mixed evidence about whether minorities trust physicians less than whites, Sewell used 2002 and 2006 General Social Surveys to ascertain that not only is there lower trust, but that these findings are not easy to uncover due to the way physician evaluation methods assess a patient's confidence in a doctor.

Specifically, Sewell found that respondents believed that their doctors don't take the challenges of their personal lives  such as their access to transportation and safe spaces for exercise or other factors, like legal status  into consideration.

The idea that minorities don't feel respected when they seek health care is being studied more, which is yielding a clear body of research that shows these perceptions are widespread.

Studies going back over a decade have found that women report more severe levels of pain, more frequent incidences of pain, and pain of longer duration than men, but are nonetheless treated for pain less aggressively.

New research based on nationwide data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that non-Hispanic blacks and other minorities are 22 percent to 30 percent less likely to receive pain medication during an emergency room visit, relative to non-Hispanic whites.

And just in case you're thinking this is a problem that only affects nonwhites, think again. This same study, which was published in the journal Medical Care, found that some white patients also were less likely to get pain medication if they were treated at a hospital with high concentrations of minority patients.

With only about 8.9 percent of U.S. physicians identifying as black, American Indian, Alaska Native or Hispanic, the most pressing need is for the cultivation and training of more minority physicians. But not far behind is the necessity of educating seasoned doctors to be more understanding of the cultural differences between themselves and their increasingly diverse patients.

And these measures are only part of the equation.

"This problem needs to be addressed through both providers and patients," said Jose Ortiz, president and CEO of the Hispanic Health Council, a Hartford, Connecticut-based organization that creates bilingual, culturally tailored programs to eliminate health disparities in the Latino community.

"We work with providers through participatory training that builds a foundation of knowledge, attitudes and skills needed to work effectively with diverse populations. The training explores issues of health inequity, stereotyping and unequal dynamics of power between providers and patients, and builds concrete skills toward addressing them.

"But we also work with patients through community health worker service programs, and it is clear that a number of factors must be overcome  these include histories of oppression of various types, lack of health and health care literacy, some cultural factors, among others. This requires an intensive educational and empowerment process that allows health care consumers to learn their rights and gain the practice and confidence needed to act upon them."

You can imagine these "intensive" processes aren't cheap, but they can be effective not only for minority communities, but also for underinsured, low-income whites and elderly patients who might be intimidated by the preponderance of high-tech gadgetry and more diverse caregivers in routine medical care.

But first we have to start with this: The disconnect between white physicians and their minority patients is becoming a legitimately documented phenomenon, not just one of those all-in-your-head things.

Once the medical establishment and patients of all races can internalize this, we can really start addressing it.

Esther Cepeda is a Washington Post columnist. Contact her at estherjcepeda@washpost.com.
Undaunted by problems

Infrastructure spending

Governor criticized

Newsom's take

California needs to stay focused on building a reserve fund for an inevitable recession and anticipate that new taxes will be needed to pay for crumbling roads and bridges, Gov. Jerry Brown said in a State of the State speech Thursday that was big on chores, short on glamour.The state's $77 billion in deferred maintenance -- primarily for fixing roads, highways and bridges -- is a problem that must be addressed, the four-term governor told lawmakers in his 14th State of the State speech."That means at some point, sooner rather than later, we have to bite the bullet and enact new fees and taxes for this purpose," Brown, 77, said. "Ideology and politics stand in the way, but one way or another the roads must be fixed."Brown spent much of his 20-minute speech recounting what California has accomplished in recent years, telling lawmakers he would not propose new programs. Instead, Brown said his focus this year will be on how the state will pay for commitments it has already made and brace itself for the next recession.Since World War II, he told lawmakers, there have been 10 recessions "none of them expected or accurately predicted," Brown said.He spoke of the widening gap between the rich and poor and highlighted the state's raising of the minimum wage and introduction of an earned income tax credit for low-income families."Difficulties remain, and they always will," said Brown, who has three years remaining on his final term as governor. "That is the human condition. And finding the right path forward is formidable. But find it we will, as we have in the past and as we will again -- with courage and confidence."The governor last year asked lawmakers to address the state's transportation funding needs, calling a special session to hammer out a deal that has not yet been reached.Republicans widely praised the governor's calls for building reserves and paying off debt, but said they did not agree that new taxes are needed to fix the state's transportation troubles.Assembly Republican Leader Chad Mayes, R-Yucca Valley (San Bernardino County), said the state first needs to ensure that transportation funding already being spent is used wisely."Let's have that conversation first, then let's see where we are at," Mayes said.Earlier this month, Brown unveiled his record $122.6 billion budget proposal for 2016-17, with large charts showing the likelihood of an economic downturn prominently displayed around him. The same "boom and bust" charts have been a fixture at Brown's news conferences, and printouts were included in press packets passed out at the State of the State."I don't want to say he's in a doom-and-gloom mood, but he's very sensitive to a recession," said state Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Francisco.In his State of the State, Brown proposed using $2 billion in "temporary surplus" money in this year's budget for a one-time investment to repair aging infrastructure, from state office buildings in Sacramento, to levees, prisons, state hospitals and parks.Brown warned about the rising cost of Medi-Cal, which has grown by $23 billion in four years for the state and federal government. In-home Supportive Services is expected to jump from $2 billion to $9.2 billion, Brown said."As the economic recovery reaches its end point and turns downward, it is crucial that we honestly face and plan for these increased costs," Brown said.Noticeably missing from Brown's speech was any mention of high-speed rail, one of the largest infrastructure projects in the state that has a long list of detractors. Brown skimmed over another project he's championed -- the controversial delta tunnels -- although he said the state needs a wide range of investments in water reliability, including "reliable conveyance."Brown pledged to work with lawmakers on water issues to "achieve results that will stand the test of time."Democratic lawmakers said more can be done to help the most vulnerable in the state. Outside the Capitol, advocates blasted Brown for not providing more funding for the developmentally disabled."We can make targeted investments that make sense," said state Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles. "The greatest asset we have here in California are the people, and we have to make sure we educate them and give them opportunities."Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is running to replace the termed-out Brown in 2018, said he agreed with the governor's overall message of restraint, but that there remain many needs in the state, from the hardships students face to gaps in prenatal care."It was very sober and contextualized a reality that only someone like Jerry Brown can appreciate through experience," Newsom said. "It's a consistent speech. This has been the message of the governor."Newsom said he'd propose similar restraint if elected governor."Maybe I'd add a little here or there," Newsom said. "But look, I like what he said. It's a starting point."
Having a marijuana pipe or rolling papers won't be a crime in Maryland any longer.The General Assembly, led by Democrats, overturned five of Republican Gov. Larry Hogan's vetoes on Thursday. One result is that a bill making possession of drug paraphernalia a civil offense and setting a fine for smoking marijuana in public will become law.The state will also receive more tax revenue from online hotel bookings. Police and prosecutors will have to prove cash and other assets are tainted before seizing them from suspects in criminal investigations. And an Annapolis arts center will get $2 million from the state. All of the laws go into effect next month.The measures were vetoed by Hogan after last year's legislative session. General Assembly leaders plan to take up one more veto, of a bill that would allow felons to vote as soon as they leave prison rather than waiting to complete parole or probation. The House of Delegates voted Wednesday to override, but the Senate postponed its vote until Feb. 5, when a vacant seat in the chamber is expected to be filled.The vote is expected to be close."We want to make sure everybody's here," said Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, a Calvert County Democrat.The bill decriminalizing things used for smoking marijuana -- such as rolling papers, pipes and bongs -- was debated extensively in both chambers Thursday.Supporters of the bill said it fixes an oversight. In 2014, lawmakers reduced possession of small amounts of marijuana from a crime to a civil violation with a fine. But they failed to decriminalize smoking paraphernalia, meaning that a person with a joint of marijuana might be fined for having the drug but face a criminal misdemeanor charge for the rolling paper."This bill is really a correction to what we did a couple years ago," said Sen. Robert A. Zirkin, a Baltimore County Democrat who sponsored the bill.Del. Ann Kaiser, a Montgomery County Democrat, said not decriminalizing paraphernalia would be like making eating blue crabs legal, but not Old Bay seasoning. That, she said, would be "inconceivable."Opponents said police officers wouldn't be able to charge people for using marijuana while driving, but supporters said police could still use driving while under the influence laws to arrest people who drive while high.Hogan's office issued a statement saying lawmakers refused to negotiate "and instead opted for the political spectacle of a veto override."The statement continued: "With these votes taken, we are at least hopeful that members of the General Assembly can now partner with the governor to move Maryland forward, instead of dwelling on last year's issues."The overrides of two hotel tax bill vetoes were cheered by the hotel industry, including Marriott International, which is headquartered in Montgomery County.Supporters of the legislation -- mainly Democrats -- said the bills require online companies that book hotel rooms, such as Expedia and Airbnb, to pay hotel taxes to the state. Under current law, the companies charge consumers for the tax, but pocket some of the money. One of the laws applies statewide, while the other law specifically covers Howard County.Katherine Lugar, president of the American Hotel and Lodging Association, cheered the legislature's action, saying it ensures that "online travel companies will no longer exploit this tax loophole." But a spokesman for the Travel Technology Association, which represents online companies, said the legislature "once again caved" to Marriott, which is seeking new headquarters and has raised concerns about Maryland's business climate.Republicans said the issue should be put on hold because Maryland's comptroller has a filed a lawsuit that contends online firm Travelocity owes the state $6 million in hotel taxes.As a result of another veto override, a new law will place the burden of proof on police and prosecutors when they seize assets such as cars and cash during investigations. The law also prohibits police from seizing less than $300 unless the money can directly be tied to drug distribution.Current law allows local and state agencies to seize assets from someone even if they're not charged with a crime and forces individuals trying to recover assets to prove that the assets are not ill-gotten gains.Supporters of the law said sometimes people have their belongings taken by police, are never charged with a crime and then must hire lawyers to get their belongings back. Others argued that the law ties the hands of police and prosecutors who are trying to crack down on the drug trade.Both chambers easily overturned a line-item veto in the budget that eliminated $2 million for the Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts in Annapolis. The arts center sits in the district of House Speaker Michael E. Busch, and many saw Hogan's veto as punitive.The question that remains is whether the Senate can overturn Hogan's veto of a bill that would allow felons to register to vote as soon as they are released from prison, an issue that has generated strong feelings on both sides.Under current law, they must first complete their parole or probation. An estimated 40,000 ex-convicts would be allowed to register to vote sooner if the bill becomes law.The Senate plans to vote Feb. 5. By then, Democratic leaders expect to fill a seat that's been vacant since Karen Montgomery of Montgomery County resigned Jan. 1. The delay suggests that Senate leaders don't have the minimum 29 votes needed to override the governor's veto.When the delay was announced, Sen. Stephen S. Hershey Jr., the Republican whip, noted that 46 senators were present in the chamber, but 47 might be present on Feb. 5. "We're not waiting for that, are we?" he asked.Miller immediately responded: "Yes."Though the quick override of five vetoes represents a defeat for the Republican governor, Democratic leaders framed the overrides as policy decisions, not a political statement."For whatever reason, the governor chose to veto these bills and the legislature reaffirmed its commitment to their passage," Miller said. "This is not a shot across the bow at the governor. It's a question of good government and reaffirming the policy that we adopted."Busch noted that all of the bills were approved with a clear majority last year -- some with bipartisan support."I think you have to stand up for the policy initiatives you passed," Busch said. "We're partners in government. We're not a rubber stamp in government."The veto overrides nonetheless disappointed Republican lawmakers."I think on most of these issues, the majority party is on the wrong side of where most Marylanders are," said House Minority Leader Nic Kipke of Anne Arundel County.
(TNS) -- A massive computer project is beating the state's expectations but has still left hundreds of state employees underpaid or led to them being told incorrectly that their health insurance had lapsed, state officials said.So far, the state has issued 443 supplemental paychecks to workers who didn't get 10% or more of the salary they earned, said Stacey Rolston, who is heading the human resources chunk of the state's huge IT project known as STAR.Perhaps several hundred more either didn't get their required overtime hours, extra pay for night or weekend hours or certain expense payments. Others got overtime for which they don't qualify, Rolston said.In those cases, the state is working to add or subtract the incorrect amounts from the workers' next paychecks to bring them to the right totals.Meanwhile, the state also is trying to work out a variety of problems that have made it appear that at least 150 state employees didn't have health insurance when they actually did. No state worker has had their coverage dropped, Rolston stressed in an interview Thursday.With the project being a decade in the making and affecting 34,000 workers and their paychecks, the problems could have been much worse, said John Hogan, assistant deputy secretary for administration."What we see every week is, 'Wow, everybody got paid.' Because a lot of companies and governments don't get that right the first time" in a big IT switch-over, Hogan said. "These are not catastrophic failures by any means....These are not problems that are going to be problems for months."Gov. Scott Walker's administration had said on Jan. 8 that a variety of payroll problems highlighted by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel would be fixed by Thursday, which marked the second round of paychecks going out to tens of thousands of workers.The problems have diminished but many remain, Hogan said Thursday.The reasons for the payroll and benefits glitches are as varied as the state's payroll process itself. Some of the issues are due to problems with the overall system while others are due to user errors by state workers, supervisors and private health care providers, Rolston said.Because of changes in some employees' ID numbers, some health care providers have had trouble finding the workers in their systems and have concluded that the employees weren't covered, administration officials said. In fact, workers haven't lost their coverage and their providers may be able to find them by searching for the employee's name rather than an ID number, Rolston said.For the past two weeks, the Journal Sentinel has been asking about the continuing problems with employees' pay and other benefits. On Thursday, administration officials provided more information about the STAR system's challenges in response.The payroll issue has arisen as part of a broader initiative known as STAR that seeks to replace scores of state computer systems, including some that are decades old. Most state officials agree that the ambitious update is desperately needed and could yield eventual savings for taxpayers if handled correctlyAdministration officials said the state's outside consultants on the project say that Wisconsin has fared better than many other states that have undertaken similar projects."In 16 years of experience with 11 (similar) implementations, this was by far the most successful go-live. I strongly believe it was due to strong leadership at all levels," Rob Nolan of Gartner Consulting said in a statement released by the Walker administration.
NYC Public Wi-Fi Goes Beta

CrowdMapIT: Rethinks Nigerias Sanitation Issues with Civic Tech

SEC Opens 21 Million-Plus Disclosure Docs

 Thats the message on New Yorks 3rd Avenue. The signage is affixed to four slim, 9.5-foot-tall kiosks that began beta testing the Big Apples first free Wi-Fi network this week. City officials have branded the kiosks as LinkNYC and intend to install more than 7,500 on a rolling basis. The highly anticipated project replaces a deteriorating payphone system and is expected to bridge the gap between low-income residents and Internet connectivity.Each kiosk includes a charging place for devices, free calls within the U.S., a 55-inch HD Display for service announcements, a 911 call button, attached Android tablet and LinkNYCs signature Wi-Fi, which the Verge reported has upload and download speeds of about 300 Mbps or faster. Users only have to login with an email and password for access to the entire LinkNYC system. Surprisingly, even with the structures fancy aluminum finishes and high-def displays, taxpayers will not be responsible for costs, according to the city. Instead, the consortium CityBridge has taken on that responsibility, promising to generate more than $500 million in outside advertising revenue during its 12-year franchise. Alphabet's Sidewalk Labs , a civic innovation company has invested in the project through Intersection, one of three companies in the CityBridge consortium  along with Qualcomm and CIVIQ Smartscapes.The advocacy group CrowdMapIT (cMapIT) is proving impacts in civic innovation extend far beyond urban cities and even international borders. Directed by Oluseun Onigbinde, cMapITs lead managing partner  and a Knight Foundation International Innovation Fellow  cMapIT has launched a project to map and track drainage issues in Nigerias Lagos region.During the rainy season, sanitation issues pose significant hardships on residents with backed up drainage spilling into homes and markets, and clogging roadways. With no adequate wastewater treatment facility and no consolidated government for the areas 18 million people, there is a critical need for monitoring and infrastructure fixes. cMapIT hopes to ease some of these burdens by sending alerts to residents when and where backups occur. The app also provides real-time crowdsourced reporting, and as a complementary measure, the team has created another app: Called PolicyMapNG , the app tracks government public projects across Nigeria. Below is a sample of cMapIT's developing drainage app.With plans for a major website overhaul, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has decided to enable easier citizen access to data on company filings in a partnership with Accenture Federal Services. The SEC awarded a five-year, $17.9 million contract earlier this month, according to a press release , and Accenture estimates the data  to be searchable on mobile devices  will encapsulate the agencys more than 21 million disclosure documents.At present, SEC.gov is a well trafficked site by investors probing for market insights. The agencys Electronic Data Gathering and Retrieval (EDGAR) system already provides access to records but officials say results will be more navigable, social and aesthetically modern, and will leverage open data formats.
Each FCvelocity-9SSL fuel cell stack will deliver approximately 15 kilowatts (kW) of power, appropriate for range-extension applications. The ESA for fuel cell stacks signed today is in addition to agreements that Ballard previously announced for heavy-duty power applications in China. ( Earlier post earlier post .)

Ballard Power Systems signed an Equipment Supply Agreement (ESA), valued at $12 million, with Guangdong Synergy Hydrogen Power Technology Co., Ltd. (Synergy) to provide FCvelocity-9SSL fuel cell stacks for use in commercial buses in China. Ballard expects to deliver the stacks in 2016 and 2017.

Synergy will collaborate with Dongfeng Xiangyangtouring Car Co., Ltd. (DFAC), which is part of Dongfeng Motor Corporation, a Chinese state-owned automobile manufacturer headquartered in Wuhan. Dongfeng Motor Corporation is the largest manufacturer of commercial vehicles in China.

The previously announced agreements reflect $27 million in relation to more than 330 buses, and also reflect $9 million in relation to 10 urban trams together with related product development activities.

The momentum we have been experiencing over the past year in China has been primarily driven by heavy-duty motive power applications, specifically to power mass transit buses and urban trams. This ESA builds on that momentum, as Ballards leading PEM technology will be deployed for range extension applications in commercial buses.

We are pleased to see DFAC supporting the largest planned deployment of fuel cell hybrid commercial vehicles globally. And, this agreement contributes to a record sales order book for Ballard, as we begin 2016. Randy MacEwen, Ballard President and CEO

Ballards FCvelocity9SSL fuel cell stack is a derivative of its work in automotive fuel cell technology. The stack, which offers scalable power output from 4kW to 22kW, is liquid cooled for high durability and is rated at a 10,000 hour lifetime.

The FCvelocity-9SSL fuel cell stack is widely deployed in Plug Powers line of GenDrive fuel cell systems for electric lift trucks. In addition, this fuel cell stack product is integrated into Ballards FCvelocity-HD7 motive module to power transit buses and light rail vehicles.
In addition to combustion engines, the new engine plant will also produce high-voltage batteries for future Plug-in Hybrid models. As with engine assembly, this project will entail close cooperation between BBA and the BMW Group to ensure knowledge transfer from high-voltage battery production in Germany.

BMW Brilliance Automotive (BBA) opened a new engine plant with a light metal foundry in Shenyang today. The new location will produce the latest generation of the BMW TwinPower Turbo three and four-cylinder gasoline engines and forms part of the BBA production network based in Shenyang in Northeastern China.

Both the engine plant and the light metal foundry incorporate the latest state-of-the-art production standards. For example machining work at the new plant uses a water recovery system similar to that at the BMW Group Plant Steyr (Austria), resulting in completely wastewater-free production. This process uses innovative combined membrane technologies to treat all wastewater from mechanical production and feed it back into manufacturing.

The new BBA plant will supply BMW Brilliances Dadong and Tiexi automotive plants. Capacity, which currently stands at up to 300,000 units per year, is tied to production volumes at the two automotive plants. In 2015, local automotive production reached more than 287,000 units. BBA funded the necessary investment from its own resources; no additional capital was needed by the two joint venture partners.

BMW TwinPower Turbo gasoline engines represent the latest development in the BMW EfficientDynamics engine family. Using a high percentage of aluminium has significantly reduced the weight of drive trains. Heat management and acoustic features were also improved. At the heart of this engine range is the award-winning TwinPower Turbo technology, combining variable load control with state-of-the-art direct injection.

A special feature of the new engine generation is standardized, location-independent production using a modular system. All engines of this generation are in-line engines and every derivative is produced on the basis of a core engine and a modular kit. This principle increases the proportion of identical parts used within each combustion type, i.e. gasoline or diesel, to up to 60%. Even around 40% of the parts used in gasoline and diesel engines are identical.

The standardized production system for modular engines forms synergies with the international BMW Group engine production locations in Munich (Germany), Steyr (Austria) and Hams Hall (UK). Value stream optimization and economies of scale benefit production processes and make them more economical. These locations, which serve as competence centers for various engine types within the global engine production network, are able to share their know-how with other engine plants at any time.

A further advantage of a standardized production system is uniform, stable processes that enhance quality. At the same time, location-independent modular production is highly flexible: Its standardized systems and processes allow the company to respond quickly to changes in market and customer demand.

Light metal foundry. The foundry sets new standards for sustainable production and has a capacity of up to 15,000 tons of aluminium per year. It is modeled on its partner plant in Landshut, Germany, the experience from which was integrated into production processes.

Innovative manufacturing processes enable nearly emission-free production of sand cores. For the first time in China, inorganic binders are used and lead to a reduction of emissions of combustion residues by 98% compared with the organic casting processes typically used in the industry.

In addition, 90% of the sand used for casting can be recycled to reduce waste to a minimum. In 2009, the BMW Group became the first to use this state-of-the-art, eco-friendly technology completely in series production of castings worldwide.

The aluminium needed for casting will continue to be delivered in solid form and then liquified to around 760 C in the on-site smelter. The returns from the casting processi.e. metal residues separated from the raw cast during cleaningare melted down in the foundrys own smelting and holding furnaces and are reused.

Innovative wire arc spraying technology (LDS) is also being introduced for production of cast-aluminium crankcases. The cylinder faces of all crankcases are coated with a wafer-thin layer of iron particles sprayed on in liquid form. This results in a lower weight and less friction in the engine leading to lower fuel consumption.

BBA is a long-standing joint venture between the BMW Group and Brilliance China Automotive Holdings Ltd. A total of around 2,000 BBA employees will work at the engine plant over the long term.
Orbital ATK successfully tested a 3D-printed hypersonic engine combustor at NASA Langley Research Center. The combustor, produced through an additive manufacturing process known as powder bed fusion (PBF), was subjected to a variety of high-temperature hypersonic flight conditions over the course of 20 days, including one of the longest duration propulsion wind tunnel tests ever recorded for a unit of this kind. Analysis confirms the unit met or exceeded all of the test requirements.

One of the most challenging parts of the propulsion system, a scramjet combustor, houses and maintains stable combustion within an extremely volatile environment. The tests were, in part, to ensure that the PBF-produced part would be robust enough to meet mission objectives.

Additive manufacturing opens up new possibilities for our designers and engineers. This combustor is a great example of a component that was impossible to build just a few years ago. This successful test will encourage our engineers to continue to explore new designs and use these innovative tools to lower costs and decrease manufacturing time. Pat Nolan, Vice President and General Manager of Orbital ATKs Missile Products division of the Defense Systems Group

The test at Langley was an important opportunity to challenge Orbital ATKs new combustor design, made possible only through the additive manufacturing process. Complex geometries and assemblies that once required multiple components can be simplified to a single, more cost-effective assembly. However, since the components are built one layer at a time, it is now possible to design features and integrated components that could not be easily cast or otherwise machined.

PBF is one of several manufacturing methods currently being explored by Orbital ATK and its technology partners. Final assembly of the test combustor was completed at the companys facilities in Ronkonkoma, New York, and Allegany Ballistics Laboratory in Rocket Center, West Virginia.
Constellation, a subsidiary of Exelon Corporation, will fund, own, and operate the 8.75MW battery storage network, deployed at seven SEPTA substations. The network is designed to use stored energy to power trains as they accelerate from stations and can provide emergency generation for trains in the event of a power outage. ABB will provide engineering, procurement, construction and operations services to Constellation for the project. Saft will provide the lithium-ion battery technology.

An 8.75MW battery storage network which will capture and reuse the energy created by braking subway cars will help Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) reduce operating costs, ensure energy resiliency, and support the stability of the electrical grid.

Recovery and reuse of braking energy is well proven and is now widely used in hybrid electric vehicles and, more recently, by bus operators the world over. The solution installed by SEPTA is based on ABBs Envistore Regenerative Energy Storage System, which usually uses capacitors to store braking energy and release it again shortly afterwards to boost train acceleration.

For SEPTAs application, the capacitors were replaced with high performance Saft Intensium Max20P Li-ion battery systems. The Max20P system, packaged in 20-foot containers, comprises Saft Synerion 24 Li-ion battery modules, power conditioning, communications interface, battery management, cooling and fire prevention systems.

The energy recovery and storage system is complemented with software that enables SEPTA to monitor energy prices and sell the stored energy back to the grid when energy prices are high, usually during peak hours and in hot weather, so helping reduce operational costs and creating a new revenue stream.

An expansion of SEPTAs 1.8 MW battery storage pilot program completed in 2014, the new network brings the agencys total battery storage capacity to more than 10 MW. The pilot recovered an average 1.1 MWh on weekdays and 1.5 MWh on weekends.

The expansion project, which is among the first commercially deployed battery storage systems in a transit operation, requires no upfront capital investment from SEPTA and will be financed through a 20-year battery services agreement with Constellation.

As a competitive energy supplier, we aim to provide our customers with the best long-term economic and business solutions for how their energy is produced and supplied. This battery storage network, along with $26 million in guaranteed savings from efficiency improvements Constellation is implementing for SEPTA, will help SEPTA deliver on its budget and energy resiliency goals. Gary Fromer, senior vice president of distributed energy at Constellation

The stored energy will help to balance electric load on the PJM Interconnection, the regional transmission organization that manages the movement of wholesale electricity in 13 states and the District of Columbia. Viridity Energy will provide energy market services for the project, bidding the batteries into the PJM market as frequency regulation resources to help match generation with demand and maintain the desired electrical frequency on the grid.

Construction activities are scheduled to begin in the second quarter of 2016 with estimated commercial operation in late 2016.
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Bridgeport will see the bulk of a $54 million federal grant announced Friday that will be used to improve shoreline infrastructure and potentially pave the way for South End redevelopment projects.

Connecticut was one of nine states that received funding from the National Disaster Resiliency Competition, which is designed to ensure states are prepared for future weather catastrophes. The grant will be administered by the state Department of Housing, which has directed the recovery program since 2012s Hurricane Sandy.

Over the last few years in Connecticut, we have transformed the way we respond to emergencies, and we are now more prepared to respond to an extreme weather event than ever before, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said in a statement. We are no doubt continuing to be proactive in modernizing our infrastructure so that our state  and especially our shoreline  is even more protected for the next severe weather event.

In Bridgeport, more than $34 million will go toward the South End East Resilience Network and help pay for the elevation of University Avenue and construction of an earthen berm to serve as a greenway. These projects will help build dry egress  or evacuation path  for future developments, a requirement by the state before public funds can be used.

Dry egress applies to construction in a flood zone, and would provide escape routes as well as entry for emergency responders during a catastrophic event. A lack of dry egress has held up South End developments including the project to tear down the former Remington Shaver site at 60 Main St. on the waterfront and replace it with housing.

Most land in the South End is said by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to have a 1 percent chance each year of a serious flood, which guides state statutes. Connecticut agencies have ruled that projects in a flood zone that fail to provide means of evacuation will be blocked from receiving state funding  including for the cleanup of contaminants, which is necessary at the shaver plant.

With a plan in place and money to pay for it, the state has indicated that work could now begin, even before the street raising and embankment construction is complete. I have no doubt this will unlock 60 Main St., said David Kooris, director of Bridgeports Office of Planning and Economic Development.

Bridgeport also received $1 million for the construction and rehabilitation of a community center in the South End to serve as a central location for future recovery efforts, as well as $350,000 for a study on micro-grids and alternative energy sources that could limit power failures in emergencies.

Fairfield and New Haven counties will also receive more than $18 million to continue funding a plan to provide accessible inland and coastal flooding information in watersheds.

Bridgeports South End has sustained repeated, severe flooding, damaging property, endangering lives and causing extended power outages  an experience shared by Connecticuts coastal communities all along the Long Island Sound, Sen. Richard Blumenthal said in a statement. This substantial, competitive federal award will do more than just repair past damage  it will help ensure the South End will thrive for decades to come while also funding comprehensive planning efforts to proactively protect and preserve all of our coastal communities.
Although the vast majority of students who attend community colleges say their intent is to earn a bachelors degree, in Connecticut only 10 percent reach that goal.

Nationally, the average is 14 percent.

Connecticut ranked 30th out of 43 states in a new study measuring states effectiveness at helping community college students attain four-year degrees. The study was released Tuesday by the Community College Research Center at Teachers College, Columbia University,

This research tells Connecticut that far too many community c ollege students are failing to meet their higher education goals, said Davis Jenkins, a senior research associate at the center.

As the cost of higher education soars and the role of the less-expensive community colleges takes front stage in presidential debates, the success rate of community college graduates takes on a new urgency.

Connecticut has a huge opportunity to keep improving, said K.C. Deane, a program manager at the Aspen Institute, a co-sponsor of the report.

More Information How Connecticut measures up Community college to four-year college transfer and bachelor's degree attainment. Indicator Ranking among states % of students transferring from community college to four-year schools 28th % of transfer students who earn an associate's dgree before transferring 15th % of transfer students who earn a bachelor's degree within six years 15th % of students from lower-income families who transfer and earn a bachelor's degree in six years 40th See More Collapse

This not something that is going to go anywhere, Deane said. We have students and families hugely concerned about the cost of college and they will continue to start at the community college.

On Monday, Estela Lopez, interim provost for the Connecticut Board of Regents for Higher Education which oversees the states 12 community colleges, said better transfer and articulation agreements is something the system is constantly striving to improve.

The system is also discussing some sort of financial incentive to help sstudents complete (their studies), Lopez said. We are aware that for lower income students financial incentives may be a critical component that aids completion.

Not just about money

Culling data from the National Student Clearinghouse, the new Teachers College report ranks 43 states  seven did not have enough available data to be included  and looked at the records of more than 720,000 degree-seeking students who entered higher education for the first time through a community college in 2007. The study compared outcomes six years later.

The report found in most  but not all states  lower-income students were less likely than higher income peers to earn a four-year degree.

But income wasnt the only factor. The income gap in the rate of degrees awarded was small to non-existent in Florida, Iowa, North Dakota, and New Hampshire.

The report also found that students who transferred to public four-year colleges or highly selective private four year colleges performed better than those at non-selective private colleges.

The best-performing states were Washington and Iowa. Nearly half  49 percent  of their students who transferred into a four-year school got the bachelors degree they sought. Following close behind were Illinois, California, New Jersey and Florida.

Deane said data also suggest that success takes more than a transfer agreement between community colleges and four-year institutions.

They are part of the equation, Deane said. Colleges also need to help students understand what courses and competencies they need to learn to achieve the degree they are seeking.

Institutions, she added, need to think of student outcomes beyond their walls.

It has to be about more than just completion of their associates degree and a successful transfer, Deane, said.

Guaranteed transfer credits

Connecticut, in recent years, has tried to strengthen the agreements between its community colleges and four-year institutions with varied success.

Last May, John Mullane, a student success counselor at Gateway Community College in New Haven, completed a study showing just how many Connecticut community college credits were rejected by the University of Connecticut..

Mullane said t he average loss is 12 credits, or a semesters worth of classes. Retaking the rejected courses delays graduation and costs millions of dollars in extra tuition.

Added together, the lost credits from 479 community college students who transferred to UConn in 2013-14 translated to about $3 million in extra tuition and fees.

Mullane has said he would like to see a state law mandating transfer agreements between the states 12 community colleges and all public four-year institutions in the state.

There is a difference between having a law and enforcing it, Mullane said on Tuesday. The reason states like Florida do so well, he added, is that there is a guarantee that community college credits will transfer.

In 2012, a law was passed in Connecticut requiring the development of a list of at least 30 general education course credits that could automatically be transferred among public higher education institutions. UConn was excluded and that list has still not been developed, Mullane said.
A former Brunswick School teacher, now in jail, has been linked to an unfolding scandal involving sexual abuse at a Rhode Island prep school.

A Boston lawyer who has been representing former students at St. Georges School in Middletown, R.I., named Timothy Tefft as one of the previously unidentified alleged perpetrators of abuse at the school.

Tefft is serving five years in federal prison after his guilty plea in 2014 to a child pornography charge.

The former teacher and newspaper editor was at the center of abuse allegations at Brunswick School. Tefft, who taught there in the 1970s and 1980s, was accused in 2013 by three former students of molesting them in the 1980s. The abuse allegedly occurred in New York state. No criminal charges or lawsuits were ever brought. Brunswick School officials had no comment on Tefft this week.

Tefft, who was 65 at the time of his arrest in 2013, acknowledged possessing dozens of files of child pornography.

Attorney Eric MacLeish, who is working with some St. Georges alumni to uncover and remedy the damage inflicted on dozens of students at the Newport-area school, named Tefft as Employee Perpetrator #5, as he was described in a report commissioned by administrators at the school.

According to an account in the Boston Globe, citing the school report, Tefft was hired in 1971 and terminated a few months later after providing alcohol to students. The school report said he reportedly sexually touched and attempted to perform oral sex on a student.

MacLeish, who attended St. Georges and did legal work on behalf of victims of the Catholic priest abuse scandal, criticized the school for not reporting Teffts behavior to authorities, according to the Globe. Tefft later worked at other schools before coming to Brunswick as an English teacher.

Tefft is incarcerated at the Fort Dix Federal Correctional Institution in New Jersey and is eligible for release in January 2018.

Staff Writer Paul Schott contributed to this report.

Robert.Marchant@scni.com
Board of Education members approved in a near-unanimous decision Thursday night a proposal for a new building for the overcrowded New Lebanon School.

Known as Option 3, the plan calls for a new building to be constructed entirely in the wooded ravine next to the elementary schools current building on Mead Avenue. The proposal was approved on Jan. 15 by the New Lebanon building committee, after they also considered an Option 4 plan that would use much of the current structures footprint.

Unlike a previous Option 1 plan for a building in the ravine  which was favored by school board and the building committee but rejected by the Board of Selectmen  Option 3 would be built within a footprint approved by the selectmen. The selectmens parameters allow for construction in the woods, so long as it does not extend beyond a site outline in the propertys northwest corner that they agreed upon in June for a plan known as Scheme D. Option 1 did not fit within the perimeter.

This is a compromise, said Peter Bernstein, the boards representative on the building committee, referring to the committees initial support for Option 1. But this is where we are.

Bernstein, nonetheless, made the motion to approve Option 3, which was supported by six of his seven colleagues. Peter Sherr declined to cast a vote, although he said he was not abstaining.

At this stage, Ive lost nearly any interest in worrying about this project because the decision-making process has been fundamentally broken for some time, Sherr said in an email to Greenwich Time. As a result, I dont want my name attached to the plan to build a bigger building than well ever need at the highest cost possible in a completely substandard location, and therefore wont be voting. Ill let others be responsible for the plan and outcome.

Board members also approved a motion that amended building plans known as educational specifications to include the ball field adjacent to New Lebanon, as well as plans for modular classrooms to house the students during construction of the new building. They added the field to the plans because of recent discussions about improving the venue, while they added the modular proposal to make sure the district is eligible for state funding for the temporary classrooms.

We want to include it because it is a factor for that whole campus, Superintendent of Schools William McKersie said of the field. Educationally, its very important that it be in the mix.

Option 3 calls for a square, two-story building with a media center in the middle. It would cover between approximately 58,000 square feet and 60,000 square feet  the exact configurations would be outlined in site plans  putting it in line with the dimensions outlined in the building plans approved last year by the school board.

The Option 3 building would stand 125 feet from Interstate 95, compared with about 200 feet for the current building. Option 3 would allow for 85 parking spaces, compared with about 20 at the current site. It would also include about 21,000 square feet of playground space, more than double the size of the current play area. About 100 trees would need to be removed for Option 3.

Building Option 3 would cost about $32.4 million to $33.2 million, depending on the square footage. Construction of the new building would start in the summer of 2017 and end by September 2018, according to architects.

McKersie and New Lebanon Principal Barbara Riccio have expressed support for Option 3.

The grouping seems to be more conducive to the (teacher) teaming we do, McKersie said at a building committee meeting last week. Our teachers work together outside the classrooms. It seems easier with Option 3 than Option 4.

Other community members, however, were concerned about the Option 3 buildings proximity to the highway and wetlands, and they maintained that the new structure should be located on the plateau where the current building stands.

pschott@scni.com; 203-625-4439; twitter: @paulschott
When it comes to fraternity life, the common imagery involves red plastic cups, lots of alcohol and John Belushi in a toga. For years, Greek life has been linked to hazing and numerous scandals, while at the same time they are responsible for contributing millions of dollars to philanthropic efforts and driving career connections.

Whether it's for the parties or the job placement, fraternities continue to be popular on college campuses across America. StartsClass, a higher education research site, used surveys to determine the percentage of male students involved in social fraternities. Two Texas schools cracked the top 10, while a couple of the schools reported about half of the males enrolled at the college were part of a fraternity.
Randerss favorite school-lunch special. Photo: Anke Scheibe/Westend61/Corbis

An angry Danish town is waging what locals have deemed a meatball war against immigrants who are supposedly destroying Denmarks identity by refusing to eat its traditional pork dishes. A law passed this week requires all of Randerss day cares and kindergartens to serve pork on equal footing with other foods, whatever that means in actuality, even though critics tell the New York Times its effectively created a problem that did not exist for the purpose of stigmatizing Muslims. It seems nobody in Randers, Muslim or otherwise, has ever attempted to ban pork, so this law comes off looking predominantly like an attack on the countrys growing immigrant population  or, by happenstance, on Jews living in Randers.

Other versions of this meatball war (in the native tongue, frikadellekrigen) have been around since 2013, when thenprime minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt blasted schools for supposedly caving to Muslim parents complaints and banning pork. Almost no evidence backed up this claim, but the idea that the Danes favorite meat needs protecting has been a hot-button topic ever since. Even fellow Scandinavian Ikea is making vegan meatballs these days, but the group that introduced Randerss law, the Danish Peoples Party, is openly celebrating it as a blow to Islamic rules and misguided considerations dictating what Danish children should eat. It stops short of commanding people to ingest pork, but force-feeding bacon grease to the townspeople may be what it comes down to if this war on the other white meat doesnt end.

[NYT]
Just get some tweezers, bro. Photo: Dale Berman/Bravo/2015 Bravo Media, LLC

Back to Los Angeles! After a series of marginally location-specific challenges capitalizing on Californias many natural resources, such as craft beer and gay weddings, the remaining chefs head back to HQ. As much as I like establishing shots of scenic docks, it is not totally clear to me what switching locations every few episodes is doing for us, but on the bright side, these travels have given our chefs lots of time to reflect on their past and present struggles from the comfort of extremely crowded black minivans.

Remember that Phillip is from L.A.? (Phillip is from L.A.) It is where his restaurants are, and also the billboards of his face. Accordingly, he is particularly delighted to see that tonights Quickfire Challenge will be guest-judged by none other than Los Angelesbased chef and season-four competitor Antonia Lofaso. Itll be really exciting to cook for a neighbor! Phillip says, brightly. Because there are ten chefs left, and because it is the tenth anniversary of Top Chef, the theme of tonights Quickfire is  the number ten! Padma lays it out: Each chef will choose one ingredient, and then everyone creates a dish using only that assortment of ten semi-random items. Phillip kicks things off with New York strip steak. Inspired by Phillips selection of a protein, Isaac chooses whole chicken, which is also a protein. We already have a solid protein, why are you choosing another protein? wonders Greek chorus Marjorie. Rounding out the selections: jalapenos, salt, vinegar, olive oil, garlic, mushrooms, tomatoes, and celery. Celery? asks Jeremy, quizzically. Celery? asks Karen, annoyedly. Celery, it goes without saying, is Jasons contribution. There was a little bit of head-scratching, he acknowledges, but I bet you everyone is going to end up using celery in their dish. On the one hand, this is almost certainly true. On the other hand, Jason is the person who made the squid balls.

At tasting, though, Padma and Antonia are mysteriously more critical of Kwames exceedingly reasonable garlic selection. I always have to cook with garlic, Kwame tells them. So you chose more for yourself than for the group? queries Antonia, widening her eyes. She does not comment on his fire-roasted chicken; probably, it was good. Jasons raw-mushroom salad with shaved celery and chicken fat vinaigrette fares better (I think the celery choice was really smart, fawns Antonia), as does Amars wood-roasted chicken breast with mushrooms. Speaking of chicken: Its good that someone used it, because Isaac, who chose it, certainly did not. Perhaps he should have: His underwhelming beef carpaccio gets him a slot in the bottom two, along with Karen and her inadequately saladlike steak salad. And Jeremy wins with yet another raw-meat dish: shaved beef with mushroom-and-crisp-garlic vinaigrette.

Youve got a flare-up. Photo: Dale Berman/Bravo

If you guys think ten ingredients are tough, try thinking back ten years, urges Padma, dressed in an outfit made entirely of pockets. Ten years ago this year, the very first season of Top Chef was premiering, MySpace was the top website worldwide, and Tom Cruise married Katie Holmes. How things have changed! Today we use Facebook, and Tom Cruise is married to nobody. To commemorate the passage of time, Padma explains, each chef must create a culinary representation of who they were ten years ago. Me and my father never had the best relationship, Kwame says, gamely taking this challenge very, very seriously. This was the point in time where I was starting to drift away from him, because our viewpoints were, like, totally different  Its not really a memory I try to go back to. Ten years ago, Marjorie was a new culinary-school grad just beginning her career, and Jason had his first management job and was yelling at everyone. I was nervous all the time. I was very green, says Marjorie, mapping out her plan for a green curry. I was turning into this crazy, raging bitch, reflects Jason, hatching a plot for boiled trout. (Ten years ago, I was starring in an experimental college production of The Little Mermaid and spent most of my time writhing across the stage bound in Saran wrap, so I get it.)

Brought closer together by these confessions, or by the fact that with ten chefs left, it is almost possible to keep track of everyone, the crew gathers on the roof of the Hotel Roosevelt to share yet more stories of ten years ago, and also their finest Tom impressions. Ten years ago, I was wildly in love with my girlfriend. I was wildly in love with making pasta, Karen waxes rhapsodically. From behind his sunglasses, Chad reminds us that he does not drink.

And its cooking time! Jeremys doing lobster ravioli with king salmon, because his mother was adopted. Ten years ago, New Orleans was devastated by Hurricane Katrina, and Isaac evacuated to his parents house in Cajun Country. How do you feed 30 Cajuns? Isaac asks. Gumbo is the answer. One of the many nice things about Isaac is that you know what hes going to say before he says it. We take a momentary break from remembering ten years ago to attend to a kitchen emergency  Marjorie couldnt get lemongrass at Whole Foods and decides to substitute grilled lemons instead  but the issue is resolved immediately when it turns out that grilled lemons are delicious and strikingly like lemongrass. I mean, ten years ago, I probably would have just cried, says Marjorie. And with that, were back. Ten years ago, Carl had moseyed into Bostons Craigie Street Bistro and talked them into giving him a job. In commemoration of his French awakening, he will be making fricassee of burgundy snails. Chad, meanwhile, was then just out of the Navy and ate an inspirational ceviche in San Felipe (hes making ceviche).

Poaching fish is a very delicate process, Jason observes, staring ominously into an enormous pot.

But before we can further investigate the trout situation, who should waltz in but Michael Voltaggio, a real bad mama jama and the winner of season six. How is Top Chef going? he asks Phillip, who is also making ceviche, because his ex-girlfriend from ten years ago was Peruvian. I thought that I was going to come in here and just do my food my way, and on Top Chef they want us to cook food to make the judges happy, Phillip informs him, obliviously. Tom tries to contain himself. Michael, who is very contained, suggests that, speaking from his own experience, the competition is actually just about cooking good food. Absolutely! Phillip agrees, as though this is what hes been saying for years. As Top Chef is nothing if not a study in contrasts, Amar then explains hes at work on a lobster-based homage to his former boss, Gerry Hayden, whose ALS is deteriorating. I want to show him that I still remember this dish, and I appreciate everything he did for me when he started cooking, he tells Tom and Michael, who share their own Gerry memories.

Bravo fortunately decided not to go with the original plan: an all-succulents challenge. Photo: Dale Berman/Bravo

I wonder what my dads gonna say when he sees this, says Kwame, who is really going the emotional distance here. I havent spoken to him in eight years, probably. His dish is inspired by the Jamaican jerk-chicken shacks they used to visit together. When you think of jerk, you automatically think of chicken. But I wanted to do something different, so I chose broccoli, he says. The only thing giving me trouble is having to think about a memory that wasnt really the happiest part of my life all day. On cue, Kwame slices his finger.



Guess how many judges there are? Six? Nine? It will probably shock you to learn: There are ten. The first offering submitted for consideration: Marjories seared halibut with grilled and roasted vegetables and green curry sauce. Whatever youve gone through over the last ten years, youve made some of the right decisions because I think this is delicious, announces Michael. Chads dish  shrimp ceviche with tomato concasse  also justifies his life choices, as do Carls snails. This dish makes me smile so much, beams Gail. I cant stop staring at it. I cant stop thinking about it. Alas, not all memories taste so sweet. In the professional opinion of judge Nancy Silverton, Karen needs to find a better relationship between [her] noodle and [her] sauce, while Phillips Peruvian love-ceviche is deemed inadequately acidic. This doesnt make any sense, because Phillip is actually a very acidic cook, according to Phillip. Jasons catastrophically underseasoned poached trout, meanwhile, doesnt quite deliver on the promise of the concept, and Tom finds Jeremys seafood combo completely incomprehensible. What does lobster have to do with salmon? he wants to know. Before, the chefs were impersonating Tom, and now Tom is impersonating Bernie Sanders.

As usual, Kwames dish, jerk broccoli with corn bread pudding, is in a class by itself, but this time, its not in a good way. Tom: This is just confusing the hell out of me. Michael: You definitely have an emotional connection with food, and I think in this case, a little bit too much of your emotion got in the way of your cooking skills. Padma: We really have to get to Judges Table.

The top three are pretty much who you expect them to be: Chad gets a shout-out for his beautifully seasoned ceviche, Gail moons over Carls classic French snails, and Marjorie beats them both with her not-so-green-after-all curry. Whos going home is less clear. Kwames attempt to bring back a good memory out of the bad memories is a disaster, but at least its heartfelt; Phillip still doesnt understand what the judges want; and no one can figure out whats up with Jasons joyless trout, or, for that matter, with Jason more generally. I think, too often, we forget about the emotional side of cooking, Tom concludes. What he means is that Jason is the next chef to leave.

It is a meditative exit. Were constantly in flux; were constantly moving from one place to another, Jason reflects, meditatively. I definitely feel like Im in that period of transition. As do we all, Jason.

Next week: Padma outsources judging to Instagram, men cook beef, and Isaac might be exceptionally good at something. See you then!
We know that Google doesn't reveal the revenue or profit it makes off of its Android mobile-operating system. However, looks like the well-guarded secret has just been revealed by Oracle. The the database makers attorney in an ongoing lawsuit against Google revealed last week that the latter has made a total of $31 billion in revenue and $22 billion in profit from Android till date.

Google said that the figures were derived from its confidential internal financial documents, adding that the "extremely sensitive information" shouldn't have been publicly disclosed as it was meant for "Attorneys Eyes Only."

"Google does not publicly allocate revenues or profits to Android separate and apart from Googles general business," the company said in a court filing. "That non-public financial data is highly sensitive, and public disclosure could have significant negative effects on Googles business."

The Mountain View, California-based company urged the court to edit related portions of the public transcript of last weeks hearing, following which the transcript was removed from electronic court records.

Filed way back in 2010, the lawsuit accuses Google of copyright violation saying that the company used Java APIs in its Android OS without permission. While Google argued that APIs can't be copyrighted, a court in 2014 ruled otherwise. Following this, the search giant took the battle to the Supreme Court, which upheld the lower court's ruling.

The ongoing arguments are now for the damages that Oracle will receive from Google. "Look at the extraordinary magnitude of commerciality here," Oracle's attorney had said last week while disclosing Android's revenue and profit.

Via
Motorola has announced that it has begun soak testing the Android 6.0 update for the second-generation Moto G (both LTE and 3G-only variants) in India and Brazil. The announcement was made by the company's senior director of software product management David Schuster on Google+.

This comes just days after the company posted Marshmallow update release notes for the device on its India support website, indicating an imminent roll out of the update.

For those who aren't already aware, soak test means that only a small subset of users will receive the update, and if everything goes fine - which means if there aren't any critical issues - a full launch will follow shortly, which is likely after a week in this case.

Source
Just a few days ago we learned that Sony is finally getting ready to bring the Xperia M5 to Europe. Back then the only confirmed countries to get it were Poland and the Netherlands, but from today you can add the UK to the list as well.

That's because Carphone Warehouse has started taking pre-orders for the Xperia M5, with delivery expected to happen by February 8. What's more, this retailer says it has an exclusive on the gold color of this smartphone. So you won't be able to buy the handset in gold anywhere else in the UK.

At the moment you can't pre-order an Xperia M5 in SIM-free form or on Pay as you go - you have to pick a contract with an operator. If you do that, the M5 is free with plans starting at 22 per month.

That cheapest option is at Vodafone and will bring you 500 minutes, unlimited texts, and 500MB of 4G data each month. If you need more, you can pick different plans of course, all the way up to one that nets you unlimited talk and text as well as 10GB of data. This is 36 per month at Vodafone, 39 at O2, and 44.99 at EE.

The Sony Xperia M5 has a 5-inch 1080p touchscreen, a 21 MP rear camera with LED flash, a 13 MP front-facing camera, MediaTek's Helio X10 chipset (with a 2 GHz octa-core Cortex-A53 CPU), 3GB of RAM, 16GB of expandable storage, 4G, and a 2,600 mAh battery. It runs Android 5.0 Lollipop.

Source | Via




Haiti - FLASH : 2nd cruise ship canceled in Labadee





Royal Caribbean has decided to cancel another stop for one of its cruise ships at the cruise line's private destination of Labadee in Haiti, due to ongoing protests. The Navigator of the Seas was scheduled to stop at Labadee on Thursday, January 21, 2016, but Royal Caribbean canceled the port call and withdrew all employees from the site.



This is the second cruise ship to skip a stop in Labadee, after protests prevented Freedom of the Seas from allowing its guests to go ashore earlier this week. https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-16371-haiti-flash-labadee-port-calls-canceled-due-to-demonstration.html



In a statement, Royal Caribbean explained "Royal Caribbean has not received any guarantees or assurances that there will not be any protests in the future. If a protest takes place while a ship is port, there would be a significant impact on our guests ability to enjoy Labadee, or we may have to cancel the visit completely."



In regards to upcoming stops in Labadee, Royal Caribbean noted, "We will continue to closely monitor the situation and are in close communication with local and government officials in Haiti. At this time, we have not made any decisions regarding any additional upcoming port calls to Labadee. The next schedule call is Vision of the Seas, on Sunday, January 24."



Sunday 24 being the day of the elections, it is likely that the call of the Vision of the Seas, scheduled that day is also canceled... What causes considerable harm to the image of Haiti in general and local commerce in particular. Recall that cruise tourism represents more than 60% of all visitors in Haiti.



In a conflict resolution approach, the representatives of the Haitian Government met Thursday the residents of the community of Labadee to start the dialogue process. Meanwhile, the Minister Villedrouin will meet today Royal Caribbean with a view to guarantee a early resumption of tourism activities in Labadee.



See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-16371-haiti-flash-labadee-port-calls-canceled-due-to-demonstration.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-13743-haiti-tourism-connecting-artisans-to-tourists-in-the-north.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-13167-haiti-tourism-good-news-10-8-more-tourists-2014.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-11974-haiti-tourism-increase-of-the-number-of-cruise-passengers-in-haiti.html



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - Justice : Delivery of 36 vehicles to those responsible of 18 jurisdictions of the country





Thursday, at a ceremony at the premises of the Court of Cassation, Pierre-Richard Casimir, Minister of Justice and Me ules Cantave, President of the Court of Cassation and of Superior Council of Judicial Power (CSPJ), handed over the keys of 36 brand new Nissan Patrol vehicle, to the Deans and Chief Prosecutors near the Courts of First Instance of 18 jurisdictions of the Republic.



The Minister Casimir invited the magistrates to redouble courage to accomplish the mission entrusted to them by law stating "This is not a favor that you made, t's a tool that we gives you." For his part, the President of the Court of Cassation invited judges to make good use of the rolling stock, in order to prolong their service time.



Furthermore on the sidelines of the ceremony, the Minister Casimir confirmed to the press that all measures were taken by the police and judicial authorities in view of the elections of Sunday, January 24 "I just remind the Government Commissioners the same notices that I had given them for the electoral day of 25 October 2015. It is also thanks to the judiciary that this day had been a success [...] The instructions are the same : impartiality, neutrality and availability," recalling that any demonstrations on public roads are prohibited throughout the country, for the days of Saturday and Sunday, due to the holding of presidential and legislative elections.



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - FLASH : Elections of January 24 are canceled ! (UPDATE 7h10 PM)





In a press release dated January 22, 2016, and signed by Pierre-Louis Opont, President of the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP), it is written that face a deteriorating security environment the CEP decided to postpone the electoral process that should lead to January 24, 2016, although the President Martelly Thursday evening confirmed the date in his message to the Nation https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-16384-haiti-elections-there-will-be-elections-this-january-24-dixit-michel-martelly.html



"Face a deteriorating security environment and threats to the electoral process, the CEP decided to postpone the electoral process that should lead to January 24, 2016, day scheduled for the vote.



The situation is as follows :



In the North Department : burning of BEC of Limbe, dof the residence of the President of BEC of Pignon, Plaine du Nord, Limonade, Quartier Morin, Pilate and of St Raphael



In the Centre : burning of BEC of Lascahobas, attempt to set fire in Thomonde. Heavy fire towards the voting center of Claire Heureuse de Savanette.



In the South : attempt to set fire to the Lycee Fabre Geffrard



in the West : attempt to set fire to the BECs II and III of Port-au-Prince, of Leogane and of Grand Goave. In fonds Parisien, armed individuals took away sensitive material stored at the National School.



In order to protect the lives of voters, the CEP staff, the institution's assets, particularly schools made available to the CEP. The Council took this decision.



Provisional Electoral Council

Pierre-Louis OPONT

President"



UPDATE 7h10 PM

The Government of the Republic has the advantage to inform the population that it has taken note of the decision of the Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) to temporarily suspend the electoral process, thereby deferring to a later date the holding of the second round of presidential and partial legislative previously set to Sunday, January 24, 2016.



It took the occasion to announce the holding of a council of ministers to the extraordinary, to take the necessary measures to guarantee public order, security of lives and property and to adopt face this new conjuncture the measures thereto pertaining.



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Published on 2016/01/21 | Source

Park Si-hoo completed a set tour with his Japanese fans.

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Park Si-hoo is currently in the role of Baek Si-yoon, a former black agent and current bar owner in "Neighborhood Hero" and has been in Macao and Korea in making the new OCN drama.

The actor spent some fun time with Japanese fans who came for a tour of the set in Paju.

Hundreds of Japanese fans came around and proved Park Si-hoo's reputation.

More than expected fans participated in the tour and warmed up the set in the freezing cold. They prepared a sign congratulating him of the drama and carried it throughout the tour.

Park Si-hoo met his fans in the 'bar' which is the main background of the drama. When the cameras started rolling, he became Baek Si-yoon and did his best with his fans watching him.

Park Si-hoo smiled at his fans and even took pictures with them in order to show his gratitude for coming from so far away. The fans behaved adequately and made sure their presence didn't interfere with his work.

Park Si-hoo is coming back for the first time in 3 years. He plays a former agent who is a master in martial arts and is expected to show some intense action.

Park Si-hoo's agency claims, "We thank the fans who came from far away to support their beloved actor".

Meanwhile, "Neighborhood Hero" can be seen every Saturday and Sunday at 11PM.
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Published on 2016/01/21 | Source

Seolhyun and eo Kang-joon, the two stars whose popularity is on the uptrend, are leaving to the jungle soon. The combination of these two gorgeous looking stars is to be a first class cast for the SBS' variety travel show, 'Law of the Jungle'

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According to an associate in the broadcasting company on January 21st, the two will join the new season of the show.

The associate also hinted that they are adjusting their schedules and discussing the details to wrap up the offers.

'Law of the Jungle' is heading to East Timor this time. East Timor is a nation located on the east side of the Island of Timor situated between Indonesia and Australia.

Seolhyun and Seo Kang-joon will leave to the island separately with the intervals between the trips by the two.
Harlow is a former New Town in Essex with a population of 86,000. Located in the upper Stort Valley, it was built in the decades after the Second World War to ease overcrowding and London and provide homes for people bombed out during the Blitz. It includes Britain's first pedestrian precinct and first modern residential tower block, The Lawn. Old Harlow, the historic part of the town, was mentioned in the Domesday Book. David and Victoria Beckham's former home, Rowneybury House, nicknamed 'Beckingham Palace', is nearby.

13:46, 17 OCT 2022
By: Bailey Faulkner

Has music ever transported you to a different time entirely? The group Ellis Dyson and the Shambles looking to do exactly that. The jazz-infused whisky folk band will take fans through a musical time machine at Legends on Friday, Jan. 29.

The band is comprised of:

Ellis Dyson (banjo, vocals)

Nathan Huvard (acoustic guitar)

Jonathan Ng (fiddle)

Danny Abrams (saxophone)

Matt Hall (trumpet)

Adam Maloney (bass)

Voted Best Local Band by the Daily Tar Heels readers and staff in April, the band is also frequently joined at live shows by various honorary Shambles.

Ellis Dyson and the Shambles

The group formed after frontman Dyson attended a jazz concert at UNC Chapel Hill, where he first met Danny Abrams. Dyson teamed up with Abrams, a New Yorker, to form a Northern-Southern fusion that would later expand to become Ellis Dyson and the Shambles.

Growing to six members, the band began touring around North Carolina and the South.

Along the way, the group became known for its explosive live shows and thrilling musicianship and its audiences tendency to join in with foot-stompin.

The bands popularity grew quickly, landing the group a spot to perform at the Shakori Hills GrassRoots Festival in 2014 and 2015.

More recently, the band embarked on a tour of the East Coast, playing shows from Baltimore all the way to Brooklyn. Welcomed to a packed house at The Rock Shop, the band had an especially fun time in Brooklyn.

Still excited from its tour of the North, the band now looks to the future.

Were working hard right now, Dyson said.

Based on the bands success already, it looks like there isnt much stopping Ellis Dyson and the Shambles.

We would love to just keep it rollin. Hopefully things will fall into place, Dyson said.

The band is especially excited about its March 12 show in Knoxville, Tennessee at the Jig & Reel. The show will mark the groups first time playing in Tennessee.

Legends

Having played Appalachian Mountain Brewery and The Local in the fall of 2014, the band will return to Boone to headline at Legends. The Shambles had a great time playing both Boone shows.

Boone is a totally different place than anywhere else. People in Boone enjoy shows and music in almost a tribal way, Dyson said.

After playing two shows in the area, the band has found a neat niche to fill. The group is certain that every show they play in the High Country will always be an interesting and unique experience.

Each show is an experience. You never know what the tribe is going to do so you just roll along with it, Dyson said.

The group will surely appeal to the hearts of Boone music lovers.

Every show is very intimate, Dyson said.

Fans can check out Ellis Dyson and the Shambles music and merchandise on Bandcamp. The band also keeps its Facebook page up to date so you will always know whats next for the Shambles.

Fridays show at Legends will begin at 9:30 p.m., with doors opening at 9 p.m. Tickets will be $4 for students in advance and $6 at the door. The show will also be BYOB with a six-pack limit.

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The Financial Times reported on Wednesday that the European Commission is planning on overhauling the regulation.

Alexander Stubb (NCP), the Minister of Finance, has estimated in an interview on YLE TV1 that the European Commission is unlikely to abandon the principle inscribed in the Dublin Regulation that obliges asylum seekers to file their claim in their country of first entry to the European Union.

The Finnish Ministry of the Interior confirmed later that plans to overhaul the regulation are indeed afoot but reminded that no details on the nature of the overhaul have yet been presented to member states.

I don't think [the principle] will be abandoned, Stubb told the national broadcasting company on Thursday.

It's perfectly clear that the Dublin Regulation will be put under the microscope, but the main focus of the debate will definitely be on external border controls. If people are allowed to move freely within our system, the priority must be to ensure the external borders are not leaking. That creates trust, he continued.

Stubb also estimated that the influx of asylum seekers represents by far the greatest challenge for the European Union. The union, he analysed, has reached a pivotal turning point due to the simultaneously ongoing debate over the future of the euro area.

I think we in the European Union are facing one of those 1950 or 1990 moments. The European Coal and Steel Community was founded in 1950, and the European Union after the Cold War in 1990. Asylum seekers currently represent by far the greatest challenge we're facing, Stubb noted.

We're facing two simultaneous threats: the first is the free movement of people, or the Schengen [Area], and the second is of course the euro and its future. Those are really the two bedrocks of the European Union and issues we're discussing also here at [the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum] in Davos, he added.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT

Photo: Roni Rekomaa / Lehtikuva

Source: Uusi Suomi
ABDI has surveyed whether the future looks more secure or insecure since 1990. Never before has the survey found such a heightened sense of insecurity. Two-thirds [of Finns] currently perceive the future as more insecure than before. The corresponding figure one year earlier was a little over one-half, the parliamentary committee reports.

A sense of insecurity has grown among Finns, finds a survey commissioned by the Advisory Board for Defence Information (ABDI) .

ABDI surveys the opinions of Finns on foreign and security policy-making as well as national security and defence capabilities every year.

Although the phenomenon is attributable to a number of factors, a heightened sense of insecurity is the most obvious change and takeaway from the latest survey in comparison to the previous year, says Sofia Vikman (NCP), the chairperson of ABDI.

The respondents expressed their concerns, for example, about the domestic employment situation, global terrorism and the economic outlook for Europe. Their responses also indicated that concerns related to the growth of the immigrant population of Finland have increased notably from preceding years, according to ABDI.

A list of the main factors deemed either somewhat or very concerning by the respondents: - Unemployment situation in Finland (87%, compared to 86% in 2014) - Global terrorism (83%, compared to 74% in 2014) - Economic outlook for Europe (79%, compared to 78% in 2014) - Increasing number of asylum seekers in Europe (75%) - Situation in Syria (72%, compared to 51% in 2014) - Global warming (72%, compared to 63% in 2014) - Increasing number of asylum seekers in Finland (71%) - Proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (71%, compared to 68% in 2014) - Religious extremism (70%, compared to 62% in 2014) - Development of Russia (69%, compared to 75% in 2014) Source: Advisory Board for Defence Information

The proportion of respondents who are concerned about the rising number of immigrants has grown by 24 percentage points year-on-year, the proportion concerned about the situation in Syria by 21, the proportion concerned about global terrorism and global warming by 9, and the proportion concerned about religious extremism by 8 percentage points.

Three-quarters of respondents, ABDI highlights, were either somewhat or very concerned about the flow of asylum seekers into Europe.

The survey found that Finns are rather unequivocally of the opinion that a co-ordinated asylum and immigration policy within the European Union is necessary to resolve the situation, tells Vikman.

The flow of asylum seekers into Finland was identified as a concern by 71 per cent of respondents.

The respondents were asked a total of three topical questions related to the ongoing migrant crisis.

The survey found that 48 per cent of respondents  52 per cent of male and 44 per cent of female respondents  have a negative view of the growing number of asylum seekers in Finland. Nearly one-third, or 29 per cent, of respondents have neither a negative nor positive view of the phenomenon. More than one-fifth of respondents  18 per cent of male and 26 per cent female respondents  have a positive view of the phenomenon.

Over two-thirds, or 68 per cent, of respondents also estimated that Finland is ill-prepared for the rising number of asylum seekers. Nearly three in four, or 72 per cent, of respondents felt the same way about the European Union.

Taloustutkimus interviewed a total of 1,005 people in 104 localities for the survey. Quota sampling based on the age, gender and regional distribution of the population was utilised to determine the sample group.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT

Photo: Kaisa Siren / Lehtikuva

Source: Uusi Suomi
The late Thomas Ryan, who was assaulted by Patrick Phelan

A man has been hit with an 11-year jail sentence after he "savagely" beat a "quiet and gentle" man leaving him permanently disabled, and later attempting to burgle the home of an elderly bachelor.

Patrick Phelan (24) pleaded guilty to recklessly causing serious causing harm to Thomas Ryan at Kennedy Park on July 10, 2013.

While on bail for the "vicious" assault on Thomas Ryan, Phelan broke into a 64-year-old bachelor's home and threatened him and demanding cash.

Money

The court heard the occupant of the house lived alone and had breathing difficulties and that Phelan pushed him on to his bed and knelt on his chest, demanding money.

Phelan fled after the man managed to push a panic alarm.

Phelan was sentenced to eight years for the attack on Mr Ryan and received a consecutive three-year sentence for the attempted burglary.

The court suspended the consecutive three-year sentence for a period of three years, from the date of Phelan's release.

Judge Tom O'Donnell described the attack on Thomas Ryan (61) as "a savage and vicious unprovoked assault on an innocent man, which led to catastrophic injuries".

Phelan admitted kicking Mr Ryan about the head several times after he met him walking home in the early hours of July 10, 2013.

Mr Ryan had been arrested for his own safety earlier in the evening after being found in an intoxicated state.

He had been released from custody and was walking home when he was set upon by Phelan, of Galvone Road, Kennedy Park, Limerick.

After the attack Mr Ryan's life completely changed, Limerick Circuit Court heard.

Judge O'Donnell extended his sympathies to the Ryan family.

He said the attack on the victim left him "incontinent and unable to feed himself".

Mr Ryan died 18 months later in a nursing home from pneumonia and other health complications.

His mother died of a stroke, which the Ryan family believed was due to massive stress of seeing her son's slow demise following the attack.

Judge O'Donnell said the attack on Mr Ryan left a "severe impact" on the entire family.

A medical report on Mr Ryan's injuries stated he suffered two skull fractures, two brain haemorrhages as a result of blunt force trauma to his head.

Judge O'Donnell said that following the attack Mr Ryan was left him unable to communicate properly and "disorientated to time, place, and persons".

"Every vastitude of independence was taken from him. He was not able to fend for himself (afterwards) and he suffered a slow demise," the judge said.

The court heard that after the attack while he was living in a nursing home the only question he would ask was: "When am I going home?".

Sentence

Speaking outside the court, a sister of the victim Breda O'Callaghan said the family were "happy" with the sentence, but would have preferred if Phelan was given the entire 11 years.

"We hope that this Patrick Phelan will realise what he did was wrong and we hope that it will change him when he gets out," an emotional Ms O'Callaghan said.

"We'll never get Thomas back, it'll never bring him back, no matter how many years (Phelan) got.

"We just hope he learns his lesson and doesn't attack another elderly man.

"He lived on his own, he was a bit of a loner. He was in London for 25 years as a chef. He loved to cook. He came back then to be with my mother and father in their last few years here.

"He went about his business. He liked a few drinks now and again, but all he would do is sing. He loved to sing," she added.
A judge has told a Co Dublin student there was no merit in his 75,000 claim alleging he was defamed by a pharmacy and ordered him to pay the legal costs of his unsuccessful action.

William Hanks claimed that Wembar Company Limited, which trades as McCabes Pharmacy, had published a text "using him as a scapegoat" for the mis-labelling of a medication for his mother.

Ms Hanks, of Estuary Row Bissett's Strand, Malahide, told the court she was a non-practising barrister and wished to assist her son in presenting his case.

In evidence she said that on November 13, 2013, she had presented a prescription and her medical card for pills in McCabe's Pharmacy and when she got home found they had been labelled for a non-existent "William Patrick Wilson Hanks".

She had received a text from the pharmacy alleging her son had given his own name when collecting the tablets.

She had only shown her son the text about two weeks after receiving it and that it was she who had sent it to the PSI.

William Hanks said his signature was not on the signed prescription which had to be signed by the medical card holder.

Judge Jacqueline Linnane in the Circuit Civil Court said she accepted the contention of barrister Shane English that William Hanks had failed to produce any evidence that he had been defamed.

Mr English, who appeared with Newman Solicitors for McCabes Pharmacy, Malahide Shopping Centre, told the judge it was Hanks' own mother who had sent an allegedly defamatory text to the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland (PSI).

Appeal

Judge Linnane said she was striking out the defamation claim for the reasons argued by Mr English, that no prime facie case had been made out, that there was no evidence of defamation, that the text was not defamatory and did not have a meaning claimed by Mr Hanks and that his own mother had sent it to the PSI.

The judge awarded costs against Mr Hanks - also of Estuary Row - but granted him a stay on the costs order pending his consideration of an appeal to the High Court.
Most men would do almost anything to swap an afternoon's shopping for a few hours in the pub - now luxury department store Brown Thomas might just have the answer.

The Grafton Street store is applying for a full pub licence as part of its plans to refurbish its third-floor restaurant, a court has heard.

The Circuit Licensing Court was told that those waiting could "anaesthetise" themselves against the impending shopping bill.

Counsel for Brown Thomas, Constance Cassidy SC said the store had been operating a wine license in its restaurant for the last 40 years.

Ms Cassidy said that the store wished to improve matters for customers, and in particular for partners and spouses who had to wait around while the shopping list was completed.

Judge Raymond Groarke, was told by Ms Cassidy that those in waiting could at least "slightly anaesthetise" themselves against what spouses and partners would spend.

Spirit

Lorraine Bedford, health and safety compliance manager with Brown Thomas, told the court the store wished to make a full drinks menu, including beer and spirits, available to customers and those who, at the moment, just had to sit around while their money was being spent.

Frank Kenny, of Kenny Kane architects, produced historical maps showing developments at the Grafton Street-Wicklow Street development over the last 300 years.

He said that since the early 1700s, maps showed various developments up to the acquisition by drapers Switzer & Co - which was bought out by Brown Thomas - of sites for development in the area.

Mr Kenny told Ms Cassidy it was clear from the sequence of historical maps that the individual buildings, which included two old pub licenses in Wicklow Street had been demolished to facilitate construction of the Switzer block.

He said planning permission had been granted for a new kitchen and carvery area, dry goods and refrigerated storage areas, dining areas and staff facilities.

Ms Cassidy added that Brown Thomas & Co Ltd had bought out an extinguished full pub license from Falcon Irish Pubs Limited, which owned Ned McKnights in Main Street, Cappamore, Co Limerick.

Brown Thomas had asked the Circuit Licensing Court for a Declaratory Order which, if plans are completed in accordance with planning permission, will guarantee the refurbished restaurant obtaining a full pub licence. Judge Groarke granted the store a Declaratory Order.
A Dublin teenager with a rare syndrome affecting her nervous system is keen to help others with the same diagnosis.

Teegan Bracken O'Reilly (15), from Tallaght, was diagnosed with Moebius Syndrome when she was just 18-months.

The syndrome means that she is unable to make facial expressions and has had to have several surgeries to correct her feet.

Challenges

Despite the challenges the teen is gearing up to sit her Leaving Cert next year and is keen to help others diagnosed with the rare condition.

During the summer the family were shocked to discover that one of only a handful of people with the condition in Ireland also lives in Tallaght.

Toddler Dexter Purtill Fennell (3) was also diagnosed at 18 months when he had trouble feeding.

Both families have now set up an Irish support group and will host their first official meet-up this Sunday in the Red Cow at 3pm.

"Teegan is brilliant with Dexter. Before she met him she was a little bit more self-conscious but she has since become more mature and she knows that she wants to help these children as they're growing up," the teen's proud mum Lesley told the Herald.

"There are no doctors who specialise in the condition in Ireland, so we've had to rely on getting in touch with families in the UK and the US and now we want to help any Irish families affected."

The symptoms of the condition, which affects the cranial nerves, can range from limb deformity to night terrors and problems with balance and co-ordination.

Recognised

Down the line the two families are hoping to fundraise for more research into the condition, which Lesley suspects may be under-diagnosed.

Sunday marks a world awareness day for sufferers of Moebius Syndrome and this will be the first time it's been officially recognised in Ireland.

Anyone who would like to get in touch with the newly formed group can contact them on moebiussyndromireland@gmail.com
Gardai search a shed and the canal for the murder scene and the missing body parts of victim Kenneth OBrien (Collins)

Gardai search a shed and the canal for the murder scene and the missing body parts of victim Kenneth OBrien (Collins)

Searches are continuing to try to identify the scene where Dublin dad Kenneth O'Brien was brutally murdered.

Gardai were concentrating on several sites alongside the Grand Canal near where his dismembered body was found in a suitcase.

The Herald can today reveal that a feared west Dublin criminal is also being probed over a possible link to the murder.

One theory being investigated is whether the victim had a brief fling with a woman known to the criminal.

However, this is just one line of enquiry in what is being called an "extremely complex case which keeps on throwing up new information".

Gardai are also investigating whether sinister threats were made to a woman known to Mr O'Brien (33) and other people known to him in the weeks before he was murdered.

"New pieces of information are coming in all the time and over 50 new lines of enquiry have opened up in the last 24 hours," a source said.

Dozens of gardai intensively searched farmhouses and land yesterday near where Mr O'Brien's body was found, but the scene of his murder has still not been identified.

Gardai denied reports that surfaced yesterday afternoon that a suspect had been arrested in the case.

They are appealing for anyone, "even courting couples", who may have been at the canal late on Friday night or early on Saturday morning when it is believed that Mr O'Brien's body was dumped.

Yesterday afternoon a number of Garda Water Unit divers searched lakes along the canal, while plain clothes units searched the building a few hundred metres away from where the victim was found.

Gardai will also launch a reconstruction of events at the Ardclough stretch of the canal this evening and tomorrow and intend to stop cars and walkers to find out if they had been in that area last weekend.

Gardai are also aware that other body parts could have been buried near the canal.

Detectives are understood to have searched a rented property and outhouses. One of the farm houses in question contains a vast amount of motorbikes and scrap metal.

Awful

Meanwhile, locals expressed their shock at the garda search.

One man said that it was "worrying" to think that the events that led to Mr O'Brien's death may have unfolded next to his property.

"It's truly awful, we're not being told much but hopefully it isn't the case that something as gruesome as this occurred here," the resident said.

"What happened to that poor man is absolutely shocking."

Yesterday gardai confirmed that they were investigating more than 200 lines of enquiry.
Game on! IU to resume series with Kentucky starting in 2025-26.

Kentucky coach John Calipari confirmed at SEC media day the two schools have agreed in principle to restart their annual regular-season series.
WASHINGTON (JTA)-Less than a month after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signaled a readiness to mend ties with Israel after years of antipathy, a delegation of American Jewish leaders has embarked on a trip to embrace Turkey's longtime rival Greece.

Members of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations are in the midst of a weeklong trip that will take them to Israel, Greece and Cyprus, the disputed Mediterranean island that has been a source of Greek-Turkish contention for decades. The trip, which includes leaders of the Greek-American community, will meet with political and religious leaders in all three countries.

Malcolm Hoenlein, the Presidents Conference's executive vice chairman, said the trip was planned six months ago-well before Erdogan told a Turkish newspaper on Dec. 13 that he hoped to reestablish ties with Israel, which have deteriorated badly over the past decade. Within days of the interview, reports said Israel and Turkey had already struck a preliminary agreement to normalize relations.

A news release announcing the trip indicated it would address the "strategic relationship" between Israel and the two Mediterranean nations and include visits to military facilities. But Hoenlein dismissed suggestions that trip indicated a rebuff of Turkey.

"Having relations with one country does not diminish anyone else," Hoenlein told JTA. "We want Israel to have as many relationships as possible."

Israel and Turkey shared a close alliance in the 1990s, when trade, tourism and military cooperation increased. But relations began to cool with Erdogan's rise to power in 2002, and broke dramatically after Israel's deadly 2010 raid on the Mavi Marmara, a Turkish-flagged ship aiming to break Israel's Gaza blockade, in which 10 Turks, including an American citizen, were killed. In 2011, Turkey expelled the Israeli ambassador.

At the same time, ties between Israel and Greece were warming. The two countries carried out joint military exercises and launched efforts to boost cooperation in various areas. But it was the discovery of natural gas deposits in the eastern Mediterranean Sea that gave major impetus to the relationship.

In November, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras of Greece and Prime Minister Nicos Anastasiades of Cyprus met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, and Netanyahu is scheduled to meet both leaders again in Cyprus later this month to advance agreement on a natural gas deal.

Meanwhile, shared concern over Erdogan's rise has led to more frequent official outings to Greece by American Jewish groups, which have begun to pivot away from decades of defending Turkey's interests in Washington. Last year, several Jewish groups backed off their longstanding reluctance to call the World War I-era massacre of Armenians a genocide, a position they had adopted largely to avoid offending Turkey.

In 2013, a congressional caucus was launched to further cooperation among Israel, Greece and Cyprus.

"There already has been a lot of local work between organizations," said Daniel Mariaschin, the executive vice president of B'nai B'rith, referring to the new closeness with American Greeks.

The inclusion of Cyprus in the tour itinerary is sure to be noticed in Turkey, which has occupied the northern third of the island since 1974, an action condemned by multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions. The Jewish delegation will not be visiting northern Cyprus, which declared itself independent of the Cypriot republic in 1983, a declaration recognized only by Turkey.

"The strategic relationship between Greece, Cyprus and Israel has evolved, helping to lend stability to the region with broader implications," the Presidents Conference said in a statement. "The delegation of American Hellenic and American Jewish community leaders plans to explore the major policy issues and concerns as well as ways to foster ties between the people of the three countries. They will also visit military installations to study the security challenges in the area."

Whether the embrace of Greece and Cyprus will complicate Turkey's overtures to Israel has yet to be seen. Developments in Syria, which have empowered enemies of both Turkey (the PYD Kurdish militia) and Israel (Hezbollah), have created a convergence of interests between the countries. The Obama administration has also pushed hard for a reconciliation, preferring that its two closest military allies in the Middle East get along. And Israel's security establishment misses its close cooperation with the region's other major military.

"Turkish-Greek ties have come a long way," said Soner Cagaptay, a Turkey expert at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. "But once ties between Israel and Turkey are normalized, eventually Greece's utility as an ally to Israel will be overshadowed by Turkey's economic and military might."

Hoenlein said it was too early to determine whether Turkey's pivot would be long lasting.

"It's a mercurial situation," he said.

Jason Isaacson, the American Jewish Committee's director of policy, said Erdogan should still be viewed with caution-not only because of his past hostility to Israel, but because of rhetoric blaming Turkey's woes on outside interests that has veered close to anti-Semitism.

"Given the proclivities of the president of Turkey, given actions and statements regarding Israel as well as regarding the connection he has alleged between the Jewish people and unrelated political issues in Turkey, [restoring ties with Turkey] cannot substitute for the relationship Israel enjoys with Cyprus and Greece," Isaacson said.
The Jewish Pavilion (JP) recognizes someone with a flair for giving back to the community every year at its annual fashion show. This year the JP is honoring Friends Board member Marci Gaeser at its "Spring into Fashion" show at Bloomingdales in Orlando on Thursday, Feb. 4.

Gaeser hit the ground running when she joined the JP Friend's Board in the fall of 2014. Within months of joining, she had agreed to co-chair two of the Pavilion's most impactful fundraisers, its annual gala and fashion show. This year Gaeser has generously agreed to co-chair both events again.

"Marci is a tremendous asset to the Jewish Pavilion," stated Nancy Ludin, JP executive director. "She jumped right into the Friends Board and her superior organizational skills coupled with her excellent people skills make her an ideal leader. We are so thankful for the time and energy she has put into chairing four events in just two years."

Right now, Gaeser has her hands-full with the upcoming fashion show at Bloomingdale's, just weeks away. Her organizational skills have come in handy, as she has already arranged for 10 volunteer models to walk the runway and showcase the latest in spring fashion trends. Additionally, she has coordinated all of their busy schedules into two fittings a week before the show. Gaeser stated, "I love having the "Spring into Fashion" show at Bloomingdales because they have something for everyone, and are a perfect fit for all ages and styles." She added, "Bloomingdale's public relations manager, Jennifer Bentson, does an amazing job of selecting just the right pieces. She also lets our models choose clothes they feel good in while showing off this year's trends."

In addition to coordinating the event, Gaeser will serve as a model for the second year in row.

Like many JP volunteers, Gaeser was introduced to the Pavilion through a family member who was receiving its services. "For years my mother-in-law, Rebecca Gaeser, received visits from Jewish Pavilion volunteers when she was a resident at Horizon Bay," noted Marci. "I know that Rebecca appreciated and benefitted from the attention. The volunteers were so caring and loving with all the residents. You could see the impact they made through the smiles on the senior's faces."

Gaeser became active in the JP Friends Board several years after Rebecca passed, when her teen-aged children required less of her time. Currently, her mother, Ruth Miller, enjoys sharing JP holiday programming and events with her daughter, grandchildren, and great-grandchild as a resident of the Mayflower in Winter Park.

The energetic Gaeser juggles her volunteerism with a busy life as the mother of four and the grandmother of one. She has a close relationship with her children ranging in ages from 16 to 30, and joked that she and her adult daughters speak on the phone "about 10 times per day." Sixteen-year-old Tyler, a high school sophomore, keeps Gaeser on the go shuttling back and forth from Hagerty High School as well as to after school activities. Eighteen-year-old Haley, the youngest of three daughters, is a freshman at USF and the most recent to leave the nest. Older daughters Patricia Primi (Adam) and Jessica Klein (Matthew) are young adults, and have kept Gaeser busy with two weddings to plan over the past several years. Two years ago daughter, Jessica, and husband, Matthew welcomed daughter Jennifer. Marci and husband, Jeff, are hands-on grandparents and treasure regular visits and sleepovers with their granddaughter.

The Pittsburgh native has spent the past two decades fashioning a life based on family, community, and charitable works. She credits her late father, Jerry Miller, for serving as a role model and for passing on his passion for community involvement. She stated, "When I get involved with a cause I'm in 110 percent."

Gaeser not only chairs events for the JP, she also spends time with its seniors. Recently, she attended Chanukah parties at the Mayflower, the Tremont, and Savannah Court in Oviedo. Gaeser has volunteered with a host of other organizations within the Jewish community, including chairing Super-Sunday for the Jewish Federation of Greater Orlando alongside husband, Jeff. She is also a past two-time co-chair for Choices with Federation's Women's Division. Additionally, she is a past trustee and treasurer of Temple Shir Shalom and is a current member of Congregation Ohev Shalom.

"Please join us in honoring Marci Gaeser, a volunteer who has made a fashion statement out of giving back, at our eighth annual Spring into Fashion Show on February 4th," commented Elise Schilowitz, president of the board of the Jewish Pavilion. "We look forward to a morning of friendship, fashion, finger foods, and fun while we raise funds for more than 50 elder facilities in Greater Orlando."

The Jewish Pavilion Fashion Show honoring Marci Gaeser will be held Thursday , Feb. 4 at 10:45 a.m. at Bloomingdale's Orlando at the Mall of Millennia. Register now at http://www.jewishpavilion.org/special-events or call 407-678-9363.
As the turmoil in the Middle East continues to increase; as states like Syria, Iraq, Libya and Yemen fall apart in a bloodshed; as millions of people from the Middle East become refugees in western countries; as a global superpower like Russia takes part in the Syrian civil war and as the role of the U.S. in the Middle East politics is minimal, it is ever more confusing to understand who everyone is and what they want.

On Thursday, Feb. 4 at 7:30 p.m., Dr. Mordechai Kedar (PhD. Bar-Ilan U.), an expert on the political discourse of the Middle East, will be speaking at Nate's Shul located at 1701 Markham Woods Rd. in Longwood. Dr. Kedar, will layout what each group stands for, what they really want and the dangers they represent.

Kedar served for 25 years in the Israel Defense Force military intelligence specializing in Syria, Arab political discourse, Arab mass media, Islamic groups and Israeli Arabs.

Kedar is the director of the Center for the Study of the Middle East and Islam (under formation), a research associate of the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies and a lecturer in the Department of Arabic at Bar-Ilan University in Israel. He lectures publicly around the globe and advises companies about general issues on the Middle East, regime stability, Islamic leadership and jihadist movements. Kedar has been interviewed on al-Jazeera in Arabic with English subtitles discussing Jerusalem. His insight and backbone took the moderator by complete surprise, and the online video is priceless. You can see this video at tinyurl.com/kedar1.

Kedar will answer all questions pertaining to the Middle East, Israel, Jerusalem, the Arab Palestinians and the complex problems facing the world today.

For reservations and ticket visit http://www.JewishNorthOrlando.com for questions or more information please call 407-636-5994 or email Rabbi@JewishNorthOrlando.com. Tickets are $10 before Jan. 31, 2016 and $15 after that date. Event sponsors of $180 are entitled to 2 tickets and a private dinner with Dr. Kedar before the lecture.
The ongoing wave of Palestinian terrorism that has plagued Israel since last fall has also brought to the fore the Palestinians' frustration with their own leadership. While Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas has been blamed for inciting violence against Israelis, many Palestinians have become disillusioned with the PA's corruption and inability to attain statehood.

As such, Israeli leaders are increasingly concerned that internal Palestinian dissatisfaction could bring about the PA's collapse, resulting in a dangerous political and security vacuum in the West Bank that could lead to even more terrorism and violence.

"We must prevent the Palestinian Authority from collapsing if possible, but at the same time, we must prepare in case it happens," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently said in a closed-door meeting with top ministers and security officials.

According to a Jan. 4 report by Haaretz, Israel's diplomatic-security cabinet held two meetings over the course of 10 days on the possibility of a PA collapse, in light of "the freeze in the diplomatic process, the ongoing wave of terror attacks, the economic crisis in the West Bank, and the political crisis within the Palestinian leadership."

The U.S. has also raised questions about the viability of the PA. In December, Secretary of State John Kerry said that "there are valid questions as to how long the PA will survive if the current situation continues."

"There are some 30,000 Palestinian Authority security forces in the West Bank, and Israel's security officials acknowledge their key role in preventing the situation from spiraling out of control, including, by the way, during the turmoil of three wars with Gaza," said Kerry.

Abbas countered the concerns, saying, "No one should dream that [the PA] will collapse."

"The Palestinian Authority exists and it is here," Abbas added. "It will be followed by a Palestinian state. The Palestinian Authority is one of our achievements and we won't give it up."

The collapse of the PA "would mean chaos," said Mideast expert Jonathan Schanzer, vice president for research at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies think tank.

"The PA handles a great deal of the day-to-day governance issues that Israel is very happy not to fulfill," Schanzer told JNS.org. "The PA also plays a significant role in minimizing the dangers of Hamas in the West Bank. A full PA collapse would be calamitous from Israel's perspective."

Schanzer, however, also downplayed fears that a PA collapse is actually imminent.

"Nothing tangible has led to this discussion, from what I can discern," Schanzer said. "There was a warning issued by the Prime Minister's Office and some unnamed sources spoke to the media, too. But from what I can tell, the discussion of a PA collapse is one without much basis at this time."

Established by the Oslo Accords peace treaty in 1993 as an interim Palestinian government, the PA-which has been dominated by the Fatah political party and its parent organization, the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), throughout its existence-has languished in political and economic limbo for the last several years under Abbas. American-brokered peace talks with Israel conducted in 2013-14 crashed, and the Gaza-ruling Hamas terrorist group continues to grow in popularity among Palestinians.

Under Abbas, the PA has not held formal elections since 2006 and maintains control only in the West Bank after being ousted from Gaza by Hamas in 2007. Abbas has had a tenuous relationship with Israel, maintaining close security ties with the Jewish state out of a shared fear of Hamas, but also seeing Israel take punitive measures such as cutting off tax transfers to the PA in response to Abbas's unilateral moves for international recognition of a Palestinian state. During the current wave of terror, Israel has accused Abbas of stoking the violence through his false claims of Israel's attempt to change the status quo on the Temple Mount holy site.

"The PA lacks legitimacy among most Palestinians. A majority of Palestinians, when polled, believe that the PA is irredeemably corrupt and that it continues to fail to deliver basic services," Schanzer said.

"It also makes neither peace nor war, which alienates both sides of the Palestinian political spectrum," he added.

Compounding the problems for the PA is a dire economic situation. Azmi Abdul-Rahman, the official in charge of the PA's financial policies, recently said that the PA's economy has suffered huge losses since the onset of the current terror wave.

According to Abdul-Rahman, the Palestinian economy has lost roughly $1.3 billion, with the hardest-hit areas being Hebron, Bethlehem, Ramallah, Nablus, and eastern Jerusalem, Ma'an News Agency reported. Abdul-Rahman blamed decreased tourism, new Israeli security checkpoints, and the cost of medical care for wounded Palestinians as contributing to the losses.

"The economy has undoubtedly been the biggest strain on the PA," Schanzer told JNS.org. "Since the exit of [former PA prime minister] Salam Fayyad, the PA has lacked the transparency and credibility that made it attractive for donor funds. [Current PA Prime Minister] Rami Hamdallah fails to uphold Fayyad's standards, and the perception that the PA is irredeemably corrupt continues to grow."

Perhaps most troublesome for the PA is the lack of a clear successor to Abbas, who has been the subject of many rumors over the past year regarding health issues or an impending resignation.

"The PA itself can survive without Abbas, but the Palestinian political elite is in crisis because Abbas has purged the system of all challengers," said Schanzer.

For Israel, then, a PA collapse would at the very least mean a significant degree of uncertainty.

"When Abbas is no longer able to govern, there will be a huge vacuum," Schanzer said.
StandWithUs (SWU) is placing a billboard on University Boulevard east of Forsyth Road beginning the week of Jan. 25, 2016 for four weeks. The billboard reminds commuters of the benefits of the US-Israel relationship which "creates hundreds of thousands of jobs in America."

The SWU billboard counters an anti-Israel one on University Boulevard between Forsyth and Semoran boulevards initiated and paid for by StopTheBlankCheck.org and IfAmericansKnew.org. It asks, "$10 Million a Day to Israel? Our Money is Needed in America." The StandWithUs billboard appears concurrently.

"Anti-Israel groups continue to misinform the public in an attempt to erode American support for Israel. Their ads hope that well-meaning viewers will conclude that the cessation of US support of Israel will result in peace. They fail to inform viewers that the funds are earmarked primarily for defense with contracts to US manufacturers thereby creating jobs in America. They fail to mention that Israel must defend itself militarily against Palestinian leaderships such as Hamas sworn to Israel's destruction. As with all the anti-Israel campaigns we`ve encountered, context and facts are always left out," states Roz Rothstein, CEO of StandWithUs a 14-year-old international Israel education non-profit.

"The agreement between America and Israel stipulates that 75 percent of the military aid Israel receives from the US has to be spent in America, The U.S. spends $250 billion a year to keep American troops protecting allies around the world, from Germany to Japan and South Korea. In contrast, the $3 billion a year America sends to Israel boosts the US economy, protects our interests and does not include any American troops on the ground in Israel, which protects itself," explains Sara Rafel, director, StandWithUs/Southeast.

The billboard StandWithUs will be up beginning the week of Jan. 25, 2016.

"The anti-Israel billboard also omits the fact that the U.S. has given the Palestinians billions of dollars in aid since 1993, which is obviously not spent in the U.S. The U.S. has been the primary financial supporter of the Palestinian refugees since 1949, donating billions to the UN agency, UNRWA (United Nations Reliefs and Works Agency), an agency set up to address their specific needs, while the needs of other refugees worldwide have no such specific agency. Indeed, the Palestinians have received more foreign aid per capita than any other group of people in the world. It is unfortunate that this money is spent on promoting hate and violence against Israelis by the Palestinian leadership, rather than on the betterment of its own people," she continues.

StandWithUs has countered anti-Israel messages on public transit and highways wherever they have appeared throughout the United States and Canada since 2007.

"Groups that publicize misinformation about Israel should be aware that StandWithUs will continue to challenge their lies and to inform the public," affirms Roz Rothstein, CEO StandWithUs.
Today  Subhas Boses 119th birth anniversary  the Union government will make public files relating to him, hitherto classified, under the Official Secrets Act. This should delight academics, not to mention Boses extended family and his dedicated followers who have campaigned for this disclosure. The move has also been welcomed by Boses only child and heir, Professor Anita Pfaff, who resides in Germany.

Those at the forefront of the campaign for declassification need to be congratulated. At the same time, it would be surprising if their expectation that such revelation will establish Bose did not perish after a plane crash in Taipei on August 18, 1945, and Jawaharlal Nehru did the dirty on him, is fulfilled.

The Bharatiya Janata Party seems eager to embrace Bose before this years elections in West Bengal. A drip feed of previously secret information will, it hopes, sustain speculation, which it can then exploit on hustings.

For communalists to claim proximity to Bose, who was naturally secular, is amusing. To paint him as an enemy of the Indian National Congress is a travesty of truth.

Bose returned to India from England in 1921 at the age of 24 after sensationally declining an offer to join the coveted Indian Civil Service. Notwithstanding long spells in incarceration, extended exiles outside the country, he fairly meteorically reached the summit of being unanimously elected Congress president at the age of 41.

The United States-headquartered international news magazine, TIME, put him on its cover. It reported from Haripura in Gujarat: Among the slick, satisfied top handful of Congress politicians, most of them obviously enjoying the incense of power and prestige, Subhas Bose stands out.

Bose was in essence a Left-wing patriot. In his presidential speech, he stressed: Our chief national problem relating to the eradication of poverty, illiteracy and disease and to scientific production and distribution can be effectively tackled only along socialistic lines.

Gandhians and Right-wingers in the Congress, though, were resistant to Bose and opposed his re-election as president. Indeed, Vallabhbhai Patel specifically asked Bose to step aside.

Bose replied he would not contest if a leftist stood as a candidate. This did not happen; and he defeated Pattabhi Sitaramayya by 1,580 to 1,375 votes.

Gandhi fumed: Since I was instrumental in inducing Dr Pattabhi not to withdraw the defeat is more mine than his it is plain to me that the delegates do not approve of the principles and policy for which I stand.

In contrast, Bose was conciliatory. It will be a tragic thing for me, he stated, if I succeed in winning the confidence of other people but fail to win the confidence of Indias greatest man.

But the Mahatma ruthlessly instigated the resignation of all working committee members, other than Boses elder brother Sarat. Besides, a resolution passed at the All India Congress Committee (AICC) session in Tripuri in Madhya Pradesh insultingly bound Bose to selecting a working committee in accordance with the wishes of Gandhiji.

Boses attempts to reach an understanding with Gandhi were rebuffed. He, therefore, resigned. At a special meeting of the AICC in Kolkata, Nehru moved a motion to urge Bose to withdraw his resignation, suggesting re-constitution of the previous working committee, barring two members, who would be replaced in accordance with the presidents choice. But Bose stuck to his stand of a more representative committee.

In effect, a rightist plot  orchestrated by Patel, Chakravarti Rajagopalachari, Jivatram Kripalani and Rajendra Prasad and blessed by Gandhi  succeeded in dethroning a democratically elected Congress president.

Bose now formed a group within the Congress, which he called the Forward Bloc, to consolidate Left forces within the organisation. In retaliation, the working committee under Prasad decided that for the grave act of indiscipline the former president be disqualified from being a member of any elected body of the party for three years as from August 1939.

It was a grave error. Bose was upset with Nehru for abandoning him. They were otherwise bedfellows on socio-economic matters. Yet he did not part company with the Congress.

In January 1941, Bose dramatically escaped from India to spend the remaining four and a half years of his life in Europe and East Asia. In his radio broadcasts from abroad, he would, in fact, often make suggestions to the Congress as one who was a part of the fold.

When it came to forming his Indian National Army (INA), he named its brigades after Gandhi, Nehru and (Maulana) Azad. As the INA commenced its campaign to enter Northeast India, Bose, on February 22, 1944, took to the airwaves from Yangon on his Azad Hind Radio. Father of the Nation, he appealed to Gandhi, in this holy war for Indias liberation, we ask for your blessings and good wishes. This was the first time anyone had so conferred the overarching mantle on the Mahatma.

Gandhi later acknowledged: The hypnotism of the Indian National Army has cast its spell on us. Netajis name is one to conjure with. His patriotism is second to none. His bravery shines through all his actions.

When in 1945 the British officers of the INA were put on trial at the Red Fort, Nehru, who had earlier opposed Boses alliance with Japan, unhesitatingly admitted: The INA trial has created a mass upheaval.

In the winter of 1960-61, when Boses half-Austrian daughter Anita visited Delhi for the first time, she was an honoured house guest at Nehrus prime ministerial residence.

However, while Bose generally figures among a pantheon of past leaders whose faces form a montage over Congress meets, the party hasnt since independence been really enthusiastic about him.

At the same time, sectarian elements staking ownership of Bose sullies his impressive commitment to inter-religious harmony.

Ashis Ray is London-based journalist and creator of www.bosefiles.info. The views expressed are personal.
Fighting ones own demons is always a challenging task. But, as Pakistan is finding, a selective slaughter, or cull, is infinitely more difficult.

That explains why, however hard it tries, the fight against terror remains a complex mission to accomplish. But the world, including India, needs to help Pakistan in this battle.

The price Pakistan has paid in terms of human lives and economic loss in the fight against terror is mind-numbing. In December 2014, Pakistans National Assembly was told that Pakistan had suffered losses of $80 billion and 50,000 lives in the war on terror over the preceding decade.

Despite American largesse, the economic cost of the fight against terrorism has been bleeding Pakistan, whose economy is just over a tenth the size of Indias at $225 billion. Capital has flown and jobs dried up in the lengthening shadow of terror, not to mention the agony of those directly affected by the death of a loved one or breadwinner.

In each countrys history a defining moment comes when public sentiment drives a change in a fatally flawed national policy. That moment for Pakistan happened when terrorists mowed down 132 school children in a Peshawar school in 2014. Tehreek-e-Taliban, better known as the Pakistani Taliban, had claimed responsibility for the school massacre; now it has gained further opprobrium by striking a university campus.

Read: Taliban attack university in Peshawar, kill students and teachers

After the unspeakable bloodbath in Peshawar, Pakistan had declared a collective resolve to stamp out terrorists. But efforts since then show how winning this battle goes beyond declaring steely resolve. To be fair, Pakistan has not remained idle. It intensified the raids against militants in the tribal areas of Waziristan and cracked down on groups like Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ). The Pakistan army took the fight against terrorism more seriously than before, driven by public sentiment and US demands.

But the country still falls well short on addressing the vital question of how to stop militant Islamist outfits acting as strategic assets against Afghanistan and India. These groups could be used for achieving Pakistans initial objectives. But they then take on a life of their own, often not obeying their masters, who are left in a quandary over how to reign them in.

Read: Pak behind Bacha Khan university attack: Frontier Gandhis great-granddaughter

Any blanket clampdown on groups like the Lakshar-e-Taiba, blamed for the 26/11 Mumbai attacks and Jaish-e-Mohammad, behind the Pathankot air base strike, is not easy because for long they remained of crucial importance for the Pakistan establishment. LeT may be a proscribed organisation but it has unfrozen assets in many parts of the country; Jamaat-ud-Dawa and Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation are the frontal organizations operating with impunity. In other words, Pakistan continues to be a victim of the fallacious distinction between good terrorist and bad terrorist

Unless Pakistan makes a strategic shift in its approach of not using its demons as angels in furthering its interests in the sub continent, its own fight against terror cannot succeed. There have been many bloody wake-up calls, and there have been many half-measures. But to win its own battle against terrorism, Pakistan needs to go the whole way. And all the countries with a stake in the region need to either help Pakistan in its efforts, or at least give it a long rope.

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If Canadian poet-novelist Margaret Atwood set the pace with her exquisitely-crafted speech at the inaugural session of the 9th Jaipur Literature Festival, two Scotsmen, author Alexander McCall Smith and festival director William Dalrymple gave the audience one of the best sessions of the day. It was almost laugh-a-minute session with McCall Smith talking about his characters and books, his craft and experiences that have often been the inspiration for his books.

Asked about how he manages to write nearly four books a year, McCall Smith in his trademark style said: I suffer from a disease called serial novelism the symptoms: they will write novels after novels and then die in fact for many authors dying is a great career move. The audience almost collapsed laughing. The publishing pressure is immense and sometimes while writing simultaneous novels, sometimes I crossover to the wrong fiction.

Read: When Shobhaa De jumped to Sunny Leones defence at JLF 2016

Visitors at the session titled The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon: Celebrating Alexander McCall Smith on the first day of the Jaipur Literature Festival 2016 on Friday. (Himanshu Vyas/HT Photo)

McCall Smith, a former professor of medical law, said that this can be possible only because he is a disciplined writer. He is an early bird and starts writing because his mind is fresh at that time. Many a times his unexpected experiences make give him the fodder for a story like The Italian Bulldozer. On a vacation in Italy, McCall Smith was forced to drive a bulldozer to his destination near Pisa since his car rental company could not give him a car. What happened after is the fascinating story.

Read: Dont have extramarital relationships, says Karan Johar at JLF 2016

Does he ever think of killing his characters? Characters belong to readers, he said, and then went on to regale the audience with funny stories of what readers have said to him about his books.

And it is not only experiences that feed into his books, but also his dreams. My dreams are quite narrative, the creator of The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series said. Fiction originates in the subconscious mind.

When a young lady, a wannabe author, asked him about writers block, he 67-year-old author answered with a smile: Writers block is probably a form of depression or authors say that when they have nothing to say a lot of people feel that they have a lot to say but actually there is no book in them.

For more JLF 2016 stories click here.

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Before debating whether there has been an end to privacy, individuals might need to ask themselves about what exactly constitutes privacy and also if they are at all concerned about it. The session Total Recall: The End of Privacy on the second day of the Jaipur Literature Festival discussed just this while examining the concerns that everyone has about the invasion of privacy.

Homi K Bhabha, Director of the Humanities Center at Harvard, kicked off the debate quoting a New Yorker article by Jill Lepore.

Read: Use Facebooks Android app with Tor

She had said that a paradox of our culture is that it is obsessed, at once, with being seen and with being hidden; a world in which the only thing more cherished than privacy is publicity. She had pointed out that Facebook is where we chronicle our lives while demanding the latest and best form of privacy protection. A great deal of the discussion revolved around the invasion of privacy with technological advances and the ubiquity of Google and Facebook.

On one hand we want all the most technical forms of protection but we ourselves are exchanging our privacy for publicity, said Bhabha, who added that India now has all kinds of policing including food and moral policing. Thoughts that defined our private lives have suddenly become public issues, he said: Are you eating beef? Are you in a hotel room as an adult with somebody of your choice? Is this right, is that wrong?

According to the Pratap Bhanu Mehta, president of the Centre for Policy Research, we worry about privacy because it means ceding power to somebody else. That power comes in two forms, one of them being big corporations. What are the algorithms like that Google uses to actually shape desires and preferences? These will need to be placed in greater structures of accountability, says Mehta, who believes information is being made more public while intellectual property and technology is being more propriety and private. Restoring a balance between the two is going to be important, he said.

Read: 12 authors to look out for at Jaipur fest

Columnist and technology consultant Niyam Bhushan warned the audience that their privacy was being plundered by big corporations and app-based services. People in India do not understand privacy, he said before doing a quick test on the audience by asking how many of those assembled had installed WhatsApp. Many hands shot up. How do you think Mark Zuckerberg is going to recoup his $19 billion dollars, if not from this gold mine of the private, intimate, candid, truthful conversations that you have? Which Googles Eric Schmidt calls at the edge of creepiness, Bhushan asked.

So what is the first step to take to safeguard privacy? While Homi Bhabha suggested that the best way was to be vigilant, Bhushan called for a quit databasing movement, to stand up and speak out whenever personal information is sought. Mehta, however, feels that a structure needs to be in place for not just the state, but also corporate houses. This will perhaps make them accountable for the information they collect.

For more JLF 2016 stories click here.

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British author, comedian and Twitter star Stephen Fry will always have the last word. Thats what the audience found out at a cleverly titled session on Selfie -- not the photography rage but the art of memoir writing -- at the Jaipur Literature Festival on Thursday. The panelists -- Fry, Helen Macdonald (the winner of 2015 Samuel Johnson Prize), Blake Morrison, Christina Lamb, Brigid Keenan and Esther Freud -- discussed their trade and what pushes them to dip into their inner selves to write about their own lives and that of those closest to them.

Memoir writing is perceived to be cathartic but I dont think it is so. Like everyone else, as a child, I was always fascinated to cast myself as the heroic characters I read about. I loved the first line in David Copperfield -- Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show -- so there had to be an escape, said Fry, who started off the session by taking a photograph of the cheering crowd.

Read: Need to learn how vacuum in Iraq created ISIS, says Christina Lamb

Blake Morrison, whose When Did You Last See Your Father? won the JR Ackerley Prize for Autobiography, spoke about how he wanted to preserve the memories of his father by writing the book. He did let out family secrets but did not offend anyone. If you write a book which is not hagiography but respectful, people will understand, he said. Speaking on the process of writing a memoir, Helen Macdonald said: We all construct stories around our lives mine is just in print.

Read: A tale of two Scotsmen and a laugh-a-minute session at JLF 2016

Journalist-author Christina Lamb said while she is not a great person of first-person journalism, she finally realised the best way was go the memoir way because she couldnt find the right person who had the ringside view of Afghanistan the way she did for such a long time.

Read: A lot of my Facebook posts become news now, says Marlon James at JLF

Replying to an audience question on the invasion of technology into our lives and whether it is making people dumb, Fry, an early adopter of technology, did not mince words: People said the same thing when Gutenberg introduced printing. But learning flourished. Internet has a wealth of information but how you use it depends on you dont be so pessimistic  dont lose faith in your brain that will see us through.

As for selfies, Fry was blunt: I hate selfies but happily sign books. Then I can look into your eyes and have a conversation. In a photo I will only have an arm around you.

For more JLF 2016 stories click here.

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The lynching of Mohammad Ikhlaq in Dadri and the suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula in Hyderabad are inflection points in the contemporary history of India, said senior television journalist Barkha Dutt at a Hindustan Times session at the Jaipur Literature Festival.

In conversation with writer Shobhaa De at a session on her recent book The Unquiet Land, Dutt said she didnt believe Prime Minister Narendra Modi would necessarily lose the next elections because of beef politics as there is no alternative.

Senior television journalist Barkha Dutt posted this photo on Twitter with this caption, With the absolutely lovely and spunky @DeShobhaa ahead of my session on #ThisUnquietLand in Jaipur. (Twitter)

At this point, De asked about the suitability of the Congress Vice President. Rahul Gandhi is probably not that alternative, Dutt responded. Arvind Kejriwal is what Rahul Gandhi wanted to become but did not have the guts to be, she added to much applause from the crowd.

Read: Rohith should have killed those who wronged him, says Dalit leader at JLF

Pointing out that the tag of anti-nationalism is often used as camouflage for promoting hatred she decried the trend of hounding individuals critical of certain things in India.

Naturally, the focus moved to the BJPs beef politics and how it revealed that the party was losing control of the narrative. Liberal politicians didnt get off the hook either: No liberal politician in the country stood up and said that we may eat whatever we want.

Read: Shah Rukh, you are my hero but we dont deserve you

If I want to eat beef I will, and I should not be killed for it, she said adding that she was disappointed that actor Shah Rukh Khan had disowned his statement on intolerance to Dutt. He had blamed the comment for the dismal box-office performance of his last film Dilwale.

Dutt also said at the session that she was disappointed that actor Shah Rukh Khan had disowned his statement on intolerance. (Twitter)

I feel Shah Rukh and others at a point in their career where they have nothing to lose should be able to risk and face criticism, she said.

For more JLF 2016 stories click here.

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India is examining a proposal to allow up to 100% foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail for food products aimed at reducing wastage, helping farm diversification and encouraging global giants to produce locally rather than importing items.

The government should allow 100% in multi-brand retail of food and food products produced and manufactured in India, food processing minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal told HT in an interview.

Last month, Badal had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, asking the government to have a relook at our FDI policy in multi-brand retail in food processing as a part of the Make in India initiative so that both farmers and consumers are benefitted and which will result in creation of critical infrastructure.

She has followed this up with another letter to Modi earlier this month, underlining the need for fully opening up the food sector to overseas investors. Besides, the minister has also asked to offer a 10-year tax holiday for food processing units.

India currently allows up to 51% FDI in multi-brand retail as part of policy notified by the previous UPA government.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), however, has been persistent in its opposition to allowing foreign giants to set up deep discount stores in India arguing that such mega supermarkets will endanger the livelihood of millions of neighbourhood mom-and-pop stories and street vendors.

The BJP, which stormed to power in Parliament in a landslide victory in 2014, has not scrapped the existing policy, although it has not actively encouraged FDI in multi-brand retail.

European mega chain Tesco, which set up a joint venture with the Tata group in 2013, is the only foreign multi-brand retail outfit operating in India currently.

Sources told HT that the government is now actively examining the proposal on allowing 100% FDI in multi-brand retail for food products under the condition that these items are completely produced in India.

Badal, wife of Shiromani Akali Dal leader and Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, told HT that FDI in multi-brand retail will help benefit farmers with better price realisation, increased employment generation and reduce wastages.

The minister also called for a comprehensive food policy under one umbrella ministry. There should be one system that handles all matters related to food, she said, obliquely arguing for bringing agriculture and food processing ministries under a single system.

The thinking of the 1960s is not quite relevant today, she said. Indian farmers are still aeons behind the developed world in terms of technology and marketing support. It is about time to move fully integrated system of food management and production backed by satellite-aided technology and forward-integration with the retail market.
India is examining a proposal to allow up to 100% foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail for food products, aimed at reducing wastage, helping farm diversification and encouraging global giants to produce locally rather than import items.

The government should allow 100% FDI in multi-brand retail of food and food products produced and manufactured in India, food processing minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal told HT in an interview.

Last month, Badal wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, asking the government to have a relook at our FDI policy in multi-brand retail in food processing as a part of the Make in India initiative so that both farmers and consumers are benefitted.

She has followed this up with another letter to Modi earlier this month, underlining the need for fully opening up the food sector to overseas investors. Besides, the minister has also sought a 10-year tax holiday for food processing units.

India currently allows up to 51% FDI in multi-brand retail as part of a policy notified by the previous UPA government.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), however, has been persistent in its opposition to allowing foreign giants to set up deep discount stores in India, arguing that such mega supermarkets will endanger the livelihood of millions of neighbourhood mom-and-pop stores and street vendors.

The BJP, which stormed to power in Parliament in a landslide victory in 2014, has not scrapped the existing policy, although it has not actively encouraged FDI in multi-brand retail.

European mega chain Tesco, which set up a joint venture with the Tata group in 2013, is the only foreign multi-brand retail outfit operating in India currently.

Sources told HT the government is now actively examining the proposal to allow 100% FDI in multi-brand retail for food products under the condition that these items are completely produced in India.

Badal, wife of Shiromani Akali Dal leader and Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, also called for a comprehensive food policy under one umbrella ministry. There should be one system that handles all matters related to food, she said obliquely arguing for bringing agriculture and food processing ministries under a single system.

The thinking of the 1960s is not quite relevant today, she said. Indian farmers are still aeons behind the developed world in terms of technology and marketing support. It is about time to move to fully integrated system of food management and production backed by satellite-aided technology and forward-integration with the retail market.
The payout of the seventh pay commission recommendations will make finance minister Arun Jaitley walk a tight rope when he announces the fiscal deficit targets for 2016-17.

Expected to incur an additional expenditure of Rs 1.02 lakh crore to pay higher salaries and pensions recommended by the commission, Rs 28,000 crore alone will go for salary hikes of railway employees. In total, the implementation will impact the fiscal deficit by 0.65% of the GDP.

Experts feel that deficit figures shared in the medium-term fiscal policy statement had stated that the fiscal deficit target for FY17 and FY18 is 3.5% and 3.0%, respectively will have a significant impact from the pay commission pay out, leaving the government with higher deficit numbers.

Achieving these targets in view of the likely acceptance and implementation of the recommendations of the Seventh Central Pay Commission will be difficult. We expect that the fiscal deficit of FY17 to come in at 3.9% of GDP. This will push the attainment of the fiscal deficit target of 3% of GDP to FY19, a year later than envisaged in the fiscal policy statement. In the past also, pay revisions have pushed fiscal consolidation targets. Accordingly, the fiscal deficit targets are likely to be 3.9%, 3.5% and 3.0% in 2016-17, 2017-18 and 2018-19 respectively, said Sunil Kumar Sinha, principal economist, India Ratings & Research.

However, the pay commission revisions are yet to be accepted by the high-powered panel headed by cabinet secretary PK Sinha. The recommendations have a bearing on the remuneration of 47 lakh central government employees and 52 lakh pensioners.

An empowered committee of secretaries was being decided to screen the recommendations with regard to all relevant factors of the Commission in an expeditious detailed and holistic fashion.

Though senior finance ministry officials feel that the pay-out which is likely to come only in the middle of 2016, might not be a big burden as the arrears would not be accounting to be much, unlike the past instances.

But, it is expected that the government, while putting a final seal on the recommendations, will keep in mind the tight fiscal position of the country.

The government will not be generous in the pay out this time as they already are facing pressures from various fronts like disinvestment and poor direct tax collections, said Dharmakirti Joshi, currently the chief economist at CRISIL.

Finance ministry till now has maintained a stand that it will be able to meet its target despite additional outgo on account of higher pay. But, finance minister Jaitley recently admitted that the impact of implementing the recommendations would last for two to three years.

The seventh pay commission had recommended an average 23.55% increase in salaries, allowances and pension, a move that will benefit 4.8 million staffers and 5.5 million pensioners. The hike will be effective from January 1, 2016.

A minimum pay of Rs 18,000 per month and a maximum of Rs 2.5 lakh has been recommended by the commission, headed by Justice (retired) AK Mathur, that presented its 900-page report to finance minister Arun Jaitley.

The government usually accepts the broad proposals for pay revision  due every 10 years  and state governments usually respond with their own hikes.
Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan on Friday lashed out at rich businessmen making big personal spends at a time when their companies are struggling with losses and debt.

If you owe a lot of money and still celebrate birthday bashes, it gives a wrong message to the people... If you are in trouble cut down your expenses, show to the people that you are doing something, Rajan told NDTV in an interview at Davos on Friday on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF).

While he did not name names, Rajan has in the past decried the tendency of banks to continue to lend to businesses that have history of letting loans turn bad. Indian banks have been over the last few years been struggling to contain their high levels of non-paying assets, which interestingly enough is dominated by big business houses.

In the case of sick companies that turn insolvent for genuine reasons, the bankruptcy code bill, which seeks to replace the countrys archaic bankruptcy rules and deal with NPAs, will make a big difference, Rajan said.

The level of non-performing asset (NPA)  loans that do not yield returns  is mounting for public sector banks. At present, it is about 6% of total advances.

Supporting the Start Up India programme launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 16, the RBI governor said that entrepreneurship needed to be celebrated and encouraged.

In a separate interview to Bloomberg TV, Rajan said economic reforms in India are going in the right direction, but the level is wrong. The direction is right. The level is wrong. We have too much of the wrong kind of regulation and too little of the right kind of regulation.

So we do need to hack away at this, and it will take time, it doesnt happen overnight. We are doing it. We do recognise that we overregulate, that business needs a better environment, he said.

There are a whole set of new businesses coming in, which we have to find ways to deal with. For example, online lending. How do we do with what happens in a downturn?

He said people tend to talk only about big-ticket items, but lose out on other things. Like in India theres now a goods and services tax (GST) which is likely to unify the country. Thats stuck in some Parliamentary discussion between the Opposition and the government. Hopefully it will be done sooner. But really theres a lot going on the ground, which is less obvious, he said.
Describing the current economic reforms in India as moving in the right direction but inadequate, Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan said that business in the country needs a better environment.

Let me put it this way... the direction is the right one. The level is wrong. We have too much of the wrong kind of regulation and too little of the right kind of regulation, Rajan told Bloomberg TV in an interview on Thursday.

The RBI chief is in Davos to attend the World Economic Forum.

We do need to hack away at this, and it will take time; it doesnt happen overnight. We are doing it. We do recognise that we over-regulate... that business needs a better environment, he said.

He spoke of the regime for businesses sought to be dismantled.

For example, last week, the Prime Minister inaugurated a programme called Start-up India, which is about eliminating bureaucratic hurdles in starting new business. New businesses had to register with 10, 15, 20 different authorities, including the pension fund, Rajan said.

You have one employee, why do you need a pension fund at this point? So the idea here is to make it simpler to start, but also remove the inspections. For three years, no inspectors would show up. You self-certify what you did, he added.

Indias central bank governor said the reforms have to take into account the entry of new kinds of businesses in the marketplace.

At the same time there are a whole set of new businesses coming in... we have to find ways to deal with. For example, online lending; How do we do with what happens in a downturn? he said.

In response to a question, Rajan said he is not too worried about Chinas economic slowdown.

In terms of the quantity of growth, theres still a lot of growth coming from China in terms of dollars. Of course, percentages are falling all the time. That is naturally to be expected of an economy which is growing richer and therefore going to slow, he said.

So Im not excessively worried about the Chinese growth, he added.
Journalists routinely undertake assignments that are rife with risk. Some choose to report from war zones, others cover riots, some photogs click through the most perilous places in the world, some paparazzi chase Kim Kardashian. In my case, I decided to begin the New Year by entering the dangerous territory of Donald Trumps latest book: Crippled America, How To Make America Great Again.

Surely this book cant be ghost-written? Another author could never get into the spirit with which The Donald haunts the political process in this American Presidential election cycle.

Books like this one mark the US election season like rats in the New York subway system. Weve had Hillary Clintons Hard Choices; Ted Cruzs A Time for Truth: Reigniting the Promise of America; Bernie Sanders Outsider in the White House (though Id personally opt for the Trump 2016: Off-Color Coloring Book). Even Bobby Jindal had his tome, American Will: The Forgotten Choices That Changed Our Republic (though he soon joined the ranks of those forgotten choices). The books combine autobiography and agenda and deliver a sort of genre that can be called Memofesto.

I decided to read The Donalds book to try and figure out what makes him tick off people.

I discovered you didnt actually need to read the text to get his ideas, you could just scan the headlines, like Immigration: Good Walls Make Good Neighbors, or The Energy Debate: A Lot Of Hot Air. The slim volume contains less than 170 pages of his politics, but does feature a 17-page long About The Author section that begins with Donald J Trump is the very definition of the American success story That spills through the text and context of Crippled America, however lame most of the material may be.

But theres nobody like me. Nobody, Trump writes, in a style that this book is steeped in. Its littered with one-liners (though hardly humorous), that run from This has to stop and I know how to fix it to Winning matters and We dont have time to waste on being politically correct. As with the opening of this paragraph, sometimes he actually stretches the argument to an entire line and a word, as in I have proven everybody wrong. EVERYBODY! Reading between the lines, this self-described Ernest Hemingway of Twitter could have tweeted this book.

To be fair, Trump isnt short of quoting from strategic thinkers when it comes to policy. For instance, he delves deep to deliver: Iron Mike Tyson, the famous fighter, once explained his philosophy, saying, Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. Perhaps, its that source of inspiration that has The Donald chewing the ear off his audience.

He offers plenty of insight too: I dont mind being attacked. I use the media the way the media uses me  to attract attention.

Other than pointing out that hes rich (Im the only billionaire ever to run), his other priority appears to be to ensure everyone knows hes famous. Just about the only time he refers to Hillary Clinton directly is when he notes that hes the only other person to have been named to ABCs Barbara Walters special The Most Fascinating People.

A self-described man of wisdom recently stated, Without looking at the various polling data, it is obvious to anybody the hatred is beyond comprehension. Where this hatred comes from and why we will have to determine. Oh wait, that was Trump, himself, on Muslim immigration into the United States. But then, he has outlasted all the outrage. The media maelstrom fits him like a bespoke suit, as he makes clear: Im a businessman with a brand to sell. When was the last time you saw a sign hanging outside a pizzeria claiming The fourth best pizza in the world?!. Teflon Don tantrums along.

At one point in this book, The Donald proclaims: This mess calls for leadership in the worst way. Given his record so far, maybe thats exactly what hes offering.

Anirudh Bhattacharyya is a Toronto-based commentator on American affairs. The views expressed are personal.

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The AAP government on Friday charged the CBI with conducting raids at the office of Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwals principal secretarys office last month under undue political pressure.

In an affidavit filed at the Delhi high court, the city government accused the CBI of raiding the office of Rajendra Kumar, located next to the chief ministers office in the Delhi Secretariat, in unprecedented haste and indiscriminately seizing documents.

The raid was thus not only devoid of merit but also smacked of vindictiveness and malafides, said the affidavit filed in response to CBIs plea challenging a trial courts direction to return some documents seized by the agency during the December 15, 2015 raid.

The HC on Thursday had issued notices to AAP government and Kumar on CBIs plea against return of some of the documents seized during the raid. It, however, had refrained from passing any interim order on CBIs plea and posted the matter for further hearing on January 25.

The sole object of the raid at said premises was to malafidely intrude, obstruct and dislocate the work of the government of NCT of Delhi as such and cause immense harm, juxtaposed with status functions to secure societal reforms, welfare, security and privacy, the affidavit, filed through Delhi governments senior standing counsel Rahul Mehra and standing counsel Richa Kapoor, said.

The trial courts special judge on January 20 had also castigated the CBI for flouting its own manual by seizing documents without showing how they were related to the alleged graft case against Kumar.

The CBI, in its petition, had claimed that the special CBI judge had failed to appreciate that the Delhi government has already obtained photocopies of the documents seized and thus the order of returning the documents was wholly misconceived.

The central agency had said, Many relevant witnesses are yet to be examined in light of the documents in question, and the special court order has given undue advantage to the Delhi government.

Any disclosure of evidence collected so far to any person, whether accused or a non party i.e. Delhi government in the instant case, would have prejudiced the larger interest of the justice and fair investigation, the CBI said.
A Delhi court on Friday granted bail to a woman who allegedly threw ink at chief minister Arvind Kejriwal at a thanksgiving rally that the Delhi government had organised after the completion of the road rationing scheme.

The court said there was no purpose in keeping Bhawna Arora (26) behind bars and granted her bail when she furnished of a bond of Rs 10,000 and a surety of the same sum.

Considering the facts that the applicant has remained in jail since January 18, it appears to me that no useful purpose shall be served by keeping the applicant behind bars...Considering the totality of circumstances, the applicant is admitted to bail, said additional sessions judge Sanjay Kumar Aggarwal.

Advocate Pradeep Rana, appearing for Arora, said his client accepted that it was not right to throw ink at the head of the state.

The probe agency, however, opposed the bail plea on the ground that the accused committed an offence against the head of state and the matter was still under investigation.

Arora, who claimed to be a member of the Punjab unit of Aam Aadmi Sena  a splinter group of Delhis ruling AAP  was booked for obstructing a public servant in discharge of duty and assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty.
The Delhi Police have a list of hundreds of vital installations that need protection. According to experts, barring a few buildings such as Parliament, India Gate, Rashtrapati Bhavan , most installations in the city are vulnerable to terror attacks.

Delhi is always under threat, the level of which is increased on certain days, senior police officers said.

A senior police officer said that Delhi was always under threat, the level of which is increased on certain days. Central agencies send terror inputs almost every week and hence there is not a single day when the threat level is low.

Security experts believe that reacting to a terror attack is one thing while preventing it is another.

A terror attack is the final closure of an operation planned months in advance. The need is to develop intelligence and work towards preventing it. The smuggling of arms into the city needs to be stopped, said Ajai Sahni, executive director of the Institute for Conflict Management and South Asia Terrorism portal.

In the past, there have been numerous instances of weapons smuggled into the city from parts of Bihar and Madhya Pradesh being seized in bulk.

Officials believe that markets and shopping malls top the list of vulnerable targets. With private security guards not trained to conduct checks, an officer said underground parking spaces make it easy for terrorists to strike. At most markets, the door frame metal detectors usually do not work.

Guards check the boot and the bonnet of cars. Terrorist can easily stock explosives under the seat and park their vehicles. On weekends, when the parking is full, anyone can cause an explosion, said a senior police officer.

It is not practical to guard all markets and malls, said former Delhi police commissioner Ajay Raj Sharma.

Sharma said people will complain of harassment, if police start conducting stringent checks across malls and market places.

In foreign countries, he said, people are observant and respond more quickly. According to a UK daily 2013 report, there is one CCTV camera for every 11 residents in London. In Delhi, not all roads or market places are covered by the CCTV cameras.

The last terror attack in Delhi was on an Israeli diplomats wife in 2012. No camera captured that incident. Absence of CCTV cameras was felt in the 2010 blasts outside the high court. Absence of cameras adds to the vulnerability, said another officer.

Easy availability of SIM cards too helps terrorists, another officer believes. Recently, an arrested Pakistani spy was found using a SIM that he had procured on a fake identity. Terrorists need cell phones to talk and chat with their handlers, said an officer.
Two men were arrested for allegedly uploading pornographic images and vulgar jokes on WhatsApp, based on a complaint by a woman advocate at the Saket police station.

The two accused, identified as Manoj and Kuldeep, were booked on charges on outraging the modesty of a woman and sent to judicial custody by a city court. They were later released on bail after they furnished bail bonds.

A senior police officer said Manoj had not uploaded any pornographic videos or images on the group, but was responsible for adding Kuldeep to the group and not removing him, despite the womans complaint.

The woman alleged that she was added to a WhatsApp group by one of her relatives a few months ago. The accused then added some of their common friends and a few of his friends. She alleged that one morning when she woke up she had received over 10 messages on that group and one of the members had sent obscene photographs and adult jokes.

Her complaint states that on receiving the messages, she first ignored the messages. But when the same person kept sending adult jokes that were in bad taste and offensive pictures, it became a nuisance and she reported the matter to the police, a senior police officer said.

Furthermore, the woman said accused Kuldeep used vulgar language in conversations. He also appeared to be a pervert which prompted her to report him to the police.

Police said they registered a case at the Saket Police station after they received the womans complaint.

As evidence, we accessed her chat details and snapshots of the messages the man had sent. Since the chat had the phone number, we sent a team to his address and made the arrest. He was arrested on Tuesday, police said.

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The National Investigation Agency (NIA) detained 14 suspected Islamic State (IS) sympathisers on Friday including six in Karnataka as part of a multi-location crackdown amid heightened security measures ahead of Republic Day celebrations.

The action comes in the wake of a threat letter to the French consulate in Bengaluru, warning against President Francois Hollandes presence at the celebrations on January 26 in New Delhi where he will be the chief guest.

The NIA has detained some people at several locations, a senior government official said, confirming that more than a dozen people were being interrogated by the NIA and intelligence agencies. We cannot say anything more at this stage.

Sources said the crackdown covered Karnataka, Maharashtra and Telangana. There were unconfirmed reports that two suspects had also been picked up in Uttar Pradesh.

Read | Delhi on alert after driver of hijacked Pathankot taxi found dead

Some of the 14 suspects are reported to be among 150-odd people identified as IS sympathisers who have been on the radar of the security establishment for weeks and months.

The NIA picked them up for questioning after intelligence indicated they were trying to secure arms and ammunition. Five of the 14 were arrested which also led to explosive material being recovered.

Investigators are analysing laptops and phones of the nine others to establish their involvement. All of the suspects are expected to be brought to Delhi.

Sources said the NIA told the home ministry that Muttabir Mushtaq Sheikh, who is among those arrested and believed to be the leader of the group, recently received funds worth Rs 6 lakh.

The suspects were reportedly in touch with the Indian Mujahideens Shafi Armar.

According to the intelligence establishment, 23 people may have already slipped out of the country to fight for IS in Iraq and Syria. Six of them have reportedly died.

The crackdown also followed Islamic States claim that militants in Kashmir have pledged allegiance to the group which has provided it a big opportunity to expand its so-called caliphate to the area.

The home ministry, which is coordinating the operations against IS, has had two meetings of 12 states to discuss threat from the outfit in the last six months.

The first meeting was in August 2015 and the second was last Saturday when home minister Rajnath Singh had noted that the group had got extremely limited traction in India and counted traditions and family values as the factors that would help triumph over this evil.

Singh had, however, cautioned against the security establishment letting its guard down and asked officers to keep up vigil.

Read | 3 hired hijacked taxi from Kangra, killed driver on Jan 14
Its been 147 days since nine people were killed in the violence that broke out during an agitation at Churachandpur in Manipur last year, but their bodies still seem no closer to undertaking their final journey. Local residents say they had died for a cause, something they cannot afford to bury three feet under the ground until it is realised.

The nine had died between August 31 and September 1 last year while protesting against the Manipur assembly passing three controversial bills allegedly aimed at depriving tribals of the right to their land, and benefitting only those living in the valley. But those supporting the legislations, which dealt with land reforms and commercial establishments, claimed they were meant to safeguard the rights of the Manipuri people from outsiders.

Within hours of the passage of the bills on August 31, protestors from Manipurs hilly areas took to the streets  Churachandpur forming the epicenter of the agitation. As tensions escalated and protesters took to violence and arson, police opened fire  allegedly killing six of the protesters.

Read | Two Northeast CMs write to Centre over Manipur crisis

Today, memories of that day continue to haunt the town  home to several tribes such as the Kuki, Paite, Hmar and Zomi. Men, women and children continue to gather near the Churachandpur district hospital morgue, where the bodies of the nine are kept. Sitting in front of nine empty coffins, all bearing photographs of the deceased, they sing hymns and shout slogans against the bills.

The nine dead people have turned martyrs in their eyes, and the meetings outside the morgue have assumed a near-ritualistic quality.

According to the tribals, the local morgue was ill-equipped to keep bodies for more than a day  it had no cold storage facility. Fervent demands cut through the red tape, but very slowly, and the facility was installed over 100 days after the bodies were brought in. By then, they had decomposed beyond recognition.

The tribals complain that the state government has done little to address their concerns. We went to register an FIR, but the police officer-in-charge refused to comply. They said they were conducting their own inquiry. Later, I get a letter from the police branding my young son as a criminal. He is only 11, says 40-year-old Nemneiching, mother of Khaijamang Touthang, one of the victims.

She speaks the truth. The suo moto case registered by the police officer-in-charge accuses the 11-year-old of arson and attacking a police station.

Besides doing away with the bills, the hill tribes want the state government to launch an investigation into the killing of the nine people. They complain that while the authorities set up an inquiry commission to probe the death of one person during the ILP protests in the valley, they seem to be taking no such step for their counterparts from the hills.

Meanwhile, the region continues to reel under sporadic violence and bandhs. Just two days ago, women protestors from the two sides had clashed at Torbung  injuring 10. Following this, the district magistrate of Churachandpur imposed a curfew in the area, prohibiting the assembly of more than 10 people.

Read | Mobs set fire to houses of minister, 2 MLAs in Manipur

Many politicians have come out in support of the protest. On December 9, a coffin rally was organised at Jantar Mantar in Delhi to mark 100 days of the Churachandpur killings. Four MPs  Tarun Vijay of the BJP, former Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio, Jiten Chowdhury of the CPM and Biswajit Daimary of the Bodoland Peoples Front  addressed protesters and demanded a review of the three bills.

Weve met a lot of politicians, but nothing has been done yet, says T Romeo Hmar, convenor of the Manipur Tribals Forum Delhi (MTFD). Home minister Rajnath Singh says he has been talking to the chief minister, but they are not doing anything. While Singh said we should put more pressure on the state government, he also asked us to bury the bodies.

Since the incident, the MTFD and the Joint Action Committee (JAC) of various tribes formed in Churachandpur have met many politicians  including Rajnath Singh, Kiren Rijiju and state chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh  but nothing seems to have worked out.

JAC convenor H Mangchinkhup said the Manipur chief minister clearly told them that the bills were passed under pressure from CorCom (coordination committee), an umbrella organisation of militant groups.

Taking the agitation forward, the MTFD and JAC plans to take out a protest on January 25  a day before Republic Day. Protesters say the movement intends to question the nature of the Indian republic, which  they allege  denies citizens their rights.

If theres one thing all the tribals believe in, its a resolution to not give up unless their demands are met. Chiinneihching, a 62-year-old woman who lost her son in police firing, echoes the sentiment. Let him be there for years, she says. Let him be there until only his skeleton remains. Ill be fine with that because he died for his people, his land.

Read | Understanding the Manipur crisis

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The Associated Journals Limited (AJL) decided on Thursday to convert into a not-for-profit company and re-launch its newspapers, the National Herald, Quami Awaj and Navjivan.

The decision comes in the midst of a legal battle over its past, which has ensnared Congress president Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul.

The decision was taken in an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) presided by All India Congress Committee (AICC) treasurer Moti Lal Vora.

The EGM adopted five major resolutions that also included alteration to the Memorandum of Association, alteration to the Articles of Association, change of the name of company and dealing with the preferential shares.

These decisions of the members of the company are in pursuance to the revival plan of the company since 2010 which includes conversion of the company to not-for-profit and re-launching the newspapers, Vora said while reading out a statement.

AJL was founded by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru in November 1937. The company and the newspapers it published, namely the National Herald, Quami Awaj and Navjivan, played an important role as the voice of freedom movement and functioned historically in the public interest and for social good. This decision of the EGM in essence formalizes this larger purpose for which the company was founded in the first place, Vora added.

Asked about the new name for the company, Vora said the resolutions adopted on Thursday would be sent to authorities for their approval and details would be shared thereafter. Sources, however, said one of the possible names could be The Associated Journals.

AJL consultant and legal advisor CB Pandey said the EGM had nothing to do with the case that had been filed against the Gandhis and the resolutions adopted would clear the confusion, if any about the whole issue.
Union human resource development minister Smriti Irani is under fire for her handling of the University of Hyderabad issue where a Dalit research scholar committed suicide.

The issue has snowballed into a massive political controversy with critics alleging that the HRD ministry pushed for the Dalit students to be punished by sending five reminders to the universitys vice-chancellor after labour minister Bandaru Dattatreya complained to Iranis department.h

Opposition parties and activists have also hit out at Irani for allegedly distorting facts in the case.

Heres a look at other controversies the minister and her ministry has been embroiled in ever since she took charge in 2014.

Iranis degree problem

The ministers educational qualifications came under scrutiny immediately after she took charge in May 2014. While critics argued how could the countrys education portfolio be handed to a person who had not even gone to college, a case was filed against the minister over allegations that she made contradictory claims about her education in documents filed in different years with the Election Commission.

In her April 2004 affidavit to the EC Irani said she completed her BA in 1996 through a long-distance or correspondence program from the University of Delhi. In 2014, ahead of the general elections, she claimed she had completed a bachelors degree in commerce from the School of Open Learning, Delhi University.

Iranis claim to have a degree from Yale University also was lampooned by her critics. The university later clarified that she had only attended a week-long programme, India-Yale Parliamentary Leadership Program, in 2013.

HRD Ministry orders judicial inquiry into Rohith Vemulas suicide

Delhi Universitys FYUP row

The rollback of the Delhi Universitys four-year university programme in 2014, a year after it had been initiated on the order of the HRD minister, invited mixed reaction from the academics and students. While some hailed it as a great move, others called it an attempt by the Irani-led ministry to impose its decision on an autonomous institution that had taken the decision after following the due process.

IIT-Delhi directors resignation

The resignation of IIT-Delhi director RK Shevgaonkar from his position in December 2014, two years prior to completion of his tenure, was attributed to the unnecessary intervention by Irani in the affairs of the premier technological institute. It was alleged that Irani had pressed upon Shevgaonkar to release the salary due of nearly Rs 70 lakh to former IIT-Delhi faculty and now BJP leader Subramanian Swamy for the period 1972 to 1991.

Irani denied there was any such a pressure from the ministry and alleged that Shevgaonkar resigned as he was faulted on account of setting up an illegal campus in Mauritius. An inquiry committee was also set up to investigate the charges against the IIT director, but nothing came out of it.

Nuclear scientist Anil Kakodkars allegations

Nuclear scientist Anil Kakodkar resigned as the chairperson of IIT-Mumbai board in March last year alleging intervention from the HRD ministry in the selection of three IIT directors.

Irani allegedly questioned Kakodkar, who was a member of the selection committee, as to why he had called candidates outside the shortlisted ones for an interview. The nuclear scientist had then retorted that it was the prerogative of the search committee to invite such candidates if it found it necessary.

Rohith Vemulas death not a matter of caste battle: Smriti Irani

Bureaucrats leaving HRD ministry

A number of bureaucrats in her ministry have left for their parent cadres or other ministries alleging her high-handed way of functioning. A lady IAS officer sought a transfer as she was publicly rebuked over her choice of room in the ministry, another allegedly left after the minister threw a file at him.

IIT-Madras ban on discussion forum

A controversy similar to the ongoing University of Hyderabad issue had erupted last year when a letter from Iranis ministry to IIT-Madras had led to the ban of the Ambedkar Periyar group, a students discussion forum, that was critical of Prime Minister Modi.

The ministry had forwarded an anonymous letter to the institution asking why such forums were allowed in the campus.

Lal Salaam to Jai Bhim: Why Rohith Vemula left Indian Marxists

Good Governance Day controversy

Iranis ministry was embroiled in yet another controversy in December 2014 when Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti asked all its schools to observe December 25 as Good Governance Day, which required the physical presence of students on a holiday.

The directive created an uproar as critics alleged that it was an attempt to disrupt the winter vacation and keep students forcibly in schools. Under attack, Irani clarified that it was voluntary and students who stayed back in the hostels could observe December 25 as good governance day.

German-Sanskrit row

The decision of the HRD ministry-run Kendriya Vidyalayas to replace German with Sanskrit as the third language in October 2014 created a furore and turned into a diplomatic issue with German Chancellor Angela Merkel raising the matter with Prime Minister Modi when the two met at the G-20 summit in Brisbane on November that year.

IIM bill

The premier management schools raised an objection to HRD ministrys move to include provisions in the IIM bill that could concentrate powers in the hands of the ministry. Facing heat, Iranis ministry held several round of meetings with the IIMs and later decided to modify/delete the contentious clauses.

Separate canteens in IIT

Iranis ministry also came under fire over reports that it had asked the IITs to explore the possibility of having separate eating space and mess for vegetarian students. CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury wrote a letter to Irani saying the government has no right to police the food habit of students.
A Bharatiya Janata Party activist, Lashkar-e-Taiba, was allegedly beaten up by the supporters of Awami Itijad Party president Sheikh Abdul Rashid (Engineer Rashid) during a protest in south Kashmirs Pulwama district on Thursday.

Khan also alleged that he was scared after Engineer Rashid, threatened of handing him over to militant outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba.However, Rashid denied the allegations.

The incident happened outside Pulwama deputy commissioners office where Rashid was holding a protest along with some of his supporters against the killing of a youth in security forces firing, a day earlier.

Khan said that the supporters of Rashid were provoked after he objected to one of their banners with the picture of Prime Minister, Narendra Modi. They were trying to portray PM as a criminal which I could not bear and objected to it, he said.

I told them that you have a right to protest but dont address PM as a criminal which they could not bear and started thrashing me. I was wounded in my head, he said.

Rashid, however, said that he told Khan that it was the Prime Minister who has to answer for everything happening in the country. He was very abusive and not ready to listen. Besides, my supporters did not beat him. There were hundreds of other people who had joined our protest, he said.

Rashid alleged that despite repeated requests to the police to stop Khans abusive behaviour, they did not act.

I repeatedly told the local SHO to stop him from using very vulgar language. When he did nothing, it was only then I said, in an ironical sense, that shall I ask Lashkar? I never meant it, he said.

Station House Officer Pulwama, Ghulam Jeelani denied that he was present when the scuffle broke out. I was busy in the security related issues around the place, he said.

The BJP activist, however, said that he has not filed an FIR yet. I have talked to my higher ups and am waiting for their response, Khan said.
Brand experts in the country see the governments new Incredible India ambassador as a mascot for women power too.

Coming out in support of the Centres decision to make Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra the face of the Atithi Devo Bhava campaign, experts feel Chopras international repute -- which includes two international music singles and an American TV drama series -- will stand in good stead.

The Incredible India campaign is mostly broadcast in foreign countries to reflect that Indians are good hosts.

I am happy to see that the government has decided to bring a female brand ambassador for the Incredible India campaign. While Amitabh Bachchan is obviously a great choice, bringing Priyanka Chopra in the campaign is a significant step as it shows equal representation of women into the development of the country, said Piyush Pandey, executive chairman and creative director for Ogilvy & Mather India and South Asia, who launched the campaign 10 years ago.

Hinting at the departure of incumbent ambassador Aamir Khan, Pandey said, I had launched the campaign 10 years ago but this does not mean that I will be attached to the campaign forever.

Another brand expert, Harish Bijoor, echoed similar thoughts. Bringing Priyanka Chopra on board is a two-way hedging by the government. The idea is to represent an Indian woman  who is young and also strong, and renowned globally, said Bijoor, adding, Priyanka Chopra is the protagonist in the American TV series Quantico and also represents the successful young female bracket of India. While presence of a senior citizen (Bachchan) in the advertisement reflects culture of trust and commitment, a young face (Chopra) assures a vibrant and dynamic society, he explained.

The ministry was initially considering suggestions to choose only a female personality as the mascot for the Atithi Devo Bhava series which is part of the Incredible India campaign to attract foreign tourists. However, it was felt that Amitabh Bachchans iconic image was important for the success of the campaign.

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The crisis at the University of Hyderabad intensified on Friday after protesters rejected the lifting of suspension on four students and refused to end their strike until the vice-chancellor quits over the suicide by Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula.

The SC/ST staff of the university too mounted pressure on vice-chancellor Podile Appa Rao with more members giving up their administrative posts to protest the alleged bias against Dalits.

The decision by students to continue their strike came barely a few hours after the university decided to terminate the suspension of four fellow students of Rohith who were punished along with him for clashing with members of the AVBP.

Read more: Dalit suicide row: The ideological battleground at Hyderabad University

We outrightly reject this illegitimate circular (to revoke suspension of four students) since it came through a committee headed by the VC, who in our opinion is not the legitimate VC anymore, but in fact a criminal on the run, the Joint Action Committee for Social Justice said in a statement. The committee is spearheading the agitation seeking justice for Rohith, who hanged himself on Sunday.

Rao should immediately surrender to police, it added.

Seven members of the the JAC are on an indefinite hunger strike for fulfilment of its demands following Rohiths suicide.

Read more: BJP, RSS rake up anti-national charge to hit back in Dalit suicide row

Vijaya Kumar, one of the students whose suspension was revoked, said this was not enough.

The VC must go. This (revocation) is a welcome decision. But we cant celebrate it because Rohith is not there. We are not able to accept your decision. We have other demands like appropriate compensation and a job for one of the members of Rohiths family, he added.

After 10 professors of SC/ST communities quit their administrative posts, the controller of examinations, chief medical officer and chief warden also followed suit on Thursday in protest.

Read more: If theres no caste bias, why are Dalit students killing themselves?

Opposition parties and activists have also hit out at Union minister Smriti Irani for allegedly distorting facts in the case.

The issue has snowballed into a massive political controversy with critics alleging that the HRD ministry pushed for the Dalit students to be punished by sending five reminders to the universitys vice-chancellor after labour minister Bandaru Dattatreya complained to Iranis department.

The BJP, which has been hit by a rash of controversies since taking power at the Centre with several of its leaders being accused of stoking communal tensions, is trying to play down the issue which could hurt its chances in this years state polls and may dominate the Parliaments budget session.

The SC/ST professors who quit said in a statement that they decided to step down following Iranis fabricated statements and also rubbished her claim that a Dalit professor was among the members of the universitys body that suspended the students including Vemula.

Administrative posts are non-teaching jobs assigned to professors like the recruitment committee of student admission panel.

The revocation gave a fresh handle to the Congress to attack Irani and Dattatreya with the party demanding a probe by a sitting high court judge and an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the HRD ministers misconduct.

The Congress has demanded the sacking of both Irani as well as Dattatreya who wrote to the HRD ministry last year alleging that the campus had turned into a den of casteist, extremist and anti-national politics.
Student politics at the University of Hyderabad has always been about three ideologies  Dalit, Left and the right-wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

Any national or international issue invariably finds its echo at the central university and protests or show of support by one group on an issue invariably leads to face-offs with ideologically opposite groups.

It was one such protest by members of the Ambedkar Students Association (ASA) in August last year that led to a clash with activists of the RSS-affiliated AVBP. It resulted in suspension of five ASA members, one of whom Rohith Vemula committed suicide on Sunday.

Read more: BJP, RSS rake up anti-national charge to hit back in Dalit suicide row

The ASA was protesting the alleged attack by ABVP members during the screening of Muzaffarnagar baaqi hai, a documentary on the Muzaffarnagar riots, at the Delhi University.

The Left and Dalit-Ambedkar groups always stage demonstrations on issues related to rights of Dalits, minorities and other weaker sections of society and also on protection of human rights and civil liberties.

Read more: Dalit scholar suicide casts long shadow over labour reforms bills

The Dalit-Ambedkar groups mostly go along with the Left-affiliated outfits. With about 1,200 supporters, ABVP is also a key player on the campus, which has nearly 5,000 students.

There were protests over the Gujarat riots in 2000. The campus always remained active with student groups raising their voice against injustice and violation of rights, said Bharat Naik, a post doctoral fellow.

However, till the late 1990s, the student groups had no political identity. The Students Federation of India (SFI), for instance, used to function as the university discussion forum while the ABVP was known as discovery.

With the increase in number of students from scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, associations were formed in the 90s to represent these sections.

Read more: Mumbai students angry about Rohiths suicide

ASA came into existence as many cases of injustices to Dalit students came to light. The need was felt for a group which can work for their rights, pointed out Suguna Rao, a former student.

Similarly Tribal Students Forum (TSF) was formed to represent the voice of tribal students.

There are also other student groups like Bahujan Students Front, Dalit Students Union, National Students Union of India, Other Backward Classes Association and Telangana Vidyarthi Vedika, all representing various groups.

A faculty member pointed out that, unlike Jawaharlal Nehru University (JUN) where it is issue-based politics, it is all caste-based politics here.

It is alleged that since 2008, caste bias drove six students to commit suicide.

Protests have always happened here but there was no violence. This time the interference of politicians has created this situation, said KP Zuhail, president of the university students union.

Students say the ABVP has been trying to assert itself after the BJP came to power at the Centre. The right wing group, whose leaders are mostly local students, started organizing events like birth anniversaries of Swami Viveknanda, Sardar Patel and other personalities.

This did not go down well with the other groups, increasing friction over the past several months.
Ajmer Police on Friday registered an FIR against the vice-chancellor and four professors of Central University of Rajasthan (CURAJ) for allegedly harassing a Dalit research scholar.

A local court in Ajmer on Monday had ordered the police to register a case under the SC/ST act against the faculty members of the university over Umesh Kishor Jonwals allegations. Police have also launched a probe into his charges.

The university had expelled Jonwal, a scholar in the social work department of CURAJ and a recipient of the junior research fellowship, in October stating that he remained absent from the university for more than 15 days in May last year.

Jonwal appealed to the university against his expulsion and later initiated a legal process and accused seven professors of harassing him and demanding money from him.

Center for Dalit Rights (CDR) announced its support for Jonwal and demanded that those guilty of harassing him should be dealt with severely.

It is very disappointing to learn that a partisan behaviour still exists against Dalits, Ramesh Chand Bansal, coordinator CDR Ajmer, said.

Sources said that the Union ministry of human resources development has also asked about the details in the case. The university has made an in-house inquiry in this matter and preparing a report to file in the ministry, they said.

Jonwals case comes at a time when the suicide of another Dalit student, Rohith Vemula, at the University of Hyderabad is making headline across the country.

Vemula had committed suicide at a hostel room on Sunday after he and four other students were suspended by university officials for allegedly assaulting a leader of the right-wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). Opposition parties have accused Union ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya of abetting the suicide.

Police have named Dattatreya, vice-chancellor Appa Rao, Telangana BJP MLC Ramachandra Rao and two students in the FIR.
Amid a raging controversy that has led to a political slugfest between the government and the opposition, police said on Friday that a suicide note purportedly written by Rohith Vemula  a Dalit scholar with the University of Hyderabad  has been sent for forensic analysis.

They are reportedly looking at several leads, including a struck-off portion in the suicide note, to unravel the circumstances surrounding the incident. The letter has been sent to a forensic laboratory for tests, including handwriting comparison. We will get the report in a few days, a police officer said.

Vemula had committed suicide at a hostel room on Sunday after he and four other students were suspended by university officials for allegedly assaulting a leader of the right-wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). The issue made headlines across the country, with opposition parties accusing Union ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya of abetting the suicide.

Read more: Dalit row: Students refuse to end strike, call VC criminal on the run

Police are also trying to shed some light on the reason for Vemula striking off a few lines in the suicide note. A report stated that Vemula had purportedly expressed his discontent with the Ambedkar Students Association, the students body he was associated with, in the struck-off portion. ASA, SFI anything and everything exist for their own sake. Seldom the interest of a person and these organisations match (sic), he reportedly said in the note.

Read more: Dalit suicide row: The ideological battleground at Hyderabad University

Police are also trying to locate Vemulas mobile phone, the call records and messages of which could help immensely in the investigation.

Gachibowli police inspector J Ramesh refused to comment on the forensic tests, stating that it would hamper the ongoing probe.

Meanwhile, the universitys act of revoking the suspension of four Dalit scholars failed to quell the student agitations being taken up on Vemulas behalf. However, sources said that the mood on the campus has improved considerably in the last few days.

With the Cyberabad police stepping up the probe, it has emerged that Vemulas father Mani Kumar hails from Vaddera, a backward class community, while his mother Radhika is a Dalit. Earlier, questions had been raised over Vemulas Dalit identity.

Read more: If theres no caste bias, why are Dalit students killing themselves?

On Thursday, Susheel Kumar  the ABVP student leader who was allegedly assaulted  implied that Vemulas activist friends were responsible for his death. Others at the university couldnt seem to understand the reason for him taking the extreme step. The suicide has mystified many on the campus because the high court was supposed to take up the matter in two days. Given the leniency that courts normally show to students, a positive outcome was expected, said a university official.

Meanwhile, Union minister Venkaiah Naidu alleged that political leaders were pouring into the university campus to play petty politics over Vemulas suicide. Their accusations against Union ministers bear no credence. There is no link between Rohiths suicide and the Union ministers, he said during a visit to Kanyakumari.

Cyberabad police have named Dattatreya, vice-chancellor Appa Rao, Telangana BJP MLC Ramachandra Rao and two students in the FIR. Even as students continue to agitate for Appa Raos removal, he has reportedly sought a meeting with them on Friday to arrive at a resolution on the matter.

(WIth Agency Inputs)
The government ordered a judicial inquiry on Friday into the circumstances that led to Dalit scholar Rohith Vemulas suicide as the crisis at University of Hyderabad intensified after protesters rejected the revocation of four students suspension and refused to end their strike until the vice-chancellor resigned.

The decision came on the recommendation of the human resource development (HRD) ministrys fact-finding committee that pointed to a complete systemic failure and blamed university authorities for handling the issue insensitively. The judicial probe report would be submitted within three months, the ministry said.

Vemulas suicide found an echo in Prime Minister Narendra Modis speech at the convocation ceremony of Ambedkar University in Lucknow where he said he was saddened by the suicide and could feel the pain of the scholars family that had lost a bright son. I am not going into the reasons, the politics of the issue, but I empathise with the family which has lost so much, Modi said as tears welled up in his eyes.

A few students who shouted slogans of Go back, Modi during the PMs speech were whisked away from the venue by security personnel. The students protesting in Hyderabad said the PMs response came too late and that the judicial probe was just a diversionary tactic.

University authorities announced a compensation of Rs 8 lakh for the bereaved family and HRD minister Smriti Irani spoke to Vemulas mother to assure her that justice would be done.

The HRD ministrys fact-finding committee said corrective measures should be taken such as institutionalising a mentor system for disadvantaged students, a grievance redress mechanism and an orientation programme to sensitise administrators on Dalit issues.

In an 11-page report submitted to Irani, the fact-finding committee said punishment was awarded to only one group and not the other. There were two groups involved and somehow the authorities punished only one group, which created an atmosphere of distrust and anger among the students, a source said.

The suicide note left by Vemula was sent for forensic analysis on Friday and police said they were exploring various leads, including a struck-off portion of the note. The SC/ST staff of the university mounted pressure on vice-chancellor Podile Appa Rao, with more members giving up their administrative posts to protest the alleged bias against Dalits.

Vemulas mother refused to meet Rao at her residence and said she would meet him on campus accompanied by the suspended students. The decision by the students to continue their strike came barely hours after the university decided to terminate the suspension of four fellow students of Rohith who were punished along with him for clashing with members of the ABVP.

The suicide has snowballed into a massive political controversy with critics alleging that the HRD ministry pushed for the Dalit students to be punished by sending five reminders to the universitys vice-chancellor after labour minister Bandaru Dattatreya complained to Iranis department.
The ministry of human resource development on Friday ordered a judicial inquiry into the circumstances leading to the suicide of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula on the basis of the report of the fact-finding committee.

The fact-finding committee constituted by the HRD submitted its observations and findings on January 22, on the basis of which the ministry has decided to constitute a judicial commission of inquiry.

The judicial commission will review the entire sequence of events and circumstances leading to Vemulas death in the context of the University of Hyderabad, and submit its report within three months, the HRD said.

The decision on who will head the judicial commission will be decided in consultation with the chief justice of Telangana at a later date.

Also, the ministry said, corrective measures to prevent such incidents in the future will be taken. including setting up a mentor system to help disadvantaged students.

Union minister Smriti Irani also met Vemulas mother in the morning and conveyed the governments support and share in her grief.

The latest move comes after protests intensified across the country over the death of Dalit scholat Vemula, who committed suicide by hanging himself in a hostel room on January 17.

Vemula, a second year PhD student at the University of Hyderabad, was among five research scholars who were suspended by the central university administration in August last year after being accused of assaulting a leader of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Also Read | All you need to know about the Dalit scholar suicide row

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The Hyderabad Central University (HCU) on Friday announced an ex-gratia of Rs eight lakh to the family of Rohith Vemula, a Dalit research scholar who committed suicide.

The announcement came a day after the university authorities revoked the suspension of four students against whom the action had been taken along with Rohith for allegedly assaulting an ABVP leader in August last year.

The University of Hyderabad has announced an ex-gratia of Rs eight lakh to the bereaved family of Rohith Vemula Chakravarti, HCU said on its website.

The agitating students had on Thursday outrightly rejected the withdrawal of suspension against the four research scholars, terming the HCU decision as an illegitimate circular. At a time when the legitimacy of Prof Appa Rao to continue as the vice-chancellor is in question, without attending to the protesting students, who are on indefinite hunger strike, the absconding VC and executive committee met on Friday (not inside the campus) and issued a circular.

We outrightly reject this illegitimate circular since it came through a committee headed by the VC, who in our opinion is not the legitimate VC anymore, the Joint Action Committee for Social Justice had alleged on Thursday.

Rohiths body was found hanging at one of the hostel rooms on the University of Hyderabad campus on Sunday. A group of seven students, who have been on indefinite hunger stike for the past three days, said the protests would continue till their demands -- removal of vice-chancellor Professor Appa Rao Podile, Rs 50 lakh compensation to Rohiths family, employment to one of his family members, unconditional revocation of suspension of the four research scholars and withdrawal of false cases booked against them in connection the alleged assault on ABVP leader Susheel Kumar are met.
Rohith Vemula dreamed of becoming a science writer like Carl Sagan and dreaded becoming a mere statistic. In the end, when he finally strung the noose around his neck on January 17, he became just that: another number.

There are at least 18 documented cases of Dalit student deaths across India due to caste discrimination. In 2008, Jaspreet Singh, a 21-year-old MBBS student at the Government Medical College in Chandigarh, killed himself in his college library after facing discrimination from his mentor and fellow students. The suicide note recovered from his pocket blamed the head of the department for deliberately failing him in an exam. His answer sheet was re-evaluated. This time, he cleared the examination but life had failed him by then.

The University of Hyderabad where Vemula took his own life less than a week back has seen at least six Dalit student suicides since 2008 and around 12 since the varsity came into existence in the 1970s, according to the Ambedkar Students Association (ASA). University PRO Ashish Jacob Thomas, however, said there is no readily available data on this.

The last case was that of Madari Venkatesh in 2013. He had not been provided a research guide and lab for seven months. He finally consumed poison, said Suman Damera, a student of the same university.

In 2007, the Thorat Committee  set up to probe the treatment meted to SC/ST students at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences  found that discrimination was rampant. If the least bit of attention had been paid to the committees recommendations, Balmukund Bharti, a final year MBBS student, might not have hanged himself in his hostel room three years later.

Dr Ajay, a former AIIMS student who now heads the Progressive Medicos Forum  that looks into issues of caste discrimination is north Indias medical colleges, said, Bharti told his parents my teachers tell me I will never become a doctor.

His parents painful testimony is part of a documentary, titled Death of Merit, in which they accuse the premier institution of caste discrimination that drove our son to commit suicide. They demanded a probe that the AIIMS administration never conducted, citing personal reasons as the reason for Bhartis suicide.

Vemula was another meritorious and articulate student and an active member of the ASA. Anant Maringanti, director, Hyderabad Urban Lab  a research centre that mentors students, said, The reasons for his death should be sought in the existential crisis faced by thousands of students from underprivileged families who choose politics to grapple with their social experience.

Dr Ajay said Vemula and the other four suspended students of the ASA were targeted because they were radical and Dalit. Vemula had raised issues of saffronisation of educational policies and social ostracisation.

The ASA backed other progressive groups which hit the supporter base of the ABVP on campus in the past four years, said Damera, adding, They were out to get people like Vemula and portray them as extremists for protesting Yakub Memons execution when it was not about Memon at all but about taking a stand against capital punishment.

The recent incident is a wake-up call for institutions that are still in denial about caste battles that are now being fought on university campuses and pushing Dalit students over the edge. The question educational institutes now need to ask themselves is: If academic spaces are inclusive, welcoming and empowering, as they claim to be, then why are young Dalit students killing themselves?

(Inputs: Tanbir Dhaliwal/Chandigarh, Prasad Nichenametla/Hyderabad)

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The main accused in the Kolkata hit-and-run case on Friday confessed that he was behind the wheel of the luxury car which mowed down an IAF officer during a Republic Day parade rehearsal in Kolkata on January 13.

According to a top Kolkata Police officer, Sambia Sohrab broke down during a prolonged interrogation being held since on Friday morning and confessed that he was driving the white color brand new Audi on the fateful morning of January 13 which killed IAF officer Abhimanyu Gaud on the Red Road.

Sambia has been giving us false statements to misdirect. Since day one of interrogation he has been giving us contradictory versions regarding the mishap. Sometimes, he said he was not driving the car but it was Sonu, his friend and another accused, behind the wheels. But today some strategic interrogation helped us getting Sambias confession, the KP official told PTI late Friday night.

KP sleuths have also arrested Sonu and Johnnie, both friends of Sambia, who himself is son of state Trinamool Congress member Mohammed Sohrab.

During investigation it was found that on the night before the mishap, Sambia, his elder brother Ambia, Sonu and Johnnie along with others attended a party at Doighat in the Port area of the city.

Sambia has also admitted that he was drunk while driving the Audi on January 13 morning, the IPS said.

Sambia, the officer said, has also admitted that he was alone in the car while Sonu and Johnnie were in another vehicle.

Incidentally, the two have been claiming that they were not travelling in the Audi, which Sambia was driving, .

Kolkata Police have seized a Skoda, which the two accused claimed that they were driving.

Talking about Ambia and father and TMC member Mohammed Sohrabs whereabouts, another top source in Kolkata Police said as per their information, the duo were trying to cross over to Bangladesh.

We have accordingly alerted forces at the Bangladesh border, the sources said.

A city court yesterday had issued a arrest warrant against Mohammed Sohrab.

The three arrested have been booked under IPC sections 120(B) (criminal conspiracy), 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence), 212 (harbouring offender) and 427 (mischief causing damage).
Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday accused the politicians visiting Hyderabad University after suicide by a Dalit research scholar of vitiating the atmosphere by making political speeches.

Politicians should not interfere in University affairs. That is my advice to all. Let peace come, Naidu said.

University is like a temple. When you go to temple, you are supposed to remove your chappals and enter. Similarly, politicians should remove their chappal of politics outside the University.

If you go there...offer condolence. Find out quietly what is the situation and then pass it on to the concerned person, rather than making political speeches, accusing and blaming this party and the other, thereby further vitiating the atmosphere, Naidu said.

The statement assumes significance in the wake of visit to the Hyderabad Central University (HCU) by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi after suicide by Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemulu.

Naidu denied allegations that Union minister Bandaru Dattatraya had interfered in University affairs and said the Minister had only forwarded a petition received by him to the Human Resource Ministry which forwarded it to Vice-Chancellor.

A Congress MP also forwarded a complaint in this regard to the Vice-Chancellor, Naidu pointed out.

Stating that the Union government had nothing to do with the issue, Naidu said different universities have different situations. It is a divisive agenda of the Congress and communists that has spoiled the atmosphere of the university.

An inquiry committee has been appointed. Let the committee give its report and then let the concerned people take appropriate action, he said.

Earlier, speaking to reporters at Kanyakumari, he slammed Congress and the opposition parties, they were using the opportunity for cheap political advantage.

Rejecting Opposition allegations against the Centre and Dattatraya, who has been accused in the suicide case, Naidu said the Centre as well as the Ministers have nothing to do with the alleged suicide.

He said that Congress was following a 5D policy of defame, disinformation, divert attention, delay development and disrupt Parliament and thus derailing progress of the country.

He appealed to the opposition to shed its negative and destroying role and help pass important bills including GST and Real Estate bills in the coming Budget session.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday distributed assistive devices to over 9,000 differently-abled persons and flagged off a new train at the Diesel Locomotive Works (DLW) ground on his fifth visit to his constituency Varanasi.

Out of the 9,296 differently-abled persons, 18, including five visually-impaired, shared the dais with the Prime Minister during the Divyangjan Sashaktikaran Samaroh. While one out of the 29 persons suffering from leprosy was given an ADL leprosy kit by the PM, others were handed over the kit later.

Modi presented assistive devices to 18 people on the dais. He also gifted sewing machines to five poor women in the presence of UKs Lord Raj Loomba, whose Loomba Foundation is working to empower 5,000 widows in Varanasi.

Union minister of social justice and empowerment Thawar Chand Gehlot and two state ministers from his department Krishanpal Gurjar and Vijay Sampla were also present during the event. Union minister of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) Kalraj Mishra also attended the camp.

Gehlots ministry had written to the Guinness Book of World Records to take note of the event, which is touted to be one of the largest of its kind. A team from Guinness Book of World Records was present at the venue to cover the event.

The Prime Minister had in a radio address recently made a plea for doing away with the word vikalang (handicapped) and calling the differently abled as divyang (born with a divine limb/organ) in a bid to sensitise the society towards their right to live a life of dignity and honour.

Reports have suggested that a new disabilities act may be passed by his government wherein the word handicapped may be replaced with impairment, in all national institutes, as a mark of changing attitudes towards persons with disabilities.

The Diesel Locomotive Works (DLW) premises also witnessed the flagging off of the Mahamana Express by the Prime Minister.

The thrice-a-week superfast train, which has been named after renowned educationist and founder of the Benares Hindu University (BHU) Madan Mohan Malaviya, promises to cover the nearly 800-km distance between Varanasi and New Delhi in less than 14 hours.

The last tour, on December 12 last year, was marked by Modi witnessing the famous Ganga Arti on the banks of the holy river, accompanied by the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Modi will also visit Lucknow, the constituency of former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, later in the day. It is the first visit to the UP capital by a Prime Minister in the last 13 years.

He is scheduled to attend the convocation ceremony at the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University and interact with students there, distribute e-rickshaws among beneficiaries at Colvin Taluqdars College, and pay tribute to Dr BR Ambedkar and then go back to Delhi.

(With agency inputs)

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi will release the digital copies of 100 files related to Subhas Chandra Bose on his birth anniversary on Saturday.

The National Archives of India (NAI) is placing 100 files relating to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in public domain after preliminary conservation treatment and digitization. On the occasion of the birth anniversary of Netaji, the Prime Minister will release the digital copies of these files in public domain, an official release from the culture ministry said.

The initiative will meet the long-standing public demand to access these files as well as facilitate scholars to carry out further research on Bose, it said.

The NAI also plans to release digital copies of 25 declassified files on Bose in the public domain every month. Modi, in his meeting with members of Bose family on October 14, last year, had announced that the government would declassify the files relating to Bose and make them accessible to public.

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee declassified 64 files on Netaji that were in the custody of the state government on September 18 2015. About 12,800 pages of the 64 files were digitised and kept for the people to read in Kolkata Police Museum in North Kolkata.

The police also distributed a set of dvds to some of the media houses. In a small function where the first sets were officially handed over to members of the Bose family, the chief minister said that she believed that Netaji did not die in the Taihoku plane crash of August 1945.

She also commented that she expected the Centre to declassify the files (more in number than those lying with her government) for putting an end to the mystery over the leaders death.
Authorities issued an alert in Delhi on Friday after the driver of a taxi allegedly hijacked near the scene of a recent terror attack on Punjabs Pathankot airbase was found murdered, sparking security concerns amid a nationwide crackdown by the NIA on alleged Islamic State militants.

Delhi Police released photos of suspects and vehicle details through their Twitter handle saying the Maruti Alto was hired by three unidentified men on January 20. The driver, Vijay Kumar, was later found dead in Himachal Pradeshs Kangra district, officials said.

The alert came amid heightened security across the nation ahead of Republic Day celebrations to be attended in Delhi by French President Francois Hollande as chief guest, months after his country was hit by a series of coordinated terror attacks claimed by the IS.

The National Investigation Agency arrested or detained over a dozen people, including the self-appointed India head of IS, during raids in Karnataka, UP, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra that sources said blew the lid off a sweeping network of the terror group with plans to carry out blasts here.

The alleged chief, or Ameer, 34-year-old Munabeer Mushtaq from Mumbai, is a software engineer and was in touch with a person named Yusuf Al-Hindi, an Indian national suspected to be a former key member of the Indian Mujahideen group and now in the IS-held area along Iraq-Syria border.

Read | Kashmir militants have pledged allegiance to us, says Islamic State

It is believed that Munabeer Mushtaq was meticulously planning to raise a pan-India network of operatives who were attracted to the IS ideology. He was planning to anoint Ameers and their deputies for all states in the country, said a senior home ministry official. They had formed a group by the name of Janood-ul-Khalifa-e-Hind and acquired explosive material like sulphur, hydrogen peroxide, detonators and wires. The group was trying to get weapons are well.

NIA sleuths found Rs 20 lakh in Munabeers bank account and seized during searches around Rs 3 lakh that he received through hawala transactions. He was unemployed for the last three years.

Bomb-making instructions and other jehadi literature were also unearthed during the raids.

Since the IS has become the biggest jehadi brand, all radicalised boys are now being lured in its name, even if they earlier belonged to (extremist groups) Students Islamic Movement of India, or IM, or Ansar-ul-Tawhid, said a senior security official.

Authorities have tightened security across major cities following a flurry of intelligence reports warning that militants could target anything, from busy malls to millions of pilgrims visiting the Ardh Kumbh.

Extra paramilitary forces were deployed in New Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, where the French consulate on Thursday received a letter warning against its presidents presence at the Republic Day celebrations.

Investigators are probing the source of the letter which said Francoise Hollande should cancel his trip to India beginning Sunday.

Police in Himachal Pradesh, where the vehicle that went missing in Pathankot was registered, said the Alto was not enlisted with any travel agency.

What sent police into a tizzy was the fact that earlier this month terrorists had killed the driver of another vehicle they had hired before attacking the airbase.

Read | Bengaluru to Delhi, security tightened after terror threats

There is no need to panic but we urge people to stay alert. Citizens should inform the police control room if they see any suspicious activity around them, said deputy commissioner of police Rajan Bhagat said.

Authorities also arrested four men in Uttarakhand this week on suspicion of planning an attack in Delhi. Security officials said the four had been under surveillance for several months after their online activities drew suspicion, including contacts with people in territories in Iraq and Syria controlled by Islamic State.

Police said the men had also been planning strikes in Haridwar, where thousands of devotees are now gathered for the Ardh Kumbh festival.

Goa Police have stepped up security and are investigating a postcard received by the state secretariat in Panaji with a warning to harm Prime Minister Narendra Modi and defence minister Manohar Parrikar.

In Mumbai, police are yet to trace six mysterious paragliders who were seen near the citys coast on January 13. Authorities said they have taken the incident seriously because of a 2010 intelligence report that the terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba had procured 50 paragliders from Europe and was conducting training in Pakistan to launch an aerial attack.

(With inputs from agencies)
Officials investigating the alleged Islamic State terror plot that was unravelled with the arrest of four students in Uttarakhand have said that the plan did not include a powerful, mass-casualty strike but an explosion that would have led to a fatal stampede at the Ardh Kumbh, a key day of pilgrimage for Hindus.

The officials recovered makings of rudimentary explosives using scrapped matchsticks which, while not being potent to cause deaths, could have led to chaos at the target site, the Har ki Pauri ghat in Haridwar, which is usually packed with thousands of people during the period of the pilgrimage.

They planned to strike Ardh Kumbh precisely because they wanted it to snowball into a communal riot. They planned that when an Islamic group would claim responsibility for the attack, it would automatically lead to communal tension and violence. The men planned to take advantage of the growing insecurities among people in India, the sources said.

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The great-granddaughter of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, after whom the Bacha Khan University is named, has accused Pakistan of being behind the attack on the institution, dismissing claims that the Taliban was responsible for the assault.

Yasmin Nigar Khan, who heads the All India Pakhtoon Jirga-e-Hind, argued the man known as the Frontier Gandhi is held in such high esteem in Afghanistan that even terrorists from that country would not attack anything named after him.

The accused the Pakistan government and terror groups backed by Islamabad for Wednesdays attack on the university that killed 21 people, saying it was done to vitiate the minds of Pakistani Pashtuns against the people of Afghanistan.

Its unbelievable that any Afghan would attack a university that is named after Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan. So the popular notion that Tehrik-e-Taliban is responsible for the attack on the Bacha Khan University is a cooked up story, Yasmin told Hindustan Times.

I firmly believe none  not even any terrorist organisation from Afghanistan  can do any harm to any institutions associated with Bacha Khan.

Yasmin said she believes the Taliban were also not responsible for an attack on an army-run school in Peshawar in 2014 that left nearly 150 people dead.

The Pakistani government and terrorist outfits supported by Pakistan are responsible for both the attacks. They have a dual mission: first to vitiate the minds of the Pakhtoons from the North West Frontier Province of Pakistan against the Afghans because Afghanistan is supporting the cause of an independent Pakhtoonistan, she said.

Second, Pakistan wants public sentiments to be (once again) in its favour after the recent attack on the Pathankot airbase by terrorist outfits from Pakistan, she added, sitting in the ground floor room of her house in Park Circus.

The room is also the office of the All India Pakhtoon Jirga-e-Hind, a pan-India association for the 3.2 million Pashtuns living in India. Yasmin has been president of the association for the past 20 years.

The attack on Bacha Khan University coincided with the death anniversary of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan. The 2014 attack on the school in Peshawar was claimed by a Taliban faction led by Omar Mansoor, who has said he also ordered the assault on the Bacha Khan University.

The leadership Tehrik-e-Talibans leadership has distanced itself from the assault on the varsity.

Yasmin, 42, has never visited Pakistan because she fears she might be arrested for supporting the cause of an independent Pakhtoonistan like her great-grandfather. She went to Afghanistan once in 1996 with her father to take part in a Loya Jirga or international conference of Pashtuns worldwide.

From the experience of my visit to Kabul and from my constant touch with my relatives and other high-ranked officials in Kabul, I can assure everyone that the Taliban are not responsible for the attacks in Pakistan, she said.

The Pakhtoons are very much part of Afghanistan. Then, why would the Taliban attack the North West Frontier Province every time, instead of striking in the Punjab or Sindh provinces?

Also Read | Pakistanis say time for tough questions instead of blaming India

Also Read | Conflicting claims: Taliban spokesman denies group behind Charsadda attack

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Strategist Prashant Kishor, who helped the Bihar grand alliance to trounce the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in last years Bihar assembly polls, has been named as advisor to chief minister Nitish Kumar.

Kishor has also been given a cabinet rank in the Nitish Kumar-led government.

Aides recall how the 38-year-old former UN officer had led Kumars campaign and targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was the NDAs star campaigner.

On June 25 last year, minutes before Modi landed in Patna to address a rally in north Bihars Muzaffarpur district, a volley of questions was fired at him from chief minister Nitish Kumars Twitter handle.

Apparently ruffled by the ploy, Modi began his speech by criticising the tweets, walking into a trap devised by the chief ministers principal election strategist.

Kishor had earlier designed Modis high-tech and highly successful campaign for the 2014 parliamentary polls but crossed over to Nitish Kumar and set up an election offensive that captured Bihars imagination.

Having worked closely with him during the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, we knew the PMs mind. The battle is half won, if one can rattle him, Kishor told HT during the Bihar election. He walked into our trap. Instead of saying what he wanted to, he started his speech by replying to our tweets.

Kishor flooded roads leading to the PMs rally venue in Muzaffarpur with Nitish Kumars posters. His tactics forced BJP chief Amit Shah to camp in Gaya district for a couple of days ahead of an August 9 Modi rally to ensure Kishor did not play any mischief.

Unlike the Lok Sabha campaign, Modi could not dictate the campaign discourse. Every time he would address a rally, Nitish would counter his claims with facts that emerged in research done by Kishors war room in a building near Patnas Gandhi Maidan.

Our purpose was limited: do not allow a Modi hype to build, said Kishor, a former UN health officer.

People close to him have told HT that Kishor does not care much for ideology or parties. He prefers leaders who deliver and strongly feels Indian elections will continue to turn more presidential.

People think of parties as too vague and amorphous. They want accountability. And can hold leaders for promises they have made, said a source.

And so he began working to turn the Bihar election into a presidential contest. Brand Nitish was reinforced. He coined catchy slogans like Bihar me bahaar ho, Nitish Kumar ho.

When the Prime Minister announced a financial package for the state, hundreds of JD(U) posters came up across Bihar, urging people to not fall for the eyewash and ensure Nitishs victory.

Kishors team distributed 30 cycles to dedicated workers in every assembly constituency, each of them covering 50 houses every day. These cyclists went to 15,000 houses in every constituency, handing personal letters from Kumar and playing out his speech on mobile phones.

When Lalu and Nitish were planning joint rallies, Kishor prevailed upon them to shun the idea. The leaders agreed and campaigned separately, covering 18-20 smaller public meetings every day each with a turnout of 5,000-plus people.

When the poll results were announced, apart from a surge in the clout of Nitish and Lalu, Kishor too surfaced as a bigger brand. The man with the Midas touch had once again shaped the outcome of an important Indian election through his master strokes, meticulous planning and implementation.

International assignments also started pouring in.

In Tanzania, the Kishor-founded Indian Peoples Action Committee (IPAC) provided consultancy services to the wining Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) Party.

The world noticed the skills of this man who devised the key facets of Modis Lok Sabha campaign, said one of his colleagues. The Grand Alliance win cements his position further in the sector.

(With inputs from HTC in Delhi)
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to undertake a padyatra in the drought-hit Bundelkhand region on Saturday when he is likely to hold meetings with farmers.

Gandhi, who will arrive in Mahoba district of the region by road from Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh, will walk seven kilometres and hold a meeting in Supa village to interact with the villagers, Congress sources said.

He is also scheduled to hold a meeting with the women self-help group at the Supa railway station and later hold a meeting with farmers in Laadpur village, they said.

Bundelkhand region, home to 18.3 million people as per the 2011 census, is blighted with drought and unseasonable rains that destroyed standing winter crops.

In the past few years, several farmers have committed suicide due to poor crop production in 13 districts that comprise the region.

The promised compensation by Uttar Pradesh government has not trickled down to those who need them the most. With no money for seeds and no water for irrigation, farmers have gone desperate, local leaders alleged.

With opposition parties becoming active in Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh in the run up to 2017 Assembly polls, chief minister Akhilesh Yadav has said his government would make necessary efforts to address the issues.

After a Cabinet meeting on Monday, Yadav had said chief secretary Alok Ranjan recently visited the region to take stock of the developmental scheme and he himself would visit Bundelkhand.

We have taken a decision on the works to be carried out under MNREGA... In coming times, Ill also visit Bundelkhand. My government will help the region in every possible way, he said.

Over a month back, Gandhi had visited western UP to interact with sugarcane growers hit hard due to failure of sugar mills to give their dues.
The official Republic Day celebration this year is going to be 25 minutes shorter, but will not compromise on its pomp and pageantry, officials said. The event will, in fact, add some fresh sparkle.

The cut-back on the duration, from 115 minutes to 90 minutes, is aimed at making the event crisper and less of a drag. In 2005, the then UPA government had shortened the event by 45 minutes. Defence minister Pranab Mukherjee had then said that the duration was just too long.

According to a memo from the home ministry, the event will keep its traditional format of military march past and cultural processions. However, this years event  which will have French President Francois Hollande witness it as the chief guest  will see a foreign marching contingent of 130 French soldiers for the first time.

In 2009, the Maratha Light Infantry had paraded the iconic Champs Elysee on French National Day on July 14, which commemorates the storming of the Bastille prison, an event that sparked the French Revolution.

Viewers will also be greeted by a march past by a canine crackteam, comprising 36 of the armys thoroughbred Labradors and German Shepherds. A glistening all-woman CRPF team  Women Daredevils CRPF  too will take part in the parade, though women soldiers have routinely participated in the event. The Women Daredevils CRPF will replace the general CRPF team this year.

The defence ministry is expected to withdraw its camel-mounted contingent, which has been missing from the rehearsals, too this year.

According to the home ministry document, the event will begin, as usual, by a wreath-laying ceremony by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Amar Jawan Jyoti. President Pranab Mukherjee will drive in straight from Rashtrapati Bhavan and take the grand salute. Fly past by helicopters and echelon aircraft  a highpoint of the celebrations  too will take place as usual.
A little over a year after it was created, the ministry of skill development and entrepreneurship is grappling with complexities arising out of the overlap of its mandate with that of other ministries.

With 70-odd skills and training progammes being conducted by various ministries and departments, the ministry has been constrained to resort to partnerships through memoranda of understanding to avoid jurisdictional turf wars.

To seek control of the ITIs that were under the training and apprenticeship vertical of the directorate general of employment and training of the labour ministry, the MSDE (ministry of skill development and entrepreneurship) had to seek intervention by the Prime Ministers Office.

Similarly, an inter-ministerial consultation was sought to iron out differences between the ministry of home affairs and the MSDE over the implementation of the Udaan programme being run in Jammu & Kashmir to impart skills.

A limited cash purse -- it has a budget allocation of about Rs 1,500 crore -- has restricted the MSDEs expansion plans, compelling it to sign MoUs with the ministries of defence and railways, and the department of telecommunications and IT. More are in the pipeline, with the Airports Authority of India and the ministry of external affairs.

These pacts allow the MSDE to use the infrastructure and resources of the partnering ministries, instead of having to scout for land to set up training centres and spend monies on rentals.

Sources in the government admit that despite a new ministry being carved out to fulfil Prime Minister Narendra Modis directive to position India as a supplier of a skilled workforce, confusion prevails as most existing skills and training programmes are yet to be brought into the ambit of the MSDE.

There is duplication of work as well as resources as the beneficiaries often enrol themselves for skilling programmes under various ministries. In the absence of a national database on a skilled workforce, even the industry is unsure of whom to approach to meet their human resource needs, an official said about the problems caused by the absence of a clear demarcation of the ministrys role.

The ministry is mandated to create a skilled workforce, ensure people in low-income jobs and unorganised segments access growth opportunities through up-skilling and re-skilling, and encourage job creators instead of job seekers.

It is aided in this by the National Skill Development Agency, the National Skill Development Corporation, the National Skill Development Fund and 33 Sector Skill Councils as well as 187 training partners.

Ministry officials are worried that if its role is limited to that of an aggregator, the target set for skilling 200 million people over the next seven years will not be easy to achieve, unless a bulk of the existing skill development programmes are solely run and administered by it.

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The head of forensic medicine at AIIMS has questioned the investigation into the mysterious death of Sunanda Pushkar, hinting at a botch-up by Delhi Police. Dr Sudhir Gupta, who headed a three-member autopsy panel, told HT on Friday 54 units of the anti-anxiety drug Alprazolam  popularly known as Alprax -- were found in the body of Pushkar alongwith lidocaine and insulin.

If the investigation had proceeded on the report we submitted on January 21, 2014, the case would have been solved within a week, he said.

The 27 tablets in her system were of 0.5mg, which is double the usual strength. It is a prescription drug and is not easily available and that too in such large quantity, Dr Gupta said. There was also an injection mark on her body and the investigators should have figured how was it given.

Alprazolam, a habit-forming drug, is usually prescribed in a milder --.25 mg  dose.

The forensic head also questioned the rationale behind sending the samples to a Federal Bureau of Investigation lab in the US for further analysis.

What we had found and mentioned in our first report was sufficient for the investigation and has also been corroborated by the FBI lab. Also, the unnecessary delay in sending the viscera samples to the US had degraded its quality, the doctor said.

Wife of senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, Pushkar, 51, was found dead in a south Delhi five-star hotel on January 17, 2014. A day earlier Pushkar had a Twitter spat with Pakistani journalist Mehr Tarar over her alleged affair with Tharoor.

The AIIMS board had identified poisoning as the reason for her death, following which the viscera samples were sent to an FBI lab in Washington last year.

In its 11-page report, FBI said it found traces of an anti-anxiety drug, corroborating AIIMS findings. Besides traces of Alprax, the FBI lab also found an anesthetic drug Lidocaine Gel, used to relieve itching, burning and pain due to skin inflammation.

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Tension gripped parts of Jalaun district in Uttar Pradesh after locals found what seemed to be body parts of about 100 cows on Friday, police and officials said.

As the news spread, Bajrang Dal activists and BJP leaders staged a protest in Muhauri village, close to where the animal remains were found in the districts Kudaura block. State police officials said police reinforcements had been rushed to the region to ensure communal harmony.

Prima facie, it looks like people involved in cow slaughtering to sell its flesh are involved. We have formed special teams to identify the criminals and arrest them, additional director general of police (law and order) Daljeet Chawdhary said, adding that he expected arrests to be made in a day or two.

The officer said police also held talks with villagers in the vicinity to ensure the atmosphere does not turn hostile. Despite several round of talks with police officers, the protest continued late into Friday evening.

The remains included heads and intestines in quantities that suggested there could have been 70-100 cows killed, according to a senior Jalaun district police official.

Cows, whose slaughter is banned in the state, are an electioneering code word and a rallying cry for both Hindu nationalists and their opponents across India.

The police are conducting raids on the basis of leads available. We will take tough action against these people who have killed the cows. So also we will maintain law and order and no one will be allowed to disturb it, Jalaun district magistrate Ram Ganesh said.

The police had a tough time in controlling Bajrang Dal activists who were also joined by locals.

Senior police officers had rushed to the site and were trying to pacify the agitators.
Two people, including a Trinamool Congress panchayat samiti member, were killed and one person was injured when crude bombs stockpiled at their house exploded on Thursday night in a village in West Bengals Birbhum district, police said on Friday.

Police said Hafijul Sk and Liton Sk allies Tariq Hossen were killed in the explosion at Ahamedpur under Khoirasole police station. The blast shattered the roof and brought down a portion of the house.

However, villagers claimed there were at least eight people in the house and some of them were killed too but their bodies were removed before the police arrived.

Birbhum superintendent of police Mukesh Kumar said primary investigation does not indicate the involvement of any terrorist group in the incident.

According to police records, Hafijul was one of the prime accused in the murder of a Trinamool worker and was held at Dubrajpur in the same district few years ago. The murder was the fallout of power struggle between two local factions of the party.

Local villagers claimed Hafijul was a Trinamool Congress supporter and was absconding since May 2012 in connection with the murder of Buro Sk, another supporter of the ruling party. Hafijul returned to the village only a few days back but police did not felt it necessary to arrest the absconding leader, they said.

Powerful bombs, guns and ammunition were stocked in Hafijuls house. Last night, we saw some people, mostly outsiders, making crude bombs. Suddenly, we heard an explosion, said a villager.

Over the past few years, Birbhum has witnessed violence in which crude bombs have been used regularly. A couple of years ago about 800 crude bombs were found stockpiled in a primary health centre in the district.

There is no such thing as law and order in West Bengal. Police are afraid to take steps and leaders of the ruling Trinamool Congress are leaving no stone unturned to make Bengal a safe haven for criminals. Mamata Banerjee is promoting terrorist training camps and bomb making units in Bengal, Siddharth Nath Singh, BJP national secretary, said.

Union home minister Rajnath Singh had also severely criticised the law and order situation in West Bengal while addressing a public meeting in the North 24 Parganas on Thursday.

Not even the police are safe here, Singh had said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on a days visit to Uttar Pradesh on Friday. He will first visit his own constituency Varanasi and later Lucknow in the afternoon.

This is Modis maiden visit to Lucknow, which has been former PM Atal Biharis Vajpayees constituency in the past.

This will be Modis fifth to Varanasi as PM. His last visit to Varanasi was on December 18 when he along Janpanese PM Shinzo Abe visited the ancient city.

In Varanasi, Modi will give away assistive devices to 9,296 divyangs (persons with disabilities). Twenty-two of the 9,296 divyangs, including five visually impaired, will be presented the devices personally by the PM.

The PM would also flag off the Mahamana Express through remote soon after reaching the function venue. Tight security arrangements have been made for the PMs visit to Varanasi.

After reaching at International Airport Varanasi at 11.05 am, the prime minister will take a helicopter to reach the DLW ground at 11.30 am for the functions. From there, Modi will take a chopper for the Babatpur airport and then leave for Lucknow in a special plane.

The state capital is all set to roll out a red carpet for Modi.

In the last 13 years, it is the first time that a Prime Minister would be visiting Lucknow. AB Vajpayee was the last to visit, way back in 2003. Manmohan Singh visited Kanpur in the run-up to the UP Assembly elections in February 2012, but did not come to Lucknow.

UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav will receive the PM at the airport, but he may not share the dais with him at Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (BBAU) on Friday where Modi will address students at the sixth convocation.

From here, Modi will go to Colvin Taluqdars College ground. On his arrival, he would be driven from the college ground to the stage on an e-rickshaw.

The PM would hand over keys of 11 e-rickshaws to the beneficiaries during the distribution of 2,100 e-rickshaws under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana. He will also interact with 11 families of rickshaw drivers here.

This special rickshaw would be driven by Vijay Pandey, managing director of the Bhartiya Micro Credit, a micro-financing company that has rolled out the PMs prestigious project in the state capital.

Under the scheme, 3,500 e-rickshaws had been sanctioned for Lucknow, out of which 2,100 would be distributed in the PMs presence.

The Ambedkar Mahasabha will be the last stop of the PM where he will pay floral tributes to Dr BR Ambedkar.
Google Doodles are known for one thing: No matter what they are about, they will always be adorable. Fridays doodle is about American chemist Wilbur Scoville and has an ice cream throwing itself on chillies. Now that may seem a bit weird but it wont if you knew about the man and his discoveries.

The doodle is celebrating Scovilles 151st birthday with a fun and interactive game. He is known for giving the world the Scoville organoleptic test, a scale for measuring the hotness of chillies that has long served as the definitive rating of how spicy a chilli is.

In the doodle, you have to neutralise the hot chillies by throwing ice cream at them. The task gets tougher as the chillies get hotter.



If you wish to know more about chillies and their hotness, here is some fun trivia for you:

You probably dont know that the hottest part of a chilli is not the seeds but the flesh inside that contains capsicain, a chemical which generates heat causing a burning sensation. The hotness of each variety of chilli is determined by the amount of heat it generates.

American chemist Wilbur Scoville.

While Mexico possibly grows and consumes the largest variety of chillies, India, Sri Lanka, Korea, Sichuan province, Bhutan and Africa arent far behind, says chef Theodor Rudiferia of DoubleTree by Hilton, Mayur Vihar, who recently crafted an elaborate chilli menu featuring six of the hottest chillies of the world, including the famous Naga Bhut Jolokia or Ghost chilli. Its deadly spicy and extreme care must be taken when handling this chilli, and the amount used, warns Rudiferia.

Read: Google celebrates Beethovens compositions in interactive doodle

A chilli thats known for its unique flavour is Sichuan pepper. Talking about the same, Chef Xi Bang Tang of The Oberoi Gurgaon says, It has a unique aroma and flavour that is not hot or pungent like black, white or chilli peppers. Instead, it has slight lemony overtones and creates a tingly numbness in the mouth.

Naga Bhut Jolokia or Ghost chilli

It is the hottest chilli in the world. (Shutterstock)

The Guinness World Records named it the worlds hottest chilli, 400 times hotter than Tabasco sauce. However, in 2011 it was superseded by the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion. Again in March 5, 2012, some ghost peppers tested hotter than the scorpion. Now the ghost pepper and scorpion pepper are tied for the worlds hottest pepper. Apart from Mexico, its grown in Assam.

Habanero

Its flavour and aroma is popular across the world. (Shutterstock)

This one comes from the Amazon region, from where it travelled to Mexico. Currently, Mexico is the largest consumer of this chilli, but its flavour and aroma is popular across the world. Habaneros usually accompany dishes in the Yucatan province of Mexico, either in solid or puree or salsa form.

Read: Want to shed pounds? Munch on chillies!

Peri peri

Its believed that they were originally brought to the Americas by Christopher Columbus. (Shutterstock)

Also known as the African birds eye chilli, it grows in Africa from where originates the famous Peri Peri chicken dish. Its believed that they were originally brought to the Americas by Christopher Columbus. The Portuguese took the chillies to their colonies of Mozambique and Angola, where they renamed them in a Swahili word that meant pepper-pepper.

Sichuan

They are reddish-brown berries that hail from the prickly ash tree. (Shutterstock)

This is a common spice used in Asian cuisine but the surprising thing is that despite its name, its actually not a pepper. They are reddish-brown berries that hail from the prickly ash tree, and have a powerful numbing sensation. They are mainly grown in China, Nepal, Tibet and Bhutan, and used in a variety of dishes including dimsums.

Chipotle

Chipotles were largely found in Mexico only. (Shutterstock)

A chipotle is actually smoke-dried jalapeno, used primarily in Mexican and Mexican-inspired cuisines, such as Mexican-American and Tex-Mex. Varieties of jalapeno vary in size and heat. In Mexico, its also known as the cuaresmeno and gordo. Until recently, chipotles were largely found in Mexico only but now they are also grown in the US and China.

Kashmiri chilli

They are long, wine red and slightly wrinkled. (Shutterstock)

While they look red hot, surprisingly, its one of the mildest variety of chillies grown. They are long, wine red and slightly wrinkled. Grown in Kashmir, its used in powdered form, and added to dishes while cooking to add a rich redish orange colour to the food. You can even make a variety of dark red sauces with it without having to worry about the spice factor.

Read: Looking for the hottest chillies? Visit Mumbais Mirchi Galli

Cayenne pepper

This ones usually added to dishes in powdered form. (Shutterstock)

Also known as Guinea spice, its named after the city of Cayenne in French Guiana. This ones usually added to dishes in powdered form or used as a condiment in flaky form, when dry. It takes about 100 days for this variety of chilli to mature, and is known to be high in vitamin A, B6, E, C, riboflavin, potassium and manganese.

Serrano

It originated in the Mexican states of Puebla and Hidalgo (Shutterstock)

The serrano pepper or the good ol green chilli thats heavily grown and consumed in India, actually originated in the Mexican states of Puebla and Hidalgo. The name of the pepper is a reference to the mountains (Sierras) of these regions. Its mildly hot compared to other chillies.

Poblano

Its one of the best choices to toss up a stuffed chilli fritter or mirch pakora. (Shutterstock)

This purplish-green hued chilli pepper too originated in Puebla, Mexico. While poblanos tend to have a mild flavour, occasionally and unpredictably, they can have significant heat. Different peppers from the same plant have been known to disseminate different amount of heat. Its one of the best choices to toss up a stuffed chilli fritter or mirch pakora.

Gundu

All pepper fry dishes, especially in Chettinad cuisine, uses generous amount of this variety of chilli. (Google)

These are round cherry-shaped chillies grown in the southern part of Tamil Nadu, and a common ingredient in sambar. They look like dried bush berries with their bright shiny skin. All pepper fry dishes, especially in Chettinad cuisine, uses generous amount of this variety of chilli.

(With inputs by Debasmita Ghosh)
Thane prison authorities have told the Bombay high court that artist Chintan Upadhyay, accused of killing his estranged wife Hema Upadhyay, will be provided with a dhurrie (rug), a pillow and a bed sheet.

The court was informed about this on Thursday, while prison officials were responding to an application filed by Chintan before the high court last week. The artist had sought a bed and a bed sheet for his prison cell because he reportedly suffered from chronic back pain and spondylitis.

The bodies of Hema, also an artist, and advocate Harish Bhambhani were found packed in cardboard cartons near a drain at Kandivali on December 12. Chintan was later arrested in this connection.

On Wednesday, the high court had asked Chintans counsel advocate  Nitin Pradhan  to produce relevant certificates in support of his medical claims.

The state government had initially objected to his plea, arguing that a medical examination conducted in police custody failed to detect any ailment of the kind. It later acceded to some of his demands, even though Pradhan failed to produce the medical certificates required.

While the authorities agreed to provide him with a bed sheet and a pillow, they rejected the request for a cot because the rules forbade making any such concession for prisoners. Instead, Chintan would have to manage with a rug made by other inmates at the Yerwada Jail.

The high court also directed prison authorities to ensure treatment for Chintan if he faced any medical issues.
The scene at the Kamal Chowk of Jagraon is quite blissful. Its broad daylight and everyone is busy with his or her regular chores. Meanwhile, someone spots an explosive in an abandoned bike and informs the police, following which an anti-sabotage team, fire brigade and ambulance turn up. A little later, the bomb has been defused.

It was a mock drill conducted by the police department on Friday to check the efficiency of different departments while dealing with an emergency situation.

Senior superintendent of police (SSP, Ludhiana rural) Ravcharan Singh Brar said, after Pathankot terrorist attack, the police have formed Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) team to cope with any untoward situation. In the team, every member has been given specific duty that he has to perform without waiting for any orders.

It was good to see that immediately after receiving the call, the cops swung into action. The team got vacated the area and placed sandbags around the motorcycle. Fire brigade and ambulance also reached in time,said the SSP.

The SSP also appreciated the public reaction. After accomplishing the operation, the police informed the people that it was a mock drill.

Panic gripped Jagraon on Friday afternoon after a suspicious box with wires attached was spotted lying at a motorcycle at Kamal Chowk.

The matter came to light at around 2:30 pm. Police reached the spot. A bomb disposal squad team was called upon. On investigation, the bomb call was declared to be a hoax.

However, later senior superintendent of police of Ludhiana (rural) SSP Ravcharan Singh Brar confirmed that it was nothing but a mock drill.

Ambulance and fire brigade had also rushed to the spot and the area was cordoned off after the scare call.
Exiled Tibetan leadership has flayed China for its spiritual cataloguing system, terming it an attempt to control the reincarnation system of Lamas in Tibetan Buddhism.

The Chinese government, particularly the Communist Party of China, has no business in interfering in the religious matters and the cataloguing of spiritual leaders is an attempt to control the reincarnation system, said Sikyong (Tibetan Prime Minister in Exile) Lobsang Sangay.

China has recently published its first list of authentic living buddhas, stating that growing numbers of fraudulent buddhas are using their status to swindle money from believers.

The list published on website of the Chinas State Administration for Religious Affairs contains names, photographs and locations of 870 verified buddhas.

Meanwhile, Sangay said China was a communist country, which believed that religion is poison.

Secondly their (China) track record of destroying 98% of monasteries and nunneries in Tibet as well as disrobing and putting behind bars, even causing death of many reincarnate Lamas of Tibet demonstrate that China has nothing to do with religion, Sangay told Hindustan Times.

Their plans, Sangay said, is to control the reincarnation system and reincarnate Lamas. But this will not be credible as China has neither legitimacy nor credibility in spiritual matter, he added.

Meanwhile, activists of Students for a Free Tibet (SFT)  a prominent NGO of the exiled Tibetans  started a petition campaign, protesting Chinas interference in religious matters.

The SFT activists said they would send the petition to Chinese government as Tibetans inside and outside Tibet dont except such interference in religious matters and that it was violation of Tibetans freedom to religion.

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People of tribal district Lahaul Spiti are celebrating Halda festival with fervour. The fest is generally celebrated in January every year to please local deities seeking better crops in the coming season as well as to expel evil souls out of the villages.

Locals said it was considered as beginning of New Year for crops in Lahaul valley, which remained under cover for six months due to heavy snowfall.

Ashok Rana, a native of Pattan valley in Lahaul, said, As festival of lights known as Diwali is celebrated all over India, this a similar kind of festival that is celebrated in Pattan, Chandra and Gahar valley in Lahaul Spiti in the second and third week of January every year.

To celebrate the event, pencil cedar branches are cut into strips and are tied together into bundles to make a torch called Halda and number of torch remains equal to the male members of each family. Halda is lit inside the house before moving out of house, where all villagers are gathered at a specific place to perform the rituals, Rana added.

Prem Lal, who is a native of Gahar valley, said, The date of festival is fixed by a Lama here, while in Pattan valley it is celebrated on Magh Poornima (full moon). When the ceremony is over at a specific place in each village during night hours, the villagers return to their houses. The Haldas are prepared and lit in the same manner and collected at one place where they burn to ashes.

Special local dishes Manna and Siddu are prepared and offered with ghee to local deities.

This celebration would continue till January 23 in various parts of the district.
A local court on Friday acquitted Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC) supremo Kuldeep Bishnoi and 23 others in a 2010 rioting case.

Bishnoi, along with former Haryana chief minister Bhajan Lal and his party workers, was booked for rioting, assaulting and preventing government of ficials from discharging their duty during the partys rally at the Sector-25 ground in March 2010.

During the protest against the then Congress government in Haryana, the party workers and the local police had entered into a clash. A total of 26 people were booked on March 5, 2010, under various sections of Indian Penal Code, including attempt to murder, which were later dropped in February 2014.

Bhajan Lal died during the trial, while one of the accused, Balkar Singh, was declared proclaimed offender. Those acquitted include Kuldeep Bishnoi, Dharam Pal Malik (for mer MP of Congress), Haryana Congress leader and partys state spokesman Ran Singh Maan, Dharam Pal, Kamal Kumar, Wazir, Rajendra Yadav, Karandeep, Bhawani Sharma, Kuldeep Singh, Hanuman, Dhanpat, Bhagwan Sharma, Satbir Singh, Balwant Singh, Ram Pal, Vinod Kumar, Sunil, Hanuman Bishnoi, Rajendar, Ram Diya, Gaurav, Bhartu Ram and Dinesh Gaur.

Their family members and friends were seen celebrating and exchanging greetings outside the court.

Commenting on the acquittal, defence counsel Sunil Narang said, The prosecution could not specify the role of each accused, as the police failed to identify the roles of each accused.

There was no evidence that who had damaged vehicles or who had broken barriers. Moreover, action should have been against the cops who had lathicharged the peaceful protesters. The private vehicles of Bishnoi and his party workers were damaged by the UT Police.

Earlier in July 2014, Bishnoi and his party workers were chargesheeted under sections 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 147/148 (rioting or enticing crowd for riots) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC respectively.

Later, on May 20 last year, the court had also framed charges under Section 3 of the Damage to Public Property Act against them.

Backdrop

Party president Kuldeep Bishnoi, along with his hundreds of HJC workers, was lathicharged by the UT police at the Sector-25 rally ground on March 5, 2010, leaving around 100 injured, including 34 cops. Water cannons, batons and teargas shells were used to disperse the protesters. The police had alleged Bishnoi and his party workers attacked them.

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A resident of Adampur town was murdered in Manila, Philippines, on Wednesday night. The victims family has expressed apprehensions that some Philippines miscreants might be behind the killing over some financial issues.

The deceased, Vipin Bhatti (32), was living in Manila city, Philippines for the last eight years. He was returning home when he was gunned down by some unknown persons in Manila. He was working as financier there.

His father Joginder Pal Bhatti, a sweet shop owner, received a call about the incident on Thursday morning and a pall of gloom descended on the town after the news spread in the area. He said the body would arrive here in the coming days.

It is second such incident in last five days, as Gurinder Singh (22), a resident of Basti Bawa Khel was also gunned down by unknown criminals in Manila.
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) rebel Bhai Baldeep Singh, who is contesting the Khadoor Sahib bypoll as an Independent backed by Swaraj Abhiyan, on Friday alleged that the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) had crossed all limits of nepotism by fielding member of Parliament (MP) Ranjit Singh Brahmpuras son Ravinder Singh Brahmpura for the February 13 byelection.

The Gurbani exponent said, The SAD is suffering from the disease of nepotism and promoting negative trends in Punjab politics. The Akalis, in alliance with the BJP, have destroyed the state with anti-people policies. As a result, every section of society is up in arms against the state government.

He added, Extending support to a new kind of politics is the need of the hour and it should be initiated from the Khadoor Sahib segment.

Bhai Baldeep said chief minister Parkash Singh Badal had announced Rs 34 crore for development projects in the assembly segment during sangat darshan programmes recently, but not a single penny was allotted to schools and hospitals. After being elected, I will ensure proper use of this fund allocation, he said.

He said he would file nomination papers on January 27 in the presence of Swaraj Abhiyan leaders such as Yogendra Yadav, Prashant Bhushan, Anand Kumar and Ajit Jha.
Their last mobilephone location of the six Chandigarh men missing under mysterious circumstances was traced to Doraha, prompting the Khanna police on Thursday to search the Doraha canal for possible bodies.

The man met one of their friends at Model Town here before leaving for home, say police, who claim to have traced this friend. The man, Shahbaz, is reported to have told police that after food and drinks, he accompanied the six men to Shimlapuri, from where they drove away to Chandigarh.

Inspector Balwinder Singh, station house officer (SHO) of Basti Jodhewal in Ludhiana said the men, including businessman Pawan Sharma; his nephew, Jayant Rishi; and companions Prabhjot Singh and Ram, had visited his police station on January 14 about the arrest of their sales agents Rampal and Pramod, but had left the same day.

Khanna senior superintendent of police Gurpreet Singh Gill confirmed that his team had started investigation on its own. We suspect that the men met with a road mishap and drowned in the canal, since these are foggy days in Doraha. Our divers have, so far, found nothing in the water, the SSP said.

Pawan Sharma of Sector 28-D in Chandigarh had led these men to Ludhiana on January 14 after the Basti Jodhewal Police had arrested the sales agents of Jayant Rishi in a case of fraud registered on December 2, 2015. Their families suspect they have been kidnapped.
Senior Supreme Court lawyer Harvinder Singh Phoolka on Friday said that the missing files of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) related to the 1984-anti-Sikh riots had no bearing with the current SIT formed by the Centre. The files had been ordered by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.

I am told by the media that some part of the file pertaining to that order of the Delhi government is missing, but that has no bearing on the present SIT because it has been constituted by the Central government, Phoolka told ANI.

The SIT has been constituted last year by the Centre and that is only one which is continuing, he added.

Phoolka further said the previous SIT which was ordered by the Kejriwal government in 2014 during its 49-day government was never made functional and after Kejriwal resigned, the lieutenant governor had not constituted any SIT.

It has no bearing on the present SIT formed by the Centre. The question of delay in the function could have been answered if the SIT would have been formed, he added.

According to reports, a file on constitution of the SIT to probe the 1984 anti-Sikh carnage has reportedly been missing from Delhi home department since March 16 last year.

The file was reportedly marked to the then city home minister Jitender Singh Tomar, now on bail in a case over his fake degrees.

The missing file issue has surfaced at a critical juncture for the Aam Aadmi Party, as it plans to contest the 2017 Punjab assembly elections.

The AAP government has time and again raised the 1984 anti-Sikh riots issue.

It had recently given an additional Rs 5 lakhs in compensation to families of the riot victims.
Punjab Police on Friday arrested one more travel agent from Delhi in connection with the Panama boat tragedy, in which some Punjabi youths were being feared dead.

Ravinder Kumar alias Ravi of Delhi was arrested on the basis of the statement of another agent Samuel alias Bunty, who had surrendered before a court on Wednesday and was sent to police remand till January 24. One more person named by Bunty was absconding and raids were on to nab him, it is learnt.

Bunty, a resident of Dayalpur village of Kapurthala, also revealed that he had sent five people to the US via the sea route and three were among those perished in the boat tragedy.

Among the youths feared dead were Gurwinder Singh and Gurpreet Singh, while Jaswinder Singh alias Sonu survived and called his family in Punjab to give the news. But, after that call, he, too, was not in contact with the family.

More sections added to FIR

Police have also added Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code and 13 of the Punjab Prevention of Human Trafficking Act to the FIR carrying Sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) of the IPC and 24 of the Immigration Act.

Senior superintendent of police Rajinder Singh said there were high chances of involvement of more people in the illegal human trafficking racket and investigations were on to bring out the truth.

Earlier, police had arrested Kulwinder Singh Multani of Bhogpur town and Harbhajan Singh of Bhatuana Lubana village of Jalandhar in this connection.

Meanwhile, government has failed to clear the air over the tragedy and whereabouts of the missing youths.

No help available on govt helpline

The state government had also set up a helpline (0172-2740397; 2740859) on January 18. Since then as many 25 callers from various parts of Punjab had complained about immigration frauds on the said numbers.

When this correspondent called at the helpline number, the operator said there was no confirmation from the foreign ministry about the tragedy and they were receiving information from the victim families only.

I am regularly calling the helpline numbers to get information about my son, but they have little to share, Bachan Singh, father of missing youth Gurwinder Singh, said.

Balwinder Singh, father of another missing youth, said he was reaching out to people and government agencies to know the whereabouts of his son, but in vain.

Kapurthala deputy commissioner DS Mangat said Punjab government was in constant touch with the ministry of external affairs to get information about the incident and the victims. Whenever the information comes, administration will immediately share it with the media and families concerned, he said.
Miffed over not allowed to witness the draw of lots, alleged to be in violation of the norms, parents filed a police complaint against St Stephens Preparatory School, Chandigarh.

According to the complaint, pre-nursery draw of lots on Thursday were held internally, which is illegal, and hence requested the police officials, Sector 46, to investigate the matter.

Sub-inspector Gurdev Singh who received the complaint said, We have recorded the parents as well as the principals version which are in variance to each other. We cannot do much into it as its a civil suit case. The education department needs to look into this.

Satish Kumar (name changed), one of the parents, who had undersigned the complaint said he had arrived at the school premises before 1 pm and still wasnt allowed to enter.

I was told at the gate that the draw of lots had already been held, he alleged.

The principal, Jennifer De Rozario, on the other hand said the complaint was absolutely baseless and that the gates were opened at 12:45 pm and each parent who had entered, signed at the entrance.

We also have a recording to prove the same. Also, we began the draw of lots at 1:05 pm and finished at 1:20 pm so the complaint doesnt stand true, said Rozario.

The complainants said they would submit a written representation to the director school education in this regard on Friday.

We will request for re-opening of the draw of lots and that it should be held in a transparent manner, said a parent.

Meanwhile, St Stephens selected five kids in play class section by draw of lots for the public on Wednesday.

In pre-nursery section, a total of 30 seats for the public (general category) were allocated on Thursday.

The school principal said the final list and the category-wise list of sibling, alumni and staff quota was still being prepared.

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The role of then superintendent of police (detective), Moga, Gurmail Singh, has come under the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) scanner in a 2010 murder case of Ferozepur. The CBI has booked Singh, who headed the investigation, for destroying evidence and forgery.

CBI counsel Sumeet Goel on Friday told the Punjab and Haryana high court that the agency would soon to file a challan against him in the case under Sections 201, 465 and 467 of the IPC. He has been booked for causing disappearance of evidence and forgery, the court was told.

Singh had given a clean chit to the three accused in a broad daylight murder case of one Kulwant Singh in Ferozepur in December 2010.

Dissatisfied over the probe by the state police, the high court in August 2014 had handed over the probe to the CBI saying the entire gamut and sequence of events needed to be revisited, including conduct of then SP (detective), Moga. It appears that there has been practically no investigation in the case. There is nothing to show that any serious effort was made to apprehend the accused, to collect relevant material, to recover weapons/vehicles used in the crime or to conduct any forensic exercise, the high court had said while ordering the CBI probe.

Allegedly over a property dispute in Ferozepur, one Kulwant Singh was shot at in broad daylight in the presence of his son Inderjit Singh. The accused named in the FIR were Jitender Mohan, Charan Dass Handa and Surjit Singh. But the police gave the clean chit to the three and concluded that Singh was a gambler and was shot at by unidentified people.
Various Sikh radical groups, including organisers of the radical Sarbat Khalsa held on November 10, 2015, at Chabba village of Amritsar, will carry out a march across the Khadoor Sahib assembly segment on January 25 to test the waters for the bypoll.

Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) president Simranjit Singh Mann told HT that all Sikh groups who played a leading role in organising the radical Sarbat Khalsa would take out the march.

He said the march would start from Khadoor Sahib and after passing through villages of the segment would culminate at Goindwal Sahib the next day. The march will be held to know the ground situation and check voters response. Then, we will decide whether to contest the bypoll, he added.

He denied that they would support any other candidate in case they did not field their own. He claimed that besides his party, United Akali Dal, Shiromani Akali Dal (1920), Shiromani Akali Dal (Swatantar) as well as heads of various Sikh sects would participate in the march.

He admitted that the organisers of the radical Sarbat Khalsa were weakened as their top leaders had been jailed.

Commenting on independent candidate Baldeep Singh, he said Baldeep was from Delhi and was not aware of the ground realities of Punjab. As the remote controls of the Congress, BJP and AAP are in the hands of those in Delhi, they cannot understand the problems of Punjabis. Their state leaders do what is directed by the central leadership, he said.
Security forces on Thursday remained on their toes after some locals spotted four suspicious armed men in a village close to the Pakistan border in Ferozepur.

Ferozepur police and Border Security Force personnel (BSF) have launched a search operation in Changa Rai Uttar village, around 3 km from the border, in Guru Har Sahai sub-division of Ferozepur district.

Sources said a villager, Harjinder Kumar, on Wednesday night made a call to the local police control room saying he saw four suspicious-looking persons carrying firearms near the village cremation ground. Taking no chances, especially in the wake of the Pathankot terror attack, security agencies launched a massive search operation in the area.

Another villager Bharat Bhushan also said he had seen four unidentified armed men near the cremation ground.

Ferozepur range deputy inspector general of police Amar Singh Chahal, senior superintendent of police Hardiyal Singh Mann, superintendent of police (headquarters) Ketan Baliram Patil and BSF commandant Gajender Yadav were monitoring the search operation. Security forces have cordoned off the area and security has been beefed up in the adjoining areas, said officials.

Nothing suspicious has been found so far but we are not taking any chances. The operation is on and various security and intelligence agencies are in the loop, DIG Chahal told HT.

On January 16, a GPS device was found outside the local railway police station. Efforts are on to recover the data of the device.
The culmination of the Sundance Institutes year-round work developing fresh perspectives in drama and documentary films is taking over Park City, Utah, for the next 11 days. Among themes filmmakers are exploring this year: Sexuality, identity, race and gun violence.

Both a showcase and marketplace for independent film, the Sundance Film Festival draws emerging and established artists from around the world seeking a wider audience for their work, and distributors hungry for fresh content. HBO and Netflix have already acquired films making their world premieres in Park City this week.

Our competition is as eclectic and diverse as it ever is, said festival director John Cooper. Of 12,700 submissions, 123 features will play at the festival, which starts Thursday and continues through January 31. Were drawn to originality. Were drawn to excellence. Were drawn to different ways of storytelling.

Love stories are also a trend this year, said programming director Trevor Groth.

Theyre not traditional love stories, but that is what they are at their core, he said. It was really interesting to see that filmmakers finding fresh ways of getting into ideas and stories that have been told countless times, but theyre still finding fresh perspectives and angles to tell them.

While movies are the main event, the spirit and celebrity of Sundance extends throughout Park City with exclusive parties and other starry events, and even a whole other film festival. Heres a look at the most anticipated movies at Sundance and other festival-related happenings:

Dramas

Several directors who have become Sundance regulars are back with premieres of their latest films, including Todd Solondz, Ira Sachs and Kelly Reichardt.

Other notable premieres include Indignation, a coming-of-age story set in the early 1950s that marks the feature directorial debut of Oscar-nominated screenwriter James Schamus, former chief of Focus Features; Sing Street, the latest musical endeavour from John Carney (Once); and Mr. Pig, from co-writer and director Diego Luna, which stars Danny Glover as a man who takes a road trip with his giant pig.

Some of the love stories in the dramatic competition are Southside With You, a take on Barack and Michelle Obamas first date; Morris from America, about an African-American kid coming of age in Germany; and Lovesong, starring Riley Keough and Jena Malone as friends who discover a new intimacy in their relationship.

Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe plays a corpse in his next film, Swiss Army Man. (Daniel-J-Radcliffe-328837940536712/Facebook)

Other films include Swiss Army Man, starring Daniel Radcliffe as a dead body discovered by Paul Dano; Goat, an exploration of fraternity hazing and violence starring Nick Jonas and Ben Schnetzer; and writer-director Nate Parkers The Birth of a Nation, based on the true story of slave-rebellion leader Nat Turner.

Documentaries

Michael Jacksons Journey from Motown to Off the Wall takes us through the singers life from Motown to how he forges a relationship with legendary producer Quincy Jones. (SpikeLee/Facebook)

The slate of documentary premieres is artist-centric, with portraits of Norman Lear, Frank Zappa, Robert Mapplethorpe, Mike Nichols and Maya Angelou in the mix, along with Spike Lees anticipated documentary, Michael Jacksons Journey From Motown to Off the Wall.

The roster of competition films is more varied, with such titles as Jim: The James Foley Story, about the young war correspondent murdered by ISIS; Newtown, which delves into parents grief after the Sandy Hook massacre; Suited, which counts Lena Dunham as a producer and spotlights tailors who specialise in making clothing for transgender bodies; and Kiki, about the culture of underground dance battles in New York City.

Oscar Buzz

With some Hollywood A-listers calling for a boycott of the Academy Awards because of its all-white slate of acting nominees, diversity is bound to be a hot topic among stars and filmmakers at the fest.

Slamdance

Established in 1995 by filmmakers whose work didnt make the cut at Sundance, the Slamdance Film Festival has been a scrappy tag-along ever since.

Were friendly neighbours, Cooper said.

The fact that theyre still around after 20-plus years speaks to the fact that theres room for them to be championing these films, Groth added.

Held during Sundance, from January 22 to 28, Slamdance presents narrative and documentary features in competition and special screenings. One featured film is Directors Cut, written by magician and TV personality Penn Jillette.

Big Stars

Star sightings are common in Park City throughout the 11-day festival, but especially during the first weekend. Besides Lee, Radcliffe, Dano and Dunham (also a Sundance judge this year), Danny DeVito, Don Cheadle, Viggo Mortensen, Greta Gerwig, Chelsea Handler, John Krasinski, Gabrielle Union, and Kevin Smith will all be in town.

Party Places

Party places abound during the festival, as Main Street storefronts are transformed into temporary lounges and hangouts. Hosts include: Eddie Bauer, Kickstarter, Variety & Fandango, and CNN, which boasts its own coffee bar. Automaker Kia will host a supper suite with The Church Key restaurant, serving private dinners to celebrity casts of Sundance films.

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An airstrike in eastern Syria on Friday killed at least 30 civilians, including 13 children, a monitoring group said.

It was unclear if the raids in Deir Ezzor province, mostly controlled by the Islamic State group, were carried out by Russian or regime warplanes, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The monitor said eight women were among those killed in the strikes on Tabiyyah Jazeera, around 20 km East of Deir Ezzor city, the provincial capital.

It added that dozens of people were wounded and the toll was expected to rise.

The monitor relies on a network of activists on the ground and distinguishes between Syrian, Russian and US-led coalition aircraft based on flight patterns, as well as the type of planes and ordnance used.

The strikes come as the regime battles IS jihadists who launched a major assault on Deir Ezzor city over the weekend.

The fighting there has killed at least 439 people since Saturday, according to the Observatory, including combatants who died in strikes or clashes, and civilians executed by IS.

While IS holds most of Deir Ezzor province, the regime has clung onto parts of the provincial capital, as well as the nearby military airport.

But with its multi-front assault, IS now controls 60 percent of the city, and has tightened a siege of the roughly 200,000 people still inside it.

Russia, a staunch ally of President Bashar al-Assads government, began an air campaign in support of Damascus last September. (AFP) RCB
The Danish central bank acknowledged on Friday it had hired its governors neighbour to a consultancy position with a salary higher than the Danish Prime Ministers, but said the relationship played no role in the appointment.

Financial website Finans said on Friday, the bank had hired Central Bank governor Lars Rohdes neighbour as consultant with a monthly paycheck of 173,913 Danish crowns ($25,000) -- 30% higher than the pay of the premier.

Critics said the position had not been advertised.

All Danish public institutions are obliged to advertise jobs, but as a self-governing, independent institution, it can be argued that the central bank was not bound to that.

The central bank confirmed the appointment and the paycheck. That she is my neighbour was not part of the considerations when she was hired, Rohde said in a statement.

Social science professor Bent Greve from the University of Roskilde told Reuters: It is not illegal what they have done but management has put themselves into a position where they can be easily criticised.

Denmark, an EU member but euro zone outsider, is the least corrupt country in the world according to The Corruption Perceptions Index made by Transparency International.
A powerful storm barrelled towards Washington DC on Friday, threatening to bury parts of the Middle Atlantic region under as much as 30 inches (76 cm) of snow and bring the nations capital to a virtual standstill.

After delivering a wintry mix in Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky, the storm is expected to arrive in the Baltimore and Washington metro areas on Friday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service. Before ending sometime on Saturday, it could leave about 2 feet (61 cm) of snow.

Western suburbs of the US capital could get nearly 3 feet (1 metre) of snow while the Philadelphia and New York areas may get a little less.

I want to be very clear with everybody. This is a major storm, Washington mayor Muriel Bowser said as the nations capital braced for what could turn out to be one of the worst storms in its history.

This has life-and-death implications and all the residents of the District of Columbia should treat it that way.

The Weather Channel said more than 85 million people in at least 20 states were covered by either a blizzard warning, winter storm watch, winter storm warning, winter weather advisory, or freezing rain advisory.

Bowser said the storm could bring 2 to 2.5 feet (61 to 76cm) over 36 hours and winds of 30 to 50mph (48 to 80kph).

Given the extraordinary conditions expected, Washington has been preparing all week for the type of blizzard that she said the city has not seen in 90 years.

AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said Washingtons snowfall could eclipse the Snowmageddon storm of 2010 that dropped 17.8 inches (45.2 cm). If forecasts prove accurate, the storm could rival the 1922 Knickerbocker storm, which dumped a record 28 inches (71 cm) on the city.

Snowy nightmare

I think its going to be a nightmare, the rates of snow were talking about, said Marisa Kritikson, 27, a nursing student at George Washington University in Washington.

The snow began in Washington at about 1 pm and NWS meteorologist Daniel Petersen said it could last 24 hours. It was due to hit New York late on Friday and last 18 to 24 hours.

Snow accumulation could reach 12 inches (30 cm) in the New York region, with winds gusting to 50 miles per hour (80 kph), forecasters said. Southeastern Pennsylvania, including Philadelphia, was expecting 10 to 18 inches (25 to 45 cm) of snow.

Governors of Arkansas and Tennessee ordered state offices closed on Friday as the storm pushed across their states and Kentucky. It dropped 5 inches (13 cm) of snow in Arkansas and a wintry mess of snow, sleet and freezing rain in parts of Tennessee and Kentucky.

Its expanding and coming east, Petersen said. It will continue to grow as it crosses the mid-Atlantic states, where Maryland, Southeastern Pennsylvania and northern Virginia will get the heaviest snow.

In Virginia, where the National Guard planned to bring in up to 300 troops.

In addition to several inches of snow, the Charlotte, North Carolina, area could get up to a half inch of ice, causing concerns about power outages and dangerous driving conditions, officials said. Other parts of the state could get a foot.

Southern outages

By early afternoon, there were more than 25,000 power outages across the Carolinas, a Duke Energy Corp spokesperson said

In Atlanta, officials urged a staggered approach to getting commuters out of the city ahead of the storm. Mayor Kasim Reed said the city had learnt from an ice storm in January 2014, when an exodus of commuters resulted in gridlock and left thousands of students stranded overnight at their schools.

In the Washington area, home to about 6 million people, residents scrambled to prepare, picking stores clean of bottled water, food and other supplies.

I have nine cases of wine, half and half and coffee, firewood and all my devices are charged. All I need now is a wing and a prayer, said Liz Scherer, 54, who works out of her home in the Washington suburb of Silver Spring, Maryland.

Federal employees in the Washington area were told their offices would close at noon on Friday to allow them to get home before the snow began piling up. City officials said everyone except emergency workers should stay off the streets.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which includes the second-busiest US subway system, took the rare step of suspending operations from late Friday through Sunday.

Airlines cancelled nearly 6,000 flights for Friday and Saturday, most of them at airports in North Carolina and Washington, according to FlightAware.com. Philadelphias airport said it would cancel all flights scheduled for Saturday.

But the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said it had no plans to shut its airports.

Residents along New Jerseys coastline were preparing for potential flooding during high tides on Saturday and Sunday. In the beach community of Ocean City, emergency management officials warned of forecasts calling for the highest flood levels since Superstorm Sandy brought heavy damage in 2012.

High winds and a full moon could combine to create a tide of nearly 8 feet (2.4 metres) in Atlantic City, officials said, still shy of the 10 feet (3 metres) that Sandy caused in Ocean City.
North Korea said on Friday it had arrested a US student who, under orders from Washington, had engaged in an unspecified hostile act after entering the country on a tourist visa.

The detention comes at a sensitive time, with the United States taking a leading role in efforts to secure tough international sanctions on North Korea over its latest nuclear test.

Pyongyang has a history of using foreign detainees as bargaining chips to extract concessions and high-profile visits to secure their release.

The student, identified as Otto Frederick Warmbier from the University of Virginia, had entered North Korea as a tourist for the purpose of bringing down the foundation of its single-minded unity at the tacit connivance of the US government and under its manipulation, the Norths official KCNA news agency said.

He was detained while perpetrating a hostile act against the DPRK, it added, using the official acronym for North Korea.

China-based Young Pioneer Tours, which organises regular trips to North Korea, said Warmbier had been a member of a New Year tour and was arrested when the group was set to return to Beijing on January 2.

We hope his release can be secured as soon as possible, the tour group said, adding that it was assisting the US State Department in the affair.

Privacy considerations

State Department spokesperson John Kirby, citing privacy considerations, declined to comment beyond acknowledging the reports of Warmbiers arrest and stressing that the welfare of US citizens was always a top priority.

The United States has no diplomatic or consular relations with the North, and the Swedish embassy in Pyongyang provides limited consular services to US citizens detained there.

Warmbier becomes the third North American detained in North Korea, which last month sentenced a 60-year-old Canadian pastor to life imprisonment with hard labour on sedition charges.

During a recent interview that the pastor, Hyeon Soo Lim, gave to CNN in Pyongyang, the North presented another ethnic Korean prisoner, whom they said was a US citizen arrested for spying in October

The term hostile act is a catch-all accusation that has been levelled at numerous detained foreigners in the past -- covering a range of possible charges from espionage to illicit missionary work.

The fact that Warmbier is accused of acting under US direction, would suggest he faces a spying charge.

The latest arrest comes months after the North released another male student -- a South Korean studying at New York University.

Arrested in April for illegal entry, Joo Won-Moon, who had permanent US residency, was freed in October through the border truce village of Panmunjom on the inter-Korean frontier.

Unlike some other foreign citizens detained in the North, Joo was never put on trial.

Several Americans have been held in North Korea in recent years, including the South Korea-born missionary Kenneth Bae, who was similarly charged with hostile acts and sentenced in 2013 to 15 years in prison.

Bae was released in November, 2014, along with fellow American Matthew Miller, after a secret mission to Pyongyang led by US intelligence chief James Clapper.

High tensions

Tensions are currently running high on the Korean peninsula, as North Korea braces for fresh sanctions in the wake of the fourth nuclear test it carried out January 6.

The United States, along with allies Japan and South Korea, has led calls for a tough UN Security Council resolution that would impose economic penalties that go well beyond existing sanctions.

In a show of strength earlier this month, a nuclear-capable US B-52 bomber -- flanked by South Korean F-15 fighter jets and US F-16 planes -- flew a mission just south of the inter-Korea border.
Moscow on Thursday dismissed as a joke a British inquirys findings that Russian President Vladimir Putin probably approved the killing of ex-spy Alexander Litvinenko a decade ago in London.

Litvinenko, a prominent Kremlin critic, died of radiation poisoning in 2006 aged 43, three weeks after drinking tea laced with radioactive polonium at an upmarket London hotel.

The inquiry said that Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun, two Russians identified as prime suspects by British police, were likely to have carried out the poisoning on the instructions of the Russian security services, but Lugovoi quickly dismissed the allegations as nonsense.

Although Prime Minister David Cameron called it a state-sponsored action, his government did not announce sanctions in response, instead summoning Moscows ambassador to London for talks lasting less than an hour.

Russia was sharply dismissive of the conclusions.

Maybe this is a joke, Putins spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. More likely it can be attributed to fine British humour -- the fact that an open public inquiry is based on the classified data of special services, unnamed special services.

Lugovoi, meanwhile, told the BBC that the inquiry had reached nonsense conclusions and said the judge leading it has clearly gone mad.

I saw nothing new there, he said. I am very sorry that 10 years on nothing new has been presented, only invention, supposition, rumours.

- Acting for state body -

At the High Court in London on Thursday, there were cries of Yes! as the main findings were read out.

Litvinenkos wife Marina, dressed in black and accompanied by her 21-year-old son Anatoly, embraced supporters afterwards.

She has spent years pushing for a public inquiry and had urged sanctions and a travel ban on Putin.

Im very pleased that the words my husband spoke on his deathbed when he accused Mr Putin of his murder have been proved true in an English court, she said.

Judge Robert Owen, the inquirys chairman, said he was sure Lugovoi and Kovtun placed polonium-210 in a teapot at the Millennium Hotels Pine Bar, where they met Litvinenko on November 1, 2006.

The FSB operation to kill Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr (Nikolai) Patrushev and also by President Putin, the report said.

Patrushev was the director of the FSB, the successor organisation to the Soviet-era KGB spy agency, at the time of the incident and has been a key security official since 2008.

Polonium-210 is a rare radioactive isotope only available in closed nuclear facilities.

The report, which contained classified evidence redacted from the version made public, said this suggested that Lugovoi and Kovtun were acting for a state body rather than, say, a criminal organisation.

There was no evidence to suggest that either Lugovoi or Kovtun had any personal reason to kill Litvinenko and they were likely to be acting under FSB direction, Owen added.

- Deeply troubled -

Shortly after the report was published, Londons Metropolitan Police issued a statement stressing they still wanted the pair to be extradited.

Owen said there were powerful motives for the killing. Litvinenko was seen as having betrayed the FSB and had regularly targeted Putin with highly personal public criticism, including an accusation of paedophilia.

Litvinenko, an ex-KGB agent turned freelance investigator who also worked for British intelligence, accused Putin of ordering his killing in a statement before he died on November 23, 2006.

In a statement to the House of Commons, Home Secretary Theresa May said Cameron would raise the findings with Putin.

She added that Britain would impose asset freezes on Kovtun and Lugovoi, but stressed the importance of Russia and Putin in efforts to resolve the conflict in Syria, a nod to the delicate timing of the issue for relations with Russia.

But Britains response to its conclusions fell short of the sanctions that some had called for.

A US State Department spokesman said Washington was deeply troubled by the reports findings and that the perpetrators should be brought to justice.

Jonathan Eyal, an analyst at the Royal United Services Institute think-tank, said the finding would make it difficult for Britain to return to business as normal with Moscow.

London also has to calculate whether this particular juncture when we need Russian support for a variety of operations in the Middle East for instance is the right moment to corner Moscow over this, Eyal said.
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Five people have been indicted on federal charges alleging they conspired to steal trade secrets from drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline PLC in order to seed a start-up with confidential data and gain a profit by trading the information with Chinese companies.

Two of the people named in the indictment - Yu Xue, 45, and Lucy Xi, 38 - worked as scientists at a GlaxoSmithKline research facility in Upper Merion, Pa. It alleges that Xue used her Glaxo email account from 2012 to 2015 to send trade secrets and confidential information about at least a dozen products to her personal account, then sent them to others later mentioned in the indictment. Similarly Xi, wife of Yan Mei (another person named in the document), emailed trade secrets to her husband.

Using this information, Xue launched Renopharma Inc. July 16, 2012, and, along with Mei and Tao Li (the fourth person named in the case), started two related companies in China, Nanjing Renopharma and Shanghai Renopharma, reported Philly.com. The businesses sought investors in China and planned to develop their own drugs using the stolen secrets taken from GSK.

"Many of the stolen documents contained GSK's procedures for researching, developing and manufacturing biopharmaceutical products, which had been developed by GSK over many years, information which would be especially useful for a start-up biopharmaceutical company," read the indictment in part.

The last person named in the indictment was Tian Xue, Yu Xue's twin sister. Tian also worked for Renopharma, and was found to be complicit in the entire affair, allowing the other four to hide a portion of the proceeds gained from Yu's activities in her own name.

The indictment charges all five people with conspiring to fraudulently obtain property from GlaxoSmithKline, theft and wire fraud, according to Business Insider.

A GSK spokeswoman has since issued a statement revealing that the company has been cooperating with authorities. She didn't reveal how much the stolen secrets were worth, but said the company doesn't believe the "breach has had any material impact on the company's business or R&D activity."

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A turtle with a deep connection to Vietnamese folklore has died of old age in the capital of Hanoi, according to CNN. The turtle was known as Cu Rua, which is Vietnamese for "great-grandfather turtle," and was said to be the incarnation of a giant turtle that played a part in winning Vietnamese independence, according to the BBC News. Experts claim that it died of old age and poor weather conditions.

Cu Rua was thought to be between 80 and 100 years old but its mythic origins date back to the 15th century, when Le Loi, a genuine figure in Vietnamese history, was allegedly loaned a magical sword via a lake from the Dragon King to fight against Chinese enemies, according to the BBC. The sword was then sent back with the help of a giant turtle, giving it a significant place in Vietnamese folk history.

Cu Rua's death has been widely mourned across Vietnamese media with many calling it a "bad omen" for the Community Party, who commence their quinquennial congress this week, according to Bloomberg Business. The turtle is said to surface whenever important events occur, making its demise as a new party leader, president and prime minster are chosen a sign of bad news for some.

The news of its death was even briefly censored, with the party's media department initially telling broadcasters "to cheerfully welcome the party congress, newspapers and media please do not report on the turtle's death for now," according to BBC News.

The turtle's body has been moved to a temple on a small island in the lake, which is called Hoan Kiem Lake, or "Lake of the Returned Sword", according to the Japan Times. State media has reported that it will be kept there until an official decision on how to proceed has been made, according to the Japan Times.

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Walmart announced in a press release Wednesday that, starting Feb. 20, every Walmart and Sam's Club employee hired before Jan.1, 2016, will earn at least $10 per hour, in what the retail giant calls "the largest single-day, private-sector pay increases ever."

This marks the second round of pay increases in Walmart's plan to to boost wages that it announced last year. The first round came last April when it boosted the pay of 500,000 employees to at least $9 per hour. Through that boost, average hourly rates allegedly averaged $13 per hour for full-time workers and $10 per hour for part-timers.

Now, the company says February's boost is forecasted to further increase the averages to $13.38 and $10.58, respectively.

Walmart said the two-year plan will cost $2.7 billion, putting a dent in its bottom line, but will also serve to benefit employees, which in turn boosts customer service and sales, according to Fortune.

"We are committed to investing in our associates and to continuing to simplify our business. When we do so, there is no limit to what our associates can accomplish," said Judith McKenna, chief operating officer for Walmart U.S. "Our customers and associates are noticing a difference. We're seeing strong increases in both customer experience and associate engagement scores. Five straight quarters of positive comps in our U.S. business is just one example of how helping our associates grow and succeed helps the company do the same."

Despite these changes, Making Change at Walmart, a group lobbying the retailer for better working conditions, said the pay raises are nothing but a publicity stunt.

"Walmart greed knows no bounds. They just closed hundreds of stores, destroyed thousands of jobs, and devastated countless small communities, but now they are trying to convince America they're giving our workers a raise? After Walmart's last wage increase stunt, many workers almost immediately saw their hours cut and take-home pay go down," reads the statement, referencing Walmart's recent announcement that it will close 269 stores worldwide, including 154 in the U.S.

"It's easier to find a unicorn than a Walmart worker who has received a meaningful raise or hasn't had their hours cut. You want to know the real impact of Walmart? Ask the communities and workers whose stores are closing. Or, even better, ask the workers who are still waiting for the last raise," the statement concluded.

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Persecution of Christians has been intensifying, according to a new report released by a U.S. advocacy group. Open Doors, a group that documents hostility against Christians around the world, said 2015 was a particularly tough year for Christians.

"The 2016 World Watch List documents an unprecedented escalation of violence against Christians, making this past year the most violent and sustained attack on Christian faith in modern history," Open Doors CEO David Curry said at the rollout of the list.

On the top of the list is North Korea where nearly 70,000 Christians are put into labor camps each year, according to Breitbart. Nigeria was top for the number of Christians killed, according to The Guardian. The report tallied more than 4,000 Christians killed in that country alone. In total, there were 7,100 reported deaths worldwide. In 2014, the number was closer to 4,000, CNN reports.

Curry said he hoped the annual list would show policymakers that some allies of the U.S. do not support religious freedom. "We believe in religious freedom for all," he said, "and that does not happen in countries that we do business with every day."

According to Open Doors, 322 Christians are killed for their faith each month and 214 churches or Christian properties are destroyed.

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Pope Francis declared in a letter to the Vatican on Thursday that women should be included in foot-washing ceremonies on Holy Thursday during Easter week, opposing centuries of tradition.

The Vatican announced that the change will now be part of the Roman Missal, the book that guides Catholic liturgy throughout the world, and it will take effect on Holy Thursday, March 24, according to CNN.

The ritual takes place in Catholic parishes around the world on Holy Thursday, four days before Easter. Until now, only men or boys were formally allowed to take part in the service, in which a priest washes and kisses the feet of 12 people to commemorate Jesus' gesture of humility toward his apostles on the night before he died, according to Reuters.

"After careful consideration," Francis said in a letter to the Vatican department that regulates rites of worship, "I have decided to make a change to the Roman Missal. I therefore decree that the section according to which those persons chosen for the washing of the feet must be men or boys, so that from now on the pastors of the Church may choose the participants in the rite from among all the members of the People of God."

In practice, many parishes around the world have long included women in the rite, and Francis, himself, broke convention on the first Holy Thursday after his papal election in 2013, when he washed the feet of women prisoners, according to The Catholic Herald.

"This is great news, a wonderful step forward," said Erin Hanna, co-director of the U.S.-based Woman's Ordination Conference, which promotes a female Catholic priesthood.

"This means that change is possible, doors seem to be opening in the Vatican," she told Reuters.

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The Obama administration on Thursday tightened rules in the visa waiver program for some European travelers who have recently visited terrorist hotspots in the Middle East, while at the same time it eased requirements for others, prompting two Republican lawmakers to accuse the president of "blatantly breaking the law."

People who have traveled to Iran, Iraq, Syria or Sudan in the past five years, or hold dual citizenship in those countries, will no longer be eligible for visa-free entry into the United States and will have to go through a more rigorous visa application process in order to enter the country, according to a joint statement from the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security, reports The Associated Press.

Individuals in those categories will now be required to apply for a visa using the regular immigration process embassies or consulates, meaning they will be interviewed and vetted by a U.S. consular official, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Republicans, however, were upset that the administration issued an exemption to allow people who traveled to the terrorist hotspots as journalists, humanitarian workers, or on behalf of international organizations or local governments to still travel to the country without first obtaining a visa. Another waiver was issued for people who have visited Iraq for "legitimate business-related purposes," or traveled to Iran after July 14, 2015, according to AP.

House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said Congress had already rejected the exemptions.

"The Obama administration is blatantly breaking the law, a law the president himself signed," McCaul, said, according to Fox News. "This is not a difference of opinion over statutory interpretation, it is a clear contradiction of the law and the agreement we reached with the White House. President Obama is again putting his relationship with Iran's supreme leader over the security of Americans."

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., said the administration's decision to abuse their limited waiver authority "needlessly compromises our national security and the safety of the American people."

He added: "The Obama Administration is essentially rewriting the law by blowing wide open a small window of discretion that Congress gave it for law enforcement and national security reasons."

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., believes the visa waiver program should be reformed, but said that "singling people out because of their national origin is fundamentally at odds with American values and invites discrimination against American citizens who are dual nationals," according to AP.

The visa waiver program allows citizens of 38 countries, the majority in Europe, to travel to the U.S. without first applying for visas, although the some 20 million who travel to the country each year under the program are still required to submit biographical information to the Electronic System for Travel Authorization, or ESTA.

The new rules were approved by Congress in December following the terrorist attacks in Paris. Lawmakers hope that tighter restrictions will prevent Europeans with ties to the Islamic State group from entering the U.S. and waging jihad.

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It doesn't take expensive items or a big house to make your home a happy place, and according to experts, having these five elements below will do the trick:

1) Paint your walls yellow. Colors can affect emotions, and for walls at home, the brighter and bolder these colors are, the happier the environment will appear, according to a study from Amsterdam's Vrije University.

2) Always have fresh flowers. Rutgers professors conducted a study that determined how flowers can affect mood changes, and the results have been immediate, long-term and positive overall. "Flowers bring about positive emotional feelings in those who enter a room," said study author Jeanette Haviland-Jones, via About Flowers. "They make the space more welcoming and create a sharing atmosphere."

3) Complement the room with floral scents. If flowers are visually stimulating, their scents can also elicit happy feelings and memories. "It [the floral smell] actually is a mood manipulator," said Patricia Wilson, a researcher from La Salle University in Philadelphia, via Live Science. "So your mood is better, and given that your mood is better, you are looking for things in your memory bank that match that mood." You can stimulate floral scents with candles, air diffusers and humidifiers.

4) Avoid clutter and do cleanups regularly. A messy house can trigger depression, as experts from the UCLA's Center on Everyday Lives and Families (CELF) learned, according to House Logic. Their research also saw that having more stuff to clean or fix leads to anxiety and stress. The design concept that less is more is actually good to follow in this case.

5) Make your bed in the morning and keep it presentable. A survey done among 68,000 people revealed that 71 percent of bed makers are generally happy, while 62 percent of non-bed makers are generally unhappy, according to Mother Nature Network. So take those five minutes folding blankets and tucking sheets when you wake up, and keep your bed neat and orderly when no one is sleeping on it.

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The number of Americans who reach 100 years old and beyond has increased, and it is expected to keep increasing, according to a new report released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

There were 50,281 centenarians in 2000, while there were 72,197 centenarians in 2014, showing a 43.6 percent rise from the turn of the century. More than 80 percent of those comprising this age group are female, the report noted.

Researchers attribute the rise of the centenarians to the availability of medicines, better medical care and more awareness about healthier lifestyles.

"In the early 1900s and before, people could count on losing about a quarter of their children to infectious diseases and other public health problems," Dr. Thomas Perls, a geriatrician at Boston Medical Center, told Reuters.

With medical improvements in combating various diseases, people who are more likely to live beyond 100 years old have a greater chance at surviving childhood illnesses, Perls explained. He said that those born after World War II -- the baby boomers -- are expected to contribute even more to the surge among the centenarians.

As the number of centenarians rises, the death rate for this age group consequently rises, the report said. Based on 2000 data, the death rate increased 119 percent for Alzheimer's disease, 88 percent for hypertension, 34 percent for chronic lower respiratory diseases and 33 percent for other injuries for centenarians in 2014. On the other hand, death rates decreased 31 percent for stroke, 48 percent for pneumonia and influenza and 24 percent for heart disease.

The top five causes of death recorded for centenarians are heart disease, Alzheimer's disease, stroke, cancer, pneumonia and influenza.

Women outliving men is hardly a surprise, with factors like genetics and lifestyle influencing women's health, Perls told TIME.

"Women are definitely winning the longevity race," Perls said.

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Five Egyptian policemen were killed and three others wounded in an ISIS attack on a checkpoint in Sinai Peninsula on Wednesday around midnight.

The Interior Ministry said unidentified gunmen killed five police personnel late Wednesday at a security checkpoint in El-Arish city. El-Arish is largest city of the restive North Sinai province.

"Unidentified gunmen opened fire on security forces at El-Etlawi square in the centre of El-Arish," the ministry said in a statement, according to Ten News.

A Sinai-based branch of the Sunni jihadist group - ISIS/ISIL or Daesh - claimed responsibility for the attack, according to Associated Press.

In a separate incident, three policemen were killed when a bomb exploded during an anti-terror raid on a militant hideout near Giza' ancient pyramids in Cairo.

"As the explosive expert was working on one of these explosives to secure the apartment, a booby trap blew up, killing three police officers and a citizen passing by," the interior ministry said in a statement on Thursday, according to CNN.

It also said two unidentified dead bodies were also found from the blast site. Islamic State claimed the responsibility for the attack.

The deadly attacks on the Egyptian security establishment comes days before the fifth anniversary of the popular uprising that ended decade long rule of Hosni Mubarak.

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Google's earnings from its Android operating system was finally revealed during a recent legal tussle with Oracle. As Annette Hurst, Oracle's lawyer, made her case in explaining Google's use of Java software without paying for it, she revealed that the search giant generates as much as $31 billion in revenue out of Android, according to Bloomberg. She was highlighting the magnitude of commerciality in relation to Google's free use of the Java platform.

Google's profit, which stands at around $22 billion, has never been publicly released. The company was not happy about the public disclosure and has asked the San Francisco court where the case is being heard to seal the transcripts of the legal proceeding or redact them, at least.

"Google does not publicly allocate revenues or profits to Android separate and apart from Google's general business," Google said. "That non-public financial data is highly sensitive, and public disclosure could have significant negative effects on Google's business."

The lawsuit, which stemmed from Google's use of Java to build Android, has been ongoing since 2010. Google initially won early rulings, but Oracle's appeals have successfully overturned those, according to The Verge. The two companies are now embroiled in a proceeding that will determine how much Google will pay Oracle for damages. Google has always maintained that it doesn't have to pay for using the software, Engadget reported.

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President Obama made $80 million available to the state of Michigan on Thursday in light of the water contamination issue in Flint. How Michigan uses that money is the prerogative of the Michigan governor Rick Snyder. This money can be spent particularly for water treatment, systems and infrastructure. Michigan's legislature is also making money available for emergency expenses, according to The Detroit Free Press.

Addressing a team of mayors at the White House, the President said that the Flint lead contamination issue was inexcusable. "Our children should not have to be worried about the water that they are drinking in American cities. That's not something that we should accept," the President said according to The Detroit News.

Karen Weaver, Flint's mayor, said: "It was encouraging to hear President Obama say that $80 million will be coming to Michigan to help local governments, like the City of Flint improve their water systems. The residents of Flint could benefit greatly from that type of money. We are waiting to see how much of the $80 million will be allocated to the City of Flint and how much of it would go elsewhere, bit it's a step in the right direction," according to The Detroit News.

However, this allocation is not related to the request Rick Snyder had made to the president for $96 million of major disaster assistance earlier this week. Since the President's office considered the Flint situation something that was man-made (rather than natural) - $5 million was allocated. Snyder then requested the President to re-consider this decision of his office. The outcome of this particular request is not yet known.

In the meantime, the legislature of Michigan is speeding-up a process to make additional funds of up to $28 million available for Flint toward clean drinking water, bottled water, water filters and other water related needs, according to The International Business Times.

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Two people are dead and two others have been left with injuries after a bank robbery that culminated in a car chase in Eufaula, Okla., according to the Associated Press. One of those killed was the bank's president and CEO, Randy Peterson.

The suspect was identified by FBI Special Agent Terry Weber to be Cedric Lamont Norris, 39, according to The Oklahoman. Norris allegedly entered the bank while pretending to be a woman, walked into Peterson's office and shot him in the stomach, according to The Oklahoman. He then went to the bank tellers and demanded money from them, according to reports by News On 6.

"I've seen people die, but I've never seen a more horrific way to die than what I saw today," the bank's owner Robert Simpson told The Oklahoman, who ran into Peterson's office immediately after he was shot. "He was a great man. I just don't know what I'm going to do without him."

Norris attempted to take a number of hostages, including two employees and a customer, according to The Oklahoman. One employee was non-fatally shot in the struggle and the customer was wounded after being held hostage.

After leaving the bank, Norris drove north and was briefly chased by officers before being killed in the shootout. The customer who was being held hostage was also shot but did not sustain any life-threatening injuries, according to News on 6. No law enforcement officials were injured during the incident.

Norris is a Texas resident who has previous felony convictions for robbery and other crimes in Texas and Oklahoma, according to The Oklahoman.

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Republican presidential contender Sen. Ted Cruz, who at one point refused to speak negatively of rival Donald Trump, said in a new interview that the billionaire businessman's immigration plan is a roundabout version of amnesty, which shouldn't come as a surprise since Trump "was publicly supporting amnesty" in 2013.

Cruz told ABC News' George Stephanopoulos that Trump's immigration plan is essentially amnesty, as he would first deport undocumented immigrants but then allow them to return to the country and obtain citizenship.

"Donald Trump's position is once you deport them, it's what's called touchback. A lot of establishment Republicans had touchback," the Texas senator said. "Basically you make them fly back to their country for a minute, touch the ground, and then they come back with amnesty as citizens. Now, Donald is entitled to do that. He can advance that position, but he doesn't get to pretend that it's not amnesty if he's legalizing 12 million people [who are] here illegally."

Cruz also suggested Trump is simply exploiting the issue of illegal immigration for political gain, claiming that Trump publicly supported amnesty as recently as 2013 during the battle over the "Gang of Eight" immigration reform bill.

"Look, I understand that Marco Rubio and Donald Trump are trying very, very hard to blur the lines here. Marco Rubio stood with Chuck Schumer and Barack Obama and advocated for citizenship and amnesty for 12 million people here illegally. I stood with Jeff Sessions and Steve King and led the opposition that defeated amnesty," Cruz told ABC News, noted The Washington Times.

"I would note at that time, right in the middle of the fight, Donald Trump was publicly supporting amnesty. He was supporting Marco Rubio's Dream Act," Cruz said. "He was criticizing Mitt Romney for being too tough on immigration. That's where Donald Trump was in 2013. Now, when he launched his campaign for president, suddenly he discovered illegal immigration was a problem."

Cruz also recently pointed to a tweet sent by Trump in 2013, in which the real estate mogul said that "Congress must protect our borders first. Amnesty should be done only if the border is secure and illegal immigration has stopped."

Congress must protect our borders first. Amnesty should be done only if the border is secure and illegal immigration has stopped.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 29, 2013

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With some reluctance, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is returning home today from the 2016 presidential campaign trail in New Hampshire as a major snowstorm approaches his state with the potential to drop up to 18 inches of snow with blizzard conditions and coastal flooding.

In a series of tweets, Christie said he was leaving New Hampshire to make sure the people of New Jersey "feel safe and secure."

I'm sorry, NH but I gotta go home - we got snow coming. #Jonas  Chris Christie (@ChrisChristie) January 22, 2016

I want to make sure the people of my state feel safe and secure. #Jonas  Chris Christie (@ChrisChristie) January 22, 2016

But I will be back, because I am able to do both things. The fact is - you are never not the governor. #Jonas  Chris Christie (@ChrisChristie) January 22, 2016

I will be going home this afternoon, but Mary Pat is staying. #Jonas  Chris Christie (@ChrisChristie) January 22, 2016

Christie was apprehensive to leave New Hampshire just a day after learning his support in the early voting state had plummeted from 12 percent to just 4 percent in a month's time. The New Hampshire primary is less than three weeks away and is the only poll in which Christie has been at all competitive, according to RealClear Politics, which currently has Christie in fifth place in the state in recent polling averages.

"I was on a call last night. I'll be on another call tonight," Christie told WMUR Thursday, as he hoped to remain in New Hampshire to campaign. "If I feel like it's necessary for me to get down there, I will, but I'm not driving a plow truck, OK? We have all of our people ready to go. They know what to do. We've been through Hurricane Sandy, this cabinet, so 6, 8, 10, 12 inches of snow on a weekend will not be something that I think will be more than we can handle."

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio criticized Christie for staying in New Hampshire with the storm rapidly approaching. "I think he needs to come back," said de Blasio today in an interview with CNN, according to NJ.com. "A day or two ago, it might have been a question mark. Right now, it's not a question mark anymore. Obviously, we are being warned that it could even be worse and we find this out with each storm - sometimes it's less than we expected and sometimes it's more, so for any governor, it's time to come home."

The Democratic National Committee also sought to hit the governor on the matter, piling on the ongoing criticism that Christie has not properly governed his state since running for the White House. "Absentee Governor Chris Christie proved once again that he'll put his own political ambitions before the well-being of his constituents," said DNC spokesperson Eric Walker in a press release, reported the Hill. "It's shameful that the governor would phone it in instead of being on the ground to handle the crisis."

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Biologist David Irons made a grim discovery while walking along the beach of Whittier, a western Prince William Sound town, in early January - hundreds of dead seabirds that we now know are most likely record numbers, a sure indication that the ecosystem has been tattered by the unusually warm sea water, according to WCVB. The dead birds looked to have met their fate by starvation and were lined up along the shore where the tide had left them.

"We have never found close to 8,000 birds on a 1-mile long beach before," Irons said. "It is an order of magnitude larger than any records that I am aware of."

Since the event, fellow biologist Tamara Zeller has been boating around Prince William Sound in search of other dead or sick murres and in the process has been tallying the amount of birds floating in the water. On Jan. 7 about two weeks ago, she counted 98 birds on the water and 284 on the shore. At the end of the day, the totally tally was at a whopping 3,000.

Heather Renner, a biologist at the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge, claims that the die-off is a part of a much bigger event that extends past Whittier and estimated that approximately 100,000 common murres have met their death in a similar manner.

"It's hard to know how many birds have died because Alaska is so big, and there are so many remote areas," Renner said.

After testing approximately 100 carcasses, the cause of death was determined to be emaciation, likely due to a lack of a proper food supply.

Despite the alarming number of deaths, even these high numbers are unlikely to put a major dent in the seabird population, according to CNN. However, the findings should not go unnoticed.

"Seabird biologists say seabirds are indicators of the health of the ecosystem," Irons said. "Now they're dying and that is telling us something. We should be aware of that. If we don't record they're dying it goes unnoticed."

As of now, scientists know that the birds are likely starving to death and it is connected to the warm ocean waters, but further than that no one knows the exact cause of the occurances, according to CBS46.

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News, events, history, and other mid-week tidbits.

Candidates for federal, state, county, township, municipal, and school board offices in Itasca County, Koochiching County, and northern St. Louis County are invited to submit a statement to Hometown Focus sharing their background, qualifications, reasons for running for office, and positions on important issues. Candidates must focus on their own merits and may not speak negatively about specific individuals and groups. Candidate statements are not paid advertisements, nor do they indicate endorsement by Hometown Focus or any of its employees.

Submissions should be no longer than 400 words. Candidate statements will be published in the October 21 and October 28 editions of Hometown Focus to ensure our print subscribers are able to read them before Election Day (Tuesday, November 8). The deadline is one week prior to publication (Friday for the next Fridays edition).

Send your candidate statement and a photo (optional), along with a contact phone number, to tucker@htfnews.us. Statements can also be mailed to or dropped off at 401 6th Ave. N., Virginia, MN 55792. Call 218-741-0106 with questions.

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The Celebration of Life service for Dorothy Jalonen that was planned for October 10, 2022, has been postponed due to complications from Hurricane Ian.
Dubai, UAE  The world's most opulent all-suite hotel, Dubai's sail-shaped Burj Al Arab Jumeirah, is bringing an expansive outdoor luxury leisure concept, called 'North Deck', to the market  by ship from Finland, over 8,000 nautical miles away. The hotel, which is renowned for pushing the boundaries of architectural design and luxury service, unveils a global first in hotel construction with a breakthrough combination of creative marine design, ingenious engineering and guest-friendly planning.

The North Deck, which is due to open to guests in the second quarter of 2016, has been developed using state-of-the-art marine technology, design and manufacturing expertise, with a strong focus on environmental benefits. The 10,000m2 private luxury deck will fan 100 metres out into the Arabian Gulf and accommodate 32 cabanas, 400 sun loungers, one fresh water pool measuring 612m2 and one salt water pool measuring 828m2, one restaurant and a bar.

The deck has been developed by marine construction experts ADMARES at a shipyard in Finland that specialisies in the construction of cruise ships and yachts, guaranteeing the highest standards in both manufacture and finish. The off-site process has meant minimal disruption to guests.

Made from steel and weighing around 5,000 tonnes, the North Deck left Finland on 9th January 2016 and is currently being transported to Dubai by sea. On arrival at the hotel in mid-February, the six sections will be lifted by crane and lowered onto a grid of 90 steel piles, each 914mm in diameter, stretching from the hotel out into the Arabian Gulf.

The construction and steel pile installation process will cause minimal impact to the marine environment. In fact it has been designed to provide shade for local fish and to attract undersea ecosystems that are known to cluster around steel piles.

Anthony McHale, General Manager of Burj Al Arab Jumeirah, commented: "As a hotel we are dedicated to surpassing guest expectations by providing the ultimate Arabian hospitality experience and we have no doubt that North Deck will do just that. We are hugely excited about its arrival - North Deck is a true reflection of Dubai's own ambition to provide the most outstanding experience for guests visiting and living in Dubai."

Robert Swade, Jumeirah Group Chief Operating Officer: "Dubai is renowned for providing exceptional experiences. This is the first time a structure of this nature and size has been built in one country and then transported to another country to be assembled and operated. We are really pushing the boundaries of innovation and demonstrating how committed we are to positioning Dubai as the most exciting destination in the world and Burj Al Arab Jumeirah as the finest provider of luxury experiences."

About Jumeirah Group

Jumeirah Group, the global luxury hotel company and a member of Dubai Holding, operates and manages a world-class portfolio of 15 properties in the Middle East including the flagship Burj Al Arab, 5 properties in Europe and 4 in Asia with10 properties currently under construction around the globe. www.jumeirah.com.

Jumeirah Corporate MBA Communications

Jumeirah Corporate Communications

+971 4 3647777

Jumeirah
Peppers Docklands has opened its doors this week, heralding the arrival of the Peppers name in the Melbourne CBD. The opening reflects the continued expansion and evolution of one of Australia's most trusted hotel brands, which today delivers contemporary, stylish accommodation for leisure and business travellers alike.

"Peppers Docklands is an unparalleled offering within the Docklands precinct, and  in response to demand from our loyal guests - represents a continuation of Mantra Group's strategic direction to grow the Peppers brand in CBD locations." said Kent Davidson, Executive Director  Sales, Marketing & Distribution.

The only 5-star hotel within the Dockland's precinct, the hotel features direct access to the Etihad Stadium concourse. General Manager, Jeremy Nordkamp, believes this is what will differentiate Peppers Docklands from other CBD located properties.

"Peppers Docklands is located right on the concourse, giving our guests convenient access to the wide range of events staged at Etihad stadium throughout the year," he said.

Named the number one new hotel opening for 2016 by Traveller.com.au, the five star, 87- room hotel is part of Capital Alliance Investment Group's $100 million M Docklands development. The contemporary accommodation is defined by bespoke bathrooms and cutting edge interior design, with hotel facilities including the stylish MOMAMI restaurant and bar, pool, gym, 24-hour reception and concierge, plus a trendy retail and eatery enclave at ground level.

Redefining the rich heritage of the brand, Peppers Docklands joins the growing portfolio of designer Peppers branded city hotels, which includes properties in Adelaide, Canberra, and the Gold Coast. Elsewhere, construction is well progressed on Peppers Kings Square (due to open in Perth in August 2016) and plans are afoot for other Peppers city hotels in Brisbane and Sydney.

About Mantra Group

Mantra Group is the leading Australian-based hotel and resort operator. Mantra Group's portfolio consists of 128 properties with more than 21,000 rooms in properties under management, across Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia and Hawaii. Operating three well-known and trusted brands  Peppers, Mantra and BreakFree - MantraGroup operates the second largest network of accommodation properties in Australia (by room number). The Group is positioned to offer both leisure and business style accommodation ranging from full-service city hotels and self-contained apartments to luxury resorts and retreats. The Group successfully listed on the ASX in June 2014 and in its first year as a public company was elevated to the ASX 200:

www.mantragroup.com.au; www.peppers.com.au; www.mantra.com.au; www.breakfree.com.au

Kent Davidson

Executive Director  Sales Marketing & Distribution

Mantra Group
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Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP) announced that beginning in March 2016, Carl Weldon will join HFTP as its Chief Operations Officer (COO)  Europe. Weldon is currently the Chief Executive of the Hospitality Professionals Association (HOSPA) and is also principal of his own consultancy business CW Hospitality. HFTP is growing exponentially throughout the globe because the industry continues to request it, said Frank Wolfe, CAE, HFTP CEO. Because of our growth and our partnerships with groups like HOSPA, HSMAI  Europe, and others, we needed an expert on the ground who has a keen understanding of both the industry and the association business. Carl Weldon was an obvious choice and we think he will be a great asset to us." Weldon was appointed as CEO of HOSPA (previously BAHA - the British Association of Hospitality Accountants) in 2005 and is credited for both reorganizing and re-energizing the association. Under his tenure, HOSPA became a major player in the industry, grew membership, gained global recognition and made HOSPACE a major industry event. He has been in Hospitality Finance and Technology and Operations for over 30 years. Starting with Forte Hotels in 1978 Weldon worked for Holiday Inns International for twelve years ultimately ending up in an EMEA corporate position. He also held positions with Periquito Hotels, Virgin Hotels, Regal Hotel Group, and Noble House Group. Due to HFTPs partnership with HOSPA and HOSPACE, Weldon will continue to liaise between the two organizations. He will also be responsible for promoting HFTP benefits including HITEC Europe, Certified Hospitality Technology Professional (CHTP) certification; Certified Hospitality Accounting Executive (CHAE) certification; Global Hospitality Accounting Common Practices, PineappleSearch.com and increasing the HFTP membership throughout Europe. Weldon will be based in the United Kingdom and will work closely with HFTPs other offices in The Netherlands, USA, Hong Kong, and opening soon in India.
Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP) announced that beginning in March 2016, Carl Weldon will join HFTP as its Chief Operations Officer (COO)  Europe. Weldon is currently the Chief Executive of the Hospitality Professionals Association (HOSPA) and is also principal of his own consultancy business CW Hospitality.

HFTP is growing exponentially throughout the globe because the industry continues to request it, said HFTP CEO Frank Wolfe, CAE. Because of our growth and our partnerships with groups like HOSPA, HSMAI  Europe, and others, we needed an expert on the ground who has a keen understanding of both the industry and the association business. Carl Weldon was an obvious choice and we think he will be a great asset to us."

Weldon was appointed as CEO of HOSPA (previously BAHA - the British Association of Hospitality Accountants) in 2005 and is credited for both reorganizing and re-energizing the association. Under his tenure, HOSPA became a major player in the industry, grew membership, gained global recognition and made HOSPACE a major industry event. He has been in Hospitality Finance and Technology and Operations for over 30 years. Starting with Forte Hotels in 1978 Weldon worked for Holiday Inns International for twelve years ultimately ending up in an EMEA corporate position. He also held positions with Periquito Hotels, Virgin Hotels, Regal Hotel Group, and Noble House Group.

Due to HFTPs partnership with HOSPA and HOSPACE, Weldon will continue to liaise between the two organizations. He will also be responsible for promoting HFTP benefits including HITEC Europe, Certified Hospitality Technology Professional (CHTP) certification; Certified Hospitality Accountant Executive (CHAE) certification; Global Hospitality Accounting Common Practices, PineappleSearch.com and increasing the HFTP membership throughout Europe. Weldon will be based in the United Kingdom and will work closely with HFTPs other offices in The Netherlands, USA, Hong Kong, and opening soon in India.

HFTP, founded in 1952 and headquartered in Austin, Texas, USA with additional offices in Maastricht, The Netherlands, and Kowloon, Hong Kong, is the global professional association for financial and technology personnel working in hotels, clubs and other hospitality-related businesses. HFTP provides first class educational opportunities, research, and publications to members around the globe including, the premiere hospitality technology conference HITEC  founded in 1972. HFTP also awards the only hospitality specific certifications for accounting and technology  the Certified Hospitality Accountant Executive (CHAE) and the Certified Hospitality Technology Professional (CHTP) designations. HFTP was founded in the USA as the National Association of Hotel Accountants.




A$AP Ferg has had a busy week. After absolutely killing it at Yams Day, the A$AP Mob rapper and producer sat down with Revolt TV to discuss his new album and Adidas collection. Then, he went on Twitter and dropped a bombshell; his new record Always Strive & Prosper, which until now had no release date, will be dropping in February.

In his interview with Revolt TV, Ferg describes the record as very personal and basically a documentary of my life. Hes extremely excited about the record, just like weve been since he teased the artists who would be featured on his album and released two dope singles in Tatted Angel and New Level featuring Future.

Make sure you keep it locked here for news of a specific release date for A$AP Fergs new record.

ASAPFergAlbum
Though French Montanas pockets arent hurting too badly, Chris Brown nabbed what was likely the easiest $5,000 of his life off the Coke Boys boss. French, Breezy, and their good friend Scott Disick, who appeared next to both artists in Breezys recent Picture Me Rollin video, were at a house party, and French was feeling in the gambling mood, as he decided to bet Brown $5,000 that he couldnt do a front flip on the spot. Brown accepted the challenge, and lucky for us, French recorded the whole scene and posted it to his Instagram.

Those who have witnessed Browns on-stage gymnastics should know that this was obviously an ill-advised wager on Frenchs part, but regardless, the ease with which Brown pulls off the flip, with no head start or anything, is a sight to behold. Watch the clip below.

After Browns successful stunt, the camera turns to Disick, who says, I can do a cartwheel. We doubt any bets were placed upon his offer.

Chris Brown
Rome Fortune is signed to Fools Gold Records, and has been teasing his next album since he released the Kaytranada produced single Dance back in October of 2015. However, the album didnt have a concrete release date until today.

Rome Fortune jumped on Twitter this afternoon to announce the official album title and release date. Keeping with the short marketing cycles of todays music industry, Jerome Raheem Fortune will be releasing on February 26, 2016.

Fortune is clearly in a great mood, either due to the announcement or something else. Hes been retweeting and responding to fans all afternoon, showing love for people who show the same to him. Its cool to see an artist keeping such a close relationship with his fans, when the days norm is to keep interaction to a minimum.

For more on Rome Fortune, check out our On The Come Up feature.

RomeFortune-album
Colm Mac Con Iomaire, Duke Special and The Gloamings Iarla O Lionard are more of the exciting names confirmed for the Marble City spectacular set for March

The line-up for the fourth year of the Kilkenny Tradfest is beginning to take shape, with some of Ireland's most decorated names leading the charge to the Marble City.

Evergreen favourites Hothouse Flowers take prime billing on a festival line-up that also includes Colm Mac Con Iomaire, who brings his full band for a performance at St John's Priory.

An altogether more intimate affair is on the cards when Duke Special hit's Cleere's, while Damien Dempsey closes the five-day spectacular with a show at the Set Theatre.

One of the highlights of the event will be an appearance by The Gloaming's Iarla O Lionaird, who combines with Australian guitar virtuoso Steve Cooney.

Throw in an outdoor spectacle when Kila visit Kilkenny Castle, a host of other acts set to be announced soon, and the return of the Bulmers Music Trail bringing the excitement to every corner of the city, and there's no end to the attractions to look forward to!

The full breakdown is available at [link]kilkennytradfest.com[/link] - tickets to all shows are on sale from Monday.
It might be a few weeks away yet, but we're already counting down the days until the annual spectacular at the Dublin Convention Centre

2016s first major gathering of the beery clans takes place from February 5-7 when the Alltech Craft Brews & Food Fair returns to the Dublin Convention Centre.

MC-ed by 2fms Rick OShea (pictured above, at left, with Lexington Brewing's Conor Farrell), the event will once again see gold, silver and bronze gongs doled out as part of the Dublin Craft Beer Cup; an attempt will be made at 5.30pm on the Friday to break the current Guinness World Record for the Largest Beer Tasting, set in Mexico where 714 people simultaneously said Salud!; Six Nations rugby action will be aired live on three of the biggest screens Dublin has ever seen, and the likes of the Camembert Quartet, Pump Up The Jam, We Banjo 3 and Booka Brass Band will provide the accompanying tuneage.

Its a cosmopolitan affair with such celebrated Irish breweries as Kinnegar, 8 Degrees, Black Donkey, Killarney, Mont, N17, Jack Codys, Rye River, Independent, OHaras, St. Mels, The Porterhouse, Trouble, White Water, Wicklow, Wicklow Wolf and White Hag rubbing taps and bottles with the likes of cult English favourites Redwell, award-winning Welsh micro Big Hand, and that most holy of Spanish triumvirates, Lo Gambusi, Rosita and Badum.

The event hosts are Alltechs Lexington Brewing & Distillery Company who, along with their Kentucky headquarters, now have a wonderful, purpose-built facility in the St. James area of Dublin.

There will also be some cracking cider producers (Dan Kelly, Lefevre, Orpens, Long Meadow, MacIvors), and distilleries (Blackwater, Boann, Lexington, St. Patricks, The Porterhouse) showcasing their respective wares.

With the likes of the Dublin Cookie Company, La Bucca, ODonnells Crisps, Sheridans Cheese, Skoff Pies, SuSo Crepes and The Bretzel Bakery providing the equally quality soakage, it promises to be another unmissable three days which, natch, Hot Flavours will be reporting extensively from.

Book tickets, which start at 15, at eu.alltechbrewsandfood.com and find out how you can win a pair at hotpress.com
One of my responsibilities as a state senator is to communicate accurate information to my constituents and to help address the concerns of the residents of my district. Lately there has been a lot of misinformation, worry and questioning as a result of the 2016 REAL ID Act rollover that occurred at the beginning of this month. Id like to use this weeks column to outline some of the important facts you need to know moving forward, especially if you are a resident of Texas County or a frequent visitor to Fort Leonard Wood.

Let me start by giving a little bit of background information about the REAL ID Act. When the act was passed in 2005 in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, it required state drivers licenses to meet certain minimum standards, and some state legislatures were worried the federal government would use the new policies to invade American citizens personal information and privacy. However, many states chose not to comply with the act, and the Missouri Legislature passed a law banning compliance with the act in 2009 to protect the citizens of the Show Me state.

Due to Missouris noncompliance, as of Jan. 10, 2016 our state-issued licenses are no longer considered a valid form of identification for accessing certain military bases and some federal facilities. This issue is where the large amount of misinformation and public concern stems from. I want to make the following very clear: You will be able to board a plane with your current Missouri license at least until January 2018; you will be able to enter Fort Leonard Wood and Whiteman Air Force Base with a current Missouri license and a second form of identification (U.S. passports, Social Security cards, certified birth certificates, etc.); and you will be able to enter the states federal courthouses at this time with your current state-issued ID.

As of Jan. 22, 2018, Missouri-issued drivers licenses will no longer be accepted to board a plane for a domestic flight, though this date might be pushed back. Some alternatives to a Missouri drivers license that are compliant with the REAL ID Act include: U.S. passports, U.S. passport cards, U.S. military IDs and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) trusted traveler cards, which can be obtained for as low as $50 for a five-year membership.

Additionally, the U.S. Marshalls offices have said they will not change their identification and security procedures for federal courthouses in the state until they receive more guidance from the DHS. For the complete list of ID types that will work as second forms at Fort Leonard Wood, visit wood.army.mil. The takeaway here is to not panic about your drivers license being noncompliant. You can still board domestic flights with it for another two years, you can still enter federal courthouses and you can still travel through Fort Leonard Wood with a valid second form of ID.

Missouri lawmakers have already introduced several bills this session addressing the REAL ID issue. Please remember, the Capitol always has, and will continue to have, your right to personal liberty and privacy as one of its number one concerns.

Mike Cunningham is a Republican member of the Missouri State Senate, representing District 33. Contact him at 573-751-1882 or www.senate.mo.gov/cunningham
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Payscout Expands GoNNew-generation global payment processing provider builds footprint and important relationships with Brazilian businesses by introducing its state-of-the-art technologies into Sao Paulo and beyond.ew-generation global payment processin

Posted by Press Releases on Friday, 01-22-2016 6:11 am

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LOS ANGELES, CA (PRWEB) JANUARY 19, 2016Payscout CEO Cleveland Brown has announced that his company is seeing traction in its newest branch office, located in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The launch of a professional team under the guidance of local manager and partner Marco Bilinski has set the foundation for bringing innovative excellencea trait Payscout is known for worldwideto the country of Brazil. Brazil is the largest national economy in Latin America, and the eighth-largest in the world.Payscout is a leading global payment processing provider, committed to the mission of supporting the entrepreneurial dream one transaction at a time. Inc. Magazine recently recognized Payscout for its three-year sales growth of 1,078%, naming the company one of the top 500 fastest-growing private U.S. companies. Payscouts partners include major financial institutions, as well as other internationally renowned businesses, making it one of the top 10 merchant proces...

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Phoenix Strategic Performance Launches eBook on Sales Acceleration & Business DevelopmentA Multifunctional Approach to Accelerate the Complex Sales Process, an eBook for sales and business leaders.A Multifunctional Approach to Accelerate the Complex Sales

Posted by Press Releases on Friday, 01-22-2016 5:52 am

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PHOENIX, AZ (PRWEB) JANUARY 20, 2016Phoenix Strategic Performance launches a new ebook for sales and business leaders, A Multifunctional Approach to Accelerate the Complex Sales Process. To effectively start the new year, it is critical that sales and business leaders review their sales processes and make the necessary changes to achieve significant growth in 2016.To help achieve this goal in 2016, we have compiled best practices on how to manage the sales process and accelerate sales growth through proven business development initiatives taken from over 30 years of experience in sales leadership and business development.The eBook covers a variety of complex sales and business development topics with actionable takeaways including:6-Step Approach: Increase the Probability of Sales Success With a Disciplined Sales Methodology Sales & the DiSC Profile: Align Salespeople & Clients Tangibilizing Ambiguity: 2 Challenges Facing Your Sales Team 3-Step Differentiation Proces...

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Equal pay for equal work has, of late, become a hot button political and social issue.Though the law states that men and women should receive equal pay for equal work, women continue to earn less than men! A recent Wall Street Journal story cites a study from the Economic Policy Institute, which says that in 2014 women made $15.21 an hour. This translates to a 71% gender and inequality wage gap! Moreover, despite the fact that policies that bar employees from discussing their salaries to one another are a form of discrimination, and sometimes even illegitimate, many employers continue to have them! In order to fix this problem, equal pay needs to be presented from front and center as a business issue. In the article Equal Pay For Women, Eliot Burdett says that it is critical to understand that paying women equally doesnt have to come at the expense of profits. Business leaders need to understand that studies overwhelmingly demonstrate that equal pay for equal work will boost a companys bottom line. An equal pay can be the means to a variety of benefits for workers, their families and also employers. This article also shares some recent studies demonstrating the importance of equal pay for women and a few costly mistakes to avoid. Companies working to recruit and retain todays top talent need to be strategic and creative when executing a talent acquisition plan. Today, companies are increasingly looking beyond just the skills and backgro...
Pre-employment tests can help you hire terrific employees when you use custom-tailored benchmark scores for each job in your organization. Best Method to get Custom-Tailored Benchmark Pre-Employment Test Scores The best way to customize pre-employment tests is to have your companys best superstar employees in each job take the tests.The typical test scores that your best employees get, in each job, should be the benchmark test scores for that job in your organization. Doing this is called a benchmarking study or concurrent validity study. Then, when the pre-employment tests are taken by job applicants, you immediately see if the applicants scores are the same or different from your companys benchmark test scores for that job. For example, lets say you want to hire great sales representatives. First, you test your very best sales representatives. Such superstar sales representativesare both (A) highly productive and (B) low-turnover. Then, you use your best sales representatives typical scores as benchmarks. If an applicant scored the same as your best sales representatives, then that person is worth spending your time for an interview and to consider possibly hiring. However, if an applicant gets test scores different from benchmark scores for your companys sales representatives, then you probably want to (a) stop considering that applicant and (b) find a better applicant! Refuse to use Two St...
Cyprus PIO: Turkish Cypriot and Turkish Media Review, 16-01-22 Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at <http://www.pio.gov.cy/> TURKISH CYPRIOT AND TURKISH MEDIA REVIEW No. 14/16 22.01.2016 [A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS [01] Davutoglu expressed optimism for the reunification of Cyprus after meeting with Akinci in Davos [02] Davutoglu met UNSG at Davos: "We expect a roughly outlined road map for the solution to come up" [03] Akinci met with Biden at Davos [04] Eide evaluated the Davos meeting to Kibris newspaper [05] Elcil criticised the statements of Turkey's Minister for Forestry and Waterworks on the water issue [06] Afrika: "Looting in the northern part of Cyprus has no limits" [07] Pegasus Airlines has transferred to illegal Tymbou airport 1,5 million passengers in 2015 [08] Russian Deputy FM cancels the first high-level visit to Turkey after the jet crisis [09] HDP's Deputy called for end to jailed PKK leader's isolation [10] Leading Turkish businessman Koc passed away [A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS [01] Davutoglu expressed optimism for the reunification of Cyprus after meeting with Akinci in Davos Turkish daily Sabah (21.01.16) reported that Turkey's Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, in statements after meeting with the Turkish Cypriot President Mustafa Ak?nc? in Davos on Thursday, said that he is hopeful that the ongoing reunification talks in the island will now enter a phase where guarantor countries, Turkey and the U.K., join the talks. Davutoglu expressed his happiness with Ak?nc? arriving at a high-level diplomatic platform like Davos and said the two sides will "hopefully" achieve success at the talks in the upcoming months. He also said that he had the opportunity to discuss the issue with British Prime Minister David Cameron during his visit to London earlier this week and that he also discussed the issue with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday. (?) [02] Davutoglu met UNSG at Davos: "We expect a roughly outlined road map for the solution to come up" Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper (22.01.16) reports that Turkish Prime Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu has said that their expectation in Davos is for a roughly outlined road map for the solution in Cyprus to come up. In statements after meeting with the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon in Davos at the sidelines of the World Economic Forum, Davutoglu said that they discussed the Cyprus problem and other regional issues with the UNSG. Asked whether he was expecting a referendum in Cyprus within the forthcoming period, Davutoglu replied: "The negotiations regarding the Cyprus problem are advancing positively. Before coming here, we had the opportunity to discuss these issues in Britain as a guarantor power. We had our first meeting as soon as we came here with Mr Akinci. For the first time the TRNC is at a platform like Davos, the TRNC president Akinci and the Greek Cypriot leader have been here as equals and addressed the guests. This is an important indicator. Mr Espen Barth Eide, who is carrying out the negotiations on behalf of the UN, is also here. During the meeting I had with Mr Ban Ki-moon, I told him that we should slowly-slowly pass into the stage during which the guarantor states are also participating in the process, because there is a tendency towards a certain consensus on the basic issues. We hope that more constant steps are taken on these issues. The meeting held here in Davos with Kofi Annan in 2004 had paved the way for Annan making the process to be his own. We hope that a similar process happens now and within the forthcoming months the sides to come together and find the opportunity to create a common ground in the direction of reaching a lasting solution to the Cyprus problem". (I/Ts.) [03] Akinci met with Biden at Davos Turkish Cypriot daily Havadis newspaper (22.01.16) reports that the Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci met with US Vice-president Joe Biden at Davos on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum. The meeting which lasted 30 minutes was held behind closed doors. According to information obtained by Akinci's office, "during the fruitful meeting the two men exchanged views on the Cyprus problem". In addition, Illegal Bayrak broadcast that Akinci met also with the Bristish Prime Minister David Cameron and briefed him on the current phase of Cyprus negotiations. (CS) [04] Eide evaluated the Davos meeting to Kibris newspaper Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper (22.01.16) writes that Espen Barth Eide, the UN Secretary General's Special Envoy on Cyprus, evaluated to the paper the three-party-meeting held in Davos and stressed that it was really important and drew a lot of attention. "The meeting was the first of its kind. And the fact that it took place having the eyes of the whole world on it, is very important", he stated. He went on and added that the interest shown at Davos would be very beneficial for the parties involved in Cyprus. He also stated that it was a good chance for the economic dimension of the problem's solution that the meeting was held at Davos. Finally, Eide stated that the two leaders sent the messages from Davos that "2016 will be solution year for Cyprus" and also that the solution of the Cyprus problem is extremely important for the two sides in Cyprus. (CS) [05] Elcil criticised the statements of Turkey's Minister for Forestry and Waterworks on the water issue Turkish Cypriot daily Halkin Sesi newspaper (22.01.16) reports that Sener Elcil, the General Secretary of the Turkish Cypriot Teachers' Trade Union (KTOS) criticised the statements of Turkey's Minister for Forestry and Waterworks, Veysel Eroglu on the water transfer issue. Eroglu stated that they had been unable to reach a result on the management and administration of the water because the "TRNC authorities" have yet to decide on Turkey's offer to temporarily manage and administer the water. Elcil stated that Turkey attacks immediately when it feels that its interests are in danger. "But the Turkish Cypriot society is not unprotected. We will not back off from struggling for our own interests", Elcil stated. He went on and added that statements made by Turkish officials regarding the relations between Turkey and the Turkish Cypriots, about "brotherhood", or "motherland-daughter land" are proved fake when the real intentions come to the surface. "Just let us know Mr Eroglu how much you will sell the water to us", Elcil noted. (CS) [06] Afrika: "Looting in the northern part of Cyprus has no limits" Under the title "They swallowed the sea too", Turkish Cypriot daily Afrika newspaper (22.01.16) reports that the looting in the occupied area of Cyprus has no limits. After the land and the mountains, the turn of the sea came notes the paper and writes: "Merit Park Hotel, which is at Kervansaray area in Keryneia, has spread its area into the sea. Behold the most evident proof of how the moneybags swallow our country. Who gave the permit for this construction and who approved it? An official to give account for this is wanted. The Net Holding, which owns five five-star hotels with casinos in our country and it moreover squanders Mare Monte Hotel by leasing it for 49 years, is constructing two new hotels in Lapithos. The director of the company, Besim Tibuk is at the same time owner of a daily newspaper and a TV channel [Translator's note: The Diyalog newspaper and Diyalog TV]. Is it not better understood now why he does not want a [Cyprus] solution? We are waiting for answers gentlemen". (I/Ts.) [07] Pegasus Airlines has transferred to illegal Tymbou airport 1,5 million passengers in 2015 Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper (22.01.16) reports on statements by Ali Sabanci, "chairman" of the "board of directors" of the Pegasus Airlines, stated to the paper that in a possible solution of the Cyprus problem, Cyprus will change dramatically and direct flights will be launched. In an exclusive interview to the paper on the occasion of the 10th anniversary from the launching of flights from Pegasus to the occupied area of Cyprus, Sabanci said that if the Cyprus problem is solved, Pegasus will launch flights to new destinations such as Turkey, Israel, Lebanon and Russia. Stating that Pegasus Airlines transfers the 50% of the tourists who are visiting the "TRNC", Sabanci asked for the taxes at the illegal Tymbou airport to be reduced in order for this number to be increased, as he said. Pointing out that their aim for 2016 is to transfer to Cyprus 15% more passengers comparing with last year, Sabanci said that in 2015 the company has transferred to illegal Tymbou airport 1,5 million passengers. (?) (AK) [08] Russian Deputy FM cancels the first high-level visit to Turkey after the jet crisis Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (21.01.16) reported that the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Vassily Nebenzia, who was scheduled to pay a visit to Istanbul on January 22, the the first high-level visit from Russia to Turkey since Ankara downed a Russian jet two months ago, has canceled his trip. The Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) Permanent International Secretariat said on January 21 that Nebenzia had canceled his trip due to health reasons. Nebenzia was scheduled to visit the headquarters of the BSEC in Istanbul on Jan. 22 to present the priorities of the Russian Chairmanship-in-Office of BSEC. [09] HDP's Deputy called for end to jailed PKK leader's isolation Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (21.01.16) reported that Dilek Ocalan, Deputy with the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) has called for an end to the isolation of Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), and continuation of the long-stalled Kurdish peace talks. "We demand substantial steps be immediately taken toward the freedom of Ocalan," the state-run Anadolu Agency quoted Deputy Ocalan as saying. "We do not accept arbitrary violations of rights secured by law," said Ocalan, who is a niece of Abdullah Ocalan, who is serving an aggravated life sentence on the island prison of Imral? on the Marmara Sea. [10] Leading Turkish businessman Koc passed away Turkish daily Sabah (21.01.16) reported that Mustafa Koc, the 55-year-old chairman of Turkish conglomerate Koc Holding and one of the country's most prominent businessmen, died on Thursday after a heart attack. The pre-eminent dynasty of Turkey's secular business elite, Koc has had, at times, an uneasy relationship with the Islamist-rooted Justice and Development Party (AK Party) founded by President Recep Tayyip Erdocan. Its businesses, which range from energy and automobiles to banking, account for close to 10% of Turkey's national output and include five of its 10 largest companies. TURKISH AFFAIRS SECTION http://www.moi.gov.cy/pio (AK / AM) Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article
Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-01-22 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/> CONTENTS [01] Fifteen refugees die in the Aegean waters [02] Government to insist on legislation for TV licenses, says official [01] Fifteen refugees die in the Aegean waters Fifteen refugees lost their lives when their boats capsided in the waters of the Aegean Sea. In the first tragic incident, six children and one woman were recovered dead, when the wooden boat, with about 48 people aboard, crashed at midnight on the rocks on the eastern coasts of Farmakonissi and sank. The Greek Coast Guard managed to rescue a girl, while the remaining 40 people had made it to get out safe by their own means. Soon afterwards, as it became known, eight bodies were recovered from the sea region off Kalolimnos. Vessels of the Coast Guard continue to search the area, in an effort to track down any more missing people and 26 people so far have been rescued. According to survivors, approximately 70-100 people were on board. [02] Government to insist on legislation for TV licenses, says official The government will push forward with the legislation needed to hold a tender for TV licenses soon, the general secretary of Information and Communication Lefteris Kretsos told private Greek TV station SBC on Thursday. He also blamed New Democracy for opposing and delaying the changes in the TV regulator's (NCRTV) board. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article
Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-01-22 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/> CONTENTS [01] 21 refugees die in new boat tragedy; search for missing persons underway [02] Gov't ministers to hold press conference on farmers, while they plan to close Tempi artery [01] 21 refugees die in new boat tragedy; search for missing persons underway Six children and a woman drowned on Friday when the wooden boat that they were on board crashed on the rocky eastern coast of the island of Farmakonissi and sank. Coast Guard that rushed to the spot rescued a girl while 40 more refugees, all passengers of the same boat, swam to the coast. At a separate incident, Coast Guard recovered the bodies of 14 people in the sea region of Kalolimnos following the capsizing of a sailing boat that was carrying an unknown number of refugees and migrants. Coast Guard vessels continue the search to locate any missing persons while 26 have been already rescued. According to the survivors' testimony, approximately 70 to 100 persons were on the sailing boat. [02] Gov't ministers to hold press conference on farmers, while they plan to close Tempi artery Labour Minister George Katrougalos, Rural Development Minister Evangelos Apostolou and Alternate Finance Minister Tryfon Alexiadis will hold a press conference on Friday on farmers' tax and social security system. The press conference has been scheduled for 11:30. Meanwhile,farmers are going to place their tractors on Athens-Thessaloniki motorway and block the traffic at Tempi valley for two hours (12:00-14:00) on Friday. Thessaly farmers say the it is warning because the farmers of Tempi block have sent an invitation to all the representatives of the farmers' blocks across the country in order to coordinate their mobilisations. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article
Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-01-22 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/> CONTENTS [01] Greek Tourism Organisation sets eyes on Iran market [01] Greek Tourism Organisation sets eyes on Iran market The Greek National Tourism Organization (GNTO) is setting eyes on Iran market in view of the forthcoming visit of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras to the Iranian capital and the participation of GNTO in the Tehran International Tourism Exhibition (T.I.T.E) to be held on February 16-19. The Secretary General of GNTO Dimitris Tryfonopoulos will visit Tehran on January 28 and 29. Tryfonopoulos will meet with his counterpart in Iran and other government officials of the tourism sector in the country. The Secretary General and representatives of the Greek Tourism will hold contacts with entrepreneurs and tour operators of the Iranian tourism market, so that Greece can attract a share of outbound tourism from Iran, during the celebration of the Persian New Year (NOWROUZ) on March 21 and during the summer holidays. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article
Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-01-22 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/> CONTENTS [01] Death toll from latest refugee shipwrecks rises to 42 [02] Tsipras, Anastasiades discuss Cyprus problem and regional cooperation, during meeting in Davos [01] Death toll from latest refugee shipwrecks rises to 42 ANA-MPA -- The death toll from the two latest shipwrecks involving refugees in the Aegean had risen to 42 by Friday afternoon, despite the enormous efforts of the Greek coast guard to find and rescue as many as possible on board the two vessels that sank, starting at dawn. At least 34 people (16 women, seven men and 11 children) lost their lives when a wooden sailboat with an unknown number of passengers sank in seas northeast of Kalolimnos, where the coast guard managed to retrieve 22 men and four women from the water and take them to Kalymnos. A second wooden boat carrying 49 migrants and refugees sank after it crashed onto rocks east of the coast of Farmakonissi. Six children and two women lost their lives in this incident, while the coast guard rescued one girl. The remaining 40 people in the boat managed to swim ashore unaided. The dead bodies and those rescued were taken to Leros. [02] Tsipras, Anastasiades discuss Cyprus problem and regional cooperation, during meeting in Davos ANA-MPA -- The Cyprus issue and cooperation between Greece, Cyprus and other countries in the region dominated a meeting between Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos on Friday. Tsipras and Anastasiades said that the bicommunal talks on the Cyprus issue must lead to a fair and viable solution that is based on UN resolutions and Cyprus' capacity as an EU member-state. They also discussed the upcoming trilateral Greece-Cyprus-Israel summit, developments relating to cooperation between Greece, Cyprus and Egypt and the prospects for further cooperation with other countries in the region, such as Jordan, Palestine and Bulgaria. On Thursday, Tsipras attended an event on the Cyprus issue held at the WEF, with the participation of the UN Special Adviser for Cyprus Espen Barthe Eide, WEF Executive Chairman Klaus Schwab, Anastasiades, and the leader of the island's Turkish-Cypriot community Mustafa Akinci. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article
Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-01-22 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/> CONTENTS [01] S&P raises Greece's credit rating to B- from CCC+, stable outlook [02] Road at Tempi opens after farmers' conclude protest [03] Injured Caretta caretta turtle rescued near Nafplio [01] S&P raises Greece's credit rating to B- from CCC+, stable outlook Standard & Poors raised on Friday its long-term sovereign credit rating on Greece to 'B-' from 'CCC+', with a stable outlook, citing the country's cpmliance with its economic program. "The upgrade reflects our assessment that the Greek government is broadly complying with the terms of its 86 billion financial support program financed by eurozone member states via the European Stability Mechanism (ESM)," the rating agency said in its press release. S&P also noted that despite differences between the government and its creditors, it expects Greece to meet the conditions attached to its 86 billion financial support program by the end of March, which will open the way for discussions on official debt relief. It also said that since last summer, the Greek government has recapitalized the country's systemic banks, and put into place budgetary consolidation measures. "Despite multiple shocks, the economy has proved more resilient than we had previously expected," the report says. [02] Road at Tempi opens after farmers' conclude protest ANA-MPA -- The national highway at the Tempi pass opened again on Friday afternoon after the end of a two-hour blockade by hundreds of Greek farmers protesting against planned changes to their pension system, taxation and against high production costs. The farmers at the Tempi road block have now invited representatives of other farmer road blocks to come to Kilada, in order to exchange views and coordinate their action. The highway is expected to close again at noon on Saturday, due to the meeting of the protesting farmers. They are asking for the prime minister to intervene and resolve the issues that concern them and begin dialogue from scratch. Following the protest at Tempi, representatives of the Tempi road block left for those of Kouloura, Alexandria and Malgara to show symbolic support. Meanwhile, farmer were protesting and blocking roads in other locations throughout the country, along the Athens-Thessaloniki highway, where the road was closed for roughly one hour in the lanes heading north from Athens to Lamia. More than 600 tractors have turned out to join protests and farmer unions are now trying to rally their forces at the Anthili junction by Sunday for a major road block. Representatives of the farmers said that the Athens-Lamia highway will close each day at noon for about an hour until Monday, when new decisions will be taken. [03] Injured Caretta caretta turtle rescued near Nafplio ANA-MPA -- Residents in the picturesque coastal town of Nafplio, in the east Peloponnese, on Friday rescued another endangered Caretta caretta sea turtle that was found injured and unable to swim near the beach of Karathonas. This was the second such incident recorded near Nafplio. The turtle had been seriously hurt in its ventral shell or "belly", which had been pierced by some sharp object along its length. It was unable to swim and was found floating on the surface of the water, near the shore. The people that spotted the turtle were able to catch it and bring it ashore, where they alerted the Nafplio coast guard to collect it. After administering first aid, coast guard officers then sent the turtle for further treatment to the sea turtle protection society Archelon. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article
Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-01-22 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/> CONTENTS [01] PM Tsipras: 'It might be the last opportunity for Greece. Let's not lose it' [01] PM Tsipras: 'It might be the last opportunity for Greece. Let's not lose it' The evaluation of Greece's economic program must be completed as soon as possible because it may be Greece's last chance, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said in an interview with Huffington Post Editor-in-Chief Arianna Huffington on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos on Friday. "The evaluation must be completed as soon as possible. Expedience is part of this program's strategy to success," Tsipras was quoted as saying during the interview published on thr website of Huffington Post Greece. "A successful and timely evaluation, which will lead quickly to a deal about the debt, will also bring about the reinstatement of trust, a rapid return to development and a complete change of mindset. I hope and wish that we do not lose this, possibly last, chance for Greece," he added. Commenting about Greece's European partners, he said that they seem to understand this, as they also have to deal with an unprecedented refugee crisis which is also heavily affecting the country. "Everything points to Greece being able to bounce back. As long as the mistakes of the past are not repeated," the premier told Huffington. However, having three different institutions contribute to negotiations is no easy feat, Tsipras noted, especially when those various institutions differ on their evaluations. "I hope that the many disagreements and conflicts between the institutions do not become the excuse for unacceptable delays that would invalidate the great opportunity for a Grecovery," he said. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article
is across the country are more than sick of hearing about the skyrocketing property prices that have hit the city of sails but first-time buyers arent the only one battling rising costs  big businesses are too.Campbell Pritchard, Head of Office Services at CBRE New Zealand, says employers are being forced to consider their property choices more carefully and it seems modern options are becoming increasingly popular.Businesses are willing to pay higher per sqm rental rates for Prime Grade buildings with quality fit-outs and efficient floor plates because of their positive impact on staff costs per head, he explained.The commercial realtor says modern properties are becoming more popular among large employers as they often provide the opportunity for businesses to occupy a single, large office floor, or smaller but more efficient floors, as opposed to spreading their staff across two or more floors in older-style buildings.This is because they can accommodate more people in a big open-plan space, with less space taken up by non-productive uses such as stairwells and foyers.But cost-cutting isnt the only upside  companies are increasingly realizing the benefits of a well branded, attractive office  specifically, attraction and retention.Larger businesses across the CBD are seeking out property options that can deliver more bang for their buck as well as an up-to-date, modern corporate environment that can assist in attracting and retaining staff, says Pritchard.
one Japanese region launches an attempt to get more women into the workplace, you may be forgiven for thinking the government is finally tackling its glaring office inequality  but a closer inspection signals otherwise.In Kanagawa, a prefecture of 9 million people just south of Tokyo, the local government has decided to enlist the help of 10 forward-thinking entrepreneurs, chosen from the regions most prominent businesses.Yet the impressive panel, made up by the likes of Fujitsu president Tanaka Tatsuya and Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn, is still missing something  a woman.Featured on the governments website, the men stand fully suited, flanked by pink borders and text announcing the WOMAN ACT initiative.The business leaders are described as the cheering team for womens success, and a slogan above them reads: Women will gradually take on leading roles.Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is increasingly emphasizing the importance of womenomics and recently promoted the National Act Plan with an aim of having women make up 30 per cent of all management positions by 2020.Disappointingly, the plan was recently amended, with a final goal of having just 7 per cent of management filled by women by 2021.The slip-up mirrors a recent hiring decision by major social media platform Twitter  just last month, the company faced criticism for hiring a white male diversity officer.
Airbnb's appeal is that it's better and cheaper than a hotel.

But a competitor is out to show people there are serious downsides to the sharing economy.

Vacation rental website HomeAway released an ad Monday showing the drawbacks of sharing space with people you don't know.

Narrated by Nick Offerman, it shows people sitting on a couch while another man clips his toenails in front of them, a bar of soap covered in hair, and a hairy man in a Speedo approaching a couple poolside.

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Airbnb allows hosts to share their properties with travellers by renting rooms in their houses, sometimes to multiple guests at a time.

(It's an arrangement that didn't work out so well for this Montreal couple).

HomeAway works differently  it rents out entire homes to vacationers with no risk of running into a stranger.

The ad doesn't mention Airbnb, but it's fairly obvious who's being targeted here.

"There is an ugly side to the sharing-economy and something for people to think about ... that is something we want to distance ourselves from," HomeAway CEO Brian Sharples told The Wall Street Journal.

It's unlikely that the ad will turn people off Airbnb altogether. But there's little doubt that shared space has its challenges.

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A Vancouver Island man's boudoir photo shoot turned him into centrefold material on Facebook until the social network took the pictures down Wednesday.

Brendon Williams posed for the cheeky shoot in December and gave the pictures to his wife, Amanda, for her birthday on Tuesday.

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After the surprise was over, photographer Masika May  who's done a proposal, wedding, and newborn shoot with the couple  posted the photos to her professional Facebook page.

May, who's based in Duncan, said things took off from there.

"I expected it to get attention within our friend circle, because he's done funny stuff before and he's hilarious," the photographer told The Huffington Post B.C. "I couldn't believe it was a half-naked, hairy man that made [my work] go viral."

But on Wednesday, people started flagging the Facebook photos for nudity. May received a message saying she'd broken the site's community standards, and that the pictures had been deleted.

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The photographer said her boudoir work has never been removed before, in three years of business.

"It's just frustrating, because I have women in the exact same poses wearing the same thing and that's OK. What if it was Brad Pitt? It wouldn't matter," May said. "But because it's a normal, everyday man, for some reason it's a problem."

She added: "There a lot [of photos] where people are wearing less than he is.

"It's one thing for it to be reported, but it's another for Facebook to agree with the fact that it's nudity when it's not."

Facebook's community standards page acknowledges that content with nudity is often shared for "artistic projects," but adds the site still exercises the right to restrict photos that some users could be "sensitive" to.

Click to enlarge.

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May has since reuploaded Williams' pictures and said she doesn't plan to take them down.

"He has underwear on in every single one," she said. "If Facebook decides to take them down again, there's really a problem."

See more photos below:

If you've ever wondered what it would be like if men did boudoir photos..... #dudeoir*Reposted with cropped photos to satisfy Facebook standards* Posted by Masika May Photography on Thursday, January 21, 2016

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Indigenous people are much more likely to experience domestic violence than non-aboriginals, suggests a new report from Statistics Canada.

The report, titled "Family violence in Canada: A statistical profile, 2014" was released Thursday.

It shows that aboriginal respondents to the 2014 General Social Survey (GSS) reported similar rates of domestic violence as they did five years prior, while incidents involving non-indigenous people appear to have fallen across the provinces.

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The 2014 GSS focused on victimization, and it spoke to Canadians aged 15 years or older in the provinces and the territories. Statistics Canada spoke with 33,127 people by telephone and had them answer questions online.

Nine per cent of indigenous respondents said they were victims of spousal violence in 2014, compared to 10 per cent in 2009.

That's more than double the number of non-indigenous people (four per cent) who reported family violence in those years.

At 10 per cent, indigenous women were more than three times more likely to report abuse than non-aboriginal women (three per cent).

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A similar gap was apparent when looking at the percentage of people who said they experienced spousal abuse throughout their lives, with a decreased percentage in non-indigenous people (6 per cent in 2009 to 4 per cent in 2014), but only a one per cent decrease for indigenous people, from 10 per cent to 9 per cent.

Forty per cent of people who identified as indigenous said they were physically or sexually abused as children. That was far more than the 29 per cent of non-indigenous people who reported family violence.

Overall, reports of family violence in the GSS, appear to be falling when accounting for all Canadians.

The 2014 GSS showed four per cent of people reporting they had been victims of abuse, compared to seven per cent a decade prior.

The percentage of spouses who experienced domestic violence fell in every province except for Prince Edward Island over the same time period, according to the report.

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Statistics for the territories were not included.

Statistics Canada's report also showed women and men reporting equal levels of domestic violence, at four per cent each, the report said.

But that statistic was challenged by Lesley Lindberg, executive director of Winnipeg's Willow Place shelter for women and children.

"We are not seeing men reporting they are victims of spousal violence with the same frequency as women," she told CBC News.

"It is nowhere close to 50-50. Of the numbers calling the provincial crisis number, 6,000 calls, only 200 were forwarded to the men's resource centre."

The report also showed that women experienced more serious forms of violence, such as beatings, choking and sexual assault. They were twice as likely to report this kind of violence as men were, although males reported higher rates of being bitten, hit or kicked.

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Nearly half of domestic violence victims said they were abused once between 2009 and 2014, and more than a third (35 per cent) said they experienced violence between two and 10 times.

Approximately 20 per cent of victims said they experienced domestic violence more than 10 times.

Police were not notified about the violence in 70 per cent of cases.

The report comes as the federal government prepares to hold an inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women and girls.

A pre-inquiry phase involving consultations with victims' families is expected to last until the summer, CTV News reported.

Here is the Statistics Canada report, visualized as an infographic:

Click for full size.

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The GSS is a series of cross-sectional surveys that cover one topic at a time. It aims to "gather data on social trends in order to monitor changes in the living conditions and well being of Canadians," according to Statistics Canada.

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Downtown Calgary and Edmonton residents currently lack access to healthy food, says a study out of the University of Alberta (U of A).

"Many residents seek opportunities to shop on foot and increasingly, many inner-city residents do not have access to cars. As a result, conveniently located grocery stores have become increasingly important," reads the study's introduction.

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And such stores are few and far between for the car-less downtown dwellers of Alberta's major cities, it said.

A "food desert" is defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as an area with poor access to healthy, affordable food.

Studies have pegged areas as "food deserts" when they have fewer than three square feet of grocery retail per capita. Four to five square feet are considered "desirable."

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Numbers contained in the U of A study indicate that there are only 3.33 square feet of grocery store per capita in Calgary's downtown. In downtown Edmonton, the number is 2.69 square feet per capita.

"Edmonton, in my opinion, currently doesnt have a healthy downtown."

The study noted that for a grocery store to be "walkable," it shouldn't be further than 500 metres away from a resident's home.

In that light, it honed in on five, 500-metre radiuses in downtown Calgary and four in Edmonton.

The area around Calgary's 11th Avenue SW and 4th Street SW has 10,948 people and no grocery store. Meanwhile, Edmonton's Jasper Avenue and 114 Street area is home to 11,336 people. And again, no grocery store.

'Food deserts'

Downtown Calgary has four grocery stores in total, with four more planned. Two of the planned stores, Loblaws and Urban Fare, have signed leases to locate there.

Downtown Edmonton fares even worse, with only three grocery stores. Four more grocery stores have been proposed there.

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Both cities are a far cry from Vancouver, which has 19 stores to help 126,000 residents access healthy groceries, the study noted.

A healthy downtown and a healthy downtown population make a healthy city. Edmonton, in my opinion, currently doesnt have a healthy downtown, study co-author Craig Patterson told The Edmonton Sun.

Why Alberta?

Alberta's situation is unique, said co-author Kyle Murray.

Albertans living downtown tend to drive to the suburbs to shop at big-box stores, Murray told CBC News.

Those that don't end up paying more money, he said.

The study said Calgary's downtown could use at least five more grocery stores, while downtown Edmonton has room for four.

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However, not all experts agree with the study's proposals.

This is a fun exercise in nice to have rather than an examination of what is actually market feasible, which requires a far more nuanced examination of resident income levels, local consumer behaviours, traffic patterns and so on," Ian Meredith, a business consultant with Altus Group, told the Calgary Herald.

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MONTREAL  The rejection by Montreal-area municipal leaders of TransCanada Corp.'s proposed Energy East pipeline prompted a sharp political rebuke from some parts of Western Canada on Thursday.

The Montreal Metropolitan Community, which represents 82 municipalities and 3.9 million residents, said it opposes the project and will defend that position at Quebec environmental impact and National Energy Board hearings.

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Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre, the current president of the organization, said the decision was unanimous and that the environmental risks of a spill far outweigh any economic benefits for the region.

Prairie provinces fire back

That position sparked anger in Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Deron Bilous, Alberta's minister of economic development and trade, said his province is now doing its share to combat climate change while facing tremendous challenges with the collapse of oil prices.

"We all look to the same resource revenues to create jobs and fund the social programs we all depend on,'' Bilous said. "The mayor of Montreal's statement today is therefore both ungenerous and short-sighted. Everyone loses if we destroy our resource economy.''

Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall called it sad that leaders from Quebec would be so "parochial'' about a project that would benefit all of Canada.

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I trust Montreal area mayors will politely return their share of $10B in equalization supported by west #EnergyEasthttps://t.co/DUtlu4VjPx  Brad Wall (@PremierBradWall) January 21, 2016

Wall said Quebec will receive about $10 billion in equalization payments this year.

''For the better part of the past decade the western Canadian energy sector and western Canadian taxpayers have supported a great portion of these transfer payments as well as the Canadian economy,'' he said in a statement.

"Is it too much to expect that these Quebec municipal leaders would respond to this reality with generous support for a pipeline that supports the very sector that has supported them?''

The foreign oil shipped to QC = no economic benefit to Quebecers. CDN oil production = billions in transfer payments that benefit Quebecers.  Jason Kenney (@jkenney) January 21, 2016

Coderre said the project is worth about $2 million a year in economic benefits to the Montreal area, while the cleanup of a major oil spill could cost between $1 billion and $10 billion.

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Environmental consultations were held across the Montreal territory last September and October and Coderre said the majority of the 140 groups that submitted briefs were opposed to the project.

TransCanada maintains that pipelines are safer and more environmentally friendly than rail for transporting oil.

A TransCanada spokesman was hopeful the company could keep channels open with elected Montreal-area officials.

"We will continue to listen to other elected leaders in Quebec and stakeholders across the province as we take their concerns and input seriously,'' Jonathan Abecassis said in a statement.

Mr Coderre demands billions in taxpayer-funded infrastructure,but opposes multi-billion $ job-creating private sector infrastructure project  Jason Kenney (@jkenney) January 21, 2016

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The proposed pipeline would take Alberta crude as far east as an Irving Oil refinery in Saint John, N.B., and would be capable of carrying up to 1.1 million barrels a day from the West to the East.

The project would include existing TransCanada (TSX:TRP) pipeline as far east as Montreal, plus new pipeline to be constructed through Quebec.

Wildrose Leader Brian Jean said the Alberta NDP government's strategy around pipelines is failing and that it's time Premier Rachel Notley started standing up for the province against ''unfair attacks.''

"While Mr. Coderre dumps a billion litres of raw sewage directly into his waterways and benefits from billions in equalization payments, his opposition to the Energy East pipeline is nothing short of hypocritical,'' Jean said.

You cant dump raw sewage, accept foreign tankers, benefit from equalization and then reject our pipelines https://t.co/J94PksWtJt#ableg  Brian Jean (@BrianJeanWRP) January 21, 2016

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"Montreal buys millions of barrels of foreign oil from dictatorships, but it is rejecting oil from their friends in Confederation. It's disgraceful! This is a project that will benefit all of Canada and will improve our GDP by $55 billion. It's time that Rachel Notley realizes this and starts fighting for Alberta.''

In December, TransCanada filed an amended application with the National Energy Board that included some 700 changes to deal specifically with environmental concerns. One month earlier, the company announced it wouldn't build an oil export terminal in Quebec.

The company estimates the cost of the pipeline will now come in $15.7 billion, up from the original $12 billion price tag. That amount doesn't count the existing pipeline assets that will be converted for use in Energy East.

Greenpeace applauded Coderre's announcement, saying it should send a signal to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to reject the project.

"Trudeau already said that pipelines projects must be accepted by the local communities before they get approved,'' said spokesman Patrick Bonin.

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At the World Economic Forums annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, Justin Trudeau participated in a break-out session called "Progress on Parity." Much to the delight of the audience, he brought up that he's raising all three of his kids to be feminists "just like dad."

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Trudeau and his fellow-panelists, including Sheryl Sandberg and Melinda Gates, were discussing the global gender gap. While more women graduate from university than men in many countries, there is still a global pay gap.

According to a recent report, the annual pay for women now only equals what men earned 10 years ago.

During the discussion, Trudeau brought up the importance of both men and women being feminists and how that applies to his sons, Xavier and Hadrien. He finished his statement with the words: "We shouldnt be afraid of the word feminist. Men and women should use it to describe themselves any time they want." And with that, the audience started to cheer.

"We shouldnt be afraid of the word feminist. Men and women should use it to describe themselves any time they want."

Canada's Prime Minister, of course, made headlines back in November 2015 when he appointed a gender-balanced cabinet.

When asked by the press why he included an equal number of men and women, Trudeau answered simply: "Because it's 2015."

For Huffington Post Canada's parenting expert Alyson Schafer's tips on how to raise boys who respect girls, please click here.

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An Australian mom who thought she was expecting twins got the biggest surprise when she discovered she was having quintuplets instead.

Kim Tucci and her husband, from Perth, already have two young daughters, but they wanted to try for one more. After months of struggling to conceive, Tucci finally became pregnant  with five babies!

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On the Facebook page for her blog, Tucci explained how she discovered the news back in August. I was moved to another machine for a clearer view and had the head doctor come in and double check the findings. She started to count ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE!!! Did I hear that correctly?? FIVE?? the mom wrote.

My legs start to shake uncontrollably and all I can do is laugh. The sonographer then told me the term for 5 is QUINTUPLETS!! Time to call my husband. When I called him from the ultrasound room I don't think he believed me at first, he quickly drove down to the ultrasound place. I could see the excitement in his face he told me, We can do this.

Doctors told Tucci that her little ones could arrive as early as 28 weeks. In anticipation of their birth, the mom and her husband hired Australian photographer Erin Elizabeth Hoskins to do a special photoshoot of Tucci at 24 weeks.

On Tuesday, Hoskins posted a photo to Facebook and wrote: Kim has carried her babies all the way into the third trimester and five healthy babies are expected to arrive any day now. These photos were taken at 24 weeks and she could not be more beautiful... her strength just shines through in every image. A true goddess, indeed.

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Take a look at the stunning images below.

This absolutely stunning woman (or shall I say goddess??) is expecting not one, but FIVE babies. Yes, you read that... Posted by Erin Elizabeth Photography on Tuesday, January 19, 2016







I've been getting a lot of emails asking to see more pictures from the maternity session with Kim from Surprised by Five... Posted by Erin Elizabeth Photography on Thursday, January 21, 2016







Speaking about the photoshoot, Hoskins told The Huffington Post, We lucked out with Kim still able to move around with relative ease in front of an epically beautiful Perth sunset. She was just radiant for this session. Despite her shy nature, she held herself like a queen, and was an absolute pleasure to shoot.

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A magic rarer than the unicorns, more fabulous than the phoenix bolsters Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, according to Rex Murphy.

And to the longtime CBC commentator, that uncommon power is an attribute worth watching, especially when Trudeau's Liberal party breaks a promise.

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If politics were bingo. This would be hitting the jackpot.

On Thursday, Murphy  known for his acerbic tongue  focused on the Trudeau governments apparent political dexterity.

The Trudeau Liberals are the only party Ive ever seen that stands to gain credit and increase its popular approval if only they break very key pledges of the platform they ran and won on, he said.

If politics were bingo. This would be hitting the jackpot.

Trudeau swept into power in October, unseating Stephen Harpers Conservatives after nearly a decade in government.

Their majority win, he said, was propelled by a groundswell of support behind two key promises: to bring in 25,000 Syrian refugees by years end and to pull Canadian fighter jets from an international campaign against ISIS.

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Broken promises and relief

Shortly after the partys election victory, a Calgary-based developer launched website to track the status of the 167 promise made by the Trudeau Liberals during the course of the election campaign.

As of Friday, three promises have been broken, according to TrudeauMetre.ca.

Their refugee resettlement plan, before its deadline was extended to February, was marked by experts as an ambitious undertaking. And it was a promise the government wasnt able to keep by a long shot, Murphy said. And everyone was relieved.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau delivers a speech during the World Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland on Jan. 20, 2016. (Photo: Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

Murphy then took stock with the partys pledge to withdraw fighter jets from combat against the so-called Islamic State, finding issues with Trudeaus reluctance to walk back an election promise that leaves Canada in the international peanut gallery while allied countries fight the violent group.

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If you wont send a few Canadian jets to fight ISIS. ISIS, which decapitates, kidnaps, rapes, burns prisoners in cages, tortures, bombs and inflicts savagery wherever it goes  then why on Earth do we have fighter jets? Murphy asked.

If you wouldnt bomb ISIS, then who would you bomb?

Murphy finished his piece by reworking a line said by Trudeau on the day he was sworn in as prime minister.

He is the first prime minister whose credit will rise if he doesnt stick by key promises. How can this be? The answer lies in some deep, deep philosophy, he said.

Because its 2016.

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Preparing for a job interview is stressful. You rack your brain so much trying to figuring out what to say and do, that the last thing you need to be worried about is what to wear.

That being said, what you wear to an interview is important. The right clothing can boost your confidence and help you make a positive first impression on your potential employer. And there's something to be said about dressing the part, too.

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So to help you out, we've put together some foolproof tips on what to wear to a job interview (no matter what position you're interviewing for), so that you can get back to figuring out your strengths and weaknesses.

Always err on the more conservative side when dressing for a job interview, regardless of your industry or the position you're interviewing for. Professionalism is always valued, and if you can convey this with your attire as you walk through the door, then you're already setting the tone for what you have to offer. We love this classic button down blouse (sleeves rolled down, please) from Banana Republic ($85). If you're fuller in the chest, try layering with a tank so that the buttons lay flat.

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The colours you wear can influence how you feel and how others perceive you, so be mindful of this when piecing together your interview outfit. Yes, you want to stand out, but you don't want to overwhelm your interviewer either. Safe colour choices include soft tones, such as blue, grey and white. If you're interviewing for a management position, opt for black as it exudes power and authority. If you're interviewing for a position in a more creative field, perhaps try purple or yellow. Purple gives off artistic vibes, while yellow inspires optimism. We love this Aritzia Sherman Blouse ($65) in "mobe pearl" with its classic cinched waist.

Interviews are nerve-raking as it is, so the last thing you need is to feel uncomfortable or self-conscious about the fit of your outfit, too. Fidgeting never looks good in an interview, and if you're moving about because your clothes don't fit properly, you're setting yourself up for failure. We adore this knee-length silk skirt from Club Monaco ($85) with its beautiful colour blocking. This material will feel great against the skin.

You want to avoid wearing anything that will detract from what you're saying, such as oversized scarves or flashy statement jewelry. Instead, opt for something more minimal and delicate, such as these pieces from Layered + Long ($40).

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You want to find the perfect outfit that will help you make a positive impression on your potential employer, so don't feel guilty about splurging a little. Consider it an investment in your future. Besides, a good suit or blazer is something you will wear again and again. But if you spend some time shopping around, you just might just get lucky and score an amazing sale like this classic blazer from Le Chateau (Now $29.99).

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An Ottawa criminal lawyer says the Toronto police force's decision to buy high-powered rifles in bulk for front-line use is incredibly misguided.

Weapons, when theyre accessible to police, tend to be used, Michael Spratt of Abergel Goldstein & Partners said in an interview with The Huffington Post Canada on Friday. Weve seen this in the Yatim case.

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He was referring to the teen who was shot to death by police on a Toronto streetcar in 2013 after officers responded to calls that Sammy Yatim was brandishing a knife. Const. James Forcillo is currently awaiting a verdict in his trial for second-degree murder and attempted murder.

In the same week that the jury began deliberating, the Toronto Police Service announced it is purchasing 51 military-style assault rifles.

Dozens of these C8 patrol carbines have been purchased by Toronto police. (Photo: Colt Canada)

According to several reports, the C8 patrol carbines are high-powered semi-automatic rifles made in Kitchener, Ont. by Colt Canada. Each weapon costs between $2,000 and $3,000.

Colt developed the gun with the Canadian Armed Forces, and describes it as battle proven in harsh combat environments.

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Dozens of Toronto officers across the citys 17 divisions will be equipped with the rifles in May, according to CBC News. The force's special squads, including the Emergency Task Force and Guns and Gangs Unit, have already used them for years, the Toronto Star reported.

Police Chief Mark Saunders told the CBC the weapons are needed for "officer safety."

"This increase of armament ... distances the police from the citizenry it should be engaging with and protecting."  Lawyer Michael Spratt

The Toronto police rifle purchase jeopardizes the force's relationship with the public, Spratt said.

"This increase of armament  whether it be armoured vehicles, riot gear, or deadly automatic weapons that distances the police from the citizenry which it should be engaging with and protecting  it does nothing for relations," he said.

"Clearly what is needed is an operational shift in how police think about the most basic aspects of their job. More guns dont make us safer."

Toronto police did not return The Huffington Post Canada's requests for comment.

Cops pushing for new guns

Police communities have been pushing for enhanced weapons since RCMP officers were gunned down in two major incidents in the past decade.

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In 2005, four officers were killed while investigating a marijuana grow-operation in Mayerthorpe, Alta.

Three RCMP officers were killed during a shooting rampage in Moncton, N.B. in 2014. (Photo: Canadian Press)

Then in 2014, Justin Bourque went on a shooting rampage in Moncton, N.B. and killed three officers.

An independent review of the RCMPs response in Moncton found that different guns may have helped responding officers.

'Creeping' police militarization

The militarization of police is a hot-button topic south of the border, and has become a creeping concern in Canada.

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In the early 2000s, Vancouver police established a military liaison unit to coordinate security for the 2010 Olympics. The elite team blurred lines between police and military, setting up communications between the two forces. The program also provided military training for some police officers, reported The Walrus.

But one researcher found there were larger ambitions for such a unit. According to The Walrus, the idea was actually pitched to police services across the country including Calgary, Victoria, and the Maritimes.

Ottawa police tank

In 2010, the Ottawa police spent $340,000 on an armoured Lenco G3 BearCat, which features blast-resistant floors, gun ports, and a roof turret.

The police seemed quite proud of it, Spratt wrote at the time for iPolitics.

Anyone whos lived in anarchic Ottawa might be justified in asking: How did our police get by this long without a tank?

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A Conservative natural resources critic has accused Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of only defending Canadian oil when mingling with celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio.

Candice Bergen made the charge in a statement on Friday that called on Trudeau to clarify where he stands on the proposed Energy East pipeline. Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre, a former Liberal MP, sparked a war of words with Prairie politicians this week after he and other Quebec mayors came out against the project.

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But the quip about DiCaprio comes on the heels of an Ottawa Citizen report that Trudeau challenged the Oscar-nominated actor after he used his address at the World Economic Forum to bash Big Oil.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the World Economic Forum. (Photo: The Canadian Press)

A Liberal source told the newspaper that Trudeau confronted DiCaprio during a dinner in Davos Wednesday to tell him his remarks did more harm than good.

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"The prime minister said there's a new (federal) government, there's a new government in Edmonton, and they're both working hard to do something serious about this issue that you care about," the Citizen quotes the official.

According to the report, the prime minister also reminded the actor that many people in the Alberta oil sector are losing their jobs. Trudeau said Friday that he told DiCaprio that "inflamed rhetoric doesn't necessarily help either the families or help Canada achieve its significant carbon reduction targets."

Not good enough, Bergen says.

"It is not sufficient for the Prime Minister to support and defend Canadian oil only while socializing with American actors like Leonardo DiCaprio in a posh hotel in Davos," she said in the release.

"It is not sufficient for the Prime Minister to support and defend Canadian oil only while socializing with American actors like Leonardo DiCaprio in a posh hotel in Davos."

"The Prime Minister needs to be clear with a very public statement and decisive action, that show that he and his government support the Natural Resource sector in Canada and the jobs and economic prosperity it brings."

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Bergen appeared to link Coderre's public announcement on Energy East to Trudeau's keynote address at the WEF this week, which she said trivialized Canada's natural resources sector.

Trudeau: Know Canada for resourcefulness, not resources

During his address Wednesday, Trudeau sought to strike a different tone from former prime minister Stephen Harper, who promoted Canada as an emerging energy superpower. Trudeau's message was that Canada has more to offer the world than just oil.

"My predecessor wanted you to know Canada for its resources," Trudeau said. "I want you to know Canadians for our resourcefulness."

The remark didn't sit well with Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi, who said resource and energy industries continue to drive the Canadian economy.

Bergen, however, seemed to suggest Trudeau can make things right by expressing unequivocal support for Energy East.

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Though the prime minister has expressed his clear support for the proposed Keystone XL pipeline to the United States, he has resisted doing the same when it comes to Energy East, which would carry 1.1 million barrels of oil a day from Alberta and Saskatchewan to refineries in New Brunswick.

Tories have long accused Trudeau of speaking positively about the project when in Western Canada and New Brunswick, while tip-toeing around the issue in Quebec. Trudeau accused the last Tory government of "torqueing" the pipeline review process.

"The Energy Sector needs someone at the federal level to step up and show initiative on the important issues of the day, like Energy East," Bergen said.

"The Prime Minister can't be saying one thing in one place, and change his tune when he's in a different province."

With a file from The Canadian Press

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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's remarks to the World Economic Forum on the need for more women in power have raised the hopes of a group pushing him to achieve gender balance in the Senate.

Trudeau took part in a panel in Davos, Switzerland Friday on the progress made towards gender parity in the workplace. Appearing alongside Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg and Melinda Gates, the prime minister discussed how naming an equal number of women and men to his cabinet has improved government.

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Trudeau told the panel that while his insistence on a 50/50 gender split in cabinet sparked opposition in some circles, those concerns faded after his team was unveiled.

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg looks on as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks at a panel on gender parity in the workplace on Jan. 22, 2015. (Photo: The Canadian Press)

"Nobody talked about merit anymore because the people in our cabinet  men and women  are extraordinarily high-qualified," he said.

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Gender balance and diversity was also a key consideration for filling thousands of government jobs, Trudeau said.

"You're getting better decision-making," he said. "You're getting governance that reflects the reality of the broad population that you're supposed to serve."

"Let's start rewarding companies and politicians who aren't driven by a macho, ego approach."

Later, Trudeau said more women in government and on corporate boards can mean less conflict and "aggressive, ego-driven" tactics.

"We want politics to be less like that," Trudeau said. "Let's start rewarding companies and politicians who aren't driven by a macho, ego approach and support people who take a much more respectful, conciliatory, open, and inclusive approach."

Group behind 'equal Senate' optimistic

The prime minister's observations were music to the ears of Donna Dasko, co-founder of Equal Voice. The organization promotes the election of more women in Canadian politics, at all levels.

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Dasko helped launch the "Campaign for an Equal Senate for Canada" last month by releasing a letter urging Trudeau to fill all 22 vacant Senate seats with women in order to achieve gender equality in the upper chamber.

The letter was signed by 80 prominent Canadian women, including former prime minister Kim Campbell, current Tory senator Nancy Ruth, and former Liberal cabinet minister Sheila Copps.

Dasko told The Huffington Post Canada Friday that Trudeau is not "shying away" from the principle of equality.

"He's made some comments about how important it is for governing and so that's really where we come in because we are talking about one of our most important institutions of government when we are talking about the Senate," she said.

"I find it almost unfathomable to imagine that people can't imagine that there are 22 qualified women in this country."

When asked if her group would be particularly disappointed if Trudeau does not heed its advice, given the global attention he's received for hitting parity in cabinet, Dasko spoke only in optimistic terms.

"I'm not looking at any disappointment yet," she said. "I'm just hopeful that we're really going to make progress on it."

Dasko said it was a good sign the independent advisory board tasked with advising Trudeau on Senate appointments includes a number of respected women.

Thirty of Canada's 83 sitting senators are women, comprising 36 per cent of the chamber. Women would make up just shy of half of the 105-seat Senate if Trudeau fills each of the 22 vacant seats with women.

"I find it almost unfathomable to imagine that people can't imagine that there are 22 qualified women in this country," she said.

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Women currently make up 26 per cent of the MPs in the House of Commons.

Don't be 'afraid' of the word feminist: PM

The prime minister also sparked applause at one point during the panel when he said people "shouldn't be afraid of the word 'feminist.'"

"Men and women should use it to describe themselves anytime they want," he said, later adding that men play a key role in supporting and demanding a shift to equality.

U.S. non-profit organization Catalyst, which promotes the progress of women in the workforce, announced Friday it will honour Trudeau in New York City this March.

"Prime Minister Trudeau, through his intentional leadership and commitment to inclusion, sets an example that shows leaders throughout the world what is possible when they deliberately build diverse teams that reflect the marketplace and the communities they serve," Catalysist president Deborah Gillis said in a release.

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Watch the full panel below:

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Pascal Broze via Getty Images Female doctor checking the time

Proving it's easier to announce an action plan than implement one, parts of the B.C. health ministry's 2011 plan "to strengthen physician hiring and oversight and enhance public confidence" remain bogged down to this day in consultations.

Following the plan's release, the ministry engaged KPMG "to conduct a review of systems and processes for the licensing, credentialing, privileging and performance management of all physicians across the province."

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KPMG retained Toronto-based law firm Osborne Margo to undertake a legislative and regulatory review.

They detailed a litany of ills ailing the system. No news release or news conference with these reports.

KPMG didn't pull any punches: "Stakeholders were clear that they wanted a strong ministry who advised organizations what to achieve, provided performance management frameworks and accountability frameworks, with the organizations themselves allowed to conceive and implement the necessary governance processes and delivery mechanisms."

Those same stakeholders felt the ministry "falls short of this strong stewardship role."

Osborne Margo's report noted that "some existing legislative provisions impede or interfere with quality assurance and performance management functions."

Next up was the ministry's governance model for health authorities.

Under the Hospital Act, the boards of directors of the five authorities were responsible for approving physician credentialing and privileging.

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Appointed by the minister, each board has six to nine members.

They're paid posts. One chair pulled in $30,000 last year, and directors up to $20,000.

Only one, Wynne Powell, didn't accept his stipend.

KPMG pointed out that "Although boards receive reports and approve privileges, most directors noted that they had to have a high level of trust that the processes within the authority were being followed... [but] there is little evidence, by way of audit or similar routine checks, to give boards comfort that these processes have been followed."

They recommended the ministry "review governance models in other jurisdictions to establish whether a case could or should be made for a different model of governance within health care to reflect commercial leading practice and allow greater levels of direct accountability for executive management."

They acknowledged that "This may be complicated as the governance model in B.C. has been established for some years and there appears to be little appetite for change."

"More than four years after the government set out its action plan, there's been some progress, but few slam dunks."

Board members are better known for who they know than what they know about health care.

A handful have a health background, including former health minister Dr. Margaret MacDiarmid, but they're the exception.

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The rest include lawyers, accountants, foresters, a florist, a former broadcast journalist, financial advisers, civic politicians (past and present) and an urban designer.

Something else most of the directors have in common? The B.C. Liberal party.

Fifty-five individuals sat on the six boards last year, including the provincial health services authority.

Since 2005, 36 have made personal or corporate donations to the party totaling more than $230,000. Of the 19 who didn't, at least six have party ties.

If few board members have a health background, it shouldn't come as a surprise that KPMG found that "There (was) no common definition for 'credentialing' and 'privileging' within the system and they are used interchangeably, creating confusion."

In the "how not to get ahead in your career" department: performance oversight was being left to nurses, with physicians relying "on nursing staff to raise red flags or file a complaint if a physician is performing outside their approved scope of practice."

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Osborne Margo's review revealed "a lack of province-wide standards and requirements in a variety of areas relating to physician oversight and performance reviews."

They included: "Lack of defined, clearly communicated requirements for reporting physician performance concerns to the College and a lack of requirements for the review and criteria for privilege appointments across all categories, specialties, and practice settings and the reappointment process to ensure continued competency and quality of care."

Issues with the oversight of non-hospital medical surgical facilities were also flagged, including "a lack of rigorous, province-wide standards for providers and premises to ensure patient safety."

More than four years after the government set out its action plan, there's been some progress, but few slam dunks.

As B.C. auditor general Russ Jones put it in 2014: "It is often easier to identify and address smaller, preventable issues than to try to correct broader, more deeply embedded issues."

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Note: Political donations tabulated using Elections B.C. contribution database

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MARK RALSTON via Getty Images Armed riot police leave after confronting anti-Olympic protestors marching in downtown Vancouver on February 13, 2010. On the streets of Vancouver, around 200 anti-Olympic protestors clashed with riot police, smashing windows, kicking cars and throwing objects. The violence followed small-scale protests on the final leg of the Olympic torch relay Friday when around 100 demonstrators, upset over the financial and environmental impact of the Olympics, briefly blocked its route. AFP PHOTO/Mark RALSTON (Photo credit should read MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images)

This week, we learned that the Toronto Police Service will be ordering C8 carbine semi-automatic assault rifles for front-line police officers.

The assault rifles, produced by arms manufacturer Colt Canada for the Canadian Forces, will cost $2,500 each, and will be in patrol cars on the streets of Canada's largest city by May. Toronto becomes only the latest municipality to acquire a weapon described on its website as "battle proven in harsh combat environments."

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Late last year, Winnipeg police purchased a $400,000 armoured personnel carrier. A manufacturer video promoting the 14,000-pound, blast-proof Gurka MPV tactical vehicle with eight gun ports features heavy metal music and the words "make a statement" appearing on the screen.

Indeed, I have to wonder if that's what these purchases are all about -- making a bold statement about who makes the orders and who follows them.

Across Canada, local police forces are acquiring weapons and tools that are designed for military purposes, and policing is becoming increasingly militarized. The usual justification for ever more advanced weaponry is similar to Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders' -- it makes officers safer in an era of declining violent crime.

Crime in Canada is down so much that even the right-wing Fraser Institute has called for scaling back police departments.

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Some local police departments receive equipment donated by the Canadian Forces. That's how Windsor, Ontario and the mean streets of New Glasgow, Nova Scotia received armoured tanks free of charge.

Often, one event precipitates a build-up in arsenal and resources that the police keep long after the event is over.

Toronto Police purchased a Long Range Acoustic Device for the G20 Summit in 2010. Otherwise known as a sound cannon, this weapon was developed by the U.S. military to fight Somali pirates and Iraqi insurgents. It is powerful enough to make human bones vibrate, and it was used against Canadian citizens. It also continues to exist in the Toronto Police arsenal six years later.

"There is a difference between working with a community to build relations and foster trust, and patrolling a community that knows you are armed to the teeth with equipment that belongs in a combat zone."

The Vancouver Police Department continues to operate its secretive Military Liaison Unit, despite it being created to coordinate security for the 2010 Olympic Games with the Canadian Forces. The unit travels four to six times a year to a base in Washington State to train with U.S. Army and National Guard personnel, in effect receiving military training. Vancouver's MLU (there are others across the country) has seemingly no oversight or public accountability. In fact, even finding information on its existence is tough.

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All of this is a major problem because a free and democratic society demands a clear separation between the military and your local police department in order to function and to safeguard the liberty we take for granted.

When we think about the militarization of the police, we often think of police in the U.S. These photos of local police officers responding to protests in Ferguson or Baltimore using some of the $450 million worth of war gear donated by the Pentagon to local departments is the kind of thing that comes to mind.

While Canada's Department of National Defence does not donate nearly as much or as advanced military hardware to local police forces as its American counterpart, millions of dollars have been spent by local departments across Canada on equipment originally developed with war zones in mind.

Not only has this led to massive expansions in local police budgets in an age of austerity, it erodes the fundamental function of police departments: to serve and protect the community.

The basic ideas upon which modern domestic policing in Canada and the U.S. are predicated find their provenance in 19th century British Prime Minister Sir Robert Peel and his Nine Principles of Law Enforcement.

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They state: "the basic mission for which police exist is to prevent crime and disorder as an alternative to the repression of crime and disorder by military force and severity of legal punishment" and that "the degree of cooperation of the public that can be secured diminishes, proportionately, to the necessity for the use of physical force and compulsion in achieving police objectives."

There is a difference between working with a community to build relations and foster trust, and patrolling a community that knows you are armed to the teeth with equipment that belongs in a combat zone, not on their street. I argue that arming local police officers with the tools of a soldier is intimidation and amounts to compulsion.

The military and the local police department serve completely different roles. In an expensive race towards increasingly invasive and threatening policing methods, it has never been more important to remember that fundamental ideal.

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Fred Lee via Getty Images GOOD MORNING AMERICA - Spike Lee discusses his boycott of the Oscars on 'Good Morning America,' 1/20/16, airing on the ABC Television Network. (Photo by Fred Lee/ABC via Getty Images) SPIKE LEE

I'm really annoyed at the Oscars this year. It's bad enough that there were no people of colour nominated in the acting or directing categories last year, but two years in a row? That can't just be an unfortunate coincidence.

It's almost as though the many brilliant actors, writers, and directors of colour aren't even considered for the vote. It's like they don't even factor into the equation.

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I've been reading about how various people are saying that they'll stay home for this year's Oscars, including Spike Lee, but if it were up to me, I'd go a few steps further.

I'd invite everyone involved in the Oscars show to call in and say they aren't coming this year, and to explain why not. This would include the presenters, the nominees, and the host.

It's hard to create change, so something drastic needs to happen to show the powers that be that this is a completely unacceptable state of affairs.

I've always been ambivalent about the Oscars. The vote tends to be skewed toward the most conservative choices. When I'm rooting for the edgy performance or the "out there" film, the safe bet is often the one that takes home the prize.

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I can tolerate a lack of imagination in the vote, where people are often rewarded more for their years of service than for the quality of their current work, but I can't sit by saying nothing about the shocking lack of diversity in the pool of nominees, two years in a row.

It's time to explode the myth of a post-racial society. People of colour are being gunned down with alarming regularity by usually white law enforcement personnel, and riots in places like Ferguson, Missouri are becoming more and more common. It's clear that the tinder box is about to blow.

The rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, promoting awareness about extrajudicial killings of people of colour, is yet another indicator that we need to face the facts. In 2016, racism is alive and thriving in Canada and the United States.

The Oscars of the past two years seem to mirror the polarization that we're seeing out in the streets. While there are amazing performances by actors of colour, as well as terrific examples writing and directing, none of these are being recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

The Academy is a corporate entity, and as such, has a major focus on the bottom line. If change is difficult to enact, we may need to hit the Academy where it hurts most, that is, in the wallet.

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A full boycott of the Oscars by all the participants might be the only way to make the Academy sit up and pay attention. It might be a great way for those involved to say, "Wake up already!" to the Academy, so that we can finally start seeing some more equitable representation in the nominees for the various Oscar categories.

Even the Academy president, Cheryl Boone Isaacs stated that things need to change, and quickly, and while she's not in a position to call for a boycott, others are. And to that point, I urge the people involved to stand up and say "Hell no!" to the Oscars this year.

If the ceremony is cancelled, and the Academy is both embarrassed and takes a hit, financially, perhaps, just perhaps, a much-needed change can finally come, at least in this bastion of Hollywood conservatism.

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Radius Images via Getty Images Sunset over Beausoleil Island Georgian Bay Islands National Park, Ontario, Canada

What happens to people when they reach a certain age only to find themselves on a metaphorical raft as the mother ship sails away without them?

The television industry I entered 35 years ago was a different world. More channels meant more choices for consumers, but also plenty of employment opportunities. And for a couple of decades, it was feast time.

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Today, part-time, freelance and independent contractors are the norm. Layoffs and redundancies have hit the industry hard. Networks like OMNI have been stripped bare, CHCH TV in Hamilton declared bankruptcy, hundreds of workers were laid off by giants Bell and Rogers. The shock of being out of work for the first time in decades has hit long-time employees and their families hard.

I've been on this road for years, and believe me, it doesn't get any easier. The hardest part is when you get so far inside your own head that you start to believe that no one cares.

The world just doesn't want to hold on to you anymore.

But if you stop trying, you die.

Long stretches of unemployment, inability to pay mortgages and bills, escalating personal tensions, separations, divorces, estrangement. Rooming houses and cheap basement apartments in my neighbourhood are full of people like that. One day, some of them just don't get up. This happens. Every day. But I made a choice a long time ago.

I'm not going down without a fight.

This past year I've tried to re-invent myself as a writer of a TV drama series. About struggle and redemption. Connection to our own universal truths. The promise of the premise delivered in expressions of empathy for the characters and their plights.

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You write what you know.

By good fortune and through mutual friends, I formed a unique creative synergy with a well-respected, internationally experienced producer and a senior writer/show runner, both who have many scripts behind them. They seemed to like my ideas for a series. Gave me a chance to write the pilot. The first two drafts were done in my present material living conditions at Evangel Hall Mission, which certainly provides for some poignant material.

Putting together plot lines, character arcs, a proper treatment, a beat sheet -- it is all very intense. The writing is one thing, but the thinking, that's the hard part. And for that you need concentration.

Through more good fortune, (starting to see a pattern here? Coincidence is only God's way of remaining anonymous) an opportunity arose to spend a month on Christian Island, a native reserve for the Beausoleil First Nation on Georgian Bay. I found myself in a place of blissful isolation. Not quite a lonely trapper in the middle of a rugged wilderness, but it was very quiet.

Mike lives nearby and he would come over once in a while to say hello. His dog Zody liked to keep me company. So, I wasn't alone. And of course, there was the Internet.

MIT technology and society specialist Sherry Turkle spent 15 years putting together a book entitled Alone Together.

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In it, she says we begin to feel overwhelmed and depleted by the lives technology makes possible. "We may be free to work from anywhere, but we are also prone to being lonely everywhere," writes Turkle. "In a surprising twist, relentless connection leads to a new solitude. We turn to new technology to fill the void, but as technology ramps up, our emotional lives ramp down."

I wanted to be alone to write, to find empathy for my characters. To find the deep need or longing that forms their narrative. The more time I spent on the Internet, the less connected I felt.

But I found a special expression of empathy and what it means, in a most unexpected way.

The cottage has a DVD player and a small TV screen, with a modest collection of films and docs. One title caught my eye. Blind Love.

The director is Eli Rubenstein, a well-known and respected figure in Toronto's Jewish community as spiritual leader of congregation Habonim.

The film (CBC Documentary Channel) tells the story of a group of six blind Israelis and their guide dogs who travel to Poland on Holocaust Remembrance Day as part of the annual March of the Living.

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In one sequence, the tour guide describes the scene inside the Majdanek concentration camp. It was a particularly cold, damp and windy day, the blind people and their dogs huddled together listening intently. When it came to the showers, the guide described the exposed water pipes, the shower heads, the exact room where thousands had died.

For one woman, Liron Artzi, a blind attorney from Tel Aviv, it was all too much. She started crying uncontrollably.

Then a remarkable thing happened. Her guide dog, Petel, reacted instinctively. Nuzzling close to Liron, licking the tears from her face. You can learn empathy. Practice it. But this was empathy as existence. A natural form of being.

Blind Love in a place of Blind Hate. The universal truth of that moment is what good storytelling is about.

That scene stays in my mind as I keep writing and push for that place where my words align, my characters develop and my story is told.

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I'll get there.

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Newsnight

George Galloway has rejected a public inquirys conclusion that Vladimir Putin was "probably" involved in the murder of ex-Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko - claiming the process was riddled with imperfection and accusing the BBCs Newsnight of conducting a show trial.

The former MP, who is standing to be London mayor for the Respect Party, defended the Russian President for trying to restore a lot of the lost prestige in the country and being the most popular politician on the planet.

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The ex-Labour politician also likened Sir Robert Owens inquiry - which found Russians Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun to have deliberately poisoned the 43-year-old in London in 2006 by putting the radioactive substance polonium-210 into his drink at a hotel - to the inquest into the death of Iraq weapons inspector, Dr David Kelly, which has been blighted by cover-up theories.

George Galloway on Vladimir Putins probable involvement in the murder of Litvinenko #newsnighthttps://t.co/Lw91TDrsrQ  BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) January 21, 2016

Galloways remarks - condemning the British establishment while showing deep sympathy for Russia - was immediately criticised by UK MPs.

Ridiculous for @BBCNewsnight to put @georgegalloway on tonight as Putin apologist.  Bernard Jenkin (@bernardjenkin) January 21, 2016

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Galloway hopes to be London Mayor.Raises doubts of Putin's connection to Nuclear terrorism occurring in London.He's unfit for public office  Tom Blenkinsop (@TomBlenkinsop) January 21, 2016

Galloway, who has a show on the state broadcaster Russia Today, made no attempt to mask his unhappiness with the Newsnight report that preceded a discussion with himself and Alex Goldfarb, a friend of Litvinenko.

In his first response to the suggestion that the assassination of Litvinenko was probably approved by Putin, Galloway said: Carlsberg is probably the best lager in the world. But perhaps not.

He went on: The tragedy of this foul murder has been followed by another Whitehall farce. This is the Hutton Inquiry (which investigated David Kellys death) all over again. Secret evidence, closed sessions. You said at the top of the show the full story was now known, but it isnt. Large sections of this process were closed to the public and the media.

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Alexander Litvinenko on his deathbed (above) and before he was poisoned (below)

Presenter Evan Davis asked directly if he accepted the conclusions of the Owen inquiry. I dont, Galloway replied. I certainly dont. I no longer believe automatically - nor do many people in Britain - what the security services say.

I know polonium-210. I was at (late Palestine Liberation Organization leader) Yasser Arafats bedside. In France. When he died. From polonium-210. So I know how foul murder this is. And they are obvious suspects. But this process was so riddled with imperfection that it cannot be relied upon.

He went on that Newsnight had gone much further than the Owen inquiry. You are basically arranging a show trial here of a President of a country of which we have to do business, apparently careless of what the implications of it will be.

Galloway, a former Celebrity Big Brother contestant, said spies and their associates often end up dead, and the show hasnt sounded at all sceptical about the inquirys findings. Youve bought this hook, line and sinker, he opined.

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Asked whether Putins reputation was in the dirt, he replied: Youve certainly done your best to put it there.

Alex Goldfarb, a close friend of Alexander Litvinenko, talks to #Newsnight about Putin. https://t.co/IPLoYjbDUk  BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) January 21, 2016

He ended with a staunch defence of the need to retain good relations with Russia - and Putins leadership.

Galloway said: We need Putin - who by the way is the most popular politician on the planet with public opinion, polls in the 80 per cent.

Goldfarb interrupted: Like Stalin.

Unperturbed, Galloway continued: The reality is we need Russia. Russia was very popular in the West when a drunkard who was handing over Russias wealth to the oligarchs was in power. Its not so popular now that Russia has a strong President thats trying to restore a lot of the lost prestige.

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A London minicab driver who arrived in Britain from Afghanistan as an unaccompanied minor 12 years ago is now highly likely to be an Islamist extremist and a threat to national security, judges have ruled.

The 27-year-old, known only as M2, had his British citizenship stripped by Theresa May in 2014 after being tracked by MI5 but re-entered the UK just months later, an investigation by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, published on The Huffington Post UK today, has found. He is currently living in a west London flat under special bail conditions.

He had appealed the Home Secretarys decision but judges at the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (Siac) have now ruled that under the civil burden of proof, it is very highly probable that [he] is an Islamist extremist who has engaged in terrorist related activities by acting as a courier for an "important" al Qaeda commander in Afghanistan.

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They not only agreed with her move to revoke his nationality, but they also described his history as a child asylum seeker as curious.

Despite being legally dubbed as a probable al Qaeda courier, he has never been charged with any terror-related offence and he strongly denies he is an extremist. He now intends to appeal the Siac verdict, a court fight that could take years and cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of pounds.

The judges decision is contained in an extraordinary ruling that portrays the journey of a man who arrived alone in Britain as a child, who is said to have become a devout member of the Tablighi Jamaat Islamic organisation, who was tried and acquitted for a serious sexual assault charge, and who was trailed in the car park of a PC World store by a man named Tom from MI5.

The Bureau knows M2s name but is unable to publish it due to a court anonymity order. The case forms part of a long-running examination by the Bureau of secret evidence in UK courts, including for counterterrorism hearings.

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Some of the evidence against M2 was deemed so sensitive to national security that it had to be heard by the judges in closed sessions  meaning that neither he, his lawyers nor the public heard the full details of the allegations against him.

Born in 1989, M2 grew up with his relatively wealthy family outside Jalalabad, 150 km from Kabul. His older brothers worked in the family business, selling tractors and agricultural equipment.

A Street Scene in Jalalabad: M2 grew up outside the city in Afghanistan

When he was 14, he left Afghanistan, arriving in the UK in December 2003 when he claimed asylum. He was granted discretionary leave to remain in Britain for three years. No details about his asylum claim are contained in the Siac judgment.

He lived in the Southall area of west London, went to school in Hanwell and then college in Uxbridge. Aged 17, he spent his 2006 summer holiday in Saudi Arabia and three years later, he was granted indefinite leave to remain in the UK.

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About a year later he married his wife, who lives with his family outside Jalalabad. She has never lived in the UK.

In December 2011, still alone in the UK, he was granted British citizenship and started working as a minicab driver in west London. Less than six months later he again left the UK and spent the next six months away.

It was this trip that triggered the first of the question marks raised by the Siac judges.

He went first to to Mecca in Saudi Arabia and then to Afghanistan, where he visited his wife and family.

But the Home Secretary claimed he had an ulterior motive. Bank statements presented to the court showed that before he left London, his Barclaycard was used to spend 560 at Currys and PC World.

UK authorities argued he had bought electronic items to take to Afghanistan. Siac, after hearing evidence from another trip two years later, ruled it was highly probable these were for the use of terrorist associates.

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M2 denies this, saying the payments were made by a friend who used his card and that he did not take any equipment with him on that trip.

In the months that followed his return to London at the end of 2012, his life took a dramatic turn. By the end of 2013, after spending another six weeks in Afghanistan, he was on bail facing a significant criminal charge of sexual offending, according to Siac.

In January 2014, with a trial impending, he booked a one-way flight to Saudi Arabia, from where he intended to fly to Afghanistan.

M2 had his first encounter with MI5 in the car park of a PC World store in west London

He claims he was told his mother was seriously ill and that he was going home to visit her. He said it was her wish he should first go on a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia to say a special prayer for her good health.

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Shortly after booking his flight he had his first encounter with MI5  in the car park of a PC World store in west London.

He said he had gone to the store to collect a camcorder. However, as he left the shop, according to the SIAC judgment, he was approached by a man who asked to speak to him the man showed him a card indicating he was from MI5, and introduced himself as Tom.

The judges continued: They got in a car, which already had a man and a woman in it. Tom then asked M2 if he knew why he had been stopped. M2 said he did not. He was told there were some people who they thought may be harmful to our country.

M2 says he was asked if he could help and was shown four photographs. He says he recognised one person from his mosque, but not the other photos.

The judges said he was then asked if one of the photos was of a man called Mir Alam. M2 told Tom none of the photos was noticeably him.

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The name Mir Alam was crucial to the Siac hearing. He is M2s cousin and also married to M2s sister. The Home Secretarys case is Mir Alam is a significant terrorist with whom [M2] is a sympathiser and co-operator.

Theresa Mays lawyers argued in Siac that Mir Alam is an important associate of the important Al Qaeda leader Faruq Al Qahtani. They said Al Qahtani is said to be the leader of a small group of highly experienced Al Qaeda militants operating in Kunar and Nuristan Provinces, engaged in fighting the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan.

The Home Secretarys case is that M2 has at least indirect association with Al Qahtani and other al Qaeda extremists, in particular men known as Askar and Mufti Yusef.

It was these apparent links that interested MI5.

According to M2s testimony, the day after he was approached in the PC World car park, MI5 agent Tom rang him. He said Tom told him he was soon due in court for the alleged sexual assault charge and that if he tried to fly abroad as planned he could be stopped at the airport.

Toms warning proved correct. On Sunday, January 19 2014, he was stopped at Heathrow by the police. They told him his criminal case was due to be heard the following day and that his departure would be in breach of his bail. His was detained and the next day his bail was revoked.

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Lawyers for Home Secretary Theresa May argued that M2 'has at least indirect association' with al Qaeda extremists

The trial then went ahead days later. However, the jury was unable to reach a verdict and the Crown Prosecution Service then decided to drop the case against him.

Less than a fortnight later on February 12, he embarked on his trip. He went to Saudi Arabia for about 10 days and then to Afghanistan.

But as he came through Kabul airport, he faced more problems. He told Siac that after being stopped by Afghan police, he was quizzed by a representative of MI6. The Siac judges wrote that according to [M2], this was the man who had been sitting in the car with Tom in London.

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He was searched and he admitted to Siac that he was carrying a Macbook Air laptop, a new camcorder and three iPhones. The authorities let him continue with the products and he travelled with his uncle and a brother to his family home.

Soon afterwards, M2 said he developed a stomach illness and that he needed treatment from a hospital in Peshawar, 130 km away across the Pakistan border. He said while there he was told that his cousin Mir Alam and his sister were now living in the city so he arranged to meet.

He told Siac the entire trip was for family reasons, but Theresa May argues he had a different motive  to courier electronic equipment for use by... extremists.

The Siac judges, chaired by Mr Justice Irwin, said some of M2s evidence was not credible and that he was dishonest.

They also queried why M2 would plan a detour to Saudi Arabia when his mother was dangerously ill, as well as devoting a good deal of energy to acquiring electronic goods to take with him. The judges also concluded that medical records presented by M2 as proof of his mothers illness had been falsified.

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And while M2 claims the laptop he took to Afghanistan was meant as a gift for a local doctor, he admitted he never actually gave it to him and that it remains in the family home outside Jalalabad.

The judges wrote that this story was an elaborate lie to conceal the fact that he brought the computer for terrorist purposes.

Three months after his arrival in Afghanistan, Theresa May signed an order depriving M2 of his British citizenship. The British authorities believed that would prevent his return.

However, just two months later, he used his Afghan passport to travel first to Pakistan and then to London where he was detained. He then spent several months in a UK detention centre but was granted bail by Siac in December 2014 pending his pending his appeal last year against Theresa Mays deprivation order.

M2 has been living in a flat in west London ever since, albeit under strict bail conditions.

He is not allowed a computer or access to the internet and he is barred from working  but he can own a car.

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His appeal was finally heard at Siac last summer  a case reported by the Bureau at the time.

But in a judgement published at the end of last month, Siac dismissed his appeal.

The judgement does not give any details of what national security evidence was heard in secret, but states: There is considerable support in the closed evidence for our conclusions as to the national security case.

There is nothing in the closed evidence which runs counter to those conclusions.

His lawyers will now appeal against Siacs judgment. The appeal process will likely take several years and could cost the UK taxpayer hundreds of thousands of pounds.

M2's 'curious' asylum history

The judgement reveals that M2 arrived in the UK as an unaccompanied minor aged 14 in 2003 and was eventually granted asylum. Referring to this, the judges state: There is the curious aspect to his history that he arrived on his own and claimed asylum, although his parents and siblings all continue to live in Afghanistan and are clearly in business in a reasonably prosperous way.

They do not give any details about his asylum claim from 2003. They note he has spent long periods since then back in Afghanistan, that he has married there, that his wife lives with his large family and that one must wonder whether he ever intends to bring her to the UK.

What is Tablighi Jamaat?

The judgement states that M2 is an active member of Tablighi Jamaat, an ultra-conservative missionary organisation dedicated to the spread of Islam. M2 says he is a devout Muslim but denies he is an extremist. But Home Office lawyers argued in SIAC that while membership of Tablighi Jamaat does not mean someone is an extremist, public material has shown that some extremists, including for example two of the 7 July 2005 London bombers, were affiliates.

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Tablighi Jamaat has consistently denied any involvement in extremism.

What is Siac, the Special Immigration Appeals Commission?

The Special Immigration Appeals Commission hears immigration cases with a national security twist  if the Government is relying on sensitive intelligence or informants to deport someone from the country or deprive them of their citizenship, the appeal happens in Siac. Closed sessions, from which the appellants, their lawyers and the public are excluded, are relied on by the Home Office to present their sensitive evidence to the judges. Two of the Siac panel are judges, and one is an expert in matters of national security matter.
A comedian appearing on 'Question Time' dealt a bitter blow to Northern Irish conservatives last night, attacking the country's ban on same-sex marriage to rapturous applause.

Grainne Maguire, a comedian and writer who appeared on the show last night, condemned politicians for enforcing "state sanctioned homophobia" by refusing to usher in changes to the law.

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The devolved assembly in Northern Ireland had voted to legalise the policy shift back in November 2015, but was blocked by a coalition of parties, including the DUP.

An audience member hit out at the veto, asking to large agreement with others in the Belfast studio: "Isnt it about time Northern Ireland moved with the times and legalised gay marriage?"

Dimbleby was left smiling wryly, interjecting the enthusiastic clapping to quip: "Hang on, hang on - if you all applaud well have nothing to discuss if you all agree with him!"

"Isn't it time about time Northern Ireland moved with the times and legalised gay marriage" asked to applause #bbcqtpic.twitter.com/nNNKQwt1Ul  Aubrey Allegretti (@breeallegretti) January 22, 2016

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Maguire delivered a blistering attack on the politicians who have left Northern Ireland the only nation out of step with the rest of the UK's same-sex marriage stance.

"I just cant believe were still having this discussion," she deplored.

"Yesterday in Westminster, Tory MPs were discussing their use of poppers, yet in Northern Ireland we still have state-sanctioned homophobia. It's absolutely crazy."

The comedian was referring to a debate on proposals that would see 'psychoactive substances', including the legal drug poppers - used to make it easier for some people to have anal sex - banned.

Maguire continued, referencing her native country's recent legalising of same-sex marriage: "I am a proud Irish person but I have to think if youre being out-liberalled by the Republic of Ireland on a social issue, youve got something to worry about."

"If you're being out-liberalled by the Republic of Ireland on a social issue you've got something to worry about..." pic.twitter.com/tprmpAZq4J  Aubrey Allegretti (@breeallegretti) January 22, 2016

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"This is not something you want Northern Ireland to be famous for - you dont wanna say: Visit Northern Ireland, weve got Titanic, weve got amazing art and culture - and, were horrible to gay people.' Its ridiculous."

She was rebutted by the DUP's deputy leader, Nigel Dodds, who claimed he was not homophobic for helping buckle the same-sex marriage bill passing in Northern Ireland's Assembly.

"This is a very serious issue and it needs to be treated with respect," he said.

"I would be appalled with homophobia I think its wrong that anyone should describe being against the re-definition of marriage but being for the equal treatment of everybody as some kind of homophobia"
The French Prime Minister has urged caution in saying that all refugees will be welcome in Europe because within seconds the message will be shared on smartphone in the refugee camps of Libya.

Manuel Valls said that Europe would become totally destabilised if it were to take in every person fleeing war-torn states Iraq and Syria.

Speaking to the BBC, the politician said it is the very idea of Europe that will be questioned if it is unable to secure its borders.

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French Prime Minister, Manuel Valls, said that Europe could become "totally destabilise"

He said: The first message that we need to send now with the greatest of firmness is to say that we will not welcome all the refugees in Europe.

Because a message that says come, you will be welcome, provokes major shifts.

Today, when we speak in Europe, a few seconds later it will be shared on smartphones in the refugee camps of Libya.

Germany accepted more than 1 million refugees in 2015.

Unlike its neighbour, France has not opened its doors to large numbers of people entering Europe.

French president Francois Hollande has said that France would 24,000 refugees over two years.

Since the Paris attacks in November, tensions have become more fraught in France between those welcoming asylum seekers and far-right groups, such as the National Front.

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Heads of state within the European Union have clashed over opening their borders to refugees.

On Thursday, Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, said Europe needed to get a grip on this issue in the next two months, adding: We cant cope with the numbers any longer.

Austria announced on Wednesday that it planned to limit the number of people allowed to apply for asylum to 1.5% of its population over the next four years. This year, the number would be capped at 37,500.

Also on the Huffington Post UK:
Google reportedly paid Apple a massive $1 billion to make sure that it was the default search engine on the iPhone back in 2014.

The astonishing figure was revealed by Bloomberg which got hold of a leaked transcript from Oracle's copyright lawsuit against Google over its Android operating system.

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It has widely been believed that Google had some form of agreement with Apple that would allow the company to remain the default search engine on the hugely popular smartphone.

Of course in recent years Apple has distanced itself from the search company, replacing Google Maps as the default mapping service with its own Apple Maps app.

Since then it has even replaced Google with Bing as the default search engine on its Spotlight search feature which allows you to search the phone and the internet directly from the home screen.

The company also offers a choice of default search engines on Safari.
People under 35 are more likely to put their trust in estate agents and government ministers than older people, according to research which reveals surprising levels of faith in figures who have been accused of "ripping them off".

Despite rising rents, fears over extortionate letting fees and the government scrapping student maintenance grants, a poll reveals people in Generation Y - born between the early 1980s and early 2000s - are "significantly" more likely to trust groups seen by some as causing them to "never have it so bad".

The poll from Ipsos Mori has ranked Britain's most-trusted professions, with doctors ranked the most trusted, followed by teachers, judges and scientists. Politicians were the group most people didn't trust to tell the truth overall, while journalists and bankers also fared badly.

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Estate agents have been blamed for the "rip-off" letting fees which Citizens Advice said should be banned to protect private renters - most of whom are young people.

The country's housing crisis has hit the young hardest, with concerns over 'rogue' landlords and rising homelessness. More than a third of England's 14.3 million homeowners are now aged 65 and over and young people have been "frozen off" the property ladder.

Government ministers, also more trusted by young people, announced in 2015 that student maintenance grants will be replaced with loans and universities can raise their fees if they demonstrate "excellent teaching".

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And Generation Y also trusts business leaders more than older peers do, despite a youth unemployment rate of around 14% and the fact that top companies in some sectors still run on unpaid internships causes frustration with business leaders.

Here are the 24 professions, from most-trusted to least:

Most trusted jobs in Britain See gallery

Young people are also far less likely to trust the "ordinary man or woman in the street" than older generations. Only 56% trust the average person to tell the truth, a far lower proportion than the 68% figure for Generation X - people born between the early 1960s and early 1980s.

The findings could also make interesting reading for health minister Jeremy Hunt as his dispute with junior doctors over a proposed new contract continues. The most trusted professionals were doctors, while politicians are the group Brits trust least to tell truth.

Doctors have accused Hunt of lying about the number of stroke deaths, while Hunt has said the doctor's union has mislead them by "misrepresenting" the government's position.

Nearly nine in ten people (89%) of people said they trust doctors to tell the truth, while just one in five (21%) trust politicians to do the same.

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An airliner has had to abandon its Heathrow to Stockholm journey due to a bomb threat apparently made on Twitter.

The SAS 737-683 plane diverted to Gothenberg, Sweden at around 8.30am. The passengers are currently in the airport being debriefed.

SAS flight SK1530 from London to Stockholm diverted to Gothenburg because of a bomb threat https://t.co/nCmUprp8OWpic.twitter.com/P92QyNaN6o  Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) January 22, 2016

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Passenger Sam Barrett said the crew told passengers the diversion was due to "technical reasons".

He tweeted a picture of the plane being evacuated and the passengers on the ground in Gothenberg.

A bomb threat brought our plane down.. Now we have to wait  pic.twitter.com/EKHkSPJRaB  Sam Barrett (@TheBarrettR) January 22, 2016

@jack_sommers We had to divert to Gothenburg due to 'Technical Reasons'  Sam Barrett (@TheBarrettR) January 22, 2016

@jack_sommers Managed to get this one from my brother's phone! pic.twitter.com/uuKfFn7RiL  Sam Barrett (@TheBarrettR) January 22, 2016

According to Flight Radar, the plane took off shortly before 7am. Mr Barrett said there were around 80 passengers on board. The capacity of twin-engined Boeing 737-683 is 120.

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A spokeswoman for the airline told The Huffington Post UK she believed the threat was made on Twitter.

She said: "I haven't seen it so I can't really confirm it but apparently it was by Twitter."

She said the authorities in Gothenberg would deal with the plane while the airline would try to get the passengers on another aircraft to complete their journey.
'Spin, the French political thriller currently hooking viewers on More4 as well as world drama platform Walter Presents, is set to take another twist this week as the spin doctor Simon's wife Appoline looks set to reveal more details about the dead president's assassination.

READ MORE:

Meanwhile, Simon Kapita, the sometimes frazzled but never inelegant spin doctor brought back from New York to steer his dead presidents mistress into office, is still rebounding from the shock of seeing his former pupil Ludovic  the equally dashing Gregory Fitoussi  turned rival, and in control of the Prime Minister's rival election campaign.

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Bruno Wolkowitch plays Simon Kapita, a spin doctor who must return from exile to help his client win the French election

For actor Bruno Wolkowitch who plays silver fox Simon, reading these scripts and acting in the show (two series in, one more currently planned in France) has made it almost impossible for him to believe in the politics he used to read in the papers, watch on the news.

"Before I had little belief in political people, but after acting in this show, with those scripts, I dont believe in anything. I have no hope," he tells HuffPostUK, sounding remarkable unfazed by the prospect.

"We maybe have one in every 10 politicians trying to do well, but that's about it. I'm not being cynical, I'm being realistic.

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"I dont read papers any more. Maybe Simon is responsible for that, I stopped watching any news on French television. I only absorb very precise facts now. I dont watch to read about a point of view any more. I dont want to watch programmes swapping between people killed in tragedies and being excited about the new foie gras thats coming our way."

Gregory Fitoussi plays Ludo, Simon's pupil turned adversary

Despite his cynicism at what he is told, Bruno remains a huge fan of his own real president Francois Hollande, still most familiar in the UK for being photographed visiting his lover, on a moped, wearing an oversized helmet.

Although Im cynical, I still believe in Monsieur Hollande, because of his eyes. I know thats very romantic, he smiles, crinkling up his own.

I think hes good, clever, he knows a lot about politics, and he doesnt show it. Everyones been making fun of him, and I love to be on the side of the underdog."

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Simon Kapita holds for Bruno the same appeal, it would appear. I love that he is very good in his work, and that he has a private life, totally destroyed, that he cant manage, he chuckles. "That feels very familiar to me.

Its very difficult to play because I feel close to him, and usually I like to play the opposite type of characters. Im trying to do very well my job, and I have a fucked-up private life, which is a mess. (I cant really imagine a British actor telling a journalist this with quite the same nonchalance, somehow.)

If the state at deceitful political play has become a standard drama offering in every country it seems  I think writers were tired of writing only about doctors and policemen, and they had to find another universe, is Brunos take  does Spin offer something uniquely French that we can still recognise in this universal age of news and politics, I wonder?

I think its the real fragility of the characters, is what Bruno, as seemingly qualified as they come, has to say. These characters could really break. Especially Simon, you could authentically believe, wow, he could actually have a nervous breakdown, and this should end tomorrow.

For the sake of 'Spins big and expanding fanbase, lets hope not.

'Spin' continues on More4, and is available on WalterPresents, Channel 4's platform for the best of world drama.
Susanna Reid had us singing our favourite Sugababes song as she arrived at the Sun Military Awards on Friday afternoon.

No, not Freak Like Me.

Thatll be Red Dress.

Lady in red: Susanna Reid

The Good Morning Britain presenter looked stunning in the red lace number, which she accessorised with a simple black clutch.

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Well, we prefer it to her NTAs accessory (thatll be Piers Morgan).

She vamped up her look with a slick of red lippie and scarlet nails for the event at the Guildhall in London.

The Sun Military Awards, now in their eighth year, were created by the Prince of Wales and are organised and sponsored by The Sun newspaper, to honour the heroes of the RAF, Royal Navy and Army.

Also in attendance were former TOWIE star Amy Childs, Emily MacDonagh, Joey Essex and Karren Brady.

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Peter Andre and his wife Emily MacDonagh

Peter Andre, who has been a frequent guest at The Millies over the years, was also at the bash.

"It's an amazing event, he said. It's not like any other ceremony because it's celebrating that these guys are fighting for their country. Everyone is so proud of them."
A crowd has welcomed four Syrian refugees to Britain, greeting them at London's St Pancras Station after a landmark ruling said they could leave the Calais "jungle" camp to be here.

One of them, a 17-year-old has said he feels "so thankful" to be in the UK and had an emotional reunion with his older brother.

He arrived along with three other refugees who will stay in Britain while their asylum applications are processed.

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The crowds carried balloons and signs saying "Welcome To Britain", "Refugees Welcome Here" and "We Are One".

Crowds welcome refugees at St Pancras See gallery

The teenager, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, said he was overwhelmed with joy to see his brother again, as the pair were last together in war-torn Syria over 18 months ago.

He said: "I feel so thankful because I would never have imagined I would be reunited with my brother."

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The four refugees who arrived in London last night

"I want to thank the lawyers who went that extra mile to reunite me and my brother. I feel so thankful."

The boy's brother hailed those who helped bring his sibling to London, remarking: "They have saved lives."

He said: "I thank the British people who have helped and I want to thank the Government and the British press who have shed a lot of light on this issue.

"I thank every person who was part of this process - they have saved lives. They have saved people from death.

"They have saved lives and we will never forget all the hard work that went into it. I thank Britain as a whole."

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The refugee who had been seeking shelter in Calais was one of four Syrians who arrived in Britain on Thursday night, after their lawyers used human rights legislation to argue they should be immediately taken out of the "intolerable" conditions of 'The Jungle'.

An immigration judge ruled they were entitled to come to the UK to join relatives already living here.

The group comprised of three teenagers and a 26-year-old mentally ill man, all of whom were camped in Northern France for at least two months, PA reported.

They were greeted off the train and welcomed to Britain by around a hundred supporters that camped outside St Pancras in anticipation of their arrival.

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Backers of the four Syrians showed their support at St Pancras

The refugees will live with their relatives in the UK while claims for asylum are considered.

At least one of the group is expected to join relatives in Scotland.
A mother accused of taking her toddler to Syria to join the so-called Islamic State militants has defended putting the child in a black balaclava bearing the group's logo, claiming the boy just "loved wearing hats".

Tareena Shakil travelled to Syria from Turkey in October 2014, where she lived in the Isis stronghold of Raqqa before returning to the UK in February 2015. She was arrested off a flight landing at Heathrow airport.

The 26-year-old denies that her child wearing the balaclava represents any allegiance to the terrorist group, pointing out that in another image her son was wearing a Thomas The Tank Engine hat.

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Tareena Shakil

The photograph, found on her phone, was taken in a mansion where she and her boy were living with other single women in the ISIS capital of Raqqa, she said.

She said a group of youngsters, including her toddler, had gone into a grown-ups' room to get the hat and were taking turns wearing it.

The Press Association reports that the former college student said: "I said to a little boy, 'can I just put it on (my son)'?

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"He loved wearing hats," she told Birmingham Crown Court on Friday.

"That's why he's laughing in this picture, because he likes wearing hats on his head.

"It's nothing to do with what's printed on it, even if it didn't have that (Isis) logo on it, I would still have taken this picture."

Shakil denies a charge of joining ISIS and another allegation of encouraging acts of terrorism through Twitter.

Shakil also said a picture of a woman holding a pistol on her phone was actually of her ISIS minder, who watched her all the time she lived at the former city governor's mansion - known as the Maqqar.

She added that a comment home to relatives saying "I have a gun" was only sent because she was told what to say by the minder.

Shakil said the message was sent as part of a "test" because she feared a journalist was using the family member's phone to get information through about life under ISIS rule.

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Tim Moloney QC, her barrister, asked why she repeatedly told family and friends in messages back home: "I'm happy."

Shakil, of Beechfield Road in Birmingham and formerly of Burton-upon-Trent in Staffordshire, told jurors: "Because I didn't want my family to worry, at that point.

"I didn't know if I'd ever be able to escape from this place, so I had to go from day to day, it was a way of coping."

The former health worker flew from East Midlands Airport to Turkey on October 20 2014, telling friends she was going on a family beach holiday.

But she ended up living in the ISIS capital of Raqqa, after being driven across the border and Syrian countryside in secret.

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She returned home with her toddler in February 2015, when she was arrested off a flight landing at Heathrow airport.

Yesterday, Shakil said she had gone to Syria to live under sharia law but denied she was a terrorist.

Opening the case against Shakil last week, Sean Larkin QC for the prosecution said the woman was "radicalised" in 2014, and started posting messages and pictures in support of ISIS.

He said: "This was no spur of the moment decision. This was planned."

Mr Larkin added: "She travelled to Raqqa to set up her new life as part of ISIS."
Watch woman's vile racist rant at Asian women on tram I dont want you teaching any of my kids... I dont want no foreign nurse looking after me. A torrent of vile racist abuse this morning on the tram from a woman who declares herself a 'Salford lady'. #YouAintNoSalfordianLovehttp://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/watch-womans-vile-racist-rant-10763958 Posted by Manchester Evening News on Wednesday, 20 January 2016

An angered woman who launched a racist rant at two Asian women on a tram in Manchester has spoken out about the incident, blaming a severe consumption of alcohol on the attack.

Adele Mortimer, 54, claimed that she "must have been spiked" in the 'Gay Village', also known as Canal St.

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Mortimer was captured on covert video footage as she slammed the pair sat opposite her on Wednesday morning, "I dont want no foreign nurse looking after me, you think I want you to look after my care when I'm an old woman? I don't fucking think so love," she said.

The woman's rant was branded racist

The unemployed mother-of-four did apologise to the two Asian women at the receiving end of her abuse, speaking to the Manchester Evening News she said: Im not a racist. Im absolutely ashamed. Its not me. Its definitely not me.

Im absolutely devastated. I would absolutely say Im very sorry."

Also revealing to the paper: "I hadnt been out for a long time. I was out with a friend and we ended up in the Gay Village. My drinks must have been spiked in the Gay Village. I wasnt myself after that.

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The clip shows ticketless Adele railing against one of the women in particular who identified herself as a university lecturer.

"I dont want you teaching any of my kids, Mortimer says in the video.

The clip then shows a person who intervenes in an attempt to calm things down, but the 54-year-old continued undeterred, saying: "I dont give a fuck".

Moments later the tram stops and the driver tells the woman she has to leave the vehicle because she is upsetting the passengers.

The recording has now been shared with the police who say they are reviewing it to see if any offence has been committed.

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It has been shared wildly since the Manchester Evening News shared it on its Facebook page.
This month the Prime Minister, David Cameron, delivered a speech about life chances which included 'new' funding to improve mental health services. At the beginning of his speech, the Prime Minister stated that "our society can't be strong and cohesive as long as there are millions of people who feel locked out of it," a sentiment I completely agree with. However, I don't believe that these proposals are going to help the millions of people who are currently isolated by their mental illnesses.

One of the proposals that Mr Cameron mentioned was "introducing the first ever waiting time standard" for teenagers currently battling eating disorders, ensuring more of them can be seen within the first month of being referred (this goes down to a week in "urgent cases").

Anyone with a mental illness can tell you that waiting times are notoriously long and so a shorter wait time would be very welcome. But it does beg the question: why only teenagers with eating disorders?

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Anorexia is often called the most deadly mental illness, and any support given to those living with it is clearly a good thing. However, just over 1% of people in the UK are living with an eating disorder whereas approximately 25% are currently mentally ill. The Prime Minister himself said that "up to 1 in 4 of us will have a problem - perhaps depression or anxiety - this year alone," so what is being done for these millions of people?

Most are forced to wait months for specialist care, and, unfortunately, many will be left with care that is far from "specialist" or even helpful. Even within mental health services, there can be complete ignorance about the illnesses these professionals are expected to treat; I personally know of several people who have been told that they cannot be helped who are then sent away with minimal support. A similar concern about sub-standard care arises in relation to a "guarantee that more than half of patients with psychosis - the most serious cases - will be treated within two weeks." Again, shorter waiting times is a great thing, but what standard of treatment will they actually be given?

Despite these concerns there are many positive aspects of the proposals, one of which is to raise the profile of less talked about mental illnesses i.e. some of which cause psychosis. Therefore it's wonderful that people with lesser-known illnesses are being included in this widespread discussion on mental health. Similarly the Prime Minister's recognition of new mothers who are struggling with ante and post natal depression is also good way of raising awareness and hopefully reducing the stigma which surrounds them and all those with mental illnesses.

A problematic aspect this speech raises however, is the issue of funding. The specific focus on certain groups risks alienating the millions who suffer from more common forms of mental illness (like depression and mixed anxiety) who were not mentioned in the speech. At times it seems as though mental health services have to compete for funding in a way which cancer care doesn't. For example, no one would take money away from brain cancer research to give to that of lung cancer, so why is the funding for mental health services so specific? Both brain and lung cancer can be deadly, just like both depression and anorexia can be, and yet both of the physical illnesses receive ample funding (without intense scrutiny of the death rates) while it almost seems like the mental illnesses are forced to compete for the money, further highlighting former Health Minister Norman Lamb's point that the allocation of this funding "will leave a disparity between physical health and mental health at the heart of our NHS."

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Similarly, the announcement of 'new' funding for mental health services is misleading; the money Mr Cameron mentioned was actually announced last March and was simply being allocated in his speech, further upsetting people who believed it to be extra funding. The Prime Minister's hopes that the funding will help to "equal" the services and treatment provided is admirable but unrealistic. However, hopefully, it can go some way to improving the standard of care in places.

For example, the extra funding for psychiatric liaison services in A&E departments is very welcome. Instead of being sent home after hours of waiting, many people who are in serious crises may well receive good care from professionals who have the resources to provide it, and that will never be a bad thing.

This is also the same for Crisis Resolution and Home Treatment teams (a team of specialists who work on caring for people in mental health crises in their homes and communities), although they already do run 24/7, an extra 400 million will hopefully help them reach more people in desperate need of their help, and help free up space in hospitals for those people who need more intensive care.

However, it is disappointing that the money is currently being allocated to places that people consider a last resort. When really struggling with suicidal thoughts, for example, people go to A&Es as they feel like there is no other place that they can go. So while the extra funding and improvement of these services is a good thing, it is a shame that we are at a stage where that is most needed and that former steps, such as regular therapy or even mental health being taught (at a decent standard) in all schools, isn't getting an increase in resources this time, and I hope that the next round of funding will provide that.

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I will forever be an advocate for therapy as it helped me significantly; my clinical psychologist was a lifeline; but it can still be hit or miss, which needs to be improved as anyone who has access to therapy deserves a useful and good experience.

When I started therapy, my anxiety and depression were very intense and I hadn't been able to leave the house for months. A number of these months were spent on a waiting list for therapy and all of them were spent thinking about how I would never get better/be able to function at a decent standard again. However, with the support of my family and my clinical psychologist I did get better.

Now, I'm not going to pretend that therapy is a magical cure, because it isn't. It's hard work and scary but it's also something that everyone struggling with a mental illness deserves a good experience of.

During his speech, Mr Cameron talked about how the majority of people are able to look back and highlight a person or people who they can say is "the person who really found my passion. They're the one's who really made the difference for me"; I believe this should be the case for everyone with a mental health problem who accesses professional services. I'm very fortunate to be able to say it about my clinical psychologist but I know this isn't the case for everyone.
The latest Oxfam report on poverty and inequality in our dysfunctional world makes a depressing read. It shows that the chasm between the richest 1% and the rest of humanity has considerably widened in the last few years. One statistic that is truly shocking is the number of people whose wealth is equal to that of the poorest half of the world's population (3.6 billion people); this number has gone down from 388 in 2010 to 62 in 2015.

These 62 people have a combined wealth of a staggering $1,760 billion, averaging $28.387 billion per individual. What is the point of owning so much wealth? If these individuals were to use 95% of their wealth to lift billions of people from grinding, oppressive poverty they would still be billionaires.

Their material life style need hardly change, but will be enhanced by having the inner contentment and happiness that comes from knowing that you have made such a positive difference to the lives of so many. I would like to think this is what I would do if I were in their position. But, wait; is there something in our psyche that makes us behave differently once we start accumulating wealth? Does our love of wealth dull our compassion and empathy with our fellow human beings? The answer to these questions is likely to be yes, and in that case do we need psychiatric help once we acquire such wealth?

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These people have become members of the super-rich club, competing with one another on who has gone up and who has gone down in the table of the ultra-wealthy. This causes many of them anxiety and neuroses. This self-obsession renders them blind to the needs and suffering of fellow human beings in their own countries and beyond.

Imagine the contentment and happiness you feel when greeted by the smiles of adults and children as you visit places, knowing that your money has brought them such happiness and joy: children going to school instead of working to support a family simply to have enough to eat, health clinics to treat simple conditions to relieve pain and suffering, clean water to drink thus preventing disease and death that result from drinking contaminated water , shelter to protect families from heat, flooding and cold. The need is great, and the remedies are in our grasp if only the resources are made available.

Another issue highlighted by Oxfam is the use of tax havens. It states:

"As a priority, [Oxfam] is calling for an end to the era of tax havens which has seen increasing use of offshore centres by rich individuals and companies to avoid paying their fair share to society. This has denied governments valuable resources needed to tackle poverty and inequality. It is three years since David Cameron told Davos that he would lead a global effort against aggressive avoidance in the UK and in poor countries, yet promised measures to increase transparency in British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies, such as the Cayman Islands and British Virgin Islands, have not yet been implemented."

I really find it difficult to understand how democratic governments can tolerate the existence of tax havens. They serve no purpose other than to help the powerful, be it individuals or corporations, to hide their wealth, thus avoiding making contributions to their societies whose resources they used to create their wealth. Tax havens also help assorted despots, royals and the corrupted elite in the developing world to hide the wealth they pillage from their own countries. Oxfam reports that: "30 percent of all African financial wealth is estimated to be held offshore, costing an estimated $14billion in lost tax revenues every year." Let us shut down these relics from a bygone age that steal wealth from the impoverished to the benefit of the already bloated few.

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We are having a referendum on Britain's membership of the European Union; here is a suggestion for another one: Should Britain continue to allow the existence of tax havens in its overseas territories and crown dependencies? Let the people decide.
Owen Jones' piece today is just another reminder of the huge disparities between London and the rest of Britain. Be it for politics, culture or business - the capital has a monopoly. The consequences for London is a city which cannot afford its people and a people that cannot afford its city. Yet in a city where a living wage will barely cover a one-room apartment for a family to exist in -people continue to flock. For work in national and international media, politics and art, to name but a few concentrated industries, London is the only choice. Whilst an average salary in Wales stands at 19,000, the mean in London is 35,000. With Britain increasingly focused into one city, London's housing will continue to suffer and the nation outside of the capital will collapse. For the sake of both London and Britain - there must be concerted effort to put an end to the capital's monopoly on Britain.

A first step could be to run Britain from elsewhere. If parliament chooses to temporarily close for repairs, the option of running parliament elsewhere in London should be ruled out - instead it should relocate further afield. The legislature could be temporarily hosted in any arena in Britain and would gift thousands of jobs to whichever city it was placed in. The option of relocating the civil service could also be explored. Certain departments have already partially moved from Whitehall and in the age of the internet there is no need for the offices to each be located on the same SW1 stretch. To alleviate costs, they could occupy former council buildings left empty by local government restructuring in the current government.

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A tourist industry would naturally develop in any areas where politics existed - but there could be increased incentives to attract visitors. There is no need for the next London Eye or Millennium Dome to be planted in to the capital. In France, the Eurostar has recently been extended to Marseille - on our side we could stretch further afield too. Better inner-city transport links could follow. When cities on the scale of Leeds currently have no options other than buses, London will remain dominant. Trams and light-rail, metros and cable transits areall ideas that could be developed. Developing new means of inner-city transport from scratch would also create the opportunity for green transport to be utilised. Jobs would follow, businesses would be keener to develop and people would far sooner relocate.
Having recently noticed that almost all the blogs I have been following for the past year or so are predominantly female travel bloggers, I set out in search of the world's best male bloggers to see what sort of adventures they were up to. Following much research, this is my list of the world's fastest rising male travel blogging stars, bloggers who have only had their site up and running for exactly 3 years or less.

10. Rob and Chris, 2 Travel Dads

Rob and Chris Taylor's site, 2 Travel Dads, follows their travels around the US with their two adorable sons. I literally can't get enough of their photos, as they explore the country with their kids in tow. What I love most about their site is that they prove having a family should never stop you from continuing to travel and go on adventures. If you are looking for inspiration and travel tips for family travel in the US, as told by two of the loveliest guys on the internet, this is the blog for you.

9. Will Hatton, The Broke Backpacker

Who knew budget travel could cause such extreme levels of wanderlust? Will Hatton, The Broke Backpacker, has lived in India for a year, worked in bars in Vietnam, herded goats in the Holy Land and conquered the highest navigable pass in the world armed with just a poorly drawn map and a packet of ritz crackers. If you are looking for a blog literally exploding with stories of adventure told by a fearless, budget backpacker, this is the blog for you.

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8. Erick Prince, Minority Nomad

When someone has traveled to over 87 countries, you know they will have a good story or two to tell! A former US Air Force Aerospace Engineer, Erick Prince now spends his name traveling to fascinating destinations that many people might overlook. If you are looking for beautifully written trip reviews, a travel perspective with a difference, and incredible photography that draws the reader right into the story, this is the blog to follow!

7. Stefan and Sebastien, Nomadic Boys

Besides the fact that Stefan and Sebastien pretty much make me laugh every time they upload a photo, these guys have grown a huge social media following of over 65,000 fans , write extremely comprehensive and useful guides to gay travel and have an excellent eye for photography. If you are looking to follow the adventures of two adult mermen as they munch their way around the globe with constant smiles on their faces and new friends by their side, this is the blog to follow.

6. Derek Freal, The HoliDaze Blog

The good, the bad and the ugly, this brilliant blog by Derek Freal tells it like it is...including that time a tweet landed him in an Indonesian jail. From partying with Japanese rappers is Tokyo and starring in a film in Indonesia to doing the unthinkable and driving over 2,000 miles across India in a Rickshaw, this guys has some ridiculous travel stories to tell.

5. Kyle Jennermann, Becoming Filipino

Set up in 2014 when intrepid traveler Kyle Jennermann decided to pack up his life in Canada and move to the Philippines, this blog has grown from strength to strength over the past few years and now has an eye-popping 270,000+ fans on Facebook. From the minute you land on this site, you immediately become aware of Kyle's inherent love and passion for all things Filipino. This blog is filled with hilarious and heart warming adventures and is a great testament to the friendliness of Filipino people.

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4. Justin Carmack, True Nomads

Set up by Justin Carmack after he quit University and set off to travel the world (79 countries and counting!), Justin is now exploring the top 100 dive sites, one dive at a time. He has hiked through ancient temples in Jordan, come face to face with humpback whales in Mozambique, dived with bull sharks in Mexico and has snorkeled in a crater in Hawaii. This blog is an incredible resource for diving fans.

3. Shane Dallas, The Travel Camel

Shane Dallas, unlike most other travel bloggers, only likes to go where others will not. Shane argues that North Korea is one of the safest travel destinations you will ever visit, that Afghanistan is the most beautiful country he has ever seen and that rarely-talked-about Somaliland is actually a pretty interesting place to visit full of slobbering camels and incredibly kind people. A fascinating writer and must read blog.

2. Nathan Allen, I Dreamed Of This

Nathan Allen always dreamed of travelling the world but when he set down in the Philippines back in 2013 he quickly decided there was no place he would rather be. His blog and photos of life in the Philippines is pure dreamy and most definitely helping to promote the country as one of the world's best tourist destinations, with his posts often reaching a few million people!

1. Drew Binsky, The Hungry Partier

Ever wondered what it would be like to pack up your life into a backpack and head off on an epic adventure, eating and drinking your way around the world? Well, that's exactly what Drew Binsky 'The Hungry Partier' is up to right now and it has grown him a huge social media following of over 89,000 followers, who have helped him to party in over 150 cities in 40 countries.
I've reached that stage in life where my children's homework becomes ever more mystifying to me. I didn't think this would happen until secondary school. I certainly didn't think it would happen in Year 2. But already my tiny baby boy is bringing home instructions for "story maps", "interactive pictures" and other things that we never did at the age of 6. And today in the bath, he confused me further still.

"School have abandoned said" he said, as he stuck an Octonaut to the edge of the bath with a flannel.

Nope, I had no idea what that sentence meant. I asked him to repeat and clarify. He didn't clarify. Instead he just repeated: "School have abandoned said".

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It took me a while but I think I worked it out - school have told the Year 2s that they can no longer use the word "said" in their creative writing. Instead, the superheroes that my boy writes about have to "cry", "exclaim" or "utter" things.

"What does "utter" mean?" he asked

"Same as "said"" said my husband, succinctly.

Now, I get the reasoning behind this ruling - they want kids to spice up their writing, use a variety of words and really consider what their word choice. But they're six. They should still be working out how to write a story, not worrying about whether they've used the same word twice in a paragraph. He has been taught story structure - beginning, middle and end - but that was in Reception, when ideally he should have still been working out the difference between curly /k/ and kicking /k/. Now, my daughter is doing phonics in the nursery, at the age of three, and my son is having to dig out the thesaurus to do his homework.

It's safe to say that the education system has gone a little crazy at the moment. The new curriculum demands everything sooner and younger and schools have to meet government demands. Metaphors and long division in Year 1. Now it's all WOW words and joined up writing.

I can't say I'm a fan of WOW words...it tends to lead to overly fussy writing which at best is clumpy and at worst incomprehensible. My niece and nephew wrote a thesaurus-ed bit of Harry Potter fanfic when they were at primary school and replaced any boring words with more exciting variants. Hence the sentence: "Fred and George said Hogwarts was disgusting...but you could never affirm those two".

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Ludwig Wittgenstein wrote that "The limits of my language mean the limits of my world." The quantity and quality of the words at our disposal are related to the quality of our thought. The more limited our vocabulary becomes, the less able we are to contemplate, articulate, discuss and develop potentially important concepts. You are what you eat. This is a significant issue for the business world, where it seems that we're constantly reminded of how limited we have become in our use of language. According to Forbes, the most annoying and enduring examples of corporate nonsense include "empower", "scalable", "ecosystem", "solution", "leverage", "vertical", "robust", "synergize", "impact" and - perhaps ironically - "learnings".

Never mind. Here are some rare and beautiful words that might just add some colour to the language of business:

1. EUCASTROPHE!

(A sudden and favourable resolution of events in a story)

This term was coined by J.R.R. Tolkien in 1944 to mean the surprisingly happy turn in a story which pierces you with a joy that brings tears. In the context of business, the word might serve as a healthy reminder that many of our successes are largely down to luck and therefore frequently a hair's breadth away from complete and utter disaster. Good news should always be welcomed. But as you raise the champagne to your lips, "Eucastrophe!" may be the word you mutter under your breath... particularly if you suspect that fortune played a significant role in your success.

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2. CONCINNITY

(the skilful and harmonious arrangement or fitting together of the different parts of something)

This word captures the beautiful logic many of us strive for in our work... even though we may only occasionally achieve it.

3. VELLEITY

(A wish or inclination not strong enough to lead to action)

This word originates from the Latin word velle, "to will". It's a term you might use in everyday life to describe an idle daydream. Or an empty promise to go for a drink with an old friend you've just bumped into. The business world abounds with velleities, where they are more typically referred to as "mission statements".

4. MUMPSIMUS

(an idea that is adhered to although it has been shown to be unreasonable)

A malapropism that is attributed to an illiterate priest who mistakenly used the word in place of the Latin term sumpsimus: 'we have taken'. When a member of his congregation corrected him, his response was to dig in his heels: "I will not change my old mumpsimus for your new sumpsimus." I'd argue that a mumpsimus is a more elegant term for the limiting beliefs that are entrenched within many organisations; in more extreme circumstances we tend to call these "toxic assumptions".

5. BRABBLING

(To argue loudly about something inconsequential)

For many of us, this term may function as a shorthand for "board meeting".

6. MERAKI

(To do something with soul, creativity or love)

Possibly the opposite of brabbling. Meraki is a modern Greek word that describes the essence of yourself that you pour into your work. It's an antidote to the notion that working for a living is necessarily a soul-destroying activity. Especially useful if you happen to work in marketing.

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7. SONDER

(The realisation that every passer-by has a life as vivid and complex as one's own)

What's the difference between a consumer and a person? A consumer is defined through the lens of a transaction. He can be loyal. He can be lapsed. But he's more of an economic unit than he is a person; a ridiculously simplified, one-dimensional caricature. The same can be said of an employee. It's an unfortunate aspect of business language that we tend to use dehumanising terms like these to refer to people; they create an unnecessary distance between businesses and the audiences they rely on. A business that thinks in terms of "people" rather than "consumers" and "employees" is far more likely to establish genuine, lasting, valuable relationships.

8. VERSHLIMMBESSERN

(To make something worse when trying to improve it)

An occupational hazard for anybody in a senior management position, or anyone who works as a consultant.

9. SCHILDERWALD

(A street crowded with so many road signs that you become lost)

A frequent problem. In some cases, this happens when an overactive internal communications or HR team feels the need to "brand" every single initiative they create, up to the point of organisational paralysis. It's just as common on packaging, where every single benefit and feature of a product has been afforded its own visual device, until the product itself becomes lost in a forest of marks, icons and callouts.

10. KINTSUKUROI

(The Japanese art of repairing pottery with gold or silver)
If the Tories think that a Labour ditching of Trident would make them unelectable, then they really are ignorant to the concerns and interests of ordinary British people.

Propped up through their newly-established alliance (only marginally less sinister than the Nazi-Soviet pact, 1939) with the BBC, the government have embarked upon an extraordinarily misguided campaign; smearing their allegedly pacifistic opponents for proposing the scrapping of what is an absurdly expensive and wholly unusable submarine system.

The sheer vituperation aimed at politicians such as Jeremy Corbyn (Nicola Sturgeon is let off for strategic purposes) in recent weeks over British retention of Trident has been architected with such intensity that it may seem as if there are no patriotic, reasoned arguments for maintenance cancellation. This, of course, is nonsense, but the extremity of the accusation may persuade those more gullible into buying it.

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What the Conservative Party doesn't seem to understand particularly well is that, despite its macho image and devastating military potential, Trident is nothing more than an outdated Cold War defence weapon lacking any substantive geopolitical purpose. Though it may very well have been useful in the twentieth century, its vocation in 2016 is hugely overestimated.

International efforts designed to discourage both the armament and proliferation of nuclear weaponry, such as the 1968 Treaty of Non-Proliferation (NPT), the Lahore declaration and New START (most recent treaty signed by Russia and the United States) have ensured that a globally-coordinated effort to stamp out both usage and production is underway.

By abolishing Trident, which itself is a grotesque technological monstrosity anchored off of the shores of country predominantly opposed to the wielding of a nuclear 'deterrent', Britain will save 2bn each year (around 6% of the annual defence budget) otherwise spent on procurement and other maintenance.

It is also, rather more poignantly, time that the United Kingdom and its politicians faced up to the fact that we are no longer one of the world's superpowers. As a country, we are not powerful, influential or sovereign enough to justify usage, and due to signed treaties and our ridiculously strong bond with American foreign policy, Britain could only conceivably make real use of Trident with the permission of the United States.

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The deterrent argument is futile, too. Just whom are we deterring against, and how so with such weaponry? A petty struggle over the Falklands with Argentina is certainly no mandate for missile launch, we've interfered far too much in the Middle East already for politicians to even think about it (we hope), and so the only plausible existential threat to the UK should emanate from countries with conflicting interests inside the European Union.

Unless we are prepared to aim our egotistical little toy at Brussels, I can hardly think of scenario in which usage would be necessary. Britain has the rather useful geographical advantage of island status, making invasion particularly difficult, is a faithful member of NATO and isn't (nor has she ever been) in the remit of Moscow's political interest. Yes, the geopolitical landscape is volatile and can change rapidly, but the aggressive pillaging of both our sovereignty and independence cannot, it seems, be overcome so easily.

The recent development of North Korea's nuclear programme is unsettling to say the least, but just how far along the process is before the rogue state can be considered a nuclear power and just how large the country's stockpile is, remains to be seen. I suspect both China and the United States will cooperate extensively on the matter to avoid inflating tension on the Korean peninsula. Efforts to denuclearise Iran in 2015, too, were fruitful and perhaps the only truly positive event to occur in the Middle East in some time.

So David Cameron and his smarmy front-benchers would do well to consider that maybe, just maybe, it would be time for Britain to let this one go, and instead use the money to restore our ransacked and fabulously trained Armed Forces (cut to the bone by the very government scaremongering about defence). Any true patriot of any country will likely acknowledge the significance of retaining a meaningful and properly-resourced Navy, Army and Air Force.

The true power and legacy of a nation has absolutely no bearing on the size of its nuclear arsenal; rather it has much more to do with how its citizens are treated and how it defends itself without invoking the very real threat of humanitarian and environmental annihilation.

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Militants have once again raided an educational institution in northwest Pakistan. The attack at Bacha Khan University has seen over 21 people killed and many injured after the militants stormed the University campus. The militants were met with resistance from security forces and after a period of intense gun fighting, the situation was brought under control.

The latest attack was designed to maximize casualties and create terror and chaos in Pakistan since there are 3,000 students enrolled at university. Only just over a year ago, the militants had barbarically murdered 130 children in an Army Public School in Peshawar that shook both Pakistan and the world to its core.

The mastermind of the Peshawar attack, Umar Mansoor, of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed that this cold-blooded rampage was in response to the military operation that Pakistani Army is carrying out against the Taliban in the region, and that four attackers had been sent by them to the university. However, a spokesperson from the TTP, Mohammad Khorasani, issued a conflicting statement shortly after Mansoor's claim, in which Khorasani condemned the attack, terming it "against Shariah".

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Whether TTP is responsible or not remains to be seen. However, whilst in Pakistan a couple of weeks ago, I noticed that Daesh were growing its supporters amongst the TTP sympathisers. The new generation of militants seem to be ISIS-inspired. Last month, Pakistani Counterterrorism unit captured a group in eastern Punjab who had allegedly pledged allegiance to the self-declared caliph of the so-called "Islamic State", Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Baghdadi has spoken on camera only once. But his address and the numerous propaganda videos released by ISIS are being watched by young people across the globe, including Pakistan.

The Taliban group, who failed to establish an "Islamic State" in Afghanistan, is now looking towards ISIS-governed territories for inspiration. ISIS also seems to be offering its moral support to these sympathisers. Whereas ISIS has been critical of Al-Qaida and the Afghan Taliban in its official magazine, 'Dabiq', it has been silent on the Pakistani Taliban and Pakistani sectarian organisations.

Needless to say that ISIS is not Islamic and it is certainly not a state. The horrific actions of these terrorists are neither Islamic nor legitimate, in any way shape or form. Targeting innocent civilians in educational institutions is satanic, and not Islamic. From the actions of the terrorists, it is clear that they are politically driven agents of hate and aim to cause as much carnage as possible. They are enemies of our civilisation and human progression through education.

Islam values human life and dignity, and the Noble Qur'an prohibits any persecution or killing of innocent human life in all its forms: "... whoever kills a soul ... it is as if he had killed mankind entirely. And whoever saves one, it is as if he has saved mankind entirely" (5: 32). Violent extremism, terrorism and taking lives of innocent people is against the teachings of Islam. One can only infer that those who commit such terrorist activities are against Islam and Muslims.

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The Terrorists are not following any version of Islam, as some people claim. The modern-day extremists/terrorists are known as Khawarij; (literally 'those who went out' the fold of Islam). They emerged in 7th century (less than 40 years after the passing away of the Prophet (peace be upon him)). Essentially, when they emerged Khawarij had political ambitions and wanted to impose a distorted version of Islam on Muslims. The modern day terrorists have similar aspirations. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) has prophesised that such people will not be following Islam and will not be admitted to Paradise because of their ill-actions.

These terrorists must be brought to justice by the government of Pakistan. Executions and military operations, although important, will not on their own prevent the spread of terrorism and potential recruitment of extremists. The breeding grounds of such khawarij, ideological and monetary sponsors of such extremists must also be exposed and dealt with according to Islamic law and the law of the land.
"History is not written for us, but by us."

This could easily be a quote from any prominent member of the Leave campaign - perhaps by Nigel Farage, Kate Hoey or Daniel Hannan. Shockingly however, it was once said by David Cameron in front of a packed out room at the 2014 Conservative Party Conference, and is said to be one of his favourite quotes of all time.

Sadly though, as we start our journey through 2016 it is becoming clearer Cameron does not really believe we should write our own history, but quite the opposite...

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On the cold morning of the Bloomberg speech in January 2013, a day which now seems a lifetime ago in the world of politics, David Cameron offered a very small glimpse of hope to Eurosceptics across the UK. He promised an In - Out referendum which would settle the question surrounding Britain's relationship with the EU once and for all.

Under a great deal of pressure from UKIP, this promise became a half-hearted attempt at winning over some of his dithering Brexit-supporting backbenchers. Cameron said he would renegotiate for an EU which was "more flexible, more adaptable, more open - fit for the challenges of the modern age."

Quiet on the content of his plans, Cameron waited nearly 18 months before offering the public any sort of insight... and did his proposal offer the British voters the option of a more flexible EU? Not at all.

With other leaders of EU Member States becoming frustrated with Cameron's inconclusive discussions with them, they demanded Britain's requests be made clear - and in writing. Finally, he was forced to present a letter to President of the European Council, Donald Tusk. The proposal was described by the infamous Jacob Rees-Mogg as "thin gruel".

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Ultimately Cameron planned to ask for the removal of a few words from the EU's constitution, and for written reassurance the EU understood some of its Member States, especially the UK, do not wish to ever be part of the Eurozone.

This letter was surely going to have Juncker and his colleagues in Brussels quaking in their boots.

Now, with Cameron looking for a final deal for Britain at the February summit of EU leaders, it seems as though even the more fruitless points of his original letter to Tusk have been hushed away. Instead, the Prime Minister seems to be focusing on one point, and one point alone - the withdrawal of benefits to new migrants to Britain for a period of four years.

But even this now comes with many a compromise.

There have been suggestions in the press over the last few days Cameron will have to accept the creation of an EU army in return for his proposals on benefits. So Brussels is trying to push the UK into 'more EU' at a time Cameron is supposed to be ferociously trying to cut back on our integration with the Union in order to convince undecided voters Britain is better off staying In!

It doesn't take 'rocket science' to understand a deal which will lead to Britain ending up with more EU than it started out with, will be a huge disaster. In a scene almost resembling something from a comedy sketch, David Cameron seems to be accepting any deal given to him in a desperate attempt to bring something back to 'con' Britons into voting to remain in the EU. It would almost be funny if the subject wasn't something as serious as the future of our country.

It has also been suggested David Cameron is ready to cut back on what seems to be his only remaining demand - restricting migrants' benefits for four years. Unbelievably it is now being mooted he will accept a mere one-year restriction.

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Cameron seems to have given up pushing for any sort of real deal for Britain. In fact, towards the end of 2015 he seemed to pop open the champagne over legislation which meant Netflix could be used by British tourists in any EU country, but at a cost of course. It is all too typical of the EU to give peanuts with one hand and peck away with the other.

The Prime Minister said at the World Economic Forum in Davos this week he is in 'no rush' to get a deal with Brussels. It seems all too likely this is because they are playing hard-ball, and not because Cameron wishes to spend more time pushing for what is right for Britain.

Regardless of the actual outcome to the Prime Minister's renegotiations, you can bet your bottom dollar you'll see Cameron on TV in the next three months or so waving a signed piece of paper from Tusk extolling his hard fought battle 'to get the best deal for Britain' or some other cliche to that affect.

And this can only lead to one possible outcome - a Leave vote.

The British voters are not naive. They will see through Cameron's failed deal. They will see Britain is not writing its own history, but instead is being dragged into a deeper federal political union - with laws and regulations being dictated by the EU parliament.

This referendum is not about staying in or leaving the EU. It is about going against the status quo and quitting the Union, or being entrenched in more Brussels doctrine than ever before.

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If David Cameron really is a firm believer in creating our own history, instead of coming back to the UK with a flimsy insubstantial deal, he should hold his hands up and say: 'Sorry guys, I tried my best - but failed. They just would not listen'.

Instead, Cameron will insist we remain a member of a Union which is not in the slightest bit interested in letting us create our own economic and political path. This has been made clearer and clearer throughout this whole renegotiation process.
Compare and contrast:

"If you're not able to speak English, you're not able to integrate. You may find, therefore, that you have challenges understanding what your identity is and you could be more susceptible to the extremist message that comes from Daesh." - David Cameron, speaking on the Today programme, 18 January.

"The Liberal Jewish synagogue in St John's Wood has appointed a French rabbi for the Gallic part of its congregation, which has grown rapidly." - London Evening Standard, 19 January.

As you may have seen, Mr Cameron also said that immigrants who have been admitted to the UK on five-year spousal visas will be required to take a language proficiency test after two and a half years. If they fail, "they can't guarantee that they'll be able to stay. It is tough."

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So let's see if I've got this right. Muslim women who are immigrants - which nearly half of them are not, having been born in the UK - are at risk of deportation unless they learn English. French Jews who have settled in London, on the other hand, get a French rabbi, because, presumably, they find it difficult to follow services in English. But no one says anything about deporting them unless they learn to speak English.

I find this - what's the polite word? - puzzling.

Of course immigrants to the UK, wherever they come from, should learn to speak English. Just as the 300,000-400,000 Brits who have settled in Spain should learn to speak Spanish. It does nothing for social cohesion if minorities are unable to communicate with majorities.

But to suggest that Muslim women who for whatever reason cannot speak English are somehow 'susceptible' to the blandishments of jihadi zealots is - I'm struggling for the polite word again - surprising. Even the former chairman of the Conservative party, Sayeeda Warsi, who was the UK's first female Muslim cabinet minister, used words like "lazy, misguided, and sloppy" to describe the Prime Minister's linking of linguistic shortcomings and potential terrorist sympathies.

Myriam Francois-Cerrah, of the Centre of Islamic Studies at London University's School of Oriental and African Studies, wrote in the Daily Telegraph: "You don't assist marginalised women by criminalising them ... Conflating Muslim women with immigrants, and immigrant Muslim women with extremism, is not simply factually wrong but morally irresponsible. And to link the "isolation" of some Muslim women to extremism is to not simply isolate them further, but to entrench an implicit link between Muslim women and extremism."

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So the Prime Minister's remarks make no sense. First, because some of the most isolated Muslim women in the UK tend to be those who come from the Indian sub-continent, especially from the rural Sylhet region of Bangladesh. They are not very likely to drop everything to join IS in Syria.

And second, because threatening to deport them is hardly likely to reduce their 'susceptibility' to zealots preaching hatred, or to help their children feel comfortable growing up in the UK. Much more likely is that it will reinforce the impression that the government regards Muslims, whether born here or not, as some kind of alien presence. And that, of course, is exactly what IS claims. Not clever, Mr Cameron, not clever at all.

Community groups working with marginalised Muslim women agree that much more needs to be done to help integrate them fully into British society. According to Shaista Gohir of the Birmingham-based Muslim Women's Network UK: 'Learning English means women can engage with their children and schools, access local services, know their rights and engage with their neighbours.'

But she also argues that to tackle alienation effectively means more than just language lessons. The real issues, she says, are patriarchy and misogyny among Muslim men. "It's not just among a few spouses stopping their wives learning English, it's among those running institutions like mosques and local councillors ... These out-of-touch men are making decisions about women's lives, and these are the sorts of barriers that women face. That's the real problem for women, regardless of how good their English is."

So if Mr Cameron is serious about wanting to encourage integration, he should be helping Muslim women's groups to tackle these much more difficult issues. Multi-culturalism and an acceptance of different cultural traditions should not be used as an excuse for the acceptance of oppression or discrimination. Refusing to allow a woman out of the house or to learn English in east London or in Birmingham is just as wrong as sexually harassing women on the streets of Cologne.

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And I cannot think of a worse way to encourage Muslims - men and women - to feel that they are accepted as valuable members of a vibrant British society than by threatening to deport vulnerable women. Mr Cameron's remarks were crass, counter-productive, and damaging.
Croatia has been one of the most remarkable and surprising up and coming travel destinations in recent years, and with a long stretch of coastline and dreamy islands overlooking the turquoise waters of the Adriatic, it's blossomed as a sunny destination for island hoppers. But there really is much more than just island life here in Croatia and so much more than meets the eye. Here are 6 undiscovered things to try the next time you visit...

1. The Waterfalls of Rastoke

Plitvice National Park is a given for anyone visiting Croatia but if you're looking to avoid the crowds, head off the beaten track to the village of Rastoke. This historic village has little waterfalls dotted along the Slunjcica River so it's the ideal place for a day hike.

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"Plitvice National Park" by mattharvey1 is licensed under CC BY 2.0

2. Istria by Car

You'll definitely want to hire a car if you're visiting Istria; there's so much to see and so little time. The thing is, this vast region in the North West of Croatia is completely disregarded by most British travellers. In fact, a large percentage of its tourists are Italian or Austrian and they happen to be sitting on Croatia's best kept secret. Fly into Pula and take a coastline drive, stopping at all the beautiful hilltop towns such as Rovinj, Porec and Novigrad.

"Istra / Istria" by BockoPix is licensed under CC BY 2.0

3. Oyster Tasting in Peljesac

The Croatians claim that their oysters are the tastiest in the world so a visit to Croatia means that oyster tasting is a must. Head to Ston (Peljesac) which is the country's largest peninsula and here you will comes across the fields of oysters which have been plucked fresh from the sea. The peninsula is also home to a number of wineries so you can taking a wine and oyster tasting tour to tantalise your taste buds.

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"Ston_1" by Mario Fajt is licensed under CC BY 2.0

4. Relax in Postira

Annnnnd relax.....this sleepy little spot on Brac Island is the type of place to come to when you fancy doing nothing. As in absolutely nothing. But with such idyllic views of the sea and so many authentic little eateries dotted along the marina, you won't want to do anything but sit and soak up the sun. Many have branded it a retirement destination so if you want peace and quiet, you'll definitely find it here. Just be sure to taste the Brachia olive oil; it's divine.

"Road to Postira 2010" by jojo is licensed under CC BY 2.0

5. Dine like the Locals in a Konoba

Pizza is popular in Croatia and the country's Italian influences are abundant in many tourist restaurants. But don't let the tasty stone baked pizza bases and the smell of fresh tomato seduce you; a Konoba is where you really want to be. A "Konoba" is a restaurant found in someone's basement and is usually family run so if you want to taste authentic Croatian cuisine, seek one out nearby.

"IMG_0794" by johnny.andrew.sherwood is licensed under CC BY 2.0

6. Go Shopping in Zagreb

So many tourists land at Zagreb International, grab their bags, and head off to a pretty island destination without second thought. But Zagreb has plenty of hidden charm for those who have time to discover it. For the young and hip, the city boasts an underground boutique fashion scene and even has its own Zagreb Fashion Week, taking place every SS and AW. Looking for a cool, chic shopping destination in Croatia? Make sure you don't miss out on Zagreb's one of a kind boutiques.

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If an animal takes a selfie, does it own the rights? While this may sound like a modern day riddle, it is in fact a question that a Californian court had to consider after People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) took issue with a Welsh photographer's picture of a monkey.

In 2011, wildlife photographer David Slater visited Indonesia to take pictures of endangered crested macaque monkeys. During the shoot, he left his camera - which he'd set up to take pictures - unattended on a tripod. Soon enough, a macaque named Naruto began monkeying around with the device - operating the camera and capturing a presumable world-first in a gallery of animal selfies.

Unsurprisingly, believing he owned copyright in the photos, Slater began publishing the pictures and using them for financial gain. However, he was later met by opposition from PETA who argued that the monkey itself owned the copyrights to the images as it, rather than Slater, had activated the camera shutter - effectively creating its own artistic work.

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A key question arose from this dispute: can an animal hold the rights to any artistic works it has created in the same way that a human can?

PETA certainly seemed to think so, filing a lawsuit in September 2015 in which they argued that, as the monkey should own the copyright as the image's creator, all profits arising from the photograph should be reassigned to the animal's wellbeing.

This argument was quashed swiftly by a San Francisco court, who ruled that the monkey could not own the rights to the image, as there is no indication that the US Copyright Act extends to protect the interest of animals.

Whilst the monkey might not own its pictures (at least not in America), Slater could still lose out on profits. Many argue that, due to the complexity of the situation, neither he nor the monkey could fairly own the copyright, positioning it instead as a public domain work.

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Slater, who maintains that he is the author of the photos, having 'engineered' the situation in which the selfie was taken, has found himself in a particularly grey area of law, one which he claims has cost him 10,000 in lost copyright fees due to free use of the image.

The case remains unresolved, and it looks as though Slater's humorous monkey selfies have landed him in a peculiar legal loophole, in which he is effectively engaged in a legal battle against an animal, with no clear solution in sight.
BEHROUZ MEHRI via Getty Images

When my daughter Malala won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 my pride was immeasurable. The award has elevated the profile and importance of education for every girl and every child globally. This year, I believe Abdul Sattar Edhi - one of the greatest humanitarians of our time - deserves such an honour. He is one man who has turned his childhood vision into a living reality for millions of underprivileged people in Pakistan. That is why I have started a petition on Change.org - my daughter Malala was the first to sign it - urging world leaders to nominate such an outstanding man.

Many people will not know Edhi's remarkable story - Edhi grew up in poverty and today he owns just two pairs of clothes and still lives in the slum he has called home since childhood. But from here he has established the largest health and welfare system in the developing world, providing healthcare to millions of people across Pakistan and has helped thousands more around the world.

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When Edhi was just a teenager, a flu epidemic broke out in his town killing many. He collected donations and set up a tented hospital. From there he continued, taking small donations from thousands of people - and using it for good.

Edhi now runs a fleet of over 1,800 ambulances driven by an army of 18,000 volunteer drivers that bring emergency aid to people across the country. It is said to be one of the world's largest volunteer led ambulance services. Edhi's ambulances are now a famous sight in Pakistan - often heading to dangerous places where others fear to go. He has trained thousands of doctors and equipped medical centres across the country.

In a country where terrorism, poverty, natural disasters are a regular phenomenon, the Edhi Foundation's help is often life-saving. Just this month Edhi volunteers rushed to help those hurt in violent attack carried out by the Taliban on Bacha Khan University. The Edhi Foundation also gives shelter to orphaned children and the destitute, free medical care, drug rehabilitation services and disaster relief.

Edhi treats all regardless of wealth, gender, class or religion. Over the years the Edhi Foundation's efforts have extended to providing relief missions world over including the Lebanon civil war in 1993 to Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

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Edhi's rise is a phenomenal one, perhaps one which would be more suited to the silver screen of a blockbuster movie, not one on par with the lived reality of one person who has single handily clawed his way from begging on street corners in the sprawling metropolis of Karachi to achieve some incredible acts of selflessness.

I was in middle school when I first heard of Edhi, now 88. For me and millions of youth growing up in 1980's Pakistan he was the hope we clung onto amidst the chaos of military coups, strikes and operations.

Many philanthropists get rich before beginning the charitable act of giving. Edhi was born with the most richest and giving heart. With the passage of time heroes I once heard or read about have faded away and remain but a memory in my mind. There are a few whose legacy will live on for generations, Ghandi the leader, Jinnah the statesman, Bacha Khan the reformer, and Mother Theresa the healer. It's a rarity to find someone in our lifetime who stands shoulder to shoulder with these giants. Edhi does.

Edhi not only epitomises the very creation of the Nobel Peace Prize based upon Sir Alfred Nobel's principles of social activism through peaceful means, he is a shining example of how sheer fortitude can create a legacy of real change.

I hope his story is heard loudly when the nominations for the 2016 peace prize draw to a close in the coming weeks. In these bleak times whereby we are deluged with humanitarian crisis after crisis, the world can learn much from Edhi's simple yet profoundly illuminating code of conduct - 'live and help live'.

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Sign Ziauddin's petition for Edhi here: change.org/abdulsattaredhi
The National Rifle Association has taken aim at Australia's gun buy-back scheme in a dramatic scare ad drawing on 20-year-old information.

The video, which takes clips of US President Barrack Obama and his potential democrat successor, Hilary Clinton, was posted on Youtube by the powerful pro-gun lobbyists on Wednesday.

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"Certainly, the Australian example is worth looking at," Mrs Clinton says in the clip, before the video goes on to show a montage of newspaper clips from 1996-1997 alerting people to the impending buy back.

The gun buy back and tough national firearms legislation was introduced by the Howard Government in 1996 in response to the Port Arthur massacre, after Martin Bryant killed 35 people during a shooting spree in Tasmania's south.

A service will be held at Port Arthur on April 28 to mark the 20th anniversary of the massacre.

Changing Australia's gun laws has attracted limited political support -- despite the fact there have been no mass shootings since.

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Pro-gun NSW Liberal Democrats senator David Leyonhjelm appeared in an NRA video slamming Australia as a "nation of victims".

"We love the NRA here in Australia amongst us gun owners and in fact we rely on you guys to also help us hold the line in Australia," he says in the clip.

The video, which so far has more than 18,000 views and is likely aimed at a domestic U.S. audience, has attracted furious agreement and opposition in its comments section.

"My guns were actually purchased, primarily, to oppose my Government if ever it becomes too oppressive," wrote one user, while another said: "After reading those headlines in those Australian papers, just imagine our government trying that shit. Americans would go insane with rage. Not going to happen here without a blood bath".

Yet another wrote: "Australia confiscated all guns, and it worked. No more mass shooting since the confiscation. NRA is just as bad as ISIS in terms of spreading violence. Its so sad that in US gun ownership is a right, but healthcare is a privilege. Shame on you NRA".

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But perhaps the sagest comment came from a user called normanfacy:

"Watch Aussie comedian Jim Jefferies talking about gun control Lol you will love it," normfacy wrote.

We tend to agree.

Jeffries hits the mark on "gun sense" with this deadly line:
TORSTEN BLACKWOOD via Getty Images Australian Federal Police (AFP) guard 525 million USD worth of crystal methamphetamine ('ice') and heroin after smashing a Hong Kong-based international drugs syndicate in Sydney on July 31, 2012. It was the largest haul of ice (306 kilograms) in Australian history and the third-biggest heroin bust (252 kilograms) and was the culmination of an 11-month operation following a tip-off from the US Drug Enforcement Administration. AFP PHOTO / Torsten BLACKWOOD (Photo credit should read TORSTEN BLACKWOOD/AFP/GettyImages)

Authorities have seized more than 150 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine and 340 kilograms of pre-curser ephedrine, smuggled into Sydney in bar stools and soup packets.

The drugs, which arrived in three shipping containers from China, hold a street value of up to $167.5 million, with authorities claiming the pre-curser ephedrine could be used to manufacture more methamphetamine.

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Drug authorities identified the substances and -- in an undercover operation -- delivered them to the provided addresses in Peakhurst and Kingsgrove, where they arrested four people.

A 57-year-old woman and 50-year-old man were among the four people taken into custody on attempted drug smuggling charges on Thursday.

A 26-year-old man was arrested at Narwee after authorities continued the undercover delivery.

Based on intelligence we identified a significant concealment of methamphetamine and ephedrine and our officers were able to disrupt this attempt to illegally import a very large amount of drugs, said Australian Border Force NSW Regional Commander Tim Fitzgerald.

The four arrested were expected to face Sydney Central Local Court on Friday for the attempted smuggling charges, with a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

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The Australian Federal Police and Chinese National Narcotics Control Commission joined forces in November -- in an initiative called Taskforce Blaze -- to investigate the trafficking of methamphetamine into Australia.
Clinton visits Simpson College Jan. 21.

PHOTO BY: Aimee Schnebeck

INDIANOLA, IOWA- Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton appealed for support from Simpson College students during her visit to Simpson College Thursday.

She assured Iowans that she has the experience to work with Republicans to find a "common ground," while improving U.S. policies related to healthcare, education and immigration.

Clinton also threw jabs at Sanders, who is popular among young liberals, about his lack of support in the Senate with previous healthcare plans.

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She made these statements at the private college just 20 minutes south of Des Moines.



But millennials in Iowa have not made up their minds just yet. Several young men and women are seeking out each candidate in hopes of forming their own opinion.

For these younger Iowans it is not just about the party. They are focusing on the candidates and the issues they promise to address during their presidency.

Robert Lyons, 21, a registered Republican, is leaning toward Clinton.

"I'm a Hillary person, the first thing that draws me to Hillary is that she's such a strong leader she's had all this foreign policy experience she's been in the white house and Washington D.C. for so long," Lyons said.

Lyons isn't sticking with his party's choice; he's choosing the candidate that he feels is the most qualified to rule the country.

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Tre Loge of Baxter, IA (bottom right) listens to Hillary's plan for education in the U.S.

PHOTO BY: Aimee Schnebeck

Tre Loge, 21, is another millennial who firmly believes in Clinton's abilities not just in foreign policy but in education, as well.

"I'm here because I'm a huge supporter of Hillary and her beliefs on education. Both of my parents are educators so I really think education is a strong part of our nation," Loge said.

These two millennials may have chosen a candidate, but there are others who are undecided and are taking their time to decide.

Abbi Carlson, 21, is passionate about immigration and healthcare. Both of these issues have attracted her to Sanders and Clinton.

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"I came out here just to hear what Hillary has to say, I went and listened to Bernie speak earlier this year so I wanted to see the similarities and differences between the candidates," she said. Carlson hoped to gain a more in-depth understanding about what Clinton plans to achieve if she becomes president.

"I thought she had a lot of really good things to say, but I'm still undecided and still trying to figure it out," said Brian Williams, 22, "I'm progressively minded and I like what she has to say in terms of getting things done."

Although the millennial had not yet made up his mind, he was not fond of the Republicans.

"I don't know. It's kind of a circus on the republican side right now," Williams thinks it is important to attend these events to listen to the candidates for him self.

Clinton talks education at Simpson College, Jan. 21

PHOTO BY: Aimee Schnebeck

Gabe Schabilion, 20, is not tied to a party either.

"I'm an undecided voter so I'm trying to get as much information from each candidate that I potentially can before I make my final decision," Schabilion thinks the voter should be looking for a candidate who represents issues that matter to them rather than a party.

"As an informed voter you should try things about those candidates that you don't certainly agree with before jumping on the band wagon.

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Although millennials cannot decide yet, they are continuing to seek out the candidates and learn more. Iowans are taking full advantage of their location.

"I'm doing my research so that I'm an informed citizen when I go to caucus." said Celena Krause, 21, "I'm taking advantage of living in the Des Moines area and the perks that gives us as voters." Krause thinks most Iowans are more active in politics due to their proximity and ability to access the candidates easily.

Several young Iowans think they are more politically active than other millennials in the U.S. Lauren Myers, 21, says age is not a factor.

"You're a part of a bigger system... you can speak up even though you are young," Myers hopes that Americans will become more involved with their government no matter their age.
LIMA, PERU - JANUARY 22: A Peruvian woman with her child climb up a steep path along the plastic water containers and tanks on the dusty hillside of PachacAtec, a desert suburb, on January 22, 2015 in Lima, Peru. Although Latin America is blessed with an abundance of fresh water, having 20% of global water resources in the the Amazon Basin and the highest annual rainfall of any region in the world, an estimated 50-70 million Latin Americans (one-tenth of the continent's population) lack access to safe water and 100 million people have no access to any safe sanitation. Complicated geographical conditions, unregulated industrialization and massive urban poverty, combined with deep social inequality, have caused a severe water supply shortage in many Latin American regions. (Photo by Jan Sochor/LatinContent/Getty Images)

Global leaders are meeting at the World Economic Forum this week to discuss how to improve the state of the world and address its most pressing challenges. There is much to talk about -- not least the global inequality crisis, which has come to the fore in recent years in the wake of the economic and financial crisis of 2008-2009. Inequality is growing at an alarming pace and poses a serious risk to economic growth, the fight against poverty and social stability.

For evidence of the destructive impact that extreme inequality has on sustainable patterns of growth and social cohesion, we need look no further than Latin America and the Caribbean. Although the region achieved considerable success in reducing extreme poverty over the last decade, its still-high levels of income and wealth inequality have stymied sustainable growth and social inclusion. In Latin America and the Caribbean, inequality is preventing a return to an inclusive growth trajectory in the face of daunting external conditions. ECLAC projects the region's growth at 0.2 percent for 2016.

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Although income inequality has fallen in recent years, Latin America remains the most unequal region in the world. In 2014 the richest 10 percent of people in Latin America had amassed 71 percent of the region's wealth. If this trend continues, according to Oxfam's calculations, in just six years' time the richest one percent in the region will have accumulated more wealth than the remaining 99 percent.

From 2002 to 2015, the fortunes of Latin America's billionaires grew by an average of 21 percent per year -- an increase that Oxfam estimates is six times greater than the growth of the whole region's GDP. Much of this wealth is held offshore in tax havens, which means that a sizeable portion of the benefits of Latin America's growth are being captured by a small number of very wealthy individuals, at the expense of the poor and the middle class. This extreme income concentration and inequality is also confirmed by analysis of the tax data available on personal income in selected countries of the region.

Safeguarding the advances the continent has already achieved and ensuring inclusive and sustainable growth must be a priority for all the countries in the region. That is why the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and Oxfam are committed to working together in order to promote and build a new consensus against inequality. There is no silver bullet, but there are measures which can be taken, which together can make a big difference -- and tax reform is a good place to start.

Poorly designed tax systems, tax evasion and tax avoidance are costing Latin America billions of dollars in unpaid tax revenues -- revenues which could and should be invested in tackling poverty and inequality. Additional revenues are key for public investment in reducing some of the region's historical gaps such as its highly segregated access to quality public goods in education, health, transport and infrastructure.

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Many countries' tax systems depend heavily on consumption taxes that place the burden on low- and middle-income groups. In addition, the region's tax systems tend to be biased towards labour income instead of capital gains and usually lack any property and inheritance tax, thus increasing wealth concentration, which is even greater than income concentration. Revenues from personal income tax are relatively low, particularly from the highest-income groups. ECLAC calculates that the average effective tax rate for the richest 10 percent amounts to only five percent of their disposable income. As a result, the tax systems of Latin America are six times less effective than European systems at redistributing wealth and reducing inequality.

Governments are also letting multinational companies off the hook when it comes to taxes, thanks to overly generous discounts on income tax rates in many countries across the region. By some calculations, the effective tax burden for multinational companies is half that of domestic firms.

Adding to this are the appalling rates of tax avoidance and evasion on the continent, with corporate income tax losses ranging from an estimated 27 percent of potential corporate income tax revenues in Brazil to roughly 65 percent in Costa Rica and Ecuador. ECLAC estimates that evasion and avoidance of personal and corporate income tax cost Latin America more than US$ 190 billion, or four percent of GDP, in 2014.

An archaic and dysfunctional international tax system also provides wealthy companies and individuals with ample scope and opportunity to avoid paying their fair share of taxes.

With the critical loss of revenues from commodities and many countries' economies now stagnating, the people of Latin America simply cannot afford for such a large proportion of the continent's income and wealth to go untaxed. Ensuring everyone pays their fair share of taxes according to their means is absolutely essential if we are to finance sustainable and inclusive growth, not just in Latin America but across the world.

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In order to meet the Sustainable Development Goals, all governments will have to take concerted and coordinated action to build a tax system fit for the 21st century. Governments must put in place more progressive tax systems at home, and they must strengthen global and regional cooperation to reduce harmful tax competition between countries and prevent the "race to the bottom." The countries of Latin America and the Caribbean could also strengthen property tax schemes or reintroduce inheritance tax. All nations must also work together, under the auspices of the United Nations, to overhaul the international tax system so that multinational companies and rich individuals can no longer exploit tax loopholes or hide their wealth in tax havens to avoid paying their fair share of tax.

So what can the political leaders and decision makers from the private sector and civil society take from the Latin American experience as they meet in Davos? The lesson is that tackling inequality must be part of a new social compact to improve the state of the world, and building a fairer tax system must be part of any plan to tackle inequality and boost inclusive growth.
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By Amol Mehra and Claire Schachter

On January 16, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) verified that Iran had implemented its key nuclear-related measures described in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and targeted at ensuring Iranian nuclear capability was limited.

As a result, the United States lifted certain nuclear-related sanctions on Iran, including prohibitions on transactions and investments by U.S. entities or persons with the Government of Iran or persons subject to the jurisdiction of the Government of Iran. Other countries quickly followed suit.

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In the U.S., officials have emphasized to congress and the public that the deal was never intended to lead to a change in Iran's domestic politics or regional relationships; the objective was always only to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. Unfortunately, this framing misses an important opportunity to use the leverage of investment as a tool for human rights promotion.



The theory is simple: if every business that trades with or invests in Iran is required to implement policies to protect human rights, including through its supply chain, foreign investment will not trigger a 'race to the bottom.' Instead, higher standards will ripple through the Iranian economy as respect for human rights becomes a norm in business.



Ensuring corporate accountability in practice is more difficult, but fortunately the U.S. already has a blueprint from which to build a human rights reporting and monitoring framework for eventual investment in Iran: the "Reporting Requirements on Responsible Investment in Burma."

When the U.S. government decided to permit new investment in Burma, it also required investors to report on their activities to the Department of State. The requirements are twofold: First, any U.S. person undertaking new investment involving the Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE) has to notify the State Department.

Second, any U.S. person whose aggregate investment in Burma exceeds $500,000 has to report annually to the State Department on "Human Rights, Worker Rights, Anti-Corruption, and Environmental Policies and Procedures," relating to their operations and supply chain in Burma, along with other policies pertaining to responsible investment. Companies must summarize or provide documentation of policies and procedures dealing with due diligence, community and stakeholder engagement, and grievances from employees and local communities. Companies also have to report on their arrangements with private security providers.

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The Burma requirements allow for companies to submit two versions of their report; one remains private, the other is for public distribution. The public report does not include information on "Risk Prevention and Mitigation," which means that information regarding actual impacts on human rights caused by a company's operations, and whether any steps have been taken to prevent or minimize identified risks, is not available to the public. Moreover, companies can request that additional information be exempt from public disclosure and can omit information if they do not have a formal policy in place. Sanctions for failing to report are also not spelled out, among other shortcomings. These loopholes should be closed to the greatest extent possible in the next iteration of responsible reporting requirements.

Despite these flaws, now that certain financial sanctions against Iran have eased, the U.S. should develop and implement similar reporting requirements for Iran. Other governments should follow suit. The stakes are especially high because of Iran's vast oil and gas deposits - human rights violations are particularly pervasive in the extractives industry.

Granting licenses for investment conditioned upon human rights performance should be a go to approach for governments when easing sanctions, and not just for Iran. Cuba, another country long-isolated by U.S. sanctions now adapting to a dramatic shift in U.S. policy, has a number of documented human rights concerns. Human Rights Watch has reported that the Cuban government engages in repression, intimidation and arbitrary arrest of human rights defenders, independent journalists and other critics. The Cuban economy presents a smaller-scale opportunity to refine and implement responsible investing requirements and to ensure that U.S. businesses bring their values with their investments.

U.S. companies and their competitors from other world markets are poised to enter and transform the Iranian economy. When they do, they could also have a transformative impact by evidencing and demanding respect for human rights. Whether they actually have this kind of impact will depend on if and how governments choose to hold them accountable. Attaching reporting requirements to any licenses granted would be a step in the right direction, and Burma provides a valuable blueprint to that effect.
Patients wait to be seen. Photo credit: Soft Power Health

This is a guest post by Dr. Jessie Stone, founder and director of Soft Power Health.

It's ten minutes to five on a Friday afternoon. The clinic has seen over 100 patients today, normal for a weekday. We are winding things down to close when a woman and her daughter approach me outside, and the woman begins talking very quickly. Despite having spent 12 years in rural Uganda as the founder and director of Soft Power Health, I am still working on my fluency in Lusoga, the local language on our side of the Nile. I ask one of the nurses to translate for me.

As it turns out, this lady and her daughter have travelled all day to get to our clinic from a small village deep in the neighboring district of Kamuli, a notoriously underserved area. They began their journey early this morning by walking for three hours to public transport that would get them a shorter walking distance to us. Since the Ugandan government healthcare system has failed to help them, they are in search of other options. Though government healthcare is supposed to be free, it is not, and if you can't pay up front, you don't get treated. Many people spend a lot of money on healthcare and still don't get the treatment they really need. This is painful to see, especially when people are in dire circumstances.

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I look at the daughter, who appears about 10 years old, and see that she has a handkerchief tied around one leg, just below her knee. Initially, I think it's probably not too serious since she walked here and does not appear to be in pain--however, every time I think that, I remind myself of the countless times I have been completely flabbergasted by what I have seen. There is not a day that goes by that I don't see something I've never seen in a medical pathology textbook: advanced tumors or widely-progressed infections or extreme cases of malaria. Part of the reason for this is that decent healthcare is not readily available for the vast majority of the population, so problems that start off as simply treatable can become quite complicated.

Patient counseling. Photo credit: Soft Power Health

Since the clock is ticking, we quickly get the girl into the treatment room. Once she is sitting calmly and quietly on the examination table, all of us gape at her leg. She has an open wound that is nearly the length of her shin, and her inner tibia is exposed. The smell of rotting flesh and decaying bone is intense. How this girl walked in to the clinic today is a mystery, but I am so glad she did because we can help her--even at this late hour. It is clear she has an infection of her bone known as chronic osteomyelitis, and, if untreated, she will definitely lose her leg. When we ask the mother what happened, we get an all-too-common story. The daughter was treated at a rural clinic near them for a small wound, but despite a variety of treatments, the infection progressed, getting worse with each visit instead of better. Along the way, the family spent a lot of money on treatment. In desperation, they sought out our help, hearing about Soft Power Health from a friend of a friend.

Chronic osteomyelitis. Photo credit: Soft Power Health

Luckily for this woman and her daughter, our clinic will charge them a very small fee and refer them into our community patient program reserved for the poorest patients who can't pay for medical care they desperately need, such as surgery or chemotherapy. We partner with a hospital in Entebbe known as Corsu Rehabilitation Hospital that can surgically treat this girl, and we can send her right away. In the U.S., this would be considered a medical emergency, but in rural Uganda where there are limited healthcare resources, there is no such thing as a medical emergency. People just have to make the best of whatever situation they find themselves in--no dialing 911 for an ambulance.

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Providing routine care. Photo credit: Soft Power Health

The good news in this girl's case is that we will ensure that she gets good treatment. Once she has had surgery and is started on antibiotics, she has a good chance to recover well. She'll be able to use her leg and live a normal life. The biggest challenge will be making sure the mom brings her daughter back for follow-up on a regular basis.

Today we focus on doing what we can to clean her wound, treat any other medical problems she might have (as it turns out, she has malaria too, the leading killer of children in Uganda), and get her ready to go to Corsu. All in all, I am so grateful that this lady made the journey with her daughter and came to talk to me because now the girl has a chance! Thanks to the ongoing support of organizations like the Segal Family Foundation, Soft Power Health can continue to provide quality inexpensive healthcare and health education to those--like this young girl--who need it most.

Postscript: Yesterday morning, I got a call from one of our drivers who said that this patient was waiting to see me at the clinic. We had been trying to track her down since before Christmas. In November, she had a scheduled follow up appointment at CORSU hospital, which she had missed. We made contact with her father who said he would bring her to clinic, and he never did. I was definitely concerned about how her post-operative healing process was going because we had gone a couple of months without seeing her. Remembering how bad the infection had been, I was not optimistic. Boy, was I surprised when I finally saw this girl: her leg was perfectly healed, and she had no pain in the leg and no signs of infection. She was walking and running around like a regular kid--now with a big smile on her face. I think that made my whole day, week and month!
When I was in high school, pre-Ancestry.com, my grandmother assembled a family tree. She wrote letters and made phone calls to relatives, searched through county records, inspected family bibles. The name of the oldest ancestor she located, Nicholas Mills, appeared in a document dated 1687 in New Kent County, Virginia. His grandson, Nathaniel Mills, was Captain of the Orange County Militia in 1777 and my entree into the DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution).

Growing up in a small Virginia town, I was hardly the only girl to be in the DAR. Genealogy was a big deal. One family had a connection to Thomas Jefferson. Another to Robert E. Lee. People were eager to be a descendant of an FFV (First Families of Virginia), a Randolph or Byrd or Washington. Desperate for a more important name than the un-famous Nathaniel Mills, I asked my mother, "Are we related to Alexander Hamilton?"

My mother shook her head and lowered her voice. "Ann," she said (imagine a strong southern accent). "He was illegitimate."

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We never spoke of Alexander Hamilton again. My mother told me there was a chance of a connection to Patrick ("Give me liberty") Henry on my father's side so years later, after Ancestry.com appeared, I did some digging. Unfortunately twice-married Patrick Henry had seventeen children so I gave up. Seventeen?

But lately my genealogical priorities have changed. I know who I want to be related to - illegitimate or not, I choose Alexander Hamilton.

Sorry, Mom, but Alexander Hamilton is cool. He raps. He dances. He's sexy. Yeah, and he also founded the United States financial system, was the first Secretary of the Treasury, led the Federalist Party - let's face it, he was brilliant, one of a kind. And now there's a musical about him, the biggest show on Broadway. How many Founding Fathers have that? (Yes, there's 1776, but that's more of an ensemble - one of its best songs is "Molasses to Rum.")

Unless you've been living under a rock, you've heard of Hamilton, the musical. Lin-Manuel Miranda (of In the Heights fame) created and stars in the show, based on biography by Ron Chernow. A multi-ethnic cast, music that ranges from rap to hip-hop to Broadway, it's history made accessible.

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Do you own the original cast recording yet? Get it. Have you read the massive Chernow bio? Get that, too. You won't be sorry. Although you might drive your family insane talking about the book - "Did you know Hamilton wrote a pamphlet in 1797 to prove he was innocent of financial corruption, only he went way TMI and admitted cheating on his wife for years with Maria Reynolds?" Or by constantly bursting into song - sometimes I'm a Schuyler sister, sometimes I'm King George III. It depends on my mood. (My family is very patient.)

My father - last name Hamilton (!) - taught American History and was disappointed when I said the founding of the United States was boring. Sadly he passed away before Hamilton, the musical. Oh, Daddy, I would tell him. You were right. The Battle of Yorktown, it's exciting. ("The code word is 'Rochambeau,' dig me?") Cabinet battles about a national bank. U.S. neutrality. Federalists and Republicans, mudslinging, duels, affairs. Who knew? Well, my father did, even though he was unable to convince me. But happily Lin-Manuel Miranda and company are around to teach a new generation that history is amazing.

A new generation will learn about Hamilton, the underappreciated Founding Father. They'll see another side to Thomas Jefferson. As a graduate of the University of Virginia, Mr. Jefferson's University, I worry they'll take away my degree if I criticize him. But in the musical and biography, Jefferson comes off as a super-wealthy, slave-owning, over-ambitious and manipulative dandy (he questions Hamilton's morals - even as he's producing children by his slave and mistress Sally Hemings). Hypocritical much? This is a Thomas Jefferson they didn't talk about at UVa.

Not that Hamilton is presented as perfect - he was wildly ambitious. And hot-tempered and could have used a filter, big time. But he came to this country as an orphan, with nothing. He was "young, scrappy and hungry" and had to work his way to the top. He didn't inherit a fortune like Jefferson or Madison.

In the musical, George Washington tells Hamilton, "History has its eyes on you." And he's right. But we have to keep our eyes on history, too. Who we are, where we're from. I'd be proud and honored to be related to Alexander Hamilton - he's what this country is about. An immigrant who finds success. The quintessential American.

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So, meaning no disrespect to Nicholas and Nathaniel Mills (and I'm happy to be their descendant), I'm hoping for a genetic dollop of Alexander Hamilton. What are the chances? Well, we share the same name. And initials.

Time to go back to Ancestry.com. Finding a connection to Alexander Hamilton will probably be easier than finding tickets to the show. Unless... once I can prove we're related, maybe I can use that to my advantage. Hamilton's relatives must have some pull.
Why did one of the world's biggest banks partner with HIV activists trying to eliminate the AIDS pandemic?

That's a question Bank of America often gets when asked about its partnership with (RED) and their efforts through the Global Fund. The answer is simple: All global health pandemics impact global companies.



The more interesting and important question is this: How do we work together to deliver the most positive outcomes? At Bank of America, it's using our expertise, not just our capital, to solve the problem. That's why our partnership with (RED) made a lot of sense.



When (RED) launched in 2006 to enable private sector support of the Global Fund, it was looking for more than just money. It needed something that can be hard to find in the public sector: the marketing and supply-chain expertise that reside in global companies. It was looking for the ability to raise awareness through the images and campaigns that great global companies can create. And (RED) believed that customers of global brands would support and encourage those efforts.

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Ten years later, (RED) and its partners have raised more than $350 million for the Global Fund, with 100 percent of that money being used on the ground in Africa to fight AIDS. This means more than 60 million people have been helped by preventive care, testing, counseling and treatment as a result of the work of our partners.

A few years ago, Bank of America joined other (RED) partners who were using their marketing resources and creative teams to spotlight success stories about the pandemic. These stories of lives saved, families kept together and people going to heroic lengths to improve their communities have moved the emotions of the world and inspired people to take action.

This year is a turning point. Medication that once cost $10,000 per year is now only about $100 per year - or about 30 cents a day. New HIV infections among children have fallen by 58 percent. Only 10 years ago, we saw a disease out of control. In 2016, we see hope of an AIDS free generation in five years. That's our goal.

That's why Bank of America is committing another $10 million over the next five years to the Global Fund through (RED), with the marketing, communications and other creative disciplines to engage the world. This money and expertise is not a donation. It's an investment. An investment to raise awareness together, to create disruption together and to make progress together. An investment to continue the work towards a sustainable solution, together.



Ten years later, it's easy to look back and see that (RED) was also on the leading edge of another turning point: the way companies define and deliver on Corporate Social Responsibility. What was once simply philanthropy and volunteerism has now become the way global companies define how we do business through an Environmental, Social and Governance framework, or ESG. It's become our value system and the lens through which we judge our progress. It comes through in the environment we create for employees, the responsible products and services we offer our customers, and the impact we can make in helping local communities around the world thrive.



As (RED) begins its 11th year, it will continue to engage business leaders around the world, experts on the ground and every individual out there who wants to make a difference in this fight. Because to find sustainable solutions, we all have to be in this together.

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NYC 10016 is not in Iowa.

National Review editor Rich Lowry is now leading an effort urging conservatives to speak out against Donald Trump and oppose his candidacy. The "Against Trump" issue of National Review concludes: "Trump is a philosophically unmoored political opportunist who would trash the broad conservative ideological consensus within the GOP."

That statement may be true, but for many conservative voters it may be unintelligible, if not irrelevant. For them, Trump could still be the party nominee, and he might even be elected president. Fox News, Talk Radio, and the panoply of self-promoting conservative websites are not bastions of deep thought, and they have profoundly more impact than, say, National Review. Let me be bold. If NR editor Bill Buckley, more into ideas, and NR publisher Bill Rusher, more into power, were alive today, and I knew both men, WFB Jr. would argue against Trump and maybe tilt Rubio as acceptable and plausible, and Rusher would argue for Trump and maybe tilt Cruz as the preeminent conservative. Who knows what the magazine cover would look like?

I'm not writing to defend the conservative background of Donald Trump or his conservative credentials; that background and credentials do not exist. The conservatives who signed this Manifesto knew about Donald Trump and his history when he announced his candidacy. They did not take him seriously then, even as he advanced; nor could they unite behind a candidate. What we are seeing now is more than too little/too late. Their current approach may have the unintended effect of helping Trump.

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Lowry is joined by major credible figures representing many strains within the conservative movement, among them: constitutional conservative Glenn Beck, former Ronald Reagan confidante and attorney general Ed Meese, neoconservatives Bill Kristol of the Weekly Standard and John Podhoretz of Commentary, Christian right columnist Cal Thomas and also Russell Moore, one of the leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention activist, and R.R. Reno, editor of the Catholic journal First Things; libertarian economist Tom Sowell and libertarian theorist David Boaz, supply-sider David McIntosh of the Club for Growth, and Tea Party activist Dana Loesch.

These are thoughtful people of integrity and intellect. Several are my friends. But most of them are not political strategists. I watched some of them last night as they floundered in frustration. They are no match for Donald Trump's most effective advocate -- Roger Stone -- who appeared on the same show. Roger speaks in consecutive, sharply honed sound bites geared expressly to the Republican primary electorate.

Based on my interviews with long-time movement conservative voters (for example, a pro-life protege of icon Phyllis Schlafly) who enthusiastically support Donald Trump and will vote for him in Iowa or New Hampshire or maybe other states, they won't budge in response to this coalition composed mainly of conservative theorists and writers. The rebellious voter antagonism toward Mitch McConnell or John Boehner will now transfer to these apparently presumptuous conservatives who, the reasoning goes, must feel threatened by Trump and therefore want to bring him down. And what about the masses of self-described conservative voters who don't really understand the philosophical basis for, the values of, American conservatism? They could care less about this Conservative Manifesto. They remain angry and Trump is their outlet. Something else (what?) must happen for this Conservative Manifesto to lead to Trump's collapse. Trump voters are not offended by Mr. Trump's seeming incivility and supposed bad manners; what seems to be his obnoxiousness and insults represent to them understated responses to the disintegration of the middle class here and, as Trump would say, "they're beheading people" abroad. Indeed, this conservative coalition against Trump will effectively validate him: in the primary elections, as The Rebel against The Establishment (even the Conservative Establishment); in the general election, if he is the nominee, as The Independent not part of the right wing and thus socially acceptable to disaffected blue collar Democrats or even disillusioned African-American voters.

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The "broad conservative ideological consensus" is already shattered. Does anyone think that Sarah Palin read Russell Kirk? Of course she would endorse Trump. And how can you explain Trump's evangelical support? Because he is a Presbyterian? This week Donald Trump's appearance at Liberty University and then at Tulsa's Oral Roberts University show that when it comes to Iowa, Trump gets it.

Ben Carson may be the only surgeon running, but Donald Trump is the surgical politician. He shows the triumph of style over substance, and he is technically adept. Observe that he precisely calibrates each news cycle. Thus, for days he raised to front and center whether Ted Cruz, his principal competitor, can be president, lee-gull-lee. Accordingly, The Donald (a) elevated the matter from obscurity; (b) threw Cruz off his stride; and (c) put Cruz on the defensive.

Trump operates at the margin, without BC (beltway consultants). Surgically, he calculated: Raise Doubt, enough to win a close election in Iowa. If Cruz is constitutionally flawed, why invest your vote in him? Much happens on the Iowa ground, sometimes frosty. Trump's gambit failed in the Talk Radio Primary, e.g., Rush Limbaugh, Mark Levin, and even Sean Hannity. And among South Carolina Republicans, some booed his attacks on Cruz, so he toned it down, for a couple of days.

Where all this ends, nobody knows for certain, but consider this sequence:

(1) Ted Cruz attacked Trump for his "New York values." It's always risky to attack a region, a state, a city. At best, Cruz figured that New York is a proxy for what Red State Republicans and Iowa social conservatives dislike. His assumption seemed a no-brainer. And he doesn't see New York in his general election calculus.

(2) Indeed, perhaps the high IQ Ted Cruz had a plan, because he then unveiled a new ad in Iowa. It features a Trump interview from 1999 with Tim Russert on Meet the Press. Trump: "I'm very pro-choice...it may be a little bit of my New York background... I live in New York City, there's a tremendous movement to allow gay marriage. It's just something too premature for me to comment on... [RE: gays in the military] ...It's not something that would disturb me. I mean, hey, I've lived in New York City and Manhattan all my life. My views are a little bit different than if I lived in Iowa, perhaps."

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(3) Trump has said that Cuba does not produce evangelicals. In last week's debate Cruz said New York does not produce conservatives. Before the words came out of his mouth, I knew that Trump would say that New York City produced William F. Buckley, Jr. A long time ago, I helped elect Bill's brother, New York State's conservative U.S. Senator James L. Buckley. And as the saying goes, "I knew Bill Buckley. And Donald, you're no Bill Buckley." All this is esoteric for Trump voters.

(4) Possibly the Cruz ad may not penetrate Trump Teflon, even among Iowa evangelicals. Liberty College president Jerry Falwell Jr. and many of its students gave Trump glowing reviews. For some students, Trump's can-do leadership, such as it is, transcends (or Trumps) Christian values. "Maybe he needs to be forgiven...Possibly he has evolved...Who are we to judge, we all sinners... He says Christians are under attack...and we will say Merry Christmas again...We're not electing a Sunday school teacher." Will Iowans in their caucuses also prefer a tough-guy hedonist?

(5) Meanwhile, Trump asserts Cruz has an integrity deficit. Why did Cruz not renounce Canadian citizenship until 2014? How could he not properly report his loan from Goldman Sachs in 2010? The Cruz explanations almost don't matter, at this point. Trump has planted the seeds of doubt, and voters feel they know Trump better than they know Cruz.

Because of 9/11, Rudy Giuliani became "America's mayor"; but his presidential campaign failed. Criticized for her Wall Street money, Hillary invokes 9/11; but she is implausible. In last week's debate Trump recalled New York heroism in 9/11 as the stuff of "New York values"; he won the exchange with Cruz.

"I've never used that phrase," volunteered the seemingly gracious Marco Rubio. "I think we're all Americans. I'm campaigning on behalf of American values. And I don't seek to divide people against each other." Perhaps the politically incorrect Cruz should have said "liberal New York values" or "liberal elitists." It's sort of like not condemning all Muslims; instead say, "radical Islam" or "radical Islamic terrorism."

Speaking of religion, "America's rabbi" Schmuley Boteach reports that MSNBC asked if he was offended as a Jew by Ted Cruz's New York comment. Rabbi Boteach was offended -- certainly not by Cruz, but by the accusation that Cruz is anti-Semitic, a charge the rabbi called "the stupidest, most disgusting thing I've ever heard."

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In all this obfuscation, the waters are quite muddy, and the beneficiary among conservative voters in the Iowa primary, and maybe beyond, is Trump, not Cruz. Here's a story about confusion: When I was a young man, I helped my friend David Keene, who also was a young man then, run for the State Legislature in Wisconsin. He was national chairman of the conservative youth organization, Young Americans for Freedom, in its glory days. David lost the legislative election in part because some rural, conservative voters thought "Young Americans for Freedom" sounded subversive. Their odd perception had turned reality on its head.

Donald Trump now will turn the tables. You can bet Mr. Trump will switch the dialogue back to the subject of New York, where -- he will say -- his enemies in The Establishment are based. Many of his supporters In Iowa and other states will instantly see a conspiracy of insiders, perhaps in this case, conservative power brokers presumably threatened by Trump's independence. Voter support for Trump is partly a protest vote against the powerful. And when it comes to magazines, plenty of Iowa voters are more familiar with People than National Review.

Iowa voters who are not fond of New York will figure this out, or Trump will remind them:

National Review is in midtown Manhattan, as in New York City. That's zip code 10016, to be exact.


They say a man is known by his enemies...

A few days ago, the oldest man in the world died at the age of 112. His name was Ysutaro Koide. (Yisrael Kristal of Haifa, age 112, may now be the oldest living man in the world,. When his family told him he was up for the honor, he responded in Yiddish, "The joy of my old age.")

And last month, the oldest politician alive attacked Ted Cruz and Donald Trump. His name is Bob Dole.

This month, Dole is singing the same tune, with modified lyrics. Dole is saying that a President Cruz could not work with Congress, but a President Trump could. This calibration must be great news for Dole's supposed preference, Jeb Bush, whose campaign is mainly that Trump should "reconsider" (Jeb's "low energy" word) his proposed temporary ban on Muslim immigrants.

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Meanwhile, Jeb and his SuperPAC have outspent (in campaign ads) the other candidates combined. Yet, he is running fifth nationally and also fifth in the Iowa primary, scheduled for a week from Tuesday. Mega-donors feel the problem is money-soluble; they continue to fund Jeb's SuperPAC. No doubt some of these SWs (Super Wealth - upper 0.1 of 1%) also were bullish on oil. They may have to invest in government-subsidized ethanol.

The press spin from Jeb's downward momentum in the Iowa caucuses won't help for the New Hampshire primary five weeks later. In that state, Jeb has spent money big time. He publicly claims to be in second place but won't identify the poll; consensus polling suggests third to sixth place.

Meanwhile, some Republican heavyweight donors (read: crony capitalists) are thinking the unthinkable and reaching out to Donald Trump. They see him as more viable in November than Ted Cruz; accordingly, Cruz, citing this development, boasts that he, not Trump, should be deployed as the Monumental Anti-Establishment Candidate (MACE). Trump has a way of having his cake and eating it too. Any compromise or change, now or in the future, is The Art of the Deal. Trump will certainly quote Dole for sure; he will even "deal" with the Republican Donor Class (they must return the hostages first), and yet he will, at least for the time being, maybe in perpetuity, retain authenticity.

To make sure Trump stays real, now comes Jane Fonda to assure conservative Republicans that Trump is her Arch-Villain, and thus their hero. Fonda, who famously traveled to North Vietnam while that nation was killing Americans, and whose visit triggered renewed torture of American POWs, is mounting a "Stop Hate Dump Trump" movement. Among her colleagues in the group is Noam Chomsky, who is an authority on Hate. Chomsky is known far and wide to Hate America (and, for good measure, in case you're wondering, he also Hates Israel.) In the future, we shall refer to Chomsky and Chomskites as SLJs (self-hating Jews).

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"History has shown us what happens when people refuse to stand against hate-filled leaders," the manifesto on the group's website says. What happens, I can tell anyone reading, is we have people like the atheistic communists Stalin and Mao and Ho Chin Minh, who liquidated many tens of millions of men, women and children; and we have their recent iteration, the religious Islamo-Fascists who the Left supports. Fonda is a feminist for the rights of women, and the Islamists on a good day treat women as second class citizens; and on a bad day (and bad days are more frequent), they rape them or kill them for being raped. Fonda also obsesses in this country about gay rights, but she is not known for confronting the radical Muslims (yes, Jane, no matter what Barack Obama tells you, there is such a thing) who assault and rape, stone, and torture, drown and kill...boys and young men who are judged to be homosexuals.

I have reviewed the signatories for Jane's "Stop Hate Dump Trump" group. The list is pretty much a compilation of Bernie supporters, as in Bernie Sanders.

They say a man is known by his enemies.
On the 18th of February, Uganda will hold a general election. On the ballot, the favorite to win the Presidency, the country's office of both head of state and the head of government, is the incumbent: Yoweri Museveni. A man who has held the post since January 29, 1986. And who has, ostensibly, introduced democracy to the country in 1996 and who has won four elections since. On paper, this is a man who has ruled for 30 years, 20 of which as a democratically elected leader. And he is headed for another 5 years.

If that sounds improbable, however, your scepticism may be justified. After all, even the Soviet Union held elections. Elections do not make a democracy. Not least because they can be rigged. For example, what you could do is to remove your opponents from the electoral register. Blunt and perhaps too obvious, but in one of the most corrupt countries in the world (towards the bottom of the international league tables according to Transparency International, the US State Department, the World Bank and many others), not too problematic, and really quite effective.

This is exactly the situation in which Mr Norbert Mao, leader of the centre-right Democratic Party (DP), has found himself since December. Mr Mao is a personal friend. So I won't on this occasion, write my personal thoughts and feelings on the matter. They will be inherently assumed to be biased. Instead I will simply report the facts.

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Mr Mao has been, in his own words, "deleted" from the Electoral Register. Not just barred from standing as a candidate, but completely disenfranchised: he does not even have the right to vote. He has also been denied a Uganda national ID card - equivalent to denying someone the paperwork needed to confirm their citizenship of the country. Remember that he has been the leader of the Democratic Party since 2005 and his party holds 15 of the country's 375 seats. This is no accidental, clerical error that has happened to a random person that would not be noticed. It is like "accidentally" removing from the Electoral Register the leaders of the Green Party here.

The Electoral Commission is also alleged to be entirely compromised: they have recently changed the voter register away from one they compiled themselves to one compiled by the Ugandan Army, who favours President Museveni. A move that is in contravention to the constitution of the country. And which, incidentally, disenfranchised millions of Ugandans, and rendered the 18th February poll illegitimate before it even takes place. Mr Mao, the Democratic Party, and also local NGOs, are planning to take the Electoral Commission to court over these abuses. But this will not happen in time for the election. And it will also be an expensive enterprise which they can hardly afford.

Now this is not new. These kinds of abuses have been par for the course for much of Uganda's post-independence history. Indeed, this is a step up from the Idi Amin years. And in the West our leaders have been happy to play along with this kind of behaviour because against the sub-Saharan African context, Mr Museveni's regime looks positively benign: it is praised for putting up one of the best responses to the HIV/AIDS problem plaguing the region, it does well on environmental conservation, the economy is not doing terribly, and the country's army is doing a reasonably job standing against the Lord's Resistance Army, one of the worst militant/terrorist organisations in the world. The fact that Uganda has oil reserves also helps.

But we do need our leaders to take a principled stance on this. Uganda is still a country rife with poverty and conflict, in a region rife with poverty and conflict, and disenfranchising the people who suffer most from this does not help the situation. Ugandan's are asking for democracy, for better governance, and they need to be able to get it. We do not do anyone any favours by refusing to "rock the boat" simply because President Museveni is not as bad as Idi Amin. Yes, things could be worse. But why shouldn't they be given the chance to be better? Disenfranchising people inevitable leads to conflict, instability, and, down the road, political meltdown. The Ugandan leadership is refusing to acknowledge this fact. But we cannot allow our leaders to acquiesce. We have enough failed states in the world. Let us not lose another one to avoidable violence and civil wars.

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Income inequality concept protest people.

I'm beginning to believe Bernie Sanders can win the Democratic nomination and then the presidency.

Sunday night, January 17th, I watched the Democratic presidential debates with my wife, a Hillary Clinton supporter, and stepson, an Edward Snowden fan. After two hours - of a real debate - they concluded Bernie Sanders had won. (That was the critical consensus.)

Since Bernie announced his candidacy, I've been torn. On the one hand, I've long admired Sanders. It's hard not to respect someone who was born the same year that I was and has paid his dues as a liberal activist and politician. On the other hand, I feel it's time for a woman to be President and I like Hillary. And, given the slate of truly dreadful candidates, any Democrat is preferable to whomever the GOP eventually nominates.

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For the past eight months I've told anyone who asked me, "I believe Hillary will win the Democratic nomination. But, Bernie's candidacy serves a useful purpose: it will push Hillary to the left." Meanwhile, the contest exposed Clinton's weaknesses and demonstrated Sanders can harness the energy of the "activist" part of the Democratic base.

On issues such as economic justice, environmental sanity, and racial equality, there's no doubt Hillary has a liberal perspective and is miles apart from any Republican presidential candidate. And, of course, on gender equity and reproductive justice, Clinton is on a different planet than are Trump, Cruz, et al.

Nonetheless, my decision on whom to support for the Democratic nomination does not come down to policies or gender or age (although in an ideal campaign I would prefer to support a younger progressive woman); it's refusing to be satisfied with the Democratic Party "business as usual" process.

There's two wings of the Democracy Party: an activist wing filled with "do gooders" who, each day, slog through the peace and justice trenches taking on issue after issue. And an establishment wing composed of "people of privilege," the Democratic portion of "the one percent."

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The two wings co-exist, but they have different access to the leaders of the Democratic Party. When Obama was in San Francisco more than a year ago, Dems demonstrated against approval of the Keystone XL pipeline; but wealthy activist Tom Steyer got to the President when Steyer hosted a democratic fundraiser.

In 2016, Bernie represents the activists and Hillary the establishment. On May 6th, when I saw Hillary in San Francisco, she talked about the role of money in American politics, "fixing our dysfunctional political system and getting unaccountable money out of it even if that takes a constitutional amendment." However, since then Hillary has run as an establishment Democrat. Bernie Sanders has made money in politics his central issue.

In the January 17th debate, Sanders pounded on this theme: "we have a corrupt campaign finance system where millionaires and billionaires are spending extraordinary amounts of money to buy elections." When each candidate was asked what she or he would do to bring the country together, Bernie replied, "The real issue is that Congress is owned by big money and refuses to do what the American people want them to do."

When asked about his Wall Street policy, Bernie Sanders responded:

The first difference [between him and Clinton] is I don't take money from big banks. I don't get personal speaking fees from Goldman Sachs... But here is the issue, Secretary [Clinton] touched on it, can you really reform Wall Street when they are spending millions and millions of dollars on campaign contributions and when they are providing speaker fees to individuals? [$600,00 to Clinton in one year.]

In 2016, Hillary Clinton is running the same campaign as Barack Obama in 2008. Obama was an establishment Democrat, a person of privilege, running on progressive policies but not addressing the issue of money in politics.

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Clinton has three weaknesses: First, she does not have a central campaign theme, a core message. (On Sunday night she offered, "I want to be a president who takes care of the big problems and the problems that are affecting the people of our country everyday.")

Second, she's identified as a Washington insider. Likely Republican nominee, Donald Trump, has surged to the lead of the Republican pack by running as an outsider. He's effectively channeled voters' anger at Washington by positioning himself as a maverick who doesn't need to accept contributions from big money. If Clinton were the Democratic nominee, Trump could attack her as part of the Washington establishment and as someone beholden to big money.

Finally, a lot of voters don't like Hillary Clinton. The latest national poll shows Sanders up 15 points in a head-to-head contest with Trump. Clinton is up 10 points.

Sanders does better against Trump because he has better favorability ratings. (Trump and Clinton are negative.)

Don't misunderstand me. If Hillary Clinton is the Democratic nominee then I will support her. But now that I think Bernie Sanders has a chance to win the nomination, I'm going to push him (even if he is an old white guy) because he's got a winning message, strong progressive values; and is most likely to ignite the Democratic activist base.
Iraqi Christians, who fled the violence in the northern city of Mosul after Islamic State (IS) group militants took control of the area, attend a Christmas eve mass at the Syriac Catholic church in the Ashti camp in Arbil, the capital of the autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq, on December 24, 2015. AFP PHOTO / SAFIN HAMED / AFP / SAFIN HAMED (Photo credit should read SAFIN HAMED/AFP/Getty Images)

Christians Under Fire

One of the worst examples of under-covered hate is the escalation of attacks and the persecution of Christians, particularly outside of the United States, where thousands are routinely murdered and imprisoned, while their magnificent sacred churches are destroyed. Only the most egregious cases, or those involving Westerners get significant coverage.

In the United States last year there was extensive coverage of attacks involving lone gunmen. Nine were slaughtered in an anti-Christian attack at Umpqua Community College in Oregon. Nine African-American Christians were murdered during Bible study at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina in June by an avowed white supremacist with a hatred of African-Americans. Another fourteen people were murdered during a holiday office party by ISIS inspired terrorists in San Bernardino.

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Middle East in Focus

However, Christians in other parts of the world are the most frequent targets for agression. One has to look no further than this month's headlines for recent examples. In Iraq where the patriarch Abraham once sojounred, satellite images obtained by the Associated Press, confirmed that ISIS completely razed the nation's oldest Christian monastery, the 1,400 year old 27,000 square foot St. Elijah Monastery. From ancient monks to modern American soldiers, the site overlooking Mosul has served not only as a sacred location for thoughtful prayer, but a world cultural asset as well.

"Our Christian history in Mosul is being barbarically leveled. We see it as an attempt to expel us from Iraq, eliminating and finishing our existence in this land," Rev. Paul Thabit Habib, a Catholic priest exclaimed after reviewing satellite images. Indeed since 2003, when Saddam Hussein was toppled, Iraq's Christian population has dwindled from 1.5 million to under 300,000 today.

On a happier note, Saeed Abedini, one of several Americans imprisoned in Iran, returned to the United States Thursday, where he was reunited with his family in Asheville, North Carolina. Abedini, 35, a Christian pastor, was serving an eight year sentence in one of Iran's most notorious prisons following his conviction in 2013 on "national security" charges. He assisted in the spread of home based churches for Christians in his homeland.

Earlier this week, ISIS' glossy English language magazine, Dabiq, praised the piety of the murderous carnage of a holiday office party for our public servants here in San Bernardino last month, that has left our community both heartbroken, yet resilient. Their morally bankrupt bastardization of Islam, which strictly forbids the murder of civilian non-combatants, derisively referred to our residents as kuffar- infidels and non-believers. Interestingly, one of those wounded prayed at the same mosque as the killer. Much of the rest of the magazine was devoted to hatred and threats directed against other Muslims, both Sunni and Shia, who ISIS said deserved barbarous punishment as well.

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Africa Battleground

On April 2, al-Shabaab gunmen stormed Garissa University in Kenya killing 148. They took more than 700 hostages and savagely executed those who they thought were Christian. Another al Shabaab operation in Kenya was thwarted before Christmas when an attempted bus massacre failed after Muslim passengers shielded Christians from the terrorists. One Muslim man who aided his Christian neighbors was shot to death.

Almost one year ago, 20 Egyptian Coptic Christian migrant workers and one African convert, were beheaded on a beach in northern Libya. "We will conquer Rome, by Allah's permission," a video narrator warned as he directed a knife towards the Mediterranean. ISIS has made Italy, the Pope and the Catholic church a prominent target for violence in its materials. The Egyptian government proclaimed a mourning period for its slaughtered citizens and then launched airstrikes on ISIS, and the prominent Islamic Al-Azhar University condemned the executions.

China

In China, Zhang Kai, 36, a Christian civil rights attorney who fought the mass removal of crosses from churches was arrested last August just before he was scheduled to meet with Rabbi David Saperstein, an ambassador with an independent government agency, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. China has an estimated 68 million Christians and religion there is highly regulated. In 2015 the Commission found that "In a striking development, at least 400 churches were torn down or had crosses forcibly removed and/or demolished in 2014, a notable increase over previous years." The report further found that, "People of faith continue to face arrests, fines, denials of justice, lengthy prison sentences, and in some cases, the closing or bulldozing of places of worship."

A Clarion Call

The spiraling theological savagery directed against Christians around the world should be a "clarion call" to other Christians, says David Curry, president and CEO of Open Doors USA, an organization that aids persecuted Christians." In 2015 the organization reported that anti-Christian persecution was at its highest level since they kept such records, noting that 7,100 Christians were killed last year because of their faith, an increase of 3000 from the previous year. This number excludes those killed indiscriminately in civil wars, and is limited to killings that directly involve "one's identification as a Christian."

The group, started in 1955, initially smuggled bibles into totalitarian countries, but expanded its work twenty-five years ago to catalogue acts of anti-Christian persecution. The group contends: "Beatings, physical torture, confinement, isolation, rape, severe punishment, imprisonment, slavery, discrimination in education and employment, and even death are just a few examples of the persecution they [Christians] experience on a daily basis."

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They ranked North Korea as the country with the most extreme persecution where they estimate tens of thousands of Christians are in held in labor camps. All of the ten most oppressive nations have emerged from the ashes of colonialism to either poverty, authoritarian rule, civil war, or rigid Muslim fundamentalism--often to mask or promote oppression.

COUNTRY ---------- 2016 ------------ 2015

1. North Korea --------92/100 ------ ----- 92/100

2. Iraq -------------------90/100 ------ ----- 86/100

3. Eritrea ---------------89/100 ------ ----- 79/100

4. Afghanistan --------88/100 ------ ----- 81/100

5. Syria ------------------87/100 ------ ----- 83/100

6. Pakistan -------------87/100 ------ ----- 79/100

7. Somalia --------------87/100 ------ ---- 90/100

8. Sudan ----------------84/100 ------ ----- 80/100

9. Iran -------------------83/100 ------ ----- 80/100

10. Libya ---------------79/100 ------ ----- 76/100

Pope Francis Reaches Out to the Muslim World

In November Pope Francis, under heavy guard went to a barricaded Muslim neighborhood and a mosque that had been under attack by Christians in the capital of the Central African Republic to join a local Imam. Imam Tidiani Moussa Naibi, a local Muslim peacemaker had called for an end to sectarian violence that had left thousands dead. The Pope, joined him, exhorting residents to cease "every act which, from whatever side, disfigures the face of God and whose ultimate aim is to defend particular interests by any and all means." Reuters reported that the Imam told the Pope, "The relationship between our Christian brothers and sisters and ourselves is so deep that no maneuver seeking to undermine it will succeed."

As ISIS seeks to assassinate the Pope and raise its flag over the Vatican, Italy's Muslim community has responded. During a meeting with the Pontiff this week, he was invited to visit one of the west's largest mosques, the Grand Mosque of Rome. According to the National Catholic Register Pope Francis "spoke of rights that must be reciprocated between Christians and Muslims" that must be the "foundation of brotherhood, of friendship and of serious cooperation."

Protect Thy Neighbor

Our Center has rightly monitored and condemned anti-Muslim violence, as well as the growing scourge of anti-Semitism overseas, but our efforts must equally extend to Christians wherever they reside, as well as to those of all faiths, or none at all.

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The promotion of religious freedoms, as well as the right not to believe, transcends politics and is a foundational bulwark of a civilized world. History has well established that when faith is systemically met with repression and violence, adherents are but the first casualty. For those concerned about the stability of our world, as well as our own protection and moral legitimacy, it is imperative that we who live in comfort and freedom, take a vigorous and unequivocal stand to protect others who can not protect themselves.
Okay, so I didnt actually get invited to this weeks summit in Davos of the World Economic Forum to discuss the implications of the technological revolution on the future of the modern world. (I think it was between me and Leo DiCaprio for a spot.) But I have certainly been a virtual fly on the wall. The concept of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the dialogue around it should be required reading for everyone.

There is no question about the transformative power of the digital revolution were in the middle of. Indeed, the Uberization of products and processes is well underway. But what about the climate and culture of receptivity with which these innovations are greeted? Isnt that almost as important as the technology developments themselves?

Examine Your Lens

Early in my career when I was a corporate finance lawyer, I remember talking with a senior leader of a large bank about the then-revolutionary ATM technology. Its just a fad, he pronounced proudly. Banking is a relationship business and people want to deal with their local teller. Try to remember the last time you dealt with a bank teller and it will likely be because of limitations of the online or ATM technology. (That bank, as it happens, is no longer around.)

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People often have an almost unconscious, white-knuckled hold on maintaining the status quo; this takes work and leadership to overcome. We need to make sure we examine the lens through which we view change in order to enjoy its benefits.

Resist the Urge to Resist Change

One of the reasons that the impacts of many of these digital platforms prevail mostly on the consumer side of our world is that individual decisionsnot corporate onesdrive adoption. To have the Fourth Industrial Revolution realize its potential transformative impacts, we need to spend as much time and attention on creating an environment that enthusiastically embraces innovation and change, as we do on exploring the technology that enables it.

We see a small microcosm of this challenge in our business at Benevity, both with large enterprise companies and recipient charities. Our user-centric platform is innovative and is constructively disrupting a corporate giving and charitable landscape that has not changed meaningfully in 20 years. Like many Fourth Industrial Revolution platforms, it combines technologies to not only drive engagement, efficiencies and experience with users, but also improves the speed, time and manner of processing of donations to global charities.

Client program administrators get excited about the software and its transformative potential to infuse purpose into their corporate culture, but more often than not end up executing their existing programs and approaches through software that was intentionally built to power innovation around giving and volunteering, not just replace paper forms with a digital version. Desired outcomes improve, but not by the quantum leaps that might be possible by optimizing program design and execution for the enabling technology. Champions for change and program redesign sometimes lack budget or senior management support. By contrast, companies that make a point of using our technology as a jumping off point for their own creativity around how to engage people with their brand and Goodness initiatives have wildly higher-performing programs that deliver business and social impact.

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The bottom line is we need to resist the urge to resist change. Technology enables change; it is only people and culture that can deliver on its potential.

Taking the Revolution Beyond Davos

While the transformative power of the Fourth Industrial Revolution brings with it the risk that new technologies will be used to widen inequality and power selfish or xenophobic tendencies, it can also facilitate generosity at scale. Goodness is cross-cultural, knows no geographic bounds, and when executed with authenticity can create transformative impacts, both business and social.

Klaus Schwab, founder of the World Economic Forum, presents an inspiring vision:

In the end, it all comes down to people and values. We need to shape a future that works for all of us by putting people first and empowering them. In its most pessimistic, dehumanized form, the Fourth Industrial Revolution may indeed have the potential to robotize humanity and thus to deprive us of our heart and soul. But as a complement to the best parts of human naturecreativity, empathy, stewardshipit can also lift humanity into a new collective and moral consciousness based on a shared sense of destiny. It is incumbent on us all to make sure the latter prevails.

Business leaders must seize the opportunity to use technology to infuse purpose into their corporate cultures in a way that drives meaningful change.

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For the second conversation in our Purpose@Work series -- a discussion designed to explore how we can infuse a deep sense of purpose into our work -- we're going to focus on the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the theme of this year's World Economic Forum in Davos.
Neal Blair, of Augusta, Ga., wears a hoodie which reads, "Black Lives Matter" as stands on the lawn of the Capitol building during a rally to mark the 20th anniversary of the Million Man March, on Capitol Hill, on Saturday, Oct. 10, 2015, in Washington. Black men from around the nation returned to the capital calling for changes in policing and in black communities. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Late one night several years ago, I was getting out of my car on an empty midtown Atlanta street when a man standing fifteen feet away pointed a gun at me and threatened to "blow my head off." I had just moved to the neighborhood, which I didn't consider to be a high-crime area. Panicked thoughts raced through my mind as the threat was repeated. I quickly realized that my first instinct to run was misguided and dangerous, so I fearfully raised my hands in helpless, terrifying submission to the barrel of a handgun. I tried to stay calm and begged the man not to shoot me, repeating over and over again, "It's alright, it's okay."

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As a young attorney working on criminal cases, I knew that my survival required careful, strategic thinking. I had to stay calm. I'd just returned home from my office with a car filled with legal papers, but I knew the man holding the gun wasn't targeting me because he thought I was a young professional. A young, bearded black man dressed casually in jeans, I didn't look like a lawyer with a Harvard Law School degree to most people; I just looked like a black man in America. I had spent much of my life in the church. I graduated from a Christian college and was steeped in Dr. King's teachings of nonviolence, but none of that mattered to the Atlanta police officer threatening to kill me. To that officer, I looked like a criminal, dangerous and guilty.

People of color in the United States, particularly young black men, are burdened with a presumption of guilt and dangerousness. Some version of what happened to me has been unfairly experienced by hundreds of thousands of black and brown people throughout this country. As a consequence of our nation's historical failure to address the legacy of racial inequality, the presumption of guilt and the racial narrative that created it have significantly shaped every institution in American society, especially our criminal justice system.

While the mainstream church has been largely silent or worse, our nation has rationalized racial injustice ever since we first ignored the claims and rights of Native people, who were subjected to genocide and forced displacement.

Millions of African people were brought to America in chains, enslaved by a narrative of racial difference that was crafted to justify captivity and domination. Involuntary servitude was banned by the Thirteenth Amendment to the US Constitution, but nothing was done to confront the ideology of white supremacy. Slavery didn't end in 1865; it just evolved. Until the 1950s, thousands of black people were routinely lynched in acts of racial terror, often while many in the white community stood by and cheered. Throughout much of the twentieth century, African Americans were marginalized by racial segregation and silenced by humiliating Jim Crow laws that denied basic economic, social, and political rights.

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The country made progress dismantling the most obvious forms of racial bigotry in the 1960s, but we refused to commit ourselves to a process of truth and reconciliation. Consequently, new forms of racial subordination have emerged. The complicity of the church continues to haunt us and undermine the credibility of too many faith leaders.

We are currently in an era of mass incarceration and excessive punishment in which the politics of fear and anger reinforce the narrative of racial difference. We imprison people of color at record levels by making up new crimes, which are disproportionately enforced against those who are black or brown. We are the nation with the highest rate of incarceration in the world, a phenomenon that is inexorably linked to our history of racial inequality.

The Justice Department projects that one in three black males born in the twenty-first century is expected to go to jail or prison at some point during his lifetime. Only in a country where we have learned to tolerate evidence of racial injustice would this be seen as something other than a national crisis.

That night in Atlanta, I was sitting in front of my apartment, in my parked, beat-up Honda Civic for ten or fifteen minutes listening to music after a long day of work. I had apparently attracted someone's attention simply by sitting in the car too long, and the police were summoned. Getting out of my car to explain to the police officer that this was my home and that everything was okay is what prompted him to pull his weapon and threaten to shoot me. Having drawn his weapon, the officer and his partner justified their overreaction by dramatizing their fears and suspicions about me. They threw me on the back of the vehicle, searched my car illegally, and kept me on the street for nearly fifteen humiliating minutes while neighbors got a look at the dangerous black man in their midst. When no crime could be discovered, I was told by the police officers to consider myself lucky. Although it was said as a taunt and threat, they were right: I was lucky; I survived. Sometimes the presumption of guilt results in young black men being killed.

From Ferguson, Missouri, to Charleston, South Carolina, communities are suffering the lethal consequences of our collective silence about racial injustice. The church should be a source of truth in a nation that has lost its way. As the dominant religion in the United States, Christianity is directly implicated when we Christians fail to speak more honestly about the legacy of racial inequality. Evangelicals, in particular, have much to overcome, given our tolerance of racial bias over the years.

This is a critically important time, when leaders of faith need to address issues of race more thoughtfully, prayerfully, and courageously. As the visionary and prophetic leader of Sojourners, Jim Wallis has been speaking truth to power for decades. This new work is timely, urgent, and necessary.

We expect too little of law enforcement officials when we fail to hold them accountable for the misjudgments represented by the shooting deaths of so many unarmed people of color. We expect too little of the church when we accept its silence in the face of these tragedies.

We expect too much of the poor and people of color, who have carried the burden of presumptive dangerousness for far too long. We expect too much of the marginalized and menaced when we ask them to stay calm and quiet in the face of persistent threats and abuse created by our history of racial inequality.

No historic presidential election, no athlete or entertainer's success, no silent tolerance of one another is enough to create the truth and reconciliation needed to eliminate racial inequality or the presumption of guilt. We're going to have to collectively acknowledge our failures at dealing with racial bias. People of faith are going to have to raise their voices and take action. Reading this extraordinary new work by Jim Wallis is a very good place to start.

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Oh, my! Why is De Niro working so much and choosing mediocrity like Dirty Grandpa? At times he is wildly funny in a film that has moments of greatness surrounded by banal attempts to get laughs. The beginning of the film is a set up and tedious in its struggle to be outrageous. The concept of an old man wanting to "get laid" and go out with a bang before the bell tolls, is a funny one. But what happened to the execution?

The plot is as follows: De Niro's grandson, Zac Efron, is about to marry an uptight socially conscious Julianne Hough. Dick Kelly (De Niro) whose wife just has died, is opposed to the wedding and creates a diversion by asking Jason (Zac Efron) to drive him to Florida to visit an old friend Stinky, (Danny Glover). About twenty minutes into this film, Stinky who is attached to an IV while watching porno films in a nursing home, gives a shot of energy that has been lacking. Glover is wickedly funny and lights up the screen in too small a part.

Up to this moment De Niro's dialogue is gross and not funny. While his acting is -- as usual -- impeccable, I wondered what was he doing making this film which is essentially an exercise in how gross the writer can go. The vulgarity becomes a bore. This convoluted unfunny film is written by John Philips who is at work on Bad Santa 2 which may give an indication as to the sensibility of the humor. Bad Santa 1 was a masterpiece in the ribald, but Dirty Grandpa is not. It must be noted that Philips did not write Bad Santa 1.

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Grandpa Kelly convinces Jason that Kelly wants to have great sex one more time before he dies so a search for co-eds on Daytona Beach becomes the backdrop for drugs, combined with Kelly's sexual frustration. Zoey Deutch and Aubrey Plaza become the girl power on the beach and objects of Kelly's and Jason's affections. Dan Mazur directs without losing focus of the plot, though these scenes are chaotic at best. Mazur's direction is not the problem. It's the writing.

As Dirty Grandpa progresses, the humor seems to improve unless I was simply becoming numb to its strain. The last scene is pay dirt in which Aubrey Plaza steals these moments from De Niro. Plaza gives a ferocious energy that will have you scratching your head thinking, "Maybe this wasn't such a bad film after all." Certainly it is the best written scene and one can almost forgive writer John Philips for being so heavy-handed throughout the film to make his point. Acknowledgement should be made of Mo Collins whose dry wit ignites the scenes in which she plays a corrupt policewoman with a deadpan expression that carries these moments and again wishing her role were not so small.

I remember in the mid-seventies when De Niro was fired by Mike Nichols in the film Bogart Slept Here because Nichols felt De Niro could not handle comedy even though De Niro had done Hi, Mom! for Brian de Palma to acclaim. In Bogart Slept Here De Niro was replaced by Richard Dreyfus while the director became Herbert Ross and the title was changed to The Goodbye Girl.

Of course in the Meet the Parents series, De Niro flaunted his comedic timing, but his role was of an uptight military man and modest next to his character in Dirty Grandpa, which calls for a fearlessness which he meets head on and for this he should be lauded. Or should it be? To ask an audience to watch this kind of macho display of senior testosterone is questionable. Is De Niro facing a kind of male menopause propelling him to choose this role or is he haunted and his ego is still reeling from having been fired by Nichols decades before for being unable to handle comedy? And does he have a deep-seated need to prove himself in a film showing his comedic acting chops in close to pornographic spades?

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Whatever.

Well, Dirty Grandpa proves that De Niro can play comedy with aplomb. He certainly is not afraid to make a fool of himself. His courage to play against his image and to risk humiliation is praiseworthy, but the material Phillips has given to him is beneath him.

De Niro is too good an actor for Dirty Grandpa and while it was brave of him to try to do and to be Dirty Grandpa, it is a strain to watch.
Hillary Clinton is running for the Democratic presidential nomination while also pledging to reform our out-of-control, shameful campaign finance system. She has called for a constitutional amendment to overturn the U.S. Supreme Court's 2010 "Citizens United" decision that largely created today's campaign-finance landscape. She also offers a few other bells and whistles dear to reform groups, namely, public matching funds for small donor contributions, more public disclosure of corporate political spending, and an executive order requiring federal contractors to disclose their political spending.

Meanwhile, candidate Clinton has given the go-ahead to establish super PACs -- supposedly not coordinated with her official campaign -- to raise as much money as possible for her 2016 presidential bid. Her surrogates have even hinted at raising and spending a staggering $2 billion on her presidential campaign. That's a lot of money - and you can't reach that figure the old-fashioned way: by adhering to the current federal limits on individual contributions.

The Clintons always trot out a favorite campaign meme about people who "work hard and play by the rules." Yes, she is technically "playing by the rules" with respect to the PAC, super PAC, and individual campaign contributions coming her way, but she is also speaking out of both sides of her mouth simultaneously when it comes to her reform agenda. The media and the voters should call her to task for this doublespeak.

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By contrast, Secretary Clinton's principal Democratic primary opponent, Senator Bernie Sanders, the Independent democratic socialist from Vermont, has denounced super PACs and refused to allow them to be established as adjunct campaign operations. Donald Trump opposes super PACS but, of course, he doesn't need them, since he can self-finance his presidential campaign (and rely on a reflexively responsive media to provide him all the free coverage he needs).

When he ran for re-election in 2012, Barack Obama made similar pledges to Secretary Clinton's -- and kept none of them. Moreover, while many focus on the damage done by "Citizens United," we should not forget the irreparable damage that stems from Barack Obama's own presidential campaigns. After all, he was the candidate who broke the system first. In fact, he's broken it repeatedly.

During his 2008 presidential primary campaign, Senator Barack Obama agreed to accept campaign spending limits in exchange for receiving support from the presidential public funding system that was established in the 1970s after Watergate. But when it came time to raise money for his general election campaign, Senator Obama became the first presidential candidate in the system's history to opt out of the presidential public financing scheme. He did so because he thought he could out-raise by tens of millions of dollars his Republican opponent, Senator John McCain, who stuck by his pledge to abide by the public financing system's spending limits and limited funding. The result: Obama spent over $300 million on his general-election campaign; McCain received and spent the paltry $84 million he received from the public financing system.

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Of course, as he broke the presidential financing system, candidate and then president Barack Obama promised to fix it. He did nothing during his first term. As his 2012 re-election campaign was gearing up, he once again opted out of the spending limits regime altogether, but said that he would oppose having a parallel super PAC. When he saw that his Republican opponents were readily embracing super PACs, he abandoned his earlier opposition, authorized a super PAC, and even made a limited number of appearances to raise money for it.

There is no reason under the sun to expect that, if elected president, Hillary Clinton would behave any differently than Barack Obama. We have seen this bait-and-switch routine repeatedly with Obama, and the media and the voters need to press candidate Clinton now for more specifics about her promises. Once elected with the assistance of super PACs, candidates will find it almost impossible to break the addiction. They claim, as a matter of practical politics, that they cannot afford to "unilaterally disarm."

Here's what we need to know from Hillary Clinton:

Will she provide a draft of her proposed Constitutional amendment and start marketing it now?

Will she announce that key ambassadorial posts in her administration will be awarded on the basis of merit and experience rather than on the amount of bundled campaign contributions?

Will she urge the Securities and Exchange Commission, notwithstanding recent Congressional constraints, to move forward now on its recently abandoned proposed rule mandating greater disclosure of public companies' political spending?

Will she promise now that, if elected, she will forsake reliance on super PACs in her reelection campaign?

Will she urge her former boss, Barack Obama, to issue an Executive Order now to require federal contractors to disclose their political contributions? Obama is reportedly considering several Executive Orders on all sorts of issues during his last year in office. An Executive Order for federal contractors is a no-brainer. He could do it tomorrow.

To his credit, Senator Sanders is following John McCain's principled stance. Perhaps the recent Sanders surge in Iowa and New Hampshire reflects his authenticity and his courage.

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For too long, campaign-finance-reform advocates have been patient dupes. If Secretary Clinton thinks she can coast to the White House with Obama-style winking and nodding, let's hope she continues to "feel the Bern."
In Miami, where I grew up, swimming in the ocean was akin to stepping into the tub; no discernable difference in temperature between the water and the air and that's just how I like it. So no one was more surprised then I to be bounding across the snow in Helsinki wearing nothing more than a swimsuit and a towel and headed to a hole in the ice on the Gulf of Finland. And yes, I was planning to swim.

To understand what lunacy prompted me do do such a thing, I need to wind back the story a few hours.

The plan was to take a hike, what tour guide Karri Korppi of Happy Guide Helsinki billed as an easy city walk through the downtown streets, through the park, ending at a sauna by the beach. We'd be so "warmed up" by then, he promised, we'd welcome an opportunity to take a dip in the sea.

Meeting us at our hotel, the historic Hotel Torni (with the best darn city views you can get while still lying in bed) Karri distributed ski poles. A few people worried we'd look silly walking through the city streets with them. But Helsinki had received eight inches of snow a few days earlier and the sub zero temperatures made the ground slippery. I was glad to have the assist.

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Just a week earlier I'd been using a hiking pole on slick trails in the tropical rainforest on the Dutch Caribbean island of Saba, about which, more later.

We passed the gia-normous Stockmann's Department store and through the district of the Design Museum's which gave me the opportunity to recommend to my fellow walkers that they not leave Helsinki without visiting its permanent exhibit on the history of design in Finland. Glass, hospital beds, scissors, who knew?

At Kaivopuisto, the city's biggest park, a horse drawn sleigh was carrying a family through the evergreens - like a storybook illustration - and on the hill by the Ursa Observatory, people were launching themselves down the snowy bank on sleds and snow saucers.

We stopped to watch the sun go down as much to the south as to the west, it was less than a month after the December solstice after all. Then we picked up our sticks and walked toward the remains of the day to the promised warmth of the sauna at Uunisarri.

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Nelly Karkkainen and her husband run the Uunisaari saunas and the waterside restaurant next door. An actress by training, Nelly took over the business when her father died unexpectedly in 2015. Renovating the pre-war former industrial building had been her dad's idea back in the nineties. It would expand his small beachside cafe, he figured. And boy oh boy did it.

On the Saturday of my visit, two weddings were scheduled for the restaurant, and guests bracketed our 2 hour stay at the spacious saunas.

After learning about sauna protocol and culture, the women in my group quickly stripped down and headed up the stairs to the dark furnace. Deep sighs all around as frozen fingers and toes yielded. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly welcome heat becomes overbearing but within five minutes I was standing back outside, wrapped in a blanket.

I was enjoying the fresh air and chatting up the bride and groom and members of their party who had stepped outside for a cigarette. How gracious were they to let me join in a group photo?

The nearness of the window-lined restaurant discouraged me from swimming in the altogether, though Nelly said it's not uncommon. So donning a swimsuit, slippers and towel I was ready for the plunge.

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Swimming in icy water is healthy, the Finnish tourism officials claim, as does everyone else who actually does it, promoting circulation, and increased energy. Crossing a snowy expanse and clambering in to the sea on a frost-covered ladder, those are the things that will kill you.

Okay, truth? I didn't get in any deeper than you see in the photo. I lingered long enough for Nelly to take a picture and prove to my disbelieving friends and family that this Miami-girl, did indeed step into a swimming hole cut into the ice in Finland in the middle of January.

And you should too. But first, let me recommend a brisk walk and a bake, top shelf at 212 degrees.
"I have a message for President Snow: You can torture or bombed us, blasted our district to the grounds. But do you see that ? Fire Is Catching... If we burn, you burn with us!"

The fourth and final installment of the Hunger Games franchise is finally leaving theaters with this flick rounding off the series earnings to $3 billion. While living under the fearful reign of a tyrannical leader who is detached from the day-to-day reality of the commoners of the fictional nation of Panem, the citizens struggle to maintain their basic needs. They live in constant fear for their safety and wonder whether they might wake up to bombed remains of their existence, or, worse yet, lose their lives or watch their families lose theirs. The Hunger Games is fictional, of course, but the strife, struggle, and destruction that is portrayed in the Hunger Games universe is akin to what is lived as reality by those in Syria daily.

Over the past four years, under the fearsome reign of a dictatorial leader, Syrians have struggled to meet their basic needs, with millions clamoring for safety across borders as refugees, risking their own lives to do so under grueling circumstances. It has been cited as the worst humanitarian crisis since World War II by the UN refugee agency with no suggestion for any improvement. It seems we would rather focus on tractable problems of imaginary people, like the oppressed citizens of Panem, than on the intractable problems of living human beings like Syrian refugees.

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According to a recent Bloomberg poll, most Americans oppose the re-settlement of any of the 10,000 Syrian refugees planned on in President Barack Obama's refugee policy. Nearly half of the governors in the United States are attempting to bar Syrian refugees from re-settling in their states, and in a sweeping house vote, the intent to deny entrance to these desperately needy individuals was reaffirmed.

Why do we seem to care more about imaginary people than real ones? Part of the reason may be explained with behavioral science. The "identifiable victim effect" is one of the strongest predictors of how much aid people will offer to others. We help specific individuals with names and faces more than we help groups of unidentified individuals--even if we could do more good by helping groups. Psychologically, a single victim is a tragedy; four million is a statistic. The Hunger Games gives us one compelling and faultless victim, Katniss Everdeen, to root for and identify with. Among the Syrian refugees, there is no Katniss. No Malala. They need a face and a voice. But they may not get one.

For reasons of privacy and safety, we don't hear enough stories of Syrian refugees. And when their stories are told, we rarely see their faces, making them less identifiable, and we are therefore less sympathetic to them as victims. Furthermore, language barriers mean we typically read printed quotes from Syrian refugees rather than hearing their actual voices--and written text rather than verbal speech has been shown by University of Chicago researchers to make speakers seem less thoughtful, competent, and intelligent. Less human, even. But in the rare cases when Syrian victims are identified through photographs and by their names, help does increase. The shocking image of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi, who drowned while fleeing the conflict zone, prompted a hundredfold increase in donations to aid organization Migrant Offshore Aid Station.

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It is understandable that we need stories sometimes not just for compassion but also for escape. Through the Hollywood depiction of illusory catastrophes in movies like those in the Hunger Games franchise, we can escape and perhaps relieve some of the psychological burden and stress of our own lives. But let us not imagine that watching suffering on the big screen absolves us of attending to real suffering. And let us not convince ourselves that feeling involved by keeping abreast of the news is any kind of substitute for taking action.

As we enjoyed the Hunger Games and look forward to a year full of promise, we should remember, too, those who are living in horrific situations with little hope of relief. And if we find ourselves cheering for Katniss fighting against the capital so that her people can have a home again, perhaps that's a reason to consider our compassion for a Syrian refugee with nowhere to sleep and nothing to eat, who doesn't get to have a Hollywood ending.
Libyan oil workers try to extinguish flames at an oil facility in northern Libya's Ras Lanouf region after it was set ablaze following fresh attacks launched by Islamic State (IS) group jihadists to seize key port terminals, on January 21, 2016. Fighting broke out at dawn in the Ras Lanouf region, which along with the nearby Al-Sidra facility is one of the country's main oil export hubs, said the National Oil Corporation (NOC). / AFP / STRINGER (Photo credit should read STRINGER/AFP/Getty Images)

By now, everyone but the most delusional must concede that the Libya intervention was a debacle of gigantic proportions. Libya remains a failed state with Jihadists controlling huge swaths of the country, including the once-prosperous town of Sirte.

The security of Tunisia, Mali and the Lake Chad Region (Nigeria, Niger, Chad, and Cameroon) has been profoundly undermined by the spill-over from the Libya conflict. And, though the NATO intervention in Libya was allegedly undertaken on humanitarian grounds, the human rights situation in Libya is a disaster, as "thousands of detainees [including children] languish in prisons without proper judicial review," and "kidnappings and targeted killings are rampant."

Incredibly, the deeper questions about the Libya intervention and its aftermath remain a largely verboden topic, even as the invasion's prime intellectual author, Hillary Clinton, campaigns for the highest office in the land. However, thanks to the release of many of her emails from her time as Secretary of State, one can get a rare glimpse into the making of what has been claimed to be a "humanitarian intervention." And, the emails show that the NATO operation was nothing of the sort.

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Thus, while Clinton was able to obtain passage of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1973 - a resolution which authorized a no-fly zone to protect civilians - on March 17, 2011, those civilians that Clinton claimed needed most urgent protection (the civilians in the town of Benghazi) were relatively safe by this time. Thus, Hillary's assistant, Huma Abedin, in an email (Doc No. C05778494) dated February 21, 2011 - that is, just a mere 4 days after the initial anti-government protests broke out in Libya -- explains:

Based on numerous eyewitness reports, it is the Embassy's assessment that the government no longer controls Benghazi. This is likely the case for Ajdabiyah as well. Numerous sources in Benghazi report that Libyan Interior Minister Abdul Fattah Younes has "changed sides" and is "now with the protesters in Benghazi." The mood in Benghazi and Ajdabiyah is allegedly "celebratory" and all posters of Qadhafi have been knocked down. . . .

Then, on March 2, a couple of weeks before Resolution 1973 was passed, Harriet Spanos of USAID sent an email (Doc No. C05778340) describing the relative calm in Benghazi. Thus, she explains that "Security Reports . . . confirm that Benghazi has been calm over the past couple of days." She explains that "economic activity is going on in Benghazi," that shops and banks are open and that "[m]obile and landline phones are working and Internet has returned."

Probably the most revealing email is dated March 30, 2011, just 11 days into the NATO bombing campaign which would go on until October, 20, when Qaddafi was finally murdered (after being sodomized). In this email (C05782459), entitled "Win this War," Clinton's closest adviser, Sidney Blumenthal, makes it clear that, in terms of the continuing reasons for the war, any "humanitarian motive offered is limited, conditional and refers to a specific past situation." In other words, while NATO would go on bombing for another 7 months, Blumenthal is already admitting that there is really no humanitarian basis for continuing the conflict.

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Still, Blumenthal insists on the importance for pressing on until final victory (i.e., the overthrow of Qaddafi, who he calls "Q"). And, he explains that the reasons for doing so include, first and foremost, boosting Obama's then-anemic approval ratings. The other reasons he outlines are "establishing security in North Africa, securing democracy in Egypt and Tunisia, economic development, effect throughout Arab world and Africa, extending U.S. influence, counter-balancing Iran, etc." Again, humanitarianism is notably absent from this list.

Moreover, in terms of the alleged goal of promoting regional security, a number of emails reflect the awareness that the bombing campaign, and the toppling of the aggressively anti-Al Qaida Qadhafi, might very well open a space for Al Qaida and allied forces to take over many parts of Libya, as they actually have. For example, one email (Doc No. C05780521), again from Blumenthal to Clinton, explains that "[t]raditionally, the eastern part of Libya has been a stronghold for radical Islamist groups, including the al Qaida-linked Libyan Islamic Fighting Group. While Qaddafi's regime has been successful in suppressing the jihadist threat in Libya, the current situation opens the door for jihadist resurgence." Given this knowledge, how Blumenthal could then argue that "winning the war" against Qaddafi was somehow necessary for regional security is bizarre in the extreme. Of course, such muddled thinking is not unique to Blumenthal or Clinton, but seems to pervade the leadership of both our political parties.

Meanwhile, the emails actually demonstrate a complete lack of concern for humanitarian violations by the pro-NATO rebels. Thus, in but another email to Hillary, dated March 27, 2011 (C057824501), Blumenthal explains, "[s]peaking in strict confidence, one rebel commander stated that his troops continue to summarily execute all foreign mercenaries in the fighting." Now, summarily executing even armed combatants is a clear violation of the Geneva Conventions, but neither Blumenthal nor Hillary demonstrate much concern about such trifles.

Even more concerning, it became known during the course of the NATO invasion that the claims of foreign mercenaries fighting for Qaddafi were false; that, in fact, the alleged foreign mercenaries were really African guest workers. What was really happening was that the rebels were summarily arresting and murdering people who happened to be black, and doing so in very large numbers. In other words, it was the U.S.'s rebel friends who were actually carrying out genocide in Libya, and NATO, which had a UN mandate to protect civilians in Libya, was aiding and abetting them in doing it.

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Socialism...must depend for its economic direction on some form of planning, and for its culture on some form of commitment to the idea of a morally conscious collectivity....

If tradition cannot, and the market system should not, underpin the socialist order, we are left with some form of command as the necessary means for securing its continuance and adaptation. Indeed, that is what planning means...

The factories and stores and farms and shops of a socialist socioeconomic formation must be coordinated...and this coordination must entail obedience to a central plan...

The rights of individuals to their Millian liberties [are] directly opposed to the basic social commitment to a deliberately embraced collective moral goal... Under socialism, every dissenting voice raises a threat similar to that raised under a democracy by those who preach antidemocracy.
In his State of the Union address, President Obama referenced last month's San Bernardino attacks, noting that "twisted souls plotting in apartments or garages pose an enormous danger to civilians and must be stopped."

However, the president did not explain how to stop this violence, whether it is inspired by groups like ISIS or other extremist views, such as occurred in Charleston, S.C., last summer.

We believe a promising way to prevent terrorist attacks in the United States is to build partnerships between police departments and communities whose members may be vulnerable to recruitment to violent extremism. Research we have conducted, together with the Police Executive Research Forum, suggests that community-police partnerships can effectively help communities build resilience against extremist ideologies and provide an early warning about individuals who may be headed toward violence.

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Our research focused primarily on police efforts to build partnerships with Muslim Americans. Tips from Muslim American community members in the 14 years since 9/11 have led to the arrest of many perpetrators who were supporting a violent extremist organization or plotting violence. Because the vast majority of Muslim Americans detest extremism and share American values, there have been few successful terrorist attacks by Muslims in the United States since 9/11 and none of them has approached the scope and scale of 9/11.

Nonetheless, there is work to be done. ISIS continues its efforts to recruit Muslim Americans to engage in violence, and dozens of Muslim Americans have proven susceptible to these appeals. Muslim Americans have a strong interest in curbing the spread of this ideology and identifying individuals who are heading down the pathway toward extremist violence.

We have found that while many Muslims would welcome a closer relationship with their local police, there are trust issues that must be overcome. Many Muslim Americans we interviewed are suspicious of law enforcement agencies because they believe innocent people have been subjected to unwarranted surveillance; Muslims are frequently harassed by airport security and immigration officials, and pervasive societal discrimination has undermined their confidence they will be treated fairly.

Muslim Americans also feel as if they are unfairly assigned responsibility for preventing violence inspired by ISIS and al Qaeda, while similar obligations are not placed on non-Muslims to prevent anti-government, racist or other forms of extremism. In addition, some Muslim Americans believe that law enforcement has allowed criminal suspects to continue to radicalize so they could be arrested, instead of working with the community to direct them away from extremism.

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Based on our discussions with Muslim Americans and police departments across the country, we believe there are a set of practices that police departments should adopt to overcome this trust deficit:

First, the most successful law enforcement agencies treat Muslim Americans as constituents, like all other residents, and work in partnerships on projects to enhance public safety.

Second, effective law enforcement agencies don't build community relations around a focus on terrorism. No individual or community wants to be treated with suspicion. We found that police don't use the White House's phrase "Countering Violent Extremism" to characterize community outreach; it gets the conversation off on the wrong foot by equating the community with violence.

Third, officers who conduct outreach and engagement are more credible when they are separate from police units that collect intelligence or investigate crimes. Communities will not work with the police on public safety projects if they believe they are being spied on at the same time.

Fourth, departments should invite community members to provide cultural awareness and basic language training to officers engaging with immigrant communities.

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Finally, call on all community members, not just Muslims, to help the police prevent all forms for terrorism and political violence.

These practices, already in use in many jurisdictions around the country, will help build a firm foundation of trust. Once such a relationship is established, the police and Muslim communities can start to address sensitive topics of how to protect young people from the social media messages of ISIS and what kinds of conduct by individuals need to be brought to the police's attention.
FILE - In this Jan. 12, 2016 file-pool photo, Vice President Joe Biden points at President Barack Obama during the president's State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington. Harking back to America's triumphant race into space, the Obama administration is launching what it calls a "moonshot" effort to cure cancer. Donat expect miracles in the president's last months, but there has been striking progress in recent years. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, Pool, File)

In 2015, President Obama announced the Million Genomes Project. This year, at his last State of the Union address last week, he is continuing his support of personalized medicine by announcing a new initiative: the cancer moonshot.

"We built a space program almost overnight. And 12 years later, we were walking on the moon. Now, that spirit of discovery is in our DNA," Obama said.

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Many people are banking on answers lying in our DNA -- our collective DNA.

Everyone knows at least one victim of cancer, and many of us have lost loved ones to the disease. Cancer, "the Emperor of all Maladies," is a leading cause of death worldwide and is the second biggest killer in the U.S., leading to half a million mortalities a year.

There's hope that the ability to correct faulty genes and the mutations they cause will lead to new cures.

Once whispered about in hushed tones, if discussed at all, society is now placing cancer front and center. Before the invention of therapies such as chemotherapy, first introduced in the 1940s and 50s, there was little doctors could do except watch their patients die. As a result, cancer went undiagnosed and untreated, a true death sentence.

Today, prognoses are improving, especially with early diagnosis and genetic testing to assess risk. Angelina Jolie opted for a preventative double mastectomy to mitigate her genetic risk of inherited breast cancer and Jimmy Carter has been declared cancer free after therapy with a new immunotherapy drug that helps the body fight its own cancer.

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Obama put Vice President Biden "in charge of mission control" of a national, multi-billion-dollar moonshot effort to end "cancer as we know it today." No matter how much money and scientific attention is given to the problem, this is a tall order. Cancer comes in many shades, which is what makes it so insidious. On top of that, human genetic diversity means patients respond differently to different therapies.

One of the biggest breakthroughs of genomic analysis of cancers is recognition of the existence of large numbers of distinct subtypes, which require different treatments and have different survival rates. For example, genetic profiling has shown that lung cancer is actually at least half a dozen different kinds of cancers. Cancer can strike all over the body and be the result of different genetic lesions, involving a long and growing list of genes, many of which, like p53, usually play essential roles in healthy cells.

Genetic profiling has shown that lung cancer is actually at least half a dozen different kinds of cancers.

Biden took advantage of the 2016 annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland this week to elaborate plans for the cancer moonshot by assembling a panel of distinguished scientists and leaders of the big data community. He opened the discussions by promising to return to Davos in 2017. He said the cancer moonshot will be a major part of his life's work beyond his tenure in office and encouraged patients to sign up for clinical trials and to tell the world "your story."

It is obvious how very personal this mission is for the vice president. Biden repeatedly mentioned his son, Beau -- a father, husband and former state attorney general of Delaware -- who died recently of brain cancer at the age of 46.

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Jennifer Doudna, a pioneer of gene-editing technologies, signaled hope that the ability to correct faulty genes and the mutations they cause will lead to new cures. Other promising avenues include the development of vaccines, genetic circuits that modify the physiology of cells and nanotechnology delivery units that directly kill tumors without damaging the rest of the body.

Biden suggested everyone go home and ask their loved ones what they think of when they think of a cure for cancer. He suggested no one would think of data and standards, and he is right.

Informatics infrastructure, including using artificial intelligence that enables smart data mining, is crucial.

Informatics infrastructure, including using artificial intelligence that enables smart data mining, is crucial. Despite this, medicine has fallen way behind the computer science revolution.

Biden called for more open sharing of data and the elimination of data silos. He acknowledged public concerns over privacy and the need to devise solutions to protect against privacy breaches. Intriguingly, the panel noted that while data can be stripped of patient information, anonymizing it for research purposes, it is now possible to reconstruct faces from genomic data.

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We have much to learn about the normal workings of cells and their progression to cancer. Recently, the medical community was surprised to find an immune-compromised man with HIV had contracted cancer from a tapeworm infection.

More recently, a study of elephants pinpointed why this long-lived species rarely gets cancer. Humans have one copy of the oncogene p53 but the elephant has 20, making the elephant genome super-charged to repair errors. Elephant cells die in response to damage by radiation. In contrast, human cells with a faulty copy of the p53 gene don't die; they go on to become cancerous.

Biden called for more open sharing of data and the elimination of data silos.

The health system also needs to change to make new approaches accessible and affordable. For example, despite the benefits of using genomic information in early diagnosis and to inform therapeutic decisions, private insurers and Medicare alike are behind the curve on covering tumor genetic profiling.

Harmonizing existing efforts and pulling together the right players is also critical. For example, the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center launched a "moonshots" cancer program in 2012 with $3 billion. Biden's efforts must build on this as well as the work of many others, such as the International Cancer Genome Consortium.

In 1961, when President John F. Kennedy gave his historic speech calling for a moon landing, few could imagine watching Neil Armstrong walk on the moon in 1969. At the start of 2016, we stand at the starting block of a new race against time. Hopefully scientists, patients, doctors and big data experts will collaborate to find ways to make the quantum leaps forward that Biden called for. The frontier to conquer this time is not space but the depths of our own genomes.

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"Being Mexican American is tough. Anglos jump all over you if you don't speak English perfectly, and Mexicans jump all over you if you don't speak Spanish perfectly. We got to be twice as perfect as anybody else. We got to prove to the Mexicans how Mexican we are and we have to prove to the Americans how American we are. We got to be more Mexican than the Mexicans and more American than the Americans, both at the same time. It's exhausting! Man, Nobody knows how tough it is to be Mexican American."

I'll never forget how I felt when I saw that powerful scene in the movie "Selena." I was 27 years old, living in Miami where Spanish feels like and often is the primary language and my Puerto Rican and Cuban roots are embraced rather than shunned. I had recently realized that this "in between" place actually existed and I was experiencing this n concept from every angle. And now I was seeing it in a movie!

I completely identified with Selena's dad and the frustration in that scene. It got me thinking, "Do Latinos in America have to be twice as perfect as everybody else?" Over the last year, I've given this a lot of thought and I've come to realize that indeed yes, we do.

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But instead of looking at it as a curse, look at it as a gift. Here's why.

Growing up, I absolutely felt like I had it twice as hard as my friends. I was a cultural fish out of water in my small country town 40 miles north of the Bronx where I was born and raised until I was 4. As a kid, the mainstream culture seemed infinitely easier for me to navigate in large part because of the media. I was raised on shows like the "Brady Bunch," "Bewitched" and "The Partridge Family." The show "Different Strokes" was the closest thing that we had to a diverse cast and even then, despite the fact that Willis and Arnold looked more like my childhood friends in the Bronx, they were living with a rich white father!

It all seemed so inaccessible to me.

When the TV was off, I was learning the Latino norms by watching my parents interact. Seeing them easily switch from English to Spanish and back again because some things, some feelings are just better communicated in Spanish.

I got intensive cultural training when we went to church on Sunday in Spanish Harlem, where not only was the service in Spanish but so was Sunday school. I learned by looks my mom or aunt would give me or by the way the people at church treated me how to act like a good Latina girl in church. I realized my brothers had a separate code of conduct and that it was very different.

The graduate level cultural training came when we would travel to La Isla to spend time with family.Those visits are ingrained in my head as some of the most treasured memories of my youth. Although I'd always sunburn first, my Latina skin would eventually turn brown. While my Spanish never felt up to snuff, by the time I left, it felt good enough. I picked up on nuances, like that my mother had a different sense of humor than she did when she spoke English. I learned how to listen in a new way, how to observe this culture that was mine to have but always felt out of my grasp.

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But how did all of this make me twice as perfect or even twice as good?

When these worlds collided as they often did, like after a trip to Puerto Rico or after spending the weekend with friends in the Bronx, that's when the magic happened. Of course, it's where frustration happened as well.

It was at this intersection, where I invented who I wanted to be and the woman I am today. It was where I decided to pick up the pen and begin writing how my story was going to go.

Somewhere along the line I left behind not feeling Latina enough and not feeling mainstream enough and in the process strengthened cultural muscles that I can humbly flex within a moments notice.
US Supreme Court building, Washington DC, USA.

With the Supreme Court's significant announcement earlier this week to take up the challenge to President Obama's executive actions that, if upheld by the Court, could protect millions of immigrants from deportation and keep families together, we're reminded yet again of the critically important role that the nine justices on the Supreme Court have in deciding the future of our families and communities.

Families across the United States are counting on the Court to follow the law, not play politics, by upholding the President's actions. Parents should not have to live in fear of being deported and separated from their children. Children should not have to worry when they come home from school whether their father or big sister will still be there. The pain and suffering of millions of immigrants in the United States could be alleviated if the Court applies the law correctly and upholds DACA+ and DAPA, thus clearing the way for so many families to live in the U.S. without fear of deportation.

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The only reason that the Supreme Court has the power to make this decision is that Republican politicians challenged the actions. It's Republican governors and attorneys general leading the politically-calculated, anti-immigrant lawsuit to cater to their far-right base by challenging DACA+ and DAPA.

And there's a reason GOP politicians turned to the courts: Republicans have spent decades doing everything in their power to fill our judiciary with far-right judges whose decisions help the party's extreme ideological agenda. Before this case reached the Supreme Court, the Republican coalition took their case to an anti-immigrant judge who consistently misapplies the law, Judge Andrew Hanen of the Federal District Court in Brownsville, Texas. As just one example, the Republican-appointed judge once called it a "dangerous course of action" for the Department of Homeland Security to reunite an undocumented daughter and mother without bringing criminal charges against the mother.

So it's no surprise that Judge Hanen misapplied the law and blocked DACA+ and DAPA. His decision was then appealed to the 5th Circuit Court, but in a 2-1 decision, they upheld his ruling. It was two Republican-appointed judges in the majority, and a Democratic-appointed judge in the minority.

The dissent of the Democratic-appointed judge, Judge Carolyn King, explained that she viewed the decision as fundamentally wrong. She believes that the her fellow justices misapplied the law, writing emphatically, "I have a firm and definite conviction that a mistake has been made."

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Now it's up to the Supreme Court to correct the previous decisions by applying the law justly and upholding DACA+ and DAPA. I hope that's what they'll do, but regardless of the outcome, the situation we face should be an important wake-up call about the power that Presidents, by picking Supreme Court justices, can hold over our community for decades. After all, a President's term is only four years, but a Supreme Court justice serves for life.

In the past few years we've seen the power right-wing justices have to misapply the law -- hurting our communities and stamping down on our civil rights in the process -- and we've seen that the court's GOP appointed justices are often willing to do just that. Just a few years ago, the Court's right-wing bloc struck down core provisions of the Voting Rights Act, limiting voting rights in a way that particularly harms people of color with the simple (and false) declaration that they were no longer necessary. And they've made it vastly easier for corporations to overpower the voices of ordinary people in elections. In another recent decision where the Court upheld long-standing rules to prohibit housing discrimination, the Court came within one vote of overturning decades of precedent protecting people of color.

The upcoming decision on DACA+ and DAPA won't be the last case with the potential to cause devastating harm in our community. And the outcome of those cases will likely be decided in the voting booth this November. The average Supreme Court justice retires when he or she is 78 years old, and during the next President's first term, four Supreme Court justices will be over 80 years old, making it very likely the next President will get to appoint multiple Supreme Court justices. As voters, we have the chance to decide whether we want to pull the Court back from its rightward march, or if we'll let it turn into a far-right, anti-Latino branch of government for a generation.

The Supreme Court -- and the future of the Latino community -- is at stake in 2016.

We've seen what damage Republican presidents have been able to create through appointing partisan judges and Supreme Court justices -- we can't let that happen this year.
Some see her as just the brave leader the Israeli left needs at this time: a bold voice for peace, human rights, and social justice, who is nudging the only democracy in the Middle East in a more enlightened direction. Others view her as a self-hating rabble-rouser who, at best, is detached from the harsh realities of the Middle East and, at worst, is a collaborator with the enemy. She is loved. She is despised. She inspires hope. She arouses revulsion. Perhaps the only emotion she does not evoke is indifference. She is MK Zehava Galon, the leader of the unabashedly left-wing Meretz party.

Galon is the only current leader of a Zionist political party that is pushing for ending Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories and establishing an independent Palestinian state that would live side-by-side with Israel. For many years, it was the more mainstream center-left Labor and the now-defunct Kadima parties that took the lead in pursuing peace talks with the Palestinians based on a two-state solution. However, this week, the head of the opposition, Labor's Isaac Herzog, echoed a sentiment more typically heard from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the man he seeks to replace: a two-state solution is not realistic in the current reality.

Herzog and his centrist rival, Yesh Atid's Yair Lapid, are talking about the need to politically separate Israel from the Palestinians. Galon and her Meretz party colleagues are alone among Zionist parties, however, in advocating an end to the occupation. (The Joint List, an alliance of predominantly Arab lawmakers, regularly calls for an end to the occupation but as a non-Zionist or even anti-Zionist party, it has little impact on public opinion among Jewish Israelis.)

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Galon is a protege of the late Shulamit Aloni, who led Meretz during its heyday when the party, having won twelve seats in the 1992 elections, joined Yitzhak Rabin's Labor-led government and helped usher in a new era of hope. Like her mentor, Galon is an outspoken critic of Israel's occupation and a passionate voice for peace, separation of religion and state, and minorities' rights. In today's more religious, nationalistic, and conservative atmosphere, her liberalism - in particular, her defense of controversial civil society groups, Arab rights, and peace diplomacy with the Palestinians - seems almost anachronistic.

Galon took over Meretz during its nadir, doubling its Knesset representation in the 2013 elections from three to six seats. In last year's elections she maintained the party's strength in terms of the number of votes it received but, because the electoral threshold had been raised from two percent to 3.25 percent, Meretz was left with only five seats in the Knesset.

Meretz is regularly lauded by Knesset observers and extra-parliamentary groups for a record of legislative accomplishment disproportionate to the party's representation in the Knesset. Its legislators are known for their diligence, first-rate constituent service, and a squeaky-clean image, free of the corruption and sex scandals that have dogged other parties. In 2013, then-Meretz MK Nitzan Horowitz was the recipient of the Israel Democracy Institute's Outstanding Parliamentarian Award. That year, The Public Knowledge Workshop (Hasadna) determined that three Meretz MKs were responsible for over a third of all proposed laws.

Other Knesset watchdog organizations, such as Open Knesset and The Social Guard, have similarly highlighted the party's contributions to Israeli democracy. In the last Knesset, Meretz received the highest "Social Index" score (followed by the Labor Party) by The Social Guard, which scrutinizes MKs' votes on hundreds of socio-economic bills.

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Meretz is also distinguished by a strong activist streak. Aside from their parliamentary duties, its five MKs can be seen regularly at left-wing demonstrations, large and small, rain or shine. Like many other Israeli politicians, they also have an active presence on social media, particularly Facebook, where they recently have addressed their fight against the "NGO Transparency bill," which they regard as just the latest manifestation of an anti-democratic wave in Israel.

Yet, their accolades are overshadowed by their reputation as a niche party composed primarily of upper class Ashkenazi Jews that caters to the yuppies and intellectuals of Northern Tel Aviv.

I recently sat down with Galon for a wide-ranging interview that touched on everything from legislation aimed at silencing NGOs critical of Israeli policies to her thoughts concerning her political rivals to the sorry state of the Israeli left. As if to emphasize the gulf between Meretz and the public, Galon made it clear that working to end the occupation is far and away her party's top priority. In a sign of Israel's rightward shift, the very word "occupation" has long been removed from the national conversation. Yet a decade ago, even Prime Minister Ariel Sharon - no leftist like Galon - talked to his Likud colleagues about the need to end the occupation.

Whether Meretz will survive the next elections is anyone's guess. What is certain is that, with Galon at its helm, the party that literally means "vigor" has no intention of slowing down, let alone giving up.

Excerpts from my interview:

On the direction in which Israel is headed:

We are nearing the fiftieth anniversary of the Israeli occupation of the territories, and it is clear that Prime Minister Netanyahu is not interested in reaching a diplomatic solution and in ending the occupation. It's convenient for him to 'manage the conflict.' It benefits his coalitional needs. It worries me that there is no diplomatic horizon. Moreover, the nearly fifty-year occupation has implications in two directions: Israel's foreign relations and international standing on the one hand and the impact of the occupation on Israeli democracy on the other hand. The latter is dramatic. The more distant the chances of a resolution become, the more it impacts the democratic fabric of Israeli society as well as the rights of minorities. We see it, in particular, with the initiatives against Israeli civil society organizations that are critical of the occupation. Rather than enacting legislation that will protect human rights and minority rights, the Knesset enacts legislation that harms minorities. The world, in the meanwhile, is becoming less and less tolerant toward Israeli policy, the policy of the occupation.

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On the link between the occupation and social justice:

Several months ago, I attended a meeting with high school students. When I mentioned the occupation, they asked: 'What occupation?' They didn't say it with cynicism. They're used to this situation. In addition to the occupation's implications for Israel's foreign relations and for Israeli democracy, we see very significant implications for social justice. A popular notion - but a mistaken one - is that given that there's no chance at the moment to reach a negotiated resolution, we should focus now on social issues instead. Yet, these issues are connected. What is a just society? It's a society that doesn't harm the rights of minorities, one that isn't corrupt, and also one that does not rule over another people. I'm not only speaking about the economic pumps for the settlements that reinforce the occupation. I'm speaking about the more general idea that we cannot speak of justice without speaking about freedom. Israeli society today is not making this connection.

On Netanyahu's stated support for a two-state solution:

I did not believe him then [at Bar-Ilan University, where Netanyahu publicly endorsed a Palestinian state, in June 2009], nor do I believe him today. He's paying lip service, no question about it. Netanyahu is a hostage of the far-right. What interests him is [political] survival. When he talks about a two-state solution, he doesn't mean what I mean by it. Netanyahu is referring to a Bantustan [rather than a sovereign] state. You can't continue to build settlements and say you support two states. All of his actions on the ground prove that he does not believe in a two-state solution.

On Mahmoud Abbas as a peace partner:

Abu Mazen [Abbas] is the best partner Israel can have. The problem is that he is eighty and not getting younger. Without achievements, his legitimacy within Fatah continues to decline. I think Netanyahu has missed opportunities to make a deal with him. If the Palestinian Authority collapses, it will be a catastrophe for the Palestinians and for Israel.

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On the ex-generals' support for peace diplomacy with the Palestinians:

Netanyahu's incitement is stronger than any logical, rational, or security-oriented argument. Thus, even though the generals speak up in support of territorial withdrawal, they are not able to respond in a way that can overcome the [government led] incitement.

On Meretz's poor showing at the polls:

As it turns out, voting is much more complex than admiration for, or identification with, a particular party. Meretz voters tend to make strategic considerations when voting. When, in 2009, Tzipi Livni was seen as likely to replace Bibi [Netanyahu], they went with her and Meretz dropped to three mandates. When I led Meretz in the 2013 elections, Shelly Yachimovich led the Labor Party. She was not seen as a candidate who could defeat Bibi, so voters voted their conscience. [Meretz doubled its mandates.] In 2015, polls showed us getting ten seats, but when voters concluded that Bouji [Herzog] and Tzipi [Livni] could replace Bibi, they made a strategic decision [to vote for the Zionist Union]. Then there is the matter of incitement against the left, which leads people to be afraid to define themselves as leftists.

On the prospect of replacing Netanyahu:

Meretz can't do it alone. Cooperation and the formation of a united front can turn the situation around, but Bouji doesn't want to define his party as leftist and is afraid of his own shadow. Yair Lapid runs away from the left and delegitimizes it. He also sees himself as a candidate for prime minister. So we are alone.

On the U.S. Role:
Kelly Fratar and Nikki Maziasz traded a mild California winter for the below-freezing temperatures, and the heat, of the Iowa caucuses.

Although the 2016 Presidential race dominates newspapers, television and social media this month, for Fratar and Maziasz the 24-hour news cycle wasn't enough. The two baby boomers still felt distant from the candidates.

"We're from California, so we're the last ones - this thing will be a shoo-in once it gets to us," Maziasz said. "That's why we're here. We don't get this detailed politics in California."

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As the first state to choose a Republican and a Democratic presidential candidate, Iowa is a special in each presidential election cycle. Hopefuls flock to the state, giving Iowans personalized, up-close attention that other states do not receive.

But it wasn't just the Presidential hopefuls who flocked to the state in late January. Iowa attracts all types of political tourists in the buildup to caucus night.

Some, like Fatar and Maziasz, flew in to observe the candidates so they could make informed votes in their home states. Others flew in from countries as far away as New Zealand to get firsthand exposure to "fascinating and entertaining" United States politics.

Many, like Jackson Davis, traveled to Iowa as part of the campaigns.

Davis was a junior film major at Emerson College before taking a semester off to be part of Bernie Sanders' Digital Road Team. He enjoyed the involved experience he got from traveling with Sanders, but also appreciated how social media had others 'feeling the Bern.'

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"It's been a whirlwind, an honest once-in-a-lifetime experience," Davis said. "Traditional volunteer efforts are still vital and effective, but you don't have to go door-to-door canvassing to make a difference anymore. The digital grassroots movement of Bernie 2016 is not only massive, but also very inclusive."

Jenny Barin, from FWD.us, also understands the power of social media on the 2016 election cycle - but like Davis, she traveled to Iowa hoping to impact the election on a more personal level.

Barin, 23, and two colleagues attended town meetings and other events for candidates of both parties, and asked questions about immigration policies. The group also pushed for voter engagement in Des Moines. Although FWD.us constantly campaigns online for immigration rights, Barin hoped she had much greater impact as a political tourist.

"Being at the center of the political universe is really cool," Barin said. "I'm surprised when I go to an event with Rand Paul or Marco Rubio, and not everyone there is a Republican, not everyone there is even registered. I love the variety of political views, and I feel comfortable engaging and asking questions and listening. It's really cool, I wish everyone could get treated the way that Iowans are right before the caucuses."


Mileva Lewis (left) with Fran Johns



Do Not Resuscitate? Allow Natural Death? Do everything to keep me alive? Whatever happens, I don't want tubes down my throat! Keep me out of Intensive Care Units!

End-of-life decision-making gets tougher every day.

Dying - that straightforward, universal human experience - now often involves a bewildering assortment of choices and decisions. And most of us are poorly prepared. We have core values (and usually more than a few fears and family histories) that come into play in making end-of -life choices, but too many of us are caught unawares.

At a recent Commonwealth Club of California event Mileva Saulo Lewis, EdD, RN, used a "values history" approach to explain how these difficult decisions are made, and to help audience members walk through the process. "Values history" translates: What matters to you? Why? It was developed at the Center for Medical Ethics and Mediation in San Diego.

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"Values," Lewis explains, "are the criteria by which you make decisions." They might be rooted in your home and family, your faith community, college or university, workplace or elsewhere, but one's values underlie all decision-making. And the reason all this matters today, especially with end-of-life decisions, is that medicine and technology have made seismic shifts over the past half century.

Lewis spoke of how the patient/physician relationship, one of these shifts, has moved from the paternalistic, "father knows best" model to what is now often termed "patient-centered" care - shared decision-making. This new model requires patients not only to be well informed, but also to be proactive and to make their values known.

The goals of medicine, Lewis explains, include curing disease, relieving symptoms and suffering, and preventing untimely death. The patient's part is to make sure the healthcare provider explains and counsels adequately, and respects the patient's expressed wishes. Ideally, decisions will be made in concert.

Lewis outlined some of the factors to consider in end-of-life decision-making such as how important to you is independence, being able to communicate with others, being pain-free and other end-of-life circumstances that have been frequently discussed in this space. She suggested one tool that has not been mentioned here, and is an excellent aid: the Ottawa Personal Decision Guide. However you make (and record) your personal choices, she stresses the importance of thinking through your values, writing down your wishes and - most important of all - talking it all over with friends, family members and your healthcare provider.

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"Know yourself," Mileva Lewis says. "Communicate. Trust yourself, and your healthcare provider. And be proactive."
Despite enormous progress in areas such as health and poverty reduction across many regions of the world over recent years, there is currently much uncertainty - if not anxiety - about what our future holds. And this is over and above the state of the economy.

Xenophobic populism, terrorism and nationalism as well as inequality are all on the rise. So too is the accumulation of CO2, casting a dark shadow into the future. Ironically, never before have we had the means available to tackle challenges on a scale and level of sophistication as we readily have at our disposal today. Yet, we seem to be lacking both the willingness and the ability to address the root causes of such problems and react in a dignified manner to their humanitarian consequences, as can be seen from the plight of the 60 million people who were forcibly displaced by the end of 2015.





The recently published annual Edelman Trust Barometer is shedding some light on this paradox. The Trust Barometer is based on a comprehensive global survey and measures public trust in governments, business, media and NGOs. This year's findings show a widening gap between the "informed public" - those who are college educated and in the top 25% of household income - and the wider demographic that make up 85% of the global population. While the informed public shows growing trust in business and public institutions, the mass population does not. This is a global phenomenon, with the 'distrusters' now in the majority in nearly six out of ten countries. According to the report, trust levels show a strong link with income inequality and it appears that the mass population is increasingly disconnected from the informed public.

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Two other findings stand out. First, trust in governments and public institutions remains very low overall and the majority now believe that business should lead. Second, while trust in business has improved, trust in executives remains low. Peers and employees are now seen as more credible than business leaders and often employees don't trust the companies they are working for.

The disconnect between the wealthy and the wider population, and the persistent low trust in public institutions, suggests that we are facing an ever deeper government/governance crisis. Of course, one can argue this is not news. After all, throughout human history government/governance failure has been the father of human suffering, with huge implications in terms of deaths as a result of wars and conflicts. But it is clear that government/governance failure remains a widespread and growing cancer.

Today, over one billion people live with fear and over 70 countries suffer from systemic corruption where ruling elites abuse power. What is now different is that digital empowerment is adding a new dimension where high profile revelations about greed and corruption can topple governments and leaders instantly. And the pace of disruption is accelerating. Rising wealth concentration - today the richest 1% own as much as the remaining 99% of the global population combined - and increasing income inequality are together feeding the divides and tensions.

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Restoring trust and re-inventing government/governance is arguably the most difficult but also the most urgent task at hand in 2016. After all, public security, health and education are not only essentials but also significant equalizers to ensure societies do not build walls within and between each other. These are the walls that in turn give rise to tensions and conflict. More than ever before, our interdependent world needs well-functioning governments to deal with global challenges such as climate change, to respond to humanitarian emergencies and to tackle dark forces of globalization, organized crime and terrorism. The world is still governed by nation states and there is no viable substitute in sight.

For too long it has been fashionable to bash governments while conveniently ignoring the critical question of "how to make public institutions work". And all too often those who criticize governments the loudest have silently worked to change policies in their favor. So to change the tide, the journey towards re-inventing governments, re-building trust and encouraging inclusive social consensus must start with the will of the people to make public institutions work. This needs to be matched by credible ethical leadership at policy level, not captured by wealth or special interests, but in the true service of the public.

Moreover, it is not only governments that have to reinvent themselves to adapt to globalization and digitalization. For business executives to become more credible leaders and for CEOs to gain greater trust, the Edelman Trust barometer rightly outlines the centrality of values, engagement and actions. Genuine business leadership is increasingly seen as not only advancing the short-term corporate interest but also to contribute to societal needs and public priorities. The corporate sustainability movement has already made important inroads and a new "Generation S" is now working hard to more effectively align private and public interests, with investors starting to get serious in integrating environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues into their portfolios. These are promising developments, as they will help to close the gap between private interests and the concerns of the broader public.

Reinventing governance to better serve the interests of the majority and aligning market forces with societal priorities requires ethical leadership in politics and business alike. As trust is low and gaps are widening, the call is out for ethical leaders to take charge. The search is on for leaders who do not celebrate wealth but who have a strong sense of fairness and justice, who know the difference between right and wrong and who understand that the forces which connect us are stronger than the forces that divide us.

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Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for

thereby some have entertained angels unawares." -

Hebrews 13:2 (RSV)

Mary Alice Williams, news anchor for New Jersey Television (NJTV) and co-founder of CNN, was known to me professionally but unknown personally.

On the day former Senator Eugene McCarthy's life was remembered and celebrated in a memorial service at Washington's National Cathedral, Ms. Williams was one of two eulogists (the other was former President Bill Clinton).

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She was Senator McCarthy's God-daughter, as she had grown up on a farm in Minnesota, and had known him from her childhood. Her eulogy was the most memorable I have ever heard. (As a eulogist President Clinton was good that day because he's always good; but Ms. Williams was better.)

While a Kennedy person (I had worked for Bobby), I had a close friendship with Senator McCarthy. I admired him greatly and flew across the country to be present at his memorial service.

I had never met Ms. Williams, but at a reception following the service, I introduced myself, told her I was president of The City Club of San Diego, a public forum, and asked if she would be willing, if her schedule permitted, to come to San Diego and speak? She graciously accepted my invitation.

A year or more had passed before she was able to come west from her home in New Jersey, but on a Friday afternoon she flew out of Newark to San Diego. I met her at the airport in the early evening, discovered she had had nothing to eat and was coming down with a cold, so I took her to a restaurant overlooking San Diego Bay.

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Over dinner I asked, "Mary Alice, do you believe in angels?"

That is not a question I commonly ask, and certainly not of a new friend. But it is the question I asked, prompted by something within me, but Mary Alice answered:

"I do. Don't you?"

I said I did, that I was haunted by the New Testament's injunction to treat strangers with kindness, because some thereby have "entertained angels unawares."

Mary Alice then told me this story:



The day John F. Kennedy Jr.'s plane crashed off Martha's Vineyard, the entire fishing fleet in Cape Cod was scouring the sound in search of him. From her cottage on Cape Cod Bay, the water looked like glass. Not a ripple or wave. Mary Alice's three little girls asked if she would take them swimming off-shore in the family's Boston Whaler.

They motored in bright sunlight a couple of miles away from the beach, wanting solitude and quiet. But not long after the girls began swimming a huge fog bank blew in, as happens on Cape Cod, and Mary Alice asked her daughters to return to the whaler, they needed to head for shore.

However, the outboard engine on the whaler, wouldn't start, despite repeated attempts.

Mary Alice did her best to hide her mounting anxiety, but finally yelled out, "Ahoy! Ahoy!" Out of the enveloping grayness of fog and rising waves, she heard a voice answer back, "Ahoy."

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A moment or two passed, it seemed longer to a worried mom when a fishing boat pulled up alongside the Williams' whaler. There on its deck stood a tall fisherman, beard and all, looking as if he had been sent by central casting, "What's wrong, Missy?" he asked. Mary Alice told him their outboard engine wouldn't start. The fisherman said he would board the whaler to see what luck he might have.

His luck was no better, and he said to Mary Alice and her three girls, "I will tow you in."

By then the sea was angry and dark, with high swell lifting the whaler and fishing boat high and slamming them into the troughs. Riding the stormy sea in toward the Cape was scary, and when they finally reached the beach, the girls jumped in the water and waded ashore; while their mother told the fisherman, "Thank you, thank you, thank you. You saved our lives. How can I ever thank you?"

Before uncoupling his fishing boat from the whaler, the tall, gray-bearded fisherman, said, "Missy, you can thank me by promising that if you ever encounter someone in need, you will do everything you can to help them." Mary Alice said, "I make that promise."

The fisherman was about to pull away, when Mary Alice called out, "What is your name and where can we find you?"

The fisherman answered, "My name is Martin, and you can find me in the village, in the little bait shack next door to the chocolate shop." And with that, he disappeared into the fog bank.

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Mary Alice and her girls went home to their cottage. The girls asked their mother for butcher paper and color sharpies; they wanted to make a poster thanking Martin, the fisherman. They finished their posters and Mary Alice drove them to the village.

They went next door to the chocolate shop, but there was no bait shack and no one, no one, had ever heard of Martin.

And that is why Mary Alice Williams believes in angels.
When it comes to healthy communication and engagement in business fear is your worst enemy. Fear paralyzes people's ability to do their best work. It has the power to put us in a cage surrounded by a professional life (and personal life) we don't want. And it forces companies to make poor decisions; spending money that doesn't need to be spent.

Reducing fear is the greatest cost reduction a business will ever experience. Reducing fear is what unleashes full human potential. When employees are fearless, regardless of position, they communicate courageously, are innovative, perform at their highest level and positively contribute to the success of their team. When employees are at their best, the business automatically saves more, makes more and experiences greater success in return.

Fear is the reason dysfunctional cultures exist. Oftentimes, rather than people making the right or ethical decision, they succumb to their fear of possible loss. Fear that sounds like: If I make an unpopular decision I'll lose my golden handcuffs. If I put people before profits I'll be seen as weak or lose respect. I'm too old or too young to "rock the boat". Many people would rather work in misery than face their fear. The result is an American workforce that's 70% disengaged (Gallup).

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If a business wants to win in today's market it has to help its leaders and employees alike get their head out of the sand and face fear head-on. To conquer fear you have to get personal. When everyone in the business takes the time to conquer their fear the business will become unstoppable, and there will be nothing it can't accomplish.

Here are 5 ways you can begin conquering your fear in business.

Name your fear:

Write down all your fears. It's amazing how many of them will go away once you physically write them down. Once you write your fears down, rate their potential in becoming a reality on a scale from 1 - 10. If there's a high potential, brainstorm options and actions that will allow you to overcome the possible outcomes. You've now turned fear into a project that you can manage and work toward overcoming.

Stop calling yourself a victim:

The only person you're a victim to is you. Here's the reality: you're smart, talented, worthy of the position you hold and you deserve to be free from fear. You have complete choice and freedom over your thoughts, attitude and behavior. Other people's choices are not yours to own, so don't allow outsider's perceptions to hold you back from conquering your fear and moving forward in healthy productive ways.

Own your core beliefs:

Fear is usually a direct refection of negative core beliefs--what we believe to be true and the story we tell ourselves. Negative core beliefs stem from our past experiences and create self-sabotaging thoughts in our present life. Examples include: I'm not good enough because... I'll never have enough money because... I have to take care of everyone because... The list goes on and on. Take a moment to write down what you believe to be your negative core beliefs, and then ask yourself how your beliefs are fueling your fears. Then for each negative core belief write a positive affirmation and say it daily. An example: I'm talented, valuable and worthy of all good things.

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Write down your desires:

What do you want? Fears block us from getting what we want by creating mental roadblocks that self-sabotage our goals and dreams. To get what you want you need to remove the fear standing in your way. Go back to the list of fears you wrote in the first exercise, and write down the desire each fear is blocking. Next, cross out each fear on the list so all that's remaining is your desire. Then for each desire write a statement of gratitude, as though you've already received exactly what you want. I guarantee, reading your statements of gratitude daily will fuel a change in you that will kick fear to the curb! An example may be: Thank you that I have the career I've always wanted because I did the right thing and stood up for myself and my team.

Practice:

Conquering fear is all about practice, and applying these techniques consistently is the secret. Fear will always try to sneak itself back into your life, and that's okay because you're human. That said, the more you practice the easier overcoming fear becomes, and you'll begin to give less power (if any) to the fear that once held you back from the professional and personal life you want.
COLUMBIA, SC - JANUARY 18, 2016: Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks to the crowd during the King Day at the Dome rally at the S.C. State House January 18, 2016 in Columbia, South Carolina. The event drew appearances from Democratic presidential candidates Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley and Hillary Clinton. (Photo by Sean Rayford/Getty Images)

First and foremost, Ta-Nehisi Coates is a brilliant journalist and I agree with him on the case for reparations. Everyone should read his groundbreaking piece in The Atlantic titled The Case for Reparations. It highlights why the African American experience is unique in every way, from slavery and Jim Crow, to the Civil Rights era and today's lasting effects in the black community from such devastating chapters in U.S. history.

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However, when Coates asks why Bernie Sanders fails to address white supremacy, and completely ignores Hillary Clinton's "abysmal" record on racial justice, as well as numerous other ties held by both Clintons to the structural injustices currently faced by African Americans, Latinos, and other communities, then some context is needed.

There's only one leading Democratic candidate in 2016 who embodies white supremacy, privilege and financial ties to the economic and political system defining these concepts. The other leading Democratic candidate is named Bernie Sanders, and his political philosophy has been likened to Martin Luther King's by Dr. Cornell West, Ohio State Senator Nina Turner, and rap artist Killer Mike.

Therefore, let's look at why Hillary Clinton, not Bernie Sanders, should be singled out as furthering white supremacy and privilege.

Hillary Clinton ran a controversial 3 a.m. ad against Barack Obama in 2008 that Harvard's Orlando Patterson believes contained a "racist sub-message." Upon viewing the images within Clinton's political advertisement, Patterson wrote that "I couldn't help but think of D. W. Griffith's 'Birth of a Nation.'"

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Here's the video of Clinton's 3 a.m. ad against our nation's first African American president.

Is there a reason the Clinton campaign showed sleeping children in the middle of the night, when running against an African American candidate?

Harvard's Orlando Patterson and others believed there were numerous reasons, and stated, "The danger implicit in the phone ad -- as I see it -- is that the person answering the phone might be a black man, someone who could not be trusted to protect us from this threat."

Then, when Obama's campaign accused Clinton's staff of "dirty tricks" in 2008 (for circulating a photo of Barack Obama in African attire), his campaign manager David Plouffe stated that such tactics represented "the most shameful, offensive fear-mongering we've seen from either party in this election."

Then of course, Obama referred to Hillary as "Annie Oakley," primarily because she portrayed herself as a "Pro-Gun Churchgoer" eight years ago.

In a complete reversal from today's loyal Obama supporter, and gun control advocate, Clinton once stated that Obama was "kind of elitist and out of touch." On his stance pertaining to why Americans cling to guns, Clinton said "I disagree with Senator Obama's assertion that people in our country cling to guns and have certain attitudes about immigration or trade simply out of frustration."

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So, Hillary Clinton ran a political ad deemed to have a "racist sub-message" by a Harvard sociologist, engaged in "dirty tricks" deemed to be "offensive fear-mongering" by Obama's campaign manager (not to mention her defense of gun owners back then), and recently accepted money from prison lobbyists, but it's Bernie Sanders who's soft on white supremacy?

Hillary Clinton had financial ties to prison lobbyists up until recently and Bill Clinton's record on mass incarceration speaks for itself. Clinton's ties to mass incarceration are highlighted in a Vice article titled Hillary Clinton Shuns Private Prison Cash, Activists Want Others to Follow Suit:

It only took Hillary Clinton six months after first calling for sweeping criminal justice reform and an end to mass incarceration for her to announce on Thursday that she would no longer accept direct donations from private prison lobbyists... Clinton's decision reportedly came after a series of meetings with several minority advocacy groups that have been demanding that 2016 candidates address the excesses of America's sprawling criminal justice system, including mass incarceration, overcrowded jails, and poor prison conditions, among other issues. Clinton's Ready for Hillary PAC has received $133,246 from lobbying firms linked to GEO and CCA. That figure was slightly lower than the $133,450 Rubio's PACs and campaign have accepted from private prison companies or groups that lobby on their behalf.

Someone needs to define white supremacy, if indeed accepting money from prison lobbyists isn't an egregious example of privilege and supremacy. On the bright side, at least Clinton accepted less money from prison lobbyists than Marco Rubio.

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If you pontificate about privilege and supremacy, make sure to follow the money first, and see if prison lobbyists and Wall Street have funded your candidate.

The fact is that Bernie Sanders never accepted money from prison lobbyists.

As for the history of mass incarceration, Bill Clinton's role in this plague is highlighted in a 2001 Los Angeles Times piece titled Federal and State Prison Populations Soared Under Clinton, Report Finds:

The federal and state prison populations rose more under former President Bill Clinton than under any other president, according to a report from a criminal justice institute to be released today. In fact, the analysis of U.S. Justice Department statistics by the left-leaning Justice Policy Institute, a project of a San Francisco-based justice center, found that more federal inmates were added to prisons under Clinton than under presidents George Bush and Ronald Reagan combined. From opposing a federal commission's push for equalization of drug sentences for powder cocaine and crack cocaine to embracing a 1994 crime bill that accelerated the rate of prison construction, the Democratic president often stole the show from "tough-on-crime" Republicans, the study said.



Yes, Clinton's presidency saw more Americans incarcerated than "under presidents George Bush and Ronald Reagan combined."

While Hillary Clinton says she'll curtail private prisons, even as she accepted prison lobbyist money (if this makes sense to you, then you're voting for Clinton), only Bernie Sanders has a concrete plan to actually end private prisons. This plan is highlighted in a Think Progress piece titled Bernie Sanders Unveils Ambitious Plan To End Private Prisons:

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Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) is officially taking on the country's private prison industry. By introducing a bill that would ban government contracts with private prisons, the presidential contender is quickly becoming the loudest advocate for criminal justice reform among his competitors. "Study after study after study has shown private prisons are not cheaper, they are not safer, and they do not provide better outcomes for either the prisoners or the state," Sanders said at a press conference Thursday.

Where is Hillary Clinton's detailed plan to end private prisons?

Finally, South Carolina Congressman James Clyburn confronted both Clintons in 2008 over their rhetoric against Obama. Hillary Clinton's loss to Obama in South Carolina caused another controversy, as illustrated in a 2008 New York Times piece titled Black Leader in the House Sharply Criticizes Bill Clinton:

The black leader, Representative James E. Clyburn, an undeclared superdelegate from South Carolina and the third-ranking Democrat in the House, said "black people are incensed over all of this." ...Mr. Clyburn added that there appeared to be an almost unanimous view among African-Americans that Mr. and Mrs. Clinton were committed to doing everything they possibly could to damage Mr. Obama to a point that he could never win in the general election.



Was it white supremacy when "Mr. and Mrs. Clinton were committed to doing everything they possibly could to damage Mr. Obama"? Or just politics among Democrats? Or both?

Bill and Hillary Clinton are the embodiment of the status quo, and while they'll say the right things to whomever their audience happens to be, they'll also accept money from prison lobbyists and run racist political ads.

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With Bernie Sanders, you have a candidate tackling not only private prisons and mass incarceration, but a person who says "I'll be damned" to quagmires and perpetual wars. Militarized police departments are a direct consequence of perpetual American wars, so that's another reason Hillary Clinton's "neocon" foreign policy hurts everyone.

Clinton and Sanders don't support reparations. Only Clinton, however, has a history with prison lobbyists and other elements of structural injustice.
Moroccans shout slogans and hold placards during a demonstration in Rabat on July 6, 2015. The protesters demonstrated for freedom and against the arrest of two Moroccan women after their outfits were deemed inappropriate as they strolled through an open-air market in the southern city of Agadir; and against the assault of a gay man in the city of Fez. The women were arrested on June 16 and charged with 'gross indecency.' AFP PHOTO/ FADEL SENNA (Photo credit should read FADEL SENNA/AFP/Getty Images)

The hymen! Be careful with your hymen! It's your dignity! It's the only thing that gives you value! He can rebuild his life, but you are worthless without your hymen! It's your honor!

The subject sounds a bit crude, doesn't it? Well, imagine listening to those warnings for a lifetime. Imagine hearing that "without your hymen, you're nobody." Imagine everyone trying to scare the hell out of women who are already treated as though they were worth next to nothing. They are also treated as being less worthy than men by virtue of their religion, and are considered to be worth only as much as whatever business deal their families can secure with the families of the men who decide to take them in exchange for a substantial dowry.

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Basically, the hymen is a woman's passport; it is the only way for a woman to be considered a real person.

Has anyone ever approached you to tell you that if you sleep with someone, you're basically jeopardizing your whole life? The fact that this still happens in the 21st century may sound surreal to many people. What comes to mind is Fernando de Rojas' remiendavirgos (virginity fixers) in La Celestina: those surly ladies who "reconstructed" the virginity of many women unfit for marriage in the hypocritical society of the 15th century.

"The hymen, in these societies, is worth its weight in gold."

Do you understand the issue? Let me tell you, at least, how they see it in those societies where tearing a hymen is still considered haram (forbidden by religion). All this fuss is all about a thin piece of skin, a remarkably thin piece of skin --and one that some women are actually born without-- that acts as a kind of gateway between the outside world and the inside of the vagina. The hymen, in these societies, is worth its weight in gold.

Socially, religiously, and morally, that sensitive door must remain closed until you find that one key that will be used for the rest of your life. That lucky man who will open it for the first time --gently or not-- will help his wife become a real woman. Before then, she wasn't considered a real woman. Oh, and that door is so valuable that it's worth more than your worth as a person, a human being, or a woman. So, you think you're a great and multitalented person? You studied at Harvard? You have great qualities? Maybe that's all true, but it doesn't matter. You're not worth the same anymore because you've lost your virginity.

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But let's get back to the subject at hand. Many women (I do not like to classify them as Muslim, or Arab, or the like, because this has also happened in Catholic Christian Spain) have faced this. It certainly, and fortunately, hasn't happened to all the females in the world. But hundreds of thousands of females have experienced this; from the moment they were born, their mothers warned them against the perverted men who will want to steal their most prized piece of meat: their hymens.

"These are stories that take place in Morocco, Spain, Egypt, the Netherlands, and France."

Let's talk about Morocco or Egypt, the cases I've explored the most. Let me say first, though, that many women who will read this will say that they are saving their hymens because they want to. They have all my respect and admiration. The rest do it out of fear-- they've been told all their lives how important their virginity is. Out of fear, they act like saints until their knight in shining armor finally arrives.



Moroccans shout slogans during a protest calling for gender equality in Rabat on March 8, 2015. The placards read: 'An invitation to think not to blaspheme', 'We won't compromise on women's rights.' (Fade Senna/AFP/Getty Images)

The others, the "used" ones, are considered to be whores who will suffer for making a mistake, or for being free.

In a country like Morocco, do you know what the consequences can be for a woman who decides to take control of her own body? Of her vagina? The first thing she'll face is being shunned and rejected by her family.

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Following this abandonment, she will try to look for a man who's willing to marry her regardless of whether or not she's a virgin. She may or may not find that person. If she's lucky, he might accept that she has been deflowered by someone else before him. But if she's not lucky... well, there's always the option of trying to hide her shame with a hymenoplasty, an operation that reconstructs the hymen. She'll do it to avoid being shunned and abandoned by her husband.

It's a very harsh reality for those who have the misfortune of ending up pregnant out of wedlock. Regardless of the selfishness of many men, who consider them to be girls to use and discard, and regardless of the lack of sexual education, it is the victim, yet again, who will pay the consequences. She may threaten to report a rape so that the man, to avoid prison, would choose to marry her. This will save him the legal trouble and will subject her to a life of misery, which she will endure for the sole purpose of preserving her family's honor.

Another scenario is for him to disappear and refuse to take care of the child. What then? Her family will reject her and she'll end up on the street. What would she do there? She could leave the child at the gates of a place that she believes would take good care of a newborn baby (this would explain the number of overcrowded orphanages in Morocco), or she could decide to keep it, finding work whatever she can.

"Does anyone really know if they would choose to be sexual with three men, with one, or with none, if they had the option?"

Being a single mother is not exactly easy in a society where the highest authority is the heshuma ("How embarrassing!" in Moroccan dialect). No one will want to hire her. Prostitution is sort of an easy way out, for nobody would ask for explanations if you're willing to sleep with hungry scoundrels (sexually speaking, that is) who pay good money and don't care about your life's story.

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This last option, one of the most common ones, condemns women to live with the humiliation of being whores and being rejected by their families. Their children? They will always be bastards, "haram children," rejected wherever they go.

It sounds like an exaggeration, right? Doesn't it sound like a different world? Well, it isn't. This is something that happens every day before my eyes. Some look at this with critical eyes, while others justify it with a vague sentiment: "This is our culture," they say.

But no matter how you look at them, these are stories that take place in Morocco, Spain, Egypt, the Netherlands, and France. These women are punished by a tradition they never chose, one that rarely gives them an option to escape.

Has anyone asked them what they want? Does anyone really know if they would choose to be sexual with three men, with one, or with none, if they had the option?

Really, mothers and sisters, do you think that the first time is always wonderful, and that from then on it must be "forever"? Has anyone told them that they're worth what they're worth because they're human beings, and that they ought to be respected as human beings? Has anyone ever told them that honor is a subjective issue that has a different meaning for each of us?

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Ok so before I go into the topic of #OscarsSoWhite and where we are in 2016, I as a political person, like to dig deep into the mechanics behind the problem. So I want to share with you the mission behind the Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences, all of which can be found on Oscars.org.

According to the website, its mission is to recognize and uphold excellence in the motion picture arts and sciences, inspire imagination, and connect the world through the medium of motion pictures. Sounds good thus far. The website also states that its comprised of 7,000+ accomplished men and women working in cinema. So there are over 7,000 members who represent the Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences [1].

I went to dig a little deeper and again, all of this is on the website. I took a look at their Board of Governors, and their role is to direct the Academy's strategic vision, preserve the organization's financial health, and assure the fulfillment of its mission. Each governor serves a 3-year term and they can only serve a maximum of 3 consecutive three-year terms for a total of 9 years. Now we know that Ms. Cheryl Boone Isaacs is the current and first African-American and the third woman to serve in this capacity. Now in taking a look at her executive board there is a total of 8 officers. Ms. Boone is the ONLY person of color on the executive board. In looking at the governors, there are 51 of them, ONLY one person of color serves in the governors and that is the current president of the Academy, Ms. Cheryl Boone Isaacs. Looking at the governing administration of the Academy, Dawn Hudson serves as the CEO and on her team, NO PERSON OF COLOR [2[. The first notion behind its lack of diversity.

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I also took a look at what it takes to become a member of the Academy that votes for the people who will be nominated for that prestigious statue in the various categories that the Academy honors and recognizes; it is an extremely complicated process that I feel is intended to make it next to impossible to become one, thus it's the 2nd reason behind its lack of diversity.

Let's take a look at the stats in accordance to LA Times research; 94% of the Academy is White, only 6% is other (which is sad because that 6% is no true diversity). The median age for members of the academy is 62 years old; it is 77% male and 23% female. Executive and writers in the Academy are 98% white; Cinematographers and visual effects members of the Academy are 95% male [3]. What makes this very interesting is that when it comes to job employment in Hollywood, it's mostly white males and they generally get the first opportunities to become members.



Within these startling numbers and statistics that I have found, this highlights the first real issue of diversity in Hollywood (please note that this is just the surface and the Academy reflects the market of Hollywood, we will have to look at the deeper lining issue of the major film companies and their issues of diversity as well). Now with this we can understand why in a strong case, for the past 2 years African-American filmmakers, actors, producers and other categories have been shut out of not only winning an academy but even being nominated for one.

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Let's look at this disgusting number based on research by the Huffington Post: since its creation, over 2,947 Academy Awards have been given out and only 31 have been given out to African-American winners! That is 1.05 percent, this is sad and disgusting; of the 31, 7 has gone to Best Actor and only 1 has gone to best Actress. Majority of those wins have gone to movies that downgrade and feed into the unfortunate stereotypes and prejudices that African-Americans have to deal with [4]. Now we can name countless African-American films that are truly worthy of recognition by the Academy, but it doesn't change the fact that regardless of how excellent a film is and it is promoting the uplifting image and true heroism and stories of our race, the fact still remains that the Academy and its lack of diversity will be the barrier that will have to be destroyed by incorporating heavy diversity within its organization.

While I commend the courage to have African-American individuals in the film industry to boycott the Academy Awards, it is a much deeper issue. I would encourage you all to stand as one group, on unionized cohort to encourage diversity within the ranks, encourage diversity in the film organizations that you are a part of for that movie you are working on and take action.

I also understand the notion that we should have our own to recognize our own; I am all for it, however in the United States of America, why must we have to do this for everything. If we are to fully realize the dreams of Dr. King and the great trailblazers who fought, sacrificed and died in the name of the American Principle, equality, freedom and justice, we have to make our voices clear and honor them and let the Academy know that each of you represent the mission of the Academy. This may be a very difficult task; so it was for Douglass, Truth, Allen, Tubman, DuBois, X, King and plenty of others, but if they can do it so can you. Be the change; expose it and call for it day in and day out in the name of equality, truth, justice and the American way.
Mainstream Republican voices seem to be increasingly, if reluctantly, accepting that Donald Trump may in fact be their party's presidential nominee? Are Republicans completely, and recklessly, abandoning their modern commitment (it wasn't always so) to the free trade ideas of their purported hero, Ronald Reagan? To the extent Trump has an economic plan to grow the American economy it boils down to two main items: risking a global trade war in the belief that the United States can unilaterally set the terms of international trade and the more plain vanilla one of lowering taxes, primarily corporate ones.

The Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act (promulgated by two Republican Senators), passed in 1930 is widely accepted by economists as greatly contributing to spiraling the world's economy deeper into depression. According to Ben Bernanke, "Economists still agree that Smoot-Hawley and the ensuing tariff wars were highly counterproductive and contributed to the depth and length of the global Depression." In the aftermath of Smoot-Hawley, U.S. imports and exports plunged. The thought that a U.S. President could actually embrace such a wholly discredited economic idea as extreme tariffs is scary. The Republican Party effectively renouncing free trade as a vital part of its cannon by embracing its Smoot-Hawley candidate is analogous to the party's evangelicals denying Jesus.

At day's end, there is one tool at Trump's disposal, which he conceded in the last debate, if China doesn't acquiesce to his demands or Mexico refuses to finance his wall - big fat tariffs.

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Compare Trump's approach to growing the economy to Reagan's vision. In his 1988 State of the Union address, Reagan said, "One of the greatest contributions the U.S. can make to the world is to promote freedom as the key to economic growth. A creative, competitive America is the answer to a changing world, not trade wars that would close doors, create greater barriers, and destroy millions of jobs." Trump fails to recognize that the ecosystem of world trade, in all its complexities, is the sum result of each nation trying to tilt the odds in its favor without crossing lines that could ignite all out trade wars.

Trump's other "big idea" is of course more prosaic and in keeping with common everyday Republican rhetoric to lower taxes, particularly corporate ones. If Trump was ever asked to answer the simple question, "When was America great in your mind?" he would quickly discover that his "great" periods were surely accompanied by tax schemes he rejects. For instance, the contribution from corporations for paying the nation's bills has steadily declined over the past several decades. Despite some people's preoccupation with marginal rates it is effective rates (after accounting for deductions and credits) that really matter. To wit, corporate income taxes averaged 4.6% of GDP in the "great" 1950s, 3.7% in the 1960s and since the 1990s have remained below 2%. Last year corporations paid 1.9% of GDP in taxes, the same as they averaged in the "great" (economic) decade of the 1990s. Does Trump want to take corporations' share of paying the nation's bills back to the great 1950s when it was above 4% of GDP?

Past periods of American growth were also accompanied by higher individual marginal tax rates. The booming 1950s had a top marginal rate of 91%. One reason why the economy may not be particularly impressed by marginal tax rates is that economic growth has occurred in the context of a variety of marginal tax schemes because total federal tax receipts, corporate and individual, have remained in a fairly tight band (putting aside recession periods when revenues sunk) averaging about 18% of GDP during the post-War period. Despite super high marginal rates in the 1950s total federal tax collections nonetheless averaged 17% of GDP. In 2014 the number was 17.4%. In other words, the amount of money that the federal government is currently pulling out of the economy as a percentage of the economy (GDP) is right in-line with post-War history. In all likelihood, the percentage needs to be increased to accommodate a demographic reality - an older nation with far greater retiree demands requiring more revenue to avoid more debt financing (in addition to thoughtful entitlement reforms).

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Similarly, U.S. Federal spending (despite false claims to the contrary), has remained steady as well averaging about 20% of GDP. One wonders if the voices like Trump's decrying a runaway, ever growing Federal Government ever actually study this stuff. All of the above figures are easily accessible at www.taxpolicycenter.org (a joint project of the Urban Institute and Brookings Institution).

The chance that spending and revenue line up more evenly is unlikely because of the American pastime of blaming the other guy's spending, or special interest, as the source of the problem. For instance, while Trump, along with many of his primary competitors, assails food stamp spending, the cost of that program equals the cost of the home mortgage deduction. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities estimates that close to half of homeowners with mortgages - most middle and low-income families - receive no benefit from this deduction. What allows many well-off Americans to see themselves not as government beneficiaries is the simple fact that they often receive their benefits through deductions, not direct cash-outlays.



Trump bashes the Obama administration's purported growing of the federal government (as does the rest of his newly found party), despite the fact that there are fewer non-military federal workers today as compared to when the President took office (today's 4.2 million federal workers versus 4.4 million in 2009) and U.S. federal spending is only a hair higher today at 20.9% of GDP versus 20.3% when Obama took office.

Trump's unemployment numbers are also misguided. He (along with others) often cites today's 63% labor participation rate to undermine the stunning drop in the unemployment rate from 10% in 2009 to today's 5%. However, the labor participation rate has been declining since 1999 (it peaked then at about 68%) and is most widely attributed by economists to the simple demographic trend of baby boomers exiting the work force. In fact, the labor participation rate was actually much lower in the 1950s at around 55% and grew as the result of another demographic trend, i.e. more women entering the workforce.

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The current post-financial recession growth rate, decried by Trump and others, which is low by historical standards, is also completely in line with another historical trend - since WW II the growth rate coming out of recessions has steadily declined. According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, the trough- to-peak annualized rates of expansion for the recessions of 1958, 1975, 1991, 2002 and 2009, are 5.6%, 4.3%, 3.6%, 2.8% and 2.2%, respectively.

The data suggests that growth rates decline as economies, just like corporations, become larger and competition grows. At Berkshire Hathaway's 2012 annual meeting, the ever wise and lifelong Republican, Charlie Munger, said that he thought the U.S. would be lucky to get 1% real GDP growth over the next 20 years because of rising foreign competition. Said Munger, "The world is getting very much more competitive." Trump's promise of returning stunning growth to the U.S. economy is misinformed campaign rhetoric and should be seen for what it is - nonsense.

There is no question, despite the material drop in the nation's unemployment rate, workers have not participated in sharing the economy's productivity gains and Trump is tapping into this understandable frustration. However, this is a decades old trend, not a new phenomenon. Even if Trump's supporters can be forgiven for believing that a rich powerful businessman with perceived superman powers has the answers to their problems the Republican Party cannot be.

No one expects Republicans to abandon their belief in cutting taxes but few issues are more important to the nation's growth than is trade among nations, particularly at a time when growth the world over is slowing. Will the self-described "Reagan Republican" Speaker Ryan, and other party leaders claiming the Reagan mantle, really embrace the assuredly disastrous effects that Trump's trade policies would inflict on the American economy and its workers? Ryan effectively said "yes" when he recently told Katie Couric that he could easily support Trump. Utah Senator Orin Hatch recently said, "I've come around a little bit on Trump," and even former Kansas Senator Bob Dole has indicated that he can likely make "peace" with Trump.

History's judgment is clear on Trump's authoritarian call for high tariffs, economic protectionism and his willingness to risk an all-out worldwide trade war - don't go there. Republicans have evidently ceded to accepting Trump's nativism, bigotry, Putin-admiring tendencies and his twitter-obsessed erratic temperament, but will they accept the ghost of Smoot-Hawley, too? Increasingly, the answer is yes.
After President Obama's State of the Union Address, KOA host April Zesbaugh gave Rep. Mike Coffman another chance to offer a thought or two about Donald Trump, when she pointed out that Obama had talked "about ignoring political hot air," like that produced by Donald Trump.

Coffman ignored the opening to talk about Trump, solidifying Coffman's position as possibly the only person in America who has nothing to say about the bombastic billionaire.

Coffman has now ducked five chances to condemn/praise/parse Trump (See here, here, here, one below, and one above.).

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Perhaps the strangest incident occurred in Washington DC after Trump proposed banning Muslims from America. All of Colorado's Republican Congressmen condemned Trump, but Coffman simply told a Roll Call reporter Simone Pathe, "I'm not going to go there. Thanks." (Coffman had issued a statement on the topic that didn't mention Trump.)

Seriously, how can you not have anything to say about Donald, even if you're the lowest informaation voter on Earth?

And putting aside the fact that Trump is the leading GOP prez contender, who's offended most every swing voter in Coffman's district, the Donald is a totally legitimate topic for Coffman to address.

Some of Coffman's actual factual positions align with Trump's (against birthright citizenship, in favor of a worker underclass, against raising debt limit in certain circumstances, and more). Coffman should clarify where he stands vis a vis Donald on these issues.

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Why hasn't Coffman condemned Trump? It's a serious and puzzling question.
Dear Mr. Trump,

I wrote this letter originally in crayon, as I believe it is consistent with your behavior over the past several months. However, the blog format, dictates it be in a standard font.

I know you are running for President and I'm sure you are very proud of yourself, but you see I have 2 children that my wife and I have invested a lot of time teaching important life lessons to. I would guess that you have taught your own children many, if not all of the life lessons listed below. Lessons such as:

"If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."

"Don't bully other people."

"Money doesn't buy happiness."

"When you're wrong, it's okay to admit it."

"Learn to say you're sorry."

"Don't make fun of other peoples physical appearances."

"Love yourself (okay you don't need help with this one) so you can learn to love others." (you however may need some work on this one.)

My kids see you as a man that's running for a very important job, as President of the United States and are quite confused as your behavior, is exactly the opposite of everything I and most parents teach their children.

I would like to share two stories with you; I was at the mall the other day and saw a kid who was making fun of another child and when his Dad asked him why he did it, he said, " Donald Trump makes fun of people and he's running to be President, so why can't I?" Then my tween son several weeks ago, with a very concerned look asked, "Dad, if Donald Trump becomes President, will we have to move?" I questioned as to why he thought that. He responded, "Because we're Mexican American." I informed him I am thirteenth generation American of Spanish/Mexican descent and that my family has been here since before there was an America or a Mexico for that matter, and that he himself was born in Santa Monica, California, so there was no reason for concern. He was still worried and said, "Yes, but Mom is from Mexico." I informed him to relax, as she is a naturalized US Citizen. Unconvinced, he then countered, "But he said he's going to deport even people that are US citizens."

Mr. Trump, I realize you love doing business deals and congratulations for your success in that area, but this is not a business deal! These are our children! They are the future of this country. Your words may get people that are living in fear, riled up, but please consider that you are scaring the crap out of kids that are hearing your destructive and divisive comments too.

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Al Lewis was one of the most recognized entertainers of all time. He was best known for his character Grampa Munster.

Al was the comic genius behind The Munsters which aired 72 episodes from 1964-1966. Previous to that, he played Officer Leo Schaunser in Car 54 Where Are You? over 44 episodes between 1961-1963. How in only 116 total episodes did he engender adoration from fans all over the world for over half a century?

Al Lewis demonstrating against the Rockefeller Drug Laws at Rockefeller Center. Photo courtesy of Karen Lewis.

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Spoiler Alert "LOVE." Al loved people, his work -- and most of all his fans. Al was fiercely loyal and brutally honest. He had over-the-top integrity that could infuriate people. He was brilliant, ahead of his time, and stubborn beyond belief. He lived life large and generous.

In her memoir I Married a Munster! My Life with "Grandpa" Al Lewis, his wife Karen Lewis describes how a host of people changed their lives for the better because they had the good fortune of crossing paths with Al.

In this new book you will read about the love affair between Karen and Al and the love these two people had for others.

Al Lewis with an inmate incarcerated at Bedford Women's Correctional Facility under the Rockefeller Drug Laws. Photo courtesy of Karen Lewis.

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You will have to read between the lines to understand how truly amazing these two people were together. These are two people who quietly devoted their lives to the service of others with unparalleled modesty. Unlike many other "celebrities," you will find that Al would support causes that he believed in and would lend his "name" to make positive social change.

After running for Governor of the State of New York, Al embraced the inequities of the Rockefeller Drug Laws and championed their removal until they were repealed. More remarkably, Al and Karen were feet on-the-ground and impactful. They visited every prison in the State of New York and mentored prison inmates.

Prison rights advocate Tony Papa writes is mentioned in this memoir because he was usually at rallies with Al. He told us:

After serving 12 years in prison for a non-violent drug crime, Al Grandpa Lewis took me under his wing and taught me the ropes about life and activism. Working with Al gave me the tools I needed to get the asses and the masses in the street to reveal and fight for the important issues that affected all of us.

Tony is the author of Fifteen to Life as well as This Side of Freedom: Life After Lockdown and serves as Manager of Media Relations for the Drug Policy Alliance.

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We reached out to Elizabeth Gaynes, executive director of The Osborne Association working with inmates and their families across New York State. Liz said:

Although I did not know Al Lewis personally I knew he was a beloved prison volunteer. It is so important for "public" people to enter our prisons and give hope to those beyond the walls -- walls that are there to keep the public out as well as to keep the prisoners in.

Al Lewis continues to make waves as this recent Tweet shows.

We knew Al well as he lived and relaxed on Roosevelt Island in the heart of New York City -- where we also live. We also followed him to Manhattan when he opened the restaurant "Grandpa Munster's." He was known for smoking his cigar, befriending children, and hosting a radio show on WBAI.

Al had a finely tuned broken heart detector and compassion and empathy for people that you rarely find today.

Al lived a life of love and that is why we loved him back. You will learn to admire Al and Karen two incredible people whose lives were full with honor, character and integrity.

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Broadcasting from WBAI for his weekly Public Affairs program,"Al Lewis Live!" Photo courtesy of Karen Lewis.

Will you receive the deep message of love and joy from this inspiring memoir? It may be hard in this current climate of made-up reality and "celebrities" who use their fame to abuse women and shock us by outrageously inappropriate treatment of others.

If you are looking for inspiration on how to live an authentic life, you will find it by reading this book.
FLINT, MI - JANUARY 21: American Red Cross volunteer John Lohrstorfer in the warehouse full of water bottles for Flint residents on January 21, 2016 in Flint, Michigan. The Red Cross is supporting state and county efforts to bring water to every household in the city. (Photo by Sarah Rice/Getty Images)

Flint used to be a place of hope.

When Daddy and Ma came up from Mississippi with the first two of their six children, big tractor graders were out in the meadows cutting roads for new neighborhoods. A great post-war migration was underway from south of the Mason-Dixon Line to the steel and car and truck plants that were to set America rolling toward an almost incomprehensible economic boom.

And there was Flint, in the middle of all the prosperity rolling down the Dixie Highway from Detroit to Pontiac and up through Flint to Saginaw and Bay City. There was eventually so much demand for the sleek new Buick Dyna Flows and Chevy Biscaynes and Ford Thunderbirds that Michigan had giant factories just to build parts. AC Delco had a huge plant to meet the demand for spark plugs and Saginaw Steering Gear provided thousands of jobs in the river valley up near Michigan's thumb.

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My parents were drawn up from the cotton fields of the rural South. Daddy wanted to be a farmer when he got home from France, but the best he could do was sharecropping and there was never a man who made a fortune growing another man's crop. They lived in a bit of a shack with no electricity or indoor plumbing and sheets were hung in the single room to provide privacy for sleeping and when the wind blew cold in the winter Ma said they tacked newspapers over the spaces between the wallboards because there was no insulation.

But the stories of jobs and gleaming new industrial cities in the Midwest kept making their way down the turn rows of the farm fields in the Mississippi Delta Country and Ma finally convinced Daddy they needed to buy bus tickets and go north. I have never come to understand what it must have been like for my father to leave the land and go to a city where he knew no one and had no skills other than growing and chopping cotton but I have felt my parent's bravery grow with the years.

"We didn't know what we were doing, son," Ma told me one day during a conversation at my sister's house up in Michigan. "We just knew we had to do something. Other people had left and made out all right and we thought we could get jobs. Everybody was getting jobs."

They ended up on a mattress on the floor of an elderly woman's house and Daddy got up every morning and went to stand in line outside a car factory door. A foreman walked down a line of waiting men and tapped the chosen on the shoulder and they got jobs. Daddy had broad shoulders from swinging a hoe and tossing hay bales into wagons and barn lofts so they gave him work, lifting bumpers out of a metal press at the Buick Division of General Motors.

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A year later Daddy borrowed $500 from his sister and my parents made a down payment on a VA loan to buy a tract house in one of those multiplying subdivisions. The 850 square foot structure cost $10,500, had three tiny bedrooms, and a sapling punched into the ground of the front yard. The porch was a four by eight foot square slab of concrete but I remember there was a white flowerpot hanging beneath the picture window in the living room and it seemed like an extravagance not really intended for us "hillbillies." Daddy turned most of the backyard into a small farm and grew corn and radishes and even watermelons.

Ma got a job, too, as a waitress at a hamburger joint up at "The Point" where the two major highways intersected coming up from Detroit and the factory workers from the Tank Plant came in daily to order open-faced sandwiches and leave her dime tips. Ma's hair looked really dark and shiny against her white uniform and when she came home after her twelve-hour days she smelled of French fry grease and fish. She rarely made over $60 dollars a week and even when her wages were combined with Daddy's the $62 dollar a month mortgage was often late to the bank.

But there we were in Flint and the city streets were filled with waxy new automobiles that had crazy options like power windows and power steering and assembly line workers were often making enough money to buy weekend cabins on the pristine rivers in Michigan's north woods. There were still more forests then than there were tract homes and Daddy and his buddies from Dixie often went out at night with hounds and hunted raccoons that they brought home and skinned. There were sometimes coon pelts hanging and drying on clothes lines in backyards and the men who could not let go of old southern traditions tried to sell them to furriers like they were urban mountain men working their traps. When he was short of money for groceries Daddy also used to shoot rabbit and squirrel with his .22 and bring it home for Ma to cook but she made him do the skinning.

Daddy also used to take us fishing when we were little up on the Shiawassee and Flint Rivers but he did not like the Flint because he said the water was dirty. There were hardly regulations of any sort; no one wanted to get in the way of progress, and the river was brown with poison long before Michigan's current governor abandoned the city's residents. There has never been any one living around Flint who would have considered taking a drink of that water even at gun point so there is no surprise that a switch was made from Lake Huron to the Flint River as a water supply without informing the citizens.

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I doubt I will ever be able to reconcile Flint's contemporary situation with what I saw as a young man coming of age. Our daughter cried as an 11-year-old the first time we drove her down Dort Highway on a visit because she could not understand what had happened to the buildings and the houses and why people still had to live among what seemed to her young eyes like ruins, which I guess, was kind of accurate. There was a time, though, people from all across America were hurrying to Michigan because we had jobs and the latest in technology and Motown's music filled the air. Unions had fought for health care and retirement and paid vacations and Michigan represented a future where a family did not have to work itself to death just to survive.

Automotive executives began to act as foolishly as politicians, though, and Flint decayed into an American Beirut. The factories kept building V-8 muscle cars while Japan was churning out economy engines that got three times the gas mileage. The market shrank for "Detroit Steel" and now there are great concrete slabs with weeds growing through the cracks where industry used to build cars and trucks and parts that made America run. A few years ago I drove past the vast concrete foundation that is all that remains of the AC spark plug factory and I struggled not to cry because I thought of all the people I grew up with who had spent their working lives on that floor. I suppose they are grateful for the time and the jobs.

Flint is mostly poor now and majority African-American and lacks any kind of political clout. When the state government and Governor Rick Snyder took over the city's administration they probably thought none of their decisions were likely ever to be called to account because the electorate lacked sophistication or influence. The governor apologizes as if what has happened to my hometown is a failure of the government's administration but it was a calculated decision he made with other elected leaders.

We live in a culture and a country now where people win elections by promising to cut government spending so our votes mean we are also responsible for our bad roads and failing schools and decaying infrastructure. Americans have been convinced that liars in suits can cut their taxes and still do them no harm, and Flint has become a warning sentinel that we cannot further tolerate such harmful political absurdities anywhere in our country. Thousands of children will have their development affected by lead poisoning because a corner-cutter did not want to pay a $100 daily bill for a city's water and because wretched pipelines have never been replaced.

Flint is a view into our tomorrows and we cannot fail to fix it and get it right. The population is animated and angry and there has to be collaboration between government entities or we will see the acceleration of a larger national deterioration. Blame, in this case, must be assigned and accounted for. Watch the news on television or the Internet and listen to the citizens and voters and you will believe they are not going to be treated poorly or denied basic services or the truth. The government might not lead us but there are families living along that river that will not compromise over the future of their children. The rest of us need to watch and learn and then act to rebuild our democracy to be representative and prosperous like Michigan when there was nothing over the horizon but another bright and optimistic sunrise.

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Flint can still be a place of hope.
Raghuram Rajan, now the head of India's central bank, once wrote an academic paper blaming the financial crisis on poor people. Just yesterday, Bill Clinton placed blame for the crisis on our government. Anyone who has seen the Oscar-winning documentary Inside Job knows full well that the crisis was caused by our banks.

Banks lent trillions of dollars to home buyers on too loose of terms knowing that they could turn the resulting junk mortgages into AAA securities through the alchemy of CDOs and securitization and thus generate hundreds of billions of profit and leave the resulting mortgage mess to their investing clients.

But the financial crisis is behind us, right? Why would Wall Street shower Hillary Clinton with millions of dollars in speaking fees and tens of millions in campaign contributions?

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I think it is an insurance policy. Wall Street wants a friend in the White House to protect the status quo, and if they can't get a Republican elected, Hillary is the next best thing. I think they need a friend in government because the industry could not survive an investigation into how they actually make their profits.

Wall Street doesn't want you to know how they make their money. A brief review of how Wall Street bankers earn their outrageous fees and bonuses will highlight why they don't want to see a reformer like Bernie Sanders succeed.

Advising people on where they invest their money is one of Wall Street's biggest businesses. Actively managed mutual funds can charge 2% per year for this advice. But, Nobel Prize winner Eugene Fama has shown empirically that these mutual funds do no better with their stock picking than throwing darts at a stock page.

If you pay your Wall Street advisor 2 percent per year for fairly worthless advice, by the time you retire in 30 years, he will end up with almost half of your savings. No wonder the bankers' boats are bigger than the clients' boats in Sag Harbor.

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Or you can give your money to a hedge fund that typically charges even more, 1.5 percent per year plus 20 percent of the upside. Again, empirical academic studies have shown that on average, hedge funds do not outperform the general market.

Of course, each year, some hedge funds report unusually good performance. This might be due to luck, but the fact that the same hedge fund names keep showing up at the top of the rankings suggests something else is going on.

The top 25 superstar hedge fund managers earn about $1 billion per year each personally. And, thanks to the carried interest rule, they pay lower tax rates on this windfall than a teacher making $30,000 a year.

Americans like to think that we are a meritocracy and if someone can create billions of profits they deserve a big pay day.

But that presumes these hedge fund managers are playing fairly and by the rules. Their very performance violates everything modern finance professionals know about the efficiency of markets. How do they do it? I think it is a combination of insider trading, market manipulation and high frequency or very fast trading that allows them to see your orders before placing theirs.

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I say "I think" because I can't prove it. Why? Because these folks have contributed millions to your congressmen to make sure that hedge funds remain unregulated and do not have to file detailed financial reports with the SEC.

Another Wall Street business that remains highly unregulated is the $690 trillion derivatives market. Bankers believe that the derivatives market makes the world safer because it allows people to share risk. What they don't see is the enormous domino effect caused by interlocking derivatives as one side of each derivative contract fails during a financial crisis. Interlocking derivatives assures that when one major bank gets in trouble, the entire global financial system is threatened.

Anyone, like Hillary Clinton, who thinks Dodd-Frank solved all the problems of the last financial crisis has a big surprise coming.

Banks are still highly leveraged with enormous debt on their balance sheets. They even ignore more than half their assets in calculating their leverage under their risk-weighted asset approach.

If a bank is leveraged 30 to 1, which means it funds itself with $30 of debt and deposits for every one real dollar of equity capital raised from shareholders, then to remain solvent, bankers have to make 30 good loans for every one bad loan. I never met a banker who could make five loans without one getting into trouble.

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Banks are bigger and more concentrated than ever. Bernie says he wants to break up the banks. Not just because they are too big to fail, but because they have gotten to be too big to manage.

I think breaking up the banks is a great idea. And I think it will unlock huge untapped value inside these monolithic institutions. If JP Morgan broke into twenty banks, JP Morgan Asia, JP Morgan Europe, JP Morgan Hi-Tech, etc., I am fairly certain the sum of the new entities' share values would far exceed the value of the old JP Morgan.

Banks not only caused the most recent global financial crisis, they have had their hands in every recession, crisis and depression you can think of.

The great depression of 1929 could not have happened without the crazy margin lending of the banks to stock speculators. The farm crisis of the 1980s was caused by banks overly-aggressive lending to farmers. The commercial real estate bust in 1990 was preceded by no-money-down bank loans to real estate developers. Japan's 1994 collapse was fully funded by the dramatic growth of bank lending to corporations and real estate speculators. The high-tech crash of 2000 was caused by bankers willingness to let their research analysts profit from investment banking business they generated. The housing crash of 2007 was preceded by a housing bubble created by bankers willing to do stupid, no down payment, no job, no documents, no proof of income mortgage loans for 99 percent of the value of a home. Why would a buyer care what price he was paying for a house -- it wasn't his money, it was the bank's.

Why is it that the banking industry keeps getting in trouble? Why, in retrospect, do they seem to keep doing stupid loose lending? And why must they be more highly regulated than other industries, a concept completely lost on Hillary and the Republicans?

It is because, like the properly regulated insurance industry, banks deal in very long-life maturity assets and liabilities. Banks can mis-price risk and do stupid lending for a long time, and it appears profitable, until a recession hits and the true cost of all the bad loans they have amassed hits the fan.

This is why government reform and regulation is required in the banking industry. Because, if one bank does stupid loose lending, all their competitors have to join them or else watch their market shares immediately head to zero. This is what the ex-CEO of Citibank was referring to before the crisis when he said, If the music is playing, you have to keep dancing.

Bernie Sanders understands that Wall Street needs to be regulated, for its own good, but also for the economic health of the country. And that is why Wall Street will spend millions on Hillary in her attempt to keep the status quo.

The author teaches finance at the SP Jain School of Global Management in Dubai and Singapore and previously worked ten years for Goldman Sachs as an investment banker in New York. He has written nine books on economics and finance that predicted the entire global financial crisis.
Syrian soldier mans government checkpoint in Damascus

The battlefield in Syria is getting increasingly crowded. The United States and its coalition partners, as well as Russia, are conducting air operations over Syria. In addition, the Syrian Air Force is conducting its own air campaign in support of its ground forces. Separate ground campaigns are under way by Kurdish forces in northern Syria, the Free Syrian Army and the Syrian military. In addition, a broad-range of jihadist groups are conducting a varfiety of attacks in Syria against each other, Islamic State forces and the Syrian military.

U.S. Special Forces are now operating in Syria both in support of the Free Syrian Army as well as independently. These various operations, not all of which have been directed against Islamic State forces in Syria, have made significant progress in rolling back the territory controlled by IS and have continued to degrade the Islamic State's fighting capabilities. This already crowded battlefield could be about to get even more crowded amid signs that Turkish military forces may be getting ready to intervene in Syria.

In northern Syria, along the border with Turkey, Kurdish YPG forces are continuing their advance west of the Euphrates River. Operating under the banner of the Syrian Democratic Forces, a loose coalition of Kurdish, Arab, Assyrian, Armenian and Turkoman militias, they have taken control of the Tishreen Dam and all of the remainng bridges over the Euphrates. They are continuing their advance on Jarabalus, on the west bank of the Euphrates, and have advanced to the southeast, taking control of the village of al-Hawl, and are now only 18 miles from the Islamic State capital of Raqqa.

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That city is now cut off from access to the Turkish border and is largely cut off from receiving reinforcements from IS forces in Aleppo province. Combined with the Kurdish Peshmerga forces seizure of Tal Afar and cutting the road network connecting Mosul and Raqqa, the Islamic State is at risk of being chopped up into three separate segments.

In the south and southwest, primarily in Dara'a and Quneitra provinces, military forces of the Southern Front, a coalition of 58 different rebel groups affiliated with the Free Syrian Army, have come under a sustained attack by Syrian military forces supported by Russian air power. The rebel groups include a variety of Islamist groups including the al Qaeda affiliated Jabhat Al-Nusrah Group. Their principal target is the town of Sheikh Miskeen. The town lies astride the Damascus to Dara'a highway and is an essential base for any military operation to recapture the rebel held areas of western Dara'a province.

Disposition of military forces in Syria, January 2016

While in the northwest, in Latakia province, a second Syrian drive succeeded in seizing the strategic town of Salma from Free Syrian Army forces. This region's population is a combination of Alawite, traditionally loyal to the Assad regime, and Turkomans with long standing ties to Turkey. The victory is the most significant for Syrian forces since the Russian intervention in September and is critical to Damascus's defense of the core Alawite area of Syria. These two areas represent the key territories controlled by the Free Syrian Army.

In the meantime, Islamic State militants are coming under continuing attack by various rebel groups in Syria. The United States and its coalition partners have also stepped up the frequency of attacks. It appears that, at least unofficially, the previous rules of engagement under which U.S. forces were operating have been relaxed somewhat. U.S. air forces have targeted IS tanker trucks carrying oil intended for smuggling into Turkey. They have also hit a range of high profile targets, including banking facilities in Mosul where Islamic State funds were being kept. Two air attacks on IS banks, one on January 10 and the second on January 19 are believed to have resulted in the destruction of between 100 million and 150 million dollars of American currency held by IS.

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U.S. Special Forces are also now engaged directly against Islamic State targets although the extent of their involvement remains undisclosed. Significantly, numerous reports from Syria claim that the Islamic State has halved the salary it pays to its militants. This development is significant since one of the consistent advantages that IS has enjoyed in recruiting militants has been its ability to offer higher pay, sometimes twice as much, as what was being offered by rival Islamist organizations.

Amidst these multi-pronged, often overlapping and sometimes directly clashing campaigns, there has been mounting evidence that Turkish military forces may be readying a ground offensive into Syria. It appears that the primary Turkish objective is to seize the territory between Jarabalus and Afrin to forestall the further westward expansion of the YPG and the creation of a "Kurdish Corridor" from the frontier with Iraq to the Mediterranean along the Turkish-Syrian border. Syrian Kurds have already declared this region the independent Kurdish state of Rojava (Eastern Kurdistan). The Turkish operation would have the added benefit of clearing IS forces along the last stretch of Turkish border that they still have access to.

Russian Sukhoi Su-25s at Latakia air base.

Turkish mine sweeping vehicles have been clearing minefields along the Turkish-Syrian borders. Such operations are usually a reliable indication that a ground intervention is imminent. In addition, the area has been subject to sustained artillery barrages by Turkish forces along the border. There have also been numerous reports that limited Turkish interventions in the area around Jarabalus have already occurred. Significantly, it appears that Turkish aircraft have been absent over Syria since Turkey downed a Soviet SU-24 Jet bomber that Ankara claimed had violated Turkish airspace.

There are further unconfirmed reports that Russia and the United States have both agreed to the Turkish intervention provided that Turkish troops do not enter the predominantly Alawite zone further to the west along the Mediterranean. It's unclear what role Turkish air forces would play in such an intervention and whether Turkish incursion into Syrian air space would precipitate a Russian tit-for-tat response. It's possible that U.S. and coalition air forces may provide air support to the Turkish ground offensive, a development that would likely draw the U.S. deeper into the Syrian Civil War.

In short, notwithstanding the fact that Islamic State forces in Syria are clearly under pressure and that the territory they control continues to be steadily rolled back, the military situation there remains an exceedingly complex, ever-shifting kaleidoscope of military forces. The Assad government has started to make significant inroads in reclaiming territory controlled by the Free Syrian Army and its affiliated Islamist groups. This is a development that will give it a significant advantage in upcoming peace negotiations.

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YPG forces advancing on al-Hawl, December 2015
1916 The Caucasus: The Trabzon Campaign

Russian troops before the Battle of Erzurum, January 1916

The Caucasus campaign was, in terms of forces deployed, a relatively minor theatre of World War I. Its long-term strategic importance, however, far out weighed, its practical tactical value. The campaign was fought exclusively by Russian and Turkish forces and their associated proxies.

During the Gallipoli campaign the Caucasus theater was important in tying up large numbers of Turkish troops in the east. After Gallipoli, it represented a backdoor to Constantinople, although given the rugged terrain, mountain passes that were only crossable in the summer, and the lack of adequate roads, pressuring the Ottoman government by advancing from the east would have been an exceedingly difficult task.

The strategic importance of the Caucasus campaign was in the fact that eastern Anatolia represented a route into northern Mesopotamia and from there down to the Persian Gulf. In theory, the Russian campaign could be seen as the northern end of a two pronged pincer movement that would have crushed Ottoman troops in Mesopotamia between the Russian troops advancing from the north and British troops advancing from the south.

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The strategic theory notwithstanding, there was little coordination between Russian and British forces. In fact, London saw Russian interest in northern Mesopotamia as problematic to British interests in the Persian Gulf and its developing oil fields. The British advance on Baghdad and into northern Mesopotamia was to a large degree prompted by London's desire to keep Russian troops out of the region.

In the end, Ottoman forces under Mustafa Kemal, the hero of Gallipoli, in eastern Anatolia were able to blunt the Russian drive to the southeast. The subsequent collapse of Russian forces following the Russian revolution gave Great Britain a free hand in Mesopotamia and in the subsequent organization of British controlled Iraq.

The Caucasus Campaign, 1916

In early January 1916, Russian forces launched a daring winter attack against the major Ottoman fort at Erzurum. Poor roads and harsh weather conditions generally meant that military operations were suspended during the winter. Taking the Ottomans by complete surprise, the Russian destroyed an entire Ottoman division at the Battle of Koprukoy between January 10 and 18. The following month the Russians broke through both of the defensive rings surrounding Erzurum and captured the city.

In April, General Nikolai Yudenich, Commander in Chief of the Russian Army in the Caucasus, divided his forces in two. One column moved north and captured the ancient port city of Trabzon (Trebizond) on the Black Sea. Control of Trabzon provided the Russians with a port to receive supplies and reinforcements for the Caucasus campaign. It also created the strategic option of landing a Russian force further west behind the Ottoman lines, although the Russians had no experience with amphibious landing operations and lacked the equipment to carry one out.

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Enver Pasha, the Ottoman War Minister and Commander in Chief of Ottoman military forces, immediately ordered the Ottoman 3rd Army, under Vehip Pasha, to retake Trabzon. The offensive failed, and Yudenich counterattacked on July 2, striking at the communications center at Erzincan, south of Trabzon. At the battle of Erzincan, July 2 to 25, the Turkish 3rd Army was forced to retreat and Erzincan fell to the Russians.

The second column headed south towards the cities of Bitlis and Mus. Bitlis was heavily fortified. It was considered the last stronghold of the Ottoman Empire in southeastern Anatolia and was the gateway into both Mesopotamia and central Anatolia. Between March 2 and August 24, in a series of actions culminating with the Battle of Mus and the Battle of Bitlis, Russian forces overwhelmed the Turkish 2nd Army and pushed it back deep into Anatolia.

The fall of Bitlis and Mus opened the door for a possible Russian advance into northern Mesopotamia and a potential link up with British forces; trapping Ottoman forces there between the two Allied armies. It also meant that the oil fields around Mosul might come under Russian control. That possibility was one reason why the British government ordered British forces in Mesopotamia to renew their drive on Baghdad.

Kurdish cavalry employed by Ottoman forces.

Russian advances in eastern Anatolia had prompted the Ottoman government to appoint Mustafa Kemal, the Turkish hero of Gallipoli, commander of the XVI Corps of the Turkish 2nd Army. Kemal, who would go on to become the first President of Turkey after the war, is credited with being the founder of the Republic of Turkey. In 1934 the Turkish Parliament bestowed to Kemal the honorary surname Ataturk -- Father of the Turks.

Kemal rallied his troops and counterattacked, retaking the cities of Bitlis and Mus, halting for the moment the Russian drive towards Mesopotamia. A further advance to recapture Van was stopped by the Russians at Gevas. By late September the Ottoman counterattacked had ended. With winter fast approaching both sides ended any substantive offensive operations.

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The World Food Programme and writer Joshua Dysart have teamed up to create a graphic novel highlighting the work of the organization's humanitarian aid workers and those they strive to help.

The comic, titled "Living Level 3," for the most severe classification of humanitarian crisis, tells the story of a fictional humanitarian aid worker, Leila, on an aid mission after the self-described Islamic State brutally seized territory there in 2014.

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When visiting a city it is easy to fall in love with it and imagine yourself living there. Of course life is not a vacation and work and other matters intrude on this fantasy. Living in Hawaii would not be a life of lying on the beach all day it would be working a resort and hoping the tips are good.

I went to Berlin to see if it was a city I could live in, so it was with a critical eye I viewed the city. How did it rate against New York?

For a New Yorker bagels are of paramount importance. I had to find out if it was possible to get a good bagel.

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I am happy to report the bagels are just Fine. In order to make us comfortable they advertise as New York bagels but of course they originated in Poland. Despite the fact that Fine has no idea what color TOAST should be, the bagels were excellent, really excellent. And they are not the only place to get them.



And I am happy to report excellent Pizza can be found as well, in wood burning ovens. #ItsNotTheWater.

If any of you have ever waited on the 2/3 line in NY and the display said 4 minutes til the next train? 4 minutes later is still says 4 minutes and after about a half an hour you get that line on the bottom telling you the train is delayed?

I have. In Berlin the trains run on time, as do the busses. They have bus lanes that are not filled with taxis and bicycles. AND the tracks are not garbage filled.



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It is not perfect from a culinary standpoint, I can see a lot of room for diversity and improvement. For instance, take Currywurst.



Really, take it. I know Berlin is famous for this creation, but I did not care for it. Ketchup and curry powder. Berlin, please accept my apology but your famous dish is vile.

...and I did not try the Kebap, we have Gyros and I assume they are similar.

The water has no fluoride.

The Groceries have no GMO and many are fully organic.

Parks are everywhere.

And it is an international city.

The 'Refugee Crisis' is largely being played out in the American press, not in the daily lives of the Germans.

I have fallen out of love with America
Wine is a journey of the taste buds no matter where you travel or what crosses your lips. In this case, pinot noir.



The simple act of opening a bottle, savoring the first aroma, the first taste, is a pleasure I never tire of. When I see the word Oregon on a pinot noir bottle, even just the word Oregon, I feel warm inside. I don't think I've ever had a bad bottle of Oregon wine. There might be something magic in the dirt. Whatever the condition of said dirt, I am happy to sip Oregon when the opportunity arises.

Today we're taking a little palate trip to the region known as Chehalem Mountain AVA, located in the northern Willamette. Known as an "uplifted" AVA (America Viticulture Area) specifically due to the movement of tectonic plates, it is conveniently less than an hour's drive from Portland. It's also a short distance from the Pacific Ocean. Mountainous coastal regions in the Pacific often breed great grapes resulting in sensational wine. This specific area is known for it's pinot noir.

Today's tasting takes place on the 2nd floor of my Napa River digs. I'm going to call this a remote tasting.

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The wines are from Raptor Ridge Winery. Owned by a husband wife team, Scot & Annie Shull, the winery came from humble beginnings, starting in the founder's garage in 1995. The soil is part of the magic of the vineyards, specifically volcanic and loess. Honestly I had to look the last one up. Loess is wind blown silt, a sediment comprised of clay, sand & silt, loosely held together by calcium carbonate. The cool part about loess is that it is responsible for creating some of the most fertile ag land on earth. Look at me being all technical and stuff.

The bottles are standard, but the label unique. It tells a story of the land. I begin with the 2014 Pinot Gris, Willamette Valley ($20). This label depicts the feather of the first bird of prey indigenous to the region, that of the Barn Owl . The bright citrus & pear notes invite me to explore further. I would describe this as fresh medium bodied wine. There is lime, melon and grapefruit, on the palate. It's refreshing & delicious making this the perfect pairing for curries; Himalayan, Thai and Malay as well grilled salmon and duck.

As I read the description of how Raptor makes their wines I am immediately taken. This to me is something I've not encountered as yet... the description of growers using a technique of 'deficit irrigation'. Basically this is a watering strategy employed to save water. The vines spend less time dehydrated, the water is used more efficiently and the fruit yield is optimized. The result is a smooth and pleasant balance of sugar and acid which your palate will appreciate.

Raptor is known for their pinot noir among others. I have a 2013 Barrel Select Cuvee Willamette Valley ($30) and a 2012 Estate (Tuscowallame) Vineyard ($45) . I'm more excited to taste the older vintages, so I deprive myself a little by taking in the 2013 first. After many years of drinking wine and few of sipping I've learned to never take the first note of wine as a complete story. The nuances of smoke and leather waft up, while black stone fruit teases. While still young, it entices you with blackberry, light cedar and cherry. The tannins are pleasantly balanced and to my delight, the wine continues to open with each pour.

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For the grand finale I pray my patience is duly rewarded and it is. The Estate Tuscowallame, Chehalem Mountain with it's exquisite ruby red glow proves it is well worth the wait. Dark berries, chocolate and vanilla, a touch of oak, pepper. I could analyze it until the tomorrow, but the truth is this wine is to be enjoyed. Sipped and savored, devoid of food would be fine. It stands well on it's own or pair it with a lighter meal of grilled salmon or lean pork grilled

So, I could be a little superstitious but the parallels are difficult to miss. A single hawk circles above us after the tasting while I take my dogs out for a break. The Jack Russell howls like a banshee at the shadow of the bird as it passes over. She must be sensing his desire for dinner and the fact that she could be it. A few minutes passes and I am back inside. The same hawk glides by my window before sunset, razor-sharp eyes taking in every inch of the landscape he surveys. Precise, meticulous like a maker of memorable wine.
I remember one summer when my children and I were in the mountains of Montana. Our cabin was among eight or ten structures that had been built to mine nickel during WWII. A river ran through the narrow valley. The water was clean, frigid, and fishing was good. Grandpa T had chosen this morning to take the kids fishing, but first, one must have worms. And the best worms were found in and around manure. My kids stepped back, horrified expressions on their faces. He insisted they get their hands dirty. The brook trout were delicious.

This down-to-earth mountain man was right. We are going to have to get our hands dirty. We must turn over the rock of child abuse. We will have to face ugly.

Why? Because our children are worth it.

We Americans pride ourselves on our freedom of speech. We agree to disagree. We applaud transparency. Fair is fair.

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Rosa Parks wasn't all that long ago. The right for women to vote, not long before that. We've tackled polio, mitigated aids, ordained women, legalized gay marriage, and espoused racial equality.

So how is it that we have put our collective heads in the sand regarding child abuse?

I need to ask some questions, and they may make you uncomfortable. But, please, let's dialogue. When will we liberate children? When will the needs/rights of a child supersede the sanctity of family? When will we as a society give voice to our children? We have a national epidemic in this country - in many countries, actually. You'll find Canada, Australia, and England with statistics that mirror our own. One in 3 girls will be molested by the time they are 18, and 1 in 5 boys. Eighty-five percent of the molesters are either known or loved by these children.

The Center for Disease Control has called adverse childhood experience a national epidemic (ACEs). You'd think we would get to work on a cure, wouldn't you? For future generations, the vaccine will be prevention.

Educate children to empower them about their bodies.

Educate parents how to protect, empower their kids, and keep communication open.

Educate schools in child sexual abuse prevention, provide training materials.

Educate church leaders in prevention, intervention, and ongoing care.

Create standards of practice for clergy/leadership when abuse is reported.

Educate the public toward a collective caring heart about child abuse.

Educate families of a child who has been abused in support of both child and family.

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With this vaccine in its infancy, I am a torchbearer to the issue. Willing to bring - with dignity, vulnerability, even humor - the underbelly of this societal beast, child sexual abuse, to our collective attention. Across the board, with the exception of organizations whose missions mirror my own (thank God for them!), people don't want to talk about it.

We have a problem. Let's own it, sort out why we won't discuss it, and take action to rectify it.

Owning it can be difficult. It's hard for healthy adults to imagine molesting a child. Sex happens - inside and outside marriage. But sex with a child is abhorrent. It makes good people nauseous, and it should.

Those who have been abused are not a subculture in our society. They are innocents whose trust was betrayed, whose hearts are pecked by shame, and whose future rests with us. WE are the ones who must not be ashamed to stand by a child.

We, by standing with and for a child, remove the stigma that victimization holds. We loosen the bonds of taboo when we are willing to talk about child abuse and our role in it. Because, you see, you and I have a role in it. We can "hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil" and be accomplices in the abuser's game. Or, we can educate our own children for their safety's sake (see "Do's and Don'ts for Busy Parents"). We can involve ourselves with families who are struggling through the emotional upheaval such news brings.

A principle of human communication is that it is impossible NOT to communicate. We communicate, whether or not we say or do anything. To do nothing communicates disinterest, apathy, discomfort, fear, or simply a lack of concern as in "I don't care." To do something, to say something has healing power; for the child, the child's family, the community in which we live. To take action, beginning now, is to staunch the spread of the epidemic and move toward stabilizing our vaccine. Help be a part of the cure. Will you?

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ASPEN, CO - JULY 01: Ta-Nehisi Coates speaks during the film screening and discussion of 'Sing Your Song' at the Aspen Institute's Aspen Ideas Festival 2011 at the Paepcke Auditorium on July 1, 2011 in Aspen, Colorado. (Photo by Leigh Vogel/Getty Images)

In his extraordinary article, "The Case for Reparations," Ta-Nehisi Coates stated, "What I'm talking about is a national reckoning that would lead to spiritual renewal ... a revolution of the American consciousness, a reconciling of our self-image as the great democratizer with the facts of our history."

In a more recent piece, Coates criticized Bernie Sanders for dismissing the concept of reparations for the wrongs done to African-Americans, saying, "Reparations is not one possible tool against white supremacy. It is the indispensable tool against white supremacy."

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The latter article left me questioning both men. As Coates pointed out, Sanders engages in the selective magical governance by considering universal, single payer healthcare politically doable but reparations for blacks politically impossible. Both are political unicorns in this America.

Coates, on the other hand, seems steeped in a universalist, civil rights era vision that this country left behind long ago, and which I question whether the majority ever accepted in the first place. Seeking an American 'spiritual renewal' via acknowledgement of America's crimes against Afro-America sounds uplifting. However, this is a country in which, per The Washington Post, "white perceptions of anti-black bias have diminished to the point where [whites] are more now likely to think anti-white discrimination is a bigger problem than bias against blacks."

A society in which whites now believe that they, not African-Americans, are the real victims of racial discrimination is not one in which reparations for blacks are on the horizon. To suggest that we must nonetheless push for reparations in order to foment a "revolution of the American consciousness," and finally align American realities to American ideals smacks of putting too much emphasis on the moral betterment on the majority, and too little on our own needs.

The idea that reparations is the indispensable tool against white supremacy rests on an unsound premise. Is our goal to free whites from their centuries-long embrace of white supremacy? Or is our goal to free ourselves from whites' embrace of white supremacy? These are two very different goals.

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Americans are woefully ignorant of the facts of our racial history. We recently had a national "debate" as to whether or not the confederate flag was the symbol of race hatred that it is, or an expression of "southern pride." America's great crime is taught in schools and presented with mainstream contexts as a temporary aberration of the few, instead of a permanent mindset of the many.

In his book, "The Half Has Never Been Told: Slavery and the Making of American Capitalism," Cornell history Professor, Edward E. Baptist writes:

Textbooks segregate twenty-five decades of enslavement into one chapter, painting a static picture. Millions of people each year visit plantation homes where guides blather on about furniture and silverware. As sites, such homes hide the real purpose of these places, which was to make African Americans toil under the hot sun for the profit of the rest of the world. All this is the "symbolic annihilation" of enslaved people, as two scholars of those weird places put it.



Unfortunately, throughout America's history, blacks have absorbed the same lessons of white supremacy and our historical annihilation as everyone else. Since we rely on public schools for the bulk of our education, we are almost as ignorant of the economic, political, and social facts of our enslavement and subjugation as most whites. We do not learn the unfiltered facts of our history in public schools, and we have no structured method passing on our unique historical and cultural information to young African-Americans.

I would suggest that freeing ourselves from the weight of an entire history of white supremacist teachings would be the priority instead of leading the majority to redemption through forcing them to acknowledge what they move mountains to ignore. For us to demand reparations, we must know in our bones why they are owed. When African-Americans have the tools in place to teach ourselves the facts of our history--some of which were so skillfully imparted in Coates' "Case for Reparations"--then we will be better armed to demand that this nation acknowledge its crimes, its debt, and pay the cost. If we know the facts of our American situation from our own Afro-American point-of-view, the spear of white supremacy will be blunted, we will be far less likely to internalize its poison, and better positioned to acknowledge and fight for our due.

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In theory, there are a lot of things to like about [Sanders'] ideas. But in theory isn't enough. A president has to deal in reality. I am not interested in ideas that sound good on paper but will never make it in real life. Hillary Clinton, 9/21/16

The point is that while idealism is fine and essential -- you have to dream of a better world -- it's not a virtue unless it goes along with hardheaded realism about the means that might achieve your ends. ... Sorry, but there's nothing noble about seeing your values defeated because you preferred happy dreams to hard thinking about means and ends. Don't let idealism veer into destructive self-indulgence. Paul Krugman, New York Times 9/22/16

In the United States, our findings indicate, the majority does not rule--at least not in the causal sense of actually determining policy outcomes..... [We] believe that if policymaking is dominated by powerful business organizations and a small number of affluent Americans, then America's claims to being a democratic society are seriously threatened. (Gilens and Page)

Team Hillary (now including economist/columnist Paul Krugman) is worried about major defeats in Iowa and New Hampshire. Their counter-attack is clear -- Bernie is all pie in the sky -- he isn't facing up to the realities of Washington. And, as Krugman coldly puts it, Sanders and his supporters are letting "idealism veer into destructive self-indulgence."

But these demeaning attacks say much more about Clinton than they do about Sanders. In effect Clinton is admitting (as is Krugman) that we have to accept American plutocracy as a given that, at best, can be modified around the edges. Neither Clinton, nor Krugman, believe that a progressive populist uprising (that Sanders is calling for and counting on) could possibly modify our elite-driven system. After all, if such a movement is possible, then Hillary is likely to lose. Therefore, it must be declared impossible, off the table, unrealistic and so on.

Clearly Clinton and Krugman accept that elite rule not only shapes our current sense of reality, but that it is our permanent reality.

Krugman, however, should know that what remains of our democracy needs to be pressured from below. His Princeton colleague, Martin Gilens, along with Benjamin Page of Northwestern University, have co-authored a study that definitely shows that the average American currently has no independent impact on public policy. They reviewed 1,779 congressional bills over the last decade and found:

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When the preferences of economic elites and the stands of organized interest groups are controlled for, the preferences of the average American appear to have only a minuscule, near-zero, statistically non-significant impact upon public policy.

Therefore, unless you already are an economic elite, you have no ("near zero") influence over government policy, which is the textbook definition of a plutocracy.

So how do we influence such a system?

By banging away from the outside -- by forming mass movements with mass demonstrations and insurgency campaigns like the one Sanders is running. He is absolutely correct to assert that we need a "political revolution" to modify and end rule by the "billionaire class."

In fact, there is no other way. All the careful policy crafting and intellectual arguments are no match for dominance of the super-rich over politics. The ties that bind Washington, Wall Street and corporate elites will not break, let alone bend, unless faced with a severe popular uprising. Occupy Wall Street did more to put runaway inequality on the political map than did either Clinton or Obama.

Hillary, however, is betting that she can win over voters by claiming that she's the practical one, not the ineffectual dreamer -- that she can get things done. But she, along with the median voter, have no chance of influencing policy unless we are mobilized to pressure the political system from the outside as well. She's been an insider for so long that she would rather talk quietly with her many elite contacts than threaten them with a mass mobilization. And let's face it -- she is one of them. Yes, more liberal, but still a part of those elite structures.

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For example, it's nearly impossible to imagine Hillary calling for a million of us to March on Washington or Wall Street to demand the breakup of big-banks and a financial speculation tax to pay for free higher education. This would be the case even if she had not taken $2 million in speaking fees from Wall Street firms. In short, she is asking us to let her be our representative among the plutocrats where she can make things happen "in real life."

Krugman show know better than to argue that great politicians are the key to great changes. But sometimes economists can be a little tone deaf to social history. It was the massive labor upheaval of the 1930s coupled with countless mobilizations of the unemployed that created the space for the New Deal. It was a decades-long militant Civil Rights movement combined with strong labor support that pushed LBJ into his civil rights stands. It was the upheavals of the 1960s that led to passage of environmental, consumer and health and safety legislation. And it will indeed take a Sanders-inspired "political revolution" to budge our entrenched plutocrats.

Clinton (and Krugman) are also making an enormous tactical error. The more they stress pragmatism and acceptance of elite political control, the more they clear the field for Bernie. People already sense what Gilens and Page have so carefully researched -- that America's basic political and economic structures are rigged against them. They want to send a message: "Hey, we are tired of our crummy wages, our porous benefits, our lousy infrastructure, our crumbling schools and runaway inequality." Bernie expresses what they already feel to be true.

Moreover, it's factually incorrect to say that Bernie appeals to our hearts while Hillary appeals to our heads. Bernie's supporters are using their heads. The only way to change the system is to challenge it. Nothing short of a "political revolution" stands any chance of success. That's "hardheaded realism" of the first order.

If Bernie continues to gain support it's precisely because voters understand that the choice is clear -- accept the reality of plutocracy and beg for crumbs --- or fight to tear it down.

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Mark Twain famously said that the trouble with whiskey is that too much is never enough. I believe the same phenomenon prevails in this modern information age, only I am not talking about booze. We all are deluged with more information than we can process. People walking down the street or sitting in restaurants are incessantly talking into invisible microphones or reading texts, borne along on an endless tidal wave of information oblivious to the world around them. A growing number of them are being killed in car wrecks or run over in pedestrian crosswalks because they are riveted to their smart phones.

But there is a legitimate question whether all this data is actually making us smarter, more productive or safer. Like booze hounds ordering another round and then another and another, we keep grasping for more and more information as if the very volume of information would make us wiser, richer and safer. Minute by precious minute our lives are consumed in a mad quest for ever more data because it is clear that the information we have is not enough. It is accepted wisdom that the very definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result, but that is precisely the cycle we are caught up in.

The steadily declining test scores of school students who, through the magic of digital technology, have access to more information than their parents ever did suggests something is seriously amiss. They have mounds of information at their disposal, but lack the wherewithal to handle it - to glean real world wisdom from the tide of information washing over them. They squander billions of hours chatting and texting away, sharing rumors and gossip, to no coherent purpose. It is a fair question whether they would be better off without those devices.

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Our government offices and business enterprises are likewise caught up in the information revolution with personal computers on every desk and clever software controlling factory floor machinery, and yet somehow productivity growth is stagnant. It is a given that economic growth depends on gains in productivity. We are limping along at 1-2 percent growth rates because of anemic productivity. Economists ponder the vast new information revolution all around us and wonder why it is not boosting productivity.

Likewise, our national security data gathering apparatus is a sprawling octopus tapping phones and e-mails around the globe, assembling vast archives of information about terrorists bent on havoc, but the sheer volume of the information thus gathered mitigates against effective analysis and effective use of it. Every new incident of terrorism brings reports that there was solid information about the culprits in the system, but it was somehow overlooked. We are drowning in information, but too much information does us more harm than good.

The information revolution as it is now playing out is getting away from us, running amok. We are overwhelmed by both the volume of information and the speed with which it moves. We are so busy processing information we have little time to think. I fear that to some extent young people are not learning how to think and we older folks are forgetting how.

Lt. Gen. Clarence E. "Mac" McKnight, Jr., (USA-Ret) is the author of "From Pigeons to Tweets: A General Who Led Dramatic Change in Military Communications," published by The History Publishing Company.
Israel

When my wife and I told people we were going to Israel, they were concerned that we'd travel to such a dangerous part of the world. At tines, we wondered as well why we just didn't go to say, Italy. I consoled myself, and told people that I live in American and work in a school, so I should be fine. In truth, we went on a whim. We got a catalog from our daughter's alma mater, St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN advertising the trip. Our daughter spoke highly of St. Olaf's recently retired chaplain, Bruce Benson, who was leading the trip.

As the trip grew near we began getting emails from the state department warning places to avoid. These were followed by reassuring notes from Bruce, which in themselves slowly grew tinged by anxiety as clashes between Palistinians and Israelis increased. A week before the trip there was some question that it might be canceled. It wasn't and we went.

Thus began a truly surprising experience. The first surprise was when we encountered a crossed a kind of border in Philedelphia instead of where we expected it to be in Tel Aviv. We arrived early for our flight to meet a guard who told us to come back in a couple of hours. We when did the gate had been transformed to a security checkpoint with a wall between the concourse. When we crossed through it, we entered Israel.

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We observed and felt a palpable warmth among the passengers, many of whom, were greeting one another as old friends. There was a palpable excitement among people who felt they were returning to a beloved homeland. We realized we were really in a different world when, in the early hours of the morning, people began donning ritual garments and praying in the aisles.

We left America at nine in the evening. The world turning as it does, we arrived in Tel Aviv at three in the afternoon. As the plane approached I cracked the window to the sight of a wide expanse of blue sky and brown, barren land. Directly after leaving the airport the harsh political realities of the region became apparent with the site of a razor wire enclosure on one side of the road and a wall on the other. I asked our driver what they were. He told me that beyond the wall was the West Bank while beyond the razor wire was a settlement. When I inquired about a large scary compound he told me that it was a small prison.

After delivering us this unsettling information he assured us that everyone would treat us really well and that we would have a really good time. Then, he dropped us off at the Holy Land Hotel, a Christian establishment in Muslim east Jerusalem.

Travel is broadening because when you leave your home and all your assumptions about life is, you realize that in some places life really is different. America revolves around and axis of individual identity. We are known by our occupations and our interests. In Israel, identity is a matter of ethnicity. You are either a Jew, Muslim, or Christian whether you believe any of the precepts of your religious identity or not. We left America as Americans. We arrived in Israel as American Christians.

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The Jewish people are possessed by a compelling narrative that stretches back to the earliest recesses of recorded history. The identity involves the belief that they are a chosen people who endured slavery, exile, and a return to the promised land. The European presence was marked by brutal prejudice and exclusion topped off by the absolute horror of the Holocaust. They suffer a sense of existential threat and they come by it honestly.

Palestine

While the Jews have been conspicuously visible in their persecution and suffering, the Palestinians have been conspicuously invisible in theirs. They first came to my consciousness with the horrific terrorist attack at the Munich Olympics. For years after that, all I knew of Palestine was that and the singularly foreign, threatening face of Yasser Arafat, who, for decades, constituted the the public persona of the Palestinian people, not the greatest press.

The Palestinian people have their own very difficult history and a difficult present leaves them with a sense of existential threat that has an equal urgency to that of the Jews. American/Israeli activist Daniel Seideman sums up the relationship when he says: "the Israelis are in denial while the Palestinians are in despair." I suspect that the root of Israeli denial lies is the belief that God promised Israel to the Jews and that wishful thought that Israel was a land without a people for a people without a land. Golda Meir made the argument that since there had never been a Palestinian state there couldn't be a Palestinian people. This certainly came as a shock to the people who place for the last two thousand years.

The Palestinians we met were nothing like the Palestinians of my imagination and the very unlike what the I imagined from the news. We may have expected rioting in the streets but we people who treated us with great warmth, courtesy and respect.

Our most intimate exposure was with our Palestinian Christian guide, Samer Abu Hadeed who earned a universal respect from our group by virtue of his erudition, intelligence and the kind civility which seems to be his default, and only, setting. I speak from experience because he didn't laugh in my face when I showed the depth of my ignorance when I asked how it was that Palestinians came to be Christian. He kindly explained it as the indigenous religion. Samer is fluent in English, Hebrew, and Arabic. We often saw him switch from one to another with ease. Over the ten days we spent with him he helped fill the void that was my knowledge of Palestinian history.

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One doesn't often hear endorsements of the British empire. I've heard two. The first came from an Indian bar tender lamenting the restrictions under which he traveled because he had an Indian rather than a British passport and the second was from Samer who told us that Palestine languished under 400 years of Ottoman rule, to a point that life expectancy had dropped to a level lower than it had in during Biblical times. Palestine flourished under British rule with improvements in educational opportunity and life expectancy.

The Jewish return to Palestine is, from the Israeli point of view, an heroic tale. From the Palestinian perspective, it is a tragic story of dispossession. The story that we heard over and over again was of families driven from their home and parents broken from the loss.



One of the cliches that I took to Israel was a belief that there is not been an alternative to violent Palestinian resistance. Before we visited the offices of Sabeel, a Palestinian Christian organization devoted to non-violence, I was unaware that there such an organization existed. We had the good fortune to meet the founding father of Palestinian Liberation Theology, Naim Ateek, author of A Palestinia Christian Cry for Reconciliation.

In its opening pages Dr. Ateek tells his story of a day when Palestinians were allowed to move around without permits on Israel's Independence Day in 1958. His father rented a truck so his family visited the home that he had built for them. "It must have been very difficult for my father to see our home occupied now by a Jewish immigrant family from North Africa while he, the rightful owner, was prevented from even entering. A few days after this traumatic experience, my father suffered a stroke from which he never truly recovered."

Toward the end of our visit, in late October, I noticed a mural at a bus stand that I thought might be a Halloween picture of a witch holding a crystal ball in her hands as she stood next to some spooky looking trees. When I asked Samer about this and he actually did laugh. He told me it was a picture of a Palestinian woman holding the memory of her village. The trees, he explained, were olive trees and there was a message in Arabic saying that her life was rooted in the land like the roots of the olive trees. In America, land is real estate that exists for profit. Palestinians who have lived there for thousands of years have a different, deeper relationship to the land.

Daniel Seideman told us that one of the big issues for Palestinians is the right of return. There are people who have been living in refugee camps since 1947 because, under the UN rules, should they move they will lose the right of return to their homes. This, he feels, is not a realistic hope. It does provide some insight into what observers see as an unreasonable Palestinian intransigence. Many of them want what their old homes and they can't have them.

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Cedar Duaybis, an 80 year old Palestinian woman spoke to us of the despair she felt with the birthing of Israel and her aspirations for an inclusive society. She like many of the Palestinians we met, carried herself with a stoic dignity that I rarely notice in Americans. In a moment of exasperation she outlined the absurdity of the situation as she saw it when she said that. "Even the 85% of Israelis who don't believe in God say that they God they don't believe in gave them this land."

Religion

When I grew up back in the 50s and 60s, religion was a matter of private conviction rather than public record. My liberal, secular family was something of an Oklahoma oddity. My mother told me that Oklahoma was the "buckle of the Bible belt," but she never bothered to flesh out the details. We attended church only on rare occasions and I don't recall any conversations about God or Jesus. Religion absent from my life until I emerged from the hippie bubble of the 70s and began working with people who held actual religions beliefs.

It understating the obvious to say that religion is a really big deal in Jerusalem's old city. As the holiest of places for the Abrahamic faiths, it is a magnet for the most fervent Christians, Jews, and Muslims.

Lacking an actual theological foundation for my encounter with the place, I could only fall back on the writings of that great religious philosopher, Dr. Seuss. The old city's winding labyrinth of passageways dotted with people dressed up in outrageous, distinctive costumes, ignoring and snubbing one another over, to my eyes imperceptible doctrinal distinctions, gave me a new appreciation for the depth of his genius. Were it not for the heavy military presence and the occasional deadly violence, the place would be really funny.

You see Christians carrying crosses along the half mile of the Via Delorosa, which passes by the entrance to the Al Aksa mosque. You turn left at where it dead ends and head south to a metal detector that takes you the Western Wall, popularly known as the Wailing Wall. If you continue walking just a few meters south, you turn around to pass through another security gate to cross the bridge that takes you to by the Wailing Wall to the Temple Mount, where Jesus threw out the money changers, now the site of the Al Aqsa mosque, the third most holy site in Islam.

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Incredibly, the old city is also an actual neighborhood where people buy food and clothing and live normal human lives. Within each neighborhood is a distinct feeling of warmth and safety. Shortly after passing a Muslim woman who was walking alone in the Muslim quarter I realized I'd made a wrong turn and turned to follow her, a move that would excite considerable alarm in America. She never bothered to turn back to look at me at all. When you think of the Wailing Wall, you might think of people wailing, but it is a very comfortable, familial and even festive place where people hold Bar Mitzvahs and conduct weddings. We also experienced a pretty convivial atmosphere on the grounds of the Al Aqsa mosque, once everyone met the dress code. There is an ease and friendliness within each area that is quite at odds with the tension and distrust between the faiths. Looking like a tourist is a real benefit in Jerusalem. You aren't a combatant and you might spend money.

And then there are the soldiers, who are, for the most part, just kids who are hanging around smoking, talking, and playing on their cell phones. The are handsome boys and pretty girls. Daniel Siedeman considers most of the violence to be suicide by soldier. A desperate young Palestinian man, or woman, attacks someone obviously Jewish and is shot by the young soldiers- kids who will have to live with it for the rest of their lives. A few days after we left there was a confrontation and shooting at the Damascus Gate which is perhaps 200 meters directly north of the Wailing Wall.

Mitri Raheb, pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Bethlehem told us the country suffers from "too much religion and too little faith." The one Muslim cleric with whom we met, Prof. Mustafa Abu Sway, echoed those sentiments remarking that "We've lost any sense of our common humanity." His comment underscored the great value of this particular trip. I'm old enough to recall a America confident in its capacity to solve social issues. The American dream of a melting pot is falling away as we fail to grapple what seem to be intractable political, religious, and class divisions. We've yet to build walls or hide behind razor wire but we've made the threat.

We learned lessons in faith from almost everyone we met. Daniel Seideman and Rabbi David Rosen are working hard to build bridges instead of walls. Palestinian. The Palestinians we met carried themselves with an unexpected poise and dignity in very difficult circumstances, Our amazing guide Samer, who acquainted us with the difficult history as well as the painful present without ever betraying any bitterness. We had the great opportunity to visit the Augusta Victoria Hospital in east Jerusalem. It serves the very desperate population of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank under the direction of Walid Namour. We were profoundly impressed with the the representatives of Sabeel. And we were all touched on a very personal level by service rendered by the staff of the Holy Land Hotel. The kitchen and desk staff were, I believe, all Christians. The maids were Muslim. They were uniformly kind and friendly.

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One of our final, and most amazing visits began with a drive up a winding road to the Samaritan Village on the peak of Mt. Gerizim where we met with the patriarch of this very tiny minority of 850 or so. Every Dr. Seuss story features a friendly, sane guy who pulls everything together and this is here it happened for us. This tall, bearded man in a fez and a long robe, invited us into his gaudily decorated living room and proceeded to charm us with a long off the cuff exposition the significance of female menstrual cycles. He went on to explain that he represented a line from Adam going back some 864 generations. Everything he said sounded so loopy but he was is so sweet and friendly, and so at ease in his own skin that he radiated sanity. He told us that Samaritans pray daily for peace between Israelis and Palestinians because he said, "If there is no peace there, then there won't be peace anywhere."
If it's generally a given that comedians make for the best comedy podcasters, then Jake Johannsen is a fine specimen of that subset. It's not important that not all of his guests on JakeThis of Jake Johannsen are comedians, nor even in show business. And the subject matter isn't always light and/or funny. But with a deft touch and a few well-placed humor nuggets strewn throughout the conversation, one comes away from his podcast thinking, "That was damned entertaining!"

His latest guest is Dr. Christopher Ryan, PhD, co-author of Sex At Dawn: How We Mate, Why We Stray, and What it Means for Modern Relationships. He's also the host of his own podcast, Tangentially Speaking. (In fact, this is essentially a dual review because the same conversation appeared a week ago on Ryan's show, even though it was recorded in Johannsen's podcast "lair".)

The subjects are far-ranging, starting with musing over the effects, both rumored and true, of ayahuasca, the hallucinogen of choice of South American native cultures (it's all in the preparation), the wisdom of couples sleeping in separate rooms (it's not as bad as it sounds), the positivity of Joe Rogan (Ryan appears on his show a lot), Johannsen's level of fame (he believes he's only recognized by people who like him), and more.

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Then there's the "monkey talk" from which this episode gets its title. Did you know chimps have big balls and apes have little ones? And what the cultural implications for those statistics are amongst monkeys?

Neither did I.

So listen in on JakeThis (or try Tangentially Speaking...) and come away being better educated and entertained at the same time.

  

Matt Benson and Andrew Linde, hosts of the Shut Up, Leonard podcast, spoke to God in their latest installment of the show that usually provides episode-by-episode analysis of their favorite TV/web show, Community.

Well, God in the sense that Dan Harmon, the series' creator (and mayor of Harmontown), pays them a visit to answer their every burning question. If he can remember the answers, that is.

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People that eat, live, and breathe something they love sometimes forget that the creators of such content may never re-visit their creation after putting it out there (hello, podcasters!) And Harmon makes no bones about the fact he rarely looks back at something that he's made - he has trouble even selecting his favorite of the six-season run of the quirky NBC/Amazon comedy.

What he does excel at, however, is ruminating about the process of creating comedy, dissecting characters to see what makes them tick, and laughing at his own well-documented foibles.

This episode may well be the climax of Shut Up, Leonard. After all, where do you go after you've spoken to God?

  

Podcasts I'm also listening to this week: The New Hollywood, with guest Paul Rust, and Not The Worst Show -- Epi 4: Handjobs, Abortions & Mommy Issues

  

The JakeThis, Shut Up, Leonard reviews and other podcasts mentioned originally posted as part of This Week In Comedy Podcasts on Splitsider.com.

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"As we marched down the street, I felt inspired that our scholars pulled together with pride and courage fighting for what they know to be true. I saw big smiles filled with pride. I also felt angry because of the disregard for scholars but motivated by their willingness to fight.

Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. should sharply remind us that the Civil Rights Movement should never just be chapters in history books. I was so proud of high school students from Seattle, Washington who learned how they could make a difference in the world around them. They took lessons from the Civil Rights Movements 1961 Freedom Rides when Blacks and Whites put their lives on the line to ride interstate buses into the segregated South. This bold student-led nonviolent action inspired a student-led action in 2015 that turned into a victory for many low-income Seattle students who need to ride city buses to get to school. This is the power of learning history and learning from history  the truth can set us free.

Seattle students, many from Rainier Beach High School, took part in the 2015 Childrens Defense Fund Freedom Schools program at two sites sponsored by Urban Impact, a local community-based organization. As part of a national day of social action, the students learned how they can use their voices to make policy change. Like the Freedom Riders, they realized they couldnt count on riding the bus to get where they needed to gomost of all, to schoolbecause they couldnt afford it.

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Over 80 percent of children at Rainier Beach High School qualify for free or reduced price lunch. The city only provided transportation for middle and high school students who lived more than two miles away from school, which disproportionately impacted students at Rainier Beach and other high-poverty schools. The hardships for students like sophomore Mariam Bayo dramatically illustrated the challenges. Mariams family couldnt afford the $1.50 bus fare each way and her asthma made the nearly two mile walk to school especially difficult. She often got chest pains while walking and didnt always have access to medicine. Often late for school, her grades suffered and by the end of her 9 grade year she was failing several classes.

Other students were concerned about walking through unsafe neighborhoods, especially following after-school activities after dark. So for their day of social action, 130 students marched to City Hall where Mariam and others testified to city leaders about why more children needed transit passes to get to school. The Seattle Transit Riders Union supported the children; one leader told the Seattle Times, Fifteen dollars per week, or $54 for a monthly pass, is too much for low-income families to pay just to get their kids to school. For many low-income students, public transit means freedom.

Mariam became part of the Seattle School District-approved pilot program at the start of the school year giving transit passes to 50 low-income students. With the bus pass in hand, Mariam was getting to school on time and her grades soared to all As and Bs. She and other students shared the impact the transit passes had made in their lives at a Town Hall style meeting they organized. The City Council then approved the 2016 budget including $1 million for bus passes for middle and high school students who are eligible for the federal free- or reduced-price lunch program and live one to two miles from their school. Mariam says, Freedom Schools was the most amazing thing that happened to me ever.

Communities and children across the country need to believe they can stay on the march towards justice, just as Mariam Bayo is doing. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. would be proud of the Seattle students actions to break down a barrier to children getting to school.
As candidates scurry around Iowa trying to harness the pivotal Christian evangelical vote, it is worth asking: How would Jesus cast his ballot today?

It's a serious question, and not only for Christians. It's a serious question for Jews or Muslims too, because so much of our Abrahamic faiths overlap (the Golden Rule, for example). It's a serious question because it does precisely what the word itself implies: it takes us on a quest. It takes us beyond the sound bites and slick stump speeches and back to the roots of our faith tradition.

Frankly, it's hard to imagine Jesus voting at all. It was not in his nature. Instead of being part of the secular system of for and against, he would be far more likely to challenge it from a spiritual perspective. After all, he was the one who said:

"Render therefore unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's." (Matthew 22:21) Because he was more interested in the latter than the former, I imagine that his politics would have come second to his faith.

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And what would this man, based on love and forgiveness, make of our political culture today? How would he respond to the intense battle between the Democrats and Republicans, who each seem to determined to portray the other as the devil himself? Would he even identify himself with a party?

The best answer to this question that I have found in this election year comes from America's heartland. Earlier this year a United Methodist pastor of a Christian megachurch in Kansas City gave a sermon to his congregation (22,000 members) entitled "Practicing Politics, Keeping Faith." I wish every American could have been sitting in the pews listening to him share his views on what a truly Christ-like approach to politics would be.

Well, here's the good news: we can listen now. Click here and you can tune in to some the wisest, kindest and -- yes, I will use the word -- patriotic election year advice that I have heard.

Like Christian ministers around the country, he started, of course, with scripture.



Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up... so that your words may give grace to those who hear. Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and slander... and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.

Ephesians 4:29-32.

And within no more than a few minutes, Pastor Adam Hamilton had created a sense of safety and trust, reflection and community, among the thousands gathered in the Church of the Resurrection. Even as you watch and listen to him on your computer or phone, you can actually feel the bond between him and his congregation deepening. And following the sermon, his Republican (~60%) and Democratic (~40%) worshippers responded the same way: with prayer and gratitude.

How did this unknown minister in the heart of the Midwest accomplish something that not one of more than a dozen presidential candidates has?

Three steps:

First of all, he made clear from the outset that he was not going to persuade them to vote for one candidate or another. He removed himself from that game completely because he feels that is a misuse of the pulpit. With a congregation that is more or less equally divided between the two parties, Pastor Hamilton knows it would be a violation of his faith and a disservice to his church community to take sides.

Secondly, he made everyone laugh. Instead of digging right into the tough issues that the congregation had asked him to address (guns, health care, immigration, etc.), he first showed a picture of a puppy to soften the mood and proceeded to talk about cats and dogs. "Which political party's members are dog-lovers and which are cat-lovers?" he asked the thousands sitting in front of him on that wintry Sunday morning in early January. And when they guessed correctly (Republicans have more dogs, Democrats more cats), everyone had a good laugh at the bizarre personality differences that underlie our political culture today.

Third, and perhaps most important, he did not offer simplistic pro or con answers. On the contrary, he said that each of the issues that he intended to discuss for four Sundays in a row were complex and that there is "truth on both sides." He made clear that he would not dishonor or disregard either "side" of the argument but would gently and honestly seek the common ground that exists in the divisive issues facing our country - especially the common ground of those who share the Christian faith.

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In Cologne on New Year's Eve there was no terrorist attack and no one got killed. But the massive assaults on women by a huge crowd with many asylum seekers has sent a nation into shock. The shock is multi-dimensional and deep: Germans are rubbing their eyes about a helpless police that was incapable to upholding the law. They are shocked about the criminal behavior of people Germany had welcomed and opened the doors for. But most of all: Germany is wondering about the values the country stands for - and whether they can be defended.

That's why Cologne signals much more than a mere violation of law. Cologne has the potential to open dangerous flood gates. For years or even decades Germany has established a code how to deal with nationalism. With rare exceptions all political parties and leaders had formed a united front when antisemitism, nazism or xenophobia were on the rise. This created a solid firewall against a return of the ghosts of the Third Reich. At the same time this unity made it next to impossible to call certain policies into question - for instance, whether Germany should actively participate in wars, whether Germany is permitted to criticize Israel - or how Germany should deal with refugees knocking on the door. With the backdrop of Germany's history the answers were clear: No wars. Israel stays sacrosanct. Foreigners are welcome - no matter what. Whoever tried to challenge those positions had to be prepared to be labelled right-wing.

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Now, after Cologne, this ring of defense has collapsed. Not only are national-minded Germans speaking out against the refugee policy of the Chancellor, but now it is the moderate, tolerant middle-class that gets confused, angry and articulate. They are exactly the people Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) always could count on in elections. But now they have difficulty understanding the Merkel strategy. They are afraid that the uncontrolled inflow of foreigners mainly from the Middle East and the Maghreb countries is fundamentally changing the German society. They see a clash of cultures in the making.

Why did it take the events of New Year's Eve to ignite this fire? Because seemingly there was an attitude prevailing at the police department in Cologne - and probably also at the regional ministry of interior - that deemed it politically incorrect to blame refugees. But the truth is: Not talking about the negatives that are associated with the one million refugees that came into Germany in 2015 is making the political right stronger, not weaker. The self- proclaimed patriots can claim to be the only ones telling the truth. Unfortunately, the events in Cologne add grist to the mill.

Generations of Germans after the war have never learned to self-consciously talk about or even defend their country, their achievements and values. To the contrary: Germans exercised tolerance verging on self-denial. Only a few years back even displaying the German colors was considered fascist. Now, challenged by refugees of whom many don't care much about the values of their host country, they are supposed to rigidly demand rules. The problem: They simply can't. They never were supposed to. And they think that doing this is behaving like a Nazi.

Angela Merkel, in a passionate speech at a recent party convention she once again tried to convince the skeptics within the CDU that there is no alternative to her policy. She made clear that shutting down Germanys borders would not only produce a human catastrophe. She told party members that the whole European project is at stake if Germany ceased solidarity.

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Merkel only tepidly addressed something at least equally important: That refugees are only welcome if they play by the rules; that they have to accept the norms and standards of their hosts. And if they don't - they are out. And she should encourage Germans to be steadfast in asserting that it is not fascist to tell asylum seekers what is right - and what is wrong. Merkel seems not to understand that by downplaying the troubles, she is about to destroy the good that has been done last year under her leadership. Even more: By ignoring this cultural debate she is leaving the field wide open for those who are true right wing nationalists.
Photo: Karen Rosenow

Over the last 10 years, I've been besieged with questions about geese.

"Are they from Canada?" is the most frequent, followed by the inevitable"How do you tell them apart?" Children always ask if you can pet them.

Here are the answers to these questions and others that arise when geese surprise us with the unexpected, as these unbridled spirits are prone to do.

Are they from Canada?

No. The true migratory goose was almost driven to extinction from over-hunting some 50 years ago when scientists found some nesting pairs at Silver Lake, Minn., and placed them in captivity.

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Coincidentally, wildlife officials began a national recovery program by taking and incubating nest eggs from "decoy" geese they had captured to lure other geese (coming down from Canada). Eventually the young were deposited throughout the U.S., sometimes in locations where there had never been geese. Thus the resident goose was born.

Resident geese don't migrate to Canada in part because they don't know the way. Migratory patterns are a learned behavior and no one was around to teach them the age-old routes of their ancestors. Eventually, the youngsters, drawn to U.S. parks and ponds, established flight patterns of their own.

Resident geese stay in the U.S. because this is where they were born and their nesting grounds are here. However, if some handsome, non-migratory dude finds the love of his life in a migratory group, his life instantly changes. He becomes part of the cycle for which he was originally intended. They head for Canada because the female determines the nesting site..



How do you tell them apart?

Look for anything that sets them apart: white eyebrows, mottled feathers or obvious injuries. The Half Moon, in photo, one of the geese in my study group, is missing part of his upper beak; Auburn, a shy, skittish female, is blind in one eye.

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You can also memorize their facial expressions, weird as that sounds. I'd know Zoey, my lead goose, anywhere by her expression. I can also identify several of her young because they have the same look. The Zo babies, I call them. Another identifying factor is the white chin strap (see photo), which runs from cheek to cheek below the face. Chin straps can be thin, oblong, chunky or fat, and shaped in unusual patterns.

Can you pet them?

No. Canada geese don't like to be touched or petted. It's just not their thing. They show affection for humans (and each other) vocally. In addition to honking, geese coo, chatter, chirp and chime.



Why are Canada geese described as being human-like?

Many of their habits and behaviors resemble ours. Like us, Canada geese have an inordinate sense of family. Like us, young geese - or juveniles, as they're called - go through a lengthy transition to adulthood, trying like teenagers to find their place in the world. And like us, Canada geese seem to fall in love; perhaps choosing a mate more carefully than us because for them it really is a lifetime commitment.

Canada geese males are also among the most romantic creatures on earth. Every day is Valentine's Day for females in mated pairs. Their mates hover over them, seeming to whisper sweet nothings as they brush their necks with those powerful bills. And it would appear to have little to do with sex. Geese mate only once a year. The rest of the year - 10 months or so - is pure romance and, of course, parenting, if there are goslings. The parents - gander and goose - also raise their young together, sharing the responsibilities.



How do you tell a goose from a gander?

A goose (female) is smaller, less vocal and tends to stay in the background. The gander is louder, larger and initially the friendlier of the two.

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Do geese mate for life?

Yes. The goslings may come and go but the mate is forever.



How long do they live?

Resident geese -- with fewer challenges from the wild -- can live to be 25 or 30 years. The geese in my study group are beginning to show their ages. The Grandfather must be at least 15. Horatio is 10; his sister, Olivia, is 7. Gandy (Olivia's mate) is about 10. Gandy and Olivia's son, Baby Honker, is 3.



What are the babies called?

Goslings.



Why do they hiss?

The hissing appears to be a warning or defense mechanism; a way of saying ... keep your distance until we know you better ...

Geese usually hiss when strangers veer too close. Generally, I ignore the hissing, I'm so used to it.

Don't take the hissing seriously unless there are newborns or a nest.

If Nesting Dad is hissing or beginning to spread his wings, quickly move away.

Generally, the hissing will subside if you talk quietly to them. Canada geese also seem to love baby talk and high-pitched voices. I've noticed that when I'm talking to (human) friends, my geese will sidle over, seemingly entranced by the animation in my voice.

The hissing also seems to be primarily reserved for humans. I've occasionally seen geese hiss at squirrels and dogs ; however, never at other geese.



Are geese aggressive?

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Generally, resident geese are exceedingly gentle around people. However, Canada geese are also highly territorial -- and chasing other geese, often and without provocation -- is part of the culture.

Do they bite?

Geese don't have teeth. However, their jaws are lined with serrated ridges made of cartilage for pulling up grass and other vegetation - and apparently strong enough to inflict a little pain when they pull the tail feathers of other geese. Fortunately, they rarely consider humans part of their nipping repertoire.



Why do geese stand on one leg?

It seems to be a form of rest or relaxation. Some geese fall asleep in this manner. On occasion, it can be a sign of injury but my experience indicates that it's usually just a comfortable stance.



Are these geese the same geese that were here yesterday?

Probably not. Like their migratory cousins, the heavens are a second home. Resident geese may not travel the distance to Canada but the group you saw at the city park yesterday is probably 200 miles away by now. The need to fly -- like wild desperados into the night -- seems ingrained.



What do geese eat?

Grass. Like horses and cattle, geese are grazers, thriving on vegetation. They will travel great distances to find the most succulent grass, pond-hopping to as many as a dozen locations in one day. They also love the occasional treat: bits of wheat bread or cracked corn and other grains, especially in winter when grass is scarce.



Why is their poop green?

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Blame it on all that grass. That's mostly what they eat.

Research also shows that geese poop, while messy, is basically harmless, and unlike dog or human feces, generally has no odor.



Who's at the top of the social honk-osphere?
In our Jan. 15 "Only in Illinois" video, we talked with Illinois Treasurer Mike Frerichs about his first year in office and the challenges he has faced as the state's top investment officer during a time of extreme instability in state finances.

That interview focused on Frerichs' official side.

Today we take a different approach to find out more about Frerichs' non-official side.

What did we learn?

Though he's 6-foot-8 and did play basketball in high school, he wasn't a star.

Like many parents of small children, his reading and viewing habits have taken a youthful turn.

His lifelong baseball allegiance dates back, literally, to the moment he left the womb.

He's got high hopes for his candidate in the presidential election in November.

Frerichs grew up in the Champaign County town of Gifford (population 975) in east-central Illinois, and is the only constitutional officer from downstate. He served eight years in the Illinois State Senate before his election as treasurer in 2014.

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A Yale graduate who spent time teaching English and studying Mandarin in Taiwan before returning to Champaign County, Frerichs says he's living proof of the adage, "You can take the boy out of the small town, but you can't take the small town out of the boy."
Powerful, wealthy, influential, and worldly, yet out of touch are just a few adjectives many critics use to describe the business leaders and politicians who attend the World Economic Forum's annual meeting in Davos. On January 20, day one of WEF, Pope Francis advised forum members to consider their role in creating poverty and inequality in a text message read for him by a Vatican cardinal. The adage the rich get richer, while the poor get poorer can change. It seems the Pope gets this through and through.

Call it coincidence or a kind twist of fate--the next day an opportunity for the elite WEF invitees to take the kind of social action that would make the Pope proud presented itself. Anti-corruption pioneer and #BringBackOurGirls founder, Obiageli Ezekwesili (also known as Oby), spoke with WEF attendees about her ongoing crusade to bring back the 219 Nigerian girls who have been missing since April 14, 2014, the day 276 of them were kidnapped from school by Boko Haram terrorists. Oby's behemoth mission has a simple message--57 girls are not 276 girls. The girls aren't all back yet. We have work to do.

All The Girls Aren't Back Yet. Now What?

After Oby spoke with people at scheduled WEF sessions, Bloomberg News anchor Stetphanie Ruhle brought her to the Girls' Lounge, where gender equality, empowerment and solidarity pervade. In an impromptu and moving interview, Stephanie and Oby chronicled Oby's journey to find the girls and bring them home to their families. While Oby has been able to use her platform as former Minister of Education to raise awareness about the kidnapping, her quest cannot be reached with just one voice. It may take a village. It may take a government. It may take every fiber of every activists' being. One thing is certain, with all the resources, funds and technology available among the World Economic Forum and other powerful communities, there's no reason Oby's voice should be the only one making any noise on this matter.

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For a whole whopping month the juggernaut hashtag #BringBackOurGirls flooded social media. You remember the sign Michelle Obama held in support of the campaign? It was the beginning of an important movement. But like an onslaught of other trending topics on Twitter and Facebook, the #BringBackOurGirls buzz died down quickly. The difference between this hashtag and others is that it's not a trend. It's a global issue, one that can't be ignored.

After Oby's talk, which left a number of people in the audience tearful, the Girls' Lounge founder Shelley Zalis said to Oby, "You're children are our children." If this declaration isn't what Davos needs to ignite action, I don't know what is.

As privileged, first world professionals, we say we want equality. We say we want justice for all. It's very easy to make these statements from where we're sitting, isn't it? In the United States, a campaign like #BringBackOurGirls would never be forgotten by the media or dismissed by the government because such a tragedy would not likely happen there.

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While finding the rest of the missing Chibok girls is a tough problem to tackle, there are positives that have resulted from this event. In an article for the Observer, Ken Wiwa wrote that there was something "reassuring" about people caring about school girls being kidnapped in Nigeria. A decade ago, would anyone outside of Nigeria have even blinked an eye at the news? Ken referred to the outpouring of initial support as a turning point in the battle against terrorism. While this is debatable, the incident has shown how powerful digital media is in times of adversity. We just need to keep the conversation going for far longer than a month. That being said, nearly two years after the kidnapping, the right to education in Nigeria has become a heated topic across Africa online and in the streets.

Where do we go from here?

Oby and Stephanie initiated a call to action for the Girls' Lounge, WEF attendees, and anyone who feels moved to organize and #BringBackOurGirls. Technologists, deep thinkers, deep pockets, and influencers are being asked to join Oby in her mission. To engage with the initiative, go to the #BringBackOurGirls Facebook page. Follow Oby on Twitter and join the conversation. Everyone has the ability to bring attention back to these girls and to bring them back home.

As Pope Francis texted earlier this week, "We must never allow the culture of prosperity to deaden us, to make us incapable of feeling compassion at the outcry of the poor, weeping for other people's pain, and sensing the need to help them, as though all this were someone else's responsibility and not our own."
Today, the landmark Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade turns forty-three years old. For forty-three years, the Supreme Court has upheld their decision that a woman's constitutional right to privacy also protects her right to make personal health care decisions about abortion. And, for forty-three years, women have had the constitutional right to access abortion services without government interference. After the unprecedented attacks this past year on Planned Parenthood and reproductive health broadly, it is perhaps more important than ever to wish Roe a resounding happy birthday.

Through our efforts in Congress and across the state of Illinois, we are fighting to protect all women's access to reproductive health care. Unfortunately, that fight has only intensified in recent years. On Capitol Hill and in state houses across the country, anti-women's health politicians continue to make it clear that they will stop at nothing to end access to a safe, legal abortion. Data released from the Guttmacher Institute shows that in the year 2000, 31 percent of women of reproductive age lived in a state hostile to abortion rights, with no women living in a state with enough restrictions to be considered extremely hostile. By 2014, 57 percent of women lived in a state that is either hostile or extremely hostile to abortion rights. This alarming increase was in part because of the 288 state-level restrictions on safe, legal abortions that have been enacted since the 2010 mid-term elections.

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Even in our home state of Illinois, where access is less restricted, women still bear the undue burden of increasing national attacks on abortion and reproductive health services. Because of restrictions on abortion access in their own state, many women in neighboring states are forced to travel hundreds of miles and cross state lines to seek an abortion. However, their rights should not have to depend on their zip code. In our own state, restrictions on Medicaid coverage for abortion unfairly impact low-income women, making abortion inaccessible to them through the Medicaid program.

As Americans, it is always important to remember where we once were and how far we have come. Before Roe, illegal abortions were common. In the 1950s and 60s, estimates indicate anywhere from 200,000 to 1.2 million illegal abortions were performed annually. Of course, these are only the reported numbers, and given the stigma surrounding abortion, the actual numbers were likely much higher. By making abortion legal, Roe v. Wade made abortion safe, not only marking a major step forward for women's rights but also saving countless women's lives.

Unintended pregnancy was a reality for American women in the decades before Roe and remains a reality today. However, persistent, misinformed attacks--in states like Texas, where the state legislature aims to entirely defund and shutter Planned Parenthood statewide--are making it impossible for women to access their constitutionally protected right to abortion. How can the United States claim to be the world's leader while simultaneously denying basic rights to half of its citizens?

As 2016 begins, we await the Supreme Court hearing arguments in Whole Woman's Health v. Cole, the biggest abortion case in decades. As advocates for choice, we must be resilient. We must not let politicians, who believe they are above the Constitution, interfere with the personal health decisions of women. It is the job of a woman, not a politician, to make informed decisions about her own pregnancy.

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LEBANON, BEIRUT - DECEMBER 31: A Syrian child one of those who have been forced to leave their homes because of the war in their country since 2011, stands outside a makeshift tent at the Al Hayat and Al Nour refugee camp in Cabal Lebanon region, Lebanon on December 31, 2015. As the weather cools down, Syrian refugees struggle to survive heavy winter conditions at the tent city. (Photo by Ratib Al Safadi/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

This year, the Middle East marks the centenary of the Arab revolts of 1916, which set in motion many of the nationalist trends of the 20th century in the region. This anniversary coincides with a heightened sense of transformation in the Arab world today -- and in many instances, the change is not for the better. As history books recount how our forefathers struggled to shape their futures after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire while world powers crudely carved up their spheres of influence, today's headlines speak of internal strife, proxy wars, mass migration and international interests colliding in the region.

However, there is more to the rapid pace of change today, from the transfer of information to the lowest oil prices since the last financial crisis. All of these developments are impacting societal changes and identities of 330 million people of the region, especially those of young Arabs grappling with sectarian and political labels being forced upon them. How this identity is developed and protected will be instrumental for the future of the region.

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Conflict and exodus are impacting those escaping conflicts and their host communities. As over 60 million refugees and displaced peoples are on the move around the world, the Middle East and North Africa is witnessing the largest displacement the world has witnessed since World War II. The immediate humanitarian crises due to the conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Libya are transforming the societies of those countries, in addition to the fallout being felt in neighbouring countries.

For a Syrian girl who was born in a refugee camp in Jordan at the start of the conflict, she is now ready to enter school. All her initial memories will be of the hardship of being a refugee and uncertainty in the future. Young men and women who didn't complete their education or have the possibility of earning a living for years due to years of displacement inside Iraq, where there are over three million displaced Iraqis according to the IOM, their identity is being shaped by sectarian violence. Young people, especially children, are being hit the worst in areas of conflict. UNICEF estimates that 13 million children are out of school in the Middle East and North Africa due to conflict.

The past year witnessed Europe struggling to deal with refugee flows, as over one million refugees arrived by sea and hundreds of thousands crossed land borders. The erection of border controls for the first time in six countries of the Schengen area. warn of a transformation of Europe itself, not just the Middle East and North Africa. However, the real transformation is happening in the MENA region.

The impact on host communities cannot be underestimated, where one-fifth of Lebanon's population is now made up of Syrians, Jordan has entire towns with Syrians forming the majority of residents, where Libyan refugees struggle to be acknowledged in North African cities. As months become years, the relationships between refugee and host communities change and the fabric of these societies is also changing. One of the many phenomena at the moment is a sectarian and tension that is heightened by regional rivalries, namely between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

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As for those not in areas of conflict, there remain fears of instability, whether due to terrorism, war or economic shocks, in addition to questions of identity in a fast-paced world. Plunging oil prices are also creating a dynamic of change that in the long run will be instrumental in transforming the economies of oil-producing countries. The recent announcement of Saudi Arabia's Deputy Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman that his country may consider selling shares in Aramco, the world's largest oil company, is a case in point. From Doha to Riyadh, the plans to introduce taxes and to cut subsidies heed a call by the IMF's Director of the Middle East and North Africa Masood Ahmed, a member of the WEF's Global Agenda Council on the Middle East, to face up to the reality of longer term low oil prices. The influence of taxation on representation will mean that political questions will arise more frequently in the oil-producing countries.

This is becoming increasing evident in the digital age and a greater boldness to express ideas and concerns. More than 100 million people access Facebook on mobiles across the MENA region today, while it is one of the fastest growing regions on Twitter and Instagram.The transfer of information is accompanying a wave of political and social changes carried throughout the region, often by young people aged between 15 and 29 years old representing close to 30 percent of the population.

There are over 108 million young people transitioning into adulthood, the largest number in the region's history. They are providing a lifeline to a civil society struggling to maintain its independence at a time of heightened fears. Young people transitioning into adulthood are also relying increasingly on entrepreneurship and the private sector. According to the World Bank, job creation in the Middle East and North Africa is dominated by 'young companies' that will need further support to expand employment and a vital sense of opportunities.

The Arab world is being transformed by war, conflict and strife. However, it is also being transformed by a new generation of Arabs who are questioning the status quo, both in politics and business. As governments and influencers in the Arab world witness these changes, countries like the United Arab Emirates and Oman are proving that 'legitimacy by competence', that is governments earning legitimacy by competently ruling their countries, is the best way forward while modern national identities are being formed. Increasingly, the people of the region, especially those who are more fortunate and living in advantage, will need to own up to the current generation's responsibilities, no longer being able to blame the past or older generations for the challenges of today.

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While many question whether the current borders of the Levant can survive one hundred years after the Sykes-Picot agreement of 1916, the real issue is how to allow the people living within these borders and crossing them to live a life of dignity.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani speaks with media in a joint press conference with his Iraqi counterpart Fouad Massoum after their meeting at the Saadabad Palace in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, May 13, 2015. Massoum is on a two-day visit to meet Rouhani and other senior officials to discuss a range of political and economic issues. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

This past week has been historic for Iran. After years of isolation and economic hardship, the nuclear deal finally went into effect and sanctions were lifted. International companies are returning back to the country after a long period of absence. Iranian banks are reentering the world financial systems again. Vital import and export lines are reopening for Iran. Billions of frozen Iranian assets were unblocked worldwide to boost a crippled economy. A young and vibrant society that has long been hungry for change is now reemerging into the world, with many hopes and high aspirations. And travel experts keep telling the world to visit the newly welcoming Iran, this long forgotten gem of a destination.

It was a happy week for Iranians across the world who stayed up until very late hours to follow the news of the implementation of a historic deal. Those who've lost loved ones in flight accidents in Iran's aging fleet are happy to see that the United States is finally allowing Iran to buy new commercial aircraft, after three decades of deadly flights and thousands of civilian deaths. Those who saw loved ones suffer or die from the lack of vital medicine due to sanctions will now have hope for a brighter future. Young tech entrepreneurs in Iran have been eagerly waiting for this day to join the international business and tech community and turn Tehran into the Silicon Valley of the Middle East. Iranians in the diaspora are happy, too. I keep hearing of more Iranian students and young professionals abroad who speak of moving back to their country now. Even those who are not thinking of moving back are proud to see their homeland come out of a dark era.

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A young and vibrant society that has long been hungry for change is now reemerging into the world, with many hopes and high aspirations.

It was also a good week for the United States. Four American citizens imprisoned in Iran for a few years were released as part of a prisoner swap between the two countries. They were exchanged with seven Iranians who were accused or convicted of violating sanctions against Iran. The historic prisoner deal was secretly made between Iran and the United States on the sidelines of the nuclear negotiations. It came as a big surprise to the general public in both countries and both governments were able to take domestic credit for this side deal. President Obama and his team came out as strong winners, after years of taking harsh criticism for not caring enough about jailed American citizens in Iran. And Iran's moderate administration was seen as a successful negotiator that was able to take something in exchange for giving up the American prisoners.

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What is even more fascinating about these historic deals between Iran and the United States -- staunch enemies for over three decades -- is that they are not limited to the nuclear dispute. The past two years of nuclear negotiations made way for a new chapter of diplomacy between the two countries that did not exist since they broke ties in 1979. After the 1979 revolution in Iran and the hostage crisis between Iran and the United States, any issue or dispute between the two countries had to be resolved through third party mediators. But since 2013 when U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif started direct negotiations, the era of no communication has ended.

These last victories will soon become legacies of an American leader who chose peace over war. President Rouhani, however, is just getting started.

Just a few days before the implementation of the nuclear deal, two U.S. Navy vessels in the Persian Gulf drifted into Iranian waters and their crew were arrested by Iran's Revolutionary Guards forces. It was a scary incident by all means, and many were speculating that it would not end well or soon. But to everyone's surprise, the new line of communication between top diplomats in both countries came to the aid. John Kerry called Javad Zarif directly and was assured that American sailors would be released shortly. And they were. Diplomats did their magic, and two longtime foes were able to quickly resolve what could have become a military nightmare for both sides.

But big victories don't come without costs. While moderate politicians in both capitals have been scoring credit, their critics have not been silent. U.S. hawks are slamming President Obama for being too soft on the "the terrorist state Iran," and Iran's hardliners are dismissing President Rouhani for making too many concessions and bowing to the "Great Satan." President Obama will be out of office soon. These last victories will soon become legacies of an American leader who chose peace over war. President Rouhani, however, is just getting started. This victory was his major election promise in 2013, and it was just fulfilled. Now that the nuclear dispute is resolved and sanctions are lifted, he still has a long way to repair a destroyed economy, create millions of jobs for a very young society and lift a large country out of years of political, economic and social isolation. President Rouhani also needs to attend to domestic, social and political reforms, protect civil and human rights in the country and release dozens of political prisoners. Iranians have long been waiting for this day, patiently.

Earlier on WorldPost:
Ethan Couch, center, sits in juvenile court for a hearing about his future Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014, in Fort Worth, Texas. Judge Jean Boyd again decided to give no jail time for Couch, who was sentenced to 10 years' probation in a drunken-driving crash that killed four people, and ordered him to go to a rehabilitation facility paid for by his parents. The sentence stirred fierce debate, as has the testimony of a defense expert who says Couch's wealthy parents coddled him into a sense of irresponsibility. The expert termed the condition "affluenza." (AP Photo/LM Otero)

As prosecutors await 18-year-old Ethan Couch's return from Mexico in order to conduct a hearing to consider whether the Texas teen -- who killed four pedestrians and injured two others while driving drunk in 2013 -- violated the terms of his probation by leaving the U.S. after a video surfaced in which he appeared to be drinking, the media faithfully continues to refer to Couch, in headlines and elsewhere, as the "affluenza" teen. "Affluenza" -- it's the cute, clever term a defense expert coined during Couch's 2013 trial to describe the not-so-cute disorder that had resulted from Couch's privileged upbringing; a disorder that, the defense argued, had coddled him into a sense of irresponsibility and clouded his sense of right and wrong.

Scoff all you want: It may sound ridiculous, but the "affluenza" defense worked. Couch managed to avoid jail time and was instead sentenced to 10 years probation (which included a prohibition on consuming alcohol) and some time in a rehab of his parents' choosing. At the time of the teen's December 2013 sentencing and in news reports since, most have argued that the defense, and the sentencing, were an outrage; that "affluenza" is not a disorder, but a result of bad parenting, for which there's no excuse. And that, in fact, "affluenza" is not real.

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There's certainly some questionable parenting going on in Ethan Couch's life, not only then but also now: Couch traveled to Mexico with his mother, who, in the days before Couch disappeared last month, reportedly withdrew $30,000 and called her husband to say he would never see her or their son again. Tanya Couch was eventually apprehended in Mexico and sent back to the United States, where she was charged with hindering the apprehension of a felon. Now, Ethan's lawyers are questioning whether the 18-year-old fled to Mexico voluntarily or whether he was taken, by his mother or by someone else, against his will.

Still: Bad parenting notwithstanding, who's to say Ethan Couch doesn't also suffer from some mental impairment? Nature, we now know, isn't the only cause of mental illness. In fact, genetics and environmental distress -- including bad parenting or a detrimental home life -- can work together to produce mental illness. And, well, the symptoms used to describe and "diagnose" affluenza are entirely real: low self-esteem, sense of entitlement, anxiety, impulse control issues.

A number of legitimate psychological studies suggest that "affluenza" may not be so far-fetched, and that the very issues listed above are indeed often higher among kids of certain privilege.

So let's say that Couch's symptoms were a result of bad parenting; just as with any other mental disorder, how they got there matters less than the fact they are there. Affluenza may not be an excuse, but it is an explanation. If Ethan Couch was truly raised without a sense of right or wrong, how would he be expected to behave in a way that's socially acceptable?

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That's not to say there should be total leeway for children, or young adults, who do the wrong thing simply because they did not fully understand the implications of that thing. Other forms of mental illness are not get-out-of-jail-free cards, and neither is this one. The mentally ill who break the law are required to face consequences, even if their punishment is different from that handed to someone of sound mind and body; their mental illness being a factor in their behavior, but not a justification for it. And so it should be for Ethan Couch. If "affluenza" is indeed what caused him to get behind the wheel with a blood alcohol count three times the legal limit for adults, resulting in the deaths of four people, he deserves to face consequences. But he also deserves to get some help.

Instead, Ethan Couch was sent back into the care of the very people -- his parents -- who allegedly caused him to act without regard to consequence in the first place.
Many people, especially those of us over 50, frequently bemoan the fact that "technology" is confusing, constantly changing and/or costing us jobs. And I can't argue with that. There is no denying that for those of us who weren't born living with bits and bytes, technology can be confusing. And for sure it's changing fast. (I had no sooner figured out Facebook then my 11-year-old informed me that it's passe and only for "old fogies." She's already moved on to Snapchat and Instagram -- and even those will likely be replaced by next season.)

This is to say nothing of the advancements in big data and technologies that can now predict outcomes or automate machinery. For certain, these have freed many individuals from repetitive and often mind-numbing work. But they have also taken jobs from people who needed and wanted them, both in the USA and around world. Not to mention the negative impact on so many of us now watching countless hours of mindless cat videos on YouTube. (I have my own "mindless" vices but I'm happy to say this is not one of them.)



Indeed, it's a brave new world. People are being replaced by machines in many ways. And with the advances in Artificial Intelligence and human-machine learning, this trend will only continue. But before we go demonizing technology, I want to spend a minute looking at the positive side of these developments, especially for some of the world's poorest people. Consider for just a minute the ways technology has already improved village life for smallholder farmers in Africa. Technology -- be it smart phones combined with internet access or even just texting -- has literally transformed village life for millions. How? Farmers can now check market prices for their crops or get weather forecasts. They can download tips for better planting techniques or new developments for fertilization or ways to save water. Simultaneously, that same smart phone can provide the farmer's pregnant wife with prenatal healthcare information and in some cases even diagnostics. And it can help her educate her already school-aged children. Using symbols, much of this can be accomplished even if the user can't read.

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Indeed, in these ways, I would argue that the internet and smart phones, tablets etc. have been some of the greatest equalizing factors of modern times. That little screen we in the West have become addicted to for connecting with friends, watching movies and keeping in touch with the office, is the very same device that is opening markets; breaking down barriers and borders, transferring knowledge (often for free) and improving healthcare outcomes, to name just a few of the things it has brought to more remote parts of the world. Minutes have even become a "bankable currency" in many places, allowing "savings," even among the "unbanked." So, truly there are two sides to the technology story. Yes, jobs are being lost; but they are also being created. For example, it may take fewer people to produce a car these days and of course people are even forgoing owning cars thanks to developments like Uber and the sharing economy. But, at the same time, an entire new industry of "app producers" has been born. And this is just one of many, many examples.



Net net: I think technology writ large is enabling many important, live-saving and life-enhancing advances. But, we need to keep harnessing it properly in order to minimize the downsides and maximize the upsides. We need to ensure that we don't simply stop thinking for ourselves; stop asking the tough questions; stop checking our facts and sources, etc. And we need to re-train those in jobs and industries that are being negatively impacted by these advances so that they are ready for the new opportunities being presented. It won't be easy, but we've done it before. Think about the transition from the agricultural to the industrial economy. We turned farmers into factory workers. The biggest difference is that we did that over a couple of generations. Today, given the speed of change, we have to do it in more like a decade. And the process will never truly be "done," as learning must now be a life-long pursuit for all of us. But while the task is great, by applying some of these very same technologies, I'm confident we can build the next generation of workers and I think we'll all be better off because of it.

For the second conversation in our Purpose@Work series -- a discussion designed to explore how we can infuse a deep sense of purpose into our work -- we're going to focus on the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the theme of this year's World Economic Forum in Davos.
Maryland's 8th congressional district is now pretty safe for Democrats and there is an opportunity to elect a strong new progressive voice. A voice for income-equality, women's rights, civil and human rights for the LGBT community and real immigration reform with a path to citizenship. A Voice replacing that of Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) now running to succeed Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) in the Senate.

There are a wealth of good candidates but it looks like this is now a three-way race between Kathleen Matthews, Senator Jamie Raskin and Joel Rubin. Matthews first came to people's attention while working as a journalist at ABC's Washington, DC affiliate WJLA. She left journalism after a prominent career and went on to an equally prominent career at Marriott Corporation becoming Executive Vice President for Global Communications and Public Affairs. Raskin is a progressive sitting State Senator. He has been Majority Whip since 2012 and serves as chair or sits on a number of important committees where his efforts have made a difference for people including; the Executive Nominations Committee, Judicial Proceedings Committee, Joint Committee on the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Critical Area, Joint Committee on Federal Relations and the Joint Committee on Legislative Ethics. Rubin is a former civil servant with experience at the U.S. Agency for International Development, Department of Energy, and Department of State. He made news when as a pioneering activist for peace and diplomacy he was a founding member of the pro-Israel, pro-peace organization J Street. While Matthews and Raskin have been in the race from the beginning and have each raised big money Rubin entered late but is drawing attention and surprised many when it was announced that he and a PAC supporting him have quickly raised enough to be competitive.



All three have records of distinction. Matthews worked her way up to producer and then writer/reporter eventually becoming a well-respected anchor at WJLA for 15 years. She then went on to host and executive produced the nationally syndicated "Working Woman" television show and hosted the political show Capital Sunday. She was named a 2002 Washingtonian of the Year by Washingtonian Magazine and has been awarded nine local Emmys and an Edward R Murrow award among other top honors during her journalism career. Her career at Marriott Corporation is also impressive. She is responsible for the company's external and internal communications including global brand and corporate public relations, corporate social responsibility, and government affairs and co-chairs Marriott's Executive Green Council. In 2011 Matthews launched a blog which provides insight into her work with Marriott, philanthropic efforts, and personal world.

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Raskin has taken what some might consider the most usual route to Congress giving him the legislative experience needed. He was a community activist and is now a Maryland State Senator representing part of the 8th congressional district since January 10, 2007. Raskin has a great record on progressive issues. He has promoted and worked on a number of good government issues as a Co-Chair the Work Group to Review Disclosure Requirements of the Public Ethics Law and chaired the Senate Special Committee on Ethics Reform. He is a former member of the Montgomery County Hate Crimes Commission, and the City of Takoma Park's Gun Policy Task Force. He also Chaired the State Higher Education Labor Relations Board from 2001-05.

Rubin has his own unique record of success at the federal level with deep experience on the issues of national security, the environment, veterans, and women's health. Though not a legislator his nearly 20 years of diverse experiences do equip him to be an effective progressive champion in Congress. Most recently his work as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for House affairs; the senior official at the State Department responsible for managing the agency's relations with the House of Representatives where he hopes to serve, make him a known quantity there. He effectively advocated in support of the Iran nuclear deal as both an activist at J Street and Ploughshares Fund, and as a government official ensuring the deal made it through a Republican-majority Congress. He worked on a bipartisan basis with the House leadership and key Members to advance Obama administration priorities in Congress to combat climate change, counter terrorist organizations, support child migrants from Central America, and stand up to the Benghazi Select Committee, to which he testified last year.

The people of Maryland's 8th Congressional District have a choice to make, but it appears any one of these three would represent them well.
By Jay T. Snyder, Chairman of Open Hands Initiative





Faculty and students at the JFK Library in Boston, Massachusetts. Photo Credit:  Kelly Fitzsimmons Photography

Fifty-five years ago this week, braving the cold winds of a winter's January, U.S. President John F. Kennedy delivered his inaugural address imparting upon the American people words still true today: "In your hands, my fellow citizens, more than mine, will rest the final success or failure of our course". During times of social turbulence, the short-comings of leadership are often held at fault. And while our leaders do bear great responsibility, in equal measure, we must ask ourselves, what have we, as citizens, done to keep them accountable? Are we exercising our civic duty to vote; to analyze, discuss, and weigh in on issues; to create equitable opportunities for shared prosperity and good health? As citizens, we play an equally important role in creating a fair and just society.

In today's interconnected world, this duty extends beyond our political borders. As ordinary citizens, it is not only our duty to hold our government accountable for foreign relations and international policies, but to complement its efforts by building relationships and understanding between the U.S. and other countries.

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In that same breath to the American people, President Kennedy also offered a call-to-action still relevant for us today: "Ask not what America will do for you, but what together, we can do for the freedom of man [sic]", what together, we, as ordinary citizens, can do for the freedom of individuals across the globe.

During the years since President Kennedy's inauguration, Colombia has suffered a violent conflict that has left hundreds of thousands of Colombians displaced and impoverished, and the safety of many insecure. After more than 50 years of conflict, the country is now on a road to peace. Colombia is a bright spot for reconciliation and prosperity in the region and from whom we can learn regarding addressing the needs of vulnerable populations in the U.S. and whose development efforts we can hope to amplify.

For the past three weeks, guided by faculty from Harvard University and the University of Antioquia, School of Medicine, 16 medical and public health students, eight from the U.S. and eight from Colombia, have been engaged in a health diplomacy exchange through a platform of experiential learning and problem-solving. Collaborating directly with the community leaders of Granizal, a refugee settlement for displaced persons, in Bello, Colombia, students have developed practical solutions to addressing health issues prioritized by the community.

With the goal of sustainability and impact, our "Post-Conflict Colombia Public Health," a project of the Open Hands Initiative and the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, in collaboration with the University of Antioquia, School of Medicine, takes an innovative approach to developing culturally sensitive and relevant health solutions. It does so by 1) generating trust through relationship building between our student ambassadors and between the students and the community; and 2) through a series of lectures and roundtable discussions, accounting for Colombia's social-political context and its perspective on healthcare, human rights, and humanitarian aid, with insight from the U.S. experience. To that end, students engaged a breadth of stakeholders: from high-level policymakers, such as U.S. Senator Edward Markey of Massachusetts and the Governor of Antioquia, Sergio Fajardo Valderrama, to urban planners, such as David Gamble and Alejandro Eschverri of the Harvard Graduate School of Design, to social thinkers, such as Julie Battilana, Associate Professor at the Harvard Business School, to local community development organizations such as La Casa de Derechos and La Fundacion Huellas. Students also had the opportunity to explore various public spaces and healthcare settings, such as the JFK Library in Boston, the Belen Library in Medellin, the metro systems in both cities, and Colombia's premiere primary care hospital in Tamesis, to examine how these spaces inhibit or promote healthy lifestyles and behaviors.

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Faculty, students, and the OHI team at Granizal, a refugee settlement in Bello, Colombia. Photo Credit:  Kelly Fitzsimmons Photography

Last Thursday, I accompanied our students and faculty to Granizal, where we hosted a health fair to address the community's self-identified needs, which included providing a first-responders training, a deworming clinic, a workshop on education and technology, and an exercise on census mapping. Witnessing the determination and fortitude of community leaders, who despite great odds, have taken it upon themselves to transform their communities for the better, and the eagerness of our students and faculty to support their efforts, I could see President Kennedy's words come to life. Here in Granizal, where access to government services, economic opportunities, and healthcare services are limited, I witnessed the power of what an active citizenry can do and what more can be accomplished when coupled with the support of true allies.

Our hope is that this project will continue to inform the careers of our student ambassadors and inspire ordinary citizens, wherever they are, to be leaders for their communities and their global neighbors. Getting to know our students and seeing them in action, I am confident that they are on their way to doing just that.

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Lastly, we hope that this project will engender deeper connections among health professionals engaged in social development and humanitarian response and that the research, policies, and interventions it has brought to bear will inform and influence future thinking around public health policies and practices in both nations and throughout the world.

Earlier today, our students presented their policy briefs to a host of local and national policymakers, including a member of the Office of the Mayor of Bello, as well as other prominent leaders from the public, private, and non-profit sectors, in the hopes of catalyzing change and bringing their solutions to fruition. Hats off to our student ambassadors who, with open hands and open hearts, have called it upon themselves to create a healthier and more prosperous world for everyone.
We live in a world where just 62 individuals own as much wealth that half of humanity, a figure that has fallen from 388 people five years ago. Just let that sink in for just a minute. Just 53 men and 9 women have as much wealth as more than 3.6 billion people on this planet. Such a startling statistic highlights how extreme inequality has picked up a dramatic pace. This time last year, we at Oxfam predicted that the 1 percent would soon own more than the rest of us, a prediction that came true even before 2015 ended. What this runaway inequality means is that hardworking people at the bottom of the income curve simply don't make enough to put food on the table or buy medicine when their kids get sick, much less buy a home or start a business, so the engine of our economic growth breaks down. Even the corporate elites meeting in Davos this week have acknowledged that such growing inequality stymies growth. And while everyone is talking about inequality -- from the head of the IMF to the Pope, from President Obama to most of the candidates seeking to replace him - there hasn't been much action to tackle it. Instead, power and privilege are being used to rig the system to continue the gap between the richest and the rest of us to levels we have not seen before. Far from trickling down, income and wealth are instead being pulled upwards at an alarming rate. Meanwhile, poverty is deepening and social mobility is shrinking. While our nation has long presented itself to the world as the model of successful, inclusive growth that lifts millions into the middle class, that is simply not the case today. In fact, the US is now the most unequal rich country in the world.





Extreme inequality is bad for all of us, but it's the poorest among us who suffer the grimmest consequences. People like five year old Morgan (pictured), whom we met while he was playing in the Mukuru slum in Nairobi, Kenya, while his mother worked, sorting through the trash. The local children often go there to scavenge for food scraps, or work alongside the adults.



Despite the fact that he lives in the fastest growing economy in Africa, Morgan's parents can't afford to send him to school. But leaked files exposed more than $560 million dollars in Swiss bank accounts that were linked to Kenya. It's heartbreaking to think the difference tax on such funds could have delivered for kids like Morgan.



And it goes well beyond Kenya. Tax havens are at the heart of a global system that allows large corporations and wealthy individuals to avoid paying their fair share, depriving governments, rich and poor, of the resources they need to provide vital public services and tackle rising inequality.



As much as $7.6 trillion of personal wealth is being hidden in offshore accounts. If tax would be paid on the income that this wealth generates, an extra $190 billion would be available to governments every year, to spend on roads, schools, hospitals.



Tax dodging by multinational companies deprive the world's poorest countries an estimated $100 billion in tax revenue every year. And it's happening here as well. US multinational corporations shifted between $500 and $700 billion - a quarter of their annual profits - out of the US, Germany, the UK and elsewhere to a handful of countries including the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Switzerland, and Bermuda in 2012. That same year, they reported $80 billion of profits in Bermuda -- more than their combined profits reported in Japan, China, Germany and France. Clearly, something is amiss.



But it doesn't have to be this way. Extreme inequality is not inevitable -- it is the consequence of political choices. We could live in a world where economic growth benefits the poorest people and tax rules work for the many -- not just the few. While inequality has many drivers and numerous solutions, we can start to tackle it by ending the era of tax havens.
Group of People Waving Gay Pride Symbol Flags

With barely a moment to take a deep breath, the LGBTQ community is back in the trenches, ready to fight for equality and justice in a critical legislative year. Immediately following a historic victory on marriage, after the balloons and confetti, we faced a tide of anti-LGBTQ attacks. From the infamous religious exemption bill in Indiana to the stinging repeal of Houston's Human Rights Ordinance, it was clear that we could not rest on our laurels. And now we know that in 2016, an emboldened opposition plans to again stir up confusion and fear, especially about transgender people, to build support for even more anti-LGBTQ legislation.

We can't let them win, not after all we have accomplished for freedom and equality.



We must continue the push for fair treatment of all LGBTQ people and our families. But in order to claim victory, we've got to be united and strategic. That's why this week Equality Federation launched our Legislative Action Center. Born out of a need for our under-funded and under-resourced movement to have more resources to combat anti-LGBTQ legislation in their communities, the LAC will help us anticipate committee hearings, floor votes, and other important milestones to prepare advocates for their on-the-ground work to win equality.

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It's astounding what our membership -- our partners in the state-based equality movement -- can juggle and accomplish at the same time. Already this year, we know that most of our members are either working to defeat anti-LGBTQ legislation or are working on passing legislation to advance our freedom. Equality Florida is one group accustomed to persevering through a flurry of legislation, good and bad. This year they are working to pass a statewide ban on conversion therapy, pass nondiscrimination protections in Jacksonville, and shut down a "triple threat" bill that would allow businesses, state-funded adoption agencies, and even health care providers to discriminate against LGBTQ people based on religious objections.

A new bill in Indiana includes even broader religious exemptions than the infamous law that passed last year. Discriminatory bills that single out transgender people are being fought by Freedom Oklahoma, PROMO in Missouri, Equality Virginia, and Equality South Dakota, among others. PROMO, Equality Ohio, and Equality Pennsylvania are among those working toward passing statewide nondiscrimination protections. And at least twelve states are working on banning anti-LGBTQ conversion "therapies."

New messaging research in combination with our Legislative Action Center enables us to support LGBTQ advocates in targeting the right people, with the right message, at the right time, like never before. However, this work cannot be achieved in a silo. We'll need your help and the help of all our allies when the public is called upon to write letters to the editor, testify, talk to your neighbors, and of course donate. It's up to all of us. Together we can make sure that 2016 will be another monumental year for LGBTQ equality.
For example, there were a total of 99 crimes committed in Campton Hills which had a reported population of 11,351. That means the number of crimes per capita is 0.00872 which translates into a 1 in 115 chance of being the victim of a crime.

We only looked at cities that have populations of more than 5,000 people reported to the FBI in 2014. This left us with a total of 202 places in Illinois to rank.
An Afghan holds his lighter as he prepares to smoke drugs in Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, March 12, 2010. Though the majority of Afghanistan's massive opium crop is smuggled aboard to feed heroine demand in rich countries, many Afghans have also become addicted to drugs. (AP Photo/Musadeq Sadeq)

The War on Drugs has created a system of mass incarceration that divides our country by race and income every bit as much as did slavery and the Jim Crow laws that Dr. Martin Luther King gave his life to eradicate.

In church this past Sunday I found myself wondering not whether Dr. King would have condemned the War on Drugs, but what language he might have used. What might he have taught us about how to respond?

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The Rev. Julian DeShazier , perhaps one of the nation's finest young preachers, provided an answer from Dr. King's autobiography: "Power without love is reckless and abusive, and love without power is sentimental and anemic. Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice. Justice at its best is love correcting everything that stands against love."

Dr. King was assassinated three years before President Richard Nixon launched this drug war in 1971. We can't know exactly he would have thought about it. But these words give us guidance. They lead me to think he would have viewed the War on Drugs as a manifestation of tragic irony.

Earlier this year, I was at a McDonalds at Roosevelt and Kedzie, a tough block on Chicago's Southwest side, speaking with a friend who had lived in the area for long time. "Al", he said, "70% of the people you see around you right now are high on something."

I asked whether he thought it would be a good idea to legalize some drugs. He looked at me with alarm. "If you did that," he said, "you'd be cutting off half the income that people here need to live and to feed their families."

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Dr. King would have understood that some acts, such as the breaking into churches to steal petty cash, are "crimes of poverty." He would recognized, if not condoned, the drug economy as a path to survival. He would have understood that social isolation and economic despair are the real problems; and that the use of drugs is a symptom, not a cause. The true cause he would have recognized as structural racism, trapping its victims in the virtually airtight cages of what, in Dr. King's day, were called "urban ghettos."

In The New Jim Crow, Michelle Alexander has a metaphor that explains perfectly what structural racism is: "If one thinks about racism by examining only one wire of the cage, or one form of disadvantage, it is difficult to understand how and why the bird is trapped. Only a large number of wires arranged in a specific way, and connected to one another, serve to enclose the bird and to ensure that it cannot escape...."

During his visit to Chicago in 1966, Dr. King identified the wires of this cage: poor schools, inadequate housing, poor transportation systems, and the absence of jobs. These wires are still in place 50 years later.

Dr. Martin Luther King was committed to non-violence as well as to justice. He taught us that violence not only fails to change hearts and behavior. It breeds more violence. He would have opposed the War on Drugs because of its systemic violence.

Make no mistake: The War on Drugs is violent. This is true not only because of the way police department have chosen to fight it - with SWAT teams and military weapons. There is a deeper, more subtle dimension to its violence.

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When as a society we make something illegal - in this case drug use - we should be very careful. We aren't just telling people they shouldn't do something. We are giving ourselves a mandate to arrest them, and very often to put them in jail or prison. The opposite of legalizing drug use is not some vague intermediate stage of moral disapproval. It is incarceration.

Arresting people and putting them in jail or prison are - let us never forget it - violent acts. Incarceration separates families. It causes people to lose jobs, and access to housing and other benefits. It destroys their lives. It been said that poverty is violence in slow motion. So is mass incarceration, and all that goes with it.

The tragic irony of the War on Drugs is that we have not only created the conditions that make drug use and a drug economy a rational choice. With the War on Drugs, we punish people for responding to the conditions and circumstances in which we have through neglect or perverse social policy forced them to live. We have created the conditions of failure and now we are punishing them when they fail.
I was talking with a good friend of mine who is Episcopalian. He was expressing his disappointment regarding the recent meeting of the Primates of the Anglican Church that met in Canterbury, England January 11-15 2016. The result of this meeting, of course, was to suspend the Episcopal Church in America from voting status in matters of the Anglican communion for a period of three years. Archbishop Fred Hiltz of Canada wrote

" I know The Episcopal Church to be very committed to the work and witness of the Communion as a whole, and I recognize the frustration they will feel in not serving in a representative way on our Ecumenical Dialogues for example. I recognize that if The Episcopal Church is not allowed to vote on a matter of doctrine or polity that the life of the Communion is diminished. I am grateful however, that they will still have a voice in the discussions of such matters."

A Reflection on the Meeting of the Primates of the Anglican Communion in Canterbury, England, January 11-15, 2016 ...the Anglican Church of Canada - 1 day ago

The reason for the conflict in the Anglican communion has been due to the position of the Episcopal Church on matters regarding human sexuality especially LGBTQ people, same-sex-marriage and ordination and ministry. Somehow, you would hope that the world- wide communion of a major denomination would focus upon matters such as hunger, homelessness, global warming, income inequality, economic justice, etc. In all fairness, the recent Primates meeting did commit itself to advocate policy that will address climate change. Archbishop Hiltz stated:

" As we have been often reminded, climate change is really about climate justice. It's about our commitment to the fifth Mark of Mission - to safeguard the integrity of creation. "

I applaud the actions of the Primates in addressing climate change, religious violence, etc. This has great potential to provide bridges of cooperation and support with other religious communities addressing these important concerns.

However, the action of banning and disenfranchising a whole denomination from representational vote in a world-wide Christian community seems to be beyond the pale. How does this promote Christian unity; rather it invites schism and a split of communions. As the Dowager Countess would observe

" When I hear you talk that way, I am tempted to send you to Nanny without your supper. "

It's not helpful for religious leaders to treat some of the greater communion as if they need to go to the principal's office. The behavior becomes rather patronizing and unbecoming.

Humans have the capability of doing great things. Our brains can experience neuroplasticity, a jello that is constantly being remolded. We have the capacity to express great love, charity and compassion for others. The action of the Primate conference doesn't communicate this reality.

A female church secretary once observed to me:

" Some people have brains like cement mixers, all mixed up and set in concrete. "

May we do better. People of faith can find ways to present a united witness to the presence of God in the world, however known.

We need more unity now, less disunity and discord.

We need more jello, less concrete.

May it be so.
Former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin speaks to a crowd as she introduces Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at a rally in Tulsa, Okla., Wednesday, Jan 20, 2016. (AP Photo/Brandi Simons)

Like everyone else in the world, I like to dump on Sarah Palin. Let's face it, when a public figure appears to be as idiotic as she does, we can't help it. Ridiculous, incomprehensible ramblings come out of her every time she's within spitting distance of a microphone, and when we can understand her, she makes little sense.

She can't be a complete idiot by normal standards, though. She just can't. She was elected governor of Alaska, picked as the vice presidential running mate to a war hero; and Donald Trump, self-proclaimed smartest guy in the world, stood right next to her on stage while she endorsed him. Some vetting had to have occurred at some point by these people.

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Sure, a former senior adviser to senator and former Republican presidential candidate John McCain (R-AZ) blasted Sarah Palin, calling her "one of America's most astounding morons," but that just might be a case of buyer's remorse and sour grapes. There are millions of real morons in America who hang on her every word and see "Caribou Barbie" as some sort of second coming.

During a recent Trump rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Palin went rogue and, in an off-script rant blamed President Obama for the arrest of her son only a couple of hours before the event. Her 26-year-old son, Track, was arrested in Wasilla and charged with domestic violence and possessing a firearm while intoxicated. Apparently, he punched his girlfriend and her son in the face. It's important to note that Track is a veteran, having served in Iraq. Palin, being the "Mama Grizzly" she's known to be, rose to her son's defense.

Let me get a little bit personal about this. I'm talking about not leaving our wounded warriors behind also. I guess it's kind of the elephant in the room because my own family going through what we're going through today, with my son, a combat vet, having served in the striker brigade fighting for you all America in the war zone. But my son, like so many others, they come back a bit different. They come back hardened. They come back wondering if there is that respect for what it is that their fellow soldiers and airmen every other member of the military so sacrificially have given to this country.

It's actually not a bad commentary on the soldiers who come back from battle broken, dejected, and mentally changed from war. She then took it a step further:

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It starts from the top, the question though that comes from our own president, where they have to look at him and wonder, 'Do you know what we go through?' So when my own son is going through what he goes through coming back, I can certainly relate with other families who kinda feel these ramifications of some PTSD and some of the woundedness [sic] that our soldiers do return with.

That comment, particularly the dig at Obama, started a slug fest from the media. And rightfully so. But it's painfully clear and obvious that America not taking care of its veterans isn't Obama's fault alone. We have a long history of not looking after our vets -- it's an American tradition.

It's a tradition that goes back as far as the Civil War, if not longer (see the video below). In the last few decades though, we've allowed the behavior to not only continue, but to be ratcheted up a few notches from simple neglect to abuse and predatory behavior. It's as if we're saying, "Hell, they've been shot at, lived in the dirt, been taken prisoner, and tortured. They can take it."

Great way to treat the folks that have risked their lives for you to have the right and freedom to talk about and treat them that way, isn't it?

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I hate to admit that Sarah Palin, however inarticulate, actually makes sense, but she does. And that leads me to my next point. Sarah Palin has a tremendous following. Many of her followers are working class families who have seen their fair share of military service. It's not the politicians and CEOs who are sending their kids to war. It's the rest of us -- and a lot of these kids are coming back damaged.

In response to Palin's rant, Paul Rieckhoff, who heads the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), said, "It's important to recognize that Track may need help like many veterans," noting that Palin is in the unique position of being able to use her notoriety to help him and other veterans suffering from PTSD.

This is a great opportunity for Sarah Palin to sound the alarm about PTSD. Now that she has endorsed Mr. Trump, I would encourage her to talk with him about it. Mr. Trump's campaign is pretty light on specifics about what he would do for veterans.

Good point.

I'm glad Palin spoke up. I'm glad that she's passionate about the lack of care our vets get when they come home. I'm glad that she used her spotlight to go off script and use her annoyingly shrill voice to raise awareness of a serious issue that's been plaguing this country for over a century. But let's see her use her God-given talents for something more than stumping for a megalomaniacal narcissist, who has yet to tell us specifically how he's going to change things.

Let's see Sarah Palin rally the troops to help the troops.

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Ralph Nader became a consumer advocate while taking on the automobile industry with the groundbreaking book, Unsafe at Any Speed. Fifty years later, he continues to speak out against the outsized influence corporations have on American politics and life.

It's estimated that three-and-a-half million lives have been saved on American roads by reforms owed to Nader's advocacy in the 1960s.

In this week's episode of "Scheer Intelligence," Truthdig Editor-in-Chief's podcast on KCRW, Nader talks about the rise of Bernie Sanders and the conditions he believes Sanders must set in order to endorse Hilary Clinton in the event she wins the Democratic nomination. Nader also discusses why Citizens United may have been the most important Supreme Court ruling of the century, as well as why he believes we only need a small fraction of the population to be politically engaged in order to dramatically change policy.

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Adapted from Truthdig.com

Read the full transcript below.

Robert Scheer: This is Robert Scheer with another edition of our podcast, Scheer Intelligence. I'm here with Ralph Nader, somebody I consider to be the kind of American original I'm trying to profile in this series; a product of the different immigration, crazy-quilt cultural, ethnicity, religious backgrounds we have in this country. And Ralph Nader is truly an American original, a person who just transformed the nature of politics as far as reflecting the interests of the average person called a consumer. Saved more lives beginning with his automobile safety crusade, and on through his various other campaigns; training a whole generation of new lawyers who in the main defended the public interest, and various spinoff organizations. And I'm here with him at an unusual moment. We're at The Nation Cruise, where a basically liberal, left audience is considering the choices in this election between a Bernie Sanders and a Hillary Clinton. And the reason I wanted to talk to Ralph is that I was on a similar cruise with him previously when Barack Obama was first running. And, I think, stupidly, in retrospect, disparaged his advocating an independent path, his concerns about an Obama candidacy coopting American politics. And I'm here not only to make amends but to ask Ralph Nader how he views this current election. So, what's going on, Ralph? I know you probably favor Bernie Sanders, but he's also agreed to support whoever the candidate is of the party; is this a dead end? Is this meaningful? What's the answer?

Ralph Nader: Well, that was a mistake he made, when he was asked, you know, about the middle of 2015, or maybe in the spring, 'Will you support the Democratic nominee?' And he said 'I always do.' Well, he should have said it depends who it is. Because the moment he said 'I always do,' the Clinton forces knew that he will fall in line, in April, say, if he loses the primaries to her, Hillary Clinton. And then it'll be, you know, one happy, corporate, Democratic run to November. The tragedy is that he's going to leave behind millions of very discouraged voters who voted for him. And he will have demonstrated that he did all this effort, raised a lot of good money in small contributions, and got nothing for it in terms of an agenda. Nothing. So what I'm suggesting is that the followers, if you're going to vote for Bernie Sanders in the various state primaries, tell him right from the beginning that he has to condition any support for Hillary on his agenda. He's got to get Hillary, very, very specifically, to adopt his major agenda in return for his endorsement. If he doesn't do that, it's the same old cycle that you've talked about, where the progressive candidate is folded in, like Dennis Kucinich and others; they're all folded in. They leave all kinds of disheartened voters and followers behind, and the corporate Democrats march all the way to Wall Street.

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RS: Well, one of the ironic results of the Obama victory, where I was captivated by the young people turning out for Obama, I was captivated by his ability to raise a number of questions, including criticism of the banking industry and, by implication, criticism of the Democratic Party's support, beginning with Bill Clinton, of the deregulation of the banking industry, and so forth. Well, after Hillary dropped out in that race, Barack Obama then actually turned to the very same people, the Timothy Geithners and the Lawrence Summerses and so forth, that had constructed the Clinton deregulation, and put them in government. And one of the results of the Obama administration, the continuation of the wars, the failure to really hold any of the bankers responsible, is the very disillusionment that you were talking about, actually, is out there. I mean, I've seen it with the young people that I teach; they certainly don't have the enthusiasm for this election that they had for the Obama election. And what I'm wondering about is this sort of interesting, odd, unexpected figure of Bernie Sanders. On the one hand, there's a great educational value to his campaign; you know, he's actually raised the possibility that something called democratic socialism might matter; certainly on domestic issues he's had a very principled position of challenging big corporate power that I'm sure you're sympathetic to. But as you suggest, already he's taken that step to betraying--maybe that's too harsh a word, I don't know; but it would seem to me if he just stands up there on the stage holding Hillary Clinton's--and she hasn't changed her position on certain key questions, one of which certainly would be how you treat Wall Street, where she's carried a lot of baggage for Wall Street and taken a lot of money from them--it could have an extremely negative effect.

RN: Yes. I think his ambition is limited. I think he just wants to push the agenda toward progressive politics, and then support the Democratic nominee, and go back to the Senate where you know he has a committee, and he's part of the Democratic Party, even though he's technically an Independent Socialist. So he's very much concerned with not jeopardizing his base in the Senate, and his seniority in the Senate. So I don't think he has the ambition to try to overtake her. Because he has all kinds of arguments against her, as you know; she's never met a war she didn't like, she's never met a weapons system she didn't like, she is a war hawk even more than Obama. She overrode Secretary of Defense [Robert] Gates, who was opposed to toppling the dictator of Libya, and persuaded Obama to remove the dictator of Libya. And the incredible chaos still is going on, spilling over into Central Africa, killing, sectarian fights. And that's her war. So I call her Hillary the Hawk, or in other moments, when I want to be bilingual, I call her Generalissima Hillary. And then--

RS: Or you could call her Margaret Thatcher.

RN: [Laughs] Worse! She's got her hands on more weapons, got her hands on a bigger empire, got her hands on the Bush-Obama past, where no national sovereignty is a barrier to special forces, drones and other attacks, unconstitutional, illegal, and violating the UN charter and the Geneva Conventions. Domestically, she's a complete corporatist. I mean, she got two speeches that totaled a half a million dollars within a couple weeks of themselves by Goldman Sachs. She then goes to at least a dozen giant trade association gatherings, locks the door--that's the condition--gets paid two hundred, two hundred fifty thousand dollars to tell them what they want to hear. And no one is demanding that she release the tapes. Because I'm sure that the car dealer's convention is going to remember the nice things she said about perhaps not regulating them very much. And all those tapes should be disclosed. So she's a Wall Street corporatist, and she's a militarist, and she's running for the Democratic Party, and Bernie Sanders is going to endorse her?

RS: Well, but you--I'm talking to--you know--I'm talking to Ralph Nader, and you know Bernie Sanders; you've known him for quite a while, haven't you?

RN: I knew him before he was mayor of Burlington. And we had some meetings together when I was up in Vermont. But he became a lone ranger, like a lot of progressive senators are lone rangers. By that I mean they don't network, they don't connect with the national citizen groups that are progressive; you know, huddle with them the way the Republicans do with the Heritage Foundation or the Cato Institute. And so I haven't gotten a call back from Bernie Sanders in 15 years. I've called him, I've written him; when he went on the floor, remember, he gave that, you know, 15-hour speech that he turned into a book--I wanted to congratulate him--never returned a call, never would meet. I think part of it is he's gone a long way without my advice; he's a lone ranger; he's been elected by a very conservative Republican state, Vermont, even though he still keeps the title democratic socialist; that's quite an achievement. So that can get into a politician a sense of 'Who needs anybody giving me advice?' Well, he's running for president now, and he's got a little tiny staff [laughs] in Vermont. He does need advice, because his delivery's getting a bit tedious; it's not diverse enough, new facts, he should give a speech on the post office, he should give a speech on corporate crime enforcement and lack of budget for the criminal prosecuting agencies in the U.S. government. But he doesn't do that. That's why I really think he is, in his own mind, his campaign has very limited ambition. It's to push Hillary in a more progressive direction, however rhetorically; you can't trust her to ever translate her progressive rhetoric into actual record if she gets elected. And he goes back to the Senate; he's got a bigger mailing list--I think he's going to raise $75 million in small contributions; that's never been done before in American political history. And I think that satisfies him.

RS: But isn't it also good for the country to have had a Bernie Sanders have this kind of reach, and introduce some new ideas, including that the words "democratic socialism" actually can be as American as apple pie, and that these are things--is there no great educational value to this, win or lose?

RN: There is, but you know the public's memory is very short. They can't often remember what somebody said at the presidential level; they can't even remember who was the vice presidential candidate. But more to the point is, what he says, he's going to raise expectation levels; and if he folds in with Hillary's campaign without having Hillary endorse publicly, vociferously and specifically his agenda, he is going to tarnish whatever memory of his good speeches with a sense of that he sold out. That he basically--not sold out for money, that he sold out because he wanted to maintain his base in the U.S. Senate. And that can negate any of the good things that he has done educating the public to understand that socialism in the U.S. is as American as apple pie. You know that, Bob. You got, you got public electric utilities, about a thousand of them, owned by the cities, including the Los Angeles [Water and] Power District, the Tennessee Valley Authority; you got public libraries, you got public schools, you got public transit, you got the public post office. [Laughs] In some conservative states you have public-owned, state-owned liquor stores, like in New Hampshire. In conservative Nebraska, the utility is publicly owned, the electric utility. And of course he mentioned Social Security and Medicare. So that's a very good thing he's done. But as I say, it can be completely overwhelmed by disillusionment if he folds without conditioning the wishes of millions of his voters by telling Hillary: no endorsement without adopting this agenda. Which she should adopt, because it has majority support; it's a vote-getter for her.

RS: What would the agenda be?

RN: The agenda would be, ah, one, breaking up the banks, the big New York banks. The second would be expanding Social Security. The third is full Medicare for all, everybody and nobody out; free choice of doctor and hospital, which we don't have today, and it's half as expensive per capita. That's the experience in Canada; they cover everybody with half as much dollars per capita. It would be expanding public works; we used to call it public works, that means more modern public transit, expanding Amtrak, expanding city transit systems; upgrade sewage, water systems; repair schools. Huge jobs program, good pay, they can't be exported to countries like China. And he's serious about that. It includes corporate tax reform; I think he would do something about these tax havens. And I think it would also include a lot of criminal justice reform. He's not really talking that much about that, but I think he would be a force for reforming the drug law and emptying out a lot of nonviolent prisoners from our jails, leaving enough space for enhanced prosecution of corporate crooks who would take their place.

RS: Yeah, and there are some Republican candidates, and there's some sentiment certainly on the libertarian side of the Republicans for prison reform; even the Koch brothers have come out for that. And generally, what will happen, Bernie--Hillary Clinton--he probably will not propose that, and even if he does, she's not going to do this. And then we're going to once again, for most of the people who've been listening to you on The Nation Cruise, who are liberal and somewhat on the left, they'll go for the lesser evil. And I recall when Jerry Brown, who's actually in California setting a much better model for the Democratic Party on a number of issues--but I remember when he was running against Bill Clinton in the primary. He said, 'This is not a choice of the lesser of two evils; it's the evil of two lessers.' And that's an interesting concept here. Is, you know, people will be traumatized by the idea of one of those Republicans getting in. Unless, and probably it's some more establishment person like a Jeb Bush, who will then move more to the center, and you'll have--

RN: Well, it's more than an interesting concept; it's the ultimate trap of American politics, where the Democrat voters will support anybody who's not as bad as the Republican nominee. And so they judge the Democratic Party, which is dominated by the corporate Democrats, by how bad the Republicans are instead [of] by how much better the Democrats can be. And there's no end to that trap. You've seen a lot of four-year cycles; every four years, both parties move to the right. Every four years, the corporate influence is greater. Every four years, as the Democrats move to the right, it gives the Republicans more elbow room to become even more reactionary. And nobody who chooses the lesser of two evils or the evil of two lessers ever will answer this question: What is your breaking point? What's your moral compass? They can't answer it, because there is no breaking point. There will always be the two major parties; the Republicans will probably always be worse [laughs] than the Democrats. And they're bringing the country down with them, because they are basically doing what their corporate paymasters from Wall Street to Houston are telling them to do, give or take a few aberrations by libertarians on the right or some hard core progressives on the left. So this is, you know, you bring down the United States of America, you bring down a lot of the world; and that is possible because we don't have a competitive democracy. Here's why we don't have a democracy in an electoral sense, Bob; one, we have, money is all-important, corrupting people's voters. Number two, gerrymandering means that the politicians will pick their voters; I mean, imagine anything less Democratic than that. And both Democrats and Republicans do that, depending on who runs the state government. And number three, they block competition! They are a duopoly. They would be indicted for violation of the anti-trust laws if there are two companies. And they're blocking the ability of third parties to get a foothold and grow from four years to four years, or two years to two years at the state and local level, at a level unheard of in Western countries. It is harder to get on the ballot in North Carolina as a presidential candidate, than to get on the ballot in six European countries. And once you add the absurdity of the Electoral College, where you can come in second in the popular vote and be president, you add this winner-take-all, so that the Green Party, even if it got 48 percent of the vote, it would lose. Whereas in Germany if it breaks five percent of the vote, it gets five percent of the Parliament. If it goes to 10 percent, it gets 10 percent of the Parliament. So you see it can grow from one election to another. So we have the most anti-Democratic elections in the Western world, hands down, and some non-Western-world countries as well, as I say. You could never elect someone like Lula in Brazil, or someone like Obrador, who really won the election in Mexico but they took it from him; you couldn't do that in this country, because there are too many obstructions built into the system by the two parties, Republican and Democrats, who think they own all the votes.

RS: So how do we get out of this trap? Ah, you've been--you know, you've been an effective person. You're not, you know, yes, somebody could say, you know, 'There's Ralph Nader, he's a bit of a crank, he's getting older, he won't go along.' But you actually have accomplished an incredible amount in this country. We could go through the list of your achievements of defending the rights of consumers. But not only that, you have influenced a large number of people, some of whom ended up being lawyers in the government and political people and media and so forth. And then what seems to happen is that most of them sell out. Right? You haven't sold out.

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RN: Or they wear out.

RS: Ah.

RN: Or they wear out. [Laughs]

RS: They wear out. Now you have contact with these people. I know I run into a very large number of people, as I've covered politics, as I've covered government, really influential people; and they call it, they were Nader's Raiders, they were in one institute or another in defense of the public interest. I believe John Phillips, our ambassador to Italy, was once a lawyer who worked with you. But I know there are many others. What happens? What is it about the American experience now that people end up at war with their better natures?

RN: Well, one is, they react to this stranglehold of the two parties by adjusting to it. And so look who came out of our shop? Jim Fallows. Michael Kinsley. Ronald Bronstein. David Ignatius. Michael Moore. And with the exception of Michael Moore, they've adjusted. OK? They're centrists. And they've done well in journalism. But here's how we'd get out of it. First you get rid of the Electoral College; that means that a presidential campaign will have to campaign in all the states. Right now, forty states are either slam-dunk Republican, like Texas, or slam-dunk Democrat, like Massachusetts. So they don't have to campaign in those states. That's one. The second is, you say, well, who can get rid of big money in politics--it's Congress, all right? So that goes to my second point. One percent or less active people in every congressional district, connecting with one another, anteing up some money for full time office in each congressional district with three or four full time people, can turn Congress around in this. Why? Because it reflects the majority opinion. Believe it or not, both left [and] right think it stinks: that money corrupts, and it stinks. So once you have majority opinion behind you, you can get Congress changed. And someone once said, 'Well, what do you mean, one percent or less engaged? What does engaged mean?' And I say, the equivalent of a serious hobby. A serious hobby, whether it's bridge, playing bridge or watching birds, it's three to five hundred hours a year. And they probably spend five hundred bucks a year on their hobby, OK? You put that in, one percent or less, you can connect beautifully with the Internet now, in every congressional district, 435. So you're dealing with one percent--let's say one percent. That would be about two and a half million people representing tens of millions of people on who? A mere 535 members of Congress, senators and representatives, 20 percent of which are with you from the get-go. Right? So we've got to stop thinking it's insurmountable, this 'you can't fight Citi, you can't fight Exxon, you can't change everything'--the moment people exaggerate the power of the opposition, they're depowering themselves by definition. They're turning themselves into even more powerless things. And the third thing that can be done to break the two-party is start locally. Because locally, you know, Bob, there are often city councils where nobody runs against the incumbents. Because it's not a two-party. They don't even have the two-party system, Democrat-Republican; Board of Education, that's where you can really start. The Tea Party was smart; they started a lot at the local level, and then they went to Congress. And that's the way you break up the two-party duopoly. Because you can also get rid of the ballot access barriers; you can put in instant runoff voting; you can loosen up the system so people have a chance to have a chance. It's amazing. In nature, a seed is given a chance to sprout, but not in American politics.

RS: Well, I'm talking to Ralph Nader. This is Bob Scheer. Let me ask you a question about the demonization of the others; you know, we're actually doing this interview on a cruise of left liberals that responded to Nation Magazine's appeal. But here, more, if you mention the Koch brothers, you mention the Republicans--well, they're the devil incarnate, you know. And I was just wondering about that, because you know after all, and we hear about Citizens United, we hear about all the money in the corporate--well, when Obama ran, he ended up getting more money from these fat cats, from Wall Street, than--

RN: By far than McCain. And any other Republicans you've pointed out in history. He got more money--[than] McCain. And I understand when he ran against Romney, he actually got [laughs] more money from Bain Capital, which was Romney's investment firm, than Romney got. Because he's exactly what they want. He can pacify the liberals--

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RS: Well, he's the Manchurian candidate.

RN: Yeah.

RS: OK, so but then the question really is, because you know, again, on this trip people say, well, Citizens United, Koch brothers, Koch brothers--and that's the main fundraising vehicle. And you know, I look at the Koch brothers, and they have their different positions. But are they really the end? Are they really worse than Goldman Sachs and all the other firms that will probably go quite enthusiastically for Hillary Clinton? And so what is the message here? How do we begin to think clearly about what's going on in our politics?

RN: Well, the message is, there are two entities in the United States. One are human beings, and the other is the corporate entity. And it's no contest. Because corporations have privileges and immunities that we'll never have, even individual billionaires will never have; I mean, we just stopped buying the [Cayman] Islands, where one office building had ten thousand corporate tax avoiders registered. And you know, for example, Citigroup has maybe a dozen subsidiaries. They can create their own children, right? Which most individuals can't do with abandon, all over the world, with hundreds of subsidiaries; they can create their own parents, called holding companies, to evade certain regulations and certain jurisdictions. By the same token, they have all the rights we have. So my point is, we got to create a double standard that only people have certain constitutional rights, because it starts out, the preamble, 'We the people,' not 'We the corporation.' Right? And that corporations, as such--not their employees--as such should not be allowed to give money to campaigns, should not be allowed to lobby, and should not be allowed to testify in the corporate name. Because they're not human beings. And so I call this subordination: subordinate the corporate entity, constitutionally, to the supremacy and the sovereignty of the people as our Founders envisioned. The word company, corporation or political parties doesn't even exist in the Constitution. Why do they run us? Why do they rule us? The second change is already underway: tens of billions of consumer dollars are building the local economies. They're farmer, you know, to consumer marketplaces; they're local renewable energy; they're credit unions; they're community banks; they're community health clinics, on and on. And YES! Magazine chronicles this out of Seattle. And every time people spend money in the local economy, they're taking money away from the Bank of America, Exxon, you know, the big guys. And it's already tens of billions, but that's what I call displacement. So you displace these giant, multinational corporations that have no allegiance to any community or any country; they go wherever they can control the government and make the most profit. You displace them at the local economy level, and you subordinate them legally so that people have greater constitutional rights than this legal fiction called the multinational corporation.

RS: But now we're going to go into this election, Ralph Nader. And people are going to say, Hillary Clinton has said she's against Citizens United, and she more likely will appoint people to the Supreme Court who would reverse it. And that's, again, people could say, 'You know, what Ralph Nader said on that podcast is quite interesting. But you vote for Hilary, you'll get somebody appointed at a court that will reverse that decision; you vote for the Republicans, they won't do that.'

RN: Well, let's say they do reverse Citizens United. It was pretty bad before Citizens United. [Laughs] 2010--before 2010, money ruled too. You know, the big corporate executives gave money; they had all kinds of loopholes to give to the Democratic committees but not to the candidates; to get over the minimum level the individual can give to each political candidate. It was a terrible situation! If anything, Citizens United woke up the country. You know, they went to the final step of basically saying, corporations can spend as much money as they want to elect or defeat a local, state or national candidate in the United States of America. I mean [laughs], I mean, you can't get any worse than that, because I think the 2016 election may cost seven, eight billion dollars. Everything--Congress, presidency--I mean, that's like a fourth of Exxon's profits, post-tax, such as it is [laughs]. So, you know, the Supreme Court--I have never advocated the impeachment of any member of the Supreme Court, until they passed Citizens United. Because that was the final straw of a whole series of decisions by a five-four majority in the Supreme Court that basically subordinated the sovereignty of the American people to the supremacy of these artificial fictions whose only motivation is greater profits.

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RS: OK, but somebody listening to this will say, 'You know, Ralph Nader, you just made the case for a vote for Hillary. Because she will appoint judges who are, will probably reverse Citizens United.'

RN: But it's nowhere near enough. If it goes to where it was in 2009, 2008--it was terrible. There were all kinds of books saying how primaries were corrupted by money. This one just opened up all the spigots. And actually, it might lead to a backfire. But our country needs so many reforms and changes that we just can't focus everything on Citizens United. You know, sometimes liberals get trapped; like, the women's rights movement got trapped by the ERA. I mean, it sucked the oxygen out of--that women all over the country paid more than men for a lot of things. They got unnecessary operations, because it was a male-dominated medical system; they had to pay more for auto purchases; they were discriminated against in terms of credit--it was all ERA, ERA, ERA. The same trap can be the future of progressive movements if you just focus on Citizens United. That's a tidbit compared to the subordination of the entire corporate structure constitutionally to the supremacy of the people. And I could give you examples where major social movements were blocked like check-offs in banks and insurance companies and utilities facilitating the organization of independent consumer groups to challenge these companies for the regulatory agencies and the court of public opinion. You know why that was shut down? Because the Supreme Court ruled that the California public utility commission, which gave people in California the right to be represented by an insert in the billing envelope for Pacific Gas and Electric, violated Pacific Gas and Electric's First Amendment rights to remain silent and not rebut this little envelope, which made the case to invite people to form an independent group to challenge Pacific Gas and Electric before the utility commission. That was so bad, Rehnquist dissented, and said 'What are you trying to say, Supreme Court, 6-3? What are you trying to say, that a corporation has a conscience? That it can have a First Amendment right to stay silent and not rebut?' This is to confuse metaphor with reality! Those are the really big issues. We have to subordinate the corporation to the supremacy of the people so the people can defend themselves, and we have to displace giant corporate sales at the community level by expanding the local community businesses.

RS: Well, let me close this, then, by asking you to look back at your whole life as a consumer advocate. I don't think in American history there's been any individual more successful than you in raising a standard of concern for the average person. I don't think that there's any person that can come to mind who was more successful. And that's an important word here; a lot of people cared, you know; there were a lot of muckrakers and populists and figures and so forth. But what was so amazing about Ralph Nader--and what year would you put the--when was the automobile victory--

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RN: It was 1966. It was only nine months after 'Unsafe at Any Speed' came out; see how fast Congress operated? You know, you--

RS: That's your book, I mean, for people who don't remember, and it--yes--

RN: Yeah, 'Unsafe at Any Speed'. You bring a key point. If we had a Democratic Congress in the past 30 years, as good as it was in 1967, '68, '69, we'd have full Medicare for all, we'd have a living wage [laughs], we'd have all kinds of reforms. But they cut the ground from under us. We have nothing to work with, and they--the Democratic Party, here's the main indictment. They cannot defend the United States of America against the worst Republican Party in its history. This is a party that has already passed bills in the House against children. They've passed bills against food stamps. They've passed bills against the right to clean air and clean water. It didn't get through the Senate, because of the filibuster. They've passed bills to expand the already bloated, corrupt military budget. They've passed bills to deregulate Wall Street even further, never mind it crashed on the U.S. Economy in 2008, 2009. They're starving the National Parks System; they want to allow more tax havens abroad for corporations--I mean, you would think this would allow the Democratic Party, Bob, to landslide; instead, they've lost the Congress. When do these guys get a flunking grade?

RS: Well, but I want to--because this is a series in what I call 'American originals.' And I think you're a person--now, we're talking about 50 years ago. Fifty years ago, you took on the most powerful industry in America, the automobile industry, celebrated by people with the most massive adverting mechanism; they defined American culture. I mean, I would be, I don't think, and exaggeration to say that most people in America even defined freedom and quality of life and the ability to move and status by their car. And you challenged those very idols, you challenged those tokens; you said, no, they should not be worshiped, the big car, the fuel-efficient car, the unsafe car; no, we have to challenge that. You educated--and obviously, people came to your side and they supported you. But you wrote a book, you advocated by consumer interests; and you defeated this incredibly powerful industry, OK? And how old were you then?

RN: Thirty-two.

RS: Thirty-two-year-old guy comes along, writes a book, 'Unsafe at Any Speed'; and within, what'd you say, a year and a half, you get legislation--

RN: Little over nine months.

RS: --nine months, you get legislation passed. And we now accept as normal that cars should be safe. And as a result we've had a tremendous decline in highway deaths and everything else, OK?

RN: Yeah, over three and a half million lives saved.

RS: Three and a half million--

In addition to injuries diminished or prevented.

RS: All right, all right. So there's the 32-year-old Ralph Nader. And now I'm talking to you as, what, 82 years old, right?

RN: [Laughs] Eighty-one.

RS: Eighty-one years old, Ralph Nader. We're sittin' here, improbably enough, in a thing where they play cards on a cruise ship, y'know. And I ran for Congress in '66, by the way; I ran against a war candidate, a guy who supported Lyndon Johnson, a Democrat; and I was editor of Ramparts Magazine. So we can both look back at fifty years. And I think you know, at that time, I was blown away by what you did. And I thought, my God, America can go through incredibly radical change. How would you assess this 50-year period? Where are we now?

RN: I would assess that my only support were the American people, and they took all these wins we got for granted and sat by while corporations beefed up their lobbyists, beefed up their campaign money, beefed up their media, and took over Washington. Washington is corporate occupied territory. It didn't have to be. My main message to people is, don't get discouraged because American history shows one percent or less active people in Congressional districts representing you; majority opinion can turn around the Congress and defeat these corporations again and again and again. And there's no time to go into all the details, but we did it; our predecessors have done it throughout American history. But it does take two and a half million people who are as serious about their civic duties as birdwatchers are [laughs] watching and counting the number of different birds that they collect. And if they want to get my column free, just go to Nader.org and they'll get a weekly column free; seven minutes of agitation, if you're a moderate reader, every week, that often tells you what can be done. And so we can overcome this demoralization of so many good people in this country.

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RS: Yeah, I mean, I think the great thing about you, Ralph Nader, is you haven't--you haven't given up, and you haven't dropped a beat, and you haven't--you know, most people get cynical; most people get worn out. They burn out and so forth. And the reason I am so excited about talking to you, and I've witnessed you now for a whole week on this cruise--ah, you've got it, OK. But also, you're a truly brilliant lawyer and social analyst, rare. And I want you--we have a few minutes left--I want you to really look at this trajectory. And first of all, let's talk about, quickly summarize the accomplishments. Because this was, you know, a revolutionary change in America, the assertion of this consumer interest, the challenge to be corporations, that a 32-year-old young lawyer, you know, 32-year-young lawyer, managed to pull off. And there were others. Why don't you first give us a list of those victories.

RN: Yeah, it was that critical period, 1966 to 1974, when the main environmental laws were passed; the consumer product safety, auto safety laws were passed; the great Freedom of Information Act was passed in 1974; even Nixon signed into law the occupational safety and health law--

RS: The Environmental Protection Agency--

RN: The Environmental Protection Act--he would have gone further if the Democrats didn't block him. He wanted the right to vote for members of Congress by the District of Columbia residents. He had a health plan, insurance plan better than Clinton offered years later. He even had a minimum incomes plan that was devised and supported by Milton Freedman and Daniel P. Moynihan, who was the assistant to Nixon, to start rolling back poverty. And the Congress blocked it, and then the decline really started. And--

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RS: Well, let's stop for that moment first, because this is a history people don't know, you know? First of all, Nixon also did a surprising thing in going to China and taking the wind out of the Cold War. But let's talk about that domestic, because Nixon has been demonized, and of course we had Watergate; but let's talk about this critical moment. In '66 you write a book, right, 'Unsafe at Any Speed', and really--

RN: In '65.

RS:'65, and it really fuels, adds tremendous energy to a consumer movement. And then an improbable president, Richard Nixon, actually builds on some of this stuff. And how do we get from there--from there to today? And look at the loss of income inequality, the attacks on labor unions--

RN: Bob, Nixon was the last Republican to be afraid of liberals. He was afraid of the rumble from the people coming out of the tumultuous sixties that spilled over into the early seventies, and that's why he would sign and sign and sign these bills, along with the ones that Lyndon Johnson signed. But once the rumble of the people diminished, and once the corporate media started blocking the kind of coverage we got--we couldn't have done a lot of what we did; we had some reporters who covered us day after day, the columnist Drew Pearson, the Washington Post's Morton Mintz, the New York Times's Walter Rugaber in Detroit on auto safety, the great reporter Pat Sloyan, UPI. They don't do that anymore. They're all looking for Pulitzer Prizes, you know; they want to write one big feature; you got to follow the struggle in Congress, you know, week after week. And we don't have that. So we have to rebuild it, and my view of rebuilding it is to get people to think, am I going to be one of the one percent reflecting majority opinion that's going to roll up my sleeves with people in my congressional district, and I'm going to be responsible for my two senators and representative, along with several thousand other people in each congressional district? You know, I think people should take Congress personally. The people of this country under our Constitution--

RS: Well, that's what the Tea Party does.

RN: Yeah, exactly. The people delegate their power under the Constitution to 535 members of Congress, representatives and senators, and a majority of these people have sold it to Wall Street, have sold it to the corporations, and they have allowed the corporations to turn our government through the Congress against its own people. You know, I think people should get angry at that. Just the way they get angry if they lose their NFL football game. At least that level.

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RS: Thank you, Ralph Nader. This has been a terrific conversation with a true American original. And people should check out your column; we also run it on Truthdig every week. And you know, I just want to say that it's just a great inspiration that you are going--you've, let me just say, you've had a great life. No?

RN: Well, I mean, pursuit of justice is the greatest gratification. I can't think of anything better. I mean, was it Daniel Webster, the senator from Massachusetts, said 'Justice is the great work of human beings on earth.' Without justice, you don't get freedom or liberty. And you know that; you've exposed so many examples of wrongdoing. And I applaud you for Truthdig and for having Chris Hedges on. You know, he writes that big column; I sometimes call him up on Sunday and interrupt him when he's going over the last lines, but that's very, very important. And we need people who will let the chips fall where they may in search of the truth. You know, the--somebody, [Charles] Lewis, who started the Center for Public Integrity, I talked to him a couple years ago and I said, what are you doing? And he said 'I'm writing a book.' I said, what's the title? He said, 'The Future of Truth.' Well, with this presidential campaign, that's a pretty important question, isn't it?
Syrian children walk through a street as they bring food back to their families in the northeastern city of Deir Ezzor on January 23, 2014. Nearly 1,400 people have been killed in Syria since clashes between rebel forces and the jihadist Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant erupted this month, a monitor said. AFP PHOTO/AHMAD ABOUD (Photo credit should read AHMAD ABOUD/AFP/Getty Images)

United States officials believe it to be too risky, but sending aid airdrops is necessary to help Syrians, especially in the besieged Eastern city of Deir Ezzor, where thousands of Syrians are starving. The regime-controlled city has been under siege by ISIS for the last 13 months.

Although airdrops would serve as just temporary relief, the city is in desperate need for food. It is described as the worst siege in Syria, as no food or medical supplies have been allowed in the city and the regime exploits the situation by selling the limited food for higher prices.

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People are selling all they have, including houses, gold and other valuables, to secure a meal. While the so-called Islamic State stops any food or supplies from entering by land, the regime does not allow for things to be transported by air and blocks people from leaving the city.

A growing number of people have died from malnutrition, including children, with nearly 30 claimed cases of death due to malnutrition thus far. Hospitals have grown weak, as they continue to run out of supplies and personnel.

A Syrian child clears debris from a street in the northeastern city of Deir Ezzor on January 23, 2014. (Ahmad Aboud/Getty Images)

The international community has completely ignored the people in Deir Ezzor city, including the United Nations, intergovernmental, and international organizations, not even advocating to provide the basic medical supplies and food that has become scarce.

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The United Nations has delivered millions of dollars worth of aid to regime-held territories, but has stayed silent about the areas under siege, like Deir Ezzor city. As a tool of war, the United Nations has defied its principle of impartiality, by utilizing aid as a political tool and not delivering it to those most in need.

Since January 15, ISIS launched an offensive in an attempt to gain control of Deir Ezzor City, making the already grim situation even grimmer. People have not had access to any kind of food for the last seven days, while enduring heavy bombing and gunfire. Due to the most recent events, the already-degrading supply of food within the city has become next to nothing, and the hospital has been unable to to treat people as it lacks the basic supplies to do so. In the last week, over 60 people have died due to the conditions.

The regime has been able to airlift aid for its troops the last 13 months, an average of 10 times a day, while the civilian population do not see any of that aid. Both the regime and ISIS have continued to have access to basic necessities and resources, while the civilian population stuck in between has received nothing but exploitation.

A rebel fighter prepares to throw a fire ball on a front line of Syria's northeastern city of Deir Ezzor on January 10, 2014. (Ahmad Aboud/Getty Images)

Hundreds of thousands of people are starving to death and there is a desperate need for action. The beginning step being airdrops of aid and food to the suffering people of Deir Ezzor City. As disclosed by the Telegraph, the United Nations has given approval to western countries to carry out airdrops over besieged Syrian towns without regime permission.

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The conditions of Deir Ezzor City has become dire and people are dying everyday as a result. Airdrops would at least ensure there is some supply of food within the city to stop people dying from malnutrition due to the ISIS imposed siege.

The second step would be the intervention of the United Nations to insure the proper distribution of aid to civilians in Deir Ezzor city. The regime and regime soldiers have exploited the people of Deir Ezzor city for the last 13 months, selling food at extraordinarily high prices. The United Nations must intervene to avoid such extended exploitation of aid and resources when delivered by the international community. This includes personnel on the ground to oversee the process and insure civilians are receiving the necessary food and aid.

Deir Ezzor City rapidly needs food and medical supplies. If you are reading this, I encourage you to act by pressuring your governments and the United Nations. The World Food Program estimates that over two million tons of aid have been delivered via airdrops in the past two decades to areas that are hard to reach.
On January 1, 2016, Ukraine acceded to the trade-related provisions of its association agreement with the European Union, ratified by President Petro Poroshenko in June 2014. Ukraine's entry into Europe's Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) was met with scathing opposition from the Kremlin. Vladimir Putin signed a decree suspending Russia's free trade agreement with Ukraine effective January 1, claiming that Kiev's EU trade pact leaves Russian markets unprotected and undercuts Russia's economic interests.

While Russia's retaliatory response to the Ukraine-EU free trade agreement was predictable, its closest ally Belarus surprisingly announced that it would uphold its own free trade agreement with Ukraine. Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenka's decision is the latest in a string of anti-Kremlin policies emanating from Minsk. Belarus has strengthened diplomatic relations and economic ties with Middle Eastern countries opposed to Syrian dictator Bashar Al-Assad, actively courted Chinese investment, and thawed relations with the West in exchange for sanctions relief.

Belarus's anti-Kremlin tilt fits closely with historical trends, as it reflects Lukashenka's focus on maintaining a stable authoritarian regime at home. Lukashenka has historically depended on economic growth as the basis of his legitimacy and popularity, so the diversification of Belarus's economic linkages at a time when Russia is crippled with sanctions is an effective strategy. Lukashenka is also attempting to increase domestic perceptions of Belarus's international status by making Belarus a mediator in the Ukraine and Syrian crises, a move which, if successful, will foster pro-regime nationalism.



The Economic Foundations of Belarus's Multi-Vector Foreign Policy

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For most of the post-Communist period, Belarus's foreign policy has leaned towards Russia. But extent of Belarus's alignment with Russia has vacillated markedly over time, in tandem with Lukashenka's shifting domestic agenda. After his 1994 election victory, Lukashenka strengthened ties with Russia, as Russia provided subsidies worth 20% of Belarus's GDP that could be used to fund popular social programs. But Belarus has been cautious to ensure that Russia does not infringe too deeply on its sovereignty. Lukashenka has clashed with Russia over gas prices and refused to endorse the Russian annexation of Crimea. This independent streak appeals to the nationalist undercurrent in Belarusian society, which supports alignment but not complete integration with Moscow.

On the surface, Belarus's most recent anti-Kremlin pivot appears to contradict public opinion. Only 18.7% of Belarusians would support armed resistance in the event of a Russian military intervention in Belarus and 62% back the Russian annexation of Crimea. However, Lukashenka's defiance of current public opinion is the product of long-term strategic thinking, as his legitimacy is predicated on the success of his state-led economic model.

With Belarus's economic growth projected at a mere 0.3%, in 2016, Lukashenka has acted decisively to pre-empt anti-regime discontent over the poor economic situation. As Russia is in recession due to the combined effect of sanctions and low oil prices, Belarus has been forced to diversify its trade linkages. In May 2015, Belarus effectively agreed to become the Western hub of Xi Jinping's Silk Road project by accepting $15.7 billion of Chinese investment in infrastructure and the potash industry. Belarus has also eased tensions with long-standing adversaries to expand its trade network. Over the past few months, Lukashenka has released six political prisoners in accordance with EU demands and re-established diplomatic relations with Kyrgyzstan that were suspended after the 2010 coup.

Belarus's free trade pact with Ukraine is the latest phase of its multi-vector strategy. The agreement builds on Lukashenka's November 2011 establishment of a pro-Belarusian lobby in Kiev to consolidate ties with Ukrainian oligarchs who have ownership stakes in the food, construction and electricity industries. Kremlin critics of Lukashenka have also highlighted Belarus's assistance in modernizing Ukrainian military hardware and its exports of diesel to Ukraine, as proof that Belarus is no longer a reliable Russian ally.

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Belarus's expansion of economic ties with democratic states and nations that have strained relations with the Kremlin demonstrates that Lukashenka's alliance-building efforts now prioritize financial benefits over normative solidarity. This shift can be traced back to the Arab Spring, when Belarus gradually reoriented its Middle East strategy away from anti-Western revolutionary regimes like Libya, towards pro-Western countries like Turkey and Saudi Arabia.

Lukashenka's staunch support for Gaddafi in early 2011 contrasted markedly with his cordial welcome of anti-Assad Turkish foreign minister Ahmet Davotoglu a few months later. After this historic summit, Belarus deepened economic ties with Turkey. Turkish president Erdogan regards favorable relations with Minsk as the gateway to increased trade linkages with the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU). Prominent Russian political analyst Yevgeny Satanovsky also recently accused Belarus of indirectly sponsoring terrorism through lucrative arms contracts with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

Belarus's expanded ties with Turkey and the Gulf states reaffirm the potential existence of a moral hazard stemming from Russia's longstanding support for the Lukashenka regime. As Russia has a paucity of regional and international allies, it cannot afford to burn its bridges with Belarus, when Lukashenka defies Moscow's interests. As Lukashenka believes Putin is unlikely to abandon Russia's commitment to Minsk, he can diversify Belarus's trade linkages to improve public satisfaction with the economic situation with little risk of blowback.

Belarus's Role as a Mediator in International Crises

In addition to addressing concerns about deteriorating economic conditions, Lukashenka's stature amongst the Belarusian public benefits immensely from participating in diplomatic summits that increase Belarus's international status. Minsk hosted negotiations during the Ukraine conflict, because Lukashenka has effectively balanced relations between Poroshenko and Putin, without overtly antagonizing either side.

Belarus has also worked hard to counter the long-standing perception that it is a mere Russian proxy. After the annexation of Crimea, Lukashenka boldly warned Putin that any Russian foray onto Belarus's soil would be met with fierce resistance. He has also stalled Russia's planned construction of a Belarusian air base, thwarting Putin's strategy of diverting Russian defensive infrastructure away from hostile Ukraine and towards Belarus.

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Belarus has built on its Ukraine mediation efforts, by increasing its diplomatic profile in the Middle East and asserting its independence from Moscow's Syria policy. The Russian state media fiercely criticized Belarus for its neutrality after Turkey downed a Russian Sukhoi Su-24 jet that flew over its air space en route to Syria.

In the wake of the crisis, Lukashenka emphasized that Russia and Turkey should meet each other halfway to defuse tensions that were harmful for regional stability. Belarus Segodnya, the country's state media outlet, condemned Russian allegations that Erdogan was smuggling oil revenues in collaboration with ISIS. Belarus has also reached out diplomatically to pro-American leaders of Iraqi Kurdistan, who have tense relations with the Kremlin. Many regard these overtures as a tacit criticism of Russia's resolute support for the Assad regime in Syria.
Next week is the International Commemoration Day of the Holocaust. In 2005 the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a resolution (A/RES/60/7), by consensus, declaring that the UN would designate January 27th as an annual International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust. This specific date was chosen, as it is the anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp. The resolution also urges Member States to develop educational programmes to instill the memory of the tragedy in future generations to prevent genocide from occurring again: remembrance of the past, with an eye towards preventing history from repeating itself!

So why am I not reassured?

The Anti-Defamation League's (ADL) Global 100 Index of anti-Semitism is a survey of attitudes toward Jews in Over 100 Countries around the world. According to the 2015-updated index, after surveying 88.4% of the world's adult population, it was found that 26% (!) of them, a quarter of all respondents, harbor anti-Semitic attitudes: that is over 1 billion people, and this is only 70 years after the end of the Second World War and the atrocities committed by the Nazis against Jews, Gypsies, gays, political prisoners and many others.

Indeed, the Nazi machine annihilating Jews was unique in its malice and evil: an industrialized extermination of the worst kind, pre-meditated ideological genocide, which was not a by-product of war, but a foundation of belief and pillar of existence for its perpetrators. Incomprehensible. Unbelievable. It is like we almost wish for it to be nothing more than a frightening tale; only it is far from it. It happened, and not too long ago.

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Could history repeat itself?

Only in the last few weeks, a discussion erupted in France, after Zvi Ammar, head of Marseille's Jewish community, suggested it might be better if Jews stopped wearing the yarmulke, also known as a kippah, "for the time being". This statement was made after a Kurdish immigrant from Turkey attacked a Jewish teacher with a butcher knife, claiming to be inspired by ISIS.

In the Middle East, the Persecution of Yazidis, Christians and other minorities by ISIS continues with some - but not too much - interruption by the free world. This is a genocidal persecution leading to exile, which includes the abduction of Yazidi women, massacres of innocent civilians and forced conversion campaigns. This, my friends, is happening here and now, as we are reading these lines. It is not - yet - a passage in the history books.

Closer to home, the situation does not look too encouraging: Jews on some of the college campuses around the country express fear to reveal their Judaism for fear of anti-Semitic attacks. Simply put, they are there to study and build a future, and not to be a moving target just because they are Jewish. The heated debate around Israel and Mideast politics plays a significant part in this updated manifestation of anti-Semitism: the Boycott movement, which opposes a peaceful solution between Israelis and Palestinians and negates the right of the Jewish people for self determination, is becoming visible and unpleasantly vocal on more and more campuses. Their agenda of dehumanizing Israel and delegitimizing it is pushed onto student government bodies, without any real reason, and poisons the atmosphere on campus. Suddenly Israel, the Jew among the nations, is the face of all evil on Earth (as is the Jew in anti-Semitic propaganda), and being Jewish means an immediate implication with that evil, no matter what political views one might espouse. At Connecticut College, a Jewish professor dared to stand by Israel when it was attacked by Hamas in the summer of 2014, and was exposed to a smear campaign, with none of his colleagues standing up for him, and an administration keeping a deafening silence. Elsewhere, swastikas appear on Jewish fraternity houses and physical and verbal violence becomes an almost daily threat, which needs to be addressed.

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The issue of anti-Semitism is a deep and troubling problem and it needs to be faced and countered head-on, whether it is manifested in its "classic" mode or whether it applies the same techniques only switching the word "Jew" for "Israel". But it also has political implications: just imagine what might happen to Jews in the Middle East, had there been no Israel. The probability is that Jews would have faced the same fate as other minorities there today, literally fighting for their lives in a region so steeped in hatred and violence. This is an all too familiar scenario for us: Jews had to fight for their existence and suffer for being Jewish all throughout Jewish history, since expelled from the Land of Israel by the Roman Empire some 2000 years ago. As we suffered through it for thousands of years, in places from Hungary to Yemen, from Russia to Morocco, we continuously yearned to come back home, to our ancestral Land, and live as an independent nation, capable of defending herself, not needing the mercy of others and we have achieved just that. We also yearned for peace. Dreamt of the day we will be able to live life side by side with our neighbors, Palestinians and Arab nations, each recognizing each other's right for self-determination, accepting and respecting one another as equal human beings. We still do.

We yearn, we dream, but we are also realistic. In Ethics of the Fathers we read the words of Hillel the wise:

"If I am not for myself, who will be for me?".
In Portland, Oregon, a brave community college launched a new project that "seeks to inspire innovative and practical solutions to community issues and social problems that stem from racism." It's called Whiteness History Month. And it has received equal parts scorn as well as praise.

It should be noted that the endeavor itself isn't "White History Month," (which would imply the celebration and accomplishments of white individuals), but rather Whiteness, which directly refers to the social construction of white supremacist culture. Those four little letters provide an important distinction that has been lost as a number of online media outlets unleashed unabashed knee-jerk fury, accusing the school of "white shaming."

The deep irony, of course, is that Portland Community College (as well as many universities around the nation) have been discussing whiteness as an academic subject for years. The messaging from anti-racist speakers, the establishment of multicultural resource centers, the recruitment of diversity and inclusion staff hasn't changed - and those efforts reflect the spirit of Whiteness History Month. Yet, the same angry mob has been relatively silent throughout those numerous activities.

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Why does indignation only occur for a dedicated month when classes on white supremacy and critical race theory are held all year long? Those same angry individuals will tell you it is the content, despite the fact that the content and activities haven't even been announced yet. Talk about ignorance - people are getting upset at what they think will take place when they don't even know what it is yet. They have an equal opportunity to submit proposals, attend, and get engaged on the subject, but they'll most likely just resort to armchair activism by shaking their heads, posting passive-aggressive notes on Facebook, and complain about "PC culture."

I think it's important to take a step back and reframe the conversation. When questioned, none of the angry callers will say their fury is rooted in the idea of a month. In fact, most are upset because they want to take "America back." They genuinely believe our country has gotten too sensitive, that there is a culture of reverse-racism, and that racism remains only a problem because people keep talking about it instead of letting it die in the past. Some will even proclaim and they themselves are not racist, they just feel whites are constantly being guilt-tripped for events of the past.

That's why messages from Donald Trump still resonate with some Americans, even when they know he is being racist. That's why people feel like they can protest a college program when they don't know anything about the subject. Most of them don't know the difference between racism as belief and racism as a social structure. Most have never engaged in a meaningful, but uncomfortable conversation about racism.

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A major national study revealed that people with "white sounding names" are 50 percent more likely to be called back for a job interview than those with "black sounding" names, even when all other credentials are the same. First-time arrests for black youth have an incarceration rate that is 48 times higher than white youth, even when all other factors of the crime are identical. Black Americans are 2,100 percent more likely to be fatally shot by police than white Americans. In fact, the average black male has a one-in-three chance of going to prison in their lifetime.

To explain these staggering statistics either you believe that people of color are naturally criminally inclined, have a poor work ethic and are predisposed to engage self-endangering behaviors, or you believe that we have a systemic wide problem across our political, legal, education, financial and health sectors. Either way, it confirms the existence of prevalent racism. And it confirms the need for Whiteness History Month so we can actually have some space to talk about solutions.

We would never try to solve hunger by refusing to talk about the issue. No one believes that they can cure cancer by ignoring the problem. Homelessness is not eradicated when we only focus conversations around homeowners. Like any other major social problem, we need to tackle this by acknowledging its existence, addressing the symptoms, and focusing on the root cause.
PHILADELPHIA, PA - JANUARY 22: Civil rights lawyer Gloria Allred attends the Pro-Choice Rally held in honor of the 43rd anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade on January 22, 2016 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Gilbert Carrasquillo/Getty Images)

A couple of years ago, the Pew Research Forum surveyed Americans under 30 years old, asking them questions about abortion and, specifically, Roe v Wade. The survey revealed the following:

41 percent thought Roe v Wade involved the death penalty or the environment, or they could not name the subject matter.

16 percent thought Roe v Wade was a case about school desegregation. 68 percent of respondents who identified as Republicans knew what Roe was about, versus 57 percent of Democrats, For the 74 percent who wanted to see Roe overturned, abortion was a "crucial issue" or "one of many crucial issues," but among those who support a woman's right to choose, that number was 31 percent. 62 percent of Americans ages 18-29, people who for the most part don't yet have children, said the right to abortion is "not that important" (compared to 53 percent of adults overall).

This week marks the 43 year since the passage of Roe v Wade which, in legalizing abortion, extended several previously withheld constitutional rights, having to do with privacy, autonomy and due process, to women. It took time and involved endless constitutional interpretations. In theory, our bodies, we get to decide what happens in and to them. In practice, not so much. The right to abortion, like other "women's issues," remains one that is constantly under attack and considered negotiable.

In 1912, maybe in between the jail time she served for providing sex ed and control to women, Margaret Sanger wrote an article about birth control called "Things That Every Girl Should Know." Almost 100 years later, echoing Sanger, Gail Collins updated it, penning her own "Things That Every Girls Should Know" about Sanger and the transformative impact of safe birth control. The problem is, given the political reality of our lives, and the continued male domination of our governance, boys and men, especially liberal and progressive ones, are the ones who need to do more of the knowing.

Even our news coverage denies women anywhere near parity in story telling about abortion and women's reproduction. A study released yesterday by the Women's Media Center found that during 2014-2015, in the nation's top 12 newspaper outlets, "male journalists wrote 52 percent of the articles focused on reproductive issues," and that "41 percent of all quotes in these pieces were attributed to men."

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Other studies confirm these demographics and the abortion stigma that they produce. One, conducted in 2012, found that in election stories about birth control, 75 percent of quotes came from men, 67 percent in stories that named Planned Parenthood. Even more appalling, something that should be an affront to anyone who cares about women, a study of nightly news broadcasts between 2010-2014 found that Catholic Church leaders were used as a source on stories about women's reproductive health care at a rate of six times that of OB/GYNs.

This is criminal. Public understanding, and the ability to shape political life and social norms in a way that reflects women's experiences, bodies and needs, is degraded by decisions that result in this pervasive marginalization. How any of these corporate bodies can claim moral authority, different from legal or political authority, is gobsmacking.

Time and time again women are paying for the fact that legislators and voters don't know that 60 percent of women seeking abortions are already mothers, that they rarely feel guilt, and, indeed, express relief and happiness; that abortion is one of the safest of modern medical procedures; or that Catholic hospitals, growing in number, are endanger the lives of pregnant women.



"Our laws and 'morality' continue to reflect, or seek to reproduce, a reality in which reproduction takes place and is managed outside of a body, the way reproduction is experienced by men."



Denying women safe and legal access to abortion is a human rights violation, even in the United States which likes to pretend that human rights violations only happen in other countries. The legal right to abortion, however, is treated like some kind of perk, something to be negotiated, a matter of opinion, subject to the eternal intervention of men. We thoughtlessly elect careless and ignorant people, many of whom demonstrate that they know virtually nothing about science, physiology, economics or their relationship to women's rights and lives. Most of them are people for whom control of reproduction can be reduced to a 12,000-year old, $.50 micro-thin shealth.

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How, it seems reasonable as many men suggest, could the problem of reproduction be so critical to women's entire lives? How could anyone think that things as banal as birth control and safe abortion be considered "Very Important Transformative Technologies," globally?

Our laws and "morality" continue to reflect, or seek to reproduce, a reality in which reproduction takes place and is managed outside of a body, the way reproduction is experienced by men. For women, the experience cannot be separated, yet, from our bodies. That fetuses are not part of men's bodies doesn't make them less part of women's. That's the bitterest pill, the one no one wants to swallow because of all its implications.

Boys and men never have to talk about their "reproductive rights" because the norm, plain old "rights," is male. "Rights" are only qualified by "reproductive" when we're talking about women -- because what we have is thought of as "different," and requires "fixing," as opposed to normative to what it means to be human. This is evident, materially, for example, in the way that abortion and health as they pertains to women's reproductive organs are isolated in "clinics" outside of "regular" care and in specialized practices that are considered "extra" and somehow mysterious.

What every boy and man should know is that the rights of the women they know, who look like they are functioning as equals in schools and work, have never been as inalienable and fundamental as their own. A woman's right to abortion, to decide if and when and how, to reproduce is a fundamental human right specific to being a human female.

Roe is meant to protect this right for American women. It confirms our right to life, privacy, health, physical integrity and security. It respects women's freedom of thought, freedom of and from religion. It confirms our rights not to be subject to inhumane and degrading treatment, such as coerced or compelled pregnancy. Denying women safe and legal abortion the way states are today -- whether by law or by regulating access out of practical existence -- is the perpetuation of widespread human rights violations in the United States. Every year since 2011 has hit new records of legislative attempts (and successes) to erode or eliminate Roe.

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States are closing clinics, regulating doctors out of practice, taking away insurance health benefits, and barring the use of modern, medically safe chemical abortion, forcing patients to be subjected to outdated medical, riskier procedures. They have made it almost impossible in state after state for girls and women to access their rights safely. It's happening despite seven in ten Americans support a woman's right to choose.

As beleaguered as it is, Roe still means we are far, far less likely to die, or be mutilated or suffer from infections. It means no one can legally, if not practically, "let us" die if we desperately want to live. It means doctors can save our lives if we have ectopic pregnancies or cancer. It means we don't have to be tied for life to abusive, violent spouses. Or to men who deliberately sabotage our birth control.



"Denying women safe and legal abortion the way states are today ... is the perpetuation of widespread human rights violations in the United States."



It means we should be able to use modern medicine and procedures to intervene, to end miscarriages safely and quickly, even though that's not happening. It means that we should no longer be forced to carry rape pregnancies against our wills even when our rapists want us to. It means we shouldn't have to think about facing imprisonment and impoverishment for something all women, by virtue of having female bodies, must seriously think about during roughly 30 years of fertility.

Every boy and man should know that the right to make decisions regarding our own bodies, to manage our own reproduction, has practical impacts that many people, in the everyday way of sexism, like to write off as selfish, unnatural and not "maternal." We get to participate in the world more equally. Go to school. Get and keep jobs. Run for office. Have sex without "ruination." Take care of our families. Trust that the children we have will be loved, safe and well. Roe is not sufficient in terms of Reproductive Justice, but it is a necessary prerequisite.

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The only way you can justify a position in which a woman does not make her own reproductive decisions is if you believe she is not ethically and morally capable, as a function of her gender, and, in the U.S., race. It means you do not trust her to be a fully adult, fully human, being.

Roe was originally based on "four constitutional pillars" of which only two remain today. Opponents to women's rights are using laws never intended to apply to abortion to intimidate, investigate, arrest, prosecute and imprison women. They do this in denial of medical facts, scientific research and with no virtually no regard or recognition of the complicated, often dangerous, urgent contexts that are unique to every pregnancy.

In December last year, a 31-year-old Tennessee woman was charged with attempted first-degree murder after she tried to self-abort, at 24-weeks, in her bathtub. Last Spring, Purvi Patel, a 33-year-old Indiana woman was sentenced to 20 years in prison after she was charged with both feticide and felony child neglect. They join a long list of women, mainly poorer, darker women who pay the highest price for attacks on Planned Parenthood and women's health.

Today, advocates fear that as clinics are shut down and laws make access difficult, risky self-abortions will grow. Last year, the Texas Policy Evaluation Project, found that between 100,000 and 240,000 women, ages of 18 and 49, have already tried ending pregnancies by themselves. The most reported method was the use of Misoprostol, but others, such as "herbs or homeopathic remedies, getting hit or punched in the abdomen, using alcohol or illicit drugs, or taking hormonal pills," were also cited.

It pays to explain why, to quote a Twitter friend, Roe V. Wade, is not "Two ways to cross a river."

It doesn't inspire confidence that the younger a survey respondent was, the less important they thought a woman's right to an abortion was. It is particularly worrisome though that liberals, men and women, were the least well informed or committed. There are good reasons why NARAL, Human Rights Campaign, and Planned Parenthood endorsed Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sander's dismissal of these organizations as members of the "establishment" is either a deeply cynical or deeply ignorant appeal, either way, it trades on people's, especially progressive men's, lack of information, understanding and education.
Good criminal defense attorneys tell their clients at the first meeting -- whether it's in a cellblock, the attorney's office, or anywhere else -- please, please, don't talk with anyone except for myself and my investigator, about the allegations in your criminal case. This usually follows on the heels of the Miranda warnings cops are required to read suspects upon arrest that make clear, under the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, an arrestee has the "right to remain silent," and, "anything [they] say, can and will be used against [them]" in court.

Good defense attorneys explain the parameters of the attorney-client privilege in the first client meeting, and how, at its core, excluding several specific exceptions, it precludes the government from ever forcing a criminal defense attorney to reveal a client's confidences -- even after the client's death. The law recognizes that the Sixth Amendment right to effective assistance of counsel would be gutted if clients could not speak freely with their lawyers about the allegations against them; the bedrock constitutional protections that flow from the attorney-client privilege are quite literally the lifeblood of any attorney-client relationship.

This is why, when I was a former D.C. and federal public defender, after initial introductions, the first thing I explained to a client was the attorney-client privilege. I did this as thoroughly and clearly as I could -- with added emphasis for clients who would be locked up pending trial -- who I knew would be tempted to call friends and family from the jail, where, all calls are recorded. I told clients the attorney-client privilege doesn't protect communications except those between client and lawyer (and anyone part of the "defense team," which can include an investigator, law clerks working for the defense attorney, expert witnesses, etcetera; the defense lawyer should immediately make clear to the client who the "defense team" includes).

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My pitch, like most attorneys that I worked with, was heavy-handed. I made clear, especially in felony cases where a grand jury had not yet returned an indictment (the formal statement of charges), that if they talked about the allegations against them -- to their moms, dads, love interests, little brothers, and so on --that the prosecutors could not only use recorded jail calls against them, they could subpoena the family member on the other end of the line, put them under oath before a grand jury, and, force them to reveal exactly what the client said about the case.

Admissions, confessions, even seemingly innocent, isolated statements -- statements that defendants think make them appear innocent -- are no less (and maybe even more than) DNA evidence, a prosecutor's most potent weapon in a criminal case; as evidence of guilt goes, they are the Holy Grail.



Making a Murderer fans know this from watching excerpts of the Brendan Dassey trial where the prosecution rested its entire case on Dassey's inconsistent (and eventually, incriminatory) statements to police; but for Dassey's statements there would have been little viable evidence to convict him.

The filmmakers [of Making a Murderer] faced a huge problem right off the bat in making a documentary about Steven Avery: They had almost no access to him as they were repeatedly denied visitations. One way they got around that problem was through the use of audio interviews that make Avery's point of view -- captured throughout the trial -- front and center in the documentary.

Focusing on Brendan Dassey's case, one of the filmmakers said:

"All calls they made from the county jail or the juvenile detention center are recorded, so we have thousands of hours of phone calls[.]"

"I remember the first time we listened to some of the calls where she's confronting him over the phone, like, 'Did you do this?' As somebody with a legal background, I'm thinking, [d]on't ask your son that over the phone!" Ricciardi recalled.

My point exactly. There is no easier or more compelling piece of evidence for a prosecutor to use against a defendant than their own words.

Folks watching Making a Murderer are understandably caught up in the undeniable human drama of the series -- drama that is stoked by those dreary prison phone calls from both Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey to their families, played in almost every episode. But please, please -- if the Brendan Dassey case was not lesson enough -- should you ever find yourself behind bars, don't talk about your criminal case over the phone.
On Tuesday the Supreme Court agreed to decide whether a single state can sue the federal government to block the government's setting of immigration enforcement priorities nationwide. The stakes are momentous, and they go far beyond immigration.

In November 2014, President Obama announced a policy called Deferred Action for Parents of Americans, or DAPA. Like Congress, the President decided that his limited immigration enforcement resources should prioritize national security, public safety, and border security. Among the lowest deportation priorities are the parents of U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents, if those parents have lived continuously in the U.S. since January 1, 2010 and meet several other criteria.

The particular vehicle that the Administration used for this purpose is "deferred action." In continuous use for more than four decades, deferred action is a case-by-case, temporary reprieve from removal, revocable at any time and for any reason. Under similarly decades-old statutes and regulations, one who receives deferred action may apply for a temporary work permit.

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Implementation was to begin last May. But a group of states, led by Texas, found a sympathetic federal judge in Brownsville. The judge issued an order blocking DAPA on procedural grounds. A 2-1 decision by a court of appeals panel affirmed the injunction. The Supreme Court has now agreed to hear the case, and a decision is expected in June.

Elsewhere I have described in detail the many reasons that I believe Texas's arguments fail on the merits. But before a federal court can even address the merits of a case, the Constitution requires the plaintiff to demonstrate "standing." This means the plaintiff has to show that the defendant's actions will cause the plaintiff concrete harm. Texas's lawyers have devised a clever argument: Deferred action results in temporary "lawful presence;" Texas law makes foreign nationals who are "lawfully present" eligible for driver's licenses; and the application fee for a Texas driver's license does not cover the full processing cost. Therefore deferred action will cost Texas money.

There are many flaws in this argument. The biggest is that no one is forcing Texas to issue driver's licenses to deferred action recipients; that is the state's choice. So Texas has to argue in effect that just being forced to choose between incurring costs and changing its policy is enough to give it standing -- even if the policy change is one that it actually prefers.

No court has ever gone to that extreme, and for good reason. First, federal laws require a steady stream of interpretations and policy decisions by a myriad of federal agencies. Practically any federal interpretation or policy decision that favors those who seek immigration benefits will make the affected individuals eligible for some state benefit somewhere. Thus, under Texas's theory there will almost always be some state that could plausibly claim standing. And given our country's deep ideological and partisan divides, there will always be a state that desires to do so.

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Compounding the problem is the broad freedom of any objecting state to choose the most favorable court. This very case is a classic illustration. By suing in Brownsville, Texas's lawyers knew they were likely to land Judge Andrew Hanen, whose earlier vitriolic condemnations of President Obama's immigration enforcement policies made him an inviting decision-maker. They also knew that the inevitable appeal would have to be filed with the Fifth Circuit, the nation's most politically conservative federal appeals court.

It is that combination -- a lax threshold for state standing to sue the federal government and the states' freedom to choose a friendly judicial forum for deciding both standing and the merits of the case -- that makes Texas's theory so dangerous.

All this transcends immigration. Every time the IRS interprets the tax code in a way that favors the taxpayer, any state that chooses to base its own income tax on federal taxable income loses revenue. The state could avoid that result by changing its law, but under Texas's theory that doesn't matter.

Or suppose the Defense Department expands eligibility to enlist in the Armed Forces. Any state that awards educational or any other benefits to veterans could claim it loses money as a result. If it chooses a friendly court, the state could tie up Defense Department policy for years.

Accepting Texas's radical theory of standing would be a recipe for paralysis. No one state should be empowered to thwart the federal government's nationwide policy decisions so easily. And that is why the consequences of the Court's final disposition will be so profound.
This article is a foundation essay. These are longer than usual and take a wider look at a key issue affecting society.

Climate change is a global problem. But local actions are needed to reduce its impact. Specifically, southern African countries must consider what they can do to protect their interests in the face of growing threats to economies and welfare.

So consider the idea of having a giant sunshade over southern Africa. During the recent heatwave, it would have been wonderful. It could have saved lives and there would have been less evaporation from dams, reducing the impact of the current drought. Crops and livestock would have fared better.

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Putting up a global sunshade is feasible, not fanciful. It has already been shown to be an option for California. But it is rarely talked about in polite scientific or policy conversation. This is because it would be geoengineering, a human intervention to alter the climate. Many people consider this to be a step too far. But this must change, not least because human action is already causing the climate to change.

Why geoengineering is a difficult subject

Discussion about geoengineering has been muted because scientists are uncomfortable about accepting second class solutions. They fear that any effort to moderate the impact of additional C02 in the atmosphere will reduce the pressure for action on the cause of the problem.

But Africa must look hard at uncomfortable options or face being left behind by other countries with fewer scruples. Specifically, it is important to consider how regional geoengineering initiatives could help to protect southern Africa from some of the more damaging impacts of climate change.

From the outcome of the COP21 meeting in Paris last year, two key points stand out:

All countries made a commitment to take action on climate change to avert a global disaster. This was real progress. But the practical commitments they made were nowhere near radical enough to achieve the goal of reducing global warming quickly enough.

The resulting slow progress means that the southern African region could face prolonged hardship. The consensus is that life under climate change will be hotter, and therefore drier, since evaporation and aridity increases with temperature.

Some countries stand to gain, some to lose

Southern Africa needs to take action as a region. Not all regions are affected equally by climate change.

Some countries - Canada and Russia specifically - actually stand to gain from a warmer globe. Millions of hectares of land that is currently frozen will become available for agriculture. This will occur just as food problems arise elsewhere.

Other countries - think Saudi Arabia - would like to put off action as long as possible. This will enable them to use their oil revenues to fund the adaptation that they will need. Coal exporting countries like Australia and South Africa have similar interests.

Yet another group of countries would like adaptation to move faster. This is not always because they are concerned about the impact of climate change. Many in Europe believe that there is money to be made from renewable energy. And they would like everyone to adopt it as fast as possible so that they can make more windmills, install more solar panels and sell more power management solutions.

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So regional interests have a strong influence on the approach to climate change. And I contend that South Africa, together with its neighbours, is not doing enough to consider specific regional interests and options. That opinion is based on more than a decade's engagement on climate issues at the United Nation's Commission on Sustainable Development, two COPs, the World Economic Forum and South Africa's National Planning Commission as well as my work on southern Africa's water resources.

The thinking - or rather the lack of it - about geoengineering is one example of regional interests.

Creating shade

Some geoengineering interventions will only work on a global scale. Proposals to suck carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere are one example. But other interventions work more locally.

It has long been known that the presence of some chemicals in the atmosphere can shield the earth from the heating effects of the sun. This has been demonstrated on numerous occasions when, after erupting volcanoes spewed sulphurous gases and ash, the earth cooled noticeably for a couple of years. The most famous case is perhaps the eruption of Mount Tambora in Indonesia in 1815. This led to 1816 being known as the "year without a summer".

The science to use this effect for geoengineering is now well documented. A leading mind on this is professor Paul Crutzen, who won the Nobel Prize for working out how to fix another global atmospheric problem - the ozone hole.

If sulphur dioxide (SO2) is used, the amount required for a worldwide solar sunshade could be dosed into the atmosphere using existing passenger aircraft. The payload would be the equivalent of two economy class seats on every flight. Crutzen estimated the cost at between $25 and $50 per developed world citizen. It would be more efficient to dose at higher altitudes but the point is that this is already a feasible option.

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What needs to be considered is whether this technology could be used to provide local sunshades. These would not help places threatened by rising sea levels which needs warming to be stopped at a global level. But it might well help to reduce the impact of higher temperatures on local agriculture and water resources.

Potential risks need to be considered. The amounts of SO2 needed are tiny compared to what is generated, more harmfully, by industry and natural sources. But it would be desirable to design and use more benign materials. Fortunately, the science of chemistry is increasingly able to design materials with very specific properties. Doing this to mitigate climate change needs to become a research priority.

To make such interventions practical, the region needs local science, focused on meeting local needs. And Western scientists have been reluctant to help develop this capacity. I have found British scientists working on climate change very helpful on many other subjects, but not on this regional interventions. And South Africa's scientists are too often guided by global thinking rather than local challenges and opportunities.

Finally, there is the question of implementation. Do we have the means to do the job? Since there would almost certainly be international opposition to regional geoengineering, we would need regional capacity for intervention. Could this be a new role for embattled SAA? It would be helpful to have a national airline to enable us to take a regional decision to protect regional interests.

Such a move could buy time while the underlying problem is properly addressed. Critics who argue that this would simply encourage further delay miss the point. The delays are happening and the consequences need to be addressed. Beyond that, the mere threat of regional geoengineering action could accelerate action to address the underlying causes more effectively.

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At the least, the southern African region if not the continent as a whole must discuss regional options. And regional geoengineering will have to be on the agenda. Otherwise Africa will once again find itself at the back of the queue, carrying the burden and the costs while those responsible for our problems profit from our passivity.
During a campaign stop in New Hampshire on Wednesday, Sen. Ted Cruz slammed the Federal Communications Commission's 2015 decision to protect the open Internet. His comments were captured in

now being circulated by Protect Internet Freedom, an anti-Net Neutrality

made up of GOP public relations staffers.

The question itself fails the truth test. And Cruz's response is so full of whoppers that it has to be taken apart, sentence by sentence, to fully demonstrate the depth of his dishonesty.

Question: "The Obama administration has declared the Internet to be a modern-day public utility. They're using Title II rules from the 1930s to justify it. What would you do as president? Would you continue this or would you change it?"



Actually, Title II isn't some relic of the Depression Era. Congress updated Title II's definitions in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, paving the way for the explosive growth of the Internet we know today. Title II status doesn't apply to "the Internet" -- it applies to the cable and phone company networks that connect us to each other. The type of common-carrier classification in this law is commonplace across the U.S. economy, but especially in modern communications networks. Before the FCC's 2015 decision, Title II applied to wireless voice services offered by flourishing cellphone carriers and to more than 1,000 small rural carriers offering residential broadband DSL and fiber access. Title II has always applied to business-grade broadband services too, with AT&T defending the "unqualified regulatory success" of a light-touch Title II approach in that multi-billion dollar industry. Outside the tech sector, common-carriage principles apply in other competitive markets like airlines, private buses and parcel shipping. None of these businesses are utilities. Many are very profitable -- some extremely so.

Cruz: "The Internet from its beginning has been tax free and even better it's been regulation free ..."



Yes, the Internet has been largely free of taxes and regulations, but Internet access providers like AT&T, Comcast and Verizon are not "the Internet." Protecting Internet users from the whims of these monopoly-minded phone and cable companies is what we're really talking about here. It's what the Title II rules are about, but that fact is inconvenient for anti-Net Neutrality types. And thinking that a cable company like Comcast is the Internet is akin to calling a lumber company like Georgia-Pacific the forest.

" ... and Obama is salivating to regulate the Internet ..."



Actually, President Obama's statement on Title II made it clear that his Net Neutrality support didn't amount to Internet regulation. The rules themselves are clear: The laws that a bipartisan Congress wrote in Title II and the FCC's order itself apply to broadband access providers. That's an important distinction that the anti-Net Neutrality crowd routinely ignores. In late 2014, Obama said "I'm urging the FCC to do everything they can to protect Net Neutrality for everyone. They should make it clear that whether you use a computer, phone or tablet, Internet providers have a legal obligation not to block or limit your access to a website. Cable companies can't decide which online stores you can shop at or which streaming services you can use. And they can't let any company pay for priority over its competitors." See? Net Neutrality protects Internet users by letting them -- and not their broadband providers -- decide where they want to go on the open Internet. That's why millions of Internet users have demanded Net Neutrality protections.

" ... So what the FCC has done, under Title II they have deemed the Internet a regulated public utility. And as a consequence they're claiming the authority to regulate pricing and terms of sale ..."



The FCC explicitly stated that its open Internet rules don't subject Internet access providers to rate setting, tariffs or wholesaling requirements. "The order bars the kinds of tariffing, rate regulation, unbundling requirements and administrative burdens that are the hallmarks of traditional utility regulation," FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler wrote in a memo released alongside the new rules. "No broadband provider will need to get the FCC's approval before offering any price, product or plan."

" ... Anyone who wants to innovate has to go to government regulators to get permission to launch some new website to do something novel on the Internet. That is lunacy ... "



This is the most dishonest comment in Cruz's statement. Absolutely nothing in the FCC's Open Internet Order gives the government the ability to decide who gets to launch a website and who doesn't. The order is clear that no one -- government or corporation -- should interfere with any user's right to access the free and open Internet, including our right to create websites and services without permission. Cruz's dog-whistle politicking is designed to rally the anti-Obama crowd that makes up his base. On that note it may succeed, but it isn't remotely close to the truth.

" ... Now declaring the Internet a regulated public utility was done under the guise of a term called Net Neutrality ... "



Nope. See above.

" ... Now, many people don't know what it means. I have described Net Neutrality as 'Obamacare for the Internet'... "



And for making such a ludicrous claim Cruz was resoundingly criticized by both Net Neutrality supporters and members of his own party.

" ... If you want the federal government regulating prices and terms of sale on the Internet, deciding which websites are OK and which are not, then Net Neutrality is a great idea."
In addition to seeking a warmer climate, lower taxes and housing costs, many retirees are relocating to college towns that provide intellectual simulation for their golden years.

Many community colleges court these senior with free or low-cost tuition. According to the American Association of Community Colleges, about 84 percent of its members offer courses specifically for students 50 and older. The cost of tuition is very affordable, averaging less than $2,500 a year for a full-time community college student. Community colleges also promote online courses for seniors who are not able to travel to a campus or want to save money on gas and parking fees.

Often, community colleges also provide non-degree programs in arts such as ceramics, jewelry, drawing, painting, etc., while some offer cooking courses, piano lessons, computer and yoga classes and water aerobics.



Terra State Community College in Fremont, Ohio, offers those 60 and over the opportunity to enroll tuition-free in any course. A senior can take anything from a "History of Rock and Roll" course to creative writing. In addition, the school has a Life Scholars program for those over the age of 50, which offers travel opportunities and special seminars.

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Paradise Valley Community College in Phoenix, Arizona, offers a range of fitness programs designed for senior students. Its SilverSneakers Fitness Program is covered by many health plans such as AARP Medicare Supplement Insurance. There are classes in Zumba Gold and Tai Chi for seniors, as well as senior-themed parties offered in its spacious fitness center.

Eastern Iowa Community College in Davenport recognizes that many seniors want to become more technically savvy to connect with grandchildren through email, Facebook and Skype, as well as to take advantage of online shopping and researching locales for future trips. Its low-cost computer courses range from an overview of Microsoft Office for $34 to learning how to navigate the Internet for $29. The school also offers yoga classes and a comprehensive exercise course combining stretching, weight training and low-impact cardio workout.

Ivy Tech in Indiana also offers seniors the opportunity to attend classes free of charge. As with other community colleges, there is a small fee for signing up and students are responsible for purchasing books. Computer, cooking and allied health courses are the most popular among seniors.

Perhaps the best argument to be made for attending a community college as a retiree is that these institutions are accustomed to working with older students, and a 60 plus student will feel right at home in a setting where many of their classmates are over 50.

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Six years ago this week, the U.S. Supreme Court created a Wild West of campaign finance regulations. With their decision in Citizens United, five justices set the stage for a flood of secret special interest money trying to buy elections nationwide. But with the race for the White House well underway, voters are only now seeing the full consequences of unchecked political spending.



From the Iowa caucuses to local elections in Las Cruces, N.M., Super PACs have taken center stage. They host fundraisers headlined by their candidates and spawn field operations with canvassers on their payroll. Just recently, the Federal Election Commission -- which is supposed to enforce our election laws -- decided in a 4-2 vote that candidates themselves need all but ask a wealthy donor for a blank check to their supportive Super PAC. These shadowy organizations are upending campaigns as we know them -- with near impunity -- and shaping elections as a result.



Citizens United and 2014's McCutcheon decision gutted sensible laws that helped ensure all voters have an equal voice in our democracy. We need to overturn those bad decisions -- and that's why I've led efforts to amend the Constitution and restore Congress' ability to pass commonsense campaign finance laws so lawmakers listen to the voters, not the person with the biggest checkbook.



But we can't forget the bigger picture. The approach we need to take to fix our politics is like a three-legged stool. Amending the Constitution is one leg -- we also need to reform redistricting and restore election law enforcement. Laws and regulations don't matter if no one enforces them.



In creating the FEC, Congress designed an agency that campaign finance experts have called "a watchdog without a bite." Gridlock is so pervasive one of its own commissioners admitted that there's a slim chance they'll be able to do anything at all this year, saying it's "worse than dysfunctional."



It's time to replace the broken FEC with a new agency empowered to keep a close eye on candidates, political parties and Super PACs, and crack down on election law violations. In the coming weeks, I plan to introduce legislation that would eliminate the FEC and start fresh.



I also plan to introduce the Fairness and Independence in Redistricting (FAIR) Act -- to bring impartiality to the secretive and highly partisan congressional redistricting process.



The president highlighted this issue in his State of the Union address last week, saying: "We've got to end the practice of drawing our congressional districts so that politicians can pick their voters and not the other way around."



In most states today, congressional maps are drawn behind closed doors -- by partisan lawmakers set on keeping incumbents in office. Pick almost any district in the country, and you'll see that virtually each one is skewed to favor one party or the other. Voters, not powerful elites, should have their say. What happened to choosing our own representation?



As a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives, I'm extremely familiar with the impact this practice has on our democracy.



We can end the gerrymandered status quo by requiring states to replace the current system with independent, citizen-led redistricting commissions. Arizona and California voters implemented similar plans and they're already bringing new faces to Congress.



Campaigns should be about the best ideas, not the biggest checkbooks or rigged districts. Sunlight is the best disinfectant, and we need it on both counts. Our democracy is better than this shadowy, anything goes Wild West.



Senator Tom Udall (D-N.M.) is a member of the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration.
Co-authored by Travis Rejman, Executive Director of the Goldin Institute and Rt. Rev. Baker Ochola, founding member of the Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative.

As the International Criminal Court begins the prosecution of Major General Dominic Ongwen, we call for him to be sent home to face justice.

A little over one year ago, Major General Dominic Ongwen, the notorious senior leader of the Lords Resistance Army, turned himself over to authorities on January 7th, 2015 through the circuitous route from the Seleka rebel group, to the US forces, to the Ugandan military, to the Central African Republic to the International Criminal Court where he now faces charges for crimes against humanity.

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Major General Ongwen was a notoriously brutal top commander who spent his entire adult life in the Lords Resistance Army (LRA) which terrorized communities in Northern Uganda, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic. Through his actions as a leader of the LRA's ongoing civil war, thousands of children and their families were killed, maimed and displaced.

Along with hundreds of civic leaders and everyday heroes in the region, the Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative (ARLPI) have worked for over three decades to protect the "night commuters," limit the abduction of children and broker a lasting peace agreement. In partnership with the Goldin Institute, ARLPI has more recently launched an initiative to train teachers in reconciliation methods and built a national-level partnership in Uganda to empower former child soldiers to lead the way on reintegration programs to heal war-torn communities and bring war-affected children home.

We have seen firsthand the destruction, the displacement, the years of missed schooling, the tragic loss of life, the sexual slavery, the abduction and trauma of child soldiers, the forced eating of human flesh and orders to kill family members, the scarred faces and missing limbs of children and parents that is the result of the LRA war.

We know firsthand the cost of the carnage and the need for justice.

What could be more clear than demanding justice in the face of these crimes against humanity?

Major General Ongwen's role in these atrocities is not in question. Demanding justice is not in question. The meaning of justice is.

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As we stand in solidarity with the children of the region who have born the worst of the cruelty and human rights violations, we must acknowledge that Major General Dominic Ongwen was also one of these children.

Before he was a feared and notorious commander, Ongwen was child who became a victim of the LRA when he was abducted at age 10 while walking to school. He had already been brutalized, indoctrinated and forced to commit unspeakable atrocities before he was 12 years old. He was told that he was doing God's work by being a soldier, cleansing his country by killing, and defending his family and neighbors from southern aggressors.

There is no denying or excusing the crimes against humanity that were committed by Major General Ongwen. At the same time, like other children in the region, Ongwen was failed by our families, our churches and mosques, our communities, our institutions, our governments and the international community who had responsibility to care for and protect our children.

Ongwen's dual status as both a victim and a perpetrator leaves us all grappling with many troubling and vexing questions. Should a child forced to commit atrocities be prosecuted for the same crimes for which he or she is also a victim?

Perhaps most importantly, who should be empowered to make these difficult decisions about the nature and practice of justice?

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While the International Criminal Court now has custody of Major General Ongwen as well as his fate through his trial, many in Northern Uganda argue for his return home to face justice of a different kind. The Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative and others believe that real justice can not be achieved through prosecution at the Hague, but rather are calling for the use of Mato Oput, the cultural justice system that is traditional and indigenous to the Acholi community of Northern Uganda from which Dominic Ongwen comes.

Mato Oput is a community-based social justice system that is holistic in nature and seeks restorative rather than punitive justice. For Ongwen, this process would start with rituals of truth telling that permits no lies, deceptions or denials in front of the whole community. We have seen the power of similar truth and reconciliation processes in bringing a sense of justice, healing and reconciliation to local communities for centuries.

Along with many other components of the Mato Oput justice system, such as the nyono-tonggweno ritual, we can help restore the humanity of all victims, including Ongwen, and begin the healing process we so desperately need after decades of bloodshed. Restorative justice is the best chance to heal as well as inoculate communities from these horrific crimes of using children as combatants in the future. If there is anything useful that can be learned from Ongwen's experience, the people of Acholiland are best equipped to uncover it.

Some in Uganda and around the world will argue that justice demands his prosecution and punishment. Further, some will argue that a trial at the Hague will enable a justice that is globally recognized and will serve as a deterrent. We do not deny that the International Criminal Court can play a critical and helpful role, especially in cases when local tensions and power imbalances make it difficult to achieve a fair and legitimate trial.

However, Ongwen committed his crimes in communities far from the Hague. In the words of Sheikh Musa of the Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative,

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It was our community that failed to protect him from abduction. It is our community that needs restoration and justice. Our fates and our justice are intertwined with former child soldiers like Ongwen who remain our children and should be recognized as some of the most deeply scarred victims of this war.

True justice will require a deep reconciliation and a shared commitment to ensure that no children suffer this tragic fate in the future. True justice will require that former child soldiers themselves bring the insight that only they possess as a result of their experience to our collective efforts towards conflict prevention. True justice will recognize that prosecuting Ogwen may deter others from the LRA from defecting and returning home, thus prolonging the conflict and endangering additional children.

We are pleased to announce that the Acholi Religious Leaders Peace Initiative stand willing and ready to accept Major General Dominic Ongwen home to face justice through the use of Mato Oput. We pledge to continue our joint efforts to reintegrate former child soldiers back into our communities and into the work of bringing true, restorative justice to the people of Uganda and the region.

Please send Ongwen home to help us all reach true justice.
Even before the Cold War and the so-called "McCarthy Era" (named after Wisconsin Senator, Joseph McCarthy), individuals and groups on the political and theocratic Right have flung the term "Socialist" as an expletive from their metaphoric sling shots into the faces of their political opponents to discredit their characters and dismiss their political ideas and policies, and to sway the electorate toward a Conservative agenda. This continues to this very day as evidenced by opponents of Senator Bernie Sanders who has described himself as a "Democratic Socialist."

As destructive and as freedom-killing as the Right would have us believe, according to the World English Dictionary, Socialism involves "a theory or system of social organization that advocates the vesting of the ownership and control of the means of production and distribution, of capital, land, etc., in the community as a whole," where each of us has a stake and advances in the success of our collective economy.

No country in the world today stands as a fully Socialist state, but rather, some of the most successful economies combine elements of Capitalism with Socialism to create greater degrees of equity and lesser disparities between the rich, the poor, and those on the continuum in between.

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I, therefore, would say to those who thrust the term "Socialist" as a curse word, if a Socialist is one who advocates for a governmental single-payer quality universal health care system, which includes safe and reasonably-priced prescription and over-the-counter drug therapies, then we should all be Democratic Socialists!

If a Socialist is one who demands that our country protects and enhances our Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid safety nets, then we should all be Democratic Socialists!

If a Socialist is one who advocates for the further nationalization of our parks, forests, mountains, rivers, streams, shores, and off-shore waters, rather than allocating increased corporate mining, drilling, and timber rights, then we should all be Democratic Socialists!

If a Socialist is one who advocates for free and quality education, not only through grade 12, but throughout higher education and after for everyone who desires and works to achieve their fullest potential, then we should all be Democratic Socialists!

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If a Socialist is one who advocates for a government-sponsored program that guarantees our seniors a retirement system that ensures a high quality of life free from economic burdens, then we should all be Democratic Socialists!

If a Socialist is one who advocates for the rights of workers to organize and to collectively bargain for better wages and working conditions, then we should all be Democratic Socialists!

If a Socialist is one who battles to eliminate workplace and larger societal inequalities based on race, nationality, citizenship status, age, sex, sexual identity, gender expression, disability, socioeconomic standing, religion, and other social identities, then we should all be Democratic Socialists!

If a Socialist is one who works to ensure that everyone is guaranteed a comfortable and secure place to live, and one who fights against a banking system that forecloses people's homes through scurrilous business practices, then we should all be Democratic Socialists!

If a Socialist is one who supports effective governmental regulations on food producers to safeguard our food supply and protect against the maltreatment of animals, and on corporations, companies, and individuals to defend our environment, then we should all be Democratic Socialists!

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If a Socialist is one who supports severe restrictions on the political process to prevent mammoth contributions by individuals and corporations to buy and own politicians to influence public policy, while locking out individuals and groups unable to amass large political funds, then we should all be Democratic Socialists!

If a Socialist is one who challenges a military industrial complex that marches to the beat of industry, and a prison industrial complex that perpetuates the racial and socioeconomic class inequities pervasive throughout the society, then we should all be Democratic Socialists!

If a Socialist is one who contests and advocates for effective restrictions on the so-called "free market" economic system that enables the creation and enhancement of mega monopolies, outsourcing of jobs, manufacture of defective products, and inhibition in the development of clean renewable energy technologies, then we should all be Democratic Socialists!

If a Socialist is one who demands a true progressive tax structure where everyone pays their fair share, one that inhibits massive inequities in the overwhelming accumulation of wealth by the top one percent of the nation as is currently the case, then we should all be Democratic Socialists!

This year, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development conducted its "Better Life Index" to determine the "happiest countries in the world," according to its residents. Based on an 11-measure survey assessing quality of life, including housing, income, jobs, community, education, the environment, health, work-life balance, and life satisfaction, most of the Scandinavian countries, plus Netherlands, Iceland, and Switzerland, and only one North American country, plus Australia, New Zealand, and Israel reached the top 10 ranked countries.

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Included in descending order are number one, Denmark, followed by Iceland, Switzerland, Norway, Israel, Finland, Netherlands, New Zealand, Canada (which provides a single-payer health care system unlike its North American neighbor, the United States), and Australia (which places severe restrictions on firearms ownership). I am saddened, but definitely not surprised, that the United States did not make the cut in the top 10. Therefore, we might do well to look to these countries for some of their Socialist policies that sustain high levels of quality of life issues for their residents.
Josh York is the Founder and CEO of GYMGUYZ, an in-home mobile personal training company headquartered in Plainview, New York. Since its inception in 2008, Josh has been valued for his hands-on leadership style growing the business and profitability to more than 1000 clients, 45 employees and a fleet of vans in less than six years.

Almost one-third of all Internet users watch YouTube, streaming hundreds of millions of hours of content every day. In the United States alone, adults will spend an average of 5.5 hours with video content each day this year.

The numbers alone make it a no-brainer; if you have the medium to market your business, filling up a YouTube channel with content should be on your to-do list. Every business wants virality -- whether it's in the form of a meme, video or image -- to catapult brand awareness and boost sales. But how do you stand out from the 300 hours of video uploaded to YouTube every minute?

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As the Founder and CEO of GYMGUYZ, an in-home mobile personal training company, I presented a challenge to myself and to my company: create a successful viral marketing video to generate more sales leads. For GYMGUYZ, creating our final masterpiece ("Shake It Off," a GYMGUYZ Parody) came down to four simple rules:

Get Creative

There's no easy answer or quick trick to creating an instant success. Hoping to find guidance in a viral video playbook is the same as reading an instruction manual on how to win the lottery. But if there's one thing all of these videos have in common, it's good, original content that captures the imagination.

How could we make a splash in a sea of mediocre uploads? With more cat videos, Adele song covers and makeup tutorials than the world knows what to do with, we had to come up with a concept that could stand out, so we had a bunch of adults sing and dance to one of the most popular teen sensations around, Taylor Swift. But instead of a straight cover, we wrote up our own lyrics to represent our company culture: working out and getting in shape.

Whatever You Do, Make Sure It's Funny

A study by Elon University analyzed 20 of Time Magazine's Best 50 Videos, identifying certain patterns that most often contributed to success. Laughter, irony and talent were just a few popular characteristics. All of these evoke some sort of emotion, and this starts the path to virality. Imagine your friend told you a joke or a funny story -- chances are that you'd pass that joke or story on to your other friends and they'd soon tell their friends because they'd want to make their friends laugh too. This is exactly what is happening in the online world when it comes to viral videos, so it's important to incorporate true emotion into your videos.

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We decided to market ourselves by having GYMGUYZ staff parody Taylor Swift's "Shake It Off." It's current, funny, relatable (let's be honest, who can't relate to our line "I stay up too late, eating those cupcakes?") and just the right amount of weird. We danced, sang and laughed a lot. But most importantly, we had fun doing it. And I think that comes through in the final cut.

Project Your Company Culture

If a video is successful, it is likely to be the first time many viewers hear about your company, especially if you are a young business. It's for this reason that your video needs to ooze your brand's personality without giving the "hard sell."

I wanted to capture our culture in a video -- to show people that we're a lot of fun and have an amazing culture. After watching the video, I wanted viewers to think: "This would be an amazing place to work, as well as an amazing opportunity for a franchise." If there's one rule to follow when creating a viral marketing video, it's this: just be yourself. Not only is it rewarding to portray your truest self, but your audience will appreciate that you're also a genuine, walking, living, breathing human -- and not just a company.

Make It Easy to Be Publicized

You need to make your video easy for viewers who like it to share with others. This is hands down the most powerful way to increase virality, and it's incredibly easy. After you make a compelling, creative and funny video, share it with people who would care about what you have to say. Encourage them to share it with others, and you have started the ripples of virality.
Rohith Vemula/ Facebook

On the volatile campus of the Hyderabad Central University, the friends of Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula, who hanged himself from a ceiling fan using a political banner for a rope on Sunday night, live in a state of shock and denial. Rohith was a well-liked student activist. Expelled from the university after an alleged altercation with a then ABVP student leader, his friends say he was sleeping out in the open -- which might have added to his feelings of helplessness and frustration.

"Rohith was deprived of his rights considering his political awareness. It's a clear case of helplessness," Dayal Paleri, a Students Federation of India (SFI) member and a friend of Rohith told HuffPost India.

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His friends staunchly maintain that Rohith was not depressed.

"Rohith was an excellent human being. A lot of people knew him well, and whenever he needed any help a lot of people would step forward to help him," Ramjee Chintagada, a friend Rohith mentioned in his suicide note, says.

There is also disquiet about the manner of his cremation. The students claimed Rohith's body was quietly cremated by the police on Tuesday. It was taken away for post-mortem right after his death. However, protesting students allege that the police had told them that Rohith would be cremated in Uppal. When his friends reached there, they found out that his body had already been cremated at Amberpeth where neither his family nor his friends were present.

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Rohith would have turned 27 on 30 January. He apparently told his friends hours before his death that he did not even money to give them a small treat on his brithday. He had not received his fellowship in the last 7 months.

"Rohith Was Deprived Of His Rights" Declare Protestors

Friends Recall What Happened Between ABVP And Rohith

On 2 August last year, when ASA (Ambedkar Students Association) were protesting against the alleged attack and vandalism by members of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad at the screening of Muzaffarnagar Baaqi Hain, a documentary by Nakul Singh Sawhney. The next day, ASA protesters allege, Susheel Kumar, an ABVP leader posted derogatory comments on Facebook targeting ASA and labelling them as "goons". About 20 students, Rohith among them, approached Susheel to question him on these posts. Kumar withdrew his post and wrote an apology. Soon after, Kumar lodged a complaint with the proctorial board saying five Dalit students -- Dontha Prashanth, Rohith Vemula, Vijay Kumar, Seshu Chemudugunta and Sunkanna -- had assaulted him. Acting on this complaint, the board took down the statements of the doctors who had treated him and certain security officers who were present when the episode unfolded.

"The medical expert said that Sushil had come in for an appendicitis surgery and there were no injuries."

According to Chintagada, the medical expert said that Susheel had come in for an appendicitis surgery and there were no injuries, while the security officers also denied witnessing any sort of violence. Kumar then produced two witnesses who vouched to the fact that he had been manhandled. According to sources, the proctorial committee stated that though there was no concrete evidence against the five Dalit students, but based on the account of the two witnesses whose names the authorities did not disclose, they decided to rusticate the five students from the university.

Protests followed this report which continued for two days and finally the Vice Chancellor agreed to revoke the expulsion due to inconsistencies in the various accounts. He also said that the university would constitute a fresh committee which would probe the matter. Interestingly, this committee was also dissolved soon after.

Meanwhile, Union Minister Bandaru Dattatreya wrote a letter to the HRD ministry saying ASA members in Hyderabad University were dabbling in 'casteist and anti-national politics'.

Rohith Vemula Suicide: Letters See Gallery

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Paleri says the decision to ostracize the five students was announced when most of the students were away on their winter break. The suspended students took to sleeping out in the open as a form of protest.

The protestors started a relay hunger strike on 17 January this year as a mark of protest. Rohith attended the ASA meeting at 10 am on Sunday but went missing after 12pm in the afternoon. His friends found him hanging in a hostel room in the evening.

This is the letter he sent the VC:

18 December 2015 To, The Vice Chancellor Subject: Solution for Dalit problem Sir, First, let me praise your dedicated take on the Self-Respect movements of Dalits in HCU campus. When an ABVP president got questioned about his derogatory remarks on Dalits, your kind personal interference into the issue is historic and exemplary. 5 Dalit students are "socially boycotted" from campus spaces. Donald Trump will be a lilliput in front of you. By seeing your commitment, I am tempted to give two suggestions as a token of banality. 1. Please serve 10mg Sodium Azide to all the Dalit students at the time of admission. With direction to use when they feel like reading Ambedkar. 2. Supply a nice rope to the rooms of all Dalit students from your companion, the great Chief Warden. As we, the scholars, PhD students have already passed that stage and already members of Dalit Self-Respect movement unfortunately, we here are left with no easy exit, it seems. Hence, I request your highness to make preparations for the facility "EUTHANASIA" for students like me. And I wish you and the campus rest in peace forever. Thanking You, Yours sincerely Vemula R Chakravarti

The Vice-Chancellor did not reply to this letter.

Protestors say this was a clear case of discrimination. They allege that Rohith and his friends did not have the resources to fight a drawn out court battle. They say there have been at least 9 Dalit deaths in Hyderabad University.

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michalz86 via Getty Images Realistic fiery explosion busting over a black background

NEW DELHI -- The father of a teenager has claimed that his son was murdered because he was a Hindu.

Seventeen-year-old Savan Rathod was reportedly made to drink petrol and burnt alive by three three assailants in the Kasba Peth locality of Pune on January 13. He died at a local hospital, two days later.

While Savan's father claims that his son was killed after he identified himself as Hindu, the local police don't believe there is a religious angle to the horrific crime. An investigation is being conducted over the theft of vehicle batteries as the trigger for the violence.

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Now, the Banjara community has come forward with a video in which the teenager confirms his father's narrative, The Indian Express reported today. It was shot in Sassoon hospital, where the teenager was treated for his injuries after the attack.

While on his death bed, Rathod said, I was working with my family in Pandhapur. I had a dispute with them and came to Pune looking for workWhile I was urinating, three persons objected and asked me my name. I said Savan Rathod. They asked me if I am Hindu? I said yes. Then they poured something over me from a can and set me on fire.

His father, Dharma Rathod, said: Savan left home about a week before his death following a petty quarrel with his sister. After coming to know about the incident, I reached Sassoon hospital on Thursday evening. I asked him what happened. From what he told me I believe that assailants did ask him whether he was a Hindu and then burnt him alive after he said yes'."

Members of the Banjara community, who recorded the video, asked Savan if he felt he was attacked because of his religion. The teenager is seen nodding in response, the newspaper reported.

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Ramesh Rathod, an advocate for the Banjara community, said: When we went to the hospital on Thursday evening Savans situation was bad. So we asked police to record his statement before he dies. But the cops refused, saying he himself was the complainant. So I recorded his dying declaration on my cellphone in the presence of his father and other activists. He did not mention anything about theft. Maybe, police fear that revealing the facts would create communal tensions.

The three suspects don't have a history of communal violence, Tushar Doshi, a senior police official, told IE. "Savan Rathods video at the hospital could be an afterthought as he did not mention anything of a communal nature when FIR was lodged," he said.

Now, right-wing Hindutva groups are likening the murder to Islamic State type killing, and accusing the police of downplaying the religious angle.

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Hindustan Times via Getty Images NEW DELHI, INDIA - JANUARY 18: Police detain the activists of various student organisations including KYS, SFI, AISA, SDPI and BAPSA during a protest outside HRD Ministry Office at Shashtri Bhawan demanding the resignation of the Hyderabad University vice-chancellor over the suicide of a Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula on January 18, 2016 in New Delhi, India. 26-year-old Vemula, a second-year research scholar of science, technology and society studies department at Hyderabad University, was found hanging in his friendas hostel room on Sunday night. He, along with four Dalit research scholars, was expelled from the University of Hyderabad 12 days ago over alleged fight with another student group. (Photo by Vipin Kumar/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

HYDERABAD -- Fresh protests rocked the Hyderabad Central University campus today with students seeking "unconditional" revocation of suspension of four dalit students and action against those responsible for the alleged suicide of research scholar Rohith Vemula.

A day after Hyderabad Central University revoked the suspension of four dalit students against whom action was taken along with Rohith, students said the revocation was not "unconditional", as per the circular issued by the university,

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Student leader, Zuhail, said it should be devoid of all conditions appended to it.

"One of our beloved friend was institutionally murdered. We are fighting for justice, still the University of Hyderabad feels that this is an extraordinary situation. Are they still mocking us. We can't even understand the language you are using...if the extraordinary situation goes away, will it (extraordinary situation) come back," Zuhail said.

The indefinite fast, started by seven students following the suicide of Vemula, entered the third day today and other forms of protests are also continuing.

A medical check-up was carried out on the fasting students this morning and the blood pressure of some of them was found varying, Zuhail said.

Asked about reports that Wi-Fi facility for students was disconnected in the university, he said they were not sure about it.

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However, some other students reported that the Wi-Fi network on the campus was slow.

Asked if there is any possibility of talks between the university authorities and the protesting students, Zuhail said it will be discussed by the students joint action committee, if an offer comes.

The university authorities had yesterday "terminated" the punishment imposed on the students, but the protesting students were not satisfied with the revocation of the suspension.

In solidarity with the students, the Controller of Examinations, Chief Medical Officer and Chief Warden were and 10 other faculty members belonging to SC-ST communities had given up their administrative posts, which they were holding as an additional responsibility.

File photo of one of the protestors holding a photo of Rohith Vemula

Vijaya Kumar, one of the students, whose suspension was revoked, had said this was not enough.

"The VC must go.This (revocation) is a welcome decision. But we can't celebrate it because Rohith is not there. We are not able to accept your decision. We have other demands like appropriate compensation and a job for one of the members of Rohith's family," he said.

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NEW DELHI -- A Delhi court has acquitted a man of the charges of raping a woman on false pretext of marriage observing that the two, being in the prime of their youth, had consensual intimate relations in "youthful eagerness".

Additional Sessions Judge Virender Bhatt, while acquitting Haryana resident Vikul Bakshi on the basis of the victim's "contradictory and inconsistent" statements, said the prosecution failed to prove charges against the accused.

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"It appears that the two, being in the prime of their youth, were having sexual relations with each other in youthful eagerness and nothing else," the court said.

It further said, "There is no evidence on record to suggest that the prosecutrix had given her consent to physical relations with the accused solely on the latter's promise to marry her or that he was having knowledge that she consented to physical relations with him only on promise to marry her."

The judge said the consent of the victim to establish physical relations with the accused appears to be voluntary and uninfluenced by any promise or assurance.

According to prosecution, the woman had lodged a case against Vikul Bakshi under sections 376 (rape) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of Indian Penal Code alleging that the accused forced upon her twice against her consent on false pretext of marriage and threatened to defame her if she insisted upon marrying her.

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However, relying on the messages exchanged between them on social networking sites, the court said it "clearly indicates that the prosecutrix herself was eager to have sexual relation with the accused and she was not doing so on any promise of marriage with him."

The court said the perusal of these messages show that these are not normal routine messages and the woman and the accused have been discussing the manner in which they would enjoy the intimate act.

"Hence these messages demonstrate that the prosecutrix was a consenting partner to physical relations with the accused and she herself had been eager to enjoy sex with him and the plan to have sexual encounter December 11, 2014 had been made well in advance and it was not spontaneous," it said.

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How many of you have heard of Wilbur Scoville?

If you haven't, let Google enlighten you about him with the fantastic doodle they have come up with in memory of Scoville's 151st birth anniversary.

Scoville was the creator of the Scoville Organoleptic Test, a scale of "hotness" that has been the definitive rating of how spicy a chilli is.

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Scoville, an American chemist, born in 1865 in Bridgeport, Connecticut, was also an award-winning researcher, and the second vice-chairman of the American Pharmaceutical Association. An article in India Today notes that his book, The Art of Compounding, makes one of the earliest mentions of milk as an antidote for pepper heat.

The Wilbur Scoville Google doodle includes a fun little game which then introduces us to the several kinds of chillies and peppers and also informs us about how hot they are compared to each other.

Once you click on the flame icon on the doodle, it takes you to a page which shows an animation of Scoville tasting chillies. Once he munches a chilli, a hand proceeds to offer him an ice cream. How many licks he takes off the ice cream is indicative of how hot the chilli is.

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For example he takes merely a lick of the ice cream when he pops a bell pepper in his mouth. But when he eats cayenne peppers, he himself lunges at the ice-cream and swallows the whole thing.

Immediately after, you are directed to a page where you have click on a sliding bar to have ice creams thrown at chillies. The ice cream traps the chilli in a block of ice. The more fiery a chilli is, the more ice creams it takes to trap the chilli.

Having said that, since you will never get to throw ice creams around in real life, why not give it a try on the internet?

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Hindustan Times via Getty Images JAIPUR, INDIA - JANUARY 21: Visitors attend the session The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon: Celebrating Alexander McCall Smith on first day of Jaipur literary festival 2016, on January 21, 2016 in Jaipur, India. Ninth edition of ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival is set to witness over 360 participants from the fields of literature, history, politics, economy, art and culture debate and discuss on one platform during the course of the next five days. (Photo by Himanshu Vyas/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

On day one of the festival, the major drama stayed disappointingly absent. Minor drama, however, had full play.

Done With Diggi?

Day One began surprisingly sunny, belying the foggy road that led there from Delhi even as late as 9 am. The biggest question for the past few days has been: will the festival continue at Diggi Palace, its original venue? That might have been great even a few years ago, but with the crowds growing exponentially with every year of the festival, it seems like it's time to put it out to pasture. The Rajasthan High Court admitted a PIL seeking to shift the venue 2 days before the festival and a DCP officer was rumoured to have been transferred after he denied permission for the venue to host the JLF this year.

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Festival Director Sanjoy Roy rushes to venue between sessions on first day of Jaipur literary festival 2016

Despite that, there was a go ahead after all, but Sanjoy Roy, one of the festival co-organisers mentioned in his opening speech that they were actively looking for somewhere new to host.

Good luck--combining the style and history of Diggi with sufficient infrastructure, capacity and charm, will be tough. That said, phone data speeds can only improve.

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How To Spot A Star

Convenient colour coding already done for you by the organisers! The speakers wear a name tag with a red band, the press wears green, the delegates (paid, sponsors etc) wear blue and the masses wear a white skinny rope.

Rajasthani dancers performs during the inauguration of JLF 2016 at Diggi Palace grounds on January 21

Bollywood Not-So-Secret Special Guest

Actor Kajol will be launching author Ashwin Sanghi's new book The Sialkot Saga on day three of the festival. Bonus points if you spot her and Karan Johar hanging about after.

The Gift Bags

In case you're curious about the contents of the delegates gift bags (I know I always am), here's what they got: BBC's History magazine, a Bloomsbury publishers diary, a bathroom kit bag containing one Dove shampoo, a set of Bombay postcards featuring poignant but pixellated images of the city, a box of chai masala and a bottle of hand sanitiser.

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Pressing The Question

The organisers manning the press desk have had to deal with loads of can I be press even if I haven't pre-registered yet? questions. Best of all was when a man came up to them, said, Do you know who I am? and threatened to make one of the women's names go viral if she didn't let him in. No word on virality yet.

Everyone Hates Air Travel

Booker winner Marlon James looked calm and unruffled, but his trip to the city was very bumpy as his Facebook rant suggests. Dude I just want to board my fucking flight. Oh it's delayed, you say? Nice first impression, India.

Canadian novelist poet, novelist and critic and guest of honour of JFL Margaret Atwood after delivering keynote address

Notable quotables

The reader is the musician of the book. - Margaret Atwood in her keynote address.

I sense an awakening in our women, saying: enough. - Shobhaa De in a session on modernity.

In order to tell a good story, you have to manipulate. - Ruskin Bond talking about scenes from a writer's life.

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I know there are lovely white people who are watching Making A Murderer and are going, Oh, the system is broken. And I was like, Oh really? Tell me more. - Marlon James on racism.

To be a novelist is to be a noticer. Colm Toibin on writing.

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JD (U) MLA Sarfaraz Alam, who went into hiding after the Patna police summoned him for allegedly abusing and molesting a woman on Rajdhani Express, denied the charge and maintained that he was not on that train.

In a telephonic interview to Times Now, Alam said he has already given his statement and will not go back on it. When asked if he will go to the police station to file his statement, Alam said the matter is already sub-judice and that he will face the matter in the court.

The incident reportedly occurred on January 17 when Alam misbehaved with a couple on the Rajdhani Express. An FIR was registered against him with the Patna railway police the next day. Following this, the police issued a summons against the MLA asking him to appear the next day.

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"We have served a notice to the MLA to appear in GRPPatna by 5 PM tomorrow for questioning in the matter," Railway Superintendent of Police P N Mishra told PTI.

"A summon notice has been sent to the MLA on WhatsApp and also through Jokihaat police station in his native place," the SP said.

He said a probe team, which had gone to Mughalsarai andNew Delhi for recording statements of the complainant and the train superintendent of Dibrugarh-New Delhi Rajdhani Express, has returned.

According to the complaint, the MLA was allegedly drunk and travelling without a ticket.

Train Superintendent Saheb Singh, in his statement, said Alam was travelling in the Rajdhani Express on that day without ticket, the SP said.

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Meanwhile, ruling JD(U) and RJD have distanced themselves from the MLA.

The MLA's father Mohammad Taslimuddin is a RJD Lok Sabha member from Araria.

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Hindustan Times via Getty Images PATNA, INDIA - OCTOBER 27: Gujarat CM and BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi with Shatrughan Sinha, former Bollywood actor and politician at the Hunkar rally on October 27, 2013 in Patna, India. The rally was preceded by a series of low-intensity blasts in the Bihar capital. One man was killed and five people were wounded in the blasts that occurred shortly before Modi arrived in Patna to launch the campaign. (Photo by AP Dube/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

PUNE -- BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha yesterday described Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a "dashing and dynamic" leader whose hands need to be strengthened, given the current "turmoil" in the country and threat to its security and unity.

"Looking at the present atmosphere in the country wherein security and unity has been threatened, it is really important that we should support PM Modi and strengthen his hands to (help) the nation overcome this turmoil," the Patna Sahib MP said.

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He was addressing a function at the Symbiosis International University where a panel discussion was organised on his biography "Anything But Khamosh" penned by Bharati Pradhan.

Sinha said he has been supporting Modi throughout.

"I referred to him (Modi) (as) dashing, dynamic and now that dynamism of his needs to be supported," Sinha told reporters.

On the ongoing debate over 'intolerance', the actor said he did not support the "award wapasi" and referred to a chapter from his book on how he had "whisked away" son of then Shahi Imam from Mumbai during the communal riots.

Commenting on Hyderabad University student Rohith Vemula's suicide, Sinha said "whatever happened is heartrending and condemnable".

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PTI

Prashant Kishor, the political campaign strategist for Nitish Kumar in the Bihar elections, has been appointed advisor on policy and programme implementation in the chief ministers office. He will hold cabinet rank.

Before the end of January, the Bihar government is likely to announce the creation of Bihar Vikas Mission, a new body to help deliver governance and development. A Prashant Kishor brainchild, this body will be headed by the chief minister and its board will include all cabinet ministers.

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The Bihar Vikas Mission will hire over 1,200 private sector consultants, researchers and professionals, injecting them at all levels of government from CM to DM, the chief ministers office to that of the district magistrate. These professionals will strengthen the system and make it deliver.

This will give lateral entry to youth in the administration, without disturbing it in any way, said a source in Kishors team, the Indian Political Action Committee, or I-PAC. The same model that we have implemented with electon campaigning, of an outside professional team working with the party, we are hoping to make it work in governance, he added.

The idea is similar to the one Kishor had proposed to prime minister Narendra Modi in 2014. After crafting the Modi campaign through his Citizens for Accountable Governance, Kishor had proposed a similar body to work with the central government bureaucracy. After some thinking, prime minister Modi, sources say, came under pressure from finance minister Arun Jaitley and BJP president Amit Shah to not do so.

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Sources in Kishors team say the idea is not to create a parallel infrastructure but strengthen the bureaucratic machinery, showing its value to bureaucrats and politicians alike. After 68 years of independence there is only 3% piped water connectivity. The Bihar government has to make it reach 100% by the next assembly election. Thats the sort of task the Bihar Vikas Mission will help achieve.

The Bihar government has held consultations with top bureaucrats about the plan. The Bihar Vikas Mission's mandate will be three-fold: to find solutions to problems, to find the resources to implement them, particularly domain experts, and finally to ensure timely execution. "Even the worst politician likes to deliver governance so he can win the next election. But in the Indian bureaucracy, it can take months to bring out a tender. The Bihar Vikas Mission will ensure the speed of implementation is not held back," the source said.

ALSO READ: Strategist Prashant Kishor To Be Advisor To CM Nitish Kumar

Nitish Kumar in his election campaign had made 7 promises, called Nitish Nischay  Vikas ki Guarantee. Apart from drinking water through taps in every house, the promises included employment for youth, uninterrupted electricity supply to every house, building of toilets, higher education, roads and drainage up to every doorstep and reservations for women in government jobs. The last of these has already been implemented, with the Bihar governments recent announcement that women will have 35% reservations.

The Bihar government is also likely to earmark most of its forthcoming budget to deliver on these seven promises.

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ASSOCIATED PRESS Indians light candles as they pay tribute to Indian soldiers killed in the Pathankot air base attack, in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, Jan 6, 2016. Indian forces have killed the last of the six militants who attacked an air force base near the Pakistan border over the weekend, the defense minister said Tuesday, though soldiers were still searching the base as a precaution.(AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)

As protests continued at the volatile Hyderabad University campus over the death of a Dalit research scholar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke up for the first time since Rohith Vemula used a political banner to hang himself on Sunday night inside a hostel room. The Prime Minister, who was addressing a convocation ceremony at the Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar University in Lucknow, said Vemula "was compelled to commit suicide".

"A mother has lost her son, I feel the pain," Modi said. "A young son of my country, Rohith, was compelled to commit suicide, what his family must have gone through, I can feel the pain. Reasons and politics may have their own place but the fact remains that a mother has lost her son," he said.

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The PM broke his silence over the incident for the first time since 26-year-old Vemula, who was expelled by the Hyderabad Central University over a clash with an Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) leader in August last year, hanged himself.

Vemula's colleagues on the campus have alleged that he was a victim of caste discrimination. The incident has snowballed into a massive political controversy with the students demanding the resignation of Vice Chancellor Appa Rao Podile and Union labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya. Both their names have been mentioned in an FIR filed after Vemula's suicide.

On Thursday, the university decided to revoke the suspension of the Dalit scholars, but agitating students have rejected the move claiming that it was not enough. Dalit professors of the university yesterday threatened to quit over the incident. Professor Prakash Babu, Dean of Student's Welfare, has also rejected Union Minister Smriti Irani's claim that he was present as a member of the Executive Council when the decision to expel the students was taken.

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Earlier in the week, Iranis efforts to downplay the caste angle had backfired as university students and opposition parties accused her of lying.

"This is not a Dalit versus non-Dalit confrontation," Irani had told reporters at a press conference on Wednesday.

"Malicious attempt is being made to ignite passions and make it caste battle," she said. "Passions have been ignited due to misinformation, misrepresentation. This is an attempt to set the record straight."

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Vemula in a letter purportedly written to the VC had said he had not got his fellowship for the past seven months. Questions are also being raised whether the HRD ministry, which wrote as many as five letters to the university, played a part in pushing Vemula, who was sleeping out in the open in a makeshift tent because he was not allowed into any hostel room on the campus, to the brink.

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Alexei Nikolsky via Getty Images MOSCOW, RUSSIA. JANUARY 21, 2016. Russia's President Vladimir Putin looks on at a meeting of the Presidential Council for Science and Education at the Moscow Kremlin. Alexei Nikolsky/Russian Presidential Press and Information Office/TASS (Photo by Alexei Nikolsky\TASS via Getty Images)

The Morning Wrap is HuffPost India's selection of interesting news and opinion from the day's newspapers. Subscribe here to receive it in your inbox each weekday morning.

Essential HuffPost

Russian President Vladimir Putin probably approved a plan by the countrys security service to kill a former agent-turned-Kremlin critic who died after drinking tea laced with radioactive poison, a British judge said in a strongly worded report that led Moscow to accuse Britain of souring bilateral relations.

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A zonal officer was busted for watching a porn clip on his phone during the Bhopal Council Meeting. According to a report, the officer was suspended, following which there was a departmental inquiry and a ban on carrying mobiles during meetings.

The legendary Indian classical dancer, Mrinalini Sarabhai, died in Ahmedabad at the age of 98. She succumbed to complications related to old age, her family said. In 1948, Sarabhai set up an institute of dance in Ahmedabad where she trained thousands of dancers and choreographers.

An association of women lawyers of the Supreme Court are fighting for a law to castrate men who rape children. A PIL filed urged the apex court to consider a revision of the existing laws against rape and include chemical castration as a punishment for people who sexually assault children.

National Bravery Awards 2015: Meet the 25 children who will be recognised for their courage.

Main News

Tobacco and real estate baron Mohammed Nisham was sentenced to life imprisonment and fined Rs 71 lakh compensation for the murder of a security guard last year. Nisham slammed his Hummer into the guard, 50-year-old K Chandrabose, because he was too slow to open the gates.

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Students at the University of Hyderabad, protesting the suspension of five research scholars, one of whom (Rohith Vemula) committed suicide, rejected the executive councils decision to revoke the suspension with immediate effect and an appeal to return to classes. They demanded the Vice Chancellors resignation.

The alleged Islamic State module busted with the arrest of four students in Uttarakhand was reportedly meant to be a smokescreen set up by Pakistans ISI to send Indian intelligence agencies on a wild goose chase. The investigator found the men had more information on a module based in Pakistan than any in Syria or Iraq.

The Trinamool Congress hit back Union Home minister Rajnath Singh for his attack on Mamata Banerjee government saying the Malda (violence) incident was his party's creation and he should not be on a mission to stoke communal tension.

Kusuma Rani, the 31-year-old IBM staffer who was found strangled in her flat in Bengaluru, was murdered by her Facebook friend whom she got to know just three weeks ago, the police said. Financial dispute is suspected to be the primary motive.

President Pranab Mukherjee will host a lunch for 100 women achievers selected in an online contest.

Off The Front Page

After 15 years of marriage, actor Farhan Akhtar and his wife Adhuna are calling it quits. They confirmed their decision to separate with an official media statement, which declared that their children remain their priority, and they would like, at this time, to protect them from unwarranted speculation.

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Former Goldman Sachs Group Inc director Rajat Gupta was released from a federal correctional facility on January 5 to serve out the rest of his prison sentence at home, The New York Times reported. Gupta will remain a federal inmate until March 13 and will be confined to his apartment. He was convicted in 2012 in an insider trading case and sentenced to a two-year prison term in Massachusetts.

The Net neutrality debate entered its final stages as telecom service providers and activists stuck to their stands at an open session hosted by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) on differential pricing. Trai has given parties until Monday evening to send in additional comments.

A man accused of raping a woman on the false pretext of marriage was acquitted by a Delhi court, saying the two in the prime of their youth had a consensual intimate relationship in youthful eagerness.

Allowing a final meeting between a death-row prisoner and his family as well as comprehensive health screening for women prisoners are among a slew of measures proposed by the new Model Prison Manual.

Opinion

Two IIT-Delhi alumni use light to persuade invisible bits of semiconductor material to kill drug-resistant bacteria. Fashioned in water from semiconductor materialsimilar to that used in solar panels or mobile phonesthe particles, or quantum dots, as their inventors call them, destroyed 92% of drug-resistant bacteria in a laboratory trial. Samar Harlankar writes why this is important in India, the worlds largest consumer of antibiotics.

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If, instead of handing your yellow metal over to the government, you opted to buy a barrel of oil with it, you would get more barrels of oil per ounce of gold now than at any time in the past, writes Sitaraman Shankar in The Hindustan Times.

Rohith Vemula was only the latest in a long line of Hyderabad college students who committed suicide. Yet, the politicisation of his death has less to do with this tragedy and more to do with his Dalit activism, writes Priyadarshi Dutta in The Pioneer.

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SFX Borrows $20M At 20% Interest, Uses Promoter ID&T As Collateral

SFX is openly exploring bankruptcy and the sale of assets to avoid implosion. But to buy some time, CEO Robert Sillerman and a board of directors that he seems to have under his spell have borrowed $20 million under very unfavorable terms to keep the company afloat.

By Dave Brooks, editor of the essential live music industry trade Amplify

Weve finally discovered the details of SFXs lifeline loan announced late last week. SFX CEO Robert Sillerman announced in a filing Thursday that his company would be taking out a $20 million loan from Catalyst Fund Limited Partnership. SFX had planned to borrow $30 million from Catalyst late last year, but that deal collapsed after Sillerman failed to provide his share of financing.

The borrowed money would not come cheap  SFX was borrowing the money at 20% annual interest and had to put most of its European holdings up as collateral including Belgian firm ID&T which promotes Mysteryland and Sensation. SFX has one year to pay the loan back.

Its basically a Band-Aid for the next few months, former investor Steven Azarbad told the New York Business Journal. Azarbad is the co-founder of Manhattan investment firm Maglan Capital and exited SFX earlier last year. They have this facility to give them more time to get their affairs in order, but it does not stop any bankruptcy talk in my mind, he added. Its just a question of when.

SFX spokesman Edmund Tagliaferri told the New York Business Journal The $20 million is for current operations.

Given the companys string of defaults, its not hard to imagine a scenario where the company defaults on their loan and loses most of its European brands

Below is a complete list of SFX Dutch and German properties being used as collateral in the deal: SFXE Netherlands Holdings B.V., SFX Europe B.V., ID&T Holding B.V., ID&Q Licenties B.V., Q-Licenties V.O.F., ID & T Trademark B.V., Q-Dance Licenties B.V., DTW Holding B.V., i-Motion GmbH Events & Communication, B2S Licenties B.V., B2S Management B.V., and SFXE International Holdings C.V.

On Wednesday, S&P once again downgraded SFXs credit rating, this time to junk status. In the event of a default, S&P said lenders would likely be able to recover 30-50% of the principal of the company.

The downgrades reflect our view that SFXs liquidity and cash flow metrics will continue to significantly deteriorate, and we expect a payment default to be a virtual certainty, regardless of the time to default, said Standard & Poors credit analyst Khaled Lahlo. We believe a restructuring or bankruptcy could occur within the next six months, and there is a high likelihood that SFX would miss the $15 million senior secured coupon payment due in February 2016 because of the liquidity crisis it is facing.

Check of more from Dave Brooks on Amplify

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Despite wide reports of accidents involving autonomous vehicles, a significant number of industry analysts still expect the cars to become an important part of the US transportation system by 2025. With that, of course, comes a complete transformation  and possible decimation  of the countrys auto insurance industry.Im not saying auto will go away in the next eight years, but because it is the main product that leads into eventual homeowners, life and other insurance purchases, it is really going to change the dynamic of how people connect with insurance, Coverhound CEO Keith Moore told Insurance Business America last year.In fact, advisory and research firm KMPG predicts that the advent of driverless cars could mean a shrinking of the personal auto industry to less than 40% of its original size in the next 25 years. Under this new paradigm, manufacturers would take on the burden of liability while drivers will likely need to buy insurance only for policies that cover non-crash damage or theft.And while most of the auto insurance carriers that dominate the US market appear to be ignoring this eventuality, there are signs that one is realigning its services to adapt to a new environment.In a new blog post on NerdWallet, the site suggests that State Farm is seeking a reinvention of itself as a life management company  a phrase the insurer included on a recent patent application with the federal government.State Farms application, Aggregation and Correlation of Data for Life Management Purposes, details the companys plans to analyze data about a customers risks, ranging from vehicles to home and personal health, and find patterns within that data with which to offer personalized recommendations, insurance discounts and other added values or services.To do that, the carrier plans to collect data about customers homes  including security, energy use and home automation, vehicles and drivers mental states, and health, including weight, blood pressure, and sleeping patterns reported on by wearable, implantable, ingestible or hand-held personal health sensors.State Farm would then use the data to send insurance discounts as well as advice or coupons for other services.A spokesperson from the carrier addressed privacy concerns, telling NerdWallet it takes the privacy of our customers seriously and does not plan to sell any consumer information it collects.With this new emphasis on life management rather than the servicing of insurance policies, State Farm may be able build a future in which the radical change coming to driverless cars is not fatal.And that makes State Farm unique among carriers. According to the KPMG survey, most senior insurance executives believe any change coming to auto will happen far in the future, or not at all. Accordingly, a full 32% say they have done nothing to prepare for driverless cars and 23% have little to no understanding of the vehicles.While this stands to severely impact insurance companies, however, many dont anticipate a similar fallout for insurance agents, who have adjusted to life without auto insurance as the product becomes increasingly commoditized.Owners of these cars may be taking on responsibility for a piece of technology when they purchase these vehicles, said John Tiene, who represents thousands of independents as CEO of Agency Network Exchange in New Jersey. You may not be buying a liability policy anymore, but you may need a cyber policy or an operator policy or any number of new insurance products.For that reason, he says, the role of the independent agent is safe.The reality is theres still going to be a huge need  maybe even a greater need  for professional insurance agents and risk managers to help owners of driverless cars navigate what will be a much more complicated insurance world than it is today, said Tiene. It may actually create more work.
During one of his campaign stops on Jan. 21, Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz told his audience that he is not currently covered by any health insurance. He used his story as a launching point for criticism against the ACA, despite one of his claims running contrary to current insurance figures."Ill tell you, you know who one of those millions of Americans is whos lost their health care because of Obamacare? That would be me," Cruz shared with a Manchester, New Hampshire crowd.He said that his coverage ended because his insurer, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, dropped its individual policies last Dec. 31."So our health care got canceled, we got a notice in the mail, Blue Cross Blue Shield was leaving the market. And so were in the process of finding another policy," Cruz said.Previously, the Cruz family was covered under a health insurance plan provided by Goldman Sachs, where Cruzs wife Heidi was employed. On March, Heidi went on unpaid leave to help in her husbands campaign. It was at that point that Ted Cruz said that he would consider finding alternative health coverage options through the ACA exchanges, settling for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas.Cruz said that his family was "in the process of finding another policy" following Blue Cross and Blue Shields untimely cancellations.He took the opportunity to criticize the ACA with his story."But our premiums we just got a quote, our premiums are going up 50 percent," he argued. "Thats happening all over the country. Thats happening in New Hampshire."Although premiums increased throughout the country this year, none of them actually surged by up to 50%, as Cruz claimed.
Piping in the haggis at The Rhinecliff(N.Y.) hotel and restaurant. The restaurant will be holding its Burns Supper next week.

Burns Suppers Celebrate Scotland's Favorite Poet & Haggis

Monday, Jan. 25, will be the Scottish poet Robert Burns' 257th birthday.

The poet and lyricist, collector of folk songs, farmer and liver-of-life-to-the-fullest, was so beloved that, only a few years after his early death at the age of 37, friends began the tradition of celebrating his birthday with merriment, music, feasting, dancing and drinking which persists into the present.

Scots and fans of the poet all over the world still celebrate his birthday with bagpipes, readings, singing, feasting and drinking  eating haggis and other, more elegant fare; drinking stout, ale, beer and scotch. Burns Night Suppers now happen all over the globe, pretty much in the same manner whether in Scotland, Oregon, Japan, India or, as in 2011, 19,000 feet up as a fundraiser on the top of Mount Kilimanjaro.

If you're not Scottish or you haven't been following Robert Burns, what, you may be asking, is haggis? And, why is haggis part of this birthday?

Haggis is a soft, meatloaf/pate/pudding-like mixture of sheep kidney, liver, heart, unpopular cuts and, outside of the United States, lung, bound with oatmeal and suet, flavored with savories like onion and herbs. Haggis was originally encased in the sheep's stomach but now is often stuffed into plastic casing as is common with today's cold cuts.

It is an ancient food, made famous by Burns' "Address to a Haggis" which is read at Burns birthday celebrations and why it is then served.

It may not sound it but haggis is delicious. Think what goes into a breakfast sausage or kielbasa or your favorite meatloaf or pate. Wikipedia has a nice little entry on haggis. With photos.

Burns Suppers are about a lot more than just eating. There is a protocol to follow and lots of piping [bagpipes], singing and reading and declaiming of Burns poems and songs.

Guests are welcomed, "The Selkirk Grace" is said and then the haggis is presented.

The haggis itself is carried into the dining hall with fanfare, to the strains of bagpipes. It is then is honored with the reading of Burns' "Address to a Haggis," cut open and served all around.

In Scotland, some celebrations include drumming and Scottish dancing. Some serve bridies/meat pies and peas. Some are formal with cocktails and canapes.

In New England, Burns Night is celebrated from Hyannis to Boston to Springfield to Deerfield, Providence, R.I., Enfield, Conn., and Albany, N.Y.

There's a dinner in Brooklyn and a whole weekend of events around Robbie Burns and Scottish food and drink and music out near the Finger Lakes in Cazenovia, N.Y.

So, where can you go to find haggis and neaps/turnips and tatties/potatoes and people declaiming to them around here this weekend?

Not very far away, as it turns out.

In Chatham, N.Y., and in the Pioneer Valley and Springfield area, some Burns Night events will take place this weekend. One already happened last weekend.

The most constant celebration of Robert Burns takes place every year at Peint O Gwrw (518-392-2337), a Welsh pub at 36 Main St. in the middle of Chatham. No reservations are needed. Just show up.

This Friday, Jan. 22, will be the 14th year chef, bartender and owner Tom Hope will be presenting the haggis.

"At 6 sharp. I'm very punctual," Hope said.

His friend, piper Neil Roberts, will pipe the haggis in, from the back of the pub to the front, take a sgian-dubh, (Hope pronounced it skin-tuh)  a small Scottish knife worn stuck into the sock with the decorative hilt showing when wearing traditional Scottish dress, a kilt  and stab the beastie/the haggis then recite the Burns' "Address to a Haggis."

"We'll all be wearing kilts," Hope told me.

He also explained that Hope and Roberts are both Scottish names.

"My grandfather was Scottish from just over the line in Yorkshire. That's where the Hope clan castle is."

His family has a castle in Scotland! But Hope is too busy with Peint O Gwrw for the last 15 years to visit anymore.

"I ordered the haggis up from Stewarts Scottish Market in Kearny, N.J. A true Scottish deli. They only do Scottish food," he said.

"And I'll be making the vegan haggis. I love making it. Maybe I should call it a vegetarian haggis. It has butter."

"I make it with two kinds of oatmeal, mushrooms, carrots, onions, two kinds of nuts, two kinds of kidney beans, Marmite and lots of rosemary  and I do it in a non-meat casing," he said.

"I'll also be doing neaps and tatties which is potatoes and rutabaga," he added.

"And there'll be Scotch. We'll pass it around in a flagon."

Then, he said, they'll serve dinner, for which he does not charge. He knows he will make the night's money on drinks.

Hope said he is trying to get a firkin, a nine-gallon quarter barrel of stout to place on the bar for the night.

"But they are difficult to come by. They spray all over when you drive in the tap and they are best the first night you open them," he said.

A mess, a production, but a tradition he looks forward to.

At 8, Side Show Willie, a rock 'n' roll band, will begin to perform so best arrive at Peint O Gwrw before 6 if your focus is Robert Burns and haggis.

On Saturday, Jan. 23 at 5 p.m., there will be a Burns Night Supper at Champney's Restaurant & Tavern at the Deerfield Inn. The Inn said they will have "a night of pipes, scotch, kilts, poetry and song  and a slice of authentic haggis."

The inn said the menu for the Burns Night supper is always the same.



The table is set for last year's Burns Supper at Blantyre in Lenox. The Blantyre celebrates every other year, so get your reservations for 2017.

They start with a platter of crudites and their own very dense brown bread. The cock-a-leekie soup, a rich chicken soup and a glass of whiskey. Then haggis and clapshot, a mash of potatoes, rutabaga and carrots, followed by a tossed winter vegetable salad.

Diners then have a choice of salmon or venison, lamb and beef fricasee, both traditional Scottish dishes.

Next there will be oat cakes with cheddar cheese and, for dessert, Scotch chocolate mousse -- laced with Scotch.

The first glass of whiskey is part of the dinner. Further drinks are available for sale.

"We do have an amazing collection of Scotches,' they said.

The cost is $65 including tax and gratuity. Tickets may be ordered from Brown Paper Tickets, http://www.brownpapertickets.com/browse.html with a $3.27 service fee. Call the inn's reservation line, 413 772-3087, with any questions and to reserve a table for your clan.

Also, this Saturday night, Jan. 23, The Colony Club, 1500 Main Street, Springfield, 413-732-4101, gm@colonyclubma.com,

At 6:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 29, The Rhinecliff, a hotel and restaurant at 4 Grinnell St. beside the Amtrak train station in Rhinecliff, N.Y., will be hosting a 3-course Scottish dinner by reservation. The menu will be cock-a-leekie soup, Highland beef stew with neeps and tatties and lemon curd shortbread for dessert.

The evening will be complete with bagpipes, storytelling and Neil Roberts in tartan kilt with sgian-dubh leading in the haggis, an ale and whiskey tasting  and more  for $39.95 or $29.95 at the bar, plus tax and 20 percent gratuity. Call 845-876 0590 for reservations.

You can go to Dorset, Vt., for a Burns birthday party at The Dorset Inn on the Green, 8 Church St. and Route 3, next Thursday, Jan. 28. Go just for the 5-course Scotch pairing with a Scottish-themed dinner, $65 with alcohol, $45 without alcohol, plus tax and gratuity; or do an overnight stay for two with breakfast for $275, .

The paired dinner includes 10-, 12- and 15-year whiskys, a Scottish ale and Drambuie, a spiced, herbed and honey-sweetened aged Scotch, with dessert and house smoked trout roe, Scotch quail eggs and fennel salad, house smoked goose, the haggis and a Drambuie fruitcake with Scotch ice cream.

Call 802-867-5500 for reservations and more information.

There will be a Burns Dinner at Celtic Hall, 430 Karner Road in Albany, N.Y., on Saturday, Jan. 30, starting at 5:30 p.m. Cost is $40 per person or $350 for a table of 10 before Jan. 22. Call 518-250-5890 for reservations and information.

As far as I can find out, there are no Burns Night celebrations here in the Berkshires although there were a couple of lovely ones at Blantyre in Lenox and Perigee Restaurant in South Lee a few years ago.

Since then, Blantyre celebrates Burns Night every other year, innkeeper Christopher Brooks told me. Last year it was very nice, he said.

"We had the bagpipes and all the traditional things," Brooks said. "We are planning to host Burns Night next year at Blantyre."

You can mark it on your calendar for 2017.

And be sure to wear your kilt. In 2011, those who wore a kilt got a 25 percent discount on the price of the evening. A proper Scots idea.
New Zealand Team Preview T20 World Cup 2022: 'Nice Guys' New Zealand May Once Again Surprise With Final Finish

'India Doesn't Take a Single Penny From Asian Cricket Council': Former Opener Claims Pakistan Will Definitely Take Part in ODI WC

T20 World Cup: No Ashwin, Pant in Harbhajan Singh's India XI For Crucial Pakistan Clash

'Bumrah's Absence is a Big Loss For India But Facing Shami And Bhuvneshwar Will be a Challenge For Pakistan'
We work towards an equitable,

gender-just, self-reliant and

sustainable fisheries,

particularly in the small-scale,

artisanal sector

We work towards an equitable,

gender-just, self-reliant and

sustainable fisheries,

particularly in the small-scale,

artisanal sector

We work towards an equitable,

gender-just, self-reliant and

sustainable fisheries,

particularly in the small-scale,

artisanal sector

We work towards an equitable,

gender-just, self-reliant and

sustainable fisheries,

particularly in the small-scale,

artisanal sector
Blue Angels Attend Imperial County Airport Aviation Day

Imperial, California - U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, the Blue Angels, attended the Imperial County Airport Aviation Day, Saturday.

The community came together to combine its Market Days with the airport's "open house."



One of the highlights of the event were the Young Eagles flights for children ages 8 to 17. The Imperial Valley's children had the opportunity to see their home from 1,500 feet in the air. The goal of the flight is to inspire children to pursue their hopes and dreams, and encourage their interest in aviation, engineering, mechanics, and other aviation fields.



"It makes sense that we come out and get to talk about what we do and kind of calm some of their nerves for the kids who are having their first flight," Marine Capt. Katie Higgins said. "I still remember, as a flight student, my very first flight. I was so nervous. It was an awesome experience, obviously I fell in love at 'first flight,' you could say."



The team will perform its first public flight demonstration of 2016 at Naval Air Facility El Centro, March 12.



The mission of the Blue Angels is to showcase the pride and professionalism of the United States Navy and Marine Corps by inspiring a culture of excellence and service to country through flight demonstrations and community outreach. In 2016, the Blue Angels will celebrate their 70th anniversary.
Imperial County Board of Supervisors Meeting Cancelled, Delegation Visiting Washington, D.C.

El Centro, California - The Imperial County Board of Supervisors wish to inform the public that the Board meeting previously scheduled for Tuesday, January 26, has been cancelled. The Board will reconvene their regularly scheduled board meetings on Tuesday, February 2, at 8:30 a.m.

Next week, Supervisors John Renison and Ray Castillo, along with some County staff, have a trip planned to visit Washington, D.C. to meet with Imperial Countys federal legislative representatives to strengthen relationships, bring attention to issues of importance and priority for Imperial County residents, and highlight all that the region has to offer.

Its important for the Board to go to Washington, D.C. to meet with our legislators and federal agencies face-to-face to have an opportunity at making a greater impact and getting additional attention to issues that affect our communities, said District 1 Supervisor John Renison.

In addition to meeting with the countys federal representatives, the delegation will meet with administrators of the U.S. Department of Transportations Essential Air Service (EAS) program to continue to work with the department on finding a new air carrier to service the Imperial County Airport.
Vice President Joe Bidens Meeting with Prime Minister Haidar Al-Abadi of Iraq

Washington, DC - The Vice President met today in Davos with Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi. The Vice President congratulated Iraqi Security Forces on their liberation of Ramadi and pledged continued U.S. support in the counter-ISIL campaign.

Both leaders discussed the urgency of stabilization efforts in Ramadi and the importance of mobilizing international support for those efforts. The Vice President encouraged continued dialogue between Iraq and Turkey to resolve concerns about Turkish troop deployments in northern Iraq and reiterated U.S. respect for Iraq's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Vice President offered continued U.S. support to help Iraq strengthen its economy as the Iraqi government implements key reforms. Both leaders pointed to ongoing successes as a sign of the close strategic partnership between Iraq and the United States.
President Obama Hosts Over 250 Mayors to Strengthen Partnerships and Grow the Economy

Washington, DC - President Obama today will host over 250 bipartisan Mayors at the White House during their annual U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) Winter Meeting in Washington, D.C. During their visit to the White House this evening, the President will thank the Mayors for their steadfast partnerships over the past seven years and will outline the Administrations priorities for cities across the country in the year ahead. The convening will also focus on the economic progress that each city has made since the President took office.

Throughout the week, senior White House officials and members of the Presidents Cabinet participated in plenary sessions and panel discussions on priority issues, including: trade, manufacturing, veteran homelessness, transportation, paid leave, climate change, affordable health care, workforce development, education, My Brothers Keeper and immigration. Today at the White House, Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates and senior White House officials will interact with Mayors in a panel discussion on criminal justice reform.

This morning, First Lady Michelle Obama will deliver remarks at the U.S. Conference of Mayors to discuss the Mayors Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness. In 2010, the Administration set the goal of preventing and ending homelessness among veterans. Through the Mayors Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness, launched in 2014 by First Lady Michelle Obama, more than 800 mayors and other state and local leaders across the country have committed to marshal federal, local, and non-profit efforts to end veteran homelessness in their communities.

Below are some of the ways Mayors are helping to make President Obamas agenda a reality in cities across the country.

Criminal Justice Reform and Community Policing: Providing a Second Chance and Building Collaborative Relations Between Law Enforcement And Communities

The President has repeatedly highlighted the need for meaningful juvenile and criminal justice reform in the United States that makes our system, fairer, smarter and more cost-effective while keeping the American people safe and secure, and has been joined in that call by leading mayors and local elected officials. The Administration is working with communities across the United States on reforms to address the vicious cycle of poverty, criminality and incarceration that traps too many Americans and on putting into practice the recommendations of the Presidents Task Force on 21st Century Policing Task Force, which set out a blueprint for strategies to promote effective crime reduction while building public trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve.

Over 40 local jurisdictions attended the White House Community Policing Convening in July 2015.

In November 2015, the U.S. Conference of Mayors sent a letter to Congress urging them to pass a criminal justice reform bill.

Since the launch of the Police Data Initiative (PDI) in May, five additional agencies have joined PDI: Denver, Spokane, Orlando, Tucson, and Fayettevillebringing the total number of agencies to 26, with more than 40 data sets released.

In November, Newark, NJ Mayor Baraka (D) and Shelby County, TN Mayor Luttrell (R) co-authored an op-ed supporting criminal justice reform with a focus on re-entry.

In November, five cities, including Memphis, TN and New Orleans, LA took on the TechHire Initiative by expanding tech training and jobs for individuals with criminal records.

Advanced Manufacturing and Tech Innovation: Paving The Way For Jobs And Skills Of The Future

Mayors are creating new opportunities for entrepreneurs looking to make the next world-changing product, and for students interested in hands-on engagement with Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). Through the Mayors Maker Challenge over 100 cities including Columbus, OH, Scottsdale, AZ, Rockford, IL, and South Bend, IN are changing the landscape of American manufacturing in small towns and big cities. Last March the President announced his TechHire initiative, which aims to train Americans with 21st century skills. Since that time 31 new cities, states, and rural communities with over 150,000 open tech jobs, and 500 employer partners, have joined the President to help give all Americans who work hard a fair shot.

In St Louis, MO a network of over 150 employers in St. Louis rapidly expanding innovation ecosystem will build on a successful MasterCard pilot to partner with local non-profit Launchcode to build the skills of women and underrepresented minorities for tech jobs.

Anderson, IN, in collaboration with Purdue University and the Flagship Enterprise Center, is building a 90,000 square foot facility  to be called the Purdue Polytechnic Institute  that will include a 12,000 square foot maker space and a 35,000 square foot incubator.

Trans-Pacific Partnership: Leveling The Playing Field For American Workers

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is a new type of tough trade agreement that will put American workers first by including the strongest enforceable labor standards of any trade agreement in history, including in areas like child and forced labor and wages. TPP levels the playing field for American workers and American businesses, leading to more Made-in-America exports and more higher-paying American jobs here at home. Mayors have been on the frontlines, advocating for TPP since they are closest to the innovation and growth that TPP can spur.

In June, the U.S. Conference of Mayors passed a resolution in support of both Trade Promotion Authority and a Trans Pacific Partnership deal that contains enforceable labor and environmental standards, a uniform tariff system, transparency, and protection of intellectual property rights. Following the resolutions passage at the conference, the U.S. Conference of Mayors wrote a letter to congressional leadership urging passage of Trade Promotion Authority, with over 100 signatures from mayors across the U.S.

In October, a group of Mayors toured a manufacturing facility in downtown Atlanta and called on negotiators to complete a TPP deal before leaving the city. Atlanta, GA Mayor Kasim Reed, who hosted the event and chairs USCMs Transportation and Communications Committee, was joined by United States Trade Representative Ambassador Michael Froman, Little Rock, AR Mayor Mark Stodola, Chair of the Conferences Exports and Ports Task Force, Tampa, FL Mayor Bob Buckhorn and Columbia, SC Mayor Steven Benjamin. Upon completion of the trade negotiations in October the U.S. Conference of Mayors reaffirmed their support for TPP.

Across the county, mayors have been touring small businesses in their cities, speaking with the media, and writing op-eds explaining exactly why they believe TPP benefits the people in their city. Mayor Mitch Landrieu of New Orleans, LA hosted Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Robert Hamilton for a small business roundtable at a local economic development group. Mayor Marilyn Strickland of Tacoma, WA hosted Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker for a small business tour, in addition to taking every opportunity to promote the Presidents trade agenda. Mayor Chris Cabaldon of West Sacramento, CA testified before the International Trade Centre on behalf of the U.S. Conference of mayors and has spoken in regional press outlets about the benefits to his city and the region. Countless other mayors have written op-eds, toured businesses, and spoken to media about the benefits of TPP.

Education: Furthering The Presidents Early Childhood and Community College Education Agenda

Since the President laid out his proposal to expand early childhood education in his 2013 State of the Union Address, cities have taken significant steps to expand high-quality preschool in their communities. Cities like Chicago, IL and Philadelphia, PA have amplified the Presidents free community college proposal and advanced free community college programs.

In March, over 50 mayors signed a letter to Congress supporting the Presidents Americas College Promise proposal.

Since the Presidents announcement on free community college last January, seven communities have announced their own free community college programs.

Veterans Homelessness: Marshaling Efforts To End Homelessness For Our Veterans

Through the Mayors Challenge to End Veteran Homelessness, local leaders across the country are ending Veteran homelessness in their communities. Since First Lady Michelle Obama launched the Mayors Challenge on June 4, 2014, more than 684 mayors have stepped up to the challenge.

Just six months after the announcement of the Mayors Challenge, three major American cities  Salt Lake City, Phoenix, and New Orleans  had eliminated Veteran homelessness.

Since the First Ladys announcement, 19 communities and the Commonwealth of Virginia have effectively ended Veteran homelessness.

In November, Virginia was announced as the first state to end veteran homelessness, helping 1,432 homeless veterans in the past year. When Norfolk Mayor Paul Fraim signed up for the challenge, an estimated 50,000 veterans were homeless on any given night in Norfolk. By November 11, 2015, the city had met their goal to effectively end veteran homelessness.

Minimum Wage and The Working Families Agenda: Expanding Opportunity For Middle Class Families

Since the Presidents 2013 State of the Union Address, about 40 local jurisdictions have taken action to raise wages. Twenty-six cities and counties have approved city-wide increases in their minimum wages for both public and private employees. Fourteen other cities and counties including Palo Alto, CA, New Orleans, LA, Portland, OR and Syracuse, NY raised wages for their city/county workers or contractors.

More than 65 mayors signed a letter from the U.S. Conference of Mayors Cities of Opportunity Task Force urging Congress to raise the minimum wage.

Since Presidents 2014 State of the Union Address, 21 cities and counties have taken action on paid sick leave, and 19 cities and counties have taken action on paid family leave.

Climate and Energy: Launching New Programs and Policies On Climate Change and Energy Efficiency

122 U.S. cities have signed the Compact of Mayors, committing to reduce local greenhouse gas emissions, enhance city resilience to climate change and track their progress transparently.

Cities like Little Rock, AR, Portland, ME, Dearborn, MI, St. Petersburg, FL, Flint, MI and San Diego, CA have partnered on the Better Buildings Initiative to make substantial improvements to the energy efficiency of buildings and lighting to save money and replace over 500,000 lighting fixtures from May 2014 to May 2016.

A coalition of 18 states, the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the National League of Cities and a number of individual cities has joined the legal defense of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys Clean Power Plan as intervenors and amicus.

In December 2014, the White House announced 16 Climate Action Champions, selected for their leadership in climate mitigation and adaptation, and their ability to demonstrate successful examples of climate action for other communities across the United States. The Champions included Boston, Dubuque, Knoxville, Minneapolis, Montpelier, Portland, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, and Seattle, and have been receiving targeted federal support to accelerate greenhouse gas emission reductions and climate resilience.

Today, the White House announced 10 Communities participating in the Resilience AmeriCorps Program: Anchorage, Boulder, Chicago, El Paso, Minot, New Orleans, Norfolk (VA), Phoenix, Pittsburgh, and Tulsa. These cities will have the opportunity to opt into the Climate Action Champions program. In keeping with the Climate Action Champions mission, designated communities will exemplify how underserved areas can work with the Federal government and strategic partners to develop plans for becoming more resilient to extreme weather events, increase civic engagement and community resilience, and become champions of environmental leadership for other under-served communities nationally.

Transportation and Infrastructure: Expanding Ladders of Opportunity Through Infrastructure

The President will continue to act when he can to promote job growth in the transportation sector and put more Americans back to work repairing and modernizing our roads, bridges, railways, and transit systems.

In December, the President signed the 5-year Fixing Americas Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act), which reauthorizes the Highway Trust Fund through 2020, reauthorizes the Export-Import Bank through 2019 and improves the Federal permit review process for major infrastructure projects.

Since 2009, the Department of Transportation has awarded 381 TIGER projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Cities across the country have been able to break ground on projects to make their communities more livable and sustainable, including the Bronx River Greenway Project and the Phoenix Grand Canal Bike and Pedestrian Improvements Projects.

In January 2015, Secretary Foxx challenged city leaders to raise the bar for bicyclist and pedestrian safety by joining a year-long Mayors' Challenge for Safer People and Safer Streets effort. Today, over 240 cities have signed on to the challenge and are taking significant action to improve safety for bicycle riders and pedestrians of all ages and abilities over the next year.

Mayor Muriel Bowser announced Washington, D.C.s Vision Zero Initiative to eliminate transportation-related fatalities.

Smart Cities: Launching The Metrolab Network and The Smart City Challenge

In September 2015, the Administration launched the Smart Cities Initiative to help communities leverage technology to tackle key challenges such as reducing traffic congestion, fighting crime, fostering economic growth, managing the effects of a changing climate and improving the delivery of city services. As part of that initiative, over 25 mayors have formed the MetroLab Network in collaboration with their local universities to harness university technical expertise to address city challenges:

The founding members  including cities from Atlanta to Seattle and South Bend  have collectively committed to undertaking more than 60 projects over the next year, which will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of infrastructure and services in our cities and communities and increase the productivity and competitiveness of our regional economies.

The Department of Transportation launched the Smart City Challenge, which will concentrate federal resources into one medium-sized city, selected through a nationwide competition. Up to $40 million in funding will go to one mid-sized city that puts forward bold, data-driven ideas to improve lives by making transportation safer, easier, and more reliable.

Affordable Care Act: Opening Access To Quality, Affordable Health Care For All Americans

On November 6th, the White House launched the Healthy Communities Challenge to engage key communities with large numbers or high percentages of uninsured in states across the country where strong federal, state and community collaboration can have a meaningful impact on reaching the uninsured.

Local elected officials from 20 cities and counties across the county are participating in the challenge to get their uninsured constituents covered:

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu challenged barbers and hairstylists to connect their customers to free, in-person enrollment assistance; Kansas City Mayor Sly James recorded a PSA which will play 333 times throughout January; Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia has recruited community organizations to undertake large canvasing efforts in areas with high uninsured subsidy eligible populations; and thanks to Detroit Mayor Duggan, the City of Detroit sent out an ACA mailer with the water utility bills that was mailed to over 200,000 households.

My Brothers Keeper: Expanding Opportunity For All Youth

In 2014, the President launched the MBK Community Challenge, an effort to encourage communities to implement their own coherent cradle-to-college and career strategy aimed at improving life outcomes for all young people. More than 230 communities in 49 states have taken the challenge and over 130 communities have hosted local action summits.

Over 50 communities have completed their local action plans

Boston Mayor Marty Walsh launched the Mayors Mentoring Movement, an initiative in collaboration with Mass Mentoring Partnership to recruit 1,000 new caring adult mentors for Bostons youth. The effort will offer new empowering relationships for boys and girls ages 7 through 18

The city of Lansing and its Mayor Virg Bernero accepted the My Brothers Keeper Challenge as part of its Mayors Young Lansing (MY Lansing) Commission and Partnership. The Lansing Board of Water & Light is partnering with MY Lansing MBK to replicate its apprenticeship program across industries. A series of community engagement events in 2014 led to the creation of a new coalition that is working with the Lansing Police Department and regional law enforcement officials to develop strategies and solutions that are improving relationships between police and community.

Immigration: Making Progress in Communities Across the Country

Cities across the country have taken significant steps to welcome immigrants and take other important steps on immigration.
United States Welcomes the Appointment of Deputy JMEC Chair to Support South Sudan Peace Process

Washington, DC - The United States welcomes the appointment of Mr. Francois Lounceny Fall, former Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the Republic of Guinea, as Deputy Chairperson of the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (JMEC) for South Sudan.

The Members of the Troika (United States, United Kingdom, and Norway) will continue to work closely with the JMEC Chair and Deputy Chair to support the South Sudanese people in reconciling their differences, implementing meaningful reforms, and rebuilding their nation.
President Obamas Call with Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany

Washington, DC - The President spoke today by phone with Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany. The President, on behalf of the American people, offered condolences for the loss of German life in the January 12 attack in Istanbul, Turkey.

The two leaders discussed the European response to the refugee crisis, including the upcoming Syria donors conference in London on February 4. Both leaders agreed that the London conference presents an important opportunity to galvanize global efforts to address the Syrian humanitarian crisis. The President expressed support for the Chancellors leadership on the refugee crisis, and discussed with her his plan to host a leader-level Global Refugees Summit on the margins of the UN General Assembly in September to secure new and concrete commitments to expand opportunities for refugees worldwide and support to frontline states. The two leaders committed to working together over the coming months to help protect and provide for the millions of people whose lives have been upturned by war. On Ukraine, the President and the Chancellor underscored their firm commitment to accelerate the full implementation of the Minsk agreements by all sides. They also discussed ways to further bolster the robust economic relationship between Europe and the United States.
The National Escalation Framework has been implemented in all hospitals and the Special Delivery Unit (SDU) is currently undertaking an audit of the Frameworks implementation in 10 hospitals. Nevertheless, the Irish Association for Emergency Medicine (IAEM) has said EDs capacity to carry out their role safely and effectively was significantly compromised by factors outside the control of the ED, most notably crowding with admitted hospital inpatients.

This problem represents a failure of the healthcare system to adequately support EDs by ensuring that an inpatient hospital bed is available in a timely fashion for those who require one, the Association has stated.

In November, together with the HSE Director General, Minister for Health Dr Leo Varadkar issued a National Emergency Department Congestion Escalation Directive to hospitals on how best to deal with ED congestion. Under the Directive, it is compulsory for each hospital to take specific steps to address overcrowding such as extra ward rounds, if trolley figures reach red status on the TrolleyGAR, or if any patient is more than nine hours on a trolley, since a decision was made to admit him or her.

There are 209 new beds open and 112 previously closed beds have re-opened, as of this month. A further 127 beds will open or reopen by March, the Minister has pledged. Meanwhile, 83 per cent of patients who present at EDs receive timely care and are discharged or admitted within nine hours, Dr Varadkar stressed.

Since the start of last year, there are nearly 900 more nurses and nearly 400 more NCHDs working in the health service. Since 2011, the number of NCHDs has increased by more than 1,000 and since March 2011, more than 300 extra consultants have been appointed, including 92 consultant appointments between January and November 2015. The number of Emergency Department consultants has increased from 56 to 84 over the past five years.

The Department of Health and key members of the ED Taskforce Implementation Group are engaging in weekly meetings to monitor ED performance and patient waiting times on trolleys. The Minister has attended all the ED Taskforce Implementation Group meetings and said he believes real progress is being made.

In the first couple of weeks of 2016, EDs are seeing up to a 7 per cent increase in the numbers of patients attending, with some sites showing more than a 17 per cent increase. There were on average up to 3,000 patients presenting to Emergency Departments on a daily basis, with nearly 200 patients presenting at larger EDs each day, the Minister told a Dail private members debate last week (January 14).

An analysis of recent performance through a 30-day moving average showed a 10 per cent improvement on the overall numbers on trolleys against the same period last year. There was some variation with hospitals like Letterkenny, Portiuncula, Mullingar, St James, the Mater, Tallaght and Connolly, showing significant improvements. However, others had fared less well and some have disimproved, he accepted.

The latest NTPF waiting List data showed that progress had been made by the HSE to reduce the numbers of patients on waiting lists during 2015. At the end of December, the HSE achieved 95 per cent compliance for the inpatient/ day case waiting lists and 93 per cent compliance for the outpatient waiting lists against the 15 months maximum wait time threshold.

On the inpatient/ day case waiting lists, the number of patients waiting more than 15 months reduced by 77 per cent during December and the number of patients waiting more than 18 months reduced by 70 per cent. For the outpatient waiting list, the number of people waiting longer than 15 months for appointments had fallen by 54 per cent, the Minister added.

gary.culliton@imt.ie
'Universe is Majestic': Hubbles Most Iconic Shot Now Has a Companion from Webb Telescope
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Deadpool continues its full-on assault of a marketing campaign with a very special message for Australia Day, traditionally celebrated on 26 January. The Merc with the Mouth's penchant for fourth-wall breaking antics has given Fox an absolute bounty of advertising options, so it's delightful to see them make full use of the character in left-field pieces like this.



Indeed, this new spot sees Ryan Reynold's foul-mouthed superhero directly address the good citizens of Australia, relishing the opportunity for a good, old-fashioned jibe; "I'd fit right in with your proud nation," he quips. "With its shady criminal past and its predilection for black-out drinking, and unrelenting condescension towards New Zealand." Condescension towards New Zealand? Every day, we're learning new things about this guy.



"One one teeny problem. You gave us Wolverine. And for that, I can't forgive you," he then chimes. "I've got no problems with Hugh [Jackman]; I mean, he's a delightful guy, he really is. True legend. But the movie, that was a career low for me."

There's truly some perverse pleasure to be had in seeing that past burden so brazenly tackled; assuring fans this new Deadpool won't share any similarities to the widely-panned incarnation which popped up, also played by Reynolds, in the slightly disastrous X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

And it looks as if all the hard work might pay off; Deadpool's hype has landed it with an estimated $55M-plus debut, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Combined with the positive reactions coming out of Fox's recent surprise screenings, though most were already self-professed fans of the character, it's looking as if this R-rated risk may actually pay off for the studio.
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It's really, really hard for me to lose respect for actors over their career choices.

Let me put that statement into perspective: I still hold a genuine, healthy level of respect for Nicolas Cage. I'm serious; he's an interesting, perpetually committed character actor who just happens to be in a position of having to star in 10,000 sub-par movies a year to fund his penchant for dinosaur bones. I get that. We've all been there on some level.



But I don't get Dirty Grandpa. And, though this revelation tears my soul to shreds, Dirty Grandpa has robbed me even of my respect for Robert De Niro.



 Dirty Grandpa - Red Band Trailer



Not forever, mind. Maybe repeated viewings of Cape Fear and Casino will drain those tainted feelings like lullabies after a rocky nightmare. Or maybe time is the simple healer of all things. But all I know is, right now, I feel the kind of repellant second-hand embarrassment that rears its head during the holidays when a drunk, bigoted relative stands up in the middle of the living room to relay a pre-prepared speech you're almost certain was gleaned entirely from the comments section of the internet.



I didn't think this was possible before now. I didn't go into Dirty Grandpa like a hound baying for blood, I've loved De Niro's filmography far too much for that kind of pettiness. I entered instead with a secret optimism; quiet, little prayers that Dirty Grandpa would prove each of my worst assumptions unfounded.



And though it made me die just a little inside to hear the Oscar winner scream in the film's trailer, "I want to f*ck, f*ck, f*ck, f*ck", I'd mentally prepared myself for a certain level of infantilism, and hoped this would maybe turn out be crude in all the right ways. De Niro could have made a delightful Dirty Grandpa, if he hit that right combination of the gleeful and the absurd.





But it turned out Dirty Grandpa's title is wholly inaccurate, and I absolutely wasn't prepared for that kind of revelation. De Niro's Dick Kelly falls far more into line with admittedly far less catchy title of 'All Round Awful Human Being Grandpa'. It's a non-stop assault on decency that he rolls out here; taking offensiveness to this whole new level of consistency and stupidity that's like entering the mind of a teenage boy hopped up on sugar, testosterone, and screaming.



He doesn't refer to the pink car his grandson (Zac Efron) drives by a feminine moniker just once; oh no, he does it over and over and over again. "Giant labia", now. "Giant tampon", after. It's endless, aggressively enthusiastic comedic trolling; like De Niro woke up a toddler one day, overheard his first swear word, and is now traipsing through his house screaming it at the top of his lungs while several panicked adults sprint behind.



Annoyingness is forgivable, but it's the insidiousness hiding behind the humour that leaves such a foul taste. To see Dick Kelly, supposedly in the act of reinvention after his wife's death, laughing in a homosexual guy's face because; "you're just really gay." It's 2016, and still some screenwriter thinks the very act of being gay is the funniest thing to ever have happened.



Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Show all 14 1 /14 Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Bill Murray With only one Oscar nomination to his name (2003's Lost in Translation), Bill Murray is one oversight that - in many people's eyes - could easily throw the Academy Awards into disrepute. AFP/Getty Images Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Samuel L. Jackson Considering he's one of the most bankable film stars in the world, it's a surprise that - with over 160 credits to his name - Samuel L. Jackson has only received a mere one nomination (Pulp Fiction in 1994). 2016 Getty Images Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Joaquin Phoenix With three previous nominations under his belt - for films including Gladiator and The Master - it was his performance as Johnny Cash in 2005 biopic Walk the Line that was expected to see him win an Oscar (he lost to the late Philip Seymour Hoffman's for Capote). 2015 Getty Images Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Brad Pitt The ever-present fixture he remains in Hollywood today, you'd think Brad Pitt would have won an Oscar by now; while serving as producer of 2014 Best Picture winner 12 Years a Slave, he currently has zero acting wins to his name despite three nominations (Twelve Monkeys, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Moneyball). 2015 Getty Images Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Tom Cruise Still one of the biggest movie stars on the planet, Tom Cruise seemed like a sure awards bet back in the Nineties with films Born on the Fourth of July, Jerry Maguire and Magnolia all earning him nominations - and yet, he never once emerged victorious. 2015 Getty Images Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Richard Gere Would you believe us if we told you Richard Gere has never even been nominated? Well, it's true - and, quite honestly, shocks us quite a bit. Poor guy. Juan Naharro Gimenez Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Gary Oldman One of the film industry's finest character actors, Gary Oldman has been nominated just the once for playing George Smiley in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. 2014 Getty Images Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Johnny Depp Despite his recent dip in quality, Johnny Depp has delivered several Oscar-worthy performances in the past. With a total of three nominations to his name - all for post-2000 releases including Pirates of the Caribbean and Finding Neverland - it's more a wonder he didn't receive more recognition for standout films such as Ed Wood and Donnie Brasco in the Nineties. 2015 Getty Images Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Harrison Ford Harrison Ford may now be the world's highest-grossing actor (sorry, Samuel) but still doesn't have the Academy Award to back up such a feat. In fact, he's now into his third decade of not receiving recognition from the Academy with his sole nomination arriving back in 1985 for Witness. Getty Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Edward Norton Edward Norton is just the kind of actor you'd assume would've scooped a statuette at some stage or another, but no - Norton just has three nominations to speak of; his first in 1996 (Primal Fear), his second in 1999 (American History X) and his third just last year (Best Picture winner, Birdman). AFP/Getty Images Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't John Malkovich American actor John Malkovich was nominated once in 1984 (Places in the Heart) and again in 1993 (In the Line of Fire) but hasn't posed much of a threat since. 2013 Getty Images Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Annette Bening Poor Annette Bening, who has come close to victory four times (The Grifters, American Beauty, Being Julia and The Kids Are All Right) but is yet to clinch one. 2015 Getty Images Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Glenn Close ...well, it could be worse; she could be Glenn Close who has been on the shortlist six times for films including Fatal Attraction, Dangerous Liaisons and, most recently, Albert Nobbs. Actors you think have won Oscars but haven't Helena Bonham Carter Helena Bonham Carter may have received a Best Actress nomination for Wings of a Dove (1997), but it was her Best Supporting Actress nomination for 2012's Best Picture winner The King's Speech that seemed a sure bet; Melissa Leo's role in The Fighter won that round. 2015 Getty Images



And, when Bradley (Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman) retorts that Dick may not have noticed that he's also black, De Niro snaps back; "that's really funny, too." Oh, don't for a second, believe this is intended as any kind of satire; we're absolutely meant to like Dick, even find him charming. We're meant to be laughing with him at this poor kid just because he's black and gay. It actually hurts my brain to think about how anyone thought that joke was either funny in the slighest, or a smart idea to put in a movie more than four people were planning to watch.

This is exactly one of those situations in which it would be such an unparalleled gift to have second sight, or an out of body experience that would send me floating over a Hollywood boardroom just at the moment De Niro signed the contract for this film. Was he overjoyed? Harrassed? Was this an eager decision? Or one of those obligations woven into the complex threads of Hollywood's web of half-made promises and compromises?

De Niro clearly doesn't want to forever be De Niro of Taxi Driver, De Niro of Heat. Maybe it's just come to a point in his career when he wants to have fun, when he's achieved enough that the idea of a challenge no longer sounds appetising. Maybe he's always wanted to do mainstream comedy, and he's finally in a comfortable enough position to do so. And it's not exactly as if he's given up on interesting, complex dramatic roles; three times now he's worked with David O. Russell, most notably delivering a touching, Oscar-nominated performance as Bradley Cooper's father in Silver Linings Playbook.



And that's fine. Do as many Meet the Parents as you like De Niro, do a thousand sequels to The Intern. You look happy in those. But not this, not here. Not a film which seems to dare you to feel wretched about your cinematic icon; riddling its opening credits with photoshopped family snaps that look as if a dog taped scissors to its paws so it could cut out movie stills from The King of Comedy and paste them over the sample photographs you get with IKEA frames.

De Niro doesn't look like he's having fun here. No one does. The discomfort hangs in the air like the stench of something rotten. When a young, horny-as-hell college girl (Aubrey Plaza, why, Aubrey? Why?!) twerks up against De Niro in a nightclub, it looks almost as if he's crying. When he starts doing rap karaoke while bouncing his arms around in a 'hippity-hoppity' fashion, he somehow instantly ages himself by 1,000 years.

This can't possibly be what anyone wanted it to be. This can't possibly be what De Niro wanted it to be; I refuse to believe it. I won't ever be able to unsee Dirty Grandpa, but I'm determined not to be beaten down by it. So I sit here, endlessly repeating to myself: De Niro is cool. De Niro is cool. De Niro is cool.
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The sci-fi disaster movie The 5th Wave starts very promisingly in its own apocalyptic fashion, but then turns into yet another teen flick along the lines of the Maze Runner, Divergent and Hunger Games franchises. It becomes increasingly dreary and derivative  and ends in a way that suggests several more mind-numbing sequels will soon be washing over us.

The early scenes, in which the mysterious aliens (known as The Others) are first laying waste to humanity, are the best. For some unspecified reason, these aliens need the Earth's resources but they won't want "us", the humans. They launch wave after wave of attacks, crippling the power system and unleashing pestilence and plague.

As we are shown devastated cities, biblical floods and even a shot of Tower Bridge in London being snapped in half, the special effects are top-notch. The same can't be said for the plotting, dialogue or the performances.

Chloe Grace Moretz plays Cassie Sullivan, the normal, all-American high-school girl who turns into a Katniss Everdeen-like warrior once the alien assaults start in earnest. The film-makers cross-cut between Cassie's misadventures and those of various teenagers (including her doe-eyed little brother) recruited by the US army to fight back against the aliens. An outrageously contrived plot twist doesn't help as the storyline stutters.

Part of the problem here is the clumsy way the film-makers combine teen movie tropes with dystopian sci-fi. In amid all the death and destruction, there's still time for some very incongruous romance. Large dollops of mawkishness are also thrown in. Cassie's goal isn't so much to save the world as to reunite her kid brother with his beloved teddy bear.
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There is an economics festival in Kilkenny, Ireland, at which the idea is to mock banking and political figures while "waiting for answers". The trick at Kilkenomics is that the experts are interviewed not by specialists but by comedians. This encourages them to communicate in a way a general audience can understand. A similar thinking underpins Adam McKay's raucous comedy, which manages the unlikely feat of being wildly entertaining while telling a complex and ultimately depressing story.

The film, adapted from the Michael Lewis book The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine, is about the events leading up to the US subprime mortgage crisis and the implosion of the global economy in 2008. This isn't really a subject for laughs but McKay treats it as the stuff of high farce.

Culture news in pictures Show all 33 1 /33 Culture news in pictures Culture news in pictures 30 September 2016 An employee hangs works of art with "Grand Teatro" by Marino Marini (R) and bronze sculpture "Sfera N.3" by Arnaldo Pomodoro seen ahead of a Contemporary Art auction on 7 October, at Sotheby's in London REUTERS Culture news in pictures 29 September 2016 Street art by Portuguese artist Odeith is seen in Dresden, during an exhibition "Magic City - art of the streets" AFP/Getty Images Culture news in pictures 28 September 2016 Dancers attend a photocall for the new "THE ONE Grand Show" at Friedrichstadt-Palast in Berlin, Germany REUTERS Culture news in pictures 28 September 2016 With an array of thrift store china, humorous souvenirs and handmade tile adorning its walls and floors, the Mosaic Tile House in Venice stands as a monument to two decades of artistic collaboration between Cheri Pann and husband Gonzalo Duran REUTERS Culture news in pictures 27 September 2016 A gallery assistant poses amongst work by Anthea Hamilton from her nominated show "Lichen! Libido!(London!) Chastity!" at a preview of the Turner Prize in London REUTERS Culture news in pictures 27 September 2016 A technician wearing virtual reality glasses checks his installation in three British public telephone booths, set up outside the Mauritshuis museum in The Hague, Netherlands. The installation allows visitors a 3-D look into the museum which has twenty-two paintings belonging to the British Royal Collection, on loan for an exhibit from 29 September 2016 till 8 January 2017 AP Culture news in pictures 26 September 2016 An Indian artist dressed as Hindu god Shiva performs on a chariot as he participates in a religious procession 'Ravan ki Barat' held to mark the forthcoming Dussehra festival in Allahabad AFP/Getty Images Culture news in pictures 26 September 2016 Jean-Michel Basquiat's 'Air Power', 1984, is displayed at the Bowie/Collector media preview at Sotheby's in New York AFP/Getty Culture news in pictures 25 September 2016 A woman looks at an untitled painting by Albert Oehlen during the opening of an exhibition of works by German artists Georg Baselitz and Albert Oehlen in Reutlingen, Germany. The exhibition runs at the Kunstverein (art society) Reutlingen until 15 January 2017 EPA Culture news in pictures 24 September 2016 Fan BingBing (C) attends the closing ceremony of the 64th San Sebastian Film Festival at Kursaal in San Sebastian, Spain Getty Images Culture news in pictures 23 September 2016 A view of the artwork 'You Are Metamorphosing' (1964) as part of the exhibition 'Retrospektive' of Japanese artist Tetsumi Kudo at Fridericianum in Kassel, Germany. The exhibition runs from 25 September 2016 to 1 January 2017 EPA Culture news in pictures 22 September 2016 Jo Applin from the Courtauld Institute of Art looks at Green Tilework in Live Flesh by Adriana Vareja, which features in a new exhibition, Flesh, at York Art Gallery. The new exhibition features works by Degas, Chardin, Francis Bacon and Sarah Lucas, showing how flesh has been portrayed by artists over the last 600 years PA Culture news in pictures 21 September 2016 Performers Sean Atkins and Sally Miller standing in for the characters played by Asa Butterfield and Ella Purnell during a photocall for Tim Burton's "Miss Peregrines Home For Peculiar Children" at Potters Field Park in London Getty Images Culture news in pictures 20 September 2016 A detail from the blanket 'Alpine Cattle Drive' from 1926 by artist Ernst Ludwig Kirchner is displayed at the 'Hamburger Bahnhof - Museum for Contemporary Arts' in Berlin. The exhibition named 'Ernst Ludwig Kirchner - Hieroglyphen' showing the complete collection of Berlin's Nationalgallerie works of the German artist Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and will run from 23 September 2016 until 26 February 2017 AP Culture news in pictures 20 September 2016 A man looks at portrait photos by US photographer Bruce Gilden in the exhibition 'Masters of Photography' at the photokina in Cologne, Germany. The trade fair on photography, photokina, schowcases some 1,000 exhibitors from 40 countries and runs from 20 to 25 September. The event also features various photo exhibitions EPA Culture news in pictures 20 September 2016 A woman looks at 'Blue Poles', 1952 by Jackson Pollock during a photocall at the Royal Academy of Arts, London PA Culture news in pictures 19 September 2016 Art installation The Refusal of Time, a collaboration with Philip Miller, Catherine Meyburgh and Peter Galison, which features as part of the William Kentridge exhibition Thick Time, showing from 21 September to 15 January at the Whitechapel Gallery in London PA Culture news in pictures 18 September 2016 Artists creating one off designs at the Mm6 Maison Margiela presentation during London Fashion Week Spring/Summer collections 2017 in London Getty Images Culture news in pictures 18 September 2016 Bethenny Frankel attends the special screening of Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" to celebrate the 25th Anniversary Edition release on Blu-Ray and DVD in New York City Getty Images for Walt Disney Stu Culture news in pictures 17 September 2016 Visitors attend the 2016 Oktoberfest beer festival at Theresienwiese in Munich, Germany Getty Images Culture news in pictures 16 September 2016 Visitors looks at British artist Damien Hirst work of art 'The Incomplete Truth', during the 13th Yalta Annual Meeting entitled 'The World, Europe and Ukraine: storms of changes', organised by the Yalta European Strategy (YES) in partnership with the Victor Pinchuk Foundation at the Mystetsky Arsenal Art Center in Kiev AP Culture news in pictures 16 September 2016 Tracey Emin's "My Bed" is exhibited at the Tate Liverpool as part of the exhibition Tracey Emin And William Blake In Focus, which highlights surprising links between the two artists Getty Images Culture news in pictures 15 September 2016 Musician Dave Grohl (L) joins musician Tom Morello of Prophets of Rage onstage at the Forum in Inglewood, California Getty Images Culture news in pictures 14 September 2016 Model feebee poses as part of art installation "Narcissism : Dazzle room" made by artist Shigeki Matsuyama at rooms33 fashion and design exhibition in Tokyo. Matsuyama's installation features a strong contrast of black and white, which he learned from dazzle camouflage used mainly in World War I AP Culture news in pictures 13 September 2016 Visitors look at artworks by Chinese painter Cui Ruzhuo during the exhibition 'Glossiness of Uncarved Jade' held at the exhibition hall 'Manezh' in St. Petersburg, Russia. More than 200 paintings by the Chinese artist are presented until 25 September EPA Culture news in pictures 12 September 2016 A visitor looks at Raphael's painting 'Extase de Sainte Cecile', 1515, from the Uffizi Gallery in Florence during the opening of a Raphael exhibition at the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow, Russia. The first Russian exhibition of the works of the Italian Renaissance artist Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino includes eight paintings and three drawings which come from Italy. Th exhibit opens to the public from 13 September to 11 December EPA Culture news in pictures 11 September 2016 Steve Cropper and Eddie Floyd perform during Otis Redding 75th Birthday Celebration - Rehearsals at the Macon City Auditorium in Macon, Georgia Getty Images for Otis Redding 75 Culture news in pictures 10 September 2016 Sakari Oramo conducting the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Chorus and the BBC Singers at the Last Night of the Proms 2016 at the Royal Albert Hall in London PA Culture news in pictures 9 September 2016 A visitor walks past a piece entitled "Fruitcake" by Joana Vasconcelo, during the Beyond Limits selling exhibition at Chatsworth House near Bakewell REUTERS Culture news in pictures 8 September 2016 A sculpture of a crescent standing on the 2,140 meters high mountain 'Freiheit' (German for 'freedom'), in the Alpstein region of the Appenzell alps, eastern Switzerland. The sculpture is lighted during the nights by means of solar panels. The 38-year-old Swiss artist and atheist Christian Meier set the crescent on the peak to start a debate on the meaning of religious symbols - as summit crosses - on mountains. 'Because so many peaks have crosses on them, it struck me as a great idea to put up an equally absurd contrast'. 'Naturally I wanted to provoke in a fun way. But it goes beyond that. The actions of an artist should be food for thought, both visually and in content' EPA Culture news in pictures Culture news in pictures Culture news in pictures

McKay (best known for his collaborations with the comedian Will Ferrell on Anchorman and Step Brothers) is dealing with material that many American economists and bankers themselves failed fully to understand. The film is full of references to credit default swaps and collaterised debt. McKay helps the audience understand such esoteric matters by taking a jaunty, tongue-in-cheek approach. Every time there is an especially complicated piece of information or financial jargon, he will throw in an interlude in which a celebrity (Selena Gomez or the chef Anthony Bourdain; or, fresh from The Wolf of Wall Street, Margot Robbie) will talk direct to camera to explain it. Sardonic voiceovers sketch in the background history of a system so warped that it eventually led to penniless Florida strippers "owning" (or at least having mortgages on) multiple properties. As the film points out, the language of high finance is deliberately obfuscating. The public isn't supposed to understand it. The irony is that, for a lot of the time, the bankers clearly didn't, either.

The "heroes" of the film are the outsiders who take the time do the maths. The paradox here  one the film can't quite resolve  is that most of them are motivated by the same basic instinct, namely extreme avarice, as the bankers who made such a mess of the American economy. They see an opportunity of cashing in when the housing bubble bursts. There are references here to foreclosures as well as an ominous shot in which we see an alligator in a condo swimming pool but this isn't a film that pays much attention to the suffering of "ordinary" Americans. To focus too closely on that would be to risk undermining the comedy.

Steve Carell plays hedge-fund manager Mark Baum (Jaap Buitendijk)

You can't help but suspect the film-makers are compromised. This is a movie made by a Hollywood studio owned by a company on whose board have sat some of the bankers the film is trying to harpoon. Even so, the contradictions are part of the appeal. The protagonists are very different from the masters of the universe in The Bonfire of the Vanities or Oliver Stone's Wall Street films. They're eccentric, querulous and sometimes foul-mouthed oddballs, most of them played by Hollywood A-List stars slumming it. There are no Gordon Gekkos here and greed most certainly isn't good.

In a brilliant character performance, Christian Bale takes the tortured loner routine he developed playing Bruce Wayne to new extremes. He plays Michael Burry, a California-based hedge-fund manager. Burry is a T-shirt-wearing beatnik-type with minimum social graces who spots before almost anyone that the housing market is "propped up on bad loans". By the laws of economic gravity, it is bound eventually to tumble down. His own investors dismiss him as a crackpot but he is dogged in his determination to short the market.

Steve Carell is equally distinctive as hedge-fund manager Mark Baum, a pessimistic and "p****d off" figure who sees a chance to avenge the indignities the American people have endured at the hands of the banks. He is the one character for whom this is a moral crusade rather than a chance to make money. His attitude is different from that of the shamelessly opportunistic Wall Street trader and city slicker Jared Vennett (Ryan Gosling in Mephistophelian mode). Then, there's the bespectacled and reclusive former banker Ben Rickert (Brad Pitt, who co-produced) acting as mentor to two small-time traders who've also spotted the impending calamity in the housing market. As the world's economy is about to collapse, Pitt's character sits in an English country pub, using his laptop to facilitate trades worth millions as the locals curse him.

McKay combines goofy comedy with moments of caustic satire. There is a tremendous scene in which many of Wall Street's most senior, self-important figures are in a conference theatre, waiting for a debate about the housing market. When their Blackberries start buzzing, they realise their banks are in trouble and scurry for the exits, dignity in shreds. Equally striking is a surreal interlude in which Baum and his staff head to Florida to do their research on the housing bubble. They encounter a Sunshine State in which no one has money and unemployment is rife  and yet everyone seems to own strings of properties and can borrow money at will to buy more. Toxic loans are bundled into packages, sold on, re-classified and given triple-A ratings by credit agencies.

Steve Carell and Ryan Gosling, who plays Jared Vennett (Jaap Buitendijk)

What makes the collapse, when it happens, so startling is the collision between the bankers' abstract formulations and the hard reality of families losing their homes. The film-makers play with our sense of expectation. We want the heroes to be vindicated, yet we realise their success will mean disaster for the economy.

The film ends in witty but downbeat fashion. It's hardly a spoiler to point out that little has changed since the 2008 housing crash and financial crisis. On the basis that the story would be simply too depressing otherwise, McKay accentuates the comedy that goes hand in hand with the incompetence and corruption  and that's why The Big Short is one disaster movie in which it is always safe to laugh.
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Vinyl copies of David Bowies final album Blackstar are being sold for up to 900 after pressing plants were overwhelmed by demand for the record, following the stars death.

Released three days before Bowies death from cancer was announced, the seven-track Blackstar was identified by fans as his epitaph.

Recommended Read more David Bowie tops US albums charts for first time with Blackstar

With just 5,000 copies of the clear vinyl edition sent to stores on the week of its January 8 release, Blackstar has already become a sought-after rarity among collectors.

As the album soared to number one, a further 6,000 vinyl copies, initially sold for around 30, were made available but those too were an instant sell-out.

Collectors soon began to cash in on the limited edition release. Copies were placed on the auction site eBay, fetching in excess of 400.

 David Bowie vinyl in demand

A Canadian purchaser placed a vinyl edition, containing three lithograph prints and lyric book on the site for $1,2500 (875).

The shortage has hit musics biggest retailers, including Amazon, which is offering a double-disc black vinyl version for 21.78 with the message: Expedited delivery when in stock.

Although vinyl album sales surged by 65% in 2015 to 2.1m records, the highest figure in 21 years, there is limited capacity to press up the records, which are labour-intensive and expensive to produce.

The UK has only two large-scale vinyl pressing plants left and most large orders are sent to factories in central Europe  the worlds biggest producer is the GZ Vinyl plant in a village outside Prague, which manufactures 14 million records a year but faces a six-month queue of orders.

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David Bowie: A life in albums Show all 27 1 /27 David Bowie: A life in albums David Bowie: A life in albums David Bowie 1967 David Bowie: A life in albums Space Oddity 1969 David Bowie: A life in albums The Man Who Sold The World 1970 David Bowie: A life in albums Hunky Dory 1971 David Bowie: A life in albums The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars 1972 David Bowie: A life in albums Aladdin Sane 1973 David Bowie: A life in albums Pin Ups 1973 David Bowie: A life in albums Diamond Dogs 1974 David Bowie: A life in albums Young Americans 1975 David Bowie: A life in albums Station To Station 1976 David Bowie: A life in albums Low 1977 David Bowie: A life in albums Heroes 1977 David Bowie: A life in albums Lodger 1979 David Bowie: A life in albums Scary Monsters 1980 David Bowie: A life in albums Let's Dance 1983 David Bowie: A life in albums Tonight 1984 David Bowie: A life in albums Never Let Me Down 1987 David Bowie: A life in albums Tin Machine 1989 David Bowie: A life in albums Tin Machine II 1991 David Bowie: A life in albums Black Tie White Noise 1993 David Bowie: A life in albums Outside 1995 David Bowie: A life in albums Earthling 1997 David Bowie: A life in albums Hours 1999 David Bowie: A life in albums Heathen 2002 David Bowie: A life in albums Reality 2003 David Bowie: A life in albums The Next Day 2013 David Bowie: A life in albums Black Star 2016

Sources said Sony, Bowies record company, did not anticipate demand for vinyl copies of the jazz-influenced record, which was heralded as an intriguing return to his experimental best even before the stars death.

UK pressing plants are also at capacity producing limited edition releases for Record Store Day in April, the global event credited with revitalising the vinyl industry. Big name artists sanction exclusive vinyl releases which are often destined to be sold on at auction sites.

Longstanding fans of Bowie, who approved a number of special versions of his back catalogue, could be sitting on a vinyl goldmine. Record Collectors Rare Record Price Guide puts mint copies of Bowies self-title debut from 1967 at 800, while top quality copies of 1971s The Man Who Sold The World fetch around 700.

Ian McCann, Record Collector editor said: With Record Store Day coming up on April 16 and the manufacturing capacity occupied producing product for it, Sony have found themselves overwhelmed with fans wanting Blackstar but scant means to produce it quickly enough.

The formats ongoing revival has caught the business with its trousers down, because most of them closed their own presses years ago. Britains pressing plants are already stretched to their limit.

Mr McCann added: However many are eventually produced, the first pressing of Blackstar, and especially the clear vinyl deluxe edition, will always have collector cachet. In a few months, once demand has settled down, a mint-condition copy Blackstar will still command a decent price.

A statement on the website of online vinyl retailer Norman Records, said: Sony have told us that, as things stand, they cannot supply the quantities we need to cover our sales of this item from their initial pressing. Feel free to place an order for it but please expect significant delays in shipping as the inevitable and necessary re-pressings will take time.

The BBC announced it has become an official partner of Record Store Day, now in its ninth year. 6 Music DJs Steve Lamacq and Lauren Laverne will present special shows around the event.

Blackstar retained its position at the top of the UK albums chart, selling a further 81,000 copies and was joined in the top ten by the 2002 retrospective Best of Bowie and his 2014 album, Nothing Has Changed. A further six Bowie albums feature in this weeks Top 40.
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Britains motorways should be lined with wind turbines because they are already unattractive and very few people live alongside them, according to Baroness Brown, the UKs green energy ambassador.

Wind farms built along the 2,300-mile motorway network would generate less local opposition than those constructed in unspoiled rural areas, predicted Baroness Brown, an independent peer in the House of Lords.

Recommended Read more Motorway lessons for learner drivers could be on the cards

You dont really want to live beside a motorway  its not good for you and its noisy. I do a lot of driving up the east side of the country and I wonder why we dont line the sides of our motorways with wind turbines, Baroness Brown said in an interview with The Independent.

We havent got infinite space and you have got to be sensitive about where you put these things. But motorways seem like an ideal location.

The land is generally used for agriculture and it is harder to object to the impact on the landscape and tranquillity when you are beside a major road, added Baroness Brown  also known as Professor Julia King  who is a member of the Governments official climate change advisory group and was recently appointed to the board of the Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult research centre for offshore wind, wave and tidal energy.

The cost of onshore wind power has plummeted in recent years and is now the cheapest of all electricity sources. But the Government has made it difficult for new onshore windfarms to be built despite them offering the best way to meet ambitious climate targets in an affordable way.

The Government pledged in its election manifesto to halt the spread of onshore windfarms. Since being elected, it has dramatically cut subsidies for onshore windfarms and given the final say over whether projects can go ahead to local communities.

I think the Government should be encouraging onshore wind. Its clearly a very good technology and its cheap. So its very disappointing we havent got stronger government support  were shooting ourselves in the foot, said Baroness Brown, who sits on the board of the Green Investment Bank.

Many stretches of motorway are not windy enough to power turbines, experts warn. But other parts of the motorway network provide plenty of scope for wind farms, they say, such as the 152-turbine Clyde array on either side of the M74 near the Lanarkshire village of Abington and the 11-turbine Swinford complex by the M1 in Leicestershire. The turbines on windfarms such as these have to be set back from the motorway so they dont fall on to it if they keel over.

Baroness Browns idea received the backing of Chris Huhne, who was Liberal Democrat Energy Secretary from 2010 to 2012, who told The Independent that he had tried to push the idea during his time as Secretary of State.

He said his department looked into the idea and concluded that it didnt offer much potential. However, he still believes motorway wind farms offer considerable potential, especially since the rapidly diminshing costs make less windy stretches more viable.

The number of turbines you see by motorways on the Continent, you would have thought it would be relatively easy. And as the cost of onshore wind goes on declining its worth looking again at this idea, he said.

The shadow energy and climate change minister, Barry Gardiner, added: This looks to be a very sensible political compromise. We need to be doing as much renewable energy as possible. And this way, you are not eroding natural beauty because there are long stretches of motorway that are in between conurbations, where people are not going to object.

A spokesman for the Department for Energy and Climate Change said: Our priority is providing clean and secure energy while keeping bills as low as possible. To do this, we have driven down the cost of renewables, helping new technologies stand on their own two feet while still meeting our renewable energy commitments.

Women in engineering: Ingrained sexism

Women are being discouraged from going into engineering by ingrained, sexist attitudes about what sort of pursuits are appropriate for them, Baroness Brown told The Independent.

The vice-chancellor of Aston University and former Rolls-Royce executive said she laments the low number of female engineers, which has been stuck at about 15 per cent for years. She added that advertising is largely to blame for reinforcing gender stereotypes at an early age.

Were brainwashing everybody in this country from a very, very early age that there are girls things to do and there are boys things to do, she said. Until the UK shakes that off we are really going to struggle to make parents, teachers and students recognise that engineering is a hugely creative subject.
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Apple has hired one of the USs top virtual reality researchers, probably signalling that it is looking to move into the industry.

Releasing a headset would bring Apple into line with other major tech companies, almost all of which have shown off virtual reality equipment. Microsoft, Samsung, Facebook and Google have all demonstrated different takes on headsets that make people feel as if they are inside a virtual world.

Now Apple has hired Doug Bowman, who was previously a computer science professor at Virginia Tech. There, he led the universitys human-computer interaction centre for about five years.

Mr Bowmans LinkedIn profile describes his work as being on three-dimensional user interface design and the benefits of immersion in virtual environments, according to the Financial Times, which first reported the news.

Mr Bowman has worked on both of the major kinds of virtual reality available today. That includes both fully immersive headsets, like those made by Facebooks Oculus, as well as augmented reality like the Microsoft Hololens, which imposes images onto the actual environment.

Gadget and tech news: In pictures Show all 25 1 /25 Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gun-toting humanoid robot sent into space Russia has launched a humanoid robot into space on a rocket bound for the International Space Station (ISS). The robot Fedor will spend 10 days aboard the ISS practising skills such as using tools to fix issues onboard. Russia's deputy prime minister Dmitry Rogozin has previously shared videos of Fedor handling and shooting guns at a firing range with deadly accuracy. Dmitry Rogozin/Twitter Gadget and tech news: In pictures Google turns 21 Google celebrates its 21st birthday on September 27. The The search engine was founded in September 1998 by two PhD students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, in their dormitories at Californias Stanford University. Page and Brin chose the name google as it recalled the mathematic term 'googol', meaning 10 raised to the power of 100 Google Gadget and tech news: In pictures Hexa drone lifts off Chief engineer of LIFT aircraft Balazs Kerulo demonstrates the company's "Hexa" personal drone craft in Lago Vista, Texas on June 3 2019 Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures Project Scarlett to succeed Xbox One Microsoft announced Project Scarlett, the successor to the Xbox One, at E3 2019. The company said that the new console will be 4 times as powerful as the Xbox One and is slated for a release date of Christmas 2020 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures First new iPod in four years Apple has announced the new iPod Touch, the first new iPod in four years. The device will have the option of adding more storage, up to 256GB Apple Gadget and tech news: In pictures Folding phone may flop Samsung will cancel orders of its Galaxy Fold phone at the end of May if the phone is not then ready for sale. The $2000 folding phone has been found to break easily with review copies being recalled after backlash PA Gadget and tech news: In pictures Charging mat non-starter Apple has cancelled its AirPower wireless charging mat, which was slated as a way to charge numerous apple products at once AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures "Super league" India shoots down satellite India has claimed status as part of a "super league" of nations after shooting down a live satellite in a test of new missile technology EPA Gadget and tech news: In pictures 5G incoming 5G wireless internet is expected to launch in 2019, with the potential to reach speeds of 50mb/s Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Uber halts driverless testing after death Uber has halted testing of driverless vehicles after a woman was killed by one of their cars in Tempe, Arizona. March 19 2018 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures The giant human-like robot bears a striking resemblance to the military robots starring in the movie 'Avatar' and is claimed as a world first by its creators from a South Korean robotic company Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi and Kaptain Rock playing one string light saber guitar perform jam session Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway resembling the giant panda is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway, resembling a giant panda, is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A concept car by Trumpchi from GAC Group is shown at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A Mirai fuel cell vehicle by Toyota is displayed at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A visitor tries a Nissan VR experience at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A man looks at an exhibit entitled 'Mimus' a giant industrial robot which has been reprogrammed to interact with humans during a photocall at the new Design Museum in South Kensington, London Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A new Israeli Da-Vinci unmanned aerial vehicle manufactured by Elbit Systems is displayed during the 4th International conference on Home Land Security and Cyber in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv Getty

The new hire follows a range of purchases, which have included companies that make technologies for recognising and understanding peoples faces.

The company has also filed patents for virtual reality technology, some of which uses its existing iPhone handsets. But its not clear whether the company is yet working on any hardware.
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Apple has confirmed a bug that iPhone 6s and 6s Plus users have been reporting for months: In certain cases, the battery indicator on the phones isn't accurate.

Users on Apple's community support forums have been reporting that their battery indicators haven't been updating properly, occasionally leading them to run out of juice when they've incorrectly thought they had enough charge.

According to a page on Apple's website, the problem seems to affect users who travel between time zones. For whatever reason, when the time zone switches it prevents the battery indicator from updating properly. The company said that it's working on a fix but didn't specify when users can expect the problem to stop.

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If you're having trouble, Apple recommends the following steps:

Restart your iPhone.

Go to Settings > General > Date & Time and make sure that Set Automatically is turned on. Learn more about the date and time on your device.

The bug doesn't appear to affect the actual battery life of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, simply the way that it's displayed on users' phones. Apple has taken some flak for the battery life on the latest models, prompting the company to release its own battery case.

Copyright: Washington Post
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Netflixs huge war on unblockers appears to have begun.

The site has started blocking proxies and VPNs, which allow people to pretend that they are watching from another country and get access to its library.

An Australian VPN called uFlix reports that Netflix has started blocking its users.

Recommended Read more Huge ban on Netflix proxies likely to be easily avoided

"You seem to be using an unblocker or proxy, the message shown to the users reads. Please turn off any of these services and try again."

Netflix announced last week that it was going to try harder to block the services across its network. But it didnt say how exactly it would do so.

It appears now that the company is looking out for the specific addresses used by those VPN and proxy services, and blocking them from connecting to the site.

That is likely to mean that the VPN companies will simply switch those IP addresses around, meaning that no one service is likely to be inaccessible for long.

Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 Show all 14 1 /14 Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 House of Cards - Season Four - 4 March Last time we were in Frank Underwoods White House things werent looking to great for the President, his first Lady having just walked out on him. What will happen next in the critically acclaimed show is anyones guess. Netflix Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 Daredevil - Season Two - 18 March Back in Hells Kitchen things were seemingly getting better. Kingpin is in prison and the crime syndicates should have dispersed - for the meantime at least. Unfortunately for Matt Murdoch, theres a new anti-hero in town: The Punisher. Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 Flaked - 11 March According to Netflix, Flaked is set in the insular world of Venice, California. It follows the serio-comic story of a self-appointed 'guru' who falls for the object of his best friends fascination. Soon the tangled web of half-truths and semi-b******* that underpins his all-important image and sobriety begins to unravel. Arnett plays Chip, a man doing his honest best to stay one step ahead of his own lies. Netflix Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt - Season Two - 15 April Following the story of 29-year-old Kimmy Schmidt on her journey through New York, season two is set to start right where the last left us. The Tina Fey created sitcom has already been renewed for a third season, so you know this one has to be good. Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 The Ranch - 1 April A comedy starring Ashton Kutcher. Based on a failed semi-pro footballer who returns home to a Colorado ranch. It also has some of the producers from Two and a Half Men behind it, which just happens to be one of the most successful shows of all time. Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 Marseille - 5 May Netflixs first French language original is a tale of power, corruption and redemption. Sounding like it could very well be the next Narcos. Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 Grace and Frankie - Season Two - 6 May The tale of a retired cosmetics mogul and a hippie art teacher living together was a hit across the world, especially in the US. Starring Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, the show has already been renewed for a third season. Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 Orange is the New Black - Season Four - 17 June Another Netflix powerhouse, Orange is the New Black will see us returning to Litchfield Penitentiary. Prepare for more Piper, Alex and Red come June. Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 Stranger Things - 15 July Eight-episode series starring Winona Ryder that follows a small community as they look for a young boy who has seemingly vanished. It all sounds quite scary. Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 The Get Down - August 12th "Told through the lives and music of a ragtag crew of South Bronx teens, The Get Down is a mythic saga of the transformation of 1970s New York City. Directed by Baz Luhrmann, this is sure to be as stylish as anything hes done before. Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 The Crown - Spring Starring Doctor Who actor Matt Smith, the period drama reveals the political rivalries and romance behind Queen Elizabeth II's reign and the events that shaped the 2nd half of the 20th century." Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 Luke Cage - Fall 2016 First appearing alongside Jessica Jones in her Netflix series, Luke Cage will pic up the pieces, seeing Cage come to terms with his super-strength and impenetrable skin. It is unknown whether Kathryn. Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 Narcos - Season 2 - Fall 2016 Its back. The Netflix series hyped to match Breaking Bad was an astounding success around the world, apparently watched more than Game of Thrones. Well find out what happens to Pablo Escabar now he doesnt have the protection of all his men. Netflix Inc. Netflix originals to look forward to in 2016 A Series of Unfortunate Events - Fall 2016 Netflix is set to revisit the much-loved childrens novel, putting Neil Patrick Harris as Count Olaf in a show that looks so much creepier than the 2004 film. Not much else is known - i.e. casting - but Lemony Snicket is on board as executive producer, so get excited.

One VPN service already suggested that it will immediately deploy new server IP addresses so users can still bypass blocks as soon as any blocks come into force.

Netflix itself has apparently suggested that it is mostly shutting down the proxies to appease license holders. The site has to have different content in each country because TV shows and films are sold by different people everywhere, and those licenses maybe harder to acquire if their owners think users are circumventing them.
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One of the biggest suppliers of equipment and testing services to the NHS pays barely any corporate tax in the UK, despite receiving hundreds of millions of pounds a year from medical sales to British clinics and hospitals.

A study of GE Healthcares accounts by The Independent suggests it has received more money back in tax benefits over the past 12 years than it has paid in, with the taxpayer appearing to be missing out on millions of pounds a year in lost revenues.

Recommended Read more Private healthcare companies accused of using tax relief to undercut

The company has been headquartered in Buckinghamshire since 2003 when its vast US owner, General Electric, bought the British multinational medical firm Nycomed Amersham. It makes scanners and other equipment used in areas such as oncology and heart disease.

Nycomed Amersham typically used to pay up to 8m in corporation tax to the Exchequer every year, plus 50m to 90m more abroad. But in the 12 years since its takeover by GE, the UK divisions examined by The Independent made a total net gain of 1.6m in benefits from the taxman.

GE is notorious in the US for avoiding taxes. News of its tax situation here will inevitably lead to questions about its success in winning contracts from the publicly funded NHS, which is struggling to find savings of 22bn.

Gail Cartmail, the assistant general secretary of the union Unite, said: The NHS is under massive financial strain: the tax contribution we all make is vital to the health of the nation. Its a national disgrace that private companies which profit from our health service can get away with having tax avoidance structures in place.

The straitened state of the NHS has clearly not been lost on GE. In its most recent set of accounts, its GE Medical Systems division noted the general economic and political conditions in the UK continue to make it challenging to increase the present level of trading activity.

That statement was made alongside accounts which showed the division paid zero corporate tax.

Since buying Nycomed Amersham, GE appears to have put much of the British operation into an interlinked web of UK companies all ultimately owned by a holding company in the low-tax Netherlands. Over the years, big dividends and loans have been paid from one GE Healthcare company to another, which may have reduced its tax bill.

In the most recent accounts, only one of the seven GE Healthcare companies in the UK scrutinised by The Independent paid any corporation tax  a tiny 250,000, or 1.7 per cent of its 14.3m profit.

The full tax affairs of GE Healthcares global business since it bought Nycomed Amersham are impossible to gauge due to the way the groups various companies accounts are filed. On 22 January, GEs full-year accounts showed healthcare profits globally were $2.8bn (2bn) in 2015. The parent company GE, whose businesses range from lightbulbs to wind turbines, has been widely criticised in the US for its aggressive tax avoidance. One of the worlds biggest companies, it structures itself to maximise the amount of money it makes and holds in lower-tax overseas countries.

It was notorious for tax avoidance long before the spotlight fell on Apple, Starbucks and Amazon. A New York Times investigation in 2011 revealed how, through a mixture of aggressive tax structures and lobbying for tax breaks, GE was paying hardly any tax in the US. That year, far from paying tax on the $5.1bn in profit it made, it received a tax benefit of $3.2bn.

This month it announced it was moving its global HQ from its Connecticut home of more than 40 years to Boston after cash-strapped Connecticut closed corporate tax loopholes in the state. GE said it had been considering the move before the tax rise but the states clampdown is reported to have hastened its departure.

Its UK healthcare division carries out large numbers of contracts for the NHS, and in 2012 was criticised after accidentally sending personal medical files on 600,000 patients to the US, in breach of data protection laws.

Dave Prentis, the general secretary of the union Unison, said: Companies that make healthy profits from selling to the NHS, yet pay minuscule amounts of tax, ought to hang their heads in shame. Nurses, midwives and other healthcare workers struggling to make ends meet would probably like to have years where they could pay zero tax, but thats not a choice open to them.

NHS staff are angry at companies that would rather pay profits to shareholders than the right level of taxes.

He called for NHS providers to be excluded if they appear to be avoiding UK taxes.

In a statement, GE said: GE Healthcare pays the taxes it owes in every country where we operate. It added that it had invested more than 500m in research and development in the UK in the past 10 years and had recently opened a multi-million pound innovation village in Cardiff to support life sciences businesses. The GE group as a whole employs 22,000 people in the UK.

The Independent was prompted to look at GEs UK-based healthcare taxes after it announced plans this month to move its global base from Amersham to the US. Although this is not expected to lead to substantial job losses, it will be mourned locally.

The company has been based in Amersham since the 1940s and was built to process radium confiscated from a German shipment. The labs radioactive expertise has made it a world-leader in creating markers used in medical scanning.

NHS contracts won last year include a 30m deal to supply X-ray archives to medics using cloud computing.
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The Zika virus is becoming a growing public health concern in the Americas, prompting officials to advise pregnant women and those who are trying to conceive to take precautions to prevent catching the virus that can damage the brains of foetuses.

Health ministers in El Salvador are the latest officials to release warnings about the virus, and have advised women to put off becoming pregnant for the next two years to avoid their unborn babies from developing microcephaly  which stops brains from growing and the head appear shrunken.

The number of cases of microcephaly in Brazil, which is also affected, has risen to 3,893 since October 2015. Currently, there are 96 suspected cases of pregnant women with the virus in El Salvador.

Here is what you need to know about the virus if you are pregnant or planning to travel to affected regions.

What is Zika?

Zika is a virus spread by mosquitos. Symptoms include a mild fever, rash, headaches, joint and muscle pain, weakness, and puss-free conjunctivitis. The signs usually start showing between two to seven days after a mosquito bite. Symptoms then continue for around two to seven days.

For most people, Zika is mild and short-lived, however its affect on babies is what is concerning the authorities and pregnant women.

How is it spread?

Zika is spread by the bite of the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which can also carry dengue and chikungunya.

It also remains in semen for up to two weeks after a man is infected.

Where am I at risk of catching it?

The largest outbreak of the virus is currently unfolding in Brazil - mainly in the impoverished north - where it has been linked to a surge in birth defects including microcephaly.

The states with the largest number of cases include: Pernambuco, Paraiba, Bahia, Ceara, Rio Grande do Norte, Sergipe, Alagoas, Mato Grosso and Rio de Janeiro, according to the UK Government.

As well as Brazil and El Salvador, countries where Zika has been reported currently include: Barbados, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Saint Martin, Suriname, and Venezuela.

The virus is known to circulate in parts of Africa, Asia and the Pacific.

Battling the zika virus - in pictures Show all 19 1 /19 Battling the zika virus - in pictures Battling the zika virus - in pictures A worker of the Salvadorean Ministry of Health fumigates a house in Soyapango, 6 kilometers from San Salvador, El Salvador. Salvadorean authorities have began a three days campaign of fumigation to reduce the presence of the mosquito that transmit the Zika virus. EPA/Oscar Rivera Battling the zika virus - in pictures A Health Ministry employee fumigates a home against the Aedes aegypti mosquito to prevent the spread of the Zika virus in Soyapango, six km east of San Salvador. Health authorities have issued a national alert against the Aedes Aegypti mosquito, because of the link between the Zika virus and microcephaly and Guillain-BarrE Syndrome in foetuses. AFP PHOTO/Marvin RECINOSMarvin RECINOS/AFP/Getty Images Battling the zika virus - in pictures A pediatric infectologist examines a two-months-old baby, who has microcephaly, on 26 January 2016 in Recife, Brazil. Getty Images Battling the zika virus - in pictures A woman walks through the fumes as Health Ministry employee fumigate against the Aedes aegypti mosquito to prevent the spread of the Zika virus in Soyapango. Marvin RECINOS/AFP/Getty Images Battling the zika virus - in pictures A health ministry employee sprays to eliminate breeding sites of the Aedes Aegypti mosquito, which transmits diseases such as the dengue, chicunguna and Zica viruses, in a Tegucigalpa cemetery on January 21, 2016. The medical school at the National Autonomous University of Honduras (UNAH) recommended that women in the country avoid getting pregnant for the time being due to the presence of the Zika virus. If a pregnant woman is infected by the virus, the baby could be born with microcephaly. AFP PHOTO/Orlando SIERRA Battling the zika virus - in pictures A man walks away from his home with his son as health workers fumigates the Altos del Cerro neighbourhood as part of preventive measures against the Zika virus and other mosquito-borne diseases in Soyapango, El Salvador REUTERS/Jose Cabezas Battling the zika virus - in pictures A three-months-old, who has microcephaly, in Recife, Brazil. Getty Images Battling the zika virus - in pictures A pregnant woman waits to be attended at the Maternal and Children's Hospital in Tegucigalpa. The medical school at the National Autonomous University of Honduras (UNAH) recommended that women in the country avoid getting pregnant for the time being due to the presence of the Zika virus. If a pregnant woman is infected by the virus, the baby could be born with microcephaly. ORLANDO SIERRA/AFP/Getty Images Battling the zika virus - in pictures Army soldiers apply insect repellent as they prepare for a clean up operation against the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which is a vector for transmitting the Zika virus in Sao Paulo, Brazil. AP Photo/Andre Penner Battling the zika virus - in pictures Workers disinfect the Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro to fight the spread of the Zika virus Battling the zika virus - in pictures Dr. Vanessa Van Der Linden, the neuro-pediatrician who first recognized the microcephaly crisis in Brazil, measures the head of a 2-month-old baby with microcephaly in Recife Battling the zika virus - in pictures Mother Mylene Helena Ferreira cares for her son David Henrique Ferreira, 5 months, who has microcephaly, on January 25, 2016 in Recife, Brazil. In the last four months, authorities have recorded close to 4,000 cases in Brazil in which the mosquito-borne Zika virus may have led to microcephaly in infants Getty Images Battling the zika virus - in pictures U.S. women who are pregnant from traveling to many South American countries Battling the zika virus - in pictures In the last four months, authorities have recorded close to 4,000 cases in Brazil in which the mosquito-borne Zika virus may have led to microcephaly in infants. Getty Images Battling the zika virus - in pictures Dr. Vanessa Van Der Linden, the neuro-pediatrician who first recognized the microcephaly crisis in Brazil, examines a two-month-old baby with microcephaly on January 27, 2016 in Recife, Brazil Battling the zika virus - in pictures Washington Post Battling the zika virus - in pictures Battling the zika virus - in pictures Battling the zika virus - in pictures

How can I protect myself

Mirroring health advice from governments including the US and UK, El Salvador's vice-minister of public health Eduardo Espinoza recently told women who are pregnant to stay covered outdoors to lessen the risk of being bitten by mosquitos  both day and night.

Extra precaution can be taken by treating clothing in insecticide such as permethrin, as well as applying insect repellent over sunscreen.

Health officials recommend not suing sun screen which is sold with insect repellent.

Avoiding and removing what attracts mosquitos can also help, including carbon dioxide, heat and movement.The WHO also recommends ensuring mosquotis do not have a place to breed, but emptying and cleaning out containers that can hold water, such as buckets, flower pots or tyres.

If you are pregnant and have recently travelled to a country where Zika is known to be an issue, or you are planning on doing so, you should contact your obstetrician or midwife

How are officials trying to stop it?

There is currently no cure for Zika. However, Brazils Presidet Dilma Rousseff recently announced that Brazil is trying to develop vaccine against the Zika and dengue viruses, also spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito.

Meanwhile, El Salvador has launched an anti-mosquito campaign by using special mists.
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If youre a parent, your son or daughter will probably fall in love with someone sooner or later - but what if you completely disapprove of their choice?

This is very tricky territory, as we know from the story of Romeo and Juliet, and is something we hear about a lot at Relate. So although you may feel very alone, try to take some reassurance in the fact that you arent.

So what can you do?

First of all, try to be clear about your reservations and why you have them. What is it about this person you dont like? Do you have evidence to back up your opinion or is it just a feeling? Could it be that you are being prejudiced because they went to the wrong sort of school or because they have numerous piercings? Or is it because you dont think they offer your child enough emotional support?

You might well feel no one is good enough for your daughter or son and thats entirely understandable. But this is one of those moments in parenting where you have to start letting go. If you raised your child to be independent you have to accept this is what they want.

But it can be painful. Realising that youre no longer the first person they turn to when theyre upset or need a shoulder to cry on can be hard after being that person for so long. Someone else has come along and is now taking their affection - and it seems taking that affection away from you. It can feel a bit dismissive.

You may feel guilty about your disapproval, but try not to get too hung up on this. One study by British and Dutch scientists suggests that disapproval of childrens partners may come down to evolution. It seems that parents may be pre-programmed to make sure their children end up with love, and support. After all, its only natural to want what you think is best for your child. The problem is that sometimes what we think is in their best interests really isnt.

If you have a really strong reservation about the person and feel its important to express it, then it can help to tell your son or daughter - but think first about how they might take it. Choose a calm moment to say it rather than in the middle of an argument. Raise it as a concern rather than a criticism and dont then bring it up every time you see them.

Theres also no need to make your disapproval obvious to your childs partner. This person may become your son or daughter in law, or a long term partner. Accept them as your childs choice. Also be aware that openly expressing or demonstrating disapproval could shore up their relationship and have the opposite effect from the one you want - they may stay together just to spite you! Whereas if you keep your distance and don't say how you feel it might just fizzle out of its own accord.

It is important to remember that if you are concerned about your child's safety then you do need to intervene.

Love and sex news: in pictures Show all 31 1 /31 Love and sex news: in pictures Love and sex news: in pictures What makes a perfect penis? Scientists have now answered one of these great unknowns. According to a new study, general cosmetic appearance is the most important penile aspect when it comes to what women value down there. This is swiftly followed by the appearance of pubic hair, penile skin, and girth. Length comes in at number six, with the look of the scrotum trailing closely behind. The least important facet of the phallus, say the scientists, is the position and shape of meatus, the vertical slit at the opening of the urethra. Getty Love and sex news: in pictures Half of divorcees had doubts on their wedding day Over half of divorcees considered abandoning their husband or wife-to-be at the altar on their wedding day, a new study has revealed. On top of likely worrying about wedding favours and making sure guests behave on their big day, 49 per cent of divorcees admitted they were unsure before the ceremony that their marriage would last. Some 15 per cent of divorcees polled said they were so wracked with doubt that they felt physically sick in the run up to their wedding. Joe Raedle/Getty Images Love and sex news: in pictures Students who marry after studying the same subject Picking a university subject is already difficult enough for young people. But heres an extra piece of data to weigh on your decision: you may be picking a life partner as well. Dan Kopf of the blog, Priceonomics, analysed US Census data and found that the percentage of Americans who marry someone within their own major is actually fairly high. About half of Americans are married, according to the 2012 American Community Survey (part of the Census). And about 28 per cent of married couples over the age of 22 both graduated from college. (The survey didnt recognise same-sex marriages for the 2012 data, but it will for 2013 onwards, says Kopf). Sean Gallup/Getty Images Love and sex news: in pictures How much sex we have (and how much we'd like) As a nation, we dont have as much sex as we would like, a survey has (somewhat unsurprisingly) confirmed. In a poll of 1523 people by YouGov, 64 per cent of Britons said they would wish to have sex at least a few times a month. The same sample said that only 38 per cent had sex at least a few times a month. In addition, 10 per cent said they wished to have sex every day, a goal which only 1 per cent admitted reaching. Rex Love and sex news: in pictures The new female condom Picture an internal condom. The chances are youre thinking of something which resembles a carrier bag. However, this could all be about to change with the new VA w.o.w. Condom Feminine. Not only is it a wireless, Bluetooth enabled, vibrating interactive device, which comes available in the shape of a heart, but the manufacturers think youll love it more than not using a condom at all. Love and sex news: in pictures One in five Brits admit to having had an affair One in five British adults admits they have had an affair, according to a new poll. 20 per cent of male respondents and 19 per cent of female respondents admitted to having had an affair in a new poll of 1660 respondents by YouGov. Orlando /Three Lions/Getty Images Love and sex news: in pictures The UK's favourite sex position Casting aside the myth that Brits are a prudish bunch, a new survey has revealed that doggy style is the nations favourite sex position. As many as a quarter of UK adults surveyed said doggy style was their favourite way to indulge with a partner. Missionary, which is sometimes scoffed at the most boring position, was favoured by a fifth of the 1,000 people surveyed by high street sex shop Ann Summers, seeing it come in as third under "woman on top". Caiaimage/REX Love and sex news: in pictures Who's most likely to cheat? Men and women who are economically dependent on their spouses are more likely to cheat, a new study has revealed. Researchers have found that men who are solely financially dependent are more like to cheat than women, at 15 per cent and 5 per cent respectively. Men who are rely on their wives may cheat because they are undergoing a masculinity threat by not being the primary breadwinner as is culturally expected, said study author Christin L. Munsch, a UConn assistant professor of sociology. Eye Candy/REX Love and sex news: in pictures Jailed for loud sex noises A woman who breached a court order barring her from causing nuisance by making "loud sex noises" was sent to jail. Gemma Wale, of Small Heath, Birmingham, was given a two-week prison sentence after a civil court judge concluded that she had breached the order by "screaming and shouting whilst having sex" at a "level of noise" which annoyed a neighbour. Rex Features Love and sex news: in pictures Photo of wedding guest proposing to girlfriend in front of bride and groom goes viral When the staggering amount time, money, and effort that goes into to planning a wedding is considered, it seems pretty obvious that all guests have is to do is turn up with some gifts, and not upstage the couple. But this fact seems to have escaped one man, whose grinning face has gone viral after he decided to propose to his girlfriend in front of the bride and grooms top table. The photo, which has been viewed over 1.4 million times on Reddit, shows a boyfriend perched on one knee in front of his crying girlfriend. Joe Raedle/Getty Images Love and sex news: in pictures Sexual fantasies The results of a sex survey are busting the myth that Britons are sexually repressed, by revealing how the majority of women have lived out their sexual fantasies. As many as 81 per cent of women and 77 per cent of men have shared and acted out fantasies with a partner  with having sex in public topping the list of turn-ons. The study also laid bare the influence of TV and film on our desires, with three-quarters of couples saying they had inspired them. Meanwhile, a further three quarters of women and over half of men have played out a fantasy theyd found in a book. LEO RAMIREZ/AFP/Getty Images Love and sex news: in pictures The world's sexiest nationalities Irish men are the worlds sexiest, according to a survey of thousands of jet-setting women. In a poll of 66,000 of single American women who use MissTravel.com, as many as 8,000 said that Irish men are the sexiest. Around half of the females who took said they were turned on by Irish men said their accent influenced their choice, according to the Irish Times. ANDREW COWIE/AFP/Getty Images Love and sex news: in pictures More sex = happiness? Couples were asked to double the amount of sex they had each week over a three month period by researchers at the Carnegie Mellon University, who compared them to couples who had their normal amount of sex. Their findings, published in the Journal of Economic Behavior, went against advice given by the average self-help book  having more sex doesnt automatically make a person happier. Instead, couples who were instructed to have more sex reported a decrease in happiness levels. Mood Board/Rex Love and sex news: in pictures Most sexually satisfied countries It is often considered the most amorous nation on the planet, but France doesn't even feature in a new list of the most sexually satisfied countries. According to a Durex global survey of 26,000 people, aged 16 and older, across 26 countries, only 44 per cent of people are fully satisfied with their sex lives. In the wake of these results, AlterNet has compiled a list of the 12 most sexually satisfied countries, with Switzerland, Spain and Italy topping the list. INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP/Getty Images Love and sex news: in pictures Sex o'clock They say women are from Venus and men are from Mars  but a new sex survey suggests that members of the opposite sex seem to operate in different time zones too. While women like to get steamy between 11:21pm on average, men are more likely to be turned on at the rather inconvenient time of 7:54am. These times fall into the broader timeslots of 11pm and 2am for women, and 6am and 9am for men. PIERRE ANDRIEU/AFP/Getty Images Love and sex news: in pictures More sex = more money People who have more sex are likely to earn more, new research claims. The research, partly conducted from the responses of 7,500 people, found employees who have sex two or three times a week earn 4.5 per cent more than colleagues who do not. Rex Love and sex news: in pictures The effects of watching porn Contrary to suggestion that porn desensitises viewers to sex, a study has found that it doesn't "negatively impact sexual functioning" and in fact boosts couples' sexual attraction to one another. In research published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine, scientists at the University of California tested the effects of visual sexual stimuli on men in relationships, finding that it "is unlikely to negatively impact sexual functioning, given that responses actually were stronger in those who viewed more VSS." Rex Love and sex news: in pictures 'I have herpes' A woman diagnosed with herpes at the age of 20 has written an emotional essay about living with the common condition to fight the stigma surrounding it. Ella Dawson, now 22, said she had never had unprotected sex and thought she wasn't the sort of person STDs happened to when the symptoms first appeared during her time at university in the US. She wrote that the diagnosis initially felt like a punishment for her values and relationships and worried her that telling boyfriends would ruin her love life. Ella Dawson Love and sex news: in pictures More sleep, better sex A new study could have a simple answer to enhancing your sex life  just get a good nights sleep (if you are a woman at least). A study conducted by a team at the University of Michigan Sleep and Circadian Research Laboratory found women who get an extra hour of sleep at night reported higher levels of sexual desire and were more likely to have sex with their partners. Getty Images Love and sex news: in pictures Swipe right A woman has detailed her experiences of a week of always swiping right on Tinder. By opening the floodgates, as Ms Caster describes it, she receives scores of messages from different men  and not all are terrible. Love and sex news: in pictures The most adulterous town in the UK Ever wondered what the neighbours are up to? Well if you live in Beeston, Nottinghamshire, then the answer is probably... having an affair. The bustling East Midlands town has been granted the dubious honour of being the UK's top spot for infidelity  with a total of 941 affairs reportedly taking place right now. According to The Official Infidelity Index 2015, which was released this week, 2.54 per cent of the towns population are currently seeing someone they shouldn't. REX FEATURES Love and sex news: in pictures Average penis size revealed Scientists have measured more than 15,000 mens penises in an effort to find out what size is normal. Researchers at Kings College London and a London NHS trust said they hoped the review would help address the concern that some men have about their penis size and aid people suffering from anxiety and distress. They revealed that the average flaccid penis is 3.6ins (9.16cm) long, or 5.2ins (13.24cm) when stretched, and 3.7ins (9.31cm) in circumference. Erect penises are 5.1ins (13.12cm) long on average and 4.5ins (11.66cm) in girth. Rex Love and sex news: in pictures One true love Men fall in love more times in their life than women, according to a new survey. 2,000 adults were asked about relationships, and discovered that more than half of men say they've loved more than one person their lifetime. For women, it's markedly fewer, with only 45 per cent saying they've had multiple loves. Love and sex news: in pictures Dating site for 'beautiful people only' A self-proclaimed elite dating website has removed around 3,000 members because they were "letting themselves go". BeautifulPeople.com describes itself as the largest internet dating community exclusively for the beautiful and puts peoples photographs to a members vote to decide if they are allowed in. But administrators have now shown that the rigorous 48-hour selection period is not a permanent pass by taking thousands of profiles down, mainly because of weight gain and graceless ageing. Love and sex news: in pictures Sex is a 'miracle cure' Regular exercise  including sex, walking and dancing  are miracle cures staring us in the face and could dramatically cut our risk of cancer, dementia, heart disease and diabetes, leading doctors have said. In a new review of existing evidence which reveals the full extent of benefits that can be accrued from exercise, the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges said the improvement in health and savings to the NHS could be incalculable. Susannah Ireland Love and sex news: in pictures Pornhub searches by age of user Pornhubs prolific Insights blog fires out many reports of sociological interest, none more so than its latest on age, which lays bare different age groups' sexual proclivities. Looking at the most popular searches among 18-24s, there are several familial terms including 'step mom', 'milf', 'mom' and 'step sister', a trend that seems to die out somewhat in users' 30s. By 65, 'massage' becomes the top term, while 'granny' perhaps unsurprisingly also hits the top ten. PlaceIt/Just Another IKEA Catalog Love and sex news: in pictures Mature sex Research into the sexual lives of more than 7,000 men and women between the ages of 50 and 90 in England reveals that half of men and almost a third of women aged 70 and over were still sexually active, with around a third of these sexually active older people having sexual intercourse twice a month or more. Around two-thirds of men and over half of women thought good sexual relations were essential to the maintenance of a long-term relationship or being sexually active was physically and psychologically beneficial to older people. Getty Creative Love and sex news: in pictures The secret to an eighty year marriage Figures from the Office of National Statistics show that 42 per cent of marriages in England and Wales end in divorce, and the average British marriage which ends in divorce lasts 11 years and six months. Helen and Maurice Kaye, now aged 101 and 102, have been married for 80 years, and say the secret is: I think its important to have patience and tolerance. You're two entirely different people who suddenly live together, which can't be easy. But if you love each other, you get over the difficulties. Love and sex news: in pictures Valentine's Day porn Pornhub saw a (slight) drop in traffic on Valentine's Day as people focused on pleasuring their partners rather than themselves. Everywhere, it is, except for London. Overall UK traffic dipped 3 per cent across the UK, with Plymouth and Oxford seeing the biggest drops of 11 per cent and 10 per cent respectively. In fact every major city spent less time watching porn bar London, the Pornhub audience for which grew by 2 per cent. Getty Love and sex news: in pictures 1 in 10 men paying for sex A tenth of British men have admitted to paying for sex, according to a new study. Professionals aged 25 to 34 who binge drink and take drugs were found to be the most likely to have used the services of prostitutes, based on findings from a study of 6,108 men. Around 11 per cent of subjects, in the study published in the Sexually Transmitted Infections journal, have ever paid for sex in their lifetime and four per cent admitted to doing so in the last five years. Getty Images Love and sex news: in pictures Questions that determine if you're in love The existence of love and its nature is something that has troubled philosophers for centuries, but a pair of scientists believe they have a set of questions that yield "clear empirical evidence" of it, or at least whether your relationship will end in divorce. They are: 'How happy are you in your marriage relative to how happy you would be if you weren't in the marriage?' and 'How do you think your spouse answered that question?' Columbia

But if you just cant see the appeal, try to see the person theyve fallen in love with through your childs eyes. What is it about this person that they find so compelling and attractive?

Perhaps theyre shy or not showing themselves in the best light with you? It can be very daunting from their point of view to meet you.

Try your hardest to find something you like about your childs partner and develop a relationship with them if you can. If you allow yourself to get to know this person a bit by listening to them and taking an interest in them, you may feel differently towards them.

Also remember that you risk pushing your child away if you are constantly hostile.

Maybe youre worried your daughter or son is going to get their heart broken? Perhaps you married too young and went through a tough divorce and you want to save them from this. While this is perfectly understandable you cant stop your son or daughter from having their heart broken. They have to make their own decisions and learn by their mistakes, not yours.

All you can do in this situation is be there for them and be supportive. If it does break up and theyre devastated never say "I told you so" or "I never liked them anyway". They just want to be heard and feel cared for. Also theres always a chance they may get back together with them, but knowing that you disapprove.

If your child has fallen in love this is something for you as a parent to celebrate and feel very proud about because it means youve raised your child to grow away from you, separate and forge their own identity. And that is the most important job a parent has.

Arabella Russell is a Relate counsellor. Relate Relate provides impartial and non-judgmental support for people of all ages, at all stages of couple, family and social relationships. For more information visit www.relate.org.uk.
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London's distinctive black cabs have lost a trademark battle against a company behind an electric taxi.

The London Taxi Company (LTC)  the maker of the traditional black cab  claimed the new Metrocab by rival Frazer-Nash was a copy.

But a high court judge has ruled that the original black cab is devoid of inherent distinctive character, according to the Guardian.

Recommended Read more Black Cab training school is shutting down in the age of Uber

The judge dismissed LTCs claim that its trademark has been infringed.

In my view the CTM [the design of the black cab] would have been perceived by the average consumer of taxis as merely a variation of the typical shape of a taxi, Mr Justice Arnold said.

The Metrocab is powered by electricity and emits 75 per cent less carbon dioxide than a comparable London taxi. It has been designed and engineered to help London meet its air quality standards and should to go into production later this year.

Peter Johansen, chief executive of the London Taxi Company, told the Guardian: We are understandably disappointed by the judges ruling. We will review the ruling to determine our way forward.

The London Taxi Company, which is owned by Chinese firm Geely, is also developing an electric version.

New regulations that come into effect in January 2018 will require all new taxis and private hire vehicles in London to have a zero emissions capability for at least 30 miles.

Business news: In pictures Show all 13 1 /13 Business news: In pictures Business news: In pictures Flybe collapses Airline Flybe has collapsed. All future flights on the Exeter-based airline have been cancelled  leaving more than 2,300 staff facing an uncertain future, and wrecking the travel plans of hundreds of thousands of passengers. The chief executive, Mark Anderson, said: Europes largest independent regional airline has been unable to overcome significant funding challenges to its business. AFP via Getty Business news: In pictures Future product placement will be 'tailored to individual viewers' Marketing executives say that product placement in films and televison shows on streaming services such as Netflix may be tailored to individuals in future. For instance, if data shows that a viewer is a fan of pepsi, a billboard in the background of a shot would host an advert for pepsi, while for a viewer known to have different tastes it could be for Coca-Cola Paramount Business news: In pictures Corbyn wishes Amazon a happy birthday In a card sent to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on the company's 25th birthday, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn writes: "You owe the British people millions in taxes that pay for the public services that we all rely on. Please pay your fair share" Business news: In pictures No deal, no tariffs The government has announced that it would slash almost all tariffs in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Notable exceptions include cars and meat, which will see tariffs in place to protect British farmers Getty Business news: In pictures Fingerprint payment NatWest is trialling a new bank card that will allow people to touch their hand to the card when paying rather than typing in a PIN number. The card will work by recognising the user's fingerprint NatWest/PA Wire Business news: In pictures Mahabis bust High-end slipper retailer Mahabis has gone into administration. 2 Jan 2019 Mahabis Business news: In pictures Costa Cola Coca-Cola has paid 3.9bn for Costa Coffee. A cafe chain is a new venture for the global soft drinks giant PA Business news: In pictures RIP Payday Loans A funeral procession for payday loans was held in London on September 2. The future of pay day lenders is in doubt after Wonga, Britain's biggest, went into administration on August 30 PA Business news: In pictures Musk irks investors and directors Elon Musk has concluded that Tesla will remain public. Investors and company directors were angry at Musk for tweeting unexpectedly that he was considering taking Tesla private and share prices had taken a tumble in the following weeks Getty Business news: In pictures Jaguar warning Iconic British car maker Jaguar Land Rover warned on July 5, 2018 that a "bad" Brexit deal could jeopardise planned investment of more than $100 billion, upping corporate pressure as the government heads into crucial talks AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures Spotif-IPO Spotify traded publically for the first time on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday. However, the company isn't issuing shares, but rather, shares held by Spotify's private investors will be sold AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures French blue passports The deadline to award a contract to make blue British passports after Brexit has been extended by two weeks following a request by bidder De La Rue. The move comes after anger at the announcement British passports would be produced by Franco-Dutch firm Gemalto when De La Rues contract ends in July. The British firm said Gemalto was chosen only because it undercut the competition, but the UK company also admitted that it was not the cheapest choice in the tendering process. Business news: In pictures Beast from the east economic impact The Beast from the East wiped 4m off of Flybes revenues due to flight cancellations, airport closures and delays, according to the budget airlines estimates. Flybe said it cancelled 994 flights in the three months to 31 March, compared to 372 in the same period last year.

On Wednesday, Transport for London decided against a number of proposals that would have imposed restrictions on Uber, the car hire app, in another blow for black cabs

Jo Bertram, Ubers regional general manager in the UK, said: Were pleased that Transport for London has listened to the views of passengers and drivers, dropping the bonkers ideas proposed last year like compulsory five-minute wait times and banning showing cars in apps."
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The big four accountancy firm KPMG could face disciplinary action over its audit work for the collapsed bank HBOS, after a volte-face by the professions watchdog.

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) was sharply criticised for its original refusal to launch a full investigation into KPMG, which signed off HBOSs 2007 accounts and rated it a going concern  just months before the Government brokered a rescue by Lloyds.

The watchdog said it had commissioned its executive counsel, Gareth Rees, to look at the issue after a review of the devastating report on the failure of HBOS by the Bank of Englands Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).

The FRC said Mr Rees would undertake preliminary enquiries about whether the firm had committed misconduct as part of its work for the bank in 2007. KPMG had been HBOSs auditor since 2001.

Mr Rees will also look at the assumptions made by management during that year.

However, this still falls short of a fully fledged investigation. The FRC said its conduct committee would decide whether that is merited after Mr Rees had presented his findings. The watchdog has been under mounting pressure to act since the reports publication in November.

Andrew Tyrie, the Tory MP who chairs the Commons Treasury Select Committee, wrote to the FRCs chief executive, Stephen Haddrill, the following month demanding that he reconsider the need for an investigation.

In the letter, he warned that the FRC would need to act quickly to maintain its public and professional credibility.

Mr Tyrie described the FRCs latest move as not before time. A great deal depends on the quality of audited accounts, he added. They were found wanting during the financial crisis. It is essential that everybody fully understands why. That is why this investigation is so important.

Simon Walker, the director-general of the Institute of Directors, echoed Mr Tyries sentiment, saying: Shareholders and customers deserve to know what role the firms auditors, KPMG, played in this scandal. The announcement of this long-overdue inquiry, therefore, is better late than never.

KPMG said: We have consistently supported the regulatory process as we believe a thorough review is in the interests of the audit profession, shareholders and society as a whole. We were pleased that the PRA and FCAs report... recognised that KPMG provided robust challenge and delivered clear warnings to HBOS, and that this resulted in a more prudent approach to provisioning than would otherwise have been adopted.

We will continue to co-operate with the FRC as it makes its preliminary enquiries. In the interests of everyone, it is now important that final conclusions are reached in a timely fashion.

The wheels began to come of at HBOS in 2008, with the bank first tapping its shareholders for 4bn in April 2008, with the rescue following in September. HBOSs loan book was the main reason that Lloyds subsequently had to accept a multibillion-pound taxpayer bailout.
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Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), has given Chinas leadership a harsh dose of reality by laying bare the challenges it faced transforming into a service-led economy.

Ms Lagarde called Chinas ability to deliver structural reform a massive undertaking as she underscored the challenges of its economic overhaul.

The Asian powerhouse is seeking to leave behind its reliance on heavy industry and transform itself into an economy driven by consumer consumption and services.

[It] will take a little time but we believe [China] will deliver I have no doubt it will happen, Ms Lagarde told an audience at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

She also said that China should communicate better with financial markets. Chinas stock exchanges have had a rollercoaster ride over the past six months, with authorities trying various measures to stem the volatility of the main Shanghai share index.

Ms Lagardes comments came as she won George Osbornes backing for her reappointment as managing director of the IMF for a second term. At a time when the world faces what Ive called a dangerous cocktail of risks, I believe Christine has the vision, energy and acumen to help steer the global economy through the years ahead, said the Chancellor, who also nominated Ms Lagarde for her first term in 2011.

Other European countries backed her nomination, including Germany, the Netherlands, France and Spain.

Asked about the nomination, Ms Lagarde said she was honoured but did not want to confirm whether she would agree to stand again.
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It's tempting to imagine a dusty, yellowed sheet of paper bearing my unfinished  and unpublished  story still curled up in some corner of 200 Gray's Inn Road, once home to The Times and The Sunday Times. In fact, it was probably incinerated long ago. But what became of the gently spoken woman who typed it that Friday evening in January 1986?

In one of the more surreal moments of a long journalistic career, I was standing in a phone box near Kings Cross, dictating to a copytaker what I didn't yet know would be my last report to and about The Times and The Sunday Times  covering an event that would change not only both our lives but the entire newspaper industry. When I started to list the different jobs of the 5,500 workers who had been called out on strike by the print unions half an hour earlier  compositors, linotype operators, machine-room personnel, publishing-room employees, clerical staff and, yes, copytakers  there was an unmistakeable intake of breath at the other end of the phone.

"Are you ok?" I asked. "Yes, carry on," she said. Then two or three paragraphs later, she signed off with a polite but abrupt apology. "I'm sorry, I've got to go now." The soft-voiced Society of Graphical and Allied Trades (Sogat) member had presumably been called to a meeting to be told officially that she was on strike.

Of course, the edition of The Times for which the story was intended never appeared the day after. The next one, on the following Monday, would be produced without the previous workforce  who were summarily sacked  at News International's brand new plant at Wapping. And the bitter year-long dispute between Rupert Murdoch and the print unions  one of the most decisive of the era  had begun.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA UK news in pictures 27 September 2022 David White, Garter King of Arms, poses with an envelope franked with the new cypher of King Charles III 'CIIIR', after it was printed in the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 26 September 2022 A gallery staff member poses next to a painting by Lucian Freud - Self-portrait (Fragment), 1956 - on show at a photocall for the Credit Suisse exhibition - Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery in London PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2022 Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg in Liverpool before the start of the Labour Party annual Conference which he opened with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II and sang the national anthem PA UK news in pictures 24 September 2022 Handout photo issued by Buckingham Palace of the ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2022 A climate change activist protests against UK private jets while lighting his right arm on fire during the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 Arena in London EPA UK news in pictures 22 September 2022 Woody Woodmansey, Lee Bennett, Kevin Armstrong, Nick Moran and Clifford Slapper attend the unveiling of a stone for David Bowie on the Music Walk of Fame at Camden, north London PA UK news in pictures 21 September 2022 A flock of birds in the sky as the sun rises over Dungeness in Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2022 Flowers which were laid by members of the public in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland are collected by the Hillsborough Gardening Team and volunteers to be replanted for those that can be saved or composted PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2022 The ceremonial procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the long walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the committal service at St Georges Chapel AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 18 September 2022 A man stands among campers on The Mall ahead of the Queens funeral Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers Nathan Collins fouls Manchester Citys Jack Grealish leading to a red card. City went on to win the match at Molineux Stadium three goals to nil. Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 16 September 2022 Members of the public stand in the queue near Tower Bridge, and opposite the Tower of London, as they wait in line to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 15 September 2022 Members of the public in the queue on in Potters Fields Park, central London, as they wait to view Queen Elizabeth II lying in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 14 September 2022 The first members of the public pay their respects as the vigil begins around the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2022 Crowds cheer as King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort arrive for a visit to Hillsborough Castle Getty UK news in pictures 12 September 2022 Crowds line the Royal Mile, Edinburgh, as King Charles III joins a procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles Cathedral following the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II Katielee Arrowsmith/SWNS UK news in pictures 11 September 2022 Members of the Public pay their respects as the hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard of Scotland, is driven through Ballater AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 10 September 2022 Britain's Prince William, Prince of Wales, Britain's Catherine, Princess of Wales, Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Britain's Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, wave at well-wishers on the Long walk at Windsor Castle AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 9 September 2022 King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort wave after viewing floral tributes to the late Queen Elizabeth II outside Buckingham Palace Getty UK news in pictures 8 September 2022 A screen commemorating Britain's Queen Elizabeth II in Piccadilly Circus, London Britain EPA UK news in pictures 7 September 2022 Police officers stand guard after Animal Rebellion activists threw paint on the walls and road outside the Houses of Parliament in protest, in London, Britain Reuters UK news in pictures 6 September 2022 Queen Elizabeth II welcomes Liz Truss during an audience at Balmoral, Scotland, where she invited the newly elected leader of the Conservative party to become Prime Minister and form a new government PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2022 Visitors at the PoliNations garden in Victoria Square, Birmingham, which is made up of five 40ft high tree installations and over 6,000 plants. The PoliNations programme aims to explore how migration and cross-pollination have shaped the UKs gardens and culture PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2022 Undergraduates at the University of St Andrews take part in the traditional Pier Walk along the harbour walls of St Andrews before the start of the new academic year PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2022 The Massed Pipes and Drums parade during the Braemar Highland Gathering at the Princess Royal and Duke of Fife Memorial Park PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2022 Number 12 Company Irish Guards at Wellington Barracks, central London, before commencing their first Guard Mount at Buckingham Palace PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2022 A salmon leaps up the weir at Hexham in Northumberland, despite the drought warnings and low water levels, the River Tyne is still flowing well allowing the salmon and sea trout to head up river to spawn. Every year tens of thousands of salmon make the once-in-a-lifetime journey along the Tyne to spawn, having been out a sea PA UK news in pictures 31 August 2022 Flowers are placed at the gates outside Kensington Palace, London, the former home of Diana, Princess of Wales, on the 25th anniversary of her death PA UK news in pictures 30 August 2022 Edinburghs waste workers clearing mountains of rubbish at Forrest Road as they return to work following their 11 days of industrial action PA

The story of how Murdoch had secretly made plans which enabled him to bypass the print unions and, from 27 January, produce all four of his titles  including The Sun and the News of the World  at the barbed-wire protected Wapping site has been told many times. As has that of the long and abortive negotiations that preceded the move, including Murdoch's November 1985 ultimatum that in six months he would replace existing agreements in an industry notorious for industrial disruption with one that would end strikes and impose management's unfettered right to manage. So, too, the subsequent strike call, the move to Wapping over the weekend of January 25-26 and the furious and often violent subsequent battles between the police and pickets trying  and failing to stop workers going into the plant and the TNT lorries that distributed papers driving out.

For the journalists, Murdoch's coup posed an acute dilemma. They were crucial to his plan, which was why he offered payments of 2,000 apiece to those going to Wapping. Their alternative was the same fate as the striking print workers': the sack. New technology had already spelt the end of the 150-year-old "hot metal" newspaper production system; but even on such papers as The Sunday Times, when the latter part of the process was replaced by "paste-up"  a halfway house to the digital make-up used today  unionised linotype operators continued to set the type at Gray's Inn Road. In the Wapping plant journalists would be  for the first time  typing directly from their computers into the system.

Few journalists relished the sudden move to Murdoch's east London fortress. But for many the idea of acting in solidarity with the print workers was equally unpalatable, not least because of the frequent stoppages by different groups among them  including some of the country's highest paid industrial workers. And part of the print workers' formidable industrial strength lay precisely in the transitoriness of the product. Car production halted by a strike could be recovered with overtime; one day's newspaper production would be lost forever.

In her behind-the-scenes account of the dispute, The End of the Street, the long-time Sunday Times reporter Linda Melvern vividly describes the agonies of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) "chapel" (or office branch) at The Times over that weekend. And in it, she quotes the chapel's "father" (chairman) Greg Neale, the courteous but unwavering champion of the NUJ's official call on its members not to go to Wapping, as saying  correctly  that the late Tony Bevins, then The Times' political correspondent, was the most "honest and brave" of those who advocated yielding to the company's demands. He was also the most effective.

In the first of two long and tense meetings on the day after the strike was called  Saturday 25 January  Bevins told his colleagues: "I want my stories to be published but yesterday was typical." The previous day he had "slogged [his] guts out" covering the Home Secretary Leon Brittan's resignation over Westland, only to see the paper not appear. But he was even more eloquent at the decisive Sunday night meeting in Bloomsbury's Marlborough Crest Hotel, combining his call to bow to what he saw as the inevitable with an excoriation of the management's tactics. "When you are faced with overwhelming pressure and you are in a cul de sac you must either fight to the death or lie down We have a gun at our heads. I believe most of you will go with ashes in your mouths."

Ashes or not, Bevins' prediction was correct. Earlier, the management had made a concession: having insisted that journalists would work the new technology "without any reservation", it dropped those three words. Whether that had any practical effect is debatable  but those in favour of holding out for longer were anyway in a minority, vainly trying to persuade the chapel that there were reasons other than mere inter-union solidarity for staying away from Wapping, at least for the moment.

Maybe  and maybe not  we could have exploited Murdoch's unprecedented need for journalistic co-operation by demanding he honour the guarantees of editorial independence from proprietorial interference that he had given to secure parliamentary approval of his takeover of The Times and Sunday Times four years earlier. (These were the very guarantees that Harold Evans, sacked by Murdoch as editor in 1982, says the proprietor breached within 12 months of the takeover.)

Of course such ideas were woefully inchoate  inevitably, given the suddenness with which the ultimatum had been sprung on us. Meanwhile, some of the discussions that fraught weekend were quite elevated. Cliff Longley, then The Times' eminent religious affairs correspondent, warned me at one point  citing a concept from St Thomas Aquinas  that those arguing against the move were at risk of "moral vanity". Either way, that group included The Times team covering labour relations: David Felton, Barrie Clement and myself as labour editor. I can't remember my contribution to the meeting, but Melvern quotes me as saying: "We are being bounced. You shouldn't let it happen Every time the chapel stands firm, the telexes start clattering with fresh concessions with management Don't imagine The Sunday Times will go. They're waiting to see what we will do."

My appeal, in other words, was no more heroic than Bevins' had been gung-ho. But it was Bevins' side that decisively won the day; The Times chapel voted by three-to-one to make the move. And The Sunday Times journalists followed suit, against the advice of their chapel father Kim Fletcher (much later the editor of The Independent on Sunday).

Melvern points out that, for Felton, Clement and me, there was a "particular dilemma": if we crossed the picket lines, our job would become almost impossible since it was unlikely any of our union contacts would speak to us. But that was only one of many factors we three had to weigh up, once the chapel had accepted the ultimatum and we had to decide whether to abide by the collective decision of our chapel or by the NUJ's instruction not to go.

Nor was it quite the whole story. As Clement later wrote, he had been swayed by all four of the reasons he ascribed to the refuseniks: "loyalty to the NUJ, sympathy for the sacked print workers, distaste for a media organisation which wielded far too much media power" and not wanting to be "pushed around by a bully offering a 2,000 bribe to cross picket lines". That Sunday evening, we met in a Goan restaurant to decide what to do the following morning. Like Neale, Fletcher, Paul Routledge and all the other refuseniks, we decided not to be part of the brave new world at Wapping. To keep our spirits up, we told ourselves that we had hadn't left The Times  it had left us.

I don't recall doing much, if any, picketing. This was partly, I think, because we were too daunted by the prospect of confronting friends and close colleagues whom we respected  and still respect  and for many of whom the decision to go into Wapping had been an agonising one; and partly  though this is a less good reason  because we were busy. In the coming months, we were luckier than most. We lived on NUJ strike pay and a generous allocation of work for the editors of various trade union journals  until the three of us were rescued by being hired, en bloc, by Andreas Whittam Smith, the editor who had the exceptional vision to found a new paper which will celebrate a happier 30th anniversary this year: The Independent.

Stop press: pickets and police clash outside the Wapping plant in 1986 (Rex)

The dispute, and the polarised world of the mid-1980s that it reflected, are commemorated in an interesting exhibition at the Tower Hamlets local history library. Among the now-rare trade union banners of florid painted silk  the one for The Sun Machine Chapel proudly carries the paper's still famous logo  the compelling photographs and the anti-Murdoch banners, you can see the infamous letter to News International from its (and the Queen's) solicitors Farrer & Co, assuring it in December 1985 that "if a moment came when it was necessary to dispense with the present workforce at [Times Newspapers Ltd] and [News Group Newspapers], the cheapest way of doing so would be to dismiss employees while participating in a strike or other industrial action". Here you can buy a copy of the vivid Wapping: The Great Printing Dispute by linotype operator John Throw. And there are copies of the strike newspaper, the Wapping Post, occasionally recalling what a different social era it was  even among supposedly progressive trade unions.

The Wapping printers never attracted the public sympathy that the striking miners had a year earlier in an equally long struggle. This was an essentially metropolitan conflict in which the high earnings and restrictive "Spanish" practices of some London printers struck few sympathetic chords across the country. But the exhibition is an attempt to redress that balance by telling "the workers' story". Ann Field, a long-time national print union official and architect of the exhibition, says the dispute was not really about new technology (over which, she says, the unions were willing to negotiate). She is adamant there was a "conspiracy" to eliminate the unions  and the jobs.

Field sees a direct line from Murdoch's victory at Wapping to the growth of his political power and the sense of impunity that made the hacking scandal (1986-2006) possible. But if Murdoch had set the unions a trap, how had they fallen so willingly into it by calling a strike? Field, now a pillar of the Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom, says: "People just didn't think it [the transfer of all four papers to the Wapping site] would happen, any more than people believed the papers had been phone hacking Of course those conducting negotiations fall out on occasions, but you don't actually expect one side simply to demolish its negotiating partner."

Yet Murdoch had already decisively consolidated his political power, and his company's sense of "impunity", in 1981 when, with the active collusion of Margaret Thatcher  and the support of the print unions  he managed to acquire The Times and The Sunday Times.

I don't at all regret not going to Wapping in 1986. But I am far from sure that a week-long journalists' pay strike five years earlier  which I supported at the time  was very smart. The then-editor, William Rees-Mogg, told me that the strike could well persuade Lord Thomson to sell the papers. He made the remark as I was interviewing him for a Times report on a Times dispute in which, as an NUJ member, I was heavily involved. (When I told him that I would have also to interview the then-NUJ chapel father Jacob Ecclestone and that the quotes of both would have to be compressed, Rees-Mogg said: "Of course. Just treat this as you would any other dispute." The story appeared as I wrote it  including the warning from Rees-Mogg, which turned out to be prophetic. Thomson did indeed put the papers up for sale.)

Yet, even then, a Murdoch takeover was far from inevitable. The Monopolies and Mergers Commission, had there been a reference to it, might have determined that the takeover gave Murdoch too large a share of the national newspaper market, opening the way to alternative bidders, of which there were several. Despite a speech of forensic eloquence in which the late John Smith  then Labour's shadow trade secretary  argued for a reference, the Commons voted to accept the decision of trade secretary John Biffen, who had been summarily moved to the department in place of the potentially less malleable John Nott. That Biffen was simply and reluctantly carrying out the wishes of Margaret Thatcher isn't seriously in doubt. And it was this, rather more than Wapping, that cemented Murdoch's mutually supportive relationship with the government of the day.

It's hard, too, for anyone who worked on The Independent over the last three decades to look back at Wapping without a measure of ambivalence. Despite the glaring defects of the print unions, Murdoch's triumph over them  along with Thatcher's defeat of the miners the previous year  was certainly part of what weakened unions in general, with long-term adverse consequences for social equality in Britain. But the impact on the newspaper industry was rather different. The Independent, for example, was a beneficiary. It gained from the corrosive impact on the image of The Times, the once pre-eminent paper of record, from being produced behind barbed wire at a Wapping plant besieged by pickets. But it gained even more because Murdoch's coup, however brutal, made it easier for a new newspaper to launch at all with new technology.

As it happens, Felton, Clement and I had a particular walk-on part in the run-up to that launch, because a week of live "dummies" was produced during the TUC annual congress, which we were covering under Whittam Smith's watchful eye. Perhaps someone will bring them out as part of the 30th anniversary celebrations. For those printed but never published newspapers  long forgotten prequels to The Independent's launch, itself something genuinely positive that emerged amid the long and sorry Wapping affair  still exist. Unlike the last story I ever filed to The Times.
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Charlotte Rampling has placed herself front and centre of the the Oscars diversity controversy - claiming that the planned boycott by black celebrities is racist to white people.

In an interview with a French radio station, the 69-year-old who has been nominated for best actress for her role in 45 Years, claimed there could be legitimate reasons why the Academy Awards shortlist contained only white actors and actresses.

One can never really know, but perhaps the black actors did not deserve to make the final list, she told Europe 1.

 45 Years - Trailer

The Oscars has sparked outcry over its failure to nominate a single non-white actor or actress, something that has been condemned by everyone from Spike Lee to George Clooney.

A number of black celebrities, including Will Smith, who failed to secure a nomination for his widely-praised performance in Concussion, is among those have said they will not attend the ceremony.

Yet Rampling claimed the boycott was racist to white people.

When asked if the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences should introduce quotas, she said: Why classify people? These days everyone is more or less accepted.

When the interviewer explained that black members of the film industry felt like a minority, she replied: No comment. People will always say: Him, hes less handsome; Him, hes too black; He is too white ... someone will always be saying You are too this or that.

#OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Show all 19 1 /19 #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Jada Pinkett-Smith Today is Martin Luther Kings birthday, and I cant help but ask the question: Is it time that people of color recognize how much power and influence we have amassed that we no longer need to ask to be invited anywhere? I ask the question: Have we come to a new time and place where we recognize that we can no longer beg for the love, acknowledge, or respect of any group? - Posted on her Facebook page. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Will Smith "The beauty of Hollywood combined with American ideals is the ultimate dream for humanity: the basis of the American concept of anything is possible, with hard work and dedication, no matter your race or religion, creed, none of that matters in America. I think that diversity is the American superpower. That's why we are great. So many different people from so many different places adding their ideas and their inspiration and their influences to this beautiful American gumbo and for me, at its best, Hollywood represents and then creates the imagery for that beauty. But for my part, I think I have to fight for and protect the ideals that make our country and make our Hollywood community great. So when I look at the series of nominations of the Academy, it's not reflecting that beauty." - Quote from ABC News appearance. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Reese Witherspoon "I really appreciated this article in TIME on the lack of racial and gender diversity in this year's Oscar nominations. So disappointed that some of 2015's best films, filmmakers and performances were not recognized... Nothing can diminish the quality of their work, but these filmmakers deserve recognition. As an Academy member, I would love to see a more diverse voting membership." - Posted on her Facebook page. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Spike Lee "This whole Academy thing is a misdirection play. We're chasing a guy down the field, he doesn't even have the ball. The other guy's high-stepping in the end zone. It goes further than the Academy Awards. It has to go back to the gatekeepers. We're not in the room. The executives, when they have these greenlight meetings quarterly, they look at the scripts and see who's in it and decide what we're making and what we're not making." - Quote from ABC appearance. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say George Clooney "If you think back 10 years ago, the Academy was doing a better job. Think about how many more African Americans were nominated. I would also make the argument, I dont think its a problem of who youre picking as much as it is: How many options are available to minorities in film, particularly in quality films? There should be 20 or 30 or 40 films of the quality that people would consider for the Oscars. By the way, were talking about African Americans. For Hispanics, its even worse. We need to get better at this. We used to be better at it." - Interview with Variety. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Snoop Dogg Somebody was actually like am I gonna watch the motherf***ing Oscars. F*** no. What the f*** am I going to watch that bulls*** for? They aint got no n***** nominated. All these great movies and all this great s*** yall keep stealing from us. F*** you! F*** you! - Posted on his Instagram page. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Don Cheadle "Yo, Chris. Come check me out at #TheOscars this year. They got me parking cars on G level." - Posted on his Twitter page, directed at host Chris Rock. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Mark Ruffalo I woke up in the morning thinking, what is the right way to do this? Because if you look at Martin Luther Kings legacy, what he was saying was that the good people who dont act are much worse than the wrongdoers who are purposefully not acting and dont know the right way. - Quote from interview with BBC News. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Lupita Nyong'o "I am disappointed by the lack of inclusion in this year's Academy Awards nominations. It has me thinking about unconscious prejudice and what merits prestige in our culture. The awards should not dictate the terms of art in our modern society, but rather be a diverse reflection of the best of what our art has to offer today. I stand with my peers who are calling for change in expanding the stories that are told and recognition of the people who tell them." - Posted on her Instagram page. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Tyrese Gibson "This is not us saying we're against the Oscars because we're gonna combat racism. We're just saying, 'Yo, this is not cool.' You can't be doing this in 2016 and act as if no one is gonna notice." - Quote from interview with People. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say David Oyelowo The reason why the Oscars are so important is because it is the zenith, it is the epitome, it is the height of celebration of artistic endeavor within the filmmaking community. We grow up aspiring, dreaming, longing to be accepted into that august establishment because it is the height of excellence. I would like to walk away and say it doesnt matter, but it does, because that acknowledgement changes the trajectory of your life, your career, and the culture of the world we live in. This institution doesnt reflect its president and it doesnt reflect this room. I am an Academy member and it doesnt reflect me, and it doesnt reflect this nation." - Speech at gala honoring Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Brie Larson "Thank you @hollywoodreporter for covering this very unique moment in my life! It was wonderful spending time with all of you. Personally, I'm interested in reading their article on #OscarsSoWhite. This is a conversation that deserves attention." - Posted on her Instagram page. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say How many black films are being produced every year? How are they being distributed? The films that are being made, are the big-time producers thinking outside of the box in terms of how to cast the role? Can you cast a black woman in that role? Can you cast a black man in that role? You can change the Academy, but if there are no black films being produced, what is there to vote for? - Quote from interview with Entertainment Weekly. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Charlotte Rampling "It is racist to whites. One can never really know, but perhaps the black actors did not deserve to make the final list. Why classify people? These days everyone is more or less accepted... People will always say: Him, hes less handsome; Him, hes too black; He is too white... someone will always be saying You are too [this or that]... But do we have to take from this that there should be lots of minorities everywhere?" - Quote from interview on Europe 1. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Michael Caine Theres loads of black actors. In the end you can't vote for an actor because he's black. You can't say 'I'm going to vote for him, he's not very good, but he's black, I'll vote for him'. You have to give a good performance and I'm sure people have. I saw Idris Elba (in Beasts Of No Nation).I thought he was wonderful. Be patient. Of course it will come. It took years to get an Oscar, years. - Quote from interview with Radio 4 Today programme. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Steve McQueen "This is exactly like MTV was in the 1980s. Could you imagine now if MTV only showed music videos by a majority of white people, then after 11 oclock it showed a majority of black people? Could you imagine that happening now? Its the same situation happening in the movies. Hopefully, when people look back at this in 20 years, itll be like seeing that David Bowie clip in 1983 [of artist critiquing channel for not featuring black artists]. I dont even want to wait 20 years. Forgive me; Im hoping in 12 months or so we can look back and say this was a watershed moment, and thank God we put that right." Quote from interview with The Guardian. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Julie Delpy "Two years ago, I said something about the Academy being very white male, which is the reality, and I was slashed to pieces by the media. It's funny - women can't talk. I sometimes wish I were African American because people don't bash them afterwards. It's the hardest to be a woman. Feminism is something people hate above all. Nothing worse than being a woman in this business. I really believe that." Delpy has since clarified these remarks, saying, "I'm very sorry for how I expressed myself. It was never meant to diminish the injustice done to African American artists or to any other people that struggle for equal opportunities and rights; on the contrary. All I was trying to do is to address the issues of inequality of opportunity in the industry for women as well (as I am a woman)." Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Clint Eastwood "I don't know anything about it. All I know is there's thousands of people in the Academy, and the majority of them haven't won Oscars. A lot of people are crying, I guess." - Quoted by TMZ. Getty #OscarsSoWhite: What Hollywood has to say Ellen Page Its awful, and I think what just happened in regards to the nominations two years in a row is a reflection of the industry itself, and the lack of diversity in all positions. Its so upsetting that were still having this conversation. I dont know what to say other than its so disheartening, and I feel like we all have to be doing what we can to make a change, because were supposed to be telling stories that reflect human experience, and we cant just be showing one group of people." Quote from interview with The Wrap. Getty

But do we have to take from this that there should be lots of minorities everywhere?

Rampling, whose 45 Years was directed by Andrew Haigh, faces compteition for best actress from Rooms Brie Larson, Carols Cate Blanchett, Joys Jennifer Lawrence and Brooklyns Saoirse Ronan.

The response on social media to Ramplings comments was immediate, and largely unsupportive.

I still plan to watch the Oscars, at least for Chris Rocks monologue. But Ill tell you what Im boycotting: Charlotte Ramplings movies, tweeted Jamil Smith, a senior editor at the New Republic.
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Americas most celebrated conservative magazine has launched a broadside against Donald Trump - devoting an entire issue opposing the Republican frontrunner and carrying a frontpage banner that reads Against Trump.

An editorial in the National Review, which describes itself as the countrys most widely read and influential magazine conservative news, labelled the tycoon a menace to conservatism.

It also contained 22 essays by conservative thinkers explaining why they believe Mr Trump should not be the Republican candidate for the presidency.

Trump is a philosophically unmoored political opportunist who would trash the broad conservative ideological consensus within the GOP in favour of a free-floating populism with strong-man overtones, the editors say in their piece.

It added: Trumps political opinions have wobbled all over the lot. The real-estate mogul and reality-TV star has supported abortion, gun control, single-payer health care a la Canada, and punitive taxes on the wealthy.

(He and Bernie Sanders have shared more than funky outer-borough accents.) Since declaring his candidacy he has taken a more conservative line, yet there are great gaping holes in it.

It then went on to attack the 69-year-old on foreign policy issues, saying that he had appeared unsure how to deal with Isis, was fixated on Iraqs oil and too quick to heap praise on Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

Donald Trump with Sarah Palin, who backed him in his bid to be the republican presidential candidate, at Iowa State University on Tuesday (Getty Images)

For someone who wants to project strength, he has an astonishing weakness for flattery, falling for Vladimir Putin after a few coquettish bats of the eyelashes from the Russian thug, it said.

All in all, Trump knows approximately as much about national security as he does about the nuclear triad - which is to say, almost nothing.

The National Review was founded in 1955 by the author William Buckley and has been described as the bible of American conservatism.

The magazines current editor, Rich Lowry, has explained the decision to devote an issue attaching the Republican frontrunner.

If you are truly are a conservative, you believe in ideas and principles - they are basically afterthoughts to Donald Trump, he said.

NBC reported that Mr Trump, campaigning in Las Vegas, responded immediately to the attack from the magazine.

He said the magazine a was a failing publication that had lost its way.

The National Review is a dying paper; its circulation is way down, he told reporters.

Ted Cruz and his daughters (AP)

Not very many people read it anymoreI guess they wanted to get a little bit of publicity, but thats a dying paper.

The National Review says its 2015 audited circulation is 150,000, and that it is the largest-circulation conservative magazine in the nation.

The magazines decision to devote an entire edition to trying to stop Mr Trump in many reflects the concerns that have gripped the Republican establishment since the tycoon entered the race, soared to the top of the polls and has not looked back since.

Many would have preferred a more mainstream candidate such as Jeb Bush, or Marco Rubio to be the candidate. As it is, the two Republican frontrunner, Mr Trump and Texas senator Ted Cruz are viewed with much suspicion by the party establishment and donors.

One immediate effect of the magazines attack was that it was dropped as one of the hosts and sponsors of a Republican debate in Houston on February 25.

We expected this was coming, the magazine's publisher Jack Fowler wrote in a blog post late Thursday night. Small price to pay for speaking the truth about The Donald.
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A petition calling for actress Emma Watson to spend one week in a migrant camp in Calais to prove how safe refugees are has reached almost 8,000 names.

The Change.org petition - now at 7,776 supporters - asks Ms Watson to spend time in the refugee camp without bodyguards to demonstrate to the public how pro feminism the refugees are.

The founder Oscar Izard said he rejects the idea that refugees from Africa and the Middle East are rapists.

Recommended Read more Emma Watson shares feminist tribute to Alan Rickman

Emma Watson should spend a week's holiday in a Calais migrant camp, without guards of course, to show how safe, and how pro feminism these migrants are, Mr Izard, from Melbourne, wrote.

The issue of refugees and the safety of women is a strongly divisive issue following the mass assault of German women - a country that has accepted around one million refugees in 2015 - by 1000 men on New Years Eve. The assault led to the Mayor of Cologne proposing women adopt a code of conduct in future to prevent assault.

Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Show all 13 1 /13 Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Women protest against sexism outside Cologne Cathedral on 5 January after the assaults Oliver Berg/EPA Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Women protest against sexism in Cologne following the rash of sex attacks on New Year's Eve Wolfgang Rattay/Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police initially failed to mention the assaults in report the following morning EPA Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police officers patrol in front of the main station of Cologne, Germany AP Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks German far-right supporters demonstrate at Cologne`s train station (Reuters) Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Supporters of anti-immigration right-wing movement Pegida in Cologne, Germany, January 9, 2016. Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police used pepper spray to control supporters of Pegida, Hogesa (Hooligans against Salafists) and other right-wing populist groups as they protested against the New Year's Eve sex attacks on 9 January, 2016 in Cologne, Germany Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police use a water cannon during a protest march by supporters of anti-immigration right-wing movement Pegida in Cologne, Germany, January 9, 2016 Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police use pepper spray against supporters of anti-immigration right-wing movement Pegida, in Cologne, Germany, January 9, 2016. Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Artist Mira Moire protests naked in Cologne against the mass sex attacks on New Year's Eve AP Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks A demonstrator holds a sign in German that reads 'No violence against women' during a demonstration in the wake of the sexual assaults on New Year's Eve, outside the cathedeal in Cologne, Germany, 09 January 2016. EPA Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Counter demonstrators hold up a sign reading "Against sexism, against racism" as they protest against a demonstration of the islamophobic movement PEGIDA at the train station in Cologne, Germany, on January 9, 2016. AFP/Getty Images Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Demonstration by a womens group on Saturday (AP) AP

Ms Watson, who is a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador, has never publicly opposed refugees, and even tweeted that refugees are welcome.

Ms Watson is currently in Davos, Switzerland at the World Economic Forum annual conference to support the "HeForShe Impact Champions" campaign and to discuss a report on gender equality that the movement released in 2015.

On Friday ten of the worlds leading companies at Davos released new workforce gender diversity figures, for the UN Womens inaugural HeForShe Parity Report.

Despite her good intentions, Ms Watson was strongly criticized by social media users last week for exploiting the death of fellow Harry Potter actor Alan Rickman to push her own feminist agenda.
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The murder of former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko is not the first time the Kremlins secret services have been implicated in deaths on British soil.

Sir Robert Owens inquiry found that Vladimir Putin probably approved an operation by intelligence agency the FSB to assassinate the MI6 informer.

It named two men suspected of poisoning Mr Litvinenko using polonium-210 at a Mayfair hotel, who both deny any involvement.

But the Litvinenko case is just one of a long line of mysterious deaths where Russian involvement has been suspected.

Boris Berezovsky

Boris Berezovsky was found dead at home (AFP)

The Russian oligarch and vocal critic of Mr Putin was found dead at his home in Berkshire in 2013 after appearing to have hung himself but the cause of death has never been solved.

Having fled Russia in 2000 as fraud charges loomed, he was granted political asylum in the UK in 2003 and became part of what was known as the London circle of Russian exiles including Mr Litvinenko.

One assassination plot was reported in 2003 and British police intercepted an alleged Russian hitman in a London hotel in 2007 but a coroner recorded an open verdict in his eventual death.

Police concluded that Mr Berezovsky had hung himself but a forensic pathologist hired by his relatives told the inquest that he believed someone had strangled the former billionaire to death.

Professor Bernd Brinkman pointed out that the dead mans face was deep purple, when hung bodies are normally very pale, and said the marks around Mr Berezovsky's neck did not match the V-shape seen in hanging.

An aerial shot of Boris Berezovsky's house

There were several other inconsistencies in the case. A paramedics radiation alarm was also set off when he entered the house and a mystery fingerprint found in the bathroom with Mr Berezovskys body was never identified.

His family and friends said they did not believe he would commit suicide, citing the fact he had recently booked a holiday and was seeing improvement in his finances.

Before his death, Mr Berezovsky spoke of enemies in Russia who were trying to destroy him and his daughter, Elizaveta, told how she feared that he had been assassinated by the Kremlin for claiming that the Russian President was a danger to the world.

Speaking following the Litvinenko inquirys result, a spokesperson for the Russian foreign ministry called Mr Berezovsky a key witness, hinting at the alternative theories that the oligarch either killed his friend himself or was involved in a polonium smuggling operation that caused Mr Litvinenkos accidental death.

Mr Berezovsky denied the claims and sued Russian state television over the allegations in 2010.

In a statement in August, the UK Russian Embassy said British intelligence services messed up their own games with Mr Litvinenko and Mr Berezovsky and now wish to cover up their institutional incompetence.

Alexander Perepilichny

Alexander Perepilichny lived in exile in Weybridge

The 44-year-old Russian businessman was helping Swiss prosecutors uncover a powerful fraud syndicate by providing evidence against corrupt politicians and officials when he died in unexplained circumstances.

Mr Perepilichny collapsed while running near his Surrey home in November 2012 and although his death was originally attributed to a heart attack from natural causes, traces of a chemical found in a poisonous plant were later found in his stomach.

Lawyers for financial firm Hermitage Capital Management, which had been leading the fraud investigation, said that Russia's FSB internal security service may have been involved.

The firm alleged that Mr Perepilichny could have been killed for helping it uncover a money-laundering operation at a pre-inquest hearing in September last year.

Geoffrey Robertson QC, representing the company, said: A Russian dies in Britain, that is not relevant. If that Russian dies by an obscure poison known only by the FSB, that is relevant.

The FSB is the core element of Russian government that was involved in the [Alexander] Litvinenko case and may well be involved in this caseat this stage there is very strong circumstantial evidence that he [Mr Perepilichny] was murdered because of the assistance he was giving to Hermitage.

The full inquest was expected to start in February at the earliest.

St Georges Hill, the private residential estate in Weybridge where Alexander Perepilichny rented a house (Charlie Forgham-Bailey)

Hermitage Capital Management CEO Bill Browder wrote a letter to police detailing the Russians involvement, telling the BBC: We said he was a healthy 44-year-old old man who suddenly dropped dead after handing over documents [to us].

William Hague, then the Foreign Secretary, raised the issue with his Russian counterpart.

To date there has been no meaningful progress towards establishing the circumstances surrounding his death, he told the Interfax news agency, seemingly hinting at Russian involvement.

I have urged my Russian counterpart to ensure that those responsible are brought to justice without further delay, and measures are put in place to prevent such cases from happening again.

Georgi Markov

Mr Markov was poisoned on Waterloo Bridge (Getty)

One of the most infamous Russian-linked murders in British soil came during the height of the Cold War in 1978.

Mr Markov was walking across Waterloo Bridge in London when he was stabbed with a umbrella. He died four days later of ricin poisoning.

The author and playwright defected to the West from Bulgaria in 1969 and became an outspoken critic of the communist regime while working as a journalist for the BBC World Service.

Pathologists examining his body discovered a pin-head sized metal pellet embedded in Markovs leg that had delivered the deadly dose of ricin.

In 1990, the Russian-British double agent Oleg Gordievski claimed that the KGB had supplied the poison and developed the complex delivery system used by Bulgarian secret agents.

Two years later, another former Soviet spy, Oleg Kalugin, claimed Bulgaria's former communist dictator Todor Zhikov had personally ordered the assassination after two previous attempts failed.

Other linked cases

The Russians accused of killing Mr Litvinenko visited David West's night club

The spokesperson for the Russian Embassy named a British man, David West, while dismissing the results of the Litvinenko Inquiry.

Calling him a key witness to the murder, she said traces of polonium were found at his night club and questioned the circumstances of his death in 2014.

The two former KGB agents accused of murdering Mr Litvinenko had visited Hey Jo and the discovery was used by British investigators as evidence of their involvement.

But there appears to have been no intelligence link  British or Russian  in Mr Wests death.

His son, also called David West, admitted stabbing the 70-year-old during an argument and was jailed for 13-and-a-half years in November.

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A judge said West called police admitting the crime, telling them he had done everyone a favour and was glad he was dead.

There was also initial suspicion of Russian involvement in the death of The Times reporter Daniel McGrory in 2007.

He was found dead at his home five days before a television interview aired in which he talked of Mr Litvinenko being killed in a state-sponsored assassination.

An inquest found the 54-year-old had died of a heart attack.

Another person who appeared on the same television show, Paul Joyal, was shot several days later in an unsolved attack outside his home.

He survived the shooting, which police said appeared to stem from random street crime, but friends told the Washington Post it may have been politically motivated.

Oleg Kalugin, a former KGB agent and Mr Putins former boss, had met Mr Joyal for drinks hours before the shooting and said he would not rule anything out.
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Levels of violent crime, including murder, rape, gun and knife offences, recorded by police have risen sharply amid fears that gang members are more becoming ruthless in their attempts to keep control of their territory.

The number of people murdered in England and Wales increased by 14 per cent in the year to September and instances of attempted murder went up by 19 per cent, while knife crime rose by nine per cent and firearms offences by four per cent.

The overall numbers of violent offences surged by 27 per cent, although much of the increase was attributed to improved recording techniques by the police.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the increase in numbers of murders from 503 to 574  reversing the previous downwards trend  was caused by a surge in killings in London and the South East. The total included 75 people who were murdered in June.

The ONS said it was too early to conclude that homicide levels were starting to creep up again, but the figures reinforced fears over levels of gang activity in London and major cities. Almost one-quarter of the rise in knife crime offences was recorded in the capital, although increases were also recorded in 33 of the other 42 police force areas.

Andy Simon, a former detective who leads an organisation which mediates between gangs in London, said: The youngsters are more likely to carry knives and to resort more quickly to violence.

Numbers of rapes and other sex crimes reported to police rose by 36 per cent to 99,609, the highest figure since current records began. The ONS said it believed the increase was linked to improved recording techniques and the greater willingness of victims to contact the police.

The 43 police forces in England and Wales reported an overall annual rise in crime of six per cent to 4.3m offences. It was the biggest year-on-year jump since 2001-2002, although statisticians linked it to improved recording of offences.

By contrast, the separate Crime Survey for England and Wales, which is based on interviews with the public, estimated that crime had dropped by six per cent over the year to 6.6m offences.

The Policing Minister, Mike Penning, said people, communities and property were safer because of a fall of more than one quarter in crime levels since 2010.

He said: The Government has made reducing violence, including knife crime, a priority and continues to work closely with the police and other organisations to tackle the drivers of these crimes.

But Jack Dromey, the shadow Policing minister, said: The Tories have slashed police officers by 17,000 and broke their promise to the public to protect frontline officer numbers. Now we see the biggest increase in recorded crime in a decade.

Steve White, chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said: "Now is not the time to be taking the foot off the policing pedal. These figures show an alarming rise in recorded crime, which is what we have been saying all along.
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Dissidents who have fled to Britain will fear for their lives because the Government has failed to take tougher action against the Kremlin over Alexander Litvinenkos murder, a leading campaigner against corruption in Russia has warned.

Bill Browder joined the widespread criticism that ministers have not taken a firm enough stance with the Kremlin after Sir Robert Owens public inquiry concluded that Mr Litvinenko was assassinated by the Russian state and President Vladimir Putin probably approved the act.

Recommended Read more Three other times Russia suspected of involvement in UK killings

Britain responded to the report by ordering financial sanctions against Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun, who allegedly carried out the killing of the former KGB agent. Both deny involvement. The moves have further cooled relations between London and Moscow.

But Mr Browder, a London-based hedge fund millionaire, said: The reaction of the Government is shameful and totally inconsistent with the gravity of the crime committed against Alexander Litvinenko in London.

He told The Independent: The Owen report clearly describes a Russian state-sanctioned assassination using nuclear material in the heart of London. It requires  both for public safety and criminal justice  for there to be a severe reaction.

Without any type of penalty for this type of behaviour it gives a green light to Vladimir Putin and his assassins to rub out anybody they like in England knowing there will be no consequences.

Mr Litivinenkos widow, Marina, called for Russias state nuclear energy corporation which allegedly produced the polonium-210 used to poison her husband to be targeted for sanctions.

Rosatom, which runs the Avaangard plant in Sarov, a secret city, where the radioactive isotopes were manufactured, is prominent in a dossier of those supposedly culpable in the killing handed to the Foreign Office by Ms Livinenkos legal team earlier this week, The Independent has learned.

After Mr Cameron said the UK was toughening up its response, Ms Litvinenko and her lawyers have been promised the Government would carefully consider the list she has presented of people and businesses they believe should face punitive measures. Copies have been sent to the Home Office and the Treasury.

There are legal avenues for Ms Litvinenko to pursue should the Government fail to impose sanctions. Home Secretary Theresa May, has written to Ms Litvinenko pledging to take necessary measures following the report.

She has asked law agencies to make further attempts to extradite Lugovoi and Kovtun, named by Scotland Yard as suspects for the murder. But this has been refused by Russia and there is little prospect of the situation changing.

Ms Litvinenko told The Independent: We are going to give the Government time to look into all the documents and we shall be gathering more material.

This is a very serious matter and needs to be taken step-by-step. I was very glad to get Mrs Mays letter, it was a private letter, it was the first time a senior member of the Government had been in touch with me in this way.

There has been a huge amount of public support for our campaign to find justice and very senior figures, including many in Parliament, are also being very supportive, and the Government must take notice of that,

Ms Litvinenko and her advisers refused to discuss the commercial concerns and individuals named in their dossier. The inclusion of Rosatom was disclosed by Whitehall officials who acknowledged that the allegation of companys connection to the murder would point towards Russian state culpability.

Lugovoi, a former KGB officer, denounced the inquiry conclusions as nonsense and said Sir Robert had clearly gone mad. He said: I saw nothing new there. I am very sorry that, 10 years on, nothing new has been presented, only invention, supposition, rumours.

Mr Litvinenko died aged 43 in November 2006, sparking an extraordinary murder investigation. A 2.2m inquiry into his death was finally held last year following a long battle by his widow.

In a 300-page report Sir Robert found that Lugovoi and Kovtun were probably acting under the direction of Moscows FSB intelligence service when they laced Mr Litvinenkos tea with polonium at the Millennium Hotel in Londons Mayfair.

Doomsday Clock: Could we be moving closer to midnight?

The Doomsday Clock, the symbolic timekeeper showing how close the world is to mankinds self-destruction, is poised to edge closer to midnight on Tuesday when a panel of experts reveals its findings.

A year in which North Korea threatened to unleash Armageddon with ballistic missiles and nuclear warhead tests, and tensions rose between Russia and the West, racheted up fears for a man-made cataclysm.

However, the panel of scientists, including 16 Nobel laureates, is also expected to take into account the recent deal struck between Iran and the West on nuclear weapons, and the progress made at a summit in Paris on containing the worst effects of climate change.

A year ago the clock was moved forward from five minutes to midnight to just three by The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, the closest it has been to the apocalypse. It was originally created in 1947 as a reminder of the threats to humanity and the planet.
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Two strangers who were told they look so alike that they could be related have taken a DNA test to find out whether this could be the case.

Niamh Geaney and Irene Adams, both 26, underwent the test after repeatedly being asked by people if they were blood-related.

Ms Adams is the third doppelganger Ms Geaney has found since she set up Twin Strangers, an online project aiming to match people who have never met but look alike.

Since setting up the website with friends, the Dubliner has met two similar-looking strangers  one who lived just a few miles away, and the second residing in Genoa. Ms Adams also lives in Ireland.

Ms Geaney, a student and television presenter, and Ms Adams took a DNA test to find out whether they were sisters, half-sisters or related in any way going back 20,000 years in their ancestry.

The results showed that there was a zero per cent chance of the women being sisters, at 150,000-1 odds, and neither did they share one parent.

Ms Geaney  who describes herself as a global doppelganger hunter  said the results to determine whether the pair are related in any way was the one she was most worried about.

This is the one that could show that we are related in some sense. And then what does that mean for doppelgangers? she said

Everyone who looks the same  are they related in some sense?

The test revealed that Ms Geaney and Ms Adams ancestors were descended from different parts of the world and so they could not possibly be related.

Not sisters, not half-sisters, not even related up to 20,000 years ago. Mental, Ms Geaney added.

 Meet Leonardo DiCaprio's Doppelganger

Twin Strangers matches lookalikes by asking them to upload photos and selecting the facial features they feel best match them.

Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Show all 38 1 /38 Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes George Osbourne and David Cameron... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... The Krays Creative Commons Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Benedict Cumberbatch... Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... An otter Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes John Bishop... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Barry Gibb Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Jared Leto... WireImage Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Jesus Christ Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Rob Brydon... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Sir Edmund Hilary Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Dara OBriain... Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Buzz Lightyear Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes John Humphries... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Earl Wonga youtube.com Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Nigel Farage... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Homer Simpson youtube.com Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Pope Benedict... Creative Commons Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Karl Lagerfeld Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Justin Bieber... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Miley Cyrus Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Roy Keane... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Ed Byrne... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Vicky Pryce Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Ed Miliband... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Wallace Creative Commons Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Kim Jong Un... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Chipmunk Theodore Creative Commons Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Wayne Rooney... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Mr Potato youtube.com Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Robin Thicke... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Billy Ray Cyrus Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Vladimir Putin... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Smeagol youtube.com Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Pope Francis... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Jonathan Pryce Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes Leonardo DiCaprio... Getty Images Separated At Birth: Famous Look-A-Likes ... Caleb Followill Getty Images

Users of the website are then presented with people who adhere to the description are able to contact them.
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What is Burns Night?

Burns Night is an annual tribute to the Scottish poet, Robert Burns. It was originally organised by his close friends and family after he died as a memorial, but it is now a country wide event that people hold themselves, with traditional Scottish food, music and Burns works.

Who is Robert Burns?

The poet, also known as Rabbie Burns, is famous for his creative literary works and wrote more than 550 poems and songs before his death in 1796, at the age of 37 after suffering from rheumatic fever. Some of his most well-known works include A Red Red Rose and A Mans a Man for A That.

He was born in 1759 in Alloway in the west of Scotland and his works strongly focused on political issues that he passionately cared about, which made him an iconic Scot, standing for his liberal views. He was also strongly inspired by the Scottish scenery, including Ayrshire, Dumfries and Galloway.

Robert Burns, 1759 to 1796. Scottish Poet (Design Pics Inc/Rex)

When is Burns Night?

Burns night falls on January 25th every year, which is the birthday of the Scottish Bard. Many restaurants in Scotland and around the world honour the traditional celebration with themed evenings.

Why do we celebrate it?

Robert Burns is Scotlands national poet and considered a revolutionary figure of Scotland. Almost 200 years have passed since his death but people still enjoy celebrating him and all things Scottish, where true Scots don their family tartan.

The 10 Best Scotch whiskies Show all 10 1 /10 The 10 Best Scotch whiskies The 10 Best Scotch whiskies tenbest1.jpg The 10 Best Scotch whiskies tenbest2.jpg The 10 Best Scotch whiskies tenbest3.jpg The 10 Best Scotch whiskies tenbest4.jpg The 10 Best Scotch whiskies tenbest5.jpg The 10 Best Scotch whiskies tenbest6.jpg The 10 Best Scotch whiskies tenbest7.jpg The 10 Best Scotch whiskies Glenlivet-founders.jpg The 10 Best Scotch whiskies tenbest9.jpg The 10 Best Scotch whiskies tenbest10.jpg

What do we do on Burns Night?

On Burns night, people celebrate with a traditional Burns supper. The centrepiece of Burns supper is haggis, which the poet describes as the great chieftain o thepuddin-race and is made from sheep heart, liver and lungs, prepared in the stomach lining and mashed neeps and tatties (turnips, swedes and potatoes. It begins with the host reading Address to Haggis, an ode Burns himself wrote.

As well as traditional Scottish food, the night is not complete without whisky. A wee dram of malt or blends goes down well on the night. People also sing Auld Lang Syne, which is also sung at New Years Eve, wear tartan and enjoy the bagpipes and recitals of his songs and poems.

Robert Burns Birthplace Museum (National Trust for Scotland)

Robert Burns Facts

The oldest statue of the poet is thought to be in Camperdown, eastern Australia. Sculpture John Greenshileds created it in the 1850s.

His poem A Red, Red Rose was apparently Bob Dylans greatest creative inspiration,

His poetry has even orbited Earth after astronaut Nick Patrick took a book of his into space in 2010 on a two week space mission.

Michael Jackson is said to have been inspired by Robert Burns work.

John Steinbacks novel Of Mice and Men takes its name from a line of Burns poetry in To a Mous, which read The best laid schemes o mice anmen/ Gang aft agley.

The 160th anniversary of his death in 1956 was commemorated with a stamp by the Soviet Union, who were the first country in the world to do so.
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On a wet Saturday morning in a square in Leeds, three men stand by a trestle table preaching Islam. "We have many questions  what are we doing here, why are we created?" Hamed asks while handing out guides to the Koran to passers-by. A few yards away a man gives out vouchers offering cash for unwanted gadgets. At the centre of the square, a young plane tree emerges from a ringed, chrome bench  a commemoration of the Queen's diamond jubilee in 2012.

Competing for the attention of shoppers are five men drawn here by their appetite for a British revolution, and the uprooting of what they view as the last barrier to real democracy. They too had plans to set up a table and a banner outside St John's shopping centre but Tony, the table guy, is running late. So the core of the Yorkshire branch of Republic, Britain's only notable republican campaign group, have spread out. Armed with leaflets, they take their argument to Leeds, one shopper at a time.

By chance, one of the first people the group meets angrily distils much of what Republic is up against. "I think it's disgusting that they're giving these out," says Lyn Adkin, 58, seconds after receiving a "Royal Secrets Must End" leaflet. She shakes it as she speaks. "I'm absolutely appalled. The Royal Family symbolise England and everything about them is English and it's wonderful. To be giving things like this out, I just don't know what to say. I'm gobsmacked and this is going in the nearest bin."

First we review the bullet points on the front of the leaflet. "The monarchy is not covered by Freedom of Information rules; Prince Charles is lobbying government in secret; millions of pounds of royal costs are hidden; the monarchy is one of the most secretive institutions in the country." Does any of this concern Mrs Adkin? "We all have secrets," she says. "And look at how they promote things, how many people come to England to look at Buckingham Palace and see the Queen. They do good! I'm so sorry to be so angry. I'm so angry, I really am."

Nigel Catling, the campaigner who gave Mrs Adkin the literature as she passed, has seen but not heard the conversation. He approaches her again to offer a different "Monarchy Must Go" leaflet, not realising what he's walking into. "I really don't want it and I'm appalled at this and I think it's disgusting," she tells him. Catling, 57, cheerily tries to start a debate but soon wishes Mrs Adkin a good day. Since it started three years ago, the Yorkshire network has leafleted cities about once a fortnight. Is it always like this? "Er, no, no it's not," he says as he looks at my tape recorder. "Would you mind turning that off?"

Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Show all 62 1 /62 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II on a walk-about in Portsmouth during her Silver Jubilee tour of Great Britain, 1977 PA Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II The future Britain's Queen Elizabeth II (R) pictured with her younger sister Princess Margaret (L) in 1933 AFP/Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II The 9-year-old Elizabeth attends an aristocratic wedding with her mother and younger sister. Later in that year with the death of her Grandfather and the Abdication of her Uncle Edward VIII she became first in line to the throne, 1936 Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II The coronation of King George VI in 1937, Elizabeth aged 10 became the heir apparent to the throne Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth and her sister arrive at Waterloo station to say goodbye to their parents as they leave to tour Canada. Elizabeth was thought too young to escort her parents on the tour and was described as "tearful" as they departed. She and her parents made the first ever transatlantic telephone call during their time away, 1939 Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II The 13-year-old Elizabeth and her sister Margret address children who have been evacuated from the cities on BBC's 'The Chilrens Hour' She said "We are trying to do all we can to help our gallant sailors, soldiers and airmen, and we are trying, too, to bear our share of the danger and sadness of war. We know, every one of us, that in the end all will be well", 1940 Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Just before the end of the war Elizabeth took part in training to become an ATS officer. She is pictured learning to change a tire, 1945 AFP/Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II The official announcement of Princess Elizabeth and Phillip Mountbatten's engagement. The pairing was incredibly controversial as Prince Phillip had no financial standing and he was foreign born, the prince of Denmark and Greece (though he served Britain in the war and was given British Citizenship), 1947 Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II (in coach) and her husband Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh are cheered by the crowd after their wedding ceremony, on 20 November 1947, on their road to Buckingham Palace, London Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth smiles at her first child, a month old Prince Charles. Charles was born on 14 November 1948 Corbis Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II The couples second child Princess Anne was born in 1950 Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Arriving back in England upon hearing the death of her father King George VI. The Kings health had been in decline for a number of years and Elizabeth had been filling in for him on an official visit to Australia by way of Kenya. As his heir Elizabeth became Queen aged 26 Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth's coronation took place on 2 June 1953. It was the first ever coronation to be aired live on television, being one of the most watched events in history with millions gathering around their TV sets to see the new monarch Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II standing next to her daughter Princess Anne, 1960 Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II President Eisenhower (centre) with the British Royal family (L-R) Prince Philip, Princess Anne, HM Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles and Captain John Eisenhower, at Balmoral Castle, Scotland, 1959 Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II as she turns to smile and talk to an unidentified officer, during the Trooping of the Colour by the First Battalion of the Jamaica Regiment at Up-Park Camp, Kingston, Jamaica, 1966 Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II walking cross country at the North of Scotland Gun Dog Association Open Stake Retreiver Trials in the grounds of Balmoral Castle in 1967 Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II during her visit to the Chelsea Flower Show in London, a regular fixture in the royal calendar, 1971 PA Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh during their traditional summer break at Balmoral Castle. The highland retreat is one of the Queen's favourite places, each year, she heads off to Scotland for the summer. "It is rather nice to hibernate for a bit when one leads such a moveable life," she once said, 1976 Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II during a walkabout in Muscat while visiting Oman, 1979 PA Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II with some of her corgis walking the Cross Country course during the second day of the Windsor Horse Trials. The monarch is responsible for introducing a new breed of dog known as the "dorgi" when her corgi Tiny was mated with a dachshund "sausage dog" called Pipkin which belonged to Princess Margaret, 1980 PA Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II (L-R) the Queen Mother, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince William, Prince Harry and the Prince and Princess of Wales after the christening ceremony of Prince Harry, 1984 PA Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II taking the salute of the Household Guards regiments during the Trooping of the Colour ceremony in London, 1985 PA Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Diana, Princess of Wales and Queen Elizabeth II as they smile to well-wishers outside Clarence House in London, 1987 AP Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II, with Chief Instructor, Small Arms Corp LT Col George Harvey, firing the last shot on a standard SA 80 rifle when she attended the centenary of the Army Rifle Association at Bisley, 1993 PA Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II South Africa's President Nelson Mandela greets Queen Elizabeth II as she steps from the royal yacht Britannia in Cape Town at the 1995's official start of the her first visit to the country since 1947 PA Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II smiles as she visits Bowring Park in St. John's, Newfoundland, on the third day of a 10-day official visit to Canada, 1997 Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh make their way into St. George's Chapel at Windsor for the annual Garter ceremony, 1999 AFP/Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II and Pope John Paul II as they meet at the Vatican, 2000 AP Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II and the Queen Mother leaving church by horse drawn carriage on the Sandringham Estate, Norfolk, 2000 PA Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth rides her horse in the grounds of Windsor Castle, 2002 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth arrives for the world premiere of James Bond movie "Casino Royale" at the Odeon cinema in Leicester Square in London, 2006 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth boards a scheduled train at Kings Cross station in London, 2009 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II planting a tree at Newmarket Animal Health Trust, during a royal visit which marked her 50th year as the charity's patron, 2009 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II talking with Pope Benedict XVI during an audience in the Morning Drawing Room at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh during a four day visit by the Pope to the UK, 2010 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II visiting the Sheikh Zayed Mosque in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, 2010 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II receives flowers from the crowd during her visit to Federation Square in downtown Melbourne, 2011 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth watches a preview of her Christmas message wearing a pair of 3D glasses, studded with Swarovski crystals in the form of a "Q", at Buckingham Palace in central London, 2012 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Members of Britain's royal family (front L to R) Prince Philip, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Charles cheer as competitors participate in a sack race at the Braemar Gathering in Braemar, Scotland, 2012 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Britain's Prince Charles kisses the hand of his mother Queen Elizabeth at the end of her Diamond Jubilee concert in front of Buckingham Palace in London, 2012 Reuters Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge laughs as Queen Elizabeth gestures during a visit to Vernon Park in Nottingham, 2012 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip attend a service for the Order of the British Empire at St Paul's Cathedral in London, 2012 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II meets young people during an official visit to The Shard building in central London, 2013 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Actress Angelina Jolie is presented with the Insignia of an Honorary Dame Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George by Queen Elizabeth II in the 1844 Room at Buckingham Palace, London, 2014 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh visit the Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red evolving art installation at the Tower of London, 2014 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh at the State Opening of Parliament, 2015 AFP/Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II (L-R) Britain's Princess Anne, Princess Royal, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, Prince William, Duke of Cambridge holding his son Prince George of Cambridge, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Harry (back), Prince Andrew, Duke of York (back), James, Viscount Severn (front), Princess Beatrice of York (back), Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh and Princess Eugenie of York (back) stand on the balcony of Buckingham Palace waiting to view the fly-past during the Queen's Birthday Parade, 'Trooping the Colour,' in London, 2015 Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II The Trooping of the Colour is an annual celebration marking the Queen's birthday, 2015 Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Britain's Queen Elizabeth II stands with Kate the Duchess of Cambridge whilst pushing Princess Charlotte in a pram as they leave after attending the Christening of Britain's Princess Charlotte at St. Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham, 2015 AP Photo/Matt Dunham, Pool Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II arrives at the Broadway Theatre in Barking, 2015 Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II greets wellwishers during a 'walkabout' on her 90th birthday in Windsor in 2016 AFP via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Members of the Royal Family during trooping of the colour in 2017 AFP via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II The Queen waves at Prince Harry and Meghan after their wedding in 2018 POOL/AFP via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex gesture during their visit to the Storyhouse in Chester, Cheshire in 2018 AFP via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Prince Charles reacts as he sits with his mother Britain's Queen Elizabeth II during an event to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings, in Portsmouth in 2019 AFP via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are joined by her mother, Doria Ragland, as they show their new son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, to the Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh at Windsor Castle Chris Allerton/Sussex Royal/PA Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II reacts as she visits the Haig Housing Trust in Morden in 2019 POOL/AFP via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II takes her seat on the The Sovereign's Throne in the House of Lords next to Prince Charles, before reading the Queen's Speech during the State Opening of Parliament in 2019 POOL/AFP via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II looks at the coffin of Britain's Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh during his funeral service at St George's Chapel in Windsor Castle POOL/AFP via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II and Britain's Prince Charles, Prince of Wales pose alongside the tree which they planted to mark the start of the official planting season for the Queen's Green Canopy (QGC) at the Balmoral Cricket Pavilion, Balmoral Estate in Scotland POOL/AFP via Getty Images Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Britain's Queen Elizabeth II cuts a cake to celebrate the start of the Platinum Jubilee during a reception in the Ballroom of Sandringham House, the Queen's Norfolk residence on February 5, 2022. - Queen Elizabeth II on Sunday will became the first British monarch to reign for seven decades, in a bittersweet landmark as she also marked the 70th anniversary of her father's death AFP/Getty Queen Elizabeth II: Life in pictures Queen Elizabeth II Queen Elizabeth II arrives in Westminster Abbey accompanied by Prince Andrew, Duke of York for the Service Of Thanksgiving For The Duke Of Edinburgh on March 29, 2022 in London Getty

It can be tough being a republican in Britain. The Queen's annus has been pretty mirabilis over and again since the horrible 1990s, when scandal, a castle fire and Diana's death shook the House of Windsor. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary this April, rounding off a diamond era for the family. The "Jubilympics", two births and a record-breaking reign have inspired countless souvenir pullouts, commemorative crockery and Nicholas Witchell reports on the BBC. Days before the leafleting in Leeds, a nation cooed as Prince George started nursery. And we watched Charles and his sons celebrate 40 years of the Prince's Trust with Ant and Dec.

Yet republicans are confident that an underestimated, largely unheard chunk of the population  a majority, they believe  is ready to think seriously about change in the year the Queen turns 90. And Republic, which has operated in its current form for 10 years now, thinks it can achieve it without even needing to convert people like Mrs Adkin. "I think about 20 per cent of the population is republican," Tony says when he does arrive, repeating a figure that is generally reflected in polls (he asks that his surname is not revealed "for work reasons"). "I also maintain that about 20 per cent of us are monarchists. That leaves 60 per cent in the middle who don't really care. But the media try and put them in with the monarchists and it's just not the case."

Republic's mission is to find and engage shy and unwitting republicans. By reversing the trade winds of royal glorification that still make the weather here, it wants to create a climate in which a government is compelled to hold a referendum  and then to persuade us to vote for an elected head of state. With that would come an elected second chamber in place of the House of Lords. But first they want their arguments to be heard over the din of ad-libbing royal correspondents and cathedral organs. And in this regard, they, too, have had a good year.

In December, a Freedom of Information request that Republic had pursued for three years revealed the routine access to confidential government papers enjoyed by Prince Charles, the wealthy businessman, landowner, lobbyist and future unelected head of state. The revelation made front-page news only months after the release of some of the prince's "black spider" memos to ministers, which confirmed suspicions about his "meddling" tendencies.

Graham Smith, the chief executive of Republic, says he expects more such evidence of interference to be revealed in the coming weeks. He joined the group in 2003 as an idealistic, left-leaning, Bristol-born former backpacker. As a 12-year-old he remembers asking to be excused from a classroom where Prince Andrew's wedding to Sarah Ferguson was being shown on television. Republic, which emerged in the early 1980s, had about 300 members and little direction when Smith, now 41, arrived after a period of living and working in Australia. By 2006, he had taken on the campaign and it now has more than 5,000 paying members as well as about 35,000 online supporters.

Resources are limited  the group has only two full-time members of staff and an income of 140,000 last year  but Smith views public apathy as progress, and an opportunity for growth. "Opinion has shifted away from the monarchy in the sense people don't care about it," he says the day before the Leeds event at Campaign HQ, his modest two-up, two-down in St Albans (he hopes to find some office space in London by the end of the year). "And they haven't shifted towards us because they haven't had the opportunity to think about it. But when you start talking to them about the issues, they quickly change their minds."

This becomes evident in Leeds after Mrs Adkin leaves to continue her shopping. In an hour of leafleting, Republic encounters only one other monarchist. When a campaigner hands Michael McGann a leaflet and the man glances at it, he turns to his young son. "Now that is what you call a tosser," he tells the boy. As he leaves the square, he explains that he was raised a royalist. "My mum and dad got a telegram from the Queen when they were married 60 years," he adds.

Members of the Republic organisation - Grant Buckley, Nigel Catling and Mark Sutton - meet in a Leeds pub earlier this month (Victor De Jesus/UNP)

Mr McGann and Mrs Adkin won't be swayed but everyone else on the square is sympathetic, to varying degrees. "I mean, we're living in 2016 so I don't really see why the Royal Family should have these privileges," says Sam Ero, a Nigerian who has lived in Leeds for eight years. Carla Martinez is about to start a shift at a nearby clothes store. "I do think it's a lot of money that goes to waste," she says, clutching the third leaflet available today. It presents Republic's estimation that all royal expenses, including unlisted security costs, amount to 334m a year, almost 10 times the official figure.> It also challenges the widespread view that the Royal Family is good for tourism, evidence for which, it says, is scant.

The Charles revelations last year coincided with a potentially favourable political wind for British republicanism. Jeremy Corbyn's election as Labour leader last September triggered fierce constitutional debate after the veteran republican hesitated before agreeing to kiss hands with the Queen when he was sworn into the Privy Council. But since then, and the grief he also received for not singing the national anthem at a Battle of Britain ceremony in September, he has parked his republicanism as a low priority.

In Smith's front room at his home in St Albans, a draft of Republic's "Royal Secrets" report sits next to a BBC Daily Politics mug. Smith says Corbyn has been a trigger for debate, as well as media appearances for Republic. But he also admits to concerns. "I think most people have no particular idea of what a republican is, but if there's a stereotype it's probably Corbyn," he explains. "People think we are instinctively unpatriotic and left-wing  And there is a danger that if Corbyn is unsuccessful, there could be some sort of blowback for us in the sense that it might reinforce the stereotype."

Either way, politics is bringing new attention  and members  to Republic. Daniel Cale, 22, has joined the group in Leeds after receiving a Republic leaflet at the anti-austerity marches in London last summer. "I never agreed with the institution but I never knew there was a campaign group," he says. The only woman among eight people who eventually show up today has heard about the group on Twitter, she thinks in a tweet by a Corbyn supporter. Both newcomers live in Leeds. "I wanted to get a feel of your aims and objectives," the 40-something (she asks not to be named) tells the men. "I don't understand how you can have hereditary advantage in a democracy."

Republic presents itself as a politically neutral pressure group. The Leeds network boasts about a Conservative councillor among its ranks. It has also set its sights on a more significant, if even less obvious ally. "We're only a few years from King Charles and he's our greatest recruiting sergeant," says Professor Stephen Haseler, director of the Global Policy Institute and an expert on constitutional monarchy. Haseler, 72, is a former chair of Republic and is old enough to remember the age of deference. "Even 20 years ago it was almost taboo to talk about this," he says by phone. "Now it's acceptable but nobody is prepared to go beyond that and that's because of the Queen. The minute she goes, that's when monarchy becomes the big issue."

He describes the Queen as a "sticking plaster" whose 63-year reign has bridged incomparable eras. "Charles will be king right away  there's no gap," he says. "It will be the first succession most people will remember and the first of the modern democratic era. We will watch the hereditary principle in action and I think a lot of people are going to say, 'hang on a minute, where do we come into this?'"

Republic plans to channel its energies not into the all-consuming period of official mourning that will follow the Queen's death, but Charles's coronation several months later. "We're still fleshing it out but we're going to be quite vocal in saying that we can't have this guy walk into the top job just because his mum was doing it before," Smith says. "We will have a controversial figure as monarch, who people are already happy to criticise and attack, and that's a significant change from where we are now."

Graham Smith of Republic in his office in St Albans (Victor De Jesus/UNP)

By the time of accession, Smith also hopes Republic will also have grown. He wants to attract at least 2,000 new members this year. While he challenges some parts of the media, including the BBC, over its "soft" treatment of the monarchy, he also knows that saturation coverage of big events is good for Republic. It gained 500 members during the 2011 Royal Wedding. The group is also growing its social and old media presence, and has a loose network of 10 volunteers who lead its investigations, in particular its Freedom of Information work. And at a local level, 21 groups are now bringing Republic's case to the streets.

At midday, the Leeds contingent leaves the square and heads to a pub for a meeting, details of which were posted on the national group's website. An hour or more of discussion follows, much of it repetitive. The average age is above 50 and there is a heavy leftward lean (the Tory councillor couldn't make it). Eventually, Mark Sutton, who co-ordinates the group, talks through some of its plans for the year. They include a stall at the Green Party's spring conference in Harrogate in February, and Ukip's main conference in Doncaster in the autumn. Sutton, who is 50, was at Ukip's gathering last year. "Surprisingly quite a few of them were on our side," he says.

It would easy to think that, despite Republic's growth and growing confidence, as well as the perceived threat to the stability of the monarchy posed by a king called Charles, the monarchy remains as rooted in the British landscape as the Jubilee tree in Leeds. Perhaps its greatest protection is the prime minister of the day, whose own role would be reduced without the patronage of the honours system and the powers that come with the royal prerogative. The current Prime Minister also happens to be a big fan  a 14-year-old David Cameron camped out overnight to watch the wedding of Charles and Diana in 1981.

But Smith believes that change will arrive in his lifetime, and will come from the bottom up, regardless of who occupies Downing Street. "Look at the Scottish independence campaign," he says. "Right up until six months before the referendum, support was somewhere around 30 per cent. A lot of that was because many people hadn't made the leap of imagination required to think about what an independent Scotland would look like. Or think about the massive turnaround in public attitudes about gay marriage, or environmental issues," he adds. "You can change minds quite quickly."

In Leeds, in a rented room at the unsuibtably regal Victoria pub on Great George Street, Sutton remembers the group's first gathering three years ago. "It was in another pub also called the Victoria," he says. But another member of the group speaks up to correct him. "Sorry, it was the Albert on Victoria Street," Sutton says, adding: "It just goes to show, wherever you go now you can't get away from the monarchy. But we want to move on and change the way the country is run. We want to change the way it thinks."
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Four Syrian refugees who had been living in the Calais refugee camp known as "The Jungle" have arrived in the UK after a landmark legal ruling.

They were met at St Pancras by relatives and around 100 people holding home-made banners with the words "Refugees Welcome" written on them.

Others carried signs and balloons saying "Welcome To Britain" and "We Are One".

One of the group urged refugees waiting to enter Britain to "have faith" and see his case as proof there is a way to reach the UK "legally and safely".

Supporters and well-wishers at St. Pancras International station in London wait to greet the arrival of four Syrian refugees (PA)

Supporters and well-wishers at St. Pancras International station in London wait to greet the arrival of four Syrian refugees (PA)

The 17-year-old said conditions in "The Jungle" were so bad it was "not fit for humans". "It is just awful," he said.

The four refugees - three teenagers and a 26-year-old man with severe mental health issues - travelled to the UK after a British court ruled on Wednesday they should be immediately brought across the Channel from the makeshift refugee camp in Calais.

Four Syrian refugees who won a landmark legal case to come to Britain from "The Jungle" in Calais, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, pose for photographs after being reunited with their families in London (PA)

The court found they should be allowed to come to live with close relatives, who are already settled in the UK, while their asylum claims are examined.

At least one is expected to join relatives in Scotland.

Inside the camps in Calais Show all 20 1 /20 Inside the camps in Calais Inside the camps in Calais A Kurdish child and her father get out of their tent in the makeshift migrant camp in Grande-Synthe near Dunkerque Inside the camps in Calais Kurdish migrants works around the tents of the makeshift migrant camp in Grande-Synthe near Dunkerque Inside the camps in Calais Volunteers from Holland set up a bridge of fortune over the mud using pallets of the makeshift migrant camp in Grande-Synthe near Dunkerque Inside the camps in Calais Refugees walk among tents in a makeshift camp as containers (rear) are put into place to house several hundred migrants living in what is known as the "Jungle", a squalid sprawling camp in Calais Inside the camps in Calais A makeshift camp is seen in front of containers (rear) put into place to house several hundred migrants living in what is known as the "Jungle", a squalid sprawling camp in Calais Inside the camps in Calais Inside the camps in Calais Inside the camps in Calais Inside the camps in Calais Inside the camps in Calais Inside the camps in Calais Asylum seekers in Calais The camp near Calais harbour where refugees from the Middle East and central Asia congregate to attempt the crossing from France to the UK Justin Sutcliffe Inside the camps in Calais Asylum seekers in Calais Most of the temporary residents in this camp are from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria or the Kurdish administered regions Justin Sutcliffe Inside the camps in Calais Asylum seekers in Calais Camp residents cook and share food at their site just outside Calais Justin Sutcliffe Inside the camps in Calais Asylum seekers in Calais A group walk through the camp near Calais Justin Sutcliffe Inside the camps in Calais Asylum seekers in Calais Most of the temporary residents in this camp are from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria or the Kurdish administered regions Inside the camps in Calais Asylum seekers in Calais A 16 year old immigrant from Eritrea tries to brace himself against the rain and cold by sheltering under the road bridge Justin Sutcliffe Inside the camps in Calais Asylum seekers in Calais Rubbish strewn on the ground near one of the campsites Inside the camps in Calais Asylum seekers in Calais A man stands among the tents at the campsite just outside Calais, France Inside the camps in Calais Asylum seekers in Calais A camp near Calais harbour where migrants from the East africa congregate to attempt the crossing from France to the UK. Most of the temporary residents in this camp are from Eritrea. Inside the camps in Calais Asylum seekers in Calais Graffiti depicting the dangerous journey trying to smuggle onto a lorry to the UK

They had all fled the Syrian civil war and had been living in the camp for at least two months.

Lawyers for the refugees argued the Home Office routinely ignored the right of refugees to be united with family members already in the UK, under a European asylum rule known as the Dublin III regulation.

The landmark case could pave the way for other refugees in the Calais camp to be brought to Britain.

Additional reporting by agencies
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A woman molested by Jimmy Savile on a live episode of Top of the Pops has criticised a report examining the paedophiles misconduct while working at the BBC.

Sylvia Edwards has criticised the report by retired judge Dame Janet Smith as a waste of time and money, after a leaked draft of the review did not criticise the BBC for not discovering the abuse and accepted denials from senior bosses that they were aware of his behaviour.

Ms Edwards, who was interviewed for an hour as part of the review, told The Sun: Of course the BBC knew what he was doing. In my case its even on video for Gods sake.

Any adult watching would have known something wasnt right. Ive never had a personal apology from the BBC and I dont think his other victims will stomach this report.

It makes you feel like the whole thing was a waste of time and money. Id hoped it would hold people properly to account

Video footage of the programme shows Ms Edwards, then 18, being groped by the depraved entertainer during an episode of Top of the Pops on 25 November 1976.

The DJ can be heard saying: I tell you something, a fella could get used to this, as it happens, he really could get used to it.

Ms Edwards said she reported the incident to a floor manager after the programme had finished and claims she was told to: Get lost  its just Jimmy messing about.

The judges leaked draft report says Ms Edwards was one of two quite serious indecent assaults and girls on the show were place in moral danger.

The review, leaked to online news site Exaro, identified more than 100 BBC employees who had heard about Saviles sexual conduct and said the former presenters abuse of children took place at numerous BBC buildings. Three of Saviles victims were nine years old, it said.

One of the key findings in the report said Savile habitually invited a group of young girls  his Team  to watch him present Top of the Pops and then chose one for sex.

Despite these findings Dame Janet also said: "I do not think any member of senior management was made aware of Saviles abuse of young people while working on Top of the Pops", however it did criticise the corporations culture.

According to Exaro, Dame Janet said: "My general impression is that most staff (other than those who had been in the higher echelons) felt that the management culture was too deferential and that some executives were 'above the law'."

Investigations into allegations of sexual assault were "wholly inadequate" the report said, and the BBC was criticised for failing to properly examine his personality, despite rumours about him and that he worked with children.

The leaked draft was published a day after it was announced the long-delayed final report would be published within six weeks.

A statement on the Dame Janet Smith Review website said the draft report was out of date and significant changes had been made to its content.

Additional reporting by Press Association
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London children whose first language is not English are getting slightly better overall grades at school than pupils who were brought up speaking it, newly-released official figures show.

The statistics, complied by the Department for Education, come the same day as the Government released details of a crackdown on immigrant mothers with weak English skills.

David Cameron said in an interview earlier this week that a lack of English being spoken in immigrant communities was hampering integration and life-chances, particularly of women.

Recommended Read more David Cameron confirms mothers could be deported over English test

He announced that spouses who came to the UK on a visa to live with their partner would have their English tested after living in the UK for several years. If they failed the test there was no guarantee they would not be deported, he said.

Mr Cameron also confirmed that such mothers with British citizen children could lose the right to live in the country their children were citizens of  potentially splitting up families.

The capital's GCSE figures however suggest that being brought up with another language is not necessarily a major disadvantage to academic success  and could be an advantage in some areas.

The Governments key measure of pupil achievement is how many attain five good GCSEs including English and Maths.

The 2014-15 figures show that 61.3 per cent of pupils whose first language is not English meet the benchmark  compared to just 60.7 who were raised speaking the language.

The difference is even more pronounced in some communities with high proportions of ethnic minority pupils.

In Tower Hamlets, where over two-thirds of the population belong to ethnic minority groups, 67.1 per cent of pupils whose first language is not English reach the benchmark.

This is compared to just 57.8 per cent who were raised speaking English.

Part of the difference is down to improved attainment in foreign languages, but science and maths were also areas of particular success for pupils whose first language was not English.

The Government defines someones first language as the language to which a child was initially exposed during early development and continues to be exposed to in the home or in the community.

It does not mean that pupils are necessarily fluent in a language other than English or cannot speak English, officials say.

The equivalent stats release for the previous year did not include data on people with additional languages.

Mr Cameron admitted on Monday that his government had actually previously cut funding for English-language tuition for immigrants who come to the UK. He blamed the deficit for the policy.

Yes, budgets did come down in the past because all budgets were under pressure because of the enormous deficit and the need to pay that down, he told the same programme.

I think we had to make difficult decisions. Now what were doing is targeting the language money  it is for those who are in the greatest level of isolation.

The figures could be related to improved educational attainment in London, where schools have performed increasingly well and a higher proportion of people have English as a second langauge compared to elsewhere in the country.

This article was updated to make it clear the figures in question relate to London
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David Cameron has launched an assault on lawyers filing spurious allegations against veterans of the British armed forces who fought in the Iraq war.

In a strongly worded post on the Prime Ministers official Facebook page it said the National Security Council will produce a plan to stamp out the industry of lawyers profiting on claims lodged against those in the armed forces. This is unacceptable and no way to treat the people who risk their lives to keep our country safe  it has got to end, the post said.

It added that it will include proposals to clamp down on no win, no fee schemes used by law firms, speeding up the planned legal aid residence test, and strengthening investigative powers and penalties against firms found to be abusing the system. Mr Cameron also vowed to take firm action against those who have abused the system historically to pursue fabricated claims.

It continued: Our armed forces are rightly held to the highest standards, but our troops must know that when they get home from action overseas this Government will protect them from being hounded by lawyers over claims that are totally without foundation.

The law firm Leigh Day has already been referred to the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal as a result of the failure to disclose a key document to the Al-Sweady inquiry.

The inquiry was established to investigate whether British soldiers tortured and murdered detainees after the Battle of Danny Boy in southern Iraq on 14 May 2004. In its final report the inquiry concluded that the allegations were based on deliberate lies, reckless speculation and ingrained hostility.

A Leigh Day spokesperson told the Independent: Over the last 12 years many cases of abuse made against the MoD during the course of the occupation of Iraq have come to light and been accepted by the Government. They include the appalling torture and murder of Baha Mousa in 2003. In addition, the Government has paid compensation for over 300 other cases relating to abuse and unlawful detention of Iraqis...the vast majority of serving army soldiers do a first class job in protecting this country but the evidence shows that this is by no means the case for all.

We have a system in this country that enables people to obtain justice if they have suffered abuse, damage or loss at the hands of anyone. No-one is above the law, not us, not the British Army and not the Government. We cannot imagine that the Prime Minister is proposing that this should change.

We have made it very clear that we refute all of the allegations that have been laid before us by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority. We will contest those allegations vigorously before the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal. Our statement in relation to these allegations is on our website and we are unable to comment further.
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Conservative Central Office tried to gag Eurosceptic MPs from publicly lobbying their local party members to vote leave  unless a pro-EU supporter was lined up to disagree with them.

In a letter sent to all the partys Association Officers the Conservatives Director of Organisation warned that they would be breaching party rules if they allowed their local MP free reign to speak out against the EU at their annual general meeting. Instead, the letter said, if their MP planned to use the event to talk in favour of Brexit, the association must ensure that the opposite view is equally strongly advocated.

But the letter, which was sent out earlier this month, sparked a furious response from Tory MPs who accused CCHQ of trying to gag them. As a result of the pressure, CCHQ backed down and said MPs were allowed to make their views clear at association annual general meetings. The party told MPs that the letter had been a misunderstanding and that it was never intended to gag MPs from making their positions on the EU clear to their local party members.

However, any referendum events held by associations will still be required to have speakers from both sides.

The letter, which was copied to regional party officials, came from Alan Mabbutt, the Tory Director of Organisation. I have been asked about the Partys position with regard to Members of Parliament or Members of the European Parliament addressing Association AGMs, he wrote. I am aware that an MEP has asked to talk specifically about the forthcoming Referendum.

He then added: Associations may wish to hold meetings of members about the Referendum to which both sides of the argument should be put. If, therefore, a view is to be expressed by a speaker at your AGM, you should ensure that the opposite view is equally strongly advocated at the meeting.

One MP whose local party received the letter said it had sparked considerable anger.

The idea that CCHQ was going to stop me speaking to my own party was outrageous, he said.

Weve got our AGM coming up and I was going to make my views very clear. This letter seemed to suggest that they would need to get someone to oppose me, which was crazy.

The Conservative Eurosceptic MP Sir Edward Leigh described the situation as ridiculous.

It is clearly an absurd letter but I have to say that nobody is going to take a blind bit of notice, he said.

Some bureaucrat is Central Office has clearly decided that it was a good idea to try and impose the partys boards neutrality in the referendum on constituency associations. But it is ridiculous to expect MPs to stay silent.

It is understood that the letter was the result of a decision last year by the Conservative Party board to stay neutral.The decision means that neither Leave or Stay campaigners will be able to call on the resources of the party. In addition, local associations are expected to take a neutral stance. However, individual party members are allowed to campaign on either side.

A source on the 1922 Committee that represents Conservative backbench MPs said that the issue of the letter had been raised with them.

We were told when we were asked that it was a misunderstanding and that there would be nothing to stop individual MPs stating their case to their local associations, they said.

But some MPs believe that it was a deliberate misunderstanding. I think they wanted to shut us up, said one.
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Four out of five people believe that it would be a risk for Britain to leave the EU, according to a poll for The Independent.

ORB found that 82 per cent of the public think that Brexit would pose a risk to the UK  including 58 per cent who see some risk and 23 per cent who see a great deal of risk. Only 18 per cent believe there would be no risk at all.

The findings suggest that the campaign to keep Britain in the EU could profit by highlighting the dangers of a vote to leave in the referendum David Cameron plans to hold this summer. He intends to spell out the possible threat to Britains economic and national security if it left the EU, including its ability to fight terrorism and crime. Supporters of Brexit have already dubbed the In campaign Project Fear the label given to the drive to keep Scotland in the UK in the 2014 referendum on independence.

The survey of 2,000 people, conducted on Wednesday and Thursday, found that 52 per cent believe Britain should remain in the EU and 48 per cent want it to leave. These figures are unchanged since last month. Women (54 per cent) are more likely to support continued membership than men (50 per cent).

Similarly, women (86 per cent) are more likely than men (78 per cent) to see quitting as posing a risk. Effective communication about the risks of Brexit to a male audience may well just about tip this in favour of a remain vote, said Johnny Heald, managing director of ORB International.

Voters who backed the Conservatives at last years general election split 50-50 on whether the UK should stay in the EU club, and so could decide Mr Camerons fate. Some 83 per cent of them see a risk in Britain departing, in line with the population as a whole. A majority of Ukip voters (54 per cent) acknowledge some risk in leaving, even though 92 per cent of them want the UK to pull out.

Four weeks before the summit of EU leaders at which Mr Cameron hopes to secure a new deal for Britain, he stepped up his drive to win support in other European capitals for his reform demands.

Talks in Prague with his Czech counterpart, Bohuslav Sobotka, focussed on Britain being granted an emergency brake under which EU migration could be halted if pressure on public services became too acute. It is being mooted as an alternative to Mr Camerons call for a four-year ban on migrants receiving in-work benefit.

The proposal has run into fierce opposition in eastern European member states, including the Czech Republic, who have condemned it as discriminatory. Mr Sobotka said: It is very important for us that any solution that is adopted on a European level does not discriminate.

Mr Cameron insisted his four-year demand was still on the table, but said he welcomed alternatives with a similar impact on migration. He added: I am confident that with the help of European partners and with goodwill we will be able to get there and find mutually satisfactory conclusions.

The Prime Minister suffered a setback when Lord Howard of Lympne, the former Tory leader, signalled he was likely to support the Brexit campaign. He said Mr Cameron is not looking very likely to secure a good enough deal to justify remaining in the EU.

In response, Mr Camerons spokeswoman said he was seeking substantial and significant and would really change our relationship and our membership of the EU.

The Leave campaign won celebrity backing from the actor Sir Michael Caine who told BBC Radio 4: I sort of feel certain we should come out.
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The Government has retreated on some of its cuts to junior doctors out-of-hours pay, according to a leaked confidential letter from their chief negotiator.

A 48-hour junior doctor strike scheduled for next week was called off on 19 January, with the British Medical Association claiming early progress had been made in negotiations.

Recommended Read more Second junior doctors strike called off after talks

It has now emerged that the decision followed an offer by Sir David Dalton, the hospital chief executive leading talks on behalf of the Government and NHS Employers, to adjust which evening and weekend hours would attract out-of-hours pay premiums.

Sir David also made new assurances that no junior doctor will have to work consecutive Saturdays and that any medic working one in three Saturdays would receive extra out-of-hours payments on those days.

The letter, dated Saturday 16th January, was leaked to the Health Service Journal. Talks between the BMA and the Government will resume on 27 January, after discussions this week facilitated by Acas mediators failed to reach a resolution to the long-running dispute, which has already led to industrial action. Another strike, which would see junior doctors walk out of all services, including emergency care, is still scheduled to take place in February.

Under the Governments original contract proposals, unsocial hours which attract additional payments, previously defined as hours outside 7am  7pm Monday to Friday, would have been cut back to all hours outside 7am  10pm, Monday to Saturday.

Plain time  the hours which attract no extra payments  would have increased from 60 hours a week to 90 hours  threatening a big pay cut for many junior doctors.

The Government later offered to begin paying out-of-hours rates at 7pm on Saturday. In their latest offer, revealed in the leaked letter, they propose a further retreat to 5pm on Saturdays, and 9pm on weekdays.

The new contract includes an 11 per cent increase in basic pay to compensate doctors for cuts to their out-of-hours income, but doctors fear many of them will still be worse off  particularly in their take-home pay, because out-of-hours payments are not subject to pension contributions, whereas basic pay is.

Dr Johann Malawana, chair of the BMAs junior doctor committee, said that there were still differences on key areas.

Alongside the pay dispute, the BMA are fighting to restore rules which see hospitals forced to pay junior doctors high premiums if they work beyond their contracted hours. Doctors say these have been the only successful protections against doctors working too many hours each week and suffering burnout, and believe that alternative safeguards proposed by the Government will be toothless.

Danny Mortimer, chief executive of NHS Employers, said he was hugely disappointed that the letter had been leaked.

We continue to have detailed and constructive discussions with the BMA, he added.

A Department of Health spokesperson said: Talks are ongoing between representatives from the British Medical Association, NHS Employers and the Department of Health, and, as agreed with Acas, we will not be commenting on the details of these talks. We are committed to creating a contract that is fair for doctors and delivers safe care for patients seven days a week.
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Police have seized a consignment of poppers during a blitz of legal high retailers conducted as the Governments Psychoactive Substances Bill moves towards becoming law.

The legal drugs were taken by Trading Standards officials and officers from West Midlands Police who visited dozens of premises across their force area.

The day of action, described as an intelligence gathering operation by police, comes as MPs voted to approve the Governments blanket ban on legal highs at its third reading in Parliament.

The new law, which does not specify bans in particular substances but will give the police powers to seize anything they believe to be a legal high, is close to becoming law.

Amendments to the Bill will now be considered by the House of Lords.

The proposed has been criticised by some MPs and the Governments own scientific advisors for banning Poppers, practically harmless and play a significant role in mainstream male gay culture.

Tory MP Crispin Blunt described the ban as manifestly stupid and said he sometimes used Poppers himself. A Conservative Home Office minister, Mike Penning, has written to MPs to say the substance could be un-banned later pending a review of evidence.

It is already illegal to sell poppers for human consumption but the ban will give police powers to forcibly remove them whatever the circumstances. They are currently sold are odourisers to get around existing rules.

World's 10 deadliest street drugs Show all 10 1 /10 World's 10 deadliest street drugs World's 10 deadliest street drugs Whoonga Whoonga is a combination of antiretroviral drugs, used to treat HIV, and various cutting agents such as detergents and poisons. The drug is widely available in South Africa due to South Africas high rate of HIV sufferers, and is believed to be popular due to how cheap it is when compared to prescribed antiretrovirals. The drug is highly addictive and can cause major health issues such as internal bleeding, stomach ulcers and ultimately death Getty World's 10 deadliest street drugs Scopolamine Scopolamine is a derivative from the nightshade plant found in the Northern Indian region of South America (Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela). It is generally found in a refined powder form, but can also be found as a tea. The drug is more often used by criminals due its high toxicity level (one gram is believed to be able to kill up to 20 people) making it a strong poison. However, it is also believed that the drug is blown into the faces of unexpecting victims, later causing them to lose all sense of self-control and becoming incapable of forming memories during the time they are under the influence of the drug. This tactic has reportedly been used by gangs in Colombia where there have been reports of people using scopolamine as way to convince victims to rob their own homes World's 10 deadliest street drugs Heroin Founded in 1874 by C. R. Alder Wright, heroin is one of the worlds oldest drugs. Originally it was prescribed as a strong painkiller used to treat chronic pain and physical trauma. However in 1971 it was made illegal under the Misuse of Drugs Act. Since then it has become one of the most destructive substances in the world, tearing apart communities and destroying families. The side effects of heroin include inflammation of the gums, cold sweats, a weak immune system, muscular weakness and insomnia. It can also damage blood vessels which can later cause gangrene if left untreated World's 10 deadliest street drugs Crack cocaine Crack cocaine first came about in the 1980s when cocaine became a widespread commodity within the drug trafficking world. Originally cocaine would have attracted a high price tag due to its rarity and difficulty to produce, but once it became more widespread the price dropped significantly. This resulted in drug dealers forming their cocaine into rock like shapes by using baking soda as a way of distilling the powder down into rock form. People were doing this because it allowed for them to sell cocaine at a lower quantity and to a higher number of people. The side effects of crack cocaine include liver, kidney and lung damage, as well as permanent damage to blood vessels, which can often lead to heart attacks, strokes, and ultimately death World's 10 deadliest street drugs Crystal meth Not just famous because of a certain Walter H White, but also because it is one of the most destructive drugs in the world. First developed in 1887, it became widely used during the Second World War when both sides would give it to their troops to keep them awake. It is also believed that the Japanese gave it to their Kamikaze pilots before their suicide missions. After the war crystal meth was prescribed as a diet aid and remained legal until the 1970s. Since then it has fallen into the hands of Mexican gangs and has become a worldwide phenomenon, spreading throughout Europe and Asia. The effects of crystal meth are devastating. In the short-term users will become sleep depraved and anxious, and in the long-term it will cause their flesh to sink, as well as brain damage and damage of the blood vessels World's 10 deadliest street drugs AH-7921 AH-7921 is a synthetic opioid that was previously available to legally purchase online from vendors until it became a Class A in January 2015. The drug is believed to have 80% of the potency of morphine, and became known as the legal heroin. While there has only been one death related to AH-7921 in the UK, it is believed to be highly dangerous and capable of causing respiratory arrest and gangrene World's 10 deadliest street drugs Flakka Flakka is a stimulant with a similar chemical make-up to the amphetamine-like drug found in bath salts. While the drug was originally marketed as a legal high alternative to ecstasy, the effects are significantly different. The user will feel an elevated heart rate, enhanced emotions, and, if enough is digested, strong hallucinations. The drug can cause permanent psychological damage due to it affecting the mood regulating neurons that keep the minds serotonin and dopamine in check, as well as possibly causing heart failure World's 10 deadliest street drugs Bath salts Bath salts are a synthetic crystalline drug that is prevalent in the US. While they may sound harmless, they certainly arent the sort of salts you drop into a warm bath when having a relaxing night in, they are most similar to mephedrone, and have recently been featured throughout social media due to the zombification of its. The name comes from the fact that the drug was originally sold online, and widely disguised as bath salts. The side effects include unusual psychiatric behaviour, psychosis, panic attacks and violent behaviour, as well as the possibility of a heart attack and an elevated body temperature World's 10 deadliest street drugs Purple Drank One of the more unusual drugs around at the moment, purple drank was popularised in 90s hip hop culture, with the likes of Jay Z and Big Moe all mentioning it in their songs. It is a concoction of soda water, sweets and cold medicine, and is drunk due to cold medicines high codeine content, which gives the user a woozy feeling. However it can also cause respiratory issues and heart failure World's 10 deadliest street drugs Krokodil Krokodil is Russias secret addiction. It is believed that over one million Russians are addicted to the drug. Users of krokodil are attracted to the drug due to its low price; it is sold at 20 a gram while heroin is sold for 60. However, krokodil is considered more dangerous than heroin because it is often homemade, with ingredients including painkillers, iodine, lighter fluid and industrial cleaning agents. This chemical make-up makes the drug highly dangerous and likely to cause gangrene, and eventually rotting of the flesh

Officers removed the Poppers for sale from an e-cigarette shop in Birmingham. The owner of the shop told local newspaper the Express and Star that he had voluntarily given the substances to offers ahead of the ban and would not sell them again.

Trading Standards officers and police however notified all shops they visited selling the items that they would return once the ban was in place and take the items using the full force of the law.

Similar raids have taken place across the country in recent months. In July Greater Manchester Police visited over 100 retailers in a series of raids where legal products were confiscated for alleged breaches of trading standards.

West Midlands Police chief inspector Simon Inglis said: Today will be also be a significant intelligence gathering opportunity in order that we can support our further message that once the legislation changes - well be back.

Any person still offering these products for sale will face the full force of the law.

Both the Home Affairs Select Committee and the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs have told the Government that Poppers should be exempt from the ban, however.
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A Conservative MP has pulled out of a BBC interview after she was told she could not veto the questions she would be asked, the broadcaster has reported.

Lucy Allan, the MP for Telford, told BBC Shropshire that she wanted to be sure that malicious false allegations made by 'aliases' were not repeated as if fact on a mainstream serious political programme.

She later denied the accusations, posting on Twitter: I never asked to veto questions - this is getting pretty nasty. I wonder who made that slur up. She added that she was hoping for an apology from the broadcaster.

The interview was due to take place on the BBC Politics Show on Friday, the corporation said.

Ms Allan has been at the centre of a number of controversies in the months since her election in 2015.

She was widely criticised for adding the words unless you die to a message she received from a constituent criticising her for voting for intervention in Syria  before posting it online.

She said she had received the added portion of the message from another constituent and had simply combined the two messages. Critics accused her of faking a death threat, however.

In the weeks following this incident, multiple former Conservative activists and staffers who worked with Ms Allan also accused her of bullying. Angry voicemail messages the MP had left on their phones were leaked to the press and met with criticism.

Ms Allan says local Labour councillors in Telford are orchestrating a negative campaign against her since she won the seat. The councillors named by the MP have denied the allegations.

Telfords constituency has been represented by Labour since its creation on its current boundaries but was narrowly won by Ms Allan in 2015 by fewer than 1,000 votes.

Prior to her election Ms Allan served as a councillor in Wandsworth, in London, and lobbied for improvements to the UK child protection system.
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Thousands of Kenyans are donating money to the family of a Muslim school teacher who died after protecting Christians from a terrorist attack.

Salah Farah has become a national hero after helping prevent another massacre by al-Qaeda allied gunman from al-Shabaab.

He was among a group of Muslims who refused to be separated from Christian passengers when the gang ordered them off a bus in Mandera last month.

Knowing that the Christians would be massacred as soon as they were identified in a horrific pattern repeated in many recent attacks, he told the gunmen to kill everyone or leave.

The Islamists let the bus go but not before killing two passengers and injuring three others, including Mr Farah.

He died of complications to his injuries in hospital on Sunday, leaving four children and his pregnant widow.

Recommended Read more Muslim man dies after protecting Christians from terror attack

As news of his death continued to spread on Thursday, a social media campaign started using the hashtag #HeroSalah to raise money for his family.

It appears to have been started by Abdullahi Derow, who has been recording the incredible response on Twitter.

May Allah bless you, he wrote. This kind of compassion is a great sign that humanity exists.

By Friday afternoon, KSH 100,000 (683) had been raised and donations continued to pour in as people continued to urge support on Twitter.

Joseph Boinnet, head of Kenyas national police, had called Mr Farah a true hero, saying he had given his life to protect fellow Kenyans from terrorists.

At the time, Mr Farah told the Daily Nation that gunmen stopped the bus and ordered Christians and Muslims to separate.

We asked them to kill all of us or leave us alone, the teacher and deputy headmaster said.

As we argued, they shot me and the boy. One man who also came out of the bus and tried to escape to the bush was shot.

Speaking to the Voice of America earlier this month, he said he wanted people to live peacefully together.

We are brothers, Mr Farah added. It's only the religion that is the difference, so I ask my brother Muslims to take care of the Christians so that the Christians also take care of usand let us help one another.

Al-Shabaab has also been launching attacks in Somalia, where at least 20 people were massacred on a beach on Thursday

Just a year before, al-Shabaab stopped another bus in Mandera in 2014, divided passengers by religion, and shot the 28 non-Muslims dead.

The Somalia-based terrorist group has launched several attacks in Kenya including the massacres at the Westgate shopping mall and Garissa University College.

Militants claim they are carrying out reprisals for Kenyan military intervention in Somalia and exploiting historical grievances between Muslim and Christian communities

Last week al-Shabaab attacked a camp for Kenyan peacekeepers in south-western Somalia, killing an unknown number of Kenyan soldiers and the group has claimed responsibility for massacring at least 20 people on Mogadishus Lido beach on Thursday.

Additional reporting by AP
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The US north east is bracing itself of a snow storm, the size of which not have been equalled for a century and which officials say has life-and-death implications.

The National Weather Service has said the storm had the potential to bring a large swath of the region to halt, and dump as much as 30 inches of snow in places such as Washington DC and Baltimore. Philadelphia and New York are also in the path of the blizzard, which has been named Jonas by the US media.

On Friday afternoon, the first of many flakes began to fall in the nations capital, which is expected to be buried by several feet of snow, and where the blizzard's power could equal that of the 1922 Knickerbocker storm, which inundated the city under 28 inches. In Chicago, a United Airlines plane slipped off the runway at O'Hare Airport.

The Weather Channel said more than 85m people in at least 20 states were covered by either a blizzard warning, winter storm watch, winter storm warning, winter weather advisory, or freezing rain advisory.

On Friday morning, officials in Washington issued a blunt warning to residents, telling them to get off the roads, go home and stay safe. They had already seen the snow strike North Carolina, Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky.

I want to be very clear with everybody. This is a major storm, Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said, according to the Associated Press.

This has life-and-death implications and all the residents of the District of Columbia should treat it that way.

AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said the storm could bring Washington one of its biggest snowfalls on record, eclipsing the so-called Snowmageddon storm of 2010 that dropped 17.8 inches.

Experts have said the storm to hit the capital between 1pm and 3pm on Friday and last until late on Saturday, bringing up to 2 to 2.5 feet over 36 hours and 40mph winds.

Earlier on Friday in the Washington area, home to about six million people, residents scrambled to prepare, picking stores clean of bottled water, food and other supplies.

I have nine cases of wine, half and half and coffee, firewood and all my devices are charged. All I need now is a wing and a prayer, said Liz Scherer, 54, who works out of her home in the Washington suburb of Silver Spring, Maryland.

The mayor of Washington has said the storm has life or death implications (AP)

Federal employees in the Washington area were told their offices would close at noon on Friday to allow them to get home before the snow began piling up.

City officials said everyone except emergency workers should stay off the streets.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which includes the second-busiest US subway system, took the rare step of suspending operations from late on Friday until Sunday.

Airlines canceled more than 5,000 flights for Friday and Saturday, most of them at airports in North Carolina and Washington, according to FlightAware.com. Philadelphias airport said it would cancel all flights scheduled for Saturday. A United Airlines plane slipped off the runway
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Four people have been killed in a shooting incident at a school in a remote community in northern Canada.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau initially said five died in the shootings but police later corrected that to four.

The school in La Loche in northern Saskatchewan had said it was under lockdown and dealing an emergency situation amid reports of an active shooter. The alleged perpetrator was in custody, Mr Trudeau said, adding that this was "every parent's worst nightmare".

The chief of a native Saskatchewan community told the Saskatoon Phoenix newspaper that the town - located six hours north of Saskatoon - was reeling from the event.

The community usually pulls together really strong in times like this. Right now, La Loche is devastated, said Clearwater River Dene Nation Chief Teddy Clark on Friday.

Both Clearwater and La Loche, a lot of people are in shock. This is something that you only see on TV most of the time.

Acting Mayor Kevin Janvier said that Royal Canadian Mounted Police had confirmed to him that one person was in custody but that he did not know anything about the suspect. According to The Canadian Press, the communitys fire chief said a boy with a gun was in custody.

Its just tragic and everybodys running around, said Mr Janvier. Im not 100 per cent sure about whats actually happened but it started at home and ended at the school.

CTV News quoted an official from the Northern Lights School Division had earlier said the shooting had taken place in the schools Dene building.

Ken Ladouceur, the divisions director of education, said he received a call from the principal of La Loche Community School shortly after 1pm.

Meanwhile, the communitys fire chief was quoted as saying a boy with a gun was in custody.

The Dene building holds students from Grades 7 to 12.

The school said on its Facebook page that it is still in lockdown and would remain so until RCMP resolve the matter.

Canadian Broadcast Corporation reporter Devin Heroux said on Twitter that he spoken to a student, Noel Desjarlais, who had been in the school at the time of the shooting.

Desjarlais says there was a lot of screaming He heard six of seven shots before he got out of the school, he wrote.

Premier Brad Wall said: Words cannot express my shock and sorrow at the horrific events today in La Loche.
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A man has been arrested for forcing his wife to walk naked down a street after physically abusing her in front of their newborn daughter.

Jason Melo has been charged with assault, menacing behaviour and endangering the welfare of a child after filming the misogynistic treatment on a New York street, according to the New York Post.

The footage sparked outrage in the city and has drawn the attention of Chirlane McCray, the first lady of New York City.

The 22-year-old wife of Melo has testified that he choked and punched her in front of their daughter, before telling her to walk on the street in only a towel on threat of further abuse.

Melo is shown pulling off his partner's towel in an effort to humiliate her in public (YouTube)

A video, which emerged as Melo was being held ahead of his arraignment, shows him pulling of her towel on the street while he accuses her of texting other men.

"Take off your towel. You're going to pay the price like a w****. Since you're a w****, pose like a w****," he says on the video.

His wife, with whom he has a three-month-old daughter, then asks for the towel back as she tries to hide between cars and cover herself with a motorcycle cover.

Chirlane McCray, the wife of New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, said the city would not tolerate this kind of abuse.

"We are steadfast in our efforts to make sure all victims of abuse are aware of the many resources available as we strive to make New York City's public and private spaces safe for all women and girls," she said in a press statement.

Melo has since uploaded a number of videos to his Instagram page asking for forgiveness and claiming to wish he could undo his actions.

"I did not want this. I did not think this would get to this point," Melo said in Spanish, according to CNN. "Maybe I did make a mistake, to do what I did, from the beginning to take her out naked."

"I take the fault. I have asked forgiveness from her, too, but I want everyone to know that I am not as bad as everyone thinks."

A woman is beaten or assaulted every nine seconds in the US, according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

In the UK, domestic violence against women remains high even as other types of violent crime continue to fall.

Melo appeared in Manhattan Criminal Court on Thursday and was charged with assault in the third degree, menacing in the second degree, and endangering the welfare of a child.
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A 17-year-old schoolgirl was allegedly forced her to kneel down by her headmaster so he could measure her dress.

Amanda Durbin, a student at Edmonson County High School in Kentucky, chose to wear a red and black jumper dress, measuring five inches above the knee, with leggings to classes last week, WBKO reports.

She was called to the headmasters office after the dress was thought to be too revealing where, Miss Durbin claims, she was told to kneel on the ground so her headmaster could measure how far her dress fell from the floor.

The student admitted she was uncomfortable kneeling in front of Principal Tommy Hodges and requested her parents to be present.

Ms Durbin said it took her parents two hours to arrive at the school, during which time she was allegedly prohibited from attending lessons.

Edmonson County High School in Kentucky WBKO (WBKO)

I didnt really appreciate having to get down on my knees, especially while I was in a dress, she told BuzzFeed News. It did make me feel a little embarrassed, a little insecure.

Miss Durbins dress was initially measured at five inches  within the school code  however, when asked to walk across the room with her hands in the air and then be measured again, the dress fell at eight inches, and she was asked to go home.

Mr Hodges told WBKO everyone was aware of the schools dress code, and many boys have been cited for ripped jeans.

If the gap between the floor and the garment is more than six inches its out of dress code, he told the station, adding that parents agree on and sign off the dress code at the beginning of the school year.

Miss Durbin said wearing the dress was a mature protest over what she felt was an unfair dress code at the school.

It was kind of a protest, but it was a mature protest, she told Buzzfeed.

Miss Durbin said she has received some disapproval from her classmates for speaking out about the incident, but says she is proud of herself for protesting.

Im hoping other girls will realise that youre not some object, she said.
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There are status quo elections. There are watershed elections. And then theres the US election of 2016 which defies all categorisation. A Manhattan property tycoon-cum-reality TV star may become the most powerful man in the world; an avowed socialist could take charge in the spiritual home of capitalism. Americans might witness the first truly open nominating convention in 40 years, possibly even the break-up of a once great political party. And 2016 could produce  how banal the thought now seems  the countrys first female president.

So what is going on? The formal calendar is the familiar one, starting in nine days time, when voters in the state of Iowa, small, white, rural and as unrepresentative as they come, take part in the caucuses that kick off election year. Then come votes in New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada, followed by an accelerating cascade of primaries. July brings the conventions. And finally the big day, 8 November, when America will choose its 45th president, a routine 18 months or so since the first candidacy was declared. But normality ends with the calendar  for the Republican party at least.

Democrats have not been immune to the turmoil, but their contest thus far follows a familiar pattern. Not for the first time, an establishment candidate  in this case Hillary Clinton  is under challenge from the left, in the person of Bernie Sanders. Sometimes the insurgent even wins the nomination, as did George McGovern in the Vietnam-tormented year of 1972.

And this years race is now far closer than the perfunctory coronation of Clinton which seemed likely even two months ago. Sanders might well prevail in Iowa and New Hampshire. More often than not however, the insurgent ultimately loses, and that is the expectation this time.

The Republican battle however is in completely uncharted territory. The ordinary voter has risen in mutiny. The Republican elite, of Congressional grandees, rich donors, and national and state party bosses, has utterly lost control of events. The direction of the party, even its very existence, are in question.

So how on earth did it come to this? The answer, at one level, is perfectly simple. The tumult is the political equivalent of the perfect alignment of meteorological forces behind the mammoth snowstorm forecast to engulf the East Coast this weekend. Unlike the snowstorm, however, the Republican crisis has been years in the making.

The partys voters are in revolt against a system and an establishment that have betrayed them. The seeds of the crisis are contained in the gerrymandering of Congressional districts (indulged in, it should be said, by both parties), as a result of which 90 per cent of seats in the House of Representatives, the Republicans power base in Washington, are safe.

Thus the real danger to most Republican incumbents is a primary challenge from the right. That threat has in turn pushed the partys contingent on Capitol Hill to the right. Hence polarisation, and the disappearance of moderates ready to compromise  the only way to get things done in a political system built upon checks and balances.

But the party establishment continued to peddle the fallacy that, even when a Democrat occupied the White House, a Republican majority could create a conservative brave new world of shrunken government, rid of Obamacare, and where illegal immigrants were sent packing. Finally voters have seen through the con, and they are furious.

Then there is the money problem. Blue collar and middle class Americans who vote Republican have woken up to the fact that, as the old joke runs, the American political system is the best that money can buy. And not only is it borderline corrupt. Congress seems to respond not to the needs of the people, but to the interests of those of the corporations and lobbying groups who finance the campaigns of its members. Small wonder Washington is the dirtiest word in the political lexicon, or that Congress is less popular than Communism and colonoscopies.

And into this poisonous brew stir a third ingredient. American elections are usually festivals of hope and optimism. But for Republicans, fear rules: fear of immigrants; fear of terrorism; fear of lost jobs and economic decline; fear, to put it in a nutshell, that America is going down the tubes. Combine all these elements, and what do you get? Donald Trump.

When Trump threw his hat into the ring last June, it seemed merely a vanity candidacy, a short-lived and narcissistic PR exercise that would keep his name, and business interests, in the lights. Instead, he has dominated the campaign, his lead in polls increasing. His showmanship and propensity for speaking the unspeakable earned him free media coverage his rivals would die for. And as the campaign has worn on, he has improved as a campaigner.

Donald Trump's most controversial quotes Show all 14 1 /14 Donald Trump's most controversial quotes Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Isis: "Some of the candidates, they went in and didnt know the air conditioner didnt work and sweated like dogs, and they didnt know the room was too big because they didnt have anybody there. How are they going to beat ISIS?" Getty Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On immigration: "I will build a great wall  and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me and Ill build them very inexpensively. I will build a great, great wall on our southern border, and I will make Mexico pay for that wall. Mark my words." Reuters Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Free Trade: "Free trade is terrible. Free trade can be wonderful if you have smart people. But we have stupid people." PAUL J. RICHARDS | AFP | Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Mexicans: "When Mexico sends its people, theyre not sending their best. Theyre sending people that have lots of problems. Theyre bringing drugs. Theyre bringing crime. Theyre rapists." Getty Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On China: "I just sold an apartment for $15 million to somebody from China. Am I supposed to dislike them?... I love China. The biggest bank in the world is from China. You know where their United States headquarters is located? In this building, in Trump Tower." Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On work: "If you're interested in 'balancing' work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable." AP Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On success: "What separates the winners from the losers is how a person reacts to each new twist of fate." Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On life: "Everything in life is luck." AFP Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On ambition: "You have to think anyway, so why not think big?" Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On his opponents: "Bush is totally in favour of Common Core. I don't see how he can possibly get the nomination. He's weak on immigration. He's in favour of Common Core. How the hell can you vote for this guy? You just can't do it." Reuters Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Obamacare: "You have to be hit by a tractor, literally, a tractor, to use it, because the deductibles are so high. It's virtually useless. And remember the $5 billion web site?... I have so many web sites, I have them all over the place. I hire people, they do a web site. It costs me $3." Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Barack Obama: "Obama is going to be out playing golf. He might be on one of my courses. I would invite him. I have the best courses in the world. I have one right next to the White House." PA Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On himself: "Love him or hate him, Trump is a man who is certain about what he wants and sets out to get it, no holds barred. Women find his power almost as much of a turn-on as his money." Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On America: "The American Dream is dead. But if I get elected president I will bring it back bigger and better and stronger than ever before and we will make America great again." GETTY

Most important, hes struck a chord. Not just because he understands the belief of white Republican voters that they, the self-perceived salt of the American earth, were being marginalised and forgotten  lost in an ever more multicultural country, where the super-rich and upstart minorities were the priorities. The man who articulated their concerns was moreover someone who had flourished mightily under the system. If he railed at the status quo, he really must have a point.

In doing so, Trump tore up the rule book. After the needlessly protracted, dog-eat-dog Republican primary battle of 2012 that badly wounded the ultimate nominee Mitt Romney, the party changed its primary rules in the hope of securing an early nominee. Instead theyve secured a shambles.

A plethora of worthy candidates entered the race. Yet if an early nominee is to emerge, that person, as matters now stand, is likely to be either the non-politician Trump or his closest rival, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, saboteur of the establishment from within. A bewildered Republican hierarchy still doesnt know what to make of Trump. But it knows exactly what it thinks of Cruz. It loathes him.

If neither wins, an open convention is a possibility, a recipe for chaos whose only beneficiaries would be the Democrats. The last time this happened was in 1976, when neither President Gerald Ford nor his ultimately unsuccessful challenger Ronald Reagan had a majority of delegates. Back then such events were called brokered conventions. These days though, the Republican establishment is in no condition to broker anything.

Republican Party chiefs still dont know what to make of Trump. But they loathe Cruz

In an ordinary year, candidates who were or are state governors would be the ones to benefit, untainted by Washington and boasting genuine executive experience. But it hasnt happened. Any one of the three governors running  John Kasich of Ohio, Chris Christie of New Jersey and Jeb Bush, formerly of Florida  would make a plausible president. But even if you throw in Marco Rubio, a senator but also an establishment candidate, the four command a combined 30 per cent support in national polls. The wrecking brigade of Trump, Cruz, and the retired neuro-surgeon Ben Carson (who like Trump has never spent a day in elective office in his life) have 60-odd per cent.

For Democrats the standard rules still apply, just. If Clinton, however uninspiring as a candidate, is favourite, that is because voters are expected to reward her experience, her command of the issues, her manifest competence. Not so the Republicans.

Policies dont extend beyond blood-curdling sound bites or personal insults. Orthodoxy is out of the window, actual political experience is a disqualification. The ruder Trump is, the more popular he becomes. The supposed lesson of Romneys defeat in 2012, elaborated in various official post-mortems, was that the party had to be nicer to immigrants, minorities and women, all constituencies where Democrats dominate.

Instead, the opposite is happening. Trump has gone furthest of course, with his call for a ban on all Muslim immigrants, but despite some dutiful harrumphing, most of the other candidates are following in his slipstream (the most honourable exception being Jeb Bush).

Money and those evil Super-PACs dont seem to matter much either. Bush raised over $100m (70m) before even declaring his candidacy, and much good its done him. Billionaires like the Koch brothers and Sheldon Adelson, the Las Vegas casino magnate, were supposed to be the puppetmasters of the 2016 election. But Charles and David Koch, who planned to pour $900m into the campaign, have publicly bemoaned their lack of influence on proceedings. The Trump operation is basically self-financed, while on the Democratic side, Sanders is breaking all records for small donations.

In a sense, Trump is nothing new. Back in the 1850s, the Know-Nothing Party in the US railed at Irish immigration. In Europe today, populist parties from Ukip to Frances Front National, Austrias Freedom Party and a host of others have set a course that Trump is following, all of them right-wing middle and working class movements, feeding off fear and disillusion with an established political order which has let them down.

Trump has given the process a dash of American swagger, but his message is the same. We got $18trn in debt. We got nothing but problems We have losers. We have people that dont have it. We have people that are morally corrupt. We have people that are selling this country down the drain The American dream is dead. And the message appeals not only to Republicans, but an entire stratum of the population.

Indeed, Sanders and Trump have not a little in common. Take the formers outburst in his last debate with Clinton. Raising the minimum wage to 15 bucks an hour. The American people want it, Sanders declared. Rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure, creating 13 million jobs, the American people want it. Demanding that the wealthy start paying their fair share of taxes. The American people want it. The real issue is that Congress is owned by big money and refuses to do what the American people want them to do.

To much of that, one suspects, Trump would say, amen. Indeed, he makes Sanders point, only from a different perspective. He has money, and thus is independent of it. He knows the venality of the system from the inside, as the political donor who expects something for his money.

And this overlap of extremes helps explain why campaign 2016 is so exhilarating. The consultants and the pundits no longer have the answers. For once, a campaign is being run by the voters. Long taboo questions are front and foremost: the role of money, the need for wholesale reform of the political system, what people really think about immigrants, the merits of a single-payer health care system, and a host of others.

How will it all end? No one has a clue. Maybe the Republican party will heal its divisions, as it did after Barry Goldwaters landslide loss in 1964, paving the way to the glory years of Reagan. Maybe Trump and Cruz will self-destruct, as the establishment prays, a sensible candidate will emerge, and todays turmoil will be as ephemeral as a Washington snowstorm. But one suspects not.
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North Korea has said it has arrested a student from the United States on charges of committing a hostile attack against the regime, according to reports.

The North's state-run KCNA news agency identified the detainee as Warmbier Otto Frederick from the University of Virginia. The state has sometimes listed English-language surnames first.

It said he entered North Korea as a tourist and was "was caught committing a hostile act against the state," which it said was "tolerated and manipulated by the U.S. government". An official at the US embassy in Seoul, the South Korean capital, said it was aware of the reported arrest.

The Korean-language KCNA report said the detainee was a Virginia university student and had entered the country with an "aim to destroy the country's unity". It did not elaborate.

There are now three westerns citizens known to be held by the isolated state.

Earlier this month a man claiming to be an American citizen told CNN that he was being held by Kim Jong-uns regime on charges of spying for South Korea. The man, identified as Kim Dong-chul, was escorted to a hotel the capital Pyongyang to be interviewed by a CNN reporter.

The US State Department, at the time, said it would not confirm the CNN report and declined to discuss the issue further or confirm whether the US was consulting Sweden  which handles US consular issues with the North Korea as there are no diplomatic relations between Washington and Pyongyang.

Additional reporting by wires


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The US student being held by North Korea amid accusations he committed a "hostile act against the state was travelling with a group of young people who were out drinking vodka until 5am the night before, according to a man who was due to be on the same flight.

Darragh, an Irish national who has asked for his surname not to be published, told the Independent he had spoken to people on the plane who had travelled with the 2l-year-old man identified by North Korea as Otto Warmbier during his trip to the hermit kingdom.

We were all talking about that and how it was quite strange that you would choose to go to North Korea on your first trip out of your home country, he said.

I dont know if its connected at all but my tour group that I was with were a lot older. But the other tour group [the Young Pioneers] were really young. Between 18 and 25. They were up until four or five in the morning drinking vodka and having fun basically. We had to be up at 7am for the actual flight. I dont know whether theres any connection there  that he may have just said something if he was hungover or if he did something stupid while he was drunk the night before

According to Darragh, Mr Frederick  a 21-year-old Virginia student - was yelled at by armed officials at Pyongyang airport terminal before being dragged away:

"We were told there were only 100 tourists in the country at the time and there were 100 people on my flight, he said. When we were leaving one of the other tour groups [the Young Pioneers] tour leader said were missing Otto.

I always remember Otto because its such a German or an Austrian name she [the tour leader] got up and was really frantically running up and down the plane. She ran to the air hostess and was trying to say to the air hostess that were missing Otto. She then went up to business class and he wasnt there.

The 25-year-old added: The tour operator eventually got through to Otto on the phone. He said to her that he didnt want to leave and had a headache and that he wanted to go to hospital. She preferred him to get on the plane and go to a hospital in China.He hung up the phone and that was the last they heard of him. There was a frantic search when they landed in China.

There was another person sitting next to me on the plane. This person said he [Otto] had said something to the guard. At the gate for the plane there was a woman collecting tickets and an armed soldier. According to the person next to me he [Otto] said something to the soldier and then the soldier started yelling at him and dragged him off.

We dont know what he said but he kept telling his tour leader  she was sitting right behind me  that he had a headache and needed to go the hospital.

Darragh approached the Independent after the North's state-run KCNA news agency identified a student it has recently arrested as Warmbier Otto Frederick from the University of Virginia. The state sometimes lists English-language surnames first.

It said he entered North Korea as a tourist and was "was caught committing a hostile act against the state," which it said was "tolerated and manipulated by the U.S. government". An official at the US embassy in Seoul, the South Korean capital, said it was aware of the reported arrest.

The Korean-language KCNA report said the detainee was a Virginia university student and had entered the country with an "aim to destroy the country's unity". It did not elaborate.

Darragh in the North Korean capital

We were told constantly that the smallest thing was considered a hostile attack: I bought lots of magazines and books there and we were told not to fold them in a way that creased Kim Jong-uns face. They said that would be an attack on their country.

There were four or five rows of people who were aware that something was happening and everyone was really nervous. Wed had a really good trip. I actually forgot that I was in country like thatso this all brought it back home.

A few thousand Westerners are thought to visit North Korea each year, and Pyongyang is pushing for more tourists as a way to help its dismal economy. The U.S. State Department has warned against travel to the North, however, and visitors, especially those from America, who break the country's sometimes murky rules risk detention, arrest and possible jail sentences, although most have eventually been released.
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A video of a wedding haka that moved a New Zealand bride to tears has been watched more than 19 million times since it was posted on Facebook.

Aaliya and Benjamin Armstrong married in Auckland last week and were blown away by a performance of the traditional Maori dance at their wedding reception by the groomsmen and guests.

So moved by the passionate display were the couple that they joined in themselves, with Mrs Armstrong left in tears after the performance.

The video ends with the couple hugging the dancers.

Awesome HAKA at a wedding reception. #ProudPolynesians Click on link for a better understaniding of the New Zealand Maori Haka: http://www.folksong.org.nz/tika_tonu/ Posted by I'm Proud to be Tongan on Wednesday, 20 January 2016

Westone Productions Limited

Mrs Armstrong told the BBC that the haka was a sign of respect from her husbands family.

I think the moment that got me was when one my friends, my bridesmaid, had jumped in. That's really one of the main reasons I jumped in, to show my love back to her.

She added: I felt the need to show love and respect back. I was really blown away.

Ben is a Maori, he is probably more Maori than I am.

Because he has fair skin, some people have been saying on social media that 'he'd better not hurt the bride', but they're actually his family.

Mr Armstrong said performing the Haka was his friends and family's way to show respect, support and love.

The newlyweds were taken by surprise again when a film of the dance posted on Facebook was watched millions of time.

(Westone Productions Limited)

Yesterday afternoon I left my phone alone for about five minutes and I had so many notifications, Mrs Armstrong said.

The haka is the traditional ancestral dance of the Maori people of New Zealand, originally performed by warriors before a battle.

Heartwarming news stories from around the world Show all 30 1 /30 Heartwarming news stories from around the world Heartwarming news stories from around the world A boy who saved the life of a suicidal man by simply asking him "Are you okay? has said he did it because he likes to help people who need help. Jamie Harrington, from Ballymun, Dublin, told the Humans of Dublin project about a meeting with a man in his 30s sitting on the edge of a bridge and about to jump off it. After sitting down and speaking to the stranger for 45 minutes, 16-year-old Jamie persuaded the man to go to hospital and seek treatment Heartwarming news stories from around the world This little boy loves books so much that he cries when his mother stops reading to him A good book can keep a child entertained for hours, but there aren't many that can actually make babies cry when they end. That's exactly what happened to one little boy, who looks completely engrossed while his mother reads him the book 'I Am a Bunny', a classic children's book about the pattern of the seasons. However, when the story ends and his mother closes the book, he immediately begins crying. The only thing that seems to placate him is opening the book at the beginning and reading the story again. It's heartening to see such a little child so completely in love with a book, but it must get a little wearing for his parents after a while Leesedanielle/YouTube Heartwarming news stories from around the world Tattoo with a hidden message highlights the invisible battle faced by people with depression A young woman has brought attention to the invisibility of depression - by getting a tattoo which sends out two opposing messages depending on how you look at it. The tattoo on her leg appears to say "I'm fine" when read by someone looking at her, but reveals its true secret to its wearer when she looks down at it, reading "Save me" instead. Bekah Miles, a 21-year-old US student who has struggled with depression for some years, got the inking on her leg to start a conversation about mental health and give voice to her experience Facebook/Bekah Miles Heartwarming news stories from around the world Teen goes to extraordinary lengths to give autistic twin the high school graduation to remember A teenager has earned herself an army of fans after she finally reached her goal to help her severely autistic twin brother across the stage at their high school graduation. Anders Bonville, 18, from Birmingham, Alabama, was diagnosed with autism when he was two, which left him non-verbal but  along with his sister, Aly  the pair developed their own unique language and set out to alter perceptions of the condition. Aly was called first on-stage to receive her diploma. With her brother being walked quietly behind a curtained area in his wheelchair to keep him calm, she quickly exited to get him before his name was called out. Aly zoomed down the hallway with her brother in his wheelchair so that he would be happy when the big moment came. Although the principal had ordered the audience to hold all applause until the end  the moment Aly took her brothers hand and led him across the stage  the entire hall rose to its feet and erupted into applause  including the principal herself Benida Pillitary Bonville via Facebook Heartwarming news stories from around the world 'Forrest Gump' completes 42 back-to-back marathons A man has completed 42 back-to-back marathons  while dressed as Forrest Gump. Ewan Gordon, 42, from Oxfordshire, copied the popular film character by growing out his hair and beard to complete the 1,050-mile challenge in memory of nine-year-old Thomas Laurie who died last year. Thomas suffered from Cockayne Syndrome  a rare premature ageing disease  which is known to affect just 100 youngsters in the UK. Mr Gordon, a civil servant, ran about 26 miles each day (42km)  the equivalent of a marathon a day  for 42 days, from John OGroats to Lands End. He said he was inspired to adopt the quirky persona following a bet when a friend said he would sponsor Mr Gordon more money for his charity run if he did @OxLightBlues/Twitter Heartwarming news stories from around the world Charity shop thanks 'true gent' who donated late wife's wedding dress with heartfelt message A charity shop in Leeds has tracked down the elderly man who donated his late wifes stunning 1950s wedding dress with a heartfelt note. St Gemmas Hospice, which runs a speciality bridal shop in Garforth, described the man as a true gent while appealing for help finding him on social media. The stunning vintage gown has a lace bodice and sleeves and full embroidered skirt. A note attached to it read: I wish any lady who takes this dress to have a life with her loved one 56 years like I did. Happy years. I was a lucky man to marry a lady like mine" St Gemma's Hospice Heartwarming news stories from around the world Blood donors in Sweden get a text message whenever their blood saves someone's life With blood donation rates in decline all over the developed world, Swedens blood service is enlisting new technology to help push back against shortages. One new initiative, where donors are sent automatic text messages telling them when their blood has actually been used, has caught the public eye. People who donate initially receive a 'thank you' text when they give blood, but they get another message when their blood makes it into somebody elses veins Getty Heartwarming news stories from around the world Guide dog jumps in front of oncoming bus to save blind owner When Figo the service dog saw an oncoming mini school bus heading for Audrey Stone, the blind woman he was trained to guide, the golden retriever's protective instincts kicked in: He threw himself at the closest part of the vehicle he could. Police photos show the result: fur stuck to the front driver's side wheel and in the middle of Michael Neuner Avenue in New York, where the bus came to a stop after striking the pair. The driver of the Brewster school bus, carrying two kindergartners to St. Lawrence O'Toole Childhood Learning Center, told police he didn't see the pair crossing the road as they made their way home at about 8:15 Monday morning. But Figo saw the bus coming and leapt into action AP Heartwarming news stories from around the world Florida boy grew his hair for two years and endured bullying to donate it to charity After more than two years growing his hair, a boy from Florida has donated his locks to charity, despite being bullied along the way. Christian McPhilamy, an eight-year-old from Florida, began growing his hair after seeing an advert about paediatric cancer and has now donated four locks, each measuring over 10 inches, to charity Facebook Heartwarming news stories from around the world A police officer who told a student his parents were killed surprised him at his graduation ceremony Kazzie Porties parents, Riley and Emily, were killed by a drunk driver. Eric Ellison, an officer at the Orange Police Department in Texas, broke the news to the couples five children and told the youngest hed be by his side during graduation Heartwarming news stories from around the world Cafe asks customer to leave after he tells breastfeeding mother to cover up An Australian cafe has been praised for sticking up for a breastfeeding mother after a customer told her to cover up. Jessica-Anne Allen, owner of Cheese and Biscuits Cafe in Queensland, Australia, has described how she was approached by a male customer in the cafe on Thursday to complain that he was upset by a woman in the coffee shop breastfeeding her child nearby. The customer asked the cafe owner, 29, to tell the mother to cover up. When Mrs Allen refused to do so, he took matters into his own hands and challenged the woman himself. Staff at the cafe then asked the man to leave Heartwarming news stories from around the world Dog with cancer completes bucket list When their dog was diagnosed with terminal cancer, Cocos owners put together a bucket list and made sure their hound experienced an exciting few weeks before she died. Before she was put down on 5 May, Coco: visited a beach; took a ride in a helicopter; went in a fire engine; ate a steak at the pub; and also had a Big Mac from a McDonalds Drive Thru, amongst other activities https://www.facebook.com/symon.spencer.9 Heartwarming news stories from around the world Elderly cancer patient who rang 911 because he had no food is inundated with donations from well-wishers An elderly cancer patient who called 911 because he was hungry and had no food is receiving donations from hundreds of people across America who were moved by his story. Clarence Blackmon was discharged from a private hospital in Fayetteville, in North Carolina, on Tuesday after spending months there for cancer treatment. The 81-year-old returned to his house without any supplies and anyone close by to call for help, leading him to call 911 in desperation and ask for food. An hour-and-a-half later, Marilyn Hinson, the operator who answered that call, arrived at his front door with police carrying bags full of food and made him some ham sandwiches Heartwarming news stories from around the world Son receives touching 30th birthday card from father who died in 1999 A son has revealed how he only just received a birthday card from his dad who died from cancer over a decade ago, with the father having the foresight to mark his children's milestone birthdays before passing away. It was inscribed with a simple 'Love ya - Dad', and was written such a long time ago that even the corny joke on the inside feels quite charmingly dated ChrisBenRoy Heartwarming news stories from around the world Chinese student carries disabled friend to school every day for three years so he doesn't miss class A teenager has been hailed as the most beautiful student in China after spending three years giving piggy-backs to his disabled friend so that he doesnt have to miss a class. The story of 18-year-old Xie Xu, who volunteered to look after his 19-year-old classmate Zhang Chi, has been shared widely on Chinese social media and received widespread local media coverage Heartwarming news stories from around the world Teenage Aldi worker Christian Trouesdale walkes an old man home A young man from Horwich in Greater Manchester has become an unexpected internet sensation after he was photographed walking a frail old man home from the supermarket. Aldi worker Christian Trouesdale, 18, said he had received a crazy reaction with messages of support flooding in from as far afield as Dubai, Canada, the US, Australia and New Zealand. The image of Mr Trouesdale hand-in-hand with a 96-year-old customer on the street outside the shop was first shared by nearby worker and Horwich resident Samantha-Jayne Brady, 23, who said it was a lovely thing to witness Samantha-Jayne Brady Heartwarming news stories from around the world 8-year-old survivor of abuse writes inspirational 'thank you' letter to social workers An eight-year-old girl who was abused as an infant has written a thank-you letter to social workers and detectives who helped to rescue her from a home where she had been left paralysed as a result of beatings. Marie Suprenant is not able to walk as a result of the injuries that she sustained before she was taken under the care of a foster parent. I want to thank you for making me happy by giving me a new warm and safe environment, she writes. Now I have a home that is nice and I have three nice meals a day Heartwarming news stories from around the world Woman praised for defending Muslim woman 'harassed on train for wearing a hijab' An Australian woman has been described as a hero for challenging a train passenger who was allegedly being abusive towards a Muslim woman sat in the same carriage. Stacey Eden claimed an older woman was accusing the unidentified Muslim woman and the man sat next to her of being an Isis supporter because she was wearing a hijab. Ms Eden, from Sydney, said the alleged tirade began "a good ten minutes" before she started filming the woman, later uploading the video on to her Facebook page. Footage from the alleged incident began as the unnamed passenger asked the woman, who was also sat with a pram on the opposite side of the train, "why do you wear it [a hijab] for a man that marries a six year-old girl?" The woman and the man remained silent, but Ms Eden responded: "She wears it for herself, OK? She wears it because she wants to be modest with her body, not because of people like you who are going to sit there and disrespect her" Heartwarming news stories from around the world Loving parents have got matching tattoos of their daughters huge red birthmark Honey-Rae Phillips was born with the large strawberry mark covering half her body. The Daily Mirror reports that Mum Tanya Phillips and dad Adam Philips, who are both from Grimsby, got the tattoos after people starting making comments about it in public. We wanted Honey-Rae to feel special, that her birthmark was something to feel proud of and not embarrassed by, Ms Phillips told the newspaper Heartwarming news stories from around the world James Robertson who walked 20 miles to work every day for nine years is gifted new car James Robertson  who was unable to afford a new car after his last one broke down nine years ago  was recently awarded more than $310,000 in donations by kind strangers who learned of his daily difficulties. Even though the money raised was meant for a new vehicle, a car dealership decided to give him a new one worth around $37,000 (around 24,000) for free in his preferred colour, red Reuters Heartwarming news stories from around the world Stranger gives Kindle to homeless man An anonymous do-gooder has shunned praise after he gave a homeless man his Kindle. The man from San Diego, California, was visiting Las Vegas last month, when he met a homeless man named Paul, who had read the same, worn book, each time he passed. The man said he had also been down on his luck in the past, and decided to give Paul his Kindle e-reader. A moving photo showing Paul with his Kindle has been viewed over 2 million times on Imgur Mjuad/Reddit Heartwarming news stories from around the world Attacked pensioner Alan Barnes crowdfund passes 200,000 in donations Pensioner Alan Barnes was mugged outside his home in Gateshead last week in an attack that left him with a broken collarbone and too scared to return to his own house. Katie Cutler, who lives nearby to Barnes, set up a crowdfunding page intending to raise 500 to help the disabled pensioner find a new home. Her efforts have led to more than 200,000 in donations being made Heartwarming news stories from around the world Man reunited with stolen dog during search for new pet Richard Brower was heartbroken after his dog, a German shepherd called Dozer, was stolen from the Yard of his Alberta home, and his endless searching proved fruitless. But he had no idea that when he started searching for a new German shepherd, he would experience the closest thing to a miracle in his life  the Claresholm Animal Rescue Society, unbeknownst to its organisers, had Dozer safe and well, and now hes back at home Global News Heartwarming news stories from around the world Bart the 'zombie cat' set to make full recovery following his unlikely return from the grave Bart, the Florida cat who was buried after his owner found him lifeless in a pool of blood after being hit by a car, is set to make a full recovery when he returned from the grave five days later. Upon his return owner Ellis Hutson took the cat for surgery to remove his eye and have his jaw re-wired, and Bart is expected to return home soon Reuters/Humane Society of Tampa Bay Heartwarming news stories from around the world Friendship Nine's civil rights-era convictions overturned by South Carolina court It is 54 years since the Friendship Nine walked into McCrorys in Rock Hill, South Carolina, and sat down at the whites-only lunch counter in a sit-in that inspired non-violent protests across the South that were an integral part to the civil rights movement. The nine were arrested and convicted of ignoring a segregation order and sent to jail for 30 days, but this week their convictions were finally overturned Reuters Heartwarming news stories from around the world 'Humans of New York' blog raises over $1 million for Brooklyn school Humans of New York, the photo blog that aims to capture daily glimpses into the lives of New York inhabitants, has raised over $1 million dollars for a school in one of the most-crime ridden parts of the city this week, all because of the story of 13-year-old Vidal. The money is for Vidals school to be able to make contributions towards its pupils college tuition and to fund trips for sixth-graders to tour Harvard University IndiGoGo/Humans of New York Heartwarming news stories from around the world Mystery man who gave heart-warming note to young mum on train to 'put a smile on her face' has been identified The stranger who handed a small piece of paper and a 5 note to a 23-year-old mother just to tell her what a great mum she is has been identified, after recipient Sammie Welch was so overwhelmed by his kindness she started a Facebook search just to be able to thank him. Ken Saunders, 50, said he just wanted to put a smile on Welchs face PA Heartwarming news stories from around the world Father calls out his daughters racist bullies in emotional video A father has taken to YouTube to shame bullies who bombarded his daughter with racist abuse on social media. Mr Knudsons daughter, from Prior Lake in the US state of Minnesota, was adopted and is of African American descent. He recounted how he approached the parents of the twin bullies only to be told that there was nothing wrong with the abuse. I have a beautiful African American daughter who I love more than life itself and would do anything for, he said in the video Heartwarming news stories from around the world This kid thought the postman should get post too It must be kind of lonely being a mailman, all this correspondence running through your hands every day but none of it addressed to you. It must be kind of lonely being a mailman, all this correspondence running through your hands every day but none of it addressed to you absofaluminium Heartwarming news stories from around the world Student raises thousands of pounds for homeless man who offered her 3 for a taxi Christmas is a traditionally a time for giving, particularly to the less fortunate members of society, but one homeless man was prepared to hand over everything he had. The man, named Robbie, offered a 22-year-old student 3 to help her get home safely after a night out - and now she is hoping to raise enough money to help him off the streets Rex

It is performed by a group and characterised by its vigorous movements, stamping of feet, and accompanying shouted chants.

Lewis Whaitiri, chairman of the London-based Maori Club, told the BBC that heloves in this day and age that we are still able to hold on to our customs and traditions.

He said that some people had a misconception that the Haka is simply a war dance and said that it is not unusual for it to be performed - as a means of celebration - even at funerals.

It's about celebrating life and overcoming adversities that you face. In that sense, you can adapt the Haka and perform it at weddings or graduations.

Asked why he thought the Haka was so loved, Mr Whaitiri said: I think it's because of the passion that lives within the Haka and the way it's delivered.

When you're doing the Haka the whole purpose of it is to get some sort of feeling in the person you are doing the Haka to, as well as yourself.

It's about moving people, that's what it is.
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The French government looks poised to extend emergency powers in the country, despite criticism from the UN that to do so would constitute excessive controls on human rights.

The Prime Minister, Mauel Valls, said that the state of emergency introduced in the aftermath of November's Paris attacks would be keep until a "total and global war" against Isis was complete.

Emergency measures were put in place on 13 November, the evening of the Paris attacks in which 130 people were killed.

They were initially tabled to last 12 days, however parliament subsequently extended the time period to last until 26 February amid security concerns.

Claude Bartolone, President of the National Assembly, told local media following a meeting with French premier Francois Hollande that he understands parliament will very likely be asked to extend the powers, The Local reports.

This week, the UN warned that the measures constituted excessive and disproportionate restrictions on fundamental human rights.

A joint statement issued by special rapporteurs on freedom of expression, opinion, assembly and privacy, warned: Ensuring adequate protection against abuse in the use of exceptional measures and surveillance measures in the context of the fight against terrorism is an international obligation of the French state.

In pictures: Paris attacks Show all 25 1 /25 In pictures: Paris attacks In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks French police with protective shields walk in line near the Bataclan concert hall Reuters In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Rescuers evacuate an injured person on Boulevard des Filles du Calvaire AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks French Vigipirate troops mobilize next to Place de la Bastille AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks French soldiers mobilize near to the Place de la Bastille AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Wounded people are evacuated outside the scene of a hostage situation at the Bataclan theatre EPA In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks People react as they gather to watch the scene near the Bataclan concert hall Reuters In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks French police secure the area outside a cafe near the Bataclan concert hall Reuters In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Rescuers workers evacuate victims near the Bataclan concert hall AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks French Prime Minister Manuel Valls and French President Francois Hollande attending an emergency meeting at the Interior Ministry AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Spectators invade the pitch of the Stade de France after explosions were heard outside AP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks A man lies on the ground as French police check his identity near the Bataclan concert hall Reuters In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Police officers man a position close to the Bataclan theatre AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Wounded people are evacuated from the Stade de France in Paris EPA In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Two men evacuate the Place de la Republique square in Paris as a police officer looks on AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Football fans are evacuated from the Stade de France stadium In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks An armed police officer Dan Gabriel In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks The Stade de France is evacuated after reports of an explosion In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks A member of the French fire brigade aids an injured individual near the Bataclan concert hall In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Wounded people are evacuated from the Stade de France in Paris In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Police are seen outside a cafe in 10th arrondissement of the French capital Paris, In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Rescuers assist an injured man on Boulevard des Filles du Calvaire, close to the Bataclan concert hall AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks The scene at a restaurant in 10th arrondissement In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks The Bataclan theatre - where around 100 people are thought be held hostage In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks The Stade de France as it was evacuated In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Forensic experts inspect the site of an attack outside the Stade de France stadium in Saint-Denis AFP

While exceptional measures may be required under exceptional circumstances, this does not relieve the authorities from demonstrating that these are applied solely for the purposes for which they were prescribed, and are directly related to the specific objective that inspired them, they said.

The laws give authorities the power to place under house arrest anyone deemed to be a security risk, dissolve groups which are deemed to be a threat to public order, conduct searches without warrants, copy data and block any websites which are assessed as encouraging terrorism.

The UN sad that the emergency laws have been used to put environmental activists under arrest and described the alleged arrests as not meeting the fundamental principles of necessity and proportionality.

130 people were killed and 368 people were injured in the attacks in the French capital on 13 November.

Isis has claimed responsibility for the attacks, citing French airstrikes in Syria and Iraq as provocation.

Under French law, the Assembly must vote on whether to extend or end the emergency measures.

According to France 24: "The proposal seems to have unanimous support across the political spectrum."

In a statement released yesterday, a spokesperson for President Hollande said: "The executive has not made its decision but will take it in the coming days."
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The Russian President, Vladimir Putin, appears set to escape sanctions despite being personally blamed over the murder of Alexander Litvinenko, with the British Government being accused of a weak response to the damning verdict on Moscows complicity in the killing.

Mr Litvinenko, one of Mr Putins most outspoken critics, was murdered by two agents who were likely to have been acting with the approval of senior figures within the Russian security service, the FSB, an inquiry found yesterday in a report welcomed by Mr Litvinenkos family.

Recommended Read more FSB links make it highly unlikely Putin was unaware of Litvinenko plot

David Cameron said that the report had only confirmed what the Government believed  but the Prime Minister stopped short of imposing immediate sanctions against Russia and Mr Putin, whose assistance is required in dealing with the crisis in Syria and tackling the threat from Isis.

Mr Litvinenkos family called for economic sanctions and a travel ban on the Russian leader, and senior political figures called for stronger action from No 10.

Mr Litvinenko died after he drank green tea laced with polonium 210 at the Millennium Hotel in Mayfair, central London, in November 2006. Mr Litvinenko pointed the finger of blame at Mr Putin on his deathbed.

Moscow dismissed the finding that Mr Putin probably authorised the dissidents murder as a gross provocation. The two agents identified as the killers said the report discredited the British justice system.

There was one goal from the beginning: slander Russia and slander its officials, said a Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zhakarova. We regret that a purely criminal case has been politicised and has darkened the general atmosphere of our bilateral relations.

The report by a retired High Court judge, Sir Robert Owen, based in part on secret intelligence reports, went further than expected in attributing blame to the upper echelons of the Russian state.

Sir Robert said there was a strong circumstantial case of Russian state involvement but there is no smoking gun in the 328-page report that directly ties Mr Putin to the murder.

However, the report highlighted antagonism between the dead man and the President that dated back to 1998 when Mr Putin was head of the FSB.

From exile in Britain, Mr Litvinenko had launched highly personal attacks on the Russian leader in which he accused him of responsibility for the murder of the campaigning Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya, culminating in claims that Mr Putin was a paedophile.

The dissident had also linked the Mr Putin to organised crime and went public on claims of corruption within the FSB, just after Mr Putin had taken over the organisation during his inexorable rise to the presidency.

Sir Robert said that if the head of the FSB, Nikolai Patrushev, had issued an order to kill Mr Litvinenko, he would probably have sought the approval of Mr Putin. Taking full account of all the evidence and analysis available to me, I find that the FSB operation to kill Mr Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr Patrushev and also by President Putin, said Sir Robert.

In response to the report, the Government summoned the Russian ambassador and said that the two men named as killers, Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun, would have their assets frozen. The report found that Lugovoi  who called the inquirys findings absurd  could have been planning the attack from as early as 2004.

Theresa May, the Home Secretary, told MPs she had written to the Director of Public Prosecutions to ask her to consider further action to extradite the men. The Government remains committed to pursuing justice in this case, she said.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos Mr Cameron insisted Britain was toughening up its response to Russia. Do we have to go on having some sort of relationship with them because we need a solution to the Syria crisis? he said. Yes, we do but we do it with clear eyes and a very cold heart.

Yet Mr Litvinenkos family said the Government should go further and called for the expulsion of all Russian intelligence officers based in London. Im of course very pleased that the words my husband spoke on his deathbed when he accused Mr Putin of his murder have been proved true in an English court with the high standards of independence and fairness, said his widow, Marina. But now it is time for David Cameron I am also calling for the imposition of targeted economic sanctions and travel bans against named individuals including Mr Patrushev and Mr Putin.

The outcome of the 2.2m inquiry was a personal triumph for Ms Litvinenko following a long battle after the Government had originally blocked it. The decision was reversed amidst a diplomatic crisis over Ukraine and Sir Robert was allowed to hear details in private of intelligence matters that led to Mr Putin being personally linked to the murder.

His findings left the Government with a diplomatic conundrum. The former ambassador to Moscow at the time of the killing, Tony Benton, said there were other important fish to fry that needed Russian assistance, including the denuclearisation of Iran and sorting out the mess in Syria.

But the Litvinenko familys barrister, Ben Emmerson QC, said that any failure to take significant action against Russia would be a craven response to nuclear terrorism on the streets of the capital.

He had claimed that the Kremlin was directly responsible for administering polonium 210, which he said would have cost tens of millions of pounds on the commercial market. Experts told the inquiry that it was most likely to have come from a plant 450 miles from Moscow.

It would be an abdication of his [Mr Camerons] responsibility to do the thing which, after all, is the first function of a state, which is to keep its people safe, said the barrister.

The shadow Home Secretary Andy Burnham said the Governments diplomatic response did not go anywhere near enough in answering the seriousness of the findings.

The Liberal Democrats said they had serious concerns over what appears to be the Government passing on responsibility for what should be an unwavering response to the Russian state.
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The man convicted of murdering the British student Meredith Kercher in Italy has said she was trying to tell him something in the moments before she died and that he is "101 per cent convinced" Amanda Knox was there.

Rudy Guede - who is currently serving 16 years in jail for the murder of the British student - said he had attempted to write on the walls with her blood to "understand" what she was saying.

Ms Kercher was found dead in the flat she shared with Amanda Knox in Perugia, Italy in November 2007 having been sexually assaulted and stabbed in the throat.

Speaking from prison in Viterbo, Italy, the 30-year-old told the Italian broadcaster Rai that the bedroom had been staged to look as a burglar had broken in and a rock had been used to break a window.

He said he and Ms Kercher had met the following evening at a college nightclub where they had shared a kiss.

He said he had accepted an invitation to come to her house the following evening but they did not have sex because neither had a condom.

He claims he left the room to go to the bathroom where he heard a scream and saw a man - who he described as "foreign" - in the house.

Meredith Kercher was murdered in 2007 (PA)

He said: "I am 101 per cent certain Amanda Knox was there".

Guede then described how the unnamed man had warned Knox they had been "discovered" and ran out of the building before saying "black man found, guilty found".

He said he then went into Ms Kercher's bedroom and saw "an abundance of blood".

He said he got a towel from the bathroom to staunch the bleeding from a wound on Ms Kerchers neck.

Rudy Guede was convicted of Meredith Kercher's murder in 2008 (Getty Images)

He described finding her lying there as a "heartbreaking moment" and said "she was trying to tell me something".

He said: "I wrote in blood on the wall to understand... fear overwhelmed me."

Guede - who is originally from the Ivory Coast - said he had then attempted to flee to Germany because he "was afraid they would not believe me".

In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Show all 14 1 /14 In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Amanda Knox 's lawyer arriving for the final verdict Amanda Knox 's lawyer Carlo Dalla Vedova arrives at the Italy's Supreme Court in Rome on March 27, 2015, the day that Knox's verdict was overturned Getty Images In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Raffaele Sollecito's lawyer before the final verdict Giulia Bongiorno, lawyer of Raffaele Sollecito, delivers comments at the Palazzo di Giustizia courthouse before the last session for the final verdict of the Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito murder retrial Getty Images In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Amanda Knox on 'Good Morning America' Amanda Knox sits alone before being interviewed on the set of ABC's 'Good Morning America' in New York, 2014 In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Amanda Knox on 'Good Morning America' Amanda Knox wipes her nose with a tissue while making a television appearance in New York, 2014 In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Amanda Knox on 'Good Morning America' Robin Roberts interviews Amanda Knox on ABC's 'Good Morning America' in New York, 2014 In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Raffaele Sollecito leaves the court Raffaele Sollecito leaves the court in Florence, 2014 In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Raffaele Sollecito leaves the court Raffaele Sollecito leaves the court in Florence. Judges in a Florence court gathered to decide whether US Amanda Knox and her Italian ex-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito are guilty of the 2007 murder of British exchange student Meredith Kercher in Perugia, 2014 In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Kercher's sister, Stephanie Kercher and brother Lyle Kercher Kercher's sister, Stephanie Kercher (L) and brother Lyle Kercher speak during a press conference in Florence, 2014 In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Appeals Court Judge Alessandro Nencini reads out the verdict Appeals Court Judge Alessandro Nencini (C) reads out the verdict for the murder of British student Meredith Kercher in Florence, 2014 In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Layers of Raffaele Sollecito Luca Maori, Giulia Bongiorno and Amanda Knox's lawyer Carlo Della Vedova (L-R) Layers of Raffaele Sollecito Luca Maori, Giulia Bongiorno and Amanda Knox's lawyer Carlo Della Vedova attend the final verdict of the Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito retrial at the Courthouse of Florence of Nuovo Palazzo di Giustizia in Florence, 2014 In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Amanda Knox on NBC News' 'Today' show Amanda Knox speaks to Matt Lauer (L) as she appears on NBC News' 'Today' show in New York, 2013 In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Amanda Knox at a news conference at Sea-Tac International Airport Amanda Knox cries and gestures to friends while her mother Edda Mellas sits next to her during a news conference at Sea-Tac International Airport, Washington after Knox landed there on a flight from Italy, 2011 In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Amanda Knox leaves the court Amanda Knox breaking in tears as she leaves the court after the announce of the verdict of her appeal trial in the Meredith Kercher' murder at Perugia's court, 2011 In pictures: The trial of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito stand outside the rented house where 21-year-old British student Meredith Kercher was found dead in Perugia, 2007

He said: "When I was found in the house of the crime I fled because I was afraid.

"No one would believe me. I thought: Negro found guilty. The subsequent investigations, conducted badly, have shown that I was right."

Police have always maintained that Guede did not act alone and Ms Kercher was killed in a "sex game gone wrong" which also involved Ms Knox and her then boyfriend Rafaelle Sollecito.

Amanda Knox and her former boyfriend Raffaelle Sollecito (not pictured) were finally acquitted in March 2015 (AP)

Ms Knox and Mr Sollecito were initially also convicted of Mr Kerchers murder in 2009 before being acquitted two years later.

The acquittal was then dismissed by the Italian Supreme Court in 2013 who ordered a retrial where they were subsequently convicted again.

A final appeal acquitted them once more in March last year.
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Europe cannot take in all the refugees fleeing war-torn Syria and Iraq and the migration crisis is putting the European Union in grave danger, the French Prime Minister Manuel Valls has said.

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Mr Valls added that Europe needed to take urgent action to control its external borders. Otherwise, he said, our societies will be totally destabilised.

Asked whether the Schengen agreement  the passport free zone on the European continent  was on the verge of collapse as a result of the on-going migration crisis, he said: No, its Europe that can die, not the Schengen area. If Europe is not capable of protecting its own borders.

The European project, not Europe as much. Not our values, but the concept of Europe that our founding fathers had, yes it is in very grave danger. Thats why you need border guards and controls outside the European Union. Sometimes we had the feeling that borders did not exist. No, borders do exist so you have to protect them.

Refugee crisis - in pictures Show all 27 1 /27 Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugee crisis - in pictures A child looks through the fence at the Moria detention camp for migrants and refugees at the island of Lesbos on May 24, 2016. AFP/Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Ahmad Zarour, 32, from Syria, reacts after his rescue by MOAS (Migrant Offshore Aid Station) while attempting to reach the Greek island of Agathonisi, Dodecanese, southeastern Agean Sea Refugee crisis - in pictures Syrian migrants holding life vests gather onto a pebble beach in the Yesil liman district of Canakkale, northwestern Turkey, after being stopped by Turkish police in their attempt to reach the Greek island of Lesbos on 29 January 2016. Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees flash the 'V for victory' sign during a demonstration as they block the Greek-Macedonian border Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants have been braving sub zero temperatures as they cross the border from Macedonia into Serbia. Refugee crisis - in pictures A sinking boat is seen behind a Turkish gendarme off the coast of Canakkale's Bademli district on January 30, 2016. At least 33 migrants drowned on January 30 when their boat sank in the Aegean Sea while trying to cross from Turkey to Greece. Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A general view of a shelter for migrants inside a hangar of the former Tempelhof airport in Berlin, Germany Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees protest behind a fence against restrictions limiting passage at the Greek-Macedonian border, near Gevgelija. Since last week, Macedonia has restricted passage to northern Europe to only Syrians, Iraqis and Afghans who are considered war refugees. All other nationalities are deemed economic migrants and told to turn back. Macedonia has finished building a fence on its frontier with Greece becoming the latest country in Europe to build a border barrier aimed at checking the flow of refugees Refugee crisis - in pictures A father and his child wait after being caught by Turkish gendarme on 27 January 2016 at Canakkale's Kucukkuyu district Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants make hand signals as they arrive into the southern Spanish port of Malaga on 27 January, 2016 after an inflatable boat carrying 55 Africans, seven of them women and six chidren, was rescued by the Spanish coast guard off the Spanish coast. Refugee crisis - in pictures A refugee holds two children as dozens arrive on an overcrowded boat on the Greek island of Lesbos Refugee crisis - in pictures A child, covered by emergency blankets, reacts as she arrives, with other refugees and migrants, on the Greek island of Lesbos, At least five migrants including three children, died after four boats sank between Turkey and Greece, as rescue workers searched the sea for dozens more, the Greek coastguard said Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants wait under outside the Moria registration camp on the Lesbos. Over 400,000 people have landed on Greek islands from neighbouring Turkey since the beginning of the year Refugee crisis - in pictures The bodies of Christian refugees are buried separately from Muslim refugees at the Agios Panteleimonas cemetery in Mytilene, Lesbos Refugee crisis - in pictures Macedonian police officers control a crowd of refugees as they prepare to enter a camp after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A refugee tries to force the entry to a camp as Macedonian police officers control a crowd after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees are seen aboard a Turkish fishing boat as they arrive on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing a part of the Aegean Sea from the Turkish coast to Lesbos Reuters Refugee crisis - in pictures An elderly woman sings a lullaby to baby on a beach after arriving with other refugees on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A man collapses as refugees make land from an overloaded rubber dinghy after crossing the Aegean see from Turkey, at the island of Lesbos EPA Refugee crisis - in pictures A girl reacts as refugees arrive by boat on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees make a show of hands as they queue after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures People help a wheelchair user board a train with others, heading towards Serbia, at the transit camp for refugees near the southern Macedonian town of Gevgelija AP Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees board a train, after crossing the Greek-Macedonian border, near Gevgelija. Macedonia is a key transit country in the Balkans migration route into the EU, with thousands of asylum seekers - many of them from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia - entering the country every day Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures An aerial picture shows the "New Jungle" refugee camp where some 3,500 people live while they attempt to enter Britain, near the port of Calais, northern France Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A Syrian girl reacts as she helped by a volunteer upon her arrival from Turkey on the Greek island of Lesbos, after having crossed the Aegean Sea EPA Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees arrive by boat on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Beds ready for use for migrants and refugees are prepared at a processing center on January 27, 2016 in Passau, Germany. The flow of migrants arriving in Passau has dropped to between 500 and 1,000 per day, down significantly from last November, when in the same region up to 6,000 migrants were arriving daily.

The socialist prime minister added that Germany, which accepted over one million refugees in 2015, is faced with a major challenge. He added: But the first message we need to send now with the greatest of firmness is to say that we will not welcome all the refugees in Europe.

A message that says come, you will be welcome, provokes major shifts. Today, when we speak in Europe, a few seconds later it will be shared on smartphones in the refugee camps of Libya."

Mr Valls also said that France would seek to keep its current state of emergency until a "total and global war" against so-called Islamic State was over. The high security measures were introduced after the Paris atrocities on 13 November in which 130 people were murdered by terrorists.
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The parents of an 11-year-old boy who jumped out of a fifth-floor window as he could no longer face going to school have published his touching suicide note.

Diego Gonzalez died in October after taking his life at his family home in Leganes, near Madrid, Spain.

His devastated parents believe school bullying drove their introverted and very mature boy to end his life and this week released his last letter in a bid to convince the authorities to investigate the circumstances surrounding his death further.

The letter, which Diego had left beside his favourite teddy bear, said: Daddy, Mummy I hope that one day you will be able to hate me a little less.

I cant stand going to school and there is no other way to avoid it.

Dad, you taught me to be a good person and to keep promises Mum, you have taken care of me very well and shown me a lot of places.

He told his sister Tata that I hope you find work soon.

The heartbreaking note was published by Spanish newspaper El Mundo on Wednesday.

According to the newspaper, police have ruled out that Diego was being bullied and the judge of instruction examining it is preparing to close the case.

The newspaper said it had reported the attempted suicide of another student who attended the same school as Diego just 15 days before the little boy died.

In that case, the girl in question had claimed the teachers let other girls hit me because they said it would make me stronger.

Diegos mother, Carmen Gonzalez, told El Mundo: [Diego] hated school, the pressure was there.

In recent times [he would say] Mommy, I do not want to go to school. And I said but son youre very good student. And he said yes, but no, no, no.

The last day I picked him [up] at school, on 13 October, he said Mommy run, run, run! and I asked him what had happened, but he would not tell me.

Mrs Gonzalez said that her son also lost his voice for months last year and doctors had told her that he had suffered an impact.

Diego praised Mrs Gonzalez and her husband in his final message before his sad death, writing: Together you are the best parents in the world.
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The police crime re-enactment video that topped the bill on German TVs equivalent of Crimewatch last Wednesday was more like a Monty Python sketch than a new and desperate bid to catch the last of Europes ultra-violent left-wing terrorists  a group still on the run from justice after more than 30 years.

It showed three ageing urban guerrilla types, now pushing 60 or older, snapping together their Kalashnikov rapid fire assault rifles and an anti-tank grenade launcher, while simultaneously programming a sophisticated jamming device capable of blocking all mobile phone traffic within a radius of 60 yards.

Clad in camouflaged military combat gear, their faces masked, the trio are shown storming an armoured black VW cash transport van in a supermarket car park near Bremen one afternoon last June. This is a hold up  get out ! screams one of the guerrillas as he sprays the vans windows, sides and tyres with bullets. We cant open the doors  the system wont allow it, cry the two terrified security guards, now locked in their heavily armoured and impenetrable van by its on-board security alarm system.

The urban guerrilla raiders look at each other, apparently dumbstruck. They cant open the security van doors and they have just realised that the supermarkets surveillance cameras have caught their every movement on video.

By now looking slightly ridiculous with their oversized battlefield weapons, they are seen meekly getting back into their blue Ford Focus getaway car and driving off empty-handed: a 1980s-style terrorist attack has just been effortlessly thwarted by second millennium technology. The Germans have a phrase for this: Vorsprung durch Technik.

But the perpetrators of the failed van robbery last year, police revealed last week, were not the ordinary criminals they first supposed. Ernst Volker Staub, 61, Daniela Klette, 57, and Burkard Garweg, 47, were the last remaining third generation members of Germanys home-grown Red Army Faction terrorist gang. Fingerprints and DNA traces found in their abandoned getaway car proved their identities beyond doubt.

They have reappeared, like strange terrorist phantoms from an organisation which officially threw in the towel 18 years ago, Butz Peters, a lawyer and Red Army Faction expert told The Independent. The police had virtually forgotten them, they have been living underground for years.

The Red Army Faction, or Baader Meinhof gang  as the left-wing urban guerrilla organisation was also known  terrorised Germany from the late-1960s onwards. Their declared war against fascist imperialism was driven by a conviction that capitalist West Germany was a US puppet state run by former Nazis.

In the course of more than 30 years they murdered 30 people including leading bankers, industrialists and diplomats; they hijacked a Lufthansa plane; and they carried out hundreds of shootings and bomb attacks.

Karl-Heinz Dellwo, 63, a former gang member who served a 21-year prison term for his part in an armed attack on the German embassy in Stockholm in 1975, said he was driven to join in the early-1970s  after being jailed for a year merely for squatting in a Hamburg house.

Its difficult to imagine now, but an armed police anti-terror unit was used to evacuate the squat, he said yesterday. They fired shots. In those days the state was unforgiving, it wanted to break us. We feared there would be a return to fascism in Germany.

More than 200 people were injured by Red Army Faction violence. Not until 1998, years after the gangs founders, Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhof, had committed suicide in prison and other key figures had been caught and jailed, did the gang concede defeat and declare its urban guerrilla project over.

And until last week, Germanys police and justice authorities appear to have completely forgotten about the likes of Staub, Klette and Garweg  the last surviving members who have been on the run for 30 years.

They are members of the so-called third generation of the gang which came into being in 1984, after leaders of the second generation such as Brigitte Mohnhaupt had been captured. Mr Dellwo said: There would have never have been a third generation if the German authorities had responded to Red Army Factions attempt to end what they were doing back then, but the authorities just ignored these offers.

Instead there followed a series of brutal political assassinations in which leading West German diplomats and bankers were gunned down in cold blood. Their victims included the Nato diplomat Gerold von Braunmuhl, who was shot twice in the head at point blank range while getting out of a taxi in Bonn in October 1986.

Deutsche Bank board spokesman Alfred Herrhausens turn came in 1989 when a bomb containing seven kilos of TNT blew apart his armoured Mercedes limousine and killed him. Detlev Rohwedder, a leading financial expert, was shot dead through an upstairs window at his Dusseldorf home in 1991. None of the perpetrators were identified.

Nobody knows whether Staub, Klette and Garweg were involved in such assassinations. Staub went underground in 1986 after serving a four-year jail term for membership of a terrorist organisation. The trio last appeared on the polices radar after a more successful raid on a supermarket security van in 1999 when they stole the equivalent of 400,000.

Mr Dellwo and the police believe the trio have run out of cash and are more interested in replenishing that than in waging a guerrilla war against the establishment.

These are desperate people who know that if they turn themselves in now they will spend the rest of their lives in jail, said Mr Dellwo. The state has left them no alternative but to rob, but theyre not interested in mass murder any more  they could have busted that van with their grenade launcher, but they didnt.

Jurgen Hage, the Lower Saxony police commander leading the hunt for the trio, hasnt a clue where they are hiding. He is sure of only one thing. They have a dog, he said last week. We found canine hairs in their getaway car.
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There are growing fears for thousands of Syrian refugees stranded in a desolate no-mans land along the Jordanian border ahead of the first winter storms expected this weekend.

An estimated 16,000 people are penned into a rocky desert area between two long earthen banks or berms 60 miles from the nearest metalled road, village or any other infrastructure, prevented by border guards from moving further into Jordan. The group consists mostly of families, including hundreds of pregnant women, some in their third trimester. Seventeen babies have reportedly been born at the site since mid-December. There are no sanitation or medical facilities and the only water in the area is brackish, aid agencies say.

The Jordanian government has refused the group further entry into the country, citing concerns  which aid workers privately concede are legitimate  that the group may have been infiltrated by Isis.

I know people still stranded at the berm. My relatives left Syria because of the heavy bombing, Khadija Taleb, one of at least 80,000 refugees at Jordans Zaatari camp, told the International Committee of the Red Cross recently. The area there is an earthen wall, an arid desert devoid of everything and inhabited by scorpions, snakes, insects and wild animals.

After a relatively mild few weeks, Jordan is bracing for the first winter storms this weekend. Refugees are using limited tarpaulin and blankets to stay warm and dry. One aid worker described the area as totally inhospitable and agencies say they fear refugees are at risk of death from freezing conditions.

The Jordanian government has granted access to a limited number of aid agencies, which are supplying basic needs of the refugees

 Syrian refugee children experience snow for the first time

Reporters visiting the site in recent days witnessed an elderly Syrian woman being told to be patient as she waited to get further into Jordan. We are thrown into the middle of the desert. Have mercy, for Gods sake, the woman called to a Jordanian guard.

Adam Coogle, Middle East researcher for Human Rights Watch, said it was not necessary to hold people at the berm. He points out that Jordans two refugee camps are currently at only half their full capacity, and that the government has set up sophisticated screening processes to ensure anyone deemed a security risk cannot enter.

In recent days, the Jordanian government has begun to speak of the berm area as a de facto camp, raising fears among aid agencies that the country will seek to make the area a semi-permanent base for refugees.

It is unlikely that we will ever be able to provide sufficient support to the most vulnerable, who are currently in the remote border areas, due to multiple access constraints, said Catherine Osborn, a Norwegian Refugee Council adviser in Jordan.

Increased fighting in Syria since Russia joined the civil war in September has prompted a sharp rise in the number fleeing the country, and the number at the berm site has risen swiftly since last November. But as Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey have significantly tightened their border policies over the past year, refugees are finding it increasingly difficult to escape Syria. Shortly after Turkey implemented new visa restrictions on Syrians entering by air or sea earlier this month, up to 400 intending to travel on to Turkey were deported from Lebanon back to Syria.

The build-up at the border began after Jordan restricted access at its two other crossings in mid-2013 and again in mid-2014, HRW says. Jordans policy, Mr Coogle says, may be partly to do with not wanting to encourage the idea that Jordanian territory is open, especially as other countries have closed their borders.

In Lebanon, only a handful have met new humanitarian criteria for entry over the past 12 months amid tightened restrictions and there have been several reports of people being turned away despite meeting the criteria. Amid increased public frustration at the strain on its resources, the government last year told the UNHCR to stop registering new refugees.

Haley Bobseine, a researcher with Human Rights Watch in Lebanon, said she had met refugees who say family members are stuck in Syria afraid for their lives in the immediate sense, but they dont qualify. They are checking up on their families to make sure they are still alive.

But aid agencies and rights groups also express sympathy for Syrias neighbouring countries, who have taken huge numbers of refugees. Lebanon now has the highest per capita number of any country in the world, around two million in a population of just over four million, while Jordan officially has 630,000.

The Jordanian government wants to see those refugees at the berm relocated to a third country. We can send them in our aeroplanes, said government spokesperson Mohammad Momani.
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When he came to the throne exactly a year ago, King Salman of Saudi Arabia was expected to continue to provide the relative stability which characterised the rule of his half-brother, King Abdullah.

Instead, the reign of Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, 80, has been marked by wars in Yemen and Syria, an ongoing feud with Iran and mass executions

King Salman was quick to shock the old order and appoint his favourite son, Prince Mohammed bin Salman - a controversial figure who has been described as "the most dangerous man in the world" - as both defence minister and deputy crown prince when he was 29.

Since then, the father and son's power has dramatically increased - as have the criticisms of the human rights abuses they preside over.

These are the reasons for the ongoing controversy surrounding King Salman's rule:

Mass executions

10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Show all 10 1 /10 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In October 2014, three lawyers, Dr Abdulrahman al-Subaihi, Bander al-Nogaithan and Abdulrahman al-Rumaih , were sentenced to up to eight years in prison for using Twitter to criticize the Ministry of Justice. AFP/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2015, Yemens Sunni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi was forced into exile after a Shia-led insurgency. A Saudi Arabia-led coalition has responded with air strikes in order to reinstate Mr Hadi. It has since been accused of committing war crimes in the country. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Women who supported the Women2Drive campaign, launched in 2011 to challenge the ban on women driving vehicles, faced harassment and intimidation by the authorities. The government warned that women drivers would face arrest. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Members of the Kingdoms Shia minority, most of whom live in the oil-rich Eastern Province, continue to face discrimination that limits their access to government services and employment. Activists have received death sentences or long prison terms for their alleged participation in protests in 2011 and 2012. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses All public gatherings are prohibited under an order issued by the Interior Ministry in 2011. Those defy the ban face arrest, prosecution and imprisonment on charges such as inciting people against the authorities. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2014, the Interior Ministry stated that authorities had deported over 370,000 foreign migrants and that 18,000 others were in detention. Thousands of workers were returned to Somalia and other states where they were at risk of human rights abuses, with large numbers also returned to Yemen, in order to open more jobs to Saudi Arabians. Many migrants reported that prior to their deportation they had been packed into overcrowded makeshift detention facilities where they received little food and water and were abused by guards. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses The Saudi Arabian authorities continue to deny access to independent human rights organisations like Amnesty International, and they have been known to take punitive action, including through the courts, against activists and family members of victims who contact Amnesty. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Raif Badawi was sentenced to 1000 lashes and 10 years in prison for using his liberal blog to criticise Saudi Arabias clerics. He has already received 50 lashes, which have reportedly left him in poor health. Carsten Koall/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Dawood al-Marhoon was arrested aged 17 for participating in an anti-government protest. After refusing to spy on his fellow protestors, he was tortured and forced to sign a blank document that would later contain his confession. At Dawoods trial, the prosecution requested death by crucifixion while refusing him a lawyer. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Ali Mohammed al-Nimr was arrested in 2012 aged either 16 or 17 for participating in protests during the Arab spring. His sentence includes beheading and crucifixion. The international community has spoken out against the punishment and has called on Saudi Arabia to stop. He is the nephew of a prominent government dissident. Getty

Last year, Saudi Arabia executed 158 people, the highest number in two decades, according to Human Rights Watch.

International condemnation followed the news the state had sentenced six teenage offenders to death.

Ali Mohammed al-Nimr, who was 17 when he was detained, is due to be crucified - his headless corpse displayed in public for several days.

Abdullah al-Zaher, who was 15 when he was arrested, could be beheaded at any moment, making him the youngest person to be sentenced to death.

War in Yemen

Saudi army artillery fire shells towards Yemen from a post close to the Saudi-Yemeni border, in southwestern Saudi Arabia, on 13 April, 2015 (FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP/Getty Images)

Two months into King Salman's reign, Saudi Arabia led a coalition of 10 nations into a controversial war in Yemen, which continues to this day.

Code named Operation Decisive Storm, the king ordered the bombing of Shia Houthis and forces loyal to former President of Yemen, who was deposed in the 2011 uprising.

The Saudi-led air campaign conducted air strikes in apparent violation of the laws of war, using banned cluster munitions, Human Rights Watch reported.

Almost 6,000 people are estimated to have been killed, almost half of those civilians. The war is also costing the Saudi treasury billions of riyals.

Backing rebels in Syria

King Salman of Saudi Arabia at the talks in Riyadh (AP)

When the uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad began in 2011, Saudi Arabia made it clear they backed the rebels and wanted the removal of President Assad.

In December, Saudi Arabia held a meeting in an attempt to unite the disparate opposition groups in Syria. Many political and rebel factions in Syria agreed a common negotiating position for talks which could lead to the replacement of President Assad.

The Gulf state is also discussing sending special forces to Syria as part of US-led efforts to fight Isis.

Feud with Iran

Iranian protesters set fire to the Saudi Embassy in Tehran during a demonstration against the execution of prominent Shiite Muslim cleric Nimr al-Nimr by Saudi authorities, on 2 January, 2016 (MOHAMMADREZA NADIMI/AFP/Getty Images)

Earlier this month, the state executed 47 people for terrorism offences, including the prominent Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr.

The execution of the cleric led a mob to set fire to the Saudi embassy in Tehran, which some commentators believe could only have happened with the approval of Iranian authorities.

Following the ransacking, Saudi Arabia immediately broke all diplomatic, trade and travel ties with Iran, leading to escalating tensions between the two Middle East powers.

While Saudi Arabia is backing the ousted Sunni-led government in Yemen, Iran backs the Shia Houthi rebels.

The future of the Saudi throne

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef of Saudi Arabia meets with Barack Obama at the White House on 13 May, 2015 (Olivier Douliery - Pool/Getty Images)

Eight of the 12 surviving sons of Saudi Arabia's founding monarch support a move to oust King Salman and replace him with his 73-year-old brother, according to a dissident prince.

When King Salman ascended the Saudi throne in January 2015, he was already ailing and relying heavily on his son. There are several reports he suffers from Alzheimer's disease and is only able to concentrate for a few hours a day.

Currently, the succession is due to hand the throne to the Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Nayef, 56, who is also interior minister.
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Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister, Adel Al-Jubeir, has refused to answer questions about reports Riyadh was attempting to buy nuclear weapons from Pakistan, but said the Kingdom would do "whatever it takes" to protect itself.

When asked about nuclear cooperation with Pakistan, he told CNN on Tuesday: "I am not going to get into details of discussions we have with foreign governments, and certainly not allied governments. I'm sure you understand."

"Saudi Arabia is committed to two things. I always say two things we do not negotiate over: our faith and our security."

He added: "Saudi Arabia will do whatever it takes in order to protect our nation and our people from any harm. And I will leave it at that."

10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Show all 10 1 /10 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In October 2014, three lawyers, Dr Abdulrahman al-Subaihi, Bander al-Nogaithan and Abdulrahman al-Rumaih , were sentenced to up to eight years in prison for using Twitter to criticize the Ministry of Justice. AFP/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2015, Yemens Sunni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi was forced into exile after a Shia-led insurgency. A Saudi Arabia-led coalition has responded with air strikes in order to reinstate Mr Hadi. It has since been accused of committing war crimes in the country. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Women who supported the Women2Drive campaign, launched in 2011 to challenge the ban on women driving vehicles, faced harassment and intimidation by the authorities. The government warned that women drivers would face arrest. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Members of the Kingdoms Shia minority, most of whom live in the oil-rich Eastern Province, continue to face discrimination that limits their access to government services and employment. Activists have received death sentences or long prison terms for their alleged participation in protests in 2011 and 2012. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses All public gatherings are prohibited under an order issued by the Interior Ministry in 2011. Those defy the ban face arrest, prosecution and imprisonment on charges such as inciting people against the authorities. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2014, the Interior Ministry stated that authorities had deported over 370,000 foreign migrants and that 18,000 others were in detention. Thousands of workers were returned to Somalia and other states where they were at risk of human rights abuses, with large numbers also returned to Yemen, in order to open more jobs to Saudi Arabians. Many migrants reported that prior to their deportation they had been packed into overcrowded makeshift detention facilities where they received little food and water and were abused by guards. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses The Saudi Arabian authorities continue to deny access to independent human rights organisations like Amnesty International, and they have been known to take punitive action, including through the courts, against activists and family members of victims who contact Amnesty. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Raif Badawi was sentenced to 1000 lashes and 10 years in prison for using his liberal blog to criticise Saudi Arabias clerics. He has already received 50 lashes, which have reportedly left him in poor health. Carsten Koall/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Dawood al-Marhoon was arrested aged 17 for participating in an anti-government protest. After refusing to spy on his fellow protestors, he was tortured and forced to sign a blank document that would later contain his confession. At Dawoods trial, the prosecution requested death by crucifixion while refusing him a lawyer. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Ali Mohammed al-Nimr was arrested in 2012 aged either 16 or 17 for participating in protests during the Arab spring. His sentence includes beheading and crucifixion. The international community has spoken out against the punishment and has called on Saudi Arabia to stop. He is the nephew of a prominent government dissident. Getty

On Monday, US Secretary of State John Kerry warned Saudi Arabia and Pakistan against trading nuclear weapons, saying there would be "all kinds of NPT [Non-Proliferation Treaty] consequences" if they did.

He added: "I mean, there are huge implications of that. And Saudi Arabia knows, I believe, that that is not going to make them safer, nor is it going to be easy, because the very things that Iran went through, they would then be subject to with respect to NPT and inspection and so forth."

Mr Kerry appeared on CNN to dismiss concerns Saudi Arabia may try to buy a nuclear weapon to compete with Iran.

Already tense relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran have deteriorated after Saudi Arabia executed the Shia cleric Nimr al-Nimr, leading Iranians to set fire to the Saudi Embassy in Tehran.
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The United Nations has been accused of altering a key humanitarian aid plan after consulting with the Assad regime.

A leaked copy of the original draft of the Syria Humanitarian Response Plan shows UN officials deleted references to besieged areas such as Madaya where the Assad regime blocked food and aid from getting through, Buzzfeed News has revealed.

It also removed any mentions of a programme to remove landmines, unexploded bombs and missiles, and references to the Assad regimes alleged human rights law violations.

UN insiders and NGOs have accused the organisation of pandering to the regime and allowing itself to be censored.

A group of Syrian NGOs wrote a letter to Stephen OBrien, the UN undersecretary for humanitarian affairs, saying they were alarmed by the revelations and said that it set an unacceptable precedent.

He said: While we recognise the need to engage the Government of Syria, they should be treated as a party to the conflict and should not exert any greater influence over the humanitarian response than any other party.

We are outraged that the humanitarian leadership agreed to major changes in the HRP document without engaging - or even informing - key partners.

 Aid reaches starving Madaya

The final draft report was agreed on by NGOs and UN offices in December then sent to the Syrian government for consultation.

The document was then supposed to be sent back to the UNs Turkey and Jordan teams so they could review the changes but allegedly this did not happen.

Instead sources told Buzzfeed News the governments requested changes were made and the document was published without further input from the NGOs.

It comes as food and aid finally reached Madaya after a six month blockage by Syrian government forces.

In pictures: Syria conflict Show all 40 1 /40 In pictures: Syria conflict In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrians carry children amid debris following a air strike by government forces in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian man carries a girl on a street covered with dust following a air strike by government forces in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrians react as they stand amid debris following a air strike by government forces in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian man carries a girl amid debris following a air strike by government forces in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis An injured Syrian man walks out from the rubble of a destroyed building following a air strike by government forces in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian woman makes her way through debris following a air strike by government forces in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis People stand on the rubble of collapsed buildings at a site hit by what activists said was a barrel bomb dropped by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, in the Al-Fardous neighbourhood of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrian residents stand amid the rubble of destroyed buildings In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian resident grasps a mattress amid rubble in the al-Firdous neighborhood of the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A view taken from Tel al-Sawadi shows a large explosion allegedly at the Wadi Deif Syrian army base in northwestern Idlib on May 14, 2014, which opposition fighters have been trying to capture for more than a year. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Islamist rebels detonated explosives planted in a tunnel under the army base killing or injuring dozens. AFP In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A bullet-riddled parking sign stands amid debris in a deserted street leading into the old city of Homs In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A general view shows abandoned buildings on a deserted square in the old city of Homs after Syrian government forces regained control of rebel-controlled areas In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A military vehicle that belongs to the Free Syrian Army is seen in Al-Amariya district in Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A mosque is pictured through shattered glass in the old city of Homs, as rebel fighters withdrew from the city centre in line with a negotiated withdrawal deal with the government after having held out under tight siege for nearly two years In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Buses carrying Free Syrian Army fighters leaving Homs. Exhausted and worn out from a year-long siege, hundreds of Syrian rebels left their last remaining bastions in the heart of the central city of Homs under a cease-fire deal with government forces. The exit of some 1,200 fighters and civilians will mark a de facto end of the rebellion in the battered city, which was one of the first places to rise up against President Bashar Assad's rule, earning it the nickname of "capital of the revolution" In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrian government forces hold up a portrait of President Bashar al-Assad (L) while others raise the national flag on top of a pole in the old city of Homs In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad run through Aleppo's Bustan al-Qasr crossing after their release by rebels. They were freed as part of a larger deal which saw the last remaining Syrian rebels in central Homs city evacuate their positions and free captives in several locations in northern Syria In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian woman and two children walk past heavily damaged buildings in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A man carries a wounded girl following a reported bombardment with explosive-packed "barrel bombs" by Syrian government forces in the al-Mowasalat neighborhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A wounded man sits as he is treated at a makeshift hospital following a reported bombardment with explosive-packed "barrel bombs" by Syrian government forces in the al-Sakhour district of the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Debris rises in what Free Syrian Army fighters and Islamic rebels said was an operation to strike Al-Sahaba checkpoint, which is considered a gateway to Al-Dayf valley, and remove forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar Al-Assad in Maarat Al-Nouman, Idlib province In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Men try to put out fire at a site hit by what activists said was an air strike by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the town of Azaz, north of Aleppo, near the border with Turkey In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Civil Defence members try to put out fire In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Survivors react at a site hit by what activists said was an air strike by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the town of Azaz, north of Aleppo, near the border with Turkey In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Residents queue as they wait to receive food aid distributed by the UNRWA at the Palestinian refugee camp of Yarmouk, south of Damascus In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Belongings of Syrian rebels inside a chapel at Crac des Chevaliers, the world's best preserved medieval Crusader castle in Syria. The village was destroyed in fighting between the government and rebel forces while the castle, listed as a UNESCO world heritage site, also has been damaged over the past two years In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Hosen Sabah, a 16-year-old student is comforted by his mother at a hospital in Damascus. Nosen was wounded by a mortar outside his school, while 14 other students were killed and over 80 wounded In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Free Syrian Army fighter works on a locally made launcher before firing it towards forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar Al-Assad in Mork town In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrian policemen and citizens inspecting the site of a car bomb at the entrance of Moadhamiyet al-Sham neighborhood in rural Damascus. According to Syria's Arab News Agency (SANA), a car bomb explosion has gone off in the countryside of Damascus and initial information say there are casualties, where a car rigged with explosions was remotely detonated at the entrance of Moadhamiyet al-Sham neighborhood in rural Damascus during engineering units it was trying to dismantled it In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Opposition fighters carrying a rocket launcher during clashes against government forces in the Sheikh Lutfi area, west of the airport in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian man helps a woman to make her way through debris following reported air strikes by government forces in the Halak neighbourhood in northeastern Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian man reacts as he carries the body of injured boy following reported air strikes by government forces in the Halak neighbourhood in northeastern Aleppo. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, at least 33 civilians were killed in the attack In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrian rescue workers carry the body of a woman following reported air strikes by government forces in the Halak neighbourhood in northeastern Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian woman walks past the burning wreckage of a car following reported air strikes by government forces in the Halak neighbourhood in northeastern Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A man and two children run to a safer place following reported air strikes by government forces in the Halak neighbourhood in northeastern Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A man holds an injured child after, according to activists, two barrel bombs were thrown by forces loyal to Syria's president Bashar Al-Assad in Hullok neighbourhood of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis An injured man talks on a walkie-talkie after, according to activists, two barrel bombs were thrown by forces loyal to Syria's president Bashar Al-Assad in Hellok neighbourhood of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A man walks inside a mosque damaged by, according to activists, a barrel bomb thrown by forces loyal to Syria's president Bashar Al-Assad in Old Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrians gather at the site of reported air strikes by government forces in the Halak neighbourhood in northeastern Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Rebel fighters carry their weapons as they run to avoid snipers loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the town of Morek in Hama province

The Assad regime finally gave permission for the United Nations and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent to enter the city earlier this month after an international outcry.

At a press conference last week, the UNs Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the situation in Madaya showed shocking depths of inhumanity.

He said UN staff who had entered the city had described the elderly and children, men and women, who were little more than skin and bones: gaunt, severely malnourished, so weak they could barely walk, and utterly desperate for the slightest morsel.
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A leading Canadian politician has said it is unacceptable that two of the country's colleges have campuses in Saudi Arabia that do not admit women students.

Kathleen Wynne, the Premier of Ontario province, has criticized both Niagara College and Ottawa-based Algonquin College for running campuses in Saudi Arabia for two years that have a men-only policy. These campuses follow Shariah law which forbids the education of men and women in the same classroom.

Ontarios Colleges and Universities Minister Reza Moridi said on Thursday that he was concerned that women were excluded.

Ms Wynne said that she told Mr Moridi to meet with the colleges as soon as she found out about the situation, which she said has got to change.

Reports speculate Ms Wynne knew about the men-only policy for months and only called out the colleges in public after the media picked up the story.

Warren Thomas, President of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union, said that he first wrote to Ms Wynne about this issue 10 months ago.

I asked why Ontario community colleges were doing business with the Saudi government  a regime infamous for its human rights abuses. I also expressed concern over Algonquin's losses in Saudi Arabia  Ontario taxpayer money that should be spent right here in Ontario to educate Ontario students, he said.

I'm still waiting for answers, he added.

Ontario provides $1.44 billion in funding to its 24 community colleges, with Algonquin getting $103 million for the current fiscal year, while Niagara College received $45 million, according to Metro News.
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The city of Leicester has, this week, played host to Japans answer to the Duchess of Cambridge who returned to the university to collect her postgraduate degree in a very low-key appearance - unlike anything we Brits are probably used to.

While Japan knows her as Her Imperial Highness Princess Mako of Akishino, during her time at the University of Leicester, however, the royal lived among students in a hall of residence - and even did a work placement at a local museum.

On Thursday, though, during the university's postgraduate graduation ceremony, the princess, 24, lined up on the stage with her peers and filed past dignitaries to shake hands with the chancellor of the university to then return to her seat. Her name had also been called out without any royal title.

Having been unveiled at press conference in September last year, the university revealed Princess Mako had been studying for an MA in art museum and gallery studies for an entire year - and the British press and majority of the student body had been none the wiser.

As well as working at the New Walk Museum, the university said the princess also undertook an intensive and varied course of study in the School of Museum Studies and, as part of her degree programme, completed a placement at Coventry Museums.

The princess with deputy head of school Dr Sheila Watson (PA)

Speaking about her time in England, the modest young royal said her time at the University of Leicester had been a wonderful experience. She added: I would like to express my sincere gratitude for having had the opportunity to pursue my studies in such a favourable environment. It has been a very fruitful year for me. I hope to apply what I have learned at postgraduate school in the future.

President and vice-chancellor of the university, Professor Paul Boyle, described how Leicesters School of Museum Studies is world-renowned and among the highest ranked research departments in the UK.

He said: We are delighted that Princess Mako chose to study with us and trust she had a wonderful time in Leicester. We will be proud to count her among our alumni and hope that she will continue to engage with our university in the future.

As a member of the Japanese Imperial Family, Princess Mako is the eldest daughter of Their Imperial Highnesses Prince and Princess of Akishino, and the first-born granddaughter of Their Majesties Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko.
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Only since 1873 have the twin cities of Buda and Pest been united as a single entity. Split by the mighty Duna (better known to us as the Danube), both halves of modern Budapest retain distinct personalities: hilltop Buda is a romantic fairytale, while low-lying Pest is all culture and nightlife.

In winter, the scene is set by festive markets, fairy lights and thermal springs, while summer sees people head outdoors for festivals and Formula 1.

All this diversity makes it brilliant for weekend breaks all year round. Jet2, Wizz Air, easyJet and British Airways fly from airports nationwide, while LOT started services from London City on 18 February.

What to do

Castles and keeps

Budapest city guide Show all 8 1 /8 Budapest city guide Budapest city guide Budapest is becoming increasingly popular for city breaks year-round. Budapest Info Budapest city guide The spectacular exterior of the Hungarian Parliament. Budapest Info Budapest city guide Buda Castle houses the National Gallery and Budapest History Museum. Budapest Info Budapest city guide Budapest is known for its outdoor pools and spas. Budapest Info Budapest city guide Take a cruise down the Danube. Budapest Info Budapest city guide Restaurant Barack es Szilva serves traditional Hungarian dishes. Barack es Szilva Budapest city guide Budapest's New York Cafe is worth a trip for the sumptuous interiors. New York Cafe Budapest city guide Budapest is a great place to shop for one-of-a-kind gifts. Getty Images

To get to grips with Budapest, you have to discover both sides of the river. Start by hiking up the hill (or ride the funicular) to the Castle District, home to medieval monuments and charming cobbled streets. Buda Castle itself dominates one side of the hilltop: once the seat of Hungarian royalty, it now houses the National Gallery and Budapest History Museum. Also dont miss Matthias Church and the faux-medieval Fishermens Bastion.

Buda Castle houses the National Gallery and Budapest History Museum (Budapest Info)

Hungarian history

Cross over to the Pest side to continue the history lesson at the Hungarian National Museum (admission 1,600HUF/4.50), whose collections cover everything from the Stone Age to the end of communism. Theres more on the countrys darker past at the House of Terror (admission 3,000HUF/8.50), which tells the chilling story of Hungarys Nazi and Soviet occupations through video footage, artefacts and interviews with survivors.

Blue Danube

Not many rivers can claim to have inspired a waltz by Johann Strauss. Many of Budapests greatest landmarks lie along the its banks, so tick them off on a 70-minute sightseeing cruise (from 4,200HUF/11.50). If boats arent your thing, jump instead on the yellow Line 2 trams that zip along the waterfront for front-row views of Budas skyline (350HUF/1).

Take a cruise down the Danube (Budapest Info)

So near so spa

The healing waters bubbling up from mineral springs below Castle Hill have been valued since the days of the Roman Empire. A leisurely soak is still very much a Budapest tradition, be it indoors or outside surrounded by billowing clouds of steam. Of the numerous public baths, the absolute classic is Szechenyi for its elegant facades and in-pool games of chess (admission 5,800HUF/16pp). If that sounds too tame, come back after hours for one of the legendary sparties that are held on Saturday nights all over town.

Budapest is known for its outdoor pools (Budapest Info)

Where to stay

What originally opened in 1896 as the Grand Hotel Royal is now Corinthia Budapest, a five-star retreat in the bustling heart of Pest. Its convenient location (trams stop right outside) puts it within reach of everything, while on-site facilities include a spa with a glorious art nouveau pool. Better yet, its excellent value with doubles from 158, B&B.

Across the river, Hotel Clark has an enviable location right next to the Chain Bridge, which became the first permanent river crossing when completed in 1849. The stone lions that stand guard on the bridge are reflected in the hotels decor, with stylised lion motifs on guestroom walls and elsewhere. Many rooms have river views, and theres also a rooftop bar. Doubles from 95, room only.

For true budget digs in the midst of the bar scene, Wombats City Hostel has dormitory bunks from around 13 per night, plus an on-site bar to get the party started.

Where to eat

You cant come to Hungary without sampling Hungarian cuisine. Start by working up an appetite with a browse of Downtown Markets stalls; then bag a table at Stand 25, an informal bistro serving local dishes such as goulash soup and stuffed cabbage. A two-course lunch will set you back around 4,500HUF (12.50).

Theres more Hungarian goodness to be found at Barack es Szilva, where traditional home-style dishes are served in a buzzy, rustic-chic setting. All the classics are here (along with a good choice of regional wines), so try something typical such as veal with paprika and dumplings. Main courses from 10 and up.

Barack es Szilva serves traditional dishes (Barack es Szilva)

For something less traditional, head to Meszar Steak Kitchen for top-notch steaks and other meaty treats in a sexy, black-tiled space. At the other end of the spectrum, Vegan Gardens meat-free food trucks serve plant-based burgers, pastries, ice cream and smoothies.

Splash out on a long, lazy Sunday brunch in elegant surroundings at Brasserie and Atrium, which offers a different theme each week (12,500HUF/35). Grab a table in the light-filled atrium, then plunder the buffet of sushi, salads, smoked fish and stews, all with a farm-to-table philosophy that highlights the best of the season.

Where to drink

Coffee culture came to Budapest during the Ottoman Empire and the city is still replete with coffee houses. Some of the best is served at hipster hangouts such as My Little Melbourne, but theres nothing like a caffeine fix at one of the belle epoque gems. New York Cafe remains a favourite for its over-the-top interiors; or try Gerbeaud on Vorosmarty Square for coffee and cakes in a similarly showy setting.

Budapests New York Cafe is worth a trip for the sumptuous interiors (New York Cafe)

Make the most of Budapests skyline with cocktails on a rooftop bar. St Andrea Skybar is a classy option with two terraces and citadel views; or try High Note Skybar for its exceptional setting in the shadow of St Stephens Basilica.

For the best nights out in Budapest, head to District VII (the old Jewish Quarter) to seek out some of its ruin bars: bohemian, pop-up pubs located in formerly rundown buildings. Szimpla Kert started the craze, filling a derelict factory with fairy lights, salvaged furniture and a 400-strong drinks list (with cocktails from around 5). It has since spawned many imitators but retains a loyal following.

Where to shop

Downtown Budapests Vaci Street is the citys main shopping thoroughfare, with stores spanning high street to high-end. Follow it from Vorosmarty Square (home to one of Europes best Christmas markets) all the way to historic Great Market Hall for stalls heaped high with sausages, paprika and palinka (the local schnapps). Head upstairs to the mezzanine level for souvenirs, snacks and traditional embroidery.

Budapest is a great place to shop for one-of-a-kind gifts (Getty) (Getty Images)

There are more foodie finds at Szimpla Sunday Farmers Market, which fills the famous ruin bar in the calm after Saturday nights revelry. The bare walls and graffiti set a very urban scene in which to browse for pastries, produce, preserves and charcuterie.

As for Hungarian design, seek out FIAN Koncepts two locations in the Castle District for gifts, bags, scarves and clothing made by local artisans. Over in District VII, Rododendron is an outlet for local designers specialising in artworks and accessories, while nearby Printa has similar wares and a wider selection of one-of-a-kind fashions.

Architectural highlight

You cant miss the impressive, neo-gothic Hungarian parliament: its Hungarys largest building and towers over the Pest waterfront.

The spectacular exterior of the Hungarian parliament (Budapest Info)

Nuts and bolts

What currency do I need?

Hungarian forint, though euros are widely accepted.

What language do they speak?

Hungarian.

Should I tip?

10 per cent.

Whats the time difference?

One hour ahead.

Whats the average flight time from the UK?

Two-and-a-half hours.

Public transport

Getting around is a doddle on Budapests four metro lines and efficient bus and tram network.

Best view

Buda Castles walls offer a marvellous panorama along the Danube to the Chain Bridge and parliament.

Insider tip

Pick up a Budapest Card from the information point at the airport. It covers public transport, two walking tours and admission to 17 museums from 22pp.

Read more on Budapest

Best hotels in Budapest

Budget hotels in Budapest

Boutique hotels in Budapest
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US visa change

Travellers to the United States who have visited Iran, Iraq, Syria or Sudan since 1 March 2011, or who hold dual nationality with these countries, will no longer be able to travel with an Esta. It is now necessary to apply for a visa prior to travel, although certain travellers may be deemed eligible for waiver. travel.state.gov

Flight delay

The launch of the world's longest flight, on Emirates from Dubai to Panama City, has been delayed by two months. The link was due to start on 1 February, but has now been deferred to 31 March. The airline says it has been delayed in order to fully receive all regulatory codeshare approvals from the wider Central and Latin America region. emirates.com

Heathrow less

A family of four can now travel at weekends on the Heathrow Express for 22 return, so long as they book 90 days in advance. The one-way adult fare is at an all-time low of 5.50 one-way, and accompanying under-16s travel free at all times. But the corresponding 90-day midweek fare has almost doubled to 12.10 one-way. heathrowexpress.com

Baltic tunnel?

Finland and Estonia have launched a study to dig a 57-mile rail tunnel beneath the Baltic between their capitals  nearly twice as long as the Channel Tunnel. The total cost of the link is estimated at around 8bn, and the plan assumes that the EU will pay around 40 per cent of the cost. bit.ly/BalticTunnel

Guernsey

Island partners

The Guernsey-based airline, Blue Island, has signed a franchise agreement with Flybe. Blue Island's flights to, from and between the Channel Islands will soon be bookable at flybe.com, and the aircraft will be rebranded. Flybe has similar agreements with Loganair and Stobart Air. blueislands.com

Bite plight

The mosquito-borne Zika virus is now spreading in the Caribbean, according to Canadian health officials, who warn of local transmission in Martinique and Haiti. Zika is similar to dengue fever in both symptoms  fever, rash, joint pain and conjunctivitis  and the fact that no vaccination is available. Pregnant women are advised not to travel to affected regions. bit.ly/ZikaNHS

Kingdom come

Warwick Castle will open 28 family friendly lodges on its grounds from 1 July. Set in woodland, they will sleep up to five guests and feature medieval flourishes as well as TVs, wet rooms and wi-fi. Overnight stays will start at 203 per lodge, including breakfast in the banqueting hall and two days' access to the castle and its attractions. warwick-castle.com/sleepovers

Suffragette city

The Houses of Parliament are running a season of Suffragette-themed tours. Blue Badge-guide-led visits called From Petitions to Prime Minister: A Short History of Women in Parliament will run on Saturdays in February and March, and on some Wednesdays. The 90-minute tours cost 25. parliament.uk/visiting
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A flight from London to Stockholm has been forced to do an emergency landing after receiving a reported bomb threat.

Tom Onslow-Cole, a British racing driver, was among the 72 passengers and five crew on board Scandinavian Airlines flight 1530 on Friday.

He told The Independent that no one was aware the plane was being diverted to Landvetter Airport until it landed shortly before 10am (9am GMT) and they were told they had arrived at a different airport.

Flightradar24 data showed the plane diverting over Sweden (Flightradar24)

Mr Onslow-Cole said the Boeing 737-600 was parked at the end of the runway and everyone was taken off as police boarded to carry out searches.

The captain made an announcement while we were in a holding area that it was something to do with a social media post, he said.

There was some confusion with a United Airlines flight number that is similar and apparently thats where the threat came from.

A Scandinavian Airlines source told The Independent the confusion was believed to have stemmed from codesharing, which means that United Airlines can sell the London-Stockholm flight under its own name.

A Twitter threat was reportedly directed at the American company but consequently affected the Scandinavian Airlines flight that was operating the journey.

A spokesperson for Swedish airport operator Swedavia said it had no information on how the alert came in and that the matter would be handled by police.

"There was a bomb threat towards an aircraft coming in from London Heathrow to Stockholm and it had to land in Gothenburg, she added.

"Police and the bomb squad are going through the aircraft."

United Airlines said it was not aware of any threats involving its aircraft but confirmed "an unsubstantiated threat relating to a codeshare flight".

Mr Onslow-Cole and fellow passengers were still waiting to get their luggage back four hours after landing but were being helped to continue their journeys.

The 28-year-old said everyone had been really relaxed because they were unaware of the security alert until they arrived at the airport, although they only learned of the nature of the scare on the internet.

It was very calm until one of the passengers found a news article online saying there had been a bomb threat, he added.

After disembarking, Mr Onslow-Cole photographed his complementary meal voucher, which simply gave the reason as BOMB.

Several hours of police searches uncovered no explosive devices and officers have now launched an investigation to find the person who made the threat.
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I know every editor says this, but I really do try to read and respond to as many of your letters as possible. The emails concern familiar subjects: coverage of Israel, austerity, whether or not to call Isis Isis, favourite columnists, creeping royalism.

But nothing has outraged my regular correspondents quite like our coverage of Jeremy Corbyns Labour Party. One editorial from November (Jeremy Corbyns Labour isnt working) met with particular fury  though thankfully little of the smug self-righteousness and venom of many Corbyn supporters online.

I take all this, if I may, as a compliment to the paper: it shows you hold us to very high standards. Given this newspaper was invented to improve British democracy, thats no bad thing. Our approach, which favours allegiance to truth over tribe, and which is not beholden to any political party (unlike many newspapers), is to keep you informed with all the pertinent facts, express our own opinion on the page opposite, offer expert analysis, and let you make up your own mind. Thats the spirit of The Independent.

Recommended Read more My 10 rules for online debate

In that very spirit, I want to record today what I hope will strike you as nine simple, salient observations about the current state of the Labour Party. I write them while highly conscious that, a couple of months ago, Corbyn told a press gallery lunch that he gets most of his news by reading The Independent. Here goes:

1: Corbyns approval rating currently stands at minus 39.

2: Some polls suggest Labour support is dipping toward around 25 per cent.

3: Scotland, and with it probably around 59 parliamentary seats, is almost certainly lost to Labour for many years.

4: Tory boundary changes will cost Labour another 20 seats.

5: Labour lost the election because its leader was not liked and it wasnt trusted on the economy. Today, it has a leader whose approval ratings are lower than Ed Milibands, and is less trusted on the economy. On top of that:

6: This week the party lost perhaps its sharpest policy brain, Neale Coleman, because of an internal feud.

7: The Tories are arguing about Europe, but only the Lords have laid a glove on them.

8: The parliamentary party disagrees with the new membership about everything other than that Tories are scum.

9: I hear whispers that Momentum, the grassroots movement, is witnessing its own bout of internecine warfare.

Corbyn is a very admirable man, who happens to be my MP. As a democrat, I want to see an effective Opposition. But, dear readers, please dont be outraged when we point out  again, and with fresh evidence  that, right now, Jeremy Corbyns Labour Party isnt working.
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The weather has turned, and with it Europes response to the refugee crisis. Summer brought hope, in the shape of Angela Merkels promise that no Syrian refugee would be turned away from Germany. There was also gradual progress towards a resettlement quota that would distribute 160,000 asylum-seekers around the EU, and lay the groundwork for a system able to host the men, women and children fleeing barrel bombs in Aleppo, or Isis in Iraq, or civil war in South Sudan.

But now a freeze has settled in. Cold weather, for once, has hardly slowed the number of arrivals: 1,600 land in Greece every day, more than were coming at the height of summer in July 2014. Asylum-seekers may feel the risk of freezing to death is secondary to that of setting off too late and arriving to find a border wall. They would not think so groundlessly.

Yes we can, Ms Merkels mantra, has been bruised by events: the Chancellors popularity is falling as the German asylum systems creak. Yesterday the French Prime Minister, Manuel Valls, offered a variant of no we cant, citing the total destabilisation of European societies. The prospect of harmonious integration  formerly promoted by Ms Merkel  may not recover from the rash of sexual assaults in Cologne over the new year, mirrored in parts of Scandinavia. This week the German President, Joachim Gauck, said the country must consider a cap on refugee numbers. (If democrats do not, Mr Gauck said, xenophobes and the far-right will.)

The asylum-seeker resettlement quota that might have eased such pressures has foundered: only 322 people have been moved by it, as the more recalcitrant states  mainly in Eastern Europe  make good on threats not to fulfil their side of the bargain. Meanwhile, more borders close, putting the Schengen agreement at risk, alongside the EUs founding commitment to provide shelter to those whose lives are at risk.

What would be needed, to stop the continent retreating into its shell, is a sense of proportion, matched by thick skin and long-term vision. Few today would believe that asylum applications in the early 1990s, from the Balkans in particular, roughly matched the levels seen today (760,000 in 1992, for example). Nor would many cast a second glance at the IMF report stating that current rates of immigration would prove to the benefit of Europes economy, if the burden were shared across all member states, with increased spending on new infrastructure benefiting all citizens.

Hopes that the problem can be solved at source are highly optimistic. It seems improbable that Turkey will close the thoroughfares for migrants in return for the 3bn (2.2bn) in aid it has been promised, when Europe itself has failed to send back anywhere near the number of failed asylum-seekers it should. Only the establishment of special economic zones in countries such as Jordan, where Syrians could work and set up businesses (they are currently prevented from doing so), would provide the right kind of incentive not to make a tilt at Europe.

The official end of the Dublin agreement  which forced migrants to claim asylum where they first made land  offers one last chance to revive a stronger quota system. That remains the only way to handle the influx humanely. Ms Merkels mistake was not to say yes we can, but to act on her own, without alerting her allies and without a quota system in place. She made the right move, but stepped out of line. Unfortunately there are few second chances in geopolitics, and the strong support of the European Commission counts for little in the face of growing isolationism among the elected leaders of member states.

Even if Europe turns its back, nobody should be in any doubt that asylum-seekers will keep coming, and in huge numbers. The only choice lies between managing these people, or ignoring them in the vain hope that they will go away. It looks increasingly like that decision has already been made.
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Some things are a certainty when youre the youngest of five: your wardrobe will contain hand-me-downs, youll get the most Christmas presents, youll discover you are adopted (I was left on the doorstep wrapped in chippy paper, apparently) and youll learn exactly when youll die.

At eight years old I was gravely informed by one of my sisters that the world would end at the Millennium. Kaboom. Game over. Doing the maths, I worked out that by the year 2000 I would be the ripe old age of 26 and so wouldve had a good innings.

Still, the news of the worlds demise was unsettling. For the next few years I was on a countdown. By my teens I was pretty sure Id been cruelly duped, but confess that it was only at 10 past midnight on 1 January 2000 that I truly stopped believing the end-of-the-world story.

Now, at 41, I have the chance to learn how Ill die thanks to a kind offer from a newspaper to simply click on a link and fill in a few details. In the spirit of journalism I should really have faced my fears and filled in the form  but then I remembered Im not really a journalist, Im a DJ, and I dont want to know when its all gonna go Pete Tong.

If you fill in your vital statistics youll find out what youre likely to die of, depending on your age, and what diseases will be all the rage when your time comes. I bravely glanced down the page and spotted a series of inappropriately cheery graphs featuring clumps of multicoloured spots, like a rug from Heals.

Rather than soft furnishings inspiration, I thought clicking the link would connect you to FaceTime with Zoltar from the film Big revealing the death tarot card by candlelight, instantly followed by a date reminder beeping into your smartphone (3 March: 10.15 hot yoga; 12.30 die; 19.00 tapas with the girls).

Im envious of deeply religious people who see death as part of lifes journey, paradise the end destination. Where a big man with a long white beard (no, not Father Christmas  though thatd be a pleasant surprise, if the big G Man had been Santa all along) would assign you your own cloud.

Im aware of my own mortality but if you knew exactly how many minutes you had left thered be too much pressure to use every one. I enjoy what is literally my spare time: those day-dreamy minutes spent tickling the dogs belly, picking at my feet, gawping at the rain through the window, standing at the fridge eating tuna from the tin.

If I knew exactly how long I had left, those moments of faffing would be deemed too wasteful. Nine minutes munching custard creams while listening to PopMaster? Come on! Youve only 5,265,332 minutes left. Learn Italian; build a donkey sanctuary; meet Dolly Parton. Id be a nightmare to live with and would surely take advantage: Pleeeeeease make me a cup of tea. Im gonna be dead a week on Tuesday.

So for everyones sake I think its best if I just work towards a simple goal: to die aged 110 surrounded by family while watching Pretty Woman and eating panacotta.

Banning Poppers? Thats like banning 90s fashion

Conservative MP Crispin Blunt provided a surreal moment this week when he stood up in the Commons, outing himself as a user of poppers, a party drug which I associate with 90s rave culture but which is still apparently very popular in the gay community to enhance nookie.

He spoke up against a ban on amyl nitrite saying that, as a gay man, he uses poppers. Not to be confused with party poppers made from multi-coloured shreds of paper, this is a little bottle of liquid that definitely shouldnt be produced at a six-year-olds party and sprayed all over grandma. These poppers dont explode  though after a quick whiff of the stuff you feel like your brain cells are popping and your head is trapped in a faulty lift door.

Should they be banned? There are more deaths from drinking, smoking and falling off ladders every year, so probably not. Personally, I thought poppers were something you grew out of, not needed legislation against.

 Duchess of Cambridge fashion choices 2015

Stress-busting idea seems certain to do the opposite

Im all for reducing stress but found Twitter co-founder Evan Williams idea of The Daily Message rather twee. He wants to create an app that gathers your emails and delivers them to your inbox all together, at a designated time each day, like going to the mailbox.

Or the British equivalent, not being able to open the front door due to the thigh-high mound of mail blocking the way as your blood pressure shoots through the roof.

The unholy matrimony of smartphones and emails means a quick reply is possible and expected. Try as we might (or want), we cant return to the 1950s  get home, pour a finger of scotch and then sort through the days messages from your favourite armchair. We answer our emails over lunch, crossing the road, on the loo.

I dont like being a slave to my smartphone but I dont think this app would loosen the shackles. Itd just create more stress.

Mums can do things that best friends cant

I consulted my 11-year-old about this weeks report by a parenting expert which recommends that we dont try to be BFFs with our kids.

We agreed theres nothing more cringeworthy than a mum and daughter who are more like best friends. Both my daughter and I already have best pals. What she needs from me is to be her mum. To guide (nag) her, to advise (shout at) her and, crucially, to love her no matter what.

Thats why the word MUM stands for Manage, Understand and Mither.

Janet Street-Porter is away
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Jeremy Corbyns silence was revealing: he said nothing at all about Labours inquest into its disastrous defeat at last years general election. No statement or briefing was forthcoming on what lessons he draws from the inquiry headed by Dame Margaret Beckett, the former Foreign Secretary.

When pressed, the Corbynistas insist the findings will feed into their decision-making on strategy. But the Labour leader seems more intent on building a new party rather than checking its foundations and learning lessons from the past. He had been sitting on the Beckett report since last November and it was published this week only after a row about it being kept secret.

Dame Margaret, the ultimate party loyalist, has produced a report that tells some home truths but also pulls its punches. She is right to say that one lesson of Ed Milibands leadership is that the party must join up its policies into a "simple, seamless narrative." Blairites used to call it hanging out the washingmaking sure the key policies hang together. Team Corbyn would be well advised to learn this lesson. It seems suspicious of modern communications because of New Labours addiction to spin. You can have a left-wing narrative, but you wont succeed if it is not coherent and you dont sell it properly.

The Beckett report noted that Mr Miliband was not judged as strong a leader as David Cameron-- something of an understatement. There was a desire not to rub Eds nose in it, one Labour official admitted. The Labour verdict omitted the findings of focus groups conducted for its inquiry, which I revealed last October: swing voters saw Mr Miliband as unfit to be prime minister, describing him as weak and bumbling, a dork and having the appeal of a potato.

True, the Beckett report does reflect the voters lack of trust in Labour on the economy, welfare and immigration and their fear that a minority Labour government would be propped up by the SNP. But it avoids the flawed assumptions on which Mr Milibands leadership was built that the British public had moved to the left after the financial crisis, and that Labour could regain power by appealing to Liberal Democrat 2010 voters and its core vote. Perhaps that was judged too unpalatable for a Labour leader who has now shifted further to the left than Mr Miliband.

The Beckett review pointed to Mr Milibands refusal to tackle head on what she rightly called the myth that Labour caused the economic crisis, which many voters now believe. He left it too late to try to regain economic credibility. Another lesson for Mr Corbyn: the tramlines are laid early in each parliament and are hard to shift.

Labour's post-mortem should have looked at Mr Miliband's decision to abandon his 2012 One Nation campaign, which was replaced by populist attacks on energy companies and banks. It might have judged him an unlikely class warrior; ironically, his strategy of playing the anti-establishment card would be better suited for Mr Corbyn, an outsider rather than an insider like his predecessor.

The Beckett inquiry has some important messages for Mr Corbyn. It should be chilling reminder to all Labour folk of the daunting mountain they must climb in 2020: it needs 94 gains to win a majority of two, when only 24 Tory-held seats have a majority of less than 3,000. She also admitted: "We did fail to convert voters in demographic groups who are traditionally seen as in the centre." And she issued a coded warning to the Corbynistas not to merely preach to the converted by "confining ourselves to those whose experience or assumptions mirror our own." It is believed that Team Corbyn's reluctance to reach out to people who did not vote Labour last year was one reason why Neale Coleman quit as his director of policy and rebuttal this week. Although four out of five of the voters Labour needs to win over backed the Tories last year, one Corbynista admitted: You are not going to see Jeremy making speeches about Middle England.

One lesson missing from Labour's review is Mr Milibands failure to defend New Labours record in power. While he rejects the Blairites charge that he "trashed the record, some Miliband aides now admit it was a mistake not to defend it, which helped the Tories turn their claim to be clearing up Labours mess into a historical fact.

However, Mr Miliband was not the first Labour leader to adopt a Gerald Ratner strategy  after the jeweller who described one of the chains products as "crap." Tony Blair rejected Old Labour and rarely missed a chance to rubbish it; Gordon Brown defined himself against Mr Blair and then Mr Miliband gave the impression that New Labour got it all wrong.  Weve been shit, vote for us is not a great slogan, one Labour MP said. The worry now is that Corbyn will imply that everything we have done in the last 30 years is rubbish.

Incoming Labour leaders would be well advised to argue that their predecessors got some things right. After all, the Tories dont disown their former leaders. The Cameroons might say that Margaret Thatcher was wrong to suggest there is no such thing as society but they are not stupid enough to excoriate a leader who won three general elections. Labours attitude to Mr Blair could not be more different.

Were back in Year Zero, Tom Baldwin, who was a senior strategist to Mr Miliband, told a Fabian Society conference last weekend as he surveyed Labours state under Mr Corbyn. Not shouting from the rooftops but shouting at each other. Yes, successful oppositions learn the lessons of defeat. But [they] also need to remember the things we got right, and distinguish between baby and bathwater. He is right, so I look forward to Mr Corbyns speech on New Labours successes.
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Spoiler alert: some of what I am about to say I intend ironically. And that includes the previous sentence. Then again, some of what I say I dont intend ironically. And between these extremes of meaning it and not meaning it are likely to be utterances whose status as to truth and sincerity I am unsure of myself.

Here is the joy of writing an essay, as opposed to a manifesto or even an opinion piece. An essay is a process of trying or testing. An experiment in words and thought. Hence those who throng to the armed wing of social media in the hope of destroying what an essayist essays are behaving exactly as Basil Fawlty did when he thrashed his stalled Austin 1100 with a limp branch: they are taking the wrong weapon to the wrong object.

We know why Basil Fawlty was so frustrated; but what ails the Twitter death squads? I leave that to psychologists of mob derangement to determine. I am concerned in this column  thats if I am  a) to educate the deranged in the rudiments of civilised conversation, and b)  altruistically  to prevent them wasting whats left of their lifeblood on causes that arent causes at all. See a man on his knees screaming his disagreement with the scent of a rose and you want to help. Thats what Im doing.

Sixty nine would appear to be a fatal age if youre a genius. Joyce Grenfell, who had more claim to being called a genius than many to whom the word is promiscuously applied, died just short of 70 in 1979, which must seem a long time ago to people whose knowledge of past events goes back no further than the launch of Instagram.

She was an actress and comedian, though her comic routines could just as fairly be called short stories. Perhaps the most famous is Nursery School in which she teaches a class of children whose dimwitted naughtiness brings to mind the misdirected delinquency of the chatroom. The most beside-the-point of the delinquents is Sidney who, when invited to be a flower of his choice, chooses a horse. A horse isnt a flower, Sidney, Joyce Grenfell tells him, her patience wonderfully tuned to stretch till doomsday. Followed by, No children, that isnt funny, its very silly.

Let that, then, be lesson No 1 for those who cling like drowning rats to the coat-tails of any writer who can swim: learn to tell the difference between a flower and a horse. Thus, when someone thinks differently from you, that doesnt make him or her a murderer, and it therefore isnt necessary for you to call for the death penalty. Thinking differently from you isnt a crime. Thinking differently from you might, if anything, be a virtue.

Lesson No 2: A horse is not a flower and Jeremy Clarkson is not a knob because you disagree with him. He might be a knob for other reasons, but he isnt a knob because he has a bone to pick with cyclists and youre a cyclist.

Lesson No 3: Camilla Long isnt the worst columnist who has ever been because her heart doesnt break into the same number of pieces as yours does when an entertainer dies. Heres a handy rule to follow before calling someone the worst columnist there has ever been: be sure youve read the others. Unless you are only speaking immoderately for the fun of getting up someones nose. But in that case, ask yourself whether the columnist you cant abide is only speaking immoderately to get up yours.

Lesson No 4: Dont marvel that publications give space to the particular worst living writer you have your sights fixed on today. It sounds like sour grapes. Of course it is sour grapes, but you should try to conceal it. The last thing a person whose only outlet is an online forum should draw attention to is the envy consuming him from the fingers down.

Lesson No 5: Failing to see the point is not a virtue. The more articles you dont see the point of, the more questions are going to be asked about your perspicacity. You are right that some things are a waste of space; in all likelihood your tweet is one of them.

Lesson No 6: Dont complain that the media wont stop hounding whoever it is you admire  say, Corbyn, to pluck a name at random. Most public figures, not excepting Corbyn, get a fair crack of the whip somewhere. What youre really complaining about is that you dont get a fair crack of the whip anywhere. But that wont be bias. It will just mean youre a knob.

Lesson No 7: Remembering what I said about irony, think twice before buckling up for war. You might be walking into a trap for the literal-minded. As a rule of thumb Id say that if you dont have a sense of humour you are missing the tone of most of what you read. So why advertise the fact? If you have nothing to do, and are looking for an activity that doesnt require a sense of humour, try colouring in.

Lesson No 8: A writer who has more words than you have isnt ipso facto a show-off. Ditto a writer who has read a couple of books and is otherwise cultive. By bleating about his or her erudition you are merely allowing your own ignorance to embarrass you. It should.

Lesson No 9: Dont imagine that a word you say is going to make a blind bit of difference. You wouldnt be tweeting poison if you were otherwise able to solicit interest. But if you must fight a losing battle try at least to be sophisticated. Telling a writer you despise that he has his head up his arse will only make him feel good about himself. Better his arse, after all, than yours.

Lesson No 10: Remember Sidney. Being a horse when youre meant to be a flower isnt funny, its silly.
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The final report from the long-running inquiry into the death of former Russian agent Alexander Litvinenko has re-ignited the controversy over what is undeniably the biggest assassination case seen in the UK for decades.

The story has all the ingredients for a spy thriller, from secret poison to international conspiracy, but its implications are far from trivial.

At the heart of the matter is the strange death in November 2006 of Alexander Litvinenko, a fugitive Russian ex-secret service officer, who was granted political asylum in UK in 2003. He had been poisoned by a rare radioactive substance called Polonium-210.

Given Litvinenkos reputation as a fierce critic of the Russian President Vladimir Putin and his security services, it was alleged from the start that the Russian state was behind his murder. A formal accusation has now been made to that effect in the report released as a result of the public inquiry into his death.

These findings could not have come at a worse time for the UK. The outcome of all kinds of international crises depends on cooperation from Russia, and its clear that the Kremlin is in no mood to play ball.

Past form

The Russian security services have been suspected of many assassinations over the decades and are known to extend their deadly grip to the enemies of the Russian state far beyond its borders.

However, Litvinenkos case has struck a chord. The manner in which he died and the fact that the murder took place in London was bound to raise public alarm. And perhaps more significantly, the alleged personal involvement of Russias president is an extremely serious accusation.

There were plenty of reasons, highlighted by the inquiry, for the Russian secret services to target Litvinenko. Near the top of the list was probably his work for British intelligence, a cardinal sin for an ex-KGB officer. This is why part of the evidence for the inquiry remains off limits to the public.

Equally significant is the fact that Litvinenko had a well-established track record of publicly accusing the Russian security services, and Putin himself, of high-profile crimes. He spoke of apartment blocks being bombed in Russia in 1999 as justification for starting the second Chechen War. He also suggested Putin had links to organised crime.

It is possible that Putin could have known or even approved of the assassination plot, although Litvinenko was a relatively low-level operative, which makes it surprising that Putin would be especially concerned about him. Litvinenkos allegations about the president were already public knowledge by that point too, and the Russian authorities had not proffered much reaction. Whats more, the nature of Litvinenkos death gave him sufficient opportunity to release any new evidence against Putin if he had it. All this points to revenge as a motive, which is perhaps not entirely unexpected given the circumstances.

The response

Russias reaction to the report has been as straightforward as it was predictable. The foreign ministry accused Britain of turning a purely criminal case into a political matter by launching the public inquiry in the first place. It accused the inquiry of lacking transparency and said it had reached a highly prejudiced conclusion.

The Russian ambassador to London, Alexander Yakovenko, called the linking of the Litvinenko murder to the Russian state a provocation. Putins spokesman simply said that the Kremlin had no interest in the inquiry.

President Putins personal involvement is speculative and is unlikely to be ever proven, but the involvement of Russian security services is undeniable. And President Putin has general responsibility for operation of the Russian state and its military and security services.

Relations between the UK and Russia hit rock bottom after the annexation of Crimea and Russias involvement in the Donbas war. This, incidentally, was what tipped the British government into approving a public inquiry into Litvinenkos death, something it had been reluctant to do previously.

The big question, though, is what will happen now. The British government talks of action, but can it really do anything? This is, after all, an old story and there is nothing in the report that was not already known to British intelligence or the British government.

Russia, meanwhile, is a significant global player and will have to be engaged with in one form or another, not least in the quest to resolve the conflict in Syria and defeat Islamic State.

Russia is not the only country in the world to fall well short of Western values on human rights, the rule of law and democracy, but it is perhaps the most troublesome for Europe, not least because of its geographical proximity to the EU and its huge size and military power, including nuclear weapons.

This makes what happens in Russia of equal or even greater importance to similar trends in China or Saudi Arabia. So, the Litvinenko findings bring forth the dilemmas for the British government it hoped it could bury: how to reconcile moral principles with hardcore realities of international politics and economics.

This piece first appeared in The Conversation. Alex Titov is Lecturer in Modern European History at Queen's University Belfast.
Banking giant Citigroup has warned the risks of a global recession are increasing as it cut its growth forecasts marginally.

The downgrade includes cuts to forecasts for the US, UK, Canada and a range of emerging markets. The analysis, prepared primarily by the bank's top economist Willem Buiter, says that despite disappointing growth, it does not expect major new easing by the main Central Banks as a whole.

The Federal Reserve remains likely to hike rates further, while the Bank of England and Bank of Japan are both on hold, it said. And while further measures are expected from the ECB, they will be incremental rather than a "big bazooka", Mr Buiter said.

The global growth forecast has been cut from 2.8pc to 2.7pc, with below consensus forecasts in many major economies.

"Risks of global recession are rising," the research note said. "Available data for Q4-2015 suggest that the global economy is currently on the edge of recession."

Citibank said the last few years have seen an "uneasy" equilibrium between repeated disappointment in global growth and offsetting monetary policy stimulus. That stimulus, it argues, has helped keep global growth trundling along at about 2.5pc year-on-year.

"However, that balance is now at risk, with rising downside risks to global growth plus the prospect that central bank policy stimulus will be less forthcoming than in recent years," the analysis states.

Citi forecasts the Chinese economy to remain sluggish as credit stimulus fades, the aftermath of the country's recent massive credit boom weighs on demand, and the country's economy changes to one focused more on services.

The Citi analysts warn that debt levels in China have risen to worrying levels, with the debt-to-GDP ratio substantially above levels in the US and Europe.

"The full extent of China's slowdown remains hard to gauge, given uncertainties over the accuracy of the official GDP data," the investor note said.

"However, side-effects of China's slowdown are evident in the weakness of other emerging markets and world trade."

The banking giant pointed out that although China accounts for about 15pc of global GDP, its slowdown is a "first-order shock" to global growth, "given the extent to which global growth has been China-dependent in recent years."

It said that China's growth has directly contributed roughly 1 percentage point a year to global GDP growth over the last five years, accounting for roughly two-fifths of total global growth.

"China's overall impact may well be bigger, given its indirect boost to activity elsewhere."

Citigroup is putting a British withdrawal from the EU at between 20pc and 30pc, which it said was not "implausible".

"Brexit, if it happens, would probably trigger extended economic weakness for the UK, a sizeable drop in sterling, plus a major political crisis, with the resignation of PM Cameron and the prospect of a second, successful Scottish referendum on independence," the bank said.
The ban on alcohol sales on Good Friday could cost the restaurant industry as much as 25m nationally, with Easter Rising celebrations and Ireland's home friendly against Switzerland heightening the overall figure.

According to the Restaurants Association of Ireland (RAI) the industry are set to face a huge loss similar to a full Bank Holiday weekend of sales, while the Government may miss out on 6m in taxes.

The restaurant representative body came to the figure by taking the average turnover of a Bank Holiday weekend and multiplying by the 2,500 restaurants affected across the country.

Speaking about the ban, chief executive officer of the Restaurants Association of Ireland, Adrian Cummins, said that the law is not just affecting Ireland's toruism brand abroad but also impinging on internal business also.

This law affects more than just the diners who want a drink, it affects thousands of restaurant employees on a busy weekend when restaurants simply wont open. It is unacceptable to have this archaic ban in place on religious grounds, especially in the multi-cultural and multi-religious society that Ireland has become.

The RAI says that between the 1916 celebrations and the international friendly, Ireland is expected to draw in 250,000 visitors to Ireland.
Finance Minister Michael Noonan has joined European colleagues in backing Christine Lagarde for a second term as head of the International Monetary Fund.

He described her as a capable leader who had shown a "helpful" understanding of Ireland's position.

The Washington-based Fund said it plans an open selection process for its top job and began accepting nominations yesterday, even though Ms Lagarde has said she is open to another term leading the crisis lender. Ms Lagarde's initial five-year term as managing director expires on July 5, and IMF executive board member Aleksei Mozhin said he expects the board to complete its selection process by early March. There are no obvious challengers to the former French Finance Minister.

UK Chancellor George Osborne said he would nominate Ms Lagarde for a second term, a move supported by Mr Noonan.

"I would like to join with my European colleagues in welcoming the nomination of Christine Lagarde for a second term as Managing Director of the IMF," Mr Noonan said.

"During the global financial crisis Christine Lagarde demonstrated that she was a very capable leader who not only fulfilled her primary role in managing the IMF but also demonstrated a high level of understanding of the difficulties and complexities associated with the crisis and its management."
Passage East Ferry Company has been put up for sale

One of Ireland's long-established domestic ferry services, Passage East Ferry Company, was put up for sale yesterday.

The decision to put the company on the block comes in the wake of the retirement of its founding shareholder, Derek Donnelly. Mr Donnelly started the business with his son, Edward, in 1982. It provides one of the only direct links between Waterford and Wexford.

Insurance firm FBD Holdings holds a 70pc share in the business, arising out of a legacy investment. The company is considered non-core to FBD.

Along with 28 vehicles, the ferry can carry up to 130 passengers, connecting Waterford City with the Hook Peninsula in Wexford and operates throughout the year making an average of 106 sailings per day, increasing to 112 during the summer months.

The five-minute journey is estimated to save 90 minutes' journey time for round-trip commuters. The company employs 16 full-time staff, who will be unaffected by the sale.

Revenue expanded by almost 5pc to about 1.6m in 2015 with additional growth of 2.5pc expected this year. Earnings before deductions have also risen steadily and climbed to 587,000 in 2015, respresenting year-on-year growth of 30pc.

The sale process is being managed by accountancy firm and business advisory specialists Crowe Horwath.

Crowe Horwath managing partner Naoise Cosgrove said the business has attracted strong interest.

He said: "We have spoken to a number of parties with a strong interest. As with any campaign we will be marketing it widely to seek to maximise value. It should appeal to other operators as well as investors looking for a profitable and cash generative investment."
Here are the main business stories from this morning's papers:

Irish Independent

* Apple chief executive Tim Cook had a private meeting with the European Union's antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager as EU regulators close in on a final decision into the iPhone-maker's tax deals in Ireland.

The Brussels meeting came on the same day as Taoiseach Enda Kenny described as "false and baseless" claims that Ireland is a tax haven for the company. Apple and the European Commission both confirmed that the talks took place but didn't elaborate on what was discussed.

Ireland may eventually be forced to recoup billions of euros in unpaid taxes from Apple. The probe is the most high profile investigation in an EU crackdown on tax deals between countries and multinationals that's also embroiled companies including Starbucks and a unit of car maker Fiat Chrysler in the Netherlands and Luxembourg.

* Finance Minister Michael Noonan has joined European colleagues in backing Christine Lagarde for a second term as head of the International Monetary Fund.

He described her as a capable leader who had shown a "helpful" understanding of Ireland's position.

The Washington-based Fund said it plans an open selection process for its top job and began accepting nominations yesterday, even though Ms Lagarde has said she is open to another term leading the crisis lender. Ms Lagarde's initial five-year term as managing director expires on July 5, and IMF executive board member Aleksei Mozhin said he expects the board to complete its selection process by early March. There are no obvious challengers to the former French Finance Minister.

* There is no end in sight for the spike in office rents, with levels in Dublin likely to top 65 per sq ft before the end of this year.

Broker JLL has become the latest big player in the commercial market to contend that office rents for the top areas of Dublin will keep rising this year, as demand continues to outstrip supply in the capital.

In its outlook for 2016, JLL believes that in Dublin city centre, headline office rents are set to rise 65 per sq ft. That figure is just below the all-time high of 70 per sq ft set back during the Celtic Tiger years and matches research throughout the Dublin office market.

The Irish Times

* European Central Bank chief, Mario Draghi, has opened the door to further stimulus, triggering a rebound in oil prices and global stocks.

Mr Draghi agreed to a policy review in March where the bank will take stock of the situation at its next rate-setting meeting.

Speaking in Davos on Thursday Mr Draghi cited new heightened uncertainty around emerging economies and an increase in downside risks as reasons for the review.

* Ireland's biggest retail complex, the Blanchardstown Centre, will be put up for sale next month by Green Property Group for a fee believed to be in the region of 1bn.

The centre is likely to attract the attention of large international investment groups and big pension funds.

JLL and Eastdil Secured will joint market the centre with the first round of bids expected to come in March.

* Management consulting company, Accenture, is to create 250 new jobs in addition to the 200 jobs the firm had announced back in September.

Accenture is looking for range of talent as it begins to invest 25m into a centre for innovation.

The announcement will bring the company's headcount up to in excess of 2,200 by August of this year.

Irish Examiner

* A new report, conducted by the European Commission, could force Ireland to change its current tax system as it aims to bring the country in line with agreements made in the OECD and G20.

The new report will analyse Ireland's corporate tax scheme and determine whether or not the country facilitates tax dodging.

The new rules would see profits taxed on where they are generated rather than where they are headquartered, incurring massive changes to companies that have its European headquarters in Ireland.

* Employee negligence is the biggest risk to data breaches according to a new survey of the country's data protection professionals.

The survey revealed that over 70pc of cyber attacks were caused by employee negligence.

External attackers were the second biggest threat to a breach, while user devices containing sensitive material came in third.

* Irish Life has been given the go-ahead to proceed in building its six-storey 20m office block on St Stephen's Green after an appeal to An Bord Pleanala was withdrawn.

The appeal was originally made by international legal firm, Maples and Calder, however its has since withdrawn its appeal of Dublin City Council's decision to give the plan the green light.

The plan will see Irish Life demolish its existing office block at Hainault House.
Over 120 jobs are to be created across the island of Ireland after three companies announced expansion plans yesterday.

Well-known Irish food firm O'Brien Fine Foods is set to create 40 new jobs as part a 14m expansion at its facility in Timahoe, Co Kildare.

The company, which produces cooked meats under the Brady Family and Rudds brand names, is planning a 8,000 sq m expansion at its premises in a move which is expected to more than double operational capacity.

This will bring the total number of jobs at Timahoe from 270 to 310 over the next two years. A further 150 jobs will also be supported during the construction phase of the expansion.

The firm employs a total of 325 people between its facilities in Timahoe and Birr, Co Offaly. Work has already started on the facility and is expected to be completed by June.

O'Brien Fine Foods managing director John O'Brien said the investment will "improve efficiency, expand production capabilities and positively impact our sustainability credentials".

Separately, the Digital Marketing Institute, which offers professional training in digital and online marketing, announced that it is hiring for 34 new jobs this year across sales, operations and marketing.

Founded in 2008 by Irish entrepreneurs Ian Dodson and Anthony Quigley, the company has grown from 20 employees in 2013 to 47. The institute has 12,500 students and 70 partner institutions teaching its programmes, from diploma to master's level.

The firm said its expansion is the "result of continuing strong international growth, which saw [an] 86pc growth in revenue across its core business in 2015".

North of the border, smart payments firm Cayan is creating 50 new jobs in Belfast as it moves into its new high-end offices in the city. The Boston firm has expanded rapidly since its launch in Northern Ireland in 2013, and employs 134 full-time staff in the area.
A number of government sites - including the CSO website - is down as a result of the issue (stock)

A DDoS attack one of the most basic and common ways of bringing a website down' without actually hacking into it.

It occurs when far more traffic than a website can handle is deliberately sent to that website to disable public access to it. If you think of a website as a revolving door, it would be like 100 people rushing to get through it at the same time: it would probably just stop letting people through.

The result is that the website becomes inaccessible to anyone trying to visit it.

The computing power is often marshalled by the aggressor using so-called botnets, which are clusters of computer servers that connect up and bombard a target with traffic it can't cope with.

This type of attack is what the Irish government is saying happened to websites such as those belonging to the Central Statistics Office (CSO.ie), the Courts Service (courts.ie) and the Department of Justice (justice.ie) on Friday morning.

This is not the same type of cyber attack as a hacking attack or a data breach attempt. Sensitive content is rarely accessed or stolen by the culprit responsible in this form of online aggression.

Culprits usually vary from activist groups such as Anonymous to pranksters.

DDoS attacks are becoming very common. One reason is that sophisticated tools to help launch DDoS attacks are very easily available online now.

In the last week alone, the websites of the National Lottery (lotto.ie) and Boards.ie have been hit by DDoS attacks. Three weeks ago, the BBC suffered one of the biggest recorded DDoS attacks in history.

It is generally difficult to trace the origin of a DDoS attack to find out who is responsible.

"We have implemented our contingency plans which are designed to minimise this disruption," said a spokesman for the Irish government this morning. "As with all DDoS attacks it is not possible to identify the exact source of the attack."
The next iPhones could feature Li-Fi technology, a method of transmitting data through light which is around 100 times faster than Wi-Fi.

Codebreaker Chase Fromm spotted mention of 'LiFiCapability' in operating system iOS 9.1's library cache.

Li-Fi has been in development for several years thanks to researchers at universities including Strathclyde, Edinburgh, St Andrews and Cambridge, and uses light-emitting diodes (LEDs) to beam information through the air, which is received by a light sensor.

Professor Harald Haas of the University of Edinburgh is widely credited with its creation in 2011, when he demonstrated that with a flickering light from a single LED, he could transmit more data than a cellular tower.

While traditional Wi-Fi is capable of transmitting data at around 7 gigabits per second (Gbps), Li-Fi tests have shown it can transfer information at more than 100 Gbps, with a theoretical output of 224 Gbps.

This effectively means that high-definition films could be downloaded on devices using a Li-Fi connection in a matter of seconds. Fitting any form of light device, including a humble lightbulb, with a microchip could transform it into a wireless data transmission point, Professor Hass explained in a TED talk.

Li-Fi is currently still in a highly developmental stage, meaning it's extremely unlikely to feature in the iPhone 7, expected for release this September.

It is also limited in its current form as visible light is incapable of travelling through walls, and that a device needs to be within direct sight of a receiver, and within a radius of around three metres. It also means it can only be used in lit rooms.

In the future, devices may be able to sidestep this restriction through use of a tracking and location system, meaning a user could place a laptop at a random spot on a table and have the system find it and create a link, according to Spectrum.IEEE.

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
Taoglas, an Irish company that deals in machine to machine technology and the Internet of things (IoT), has cut the ribbon on its new $2m facility in San Diego.

The new facility, which is the first of its kind in North America, will offer device designers and manufacturers a fully equipped design and testing location.

The San Diego location is an antenna and radio frequency design centre, dedicated to the IoT market.

The company was set up by Wexford man, Dermot O'Shea and Dubliner Ronan Quinlan in 2004. It currently employs 37 in Wexford and some 130 worldwide.

The firm also has locations in Taiwan and Germany. Taoglas also expects to expand further in Ireland.

Speaking about the launch of its new centre, Ronan Quinlan, the firm's co-CEO, said that the new facility is off the back on continued re-investment.

"Our enlarged San Diego facility reflects our growth rate last year of almost 100pc. We work hard to support our customers worldwide who, not only need the off-the-shelf or custom antennas we offer, but also need design services and assistance.

"In Wexford, Taoglas headquarters houses research and development (R&D), finance, marketing and product management for Taoglas globally. It also has customer service, sales and engineering support for European customers," Mr Quinlan said.

Commenting on the investment by a globally-recognised Irish company, Philip Grant, consul general of Ireland to the Western United States, said: "The expansion of an Irish company in the North American market is a great example of how Irish technology and business ingenuity can contribute to local economies. Taoglas has been servicing this region from San Diego for only five years so such growth is quite impressive."
Prime Minister David Cameron called on business on Thursday to speak out in favour of Britain staying in a reformed European Union, but warned those wanting a quick fix that he would settle only for the "right deal".

Cameron, who was attending the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos, hit back at criticism that his decision to call a referendum increased global uncertainty, saying he was a democrat who wanted to "confront this issue" once and for all.

His appeal, though, was to a largely sympathetic, if small, audience, increasingly worried that a Brexit, or British exit, would further hurt their businesses and London's status as a financial centre at a time when the global economy is shaky.

"I hope that business ... and other organisations won't hold back. I would say don't hold back right now, even though the question isn't settled," Cameron said, adding he hoped to achieve agreement with the European Union at a February summit.

"If there's a good deal on the table I will take it and that's what will happen. But I do want to be very clear, if there isn't the right deal, I'm not in a hurry," he told a half-empty hall at the leading business conference.

The referendum will not only shape Britain's role in world trade and affairs, but also the EU, which is struggling to maintain unity over migration and financial crises.

Cameron described the referendum, which could be held as early as June if he wins a deal next month, as "a massively important generational question for Britain and for Europe".

The prime minister met business leaders in Davos after being boosted by pledges from several banks to fund a campaign to keep Britain inside the European Union and by senior European leaders who said a Brexit would be a "tragedy" and "disaster".

"We would all be worse off if you were to leave," Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, whose country holds the EU presidency for the first half of this year, told a British questioner.

Paul Polman, the head of consumer goods company Unilever, likened a possible Brexit to a messy, costly and ultimately regrettable divorce.

"I think the UK has to ask themselves some profound questions, even the people that emotionally would say right now I need a short term solution that I might run away from something," he told Reuters.

"Its not necessarily the right long-term solution."

BRITONS SPLIT

But the British leader must still persuade Britons, who according to opinion polls are deeply split over EU membership.

Although official campaigning on both sides of the debate will not begin until Cameron has finished negotiations with the bloc which he hopes will secure a better membership deal for Britain, the battle lines have already been drawn.

And Cameron's courting of companies and pledges from banks to help fund those lobbying to stay in the EU were swiftly met by the 'out' campaign saying the donations were proof that the EU protects vested interests.

Many British businessmen say the EU needs deeper reform to secure them the financial advantages they need. They want the single market in the digital and service industries to be developed and bureaucracy to be cut.

"If Britain decides to stay in a reformed Europe at no stage will you hear me say that 'that is perfection, this organisation is now fixed'," Cameron told the audience.

"There are many things that are imperfect about the European Union today and there'll be many things that will be imperfect about the European Union even after this negotiation."
Ice Cube and Kevin Hart star in Ride Along

Kevin Hart and legendary hip hop artist and actor Ice Cube rode into Dublin today and met Dublin GAA football stars Michael Darragh MacAuley and Kevin McManamon at a special Q&A held at the Foundry, Google European HQ

He might be Straight Outta Compton but Ice Cube looks rather comfortable with his new Dublin jersey.

The rapper and actor was in town today with his fellow Ride Along 2 star Kevin Hart and the pair met Dublin GAA football stars Michael Darragh MacAuley and Kevin McManamon at a special Q&A held at Google HQ.

The live Q&A at Google headquarters was hosted by Baz Ashmawy.

Introducing the two, Baz described rapper and actor Ice Cube as "someone I would sleep with... if I didn't dislike stubble and penis".

Expand Close Actor Kevin Hart and legendary hip hop artist and actor Ice Cube rode into Dublin today and met Dublin GAA football stars Michael Darragh MacAuley and Kevin McManamon at a special Q&A held at the Foundry, Google European HQ / Facebook

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Whatsapp Actor Kevin Hart and legendary hip hop artist and actor Ice Cube rode into Dublin today and met Dublin GAA football stars Michael Darragh MacAuley and Kevin McManamon at a special Q&A held at the Foundry, Google European HQ

Actor and stand-up comedian Kevin Hart described to the crowd of media, vloggers and Googlers his first visit to an Irish gym.

"I don't know what they didn't change but I walked in and said, something's not right in here, man!"

"There were red carpets, there was like, castle chairs... I was working out, like, something used to go down in here".

"They press a button and something turn into something..."

Ice Cube revealed that he filmed 'Ride Along 2' and 'Straight Outta Compton' at the same time.

"It was a labour of love... thank God for technology, it allowed me to be in two places at the same time".

Speaking about on-set mishaps, Hart revealed Ice Cube had "knocked out a stuntman" and Ice Cube revealed that Hart had "killed a chicken".

"Don't be telling people that, man, I'm black! They'll be like, you're killing chickens what is wrong with you?"

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Explaining what happened, Hart said that he likes to recreate a stunt after a stuntman has completed it, in order to get the ensuing sequence as real as possible.

"I watched him jump in the chicken coop... I thought I can do this. I was coming in hot... I didn't know the chicken was standing on the spot mark".

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'I never go to the Oscars so how could I boycott something I never go to?' - Ice Cube addresses Oscar diversity row

Ice Cube said that he "clipped" a stuntman when he "didn't duck" during a fight scene. "There was a little blood".

"Horror movie!", Hart added, "he knocked him out... and you blame him!"

The comedic duo also discussed their partners during the hour-long Q&A, with Ice Cube crediting his 20-year marriage to "true love".

"We've developed a partnership, a friendship, and we handle our business by ourselves".

"We respect each other on all levels".

Baz joked that 22 years in "Hollywood years... is over 4,000".

Ride Along 2 hits cinemas around the country today, January 22nd.

Watch the full stream below.
US Lawyer Colleen Rohan in Dublin to launch The Bar of Ireland's 2016 Innocence Project Scholarships. Photo: Mark Condren

A top US lawyer has urged Irish fans of 'Making a Murderer' to back an online petition calling for justice for Steven Avery.

Defence attorney Colleen Rohan jetted into Dublin yesterday to launch The Bar of Ireland's 2016 Innocence Project Scholarships.

Speaking at the event, the Wisconsin-born legal expert told how the Netflix sensation showed the importance of people in power fighting cases of wrongful imprisonment.

Ms Rohan, who is a founding member of the International Criminal Law Bureau, said: "I guess everyone in Ireland has watched it, except for people who are still asleep or something.

"I think that people signing petitions has a massive impact. First of all on Steven Avery himself, so that he can endure what he's got to go through, and we're assuming now that he was wrongfully convicted.

"Frankly, there's something wrong with that case," she continued. "Every defence lawyer I know who's watched this shakes their head and says, 'There's something seriously wrong'.

"So for him knowing that he has that kind of support is huge because usually a person in his situation is completely forgotten."

Almost half a million people have now signed an online petition calling for the 53-year-old Wisconsin man - who is currently serving life in prison for the murder of photographer Teresa Halbach - to be pardoned.

Mr Avery previously spent 18 years behind bars for a rape that DNA evidence later showed he did not commit. Now the 10-part docu-series, binge-watched by many at Christmas, has cast doubts over his second conviction as well.

Describing some of the arguments put forward by the defence in the documentary - including that police had planted the victim's car key in Mr Avery's home - as among "the most compelling" she'd ever heard, Ms Rohan added: "Although it's not common to see a miscarriage of justice of that magnitude, it's not entirely rare either, so the film-makers who made that documentary are heroines.

"People for good reason, I suppose, are loathe to believe, for example, that police officers will lie or plant evidence.

"Obviously most prosecutors, police officers, judges and defence lawyers are honest and they do their work properly and ethically. But in the cases where that does not occur, people need to know about them [and] they need to talk about it.

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"So for me, this is a really healthy public debate that needs to happen."

Five junior members of The Bar of Ireland are this year set to receive sponsorships to work on Innocence Projects just like the one featured in 'Making a Murderer' in the US.

Founded in 1992, the non-profit organisation works to exonerate wrongly convicted people using new DNA testing.

Praising the 80pc of Irish lawyers engaged in pro bono work, Ms Rohan said: "I know that the Innocence Projects have had an impact in the US on attitudes towards the death penalty. If we have a system that can engage in an error that horrible, we shouldn't have a death penalty because you can never undo an execution."
Trial: Lawyer Jerome Buting and murder accused Avery, right, listen to closing arguments in court in 2007

Fans of Making a Murderer documentary have been curious to know why defence laywer Dean Strang has a hurling statue in his office

Making a Murderer defence lawyer Dean Strang will appear on the Ray D'Arcy Show on Saturday night.

Strang features in the Netflix documentary which charts the trial of Steven Avery for the murder of Teresa Halbach in Wisconsin in 2007.

Avery had previously served 18 years for a sexual assault of which he was later cleared by DNA evidence. Two years later he was arrested by the same Manitowoc County police service for murder.

Strang has become something of a celebrity since the documentary aired on Netflix in December as many people believe Avery to be innocent of the murder despite the fact he was convicted of the crime and is now serving time.

The documentary has exposed several alleged flaws in the criminal justice system and they are issues Strang faces head on in the course of the trial.

He has also become an unlikely heartthrob, along with fellow defence lawyer Jerry Buring.

Also appearing on the show this week is Celebrity Big Brother housemate and ex-wife of David Bowie, Angie Bowie.

TV chef Neven Maguire and his wife and business partner Amelda will be in studio too and Jules Coll, star of Damo and Ivor, will be chatting about losing 9 stone.

Music will come courtesy of up and coming Dublin band Mongrel State.
Trial: Lawyer Jerome Buting and murder accused Avery, right, listen to closing arguments in court in 2007

One of the lawyers featured in Netflix hit documentary Making a Murderer has joked about his newfound heartthrob status.

Jerry Buting and Dean Strang feature in the series which charts the 2007 trial of Steven Avery for murder in Wisconsin.

Both were defence lawyers for Avery and since the documentary landed in December they've garnered quite a following.

Speaking to Ivan Yates on Newstalk on Friday, Buring joked about the fact they're now considered superstars and have even gained romantic admirers.

"That's been kind of amusing because we didn't or don't act any differently than we normally do in any case," he said.

"The internet heartthrob stuff is very unexpected."

He joked, "Our wives are quite amused by the prospect that all these other people are I guess discovering what they've already known for years."

However, he said it's not the best thing to come out of the series being such a hit.

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"It's flattering but it's not really the most important outcome of this," he said.

"The thing I like the most is when I hear from young people in college and law school that they want to be a criminal defence attorney and do what we do like we do it.

"That's nice. If we are in any way inspiring people to see this as a noble profession, it's like a vocation to me, then I think that alone is worthwhile."

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Fantasy epic Game of Thrones has been brought to life in a surreal parody for the stage.

Graeme of Thrones features all the gore, sex and nonsense that would keep any Game Of Thrones fan happy.

It follows the story of Graeme, who is unhappy with how his beloved books were realised for the TV series and has taken it upon himself to show how the epic set in the world of Westeros should have unravelled.

He doesn't quite have the same budget as the series which was partially filmed in Ireland, or as many talented cast members, but he's sure series' author George RR Martin would approve.

Featuring a family tree wider than The Wall and more subplots than anyone can follow, it's an unauthorised parody of the international phenomenon.

The show, created by a team of some of the UK's top comedy writers, is being described as a rollercoaster ride of beheadings, incest and war.

The creative team for the show includes Toby Park and award-winning writer Jon Brittain. Park's physical comedy company Spymonkey has produced other projects including Mack & Mabel starring Michael Ball. Jon Brittain won a Bafta award for Margaret Thatcher Queen of Soho.

Graeme of Thrones will be in Dublin for one night at The Olympia Theatre in April. Tickets, costing 29 including booking fee, go on sale on January 29 via Ticketmaster.
Garda divers resume their search at Ardclough Canal where the dismembered body of Kenneth OBrien was found. Photo: Collins

Gardai are to release a detailed description of the suitcase in which the body of murder victim Kennneth O'Brien was discovered in an effort to gather more insight into his murder and disappearance.

The gardai are trying to pin down when O'Brien left his home for the final time last Friday as they believe it is crucial to their inquiries to find his brutal killer.

Mr O'Brien, whose torso was found in a suitcase in the Grand Canal at Ardclough in north Kildare on Saturday afternoon, was alone at his house in Lealand Road, Clondalkin, in west Dublin.

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His partner had already left for work in the family car and detectives are now trying to establish if the 33-year-old was collected by somebody outside his home or was meeting him nearby.

Mr O'Brien had told his partner the previous night that he was travelling outside Dublin the next day for a job.

Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Kenneth OBrien Garda divers at the scene in the Grand Canal where the body of Kenneth OBrien was found. Collins Dublin, Gareth Chaney Members of the Gardai at the scene in the Grand Canal where the body of Kenneth OBrien was found. Collins Dublin, Gareth Chaney / Facebook

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But gardai do not think he left the capital.

They are anxious to determine when he left the house on either Friday morning or early afternoon as they have to trawl through a huge amount of CCTV footage in the surrounding area.

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Officers hope the footage will either show Mr O'Brien as he walked away from his estate or being picked up in a vehicle.

It is believed a feared west Dublin criminal is also being probed over a possible link to the murder.

However, this is just one line of inquiry in what is being called an "extremely complex case which keeps on throwing up new information."

Gardai are also investigating whether sinister threats were made to a woman known to Mr O'Brien (33) and other people known to him in the weeks before he was brutally murdered.

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"New pieces of information are coming in all the time and over 50 new lines of inquiry have opened up in the last 24 hours," a source explained.

Gardai will launch a reconstruction of events at the Ardclough stretch of the canal this evening and tomorrow and intend to stop cars and walkers to find out if they have been in that area last weekend.

And officers will release a detailed description of the suitcase in which the torso was found as they try to find out if it had been purchased recently or had gone missing from someone's home.

One of the senior officers told the Irish Independent last night he was "quietly confident" that the killer would be caught.

But he warned that the investigation was likely to be a lengthy one unless they gathered fresh intelligence.

He predicted that if they got a break in their inquiries, it would be significant. He said that several hundred lines of inquiry were being pursued.
Anglo Irish Bank had difficulty processing transactions amounting to 7.2bn between it and Irish Life & Permanent (IL&P) because it had run out of money to make its normal daily payments, a jury has heard.

The purpose of the transactions between Anglo and IL&P in September 2008 was so that a corporate deposit of 6bn to 7bn would be reported in Anglo's year-end figures.

Non-bank, or corporate, deposits have a greater value from the point of view of the market as they are considered "stickier" or more secure, the trial has heard.

Anglo's former director of treasury, Matt Cullen, was giving evidence on the second day of the trial of former Anglo executives John Bowe (52), from Glasnevin, Dublin; William McAteer (65), of Greenrath, Tipperary town, Co Tipperary; and former IL&P executives Denis Casey (56), of Raheny, and Peter Fitzpatrick (63), of Malahide, both Dublin.

They have all denied conspiring to mislead existing and potential investors, lenders and depositors by engaging in transactions between Anglo Irish Bank, IL&P and Irish Life Assurance to make Anglo appear 7.2bn better off than it was.

Mr Cullen said the executive directors of the bank were aware of the purpose of the transactions and he assumed the board was also aware. He also told Dublin Circuit Criminal Court that Anglo discovered after close of business on September 29, 2008, that it would not have enough funding to make its payment schedule the following day.

He said the bank managed to secure emergency funding of "1.2bn or 1.3bn or 1.4bn" from the Central Bank so it could make its payments on September 30. He said the Central Bank was not informed of Anglo's plans to complete "6bn or 7bn" in transactions with IL&P.

Mr Cullen told the court the bank guarantee scheme was introduced that night and on September 30, 2008 "billions, three or four billion was coming in" to Anglo.

On September 25, 2008, Mr Cullen said it was planned that Stg900m would be transferred from Anglo Isle of Man to IL&P and then back to Anglo, through Irish Life Assurance. He said this money was to be on deposit in Anglo for only a few days, but it "had to be over the year end".

He said he spoke to his colleague Ciaran McArdle, who had been directed to complete the transaction, and told him he'd "done so much and couldn't do any more".

He also said he informed Mr Bowe about how much had been done and it was decided they'd try again the next day.

Mr Cullen said he couldn't recall if the Stg 900m transaction was completed on September 26 or September 27. He said the transactions continued on September 29, 2008 and it was to be done "in 1bn lots". He added that market conditions were extremely tough and for the first time ever Anglo "blocked" the system, as it didn't have enough money.

Mr Cullen said funds came onto the market later on September 29 and Anglo was able to make its payments, but was unable to do the "tranches of 1bn".

He said the bank guarantee was "extremely positive right across the Irish market", and while he was unsure of the exact deposit figure, he said "billions, three or four billion was coming in" to Anglo.

He also said he did not have any direct knowledge that the Anglo board was told about the transactions.
A JEALOUS wife has been found guilty of assaulting a woman her husband brought home after he told the victim he was in an open relationship.

Kay Sealy was enraged to find Charlotte Akomfrah in her home and threw the victims shoes at her leaving the young woman with a cut to her head.

Ms Akomfrah (27) had been out in the city centre on work drinks on the night of August 30, 2014.

Tallaght District Court heard how she and Sealys husband, Ciaran Sealy, had been flirting and he asked her to come home with him.

She asked if Mr Sealy was married and he said he was in an open relationship, Ms Akomfrah said in her testimony.

Ms Akomfrah said she got a taxi to Tallaght with Mr Sealy in the early hours of August 31.

She said they had been kissing when they arrived at his house at Deerpark Place and she later went to the bathroom.

There was a tug on the handle of the door.

When I came out I heard a woman screaming, calling me names, calling me a bitch. She started hitting me. I was so shocked.

She kept on hitting me. She started hitting me with my shoes. I was crying out please stop, Im sorry, I didnt know.

I saw a man standing in the doorway. I asked him to help me. He just shook his head. I made it out onto the street. I saw my head was pumping blood. I rang an ambulance.

She said she was taken to hospital and later reported the incident in Blackrock Garda Station.

Under cross-examination by Ms Sealys lawyer, Michael Hennessy, Ms Akomfrah denied that she had been completely naked.

He put it to her that she hadnt been hit over the head with her shoes and that the lodger in the house had thrown the shoes out the door.

Ms Akomfrah told Mr Hennessy that she did not have a good memory of the incident.

Christopher Merriman, the Sealys lodger, he had heard noise from downstairs and that he saw Ms Akomfrah standing nude.

She was asking for help. I told her to put her clothes on and to leave. Kay just pushed her out the door. She threw her shoes out and then Kay and Ciaran had a bit of an argument, Mr Merriman said.

Kay Sealy (35), of Deerpark Place, Tallaght, had pleaded not guilty to assaulting Ms Akomfrah causing her harm.

She told the court that she heard some noise from the sitting room. She said she thought the injured party was a burglar. She said she found her husband in his jeans and Ms Akomfrah in just her underwear.

I asked her to get out. She refused. I must have asked her to leave ten times. She just wouldnt leave. She asked Christopher for help. She turned around and said I want my shoes. She said she pushed Ms Akomfrah out the door.

The Solicitor for the DPP asked Ms Sealy to explain how Ms Akomfrah got a cut on the head.

I presume it was when I threw the shoes. If I was in somebody elses house and was asked to leave. I would get out fast, she said.

Asking Judge Coughlan to acquit his client, Mr Hennessy said no wife in Ireland would have acted differently.

The villain of the piece was not before the court, he added.

Judge Coughlan said the defendant was charged with assault and the injured party had received a cut to the head.

He found Sealy guilty and fined her 75.
Anti Austerity Alliance TD Paul Murphy who faces charges of falsely imprisoning Tanaiste Joan Burton during a water charges protest in Jobstown is to seek a trial at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court.

Counsel for Mr Murphy indicated to the court that the defence was anxious for further disclosure but that his client would be seeking a trial date on the next occasion.

Ms Burton and her entourage had left a graduation event at An Cosan Education Centre at Jobstown, Tallaght when a demonstration was held which delayed her for about two hours on November 15th, 2014.

She and her team had been attempting to travel by car to St Thomas Church for the rest of the ceremony when it is alleged violence broke out.

Mr Murphy (32) with an address at The Copse, Woodpark, Ballinteer appeared at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court along with 18 others, some facing charges of false imprisonment and violent disorder.

Among the group of accused are Dublin Councillor Kieran Mahon (38) of Bolbrook Grove, Tallaght and Anti Austerity Alliance Councillor Michael Murphy (50) of Whitechurch Way, Ballyboden.

Tony McGillicuddy BL, prosecuting, asked Judge Melanie Greally to remand all accused to appear again in court on March 7 for arraignment.

Mr McGillicuddy submitted that a number of the accused were seeking trial dates, some wished for arraignment dates and that some defense counsel were looking for more disclosure.

He said the best approach is to keep matters together at this stage as a trial with 19 people might not be feasible.

Judge Melanie Greally granted senior counsel in all cases, apart from Cllr Mahon to whom legal aid has not been assigned yet.

She remanded Mr Murphy and all his co-accused on continuing bail to appear on Monday March 7 next for his arraignment.
On a bitterly cold January evening in 2011, Brian Cowen posed outside Government Buildings with his wife Mary by his side.

Just moments earlier, it was announced that the Fianna Fail parliamentary party had passed a motion of confidence in the then Taoiseach.

Among those who challenged Cowen's faltering leadership were two of his own Cabinet members - Micheal Martin and Mary Hanafin.

Martin, who would later succeed Cowen as leader, quickly resigned as his Foreign Affairs Minister, telling reporters after the vote: "One has to make a stand."

Fives years on, the situation in Fianna Fail is very different.

But one trademark of Irish politics is that 'old wounds never truly heal'.

And the sentiment behind the phrase coined by the novelist George R.R. Martin surfaced within the Fianna Fail party this week.

The decision by Mary Cowen to launch an astonishing attack on Ms Hanafin stems from the Dun Laoghaire councillor's decision to oppose the motion of confidence in her husband, party sources say.

Defied

The two Fianna Fail women have not properly spoken since the day Ms Hanafin sided with Mr Martin and defied their party leader.

Ms Cowen's remarks on Facebook suggest that she is bitter over Ms Hanafin's resurgence within the Fianna Fail fold.

Ms Hanafin's growing prominence within the party, as well as her regular media appearances, appear to have struck a chord.

And Ms Cowen is by no means alone in holding those views. The party is deeply divided over Ms Hanafin's newly found role within the party.

Some, many of whom are frontbench members, wish she would just get off the pitch and stop making criticisms of modern day Fianna Fail.

A growing number of other party members, however, including two senior TDs, privately say they agree with Ms Hanafin's position on being open about the prospect of a Fianna Fail/Fine Gael coalition after the General Election.

Ms Cowen's intervention has made one thing clear. The party remains deeply fragmented and torn, with different dynasties still holding sway.

But with an election just weeks away, the spat between these Fianna Fail families will only achieve one thing - playing into the hands of Fine Gael.
Public Expenditure Minister Brendan Howlin has launched a scathing attack on Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin saying he is the arch revisionist who abandoned Brian Lenihan as the economic crisis was developing in 2011.

The Labour Party minister claimed Mr Martin thinks the later stages of the Fianna Fail-Green Party government were the halcyon days.

Expand Close Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin. Photo: Mark Condren / Facebook

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He wants to rewrite history. That his Government was on top of things.

That he and the late Brian Lenihan worked hand in hand. Hardly, he said at the launch of Kildare South candidate Mark Walls election campaign. Mr Wall is replacing his father Jack, whom Mr Howlin described as a gentleman to his fingertips.

But during his speech to Kildare members this evening, Mr Howlin ridiculed Mr Martins record when Fianna Fail was in Government.

He ran away in the hour of need and put his own political future before that of the country, Mr Howlin said.

He was no ally of Brian Lenihan. He left him in the lurch, Mr Howlin said.

Mr Howlin went on to describe Mr Martin as the Bobby Ewing of Irish politics.

So the people of Ireland need to be wary. They are being asked to choose between stability and instability.

The kind of instability that has prevented the formation of a Government in Spain.

The kind of instability that prevents that Spain tackling an unemployment problem that is crippling that country and the lives of their young people in particular.

Instability is the enemy of progress, he said.

Mr Howlin concluded: Fianna Fail offer only a return to the days so bad that Micheal Martin pretends to have forgotten them.

But the Irish people havent forgotten and they wont let Fianna Fail do so either, he added.
The flu season could last for another two months - leaving hospital emergency departments grappling with serious levels of overcrowding for weeks to come, it emerged yesterday.

Nationally, 492 patients were languishing on trolleys waiting for beds yesterday, with 113 moved to wards in a bid to bring some relief to congested emergency departments.

And hundreds of other patients were also forced to stay at home after their surgery was cancelled in order to free up beds in a number of hospitals including Cork University Hospital and the Mater Hospital.

Fergal Hickey, spokesman for emergency consultants, warned that the flu season, which is adding to the trolley gridlock, is only beginning and could last for another eight weeks.

Five people have already died from the effects of flu this winter and three patients with the flu were admitted to critical care last week.

There was an increase in flu cases among the over-65s and young children.

Mr Hickey said appeals by hospitals asking people to go to their GP if possible will have little or no impact because the sickest patients needing a bed will have to come to the emergency department.

"These are not a group of patients who can be diverted elsewhere. It keeps getting preached," he said.

However, he admitted that some of the patients whose surgery is being postponed may end up in the emergency department after developing complications.

"The key thing is that we have too few beds. We need to deal with this and stop hoping the problem will go away."

The HSE's figures showed that 188 patients were waiting more than nine hours.

Health Minister Leo Varadkar conceded that hospitals are becoming overwhelmed and he could not rule out a worsening in overcrowding in the coming weeks.

He said the demand was unprecedented, with a 10pc rise in attendances.

Although more beds are being brought onstream, they cannot keep pace with the numbers of patients who need admission, he added.

The minister said that patients whose surgery has been cancelled will not be put to the back of the queue and will be given priority to have the operations re-scheduled.

Beaumont Hospital in Dublin, Cork University Hospital and Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda were struggling yesterday with patients having to endure the blockages and jam-packed conditions for hours.

Other hospitals where patients had to brave overcrowding were University Hospital Galway, Sligo Regional Hospital and Limerick Hospital.
It is generally reported that these drugs can have serious side-effects both from a psychological and physical viewpoint Photo: Bloomberg

Young people who dabble in synthetic drugs sold online were warned yesterday they do so at their peril.

There is "no quality control" of these potentially lethal substances. Public health experts issued the alert after it emerged the dangerous drug, which left six young people hospitalised in Cork earlier this week, is known as the N-Bomb.

Dr Edel Duggan, Director of the National Poisons Unit in Beaumont Hospital in Dublin, said it has previous experience of being asked by emergency doctors for advice on how to treat users who suffer hallucinations and other major side-effects after taking this drug.

"If doctors have some idea of what it might be then we can give them information on how to treat the symptoms such as very high temperatures and the impact on the heart or kidneys," she added.

The HSE updated its warning about the 2C family of psychedelic phenethylamine designer drugs.

These include among others, 2CB, 2CP, 2CI and its derivative 25I-NBOMe.

"These drugs are also known by their street names, which include N-Bombs, Smiles, Solaris, 25-I, INB-Meo, and Cimbi-5.

"They can be sold in liquid, powder and tablet form and are consumed at parties or clubs for their stimulant, mood-altering and in some cases, aphrodisiac effect.

"However, it is generally reported that these drugs can have serious side-effects both from a psychological and physical viewpoint. Such side-effects include paranoia, hallucinations both auditory and visual, gastrointestinal effects and kidney problems."

The spokesman said that given the serious side-effects experienced by the young people in Cork, the HSE Addiction service is warning about possible contaminated "party pills".

The confidential HSE Drugs and Alcohol Helpline is at freephone 1800 459 459 or email helpline@hse.ie or ww.drugs.ie.
Nikki Murphy has received nine rejection letters from local schools for son Reuben (R) Credit: Education Equality

Religious discrimination in Irish schools was front page news today as one mothers struggle to get her son an education in a state-funded primary school was featured by the New York Times.

The international edition of the newspaper, which is one of the most read dailies in the world, ran a front-page story about Reuben, a five-year-old Irish boy who has been rejected by nine local schools in south Dublin because he is not baptised.

Reubens frustrated mother Nikki Murphy (36) spoke about the story earlier today with RTEs Ray DArcy, and said while she appreciated the coverage it means nothing if I cant get [my son] into school.

Its a bittersweet day... Ive gotten a lot of phone calls and emails but hasnt affected anything  I still dont have a school place for Reuben.

For as great as all this publicity is it doesnt change the fact that Im struggling to find a place for him.

Ms Murphy defer Reubens schooling until 2016 after she received nine rejection letters from local schools last year, rejections she says where because he is not baptised.

Almost all state-funded primary schools in Ireland fall under the jurisdiction of the Catholic Church, and, under Irish law, the Church is allowed to consider its religious ethos when deciding admissions.

As a practical matter, this often leads to parents baptising their children simply to secure a place at a nearby local school.

Speaking on the Ray DArcy Show, Ms Murphy said she had received on Thursday the first school rejection letter for 2016, and said she was not confident that the 15 other applications she sent out would come back any differently.

I honestly dont blame anyone for getting their child baptised just to get a school place, Ms Murphy continued.

Were a non-religious family, we dont have Reuben, or his little brother, baptised so for that reason he is at the bottom of the enrolment category in each of our local schools.

Its very stressful because he knows that his friends went off to school last year and he didnt.

Expand Close Reuben (R) and and his brother Roscoe (L) CreditL Education Equality / Facebook

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[Reuben] has even started to pretend that hes going to school [because] he knows hes being left behind.

My son is barely five, he doesnt care about religious ethos, he cares about paw patrol.

Ms Murphy went on to dismiss claims that incidents such as Reubens were not commonplace, saying that Education Equality, a group which campaigns for the end of religious discrimination in State-funded school, was constantly being contacted by concerned parents.

They say its anecdotal, that it only affects about 20 pc of schools but these are real people, real families have to deal with this.

Everyone has their own stuff going on and this is just added pressure.

Criticising the Government for dodging the issue, Ms Murphy continued: The State is suppose to provide free education to everyone these are 100 pc state-funded schools.

The teachers pay, the lightening bill, the heating bill, the maintenance, the classrooms theyre building on that Reuben wouldnt be able to go into these are all paid by taxes, my taxes and Im not getting any kind of refund because theyre not letting [my son] go to school.
What had begun with a phone call from an angry victim quickly evolved into a campaign that forced the issue of rural crime onto the national agenda - and the agenda of the forthcoming general election.

Tipperary businessman John Tully contacted the Irish Independent to complain that his area had become plagued by burglars. His shop had been targeted twice in less than 14 months by thieves who broke in through the roof.

Mr Tully organised a group of local farmers, businessmen and citizens from the village of Littleton and its hinterland to gather together to highlight their plight. And the story they had to tell was extraordinary.

Over the previous three years, practically every business premises, farmhouse and private dwelling within a 10-mile radius of the tiny hamlet on the old Cork to Dublin road had been burgled at least once, with many of them targeted on multiple occasions. The village, 8km from Thurles, has been repeatedly hit by travelling criminal gangs since it was bypassed by the M8.

The residents group had catalogued over 50 incidents in the previous 12 months alone. Every premises in the village of Littleton, population around 400, had either an attempted break-in or an actual robbery.

Local parish priest Fr Joe Tynan told how not even the deceased members of the community were exempt.

"This crimewave is destroying the community because people feel very vulnerable, people feel powerless - and I suppose that is how I feel myself," Fr Tynan admitted.

"This problem began about three years ago and has escalated ever since. The candle shrines in the church are regularly being broken into using bolt cutters, and flowers and personal items are constantly being taken off graves."

The group expressed their utter frustration that most of the crimes remained unsolved. They blame the chronic lack of garda resources and a lack of support by garda management for the village's only officer.

The sheer volume of thefts meant that many businesses and homeowners could no longer afford rising insurance premiums.

Michael Clohessy, who owns the local garage, clutched a sheaf of garda 'crime victim' letters to illustrate how often he had been targeted by criminals.

"Each time I am robbed, I get great help from our local garda - but he is one man on his own and he is snowed under. The guards don't have the resources to deal with this any more," he said.

What should have been a wake-up call for the Garda Commissioner and the Justice Minister was that these concerned, law-abiding citizens had lost faith in the ability of the gardai to protect them.

When the Irish Independent ran the first of many stories on the subject in August, the overwhelming public response quickly showed that Littleton represented a microcosm of what was happening right across rural Ireland.

Initially, it seemed that no one in either garda headquarters or the Government seemed to have noticed the problem.

The Irish Independent met the victims of crime across the country and everywhere we went they blamed the rural crime epidemic on garda station closures and a lack of resources for the force.

A depressing picture began to emerge of whole counties having only a handful of gardai on duty at any one time, with barely enough gardai to man the squad cars which, after years of neglect, were clapped out and incapable of pursuing robbers in their high-powered getaway vehicles.

In particular, our reports busted the myth of 'community policing' and exposed the rhetoric of the garda top brass, who proclaimed the force to be a "community-centred" service.

The truth is that in most rural communities, residents no longer know the local gardai, whom they only ever see when a crime has occurred - or they are stopped for speeding.

All of these factors were made abundantly clear by the 3,000-plus citizens who attended two 'monster' meetings in Tipperary and Meath in October and November, under the theme 'Save our Communities'.

The men and women of rural Ireland held microphones in faltering hands as they shared harrowing stories of being robbed and terrorised in their homes. They spoke of living in fear and having a gun beside the bed. When asked would they condone the shooting of an intruder by a homeowner with his licensed firearm, there was no equivocation in the show of raised hands from the people in Tipperary and the northeast.

Mary, an elderly lady living alone in Tipperary, told a particularly poignant story to the hushed audience crammed into the function room of the Anner Hotel in Thurles. She said her peaceful world had been thrown into chaos after a burglary at her home. Her voice trembled as she described not being able to sleep at night and keeping a shotgun beside her bed.

The display of people power sent a shiver of fear through the collective spine of the current Government - especially Fine Gael, whose original support base was the farming class.

There is a perception that the grassroots supporters have been forgotten about.

The law-abiding, loyal citizens are angry that they have been taken for granted by a Government that put the economy before the people it serves. The people of rural Ireland believe their way of life is under threat and that their plight has been ignored. When gangs of feral thugs began taking advantage of an under-resourced garda force and descended on the countryside to rob, it was the final insult.

Behind closed doors, there has been a concerted effort, especially on the part of the Garda Commissioner and her deputies, to bury the rural crime narrative. In off-the-record briefings to journalists, both the commissioner and her political master have been claiming that concerns over rural crime were merely hype promulgated by this newspaper.

But whatever about her private assertions, in public Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald felt compelled to announce three times the same piece of proposed legislation cracking down on repeat burglars.

There was also a rush to announce the purchase of a new fleet of high-powered squad cars to tackle the motorway bandits - which turned out to be nothing more than replacements for existing vehicles that were ready for the scrapyard.

And then the minister and her commissioner, who both believe there is really no problem with rural crime, announced the launch of the 5m Operation Thor, designed to target burglary gangs. It is only scheduled to last until April - when the election will be safely out of the way.
Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald remains under fire over her excuses for limiting the scope of a review of snooping laws.

The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) said the minister's reasons for limiting the review to the accessing of the phone and internet records of journalists was "implausible".

The independent human rights watchdog said the review should be widened to take in the use of snooping laws against all members of the public and not just journalists.

The former chief justice John Murray has been given three months to conduct the review, which was sparked by revelations the Garda Siochana Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) accessed the phone records of two reporters while investigating an alleged garda leak.

Ms Fitzgerald said she did not order Mr Justice Murray to look at the wider application of snooping laws as "it would have delayed resolving the specific issue about journalistic records that has given rise to concern".

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However, ICCL executive director Mark Kelly insisted the argument made by the minister was "implausible". He called for Mr Justice Murray's terms of reference to be expanded.

"The former judge has been asked to review the legislative framework of the 2011 Data Retention Act and that Act makes no distinction whatsoever between accessing and retaining the communications data of journalists and that of other people," said Mr Kelly.

"In other words, the former judge has been asked only to review the adequacy of the law, not to scrutinise the many thousands of times it is used annually to compromise the privacy of journalists and the public at large.

"Consequently, artificially restricting his terms of reference to the law's use to snoop on journalists will not reduce the time needed for his review, but will diminish the value of his findings."

The most up-to-date snooping figures show that An Garda Siochana, GSOC, the Defence Forces and the Revenue Commissioners made 8,622 requests for access to personal phone and internet records in 2014.

GSOC maintained its silence on the issue yesterday and has issued no comment since the snooping revelations emerged last week.

However, GSOC commissioners may be forced to speak on the issue publicly soon at the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Public Service Oversight and Petitions. Labour senator Susan O'Keeffe, a former journalist, said she "absolutely" believes GSOC should be brought before the committee before the General Election is called.

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"I would obviously be very concerned about any surveillance of phones of anybody and particularly of journalists - not just because I was one," said Senator O'Keeffe.

"We know that we recognise the value and the power of the fourth estate and the need to ensure that journalists can pursue their work without having to reveal their sources."

Independent TD John Halligan also said a GSOC representative should face questioning from TDs and senators before the Dail is dissolved.

"This is such a huge issue with journalists and the media that I don't think that this can go six weeks through an election campaign and maybe another three or four weeks before they form a government without some finality being brought to this as to what's happening, how it's happening, who has agreed to it, and how it is monitored".

The committee's chairman, Sinn Fein TD Padraig MacLochlainn, said it would be "helpful" if GSOC made a statement clarifying their position.

But he said that ultimately it was up to TDs to resolve the issue by amending legislation so that authorities would need the approval of a judge before getting access to phone and internet records.
NewsBrands Ireland, the representative organisation for 16 national newspapers, has welcomed the decision by Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald to establish a review of laws under which journalists' phone records have been accessed by authorities.

The organisation said it looked forward to providing its views to Mr Justice John Murray, who has been appointed to carry out the review.

It said its clear position was that the current legislative framework breaches the right to freedom of expression guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights because it does not adequately protect the sources and privacy of journalists.

"It is a disturbing feature of the legislation that journalists do not know if their private information has been sought and accessed," NewsBrands Ireland said in a statement.

NewsBrands Ireland also called on Ms Fitzgerald, An Garda Siochana, the Garda Siochana Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) and the other bodies involved to clarify how many access requests have been made and granted, who the journalists involved are, and why this was felt to be necessary and appropriate.

Meanwhile the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) met with GSOC commissioners yesterday to discuss its concerns.

In a statement, the NUJ said it remained of the view that access to the telephone records and other data of citizens by statutory agencies should be on foot of an application made before a High Court judge and that such applications should be justified on the basis of a public interest test.
A senator who has seen burglars attempt to break into her home five times in the past two years has vowed to reopen her local Garda station if she is elected to the Dail.

Fianna Fail candidate Mary White said thieves have attempted to force their way in to her Dublin home on countless occasions.

However, she said that the incidents are now occurring more often since Stepaside Garda Station closed in 2013. "The amount of people who have been affected is extraordinary," said Ms White.

"We need to see gardai on the beat, we need a garda presence," she added.

"It was a folly to close Stepaside Garda Station."

Ms White said that burglars attempted to break in to her home five times in the past two years while she was lying in bed at night.

The areas around her home in South County Dublin have seen crime increase by 42pc since September 2014.

North Dublin has also seen a spate of burglaries recently, including three in Clontarf and one in Coolock on Saturday.

She said that she has been forced to take precautions to protect her home. "I have a sliding door and they tried to break that," said Ms White.

"It was broken once before but I have a new one in now and they say it cannot be broken," she added.

"You need to have everything in place. You need alarms too and I tell the senior citizens not to answer their doors at night."

"A man was cutting my grass here a few weeks ago and someone was opportunistic took all of the tools from his van.

"Senior citizens feel very vulnerable."
A young father has been forced to spend the night away from his wife and their newborn daughter after being evicted from the Woodland Park illegal halting site in Dundalk.

The baby was born last Friday as her parents' caravan was being moved to a disused car park.

Louth County Council was acting on foot of a fire and safety audit of the site last October.

Yesterday, the new mother said: "I can't stay here with the baby. I have to bring her back down to my mum's in Dublin because she has a house. It feels very bad, you are meant to be together with your first baby. It is not nice."

Her husband said the day he found out he was to become a father was "the happiest day of my life". But he has spent recent nights in a B&B, which he will have to leave today.

"If I got a house, I'd take it today, with the kid and things, I'd love a house today," he said.

In a statement, the council said: "Discussions are ongoing. The short to medium-term accommodation solutions proposed to the Traveller representatives on Tuesday are still being considered by the families."
PARALYMPICS Ireland has set a target of eight to 10 medals for September's games in Rio, writes Cliona Foley.

That is a substantial drop from the record 16 medals our Paralympians won at London 2012, including eight golds.

But CEO Liam Harbison said that retirements and the deletion of some events from the programme mean 10 is a realistic target this time.

"In high performance sport medals, unfortunately, are the main factor we are judged on," he acknowledged.

"In Athens we won four medals, no golds. In Beijing we won five, three gold. Suddenly we had 16 in London where we had targeted 17. That was obviously magnificent but it was exceptional and people need to understand that it is still extremely hard to win medals."

Paralympics Ireland are currently in talks with RTE to try to secure daily television coverage from Rio. The team will be announced on July 5.
At least 10 Fianna Fail members have been ejected from a social media forum amid suspicions they may have "leaked" details of a series of controversial posts by the wife of former Taoiseach Brian Cowen.

It emerged this week that Mary Cowen used a private Fianna Fail members page on Facebook to launch an extraordinary attack on former Education Minister Mary Hanafin.

In a series of posts, copies of which were obtained by the Irish Independent, Ms Cowen warned party leader Micheal Martin to "watch his back" in relation to Ms Hanafin's revival within the party. Ms Cowen, who is still an active member of the party, also criticised remarks made by Ms Hanafin following the party's Ard Fheis.

The Dun Laoghaire election candidate claimed that she has been approached by grassroots members encouraging her to "influence" party policy. But Ms Cowen took major issue with the remarks on the Facebook page, which has almost 1,400 members: "Have just read the Irish Independent and I see an article about Mary Hanifin (sic) stating that Fianna Fail members have called on her to influence party policy."

The Facebook post continues, claiming that Ms Hanafin is "not elected yet and she is running the party".

And it adds: "Micheal Martin better watch his back as there wouldn't be to (sic) much loyalty there!!!!!!"

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The posts by Ms Cowen were later deleted after she learned that the remarks had been picked up by the media.

Neither Ms Cowen or Ms Hanafin have commented on the row.

A Fianna Fail spokesman said that the party has "no role in the administration of the Facebook group which is currently subject to media reports".

But it has emerged that administrators of the group have ejected at least 10 members from the forum amid suspicion they were behind the alleged leak to this newspaper.

"There is clearly a witch hunt on to find the leaker," one Fianna Fail Oireachtas member said last night.

In a series of posts on Wednesday night, moderators of the site said the individuals were removed from the page while there was an "investigation".

"Some members will be removed from the page pending further investigation," a message stated.

Fianna Fail sources believe Ms Cowen's attack on Ms Hanafin stems from the former TD's decision to oppose a vote of confidence in Mr Cowen in 2011.

Mr Martin also voted against his predecessor.

Neither Ms Cowen or Ms Hanafin have spoken at length since the vote, according to the same sources.

Ms Hanafin, who is contesting the Dun Laoighaire constituency alongside her council colleague Cormac Devlin, has infuriated many frontbench TDs in recent months following her comments about the party.

However, several deputies privately agree wholeheartedly with her claims that the party should not rule out Fine Gael as a potential coalition partner.
Garda divers resume their search at Ardclough Canal where the dismembered body of Kenneth OBrien was found. Photo: Collins

Gardai search for evidence close to where the dismembered body of Kenneth OBrien was found at the weekend. Photos: Colin Keegan

It is a grisly and chilling image: a body dismembered and dumped in a canal.

Kenneth O'Brien suffered an unthinkable fate, but most shockingly this has happened here before.

Killers hope that dismembered and decomposing bodies will never be found. And if they are, detectives are often hampered in their investigations.

The shocking murder of Kenyan national Farah Swaleh Noor in March 2005 was one such murder, carried out by so-called 'Scissor Sisters' Charlotte and Linda Mulhall.

Charlotte stabbed Noor up to 20 times with a kitchen knife at her mother's home at Richmond Cottage, Ballybough, North Dublin, while older sister Linda later admitted hitting him "a good few times" on the head with a claw hammer.

The women then spent hours sawing up his body before dumping his remains in the Royal Canal and taking his head on the bus to Tallaght, where it was hidden in a park before being moved. Farah's head was never found. Both women denied the murder but were convicted, and sentenced to life in prison.

Dumped

In July 2001 another woman was linked to the brutal murder of 21-year-old Romanian Adrian Bestea.

He was murdered after girlfriend Marina Sourovtzeva (31) hired three fellow Russians on O'Connell Street to teach Bestea "a lesson" for his violent attacks on her.

The men beat him for four hours at her home at Strand Road in Sandymount before killing him with a blow from a wheel brace.

The following day Mr Bestea's body was crammed into a suitcase and taken by bus to Drumcondra where they dumped it into the Royal Canal. Sourovtzeva was jailed for two years.

The death of Mr Bestea came just 18 months after the brutal gangland murders of Patrick Murray (19) and Darren Carey (20).

The men went missing from Ballyfermot just days before 1999 drew to a close. Both had been blasted in the head with a shotgun on the Aylmer Bridge on the Grand Canal in north Kildare.

Their bodies were then chucked into the water, gardai recovering their remains in mid-January 2000.

A man was charged with the murders but the case was dropped by the DPP the following year.
It is generally reported that these drugs can have serious side-effects both from a psychological and physical viewpoint Photo: Bloomberg

THE HSE has issued a new warning over the drug 25I-NBOMe, which it has warned is extremely potent and easy to overdose on.

25I-NBOMe, with a street name of N-bomb, was behind the hospitalisation of six people in Cork earlier this week.

It is also believed to have resulted in the hospitalisation of six students from a Dublin college in 2014.

An 18-year-old man remains in hospital fighting for life after consuming the drug.

The HSE has warned members of the public that the N-bomb drug can have very serious side effects  especially when snorted as it becomes extremely potent.

Experts have warned that just one line of the drug snorted could prove lethal.

It has been linked to several deaths internationally.

The EU issued a warning on the increasing use of the drug in 2014.

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Side effects of the consumption of the drug routinely include paranoia, hallucinations, stomach problems and kidney problems.

The HSE warned that there is no quality control on drugs and that they are frequently contaminated with impurities.

Young people are advised that there is no quality control on these drugs. There are problems with purity and contaminants, and there is no way of checking that what is purchased or consumed is the intended substance.

Given the serious side-effects experienced by the young people in Cork, the HSE Addiction services are issuing a warning about possible contaminated party pills and advise people not to consume any unknown substances that they are offered at this time, it said.
A Dublin teenager with a rare syndrome affecting her nervous system is keen to help others with the same diagnosis.

Teegan Bracken O'Reilly (15), from Tallaght, was diagnosed with Moebius Syndrome when she was just 18-months.

The syndrome means that she is unable to make facial expressions and has had to have several surgeries to correct her feet.

Challenges

Despite the challenges the teen is gearing up to sit her Leaving Cert next year and is keen to help others diagnosed with the rare condition.

During the summer the family were shocked to discover that one of only a handful of people with the condition in Ireland also lives in Tallaght.

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Toddler Dexter Purtill Fennell (3) was also diagnosed at 18 months when he had trouble feeding.

Both families have now set up an Irish support group and will host their first official meet-up this Sunday in the Red Cow at 3pm.

"Teegan is brilliant with Dexter. Before she met him she was a little bit more self-conscious but she has since become more mature and she knows that she wants to help these children as they're growing up," the teen's proud mum Lesley told the Herald.

"There are no doctors who specialise in the condition in Ireland, so we've had to rely on getting in touch with families in the UK and the US and now we want to help any Irish families affected."

The symptoms of the condition, which affects the cranial nerves, can range from limb deformity to night terrors and problems with balance and co-ordination.

Recognised

Down the line the two families are hoping to fundraise for more research into the condition, which Lesley suspects may be under-diagnosed.

Sunday marks a world awareness day for sufferers of Moebius Syndrome and this will be the first time it's been officially recognised in Ireland.

Anyone who would like to get in touch with the newly formed group can contact them on moebiussyndromireland@gmail.com
Habsburg splendour: The magnificent city of Budapest was the starting point for a magical cruise on the Danube through four countries.

Holiday World takes place in the RDS Simmonscourt from Friday 22nd January to Sunday, 24th January. Picture: Arthur Carron

Holiday World takes place in the RDS Simmonscourt from January 22 to 24. Models Kerri-Nicole and Nathan are pictured with Eddie McGuinness, who is launching this years The Outing, LGBT match making at this years Match Making festival in Lisdoonvarna. Photo: Arthur Carron

Holiday World has kicked off in Dublin's RDS, with an exuberant travel trade predicting its best January in years.

The annual travel and holiday show takes place at the RDS Simmonscourt in Dublin from Friday, January 22 to Sunday, January 24.

Some ITAA members have seen a sales increase of 40pc so far this month, compared with last years figures," said Pat Dawson, CEO of the ITAA.

The good business, and several new arrivals - including a Canadian Pavilion, Manchester City FC and stalls from Barbados, Texas and the Czech Republic among others - had spirits high this morning.

The show is an excellent opportunity to shop around and nab a holiday discount - but you need to work smart, rather than hard, to get the best results.

Here are some tips to get you started:

Have a plan of attack

Holiday World is a super one-stop-shop for browsing and booking holidays, with over 1,000 travel professionals from 50 countries on hand to have a chat... a welcome change from hours of frustrating research online.

To spare your fatigue, have a plan of attack. Grab a programme and figure out which stalls you want to hit, and what questions you want answered.

Ask the experts

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Award-winning travel journalist Eoghan Corry is running a series of travel summits at Holiday World. He'll be joined by experts on topics ranging from The Americas to Cruises, Solo Holidays and Exotic Destinations. If you're planning a big trip, or honeymoon, these seminars are an excellent start... and they're free.

If you don't ask...

Holiday World is bursting with show-only discounts - but not all of them are trumpeted from the stalls. Exhibitors are wary of setting off mini-price wars under the RDS roof, so play the diplomatic card and ask what they're prepared to offer. One operator told me it would cut 100 off the price of any holiday booked at the show.

Get 10pc off the Camino

Speaking of discounts... Camino Ways is offering 10pc off all bookings on holidays in Spain, Portugal, Italy and Ireland made at the show. You can also get 2-for1 admission by downloading a special voucher from CaminoWays.com. Stand: K9.

Set sail with Stena

Stena Line has several show-only deals, including 20pc off certain sailings to Britain and 15pc off sailings to France. It's also got up to 40pc off hotel and ferry packages. See stenaline.ie/hwdublin for more. Stand: K12

Enter competitions

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What have you got to lose? Both TravelMood and American Holidays are giving away holiday vouchers worth 1,000, for example. You could also win hospitality match tickets to Man City's Etihad Stadium (above). Bring your lucky pen!

Travel Corporation tips

The Travel Corporation has several brands at Holiday World, and each has its own enticing offers. Insight Vacations has a 150 discount on show bookings, for example, while Contiki has 10pc off all trips anywhere in the world. Stands: E3/H10

Sunway savings

Sunway has heaps of holiday offers at its stand, starting from 299pp for a 3-star package to Kusadasi, Turkey. It also has vouchers offering savings of 150 off brochure prices on 2016 summer holidays in Europe. Stand: D7/D8

Consider a cruise

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MSC Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, Hurtigruten, Norwegian Cruise lines, Silversea Cruises and Royal Carribbean all have a presence at this year's show - and they're all angling for Irish business. Winter in the Med offers the best deals.

It's not just ocean cruises. Uniworld River Cruises has 2-for-1 offers plus a further 150 per booking discount if booked at the show. Stand: H10

Celebrity Cruises, which can be booked with Tour America (touramerica.ie), is offering free drinks packages, select European flights from 99pp and buy-one-get-one-half-price on select European sailings. Stand: B9/C9

Stay at home

Don't forget the holiday potential right here on our doorstep. From Kinsale to Kilkenny, Wicklow to Donegal, there's a huge range of Irish destinations - and each has their own offerings in terms of discounts, competitions and deals.

Holiday World is in its 27th year, and bumper January bookings see the organisers "confidently expect" an increase in visitor numbers.

For more info, see holidayworldshow.com.
Fahy Choice Worldwide staff members receiving their award for Travel Agency of the Year 2016. Left to Right are Tara Magee, British Airways; Maura Fahy, Caroline OToole and Clodagh Connolly of Fahy Travel; Martin Skelly, President ITAA.

Cassidy Travel and Fahy Travel Worldchoice were crowned ITAA Travel Agencies of the Year at the Irish Travel Industry Awards last night.

A lively and upbeat crowd at the Irish Travel Agents' Association's (ITAA) annual awards, hosted by RTE's Miriam O'Callaghan at the Mansion House in Dublin, was buoyed by news of "unprecedented" January bookings.

Some ITAA members have seen a sales increase of 40pc so far this month, compared with last years figures," said Pat Dawson, CEO of the ITAA.

"Many agents are reporting their best sales in seven years."

Eoghan Corry, editor of Travel Extra and Irish Independent contributor, received the Special Contribution to the Irish Travel Industry Award.

Atlas Travel Group won Best Corporate Travel Agency, while Clickandgo.com took the gong for Most Innovative Marketing Campaign for its 1 deposit offer, the only one of its kind in the travel industry in Ireland.

The full list of ITAA award winners:

Travel Agency of the Year (<10 employees): Fahy Travel Worldchoice

Fahy Travel Worldchoice Travel Agency of the Year (>10 employees): Cassidy Travel

Cassidy Travel Contribution to the Travel Industry: Eoghan Corry

Eoghan Corry Best Corporate Travel Professional: Karen Gleeson, FCm Travel Solutions

Karen Gleeson, FCm Travel Solutions Best Leisure Travel Professional: Liz Wright  Tour America

Liz Wright  Tour America Most Innovative Member Marketing Campaign: ClickandGo.com

ClickandGo.com Best Corporate Travel Agency: Atlas Travel Group

The gala event, held on the eve of Holiday World at the RDS (Jan. 22-24), also saw travel agents vote on a host of suppliers' awards.

The full list of suppliers' awards:

Best Airline to Europe: Aer Lingus

Aer Lingus Best Business Class Airline to Europe: British Airways

British Airways Best Airline to North America: Aer Lingus

Aer Lingus Best Long Haul Airline: Emirates

Emirates Best European Sun Tour Operator: Sunway

Sunway Best Escorted Tour Operator: Insight Vacations

Insight Vacations Best Specialist Tour Operator: The Travel Corporation

The Travel Corporation Best Ski Tour Operator: Crystal Holidays

Crystal Holidays Best Long Haul Operator: Classic Resorts

Classic Resorts Best General Cruise Company: Royal Caribbean International

Royal Caribbean International Best Ultra Luxury Cruise Company: Silversea Cruises

Silversea Cruises Best Specialist Cruise Company: Uniworld

Uniworld Best Ferry Company: Irish Ferries

Irish Ferries Best Technology Provider: Amadeus

Amadeus Best Car Hire Company: Hertz

Hertz Best Travel Insurance Provider: Blue Insurance

Blue Insurance Best Tourist Board: Spanish Tourist Board

Spanish Tourist Board Best Supplier Support Team: MSC Cruises

MSC Cruises Best Accommodation-Only Provider: Bookabed

Bookabed Best Supplier Representative: Rebecca Kelly - MSC Cruises

Rebecca Kelly - MSC Cruises Best Worldwide City Destination: New York

New York Best European City Destination: Barcelona

Barcelona Best Ski Destination: Austria

Austria Best Summer Sun Destination: Spain

Spain Best Winter Sun Destination: Lanzarote

Lanzarote Best Worldwide Theme Park: Universal Orlando Resort

Universal Orlando Resort Best Worldwide Hotel Chain: Hilton

Speaking at the awards, Martin Skelly, ITAA President, said:

Following a challenging few years, the outlook for Ireland's travel trade is improving and this is down to the talented individuals working in our industry who have adapted to the market change and developed their roles.

"Already, 2016 looks set to be a great year for the Irish travel industry.
In 2014, a total of 1,450 applications for asylum were recorded in Ireland, up 505 on 2013 figures. However, we are well below the European average in terms of asylum seekers who come into Ireland. Official figures show that Ireland receives 0.3 asylum seekers for every 1,000 people living in Ireland, compared to 1.2 asylum seekers per 1,000 across the European Union.

Of the 160,000 refugees fleeing the Syrian conflict to be settled across the EU, Ireland is accepting 4,000 refugees, or 2.5pc of the total number of refugees to resettle across the EU. Ireland represents just less than 1pc of the total population of the EU, so on that basic number, Ireland is punching above its weight in terms of its contribution to addressing the Syrian refugee crisis.

The Office of Refugee Applications Commissioner, an office most Irish people have probably never heard of, is in fact responsible for processing all applications for asylum in this country. The Justice Minister is bound to accept all recommendations from that office unless questions of "national security" or "public policy" arise.

According to reporting across the water, there are 3,000 UK citizens who are suspected home-grown Islamic fundamentalist terrorists. There has been a common travel area in existence between Ireland and the UK since the 1920s, meaning no borders and no passport control. In a Europol report published in 2015, a total of 201 failed, foiled or completed terrorist attacks were reported by seven EU member states in 2014, with more than half of them by the UK.

In a book, published by Cambridge University Press in 2014, entitled 'Eurojihad', the authors estimate that within the European Union there are an estimated 325,000 individuals at risk of becoming Islamic fundamentalists.

A key tenet of the European Union is freedom of movement of people - if we lose that, we lose the union. The balance that is struck, however, in having a no-visa passage across the EU, is that the failed policies of other countries or nations outside the EU that have led to radicalisation can suddenly become a problem at home.

The reactionaries will say that the solution to the risks that Ireland faces is to shut the borders and batten down the hatches. Unless you want comely maidens back at the crossroads and the entire nation back farming the land, this suggestion has no basis in reason or law.

So what can the Government do to keep us safe from the real threats of Islamic fundamentalism that exists, faced with these realities?

A few weeks ago, I suggested on a radio programme that better screening was needed for refugees entering Ireland. This statement found its way to the front pages and was printed across many newspapers. Despite what the Labour Party and others may have you believe, it is possible to meet our humanitarian obligations as well as maintaining Ireland's national security. Logic and basic human compassion demand that we do both.

Ireland can do what is right and accept and create a life for refugees fleeing the horrific barbarism that is being inflicted on them and their families, while making sure that we maintain essential intelligence on who is entering our country.

I believe that Ireland's intelligence services are not fit for purpose and while the global terrorist threat expands, our Justice Minister and the Government are simply not doing enough to protect Ireland from harm.

As we enter the centenary year of the Rising, this State has a chequered history when it comes to intelligence gathering on terrorist threats. For example, the Dublin and Monaghan bombings, the Omagh bombings, the assassination of Lord Mountbatten, the Warrenpoint ambush and the murders of Chief Supt Harry Breen and Supt Bob Buchanan, to name but a few.

For over 30 years, the provisional IRA under the purported stewardship of Gerry Adams and others, was able to smuggle large shipments of arms and explosives to sustain Sinn Fein's terrorist arm for many years.

The National Security Committee in Ireland, formed in 1974, is tasked with advising the Taoiseach on high-level security issues but includes no minister, no permanent staff, no working groups and conducts no independent analysis.

Unlike most other countries, our intelligence is vested in An Garda Siochana and the Defence Forces, rather than one single civilian agency. Such is the underfunded and unstructured state of our intelligence services that we rely almost exclusively on foreign agencies for our information. This is no way to protect our country against the modern threat that we all face.

My party, Renua Ireland, has already said that we want to be the people's watchdog in government, if given the chance. And when it comes to security and justice, we will not allow the threats that face Ireland to continue to remain unabated and we aren't afraid to make the reforms that are necessary.

Lucinda Creighton is a TD and leader of Renua Ireland
Georgia May Foote with her dance partner Giovanni Pernice (BBC)

Strictly Come Dancing contestant Georgia May Foote and dance partner Giovanni Pernice have confirmed that they are moving in together.

The pair, who reached the 2015 Strictly Come Dancing final, have been dating for one month after first meeting on the BBC show.

A photo posted by Georgia May Foote (@georgiamay112) on Jan 8, 2016 at 3:26am PST

Georgia, who is currently based in Manchester, recently revealed that she is relocating to London.

"Im going to move to London because Im just at that age now.," Georgia told The Mirror.

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When asked if the two would be moving in together, they both replied "yes".

Georgia is reported to have gotten close to Giovanni after she turned to him during the breakdown of her relationship to fellow Coronation Street actor Sean Ward.

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Georgia is said to have sought comfort in Giovanni following the breakdown of her relationship with her fellow soap actor Sean after a string of rows.

The couple are alleged to have ended their eight-month romance shortly after the Strictly final a few weeks ago amid his "insecurity" over the on-screen couple's relationship.

Last November Georgia condemned reports of the "Strictly Curse", telling The Mirror: "It's so stupid and quite offensive hearing rumours like that. Giovanni and I are just good mates - it's lovely."

Over the years the "Strictly Curse" has seen marriages and relationships ruined when celebrities fall for their professional dance partners.
Kenny Hamblin, left, and Andrew Watts with the Roanoke Parks and Recreation Department shovel snow on the Martin Luther King bridge on First Street and Salem Avenue as snow falls Friday morning (Stephanie Klein-Davis/The Roanoke Times via AP)

A woman strolls along Campbell Avenue at First Street with her dog as snow falls Friday morning (Stephanie Klein-Davis/The Roanoke Times via AP)

Cars make their way down Electric Road in southwest Roanoke County past Tanglewood Mall on Friday morning (Erica Yoon/The Roanoke Times via AP)

Severe winter weather in the US has forced the cancellation of several transatlantic flights between Dublin and the US.

Aer Lingus has cancelled two flights later on today in each direction between Dublin and New Yorks JFK Airport.

Delta, America and United Airlines have also cancelled flights from Dublin to Philadelphia, New York and Newark.

Meanwhile, it has emerged that at least eight people have already died in road accidents blamed on the icy conditions.

The National Weather Service (NWS) said the winter storm could rank near the top 10 to ever hit the region, and meteorologist Paul Kocin compared it to "Snowmageddon", the first of two storms that "wiped out" Washington in 2010.

Weather service director Louis Uccellini said: "It does have the potential to be an extremely dangerous storm that can affect more than 50 million people."

The snowfall, expected to continue from late on Friday into Sunday, could easily cause more than 1 billion US dollars (700 milllion) in damage and paralyse the eastern third of the nation, he added.

So far, the snowstorm is looking just like the forecasts promised, and Washington could get one of its top three storms in history, the NWS said.

Mr Uccellini said all the elements have come together to create a blizzard with brutally high winds, dangerous inland flooding, white-out conditions and even the possibility of thunder-snow, when lightning strikes through a snowstorm.

Snowfall as heavy as 1-3in an hour could continue for 24 hours or more. In addition to Washington, 12-18in of snow is predicted for Philadelphia and 8-12in for New York.

A state of emergency has been declared in Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, the District of Columbia and parts of other states.

Blizzard warnings or watches are in effect along the storm's path, from Arkansas through Tennessee and Kentucky to the mid-Atlantic states and as far north as New York.

As far south as Atlanta, people are urged to go home and stay there.

Schools and government offices are closed, thousands of flights have been cancelled and millions of people have been stocking up on supplies.

All major airlines have issued waivers for travel over the weekend, allowing passengers to rebook on to earlier or later flights to avoid the storm.

Flight tracking service FlightAware said airlines have cancelled more than 2,400 flights on Friday to, from or within the US, and another 2,400 have been cancelled for Saturday. By Sunday afternoon, airlines hope to be back to full schedule.

Washington's subway system said it will shut down late on Friday night and remain closed until Sunday. About 1,000 track workers will be deployed to keep New York City's subway system moving and 79 trains will have "scraper shoes" fitted to reduce the icing on the rails.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said President Barack Obama will hunker down at the White House.

The US Capitol Police said sledging on Capitol Hill, which only recently became legal after an act of Congress, would be welcome for the first time in decades, as long as conditions are safe.
Five people were killed and two critically injured in a school shooting in a remote part of Saskatchewan on Friday and a suspect is in custody, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.

Trudeau did not give a motivation for the shooting in La Loche, about 600 km (375 miles) north of the city of Saskatoon. But La Loche acting Mayor Kevin Janvier told the Canadian Press the incident may have started at the suspect's home.

"I'm not 100 percent sure what's actually happened but it started at home and ended at the school," Janvier said.

Mass shootings are relatively rare in Canada, which has stricter gun laws than the United States. With five dead, La Loche would be the country's worst school shooting since 14 college students were killed at Montreal's Ecole Polytechnique in 1989.

"Obviously this is every parent's worst nightmare," said Trudeau, who was in Davos, Switzerland for the annual World Economic Forum.

The shooting occurred in building that houses middle school and high school students, according to the Facebook page of the district, which has about 900 students.

Extra doctors and nurses have been sent to treat patients in Keewatin Yatthe Regional Health Authority's 16-bed hospital, said spokesman Dale West.

Teddy Clark, chief of the Clearwater River Dene Nation, said that his daughter told him about the shooting, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported.

"We're just trying to pull together here and make sense of all this," Clark told CBC television. "It's not a very pretty scene right now."

La Loche student Noel Desjarlais told the CBC that he heard multiple shots fired at the school.

"I ran outside the school," Desjarlais said. "There was lots of screaming, there was about six, seven shots before I got outside. I believe there was more shots by the time I did get out."

A cellphone video taken by one resident and broadcast by the CBC showed students walking away from the school through the snow-covered ground and emergency personnel moving in.

In 2014, a teacher expressed concern about violence at the La Loche school, citing an incident where a student who had tried to stab her was put back in her classroom after serving his sentence, and another attacked her at her home.

"That student got 10 months," Janice Wilson told the CBC of the student who tried to stab her in class. "And when he was released he was returned to the school and was put in my classroom."
Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield won the National Television Award for best magazine show

Ant and Dec have revealed how Holly Willoughby's dress got quite so stained before she presented This Morning on Thursday - playing Pie Face, badly.

Willoughby and Phillip Schofield did not go home after attending the National Television Awards the night before, and instead appeared on screen on Thursday morning wearing the same outfits.

They spent the night at Ant McPartlin's house to celebrate their award wins, getting "pie-faced" - in many senses of the word.

Speaking on the red carpet at London's Dominion Theatre ahead of Britain's Got Talent auditions, Declan Donnelly blamed co-host Ant: "They were in quite a state on yesterday's TV, mostly down to this guy... He's a very bad influence, I can tell you that first-hand."

Their antics included a game which left Willoughby's white dress stained.

McPartlin said: "It's a game called Pie Face. It's a plastic hand, you put some food on, and then you roll a dice and turn a dial and, randomly, the hand will slap you in the face and you're Pie-Faced.

"I was very good at it. I only got Pie-Faced once. Holly wasn't very good, she got hit three or four times."

Donnelly joked: "I think everyone was a little bit pie-faced before they even started."

Willoughby and Schofield spent the next morning trying to recover on the This Morning sofa, looking the worse for wear.

Meanwhile, Britain's Got Talent judge Amanda Holden has claimed the show will never win a National Television Award.

The show was nominated this year but lost out to Strictly Come Dancing.

Holden said: "We will never win the National Television Award because they are always in January and Strictly is an amazing show but it's always fresh in everyone's heads.

"So unless they change when they put it out, we won't win. It's so annoying."
North Korea said on Friday it had detained a U.S. university student for committing a "hostile act" against the country and was investigating.

The state-run KCNA news agency said the person entered North Korea as a tourist and was "was caught committing a hostile act against the state," which it said was "tolerated and manipulated by the U.S. government".

KCNA said Otto Frederick Warmbier had entered the country with an "aim to destroy the country's unity". It did not elaborate.

Warmbier is an undergraduate at the University of Virginia, according to the university's website. Gareth Johnson of China-based Young Pioneer Tours confirmed Warmbier was on one of its tours and said he had been detained in North Korea on Jan. 2.

An official at the U.S. embassy in the South Korean capital Seoul said it was aware of the reported arrest.

Johnson said Young Pioneer Tours was in touch with Warmbier's family and U.S. officials.

"We are in touch with Otto's family, the U.S. State Department and the Embassy of Sweden in Pyongyang and doing all we can to secure his release," Johnson told Reuters.

The Swedish Embassy represents U.S. interests in North Korea.

A South Korean-born Canadian pastor was arrested in North Korea last year and given a life sentence for subversion. Earlier this month, a Korean-American man told CNN in Pyongyang that he was being held by the state for spying.

In 2014, Pyongyang released three detained Americans. Last October, it freed a South Korean national with a U.S. green card after holding him for six months.

South Korea warned that the United States and its allies were working on further sanctions to inflict "bone-numbing pain" on North Korea after its latest nuclear test this month, in contravention of U.N. Security Council resolutions, and urged China to do its part to rein in its neighbour.
Rudy Guede made his claims during an interview with Italian broadcaster Rai

The man convicted of killing British student Meredith Kercher claims she tried to write a message in her own blood as she lay dying on the floor.

Rudy Guede, who is serving a 16-year sentence for the 21-year-olds murder, told the grisly tale as part of an interview with Italian broadcaster Rai, during which he expressed his innocence.

Speaking from prison in Viterbo, in central Italy, the 30-year-old said Ms Kercher tried to tell him something by writing on the wall with [her] blood" as he used a towel to staunch the wound in her neck".

He told the Italian broadcaster that the bedroom where the 21-year-old was found stabbed to death was staged to look as if a burglar had come in.

Asked what the message was, Mr Guede, originally from the Ivory Coast, replied he did not know.

"I cannot... it was heart-breaking," he said before claiming he fled the scene because he feared police would not believe he was not involved in the crime.

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Officers investigating the murder of Ms Kercher found the 30-year-olds DNA on her body and his bloody footprint near where she was found.

Italian police always maintained that Mr Guede did not act alone, and famously arrested and charged American woman Amanda Knox and her boyfriend with murdering Ms Kercher.

A guilty verdict at Ms Knox's initial trial and her 26-year sentence where eventually overturn following a lengthy appeal, during which Italys highest court said there had been "stunning flaws" in the case against them.

However speaking to broadcaster Rai, Mr Guede insisted that he could hear Ms Knox's voice in the apartment while he was in the bathroom, moments before he claims to have found Ms Kerchers body.

I heard the bell ring, he said.

"[Meredith] opened the door, and I heard the voice of Amanda Knox coming into the house. They started arguing.

Earlier on Meredith complained about her stealing money, so I didn't worry too much, and remained in the bathroom," he continued.

I heard a loud scream and thats when I got out.

The lights were all off apart from Merediths bathroom [and] I saw the silhouette of a man in front of her door.

Before the documentary aired, Mr Guede opened a Facebook account with an image from the TV interview saying: "Now I begin to tell my story.
(Clockwise from top left) Bart Pawlowski, Caitlin Adams, Aaron Murray, Uzair Patel, Ishmael Brown and Ehsen Abdul-Razak , members of a gun gang who were jailed at Harrow Crown Court, in what detectives said was a plot to make and sell illegal guns and ammunition to criminals in London

Undated handout photo issued by the Metropolitan Police of Caitlin Adams, 25, who has been jailed for 10 years at Harrow Crown Court after she and five men including a Polish former soldier, were involved in what detectives said was a plot to make and sell illegal guns and ammunition to criminals in London

Undated handout photo issued by the Metropolitan Police of Caitlin Adams, 25, posing with an AK-47, who has been jailed for 10 years at Harrow Crown Court after she and five men including a Polish former soldier, were involved in what detectives said was a plot to make and sell illegal guns and ammunition to criminals in London

A gangster's moll who posed for a saucy selfie holding a machine gun while wearing just a leotard and a balaclava has been jailed for 10 years, police said.

Caitlin Adams, 25, and five men including a Polish former soldier, were involved in what detectives said was a plot to make and sell illegal guns and ammunition to criminals in London.

Adams picked up deactivated guns and delivered them to a workshop to be reactivated for her serving prisoner boyfriend Ishmael Brown.

Among the guns was an AK-47 assault rifle, and police discovered a selfie taken by Adams while squatting in a kitchen with the powerful battlefield weapon.

Expand Close Undated handout photo issued by the Metropolitan Police of Caitlin Adams, 25, who has been jailed for 10 years at Harrow Crown Court after she and five men including a Polish former soldier, were involved in what detectives said was a plot to make and sell illegal guns and ammunition to criminals in London / Facebook

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Whatsapp Undated handout photo issued by the Metropolitan Police of Caitlin Adams, 25, who has been jailed for 10 years at Harrow Crown Court after she and five men including a Polish former soldier, were involved in what detectives said was a plot to make and sell illegal guns and ammunition to criminals in London

Five of the gang, including Adams, were handed jail sentences totalling 45 years at Harrow Crown Court on Friday, the Metropolitan Police said.

Detective Constable Claire Gentles, from the Metropolitan Police's Trident and Area Crime Command, said: "The firearms and ammunition this gang converted had the potential to cause great harm on the streets of London and there is no doubt that the capital is a safer place as a result of the network being dismantled.

"The sentencing of Caitlin Adams should serve as a warning to others of the grave consequences of storing and transporting guns for others."

Police said they swooped on a taxi in the Newham area of London in June and arrested two men, Aaron Murray and Uzair Patel, after a reactivated 9mm handgun was found in the footwell.

The investigation found that Murray was buying deactivated guns and reactivating them at a workshop.

It was subsequently raided and its owner, former Polish soldier and metalworker Bart Pawlowski was arrested.

Detectives said Brown was using a mobile phone smuggled into his cell at HMP Rochester to buy deactivated guns and then sell them to criminals once reactivated. Another prisoner, Ehsen Abdul-Razak, was arrested after it was discovered he helped sell the gun to Patel with his own secret phone.

Police believe that between January and June last year more than 40 guns were sourced by the gang. Eight re-activated guns linked to the group have been found and police are looking for more.

Adams, of Campshill Road, Lewisham was found guilty of conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and sentenced to 10 years on Friday.

Brown, 26, of HMP Rochester admitted conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and was sentenced to 12 years.

Pawlowski, 42, of Thornsett Rd, Wandsworth was found guilty of conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and was jailed for 13 years.

Patel, 28, of Abbey Road, Stratford, east London, admitted possession of a prohibited weapon and was jailed for five years.

Ehsen Abdul-Razak, 19, of HMP Rochester, admitted conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and was sentenced to five years.

Murray, 28, of Witley Point, Wandsworth pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transfer prohibited weapons and will be sentenced in March.
Marina Litvinenko, the wife of former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko, arrives with her son Anatoly at the Royal Courts of Justice, London Photo: PA

Russian President Vladimir Putin probably approved a plan by Russia's FSB security service to kill former agent Alexander Litvinenko, a British judge has found.

In a sensational 300-page report, Judge Robert Owen said that he is certain Litvinenko was given tea laced with a fatal dose of polonium-210 at a London hotel in November 2006.

He said there is a "strong probability" that the FSB directed the killing, and the operation was "probably approved" by Mr Putin.

Mr Litvinenko, a former FSB agent, fled to Britain in 2000 and became a vocal critic of Russia's security service and of Putin, whom he accused of links to organised crime.

Judge Owen said Mr Litvinenko "was regarded as having betrayed the FSB" with his actions, and that "there were powerful motives for organisations and individuals within the Russian state to take action against Mr Litvinenko, including killing him."

Yesterday, Mr Litvinenko's widow Marina said outside the High Court in London she was "very pleased that the words my husband spoke on his deathbed when he accused Mr Putin have been proved by an English court." London's Metropolitan Police said the investigation into the "cold and calculated murder" remained ongoing.

One of the most controversial claims in the report was that there was a "personal dimension to the antagonism" between Mr Litvinenko and Mr Putin which "culminated in [an] allegation of paedophilia in 2006".

He claimed Mr Putin had destroyed videotapes which showed him "making sex with some underage boys".

Mr Litvinenko published an article on the Chechenpress website in July 2006, months before his death, claiming that when Mr Putin stopped and chatted to tourists in the Kremlin he spoke to a four or five-year-old boy called Nikita and then "kneeled, lifted the boy's T-shirt and kissed his stomach".

He went on: "The world public is shocked. Nobody can understand why the Russian president did such a strange thing as kissing the stomach of an unfamiliar small boy.

"The explanation may be found if we look carefully at the so-called 'blank spots' in Putin's biography."

He said that after graduating from the KGB college he was not accepted into the foreign intelligence service because "shortly before his graduation, his bosses learned that Putin was a pedophile [sic]."

Instead of making a fuss, officials at the Andropov Institute, the KGB college, simply decided to avoid sending him abroad.

"Many years later, when Putin became the FSB director and was preparing for the presidency, he began to seek and destroy any compromising materials collected against him by the secret services over earlier years...among other things, Putin found videotapes in the FSB Internal Security directorate, which showed him making sex with some underage boys."

Judge Owen said the personal attacks on Putin were among the "powerful motives" for the murder.

Last night, Alexander Yakovenko, the Russian ambassador in the UK, said Russia would not accept any decisions reached in secret and based on evidence not tested in open court. The length of time taken to come to these conclusions led them to believe it was "a whitewash of British security services' incompetence", he said.

Mr Yakovenko said these events "can't help but harm our bilateral relations".

According to the BBC, the conclusions of this inquiry are stronger than many expected in pointing the finger at Mr Putin personally. The evidence behind that seems to have come from secret intelligence heard in closed session.

Saying that Mr Litvinenko was killed because he was an enemy of the Russian state will raise pressure on the British government to take real action. That may pose difficulties given the importance of Russia's role in the Middle East but, without action, people may ask if the Russians have been allowed to get away with what has been described as an act of terrorism on the streets of London.

Mr Litvinenko fled to the UK in 2000, claiming persecution. He was granted asylum and gained British citizenship several years later. In the years before his death, he worked as a writer and journalist, becoming a strong critic of the Kremlin. It is believed he also worked as a consultant for MI6, specialising in Russian organised crime.

The inquiry heard from 62 witnesses in six months of hearings and was shown secret intelligence evidence about Mr Litvinenko and his links with British intelligence agencies.

In Moscow Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for the Russian foreign ministry, hinted that the British secret services may have gone to extraordinary means to secure what she called their "desired result".

"Just before the authorities launched this inquiry in 2014, which just so happened to coincide with the deterioration of the situation in eastern Ukraine, two key witnesses died," she said. She was referring to Boris Berezovsky, an exiled Russian oligarch and critic of Putin who knew Mr Litvinenko, and David West, the owner of a restaurant where the two men frequently met.

Ms Zakharova appeared to be hinting at an alternative theory in which Mr Berezovsky was the real killer, or that Mr Litvinenko died of radiation poisoning by mistake while running a polonium-smuggling operation with the oligarch. ( Daily Telegraph London)

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
Officers discovered the bodies of two men believed to be migrants

One of two bodies discovered in a shipping crate has been identified by police as belonging to an Afghan teenager.

Police were called to boilermakers Ferroli in Lichfield Road, Branston, Staffordshire, on November 17 after staff noticed an unpleasant smell coming from the crate.

Officers discovered the bodies of two men believed to be migrants.

Following DNA analysis, Staffordshire Police have identified one of the bodies as belonging to Khalid Sorki, a teenager from the Taliban-controlled Turkmen Valley area of Afghanistan.

Police said Mr Sorki's family have been informed and arrangements are being made to repatriate the body.

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Detective Chief Inspector Dave Giles said: "We extend our condolences to Khalid's family. It is tragic that they lost a young member of their family in such circumstances although we are pleased to have been able to provide them with some answers as to what had happened to him.

"He is believed to be 16 or 17 years old. We will never know his exact age as in Afghanistan dates of birth do not hold the same significance as they do here."

Progress was being made in identifying the second male. Police said the crate was part of a consignment of commercial boilers which left Italy on October 5 and entered the UK via Dover ferry port on October 8.
North Korea says it has arrested a US university student for what it said was a "hostile act" orchestrated by the American government to undermine the nation.

State media said the University of Virginia student entered the country under the guise of a tourist and plotted to destroy North Korean unity with "the tacit connivance of the US government and under its manipulation".

The North's official Korean Central News Agency said in a short report that the student, whom it identified as Warmbier Otto Frederick, was "arrested while perpetrating a hostile act", but did not say when he was detained or the nature of the act.

Pyongyang sometimes list English-language surnames first, in the Korean style. The University of Virginia's online student directory lists someone named Otto Frederick Warmbier as an undergraduate commerce student.

A China-based tour company specialising in travel to North Korea, Young Pioneer Tours, confirmed that one of its customers, identified only as "Otto", had been detained in the North's capital, but provided no other details.

North Korea's announcement comes amid a diplomatic push by Washington, Seoul and their allies to slap Pyongyang with tough sanctions for its recent nuclear test. In the past, North Korea has occasionally announced the arrests of foreign nationals in times of tension with the outside world in an apparent attempt to wrest concessions or diplomatic manoeuvring room.

North Korea regularly accuses Washington and Seoul of sending "spies" to overthrow its government to enable the US-backed South Korean government to control the entire Korean peninsula. Some foreigners previously arrested have read statements of guilt that they later said were coerced.

Earlier this month, CNN reported that North Korea had detained another US citizen on suspicion of spying. It said a man identified as Kim Dong Chul was being held by Pyongyang and authorities had accused him of spying and stealing state secrets.

The US State Department said it could not confirm the CNN report. It declined to discuss the issue further or confirm whether the US was consulting Sweden, which handles US consular issues in North Korea because Washington and Pyongyang do not have diplomatic relations.

North Korea has previously released or deported US detainees after high-profile Americans visited the country.

The Korean peninsula remains in a technical state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea.

North Korea is holding at least three South Koreans and one Canadian.

Last month, North Korea's Supreme Court sentenced a Canadian pastor to life in prison with hard labour for what it called crimes against the state. The offences he was charged with included harming the dignity of the North's leadership and trying to use religion to destroy the system, according to the North's state media.
An artist's rendering shows the distant view from "Planet Nine" back towards the sun. Photo: Reuters

Professor Mike Brown speaks in front of a simulation of the probable orbit of the planet (in yellow). Photo: Reuters

Scientists have found evidence of a ninth planet in the solar system which is travelling on a bizarre elongated orbit.

The body, which has been dubbed 'Planet Nine', is 10 times the mass of Earth and takes between 10,000 and 20,000 years to orbit the Sun. It is so big that researchers have branded it 'the most planet-y planet of the solar system'.

It was found by researchers at the California Institute of Technology who were puzzled as to why 13 objects in the Kuiper Belt - an area beyond Pluto - were all moving together as if being 'lassooed' by the gravity of a huge object.

After running computer simulations to see what was having an effect, they found that only a massive planet could be causing the strange movement.

Prof Martin Rees, Britain's astronomer royal, said that telescopes should be able to see the planet.

"If it exists, it should be detectable," said Prof Rees. "So we must wait until searches with big telescopes have been carried out. These are indirect arguments, but they should motivate a more intensive search for an inferred faraway planet."

Researcher Dr Mike Brown, who discovered evidence for the planet with Dr Konstantin Batygin, said that it was so large that there should be no debate about whether it was a true planet.

Unlike the class of smaller objects now known as dwarf planets, 'Planet Nine' gravitationally dominates its neighbourhood of the solar system - one of the key tests for planet classification.

Pluto used to be regarded as the ninth planet but was downgraded in 2006 to a dwarf-planet or 'plutoid' and is now known unceremoniously as 'asteroid number 134340'.

"This would be a real ninth planet," says Dr Brown, the Richard and Barbara Rosenberg Professor of Planetary Astronomy.

Mr Brown's earlier research helped to demote Pluto after other small, icy bodies were found beyond Neptune. "All those people who are mad that Pluto is no longer a planet can be thrilled to know that there is a real planet out there still to be found," he said.

Dr Brown, who tweets under the handle @plutokiller, added: "My daughter is still kind of mad about Pluto being demoted. She suggested a few years ago she'd forgive me if I found a new planet. So I guess I've been working on this for her. There have only been two true planets discovered since ancient times, and this would be a third. It's a substantial chunk of our solar system that's still out there to be found, which is exciting."

Dr Batygin, an assistant professor of planetary science, added: "For the first time in over 150 years, there is solid evidence that the solar system's planetary census is incomplete."

Dr Robert Massey, of the British Royal Astronomical Society, said the planet would be cold and dark. "It's a very long way away and our Sun would appear as a very bright star in the sky," he said.

Dr Brown and other colleagues have begun searching the skies for 'Planet Nine'. Only its rough orbit is known, not its precise location. The team reported their findings in the 'Astronomical Journal'. ( Daily Telegraph, London)

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
A massive winter storm has swept into the southern and eastern United States, with thousands of flights cancelled, emergencies declared in five states and Washington braced for 2ft of snow.

At least eight people have already died in road accidents blamed on the icy conditions.

The National Weather Service (NWS) said the winter storm could rank near the top 10 to ever hit the region, and meteorologist Paul Kocin compared it to "Snowmageddon", the first of two storms that "wiped out" Washington in 2010.

Weather service director Louis Uccellini said: "It does have the potential to be an extremely dangerous storm that can affect more than 50 million people."

The snowfall, expected to continue from late on Friday into Sunday, could easily cause more than 1 billion US dollars (700 milllion) in damage and paralyse the eastern third of the nation, he added.

So far, the snowstorm is looking just like the forecasts promised, and Washington could get one of its top three storms in history, the NWS said.

Mr Uccellini said all the elements have come together to create a blizzard with brutally high winds, dangerous inland flooding, white-out conditions and even the possibility of thunder-snow, when lightning strikes through a snowstorm.

Snowfall as heavy as 1-3in an hour could continue for 24 hours or more. In addition to Washington, 12-18in of snow is predicted for Philadelphia and 8-12in for New York.

A state of emergency has been declared in Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, the District of Columbia and parts of other states.

Blizzard warnings or watches are in effect along the storm's path, from Arkansas through Tennessee and Kentucky to the mid-Atlantic states and as far north as New York.

As far south as Atlanta, people are urged to go home and stay there.

Schools and government offices are closed, thousands of flights have been cancelled and millions of people have been stocking up on supplies.

All major airlines have issued waivers for travel over the weekend, allowing passengers to rebook on to earlier or later flights to avoid the storm.

Flight tracking service FlightAware said airlines have cancelled more than 2,400 flights on Friday to, from or within the US, and another 2,400 have been cancelled for Saturday. By Sunday afternoon, airlines hope to be back to full schedule.

Washington's subway system said it will shut down late on Friday night and remain closed until Sunday. About 1,000 track workers will be deployed to keep New York City's subway system moving and 79 trains will have "scraper shoes" fitted to reduce the icing on the rails.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said President Barack Obama will hunker down at the White House.

The US Capitol Police said sledging on Capitol Hill, which only recently became legal after an act of Congress, would be welcome for the first time in decades, as long as conditions are safe.
Minister Jose Alvarez speaks to a group of men at Haven of Rest Ministries in Anderson.

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By Charmaine Smith-Miles of the Independent Mail

Palm Sunday in 1987 is the day that Jose Alvarez will never forget.

He walked into a Catholic church on 204th Street in New York to get his palm cross, as sort of a "good luck" charm for the year ahead. But the place was packed. So he walked to the next church he could find, the Manhattan Bible Church on 205th Street.

There he found something he'd not seen, or felt, since a trip he'd made to the Dominican Republic three years earlier.

Alvarez, a native of the Dominican Republic and now an Anderson resident, traveled to the Caribbean nation to sober up and spend some time with his family in 1984. He'd spent years dealing drugs, and eventually using them.

"I used to go there to dry up," Alvarez said. "It was there that I heard the Gospel for the first time ? out of the mouth of this little short guy from Puerto Rico, Nicky Cruz. It was like he'd followed me there and was telling my story."

Alvarez had just finished a two-year sentence at one of the prisons on New York's Rikers Island. The prison sentence was one of the blips in Alvarez's life of crime.

When he was 12, Alvarez was already involved in a gang in Brooklyn. While in high school, he started smoking marijuana and huffing glue.

Drugs and gangs had attracted Alvarez because he saw it as a way out of the streets of Brooklyn. His mother was a single mother, raising him after his father left them when he was 8 years old.

It didn't take long for him to meet a group of men with connections to a supply of drugs coming out of South America. Soon, the boy from the Dominican Republic was buying boats, a Stingray Corvette, a 1957 Chevy Corvette. By the time he was 33, he was spending $1,200 a day on cocaine and heroine.

"You think that because of that status, those things you have, that the drugs aren't going to touch you," Alvarez said. "But they do."

Cruz's story was similar. He too, was a poor young boy who was influenced by the wrong sorts of people on Brooklyn's tough streets.

"This life I live now, I live because of the Christ who died for me. So, now, I work for him."

That day in 1984, Alvarez's aunt's maid had invited him to a concert where a salsa band, Richie Ray and Bobby Cruz, was performing.

Alvarez didn't know that the band, whom he'd listened to in New York, was there to sing Christian songs. Nicky Cruz was slated to speak at the concert, to tell the crowds of his powerful conversion to Christianity.

Nicky Cruz was a leader of the violent Mau Mau gang that ruled Brooklyn's streets in the 1950s. Like Alvarez, Nicky Cruz was a transplant to New York City. Cruz's life was changed the day that he ran into evangelist preacher David Wilkerson, who was ministering to people on the streets in Cruz's neighborhood.

Cruz went on to become an evangelist like Wilkerson, and in 1984 told his story to a large crowd that was gathered in Alvarez's hometown. Cruz's life story is told in the book, "The Cross and the Switchblade."

"The feeling in that crowd was amazing," Alvarez said. "Nicky Cruz talked about how Jesus Christ had died for my sins ? for me, Jose Alvarez."

That was the same message that Alvarez heard when he walked into the Manhattan Bible Church. He heard a pastor in the pulpit talk about how there was no sin so great, so evil that he would not be loved by God.

"He was preaching on the Bible verse John 3:16," Alvarez said. "It became so real to me. Then a woman,

Diane Monroe, got up and sang ?People Need the Lord.' That day, I responded to the invitation to the altar. I knew I was that person. I knew I needed the Lord."

Now Alvarez is doing the same thing that Nicky Cruz was doing in 1984. Except Alvarez is doing his mission work in Anderson. After that Palm Sunday service in Manhattan, he went through a year of counseling and Bible study at New York's Transformation Life Center, a Christian program for those addicted to drugs and other substances.

He was ordained as a minister at First Baptist Church at Woodstock, Ga., in 2003. Now, he travels among Anderson, Atlanta and the Dominican Republic on a regular basis to lead prayer groups, reach out to children and tell his story.

He and a group of board members lead a ministry that bears his name.

"We come alongside other ministries to help them," Alvarez said.

On Wednesday, he led a church service on the streets of Atlanta, and by Thursday, he was back in Anderson teaching a Bible class at the Haven of Rest Ministries on West Whitner Street.

"Because of his past, Jose has a heart for hurting people," said Sid Stewart, director of the Haven of Rest ministries. "That's the thrust of his life."

Before he taught that class at the Haven of Rest, Alvarez led a small prayer group at Second Baptist Church in Belton. He wasn't in front of a large crowd, and he was sitting in a room not much bigger than a closet with three other men.

He went around the room, asking about their concerns and worries. He scribbled notes on a piece of paper, and then he bowed his head and prayed for miracles from the same God who performed a miracle in his life 25 years ago.

With certainty and joy, Alvarez said, "This life I live now, I live because of the Christ who died for me. So, now, I work for him."
Photos by Sefton Ipock/Independent Mail Clemson University students watch a skit depicting an example of discrimination on the universitys campus during the Tunnel of Oppression presentation Thursday.

SHARE Clemson University students watch a skit depicting a students reaction to racial profiling during the Tunnel of Oppression presentation Thursday. Clemson University students watch a skit depicting a homophobic encounter and the resulting consequences during the Tunnel of Oppression presentation on Thursday.

By Mike Eads of the Independent Mail

CLEMSON  The topics of cultural diversity and insensitivity are not as black-and-white as many people assume, according to a group of Clemson students.

The Tunnel of Oppression, an annual part of Clemson's Martin Luther King Jr. observances, returned Thursday to the Hendrix Student Center.

The experience was intended to get people to think more broadly about what constitutes acceptable behavior. Visitors were guided through a darkened ballroom and shown the everyday slights and obstacles faced by people of color, the economically disadvantaged, the learning and/or physically disabled, sexual assault victims and LGBTQ people.

Students scripted and acted out different scenes depicting gay bashing, racial profiling and sexual assault. The physical actions were simulated, but the reactions and language were authentic.

"We want to make someone feel the emotional impact of each situation  people can feel what they want to feel, but hopefully when they hear what someone else feels they will respect that and understand how they feel," said Iesha Steele, one of the event organizers.

A few of the scenes included slurs that are not acceptable in polite society. The volunteers thought the strong language was appropriate.

"We thought about it and were hesitant at first," said Steele, a junior majoring in industrial engineering. "But we decided it was necessary not just to throw those words in, but make it representative of what these conversations would actually sound like."

Tour guides set up the scenes and followed up quick summations of what happened. Afterward, they could go into a nearby classroom to discuss the matters in more detail.

Junior Brandon Wolfe took the tour with his class.

"I thought they did a good job of raising an awful lot of issues," said Wolfe, who hails from Fort Mill. "I think stuff like this helps to start conversations between different people and see different perspectives."

Junior Olivia Svacha agreed.

"Honestly, I don't think about these things sometimes," said the biology major from Greenville. "They covered situations you wouldn't normally think about. It definitely affected me."

The Tunnel of Oppression was presented by the Harvey and Lucinda Gantt Multicultural Center, which has two more programs coming up this month to build on this week's MLK celebration events:

Campus Police Chief Eric Hendricks will join Greenville City Councilwoman Jil Littlejohn, Clemson city Police Chief Jimmy Dixon and others Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the McKissick Theatre for "Open, Honest Conversations: Bringing Together Law Enforcement and the Community."

The first-ever Clemson University Values Summit will happen 1-6 p.m. Jan. 31. The program will include a keynote by Maura Cullen, author of "35 Dumb Things Well-Intended People Say" and breakout sessions covering issues related to the LGBTQ community, multiculturalism and more. To register, email rmorga2@clemson.edu or call 864-656-7625.

Visit clemson.edu/centers-institutes/gantt/events.html for more information.

Follow Michael Eads on Twitter @MikeEads_AIM
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By Wayne Morton Special To The Anderson Independent-Mail

The owner of a chain of strips clubs including the Cafe Risque in Lavonia was found dead Sunday morning in his Micanpoy, Fla., home, according to authorities.

The Alachua County Sheriff's Office in Gainesville, Fla., reported that Asher G. "Jerry" Sullivan, 47, was found dead at about 11 a.m. Sunday by family members in his home.

"We do not suspect foul play," said Sgt. Keith Faulk, spokesman for the sheriff's office.

Sergeant Faulk said Mr. Sullivan's 14-year-old son found his father had died when he tried to wake him while his mother cooked breakfast. Sheriff's deputies responded to the 911 call and summoned emergency medical services personnel who were unable to revive the club owner.

"We are all broken," said the night manager of the Lavonia club, who did not wish to be identified. "He comes in from time to time checking on the business.

"But the company's moving on. But I really don't know what's going on. We don't even know anything about funeral arrangements."

Lavonia Police Chief Randy Shirley, whose department was sued by Mr. Sullivan last year concerning the use of a search warrant, received the news of Mr. Sullivan's death on Tuesday.

"I was saddened that Mr. Sullivan had passed away," he said.

Due to the pending litigation, Chief Shirley could not comment further.

Family members of Mr. Sullivan declined comment. Gainesville attorney Gary Edinger, who represented Mr. Sullivan and considered him a friend, said his client was a hardworking family man.

"The way he was thought of was different than the way he really was," he said. "He actually led a pretty regular life."

Mr. Sullivan owned Cafe Risque and four other strip clubs in Georgia and North Carolina. The clubs are advertised on large yellow signs along interstate highways, announcing, "We bare all."

Earlier this year the Georgia General Assembly began a debate on a proposal to restrict the signs from being posted due to the implied obscenity. The Lavonia club, as do the other clubs owned by Mr. Sullivan, also sell magazines, videos and sex toys.

In Waldo, Fla., the proposed site of a "super store" owned by Mr. Sullivan drew protesters in April. The club owners countered with a truck full of bikini-clad women.

The following month, a hazardous substance was released inside the building, an incident being treated as a terrorist attack by Florida investigators. Mr. Sullivan had posted a sign at the building last month criticizing the Florida attorney general for not moving fast enough to arrest the person responsible for the damage.

Two months ago, according to authorities, Mr. Sullivan sued Alachua County over restrictions on adult-oriented businesses. He also has been involved in numerous lawsuits concerning advertisements for his clubs and for a sign criticizing a Florida code enforcement officer.
BMW announces $1.7 billion investment to build all-electric vehicles

The $1.7 billion investment includes $700 million to build a high-voltage battery assembly plant with 300 new jobs in Woodruff.
With the dropping temperatures and the snow clouds rolling in, heat is a necessity for safety. Those in need of heating assistance now have a new venue to search for services.

The Cabarrus Health Alliance has launched the Network of Care for Public Health Assessment and Wellness, an innovative, online web portal that will provide families and individuals with key health information as well as comprehensive list of services and resources in an easy-to-read format. Marcella Beam, public information officer for the alliance, said the website will be extremely beneficial to the community, especially with the threat of winter weather.

It has the benefit of being able to put information on there about emergency situations, how to prepare, keeping your pipes warm and how people can apply for heat assistance, Beam said.

The site, www.cabarrusnetworkofcare.org, has a disaster preparedness link which includes advice on how to be ready for earthquakes, natural disasters, floods, hurricanes, winter storms and many other occurrences.

The winter storm section urges people to be prepared by having sufficient heating fuel, emergency heating equipment and what to eat when stuck inside.

It is the perfect timing right now for us to launch the site because of the hazardous weather but the site can be used anytime people need something that is a personal emergency, Beam said.

The services link on the site takes the user to information and locations of places that can help them with rehabilitation loans, home purchase counseling, housing expense, senior housing, housing authorities and emergency shelters. Those that click on emergency shelters are given phone numbers and addresses to places like the American Red Cross, Cabarrus County Emergency Management and Charlotte Emergency Housing.

The goal is to allow people to find services for their own emergency, Beam said. If they need food assistance, they can learn where food pantries are. If they need heating assistance, it will take them directly to a link.

The Network of Care also has a mobile app that shows users the locations of services near them.

The site is a result of a Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) grant the alliance received.

Through our continued work to improve the health of residents, we identified a need to improve access and knowledge of community resources. This site is a one-stop shop for residents to find the services and information they need to live a healthier life, said Dr. William Pilkington, Cabarrus Health Alliance CEO and health director.

The alliance worked with Trilogy Integrated Resources LLC, the leading information provider in the field of social services, to create the site.

Community members and stakeholders have access to local health indicators, model practices from around the nation and local collaboration tools. The site integrates statistics from National Data Warehouse and other sources into a collection of more than 100 local health and quality-of-life indicators specific to Cabarrus County. Further content is also available, including news, reports and services, all specifically related to the topic of concern. The system also automatically brings a vetted library of best practices from around the nation. This best practices library describes how different communities with the same problem have worked toward positive change.

Beam said the alliance also sought community input when creating this new tool. She said they wanted to make it as user-friendly as possible.

We brought in some community members and community partners and had them look at it. We are partnering with Cabarrus County government and Department of Human Services, which are two huge initiates in the community that regularly work with population that are in need of services, Beam said.

Greg Stewart, who works with the alliance and previously with the mental health department of social services, said he believes this website is something the community has needed for a long time.

Its great to be able to have a one-stop place to find things. This is a really big deal because it is hard to get all that information in one place, Stewart said. As a professional and as a community activist, its great to see this finally coming to fruition. I can see a number of professionals and regular community folks being able to go on and get information.

The health alliance is planning an official launch of its Network of Care on Thursday, Feb. 4 but the site is already up and running for anyone who needs assistance during the winter storm.

Ive lived in the community for a long time and there are a lot of needs. Its hard for everyone to have access to all information that is going on and it makes a struggle that much more frustrating when you are having a hard time, Stewart said. I think this site is really going to help the community.

What to do before a winter storm threatens:

- Prepare to survive on your own for at least three days. Assemble a disaster supply kit. Be sure to include winter specific items such as rock salt to melt ice on walkways, sand to improve traction, snow shovels and other snow removal equipment. Keep a stock of food and extra drinking water.

-Prepare for possible isolation in your home:

 Have sufficient heating fuel; regular fuel sources may be cut off.

 Have emergency heating equipment and fuel (a gas fireplace or a wood burning stove or fireplace) so you can keep at least one room of your residence livable. (Be sure the room is well ventilated.) If a thermostat controls your furnace and your electricity is cut off by a storm, you will need emergency heat.
Kriti Kharbanda, the lass who was cast opposite Pawan Kalyan in Teen Maar, is currently acting in Raaz 4. The film stars Emraan Hashmi. Expectedly, she and Hashmi have a long smooching scene in the film.

It was reported as early as in November that the damsel would be doing a sensuous scene, but it was never clear as to how far she will go. Recently, she is learnt to have shot for a long smooching scene and, curiously, the rehearsal had to be longer!

The duo did not do it extempore and preferred some practice before giving a shot.

Looks like Kriti is going to be a newsmaker when the film releases. The fourth edition of Raaz has high expectations going for it, especially coming as it does from the Mahesh Bhatt house. The film has been shot in Romania.
Idea Cellular Ltd is currently trading at Rs. 107.1, down by Rs. 6.8 or 5.97% from its previous closing of Rs. 113.9 on the BSE.

The scrip opened at Rs. 115 and has touched a high and low of Rs. 115 and Rs. 105.6 respectively. So far 18725074(NSE+BSE) shares were traded on the counter. The current market cap of the company is Rs. 41008.1 crore.

The BSE group 'A' stock of face value Rs. 10 has touched a 52 week high of Rs. 203.9 on 17-Apr-2015 and a 52 week low of Rs. 109.6 on 18-Jan-2016. Last one week high and low of the scrip stood at Rs. 122.5 and Rs. 109.6 respectively.

The promoters holding in the company stood at 42.25 % while Institutions and Non-Institutions held 29.18 % and 28.58 % respectively.

The stock is currently trading above its 200 DMA.

In an interview with the Economic Times, Idea Cellulars managing director Himanshu Kapania explained why the company is not following the industry bandwagon of participating in spectrum auctions.He elucidated that the majority of the network operators are focusing on expanding their data capacity, which will not be utilized immediately. Rather than such capacity expansion, the company is more inclined towards monetizing from its current assets and is good with the option of buying airwaves via secondary sale as and when required.Kapania sees no immediate need to plan too far in the future as he is confident that the trading and sharing norms along with market consolidation will not lead to any shortfall of airwaves in future. He updated that the company has 4G spectrum in 12 circles, including 2 Videocon circles. The company is eyeing expansion of 3G at the moment, he added.Meanwhile, Kapania does not see the entry of Reliance Jio as a threat but as an opportunity. He holds the view that Reliance Jio will help expand the market, which will ultimately benefit network operators. He said that the company is eyeing its broadband user base to grow to 500 million from 90 million in the next three to four years. Kapania even stated that Reliance Jio will induce tsunami of consumption by as early as 2018.Kapania did agree that revenue growth suffered in 2015 as it declined to 4.5%-5.5% from 10% in 2014. He cited TRAIs mandate for capping of SMS and roaming charges as the reasons for low revenue growth. However, Kapania asserted that the prices have reached the bottom and are set to rise from this point.He told ET that the companys priority to target the first time customers in data services is adding to price pressure though each migration takes the ARPU (average revenue per user) to Rs. 175-200 from Rs. 50-75.Kapania said that the company has identified Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Kochi and Pune as target markets for wired broadband.
after its overseas arm ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Republic of Equatorial Guinea to cooperate in the hydrocarbon sector in the African country.

The scrip opened at Rs. 211 and has touched a high and low of Rs. 217.2 and Rs. 210 respectively. So far 5306101(NSE+BSE) shares were traded on the counter. The current market cap of the company is Rs. 177611.97 crore.

The BSE group 'A' stock of face value Rs. 5 has touched a 52 week high of Rs. 373.7 on 04-Feb-2015 and a 52 week low of Rs. 206.25 on 21-Jan-2016. Last one week high and low of the scrip stood at Rs. 224.45 and Rs. 206.25 respectively.

The promoters holding in the company stood at 68.93 % while Institutions and Non-Institutions held 17.49 % and 13.58 % respectively.

The stock is currently trading above its 200 DMA.
The government will pay banks a 2.5% commission to unlock the countrys massive stash of gold under a new monetisation scheme, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said, as the ambitious plan received a poor response from banks and customers. (MINT)Private sector RBL Bank today launched a platform to provide end-to-end banking services to the emerging entrepreneurial community. (ET)The Reserve Bank of India has put in place a central fraud registry, which is a searchable database to help banks detect instances of fraud by borrowers early on, the central bank said in a notification on Thursday. (MINT)As the WEF debates ways to master the fourth industrial revolution, top banker Chanda Kochhar today said financial sector has rapidly adopted the new technology and ICICI bank is targeting total transactions worth Rs 80,000 crore through mobile banking by the end of this fiscal. (ET)The Kotak group will launch a $500-600 million fund, along with the Canadian pension fund manager, to buy stressed assets on the books of Indias banks, two people familiar with the plan said. (MINT)Barclays Plc will shut its cash equities division in India, in line with a decision to exit this business across the Asian region, said two people familiar with the developments. (MINT)Securitisation will continue to be instrumental for the eight micro finance institutions turned small Indian finance banks, as it will take time for them to develop a retail deposit franchise, says a report by rating firm Moody's. (ET)The Central Bureau of Investigation has registered a case of cheating and criminal conspiracy against two Gujarat-based private firms and others for allegedly causing a loss of Rs.38.53 crore to the Union Bank of India . (HINDU)
Reliance Communications Ltd has announced its financial results for the quarter ended December 31, 2015 on January 22.The Un-Audited Consolidated results for the Quarter ended December 31, 2015:The company posted decline of 15% in Profit after Tax (PAT) of Rs. 171 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2015 as compared to Rs. 201 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2014.Total Income decreased from Rs. 5469 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2014 to Rs. 5298 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2015.The EBITDA Margin of the company stood at 33.8%.The Un-Audited Standalone results for the Quarter ended December 31, 2015:The Company has posted a net loss of Rs. 7690 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2015 as compared to net loss of Rs. 5850 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2014. Total Income has decreased from Rs. 29850 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2014 to Rs. 25260 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2015.Reliance Communications Ltd ended at Rs. 66.65, up by Rs. 0.45 or 0.68% from its previous closing of Rs. 66.2 on the BSE.The scrip opened at Rs. 68.55 and touched a high and low of Rs. 68.75 and Rs. 65.65 respectively. A total of 16872119(NSE+BSE) shares were traded on the counter. The current market cap of the company is Rs. 16589.05 crore.The BSE group 'A' stock of face value Rs. 5 touched a 52 week high of Rs. 91.8 on 01-Jan-2016 and a 52 week low of Rs. 45.65 on 25-Aug-2015. Last one week high and low of the scrip stood at Rs. 80.15 and Rs. 63.15 respectively.The promoters holding in the company stood at 59.7 % while Institutions and Non-Institutions held 29.58 % and 10.3 % respectively.The stock traded above its 50 DMA.
A few weeks ago a friend asked me What all do I need in my kitchen to make me a great cook? Interesting question, right? Well that got me thinking. Some people may not know some of the basic items you should have in your kitchen to effectively prepare what I call good eats so here we are. Were going to cover things that help make your cooking easy and your kitchen effective.

First up- The drivers of the kitchen- a quality set of knives. They dont have to be uber expensive, but they should be sturdy, have strong handles, and be sharp. I like this Kitchen Knife Set (and we) always hand wash our knives. Putting them in the dishwasher dulls them and can even ruin your knife.

The use of a good set of knives means you need quality cutting boards. Its a good idea to have several. I dont like to mix my raw meat with my raw veggies so I have a cutting board specifically for meat and one specifically for veggies. I also have wooden butcher block for carving of meats. Grab these and these if youre looking for a set.

The wooden spoon is sturdy and dependable. I use them in almost everything. A good wooden spoon can hold up to your yummy spaghetti sauce, and scrape the yummy bacon bits of a pan in no time flat. Check these out if you dont have a set.

After you chopped your good eats, youll need something to cook them in. I post a lot about using a Dutch oven. A Dutch oven is basically a heavy bottomed pot. There are many different types of Dutch Ovens. Do a little Google search and  your head will spin. The Dutch ovens I have are cast iron enamel. The cast iron enamel Dutch Ovens are great conductors of heat and can be used on top of the stove as well as in the oven. I have the following: Lodge Braiser Small. A Dutch Oven, can fry, roast, braise, bake, steam the possibilities are truly endless. There are several more expensive brands, but go by what is in your budget. I can attest for the items I have in my kitchen, theyve lasted years. If youre looking for the high-end brand, Le Creuset, I suggest checking your local TjMaxx, JCP or Macys before paying full price. Save a couple of coins if you can.

Lastly, after you chopped your good eats youll need good oil for searing, frying, or roasting them in. In the image, I have grapeseed oil pictured, but I currently use the following in my home: Canola Oil, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Vegetable Oil and Vegetable shortening. Each fat has its own job. Grapeseed oil has a high smoke point and it can pretty much do any and everything.

I hope this kitchen basics guide has been helpful to you.
My first taste of Amazing Joes happened during my days at Ball State University. I first heard about the restaurant during an English class. One of my class members mentioned she worked there and recommended I try the food one day. That summer, I dragged my roommate to Amazing Joes, and the rest is history. Not only was their food great, they also had great drinks and service.

When I saw the Amazing Joes sign being hammered to the outside of a building at Clearwater Crossing on East 82nd Street, my smile grew from ear to ear. I instantly remembered the great flavors of Amazing Joes and knew I had to stop by. I decided to bring one of my good friends, Mia, along for the journey to great food.

Let me start off by saying how friendly the staff was. Before we ordered, we were greeted by Chad Massoth, managing partner of Amazing Joes, who said although the location had only been open for a couple of weeks, business was going very well. We also chatted about a few recommended menu items. I did notice a menu with specials resting on the table. Every Monday through Thursday from 45 p.m., customers can enjoy dishes such as USDA Choice hand-cut sirloin, chicken fingers, pork chops, a variety of salads, catfish and more for just $9.99. Also, 18-ounce margaritas are $4.49 all day every Sunday.

What I remember most about Amazing Joes in Muncie is the chicken wings. While they were tempting, I decided on something different. I ordered the Grilled Shrimp Dinner, which included seasoned and grilled shrimp with garlic butter served on a bed of rice. For my two sides I chose a house salad and steamed broccoli. Mia ordered the Marinated Chicken Kabob Chicken, with red and green peppers, red onions and zucchini all marinated in a special house sauce. The large menu also offers items such as the Blackened Salmon Caesar Salad, Italian Chicken Nachos, Ribeye Steak, Joes Famous Filet Kabob, Nawlins Pasta Bowl, Cheesy Chicken Mac, ribs and more.

Once we ordered, Massoth returned to let us know about some of the community activities Amazing Joes has completed. Those who wore a full Santa suit on Christmas received a free meal, and for those not interested in playing dress up, a small bag of non-perishable items or winter coats could be traded in for a full entree at Amazing Joes. I thought this was a great way to connect with the community. About 15 minutes later, Mia and I found our conversation perished as our attention was solely focused on the food. My grilled shrimp was very well seasoned and Mias chicken kabob looked fantastic. You could tell it came straight off of the grill and on to the plate.

Next time, Im looking to try the Cheesy Chicken Mac or the chicken wings  maybe even a margarita as well.

Amazing Joes Steakhouse

3716 E. 82nd St.

Indianapolis, IN 46240

(317) 436-7367

MondayFriday:

411 p.m.

SaturdaySunday:

11 a.m.11 p.m.

Amazingjoes.com
Everything shook and I think it lasted at least a minute. In her squeaky scared tone, my cousin sister tells me how she felt when last weeks earthquake of 6.7 hit Imphal, the capital of Manipur. Sitting in Mumbai, I had no idea about the calamity until I started getting calls from friends in the wee hours of the morning concerned about the well-being of my extended family back home.

allwonders.com

All were safe in my world but some unfortunate lives were lost and the devastation to property was massive. I turned to the news sites immediately. Homes, buildings, bridges had cracked and collapsed. For once, I was thankful for the underdeveloped state of my state. We dont have many high-rise structures. In fact the highest building in the capital Imphal would be 5 floors at the most. While I went through the list of buildings that were damaged, a particular one moved me.

The building that housed the Ima Keithal had collapsed.

allwonders.com

Literally translating to Mothers Market - Ima means Mother and Keithal Market - this marketplace has 4000 shopkeepers. And not one is a man among them.

allwonders.com

This place has always been closely associated with my childhood memories. During our summer holidays when we would visit home, one trip here was a must. After all, it had something for everyone. From the small dried fish ngari, to hand-woven woollens, to miniature Manipuri dolls, traditional phaneks (sarong-like skirts worn by Meithei Manipuri women), kitchen utensils, exotic vegetables, smelly bamboo shoot, to crazy red chilies umorok and herbs, it had everything.

allwonders.com

I could spend a day here, just roaming around like a roadside bum. But a first experience being here might be a bit overwhelming for an outsider. The strong odour of fermented bamboo shoot to the smell of fish, along with the women laughing and talking through their betel stained teeth, the experience is unique. Especially if there are 4000 of them!

allwonders.com

This is the worlds only all-women marketplace and perhaps the oldest of its kind in Asia, so a bit of chaos should be expected. But believe me, it is the chaos that makes being here so exciting.

e-pao.net

But it is not just the sheer number of women or the exotic ware sold here that make the market so special. This market has always been a symbol of women empowerment and is of major historic significance. Some say it started as early as the 16th century (1533 AD) and since then has been under constant threat of relocation by the British occupancy of Manipur in 1891. The British wanted to take control of the economy but it wasnt easy to jilt these women. This led to the formation of Nupi Lal or the War of the Women where in 1904 and 1939, women protested against exploitative colonial British policies.

allwonders.com

This Keithel is not just a hub of commerce, but also of information exchange and socio-political processes. Between their transactions and barters, women would discuss socio-political issues and keep the flow of information going, keeping themselves aware and empowered.

allwonders.com

In many ways, it would be unfair, even limiting, to call this platform a market place. It has always been, and is more like an institution - a way of life for women, a hub for revolutionist ideas, and a symbol of gender justice.

allwonders.com

While the rest of India is struggling for the dignity of women, Ima Keithal, a market tucked away in the far North East of India continues to be a beautiful example of women empowerment and equality.

Each of them, Mary Koms in their own way.
Its that time of the year again when security checks have increased, parade practices have been blocking several roads in the national capital, tri-color decorations are ready at public places, online sales have begun, and we look forward to the first national holiday of the year. Ladies and gentlemen, its time for our 67th Republic Day.

Read on as we tell you all thats there to look forward to at this years celebration.

1. French president Francois Hollande will be the chief guest on our 67th Republic Day.

Reuters

After three years, Hollande will be coming to India on a state visit. And he has been invited to attend the RDay parade as the chief guest. Hell be the second French president to be the chief guest at Indias Republic Day. In 2008, his predecessor, Nicolas Sarkozy, was the first French president to attend this ceremony.

2. Along w ith the French president, French troops will also be participating in the Republic Day parade.

Times of India

For the first time in Indian history, a French troop will be walking down with Indian soldiers. A French contingent comprising 56 personnel of the 35th Infantry Regiment of 7th Armoured Brigade is taking part in a joint counter-terrorism exercise called 'Shakti 2016' with Indian soldiers.

3. Indias first indigenously developed aircraft carrier Vikrant and submarine Kalvari will be displayed by the Navy tableaux this year.

Comyan

One of the first developments of the Scorpene series, submarine Kalvari is still under construction. The Navy tableaux will promote several other indigenous products and will be led by 144 young sailors.

4. For the first time on Republic day, you wont see a BSF camel contingent marching down the Rajpath.

Times of India

5. To add to the disappointment, paramilitary forces like ITBP, CISF and SSB will be absent from the parade this year.

olivegreens

6. After 26 long years, the Army dog squad will finally make an appearance.

Comyan

These dogs have been training relentlessly for the last 4 months and the dog handlers can't wait to take them out on the 67th Republic Day in New Delhi. The Army, which has about 1,200 Labradors and German Shepherds, has selected 36 canines to march down Rajpath with their handlers.

7. For the first time, a women-only stunt contingent will demonstrate their motorcycle riding skills.

Comyan

The contingent called the 'Women Daredevils CRPF  comprises 120 women from the CRPF's three women battalions and Rapid Action Force. It was created in 2014. They have been training for this very opportunity for the last two years and we are sure they are going to blow our mind on the big day.

8. Sachin Tendulkar, Baichung Bhutia and Sania Mirza will feature in the first ever video of the national anthem.

Comyan

In a first, a video featuring the national anthem will release two days before Republic Day. Famous sporting icons like Sachin Tendulkar, Baichung Bhutia and Sania Mirza will be in the video, and it will be shot in Mumbai. Abhijit Panse will direct it, and the music will be composed by Bollywood music director Ram Sampath. Sachin Tendulkar will release the video.

While Republic Day is celebrated every year, and watched on the telly across the nation, we believe witnessing the spectacle from up close will be a memory that will stay with you for the rest of your life. We'll be there. Will you?
According to the inaugural list of the world's best countries, Germany is the Best county in the world.

DW

The ranking by U.S. News & World Report, the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School and global brand consultants BAV Consulting was published on the sidelines of World Economic Forum Annual Meeting on Thursday.

Germany secured its top spot for a number of reasons, like its economy, low unemployment, popularity around the world, high-quality brands and adept at using soft power abroad.

Canada, UK, US and Sweden makes the top-five counties list.

Washington Post

India is ranked 22nd, while China is on the 17th position in the list, which ranked 60 countries on the basis of sustainability, adventure, cultural influence, entrepreneurship and economic influence.

About India, the report said the country faces its fair share of international and domestic challenges.

PTI

"India has a fast-growing, diverse economy with a large, skilled workforce. But because of its population, it's also one of the poorest countries in the world based on income and gross national product per capita.

"Although agriculture employs the most workers, services are the major source of economic growth. Due to its educated, English-speaking workforce, India has become an important center of information technology services, business outsourcing services and software workers," it noted.
When the Amroha municipality here advertised for 114 posts of sweepers, it hardly imagined that 19,000 applications, mostly from BA, BSc, MA, BTechs and MBAs would come in.

stockpicturesforeveryone/ Representative Image

While officials of Amroha municipality are expecting still more applications, the state government has ordered the selection process to be put on hold as organisations representing sweepers have protested, demanding the posts be reserved only for the Valmiki community.

Municipal officials have been overwhelmed by the number of highly-qualified applicants so far.

"The process of uploading application forms for all 114 posts is still going on and we have uploaded 5,000 of the 19,000 received. Most are graduates, postgraduates, BTechs and even MBAs," said Faiz Alam, Amroha Nagar Palika office superintendent.

The Hindu/ Representative Image

The posts do not require educational qualifications because the work involves manual labour like cleaning streets with brooms, maintaining drainage and municipal sewer lines. Candidates will be informed about the interview stage. The salary for each post is Rs 17,000 per month.

Meanwhile, the state government has put the entire process on hold for the time being. "Our office has received a letter from the chief secretary of the state urban development department, Shri Prakash, to put the process on hold on the orders of the chief minister," said Afsar Parvez, chairman of the civic body.

"The valmiki community has protested against the recruitment process because a large number of graduates and postgraduates from other castes have applied for the post of sweepers. A delegation from the community met with the chief minister and demanded the jobs should be reserved for members of their community alone," Parvez stated.

Mint/ Representational Image

Meanwhile, thousands of unemployed but highly qualified youths are still waiting for interview calls. "I have been jobless since I finished college in 2014. So when I heard about openings as sweepers, I thought this would be a good opportunity for me to earn a living and help my family," said Nakul Singh of Dhera village, son of an agricultural labourer and BSc with honours in mathematics.

While it may sound strange, many unemployed youth are of the opinion that something is better than nothing.

This is no the first time such massive influx of educated applicants for low-qualified jobs have been reported from across the country. In August last year, some 75,000 applicants had queued up for 30 peon jobs in the Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Chattisgarh.

Similarly, in last September, more than 23 lakh persons applied against 368 posts of peon in the state secretariat in UP.

In Rajastan, an opening for five peons in October saw some 23,600 applicants.
Cars from Mercedes Benz, BMW, Audi, Jaguar, Porsche and Bentley are the dream of any car enthusiasts, but let us admit it, not everyone get to own one, mainly because of the price.

Hindustan Times

Well, here is some good news for you if you are looking to buy one of the monster-machines.

Head straight down south to Chennai... Thousands of cars, including Mercedes Benz, BMW, Audi, Jaguar, Porsche and Bentley, are going under the hammer, that too for as little as Rs 2 lakh.

No, these are not any faulty cars, the only defect they have are the 'damages' suffered during the recent floods in Chennai.

Volvo showroom in Teynampet, Chennai during the Flood/ Facebook

These cars are going under the hammer after they were declared damaged vehicles beyond repair by insurance firms.

The price of BMW 3 series starts at Rs 6 lakh, a 2015 Audi A4 is available at Rs 3.4 lakh, and a Porsche Cayenne (2012 model) is available at Rs 5 lakh.

Hindustan Times

Around 10,000 vehicles, at as low as 40 percent of its original market price is expected to be sold here.

According to claims filed to insurance companies, by dealers, as many as 30,000 cars were damaged in the flood.

If you are interested in buying one of these cars you can find them here.
In the recent terror attack on the Cappuccino Cafe in Burkina, FasoFrench-Moroccan photographer Leila Alaoui was killed by al-Qaeda. The 33-year-old journalist was touring Africa on behalf of Amnesty International. She was working on a project on women's rights when the jihadists shot her twice in the leg and chest.

middleeastrevised.com

She had recovered after her surgery, and even spoke to her parents, but soon suffered a heart attack which she couldn't survive.

Her death is being mourned by women all over Africa and an estimated 1,000 people attended her funeral in Marrakech. Born in France, brought up in Morocco, and trained in photography in New York, Leila wanted to course through man-made borders that divided people, cultures, races, and religions.

Instagram/Leila Alaoui

Amnesty released an official statement announcing her death on Monday morning in the attack that also saw thirty more people killed and several injured.

An icon for many back home, as Leila breathed her last, many were attending her exhibition - her last completed work on The Moroccans - at the Maison Europeenne de la Photographie in Paris.

Even the French Parliament observed a minute's silence to offer their tribute to her.

The Independent

"Leila was an extraordinary young woman. We wanted to work with her because of her talent, and her passion for helping women, girls and marginalised people tell their own stories and claim their rights. As a strong woman herself, she wanted to show women as authors of their own destiny, not as victims. We are all devastated by her loss," said Amnesty Internationals director Yves Traore, in Burkina Faso.

Previously, Leila had also worked with UNHCR and the Danish Refugee Council to create awareness for those who sought asylum in Lebanon. Her portraits are a testimony to the brilliant work she had emerged herself in. Take a look.

#1

A photo posted by Leila Alaoui (@leilaalaoui) on Jan 3, 2016 at 5:56am PST

#2

#3



Over a year ago, Leila had also travelled to India and posted these pictures on her Instagram account:

#1

With my ladies!! #India A photo posted by Leila Alaoui (@leilaalaoui) on Nov 4, 2014 at 4:44am PST

#2

Photoshoot #India A photo posted by Leila Alaoui (@leilaalaoui) on Nov 4, 2014 at 1:11am PST



The world didn't just lose a beautiful girl who had her heart set on bringing down borders, but also a messiah for those who had lost their homes, and more importantly, their hope.
Follow us on india changing tax laws for stability predictability fm arun jaitley

New Delhi: India is gradually transforming most of its taxation laws for a greater degree of stability and predictability, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said, stressing that the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST) is a major step in this direction.

"It has been our effort in India to gradually transform and change most of our taxation laws, put to rest various disputes and issues which have been pending and make sure that the scope of discretion is eliminated and there is a greater degree of stability and predictability as far as taxation laws are concerned," Jaitley said.

In a video message to an inaugural global conference on legal matters being held here on January 21-22, Jaitley noted investors' preference for stability of laws and dislike of uncertainty and assured them that India is "seeking to bring about convergence (of laws) among the states in India too".

"One major step needed to increase the ease of doing business, is to reduce inter-state variation and the barriers to inter-state trade," Jaitley told some 500 delegates from 40 countries attending the conference on 'Doing Business Across Asia: Legal Convergence In An Asian Century'.

In several areas, the Indian government has put out a model law encouraging their adoption by the states. "The proposed Goods and Services Tax is a major step in this direction," he said.

The net impact of the GST, once it is put into force, is that there will be a seamless transfer of goods and services across the country.

"There will be uniformity in taxation rates, there will be much greater compliance and obviously certainty... it's going to help India's GDP," he said.

The GST Bill has been pending in the Rajya Sabha since the past three sessions. The opposition Congress wants no additional cess and a constitutional cap of 18% on the tax. Although the Central Government has agreed to the first condition and has even agreed to limit the GST, it refuses to put down the cap in the Constitution.

The Central Government, which had initially set a deadline for rolling out the tax as April 1, has been attempting to broker peace and get the Bill passed in the Budget Session, which will begin in the second half of February.

Jaitley, at the same time, pointed out that an artificial or coerced push to convergence can backfire, citing the experience of the banking regulation in the European Union.

"If India despite its massive population and unparalleled diversity has remained strong and united political and economic unit, it is partly because of the freedom given to states to be diverse in their laws and regulations.

"Some degree of divergence in practice also allows for experimenting with multiple models," he said.

"The fact that India's central bank did not fully subscribe to the then global consensus of free flows of financial capital, is credited with insulating India from the global financial crisis of 2008.

Latest Business News
Follow us on indian firms eager to invest in african oil assets petroleum minister

New Delhi: India has conveyed to African countries that took part in the just concluded fourth India Africa Hydrocarbons Conference that Indian companies are keen to invest in upstream assets in Africa, Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said today.

"We conveyed that Indian companies are keen to invest in upstream assets in Africa and are prepared to look at all opportunities on the table with an open mind", Pradhan said addressing the closing session of the conference here.

"India will not be found wanting, whether by way of technical or managerial capability or resources," he said.

The minister said Indian companies have expressed interest to partner African countries in developing city gas distribution projects, gas-based power and fertilizer plants as well as in laying cross-country gas pipelines.

During the conference, Pradhan held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from nine African countries as well as with other visiting delegations, the petroleum ministry said in a release here.

"During the bilateral meetings, it was also agreed to provide facilitating framework, wherever required, for public and private sector companies of India and the African countries to undertake oil and gas projects," the statement said.

In her valedictory address at the conference, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj called for India and Africa to work together and move from "energy poverty" towards "energy justice".

As many as 25 African nations took part in the conference.

On the sidelines of the conference, state-run explorer ONGC's overseas arm, ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL), signed an agreement with Equatorial Guinea for cooperation in oil and gas exploration in the African republic.

The pact was signed on January 20 "to cooperate in the upstream hydrocarbon sector in Equatorial Guinea", said a statement issued by OVL, the overseas arm of state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC).

OVL, which currently has a stake in 36 projects in 17 countries, is alread present in Africa through participation in projects in Mozambique, Sudan and South Sudan.

India imports around 16 percent of its oil needs from Africa and imported 32 million tonnes last year.

Crude accounts for two third of Indian imports from Africa. Petroleum products account for a third of India's exports to Africa.

Latest Business News
Follow us on 5 most anticipated compact suvs launching in india in 2016

New Delhi: We have seen a boom in the auto industry in recent times that came with the introduction of a number of different SUVs or the new segment vehicles such as sub-compact cars.

The boom is a result of the increased purchasing power of the people in India. Many carmakers are now coming forward with new vehicles and that too with the competitive price tag, making the competition fierce.

As the big event Auto Expo 2016 is soon going to hit the Indian automotive scene, all the carmakers are geared up to introduce their new models and make a comeback in terms of sales.

Here comes the list of upcoming compact SUVs scheduled to be launched this year.

Hyundai sub-compact SUV

Hyundai's Creta has been receiving a good response by the customers all through the country and that too because of its amazing design and performance by the Korean auto giant.

Taking forward the same strategy, the company will be launching a baby Creta which will rival against Ford EcoSport, TUV300 and upcoming Vitara Brezza.

Under the hood, the car will get 1.4 litre diesel engine and expected price tag is around INR 7 lac to INR 9 lac.

Maruti Vitara Brezza

Another car in SUV segment is Maruti Vitara Brezza and that will be revealed ahead of the Auto Expo 2016.

The car will be launched soon after the debut. The vehicle is manufactured and engineered in India only, and will lock horns with the likes in the segment; Mahindra TUV300 and Ford EcoSport.

Mechanically, the car will work on 1.2 litre K-series petrol mill and 1.3 litre DDiS engine. We can expect the price for the car in between INR 6.5 lac to INR 9 lac.

Honda BR-V

Honda's new compact SUV model BR-V is all prepared to make its debut at the upcoming Auto Expo to be held in Delhi.

The vehicle has been already introduced in Indonesia and is doing quite well there.

In terms of engine options, the new BR-V will get 1.5-litre petrol and 1.5-litre diesel mills.

The seven seater car is expected to come at a price range of INR 8.5 lac to INR 12 lac.

Datsun GO Cross

Another compact SUV in the lineup is coming from Datsun. The Japanese automaker unveiled the concept model first at the Tokyo Motor Show 2015.

The new Datsun Go Cross will be powered by 1.2-litre petrol engine shared from the GO Plus MPV from which it also shares the platform. The car is expected to come with a price tag of INR 5.5 lac to INR 7.5 lac.

Tata Nexon

Tata is all prepared to launch its new compact SUV Nexon in the Indian market this year, the vehicle is very beautifully designed by the carmaker that instantly catches the eye of the customers.

Talking about the design, new Tata Nexon is based on the Osprey concept with modern design language, it gets Diamond DLO, Humanity Line and Slingshot line.

Talking about the interiors, the car will receive next generation Harman Infotainment System, foldable rear seats, height adjustable driver seats and a lot more that Tata has been implementing in its latest cars.

Mechanically, Nexon will carry the 1.2-litre petrol turbocharged Revotron mill that can produce a power output of 108 bhp and maximum torque of 170N, while on the other hand, it gets 1.3-litre diesel from the Zest.

The car would be launched in the price range of INR 6 lac to INR 8 lac.

Latest Business News
Follow us on rajat gupta to finish insider trading sentence at home with ankle bracelet

New York: India-born former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta - freed early after receiving credit for good behaviour - will stay confined to his apartment until March with an ankle bracelet that will monitor his movements.

Convicted in 2012 on insider trading charges, the IIT and Harvard-educated 67-year-old formerly with McKinsey began serving a two-year prison term in June, 2014. He was freed from Federal Medical Centre Devens, a federal correctional facility in Ayer, Massachusetts, on January 5 to serve out the rest of the sentence at home after receiving credit for good behaviour, New York Times reported.

"Even though Gupta is no longer at Devens, he will remain a federal inmate until March 13, confined to his apartment and required to wear an ankle bracelet that monitors his movements," the paper said.

Joel Sickler, the founder of the Justice Advocacy Group, a company that advises inmates on prison stays, said that an inmate in good standing is eligible for home confinement for 10 per cent of a sentence, up to six months.

"Many white-collar inmates like Gupta argue for an early release so they can go back to work and pay off the mounting financial obligations they face in the form of fines and restitution," the paper said.

Gupta last year applied to corrections officers for an early discharge from Devens.

Under the rules governing home confinement, Gupta can go to work, visit a doctor's office or attend religious services, Sickler said. "With permission, you can go shopping or get a haircut," he said.

In June 2012, a Manhattan jury found Gupta guilty of tipping Raj Rajaratnam, a onetime business associate and founder of a New York hedge fund known as the Galleon Group, to corporate secrets that he had gleaned in his position as a director of companies like Goldman Sachs and Procter & Gamble.

Since returning to his Manhattan apartment, Gupta has been fielding calls from former associates who say he is in good spirits and looks back on his spell in prison philosophically, the NYT said.

Gupta's March 13 release date falls on a Sunday, so "they will release him on Friday," the paper quoted Sickler as saying. "He will turn his bracelet in that Friday afternoon."

At the age of 45, Gupta became the first Indian CEO of the consulting giant McKinsey. He co-founded the prestigious Indian School of Business with fellow McKinsey executive Anil Kumar, who had pleaded guilty to insider trading and testified as a government witness against Gupta in his trial.

Gupta had filed several appeals, including to the US Supreme Court, to overturn his conviction and prison term but the courts rejected his arguments and affirmed his sentence.

Latest Business News
Follow us on unbelievable masturbation booth guy fi opens in new york for men to relieve stress

New Delhi: It is hard to believe but its true that a masturbation booth 'Guy-Fi' has been opened recently in New York city of United States.

This first of its kind booth made exclusively for men is installed in Manhattan. Its objective is to help the men get relief from the work related stress.

The 'Guy-Fi' is a concept of a award winning British founded company 'Hot Octopuss' which works for creating sex toys for the new generation of men, women and couples.

It aims to create the products which combine science and innovation so that the products can fit into the 21st century.

A study reveals that 80 per cent of Americans suffer from their workplace stress, therefore Hot Octopuss has launched the world's first male stress relief booth in Manhattan.

The step of innovating a booth has been taken to take the habit of 'self-soothe' out from the workplace

The company is inviting those workers who want to have a break from their busy and stressful schedule and helping them to understand that how a little break can make a big difference to their productivity.

Adam Lewis, Hot octopus cofounder, said in a press release:

"There's no denying that working a nine to five job can be stressful on both your mind and body, especially in a non-stop city like Manhattan. It's really important for guys to look after themselves so that they can stay healthy and focus properly on the task in hand. We're told time and time again how beneficial it is to have a break away from your desk."

Read More Trending News
Patna: An unidentified man has threatened to kill Fatima Khatoon, fighting against prostitution and human trafficking in Bihar's Araria district and a star of Kaun Banega Crorepati' contest last year, police said on Wednesday.

Fatima has received threatening call on her mobile phone repeatedly in last few days, a district police official said.

While lodging a police complaint in Farbisganj in this regard, the 29-year-old Khatoon, a mother of six children, has sought police help as unidentified caller warned her to damage her house as well.

Police have begun a probe into her case, the police official said.

Last year, Khatoon was in the news for receiving kudos from Amitabh Bachchan on his popular show Kaun Banega Crorepati' and won Rs 25 lakh.

Khatoon was trafficked at the age of nine for marriage but was later forced to join prostitution. She ran away from the red light areas, risking her life and later launched an anti-trafficking campaign.

According to her, in 2004, she began the first women's group inside the red light area in Forbesganj.

She now organises women to fight for their own rights and the rights of their daughters to live a life free of sexual exploitation.
Follow us on bigg boss 9 mandana might get eliminated from show watch her journey in mind blowing video

New Delhi: The popular reality show Bigg Boss 9' is just one episode away from its finale.

Yes! The show will end tomorrow. But despite being so close to the finale, the twists and turns seems to be never-ending on BB9.

Not just every episode, but it looks like every moment of the show is bringing some or the other surprise for the contestants and the audience.

Recently we saw that Keith Sequeira got eliminated this week which was almost unexpected for everyone.

Before, people could overcome this shock; here comes another jolt as Bigg Boss eliminates another finalist.

Bigg Boss 9 finalist Mandana Karimi might be evicted from the show.

Shocked? But, this is true.

So far, there had been four finalists on BB9  Mandana Karimi, Rochelle Rao, Rishabh Sinha and Prince Narula, but with Mandana being eliminated it will be a straight fight between Prince, Rochelle and Rishabh.

The Iranian beauty Mandana had been one of the strong contenders of the show and also the audience's favourite since beginning.

But her I don't care attitude' became her drawback and she soon spoiled her image. Even host Salman Khan bashed her for her arrogance.

Infact, she was also termed as Revolver Irani' by Bigg Boss.

BB showed a video to the four finalists about Mandana's journey on the show featuring how the lady who pretended to be a sweet girl ended up being the gunda' of the house. The video featured all the contestants she had targeted with all her fights.

And now there is the buzz that the actress might get evicted from Bigg Boss 9 after being so close to the finale.

Indeed, it will be a big shock for both Mandana and the audience. If the reports turn out to be true, we wonder who will come out to be the winner of Bigg Boss 9 tomorrow.

Latest Bollywood News
Follow us on pooja bedi lashes out at parveen dusanj for ruining her relation with kabir

New Delhi: Veteran actor Kabir Bedi has been making to the headlines these days, thanks to his fourth wedding and war of words with daughter Pooja.

Kabir married his long-time girlfriend Parveen Dusanj a day before he celebrated his 70th birthday.

This is when Pooja, who was not invited to the wedding, took it to social media to express her feelings and ended up calling Parveen a wicked witch.

Although, she had deleted the post later and did wish the newly wed all the best, but Kabir was deeply disappointed by Pooja's post and refused to accept any explanation on it.

The war of words between Pooja and Kabir raised a lot of eyebrows and the rumours about problems in father-daughter relationship started doing the rounds.

Finally, Pooja Bedi decided to put all the rumours at rest and opened up on her fight with dad Kabir. The Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar' actress blamed Parveen for spoiling her terms with the veteran actor.

Parveen has driven a wedge between a father and a daughter. Friends and family have told me that till she is in the picture, I'll never be able to reconcile with my dad, Pooja told a leading daily.

On the other hand, Kabir Bedi is quite happy after marrying Parveen, who is 29 years younger to him. The couple has been dating each other from around a decade and entered the nuptial bond on January 15, 2016.

Latest Bollywood News
Follow us on bhallaladeva is searching for a bride for his arch enemy baahubali

New Delhi: In 2015, the period drama Baahubali' smashed box-office records. It gave cine buffs characters to love, hate, respect, adore and visuals to leave them spellbound. The magnum opus directed by S S Rajamouli gave audiences the protagonist Baahubali who was troubled by the antagonist Bhallaladeva.

Off-screen, however, Bhallaladeva has taken it upon himself to find a suitable bride for Baahubali.

In real life, of course!

Prabhas, who essayed the role of Baahubali in the movie, was rumoured to get married this year. According to media reports, he has promised his uncle, veteran actor Krishnam Raju that he'll get hitched by the end of this year.

Rana Daggubati aka Bhallaladeva has now put out a matrimonial ad on Twitter to help his on-screen arch enemy and off-screen friend get hitched.

Rana, in his tweet, said that the girl needs to be attractive, should be able to 'chase down a forest, mountain and an avalanche.

This is the hilarious tweet which Rana Daggubati shared:

Baahubali, which was made on a budget of Rs 120 crore, released worldwide on July 10, 2015, to positive reviews from critics. It became the highest grossing Indian film within India, and became the third highest grossing Indian film globally.

Latest Bollywood News
Follow us on oscar awards face bias slur as coloured celebs pledge to boycott ceremony

New Delhi: The Academy awards ceremony to be held at the end of this month has come under a lot of fire owing to the nominations. Many prominent names of Hollywood have criticised the Academy awards over its failure to nominate a single black actor for the second year running.

The who's who of Hollywood started an online protest terming it as systematic discrimination against coloured actors'.

Soon enough, the hasthtag #OscarsSoWhite trended on the micro-blogging site Twitter trended for almost a day.

Director Spike Lee and actor Jada Pinkett Smith announced their decision to boycott the Oscar ceremony. Jade's husband Will Smith was supposedly one of the strong contenders for the Academy awards but he didn't receive a nomination.

"We cannot support it and [I] mean no disrespect ... But, how is it possible for the second consecutive year all 20 contenders under the acting category are white? And let's not even get into the other branches," Lee wrote on Instagram.

"Forty white actors in two years and no flava at all. We can't act?! WTF!!"

In a video message on Facebook, Pinkett Smith said, Begging for acknowledgement, or even asking, diminishes dignity and diminishes power," Pinkett Smith said. "And we are a dignified people and we are powerful.

This uproar has caught the attention of Cheryl Boone Isaacs, Academy Award Chief.

This is a difficult but important conversation, and it's time for big changes. The Academy is taking dramatic steps to alter the make-up of our membership. In the coming days and weeks we will conduct a review of our membership recruitment in order to bring about much-needed diversity in our 2016 class and beyond, read a letter by Cheryl shared on the official Twitter account of Academy awards.

Well, let us see if this strong step by Hollywood celebs manages to bring about any change in Oscar's nominations or not.

Latest Hollywood News
Follow us on president gives national honours to 25 kids for bravery

New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee today gave away the National Bravery Awards 2015 to 25 children from across the country for showing exemplary courage in saving the lives of others.

Two awardees - Gaurav Kawduji Sahastrabuddhe, 15, of Maharashtra and Shivansh Singh, 13, of Uttar Pradesh - were honoured posthumously. Their mothers received the award from the President.

The awardees said they were very happy to receive the honour and would continue to serve society and the country.

Rakeshbhai Shanabhai Patel told IANS that he dreams of joining the army after completing education as "serving the nation is my dream".

"I think we should continue to serve our country in whatever way we can," he said.

The bravehearts will participate in the Republic Day parade on Rajpath on January 26.

Latest India News
Follow us on alert issued after driver of missing taxi from pathankot found dead

New Delhi: Delhi Police, today, issued an alert for a white Alto car taxi (HPO1 D 2440) which went missing after being hired by three unknown people from Pathankot. The driver of the taxi, Vijay Kumar, was found dead near a bridge on the Dharamshala-Pathankot Highway on Wed, 20th January.

The police officials investigating the mysterious death of the driver have ruled out any sort of terrorist connection in this unfortunate incident.

Sanjay Kumar, Director general of Police, said, So far our investigations have not shown any terror link and efforts are underway to trace the culprits and recover the missing vehicle, apparently hijacked by three accused who had hired the taxi on January 14 evening from Gaggal.

However, keeping in view the Pathankot Air Force base attack where terrorists had first killed a cab driver and robbed his car before launching the strike, an alert has been issued by the Delhi Police.

A white colour Alto taxi No. HP 01D 2440 was hired from Pathankot by three unknown people. The driver of the taxi, Vijay Kumar from Gaggal, Kangada was found dead on 20 Jan 2016 at the Kalta Bridge, District Kangada. The Alto car is missing. Search operations are on. Stay Alert!" read Delhi Police's official twitter handle.

Latest India News
Follow us on devyani khobragade s daughters not indian citizens centre tells delhi hc

New Delhi: Two daughters of controversial IFS officer Devyani Khobragade are "no longer Indian citizens" as they hold American passports, government told Delhi High Court on Thursday.

The brief submission was made by the Centre before Justice Manmohan, who was hearing a petition filed by Ms Khobragade on behalf of her daughters challenging revocation of their Indian passports.

The counsel for Ms Khobragade, a former Deputy Consul-General of India in New York, contended that the government had impounded the Indian passports of the diplomat's daughters without following due process of law and not issuing them show cause notice or hearing them.

After brief submissions, the court listed the matter for further hearing on March 30 after Ms Khobragade's lawyer sought a passover since senior advocate Amit Sibal, who was to argue, was not present in court.

The court had in May last year stayed the December 30, 2014 order by which the government had revoked the passports.

Defending its decision, the government had said that Ms Khobragade had obtained US and Indian passports for her daughters in violation of law and without informing External Affairs Ministry (MEA), raising serious questions about her "trustworthiness and integrity".

It had also said she had obtained Indian diplomatic passports for her daughters by "suppressing material facts" which established that she "wilfully and blatantly violated the Indian Passport Act".

Countering the allegations, Ms Khobragade had contended that in her 16 years of service she was "routinely adjudicated" as 'outstanding' or a very good officer with the highest degree of credibility and integrity.

She had also denied the allegation that she had violated the passport and citizenship laws by obtaining American and Indian passports for her two daughters, who she claimed were entitled to have Indian diplomatic passports.

Ms Khobragade was arrested on December 12, 2013 on visa fraud charges for allegedly making false declarations in a visa application for her maid. She was later released on a $250,000 bond.

It had triggered a diplomatic row between US and India which had retaliated by downgrading privileges of some categories of US diplomats, among other steps.

Latest India News
Follow us on nia arrests 11 isis terror suspects in nationwide crackdown

New Delhi: Ahead of the Republic Day celebrations, the National Investigating Agency (NIA) today conducted nationwide searches and held a number of terror suspects from across the country.

According to reports, 6 suspected terrorists including a chemical engineering dropout were arrested by the NIA in Bengaluru, Mangaluru and Tumkur districts (all in Karnataka) for links with the terror group Islamic State.

The NIA also picked up four terror suspects from Telangana capital Hyderabad. Reports say the state police was working on the leads provided by the intelligence officials.

One more suspected ISIS operative was arrested from Mumbra near Mumbai in an operation by Maharashtra ATS and NIA.

The arrests come in the wake of heightened security in the country during the Republic Day week.

In Delhi, police has issued an alert after the driver of a taxi, hijacked by three unidentified men from Pathankot, was found murdered.

The driver of the vehicle, identified as Vijay Kumar, was found dead at the Kalta bridge in Kangra, police said, adding that the vehicle (Alto) was not registered with any travel agency.

Police also released photographs of suspects and details of the vehicle through its official Twitter handle saying the Maruti Alto was hired by three unidentified men on January 20.

Delhi has been put on high alert after intelligence warned of a possible terror attack by ISIS to disrupt the Republic Day celebrations where France President Francoise Hollande will be the chief guest.

Earlier this week, Special Cell of Delhi Police had arrested four suspected terrorists from Uttarakhand. Police had said that all 4 were planning an attack in Haridwar, where thousands of devotees are now gathered for the Ardh Kumbh Mela.

Latest India News
Follow us on pathankot attack nsa of india pakistan in constant touch says mea

New Delhi: Asserting that it was "closely" following the progress in the investigation in Pakistan on the Pathankot terrorist attack, India has said it expects "robust action" from Islamabad to bring the perpetrators to book.

External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup also dismissed as "baseless" the allegations that India was behind an attack at a university at Charsadda in Pakistan in which at least 20 people, mostly students, were massacred by heavily-armed suicide attackers yesterday.

"The issue is also not been raised officially with us by Pakistan," he said yesterday.

Maintaining that both National Security Advisors and Foreign Secretaries of the two countries were in touch with each other, he said a meeting between S Jaishankar and his counterpart Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhary will take at a "mutually convenient date" but refused to put any time frame.

On the visit of a Pakistan SIT in connection with the terror attack, he said the government has not got any information after the first official statement by Pakistan government on a possible visit by an investigation team here and was awaiting for a "firm proposal".

"In principle, we have welcomed the decision of Pakistan government to consider sending a SIT team... rest is matter of details. What they can see? Where they can go? What will be terms of reference? Those need to be worked out by agencies on both sides provided Pakistan government firms up its decision to send the team," he said.

He was asked about comments by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar that a JIT proposed by Pakistan will not be allowed to visit the Pathankot airbase -the site of the terror attack.

"The two NSAs have not met but they have been in touch. We continue to closely follow on the progress in the investigation in Pakistan on the Pathakot terrorist attack... We continue to expect robust action by Pakistan against all the perpetrators," he said.

Reiterating that India has given actionable intelligence to Pakistan, he said, "We are looking for the credible and comprehensive action to bring all the perpetrators of Pathankot terror attack to justice."

Asked if the attacks in Pathankot and near the Indian missions in Afghanistan were part of a coordinated planning by a terror group, he said it would be difficult to say but one thing was clear that terrorism was emerging as the greatest challenge. The distinction between good terrorism and bad terrorism should be removed, he added.

In Islamabad, Foreign Office (FO) spokesman Qazi Khalilullah said, "The Foreign Secretary-level talks between Pakistan and India are going to be held in near future and both sides are in touch on that count."

Latest India News
Follow us on rohith vemula s last letter sent for forensic analysis

Hyderabad: The letter purportedly written by Rohith Vemula, the Dalit scholar of University of Hyderabad, before he committed suicide, has been sent to the forensic lab for analysis, police sources said.

"The letter was sent to forensic lab for handwriting match and other analysis. It would take a few days to get the report," police sources said.

Rohith's body was found hanging at one of the hostel rooms on the University of Hyderabad campus on Sunday.

Rohith and four other students were earlier suspended from the university following an alleged assault on an ABVP leader. Later, the suspension was revoked but they were barred from accessing hostel facilities.

When contacted, Inspector J Ramesh of Gachibowli police refused to share any information saying it would hamper the investigation.

Cyberabad police haS named Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya, Vice Chancellor Appa Rao, Telangana BJP MLC Ramachandra Rao and two students in the FIR filed in the suicide case.

Latest India News
Follow us on hit and run maha govt moves sc against salman khan s acquittal

New Delhi: The Maharashtra government today moved the Supreme Court challenging the Bombay High Court's verdict acquitting Bollywood actor Salman Khan in the 2002 hit-and-run case which left one person dead and four others injured.

The petition by the Maharashtra government follows the Bombay High Court's judgement acquitting Salman of all charges, overturning the trial court's order that pronounced a five-year jail term for him.

The Bombay High Court has erred in not appreciating the prosecution evidence. The trial court's order convicting Salman Khan was correct and should be upheld, Sandeep Shinde, the public prosecutor who has been associated with the case, said about the contents of the special leave petition (SLP).

The High Court, in its verdict passed on December 10, 2015, had held that prosecution had failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the actor was driving the vehicle at the time of the accident and was drunk.

The judgement by the High Court had come on an appeal by the superstar, seven months after he was pronounced guilty by trial court of running over five people sleeping on a pavement outside a laundry in suburban Bandra with his Toyota Land Cruiser, killing one and causing injury to four others on October 28, 2002.

The HC had rejected as wholly unreliable the statement of eyewitness Ravindra Patil, former police bodyguard of Salman, recorded by a magistrate in which he had accused the actor of driving under the influence of liquor.

The judge had said that Patil was a wholly unreliable witness because he had subsequently made improvements in his statement to the magistrate.

Patil, the first informant in the case, in the FIR filed soon after the accident had not accused Salman of having consumed liquor but only said he was speeding against his advice.

The prosecution's case during the trial had firmly rested on the statement of Patil, who died in 2007, much before the case was tried afresh under more serious charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

The magistrate's court had conducted the trial for a much lesser offence of causing death by rash and negligent driving.

On May 6 last year, a sessions court had convicted Salman in the case in which one person was killed and four others were injured when his vehicle had crushed them when they were asleep on a pavement outside a laundry.

(With PTI inputs)

Latest India News
Follow us on taslima nasreen reveals her hindu ancestor s name was haradhan sarkar

New Delhi: Controversial Bengali author, atheist and feminist Taslima Nasreen has revealed on a social networking site that her Hindu ancestor's name was Haradhan Sarkar, whose son converted to Islam in Mymensingh, Bangladesh.

"My Hindu ancestor's name was Haradhan Sarkar", tweeted the author.

She further tweeted: "My Hindu ancestor Haradhan Sarkar was Kayastha, not lower caste. His son was converted in2 Islam. Sufi influence? Forced to convert? I don't know."

Pressed by some of her Hindu fans whether she would prefer to return to the folds of Hinduism, the author tweeted back: "I already converted to rationalism and humanism. That's final."

Taslima was born on August 25, 1962 to a doctor Rajab Ali and his wife Edul Ara in the town of Mymensingh. She has been married thrice, first to a Bengali poet Rudra Mohammad Shahidullah, then to a Bangladeshi journalist Nayeemul Islam Khan and finally to an editor Minar Mahmood.

The author, who is facing death threat in the form of 'fatwa' from Islamic fundamentalists, fled Bangladesh in 1994, and since then has been staying in exile. She was forced to leave Kolkata in 2007, when Islamic fundamentalism staged violent protests against her anti-Islamic writings. An outfit called All India Muslim Personal Board (Jadeed) had offered Rs 5 lakhs for her beheading in March, 2007.

She lived in exile for ten years in Europe and America. Her Bangladeshi passport has been revoked. She was granted citizenship by the Swedish government. Since 2007, she has been staying in Delhi under police security.

Latest India News
Follow us on uber cab driver arrested for molesting woman journalist travelling from delhi to noida

Noida: A woman journalist has accused an Uber cab driver of molesting her while she was on her way from Delhi to Noida, following which the driver has been arrested.

As per the complaint, the woman journalist took the Uber cab service from Delhi to Noida last night, DSP Vijay Dhul said.

The woman suspected that the driver Ravinder Singh was taking a wrong route near Noida Sector 15 metro station, and asked him to stop the vehicle.

She then alighted from the cab and started walking, while the driver insisted on taking her to her destination, police said.

The woman, a resident of Gurgaon, alleged that the driver chased her and behaved inappropriately, they said.

The journalist then called the police control room and registered a complaint.

"The accused driver Ravinder Singh was arrested today and produced before a court that has sent him to judicial custody," Dhul said.

Singh has been booked under IPC section 354, he said, adding that further probe was on.

Latest India News
Follow us on netaji cremated in taikhou claims british website

London: A British website has made some sensational revelations backing the theory that Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose died in a plane cash on August 18, 1945, in Taiwan.

According to the website, Netaji was cremated in Taihoku, Japanese name for Taipei, as the coffin was too long to be put in plane bound for Tokyo, where the body was originally scheduled to be taken for performing his last rites

The website, www.bosefiles.info, created by London-based journalist and Netaji's grand nephew Ashish Roy referred to the evidence provided by Tan Ti-Ti, who was in charge of issuing cremation permits in Taipei, together with that of other local officials, to buttress its claim.

Tan Ti-Ti, in his testimony contained in the British Foreign Office's file number FC1852/6 of 1956, said that he personally attended to Bose's body at the concerned crematorium.

It also transpires from the file that Japanese army officers probably did not issue a death certificate in Bose's name to maintain secrecy about his demise.

Ko Keng Yuan, who was the Director of the Health Centre in Taipei, stated the matter of Bose's death and whether the cremation permit was issued under an assumed name "were important secrets of the Japanese military".

Eleven years after the alleged air crash, British Consul General in Taiwan Albert Franklin wrote to the Taiwanese government requesting an investigation into the death of Bose.

In response, C.K. Yen, Chairman of the Taiwan Provincial Government, sent a detailed police report dated June 27, 1956. This included an interview with Tan Ti-Ti, who said the cremation took place on August 22, 1945.

A Japanese army officer who accompanied the body told Tan Ti-Ti: "The deceased was Bose, the Indian leader who, proceeding to Tokyo on important business, was injured when his plane was involved in an accident."

The previous day - August 21, 1945 - the same Japanese officer, according to Tan Ti-Ti, "submitted the death certificate of a certain Ichiro Okura".

Yen clarified to Franklin that during World War 2 in the case of military personnel A- Bose was then Supreme Commander of the Indian National Army - without family members in Taiwan, "permission for cremation was granted on the strength of a certificate from a military hospital".

This appears to have occurred in the case of Bose, the website claimed.

The police findings based on a report prepared by Taiwan's Department of Health said: "There is a register of cremations at the Municipal Health Centre and the officers of the Health Centre are of the opinion that the entry was made in the name of Ichiro Okura."

Tan Ti-Ti confirmed that on the day of the cremation, the same Japanese army officer "came to the crematorium in a car in the company of an Indian", said to be Bose's aide-de-camp Colonel Habibur Rehman, who survived the crash.

He went on to say "the Indian, it was said he was Bose's follower, some said he was an aide-de-camp; he was dressed in the white garment of Japanese soldiers under medical care, wore slippers, parts of his face were bandaged; he was tall and swarthy, wept bitterly and seemed extremely sorrowful".

Tan Ti-Ti asserted he and another person called Lin Sui Mu opened the coffin. He added the body had been "put into a coffin for conveyance to Tokyo but the coffin was too big for aeroplanes available at the timea. It was, therefore, cremated in Taipei.

The next day (August 23, 1945), the Indian (Col. Rehman) and the same Japanese army officer came to collect the ashes, Tan Ti-Ti further maintained.

Tan Ti-Ti's testimony matches that of Colonel Habibur Rehman.

"I requested the (Japanese) Army authorities to arrange for the early transportation of the body either to Singapore or Tokyo, preferably to Singapore," Rehman testified on August 24, 1945.

He went on: "On 21-8-45 a senior Japanese Staff Officer informed me in the hospital that the length of box (coffin) did not allow the box being put into the plane. He suggested that the body be cremated in Taihoku.

"Seeing no other alternative, I agreed to the suggestion and the body was cremated on 22-8-1945 at Taihoku under the arrangement of the Army authorities. The ashes were collected on 23-8-1945."

Latest World News
Follow us on pm modi to host dinner for bjp office bearers

New Delhi: A day before Amit Shah is slated to return for a full-term as the BJP president, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host a dinner for party office-bearers on January 23.

A BJP functionary said the dinner will coincide with Shah completing the remainder of the term of Rajnath Singh, who demitted the post after joining the union cabinet following the party's triumph in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

The Bharatiya Janata Party had on Wednesday announced the schedule for the election of the party's national president.

The party's returning officer Avinash Rai Khanna said the nomination will take place on January 24 and the scrutiny will be done on the same day. If necessary, the election will be held on January 25.
Follow us on no mahajot in assam but congress trying for maha understanding among secular parties tarun gogoi

New Delhi: Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi today ruled out any possiblity of Congress party entering into pre-poll alliance with any other political party for the upcoming Assembly elections in the state.

The three-term Chief Minister, however, said that the party was open to 'grand understanding' with secular parties. Explaining the meaning of 'grand-understanding', Gogoi said that Congress and like-minded secular parties would ask the electorate not to vote for BJP under any circumstance.

"No 'mahajot' in Assam, as of now. Congress will go it alone but I am in favour of 'grand understanding' between secular parties. No seat sharing. Maha-understanding means to tell voters that vote for us, don't vote for BJP," he said while admitting that all parties are facing tough challenge in the state.

When the 'Mahagathbandhan' (Grand Alliance), of which the Congress is a part, won the Bihar Assembly polls, several Congress leaders including Gogoi had suggested that 'anti-BJP forces' should form an alliance in Assam and other state assembly elections too.



Gogoi's latest statement puts an end to speculation that the Congress, Badruddin Ajmal's AIDUF and the AGP may come together to contest the upcoming Assembly polls.

Accusing the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi of misleading people, the Chief Minister said, "All sorts of propaganda is going against us and even PM is indulging in the same. PM was also CM of Gujarat, can he say he achieved everything? Why did BJP lose in panchayat elections."

"There is no anti-incumbency in Assam. Anti- incumbency arises where no work has been done. I don't rule out a little bit of incumbency because nobody is perfect," he added.

Lashing out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for criticising his predecessor Manmohan Singh, Gogoi said, "Instead of concentrating on internal affairs, PM is focussing more on external affairs. He prefers to meet NRIs than our own people. When PM Modi came to Assam, he attacked Manmohan Singh. I have never seen an incumbent PM criticising his predecessor. Who gave Assam the IIT? It was Manmohan Singh."

"Modi is not behaving as dignified PM. My personal relation with PM Modi is very good. I like his company but I want deliverance for Assam," he further said.

When asked about media reports suggesting that Congress may rope in political strategist Prashant Kishor for devising electoral strategy in Assam, he said.

"No support has been sought from Prashant Kishor. We will take advice of our local people only," Gogoi said.

When asked who will be the face of Congress in the elections, Gogoi said, "Everybody's face will be therein election campaign and I will be the captain ."

The Assam Chief Minister also hinted that the upcoming elections will be a direct conterst between him and PM Modi.

"Modi is General of BJP and I am General of Congress. So it is a fight between me and him," he added.

Gogoi also took potshot at the BJP for lacking a credible face in the state.

" The BJP has no credible party face in the state. Even Sarbananda Sonowal, Assam BJP chief, is an import from AGP," Gogoi said.

Elections to the 126 member Assam assembly is expected to be held in April-May.
Follow us on court slams cbi over raid at kejriwal s office aap wants apology from modi

New Delhi: A trial court in the capital on Wednesday came down heavily upon CBI stating it cannot be clothed with divine powers, and directed the agency to return the original documents seized by it during a raid conducted at the office of Rajendra Kumar, Principal Secretary.

Special Judge Ajay Kumar Jain said the CBI cannot retain the documents in the garb of the argument that investigation is in progress without whisperingin what manner they are related to the present case.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday demanded an explanation from the PMO for the raid at Delhi Secretariat on the ground that it reports to the Prime Minister, on a day a city court directed CBI to return to the AAP government documents seized in the raid.

Lashing out at CBI, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia even demanded an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alleging that the "politically-motivated" action was carried out at his behest to defame the Chief Minister's Office. Sources said the Delhi government is contemplating to move court seeking "strict action" against the CBI officers who were part of the raid at the Delhi Secretariat on December 15.

Claiming that the court order is vindication of Delhi government's stand on the raid, Sisodia demanded that there should be action against CBI officers who were part of the raid.

"The Prime Minister should apologise to the country for the politically-motivated raid. Action should also be taken against the officers who misled the PM and raided Kejriwal's office and took wrong files from there. The raid was to defame the office of Chief Minister."

Earlier, CBI came under a scathing attack from the city court which directed it to return documents sought by the Delhi government seized during recent raids on the office of Kejriwal's principal secretary Rajendra Kumar, saying the agency "cannot be clothed with divine powers" to flout its own rules.

"From the day one, we have been repeatedly saying that the CBI's raid was politically motivated. With the court order today, it has been proved now. The court has also observed that this raid was at the CM's office. In court, CBI failed to prove the connection between allegations relating to an issue from 2007 to 2013 to the files of 2015-16 based on which they carried out the raid," Sisodia said.

He claimed the files CBI had seized included those belonging to IT, Food & Supply and Transport Departments besides the In and Out registers of CMO and some files relating to transfer and postings.
Follow us on dalit scholar suicide politicians throng hyderabad kejriwal to visit today

Hyderabad: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will visit Hyderabad today to meet the family of the Dalit research scholar who committed suicide, an official told IANS.

AAP leaders Ashish Khetan and Ashish Talwar reached Hydrabad on Thursday to meet protesting students there.

Kejriwal had on Wednesday demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi sack HRD Minister Smriti Irani, Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya and apologise to the nation over the suicide by the Dalit student, questioning their interference in the internal affairs of the institution.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi visited the university on Tuesday, he accused that Union Ministers and the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Hyderabad were not being fair, thus forcing Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula to commit suicide.

Meanwhile, BSP chief Mayawati has demanded legal action against Union Ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya over the alleged suicide of a Dalit research scholar in Hyderabad Central University. She also demanded the same action against the HCU Vice-Chancellor Appa Rao.

Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani said there was a "malicious attempt to project it as a caste battle". Another central minister, Bandaru Dattatreya, insisted he did not influence the university to suspend Rohith Vemula - who killed himself - and four other students.

"There has been a malicious attempt to project the issue as a caste battle. The truth is that, it is not," Irani told the media in New Delhi, in her first reaction to the raging row.

The Joint Action Committee (JAC) for social justice, an umbrella of student groups, continue its protest at the university that remained shut. The protesters have vowed not to allow classes till Vice Chancellor Appa Rao resigns and justice is done to Rohith's family.

A two-member committee sent by the human resource development ministry continued its probe for a second consecutive day.

Minister of State for Labour Dattareya, who represents Secunderabad in the Lok Sabha, clarified that he did not put pressure on the university to suspend any student.

He said he merely forwarded two representations he got from the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) to the human resource development ministry.

Dattatreya extended his heartfelt condolences to Rohith's family.

Rohith Vemula ended his life on Sunday in the University of Hyderabad after his suspension following an alleged clash with a leader of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, which is affiliated to the RSS.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi visited the university on Tuesday
Follow us on malda violence rajnath tears into mamata govt says nobody safe in wb

Kolkata: Home Minister Rajnath Singh today launched a scathing attack on the Trinamool Congress (TMC)-led West Bengal government in the state over the recent incident of mob violence in Malda, flaying the government for failing to take appropriate action against the culprits.

Addressing a public rally in Ashok Nagar in Barasat, the Union minister said that it was the duty of the chief minister Mamata Banerjee to find out who was responsible for the Malda violence.

Angry crowds had burnt down the Kaliachak police station and set several vehicles on fire. "The Trinamool Congress government and West Bengal chief minister should make it clear who is responsible for the incident," Rajnath Singh said.

"I assure the people that whoever is responsible for the Malda violence will be exposed. The West Bengal government cannot deny responsibility for Malda incident," he added.

The Home minister said that the Malda violence was a clear indication of the deteriorating law and order in the state and also cast aspersions on the intent of the government to bring the guilty to book. Malda violence was not a small incident. Who plotted it? Was the administration not aware of a procession so huge? Were senior police officials not deputed for the procession? he said.

They (the mob) had the courage to burn down a police station and even attempt to kidnap a BSF official. Is there an attempt to save those who attacked a BSF official? the Home minister added.

In a dig at West Bengal chief minister for the declining law and order situation, Rajnath said, "Aaj West Bengal mein koi surakshit nahi, na maa, na maati na manush. Yahan tak ki police wale bhi surakshit nahi (No one is safe in Bengal, not even the state police)," Rajnath Singh said.

During his address, Rajnath also touched upon rising Bangladeshi infiltration into the state and smuggling. "It is the BSF which has given the most befitting response to infiltrators from neighbouring countries. We are doing our best to secure the Bangladesh border entirely. The entire India-Bangladesh border will be fenced," he said.

Speaking on the declassification of Netaji files, Rajnath said, "Let me assure you that we are waiting for the mystery to unravel. PM Modi has promised to declassify all the files on January 23," he said.
Follow us on opposition using dalit suicide for cheap political gains venkaiah naidu

Kanyakumari: Hitting out at Congress and other opposition parties over the alleged suicide of a Dalit research scholar at Hyderabad University, Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu today said they were using the opportunity for cheap political advantage.

"Congress and the opposition parties are using the opportunity for cheap political advantage," he told reporters here.

Rejecting the opposition's allegations against the Centre and Union Minister Badaru Dattatraya, who has been made an accused in the suicide case, Naidu said the central government as well as the ministers have nothing to do with the alleged suicide.

"Even the suicide note of the boy does not say anything to that effect," he said.

Naidu claimed that eight students have committed suicide at the university when the UPA government was in power and nobody was now talking about it now.

"Congress is following a 5D policy of defame, disinformation, divert attention, delay development and disrupt Parliament and thus derailing progress of the country," he said.

He appealed to the opposition to shed its "negative and destroying role" and help pass important bills, including the GST and Real Estate bills "which will be a big boost to the economy of the nation", in the coming Budget session of Parliament.

He said the entire world was turning towards India as an attractive investment destination and this was reinforced by major CEOs at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Noting the Union government was giving top priority for investment in infrastructure, agriculture and social security measures, Naidu said the policy of the government was appeasement to none and justice for all.

Later, Naidu visited the Vivekananda Rock Memorial and offered tributes.

Talking to reporters at the rock memorial, the minister said Swami Vivekananda was instrumental in taking our culture, heritage and dharma across the globe.

"Swami Vivekananda's teachings and preachings are guidance to the man kind," he said.

Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan was also present on the occasion.
Follow us on politics aside a mother lost her son pm modi on rohith s suicide

Lucknow: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today broke his silence on the suicide of Rohith Vemula in Hyderabad saying that it was unfortunate that a student was compelled to take such a drastic step and that he felt the pain of the bereaved family.

PM Modi also sought to keep politics aside as he expressed deep anguish at the loss of the family. "A young son of my country, Rohith, was compelled to commit suicide, what his family must have gone through, I can feel the pain," PM Modi said addressing the convocation of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University in Lucknow.

"Politics aside, a mother has lost his son. There can be no bigger grief," an emotional Modi said.

The death of Rohith Vemula, who was found dead in his hostel room on Sunday has led to immense controversy across India. Rohtih was among five Dalit scholars who were staging a protest over their suspension following an alleged clash with some leaders of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad.

Protesting students have alleged that the central government was putting pressure on the Hyderabad Central University to act against those accused by the ABVP leader.

Meanwhile, based on the report by the fact-finding team, the HRD ministry has decided to set up a Judicial Commission to look into the sequence of events leading to Rohith Vemula's suicide. Union Minister for Human Resource Development Smriti Irani today spoke to Rohith's mother and assured her of justice.

The Judicial Commission will submit its report within three months.
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At least six people  and eight attackers  were killed when al-Shabab suicide bombers and gunmen attacked a seafront hotel and restaurant in the Somali capital, the intelligence agency said. A car laden with explosives rammed into the Beach View Hotel on Lido beach on Thursday evening, after which several al-Shabab fighters opened fire at the hotel, witnesses told Al Jazeera.

After the blast, I saw at least four armed men run into the hotel, shooting everyone inside and around the hotel, Mustafa Elmi, a Lido beach visitor, told DPA news agency. I managed to escape with minor wounds, but there were people who were shot dead on the spot, he added. Locals said the death toll was likely to rise because some families had earlier collected bodies for burial.

A second explosion hit the nearby Lido Seafood restaurant, where several gunmen were reportedly holed up. The lights at Lido Seafood have just been switched off. Heavy gunfire is now ongoing, Abdirizak Mohamud, a freelance journalist at the scene, told Al Jazeera. More and more security forces are now going into the restaurant. They have pulled out three injured people so far, Mohamud added.
Unfortunately, Eminems sister-in-law, Dawn Scott was mysteriously found dead on Tuesday, January 19 from a suspected drug overdose.

According to People magazine, the 41-year-old, whos the biological mother of the rappers adopted daughter, Alaina Scott, was found unconcious in a home in Macomb County, Michigan.

The emaciated elderly woman also found with her body was taken to the hospital.

She was found slumped over in bed and unresponsive, Mayor James Fouts of Warren, Michigan told the mag. Its suspected to be drug use, possibly heroin.

The Macomb County Medical Examiners office confirmed Scotts identity, but could not confirm an official cause of death as a toxicology report is still pending.

Scotts sister Kimberly Mathers, posted a heartfelt message saying: Dawn was my sweet, beautiful sister who lost her way. I kept a light lit for her hoping shed find her way back to me. I miss her and love her more than anything I could ever say. I wish she was here so I could hug her and tell her I love her.

She added on the funeral homes tribute wall: Half of me is gone and I will never feel whole again. She made me laugh and kept me on my toes. She was the best sister and friend in the world and I will miss her until we are together again.

Her memorial service is set for January 23 at a funeral home in Michigan. Eminem or his rep did are yet to make a comment
A human rights group, International Society for Civil Liberties and the rule of Law (Intersociety) has lamented the violence unleashed by security forces on Biafra protesters.

In a press statement issued yesterday in Onitsha, Anambra state, entitled: Violent Suppression Of Nonviolent Protests In Nigeria: Buhari Must Heed EUs Advice, Intersociety decried what it termed as murder of 50 in violent suppression of non-violent Biafran protesters by Nigerias security forces between August 30, 2015 and January 18, 2016.

The group said the documented statistics available at its disposal clearly indicated that such a massive application of state violence outside local and international norms to violently suppress the pro-Biafran non-violent protests in Nigeria within the afore-mentioned period of less than five months, had led to the gruesome murder by security forces of such a number of Nigerian citizens and Biafran citizens in particular.

The group said the murdered victims included four citizens killed in Awka and Onitsha on August 30, 2015; 13 killed in Onitsha on December 2, 2015; 12 killed in Onitsha on December 17, 2015 (eight were killed on the spot and four others died in hospital following gunshot wounds); and eight killed in Aba on January 18, 2016.

The statement also alleged that scores of innocent citizens have also disappeared in the hands of Nigerian security forces particularly the Nigerian Army and the Nigeria Police Force.

Citizens are routinely arrested by police on allegation of being MASSOB or IPOB members and killed secretly and buried in undisclosed shallow graves; likewise those shot and killed by soldiers and police while embarking on peaceful protests. Once their bodies are taken away by their killer security operatives, they will never be accounted for or released to their families for befitting

Over 120 citizens were shot and critically injured with gunshots in Delta, Rivers, Anambra, Abia and Enugu States between 30th August 2015 and 18th January 2016. Of these, over 40 citizens were critically shot and injured in Anambra (30thAugust, 2nd and 17th December 2015); 30 in Abia State (18th January 2016 alone), 21 in Rivers State (30th August 2015); 10 in Delta State (30th August 2015) and 6 in Enugu State. These exclude scores of others critically shot and injured in related nonviolent protests in those States as well as Bayelsa State.

Among those critically shot and injured in Rivers by Nigerian Army and the Police including their mobile lines are Citizens Sunday Udegbe Nwabunne Udo, Agwasi Anthony, Meshach Emmanuel, Chinwendu Ogbonna, Amanda Onyekachi, Emmanuel Arinze, Okwudiri Ojah, Chibuike David, Uzochi Ugwojialili; Chukwuma Igwe, Kingsley Okere, Chinedu Solomon Iwu, Okon Emmanuel Udo, Kelechi Uwaeze, Uwalaka, Solomon Chikwe, Ikenna Ezekwem, Ubani, Amarachi Onyemachi, and Chukwudi Ofoegbuliwe, In Enugu State, the following were critically shot and injured, Mr. Godswill Ojikeme, Mrs. Chinyere Godswill Ojikeme, Ogbodo Monday, Jonah Kelechi, Onuigbo Paul and Obiorah Innocent.

Those gravely shot and wounded in Delta State are: Chinedu Abe, Onovo Michael, Kingsley Anuife, Amechi Ojieh, Ogbonna Kanayo, David Ogbu, Charles Chukwuka, Elochukwu Uzor, Chinedu Chukwuma and Onyekanna Ifechukwude. Those critically shot and injured on 30th August 2015 in Anambra State are: Sampson Kalu, Chidiebere Nnaji Onyekwelu Ovute, Felix Ndianaefo, Ikechukwu Okafor, Chimaobi Okafor, Christopher Oforah, Sunday Nwazugbo, Stanley Eze, Mrs. Eucharia and Mrs. Patricia. Two of the four citizens killed in Awka and Onitsha in the same peaceful protest of 30th August 2015 were Ebuka Nnolum from Enuguabo-Ufuma in Anambra State and Obasi Maduka from Oshiri in Ebonyi State (his brothers number is. In the 2nd and 17thDecember 2015 peaceful protests in Onitsha, over 30 citizens were critically shot and injured, out of whom, 27 citizens were taken and admitted at the Multicare Hospital.

Between 300 and 400 citizens or more labeled Biafran or IPOB or MASSOB members had also been arrested, detained, tortured, or killed extra judicially across the country since 30th of August 2015. In the Aba pro Biafran peaceful protest of 18thJanuary 2016 alone, 60 peaceful protesters were arrested and detained. Many are still languishing in pretrial detention; others are facing concocted heinous political crimes charges such as treason and treasonable felony.

The group stated that in the world over, violent suppression of non-violent protests by territorial governments have always boomeranged; leading the suppressed to abandon non-violent approaches and resort to self help or self defense approaches.

Consequently, the latest advice handed down to the Government of Muhammadu Buhari by the European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security, Ms Federica Mogherini, is a welcome development, timely and internationally grounded. The EU High Representative had advised Buhari that in as much as, the European Union has strong diplomatic and economic ties with Nigeria, protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms remains a priority for the EU and we encourage the authorities (Nigeria) in every occasion to respect such rights, the group said.

The EU, on the other hand, advised pro Biafran campaigners and the Organization of Emerging African States (OEAS) that self-determination and border changes must be in accordance with established international law.
Israeli authorities have demolished several homes in the strategically sensitive E1 region of the occupied West Bank, displacing at least 17 Palestinians, among them children. Israeli troops forcibly evacuated local residents and bulldozers flattened four homes in the Jabal al-Baba community, on the outskirts of occupied East Jerusalem, on Thursday, according to a local spokesman.

They showed up at four in the morning and removed everyone from their homes  men, women, children, Daoud al-Jahalin, the spokesman of the Jahalin Bedouin tribe in the neighbouring village of Abu Nuwwar, told Al Jazeera. There were no journalists there to witness it so they did it all by force, pointing their weapons at people and hitting many of the young men.

Jabal al-Baba and Abu Nuwwar are among more than 20 Palestinian Bedouin villages  known as the Jahalin communities  in the E1 area of the central West Bank. An estimated 300 people live in Jabal al-Baba, while another 700 live next door in Abu Nuwwar.

Israel intends to demolish those communities and build Jewish-only settlements in their place, effectively dissecting the West Bank into separate halves and eliminating the possiblity of territorial congruity in a potential Palestinian state.
Javier Mascherano has been sentenced to a year in prison but is unlikely to ever serve time in jail, after a verdict was reached in his tax evasion case. The Argentine has been fined 815,000 and handed a years sentence for two counts of fiscal crimes committed in 2011 and 2012.

Mascherano has previously admitted to the offences, repaid the money owed and paid a hefty fine as recompense.

After such compliance with the investigation, the court is expected to grant the wish of Mascherano and his lawyer, David Aineto, in suspending the custodial sentence in exchange for a further fine.

The Barcelona star said in a statement released on Thursday: Im a professional sportsman and I dont know a lot about legal and financial matters.

Javier Mascheranos statement in full:

Today I have reached an agreement with the Spanish tax authorities, with a firm verdict agreed by all parties. Thus, with a resolution now for the legal matters and with the relief of having sorted my tax situation, I would like to make a brief statement.

After agreeing my move to Barcelona I contracted a specialist tax agency with well-known professionals that enjoy a great reputation. According to my situation they recommended me certain structures, all within the law, telling me that they were normal, transparent and accepted procedures.

I was assessed by these professionals from 2010 to 2014 I decided to change agency because of the proceedings I was facing, and with evidence that the problems may not be potential but in fact very real. My new agency recommended that I pay the tax authorities the money they were claiming, presenting also a corrective payment.

Now, finally, after a long wait this agreement has arrived which allows me to relax again and go about my daily life.

Im a professional sportsman and I dont know a lot about legal and financial matters.

Therefore I must rely on the people that manage these technical, and for me, complicated, issues.

All my career I have been an honest and responsible person I will take this experience that has accosted me as another experience which I will leave stronger and calmed by the fact that I am once again within the law.

Source: The Guardian
Telecommunications Company, MTN Nigeria, has said it is considering settling out of court with the Nigerian Communications Commission over the N1.04tn fine imposed on it.

On Friday, at the resumed hearing of the suit it filed to challenge the N1.04tn fine, MTNs lawyer, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), pleaded with the presiding judge, Justice Mohammed Idris, to give parties 60 days to explore the option of settlement out of court.

But the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), who was sued as the 2nd defendant, told the court, through his lawyer, Mr. Dipo Okpeseyi (SAN), that parties had been finding it difficult to settle out of court.

He urged the court to take it that all the court papers in the matter had been properly filed and served and that the case was still ongoing.

This is a matter of national importance. There have been concessions in the past and nothing happened, Okpeseyi noted.

In his own reaction, counsel for the NCC, Mr. Yusuf Alli (SAN), argued that the maximum period allowed by the court rules was 21 days for parties to file and serve written addresses.

After entertaining arguments from all parties, Justice Idris adjourned till March 18 for report of settlement or for hearing in the case.

The judge also held that all processes filed shall be deemed as properly filed and served.

He held that all the preliminary objections and substantive application shall be taken together on the adjourned date if need be.

Justice Idris had on January 12, 2016 turned down an application of mareva injunction by the AGF seeking to bar MTN from emptying its accounts in 21 commercial banks in Nigeria, in order not to boycott N1.04tn fine.

The AGF had expressed the fear that MTN could move all its funds out of the country before the N1.04tn fine could be enforced.

He had sought an order directing all the 21 banks to open a special interest-yielding account in the name of the Chief Registrar of the Federal High Court and move N1.04tn into it from MTNs accounts.

But in refusing the application, the judge said the AGF did not place enough material fact before the court to prove that MTN was making any moves to repatriate all its funds out of Nigeria.

MTN had filed the suit to challenge the N1.04tn fine imposed on it by NCC for its failure to deactivate its unregistered subscribers.

Among other things, the company contended that NCC could not act pursuant to Section 70 of its establishment Act to impose the fine on it, adding that it was not given fair hearing before the fine was imposed.

Source:ThePunch
An unemployed Nigerian man was arraigned before Dubai Criminal Court on Monday, January 18, for trying to withdraw more than Dh500,000 from another mans bank account using an Emirates ID card that the account holder had lost.



The ID card belonged to a man from Kenya who had lost his wallet in March last year. Two months laterthe Nigerian was contacted by a friend who had found the Kenyan mans wallet. He asked the Nigerian to visit the bank on Khalid bin Al Waleed Road in Dubai, use the ID card to pose as the Kenyan and withdraw Dh580,000 from his account.

In return, he would be paid Dh50,000, the friend told him. The fraud was thwarted when a bank employee spotted the difference between the Nigerian and the photo on the ID card. The man fled the bank, but was arrested five months later .

In court, he admitted using an Emirates ID card belonging to someone else, forging the bank account withdrawal slip by signing it and adding his personal details, using the forged slip, and attempting to fraudulently obtain Dh580,000.

The man whose name was not revealed will be sentenced on February 8 .

Source: The NationalUAE
Punch

The country sold N195.95bn ($975m) in Treasury bills with maturities from three months to one year in its second auction of the year on Wednesday, at higher yields than previously, the Central Bank of Nigeria said on Thursday.

Vanguard

It is no longer news that African music star, David Adeleke (Davido) signed a multi-million dollar Record deal with Sony Music at their headquarters in New York. Davido becomes the first African to ink such a deal.

Daily Times

Activities of government officials were on Thursday temporarily put on hold in Edo State Government House and some ministries, as political office holders stormed Benin High Court over the arraignment of the member of the House of Representatives, representing Etsako Federal Constituency, Hon. Philip Shaibu.

The Sun

Former National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd), was yesterday brought before Justice Husseini Baba-Yusuf of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory [FCT] to answer criminal charges brought against him on the order of the court.

Guardian

The Minister of State for Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, said on Thursday in Abeokuta that the Federal Government would build 10,000 functional primary healthcare centres across the country.

Daily Trust

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors have said that the handcuffing of the National Publicity of their party, Olisa Metuh, is meant to deride not only him but also to cast the party in bad light before Nigerians. The PDP Governors Forum, in a statement yesterday in Abuja by Earl Osaro Onaiwu, its coordinator, said the action was meant to let Nigerians see the PDP as a party of corrupt individuals even when they were yet to be convicted by any competent court.
North Korea says it has arrested a US student accused of committing a hostile act against the state. State news agency KCNA identified him as University of Virginia student Otto Frederick Warmbier. He had entered North Korea as a tourist with the intention to destroy the countrys unity, said KCNA, which added that the US government had tolerated and manipulated him.

It did not give further details, but said he was now under investigation. An official at the US embassy in the South Korean capital, Seoul, told Reuters it was aware of the arrest. China-based tour agency Young Pioneer Tours released a statement confirming that Mr Warmbier had been detained while on one of their tours in Pyongyang, and said his family had been informed.

It had earlier told Reuters that Mr Warmbier was arrested on 2 January. We are in contact with the Swedish Embassy who are working with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to address the case. We are also assisting the US Department of State closely with regards to the situation, it said in the statement.

In the meantime we would appreciate Ottos and his familys privacy being respected and we hope his release can be secured as soon as possible. Sweden represents US interests in North Korea as Washington and Pyongyang do not have diplomatic relations.

BBC.
A Norwegian man made a daring effort to save his car after he was awoken by an attempted theft early Wednesday morning. When the car owner, 25, ran from his home without taking the time to dress himself as he grabbed onto the car door handle of his Volkswagen Passat as the thief attempted to drive away. The car thief attempted to shake the man loose by driving through the snow at speeds as high as 56 miles per hour, but the determined owner was ultimately able to make his way onto the roof of the vehicle.

He then successfully entered the car by breaking the rearview window with his knee and was able to thwart the thief after running the car into a safety barrier. According to the BBC, local police chief Jan Nesland compared the unidentified car owners daring rescue to an action movie and noted the subzero temperatures made the feat even more impressive.

Bruce Willis wouldnt have managed that, he told Norways TV2 news. Its not something we would advise people to do, but now that hes done it  well, its an incredible story. The car owner was taken to the hospital after the incident after suffering cuts on his knee from breaking through the car window.

UPI.
Some members of the House of Representatives have argued that the corrected version of the N6.08trn budget proposal submitted to the House was wasteful, fraudulent and unrealistic. The lawmakers, who spoke during the debate on the Appropriation bill said the budget was too high for a government talking about cutting cost. The lawmakers highlighted the issues they have with the budget. INFORMATION NIGERIA has put together the issued they highlighted in this piece

 They argued that N3, 914,197, 062bn meant for annual maintenance of Villa facilities was not in the first budget document.

 N228.6m for sourcing and purchasing equipment (purchase and importation), which was not in the first budget was contained in the corrected version.

 They said the budget only made projections for heavy revenues through massive borrowing without serious plans for the repayment of such loans.

 The lawmakers also criticized the idea of borrowing N500m daily to fund the budget.

 The 2016 budget by President Buhari earmarked N4bn to Aso Rock clinic, N536m to link cables from drivers rest room, guest house to the Aso Villa and N795m for website update. This according to the Senate is fraudulent.

What do you think???
Public health officials in El Salvador have advised women to delay pregnancy for the next two years to prevent children from developing birth defects from the mosquito-borne Zika virus. Eduardo Espinoza, the countrys vice-minister of public health, said on Thursday that women who were already pregnant should stay covered outdoors to reduce the risk of mosquito bites.

Wed like to suggest to all the women of fertile age that they take steps to plan their pregnancies, and avoid getting pregnant between this year and next, he said. The government decided to make the announcement after 5,397 cases of the Zika virus were detected in El Salvador in 2015 and the first few days of this year, Espinoza said.

Official figures show 96 pregnant women were suspected of having contracted the virus, but so far none have had babies born with microcephaly, or abnormally small heads, which the disease can cause.

In Colombia, which has the second-highest Zika infection rate after Brazil, the government is also advising women to delay becoming pregnant, but only for six to eight months. President Dilma Rousseff said on Thursday that Brazilian researchers were working with domestic and foreign laboratories to attempt to develop a vaccine for the Zika and dengue viruses.

Aljazeera.
GBPAUD Consolidating Just Below Key 1.80 Level Tradable Patterns - Wed Oct 19, 10:25PM CDT The GBPAUD is consolidating around what is arguably downchannel resistance (on the weekly chart), taking a breather after breaking Monday above the psychologically key 1.80 whole figure level. Although...

Hog Futures Close Higher Barchart - Wed Oct 19, 4:48PM CDT At the close lean hog futures were $0.85 to $1.20 higher at the close. The CME Lean Hog from 10/17 was $93.19, down by 16 cents. The National Average Base Hog price for Wednesday afternoon was $3.67 stronger... HEZ22 : 87.375s (+1.04%) HEJ23 : 92.750s (+1.09%) KMZ22 : 96.875s (+0.36%)

Limit Drop in Dec Cotton Barchart - Wed Oct 19, 4:48PM CDT Cotton futures hit their limit a couple of times to the downside on Wednesday, with December ultimately closing there. The other front months ended the day with 302 to 347 point losses. Dec is now printing... CTZ22 : 79.14 (+1.09%) CTH23 : 78.78 (+1.04%) CTK23 : 78.25 (+1.06%)

Cattle Strengthens on Wednesday Barchart - Wed Oct 19, 4:48PM CDT Front month live cattle futures ended the day with gains of $0.72 to $1.57. The December contract went home $1.02 under the contract high and just 5 cents under the day sessions high. Feeders faded... LEV22 : 149.350s (+0.59%) LEZ22 : 151.350s (+1.05%) LEG23 : 154.250s (+0.97%) GFV22 : 175.225s (+0.23%) GFX22 : 178.075s (+0.14%)

Soybeans Close in Black on Wednesday Barchart - Wed Oct 19, 4:48PM CDT The Wednesday soybean market saw afternoon strength push beans fractionally to 2 3/4 cents in the black. Through the session November contracts saw a 21 1/2 cent trading range from +6 1/2 cents to -15c.... ZSX22 : 1374-2 (+0.13%) ZSPAUS.CM : 13.2637 (+0.06%) ZSF23 : 1384-2 (+0.11%) ZSH23 : 1393-0 (+0.09%)
Phoenix-based AMERCO Real Estate Co., the acquisition and development entity for The U-Haul Co., has purchased a former furniture store in Tulsa, Okla., that it will convert to a U-Haul rental and self-storage facility. The company acquired the Rooms Today store at 3500 S. Sheridan Road for $3.5 million from Mathis Brothers Furniture, according to the source.

Although the store closed last year, the owners had been trying to sell the property for the last five years, according to Dwayne Flynn, one of the brokers in the transaction. They wanted to find a buyer that would buy the building but wouldnt compete with them, he told the source.

U-Haul plans to convert the 167,702-square-foot building to climate-controlled self-storage, said Jeff Lockridge, manager of media and public relations for U-Haul. The facility will also offer a hitch bay, moving and packing supplies, trailer and truck rentals, towing equipment, and U-Box container rentals. U-Haul is finalizing plans for the project and working with the city to obtain permitting for immediate trailer and truck rentals, Lockridge said. Sometimes were able to get a temporary showroom open as we convert; other times we put out a temporary office trailer for rentals.

Mathis Brothers acquired the building on Sheridan Road as well as other properties in 2003 from Evans Furniture, which built the site in 1972. The company has sold future at the location under several names, including Factory Direct.

Flynn, Bill Mizener and Ryan Shaffer of CBRE Inc. in Tulsa represented Mathis Brothers in the transaction. AMERCO was represented by Jami Gray of CBRE in Phoenix.

AMERCO is the parent company of U-Haul International, Oxford Life Insurance Co. and Repwest Insurance Co. Established in 1945, U-Haul has 40 million square feet of storage space at more than 1,200 owned and managed facilities throughout North America.
Crude oil futures rebounded sharply this morning, with West Texas Intermediate futures contracts for front-month delivery edged up past $31 per barrel, up more than 15 percent from the lows hit Wednesday. The move comes after prices reached the lowest level in a dozen years earlier in the week and U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data revealed the largest net-short position in oil since 2006, suggesting that short covering drove todays bullish move. While the bounce may prove to be temporary, European equities got a bounce aided by European Central Bank president Mario Draghis hint at more stimulus yesterday. French bourse CAC 40 was up more than 3 percent in early trading. With sentiment for commodity markets broadly  and energy in particular  near all-time-lows, the collateral damage to financial markets remains massive. Yesterday Moodys Investors Services reported that the credit rating of dozens of energy producers are under review for a potential downgrade, spurring more pressure for high-yield bond investors.

Nabiullina skips Davos as ruble collapses. The Bank of Russia issued a statement that bank governor Elvira Nabiullina has canceled her trip to the World Economic Forum at Davos to hold an emergency policymakers meeting in response to the rubles continuing decline against major currencies in light of the recent sell-off in oil markets. As of 2012, oil and gas production accounted for more than 15 percent of Russian GDP and more than half of federal government revenues, according to the World Bank.

Yahoo! rejects offers. Reuters reported yesterday that Sunnyvale, Californiabased Internet company Yahoo! has solicited offers for its core internet business in advance of the fourth-quarter earnings release, scheduled for February 2, as management there considers strategic options. According to the report, based on anonymous sources, the company intends to continue with a spinoff of the unit, provided it can achieve favorable tax treatment.

European PMI weaker than expected. Final December composite purchasing manager index data for the euro zone released today by Markit was weaker than consensus forecast at 53.5 versus an initial 54.1. Both service sector and manufacturing components were revised downward.

Portfolio Perspective: Facing the Reality of Financial Market Risk  Jim Strugger, MKM Partners

On no occasion over the almost 30 years of available data has a volatility event of the magnitude experienced last August not occurred amidst a high-volatility regime or signaled the beginning of one. That event, and the subsequent elevated floors under VIX and VVIX, were the reasons we at MKM Partners abandoned our long-held view that the period of structurally low volatility would stretch toward the five-year historical average.

The importance of this transition in our work cant be understated. There have been two recessions and bear markets since the mid-1990s, all contained within high-volatility regimes. Theres little doubt that a period of elevated financial market risk has begun  evident by cyclical shifts in VIX, VVIX, GFSI and realized volatility via the SPX intraday high-low spread.

During both the 1990s and 2000s high-volatility regimes, there were ten shocks that spiked spot VIX into the high-20s  so roughly two events per year  with the distance between them positively correlated with magnitude. As much as focus is on the volatility event at hand, there has to be an appreciation for the duration of this new risk environment.

Jim Strugger is a managing director and derivatives strategist for MKM Partners in Stamford, Connecticut.
Led by the Nature Conservancy, the deal could serve as a model for other developing island nations, but will investors step up?

The Seychelles, a picturesque 115-island nation off the coast of East Africa, is known for its pristine beaches and exotic wildlife. But this archipelago in the West Indian Ocean is also the site of a new financial product that aims to reduce debt and climate-change mitigation pressures for the countrys government and its 90,000 citizens.

Ninety-nine percent of the Seychelles territory is ocean, so economic growth hinges on marine conservation. But in recent years that reliance has left residents worried as they witness extreme weather, ocean acidification and other effects of climate change. Burdened with public debt that amounts to 65 percent of its $1.4 billion gross domestic product, the country cant afford to confront these problems alone.

We are constantly aware of the vulnerabilities our people and economy are exposed to as a direct result of climate change, Ronald Jumeau, the Seychelles ambassador for climate change and small island developing state issues, wrote in a recent op-ed. And because our resources are so limited, we have to stretch them in unique ways.

Help recently arrived in the form of a debt swap in exchange for commitments to a climate adaptation plan. Announced at Decembers 21st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris, this deal will see the Seychelles restructure almost $30 million in debt with the aid of $23 million from NatureVest, the impact investing unit of the Arlington, Virginiabased Nature Conservancy, and $7 million in philanthropic grants. The government will reroute debt payments into an independent trust dedicated to measures that will reduce the countrys sensitivity to climate change along its coasts and within marine areas.

This effort is the brainchild of Robert Weary, senior director of product development at NatureVest. Weary based it on similar Nature Conservancy debt swap products that helped countries such as Belize and Costa Rica trade debt for conservation, but he says he tweaked the new version in several ways: There are a few firsts in this Seychelles deal.

For starters, no previous debt swap used impact capital or financed climate adaptation. The Seychelles swap also includes a policy component that Weary believes is another innovation. The deal encourages the Seychelles government to expand its marine protected systems and no-take zones  places where fishing, mining, drilling or extraction of any kind is forbidden. Proceeds from the swap will help to fund the enforcement, management plans and restoration work required to keep these areas safe.

Small island developing states, or SIDS, like the Seychelles are highly vulnerable to the double threat of indebtedness and climate change. Last year the United Nations Development Program found that 15 of the 39 SIDS that are U.N. members had public debttoGDP ratios higher than 60 percent. Four SIDS  most of them in the Caribbean  reported debt-to-GDP ratios above 100 percent.

Debt and natural exposure compound each other, says Francisco Carneiro, Washington-based lead economist and program leader for the Caribbean at the World Bank Group. Every time theres a natural disaster, losses can be large  larger than a countrys own GDP sometimes. It can be hard to get out of the high-debt/low-growth spiral.

NatureVests Weary intends to scale the Seychelles model. Grenada and Jamaica have expressed interest in analogous deals, and he hopes to have them in place within 12 to 18 months. In the South Pacific, Palau and the Marshall Islands  whose land mass is vanishing beneath the waves  also wish to follow suit.

To keep going, Weary must attract other impact investors, but he admits hes stumped. Thats the next nut to crack, he says. But from what Im hearing, theres no appetite from impact investors on deals longer than ten years. I need 20-year money to really make these work.

Carneiro says the World Bank is helping to bring the debt swap product to Jamaica, which carries almost $700 million in structural bilateral debt. Negotiations havent moved beyond talks with the countrys creditors, but he expects that the Jamaica and Seychelles deals will serve as a springboard to create a revolving World Bank fund for financing similar products.

Were hoping itll be a huge success, Carneiro says, stressing that time is short for cash-strapped island states to build resilience to climate change: With that success, we can approach donors and investors in various regions.
Lloyds has collaborated with modelling firms AIR Worldwide and RMS with the Cambridge Centre of Risk Studies to announce a set of common core data requirements for cyber risks, the insurance institution has announced.Both AIR and the RMS/Cambridge team have agreed to highlight common elements when they publish their data schemas later this month, with each agreeing to use similar terminology and precise definitions, Lloyds said.Now it is turning to key brokers to do their bit.Lloyds director of performance management, Tom Bolt, said: Cyber insurance is an important new area of coverage and it is essential that we have good quality standardised data to track exposures.I am delighted that the RMS/Cambridge team and AIR, in consultation with the Lloyds Market Association, have worked with us to propose standard definitions for some common data.I have written to major brokers to ask them to endeavour to provide this data to Lloyds underwriters.Lloyds general representative in Australia, Chris Mackinnon , told Insurance Business that the new framework should help the Australian industry to better evaluate cyber risk.The framework introduces common core schema for cyber exposure data and common core features for input data used in cyber risk tools in the market, Mackinnon said.This will enable Australian brokers and insurers to better evaluate cyber risks, with increased access to good quality standardised data to track exposures.Mackinnon noted that the new framework is aimed to help standardise an ever-changing and evolving risk as the business looks to keep up with an emerging risk with huge potential opportunities and challenges.This new framework will provide better clarity for the calculation of risks and this is a significant step forward, Mackinnon said.At Lloyds we have been modelling catastrophes for hundreds of years, and our data enables us to create very effective modelling forecasts.But cyber security risks are a relatively new class of business and the entire insurance industry needs to ensure that it improves data aggregation to build more reliable models that enable underwriters to properly price risk.Lloyds underwriters are some of the most experienced in the world, and we are pleased that we have been able to use our experience to help build a consensus on the standardisation of data that will benefit the whole sector.The common core data requirements can be found here
Is this mega case really over?
A New York man is about to go on trial in vehicular homicide case that tests the limits of criminal consequences. He wasnt behind the wheel when a police officer was struck and killed  he was leaning against the guardrail.

Prosecutors say James Ryan was charged because his drunken driving on the Long Island Expressway set in motion a series of events that ended in the officers death. Nassau County Police Officer Joseph Olivieri was struck and killed after arriving to investigate a pair of accidents Ryan allegedly caused in October 2012.

The crashes have already been the subject of vigorous court battles, including an appeals court decision supporting the 16-count indictment. But Ryans attorney believes prosecutors have overreached.

I think the district attorneys office has been blinded by the allegations of alcohol use, said defense attorney Marc Gann. Theres nobody else to criminally blame so they blame Ryan.  Its extremely unusual for a person not driving to be charged with a vehicular death.

Ryan, a 28-year-old part-time student, could face up to 25 years in prison if convicted of aggravated vehicular homicide, manslaughter, driving while intoxicated and other charges. A spokesman for county prosecutors declined comment, citing the upcoming trial.

This factual situation is certainly rare and relatively unique, said Joseph McCormack, an adjunct law professor at St. Johns University who serves as the New York state traffic safety resource prosecutor.

McCormack said prosecutors are employing the legal principle of causation/foreseeability, in which suspects are charged in events that are foreseeable results of their actions. In one such case from 1994, a New York City man was convicted of murder in the death of an officer who was had been chasing after him in a robbery investigation and fatally fell through a skylight.

More recently, in 2013, Nassau prosecutors convicted a man of vehicular manslaughter for the death of a motorcyclist who crashed into his wrecked car after he crashed while driving intoxicated.

According to prosecutors, Ryans Toyota first clipped a BMW on the expressway, stopped farther down the road in the high-occupancy lane and then was hit by another car. A few minutes later, an SUV driver apparently did not see Ryans vehicle, which had been turned sideways from the earlier crashes, and smashed into Ryans car before hitting Olivieri.

Prosecutors say Ryan had been drinking in a Manhattan bar and at the time of the accidents had a blood-alcohol level of 0.13, above the states 0.08 threshold of drunkenness.

A state judge initially dismissed the charges, finding Olivieris death was solely attributable to the SUV driver, who was never charged.

A state appeals court later reinstated the charges, saying it was reasonably foreseeable that the defendants conduct would cause collisions and that the police would respond and be required to be in the roadway, where they would be exposed to the potentially lethal danger presented by fast-moving traffic.

It also noted Ryans actions need not be the sole cause of death and, indeed, the defendant need not have committed the fatal act to be liable.

Leonard R. Stamm, a Maryland attorney and dean of the National College for DUI Defense, did not agree with that ruling.

It appears that the appellate court took a much broader view, Stamm said in an email. It is not reasonably foreseeable that driving drunk would cause that kind of fatal accident.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Auto Fraud New York
Swiss Re Corporate Solutions Ltd. and Veolia have joined forces, under the auspices of The Rockefeller Foundation, to launch an infrastructure recovery initiative to speed up economic recovery in the aftermath of catastrophic events for cities across the globe.

The partnership, designed to support cities worldwide in the areas of climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction, infrastructure enhancement and recovery, was announced in Davos, Switzerland at the World Economic Forum, by Swiss Re Corporate Solutions CEO, Agostino Galvagni; Antoine Frerot, chairman and CEO of Veolia, and Rockefeller Foundation president, Dr. Judith Rodin.

The current reality is that cities rarely have financial plans in place to protect critical assets against shocks before they occur, and in the aftermath of such events, cities must determine what is damaged, how it will be fixed, who can fix it and how to fund these repairs, which can take months or years, said a statement issued by the three organizations.

This initiative is designed to dramatically improve and streamline the existing process, the statement said.

Under the partnership agreement, Swiss Re and Veolia, which is a resource management company with expertise in water, energy and waste systems, will work with cities to understand the risk exposure of critical assets under current and future climate scenarios.

Under this agreement, both partners will perform risk assessments of cities, identify their most vulnerable and valuable assets, and work together to build resilience strategies around these assets, the organizations said, noting that these assessments could help cities develop resilience plans while reducing their risk exposure over time, the statement said.

Swiss Re and Veolia said they will work to develop a pilot for the initiative in a city, such as New Orleans, which could focus on some of the citys infrastructure, including critical water and wastewater systems.

By planning ahead for major shocks and stresses, cities not only strengthen the resistance of their vital infrastructure, they can also limit economic interruption and begin to quickly repair damage without waiting for insurance assessments, payouts, and solicitations for repair proposals, the statement continued.

The partnership was brokered by 100 Resilient Cities (100RC), a Rockefeller Foundation funded initiative, aimed at helping cities better understand the susceptibility of their critical infrastructure to disaster risk, provide the resources to better protect this infrastructure, and enable these assets to be more quickly functional following a disaster.

When we joined the 100 Resilient Cities project as one of its founding partners in 2013, part of the commitment was to create a functional toolbox for cities to assess, price, prepare for and mitigate risks. Our partnership with Veolia brings us one step closer to fulfilling that vision, and were convinced that if we can make it a success, the concept can be scaled and replicated for other cities, and for other services. Its an important step in moving resilience from talk to action, said Agostino Galvagni, CEO Swiss Re Corporate Solutions.

We support the initiative as we hope our expertise in risk management is central to building cities that are more resilient by helping them to identify, quantify, prioritize and ultimately transfer this risk away from their citizens and into the private market, said a Swiss Re spokesperson.

This partnership is a sign that the private sector better understands what cities need to build resilience, and cities will no longer have to make difficult and often inefficient decisions after experiencing a disaster. They will know what is at risk, how it needs to improve, who will fix it, and where the funds will come from, all which allows them to rebound more quickly, said Michael Berkowitz, president of 100 Resilient Cities. Hopefully, this is the just the beginning, and when other market leaders recognize the importance of what Swiss Re and Veolia are doing, they too will begin to really innovate.

Our partnership with Swiss Re embodies the fact that resilience goes much beyond risk prevention and recovery in case of natural disaster, said Antoine Frerot, chairman and CEO of Veolia. We are strongly convinced that resilience reinforces cities attractiveness and represents a competitive advantage for cities.

Through the combination of their expertise, this initiative will help cities identify both vulnerabilities and opportunities, and pave the way for enhanced resilience. Investments in resilience-building ensure that the very fabric of our communities remains strong, in good times and bad, said Dr. Judith Rodin, president of The Rockefeller Foundation.

About Veolia and The Rockefeller Foundation

Veolia designs and provides water, waste and energy management solutions that contribute to the sustainable development of communities and industries. With more than 179,000 employees worldwide, the group helps to develop access to resources, preserve available resources, and to replenish them.

The Rockefeller Foundations mission for more than 100 years has been to promote the well-being of humanity throughout the world. The foundation works at the intersection of four focus areas  advance health, revalue ecosystems, secure livelihoods, and transform cities  to address the root causes of emerging challenges and create systemic change.

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Topics Mergers & Acquisitions Swiss Re
The North Dakota Insurance Reserve Fund will pay $142,500 to settle a federal civil rights lawsuit against the Richland County Sheriffs Office.

The three men who filed the lawsuit alleged they were injured when two deputies, Dan Wise and Steve Gjerdevig, used excessive force during a traffic stop for speeding in Abercrombie in August 2011.

Christopher Miranowski, Derek Grund and Adam Nelson sued in U.S. District Court in Fargo in August 2012, alleging that Wise and Gjerdevig yelled at them with perverse language and assaulted and battered them.

Authorities maintained the officers did nothing wrong because the three men had been drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana that night, appeared to be fleeing the officers and were uncooperative during the traffic stop. Court documents indicated the deputies pointed a firearm and a Taser at the plaintiffs but did not fire the weapons.

KFGO radio learned of the settlement through an open records request. Settlement terms call for Miranowski to receive more than $76,000, and Grund and Nelson to each receive $15,000. Theyll share an additional $36,000 for medical costs.

The settlement says the payments are not an admission of liability on the part of the defendants.

The three plaintiffs initially were seeking unspecified damages to be determined by a jury. Court documents show that the case was dismissed last month with prejudice, meaning the dismissal is permanent and the case cannot be brought back into court.

The state Insurance Reserve Fund handles claims against local governments.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Lawsuits
Columbus, Ohio-based property/casualty insurer, Nationwide, announced that Tom Clark has been elected president of Nationwides Excess & Surplus lines business.

In a planned leadership transition the company announced in 2014, Clark succeeds Mike Miller, who remains with Nationwide.

Prior to joining the Excess & Surplus team as executive vice president in 2014, Clark served as senior vice president for Allied Field Operations. In addition, Clark led field operations for Harleysville Insurance and played a key role in the integration of Harleysville into the Nationwide family. He has more than 25 years of technical and leadership experience in the insurance industry.

Miller is now president of Nationwide Ventures. In his new role, Miller will work to successfully source, execute and manage strategic investments for the company.

Source: Nationwide

Topics Excess Surplus
A second lawsuit over Puerto Ricos debt default will be joined with a similar suit in order to save time and money and avoid inconsistent rulings, a U.S. federal judge said on Thursday.

Financial Guaranty Insurance Co., or FGIC, sued Puerto Rico on Tuesday for diverting $164 million in revenue streams meant to pay the islands debt.

The lawsuit mirrored one brought earlier this month by two other bond insurers, Assured Guaranty and Ambac Financial, which argues that the so-called clawbacks violate the U.S. Constitution.

The cases, both filed in U.S. federal court in Puerto Rico, are the first against Puerto Rico since Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla called the U.S. territorys $70 billion debt load unpayable last June.

The governor has said the only way to afford to pay debt backed by Puerto Ricos constitution was to redirect or claw back revenues earmarked for debt at other agencies.

Both cases assert most of the same claims, including the same defendants, U.S. District Judge Gustavo Gelpi said in a court filing.

By joining the two lawsuits, he said the defendants, who include Garcia Padilla and other top Puerto Rican officials, can save money by not going to trial before two different judges.

Both cases will now go before U.S. District Judge Jose Fuste in Puerto Rico.

The lawsuits could mark a long, expensive court fight over Puerto Ricos efforts to restructure its debt. The island lacks access to U.S. bankruptcy protections, and creditors have resisted voluntary concessions, making for a messy and unpredictable path to restructuring.

A 45 percent poverty rate and shrinking tax base have helped push Puerto Rico into an economic quagmire. The lawsuits represent the first chance for a judge to assess the islands long-standing claims that it faces a humanitarian crisis and needs help from creditors.

But the litigation could prove largely symbolic, as the parties are expected to put most of their resources into consensual restructuring talks in the coming months.

FGIC insures about $1.2 billion of debt at the clawed-back agencies, while Ambac insures about $1.1 billion and Assured nearly $1.5 billion, according to the lawsuits.

(Reporting by Tracy Rucinski; Editing by Peter Cooney)

Topics Lawsuits Carriers USA
The Oklahoma mail carrier at the center of the first trial over General Motors Co.s deadly ignition-switch defect is dropping his claims after being accused of lying to the court.

Robert Scheuer, 49, will walk away from the case empty- handed, ending a lawsuit that was supposed to serve as a guide for hundreds of others against GM over the ignition switch, his lawyer said in a filing Friday in Manhattan federal court.

Scheuer had sued over claims the defective switch in his 2003 Saturn Ion disabled his air bag in an accident, leading to neck and back injuries. But the case collapsed after GM found evidence undermining several claims, including the extent of his injuries and details surrounding his familys eviction from their dream house after the wreck.

The apparent lies the plaintiff and his wife told the jury ended the trial early, and we are pleased that the case is over without any payment whatsoever to Mr. Scheuer, GM spokesman James Cain said in a statement.

U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman on Thursday granted GMs request to show jurors evidence that Scheuer and his wife, Lisa, had fabricated the story blaming GM for their eviction about four months after the accident. The judge said the new evidence would probably be devastating to the case.

Detroit-based GM claimed Scheuer had doctored a federal- government check stub to provide proof of funds to move into the familys new home. When the real estate agent found out, the family was evicted, the carmaker said. GM said the real estate agent had come forward after the trial started, and that the company had extensive evidence that it had nothing to do with the familys financial troubles.

Scheuer and his wife both hired criminal-defense attorneys this week after the carmaker accused them of lying.

The case was chosen as the first for trial by Robert Hilliard and Steve Berman, two of the top plaintiffs lawyers in the U.S., who are leading the ignition-switch litigation. They havent denied the allegations of forgery and perjury against their client.

GM recalled 2.59 million cars due to the defect and has already paid more than $2 billion in legal costs and settlements. Despite GMs admissions, the company is challenging liability in hundreds of individual cases.

The case is Fleck v. General Motors LLC, 1:14-cv-08176, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).

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Copyright 2022 Bloomberg.
Are loss-of-use damages, such as lost profits, allowed in Texas when an insured has recovered fair market value on a commercial vehicle that is deemed a total loss after an accident? The Texas Supreme Court thinks so, despite an insurers argument to the contrary.

In decision released Jan. 8 the Texas Supreme Court reversed the decision in J&D Towing, LLC vs. American Alternative Insurance Corp. (AAIC), in which a state appeals court overruled a trial court and found in favor of the insurance company.

The case stems from an accident in which the only tow truck owned by J&D Towing was struck by a motorist and rendering it a total loss.

All parties agreed that the accident, and resulting loss, was caused by the driver of the car that ran into the passenger side of the tow truck, which was on its way to repossess a vehicle.

J&D believed the 2002 model tow truck was worth between $19,000 and $20,000 at the time of the accident. The at-fault drivers insurer offered an amount several thousand dollars less than that. After several rounds of negotiation, J&D ultimately reached a settlement of $25,000, the limit for property damage on the other drivers policy.

J&D then filed a claim with AAIC under an underinsured-motorist policy issued by AAIC, requesting compensation for the loss of use of the truck, the Supreme Courts opinion states. The assertion was that the funds from the property damage settlement were insufficient to compensate for loss-of-use damages.

AAIC denied J&Ds claim and cancelled the policy.

J&D sued the insurer and represented to a jury that loss-of-use damages between the time of the accident, Dec. 29, 2011, and March 8, 2012, totaled either $27,866.25 or $29,416.25, with the difference being whether the jury awarded damages for a nine-week period or a ten-week period.

Instead of presenting evidence at trial, AAIC challenged the availability of loss-of-use damages in its motion for summary judgment and motion for an instructed verdict. AAICs argument may be summarized as follows: (1) its underinsured-motorist policy only offers to pay J&D damages that J&D is legally entitled to recover; (2) Texas law does not permit recovery of loss-of-use damages in total-destruction cases; (3) it is undisputed that J&Ds truck was totally destroyed; therefore, (4) J&D is not legally entitled to recover loss-of-use damages; and (5) AAIC is not obligated to pay under the policy, the opinion states.

The trial court denied both motions and the jury awarded J&D $28,000 in damages for the loss of use of the truck.. AAIC had argued that Texas law does not permit loss-of-use damages in total destruction cases, but the trial court was unconvinced.

It was determined that the truck was worth $19,500 at the time of the accident. The court reasoned that AAIC was entitled to a credit of $5,500, the difference between the amount of property damage that did not cover the value of the truck but instead partially compensated J&D for its loss-of-use damages.

The trial court then entered a judgment for J&D in the amount of $22,500 plus interest and court costs.

AAIC appealed. The appeals court agreed with the insurers argument that Texas law does not permit loss-of-use damages in total-destruction cases and reversed the trial courts judgement and award.

J&D then appealed to this Court, raising an argument that sounds in fairness and common sense: Texas law permits loss-of-use damages in partial-destruction cases, and the same should be true in total-destruction cases. The court of appeals distinction, J&D claims, is not only illogical but is also against the great weight of jurisdictions that have eliminated that archaic distinction, the Supreme Courts opinion states.

The Texas Supreme Court recognized that appeals courts in Texas have not been consistent in their opinions on whether loss-of-use damages are permitted in total destruction cases.

We, therefore, find ourselves at a crossroads. We have never expressly permitted or prohibited loss-of-use damages where personal property has been totally destroyed, but our general loss-of-use-damages caselaw emphasizes full and fair compensation, which ostensibly cuts in favor of permitting these damages in total-destruction cases. Conversely, most Texas courts of appeals have opted for a prohibition of loss-of-use damages, over the compelling dissenting view that such a prohibition is nonsensical and inequitable, the opinion states.

Early caselaw and early legal treatises across the majority of U.S. jurisdictions historically prohibited loss-of-use damages in total-destruction cases while permitting such damages in partial-destruction cases, the Court wrote. The reasoning behind that prohibition is not entirely clear, the Court conceded.

Despite historical outcomes, recent caselaw and treatises have shifted away from the prohibition. And the reasons for the shift appear to coalesce around one simple point: The owner of totally destroyed personal property may suffer loss-of-use damages to the same extent that the owner of partially destroyed personal property may suffer loss-of-use damages  permitting the damages in the latter case and not the former is, therefore, illogical, the Court wrote.

The Court ultimately agreed with the trial court and concluded that Texas law does permit loss-of-use damages in total-destruction cases. But, the Court also offered the caveat that: Permitting loss-of-use damages in total-destruction cases, however, is not a license for unrestrained raids on defendants coffers.

The high court declined to rule on the jury charge or the amount of loss of use damages awarded.

Topics Auto Texas Profit Loss Property
An argument raised by lawyers for a Texas teenager known for using an affluenza defense in a fatal drunken-driving wreck  that he may have been taken to Mexico against his will  is unlikely to help his case, outside juvenile defense attorneys said.

And even if a judge agrees that Ethan Couch was forced to flee to Mexico, he could still be locked up if the judge determines he violated probation by attending a party where people were drinking.

Attorneys for Couch said the 18-year-old is dropping his deportation fight in Mexico as they investigate whether he fled there or was brought against his wishes. He was arrested there with his mother, who is now charged with hindering the apprehension of a felon. She was returned to the U.S. quickly, but Couch won a delay based on a constitutional appeal that normally leads to a lengthy trial process.

Authorities allege the two crossed into Mexico in December, as Texas prosecutors investigated whether Couch violated his probation in the 2013 drunken-driving case. His attorney, Scott Brown, said that whether his client was voluntarily or involuntarily taken to Mexico is something that is still being investigated.

That comment came after a brief hearing in juvenile court scheduled to determine whether Couch, who is being held at a Mexico City detention facility, violated his probation and if the case should be transferred to adult court. But the judge cut the hearing short after Couchs attorneys said his parents werent properly notified. Another hearing was set for Feb. 19.

Dallas attorney Peter Schulte said the new defense argument might be related to the affluenza claim that Couch was coddled into a sense of irresponsibility by his wealthy parents. The condition is not recognized as a medical diagnosis by the American Psychiatric Association, and its use drew widespread derision.

The latest argument, Schulte said, could be some extension of affluenza, that he cant make decisions on his own and any time mommy says to do something he does it.

But the argument is unlikely to impress a judge because of Couchs age, Schulte said.

Attorney Seth Fuller of Denton, Texas, said Couchs defenses are limited to claiming he didnt realize he was violating probation by going to Mexico or that he went there involuntarily.

This is just grasping at straws, he said, adding, It doesnt seem like a good defense, but it is one of the few available.

Neither Schulte nor Fuller is involved in Couchs case.

The latest strategy, though, could affect Couchs mother.

If Ethan Couch can prove he was taken against his will, Tonya Couch can be charged with kidnapping. Tarrant County district attorney spokeswoman Samantha Jordan said there would have to be adequate proof that Tonya Couch forced her son to go to Mexico before prosecutors brought additional charges against her. Wed have to see the evidence, she said.

Whether Couch is able to prove that he was taken to Mexico against his wishes will not affect prosecutors efforts to transfer his case to the adult system, Jordan added.

Attorneys for Tonya Couch declined to comment. The 48-year-old was released on bond last week in Texas after she was brought back from Mexico.

Brown, Ethan Couchs U.S. lawyer, said documents have been filed to release the injunction that objected to his return, but did not say how long the process would take.

Immigration and federal courts officials in Mexico said they didnt have any information indicating Couch was dropping his deportation fight. Couchs lawyer in Mexico didnt return messages, and U.S. Marshals spokesman Trent Touchstone said he had no information about the issue.

The hearing to determine whether Couchs case is transferred to the adult system can take place without him.

If his case remains in the juvenile system, he could be put in a juvenile detention center until he turns 19 in April, when his record could be expunged.

He was 16 at the time of the crash. Investigators said Couch was driving at three times the legal intoxication limit for adults when he crashed a pickup truck into a crowd of people trying to help a stranded motorist, killing four. A juvenile court judge sentenced Couch to 10 years probation, outraging prosecutors who wanted him to face detention time.

If his case is transferred to the adult system, Couch would face up to 120 days in an adult jail, followed by 10 years probation. If he violates probation, he could face up to 10 years in prison per death, Tarrant County District Attorney Sharen Wilson has said.

Hes trying to avoid all punishment, Fuller said.

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Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics USA Texas Aviation Mexico
The Florida Association of Insurance Reform has asked Gov. Rick Scott and his Cabinet, which consists of Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater, State Attorney General Pam Bondi, and State Agricultural Commissioner Adam Putnam, to allow for input on the search for the next Florida Insurance Commissioner.

Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty announced Jan. 5 that he would step down from his position after 12 years in office.

Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin M. McCartys resignation presents an opportunity for Floridians to weigh in on the replacement process for this critical position. Since the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation was created in 2003, McCarty has served as its only appointed Insurance Commissioner, FAIR said in a statement.

More specifically, FAIR asked that a national search firm be hired to conduct a nationwide search, saying the Florida Cabinet should allow for input and review by stakeholders, especially consumers. FAIR also asked the search process be conducted in an open and transparent manner while cautiously monitoring the participation of all local stakeholders to avoid any accusation of politicizing the process.

FAIR believes that working together is the best way to solve even the most contentious issues in the Florida property insurance market, the most competitive market in the nation, FAIR said in a statement.

FAIR President and CEO, Jay Neal, said the Florida private property insurance market has significantly improved since the current cabinet took office. FAIR honored McCarty with a Lifetime Achievement Award in acknowledgement of his work in the Florida insurance market.

This critically important appointment needs industry knowledge, experience and balanced leadership abilities to continue the course, Neal said.

FAIR is a non-profit educational organization that works to educate Florida consumers and insurance industry stake-holders about the effects of insurance public policy.

Related:

Topics Florida Market
States across the Southeast, including Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia, were hit by extreme winter weather this week and forecasters say it isnt finished yet. Another two feet of snow is still expected across some of the Southeast starting today.

The National Weather Service says between 2 and 4 inches of snow fell across large portions of both Kentucky and Tennessee Wednesday, while some areas of Middle Tennessee also got a coating of ice.

At least one traffic-related death was reported when a car slid off the roadway due to speed and slick conditions, killing the driver and injuring a passenger. School districts and some universities in both states have been closed.

And the bad weather isnt over. Weather forecasters in Memphis warned residents in West Tennessee, north Mississippi and eastern Arkansas of an approaching winter storm that could create blizzard conditions.

NWS in Memphis issued a winter storm warning for Thursday night through Friday night for large portions of the mid-South area. Sleet and snow accumulations could reach 2 to 4 inches, or more. Heavy snowfall combined with strong winds could create a blizzard.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet said crews are continuing to treat roads to keep them passable, though they urged drivers to travel slowly as many remained partially covered.

The wintry weather may be just a precursor to whats coming next. Forecasters said another cold front hit Thursday night and will continue Friday, potentially dumping more snow over the region before traveling eastward.

In West Virginia, Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin began mobilizing the West Virginia National Guard to assist in the upcoming winter storm on Wednesday.

Tomblin took advantage of a statute passed in 2014 that allows him to organize state resources in advance of predicted severe weather.

NWS said some areas of the state could get up to 2 feet of snow and issued a winter storm warning for the state through Sunday.

During Superstorm Sandy in October 2012, the National Guard teamed with state highway crews to clear snow and trees from roadways. The Guard also helped distribute thousands of meals and water to shelters.

On Wednesday, schools in two dozen counties in West Virginia closed early due to a storm that brought a few inches of snow and was blamed for numerous accidents.

In North Carolina, NWS issued either winter storm warnings or advisories for 56 counties across the northern half of North Carolina, as well. Forecasters say frozen precipitation is likely from Thursday through Saturday night. Weather.com reported a foot of snow had already been dumped on the state by Friday morning.

Forecasters said Thursday up to 18 inches of snow is possible in the North Carolina mountains to 8 inches in the central part of the state. They are also concerned about the possibility of flooding along the Tar and Neuse river basins over the weekend. Rainfall has been above normal since October, increasing the chances for runoff into streams.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Virginia North Carolina Tennessee Kentucky
Los Angeles, CA, January 22, 2016  Worldwide Facilities is proud to announce that John Addeo, the founder of three national insurance brokerage companies, will be joining its Board of Directors.

After graduating from Manhattan College, Addeo began his career with Peat, Marwick, and Mitchell as a CPA. He later worked at a leading international insurance brokerage company, where he held a number of senior-level finance and operations positions during a distinguished 20-year tenure.

In 2008, he partnered with leading middle-market private equity firm Genstar to found Confie Seguros, a nationwide insurance brokerage firm that specialized in serving the needs of the Hispanic community. When Addeo sold the company to ABRY Private Equity five years later, it had grown to operate in 10 states, with 300 retail sales outlets.

He is also the founder of USI Insurance Services Corp, now owned by Onex Partners, and Alliant Insurance Services, Inc., acquired by KKR.

I have spent over 40 years in the insurance brokerage space, and am looking forward to leveraging that experience to assist Davis Moore and his management team in building and expanding this leading wholesale operation, Addeo says, both organically and externally through acquisition.

Worldwide Facilities will benefit greatly from Mr. Addeos experience and contacts, adds Davis Moore, CEO of Worldwide Facilities. We look forward to a very positive and productive association.

About Worldwide Facilities, Inc.

Worldwide Facilities is a national wholesale insurance broker and managing general agent that has been in business since 1970. Our seasoned brokers and underwriters are industry leaders in providing expertise in a wide range of specialty lines, and offer extensive contacts with carriers domestically and overseas.

Media Contact

Erika Guerra

EGuerra@wwfi.com

Direct: (213) 236-4509



Topics Agencies
Nella capitale vicini Michetti e Gualtieri. A Siena e a Roma si vota anche per le elezioni suppletive alla Camera dei deputati

Si sono chiusi alle 15 i seggi per le consultazioni elettorali che si sono tenute domenica 3 e lunedi 4 ottobre, che hanno chiamato a esprimersi oltre 12 milioni di elettori. Si e votato per il rinnovo di 1.192 amministrazioni comunali, per le suppletive della Camera dei deputati nella XII circoscrizione Toscana, collegio uninominale 12  Siena e nella circoscrizione XV Lazio 1, collegio uninominale 11  Roma  Quartiere Primavalle, e per le regionali in Calabria. Alle 15, con 621 comuni campionati su un totale di 1.153, il Viminale rende noto che laffluenza e pari al 59,79%, quando nel 2016 il dato era stato 65,98%, anche se in quelloccasione si era votato un solo giorno. Ecco i primi exit poll effettuati dal consorzio Opinio Italia per la Rai.

Roma

A Roma il candidato del centrodestra Enrico Michetti raggiunge una forchetta del 27-31%, seguito dallex ministro Roberto Gualtieri, candidato del centrosinistra, con il 26,5-30,5%. In una forchetta tra il 16,5 e il 20,5% Carlo Calenda e la sindaca uscente Virginia Raggi.

Milano

Alle comunali a Milano il candidato del centrosinistra e sindaco uscente Giuseppe Sala raggiunge una forchetta del 54-58%, dietro di lui Luca Bernardo (centrodestra) con il 32-36%, mentre Layla Pavone e Gianluigi Paragone in una forchetta tra il 2 e il 4%.

Napoli

Calo dellaffluenza nel capoluogo campano, con il dato definitivo al 47,19%, quando alla tornata del 2016  ma in quelloccasione si votava in un solo giorno  al primo turno si reco il 54,12%. In base al primo exit poll del consorzio Opinio Italia per la Rai, il candidato del centrosinistra e Movimento 5 Stella Gaetano Manfredi raggiunge una forchetta del 57-61%. Dietro lui Catello Maresca (centrodestra) con il 19-23%; Antonio Bassolino (9-13%) e Alessandra Clemente (5,5-7,5%).

Torino

Affluenza sotto il 50% a Torino, dove si e presentato alle urne il 48,06% degli aventi diritto: peggior risultato della storia nel capoluogo piemontese. Il candidato del centrosinistra Stefano Lo Russo raggiunge una forchetta del 44-48%, seguito da Paolo Damilano del centrodestra con il 36,5-40,5%, Valentina Sganga, tra il 7 e il 9%, e Angelo DOrsi (1,5-3,5%).

Trieste

A Trieste il candidato Roberto Dipiazza, del centrodestra, raggiunge una forchetta del 46-50%, seguito da Francesco Russo del centrosinistra tra il 29 e il 33%. Poi Riccardo Laterza (9-13%) e Alessandra Richetti (2-4%).

Notizia in aggiornamento
Faced with the prospect of a hostile takeover by another company or an investor group, a corporate board might adopt a defensive strategy called a shareholder rights plan. Such plans discourage the unwelcome accumulation of company stock above a set threshold by promising to dilute an activist buyer's stake with discounted share sales to the other shareholders. The goal is to make share purchases above the limit set in the shareholder rights plan unpalatable, hence the "poison pill" nickname for the tactic.

An example of a poison pill defense occurred in 2012, when the board of Netflix, Inc. (NFLX) adopted a shareholder rights plan days after investor Carl Icahn acquired a 10% stake in the company. The poison pill stipulated that in the event of any new acquisition of 10% or more, any Netflix merger or Netflix sales or transfers of more than 50% of assets, other shareholders would be able to purchase two shares for the price of one.



Advantages of a Shareholder Rights Plan

Introduced in 1982 as hostile takeovers started shaking up corporate boardrooms, shareholder rights plans have proven effective as a delaying tactic, though they're seldom the long-term answer to activist pressure or merger interest.

A poison pill defense could help a company whose share price has suffered a short-term decline resist a vulture bid from a potential acquirer seeking to take advantage of a temporary discount. Market declines at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic led hundreds of U.S. companies to adopt shareholder rights plans for that reason.

Disadvantages of a Shareholder Rights Plan

By discouraging a motivated buyer from buying more company stock, a shareholder rights plan is likely to leave a share price lower than it would be otherwise, at least in the short run.

Poison pills can also shield entrenched and underperforming company managers from shareholder efforts to replace them.

The good news on that score is that since shareholder rights plans are adopted by company boards, replacing a board in a proxy contest can make a poison pill go away if the new board so chooses.

Because poison pills discriminate against activist buyers and restrain trading in a company's stock, they typically require justification, and often have sunset provisions.

Shareholder rights plans cannot dilute the stakes acquired before they were adopted, so they can't reverse the accumulation of shares by activists or potential acquirers.
Bear markets are a fact of life. That doesn't make it any easier to anticipate them, predict how long one will last, or estimate the depth of the decline. But you don't need to be a clairvoyant to take a few prudent steps to minimize your bear-market losses while improving long-term investing returns in the bargain.

Key Takeaways Bear markets are hard to predict and trade, but they are not reasons to panic.

Older investors with high account balances run higher bear market risks than younger workers with lower savings.

Diversifying into less risky stocks can minimize bear-market losses and offers long-term benefits.

Going into cash during a bear market is likely to depress returns following the recovery for many investors.

What Is a Bear Market?

A bear market is commonly defined as a stock market decline of 20% or more as reflected in a broad index like the Standard & Poor's 500 or the Nasdaq Composite.

Because stock markets can suffer frequent declines of 5% or more, investors often don't realize a bear market has set in until their losses go well past that point.

The combination of the losses already suffered, rising uncertainty about the future, and increased market volatility can leave investors wracked with indecision and unable to take corrective action while their portfolio sustains long-term damage.

While every bear market in history was eventually followed by higher prices, plenty of portfolios ruined by bear markets have taken much longer to recover, and some never did. The first order of business in investing is preserving capital, and there's nothing like a bear market to drive home that point.

3.9% The decline in the S&P 500 on June 13, 2022, when the index closed in bear market territory for the first time since March 2020.

Meanwhile, the gains made at high risk during a bear market don't count double. It's all well and good to be greedy when others are fearful if you're Warren Buffett. (In fact, the Oracle of Omaha said that is the only time to be greedy.) Either way, you're not Warren Buffett, and your retirement savings don't need a hero during periods of high risk.

What starts out looking like a 10% correction or a mild bear market could prove to be the 78% dot-com bubble implosion of 2000 to 2002, or the 54% slump in the Dow Jones Industrial Average between 2007 and 2009.

So then what can we do to really cushion our losses, and even make some money in a bear market? Here are four strategies to consider.

Dollar-Cost Average

If you regularly invest a fixed sum in stocks, whether through a 401(k) or a Roth IRA, you will end up buying more as market prices go down and less as they go up, tilting the odds modestly in your favor.

The benefits of dollar-cost averaging accrue on top of those of making regular contributions to any tax-advantaged savings plan. For 401(k) plans, contributions and employer matches typically account for two-thirds of the annual balance increase while investment gains make up one-third. That suggests many 401(k) contributors have the means to rebuild their account balances from bear markets relatively quickly.

Many, of course, doesn't mean all, and aggregates obscure significant differences based on the size of the 401(k) balance, among other factors. Those with balances of more than $200,000 experienced losses of more than 25% in 2008, while account balances under $10,000 grew 40% as contributions swamped investment losses, according to one study.



Calibrate Risk

No amount of dollar-cost averaging can get around the fact that workers with higher account balances have much more to lose in a bear market, while older plan participants have less time to make up any such losses before retirement. And of course there is a large overlap between these groups.

Considering the balance of risk and reward, an investor approaching retirement should have a much more conservative approach to a bear market than a younger worker with a smaller account balance. Yet often that isn't the case. As of Q3 2021, Baby Boomers (those born between 1946 and 1964) were the generation most likely to be invested too aggressively, according to Fidelity Investments' study of its retirement plan participants. In contrast, 51% of the GenX plan participants, 70% of the Millennials and 85% of GenZ were 100% invested in a target date fund.

Note too that target date funds also risk big losses in a bear market, losing between 23% and 39% in 2008 depending on the target date.



Only you can determine what portfolio allocation will let you sleep soundly and safeguard your future considering your age, means, and risk tolerance. The important thing is to figure it out and act accordingly instead of surrendering to inertia.

Image by Sabrina Jiang  Investopedia 2020

Diversify Without Disengaging

Bear markets tend to savage growth stocks more so than value ones. By a happy coincidence, lower-risk stocks have generated long-term returns similar to those of riskier ones, despite the lower risk. For portfolios tilted towards speculative stocks, that means some diversification into value, even if it is overdue and takes place during a bear market, can pay dividends figuratively as well as literally long after the bear market is history.

Cash has a role in a diversified portfolio. Even if it doesn't earn much yield, it represents a reserve of buying power that can be quickly marshalled as the bear market presents opportunities.

But if you place a significant proportion of your retirement account into cash during a bear market, you'll face the unenviable task of having to figure out if, when, or where to redeploy it, or else face diminished long-term returns.

Market timing is hard, and trying it is likely to leave you poorer. Fidelity 401(k) plan participants who changed their equity allocation to zero between October 2008 and March 2009 and then invested in equities again after the downturn gained 25% through June 2011, versus 50% for those who left the allocation alone.

The 54% rebound in the S&P 500 between early 2009 and fall of 2011 left many plan retirement participants behind. One study focusing on workers ages 51 to 59 found the average account balance increased only 7% over the same span, with 45% of the workers experiencing a decline in retirement savings.



Hedge and Speculate Prudently With Options

Only a small percentage of options traders make money, while the vast majority of the retail investors hankering for the leveraged returns options can provide lose so much money that economists can only assume they're doing it for gambling and entertainment.

If you're not sure whether you belong to the small minority, you probably don't. And if you did, you wouldn't be here to learn that some option trades can make the smart or lucky speculator money in a bear market. You'd already know that put options or put spreads, especially those bought after a bear market rally, can be used to hedge long positions or acquired for a speculative trade.

At least if you buy a put, the acquisition cost is the value at risk. Selling a put, especially in a bear market, can prove much costlier. As prices decline, there is a good chance the put will be exercised. And even if you end up acquiring a stock you wish to own at an acceptable price this way, chances are high that further bear-market declines will drive it lower.

The Bottom Line

Bear markets are no reason to panic but a good time to make sure your portfolio is properly diversified and de-risked. Know how much you have at stake and how much time you have to recoup any losses.
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In the month of December, OPEC has pumped lesser oil. However, it does not mean that price of crude is going to rise soon.

OPEC dropped its monthly report on the state of the oil industry on Monday morning, which showed that the world's oil exporters produced 32.2 million barrels per day in December, down around 200,000 barrels from November.

Despite this minor fall, OPEC doesn't expect that it will have any positive affect in production, with the report noting that in December: "Persistent oversupply in the oil market coupled with increasing signs of slowdown in the Chinese economy to exert pressure on the oil market."

December's drop in production was led by Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Kuwait, all of whom reduced their oil production during December. Nigeria slowed production the most over the month, losing 77,000 barrels per day, down to 1.8 million per day. Even though several OPEC nations slowed their production during December, the report shows that the oil market is still oversupplied by around 2.5 million barrels per day. OPEC says that demand for crude oil from OPEC nations stood at 29.9 million barrels per day over the course of 2015, with production averaging out at around 31.85 million.

Demand is expected to grow by 1.26 million barrels per day in 2016, with the world needing a total of 94.17 million barrels every day, up from 92.92 million over 2015. OPEC also forecasts that demand for its oil will grow by 1.7 million barrels this year to 31.6 million barrels a day. While production from OPEC declined in December, the oil market is expecting another big chunk of oil sometime soon, as Iran returns to the fold following the lifting of international sanctions over the weekend. Estimates have suggested that Iran could pump as much 500,000 barrels per day extra, putting even more downward pressure on the oil price.

Mohsen Qamsari, director general for international affairs of the National Iranian Oil Company said, "We will be more subtle in our approach and may gradually increase output."

The report also officially announced Indonesia's return to OPEC, something which occurred in early December. The South East Asian nation, which is a net importer of oil, was an OPEC member for around 45 years, before suspending its OPEC membership in 2008, but returned to the organization in December.

The price of oil has crashed in the last 18 months, falling from a peak of around $115 per barrel in June 2014, to less than $28 on Monday morning, hitting 13-year lows in the past week.



| Soruce: Business Insider | By S.Seal
Once again, a kind Irish bus driver has become something of a celebrity after stopping his bus to ensure an elderly woman wouldnt trip on her shoelace.

William Harris was driving the 205 bus in Cork City from the Cork Institute of Technology to the city center when he noticed that an elderly lady getting off the bus had her shoe untied. As her arthritis was preventing her from doing it up herself Harris stepped out of the bus, got down on his knee, and gave her a helping hand.

The moment in Cork was captured by another passenger Clara OBrien, who shared a photo to the Bus Eireann Facebook page, stating that the moment had made my day.

I want to commend one of your bus drivers who was driving the 205 service from CIT to Kent Station at 15:40, OBrien wrote.

As an elderly lady was getting off the bus she almost tripped. Once she was off, the driver noticed that her lace was undone and he stalled the bus to tell her. When she said that she knew, he realized that she wasn't steady enough on her feet to bend down and tie it herself, so he got off the bus and tied it for her.

He was so kind to her and went out of his way to look after a customer. I haven't seen someone do something so kind in as long as I can remember and the lady was so appreciative she blew a kiss as the bus was pulling away. Your driver made my day.

Hi! I want to commend one of your bus drivers who was driving the 205 service from CIT to Kent Station at 15:40. As an... Posted by Clara O'Brien on De Ceadaoin, 20 Eanair 2016

This is not the first time an Irish bus driver has been commended for having a heart of gold either. In November 2015, Belfast bus driver Paul Doyle also earned massive amounts of praise when he pulled over his bus to hand over a present of a winter coat to a homeless man he had noticed living along his route.

Read more: Thousands praise Belfast bus drivers kind act towards a homeless man.

The image has turned the Cork bus driver into a viral sensation with over 81,000 likes at the time of writing. Many others have also taken to the comments section to share their own stories of kindness shown by the employees of Bus Eireann, Irelands national bus service.

That's my brother!! William Harris my mother bought us up to respect others around! wrote his sister Martina.

So proud william!! Kind hearted man.

I'm not surprised by this bus drivers act of kindness, Fiona Margaret Maher also commented.

I used to take this bus from train station and was always glad to see William in the morning such a nice and happy person, one of the nicest bus drivers in Cork!

Speaking with Cork radio station Red FM on Thursday morning after Bus Eireann allowed him to skip his 11am shift so he could deal with all the interview requests, Harris said he was shocked at the response to an action he had never even given a second thought.

"There was this elderly lady getting off the bus by Brookfield, and I noticed her lace was open, he told the radio station.

"So I called her and said to her, 'Ma'am, your lace is open'. But she said she couldn't bend down because she suffers from arthritis.

"I just got out of the cab of the bus, I just went down - thought nothing of it - and I tied her lace.

"She said thanks and I just got back on to the bus again, like."

Harris continued to say that he never thought it would be so important for him to simply help out an elderly lady, something he did the whole time when looking after his own mother.

"It's only a small thing, I didn't think it would be that important, he said.

"We always tied my mother's shoelaces, put on her socks for her. It's just a normal thing.

"People have done a lot better things than I had done yesterday and they never get noticed.

"It's just a small simple thing, it's amazing how it caught on."

Even if it is only a small act, William, we still commend your kindness. Keep doing us proud, bus drivers of Ireland!

H/T: Irish Examiner.
A leading Muslim cleric has warned against the influence of extremists, who he thinks could come from the UK and infiltrate the Muslim community in Ireland.

Shaykh Dr. Umar Al-Qadri believes that although extremism is not yet an issue in Ireland, there is a danger of extremist Islamic groups in the UK showing a greater interest in Muslims across the Irish Sea and attempting to recruit them.

He warned the estimated 60,000 Muslims in the Irish Islamic community to be vigilant and stated that education must be put in place to prevent the problem.

A few years ago, radical Muslim groups would have had no interest in Ireland, but now I see they have an interest, Dr. Al-Qadri told the Irish Times.

I am seeing organizations that have their own offices in England and I am seeing them opening branches here and trying to get a hold in the Irish Muslim community.

Dr. Al-Qadri went on to say that he was already aware of one extremist Muslim who had moved to Ireland from the UK, although he had no evidence he was attempting to radicalize or recruit Irish men.

This is not to say that radicalization is not happening, he warned. Thirty or so Irish Muslims have already traveled to Syria as a result of grooming and recruitment carried out over the internet.

Read more: Muslim leaders to create political action group for Irish election.

Dr. Al-Qadri is currently the chair of the Irish Muslim Peace and Integration Council and Imam of the mosque at Blanchardstown in Dublin. The Irish Muslim Peace and Integration Council is a nationwide Muslim body in Ireland established to provide a forum where the Irish Muslim community can speak as one recognized voice on matters relating to their well-being in Ireland. They also aim to encourage individual Muslims and Muslim organizations to play a full and participatory role in Irish public life.

In July 2015, the organization held a Not in Our Name protest in Dublin in which they condemned the use of violence by ISIS as a distortion of their beliefs and called on Muslims in Ireland to adopt a strategy which would prevent radicalization.

They also released a document entitled Irish Muslim Declaration of Peace and Guide to Prevent Radicalisation, a strategy against radicalization in Ireland.

Dr. Al-Qadri still believes that these measures need to be adopted if extremism in Ireland is to be prevented.

If we dont have preventative measures to make us immune from radicalization, then we will end up like Muslim communities in Europe and the UK which have a significant problem with extremism, he said.

We need to ensure that certain things are taught in Islamic weekend schools  that young people are equipped with the necessary knowledge to interpret Islam correctly and know it is not violent.

As an outcome of the Paris attacks and the sexual assaults in Cologne, Germany, on New Years Eve, Dr. Al-Qadri believes there has been a rise in Islamophobia in Ireland, but that the Irish peoples own history makes them generally more tolerant.

I think the Muslim community are feeling here what the Irish community was feeling in the UK 40 years ago when there were bomb attacks by the IRA. People are afraid, he said.

But I think Irish people, because of their own experience in the UK in the 1970s and 1980s, understand the position of Muslims and know you cannot brush them all with the same comb.

Read more: Leading Irish Muslim-born figure says ignorance surrounds Muslim culture in Ireland.

The Imam was also quick to condemn a controversial website recently brought to the attention of the Gardai (Irish police) which he believes was created in order to incite Islamophobia.

The site, hijra2ireland.com, showcased Ireland as a perfect haven for would-be Muslim migrants, stating that they could easily come and stay in the country illegally, they would have access to medical care even Irish citizens dont have, and that, thanks to the rejuvenated Irish economy, there are many jobs available that Irish people will not be happy to do.

On the homepage was an image of Dublin saying, New Golden Age of Islam. The group stated they were non-political body that has set a goal to bring as many Muslims to the state as possible.

Dr. Al-Qadri believed the website, whose origins are still unknown, was shocking and an attempt to undermine their work in helping the Muslim community to successfully integrate into Irish life.

It is undermining the work that we do to show that Islam and Muslims are compatible with Western society, he said.

Islam still remains a minority religion in Ireland although it is the most popular non-Christian faith practiced in the country. The 2011 census stated that 49,204 Muslims live in the Republic (1.07%), a 51 percent increase on the 2006 figure. That number is sure to rise again come the 2016 census. It is now estimated that there are 60,000 Muslims living in Ireland. According to census figures, 30.7 percent of Muslims in the country have Irish nationality.

What do you think are the best ways to prevent the possibility of extremists in Ireland? Leave your thoughts in the comments section, below.

H/T: The Irish Times
For sheer political audacity, Republican presidential candidate Senator Ted Cruz takes the biscuit jar for comparing himself to John F. Kennedy, saying the former president would be a Republican nowadays.

That is about as likely as Cruz agreeing with Senator Bernie Sanders on a massive tax rate hike for the rich.

Cruz made his comments while speaking in Massachusetts, but he may well have been in LaLa Land with the comparison.

Heres a senator who said he was looking forward to seeing if sand glowed red, a clear allusion to a nuclear strike against ISIS which would kill hundreds of thousands if not millions of innocents as collateral damage.

Kennedy, on the other hand, ignoring his war hungry generals, refused to use the nuclear option during the Cuban missile crisis and negotiated a way out with Khrushchev, the Russian leader, as the world held its breath.

Cruz no doubt would have taken General Curtis LeMays advice and turned Cuba into a parking lot with a resultant unwinnable war. No doubt Cruz would have agreed with LeMay's statement about negotiating with the Russians that, This is almost as bad as the appeasement at Munich.

Cruz also said Kennedy believed in freedom of religion and so does he  unless of course it is Muslims you are talking about at which point it stops at the border.

Kennedy believed religion was irrelevant to political hiring and smartly put away fears about his Catholicism.

Cruz, though, wants religion everywhere. If you dont begin every day on your knees asking God for His wisdom and support, I dont believe youre fit to [be president], he feels.

Also, Cruz urged Evangelical Christians to outvote secular Americans as nothing is more important than having people of faith stand up and just vote our values, vote biblical values and thats how we turn the country around.

That's just what the country needs, a religious litmus test for president in 2016.

Has Cruz learned nothing from the past when religious prejudice kept many religions out? As his fellow Texan and failed presidential candidate Phil Gramm stated when asked his religious views, I aint running for preacher. Cruz would be our first preacher president.

Even his revisionism on tax cuts is extraordinary. Kennedy wanted to take the top rate down from 91 percent to 67 percent. Cruz wants a flat tax of 10 percent which would enormously enrich the wealthiest and bankrupt the government.

Kennedy was also passionately committed to safety net welfare proposals while Cruz, with his revenue through the floor from his flat tax, would gladly do away with programs like Medicaid and the Housing and Urban Development agency.

Cruz believes that the Tenth Amendment delegates far more power to the states on spending issues, while Kennedy was an advocate for more federal government, not less, to ease the burden on the poor.

Under Cruz we would have a Christian theocracy with every position, especially critical ones such as seats on the Supreme Court, subject to litmus tests based on religious principles.

Kennedy required no such tests and gloried in getting the best people irrespective of background to serve with him.

So knock it off Cruz. Youre no JFK, or even a shadow of him. You remind us more of dopey Dan Quayle than any recent Republican candidate.
Remembering the life of one of Ireland's greatest literary geniuses James Joyce.

On January 14, 1941, the day after he died in Zurich, Switzerland, after undergoing surgery for a perforated ulcer, English newspaper The Guardian published a fitting obituary to one of Ireland's greatest writers, showcasing the impact he had on the world of literature.

Read more The genius of the Irish writer James Joyce - gearing up for Bloomsday

We look back on the great words from The Guardian, now written over three-quarters of a century ago, and remember how true they still are:

"With the death of James Joyce there passes the strangest and most original figure which Ireland gave to Europe in this generation", the article reads.

"The ban imposed for years upon his 'Ulysses' gave a notoriety to his name without disclosing his true stature and strength.

"He annihilated the ordinary and the normal and revealed a jungle world of the mental and emotional reactions which may come over men in a single day

"That he was a genuine artist, sincere, integrated, and profound is clear from the simplicity of his early short stories 'Dubliners' and from the well-defined autobiographical narrative of 'Portrait of the Artist'."

Read the full obituary on the Guardian's website.

To remind you of the brilliance of his work here is an audiobook recording of his short story "The Dead" which feature in "Dubliners" and has become a popular stage production to be performed at Christmas time, undertaken by New York's Irish Repertory Theater in exquisite style in December 2016.

* Originally published in January 2016. Updated in 2021.
Gardai investigating the murder of Kenneth O'Brien have renewed their appeal for information.

The 33-year-old disappeared last Friday. His remains were discovered in a suitcase in the Grand Canal at Ardclough in Kildare the following day.

Mr O'Brien (pictured) left his house a week ago, having told his partner he was working outside Dublin that day.

The following morning, a Saturday, people walking near the Grand Canal in Ardclough in Co Kildare discovered a suitcase, which transpired to contain Mr O'Brien's torso.

Now gardai are renewing their appeal for anyone who was in Ardclough near the Canal on Friday and early Saturday to contact them.

They also want to speak to anyone who may have seen or had any contact with Kenneth last Friday morning, or can help in tracing his movements.

Gardai have searched extensively for the murder scene, but have yet to make a significant fin.

They are again asking anyone returning to their property or business premises after a time away, to check to see if there is anything unusual.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the incident room at Leixlip Garda Station 01 666 7800.
A woman has been found guilty of 29 counts of neglect and cruelty to her children in the west of Ireland between 2006 and 2011.

The jury found her not guilty on the remaining 13 charges after deliberating for over three and a half hours at Galway Circuit Criminal Court.

During a nine-day trial, six of her children gave evidence of being beaten, abandoned and left in the care of strangers.

Judge Karen OConnor thanked the jurors for sitting through such a "difficult" trial before exempting them from jury duty for five years.

The allegations levelled against the woman ranged from beatings with wooden spoons and belts to leaving the children for days at a time and washing their mouths out with washing-up liquid.

Two of her sons claimed they had to jump out of the way of her car one day after she threw them out for spilling ice-cream in the back seat.

She was found guilty of driving her car at two of her sons after they spilled ice-cream on the back seat. The jurors also convicted her of pushing one of her boys down the stairs. He said she laughed at him when he banged his head off a door.

Among the charges she was acquitted of was an allegation she showed her daughter how to self-harm properly.

The alleged offences happened over a five-year period that led to the children being taken into care in May 2011.

After deliberating for two hours yesterday, the jurors spent most of this morning listening back to the evidence of the womans eldest daughter who claims her mother tried to drown her in the kitchen sink after she used a "bad word".

The evidence of a plastic surgeon who treated her and one of her brothers was also played before the 12 men and women went back to the jury room.

The claims of neglect and cruelty related to seven of the womans children  five of whom gave evidence through a live video link.

The court heard claims of children being beaten with wooden spoons, belts and a back scratcher.

The woman admitted pouring fairy liquid down some of their throats and slapping her children from time to time to discipline them, but denied using excessive force and relied on the defence of reasonable chastisement.

Her eldest daughter came into court in tears after the verdicts were delivered.

The woman will be sentenced in April.
Farmers in the western French region of Brittany have blocked a national highway with a pile of smouldering tyres to protest against falling prices.

The farmers want more help from the government, saying they cannot pay their bills because prices have stagnated or fallen while they face higher expenses than their competitors elsewhere in the European Union.
In a trading update, Royal Mail said it handled 130m parcels in December alone, reflecting strong Christmas trading, up 6% from the previous year, a bigger volume increase than recorded by any of its competitors.

Technology changes mean the number of letters being sent is in decline but this is balanced by a growing parcel market driven by online sales.

We remain on track to deliver at least a 1% reduction in underlying operating costs before transformation costs ... for the full year, said Moya Greene, the companys Canadian chief executive.

Royal Mail has become more focused on cost controls and efficiency improvements to help underpin profits after the loss of key customer Amazon which began delivering parcels through its own network.

Others competitors like UK Mail, which had added extra capacity to meet rising online retail demand, also threaten Royal Mails dominance in the British postal market.

The company has previously warned of over-capacity in the market, which it said would put pressure on its pricing for the next few years.

Royal Mail has managed to fend off competition in letter delivery from firms such as City Link and Whistl, owned by Dutch-based PostNL, which have both pulled out of that part of the market.

With operating performance remaining relatively buoyant and with the potential to begin stemming market share losses in parcels, we believe Royal Mail offers significant ... upside, said BAML analysts in a note, who raised their 2016 forecast.

Analysts from Barclays also made small changes to their forecasts, with Davy Research upgrading its rating to Neutral from Sell. But Royal Mails shares are a long way off their post- privatisation peak in January last year, having dropped by about 46%.

The company said group revenue for the nine months ended December 27 was up 1% compared to a flat outcome in the first half, and overall trading was in line with its expectations.

Royal Mail said it had seen a strong performance in its European parcels arm GLS, with volumes up 11% and revenues climbing to 10% in the third quarter, on the back of strong demand from Poland and Italy.

It had previously warned of challenging market conditions but said the improvement meant it was not anticipating a decline in GLS margins for the full year.
But while this will be good news to Finance Minister Michael Noonan a number of directives and recommendations on corporate tax to be released by the European Commission will threaten massive changes in the countrys tax system.

The package of measures to be released next Tuesday builds on the agreements in the OECD and G20 on base erosion and profit shifting  BEPS  but which will make some of them compulsory and align the way they are implemented across the EU.

The cornerstone of the new rules, according to EU officials, is to effectively tax profits where they are generated, rather than where the company is headquartered or where the intellectual property is held.

It will aim to do away with the situation where a multinational company in one member state can assume all the debts which can be offset against tax, as is the situation in Ireland, while equity and dividends are not.

It will prevent moving the value of research and development to an offshore or low-tax country towards the end of the work to avoid profits being taxed in the country where the work was carried out.

However it will not require changes to Irelands new knowledge box that gives companies preferential tax and which complies with the OECDs model.

Officials stressed the aim is to ensure a level playing field for member states and said they have built in enough flexibility  proposing minimum standards only  to give countries flexibility to adjust them to ensure their size or geographical location does not militate against them, giving larger better-placed countries an advantage.

The study of what elements of each countrys tax regime facilitates companies to avoid paying their full share of tax, was carried out by an independent body for the Commission.

It supports Irelands contention that companies actual tax payments of 11% are much closer to the headline rate of 12.5%.

This compares to countries, like France and Germany, with headline rates of around 30%, which have much lower effective rates of around 7.5%, due to a range of items they allow companies to offset against tax.

According to a European Parliament analysis multinationals avoid paying up to 70bn a year because of a range of hybrid mismatches and a lack of transparency, while domestic companies pay, on average, 30% more tax than multinationals.

Taxation Commissioner Pierre Moscovici told MEPs that 2016 will be the year of corporate tax reform and fiscal transparency.

We have a serious problem with tax avoidance and lack of transparency. Too many people have looked the other way.

The package will include legal and non-legal proposals, including two analytical documents  one the external study on aggressive tax planning and a second with evidence to underpin the package.

The Dutch government, which has taken over the presidency of the EU for the year, has said that it wants to get agreement on the two directives by July,which will require unanimity.
The Dublin-based company was founded in 1999 by IT entrepreneur Ray Nolan and hostel owner Tom Kennedy and sold to US private equity house, Hellman and Friedman for around 250m a decade later.

It raised over 180m from a dual listing on the Irish and London stock exchanges in November, nearly 12 months after closing the year with a 200m deficit.
Enda Kenny also defended Irelands tax arrangements with multinational companies, telling the audience past claims that it was a tax haven for big businesses were without foundation.

Mr Kenny took part in a panel discussion titled How to Reboot the Global Economy on the second day of the forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Asked about Irelands journey from financial crash to being the EUs fastest growing economy, the Taoiseach said: We have set a model here of how government can actually deal with a very catastrophic position and yet, in a relatively short time, come through that.

Mr Kenny took part in the event alongside Nobel economist Joseph Stiglitz, Brazils finance minister Nelson Henrique Barbosa-Filho, and Zhang Xin, the chief executive of SOHO China Limited.

In terms of attracting foreign direct investment, Mr Kenny said Irelands relatively low 12.5% corporation tax rate was not as important as the countrys talent pool.

Always good to catch up with Sheryl, a great believer in Ireland and our recovery. #wef16https://t.co/q2rkurmAD2  Enda Kenny (@EndaKennyTD) January 21, 2016

When the discussion turned to tax avoidance practices used by some multinational companies, Mr Kenny noted past allegations made in the US that Ireland had been a tax haven.

He described the claims as completely false, baseless and untrue.

The Taoiseach insisted there had been no special deals with any companies.

From our point of view we defend 100% the authenticity of the way we do business with international companies, he said.

Professor Stiglitz is a critic of austerity policies implemented by some eurozone countries.

At one point he was asked from the audience if his theory was undermined by the growth levels Ireland was recording.

I wouldnt call it a victory yet, youve turned the corner, which is great, and I have got to commend you for that, he replied.

Among the countries that had austerity, you did the best.

In response, Mr Kenny said: We are not declaring any victory here, were reporting progress and we are reporting the management of that progress for the future, in the peoples interests.

Elsewhere at the Davos summit, British prime minister David Cameron called on business to speak out in favour of Britain staying in a reformed European Union, but warned those wanting a quick fix that he would settle only for the right deal.

Cameron met business leaders in Davos after being boosted by pledges from several banks to fund a campaign to keep Britain inside the European Union and by senior European leaders who said a Brexit would be a tragedy and disaster.
A Red C poll for Newstalk radio reveals 78% of people surveyed think abortion is an appropriate course of action in the case of rape or incest; while 76% support it in cases of fatal foetal abnormalities.

The poll also shows 61% of people support decriminalising abortion in cases of non-fatal foetal abnormality; and 59% in cases where the woman experiences suicidal feelings.

Sinead Mooney, the joint managing director of Red C Research, said that where a woman is raped or gets pregnant by a family member, theres strong support for termination.

We had a very strong support for legalising abortion in that circumstance: almost eight in 10 adults agreed that it should be allowed in those circumstances, she said.

The survey, which involved a national representative sample of 1,005 adults, also reveals 41% of respondents agreed termination of the pregnancy should be an option in any circumstances felt necessary by the mother.

However, the poll shows a lower level of support for repealing the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution, with 48% believing it should be removed and 41% believing it should not.

Richard Colwell, CEO of Red C Research said: The results of this exclusive poll for Newstalk show that the majority of adults in Ireland would like to see legal options for abortion within certain circumstances to be introduced in Ireland.

However, while seeking these changes, many remain committed to the ideals of the Eighth Amendment, suggesting that while at a national level the people want to see abortion laws within Ireland revised, they still want to see careful governance retained.
Just over 4m has been approved by the European Regional Development fund with matching funding from the council. Improvement works include the broadening of footpaths on all main streets and the provision of bus and cycle lanes to reduce motor traffic and noise.

Announcing the plan, the Minister for Education Jan OSullivan said: This investment will assist efforts that all those who love Limerick are making to revitalise the city centre and is very welcome. This will literally transform the very core of Limerick.
Four senior bankers, including former Irish Life and Permanent (ILP) CEO Denis Casey and Anglos former group finance director Willie McAteer, are accused of conspiring to mislead investors by using interbank loans to make Anglo appear 7.2bn more valuable.

Mr McAteer, aged 65, of Greenrath, Tipperary Town, Co Tipperary and Mr Casey, aged 56, from Raheny, Dublin, ILPs then group finance director Peter Fitzpatrick, aged 63, of Malahide, Dublin, and John Bowe, aged 52, from Glasnevin in Dublin, who had been Anglos head of capital markets have all pleaded not guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to the four charges. The charges allege that between March 1 and September 30, 2008, they conspired together and with others to mislead investors, by engaging in transactions between Anglo, ILP, and Irish Life Assurance to make Anglo appear 7.2bn more valuable than it was.

On day two of the trial, Anglos former head of treasury Matt Cullen told prosecuting counsel Una Ni Raifeartaigh SC that the executive directors of the bank were aware of the purpose of the transactions and he assumed the board was also aware. He also testified that ILP agreed to complete the transactions on September 30, 2008 after the government banking guarantee had been put in place.

Judge Martin Nolan sent the jury home until Monday at the earliest after a legal issue arose.

Mr Cullen testified that that the scheme to raise six or seven billion in corporate deposits involved money being transferred by Anglo to ILP. It would then be put back on deposit by Irish Life Assurance (ILA), the non-banking entity owned and managed by ILP, so it would appear in Anglos accounts as a corporate deposit.

He said the money had to come from ILA so that it would show up as a corporate deposit as opposed to an interbank loan. Non-banking deposits, from the likes of life assurance and pension funds, have a greater value than interbank loans from the point of view of the markets as they were considered stickier or more long term, the trial has heard.

Mr Cullen said the corporate deposits figure was for publishing in the banks full-year accounts, when the money would be seen as deposits coming in from ILA. He said he didnt think the transactions created liquidity for the bank as they were short term and didnt consider that they would have any commercial purpose apart from being in the account, which might directly influence the markets.

He said the executive directors were aware of the purpose. He believed it was to be discussed at the board meeting on September 30. The witness said the funding initiative was discussed at the weekly Friday meetings which were attended by Mr McAteer and Mr Bowe that summer.
Chamber chief executive Conor Healy last night described the meeting with Kevin OMalley as positive.

Mr Healy said the ambassador listened to their concerns; is aware of how important the new flights are; and understands the timelines involved.

Kevin OMalley

He has committed to bring those points back to the Department of Transport in Washington, he said.

But Mr Healy called on Taoiseach Enda Kenny to intervene: I welcomed his comments that he supports the efforts of the transport minister to resolve this issue, but the Taoiseach needs to intervene personally at this stage.

Mr Healy met the ambassador as part of a delegation which included Kevin Toland, the chief executive of the daa; Niall McCarthy, the head of Cork Airport; and Dermot McCarthy, a flights operation inspector with the Irish Aviation Authority.

They discussed the two-year delay by the US Department of Transportation (DoT) in issuing a foreign carrier permit to Irish airline, Norwegian Air International, which plans to launch a Cork to Boston service in May. The airline also hopes to launch a Cork-to-New York service next year.

The airlines application, which is in full accordance with the 2007 Open Skies agreement between the EU and US, is now the longest pending application of its kind. It is understood that a decision is needed within weeks to ensure the service begins as planned in May.

Mr Healy said the proposed service is vital for several US multinationals which have European operations in Cork and which have consistently stressed the importance of connectivity between Cork and the US, and for indigenous companies who are exporting to the US.

He said they also stressed the importance of the flights to the tourism industry, especially with the launch next week of a major new tourism strategy for the Cork region  which targets the US as a major market.

He welcomed efforts by Ireland South MEP Deirdre Clune, who is meeting European Commission officials next week to discuss the issue; but he called on Enterprise Minister Richard Bruton, Foreign Affairs Minister Charlie Flanagan, and other elected public representatives to intervene.
Circuit Court president Mr Justice Raymond Groarke was told this was part of the plan of Brown Thomas in Dublins Grafton Street in its application for a legal facility that will ensure it a full pub license when plans to refurbish its third-floor restaurant are completed.

Constance Cassidy SC, counsel for Brown Thomas, said the store had a wine license in its restaurant for the last 40 years and wished to improve matters for their customers and in particular for partners and spouses waiting around while shopping was completed.
Judge Jacqueline Linnane in the Circuit Civil Court said she accepted the contention of barrister Shane English that William Hanks had failed to produce any evidence he had been defamed, and dismissed his case.

Mr English, who appeared with Newman Solicitors for McCabes Pharmacy, Malahide Shopping Centre, told the judge it was Hanks own mother, non-practising barrister Patricia Wilson Hanks, who had published an allegedly defamatory text to the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland (PSI).

William Hanks, of Estuary Row, Bissetts Strand, Malahide, claimed that Wembar Company Limited, which trades as McCabes Pharmacy, had published a text using him as a scapegoat for the mis-labelling of a medication for his mother.

Ms Hanks, also of Estuary Row, told the court she was a non-practising barrister and wished to assist her son in presenting his case.

In evidence she said that on November 13, 2013, she had presented a prescription and her medical card for pills in McCabes Pharmacy and when she got home found they had been labelled for a non-existent William Patrick Wilson Hanks. She had received a text from the pharmacy alleging her son had given his own name when collecting the tablets which had contributed to the confusion of labelling.

Cross-examined by Mr English she told the court she had only shown her son the text about two weeks after receiving it and that it was she who had published it to the PSI.

William Hanks said his signature was not on the signed prescription which had to be signed by the medical card holder.

Judge Linnane said she was striking out the defamation claim for the reasons argued by Mr English, that no prime facie case had been made out, that there was no evidence of defamation, that the text was not defamatory and did not have a meaning claimed by Mr Hanks and that his own mother had published matters to the PSI.

The judge awarded costs against Mr Hanks but granted him a stay on the costs order pending his consideration of an appeal to the High Court.
Revenue chiefs have also told the Irish Examiner that  despite Government suggestions the taxes could be reduced downwards  there would be no decreases because of flooding.

Several ministers, including Mr Noonan, previously said during Storm Desmond that homeowners should submit a new valuation for property taxes, which are self-assessed. Mr Noonan said then it was already within the legal base of the property tax to allow householders to deal with reducing values from any extraneous event including flooding.

Tanaiste Joan Burton also suggested earlier this month that homeowners hit by severe flooding may be able to look again at valuing their property.

But, in a written parliamentary answer, Mr Noonan has now ruled out such an option.

Michael Noonan

In the Dail reply to Fianna Fail finance spokesman Michael McGrath, he says: The declared valuation is not affected by any repairs or improvements made to a property or by any general increase or decrease in property prices that might occur over the course of the valuation period.

He confirmed on the Dail record that the current valuation date of 1 May 2013 is now valid until 31 October 2019 on foot of the recent legislative amendment.

This means there will be no changes to valuations  and therefore property taxes  until the stated period in the legislation, unless the Dail agrees to fresh amendments. The Revenue Commissioners also confirmed this yesterday, when contacted by the Irish Examiner.

The valuation is not affected by any repairs or improvements made to a property or by any general increase or decrease in property prices that might occur during the valuation period. There is no provision in the LPT Act to increase or decrease an LPT valuation on the basis of an event such as flooding.

Michael McGrath

Mr McGrath criticised ministers for misleading homeowners struggling with flood damage: The minister for finance effectively quoted a non-existent provision of Local Property Tax legislation when he claimed that householders could apply for a reduced valuation to take account of the damage to their home.

He said there was enough time between now and the general election to bring amendments before the Dail, allowing people to revalue their damaged homes.
Gardai and health experts yesterday moved to clarify that the drug was not 2C-B, as was initially thought but a derivative called 25I-NBOMe.

The man was one of six people rushed to hospital early on Tuesday after suffering serious effects at a house party on St Patricks Terrace on Green Street.

Sources told the Irish Examiner that gardai had arrested the supplier and his supplier, the source of the drug.

Gardai are endeavouring to ensure that there is no more of the substance in circulation.

Sources said 25I-NBOMe was a highly dangerous drug, particularly when taken in powder form, as at the Cork party.

It is a very potent substance and in powder form you have no idea how much you are taking.

If you swallow it, in little paper bombs, or snort it, even a line, it could be fatal, said a Garda source.

In an updated alert, the HSE warned people that there was no quality control on 25I-NBOMe or its related 2C drugs and advised them not to consume any unknown substances.

Andrew Cunningham of the European drugs agency said: Due to its high potency, 25I-NBOMe, in the form of powders and liquids, where it is more difficult to limit the dose taken, may increase the risk of serious adverse events.

The WHO Expert Committee on Drug Dependence described the risk from it as especially serious.
Both made more than 100 entries on the new Lobbying Register which passed its first deadline for returns yesterday, covering activities from September to December last.

Ibec lobbied widely, making repeated contacts about measures to cut alcohol consumption in the Public Health (Alcohol) Bill and what it wants in general election manifestos  chiefly cuts to capital gains and the top rate of income tax.

The IFA submitted returns on a wide range of subjects including long-running concerns about TB eradication policies; and challenges to the beef and sheep sectors; to more recent problems around flooding.

All individuals and organisations who approach a politician, special adviser or senior civil servant to try to influence the law or public policy on their own behalf or for a client are now obliged by law to register their details and file returns on their activities three times a year.

Returns by Ervia, Irish Waters parent company, suggest it was unsure of its support even from within the coalition. It met Tanaiste Joan Burtons special advisor to: provide information on the need for a national utility to run Irelands water services.

The only other party representative approached and given the same briefing at a separate meeting was Pearse Doherty of Sinn Fein which wants to abolish Irish Water.

The Tanaiste was mentioned in 126 acts of lobbying, targeted individually or in a group, while Taoiseach Enda Kenny was mentioned 137 times. However, Finance Minister Michael Noonan must be feeling particularly powerful as he was the most frequently targeted Cabinet member with 323 mentions.

Some 1,050 people and organisations had registered by the time phone helplines closed at 5.30pm yesterday although registration could continue online until midnight, and between them they made 2,283 returns.

Some lobbying was specific in its aims. One lobbyist wanted Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald to tour Merrion Vaults to promote the use of safety deposit boxes as a safeguard against burglary.

The Vintners Federation made a less clear approach to Health Minister Leo Varadkar to push for regulations that all outlets supplying food would have toilets.

Some approaches reflect ongoing matters of public concern. The National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church sought to meet Childrens Minister James Reilly to ask him to ensure statutory agencies shared with the board any knowledge they had of allegations against priests and religious.

It said it wanted to avoid putting children at risk of abuse. It reported the meeting took place but that information sharing is still a subject for discussion.

Lobbying regulator, Sherry Perreault, said she was delighted with the level of compliance.

At this stage were just making sure that people are getting their returns in and complying with the rules. Were going to be doing more comprehensive analysis of the quality of the returns over the next few weeks, she said.

She said where the information supplied was incorrect, incomplete or vague, there would be follow-up to ensure the returns were improved.
However, the couple, who won the award for their significant and strategic philanthropic investment in many areas of Irish life declined to talk about the honour.

Mr Naughton, who was born in Dundalk, Co Louth, founded Glen Electric, now the Glen Dimplex Group, the worlds largest manufacturer of domestic heating appliances.

The couple have given significant funding to the National Art Gallery and provided scholarships to promote the study of engineering, science and technology by third-level students through the Naughton Foundation.

They have also made a major contribution to the history of art and architecture in Ireland though their support for the Royal Irish Academy, which nominated them for the award.

The Corporate Philanthropist of the Year is Xilinx Ireland, a major US technology multinational that was nominated for the award by Talbot Senior National School, Clondalkin, Dublin.

The company which first established operations in Dublin in 1995 also has engineering centres in Cork and Belfast. Its principal David Ruddy said the company helped develop the schools information technology infrastructure.

The company genuinely cares for our school and senior staff regularly visit to touch base with us, he said.

A special award was also presented to the Atlantic Philanthropies, founded by billionaire and Irish-American Chuck Feeney, that will end its Irish operations this year.

The chief executive of the Community Foundation of Ireland, Tina Roche, said that this years winners were all long-term strategic philanthropists.
It has been revealed three of Enda Kennys background staff are on salaries over the 92,672 cap.

Speaking as she unveiled an election billboard vowing to scrap water charges, Ms McDonald said: It reminds you of the LOreal approach  because Im worth it. It seems in the minds of the current government some are more equal and some are more worthy than others.

However, she said it was not surprising the Taoiseach was breaking the pay cap as other senior ministers, including the Tanaiste, had done so in the past.

We know that Government, having set their pay cap, went off then to breach their pay cap repeatedly, she said.

It raises a whole question around the commitment to political reform much less the democratic revolution of which they spoke.

I think its brazen, I dont believe we have ever gotten a convincing explanation from any member of government as to why the pay cap was breached time and time again.

She said Sinn Fein is willing to go into government after the next general election, but would not hold up a Fianna Fail or Fine Gael government as a minority party.

Meanwhile, in a Today FM radio interview earlier this week, Mr Kenny said Sinn Fein had no real intention to go into government.

However, yesterday Ms McDonald said: Make no mistake, we want to be in government. It is a matter of time. Will it be after the next election? I cant say.

Launching their billboard urging people to support this weekends march against water charges, Ms McDonald said Sinn Fein was the only party that would commit to getting rid of the levy.

However, Labour senator John Whelan said Sinn Feins claim that only they will abolish water charges is laughable given they have repeatedly failed to permanently abolish water charges in government in Northern Ireland.

He said: From 2007 to 2011, then Sinn Fein regional development minister Conor Murphy had the opportunity to reverse water metering but made no attempt to do so. Under his watch, a comprehensive water metering programme took place across domestic properties in Northern Ireland.

Ms McDonald encouraged people to attend Right2Water rallies tomorrow.

Urging people to join the protest, party president Gerry Adams said: Water is a human right and while water services must be paid for, this must not be done through a double tax on hard-pressed citizens.
In a statement, NewsBrands Ireland said it would be making a submission to the review announced by Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald.

Meanwhile, the National Union of Journalists yesterday met three commissioners who head the Garda Siochana Ombudsman Commission and sought clarity as to the procedures it uses to seek the phone and internet data records of journalists.

NewsBrands Ireland, the representative body for 16 national newspapers, said it welcomed the ministers review of the legislative system whereby journalists phone records had been accessed by the gardai, GSOC and possibly other State bodies.

It said it looked forward to making its submission to the review, adding: However, our clear position is the current legislative framework breaches the right to freedom of expression guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights because it does not adequately protect the sources and privacy of journalists.

It said it was a disturbing feature of the law that journalists do not know if their private information has been sought and accessed.

It called on the minister, the gardai and GSOC to answer these questions: n How many access requests have been made and granted? n Who are the journalists? n Why this was felt to be necessary and appropriate?

NUJ Irish secretary Seamus Dooley said he met the GSOC commissioners yesterday.

He said GSOC chair Judge Mary Ellen Ring told him their decisions were informed by the Constitution and the ECHR.

He was told that consideration was always given to the balance of the constitutional and other rights to privacy and protection of sources of the individual concerned and the proportionality, fairness and likely outcome of the investigation.
Only one member, Labours Joe Costello, had a perfect 100% record of attendance, while chairman John McGuinness and vice-chair John Deasy went to 94% of meetings.

Attendance records for the committee show while some members made it to over 94% of meetings last year, other TDs failed to show up for the vast majority of gatherings of the most important Dail committee.

Joe Costello

Figures obtained by the Irish Examiner reveal that Mr Nolan showed up for 11 out of 33 meetings from December 2014 to December 2015. Ms Collins attended 16 of the 33 meetings, the records show.

Fianna Fail TD Sean Fleming, according to the figures, attended 13 or 39% of meetings during the year.

Mr Nolan, who is a representative for the Galway West constituency, was a regular attendee at PAC meetings in the earlier part of this Dail term, but his numbers have fallen sharply in recent times, as reflected by the attendance records.

Explaining his low attendance rate last year, Mr Nolan said: In the early days, I attended most meetings and I was a generalist in terms of issues. I was a jack of all trades and a master of none. More recently, I have tended to specialise on certain topics so hence my attendance numbers would be lower, he said.

Mr Nolan denied the drop in his attendance rates was to do with him concentrating on his re-election campaign.

It wouldnt have had an impact on the election or my campaign as I would be in the Dail on a Thursday morning anyway, he said.

Mr Nolan said as there are several Labour members of the committee, he said they worked as a team to ensure the party was properly represented at PAC meetings on Thursday mornings.

I would work closely with my Labour colleagues on PAC as a team, so we would tic tac to ensure someone was always there, he said.

Ms Collins, speaking last night, said her involvement in the campaign to promote small businesses ahead of the budget meant her diary had a number of clashes, which caused her to miss PAC meetings.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner, the Cork North-West TD, said she takes her role on PAC very seriously but her involvement in the small business campaign, which was highly successful, meant some meetings of PAC had to be missed. A lot of those meetings for the small business group happened on Thursdays which unfortunately meant I wasnt there, she said.

Defending his record, Mr Fleming said anyone who has watched the PAC knows he has made a telling contribution to many meetings he attended. There are issues I specialise in and when there I contributed fully. Otherwise, I dont see the point of wasting peoples time, Mr Fleming said.

The period upon which the figures are based is from when new members of the committee came aboard following the reshuffle which saw Simon Harris promoted to junior minister and members Kieran ODonnell and Eoghan Murphy leave to take up their position on the Oireachtas Banking Inquiry.

The members of the PAC are: John McGuinness (chairman); John Deasy (vice-chair); John Perry (FG); Aine Collins (FG); Paul Connaughton (FG); Joe Costello (Labour); Robert Dowds (Labour); Sean Fleming (Fianna Fail); Mary Lou McDonald (SF); Gabrielle McFadden (Fine Gael); Derek Nolan (Labour); Shane Ross (Independent) and Patrick ODonovan (Fine Gael).

The PAC is seen as the most important Dail committee as it deals with how the States money is spent.
The woman, who left her husband and two young children without any explanation ended up, days later, causing chaos on a British motorway before stabbing a Good Samaritan to death.

Sabina Eriksson, 41, had lived in Mallow, Co Cork, for a number of years before inexplicably taking off one morning in early May 2008. She hit the headlines in Britain a few days later when she ran three times in front of traffic on the busy M6 motorway in North Staffordshire.

At one stage, the mother-of-two was hit by a Volkswagen Polo and knocked out for 15 minutes. When she regained consciousness, she ran out into the traffic again.

Ms Eriksson then attacked a police woman who went to arrest her at a nearby motorway service station. She was charged with trespassing.

Magistrates released Eriksson from custody a day later, without issuing an order to assess her mental stability. The following day, May 19, she met 54-year-old Glen Hollinshead, in Fenton, North Staffordshire, and asked him for directions to the nearest hotel. He invited her to stay at his home.

Nottingham Crown Court heard that after staying the night she stabbed Mr Hollinshead. After the stabbing, Eriksson ran from the house and was chased by paramedics before jumping 40ft from a bridge onto a dual carriageway. Eriksson, who had no alcohol or drugs in her system, suffered serious injuries.

Christopher Hotten QC, prosecuting, said: Any ordinary person would believe that her whole behaviour was bizarre.

Mr Hollinsheads family are demanding to know why Eriksson was released from custody by magistrates after she had run amok on the M6. His brother, Garry, told local media her mental disorder should have been picked up prior to her being let out into the community.

Eriksson admitted the manslaughter of Glen Hollinshead on the grounds of diminished responsibility.

She is awaiting sentencing.

Eriksson, who was born in Sweden, had lived in Mallow for a number of years.

Garda sources said she had never come to their attention during that time. They believe she suddenly left after a visit from her sister.

It remains a mystery why she left, especially without telling her husband and their children.
Cmere, somebody told me the other day that black pudding is some kind of superfood now. Obviously Im going to stop eating it because I dont want people to think Im a hippy or from Dublin, like. What do you think I should eat instead to show that Im totally from Cork?  Dowcha Donie, Blackpool (the one on the northside, not the one in England, do you know what I mean?)

I hear that bodice is still popular with people who lost their taste buds in an all-night poker game. Here is my favourite recipe for bodice. 1: Boil on a low heat for four hours. 2: Get a fit of the gawks because the smell would remind you of that man from Dungarvan who sat beside you on the bus. 3: Eat it anyway while belting out The Boys of Fairhill, because Cork people can be slow to admit they are wrong. 4: Get another fit of the gawks.

Ciao. I went into town the other night to try and get off with every woman in town. (Its no joke being Italian.) I took a taxi and asked the driver to drop me off on Pembroke Street. He had no idea what I was talking about and we ended up driving around for 10 minutes. Thats 10 minutes when I could have been sidling up to groups of Cork women, trying to identify the most desperate one. Why did the taxi driver not know where he was going?  Marco, Milan, and Skehard Road, Im free for an hour on Tuesday.

Let me give you a quick lesson on directions around Cork. The correct name for Pembroke Street is Down the Side of DImperial. Also, the foot bridge from the Grand Parade and Sullivans Quay is called The foot bridge from the Grand Parade to Sullivans Quay. The good news is Im free for an hour on Tuesday. The bad news is Id rather attend an evening of local culture in Kilmallock than spend an hour with you.

Were just looking up holidays here in one of our three living rooms. I dont want to fly direct from Cork after last year, because I just kept bumping into people from my class in college when I was studying Law (Hons). Do you think it would be worth driving up to Dublin in Reggies top-of-the-range Lexus and flying out from there?  Annette, Douglas Road, my handbag is worth more than your house.

Whatever you do, dont get the bus to Dublin. My posh sister did that last year and ended up sitting behind a family who never stopped talking about Celebrity Big Brother. Shes still not over it. I know a lot of Cork snobs are choosing to fly out of Dublin to steer clear of the norries. Only to arrive at the departures gate above and find a family in matching tracksuits screaming, Its never too early to get stuck into the gargle, wha!! I find the Dublin norries take it to a whole new level.

Howre oo going on? Herself is after finding this new thing now called Netflix. Its like the telly, but theres no Miriam OCallaghan. Anyway, she has us watching this show from America called Making a Murderer. Tis more addictive than those Scots Clan toffees. Do you have any idea how it ends? Ed Ted Ned, keep driving beyond Dunmanway until you start to get funny looks.

Im not going to reveal how it ends. The last thing I need is a mob of angry telly nerds outside my house shouting Death to the Spoiler Witch. They still havent forgiven me for revealing who killed your one Lucy on EastEnders. Making a Murderer is a great show really. Its full of badly dressed, backward country people with hilarious accents. Youd nearly have to remind yourself youre not watching a documentary set in Killorglin.

Hello old stock. Ive decided to stop following the Munster rugby team. It isnt the same since we started losing and I find a lot of the new fans work with their hands. So would anyone like to buy a Munster jersey?  Jim, Model Farm Road, I didnt get where I am today by passing up an opportunity for a free ad. (PS I can get Ronan OGara to sign it for an extra tenner.)

If I gave you 20, could you persuade Ronan to come back and play? Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but Cork is awash with Munster jerseys for sale. Im not surprised. Who in their right minds would want to travel up to Limerick on a regular basis? Unless its for charity and youve volunteered to give them elocution lessons. Its important to help out those less fortunate than ourselves.

I dont want to fly direct from Cork after last year, because I just kept bumping into people from my class in college when I was studying Law (Hons)
The service is launching with a number of impressive features, including 7 day catch up, free HD channels and a single button to restart the program you've switched to. This is all tied together with a clean and visually designed user interface and an accessible remote control which features its own dedicated Netflix button for deep integration of the streaming video service.

The packages are rolling out now, and Vodafone is also launching a companion app at the same time. The TV Anywhere App is designed to replicate the experience you have at home, with access to more than 70 channels at launch, and you'll be able to watch your favourite shows and sporting events no matter where you are.

What's more, for Vodafone Mobile customers, any video watched through the app won't count towards their data limit. So you'll be able to stream hours of TV on the train, over 3G or 4G and you don't have to worry about it eating into your allowance. What's more, this applies to all Vodafone customers - so even if you're on a basic pay as you go package with very limited data, you can still watch as much as you like, for free.

It's an impressive extra feature to offer their customers, and one which chooses not to restrict access to video streaming - if you can watch it at home on Vodafone TV, why not let you watch as much as you like when you're out and about too?!

Vodafone TV is available now, with packages starting from 40 per month for the first six months. Head to your local Vodafone store to find out more or click on vodafone.ie/tv.
Bernard McNamara has moved to put things right, as he sees it, at Longboat Quay.

In recent weeks, Mr McNamara has begun to address the problems that have dogged the complex built by his company, Gendsong in 2006.

Just under a year ago, it was revealed by this newspaper that major fire safety deficiencies were discovered at the 298-unit apartment complex on Dublins Sir John Rogersons Quay.

Two reports, from a fire consultant and Dublin Fire Brigade, had highlighted major fire safety deficiencies. A decision was taken to upgrade the fire alarm system rather than evacuate the building, allowing time to move on to rectifying the major problems.

While the fire alarm system was being upgraded over seven months, it was deemed necessary to have fire marshals in situ 24/7.

The full extent of the problem was revealed publicly in September when the complexs management company announced that remedial work would cost 3.88m, on top of 1.2m already spent.

Since then, the management company acting on behalf of owners has taken action against the Dublin Docklands Development Authority (DDDA), which partnered McNamara in developing the complex.

Dublin Fire Brigade issued a fire safety notice on the complex on October 1. The following month, Dublin District Court directed that the works be completed in early 2017. If that timeline isnt met, the fire brigade will move to have the complex evacuated.

Meanwhile, the row continues over who will pick up the tab. The DDDA and the receiver for Gendsong have offered to pay 2.75m of the remaining cost of 3.88m  including 250,000 from the receiver  but the apartment owners say this leaves them with a huge bill for something that was not their fault.

Now, Mr McNamara has entered the fray. On December 18, he wrote to residents offering to do the work at cost price. On the face of it this is an attractive offer. Gendsong went into receivership a few years ago eliminating the prospect of any compensation from that quarter.

Mr McNamara is not legally liable personally. Offering to do the remedial job at cost price would save the apartment owners any financial pain.

Another winner might be Mr McNamaras reputation, which has suffered as a result of all that has spilled out from behind the walls of Longboat Quay. There are, however, a few major stumbling blocks.

In the first instance, Mr McNamara denies that any of the problems with fire safety relate to deficiencies in construction. In the letter to residents, he outlines that many of the fire safety issues and associated costs do not relate to non-compliance during construction. He has cherry-picked a number of the findings and recommendations in the consultants report, attributing much of the work to upgrades and the result of wear and tear.

The consultancy Michael Slatttery and Associates (MSA) was employed by the DDDA.

The Slattery report runs to 100 pages and includes a whole gamut of remedial work that reflects on the construction, including detail such as incomplete fire stopping, smoke seals damaged or missing and defective service risers which will require work to ensure they do not present a fire spread risk between apartments.

Mr McNamaras position that Gendsong bears no responsibility for what has been uncovered echoes that of his architect on the job, Eugene Van Jaarsveld.

He told a newspaper last October that the fire brigade has signed off on the work. How could the building not be compliant if the fire brigade signed off on it on completion?

Its a perfect defence apart from the glaring fact that the fire brigade didnt sign off on it. The fire brigade has no function in the construction of fire safety features after issuing a certificate based on the design. The fire brigade signed off on the design. The completed work was signed off on by a consultant employed by the developer. The problem is that it was not built according to the design.

Mr McNamara does not appear to accept the interpretation of, not one, but three expert reports on the deficiencies. The consultant who found the initial deficiencies, Eoghan Ryan, was working for the receiver of Gendsong.

After he alerted Dublin Fire Brigade, it conducted its own investigation and report, which initially suggested the deficiencies were so serious that some residents should be evacuated immediately.

The upgraded fire alarm system was a compromise that allowed residents to stay in their homes. Mr McNamara doesnt accept that conclusion. In a solicitors letter to the Irish Examiner, he disputed the findings of Mr Ryans report and stated the recent and costly upgrade to the fire alarm system was in all likelihood an unnecessary upgrade.

Then the DDDA hired Slattery, regarded as one of the top firms in the business. Effectively, Slatterys brief was to check that Dublin Fire Brigade was not exaggerating the problems, while ensuring that the works would bring the complex up to the required standard.

So any notion that Slattery might recommend, for instance, excessive remedial work, would not make sense. If anything, the consultants brief would include minimising the potential cost to a client.

Yet despite that, Mr McNamara is now claiming that he can do the required works for less than half the stated estimate.

You should be aware that I have asked experts to estimate the cost of the necessary works prescribed in the MASA report, he wrote to residents.

In their opinion they estimate that such work could be carried out (within about a 15-week timeframe) for circa 1.5m. This estimate would represent a significant cost saving against the proposed 3.88m and well below the DDDAs most recent offer of 2.5m. This would mean that owners/residents would not have to fund any works in order to comply with the Fire Safety Notice.

Everybodys a winner, but the question arises as to how could the work be done for such a price?

Even if the apartment owners were on board for Mr McNamara to go back to work at Longboat Quay, there is another outstanding issue, if he were not to agree to implement the MSA report in its entirety.

Any variation from the schedule of works outlined by Dublin Fire Brigade would require all parties to return to the district court and readjust the original order. This would involve Dublin Fire Brigade and Slattery going before the judge and declaring they had got things wrong and have since been put right by Bernard.

A number of owners with whom this reporter has spoken are sceptical about the offer. Some view it as a PR exercise. Others are worried that there would be any attempt to vary the schedule of works demanded by the fire brigade.

Now, as of last Monday, Mr McNamara has made a new offer which is being considered by the management company at Longboat Quay.

Meanwhile, the legal actions continue. If Mr McNamaras offer isnt accepted, the dilemma of locating the funding for the works continues, the worry for owners and occupiers, who are entirely blameless, continues.
Here are some of his clashes with Moscow:

Alleged instructions to assassinate Boris Berezovsky: In 1998 Mr Litvinenko took the extraordinary decision to blow the whistle on an alleged FSB plot to murder prominent tycoon Mr Berezovsky, culminating in a press conference in which he publicly denounced the agency in front of the worlds media.

The report said Mr Litvinenko was regarded as having betrayed the FSB.

Books: Mr Litvinenko co-authored two books following his arrival in Britain.

Blowing Up Russia, published in 2001, asserted that a number of apartment bombings in September 1999, which killed hundreds and were officially blamed on Chechen separatists, were actually the work of the FSB.

Another book, The Gang From The Lubyanka, set out allegations of corruption and involvement in organised crime.

The report said the idea of betrayal was compounded by Mr Litvinenkos campaigning in Britain.

Links to other Kremlin critics: Mr Litvinenko was an associate of Boris Berezovsky and Akhmed Zakayev, both of whom were leading opponents of the Putin administration.

Criticism of President Putin: Mr Litvinenko made a string of personal attacks on the Russian leader in the years after their only face-to- face meeting in 1998.

The most dramatic allegation came in an article Mr Litvinenko wrote in July 2006 accusing President Putin of paedophilia.

His article recounted a meeting between Mr Putin and a boy aged four or five in a square near the Kremlin.

Putin kneeled, lifted the boys T-shirt and kissed his stomach, Mr Litvinenko wrote.

The former FSB agent claimed there were blank spots in Mr Putins career that could be explained by his superiors alleged knowledge that he was a paedophile.

Just days before he fell ill, Litvinenko accused Mr Putin of responsibility for the murder of journalist Anna Politkovskaya.

Work for the intelligence agencies: The inquiry was told Litvinenko became involved with MI6 after arriving in Britain, receiving regular payments for consultancy work.
Moscow dismissed the finding that Valdimir Putin probably authorised the dissidents murder by the state security service as a gross provocation connected to deep disputes over Ukraine and other issues.

And the two agents identified in the report as the killers said it was crazy and discredited the British justice system.

It represents a fresh blow to diplomatic relations between the two countries, which were plunged into the deep freeze by the 2006 killing in London.

Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zhakarova told reporters: There was one goal from the beginning: slander Russia and slander its officials.

Painting the behind-closed-doors probe as a shadow puppet theatre, she added: We regret that a purely criminal case has been politicised and has darkened the general atmosphere of our bilateral relations.

Moscows anger was expressed by its ambassador to the UK Alexander Yakovenko when he was summoned for talks with minister David Lidington.

The embassy said he had made clear it considers the Litvinenko case and the way it was disposed of a blatant provocation of the British authorities.

We will never accept anything arrived at in secret and based on the evidence not tested in an open court of law, it went on.

The length of time that it took to close this case in this way makes us to believe it to be a whitewash for British special services institutional incompetence.

Andrei Lugovoi, who gained immunity from prosecution when he was elected to the Russian parliament in 2007, claimed he had been denied the chance to give evidence.

The inquiry report said he declined to.

These announcements from the British parliament completely discredit the British legal system  completely  in the eyes of any sensible, normal person, he said.

His alleged co-killer Dmitri Kovtun was quoted by the Tass news agency as blaming false evidence.

The crazy evidence is easily refuted, he was reported to have said.
British prime minister David Cameron is under pressure to escalate reprisals against Russia after a public inquiry implicated Vladimir Putin in the assassination of Alexander Litvinenko.

The report by Robert Owen found the president probably signed off on the poisoning of the dissident with radioactive polonium in London in 2006.

Moscow called the process politically motivated and absurd, while the British government responded by summoning the Russian ambassador and announcing that the two men who allegedly carried out the killing  Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitri Kovtun  would have their assets frozen.

However, the barrister for the Litvinenko family warned it would be craven if the prime minister avoided substantial reprisals for nuclear terrorism due to diplomatic considerations over crises in Syria and Ukraine.

The previous row over the assassination sent relations between the countries into the deep freeze for more than five years.

In a 300-page report, Mr Owen said Mr Lugovoi and Mr Kovtun were probably acting under the direction of Moscows FSB intelligence service when they laced 43-year-old Mr Litvinenkos tea with polonium at the Millennium Hotel in Londons Mayfair.

Alexander Litvinenko photographed at his home in London 2002.

Singling out then-FSB chief Nikolai Patrushev alongside Mr Putin, the former judge wrote: Taking full account of all the evidence and analysis available to me, I find that the FSB operation to kill Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr Patrushev and also by President Putin.

Mr Owen pointed to Mr Litvinenkos work for British intelligence, criticism of the FSB and Mr Putin, and his association with other dissidents such as Boris Berezovsky as likely motives for the assassination.

There was also undoubtedly a personal dimension to the antagonism between Mr Putin and Mr Litvinenko.

Tensions dated back to their only direct meeting in 1998, when Mr Putin was head of the FSB and Mr Litvinenko wanted him to bring in reforms.

The dissident made repeated highly personal attacks on the Russian leader after seeking asylum in the UK in 2000, including an allegation of paedophilia in July 2006.

Mr Owen wrote: I am satisfied that, in general terms, members of the Putin administration, including the president himself and the FSB, had motives for taking action against Mr Litvinenko, including killing him, in late 2006.

Other cases suggested that in the years prior to Litvinenkos death, the Russian state may have been involved in the assassination of Mr Putins critics, although this evidence was circumstantial.

Mr Owen said he was sure Mr Litvinenkos murder had been carried out by Mr Lugovoi and Mr Kovtun, who are both wanted by UK authorities but who Russia has refused to extradite.

The last photo taken of poisoned spy Alexander Litvinenko alive.

The use of polonium 210 was at the very least a strong indicator of state involvement, as it had to be made in a nuclear reactor.

The inquiry heard evidence that Mr Litvinenko may have been consigned to a slow death from radiation rather than shot in order to send a message.

Mr Lugovoi has been lionised in Russia since the killing, becoming a member of the Duma, the Russian parliament, and receiving an award from Mr Putin.

Mr Owen suggested that showed Moscow was signalling approval of the murder, although he stressed that by itself did not necessarily mean the state was involved.

Mr Litvinenkos widow, Marina, said outside the High Court that she was very pleased that the words my husband spoke on his deathbed when he accused Mr Putin have been proved by an English court.

Her barrister, Ben Emmerson queens counsel, told a press conference that the killing had amounted to nuclear terrorism, and said the family had sent ministers a list of potential targets for sanctions.

Scotland Yards investigation remains open and European arrest warrants remain in place for the two men, the Home Secretary added.

The report found that Mr Lugovoi and Mr Kovtun also tried to poison Mr Litvinenko at a meeting in London on October 16  a fortnight before he ingested the fatal dose.

It said the pair then placed the substance in a teapot in the Pine Bar at the Millennium Hotel on November 1 2006.

They left a radioactive trail in a number of locations around the capital, including a hotel sink where they deposited leftover polonium.

The year-long inquiry heard evidence from a variety of experts, but neither of the alleged killers appeared in person.

Much of the material from the UK security services has been censored from the public version, although it informed Mr Owens findings.

The British government initially argued that a public inquiry was not necessary and the matter should be dealt with by an inquest.

However, Mrs Litvinenko won a court battle to have the decision overturned.
He vowed that the review into its culture would be invaluable in helping to ensure such incidents never happen again.

A leaked draft report of the review by Janet Smith condemns the BBC over its deferential culture and untouchable stars, and criticises it for having managers who were above the law.

It also warns that it was possible another predatory child abuser could be lurking undiscovered in the BBC even today.

Rapes, indecent assaults on both boys and girls, and incidents of inappropriate sexual conduct with teenagers over the age of 16 were all in some way associated with the BBC, the draft report states, adding that three of Saviles victims were only nine.

Incidents occurred at virtually every one of the BBC premises in which Savile worked, the report said, and more than 100 employees at the corporation told the review they had heard about Saviles sexual conduct.

Commenting after the leaked report, Tony Hall said: Firstly, my thoughts and all our thoughts are with the victims of Jimmy Savile and their families. What happened was a dark chapter in the history of the BBC.

How did Jimmy Savile get away with it? @xtophercook looks at leaked BBC report tonight https://t.co/bScyn9gFih pic.twitter.com/7SARROCLYA  BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) January 21, 2016

Janet Smiths report will be invaluable in helping us understand what happened and to help ensure that we do everything possible to avoid it happening again.

The review has said that the copy leaked to the media is an early draft which has changed considerably, so, while I am impatient to learn those lessons, the responsible thing must be to act on the final report, which we have not received.

Savile was found to have carried out four rapes  two of girls under 16  and one attempted rape, which were among 61 incidents of sexual assault.

Abuse took place on the sets of Top Of The Pops and Jimll Fix It, at least once on camera, as well as in corridors, kitchens, canteens, and dressing rooms at the BBC Television Theatre, Television Centre and Broadcasting House, where he worked for Radio 1 Incidents also occurred at Lime Grove in London and BBC properties in Leeds, Manchester and Glasgow.

While staff said they were aware of his sexual behaviour, they were scared to report it to managers, the draft report, published by news website Exaro, states.

Investigations were wholly inadequate, and the BBC was criticised for failing to properly examine his personality, despite rumours about him and that he worked with children.

However, retired judge Smith accepted denials from senior bosses they knew of his sexual activity, and she does not criticise the BBC for not discovering the abuse.

She does, though, say: My general impression is that most staff (other than those... in higher echelons) felt that the management culture was too deferential and and that some executives were above the law.
Asia Thai Military Court to Release 14 Students Ahead of Trial

A Thai military court will release 14 detained student activists but they will still face sedition chargesfor defying the juntas ban on political gatherings.

BANGKOK A military court in Thailand said Tuesday it will release 14 student activists from detention but they will still face sedition chargesand the prospect of years in prisonfor defying the juntas ban on political gatherings.

The university students, 13 men and one woman, have been detained since their arrest on June 26 in Bangkok after leading a series of peaceful anti-coup rallies in the capital and elsewhere.

The case sparked international calls for their release and criticism of the military juntas use of military courts to try civilians and its strict controls on freedom of speech and assembly. University professors and students joined dozens of protesters to show support for the students outside the court, across from the Grand Palace in Bangkoks historic quarter.

Amid mounting pressure, the court denied a request from police to extend the students pre-trial detention for 12 more days, said defense lawyer KrisadangNutcharut. They were expected to be released Wednesday morning.

Under Thai law, people can be held a maximum of 48 days without formal charges.

The court agreed with our request to release them on grounds that they have no intention to run away,Kritsadang told reporters outside the courthouse. Journalists were not allowed to attend the hearing. They can now go back to their studies.

In a June 25 rally, the students wrapped Bangkoks Democracy Monument in black cloth and called for the junta to get out. In May, they conducted peaceful rallies in the northeastern province of KhonKaen to mark the coups first anniversary.

They face charges of sedition and violating the juntas ban on political gatherings of more than five people, which carry penalties of up to seven and a half years in prison. No date has been set for their trial.

Since overthrowing an elected government in May 2014, the nations military rulers have jailed opponents who dared to speak out against them. They have censored the media, forbidden open political debate and ordered that security-related offenses be handled by military courts.

Commenting on the courts decision, a government spokesman warned the students to behave.

Even though they will be released, it doesnt mean the case is concluded, said deputy government spokesman SansernKaewkamnerd. He urged the students not to create chaos in society or to hold activities like in the past.

The military has spoken of holding national elections but has not said exactly when they could take place, and its latest constitutional draft would curb the powers of elected political leaders.

Human Rights Watch said in a statement that the students arrests demonstrate the military juntas unwillingness to ease its oppressive rule.

The UN human rights office has called for the students release and urged the government to review its use of laws that limit freedom of expression and assembly.

The European Union has called the arrests a disturbing development and said civilians should not be tried in military courts.

The students case is the latest dilemma for the government, which has come under fire for the countrys long-ignored human trafficking violations and illegal activity in the lucrative fishing industry that could lead to an EU ban on imports from Thailand.
Burma Asean MPs Call for Release of Jailed Saffron Leader

A group of parliamentarians from across Southeast Asia raises concern over the re-arrest of former monk and pro-democracy leader Gambira, calling for his immediate release.

RANGOON  A group of parliamentarians from across Southeast Asia on Thursday raised concern over the re-arrest of former monk and pro-democracy leader Gambira, calling for his immediate release.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Asean Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) said Gambiras arrest was likely politically motivated. His detention at such a pivotal time is extremely concerning and risks sacrificing any potential positive legacy of the government of President Thein Sein, the statement read.

Gambira has sacrificed a great deal to support the rights of the Myanmar people to fight for democracy and should be treated accordinglynot hounded and thrown in jail, Son Chhay, a Cambodian Member of Parliament and Vice Chair of APHR, said in the statement.

On Friday, at least 20 political prisoners were released in a presidential amnesty following calls from the international community and human rights groups to free all prisoners of conscience before the current governments term ends in late March.

More prisoners are expected to be released throughout the day, though it is still unclear whether Gambira was or will be among those freed. He is unlikely to have been screened and identified as a current prisoner of conscience, however, as he has not yet been convicted.

Gambira, also known as Nyi Nyi Lwin, has long been considered one of Burmas most prominent political prisoners. A former monk and a leader of the 2007 Saffron Revolution, he was arrested and forcibly disrobed for his role in the pro-democracy uprising.

His arrest on Jan. 19 was at least his fourth detention since he was freed in a 2012 amnesty. Since his initial release, he has lived alternately in Burma and Thailand, where he sought treatment for mental illness and post-traumatic stress disorder related to his treatment while in prison.

His latest detention, on allegations of violating an immigration law that could land him in prison for up to five years, has been roundly decried as politically motivated, prompting a chorus of calls for his release. On Wednesday, rights group Amnesty International also called for his immediate and unconditional release.

Gambira is currently being detained in Mandalays Oh Bo Prison, and his next hearing is scheduled for Feb. 3.
Burma Buddhist Peace Conference Kicks Off With Presidential Cameo

Burmese President Thein Sein addresses a World Buddhist Peace Conference, calling on religious leaders to unite against extremism in the face of growing religious polarization.

MANDALAY  A diverse crowd of religious figures from around the world convened in central Burma on Friday for the start of the World Buddhist Peace Conference, an ambitious event with the stated aim of bridging religious differences in Burma and abroad.

Burmese President Thein Sein addressed hundreds of attendees at the opening event in Sagaing Division, calling on leaders to unite against extremism in the face of growing religious polarization.

I would like to kindly urge world religious leaders, political leaders and national leaders around the world to join hands and teach their followers to practice the middle way and avoid extremism, Thein Sein said, in what will likely be one of his last major public speeches before his term ends in late March.

The three-day event was organized by the Sitagu International Buddhist Academy, founded in 1994 by Sitaugu Sayadaw U Nyar Neitthara. Also speaking at the opening remarks on Friday, the well-known Burmese monk cautioned against discrimination.

Some 500 people were invited to the conference, representing an array of faiths from about 50 countries worldwide. Australia, Bangladesh, China, Ethiopia, India, Iran, Norway, South Africa and the United Kingdom were all represented at the event.

Messages of support were also received by the events organizers from the United Nations refugee agency, the office of the European Union in Burma, the US Embassy, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh and religious figures who could not attend.

According to the conferences organizing committee, much of the event will focus on experience sharing among experts from conflict-torn countries where religion and racial differences have exacerbated tensions. Organizers said they hoped the event would help repair the image of Burmas Buddhists, as some elements within the countrys religious majority have been viewed as extremist.

Relations between Burmas majority Buddhists and minority Muslims have deteriorated in recent years, with 2012 violence between members of the two faiths in Arakan State killing more than 100 people and displacing an estimated 140,000 additionally. Most of those affected by the communal conflict in western Burma were members of the persecuted Rohingya Muslim minority.

While nothing on that scale has occurred in the years since, sporadic violence at disparate locations across the country has served to highlight extant underlying tensions between the two religions, and ushered in the rise of a powerful Buddhist nationalist movement that has only recently receded from the public sphere.

Special guests opened the ceremony with a message to the worlds youth that all religions share a common goal of peaceful coexistence.

We want to tell the youth here that being extreme is not being religious, said Uadim Polianskii, chairman of the Jewish Society of Aesthetics and Physical Training in Russia. Every religion practices peace and love. If each of us understands the true meaning of our religious practice, we will live peaceful and harmonious lives.
Burma Dozens of Political Prisoners Released as Govts Term Nears End

More than two dozen political prisoners are released from penitentiaries across Burma as President Thein Seins term of office enters its 11th hour.

RANGOON  More than two dozen political prisoners were released from penitentiaries across Burma on Friday morning, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), as President Thein Seins term of office enters its 11th hour.

According to our statistics, 33 political prisoners have been released since this morning, Aung Myo Kyaw, an AAPP member who is closely monitoring the releases, told The Irrawaddy before noon on Friday.

According to the Presidents Office, the release of political prisoners is part of a larger amnesty of more than 100 convicts.

Burmas government has today released one New Zealand [national] prisoner and 101 [Burmese] national prisoners and has commuted the death sentences of 77 prisoners75 males and two femalesto life imprisonment, according to Presidents Office director Zaw Htay, who conveyed the information via his Facebook account, where he goes by the name Hmuu Zaw.

Aung Myo Kyaw confirmed that New Zealand national in question was Phil Blackwood, who was convicted to 2.5 years in prison last year for religious defamation, along with two Burmese colleagues, in a case decried by human rights activists.

The president has granted amnesty following the successful conclusion of 2015 elections, the first Union Peace Conference and the commencement of The World Buddhist Peace Conference, Zaw Htays post reads.

Aung Myo Kyaw said the prisoners of conscience were released from Insein, Mandalay, Taungoo, Pyay, Nyaung U, Myitkyina, Putao and Hpa-an prisons. Among the released are human rights activists who fought against land-grabbing at the Chinese-backed Letpadaung copper mine project in Sagaing Division, and others protesting military seizure of land in Rangoons Michaungkan quarter.

Fridays releases come just over a month before Thein Sein leaves office at the end of March. On Monday, during his second diplomatic visit to Burma, US Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged the outgoing government to free all remaining political prisoners before the National League for Democracy (NLD) takes power on April 1.

In response to the requests of personalities and organizations, the president has released the prisoners on social grounds, so that they can serve the interests of the country after their release, Zaw Htay wrote on Facebook.

This story was updated at 12:19 pm to include comments from Presidents Office director Zaw Htay, and at 12:35 to include confirmation of Phil Blackwoods release.
Burma Inya High-Rise Owned by Militia Chief Unlikely to Resume: YCDC

Construction of a Rangoon high-rise owned by a militia leader is unlikely to resume after being suspended earlier this week, a municipal government official says.

RANGOON  Construction of a high-rise development in Rangoon owned by the leader of a militia is unlikely to resume after it was temporarily suspended earlier this week, according to an official from the municipal government.

The Yangon City Development Council (YCDC) issued an order on Monday to halt construction of No. 74 University Ave., the project commenced without approval from the municipal body.

The property is owned by Kyaw Myint, chairman of the Pansay Peoples Militia, an armed group allied with the Burma Army. The militia was founded about 20 years ago and is based in Muse, on the Sino-Burmese border.

Khin Hlaing, an elected member of the YCDC, said the design of the development violated city guidelines and probably would not meet the citys guidelines.

Though it has only been temporarily, it is very unlikely to get permission to resume because of its design, Khin Hlaing told reporters on Friday.

Situated near Inya Lake, a designated noise-free zone, the proposed 12.5 storey development would exceed the neighborhoods 42 ft height cap.

The decision was made after Khin Hlaing and Lower House parliamentarian May Win Myint, a member of the National League for democracy, spoke out about the development earlier this year.

Residentsincluding Buddhist monksin the neighborhood had submitted their complaints about the construction since August last year, Khin Hlaing said on Friday.

On Wednesday, Kyaw Myint submitted a letter, seen by The Irrawaddy, to Rangoon Division Minister Myint Swe, requesting that the project be allowed to resume. The appeal claimed that the development had already been approved by the YCDC and neighboring residents.

The militia leader was not immediately available for comments on Friday.
Burma Kachin Aid Worker Sentenced to 6 Months in Facebook Defamation Case

Kachin aid worker Patrick Khum Jaa Lee, arrested over a Facebook post deemed to defame the Burma Army, is sentenced to six months minus time served.

RANGOON  Kachin aid worker Patrick Khum Jaa Lee, who was arrested over a Facebook post deemed to defame the Burma Army, was sentenced on Friday to six months in prison minus time served, just hours after a presidential amnesty freed dozens of others viewed as prisoners of conscience.

The sentence was handed down by Justice Kyi Sein at Rangoons Hlaing Township Court on Friday afternoon.

Khum Jaa Lee, 43, was arrested in October of last year and charged under Burmas Telecommunications Law for allegedly sharing a photo of a man dressed in traditional Kachin attire stomping on an image of Burma Army chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing.

He has denied sharing the content in question and says he was coerced into signing a confession.

Numerous requests for bail, premised on his deteriorating health, have been denied throughout his months-long detention. Khum Jaa Lee suffers from hypertension and asthma, according to his wife, renowned peace and womens rights activist May Sabe Phyu.

His arrest sparked international outcry as one of a rash of criminal defamation charges related to social media in the lead-up to a Nov. 8 general election.

Just days before Khum Jaa Lee was jailed, a young supporter of the opposition, Chaw Sandi Tun, was arrested over a Facebook post likening military uniforms to womens clothing. She was sentenced to six months in prison on Dec. 28.

At least 52 political prisoners were freed from penitentiaries across the country on Friday as part of a presidential amnesty, including land rights activists and a New Zealand national convicted for insulting religion.

More than 400 other political detainees remain imprisoned or awaiting trial on politically motivated charges, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP).

A top US diplomat on Monday urged outgoing President Thein Sein to free all remaining prisoners of conscience before his term ends in late March.

His military-backed party will hand over power to the National League for Democracy (USDP), the party led by Aung San Suu Kyi, which secured a landslide win in the November polls.
Burma Kachin State Anti-Poppy Campaigners Secure Police Protection

The Kachin State government promises to provide security for a group of anti-drug campaigners planning a poppy-eradication drive, after a teenage member was shot dead.

RANGOON  The Kachin State government has promised to provide security for a group of anti-drug campaigners in Waingmaw Township after a teenage member was shot dead last week while clearing poppy fields in the state.

Zonne Deink, a priest and leader of the Pat Ja San organization, told The Irrawaddy that authorities gave the group approval to carry out its poppy eradication campaign on Thursday, after members earlier in the week requested protection.

We have drawn up plans [to destroy poppy plantations] with more than 1,000 members, he said, adding that the group planned to begin carrying out its mission on Saturday.

Zonne Deink said he had first asked for the state governments assistance after the group was confronted by members of a local Border Guard Force (BGF), militia and poppy growers, who prevented them from destroying poppy fields in the township on Tuesday.

A member of Pat Ja San, who asked not to be named, told The Irrawaddy: About 500 people carrying sticks, swords and guns were blocking our way, so we could not proceed. We have had to ask the Waingmaw police station and township administrator to provide security for us.

Though the group has been destroying the small-scale plantations of local poppy growers in Kachin State, it does not provide the farmers with substitute crops nor monetary compensation, a source of friction that proved deadly on Jan. 15, when a farmer fatally shot a teenage who was clearing poppies in Tanai Township, northwest of Waingmaw.

Despite the fact that Burma Army units are based in Injangyang, Chipwi, Tsawlaw, and Waingmaw, the four townships are largely under the administration of the New Democratic ArmyKachin (NDAK), a group led by Zakhung Ting Ying that officially transformed into a BGF in 2009.

Zakhung Ting Ying won a seat in the Upper House constituency covering Chipwi, Tsawlaw and Ingyanyan townships in the 2015 election.

According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the total area under opium poppy cultivation in Burma in 2015 was estimated at 55,500 hectares, including 4,200 hectares in Kachin State.

While the figure represented a 4 percent decrease from 2014, Burma remains the second-largest opium producer in the world, after only Afghanistan.
Burma Local Activist Among Trio Detained in Arakan State

The chair of a local civil society group and two others were detained in Arakan States Kyaukphyu Township on Thursday, according to eyewitnesses.

RANGOON  The chair of a local civil society organization and two others were detained in Arakan States Kyaukphyu Township on Thursday, according to eyewitnesses, who suggested the trio were accused of having links to the Arakan Army (AA).

Maung Aye, the chair of the Kyaukphyu Rural Development Association, and two other unnamed men were detained in Leik Kha Maw village at around midday on Thursday by a group of eight men in plainclothes, presumed to be police or military officers, according to local monk and the brother of Maung Aye, Oo Bawdi.

Our villagers are very scared now, said the monk, adding that the plainclothes men were armed.

The village is situated near the Shwe gas project, around 10 km from the town of Kyaukphyu in the coastal western state.

Local villager Maung Yin Daung, who witnessed the arrests, said that when he went to Kyaukphyu police station to make enquiries, police there denied any knowledge of the detainees.

We heard that they were arrested because of an AA connection, he said.

Recent conflict between government troops and the Arakan Army broke out in Kyauktaw Township on Dec. 27. Hundreds of local Arakanese people have been forced to flee their homes, with the Burma Army pledging to remove the ethnic armed group from Arakan State.

Burma Army troops clashed several times with Arakan Army forces in a number of areas in the western state beginning in late March 2015. Following the fighting, at least 20 people were detained under Burmas Unlawful Association Law for their alleged links to the armed faction.

According to villagers, Maung Aye was a respected member of the local community who helped address cases of land confiscation and led protests against unfair compensation.

The Irrawaddy contacted the head of Kyaukphyu Township police office, Win Kyi, on Thursday evening, who said that the local police force was not involved and that he had no information on the detainees.

Oo Bawdi claimed Maung Aye was being held by military members from infantry battalion No. 34, an assertion The Irrawaddy could not immediately verify.
Burma Police Open Fire on Ethnic Protesters in Nepal, Killing 3

Police fire on ethnic protesters in southern Nepal, killing at least three and wounding eight, in fresh violence in the Himalayan nation.

KATHMANDU  Police fired on ethnic protesters in southern Nepal on Thursday, killing at least three and wounding eight, in fresh violence likely to trigger more trouble in the Himalayan nation facing severe shortages of fuel and other supplies because of the protests.

Government administrator Devi Bahadur Bhandari said the police acted as the ethnic Madhesi protesters tried to attack a political rally organized by the ruling Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist) in Rangeli, near the border with India. Police tried to stop the attackers with batons, tear gas and blank shots before firing live rounds into the crowd killing two protesters.

Police said another protester was also killed by police in nearby Dainiya. Further details on the circumstances there were not available.

The protesters have been demonstrating and imposing a general strike in much of southern Nepal for months and have blocked a key border crossing through which Nepal gets much of its fuel and other supplies from India. At least 50 people have been killed since August in protest-related violence, but no major violence had been reported in the last month until the deaths on Thursday.

The Madhesis say the constitution carved Nepals seven states unfairly with borders that cut through their ancestral homeland. They want a larger state, more government representation and more local autonomy.

Talks between the protesting groups and the government have continued. Madhesi leaders and Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli met on Thursday in Kathmandu but reached no agreements.

Upendra Yadav of the United Democratic Madhesi Front, the main group leading the protests, told reporters after the meeting that the two sides were at the same position they were four months earlier and no progress was made.
Burma Political Prisoner Release Tallies 52, With 78 Still Behind Bars: AAPP

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners calls on the government to release Burmas remaining prisoners of conscience, totaling 78, after 52 were freed on Friday.

RANGOON  Fifty-two political prisoners were released from penitentiaries across Burma on Friday, while 78 remain and hundreds more are still facing trial on politically motivated charges, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), which called on the government to release the outstanding prisoners of conscience.

The amnesty ordered by President Thein Sein involved the release of a total of 101 Burmese nationals and one New Zealander, Phil Blackwood, who was sentenced last year to 2.5 years in prison for religious defamation.

The president has granted amnesty following the successful conclusion of 2015 elections, the first Union Peace Conference and the commencement of The World Buddhist Peace Conference, said Presidents Office director Zaw Htay on Friday morning, via his Facebook account Hmuu Zaw.

Among nine penitentiaries to discharge political prisoners nationwide, Rangoons notorious Insein Prison and the lockup in Karen States Hpa-an released the largest totals, at 19 prisoners of conscience each.

Aung Myo Kyaw from AAPP told The Irrawaddy that the number of remaining political prisoners stood at 78, since the Kachin aid worker Patrick Khum Jaa Lee was sentenced to six months in prison just hours after the presidential amnesty over a Facebook post deemed to have defamed the Burma Army.

Bo Kyi, joint secretary of the AAPP, said Friday that the advocacy group would continue to demand the release of all political prisoners, without exception, citing student activists, land rights campaigners and journalists who remain behind bars as cases outstanding.

We appreciate the release. But what we, and international organizations, are demanding is to release all political prisoners, without any exception, he told The Irrawaddy.

The country would benefit more if they were released and given a chance to play suitable roles for the country, instead of keeping them in prison cells, he continued. It can also be an obstacle to national reconciliation.

Although the release of Blackwood and 13 protestors of a military land-grab in Rangoons Michaungkan quarter dropped high-profile causes from AAPPs docket, several prominent names will remain on its list of political prisoners.

In one recent case, Chaw Sandi Tun was sentenced to six months imprisonment in late December for sharing a photo collage online that compared revamped uniforms worn by Burmese military personnel to the apparel worn by National League for Democracy (NLD) chairwoman Aung San Suu Kyi. Chaw Sandi Tun was not among those released on Monday, according to her mother.

Tin Lin Oo, a writer and former NLD member, was also passed over, according to AAPP. He is serving a sentence of two years in prison with hard labor after he argued, at a literary festival, that discrimination on racial and religious grounds was incompatible with the central tenets of Buddhism. For that, a court deemed him guilty of deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings.

Five members of the Unity journal were also excluded and will continue to serve their seven-year sentences in a case that saw them found guilty of revealing state secrets in an article printed by the publication.

AAPP says additionally, more than 400 activists are still facing trial on politically motivated charges and were not considered in the amnesty.

US Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Burma this week and called on the outgoing government to free all remaining political prisoners before the NLD takes the mantle at the end of March.

New York-based Human Rights Watch released a statement the same day, arguing that the Thein Sein government could leave behind a positive legacy by immediately and unconditionally freeing all remaining political prisoners.

Thein Sein shouldnt wait for the new government to take office in late March to free those who should never have been imprisoned in the first place, the deputy Asia director of Human Rights Watch, Phil Robertson, said in the statement.

Thein Sein has released more than 1,000 political prisoners over the course of his five-year political term.
Burma TED Talks Event Set for Rangoon in March

Known around the world for its conferences on an ever-expanding range of topics and ideas, TED talks is now coming to Burma.

RANGOON  Known around the world for its conferences on an ever-expanding range of topics and ideas, TED talks is now coming to Burma.

The independently organized event under the TED banner will take place on March 23 at Rangoons Inya Lake Hotel, according to organizers.

TEDxInyaLake will feature a range of speakers including poet Nay Oake, filmmaker Lin Sun Oo, lawyer Robert San Aung, environmental conservationist Yin Myo Suu, education expert Tim Aye Hardy, author Pascal Khoo Thwe, and many more.

The organizing team includes eight female professionals headed by Thiri Thant Mon, managing director at Sandanila, and lead curator Thin Lei Win, chief correspondent with bilingual news agency Myanmar Now.

The conference will be held under the theme Myanmar Connects and aims to promote the world of ideas to Myanmar via TED and TEDx talks, and in turn contribute Myanmars ideas to the world, according to the events website.

Thiri Thant Mon told The Irrawaddy via email on Thursday she was motivated to help organize the event due to a passion for education and empowerment and a desire to raise learning standards in her native country.

A country in isolation subjected to poor education and propaganda raises a citizenry that is ill-informed and unable to take advantage of and compete in the interconnected world with the freely available knowledge that we have today, she said.

I aim to help change this in any small or large way.

The event aims to provide a window onto Burma as a normal human society with normal human problems, the website says.

Lin Sun Oo, chief executive officer of Tagu Films, who will be speaking about his personal story as a third generation filmmaker in his family, said he appreciated the variety of speakers set to take part in the event.

Its a good mix because it isnt just about politics and the same narrative about Myanmar and its military past, he told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday.

TED describes itself as a nonprofit, launched in 1984, and devoted to the spread of ideas on a plethora of topics, with discussions held in more than 100 languages to date.
Burma Tony Blair Queried, Again, Over Nature of Burma Dealings

Former British prime minister Tony Blair was back in Burma again earlier this month, but the exact nature of his visit was yet again unclear.

Former British prime minister Tony Blair was back in Burma earlier this month for at least his fifth visit since a quasi-civilian government assumed power under President Thein Sein.

Blair, who has staked out a lucrative niche in various advisory and entrepreneurial roles since leaving office, met with outgoing Union Parliament Speaker Shwe Mann and National League for Democracy chairwoman Aung San Suu Kyi in Naypyidaw on Jan. 7.

However, as in previous years, the purpose of his visit was less than clear.

A UK-based rights group, Burma Campaign UK, has consistently called on Blair to reveal the precise nature of his dealings in Burma. The group reiterated this stance in an email to The Irrawaddy on Thursday.

Tony Blair should be transparent about what who he is working for and why he keeps visiting Burma, said Mark Farmaner, Burma Campaign UK director.

In other countries Tony Blair has been known to combine work with his foundations with his business interests.

Farmaner said the advocacy group had repeatedly written to Blairs office to seek details of his dealings in Burma, without receiving adequate clarification.

Burma Campaign UK has previously stated that Blair was believed to be advising Thein Sein in some capacity.

Blairs former chief of staff from 1997-2007, Jonathan Powell, also has interests in Burma through his charity Inter Mediate, which works in conflict resolution.

According to informed sources, Powell helped broker a trip to Columbia in December for a delegation comprised of representatives from the Burma Army, three ethnic Karen armed groups including the Karen National Union, and the government-affiliated Myanmar Peace Center, to study the countrys peace process.

Farmaner said he wouldnt be surprised if Blairs recent visit was linked to Powells work in Burma.

Jonathan Powell and Tony Blair are old friends from their time when Tony Blair was Prime Minister, and they have both been involved in Burma in recent years, he said.

The problem is that their involvement seems to have been more in support of President Thein Seins government than being neutral or supporting civil society and the democracy movement.

The Irrawaddy wrote to Inter Mediate for comment but was yet to receive a reply at time of publication.

Bertil Lintner, a veteran Swedish journalist and the author of several books on Burma, said there were numerous foreign organizations jockeying for involvement in Burmas ongoing peace process.

It is just a waste of time and money in the peace-industrial complex, Lintner said. There is lots of money to be made there.
Commentary Weighing Suu Kyis Role in a New Political Order

To ensure influence at home and abroadand with the presidency currently off-limitsAung San Suu Kyi may opt to assume the role of Burmas foreign minister.

Its one of several unanswered questions in what looms as a new era in Burmese politics.

With Aung San Suu Kyi constitutionally barred from assuming the countrys highest office, what formal political position, if any, will the ever popular pro-democracy leader seek when her party takes power in late March?

Undoubtedly, the National League for Democracy (NLD) chairwomans ultimate aim is the presidency. However, Suu Kyi remains ineligible for the position due to Article 59(f) of Burmas military-drafted 2008 Constitution which rules out individuals whose parents, children or spouse are foreign citizens.

Suu Kyis two children are British nationals, as was her late husband.

There has been speculation that the offending article may be suspended to allow Suu Kyi to assume the role. However, the likelihood of the military agreeing to such a proposition ahead of the impending transition of power appears remote.

With that in mind, some analysts have turned their attention to what official role Suu Kyi, 70, may take on in an NLD-government. The Lower House speaker of Burmas Parliament was one plausible suggestion.

But that notion seemed off the mark after recent reports the NLD had nominated Win Myint and ethnic Karen Win Khaing Than, both NLD members, as speakers for the Lower and Upper House, respectivelynotwithstanding the partys subsequent refusal to confirm the reported nominations.

Other analysts contend Suu Kyi may remain as party leader, without taking any official position in the parliament or the executive.

She would certainly still be The Lady in charge regardless of her formal political role. The NLD leader has made one point abundantly clear: whoever officially leads the country, she will rule from above the president in the forthcoming government.

However, Suu Kyi may feel that assuming an official position is the best way to drive the government. There are also important points to consider regarding her influence over key decision-making bodies, perhaps most importantly, the National Defense and Security Council (NDSC).

The 11-member body is empowered by the Constitution to devise policy on certain military and security issues, including the right to petition the president to declare a nationwide state of emergency.

The council includes the president, two vice presidents, both Union Parliament speakers, the commander-in-chief and deputy commander of the Burma Armed Forces, and respective heads of the Foreign, Home, Defense and Border affairs ministriesthe latter three of whom are military appointed.

A position on the powerful council, of which the military commands a majority (considering one vice-president is selected by military lawmakers), will be a key concern of Suu Kyi.

In light of thatand with the presidency currently off-limitsSuu Kyi may opt to assume the role of foreign minister. In that role, whenever the council is held, Suu Kyi would retain a constitutional right to be there, alongside the Burma Army chief and other powerful military figures.

Of course, her president would be there too.

The role of foreign minister would not allow the NLD chairwoman to spend as much time on the coalface in Parliament, as she has done since winning a seat in April 2012 by-elections. However, in the new legislative chamber, the NLD will command a powerful majority and both speakers. Suu Kyi may deem it wise to focus her efforts on managing the executive arm of government.

Soon after the November general election, the Washington Post newspaper asked the leader of the victorious party: When there is a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nationsor another gathering of heads of statethey are going to want you there. They are not going to want someone else.

Suu Kyis answer was unequivocal: Ill go there. Ill go along with the president, and he can sit beside me.

To fulfill that vow, The Lady, despite her already distinguished standing around the world, may be aided by formally commanding a ministerial position. The position of foreign minister would seem an ideal choice.

No other person within the NLD is more qualified to grace the stage of international diplomacy and, even if she wasnt foreign minister, it is Suu Kyi that world leaders will want to meet.

As for the Burmese people, most will be satisfied regardless of the 70-year-olds official positionas long as she is the lady in charge.
Megan

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Friday, January 22nd, 2016 (12:01 am) - Score 496

The 29.75m Connecting Cambridgeshire project in England, which aimed to make BTs superfast broadband (24Mbps+) network available to 90% of premises in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough by the end of 2015 (98% for the raw fibre broadband footprint), has today officially completed its target.

The completion of the Phase One Broadband Delivery UK contract means that an additional 97,000+ local homes and businesses have been put within reach of the service, some of which might never have happened without the extra public investment.

Overall this means that roughly 300,000 premises (when including BT and Virgin Medias separate commercial coverage) in the region can now get access to the faster connectivity. The eagle-eyed among you will no doubt notice that todays target was hit ever so slightly later than planned, although a few extra weeks is hardly anything to moan about.

Elsewhere take-up of the new fibre broadband (FTTC/P) service is said to be among the highest in the country at nearly 30%, which spells good news for clawback linked reinvestment (see further below).

Ed Vaizey, Digital Minister, said: The Governments rollout of superfast broadband is making tremendous progress, and with one of the highest take-up rates in the UK, Cambridgeshire is a leading digital county. Weve already reached an additional 3.5 million UK homes and businesses, almost 100,000 in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough alone, and the Connecting Cambridgeshire project will reach another 6000 premises in the next phase of our plan.

Ian Bates, County Councillor, said: We have come a long way since the County Council took the bold decision to invest in superfast broadband along with Peterborough City Council and awarded the contract to BT in March 2012. We live in a digital world and its vital that our businesses and communities have the connections they need to compete and thrive. Were already a leading digital county with some of the biggest technology clusters in the country in Cambridge and Peterborough and we want to continue to be at the forefront of innovation to underpin growth and jobs.

The good news is that a Superfast Extension Programme (SEP) contract, which is backed by 1.5m extra from the Government, was signed last year to help push the connectivity out into more areas (here). On top of that BT has also confirmed that another 5.3m will be returned through clawback to be reinvested in enhanced coverage (here).

The contract extension should cover another 6,000 homes and businesses in further roll-out phases from Spring 2016. Combined with the private sectors commercial roll-out this means that over 93% of households and businesses across the county can already get fibre broadband and the programme is on track to reach at least 95% by the end of 2017 (we believe they mean superfast speeds for this).

The press release also states that the next two years will see the programme reaching some of the most challenging rural areas of the county, albeit with other technologies, such as wireless and Satellite, being used for the remainder by 2020.
Major: Communication

Hometown: Brazil, IN

Student Media Involvement: Syc Creations

Favorite Food: Burgers with everything but mustard

Fun Fact: He really loves superhero movies, and wants to make his own someday
Foxconn Technology Group, a company popularly known as the manufacturer of Apple's iPhones, has set its sights in expanding its business and broaden its horizons by purchasing Sharp Corporation. The Japanese company hasn't been doing well in the market as of late, and reports have now surfaced that Foxconn is on a bidding war to buy out Sharp.

'Foxconn, the Taiwanese company that assembles the bulk of the world's iPhones, has offered about 625 billion ($5.3 billion) to take over troubled Japanese electronics maker Sharp Corp., according to people familiar with the matter,' reads a report from the Wall Street Journal.

According to reports, Foxconn has made a US$5.1 billion bid. Sharp happens to be one of Apple's main display suppliers while the company based in Taiwan, on the other hand, is Apple's biggest manufacturer for its mobile devices. Further reports suggest that Foxconn founder Terry Gou had already bought a huge chunk of Sharp's LCD business a couple of years ago, amounting to about 38 percent of the Japanese company.

Should the information that has been gathered holds true, then it could also mean that Foxconn is also bailing out Sharp's considerable debt, with an estimated US$4.4 billion of payment due soon in Japanese banks.

However, it seems Foxconn isn't alone. The company has found itself in a bidding war with the Innovation Network Corporation of Japan. The INCJ is looking into keeping Sharp inside the Japanese shores, and lenders to the company reportedly also want the same thing. The state-controlled fun has allegedly invested in Japan Display Inc., which happens to be a joint operation of former Sony, Toshiba and Hitachi businesses. According to further reports, Sharp will be making a decision regarding the offer before the end of its next fiscal quarter, but the company may favor INCJ over Foxconn.
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Wrestling fans were on the edge of their seats all night as fearsome fighters took each other on, both inside and outside the ring, using whatever they could lay their hands on.

A smashing Hardcore Match featuring Jody Flash and Johnny Storm saw the pair crash through a trestle table as Flash got the better of Storm to steal the title.
The victim allowed one of the men in to the back garden of her home in Hanworth Road, Hampton, at 2.30pm on Wednesday, April 12. She became suspicious when she realised he had been in the garden for some time and went to look for him.

While she was in the garden a second man walked in through the side gate and stole the handbag from the kitchen table. The bag contained 30 cash, a bus pass and a set of keys.
Figures released last week reveal a marked drop in the number of teachers in secondary education, with Richmond losing 45 staff in the past year.

The loss has led to a hefty increase in the number of pupils being supervised by each teacher and has sparked fears of growing class sizes in secondary schools.

Conservative Councillor Geoffrey Samuel, a former headmaster of Heathland Secondary School in Hounslow, is deeply concerned about the loss of vital teaching staff.

He called for the council to make the staffing figures public at last week's full council meeting.

He said: "The figures were far worse than I thought. Secondary schools are a priority in this borough. For the pupil/teacher ratio to rise by 10 per cent is in fact quite deplorable. It will mean larger class sizes in secondary schools."

He blamed the reduction in the number of secondary teachers in the borough on early retirements and the non-renewal of temporary contracts.

He also expressed concern at the figures for class sizes in primary schools. The Government has ploughed extra money into the primary sector to cut class sizes.

In Richmond class sizes have fallen but the LEA figures show some discrepancies at Trafalgar Infants and Archdeacon Cambridge's Schools in Twickenham.

Councillor Brian Miller, chairman of the council's education committee, said that class sizes were not increasing.

He said: "We are seeing class sizes even out. Our secondary schools are doing a brilliant job.

"We have schools that are improving year on year and we have a dedicated band of loyal staff and governors to make sure that happens."
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On the eve of the Davos conference, Pope Francis warned the wealthy delegates and the economic elites of the world and cautioned them not to be deaf and blind to the cry of the poor and to discontinue doing things that produce inequality in this world.

The pope's call was issued on Wednesday at the conference. But it was in contrast to Joe Biden's state of mind. Being a person who always wants to crack jokes, the U.S. Vice-President is apparently in a good mood when he made a wisecrack at President Obama.

While speaking at the World Economic Forum on Wednesday, he said his boss has not allowed him to go to Davos until now. "I've really resented the hell out of the fact Barack wouldn't let me come until tonight," says Biden in his speech. But he quickly added that he is only joking about it.

It appears that the pope is more serious about the situation than the U.S. vice president. He stated that current technologies have the potential to make robots with artificial intelligence as a substitute for humans. The pope urged that replacing humans with "soulless machines" should not be allowed.

"To all of you I appeal once more: 'Do not forget the poor!'", he urged the delegates of the Davos conference.

Much more than being a jokester, Biden has been frequenting almost every conference that was held by the 45-year-old World Economic Forum. In his speech, he focused on the theme of the meeting - the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Turning more serious, he said he hopes that the conference would have more winners than losers. This statement was directed to the delegates who are comprised of 2,400 business leaders among others. He urged these business leaders to be serious about their responsibilities towards their workers and shareholders.
While drumming up support for Donald Trump, Sarah Palin was forced to face the growing controversy involving his son. Track Palin, the 26-year old son of Palin and an Iraq veteran was arrested recently for domestic violence.

The former governor of Alaska said his son's condition stemmed from the effects of PTSD. She then blamed Barack Obama, the U.S. president for not giving enough medical and mental care to war veterans.

Based on documents provided by the police, the younger Track was arrested Monday night after an altercation with his girlfriend that occurred in his parent's home at Wasilla, Alaska. The report said that he beat his girlfriend and threatened to commit suicide. He was charged on the same day that his mother was declaring her support for the candidacy of Trump.

The incident may have probably caused Palin to cancel her appearance at a morning event related to her Trump endorsement. It appears that her son's arrest the night before has overshadowed the euphoria connected to her announcement.

To mitigate her son's actions, Palin said her son's behavior is caused by post-traumatic-distress-order and immediately turned the focus on President Obama, by saying that he is 'disrespectful' in treating war veterans.

"I guess it's kind of the elephant in the room - because my own family, going through what we're going through today with my son, a combat vet having served in a Stryker brigade, fighting for you all, America, in the war zone. But my son, like so many others, they come back a bit different. They come back hardened," Palin lamented.

She added that war veterans returning home from the battlefield are also bringing their own battles within by coming back entirely different when they initially left their country. It is very important, she added, for the country to have a commander-in-chief that will show them respect.
In early 2015, shortly after his victory in a heated re-election contest, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder began exploring a run for president. With his business experience and electoral success in a blue state, the Republican was considered a viable potential candidate, so he embarked on a national speaking tour and set up a fundraising organization. Its name: Making Government Accountable.

As Snyder was testing the presidential waters, however, his government was being shamefully unaccountable to constituents who were concerned about their water supply. The city of Flint switched its primary water source from Lake Huron, through Detroits system, to the Flint River in April 2014. Approved by an emergency manager appointed by the governor, the move was supposed to save the beleaguered city millions of dollars. But residents soon began reporting tap water that appeared discolored, smelled rotten and caused kids to break out in rashes. Today, Flint has become a nightmarish example of how misguided austerity policies can literally poison the public.

We now know that Flints water supply was contaminated by lead that it collected from deteriorating pipes. In recent weeks, Snyder has issued a public apology to the city, declared a state of emergency, activated the National Guard and requested assistance from President Obama, who declared the situation a federal emergency on Saturday. The state health department is also looking into whether an outbreak of Legionnaires disease that has killed 10 people in the area is connected to the water crisis. Meanwhile, the Justice Department is investigating the state and local governments actions, while it could cost up to $1.5 billion to fix the citys water distribution system.

All of this is the result of the Snyder administrations stunning lack of accountability, beginning with the fateful decision to put Flint under the control of a political appointee who was unelected and unaccountable to the public. When the citys residents initially reported their concerns in 2014, officials responded by pumping hazardous levels of chlorine into the water. When complaints persisted, officials assured citizens that the water was safe to drink, repeatedly disregarding clear evidence that it wasnt. But when elevated levels of lead showed up in childrens blood this past fall, the government was forced to admit there was a problem. Snyder appointed a task force to investigate the crisis, which found, among other things, that legitimate fears were met with aggressive dismissal, belittlement, and attempts to discredit the individuals speaking out.

They cut every corner, said Flint resident Melissa Mays. They did more to cover up than actually fix it. Thats criminal. Snyders then-chief of staff, Dennis Muchmore, acknowledged the administrations deplorable response in a July 2015 email, writing: These folks are scared and worried about the health impacts and they are basically getting blown off by us (as a state were just not sympathizing with their plight).

But the water crisis in Flint represents more than a catastrophic political failure. It is also a direct consequence of decades of policies based on the premise that government spending is always a problem and never a solution. Long before Flint tried to reduce spending by moving to a cheaper water source, the pipes that ultimately poisoned the water were neglected. Across the country, crumbling infrastructure is a pervasive threat that is creating serious issues in other cities and could produce similar crises. As Michigan State University economist Eric Scorsone explained, Flint is an extreme case, but nationally, theres been a lack of investment in water infrastructure. This is a common problem nationally  infrastructure maintenance has not kept up.

Unfortunately, the biggest obstacles to desperately needed public investments are politicians like Snyder who conflate accountability with austerity. For Republican technocrats in particular, more accountability almost always means less spending on government programs that help ensure the public good.
Ideas Editorial Page Editor David D. Haynes talks about ideas, innovations and trends worth considering SHARE

By of the

West Branch, Iowa - Drop by the McDonalds off Interstate 80 many afternoons in this small eastern Iowa community, and youll find charter members of the CAVE Club, a group of retirees who play a mean hand of euchre over bottomless cups of coffee.

(CAVE, they joke, stands for Citizens Against Virtually Everything, which isnt quite fair to these fellows. I found them to be an amiable group).

Lets try spades, says Norm Bickford.

Doggone it, heres a spade, says his partner Bill Jensen slapping down a black card.

Like so many voters, members of this club are fed up with broken promises. I cant stand the ads, says Bickford. They say theyre going to do this and do that and then they get to Washington and they dont do anything.

Russell Grout, a retired truck driver, said he has voted Republican in the past but maybe not this year. Ill be 70 years old this month, and this is the craziest election Ive seen. The things these candidates are saying, to me its embarrassing.  to not let Muslims in or to bomb some place into oblivion. Thats crazy, he said.

The Republicans, I dont think I could be proud of any of them.

---

There is one Republican, though, that Ill bet they are proud of  Herbert Hoover. His presidential museum and library sits on a beautifully kept property just across I-80 on S. Downey St. Hoover was born in West Branch, and his library opened here in 1962. It is one of 13 presidential libraries around the nation. Hoover, who died at the age of 90 in 1964, and his wife, Lou, are buried on a rise adjacent to the library.

Orphaned at age 9, Hoover got himself into the newly opened Stanford University and decided on a career as a mining engineer. Over the next 20 years, he traveled the world and made a fortune as an engineer and financier. But he wanted to do more than make money. After World War I broke out, he organized efforts to help Americans stranded in Europe and later to feed starving people caught in the war zone. He continued his humanitarian work after the war as Europe recovered. (He is remembered for similar efforts after the second world war)

By 1920, his reputation secure, activists in both parties wanted him to be their presidential candidate. He was chosen as secretary of commerce and served under both Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge. He won acclaim for promoting efficiency, new industries such as aviation and radio and for leading floor relief efforts after a devastating Mississippi River deluge in 1927. He easily won election in 1928.

But Hoover's legacy will always be tainted by the Great Depression. Conventional wisdom is that his administration didn't do enough to treat the economy after the crash in October of 1929. The truth, of course, is more complicated than that. As the museums exhibits point out, Hoover was dealt a tough hand and tried to play it as best he could. But he didn't favor direct relief for the millions of unemployed, instead relying on public works projects and loans to the states. That was woefully inadequate in the face of massive joblessness. Hoover lost to Franklin D. Roosevelt in a landslide in 1932.

Tom Schwartz, director of the complex, and formerly director for special collections and research at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield, Ill., walked me through the museum. Schwartz sees several parallels between Hoover and the present campaign.

Like Trump, Hoover never held elective office. Like Trump, he was fabulously wealthy. Unlike Trump, Hoover was no braggart. A Quaker, Hoover was prone to downplaying his achievements, Schwartz said, which was an honorable trait but one that hurt him politically when times got tough.

Like Cruz, Hoover faced questions over his citizenship. Hoover had lived abroad for many years, and his political opponents tried to claim he had renounced his U.S. citizenship. Trumps recent attacks on Cruzs supposed problem apparently is not a new political strategy.

Unlike either of the GOP renegades, Hoover saw himself as a progressive in the mold of Theodore Roosevelt.

Im heading out Friday morning to talk to more voters in western Iowa as the Iowa Caucuses draw near. The Caucuses will be Feb. 1, and the race in both parties in Iowa remains tight.

Follow my daily reports on my live blog.
Jonas Prising (fifth from left), chariman and CEO of ManpowerGroup based in Milwaukee, was part of a panel discussion Friday on the global gender gap at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The panel included moderator Lyse Doucet (from left), BBC chief international correspondent; Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau; Facebook CEO Sheryl Sandberg; Melinda Gates, co-chairman of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; Prising; and Zhang Xin, CEO of SOHO China Limited. Credit: Submitted photo

SHARE Melinda Gates, co-chair of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Associated Press Sheryl Sandberg, CEO and member of the Board of Facebook Associated Press Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Associated Press CEO of ManpowerGroup Jonas Prising Associated Press

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In the past 10 years, little progress has been made at closing the global gender gap between men and women in the workplace, and corporate leaders surveyed by Milwaukee-based ManpowerGroup Inc. believe it will take another generation to achieve parity.

Those findings highlight two new reports discussed Friday in Davos, Switzerland, on why it's so tough to close the gender gap.

An entrenched male culture is the biggest barrier to making progress, ManpowerGroup found in its report, released at the World Economic Forum. The report says millennials are optimistic that their generation will be the one that achieves parity. But not anytime soon, the company's survey found. Millennial women say it will take 22 years to achieve parity.

A separate report, published by The World Economic Forum on the Industry Gender Gap, found women account for 30% of the workforce across multiple industries, even though they outnumber men in attending universities. Women earn 32% less than men in comparable positions, the survey found.

According to the survey, just 9% of global CEOs are women. Females make up 28% of corporate boards, 15% of senior management functions and 25% of midlevel roles.

"Can we afford to wait another generation? And do we risk losing out on human potential if millennial females become disillusioned with the corporate world? Women are already voting with their feet. Almost half of all small and medium-sized enterprises are majority or equally-led by women," ManpowerGroup's report says.

Companies and other organizations need to use the principle of "conscious inclusion" and not limit women's roles to just certain parts of the organization, said Jonas Prising, chairman and chief executive of ManpowerGroup, during a Davos session Friday on gender parity.

"Women tend to be clustered in certain professions or certain functions, and we believe for there to be more female leaders at the helm of companies  and there are only 4% of (U.S.) companies led by a female CEO  you need to make sure you have women in technical roles and business roles and P&L (profit-and-loss) roles," Prising said.

Social norms in a corporate culture can work against doing so, and corporate leaders need to move deliberately and purposefully to enable women to "move into the pipeline" for leadership roles, he said.

Women hold one-third of board seats at ManpowerGroup, up from zero when former CEO Jeff Joerres made a personal commitment to add women to the board. Under Prising, one-third of top executives are female, and one-half of what the company calls its "emerging leaders" are women, the ManpowerGroup report said.

Prising spoke along with Melinda Gates of the Gates Foundation and Facebook Inc. Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg, as well as Canada's Justin Trudeau, who last year appointed the world's first gender-balanced cabinet after he won election as prime minister.

"Men have to be part of this conversation. We shouldn't be afraid of the word feminist," Trudeau said. "Men and women should use it to describe themselves anytime they want."

Inequity starts at home, given the unwritten but still persistent expectations about women's roles as family caretaker and CEO-of-the-house, said Gates. Mothers, not fathers, are often those leaving work to take their child to the doctor, she said.

Changing that will take replacing maternity leave policies with family leave policies, said Gates, adding just two of 50 U.S. states have family leave policies.

"There's a toddler wage gap in the U.S.," added Sandberg. "Boys are taking out the trash. It takes less time than cleaning the dishes, and they're getting higher allowances. We start out in our homes with these very different expectations, and the time spent on these tasks is incredibly important and very different."

Alex Molinaroli, chairman and CEO of Johnson Controls Inc., is also in Davos this week, and serves as a trustee for the World Economic Forum's focus on gender parity. Glendale-based Johnson Controls provides incentives to managers who meet certain gender targets, he wrote in a column posted on the forum's website.

"Although gender quotas are often perceived negatively by men and women alike, they're a stimulant for change," Molinaroli wrote. "It's not about filling a seat, it's about starting the conversation, bringing awareness and driving change."

Also Friday, 10 companies, including Barclays Plc, Twitter Inc., PricewaterhouseCoopers and Tupperware Brands, announced they are joining forces with the United Nations to raise awareness that not enough is being done to help women reach parity in the global workplace.

Bloomberg News contributed to this report.
Carpenters put shingles on the roof of a house under construction Thursday in the Spencers Pass West subdivision north of Silver Spring Drive and just west of 1 Mile Road in Menomonee Falls. Credit: Mark Hoffman

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Although sales of existing homes rose 10.5% in the Milwaukee metro area last year, construction of new houses remained flat in 2015.

Some builders, however, say there are encouraging signs for the local new-home industry as the price gap between a limited supply of existing homes and new ones continues to narrow.

Permits to construct new homes declined about 1% from 2014 in Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Washington and Waukesha counties, slipping to 1,225 from 1,237  continuing a slight downward trend over the past three years, according to MTD Marketing Services of Wisconsin Inc.

That's way off from the pace of the pre-recession building craze in the early and mid-2000s, which at one point produced 3,000 housing starts in a year. But it's still far better than later in that decade, when permits for new homes plummeted to as low as 831 in 2009.

While a big boom in 2016 seems unlikely, some builders say there is evidence of growing interest by consumers in putting up their own place.

Attendance at the Metropolitan Builders Association's annual Home Building and Remodeling Show at State Fair Park last weekend was up by 45% from a year earlier, and people are talking seriously about building  not just looking, builders said.

"The qualified leads we had sourcing out of that was unbelievable," said Mike Bauman of Joseph Douglas Homes. "People already have their lots, they are ready to go, they want to do something. We've got numerous appointments scheduled from that show already."

Tom Hignite of Miracle HomeBuilders also said there has been a surge in interest in new home construction recently as the price gap between old and new has been shrinking.

Data from the Greater Milwaukee Association of Realtors shows the average price of existing homes sold in Milwaukee County rose 7.1% last year while increasing 9.7% in Washington County, 4.2% in Ozaukee County and 2.4% Waukesha County.

"Our traffic in the past month and a half, even with the holiday, has been very good," Hignite said. "We've sold five homes in the last three weeks  contracts for new homes. And we've taken offers on two specs in that time. That's very robust."

Most people looking to build a new home have young families and are moving up from a smaller house, but some are older homeowners desiring a smaller place on one level or a special design to accommodate in-laws or other family members  a house with two master bedrooms, for instance.

"Boomers are getting out of their 4,000-square-foot two-stories and wanting to build a smaller ranch," Bauman said.

First-time buyers typically aren't a factor in the home-construction market, in large part because of the higher prices. A starting point for a newly built house in metro Milwaukee is around $350,000, several builders said.

With residential real estate on the rise again, post-recession discounts on raw lots have gone away, said David Belman, president of Belman Homes and the 2016 president of the Metropolitan Builders Association. The cost of materials also has increased, and regulations on land developments have pushed expenses for new homes upward.

In addition, skilled laborers for the homebuilding industry still are in short supply, he said.

"In talking to my carpenters and my painters, they are having an awful time trying to find motivated young people who want to do that kind of work," Belman said. "A lot of time they will put people on and they're working for a day or a week and then they say, 'This is too much for me it's not what I want to do.' And they quit."

Belman said he doesn't foresee a big boost in new-home construction this year. Belman said he's expecting it not to be much different from 2015. But he said industry economists are predicting that "maybe in a year or two, we're really going to start to pick up."

Hignite, though, said the low inventory of existing homes for sale could have an impact sooner rather than later.

"As inventory dwindles and people can't find what they're looking for  or that's close enough to what they're looking for  they end up having to build," he said.
By ,

To whom it may concern in the publishing world of crime fiction  please stop using "Girl" in titles to suggest a female character (usually the narrator) is unreliable, unrelenting, perhaps even dark and diabolical.

In "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," "Gone Girl," "Girl on the Train," "Luckiest Girl Alive" and "Girl, Put Down That Knife" (ok, I made that one up), the protagonists are as far from being girls as their authors. In fact, one of the reasons I'm leading this first column of 2016 with Alafair Burke's"The Ex" (Harper) is that despite a wily narrator, there's no "Girl" in her title. The other reason is "The Ex" is a really riveting legal thriller.

Burke's protagonist, Olivia Randall, is a complicated woman with legal skills to match the Lincoln Lawyer.

She's also fully aware that deception and manipulation may be her best attributes. In the opening pages, Olivia kicks someone else's husband out of her bed and admits she's a skilled liar. When the daughter of her ex-fiance asks for help because her dad is the main suspect in a spree killing on the Hudson Parkway, Olivia's guilt propels her into action. With slick legal problem solving (Burke is a law professor in her own right), Olivia proves she's at the top of her game as a criminal defense attorney. And with her pacey plot and fascinating characters, Burke proves she's at the top of hers as a writer.

You go, girl!

Set in present-day Los Angeles in "an architectural clutter" of buildings that includes a creepy old ancestral mansion called "Caveat," Tim Powers'"Medusa's Web" (William Morrow) is an ingenious supernatural mystery that snagged my imagination from its opening pages. Aunt Amity ("affluent from the sales" of novels about a female PI in 1920s Hollywood) has killed herself "grotesquely" just days after altering her will, leaving four estranged (and strange) cousins, each with precognition and "time dislocation" abilities, to fight about their inheritance. The cousins' mystifying visions are triggered by images of spiders.

Eventually the visions lead to a famous silent film about Salome, Aunt Amity's fiction and the family's past in old Hollywood. To write any more about this unusual and bewildering mystery (in a Philip K. Dick kind of way) will spoil your experience.

This book will trigger a few chilling shivers.

Beware.

Finally, if conniving criminal lawyers and creepy cousins are not your druthers, pick up Andrew Grant's terrific "False Positive" (Ballantine). Grant's twisty story introduces a new character to his literary repertoire (one I hope returns).

Alabama detective Cooper Deveraux is driven, dedicated, but deeply flawed with a hair-trigger conscience and a history of violence (his record is peppered with accusations of excessive force that are critical to the plot). Cooper lives in a refurbished downtown Birmingham office building that's a lot like him: "balanced, elegant proportions" and "remade top to bottom."

Cooper is barely off a suspension when he's assigned a new partner and a troubling new case with a kidnapped foster child at its center.

Cooper's new partner "has an uncanny, intuitive ability to latch onto any false note," a critical skill for any detective, especially if any detective is hiding something.

Carole E. Barrowman is a professor of English at Alverno College and co-author of three "Hollow Earth" novels, including the recently published "The Book of Beasts."
Jack Garratts free show for WYMS-FM (88.9) was a coup for the station. The 24-year-old Englishman is expected to be a big star after his debut album Phase comes out Feb. 19. Credit: Maegan Eli Krause / for the Journal Sentinel

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It was evident Thursday, but it will be clearer years from now, that Jack Garratt's free set at the WYMS-FM (88.9) studios was a big achievement for the station better known as 88Nine Radio Milwaukee.

How did it happen? Program Director Jordan Lee said Garratt's label, Interscope Records, contacted him about doing a show as part of a radio-only tour this month, the first step in an aggressive campaign for debut album "Phase," out Feb. 19.

"They've been playing him since December 2014, a lot earlier than anyone else," James Evans, Interscope's director of rock promotion and marketing, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Credit goes to Tarik Moody, who discovered Garratt's "The Love You're Given" in 2014 and played it on his "Rhythm Lab Radio" show. Lead "Phase" single "Worry" entered into rotation soon after. "Breathe Life" went into heavy rotation last fall, before Interscope assembled a campaign.

Getting Garratt before he headlines big venues suggests Radio Milwaukee has earned "respectability as a tastemaker station," Moody said. "Hopefully, we'll see more of these opportunities."

Garratt's set Thursday was taped; a broadcast date has yet to be announced. He will be a guest on "Rhythm Lab Radio" airing at 10 p.m. Friday.

Piet Levy co-hosts a weekly segment at 8 a.m. Thursdays with Lee on Radio Milwaukee.
When Guy Rehorst founded Great Lakes Distillery in 2004, he went from homebrewer and hobby wine maker to craft distiller.

Tapping into a growing industry, his company uses local ingredients including Wisconsin ginseng in its gin and maple syrup in its rum. Today it produces more than a dozen specialty liquors, including vodka, gin, pumpkin seasonal spirit and absinthe and the award-winning Kinnickinnic Whiskey. It's also become the "longest surviving beverage distillery in Wisconsin since Prohibition times."

Acknowledging a love for Great Lakes living, the 52-year-old president of the Wisconsin Distillers Guild lives in Milwaukee and has always chosen to live no more than a mile from Lake Michigan.

In his genes

My grandfather was born here, but his parents came from Germany. He grew up in Bay View, as did my father.

On my grandmother's side, they owned a bar on 9th and Arthur. Until the last decade, we had a family bar operating there. I can still remember going there with my parents when I was a kid. My grandmother, who lived upstairs, would be sitting in the bar keeping an eye on the business, tending bar well into her 90s. Hopefully I inherited those genes.

Hobbyist to craft distiller

If you're homebrewing, distillation is just one more step. I joke with brewers that in our business we actually finish the product. You guys just brew it, stop there. (Distilling) is definitely not a hobby for everybody; for one, it is illegal (distilling at home).

Experiments don't always end well

About two years ago, we did a little experiment trying to roast some apples. We actually roasted them underground, built a bonfire, took sacks of apples, buried them, let it cool, dug it up the next day. It was definitely smoky, but it also tasted like dirt. So that didn't work too well.

Lessons learned

There are certain products we experimented with that will never see the light of day. One of the biggest things I've learned, when you're distilling, certain flavors condense. That is often a good thing. When you're making absinthe, anise becomes intense. When you make gin, certain flavors intensify. Others don't.

For example, it would've been logical in Wisconsin that one of the first products we wanted to come out with is cranberry vodka, but it turns out there is not a lot of flavor in the berry itself. We don't use artificial flavorings, so we just kind of dropped it. We're not doing a cranberry vodka.

Where he eats

I love when a new restaurant opens, like Merriment Social. I saw them on our buyer list, so I went and was blown away by the food and cocktails. When it comes to dining, it is usually what is the new place in town.

One of my favorites in town is Swinging Door. It is bar food but a notch better, and reasonable. I find myself eating there way more often than I should.

His signature drink

I do a lot of gin and tonics. We just started bottling our own tonic. We've been making our own tonic in the tasting room and had it on tap. People wanted to buy it. We've always had to tell people you can't. We just started bottling and selling our tonics. La Pavia (Beverage) does them in the Lincoln Warehouse.

What defines his workspace

Number one, mess. Next, bottles, bottles and bottles. I've got a lot of first releases of our products, but also a lot of bottles of other people's products I like or that I've wanted to try. All in the name of research.

Guilty pleasure

I've got a couple. The most basic one, for me, a rum and coke is it. My staff kind of laughs at me because sometimes people get in their head a certain drink doesn't highlight the spirit.

Otherwise I go for a really good bourbon  at least a 10-year-old bourbon  with cheese, either some smoked Gouda or cheddar.

Worth the wait

Whiskey. The problem with a small producer making a whiskey, all the cost is up front, then you put it on a shelf for years and years. It is just money sitting on a shelf.

We can't just lay down a ton of whiskey and put it on a shelf. So every year on Dec. 5, we do our Repeal Day rye release. It is five years old when we release it and it is the most delicious thing, but we have such a limited supply we usually run out within two weeks.

His dream job

As a kid I wanted to be an archaeologist or truck driver. I've unloaded a lot of trucks, but not driven too many.

This is the best job I've ever had in my life, and the longest I have ever held a job. We're making alcohol here. Nobody is ever sad to see us.

Making a toast

I'm always impressed by people who can. Kyle Cherek gives a great toast. I've seen him do it a few times. I'm not too big with words, and the whole concept of giving a toast intimidates me. I'm better at the drinking of the toast.

Fork. Spoon. Life. explores the everyday relationship that local notables (within the food community and without) have with food. To suggest future personalities to profile, email nstohs@journalsentinel.com.
Beer ferments in brandy and oak barrels at Central Waters Brewing Co. in Amherst. Credit: Chelsey Lewis

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Central Waters Brewing Co. doesn't look like much from the outside. Tucked into an industrial park off Highway 10 in rural central Wisconsin, the Amherst brewery could easily pass for a feed shop or storage barn.

But looks can be deceiving, and the small brewery was recognized recently as one of the eight best breweries and brewpubs in the Midwest by U.S. News & World Report. The article notes the brewery "continues to be regaled by top outlets as one of the top 10 brewpubs in the country." That's thanks to multiple award-winning beers, including their top-notch barrel-aging program.

The secret is pretty much out on Central Waters: Tickets for the brewery's annual anniversary party  scheduled for Jan. 30 and featuring the release of 18, a special anniversary barrel-aged beer  sold out in less than an hour.

 More of a spirits kind of person? Head to Death's Door Spirits in Middleton, named one of America's best craft distilleries by Thrillist.

The distillery's name comes from the dangerous passage between Door County and Washington Island where many a ship has met its watery grave. Death's Door gets many of the ingredients for its vodka, whiskey and gin from Washington Island, including wheat and juniper berries.

 Order up some of those spirits or a Central Waters brew at This Is It, Wisconsin's most popular bar, according to Foursquare. The city guide app based the rankings on ratings from users and the number of visits to each bar.

The bar, at 418 E. Wells St., has a rating of 8.4 (out of 10) on the app, with users offering up these comments: "Inexpensive drinks, friendly people and the best jukebox in town"and "Hands down, one of the best gay bars in Milwaukee."

ABOUT THIS FEATURE

How do we rate? There is no shortage of lists, rankings and charts to tell us. Adding Us Up is a recurring look at where Milwaukee and Wisconsin rank on the latest lists, from the semi-serious to the silly. If you spot a ranking that rates, share it with us at greensheet@jrn.com.
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A man suspected of trafficking stolen goods who also is the brother of a terrorism suspect appeared Friday in U.S. District Court in Milwaukee.

Samer Mohammed Al-Jayab, 19, is charged with his brother Younis Mohammed Al-Jayab and cousin Ahmed Waleed Mahmood with conspiracy, interstate transportation of stolen goods and other counts. The others appeared earlier in Milwaukee. All three are scheduled to appear again next Friday.

Samer Mohammed Al-Jayab was arrested in Sacramento, Calif., and voluntarily returned to Milwaukee. Also arrested in Sacramento was his brother, Aws Mohammed Younis Al-Jayab, a 23-year-old Iraqi refugee who is charged with lying as part of a terrorism investigation. He traveled to Syria to fight alongside terrorist groups, a trip he planned while living in the Milwaukee area in 2013, court documents say. He was indicted earlier this month.

Court documents do not indicate any connections between the terrorism counts and the stolen goods case. Samer Mohammed Al-Jayab's attorney, Adam Essling, said Friday he does not know of any connection. He declined to comment further.

Samer Mohammed Al-Jayab, who lives with his older brother in Cudahy, traveled back to Milwaukee from Sacramento on his own after he was released from custody there.

U.S. Magistrate David Jones said that was to Al-Jayab's credit and allowed him to remain out on bail but with electronic monitoring to ensure he doesn't leave the area. Jones noted Al-Jayab has relatives outside the country. Through an Arabic interpreter, Al-Jayab said he did not hold citizenship in another country and does not have any passports. He said he works at a grocery store.

The stolen goods investigation started in May 2014 when an informant told the FBI that Younis Mohammed Al-Jayab was buying stolen merchandise and selling it overseas. At the time, Younis Mohammed Al-Jayab was working at the 27th St. Tobacco store, which more recently has been the target of a nuisance action by the City of Milwaukee, according to the complaint.

Over roughly six months, undercover FBI agents sold Younis Mohammed Al-Jayab, Samer Mohammed Al-Jayab and Mahmood 32 new Apple iPhones, a laptop and a television, together valued at $21,500, the complaint says. Some of the items were shipped overseas, to Romania and Cyprus, it says.
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Milwaukee police arrested 14 people  including 10 juveniles  in four carjacking cases in an 18-hour span, department officials said in a social media post Friday.

The flurry of arrests comes as Milwaukee police and suburban agencies continue to focus on carjackings in a specialized task force. The task force has arrested about 115 people since its creation last month.

Mayor Tom Barrett praised the quick response of Milwaukee police and said his office will closely monitor how the cases progress through the court system.

"I want the message to get out that the games are over," Barrett said Friday.

Milwaukee police reported the following carjacking arrests:

Two men, ages 18 and 20, and a 16-year-old boy were arrested after a 55-year-old woman was robbed of her car at gunpoint about 7:20 p.m. Thursday in the 1300 block of N. 57th St.

The three were arrested later Thursday in the 3400 block of N. Holton St.

Five teens, ranging in age from 12 to 16, were arrested after an SUV was taken in an armed robbery about 6 p.m. Wednesday in the 2200 block of S. 36th St.

The stolen SUV was seen by officers about 12:30 p.m. Thursday. The 12-year-old driver led police on a chase that ended when the vehicle crashed near 19th and Locust streets. Police arrested the driver and four other teens who ran from the car.

Two men, ages 22 and 24, and two 15-year-old boys were arrested after an armed robbery in the 2400 block of S. 9th Place.

The robbery occurred about 6:50 p.m. Thursday and police saw the stolen car soon after and chased it. The pursuit ended near 35th St. and W. Capitol Drive about 7:55 p.m. and the four people were arrested. Police are still searching for a fifth person who ran from the vehicle.

Two teens were arrested after a man's vehicle was taken in an armed robbery just before 11 a.m. Friday in the 1700 block of N. Hi-Mount Blvd.

Officers saw the stolen vehicle and chased it until 26th St. and Ruby Ave., where they arrested two boys, ages 14 and 16.

Earlier this week, the driver of a stolen SUV was killed in a crash while trying to speed around another vehicle. Two teen girls who were passengers suffered serious injures. No one was injured in the other vehicle.

The Honda CRV had been taken in an armed robbery Jan. 15 in the 2900 block of N. Farwell Ave.

Milwaukee police, suburban agencies and prosecutors launched a task force focused on carjackings on Dec. 1.

Some of those who have been arrested could eventually face federal charges and longer sentences.

At least one of those arrested, Richard Whittaker, 32, of Milwaukee, already was indicted in federal court.
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A pair of burglars who on Christmas Eve stole a safe from a home they were previously hired to clean disposed of contents of the safe they felt had no value  including the cremated remains of the son of a Muskego couple  police said Thursday.

Shawn M. Davis, 28, and Stephanie Lofy, 27, both from Milwaukee, were arrested, booked for burglary and released, according to the Muskego Police Department.

The case has been referred to the Waukesha County district attorney's office for possible charges, police said.

According to a news release from Muskego police, the burglary took place at the home of Edward and Carol Bomback and the remains in the safe were that of their son Chad, who died in April, 2015.

After the safe and other items were stolen the couple offered a reward for the arrest and conviction of the thieves and the return of their son's remains. No one came forward as a result of the reward offer, however a police investigation led to the arrests of Davis and Lofy.

Police recovered some of the stolen items but not the remains.

Davis and Lofy, who had previously been employed to clean the couple's home, told police they did not realize what they had stolen and that they disposed of anything they felt didn't have any value, according to the release.
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A 15-year-old Homestead High School student was arrested early Friday and is expected to be formally charged as a juvenile with making a threat against the school Thursday on a social media polling application.

The arrest was announced at a 10 a.m. news conference by Mequon Police Chief Steve Graff and Mequon-Thiensville School District Superintendent Demond Means, who had decided Thursday evening to cancel classes at the high school for Friday.

Graff said police got a report of the threat, in the form of a poll question with possible answers on the app Whatsgoodly. He said the app's California developer helped police identify who had posted the threat. Police then worked with the Ozaukee County district attorney to obtain a search warrant, served at the boy's Mequon home at 5:13 a.m. Friday.

Graff said the boy was acting alone and didn't plan any further action. There was no more concern for students or staff.

Graff offered this message to teens who think they can remain anonymous behind social media apps: "You can't."

Means said Friday evening activities at Homestead would go on as scheduled, though with increased security. He thanked police for the quick resolution and stressed that all such threats would be taken seriously and prosecuted fully.

He said it was the focused nature of the threat  a specific date and specific school  that led to his decision to cancel school.

Means said several students, and some parents, took screen grabs of the threat, which disappeared quickly, and forwarded them to school officials.

The boy is being charged under a statute titled bomb scares, but the language actually covers any threat to destroy any property by means of explosives. The charge is a felony punishable by up to 18 months in prison.

The post was in the form of a question, "All HHS students don't go to school tomorrow trust me?" with four choices a reader could select: Ok, No, You've been warned, and a button with three symbols: two explosions and a handgun.

The boy also will be charged with using a computer to make a threatening communication, a misdemeanor. Ozaukee County District Attorney Adam Gerol said the boy was expected to make a juvenile court appearance Friday afternoon.

Legislators are working on a bill to specifically make false threats of gun violence in schools a separate felony after some law enforcement officials complained that they could only charged with misdemeanors in those situations.

Whatsgoodly supposedly allows users, anonymous but for their gender, to ask questions of others signed into the same college campus or geographic area. Critics have said it enables cyberbullying.
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The site of the first community listening session hosted by the district charged with turning around some of Milwaukee's poorest performing schools has been moved after critics complained that it was to be held in a private-voucher school that competes with Milwaukee Public Schools for students.

Demond Means, commissioner of the Opportunity Schools and Partnership Program, announced Thursday that the meeting would move from Destiny High School on N. 76th St. to the Washington Park Senior Center, 4420 W. Vliet St.

Means acknowledged "some blowback" about the location, but said he hadn't intended to promote a voucher school at the expense of MPS.

"I had originally reached out to Christian Faith Fellowship Church, and they sent me to Destiny," he said. "My interest was in finding a location that was convenient for the community."

Means, superintendent of the Mequon-Thiensville School District, was named by Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele in November to lead the turnaround district, which has been characterized by traditional public school advocates as a takeover of Milwaukee Public Schools.

Means and Abele insist they have no intention of taking over any city schools and instead would work with MPS to improve schools from within.
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Flights scheduled to depart Mitchell International Airport to Charlotte, N.C., Washington, D.C., and other East Coast cities expected to be hit with a massive blizzard have been canceled, according to the airport's website.

All American Airlines flights out of Mitchell to Charlotte were canceled as well as an American departure to Philadelphia at 11:40 a.m.

Southwest Airlines flights to Washington, New York and Baltimore are canceled along with a Delta Airlines flight to Atlanta.

In Milwaukee, occasional snow showers are likely through Friday night, though accumulations are expected to be less than half an inch, according to the National Weather Service in Sullivan.
Gov. Scott Walker delivers his state of the state address at the Capitol in Madison on Tuesday. Credit: Associated Press

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Just because there's a real problem doesn't mean every solution offered to address it is the right one. Subtleties like that, sadly, are too often lost in the melee of political debate.

Such is the case with Wisconsin's civil service and the bill Gov. Scott Walker is about to sign that will effect a major overhaul of that system. The new law will do away with the civil service entrance exams that have been used for about a century as an initial screening method for job applicants. In their place, hiring would be based on an applicant's resume. It also would eliminate seniority protections, centralize hiring within the Department of Administration, and make it easier to fire employees.

I've talked with several friends who have or are now working for the state and the majority of them agree that the hiring process does need to change. The testing system is long, drawn out and often confusing. Qualified applicants, they say, are dropping out of the running for other opportunities before grading or placement can even happen, simply because the process often takes months. Plus, it can be difficult to locate all of the information needed to successfully complete the tests in the first place.

On the other hand, the testing system is a mostly anonymous way to vet potential employees, making it more difficult for someone to be ruled out based on that person's race, sexual orientation or past political leanings.

It's not a perfect system by any means, and quite probably overdue for an overhaul. But the new bill about to become law exploits that vulnerability for partisan gain. The DOA under Walker has become one of the most politicized agencies in state government, which makes handing over the reins of all hiring to the agency extremely suspect. Adding to that, it would be the governor's political appointee judging the incoming applications. And even if you slide past those checkpoints, the probationary period for new hires is to be extended, during which one can be fired for any or no reason at all. How's that for fair?

Instead of seeking constructive ways to streamline and upgrade the hiring process while maintaining as much impartiality and fairness as possible, we've got a new law that seems designed to push Wisconsin more toward being an "at-will" state, where workers enjoy little to no protections from possibly discriminatory or retaliatory termination.

It's a nice little bait-and-switch, too. Back in 2011 Walker used the civil service laws as a reason why we shouldn't worry about losing collective bargaining rights. In his February fireside chat that year, Walker assured us that, "It's important to remember that many of the rights we're talking about don't come directly from collective bargaining. They come from the civil service system here in Wisconsin. That law was passed in 1905, long before collective bargaining, and it will continue long after our plan is approved."

Not so much, apparently. This is what happens when you have people who believe government is the enemy running the government.

Government, like the people who make it up, is never perfect. It has to evolve. We should be constantly striving to update and improve our systems and processes so as to adapt to our ever-changing world. There are ways to do this that don't involve taking away worker rights and closing doors of opportunity to people who don't look like or believe the exact same things as the folks in power.

Sadly, the folks in charge at the moment can't see those nuances  or if they do see them, they choose not to care.This isn't the most glamorous topic, especially given how many other pressing issues exist. But many of those issues are dependent on having competent, dedicated people working on them from the state level. You've only to look at the current public health tragedy in Flint, Mich., for an example of what can happen when partisan political appointees are given too much power over our cities and resources.

Government should be a place where the best and brightest go to serve the greater good and be compensated appropriately for it, with fair hiring practices that ensure that a wide variety of perspectives are at the table. All of that is probably anathema to those who care only about personal gain and political brinkmanship, which is all the more reason we the people should be fighting like hell to make it so.

Emily Mills is a freelance writer who lives in Madison. Twitter: @millbot; Email: emily.mills@outlook.com
Columnist Christian Schneider argues that Wisconsin should lift its ban on the sale of home-baked cookies, cakes and other goods. Credit: Michael Sears

"C" is for "Crony Capitalism." And that's evidently good enough for Wisconsin.

These are the words that would be sung by noted songsmith Cookie Monster if he were told of the war on baked goods currently being waged in Wisconsin. According to current state law, it is illegal to sell home-baked cookies, cakes and other goods  a law that could turn any unsuspecting grandmother into a hardened criminal. (See Netflix's upcoming documentary, "Making a Muffin.")

Of course, the ban is supported by professional grocers, bakers and restaurants who don't want home bakers to take a big, chewy bite out of their market share. By supporting the law, they are engaging in boilerplate "regulatory capture," a process by which an industry uses state laws and regulation to hamstring competitors.

Naturally, these industries couch their concern in the language of "safety," arguing that if grandmothers were allowed to emerge from the cookie black market, ginger snap enthusiasts would start dropping dead in the streets. "Wisconsin has a strong food safety history," wrote the Wisconsin Restaurant Association in opposition to lifting the ban on selling home-baked goods. "There are unequivocal, science-based reasons why food prepared in private homes should not be sold to the public," the group added.

But all of Wisconsin's neighboring states allow for the selling of nonhazardous baked goods, and the grim reaper has yet to begin roaming the land, handing out cupcakes. Illinois bakers are allowed to sell up to $25,000 of their goods to consumers at farmers markets; Minnesota allows $18,000 in annual sales, Michigan allows $20,000 per year, and Iowa has no limit on direct-to-consumer baked goods.

Wisconsin's limit simply makes it more difficult for aspiring bakers to start businesses in their own homes. Late last year, aspiring Outagamie County baker Stacy Beduhn told a state Senate committee that alterations needed to her home kitchen to bring her nascent cake baking business up to code would cost around $25,000. Stay-at-home mom Billie Kotecki of Green Bay told the committee she wants to supplement her income baking goods from her home, while still being able to raise her kids. For women like these, the barriers of entry to the baking business are currently too high.

This year, legislation is working its way through the Legislature that would allow in-person sales of up to $7,500 per year of nonhazardous home-baked goods. Sales wouldn't be entirely unregulated; the home baker would still need to adhere to signage and labeling requirements, and the operator would be subject to food safety training. The baker also would register with the state and document food sales. (Full disclosure: the bill's Senate author, Sen. Sheila Harsdorf, is my former boss.)

This session's "Cookie Bill" resembles the "Pickle Bill" of 2010, which allowed home canning and pickling enthusiasts to make and sell certain canned goods without utilizing expensive industrial kitchens. Family farmer Erin Schneider of LaValle (no relation) has credited the new law with allowing her to boost her small operation's sales by about $2,000 per year.

Ultimately, the choice of whether a home-bakery business should be trusted rests with the consumer. Under the bill, sales must be face-to-face (although not door-to-door), so the purchaser can gauge the seller. Plus, there's no doubt many popular national brands we love today originated in someone's home kitchen, yet somehow failed to leave a trail of illness in their wake. (I presume the Keebler Elves got a free pass because they don't make handcuffs that tiny.)

As long as baking cookies is outlawed, only outlaws will bake cookies. State law shouldn't exist to protect entrenched interests from competition  it should encourage entrepreneurship and allow home-based businesses to flourish.

In the nomenclature of today, let's end this protectionist racket and Make Wisconsin Delicious Again.

Christian Schneider is a Journal Sentinel columnist and blogger. Email cschneider@jrn.com. Twitter: @Schneider_CM
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Saddened by settlement

I am saddened to see another large settlement agreement reached between a community and victims of illegal acts at the hands of public employees ("Milwaukee aldermen OK $5 million settlement of strip search lawsuits," Jan. 20).

I am empathetic to the victims who had their civil rights violated and will never again have faith in the system. They benefit some from this settlement, but in reality their lives will never be the same, and their image of the police is forever tarnished.

I feel for the large contingent of dedicated public service employees whose credibility has been compromised by the despicable acts of a few rogue employees. They are the ones who face the backlash of community mistrust.

And last of all I feel most for the Milwaukee community as a whole, which will again lose the most. Valuable resources much better spent on training, hiring additional officers, investing in new technologies and improving an aging infrastructure will instead go towards a settlement. I echo Ald. Mark A. Borkowski's sentiment that the only true winner in this is the attorneys.

Dan Conrad

Menomonee Falls



Warming shelters needed

It was wonderful to hear about the work of Angels Among Us in our community in opening a warming shelter during our bitter cold spell. Thanks also go out to First Spiritualist Church for the use of the building.

I can't think of a better use for a church than to warm the souls of those in need, can you? My wish is that we could build on this by having more churches open their doors to help those in need. If Milwaukee could have four churches in the city be designated warming areas that are open when needed, what a difference it would make in so many lives.

I call on all religious organizations to make sure that doors are open. We have a need and we have buildings. Let's work to make sure our fellow man is warm and safe.

Kathy Behling

West Allis



Lazich's proposal is dangerous

I am not sure where state Sen. Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin) is heading with a proposal to permit the carrying of weapons on school grounds. Who is speaking with her on this matter? Who is going to protect who? Where is she getting her facts from?

This is a very dangerous situation that she is bringing to the foreground. Look at all the students that could be at risk. Look at all the teachers and staff that could be at risk. Not to even mention the parents dropping off the students at the school yard. Are her intentions to place a law enforcement officer at each school yard to protect our students so we need a law to have armed security on all of our playgrounds? Is this the plan?

Have we not learned from the past attacks on school grounds?

Robert Werner

Milwaukee



Natural next step?

Too many Wisconsin children are unreasonably denied the opportunity to hunt with firearms.

Much like deciding when the time is right for little Jack or Jill to move up to a two-wheeler, parents should be able to make choices for their kids about guns. It could be just like mentoring other activities key to development: eat that spinach, turn off the TV and do your homework, reload your weapon.

A natural next step would be to eliminate arbitrary age minimums in general. For instance, with a parent-approved supervisor as passenger and drinking buddy, kids could drive to T-ball, then stop for a beer. And should the mentee be caught having had one too many from the sippy-cup, the penalty for first offense would likely be not much more than a slap on the wrist  or maybe the bottom.

C. Hansen

Shorewood

Please email your letters to jsedit@jrn.com, or mail them to Letters to the editor, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, P.O. Box 371, Milwaukee, Wis. 53201-0371. Letters are generally limited to 200 words and are subject to editing.
Birth control medication is bagged at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Milwaukee in 2014. Credit: Journal Sentinel files

Republicans in the state Legislature continued their hatchet job on Planned Parenthood this week, chopping millions in support and reimbursement payments to the agency and leaving in doubt the ability of too many women  especially the poor and uninsured  to access appropriate health care.

This week, the Journal Sentinel reported, state senators voted 18-14 along party lines for a bill that would restrict how much Planned Parenthood could be reimbursed for prescription drugs, stripping it of perhaps $4 million a year, according to a rough estimate by Planned Parenthood. A second measure the Senate approved would cut another $3.5 million in government payments to Planned Parenthood.

The Senate also voted 19-14 to pass a bill that would prevent the state from passing on federal money it receives through the Title X grant program to any group that provides abortions or has an affiliate that provides abortions. Title X money goes toward family planning and health screening for the poor and uninsured and is not allowed to be used for abortions.

Four years ago, Republicans made other funding cuts to Planned Parenthood, which the group says led to the closure of five rural clinics that provided birth control and health screenings but not abortions.

That left too many women with too few reproductive health care options close to home. These cuts will only further damage Planned Parenthood's ability to provide care for women, especially for women who cannot afford to get that care on their own. And the kicker is that none of these cuts will affect abortion services.

One piece of good news was that Republicans have not been able to muster enough support yet for a measure that would bar research on tissue from fetuses that were aborted after Jan. 1, 2015. Bill supporters say it's necessary to protect against profiteering from the remains of fetuses, but the fact is that there already are safeguards in place to prevent and the bill could end up putting important scientific research in Wisconsin at risk.

Just as with the cuts to Planned Parenthood funding, Republicans are again trying to fix a problem that exists only in their minds or at the very least could be dealt with using less draconian measures. Gov. Scott Walker and other Republicans should think about that before these measures become law.

Civil service reform: Another measure approved by the Senate and headed to Walker's desk offers reason for concern, but I'm not convinced that it will have the dire consequences that many of its opponents predict. The bill is designed to streamline the state's 100-year-old hiring and firing practices.

Opponents such as state Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Middleton) said the bill would allow supervisors to play favorites and return to a system of political patronage.

I understand Erpenbach's concerns, but I'm not so sure. The Journal Sentinel reported that the bill would eliminate the state's civil service exams; stop allowing longtime employees to avoid termination by "bumping" other workers with less seniority out of their jobs; and shorten by more than half the process for employees to appeal their dismissal or discipline.

Speeding up the process does not necessarily mean the elimination of civil service protections for state employees, although it should be noted that Walker touted those protections when he acted to gut public employee unions with Act 10. Legislators should closely monitor the effects if this legislation and make adjustments if necessary to ensure those protections aren't affected.

But I've talked to both state managers and applicants for state jobs and the sense I have is that the system is too cumbersome and doesn't always come up with the best candidates. And the state faces a formidable challenge in the need to fill thousands of jobs open because of retiring baby boomers. This is a change that could help state agencies and workers  but it will be important to stay on guard against possible abuses.

Ernst-Ulrich Franzen is the Journal Sentinel's associate editorial page editor. Email: efranzen@jrn.com; Twitter: @efranzen1
Brooks says judge can't 'tell him what to do' on Day 13 of Christmas Parade trial
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A 31-year-old Necedah man will not face homicide charges in a suspected drunken drive crash into an Amish wagon that killed a father and son, according to the Wausau Daily Herald.

District Attorney Craig Lambert said that Seth M. Nelson will receive a citation for drunken driving and driving with a prohibitive blood-alcohol concentration.

"The accident reconstruction analysis conducted by the Wisconsin State Patrol concluded that the tragic accident occurred due to the limited visibility of the wagon and would have occurred regardless of Mr. Nelson's impairment," Lambert said.
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Global Voices Advocacys Netizen Report | (Globalvoices.org) |  

Activists online and on the ground in Egypt have faced heightened scrutiny and legal threats from government authorities since early January, as the country approaches the fifth anniversary of the mass protest movement that toppled former President Hosni Mubarak.

In addition to multiple arrests of activists and artists who have expressed criticism of the current regime, at least five people have been arrested due to their activities as administrators of Facebook pages. Three among them were arrested at the start of January and accused of belonging to the Muslim Brotherhood, the prominent political party outlawed by military leaders in 2013. All were accused of inciting violence against state institutions and calling for protests to be held on January 25.

On January 14, Ahmed Abdel Gawad, managing editor of the privately owned news site Masr al-Arabia, was detained briefly and then released after the sites offices were raided. According to independent news site and Global Voices partner Mada Masr, security forces seized eight computers in the raid and unpublished several of the websites top news stories, saying the articles threatened national security.

Various activists promoting protests have also bumped up against Egypts so-called anti-protest law, which requires citizens to obtain a state permit before holding a public gathering of 10 or more people.

As online conversations and coordination of demonstrations increases, technology platforms are bracing for challenges as well. Netizens across the country have reported challenges using platforms such as Skype, Facebook, Viber and WhatsApp.

Based on following the situation the reason behind shutting down #Facebook Free Basics in #Egypt, is probably requests to access users data.  Ramy Raoof (@RamyRaoof) December 30, 2015

And after Facebooks Free Basics app was mysteriously discontinued by Egyptian ISP Etisalat, Facebook appears to be stepping up its game in order to better serve Egyptian users facing censorship and surveillance constraints. As of January 19, Egyptian Android users can now access Facebooks mobile site using the privacy-protective Tor browser, thanks in large part to Orbot, a proxy tool created by non-profit tech tool developer The Guardian Project. Learn how to download and use the tools here.

Advocates on trial in Ethiopia, Morocco

January 27 will mark a major court date for several free expression advocates facing trial in North Africa. In Morocco, seven advocates including Global Voices author Hisham Almiraat will begin trial, with five facing charges of threatening the internal security of the State and two of receiving foreign funding without notifying the General Secretariat of the government. In Ethiopia, blogger Zelalem Workagegenhu and two of his friends will return to court on charges of co-facilitating an online social media training (which never took place) and recruiting members for a diaspora organization. Acclaimed journalist and blogger Eskinder Nega, who is currently serving an 18-year prison sentence on terrorism charges, is slated to testify in their defense.

Like Egypt, Morocco is blocking VoIP services

Access to VoIP services Whatsapp, Viber, Facebook and Skype was blocked by Moroccos telecom providers, who claim the services breached their regulations. In response Moroccans announced plans to boycott the companies. They say theyll escalate if the block does not end.

Could Peruvian social media users face prosecution for criticizing political candidates?

Perus National Board of Elections vowed to prosecute anyone who criticizes or humiliates political candidates on social media, under the countrys Organic Elections Law. Elections officials made it clear that the policy would apply to anyone  including competing political candidates. The motion has since been revoked.

Chinas new assault on circumvention tools

Chinese regulators are working to ensure that local content delivery networks  third-party servers that deliver content to end-users with a certain guarantee of high availability and high performance  remove circumvention tools from their networks. Although the move carries some political significance, experts note that most of these circumvention services are not politically motivated but rather geared towards expediting the streaming of foreign online games and television network programs. The change in tactic may be linked to amendments to Chinas penal code made in November 2015 that addressed Internet-related crime, among other thing.

Pro-Russian separatists block independent news sites in Eastern Ukraine

Access more than 100 Ukrainian news websites was blocked in the self-proclaimed Lugansk Peoples Republic, an area of eastern Ukraine occupied by pro-Russian militia. The militia leaders claim the block, which was ordered by decree from the militias Ministry of Information, was instituted to protect citizens from the destabilizing influence of Ukrainian media. Among the sites blocked are several news services including BBC Ukrainian, Ukrainska Pravda, Obozrevatel, TSN, and 24 TV.

Ellery Roberts Biddle, Marianne Diaz, Oiwan Lam and Sarah Myers West contributed to this report.

Global Voices Advocacy's Netizen Report offers an international snapshot of challenges, victories, and emerging trends in Internet rights around the world.

Via Globalvoices.org

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Related video added by Juan Cole:

ARD Stanford: The Containment of Politics in Egypt: A Panel Discussion, January 11, 2016
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By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) |  

At the Davos World Economic Forum, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu insisted that the deal between the UN Security Council and Iran limiting its enrichment program to purely civilian uses had made Israel less secure, and that it must therefore be granted tens of billions of extra military aid from the United States.

Netanyahu made the claim on the US taxpayer in the wake of his harsh words for the US ambassador to Israel, Daniel Shapiro.

Shapiro had addressed a conference earlier this week in which he said that the Obama administration now questions the commitment of Netanyahus government to peace with the Palestinians. Shapiro said that Israel wasnt acting credibly to curb the violence of Israeli squatters on the Palestinian West Bank against Palestinians, and that it should open more land to the Palestinians: Too much vigilantism goes unchecked, and at times there seems to be two standards of adherence to the rule of law, one for Israelis, and another for Palestinians. . . Hovering over all these questions is the larger one about Israels political strategy vis-a-vis its conflict with the Palestinians. He also criticized Palestinian violence.

Netanyahu slapped down Shapiro, calling his observations unacceptable and incorrect, he added, Israel enforces the law for Israelis and Palestinians.

Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked demanded that Shapiro take back his words.

A former aid to Netanyahu went on Israeli television on Tuesday and put Shapiro down as a yahudon or little Jew boy, a deeply offensive epithet used by some far rightwing Israelis to characterize diaspora Jews they view as insufficiently Jewish or insufficiently supportive of Israel.

Then yesterday the Netanyahu government made Shapiros point for him by announcing that it will steal 350 acres of Palestinian land near Jericho in the Jordan Valley.

So, to summarize: Netanyahu tried to humiliate the president of the United States by addressing Congress and urging it to overturn Obamas Iran negotiations. Then when he was defeated he turned around and demanded extra billions in military aid. He and his friends insulted Ambassador Shapiro for daring criticize their vast land thefts and Jewish-only colonial policies in Palestinian territory. Then they barefacedly announced that they are in fact going to steal another 350 acres from Palestinian owners.

Not sure if their shoplifting that land requires that we give them yet more billions.

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Related video:

CCTV:  Israel confirms it plans to seize West Bank land
Just two days after a poll showed Bernie Sanders trouncing the national frontrunner Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire, a new survey of Iowa voters released late Thursday afternoon shows Sanders with a solid 8-point lead over his rival in the early caucus state.

According to the new CNN/ORC poll, Sanders is leading Clinton in Iowa 51% to 43% among likely Democratic presidential caucus-goers. The poll noted its margin of error at +/- 6.1 percent.

Conducted from Jan. 15 to Jan. 20, the poll is most significant for showing the dramatic swing which has occurred since the same survey was conducted at the beginning of December. At that time, Clinton was ahead by more than 20 points (54% to 36%).

There was also a big swing regarding who voters trusted most on specific issues. With a prominent disagreement over the need for healthcare reform surfacing this week in which Sanders defended his proposal to create a Medicare for All program from attacks by the Clinton campaign, one twitter user pointed out how Iowa voters now trust Sanders much more on dealing with the nations healthcare challenges:

A big change in CNNs Iowa polls: Clinton was judged to be best on health care 63-31, now its Sanders 51-45. pic.twitter.com/im9wwTSzNX  Taniel (@Taniel) January 21, 2016

Additionally, the poll found that Iowans now trust Sanders over Clinton on the economy by 22 points (58% to 36%). Meanwhile, 67 percent of those surveyed said they thought Sanders policies would help the middle class, while only 30 perecent felt the same about Clinton.

The other key metric which showed a dramatic reversal was the way in which individuals think Sanders does a better job of representing their own personal values as Democrats. Though Clinton held a 46% to 44% lead in that category in December, Sanders has now blown past her  with 57 percent surveyed saying he more closely represents their views, compared to just 38 percent for Clinton.

As progressive advocate Jim Hightower observed in his column on Thursday, something is happening in the country when it comes to the Sanders presidential run. Hightower describes the campaign as a spontaneous, unusually vibrant grassroots uprising that has already shattered the Democratic Establishments holy myth that corporate centrism and super PAC money are the only means to victory.

That said, and even as her lead slips in state after state and across the country, Clinton remains the national frontrunner. Even among those Iowa voters in Thursdays CNN/ORC poll, Clinton was still seen as the Democratic candidate most likely to win the general election in November.

So can Sanders actually win? That remains the outstanding question, but is one that more and more people are asking with increasingly serious faces.

As Bob Burnett said in his Common Dreams op-ed on the subject today, Im beginning to believe.
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By Nick Turse | ( Tomdispatch.com) |  

Theres good news coming out of Iraq again. The efforts of a 65-nation coalition and punishing U.S. airstrikes have helped local ground forces roll back gains by the [so-called] Islamic State [group] (IS).

Government forces and Shiite militias, for example, recaptured the city of Tikrit, while Kurdish troops ousted IS fighters from the town of Sinjar and other parts of northern Iraq. Last month, Iraqi troops finally pushed Islamic State militants out of most of the city of Ramadi, which the group had held since routing Iraqi forces there last spring.

In the wake of all this, Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter touted the kind of progress that the Iraqi forces are exhibiting in Ramadi, building on that success to continue the campaign with the important goal of retaking Mosul as soon as possible. Even more recently, he said those forces were proving themselves not only motivated but capable. I encountered the same upbeat tone when I asked Colonel Steve Warren, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad, about the Iraqi security forces. The last year has been a process of constructing, rebuilding, and refitting the Iraqi army, he explained. While it takes time for training and equipping efforts to take effect, the increasing tactical confidence and competence of the ISF [Iraqi security forces] and their recent battlefield successes indicate that we are on track.

Progress. Successes. On track. Increasing tactical confidence and competence. It all sounded very familiar to me.

By September 2012, after almost a decade at the task, the U.S. had allocated and spent nearly $25 billion on training, equipping, and sustaining the Iraqi security forces, according to a report by the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction. Along the way, a parade of generals, government officials, and Pentagon spokesmen had offered up an almost unending stream of good news about the new Iraqi Army. Near constant reports came in of remarkable, big, even enormous progress for a force that was said to be exuding increasing confidence, and whose performance was always improving. In the end, the U.S. claimed to have trained roughly 950,000 members of the steady, solid, Iraqi security forces.

And yet just two and a half years after the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq, that same force collapsed in spectacular fashion in the face of assaults by Islamic State militants who, by CIA estimates, numbered no more than 31,000 in all. In June 2014, for example, 30,000 U.S.-trained Iraqi troops abandoned their equipment and in some cases even their uniforms, fleeing as few as 800 Islamic State fighters, allowing IS to capture Mosul, the second largest city in the country.

Blaming the Victim

When U.S. forces departed Iraq in 2011, it was after helping the Iraqi government create an entirely new Iraqi Security Force following the fall of Saddam Husseins regime, Major Curtis Kellogg, a spokesman with U.S. Central Command, explained to me last year. It almost sounded as if the old regime had toppled of its own accord, a new government had arisen, and the U.S. had generously helped build a military for it. In reality, of course, a war of choice  based on trumped up claims of nonexistent weapons of mass destruction  led to a U.S. occupation and the conscious decision to dissolve Iraqi autocrat Saddam Husseins military and create a new army in the American mold. [T]he Iraqi security forces were a fully functioning element of the Iraq Government, Kellogg continued, explaining how such an Iraqi military collapse could occur in 2014. However, the military standards established and left in place were allowed to atrophy following the departure of U.S. troops.

More recently, Colonel Steve Warren brought up another problem with Iraqs forces in an email to me. The Iraqi army that we left in 2011 was an army that had been trained for counterinsurgency. That means route clearance, checkpoint operations, and IED [improvised explosive device] reduction, for example. The Iraqi army that collapsed in 2014 was not trained and not ready for a conventional fight  the conventional assault that ISIL brought to Mosul and beyond.

Both Kellogg and Warren stopped short of saying what seems obvious to many. Kalev Sepp, the adviser to two top American generals in Iraq and a former deputy assistant secretary of defense for special operations and counterterrorism, shows no such hesitation. We had 12 years to train the Iraqi Army We failed. Its obvious. So when this lightly-armed insurgent group, the so-called Islamic State, invaded the country, the Iraqi army collapsed in front of it.

Its taken billions of dollars and a year and a half of air strikes, commando raids, advice, and training to begin to reverse the Islamic States gains. According to Warren, the U.S. and its partners have once again trained more than 17,500 ISF troops, with another 2,900 currently in the pipeline. And once again were hearing about their successes. Secretary of Defense Carter, for example, called the fight for Ramadi a significant step forward in the campaign to defeat this barbaric group, while Secretary of State John Kerry claimed the Islamic State had suffered a major defeat there.

Still, the tiny terror group seems to have no difficulty recruiting new troops, is ramping up attacks in the district of Haditha, carrying out complex attacks in Baghdad and the town of Muqdadiya, and continues to hold about 57,000 square miles of Syrian and Iraqi territory, including Mosul. With questions already being raised by Pentagon insiders about just how integral the Iraqi security forces were to the retaking of Ramadi and doubts about their ability to clear cities like Mosul, its worth taking a look back at all those upbeat reports of progress during the previous U.S. effort to build an Iraqi Army from scratch.

Nothing Succeeds Like Success

After the U.S. toppled Saddam Husseins government in April 2003 as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, the Bush administration began remaking the battered nation from the ground up. One of the first acts of L. Paul Bremer III, the top American civilian official in the occupied country, was to dissolve Iraqs military. His plan: to replace Saddam Husseins 350,000-man army with a lightly armed border protection force that would peak at around 40,000 soldiers, supplemented by police and civil defense forces. In an instant, hundreds of thousands of well-trained soldiers were unemployed, providing a ready source of fighters for a future insurgency.

In less than six months we have gone from zero Iraqis providing security to their country to close to a hundred thousand Iraqis Indeed, the progress has been so swift that it will not be long before [the Iraqi security forces] will outnumber the U.S. forces, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld suggested in a cheery assessment in October 2003.

Major General Paul Eaton, tasked with rebuilding the Iraqi Army, similarly articulated his upbeat vision for the force. Schooled by Americans in fundamental soldier and leadership skills and outfitted with all the accoutrements of modern Western troops, including body armor and night-vision equipment, the new military would be committed to defend[ing] Iraq and its new-found freedom, he announced at a Baghdad briefing in January 2004. Soon, Iraqis would even take over the task of instruction. I would like to emphasize that this will be an Iraqi Army, trained by Iraqis, he said. As Iraq is reborn, he added, we believe that her armed forces can lead the way in unifying the country.

Paul Eaton and his team did an extraordinary amount for the Iraqi Security Force mission, his successor Lieutenant General David Petraeus would say a couple of years later. They established a solid foundation on which we were able to build as the effort was expanded very substantially and resourced at a much higher level.

Retired Special Forces officer Kalev Sepp, who traveled to Iraq as an adviser five times, had a different assessment. General Eaton was direct in letting me know that he wanted to be remembered as the father of the new Iraqi Army, he told me. I thought his approach was conceptually wrong, Sepp recalled, noting that Eaton understood his mission was to create an army to defend Iraq from foreign invasion, but he completely overlooked the internal insurgency. (A request to interview Eaton, sent to the American Security Project, a Washington D.C.-based think tank with which the retired general is affiliated, went unanswered.)

General Eaton would later blame the Bush administration for initial setbacks in the performance of the Iraqi Army, thanks to poor prewar planning and insufficient resources for the job. We set out to man, train, and equip an army for a country of 25 million  with six men, General Eaton told the New York Times in 2006. He did, however, accept personal responsibility for the most visible of its early failures, the mutiny of a freshly minted Iraqi battalion en route to its first battle in April 2004.

In the years that followed, Americas Iraq exploded into violence as Sunni and Shiite militants battled each other, the U.S. occupiers, and the U.S.-backed Baghdad government. On the fly, U.S. officials came up with new plans to build a large, conventional, heavily armed force to secure Iraq in the face of sectarian strife, multiple raging insurgencies, and ultimately civil war. The Iraqi military and police forces expanded rapidly from 2004 to 2006, adapting to the counterinsurgency mission, according to a report by the U.S. Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction. As chaos spread and death tolls rose, estimates of the necessary numbers of Iraqi troops, proposals concerning the right types of weapons systems for them, and training stratagems for building the army were amended, adjusted, and revised, again and again. There was, however, one constant: praise.

In September 2005, as violence was surging and more than 1,400 civilians were being killed in attacks across the country, General George W. Casey Jr., commander of Multinational Force-Iraq, reported that the security forces were progressing and continuing to take a more prominent role in defending their country. He repeatedly emphasized that training efforts were on track  a sentiment seconded by Defense Secretary Rumsfeld. Every single day, the Iraqi security forces are getting bigger and better and better trained and better equipped and more experienced, he said.

I think we did a very effective job of training the Iraqi military recruits that were brought to us, Casey told me last year, reflecting on U.S. efforts during his two and a half years in command. The trouble, he said, was with the Iraqis. The political situation in Iraq through 2007 and even to this day is such that the leadership of the Iraqi government and the military never could instill the loyalty of the troops in the government.

At the time, however, American generals emphasized progress over problems. After Petraeus finished his own stint heading the training effort, he was effusive in his praise. The bottom line up front that Id like to leave with you today is that there has been enormous progress with the Iraqi security forces over the course of the past 16 months in the face of a brutal insurgency, he boasted in October 2005, adding that considerable work still lay ahead. Iraqi security force readiness has continued to grow with each passing week. You can take a percentage off every metric thats out there, whatever you want  training, equipping, infrastructure reconstruction, units in the fight, schools, academies reestablished  you name it  and what has been accomplished would still be remarkable. (Messages seeking an interview sent to Petraeus at Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co., the investment firm where he serves as chairman of the KKR Global Institute, were not answered.)

In November 2005, President Bush voiced the same sentiments. As the Iraqi security forces stand up, their confidence is growing, he told midshipmen at the Naval Academy. And theyre taking on tougher and more important missions on their own. By the following February, General Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was similarly lauding that military, claiming the progress that theyve made over this last year has been enormous.

The next month, Lieutenant General Martin Dempsey, who succeeded Petraeus as commander of the Multinational Security Transition Command-Iraq (MNSTC-I) and later served as chairman of the Joint Chiefs, chimed in with glowing praise: What were seeing now is progress on a three-year investment in Iraqs security forces. Its been a big investment, and its yielding big progress.

I asked retired Army Colonel Andrew Bacevich, a professor of history and international relations emeritus at Boston Universitys Pardee School of Global Studies, how so many American officials could have seen so much progress from a force that would later collapse so rapidly and spectacularly. I think theres a psychological need to see progress and, of course, its helpful to parrot the party line. I do think that, psychologically, you need to be able to persuade yourself that your hard-earned efforts  this time spent away from home in lousy conditions  actually produced something positive.

Kalev Sepp, who traveled all over Iraq talking to the commanders of more than 30 U.S. units while conducting a seminal counterinsurgency study known simply as the COIN Survey, told me that when he asked about the progress of the Iraqi units they were working with, U.S. officers invariably linked it to their own tour of duty. Almost every commander said exactly the same thing. If the commander had six months left in his tour, the Iraqis would be combat-capable in six months. If the commander had four months left, then the Iraqis would be ready in four months. Was a commander going to say I wont accomplish my mission. Im not going to be done on time? All the other units were saying their Iraqis were going to be fully trained. Who was going to be the one commander who said I dont think my Iraqi unit is really ready?

Official praise continued as insurgencies raged across the country and monthly civilian death tolls regularly exceeded 2,000, even topping 3,000 in 2006 and 2007. The Iraqi security force continues to develop and grow, assisted by embedded transition teams, Lieutenant General Ray Odierno, commander of the Multinational Corps-Iraq, announced to the press in May 2007. Yes, there are still problems within the Iraqi security forces  some sectarian, some manning, and some to do with equipping. But progress is being made, and its steady. A 2008 Pentagon review also indicated remarkable progress with 102 out of 169 Iraqi battalions being declared capable of planning, executing, and sustaining counterinsurgency operations with or without Iraqi or coalition support, up from just 24 battalions in 2005.

Years later, Odierno, still in charge of the command, then known as United States Forces-Iraq, continued to tout improvement. Clearly theres still some violence, and we still need to make more progress in Iraq, he told reporters in July 2010. But Iraqi security forces have taken responsibility for security throughout Iraq, and they continue to grow and improve every day.

The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, Stuart Bowen, was also upbeat, noting in 2010 that the $21.3 billion already spent to build up the then-660,000-man security force had begun to pay off significantly. Don Cooke, head of the State Departments Iraq assistance office, agreed. We have built an Iraqi security force which is capable of maintaining internal security in Iraq And four or five or six years ago, there were people who were saying it was going to take decades.

In October 2011, as U.S. forces were preparing to end eight years of occupation, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta offered up his own mission-accomplished assessment. You know, the one thing we have seen is that Iraq has developed a very good capability to be able to defend itself. Weve taken out now about a hundred thousand [U.S.] troops [from Iraq], and yet the level of violence has remained relatively low. And I think thats a reflection of the fact that the Iraqis have developed a very important capability here to be able to respond to security threats within their own country, he said of the by then 930,000-man security forces.

Winners and Losers

As the U.S. was training recruits at bases all over Iraq  including Camp Bucca, where Iraqi cadets attended a U.S.-run course for prison guards  another force was also taking shape. For years, U.S.-run prison camps were decried by many as little more than recruiting and training sites for would-be insurgents, with innocents  angered by arbitrary and harsh detentions  housed alongside hardcore militants. But Camp Bucca proved to be even more dangerous than that. It became the incubator not just for an insurgency, but for a proto-state, the would-be caliphate that now lords over significant portions of Iraq and neighboring Syria.

Nine top commanders of the Islamic State did prison time at Americas Camp Bucca, including Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the groups leader who spent nearly five years there. Before their detention, Mr. al-Baghdadi and others were violent radicals, intent on attacking America, Andrew Thompson, an Iraq War veteran, and academic Jeremi Suri wrote in a 2014 New York Times piece. Their time in prison deepened their extremism and gave them opportunities to broaden their following The prisons became virtual terrorist universities: The hardened radicals were the professors, the other detainees were the students, and the prison authorities played the role of absent custodian.

So how could U.S. officials have so successfully (if inadvertently) fostered the leadership of what would become a truly effective fighting force that would one day best the larger, far more intensively trained, better-armed military they had built to the tune of tens of billions of dollars? The people we imprisoned didnt leave with skills when they finally got out of prison, but they did leave with will, says Andrew Bacevich. What we were doing was breeding resentment, anger, determination, disgust, which provided the makings of an army that turns out to be more effective than the Iraqi Army.

General George Casey, who went on to serve as Army Chief of Staff before retiring in 2011, sees the failure of Iraqs Shiite government to reach out to minority Sunnis as the main driver of the collapse of significant portions of the countrys army in 2014. You hear all kinds of reasons why the Sunni forces [of the Iraqi military] ran out of Mosul, but it wasnt a surprise to any of us who had been over there. If your country doesnt support what youre doing, theres no reason to fight for them, Casey explained in a phone interview last year. People probably give short shrift to what we in the military call the will to fight. When it comes right down to it, thats what its all about. And we cant instill the will to fight in the heart of a soldier from another country. We just cant do it.

We can talk about how appalling Daesh is, adds Kalev Sepp, using the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State, but their fighters believe in what theyre doing and that adds a particular steel to ones backbone. Bacevich, who has recently finished writing a military history, Americas War for the Greater Middle East, echoed this sentiment, noting the stark difference between U.S.-trained Iraqi forces and their brutal opponents. Whatever else we may think of ISIS, their forces appear to be keen to fight and willing to die in order to promote their cause. The same cannot be said of the Iraqi Army.

And yet, in the wake of the implosion of Iraqs security forces, the United States  as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, its campaign against IS  began a new advisory and training effort to assist and re-rebuild Iraqs army. In June 2014, President Obama announced that up to 300 advisors would be sent to Iraq. The size of the U.S. presence has increased steadily ever since to roughly 3,500.

As per policy we do not disclose specific numbers of troops and their roles, Colonel Warren, the U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad, explained to me. He did, however, note that there are approximately 5,500 Coalition personnel from 17 partner nations including the United States conducting advise and assist missions and training at Building Partner Capacity sites.

Despite the poor results of the prior training effort, even some of its critics are hopeful that the current mission may succeed. American advisors could have a positive effect, Sepp, now a senior lecturer in defense analysis at the Naval Postgraduate School, told me. He explained that a pinpoint mission of training Iraqis to take back a particular city or defend a specific area stands a real chance of success. Casey, his former boss, agreed but insisted that such success would not come easily or quickly. This is going to take a long time. This is not a short-term thing. People want to see ISIS defeated  whatever that means  quickly. But its not going to be quickly because the problems are political more than military and thats going to take the Iraqis some time to come to grips with.

Doomed to Repeat It?

History suggests that time is no panacea when Washington attempts to prop up, advise, or build armies. In the early 1950s, the U.S. provided extensive support to the French military in Indochina  eventually footing nearly 80% of the cost of its war there  only to see that force defeated by a less advanced, less well-equipped Vietnamese army. Not long after, the U.S. began an expensive process that continued into the mid-1970s of building, advising, equipping, and bankrolling the South Vietnamese military. In those years, it ballooned into a million-man army, only to disintegrate two years after the U.S. ended its own long, unsuccessful combat effort in that country.

The assumption that we know how to create armies in other parts of the world is a pretty dubious proposition, Andrew Bacevich, a veteran of that war, told me. Yes, Vietnam was a vivid demonstration of a failed project to build an effective army, but you dont even have to cite Vietnam. Iraq obviously is another case. And more generally, the Pentagon exaggerates its ability to create effective fighting forces in parts of the developing world.

Indeed, recent U.S. training efforts around the globe have been marked by a string of scandals, setbacks, and failures. Last year, for example, the Obama administration scrapped a $500 million program to train anti-Islamic State Syrian rebels. It was supposed to yield 15,000 fighters over three years but instead produced only a few dozen. Then theres the 13-year, $65 billion effort in Afghanistan that has yielded a force whose rolls are filled with nonexistent ghost troops, wracked by desertions, and hobbled by increasing casualties. It has been unable to defeat a small, unpopular, Taliban insurgency now growing in strength and reach. The short-term loss by U.S.-backed Afghan forces of the city of Kunduz late last year and recent Taliban gains in Helmand province have cast a bright light on this slow-motion fiasco.

These efforts have hardly been anomalies. A U.S.-trained Congolese commando battalion was, for example, implicated by the United Nations in mass rapes and other atrocities. One effort to train Libyan militiamen ended up stillborn; another saw militants repeatedly raid a U.S. training camp and loot it of high-tech equipment, including hundreds of weapons; and still another saw advisers run out of the country by a militia soon after touching down. Then there were the U.S.-trained officers who overthrew their governments in coups in Mali in 2012 and Burkina Faso in 2014. In fact, a December 2015 report by the Congressional Research Service noted:

Recent events, particularly the battle between the Afghan government and the Taliban over K[u]nduz, the inability of [Department of Defense]-led efforts to produce more than a handful of anti-Assad, anti-Islamic State (IS) forces in Syria, and the collapse of U.S.-trained forces in Iraq in the face of the Islamic State, have called into question  including in the Congress  whether these [building partner capacity] programs can ever achieve their desired effects.

Despite all of this, the Pentagon remains committed to creating another Iraqi Army in the American mold with, as Colonel Warren recently explained to me, modern American equipment, modern conventional training, and of course, supported by air power. The U.S. has, he notes, already spent $2.3 billion arming and equipping this new force.

Andrew Bacevich once again sees crucial flaws in the American plan. Our trainers, I suspect, are probably pretty good at imparting technical skills Im sure that they can teach them marksmanship, how to conduct a patrol, how to maintain their weapons, but I cant imagine that we have much of a facility for imparting fighting spirit, sense of national unity, and thats where Iraqi forces have been deficient. Its this will versus skill thing. We can convey skills. I dont think we can convey will.

For his part, Secretary of Defense Carter seems singularly focused on the skills side of the equation. ISILs lasting defeat still requires local forces to fight and prevail on the ground. We can and will continue to develop and enable such local forces, he told the House Armed Services Committee in June 2015. Thats why [the Department of Defense] seeks to bolster Iraqs security forces to be capable of winning back, and then defending and holding the ISIL-controlled portions of the Iraqi state. Last month, Carter assured the Senate Armed Services Committee that he was still urging the Iraqi government to do more to recruit, train, arm, and mobilize Sunni popular mobilization fighters in their communities.

This presumes, however, that there is a truly functioning Iraqi state in the first place. Andrew Bacevich isnt so sure. It may be time to admit that there is no Iraq. We presume to be creating a national army that is willing to fight for the nation of Iraq, but I dont think its self-evident that Iraq exists, except in the most nominal sense. If thats true, then further efforts  a second decades worth of efforts to build an Iraqi army  simply are not likely to pan out.

Nick Turse is the managing editor of TomDispatch and a fellow at the Nation Institute. He is the author, most recently, of Tomorrows Battlefield: U.S. Proxy Wars and Secret Ops in Africa, as well as Kill Anything That Moves: The Real American War in Vietnam. He has written for the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and the Nation, and is a contributing writer for the Intercept.

Follow TomDispatch on Twitter and join us on Facebook. Check out the newest Dispatch Book, Nick Turses Tomorrows Battlefield: U.S. Proxy Wars and Secret Ops in Africa, and Tom Engelhardts latest book, Shadow Government: Surveillance, Secret Wars, and a Global Security State in a Single-Superpower World.

Copyright 2016 Nick Turse

Via Tomdispatch.com



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On the frontline of the fight against IS in Iraq  BBC News
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Haroro J. Ingram | (The Conversation) |  

The rise of [the so-called] Islamic State [group] (IS) has reaffirmed what al-Qaeda and the Taliban proved last decade: strategic communications, particularly counter-propaganda efforts, remains one of the key weaknesses of Western counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency strategy.

In November 2007, the then-US defence secretary, Robert Gates, said:

It is just plain embarrassing that al-Qaeda is better at communicating its message on the internet than America. As one foreign diplomat asked a couple of years ago: How has one man in a cave managed to out-communicate the worlds greatest communication society?

The world now faces an even more sophisticated foe. The IS propaganda machine has eclipsed its predecessors and peers in its reach, resonance and relevance to local and transnational audiences.

Less territory but greater appeal

The pull of IS propaganda and its ability to mobilise supporters is reflected in some disturbing trends. In the same year that IS lost almost 13,000km of territory across Syria and Iraq, the number of foreign fighters it attracted reportedly doubled.

Official IS wilayats (provinces) have emerged in Africa, the Middle East, Europe and Asia. A study of Islamist-inspired terrorist plots in the West between January 2011 and June 2015 revealed that of 69 plots, 30 had an IS connection. Twenty-six of these occurred between July 2014 and June 2015.

IS plots were almost twice as likely to be executed compared to non-IS-connected plots. This is despite most perpetrators having not met or communicated with IS leaders.

How broader communities perceive the IS threat is also indicative of the potency of the groups propaganda. In Afghanistan, where ISs Wilayat Khurasan has attracted disgruntled locals and former Pakistan and Afghan Taliban members, an Asia Foundation survey found that 54.2% of respondents who had heard of IS believed that the group posed a current or future threat to their district.

Similarly, the 2015 Lowy Institute poll found that Australians saw terrorism as the highest national security priority: 69% of respondents believed that ISs rise represented the greatest threat to Australias security.

Even in the US, where attacks by militant right-wingers are more frequent than those by jihadists, IS regularly dominates domestic security discussions. ISs propaganda campaign has been a crucial driver of these trends, but so too has been the failure to counter it effectively.

Deciphering the siren call

Having analysed Arabic and English IS communiques and interviewed dozens of locals from the Middle East and South Asia who are battling IS media, it is clear that a potent strategic logic is driving the groups propaganda campaign.

The overarching purpose of IS messaging is to shape the perceptions and polarise the support of contested populations  friends and foes alike. It achieves this by producing communiques that appeal to its audiences rational-choice and identity-choice decision-making processes.

ISs propaganda trademark may be identity-choice appeals that call for fellow Sunnis to join their caliphate and follow true Islam. However, rational-choice appeals (cost-benefit considerations), especially those that highlight ISs politico-military successes versus its opponents failures, feature prominently in IS messaging.

By interweaving rational- and identity-choice appeals in its messages, IS is aligning powerful decision-making processes in its audience. This may help explain the seemingly rapid radicalisation of its supporters.

Furthermore, IS propaganda lures both friends and foes into disproportionately focusing on the groups strengths and overlooking its weaknesses. At the same time, it exaggerates the perceived weaknesses of anti-IS forces and disparages their strengths.

To further boost these dynamics, ISs rational- and identity-choice appeals are packaged in messaging that address a variety of themes. The result is a propaganda campaign that is strategically calibrated to leverage powerful psychosocial forces in its target audiences.

Tangled in the propaganda trap

It is soothing to believe that the appeal of IS propaganda is due to slick production, social media and extreme violence. But such views help reinforce misinterpretations of violent non-state political movements as comprised of only irrational actors driven by zeal and bloodlust.

If true, flashy pictures and gore delivered instantly over the internet would appeal to such savages. But this phenomenon is more complex, the reality more disturbing and the enemy more sophisticated than that.

As a member of the Syrian opposition warned me, IS uses propaganda to coax its enemies into misguided politico-military and strategic communications efforts. We keep getting snared in ISs traps because the field has not developed a nuanced understanding of both the top-down strategic logic of extremist propaganda and the bottom-up dynamics of how audiences perceive and respond to such messaging.

Given the immense military and financial pressures IS is facing, expect it to rely increasingly on a fusion of asymmetric combat operations and targeted propaganda to sustain its slogan: remaining and expanding.

Some will take solace from these strategic shifts as indicators of a weakening IS. But, as last year proved, such changes do not necessarily mean ISs appeal will diminish  nor that attacks like Paris or Jakarta will cease. The opposite may prove true.

Haroro J. Ingram, Research Fellow, Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs, Australian National University

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.



Related video added by Juan Cole:

The Young Turks: UN Report: ISIS May Be Guilty Of Genocide
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Jan. 22, 2016) -

NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWS WIRE SERVICES OR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES.

UEX Corporation (TSX:UEX)(OTC PINK:UEXCF)(FRANKFURT:UXO) ("UEX" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has closed the $2.0 million private placement (the "Placement") with Mr. Stephen Sorensen as announced in UEX's news release of December 22, 2015. Mr. Sorensen has purchased 20,000,000 units of the Company at a price of $0.10 per unit (the "Offering") pursuant to a price protection notice filed with the TSX. Each unit consists of one common share of UEX and one full share purchase warrant. Each warrant gives Mr. Sorensen the right to purchase a common share of UEX at a price of $0.20 per share for a period of two years from the closing of the Offering.

Mr. Sorensen, a long time UEX shareholder, beneficially holds directly or indirectly 22 million shares of UEX representing approximately 8.27% of the issued and outstanding shares of UEX.

The Offering was a non-brokered private placement with no commission, broker or finder's fee.

The Company intends to use the proceeds of the Offering to fund the 2016 $1,750,000 cash payment for the Christie Lake Option due to JCU (Canada) Exploration Company Limited ("JCU") and to cover the $250,000 payment already made to JCU upon signing of the letter of intent (see UEX's October 26, 2015 and January 19, 2016 press releases).

Cameco Corporation ("Cameco") had a pre-emptive right, so long as it maintained a minimum 20% ownership interest in UEX, to purchase shares of UEX on the same terms and conditions as the Offering so as to maintain its approximate 20.33% ownership interest in UEX. Cameco has informed the Company that it will not be exercising their pre-emptive right

With the closing of this Placement and the decision of Cameco not to exercise its pre-emptive right to maintain its equity ownership of UEX, Cameco's equity ownership of UEX has now declined from approximately 20.33% to approximately 18.80%.

The drop in Cameco's equity ownership below the 20% level terminates some of the special rights Cameco has held since UEX's inception, pursuant to the October 2001 agreement among Cameco Corporation, Pioneer Metals Corporation and UEX Corporation ("the Agreement").

Specifically, the special rights that have now been terminated are as follows:

Cameco's right to market, on behalf of UEX, its share of uranium produced from any mine in which UEX has an ownership interest.

Cameco's right of first refusal to match the terms of any equity, equivalent-to-equity, or debt financing required by UEX to develop a new mine.

Cameco's right to maintain its ownership interest in UEX through a pre-emptive right to participate in UEX's future share equity financings.

CEO Roger Lemaitre noted, "As a co-founder of UEX in 2002, Cameco has been a special shareholder for fourteen years and has participated in some of our equity financings. However, since its inception, UEX has raised over 89% of its equity funding from many sources and investors, other than Cameco, demonstrating the wide levels of support investors have for UEX and our enviable uranium assets."

Under the Agreement, and provided that Cameco maintains a minimum 10% equity ownership of UEX, Cameco will retain the right to nominate a director to the UEX board (a right not currently exercised).

Regardless of Cameco's ownership interest in UEX, Cameco will have the right to provide toll milling to UEX at the Rabbit Lake Mill for future uranium production from the claims comprising the original Hidden Bay Property, provided that the required toll milling capacity is available and is provided at competitive pricing, delivery and similar terms that UEX could negotiate with another toll miller.

Board Chair Colin Macdonald further commented, "On balance, as we move forward into the next uranium cycle, we believe UEX shareholders will be best served by the Company having a share structure that continues to be widely held and in the absence of Cameco's special shareholder rights. This will allow all shareholders the equal opportunity to benefit from UEX's growth through the upcoming exploration activities planned for our newly optioned Christie Lake Project."

The securities referred to in this news release have not been, and will not be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any applicable securities laws of any state of the United States, and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons (as such term is defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act) or persons in the United States unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and any other applicable securities laws of the United States or an exemption from such registration requirements is available. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of these securities within any, including the United States.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of UEX,

Roger Lemaitre, President & CEO

About UEX

UEX (TSX:UEX)(OTC PINK:UEXCF)(FRANKFURT:UXO) is a Canadian uranium exploration and development company actively involved in sixteen uranium projects, including four that are 100% owned and operated by UEX, one joint venture with AREVA that is operated by UEX, as well as nine joint ventures with AREVA, one joint venture with AREVA and JCU (Canada) Exploration Company Limited, which are operated by AREVA, and one project to be under option from JCU (Canada) Exploration Company Limited and operated by UEX. The sixteen projects are located in the eastern, western and northern perimeters of the Athabasca Basin, the world's richest uranium belt, which in 2014 accounted for approximately 16% of the global primary uranium production. UEX is currently advancing several uranium deposits in the Athabasca Basin which include the Kianna, Anne, Colette and 58B deposits at its currently 49.1%-owned Shea Creek Project, the Horseshoe, Raven and West Bear deposits located at its 100%-owned Hidden Bay.

UEX's Hidden Bay and Shea Creek projects have mineral resource estimates as follows:

UEX Corporation - Indicated Mineral Resources (1) (2) (3)

Project Tonnes Grade

U 3 O 8 (%) Total

U 3 O 8 (lbs) UEX's share

U 3 O 8 (lbs) Shea Creek (2) 2,067,900 1.484 67,663,000 33,222,533 Hidden Bay (3) 10,372,500 0.160 36,623,000 36,623,000 TOTAL INDICATED 12,440,400 0.380 104,286,000 69,845,533

UEX Corporation - Inferred Mineral Resources (1) (2) (3)

Project Tonnes Grade

U 3 O 8 (%) Total

U 3 O 8 (lbs) UEX's share

U 3 O 8 (lbs) Shea Creek (2) 1,272,200 1.005 28,192,000 13,842,272 Hidden Bay (3) 1,109,200 0.111 2,715,000 2,715,000 TOTAL INFERRED 2,381,400 0.589 30,907,000 16,557,272

Notes:

(1) The mineral resource estimates follow the requirements of National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects and classifications follow CIM definition standards.

(2) The Shea Creek mineral resources were estimated at a cut-off of 0.30% U 3 O 8 , and are documented in the Shea Creek Technical Report with an effective date of May 31, 2013 which was filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com on May 31, 2013.

(3) The Hidden Bay mineral resources were estimated at a cut-off of 0.05% U 3 O 8 , and are documented in the Hidden Bay Technical Report with an effective date of February 15, 2011 which was filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com on February 23, 2011.

Qualified Persons and Data Acquisition

Technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Roger Lemaitre, P.Eng., P.Geo., UEX's President and CEO who is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101.

Forward-Looking Information

This news release may contain statements that constitute "forward-looking information" for the purposes of Canadian securities laws. Such statements are based on UEX's current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections. Such forward-looking information includes statements regarding the anticipated execution of the Christie Lake Option Agreement, the anticipated completion of the Offering, the proceeds from the Offering and the intended use of proceeds, as well as UEX's mineral resource and mineral reserve estimates, outlook for our future operations, plans and timing for exploration activities, and other expectations, intentions and plans that are not historical fact. The words "estimates", "projects", "expects", "intends", "believes", "plans", "will", "may", or their negatives or other comparable words and phrases are intended to identify forward-looking information. Such forward-looking information is based on certain factors and assumptions and is subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from UEX's expectations include conditions in general economic and financial markets, uncertainties relating to interpretation of drill results and geology, additional drilling results, continuity and grade of deposits, participation in joint ventures, reliance on other companies as operators, public acceptance of uranium as an energy source, fluctuations in uranium prices and currency exchange rates, changes in environmental and other laws affecting uranium exploration and mining, and other risks and uncertainties disclosed in UEX's Annual Information Form and other filings with the applicable Canadian securities commissions on SEDAR. Many of these factors are beyond the control of UEX. Consequently, all forward-looking information contained in this news release is qualified by this cautionary statement and there can be no assurance that actual results or developments anticipated by UEX will be realized. For the reasons set forth above, investors should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking information. Except as required by applicable law, UEX disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Cautionary Note to United States Investors

This news release has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the securities laws in effect in Canada, which differ from the requirements of U.S. securities laws. Unless otherwise indicated, all resource estimates included in this press release have been prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") and the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy, and Petroleum Definition Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves. NI 43-101 is a rule developed by the Canadian Securities Administrators which establishes standards for all public disclosure an issuer makes of scientific and technical information concerning mineral projects. Canadian standards, including NI 43-101, differ significantly from the requirements of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"), and resource information contained herein may not be comparable to similar information disclosed by U.S. companies. In particular, and without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the term "resource" does not equate to the term "reserves". Under U.S. standards, mineralization may not be classified as a "reserve" unless the determination has been made that the mineralization could be economically and legally produced or extracted at the time the reserve determination is made. The SEC's disclosure standards normally do not permit the inclusion of information concerning "measured mineral resources", "indicated mineral resources" or "inferred mineral resources" or other descriptions of the amount of mineralization in mineral deposits that do not constitute "reserves" by U.S. standards in documents filed with the SEC. Investors are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of mineral deposits in these categories will ever be converted into reserves. U.S. investors should also understand that "inferred mineral resources" have a great amount of uncertainty as to their existence and great uncertainty as to their economic and legal feasibility. It cannot be assumed that all or any part of an "inferred mineral resource" will ever be upgraded to a higher category. Under Canadian rules, estimated "inferred mineral resources" may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies except in rare cases. Investors are cautioned not to assume that all or any part of an "inferred mineral resource" exists or is economically or legally mineable. Disclosure of "contained pounds" in a resource is permitted disclosure under Canadian regulations; however, the SEC normally only permits issuers to report mineralization that does not constitute "reserves" by SEC standards as in-place tonnage and grade without reference to unit measures. Accordingly, information concerning mineral deposits set forth herein may not be comparable with information made public by companies that report in accordance with U.S. standards.
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA / TheNewswire / January 22, 2016 / MGX Minerals Inc. ("MGX" or the "Company") (CSE: XMG / FKT: 1MG) is pleased to announce the Company has entered into a Comprehensive Development Agreement (the "Agreement") with Dominion Excavating Ltd. ("Dominion").

Dominion is a First Nations-owned company based in Invermere, British Columbia that employs local residents. As part of the Agreement Dominion will provide a range of project development services for the Company's flagship Driftwood Creek magnesium project ("Driftwood") including road construction and mine development in exchange for an equity stake in MGX.

"We remain committed to partnering with local business and bringing new economic opportunities for the East Kootenay region," stated MGX President and CEO Jared Lazerson.

About MGX Minerals

MGX Minerals (CSE: XMG) is a diversified Canadian mining company engaged in the acquisition and development of industrial mineral deposits in western Canada that offer near-term production potential, minimal barriers to entry and low initial capital expenditures. For further information, please visit the Company's website at www.mgxminerals.com.

Contact Information Jared Lazerson

Chief Executive Officer

Telephone: 604.681.7735

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.



Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking information or forward-looking statements (collectively "forward-looking information") within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information is typically identified by words such as: "believe", "expect", "anticipate", "intend", "estimate", "potentially" and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking information provided by the Company is not a guarantee of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking information as a result of various factors. The reader is referred to the Company's public filings for a more complete discussion of such risk factors and their potential effects which may be accessed through the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Copyright (c) 2016 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Jan. 21, 2016) - Lundin Mining Corporation (TSX:LUN)(OMX:LUMI) ("Lundin Mining" or the "Company"), announces production results for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2015. The Company also provides operating and capital guidance for 2016.

2015 Highlights:

Exceeded the high-end of annual production guidance for copper and nickel while meeting overall targets for zinc.

Candelaria outperformed the most recent copper production guidance due primarily to higher than expected mill throughput in Q4.

At Candelaria as previously announced, the successful exploration and mine plan optimization efforts resulted in total Mineral Reserves increasing by approximately 20% and resulted in the extension of the mine lives of all of the higher grade underground mines as well as the open pit.

Zinkgruvan achieved new annual records relating to tonnes of ore mined and milled. Annual zinc production also constituted a new record for the operation.

As at year end 2015, the Company had a net debt balance of $441 million, and did not have any amounts drawn on its $350 million revolving credit facility.

A summary of the Company's production results compared to the latest guidance is shown below and further details are provided in the tables at the end of the release.





(contained tonnes) Q4 2015

Production

Results Full Year

2015

Production

Results 2015

Production

Guidance1 Copper Candelaria (80%) 31,875 144,832 138,000 - 141,000 Eagle 5,996 24,331 23,000 - 24,000 Neves-Corvo 11,078 55,831 54,000 - 56,000 Zinkgruvan 5 2,044 2,000 Aguablanca 466 6,221 6,100 Wholly-owned 49,420 233,259 223,100 - 229,100 Tenke (24%)2 n/a n/a 50,600 Total attributable n/a n/a 273,700 - 279,700 Nickel Eagle 7,074 27,167 26,000 - 27,000 Aguablanca 514 7,213 7,100 Total 7,588 34,380 33,100 - 34,100 Zinc Neves-Corvo 14,196 61,921 59,000 - 62,000 Zinkgruvan 25,339 83,451 82,000 - 85,000 Total 39,535 145,372 141,000 - 147,000

Mr. Paul Conibear, President and CEO commented: "The Company finished 2015 on a strong note and achieved or exceeded annual production guidance at each operation. In light of the current commodity price environment our operating and capital investment activities will continue to focus on financial flexibility and maximizing cash flows in order to preserve the Company's strong balance sheet."

2016 Production and Cost Guidance

All production guidance estimates for 2016 have remained unchanged from the figures previously disclosed on December 2, 2015.

The outlook below does not include guidance for the Aguablanca mine which remains under suspension pending further notice.

Our 2016 cash cost guidance reflects the results of cost review and reduction plans undertaken at each operation in order to help offset the cash cost impact of lower expected by-product credit metal prices.

2016 Production and Cost Guidance3 Tonnes C1 Cost4 Copper Candelaria (80%) 118,000 - 123,000 $1.55/lb Eagle 20,000 - 23,000 Neves-Corvo 50,000 - 55,000 $1.65/lb Zinkgruvan 3,500 - 4,000 Tenke (@24%)5 ~50,000 n/a Total attributable 241,500 - 255,000 Nickel Eagle 21,000 - 24,000 $2.25/lb Total 21,000 - 24,000 Zinc Neves-Corvo 65,000 - 70,000 Zinkgruvan 80,000 - 85,000 $0.45/lb Total 145,000 - 155,000

2016 Capital Expenditure and Exploration Guidance

Capital expenditures for 2016 for mines operated by the Company are expected to be $220M, which includes:

$35M in capitalized stripping at Candelaria. This has significantly decreased from prior estimates due to a deferral of 30Mt of waste being mined from Phase 10, resulting in expected cost savings of approximately $65M in 2016.

At Candelaria spending on the Los Diques tailings facility is expected to amount to $70M in 2016. The total capex budget for the project is expected to total $325M between 2016 and 2018, in-line with prior estimates.

At Eagle sustaining capital costs are expected to total $10M in 2016, which represents a decrease of 50% compared to 2015 guidance levels.

At Neves-Corvo capital costs in 2016 are expected to total approximately $55M, in-line with guidance levels provided for 2015.

At Zinkgruvan the guidance amount of $35M for 2016 includes the spending of $8M on an expansion project which is aimed at increasing the overall mill capacity by approximately 10% by the end of 2017.

Exploration expenditures in 2016 are expected to total $40M, which represents a decrease of approximately $20M from 2015 guidance levels due to the deferral or cancelation of most greenfields exploration work.

The 2016 exploration budget comprises spending approximately $18M on exploration at Eagle East and $17M at Candelaria. All exploration activities remain discretionary and can be further reduced if necessary.

Capital & Other Costs ($ millions) 2016 Candelaria (100% basis): Total Capitalized Stripping6 35 Los Diques Tailings Capex7 70 Other Sustaining Capex 15 Total Candelaria 120 Total Eagle 10 Total Neves-Corvo 55 Total Zinkgruvan 35 Total Capital Costs 220

About Lundin Mining

Lundin Mining Corporation is a diversified Canadian base metals mining company with operations in Chile, Portugal, Sweden, Spain and the US, producing copper, nickel and zinc. In addition, Lundin Mining holds a 24% equity stake in the world-class Tenke Fungurume copper/cobalt mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo and in the Freeport Cobalt Oy business, which includes a cobalt refinery in Kokkola, Finland.

On Behalf of the Board,

Paul Conibear, President and CEO

The information in this release is subject to the disclosure requirements of Lundin Mining under the Swedish Securities Market Act and/or the Swedish Financial Instruments Trading Act. This information was publicly communicated on January 21, 2016 at 5:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain of the statements made and information contained herein is "forward-looking information" within the meaning of the Ontario Securities Act. This release includes, but is not limited to, forward looking statements with respect to the Company's estimated annual metal production, C1 cash costs, and capital expenditures. These estimates and other forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, risks and uncertainties relating to estimated operating and cash costs, foreign currency fluctuations; risks inherent in mining including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, unusual or unexpected geological formations, ground control problems and flooding; including risks associated with the estimation of mineral resources and reserves and the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations; the potential for and effects of labour disputes or other unanticipated difficulties with or shortages of labour or interruptions in production; actual ore mined varying from estimates of grade, tonnage, dilution and metallurgical and other characteristics; the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses, commodity price fluctuations; inability to successfully integrate the Candelaria operations or realize its anticipated benefits; uncertain political and economic environments; changes in laws or policies, foreign taxation, delays or the inability to obtain necessary governmental permits; and other risks and uncertainties, including those described under Risk Factors Relating to the Company's Business in the Company's Annual Information Form and in each management discussion and analysis. Forward-looking information is in addition based on various assumptions including, without limitation, the expectations and beliefs of management, the assumed long term price of copper, nickel, zinc and other metals; that the Company can access financing, appropriate equipment and sufficient labour and that the political environment where the Company operates will continue to support the development and operation of mining projects. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements. Accordingly, readers are advised not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

2015 Operating Statistics

Details of operating statistics by mine, by quarter and for the year are summarized below:

Candelaria

2015 (100% Basis) Total Q4 Q3 Q2 Q1 Ore mined (000s tonnes) 33,922 8,012 8,240 9,022 8,648 Ore milled (000s tonnes) 29,694 7,504 7,933 7,327 6,930 Grade Copper (%) 0.64 0.53 0.61 0.68 0.78 Recovery Copper (%) 92.7 92.2 92.4 94.0 92.6 Production (contained metal) Copper (tonnes) 181,040 39,844 45,195 46,651 49,350 Gold (000 oz) 102 23 25 27 28 Silver (000 oz) 1,874 394 433 464 583

Eagle

2015 Total Q4 Q3 Q2 Q1 Ore mined (000s tonnes) 740 190 191 175 184 Ore milled (000s tonnes) 746 183 193 184 186 Grade Nickel (%) 4.3 4.3 3.9 4.2 4.7 Copper (%) 3.4 3.4 3.5 3.1 3.6 Recovery Nickel (%) 84.2 83.8 85.0 84.4 83.5 Copper (%) 97.0 97.9 97.3 96.4 96.4 Production (contained metal) Nickel (tonnes) 27,167 7,074 6,438 6,349 7,306 Copper (tonnes) 24,331 5,996 6,514 5,403 6,418

Neves-Corvo

2015 Total Q4 Q3 Q2 Q1 Ore mined, copper (000 tonnes) 2,501 583 614 673 631 Ore mined, zinc (000 tonnes) 1,000 241 255 254 250 Ore milled, copper (000 tonnes) 2,542 584 619 699 640 Ore milled, zinc (000 tonnes) 1,014 240 257 258 259 Grade Copper (%) 2.7 2.4 2.8 2.7 2.9 Zinc (%) 8.0 7.5 8.1 7.9 8.5 Recovery Copper (%) 80.6 79.6 79.1 81.1 82.4 Zinc (%) 71.8 75.6 63.3 73.6 74.9 Production (contained metal) Copper (tonnes) 55,831 11,078 13,917 15,348 15,488 Zinc (tonnes) 61,921 14,196 14,363 16,022 17,340 Lead (tonnes) 3,077 311 366 1,080 1,320 Silver (000 oz) 1,329 270 310 359 390

Zinkgruvan

2015 Total Q4 Q3 Q2 Q1 Ore mined, zinc (000 tonnes) 1,126 313 257 289 267 Ore mined, copper (000 tonnes) 137 nil 40 52 45 Ore milled, zinc (000 tonnes) 1,096 307 260 267 262 Ore milled, copper (000 tonnes) 139 nil 52 43 44 Grade Zinc (%) 8.3 9.0 7.7 8.6 7.6 Lead (%) 3.8 4.2 4.0 3.4 3.4 Copper (%) 1.7 nil 1.1 2.4 1.5 Recovery Zinc (%) 92.1 91.5 91.5 92.8 92.6 Lead (%) 82.9 83.0 83.7 82.4 82.6 Copper (%) 88.1 nil 80.1 91.9 89.0 Production (contained metal) Zinc (tonnes) 83,451 25,339 18,458 21,237 18,417 Lead (tonnes) 34,120 10,733 8,609 7,379 7,399 Copper (tonnes) 2,044 5 475 974 590 Silver (000 oz) 2,542 729 627 622 564

Aguablanca

2015 Total Q4 Q3 Q2 Q1 Ore mined (000s tonnes) 616 nil 51 187 378 Ore milled (000s tonnes) 1,292 100 376 392 424 Grade Nickel (%) 0.68 0.65 0.58 0.70 0.77 Copper (%) 0.52 0.50 0.48 0.54 0.54 Recovery Nickel (%) 81.1 77.0 78.4 82.0 83.7 Copper (%) 93.1 90.6 93.0 93.4 93.4 Production (contained metal) Nickel (tonnes) 7,213 514 1,708 2,245 2,746 Copper (tonnes) 6,221 466 1,658 1,975 2,122

(1) Guidance as presented in the Company's Management Discussion and Analysis for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2015.

(2) Production results for Tenke have not yet been released by operator Freeport-McMoRan Inc. ("Freeport").

(3) Production guidance is based on certain estimates and assumptions, including but not limited to; mineral resources and reserves, geological formations, grade and continuity of deposits and metallurgical characteristics.

(4) Cash costs remain dependent upon exchange rates (forecast at EUR/USD: 1.10, USD/SEK: 8.50, USD/CLP: 700) and metal prices (forecast at Cu: $2.05/lb, Ni: $4.15/lb, Zn: $0.70/lb, Pb: $0.70/lb, Au: $1,100/oz, Ag: $15.00/oz, Co: $13.00/lb).

(5) Tenke guidance has not yet been provided by operator, Freeport. Lundin Mining anticipates production from Tenke in 2016 to be comparable to expected 2015 production.

(6) During the production phase, waste stripping costs which provide probable future economic benefits and improved access to the orebody are capitalized to mineral properties. The Company capitalizes waste costs when experienced strip ratios are above the average planned strip ratio for each open pit phase under development.

(7) The Los Diques project capex is based on project review estimates completed in 2015 which assumed an USD/CLP exchange rate of 625.
LONDON, ENGLAND--(Marketwired - January 22, 2015) - Condor Gold plc (AIM:CNR) - Condor (AIM:CNR) ("Condor" or "the Company") is pleased to announce, further to its announcement of 20 October 2015, the full results, including Net Present Value ("NPV") and Internal Rate of Return ("IRR") figures, contained in the Whittle Consulting Limited's ("Whittle") Enterprise Optimisation study on La India Project, Nicaragua (the "Study"). The Company was in an Offer Period as defined by the Takeover Code at that point in time and was unable to publish the NPV and IRR figures derived from the independent optimisation study during the Offer Period, even though the purpose of the study was to optimise the mine schedules to NPV. One of the reasons that the Formal Sales Process was terminated on 18th January 2016 is to provide shareholders with the full details of the optimisation study. However, as the Company is now out of an Offer Period it is pleased to update investors with these improved NPV and IRR results which significantly increase the La India Project economics.

The Study involves the application of advanced analytical techniques to construct a model of the operation from the ore bodies through mining and ore treatment processes to products sold to the market with a view to maximising a project's NPV. The study used the reserves/resources and technical studies used in the NI 43-101 compliant Pre-Feasibility Study ("PFS") and Preliminary Economic Assessments ("PEA") produced by independent mineral resource and mining consultants SRK Consulting Limited ("SRK") in December 2014.

Highlights:

NPV increases on average 56% across three production scenarios and 78% for the PFS case.

Average NPV US$196M compared to the current market capitalisation US$12m highlights significant undervaluation with a price-to-book ratio 0.06 times

IRR averages 30% across three production scenarios

29% increase to 866k oz gold from 674k oz gold of contained gold of Indicated ounces only in the base case La India open pit, as the pit pushes deeper

29% increase to 1,066k oz gold from 827k oz gold contained gold of Indicated and Inferred ounces within La India open pit + two feeder pits

18% increase to 1,544k oz gold from 1,313 oz gold of contained gold of Indicated and Inferred within all pits and underground

22% increase in average gold production for the first 5 years, ranging from 91,000 oz to 165,000 oz gold per annum across three production scenarios

The recovered gold over life of mine ranges from 796,000 oz to 1,437,000 oz gold across the 3 production scenarios

All in sustaining cash costs remain under US$700 per oz gold for all production scenarios

Mark Child CEO comments:

"We are very pleased to now be able to release the materially improved NPV and IRR figures contained within the optimisation study. The NPV of the PFS case of Indicated ounces gold only, increased 78%. The average NPV increases 56% for three production scenarios compared to the production scenarios within the PFS and PEAs announced in December 2014. The average NPV is US$196M compared to the current market capitalisation of US$12M, valuing the Company at a price-to-book ratio of 0.06 times, highlighting the material undervaluation of the Company's shares. The IRRs increase to an average of 30%. Indicated ounces of gold within the main La India open pit increase by 29% to 866k oz gold and also by 29% for the main pit + feeder pits to 1,066k oz gold as the pit pushed deeper. The annual gold production for the first 5 years increases on average 22% and ranges from 91,000 oz gold to 165,000 oz gold per annum versus the PFS and PEA studies. The recovered gold over life of mine ranges from 796,000 oz to 1,437,000 oz gold. The average pay back of upfront capital costs is between two and three production years highlighting the outstanding economics and versatility of La India Project."

Background

Whittle Consulting's (WCL) Enterprise Optimisation is an integrated approach to maximising the Net Present Value (NPV) of a mining business by simultaneously optimizing 10 different mechanisms across the mining value chain. Condor commissioned the independent optimisation study in May 2015 to investigate strategic options to improve project economics. The Study is a strategic planning tool and is not NI 43-101 compliant. However, WCL is the recognised world leader in a specialist field of maximising the economics of a mine and has completed work for major mining companies: Rio Tinto, Anglo American, Kinross, AngloGold Ashanti, Barrick, Xstrata, Vale. The report presents the findings from the Enterprise Optimisation Study for La India Project. An oil price of US$100 was used in the PFS and PEAs.

Four production scenarios were assessed, based on the study methodology employed by SRK and Condor.

The PFS case includes measured and indicated material only from the La India open pit, with a processing capacity of 0.8 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) or 2,200 tonnes per day (tpd).

The PEA 1.0 case also includes the La India open pit inferred material, with a process capacity of 1.0 mtpa or 2,800tpd

The PEA 1.2 case includes all of the La India open pit material, and also includes material from two nearby smaller pits, America and Central Breccia. The processing capacity for this case is 1.2 mtpa or 3,300tpd. This is known as scenario "A" in the SRK reports.

The PEA 1.6 case adds underground mining from La India and America, over and above the material in PEA 1.2. The processing capacity for this case is 1.6 mtpa or 4,400tpd. This is known as scenario "B" in the SRK reports.

Validation runs for each case were produced. Optimised runs were generated using multi-mine scheduling, fully variable cut-off grade and stockpiling. Reduced capacity cases were run, also optimised for schedule, cut-off grade and stockpiling. Grind-throughput-recovery relationships were developed for the La India open pit material, and this methodology was used to further optimize the schedule for all cases. Pit and Phase optimisation was completed on the La India pit using the Enterprise Optimisation economics, which improved NPV.

The optimised cases were developed from work done from May 2015 through to September 2015. The gold price for this work is $1,250 per troy ounce, and the silver price is $19.75/troz in order to have a like for like comparison with the PFS and PEAs. Metal recoveries were based on the PFS and PEA work completed in late 2014.

Post-tax results are indicated in Table 1 for the four production scenarios. The Enterprise Optimisation methodology improved NPV in all cases, with decreasing improvements across the larger plant / open pit scenarios. This is due to the Grind-Throughput-recovery (GTR) work being isolated to La India Vein Set only due to limited metallurgical data on the America and Central Breccia. Similar results may be recognized when data is collected and assessed for the America and Central Breccia open pit and underground material. It is important to note that the 1.0 mtpa case does not have a PFS/PEA study equivalent, nor corresponding pit designs, so there is no comparison data. In these cases, improvements are measured against the initial Enterprise Optimisation calibration runs.

To view Table 1, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122table1.jpg.

Table 2. Comparison of production scenarios to PFS and PEAs

La India - PFS



Open Pit - PFS

IND Only La India



Open Pit

IND+INF All Open Pits



PEA-A

IND+INF All Open Pits + UG



PEA-B

IND+INF PFS Whittle

EO Whittle

EO PEA A Whittle

EO PEA A Whittle

EO Nominal Processing Plant capacity tpd 2,200 2,800 3,300 4,400 Nom. Capacity in M-tpa 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.6 Contained gold koz 674 866 955 827 1,066 1,313 1,554 Recovered gold koz 614 796 882 752 985 1,203 1,437 1st 5 years avg. production gold p.a. koz 76 91 101 94 118 138 165 Production improvement 1st 5 years 20 % n/a 25 % 20 %

Figure 1 presents a waterfall summary of the value contributions for the PFS 0.8 ktpa / 2200 tpd case. The initial optimised schedule, utilizing fully variable cut-off grade and a maximum of 1.5 mt of stockpiling, adds 3.8% to the base NPV. The grind-throughput-recovery methodology improves NPV by another 25.7% over the prior case due to faster/coarser grinding and reduced costs. The Enterprise Optimisation net value economics generate a larger pit and higher early value phases, improving NPV by an additional 48.2%. This exercise did generate a larger pit with more ounces - it should be stressed that this is not at a PFS level of study. The overall value improvement in the PFS 0.8 case with the Enterprise Optimisation methodology is 78% at a gold price of US$1,250. The bold numbers in the graph are the total NPV at 5%, and the italicized numbers are the increment value and percent change over the base.

To view Figure 1 - La India PFS Value Contributions, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122fig1.jpg.

Figure 2 provides a similar presentation of the value contributions for the PEA 1.2 "A" case, which includes all Measured, Indicated &Inferred material from all three pits, with a nominal processing capacity of 1.2 mtpa (3300 tpd). There are two cut-off grade and stockpile optimised Prober schedules for reduced processing rates presented in this graph, both of which exceed the initial study NPV. The run at the nominal throughput of 1.2 mtpa has a better NPV than the 1.0 mtpa case, but only by about 1%, which may mean that the optimal processing capacity for this case may be less than the nominal 1.2mpta level. Cut-off grade and stockpiling improves NPV by 13% over the base, and GTR adds 17.9% to the NPV. The Enterprise Optimisation-generated pit and phase optimisation added 16.4% over the base. Overall, the Enterprise Optimisation methodology improved NPV for the PEA "A" 1.2 case by over 50%.

To view Figure 2 - La India PEA 1.2 "A" Value Contributions, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122fig2.jpg.

Figure 3 presents the value contributions for the PEA 1.6 "B" case. This case has all of the open pit material available, plus a conceptual view of underground resource from the La India and America deposits, with a nominal processing capacity of 1.6 mtpa / 4400 tpd.

For the PEA 1.6 "B" case, the reduced processing runs all have increasing values commensurate with increasing processing rates, meaning that the mine fleet size is not a mismatch for the higher production cases. However, it may be the mining fleet is over-sized for the lower production rates, which, if recapitalized, could improve NPVs for the lower production cases. This was not tested in this study, since contractor mining is the baseline assumption.

The cut-off grade and stockpile schedule improves NPV by 17.6% over the base, and the GTR case adds 2.6%. The GTR approach had less impact in this case as only the La India material has sufficient information for GTR analysis. With the addition of the Central Breccia (CBZ) material, the America pit material, and the higher grade underground material, there is proportionally less material eligible for this methodology. The Enterprise Optimised economics-base pit and phase optimisation generated significant value for the PEA 1.6 "B" case, 17% over the base. The total value gain for the PEA 1.6 "B" case is 40% over the base.

To view Figure 3 - PEA 1.6 "B" Value Contributions, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122fig3.jpg.

Outcomes

This Enterprise Optimisation Study developed the NPV-optimised schedules through variable cut-off grade, stockpile capacity, grind-throughput-recovery, multi-mine scheduling, and optimised pit and phasing. Significant outcomes of this process include:

An optimised schedule utilizing fully variable cut-off grade with stockpiling adds significantly to the project NPV in all cases. The permitted maximum stockpile capacity of 1.5Mt should be utilized, and additional stockpile capacity may add value. The grind size-throughput-recovery (GTR) methodology adds significant value to the project in all cases where it can be utilized. Modification of the ultimate pit and phase selection based on the methodology presented here increases NPV significantly in all cases, partially due to incorporating additional tonnes and ounces. The theory of constraints indicates using US Dollar per kilowatt hour as the limiting factor in the business system will improve value. The Enterprise Optimised pit and phase optimisation based on this, combined with cut-off and GTR optimisation adds significantly to project NPV. When additional mining material is added, processing capacity may not necessarily need to be increased, and may not yield the optimal NPV.

The Enterprise Optimisation methodology as applied in this study was able to pull cash flow forward as indicated in Figure 4 through Figure 6. These three figures represent the PFS 0.8 mtpa case, the PEA 1.2 mtpa case, and the PEA 1.6 mtpa case.

To view Figure 4 - La India PFS 0.8 Optimised Net Cash Flow, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122fig4.jpg.

To view Figure 5 - La India, America, CBZ PEA 1.2 Net Cash Flow, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122fig5.jpg.

To view Figure 6 - La India, America, CBZ, Underground PEA 1.6 Net Cash Flow, please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/cnr0122fig6.jpg.

Conclusion

Overall, the independent optimisation analysis conducted by WCL clearly demonstrates the potential to unlock substantial additional value from the La India Project. Across 3 production scenarios, NPV increases over 50%, IRRs average 30%, the payback on upfront capital costs is between two to three production years, and gold production increases on average 22% for the first 5 years. WCL's study is a strategic planning tool, which is used to maximise the economics, particularly the NPV, ahead of a "build decision" and can often form part of a more detailed Definitive/Bankable Feasibility Study. It should be noted that WCL's study is not NI 43-101 compliant and would require re-generation of the PFS and PEAs to confirm the improvements. Phase 2 of the study will consist of optimisation of the underground potential for the project, as well as sensitivities to accommodate the impact of lower metal and oil prices.

Whittle Consulting Limited

Whittle Consulting's (www.whittleconsulting.com.au) approach to Enterprise Optimisation involves the application of advanced analytical techniques to construct a model of the operation from the ore bodies through mining and ore treatment processes to products sold to the market. Once modelled, a powerful mathematical optimiser is applied to manipulate the variables which are regarded as "negotiable", to develop long-term plans that excel in terms of a wide range of economic and other operational and business criteria.

Modelling techniques and facilities are comprehensive, capturing and harnessing the client's information on geology, geotechnical, mining engineering, process engineering and metallurgy, finance and marketing, to combine into an integrated Enterprise Optimisation Model that contains the details of all development options under consideration. The model is used to direct underground mine design or as a basis for pit and phase optimisation and to develop life-of-mine business plans which identify the optimal operating configuration for the scenario presented. The result is a unique capability that can resolve planning issues beyond the scope of available packaged planning software and conventional techniques.

It is common for Whittle Consulting to interface with diverse commercial and in-house software packages during an Enterprise Optimisation exercise. These may be limited to mine planning and scheduling packages or financial reporting, or may for example already incorporate 2 or 3 of the twelve Enterprise Optimisation steps or could even utilise highly technical plant optimisation routines. It is typical for the Enterprise Optimisation work to use the output of any of these packages as input to overall optimisation of an operation or project. The Enterprise Optimisation results provide conceptual guidance for the detailed operational plans which will be developed by the client or their engineering and cost study consultants in most cases using their existing software.

All the mechanisms required for this study have been implemented before - most of them on a routine basis.

Whittle's Enterprise Optimisation study on Condor was prepared by Richard Peevers (B.A. (Geology), MBA (Finance), M.Eng. (Civil), Registered Professional Civil Engineer California). Richard holds degrees in geology, engineering, and business administration and has managed copper, gold, borate, and nickel optimisation studies for Whittle Consulting.

In accordance with Rule 26.1 of the Code, a copy of this announcement will be published, subject to certain restrictions relating to persons in any restricted jurisdiction, at www.condorgold.com.

About Condor Gold plc:

Condor Gold plc was admitted to AIM on 31st May 2006. The Company is a gold exploration and development company with a focus on Central America.

Condor completed a Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) and two Preliminary Economic Assessments (PEA) on La India Project in Nicaragua in December 2014. The PFS details an open pit gold mineral reserve of 6.9M tonnes at 3.0g/t gold for 675,000 oz gold producing 79,300 oz gold p.a. for 7 years. The PEA for the open pit only scenario details 96,800 oz gold production p.a. for 8 years whereas the PEA for a combination of open pit and underground details 137,500 oz gold production p.a. for 8 years. La India Project contains a total attributable mineral resource of 18.4Mt at 3.9g/t for 2.33M oz gold and 2.68M oz silver at 6.2g/t to the CIM Code.

In El Salvador, Condor has an attributable 1,004,000 oz gold equivalent at 2.6g/t JORC compliant resource. The resource calculations are compiled by independent geologists SRK Consulting (UK) Limited for Nicaragua and Ravensgate and Geosure for El Salvador.

Disclaimer:

Neither the contents of the Company's website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Company's website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.

Contact:

Condor Gold plc

Mark Child, Executive Chairman and CEO

+44 (0) 20 7408 1067

Luc English, Country Manager

Nicaragua

+505 8854 0753



Beaumont Cornish Limited

Roland Cornish

+44 (0) 20 7628 3396

Numis Securities Limited

John Prior and James Black

+44 (0) 20 72601000

Farm Street Media

Simon Robinson

+44 (0) 7593 340107
New-comers could profit from an informative crash course on their hosts norms and values. But the question, What does it mean to live in a multi-ethnic society, in a meta-nation? is one that hosts themselves should not put the aside for too.

The outcry from the media that followed the incidents over New Years Eve in Cologne and other German cities threatens to put an end to Willkommenskultur. The police registered more than a hundred complaints by women who had been mugged or sexually harassed by young men of predominantly foreign origin. Many of the identified perpetrators were asylum-seekers.

The conservatives and nationalists exclaimed Weve been telling you so all along! The liberals and progressives, on the other hand, blamed them for racism and bigotry  often justly. Yet, in the day after the events, the latter  myself included  went through a series of disappointed expectations. At first, I hoped that the police would find out that the culprits were not predominantly of foreign origin. Then, I hoped there would be no refugees among them. And finally, I hoped that the motivation for the attacks was predominantly economic and not sexual. In the course of a few days, I saw my liberalist hopes shattered one after the other.

Its easy to attack conservatives for their over-generalisations, for blaming the refugees as a whole for the crimes of the few. However, liberals too often like to lump the refugees to one helpless mass that is in need of our benevolence. European liberals dwell in a perpetual state of not altogether unpleasant repentance for past colonial wrongdoings, which makes them blind to some essentially European accomplishments that are worthy of being defended.

* * *

Courses dealing with integration have been one of the more constructive attempts to provide a rational and systematic response to the events. The idea: Along with some practical information about their host countries, the new-comers should learn about European values. Though, inevitably, any mention of Europes spreading of values invokes the ghost of its colonial past.

The very tone of The Economists recent remark on such courses might indeed push one to believe that they are a form of cultural imperialism. One should, it is written, teach migrants that they must respect both the law and local norms such as tolerance and sexual equality.

I dont think one needs to teach migrants that they must respect the law and local norms. That laws and rules must be obeyed is a lesson that a criminal is taught by correctional facilities. In most cases, it would be enough to simply explain to new arrivals what the laws and norms are that exist in the society where they now live.

Besides, Western societies arent exactly sexism-free. Sexual harassment is still a sad reality that too many women face across Europe and which many took to the street to protest after the events in Cologne. A carnivalesque atmosphere, such as the one during New Years Eve in Germany, often aggravates this reality. Women have been complaining for years that Munichs police force is sluggish in its dealing with complaints of sexual assaults during the yearly Oktoberfest.

Nevertheless, it is simply a fact that feminist movements have had a better chance and more success in their fight against male chauvinism in Europe than in the countries across North Africa and the Middle East. Thus, young men that come from there might indeed profit from a crash course in matters of sexual equality.

* * *

In fact, integration courses are nothing new. One is already offered by the German Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF). It is voluntary, but there is an incentive. Successfully absolving it reduces the minimum required time of living in the country before being able to apply for the German citizenship from eight to seven years. The course has two parts: the first module focuses on the German language, and the second is called Life in Germany.

But consider the following question which the BAMF uses to test foreigners newly acquired legal and social knowledge as well as knowledge of living standards in Germany.

A black man applies for a job as a waiter in a restaurant in Germany. What would be an example of discrimination? He does not get the job a) because his knowledge of German is not sufficient, b) because his financial expectations are too high, c) because of his skin colour, or d) because he does not have sufficient professional experience required for the job.

The answer is trivial, but the question itself seems to contain a racist stereotype. Why does the man of colour apply for a job at a restaurant and not, say, at a management consultancy?

In other words, parallel to courses for immigrants, the general local population could also profit from some systematically organized cogitation on the effects of globalization on their own society  above all, its shift away from the hitherto relative ethnic and cultural homogeneity.

What is the new meaning of being a citizen or resident in Germany, when it is becoming a meta-nation? Native Germans wont be able to enlighten the new-comers on this question, unless also they deal with it on their own.

There will hardly be an acceptable way around Willkommenskultur. According to some estimations, in the coming decades, Germany would need to absorb 300,000 to 500,000 people annually simply to prevent the collapse of its social systems due to the ageing of its population.

Hence, along with the polices local-case efforts to find and punish the perpetrators of the New Years Eve incidents, Germany must also work against stereotypes and structural inequalities that new-comers face  first and foremost enabling legal access to work. Being able to provide for themselves in a dignified manner will be a more concrete, effective, and egalitarian lesson in equality, more than anything that can be taught in a classroom.
Who are the real Europeans today? The bureaucrats, officials and parliamentarians of the European institutions, in their somewhat isolated Brussels bubble? A few distinguished philosophers and other intellectuals who firmly reject nationalism? Or the bobos (bourgeois-bohemiens), rather highly educated middle-class big city inhabitants, who might feel culturally more similar to their counterparts in equivalent cities across the continent than to their compatriots in seemingly remote provinces of their own countries? Migratory movements have certainly influenced, for several decades, mentalities and national identities, and European integration has, at least for some time, contributed to bringing governments, countries and even peoples closer. But with the Euro crisis of recent years, that trend has started to go in the opposite direction. While intra-European migrations alone do not appear to bring about much more mutual understanding, extra-European migration pressure in 2015, certainly already present for decades, has become one factor which particularly threatens to undo much of what past decades have achieved in terms of promoting pro-European feelings and identities. The fault lies not in those who are coming, but in the contradictions of the countries they are coming to

For an observer (such as the author) who is himself or herself a long-term, multiple intra-European migrant and has been living, studying and working for decades in several European and possibly other countries, recent events in the field of migration can hardly be seen as minor problems. If the Schengen system falls apart and the ill-managed euro-zone goes bankrupt, two obviously very real dangers, what will be left of the European dream described so optimistically, but not without realism, twelve years ago by Jeremy Rifkin? Is it thinkable that such giant steps backward would leave the rest of the European projects foundations unshaken? How can we expect that European leaders will be able to resolve these problems tomorrow, if they have been failing so disastrously in recent months to reach an agreement in their ever-repeating, pathetic Eurozone and migration summits? Surely it is far easier for analysts to criticize them than it is for the leaders themselves to launch adequate policies. Granted, these challenges are not at all easy to address, but it is also obvious that the current leadership is hardly up to the task of finding real and lasting solutions.

Separatist tendencies in several countries do not contribute to making these problems more manageable. Their roots are of course different, but they have something in commona somewhat egoistic rejection of the other who have, up until now, been compatriots. There is also a connection between the way the European Union functionsor doesnt functionand globalisation, which tends to make the lives of most citizens more precarious and to deepen social, as well as the regional, inequalities. If Europe has failed to diminish the Italian North-South divide, this is also a logical consequence of its regional dynamics, even if the main responsibility for the structural weaknesses of the South lies in internal Italian politics. If half of the Catalans want independence, centralist rigidity is likely to blame, but also historical and cultural resentments and the fact that Catalanswho outlawed bullfights recentlyare, like the Basques, geographically, and maybe culturally, closer to the rest of Western Europe than are other Spaniards. If many Scots want independence after centuries of UK membership, it might mainly be due to the Thatcher legacy but also to their oil wealth and to Britains increased North-South divide, in this case favouring the southern part of the country. And Belgian centrifugal forces have not been stopped by the fact that Brussels has become the increasingly influential capital of Europe. Even the old Corsican nationalism, which just received a boost in the French regional elections, is certainly related to cultural factors as well as to history, geography and the complicated relations between the natives and the holiday invaders from the continent.

But what about European identity in these crisis-stricken Brexit and Grexit scenarios, disintegration prospects in four EU member states and a seemingly unstoppable rightwing populism in most countries, which thrives on a furiously anti-immigrant and anti-EU demagogy? It is too easy to answer that more Europe is necessary to save the EU; many citizens see the Union in fact more as the problem than the solution, and they can hardly be blamed for their simplified perception, given the EUs many years of incapacity to find solutions for its acute economic, social and political problems. On top of all this, one million new immigrants in 2015 put heavy strains on even a big country like Germany, and not only hardline xenophobes fear that the immigrant flows, if they continue for several years, could potentially upset their society, already shaken by racist attacks. Anyway, the notorious lack of solidarity among countries in this field gives little optimism about the EUs coherence. On the other hand, election results in all southern EU countries clearly confirm what everybody should have known for years, namely that German and Brussels-inspired austerity recipes dont work and need urgent rectifications. What is clear is that both the Eurozone crisis and migration represent heavy challenges to a European identity which was, at best, in an embryonic stage for the majority of the French, German, and Greek citizens, an opinion bolstered by many in other EU member states as well.

Terrorism has become another huge challenge in 2015 and one more boost for right-wing populism. Particularly in France, which had a Ministry for Immigration and National Identity between 2007 and 2010, it is obvious that a crucial component of todays agenda includes how to deal with home-grown terrorism and religious fanaticism, as well as how to counter simplifications which link them directly to immigration and to Muslims in general, in France and elsewhere.

Solidarity is inseparable from identity, and normally citizens of more prosperous regions of national states accept to pay for their fellow citizens of poorer or structurally disadvantaged regions, like Bavaria uses to pay for the Eastern lander, Bremen or Berlin. Now Catalans refuse to pay for Andalusians, as do the Flemish for Francophone Belgians and Northern Italians for their Southern countrymen. Even in Germany, recent years have witnessed a growing rejection of solidarity through national Finanzausgleich or compensation payments. As the Eurozone crisis shows, such solidarity is, not surprisingly, largely absent when people are asked to pay for other countries. This is especially the case if those who are asked to pay are misinformed about the reality of the situation, which has little relation to the story of the responsible and hard-working brothers helping their irresponsible and spendthrift siblings. Italian Prime Minister Renzi was partly right when, in a recent European summit, he told Chancellor Merkel that Germany should not see itself as the generous financier of the southern member states There is still a serious North-South divide largely along the borders of the Roman Empire, with often quite diverging mentalities and very few cross-country language knowledge and real understanding.

Today, many people view themselves as citizens of their city (or region), their native country, their country of residence (if it is a different one) and to some extent of Europe, and even as citizens of the world. Britons and Irish believe often, not illogically, that they are closer to other Anglophone people than to their continental neighbours, as do Spaniards and Portuguese related to Hispanic and Lusophone countries, and even French people might feel more at home in countries where their language is widely spoken. If the above-mentioned challenges, and those of the long-term economic downturn and accompanying mass unemployment, are not met adequately, it is obvious that the fragile European component of their identity will become weaker and weaker, with potentially disastrous consequences for the entire European project.
AOA member and actress Seolhyun and 5urprise member and actor Seo Kang Joon will both be leaving for the jungle although they will not travel there together.

According to the Korean media outlet Newsen, the stars are scheduled to appear on the SBS variety travel show "Law of the Jungle." During the show celebrities try to survive in a tough environment. The shows have previously taken k-celebs to such challenging environments as Siberia and the Himalayas. This time the destination is the jungles of East Timor, which is located between Indonesia and Australia.

On January 21, an SBS representative stated that both k-celebs will be joining the show. Seo Kang Joon, who can currently be seen on the drama "Cheese In The Trap" is leaving for East Timor with Jeon Hye Bin, 2PM's Chan Sung, Infinite's Sung Jong and B1A4's Sandeul in late January.

Seolhyun will join them in early February.

Both stars have been busier than usual lately and it took a while to work the variety show appearance into their schedules.

Besides working with AOA, Seolhyun had a role in the film "A Murderer's Guide To Memorization" with co-star Kim Nam Gil. It's her second film role following "Gangnam Blues," in which she played Lee Min Ho's kid sister. Seolhyun also serves as a promotional ambassador for Visit Korea this year, along with her co-star Lee Min Ho. In 2015 she appeared on two variety shows, "Running Man" and "Two Days, One Night."

Even though Seo Kang Joon is playing the second lead in "Cheese in the Trap," he can more easily get away because the drama was mostly shot in advance. The actor debuted as a student in the 2012 drama "To The Beautiful You" and has steadily gained in popularity. He played Joo Sang Wook's romantic rival in "Cunning Single Lady," appeared in "What Happens to My Family?" and "Splendid Politics." He can also be seen in the films "My Love My Bride" and "The Beauty Inside." Seo also appeared in his share of variety shows in 2015, including stints on "Roommate," "Running Man" and "Dating Alone."
The EU's ambassador to Canada, Marie-Anne Coninsx, is pictured Tuesday, Oct.8, 2013 in her Ottawa office. Coninsx says the massive free trade pact between Canada and the European Union will, for the most part, be a done deal in one year even if it is not fully ratified. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Mike Blanchfield
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(Kitco News) - Based on a recent MarketWatch op-ed, gold may want Donald Trump to win the U.S. presidency.

Columnist Brett Arends focused his attention on a remarkable, but little noticed gold plug by Republican front-runner Trump, in an opinion piece published earlier in the week.

During the debate, Trump brought up concerns over trade and how Chinas devalued yuan has a competitive advantage against the U.S.

This notion of currency wars, which Trump brought up briefly during the debate, Arends said, is positive for gold.

Image courtesy of imgflip.com

China is ripping us on trade. Theyre devaluing their currency and theyre killing our companies. Thousands of thousands  you look at the number of companies and the number in terms of manufacturing of plans that weve lost  50,000 because of China, he told the crowd in Charleston, South Carolina.

Weve lost anywhere between four and seven million jobs because of Chinawe have very unfair trade with China. Were going to have a trade deficit of $505 billion dollars this year with China. A lot of that is because they devalue their currency, Trump said.

According to Arends, gold tends to perform well in times of currency wars because it is the one currency in the world that nobody can print and it maintains its value.

Financial markets have been volatile since the beginning of the year over uncertainty on the Chinese economy  the worlds second largest. During the first trading week of the year, the Chinese yuan fell almost 2% against the U.S. dollar, hitting a low last seen in 2011. The Chinese currency was last quoted at 0.000133, up 0.09% on the day.

As doubt was cast over equity markets so far this year, gold prices rallied back above $1,100 an ounce, a level last seen on Jan. 7. February comex gold futures have continued to flirt with that level and were last quoted down $1.80 at $1,096.40 an ounce.

Whether the Donald is a gold bug or not, he made it clear what his focus will be if he wins the Presidency.

Im a free trader. I believe in it but we have to be smart, he said.

By Sarah Benali of Kitco News; sbenali@kitco.com

Follow me on Twitter @SdBenali
(Kitco News) - Shares of mining companies that trade in North America were mixed during the first four days of the week.

As of Thursdays close, Comex February gold futures were at $1,101.40, a gain of $12.80, or 1.2%, for the first four days of the week. Comex March silver was up 18.5 cents, or 1.3%, over the same time period to $14.095.

During that same time span, the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs index (HUI) was down 0.9138 point, or 0.1%, to 105.7923. The Market Vectors Gold Miners exchange-traded fund (GDX), which consists of stocks of gold-mining companies, fell 17.5 cents, or 1.3%, to $12.91.

As has been the case frequently in the last couple of months, shares of South African gold producers have been among the top performers. Weakness in the South African rand has helped their profitability, since this means they get more money in their local currency when they sell their product. Some of these companies were further helped by analyst upgrades.

Anglogold Ashanti (NYSE: AU) climbed 72 cents, or 10%. Harmony Gold Mining Ltd. (NYSE: HMY) rose 12 cents, or 7%. Sibanye Gold Ltd. (NYSE: SBGL) added 57 cents, or 7%.

Lake Shore Gold Corp. (TSX: LSG) was one of the bigger non-South African percentage gainers, with its shares climbing 8 cents, or 7%. The company was one of many that provided a preliminary report on 2015 output, with production slipping to 178,700 ounces from 185,600 in 2014. However, Lake Shore estimated all-in sustaining costs around $870, below guidance of $950. Lake Shore projected 2016 production of between 170,000 and 180,000 ounces.

LSG continues to benefit from a depreciating C$ (Canadian dollar), and given recent currency fluctuations, we expect this to continue into 2016, said a research note from BMO Capital Markets.

Shares of Lake Shore Gold Corp.



The worlds largest producer, Barrick Gold Corp. (NYSE: ABX), added 43 cents, or 5%, through Thursday. The company did not make any big announcements prior to Thursdays stock-market close, although it had one after. Barrick said preliminary 2015 production of 6.12 million ounces of gold was within guidance. However, the producer also warned that of impairment charges. Preliminary analysis indicates potential goodwill impairment charges of approximately $1.8 billion, and asset impairment charges in the range of $1.0-$1.2 billion primarily related to Pascua-Lama and Pueblo Viejo, Barrick said.

Great Panther Silver Ltd. (NYSE MKT: GPL) moved up by a little over 2 cents, or roughly 5%. The company listed record production in 2015 from its Mexican mines, with output up 30% to 4,159,121 silver-equivalent ounces, exceeding guidance of between 3.8 million and 3.9 million. Further, higher production enabled the company to lower unit costs, Great Panther reported.

In our view, these strong production figures, coupled with sustained high grades at San Ignacio and grade control at Topia, should strongly position Great Panther to weather the current prolonged downturn in the precious metals markets, said a research note from Rodman & Renshaw.

Shares of SEMAFCO Inc. (TSX: SMF) lost 65 cents, or 16%. The company reported preliminary 2015 output of 255,900 ounces that was within guidance for the eighth straight year, although 2016 output is expected to come in lower at between 225,000 and 245,000 ounces. The 2015 all-in sustaining cost was estimated at $648 an ounce; guidance of 2016 is between $720 and $760.

Seabridge Gold (NYSE: SA) posted a sharp loss for the second straight week, this time declining 83 cents, or 12%.

First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (TSX: FM) shed 37 cents, or 12%. News reports blamed lower share prices on continuing weakness in copper prices and TD Securities stripping the company of its buy recommendation.



Iamgold Corp. (TSX: IMG) fell 23 cents, or 12%. The Canadian producer reported that 2015 output of 806,000 ounces of gold was within guidance, as were costs. However, 2016 output is projected to be modestly lower at between 770,000 and 800,000 ounces, although Iamgold reduced its guidance for all-in sustaining costs by $75 an ounce.

The new guidance showed that Iamgold continues to make progress in reducing the cost structures of its cornerstone assets, Rosebel and Essakane, said a research note from CIBC World Markets. However, the slower ramp-up at Westwood and higher development capex could keep investors in the wait-and-see mode for now.

By Allen Sykora of Kitco News; asykora@kitco.com
Steve Zugschwerdt / Special to the Kitsap Sun The Theler Community Center in Belfair.

By Arla Shephard Bull

BELFAIR  North Mason School Board members heard a variety of ideas about how it should move forward with the financially strapped Mary Theler Community Center, from burning it down to starting a GoFundMe account, during a forum Wednesday.

The North Mason School District owns the community center in Belfair, but Superintendent Dana Rosenbach announced last month that the district will soon no longer receive funding to support the center.

The trust that benefactor Sam Theler set up in 1968 to support the property he gave the school district has been depleted, Rosenbach said.

The district is not permitted to support Theler using bond or levy funds, Rosenbach said during the forum at North Mason High School. "That's why we're here today."

Several people expressed support for keeping the Theler center under the purview of the school district, though managed by a nonprofit, as it had been until 2014, or a for-profit company.

"It warrants special consideration above what school districts do," Rick Calvin, of Grapeview, said. "I think it's appropriate for the school district to embrace the opportunity it has of this property, instead of trying to move away from it."

Calvin suggested involving more students with the property beyond the environmental education courses that are held at the wetlands classrooms, like teaching courses on grant writing and managing a budget or giving students an opportunity to engage in public service.

Mike Porter, of Belfair, proposed setting up an account through the GoFundMe crowdsourcing site to pay for repairs and upkeep at the community center, asking people on Facebook to support it, and building a spray park for kids.

Several people expressed support for tearing down the building and allowing a nonprofit to manage the wetlands and trails.

"I've been behind supporting Theler at all costs," said Belfair's Herb Gerhardt, echoing others before him. "However, do we have the finances to do it? Let's burn that building down. We really don't need another community center in Belfair. That building is an albatross."

The new Faith in Action senior center, scheduled to open next month on Old Belfair Highway, would suffice for the needs of North Mason for a community center, Gerhardt said.

Grapeview's Phil Wolff suggested turning the property over to Washington State Parks.

"Trails are not necessarily cheap," he said. "I don't want the school district that my kids went to and that I fund to pay for recreation opportunities."

Others simply expressed a desire to see the community center remain open at any cost.

"We're the recipients of an undeserving gift," Martin Ellis, of Allyn, said. "We're the heirs of a legacy, the executors of a dream. The Thelers considered us family and left us their prized possession. As we move forward, we should do it with the Thelers' hearts and souls in mind."

At the end of the night, Madelaine Trask Connelly, 7, spoke up.

"Theler center is a good place," she said. "It helps people like Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts learn. So I think we should keep the building there for people to be happy with Theler center."

THELER FUNDRAISER

What: "Bumped off Bourbon Street," a mystery dinner party fundraiser for Theler center

When: 6-8:30 p.m. Jan. 30

Where: Mary E. Theler Community Center, 22871 Highway 3 in Belfair

Cost: $40 per couple for dinner, including appetizers, salad, chicken and sausage jambalaya, shrimp, green beans almandine and rice. Wine and beer available for purchase. Dress in Mardi Gras attire.

Info: Call the Theler center at 360-275-4898.
<p>While holding the schultAete, Eliza Jurcak, 5, looks at newspaper article held by mom Christa Hinchcliffe that features her on her first day of school receiving the same schultAete from Christaas grandmother Gila. MEEGAN M. REID / KITSAP SUN</p>

SHARE Eliza Jurcak, 5, and her mother, Christa Hinchcliffe, with their families schultAete Thursday at their Bainbridge Island home. MEEGAN M. REID / KITSAP SUN Eliza Jurcak, 5, looks at the adornments on the schultAete. MEEGAN M. REID / KITSAP SUN Gisela Hinchcliffe with great-granddaughter Eliza. Contributed photo

By Chris Henry

BAINBRIDGE ISLAND  In a faded newspaper photo from 1978, a little girl stands in a doorway on her first day of kindergarten holding a giant cone-shaped object taller than her. She grins up at a woman silhouetted in the doorway, her grandmother Gisela Hinchcliffe.

The cone is full of treats and small gifts to sweeten the first day of school, a German tradition Hinchcliffe brought from her homeland.

The little girl, now a mother of two on Bainbridge Island, has carried on the tradition of the schultuete (pronounced SHUL-too-ta and roughly translated school bag.). On Friday, when Christa Hinchcliffes daughter Eliza, 5, heads to Wilkes Elementary School, she will get the same schultuete her mom received more than 30 years ago.

School starts Wednesday on Bainbridge for all students except kindergartners.

Other children in the family, including her son, Liam, 8, now entering third grade, have received the schultuete when it was their turn to start kindergarten.

Liam remembers that day, and how he was a little nervous to ride the bus by himself for the first time. Eliza will have her brothers company  and advice  when she steps onto the bus. Liam suggests she make some friends like he did.

Liam remembers being excited and surprised to get the schultuete, which held a treat, some Legos and school supplies.

When we sent Liam to kindergarten, I was very overwhelmed with emotion, both sadness and excitement, Christa Hinchcliffe said. But with Eliza, I feel so confident about her going to kindergarten. Shes definitely ready, very ready emotionally and mentally.

Corey Jurcak, Christas husband of Czech descent, enjoys the schultuete as much as his wife and kids.

I like having these European traditions in the family, so Im really supportive, Jurcak said.

The schultuete dates back to the early 19th century, according to German-born Vivian Lie, who sells pre-made cones through her Chicago-based KinderCone website. Some families give the schultuete at the start of every school year, Lie says.

Gisela Hildebrandt Hinchcliffe received her schultuete when she started first grade. She remembers getting fruit, a great luxury in that place and time.

As a young woman living in war-ravaged Berlin, she met John Hinchcliffe, who was serving in the Army during World War II. They married in 1949.

When grandchildren came along Gisela Hinchcliffe decide it was time to revive the tradition of her youth. She created the schultuete out of an old cardboard box. She covered it in shiny silver paper and decorated it with stickers of flowers, stars and alphabet letters.

When Christa Hinchcliffe started school at Riverview Elementary in Snohomish, Grandma Gila was there to see her off with a cone full of German chocolates and small toys.

I was very excited, because I knew my grandma was coming over, but I had no idea why. Hinchcliffe said.

The Everett Herald documented the event.

Gisela Hinchcliffe enjoys sharing other German traditions with her family. There are pictures of the kids in lederhosen, German-style advent calendars and a paper Santa Claus boot with a paper whip in it.

Supposedly when youre good you get an apple or orange, and if youre not good, you get hit with the whip, she said.

But its all in fun. It is after all a paper whip.

The schultuete, now in its second generation of service, has seen some wear. Its pointy end is a little squished and the top is girded together with green Duct tape. It has become a cherished heirloom. After Eliza, her cousin Miles, now 3, will be the next great-grandchild to get the schultuete.

For Hinchcliffe, of Lake Stevens, widowed since 2001, seeing the schultuete put to use again is gratifying.

I just love it, and Im hoping that my great-grandchildren are going to continue that, Hinchcliffe said.

Last week, Eliza was looking at the Everett Herald clipping.

Mom, you were 5 years old when you started! she said, amazed to think her mother was once her age.

Perhaps a couple of decades from now or more, Eliza will be giving the schultuete to her 5-year-old child.
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By Larry Little

Last October our Independent Thinkers meeting heard from Bremerton's police chief, our county prosecutor and a senior representative from Olympic College in a conversation about violence in our communities. In part the topic was picked to focus on what seemed to be a dominant fear in our county, based on the recent news of a shooting at a community college in Oregon.

In December my column mentioned bomb threats at schools both in Kitsap County and elsewhere in the state, and I emphasized that "one of the best ways to address fear is by good advance planning."

As it's obvious that local threats can come in many forms, at least one of them being in the form of an earthquake, I was pleased that the Kitsap Sun ran a series of in-depth articles earlier this month on our earthquake risk. Most appropriately the first in that series was titled "Seattle Fault: Our Big One," and the next day's article was headlined, "Ready to rely on neighbors." I was especially impressed with the preparations that a community in Port Orchard already has made to stockpile supplies and coordinate their response.

I still recall where I was and how I felt when the so-called Nisqually Quake of 6.8 occurred in 2001. I ran to my shipyard complex office door and stood in the doorway, and for the moment being in such a state of shock, I let myself enjoy the shaking as if I was on a Disneyland ride. While I soon came back to reality, I stepped into another problem, as the naval command didn't have an earthquake plan to share at that moment, and even had some trouble assessing who was in charge.

Last week I had a chance to talk with both Kitsap County's director of emergency management and my daughter-in-law, who is in a similar position for the University of Washington Medical Center.

Mike Gordon emphasized that earthquakes were assessed as the greatest risk, with landslides an associated problem. He noted that preparation plans addressing various threats, including terrorism, by the various naval commands in our area are in much better shape than in 2001. He is available to help neighborhoods create and maintain effective plans.

Our daughter-in-law also mentioned that earthquakes are a top priority threat for hospitals, with complete power failures, water contamination, Internet loss and civil disturbances as also significant. They run drills more often than the required annual ones, and often do very specialized ones.

After these conversations, I felt reassured that significant progress has been made in assessing the primary risks facing both communities, and at least one hospital.

It seems to me that fundamental preparation is key for the vastly unpredictable traumas of the future, whether they be a nuclear attack, terrorism, a serious cyber incident, massive floods, earthquakes or some other form of natural calamity.

However, the national mood right now appears to be angry and fearful, as the rhetoric of leading presidential candidates reflect. That angst is as real as the fear of earthquakes.

The question is how to address the collective mood and deal with the threats, tangible and intangible.

Stated another way, what really is the "fundamental preparation" needed to address our fears? My sense is that above and beyond all of the written comprehensive plans and drills, the real preparation is much deeper, much harder to achieve, and is always an ongoing process over generations.

It was wonderful to see what has happened in certain publicized cases in response to an emergency, such as the Muslims who refused to identify Christians on a bus overtaken by terrorists, or in New York after 9/11. However, on the societal level, fundamental structural integrity has proved the best indicator of a sustainable and enduring response, especially in the case of an ongoing challenge or crisis. I cite for example the families who sheltered runaway slaves in 18th century America, how Americans worked together to address the challenges of World War II and getting to the moon in the 1960s, and the families who sheltered Jews (including Anne Frank) during the Holocaust.

While local leadership is encouraging, I hope to find some national leadership on these and other fronts when I travel in early February to New Hampshire to attend as many town halls as possible  by presidential candidates of both political parties.

Stay safe and fear not.
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By Tom Philpott

On Jan. 8, six days before he closed out a 45-year Marine Corps career, his last job leading U.S. Southern Command, Gen. John F. Kelly sounded an alarm, which he must have hoped would be heard on Capitol Hill.

Kelly was asked at his final Pentagon news conference to comment on Defense Secretary Ashton Carter's Dec. 3 decision that every combat job, without exception, be opened to women who meet gender-neutral standards.

This and every decision impacting on the military, Kelly answered, should have "only one filter  Does it make us more lethal on the battlefield?"

If the answer "is, 'It shouldn't hurt,' (then) I would suggest that we shouldn't do it, because it might hurt," said Kelly. His great fear is that standards will be lowered, regardless of current promises that they won't be.

"There will be great pressure, whether it's 12 months from now, four years from now, because the question will be asked (after) we've let women into these other roles, 'Why aren't they staying ? Why aren't they advancing ? Why aren't they becoming  more senior?' And the answer  will be 'If we don't change standards, it will be very, very difficult to have any  real numbers come into the infantry or the Rangers or the SEALs.' "

Over time, lowering standards will be "the only way it'll work (for) the agenda-driven people here in Washington," Kelly said.

Attention now turns to Congress where some lawmakers, worried about readiness, hope to modify Carter's no-exception policy and will comb through individual services' implementation plans. Other members of Congress will advocate for a swift opening of all combat skills and units to women who have the physical and mental toughness for these jobs.

About 10 percent of current military positions, almost 220,000 jobs, remain closed to women, mostly in infantry, armor, reconnaissance and some special operations units. The Marine Corps was the only service to seek to exempt some front-line combat skills from gender integration. It argued mixed gender units would be less capable in ground combat, and female Marines routinely would suffer more occupation-related injuries.

Carter rejected the Corps request, saying combat effectiveness remains a priority but it can be preserved through careful implementation and adherence to tough gender-neutral standards to fill every skill.

"There will be women who can meet the physical requirements of these specialties, even as there are men who cannot," Carter said.

By law, Carter must report to Congress on plans to open units or positions previously closed to women. He also must provide analysis on how removing all combat restrictions should impact the law governing a military draft. Only male 18-year-olds now need to register with Selective Service.

Congress then will have 30 calendar days to review Carter's report, which presumably will include detailed implementation plans from Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Special Operations Command. Congress has authority to order changes if a majority of lawmakers have concerns over how opening all skills will affect readiness, unit cohesion or other issues.

Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., chairmen of the armed services committees, issued a joint statement promising a careful review, saying opening all combat positions to women will have "a consequential impact" on service members and war fighting capabilities.

Republicans, who form the majority on both committees, are said to fall into two camps: those awaiting more information and those opposed to Carter's decision. Rep. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., said there are at least as many lawmakers like her who will fiercely oppose any delay. A retired Army National Guard officer, Duckworth lost both legs and partial use of an arm to a rocket-propelled grenade while piloting a Black Hawk helicopter in Iraq.

Of Kelly's comments, Duckworth said she's "not surprised there would be a general somewhere who would say something along these lines. But  none of the women who are going to apply (and) meet the standards to serve in these units want the units to be less capable or less deadly."

"If anything the women will fight  to make sure standards aren't lowered," added Duckworth, who serves on the armed services committee and is running for the Senate against first-termer Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Ill.

Duckworth recalled how she and the only other woman in her flight school "fought as hard as we could to make sure people understood we were just as good of pilots are the guys were" and sought no special treatment.

Looking back, Duckworth said, "I couldn't qualify for Rangers school but a lot of he guys can't either. Whatever percentage of women can, even if it's two percent, let them do the job!"

In the last 14 years, 161 U.S. military women have died in Afghanistan and Iraq, and 1,016 have been wounded. Women are in combat, Duckworth said; indeed the U.S. military can't go to war without them. The question is can some women "drag a 250-pound dead weight, which is what we consider to be a fully combat-equipped soldier? Can you drag your buddy to safety while continuing to fire your weapon and do your job? If you can, and you're ready to lay down your life for your country, good for you. Go do it."

The House Armed Services Committee plans a hearing on this soon. One member expected to lead the opposition is Rep. Duncan D. Hunter, R-Calif., a major in the Marine Corps Reserve who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. Last September he asked Navy Secretary Ray Mabus' to resign over his public criticism of the Corps' request for certain skill exemptions.

This month in a pair of letters to Carter, Hunter attacked Mabus' Jan. 1 order that the Marine Corps in 15 days provide a plan to move to mixed gender training of all recruits and officer candidates. Hunter said gender-segregated training is supported by "decades of scientific and individual consensus" and "everything we have come to  understand about warfare."

Mabus' "social meddling," he warned, won't strengthen Marines' ability to close with and destroy the enemy but instead "will put lives at risk."

Hunter told us he hopes to have language inserted in the defense authorization bill "to at least look at this issue more closely before making such a drastic change. And we need more members on both sides of the aisle to address this too. It can't just be the (Iraq and Afghanistan War) veterans who are taking this on."
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Home Federal Bank PATRICK/NEWS SENTINEL)

SHARE David Reynolds has been named president of Home Federal Bank Home Federal Bank Executive Vice President Debra Smith (from left) and President Dale Keasling name Gregory Walters a Hometown Hero and the program's overall 2013 winner at a ceremony at the bank's Fountain City branch May 2, 2013. Walters designated his $5,000 award to Friends of Literacy, and Executive Director Melissa Nance, right, accepted the funds on the organization's behalf.

By Shelley Kimel of the Knoxville News Sentinel

Knoxville-based Home Federal Bank is making some room at the top with changes to senior bank roles, including a new president.

Longtime leader Dale Keasling will remain chairman and CEO for the "foreseeable future," but senior bank officer David Reynolds will take over as president, the bank announced Friday.

"Looking at succession planning is very important ... I've held this position as president, chairman and CEO for more than 10 years and we thought it was important to let people know inside and outside the bank who'd be in executive leadership in the long run," Keasling said.

Reynolds, who has been with the bank for 20 years, previously served as executive vice president and manager of commercial banking for Home Federal.

"David Reynolds is an extremely capable, experienced and respected banker who understands the important position that Home Federal Bank holds in our community," Keasling said. "He will continue the long-standing tradition of ensuring that Home Federal Bank remains the quality bank our customers have come to know and respect."

Keasling had been the bank's president for 24 years, he said.

The bank also moved two of its executive vice presidents into C-level positions.

Debra Smith has been named chief administrative officer for the bank and Terry Rowland has been named chief lending officer. Both have held leadership roles with the bank for more than 30 years.
Stella Harris and Bob Smiddy wait to check baggage for a holiday flight at McGhee Tyson Airport in Alcoa Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2015. (AMY SMOTHERMAN BURGESS/NEWS SENTINEL)

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By Ed Marcum of the Knoxville News Sentinel

The winter storm pressing in on Tennessee over the weekend was already having an effect on operations at Knoxville's McGhee Tyson Airport Thursday.

Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority spokeswoman Becky Huckaby said she did not have numbers, but on Thursday airlines canceled several flights that were to have taken place over the weekend mostly to Washington, D.C. and Charlotte, N.C>

"They did that as a pre-emptive measure in anticipation of the storm," Huckaby said Friday.

Travelers scheduled for those flights have been contacted by the airlines, she said.

There were no more cancellations Friday, but McGhee Tyson Airport was seeing some delays, Huckaby said. Passengers may check the status of flights at the McGhee Tyson website at www.tys.org or check directly with their airlines, she said.

"We are asking passengers if you are flying out of McGhee Tyson over the next 24 to 48 hours to contact their airlines," Huckaby said. "It is very important that when you make your reservation for a flight to leave the airline a number where they can reach you."

Huckaby urged travelers to have patience, because the airlines must make decisions based on passenger safety.

"We understand everybody has places they need to go and things to do, but some of this is out of the hands of the airports and the airlines," she said. "Hopefully, all this will be just an inconvenience."
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Sample a chocolate treat from each of the vendors for just $15 at the 2016 Chocolate Fest. The event is taking place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 30, at the Knoxville Expo Center. If you want to simply browse the sweet art and let your children enjoy the kids' vendors, entry is free. Proceeds benefit the Ronald McDonald House, and tickets can be pre-purchased at Sugarbakers Cake, Candy & Wedding Supplies at 514 Merchants Road or Imagination Forest at 7613 Blueberry Road in Powell. More: Knoxville Expo Center - 5441 Clinton Hwy, www.chocolatefestknoxville.com

The University of Tennessee Medical Center's Cancer Institute thanks Tori Parker and Sevier County for their generous donation. For the past six years, Tori has collected change in Sevier County to help cancer patients. Each January, she donates what she has collected to the Breast Health Outreach Program at UT Medical Center. This year, she collected $4,394.59.

Tickets are now available for Mardi Gras Night, which will begin at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 6. The Optimist Club of Knoxville's 10th Annual Benefit Dinner and Auction raises funds for numerous projects benefiting local children. Food will be provided by Rothchild Catering. The special venue for this dinner is on the UT campus, Neyland Stadium, in the Tennessee Terrace (at Gate 19). Free parking will be available at Lot 9, directly across the street from the entrance. Tickets will be available until Monday, Feb. 1, at www.optimistclubofknoxville.org/auction.htm. Price is $75 each plus an online service fee. The exact address of the venue is Neyland Stadium, 1265 Phillip Fulmer Way, Knoxville, TN 37916.
Marcus Douglas Washington

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By Jamie Satterfield of the Knoxville News Sentinel

The legal dividing line between pimp and human trafficker rests on a cellphone, the Internet and condoms, a federal judge has ruled.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Guyton faced a new twist in an ongoing legal debate over the reach of the federal government in prosecuting crimes traditionally handled in state courts in the case of Marcus Douglas Washington, who's accused at the state level as a pimp.

Washington, 38, is already charged in Knox County Criminal Court with counts including promotion of prostitution and human trafficking of two women in Knoxville between August 2013 and September 2014. But in a case being shepherded by the U.S. Justice Department's Civil Rights Division as part of a new push against sex trafficking, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Knoxville last year charged Washington under the federal Trafficking and Violence Protection Act, using the same particulars as alleged in the state case.

Assistant Federal Defender Jonathan Moffatt cried foul, calling the case a classic overreach by the federal government since, he says, Washington and the two women are Knoxville residents, the sex acts were carried out in Knoxville and, presumably, the customers also local.

In order for a state crime to be prosecuted under federal law, prosecutors must show what is known as an "interstate nexus"  proof the crime played out across state lines, somehow affected commerce between states or involved goods manufactured outside the state in which the crime occurred. There has long been legal debate, all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, on exactly what that means. For instance, federal prosecutors now routinely file charges in convenience store robberies when either the violence was particularly great or the suspect particularly dangerous, even though the crime itself is local. To prove interstate nexus, authorities merely have to show an item in the store was manufactured outside the state.

Moffatt contends Assistant U.S. Attorney Brooklyn Sawyers and Justice Department trial attorney Nicholas Durham can make no such showing.

"Local prostitution and pimping is undoubtedly a state crime left to the law enforcement authorities of the state of Tennessee," Moffat wrote. "The state of Tennessee is the primary sovereign when it comes to making policy decisions about pimping and prostitution."

Durham isn't saying whether he and Sawyers have some additional evidence on the issue of interstate nexus up their sleeves, but he argued at a hearing before Guyton the allegation that Washington supplied the women with condoms made out of state and used a cellphone and websites to advertise and set up sex transactions ought to be enough to allow the case to go to a federal jury.

Guyton agreed, although he wrote in a footnote to his decision he remains a bit dubious of condoms, manufactured outside the state, alone as proof enough of an interstate nexus to merit a federal sex trafficking case.

PDF: U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Guytons ruling

"The undersigned shares some of the defendant's concern over the breadth of an interstate commerce nexus derived exclusively from condoms and cellphones, however the court notes that in the instant case, the government proffered that the defendant also used the Internet to advertise commercial sex acts," Guyton wrote. "The use of an instrumentality of interstate commerce (the Internet) suffices to affect interstate commerce."

Durham also is fighting back against Moffatt's assertion in a motion that the two women at issue in the case voluntarily engaged in prostitution and therefore are not sex-trafficking victims as intended for protection by Congress.

"The evidence in this case will show that defendant used physical force and threatened serious bodily injury against the victims and their families as one method to maintain their participation in commercial sex acts," Durham wrote. "The evidence will show that over the course of his relationship with the victims, defendant created a large amount of sexually explicit photographs, artistic renderings or videos of the victims, which he would then use to advertise their services as prostitutes. The evidence will show that, as to other witnesses, even after defendant ended a relationship with a particular woman, he would often continue to post their nude or sexually explicit photographs online for his own pecuniary gain. Additionally, defendant has threatened at least one of the victims with exposing her involvement in prostitution to family members and others in order to coerce her continued participation."

Washington's state case is on hold pending outcome of the federal case. The federal trial before Senior U.S. District Judge Leon Jordan is set for April, but Washington earlier this month insisted on a new taxpayer-funded attorney. Jordan last week appointed attorney Phil Lomonaco to take over the case.
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By Mamie Kuykendall of the Knoxville News Sentinel

A Jefferson City woman is awaiting extradition to North Carolina for allegedly murdering a woman there in 2014, according to the Jefferson City Police Department.

Officers Wednesday arrested Felicia M. Barnes, 38, in her East Rhoten Street home around 6 p.m. for allegedly murdering Danielle Alicia Chance of Samson County, N.C., according to police.

The Samson County Sheriff's Office discovered suspected human remains of the recently reported murder, and in the subsequent investigation learned a potential suspect had relocated to Tennessee, according to authorities.

Items potentially related to the slaying were recovered in Barnes' home, according to police.

Barnes currently is at the Jefferson County Justice Center.

Details of the murder were not made immediately available.

More details as they develop online and in Saturday's News Sentinel.
Justice gavel in courtroom.

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By News Sentinel Staff

CLINTON  According to a lawsuit, a renter of an Oak Ridge house sustained "unusual bouts of pneumonia and significant problems with his breathing" while living there and tested positive for mold in his blood stream.

An Anderson County Circuit Court lawsuit seeking $4.3 million in punitive damages alleges the landlord at first intimidated the renters into refraining from seeking legal action over their concerns.

Tom and Kathy Swiney, who resided in the rental house at 696 West Outer, filed the complaint against James and Kim Smith, listed in the lawsuit as residents of Oliver Springs.

According to the complaint, Tom Swiney began suffering a "significant deterioration of his health" during the time he lived in the rental house. He was "recklessly poisoned" by mold in the house, it alleges, and that will likely cause his death.

The legal action contends James Smith "failed to inspect and prevent toxic contamination" of the growth of mold in the rental house, and that "overall reckless neglect" was the basis for part of this "toxic dilemma."

After Tom Swiney's health woes were allegedly caused by the mold, he informed Smith, the legal action states. Discussions arose, it continues.

"Mr. Smith became coercive and abused his position of power as the landlord and induced the plaintiffs to be intimidated and refrain from seeking legal action."

According to the complaint, Smith "thereafter threatened Plaintiffs with severe economic consequences, including a lawsuit for breaking a lease "

That action "initially prevented Plaintiffs from evacuating the premises due to fear and economic helplessness," the complaint alleges.

After Tom Swiney's diagnosis of mold in his bloodstream, the lawsuit contends James Smith "sprayed the residence  in order to spoliate any evidence and conceal that he had recklessly poisoned the plaintiff."

The lawsuit seeks an initial $2.5 million in punitive damages along with an additional $1.8 million judgment "due to Mr. Smith's fraudulent attempt to cover up his creation of Plaintiff's injuries."
Milsaps Bus Lines buses sitting at 9305 Dutchtown Road as a snow event in Knoxville caused Knox and area schools to close Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016. (MICHAEL PATRICK/NEWS SENTINEL)

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By Lydia X. McCoy of the Knoxville News Sentinel

KNOXVILLE  After Knox County Schools used all eight of its built-in snow days in the 2013-2014 school year  and make up a day  the district decided to air on the side of caution and add some additional days to its calendar moving forward.

For the last two school years, the school system has had 10 snow days built into the calendar to give them some additional days to accommodate for East Tennessee winters.

The school system can cancel up to 10 instructional days due to inclement weather before any makeup days will be required. Friday marked its third consecutive day out as the area hunkered down in anticipation of 3 to 4 inches of snow expected to hit Knoxville over the weekend.

Schools Superintendent Jim McIntyre said Friday his decision to close school for a third day was a difficult one.

"But with a winter storm warning taking effect at 1 p.m., and some uncertainty around weather conditions at dismissal time, I felt it was important to take the most careful and prudent option and cancel school," he said.

McIntyre noted that on two occasions within the last five years he has had to call Knox County Sheriff Jimmy "J.J." Jones to ask him to send deputies in his military surplus Humvees to pick up students who were stranded on school buses because of snow.

"Both of those instances had a happy ending and law enforcement did a marvelous job, but I never want to be in a position where we have to do that again," he said.

The superintendent said the district has a "generous" number of days built into the calendar to make decisions exclusively on student safety.

"We have now used three of our 10 snow days, but if conditions require us to use more than 10 inclement weather days and make them up later, we will do that," McIntyre said.

"Despite the inconvenience and logistical challenges this might create, it is certainly worth it to keep our kids safe."
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By News Sentinel Staff

LDA Engineering, in Alcoa, announced Thursday it will commit $250,000 of employee volunteer time and financial donations over the next 10 years to several East Tennessee school systems, including Knox County, toward initiatives in STEM, or science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

The initiative, which will be used to help ensure the advancement and promotion of innovative thinking and STEM-focused learning in Tennessee's classrooms, is part of the civil and environmental engineering firm's move to a new office space in Tyson Centre in Alcoa.

"LDA Engineering is focused on a greater commitment to serving the communities where we live and work, and with that focus we wish to support and participate in activities that will develop future professional engineers and scientists," said LDA President and CEO Jason Brooks in a statement.

"We strongly believe in the educational initiatives of STEM programs, and we want to support these initiatives with the commitment of our time, support and resources. STEM programs are the best opportunity we have to introduce engineering early in the learning process to facilitate and encourage continued interest in math and science."

The company will launch the initiative this year in the following school systems  Alcoa City, Maryville City, Blount County, the Clayton-Bradley STEM Academy, Knox County Schools including the L&N STEM Academy, Oak Ridge and Hamblen County.

The way the initiative will work, LDA will make an annual call for applications to identify partner programs for the upcoming academic year. Once the firm has chosen the projects it will devote employee staff time and charitable giving dollars to advance core missions and activities of the selected programs. Each employee will put in between 8 and 16 hours of paid time annually.

Applications for the inaugural class are initially due on March 31, 2016.
US Nitrogen warehouse. (ADAM LAU/NEWS SENTINEL)

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By Hugh G. Willett

Even as the controversial pipeline that would take water to and from the Nolichucky River for use by the US Nitrogen plant moved closer and closer to his property, Greene County resident Don Bible was confident he could take legal action to stop the machines from digging on his property.

"We're not living in Russia," he said.

Almost a year later, with the double pipeline installed across his land and ready to start pumping water to the plant just a few miles down the road, Bible and other local residents are still not willing to admit defeat.

"We're not quitting but we're not holding our breath either," he said.

Although several lawsuits to stop the pipeline have been dismissed, at least one lawsuit that involved a possible violation of the Open Meetings Act is still waiting to be heard on appeal.

Bible said he and the others are a long way from giving up.

"We've been living here 50 years. They won't have no peace as long as we're still here," he said.

Recently Bible and others living near the pipeline filed an amended complaint against the Tennessee Department of Transportation, seeking to void the right-of-way permit that allowed the pipeline to be built across their land without their permission.

The complaint contends TDOT issued a permit to a private company for a right-of-way to install the pipeline under authority that by law is designed to provide permits to a utility. Neither US Nitrogen nor the Greene County Industrial Development Board are utilities, the complaint alleges.

Although TDOT initially denied the permit for a right of way on the basis that such a permit could not be provided for private use of a single company, the permit was eventually granted to the IDB.

TDOT spokesman Mark Nagi said he could not comment on the recent filing because the case is being handled by the state attorney general.

Elizabeth Murphy, attorney for the residents, said she isn't surprised that TDOT doesn't want to comment.

"The state doesn't like the state to be challenged, even when the state is doing something illegal," she said.

In October of 2014, the complaint states, an agreed order signed by US Nitrogen and the IDB assured Bible his property rights would be respected.

In February 2015, construction crews protected by armed members of the Greene County Sheriff's Office entered his property and installed the pipeline without regard to the evidence, including a report from a licensed surveyor and a title attorney, showing they were on private property, Bible said.

He said he and other residents have no objection to the operation of the plant.

"We just want them to buy their water from Greeneville like they said they would in the first place," Bible said.

A spokesperson for the attorney general said the state has filed a motion to dismiss the case on the grounds that the plaintiffs do not have standing to challenge the permits and that it is not clear any damages were caused by the actions of TDOT in granting the permit for the right of way.
The label of a package of recalled ground beef produced by Snapp's Ferry Packing Company in Afton, Tenn. The establishment is recalling approximately 410 pounds of beef product that may be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced. The ground beef item was produced on Nov. 20, 2015. (USDA)





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By Mary Constantine of the Knoxville News Sentinel

Snapp's Ferry Packing Company of Afton, Tenn., is recalling 410 pounds of ground beef feared to be contaminated with E. coli bacteria, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service.

The recall follows 13 cases of foodborne illness in Knox County and a positive result for the E. coli 0157: H7 bacteria confirmed by the inspection service on Tuesday. The contamination was linked back to the packing company's product.

"To date, none of those who experienced ill health effects after consuming the meat required hospitalization.  We believe the risk for further illness related to this product has been mitigated," said Dr. Martha Buchanan, director of the Knox County Health Department.

The Oliver Royale, Good Golly Tamale and Savory and Sweet Truck are the three local eateries involved in the outbreak. Buchanan said each establishment has displayed "excellent cooperation" during the investigation and subsequent recall.

The county and the Tennessee Department of Health "worked cooperatively during the last two months" to investigate the 13 cases in Knox County, Buchanan said.

More recently, the USDA joined the investigation and on Wednesday issued the recall, she said.

The ground beef was produced on Nov. 20 and distributed wholesale to Knoxville restaurants in 5-pound packages. The packages are easily identifiable by the Est. 9085 designation noted within the USDA inspection stamp. No packages were distributed to grocery stores or other retail outlets.

Jeremy Southerland, owner of Snapp's Ferry Packing Company, said he is cooperating thoroughly as well.

"Right now it is still an ongoing investigation and we are working closely with the USDA," he said.

The USDA has designated the recall as a Class I outbreak, which means there is a "reasonable probability that the use of the product will cause serious, adverse health consequences or death," according to a news release.

E. coli 0157: H7 is a potentially deadly bacterium that can cause abdominal cramps, dehydration and bloody diarrhea. Most people recover from the symptoms within two to eight days after exposure, but kidney failure is possible, especially for children under age 5 and for older adults.
SHARE Psychologist Lance Laurence

By Kristi L. Nelson of the Knoxville News Sentinel

A longtime Knoxville psychologist was reprimanded by the state and fined $1,000 last month, after a May incident in which he dragged a child across his carpeted office floor.

Lance Laurence, a psychologist at the Westfield Center, had been providing psychotherapy for the 11-year-old boy for 10 months at the time of the May 13, 2015, incident, the report said.

On that date, it said, the boy "cried continuously throughout the therapy session" and refused to leave Laurence's office at the end of the session. Laurence then tried forcing the boy to stand, the report said, but the boy "resisted." Laurence then "grabbed (the boy's) ankle and drug him across the carpeted floor." The report notes photographs show the boy had carpet burns from the incident.

On Dec. 10, the Tennessee Board of Examiners in Psychology found Laurence violated part of the Tennessee Psychology Practice Act with "unprofessional, dishonorable or unethical conduct" during the incident. The board issued a reprimand on Laurence's license  his first since he received his Tennessee license in 1981  and ordered him to pay a $1,000 civil penalty, be assessed on his "fitness to safely practice psychology" through a program at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, and complete a continuing education course relevant to the problem. In addition, he had to repay the state all costs associated with prosecuting the case. He still can practice.

"Dr. Laurence is a well-respected member of the psychology profession and has been serving this community for 35 years," said Laurence's attorney, Jennifer Pearson Taylor of London Amburn Attorneys at Law. "He had never received a complaint prior to this unfortunate incident, nor has he received one since."

Taylor said patient privacy prevents Laurence from commenting on the specific incident, but that he "cooperated fully" with the investigation and "looks forward to serving this community for many years to come."

Laurence had until recently been director of the University of Tennessee's Psychological Clinic. UT spokeswoman Lola Alapo said an interim director was hired three years ago, with a plan for Laurence to transition into retiring from the clinic. He did not directly interact with clients, she said. Alapo said Laurence will to teach in the university's Department of Psychology.

Laurence was Psychologist of the Year for the American Psychological Association in 1998 and for the Tennessee Psychological Association in 1994. In 1998, he received the American Psychological Association's Karl Heiser Lifetime Achievement Award.

He is a past president of the Tennessee Psychological Association and served on the White House Health Advisory Review Committee in 1993-94.
<p>Carlos McKnight of Washington, waves a flag in support of gay marriage outside of the Supreme Court in Washington, Friday June 26, 2015. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)</p>

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By Richard Locker

NASHVILLE  A day after state lawmakers killed a legislative effort to ban same-sex marriage in Tennessee, five residents filed a lawsuit opening a new court challenge that they hope will eventually lead the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse its 2015 ruling legalizing same-sex marriage across the nation.

The lawsuit, filed in Williamson County Chancery Court, specifically asks state courts to declare Tennessee's marriage license law  which still says that a license can be issued only to one male and one female  is invalid in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling.

As a result, the suit asks that Williamson County Clerk Elaine Anderson be enjoined from issuing any marriage licenses until the issue is resolved. The county, just south of Nashville, is heavily Republican and the state's most affluent county but David Fowler, the lawyer who filed it, said it was filed there only because he and the five plaintiffs live there.

The plaintiffs include three ministers, who say they are subject to criminal penalties under the Tennessee law if they fail to sign and return a marriage license to the issuing clerk's office within three days after solemnizing the marriage. The suit asks the court to declare that the criminal sanction is unenforceable if the ministers do not sign or return it because they are unsure if the license law is valid.

Fowler, a former state senator who heads the conservative Family Action Council of Tennessee, said that the lawsuit is essentially a means to return the same-sex marriage issue to the courts where he hopes it will eventually work its way back to the U.S. Supreme Court and create an opportunity for the high court to reverse its June 26 ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges.

"The bottom line is to say to the state courts of Tennessee, you have to decide what the Supreme Court of the United States really did," he said. "They purported to do two things that are mutually exclusive: rule a law invalid and then rule that everyone has a right to get married under an invalid law. That inconsistency must be pointed out, raised and resolved. And this lawsuit seeks to do that."

In essence, Fowler said he believes that by striking down the part of Tennessee law that limits the issuance of marriage licenses to one man and one woman, the Supreme Court effectively made the entire Tennessee marriage license statute invalid under a legal doctrine called "elision" because the Tennessee Legislature never intended the license statute to apply to same-sex couples.

But, he said, the court cannot and did not enact a new Tennessee marriage license law and neither has the Tennessee Legislature, which he said is the only entity with the legal power to write laws setting out the duties of Tennessee county clerks.

Fowler said he's representing the plaintiffs through the Constitutional Government Defense Fund, which he said is an arm of his Family Action Council. He said he is looking for "people with the courage to speak up" to file similar suits in East Tennessee and in Shelby County.

Hedy Weinberg, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee, called the lawsuit "just one more attempt to circumvent" the Supreme Court's same-sex marriage ruling. "It undermines our American value that the government should treat everyone equally under the law and not discriminate.

"Obergefell ensures that loving, committed same-sex couples in Tennessee and nationwide who want to build and share a life together will be treated with the same respect and dignity as everyone else," she said. "The decision made clear that the freedom to marry is a fundamental right protected by the United States Constitution and this decision is the law of the land. Regardless of any personal opinions to the contrary, Obergefell in no way affects the religious liberty of those who are against marriage equality."
Mark Harmon, Knoxville News Sentinel columnist.

In less than a year we will inaugurate a new president of the United States, so this may be a good time to examine how we select that person.

More specifically, it's time to abolish the Electoral College.

The original intent for the Electoral College was for it to be a deliberative body. Federalist Paper No. 68 in 1788 declared it should be comprised of "men most capable of analyzing the qualities adapted to the station, and acting under circumstances favorable to deliberation, and to a judicious combination of all the reasons and inducements which were proper to govern their choice."

Long ago the Electoral College strayed from that intent.

Electors are party functionaries who merely cast the expected vote. It is now a system that turns the presidential election into 50 separate state races scored in a skewed manner.

Each state gets a number of electors equal to the number of people it sends to the House and Senate. Because each state gets two U.S. senators regardless of population, this skews higher the value of votes in small states.

FairVote.org tallied how this structural flaw operates.

In a typical state, each electoral vote represents 545,828 people. In Wyoming, however, each electoral vote represents 168,843 people. Thus, a vote cast in Wyoming is 3.23 times more influential that a vote cast elsewhere. In contrast, a California vote is worth only 85 percent of a vote cast elsewhere.

The reality of swing states adds to the distortive qualities of the Electoral College.

Statistician Nate Silver, just hours before the 2012 election, calculated the probabilities for certain states providing the decisive electoral votes. Ohio led the list at 49.8 percent, followed by Virginia and Nevada at 12.3 percent and 9.9 percent, respectively. Alan Green, writing in The State, calculated that a swing-state vote in Florida is 500 times more valuable than a vote cast in non-swing South Carolina.

Four times the Electoral College has denied the presidency to the winner of the popular vote. In 1824 John Quincy Adams became president despite getting 38,221 fewer votes than Andrew Jackson. In 1876 Samuel Tilden had 252,666 more votes than Rutherford B. Hayes, but Hayes became president. In 1888 Benjamin Harrison became president despite having 94,530 fewer votes than Grover Cleveland. In 2000 George W. Bush obtained the presidency, but Al Gore had 543,816 more votes.

A constitutional amendment could require each state's chief election officer to report the popular presidential vote in each state, with the presidential/vice presidential ticket with the most votes securing the offices. Such a change would align with past democratization trends.

Our Constitution has been amended 17 times since the original Bill of Rights, and six of those amendments expanded popular voting.

The 15th Amendment extended voting to those previously held as slaves, while the 17th Amendment created direct popular election of U.S. senators. The 19th Amendment guaranteed to women the right to vote, while the 23rd brought in District of Columbia residents, and the 24th prohibited poll taxes. The 26th extended voting to 18-year-olds.

Two Supreme Court cases, Baker v. Carr in 1962 and Reynolds v. Sims in 1964, turn on the equal value of each vote cast, the important principle of one person-one vote. Let's advance the principle further by relying on the popular presidential vote and ending the Electoral College.
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A joint committee in the state Legislature has come up with a sensible compromise plan outlining the process for judicial confirmations in Tennessee. The plan ends a year-long impasse on how to approve a nominee to the state's Supreme Court and two appellate courts, and if approved by both legislative chambers would clear the way for a vote to fill a Supreme Court vacancy in the coming weeks.

Though matters of process often appeal only to policy wonks, the issue is important because it involves the larger concepts of checks and balances and separation of powers that are a fundamental part of both state and national governments. The state Supreme Court and the appellate courts are not rubber-stamps for the Legislature or the governor, but at times will be called on to rule on the possible excesses of both and ensure that all citizens of the state are due the equal protection of the laws.

The confirmation process took on some immediacy this session because Gov. Bill Haslam has nominated Roger Amos Page of Jackson to the state Supreme Court, replacing Gary Wade, who resigned last year. If no plan is approved within 60 days of the opening of the session, Page will be confirmed automatically.

In 2014, Tennessee voters ratified a constitutional amendment restructuring the process by which Supreme Court justices and appellate court judges  a total of 24 in the three courts  are selected and confirmed. The governor still appoints the new justice or judge, but now the Legislature has a direct hand in the confirmation.

The Legislature has to develop its own rules for the confirmation process. Last year, the House and Senate approved separate plans. A conference committee agreed that a majority of the 132 legislators in the House and Senate would constitute approval of the candidate. Then, late in the session, senators began doing the math, and the process didn't add up to their liking. A majority of both houses equals 67 members, two-thirds of the 99-member House alone. Thus, 67 members of the House could approve a judicial nominee even if every single senator rejected the nominee.

Some argued that rejection by either chamber should scuttle a nomination. Others contended that, if the houses disagree, the clock should keep ticking toward an automatic confirmation.

The compromise, the brainchild of state Rep. Jon Lundberg, R-Bristol, calls for the Legislature to meet in joint session. A simple majority would be needed for confirmation, but the plan would allow one chamber to reject a nominee with a two-thirds vote of its members. The high threshold for a single-chamber rejection could prevent default confirmations in the event that one party controls the House and the other controls the Senate. It also should act a safeguard against a fringe lawmaker hijacking a confirmation vote.

Members of the committee praised Lundberg's solution on a bipartisan basis, according to the Tennessean, and voted 10-0 for its passage. Votes in the House and Senate could occur as early as Monday.

Lawmakers should approve this reasonable method of fulfilling their constitutional responsibility in judicial selection.
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The Republican-led Legislature seems content to ignore the economic and health benefits that would come from passage of Insure Tennessee. They won't even vote on it. So much for doing the will of the people, since a majority of Tennesseans support it.

The problem is that the funding would come from the federal government, and they refuse to save lives and help the state economy if it derives from President Barack Obama. The problem with Obamacare is that the decision to expand Medicaid has been left to the states. Some states, like Tennessee, would rather see needless suffering and death than take this money. Each year 45,000 uninsured Americans die from lack of health care. No problem to the state legislators who get health insurance paid for by us taxpayers.

We may never be able to get states like Tennessee to care about low-income citizens or even lower premiums for those of us already insured. The answer is for us to nominate and elect a president who will fight for guaranteed health coverage for all Americans, which should be our right as citizens. Bernie Sanders is the only candidate who will do this, and it will not only save lives but lower our insurance rates.

Why is Sanders supporting health care for all while the others, including Hillary Clinton, are not? One need only look at who funds their campaigns. Sanders' campaign is primarily funded by millions of citizens, with the average donation less than $30. He will fight for us, for our rights, and not be worried about the profits and high salaries of big insurance corporations. Vote for your own good and for the good of your children and grandchildren. Vote for Bernie Sanders.

Anna Grabowski, Ten Mile, Tenn.
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I am sickened, saddened and disgusted to learn that we are putting so much emphasis on admitting huge numbers of refugees into our country, providing them places to live, food, clothing, etc., yet we ignore our own veterans, who fought for the right to our freedoms but are homeless, with a backed-up health program and limited government assistance.

Don't get me wrong; our country was founded by immigrants. However, there was not a government program waiting with open arms to provide them housing, food, jobs, etc. Our Founding Fathers came with limited supplies and worked for what they had.

Are immigrants going to contribute to society or sponge off it? Are they going to embrace the American way or belittle and try to change America to the new (insert whatever country they came from)? We are the home of the brave and the land of the free. We have freedoms here that other countries do not have, yet they condemn us for them. They burn our flag, try to bomb our cities, brainwash our youth, try to take over our rights and limit our freedoms, yet they welcome any monetary assistance we want to bestow on them and want to be welcomed into the country they claim to hate with open arms.

Our military, veterans and American people should come first when it's time to hand out government assistance. There are places in the U.S. where people live below the poverty level. There are homeless families living in cars, going from shelter to shelter. It's time for the rest of the world to stop counting on the U.S. to bail them out, feed, clothe, house and take them in, especially when they don't appreciate it in the first place. Charity beings at home, and the U.S. is our home. Take care of our people first.

Patsy Ruppe, Kingston
Broadway Shopping Center Kroger lead fuel clerk Sharon Walsh works to clean up after snow fell across the area Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. A second system is expected to hit the Knoxville area Friday and Saturday. (AMY SMOTHERMAN BURGESS/NEWS SENTINEL)

TEMA declares state of emergency with major winter storm forecast

By News Sentinel staff

Blizzard-like conditions forecast by meteorologists led the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency on Thursday to declare a Level 3 state of emergency, and to urge Gov. Bill Haslam do the same.

A major winter system was predicted to hit West Tennessee on Thursday night and move across the state into East Tennessee through Saturday.

The state has five state-level emergency declarations, ranging from Level 1 (catastrophic) to Level 5 (normal). Under Tennessee law, a state of emergency automatically occurs when the activation level is Level 3 or higher.

Freezing rain, sleet, snow and high winds may create dangerous conditions in certain areas, according to a news release from the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency, which warns of possible power outages and stranded motorists.

The National Weather Service in Morristown has issued a winter storm warning for East Tennessee, in effect from 1 p.m. Friday through 7 p.m. Saturday.

Gov. Bill Haslam's office says all state government offices will be closed Friday due to the inclement storm.

A previous statement said offices in Middle and East Tennessee would be open for a half-day, but Haslam spokeswoman Jennifer Donnals said conditions deteriorated earlier than was forecast, The Associated Press reported.

State and military organizations are monitoring the situation, and the American Red Cross has been notified and is putting shelter staff and volunteers on alert and placing key shelter locations along interstates on standby.

Three to 4 inches of snow is likely to hit the Knoxville area this weekend, just after city of Knoxville crews spent Wednesday and Thursday plowing and salting main traffic arteries and clearing up slick spots.

The forecast calls for rain showers Friday morning, followed by a mix of rain and snow in the afternoon, with highs in the mid-30s. Friday night, expect snow showers with highs in the mid-20s.

Snow is likely Saturday morning, with highs in the lower to mid-30s and overnight lows around 18 degrees. Sunday should be sunny, with highs in the upper 30s to lower 40s and lows in the lower 20s.

(Tweet your snow photos to @knoxvillewx or @knoxnews with the hashtag #knoxwx.)

Crews spread about 650 tons of salt Wednesday when the winters first snowstorm swept into East Tennessee, dumping from 1-4 inches of snow with about 2 inches in Knox County.

The city still has an 1,800-ton stockpile of salt, and 10 triage response teams provided emergency medical services through Thursday morning, using four-wheeldrive vehicles to reach those needing help.

Knoxville Area Transit will be providing regular bus services starting at 6 a.m. Friday. Call 865-637-3000 to check on snow conditions and which routes KAT will drive. The United States Postal Service is asking everyone to keep areas around mailboxes, steps, and sidewalks clear of ice and snow, to enable quick and safe mail carrier service.

Waste Connections crews were picking up trash and recyclables for its Thursday pickup customers and for customers who could not be serviced on Wednesday. Crews discontinued pickups Wednesday afternoon when snow conditions worsened.

All Knox County government offices are expected to be open during regular hours Friday morning. Visit http://knoxcounty.org/closed/ to check before you go.

Knox County Schools, which had canceled classes Wednesday and Thursday, called off school for Friday.

See also: Full list of school closings

Weather and speeding Wednesday contributed to a wreck that killed a 19-year-old man and hurt his 20-year-old passenger on Solway Road. Icy roads also led to 10 other crashes, one with injury.

The National Weather Service is warning of the impact this snowfall will have on the region, causing dangerous driving conditions. Secondary roads are likely to become extremely treacherous, and residents should avoid travel unless absolutely necessary.

The weather service also advises drivers to keep an extra flashlight, food and water in your vehicle in case of an emergency.

See also: The Market Square webcam

The heaviest snowfall from the storm is forecast to occur along Southwest Virginia, the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Cumberland Plateau with the highest amounts in the highest terrain. Ice accumulations of up to one tenth of an inch are possible along the Cumberland mountains.

Snowfall forecasts for Friday (1/22/16) through Saturday (1/23/16) for East Tennessee. (National Weather Service, Morristown)

Extended forecast:

Saturday: Cloudy with snow likely in the morning, then a chance of snow in the afternoon. Highs in the lower to mid-30s. Chance of snow 60 percent.

Saturday night: Mostly cloudy with lows around 18.

Sunday: Sunny with highs in the upper 30s to lower 40s.

Sunday night: Mostly clear with lows in the lower 20s.

Monday: Mostly sunny with highs in the mid- to upper 40s.

Monday night: Mostly cloudy with a 40 percent chance of rain showers. Lows in the mid-30s.

Tuesday: Mostly cloudy with a 40 percent chance of rain showers. Highs in the mid-40s.

Tuesday night: Mostly cloudy with a 30 percent chance of rain and snow showers. Lows in the upper 20s.

Wednesday: Partly sunny with a 20 percent chance of rain and snow showers. Highs in the upper 30s to lower 40s.

Wednesday night: Partly cloudy with lows in the mid-20s.

Get weather warnings or alerts by signing up at MyKnoxnews.com, and follow @KnoxvillleWX on Twitter for Knoxville-area weather information.

More coverage of the winter storm hitting Tennessee and the eastern United States:
A local court on Friday overturned the acquittal of a 32-year-old hip-hop artist accused of using and selling drugs.



The appeals department of the Seoul Eastern District Court sentenced Kwon Ki-bum, better known by his stage name Bumkey, to eight months in prison with a two year suspension.



Bumkey was indicted in December 2014 on charges of selling 6 grams of meth and 10 MDMA pills, better known as "ecstasy," to two of his acquaintances from August 2012 to September 2013. He was also accused of taking ecstasy twice during the period.

A lower court found Bumkey not guilty due to a lack of evidence, but the appeals department said the evidence provided by the prosecutors was enough to prove his conviction.



"Kwon repeated the crime though he once received a suspended prison term for taking ecstasy," the court said. "(We) took into consideration that the amount was not significant."



Bumkey could not be immediately reached for comment. (Yonhap)






K-pop girl band Crayon Pop are hot property in Japan.

The five-member band, popular for eye-catching choreography and eccentric costumes, have sold out tickets for their Tokyo concert on January 31.







The concert is the first leg of their Japanese tour, "Crayon Pop 1st Japan Tour 2016," following the release of their first Japanese studio album, "Crayon Pop," on Wednesday. The album ranked 11th on the Oricon chart the day it was released.

The tour will visit Japanese cities including Nagoya and Kobe. Xport News said concerts in those cities were nearly sold out.





The band debuted in Japan last July with single "Rarirure" and released their second Japanese single, "Dancing All Night," in November. The single albums all sold out.

The band debuted in Korea in 2012 and will reportedly return to the K-pop market in the first half of this year.
President Park Geun-hye expressed hope on Friday that South Korea's culture will be born again as a cultural asset shared by mankind.



She also said South Korea is seeking to help plant new seeds of hope in areas affected by conflict and poverty through K-pop and other aspects of Korean culture.



"At a time when borders are eroding, when our world is increasingly becoming a shared community, I look forward to humanity being brought together and connecting through culture," Park said in a video message at a "Korea Night" function hosted for foreign business leaders at the World Economic Forum under way in the Swiss ski resort of Davos. "I hope is to see Korea's culture go through the kind of renewal that would make it more accessible across the world."



South Korean pop culture has gained wide popularity in China, Southeast Asian countries and other parts of the world in recent years.



In 2014, Park attended the forum, known as the "Davos Forum." (Yonhap)




South Koreans feel they are suffering from bad health despite having one of the longest life expectancies in the world, a report by a state-run think tank showed Friday.



According to the report by the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs (KIHASA), 35.1 percent of South Koreans over 15 said they are in good health. This is well below the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development average of 69.2 percent, and significantly lower than the 80-90 percent levels found in the United States, Canada and New Zealand.



The think tank's report, based on information collected from the OECD's Health Data, showed only Japan had a reading of below 40 percent among the world's developed market economies with high income.



Despite what people perceive, the life expectancy for a South Korean stood at 81.8 years, higher than the 80.5 years for the OECD.



"The difference in perception and life expectancy derives from social and cultural views on health," KIHASA said. "Different views on weight played a role."



The institute said that South Koreans generally tended to equate obesity with bad health and that, compared to other OECD members, more often believed they were overweight. It also said women were more likely than men to think they are fat.



Other fallouts from the subjective perception of ill health can be found in the average days a South Korean spends in a hospital compared to people living in other countries.



On average, a South Korean spent 16.5 days in the hospital, vis-a-vis 8.3 days for the OECD, although part of the reason is due to the longer time that dementia patients spend in convalescent hospitals.



The report also showed that from 2004 to 2013, the number of hospital beds jumped two-fold, which is a much sharper increase compared to the 10 percent growth tallied for the OECD as a whole.



While there has been an increase in the size of medical facilities, Asia's fourth largest economy had the third lowest number of doctors per 1,000 people. Within the OECD, the average stood at 3.3 per 1,000, while corresponding numbers for South Korea stood at 2.2.



This has led to a much greater number of patients being checked by local doctors, which can affect the quality of care given, it said. On average, a South Korean doctor checked 6,487 patients as of 2011, 2.7 times larger than the average of the OECD. (Yonhap)








By Chung Ah-young



Recent horrendous child-abuse cases reveal how Korea has been, and continues to be, ill-prepared to protect children from domestic violence.



Most children who were abused at home were found after mistreatment left severe mental and physical injuries and sometimes brought fatal consequences.



The remains of a seven-year-old boy were found last week more than three years after he was presumed killed in 2012 by his father's violence at home in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province. The boy had been absent from school for four years.



In December, a girl, 11, escaped from her home in Incheon barefoot after being abused by her father for more than three years.



Whenever such serious child abuse cases surface, the government has vowed to mend the legal system to protect children better from mistreatment or negligence.

But the legal system has still failed to detect child abuse in its early stages and punish the perpetrators.



More reports, harsher punishment



Experts want the government to strengthen the laws to encourage more reports of such abuse and to give harsher punishment to offenders.



Although corporal punishment is banned under the Child Welfare Law, some parents still believe physical punishment is the way to discipline their children.



Experts say domestic violence on children is hard to detect unless neighbors or others report suspicious cases to authorities.



According to the Good Neighbors child protection center in Daejeon, 1.6 out of 100 children notify authorities of abuse or go to protection facilities. Most are older teens.



"Even if we receive reports of suspicious cases, it is hard to gather evidence of child abuse unless the victims offer testimony," said Kim Mi-ae, director of the center.



Experts said that under the present system, the early discovery of child abuse relies on school monitoring because, in many cases, a long-term absence is a sign of domestic problems.



But the recent cases reveal the flaws that fail to prevent such tragic incidents.



Under the related law, if a student is absent from school for more than seven days without clear reasons, the school is required to send a letter to the student's parents and tell the regional community office.



Then, the office is supposed to encourage parents to send the student to school. It needs to notify its suspicions to the local education office if the student continues to be absent.



However, students that are absent for more than 90 days are classified as a long-term absentee, which means they are no longer monitored by the school.



The Incheon girl and the Bucheon boy were victimized under such a flawed system because they were not monitored by their schools despite long truancies.



Also, there is no binding measure to force parents to send their children to school if they ignore the school's request. If parents refuse to send their children to school, the education office can fine them 1 million won. But the fine has never been imposed, according to the education authorities.



The Korean Federation of Teachers' Associations (KFTA) said the Bucheon incident reflects the collapse of humanity and ethics in Korean society. It has demanded harsher rules to force parents to take responsibility for their children.



"We don't have the authority to force parents to come to school for consultation about children," KFTA spokesman Kim Dong-seok said.



According to Korean Institute of Criminology (KIC) child abuse research, only 32.2 percent of offenders were indicted from 2004 to 2013, with most others getting the indictments suspended. The KIC said that means most victims have returned to their families, vulnerable to repeated violence.



Education Minister Lee Joon-sik said Thursday the ministry would seek to revise the law to enable teachers to report students to authorities if they are absent or missing for extended periods. Under the present law, only the parents can report that their child is missing.



In the United States, parents face fines or jail in many states over their children's unexcused school absences. If parents refuse the school's request to visit the school about their child's absence or other problems, they can face prosecution.



The United Kingdom has the so-called "Cinderella Law" to punish parents who emotionally abuse children.




By Jung Min-ho





The government finalized guidelines Friday enabling companies to more easily lay off "underperforming" workers, a move that has triggered fierce protest from labor unions.





Its decision came three days after the Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU), the nation's largest umbrella union, declared a pullout from the three-party labor, management and government talks in protest of the government's adoption of the guidelines.





The government said the labor reform program, including the introduction of the wage peak system and moderated employment rules, is aimed at creating more jobs.





"The guidelines are not about making it easier to fire workers," said Employment and Labor Minister Lee Ki-kweon in a media briefing at the Sejong Government Complex. "We came up with them to clarify contract relations between employers and workers. The guidelines are necessary to reduce unnecessary conflict between the two sides, which amounts to more than 13,000 cases every year."





Lee said the ministry will hold a meeting with the heads of its 47 affiliates across the country on Monday to discuss follow-up measures.





The guideline stipulates that companies can lay off underperforming workers after providing them opportunities to improve their performance, while the current labor law prevents workers from being fired unless they cause serious damage to their companies or the companies face a severe fiscal crisis.





According to the guidelines, companies can also change or introduce employment rules if the change is "socially agreed upon," without agreement from the labor union or a majority of the workers _ a requirement under the current rules.





Experts say that although the guidelines are not laws, they will likely provide an administrative basis that companies can use to fire workers and make their business environment friendlier to employers.





"So, what will end up happening is a great waste of time and money because fired workers will sue their employers for illegal layoffs," said the Justice Party, a minority opposition political party.





While the government claims that the reform of labor regulations will create jobs and boost the economy, labor unions believe that it will only create more unstable jobs and weaken the general rights of workers.





Labor unions also fear that performance evaluations of workers will be unfair and employers will exploit them as a means of removing those they simply don't like.





Lee said that the standards of performance evaluations will be defined only under the agreement between management and labor. But many workers remain unconvinced.





The FKTU and the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), the nation's second-largest umbrella union, are expected to step up actions against the government's move, following the announcement of the guidelines.





The FKTU took part in the tripartite talks and reached a large-scale agreement over labor reforms in September. However, the union declared that agreement null and void earlier this week after it failed to discuss details with the ministry.





The KCTU said it would stage a rally in downtown Seoul on Saturday to protest the government's labor reform move.




By Chung Hyun-chae



The City of Seongnam's benefits provision program for young adults has digressed from its original intention, having been misused by some beneficiaries and causing controversy.



On Wednesday, the city government located southeast of Seoul in Gyeonggi Province began providing gift vouchers worth 125,000 won, which can be used at shops only in Seongnam, to all citizens aged 24 who have lived in the city for at least three years.



The policy, named "youth dividends," was aimed at financially supporting young adults who need living expenses and job training fees amid high unemployment, as well as boosting the local economy. The municipality planned to provide the vouchers every quarter, adding up to 500,000 won in total per year, expecting 11,300 people to benefit.



Some of the beneficiaries, however, have tried to sell the coupons through secondhand goods websites to get cash. They said they would sell the vouchers at about 80 percent of the face value.



As controversy emerged, the city government requested such website operators to remove any posts related to the vouchers. It also asked the websites to ban the use of related keywords.



Seongnam pushed ahead with the voucher program despite opposition from the central government, which regarded it as a populist policy and demanded the municipality drop the plan. But Seongnam insisted, and the central government filed a petition with the Supreme Court asking it to stop the program. The government also threatened to stop providing subsidies to the city.



In response to criticisms that the policy has been misused by the beneficiaries, Seongnam said it would switch to electronic cards instead of vouchers.



"Starting from the second quarter, we will supply electronic cards which are rechargeable but not transferable or negotiable," a city official said. "Because of the legal process of adopting the electronic card system, we need some time."



Aside from this policy, the city government has planned two other welfare policies, offering free school uniforms to first-year middle school students and money for postnatal care services.



"We will fight for the welfare rights of Seongnam citizens and for our autonomy," Seongnam Mayor Lee Jae-myung said at a press conference earlier this month.




President Park Geun-hye speaks during a joint policy briefing with officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Unification and the Ministry of National Defense on their policy goals for 2016 at Cheong Wa Dae, Friday.

/ Joint press corps



By Jun Ji-hye

President Park Geun-hye offered Friday a five-nation meeting, excluding North Korea from the long-stalled six-party talks, to resolve Pyongyang's nuclear program.

She made the proposal during a joint briefing at Cheong Wa Dae with the foreign, unification and defense ministries, during which they reported their 2016 policy plans to her.

The six-party talks involving the two Koreas, the United States, Japan, Russia and China are aimed at denuclearizing the North but have been suspended since late 2008, casting doubt over their effectiveness.

"The relevant countries need to find more varied and creative measures including pushing for five-party talks by excluding the North," Park said. "The six-party talks had been a useful channel for resolving the North's nuclear issue through negotiations, but if its suspension is prolonged, its effectiveness will be called into question."

Her remarks indicate that she has given up on resolving the nuclear issue through talks with the North, which has shown little sign of abandoning its nuclear program as evidenced by its latest defiant claim on Jan. 6 that it had successfully detonated a hydrogen bomb during its fourth nuclear test.

Hours after Park's suggestion, however, China urged the participant nations to work together on resuming the six-party nuclear talks, apparently dismissing the South Korean President's idea of holding talks without the North.

"Considering the current situation on the Korean Peninsula, dialogue and negotiation are still the fundamental way to resolve the Korean nuclear issue," said China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei during a briefing.

He said that all parties should "restart the six-party talks at an early date, move forward the goal of denuclearization and ensure long-term stability and development of the peninsula."

The six-party talks have been stalled as the North insists that it should join the talks with the status of a nuclear power, calling for an unconditional dialogue, while the South and the U.S. have urged the North to show its commitment to the abandonment of its nuclear program before such talks can resume.

President Park stressed the importance of the role of China, saying that cooperation with China is the key to creating an environment in which the North has no choice but to change itself.

"China has expressed its strong willingness a number of times not to accept nuclear weapons on the Korean Peninsula," she said. "I expect China to take effective measures to make the North realize that the development of nuclear weapons is useless and it should come out and embrace international society like Iran did."

Park referred to the historic nuclear deal between Iran, the U.S. and five other world powers that recently lifted nuclear-related sanctions on Iran after a decade of international isolation.

Park's demand for China's cooperation comes amid Beijing's apparent lukewarm stance on the North's nuclear development. China, traditionally an ally of the North, is a veto-holding permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) that is currently working on a resolution to impose harsher sanctions against the North.

Park called on officials to concentrate their diplomatic capacity in order for the UNSC to produce strong and effective sanctions against the North.

She added that the fundamental solution to resolve the North's nuclear issue is achieving unification between the two Koreas.

For its part, the Ministry of Unification told Park that it is planning to establish a task force to work on the denuclearization of the North and the establishment of peace between the two Koreas.

A ministry official said a director-level official will lead the task force, noting that "We are now focusing on firm sanctions in responses to the North's nuclear test. If the North offers any talks, we will ask them to discuss denuclearization first."

During its report on how to deal with the North militarily, the Ministry of National Defense said that South Korea will enhance information-sharing on the North's nuclear and ballistic missiles with the U.S. by installing a new military network, called Link16, which connects the Korea Interface Control Center (KICC) with the United States Forces Korea's (USFK) Joint Interface Control Center (JICC), both in Osan, 35 km south of Seoul.

The military tactical data exchange network will allow the allies to share text and imagery intelligence on a nearly real-time basis, which will enable Seoul to gain access to U.S. information collected by its Defense Support Program reconnaissance satellite over the Korean Peninsula as well as its Space-Based Infrared System (SBIRS).

SBIRS, the Pentagon's space program for preventing nuclear war, provides persistent global, infrared surveillance capabilities to meet 21st century demand in the areas of missile warning, missile defense, technical intelligence and battlespace awareness.

The move practically means the South will also share a real-time military data link with Japan, given the USFK's JICC is connected with the U.S. Forces Japan that have reportedly set up the information-sharing system with Japan's Self-Defense Forces.

This year, the Ministry of National Defense will also kick off a project to introduce a total of five military reconnaissance satellites by the early 2020s as well as deploying the Taurus bunker-busting long-range air-to-ground missile with a 500-kilometer range made by the German-Swedish joint venture Taurus Systems, the ministry added.

Follow Jun Ji-hye on Twitter @TheKopJihye
By Kim Hyo-jin



The main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea agreed on dealing with a pending bill, devised by the ruling Saenuri Party to revitalize corporate activities, lawmakers said Friday.



The so-called "One-Shot Act" intends to ease regulations and provide tax cuts when firms voluntarily sell off or purchase businesses. It also supports their mergers and acquisitions by simplifying the legal procedures.



"The opposition party has accepted the original bill," Saenuri floor leader Rep. Won Yoo-chul told reporters.



The bill is expected to get bipartisan approval during a session of the parliamentary Industry, Commerce, and Resources Committee, scheduled for Monday, he added.



The bill has been pending for months in the Assembly while the opposition called on excluding conglomerates, or chaebol, to be subject to the bill, expressing concerns that they could take advantage of the regulations to execute corporate takeovers.



The Minjoo's agreement came amid mounting calls by the government and the economic sectors to stop delaying economic regeneration.



"With two months ahead of the general election, we had to avoid the situation where the public could blame us for inaction against the sluggish economy," a party official said.



Also, it was to secure leverage for the negotiation of other economic bills, another party official said.



The Saenuri Party agreed to implement the act for three years first and then lengthen it for an extra two years after consultation, instead of letting it run for a straight five years as it originally insisted.



They also reached an agreement on passing the North Korea Human Rights Act, calling for the government to work on the North's human rights situation while improving inter-Korean relations.



The political parties plan to resume negotiations on Saturday to further discuss the rest of the contentious bills on which they have thus far failed to narrow their differences of opinions.



They have traded barbs over labor reform bills including the increase in the number of industries permitted to temporarily dispatch workers to other enterprises. While the Saenuri Party has backed the bills for generating more jobs, the Minjoo party argued it would aggravate issues related to non-regular workers.




U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon met with a special envoy of South Korean President Park Geun-hye in Switzerland and discussed ways to increase cooperation between the two sides, Ban's office said Thursday.



The meeting with Rep. Choi Kyung-hwan took place on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in the ski resort of Davos and the two sides discussed global issues as well as bilateral cooperation, the office said in a statement.



Ban expressed his appreciation for South Korea's support in advancing key international priorities, including the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as well as the Paris Agreement on climate change in 2015, the office said.



Ban also expressed hope that Korea would play a leading global role in the implementation of the two goals.



Noting that Choi had successfully completed his service as deputy prime minister and had returned to the National Assembly this month, Ban asked that Choi galvanize support from the Korean government and parliament for the U.N.



The two sides also shared concerns about current developments on the Korean Peninsula after the North's nuclear test. Ban reiterated his hope that the parties will intensify efforts to move for denuclearization, peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, the office said. (Yonhap)




By Gwynne Dyer



Five years ago this month, the "Arab Spring" got underway with the non-violent overthrow of Tunisia's long-ruling dictator, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali. He dared not order the army to open fire on the demonstrators (because it might not obey), he was running out of money, and eventually he flew off off to Saudi Arabia to seek asylum.



In an Arab world where satellite television broadcasts and social media had effectively destroyed the power of the censors, practically everybody else spent the four weeks of civil protest in Tunisa tensely watching what the Tunisians were doing. When the Tunisian revolutionaries won, similar non-violent demonstrations demanding democracy immediately broke out in half a dozen other Arab countries.



It felt like huge change was on the way, because the world had got used to the idea that non-violent revolutions spread irresistibly, and usually win in the end. The ground-breaking "People Power" revolution in the Philippines in 1986, for example, was followed in the next three years in Asia by non-violent democratisation in South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Bangladesh, and failed attempts at non-violent revolution in Burma and China.



Similarly in eastern Europe, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Communist regime in East Germany in 1989 was followed by non-violent democratisation in all the Soviet-dominated "satellite" countries by the end of the year. The Soviet Union itself broke up in 1991, and some of its component parts also became democratic. Non-violence was a magic potion, and people assumed that it was bound to work in the Arab world too.



They were wrong. The non-violent movements demanding democracy spread just as fast, but their only lasting success was in Tunisia. Egypt and Bahrain are back under autocratic rule, and Yemen and Syria are both being devastated by civil wars and large-scale foreign military intervention. Libya is also being torn by civil war (although the revolution there was never non-violent).



You can hardly blame people for trying to get rid of the old regimes  they were pretty awful  but beyond Tunisia the endings were uniformly bloody and tragic. Was there some systemic reason for this, or was it just a lot of bad luck? There is great reluctance to pursue this question, because people are afraid that the answer has something to do with the nature of Arab society or Islamic culture. They shouldn't worry.



Islam is not incompatible with democracy. Indonesia, the most populous Muslim country, had a non-violent democratic revolution in 1998 and continues to be a thriving democracy today. Turkey has been democratic for decades, although Recep Tayyib Erdogan, the current president, is doing great damage to the country's democratic institutions. Pakistan and Bangladesh are both democracies, although turbulent ones.



These four countries alone account for almost half the world's Muslim. In the Arab world democracy is a much scarcer commodity, but it does exist, most notably in Tunisia itself. Several other Arab countries, like Jordan and Morocco, have a significant democratic element in their politics, although the king retains much power.



So what went wrong with the "Arab Spring"? In the case of Bahrain, the problem was that the majority of the population is Shia, but the ruling family is Sunni and saw the democratic movement as an Iranian plot. Neighbouring Saudi Arabia saw it the same way, and sent the Saudi army in to crush the "plot".



Yemen was a lost cause from the start, since there was already an incipient civil war in the country. Now it's a full-scale war, with foreign military intervention by a Saudi-led coalition that includes half the countries in the Arab world, and the non-violent protestors are busy hiding from the bombs.



Syria was a hard case since the Ba'athist regime, in power for more than forty years, had accumulated a great many enemies. The Alawite (Shia) minority who dominated the regime were terrified that they would suffer from revenge-taking if they lost power, and were willing to fight to the last ditch to keep power.



But it is also true that Turkey and Saudi Arabia, and later the United States as well, encouraged an armed uprising in Syria that undercut the entire non-violent movement. It probably wouldn't have succeeded anyway, but it really didn't get tried. And in Egypt, the non-violent revolution actually won.



The victory didn't last long. The Muslim Brotherhood won the election in 2012, and the urban, secular minority who had made the revolution panicked. They asked the army to intervene, and the army was happy to oblige  so now the army runs the country again, after a massacre of non-violent Muslim Brotherhood protesters in 2013 that was probably worse that the slaugher on Tienanmen Square in 1989.



Egypt is by far the biggest country in the Arab world. If it had not thrown its democracy away, about a third of the world's Arabs would be living in a democracy today. It was very bad luck, but non-violent revolution is still a viable technique  and democracy is still just as suitable for Arabs as it is for Poles, Peruvians or Pakistanis. It's just going to take a little longer than we thought in 2011.



Gwynne Dyer is an independent journalist whose articles are published in 45 countries. Contact him at gwynne763121476@aol.com.




South Korea plans to set up a new military network to share text and imagery information on North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missiles with the United States and Japan this year, the Defense Ministry said Friday.



The military plans to install a Link16 data link, connecting its interface control cell with that of the United States Forces Korea, both in Osan, south of Seoul, showed the ministry's 2016 policy plan reported to President Park Geun-hye earlier in the day.

The military tactical data exchange network will allow the allies to share text and imagery intelligence on North Korea's nuclear and missile activities nearly on a real-time basis.



With the data link, South Korea will be able to gain access to U.S. information collected from its Defense Support Program reconnaissance satellite over the Korean Peninsula.



The move practically means South Korea will have the real-time military data link also with Japan, given the USFK's Link16 connection with the Japanese military

.

"Despite the U.S.-Japan linkage, information sharing will not take place without the agreement from each side and, even if it takes place, it will be confined to subjects on North Korea's nuclear weapons and missiles," a defense official said.



This year, the Defense Ministry will also kick off a project to introduce a total of five military reconnaissance satellites by the early 2020s, the report showed. The plan is part of a wider project to install South Korea's missile defense systems -- Kill Chain and KAMD -- by 2023 against North Korea's emerging nuclear and ballistic threats.

To better combat North Korea's continuing cyberthreats, the ministry also plans to establish a state-run cyber defense research center this year, which will be commissioned to develop cyber weapons against North Korean attacks, according to the report. (Yonhap)




President Park Geun-hye proposed Friday that South Korea hold talks with the United States, China and other regional partners to discuss ways to denuclearize North Korea.



"We should find various and creative approaches, including attempting to hold five-way talks excluding North Korea," Park said in a meeting with officials on how to deal with North Korea.



The comments represent growing doubts about the effectiveness of the nuclear talks, which showed no signs of resumption.



North Korea quit the disarmament-for-aid talks in April 2009 and conducted a second nuclear test a month later. But it has since repeatedly expressed its desire to return to the negotiating table without any preconditions.



But South Korea and the U.S. have said that Pyongyang must first show its sincerity toward denuclearization before such talks can resume.



The nuclear talks, which also involve Japan and Russia, were last held in 2008.

Park called on officials to concentrate diplomatic efforts on ensuring that the U.N. Security Council can adopt a resolution for strong and effective sanctions on North Korea over its fourth nuclear test earlier this month. (Yonhap)




By Kang Hyun-kyung

DUBAI  Shin Dong, a Dubai-based wholesaler who also owns Asian grocery store 1004 Mart, realized a potential market for Korean fruit in the Middle East after the successful sales of Jeju Island tangerines last year.





Shin Dong, a Dubai-based wholesaler who also runs Asian grocery store 1004 Mart

/ Korea Times

In November, he imported 3,500 10-kilogram boxes of tangerines from the island and sold them to Abu Dhabi and Dubai consumers through Lulu Hypermarket, a multinational retail chain that operates in the United Arab Emirates.

The tangerines sold out, enabling Shin, 60, to heave a sigh of relief.

"Before this, I was very worried about my decision to import tangerines from Jeju Island because fruits like tangerines easily perish," he said on Jan. 12 at his office in the 1004 Mart storage warehouse in Dubai Investment Park.

The tangerines were non-greenhouse tangerines, that is, they were raised outside a greenhouse. Non-greenhouse tangerines are grown on the island only in November, compared with greenhouse tangerines, which are grown all year around. Shin said he only imports outdoor-grown tangerines because greenhouse-grown ones are not cost effective.

Encouraged by the moderate success and consumer satisfaction, he conducted another experiment, this time with strawberries.

Shin said strawberries are "even more sensitive," that is, even more easily perishable, than tangerines. Strawberries need to be shipped by air because of its short shelf life. Korean strawberries are now being sold at Lulu Hypermarket in Abu Dhabi.

Shin began to explore the fruit business last year in an effort to diversify. His move coincided with the Korean government's announcement to promote Korean food in the Middle East.

Shin has been doing business in the Middle East for 29 years. He first arrived in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in 1987 as a textile marketing manager for Sunkyung, which was later renamed as SK Group. His duties at his job in Jeddah at that time included meeting local distributors and wholesalers to encourage them to import Sunkyung fabrics. He relocated to Dubai in 1992 after he was promoted as the head of the local office.





His years of experience in the Middle Eastern textile business opened his eyes to a new business opportunity  textile brokerage. He found that over 90 percent of textile agents who served as a bridge between suppliers and local distributors were Indians.

"I wondered why there were no Korean textile agents in Dubai, where a huge textile market was in place, because at that time, Korea had a prospering textile industry and was considered home to premium fabrics," he said.

Shin became the first Korean textile agent in Dubai. "People like me were called budongsan' or realtor in English because I made a living by matching textile suppliers overseas and local distributors," he said.

His business went well partly because he was able to find premium textile providers from Korea. Following his success, 15 additional Korean companies had been created to deal with the textile brokerage business.





Business, however, wasn't always smooth-sailing. In the early 2000s, China began to rise as a global powerhouse with cheaper labor costs and textile businesses relocated to China. The Korean textile industry began to suffer as a result.

Shin realized that it's time to change his business area and explored interior design and curtains. But his new ventures didn't go well.

After years of preparation, he finally entered the grocery business in 2008, opening the retail store 1004 Mart, which sells mostly processed Korean food items. The name of the grocery store pronounced in the same way of the Korean word "cheon-sa" or angel. The timing was bad, however, as the Dubai economy was hit hard by the Wall Street-born financial crisis in the same year.

"Although the food industry was less affected by the financial crisis that hit Dubai in 2009, it was tough for me to manage the new business area," he said. He opened an online store to sell processed Korean food products to some 15,000 Korean consumers in Dubai. In 2008, Dubai-based Koreans were his main consumers. To diversify his income source, Shin also provided a catering service for Korean construction companies operating there. This new business started to become lucrative after several Korean companies, which were potential clients, won deals to construct buildings in Dubai in 2012 and 2013.

Today, Shin's grocery business has the lion's share in the Korean food market in the Middle East with a 65-percent market share. The company has some 50 employees and annual sales of approximately 15 billion won.

Last year was a milestone in his business because he shifted his consumer focus from Koreans in Dubai to locals. No Korean company won construction deals in Dubai last year, and his catering business, which makes up 35 percent of his income, would suffer.

The wholesaler decided to turn his attention to sushi restaurants and luxury hotels as new business partners and provided them with processed food products and raw fish. Since last year, he has been importing $20,000 worth of flatfish from Jeju Island every month for the sushi restaurants in luxury hotels in Dubai. During the process of importing the fish, the businessman discovered the wonders of flatfish trade.

"Flatfish sleep when the water temperature goes down to a certain degree," he said. "And they wake up once the temperature goes up."

Flatfish's temperature-sensitivity helped Shin import fresh fish. Once they are caught in the waters off the southern island, fishermen pack each of them with ice in a plastic bag. The fish then fall asleep on the journey from Jeju to Dubai. By the time the plane lands in Dubai, the ice has melted and the water temperature in the plastic bags has gone up, waking up the fish.

"This is how I can provide fresh Jeju flatfish to hotels and sushi restaurants in Dubai," he said.

Shin plans to distribute more Korean fruits, fish and processed food products in the Middle Eastern market. He said in addition to strawberries, tangerines and flatfish, some processed Korean food products, such as dumplings and briskets, can appeal to the Middle Eastern consumers.

"There's no doubt that Samsung smartphones and Hyundai automobiles have done well in the Middle East when it comes to sales," Shin said. "However, Korean food has a long way to go."

According to him, some 30,000 to 40,000 processed food products, fruits and vegetables from all over the world are selling in Carrefour, Europe's largest retailer, but only three of them are from Korea  ramen; choco pie, a snack cake consisting of two small round layers of cake with marshmallow filling and chocolate covering; and kimchi.

Thanks to him, 16 processed Korean food products are now available at large retailers in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and he recently inked a contract with local retailers to provide 30 more processed food items to local consumers.
By Jon Dunbar

There sits a big empty field in Yongsan, central Seoul, overgrown with weeds and littered with trash. One end of the lot has been taken over by temporary structures boasting model homes found in nicer neighborhoods. A sole excavator sits in the middle, moving dirt around with no clear plans for construction.

On this spot seven years ago, six people were killed in the name of urban redevelopment. On Jan. 20, 2009, Korean police initiated a daring operation to break up a rooftop siege in a neighborhood here slated for demolition, lifting a cargo crate full of anti-terrorist cops by crane so they could apprehend the evictee protesters. Things didn't go as either side planned, with a fire resulting in six deaths  five protesters and one police officer.

Prior to that, the evictees of Yongsan Zone 4 sought refuge from hired goons terrorizing them in their homes and businesses while they beseeched the redevelopment company to negotiate with them. After months of terror they fought back, throwing debris and even molotov cocktails to keep their attackers at bay as 40 evictees holed up in a rooftop fortress.

This exact scene has played out in urban renewal zones nationwide, but Yongsan 4 was unique for three main reasons.

First, this was a mixed commercial-residential area, and evictees stood to lose livelihoods, residences, or both together. Back then, laws guaranteed fair compensation for evicted residents, but business owners had not yet won such consideration.

Secondly, while other such protests tended to unfold further from public view, this one was right by a major road, near a bus stop and Sinyongsan Station exit 2.

Third, the police response was more aggressive than usual. While such evictee sit-ins may drag on for months, this one was busted up on its first day. Some attribute the swift response to the prominent location, while others blame Seoul Police Chief Kim Seok-ki. Kim had been nominated two days earlier by then-President Lee Myung-bak to head the National Police Agency, and was criticized for trying to impress the President.

Police actions and motivations were heavily parsed by the 2011 documentary "Two Doors," but little attention was given to the evictees' plight and actions.

My relationship with Yongsan 4 began in November 2008: when looking to beat the long taxi queue at Yongsan Station, I found myself in front of Namildang, the four-story building where the disaster would occur 66 days later. My passing stirred an old woman in a destroyed market stall. "Is it time to leave?" she asked, then seeing who I was she went back to sleep.

I found the neighborhood systematically bashed up by hired goons, despoiled with the most gruesome graffiti I'd ever seen. Depicting severed hands, hangings, beheadings and castrations  they were made by the sick sociopaths who would chase the area's evictees up to Namildang's roof where some would meet their death. I often nickname parts of the city; for its hired goon activity, I dubbed this place "Gangsters' Paradise."

Then in January 2009 when news of the catastrophic rooftop clash came out, before I knew of its location, my first thought was "Gotta be Gangsters' Paradise."

The hired goons were largely snubbed subsequent discussions of what went wrong at Yongsan 4, with many in the public citing police brutality, while others blamed the evictees for their own violent actions  neither entirely without reason but both short-sighted.

Either way, this incident raised much-needed public attention to urban renewal issues and served as a rallying cry among other evictee protests for years to come, possibly forcing mercy from authorities and construction companies.

Meanwhile, chief Kim declined the national nomination, floating between government positions for years. Last month he stepped down as Korea Airports Corp. CEO, intending to run in this year's April elections. Eight protesters who survived the deadly rooftop clash were jailed. The five evictees who died are at Maseok Moran Park, a burial site for political martyrs located in Namyangju, northeast of Seoul, where a memorial was held Wednesday. In the former location of Namildang, there's now a parking lot and the remainder of the area is a brownfield zone visible from the front steps of Yongsan Station.

The protesters may not be heroes, but the forces of redevelopment have emerged as villains. Whether you blame the police, the hired goons, the evictees, or all or none of them, seven years have passed since that tragic winter morning and damningly, no progress has been made on redeveloping the land. Six people died, for what? A big empty wasteland.

On Jan. 23, a rally is scheduled to be held there.

Until all wounds are healed, the Yongsan Disaster cannot be said to have ended.

Jon Dunbar is a copy editor at The Korea Times.
To save money, the state of Michigan poisoned the children of Flint.



State officials thought so little of the impoverished city and its 100,000 residents, most of them poor and people of color, that they switched the water supply from the pure waters of Lake Huron to the brackish Flint River. Then they broke federal law by neglecting to treat the water with an anti-corrosion agent, which would have cost about $100 a day.



The water's heavy iron content ate into the water lines, about half of which are made of lead. The water smelled and tasted foul, but state officials said everything was fine, even though a university research team said the lead content was dangerously high.



Finally a pediatrician, Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, compared the blood lead levels of toddlers she was seeing with records on hand from previous years. She saw lead levels had doubled or even tripled since the water line switch.



Lead poisoning is irreversible. To save a relatively small amount of money, the state may have doomed these children to lower IQ levels, behavioral problems, growth delays, hearing difficulties and a host of other physical and neurological ailments.



"There's tons of evidence on what lead does to a child, and it is one of the most damning things that you can do to a population," Hanna-Attisha told CNN.



Michigan has committed a stunning act of governmental malpractice. When President Barack Obama travels to the state on Wednesday to applaud progress in Detroit and its auto industry, he should make a side trip to Flint. It would signal to a fearful community that the president of the United States cares about its plight.



The tainted water supply will cost the state and federal government for years. Flint's families will need intensive services like nutritional programs and early childhood education to mitigate the damage.



But right now they need clean water. The state spent $10 million to hook the water back to its old source, but the corroded pipes are still leaching lead. The National Guard is going door to door, passing out bottles of water safe to drink.



The scandal ought to bring an end to the political career of Michigan GOP Gov. Rick Snyder, who personally reacted far too slowly to the crisis while some of his top officials improperly downplayed the threats as well.



And it should act as a cautionary tale to other states that wrongly think it's smart policy to starve state budgets to the point where essential services begin to break down.



States can act irresponsibly with wasteful spending, yes. But refusal to spend  even when the law requires it  can cause immeasurable harm. Just ask the people of Flint.



This editorial appeared on the Kansas City Star and was distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.




The South Korean government said Thursday it would not allow any direct civilian exchanges with North Korea for the time being, a punitive step against Pyongyang for its fourth nuclear test.



It's time to concentrate efforts on imposing effective sanctions on the North, said an official at the Unification Ministry that handles Seoul-Pyongyang relations.



The reaffirmation of Seoul's firm stance came after reports that the North proposed contact in China with the South's civilian organizations not before long after its Jan. 6 nuclear test, allegedly hydrogen-based.



"North Korea offered consultations on projects under way (by some South Korean aid groups)," the ministry official told reporters.



He made clear the government's disapproval of any direct inter-Korean civilian meeting at a time when the international community is discussing tougher sanctions on Pyongyang.



The inter-Korean relationship should "not be business as usual," he said, adding the North's suggestion is like "asking for shaking hands and being on good terms after a slap in the face."



In the wake of the North's nuclear test, its national commission on reconciliation reportedly sent a fax message to several South Korean humanitarian and religious groups proposing meetings in China on their projects this year.



Under South Korea's National Security Law, its nationals must receive government approval before contact with North Koreans.




Han Yong-gil, second from right, CEO of the Christian Broadcasting System (CBS), poses with KATUSA Veterans Association Chairman Kim Jong-wook, left, Lt. Gen. Bernard Champoux, right, the commander of the Eighth U.S. Army, and Command Sgt. Maj. Richard Merritt after receiving the Staff Sgt. Kim Sang-won Distinguished Former KATUSA Award at Yongsang Garrison in Seoul, Thursday. / Courtesy of KVA



By Kang Seung-woo

Han Yong-gil, CEO of the Christian Broadcasting System (CBS), has received an award commemorating KATUSA veterans for their contribution to the ROK-U.S. alliance.

The KATUSA Veterans Association (KVA), chaired by Kim Jong-wook, held a New Year's reception at Yongsan Garrison in Seoul, including the awards ceremony.

Ranking U.S. and Korean service personnel, including Lt. Gen. Bernard Champoux, the commander of the Eighth U.S. Army (EUSA), attended.

The Staff Sgt. Kim Sang-won Distinguished Former KATUSA Award, established last year, is presented annually to a KATUSA veteran who has distinguished himself in his career and for his contribution to Korean society and the alliance between Seoul and Washington.

Sgt. Kim served as a KATUSA with the 17th Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division, during the Korean War and participated in more than 300 combat patrols, including the drive to the Amrok River in late 1950.

For his fighting spirit and unflappable courage, Kim was later awarded the Silver Star for gallantry in action during one of his numerous patrols.

"Being a member of the KATUSA has helped me to build a solid foundation of integrity and respect throughout my life," Han said after receiving the award.

"I have learned how crucial KATUSA and the friendship between the U.S. and Korea are for peace on the Korean Peninsula. I have seen how much effort the American soldiers show, in a country 6,500 miles away from their home."

Han, 53, was assigned to the TANGO Security Force of the EUSA's Special Troops Battalion from 1983 to 1986.

"The people who have been awarded with this honor are people who served in KATUSA and contributed in various fields to our society," he said. "I will always remember what this award stands for, and remember to stand by it at all times."

Champoux also gave Han credit for his efforts to advance the alliance.

"CEO Han has dedicated much of his life to making outstanding contributions to the Republic of Korea and to the alliance and has improved relations between our two nations," the commanding general said.

"As the CEO of the Christian Broadcasting System, he instituted broadcast programming policy that helps promote our Good Neighbor efforts here through positive messages for the alliance and the Republic of Korea."

Champoux also said Han is just one of many examples of former KATUSAs who give back to Korea and the alliance.

Separately, the KVA conferred the Plaque of Merit on Champoux and EUSA Command Sgt. Maj. Richard Merritt to recognize their contribution and dedication to KATUSA soldiers and the KVA.

"Lt. Gen. Champoux and CSM Merritt have continuously supported the welfare of KATUSA soldiers, always aware the KATUSA soldiers are one of the important combat multipliers," said Chairman Kim. "Also, they have contributed to the KATUSA Veterans Association so that the active duty KATUSA soldiers and KATUSA veterans become one."

KATUSA, which stands for the Korean Augmentation to the United States Army, is a military program initiated during the Korean War in August 1950 and is recognized as a clear icon of the ROK-U.S. alliance and cooperation. Some 3,600 KATUSA soldiers work alongside more than 28,000 U.S. service members in Korea.
This past November, the KpopStarz Malaysia team traveled to South Korea's island province of Jeju to attend KCON 2015 Jeju with the help of the Jeju Tourism Organization. Located off the southwestern coast of the Korean peninsula, Jeju, with its temperate climate and lush natural attractions, is a popular destination for honeymooners, film crews, and Korean culture fans from around the world. They spent a few days soaking in the sights around the island and hit up the first manifestation of the Hallyu culture convention to be held within South Korea's borders. KCON 2015 Jeju took place Nov. 6-7 following the event's expansion from Los Angeles to Japan and New York City earlier in the year.

See what kind of fun the KpopStarz Malaysia team had on their visit to Jeju Island and get some travel ideas of your own with this travelogue. Be sure to check out the K-pop-themed Part 1 HERE.

Jeju Island's Coastlines and Nature Sights

(Photo : Aisyah Roslan)

Being an island, Jeju Island is of course famous for its coastlines. There are visual treats everywhere you go. The blue and turquoise colors of the sea stretch as far as the eye can see and black volcanic rocks pepper the coastline adding to the unique charm of the island. We visited the Aewol coastline and it looked beautiful even though the weather was a bit gloomy that day. I can just imagine it would be even more beautiful when the day is bright with the sun in the sky.

Besides the sweeping coastlines, Jeju Island is the place to go if you want to spend some time just to convene with nature. One such place that we visited called Sangumburi Crater was just gorgeous, especially in autumn where you can find an abundance of Eulalia flowers, also known as silver grass, which provided many photo opportunities. It was windy while we were there so to see a whole field of them blowing gently in the breeze was a sight to behold indeed. It was an easy walk uphill to the site of the crater and the view was really gorgeous, especially when we could see some of the autumn foliage from the lookout. (Note: Entrance fee to Sangumburi Crater is 6,000 KRW for adults and 3,000 KRW for children)

Another nature site we visited was Seosokkak Estuary, where sea water meets fresh water. The most special thing about the estuary is that you can ride transparent canoe to enjoy the picturesque view. However, it was drizzling while we were there so the operation for the canoe ride was closed. It was still a beautiful sight though, but make sure to visit when the sun is out to fully enjoy what the attraction has to offer.

(Photo : Aisyah Roslan)

A Visit to Unique Udo Island

We also got to visit Udo Island, a small island off the Jeju coast, which apparently got its name from its unique shape that is said to look like a cow lying down. To get to Udo Island, we had to take a 10-minute ferry ride from Seongsan Harbour to Cheonjinhang Harbour. Upon arrival, we took a shuttle bus, one of the easiest ways to move around the island. Visitors may also opt to rent scooters or, perhaps more interesting, mini cars that can only fit two passengers. Just make sure that you have your driver's license ready!
The SLFP does not condone the continuation of the Emergency Regulations (The Public Security Ordinance) more than a day necessary

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This dialogue appears in the January 22, 2016 issue of Executive Intelligence Review.

Overcome Your Fears; Our Enemy Is the British EmpirePeriod!

by Lyndon H. LaRouche, Jr.

[PDF version of this dialogue]

Over a three-day period, from Jan. 14 to Jan. 16, Lyndon LaRouche engaged in a series of public and private discussions during which he directly addressed the actual nature of the current strategic crisis, as well as the fear which is preventing both elected officials and the citizenry from acting in a bold and appropriate fashion. We begin with quotations from Mr. LaRouche to a private assembly on Jan. 16:

Jan. 16 Private Meeting

LaRouche: People are trying to pick details. And trying to pick details does not show you what the real picture is. And thats the point. But whats happened is that the world at large is being fooled by details of this nature. What the reality is,the whole thing is created on the basis of the continuity of the British Empire. So, the British Empire is the target youve got to pay attention to. Youve got to understand the British Empire, and everything thats happening is that.



View full size LPAC

Look at whats happening with this crazy pope! Hes a nut! Hes insane; hes a killer, and his vows are those of a killer. And hes a leading pope, nominally. Who runs it? The British Empire runs it! And all of this stuff is based on the problems defined by the British Empire. The whole thing is a British Empire scheme. It doesnt mean its a plan that they have, as such, thats going to win. But, theyve decided to play that game. And everything is being done within the context of that game.

And I think our organization gets fooled into believing that these things are the keystones; they are not. What do you have to do? If you remove the British royal family, the problems over. Therefore dont try to say, this detail, this detail, this thing is the issue; it is not! Theres only one issue: Eliminate the British Empire! Eliminate everything it stands for; shut it down.

Dont worry about the details. The detail is: Are we going to end the existence of the British Empire, or not? Thats it! There is no other issue. All the other issues, are only superficial, in terms of their characterization. If you look at the history of mankindBertrand Russell! Bertrand Russell, remember him? This is how it was run. What happened? At the beginning of the Twentieth Century, Bertrand Russell came in, and everything that was happening was defined by Bertrand Russell! You had almost no one who was not a stooge for Bertrand Russell. We had a few people who were against him, but they were eliminated soon enough.

Only One Issue

Youve got to understand there is not this thing, and this thing, and then this thing, and then this thing. No! Its nonsense! Reality is: the British Empire has set the whole thing up. What do you think has happened in the United States? What do you think has happened with the people of the United States? Its that! Its the British Empire. But people in our organization are trying to adapt to this scenario, these kinds of scenarios, and theyre idiots. Most of our members, on this question, behave like idiots.

Theres one issue: the British Empire, period. Thats the only subject. What do we do about the British Empire? Everything else is just talk, just talk, a distraction. When people come in here, come to me and say, Well, heres the latest information, I begin to groan. Because, when people come in with something newOh, this is the big new issuebunk! Its not the new big issue.

Look at the course of history. Dont look at what you say so-and-so does this, so-and-so says that, so-and-so talks about that, so-and-so believes thatits all nonsense! We really should know what the story is, but we talk ourselves into these this, that, and this thing, and that thing, and this thingits nonsense, it has no reality to it. The point is to get rid of that kind of rut stuff out of your mind!

National Foundations to End Senior Hunger

The British Empire dominates the planet! Its still doing it! How do you think the Green policy is going through, and how far is the Green policy operating? How far is it operating, right now? Now, whats the Green policy? It is entirely the British System! It is nothing but the British System. So, dont go looking for explanations, per se. You have to sink the British Empire! The other stuff is simply a way of chattering, and the result is simply fantasies. Most of our people get stuck into pure fantasies, not reality. . . . Whats the reality? What is the real thing thats going on? All around the worldthe British Empire. . . .

The people who are brainwashed in the British System dont like to say so; they dont like to admit it, but its true. If you think carefully about people in the United States, theyre brainwashed. The typical American is a brainwashed victim of the British system. Think carefully. Think about Wall Street. Whats Wall Street? It dominates the country, the nation. Well, who does that? Ha, ha! Wall Street, whats Wall Street? Wall Street is an expression of the British Empire. The culture, think about the culture, the kind of culturethe changes in culturethat have gone on inside the United States itself.

Members of the United States are a pack of idiots. Why are they a pack of idiots? Because they want to follow these ideas: Oh, this is the thing thats important! Why is it important? Well, because theyre being told that its important. All these subjects, these fads, even the design of your costumes you wear, thats all they are. Its fake. Its a game. The best thing to do, if we get desperate, we take all the British agents in one swoop. And then we will have a better kind of world.

But dont get into this thing about this guy, and this guy, and this guy has this, and this guy has thisits chatter. There are a lot of facts that we can pick out, and we sometimes do pick out, but when youre defining policy and strategy, thats where most of our members, and most of the people of the world, get fooled. Theyre suckers. They want to explain, they want to come up with a story: Oh, we have the latest story; we have the latest evidence; we have the latest this; we got this information; were watching this guy very carefully. Boom! Nothing! It doesnt mean a damn thing! Its a stunt.

Ive seen this thing, and watched itthe typical American is an idiot. And thats the good side!

Why Most People Are Idiots

Most of the Presidents of the United States were trash and worse. Its a fact; so why are you listening, saying weve got to check on these guys? Why not just say, Yes, we know about them. Theyre trash? Thats the end of the conversation. If its popular, it stinks. If its popular, its rotten. Rotten things are just like that. The education systemthe people are rotten, that we get in the universities. What is going on in the West Coast in general, whats the culture? What do they produce? Its awful!

And therefore, the idea that you can somehow adapt to these kinds of recipes, these kind of perspectives . . . take culture, music. What culture? What culture? Dead. Rotten. Practical people are inherently stupid, so why are you listening to them? Theyre inherently stupid. Ive known that for a very long time, but some of you guys didnt catch on to that. I learned in school. What do you get in schools? Crap! How do you get a degree in university? Crap!

Look at the record, and then think of the change that occurred at the beginning of the Twentieth Century, which is dominated by Bertrand Russell. Thats your culture, and you believe in it. Why do you believe in it? Because you want to be popular. What do you get by being popular? Well, various kinds of diseases. Thats what popularity is for, to be a vehicle of diseases.

We have to stand apart from that. We cannot say that we have gimmicks. This is something that will work for us, this is something that will be useful to us. Forget it! Popular opinion. And the problem with the American people is they talk too much. Why are they talking too much? Because theyre idiots! Why are they idiots? Because they believe in discussing things, and they all assemble to discuss things. And what are they discussing? Idiocy!

You have to learn that. Anyone who went to schools and universities and so forth, should have been warned that this thing is a fake. But they would say, Yes, you have to take this into account, youve got to take this into account. Sometimes, you have to terrify these bastards. Theyre so stupid the only way you can get them to think is to terrify them. Otherwise, their brains dont work. . . .

If you want to deal with the enemy, youve got to frighten the enemy with the effect of what the enemy intends to do. Ive had a little fun with that. Most people are idiots. Why are they idiots? Because they want to be practical. The only way you can become an idiot is to be practical.

But this whole thing about being practical, it disgusts me inherently. I want to hit something when I hear about something practical. Its corruption, actually. Its absolutely corruption. Its trying to adapt to something as showmanship; and its always a fraud. And you cant blame the dogs for that. Sometimes, I think they should pee on something, because its better than the alternative.

We have to get rid of this shibboleth kind of stuff.

Jan. 14 Fireside Chat

The following remarks were delivered by Lyndon LaRouche during his Thursday, Jan. 14 Fireside Chat, the first response is to an individual who described the current hellish conditions in the State of West Virginia, and the second is a response to an individual who questioned both what is holding back the effort to remove Barack Obama from office, and what can be done about the corruption of elected officials:

LaRouche: OK, good. Lets look at this thing in a practical way, because youve gone through a number of facts which are all true. But! we dont have to have any of those problems! We dont! if we change the Presidency now, and if we go back in the direction of what we have known how to do during the course of my lifetime. I was born in 1922, and I have a pretty good knowledge of what the history is. I wasnt there in 1922, because I had just been born then, but I have pretty good knowledge about what this is all about.

Now, this is what happened. We start with Bertrand Russell, whose career began at the beginning of the Twentieth Century. And he was the most evil man that was ever born, up to this point at this time.

So the problem is, we are stillin the United States and beyond the United States, in general, the population of the United States, of South America, of Central America, of Europe today, Europe as such,Putin is in better shape than the rest of Europe is, for example. China is in excellent condition, compared to what the United States is today.

Now if we were to say, were going to throw out what Bertrand Russell representsand that was really evil stuffand if we say were going to change that, now weve got a problem. Youve got students, young students, middle school age students, all kinds of students; well, most of these students are pretty stupid. That is, most of the students today, in the United States in particular, who are being educated, or getting promotions and so forth on the basis of being educated, theyre pretty stupid. Theyre almost hopelessly stupid.

Especially in California. Californias the areathey have a Governor over there in California, and he really is a mess, and hes destroying California. We have to get rid of him! Because California is capable of reversing its direction. We have a number of people who I was closely associated with in California. They are very effective people, but unfortunately, we have a Governor in California at this time, who is really a Satanic force. If you remove him from his position as a Satanic force, things get better. If you go in cooperation with other nations which are trying to do the same thing as China, for example, youll find that therell be a sudden reversal of the kind of degeneracy which has hit the United States in particular over the entire period since the beginning of the Twentieth Century.

That will be changed. Remember what happened: Remember the space program, before Obama killed it, all these things; all these good things that we used to do can be brought back. But we have to have the determination to make sure they do come back. Because we cannot tolerate what is happening to the miners in West Virginia and so forth. You cant accept that. We have to change it.

So, why dont we just change it? How do we do that? Well, Im willing to do my stint for that operation. Get rid of the bums. Get rid of the idiocy, get rid of the degeneracy which hits most of the members of our population. The biggest problem in the United States is the galloping degeneration of the living members of this nation. We have to change that. We can change it. We have to resolve to change it. And thats the mission that weve just got to take on.

You will find that China will cooperate with us in this. Russia will cooperate. Certain other nations of the planet will cooperate. But the main thing we have to get rid of are two things: First, get rid of the British system, just eliminate it, absolutely! And then eliminate whats rotten inside the United States.

And you will find that happened with Franklin Roosevelt in his administration. What he did is, he made works of genius in his term of office as President. All the great things that were built in that period tell us, all we have to do is get rid of the bums and give a chance to the people who need help and will take it; and we will rebuild the economy of the United States.

LaRouche: I would say this, I would say, well, heres what the situation is: Wall Street is hopelessly bankrupt. Not only is Wall Street bankrupt, but the entire trans-Atlantic community is bankrupt, hopelessly bankrupt.

Now, that doesnt mean that the nations territory has to also go down. It does not. All you have to do, is get rid of all the interests which are associated with Wall Street in the United States and throughout the world. Now, if you shut these guys down, fire them, tell them they have no rights, no privileges, they dont deserve to eat, things like that, because poor people have to have something to eat for a change. And if we go at this thing right, we will find that the confidence that we can bestir, by challenging the evil which is represented by Obama; for example, if you get rid of Obama, and if you tell people Obama has actually been removedwell, see most of the parents of those who have been killed by Obama! That is, what has happened, theres a mass of people who are regularly murdered by Obama personally, on Tuesdays.

What is holding everything back is, people are scared. Theyre scared because Obama is killing people! Hes killing citizens of the United States. He terrifies people from the most powerful economic interests in the United States. They are terrified by Obama! Now, if you take Obama, and you put him in prison for the crimes hes committedand he has to stay in prisonhes not going to have much influence on the life of humanity. So, the best thing to do, lets shuffle this guy into a deep prison, and give him a chance to think about his sins, his evils. And let the sins take over.

Youll find that once you close down Wall Street and close these racketeers and murdersand Obama is a murderer. Hes a criminal, hes a murderer. Close him down, get rid of him. Let him go someplace else. He wants to travel, let him try Mars; it might be a good place for him. Of course, he wont last too long, and therefore the pollution wont persist too long.

But the point is that we have to do it. And we can do it, and we must do it. We can do it. Just stop being scared, or not that scared.

Jan. 16 New York City Meeting

Two days after the nationwide Fireside Chat, Lyndon LaRouche spoke on Jan. 16 before a Town Hall Meeting in New York City, where he further investigated the question of the fear and the cowardice that is holding back the citizenry. We present excerpts of this dialogue below:

LaRouche: Its a good time to have this kind of thing, right today. As you probably some of us here are watching you, and watching me and so forth. And weve augmented some of our attendance here, and why dont we just go ahead and do what were supposed to, and see what happens?. . .

Question: One of the things that I was thinking, there are many events coming up where Congress people will be speaking, or holding things on their own, and if we get to more of their constituents,I plan to talk to some of the people who are with me, some who are in this room, actually, and go to an event thats being held by Mr. Jeffries coming up soon.

So if we think in that way, to get to the constituents to make them force the Congress people to do the right thing also, and confront them on their territory and make the phones calls, do those kinds of things where people are actually helping us to make them do the right thing.

LaRouche: Thats what were trying to do. Its what we have to do. And its a tough row to ride, because they are scared. Theyre intimidated, theyre frightened, and they dont have much courage. If you get a little bit out of them, it may be useful. But you have to recognize the fact that we have a very cowardly organization to deal with. Theyre frightened.

But we have to understand that Obama is the problem, because Obamas role has been that of a killer. Look, heres a man, Obama, he kills people! He kills people; every Tuesday, he kills people. And that is not conducive to peaceful and productive discussion. And therefore, the problem is of that nature. And I think you have to take a little bit of his scalpnow, it doesnt mean you have to take his scalp, because I dont think you want greasy scalps. But in any case, that is where the problem lies.

In general, the citizens of the United States are very cowardly. They will not tell the truth; they will back off, they will duck, they will do all these kinds of tricks; and its very difficult to get them to be honest. And they usually are not very honest. Theyll say Yes, but. . . the old billy-goat song, yes, but. . . yes, but. . . yes, but. . . .

So its a difficult problem. But I think from an organization such as this one here, which is a little less than cowardly, we might get a little bit of more action here, from the people assembled here, than we did from the Congress by a long shot.

Question: Greetings, Lyndon. You mentioned the 28 pages previously, and the lack of courage in the Congress. And back during the Vietnam era, there was a Senator named Mike Gravel who brought the Pentagon Papers to the attention of a Congressional body. And although a lot of people wanted to punish him, they couldnt, because he had immunity when he presented it to a Congressional body.

Now today, most of our Congressmen havent had the courage, yet, to even read the 28 pages. And those who have read them are more or less shocked. They cant speak about the content of what they read, they cant take notes, they cant bring in cell phones, or cameras. They have to read it in front of a guard.

My question to you: Do we, or can we identify a man, or woman, in the Congress, either in the House or the Senate, who has the courage to stand up on the floor of Congress, and to basically recite what they remember of the 28 pages; to let the entire world know, who was at least in part responsible for the financing of 9/11, the terror that were still under, through ISISno doubt its still connectedto draw that line, at least to put that idea in the American public?

So I ask you again: can you, or can this group, identify an historical character, who now can step forward at this great time of crisis, and speak the truth as to what theyve read in those pages, and identify the terrorists responsible, at least in part, for the 9/11 atrocities? Thank you.

The Problem is Gutlessness

LaRouche: Okay. Well, I know about this; other people know about this condition, and what is required. But amazingly, leading members of the Congress, havent got the guts to say so. Its all true. Its known. We have leading members of Congress, or those who have been leading members of Congress, they know this. I know this. Other people know this. And thats the truth.

Whats the problem? The problem is the problem of Obama right now. It was the Bush family, now its Obama. And Obama uses threats of killing. Obama is a specialist in killing members of Congress and similar kinds of people. And theyre scared. Because they think that being killed by him has a factor of futility. Theyre frightened.

And because of the pressthe press is frightened. They are frightened. And thats the problem. Its not that simple. We have a population in the United States which is scared as Hell. And when it comes to this issue, only a few will speak. Only a few.

Question: My question, or my response, is that we only need actually one to speak, publicly. The international papers, Im sure, the media would pick that up, and, the United States media would be forced to pick it up. The Internet media certainly would pick it up, at least to some extent.

So we only have to identify one brave person. I think that many people are frightened, but thats not anything new. Thats been happening all through history. People eventually step up to bat. Youve been doing it for many years, many years.

LaRouche: Yes, but they wont do it; they are scared! And their fear is not unjustified. What happens is, every Tuesday, citizens of the United States are killed by order of the President. This President. And, its that kind of fear.

Now there are other conditions of cowardice in the population. In other words, were speaking of Manhattan. And people who are living in southern Manhattan, know all about this, understand it, but there are very few who find the ability to come up and speak it. Thats the problem.

Question: You know, I think of the Founding Fathers and the fifty-six people who signed the Declaration of Independence, and they knew when they signed that they were basically signing their death warrant if they didnt succeed in the Revolution. And, I would think that, karmically, we have a tie into 1776, and that we must be able to identify at least one patriot amongst the Congressmen, and have that patriot stand forward, and we give him that support he needs.

LaRouche: The problem is, we have the gutlessness of most citizens of the United States, when it comes to their standing there. And the problem is, its not just simple gutlessness. They can be killed by the President of the United States, that is, Obama. Obama will kill people on a minutes notice. And people dont know how to get out of the threat of being killed for speaking out.

Then you get a problem in the population more generally. They become collectively terrified. And its very difficult to get members of Congress, or even ordinary citizens to tell the truth about tough matters. The United States is full of cowards. But theyre not cowards, per se; they know that Obama can kill them. The smartest ones know that he can kill them. Obama can do it, and has done it, repeatedly. Every Tuesday, citizens of the United States are being killed by the order of Obama. On Tuesday.

So, its going to take something a little tougher than we have, as an organizing process, to get this problem across. People know it! A good number of people know it. Very few people will speak it. Why? Because they think its futile. Because they think that even their sacrifice of their own life will not work. And, thats the problem. So, the point is, youve got to throw Obama out of office. Throw him out of office!

Look what hes doing now. Hes killing a whole bunch of citizens in various parts of the world, just killing them. And hes doing it; hes getting by with it. Germany wont fight. Other nations wont fight. Do you expect a citizen, who is not a potent citizen, to fight like that? They will talk about it in a certain way. They wont speak out for it.

We have turned our nation into a batch of cowards. But the cowardice is not unwarranted. And its going to take some tough work to solve that problem. It has to be solved, but its not something that you can just do. Youve got to make it happen, but you cant just make it happen arbitrarily. You really have to pull it off. And, if you can build that up mentally, that is a step in the right direction. But its not something you can just pull off on the street. Unfortunately, thats true.

Cowards and Liars in Congress

Question: What do you think would be an appropriate approach toward Martin Luther Kings birthday?

LaRouche: I think we have a chance of doing something about it. The opening is there. The question is how to get the mechanism to function because the thing is knowable. But what Im impressed by is the fear of citizens.

Now, if you want to understand how serious that is, you have to take the name of Obama. Obama is actually the person who is chiefly responsible for the terror against the citizens of the United States themselves. Why? Because he kills. He kills on Tuesdays; he kills innocent citizens on Tuesdays. Thats been his profession. And nobody steps in there and says, youre not going to be killed. What they get is that the order is given, to kill them! Obama does it on Tuesdays!

And therefore you have to get a force of influence which can muster people to stand up with courage enough to deal with this problem. Thats the problem. We have a nation of cowards, and thats the problem. . . .

Question: Hi Lyn. I want to give a very brief report on what we did last week in Albany, where were now moving, and we will have the Glass-Steagall resolution re-introduced in Albany. And this will be the third year weve had the Glass-Steagall resolution introduced, and what happens is that we have a good number of people who are co-sponsors, but the resolution is never taken out of committee.

Now, in terms of what youre talking about, about how to get people to deal with the fear, I think this is the critical question, and I want to tell you a short story.

We met with a State Senator during the Summer, who is from Harlem. And he wanted to introduce Glass-Steagall. He was going to put it in the Senate; he was going to write a letter, an op-ed in the Amsterdam News, and everything was moving, and he was going to read about Ferdinand Pecora, and get some guts on this thing. So then we didnt hear anything.

So we went on Tuesday to his office and talked to his aide. His aide had told us during the Summer, well, theres not enough people backing it, okay. Its good, were for it. Well, this time we walked in and the aide was very happy. The Senator had endorsed Bernie Sanders, and Sanders was just in New York talking about Glass-Steagall. And so he was ready to re-write the resolution, and he was ready to move. And then the Senator came in.

Now just to put it in context: On the wall of the Senators office, theres a poster. And on one side is Martin Luther King, and it says The Dreamer, and on the other side is Barack Obama, and it says, The Dream. [audience gasps]

And what happened in our discussion is, at first the Senator was talking about introducing Glass-Steagall, and how it would work, and how do you explain it. And then he became more and more and more enraged, and he was attacking the way we were talking about it, and he said, People in my district cant understand this. They cant understand it; this is arrogant to talk about derivatives. People dont know what derivatives are. You cant talk about derivatives.

And on the housing crisiswhich in Harlem is off the charts, where people are being shoved out by gentrificationhe said I dont see any connection between Glass-Steagall and housing, and he said, Look weve met for an hour, Ive given you all this time. And we fought it out.

But nonetheless, what we didnt say, and I think its very important to what you are saying today; we didnt say to him, You are terrified! of what youve got up on your wall. Thats the problem!

And instead we tended to argue it out, but I think the point youre making, if people really think about it, and Im thinking about it because I know we have to do this differently; we have to say what youre saying, and which is actually true, that there is enormous fear. And theres fear about Obama, theres fear that youre dealing with a killer, and theres fear about the fact that you put him in office, and that you continue to try to support him. And I think perhaps if were going to move this thing in Albany, to actually get Glass-Steagall voted on, we have to bring this question up. And I wanted to both tell you that, and see if you have any comments.

LaRouche: I do have a comment. The point is that, yes, these conditions exist. No doubt about it. It happens.

Members of Congress are not only cowardly, they are liars. Look, if somebody comes into the office there of a member of Congress, or in another state, if they come there and they raise this question, the truth is, that question presents the truth. Everybody knows it. That is, if they wish to know it. And therefore, the people who say that are lying. The members of Congress and State Representatives who are taking that position are lying. They know theyre lying, fully. And they continue to lie. Because they say their interest requires them to lie. And the only way you can do it is, youve got to find the circumstance, under which you can just say that outright. Well, we know youre lying. We know youre lying. But wed just like to have you tell the truth a couple of times.

And thats the only way you can deal with it. Then they will get very upset, theyll denounce you in all kinds of directions, and say this was insane, this was terrible, this was not decent, Im a respectable member of Congress, I have these rights, you cant say these things about me!

You say, well, arent you lying? [laughter] And they just walk out of the room and tear things up. Theyre terrified.

The Citizens Have Lost Their Guts

Question: Weve got a big week coming up in New York. And my question to you in terms of the drivethe removal of Obamaweve got the two main issues: Wall Street being crushed by Glass-Steagall, and taking the 28 pages to a much-needed higher level. How do you propose, how do you suggest, we move, now, and in the next few weeks?

LaRouche: You are faced with a threat which is a most credible threat, to destroy everything that you have! And its there right now! What Obama is doing, what the Wall Street crowd is doing, is theyre destroying the very life existence of the citizens of the United States, who are faced with actions which will kill them.

Now, right now, for example there are whole categories of people who are employed citizens of economic function. And they kill each other! They literally kill each other, or they kill themselves; because theyre terrified. And on that basis, very few people among them have the courage to live! People tend to die because they are afraid and they want to get rid of being afraid by dying. And thats whats come to the people of the United States.

And they cant trust the Congress, they cant trust the members of Congress, they cant trust the society, and theyre being killed! And the rate of killing of citizens is rising. And it seems that virtually nothing is being done about that.

Now, were on the edge of the worst and most dangerous war that has ever been fought by mankind. Were on the edge of Russia and China against the British Empire, what the British Empire represents, or what Obama represents as well. Those are the problems. And if the citizens have the guts, theyll respond to that.

But the citizens have lost their guts. Theyve been taken away from them. The members of their families are terrified. They become cowards regularly. Now me, old man me, well I say these things. I have been in the practice of saying these kinds of things. But very few peopleIm not saying that Im the greatest herothats not the case. I understand, more deeply than most citizens of the United States do. And the only problem is the cowardice is of a very specific kind: Look, its not that bad.

Youre saying its bad, its not that bad. Its not that bad! [pounds the table, laughter]

And thats what the problem is. Cowardice! And we have to help people get back their courage.

Question: Mr. LaRouche, I had a discussion with a few friends of mine and I brought up the Hill-Burton system. And with the Glass-Steagall, how would rebuilding the Hill-Burton system work?

LaRouche: I can identify that very quickly. Im very familiar with that. Look, the problem here is cowardice which is induced in the citizens. They dont want to take on those issues. They dont want to take on, also, the issues which involve themselves. They dont want to take on the recognition of their own cowardice. Therefore, they dont want to admit that theyre cowards.

Look, you have people who are dying. They are killing themselves. In labor union activities theyre there, they know this. Theyre being killed. Theyre dying. The rate of death of people in these qualities of production, of manufacturing, and things like thattheyre dying, theyre collapsing. They wish to die. They do things that show that they wish to die, because they want to get this over with.

Iif you can induce people to become cowards, then you can make them to do whatever you want them do. And thats what the problem is.

Practical Measures Dont Work

Many of these people who were working people, who had professions as working people, they quit. They were cowards. And they actually acted in order to induce their own death! In order to end the noise of dying. And thats whats happening. And if you cant solve that problem and end that problem, mankind becomes a collection of cowards, the worst kind of cowards. They wont face the truth.

They take drugs. They take drugs in order to kill themselves. People who are working people kill themselves to get rid of life because of their cowardice. And this is the thing we face, and therefore the question is how do we change that kind of reaction? The number of people who are working people, who are trade unionists, for example, and similar categoriesthe death rate among them is increasing at an accelerating rate. And to a large degree it is voluntary. They are trying to escape from life, from a life which is no longer enjoyable.

And therefore we have to go to a higher level of action, not practical measures. Practical measures never worked. Practical measures under these kinds of conditions were always a failure! They were always a bluff. They never meant anything. And when you have people and members of families who commit suicide in one form or the other, thats the most extreme kind of cowardice. Working people for whom the conditions of life are worsening, lose their guts. And my problem is, how do I do things which will help them get back their guts? Then they will do the best.

Question: I want to talk about this question of cowardice because it seems to me that since the death of FDR the American people have been terrorized under McCarthy, Trumans bombing of Japan, the death of Kennedy, the assassination of Malcolm X, the assassination of King, the assassination Bobby Kennedy. And this being the celebration of Martin Luther Kings birthday, I think that it would be good if we use that,when were talking to these Congressmen,that they have to come up to that level, they have to come up and do the right thing.

The other thing I wanted to mention about FDR, is that in 1940 and 1944 when he gave his inaugural address, both times he referred to the fact that people make mistakes. And he said that he himself, as President had made mistakes. But he said, the scales of justice for mistakes are different, because if you have a good heart, a warm heart, that the scale of justice is on your side. But if you have a cold heart, thats bad.

Anyways, I just wanted to bring that up, and see what you thought about the idea of making from now to Presidents Day or earlier, the focus of getting these Congressmen to move?

LaRouche: Well, the problem was the FBI. The FBI was the thing that destroyed the United States. Thats exactly what happened. And Obama is carrion left over from that stuff.

No, this has been the case. And the members of Congress have become increasingly cowardly, succession after succession. The willful degeneration of the members of Congress is among the most appalling experiences that Ive ever witnessed.

Now, how did that happen? As the soldiers returned at the end of World War II, at the time of the so-called preliminary peace agreement, thats when the cowardice took over.

When I got back from doing service in Asia, I was promoted rapidly to a very lucrative position as a leader in economics in Manhattan. And then the FBI got rid of me. And what happened? A lot of people got the same treatment. And thats how it happened.

You had people who were privileged, ostensibly, and you had people who were treated as lower-level people. One group would do almost anything to get something, to get rewards whether they deserved them or not, and there was another group of people who were always the underdogs. And thats how the system worked.

The U.S.A. Has No Sovereignty

And that had happened already when I got back, out of military service. It already had happened! And the people I knew, in general, were sort of slaves. They were given the worst jobs, the worst employment opportunities, so forth, thats what was happening! That was being done by the citizens of the United States against the citizens of the United States! Under the leadership of Wall Street! Under the leadership of what? Of the FBI.

The greatest agency of hate, against the people of the United States, was the FBI! The FBI was the most murderously inclined element of the U.S. government.

Now, were still fighting this! What do you think it is? What are the leading members of the Congress? Theyre the enemies of the people! By their voting! Take the vote that just passed, at the end of last year, it was an act of treason against the American people! Who did it?

The Congress!

So, these are the things that have to be said, openly and directly. And its because people are afraid to talk about those things in those terms, that the very spoken words betray them.

Question: Good afternoon, Mr. LaRouche. Im from the state of Connecticut. Meanwhile, on the battlefront last night, I went to see a movie, The Big Short. Just before it ended, I walked out and stood by the exit, and I had over 100 leaflets of our Glass-Steagall and Recovery, one of the older ones, and it was an opportunity of a lifetime, and it came to me in a dream. [applause]

My second thingThis is what Im trying to do to help this fight: The economy of Connecticut has been destroyed by Wall Street, taxes without representation. I have set up meetings with the state representatives. . . . I will have meetings with them so we can push in what the constituents need, the Glass-Steagall. And they can write or call their elected officials. And this is my part. What is your . . .

LaRouche: OK, I will respond to that. The problem here is, that we are governed by the British Empire. The United States has no sovereignty! No efficient sovereignty. You have some things that are called sovereignty in the United States, but they aint real. And that has been the case ever since Franklin Roosevelt was being dumped before his death. In other words, once the election had occurred, the Republican Party had won; at that point, the United States honor had collapsed, and has been collapsed ever since.

So therefore, the problem is not how do we explain how it should have worked or what the principle is. There is no principle! There is no principle!

The United States has always been, since that time, suffering the wrongs of life. Thats been the course of life. Who ran it? The British Empire ran it! They ran it! And people of the United States did duty for the British. Thats how it worked. Thats always been the case since that time.

Therefore, if you want to be honest, and also a little bit courageous, all you have to do, is say, were going to shut this thing down. For example, I make jokes about it, but its true, its a truthful joke, about Manhattan. Much of the stuff, the wealth of Manhattan is junk, its trash! Its not worth anything to the human beings, to the people. People may like expensive buildings, they may like these kinds of things,as long as they possess them! But they dont do anything for the human beings in general.

The education system, throughout the United States, is degenerating, and its degenerating at an accelerating rate. The members of the Congress are degenerating at an accelerating rate.

China and Russia

So what is needed is an action on behalf of the United States and its people to bring an end to this crap! We are slaves of the British Empire, because the whole system is run from and by the British Empire. They run it! The Queen is still doing it. And the Queen has to be put in prison because shes stupid and therefore we cant have her running around in a condition like that, being a stupid person. This is not right.

So anyway, what runs our world? Does the United States run the world? No! The British Empire controls the world! It need not do so, however. If we in the United States say were not going to have that any more, we just simply cancel it and the Queen goes out! But the people dont have the guts to do itOh! The Queen! Oh!! The Queen! Somebody comes up, and they faint, Oh, the Queen is here, again!

We fail to recognize the truth. And Ive had some experience with the truth. As I said, I served in India, around India, as a GI. I got into trouble with the British, for which Im very proud. I pulled something off and did some other things which got some people very excited, because I had the opportunity to say this will work and I would talk to the military people. We would discuss things. They said, its a good idea until they found out I was doing it, and then they tried to pull me off it!

So I had a good life and a good perspective, and I was not a slave. But I turned around, went back to the United States and I found that I was suddenly a slave. An ordinary citizen, better known as a slave. And thats the problem.

The point is, we have the resources under our Constitution or the intention of our Constitution, which can meet the challenge of this problem. We have to do it. The only way its going to happen really is through the role of China and Russia and a few other places like that. Otherwise, youve got nothing coming. But if we can get the cooperation of China and Russia and a few other places which do have some independence, we could do just fine. [applause]

LaRouches Closing Remarks

LaRouche: OK. First thing, shut down Wall Street. Absolutely shut it down. Dont bring it back. Dont let the wind blow from that direction because its putrid. All we have to do is to understand these kinds of principles. We know them, Ive known them, theyre there. But people feel they have to be obedient to government. The problem is the government is not the government. The government is not really the government. They have some fakers who are stand-ins in the name of being the government. But they dont govern for the nation. They govern for the rich!

They steal!

If you want to speak honestly, the way they live is they steal. And the people concede to allow the stealing. And thats all there is. Theres no productivity; if you look at the reality of the condition of the citizen in the United States, you have a falling rate of the conditions of existence of the citizens in the United States! Theyre being raped! Everything is being stolen from them thats worth anything.

And somebody comes out and says, Oh, weve got this, weve got this option, weve got this option. None of it is true.

All we have to do is turn the authority of the United States back to the people of the United States, but according to the kinds of principles which validated the development of the United States and of other nations as well. China and Russia are the leading nations of the world today. Understand that.

See it. Appreciate it. Its the truth. And just understand that.

China has become again a very great nation. It has not reached the full maturity of which it is capable. But China is the first nation now to deal with nearby space. Thats where the space program develops. Now this is a modest venture in space but its going to grow.

Putins history was that he was a member of a family which died fighting to save Russia! So Putin is there, hes real, hes honest, hes effective. China is tied closely to Putin now in collaboration and theres something emerging: What is it? Theres a change.

Suddenly, the United States doesnt mean much. Why doesnt it mean much? It no longer does anything very useful. Its a bunch of silly fools giving off bad odors. Theres nothing good there.

We have to realize we have to change that. We have to understand what the United States was supposed to mean, as Alexander Hamilton provided the guidance. And we have to get the people of the United States to revolt in a certain way, that is to say: We dont take this crap no more.

Thats all you have to do. And get the people who are going to be running the institutions of government in the United States, let them operate as appropriate members of government. Shut down Wall Street, bring the British royal family down. And solve the problems! Stop giving way to slavery! Stop being a slave for the British Empire. Stop killing people around the world for the sake of the British Empire. Its that simple. But it takes the guts required to recognize that that is your mission. And thats the important thing, the recognition of ones mission in life for mankind, the meaning of the mission of life for mankind.

Once you have that securely fixed, you should be able to do something better than weve been seeing recently.
This editorial appears in the January 22, 2016 issue of Executive Intelligence Review.

EDITORIAL

The Immediate, Grave Danger

Of Genocide

[PDF version of this editorial]

Jan. 14The United States and the world are facing an immediate grave danger. President Obama's State of the Union address demonstrated that he is completely out of control, Lyndon LaRouche said today. The speech was a total fraud, and anyone accepting Obama's lies is opening the United States up for total destruction. On behalf of the British, Obama is ready to blow up the United States altogether. This is an immediate option. The issue of Wall Street's crimes is actually a cover for the fact that the United States as a whole is being set up for genocide. This is the British policy of genocide, and the current Pope has been thoroughly suckered into it.

It is not just Obama who is doing the killing; Obama is only the lead dog. It's the British,the British Empire.

And of course people are frightened; maybe they're not frightened enough. But in any case, we have to tell the truth.

The planned genocide is the secret of the massive COP21 "climate-change" conference in Paris last November-December, with its estimated 50,000 participants representing 196 nations. But no binding treaty could possibly be reached,What was its purpose then? It was the mass-declaration of intention for this genocide. It was to rally the troops for the scheduled "big kill." It was the Dance of Death.

And this Pope's May 2015 encyclical, Laudato Si', calling for humankind to be sacrificed for the sake of the "climate," was exactly the same thing. The Pope has come under British direction and control; he is being used by a British operation. He's committing crimes.

The thrust of the genocide is aimed squarely at the trans-Atlantic region. But it is accompanied by the British threat to destroy Asia by war. That is what Obama is working on in the western Pacific; the Russians understand this completely.
Heres another example of the perils of trusting corporate promises, Wal-Mart edition.

Back in 2012, the huge retailer quelled civic opposition to allowing it into Washington, D.C., by promising to build two stores in the citys poorest neighborhoods to go with three stores it would build in more middle-class neighborhoods.

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With the latter three stores already opened, Wal-Mart abruptly announced last week that it was scrapping plans for the other two. The neighborhoods to be left high and dry are in the citys Ward 7, which is 95% African American, with a median household income of $35,000.

We have absolutely been shafted.... I bet you Wal-Mart doesnt do that everywhere.  Former Washington, D.C., Mayor Vincent Gray

As is the case in many poor, minority neighborhoods, Ward 7 is underserved with food stores offering healthy options at reasonable prices. The expectation was that Wal-Marts arrival would relieve that condition.

Washington officials and residents are justifiably enraged. We have absolutely been shafted, former D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray, who negotiated the 2012 deal, told local broadcasters. They think they can do this to us and we will roll over. I bet you Wal-Mart doesnt do that everywhere.

Wal-Mart places its decision to abandon inner-city Washington in the context of a worldwide pullback involving the closing of 269 stores, including 154 in the U.S. The three already launched in Washington will stay open. A company spokesman told the Washington Post that its expectations for the profitability of the new stores had been scaled back, and the first three stores, in trendier and gentrifying parts of the city, werent meeting expectations either. Wal-Mart spokesman Brian Nick told me that not a single one of the three existing D.C. stores is profitable; accordingly, weve concluded opening two additional stores in the District is not viable.

One City Council member said that in a closed-door meeting, a company official pointed to proposals to increase the citys minimum wage, which could rise from $11.50 an hour to $15 if a ballot measure passes in November, as a condition that could make the D.C. plans even less viable. According to the Post, the company also objected to a proposal to require employers to pay into a family and medical leave fund for workers.

The most important factor in this episode may be that, despite the communitys expectations, Wal-Marts commitment to build two stores in Ward 7 was never absolute. Instead, as was stated in the Community Partnership Initiative that embodied the agreement with the city, it was subject and contingent upon business conditions. City officials glossed over that qualification in characterizing the deal as ironclad, but that was their error. Wal-Mart always knew it had an escape clause. Nor is there any doubt that for Wal-Mart, business conditions have changed, and not only in Washington.

Nick says the fact that stores in more promising parts of the city were built and opened before the Ward 7 stores is a product of happenstance; the companys plan always was to build stores as the locations became ready, and the Ward 7 locations were delayed.

Still, Wal-Mart played its partnership initiative for all it was worth. The company got more from its pledge than merely permission to open stores in the city at a time when its corporate strategy involved expanding out of the suburbs into big cities. The company was also able to kill a 2013 living wage measure that would have required D.C. retailers to pay employees at least $12.50 an hour in wages and benefits, or 50% more than the then-minimum wage. Mayor Gray vetoed the measure in response to a threat from Wal-Mart to pare back its building plans.

The city bulldozed an entire neighborhood in Ward 7 to make way for Skyland Town Center, a $200-million complex that was to be anchored by Wal-Mart. City officials have said that they dont have any other anchor prospects on their list, and the development is in question.

Its unclear whether the city has any recourse against Wal-Mart for reneging on its deal, but things dont look promising. The 2012 agreement wasnt reduced to writing as an enforceable contract, and now that the first three stores have been built, the citys leverage is limited. Wal-Mart will abandon the leases it signed for the two Ward 7 locations, but any price it pays for breaking the leases wont come near to making up for the loss of jobs and shopping opportunities caused by their abandonment.

All that may be left is a bitter lesson already learned by communities such as San Francisco, St. Louis, and San Diego that offer a big commercial entity the sun, moon and stars (in their case, the NFL) but dont secure a guarantee of performance on the other side: When you make a deal, get everything--everything--down on paper.

Keep up to date with Michael Hiltzik. Follow @hiltzikm on Twitter, see our Facebook page, or email michael.hiltzik@latimes.com.

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U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a candidate for the GOP presidential nomination, has revealed on the campaign trail that his family no longer is covered by health insurance.

Naturally, he blames the Affordable Care Act: Ill tell you, you know who one of those millions of Americans is whos lost their healthcare because of Obamacare? That would be me, he told an audience in Manchester, N.H., according to Politico. I dont have healthcare right now.

If you pay attention, however, youll discover that Cruzs quandary is entirely his own fault. His, and his Republican colleagues in the Senate.

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You know who one of those millions of Americans is whos lost their healthcare because of Obamacare? That would be me.  Sen. Ted Cruz, who failed to sign up for 2016 health insurance

[UPDATE: It turns out that Cruz actually is insured and always was, as his campaign disclosed late Friday. This makes his remark about his losing his coverage because of the Affordable Care Act look even more like pure political spin. Read on, and see more below.]

Essentially, Cruzs coverage lapsed because his 2015 carrier, BlueCross BlueShield of Texas, ended its individual PPO plans for 2016, including the family plan that covered the Cruz family. The carrier decided to move entirely to HMO plans for the individual market. And Cruz didnt manage to sign up for a new 2016 plan by Dec. 31. That happened even though the insurer announced its decision to close PPO plans way back on July 23. Five months is normally enough for an educated adult to arrange health insurance.

Cruz still has until Jan. 31 to sign up for coverage beginning March 1, and he said hed be doing that. Were in the process of finding another policy, he said. I hope by the end of the month well have a policy for our family.

In other words, Cruzs problem has nothing to do with Obamacare and everything to do with his own sloth  unless the explanation is more sinister, as insurance expert Richard Mayhew of balloon-juice.com speculates: The Cruz family is currently uninsured to guarantee their father a cheap laugh line.

Whats more certain is that Cruzs characterization of his issue is layered with dishonesty. He claims that the new plans he has examined carry premium increases of 50%  Thats happening all over the country, he said. Thats happening in New Hampshire.

Well, no. Cruz wasnt especially forthcoming with details about his old plan or the new ones hes examining, but average rate increases in the individual market in Texas arent anywhere near 50%. No single carrier is getting a rate increase that high; the largest is 34%, for a very tiny carrier. At some companies, including BlueCross BlueShield, some rates actually decreased.

In New Hampshire, the biggest plans had increases in the single digits. At Anthem, the largest individual insurer, some rates decreased.

Its proper to examine why Cruz is looking for insurance on the individual exchange in the first place. Until last year, the Cruz family got its coverage from his wifes employer, Goldman Sachs. But after she took an unpaid leave of absence from her job to help him run for president, they had to find coverage from his employer  the federal government.

Normally, Cruz would be eligible for the standard government health insurance plan enjoyed by all government employees. But thanks to a deliberate monkey wrench forged by Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) during the drafting of the Affordable Care Act, members of Congress and their staffs are required to get their insurance through the exchanges  a biting-your-nose-off-to-spite-your-face stunt that increased the complexity of health coverage for them all, since the ACA wasnt designed to substitute for employer insurance.

Cruz is still eligible for the governments employer subsidy of up to 75% of his health insurance premium. He has said he wouldnt accept the employer share, which makes his complaint about his cost of insurance just a teeny bit more dishonest because hes the one driving up his own premium.

Cruzs lament is sadly typical of congressional critics of Obamacare, including former Speaker John Boehner, who made the claim in 2013 that his insurance rates had spiked because of Obamacare. It was just as bogus as Cruzs complaint, as we demonstrated here. Former Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) claimed in 2014 that Obamacare had cost him his cancer doctor. Typically, his office refused to provide any details, including why the 65-year-old Coburn was using an ACA plan instead of Medicare.

Thats the state of Obamacare criticism on the GOP side of the aisle. They insist they want to repeal and replace Obamacare. Because they cant offer any legitimate reasons to do so, theyre stuck with making them up.

[More on the Cruz campaigns backtracking: A campaign spokesman told the Wall Street Journal that the Cruz family had been automatically enrolled by BlueCross BlueShield in one of its HMOs, or health maintenance organizations, as of Jan. 1, when their former PPO plan expired. The insurance carrier did this for all 2015 PPO enrollees who took no action before Dec. 31. Cruz presumably should have known this, if he was paying attention, as the insurance carrier informed all affected customers of the change.

[The campaign says Cruz has now arranged to switch to a PPO plan offered in Texas by Humana, effective March 1.]

Keep up to date with Michael Hiltzik. Follow @hiltzikm on Twitter, see our Facebook page, or email michael.hiltzik@latimes.com.

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The superbug that raged through Bill Warners body after a routine medical scope procedure in early 2013 was so dangerous that his family was warned about entering his room at a time when he needed them most.

For more than eight months after the procedure at the Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, N.C., the 55-year-old truck driver suffered. He hallucinated, gripped the sheets in intense pain and withered away, losing 60 pounds before dying on Nov. 24, 2013, according to testimony his wife later gave at a federal hearing.

But the hospital never filed a report required when a medical device kills or seriously injures a patient. The mandatory federal reports are meant to alert regulators to dangerous defects in devices so that lives can be saved.

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A Senate investigation of deadly infections spread by contaminated scopes found that not one of the 16 or more American hospitals where patients were sickened appeared to have properly filed the required federal report.

A Senate report titled Preventable Tragedies said the hospitals failure to properly report the outbreaks left the Food and Drug Administration with an inaccurate picture of the frequency and severity of the outbreaks.

The FDA didnt warn hospitals about the device until Feb. 19, 2015, after a Times article detailed an outbreak at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, where seven patients were infected, including three who died.

By then, at least 195 patients at hospitals across the country had been infected since the first known U.S. outbreak in 2012, according to the investigation by the minority staff of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.

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Some hospitals eventually notified the scope manufacturers  and sometimes federal regulators  about the outbreaks, but those notices often came months later, according to the report released last week.

Hospitals dont want to be on the front page of newspapers, so they go into this quiet mode, said Lawrence Muscarella, a medical safety expert in Montgomeryville, Pa. There is this code of secrecy.

Investigators said it was likely other hospitals experienced outbreaks from the device known as a duodenoscope but had never tried to identify or track them.

Hospitals dont want to be on the front page of newspapers, so they go into this quiet mode.  Lawrence Muscarella, medical safety expert

Because of the lack of reporting, it may never be known how many patients were sickened by the reusable devices, which regulators now say are nearly impossible to disinfect.

Doctors use the long snake-like duodenoscope nearly 700,000 times a year in a procedure in which it is threaded down a patients throat and into the digestive tract to diagnose and treat cancers, gallstones and other conditions.

Last week, Olympus Corp., the leading manufacturer, said it was recalling and redesigning the duodenoscope model that it began selling in 2010. Three independent experts have questioned the safety of the scopes intricate, hard-to-clean design.

Federal law requires hospitals to report deaths from a medical device to the FDA within 10 days. If the device seriously injures a patient, the hospital must notify the manufacturer within 10 days. Both notices require hospitals to fill out what the FDA calls Form 3500A.

The staff of the Senate committee said its conversations with hospital employees during the investigation revealed a disconcerting lack of awareness that these reporting obligations even exist.

The FDA also allows anyone, including patients or family members, to file voluntary reports of problems with medical devices. Some hospitals eventually filed these voluntary reports with the agency.

At some hospitals, doctors launched time-consuming investigations to trace the source of their patients illnesses. Many hospitals contacted local health officials; two reached out to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

But for years, other medical centers  and the public  remained in the dark to this patchwork of uncoordinated and behind-the-scenes efforts. Because there was no single repository for the reports, it was difficult to spot patterns or quickly understand why patients were falling ill.

In California, local health officials keep details on most hospital outbreaks confidential. Officials say the secrecy helps to encourage hospitals to report problems so that they can be fixed. The state requires hospitals to report unusual events such as outbreaks, but they face no financial penalty if they dont.

The FDA began looking into the possibility that the duodenoscope could transfer bacteria among patients only when it was alerted by the CDC in September 2013 of an outbreak at an Illinois hospital. When the FDA staff looked to see whether reports of similar outbreaks had been filed, the Senate investigators said, it appeared to have found just one. By that time, eight outbreaks had happened or were continuing at American hospitals, the investigators said.

Carolinas Medical Center was among the hospitals that failed entirely to alert manufacturers or the FDA of the problems, according to the investigators. The hospital did not respond to repeated requests for comment from The Times.

At least five patients tested positive for a superbug at Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee beginning in May 2013, but a hospital official did not report the case to the manufacturer until January 2014, according to the Senate report.

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Froedtert doctors eventually identified 27 patients who had procedures with the same scope and tried to contact them to undergo testing for the superbug, the hospitals doctors later wrote in a medical journal article, which was published this year.

Six of those patients could not be reached because they had died or were in hospice care, according to the article. One of the patients who tested positive for the bacteria also died, they wrote.

A Froedtert spokeswoman said the hospital did not quickly file the mandatory report because the doctors had not definitely confirmed that the scope was the source of the infections.

At the University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center, doctors discovered 14 patients with dangerous drug-resistant infections from September 2012 to April 2013. Ten of those patients had been treated with the scope, the hospital said.

Anthony Berry, a university spokesman, said the hospital had advised Olympus and local health officials about the outbreak in February 2013.

The hospital did not file Form 3500A, he said, because testing had failed to find the same bacteria that sickened the patients on the scope.

Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia gave a similar reason  negative test results  for not reporting infections in eight patients. Senate investigators said those patients were sickened in early 2013.

But Muscarella said the scopes can test negative but still harbor bacteria inside.

He said many hospitals have close relationships with device manufacturers. Some hospitals purchased millions of dollars in equipment from Olympus or the two other manufacturers, he said. Those expensive purchases can make hospitals reluctant to report problems, he said, because the $40,000 devices may become unusable if they are found to be flawed.

Deborah Kotz, an FDA spokeswoman, said hospitals face fines and other penalties for not meeting the legal reporting requirements.

We have investigated cases and taken compliance actions, Kotz said, but we are not aware of criminal prosecutions that have resulted from a failure to report adverse events.

melody.petersen@latimes.com

Twitter: @melodypetersen

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The latest call came the other day. This time it was from someone claiming that Nadege Joly owed more than $200 in electricity bills.

Joly, 42, is used to it by now.

I get a scam call on my cellphone at least once a week, she told me. Each time, they say I owe them money and Im going to get in trouble if I dont pay.

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Its the dark side of wireless life. As more people abandon their land lines and go wireless-only, thus becoming much easier to reach, scammers have grown increasingly brazen in dialing for dollars.

A survey being released Friday by the mobile communications firm Truecaller found that three-quarters of U.S. scam calls now are received on wireless devices. Thats a big jump from last year, when half of all such calls still came in on land lines.

Some other findings from the survey:

 About 27 million Americans reported losing money to phone scams over the last 12 months, up 53% from a year earlier.

 Total losses were estimated at $7.4 billion, or an average $274 per victim.

 Men are bigger suckers than women. About 15% of men reported being duped by phone fraudsters, compared with 8% of women. People ages 18 to 34 were the most frequently targeted.

The scammers go where the targets are, said Tom Hsieh, Truecallers vice president of growth and partnerships. As people move away from land lines, so do scammers.

Joly, a Houston resident, is typical of millions of consumers. Her mobile phone is now her only phone, so once that number became accessible to scammers, they came out of the woodwork to try to fleece her.

Its not hard for bad guys to find you. Your phone number might be posted online or available from public records. Or it may have been part of a hacked database.

Last year, health insurance giant Anthem reported that as many as 80 million members had their names, phone numbers and other personal information accessed by hackers. Similarly massive security breaches have been announced in recent years by JPMorgan Chase, Target, EBay and others.

Your information is everywhere, said Ryan Manship, security practice director with the Minnesota consulting firm RedTeam Security.

Aside from purchasing hacked numbers on the black market, Manship said, scammers also obtain peoples contact information from old handsets that were never completely wiped clean. Youd be surprised how often that can happen, Manship said.

Once scammers put together a call list, they use automatic dialing machines to go after potential victims. When a call is answered, the scammer gets on the line.

Maybe itll be the so-called granny scam, in which the caller claims a loved one is in jail and needs bail money right away. Or its the Microsoft scam, in which a purported technician offers to help debug your computer.

Were seeing a lot of the one-ring scam, said Bart McDonough, chief executive of Agio, a New York security consulting firm. Thats where your cellphone rings once, and then you call back not realizing its a 900 or international call that can cost like $10 a minute.

An especially popular racket last year was the IRS scam, which involved a call supposedly from the tax agency and a threat of arrest if overdue taxes werent immediately paid.

The IRS said this week that such calls are now the most common tax scam. Since 2013, it said, at least 5,000 victims have been bilked out of more than $26 million.

I got that call last summer, Joly told me. The man had a foreign accent and sounded like he was reading from a script.

Experts say you should immediately hang up if you receive a call announcing that youve won a prize or are due some money, or if youre pressured to make an immediate decision.

If a caller claims to be from an official agency or a well-known company, verify that the call is legit.

Use common sense, said Jon Rudolph, principal software engineer at Core Security, a Boston consulting firm. The IRS doesnt call people for information.

Ask for the callers name, phone number and location. Tell them youll call back. Needless to say, if they wont provide this information, the conversation is over.

If they do give a number, Google it and see what comes up. If its not the actual agency or company, walk away.

Mike Davis, a researcher at Seattle consulting firm IOActive, said youre only increasing your chances of being targeted by scammers any time you dole out personal information online. Internet surveys that promise free gifts or sweepstakes winnings are especially troublesome, he said.

Even if these websites are legitimate, they often sell your information for profit in a secondary market, which is where scammers can learn intimate details such as your Social Security and work phone numbers, Davis said.

RedTeams Manship said its a fact of modern life that most people are tethered to devices that double as phones and computers.

You can be found by scammers, he said. Theres no avoiding them.

So just remember: Your grandchild isnt rotting away in some overseas jail. Microsoft isnt calling to fix your computer. And the IRS never, ever calls taxpayers on the phone.

But do pay attention if the agency sends you a letter.

David Lazarus column runs Tuesdays and Fridays. He also can be seen daily on KTLA-TV Channel 5 and followed on Twitter @Davidlaz. Send your tips or feedback to david.lazarus@latimes.com.

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Artful photographs of Elizabeth Taylors Bel-Air home. A fable about a female astronaut from the future. And a series of sound-inspired pieces in a Santa Monica garage. Plus: a pop-up show by a Chicago graphic design duo and the season opener at West Hollywoods Pacific Design Center. Here are five events not to miss this week:

Lita Albuquerque, 20/20: Accelerando, at the USC Fisher Museum of Art. In an exhibition that melds film, sound and performance, Albuquerque tells the story of a 25th century female astronaut who lands on Earth in the year 6,000 BC. The piece is drawn from a text that Albuquerque has been working on since 2003, re-imagined in the museum as an impressionistic environment that, among other things, features original music by film and theater composer Robbie C. Williamson. Opens Tuesday. 823 W. Exposition Blvd., Exposition Park, Los Angeles, fisher.usc.edu.

Catherine Opie: 700 Nimes Road at MOCA Pacific Design Center. For six months in 2011, Los Angeles photographer Catherine Opie documented the Bel-Air estate of Elizabeth Taylor  the clothes, the photographs, the jewelry, the little bits of personal ephemera that make a house a home. Now she is showing the series, one that chronicles a life of wealth and fame, at the Museum of Contemporary Arts West Hollywood space. Opens Saturday and runs through May 8. Pacific Design Center, 8687 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood, moca.org.

designLAB at the Pacific Design Center. To kick off the winter arts season, a number of the art and design spaces at the Pacific Design Center are holding simultaneous openings on Friday evening that will also include food, drink and specially curated performances. During this time, MOCAs PDC space will be open to museum members. 5 to 9:30 p.m. Friday 8687 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood, pacificdesigncenter.com.

Siren at Five Car Garage. A group show of 10 artists who hail primarily from the Los Angeles area looks at works that employ or reference sound. This includes works of video and a pair of sound baths that provide sound healing. (The sound baths require advance RSVP and an admission of $30.) There will also be talks and performances, including a show of Cathartic Karaoke by artist Jennifer Sullivan on Jan. 30 at 5 p.m. Five Car Garage is located in the garage of a private home; address and other details are provided with an RSVP. Opens Friday and runs through March 18. Santa Monica, emmagrayhq.com.

Sonnenzimmer: Graphic Arts Future Tour at the Quiet Life. Chicago art and graphic design duo Nick Butcher and Nadine Nakanishi come to L.A. for a one-day pop-up event in Highland Park. The couple, who produce art books, installations, paintings and prints, have long blurred the line between commercial graphic design and other forms of art, and will be showcasing a series of collaborative prints, posters and art books during their brief L.A. sojourn. 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, 5627 N. Figueroa St., Highland Park, Los Angeles, thequietlife.com.

FINAL WEEK:

Spiritual Language at TAG Gallery. Roughly 40 artists, including Fabian Debora, Alex Kizu and Juan Carlos Munoz Hernandez, have contributed works to this group show, which has served as a benefit for Homeboy Industries. Proceeds from the sales of the works go to the organization; the gallery also is accepting donation of art supplies to help support Homeboys art-related programs. Through Saturday. 2525 Michigan Ave., D3, Santa Monica, taggallery.net.

The Idea of North: The Paintings of Lawren Harris at the Hammer Museum. Known for his elegant depictions of frigid Canadian landscapes, Harris was part of the Group of Seven, a group of painters who were proponents for establishing a distinctly Canadian school of painting  in Harris case, one with distinctly Modernist overtones. His sparse landscapes, depicted in stained-glass hues of blue, white and green, often with exalted rays of light descending from the heavens, have practically religious overtones. Through Sunday. 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Westwood, hammer.ucla.edu.

Uh-Oh: Frances Stark, 1991-2015 at the Hammer Museum. This is a survey of work by L.A.-based artist Frances Stark, whose wide-ranging practice  shes done everything from carbon drawings to elaborate digital animations  covers a similarly broad terrain of subjects, including critiques of institutions and intimate views of the artists personal life including animated productions of private online chats. Through Sunday. 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Westwood, hammer.ucla.edu.

Giant Robot Biennale 4 at the Japanese American National Museum. Giant Robot  the shop and gallery  has long focused on Asian and Asian American popular culture, showcasing works and decorative merchandise by figures such as Yoshitomo Nara and Takashi Murakami. Since 2007, founder Eric Nakamura has partnered with the Japanese American National Museum for this biennial, which showcases pop-infused works by an array of young artists. Through Sunday. 100 N. Central Ave., downtown Los Angeles, janm.org.

ONGOING EXHIBITIONS

David Korty, at Night Gallery. The Los Angeles-based painters latest series, titled Figure Construction, begins with the color blue. He uses the same inky backdrop on works that contain layered blocks of painted text, drawings and pattern fragments, which cohere into abstracted human figures. The show also includes a number of the artists geometrically inspired ceramic works. Through Jan. 30. 2276 E. 16th St., downtown, nightgallery.ca.

Somewhere Over El Arco Iris: Chicano Landscapes, 1971-2015, at the Museum of Latin American Art. Guest curator Julian Bermudez has gathered 25 works that tell a story of landscape through the works of Chicano artists over more than four decades. This includes classic pieces by noted California figures such as Gronk, Frank Romero, Patssi Valdez and Carlos Almaraz. But it also includes up-and-comers such as Shizu Saldamando and Jaime Germs Zacarias. Extended through Jan. 31. 628 Alamitos Ave., Long Beach, molaa.org.

Hannelore Baron: Collage & Assemblage, at Jack Rutberg Fine Art. Taut works of assemblage and collage take their power from the found materials the artist used: bits of fabric and other gewgaws found in thrift stores and junkyards, charged objects that retain the sense of having once served other purposes. Born in Germany (her family fled the country in the wake of Kristallnacht), Baron was part of New Yorks artistic milieu at mid-century, but her pieces, which feel faded and worn, suggest the claustrophobia of isolation and confinement. Extended through Jan. 30. 357 N. La Brea Ave., Fairfax, jackrutbergfinearts.com.

Xara Thustra: Stop Men, at Last Projects. The San Francisco artist and activist, known for producing work in a wide range of media  graffiti, posters, video, performance and more  is unveiling new paintings and a pair of traveling murals. Through Jan. 30. 6546 Hollywood Blvd., #215, Hollywood, alastprojects.org.

Stas Orlovski, Skazka, at Young Projects Gallery. The L.A.-based Orlovski is known for his haunting stop-motion animations that employ bits of vintage childrens books and Victorian drawings. This new work, which features a soundtrack by experimental audio artist Steve Roden, is inspired by 19th century magic-lantern performances and includes a stage-set and larger-than-life projections onto silhouettes. Through Feb. 5. Pacific Design Center, 8687 Melrose Ave., Space B230, West Hollywood, youngprojectsgallery.com.

Kori Newkirk, at Roberts & Tilton. Known for creating sculptural pieces out of synthetic hair and pony beads, the Los Angeles-based artist is now taking on the idea of the circle in myriad ways, including a series of sculptures crafted from found bicycle wheels. Through Feb. 6. 5801 Washington Blvd., Culver City, robertsandtilton.com.

Rafael Rozendaal, Abstract Browsing, at Steve Turner. A series of Jacquard woven tapestries explores the architecture of the Internet, a subject that has long-fascinated this Dutch-born artist. He is also presenting a series of wall works inspired by haiku. Through Feb. 6. 6830 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood, steveturner.la.

Steven Hull, Never Again Sharpen Your Teeth on the Rope That Holds You Safely to Shore, at Rosamund Felsen Gallery. The Los Angeles artist, known for the dexterous ways in which he combines painting and sculpture to create theatrical installations, has put together a show inspired partly by seaside carnival, partly by an ocean voyage. The exhibition  his 11th at Rosamund Felsen  includes paintings, large-scale wood sculptures and oil paint transfers. Through Feb. 6. 1923 S. Santa Fe Ave., downtown Los Angeles, rosamundfelsen.com.

Various Small Fires (Working Documents) at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. A show that illuminates unusual bits of LACMA history, such as the plan to have a robot patrol the galleries or the time a dog worked as a security guard. Included in the mix is Ed Ruschas working sketch for his infamous mid-60s canvas The Los Angeles County Museum on Fire. Through Feb. 7. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Mid-Wilshire, lacma.org.

Minoru Ohira: Iki and Yabo, at Offramp Gallery. Iki in Japanese means chic; yabo, unrefined. In this exhibition, the Japanese sculptor examines the fine line between the two concepts in a series of largely wooden sculptures that evoke and deconstruct elements of architecture. Through Feb. 7. 1702 Lincoln Ave., Pasadena, offrampgallery.com.

Victor Hugo Zayas, at the Museum of Latin American Art. Gritty abstractions the color of charcoal, acid and steel capture the industrial innards of Los Angeles. Zayas, a painter who maintains a studio on the banks of the L.A. River, will have a survey of more than 40 works on view at the museum  works that chart the evolution of the citys industrial landscape. Through Feb. 7. 628 Alamitos Ave., Long Beach, molaa.org.

Toba Khedoori, at Regen Projects. In her fourth show at the gallery, the L.A.-based artist, known for her detailed renderings of plants, architecture and other objects, takes to canvas as well. Her pieces reveal aching detail that, at moments, teeters into abstraction  creating images that are more than mere representation. Through Feb. 13. 6750 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood, regenprojects.com.

Customizing Language, at Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions. Organized by guest curators Idurre Alonso and Selene Preciado, this group show gathers artists from the Americas to look at the ways in which language often reflects political reality. Featuring the work of figures such as Marco Ramirez ERRE, Regina Jose Galindo and Mely Barragan (whom I wrote about as part of the Tijuana art series in October). Through Feb. 14. 6522 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, welcometolace.org.

Edmund de Waal, Ten Thousand Things, at Gagosian Gallery. Both an artist and an acclaimed novelist, de Waal is a figure whose passion for words feeds his art and vice versa. For his first solo exhibition in L.A., he is presenting arrangements of objects  including the ceramics he makes  inspired by music, poetry and the architecture of Rudolph Schindler. Through Feb. 18. 456 N. Camden Drive, Beverly Hills, gagosian.com.

Sadie Barnette, Superfecta, at Charlie James Gallery. In a series of multimedia works  from photography to meticulously rendered drawings  the artist looks at the culture of horse racing, touching on issues of fantasy, escapism and chance. Through Feb. 20. 969 Chung King Road, Chinatown, Los Angeles, cjamesgallery.com.

George Porcari, Greetings From LA: 24 Frames and 50 Years, at Haphazard. Since the 60s, artist George Porcari has been photographing Los Angeles  from the street to the beach. In this exhibition, he uses those images to make large-scale photo collages set around a blank space  or void  that shapes the tone of the images above and below. Through Feb. 20. 1542 Sawtelle Blvd., Sawtelle, Los Angeles, haphazard.co.

Marcia Hafif, Glaze Paintings and Works on Paper From the 1970s, at Marc Selwyn Fine Art. Throughout her career, Hafif has been obsessed with color: the colors of the Pacific Ocean or Roman architecture  hues that she reproduces in paintings and installations that serve as meditations on the subtleties of tone. In her first solo show at Selwyn, the artist is showing some of the early works  graphite drawings and glaze paintings  that helped shape her practice. Through Feb. 20. 9953 S. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills, marcselwynfineart.com.

Ishiuchi Miyako: Postwar Shadows at the Getty Center. Showcasing several bodies of work by the Japanese photographer, this exhibition includes her moving images of objects and clothing that survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. Each image captures deeply personal details such as patches, mends and stains, all evidence of the full lives once inhabited by these garments. Also on view will be a small exhibition of contemporary Japanese photographers. Through Feb. 21. 1200 Getty Center Drive, Brentwood, getty.edu.

Punk Povera, at Wuho Gallery. This group exhibition gathers painting, drawing and sculpture from L.A. and Mexico City inspired by a pair of cultural movements: Arte Povera, the Italian art movement that focused on the use of simple materials, and punk, the musical and fashion movement that favored grit over excess. Through Feb. 21. 6518 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, wuho.architecture.woodbury.edu.

The Wartime Photographs of Ansel Adams, at the Skirball Cultural Center. Adams powerful black-and-white images from Manzanar during World War II protested what he described as the enforced exodus of American citizens: Japanese Americans who were forcefully detained for the course of the war. Its a stirring view of life for Japanese Americans during a dark period in American history. Through Feb. 21. 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Brentwood, skirball.org.

Diana Thater, The Sympathetic Imagination, at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The Los Angeles-based video artist is widely known for groundbreaking video installations that incorporate the architecture of a space while exploring a range of natural phenomena: from the underwater lives of dolphins to the ways in which bees communicate. For the show at LACMA, she is showing works shot in Claude Monets garden in Giverny, France, and at the Galtaji Temple in Jaipur, India. Through Feb. 21. 5905 Wilshire Blvd. Mid-Wilshire, lacma.org.

Noah Davis: Imitation of Wealth at the Museum of Contemporary Art Grand Avenue. In 2013, Davis re-created a series of works by famous artists and put them on display at the Underground Museum, his alternative art space in Arlington Heights. The idea was to display works of high cultural value in an unlikely setting. Now, the Museum of Contemporary Art has re-created the installation  a work made more poignant by the artists recent death. (The piece is viewable free of charge through the windows of a storefront space adjacent to the museum.) Through Feb. 22. 250 S. Grand Ave., downtown, moca.org.

John Outterbridge, Rag Man, at Art + Practice. The renowned Los Angeles assemblage artist is showing works produced mainly over the last decade and a half from scavenged materials such as twigs, bones and hair. Works from the recent series Rag and Bone Idiom evoke talismans and healing rituals. Through Feb. 27. 4339 Leimert Blvd., Leimert Park, artandpractice.org.

Marianne Vitale, at Venus. A sculptor known for her weighty pieces is having her West Coast debut show with a pair of installations that will feature 60 tons of steel railroad track and a series of nearly 100 11-foot white pine timbers. Through Feb. 27. 601 S. Anderson St., Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, venusovermanhattan.com.

R. Luke DuBois: Now and Sandow Birk: American Quran, at the Orange County Museum of Art. OCMA opens a pair of new shows: one by the New York-based DuBois, an artist who often employs data to create unique visualizations, and the L.A.-based Birk, who has spent nine years transcribing and illustrating every verse of the Koran in a uniquely American way. Through Feb. 28. 850 San Clemente Drive, Newport Beach, ocma.net.

Rain Room, at the L.A. County Museum of Art. It was universally panned by the critics when it appeared at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. (New York Magazine critic Jerry Saltz described it as the worst single work of art that I saw all this year ... a high-tech amusement-park ride.) And my colleague Christopher Knight labeled it brainless amusement in his review of the experience. But who cares when you can take the worlds most awesome selfie inside it and share it with the world on Instagram? Through March 6. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Mid-Wilshire, lacma.org.

Derek Fordjour: Eight Paintings and Yashua Klos: How to Hide in the Wind, at Papillion. A pair of new shows at Papillion explore the black figure in unique ways. In a series of new paintings, Fordjour places arrangements of figures against patterned and other carnivalesque backgrounds. Klos, in the meantime, creates elaborate collages that find ways of integrating faces and heads into architectonic elements that appear to float in space. Through March 6. 4336 Degnan Blvd., Leimert Park, Los Angeles, papillionart.com.

Dansaekhwa and Minimalism, at Blum & Poe. A survey of some 35 works pairs pieces by key American minimalists (Sol LeWitt, Carl Andre, Agnes Martin) with important works from Koreas Dansaekhwa movement, whose artists (figures such as Lee Ufan and Kwon Young-woo) were renowned for creating monochrome works in imaginative and textural ways. A truly meditative show. Through March 12. 2727 S. La Cienega Blvd., Culver City, blumandpoe.com.

Ron Jude: Lago, at Gallery Luisotti. In his fourth solo show at the gallery, Jude explores the landscape of the Salton Sea, the famously polluted body of water, near which the photographer spent some of the formative years of his childhood. Through March 12. Bergamot Station, 2525 S. Michigan Ave., Santa Monica, galleryluisotti.com.

Disguise: Masks and Global African Art, at the Fowler Museum. This exhibition looks at the art of disguise through the work of a dozen contemporary African and African American artists  touching on everything from elaborate masks to the illusionist camouflage of the digital sphere. Expect to see work by artists such as Zina Saro-Wiwa, Jacolby Satterwhite and Brendan Fernandes. Through March 13. UCLA, north campus, Westwood, fowler.ucla.edu.

Frank Gehry, at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Featuring more than 200 drawings and 65 models, as well as countless photographs and video, this retrospective looks at the life and career of one of L.A.s most celebrated architects. Totally worth it just to see the original design for downtowns Disney Hall. (Glad they went for the option that was built.) Through March 20. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Mid-Wilshire, lacma.org.

In Focus: Daguerreotypes, at the Getty Museum. A selection of some of the museums 2,000 daguerreotypes go on view alongside daguerreotypes from the collection of singer-songwriter Graham Nash, a prominent collector of this early type of photography. Through March 30. 1200 Getty Center Drive, Brentwood, getty.edu.

Robert Cremean: The Beds of Procrustes and The Seven Deadly Sins, at the Pasadena Museum of California Art. The California artist is known for cool, diagrammatic pieces that employ the human figure in ways that riff on bigger questions of art, myth, faith and sacrifice. For his show in Pasadena, one installation examines the legend of Procrustes, the Greek mythological bandit who would torture people in various ways in order to force them to fit onto an iron bed, while another uses human figures to interpret each of the deadly sins. Through April 3. 490 E. Union St., Pasadena, pmcaonline.org.

Hard Edged: Geometrical Abstraction and Beyond, at the California African American Museum. A new exhibition features the work of 46 artists  from emerging figures to well-established names  working in the arena of geometric abstraction. This includes works by fresh voices and standard-bearers, including well-known figures such as Rashid Johnson, Senga Nengudi, David Hammons and Tim Washington. Through April 24. 600 State Drive, Exposition Park, caamuseum.org.

Alice Konitz, Los Angeles Museum of Art (LAMOA), at Occidental College. This is a work of sculpture that also serves as a micro exhibition hall. The space was established in Konitzs backyard in 2012 but will be on view at Occidental College for the course of the academic year. The inaugural exhibition features work by L.A. artist Alice Clements. Through spring 2016. In front of Weingart Hall at Occidental College, 1600 Campus Road, Eagle Rock, oxy.edu.

Popol Vuh: Watercolors of Diego Rivera, at the Bowers Museum. The Popol Vuh is a nearly 500-year-old Mayan text, written in Quiche, that recounts that cultures creation myths. This sacred text inspired a series of watercolors by Mexican muralist Diego Rivera, an artist who was preoccupied with indigenous themes. Now 17 of these paintings, on loan from a museum in Mexico, are on view at the Bowers. Through May 29. 2002 N. Main St., Santa Ana, bowers.org.

Alex Israel, at the Huntington. In 2012, the San Marino library and museum unveiled the first of its contemporary interventions with low-key works by Ricky Swallow and Lesley Vance. Now the museum is getting bolder, with a series of installations by painter Alex Israel, whose pop-inspired canvases and objects touch on topics such as celebrity, glamour and power. Through July 11. 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, huntington.org.

Senses of Time: Video and Film-Based Works of Africa, at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. For one of its long-term installations, the museum has gathered works of video or film by contemporary African artists that explore the body and the looping nature of time. This includes pieces by figures such as Yinka Shonibare, Sammy Baloji, Berni Searle, Moatax Nasr and Theo Eshetu. Through Jan. 2, 2017. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Mid-Wilshire, lacma.org.

Islamic Art Now at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Contemporary works from LACMAs permanent collection by 20 artists who live in or have roots in the Middle East look at questions of society, gender and identity. Runs indefinitely. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Mid-Wilshire, lacma.org.

Find me on Twitter @cmonstah.
Why do we tip?

The American practice of tipping used to not be so American. Several histories of tipping trace it back to a practice adapted from Europeans, whose own history of tipping goes back to at least Tudor England, when overnight guests would leave a small gratuity (or vails) for the house servants. Moneyed Americans, traveling abroad in large numbers after the Civil War (see: Henry James), apparently liked what they saw and brought it back home.

Not that it was immediately welcomed. Far from it: Tipping was considered un-American. Mark Twain famously refused to tip his cab driver. Anti-tipping pamphlets were written and opposition groups popped up across the country. It got so heated that some states even passed anti-tipping laws (all were eventually repealed). The reasons the opposition gave against tipping then are remarkably similar to the reasons in opposition to tipping now: that it creates or exacerbates the class divide between tipper and tippee; that it allows employers to shift part of its wage burden to customers; that it hides the real cost of dining.

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How much do we tip?

A 2014 Michelin/Harris poll found that the average American diner tips about 18%. Last year, a Payscale study found that Los Angeles diners similarly leave an 18% tip at restaurants. Studies have shown that how much we tip also depends on many factors unrelated to service, such as the servers gender and ethnicity, or whether the checks have Thank You handwritten on them.

What does the restaurant do with the tip I leave after my meal?

Under state law, tips are the properties of the employees, though exactly how the tips get allocated among the tipped employees varies by restaurant. A common method is for the restaurant to pool all tips earned over a certain period of time  say, a shift, or a week  in a big pot and then to redistribute them to eligible employees according to a formula devised by the restaurant.

Which employees are eligible to participate in a tip pool?

Californias labor statute spells out exactly who cannot receive any tips: Neither the restaurants owners nor its agents are permitted to take tips. Agents of the owner include managers and supervisors; essentially, those who supervise other employees, or have the authority to hire or fire employees. Even if they wait on a table, or help deliver dishes, owners and their agents cannot receive any tips.

Only non-supervisor employees who provide service to diners  such as servers, busboys, bartenders, hosts, line cooks and dishwashers  can be part of the pool.

Line cooks and dishwashers? I thought kitchen staff couldnt participate in the tip pool because they do not provide direct table service?

That was true until a few years ago. In California, the idea that tips may be earned only by those who provide direct table service is rooted in a 1990 appellate court case, Leighton vs. Old Heidelberg, Ltd. The restaurant in question, Old Heidelberg, was the German restaurant of choice if you lived around Van Nuys (there were lederhosen and schnapps). A server, unhappy that the tip pool included busboys and bartenders, sued the restaurant. In validating the restaurants tip pool arrangement, the court said that the restaurant simply followed a house rule which is the industry practice, that tips left on table be pooled and distributed among employees who directly provide service to the tipping patron. That language caught on and was widely interpreted to mean that only those employees who come face-to-face with diners can be included in a tip pool. Which meant that cooks were left out of the pool.

That narrow interpretation of service doesnt quite correlate with the reality of the dining experience, of course. After all, how much you tip may be just as dependent on a servers friendliness as it is on whether the steak was cooked correctly. And in 2009, an appellate court agreed. The case was Etheridge vs. Reins International; the tip pool in question included kitchen staff, bartenders and dishwashers. The court, rejecting the idea that only those in the direct chain of service may receive tips, noted that, because the kitchen crew isnt visible to most diners, its critical to include them in a tip pool.

Stephen Berry, a partner at Paul Hastings employment law department who also cowrote an amicus brief in support of the restaurant in the Etheridge case, says that the case is still good law in California. And for what its worth, the Department of Industrial Relations, the agency entrusted with enforcing the states labor laws, notes in its own Frequently Asked Questions that employees who are in the general chain of service may receive tips so long as their role bears a relationship to the customers overall experience.

But doesnt federal law say that cooks cant be part of the tip pool?

Yes and no. The federal law that governs tip pooling is the Federal Labor Standards Act (FLSA), and the Department of Labors guidelines explicitly exclude cooks and dishwashers from tip pools. But the 9th Circuit, which has jurisdiction over two territories and nine states, including California, decided in a 2010 case that the tip pool provisions of the FLSA dont apply to states (like California) that dont credit tips against an employers minimum wage obligations (the so-called tip credit)  meaning that a restaurant may include its kitchen staff in its tip pool without running afoul of federal law. As one might expect, the department did not agree, and litigation followed after that. The relevant case, Oregon Restaurant and Lodging vs. Perez, is pending in the 9th Circuit, so the department isnt enforcing its position on tip pooling in 9th Circuit states  like California  that dont take the tip credit.

What does tipping have to do with the minimum wage?

In states that take the tip credit, quite a lot. Employers in tip credit states may apply an employees tips against their minimum wage obligations, though how much an employer must pay before taking the tip credit varies from state to state. Because California doesnt permit employers to take the tip credit, employers are required to pay their employees the states full minimum wage (currently $10 per hour), regardless of whether the employee also receives tips. Thus in some high-end restaurants, the front of house crew may earn considerably more than the kitchen.

Tien Nguyen is a Los Angeles-based food writer and lawyer.

food@latimes.com
Louis J. Marinelli is a very smart, very talkative 29-year-old ESL teacher who lives in San Diego with his Russian-born wife. A native of Buffalo who moved to California in 2006, hes been studying how his adopted state fits in with the rest of the country.

He has come to the conclusion that while America needs California, California does not need America.

At all.

Join the conversation on Facebook >>

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So he is pushing for secession, gently, by running for the California Assembly against Democrat Lorena Gonzalez, a popular incumbent who probably has little to fear from Marinellis challenge. By 2020, however, he hopes to get a secession measure on the state ballot.

There are two kinds of people in California, he tells me. People who identify themselves as Californians and Americans who are occupying California.

There are two kinds of people in California. People who identify themselves as Californians and Americans who are occupying California.  Louis J. Marinelli, who hopes to get a secession measure on the state ballot

That is so not mellow, but hes not the only Californian in revolt. A handful of Northern California counties have been trying for decades to break away to form the independent state of Jefferson. In 2013, Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tim Draper proposed breaking California into six states.

As far as I know, no one else is proposing a whole new country.

I got curious about Marinelli after the California secretary of state ordered county election officials to start keeping track of voters affiliating themselves with his California National Party. That sounded like the legitimization of something a little bit wacky. (On the other hand, what is politics if not the legitimization of that which once seemed wacky?)

Could this movement catch fire? So far, the metrics are not encouraging. Last year, the group raised $10,000, Marinelli said. So far, only 300 people have signed up as volunteers on his website.

Last weekend, I spent an afternoon with Marinelli, who had come to an outdoor mall here near the Mexican border to campaign for the Assembly, and, just as important, to discuss the idea of secession with fed-up Californians. Despite the fact that he was giving away T-shirts, not a single person stopped to chat.

I, however, got an earful.

::

The most surprising thing I learned is that Marinelli is coming at secession from the left, not the right.

Fundamentally, he said, we have a problem with the United States. Ideologically they are very different from us  their agenda, their militarism, their imperialism and colonialism. The United States is always at war. We dont want to bomb other countries.

The platform for the California National Party includes a commitment to reversing global climate change by reducing carbon emissions (an area in which, as Gov. Jerry Brown proudly noted in his State of the State speech Thursday, California is a leader).

But the Americans over there, Marinelli said, gesturing more or less in the direction of Washington, D.C., are debating whether climate change is real.

Marinelli supports a single-payer healthcare system, reproductive rights, public financing for political campaigns, a path to citizenship for immigrants who are in California illegally, and criminal justice and police reform. People talk about gun control, he said. I want to talk about police gun control.

He thinks the Pledge of Allegiance is propaganda. Its an indoctrination. And then you grow up thinking America is the best country, but can anybody tell me why? Besides military strength and incarcerations, what are we No. 1 in? Nothing.

Perhaps most to the point, he believes that California does not receive its fair share of federal dollars.

This is a theme that crops up regularly; six years ago, when California was in one of its cyclical budget holes, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger argued as much in his State of the State speech. Many budget wonks think its untrue that California receives short shrift from the feds; others think its a pointless statistic as smaller, poorer states should receive more federal help.

We have some of the worst roads in the country, some of the worst schools in the country and yet they are taking our taxes, said Marinelli. This exploitation is off the charts!

If you would like to immerse yourself in arguments for California secession, take a look at the 157-page tome Californias Future: Your Guide to an Independent California, available on Marinellis Yes California website. May our right to self-determination be acknowledged, the dedication says, so that the nation of California may be released from captivity.

Maybe Im just not mad enough. When I curled up with it in bed the other night, it put me right to sleep.

::

Marinelli grew up in Buffalo worshiping John F. Kennedy (and not Ronald Reagan, as you might expect from someone born in 1986). His high school nickname was JFK, because he could recite hours of Kennedy speeches by heart.

In 2003, as a 17-year-old political neophyte, he trekked to Iowa to volunteer for Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards. Disappointed that John Kerry became the nominee instead, Marinelli shifted right; he supported George W. Bushs reelection and found solace in the embrace of Fox News.

That channel is highly manipulative, he said. It turned me into your typical conservative ideologue.

He became an anti-gay-marriage activist and traveled the country agitating against equal rights  21 cities, 17 states, 10,000 miles in 30 days. Ironically, he said, it was all the travel that led to a change of heart. He moved abroad for a couple of years, his eyes were opened, he met gay people and came to appreciate their quest for equality.

And now hes got a new passion. It is possible that Marinelli has found his true political calling, but his restless history suggests that he is a searcher.

Which doesnt just make him a true Californian. It makes him a true American.

robin.abcarian@latimes.com

Twitter: @AbcarianLAT

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Just before Danny Munoz could reach the man who had caught his eye, someone else whisked the stranger off to dance.

So Munoz waited under the flashing lights for him to return. They started talking. They danced to Donna Summer. They began to fall in love in the cavernous club, a love that would one day lead to marriage.

In other discos you felt like you had to be a certain way. Act a certain way. Dress a certain way, Munoz, now 66, remembered. Not at Circus Disco.

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For decades since the disco opened in 1974, clubgoers strolled through its outlandish entrance  the gaping mouth of a cartoonish clown  to dance and flirt and feel at home. It was an exuberant gay hot spot that didnt shut anyone out. Not gay men. Not their female friends in high heels. And not Latinos like Munoz, who were often turned away at other gay clubs.

Your own family has rejected you. So you create a new family of people like yourself.  David Hiovich, Circus Disco regular

Circus Disco was recently closed and hundreds of new apartments are being planned in its place, part of a sweeping plan to redevelop the Hollywood site. But historic preservationists say they have struck a deal with the developers, one that could recognize the clubs history without halting plans for new housing, shops and restaurants.

Under the agreement, real estate developer AvalonBay Communities has promised to spare many of the remaining features of the old disco, including its dance floor, neon ceiling lights and that fanciful clown entrance, and incorporate them into the project. One of the clubs mirrored balls, for instance, will hang in an elevator lobby leading up to apartments, the company said Thursday.

Richard Adkins, president of the preservation group Hollywood Heritage, said the agreement will save almost all the remaining historic artifacts at the building. The company will also support making the location a historic site, eventually putting up an exhibit there for visitors to learn about its past. And a walking path on the site will be named Circus Way.

It was a creative solution  a solution that will tell the story of Circus Disco to future generations, said Mark Janda, senior vice president of development for AvalonBay Communities.

Under an agreement with historic preservationists, real estate developer AvalonBay Communities will incorporate the clown entrance and other features of Circus Disco into the new project. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

In return, Hollywood Heritage pulled back its original proposal to make the building itself into a historic monument  a step that could have made it harder to tear down or alter the former warehouse off Santa Monica Boulevard. Historic preservationists had discovered that half of the original club had been torn down decades ago, which would have made it difficult to enshrine the building itself as a monument.

Even if that werent the case, Adkins said the groups ultimate goal was not to preserve the clubs architecture but to recognize the role it played as a haven for Latinos and other men of color who were routinely excluded from other gay nightclubs.

Munoz remembers the tension of waiting outside other clubs that would pick and choose, wondering if he would be let in. At Circus Disco, he said, the only reason people were shut out was the fire code.

Decades ago, Munoz said, he practically lived there. His husband, David Hiovich, said he used to go five times a week. There were the electric nights of disco, fun-house mirrors and circus but also Sunday afternoon barbecues with hot dogs and hamburgers long before the dance floor became so crowded that you could barely walk through.

We called ourselves a family. Your own family has rejected you. So you create a new family of people like yourself. And thats who you celebrated birthdays with, thats who you celebrated holidays with, who you went out to eat with, said Hiovich, 59. It was an oasis from the rest of the world.

Los Angeles had recently listed Circus Disco as an important site in a survey of historic locations important to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, but Adkins said the study hadnt been published when the environmental analysis for the Santa Monica Boulevard development was being prepared. That analysis, prepared for a previous owner, said that none of the affected buildings appeared to be eligible for historic protection.

Preservationists have been fearful that L.A.'s LGBT history could be lost to redevelopment.

Many gay clubs of decades past were at sites that once were kind of marginal, kind of undercover, said Adrian Scott Fine, advocacy director for the L.A. Conservancy. Today thats not the case. The real estate market is at a point now where these sites are highly valuable for development.

His group has raised concerns about plans to redevelop the West Hollywood site that once housed the Studio One disco. Historic preservationists also mourned Jewels Catch One, which catered to black LGBT clubgoers, when it closed its doors in Arlington Heights last year. A new owner has said he plans to reopen it this year with a different name and broader clientele.

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When gay life was in the shadows, before the Internet made it easy to find other gay men, Circus Disco was more than just a place to have fun, Hiovich said.

It was a place to go and be around your tribe, Hiovich said, his voice wavering. And to feel that its OK.

emily.alpert@latimes.com

Twitter: @LATimesEmily

Times staff writer August Brown contributed to this report.

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Federal investigators looking into Los Angeles City Councilwoman Nury Martinezs 2015 reelection bid have turned their attention to contributors who gave some of the smallest donations of her campaign.

Campaign-finance probes at City Hall have historically centered on large contributions, the kind that illegally exceed spending limits. But this time around, federal investigators have been focusing on donations listed in Martinezs contribution filings of just $5 and $10.

Those types of small donations were important to Martinezs campaign, helping her to qualify for a much larger pool of matching funds  taxpayer money provided to candidates who demonstrate grass-roots support.

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Five constituents in Martinezs San Fernando Valley district, all of them listed in city records as small donors, said they were contacted by the FBI or other investigators over the last four months. Three of those five said they had also appeared before the federal grand jury.

Irene Salazar, who lives in Sun Valley, said law enforcement agents asked, in person and by phone, if she and three family members had donated to Martinezs campaign.

Records submitted by Martinezs campaign to the city Ethics Commission list Salazar, her husband, her son and her daughter as $5 donors. But Salazar says no one in her family provided contributions.

None of us gave anything to the Martinez campaign, said the 57-year-old janitor.

Adam Bass, a spokesman for Martinez, declined to comment. Roy Behr, a consultant on the councilwomans reelection campaign, said in October that Martinez understands from the U.S. attorney that she is not a target of the probe.

As far as she knows, that is still accurate, Behr said this week. He declined further comment.

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It is still unclear what the federal investigation is examining and who is being targeted. Neither the FBI nor the U.S. attorneys office would discuss the Martinez matter.

Small campaign donations did not play a significant role in City Council campaigns until last years election. That was the first contest where, under newly approved ethics laws, candidates had to show they had collected contributions from at least 200 residents within their respective council districts to qualify for taxpayer matching funds.

Those rules specified that each district donor must give at least $5.

To qualify for those taxpayer funds, Martinez submitted a list of contributions from about 220 residents of her district, which takes in such neighborhoods as Van Nuys, Lake Balboa and Panorama City. More than three-fourths of those donations were for $10 or less, city campaign contribution records show.

Once candidates qualify for matching funds, they may obtain up to $2 from City Hall for every dollar they receive from a campaign donor who lives in Los Angeles. Martinezs campaign ultimately received $65,360 in public funds, which made up nearly a fifth of her campaigns spending, according to the Ethics Commission website.

Had Martinez failed to obtain valid donations from 200 district residents, she would not have been eligible for that taxpayer money.

Panorama City resident Gary Villagonzalo told The Times that FBI agents showed up at his door last fall to ask him about donations to Martinezs reelection bid. Villagonzalo said that during that visit, he was surprised to learn that he was listed in city records as a $10 campaign contributor.

Villagonzalo said he later discovered that, without his knowledge, his daughter had named him, his wife and his other daughter as donors to Martinezs campaign. She just put our names there  10 bucks, 10 bucks, 10 bucks, said Villagonzalo, who works as an in-home healthcare worker.

Were really upset, he added.

Villagonzalos daughter could not be reached. The Times left multiple messages with her father asking for her to comment.

After the FBIs visit, Villagonzalo said, he and three other family members were asked to appear before the federal grand jury. Villagonzalo said he is not sure if his daughter, who is a college student, had provided the $40 needed to cover the familys four $10 contributions.

The Los Angeles City Charter bars campaign donors from giving on behalf of another person without that persons knowledge and participation. Each violation can be treated as a misdemeanor and result in a $5,000 financial penalty.

Some who were contacted by investigators said they did indeed give to Martinezs campaign.

Arleta resident Arcelia Arias, who gave $5 to Martinezs reelection bid, said FBI agents came to her home last year to ask about her contribution. Arias declined to describe how she decided to give the money, saying she had wasted enough time answering questions before the grand jury.

My money is my money, and I can do whatever I want with my money, she said.

Martinez was elected to the council in 2013 to fill the seat vacated by U.S. Rep. Tony Cardenas, who is now in Congress. She played a role in the councils decision to raise the citywide minimum wage to $15 by 2020. She also is part of Council President Herb Wessons leadership team.

During last years election campaign, council candidates across the city scrambled to meet the new 200-donor threshold. Former state Assemblywoman Cindy Montanez, who ran against Martinez, said the requirement was difficult to achieve in the working-class district, which is heavily Latino.

It was a really hard, very time-consuming, process, Montanez said, because [donors] have to live in the council district, and people in our council district are not used to giving money.

Behr, the campaign consultant, said last year that some Martinez staffers had been asked to appear before the grand jury. On Tuesday, he would not say whether the councilwoman had been called. But others in her district confirmed that they had been summoned.

Panorama City resident Joseph Cruz, a $5 donor to Martinezs campaign, told The Times that he, his wife and his father-in-law went before the grand jury last month. All three were listed as small contributors to Martinez.

Cruz said investigators asked him who had requested the donation to Martinez. He declined to tell The Times what his answer was.

david.zahniser@latimes.com

Twitter: @davidzahniser

Times staff writer Emily Alpert Reyes contributed to this report.

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A Navy petty officer received more than two years in prison Thursday for his role in the Fat Leonard bribery scandal  the first of at least seven defendants to be sentenced in a case that has prompted sweeping changes in how military contracts are handled.

U.S. District Judge Janis Sammartinos sentencing of Dan Layug, who prosecutors said was the least culpable of the defendants, sets the bar for when the higher-ranking Navy officials appear before her.

You put the Navy at risk. You put your colleagues at risk. And you put our country at risk, Sammartino told Layug.

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------------

FOR THE RECORD:

Bribery case: In the Jan. 22 California section, the headline on an article about the sentencing in a military bribery case referred to the defendant as a Navy officer. He is a Navy petty officer, an enlisted position. 

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In his plea agreement, Layug admitted giving confidential information to Singapore-based Glenn Defense Marine Asia, a military contractor that provides goods and services to visiting Navy ships at ports throughout Southeast Asia.

In return, the supply and logistics petty officer received bribes of hotel stays, electronics and a monthly stipend of $1,000.

By doing so, prosecutors said, Layug joined a stable of informers whom Fat Leonard Francis had collected to expand his firm and bilk the Navy out of some $20 million.

It all started with a gift of an unlocked cellphone in 2010 from Layugs contact, an associate at the defense contractor. Later presents included iPads, a PlayStation, a camera, a laptop and luxury trips to Malaysia and Indonesia.

When he hinted to his contact that he was thinking of taking a second job, he was offered the monthly stipend, prosecutors said.

During a port visit to Vietnam, the contact asked for the invoice of a competitor to help Glenn Defense Marine Asia craft a bid for an upcoming South Korea contract. Layug sneaked the file off the Blue Ridge command ship, shared it with the contractor and then smuggled it back on board, prosecutors said.

The relationship lasted a little less than three years.

He knew exactly the worth and risk that breed of classified information posed, and for whatever reason he decided to turn his back ... in return for, frankly, trinkets, putting our nation, our Navy and our sailors at risk, Assistant U.S. Atty. Mark Pletcher said.

Layug cooperated with authorities upon his arrest and on Thursday accepted full responsibility.

I let my ego and my greed take over me and betrayed my country, Layug told the judge. Whatever sentence I get today, Ill get back up.

After his arrest, Layug was assigned to a temporary unit in San Diego working with military members struggling with personal issues. He is expected to be administratively processed out of the Navy from his rank of petty officer first class, and to surrender to prison on April 1. He will have to pay $15,000 in restitution and a $15,000 fine.

Navy Rear Adm. Jonathan Yuen, chief of the Navy Supply Corps and commander of the Navy Supply Systems Command, told the judge Thursday that a task force has overhauled the Navys contracts procedures, making it harder for anybody to take advantage of holes in the system.

Changes include not being too dependent on any one contractor and segregating the three phases of dealings with contractors  procurement, receipt of goods and services and payment.

He said 60 additional people have been hired and trained to provide better oversight.

This has had a far-reaching impact in the way we perform our mission, the way others perceive us and the way we feel and think about ourselves, Yuen told the judge.

Six others  including a Navy commander, a captain and a Naval Criminal Investigative Services special agent  have pleaded guilty in the scandal, as has Francis, who is to be sentenced in August. Two others have been charged and pleaded not guilty.

kristina.davis@sduniontribune.com

Davis writes for the San Diego Union-Tribune.
The Los Angeles city attorney has forced the Southern California Gas Co. to back down from a plan the utility quietly put in place this week to stop offering rental houses to Porter Ranch families dislocated by the nearby gas leak.

The company instructed its relocation specialists on Tuesday to no longer place residents in rental houses because they are increasingly hard to find and expensive for short-term lease. The utility, noting that it expects to plug the leak in four to five weeks, told agents to put families in hotels and motels instead.

The utility reversed its decision after City Atty. Mike Feuer threatened legal action under a court order his office won last month establishing rules governing the relocations.

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It would be totally unacceptable for SoCal Gas to harm residents further by rolling back its relocation policy, said Feuer, who learned of the gas companys action from The Times. My office spoke to SoCal Gas on Wednesday, putting it on notice that such a change would violate the courts order.

On Thursday, Stephanie Donovan, a spokeswoman for the company, said it had asked its relocation agents to focus attention on short-term accommodations such as hotel rooms to quickly accommodate the greatest number of residents given the difficulty of finding homes available for short-term rentals.

The city attorney did not agree with our approach and we agreed to continue to look for houses for residents who request those accommodations, Donovan said.

What a pickle -- for SoCal Gas, landlords, relocation agencies and residents desperate to leave town until the broken well is fixed.  Danielle Rabadi, 29, a real estate agent helping Porter Ranch families

But some effects had already been felt. On Tuesday and Wednesday, some residents seeking relocation were told houses were no longer available. Some landlords saw the utility cancel plans to lease their residential units.

What a pickle  for SoCal Gas, landlords, relocation agencies and residents desperate to leave town until the broken well is fixed, said Danielle Rabadi, 29, a real estate agent who is helping a rental business finalize short-term lease agreements on temporary homes for three Porter Ranch families.

Porter Ranch resident Joey Haim, 45, who was expecting the company to rent a house so his family of four could move from temporary boarding in a small, noisy Encino apartment, is not sure what to think.

SoCal Gas knew we were looking for a house with help from one of its relocation agencies, he said. But on Tuesday, they told my wife that we were in a safe zone and that they werent moving people anymore.

Thousands of households have applied for relocation since the leak was reported Oct. 23 and residents began experiencing ailments including nose and throat irritation, coughing, shortness of breath, nausea, headache, dizziness and nosebleeds.

So far, the gas company has relocated 3,112 households to temporary homes and hotels outside of Porter Ranch, a community of 30,000 whose northeast border is about a mile from the leaking Aliso Canyon well. Another 2,571 households are awaiting relocation, the company said.

Most hotel and motel rooms and rental homes in the region were snapped up soon after the company launched its relocation effort in November. The resulting shortage pushed monthly rates as high as $15,000 as landlords sought compensation for short-term rental of properties they usually lease for a year or longer.

The court order negotiated last month by the city attorney and Southern California Gas Co. requires the utility to respond to relocation requests within 48 hours and to find temporary housing within 72 hours of initial contact. Delays beyond the deadline are common, however, because families object to the proposed temporary housing for a variety of reasons.

Disputes over the type or location of housing can be appealed to mediators and even taken to court if necessary.

Since the mediation program went into effect on Dec. 24, 65 people have requested mediation, and 10 cases have been resolved, said Rob Wilcox, a spokesman for the city attorney. Forty-one of those requests were submitted within the last week.

On Thursday, Travis Research Associates Inc., a marketing research firm retained by the gas company, confirmed that it was conducting focus groups of Porter Ranch residents who have been relocated. The questions included asking about their relocation experiences.

The firm declined to say how much the utility was offering residents to participate. However, a recorded telephone message indicated that the company was offering $150 as compensation for their time.

Separately, Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders on Thursday issued a statement on the gas leak, calling it yet another example of the urgent national need to transition away from fossil fuels and toward energy efficiency and sustainable, renewable sources of power.

It is simply unacceptable that a gas leak which began last October is still poisoning the air and that the company continues to profit from the storage facility, the statement said.

louis.sahagun@latimes.com

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The Newport-Mesa Unified School District has paid $273,591 into a separate retirement account for its deputy superintendent and chief business official as an incentive to delay his retirement.

The fund for Paul Reed was created in recognition of the boards desire that the deputy superintendent continue to serve the district past the optimal STRS retirement age of 62, Reeds contract states.

Reed, 68, also will receive a pension from the state when he retires.

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But the districts former director of human resources, John Caldecott, said the lack of specifics related to the retirement contributions raises red flags and questions about transparency. Information about the retirement fund was obtained by Caldecott after he filed a state public records request.

There is no way the public would have known the dollar amount that is being contributed by the district to Paul Reed, Caldecott said. The board is elected to be the eyes, ears and voice of the taxpayer. I dont think that happened in this case. They have been the voice of the administration.

District officials said the extra funds are merited because of Reeds skill set.

Experienced professionals with strong business and education proficiencies, like Paul Reed, are difficult to come by, board President Dana Black said. We value his knowledge, expertise and success in ensuring our continued fiscally responsible approach to providing a world-class education for our students.

Reed began working at Newport-Mesa in 2002 after spending 26 years in the Irvine Unified School District, where he got his start as a labor negotiator. As one of Newport-Mesas top officials, Reed has guided the district through recession and cuts in education funding.

Caldecott, however, said Reed does nothing for this compensation. This is a gift. It doesnt make sense to pay someone not to retire.

Reed declined to comment.

Reed is the only management employee who receives additional retirement money from the district, Newport-Mesa spokeswoman Annette Franco said.

The contributions were first approved by the board in 2009 and are transferred annually into an account at Reeds bank, Franco said.

At that time, the board offered to buy service credit from the California State Teachers Retirement System, or CalSTRS, which would have, in essence, increased the number of years Reed has served in public education in the eyes of the state retirement agency. That number is used as part of a calculation to determine compensation after an employee retires, according to CalSTRS.

However, Reed asked the board, and it agreed, to purchase a tax-sheltered annuity of like value instead of the CalSTRS credit. A tax-sheltered annuity, also known as a 403(b) account, is similar to a 401(k) in that it enables employees to defer some of their salary in individual accounts. The deferred salary is generally not subject to federal or state income tax until it is distributed, according to the Internal Revenue Service.

Its not unheard of for public employees to receive retirement funds in the form of tax-sheltered annuities, said Michael Sicilia, media relations manager with CalSTRS.

We wouldnt even know about it because it wouldnt have an impact on STRS credit, he said. Its something thats negotiated in employee contracts.

Reeds contract does not specify how the district calculates the amount to contribute to his retirement fund or the amount to be paid annually.

But this year, the board agreed to pay $40,414 into the fund, according to information provided by Newport-Mesa Unified.

Reed will earn a base salary of $259,143 this year. He also receives annual allowances of $7,800 for transportation and $1,200 for communications such as cellphones, according to his contract.

The board fired Caldecott in January 2015 shortly after he filed a lawsuit against the district to compel officials to release internal emails and other documents related to his claim that Supt. Fred Navarro had created a hostile work environment for employees and retaliated against Caldecott for questioning salary reports to CalSTRS.

In December, a three-judge panel of the state 4th District Court of Appeal ruled that the school district must release dozens of documents related to Caldecotts allegations against Navarro. The district plans to release the documents after a final review by an Orange County Superior Court judge.

hannah.fry@latimes.com

alexandra.chan@latimes.com

Fry and Chan write for Times Community News.
A 33-year-old man was convicted of stabbing his ex-girlfriend multiple times in the arms and chest after she tried to break up with him, the Los Angeles County District Attorneys Office said.

Miguel Roman Gutierrez was convicted Thursday of premeditated attempted murder, evading an officer and mayhem.

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Jurors also found true special allegations that Gutierrez used a deadly and dangerous weapon  a knife  and that he committed great bodily injury to the victim.

The Bell attack took place in April 2014. Gutierrez was separated from his wife at the time and had a girlfriend he had been dating for three months, according to Deputy Dist. Atty. Mariela Torres, who prosecuted the case.

The girlfriend realized Gutierrez was not going to get divorced, the prosecutor said, so she decided to break up with Gutierrez. Following the break up, the two went to the womans car and sat inside the vehicle, Torres said.

Gutierrez then asked the woman whether she would return, to which she replied no. He exited the car and asked again whether the woman would come back. As she started to drive away, Gutierrez made her stop the car, pulled out a knife and stabbed her 11 times in the arms and chest, Torres said. He almost severed the womans pinky, authorities said.

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Gutierrez then fled the scene, and the victim drove a block away and asked a bystander for help. She also called 911, Torres said.

Bell Police lost Gutierrez after a short chase, but he later was arrested in connection with the crime.

Gutierrez is scheduled to be sentenced next month. He faces a possible maximum sentence of life in state prison.

sarah.parvini@latimes.com

For more local and breaking news, follow me on Twitter: @sarahparvini

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The California Supreme Court agreed Thursday to review an appellate court decision that public colleges and universities have no responsibility to protect students from violence committed by other students on campus.

In a unanimous decision, the court granted a petition to review a 2-1 ruling by the 2nd District Court of Appeals last year that dismissed a lawsuit filed against the University of California regents by former UCLA student Katherine Rosen, who in 2010 was stabbed and had her throat slashed by a mentally ill classmate in her chemistry lab.

The lawsuit alleged that in the months before the attack, UCLA officials and professors had received reports of disturbing behavior by Rosens assailant, Damon Thompson.

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Thompson had been diagnosed as having paranoid delusions, was possibly suffering from schizophrenia and had been expelled from student housing after a physical altercation with another resident, according to court documents.

UCLA failed to respond to the warnings and did not alert students to his potentially violent behavior, the lawsuit alleged.

In 2010, a judge found Thompson, who admitted to the stabbing, not guilty by reason of insanity.

A different judge previously denied a request by the UC regents to dismiss the lawsuit. That decision was appealed, resulting in the appellate court ruling.

Attorney Brian Panish, who represented Rosen, accused the university of presenting itself as a safe campus but abandoning any responsibility once a tragic incident occurs.

Students have a fundamental right to protection from foreseeable violence while attending college, he said.

We will continue to fight for justice for Ms. Rosen and for all other students in order to ensure that universities are held accountable if adequate safety policies and procedures are not adopted and followed, Panish said.

In the appellate court majority opinion, Justice Laurie Zelon wrote that the violent crime committed by a person suffering from mental illness is a societal problem not limited to the college setting.

While colleges may adopt policies and provide services to reduce the likelihood of such violence, they are not liable for criminal action by mentally ill people, regardless of whether it was foreseeable, she wrote.

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In a dissenting opinion, Justice Dennis M. Perluss wrote that UCLA promotes itself to prospective students and their families as a campus where student safety is of the highest priority. The institution has a duty to protect students from foreseeable harm, he wrote.

I would find such a special relationship exists between a college and its enrolled students, at least when the student is in a classroom under the direct supervision of an instructor, and the school has a duty to take reasonable steps to keep its classrooms safe from foreseeable threats of violence, Perluss wrote.

In a statement, UCLA said it is sympathetic to the trauma Rosen endured. The university also welcomes the Supreme Court review and believes that the courts ruling will be affirmed, the statement said.

Student safety continues to be a top priority for UCLA, and we continually strive to provide a welcoming environment for all students that encourages learning and offers resources to support our students in need, the statement said.

For more Los Angeles civil court news, follow @sjceasar

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Police in Culver City are searching for two of the four suspected bank robbers who opened fire during a Thursday morning heist.

The four suspects opened fire during the 9 a.m. robbery at One West Bank on Jefferson Boulevard, but no one was injured, according to Culver City Police Lt. William Browne. It was not immediately clear if the suspects opened fire inside the bank, or what they were shooting at.

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A vehicle that fled the robbery scene was discovered a short time later, and one of the suspects was captured nearby, Browne said. A second suspect was captured inside a T.J. Maxx store a half-mile from the bank, according to Browne.

The names of the two suspects taken into custody were not released because police are still searching for the two outstanding suspects, police officials said.

Police from Culver City, Santa Monica and Beverly Hills were searching for the other two suspects in an area near Malat and Vera ways around noon, Browne said.

Two nearby elementary schools were placed on lockdown while authorities tried to locate the suspects.

El Marino and El Rincon elementary schools were both placed on modified lockdowns around 10:30 a.m., Browne said. Students at both El Marino and El Rincon were all safe and accounted for, the Culver City Unified School District said on Twitter.

Students at El Rincon were required to remain inside the classroom, according to a statement posted by the principal on the schools website.

Children were able to use the restroom, and we provided lunches to each classroom, the statement said. El Rincon will reopen for classes on Friday.

At some point in the day, El Marino received an all clear, and after-school programs continued as scheduled, according to the Culver City Unified School District.

Follow @JamesQueallyLAT on Twitter for crime and police news in Southern California.

Times staff writer Matt Hamilton contributed to this report.

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Forty years later, Sylvia McLaughlin still spoke unapologetically about beauty.

She was well-versed, by then, in various scientific rationales for conserving and restoring tidal marshes  fluent water quality, ecological diversity, etc.  and a veteran of the boards of virtually every environmental organization in the Bay Area, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Yet her first motivation for activism remained her chief one: Its beautiful, she told a reporter by way of explanation in 2011, gesturing out to San Francisco Bay. We should save these beautiful places.

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McLaughlin, who co-founded the San Francisco Bay conservation group Save the Bay and helped pioneer the tradition of grass-roots environmental activism in California, died Tuesday at her Berkeley home. She was 99.

With Catherine Kay Kerr, the wife of UC President Clark Kerr, and Esther Gulick, McLaughlin founded the San Francisco Bay Assn., now called Save the Bay, in 1961.

The groups success in halting the inexorable filling and paving of San Francisco Bay, and lobbying for legislation to regulate future shoreline development, were among the earliest victories in what became decades of effort to protect and restore the Bay Areas shores and tidal marshes, said David Lewis, executive director of Save the Bay in Oakland.

McLaughlin, a mother of two, began her work over cookies and tea at her kitchen table at a time when environmental activism was still in its infancy and urban conservation was all but unknown, Lewis said.

Private companies owned the shoreline. There were no rules against filling the bay, no Clean Water Act, and no regulatory agencies, he said.

Half a century later, San Francisco Bay has expanded, its water quality has improved, its wildlife is healthier, and the public has access to 343 miles of trails and a necklace of shoreline parks. Restoration efforts continue apace; Bay Area voters in nine counties will decide on a parcel tax for further habitat restoration in June.

The oversight agency that grew from McLaughlin, Kerr and Gulicks activism  the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission, which was legislated into existence in 1965  remains in place and has since served as a model for similar regulatory bodies, including the California Coastal Commission established by voter initiative seven years later.

They just did it with their fingers, literally dialing calls to their friends, Lewis said.

Humans had been filling San Francisco Bay since the Gold Rush era, and San Franciscos waterfront and nearby areas were built on fill. After World War ll, real-estate developers clamored for shallow tidelands to build on. The bay was being paved over.

Save the Bay mobilized thousands of Bay Area residents who sent bags of fill sand to legislators to drive home their point.

McLaughlin continued her activism for decades and remained vocal well into her 90s. McLaughlin Eastshore State Park, which runs from Richmond, is named for her.

Years later, McLaughlin recounted her groups fight to stop a massive 1968 development plan by a partnership that included David Rockefeller. The battle to save 27 miles of shoreline south of San Francisco Airport lasted a decade.

In the end, Rockefeller shook McLaughlins hand. You win, she recalled him saying.

McLaughlin was born Dec. 24, 1916, in Denver, the third of four children of city official George E. Cranmer and violinist Jean Chappell Cranmer, and graduated from Vassar College in 1939. She married Donald McLaughlin, president of Homestake Mining Co., in 1948.

They moved to a view home in the Berkeley Hills, where she could see the bay being developed before her eyes. Her husband was a UC regent, prompting her to connect with the UC wives who became her collaborators.

Her husband preceded her in death in 1984. She is survived by daughter Jeanie Shaterian; son George C. McLaughlin; stepson Donald McLaughlin Jr.; four grandchildren; and six step-grandchildren, Save the Bay said.

jill.leovy@latimes.com
A former member of a polygamous religious sect that is the focus of a discrimination trial in Arizona described Thursday how he suddenly became the victim of vandalism and intimidation after he left the church.

Isaac Wyler said he complained to local authorities hundreds of times after his horse property was vandalized, including water lines and fences being cut, but the police did nothing because he was no longer a member of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He also described finding a dozen dead cats on his property.

There are two sets of rules depending upon who you are, Wyler told the jury in U.S. District Court.

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Wyler is the second former member of the church, known as FLDS, to testify at the trial on behalf of the U.S. Justice Department. The sect broke away from Mormonism in the 1930s when the mainstream Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints disavowed polygamy.

The Justice Department accuses Colorado City, Ariz., and Hildale, Utah, of functioning as an arm of FLDS and discriminating against nonbelievers by systematically denying them housing, water services and police protection.

Police officers are accused of failing to investigate crimes against nonbelievers and assisting leader Warren Jeffs while he was a fugitive on charges of arranging marriages between men and underage girls. Jeffs is now serving a life sentence in Texas for child sexual assault.

The communities deny the allegations and say religion isnt a factor in their decisions. They believe the government is discriminating against them based on their religion.

The case marks one of the boldest efforts by the federal government to confront what critics have said was a corrupt regime in both towns.

Wyler on Thursday provided a look into life in the towns. He said his hometown of Colorado City had parades, fairs and other social gatherings when he was growing up, but those activities ended after Jeffs took over as the churchs top leader.

Everything changed, Wyler said.

Wyler said that although he was forced out of the church in 2004, he had started to turn against it after he heard Jeffs call for the executions of the attorneys general of Arizona and Utah.

That shook me up real bad, Wyler said. I dont feel like I signed up for any religion like this.

After leaving the church, Wyler went on to work part time as a consultant for a communal land trust that was once run by Jeffs but was seized by the state of Utah in 2005 amid allegations of mismanagement by church leaders. The trust is now controlled by the state and manages the housing within the community.

Wyler cited his work for the trust as evidence of how town leaders treat nonbelievers differently. He was once charged and convicted of trespassing for carrying out an eviction in his work for the trust, but noted that none of his complaints about vandalism at his property ever led to arrests.

I feel like my complaints go into a bin that says garbage on it, he said.

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Search most photos of the armed occupiers who took over a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon, and youre liable to see a few common features. Beards, sure. Stiff-brimmed cowboy hats, too. And, in many shirt pockets, a tiny bound volume.

Its the Constitution. But not the way most people read it.

It includes all 4,543 words inscribed by the Founding Fathers, with 18th century spelling and punctuation preserved, but the pocket Constitution held aloft by Ammon Bundy at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge contains some additional notations courtesy of an anti-communist conspiracy theorist named W. Cleon Skousen.

------------

FOR THE RECORD:

Oregon standoff: In the Jan. 23 Section A, an article about an annotated version of the U.S. Constitution carried by some of the Oregon wildlife refuge occupiers was accompanied by an incorrect photo. The photo showed a pocket version of the Constitution from the U.S. Government Bookstore, not the version with notes from conspiracy theorist W. Cleon Skouson. 

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Skousen, who once accused President Dwight D. Eisenhower of being a Soviet agent and whom Time magazine once labeled an exemplar of the right-wing ultras, pairs the original Constitutional text with quotes from Founding Fathers about the necessity of religion in governance.

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Its message: The Founding Fathers intended the United States to be a Christian nation, beholden to a Christian god, and never intended the federal government to have any power over its people.

No Constitutional authority exists for the federal government to participate in charity or welfare  W. Cleon Skousen

Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people, it quotes John Adams in an addendum. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.

Constitutional scholars say some quotations are either deliberate alterations or taken out of context. The Adams quote, taken in its entirety from a 1798 letter to the Militia of Massachusetts, is an instruction to abide by morality, and seems to use religion in place of good deeds and words.

Other quotations center on the need for people to take power for themselves, and not let government lay too heavy a hand on their affairs.

Its a message that rings clear to Cliven Bundy, who had a copy of the booklet during his 2014 standoff with federal agents on his Nevada ranch over unpaid grazing fees. His sons Ammon and Ryan brought it to the Oregon wildlife refuge.

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Its something Ive always shared with everybody and I carry it with me all the time, Cliven Bundy told The Times on Thursday. Thats where I get most of my information from. What were trying to do is teach the true principles of the proper form of government.

Bundy gets his pocket Constitutions from a friend in Utah named Bert Smith, who buys 1 million at a time, storing them in a warehouse between distributions to Mormon groups, schools and soldiers overseas.

Smith said that he was a longtime friend of Skousen, a Canadian-born onetime FBI agent who died in 2006, and that the booklet was Skousens life work. Skousen founded the organization that prints and distributes the pocket Constitution, the Idaho-based National Center for Constitutional Studies.

Zeldon Nelson, the National Center on Constitutional Studies president, said the group has 15 million pocket Constitutions in circulation and just translated it to Spanish. The center believes God accords all equality, and reiterates Skousens view that government should not play a role in efforts to ensure equal rights to all people.

The Bundys and their supporters refer to the Constitution constantly: during speeches, of course, but also over bowls of soup at lunch or at campfires at night.

They have invoked its privileges to justify their occupation, especially Article 1, Section 8, Clause 17, called the Enclave Clause, which they argue means the federal government shall own no land.

Mainstream constitutional scholars dismiss such an analysis, but it has reemerged as a favored tool of the American lands movement, which seeks to transfer federal land to states, counties and private entities.

The booklet, which features George Washington on its cover, sells for 35 cents each. Those looking for low-cost Constitutions include school districts in Florida, which were forced to apologize in 2013 after they included the pocket Constitution among their civics materials without reviewing the added material.

In death, Skousen became a favorite of conservative Glenn Beck, who helped elevate Skousens profile on his CNN show and later his website. Beck wrote the foreword to Skousens book, The 5,000 Year Leap, another effort to recast American history as that of a Christian nation.

Specifically, his work espouses a brand of anti-communist Mormonism which perceives a threat to the U.S. by forces outside the government and within. With Becks foreword and publicity, a 2009 edition of The 5,000 Year Leap topped the list of Amazon best sellers in its first week.

No Constitutional authority exists for the federal government to participate in charity or welfare, he once wrote.

Despite its age  Skousen began researching the first volume of the booklet in the 1960s  the document is finding its footing in the constellation of anti-government, pro-religion conservatives who support states rights and original intent, the idea that the Constitution, like the manual of a car, is a set of explicit instructions that detail how to operate a republic without need for interpretation or modernization.

His thoughts on original intent were among his more mainstream views, but it was his views on communism and fears of a New World Order that drew attention and, sometimes, ridicule.

Skousen lived in controversy from his beginnings in public life. Leaving the FBI after 15 years in 1951, Skousen took a post at Brigham Young University, then was appointed chief of the scandal-ridden Salt Lake City Police Department. He was fired after four years, in 1960, contemporary accounts claim, because he was too zealous in eradicating card games in private clubs.

After the police department, Skousen turned to what would be his calling: Writing books and founding nonprofit organizations. His first book, The Naked Communist, was published in 1958 and claimed a geopolitical plot was underfoot to transform the U.S. into an arm of the Soviet Union. GOP presidential candidate Ben Carson has spoken glowingly of the book.

Its really quite amazing, Carson told Bloomberg. You would think it was written last year.

Skousen became a favorite of the ultra-right John Birch Society, which added him to its speakers list, even as some members of mainstream conservatism during the height of the U.S. Rep. Joseph McCarthys Red Scare thought Skousens views were too extreme.

The popularity of Skousens views, and his prominence in American public life, have waxed and waned with the political tides. When Ronald Reagan took office in 1981 and fears of nuclear war with the USSR were on the rise, Skousen became a charter member of the Council for National Policy, a conservative think tank that paired wealthy donors with the idea men of the Reagan Revolution.

His views were increasingly viewed as out-of-touch with mainstream American values, particularly when the Cold War ended, and he was fated to die in relative obscurity. A Stanford law professor assessing his legal writings compared them unfavorably to a warm pitcher of spit.

Now, a decade after his death, Skousens lifes work is getting its moment in the lights.

nigel.duara@latimes.com

Twitter: @nigelduara

NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >>

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First Lady Michelle Obama urged the nations mayors Thursday to redouble efforts to ease homelessness among military veterans in a speech that both highlighted progress and underscored the magnitude of the problem.

Obama, speaking at the winter meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Washington, said it was an absolute outrage that veterans were sleeping on the nations streets.

It is a horrifying stain on our nation, particularly when you think about all that these men and women have done for our country, she said.

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The first lady lauded the city of Los Angeles for finding homes for more than 5,500 of the 7,000 veterans estimated to be on the streets as of January 2015, and for developing mental health and job placement services to keep them housed.

Mayor Eric Garcettis office has said it would be early spring before the remaining L.A. homeless veterans could be placed in homes.

In 2014, Garcetti joined the leaders of dozens of cities in California and across the country in accepting the Obama administrations challenge to end veteran homelessness by the end of 2015.

Houston, Las Vegas, Philadelphia and the state of Virginia are among cities and states that reached functional zero, the point at which veterans who become homeless are quickly identified and helped. Los Angeles is still trying to get to that point.

Garcetti and Obama encouraged the assembled mayors to continue working.

We can win this war. We can fulfill this mission. I have seen it in Los Angeles, Garcetti said.

To get veterans off the streets, Garcetti said Los Angeles had sought more than $100 million in federal veterans housing grants, Housing and Urban Development housing grants and local money. To keep them off the streets, city officials are working with businesses and nonprofit groups to help veterans find jobs, get medical and mental health treatment and other resources they might need.

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We are putting folks in [homes] and not just counting them as checked off, Garcetti told the Los Angeles Times after his speech. Somebody might go into an apartment, but were making sure they have the counseling that they need, making sure they have the job training.

More than 44,000 homeless people were counted in Los Angeles County last year, a 12% increase from 2013, according to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority. Of the total, nearly 26,000 were in the city of L.A.

Veterans make up about 15% to 20% of the citys homeless, Garcetti said, and Los Angeles is working to scale up the veteran model to help other homeless Angelenos.

People are frustrated by the homelessness in Los Angeles, and I want to mobilize 4 million people to be engaged, Garcetti said. With this, I think youre finally able to see for the first time, really in my lifetime, a significant victory. It gives me a lot of hope.

Obama urged other mayors to join her push.

Your peers have provided you all with a road map for how to get this done, she told the mayors. Whether youre a big city, a small county or an entire state -- someone just like you has done it.

Since joining the first ladys challenge, Santa Barbara County has found housing for 90 of about 270 homeless veterans, Santa Barbara Mayor Helene Schneider said. Part of that progress resulted from focusing on the needs of 10 chronically homeless people along a single street. All 10 have moved into homes and one is now employed by a business he once panhandled in front of, she said.

She pointed to the 1% rental vacancy rate in the city, and said Santa Barbara is starting a program to encourage landlords to give veterans priority for available rentals.

Schneider, co-chair of the Conference of Mayors Hunger and Homelessness Task Force, said the challenge had forced cities to develop more sophisticated approaches to homelessness.

Its forcing us to collect data and follow through and figure out whats working and be accountable, she said. We see progress. Were just taking longer than wed like.

sarah.wire@latimes.com

Follow @sarahdwire on Twitter

Read more about the 55 members of Californias delegation at latimes.com/politics

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Heres a simple guideline for the California Public Utilities Commission when it votes next week on a new rate scheme for rooftop solar users who also connect to the electric grid: Dont be like Nevada.

Last month, public utility commissioners in that super-sunny state put the chill on the burgeoning rooftop solar market by imposing steep monthly fees on solar customers while slashing the compensation they are paid for the excess power they return to the grid. In so doing, Nevada made it virtually unaffordable for the typical homeowner to install solar panels. Good going, guys.

Commissioners in California, by comparison, have crafted a reasonable proposal that makes solar users pay to draw power from the grid when the sun doesnt shine, while maintaining a healthy credit for the power they contribute during the day. The PUC is set to take a final vote on this proposal next week, but the states three big electric utilities  Southern California Edison, San Diego Gas & Electric and Pacific Gas & Electric  are agitating for last-minute changes to squeeze more money out of solar users.

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These customers can afford it, the utilities argue, now that a key federal tax credit for solar power has been renewed. Congress surprised the solar industry in December by extending a 30% credit for the installation of solar-power equipment that was set to expire this year. Besides, the utilities claim, the current proposal is not fair because it would make all ratepayers subsidize the rich people who can afford to go solar. This argument might have seemed reasonable in, say, 1995, when solar panels really were out of most peoples reach. Not so today, when the tax credit and new business models are making solar setups affordable to homeowners of all income levels. As the market grows, it should become even more affordable.

Nor is it clear how much, if any, subsidy the proposed rates would provide to solar users, given the changing price of panels and innovation in business models. What we do know is that every kilowatt generated by rooftop solar panels in Sylmar or Stockton means one kilowatt that didnt come from nonrenewable sources. Furthermore, the solar industry makes the case that extra power generated by a home with rooftop solar and sold to neighbors reduces the cost of transmitting power into that community. In any case, there is always a cost to worthwhile investments. And keeping solar affordable will pay off for all Californians, whether they decide to switch or not, by reducing greenhouse gases and, potentially, the need for new power plants. Interestingly, Southern California Edison cited that same sort of shared benefit last week when it touted its $355-million plan to build 30,000 electric charging stations paid for by ratepayers  all of them, not just those who own electric vehicles.

Transitioning to renewable energy requires regulators to strike a delicate balance, providing incentives that drive investment without placing undue burden on everyone else. Nevada didnt find the right balance. In its current proposal, the CPUC did.

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Americans are embracing the idea that we should expand Social Security. A movement started by a few progressive activists spread to opinion makers and ultimately to presidential candidates such as Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. But is a broadly expanded Social Security program really necessary? And can we afford it? The best evidence indicates that the answer to both questions is No.

For years, the Social Security Administration stated that, for an average person, Social Security replaced about 40% of pre-retirement earnings, versus financial advisors recommendation of a total replacement rate of about 70%. This gap caused widespread concern, but almost no one understood how the administration generated its 40% statistic. It turned out the administration was using a misleading method  comparing the benefits paid to the average new retiree to the wages of the average, still active worker.

In 2014, the Social Security Trustees removed the calculated replacement rates from their annual report, fearing they may lead to confusion.

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The following year, an expert panel appointed by the Social Security Advisory Board recommended a more logical way to determine the replacement rate: comparing Social Security benefits to an average of the retirees final years of substantial earnings. When the Congressional Budget Office used this alternative method, it found that Social Security replaced close to 60% of final earnings. For low-income retirees, Social Security replaced close to 100%.

Setting aside the replacement rate issue, some reformers insist that we must expand Social Security because the broader state of the American retirement system is so dire. For instance, some cite data showing that 52% of Americans over age 55 dont have a retirement account. But roughly half of that group  25% of the total  have a traditional pension plan. The other half are mostly very poor  with average household incomes of about $20,000  and will receive a Social Security benefit close to their pre-retirement earnings.

Reformers also point to government statistics purporting to show that retirees have little income outside Social Security. Yet the source of these statistics, the Current Population Survey, counts income only if its delivered regularly  say, a monthly check from a traditional defined benefit plan  leaving out lump sum payments and irregular deductions from a 401(k). Thats a significant oversight.

A 2014 report from the RAND Corporation concluded that about 71% of individuals ages 66-69 are adequately economically prepared to retire, given expected consumption.

Academic studies using more rigorous methods paint a more optimistic picture. A 2014 report from the Rand Corp. concluded that about 71% of individuals ages 66-69 are adequately economically prepared to retire, given expected consumption. A scholar at the Brookings Institution and two economists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison found that roughly three-quarters of the households in a large sample had accumulated sufficient resources in 2004 to maintain pre-retirement living standards in retirement.

After a sometimes-difficult transition from traditional defined benefit pensions to 401(k)-type plans, the private sector is now well equipped to help Americans supplement their Social Security benefits. In 2012, 75% of all private sector workers were offered a retirement plan by their employer and 61% participated, far more than the 38% who participated in traditional pensions at their peak in 1980.

Instead of requiring workers to affirmatively sign up for their retirement plan, 59% of 401(k)s now automatically enroll employees. Instead of managing their own investments, 41% of 401(k) participants now invest in target-date funds that automatically adjust their investment as they age. Administrative costs, which often have been too high, fell by more than 10% from 2009 to 2013 and now are comparable to traditional pensions. Total retirement assets today are higher relative to Americans incomes than any time in recorded history.

The main problem with Social Security is not that its stingy, but that its inadequately funded. According to the Social Security Trustees, the programs long-term deficits have risen by 58% since 2008. The Social Security Advisory Boards 2015 expert panel and the Congressional Budget Office both project even larger funding shortfalls. A policy such as eliminating the $118,500 ceiling on wages subject to payroll taxes, a favorite of progressive advocates, would raise U.S. taxes to Scandinavian levels without fixing the long-term shortfall.

Targeted reforms could improve Social Security greatly. For instance, many individuals with short careers fail to even qualify for Social Security benefits because of a 10-year vesting period. None of the existing Social Security expansion plans fix this problem. But a universal minimum Social Security benefit paid to all retirees, such as is offered in New Zealand, could reduce poverty in old age at relatively low cost. Likewise, small-scale adjustments such as universal auto-enrollment and auto-escalation for 401(k)s could improve the private retirement system.

The case for across-the-board Social Security increases rests on misunderstood data and a willingness to ignore Social Securitys rising unfunded liabilities. Neither is a foundation for good public policy.

Andrew G. Biggs is a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. He served as the principal deputy commissioner of the Social Security Administration from 2008 to 2009.

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To the editor: Although bioethicist and theologian Charles C. Camosy makes some excellent arguments for why the Roman Catholic Mercy Hospital in Redding should be allowed to refuse to allow a woman to have her tubes tied during a scheduled C-section, he appears to be elevating the hospital to the level of a person. (Why a Catholic hospital shouldnt be obliged to do a tubal ligation, Opinion, Jan. 18)

Sure, some women and doctors can pick their hospital where they deliver, but with insurance networks becoming narrower, allowing Catholic hospitals to forbid a woman (or her doctor) from doing a tubal ligation at the time of a C-section will greatly harm healthcare for women.

Tubal ligations take a few minutes while the abdomen is already open; forcing a woman to have another surgery increases risk. Tubal ligations lower a womens lifetime risk of ovarian cancer, and if a woman gets pregnant again after a C-section, the risks involved in repeating such procedures are higher than with the primary surgery.

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Treating a hospital as if it were a human would increase the number woman who die each year from surgery complications or from ovarian cancer.

Howard C. Mandel, MD, Los Angeles

..

To the editor: Pregnancy is a high-risk medical situation. That is why before modern medicine, women would make out their wills as soon as they found out they were pregnant.

Although the complications have greatly decreased, giving birth is still a risky business in many cases.

By preventing subsequent pregnancies, tubal ligations prevent a ruptured uterus from a previous cesarean section that could kill both mother and baby; by preventing subsequent pregnancy tubal ligations avoid postpartum hemorrhage in someone whose uterus wont contract; by preventing subsequent pregnancy a tubal ligation prevents life-threatening bleeding in a patient with a history of abnormal placental implantation; and by preventing subsequent pregnancy a tubal ligation eliminates the chance of a high-risk delivery in a women who has large fibroids and is at risk for extreme premature delivery.

This is hardly a choice between a Burger King hamburger and a chicken sandwich. If the Catholic Church doesnt want to help women with their medical care, it should get out of the business of obstetrics.

Catherine Warner, MD, Anaheim

..

To the editor: Camosy attempts to make the point that permitting patients to demand services like a tubal ligation would signal the end of medicine as a professional practice.

How about a group of physicians being told what procedures they can and cannot perform because they are associated with a hospital that adheres to directives from bishops of the Catholic Church? Would Camosy have us believe that there are no physicians in that hospital who would have performed a tubal ligation had it been permitted by the administrators?

What happened to their professional practice rights?

Arthur Klimeck, San Pedro

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A Democratic state legislator is taking aim at smartphone encryption, arguing the strict security measures to protect cellphone data hamper law enforcements ability to crack down on human traffickers and other criminals.

Assemblyman Jim Cooper (D-Elk Grove) has introduced a measure that would require all cellphones produced and sold in the state to have the capacity to be unlocked, setting the stage for battle with tech companies and privacy advocates.

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Cooper, who unveiled his legislation Wednesday, said that data would be accessed only with a court order, limiting the impact on everyday phone users.

Its not the boogeyman. Its not NSA. Its not Edward Snowden, Cooper said, adding that 99% of the public will never have their phone searched with a court order.

Were talking phones that are involved with human trafficking, which is an issue right now.

But consumer advocates see wide-reaching repercussions in the proposal.

This is [a] terrible policy that is entirely infeasible from a technical perspective, said Andrew Crocker, an attorney with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a civil liberties group. There is no way to ensure that phones can be decrypted by the police and not the bad guys. Its not about privacy but security  the security of innocent peoples devices against hackers, thieves and others.

Coopers proposal may also run into resistance from tech companies, who have made encryption a default feature in smartphones in recent years.

What the companies are responding to is what consumers want  they expect privacy and security, said John Doherty, a lobbyist for TechNet, an industry association. Given all the justifiable attention thats paid to hacks and breaches and leaks, I think a lot of the tech companies said we have to make a system that is as secure as possible.

Cooper, a former captain in the Sacramento Sheriffs Department, has staked out a tough-on-crime stance as a lawmaker. He touted his measure at a news conference while flanked by law enforcement representatives, who said the decryption capability is necessary to access evidence, such as texts and photos, in trafficking cases and other criminal activity.

This evidence is crucial to holding those exploiters accountable and prosecuting them to the fullest extent of the law, said Natalia Luna, Sacramento Countys chief deputy district attorney. Currently, the only way to access this data is by the user or permission of the user and a pass code, allowing the criminal to use the phone not only as a sword but as a shield.

But Samantha Corbin, a lobbyist for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said that requiring devices to a have a backdoor that could undo their encryption would erode the security of everyone in California who has a smartphone in exchange for the simple potential that law enforcement can do their job with more ease  without regard to consumer protection, security or constitutional rights.

She said that consumers, or tech-savvy criminals, could turn to third-party encryption software to lock their phones, a product not addressed in Coopers proposal.

Corbin said she expected privacy groups and tech companies to unite in opposition to the bill  an alliance, she acknowledged, that is generally rare in the Capitol.

Most of the early salvos from Cooper were aimed at the tech industry, which he said should put people over profits in supporting his bill.

Were fighting multibillion-dollar companies that have the best lawyers in the world and the best lobbyists in the world, Cooper said. But were not going to give up.

Follow @melmason for more on California government and politics.

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On the banks of an ancient lagoon in Kenya, researchers have found evidence of a massacre that occurred 10,000 years ago.

The skeletal remains of 12 adult victims discovered in Nataruk, near Lake Turkana, tell a grim story of merciless violence by one group of hunter-gatherers against another -- the oldest known example of its kind in human history.

Ten of the skeletons show clear signs of violent trauma, including club and arrow wounds to the head, ribs, knees, hands and neck, according to a paper published this week in the journal Nature.

One skeleton was found with what appears to be an obsidian arrow still lodged in its skull; another had an arrow in its chest.

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Two of the skeletons -- those of an older man and a woman who was at least six months pregnant -- showed no evidence of lethal injury. But researchers say it is possible they suffered violent deaths as well.

Fatal arrow wounds to the abdomen, for example, dont necessarily leave skeletal lesions.

Marta Mirazon Lahr, a human evolutionary biologist at the University of Cambridge who helped uncover the grisly scene, said it suggests warlike behavior goes back further in human history than was previously thought.

Most scholars have considered that warfare emerged as a result of ownership of land, farming and more complex political systems, she said. Our findings show that this hypothesis is incorrect, and that intergroup conflict had a much longer history.

Evidence of warfare is well preserved among settled, sedentary communities -- either among themselves, or between them and hunter-gatherers they may have encountered. But until now, there was no archaeological record of armed conflict between early nomadic hunter-gatherer groups, Lahr said.

There have been signs of human violence that predate the Nataruk find, however. For example, human remains discovered at the Qadan graveyard at Jebel Sahaba, Sudan, go back 12,000 to 14,000 years ago and show clear signs of violence. But the fact that the victims were buried suggests they were part of a more sedentary society.

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There have also been isolated examples of violent trauma not far from Nataruk, but whether that was a result of intergroup fighting is unclear.

That is what is unique and important about this paper, said Kim Hill, an anthropologist at Arizona State University who was not involved in the study. There is little doubt that this represents intergroup warfare.

The prehistoric carnage reported in the paper occurred about a mile from the shores of Lake Turkana, which at the time provided a fertile environment for many plants and animals. The fossil record suggests the area was brimming with life, including elephants, hippos, rhinos, zebras, warthogs, gazelles and millions of fish -- as well as lions, hyenas and wild dogs.

The edge of the lake must have been an amazing place to live -- but also dangerous, Lahr said. We have also found several fragments of human fossils at other sites with evidence of having been eaten by carnivores.

The researchers believe the victims of the massacre were a small traveling band of hunter-gatherers who stopped by a lagoon to hunt or fish.

The position of the skeletons suggests that the victims hands were bound at the time of their death. Since their killers wielded weapons that are not associated with hunting and fishing, the researchers believe the attack was planned.

It is impossible to know how big the group of assailants might have been, but Lahr said it was probably larger than that of the victims.

The most important thing in determining whether it is worth attacking or not is simply the numbers, she said.

There is no evidence that graves were dug for the victims, and the haphazard position of their bodies suggests they were not moved after their deaths.

Despite the amount of forensic evidence uncovered at the site, it already seems clear that the discovery will not put to rest the raging debate among anthropologists over whether hunter-gatherers engaged in warfare.

Douglas Fry, an anthropologist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, suggested the abundant resources near Lake Turkana made it possible for the hunter-gatherers who lived there to enjoy some aspects of a sedentary existence, including food storage and more social complexity. These, he argues, lead to warlike tendencies.

My suspicion is that the finds described by Dr. Lahr and her colleagues reflect the increased intergroup conflicts that become possible -- even likely -- during a pre-agricultural revolution that ushered in a host of social changes, said Fry, who wasnt involved in the Nature study.

Hill saw the paper as offering further evidence that warfare among hunter-gatherer societies probably occurred quite frequently as a way to gain resources.

In short, theory and common sense suggests that people will kill when they can get away with it and when there is something to gain, he said. Hence, intergroup violence has probably been part of Hominin natural history for a long time.

Lahr agreed.

Nataruk is extraordinary for having preserved what was probably not an unusual event in the lives of hunter-gatherers at the time, she said. But we should also not forget that humans, uniquely in the animal world, are also capable of extraordinary acts of altruism, compassion and caring. Clearly both are part of our nature.

Do you love science? I do! Follow me @DeborahNetburn and like Los Angeles Times Science & Health on Facebook.

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A national organization focused on animal and habitat protection claims the city of Laguna Beach is not following state law regarding coyote trapping.

Jean Su, staff attorney for the Oakland branch of the Center for Biological Diversity, sent Laguna officials a letter Jan. 14 requesting Critter Busters staff receive written permission from residents living within 150 yards of a coyote trap, regardless of whether the trap is placed on public or private property, to comply with the California Code of Regulations.

In a 4-1 vote Jan. 12, the City Council approved a year-long $30,000 contract with Santa Clarita-based Critter Busters to set traps  if necessary.

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The city began setting traps in July and caught 11 coyotes, Laguna Beach Civilian Services Supervisor Jim Beres wrote in an email. Animals are euthanized if they are trapped to comply with state law. In the last several months, residents said they saw more of the animals roaming the streets and entering backyards in the last several months, occasionally with small dogs in their mouths.

While we have concerns regarding the wisdom and efficacy of the trapping program itself, at a minimum, any such effort must be done in compliance with all legal requirements, the letter says. We urge the city to immediately remedy its non-compliance with California state law by requiring Critter Busters and any other trapping contractors acting under the citys coyote trapping program to receive written consent from all property owners whose properties are within 150 yards of the set trap prior to any further trapping activity.

State code says: Traps may not be set within 150 yards of any structure used as a permanent or temporary residence, unless such traps are set by a person controlling such property or by a person who has and is carrying with him written consent of the landowner to so place the trap or traps.

The rule applies to traps set on private property, Beres said, adding that based on our interpretation of that code, we believe the city is fully complying with that regulation.

Su provided an email Beres sent prior to the councils vote last week that further explains the citys position.

We agree that the private trapper must obtain the written consent of the landowner upon whose property the trap is set, Beres wrote. We disagree that the written consent of all landowners who own land that contains a structure used as a residence located within 150 yards of a trap is necessary, if the trap is not located on their property.

Critter Busters, which started trapping in December, received written consent from homeowners to place snare traps on their property, Beres added. The city contracted with another company prior to Critter Busters, but changed to save money, police said.

As of Wednesday, Beres said none of the snare traps were currently placed in the city.

Since the six coyotes were caught by Critter Busters in late December, we have had no reported attacks or attempted attacks on pets in Laguna Beach, Beres said. The number of calls to Animal Services reporting any kind of coyote activity in Laguna Beach has decreased about 95% compared to before the six coyotes were caught. So we believe that the habituated coyote or coyotes that were responsible for the recent spate of attacks, attempted attacks, and encounters with people were among the six coyotes that were caught.

We have rarely used the services of a trapper to deal with problem coyotes in Laguna Beach.

The councils decision last week authorized the city to use some of the $30,000 to pay for prior trapping services and have a remaining balance for any coyote management activities, not just trapping.

We plan to use a portion of the funds to create new educational fliers and door hangers containing coyote information, Beres said. The funds can be used to pay for the overtime costs of the Animal Services officers to conduct community meetings and engage in after-hours hazing [of coyotes]. If attacks on pets were to begin again and it was determined that trapping was necessary to catch and remove the problem habituated coyote or coyotes responsible for the attacks, the funds could be used to pay for the trapping.

If Critter Busters sets traps in the future, the Center for Biological Diversity wants written permission from residents, even if traps are placed on public land.

The Center for Biological Diversity wants the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to investigate and, as appropriate, cite and/or prosecute relevant city officials and their trapper contractors for these violations.

Laguna Police Chief Laura Farinella requested a written opinion from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife on the agencys interpretation of the code, Beres said.

Fish and wildlife authorities did not return a call or email seeking comment.

Su hopes to receive a response from the city in the next two weeks.
Painter Mark Rothko faced a series of struggles: He left Russia when he was 10, his father died seven months after the family arrived in Portland, Ore., he dropped out of Yale after two years and bouts of heavy drinking destroyed his health. He committed suicide at age 67 in 1970.

But his prolific works of large, abstract canvases with occasional hints of color had a profound influence on artistic styles, and Rothko, who refused to be defined by any art movement, is considered one of the most famous postwar American artists.

In playwright John Logans Tony Award-winning drama Red, the plot centers on Rothko and his assistant and touches on themes like the nature of art and what drives an artist.

Red is set in 1958 as New York artist Rothko has received the art worlds largest commission to create a series of murals for The Four Seasons restaurant in the new Seagram building on Park Avenue. Rothko works feverishly with his young assistant, Ken, in his studio on the Bowery. But when Ken gains the confidence to challenge his mentor, Rothko feels a vulnerability as he faces the mission of creating a definitive work.

South Coast Repertory founding artistic director David Emmes said what drove him to want to direct Red is that it addresses the complexity of pursuing a passion while facing the reality of making a living. The play runs through Feb. 21 at the Costa Mesa theaters Segerstrom Stage.

Emmes said he also has always had an interest in the visual arts and is an admirer of Rothkos.

He said when he reread Logans script, he found the play to be a remarkable inside look into the creative process and the often competing demands of creativity and commerce.

I think the play draws us wonderfully into the world of creativity and its process, and it brings a discussion of what an artists responsibilities are, Emmes said. Its a really compelling piece.

To translate the script into a compelling play, Emmes said he first had to secure the right cast and that included actor Mark Harelik for the role of Rothko.

Harelik, described by Emmes as gifted and one of the best American theater actors, has done six previous productions over his long association with South Coast Repertory, including leading roles in Cyrano de Bergerac and Tartuffe. His credits also include the original Broadway production of The Light in the Piazza.

The two-person play also stars Paul David Story, who is making his SCR debut as Rothkos assistant, Ken. Story has also appeared on Broadway.

The original play opened in London seven years ago featuring Alfred Molina and Eddie Redmayne. The production, with its two leads, transferred to Broadway and was awarded the 2010 Tony Award for Best Play.

The challenge of the two-character play, Emmes said, was to ensure that each scene has a context where the actors can explore the dramatic needs of the play, which features heated moments between the two.

Emmes said he was confident in Harelik and Storys ability to explore the aspects of the painter and assistant relationship.

I thought this required great artistry, and its a big mountain to climb, Emmes said. You need someone who has the stamina and energy to hit the summit.

Emmes, who read Rothko biographies and conducted research on the painter, said he wants audiences to gain a deeper insight into how difficult it is for an artist to make his or her way in the world.

As Rothko is often quoted as having said, When I was a younger man, art was a lonely thing. No galleries, no collectors, no critics, no money. Yet it was a golden age, for we all had nothing to lose and a vision to gain. Today it is not quite the same. It is a time of tons of verbiage, activity, consumption.

*

IF YOU GO:

What: Red

When: 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 8 p.m. Thursdays, 2:30 and 8 p.m. Saturdays, and 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Sundays, until Feb. 21

Where: South Coast Repertorys Segerstrom Stage, 655 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa

Cost: Ticket prices vary

Information: (714) 708-5555 or visit scr.org

--

Kathleen Luppi, kathleen.luppi@latimes.com

Twitter: @KathleenLuppi
Organizers who are working to establish a proposed Armenian American Museum that would be located across the street from Glendale Community College spoke to the colleges trustees this week to promote the museum as both a community resource and neighbor to the campus.

The museum would be housed on the corner of Mountain Street and Verdugo Road next to the Glendale Civic Auditorium on a 1.37-acre site currently used as a parking lot.

College officials in recent weeks have met behind closed doors to discuss potentially purchasing the nearby civic auditorium from the city, and on Tuesday, organizers said they are aware of those talks and do not oppose them.

We think the college and the museum can co-exist in harmony and actually support each other, said Zaven Kazazian, a member of the museums executive committee. We are not opposed to what the college is doing, and I hope the college is not opposed to what we are doing. We are very much in a process of working with the college. We are planning on making sure of the fact that no matter what happens, that the college will be supporting the museum, and we are going to be supporting the college.

Some college trustees said they appreciated Kazazian and fellow museum organizers attending the meeting, but did not elaborate on the colleges plans for the auditorium.

Vahe Peroomian, a college trustee, wished the organizers good luck going forward, while fellow trustee Ann Ransford said, Ditto.

In December, the trustees voted to approve a facilities master plan, which hints at a friendly collaboration between the college and the museum as both parties plans unfold.

The master plan indicated that the colleges music program and child development center may be housed in the Glendale Civic Auditorium.

The development of this site would be planned in coordination with the future Armenian community cultural center should plans for that facility be realized, the document stated.

--

Kelly Corrigan, kelly.corrigan@latimes.com

Twitter: @kellymcorrigan
The past 6 1/2 years have been a roller-coaster ride for Irvine resident Ben Allen.

In 2009, his wife, Judy, was diagnosed with Alzheimers disease, and since then, its been one challenge after another, from memory loss and mood swings to moving across the state to be closer to family, and eventually transferring Judy to a permanent memory care community.

Theres a real tendency to become isolated because things just become more difficult, Allen said.

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Thats why Allen said the best thing he and Judy did was to join a support group from day one. The Allens started off with the Alzheimers Assn. in Northern California, but after moving to Irvine in 2011 switched to Alzheimers Orange County, where Allen is now an active volunteer and community speaker.

The Orange County group announced last month that it is among those chapters across the country breaking from the national organization. The New York City and San Diego chapters are among those splitting from the Chicago-based national Alzheimers Assn.

The groups say they want to retain local control.

Bottom line is that you have 84,000 people in the local market, and we felt we could do more with our money and time locally than we could by staying with the national organization, said Michael Lancaster, chairman of the Alzheimers Orange County board.

Jim McAleer, the CEO of the local group, said the decision, which he called a divorce, was made after the national office announced its intention to merge its dozens of chapters into one centralized nonprofit, which would have meant a shift away from local services and turning over all fundraising dollars to the national group.

In Orange County and a number of our sister chapters, we were and are producing at a really high level, so that would have caused us to backtrack, he said.

Lancaster said breaking away will allow the local group to focus exclusively on the needs of the county.

Alzheimers is a chronic neurodegenerative disease with symptoms that include memory loss, disorientation, language problems and trouble managing self-care. It is the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the fourth in the county, according to the Orange County Health Care Agency.

Alzheimers is sometimes described as the long goodbye, Allen said. It can be a long, slow process, and because of the progression of symptoms, theres a repetitive grief process that sets in.

He added: There are plateaus and drops, plateaus and drops. I would get used to something and say, If this is it, Ive got it, Im OK. But then something changes, and the grief process starts all over again.

Allen said he is all in favor of Alzheimers Orange County being as strong and viable as possible, even if that means independence.

The group provides a cost-free resource for local Alzheimers families like the Allens, offering support groups, caregiver education, emergency consultation and financial planning advice.

Having something to do on a regular basis, to get out and be with other people was a very uplifting thing, he said. Its not something that anybody can do alone. Its a tough road.

McAleer said about the local group:

We hold your hand from the moment of diagnosis all the way until the end of life. Theres not someone to fill that gap.

According to organization officials, Alzheimers Orange County currently serves 84,000 people with dementia and trains more than 27,000 caregivers per year. It also raises $5 million each year.

Our organization is for a person with the disease and the caregiver. Thats the only reason were here, McAleer said. What we do and how well serve them is based on what they need, not our organizational structure.

McAleer was clear that the changes would not affect any of the dozens of groups or other services that local families receive. The group will continue to be based in Irvine.

Now the organization is looking at ways to expand its scope within the county.

McAleer said Alzheimers Orange County is working on introducing new services, such as adult day healthcare and respite care.

For our families, being able to drop your loved one off for two hours so you can get a haircut is huge, he said.

The group is also trying to extend its reach into underserved communities.

Alzheimers Orange County has already begun work not only on translating its materials into Vietnamese and Spanish and identifying how best to advertise to these populations, but also recruiting dedicated staff and volunteers who can culturally relate.

McAleer explained that cultural sensitivity is necessary to understanding the stigma that exists within specific communities  in the Vietnamese community, you dont use the word Alzheimers, he said, because mental health issues are nothing talked about  and the social dynamics, such as large extended families among Latinos, that may come into play when working through the disease.

The group is now also looking at ways to make inroads into local Korean, Chinese, Persian and LGBT communities.

Joshua Grill, director of education at UC Irvines Institute for Memory Impairments and Neurological Disorders, said the effect of Alzheimers Orange County on local families has been profound.

Families are facing a long, uphill battle of dealing with this disease and planning care for someone who is ultimately going to depend on others for their quality of life, he said. Families in the throes of this disease need all the help they can get, and there are not enough resources made available to them, but Alzheimers Orange County provides a lifeline that makes all the difference.

McAleer wants everyone to start paying attention to Alzheimers  not just those affected by the disease.

As the baby boomer generation ages, he explained, the number of those with Alzheimers across the country is expected to balloon, from 5 million today to 10 million by 2030. In addition, the disease cost an estimated $200 billion in healthcare expenses in 2012, and that number is expected to be $1.1 trillion by 2050, according to the Alzheimers Assn.

Its the most expensive disease in the world, and its hopelessly underfunded at the federal level, McAleer said. Its going to cripple Medicare. This is the biggest threat to our healthcare system in decades.

Allen agreed that this is a disease all people need to know about.

Its essential for everyone to be educated about Alzheimers and other kinds of dementia, he said, because if you dont know somebody close to you with Alzheimers, you will.
Somalias security forces ended a deadly siege of a beachfront restaurant in the capital, with more than 20 people killed in the attack, a police official said Friday.

The security forces took control of the restaurant just before dawn, said Capt. Mohamed Hussein, speaking from the scene of the attack in Mogadishu.

It was not clear whether Husseins report of more than 20 killed included the assailants.

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Blasts and bursts of gunfire could be heard as Somali special forces went from room to room pursuing the Shabab gunmen who were holed up inside the restaurant.

Hussein said the security forces rescued many who had been trapped inside the restaurants hall, where a party was taking place when the attack started on Thursday.

Witnesses said that gunmen shouted, Allahu akbar -- God is great -- and entered the restaurant from the direction of the beach as people sitting behind razor wire watched the seashore.

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They randomly fired at people sitting near the beach before entering the restaurant, said Ahmed Nur, who was strolling along the shore when the attack happened.

Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack in a broadcast on its online radio late Thursday.

The Al Qaeda-linked militant group attacked Kenyan peacekeepers in southwestern Somalia last week. It said it had killed about 100 Kenyans and seized weapons and military vehicles. The Kenyan government has given no death toll, but said there were fatalities.

Despite being pushed out of Somalias major cities and towns, Shabab continues to launch deadly guerrilla attacks across the Horn of Africa country. African Union troops, government officials and foreigners are frequently targeted.

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The tatty, faded umbrellas bob above a long queue of people, protection not against rain, but the parching sun. In what some farmers are calling the worst drought theyve seen, residents in many rural townships saw the water in their taps dribble and die months ago.

Crops didnt get planted. Wildlife disappeared. Cattle were sent away to early slaughter when farmers couldnt bear to watch their slow, dry deaths.

El Ninos path across Africa has been a punishing mirror image of its march up the Pacific in the Western Hemisphere: pockets of flooding in places such as Somalia and Kenya, and here in the south, an endless succession of days so dry that water, even simple municipal drinking water, has become a precious commodity. Government officials are sending tap water by truck to thirsty outlying communities in a massive drive across the country.

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People are in dire need. Its heartbreaking. What you see there will bring tears to your eyes.  Salman Seeday, water delivery volunteer

Salman Seeday, a volunteer who delivered water recently to this remote town in Free State province near the Lesotho border, described how people ran toward the arriving trucks, grabbed the bottles that were offered and guzzled down the contents.

Within two or three minutes we had a queue of two or three thousand people, he said. People are in dire need. Its heartbreaking. What you see there will bring tears to your eyes.

El Nino, the cyclical warming of the equatorial Pacific Ocean, has started to relieve the long-running drought in the western United States even as, on the other side of the world, it has created a new one in Africa.

Here in the continents most industrialized nation and second-biggest economy, the availability of drinking water has become, in many places, an emergency. Five of South Africas nine provinces have been declared disaster zones, as well as areas of two other provinces. The country, which normally exports corn to much of southern Africa, will have to import up to 6 million tons of grain, according to Agriculture Minister Senzeni Zokwana.

One farmer in Eastern Cape province committed suicide this month, as the country dried up and his cattle died. There have been violent fights over water in some towns, according to Yaseen Theba, who set up Operation Hydrate, one of several voluntary water delivery efforts.

Sello Moletsane, 22, and his sister Nthabiseng, 29, of Senekals Tambo settlement got up at dawn to queue with four buckets for water sent in by municipal tanker. Eight hours later they were some of the last people to get water. They trundled up the dusty street with just two full buckets in their wheelbarrow. There wouldnt be any more water for two days.

We have to wake up at 12 oclock at night for the queue. Sometimes we sleep here, said Vinus Nkala, 36, who lives with her three children on the outskirts of Senekal, a parched town with peeling-paint facades and listless people hanging outside the liquor store.

Water delivered by the local municipality was muddy and had given some children diarrhea, so people were afraid to use it for drinking, said Nkala, who has witnessed fistfights and screaming matches over water in the queues. After the first rain in months fell on a recent Monday, people rushed with buckets to collect the dirty water for washing clothes.

The voluntary water trucking efforts began late last month.

In the Free State, theres only a trickle of water coming out of the taps. Theyre just dropping off their cattle at the abattoirs. They cant slaughter them fast enough. Theres no feed, said Caroline van Saasen, who works for the Chamber of Commerce in the town of Middelburg in Mpumalanga province.

She set up a Facebook page to arrange donated water deliveries and was overwhelmed when 20,000 people signed up as volunteers within a few days. Members of the group arrange their own deliveries, trucking water across the country in bottles or tankers. Van Saasen said more than 317,000 gallons have been delivered since the project started late last month.

Theres so much [water] transport running all over South Africa that I cant tell you what is going where, Van Saasen said.

A South African security company manager, who goes only by the name of Theba, has been trucking water donated by South African companies. His operation delivered more than 26,000 gallons of water to Senekal on Thursday. A long line formed instantaneously under the blazing sun as the trucks pulled up.

We couldnt not do it. We could not sit back and watch people die and kill people out of thirst, he said.

We needed to get water to people as quickly as possible. We are totally aware of the fact that this is not the most practical solution. But the people need water now. You can see the queues. And while were getting a project together to put tanks into these areas, at least we can get water to the people.

Free State is one of the five provinces that have been declared a disaster zone. Parched paddocks stretch into the distance, unplanted. A gust of wind whips up a cloud of red dust. Dams and rivers are dry. Thin cattle huddle around a small pool. The little rain that has arrived came too late for planting.

The crisis has forced welfare recipients to spend a good portion of their monthly grants on water. Nkala, the mother of three, said she was forced to buy the cheapest food she could find. Many people usually grow food in small plots, but the drought has forced most to buy all their food.

I never seen anything like this in my life. We never felt we could experience this thing, said Maduna Nkosama, 27, of Senekal. His family of nine was too poor to buy water and instead has been relying on municipal tankers  with their dubious water supplies.

We dont know where the municipality got that water. That water is not good enough, especially for the kids. Some kids have been getting sick, Nkosama said. Some townsfolk are angry that farmers bringing water tanks there were charging 60 cents for 5 gallons of water.

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Its not fair. If you have something, why dont you contribute to other people, to show mercy? Nkosama said. Some people take advantage of us because of our suffering.

Critics say the water crisis points up the national governments failure to invest in water infrastructure, while others complain municipal governments havent responded effectively to the crisis.

They should have built more dams, said Nkala. Im very angry at the municipality. The community are many, but the dams are few. I wont vote again. No more.... We are not getting help, so I dont see any point.

Follow @RobynDixon_LAT for news from Africa.

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The number of rhinos poached in South Africa, home to 80% of the worlds population, fell marginally in 2015 after years of rising dramatically, according to newly released government figures.

There were 1,175 rhinos killed last year, down from 1,215 the previous year, leading the government to conclude that poaching had stabilized and that efforts to protect the animals were starting to work.

But experts said that conclusion was premature, given that it was based on a single year of data. They also suggested that efforts to protect rhinos in South Africa are driving poachers to neighboring countries.

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In Namibia, 80 rhinos were killed in 2015, up from 25 the previous year, and in Zimbabwe, the total more than doubled to 50.

The threat seems to be spreading across the region and you would expect that, said Jo Shaw, rhino program manager at the World Wildlife Fund in Johannesburg. Its like a bubble. If you squeeze hard in one area, it will bulge in another area.

This is why we need to treat the problem systemically, she said. You can throw lots of money and time and effort into field security in priority rhino sites and we have to do that. But ultimately it is just going to shift the pressure elsewhere.

The effort to protect rhinos in South Africa has been fueled by international donations and aid, including $23 million from American billionaire Warren Buffett and $3.75 million from the U.S. government in 2014. Other donors include the Netherlands and Sweden.

White rhinos are classified as a threatened species, while the rarer black rhino is critically endangered. It has been illegal under international treaty since 1977 to buy or sell their horns, which have long been prized in China, Vietnam and other Asian nations for use in traditional medicine, including curing hangovers and preventing illness.

Increasingly, the horn is also seen as a status symbol for wealthy elites and is used in jewelry.

In South Africa, a political battle is unfolding over a controversial strategy to save rhinos.

A group of private rhino owners argue that the international treaty  the Convention on Trade in Endangered Species, or CITES  should be modified to allow commerce in horns that are farmed. Horns grow like fingernails, only much slower, and can be harvested every seven years without harming the animals. In fact, horn removal has become a strategy for protecting rhinos in national parks by making them unattractive to poachers. The horns are stockpiled because they cannot be sold.

NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >>

The farmers say that the proceeds from legal sales could help fund protection efforts.

But opponents say that horn farming would only feed demand, and that it would be difficult to distinguish illegal horns from legal ones.

The South African government set up a committee to report on rhino horn farming and trade. The next CITES meeting  where any changes to the treaty require approval  is scheduled this fall in South Africa.

The country is home to about 20,000 rhinos, including 5,000 or so that are privately owned and between 8,000 and 9,000 in Kruger National Park, where 826 were killed last year.

The battle against poaching in the park at times resembles a guerrilla war. On one side are nimble gangs of armed poachers, paid by international smuggling syndicates, that slip in and out of the park, mainly from Mozambique. On the other is the South African army, which is experimenting with the use of surveillance drones.

Edna Molewa, the environmental affairs minister, said Thursday that the countrys anti-poaching law enforcement efforts had improved, with 317 arrests in 2015, compared with 258 in 2014. All of the arrests last year were either in the park or just outside it.

On Tuesday, a court in Roodeport, outside Johannesburg, denied bail to four people  including three current or former police officers  charged with rhino poaching, money laundering and racketeering.

Michael Masutha, the justice minister, said 48 people were convicted of rhino poaching charges since April, including 24 sentenced to jail. In six cases, charges were dropped or the suspects were acquitted.

Shaw, of the World Wildlife Fund, said more prosecutions are needed in the Asian countries where rhino horns ultimately end up. This month, CITES called on Vietnam to produce evidence on the number of prosecutions for rhino horn use.

In Asia, what we are seeing is a carrot approach, with calls on people not to use rhino horn, Shaw said. What were not seeing is the stick. Theres an occasional arrest of a rhino horn smuggler. There are no arrests of the people selling horn and no arrests of the consumers themselves.

These are the guys paying huge amounts of money, who are driving whats going on in South Africa.

Follow @RobynDixon_LAT for news from Africa.

NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >>

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North Korea on Friday announced the arrest of a university student from Ohio accused of posing as a tourist to commit a hostile act against the reclusive nation.

News of the University of Virginia students detention came at a time of heightened tension between North Korea and the United States, which has been working with allies in the region to increase international sanctions against the country over the governments claims to have carried out its fourth nuclear test this month.

The official Korea Central News Agency identified the detainee as Otto Frederick Warmbier, who it claimed entered the country with the intention of bringing down the foundation of its single-minded unity at the tacit connivance of the U.S. government and under its manipulation.

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A China-based tour operator, Young Pioneer Tours, confirmed that one of its clients had been detained in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang. The company said it was in touch with the mans family, the U.S. State Department and the Swedish Embassy, which handles consular affairs for American citizens in North Korea because Washington and Pyongyang do not have diplomatic ties.

The State Department issued a statement saying it was aware of the reports but had no further information to share, citing privacy considerations.

North Korea has in the past appeared to use foreign detainees as leverage against the U.S. and its allies, which it regularly accuses of plotting to overthrow the government of Kim Jong Un.

Less than a week after carrying out the latest test, authorities in Pyongyang gave CNN access to Kim Dong-chul, who described himself as a naturalized U.S. citizen detained on suspicion of spying for South Korea.

In December, a South Korean-born Canadian pastor, the Rev. Lim Hyeon-soo, was sentenced to life in prison with hard labor on charges that included using religion to try to destroy North Koreas system of government.

Pyongyang is also believed to be holding at least three South Koreans.

Warmbier was in North Korea for a five-day New Years trip and was detained at Pyongyang airport on Jan. 2, four days before the nuclear test, the Reuters news agency reported, citing an official at Young Pioneer Tours.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a Republican presidential candidate, called the arrest inexcusable. He should be released & returned immediately, Kasich said in a message posted on his Twitter account.

Warmbier attended high school in Wyoming, a suburb of Cincinnati, and was the salutatorian of his graduating class in 2013, said Susanna Max, spokeswoman for Wyoming City Schools.

He is now a third-year commerce student at the University of Virginia and a member of the schools selective Echols Scholars Program, the university newspaper the Cavalier Daily reported.

Warmbier also served on the Student Council Sustainability Committee, helped manage the Alternative Investment Funds $20,000 portfolio and is a member of the Theta Chi fraternity, according to his profile on the professional networking site LinkedIn. His interests are listed as running, rap music, travel, vintage clothing and sustainability.

For more international news, follow @alexzavis on Twitter

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After her mother whisked her away at age 8 from her pueblo in Oaxaca to the Mid-City neighborhood of Los Angeles, Veronica Martinez Sanchez forgot most of what her life was like at the foot of Picacho Mountain.

The few memories that remained were of the loquat tree she climbed as a child and the splashes of yellow and red flowers emblazoned on the traditional blouse of her grandmother Sofia Gomez  a woman Martinez remembered as tall, slim and strong.

Those fuzzy images and the stories her mother and father recounted made her yearn for her place of birth.

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For most of her life, though, these were only wistful yearnings  without legal status, she could never hope to safely reenter the U.S. Then came President Obamas Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which in addition to protecting many children brought into the country illegally from deportation, opened the door for some of them to leave the country temporarily.

The problem: There are no guarantees that U.S. immigration agents at the border will honor those who have applied for these so-called advance paroles.

If she went home to Oaxaca, she might never be able to return home to Los Angeles.

Martinez decided to try.

She became one of a growing number of young dreamers across the U.S. who are traveling back to Mexico and Central America, learning to traverse two worlds  and discovering they are citizens of both.

I didnt realize I was so Americanized. I didnt want to accept it, Martinez, 27, said after spending several months with her grandmother last year, conversing comfortably in their native Zapotec. You become used to life in the U.S. Thats the truth.

::

Martinez, who often wears a brilliant white smile framed by high cheekbones, was silent and nervous on the plane south. During a shared taxi ride from the airport to her village, her heart pounded when she caught view of rocky Picacho Mountain and of Zapotec women with brilliant green, red and yellow traditional dresses walking along the road.

Martinez, who was worried about her command of the Zapotec language, surprised herself and the women in her taxi when she joined the conversation. They complimented her on how well she spoke despite being away for so long. Finally, Martinez thought, she was back home.

Hilaria Sanchez Hernandez and Eleuterio Hernandez Hernandez in their store in San Bartolome Quialana. (Cindy Carcamo / Los Angeles Times)

San Bartolome Quialana, a rural village in the southern state of Oaxaca, has a population of about 2,000 people, most of them Zapotec women and children. About half of the town  mostly young men  has migrated north to California.

Her parents were part of that migration. Though Martinez spent most of her life in the U.S., she said it never really felt like home.

But when she got to her village, wearing a T-shirt and shorts  her daily garb in California  she didnt quite fit in either.

Women looked at her from head to toe and said her shorts revealed too much skin. They were reserved and short when she tried to make conversation. It wasnt until a few weeks in, when she decided to don the traditional Zapotec dress, that she felt like part of the community.

You look so pretty now, women told her.

At first I felt like I was neither from here nor over there. Now, I feel like both are home  Veronica Martinez Sanchez

Generally, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services will grant advance parole for DACA recipients only if they have a qualifying humanitarian, employment or educational reason to travel abroad. Some dreamers were brought to the U.S. illegally, some overstayed visas and now live in the country without documentation.

According to the agency, in the first two years of DACA implementation, about 6,400 DACA recipients had applied for advance parole. Its unclear how many have been denied reentry into the U.S.

Martinez received permission under the educational provision, traveling with a study abroad program sponsored by UC Riverside, where she is a sociology and anthropology major. She attended classes in Mexico City but spent most of her time completing an independent research project on traditional dress in her village.

Although she quickly adapted to the slower rhythms of village life, she also had a surprising revelation.

She caught herself calling the U.S. home. She missed it too.

At first I felt like I was neither from here nor over there, she said of Mexico and the U.S. Now, I feel like both are home. I have the right to be here and there. Home is where family is. I have family here and there.

The sentiment rings true for many others in the same position, said Angelica Esquivel, a recent UCLA graduate who conducted research on youth who return to Mexico on advance parole.

The 24-year-old Esquivel, also on advance parole in Mexico for research and to visit her family, said many of those who participated in her study  including Martinez  discovered how rooted they really are in the U.S. during their time in Mexico.

Theyve come to the acceptance of being a trans-national actor, Esquivel said. When youre in the U.S., you have memories and miss Mexico. Now, youre in Mexico and you miss your life in the U.S. One will always miss one or the other.

Martinez also experienced what anyone feels when returning to a childhood home  that memory and reality dont quite match. The loquat tree she climbed as a child didnt seem as tall. Her grandmother wasnt as strong.

After 15 years of separation, Veronica Martinez Sanchez, left, and Sofia Gomez had the opportunity to reconnect in their Oaxacan village of San Bartolome Quialana. (Cindy Carcamo / Los Angeles Times)

Gomez, now 85, is frail and lives alone in a small cinder-block house. Her vision blurred by cataracts, she sometimes loses her way in town.

Martinez also spent time with her maternal grandparents, Rosa and Jose Sanchez, who also live in the village, but paid special attention to Gomez. Spanish is Gomezs second language, so grandmother and granddaughter spoke mostly in Zapotec.

In many ways, she took on the role of her father and mother, who could not visit Mexico because, like most people without legal status in the U.S., they dont qualify for advance parole.

Rosa Sanchez told her granddaughter something that made them both tear up.

You being here was as if my daughter were here, she said. It was like your mom had come back to visit me.

Others who participated in Esquivels study also found themselves with a sense of great responsibility, finding that they ended up representing their parents in some way.

A visit to Mexico comes with a lot of responsibility, more than one may have imagined, Esquivel said.

Martinez normally spent the mornings with Gomez, making her coffee and eating eggs. Weekly, shed accompany her to the Sunday fair in the nearby town of Tlacolula, where the pair talked over barbacoa de borrego  roasted lamb in adobo marinade  and hot chocolate.

One morning in her grandmothers kitchen, Martinez, who wore a traditional long skirt and blouse with purple flowers, flashed Gomez a smile.

I do this for my dad because I know he cant be here for my grandma, she said. I just wanted to make my grandma happy  at least for a couple of months.

Martinezs father sends money every month to his mother, hoping it will help her pay for expenses  perhaps a trip to a doctor who can attend to her eyes.

Instead, the grandmother socks it away, hoping hell return one day so she can give it to him.

Arent you happy Im here? Martinez asked her grandmother.

The grandmother squinted her eyes.

Yeah. Yeah. But youre leaving again, she replied. I dont know why you want to go. When you go, Ill stay alone.

Gomez has asked why Martinez couldnt attend a school in the village. Martinez didnt even try to explain. Shell graduate from UC Riverside this year and plans to study indigenous communities in graduate school.

When Gomez was asked whether shed ever had the desire to visit the U.S. to see her family, the grandmother responds with an adamant no.

Id probably die if I go over there. I dont want to go. I have my animals to tend to and I cant take my animals, she said.

Martinez reached out and stroked her grandmothers face with affection.

Im not the greatest nieta  granddaughter, she said in English. I wish I could spend more time with her, but its hard to be here and see her in this way. Lonely  by herself.

Martinez left her village in December, nervous about whether shed be allowed back into the U.S. The lines at customs at Los Angeles International Airport confused her a bit. Should she queue up at the one for U.S. citizens or the one for foreigners? She chose the latter.

An agent sent her for a secondary inspection. After a few hours came the verdict: She could return.

She was happy to be back but was soon itching to return to her Oaxacan village. She knows it may be quite a while before shell be able to do so legally.

For now she straddles both homes as best she can, often wearing her flowery blusa  blouse  with her shorts.

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Tunisia imposed a nationwide overnight curfew Friday in response to growing unrest as protests over unemployment across the country descended into violence in some cities.

A curfew from 8 p.m. until 5 a.m. was declared because the attacks on public and private property represent a danger to the country and its citizens, the Interior Ministry said.

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Overnight into Friday, police stations came under attack and security officers used tear gas to repel protesters armed with stones and Molotov cocktails. In housing projects on the outskirts of the capital, Tunis, roving groups of young people pillaged a bank and looted stores and warehouses.

The previous night, a police officer died after protesters flipped his car, the government said.

The week of increasingly violent demonstrations was triggered Sunday when a young man who lost out on a government job climbed a transmission tower in protest and was electrocuted. The suicide more than five years ago of another unemployed youth set off a popular uprising that overthrew Tunisias longtime ruler and eventually gave rise to the Arab Spring uprisings across North Africa.

Tunisia built the only democracy to survive that movement, which spawned chaos elsewhere in the region. But the countrys economy is foundering, and about one in three young people remains without work.

Are we not Tunisians too? Its been four years Ive been struggling. Were not asking for much, but were fighting for our youth. Weve struggled so much for them, said Leila Omri, the mother of an unemployed graduate in Kasserine.

NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >>

Tunisias prime minister, Habib Essid, cut short a visit to France to deal with the protests. Tunisias unemployment rate stands around 15%, but is 30% among young people.

Tunisia has been under a state of emergency since a suicide bombing in November killed 12 members of the presidential guard in the heart of Tunis  an attack that capped an unusually violent year for Tunisia. That bombing, as well as deadly attacks earlier in the year against the Bardo museum in Tunis and the tourist beach town of Sousse, were claimed by the Islamic State group.

In Paris just before leaving for home, Essid said the problem was not with democracy, but with the economy.

We have a set of policies to try to solve this issue, which is one of this governments main challenges, he said after his meeting with the French president. We dont have a magic wand. We cant solve the problem of unemployment in one go.

France promised aid worth 1 billion euros (about $1.08 billion), much of it dedicated to inland regions far from the relatively glamorous coastal areas that include the resort of Sousse. But tourism, the main driver of Tunisias economy, plummeted after last years attacks, leaving even the coasts struggling.

You want a solution? Its easy: Give the people jobs, instead of pouring millions into Sousse, said Abid Khadhraoui, another unemployed graduate. You had five years and nothing happened. All we want are jobs!

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The Coca-Cola Company has announced a $1 billion investment in Argentina over the next four years.

The investment will cover bottling and distribution operations in the South American country, the firm said on Thursday, Reuters reported. The move is projected to provide more business opportunities in Argentina.

Coca-Cola CEO Muhtar Kent told Argentine President Mauricio Macri of the investment when the two leaders met at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, the news outlet added. Macri has been wooing chief executives that Argentina is open for more business ventures.

Francisco Do Pico, a spokesman for Coca-Cola Argentina, said that the spending plan would include a new bottling plant located in the northern Corrientes province, as well as two new distribution centers, Reuters further reported. Construction of the bottling factory had already commenced, he noted.

"At this time we do not rule out acquiring a local company in the non-alcoholic drink sector," Do Pico added, as quoted in Reuters' report.

The beverages company currently employs more than 8,000 people in Argentina, teleSUR reported.

Aside from Coca-Cola, Macri also met with the CEOs of The Dow Chemical Company, Royal Dutch Shell, Total, Mitsubishi, Google, and Facebook on Thursday, the news outlet listed. He is also expected to have discussions with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"They were very productive meetings," Macri told Telam, as reported by teleSUR. "There is much acceptance and interest in this new era that has begun in our country."

Macri's attendance marks the first time that an Argentine president has graced the World Economic Forum, teleSUR noted. He has sworn to roll back progressive economic policies that were instituted by his predecessor, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, and remove Buenos Aires from Latin America's left.

This week, Macri announced his plans to improve the diplomatic relations between Argentina and the United Kingdom despite of the two countries' dispute over the Falkland Islands.

Macri said that he would continue to push Argentina's claim to the islands' sovereignty, but he is optimistic that the conversation would steer into "a new type of relationship," the Guardian reported.

The president remarked that he wants to give "better opportunities" to Argentines, adding that wants to "build better relationships" with all the nations of the region, the news outlet noted.

"We have to be a predictable and trustworthy country. We have to show investors that their rights will be respected, as well as we'll demand that they obey Argentina's laws," Macri said, as quoted by the Guardian. "Argentina wants to have a good relationship with the whole world."

 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Bolivia's second-largest lake is now a dry wasteland with no hopes of ever rebounding back to life.

Lake Poopo, located in a shallow depression 12,000 feet high in the Altiplano Mountains in southwest Bolivia, was officially declared evaporated last December, NBC News reported. The salt lake has dried up several times in the past, but it returned to twice the area of Los Angeles. Scientists, however, said that such a rebound may be impossible now.

"This is a picture of the future of climate change," said Dirk Hoffman, a German glaciologist, as quoted by the news outlet. Hoffman studies how increasing temperatures from the burning of fossil fuels has sped up glacial melting in the country.

One of the major causes of Lake Poopo's drought is the intermittent El Nino meteorological phenomenon, NBC News further reported. According to authorities, another factor is the diversion of water from the lake's tributaries, majorly for mining and agriculture.

Also considered responsible for Lake Poopo drying out is the misuse of the water supply, said Lisa Borre, a senior researcher with the Cary Institute for Ecosystem Studies in New York, as reported by National Geographic. The Bolivian government's failure to address existing management plans is to be blamed as well.

"The lake was very shallow, only a few feet deep, and it is in an arid climate, so its level fluctuates a lot with the weather, but it's never been this bad," said Borre, as quoted by National Geographic.

Borre continued, "The Bolivian government is blaming El Nino and climate change, and certainly those played a role, but they are not saying that they have also failed to implement the management plan for the basin."

Lake Poopo receives most of its water supply from the Desaguadero River, which flows from Lake Titicaca, Bolivia's largest lake, the news outlet wrote. The management plan indicated that water managers are expected to allow water to flow down the river into Poopo, but just recently, the flow has been slowed.

Borre said that officials aren't opening control gates regularly to propel water down the river, National Geographic added. When water is available, there are plenty of times when sedimentation clogs the river due to the runoff from the area's development and mining activities.

Angel Fores, the leader of the local citizens' group that tried to recover Poopo, said that mining firms have been diverting water since 1982, NBC News reported.

To save the lake, Bolivian President Evo Morales' administration has requested $140 million from the European Union. The funding will be for water treatment plants for the Poopo watershed and to dredge tributaries from the Desaguadero.

 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Colombia freed the first batch of FARC guerillas pardoned during the course of ceasefire between the government and the rebels on Thursday.

According to a report from AFP cited by the Tico Times, 16 out of the 30 Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) soldiers who were pardoned by Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos on November 22 have been liberated as a goodwill gesture from the government.

Back in July, the FARC rebels initiated a unilateral ceasefire.

"This is a first, unilateral gesture by the government after evaluating the observance of the FARC's unilateral ceasefire and the resulting reduction in violence and advances in the (peace) process," a statement from the Colombian government's high commissioner for peace explained.

While they welcomed the gesture from their long-time adversary, the FARC leadership is still unsatisfied. They reiterated their hopes for the government to release more of their members, particularly those who have health problems.

In fact, even those who have been liberated have the same opinion, according to Yahoo News.

"We still can't break into applause, because our comrades are still in prison," freed FARC rebel Sandra Patricia Isaza told the press.

Despite this, the Colombian government is still proud of the development, with analysts considering it the key to the "trust-building" process between the two sides.

"For the first time, we will see the FARC acting in society. We will see who they are, what they're going to do and whether they will participate in politics," Jorge Restrepo, a political analyst, explained to AFP.

The end of the negotiations is set to come to its final stretch. Both sides decided to sign a final peace accord on March 23.

However, FARC warned that there may be more "substantial hurdles" coming as they tackle six issues including land reform, justice for war victims, the ex-rebels political participation after being liberated and the continuous bout against drug trafficking in the world's biggest cocaine-producing country.

The rebels also presented another issue that involves right-wing paramilitary groups, who they believe are still assassinating FARC members and leftist leaders. This comes even after they were officially disbanded during the peace talks.

Because of this, negotiators from both the government and the largest guerilla group in Colombia, requested for United Nations to initiate an unarmed observer mission to oversee the development of the peace talks.

 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Member nations of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries have snubbed Venezuela's call for an emergency meeting. Unlike the South American stakeholder, other OPEC delegates aren't fazed by the slumping oil prices.

One representative from the Middle East said the request for a meeting was "extraordinary," while another unnamed delegate said that the drop in oil prices is just temporary, per Reuters.

"It will not be low for a very long time," said the OPEC source. "If the price does fall to $20, many producers will leave the market."

Right now, Oil prices have plunged to below $28 per barrel. That's the lowest it has ever been since 2003. While the sag doesn't necessarily signal a global crisis, its effects can still be felt by all producers, especially recession-stricken countries like Venezuela.

Venezuela Oil Minister Eulogio del Pino has repeatedly requested for an emergency meeting this February. He indicated that the current oil prices are too low, and that the fair level should be $60 a barrel, per Reuters.

"We need a production cut that allows, for now, a stabilization of prices," said del Pino. "Every day it goes down $3, up $3. That does not allow us to plan."

The Venezuelan representative added that he has consulted with several of his contemporaries so that the February meeting will push through. Del Pino is also inviting non-OPEC countries to participate since he believes all are affected by the low oil prices.

According to OPEC guidelines, an emergency meeting will only be arranged if the majority of the 13 members supports it. That being said, Middle Eastern countries such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have a huge role in approving or vetoing requests.

"There is no change in the Gulf countries' position with their market share strategy," said one OPEC representative. "Also none of the non-OPEC (countries) show they are willing to cooperate with OPEC for a cut. Iran also still didn't add (extra) oil to the market. So things didn't change."

Aside from the country's economic downturn caused by the low prices of oil, Venezuela is also suffering from a nationwide food shortage. The problem has gotten so perverse that President Nicolas Maduro has implemented a radical strategy to keep most Venezuelans fed three times a day, Fox News reported.

Venezuelan officials under the newly formed Urban Farming Ministry are now encouraging families to grow their food at home.

"We just need sun, water and a lot of hearth. Currently our cities are just food consumers and parasites," said new agriculture minister Emma Ortega.

 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has come up with a way to solve his country's food shortage: producing food at home.

"Cilia and I have 50 chickens in our house," said Maduro recently, referring to his wife, Cilia Flores, as reported by Fox News Latino. "It's time to develop a new culture of production."

The president has recently announced the creation of another department called the Urban Farming Ministry, which is headed by Emma Ortega, the news outlet added. Ortega is a left-wing and colorful activist known to be Maduro's longtime friend.

"People have to solve the current emergency cultivating in any available space," Ortega said this week during her first meeting with urban farmers in Caracas, as reported by Fox News Latino. "We just need sun, water and a lot of hearth. Currently our cities are just food consumers and parasites."

During the past few years, Venezuela has greatly depended on food imports to sustain the needs of its 30 million people, Fox News Latino wrote. However, the huge crash in oil prices significantly reduced the country's purchasing power, which gave way to the shortage of the most basic goods.

Maduro's socialist government is providing workshops and classes to teach those who have no knowledge about farming. Maria Jimenez, a field technician with the government-run Siare Foundation, told Fox News Latino that all that is required is to have "any available place at your house with enough light."

Among the urban farming initiatives already in place in Caracas is the Bolivar's Crops Center. The 27,000 square-foot area was renovated last year, Fox News Latino reported. Pro-government groups are currently cultivating 20 different produce there, including lettuce, tomato, spinach, onion, and some medicinal plants.

Ortega said that the project aims to expand urban farming to every locality in Venezuela's urban areas, the news outlet added. Some people, however, are cynical of the idea.

"Venezuela's food production problems will not be solved with urban farming. They are caused by macroeconomic imbalances that need to be corrected," argued Tomas Socias, economist and former president of Venezuela's Chamber of Food Industry, as quoted by Fox News Latino.

He continued, "Ninety percent of the products made here need foreign raw material. That requires dollars and for that the government has to stop importing food to activate the national production again."

Socias added that creating new ministries is useless, especially now that the Venezuelan government should be cutting spending, the news outlet wrote. Aside from the Urban Farming Ministry, Maduro also formed the Department of Marine Life and Fisheries and the Department of Agricultural Production and Land. Socias suggested that these ministries could function as one.

 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
More tourists are not happy with Sunwing Vacations, who organized their trip to Cuba and stay in a resort where they reportedly got salmonella.

According to Global News Canada, B.C. residents Ashlee Hanefeld, her husband and their six-year-old daughter booked their trip to Cuba with Sunwing Vacations for more than $5,000.

Much to their surprise, all three of them felt sick within just 48 hours during their stay at the four-and-a-half star resort, Grand Memories Varadero, from December 26 through January 3.

The family immediately sought medical attention.

According to Hanefeld, her husband was examined and was found to have caught salmonella.

Salmonella is a kind of bacteria that lives in the intestine after the patient eats contaminated food, and is usually more active during the summertime.

A report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that patients infected with salmonella suffer from a type of food poisoning called "salmonellosis." Symptoms include fever, diarrhea, and abdominal cramps, which all occur within 12 to 72 hours after infection.

"This was probably the worst food we have ever had. We knew going to Cuba that the food was going to be bland, but we did still expect to get cooked food. The chicken was routinely undercooked," Hanefeld told Global News.

Aside from their complaints with the food, Hanefeld also noted the mold on the walls of public restrooms, which "they tried to paint it over."

Vancouver Island resident Kris Schill reported a similar case, where she reportedly began throwing up and experienced abdominal cramps about five to six hours after she went to a buffet in the same resort.

According to a separate report, Global News reportedly received a total of at least 80 emails complaining about trips to Cuba administered by Sunwing Vacations, including one from Bojana Ristic who stayed Memories Paraiso Azul Beach October last year.

Memories resorts in the country are under the management of Blue Diamond Resorts, an affiliate of the Sunwing Travel Group.

Sunwing refused to discuss details of the complaints to Global News.

"We cannot comment on individual cases, as each situation is different, however we can confirm that should an issue be identified, we are swift to take corrective action. We also negotiate appropriate compensation on behalf of our customers," a statement from the company stated.

TripAdvisor contributor Dee12345_11 from Vaughan, Canada had a very strong negative review of the company, advising tourists to "stay away from Sunwing."

It narrated her terrible experience with the company, including the nightmarish travel to Cuba, and a very unsatisfactory stay in Varadero.

 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Rampant incidents of violence in Mexico increased by almost 8.7 percent last year. This is the first increase in hoimicide incidents as Mexican president Enrique Pena Nieto struggles to establish peace and order in the country, just as he promised during his campaign election.

In a report with Newsweek, while the homicide rate has significantly increased, other crimes like kidnapping and extortion have fallen. According to government data obtained last Wednesday, this is probably due to Mexican drug gangs who have shifted towards more brutal means with their dealings.

Though President Nieto's efforts have been valiant since his term in office, many of Nieto's detractors have come to doubt the progress of security in Mexico. This is especially true as the Mexican government celebrates the recapture of notorious drug lord, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.

The situation in Mexico has become so bad that former Mexican intelligence official Alejandro Hope said that "2015 was not a good year," per Huffington Post. The former chief added that he fears that the rate of homicides under Nieto's term will be far worse than it was during Felipe Calderon's term in office.

According to the Huffington Post report, the homicide rate surged in the spring of last year, with its peak in August at 1,709. While the number of killings has been known to drop over the past few months, the figures remain significantly higher than when the year began.

Civilians in Mexico continue to fear for their lives, as they believe that Nieto and the government are doing very little to contain these crimes. Recently, the U.S. State Department reissued a travel warning to Mexico, telling American citizens to avoid travelling to the country by land, especially at night. It was reported that an estimated 103 U.S. citizens were killed in Mexico last year.

Human rights activists also complained that the Mexican government hasn't made any significant efforts in locating those who have disappeared. Human rights groups also speculate that the government has a hand in the incidents where people go missing.

Witnesses say that many of those who have gone missing were last seen being arrested by the Mexican police. Unfortunately, since the country lacks a detailed register of arrests, authorities deny any involvement, and wash their hands clean of the matter.

During his election campaign in 2012, Nieto vowed to emphasize economic reform in the country. He claimed to focus on eliminating Mexico's problems with organized crime, where more than 100,000 people have been killed over the last ten years.

Unfortunately, Pena Nieto's efforts seem to have been in vain. Currently, Nieto and his government are facing a scandal involving the disappearances of 43 student activists. "El Chapo's" highly publicized escape from Mexico's maximum security prison was also seen as an "embarrassment" to the country.

 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The taxi booking app EasyTaxi has its eye on a massive expansion across Latin America this 2016 after the Rocket Internet-backed mobile software catered 83 million commuters all over the region last year.

According to a report posted in TNooz, EasyTaxi CEO and co-founder Dennis Wang emphasized the company's opportunity to serve Latin Americans further with the upcoming expansion.

"The LatAm taxi market is still virtually untapped as taxi app rides represent less than 5% of total rides in the region," he explained.

He further explained that with the support from lawmakers in Latin America's biggest capitals of Sao Paulo, Mexico, Lima and Bogota, the app is set to exceed its current market share. It has already reached 90 percent in Colombia alone since it merged with the Colombian Tappsi in December.

Considered to be the pioneer in online taxi services in Latin America, EasyTaxi is currently working on improving its products and services by spending more on the technology, Wang explained.

According to Wang, EasyTaxi is "payment agnostic," and is considering the wide array of payment options -- credit card, cash, in-app, and corporate bookings in an effort to have an edge over other taxi booking apps.

The app is currently available in 30 countries and 420 cities all over the world, including Jordan, Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, where the app has earned the highest market share outside of Latin America. There are about 20,000 drivers in Jeddah, Dammam, and the Saudi capital, Riyadh.

The company is also planning to add a cashless payment option for EasyTaxi users in Egypt as it teams up with Mastercard.

Wang further explained that while the company, like Uber and Didi Kuaidi, may experience different levels of profitability based on the amount of investment, EasyTaxi maintains growth as its top priority.

"Easy Taxi ... expects revenues to cover for operational costs already in 2016. Yet, despite high prospects for early break-even, Easy Taxi won't sacrifice its growth, which the company believes is still a top priority. This is likely to translate into more marketing initiatives and promotions towards users in the current year," he stated.

Aside from being dubbed as one of the "Top Apps of 2014" by both Google and Apple, EasyTaxi is also the holder of awards such as Startup Farm Rio 2011, IBM SmartCamp Brazil 2011, Startup Weekend Rio 2011, TNW Awards Brazil 2012, LIDE Entrepreneurship Award 2013 and the Spark Awards 2013.

It highlights faster and safer transactions with verified drivers as well as a "seamless experience" with payment modes.

 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Eleven former military officers in Guatemala will be prosecuted on charges of crimes against humanity, said the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights (UNHCHR).

According to Radio Vaticana, these military personnel are facing charges of enforced disappearances and crimes against humanity, which they committed in the 1980s, at the height of the Guatemalan Civil War.

Ravina Shamdasani, the UNHCHR spokesperson, said that the UN's decision to try the accused came after investigations from the Guatemalan Attorney General's Office came that found human rights violations that took place in a military camp in Coban.

According to the investigations, mass graves were found in the camp containing the remains of at least 500 people, including women and children, who had been gagged and bound.

Among those on trial include the former military Chief Manuel Benedicto Lucas Garcia, who incidentally also happens to be the brother of the then-President of Guatemala, Fernando Romeo Lucas Garcia. He was said to have worked closely with US Military officials to develop the warfare system in the highlands against Guatemala's Mayan communities. This "system" included having to decapitate and crucify indigenous people.

Lucas expressed his disappointment about being put to trial after he proclaimed his innocence to the court, saying that he was never in the area at the time that the massacres occurred. Another alleged criminal, Edgar Justino Ovalle, who cofounded the party supporting current president Morales, has impunity at this point and cannot be arrested. However, according to The New York Times, it seems that the Attorney General has stated that the office is asking the Supreme Court to lift the said immunity.

Tico Times noted that Raul Dehesa Olivia, who was also one of the accused, argued that commanders and sub-commanders should not be put on trial for the crimes committed by the rest of the troops. He said, "We are here because we defended the Guatemalan people."

The military officials involved had it a long time coming. In 1996, when peace accords were signed between Guatemala's then-governing party and the Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity guerrillas, the Historical Clarification Commission was established, and trouble brewed upon the commission's report on the conflict, published in 1999.

According to Guatemala Solidarity, the report stated that of all the violations recorded during the 35-year war, 93 percent of the violations were committed by the state, and only 3 percent was attributed to the guerrillas.

Of all the victims, 83 percent were from the indigenous Maya group, and another 17 percent was from Ladino. It was concluded that the state made a "genocidal campaign" against the Mayans in the western highlands, however, the finding has been denied by the government up until this day.

 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Several countries in Latin America were included in the top 10 happiest nations in the world.

The survey, conducted by WIN/Gallup International, revealed that among the top 10 happiest countries were Colombia, Argentina, Mexico, Ecuador and Panama.

News.Mic explained that the annual survey included more than 66,000 people from 68 countries, who were then ranked based on their "net happiness."

The respondents were asked about their views and perceptions of happiness, and were asked the following questions:

1. "As far as you are concerned, do you think that 2016 will be better, worse or the same than 2015?"

2. "In general, do you personally feel very happy, happy, neither happy nor unhappy, unhappy or very unhappy about your life?"

3. "Compared to this year, in your opinion, will next year be a year of economic prosperity, economic difficulty or remain the same for your country?"

Results disclosed that Colombia is the happiest among all surveyed nations, with 85 percent of its people saying they are happy.

Fiji and Saudi Arabia followed closely, since they both had 82 percent happiness index.

According to TelesurTV, four other Latin American countries also made the cut for the happiest countries. This included Argentina and Panama at 79 percent, Mexico at 76 percent and Ecuador with 75 percent.

It added that the overall results for all the surveyed countries revealed that 66 percent of the people claimed they were happy. The figures are reportedly a few points lower than last year's 70 percent.

Aside from being one of the happiest countries in the survey, Argentina was also on the top list of the most hopeful countries. More than half of the respondents in the country expressed optimism in the future of Argentina.

Explaining the reason for the happiness of people in Latin America, Huffington Post said Latinos have a different set of priorities compared to those living in North America.

It noted that Latin Americans consider time with friends and family more important their time for work.

"They work to live rather than living to work," added Huffington Post.

Many residents of Latin American countries also "live for today," and prioritize their happiness above goals and dreams.

Gallup officials shared the same observation. In a Live Science report, the one great lesson from Latin America is that the region does not have the wealthiest people in the world, but yet they are the happiest.

Huffington Post said Latinos enjoy "living, loving and laughing" with their families, even if they have little money.

 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Splash Media, a social media agency, will continue their work abroad through their international exchange program. The partner of the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) and the U.S. Department of State will be travelling to Nicaragua for two weeks to train local journalists.

Nicaragua has been notorious for its war on journalists. Many advocates of the written word have been silenced because of their investigative works done against the government, Slow Journalism says.

The U.S. government has supported the training of Nicaraguan journalists in the past, with the goal of helping the intrepid men and women learn what security measures must be done when covering potentially dangerous stories, Managua says. Last year, the U.S. government together with NGO Project Concern International, was responsible for the training of 100 journalists.

In a report with Busy By Way, Kelsey McFarland, who heads Splash Media, will spend two weeks training local journalists. McFarland, who is a veteran in the world of Journalism, will also be sharing her own thoughts and experiences when it comes to current trends of social media as well as digital marketing and social media responsibility. While there are those who believe that responsible journalism is hard to come by nowadays, McFarland hopes to remedy that.

The social media agency believes that responsible reporting is an effective tool in helping strenghten the security of Nicaraguans.

According to the BusyByWay, the exchange program, titled "A Digital Path to Entrepreneurship and Innovation for Latin America" wants to instill in the journalists a sense of self sufficiency in improving their social media skills. In an age where the Internet has vastly controlled everyday life, it is vital for journalists to learn to adapt and make use of the virtual platform without sacrificing the quality of their work.

In fact, the agency has been known to train thousands of journalists across 180 nations.

McFarlan will be hosting the event at Universidad Americana (UAM). She will also visit local newspapers, media outlets and journalists during her time there. Splash Media hopes to break more barriers of culture and communication in the future.

 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
When planning your next South American escapade, Cuba's capital should be near the top of your list. Apart from its smiling citizens and pearly-white shorelines, Havana's rustic ambience tells the story of a city frozen in time.

To prepare yourself for an unforgettable journey, here are 5 things you should know about Havana:

1. It's called The Rome of the Caribbean

Like its Italian counterpart, to which it is nicknamed after, Havana is home to numerous sites and buildings that have been preserved over the centuries. Its main attraction is Habana Vieja. The UNESCO world heritage site serves as the city's downtown area filled with Baroque and Neoclassical architecture, Planetware reported.

Other prominent sites include the Museo de la Revolucion in Calle Refugio 1, the Museo Napoleonico near Universidad de La Habana in San Miguel 1159 and the Castillo de los Tres Reyes del Morro guarding the port of Havana.

2. Tourism in Havana has been roaring even without the US

Diplomatic relations between the US and Cuba may have thawed in recent years, but that doesn't immediately restore over 50 years of indifference. Unbeknownst to most Americans, tourism in the South American country, especially in its capital, has remained unaffected by the longstanding US embargo.

In 2014 alone, Cuba has welcomed no less than three million international visitors. That roughly translates to $2.5 billion in tourism revenue, as per the latest data from the United Nations World Tourism Organisation. This makes it the third most visited Caribbean holiday hotspot, trailing only slightly behind the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico.

3. Hotels in the city are mostly upscale properties

Tourists looking for five-star accommodations will find plenty near the National Capitol Building in Havana. The Spanish-owned Iberostar and Melia chains offer top-notch service, while Hotel Nacional de Cuba in the middle of Vedado, Havanam was proclaimed Cuba's Leading Hotel in 2015 by the World Travel Awards.

That in mind, mid-tier hotels in Havana are close to nowhere to be found. Nevertheless, mid-budget tourists can immerse themselves in Cuban culture by renting local apartments and private houses.

4. Rum and beer reign supreme

BreakingTravelNews noted that rum is easier to find in Havana than a bottle of water. Cerveceria Antiguo Almacen de la Madera y El Tabaco is also producing a distinctive brew of Caribbean craft beer. Tourists on a budget will be glad to know local beer is also freely available in Havana.

5. Wallow in water activities in Havana

Havana is a city oasis blessed with calm, clear water and pristine beaches. It is perfect for all sorts of water activities like snorkelling, kite-boarding, scuba-diving and more.

 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
One of Chile's top officials has recognized the economic slowdown in the country, but expressed optimism that the country can overcome another battle in terms of its economy.

Bloomberg said the country's Finance Minister Rodrigo Valdes has noted that the country will be able to recover from the economic woes it is currently facing, though it may take a bit longer.

"There are no major reasons to think that Chile can't return to the growth it saw a few years ago, before the copper boom. In the long-term, things haven't changed that much," he added.

With Valdes' recent statements, the Chilean people and businesses have regained optimism that Chile will make it past this economic crisis, especially in the copper industry.

In a similar Jakarta Globe report, the finance minister mentioned that the world's largest copper exporting nation is indeed experiencing a slowdown because of the fall in metal prices.

He added that the government is trying to cope by recalculating growth as well as budget costs.

"(Emerging markets) are seeing headwinds that we have not seen for at least 10 years," Valdes explained, noting that the trend is a different one from what the country experienced back in 2009.

Seven years ago, he said that there was a V-shaped shock, where the country was able to perform a lot of things even in a short term.

The need to adjust to reality was highlighted by the finance minister, noting that people should recognize the situation and act properly on it.

As for the country's current coping mechanism, the finance minister told Jakarta Glove that they are adjusting the 2.75 percent expansion for year, as it is unrealistic.

The correct figure is estimated near 2 percent, but Valdes said the government will be properly studying this for the next weeks.

"We assumed that copper prices would be around $2.50 per pound this year and that's looking very unlikely. At the end of the day, this means there will be fewer fiscal resources," Valdes mentioned in a similar Reuters report.

Chilean President Michelle Bachelet also recently mentioned that the slump in copper prices can be managed and met with prudence by the country under her leadership, as per La Prensa.

She also expressed positivity that with the government's effort will protect the citizens and still attain economic growth for Chile.

Along with these pronouncements, Bachelet encouraged investors to continue capitalizing on the opportunities in the country, since it still offers "stability, reliability and capacity."

 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Biggest Medical Cannabis Farm in Latin America Inaugurated in Chile

media@latinoshealth.com By Staff Reporter Jan 21, 2016 11:15 PM EST

The biggest medical cannabis farm in Latin America has inaugurated in Chile on Tuesday. The region has started to grow its acceptance of the therapeutic uses of the previously illegal plant.

NBC News reported that the organizers have said that the plantation in Colbun, a small town that is about 170 miles (275 kilometers) in the southern part of Santiago, can help treat some 4,000 patients all over the country of Chile. This, however, becomes Chile's Congress debates in the decriminalization of small quantity of marijuana for personal cultivation and use.

The organizers also said that they will work closely with various universities and laboratories to unfold cannabis-based therapies, which can help patients suffering from chronic pain, cancer and epilepsy complications and other conditions or diseases.

Jakarta Globe also reported that the plantation has about 6,900 stalks that follow the project to work as an experiment in a secret location in Santiago, which is the capital of the country. As it is, the opinions on the use of marijuana have shifted in a traditionally conservative country like Chile. This is noted by Ana Maria Gazmuri, the head of the foundation behind this project. However, the center-left government at this time has also pushed for abortion and same-sex civil union reforms.

"This farm will further permit people to see for themselves the reality of the plant, and what its uses are," Gazmuri, who was also a 1980s TV soap opera star and an advocate of "holistic" medicine, said.

She also added that there are still some government officials that do not agree with this initiative, which is delaying approval and causing difficulties for her group.

"Regarding marriage equality, regarding cannabis, regarding abortion - the majority opinion is in favor of securing these rights," Gazmuri has also said.

In addition to this report, the project organizers are hoping to gather 1.65 tons of cannabis in the near future, between March and May. This harvest is going to be under the supervision of the Chilean government's agricultural service department.

Meanwhile, NBC News previously reported that Uruguay has moved to legalize fully the usage and cultivation of marijuana in 2013. It is the first country to introduce this step, which is closely watched by the world.

Moreover, in Mexico, the court ruling has opened the door to the limited quantities of legal cannabis growing in November 2015. President Juan Manuel Santos of Colombia has just signed a decree that is legalizing medical cannabis in December. He said that what he did doesn't weaken their government's fight against those illicit crops and drug traffickers that are still out there.

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'Master Herbs Inc' Cough Syrup From China Recalled due to Morphine Content: FDA

media@latinoshealth.com By Staff Writer Jan 22, 2016 05:30 AM EST

A cough syrup made by Chinese company Master Herbs Inc. is being recalled by the US Food and Drug Administration for containing morphine.

The Chinese company Master Herbs, Inc. voluntarily recalled its Licorice Coughing Liquid from all stores nationwide after it was found to contain morphine which was not put in its label. The only relevant ingredient they did declare is compound camphor which contains the opioid.

According to the FDA press release, the cough syrup is intended to provide temporary cough relief brought about by cold and minor throat irritations. The product can be found in Chinese grocery stores in different states including Ohio, Nevada, Hawaii, New Jersey, California and Illinois.

The release also made consumers aware that morphine can cause adverse health effects including those who may be allergic or sensitive to it. Young children with respiratory illness especially should not also be allowed to be exposed or ingest morphine.

"Consumers using this product may not be aware they are ingesting morphine. The unaware ingestion of morphine can lead to life-threatening respiratory depression and death," the release stated.

"Because the morphine contained in this product is not identified on the label there is a risk that patients who are hypersensitive to morphine could suffer severe allergic reactions. In addition, young children with a respiratory illness are vulnerable to respiratory depression from opioids and should not be exposed to morphine in any event."

According to CBS News, the risk of adverse health reactions increases when opioids like morphine are ingested with other drugs. The outlet cited a 2014 study which states that the prescription painkillers can be deadly when combined with other drugs.

Master Herbs, Inc. is not aware of the adverse reactions of their product. The company is reaching out to their contacts and customers to have all recalled products returned. The FDA also advised consumers to stop using the product and have it returned to where they purchased it. Retailers and wholesalers are also notified to stop selling the cough syrup and return it to the Chinese company.

Should there be any questions regarding the product recall, the company left their phone number 626-319-9915, where you can reach a representative from Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. PST. An e-mail address has also been provided: 999herbs@gmail.com.

If you are experiencing adverse health effects, please go to your nearest healthcare provider for checkups. You can also submit adverse health reactions and anything pertinent about the product through FDA's MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting via e-mail, snail mail or fax.

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Multiple Myeloma Drug Kyprolis Gets FDA Approval

media@latinoshealth.com By Staff Reporter Jan 22, 2016 08:55 AM EST

Amgen Inc. revolutionary blood cancer drug Kyprolis has been fully approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a treatment for patients with multiple myeloma. Taken together with other therapies, the cancer drug is proven to slow down the progression of the disease.

Reuters reported that FDA has approved Kyprolis as a single agent with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma, given that patient has previously received other treatments already. The blood cancer drug was granted an accelerated initial approval in 2012 but was fully approved Jan. 21 as a single agent for the therapy of multiple myeloma.

Accelerated approval as explained by the news site is given to the drug based on the benefits expected from the drug. If the surrogate end point such as radiographic image and laboratory works supports the claimed benefits, the drug is given the accelerated approval.

On the other hand, the drug will be fully approved if the effects are proven through direct measure of how the patient feels and functions. Once studies establish the claimed benefits through an actual trial, the FDA then grants full approval for the drug.

Meanwhile, Pacific Coast Business Times provided details on what type of blood cancer Kyprolis is capable of treating. The news outlet reported that multiple myeloma is a type of blood cancer that forms in plasma cells, growing on bone marrows where blood cells are formed.

The disease remains incurable. Multiple myeloma kills patients by producing too many impaired plasma cells that affect the production of healthy blood cells. It is also characterized by recurring pattern of remission and relapse. It is known to be a rare but a very aggressive form of cancer.

Although there is no cure for the disease, the effects can be controlled. Kyprolis breaks down protein in cancer cells, ultimately killing the cancer cells.

In 2015, the American Cancer Society has predicted that 27,000 Americans will be diagnosed with multiple myeloma. From that number, 11,000 are expected to die. In 2012, there were 90,000 Americans suffering from the disease according to the National Cancer Institute.

"Kyprolis is the only approved therapy for relapsed multiple myeloma with proven efficacy as a single agent, doublet and triplet combination that is offered in a variety of doses to meet individual patient needs," Sean E. Harper, M.D., executive vice president of Research and Development at Amgen, said via StreetInsider.

"Importantly, this new approval supports the use of Kyprolis as a backbone therapy for the management of relapsed multiple myeloma, a difficult-to-treat blood cancer," Dr. Harper added.

The trial testing proved Kyprolis, if combined with the drug dexamethasone, doubled the length of time before the disease advances. The effect is more beneficial compared to its rival drug, Velcade with dexamethasone.

To know more about multiple myeloma, check out the video below:

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Dengue Fever Update: Argentina on High Alert After 1,100 Cases Reported in the Country

media@latinoshealth.com By Czarina Malleta Jan 22, 2016 06:00 AM EST

Tags dengue, Argentina

Argentina reported 1,100 cases of dengue fever nationwide. The country is currently on "mitigation" phase, according to an article from Fox News Latino.

There were first cases of dengue fever that hit Buenos Aires City while some were reported in Greater Buenos Aires and across the northwest part of the country. Health Minister Jorge Lemus has already called it an "epidemic of dengue fever," Buenos Aires Herald stated in a report. Lemus cited the provinces of Misiones and Formosa, where many cases of dengue have been reported.

According to City Health Minister Ana Maria Bou Perez, the entire city is put at risk because the contagion can happen anywhere. She added that the rapid spread of the dengue fever in neighbouring countries has become a "very serious" matter that needs immediate action.

Bou Perez has already announced a city-wide plan for prevention that will focus on targeting locations where dengue fever could start, such as pools of standing fresh water where mosquitoes lay their eggs. The minister has already talked with the environment ministry to fumigate areas in the city that are highly vegetated.

Mayo Clinic described dengue fever as a disease caused by mosquitoes that are common in tropical and subtropical countries. It is transmitted and spread by a bite of the Aedes mosquito carrying the dengue virus.

Common symptoms of the dengue fever include fever, headaches, pain behind the eyes and bone, muscle, and joint pain. Patients who are infected with the dengue virus might also experience rash all over their bodies, nausea, vomiting, and bleeding from gums and nose.

Recovery period can last for a week, but some cases may worsen and become life-threatening. Blood vessels of patients become leaky and platelet count drops, which can lead to other serious issues like severe abdominal pain, bleeding under the skin and continuous vomiting.

There is no cure for dengue fever, but doctors advise patients to drink a lot of fluid to avoid dehydration from fever and vomiting. Admission to a hospital, IV drops and blood transfusion may be needed if the case becomes severe.

This spread of the dengue fever in Argentina is considered the most critical case the country has faced since the outbreak from 2009. This news come as a growing fear of an epidemic of the Zika virus has affected Latin America, a disease also transmitted by mosquitoes.

Find out more about the dengue fever and its danger in the video below:

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In five months, the Supreme Court will make another landmark ruling during President Barack Obama's final term in office.

Unlike last summer's decisions to legalize same-sex marriage and uphold portions of the Affordable Care Act, the Supreme Court's verdict on Obama's immigration executive action -- programs aimed at staving off deportation for millions of undocumented individuals -- may come weeks before Democrats and Republicans converge to elect each Party's presidential nominee.

Republican presidential candidates campaign on enhanced national security and immigration efforts, including placing restrictions on who receives work visas; Democrats argue that there are ways of keeping the country safe without alienating immigrants, or deterring them from legally coming to the United States. But the justices may be throwing a monkey wrench into one Party's plans. Given that a verdict will come five short months from Election Day 2016, it may not give candidates on the losing end much time to recover.

The Repeal of DAPA and DACA

Obama unveiled two reforms efforts in November 2014. First, he expanded on the 2012 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), while the other implemented the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA), which would help 4.3 million undocumented parents stay alongside their U.S. citizen or permanent resident children.

Texas, along with 25 other states, challenged the constitutional legality of the president's efforts. The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed because, among others things, the Department of Homeland Security "lacked the authority to implement the program even if it followed the correct rulemaking process."

Republican candidates have stood by the court's decision, and many vow to nullify Obama's executive action upon their first days in office, if elected. Republican front-runner Donald Trump stanchly favors mass deportations of immigrant Latinos and a ban on some, not all, Muslims. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz rebuked Trump's outlandish ideas, but is still open to building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. Marco Rubio, who once championed immigration reform legislation, says he will end DACA, even if Congress doesn't pass any other form of protection for them.

The Supreme Court's reaffirmation of the lower courts would move the conversation from debating DAPA and DACA's legality to creating a plan to deport most of the 11.3 million undocumented immigrants living in the country. This would be a big win for Republicans -- it might even swing a few Independent votes in their direction -- but that would leave GOP strategists with the problem of winning the Latino vote.

A record-high 27.3 million Latino are expected to cast a ballot on this November. Nearly 12 million will be eligible to vote for the first time. One can safely assume a majority of these millennials are family or know someone who would directly be affected by the Supreme Court's decision. GOP candidates run the risk of antagonize youths by speaking too fondly of their proposals.

For Democrats, the challenge would be in convincing Latino voters that their nominee -- be it former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders or former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley -- can succeed where Obama couldn't. They would have to tap into a disenfranchised voter base who witnessed the repeal of two vital immigration reform programs.

Allowing DAPA and DACA to Proceed

Conservatives who met the Supreme Court decisions on Obamacare and same-sex marriage with scrutiny will have another reason to rile up their supporters. Waning Republican candidates will double-down on promises to repeal DAPA. The front-runner will have to convince right-leaning voters that his or her goal of tightening the border can still be accomplished.

Just as importantly, they'll have to sway Latinos into voting GOP.

Obama likely won't have time to fully implement the programs, leaving the Democratic nominee with an opening to the Latino vote. Clinton alienated potential voters with her seemingly disingenuous #NotMyAbuelita Twitter campaign that drew immediately backlash. Sanders, who lags behind Clinton in national polls concerning Latinos, hasn't done much to court them.

An impreMedia/Latino Decisions poll conducted last November found 14 percent of registered Latino voters in 14 battleground states didn't know who Sanders was. Most favored Clinton by a 38-to-16 margin. Thirty-six percent of respondents said immigration was a pertinent issue in choosing their candidate.

Clinton and Sanders don't automatically win with a reprieve of DACA and DAPA. They'll have to alleviate concerns about another terrorist attack, and argue how allowing undocumented immigrants to stay won't burden the U.S. economy. Undecided voters need to know why the Supreme Court would rule in favor of granting parents and children a stay at a time when the national debt tops $18 trillion.

Regardless of the SCOTUS verdict, potential voters will have more to consider on Election Day.
President Barack Obama touched down in Michigan on Wednesday where he delivered a speech addressing the man-made water crisis in Flint that has exposed the entire community to toxic levels of lead.

Making his first public remarks on the water fiasco, Obama admitted that he would be devastated if he were living in Flint and his own children were poisoned by the drinking water.

"I am very proud of what I've done as president, but the only job that's more important to me is the job of father," Obama said at a joint General Motors-United Auto Workers facility in Detroit, reports ABC News. "And I know if I was a parent up there, I would be beside myself if my kids' health could be at risk."

The president also criticized Michigan officials who decided to start using the polluted Flint River as a water supply in April 2014 to save money.

"It is a reminder of why you can't shortchange basic services that we provide to our people and that we together provide as a government to make sure that public health and safety is preserved," Obama said.

The drinking water in the predominately black, low-income community first became contaminated with lead after a state official appointed by Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder decided to tap into the Flint River. Because the new water source was polluted, community members began complaining that their faucet water was the color of urine and caused rashes.

State officials, however, brushed off concerns for months, telling locals that the water was safe to use for bathing and cooking. It wasn't until an independent research study discovered elevated levels of toxic lead in children's blood in the area that the Republican governor decided to switch the water supply from the Flint River back to Lake Huron months later in October 2015.

Now, residents and high profile activists like filmmaker Michael Moore are calling for the governor's arrest.

Although Obama did not visit Flint while in Michigan, he met with Flint Mayor Karen Weaver Tuesday at the White House.

"I told her that we are going to have her back," Obama said.

The White House also provided a description of the meeting, which states that Obama "heard firsthand how the residents of Flint are dealing with the ongoing public health crisis, and the challenges that still exist for the city, its residents, and the business community," reports CNN.

In addition, the White House also sent Nicole Lurie, the deputy secretary for preparedness at the Department of Health and Human Services, to coordinate federal efforts in Flint.
In Brazil, the practice of abortion is illegal except in cases of the pregnant mother being in great danger, experienced rape or the baby has fetal brain deformity. However, with the threat of the Zika epidemic plaguing the country, will they change their outlook on abortion?

According to Slate, the cases of microcephaly or babies being born with abnormally small heads have increased since the Zika virus started to spread in Brazil.

The news outlet says that with around 1.5 million cases of Zika virus infection in Brazil, women are complaining that they are not receiving the proper support in order to avoid the epidemic. Despite microcephaly being considered as a fetal brain deformity, Brazil remains undecided whether to allow abortion and grant women's rights to abort their affected child.

Currently, Brazil's best offer to its citizens is to delay their pregnancy. In a previous CNN report, the outlet quoted Angela Rocha of the Oswaldo Cruz Hospital saying, "It's a very personal decision, but at this moment of uncertainty, if families can put off their pregnancy plans, that's what we're recommending."

A simple sonogram can easily detect whether an unborn child is suffering from microcephaly, but women in Brazil are torn between the legality of terminating their pregnancy or the risk delivering the baby with the deformation. Meanwhile, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has already warned pregnant citizens of the U.S. to delay or avoid traveling to regions where the Zika epidemic is present.

In a statement, the CDC said, "Until more is known and out of an abundance of caution, pregnant women should consider postponing travel to any area where Zika virus transmission is ongoing. Pregnant women who do travel to these areas should talk to their doctors or other healthcare providers first and strictly follow steps to avoid mosquito bites during the trip."

Brazil is not the only country who deems abortion as illegal. El Salvador punishes women and doctors who perform the abortion with up to 40 years of imprisonment. Cases of stillbirth, miscarriage and premature birth are also suspected as forms of abortion in El Salvador.

According to 9News, symptoms of the Zika virus include lack of energy, joint pain, muscle pain, weakness, headaches and pinkeye. An infected individual may start noticing these symptoms after two to 12 days after they are bitten by a mosquito, but unlike the dengue fever, Zika does not post a fatal threat to adults and children.
There appears to be progress and setbacks with President Barack Obama's Latino judicial nominees.

John Michael Vazquez

On March 26 last year, Obama nominated John Michael Vazquez to serve on the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. Nearly 10 months later, the Senate has finally agreed on a date to confirm him.

Since Obama made the announcement, New Jersey Sens. Bob Menendez and Cory Booker have applauded the nomination and the nominee.

"I am delighted to hear of Mr. Vazquez's nomination," said Menendez, who reportedly recommended Vazquez for appointment, in a statement last March. "John's extensive legal career and extraordinary credentials in both private and public practice prove he is the right choice to serve New Jersey as District Court Judge. I wholeheartedly applaud his nomination, and look forward to his swift confirmation by the Senate."

"John Vazquez is committed to the highest principles of justice and fairness, and he brings a wealth of valuable experience to the federal bench," Booker said. "John has proudly served the people of New Jersey throughout his distinguished legal career and I look forward to his confirmation by the Judiciary Committee and the full Senate."

Vazquez's nomination process began in July, when the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on his selection. Almost two months later in September, the Judiciary Committee approved Vazquez, and it was up to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to determine a full Senate vote.

On Jan. 27, the Senate finally voted 84-2 to confirm Vazquez. Fourteen senators were not present to vote, including Latino Republican Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida and Ted Cruz of Texas. The sole Latino Democrat in the Senate, Menendez, voted in favor of Vazquez.

Dax Eric Lopez

On July 30, 2015, Obama nominated Dax Eric Lopez to serve on the U.S District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. If confirmed, Lopez would become the first Latino to serve as a lifetime-appointed federal judge in Georgia.

Lopez has yet to receive his Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, and Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., seems to be a factor. Perdue has reportedly declined to provide the "blue slip" for Lopez's Judiciary Committee, which home-state senators usually submit as a sign of approval before the hearing. Perdue, who also sits on the Judiciary Committee, said he's "uncomfortable" with the Latino judge's engagement with the Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials (GALEO).

"Considering a nominee for lifetime appointment to our federal courts is one of the most significant responsibilities I have as a United States Senator and member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. I take this responsibility all the more seriously when considering nominees to federal courts in my home state of Georgia," said Perdue in a statement on Thursday.

"After a thorough review of the professional and judicial record of DeKalb County Judge Dax Lopez, I have become uncomfortable with his longstanding participation in a controversial organization including his service on its board of directors," Perdue added. "I am particularly concerned with his continued participation with this organization and his public comments after he became a state judge. Unfortunately, our personal meeting, while cordial and informative, did not fully alleviate my concerns. Furthermore, I believe similar concerns would be raised by many of my colleagues, making Judge Lopez's final confirmation unattainable."

Lopez, who has been serving as a judge for the State Court of Dekalb County since 2010 -- appointed by then-Georgia Republican Gov. Sonny Perdue -- is also a Republican.

Other Latino Judges

Still awaiting progress in his judicial nomination is Armando Bonilla, who would become the first Latino to serve the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. On Jan. 11, the Senate did confirm Judge Luis Felipe Restrepo to serve the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, more than a year after Obama nominated the Colombian.

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For the latest updates, follow Latin Post's Politics Editor Michael Oleaga on Twitter: @EditorMikeO or contact via email: m.oleaga@latinpost.com.

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UPDATE: Feb. 13, 2016: Article amended to include confirmation of Vazquez.


Attorney General Loretta Lynch fiercely defended the legality of President Barack Obama's recent executive actions on gun control, arguing that his proposal wasn't "chipping away at the Second Amendment."

On Wednesday, the U.S. attorney general stated that Obama's gun actions are "well within existing legal authorities" before the Senate Appropriations Committee, a subcommittee that oversees funding for the Justice Department (DOJ), reports CNN.

Under Obama's proposal, which he announced earlier this month, the federal government would expand background checks on gun sales, require firearm dealers to report stolen guns, and enforce existing gun safety laws, all in an effort to curb gun violence. Republican leaders and 2016 candidates, however, have denounced the move as an infringement to Second Amendment rights.

"I have complete confidence that the commonsense steps announced by the president are lawful," Lynch said, according to USA Today.

"The actions announced by the president, which focus on background checks and keeping guns out of the wrong hands, are fully consistent with the laws passed by Congress," she said before the panel's Republican chairman, Alabama Sen. Richard Shelby, who has threatened to withhold funding for measures that threaten gun owners.

In addition, Lynch said Obama's gun actions would allow law enforcement agents to investigate cases involving lost or stolen guns found at crime scenes. She also reasoned that the Justice Department would need $121 million to hire more employees to keep track of the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) database.

During the Senate Appropriations hearing, there was bipartisan support for giving the DOJ additional money to fund two pieces of Obama's plan: hiring more federal agents and examiners to enforce existing gun laws, and quick criminal background checks for gun buyers.

Still, Shelby did not say whether or not he will approve additional funding for the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

"I want to see some specifics," he said. "We ought to make sure the Justice Department has the requisite amount of funds to carry out and enforce the law."
Eight Latina tech entrepreneurs have been selected for the final competitive round of the new Latina-focused Puerto Rico-based startup accelerator AccessLatina. The eight finalists will compete for a $25,000 grant and a round of crowdfunding, along with mentoring, access to professional networks, and training to take their businesses to the next level.

The group, described by AccessLatina as "eclectic and diverse" have already shown success, together generating more than $1.2 million over the last two years through their businesses.

The Latina-founded ventures represent a wide range of markets and operations, from beauty product subscription services, to full immersion language learning, to digital branding, to exporting exotic, natural, locally grown foods. Beyond commerce, these startups tend to have a strong emphasis on positively impacting underserved communities.

"We are enthusiastic to work with the varied group of entrepreneurs the judges selected as finalists; their businesses are diverse, full of growth potential, and making a difference in their communities," said AccessLatina co-founder Lucienne Gigante.

Here are the eight AccessLatina finalists, chosen by a panel of more than 40 judges participating in the accelerator:

Ix Style - New York

Founded by Francesca Kennedy, Ix Style is a successful artisan sandal and handbag retailer, which provides fair-trade employment to women artisans in Guatemala. The Gap, Anthropology, and J Crew have picked up the brand, and celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow, Amanda Seyfried, and others have sported Kennedy's footwear.

On top of employing craftswomen in Guatemala, Ix Style donates a portion of every purchase towards providing clean drinking water to children in the country, where Kennedy's own family has its roots.

Lux Beauty Club - Miami

Since 2011, this business, co-founded by Leslie Namad and Victoria Flores, has been selling hair products, originally under the name SOBE Organics & Press on Hair. Wanting to create a one-stop shopping community where customers could buy hair and beauty products on a regular basis, Namad and Flores hit on the subscription box idea, and Lux Beauty Club was born.

Puerto Rico Disena - New York

Founded in 2013 by Michelle Perez Kenderish, this online shopping platform features products from independent designers, artisans, local collectives, and brands in Puerto Rico. The site's mission is to inspire consumers to choose buying from small batch and sustainable production sources, and to foster creative entrepreneurship on the island.

ConCalma - Puerto Rico

Matilsha Marxuach founded this online marketplace for fair-trade, environmentally responsible, and local artisanal tote bags, pouches, and backpacks. The bags are all manufactured in Puerto Rico artisanal collectives using locally available resources, while building communities in rural regions of Puerto Rico.

Flamenca Films - New York

Television producer and on-screen personality Trina Bardusco created the documentary series "Wanderlust." The first episode features Bardusco going to Spain and hanging out with world-renowned flamenco dancers. In 2015, her production company Flamenca Films was born from her passion for dance and film. The company's mission is to produce digital branded content with a particularly feminine flair.

Novel Research - New York

Based out of the Bronx, Catherine Lajara's venture aims to reduce disparities in clinical medical trials and development of treatments. The company conducts high-quality pharmaceutical research with a bent toward helping underserved communities.

Agropek - Puerto Rico

Founded in 2013 by entrepreneur Cindy Cruz, Agropek exports exotic and healthy natural, locally grown foods, all from Puerto Rico.

Institute for Spanish Learning Acquisition - Puerto Rico

Known as ISLA Language for short, this enterprise founded by Sacha Delgado provides full immersion and cultural language learning in Puerto Rico. The service opens the island to tourists looking to learn Spanish by providing classes, lodging, meals, and activities to maximize exposure to the language and Puerto Rican culture.

Starting Up the Accelerator

These entrepreneurial Latinas will compete for the chance to be guided through three modules as part of AccessLatina's accelerator program, which is the first multi-market program designed to help Latina business owners no matter what segment of the economy they specialize in.

"Latina-owned businesses have increased nearly 200 percent over the past decade and we want to help them grow through access to capital, mentorship, networks and opportunities," said AccessLatina co-founder Marta Michelle Colon.

Renowned entrepreneurship professor Antonio Davila, formerly of Stanford University's Graduate School of Business, kicked off the accelerator's competition by hosting a daylong seminar on the challenges in managing startup growth.

"It is very interesting to work with people like these female entrepreneurs who are enthusiastic about building companies and organizations that are helpful to society," Davila said.
A new study finds the first full year of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), often referred to as "Obamacare," resulted in an all-time low rate of Hispanic children living without health insurance.

The study, by the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families and the National Council of La Raza, found that the number of uninsured Hispanic youths dropped from 2 million in 2013 to 1.7 million a year later, the first year most of the provisions offered by the ACA went into full effect.

The overall rate of uninsured Hispanic kids dipped to an historic low of 9.7 percent, nearly 2 full points lower than the 11.5 percent that was registered just a year earlier.

Deeper analysis finds some states are making far more progress than others, with the most gains coming in regions where legislators have actively taken steps to cover more children and adults through Medicaid expansion.

In all, 11 states saw both the number and percentage of uninsured Hispanic children significantly drop over the year being analyzed. Among those states, many have taken additional steps to expand coverage for both Hispanic children and their parents, including raising the income eligibility levels for health insurance programs like Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program, or CHIP.

For example, in Nevada, over that time, the uninsured rate for Hispanic children dropped nearly 7 full points, from 20 percent to 13.3 percent, giving the state the distinction of achieving the largest decline in the country.

On the other hand, Kaiser Family Foundation reports states like Texas, Florida and Georgia did not move to expand Medicaid programs, and recent numbers seem to bear out the consequences. Both Georgia and Texas had uninsured rates four times higher than that of New York.

With Hispanic children being the fastest growing segment of the U.S. population, pegged to compromise nearly one-third of the domestic workforce by 2050, NCLR Health Policy Project manager Steven Lopez insisted providing adequate health care coverage for them is a winning proposition for the U.S.

"Given these demographic projections, the future well-being and success of our nation is linked to that of the Latino community," he said.
Presidential campaigns and Super PACs (political action committees) are making the 2016 election season one of the most expensive contests of all time.

Democrats

Based on advertising-tracking data from SMG Delta, via NBC News, the Bernie Sanders' campaign has outspent follow Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Martin O'Malley. Sanders, who only utilizes campaign donations and opposes Super PACs supporting the independent Vermont senator's presidential bid, spent $12.8 million during his campaign so far. In comparison, Clinton, who has utilized $200,000 from the Priorities USA Super PAC, has spent a total of $11.6 million, slightly less than Sanders.

Former Maryland Gov. O'Malley's presidential campaign has spent the least, when comparing both major political parties. Only utilizing Super PAC funds, SMG Delta said O'Malley's campaign has spent $219,000.

Republicans

Among the Republican presidential field, one GOP candidate has easily outspent all three remaining major Democratic candidates. Since the launch of his campaign, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has spent $58.8 million. A large portion of Bush's campaign spending, $55.9 million, came from his Right to Rise Super PAC, while his main campaign has spent $2.9 million.

The Republican to spend next to most in the presidential campaign is a fellow Floridian politician: Sen. Marco Rubio. The Latino, son of Cuban immigrants, has accumulated $32.6 million, which includes $11.6 million from the campaign, $11.2 million from Super PAC donations and $9.9 million from 501c4 groups.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie ranked third in spending in the GOP field with $11.4 million, mainly from Super PAC funds ($10.4 million), with only $480,000 directly spent by his campaign. Narrowly behind Christie is Ohio Gov. John Kasich, spending $4.4 million from the campaign and $200,000 from Super PACs.

The second Latino in the GOP race, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, has spent $1.9 million directly from his campaign, while outside groups helped bring the total expenditure to $4.2 million.

Republican front-runner Donald Trump, who, similar to Sanders is not accepting Super PAC funds, has said he's self-funding the campaign. Based on data, Trump has spent $4 million.

Meanwhile, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson and former HP CEO Carly Fiorina have spent $4.6 million and $1 million, respectively. Fiorina's spending has come entirely from Super PAC funds.

The campaign spending will likely increase as candidates from both parties near the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary on Feb. 1 and Feb. 9, respectively.

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For the latest updates, follow Latin Post's Politics Editor Michael Oleaga on Twitter: @EditorMikeO or contact via email: m.oleaga@latinpost.com.
Lawyers representing Ethan Couch, the infamous "affluenza" Texas teenager, said they have dropped their fight against his deportation to the United States.

A Mexican official announced Tuesday that the 18-year-old was dropping his fight against being sent home to Texas from Mexico, reports The New York Times. Couch and his mother, Tonya, fled to Mexico in December, after a video posted on social media appeared to show the teen engaging in a drinking game.

His lawyers say he fled in fear the video would prove he violated the 10-year probation sentence he received at the age of 16, after he killed four people in a drunk driving accident in 2013. Couch's attorney's successfully kept him out of prison by arguing that he suffered from a condition called "affluenza," which prohibited the rich, spoiled teen from knowing the difference from right and wrong.

Both Couch and his mother were arrested last month in Mexico following an extensive manhunt. Tonya Couch was quickly deported, but her son won a delay based on a constitutional appeal. He is currently being held in a detention center in Mexico City.

Lawyers for the teenager presented a document to a court in western Jalisco State seeking to end the stay granted against his deportation. However, Couch must still sign the paperwork and have it ratified by the judicial authorities. Once that is done, he would return to the United States to face charges that he violated his probation by fleeing the country.

"It is our understanding that paperwork has been filed by Ethan's counsel in Mexico that will terminate the ongoing Mexican immigration proceedings," his attorneys, Scott Brown and William Reagan Wynn, said in a statement, according to Reuters. "We believe that this will result in Ethan's return to the United States within the next few weeks."

Couch is also scheduled to appear in court in February for a hearing that will determine if his case should be prosecuted in a juvenile court or an adult court.
As the 2016 Elections is fast approaching, presidential candidates are caught in the middle of different opinions as to their eligibility and their effect on the political arena if they will be seated in the White House as the U.S. president.

This includes Republican candidate Ted Cruz, who in the primaries is going head-to-head in polls against another Republican presidentiable Donald Trump. CNN Politics reports that the Republican senate has recently aired out their opinions on the two bets and is reportedly gearing towards Trump rather than Cruz.

The publication further reports that ever since Cruz stepped in Washington D.C., he was not very appealing for his co-legislators for his stance on different social and political matters. The problem is, according to the news agency, is that Cruz may bring a problem for the Republican senate if he will be the Republican candidate.

According to Orrin Hatch, a Republican in the Senate, Cruz will not give a positive effect to the senate seats, he said as reported by the news agency."There's a lot of people who don't feel he can appeal to people across the board," Hatch added. "For us to win, we have to appeal to the moderates and independents. We can't just act like that only one point of view is the only way to go. That's where Ted is going to have some trouble."

The publication added that this year, Cruz alleged that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was a liar on her deal with an Export-Import Bank. The news further put Cruz in a tough position with the Republicans in the Senate.

Meanwhile, The Atlantic also reveals that Cruz gives no regard to his fellow senators, which is likely the reason why the Republicans are choosing Trump over him. "I've watched him stand on the floor of the Senate and call the majority leader a liar," D.C. Lobbyist Trent Lott said as quoted by the publication.

He added, "I don't know whether he was or he wasn't -- you don't do that where I'm from. If I'd have been in the Senate, I would have tried to have him removed from the floor of the Senate for inappropriate conduct. You just don't do that. Are we not still gentlemen, and respectful of each other?"

The news agency shared that Cruz was even in the spotlight for being a negative aspect of the Republicans back when he confronted President Barack Obama regarding his health care law, which resulted in a partial government shutdown.

This was the reason why Lott speculates that Cruz cannot be the Republican candidate. "While I might agree philosophically quite often with Ted Cruz, his tactics are unrealistic and do not work," Lott further explained as quoted by The Atlantic.
After a relatively mild winter and an alarmingly warm Christmas, Old Man Winter will finally shake things up in the Northeast this weekend.

Forecasters expect "Winter Storm Jonas" to bury much of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast in up to two feet of snow, starting on Friday. Blizzard warnings have already been issued for the Baltimore and Washington D.C. metro areas, while blizzard watches are also in effect all the way to Philadelphia and New York City.

The National Weather Service's Weather Prediction Center warns that Jonas, the first major storm of the year, could bring heavy, "perhaps crippling" snowfall in Baltimore, Washington, Philadelphia and other regions, reports The Associated Press. The winter storm will likely arrive on Friday and last throughout Saturday morning.

Altogether, Jonas is expected to deliver heavy snowfall to about 15 states on the East Coast, bringing heavy ice accumulations, strong winds and coastal flooding that will last through Sunday, predicts The Weather Channel.

Mayor Muriel Bowser of the District of Columbia held a news conference Wednesday where she talked about preparation for the blizzard conditions and up to 2 feet of snow. She has also sent request to the National Guard for Humvees that could reach isolated people and areas, if necessary.

"If this is a blizzard and we have sustained winds and people lose power, that would be my biggest concern," Bowser said, according to The AP. "We can move the snow. We will move the snow."

Weather experts also issued warnings for people to avoid traveling in blizzard conditions, especially Friday night through Saturday night when the strongest winds and potentially life threatening conditions are expected to arrive.

The storm has already dropped snow in certain parts of the central Plains Wednesday night and Thursday morning.

Meteorologist Rich Otto said Wednesday that the storm will bring ice and freezing rain to Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky on Thursday. Meanwhile, experts say there will be at least 6 inches of snow likely throughout the I-95 corridor northward through New York City.
Investigations were recently held in light of the allegations against an Ohio professor from Kent State University, claiming that Julio Pino had ties with the Islamic State (ISIS), KentWired reports. Furthermore, the publication also revealed that there were allegations saying that the associate professor was also trying to recruit students to join the militant group.

The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security were reportedly leading the investigation after reports surfaced that Pino, an associate Professor in the Ohio university, was promoting ISIS and had a behavior of shouting in class against Israel, which concerned the faculty and students, the news agency reports.

Emily Mills, Editor of the Kent Stater, reportedly published a story in the independent newspaper of the university. She alleged that Pino was indeed part of the ISIS based from the public knowledge in her school, the news outlet reports.

Mills further revealed that Pino was known for shouting "'death to Israel' during an Israeli diplomat's lecture," she said as quoted by the publication. Meanwhile, as investigations continue and details remain to be disclosed from the public, per the New York Times, the professor has already held a press conference denying the allegations.

On Thursday, Pino addressed the allegations at the Oscar Ritchie Hall as reported by KentWired. "I wish to state for the record that none of these allegations have any foundation whatsoever. I have no ties to any politics of Islam, the Islamic State or any other political organization here in the United States or abroad. I have never discussed the politics of Islam, the Islamic state or any other political organization with the students, with the faculty or with anyone else on campus," Pino said as per the publication.

"I do not endorse violence. I do not advocate violence nor do I practice it and I always try to fulfill my duties, which are to my family, to this community, to this university and obviously to my students. And I shall do so for as long as I'm able to," he added.

The professor graduated with a doctorate degree in history from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1991 and specialized in Latin American history and the third world, as per his resume.

Meanwhile, the news outlet reports that Pino is still holding classes at the university teaching history while investigations are ongoing. The Muslim convert, according to the New York Times, has always been connected to controversies since 1992.


"If we capture any of them alive, they are getting a one-way ticket to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and we are going to find out everything they know." This was Marco Rubio's statement as he expressed his views on waterboarding during the most recent GOP debate which took place last January 14.

Presidential candidate Marco Rubio isn't the only one that is in favor of waterboarding as Donald Trump stated that, "Would I approve waterboarding? You bet your a-s I would -- in a heartbeat."

As per MSNBC, Trump added that he is confident enough to support waterboarding, "And I would approve more than that. Don't kid yourself, folks. It works, okay? It works. Only a stupid person would say it doesn't work."

Jeb Bush is also in favor of using torture to "enhance" the interrogation method as per Politico's report.

As for Governor Chris Christie on the other hand, when he was asked if waterboarding should be considered as a form of torture, he firmly answered, "I don't believe so. I don't believe so. And I will tell you that the intelligence officers who conducted that activity were told by the Justice Department that what they were doing was lawful and constitutional."

Christie added that the White House "demean and kill the morale" of Intelligence Agencies by abolishing the waterboarding method as per MSNBC's report.

As per Politico, Christie added that, "These are people doing a dangerous job in a dirty world, and we need to support them because they are the first line of defense between us and ISIS, between us and Al Qaeda."

All GOP candidates except Senator Ted Cruz are in favor of bringing back the waterboarding and other torture methods which were abolished by the Obama administration by implementing an anti-torture law.

For Ted Cruz however, the said method is no longer necessary. He also mentioned that performing torture to acquire information is "wrong."

Cruz stated, "We can defend our nation and be strong and uphold our values, there is a reason the bad guys engage in torture. ISIS engages in torture. Iran engages in torture. America does not need to torture to protect ourselves."

In response to Ted Cruz opinion on torture, Greg Sargent from The Washington Post stated, "We don't know exactly what Cruz means by "torture." Some on the right say they oppose torture but support waterboarding, as if there were some kind of meaningful distinction between the two. There isn't."
Two weeks after the recapture of notorious drug cartel boss Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, many are wondering if the reigns of drug cartels in Latin America have finally ended.

In the book, "Gangster Warlords," journalist Ioan Grillo dissected the narcotics world in the region with fastidiousness and firsthand knowledge on both its mechanics and its culture. He also gave an unprecedented glimpse into the hyper-violent realm of drug cartels in Latin America. According to Time, the Mexico-based author explored the criminal bosses at the frontlines of the continental catastrophe called the drug wars.

"The new generation of kingpins from Mexico to Jamaica to Brazil to Colombia are no longer just drug traffickers, but a weird hybrid of criminal CEO, rock star and paramilitary general," Grillo wrote. "They fill the popular imagination as demonic antiheroes. Not only do they feature in underground songs in the drug world - they are re-created in telenovelas, movies, and even video games simulating their new warfare."

"Gangster Warlords" followed Grillo's book "El Narco," which investigated the rise of Mexican drug cartels, International Business Times noted. In the book, Grillo delivered an impressive in-depth account of the appalling situation in countries torn apart by drug warfare in Latin America.

He also took in the fearsome organizations including Brazil's Red Commando and Jamaica's Shower Posse to Mexico's Knight Templar cartel and Los Viagras gang, as well as the "Northern Triangle" of Nicaragua, Honduras and El Salvador. And while the resulting picture was grim, Grillo effectively provided a fascinating look at deadly gangsters in often-neglected corners of the Latin American hemisphere.

Grillo also explained that while guerrillas have disappeared from most of the region in the new millennium, some of the remaining guerrillas such as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) have become major cocaine traffickers. And when the freedom fighters vanished, the cartel armies have risen.

Several Latin Americans see insurgents as "honorable fighters" who liberated their land from Spanish Empire tyrants. Unfortunately, they view cartel hit men as "demons." Guerrillas and cartel gunmen also differ when it comes to the strategic objectives of a bloodshed. While guerillas often try to knock over governments and take power, cartel gunmen usually attack security forces to pressure governments to recoil.

Meanwhile, narcotics have become the largest black market of all. According to Grillo, it is estimated to be worth $3 billion annually and the global industry has forced huge resources into criminal empires for years. Moreover, crime families and their friends in politics and business have taken over much of the world's trade in narcotics and guns over the last decades. And the global black market in contraband, human trafficking and guns has exponentially expanded.
Maquiladora workers are protesting the absence of the promised $0.35 raise since October 2015. According to Latino Rebels, the maquiladoras, which are composed of three international companies mainly Lexmark and Eaton Bussman from the U.S. and Foxconn from Taiwan, failed to push through with the previously agreed wage hike. The said amount was expected to be released in October 2015 with provisions based on each worker's job performance.

The protest was done during the course of the Transnational Pacific Partnership, where the protesters reiterated the government's inability to stop the creation of an independent union. In order to make their appeal heard, workers also picketed near the Lexmark Plant since November 2015 with members looking after the camp 24-hours a day, seven days a week.

Apart from the protest on the missing wage hike, the workers are also condemning several practices within the company: the formation of an independent union, the ending of sexual advancement on work lines and re-establishment of fired workers from the company.

On Oct. 19, 2015, Lexmark declared a total of $851 million revenue for the third quarter. Workers then demanded the promised wage hike, which the company failed to comply. When they asked for Atty. Susana Prieto Terrazas' advice regarding the matter, they were told that they could not sue the company under the Federal Labor Law but she gave them a suggestion to form an independent workers union as allowed by the law.

Led by Atty. Susana Prieto Terrazas, in early January, workers from the Lexmark Plant, headed to Mexico to bring their grievances to the State of Chihuahua in Mexico City. The protest by Lexmark workers was also supported by the Kentucky Workers League, which sponsored cultural programs in front of the Mexican Consulate, Lexmark Plant and the Lexmark Headquarters.

According to The Nation, the protest began in November when workers finally found the courage to speak and protest their concerns against the maquiladoras. Carlo Serrano from Foxconn's Scientific Atlanta Company said, "We just got so tired of the insults, the bad treatment and the low wages that we woke up. We don't really know what's going to happen now, and we're facing companies that are very powerful and have a lot of money. But what's clear is that we are going to continue. We're not going to stop."

Ali Lopez, a single mother of two and confesses that she works all the time but she can't afford the 200-peso rate of childcare, so she is forced to let her older daughter take care of her younger sibling while she's at work.
Archaeologists from Colorado State University have begun to dig up the possible site of the lost "White City" in Honduras almost four years after being explored. A group of archaeologists and filmmakers used an equipment called a lidar in the jungles of Mosquitia to find ruins of plazas and pyramids back in 2012 before announcing the discovery last year, per FOX News.

The government of Honduras showed its support for the uncovering of "Ciudad Blanca" or the "Lost City of the Monkey God." President Juan Orlando Hernandez announced the partnership between the Colorado State University and the Honduran government that will try to uncover a whole new civilization.

"We are blessed to be alive at such a special time in Honduran history. This discovery has created a lot of excitement because of its significance for Honduras and the world," Hernandez told the media via The Independent.

Artifacts found in the site will be exhibited at the museum in Catacamas under the care of the Honduras Institute of Anthropology. It is called the "Lost City of the Monkey God" because legends say that a monkey once kidnapped a woman to be able to breed half-man, half-monkey creatures.

FOX News noted that Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes first mentioned the city back in the 16th century in a letter sent to Emperor Charles V. Cortes said that the city had more gold than Mexico. However, Cortes never found the so-called "White City" or "Cuidad Blanca" because of the difficulty of the journey. The city got its name because of the presence of white limestone rocks in the area.

The report added that American explorer Theodore Morde claimed to have found the lost city back in 1939, but he was killed in a vehicular accident before telling his discovery. The Guardian noted in their report that the site probably existed between 1,000 A.D. and 1,400 A.D. and is possibly a non-Mayan civilization.

The findings in Honduras will be compared to several recently discovered ancient cities in Nicaragua to discover any similarities. Archaeologists are excited to find more details of a whole new civilization from Central America that are not Mayans.

Chris Fisher of Colorado State University and National Geographic clarified that the site will be called "City of the Jaguar" because a number of artifacts found in the area have jaguar carvings. "Ciudad Blanca" or the "White City" will now refer to the entire region where the site is found.

In a report by the National Geographic, the excavation project headed by the Colorado State University and the Honduran government is supported and funded by the National Geographic Society.
As Venezuela struggles in its worst economic crisis in decades, the citizens are feeling the strain with a food shortage sweeping the country. To combat the difficulty in acquiring food, President Nicolas Maduro is telling families to consider producing their own food at home.

According to a report from Fox News Latino, President Maduro is urging the country to "develop a new culture of production." Even the Venezuelan leader is taking steps to be prepared at home saying he and his wife currently have 50 chickens in their residence.

Activist and head of the newly established Urban Farming Ministry Emma Ortega stressed the idea of urban farming during a meeting in Caracas saying, "People have to solve the current emergency cultivating in any available space. We just need sun, water and a lot of hearth. Currently our cities are just food consumers and parasites."

The goal is to eventually have urban farming make a significant dent across the entire country.

"If a building has 120 apartments and they all have crops, they could even exchange the different produce they grow," Ortega pointed out.

Siare Foundation field technician Maria Jimenez said that light is a vital part in considering where to plant, saying that a balcony is a good place to start with "self-made wooden tables or in bottles."

"You can grow tomatoes, chives, cayenne, pepper and much more," she added.

To help the people learn more about farming and begin growing their own food, the government is staging workshops and classes. In Caracas, the Bolivar's Crops Center is already up and running in the heart of the capital with 20 different produce sprouting up including lettuce, spinach and even medicinal plants.

Not everyone is in line with the country's newfound focus. Economist and former president of the Chamber of Food Industry Tomas Socias stated that he is not expecting urban farming to be the answer for the widespread food shortage.

"They are caused by macroeconomic imbalances that need to be corrected," he said. "Ninety percent of the products made here need foreign raw material. That requires dollars and for that the government has to stop importing food to activate the national production again."

Last week, the Venezuelan government declared an economic emergency in the face of the country's worsening economy. According to a report from New York Times, the decree will give President Maduro the authorization to bypass the National Assembly on financial and other matters.

The state of emergency came just after the central bank revealed that the country's economy contracted by 4.5 percent in the first three quarters of 2015.
Did you know that bagels have gradually become popular in Buenos Aires? Thanks to 27-year-old former geophysics student Jacob Eichenbaum-Pikser, who bravely introduced the Poland-originated bread product to Argentina's capital and largest city.

New York has been known to have the best bagels after Eastern European Jews introduced the bread product to North America. But today, it seems that Buenos Aires is starting to rise as Latin America's bagel capital. According to Munchies, Eichenbaum-Pikser is responsible for introducing handmade bagels to Buenos Aires and can't even bake them fast enough to meet the increasing demand.

He is also trying his best to create "authentic" New York-style bagels and American-style cream cheese from scratch.

"Because for a lot of people, this is their first bagel. I want this to be as authentic as it can be," Eichenbaum-Pikser said. "Bagels have become trendy, like all things American, among Argentinians."

Eichenbaum-Pikser's success in making bagels never came easy since Argentina is not a breakfast and brunch nation. The locals known as Portenos also prefer soft white bread and consume beef late in the day.

"I could not sell bagels for breakfast here," he said. "People wouldn't eat them-especially not with salmon."

Due to of his unwavering determination, Eichenbaum-Pikser decided to offer his bagels as a lunchtime option at several trendy cafes in the chic neighborhood of Palermo Soho in Buenos Aires.

Moreover, Eichenbaum-Pikser, who initially sells his bagels from a bicycle cart at Buenos Aires cafes, also launched a new craze for hamburguesas in the capital after he opened a Burger Joint. Today, bagels and other American baked goods such as muffins, scones and chocolate chip cookies also dominated the cafe menus.

Jacob Eichenbaum-Pikser, however, never planned to be a full-time baker. As a matter of fact, he had never baked a single bagel before he moved to Argentina two years ago. He was studying geophysics at Brown and Columbia but changed course and moved to Buenos Aires, where he had studied during his junior year.

For a short while, he worked as a private SAT tutor. Though his work was profitable, it was not engaging. Eventually, he decided to pursue his interests in life. And since Argentinian food can get monotonous, he craved for bagels and started to recreate one of New York's comfort food. And while he initially started making bagels as a personal interest, it later exploded into a small-scale production.

"All of a sudden, I had to make five dozen a week when I had been making five dozen a month," he said.

The early days of making bagels, however, were based on trial and error. But despite the substandard bagels and burnt toppings, Eichenbaum-Pikser took his scientific background as an advantage and molded the recipe to perfection. And to further improve his product, he would watch the early morning production at a New York bagel bakery whenever he visits home.

Meanwhile, entrepreneurial spirit and culinary creativity aren't the only factors that made Sheikob's Bagels a success. In fact, making bagels and cream cheese from scratch isn't enough. Eichenbaum-Pikser has constantly faced challenges as well. And the greatest of which was being able to introduce a filling sandwich to a city with no taste for morning meals.
Citing a 2014 study, at the rate that Chile's glaciers are disappearing, they could be gone in a few years.

Chile accounts for 82% of the glaciers in South America. Patagonia's glaciers are part of them. The region is located in South America's southernmost tip. Chile and Argentina share Patagonia, and on the side of Chile are the glacial inlet temperate rainforests.

Three decades ago, the town of El Chalten was established as a military outpost with Chile's border dispute. Nowadays, the town, with its mountainous glacial offerings, has become one of the world's leading trekking destinations and is visited by an estimated 50,000 tourists each year just between November and April, according to Windsor Star.

Patagonia's pristine streams can be drunk safely by visitors. Condors are commonly seen soaring in the skies and one can relax underneath the region's granite towers

Sadly, the breathtaking sites and activities provided by the glaciers could vanish as rapidly as the white, blue and brown cascades are disappearing.

While not as popular as the Antarctic glaciers, Patagonia's glaciers in Chile comprise one of the Earth's largest freshwater reserves and they are vital to the survival of the local ecosystems.

Climate change in southern Chile and mining activities in northern and central Chile are threatening their existence.

In an attempt to gather critical data about Chile's glaciers and the rate at which they're diminishing, Greenpeace's Esperanza went to Patagonia and stayed there for several days.

Together with glaciologists and a climatologist, Greenpeace's expedition studied two remote glaciers in the southern region of Chile. One of the glaciers, Pio XI, which is the largest in the Southern Ice Fields, was studied via radar technique radioglaciology. The team of researchers had to hike for hours to measure the ancient ice's thickness.

Cameras were placed in vital locations as well to monitor their retreat rate.

Moreover, in a research by AntarcticGlaciers.Org, which used satellite measurements to study the Patagonian Ice Fields, it was discovered that the glaciers are receding and thinning at an incredibly rapid rate. This quick decline will eventually contribute significantly to the already alarming sea level rise in the world.

Major ice fields in the regions of North Patagonian Ice Field, South Patagonian Ice Field, Gran Campo Nevado and Cordillera Darwin reportedly suffered extensive glacier losses.

The years with the fastest rate of loss were from 2000 to 2011 in the Chilean Lake District and in the Northern Patagonian Ice Field, while from 1986 to 2001, glaciers in the south like the Cordillera Darwin, Monte Sarmiento, Isla Riesco and Tierra Del Fuego, shrank the fastest.

This means that Chile's glaciers are shrinking faster than ever as compared to the last 100 years.

What can we do to stop this?

Chile's laws have little to no protection of their glaciers.

In fact, there are no laws governing big companies responsible for their destruction.

Chile-based company CODELCO, which is the world's largest copper producer, has wrecked around 342 hectares of Andes glaciers. Mining companies Barrick, Antofagasta Minerals and Anglo American have also continued their business and rapidly destroyed glacial areas, therefore threatening Chilean water reserves.

However, according to Greenpeace, Chile is undergoing a proposal consideration process where some glaciers will be protected, but it still poses a problem for over 50% of Chile's glaciers as they are left unprotected.

There is still hope though.

The environmental protection organization says that people can help if more persons would send personal messages to Chilean President Michelle Bachelet to protect all glaciers and the people of Chile.

To get more data on Antarctic Glacier's research, check out the GLIMS database, which is available for download. Meanwhile, full inventory and analysis are also seen in the Journal of Glaciology, Davies and Glasser 2012.
Leaders in Miami-Dade county Wednesday voted against supporting the arrival of a Cuban consulate to the city.

County commissioners came to the decision with a 9-3 vote, strongly opposing the idea proposed by the Obama administration, the Miami Herald reports.

There have been talks of opening a consulate in the heavily Cuban populated city as the president continues to restore relations with the nation. In June of last year, the Cuban embassy in Washington, D.C., was opened to much fanfare, though a few protesters were present as well.

County Commissioner Esteban "Steve" Bovo introduced Wednesday's resolution, urging the federal government to rethink bringing a consulate to Miami. Despite the efforts made by the Obama administration, he said there are still major concerns with the Cuban government and how it treats its people.

"To think for a second, to have the Cuban government here, the dictatorship basically, here in Miami, I think is an affront to a huge majority of the Cuban-American community," said Bovo to the Miami Herald. He warned the move could potentially spark protests in the community, many of whom are exiles from the island country.

According to the Herald, a 2014 Bendixen & Amandi poll found that most Cuban Americans supported the idea of Miami consulate, with 50 percent in favor of the proposal and 39 percent against it. However, Cuban exiles in Florida were less enthusiastic, with only 41 percent in support and 46 percent opposed.

Many of the people opposed to the consulate have familial connections to Cuba. Bovo's father was a veteran of the failed Bay of Pigs invasion in 1969. Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado, who also supports the resolution, is a Cuban native whose father was kept as a political prisoner for two decades.

"I'm going to go to federal court if the State Department grants a license to Cuba to establish a consulate here," Regalado said on Monday.

Bovo believes the time for a Miami consulate will arrive but not just yet.

"The moment there's a free Cuba, the moment there are elections in Cuba, the moment that beatings stop happening in Cuba, then I think there will be a very bright opportunity [for Miami-Dade] to take its right leadership role in Cuba," Bovo said.

"All we need is to be a little patient."
Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio took a jab at GOP front-runner Donald Trump at a campaign stop in New Hampshire, saying the real estate tycoon is not "ready" to become the leader of the free world.

The Florida senator didn't hold back when asked to give his opinion of Trump during a sit down with voters at a diner in Manchester, reports ABC News. That's when Ron Morrison pressed him to give a straight answer about the reality TV star.

"I don't think he's ready to be president of the United States," Rubio said.

"We have a right to be angry and upset about the direction of our country," he said. "But that alone won't be enough. You gotta know what you're going to do about it."

The junior senator also took a stab at Trump's campaign slogan, "Make American Great Again!" describing it as an empty promise that lacks substance.

"We owe it to you to tell you exactly what we're gonna do. And it can't just be, 'Oh we're gonna make everything great again,'" Rubio said.

At one point during the discussion, the conversation shifted toward former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who officially endorsed Trump earlier this week.

"I like Sarah Palin. She doesn't always say nice things about me, but I like her very much," Rubio said when asked for his opinion of her.

"Oh say it -- 'she's an idiot,'" one of the diners chimed in. However, Rubio pushed backed, insisting that he likes the former Republican vice presidential nominee.

"No, I don't believe that, I don't believe that at all," he said, adding he's never met her. "I love her spunk and her energy."

Rubio also took a shot at the billionaire businessman on Friday, saying that he is not a "movement conservative."

"I don't think Donald is running as a movement conservative," Rubio told Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum, according to Politico. "I don't think he's ever said that. It's clear he's not. I mean, what he's running [as is] someone who's a populist, who's upset about the direction of this country - as am I, as are millions of Americans."

He went on to argue that not only does he offer the Republican Party "consistent conservatism, real conservatism," but he also has "the ability to beat Hillary Clinton."
CNCO, the boy band that won Season 1 of Univision's "La Banda," will be joining Puerto Rican music superstar Ricky Martin on his 2016 "One World" tour.

The group shared a photo on their official Instagram account announcing the news.

"It's an honor for us to have a special appearance at @ricky_martin #OneWorldTour, our first performance will be in #PuertoRico," the group captioned the post.

A photo posted by CNCO (@cncomusic) on Jan 21, 2016 at 3:35pm PST

The tour will take the group to Puerto Rico on Feb. 12, where they will kick of their special appearances in San Juan. This will be followed by performances in Mendoza, Rosario and Buenos Aires, Argentina and Santiago, Chile.

The news comes as no surprise. At a press event after the show's finale, Martin, one of the judges on the show, revealed that the boy band would definitely be touring come 2016, reported Radio Formula.

"What I have asked them is that if they have five minutes to sleep, please sleep because what is coming in the coming months is very intense," he said. "God willing, in February we start in Argentina, Chile, we are going to Mexico, going to Colombia, Paraguay, Uruguay, Bolivia, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic...their passports are going to get filled up fast."

CNCO is made up of members Erick Colon, Christopher Velez, Joel Pimentel, Zabdiel De Jesus, Richard Camacho.

The group won the reality competition, created by Simon Cowell and produced by Martin. The show was originally launched in an effort to create a Latino boy band that could fill the gap left behind by the breakup of Menudo, the group that launched Martin's own career.

According to Billboard, last May it was announced that Season 2 of the Spanish-language reality competition would switch things up and look for a Latin female group.

I am absolutely delighted to be announcing season 2 of 'La Banda', Cowell said. The enthusiasm for this format is already very exciting and most importantly we are seeing some incredibly promising talent.

CNCO's new single, Tan Facil, will be released on Jan. 29.

Check out the group's performance of "Devuelveme Mi Corazon" in Times Square during Univision's "Feliz 2016" special.
Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz cited President Barack Obama's signature health care law as the reason he no longer has health care insurance.

While speaking at a campaign event in New Hampshire on Thursday, the Texas senator stated that he has lost his coverage "because of Obamacare."

"You know who one of those millions of Americans who's lost their health care because of Obamacare? That would be me," he told an audience in Manchester, according to CNN. "I don't have health care right now," he added, before explaining how he lost his coverage.

Back in 2013, Cruz was covered under his wife's plan while she was working at Goldman Sachs. However, now that Heidi Cruz is on unpaid leave from the Wall Street firm, she is no longer receiving company benefits like health insurance, the candidate said.

Cruz, however, has the option of receiving a 75 percent employer subsidy by enrolling in the Affordable Care Act as a member of Congress. Instead of taking the offer, he decided to purchase an individual policy from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas. Then, when the company canceled their individual policies, Cruz lost his coverage.

"I had purchased an individual policy and Blue Cross Blue Shield canceled all their individual policies in the state of Texas effective Dec. 31. So our health care got canceled. We got a notice in the mail. Blue Cross Blue Shield was leaving the market," Cruz said.

"And so we're in the process of finding another policy," he added. "I hope by the end of the month we'll have a policy for our family, but our premiums -- we just got a quote, our premiums are going up 50 percent. That's happening all over the country. That's happening all over New Hampshire."

In response, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) released a statement calling Cruz's claim a "misleading ObamaCare sob story," reports The Hill.

"Ted Cruz had the option of signing up for coverage through his position as a U.S. Senator, but opted out in order to make a political point," DNC spokesman Eric Walker said on Thursday. "The fact that Ted Cruz would use his own irresponsible decision as an excuse to take affordable care away from 19 million Americans is despicable."
Bolivias second largest lake, Lake Poopo, has officially dried up.

Thousands of people in the region may have lost their livelihoods due to the lakes disappearance, the Associated Press reports. The lake's remains are surrounded by upturned fishing boats and dried nets.

Lake Poopo has dried up in the past, but scientists now say this time the lake may never recover.

According to Dirk Hoffman, a German glaciologist who tracks how rising temperatures have sped up glacial melting in Bolivia, the fate of the lake is a sign of what is to come. "This is a picture of the future of climate change," said Hoffman.

NASA informs that during a typical year, rainfall during Bolivia's wet season, which starts in December to about March, resupplies the lake. Unfortunately, a drought has persisted throughout this years rainy season. The lack of rain coupled with water diversion due to local agriculture has turned the lake into an arid wasteland.

According to the Oruro governor's office, at least 3,250 people have received some humanitarian aid due to the drying of the lake.

Regional Gov. Victor Hugo Vasquez says Lake Poopo is now down to 2 percent of its usual water level. Florida Institute of Technology biologist Mark B. Bush says the long-term trend of warming and drying will eventually alter the entire Andean highlands.

Angel Flores, the leader of a local group that has tried to save Lake Poopo, blames authorities for ignoring the obvious warnings signs. "Something could have been done to prevent the disaster, says Flores, Mining companies have been diverting water since 1982."

Bolivian leader Evo Morales has tried be remain optimistic about the lake. "My father told me about crossing the lake on a bicycle once when it dried up," he recently said after returning from a climate conference in Paris.

I dont think well be seeing the azure mirror of Poopo again," said Milton Perez, a Universidad Tecnica researcher.
Mexicos murder rate has increased exponentially in 2015, rising to almost 9 percent, despite the government's efforts to combat it.

Around 17,013 murders were reported last year. In 2014, the previous year, there were 15,653 reported homicides.

As Reuters reports, the recent increase in homicide is the first in four years.

Government data informs that as the murder rate has increased, other serious crimes, such as kidnapping and extortion, have actually gone down.

The current murder rate breaks down to about 14 murders per 100,000 people. In the United States, the murder rate is around five murders for every 100,000 people.

As the Wall Street journal reports, the new data points to a geographical shift in where the murders occur. In 2011, most murders in Mexico took place in the northern border states, such as Nuevo Leon and Coahuila. The newest numbers reveal that the murder rate is growing in center-south areas such as Guerrero, Guanajuato, Puebla and Mexico City.

According to Jorge Chabat, a security expert who hails from Mexico City's CIDE University, the increase in the murder rate has come as a major setback for Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto. This is a hard blow for Pena Nieto, whose main asset on the security front had been until now the decline in murders, said Chabat. He cant play that card anymore.

In 2014, Pena Nieto proposed to dissolve the nation's 1,800 local police forces and unify all officers into 32 state forces which would, in theory, be more difficult for drug gangs to infiltrate or influence.

According to Chabat, the ability for cartels to infiltrate Mexico's state and municipal police is the crux of the problem. As long as all government levels, local, state and federal, arent capable of solving this structural problem of corrupt, underpaid police forces, what well have is gangs moving from one state to another, and the problem will never end, said Chabat.
A new poll shows that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and Democratic hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders have gained strong leads in Iowa, less than two weeks before the first primary caucuses.

A CNN/ORC poll released Thursday shows Trump holds a commanding 11-point lead in Iowa over the crowded Republican field. The billionaire business man received 37 percent of the vote from likely Republican caucus-goers while Texas Sen. Ted Cruz came in second place with 26 percent of the vote.

Meanwhile, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio ranked in third place with 14 percent, which is more than half of the support that fourth place winner Ben Carson received with just 6 percent of the vote.

The survey, which was conducted Jan. 15-20, also shows Sanders in the lead by 8 points over Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton. The Vermont senator earned 51 percent of the vote among likely Democratic presidential caucus-goers in the state, while 43 percent backed Clinton.

That's a big jump from a CNN poll released in December that showed Sanders trailing Clinton in the critical first-in-the-nation voting state by 18 points, 54 percent to 36 percent.

In addition, polling data indicates that Cruz is doing well with Republicans who voted in the party's last competitive caucus. Twenty-eight percent of those traditional voters support Cruz, while 30 percent back Trump.

Plus, Clinton has a strong lead over Sanders -- 55 percent to 38 percent -- among Democrats who caucused back in 2008. That means both Trump and Sanders will benefit if more new caucus voters head to the polls next month.

The former secretary of state also has a big 40-point lead on Sanders when it comes to the issue of foreign policy. Furthermore, more Democrats believe she could win the general election in November, 60 percent to 38 percent.

On the other hand, an overwhelming 67 percent of Democratic caucus-goers said they trust the progressive senator over Clinton when it comes to the economy, compared to 30 percent who chose Clinton.
Vietnam, one of the few communist countries lasting, will start to elect its officials today. During the congress eight-day meeting, Vietnam will have newly elected officials to govern the country. Some reports say tension may rise because there is an ongoing debate as to whether Vietnam will tighten its ally with the United States or will renew its ties with China.

Japan Times reported that every five years, Vietnam government officials decide whether they will preserve their attachment with China or make progress with their economics' independence. China and Vietnam are in a fight together with many other countries regarding South China Sea as they are claiming islands in the place. Tension between the two countries is increasing as Vietnam found a comfort in US as they help small countries fight for their right.

About the election process, BBC stated that 1,510 members of congress representing 63 provinces in Vietnam will have a closed meeting. The meeting cannot be covered by the media as Vietnam is strict when it comes to those things. It will end in January 28 as they will name the new general secretary, the prime minister, the president, the chairman of the National Assembly. Many other top positions will also be announced during the last day of the meeting. The general secretary is their highest leader and it is the one that will govern the country.

Though media is not allowed some leaks were spread like the current general secretary, Nguyen Phu Trong, 71 will probably still be the general secretary for the next coming years as no other nominees were allowed. According to Washington Post, there was a compromise that occurred during an intense debate earlier this month. Moreover, there was a rule in 2014 to ban other nominees for the general secretary position. Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, who was Trong's rival and was competing for his position, does not have a chance now so he is reported to be retiring.

The two leaders have opposed plans for Vietnam. Trong wants to keep China beside them while Dung wants to open Vietnam more to other countries. Future plans for Vietnam will be revealed after the closed door meeting on the 28.
The European Union ordered the Belgian government to recover US$ 230 million in state aid granted Duferco steel group. This is due to the state aid to the group that distorted competition in the industry.

The New York Times reported that this is the second time within a short period the EU competition office ruled against Belgium. Last week, it ordered the Belgian government to recover US$ 760 million in illegal tax breaks granted to 35 multinational companies to entice them to stay in Belgium. The Commission concluded that the US$ 230 million (211 million) funding given from 2006 to 2011 to the Duferco group violated EU state aid rules. Despite this aid, the company eventually withdrew almost all business activities from Belgium. EU Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said that there was no point in providing state aid just to keep a company within a country.

New Europe quoted Vesteger as saying that steel companies across Europe have been struggling because of overcapacity and imports and that the response to this problem is to improve the EU steel sector's long-term global competitiveness. She said that Duferco's withdrawal from Belgium despite the aid shows that even if government provides funding to artificially keep failing steel manufacturers afloat "distorts competition and only delays their exit from the market at the expense of taxpayers". The Commission noted that public funding for companies only provides selective advantage to beneficiaries that their competitors lack.

In a press release explaining the decision of the EU, Commissioner Vestager said that the EU's response to the challenges facing the steel sector should be to ensure fair competition globally and to protect a level playing field within the EU. She said that the European stell manufacturers need to be globally competitive and must not rely on public funds to survive. She clarified that EU state aid rules allow for support research, development and innovation to make steelmakers competitive in the long-term but do not allow public support for rescue and restructuring of failing steel companies.

Duferco received the state aid sometime between 2006 and 2011 but nevertheless withdrew most of its business from Belgium later on. The EU also opened a formal probe into the Ilva steel producer due to possible state aid as well.
Jan 22, 2016, 10:19am ET

VW under fire in Germany for "unfair" customer treatment

VW\'s lack of compensation at home draws ire.

Volkswagen is in hot water in Germany after weeks of what many see as backpedaling from the company's promise to compensate its customers in the wake of the global TDI emissions fiasco.

On Thursday, Volkswagen said there are "no grounds" for a compensation program in Europe similar to the one currently underway in the United States.

This followed a letter written Tuesday by European Industry Commissioner Elzbieta Bienkowska demanding that Volkswagen offer equitable compensation to all of its customers, suggesting that the existing TDI goodwill program and any forthcoming efforts in the United States should be mirrored in European markets, Reuters reported.

Many felt that Volkswagen's early comments regarding future plans to address non-compliant models constituted assurances that customers would be compensated for the fallout of the scandal.

This week, Volkswagen spokespersons have made comments alluding to the idea that either no wrongdoing was committed, or that any wrongdoing that may have been committed didn't result in a quantifiable financial loss for customers in Europe and the UK.

On Thursday, it was reported that a VW spokesperson told the New York Times that the programming used to circumvent vehicle emissions controls "is not a forbidden defeat device" under European regulations.

Previously, VW CEO Matthias Mueller told NPR that the company did not lie or intentionally deceive American regulators with its defeat device, but rather simply had "not the right interpretation of the American law." That statement was later walked back.
A 56-year-old suspected drug dealer had 223 packets of heroin during a stop in Bethlehem, city police said.

The Bethlehem Police Department's Special Operations Unit in October 2015 launched an investigation into heroin dealing. At the time, investigators were searching for Dennis Gonzalez, of the 1800 block of Lynfield Drive, who they say is a mid-level drug dealer supplying heroin to street-level dealers.

Gonzalez at 1:20 p.m Jan. 20 was driving a silver Cadillac in the area of York Road and Union Boulevard and was stopped by police. They allegedly found him in possession of 223 wax packets of heroin, a cellphone, $586 in cash and a wallet containing credit cards and a Social Security card belonging to another man with the same last name.

Police say the heroin is valued at $2,500.

Police then obtained a search warrant and searched Gonzalez's home. Police seized $6,670 in cash and Gonzalez's 2004 GMC Envoy as part of the investigation.

Gonzalez is charged with felony possession with intent to deliver drugs. He was arraigned before District Judge Jacqueline Taschner, who set bail at $50,000.

In lieu of bail, he was taken to Northampton County Prison.

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
Evan Castellanos left and Leah Cadwallader

Evan Castellanos, left, and Leah Cadwallader

(Courtesy photos)

An Upper Macungie Township man admitted Friday he attempted to kill a Bethlehem man, shooting him through the chest.

Evan Castellanos, 19, pleaded guilty Friday to attempted homicide, according to Northampton County Assistant District Attorney Kelly Lewis.

The plea bargain includes an agreed-to sentence of 16 to 35 years in state prison. Sentencing is scheduled for March 4 in front of Judge Stephen Baratta.

Castellanos and his girlfriend, Leah Cadwallader, lured Anthony Berliner out of his apartment on June 15, 2014, in the 600 block of Atlantic Street on Bethlehem's South Side. Then Castellanos shot him once in the chest.

Castellanos and Cadwallader told police they were in New York at the time of the shooting, but a drug dealing associate of Castellanos testified Cadwallader and Castellanos gave him a ride from Kutztown to Bethlehem.

Video surveillance has Cadwallader's car in the Lehigh Valley when she claimed to be in New York, according to court records.

A grand jury recommended indicting the couple in November 2015. Castellanos was extradited to Northampton County from a Florida prison, where he was in on drug charges.

Cadwallader, 19, of Lenhartsville in Berks County, Pa., has charges of conspiracy to commit attempted homicide and conspiracy to commit aggravated assault pending against her.

Rudy Miller may be reached at rmiller@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @RudyMillerLV. Find Easton area news on Facebook.
Easton Mayor Sal Panto Jr. unveiled city hall at 123 S. Third St. on Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2015.

Easton City Hall at 123 S. Third St. in Easton.

(Rudy Miller)

Three of Easton's four pension funds are so woefully underfunded they are creeping toward the level of "severe distress," according to the Pennsylvania auditor general.

The city's unfunded pension liability has grown by $19 million in four years, according to a news release Thursday from Auditor General Eugene DePasquale.

"This is a troubling trend. Easton continues to pour more money into its pension plans, yet continues to lose ground," DePasquale said.

Easton Mayor Sal Panto Jr. said he's well aware of the crisis. He has long championed state-level pension reform. He wants to put new city employees into the Pennsylvania Municipal Retirement System, a hybrid pension/401(k) type system.

Without that, keeping up with escalating pension costs is like "throwing money into a hole," the mayor said.

"Right now, they've got to stop the bleeding," he said. "Until the state Legislature changes the structure, you can throw as much money (into pension funds) as you want."

The news release says the city's unfunded liability went up from $9.1 million in 2009 to $28.2 million in 2013. In the meantime, Easton's annual pension contributions more than tripled from $960,000 to $3.6 million.

The mayor said he had to support raising the earned income tax and imposing it on commuters, but even that hasn't come close to solving the problem.

DePasquale's audit says the city's police pension plan is only 52 percent funded. The pre-1979 pension plan for employees is 56 percent funded and the firefighters' plan is 67 percent funded.

A plan is considered distressed if it's less than 50 percent funded. Panto said he puts the amount of money into the plans as required by the state.

Part of the problem is the increasing life expectancy of police and firefighters who retire in their mid-50s but collect full pensions into their 80s.

That's why he says new hires need to enter the hybrid system. He doesn't begrudge employees vested in the system from receiving what they were promised. But new hires need to understand they'll be partially responsible for their own retirement savings.

DePasquale says in his news release he agrees with the move toward PMRS funds.

Panto said he's been working alongside DePasquale to lobby the governor for pension reform.

"It's a $6 billion problem in the state of Pennsylvania for local municipalities," Panto said. "And it's not just an Easton problem any more. It's a local government issue."

Rudy Miller may be reached at rmiller@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @RudyMillerLV. Find Easton area news on Facebook.
Anthony-J-Madonna.JPG

Anthony J. Madonna, 35, of the 400 block of Fifth Street in West Easton.

(Courtesy Photo)

Barbara Groegler's childhood home in Palmer Township was always a place full of warmth, love and happy memories.

But not any more.

The woman who grew up at the home in the 2800 block of Jones Boulevard said her life changed when Anthony Madonna burglarized the home, which was left vacant after Groegler's parents died.

"I now feel dirty when I enter that home because I don't know what was touched by you and walked on by you," she told the 35-year-old West Easton man at his plea hearing.

Madonna agreed Thursday to plead guilty to two counts of burglary and single counts of criminal mischief and heroin possession. He had been charged with five burglaries, including Groegler's childhood home.

"You violated that house, Mr. Madonna," she said. She's fearful at home alone and needs her husband to check her home to make sure she's safe.

Northampton County Assistant District Attorney Laura Majewski and Madonna's attorney Alex Mills both agree to a two- to four-year state prison sentence.

Judge F.P. Kimberly McFadden said she's getting more information before she decides whether to go along with their recommendation. And moving the sentencing to March 4 will allow time for the other victims to make statements.

Madonna admitted his crimes were fueled by drugs.

"I was selling items to get drugs. Yes, I was," he said. He has a list of drug-related crimes dating to 1999.

Madonna asked the judge to allow him to finish a Bible program in Northampton County Prison before he is moved to the state system.

Police tracked down Madonna after the burglary of Groegler's parents' home because his sneaker matched a footprint at the crime scene. He was caught on video surveillance after his burglaries began to mount.

Police found Groegler's mother's fur coat in Madonna's home.

Madonna was charged with the following Palmer Township burglaries between Sept. 8 and Oct. 8, 2015:

3500 block of Chain Dam Road

3300 block of Kaywood Drive

400 block of Avon Street

first block of Audubon Avenue

2800 block of Jones Boulevard

Rudy Miller may be reached at rmiller@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @RudyMillerLV. Find Easton area news on Facebook.
Despite Stockertown resident Robert Fuls believing his North Main Street home is a target to stray bullets flying from a nearby gun range, investigators with the Northampton County District Attorney's office say the range is safe.

Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli holds a news conference on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016 to discuss investigations into two Northampton County gun ranges. (Pamela Sroka-Holzmann | For LehighValleyLive)

Fuls and his son, Eric Fuls, have been lobbying for the closure of the Stockertown Rod & Gun Club since 2011. Eric Fuls then pointed out patched up spots, dings in the brick and some ominous-looking holes in window frames.

"You can actually hear them go through the yard," Robert Fuls told lehighvalleylive.com in May about stray bullets. "You can hear them shooting and hear the 'zing.'"

Fuls claimed his home has been struck five times. At least two other Main Street neighbors also complained to borough police about property damage.

But Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli said new safety measures installed at the gun range have proven to increase safety. Morganelli held a news conference Thursday to discuss his findings.

He noted the last documented incident of a bullet actually hitting a home was reported by Eric Fuls on Nov. 8, 2011 and when investigators spoke to neighbors, they didn't have any recent issues with the range.

"There have been no reports of a bullet striking the Fuls' residence in over five years," Morganelli said.

Increasing safety

The Stockertown Rod & Gun Club, founded in 1954, is located in an area zoned as a mixed-use district. Borough zoning permits the gun range as a proper use.

Morganelli said detectives began investigating the gun range following additional complaints by Robert Fuls in September. They spoke with Stockertown police Chief John Soloe extensively, reviewed Google maps to get a handle on the proximity of the gun range to the Fuls property and interviewed gun club employees.

Soloe relayed the only physical evidence he had was a bullet from a January 2011 incident, in which Morganelli turned over to the Lehigh County Ballistic Department for analysis.

Lee Clewell, the club's president, informed investigators of additional safety measures conducted to improve the safety of the gun range.

Among them, Clewell provided documentation establishing 25 truckloads of fill were delivered in December 2011 to increase the back stop of the rifle range for $2,793. In July 2012, another $1,570 was spent to increase the height of the back stop to 22 feet and re-position it further away from from the direction of homes.

The range also has several signs and club rules posted on the grounds reminding shooters to be responsible and safe. Louvers have been installed to prevent high shots, Morganelli said.

The range is in its early stages of placing surveillance video cameras on the site -- something Stockertown Borough Council President Amy Richard in May said would be a top consideration.

Kurt Tempinski, a Lehigh County forensic ballistic expert formerly employed by the Pennsylvania State Police, also examined the Fuls' property and the range. He concluded there is a possibility a round originating from the range may have been responsible for striking homes in 2010 and 2011, but there is no evidence since that time.

"Further, there is no way to identify the individual and/or individuals who may have been responsible for the stray bullets fired striking residences in 2010 and 2011," Morganelli said. "Therefore, there exists no basis to bring criminal charges against any individuals or against the gun club."

Richard also has said she's not completely convinced shooters at the rod and gun club are to blame. The Fuls' property has a wooded revene to the east with open fields.

"We are in a rural community, there is small game hunting," she had said.

Soloe, the police chief, was questioned about the Stockertown Rod and Gun Club donating $500 to his department and Soloe said the funds actually came from the Northampton County Youth Field Day Foundation, which uses proceeds from an annual field day to aid various police departments, according to Morganelli.

Soloe admitted some members of the gun club are members of the Northampton County Youth Field Day Foundation, but that wouldn't influence his decision to appropriately respond to complaints involving the gun range, according to Morganelli.

Slate Belt gun range shut-down

In comparing the Stockertown Rod and Gun Club to the Belfast Sportsman Association, Morganelli called them polar opposites.

The association closed the Plainfield Township gun range in September after several complaints from homeowners. A Sullivan Trail resident lliving a half-mile from the 474 Sportsman Club Road range, claimed bullets missed the back stop at the range multiple times and struck her house.

Morganelli said the Belfast Sportsman Association failed to maintain an appropriate and safe back stop. There were clear indications of individuals shooting "extremely high" with obvious damage to the tops of trees behind the shooting back stop, he said.

Unlike the Stockertown range with a heavily wooded area to the back of the shooting range, the Belfast range has an open field. It would need "significant improvements" to reopen and operate in a safe manner, Morganelli said.

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
A 51-year-old man allegedly called a Northampton County judge in the middle of the night last month, threatening to "declare war" on the Pennsylvania judicial system, beginning with the judge.

The target of the threat, Judge Emil Giordano, had dismissed a harassment charge in November 2012 against the suspect, John Robert Large, of Lansford, Pennsylvania, according to court records.

Large's legal troubles continued after the 2012 incident, including additional harassment charges filed against him for incidents Oct. 27 in South Whitehall Township and Oct. 31 in Bethlehem.

Large was not in custody as of Thursday afternoon, with the three arrest warrants pending from the case involving Giordano and the Bethlehem and South Whitehall Township incidents.

It was about 1 a.m. Dec. 21 when Large twice called Giordano at home in Hanover Township, Northampton County, demanding that Giordano resolve Large's court issues so he could see his children by Christmas, court records say.

In addition to threatening war on the Judiciary, Large used profanity in ordering Giordano to "fix this."

Large referenced to Giordano having met him outside the office of Carbon County Judge John Braxton, according to court records. Giordano later Dec. 21 called Braxton, who relayed Large had been harassing him and a Lehigh County judge via telephone, records say.

Colonial Regional police contacted RCN to learn the phone number used to call Giordano was an AT&T Wireless account, and AT&T relayed the number is registered to Large, records say.

Giordano's ties to Large, of the first block of Jones Street in Lansford, in Carbon County, began after Large was found guilty in September 2011 of harassment. That case out of Walnutport involved a nursing agency and Large's concerns about care of his daughter, who has a disability, court records say. On appeal, Giordano in February 2012 suspended the conviction and dismissed it that November after Large had complied with the judge's order for 10 months.

Conditions of the order included Large avoiding contact with Around the Clock Nursing Agency and others, and having a doctor verify he is taking his prescription medication and avoiding illegal drugs.

Giordano said Thursday, "Of course I'm concerned, but I live in a great neighborhood with very vigilant neighbors, as well as one of the top police forces in the county and one of the finest sheriffs departments in the state."

In the Bethlehem case, Large is accused of calling the city home of a woman with whom Large had been embroiled in a 2014 criminal case in Lehigh County. He was accused at that time of audio and visually recording Patricia Zurick without her consent. Four counts of intercepting communications and one charge of possession a device for intercepting communications were dismissed in April 2015.

Large, about 1:40 a.m. Oct. 31, allegedly called Zurick and asked her husband to let him speak with her, identifying himself as "nursing," court records say. Large then proceeded to scream at Zurick and threaten to kill her, according to city police.

A police investigator contacted the victim's telephone provider, Ironton Telephone Co., and learned the number used to call Zurick. Following up on the 2014 case involving Zurick and Large, police contacted Large's Carbon County probation officer and confirmed Large's number was the same one used to call Zurick, court records say.

Details of the South Whitehall case were not immediately available Thursday.

Among Large's previous run-ins with law enforcement were threats made in June 2014 against an administrator of HCR ManorCare in Bethlehem at her home in Nesquehoning, Carbon County, according to a report by The Times News. Large's daughter was being treated there at the time, and Large was demanding her discharge, the report states.

In the summer of 2007, Large was accused of stalking then-Carbon County Judge David Addy, who had had been handling a child-custody case involving Large and his now-ex-wife, The Times News reports. Addy died in December 2009. In another case involving a judge, former Carbon County President Judge Richard Webb recused himself from a case after Large allegedly followed him, according to the newspaper's report.

Reporter Rudy Miller contributed to this report.

Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
garret strathearn

Garret Strathearn, Allentown's former finance director, is accused of falsifying public records in order to help a campaign donor of Mayor Ed Pawlowski to get a city contract. (Via allentownpa.gov | lehighvalleylive.com)

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BOUND BROOK -- Borough Administrator Garret "Gary" Strathearn was suspended from his post Thursday after borough officials learned he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud on Jan. 11.

Bound Brook Mayor Robert Fazen told NJ Advance Media on Thursday that he just learned of Strathearn's guilty plea on Wednesday and the borough had no idea that he had been charged last month as the result of an FBI investigation into Allentown, Pennsylvania's city government.

Strathearn, 68, of Sea Girt, was hired by the borough in October, after serving five years (2010 to 2015) as the finance director to Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski. In his guilty plea in Federal Court in Philadelphia, he admitted he interfered with the awarding of a contract at the request of a public official who "was receiving campaign contributions from the eventual contract awardee," according to a release from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Philadelphia.

Neither Strathearn, nor his attorney, Pennsylvania Assistant Federal Defender Stuart Patchen, immediately returned a phone call seeking comment.

Fazen said Borough Council will meet Tuesday in an executive session to decide the next course of action. He said the borough is currently conferring with its attorney.

"We weren't aware of this when he was hired," said Fazen. "I personally wasn't aware of it until yesterday. We'll have to look at the hiring procedure we used in hiring Mr. Strathearn. I'm anxious to change our bylaws. We obviously didn't do a good job. This is a pretty big shot to the borough."

Strathearn and former Assistant City Solicitor Dale Wiles, who previously pleaded guilty, were charged with awarding Allentown's 2014 revenue collection contract to the campaign donor, according to the U.S. Attorney release. The pair were also charged with falsifying paperwork and making false statements to FBI agents.

Each is facing a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine, three years of supervised release and a $100 special assessment. Strathearn will be sentenced on April 14.

The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations and the Pennsylvania State Police.

Dave Hutchinson may be reached at dhutchinson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DHutch_SL. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
A 26-year-old Allentown man will serve 40 years in prison for his role in 2012 holdup in Phillipsburg during which a gas station attendant was fatally shot.

Andy Torres was sentenced Friday, though his attorney says he plans to appeal.

Torres was convicted Oct. 29 of felony murder, armed robbery, conspiracy to commit armed robbery and two weapons charges. He was acquitted on a first-degree murder charge, which would have carried an automatic life sentence.

A felony murder charge is levied against a defendant accused of participating in a crime in which someone is killed, even if the defendant is not directly responsible for the death. It carries a potential sentence of 30 years to life in prison.

The four people charged in connection with a fatal shooting Jan. 5, 2012, in Phillipsburg are, from left, Andy Torres, Zachary Flowers, David Beagell and Alexis Flowers. (Courtesy photos)

Authorities alleged Torres was the gunman in a group of four accused of planning and carrying out the Jan. 5, 2012, robbery at the BP gas station on South Main Street. The attendant, 47-year-old Kismathdas Kasam, was wounded in the leg with a shotgun and died two days later.

A jury determined there was enough evidence to establish Torres was at the scene, but not enough to determine he pulled the trigger.

"It was a terrible crime. Mr. Kasam did not have to die," Warren County First Assistant Prosecutor Michael McDonald said following the sentencing. "They did not have to shoot him. They have to live with the consequences of their actions."

Torres' attorney, Michael Priarone, said an appeal is planned in the next 45 days but declined further comment.

Torres is the second of the group to be sentenced. David Beagell, of Blakeslee, Pennsylvania, agreed to a 12-year sentence in a plea deal in 2012.

The other two co-defendants, siblings Alexis and Zachary Flowers, of Allentown, face charges of felony murder, armed robbery, conspiracy to commit robbery and three weapons counts after refusing to testify against Torres. They have pleaded not guilty and status hearings are scheduled next month.

Torres was sentenced Friday by Superior Court Judge Robert Reed in Somerset County. Reed presided over Torres' trial in Warren County and was transferred in a routine reassignment after its conclusion.

Torres will be required to serve 34 years before becoming eligible for parole, McDonald said. Most of the other counts were merged with the 40-year sentence. Sentences of four and seven years on two weapons charges will be served at the same time.

Though the prosecution had requested those other sentences be added to the felony murder term, McDonald said he felt the judge's sentence was "reasonable."

"One down -- technically two down if you count Mr. Beagell -- and two to go," he said.

Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
A Kildare couple said goodbye to boring traditional wedding practices and said I do to a wedding with a difference. With just three weeks to plan the big day, Niamh Nevin and Dave OLearys exciting nuptial preparations feature on this weeks Dont Tell the Bride, which will be aired on Thursday February 16 on RTE.

A Kildare couple said goodbye to boring traditional wedding practices and said I do to a wedding with a difference. With just three weeks to plan the big day, Niamh Nevin and Dave OLearys exciting nuptial preparations feature on this weeks Dont Tell the Bride, which will be aired on Thursday February 16 on RTE.

Mystery still surrounds the big day but all will be revealed this week so Niamh still has to remain a little tight lipped about the event until the programme airs.

It was a fantastic experience. I would definitely do it again. I wouldnt change a thing. I would do it all the same again, she says. The beautician from Coill Dubh explains how the pair ended up getting married on TV.

Dave came up with the idea and I wasnt too keen at first but then I came around to the idea. We applied on line and after a while we heard back from them. We were told on a Monday that we were accepted and they started filming the following Wednesday. Everything happened so quick. David had to move out and he had three weeks to organise everything. We couldnt see each other at all or the contract would be broken. We said we didnt want a traditional wedding. David was great. I was terrified at times but I knew he would make the right decisions.

Niamh recalls how she first me Dave when she was 17/18 years-old.

I was going for a walk with my friend and we were on the bridge in Robertstown and he knew my friend and we started talking. He knew some of our mutual friends and it went from there. I was originally from Dublin but I had moved down when I was 13 so I knew him to see. He said he fancied me when I was younger, she laughs.

Niamh and Dave were going out for about ten years and had always planned to get married. Their little son Jake played a big part in the special day. Niamh runs Star Nails and Beauty salon and Dave runs The Star Barbers which are side by side in Allenwood. During the three weeks apart Niamh said she missed him dreadfully.

It was very hard. We had never been apart for so long, she said.

Niamh revealed the wedding was a rockabilly style wedding and they tied the knot in a civil service on November 8. Her parents Paula and Tony were there on the day to wish them well as were Daves parents, John and Roseleen.

The whole experience has brought us closer together. Dave did a fantastic job. It was a great experience for us, she said.
The campaign for a new community hospital in Carrick-on-Shannon and restoration of nurse led services at St Patrick's Hospital has escalated to a priority election issue.

The Friends of St Patrick's Hospital have become very disillusioned by the lack of progress made and by the ambiguity and the lack of clarity from the Department of Health and the HSE.

They have announced that the restoration of nurse led services at St Patrick's and the future of a new HSE nursing home in the county town is the top priority election issue for the county.

Leitrim has the highest dependency ratio (57% ratio of over-65s to the rest of the population) in Ireland and so the care of the elderly is an issue that affects every voter.

The local group are in the process of contacting all election candidates for the General Election to put forward a commitment to the provision of five day nurse led care, a new 90 bed community hospital along with written proof of their commitments from party leaders.

The group intends to inform the public of the politicians' credible responses in the run up to the election and to put forward their political position.

They are also seeking clarity through the Freedom of Information Act concerning the existence of an application for a replacement community hospital in Carrick-on-Shannon.

Despite the HSE telling a public meeting last October that it has a site which is just awaiting approval, Minister Leo Varadkar told representatives that no application or plans for a new hospital had been received by him.

In correspondence to Leitrim County Council in December, Frank Morrison, General Manager of Community Services in the HSE for Sligo Leitrim, said the HSEs aim is to provide a nurse led Therapeutic Day Hospital.

He said there are plans to increase the level of service available at the day hospital including a Falls Clinic to help assess and refer patients at risk of falling and a Specialised Tissue Viability Clinic which is expected to commence in early 2016.

Mr Morrison said Ongoing discussions have taken place with all clients, families, GPs and Public Health Nurses in relation to the recent changes to the day hospital.

But the Friends of St Patrick's say no discussion has taken place with patients, family members or local GPs and the loss of these services is hitting local families hard.

Despite being promised a return to nursing led care, it has not materialised.

The group, which includes local GP Dr Kieran Greene, dispute the recent HSE review of services which found no patients attending St Patrick's Day Care requested nurse led care.

With just over a month to the general election, Friends of St Patrick's Hospital are asking all voters to ask canvassing politicians about their commitment to elderly care.
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Ireland West Airport Knock have been given the green light to make submissions for funding under a five year business plan after the European Commission approval for Irelands 2015-2019 Regional Airports Programme last week.

Ireland West Airport Knock have been given the green light to make submissions for funding under a five year business plan after the European Commission approval for Irelands 2015-2019 Regional Airports Programme last week.

The Chairperson and Board of Ireland West Airport Knock welcomed the decision by the European Commission in approving Irelands 2015-2019 Regional Airports Programme. The Programme, officially a will allow for the State to provide financial supports (State aid) to the four regional airports , including Ireland West Airport Knock, over the period 2015-2019.

Since the completion of the joint Government and Airport study, chaired by Deputy John OMahony, on the future of Ireland West Airport Knock, in December 2013, we have presented a strong business case for future investment into the Airport and delivery of that reports key recommendations, it was noted in a statement issued last week.

We expect this announcement to form the basis of a long term commitment and investment from both the European Commission and the Government to support the Airports growth and development plans, in tandem with the airlines and business partners, that use the airport. In this context the future support and investment from the Local Authorities, and all regional tourism and business stakeholders, is also of key importance.

We recognise that the level of financial supports will be contingent on the availability of exchequer resources in any one year and subject to the 2014 EU Guidelines on state-aid to airports, which at this point limits major capital investment to a level of 75% of project costs. However we are determined to work closely with the Minister and his Department in submitting plans to access a higher level of capital investment aid of over 90% of project costs for this airport and for the continuation of operational funding.

The Chairperson and Board of Ireland West Airport Knock thanked the Taoiseach, Ministers and local representatives for progressing matters to this stage. In the interim the airport will commence the process of making submissions to the Department with the objective of securing the airports future growth and development.

Independent Roscommon/South Leitrim TD, Michael Fitzmaurice, told the Leitrim Observer that he would be supporting Knock Airports submission for funding under a five year business plan.

Knock Airport is one of the most valuable transport hubs in the western region and any funding that will help to improve its facilities is very welcome, he said.

Fine Gael TD for Sligo/north Leitrim, John Perry, also welcomed the news noting the The approval of the 2015-2019 Programme will greatly assist Knock Airport in working towards a position of viability. Under the 2014 EU Guidelines, all of Irelands regional airports have until April 2024 to become self-sufficient before OPEX supports are discontinued.

Knock Airport is of major importance to support local businesses and to provide a link to the rich tourism offerings in the North West.
The far-reaching positive impacts of broadband must be extended to rural Ireland without delay, IFA Director of Organisation James Kelly said at the launch of a pilot fibre broadband programme in Belcarra, Mayo.

The far-reaching positive impacts of broadband must be extended to rural Ireland without delay, IFA Director of Organisation James Kelly said at the launch of a pilot fibre broadband programme in Belcarra, Mayo.

Inadequate broadband service continues to undermine the enterprise potential of rural Ireland. The IFA is continually pressing this issue with both Government and Industry., said Mr Kelly.

The National Broadband Plan is a welcome commitment from Government to prioritise rural broadband, and the high level of industry interest is very encouraging. The Government must now begin the tendering process and make the needed investment to deliver a high-speed, future-proofed solution to rural homes, farms and businesses.

The pilot fibre broadband programme running in Belcarra by Eircom Wholesale shows the positive effects and potential that are achievable for farm families and businesses, Mr Kelly said: It is very clear from our engagement with farmers on the programme in Belcarra that the adoption and use of ICT brings clear benefits in increased productivity and efficiencies at farm level. We also know that farmers all over the country want to embrace the opportunities ICT brings but find themselves restricted from many innovation opportunities due to poor or no broadband access.

Alongside the benefits to individuals, families, and businesses, broadband access also has the potential to have huge social and economic impacts: The National Broadband Plan presents a real opportunity to finally address the digital divide.

Creating a level playing pitch on broadband access can create jobs and rejuvenate rural Ireland; it can encourage new enterprise and investment in rural Ireland; and, support diversification and expansion of existing businesses.
Six principal council by-elections were held yesterday, five of which resulted in holds. There were two second place finishes for Liberal Democrats in Southwark (LB) and Hertfordshire (CC). In the London contest, Lauren Pemberton-Nelson polled 14.5% with an 8.2% vote share increase from 2014 in Faraday ward, with Labour holding their seat comfortably with over 60% of the vote. Shailain Shah was also a runner-up in the Bushey North by-election polling 19.9%, with an increased vote share of 5.8% from two years ago. The Conservatives held the seat with 52.6%.

The Tories also successfully defended a seat in Crowborough East ward in Wealden (DC) with 64% of the vote. Jane Clark came second for the Liberal Democrats with 24.5%, a vote share decrease of 10.1% from May.

Elsewhere, Labour made a gain from UKIP in Thanet (DC). They took the seat in Newington ward with 37.7% and a 59 vote majority, as UKIPs vote share dropped by 14.2% from May. Jordan Williams polled 1.6% for the Liberal Democrats, with the party not having fielded a candidate earlier in the year. Labour also held a seat in Thatto Heath ward in St Helens (MB) with 71.1% of the vote.

In South Lanarkshire (UA), the SNP received 42.9% of the first preference votes as they held their seat in Hamilton North & East ward. Norman Rae received 1.8% of first preference votes, with no Lib Dem candidate being fielded in the wards previous election four years ago.

In addition to the principal council contests, the Liberal Democrats won the Valley ward by-election on Newhaven Town Council. Lib Dem Kristoph Von Kurthy won the seat with 45.3% of the vote.

Just one principal council by-election will take place next week. Labour will be defending a seat in Parkfield & Oxbridge ward in Stockton-on-Tees (UA), with Drew Durning standing as the Liberal Democrat candidate.

For a detailed list of last weeks results please click here. If you would like more information on all the forthcoming by-elections and details on who to contact for help, click here.

* ALDC is the Association of Liberal Democrat Councillors and Campaigners
The Liberal Democrats have had a strong and flourishing relationship with the South African Democratic Alliance (DA) for many years, and we continue to work together through the Africa Liberal Network (ALN) and the Young Leaders Programme. In this series of profiles of our liberal sister-parties overseas, Luke Akal, ALN Coordinator, gives an account of the DA:

On 27-30 January this year, the 13th annual Africa Liberal Network (ALN) General Assembly is being held in Johannesburg, hosted by South African member party, the Democratic Alliance (DA). The DA is a shining light of liberalism on the African continent and, as the main opposition party in South Africa, is an inspiring model for liberal parties around the world.

Since its establishment, the DA has increased its vote share in every election, going from 12% in 2004 to 22% in 2014, gaining 89 MPs and becoming the main opposition party. In 2009, the DA gained power in the Western Cape province, giving the party an opportunity to deliver on its promises. Over the past 6 years, the Western Cape has seen an impressive decrease in crime, as well as improvement in infrastructure, and demonstrating that the DA is a safe pair of hands in government.

Last year the DA launched Vision 2029, an ambitious plan to become the ruling government party by the end of the next decade. With the ruling African National Congress (ANC)s failure to tackle staggering levels of inequality, crime, unemployment and the legacy of apartheid, and the recent crisis in which President Jacob Zuma was forced to appoint his third finance minister within a week, the need for a change of government in South Africa is clearer than ever.

The DA has achieved its impressive growth by running on an unapologetically liberal platform, in stark contrast to the uninspiring and corrupt leadership of Zumas ANC. They advocate an Open Opportunity Society for All in which all people, regardless of gender, race or sexuality, are empowered to live their lives, pursue their dreams and develop their full potential. They stand for a free market economy, in which the role of the government is to provide every citizen with a minimum basic standard of quality services and resources, and have ambitions to significantly extend access to education and health care, tackle the HIV-AIDS crisis and address South Africas dangerous carbon footprint through green energy and environmental policies.

At the core of its success is the DAs unique investment in its youth. Through its Young Leaders Programme, supported by the Liberal Democrat International Office, the DA organises a series of retreats for a group of young members within the party every year, and provides them with mentorship and training in leadership skills, with the long-term goal of empowering the next generation of leaders both within the party and in the country. Alumni from the programme have gone on to become activists, councillors and MPs, and are undoubtedly the future leadership of the party.

The DA faces challenges ahead, with the rise of the Economic Freedom Fighters, a political party exploiting the prevalence of poverty and unemployment and advocating a politics based on division, blame and hatred. But with continued commitment to the principles of liberalism, the DA is well placed to become the future government of South Africa.

The DA is the most diverse party in South Africa, now well-recognised and progressed under the leadership of MP Mmusi Maimane. Maimane, as a previous mayoral and premier candidate for the DA, will address the ALNs General Assembly on Friday 29 January 2016 on the topic of Principles for Liberal leadership: Shaping the Africa of our dreams. He will address the audience along with the ALNs President, Olivier Kamitatu.

This year, the ALN General Assembly focuses on the theme  Winning Elections: Strategies, Policies and Solutions for Success . The ALNs 44 member parties, from across the African continent, will gather in Johannesburg to share experiences and strategies on how to win elections and achieve liberal governments in their home countries. With the DA gaining ground in South African politics every year, we cannot think of a more appropriate host for this event!

Mmusi Maimane, Leader of the DA, said:

It is our goal to build a South African society based on the core values of Freedom, Fairness and Opportunity for all, where no child is left behind because of the circumstances of their birth. The DA is committed to building a political home for all our people, uniting South Africans around shared values, and ensuring that every single South African has a voice and a say in the future of our nation. It is an honour for the DA to be hosting this years Africa Liberal Network General Assembly. Internationalism and liberalism go hand-in-hand and we cherish the opportunity to meet and work with our fellow African liberals to help usher Africa into a brighter, more liberal future.

* Luke Akal is Coordinator of the Africa Liberal Network
TWO Polish men have pleaded guilty to charges relating to one of the most significant drugs seizure in West Limerick in recent years.

Large quantities of cannabis herb and cannabis plants  worth almost 500,000  were seized during a major garda operation involving around 50 gardai on February 4, 2015.

Thousands of cannabis plants - at various stages of growth - were seized during a number of pre-planned searches at several houses in the Newcastle West garda district.

At one location, a large amount of equipment, used in the cultivation of cannabis, was also found in unopened boxes.

Previously, investigating gardai stated they believed the cultivation operation was being extended around the time the premises was searched.

The intelligence-led operation was led by Superintendent Tom OConner and involved local gardai as well as members of the divisional drugs unit who are based at Henry Street garda station in the city.

Two Polish men who were arrested and questioned following the seizure of the drugs first appeared in court a number of days later.

Their case was listed for trial at Limerick Circuit Court this week but on Wednesday morning, both men formally entered guilty pleas when they were arraigned.

Grzegorz Jacniak, aged 40, who has an address at Market Court, Newcastle West pleaded guilty to four charges relating to offences at a house at Coolagowan, Castletown Conners and at a house at Arra View, Newcastle West.

The charges include cultivating cannabis plants without a licence and possession of cannabis for the purpose of sale or supply  which at the time was worth more than 13,000.

His co-accused - Artur Pietrziak, aged 37, who has an address at West End, Mountcollins  pleaded guilty to cultivating cannabis plants at his home and to possession of cannabis for the purpose of sale of supply at the same address.

Michael Collins BL, instructed by State Solicitor Aidan Judge, said that the defendants guilty pleas were acceptable to the State and he indicated that a number of other charges will be withdrawn at the conclusion of the sentencing process.

Judge Tom ODonnell noted this and he adjourned the matter to March 16, next when he will hear details of the offences.

The jusge requested the preparation of a progress report from the governor of Limerick Prison in the case of Mr Jacniak who has been in custody at this point for almost 12 months.

Mr Pietrziak was remanded on continuing bail pending the sentencing hearing.
LIMERICK city general election candidate Sarah Jane Hennelly has this week called on Fianna Fail TD Willie ODea to outline his stance in relation to whether laws should be changed to allow for abortions in cases of fatal foetal abnormality.

She stated that Deputy ODea was one of four Fianna Fail Oireachtas members who failed to answer an Irish Independent survey in relation to the matter recently.

This is a tragic issue that affects a large number of women and families in Ireland, including many from Deputy ODeas constituency. Twelve women a day travel to the UK from Ireland for an abortion. It is simply not acceptable to try and pretend this is not an issue that affects people in Limerick. Therefore, its vital that the deputy comes out and states his position on the matter before he asks people to re-elect him next month.

The people of Limerick city deserve to know where their elected representatives  or those seeking their mandate  stand on this barbaric legislation. I am simply asking that Deputy ODea meet this most basic expectation, she said.

However, Deputy ODea told the Limerick Leader that he did not receive the Irish Independents message on time.

My opinion on the matter is that I support and stand by the Eight Amendment of the Constitution, he added.

Ms Hennelly, who narrowly lost out in the local elections in 2014 as an Independent candidate, said that it is not about securing votes or playing it safe; its about supporting women, many of whom are from Limerick.

This is not a pro-life or pro-choice issue. It is a human rights imperative. The absence of a position, or a wilful obscuration of the same, stands in stark contrast to the bravery of the women who will have no choice but to confront this issue head on.

She said that, unlike other parties, the Social Democrats have been clear on the topic.

The Eighth Amendment to the Constitution must be repealed so as to respect and protect the lives, health and choices of women living in Ireland. As it stands, our countrys laws afford women a qualified right to healthcare when pregnant. It criminalises girls, women and medical professionals, and is not permitted in cases of rape or incest.

"It is an act of moral cowardice to say to a woman  who has just been given the worst news of her life  that due to political expedience you are unable or unwilling to clearly state your position on her rights.

Her party leaders will host a public Social Democrats meeting which takes place on January 28 at the University of Limerick.
A MARKET trader has been found not guilty of assaulting another trader during an incident at Kilmallock Mart more than two years ago.

Denis Hannifin, aged 35, of Curry Athlone Road, Longford had pleaded not guilty to assaulting 41-year-old Timothy Nevin on the morning of October 28, 2013.

He also denied producing a knife during the course of a dispute on the same date.

During a three day trial at Limerick Circuit Court, it was the alleged the father-of-seven slashed Mr Nevin with a carpet knife  inflicting cuts to the back and side of his head.

In his evidence, Mr Nevin  who has an address at Bettystown, County Meath  said he travelled to Kilmallock with his teenage son the night before the market, which is held every Bank Holiday Monday.

He said having slept in his Mercedes van overnight, he entered the mart shortly after 7am to set up his stall.

He told the jury of seven men and five women he travels around the country to markets selling goods including tools, drills and socket sets and other bits and that he has known Mr Hannifin for a number of years.

He told Michael Collins BL, prosecuting, that after setting up his stall he went for a walk and was struck by the defendant as he was returning to the stall.

He declined to make a formal statement of complaint to gardai on the day of the incident and attended the Midlands Regional Hospital in Mullingar the following day.

The jury was told he sustained a 9cm linear cut to the back of his head and a 6cm cut to the side of his face near his right ear.

Garda Robert Young of Kilmallock garda station said the alleged culprit, was not present when he and a colleague arrived and that no weapon was found. No other traders were willing to give their names or make witness statements, he added.

Giving evidence this Wednesday, the defendant told the jury there was some history between the extended Nevin and Hannifin families but insisted he does not hold a grudge against anybody.

He denied assaulting Mr Nevin, who is a cousin of Olympic boxer John Joe Nevin, and claimed he hid behind a truck and fled from the mart after he (Mr Nevin) threatened to kill him.

Following less than an hour of deliberations, the jury returned a unanimous not guilty verdict this afternoon.

Judge Tom ODonnell thanked them for their service and attention during the trial and he excused them from further jury service for five years.
ST Camillus Hospital in Limerick is to receive 16m under the governments 300m health capital programme to help make the facility HIQA compliant.

Minister Kathleen Lynch, who has responsibility for social care as well as mental health and primary care, announced the 16m in Newcastle West this Thursday.

The 16m for St Camillus, she told reporters, would be spent in two phases between 2016 and 2020.

It is not HIQA compliant, she said. It is essential we make it HIQA compliant.

The work, she explained would include a 50-bed followed by a 25-bed development. And she added: If the economy continues to improve it the way it is envisaged, I believe we may will be looking at two 50 bed units.

The development at St Camillus has been planed and worked on for some three years, the Minister explained.

The plans are all in place, she said. We wouldnt have gotten the 300m (capital programme money) without a plan. We wouldnt have gotten agreement with HIQA if we didnt have a plan.

We knew what the need was, where the deficiencies were, she added. We know how much we needed to do is.

The Minister was in St Itas Hospital in Newcastle West where she was opening a new 22-bed rehabilitation unit, built at a cost of 2.5m.

She announced that St Itas would receive 3m from the capital programme 2016-2020 to build a further eight bed unit which would ensure the entire hospital was then HIQA compliant.
TWO cousins who are charged in connection with a burglary in East Limerick during which another man died are to face trial on indictment.

David Casey, aged 21,who has an address at Carragh Park, Coolock, Dublin 17, and Michael Casey, aged 32, of Clonlong Halting Site, Southill in Limerick each face a number of theft and criminal damage charges relating to offences which are alleged to have happened at locations in Cappamore and Doon on August 27 last.

Both men are accused of stealing a ladies gold watch, worth 200, and 30 in cash during a burglary at the home John ODonoghue at Toomaline, Doon.

The-62-year old collapsed and died when he returned home at around 2pm to discover a number of intruders at his home  sparking a full garda investigation.

A post-mortem examination, carried out by State Pathologist Prof Marie Cassidy, confirmed Mr ODonoghue died from a heart attack.

On Tuesday, Sergeant John Moloney said directions were received from the DPP in recent days and that the matter is to proceed on indictment at the circuit court.

He said the DPP has also directed that both men should face trial on indictment in relation to a number of other offences which are alleged to have happened on the same day.

The defendants are accused of stealing 1,000 worth of jewellery from a house at St Judes Kyle, Cappamore and with causing 250 worth of criminal damage to the front door of another house at Portnard, Cappamore.

They are also charged with causing 120 worth of criminal damage to the front door of a third house at Dromsallagh, Cappamore.

Last month concerns were expressed about the delay in progressing the case by solicitors representing the accused men who submitted it was unacceptable given the fact both men are in custody. having been refused bail.

On Tuesday, solicitor John ODonovan, representing Michael Casey, reiterated his concerns.

Noting that directions have been received from the DPP, he said his client is anxious that the book of evidence be prepared as quickly as possible.

In reply to Sgt Moloney who said it will take some time given the complexities of the garda file, he said he was concerned there may be further delays.

My concern is we will be having this conversation this time next year, he said.

Judge Mary Larkin noted Mr ODonovans concerns but added the State has 42 days by law to prepare the book of evidence.

She said she was not willing to mark the matter peremptory but that she was making a note on the court file that time is of the essence.

The case was adjourned to February 16, next.
BUCKNACKT'S SORDID TAWDRY BLOG We should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive & well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate, bier or wein in hand, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WHOO-HOO, WHAT A RIDE!!!!!!"
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News / Local

by Thandeka Moyo

EIGHT men who brought terror to the residents of Cowdray Park and Luveve suburbs in Bulawayo, raping women and robbing residents, will never hurt anyone again after they were jailed for a combined 629 years yesterday.A ninth member of the gang, shot by police while trying to flee, did not stand trial as he is hospitalised. Police say they are also looking for a 10th suspect.Between December last year and January 16 this year, when two teachers and a third woman were raped at Luveve High School - their final twisted act in a reign of terror - prosecutors said the men committed a combined NINETY crimes.The eight, aged between 21 and 36 years, pleaded guilty to all the charges which included multiple counts of rape, robbery, unlawful entry and carjacking.Three regional magistrates, Sibongile Msipa-Marondedze, Mark Dzira and Chrispen Mberewere took turns to preside over the cases divided into 10 records.Mberewere declared that for once, residents of Luveve, Cowdray Park and surrounding areas would have a peaceful night knowing that justice has taken its course.The mastermind of the 10-man gang and eldest, Nqobizitha Ncube, 36, of Old Pumula, who took part in almost all the crimes was incarcerated for an effective 166 years.The youngest members of the gang, Lewis Ndlovu, 21, of Nugget Mine in Matopos, and Milton Ndlovu, 23, of Silobela, Lower Gweru, were each jailed for 34 years.Three Dlamini brothers from Pumula East  Gift, 32, Buyani, 25, and Stanford, 22, told the magistrates that poverty drove them to use machetes, knives, axes and torches to instill fear in their victims before robbing and raping them.Buyani was slapped with an effective 122 years in jail, while Stanford and Gift got 85 years and 18 years respectively.To a stunned gallery, Mlungisi Maphosa, 24, revealed that he was a father of five children with different women and was expecting his sixth child with his heavily pregnant wife.His children will not see him home for the next 58 years  if he is still alive. He would be 82 then.Maphosa's address was listed as Baines Junior Primary School  although he is not thought to be an employee of the school."In coming up with your sentence, the court considered that you pleaded guilty to all counts and did not waste time."However, as the old saying goes, 'crime does not pay', and there's no doubt you deserve a deterrent sentence," Dzira told the vile criminal gang during sentencing."A woman's privates are a treasure reserved for a few chosen ones and as men, it's high time we learnt that when women say no, we respect their bodies and stop raping them."Dzira sent away Ncube, Buyani and Nkiwane to a total of 28 years for three counts of robbery and handed over to magistrate Msipa-Marondedze.She began: "After considering the aggravatory circumstances surrounding these crimes, it's clear that the accused persons are not only a danger to the community but have become a danger to themselves."We need to send them away for a very long time so that we send a message to like-minded would-be criminals."Msipa-Marondedze sentenced Ncube, Buyani and Nkiwane to 26 effective years each for gang-raping and robbing a woman in a bushy area near Luveve cemetery on December 11.She went on: "Gang rape is a very serious crime and traumatising in nature. Maphosa's act of dragging a woman out of her bedroom leaving behind the husband and raping her in her own living room is unacceptable. He belittled the victim's husband."For the crime, committed in Cowdray Park, Maphosa was banged up for 16 years.Magistrate Mberewere took over from Msipa-Marondedze and rebuked the gang for terrorising residents.He told the evil gang: "For once, residents of Luveve, Cowdray Park and surrounding areas will have a peaceful night tonight knowing justice has taken its course and that their tormentors are behind bars."Zimbabwe is a peaceful country and we'll not tire sentencing like-minded criminals like you to lengthy periods in jail to maintain that peace. He said the maximum penalty for rape was reserved for the worst cases and labelled Ncube and Maphosa as arguably the most perverted rapists to have come before his court. Ncube pleaded guilty to five counts of rape, and Maphosa three."There's no sane man who can rape and dream of doing community service for such a crime. I believe my solid 20-year sentences are justifiable and deserved by Ncube and Maphosa who had guts to drag a woman out of her car in the presence of her boyfriend into a bush where they took turns to rape her twice each."
News / Local

by Staff Reporter

1953 visit to Southern Rhodesia: The Queen Mother presents the best bull on show award:

During Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother's visit to Southern Rhodesia in 1953, she presented Dave and Mike Conolly's father, Joe Conolly, with the Bulawayo Agricultural Society's 1,000 Guinea Floating Trophy for the best bull on show, a pedigree Hereford bull, at the Bulawayo Show. Hereford cattle have proved to be among the best in the world when it comes to ranching and surviving severe drought conditions.



As the drought in Zimbabwe bites deep and reports of cattle deaths escalate, the country's last two herds of irreplaceable pedigree Hereford and Senepol cattle are under severe threat - not directly from the drought, but from a senior government official who has forced the owner off his farm.If nothing is done by the President of Zimbabwe, his ruling ZANU PF party or the international community - which has provided food aid to the country every year since the inception of the farm invasions in 2000 - the owners, commercial farmer Dave Conolly and his brother, Mike Conolly, will be forced to send both herds, as well as their dairy herd, for slaughter.Bred over the last 80 years for Zimbabwe's very specific conditions, the pedigree Hereford herd has a connection to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, who visited the country - then Southern Rhodesia, in 1953.During the Royal tour, the Queen Mother presented the Conollys' father, Joe Conolly, with the Bulawayo Agricultural Society's 1,000 guinea floating trophy for the best bull on show at the Bulawayo Show. This was a magnificent Hereford bull, and the family has a treasured photograph of the event."Hereford cattle have proved to be ideal for cross-breeding with the indigenous cattle as they have much better food conversion ratios than the indigenous breeds, which significantly improves the productivity of the land," explained Dave.The Senepol, a Red Poll/African N'dama cross, is ideal for the low rainfall and drought-prone Matabeleland South province, where Dave's Centenary farm is located, because it is heat tolerant and resistant to parasites.Dave and Mike, who is on the adjoining Boxwell farm, set up their Senepol breeding programme in 1996 and it has been highly successful. South Africa's first breeding stock originated from Zimbabwe.The significance of these last breeding herds for Zimbabwe  and also for the southern African region  is clearly of no interest to Dr Ray Ndhlukula, Deputy Chief Secretary to the President and the cabinet.Since June 2014, Dave has been embroiled in a fierce legal battle with Ndhlukula, who has been trying to take over Centenary farm, despite reportedly having two other farms in Matabeleland South. These are Wilfred Hope Farm in Marula, and Vlakfontein  otherwise known as Subdivision 2 of Marula Block.On August 5, 2014 Ndhlukula sent his thugs to evicted Dave's workers and their families from the farm, rendering them destitute, despite a High Court order to block their evictions.Although a contempt of court case against Ndhlukula was filed at the High Court, Dave was forced off his farm in September 2014. Since then, neither he nor his farm workers have been able to return to their homes and all of their farming activities have been blocked.Despite the escalating drought, and Ndhlukula being found in contempt of court, Dave's leave to implement appeal on November 16, 2015 was mysteriously removed from the role in the Bulawayo High Court.This has allowed Ndhlukula to flaunt the contempt of court order (Judgement No: 43/15) and thus prevented him from making use of the available water right on Centenary Farm.Ironically Ndhlukula was in charge of the government's ZimAsset statement of intent for food and food security, announced in December 2013 but now effectively defunct.Ndhlukula subsequently told the police, the District Administrator and members of the Lands Committee to instruct Mike to also vacate his Boxwell farm which had been consolidated with Centenary farm for practical purposes and operated as a single unit.While the Hereford and Senepol herds have been kept on Centenary farm since Boxwell is too small for cattle ranching, the dairy is located on Boxwell. Since the takeover of Centenary, the Conollys have had to move their cattle to Boxwell and to provide supplementary feed, which is unsustainable.A further problem they face is that the dam, which supplies the water for the cattle, pastures and cropping operations using an extensive piping system, is located on Centenary farm, which is under Ndhlukula's control.On October 8, 2015 the press reported that southern Africa had suffered one of its worst harvests in years due to a lack of rain, prompting concerns about food shortages across the region.However, just four days later, on October 12, Mike received a summons from the High Court notifying him that the Minister of Lands, Land Reform and Resettlement was claiming an order for his eviction from Boxwell Farm  and in addition was claiming for the costs of this action.The same day, the press reported that 7,000 cattle had died in Zimbabwe's southern provinces and that Masvingo province had been hardest hit with around 5,000 cattle deaths.In August 2015, the World Food Program (WFP) warned that an estimated 1.5 million Zimbabweans were expected to go hungry after a dramatic fall in maize production. Reports indicated that at least 700,000 tonnes from neighbouring countries was required to avert a food crisis.USAID mission director, Stephanie Funk was quoted as saying that there was a need to find a solution to the issue of hunger in Zimbabwe by addressing the "root cause"."Since 2002, we have provided more than US$1bn in humanitarian assistance to millions of vulnerable Zimbabweans. USAID is providing US$27m to meet immediate food security needs of hundreds of thousands of rural Zimbabweans," Funk said."If I am not allowed back onto my farm to grow fodder crops, the two pedigree cattle herds and the dairy herd will have to be sent for slaughter," warned Dave."We can't move them to another area because there is foot and mouth disease in the district. In April last year, the disease struck the Matabeleland and Midlands regions, leaving a trail of destruction and poverty and the situation still remains very serious," he said.The ZANU PF government and recipients of Mugabe's patronage like Ndhlukula are destroying Zimbabwe's assets in the form of pedigree cattle, the human resource that developed and farmed them so successfully and the titled land that combined to make our agricultural sector so successful the past," warned Ben Freeth, spokesperson for SADC Tribunal Rights Watch."Contrary to international public awareness, land invasions are still taking place in Zimbabwe - in this instance by the Deputy Secretary in the President's Office," said Freeth."ZANU PF can only rule when the people are on their knees and dependent on the party  either directly or indirectly for food aid, therefore what has happened on Centenary and Boxwell farms is part of their control strategy," Freeth explained.As the drought intensifies, maize production estimates have dropped further, with production for the 2015/16 season estimated at only 200,000 tonnes. This represents an estimated shortfall of 1.6 million tonnes. The total cost of imports through to June 2017 is estimated at around US$870 million.The Conollys are appealing to the international community, which has saved the Zimbabwean people from mass starvation since 2001, to intervene and save their irreplaceable cattle herds for Zimbabwe's agricultural future.
News / National

by Staff Reporter

Houses along airport road have been demolished following a notice given to residents late last year.The residential area was declared illegal as houses were built on Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) property.The Harare City Council has embarked on an exercise to demolish all illegal structures across the city with the latest demolition being of illegal settlers along airport road.The settlement has been declared illegal as the land is reserved for the expansion of Harare International Airport.The settlers were notified by the city fathers of the intention.Settlers in the area complained on the decision by the local authority citing non-communication while also alleging that their funds have been abused by land barons.Harare has seen the emergence of illegal settlers since the adoption of the multi-currency system with land barons being accused of duping desperate home seekers of the hard earned cash.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Government is worried by the failure by seven commercial radio stations licensed last year to start broadcasting, Secretary for Information, Media and Broadcasting Services Mr George Charamba has said.The Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe licensed eight commercial radio stations: FAYA FM, Hevoi, Breeze FM, Skyz Metro FM, KE100.4 FM, Nyaminyami FM, YA FM and Diamond FM.Only YA FM in Zvishavane has started operating.Speaking in Bulawayo yesterday, Mr Charamba said there was a real risk that some of the licence winners would fail to go live."Speaking from a policy point of view, I'm getting worried. The accent in the debate of broadcasting liberalisation has been in breaking the jinx of monopoly which means in licensing. Maybe recklessly we were driven by guilt not by calculation, so we went on a licensing spree. Licence station A, station B and station C. Now we've more licences than we have stations. I don't licence to fail, I licence to ensure that there's sustainable service provision for Zimbabweans," he said.He said some stations were struggling and the Government would go back to the drawing board to find solutions to the problems."When you see more than one failure, each suggesting a trend, you go back to the drawing board and say, is it the broadcaster who's failing or it's the way we've structured our industry which is not sustainable?"He said the changes to policy would be done to help sustain the sector and service provision by the radio stations."I think a responsible manager of a sector must ensure changes take place at a pace which is reasonable, which is realistic."More importantly, you must make sure the players in the industry are man enough to be equal to the market available, lest there's what is termed ruinous competition, where everyone is in to the detriment of everyone. Once you do that, you've undermined the concept of sustainability which is the hallmark of policy making," said Charamba.With the shrinking advertising revenue due to the downward turn of the economy, the viability of radio stations was threatened, he added."When the economy is not on the upward trend it means the budget for advertising is correspondingly shrinking. More importantly, if a company is put into a corner the one budget which is very easy to slash is one for advertising. So you've shrinking economic activity,a shrinking advertising budget and within that shrinkage a reassignment of monies which were initially allocated for advertising and you've 10 stations battling for that dwindling cake, you can't succeed," he said.
A runny-nosed female walrus at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom had veterinarians concerned that she was suffering from more than just a common cold. As it turned out, the 22-year-old walrus, named Siku, was suffering from a parasitic infection that was causing the rivers of snot. [Read full story about how the cause of Siku's runny nose]

Three Walruses

A healthy Siku the walrus is flanked by her two companions at Six Flags Discovery Park in Vallejo, California. All three walruses were orphaned as pups in Alaska and have lived in captivity since. At age 17, though, Siku came down with a runny nose that wouldn't go away. (Credit: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom)

Runny nose

A sick Siku with copious yellow nasal discharge pouring from her nostrils. Initially, antibiotics helped clear the flow, according to Six Flag veterinarian Vanessa Fravel. But once the antibiotic course was over, the mucus came back. (Credit: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom)

Sleeping Siku

Thick snot kept Siku from breathing comfortably, and she soon began breathing through her mouth, like a person with a bad cold. As the weeks went on with no relief, she became lethargic and lost her appetite. (Credit: Copyright 2016 British Veterinary Association)

Walrus medicine

It's difficult and dangerous to anesthetize a 2,000-pound walrus. So veterinarian Vanessa Fravel and trainers at Six Flags Discovery Park taught Siku to accept a scope up her nose. First, she was rewarded for simply opening her nostrils; then, for accepting a cotton swab up her nose. Gradually, trainers worked with Siku to accept tubing up her nose for 30 seconds to a minute, enough time to get a sample of the mucus inside her nostrils. (Credit: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom)

Walrus rhinoscopy

An internal view of a walrus rhinoscopy. A small brush pushed through the scope collects a sample from a couple inches into Siku's nasal passage. Upon seeing the sample, Fravel realized that Siku's nose was infested with parasitic mites. She was surprised, but relieved, she told Live Science  mites are a treatable ailment. (Credit: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom)

Mites inside

A view of the rhinoscopy brush inside Siku's nasal passages. The undulating pink tissue is the mucosa of the nasal turbinate, the bone inside the nasal passages. The white specks clinging to the mucosa are mites, later discovered to be of the species Orthohalarachne attenuate. (Credit: Copyright 2016 British Veterinary Association)

Surprising mite

Orthohalarachne attenuate commonly infect the nasal passages of wild sea lions and seals, but there is only one report of them infecting walruses in the wild, and only two reports of captive walruses plagued by these parasites. This mite is about 0.16 inches (4 millimeters) long. (Credit: Copyright 2016 British Veterinary Association)

Patient walrus

A vet tech inserts a scope into Siku's nose as a trainer keeps a hand on the walruses' snout and chin. It took a month to train Siku and her fellow walruses to accept the scope so that veterinarians could diagnose the cause of Siku's runny nose. (Credit: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom)

Open wide

The first step in training the walruses to accept the rhinoscopy procedure was to train them to open their nostrils on demand. Here, Siku opens her nostrils, a behavior she learned to do in order to get a treat. Yellowish-white discharge can be seen on her right nostril. (Credit: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom)

Scoping it out

Although Siku was trained, walruses can be unpredictable. So staff members conducted their nose examination from behind a half-door, in case Siku became distressed and tried to charge them. Luckily, the procedure went smoothly, Fravel told Live Science. (Credit: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom)

Walrus in training

Before bringing in real equipment, Six Flags Discovery staff members used plain plastic tubing to teach Siku to accept objects in her nostrils. Fravel and her colleagues were confident in their ability to train Siku and the other walruses at the park, because all three had previously been trained to accept artificial insemination for walrus breeding programs. (Credit: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom)

In a walrus head

Initially, veterinarians tried other ways to diagnose Siku's problem. Blood testing revealed elevated white blood cells, a sign of an immune response to some infection, but no other hints as to the ultimate cause of the persistent nasal discharge. Samples of the mucus taken from outside of the nostril revealed nothing out of the ordinary. This skull radiograph likewise appeared normal. (Credit: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom)

Swimming Siku

A treatment with the anti-parasitic medication ivermectin knocked out the parasite infection and got Siku swimming happily again. Veterinarians aren't sure how Siku got the parasites. The two other walruses she lived with had some nasal mites, too, though not enough to cause symptoms (they were also treated). All three could have harbored them in the wild, or Siku may have caught them while on breeding loan, Fravel and her team reported in the journal Veterinary Record Case Reports. Or trainers at Six Flags may have inadvertently transferred mites from wild-born sea lions at the park to the walruses. The park now strictly enforces hand-washing between exhibits for its trainers, Fravel said. (Credit: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom)

Follow Stephanie Pappas on Twitter and Google+. Follow us @livescience, Facebook & Google+.
An illustration of <i>Dollocaris</i> using its excellent vision to catch a Jurassic-age shrimp.

A mysterious 160-million-year-old crustacean had incredibly complex eyes similar to those of modern arthropods, a group that includes insects and other crustaceans, among other animals, a new study finds.

The ancient marine arthropod, known as Dollocaris ingens, likely used its exceptional vision to hunt, possibly as an ambush predator, the researchers said.

"It's a very weird creature, indeed," said study lead researcher Jean Vannier, a paleobiologist at the French National Center for Scientific Research in Lyon. "We found the remains of undigested shrimps in its stomach, and the animal had obvious [grasping] legs. No doubt, acute vision was essential in its daily life." [Fabulous Fossils: Gallery of Earliest Animal Organs]

Typically, Vannier studies creatures that lived during the Cambrian period (between 541 million and 485.4 million years ago), when many animal groups first appeared in the fossil record. Complex sight also evolved during this time, and was a real game changer for these organisms.

Study co-researchers Brigitte Schoenemann (left) and Jean Vannier (right). (Image credit: Courtesy of Jean Vannier)

"When vision appeared, things changed dramatically," Vannier told Live Science. "Animals with eyes could detect prey more easily, and prey had to worry about it."

But scientists have yet to find a well-preserved eye with fossilized sensory cells from the Cambrian period, he said. So, Vannier and his colleagues turned to the D. ingens fossils dating back 160 million years, to the Jurassic period. The fossils were discovered in the 1980s in the La Voulte-sur-Rhone formation in southeast France, but they had not been properly studied until now, he said.

The eyes of D. ingens are a remarkable find, Vannier said. "Such exceptional preservation of an eye had never been observed in the fossil record, except in very recent fossil flies in amber," he said.

Super Surpr-eyes

D. ingens belongs to an enigmatic extinct group of crustaceans called thylacocephalans, which don't resemble any modern crustaceans, Vannier said. He and his colleagues discovered its incredibly preserved eyes while examining the critter, which measures between 2 and 8 inches (5 and 20 centimeters) in length.

The 160-million-year-old arthropod Dollocaris has exceptionally well-preserved and complex eyes. (Image credit: Jean Vannier)

To study the creature's internal organs, they used X-ray microtomography, a technique that compiles X-ray cross-section scans to make a virtual 3D model. Then, they used a scanning electron microscope, which helped them discover the exceptional eyes.

The eyes make up nearly one-fourth of the animal's entire body, and each eye has about 18,000 ommatidia, tiny cylinders that make up a compound eye (think of a fly's eye). D. ingens has more of these cylinders, which contain a lens and light-receiving sensory cells, than any other modern arthropod except the dragonfly, which has about 30,000.

The size, shape and number of these ommatidia indicate that D. ingens had "acute vision, which normally characterizes predators" such as dragonflies and mantis shrimps, Vannier said.

The study was published online Tuesday (Jan. 19) in the journal Nature Communications (opens in new tab).

Follow Laura Geggel on Twitter @LauraGeggel. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science.
Examples of organisms and trajectories observed in sackhole brines of Malene Bay, Greenland, using digital holographic microscopy. (A) Appearance of a nearly full-screen image containing objects suggestive of bacteria (arrows). (B) Zoomed-in appearance of a single bacterial cell. (C) Amplitude image of non-motile diatom. Note the clear resolution of cell walls and nuclei. (D) More slowly swimming, typical photosynthetic algal cell. (E) Zig-zag motility of a bacterium, observed as a projection through 60 seconds of time.

The first evidence of alien life may be recorded as a hologram.

Scientists have detected microbes in Greenland sea ice using a specially built digital holographic microscope, suggesting that the instrument could have similar success on icy moons in the outer solar system, if any of them harbor life.

Indeed, the holographic microscope could theoretically make a contribution to NASA's mission to the Jupiter moon Europa, which the agency plans to launch by the mid-2020s, the instrument's developers say. [13 Ways to Hunt Intelligent Alien Life]

"This was designed from the beginning to have a path to flight," said Chris Lindensmith of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, who presented the team's latest results last month at the annual fall meeting of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) in San Francisco. "We're ready to jump up and say, 'Pick us! Pick us!'"

Photographing life

Digital holographic microscopy (DHM) uses the interference of light (which is produced by an internal laser) to record information about an object as a hologram. A computer then uses this information to construct a viewable image of the object.

Digging the digital holographic microscopy unit into the sea ice during a field trial near Nuuk, Greenland. (Image credit: Shelly Carpenter, University of Washington)

"DHM has several advantages over ordinary imaging microscopy when it comes to possible use on a space mission, Lindensmith said. For example, it's easy to make DHM instruments autonomous; there is no need for knob-twiddling to bring a target object into sharp view.

"The thing that makes it magic is, we don't have to do any focusing," Lindensmith told Space.com at AGU. "We can reconstruct any image in the object field.

DHM images can be recorded in the form of videos, which allow researchers to detect microbe motility  one of the least ambiguous signs of life.

The team built a field-ready DHM system thats about the size of an airplane carry-on bag, then put it to the test last March in three different sea-ice sites near Greenland's capital city, Nuuk, which lies on the giant island's southwestern coast.

The results were extremely promising, Lindensmith said. The instrument was able to resolve objects smaller than 1 micron (or 1 millionth of a meter), and it detected moving eukaryotes  organisms whose cells contain a nucleus and other membrane-bound organelles  in every single one of the more than 100 sea-ice samples it examined.

It was obvious from the DHM footage that the microbes were actively swimming, and not merely being swept along by fluid flow, Lindensmith said. Some of the imaged eukaryotes were motionless, but in many cases their cellular structure clearly identified them as organisms, he added.

"Big eukaryotes  those things just scream out," he said.

The story was a bit different for the prokaryotes  organisms such as bacteria that have no nuclei or other membrane-enclosed internal structures. Most of them were not moving upon initial observation, and when motionless they were tough to tell apart from random debris.

However, the researchers were able to induce prokaryotic movement by adding the amino acid serine to the samples.

Similar goosing strategies would likely be employed on a space mission to get microbes to move, Lindensmith said. For example, samples could be heated slightly, or hit with light and/or a magnetic field. It would even be possible to offer up food to alien microbes without adding sugars or other contaminants from Earth, he added  simply kill a small portion of the native prokaryotes, and let the others swim over and feast on their brethren. [6 Most Likely Places for Alien Life in Solar System]

Going to Europa?

The DHM unit's performance in the Greenland ice could make it an intriguing contender for future life-detection missions to moons such as Europa and the Saturn satellite Enceladus, both of which possess global oceans beneath their icy shells.

Close-up of the digital holographic microscopy unit during field trials in the sea ice near Nuuk, Greenland. (Image credit: Shelly Carpenter, University of Washington)

NASA is already developing a Europa mission, a $2 billion project that's scheduled to launch in the early to mid-2020s. The as-yet-unnmaned spacecraft will perform 45 flybys of Europa from Jupiter orbit over the course of 2.5 years or so, assessing the moon's habitability with nine different science instruments.

The Europa spacecraft's payloads are not set in stone yet; NASA is considering adding a lander to the mission, possibly to hunt for signs of life on or near the moon's surface. If the agency does decide to go this route, a DHM unit would make a lot of sense, Lindensmith said; the microscope could be integrated into an instrument suite that also contains spectrometers, which would perform chemical analyses of target samples to complement the imaging work.

There shouldn't be any trouble getting a DHM instrument ready to go in time for the Europa mission's launch, he added. The unit that got a workout in Greenland last year is already nearly in "space mode," and the team should have a design for a bona fide flight version laid out by the end of February, Lindensmith said.

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope spotted signs of a plume of water vapor emanating from Europa's south polar region in late 2012 (though future efforts to confirm the plume have not been successful), and geysers near Enceladus' south pole continuously blast out large amounts of water ice, organic compounds and other material.

A DHM instrument could theoretically search for signs of life in Europa or Enceladus plume material collected during flybys, Lindensmith said, but such work would pose challenges that a lander-based instrument wouldn't face. For example, plume samples would be very small, so the odds of seeing something interesting would be lower. Further, plume material would be snagged by a spacecraft at high velocity, possibly killing and/or destroying any cells that were picked up.

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.
News / National

by Stephen Jakes

A staunch supporter of President Robert Mugabe, Energy Mutodi has exposed that the ruling Zanu PF factional wars are escalating a development which he said points towards an inevitable implosion."A Cold War is brewing in Zanu PF with the latest developments pointing towards an inevitable implosion if stop gap measures are not implemented to calm down the situation and allow soberness and objectivity to be revived in the once glamorous revolutionary party," Mutodi posted on Facebook."According to sources, the G40 faction, whose pillar of strength Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko is currently holidaying in the Far East together with the First Family has set the stage for a final push in eradicating its rival Lacoste faction by drafting a list of individuals it wants dismissed from their influential government posts with immediate effect."Mutodi said the looming cabinet and security sector shake up will result in most if not all individuals either linked to former Vice President Joice Mujuru or the troubled Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa being shown the exit door from their lucrative appointments."However, what is extra-ordinary with the impending G40-led clean up exercise is that even Vice President Emerson Mnangagwa himself will not be spared.According to sources, the G40 wants to deal with the feared VP once and for all together with his close friend and ally Dr Constantine Chiwenga who is currently serving as Commander of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces," said Mutodi."Chiwenga is expected to be replaced another highly decorated security Chief Air Marshall Perence Shiri who has been his rival for the military top post for quite some time."Mutodi said the police has not also been spared as its head Commissioner General Augustine Chihuri well known during wartime as Cde Chocha will be sacked and replaced by one of his deputies DCG Matibili."Chihuri will go alongside Godwin Matanga who has been accused of being a Mnangagwa ally. In the CIO, one Mudahondo will fall and will be replaced by Colonel Kembo," he said."CIO boss Bonyongwe, DDG Nhepera and DIA Basopo will also be dismissed according to the G40 proposal and be replaced by loyalists. he reports indicate that one Andrew Muzonzini will take over from Bonyongwe. There will also be gnashing of teeth in the President's Office as long serving Chief Secretary Dr Misheck Sibanda will be purged and be replaced by his deputy Colonel Katsande according to the drafted reshuffle."Mutodi said. Ray Ndhlukula will also go and will be replaced by one Farai Matamangira while Justin Mpamhanga who is Deputy Chief Secretary will also meet his waterloo according to the proposed changes."In cabinet, sweeping changes will see Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa being replaced by Senate President Edna Madzongwe while Home Affairs Minister Ignatius Chombo will be fired and be replaced by Shadreck Chipanga.The G40 fears Chombo can be a spoiler to its plans due to his closeness to President Mugabe and the whole royal Gushungo clan," claimed Mutodi."Jorum Gumbo who is Minister of Transport will also be removed together with his predecessor Obert Mpofu who is set to be replaced by Psychology Maziwisa as Minister of Economic Planning. Kizito Chivamba will take over from Jason Machaya who will be shown the door for allegations of being a Mnangagwist a few months after he was spared the chop on allegations of being a Joice Mujuru ally.In Mashonaland Central Province, fraud-accused Resident Minister Martin Dinha will be fired and Dickson Mafios will come in his place."The firebrand youthful politician said in Manicaland, Oppah Muchinguri will be axed from cabinet and be replaced by little known Anna Ndlovu while hard working Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa will be dismissed and be replaced by Zimbabwe Investment Authority boss and former banker Nigel Chanakira.Energy Minister Samuel Undenge will also be fired alongside War Veterans Minister Christopher Mutsvangwa who is being accused of mobilizing war veterans to go against the G40 cabal."Agriculture Minister Joseph Made whom grain millers have threatened with court action for failure to processes maize import permits has also been targeted and according to the G40 plans he will be fired and be replaced by foul-mouthed Paddy Zhanda who once said President Mugabe was too old to rule. The proposed G-40 masterminded changes have coincided with a mysterious break-in into Vice President Mnangagwa's office, a development that may show that those who broke into the office were keen to find any piece of evidence that they could use to nail the Midlands godfather," he said.He said sources have also claimed that the VP and his ally Constantine Chiwenga are being accused of holding private meetings in the absence of their assigned bodyguards especially soon after Mnangagwa's inauguration in December 2014."The break-in could have therefore been set up to try and extract any evidence that may prove any evil plans by the two war veterans that could make it easy to sake them. Mnangagwa, a more than three time elections campaign manager for President Mugabe notably during the hotly contested 2008 runoff and the 2013 plebiscite has been the President's most trusted body guard from during the liberation war and his blue-eyed boy favored to take over from him whenever he retires," Mutodi said."However, the emergence of the Generation 40 faction, that draws its strength from its closeness to First Lady Grace Mugabe has made Mnangagwa vulnerable and prone to attacks by an organized team of young turks that are using any means possible to wrestle power from the old guard."He said the G40 strategy is to isolate President Mugabe from his trusted comrades after which he will be left exposed and too weak to remain in power."It is also in their plans that should they succeed to persuade the President to willfully relinquish power before the end of his current term, Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko should take over to finish his term as President while Saviour Kasukuwere warms up to take over as President in 2018. It is not yet established who Kasukuwere will then name as his deputy although it doesn't need a rocket scientist to tell that American schooled and alleged CIA agent Professor Jonathan Moyo will be one of the deputies," Mutodi said."Should the G40 succeed in influencing President Mugabe to implement the purges that it has proposed, it would have successfully managed to destroy Zanu PF from within as earlier on noticed by former Zanu PF spokesperson Rugare Gumbo."He said the media reports in the recent weeks have claimed that the G40 was confident that it will successfully process the replacement of Vice President Mnangagwa by a woman this year and nothing will stop this from happening."As a way of persuading the First Family to act expeditiously and uncompromisingly on its demands, unconfirmed reports have intimated that the G40 kingpins have proposed joint business ventures with the royal family while VP Mphoko in his individual capacity has offered the family shares in his Choppies Supermarket chain in a move that may cause undue influence on the veteran ruler to choose his successor in line with the G40 interests," he said."Among those who have been mercilessly driven away from President Mugabe as the G40 escalates its campaign to take over power are former deputy President Joice Mujuru, former Intelligence Minister Didymus Mutasa, former War Veterans leader Jabulani Sibanda among others who are now in their final stages to launch a rival political outfit to be called People's First."Energy Mutodi studies a Bachelor of Laws Degree at the University of Zimbabwe and a PhD in Financial Economics at the University of Cape Town. He also holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in War Studies and Geography, and a Masters Degree in Business Administration from the University of Zimbabwe. He is a member of Zanu PF.
News / National

by Staff reporter

FORMER Botswana President Festus Mogae has uncharacteristically called on President Robert Mugabe to "stop hiding behind sovereignty, while abusing people" and to accept gay rights.In a recent interview with a United Nations online magazine, Africa Renewal, Mogae accused Mugabe and his Zanu-PF administration of "thinking they are more important than his country"."Sovereignty has limits like any other right. A leader cannot kill and harass his people and hide behind sovereignty. A true leader does not kill, but protects his people," Mogae said."We still have leaders in Africa who think they are indispensable, larger than life and more important than their countries. That must stop. If a leader loses control, the world will and should intervene to save the people."Responding to reports that some African leaders were of the view that gay rights were un-African, after applauding Mugabe when he declared at the UN 70th General Assembly that Africans were not gay, the ex-Botswana leader said: "It's not surprising that we appear to be speaking from different corners of the mouth. Differences in opinion are welcome".Mogae said the Zimbabwean leader should dump "outdated beliefs"."While I admit that the West often push their agendas on Africa, which we must be wary of, I also believe we must, as Africans, admit that the world is changing and we must move with the times," he told the magazine."This means often abandoning some of our long-held convictions about life, if the need arises."In my long interaction with LGBT [lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and trans-sexual] groups and extensive research, I have come to the realisation that we are limited in our knowledge and must be open to new discoveries. I have been converted; I used to hold the same beliefs as my counterparts."President Mugabe has said that he hates homosexuals and is on record as saying they are worse than pigs and dogs. That is still his position."Leadership is not always about you, it is about people and often circumstances. I call upon African leaders to open up to second generation rights."Information, Media and Broadcasting Services minister Christopher Mushohwe yesterday said: "I read it, he did not mention the President by name, but if indeed he was referring to President Mugabe, it is unfortunate. He said it while he was in America, maybe he wanted to please the New Yorkers. Why does he wait to be in America to say it? Why not say it while he is in Africa? He was here a few days ago, why didn't he say it? If he couldn't do it here, he could have said it while in Botswana. That is the problem with most African leaders, they think if they are in Europe, they are Europeans, if they are in America, they are Americans."Mugabe is an avowed critic of homosexuals and infamously described them as "worse than pigs and dogs".Botswana has remained a lone voice in the region against Mugabe's perceived excesses, demanding a return to legitimacy and respect of human rights in Zimbabwe, much to the chagrin of the veteran Zanu-PF leader.Current Botswana President Ian Khama has also clashed with Mugabe on several occasions on various issues.Gay rights remain a contentious issue in Southern Africa with South Africa being the only country to recognise homosexual marriages.
As Storm Frank bashed the country, brave Longford soldier Brian Gallogly completed a mammoth 127-kilometre hike through the Wicklow Way in aid of Pieta House and Suicide Prevention.

Twenty-seven-year-old Brian, from Crenagh, along with two of his Irish Defence Forces colleagues - Ronan Guerin (24) & Martin McDowell (29) from Swords - battled rain, ice and high winds to complete their challenge in 45 hours and 17 minutes, almost three hours ahead of their 48 hour target.

They began their gruelling challenge after midnight on Monday, December 28 from the village of Clonegal in Co Carlow and their journey ended at 9:17pm on Tuesday, December 29 at the entrance to Marley Park.

A fourth member of the team - Jamie Martin (25) from Dundalk - had to pull out after about 18 hours after he sustained a stress fracture on his foot.

Jamie suffered the worst, explained Brian.

He added, We have a few small injuries, luckily with nothing major other than some blisters and tired feet.

Brian, along with Ronan and Martin, were overwhelmed to see the crowd that came out to support them at the finish line.

It was really tough towards the end but hearing our friends and family were waiting in the stormy weather at the finish line really spurred us on, reflected Brian.

He said that after Jamies injury they took an unscheduled break as the storm was making it impossible for them to carry on.

Myself, Martin and Ronan got back out at 6am on day two and carried on. It was brutal at some points but we had to stick with it. We are really pleased with the timing we made considering the unscheduled break, and we enjoyed celebrating afterwards with our families, explained Brian.

The team have managed to raise over 4,000 so far for Pieta House, and they would like to thank all those involved and anyone that has donated to date.

Brian said it was fitting they completed the challenge at the darkest time of year, not to mention the coldest. We hope that this will mirror some of the hardship that people experience through the suicide of a loved one.

Anyone still wishing to donate can do so at: www.mycharity.ie/event/127k_

wicklow_way_for_suicide
School & Education, Nature & Weather, Local News, Community, Charity & Cause, Press Releases

By Long Island News & PR Published: January 22 2016

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the selection of enrollees for New York States Excelsior Conservation Corps, a new AmeriCorps environmental education and stewardship program for 18 to 25 year olds.

Albany, NY - January 20, 2016 - Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the selection of enrollees for New York States Excelsior Conservation Corps, a new AmeriCorps environmental education and stewardship program for 18 to 25 year olds. Members enrolled in the program will perform meaningful and lasting environmental projects across New York State while gaining hands on experience and skills in conservation careers.



The Excelsior Conservation Corps offers a unique opportunity for young New Yorkers to gain valuable skills and training while addressing many of the states environmental needs, Governor Cuomo said. These members embody New Yorks leadership in protecting our environment and I am proud to support this very important program.



Out of 209 potential applicants, the Excelsior Conservation Corps has enrolled 50 members from diverse backgrounds, including members from a Youth Works program in Albany and two veterans. Representing all ten regions of the state, these participants will undertake over 80 projects, providing services to 19 different Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation sites and 44 Department of Environmental Conservation properties.



DEC projects include Arden Height Woods Trial improvements in Staten Island where members will build decking over exposed roots, I FISH NY Clinics and Outreach in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx, where members will assist with in-class lessons and fishing clinics, and developing a history trail at Five Rivers Education Center in Albany County. Members will assist State Parks on a variety of slated projects such as the installation of a 500-kilowatt solar system at Robert Moses State Park, which will make the Suffolk County coastal park the first energy neutral park in the nation. Trail maintenance across multiple state parks and historic sites touching numerous regions is another high priority State Park target for the Environmental Conservation Corps (ECC). Many state parks such as Letchworth State Park in the Finger Lakes, Robert Treman State Park in the Southern Tier and Grafton Lakes State Park in the Capital District each have multiple projects that present greater opportunity for the members to leave a lasting legacy. The 10-month service program will be administered by the Student Conservation Association, a leading national organization in youth and young adult conservation service and environmental programs.



When Governor Cuomo and our great partners introduced this program in the fall, we knew it would be a special opportunity for young people across the state to get unprecedented hands on experience in environmental stewardship, said Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul. Im thrilled to see that so many people took interest in the Excelsior Conservation Corps program and I am confident that it will build upon New Yorks leadership role in protecting and enhancing the states natural resources, while empowering the next generation of conservation leaders.



The program is funded through $1.9 million in combined state and federal funding, including $1 million from the New York State Environmental Protection Fund, New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation and the State University of New York. The New York State Commission on National and Community Service, in partnership with the federal Corporation for National and Community Service, has also committed $850,000 of AmeriCorps funding to the program. Additional funding will be secured by the Student Conservation Association through sponsorships and private donations.



Excelsior Conservation Corps Activities & Training



Under the supervision of the Student Conservation Association, program members will assist state agencies including DEC, State Parks, the Environmental Facilities Corporation and State University of New York in open space management; natural resource stewardship; infrastructure and sustainability improvements; recreation and access mapping; and environmental education and outreach at state campgrounds and nature centers. Specific projects will include water improvement projects, safety enhancements on trails and campsites, tidal marsh restoration, invasive species removal and climate change resiliency measures. In addition to environmental stewardship work, members will undergo disaster and volunteer management training to help communities impacted by extreme weather and serve as volunteer leaders during major storm events.



Excelsior Conservation Corps members will be based at Morrisville State College, where they will receive extensive training and certifications in wilderness first aid, trail construction, carpentry, risk management and emergency response, education and outreach, and backcountry living. After completing the programs basic training, members will engage in service work, dividing into smaller teams to tackle priority projects across the state. While on remote and multi-day or week service hitches, members will stay at satellite sites, often camping or staying in cabins at State Parks and DEC campgrounds.



Department of Environmental Conservation Acting Commissioner Basil Seggos said, Under the direction of Governor Cuomo, New York continues to lead the way in addressing important environmental needs facing the state. By combining environmental stewardship with youth service and skills development, this unique program will foster much needed improvements to Adirondack and Catskill Park campgrounds as well as advance other needed restoration projects across New York. We look forward to working closely with the ECC to make this a quality experience for our members and a potential career for these young adults.



New York State Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation Commissioner Rose Harvey said, Decades ago the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built and left an indelible mark on our state parks that millions of New Yorkers enjoy today. Thanks to Governor Cuomo the new Excelsior Conservation Corps will carry this torch and continue this tradition as todays young adults will help rehabilitate and restore our states outstanding recreational facilities.



Congressman Paul Tonko said, Maintaining our parks and recreation areas is an important part of protecting natural resources and ensuring that Americans have valuable outdoor recreation opportunities. I am certain that we will see outstanding work from the ECC in the Capital Region and throughout New York State. I look forward to working with them to advance a priority of mine in Congress that promotes sustainability, protects national treasures, and boosts our heritage areas.



Senator Neil Breslin said, "The environmental education and stewardship program is a great opportunity for young adults to gain valuable experience in the area of environmental conservation. Protecting and preserving our state's natural resources is critical to ensuring a brighter future for New York and this kind of first-hand experience these young people will gain will only further support that effort."



Assemblymember Patricia Fahy said, ECC is just the sort of thoughtful and creative solution for New Yorks compelling issues that can inspire generations. Im eager to follow the progress of this inaugural group of 50 New Yorkers as they work the public benefit triple bottom-line of environmental conservation, community service and inspirational job possibilities, and commend the Governor for providing our youth with what may be a life-altering opportunity to make a difference.



Linda Cohen, Executive Director of the New York State Commission on National and Community Service  New Yorkers Volunteer, said, These 50 New Yorkers embody the spirit of service that has defined AmeriCorps from its start and beyond, reaching back to the earliest days of the Civilian Conservation Corps right here in New York State. Together, they are embarking on a life-changing experience that will have a lasting, meaningful impact on the environment. The Commission stands behind these young men and women in their important service to our state, and we look forward to seeing all they accomplish.



New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation President and CEO Sabrina M. Ty said, The creation and launch of the inaugural Excelsior Conservation Corps underscores the Governors leadership and vision in expanding New Yorks environmental legacy by engaging the intellect and energy of our youth. EFC is proud to support this initiative and appreciates the Corps commitment to performing important conservation work that will protect our states water and other natural resources for generations to come.



Morrisville State College President Dr. David. E. Rogers said, SUNY Morrisville is thrilled at the opportunity to host the students from Excelsior Conservation Corp (ECC). We have many faculty and students already engaged in applied research with programs that align with the ECC mission. Many SUNY Morrisville Alumni from these programs have assumed leadership roles throughout NY State as professionals in the American Fisheries Society, the Society of American Foresters, and the Wildlife Society.



New York State Division of Veterans Affairs Director Eric J. Hesse said, What Governor Cuomo, the Department of Environmental Conservation and State Parks are doing with the Excelsior Conservation Corps is not only good for New York, but also good for our Veterans. I am very pleased that two Veterans will be serving as a part of the inaugural class. Outdoor conversation work is a natural fit for many Veterans who have experience living and working in teams. I hope their opportunity and experience will lead to many additional Veterans in future classes. I applaud the ECC for the recruiting effort they put forth to get these Veterans to be part of the program.



Student Conservation Association President and Chief Executive Officer Jaime Berman Matyas said, We are honored and excited to initiate Governor Cuomos Excelsior Conservation Corps for New York State. This unique program builds upon the relationship the SCA has had with DEC and State Parks for 17 years in our joint efforts to expand outdoor recreation and education experiences for New Yorkers through our hands-on education outreach programs and stewardship projects.
Family & Parenting, Sports & Recreation, Local News, National & World News, Press Releases

By Long Island News & PR Published: January 22 2016

This past weekend the Huntington YMCA hosted the Fitter and Faster swim clinic tour.

Leg. William R. Spencer, M.D. thrilled to meet Olympians Davis Tarwater (left) and Lauren Purdue (right) at Huntington YMCA as they were there to inspire youth swimmers.

Huntington, NY - January 20, 2016 - This past weekend the Huntington YMCA hosted the Fitter and Faster swim clinic tour. Participants had the unique opportunity to learn from Olympic Gold Medalists Davis Tarwater and Lauren Purdue. The clinic focused on teaching swimmers techniques for a more efficient butterfly and improving turn-speed and executing more powerful breakouts. Legislator William R. Spencer, M.D. was thrilled to meet up with the Olympians who inspire our youth to reach their goals as swimmers!
Local News, Crime, Business & Finance, Press Releases

By Long Island News & PR Published: January 22 2016

Attorney General entered into a separate settlement with Westbury Jeep Chrysler Dodge, Inc. and Fiat of Westbury LLC, related car dealerships in Westbury, NY, that also sold CFI credit repair and identity theft services.

Schneiderman: When consumers shot for a car, they should not be misled by deceptive dealerships looking to make a quick buck.

Westbury, NY - January 20, 2016 - Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today announced a lawsuit against several Queens auto dealerships: Koeppel Nissan, Inc., Koeppel Cars Of Bayside, Inc. d/b/a Koeppel Subaru, Koeppel Mazda, Koeppel Auto Group, and Koeppel Volkswagen, Inc., (collectively, Koeppel or Koeppel dealerships). The lawsuit, filed in New York Supreme Court, alleges that the Koeppel dealerships, all owned by the Koeppel family, unlawfully sold after-sale products and services, including credit repair and identity theft protection services to 1,426 consumers that sometimes exceeded a cost of $2,000 per consumer. The Attorney General also announced new settlements with dealerships in Nassau and Suffolk county for selling credit repair and identity theft protection services to consumers.

When consumers shop for a car, they should not be misled by deceptive dealerships looking to make a quick buck off New Yorkers, Attorney General Schneiderman said. Unfortunately, some dealers pad their pockets with fees for products and services that unaware consumers dont need, and dont want.

According to the lawsuit, the Koeppel dealerships used deceptive sales tactics, including charging consumers for services while concealing such charges from the consumers, or by misrepresenting that the services were free. In fact, consumers did not receive the credit repair and identity theft protection services for which they were charged.

The court papers also allege that the Koeppel dealerships collected more than $1 million from consumers between January 2013 and November 2014 for the credit repair and identity theft protection services alone using such deceptive tactics. The suits seek a court order prohibiting the Koeppel dealerships from engaging in these kinds of practices in the future and directing them to refund all illegally obtained overcharges to consumers.

The Koeppel dealerships arranged with an independent company, Credit Forget It, Inc., to sell Credit Forget Its credit repair and identity theft protection services beginning no later than early 2013. It is a violation of state and federal law to charge upfront fees for services that promise to help consumers restore or improve their credit. Contracts that violate the credit repair laws are void.

The court papers further allege that the Koeppel dealerships added on charges for other after-sale items like VIN etching and key replacement services, without clearly disclosing what they were charging for such services. The costs of these services were often bundled into the vehicle sales price and not separately itemized. As a result, unknown to the consumer, the price of the car stated on purchase and lease documents was inflated by the amount of these after-sale items.

In addition, the Koeppel complaint alleges that the dealerships sometimes negotiated purchase and lease terms with consumers in Spanish and then only provided contracts and documents in English. New York City law requires that when the terms of an installment agreement are negotiated in Spanish, the seller must provide documents translated into Spanish.

The Attorney General also entered into a separate settlement with Westbury Jeep Chrysler Dodge, Inc. and Fiat of Westbury LLC, related car dealerships in Westbury, NY, that also sold CFI credit repair and identity theft services. That settlement requires the dealerships to stop selling illegal credit repair products and using deceptive and misleading sales tactics. It also requires the dealerships to itemize the cost of after-sale items in its sale and lease agreements. Westbury will refund over $100,000 to consumers, which represents the full profits it received from selling credit repair and identity protection. It will also pay $5,000 in penalties and $5,000 in costs.

The Attorney General also settled with Security Auto Sales, Inc. d/b/a Security Dodge in Amityville, Suffolk County, for similar practices. In addition to injunctive relief, Security Dodge will refund over $18,000 to consumers, which represents the full profits it received from selling credit repair and identity protection. It will also pay $5,000 in penalties. The office is continuing to investigate a number of other New York auto dealers that sold or sell after-sale services without the knowledge and consent of consumers.

These lawsuits and settlements are part of the Attorney Generals initiative to end the practice that automobile dealers call jamming, or charging consumers for hidden purchases. In 2015, Attorney General Schneiderman announced a settlement with Credit Forget, Inc., the company that purported to provide the credit repair and identity theft protection services. In 2015, the Attorney General also settled with Paragon Motors of Woodside, Inc., d/b/a Paragon Honda, Worldwide Motors Ltd. d/b/a Paragon Acura, and Civic Center Motors Ltd. d/b/a White Plains Honda, a group of automobile dealers in Queens and Westchester Counties, that the Attorney Generals office determined had also fraudulently sold these same Credit Forget It contracts. Paragon agreed to pay restitution potentially totaling nearly $14 million.

Consumers who believe they have been jammed with unwanted products or services in connection with a vehicle lease or purchase or who were sold Credit Forget Its credit repair or identity theft protection services are urged to file complaints online or call 1-800-771-7755.

The cases against the Koeppel dealerships and the settlement with the Westbury dealerships are being handled by Special Assistant Attorney General Stephen Mindell, Assistant Attorney General Herbert Israel, Assistant Attorney General Noah Popp, Deputy Bureau Chief Laura J. Levine, and Bureau Chief Jane M. Azia, all of the Consumer Frauds and Protection Bureau, and the Executive Deputy Attorney General for Economic Justice Karla G. Sanchez. Security Dodge was handled by Assistant Attorney General Rachael C. Anello of the Suffolk Regional Office, Kimberly Kinirons, Assistant Attorney General in Charge of the Suffolk Regional Office and Executive Deputy Attorney General for Regional Offices Marty Mack.
Nature & Weather, Local News, Community, Charity & Cause, Press Releases

By Don Miller Published: January 22 2016

Regional foodbank currently has stockpiles of bottled water, MREs and other food products at its Hauppauge Distribution Center ready to be distributed to areas impacted by the pending storm, should the need arise.

Should the need arise, Island Harvest's Hauppauge Distribution Center is currently stocked with bottled water and MREs (meals, ready to eat) for those areas impacted by the storm.

Hauppauge, NY - January 22, 2016 - In anticipation of the pending blizzard warning issued by the national Weather Service, Island Harvest Food Bank today announced the activation of its emergency response protocols due to the blizzard conditions forecasted throughout the region beginning early Saturday morning and continuing throughout the day.

A blizzard warning is in effect for Long Island from 4:00 a.m. Saturday until noon on Sunday. According to the National Weather Service, Nassau and Suffolk counties can expect between 6 and 10 inches of snow with slightly lower amounts on the Twin Forks. Coastal flooding and high winds are also forecasted.





Island Harvest currently has stockpiles of bottled water and MREs (meals, ready to eat) at its Hauppauge Distribution Center. The product is ready to be distributed to areas impacted by the storm, should the need arise. Island Harvest will also maintain drivers and staff to deliver the supplies if needed, and to assist first responders in affected areas with food, water and other vital supplies.

Island Harvest will remain in contact with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the American Red Cross, and the emergency management offices of both Nassau and Suffolk counties, and the Long Island Voluntary Organization Active in Disaster (LIVOAD) throughout the weekend. The organization is also in communications with Feeding America, a national network of food banks; in the event aid and assistance is required in other parts of the east coast also facing severe storm conditions due to Hurricane Joaquin.

The National Weather Service further advises that travel could be extremely dangerous with whiteout conditions during the storm and that roads may become impassable, and high winds could bring down electric lines and tree limbs and Island Harvest echoes the advice of officials in urging Long Islanders to stay home, if possible, during the storm.

Island Harvests regularly scheduled distribution of food to its member agencies across Long Island on Monday will commence as usual. Agencies will be notified of any changes, should they occur, or can contact Island Harvest at 516-294-8528, extension 117.

Island Harvest will issue updates accordingly and as necessary. For more information visit online, or call 631-873-4775.

About Island Harvest Food Bank

Island Harvest Food Bank is a leading hunger-relief organization that provides food and other resources to people in need. Always treating those it helps with dignity and respect, its goal is to end hunger and reduce poverty on Long Island through efficient food collection and distribution; enhanced hunger-awareness and nutrition-education programs; job training; and direct services targeted at children, senior citizens, veterans and others at risk. Approximately 94 cents of every dollar donated to Island Harvest goes to programs that support more than 316,000 Long Islanders. Island Harvest is a lead agency in the regions emergency-response preparedness for food and product distribution, and is a member of Feeding America, the nations leading domestic hunger-relief charity. More information can be found at www.islandharvest.org.
Others, Nature & Weather, Local News, National & World News, Seasonal & Current Events

By Brian Re Published: January 22 2016

The National Weather Service has issued a Blizzard Warning for Long Island, which will be in effect from 4 AM on Saturday until 12 PM on Sunday.

The National Weather Service has issued a Blizzard Warning for Long Island, which will be in effect from 4 AM on Saturday until 12 PM on Sunday. The Warning is blanketed across Long Island and includes New York City and coastal portions of Northeast New Jersey. This Blizzard Warning serves as an upgrade from the Blizzard Watch for the area that was reported yesterday.



Snow accumulations are expected in the range of 7  12 inches, with winds of 25  35 MPH and gusts reaching 50 MPH. Temps will stay in the upper 20s to the lower 30s for the period.



With visibility expected to be at a quarter mile or less, the NWS is advising that travel will be extremely dangerous during this time. Heavy snow and strong winds have a high probability of causing whiteout conditions, with secondary roads being impassable. The heavy snow combined with the high winds will create dangerous conditions for drivers, and could potentially down tree limbs and power lines, making roads impassible.



Numerous school districts have canclled the SAT seating, and some schools are closing tonight and tomorrow. Please visit our Long Island School Closures Page for regular updates of school closings in your district.



For the most up to date weather information, head over to the LongIsland.com Weather Center, where you can find the latest weather forecasts, advisories and more.



To get the latest traffic & road conditions before traveling this weekend, visit the LongIsland.com Traffic Center, and be sure to check out the live traffic feeds on our Traffic Cam Page.

[Source: NWS]
Nature & Weather, Local News, Crime, Press Releases

By Long Island News & PR Published: January 22 2016

Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today issued a consumer alert warning both consumers and businesses about price gouging ahead of this weekend's winter storm that is expected to impact parts of New York State.

Schneiderman: Dangerous winter storms are not a time for businesses to exploit New Yorkers in order to line their pockets.

New York, NY - January 21, 2016 - Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman today issued a consumer alert warning both consumers and businesses about price gouging ahead of this weekend's winter storm that is expected to impact parts of New York State. A blizzard watch is in effect from Saturday morning through Sunday afternoon for New York City and Long Island. Snow accumulation could reach up to 12 inches, and wind gusts are expected up to 50 miles per hour. A winter storm watch is also in effect for parts of the Hudson Valley.

General Business Law prohibits excessive increases in prices of essential goods and services like food, water, gas, generators, batteries, and flashlights, hotel lodging, and transportation, during natural disasters or other events that disrupt the market. During and after severe winter weather events, these goods and services might also include snow plowing, snow removal from roofs, shovels and other snow removal equipment, salt, and contract services for storm-related damage.

Dangerous winter storms are not a time for businesses to exploit New Yorkers in order to line their pockets, said Attorney General Schneiderman. I encourage consumers to report any businesses that may be capitalizing on this snowstorm to distort their prices.

Any New Yorkers who believe they have been the victim of price gauging should call the Attorney General's office at at 800-771-7755 or visit online to file a complaint.

New York States Price Gouging Law (General Business Law  396-r) prohibits merchants from taking unfair advantage of consumers by selling goods or services for an unconscionably excessive price during an abnormal disruption of the market. The price gouging law covers New York State vendors, retailers and suppliers, including but not limited to supermarkets, gas stations, hardware stores, bodegas, delis, and taxi and livery cab drivers.

New York's price gouging law takes effect only upon the occurrence of triggering events that cause an abnormal disruption of the market. An abnormal disruption of the market is defined as any change in the market, whether actual or imminently threatened, that results from triggering events such as weather events, power failures, strikes, civil disorder, war, military action, national or local emergency, or other causes. During an abnormal disruption of the market like a major weather event, all parties within the chain of distribution for any essential consumer goods or services are prohibited from charging unconscionably excessive prices. Consumer goods are defined by the statute as those used, bought or rendered primarily for personal, family or household purposes. For example, gasoline, which is vital to the health, safety and welfare of consumers, is a consumer good under the terms of the statute. Therefore, retailers may not charge unconscionably excessive prices for gasoline during an abnormal disruption of the market.

New York's price gouging law does not specifically define what constitutes an unconscionably excessive price. However, the statute provides that a price may be unconscionably excessive if: the amount charged represents a gross disparity between the price of the goods or services which were the subject of the transaction and their value measured by the price at which such consumer goods or services were sold or offered for sale by the defendant in the usual course of business immediately prior to the onset of the abnormal disruption of the market.

The aftermath of winter storms may also necessitate the hiring of contractors to assist with additional snow removal and home repairs. Reports of roof collapses and the possibility of flooding from warming temperatures are two areas of significant concern. Consumers should protect themselves when hiring contractors to perform storm-related services by considering the following:

Shop around. Get at least three estimates from reputable contractors that include specific information about the materials and services to be provided for the job.

Get it in writing. Insist on a written contract that includes the price and description of the work needed.

Don't pay unreasonable advance sums. Negotiate a payment schedule tied to the completion of specific stages of the job. Never pay the full price up front.

Get references. Check with the Better Business Bureau, banks, suppliers, and neighbors. Always contact references provided to you.

Know your rights. You have three days to cancel after signing a contract for home improvements. All cancellations must be in writing.

The Office of the Attorney General has a history of successfully cracking down on illegal price gouging. In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, which saw hundreds of complaints in response to some of the largest jumps in gas prices in state history, Attorney General Schneiderman filed lawsuits with more than 50 gas service stations for violations of the New York State Price Gouging Law. The monetary settlements reached in these settlements totaled more than $300,000 in penalties and costs.

The Attorney General also reached an agreement with Uber in 2014 to limit prices during abnormal disruptions of the market consistent with New Yorks price gouging statute. Under the agreement, Uber sets a cap on its pricing during emergencies and natural disasters limited to the normal range of prices it charged in the preceding sixty days  while also limiting the allowable range of prices by excluding from the cap the three highest prices charged on different days during that period.

This past March, the Attorney General filed two lawsuits and reached a settlement against contractors accused of price gouging during the massive snowstorm in Greater Buffalo in November 2014. The Attorney Generals Office received complaints against two companies for charging $2,000 to remove snow for consumers. In some instances, it is charged that one of the companies failed to remove all snow from roofs, as it only agreed to remove 4 feet of snow from the gutter upward, leaving a significant amount of snow left on the roofs.

The Attorney Generals settlement with Buffalo and Orchard Park Topsoil followed an investigation which revealed that the company was charging up to $650 to remove snow from consumers driveways during the 2014 storm. The Attorney Generals investigation revealed $650 was at least double what other contractors were charging for the same service. The company agreed to pay restitution to each consumer in the amount it paid in excess of $300, and a fine in the amount of $150 per occurrence.
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Columnists Press Releases
News / National

by Staff reporter

Vice President Phelekezela Mphoko took with him an entourage of 29 people - including relatives, on taxpayers' funds - on a two week visit to the Far East to meet with President Robert Mugabe, who is expected back from his annual vacation today.This comes at a time when government is struggling to pay a 500,000 strong workforce while more than 105 of the country's population faces hunger.Sources said that Mphoko together with his 29 member entourage traveled via South Africa aboard an Air Zimbabwe plane, which includes stop overs in Dubai and Austria before he returns next week on Monday.Sources also revealed that Mphoko was accompanied by his wife, Laurinda, his children, their spouses and grandchildren, one of whom he stays with at Rainbow Towers Hotel in Harare.However, other sources close to the Vice President insisted that he had a 10-member delegation which included his security aides, permanent secretary, personal assistant and daughter.
News / National

by Lovemore Kadzura

A SHAMELESS Rusape polygamist who quenched is unbridled sexual lust on his mentally ill 14-year-old daughter will languish in prison for the next 18 years.The 46-year-old man who was not represented and pleaded not guilty will, however, spend 15 years behind bars after regional magistrate, Mr Livingstone Chipadza, suspended three years of the sentence for the next five years on condition of good behaviour.Rusape Area prosecutor, Mr Tirivanhu Mutyasira, told the court that the man took advantage of the absence of his wife who is the girl's mother to rape her."On October 25, 2015 at Village 13, Nzvimbe in Nyazura at around 10am, the mentally challenged girl was left behind by her mother in the company of her father while she went to collect some maize-meal."The father called his daughter into his bedroom where he raped her."The young girl cried for help and was heard by her five-year-old sister who also saw her coming out of the bedroom crying."When the complainant's mother returned home around 4pm, the five-year-old girl told her what she had seen and the mother quizzed the complainant who revealed that her father had raped her," said Mr Mutyasira.In passing sentence, Mr Chipadza did not have any kind words for the rapist father describing his act as immoral and anti-social."Your moral blameworthiness in this case is very high. The complainant you raped is your daughter who is only 14 years and moreso mentally challenged."She was looking up to you for protection, but instead of protecting her you turned into a villain to abuse her."Society hates people who behave in such a way. It is very shameful to behave in the manner you did."It is so immoral to satisfy your lust on your ill daughter. What baffles this court is that you are married to two wives whom you could have quenched your sexual lust on," said Mr Chipadza.
News / National

by Staff report

Zimbabwe's opposition parties, excluding Morgan Tsvangirais MDC-T, have tasked Tendai Biti to be chief negotiator in talks seeking to forge a grand coalition with former vive-president Joice Mujuru's People First movement.The MDC-T is divided on joining hands with Mujuru. Tsvangirai is supporting the move while National Executive Council member Nelson Chamisa rejects the plan.Sources said the parties agreed to rally behind Mujuru on condition that she scales up efforts to formally set up the largely obscure political outfit.Last week, opposition parties leader who include Biti, Lovemore Madhuku, Emilia Mukaratirwa and Elton Mangoma met to come up with a strategy on how to face Zanu-PF in the 2018 elections.
US military and intelligence officials believe an influential and dangerous Iranian-supported militia is responsible for kidnapping three American contractors in Iraqs capital several days ago. The militia, known as the League of the Righteous, has denied any involvement in the kidnapping, but has a history of abducting foreigners in Iraq.

US military and intelligence officials told The Long War Journal that the League of the Righteous is the prime suspect in the kidnapping of the three Americans, who disappeared last week while visiting an apartment in the Dora neighborhood in Baghdad.

We strongly suspect that AAH [Asaib al Haq, or the League of the Righteous] abducted them, one official said. Our information leads me to believe that they [the Americans] are being held by this militia.

Other US officials contacted by The Long War Journal agreed with the assessment. The US officials were not authorized to publicly comment on the matter, thus were granted anonymity by The Long War Journal.

The US officials would not discuss the nature of the information that leads them to suspect the League of the Righteous. However, according to press reports, the neighborhood where the Americans were seized is patrolled by the League of the Righteous. The Americans are thought to be held in Sadr City, a strong hold of the militia.

The League of the Righteous was almost immediately identified as one of three likely candidates to have kidnapped the American citizens, who are believed to work for General Dynamics. Reuters reported on Jan. 21 that in addition to the League of the Righteous, the Hezbollah Brigades and the Badr Organization  two other militias supported by Iran  were also suspected in the kidnappings.

Iraqi news outlets accused the League of the Righteous of abducting the Americans within a day of the kidnappings. Iraqi security officials told Al Hadath, Al Arabiyas television station, that the group was responsible.

The League of the Righteous quickly issued a denial.

The League of the Righteous Islamic Resistance has nothing to do with the kidnapping of Americans in Baghdad, Jawad al Tlabawi, a military spokesman for the group said in a statement that was published on the Popular Mobilization Forces website.

The Popular Mobilization Force, or Hashid Shaabi, is the command assigned by the Iraqi government with organizing militias to fight the Islamic State. The most powerful militias in the PMF are backed by Iran, and the groups operational commander is known to be closely tied to Irans Qods Force.

A decade of kidnapping

The League of the Righteous has kidnapped and held Westerners as hostages in the past. Some have been killed while in custody. In 2006, the group kidnapped and murdered US Army Staff Sergeant Ahmed Kousay Altaie. A group called the Ahel al Beit Brigades claimed it kidnapped Altaie. But a US intelligence official who specialized in Iraqi Shia terror groups told The Long War Journal in 2010 that the Ahel al Beit Brigades is part of the League of the Righteous.

The League of the Righteous was directly implicated by General David Petraeus as being behind the January 2007 attack on the Provincial Joint Coordination Center in Karbala. Five US soldiers were killed during the Karbala attack and subsequent kidnapping attempt. The US soldiers were executed after US and Iraqi security forces closed in on the assault team.

In May 2007, a group that calls itself the Islamic Shia Resistance, which is in fact a front for the League of the Righteous, kidnapped five British citizens from the Finance Ministry in Baghdad. Four of them were executed while in custody, and a fifth, Peter Moore, was exchanged in December 2009 for Qaiz al Qazali, the emir of the League of the Righteous, and other members of the militia who were in US custody.

It also kidnapped Issa T. Salomi, a US civilian contractor, in Baghdad. Salomi was freed in March in exchange for four members of Qais terror group.

Threats against US citizens in Iraq

Senior leaders of the League of the Righteous have threatened the US in the past. Qais al Qazali, the groups emir, threatened the US after the release of the amateur film called Innocence of Muslims.

The offense against the Messenger [Prophet Mohammed] will put all the American interests Iraq in danger. We will not forgive that, Qazali said in September 2012.

Akram Abbas al Kabi, a senior leader who is also the secretary general of another Iranian-backed Shiite militia, the Harakat Nujaba, called for vengeance against the US in June 2015 after an explosion near Abu Ghraib that purportedly killed 10 members of the League of the Righteous. Kabi, who is listed by the US as a global terrorist for activities in Iraq, blamed US aircraft for their deaths.

All resistance movements will seek revenge [against the US] in a timely manner, Kabi stated.

Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of FDD's Long War Journal.

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News / National

by Staff reporter

As Zanu-PF's deadly factional and succession wars continue unabated, Higher Education minister Jonathan Moyo took to Twitter yesterday, querying The Herald's coverage of the ruling party's worsening infighting."It is as curious as it is concerning that @HeraldZimbabwe now has references to "the anti-Mnangagwa cabal in Zanu-PF". What or who is that?" he asked.His Twitter post comes as State media, apparently acting under pressure from hawkish Information permanent secretary George Charamba, appear to have taken a position in favour of the party faction behind embattled Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa's mooted presidential aspirations.A source within Zimpapers, publishers of The Herald and the Chronicle, said editors at the stable had come under increasing pressure to take "a definitive position" in the post-congress Zanu-PF's wars."There is clearly an instruction from the ultimate editor-in-chief' (euphemism for Charamba) for Zimpapers to more and more take a definitive position on the party's infighting."Many readers have noted that over the past few weeks we are propping up one side and trashing the other side, a turn that has been demanded by the ultimate editor-in-chief'," a Zimpapers staffer said.Charamba has over the past few weeks used his Nathaniel Manheru column to threaten and excoriate the country's independent media for its coverage of Zanu-PF's wars, while increasingly appearing to bat in Mnangagwa's corner.So incensed by this have been many Zanu-PF bigwigs that some of them have accused him of being disloyal to President Robert Mugabe.Speaking in interviews with the Daily News last week, they said Charamba was playing a "flagrantly divisive" role in the ruling party's seemingly unstoppable factional and succession wars."He is clearly more loyal to Ngwena than he is to the president, who is his boss. Everyone in government and in the party knows that Charamba, aka Nathaniel Manheru, will only defend his favourite VP and not anyone else when they are under attack, not even the president or his family," one of the bigwigs said.Another Zanu-PF official said Charamba had "got away with murder for a long time"  pointing to his controversial writing and statements in State media, his recent fight with War Veterans minister Christopher Mutsvangwa, his views on Gukurahundi and his alleged failure to protect Mugabe, including when the nonagenarian read the wrong speech in Parliament last year."... while he once insisted forcefully that there were no factions in Zanu-PF, he is now writing that there is an anti-Mnangagwa faction in the party. So, which is which, and who are these people that he is divisively talking about?" the official said.The First Family also showed their displeasure towards the end of last year when First Lady Grace Mugabe at her last two rallies indirectly attacked Charamba for criticising ZimAsset in his controversial Nathaniel Manheru column.Also appearing to criticise Charamba then for his recent Nathaniel Manheru polemics was Moyo who wrote on Twitter that, "It's no good to say media should not cover security sector while you are defending public media reports implicating ZRP in poaching!"."It's fatal that some Cdes seek or support personal ambitions & positions in ways that undermine key gains of the liberation struggle!"Unconstitutional & unlawful utterances should not be associated with or come from officials who have taken oaths to uphold the law!"Threatening people left, right & centre is bad politics which betrays the lack of capacity to persuade the public through policy & law!"Threats breed misunderstanding, fear, alarm & despondency whereas what's needed is understanding & hope from government policies!" Moyo said in posts that many of his followers applauded.Contacted for his insight having worked in the presidency for a long time, former senior Cabinet minister, Didymus Mutasa said Charamba was "definitely fighting" in Mnangagwa's corner  as he was allegedly already preparing for life after Mugabe.Mutasa also traced Charamba and Mnangagwa's relationship to the so-called Tsholotsholo Declaration of 2004 which Mugabe saw as a coup against him, and where it was alleged that the Information Tsar had hired a plane for the attempted coup which was designed to stymie the ascendancy of former Vice President Joice Mujuru.He also said that Charamba had even allegedly drafted Mnangagwa's acceptance speech in Tsholotsho."He (Charamba) should not be involved in any of what is happening in Zanu-PF right now. He has indeed been fighting for that particular person."He should not be involved in any of the activities, particularly those involving Emmerson."He should speak wisely and comment correctly when talking about the media and when journalists seek to understand what is happening in Zanu-PF."I remember when I still worked for Zanu-PF that he was not even allowed to come into the politburo, and so he should not threaten anyone because he knows very little about anything," Mutasa said.This is not the first time that Charamba has been caught in controversy."He was two years ago found to be among the people who benefitted at Premier Services Medical Aid Society.Last year, he was involved in an unseemly war of words with Mutsvangwa, with his personal life also coming under the spotlight a few years before that.
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News / National

by Staff Reporter

The Meteorological Services Department has forecast that heavy rains are going to be received across the country between Monday and Thursday next week.Sharp downpours that might lead to potential flash floods are expected across the country between the 25th to the 28th of this month.The department forecast that rains in excess of 50 mm in 24 hours may occur in all Matabeleland provinces, central Midlands, all Mashonaland provinces and Manicaland.The department's head public weather services Mr Tich Zinyemba says rains in excess of 80 millimeters are forecast in the Nyamandhlovu, Tsholotsho, Kezi and Gweru/Zvishavane areas on the 26th and into Mashonaland provinces on the 27th."A cloud system currently over Botswana and South Africa is forecast to move into Zimbabwe by the 25th through Matabeleland provinces. This is expected to spread further into the country and indications are that there would be sharp downpours that might lead to potential flash floods," said Mr Zinyemba.Meanwhile, information obtained from the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) shows that the rains received so far have boosted the levels of water in most of the major dams.Although no spillages have been recorded, most dams in the Mashonaland provinces are well above 60 percent.In the Manyame catchment area, Chivero, Manyame, Mazvikadei, Bhiri-Manyame dams are all above 70 percent.In the Mazowe catchment area which covers Mashonaland Central Arcadia, Masembura and Mwenje dams are all above 70 percent except for Mazowe dam which is at 31 percent.In the Runde catchment area which covers Masvingo province three dams namely Bangala, Muteri, Manjirenji and Mutirikwi dams are below 35 percent.Kariba dam is critically low at 12,1 percent.
News / Press Release

by ZIMPOC

The Zimbabwe Prison Oriented Orphans Care (ZIMPOC) applauds the Constitutional Court's landmark ruling to end child marriages.The criminalization of Under 18 marriages is a giant step in making sure that rights children in general are protected.The ruling also comes in as a ray hope in the fight to end sexual abuse and child marriages of the vulnerable children particularly those orphaned as a result of death or incarceration of legal guardians.We say it is a ray of hope because the ruling outlaws child marriages but is not in tandem with the age of consent enshrined in the constitution.What it entails is that older people will continue to abuse juveniles by having sex with them albeit without marrying them as long as they are of the age of consent.ZIMPOC therefore urges the government and responsible authorities to swiftly align the constitution's age of consent with the ConCourt's landmark ruling on child marriages.ZIMPOC Public Relations Department
IP enforcement in Vietnam saw continued development in the past year. As we have reported previously, 2014 saw several breakthrough cases in patent infringement, domain name dispute resolution and other areas. In 2015, the law continued to evolve as more and more complex questions arose.

Patent jurisprudence

Key developments in patent litigation in 2015 arose in a case in which a European agrochemical company filed a civil action against a Vietnamese agrochemical producer in Ho Chi Minh City, charging that the Vietnamese company had infringed the European company's pesticide patent. In response, the local company filed an invalidation action in relation to the patent. Notably, the HCMC Court did not stay the patent litigation case pending the outcome of the invalidation proceeding, but rather proceeded to issue its judgment declaring patent infringement and imposing orders for the infringer to pay damages and attorney's fees. This was an important development in jurisprudence that should be noted by practitioners.

Another positive development in jurisprudence was that in the same case, the HCMC Court took a rare stance in crafting its judgment to effectively act as a permanent injunction prohibiting the infringer from committing further infringement of the patent in question. Typically, in Vietnam, judgments do not contain such language, and therefore often leave winning rights holders dissatisfied.

A related development in patent litigation jurisprudence was the increasing role of opinions from the National Office of Intellectual Property (NOIP) in the handling of cases. Previously, enforcement authorities such as the Inspectorate of the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) would adjudicate a case based solely on an opinion from VIPRI, a quasi-governmental agency which can issue expert opinions. However, due to the increasing complexity of patent cases in Vietnam, as well as the high-profile nature of the cases, now that more of them involve local generic producers, there has been a trend for the enforcement authorities to also ask the NOIP for an expert opinion to be considered along with the VIPRI opinion. In a sense, MOST or other agencies feel more comfortable in handling a case when there are two expert opinions affirming the infringement. Although having two positive opinions puts the rights holder in a very strong position, this new step may prolong the time needed for settling a case.

Parallel imports

The past year also saw new developments in relation to the handling of parallel imports under the law. Parallel imports are generally allowed under Vietnamese law. However, in a case involving a major European research-based pharmaceutical manufacturer, the manufacturer was able to employ a strategy to effectively prevent parallel imports into Vietnam based on regulatory issues.

In this case, the rights holder learned that a Vietnamese company was importing diabetes drugs into Vietnam that the company had manufactured for the Turkish market. While these drugs were "genuine" products of the manufacturer, and drugs under the same brand name had been authorised for circulation in Vietnam, Turkey requires different standards for storage than Vietnam, and the company believed the quality of the drugs would deteriorate more rapidly in Vietnam's tropical climate, negatively impacting consumer health as well as the manufacturer's reputation.

At the company's request, the Hanoi Market Control Department in cooperation with the Inspectorate of the Department of Health conducted a sweep action against two major distributors of the products. After the raid, the authorities seized hundreds of parallel import products, and decided to sanction the distribution of the parallel imports by relying on regulatory aspects, especially labelling regulations, imposing a monetary fine on the infringers.

The authorities then sent a letter to the Drug Administration of Vietnam (DAV), bringing the DAV's attention to the regulatory violations in particular and the parallel import situation in general. It is hoped this will lead the DAV to take further precautions in granting licences for parallel importation.

Domain name disputes

In 2015, MOST continued to rule that various domain name registrations constituted IP infringements if the domain name included the trade mark of a rights holder. However, the way in which such decisions were implemented has shifted. In 2014, a few cases were implemented by the Ministry of Information in Communications, which ordered the Vietnam domain name registry to revoke the names and allow the rights holders to register them. However, in 2015, as the domain name regulations are in flux, and the authorities are still debating how to handle such cases, there was a trend toward the authorities merely revoking infringing domain name registrations but not allowing the true rights holders to register them. Thus, the domain names are effectively suspended, and no one is allowed to register them.

What's ahead in 2016?

In 2016, we expect some of the following to be key developments:

Vietnam may adopt long-awaited legislation to help solve problems in combatting infringing company names, as well as infringing domain names, in the form of a joint circular between relevant competent authorities.

There will be increased action in the area of licensing of copyrighted works such as films and music due to more effective enforcement programmes by rights holders.

Generic pharma companies will seek to fight back more strongly on the patent side.

Vietnam may enact implementing regulations relating to TPP provisions (such as relating to patent term extension).

Thomas J Treutler Loc Xuan Le

Tilleke & GibbinsHAREC Building, 4th Floor4A Lang Ha Street, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi, Vietnam Tel: +84 4 3772 6688Fax: +84 4 3772 5568vietnam@tilleke.comwww.tilleke.com
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News / Press Release

by Jacob Mafume - PDP National Spokesperson

The depressing news that thousands of cattle are dying in the country due to the drought is again a reflection of how the Zanu PF government is unwilling of putting in place proper support mechanisms to protect the farmers.The high death rate of cattle due to the devastating drought and lack of government support is affecting thousands of farmers across the country. The most hit are the communal farmers who will be left destitute.The condition in which the cattle are in is shocking while some desperate farmers are being forced to sell their livestock which normally fetches $500 per beast for less than $50.In Matabeleland South, an estimated 350 000 herd of cattle is expected to die if no measures are not put in place to save the situation.It is therefore worrying that with these frightening events unfolding across the country, the government remains unwilling to declare a state of emergency in the country.In this crisis, Zanu PF is turning out to be the real El Nino whose clueless leaders are enjoying luxurious holidays while the country is in a total mess.During the drought period of 1991-1992, the same government's incompetence and unpreparedness led to the death of over one million cattle.The national herd, which has been on a decline since Zanu PF's controversial land reform programme, is set to further dramatically decline due to the drought and ineffectiveness of the Zanu PF government.It is self-evidently clear that our crisis in Zimbabwe is emanating from a centre that can no longer hold. Robert Mugabe has shown that he is only interested in the politics of power, power retention and personal aggrandizement.The cash-strapped government should admit it has failed and appeal to international donors to save the deteriorating situation and assist especially the resource challenged communal farmers.The neglect of the Zanu PF government in supporting farmers to cope and in safeguarding national food security has had disastrous effects including lost livelihoods.As a pro-poor party, the People's Democratic Party (PDP) is saddened that in some parts of the country, villagers are to walking for kilometers in search of water sources for the cattle as most water sources in the countryside have dried up.In some worse cases, the villagers and cattle are being forced to drink from the same reservoirs.Zimbabwe should take note of what other southern African countries in similar situations have done.In South Africa, its government has declared five provinces drought disaster areas while in Zambia the government is now importing maize from South America to feed the people and for stock feed.In order to mitigate the drought and save the country's cattle herd, there is need to urgently introduce supplementary feeding schemes for the dying herd.There is need for special attention in rural infrastructure development and investment in order to protect the poor.To cope with climate change, the government should increase the availability of animal feeds through targeted programmes, such as ranches and enriched fodder.
Falling shipping freight rates for transporting containers from Asia to Northern Europe on Friday showed there was no traditional surge in cargo exports from China ahead of the Chinese New Year, indicating a bleak outlook for the industry.



Spot freight rates on the world's busiest trade route have halved since the start of the year after falling 26 percent to $545 per 20-foot container (TEU) this week -- a level not considered to be commercially viable for most vessels.



Container rates usuaally rise ahead of the Chinese New Year, which this year begins on Feb. 8, as companies try to ship goods to Europe before factories close and millions of workers travel home to celebrate for at least a week.



Last year, considered to be a bad one for shipping, average freight rates were $1,098 per TEU ahead of the Chinese New Year and $1,659 per TEU the year before. Rates this year for Asia to Europe have averaged $739.



Freight rates for Asia to the Mediterranean fell 27.6 percent this week. Rates for freight shipped to the U.S West Coast and East Coast were down 2.8 percent and 1.5 percent respectively, a source with access to data from the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index told Reuters.



Most container shipping companies are running with negative margins on their earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisatio), and greater industry discipline on rates must be enforced, Scandinavian bank Nordea wrote in a note to clients last week.



"We argue that the current rate level is unsustainable, even when adjusting for lower bunker (fuel) costs," Nordea wrote.



Maersk Line, the world's biggest container shipping company with more than 600 container vessels, in November reported a 61 percent drop in third-quarter net profit.



The Danish shipper controls about a fifth of the containers transported from Asia to Europe.



Global sea-borne trade is highly dependent on global growth. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) this week cut its global growth forecast for the third time in less than a year.



The Fund forecast the world economy to grow by 3.4 percent this year and 3.6 percent in 2017. Both forecasts were down 0.2 percentage points from the previous estimates made in October.



Reporting by Ole Mikkelsen
The Hyderabad-based CVR group led Krishnapatnam Port Company addressed as the cape hub of India becomes home for Capes once again as it resumes normal operations on 20th January 2016 within a record span of 50 days after its operations were adversely affected due to siltation.



The port suffered severe rainfall and floods, during November 2015 which caused siltation and adversely affected the operations. However, the port which is equipped with its in-house dredgers with the help of its trained and dedicated staff, achieved the draft of 18 meters in a record span of 50 days which demonstrates its infrastructural prowess and commitment to work in the best interest of its customers thereby assuring a continued and seamless business experience.



Being amongst the few in the country that has the strength of handling cape size vessels with 200000 DWT, on 20th January 2016, Krishnapatnam Port successfully berthed MV Percival with 157000 MMT of coal from South Africa.



Mr. Anil Yendluri, Director and CEO Krishnapatnam Port said, It is indeed a moment of great pride for us as we have been able to resume our original scale of operations in such a short time period which is inarguably one of the fastest turnaround to normalcy after our operations were impacted. It speaks volumes of our world-class infrastructure and high levels of productive efficiency, the port today possesses.



The response from our customers and the industry at large has been extremely encouraging and I would want to congratulate the dredging team for their untiring efforts round the clock for this. he further added.
Eastern Shipbuilding Group, Inc. launched the Escort Tug NEPTUNE for Suderman & Young Towing Company on January 5, 2016. This series of Robert Allan, LTD. (RAL) designed Z-Tech 2400 Class Terminal & Escort Tugs is currently under construction at Easterns Nelson Street facility. The vessel is scheduled to deliver in the second quarter of this year.



The launch ceremony was held at Easterns Nelson Street facility and hosted by Joey DIsernia, President of Eastern, with employees and guests in attendance. Mike Nigro, V.P. of G&H Towing shared a few words about the quality work and commitment of the companies involved, Mikes wife Lisa and Father Roy Marien of St. Johns Catholic Church of Panama City blessed the vessel. Mikes wife Lisa was in attendance and their daughter Haylee had the honor of christening the vessel.



The NEPTUNE (ESG Hull #237) is the second of a series of four (4) Z-Tech Class Terminal & Escort Tugs being constructed for Suderman & Young Towing Company. The TRITON (ESG Hull



#235), the lead vessel in the series that delivered in December 2015. The TRITON is currently in service in Texas. Eastern is also constructing another identical series of four (4) tugs for Bay Houston Towing Company. G&H Towing Company is the Owners onsite Representative and Agent during the engineering, construction and delivery for both Suderman & Young and Bay Houston. G&H Towing Company will operate the vessels after delivery.



Robert Allan, LTD (RAL) of Vancouver, B.C. provided the Z-Tech 2400 Class Terminal & Escort Tugs design and engineering. G&H Towing's fleet currently consists of eight Z-Tech tugs in operation. This Z-Tech incorporates the latest technology for escort service and ship assist.





The NEPTUNE Z-Tech 2400 features the following characteristics:



ESG Hull #: H237  2nd Vessel in the Series of (4) Dimensions (Overall): 80-0x 38-3x 15-9

Total Horsepower: 5,150 HP @ 1,600 RPM

Main Engines: (2)Caterpillar 3516C (B rating) Tier 3

marine propulsion diesel engines

Main Propulsion: (2) Schottel Model SRP 1215FP in Nozzles Z-

Drives

Main Generators: (2) John Deere 4045AFM85 Tier 3, 99kW 480V

@1800 RPM marine diesel generator sets

Hawser Winch: (1) Markey Machinery Fairleader 50HP

Electric Hawser Winch, Model DEPCF-48S, 36 wide Drum Mid-drum brake holding capacity 300,000 lbs

Classification: ABS A1, Towing Vessel, AMS and Escort

Service ABS Loadline (SoC), Statement of Compliance

Flag: United States of America


Egypt's state-owned EGAS said on Friday it had postponed a liquefied natural gas (LNG) delivery from BP last month until later this year, rejecting suggestions there were any payment difficulties.



LNG tanker British Sapphire was diverted to Brazil rather than discharging in Egypt. Traders said the delay was related to payment problems.



"This is completely untrue," EGAS Chairman Khaled Abdel Badie told Reuters, adding that deliveries had been postponed until Egypt's peak energy consumption period in August.



Egypt became a major market for LNG shippers after the launch of two floating import terminals last year.



Badie said Egypt is looking to rent a third floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) in the first quarter on 2016.



Egypt has struggled to pay for oil products and LNG due to an acute foreign currency crisis worsened by a fall in tourism following the crash of a Russian airliner in Egypt in October.



According to financial and trade sources, last month Egypt asked for 90 days to pay for LNG deliveries, up from the traditional 15, creating arrears currently estimated at $400-$500 million.



Egypt's suppliers include Shell, Gas Natural , Trafigura, Vitol, EDF Trading , PetroChina and Noble Group.





Reporting by Abdel Rahman Adel
Marines are no strangers to urban combat. From as far back as the Battle of Chapultepec, to the Battle of Hue City during the Vietnam War, to the more contemporary urban battles of Fallujah and Ramadi during Operation Iraqi Freedom, Marines have been kicking down doors in every clime and place.



Despite their experiences, urban combat skills do not materialize out of thin air. While all Marines receive some form of Close Quarters Battle training, more advanced techniques must be learned to ensure success in combat.



The Raid Leaders Course is one of many training programs in the Marine Corps that teaches these skills.



The three-week program is designed to teach Marines the skills they need to conduct raids in urban environments. This includes refining combat marksmanship skills, learning advanced Military Operations on Urban Terrain and CQB techniques, as well as learning raid planning procedures.



No matter how many bombs you drop on something, someone is going to have to go in and physically take that space, explains Kevin Harris, combative marksmanship trainer with Expeditionary Operations Training Group. That is why we need to understand MOUT movement so they can safely move around an objective area and clear a room, which is where CQB comes into play.



Despite it being an advanced course, the skills taught are broken down to their basic steps.



Harris explained he likes to teach a mantra of brilliance in the basics. For this particular tactic to be effective, everyone on the team has to understand their role in a given situation and practice at it.



Taking a crawl-walk-run approach, Marines in the course start with two-man room clearing, working their way up to four-man clearing. Marines cycle through each position in an team, making sure they understand their role in a particular spot.



To me, knowledge is power, said Harris. I want to give everyone the knowledge they need to be successful. If I know there are some certainties in combat, why would I not practice these things over and over again?



The guys that are at the top werent born that way, Harris added. They committed themselves to learning how to do something right and then practiced it over and over again until they mastered it before moving on to a new skill.



While Raid Leaders Course instructors teach their students the skills they need to be successful, the goal isnt perfection. Its up to the students to take the skills they have learned back to their respective units and not only keep refining them, but teach their junior Marines what they learned.



Sergeant Aronros Olano, a squad leader with Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment and RLC student, explained that the course is beneficial for his unit, as a majority of their sergeants, corporals and lance corporals who hold a leadership billet are attending the course.



Im learning different ways to teach my Marines how to clear rooms and clear hallways, said Olano, a Las Vegas native. The course instructors are giving us a bigger spectrum of tools to add to our toolbox that we can then transfer over to our junior Marines.




The year 2015 has come to its end, so the MageWorx team has decided to sum up the best results of the company. Furthermore, they have made the summary available to each and every user, who visits their official website so that each client could be aware of the what the company has achieved.

MageWorx is a reputable company, which currently offers advanced Magento SEO and product management solutions that are considered the best in the industry these days. Founded in 2008 in Virginia (the USA), the company quickly developed into one of the most successful teams in its niche. In 2009, they opened another office in Europe, namely in Belarus (Minsk) to make their products available for thousands of customers across the globe. In 2015, they acquired Webtex software and started investing into the development of Savvy Cube-SAAS advanced Magento analytics software. The experts working for MageWorx are sure that this will help to expand the company into new product niches and strengthen its current positions on the market.

Among the most remarkable events the company has faced in 2015, were the development of Magento 1 and Magento 2 products. The team released seven fully-fledged Magento1 solutions specially designed to meet the needs of Magento store owners. These includes Amazon Fulfillment, Extended Report Option, Advanced Orders Grid, Cross Linking, Orders Editor, Rich Snippets and SEO Meta Templates Magento 1 extensions. Apart from that, 128 updates of Magento1 modules were released, which eventually helped to enrich the products functionality and magnify their performance.

Speaking about Magento 2 release and development, MageWorx became the pioneer in designing solutions for the new platform version last year. Currently, they have already released four advanced extensions you can read about at http://www.mageworx.com/magento-extensions.html . These Magento extensions include the SEO Suite option, the Sitemap Suite, the Search Suite (Sphinx Integration) as well as the Store and Currency Switcher. Three other solutions are now in the process of development.

During the year 2015, the professional and knowledgeable MageWorx team has expanded to 20 highly-qualified specialists and that it another achievement the company is proud of. These people are capable of customizing and extending Magento products to meet the requirements and needs of clients.

For more information, please, feel free to visit http://www.mageworx.com/

About the Company:

MageWorx is the US-based company, which focuses on the development and management of Magento SEO products. The company was created in 2008 and has won recognition among their clients since that time. In 2009, a new MageWorx office was opened in Belarus, which made the companys services available for the European clients. Currently, they have a team comprised of 20 professionals, who work hard on the development of advanced Magento solutions and have already succeeded in the process.

Contact Info:

Address: 222 South Ninth Street, Suite 1600, 55402 Minneapolis, MN, USA

Tel.: +1 612-756-9123

E-mail: sales@mageworx.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mageworx

Twitter: https://twitter.com/mageworxteam

Google +: https://plus.google.com/+Mageworx

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mageworx

Website: http://www.mageworx.com/

For more information: http://www.mageworx.com
News / Regional

by Staff reporter

A GROUP of white commercial farmers in Matabeleland South province have petitioned President Robert Mugabe to stop his aide, Ray Ndhlukula from invading Centenary Farm, saying rare breeds of cattle were at risk of extinction due to the on-going farm wrangle.The farm is owned by David Conolly, a renowned Hereford and Senepol cattle breeder.In the petition, the white farmers, represented by Ben Freeth - the spokesperson for Sadc Tribunal Rights Watch - said cattle breeds were likely to go extinct following the invasion of the property by Ndhlukula, who is deputy chief secretary to the President and Cabinet."If the herds are slaughtered, all of their genetics - their irreplaceable gene pool - will be destroyed because Ndhlukula is refusing to obey the law," read part of the petition.Conolly said he had moved the two breeds from Centenary Farm in Figtree to Boxwell Farm in the same area, but due to lack of water, their existence was under threat.Ndhlukula and Conolly have been fighting over the property in the courts for over three years and this has reportedly disrupted production at the farm, while putting the two prestigious breeds at the risk of extinction."It has taken more than 80 years to breed this pedigree herd of Hereford cattle - suitable for Zimbabwe's very specific conditions - and since the farm invasion, the loss of invaluable breeding stock has been catastrophic," wrote the group, which represents the interests of the farmers.Ndhlukula yesterday declined to comment on the matter, saying the matter was subjudice."There is a court process underway so I will not say anything on that issue. Whatever Conolly says, I will not respond to anything," he said.Yesterday Conolly said he was now left with no option but to slaughter the beasts due to shortage of water and grazing land."Despite the court orders in our favour, we are still not allowed on the farm and this has exposed our animals to untold suffering," he said."The farm where we are keeping them does not have enough water as opposed to our farm, which has plenty of water and enough pasture."It seems that the desired outcome of the fast track land nationalisation programme - which is apparently the cessation of all production and the destruction of formal employment on commercial farms across the country - has been achieved at Centenary Farm," Conolly added.
Patriots, Virginians, Americans, on January 18, 2016, myself along with other members of the Virginia Chapter of "Oath Keepers" traveled to Richmond to participate in what is referred to as "Lobby Day". It is time set aside each year for citizens to lobby their senators and delegates with concerns they may have on items of interest. This session was dominated by gun control measures both for and against. Our focus was on measures to protect and preserve the rights afforded to all by the 2nd Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.

While there, I was able to meet with Martinsville representatives, Senator Bill Stanley and Delegate Les Adams. Our discussion focused on gun rights and their alignment with the Constitution. I am pleased to inform you that on matters of gun rights and matters of individual liberties they both are supporters of the 2nd Amendment and liberties as outlined by our founding fathers and the Constitution.

Encountering the "Antis" was an experience, each with their yellow stickers that read "Background Checks Save Lives". While background checks on the surface seem logical and harmless its what lurks beneath the surface like an iceberg that is dangerous to our freedom and liberty.

Patriots do not be fooled. I believe universal background checks (UBC) will simply be the governments method of gun registration. Gun registration is needed in order to have any type of enforcement. I believe gun registration will be the first step towards "confiscation", just ask the folks in California. In a UBC environment the tradition of a father giving his son or daughter their first hunting rifle would be greatly encumbered. It would require going to the local gun store and subjecting your child to a background check and then in the event that it didnt go through, you (Dad) would have to submit to a background check in order for the dealer to return your legally owned property to you. I urge all Virginians to research UBC for more in depth particulars.

While the "Antis" would like to make this a weapons battle, the truth of the matter it is the very attack on liberty. Patriots, here in Virginia, we dont need the few dictating to the many their narrow views as demonstrated by Gov McAuliffe and Attorney General Mark Herring both whom I believe are beholding to outside money and influence.

Facts are facts and the matter of fact is that all the recent shootings from VA Tech to San Bernardino would not have been prevented by a background check. All the weapons used were purchased legally as reported by the ATF. The sad truth is that no background check of any kind will ever be able to gauge "intent". Sadly this is the world we live in.

Patriots, we must remain strong and collective to combat this assault on Freedom and Liberty. God Bless!

Barry Joyce

Martinsville
In Defence of Marxism is committed to safeguarding your privacy. At all times we aim to respect any personal data you share with us, or that we receive from other organisations, and keep it safe. This Privacy Policy (Policy) sets out our data collection and processing practices and your options regarding the ways in which your personal information is used.

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JESUSLANDFor those who might be wondering what Sen. Marco Rubio (Batshitcrazy-FL) would do about the "porn problem" if he were elected president, there is perhaps a clue to be found in his "100 Innovative Ideas for Floridas Future," which he created after having been elected Speaker of Florida's House of Representatives in 2006.

"Whistleblower status should be afforded to everyone who reports these crimes, even if they are involved in the act," read Rubios 43rd "idea." "As an incentive for reporting the illegal activities, whistleblowers should also receive half the proceeds from any forfeiture actions brought in the case."

It seems likely that Rubio was thinking about high-profile sex workers, whether they be found on high-end websites or hanging around upscale Miami/Orlando/Tampa/Key West country clubs and exclusive watering holes of the rich and famous, since many sex workers only earn enough to keep themselves and their families out of hockbut it's still a bad idea.

Even worse (or perhaps simply more interesting) is that the proposal would not only allow "johns" to turn in the prostitute after the pair have concluded their business, but also even allows for sex workers to turn themselves in for the prosecutorial immunity that comes from being a whistleblower. It also leaves the door open for anyone to file a reporteven if the supposed "sex worker" has never accepted a dime for sex in his/her life!

Think of it as "revenge porn" for the very sexually conflicted.

"Rubio further argued that those who use websites that promote illegal sexual activity should have their names 'placed in a registry'," reported Daily Beast correspondent Tim Mak. "That would 'discourage people from patronizing businesses and websites that promote criminal activity.' The new law would also be coupled with a 'large-scale advertising campaign' to shame those who 'promote illicit sex' in Florida, encouraging people to come forward with information relating to 'these destructive, demeaning crimes'."

As it turns out, Rubio's proposal never made it through Florida's Senateand Rubio's campaign never got back to Mak when he queried whether Idea No. 43 was still something Rubio supportedbut if the adult industry didn't have many other good reasons why Rubio shouldn't be elected, Idea No. 43 should be near the top of the list.
Governor Bullock has been called "the biggest threat to Citizens United."

Governor Steve Bullock today released the following statement on the 6th anniversary of the Supreme Courts Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission ruling and vowed to uphold his history of fighting to keep dark money out of elections:

"It has been six years since the disastrous Citizens United decision and the corrupting impact of that action is being felt more than ever. I will continue to fight for fair, transparent, and accessible elections because I, along with all Montanans, believe that our elections should be decided by we the people  not by a small number of wealthy people who seek to hide their money and motivations."

Full Story: https://governor.mt.gov/Newsroom/ArtMID/28487/ArticleID/3013
U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows answered questions from some of his constituents in McDowell County Thursday morning about the economy; the 2012 attack on the U.S. embassy in Benghazi, Libya; increasing federal regulations; the need for more broadband Internet in rural areas and the U.S. Forest Services plan to designate huge tracts of land as wilderness areas.

But the Republican from Cashiers who represents the 11th Congressional District said he has not yet made an endorsement among the several GOP candidates for president. Nor does he plan to run for president himself.

I want to make sure my endorsement reflects the priorities of my district, said Meadows. We will try to make a decision next week.

Meadows, 56, spoke to his constituents from McDowell Thursday morning at the Crooked Door Coffeehouse in downtown Marion. The meet-and-greet event attracted around 30 people including four McDowell County commissioners, Mayor Steve Little, Chamber of Commerce Director Steve Bush, City Manager Bob Boyette, several law enforcement officers and other local residents.

As the event began, Meadows was asked by Kenneth Wegman of Marion about the economy and whether or not he supported greater use of rail service.

I am a big supporter of rail and shortline rail, said Meadows. Ive met with not only Norfolk Southern but others. Were trying to improve the infrastructure, trucking and rail.

In addition, he is working on the issue of foreign competition and making sure the United States can compete fairly against other countries.

We have to compete on a level playing field, a level playing field where U.S. workers will always win, he said.

Meadows was also asked about the SHIELD Act which is meant to protect the power grid from natural threats or manmade attacks. It is a vulnerability we have to address, he said, adding he is aware that many people are concerned it could result in higher electric bills.

Commissioner Randy Hollifield asked Meadows about the plan by the U.S. Forest Service to designate huge tracts of land as wilderness areas.

Meadows said he is opposed to it because it could adversely affect counties, like McDowell, that have large amounts of federal forest land. He said it is a different designation from a national park.

It hurts our tax base, he said. It really doesnt manage our forests the way they should be managed. Weve been listening to our county commissioners.

Steve Miller of Marion said to Meadows he is strongly in favor of more local control.

We have to do it locally, said Miller to the congressman. We have to do it here. We look to you to level the playing field. Im scared of my government and I am a patriot. Were looking to you to clear the path.

Bob Coleates of Marion asked about the investigation into the 2012 attack on the embassy in Benghazi, Libya. This is a matter that Meadows has focused a lot of time and attention.

He said the Select Committee that looked into this has come to a close and it will conclude the investigation without any real or meaningful reforms. He said this is very hurtful for him.

However, a recent movie called 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi has been released in theaters. Meadows said he and his wife saw the movie. In fact if anything, it doesnt tell enough of the story, he said. Theres a lot more to that story.

He added this movie is helping more Americans say Weve got to do something about this.

Meadows said we cannot allow a tragedy such as this to happen again. But it could happen again at U.S. consulates and embassies around the world. And there has to be greater accountability among government officials when an attack like this happens.

Too often, people are able to cover themselves in such a way that there is never accountability, he said. And I can tell you one of our oversight aspects is to really make what I call real life accountability, that if you dont do your job, you lose your job.

Commissioner Tony Brown brought up the issue of more and more federal regulations on businesses and local governments. The regulations are killing this country, he said.

Brown asked Meadows who he supports among the various Republicans running for president. Meadows said he has not yet decided whom he will endorse.

Im not running for president, he said. He added he was born at an Army hospital in Verdun, France and both of his parents were U.S. citizens.

Meadows said he will focus on cutting regulations, honoring the Constitution, supporting our veterans and military personnel and quit doing business as usual in Washington, D.C. Whomever he endorses for president must share those same priorities.

Bush asked him about the need for more broadband Internet in rural counties like McDowell. The McDowell Chamber of Commerce has a task force working on this.

Meadows said the U.S. Congress is making progress slowly on this issue and he is well aware of the need for more broadband in western North Carolina. People are going to the schools and sitting outside to use their broadband because they cant use it at home, he added.
Astronomers at the California Institute of Technology announced Wednesday that they have found new evidence of a giant icy planet lurking in the darkness of our solar system far beyond the orbit of Pluto. They are calling it "Planet Nine."

Their paper, published in the Astronomical Journal, estimates the planet's mass as five to 10 times that of the Earth. But the authors, astronomers Michael Brown and Konstantin Batygin, have not observed the planet directly.

Instead, they have inferred its existence from the motion of recently discovered dwarf planets and other small objects in the outer solar system. Those smaller bodies have orbits that appear to be influenced by the gravity of a hidden planet - a "massive perturber." The astronomers suggest it might have been flung into deep space long ago by the gravitational force of Jupiter or Saturn.

Telescopes on at least two continents are searching for the object, which on average is 20 times farther away than the eighth planet, Neptune. If "Planet Nine" exists, it's big - about two to four times the diameter of the Earth, which would make it the fifth-largest planet after Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. But at such extreme distances, it would reflect so little sunlight that it could evade even the most powerful telescopes.

Confirmation of its existence would reconfigure the models of the solar system. Pluto, discovered in 1930, spent three-quarters of a century as the iconic ninth planet. Then, a decade ago, Pluto received a controversial demotion, in large part because of Brown.

His observations of the outer solar system identified many small worlds there - some close to the size of Pluto - and prompted the International Astronomical Union to reconsider the definition of a planet. The IAU voted to change Pluto's classification to "dwarf planet," a decision mocked repeatedly last summer when NASA's New Horizons probe flew past Pluto and revealed a world with an atmosphere, weather and a volatile and dynamically reworked surface.

Brown, who tweets under the handle @plutokiller and who wrote the book "How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming," said now may be the time to rewrite the textbooks yet again.

"My daughter, she's still kind of mad about Pluto being demoted, even though she was barely born at that time," Brown said. "She suggested a few years ago that she'd forgive me if I found a new planet. So I guess I've been working on this for her."

NASA's director of planetary science, Jim Green, cautioned Wednesday that there could be other explanations for the observed motion of the small bodies in the outer solar system. He referenced the famous dictum from Carl Sagan that "extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence."

"The Sagan Rule applies. If it's there, find it. I challenge you. Somebody out there oughta find it," Green said.

But he said he was personally excited about the new research: "What an era we're in, where we're discovering new things about our solar system that we never thought possible even a handful of years ago."

Brown and Batygin initially set out to prove that Planet Nine didn't exist. Their paper builds on earlier research by two other astronomers that revealed a peculiar clustering of the small, icy objects discovered in the past decade or so in the remote regions of the solar system.

In 2014, Scott Sheppard of the Washington-based Carnegie Institution of Science and Chad Trujillo of the Gemini Observatory in Hawaii published a paper in the journal Nature that discussed the potential existence of a giant planet affecting the orbits of those dwarf worlds. Sheppard and Trujillo noted a similarity in the motion of those bodies when they are closest to the sun.

"We thought their idea was crazy," Brown said, explaining that extra planets are always the "go-to suggestion" when astronomers find orbital behavior they can't explain. But he and Batygin struggled to debunk that hypothetical ninth planet. They used mathematical equations and then computer models, ultimately concluding that the best explanation for the smaller objects' clustering was the gravitational effects of something far bigger.

Such clustering is similar to what's seen in some asteroids that are about as close to the sun as the Earth. They wind up in stable orbits that keep them far from Earth and free from any significant disturbance by the Earth's gravity.

"Until then, we didn't really believe our results ourselves. It just didn't make sense to us," Brown said. But their modeling showed that a planet with 10 times the mass of Earth would exert an influence over the orbits of the smaller bodies and keep them from coming as close to the sun as they should. It would also slowly twist these orbits by 90 degrees, making them periodically perpendicular to the plane of the solar system.

"In the back of my head, I had this nagging memory that someone had found some of these modulating objects and not known what to make of them," Brown said. "And sure enough, these objects do exist. And they were exactly where our theory predicts they should be."

That's when the Caltech researchers started to take Planet Nine seriously. "That was the real jaw-dropping moment, when it went from a cute little idea to something that might be for real," he said.

Sheppard, who co-wrote the paper that Brown and Batygin set out to disprove, says the existence of a hidden planet is still a big unknown. "Until we actually see it for real, it will always be questionable as to whether it exists," he said, cautioning that the latest calculations are based on a relatively small number of known objects and that further observations and detections of perturbed bodies would bolster the hypothesis.

Still, Sheppard significantly upped the odds of discovery - from 40 percent before to 60 percent now. "Some people took it seriously, but a lot of people didn't," he said of his own study's findings. "With this new work, it's much more rigorous, and people will take it more seriously now."

Brown said he puts the odds of Planet Nine being real as "maybe 90 percent."

From the Cote d'Azur Observatory in Nice, France, planetary scientist Alessandro Morbidelli agreed that the evidence was stronger this time. "I immediately felt that this paper, for the first time, was providing convincing evidence for a new planet in the solar system," said Morbidelli, an expert in these kinds of orbital movements who was not involved in either study. "I don't see any alternative explanation to that offered by Batygin and Brown."

"We will find it one day," he added. "The question is when."

The past two decades have seen a burst of discoveries as astronomers have scrutinized the light of distant stars and looked for signs of orbiting planets. More than a thousand such planets have been detected through analysis of starlight that has traveled across the vast interstellar distances. Brown and Batygin, however, have been searching closer to home, looking for objects that orbit the sun and remain unseen only because the outer regions of the solar system are exceedingly dark.

The thought of a hidden planet larger than Earth is intriguing, but for now it's difficult to say too much about the hypothetical conditions there. Brown believes it's probably an icy, rocky world with a small envelope of gas - a planet that could have been the core of a gas giant had it not been ejected into a wonky, highly elliptical orbit. It might not make its closest approach of the sun more than once every 10,000 years, and even then it would remain far beyond the known planets.

The situation mimics what happened in the 19th century when careful observation of the seventh planet, Uranus, indicated that there must be another body in far-distant space influencing its orbit. That work led eventually to the discovery of Neptune.

It would be difficult to see the ninth planet if it's not at or near its closest approach to the sun. Brown doesn't believe the object is at that point, saying it would have been spotted by now. But he does think that the most powerful telescopes on the planet, if pointed in precisely the right direction, might be able to detect it even when it is most distant from the sun.

"We've been looking for it for a while now, but the sky is pretty big," Brown said. "We know its path, but not where it is on that path."

He and Batygin hope their paper's publication will infuse the search with new energy. "If other people - better astronomers - get excited about the idea of finding Planet Nine, we could hopefully see it within a couple of years," he said.

The two know they may not get credit for that discovery. Until the planet is spotted directly with a telescope, any work surrounding it is theoretical. Brown, Batygin and other scientists who have made the case for Planet Nine's existence are providing treasure maps and clues - but someone else could very well strike gold before they do.

If and when it's spotted, Planet Nine would be evaluated by the same criteria that got Pluto demoted. Brown isn't concerned about that.

"That's not even a question -- it's definitely a planet," he said. One of the trickiest criteria for planet status, based on the standards set by the International Astronomical Union, is that a planet must "clear the neighborhood" around its orbital zone. It needs to have the gravitational prowess to change the orbits of other objects.

"Planet Nine is forcing any objects that cross its orbit to push into these misaligned positions. It fits that concept perfectly," Brown said.

The "Pluto killer" added: "Not to mention the fact that it's 5,000 times the mass of Pluto."
Chicken will be the best-positioned protein due to its low price position in times of pressure on consumer spending power but rises in production costs and the long-term impact of COVID-19 threaten to disrupt the sector, according to Rabobank.
by Aaron Goldman , Op-Ed Contributor, January 20, 2016

Usually what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but this time I'm kissing and telling. Here are four things I saw at the Consumer Electronics Show the week before last that will have a lasting impact on the social media space:

1. Snapchat logo on Luxor.This was the first thing I noticed after arriving on the Las Vegas strip following a long drive up from Phoenix (long story but, no, we didnt stop in bat country) and it proved Snapchats coming to play and here to stay. Given that the beam of light atop the Luxor is one of only two manmade objects that can be seen from outer space, its clear that Snapchat was not only hell-bent on raising awareness beyond Millennials at CES, but beyond mere earthlings.

With noise being made about an ads API, its also clear that Snapchat is ready to fully monetize. All brands should be taking notice and become (more) active on Snapchat today, so that theyre ready to capitalize on (more) ad opportunities in the near future.

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2. VR everywhere. Forget TV everywhere. Were entering an era of VR (virtual reality) everywhere, and it was everywhere at CES. From Facebook Oculus, with its $600 Rift device, to Google Cardboard, which goes for around $20, VR has become more advanced and more accessible all at the same time  which may prove to be the tipping point for consumer adoption.

What does this mean for social media? The next wave of social networks wont be sites or apps that let people interact via text, pics, and video, but rather through immersive multimedia. Maybe Ill even be able to get a Second Life out of this shirt!

As with every new digital medium, itll start with porn  and no surprise, there was plenty of that in Vegas  before moving quickly into mainstream categories. The time is now for brands to explore VR and think through how they can add value to the ecosystem  or at least grab consumer attention within it.

3. Flo Rida shilling for AOL. CES  and Vegas, for that matter  is always awash in celebs, and this year was no different. Nick Cannon gave a talk at C-Space on digital media, Lady Gaga played the Media Link Baller, er, Executive Party, the Jonas Brothers were getting Brandish with ad celeb Sean Finnegan, and Flo Rida headlined the AOL party at OMNIA.

It all serves as a stark reminder of the power of influencers in the (social) media world. If you can get a plug from someone with a big following, it can have a massive impact for your brand. Of course, not all brands can afford to pay for celebrity endorsers  or even one celebrity tweet  but for those that can, its going down for real!

4. Ad Tech, Mar Tech, Media Tech, oh my! You couldnt take a step in Vegas during CES without tripping over an ad-tech (ad technology) vendor  but dont let them hear you call them that! Indeed, ad tech has become a four-letter word in our industry, largely due to skepticism from the investor community.

Cory Treffiletti tried to put a positive spin on it in his Online Spin column  and hes got a good vantage point, having been part of an ad tech acquisition by one of the leading mar-tech (marketing technology) companies. Dave Morgan, however, thinks ad tech should be worried about the rise of mar tech.

Im not sure were looking at things through the right lens, though. Whether its ad tech or mar tech, the key to success for these companies and the constituents they serve  clients and investors, hopefully in that order!  is whether their business model is SaaS (software as a service) or arbitrage.

There are still way too many ad-tech vendors  and many of them shelled out big bucks for a presence at CES  that just provide a managed service or ad-network offering. These folks typically have a thin user interface on top of proprietary algorithms that manage ad placements. As a client, you dont have the ability to control all campaign parameters yourself, nor see exactly where your ads are running. These types of companies will not last much longer  and betting on them from a client or investor standpoint is as foolish as splitting sixes against a ten in blackjack.

Were starting to see a new category emerging between ad tech and mar tech with the data science and transparency that clients  and investors  need to succeed. Its called media tech, and it differentiates from ad tech by including content solutions, but doesnt get into full CRM like mar tech.

The winners here will be those focused on SaaS for cross-screen media activation and analytics. And at the core of the leading platforms will be social media data. Whether its creating audience segments or measuring brand engagement, social data can help maximize media value for all players in the ecosystem.

Indeed, my biggest takeaway from CES is that its never been a better time to be in social media  so cheers to all of you insiders out there  and, remember, always bet on Zuck.
by Wendy Davis , Staff Writer @wendyndavis, January 21, 2016

Many of the organizations and companies that lobbied against Comcast's merger with Time Warner have launched a new effort opposing Charter's attempt to buy Time Warner and Bright House Networks for $67 billion.

Opponents -- including satellite provider Dish TV and watchdogs Public Knowledge and Consumers Union -- say the merger will result in a broadband duopoly in the U.S. They calculate that Charter will control almost one-third of high-speed broadband connections in the U.S. (meaning connections of at leat 25 Mbps) after the merger. Together, the post-merger Charter and Comcast will serve almost 90% of high-speed broadband homes, according to the opponents, which have organized under the name Stop Mega Cable Coalition.

"Once again we are faced with a proposed cable merger that threatens the emergence of robust competition for streaming services, Gene Kimmelman, president and CEO of Public Knowledge, said Thursday in a statement.

The coalition warns on its Web site that Charter and Comcast could use their duopoly power to team up against relatively new over-the-top online video distributors. For instance, the coalition says, Charter and Comcast could push subscribers to purchase cable video packages by increasing the price of stand-alone broadband. That type of move could obviously thwart over-the-top providers, given that many people who subscribe to cable video probably will not also want to subscribe to an over-the-top service that offers the same programs.

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The coalition also warns that the cable companies also could treat their own content more favorably than video offered by over-the-top services, such as by charging those services high fees to interconnect with the broadband networks.

Charter said in a statement that the opponents' arguments are "baseless," and that it is "committed to ... delivering fast internet speeds, preserving an open internet and advancing online video friendly policies including no data caps and no modem fees."

Charter has publicly promised to refrain from imposing data caps, or from moving to a pay-per-byte billing system, for at least three years after the merger closes. The company also said it won't charge content companies extra fees to interconnect directly with Charter's servers.

That latter promise seems to have won over Netflix, which in 2014 agreed to pay four other Internet service providers -- Time Warner, Comcast, Verizon and AT&T -- extra fees in order to interconnect directly with their servers. Netflix told the FCC last year that it didn't oppose the merger. CEO Reed Hastings reiterated this week during an earnings call that Charter's proposed mergers would benefit over-the-top video providers.
by Barbara Lippert , Featured Columnist, January 21, 2016

An endorsement is a form of ad, of course. And no endorsement in the history of political discourse has been as mind-blowing as the one that Sarah Palin offered up for Trump on Tuesday.

Dazzlingly erratic, it seemed to throw off the entire time/space continuum.

Im not sure what sort of deal (or dill, as Palin pronounces it ) Trump cut in order to get the former Alaska Governors seal of approval  and he hopes, evangelical following  for his presidential run in a huge field of more conservative Republicans.

But in so doing, I doubt he expected to be swallowed up on that stage in Ames, Iowa, with a sometime-politician who morphed, right in front of our eyes, into a bizarre female version of the top-hatted, cane-toting cartoon character Michigan J. Frog, crossed with Phyllis Diller and a bit of Elvis.

Just as Trumps measured and even poetic response to Ted Cruzs attack on him for having New York values elevated the Donald to some sort of statesman-like status in the last debate, Palins narcotic, narcissistic tizzy of an offering seemed to right-size the Trump ego down to something fairly ordinary.

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Palin ran up to the podium like the young Dan Quayle when he first bounded out of the gates to be George H.W. Bushs vice president and was not yet house-broken.

It made for very weird gender-combo theater. After an awkward attempt at an air kiss, Trump was reduced to standing on the sidelines, occasionally miming Youre fired and pointing his signature-Apprentice index finger into the crowd.

As Palin, his fellow politician/reality star, got more into her rapper/ holy roller/spoken-word-poet/vaudeville act, it looked like Trump wanted to aim that billion-dollar pointer right at his own head.

Where to begin with analyzing the overall dissonance?

How about with the subtext of Trumps famously off-key put-down of war hero John McCain, Palins 2008 presidential running mate? In the early days of making statements that would have discredited other pols, but only made him more of a winner, Trump said: I happen to like people who werent captured.

This time, his would-be running mate spent considerable time talking about the heroic sailors captured in Iran. She used their heroics as a way of putting down and feminizing Obama. She spoke about how our pussy-footing President  who in reality got them released overnight  bent over and led from behind. (A day later, she would blame Obama for her sons post-war PTSD, but thats a whole 'nuther can of worms.)

At the initial endorsement, Palin used everything to put down Obamas dainty, tea-offering, community organizer background, even referring to things he said in 2008, in what was supposed to be an off-the-record talk to donors, about voters who cling to their religion and guns.

In response, her language was cruising for a bruising, bursting with faux macho bravado and references to male violence and/or prison movies.

I wasnt the only one to see this. Rhonda Garelick, a professor of comparative literature at Princeton, agreed, adding that some parts of the speech, with its multiple listing of things with internal rhyme, and inner repetition of the hard g reminded her of a particular kind of gangster rap, given its insistence on a fetishized masculinity underscored with homophobia.

Thats exactly it. Palin elevated a certain kind of macho masculinity, while issuing all sorts of dog-whistle homophobic comments.

Now on to that spangly jacket, which she proudly shimmered in while talking about Democrats who wear political correctness like suicide vests. (Mentioning a suicide vest is strange under any conditions, but was particularly unfortunate given her sons arrest for domestic violence and reported behavior just the day before.)

Had she worn that jacket back while running for vice president in 2008, Palin would have been off the reservation. Robin Givhan, the fashion writer from TheWashington Post, wrote that Palin was dressed as someone who has come to steal the spotlight rather than share it.

The black cardigan with stalactite-like shimmery fringe was fashionable and not cheap  it was made by the designer label Milly. But anyone with any experience on camera would know it was hardly appropriate for that moment behind the podium, and that it would not photograph well.

It reminded me of a curtain on a vaudeville stage. And for Garelick, it also suggested what was behind the curtain: burlesque-style strippers, like Gypsy Rose Lee, there to take it off. 

Indeed, theres been talk about how even liberal old white guys secretly think Palin is hot. Again, reducing women in politics to a sum of body parts is not good for the republic, or either party.

And maybe it has nothing to do with gender, or the Mars/Venus act, but Palins language, with all of its show-offy ungrammatical syntax and non-words, is the exact opposite of Trumps, with his child-like sentences that reduce everything to black and white, good or bad.

Michele Somerville, a Brooklyn-based writing teacher, who has worked with a gamut of students  from kids as young as five to seniors  explained the difference between Trump and Palins language. "He over-boils things down, she said. He takes the sound bite and makes it the whole thing.

A perfect example: that gaffe at Liberty University about the passage from what he called Two Corinthians. Sensing something was off after he read it, he asked the crowd: Thats the whole ball game, right?

 Thats the whole ball game, is very telling, Somerville said. The Bible is not a ball game, so the quote shows that Trump tends to see everything as a contest, measured in points, like a sporting event.

Somerville posited that Palins speech is just the opposite: Shes embroidering, making it fancy, putting a push-up bra on the language.

Somerville said that her elementary-school students ask if they should use vocabulary words when they want to seem sophisticated, and thats what Palin does. If you dont know what youre talking about, do what Trump does, and reduce it all to the same bland superlatives. Or do what Palin does: dazzle with syllables.

According to Somerville, Language is a clue to psychological development. They are both versions of the same problem, coming from a fifth-grade level, and not being able to put the truth into comfortable modes of expression.

Whatever. True to form in this out-of-body experience of an election, the Palin endorsement so far seems to be working for Trump.

Can I get a hallelujah?
by Philip Rosenstein , Staff Writer, January 22, 2016

Efforts to drive primary voters to caucus sites or voting locations are in sprint mode, as we close in on the first primaries. The huge sets of voter data, ranging from email addresses to physical addresses and political affiliation, are of enormous value.

It is no coincidence that there has been increased scrutiny over privacy policies that rule the dissemination of campaign data. Data integrations have been central to creating voter profiles and integral to the programmatic targeting effort borrowed from commercial advertising.

In September 2015, the Online Trust Alliance took a look at the privacy policies for 23 presidential candidates, many of whom have already dropped out of the race.

Of those still around, the results of the study highlight troubling policies when it comes to protecting voter data.

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The study gave 74% of the candidates Web sites (those still in the race at the time) a failing grade, given either nonexistent or inadequate privacy policy disclosures. Even more worrisome,they reserve the right to liberally share or sell their donors and site visitors personally identifiable information.

This includes phone numbers and addresses, but also more personal and potentially dangerous data, like passport numbers. Additionally, the privacy policies that reserve the right to share or sell data could be shared outside of the immediate campaign landscape to third parties, though selling them for commercial use is prohibited by law.

Americans seem to have no problem giving personal data to companies like Facebook, Google and Apple.

Companies like Google are so obsessed with privacy that visitors to their offices have to destroy their guest passes when they leave and are accompanied to the restrooms by a Google employee.

Political campaigns mostly fall on the other side of the spectrum. The laws that might force a Facebook or Google into a Congressional hearing on data breaches do not apply to political campaigns.

Professor Michael Zimmer of the University of Wisconsin, who specializes in Internet ethics and privacy issues, told The Guardian: Its one thing for a marketer to try to predict if people like Coke or Pepsi, but its another thing for them to predict things that are much more central to our identity. Whats more personal than how I interact with the world in terms of social and cultural issues.
by Laurie Sullivan @lauriesullivan, January 22, 2016

A revenue-sharing advertising agreement between Apple and Google shows just how far companies will go to get close to consumers online.

Apple received $1 billion from Google in 2014, gaining a percentage of the revenue generated by search advertising serving up on iPhones.

Court documents obtained by Bloomberg reveal how Apple benefited from Google's ad business after an attorney for Oracle at a Jan. 4, hearing spilled the beans during a Jan 14 copyright hearing in federal court. The suit accuses Google of using Oracle's Java software to develop the Android operating system without paying for it.

Annette Hurst, the Oracle attorney, disclosed the details, per Bloomberg, estimating that at one point the revenue share was 34%, although the transcript didn't clarify whether that percentage equaled the amount of revenue kept by Google or paid to Apple.

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Apple's share of U.S. iPhone users rose from 42.3% in 2014 to about 43.3% in 2015, according to eMarketer. In 2013, that number was around 40%. Android, by comparison, saw its share of U.S. smartphone users rise to 51.7% in 2015 -- up from 51.3% in 2014, and 50.5% in 2013, per eMarketer.

In the U.K. eMarketer estimates Apple accounted for about 32.2% share of smartphone users in 2015, up from 30.8% in 2014. Android accounted for about 56.2% and 55.9%, respectively, of smartphone users in the U.K., per eMarketer.

The irony is that despite Apple CEO Tim Cook's stance on privacy and protecting customer data, the company partnered to use Google's search services. In June 2015, Cook told a group at the EPICs Champions of Freedom event in Washington that consumers shouldn't have to make a tradeoff between privacy and data. "We dont think theyre worth having your email, your search history and now even your family photos data mined and sold off for god knows what advertising purpose," he told the group.

The search industry is full of revenue-sharing deals. Usually, the industry is not privy to the percentage or dollar amount earned. Such the deal between Yahoo and Google. Yahoo reported in its third-quarter 2015 earnings result that it reached a deal with Google to use its search services to complement its deal with Microsoft.

The deal between Microsoft and Yahoo, originally signed in December 2009, came up for renewal in April 2015. Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer, at the time, explained that Yahoo would deliver 49% of its desktop search quarters, but Microsoft would power the listings and ads on the remaining percentage.
by Wendy Davis @wendyndavis, January 22, 2016

Firing back at the Department of Justice, Apple says its decision to enter the ebook market had "tremendous procompetitive effects," resulting in benefits like an increase in digital book sales.

The company makes that argument in new court papers, filed as part of a bid to appeal its antitrust defeat to the U.S. Supreme Court. Late last month, the Justice Department urged the Supreme Court to reject the case on the grounds that the verdict against Apple was "supported by overwhelming evidence."

The legal battle between Apple and the Justice Department dates to 2012, when federal and state prosecutors accused Apple and five publishers -- Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin and Simon & Schuster -- with conspiring to end Amazon's policy of charging $9.99 for electronic versions of new releases and bestsellers.

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When Amazon introduced the Kindle, the company was able to discount ebooks because the industry ran on the wholesale model, meaning that companies like Amazon purchased books at wholesale and then decided what price to charge.

In 2010, Apple and publishers forged an agreement to shift to an "agency" model. With that model, the publishers set prices and retailers like Apple and Amazon acted as agents, selling the books for a commission. The price of bestselling ebooks soon rose to $12.99 and higher.

Apple allegedly wanted the shift in order to sell books on the then-new iPad, but for more than $9.99 -- a rate that in some cases appeared below cost. The company presumably believed it wouldn't gain a foothold in the relatively new ebook market if it charged more than Amazon.

After a three-week trial in New York in 2013, U.S. District Court Judge Denise Cote ruled that Apple illegally orchestrated a price-fixing conspiracy with publishers. A panel of the 2nd Circuit upheld that finding last year by a 2-1 vote.

Apple recently asked the Supreme Court to hear the case. The company has drawn the support of several outside organizations including the Authors Guild, which says Apple helped writers -- and boosted competition -- by preventing Amazon from creating a monopoly in ebooks. "Whatever else may be said about how Apple entered the market, one thing is clear: Following its entry the industry became more competitive," the Authors Guild wrote in a friend-of-the-court brief filed in October.

Apple's latest papers repeat its arguments that it entered into business negotiations with the publishers for a legitimate purpose -- to enter the ebook market. "Apples conduct was undisputedly directed to a legitimate, procompetitive objective -- new entry -- and its agreements involved setting the terms of trade between Apple and the publishers, and no one else," the company says.

The company also points out that Circuit Judge Dennis Jacobs, who dissented from the panel's decision against Apple, wrote that no one has "suggested a viable alternative" that would have enabled the company to enter the market.
Water birth, in which a baby is born in a pool of water, is not particularly dangerous for newborns, according to research published in the Journal of Midwifery and Womens Health.

Share on Pinterest Babies born in water do not have lower Apgar scores or need hospital treatment more than other newborns.

Birthing pools have been used for some time in Europe, Australia and New Zealand. In the US, they have gained popularity. However, safety concerns have caused controversy.

Immersion in water during labor is thought to have various benefits, including less need for pain medication and, theoretically, a smaller chance of vaginal trauma, as the perineum becomes more elastic and relaxed in water.

The water is believed to reduce stress hormones and decrease blood pressure, easing tension in the mother. For the baby to pass from the amniotic sac into the warm water may also be less stressful for the neonate, possibly reducing fetal complications.

One concern is the possibility of drowning. When babies are born, they have a dive reflex, which means they can block their throats when underwater. This should mean there is little chance of drowning. However, near-drownings have been reported due to the baby breathing in fluid from the tub.

There is also a small risk that water will enter the mothers bloodstream, causing a water embolism. The fear of additional exposure to infection has also been voiced, although at least one study has indicated that this is unlikely.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Academy of Pediatrics support laboring in water but not being immersed when the baby is born.
Two former employees of GlaxoSmithKline  along with three other people  have been charged with allegedly stealing trade secrets from the pharmaceutical giant, according to an announcement from the US Attorneys Office in Pennsylvania.

Share on Pinterest Five people have been charged with conspiracy to steal trade secrets from GSK, including two former employees of the drug giant.

Image credit: GSK



On Wednesday, US Attorney Zane David Memeger revealed that an indictment had been filed against 45-year-old Yu Xue, from Wayne, PA, and 38-year-old Lucy Xi, from West Lake Village, CA  former employees at GlaxoSmithKlines (GSK) research facility in Upper Merion, PA.

The indictment involved conspiracy to steal trade secrets, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, theft of trade secrets and wire fraud.

Three other researchers  42-year-old Tao Li, 36-year-old Yan Mei, both from China, and 45-year-old Tian Xue, from Charlotte, NC  have also been charged.

The indictment document states that both Yu Xue and Lucy Xi stole trade secrets and otherwise confidential information from GSK during their employment with the company.

Yu Xue e-mailed the information to her own personal account  against company policy  before sending it from her personal account to Tao Li, Yan Mei and Tian Xue. Lucy Xi e-mailed the stolen information to Yan Mei, her husband, according to the document.

The stolen information contained trade secrets associated with new drugs under development by GSK  including drugs for cancer  as well as confidential information relating to research data and drug manufacturing.

Such information would be very useful for a start-up pharmaceutical company, according to the indictment document, and it is believed this is what it was used for.
Patients with blood disorders can now get detailed blood group typing to enable better matched and potentially safer transfusions.

NHS Blood and Transplant is now offering to genotype blood groups for those patients with haemoglobinopathies, which are disorders including sickle cell disease and thalassaemia that affect the body's ability to make the oxygen carrying molecule haemoglobin.

The typing will also detect 'Rh Variant' blood groups, which are slightly different to other blood groups and need to be considered when planning transfusions. Previously, typing to this level would only be possible through reference laboratories using complex genotyping methods. Unlike the older phenotyping methods, NHS Blood and Transplant's new, extended, testing can also be provided for people who have recently received blood.

NHS Blood and Transplant's work will enable the creation of a database of genotyped blood details for patients in England with these disorders.

Extended blood type information, and fast access to the database, will potentially enable safer blood transfusions for patients with haemoglobin disorders, who may need numerous transfusions during their lifetime and who may move between hospitals. A sickle cell patient on a regular transfusion regimen might typically receive around 90 units of a blood a year.

Dr Sara Trompeter, NHS Blood and Transplant Consultant Haematologist, said: "Patients taking part can now potentially receive more finely matched blood if we know not just their blood group, but whether they have a variant Rh type. And there will also be greater safety and likelihood of getting matched blood in an emergency, as their records will be held centrally and can be accessed by blood banks in local hospitals.

"We would urge all patients with haemoglobin disorders such as, sickle cell disease or thalassaemia, to speak to their medical or nursing team about providing a blood sample to NHS Blood and Transplant via their local transfusion laboratories to be genotyped."

Blood transfusions can result in red cell antibody formation - alloimmunisation - resulting in a patient developing an antibody to a blood group they don't have naturally, usually in response to a blood transfusion. These antibodies can destroy donor blood and make it harder to transfuse the patient in the future. Alloimmunisation can be life threatening and around 25 per cent of people with haemoglobin disorders are affected by it.

Monica Korpal, 37, from Nottingham, has beta thalassaemia major, and needs two units of blood every three weeks. She has needed blood since she was 18 months old and has received hundreds of transfusions.

Monica, a married bank manager, welcomed the genotyping initiative. She said: "Getting the best matched blood every time is vital and it is really hard if you have to wait for a transfusion. The national database is a great idea. I've often worried about travelling and visiting people and other hospitals not having my information."

Before the start of this initiative, only a small number of patients had their blood tested for Rh variant status. Around half of patients might have been tested for their basic blood phenotype, but that information would only have been stored at their local hospital. The initiative will test for a wider array of blood groups, including the most common Rh variant genes.

NHS Blood and Transplant is offering this testing at no extra cost to hospitals as part of the initiative until end of June 2016. More than 2,500 samples have been received so far, and it is hoped that many more samples from the estimated 15,000 people affected by haemoglobin disorders will be submitted before July. The results are processed centrally by NHS Blood and Transplant at the International Blood Group Reference Laboratory near Filton and securely stored. The results will be accessible to the teams who are involved in the future care of these patients.
You grab for the cough syrup for some relief from that nasty lingering cold, what do you measure the dose with? Many of us use teaspoons or table spoons to measure out doses for ourselves and our children but this results in dosage errors! This new study finds that errors in estimating doses can be mitigated by changing the serving measurements on the dosage facts panel from teaspoons to milliliters.

A previous study by authors Koert van Ittersum, PhD at the University of Groningen (The Netherlands) and Brian Wansink, PhD of Cornell University found that when individuals use teaspoons to measure medicine they tend to under-serve by 8.4% and when using table spoons they over-serve by 11.6%.

For this study, Van Ittersum and Wansink proposed that by writing the Drug Facts and dosage information in milliliters, which are more difficult to estimate visually, people would choose more accurate measuring devices to measure out doses and would be less likely to make dosage errors. Of the 177 young adults that participated in this study, 34.5% reported using kitchen spoons most frequently to measure medicine. The researchers found that when these study participants were given dosage information in teaspoons 60.9% chose a teaspoon to measure with while none of them chose the milliliter measuring cup. However, when the dosage recommendation was given in milliliters the teaspoon and the measuring cup were equally popular among this group. These results indicate that the risk of dosage error decreases by around 50% by simply changing the recommended units of measurement from tea spoons to milliliters.

"When measuring medicine for ourselves or our children, we often use regular kitchen spoons but they are not accurate measuring instruments," explains lead author Koert van Ittersum, "While we feel that we can estimate teaspoon doses, milliliters are much harder to estimate visually, therefore people are more likely to use accurate measuring spoons or cups when given dosage information in milliliters." In conclusion, the authors recommend that the US Food and Drug Administration mandates that the pharmaceutical industry not use teaspoons on Drug Facts and dosing information. They also emphasize the importance of not spoon-dosing at home, instead using the measuring cups that typically come with liquid medicine.
Using the latest connected-health technology, research from The University of Manchester indicates that the more often people engage with digital weighing scales, the more weight they lose.

The findings, which are based on data gathered over a period of four years with 975 public participants, showed that the users who interacted the most with their internet-enabled scales were also the ones that went on to lose the most amount of weight, the equivalent to an extra 1.13kg lost in men and 0.925kg lost in women over twelve months.

Led by Dr Matthew Sperrin, Lecturer in Health Data Science at The University of Manchester's Health eResearch Centre, the study was delivered in partnership with Withings, a French manufacturer of connected-health technology, who gathered the anonymised data from a random sample of their UK-based Smart Scale customers.

Dr Sperrin said: "Connected-technology is opening up the opportunities for research teams to understand more about health and investigate new ways to encourage healthier behaviour in the general public.

"In this study we wanted to know more about the ways that engagement with weighing scales indicates the users' behaviour, something that is only possible with recent advances in technology. By working with Withings we were able to spot a strong correlation between self-weighing and weight-loss, particularly that the more a patient weighed themselves, the more weight they were shown to lose.

"Is it the weight change that encourages people to more closely monitor their weight or is it the monitoring that encourages the weight change? This is something we would be keen to investigate further now that we know that the information gathered by connected health devices can be re-purposed and meaningfully used for the purpose of research."

Alongside these findings investigators were also able to understand more about the typical users of this type of connected health device. By comparing the data collected by Withings with the BMI information collected in the National Health Survey the team also learned that typically female users had a lower BMI than the average population whilst for male users BMI tended to be higher.

Alexis Normand, Director of the Withings Health Institute added: "This type of technology is a real breakthrough for the future of health research. We are getting clearer and more detailed insights into the way that people live their lives on a day-to-day basis and what encourages and motivates healthy behaviour.

"This is a fascinating time to be involved in health informatics, it is the first time we have collaborated with a university in research and it has been a very positive experience. We are keen to further develop public-private partnerships and look forward to continue working with the team at The University of Manchester's Health eResearch Centre as we move further into 2016."
Women who take oestrogen supplements from before or at the start of menopause and continue with them for a few years have better preserved brain structure, which may reduce the risk of dementia.

Globally, one new person is affected by dementia every four seconds. In 2010, 36 million people were estimated to have dementia.

Now, findings in a doctoral thesis from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) show that oestrogen supplements can reduce the risk of dementia in women.

"Oestrogen supplements can have a positive effect against dementia if women start early enough with treatment," says Carl Pintzka, a medical doctor and PhD candidate at NTNU.

The finding has been published in the journal Neurobiology of Aging.

A sample of 80 women who had used oestrogen supplements through menopause was compared with 80 women who had never used oestrogen supplements. All had participated in the Nord-Trndelag Health Study (HUNT), a general population-based study in mid-Norway.

The brain shrinks with less oestrogen

Following menopause, womens' oestrogen levels drop significantly compared to levels before menopause.

MRIs of the brains of the women in the study showed that those who had taken oestrogen supplements throughout menopause had a larger hippocampus. The hippocampus is one of the most important structures for memory and sense of place, and is one of the structures that is affected early in the progression of Alzheimer's disease.

"We also examined the shape of the hippocampus and found that areas where hormone therapy had the greatest effect are the same areas that are affected by Alzheimer's disease in its early stages," says Pintzka.

Other studies have shown that women who start oestrogen supplements several years after menopause do not benefit from the same positive effect on the hippocampus.

Must start oestrogen from the late 40s

Pintzka's findings show that boosting oestrogen levels increases the volume of the hippocampus. As of yet there are no drugs that stop or prevent the course of Alzheimer's disease, and the focus has shifted towards strategies to prevent or delay the onset of dementia.

Successful strategies are thought to be those that increase brain volume, and that in particular preserve the hippocampus. The risk of dementia may therefore be reduced for women taking estrogen supplements around the time of menopause, according to Asta Haberg, a Professor of Neuroscience at NTNU and Pintzka's supervisor.

Until 2002, many women in Norway and internationally took oestrogen supplements during and after menopause. The reasons for boosting oestrogen levels are to reduce hot flashes and osteoporosis and to prevent cardiovascular disease. Then the number of women taking supplements fell dramatically.

The studies that scared women

Pintzka points to two specific studies as the reason for the steep decline in the use of oestrogen supplements. In the summer of 2002, a large study of menopausal women conducted by the "Womens Health Initiative" was published.

This study landed like a bombshell in professional circles and the media. The conclusion was that the disadvantages of long-term treatment with oestrogen far outweighed the benefits.

The study included 16,000 women and showed that the combination of oestrogen and progestin increased the risk of both heart disease and breast cancer. Furthermore, the study showed that those who took oestrogen supplements had poorer memory and greater risk for dementia than the control group.

Soon after, The Journal of the American Medical Association published another study, which had followed 44,000 women for 20 years. This study showed that oestrogen therapy increased the risk of ovarian cancer if treatment persisted for over 10 years.

Some risks increase, others drop

"It's true that the risk of some cancers increases with oestrogen supplements, but we also know, for example, that the risk of hip fractures and colorectal cancer drops with their use," says Pintzka.

According to Haberg, it's a big question whether the findings of the American studies can be transferred to Norwegian women, because women [in the American studies] started using oestrogen at a later age. "Oestrogen supplements used in the United States are also different from the ones used in Europe," she says.

More recent studies suggest that boosting oestrogen levels has protective effects on the brain if started around menopause, but that the same treatment could be harmful for women if they start supplements later than a few years after menopause.

"The women who participated in the Women's Health Initiative study started with oestrogen supplementation 15-30 years after menopause. This was probably too late to expect a positive effect," Pintzka says.

More and more people will be affected by dementia

According to Norway's 2014 Public Health Report, Norway has approximately 70 000 people with dementia, and that number is anticipated to increase greatly in the coming years due to a growing population and higher average age.

Norway is not alone in facing this development, which is associated with the increasing average age of the population.

The World Health Organization has identified the fight against neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, as some of the biggest health challenges society faces in the coming years.

Women should start early with oestrogen if they decide to use it

Haberg believes that positive effects on the brain from using oestrogen supplements are highly probable, but whether supplements eventually protect against dementia remains unclear.

"Women who want to take oestrogen supplements should start early to benefit from the positive effect on the brain," says Haberg.

Pintzka points out that none of the participants in his doctoral thesis had dementia at the start of the study, nor have any developed the disease since the MRIs were taken. He adds that neither he nor his supervisor know how many participants may develop dementia as they continue to age. An NTNU research group plans to follow up on this question in the next HUNT study.

Pintzka is now employed by St. Olav's University Hospital in Trondheim as a researcher for the National Competence Service for Functional MRI.
The engineer Aitor Urrutia has received his PhD with these devices that combine nanotechnology and fibre optics for use in hospitals or on industrial premises.

The Telecommunications Engineer Aitor Urrutia-Azcona has designed some humidity sensors with anti-bacterial properties that combat the proliferation of micro-organisms in environments where the humidity level is very high, such as hospitals and industrial premises for foodstuffs or pharmaceutical products. These devices combining nanotechnology and fibre optics are part of his PhD thesis read at the Public University of Navarre (NUP/UPNA).

"Humidity is one of the most controlled and most monitored aspects nowadays owing to its great importance in a whole range of industrial processes or in areas such as food monitoring, air quality, biomedicine or chemistry," explained Aitor Urrutia, who is from Auritz/Burguete, but who currently resides in Irunea-Pamplona. "Yet problems remain in terms of measuring and monitoring it in specific situations such as environments where the humidity level is very high".

The proliferation of bacteria in such environments where the humidity is very high is common and this leads to the formation of "biofilms" which are ecosystems made up of these microorganisms attached to a surface. This leads to the problem known as biofouling which causes "the deterioration of many materials and devices, affects their performance and cuts their service lifetimes. Right now, the costs arising out of biofouling are very high mainly because of the maintenance work or replacement of equipment," pointed out Urrutia.

When considering this widespread problem, in his PhD thesis Aitor Urrutia set about building new humidity sensors that would have antibacterial properties for applications that function in environments where the humidity is high and which are conducive to bacterial growth, and thus prevent the creation of biofilms and overcome biofouling.

Combining nanotechnology and fibre optics

To develop the various humidity sensors, Aitor Urrutia based himself on the combination of the latest advances in nanotechnology (new materials and new manufacturing techniques for coatings and nanoparticles) over new fibre optic configurations. "The sensors developed are made up of an optic structure to which coatings with a thickness of less than one micron are applied," pointed out the new PhD holder. "Thanks to the embedded silver nanoparticles included, these coatings provide the sensors with two additional functionalities: antibacterial properties and increased sensitivity. That way, the new sensors developed have longer service lifetimes and perform better".

What is more, these fibre optic sensors offer additional advantages such as "their biocompatibility, immunity with respect to electromagnetic interference, their low cost, size and weight, and the possibility of long-distance measuring," according to Urrutia, whose PhD thesis was supervised by the lecturers in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Francisco J. Arregui-San Martin and Javier Goicoechea-Fernandez.

The new humidity sensors developed could be integrated into a wide variety of sectors, such as, for example, health centres and hospitals to monitor human respiration, among other applications; on premises and in chambers used in processes in the foodstuff and pharmaceutical industry; in biotechnology and home automation; and in the monitoring of structures or cavities that are difficult to access, such as cooling towers or off-shore facilities.
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The study, "Predicting gestational age using neonatal metabolic markers," was published recently in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Other UI researchers involved with the study are Stanton Berberich, program manager at the State Hygienic Laboratory, and John Dagle, associate professor at the Department of Pediatrics for UI Health Care.Premature--also known as preterm--birth refers to when a baby is born before 37 weeks of pregnancy. Important growth and development occur throughout pregnancy--especially in the final months and weeks.According to the World Health Organization, about 15 million babies are born preterm each year; that is more than 1 in 10 babies worldwide. Some 60 percent of them are born in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.Preterm birth is now the leading cause of death in children under five worldwide. Nearly 1 million children die each year from complications related to preterm birth. Many survivors face a lifetime of challenges, including learning disabilities and visual and hearing problems.The study analyzed five years of data--about 300,000 records--from the Iowa neonatal newborn-screening program. The screening is a routine part of care for every baby born in the U.S. and tests for mostly rare conditions that, if caught early, can be treated to reduce the likely damaging health effects to the child.The researchers hypothesized that metabolic markers measured during the newborn screening could build a first-ever metabolic gestational-dating algorithm that could be used at the time of birth when there is no early ultrasound. Their theory worked--but they weren't alone in their findings.Ryckman's manuscript was published by AJOG in tandem with papers from the University of California, San Francisco and the University of Ottawa whose similar gestational age studies independently reached the same conclusion as the one conducted by UI researchers.The trio of studies was funded by the Gates Grand Challenges, an initiative of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. George Wehby, associate professor in the UI Department of Health Management and Policy at the College of Public Health, is the principal investigator for the UI Grand Challenges Explorations' phase one grant. Ryckman also received funding for this study from the National Institutes of Health."All of our groups are excited by these findings, which we feel will have particular relevance in low-resource settings where women enter prenatal care late or not at all," Ryckman says.Ryckman is now joining researchers from the University of California, San Francisco; the University of California, San Diego; Harvard University; the University of Toronto; the University of Malawi; and Makerere University for a metabolic-testing trial on 800 newborns in Uganda and Malawi. The researchers will also apply a similar model to samples of the mothers' blood to see if they can determine which mothers may deliver early."We want to see if we can get at another aspect of this situation, which is targeting women who are at high risk of delivering early," Ryckman says. The two-year study is being funded by $950,000 from the Gates Foundation and the University of California, San Francisco Preterm Birth Initiative.Inequalities in survival rates for preterm babies around the world are stark, according to the World Health Organization. In low-income settings, half of babies born at or earlier than 32 weeks die because of a lack of feasible, cost-effective care, such as warmth, breastfeeding support, and basic care for infections and breathing difficulties. In high-income countries, almost all of these babies survive.Ryckman says researchers hope their metabolic gestational-dating algorithm can be used in developing countries to actively examine the rates of preterm births and then target at-risk areas with interventions and prevention programs. Current measures, such as birth weight, are very poor surrogates for gestational age, and the researchers hope their metabolic gestational-dating algorithm can provide a more accurate estimate of preterm birth in the low-resource areas that need it most.Source: Eurekalert


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Jill Mesirov, associate vice chancellor for computational health sciences and professor of medicine at UC San Diego School of Medicine and Moores Cancer Center, said, "Now that new sequencing technologies can produce significantly greater amounts of data than they could a decade ago, the methods required to analyze that data must be correspondingly more powerful. The problem is that only a small portion of the biomedical research community has the expertise to know the right method, or combination of methods, to solve their research questions and the best way to apply those methods to their data."Before GenomeSpace, it was extraordinarily difficult for researchers, especially without programming skills, to get many of the available analysis tools to work together. Users needed to know how to write short computer programs in order to transform and transfer data between platforms. GenomeSpace now performs this service seamlessly with a user-friendly interface, connecting popular genomic data analysis tools such as Cytoscape, Galaxy, GenePattern and the Integrative Genomics Viewer (IGV). Several of these tools are themselves 'tool aggregators', so in linking them, GenomeSpace provides access to hundreds of bioinformatics analyses.What's more, GenomeSpace doesn't just leave users on their own to determine the best tools for their particular research questions. The site also provides 'recipes' - easy-to-follow example workflows that clearly demonstrate the sequence of tools researchers should use to get the information they are looking to extract from their raw data. GenomeSpace currently provides 13 recipes. The platform's developers are now inviting the user community to contribute their own additional recipes.Michael Reich at UC San Diego School of Medicine, who leads the GenomeSpace development team, said, "No individual lab can possibly develop all the right useful recipes - crowdsourcing will help make GenomeSpace even more useful to non-programming researchers."Here's how an example GenomeSpace recipe works: A researcher wonders if there is a specific set of genes that leukemia stem cells express differently than normal white blood cell precursors. She also wants to better understand the biological mechanism underlying those differentially expressed genes but doesn't know where to start. With GenomeSpace, the researcher can simply upload the gene expression data and other information about the two cell types (the 'ingredients') and follow a GenomeSpace recipe, designed specifically for these types of research questions. In this case, the recipe tells the researcher how to run the data ingredients through two tools available in GenomeSpace: 1) GenePattern, which finds a list of the 50 genes that differ the most between the two cell types and 2) Cytoscape, which identifies how proteins associated with these genes interact in networks, thus providing clues to the roles that tumor-specific or normal cell-specific genes play in the body.This type of information provided by GenomeSpace could help the researcher better understand how leukemia develops and help identify possible targets for new therapeutics, said Reich.Mesirov said, "Our recipe resource was modeled on Tom Maniatis' classic,. We hope, with a combination of our own development and crowdsourcing, to grow the resource and increase its breadth. It's our long-term goal to convert these descriptive workflows into more dynamic, interactive interfaces making them even easier to follow."Source: Newswise
The following are some of this week's reports from the MEMRI Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM) Project, which translates and analyzes content from sources monitored around the clock, among them the most important jihadi websites and blogs. (To view these reports in full, you must be a paying member of the JTTM; for membership information, send an email to [email protected] with "Membership" in the subject line.)

Note to media and government: For a full copy of these reports, send an email with the title of the report in the subject line to [email protected]. Please include your name, title, and organization in your email.

EXCLUSIVE: ISIS Video: Libya Will Be Departure Base For Raid On Rome, Andalusia

On January 21, 2016, the Al-Battar media company, identified with the Islamic State (ISIS), released a video, about 4:30 minutes long, titled "Libya of Al-Mukhtar Swears Loyalty to the Valiant Caliph." The video, which as distributed via Telegram and incorporates segments from previous videos by ISIS' "Libya Province," describes the organization's expansion in Libya and its victories over the "apostates" - primarily the militias of General Khalifa Haftar. The narrator boasts that Muslims living in ISIS-controlled areas enjoy prosperity, peace and security under shari'a law.

EXCLUSIVE: ISIS Launches Campaign Urging North African Muslims, Al-Qaeda Members To Join Its Rank, Target Local Governments

On January 19, 2016, the Islamic State (ISIS) and its supporters on Twitter launched a social media campaign urging Muslims living in North Africa countries, specially Tunisia, Morocco, Mali, Algeria, Libya and Mauritania, as well as members of groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda, to join the ranks of ISIS and target government officials, soldiers and security officers.

Using the Hashtag "The Islamic Maghreb" on Twitter, the campaign, which consists of videos, mostly featuring ISIS fighters from North African countries, intends to persuade Muslims, jihadis and member of Al-Qaeda to join local ISIS branches in Libya, Algeria and Mali.

EXCLUSIVE: Jaysh-Al Fath Video Attacks Shi'ites, Says That The Russians 'Will Return Without Heads'

On January 21, 2016, the Al-Muhajirun media group, which is affiliated with the Jaysh-Al Fath coalition of Islamist militias in Syria, released an eight-and-a-half-minute video that attacked Shi'ite and Russian intervention in Syria. The video was shared via the group's Twitter and Facebook accounts. Titled "Yes, Yes Umar, Al Qaqaa Al-Misri," it features an Egyptian fighter delivering the message.

Opening Images

The video commences with images of Iranian troops marching, and shows Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. After that appear Russian soldiers carrying coffins. This imagery alludes to the content that follows.

EXCLUSIVE: American Female ISIS Member Brags: 'Finally Got My Hizam [Suicide Belt] Today'

On January 19, 2016, an American woman who posted a photo and message on her Telegram channel about possessing a suicide belt. Expressing her desire to use it in a suicide operation, she wrote: "Alhamdulilah finally got my Hizam [belt, i.e. suicide belt] today. May Allah Subhana wa ta'ala grant me the opportunity to use it soon, to grant me the honor to sacrifice myself for Him, for His deen [religion] (To kill the kuffars) [infidels]. May Allah subhana wa ta'ala grant us all shahadah [martyrdom] Ameen." At the time of this writing, her Telegram channel has 451 members.

EXCLUSIVE: American Female ISIS Member Opens Telegram Channel To Help Women Move to Islamic State, Provides Information, Photos Of Her Experiences In Syria

On January 15, 2016, an American woman created her own Telegram channel. She is married to Abu Isa Amriki, a prominent ISIS contact who assists those interested in financing ISIS fighters or in immigrating to the Islamic State. Both were previously mentioned as such contacts by Omar Hussain before he launched his Telegram channel, and on his Tumblr blog; Hussain was recently ordered to shut down his Telegram channel by the ISIS media team. At the time of this writing, her Telegram channel had 157 members.

Report: ISIS Cuts Fighters' Salaries By Half

On January 19, 2016, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) posted a photo of an Islamic State (ISIS) document notifying ISIS fighters that their salaries are about to be cut by 50 percent. The notice, issued by ISIS's treasury in Al-Raqqa, states that the move is due to "extraordinary circumstances" and stressed that "jihad by means of money" is more important even than jihad on the battlefield.

ISIS In Furat Province Executes Man For Homosexuality (Warning: Graphic Images)

On January 16, 2016, the Islamic State (ISIS) in Iraq's Al-Furat province released a number of photos documenting the execution in the city of Rawa of a man convicted of engaging in homosexual relations. The photos, posted on the jihadi forum Al-Shomoukh (shamikh1.info) and elsewhere, show the victim being taken to the rooftop by ISIS executioners and then being cast to his death while a crowd of onlookers watches from below.

Female Malaysian ISIS Member Seeks Co-Wife Via Twitter

On January 14, 2016, Malaysian ISIS member Shams sent a series of Tweets explaining that she had changed her mind on the topic of polygamy, and would now like a co-wife. Shams, who was widowed during the summer of 2015 and has a young son, is a physician by training. She appears to be currently married to a Swedish fighter who calls himself Abu Layth Tamimi on Twitter. Tamimi is very active on Twitter, and once tweeted a photo from what he said was a bomb-making class in the Islamic State.

English-Language Taliban Telegram Channels Publish News Updates

Two English-language Taliban channels, Alemarah News and #Breaking Islamic Emirate, were created on Telegram in late 2015. The first went live on October 26, and currently has 1,273 members; the second was created on November 2, 2015 and currently has 71 members. The two channels cover similar news stories, focusing on Taliban battles in Afghanistan and on American activity in the region. They also disseminate photos, audio broadcasts by leaders, and videos of battles. Both the accounts are loyal to the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, the Taliban shadow government headed by Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansoor.

AQIM In Official Communique Following Burkina Faso Attack: Our Main Target Was The Hotel, Which Was 'A Den Of Espionage'; If France Leaves Us Alone, We'll Do The Same - Otherwise Attacks On It And Its Nationals Will Continue

On January 17, 2016, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Maghreb (AQIM) issued a comprehensive official communique addressing the January 15, 2016 attack in Ouagadougou, capital of Burkina Faso. Titled "When Muslim Africa Avenges Its Victims," it was released by the AQIM-affiliated media company Al-Andalus and posted on the jihadi forum Al-Fida and elsewhere. It follows a previous message by AQIM on this attack, released on January 16.

The following are its main points:

The communique states that the main target of the attack was the Splendid hotel and some targets near it, and stresses that these targets were deliberately and carefully chosen because they are centers of "global espionage" in West Africa and of deals intended to rob Africa's natural resources. It states further that, following reconnaissance and observation of the targets, three elite soldiers from the organization were dispatched to carry out the operation. They first attacked the Cappuccino caf, which is frequented by "the greatest criminals," some of whom were killed. Then they processed to the hotel, where they fought for several hours, killing "crusader arch-criminals" of various nationalities who were staying there.

AQIM Takes Responsibility For Burkina Faso Attack, Threatens More Attacks On French Targets

On January 16, 2016, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) released an audio of an interview with one of its fighters in which he refers to the January 15 attack in the Burkina Faso capital of Ouagadougou. The fighter justifies the attack and threatens that he and his comrades will continue their strikes against France. The audio, some 3:30 minutes long, was released by the AQIM-affiliated Al-Andalus media company and posted on the jihadi forum Al-Fida. Its sound quality is poor; the interviewer's voice is distorted, apparently to prevent identification. The same day, Al-Fida also posted a written communique by AQIM in which the organization states that the attack was perpetrated by its affiliate, Al-Murabitoun.

TIP Video, Nasheed Glorify Martyrdom

On January 15, 2016, the Voice of Islam, a media organization identified with the Uyghur organization Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP), released a four-minute video nasheed titled "Seeking Martyrdom." The video, in Uyghur with Arabic and English subtitles, was disseminated via the Voice of Islam's Twitter account; it shows images of current and fallen fighters and glorifies martyrdom.

Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) Videos Feature Messages From Its Fighters In Syria

The Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP), an Al-Qaeda affiliate comprising mostly Uyghur fighters, has released two short videos featuring messages from its fighters on the frontlines in Syria fighting Syrian regime forces. The videos, each around four minutes long, were titled "A Call From The Frontlines Of Jihad"; the messages from the fighters are in Uyghur.

Issue 13 Of Dabiq Magazine Praises San Bernardino Shooting, Hopes It Will 'Awaken More Muslims In America, Europe, And Australia'

On January 19, 2016, the Islamic State (ISIS) released the 13th issue of its English-language magazine Dabiq. The 56-page magazine, which is titled "The Rafidah: From Ibn Saba' To the Dajjal," focuses on Shi'ites, but includes articles on other topics as well, such as one about ISIS's executioner Jihadi John, and an article against Saudi Arabia, among other items.

Article In Issue 13 Of ISIS English-Language Magazine 'Dabiq' Eulogizes Late ISIS Beheader 'Jihadi John'

Issue I3 of the Islamic State (ISIS) English-language magazine Dabiq, released January 19, 2016, devotes a two-page article to the organization's iconic media star, the British fighter "Jihadi John," aka Mohammed Emwazi, who famously beheaded hostages including U.S. journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, and who was killed in a drone strike in August 2015. The article, "Among the Believers Are Men: Abu Muharib Al-Muhair," refers to him as Abu Muharib Al-Muhajir, and provides details about his family and what it claims are facts about his emigration to Syria despite being under surveillance by MI5. It also recounts some of his experiences as a fighter in Syria.

Article In Issue 13 Of ISIS English-Language Magazine 'Dabiq' Outlines Proper Mourning Etiquette For ISIS Widows

Issue 13 of the ISIS English-language magazine Dabiq, which was released on January 19, 2016, featured an article titled "Advice on Ihdad [mourning]." The 3-page article includes a number of rules that a widow is expected to observe in the Caliphate. Portions of the advice provided are included below:

The article begins by explaining that certain habits are prohibited during the mourning period: "Ihdad - according to the Shari'a - is for the widow to stop adorning herself with jewelry, perfume, decorative clothing, and anything else meant to beautify oneself. This is an obligation during the 'iddah for all women whose husbands have passed away."

In Interview In Issue 13 Of ISIS English-Language Magazine 'Dabiq': ISIS's Wilayat Khurasan Chief Saeed Khan Says 'There's A Big OpportunityOC For The Islamic State To Expand' To Kashmir

Issue 13 of the Islamic State (ISIS) English-language magazine Dabiq, released January 19, 2016, featured a lengthy interview with Hafiz Saeed Khan, ISIS's Wali (governor) of the organization's Wilayat Khurasan (Khurasan province). According to jihadis, Khurasan covers a vast region including Xinjiang, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, India, and Bangladesh.

Poster Of Paris Terrorists, Featured In 'Dabiq,' Suggests Certain Details About The Attack

The 13th issue of Dabiq, the English-language magazine of the Islamic State (ISIS), which was released on January 19, 2016, features a poster celebrating the ISIS fighters who perpetrated the November 13, 2015 attacks in Paris. The poster (see below) shows the nine terrorists against the background of a panorama of Paris, each with a label giving his name. It is titled "Just Terror" and subtitled: "Let Paris Be a Lesson for Those Nations That Wish to Take HeedOC"
On December 5, 2015, media reported that 150 Turkish soldiers had entered Iraqi territory with 20-25 tanks, that were then deployed at a Turkish military base located inside Iraq near the city of Mosul, which had been captured some 18 months previously by the Islamic State (ISIS). In light of these reports, the Iraqi government quickly condemned the violation of its sovereignty, threatening to appeal to the UN Security Council for a resolution demanding that Turkey withdraw all its forces from Iraq.[1] Iraqi Shi'ite militia leaders joined the Iraqi government's demands, even threatening that if Turkey did not withdraw, they would not hesitate to use force against it.[2] Concurrently, Shi'ite militia supporters in Iraq launched protests against the Turkish presence in the country.[3]

For its part, Turkey said that its military presence in Iraq was not new, and had begun in late 2014 in coordination with the Iraqi government. According to Turkey, its soldiers are in Iraq to assist in training, instructing, and advising Iraqi security forces and Kurdish Peshmerga forces in the struggle against ISIS, as part of the international coalition to fight it.[4] Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated in a December 27, 2015 interview with Al-Arabiya TV that Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-'Abadi had personally requested military aid from Turkey during his visit there shortly after Mosul's capture by ISIS. According to Erdogan, Iraqi officials, including the defense minister, even visited one of the Turkish bases in Iraq, observed the activity there, and expressed their satisfaction with it.[5] Also, according to Turkey, its soldiers' recent entry into Iraq, as reported by media, was merely part of standard troop rotation.[6]



Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-'Abadi with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (Image: Kirkuknow.com)

Turkey's version of events was supported by elements in Iraq, mostly Kurdish politicians who said that the Turkish presence, at least in autonomous Kurdistan, was with Kurdish consent. A Kurdistan government spokesman issued a statement saying that "as part of the cooperation with the international anti-terrorism coalition, the Turkish government opened two training bases late last year [2014], one in Erbil and one in Sulaymaniyah, in order to train Peshmerga forces. At the same time, another center for training Iraqi forces was established near Mosul..."[7] Former Nineveh governor Atheel Al-Nujaifi also stated that the Turkish presence in the country was coordinated with the Iraqi authorities.[8]

However, despite these claims, Iraqi Prime Minister Al-'Abadi reiterated his demand that Turkey immediately withdraw from Iraq, and the Iraqi representative to the UN asked the Security Council to discuss Turkey's violation of Iraqi sovereignty. Beginning on December 14, 2015, Arab media featured reports, confirmed by the Turkish Foreign Ministry, of a gradual pullout of Turkish forces from the Mosul area. However, Turkey stressed that this was not a withdrawal, but rather a redeployment of forces on the ground, and that it had no intention of withdrawing its troops from the country.[9] In response to Turkey's statements, Iraq demanded that the Arab League foreign ministers meet to discuss the Turkish incursion into its territory and force it to withdraw. Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim Al-Ja'afari also did not rule out the possibility of the use of military force against Turkey, leading Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, to cynically suggest that he focus his military efforts on fighting ISIS.[10]

The London-based Qatari daily Al-Quds Al-Arabi cited sources in Iraq who assessed that the tension with Turkey was the result of Turkey-Russia tension stemming from Turkey's November 2015 downing of the Russian jet.[11] This crisis is also manifested in Russia's and Iran's increasingly harsh rhetoric against Turkey, and, according to the sources, this tension could sour Iraq-Turkey relations to the point where they sever all ties with each other.[12] Conversely, the Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar cited a source that rejected Turkey's explanations regarding its incursion into Iraq, claiming that the move was not meant to help Iraq but rather to pressure it to allow a Qatar-Turkey gas pipeline to be laid in its territory.[13]

The Iraqi press, primarily its pro-Iran outlets, published articles harshly attacking Turkey and Erdogan. They claimed, inter alia, that Turkey is seeking to restore its Ottoman-era control of Iraq, that it supports ISIS, and that it seeks to plunder Iraqi oil. One article even called Erdogan "Satan."[14]

Alongside opinion pieces expressing Iraqi rage at Turkey and reflecting the tension between the countries, the Turkish incursion also provided a opportunity for some writers to express their general opposition to any foreign intervention in their country. These writers stressed that throughout history Iraq had been squeezed between the two empires of Iran and Turkey, and called for adhering to the uniquely Iraqi identity and resisting the sectarianism associated with ties to any patron superpower.

This report will review some of the articles in the Iraqi press expressing rejection of any foreign intervention in the country:

Iraqi MP: Iraq Should "Strike Any Foreign Force Entering Its Territory"

Serwa 'Abd Al-Wahid, an Iraqi MP from the Kurdish Change (Gorran) Movement, published an article in the daily Al-Zaman harshly attacking Turkey for invading Iraq. She claimed that Turkey was treating Iraq as if it were still part of the Ottoman Empire, and did not hesitate to criticize the Kurdistan government for allowing a Turkish presence in the region without the consent of the Kurdish parliament. She added that Iraq should fight any foreign element that invades it, not just Turkey.

She wrote: "A lack of decisive steps by the central [Iraqi] government and the [Kurdistan] regional government against the violation of [the sovereignty of] Kurdish territory in Iraqi Kurdistan will open the door to additional foreign intervention, which will harm Iraqi sovereignty and exact a high price from our people. This invasion into Iraqi territory is part of a plot to violate Iraqi sovereignty, and remaining silent about it will constitute acceptance of this reality, as is happening with the Iranian presence in Iraq. The government must not settle for issuing a stern statement [condemning the invasion], but must implement its threat and strike any foreign force entering its territory. Respecting Iraqi authorities means preserving the sanctities of the country, and land is the most sacred [thing] of all."[15]



"Iraqi sovereignty" is trampled while the "government" buries its head in the sand (Source: Al-Mada, Iraq, December 8, 2015)

Iraqi Columnist: Foreign Intervention By Any Country Will Harm Iraq; We Should Rely Only On Ourselves

Muhammad Jarrad, a columnist for the Iraqi daily Al-Sabah, called on Iraqis to abandon their loyalty to either Sunni or Shi'ite and to unite against ISIS themselves, instead of relying on foreign forces to fight it: "We should be upfront and [acknowledge] that the Iraqi sides are divided amongst themselves regarding the entry of foreign forces, in the same way that they are divided on the issue of supporting the international [anti-ISIS] coalition to which these forces are connected. Some believe that the Russian-Iranian coalition is the most serious in fighting ISIS and the terrorist organizations, whereas the rest pin their hopes on the Western-American coalition that is supported by some Arab Gulf states. Some [Iraqis] are motivated by a despicable sectarian worldview that causes them to place their narrow interests above the interest of Iraq, its national sovereignty, and its territorial integrity.

"It is our duty to address an important truth, namely that an incursion by the ground troops of any foreign country will cause [that country] to impose [on Iraq] an international and regional script that serves its own interests without considering Iraq's interests and unity. Everyone must know that Iraq can defeat [ISIS] only if all its sons cooperate and thwart the possibility of foreign intervention. For this purpose, the residents of regions occupied by ISIS should rely on security forces, the heroes of Shi'ite militias, and the Iraqi Sunni tribesmen to liberate their cities. The residents of these areas should play an active role in maintaining the liberated areas and overseeing the borders, and in attacking ISIS hotbeds, rather than relying on American and Arab guarantees to liberate their cities."[16]

Iraqi Columnist: Iraq Has Been Trapped Between Iran And Turkey For Centuries, And Has Suffered Greatly For It

Dr. Sa'd Al-'Ubaidi, also a columnist for Al-Sabah, stressed that throughout history Iraq has been trapped between the Iranian hammer and the Turkish anvil, and that these powers have fought with each other for influence in Iraq, with the Iraqis stuck in the middle. He wrote: "Before Iraq's founding as a country in 1921, it was an arena of conflict between the Persian and Ottoman empires, each of which exerted its influence on it, with Iraq's sons as the true victims [of this conflict] and serving as fuel for it. The influential party [either Persian or Ottoman] tended to lean on some [Iraqis] and saw them as subordinate to it, convincing them that it relied on them to hold [public] office and to collect monies, and as a means of controlling and taking vengeance on the other part of the country. Thus, throughout the era of the struggle between these two empires, the Iraqi people as a whole lost its security, stability, and growth.

"This struggle remained ongoing even after the founding [of the Iraqi state], and the new Iraq is still an arena in which both sides, Iran and Turkey, are interested... The Turkish military incursion into northern Mosul has proven this reality, and the controversial popular response to it and to the Iranian presence have further confirmed it. This indicates that the efforts [by Iran and Turkey] to worsen [the situation in Iraq] so as to serve the interests of these two countries and to further their efforts to expand their influence on Iraqi soil, in a way that does not serve the entirety of the Iraqi people, who are fated to fight each other as representatives [of these two countries]..."[17]

Endnotes:
On the eve of the fifth anniversary of the January 25, 2011 revolution in Egypt, much of the Egyptian press has focused on the ambivalent relationship between the current Egyptian state under President 'Abd Al-Fattah Al-Sisi and the January 25 revolution that brought down the regime of president Hosni Mubarak. On the one hand, Sisi regularly presents his rule as a continuation and fulfillment of the 2011 revolution. This principle is enshrined in the preamble to the 2014 Constitution, which refers to January 25, 2011 and June 30, 2013, the date marking the popular agitation that ended with the ouster of president Muhammad Mursi, as one single revolution.[1] On the other hand, critics point to similarities between the current regime and that of Mubarak, including repression of dissent and the return of figures from the pre-revolutionary era to positions of power and influence. According to these critics, Sisi may praise the 2011 revolution, but he also buries it.

Epitomizing this ambivalence was an incident on January 10, 2016, at the inaugural session of the newly elected parliament that represented the completion of Sisi's "road map": MP Murtada Mansur caused a commotion when he refused to take the oath on the constitution in its entirety. Mansur explained that he was loyal to the articles of the constitution, but would not swear to the preamble, since in his view January 25, 2011 was not a revolution, but a conspiracy against Egypt.[2] He was subsequently chosen as chairman of the new parliament's human rights committee.[3]

This ambivalence has been a dominant theme in public discourse in the lead-up to this anniversary, and it intersects with the perennial speculation as to where public opinion truly lies and whether civil unrest may be around the corner. The Muslim Brotherhood, its allies, and other opposition movements have of course always considered June 30, 2013 a coup, and the post-MB state as an absolute negation of the 2011 revolution. The state has taken measures to preclude any possible unrest on the part of these movements on the anniversary of the revolution[4] - including fresh arrests of MB members[5] and leaders of the April 6 Youth Movement,[6] and the distribution of a unified sermon to mosque imams that condemns anti-state protests on January 25 as sinful.[7]

The following are excerpts from two recent columns by Egyptian writers that address the nature of the regime and the state of affairs in the country on the eve of the fifth anniversary of the revolution:



"[January] 25 Revolution" (image: facebook.com, January 20, 2016)

Ibrahim 'Arafat: "The June 30 [2013] State Is Perplexed How To Convince Egyptians That It Is The Fulfillment Of The January [2011] Revolution"

On January 10, 2016, Ibrahim 'Arafat, a professor of political science at Cairo University and the University of Qatar, wrote a column in the official Al-Ahram daily warning that so long as the Egyptian state fails to uphold the January 25 revolution in deeds as well as words, the specter of a renewed revolution will continue to trouble it:

"The fifth anniversary of the January 25 revolution falls in approximately two weeks. Five years have passed, and the state is still perplexed by this revolution. The Mubarak state was perplexed as to how to stop it. The Muslim Brotherhood state was perplexed as to how to wrest it away. And the June 30 [2013] state is perplexed as to how to convince Egyptians that it is the fulfillment of the January revolution.

"The relation between state and revolution, whether in Egypt or anywhere else in the world, is always complicated and confused. No state wants to fall, and thus it does not submit easily to a revolution; and no revolution ever leaves a state as it was. Egypt's experience over the past five years emphasizes that just as the state has been perplexed by the revolution, and whether it has been good or bad for Egypt, so the revolution has also been perplexed by the new state, and whether it is with it or against it...

"Since June 30 [2013], a third kind of the state's perplexity at this revolution has appeared. On the one hand, the state affirmed in the constitution that the January 25 [2011] revolution was the root from which the June 30 [2013] revolution sprouted. This means that [the state] is responsible to the Egyptians for actualizing the demands [of the January 25 revolution] by preventing any return to the practices of the Mubarak state. On the other hand, however, for various reasons the state has had recourse to reproducing many of the bases and cadres of the Mubarak state. This makes many Egyptians doubt whether it can do justice to a revolution whose legitimacy it [claims to] enjoy, but whose law it ignores... The state... is still surrounded by thoughts, practices, and faces of the past, those who were hostile to the revolution and who have returned to venture to take revenge on its foundation and on those who launched it. The state will remain perplexed so long as it is for the revolution in speech, but fails to do it sufficient justice in action..."

"Revolutions... Have A Visible Head That Can Be Cut Off, And A Submerged Body, Which No One Knows When It Might Resurface"

"What must happen is for the idea of enabling the revolution to defeat the idea of pacifying the revolution. It is true that at present it appears possible to subdue affairs in a spirit contrary to the Egyptians' desires as expressed on January 25 - but the results of reliance on [this path] are not guaranteed.

"Revolutions are like states: they have a visible head that can be cut off, and a submerged body, which no know when it might resurface. This is what has been perplexing the state to this day. Has the air gone out of the sails of the January revolution? Has it died down, not to return? Or is there still much of it that [lies] concealed? Every January 25 since the revolution this question poses itself anew, and perhaps it will continue to do so for years to come, so long as the state remains in its state of perplexity... Buying time with revolutions is possible, but it is not a certain prospect..."[8]

'Amr Hamzawy: The Widespread Arrests "Clearly Indicate The State Of Fear Of Society, And Anxiety About The People, That Has Taken Hold Of The Ruler And His Aides"

On January 18, 2016, the Egyptian political scientist and former MP 'Amr Hamzawy published an opinion piece in the London-based daily Al-Quds Al-'Arabi harshly condemning the path taken by the post-June 30 regime and its repression of peaceable voices of protest, characterizing it as a "Republic of Fear" that is frightened of civil society. Hamzawy wrote that despite these measures, a peaceful movement to rid the country of authoritarian rule was certain to emerge:

"Among the most prominent of present-day manifestations of the Egyptian Republic of Fear's fears - that republic that was brought back to existence by the military-security element in the summer of 2013, and on which the reigning authoritarianism feeds - are the repeated campaigns of arrests of students, youth, journalists, workers, and unionists. They are thrown into holding cells without any defined charges, and for an undefined period. These kinds of campaigns, which expand the scope of repression in an unprecedented manner... clearly indicate the state of fear of society, and anxiety about the people, that has taken hold of the ruler and his aides."

Hamzawy goes on to document a number of cases: arrests of students and other young people from the MB - more than 70 in Alexandria alone; members of the liberal April 6 Youth Movement who were arrested at their homes at night, and whose arrests were only announced after public outcry; and others. He continues: "The arrest of journalists continued, for example the young Mahmud Al-Saqa, who 'disappeared' early this month for a number of days, then appeared in preventive custody before the chief district attorney for State Security, on charges of joining 'an organization founded in contravention of the law, named the 'January 25 Youth Movement'," and of calling for demonstrations on the upcoming January 25..."

Likewise, Hamzawy describes similar cases in the labor and union sectors of society - for example, that of the doctor Tahir Mukhtar, who is also a member of the doctors' union's committee on freedoms. Mukhtar, along with two university students, was arrested and brought to trial on charges relating to a statement from the committee on the right to health in prisons, and also on charges relating to his participation in the January 25, 2011 revolution and other demonstrations.

"The Open Repression Strips The Reigning Authoritarianism Of The Ability To Claim That It Enjoys 'Sweeping Popular Support'"

Hamzawy continues: "The security apparatuses, in their constant repression that aims at putting an end to any opportunity of peaceful activism on the part of their opponents or those who have suffered from their injustices and violations, rely on the foundation of preventive custody. In 2013 the clause specifying the maximum time of detention without judicial proceedings in the laws regulating this practice was deleted. They also rely on media mobilization in support of the ruling authoritarianism, which falsely justifies its violations as actions of 'necessity' in order to protect the state, stability, and national security. They employ the public and private television channels and the majority of the newspapers... in order to produce and perpetuate this hysterical mobilization. Nonetheless, the open repression reveals to many Egyptians the truth that the security apparatuses, and the reigning authoritarianism that stands behind them, fears them, and fears the possible uprising of their rage... Likewise, the open repression strips the reigning authoritarianism of the ability to claim that it enjoys 'sweeping popular support', and flings the ruler down from the lofty rank of the 'heroic saviors' to that of the 'daily accounts of repression' in order to remain in power.

The Religious Establishment Forbids Protest With "The Same Expressions They Used In An Attempt To Delegitimize The January 25, 2011 Revolution And To Keep President Mubarak In Power"

"In addition, the reigning authoritarianism in Egypt relies on the official religious institutions, and with allied religious leaders, as machines for the issuing of fatwas and opinions that forbid demonstrations, criminalize peaceful activism, and recycle the worn-out expressions of 'the sin of rebelling against the ruler.' When one adds this to the open repression, the scope of the Republic of Fear's fear of society, and its anxiety about the people, becomes clear.

"A few days ago Dar Al-Ifta' [Egypt's supreme fatwa-issuing body] issued a fatwa on 'The Prohibited Nature of Demonstrating on January 25.' It called demonstrating a crime, and accused those who call for it of conspiracy [against Egypt] and sabotage. Then, the Ministry of Religious Endowments distributed this 'beneficial fatwa' to all the mosques, as a unified topic for the sermon for the midday prayer this past Friday... [These are] the same expressions they used in an attempt to delegitimize the January 25, 2011 revolution and to keep president Mubarak in power... The reliance of the reigning authoritarianism - the same one that claims so frequently to have rescued Egypt from the disaster of religious rule, and to have separated religion from state - on the official religious institutions and on loyalist sheikhs in order to keep society in check, demonstrates the degree of its fear of any possible peaceful activism...

"On the other side, students, youth, journalists, workers, unionists, and other sectors of popular society look upon the spectacle of the frightened 'Republic of Fear'. They observe its open repression and its instrumentalization of religion. They free themselves from the intimidation of the former, now that it has become a routine phenomenon; and they make fun of the incoherence of the latter, now that the institutions and the loyalist sheikhs have changed from one position to its opposite... They know that the advent of peaceful activism to free [Egypt] of authoritarianism is a certainty."[9]



Endnotes:
A salute of 21 guns and the unfurling of the Indian National Flag by the first President Dr. Rajendra Prasad heralded the historic birth of the Indian Republic on the 26th of January in the year 1950. Thereafter, the day was decreed to be a national holiday and, thus, was recognised as the Republic Day of India. 2016 shall witness the 67th Republic Day of India.

On this momentous occasion, MensXP brings to you a memorable list of quotes by our freedom fighters that have lived down in the annals of the history of the Indian struggle.

 BCCL

1. "We are Indians, firstly and lastly."  B.R. Ambedkar

2. "Citizenship consists in the service of the country."  Jawaharlal Nehru

3. "Let new India arise out of peasants' cottage, grasping the plough, out of huts, cobbler and sweeper."  Swami Vivekananda

4. "I feel that the constitution is workable, it is flexible and it is strong enough to hold the country together both in peacetime and in wartime. Indeed, if I may say so, if things go wrong under the new Constitution, the reason will not be that we had a bad Constitution. What we will have to say is that Man was vile."  B.R. Ambedkar

 BCCL

5. Indians today are governed by two different ideologies. Their political ideal set in the preamble of the Constitution affirms a life of liberty, equality and fraternity. Their social ideal embodied in their religion denies them."  B.R. Ambedkar

6. Unlike a drop of water which loses its identity when it joins the ocean, man does not lose his being in the society in which he lives. Man's life is independent. He is born not for the development of the society alone, but for the development of his self. B.R. Ambedkar

7. What are we having this liberty for? We are having this liberty in order to reform our social system, which is full of inequality, discrimination and other things, which conflict with our fundamental rights. B.R. Ambedkar

 BCCL

8. You must be the change you want to see in the world.  Mahatma Gandhi

9. We have inherited no old enmities. Our republic enters the world stage, therefore, free from pride and prejudice, humbly believing and striving that in international as well as internal affairs our statesmen may be guided by the teachings of the Father of our Nation  tolerance, understanding non-violence and resistance to aggression.  Dr. Rajendra Prasad

10. Now, dear young friends who have assembled in front of me and the nation, I have a message of Courage for you.

Courage to give

Courage to think different,

Courage to invent,

Courage to discover the impossible,

Courage to travel into an unexplored path,

Courage to share knowledge

Courage to remove pain

Courage to reach the unreached

Courage to combat problems

And Succeed,

Are the unique qualities of youth.  Dr APJ Abdul Kalam
All of us have nearly grown up hearing valiant tales of our Indian Army. The brave sons of our soil have fought horrifying wars, carried out near-impossible counter-insurgency/terrorist operations, have lost livesonly to bounce back and hit hard with more tenacity. All of this only so that we can lead a happy life with our loved ones, so that we go to bed and sleep peacefully every night! And it doesnt matter if you have heard of their heroic tales before, these stories need to heard, cherished and reheard again. In the wake of our 67th Republic day , lets talk about some of the fiercest operations carried out by IAF.

1) Operation Polo (September, 1948)

 kindlemag

Hyderabad, as we know of it today, is a part of India. Back then in the past, it wasnt so! In 1947, when the British left India, they gave the princely states the option to join either India or Pakistan. The idea of Hyderabad as an independent state aided by Pakistan did not go down well with our government, so the plans to invade the state, overthrow its Nizam and annex Hyderabad into Indian union stemmed from there. Thus began the operation that was given the code name Operation Polo and it lasted for five days ending in September 18, 1948. A state of emergency was declared when 36,000 Indian troops entered Hyderabad. Our troops displayed such immense bravado that an estimated 32 were killed and 97 injured on our side whereas 490 killed and 122 wounded from Hyderabad.

2) Operation Cactus (November, 1988)

 Defence Forum India

 Defence Forum India

If we are to give an example of the expertness and agility of our Indian Military, it has got to be the operation that was carried in Maldives by the forces in 1988. A coup d'etat by the rebels from Maldives backed by some 80 members of People's liberation Organization Of Tamil Elam, a Tamil Militant organization in Sri Lanka, plotted to overthrow the government, an attempt that was thwarted by the IAF. Abdul Gayoom, the then President requested military assistance from India. In response, within 12 hours, was sent 1600 paratroopers led by Brigadier Farooq Bulsara who quickly seized control and rescued President Gayoom. The mercenaries who were outclassed by the paratroopers tried to flee in a captured freighter to Sri Lanka but were intercepted by the Indian navy planes and frigates.

3) Operation Meghdoot (April, 1984)

 BBC

Following the unclear demarcation of the Siachen Glacier territory as per the Shimla Agreement of 1972, both the countriesIndia and Pakistanhad their own interpretation of their claims over this disputed land. Although both the countries allowed mountaineering expedition from their sides, Pakistan, in 1984, decided to stake their claims with military deployment in the areaa move which was countered by the India with the launch of Operation Meghdoot. It was one of the fiercest operations carried out by our military, the resultant being that India has now gained full control of the entire Siachen Glacier. It was the first assault to be successfully launched in the worlds highest ever battlefield. Pakistan launched an all out assault, first in 1987, and once again in 1989 to capture the ridge and passes held by Indiaboth times they failed miserably!

4) Operation Black Tornado (November 2008)

 Twitter

 Rediff

Members of Lakshar-e-Taiba attacked the Maximum City with 12 coordinating shootings and bombings at prominent places in South Mumbai in devastating terror attacks, widely known as the 26/11. But, well planned set of commandos of NGS and MARCOS swung into action, stormed into Taj Mahal and Oberoi Hotel as well as Nariman House and tacked the terrorists head on and rescued several hostages. Operation Black Tornado was the name given by the commandos. Amongst profound barrage of gunfire and resorting to firing in complete blackness, the commandos fought viciously and managed to save 9 hostages from the Nariman House, and 300 and 250 hostages from Taj and Oberoi Hotels, respectively. Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan and Havaldar Gajendra Singh Bisht paid the ultimate sacrifice and were martyred in the process.

5) Operation Vijay (May, 1999)

 Twitter

During the Kargil War, The Indian Army began Operation Vijay in the peak summer of 1999 to flush out the Pakistani intruders who had infiltrated Indias border outposts along the LOC as well as the mountain ranges sitting along the Srinagar-Leh highway around the town of Kargil. India positioned five infantory divisions, five independent brigades, 44 battalions of paramilitary troops and deployed 60 frontline aircrafts. This is one of the most treacherous episodes of military history of independent India, where although we conquered the war, we had to sacrifice many brave sons of our lands including Vikram Batra, Anuj Nayyar and Manoj Kumar Pandey.

6) Operation Parakram (December, 2001)

 Twitter

Operation Parakram, also known as the India Pakistan Standoff 2001-02, was a result of the conspired terrorist attacks on the Indian Parliament on December 13, 2001 by two Pakistan-based terror groups fighting Indian administered Kashmir, the Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad. A time when India and Pakistan were almost on the brink of a nuclear war the closest any two states had come to a nuclear exchange since the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. India claimed that these organizations operated with the support and knowledge of Pakistans ISI. It was a seven-month long operation where millions of soldiers were mobilised by both. It was also one of the last India-Pakistan conflicts that had led to such a large-scale operation.
If a man says hes not afraid of dying, hes either lying or hes a Gorkha.

This quote by Sam Manekshaw, Indian Armys first Field Marshal, aptly describes what it means to be a Gorkha. Indian Army Gorkhas are meant to be fearless and as any military personnel worth his salt would know, they are also the most worthy warriors of the Indian Army.

Courage on war front and innumerable gallantry awards notwithstanding, the aura of Gorkhas on the field demands immense respect and makes the enemy tremble with fear. Their personal weapon is a Kukri, which is a 12-inch long curved knife and can be found with every Gorkha rifle personnel. The Kukri or Khukri is also embedded in their badges attested on the uniform.

 Twitter

The Gorkhas became an integral part of pre-independence British army after British General Sir David Ochterlony saw the Gorkha men fight against the British East Indian Company. From then on, Gorkhas have been a part of Afghan Wars, Indian Rebellion of 1857, and other United Nations peace keeping missions in Lebanon and Sierra Leone too.

After independence, out of the 10 Gorkha regiments at the time, six joined the Indian army. An 11th regiment was re-raised post-independence after many men from 7th and 10th regiment which had defected to the British army, joined the Indian army.

Currently, the Indian army is indebted to the service of 40,000 brave Gorkha soldiers in 42 different battalions of 7 regiments. One of the most famous platoon of Gorkhas, 1/11 Gorkha Rifles is one of the most decorated with 11 vir Chakras, 2 Maha Vir Chakras, 3 Ashok Chakras and 1 Param Vir Chakra. The stories of its Param Vir Chakra winner Lt. Manoj Kumar Pandey are a case study in their glorious history of courageous war footings.

 Facebook

Another famous battalion of Gorkhas is the third battalion of the 4 Gorkha Rifles which was instrumental in Operation Meghdoot in Siachen. The 8 Gorkha Rifles are also have a glorious past as they produced one of the only two Field Marshals for India  Sam Manekshaw. Indias current chief of army staff, General Dalbir Singh Suhag, is also from the Gorkha Regiment which is a testament of the most incredible services of Gorkhas.

On this Republic Day, we salute these brave men of the Gorkhas for their courage and sacrifice, may they bring more glory to our nation!
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The Alternate Foreign Minister for European Affairs, Nikos Xydakis, met at the Foreign Ministry today with the Palestinian Ambassador to Greece, Marwan Emile Toubassi, and the Tunisian Ambassador to Greece, Tarek Saadi, following the Hellenic Parliaments passing, on 22 December 2015, of its Resolution on recognition of the Palestinian state.



During the meeting, which took place in a friendly atmosphere, there was reaffirmation of the excellent historical and traditional relations between Greece and Palestine and Greece and all of the countries of the Arab world.



The Palestinian Ambassador thanked our country for its varied and longstanding assistance on the Palestinian issue.



In the discussion that followed, emphasis was put on the further development and deepening of all aspects of bilateral relations and of Greeces relations with the Arab world on the political, economic and cultural levels. Special reference was made to the promotion of economic cooperation between Greece and the whole of the Arab world.



Finally, the two Ambassadors acknowledged Greeces assistance in the humanitarian approach to and handling of the refugee crisis, which concerns mainly Arab populations.
JOURNALIST: Mr. Kotzias, the Christian social part of the Union and part of the Christian democratic faction want to close the German borders to refugees. What would such a development mean?



N. KOTZIAS: Absolutely nothing. The refugees would nevertheless find more transit routes towards German.



JOURNALIST: But obstacles are going up in general. FYROM has already closed its borders to the refugees. The Austrians have put a ceiling on the number of refugees they will accept. Arent you afraid that Greece will be left with an extremely large number of refugees?



N. KOTZIAS: The refugees will find new routes. This is shown by the case of the U.S., which is the richest country in the world. This advanced nation has constructed a state-of-the-art electronic fence on its border with Mexico, and consequently one would have to cross a desert that stretches to Texas and New Mexico. However, and despite these extremely adverse conditions, 41 million people have passed into the U.S. since 2001, 13 million of them illegally. No wall can keep out the refugees.



JOURNALIST: But the more fences there are in Europe, the more expensive fleeing is. Many Syrians would no longer be able to afford the path to Germany. Why doesnt this cynical logic hold?



N. KOTZIAS: Because the traffickers will ask for other kinds of payment. Right now they just want money. But they might later, for example, ask for body parts, like a kidney, lets say. In these types of criminal organizations there is a kind of imagination at work; a kind of imagination that you and I dont have.



JOURNALIST: Many European citizens express the view that the Greeks could at least enlist more means for maritime patrols to better protect Europes external borders.



N. KOTZIAS: But we are already doing that, and its isnt achieving anything. If we wanted to stop the refugees, we would have to carry out a war against them, bomb them, sink their boats and leave the people to drown. But this runs counter to humanism, on the one hand, and to European law and international agreements, on the other. Its out of the question. That is why, in the official meetings of the EU Foreign Ministers, there is silence from the politicians who, in their countries, state to the news media that the Greeks are those who arent doing their job.



JOURNALIST: But couldnt Greece ask for more help? In the EU there are complaints that Frontex could be strengthened, but that you arent interested in that.



N. KOTZIAS: It is a myth that we, first of all, dont want to receive European assistance. Precisely the opposite occurred: We asked for 780 Frontex personnel, but only 340 border guards were sent. They were earmarked for helping us with the task of refugee registration, but initially they operated bureaucratically as they would on their home base: The stopped work at 15:00 and the weekend was the weekend. So they did nothing on the specific task. They have now adapted, as the refugees unfortunately dont follow the duty timetable of Frontex personnel.



JOURNALIST: Registration is a key word. Why is it still not possible to gather all of the data on the refugees who are in Greece?



N. KOTZIAS: We are now managing that. But so many refugees were arriving in the summer that on some islands there were as many as 23 times more refugees than residents.



JOURNALIST: Couldnt the refugees at least be registered during their embarkation for Athens?



N. KOTZIAS: There were simply a great number of refugees. And another example: Ultramodern and efficient Germany itself was for a long time not in a position to register the refugees who were coming from Austria. Whats more, the German-Austrian border is much smaller than our maritime border with Turkey.



JOURNALIST: If you could put together a wish list, what would top that list?



N. KOTZIAS: We have to combat the reasons behind the fleeing of refugees. In other words, for there to be peace in Syria. One of the big mistakes was the inadequate funding of the reception and accommodation spaces for the refugees in Lebanon and Jordan. I stated a relevant warning, months ago, that 320,000 people would leave these spaces because they were so desperate. And this is exactly what happened. It would be better for the Syrians if they could stay closer to their country. And another point: Only 55% of the refugees who have passed through Greece since December 2015 are of Syrian origin. They even come from Morocco and Algeria, hoping for a better life in Europe. For 40 they fly to Istanbul and then give another 10 for a bus ticket to the Turkish coast.



JOURNALIST: The German government now wants to declare Morocco and Algeria safe countries of origin. What is your view on that?



N. KOTZIAS: It would be much more effective for the Turkish government to move in the direction of establishing the requirement of an entry and transit visa for Moroccan and Algerian nationals. In this way, no one could simply fly to Istanbul and then get into an inflatable boat.



JOURNALIST: Some one million refugees reached Greece last year. How expensive was this for your government?



N. KOTZIAS: We have spent approximately 2 billion. For shelters, food, transportation and healthcare. For us, 2 billion is a great deal of money. To be precise, it is more than what will accrue from the pension cuts the Troika is now imposing on us.



JOURNALIST: Because of these planned cuts, maritime transport employees are striking, farmers are blocking roads, self-employed professionals, like lawyers and doctors, arent working and are holding demonstrations. Will your government survive?



N. KOTZIAS: The Troika is pressuring us towards a policy that hits the average Greek citizen very hard. The economy is being undermined by the ongoing austerity. Meanwhile, 200,000 highly-trained scientists have abandoned the country. This translates into a loss on the order of 14 billion, if one calculates the cost of educating them from nursery school through their doctoral degree. Not a word has been said with Troika about these numbers. But other countries, including Germany, are benefitting from this situation, as they are taking our doctors without having spent a cent on their education.



JOURNALIST: And again: What are the chances of your Syriza governments surviving? Polls are showing that the conservatives now have a lead in Greece.



N. KOTZIAS: I am aware that certain circles abroad dream of the collapse of our government. But the polls are carried out at the behest of the conservative party. The institutes controlled by the conservatives are the same ones that predicted that the conservative view would win out in the referendum on the Grexit. As you know, the result was different.
N. KOTZIAS: Good morning, many happy returns, and happy new year.



We know that Parliament is based on the principle of government and opposition. These Committees here are based on the principle of our common national interests  to the degree that we achieve it  our common outlook on foreign policy and the outside world, and the effort to meet, as best we can, the common goals based on the common denominator we can find.



I thank you very much for the invitation. I hope I am useful to you today. But I hope even more that our Ministry is useful to you over the coming years  and, after today, in an enhanced manner  and can contribute and assist, with texts and thoughts, in the great task you are undertaking.



As you know, the Foreign Ministry has four Ministers at this time. It has hundreds of worthy diplomats, but, for me, our having MPs and the Parliamentary Friendship Groups with third countries is like having three hundred Ministers of Parliamentary Diplomacy and many more voices that we can organize.



In the 19th century, parliamentary diplomacy had not been developed. It was mainly a diplomacy of the so-called Assemblies, until the League of Nations was formed and, for the first time, institutionally brought together a diplomatic assembly, in order to gain a voice in the Parliaments. And still, today, there is the need to create and bring together Parliamentary Assemblies in international and regional organizations. Some organizations have them. Certain distinguished academic colleagues of mine, such as David Held, have proposed as a second decision-making mechanism at the UN, for example, beside the General Assembly, a General Assembly made up of representatives of Parliaments. You know that, once upon a time, in the European Union, before the European Parliament was elected it was made up of representatives of the national parliaments.



Since that initial era of the League of Nations, the beginning of the European Union, we had the creation of Parliamentary Committees in most of the Parliaments in the world. We have committees that talk to one another, as well as to ministries. They play a very big role, these committees, in the development of interpersonal relations. For me, from the perspective from which I see the functioning of foreign policy, they are important.



The Parliamentary Assemblies of the international organizations, the Parliamentary Friendship Groups among states  two, as a rule, but I will propose multilateral committees to you  makes it possible for more people to meet, serious and politicized people, certainly, to develop personal relations and talk about things that are sometimes difficult for Ministers to say to one another. That is, the potential to discuss, to raise certain issues in a friendly but frank manner is very great in the Parliamentary Assemblies of the international organizations and in the Interparliamentary Assemblies.



Today, of course, we are in another era from the one where the Assemblies of the 19th century or the first Interparliamentary Committees of the 20th century appeared. You know that, in what we call internationalization  I adopt the term globalization  we have a very complex diplomacy. It is not just a single diplomacy between two states. If you talk to older diplomats, they will tell you, We didnt travel so much. We took a trip every two, three, six months, whereas I, for example, just last week I took eight flights to different countries, together, of course, with diplomats accompanying me or going on their own trips.



The second thing we have is that, beyond the intensification of diplomatic contacts, we have many, many players. Among those, in my opinion, following the central state mechanism of President-Prime Minister-Ministries, the most important is Parliament.



The Parliament has, in my opinion, a mediating role between the demands of the movements, the activists, civil society, social organizations, intermediary organizations and the Foreign Ministry, at which the expression of opinion is carried out in the manner that strictly perceives the states interests, so it cannot function precisely on the basis of the outlooks of movements and activists.



In my opinion, the agency that mediates between society  in its will to act, to express an opinion  and the hard core of the state is, precisely, Parliament. The role of Parliament for us is developing, moreover, very, very much, not just because the number of subject-areas is increasing and it has a special role as a player, but because today, to a degree, internal-external relations are limited.



Ill give you an example, without wanting to open up a certain issue. For example, you know that the Greek state demands that any name taken by our northern neighbour, FYROM, should be for all uses, domestic and external. You know that they think they can separate these. But, if you look at it practically, they cannot be separated. The northern neighbour country has, for example, two million automobiles, of which a million and a half travel abroad. In Europe, for example, we move around with IDs with Latin characters. IDs are domestic documents, but they have become international documents. Or today, in the era of increasing post-graduate degrees, national degrees are used for additional levels of studies, to an extent in the international space.



So, I want to say that the relationship between domestic policy and foreign policy, domestic symbolisms and external symbolisms, are inextricably linked with one another; they are not separated in the manner they were in the past, and, by extension, the role of a national Parliament is not simply domestic, only referring to international relations, but international relations are being upgraded more and more, and the importance of Parliament for us is growing. And also growing is public diplomacy and Parliamentary Diplomacy and the citizen diplomacy that is linked to Parliament.



What I want to say is, at a time when the role and importance of foreign policy is growing stronger, the role of the major player in foreign policy, which, in my opinion, is Parliament, and in particular specific committees  the dozens of Committees you have created for Interparliamentary contacts  is growing in strength and being upgraded.



In our opinion, Parliaments make foreign policy and should make foreign policy and create networks of friendships and interconnections and also take on a coordinating role. Moreover, however, we believe  and I believe this personally  that Parliament has many, many functions with regard to foreign policy. It controls the domestic policy of the core of the state mechanism  that is, Prime Minister, Foreign Ministry and other Ministries that also play a role in Foreign Policy  supports, to the degree it wants to, the official foreign policy, but also shapes its own way to make foreign policy.



I think that we must safeguard the autonomy and unified voice of these Parliamentary Committees in international external policies, bearing in mind, of course  not ignoring, but not being subservient to  the importance of these positions we have.



I also think that Parliaments can become agencies for expressing what we call national issues. The Chinese call them core foreign policy issues. There are various names, but this term has been established. One could say, the immediate issues we have in our environs.



But at the same time I want to tell you that my experience  and from what I have studied, and I am not very specialized in this  from the other Parliaments is that it is important not to limit yourself to narrow issues that interest our country. In foreign policy, to develop and gain a role, it is of great importance to defend general principles, universal human values; to show solidarity with the needs of the everyday citizen who lives in the world, to bear in mind peoples who are fighting for basic rights or to satisfy basic needs. To the extent that one adopts and fights for a broad range of issues, one also becomes more convincing with regard to what one wants to express concerning ones own space.



This means that, certainly, as the Foreign Minister I will always be pleased if your Committees support our views on foreign policy, but I will be equally pleased if I learn from you, because you have another perspective, you are closer to society, you meet with other types of personalities and social agencies while exercising the duties of the Committees founded by Parliament, and, by extension, you have a lot to tell us. That is, to the extent possible, we should have our experiences, our concerns and our worries, and hopefully we can use them correctly and gain something.



So I want to say that we have a sequence and an interaction in foreign policy, of course maintaining the special role of the Foreign Ministry. I believe that your Committees must be autonomous, but also be helped by the Foreign Ministry to maintain their special character, which I just described. Because, as I said, my basic outline is civil society, social organizations, activists. Over or next to or under, as you will  Im not interested in the geography of the configuration. There is the central Foreign Minister and, of course, the Prime Minister, the instructions of whom the Foreign Ministry follows, and between these there is the Parliament, which mediates.



And dont forget that, from the nature of its activities, the Parliament is a deeply democratic organ and has a profoundly democratic function, as individual and party opinions come first, which isnt the case at a Foreign Ministry. That is why certain conversations can take place more easily between MPs and society.



Now, I am pleased  and I say this as a MP, as well  that with the new Presidium of the Parliament these Parliamentary Groups we, at least I, requested are becoming active from the beginning of the year. They are Parliamentary Groups in which you have put forward, through your participation, the sectors of interest in the same manner as I would rank them. That is, the largest groups are China, the U.S., key players in the European Union, Serbia, Turkey and other countries in the region.



For the countries farther removed from us, I see there are as few as three members. These friendship groups can record issues we have with other countries and help upgrade our foreign policy. Moreover, they can open the way for relations with countries with which we do not have intensive relations or we dont pay enough attention to due to our pressing day-to-day issues.



The identification of the interests of a country with which we do not have intensive relations will also be a gain for us. And you can, because it is easier for the MPs  through your Parliamentary missions  help us identify the intentions and desires of third countries that are important to us on our major national issues or on problems that we call global.



Few Foreign Ministers speak  I often do, at least in the organs I participate in internationally, but not everyone does  the language of forthrightness, of truth and of clarity, but in a diplomatic manner. Sometimes they can be decoded through the parliamentary contacts you will have.



Now, practically, I believe that these Committees have the undivided assistance, and must have the undivided assistance, of the Foreign Ministry. I think that, along the way, we could shape special relations between the president or presidium of each Committee, and, if possible or necessary, other MPs, and the corresponding Directorate of the Foreign Ministry.



It is obvious that the Foreign Ministry helps through its Directorates and through its Embassies. Consequently, every time a Committee travels abroad, contact should be made with the Embassy, and our Embassies assist every Parliamentary representation and provide dossiers with all of the documents we consider necessary for a successful mission.



It is a fact that there are matters that are not always for general disclosure. However, on special issues I think there can be at least oral communication regarding what one should be careful of, where the negotiations stand in general.



Allow me to say, for your information, given that I am here, that we have had interesting developments in recent days. We put together a new trilateral. The trilateral is a special institutional system we have with two third countries. Today, as a rule, the second country is Cyprus. Cyprus and Greece are member states of the European Union, and we mediate for and defend the well-meaning interests or outlooks of our partners. We are trying to systematically develop economic, social and political relations, particularly with regard to regional problems.



These trilateral systems are highly complex. That is, the first level is the high-level diplomatic personnel, the second level is the Secretaries General, the third is the Foreign Ministers, and the fourth level is that of the Prime Ministers or Presidents of the states. Recently, for example, there was the President of Egypt, Mr. Sisi.



We also had trilaterals in the past, when we had cooperation with Egypt and Israel. We are now initiating a more systematic cooperation with Jordan. We have had the first meetings of the Secretaries General, Political Directors, as well as the Ministers, on Monday. We are also looking at  we have agreed on  moving ahead to a trilateral with Palestine and, additionally, with Lebanon.



Moreover, we have agreed with the Arab countries, with whom we have trilaterals, that, towards the end of the year, we will hold multilateral meetings with all of these Arab countries participating in trilateral configurations on issues of security and stability in the Eastern Mediterranean.



It might be interesting for you to consider, as a follow-up to or herald of future trilaterals, the formation of trilateral Friendship Groups, as a new institution, in tandem with the bilateral Friendship Groups. These trilateral Friendship Groups would contribute and lend depth  particularly more sociopolitical depth  to the trilaterals we have begun to develop.



Late this past Sunday evening we had the beginnings of a quadrilateral among the Balkan member states of the European Union: Croatia, Bulgaria, Romania and Greece. Croatia is still in the process of forming its government, but high-ranking diplomats participated in the meeting. We agreed to continue at the Informal Council meeting  the Gymnich meeting, so called because the first such meeting took place in Gymnich  on 5 and 6 February.



This is an initiative of ours that I hope will be fleshed out more strongly in the future, for a kind of cooperation between four member states of the European Union, a type of cooperation we didnt have in the past. There was an effort in the past for a trilateral with Romania and Bulgaria and for common policies aimed at stabilizing the Balkan peninsula and Southeast Europe.



Moreover, we have intensive cooperation with Cyprus, which I imagine has and will have its parliamentary dimension. We have intensive contacts with member states of the European Union, but the parliamentary system also has the European Parliament, and one must look there at how exactly to separate the bilateral issues that dont strictly concern the European Union from the issues of the European Parliament.



It is very good that there are certain countries  I would say there are fifteen at this time  with whom we are developing special relations, like, for example, China, the United States of America, like Russia. The expansion and intensification of our relations with these countries is of very great importance, on the level of Parliamentary institutions as well. I say institutions because these countries, most of them, have either unique parliamentary systems, like the Peoples National Assembly, with three thousand MPs, which meets once a year in China, or a two-house system and subsystems, like the U.S. Congress, which has the Senate and the House of Representatives.



Consequently, I would urge the Presidium of Parliament and you, beyond the bilateral Parliamentary meetings, if we can, to open new roads or to follow the multilateral special processes followed by Greek foreign policy, and for this to be expressed through the parliamentary process as well.



Thank you very much for your attention, and I hope to be made even wiser by your observations today and in the future.



I repeat that this is a subject on which  beyond, of course, one or another disagreement on practical issues of foreign policy  we have common concerns, and the role of the opposition-government principle is less intense and strong that in the regular Parliamentary Groups.



Thank you very much.
The U.S. air campaign against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria has killed at least 16 civilians and wounded nine to date despite the strict rules of engagement for U.S. pilots, according to U.S. Central Command.

Air Force Col. Pat Ryder, a CentCom spokesman, said the low civilian death toll from more than 9,800 airstrikes that dropped more than 35,000 precision munitions was a "testament to our aviators" and their skills in using all-precision munitions to keep so-called "collateral damage" to a minimum.

In a telephone briefing Friday to the Pentagon, Ryder said that "mitigating civilian casualties has been a key component" in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) but "we also cannot guarantee zero civilian casualties."

"We deeply regret the unintentional loss of life and injuries resulting from those strikes and express our deepest sympathies to the victims' families and those affected," Ryder said. He also said that some of the casualties were attributable to the "cowardly behavior" of ISIS fighter in hiding among civilian populations.

At times, the perceived gain from striking an ISIS target must be weighed against the "acceptable risk" that civilians will be killed as a result, according to U.S. military officials.

On Wednesday, Army Col. Steve Warren, a spokesman for Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, said that the decision was made on Monday to bomb a building in Mosul that ISIS used to distribute cash despite the likelihood that civilians would be killed or injured.

As part of Ryder's briefing, CentCom released the results of five assessments of allegations that civilians were killed or injured in airstrikes from July 4 to July 17 last year. CentCom used the term ISIL, another acronym for ISIS:

-- On July 4, 2015, near Ar Raqqa, Syria, during strikes against 16 ISIL bridges, it was assessed one civilian in a truck with a trailer was likely killed.

-- On July 7, 2015, near Ar Raqqah, Syria, during strikes against ISIL fighters, it was assessed that a civilian was injured by a secondary explosion and flying debris from the initial strike.

-- On July 8, 2015, near Sarmada, Syria, during a strike against a vehicle carrying Khorasan Group Leader Muhsin al-Fadhli, it was assessed two civilians on a motorcycle were likely injured.

-- On July 11, 2015, near Ar Raqqah, Syria, during counter-ISIL strikes it was assessed one civilian was killed. A post-strike review revealed a secondary explosion from a vehicle crossing a bridge nearby the intended target; this explosion resulted in one civilian likely killed.

-- On July 17, 2015, near Mosul, Iraq, during strikes against ISIL fighters traveling in a vehicle, it was assessed one civilian was injured.

Ryder said that thus far CentCom has received 120 allegations that a U.S. airstrike caused civilian casualties. After review, 67 of the 120 allegations were "deemed not credible," he said. Centcom currently has 14 allegations under review. Of those 14, nine were pending credibility assessments and five were under active investigation, Ryder said.

Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has said repeatedly in recent weeks that the campaign against ISIS will be accelerated but there were no current plans to change the rules of engagement for airstrikes, Ryder said. However, "we're continually looking at our processes, continually finding ways to hit the enemy with minimal civilian casualties," he said.

Critics of the Obama administration have frequently called for relaxing the rules, charging that as many as three-quarters of sorties flown by U.S. warplanes return to base without dropping munitions for fear of collateral damage. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), has also called for placing U.S. combat air controllers on the frontlines to guide airstrikes.

Last July, Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, then-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a SASC hearing that the majority of combat air missions over Iraq returned without dropping bombs.

"At a similar period in the Afghanistan conflict in 2012, the number of aircraft that returned with their ordnance because there were not targets available on the ground was 83 percent," Dempsey said. "It's 65 percent in Iraq right now." However, Air Force and other U.S. military officials have said that the percentage of planes dropping munitions has increased since last summer.

Republican presidential contenders have been particularly critical of the Obama administration in calling for the rules of engagement to be relaxed.

Last month, former Gov. Jeb Bush, R-Fla., called on Obama last month to "take the lawyers off the war fighters' backs and let them go do the job."

"Up until recently, 75 percent of all the sorties that left the base came back without dropping their ordnances, because there was such a concern about making sure that there were no civilian casualties," Bush said on ABC-TV's "This Week" program.

Bush's numbers appeared to be at best outdated. The Air Force later told Politifact Florida that about 50 percent of sorties dropped munitions in July and the number had risen to 65 percent in November.

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.
BARKSDALE AIR FORCE BASE, La.  "Pilot, we have a lock-on," the B-52 Stratofortress electronic warfare officer called out in surprise.

Capt. Jim Bowles, a B-52 instructor pilot, gritted his teeth, looked downward and sure enough, an SA-6 surface-to-air missile had been launched in his direction.

For most, being shot down by a missile over enemy territory is not a concern expected to become a reality. But for Bowles and his crew, this could be reality flying toward them in the dark Iraqi night.

Minutes passed, each one an eternity in itself. Bowles held his breath.

"This is it, this could be it," recalled Bowles, now an Air Force Global Strike Command program analyst.

He could see the missile. What he couldn't see were the jamming systems working to save him and his aircrew. Operating perfectly, the jamming sent the missile in another direction.

Bowles avoided a missile that night while deployed to Iraq in support of Operation Desert Storm. Throughout the preparation and deployment, his training and his family were constantly in his mind.

Prior to the deployment, Bowles, his wife and their children went on a family vacation and visited relatives. Every afternoon at 2 p.m., he was required to call and check in with his unit on Barksdale Air Force Base and in the meantime, planned for a duty station move to Castle AFB, California.

One phone call just after returning from vacation changed his plans.

"It was about 11:30 at night and the phone rings," he said. "My wife and I looked at each other and said, 'oh no.' I picked up the phone and was told to report to Barksdale."

The situation in the Persian Gulf had escalated in December 1990.

"While I'm doing Christmas decorations, I'm also packing my bags for deployment to do combat operations," he said. "It's a unique experience when you think about peace on earth and goodwill toward men, and I may have to bring combat to my enemy."

After moving to the air base in January, Bowles was sent to Nellis AFB, Nevada, for a two-week preparatory exercise called Desert Flag.

"The ramp was full of every type of aircraft," he said. "Desert Flag was a Red Flag (exercise) on steroids. By Wednesday of the exercise, we saw aircraft leaving the base, and by Thursday, the airfield was a quarter empty. Where's everybody going? We all knew."

After the exercise, Bowles boarded a bus to get a final round of immunizations and immediately deployed to Saudi Arabia to conduct combat operations against Saddam Hussein's forces.

"While there was some apprehension about going into combat and the potential for not coming home, there was also a confidence because we knew we could do our mission," Bowles said. "We'd trained together, and we'd do the jobs we were assigned to do."

The first couple of missions went off without a hitch, he said. They were relatively uneventful and weapons were released on critical targets.

Additionally, Bowles and his aircrew would make "Taco Bell runs," nicknamed after the 1980s advertising campaign.

"There were mine-breaching missions where we released our bomb-release lines just a few miles short of the Saudi Arabian-Kuwaiti border, and because of height and time of fall, those weapons would fall into the mine fields that Saddam Hussein had sewn," Bowles said. "We called those our Taco Bell runs because they were our runs for the border."

At one point, Hussein sent three armored units to advance into the town of Khafji. All Bowles and his crew were given was a slip of paper with coordinates.

"At that time, Saddam's armored columns were exposed and we laid down the fire on him with two aircraft full of MK-82s and one aircraft full of cluster bombs," Bowles said. "After we landed, we received a report saying we'd stopped them in their tracks."

Throughout the numerous combat missions, the B-52 continuously demonstrated itself to both ally and enemy forces as a fearsome and unmatched weapons delivery system.

"The B-52 has such a high capacity magazine that you can drop a very large number of munitions," Bowles said. "We would get reports of enemy prisoners of war that surrendered because of the threat of B-52 attacks. They'd cross the Saudi border and surrender to the Saudis, surrender to our troops and even to our photographers because they didn't want to experience the onslaught of the cluster bomb units we were carrying."

Bowles, having completed 25 combat missions in 10 weeks, considers Desert Storm to be a career-defining moment.

"When I look back on Desert Storm, it feels like yesterday. It's a memory deep within myself and my family," Bowles said. "That was 25 years ago, but we can't fight the last fight. We have to fight the fight of tomorrow."

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The commissary's senior enlisted adviser made a visit to Guam early this month to examine the produce situation, officials said and, according to some there during the visit, he didn't like what he saw.

"He came and visited our commissary and was not happy," said one family member stationed on Guam who asked not to be identified. He "said that he had already planned to visit next month, but when he saw what was being posted on social media, he changed plans and came as soon as possible. They were not expecting him, so it was a surprise."

Air Force Command Chief Master Sgt. Stuart M. Allison, who has been the Defense Commissary Agency's (DeCA) senior enlisted adviser since 2014, visited the two commissaries on Guam from January 10-15 at the request of DeCA's director, Joseph Jeu, a commissary spokesman told Military.com in a statement.

DeCA came under fire after a contract change late last year resulted in drastic produce price hikes. Under a previous contract, the cost of shipping produce to Guam had been paid by taxpayers. Under the new contract, however, that cost is passed on to patrons as part of items' price tags. And while most prices had leveled off as of Jan. 10, bagged salad continued to cost an average of 200 percent more, officials said.

While price continues to be a concern, Allison said, many shoppers were also worried about product quality. Patrons had previously told Military.com that produce shipped by boat instead of being airlifted, which keeps costs down, is often wilted or spoils quickly.

"Through my discussions with service members and their families, I saw that their main focus wasn't necessarily on price but more on quality," he said in a statement. "We spent a lot of time ensuring the supplier understood our expectations for quality."

Allison also ordered a reorganization of the produce area at the Orote commissary on Naval Base Guam, officials said, and met with more than 150 patrons, including spouses.

"We were very well-received by our patrons in Guam. The customers feel that their voice was heard. And I can say that we heard their concerns, and we will do our best to address them," he said. "The overall purpose of our trip was simple: We wanted to be there to assess firsthand what the produce situation was in Guam and see what changes could be made to improve it. We also wanted to build up the communication with our customers and produce supplier."

-- Amy Bushatz can be reached at amy.bushatz@military.com.
After months of delay, Eric Fanning finally was given a confirmation hearing Thursday by the Senate on his historic nomination by President Obama to become the first openly gay Army secretary.

Fanning's sexual orientation never came up in the course of his testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), and the hearing instead focused mainly on the Army's struggle to meet commitments in a period of downsizing.

Fanning, who previously served as acting Air Force secretary and chief of staff to Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, appeared headed to an easy confirmation by the full Senate.

Obama nominated Fanning, 47, from Kalamazoo, Michigan, last September but Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kansas, had put a "hold" on the process to protest the administration's plan to close the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, detention facility and move some of the remaining prisoners to the U.S.

Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, the SASC chairman, and others also held up the nomination by charging that Obama had violated the little-used Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 by putting Fanning's name forward.

Fanning had been serving as acting Army Secretary since the retirement last year of former Army Secretary John McHugh. McCain said that the Vacancies Act prohibited anyone serving in an "acting" post from getting the full-time job.

To get around McCain's complaint, Carter shuffled top Army management posts. Fanning resigned as acting secretary. Patrick Murphy, a Pennsylvania Democrat who served in the House from 2007 to 2011 and had been nominated to become Army undersecretary, was named acting secretary until Fanning could get a hearing.

At the hearing, McCain appeared to be satisfied with Fanning's compliance. "In my opinion, his resignation has cured the president's violation of the law," McCain said.

In his testimony, and in response to questions, Fanning shared the concerns of McCain and other senators on both sides of the aisle on the problems faced by the Army in paring troop strength to 450,000, and possibly 420,000 if mandated budget cuts under the sequester process return.

"I do worry about the size of the Army today," Fanning said. The Army has a plan to improve readiness, but "the demand on the force -- the size that it is -- makes it difficult to keep it trained," he said.

Fanning did not serve in the military, but said "I learned from an early age the importance of service" from two uncles who went to West Point and others in his family with a military background.

"Few understand the many missions of the Army," Fanning said, noting that more than 140,000 soldiers are now serving overseas in some capacity in about 140 countries. "If confirmed, these soldiers will be my highest priority, specifically making sure they are ready."

The senators on the committee essentially treated Fanning as they would any other nominee. They opened with a brief policy question and then focused on issues in their home states.

Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-New Hampshire, wanted Fanning to check on a crumbling National Guard facility in Manchester, New Hampshire. Fanning said he would. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, complained that contractors in West Virginia were doing too many things that the National Guard ought to do. Fanning said he'd look into that too.

When asked if women should be required to register for the draft, now that the combat exclusion rule has been scrapped in the military, Fanning said the decision was up to the Obama administration. However, Fanning added that "if we're focused on equal opportunity, a part of that is equal responsibility."

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, wanted to know what Fanning thought about the possibility that retired Army Gen. David Petraeus might be demoted to three-star rank because of his misdemeanor guilty plea to allowing his mistress to view classified information .

Fanning said he shared former Secretary McHugh's position that "no further action" should be taken against Petraeus. "That's a great answer," Graham said, adding that "I look forward to voting for you."

Earlier at an Association of the U.S. Army breakfast, Gen. Mark Milley, the Army's chief of staff, and retired Gen. Gordon Sullivan, a former Army chief of staff, both endorsed Fanning.

Milley called Fanning "very effective on the Hill and inside the building (the Pentagon)" and "a pleasure to work with."

In summing up why he wanted the post, Fanning said. "It would be my honor to play a role in making sure that the best men and women our country has to offer get all the support they need in undertaking the mission of defending our country, a mission for which they freely volunteered. We ask them to do extraordinary things, we owe them no less."

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at richard.sisk@military.com.
A day after calling off a search-and-rescue mission for 12 Marines who went down in a two-helicopter collision off the coast of Oahu, the Marine Corps has officially declared that the Marines are lost.

Four officers and eight enlisted crew members went down when two CH-53E Super Stallions attached to Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 463 out of Hawaii collided during routine night training Jan. 14. A joint search-and-rescue effort led by the Coast Guard combed a debris field off Oahu's north shore for five days, turning up four empty life rafts and aircraft parts, but no survivors.

Capt. Timothy Irish, a spokesman for III Marine Expeditionary Force, said the Marine Corps updated the status of the missing men to "deceased" Jan. 20, following the end of the search.

He confirmed to Military.com that remains had been recovered from the wreckage.

Irish also released new details about the Marines, whose ages ranged from 41 to 21. Several had seen service in Iraq or Afghanistan; all were attached to HMH-463, Marine Aircraft Group 24, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing stationed at Marine Corps Base Hawaii at the time of the crash.

According to Marine officials, the deceased are:

Maj. Shawn M. Campbell, CH-53E Super Stallion pilot Campbell, 41, from College Station, Texas, joined the Marine Corps Sept. 30, 1999. His deployments include Operation Iraqi Freedom and the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit. Major Campbell's decorations include the Air Medal with strike/flight device, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with gold star in lieu of second award, Navy Unit Commendation with two bronze stars in lieu of third award, National Defense Service Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal with two bronze campaign stars, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon with two bronze stars in lieu of third award.

Capt. Brian T. Kennedy, CH-53E Super Stallion pilot Kennedy, 31, from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, joined the Marine Corps July 1, 2003. His decorations include the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon with one bronze star in lieu of second award.

Capt. Kevin T. Roche, a CH-53E Super Stallion pilot Roche, 30, from St. Louis, Missouri, joined the Marine Corps Dec. 19, 2005. His deployments include Operation Enduring Freedom. His decorations include the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Korean Defense Service Medal and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon with one bronze star in lieu of second award.

Capt. Steven R. Torbert, CH-53E Super Stallion pilot Torbert, 29, from Florence, Alabama, joined the Marine Corps Oct.14, 2004. His decorations include the National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon.

Sgt. Adam C. Schoeller. CH-53E Super Stallion crew chief Schoeller, 25, from Gardners, Pennsylvania, joined the Marine Corps March 23, 2008. His deployments include Operation Enduring Freedom. His decorations include the Air Medal with one individual action device and five strike/flight devices, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal with bronze star in lieu of second award, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Sea Service Deployment Ribbon with bronze star in lieu of second award, and the NATO Medal.

Sgt. Dillon J. Semolina, CH-53E Super Stallion crew chief Semolina, 24, from Chaska, Minnesota joined the Marine Corps Sept. 1, 2011. His decorations include the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon.

Sgt. Jeffrey A. Sempler, a CH-53E Super Stallion crew chief Sempler, 22, from Woodruff, South Carolina joined the Marine Corps Aug. 12, 2010. His decorations include the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon.

Sgt. William J. Turner, CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter crew chief Turner, 25, from Florala, California, joined the Marine Corps Aug. 8, 2008. His deployments include Operation Enduring Freedom. His decorations include the Air Medal with four strike/flight devices, Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal with bronze star in lieu of second award, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Sea Service Deployment Ribbon and the NATO Medal.

Cpl. Matthew R. Drown, a CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter crew chief Drown, 23, from Spring, Texas, joined the Marine Corps March 2, 2011. His decorations include the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.

Cpl. Thomas J. Jardas. a CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter crew chief Jardas, 22, from Ft. Myers, Florida, joined the Marine Corps May 6, 2011. His decorations include the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon.

Cpl. Christopher J. Orlando. a CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter crew chief Orlando, 23, from Hingham, Massachusetts, joined the Marine Corps Aug. 9, 2012. His decorations include the National Defense Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon.

Lance Cpl. Ty L. Hart, CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter crew chief Hart, 21, from Aumsville, Oregon, joined the Marine Corps Aug, 8 2012. His decorations include the National Defense Medal and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.

Irish said that Marine Corps Base Hawaii planned to hold a Jan. 22 memorial service for the men aboard the base.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the Marines and their families as we all mourn this tragic loss of life," he said in a news release.
Air Force Gets Its Own Combat Dive Badge After Using the Navy's for Years

Air Force officials said there is a notable distinction between Navy divers and their divers, which was a key reason for...
Sarah Palin is taking heat from veterans for seeming to point the finger at President Obama over mental issues her son may be dealing with following his Iraq war service.

Her son Track was arrested earlier this week on domestic violence charges, and Palin publicly addressed the case Wednesday during a post-endorsement appearance on the campaign trail for Donald Trump. She appeared to link his alleged behavior to post-traumatic stress disorder -- and used it to criticize Obama's veteran policies.

But Paul Rieckhoff, the head of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), criticized the former Alaska governor's comments Wednesday night.

He tweeted: "We need more programs and less politics to battle PTSD."

Speaking with NBC News, he also said, ""It's not President Obama's fault that Sarah Palin's son has PTSD."

He called PTSD a "very serious problem" and reportedly urged Palin not to "politicize" it.

"I hope this doesn't become a portable chew toy in a political campaign," he said, according to NBC News.

The comments touched off a Twitter exchange with other military service members concerned about Palin's remarks. One, who identified as a retired Army veteran, said her comments could cause "perceptual problems & future treatment issues" for those diagnosed with PTSD.

Palin addressed the "elephant in the room" -- her son's arrest -- at her first stop on the campaign trail for Trump after endorsing him Tuesday.

"My son, like so many others, they come back a bit different," she said in Tulsa, Oklahoma. "They come back hardened. They come back wondering if there is that respect for what it is that their fellow soldiers and airmen and every other member of the military have sacrificially given to this country and that starts at the top."

Palin said military members look at Obama and question whether he knows the sacrifices they make to "secure America and to secure freedoms."

"So when my own son is going through what he is going through coming back, I can certainly relate with other families who kinda feel these ramifications of some PTSD," she said.

Track, a 26-year-old Iraq veteran, was arraigned Tuesday on charges of domestic violence assault, interfering with a report of domestic violence crime and possession of a firearm while intoxicated.

According to the police affidavit posted by KTVA-TV, officers were called to the residence Monday night following two 911 calls -- the first from Track's girlfriend and the second from him.

The woman claimed Track had "punched her in the face and that a firearm was involved," according to police records.

The charges against Track were filed the same day Palin appeared at an Ames, Iowa, rally to endorse Trump, the current GOP frontrunner.
Rafael Olmeda of the Miami Sun Sentinel reports that Broward County prosecutors will not file criminal charges against left-hander Aroldis Chapman in connection with allegations of domestic violence dating back to this past October. Olmeda adds that the Broward States Attorney office will be making an official statement on the matter later today.

Chapmans lawyer, Paul Molle, issued the following statement, according to Olmeda: We are all pleased that the Davie Police Department and the Office of the State Attorney took the time to fully investigate the matter and have concluded that charges were not warranted.

As Olmeda reminds, no arrests were made at the time of the purported incident, with police officials citing inconsistencies in witness accounts. Chapmans girlfriend, Cristina Barnea, told police that Chapman struck her in front of others at a birthday party and also choked her. The initial reports of the incident also alleged that Chapman discharged a handgun eight times in his garage. However, Olmeda writes that Barnea later told police she only heard one gunshot, was not certain who fired the shot and did not wish to prosecute Chapman. He continues, noting that Barnea told prosecutors that she did not remember saying that Chapman had hit her, and other witnesses said they saw no physical altercation between the pair.

Whether or not Chapman will face some form of suspension under Major League Basbealls newly implemented domestic violence policy remains to be seen. That decision will be left up to commissioner Rob Manfreds discretion. The widespread expectation has been that Chapman will face some form of repercussion  likely in the form of a suspension  although the fact that no arrest was made and no charges have been filed seems likely to work in his favor to some extent.

Earlier this offseason, the Dodgers backed out of a trade to acquire Chapman, reportedly in large part due to the emergence of these allegations. The Yankees acquired Chapman from the Reds several weeks later for a package of infielder Eric Jagielo, right-hander Rookie Davis, right-hander Caleb Cotham and infielder Tony Renda.
HOLLAND, MI - As Hope College students and the Holland community begin enjoying the $35 million Jack H. Miller Center for Musical Arts and the $7 million Kruizenga Art Museum, President John Knapp said he also is proud of the endowments that will sustain them.

"These buildings were completed with no debt," said Knapp in a recent interview.

Going forward, each of the buildings will be supported by an endowment equal to 25 percent of their construction cost, he said.

"Those facilities were not built with tuition dollars," said Knapp.

Hope's tuition for the current academic year is $30,370, not including room and board.

Knapp said the college's "Greater Hope" fundraising drive raised $203 million, topping the $175 million goal established in October, 2011. The campaign began in 2007.

This 64,000-square-foot musical arts center was built with 65-foot tall precast concrete panels weighing more than 80,000 pounds each. The building was designed to isolate sound and vibration from musical activities within the building and from the adjacent railroad tracks.

The musical arts center also includes a glass-enclosed two-story lobby area, a main performance hall with 800 seats, a recital hall with seating for up to 125, instrumental and choral rehearsal rooms, faculty studios and practice rooms, and a dedicated organ studio.

The building's Casavant Opus 3903 organ was installed over four weeks last June. Five weeks were set aside to tune the instrument, according to general contractor G.O. Construction, a joint venture between GDK Construction of Holland, and Owen-Ames-Kimball Co. of Grand Rapids.

The art museum, also built by G.O. Construction, consists of 27 granite slabs, each 22 feet high, with LED lights illuminating the space between each panel. A building's footprint is in the shape of an artist' pallet.

Hope College is now completing the last of seven new buildings that will be funded by the proceeds of the "Greater Hope" campaign - a $22.5 million student center that will be completed by April 2017.

The Jim and Martie Bultman Student Center is being built in the central campus between College and Columbia avenues and 10th and 13th streets, west of the DeWitt Center on the site formerly occupied by Nykerk Hall of Music.

The student center was funded in part by a $10 million lead gift from the family of Cheri DeVos, daughter of Amway Corp. co-founder Richard DeVos.

RELATED: How and why Amway's DeVos family gives away billions

Jim Harger covers business for MLive/Grand Rapids Press. Email him at jharger@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter or Facebook or Google+.
"Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master." - George Washington
KENT CITY, MI --It's a busy weekend, for eating!

In a few hours I'll be visiting Kent City to take on Papa Piccione's 5lb. stromboli as part of our search for Michigan's Most Extreme Challenge.

Owner Jeff Sabin said on Facebook:

"You got this GONZO!"

More than 50 have tried the challenge, and only two have succeeded.

I hope to be the next.

If I can't do it I think I found someone who can. He's my ringer.

His name is David Kutzko, a Classics and Greek professor at Western Michigan University, who moonlights as a competitive eater. He was my expert on the search for Michigan's Best Burger. He was a beast.

RELATED: Michigan's Best Burger 2013: Our Top 10 list, and more!

We'll arrive at 5:45 p.m.

We'll begin about 6 p.m.

Follow me on Facebook, Twitter and Periscope were we will have LIVE updates.

Papa Piccione Pizza is located at 80 S Main St. in Kent City (just north of Grand Rapids).

If that's not enough, I'm also participating in this weekend's Crack Fries Eating Contest at HopCat in Grand Rapids.

Next: Crack Fry Eating contest at @HopCat in #GrandRapids 3 p.m. Jan. 23. The record is 4 pounds in 6 minutes. pic.twitter.com/E6559hfRtI  John Gonzalez (@MichiganGonzo) January 22, 2016

HopCat, one of America's top-rated beer bars, will mark eight years in business on Jan. 23 with special beer releases and free orders of its famous Crack Fries until 5 p.m. to everyone who visits.

I'll be there at 3 p.m. for the annual Crack Fries-eating contest.

It sounded like a fun idea earlier in the week. Wish me luck.

More details on the HopCat Facebook page.

John Gonzalez is on the Life + Culture Team for MLive.com. He covers travel, events, TV and coordinates Michigan's Best. Email him at gonzo@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter, Facebook or Google+.
Aquinas College's 25th annual St. Thomas Aquinas Lecture will feature William Cook, who will discuss sacred architecture.

The topic was chosen in connection with the college's newly announced campus chapel, Our Lady Seat of Wisdom.

The lecture, which is co-sponsored by the Aquinas Catholic Studies and Campus Ministry departments, is free and open to the public and will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 28, in the Wege Ballroom, 1607 Robinson Road.

Cook is a professor and researcher whose work focuses on St. Francis of Assisi and his order. He is a published author and has received teaching awards from the State University of New York, Baylor University, the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and the Medieval Academy of America.

The Bill Cook Foundation, which was established to help some of the world's poorest children obtain an education, currently supports schools and students in Laos, Cambodia, Papua New Guinea, Kenya and Ethiopia and will soon expand its work to include Myanmar, Honduras and Nicaragua.
The World Affairs Council of West Michigan is promising a speakers series that will go beyond the "shrill" rhetoric being voiced on this year's campaign trail.

The organization is presenting its annual "Great Decisions" global discussion series during February and March.

Topics for the 2016 series include global migration, cybersecurity, genocide prevention and normalizing relations with Cuba.

Guest presenters include some well-known local residents, such as former mayor George Heartwell and Bing Goei, as well as experts from around the world.

"The rhetoric surrounding issues from the presidential campaign to immigration seems particularly shrill this year - and the amount of misinformation circulating gives us pause," said Dixie Anderson, executive director of the World Affairs Council of Western Michigan. "We see 'Great Decisions' as a welcome antidote to this trend, allowing experts to lead a civil discussion about global issues that affect people in every corner of the world - including those living right here in West Michigan."

Each of the eight presentations will feature an extensive question-and-answer session with the audience.

"Our format allows people to draw close and gain a personal perspective on some of the most pressing issues of the day," said Anderson.

Discussions are held at 6 p.m. Mondays beginning Feb. 1 at the Performing Arts Center at Aquinas College, 1607 Robinson Road. Cost to attend is $10 for members and $15 for others. No reservations are required and tickets are available at the door. Free parking is available.

The series kicks off Monday, Feb. 1, with Isra El-beshir, representing the Arab American National Museum in Dearborn. Her presentation, titled "It Isn't Funny: A Political Cartoonist in the Arab World," will focus on the political "khartoons" of Khalid Albaih, a Sudanese Muslim living in Qatar. Albaih's politically charged work rose to prominence in the early stages of the Arab Spring protests of 2011.

El-beshir will discuss how Albaih utilized social media to quickly become an artist of the revolution. As his work was shared online and in the streets across Arab nations, he gained international prominence - and feared for his safety. He has tackled such issues as the Charlie Hebdo attacks, the Saudi-Iranian crisis and the ongoing Syrian refugee crisis.

The series will also feature the following:

Feb. 8: "Migration to Michigan: Challenges and Opportunities," presented by Bing Goei, the former owner of Eastern Floral who now leads Michigan's Office for New Americans.

Feb. 15: "Climate Change: Local Solutions to Global Problems," presented by George Heartwell, the former mayor of Grand Rapids.

Feb. 22: "Never Again: The U.N.'s Role in Genocide Prevention," presented by Dr. Brett O'Bannon of the Conflict Studies Program at DePauw University.

Feb. 29: "Our Allies in the Middle East: The Future of Kurdistan," presented by Dr. Jessie Clark, a geographer at the University of Nevada-Reno.

March 14: "Is Korean Reunification Possible?" presented by Dr. James Person of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C.

March 21: "ISIS: What We Don't Know," presented by Patrick Skinner, a former CIA case officer and currently with the Soufan Group of New York.

March 28: "Cuba and the U.S.: What Does the Future Hold?" presented by Ambassador Charles Shapiro, formerly coordinator for Cuban Affairs for the U.S. Department of State.

For more information on sessions, dates and times, as well as detailed information on speakers, visit www.worldmichigan.org/great-decisions-discussion-series-2016.
by Lauren Leffel

Water has always been pivotal to Michigan's triple-bottom-line sustainability, but the wise management of this precious resource has perhaps never been as crucial as now. For evidence, we need look no further than major water quality and quantity challenges--some would say crises--across the country, from the Chesapeake Bay to western Kansas and from Lake Erie to the dramatically depleted California reservoir system. Producer Russ White and I took Greening of the Great Lakes to the Michigan Water Symposium, organized by the Michigan Agri-Business Association (MABA) as the capstone of its 2016 Winter Conference and Trade Show. The symposium brought together individuals and experts from around the country to discuss how we can better collaborate nationally to ensure the preservation of our water.



Jim Byrum, Kirk Heinze

Jim Byrum- president of the Michigan Agri-Business Association (MABA)

"What we are focused on at this conference is water quality and water access."

Byrum emphasizes that although Michigan is a state known for its abundance of freshwater, there are lessons to be learned from the California and Nebraska water situations, such as communication between different groups and organizations.

"We need to bridge communication divides and bring together partnerships between agricultural groups, environmental groups, government agencies, and nonprofits to work toward the betterment of crises like that of Lake Erie," says Byrum.

"Water is a resource we can and should use in agriculture, industry, and recreation, but, at the same time, we want generations after us to enjoy the same opportunities. If we are going to solve water quality issues, it has to be a holistic approach."

In addition to the water conference, MABA recently kicked off its first, voluntary, certified fertilizer application program. Over 270 people gathered to learn more about application technology and impacts of fertilizer on water quality issues. Private sector support and engagement in programs like this have already reduced phosphorus loading in water bodies by 40 percent, and, according to Byrum, it will be the private sector that will lead in reducing it another 40 percent.

"The private sector has and will continue to change agricultural production more in the next decade than anything to do with government regulation."



Click here to hear Byrum's conversation with Heinze.





David Ullrich, Kirk Heinze

David Ullrich- executive director of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, based in Chicago

A keynote speaker for the symposium, Ullrich spoke on the intersection of rural and urban interests and the need for new partnerships to achieve water quality goals.

"The Great Lakes Basin is a global treasure that will become even more valuable than oil or gold," says Ullrich.

The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, launched in 2003, is a group of 120 mayors from both Canada and the U.S. representing more than 17 million people, with three goals: to (1) involve city officials in decision making processes in regards to the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway, (2) create a strong best practices network, and (3) increase the attention in given to water resource issues in both Washington D.C. and Ottawa.

"Our organization wants to partner with anyone who wants to solve problems and make life better."

Ullrich discusses the past battle of extremes between urban manufacturers and agricultural producers, and highlights the interdependence between the two in regards to food and equipment needs and their common interest in water abundance and quality.

"There is a natural partnership between urban and rural communities."

Looking forward, Ullrich and the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative will be looking at how the agricultural and private sectors can come together to create tangible solutions for such problems as nutrient loading, greenhouse gas emissions, and invasive species.



Click here to hear Ullrich's conversation with Heinze.





John Berge, Kirk Heinze

John Berge- general manager, North Platte Natural Resource District (NPNRD), in Nebraska



Berge focused on the very disturbing Ogallala Aquifer situation. The NPNRD is a political subdivision in Nebraska that collects taxes to use for a variety of sustainability tasks such as monitoring the quality and quantity of groundwater.



The Ogallala Aquifer stretches from Texas to South Dakota and is twice as large as all of the Great Lakes combined. In recent years, the areas of western Kansas and northwestern Texas have seen dramatic declines in the elevation of their groundwater from the Ogallala.

Berge emphasizes that although Nebraska's water supply is not in bad shape right now, that doesn't mean it won't be down the road--a situation Michiganders and others in the Great Lakes Region should note.

"You cannot plan for a drought in the middle of a drought; you have to plan years before it. We know and need to act on the fact that this aquifer is not an unlimited resource."

Heinze asked Berge what other lessons from Nebraska and the Ogallala can be applied to current and future water issues in Michigan.

"You have to focus on maintaining the quality of your water, and, most importantly, you need to start protecting the quantity of that water by talking to landowners and involved parties and finding ways to reduce use now."



Click here to hear Berge's conversation with Heinze.





Steve Beckley, Kirk Heinze

Stephen Beckley, expert on California water issues, principal of S. Beckley and Associates, in Woodland, CA



In regard to California's devastating drought and its impact on California's agriculture industry, Beckley explains that water scarcity has been terribly hard on not only the farm owners, but also on the tens of thousands of people seasonally hired to help on the farms. However, in the past year or so, California has seen a significant reduction in the population's use of water.

"People are pulling together, environmental, agricultural, and urban groups, to solve this problem and meet the future needs of all."

Sites Reservoir, a proposed off stream reservoir that would be located in the Sacramento Valley, is one key example of the prodigious efforts needed to effectively maintain and improve water storage.

"This plan will take water that would normally be flown out for storage and will instead enable it to be pumped up to Sites for storage and future use."

Beckley's advice to Michiganders and others on the Great Lakes echoed that of most of the featured speakers at the symposium.

"Plan ahead, try to work together, and look for nontraditional partners. We're all in this together."



Click here to hear Beckley's conversation with Heinze.





Please join me for Greening of the Great Lakes every Sunday evening at 7:00 on News/Talk 760 WJR.
Alpha_Sigma_Phi_111115_RJS_02.jpg

The Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity house at 920 Baldwin Ave. in Ann Arbor on Nov. 11, 2015.

(Ryan Stanton | The Ann Arbor News)

Alpha Sigma Phi, the University of Michigan fraternity that Ann Arbor officials said this week has demonstrated "an excessive disregard of city regulations," has received another noise violation ticket.

The Ann Arbor Police Department confirmed police responded to a noise complaint at 920 Baldwin Ave. at about 3 a.m. Thursday and issued a ticket.

The noise violation came only hours after fraternity members were informed of the results of a city investigation into the fraternity's nuisance behavior.

City attorneys said earlier this week they plan to watch the fraternity closely before deciding whether more aggressive legal action needs to be considered, such as filing a civil nuisance lawsuit against the property.

Brian Klein, the fraternity's president, said Wednesday night he thought things were moving in a positive direction following the investigation.

"Hopefully we're on the right track to restoring a good relationship with our neighbors and the rest of our community. We'll continue to prove that our presence is beneficial and not a nuisance," Klein said.

But only hours later, neighbors complained to police again.

"Nothing has changed," said Linda Shill, who lives next to the fraternity and has complained numerous times about alleged loud partying and drunken behavior.

In response to complaints from neighbors, the City Council directed the city attorney's office to investigate the fraternity's nuisance behavior back in November. A report of the findings was delivered to council Tuesday night.

The investigation revealed there were 53 calls for service for 920 Baldwin Ave. in 2015, and 38 of them were for noise complaints.

Klein suggested Wednesday night, before the fraternity got yet another ticket, that neighbors were crying wolf.

"The report claims we've had upwards of 40 noise complaints, but it's only come down to about 10 percent of those ever resulting in tickets, and it's kind of like the boy who cried wolf," he said. "The stigma surrounding our and other fraternities' presence on campus is wildly incorrect, and we're hoping to show that."

Klein said on Thursday he was busy setting up the house for a rush event starting at 6 p.m. and he couldn't talk.

He later provided this statement:

"We do not host parties at our house and nothing is occurring on an organizational level that is creating illegal noise. Any noise coming from the house is a result of individual action and the fact that more than 15 people live there."

After changing the way noise tickets are handled through the court as of December, City Attorney Stephen Postema said Tuesday night the city was going to watch the situation for a little while longer before taking further action.

Following the most recent noise violation, Postema said on Thursday the city attorney's office would be reviewing it.

Ryan Stanton covers the city beat for The Ann Arbor News. Reach him at ryanstanton@mlive.com.
Former_Bakers_Square.jpg

Progress is slow on the renovation of the new La Fuente Mexican Restaurant location.

(Tom Perkins | For The Ann Arbor News)

In 2012, Ypsilanti Township's La Fuente Mexican restaurant applied for a liquor license for a building its owners are remodeling in the Paint Creek shopping center.

More than three years later, restaurant is still being remodeled, and will be under construction for the foreseeable future.

Because of the slow renovation, Ypsilanti Township moved to rescind the restaurant's Class C liquor license.

The township is allotted a limited number of licenses by the the Michigan Liquor Control Commission and has turned away other businesses that have requested licenses over the last several years.

The Ypsilanti Township Board of Trustees, which approved La Fuente's application three years ago, voted to rescind the license at its Tuesday meeting. Because La Fuente never followed up with the MLCC after the township approved its 2012 application, the license was never fully in La Fuente's possession. That means the license is now rescinded and the move doesn't need MLCC approval.

"Because all this time has passed, and because remodeling is not complete, and because it's not close to complete, and because other applicants came forward and applied but can't get a license because this applicant has one and won't use it, we thought it appropriate to ask the Board to consider this," Mike Radzik, the township's director of the office of community standards, told the Board on Tuesday night.

La Fuente opened 11 years ago and currently operates in a unit behind the new building. It also holds a liquor license in that location and could, in theory, transfer it to the new location.

Radzik said La Fuente completed work without proper permits, and changes to the seating capacity will require an amendment to the site plan. That issue needs to go before the Planning Commission. The township has twice issued stop work orders because permits weren't pulled.

"It's far from being complete. A lot of work has been done, but not completed. And that work was done without permits," Radzik told the Board. "When we inquired a couple years ago, we were told it would be done in a couple months. We were told the same thing last year, and the same thing this year."

When asked by the Board why the project is taking so long, La Fuente manager Martin Alvares said the restaurant encountered some unexpected issues, but he assured board members the project is almost done.

"We only need three months to deal with it. Everything is complete. Only a few things to do," Alvares told the Board.

Radzik and township building inspectors, who assessed the restaurant last week, said that's not true.

In August 2014 Alvares, told The Ann Arbor News he expected the renovation would be complete within several months.

According to township records, La Fuente bought the property in March 2012 for $685,000. Prior to that it was owned by a Kerby's Koney Island. Kerby's went out of business in 2011. Ram's Horn and Baker's Square each previously operated stores at the location.

The township encountered similar issues with the owners of Los Amigos restaurant on Michigan Avenue. Its owners moved forward with an expansion of the restaurant and parking lot without submitting plans to the township or pulling permits.

When inspectors found the lot was built with a material not permitted by township code, Los Amigos had to tear it up, go through the planning process and lay a new lot.

Tom Perkins is a freelance reporter for The Ann Arbor News.
Bay County Animal Control officer trapped a third cat at a foreclosed home located at 1409 Leng St. in Bay City. (Yfat Yossifor | The Bay City Times)

BAY CITY, MI -- The third, and hopefully last, cat trapped inside a vacant Bay City house has been rescued.

Bay County Animal Control officers on the morning of Friday, Jan. 22, visited the house at 1409 Leng St., where they had left a live trap the day before. They arrived to find an orange-and-white short-hair cat inside the trap.

This is the third cat the officers have rescued from the house in as many days. On Wednesday, officers rescued a black-and-white long-haired bobtail and on Thursday, they pulled a solid black cat from the house.

Live traps were used to capture all of the felines.

The Humane Society of Bay County collected the prior two cats to have them sterilized and vaccinated. The organization plans to do the same with the third one.

The first cat was docile and friendly, Humane Society of Bay County President Jeannie Wolicki-Nichols said, while the black cat is more timid and feral, according to Animal Control Director Michael J. Halstead. The orange-and-white one on Friday appeared to be timid as well, sticking to a rear corner of his cage.

The first cat, dubbed "Whiskers" by Wolicki-Nichols, is a male believed to be about 6 years old. He weighs 11 pounds and a veterinarian who inspected him believes he was born with his tail stubby, as opposed to it having been cut.

Becky Wenzel, who lives next door to the two-story Leng Street house, told The Times the residence has been unoccupied since about July. Property tax records show it is owned by Wells Fargo, based out of Fort Mill, S.C.

Recently, heavy winds knocked out the glass of a basement window. On Wednesday, Jan. 13, crews repaired the window, Wenzel said. That Sunday, Wenzel and her husband drove by the house and noticed cats in the living room window, she said.

"We tried the doors, but the doors were locked and we couldn't get them out," Wenzel said. In all, Wenzel saw three cats. A third cat, described by Wenzel as having an orange and white coat, presumably remains inside the home. Halstead said his officers reset the live trap Thursday morning after retrieving the black cat.

After first spotting the cats, Wenzel called Wells Fargo and the institution's asset company maintaining the property, but was told it could take up to seven days for them to extricate the cats.

"I said, 'They could die by then. They've already been in there four or five days,'" Wenzel said. "I was so worried about them."

Wenzel then called the Humane Society, which relayed the information to Animal Control. The agency was able to get permission from Wells Fargo to enter the house, Wolicki-Nichols said.

"If it hadn't been for her coming forth, nobody would know," Wolicki-Nichols said. "Thank goodness we have people like that."

Animal Control officers first entered the home and set the live trap on Tuesday, Jan. 19.

Wenzel has said she is willing to temporarily house the cats until a permanent owner can be found. Wolicki-Nichols on Thursday dropped off an insulated cat shelter to Wenzel. On Friday, Wolicki-Nichols brought Whiskers to Wenzel, and she plans to bring the black cat to her on Saturday.

The Humane Society is planning a workshop in February to teach people how to construct such a shelter, Wolicki-Nichols added.

Though Wenzel only saw the three cats that have since been captured, Animal Control officers plan on putting a live trap back in the house Monday just to ensure there aren't more wayward felines trapped inside.
TimothyWachowski.jpg

Timothy J. Wachowski

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BAY CITY, MI -- A Bay City man with a quirky facial tattoo accused of crashing into a vehicle while in an inebriated state has to wait a while longer for his next court date.

The preliminary examination of 32-year-old Timothy J. Wachowski -- with "Psycho X Pathic" tattooed across his brow -- was scheduled to take place the morning of Thursday, Jan. 21, before Bay County District Judge Timothy J. Kelly. The judge adjourned the matter at the request of Bay County Chief Assistant Prosecutor Nancy E. Borushko, who said she was still waiting on lab analyses on Wachowski's blood samples.

Wachowski's blood is being tested for both alcohol and illicit drugs. The former test yields results in approximately a month, while the latter's results can take six to nine months, Borushko said.

Wachowski's attorney, Bruce K. Mannikko, objected to the adjournment and asked his client's bond be reduced from $25,000 to something more affordable. He said Wachowski has an employment opportunity waiting for him.

Borushko argued the bond should not be reduced, saying Wachowski has a criminal record going back to his juvenile years. Wachowski has a burglary conviction from 1995 in California and convictions in Florida for domestic violence in 2009 and the Michigan equivalent of unarmed robbery in 2010, Borushko said. He served prison time on the latter conviction, Borushko said. Wachowski also left Michigan years ago when he had warrants outstanding for his arrest, she added.

Furthermore, Wachowski has a history of violating bond conditions and probation, Borushko alleged.

Kelly declined to reduce Wachowski's bond.

Wachowski is charged with single counts of operating while intoxicated, third offense, driving on a suspended license, second offense, and failure to stop after a collision. The charges are punishable by up to five years, 93 days and 90 days incarceration, respectively. Unrelated, Wachowski is also charged with a one-year misdemeanor count of indecent exposure. Authorities issued a warrant for Wachowski on that charge in 2005. Records don't specify much about that incident, apart from saying it occurred July 8, 2005, on South Henry Street near Thomas Street.

The driving-related charges stem from an incident that occurred the evening of Tuesday, Dec. 29, when police responded to the area of South Monroe and 15th streets in response to a hit-and-run crash. A blue 2003 Dodge Neon had struck a 2005 Chevrolet in the 300 block of South Monroe Street, court records show.

Witnesses told police that the Dodge was driven by a man and contained a woman passenger. The Dodge struck the Chevrolet from behind, causing the Dodge's airbags to deploy, court records show.

Witnesses told police the Dodge's female passenger then tried pulling the male driver from the wreck. The man eventually ran and tried to hide, but was followed by witnesses, court records show.

Police found Wachowski sitting in snow on the sidewalk near the Rally's at 102 S. Madison Ave. He smelled slightly of intoxicants, was shaking, had a blank stare, pinpoint pupils, and did not respond to officers' verbal commands, court records show.

The female passenger of the car told police they were going to a nearby store to buy chicken for dinner. She said, as far as she knew, Wachowski had not been drinking and he doesn't use drugs, court records show.

Due to his odd physical state, Wachowski was transported via ambulance to McLaren Bay Region hospital. Along the way, he became combative with paramedics, requiring him to be restrained. Court records show a paramedic administered Narcan -- opioid antagonist administered to those in the grips of an overdose -- to Wachowski and he started "flipping out."

At the hospital, a phlebotomist took samples of Wachowski's blood. Wachowski was admitted into an Intensive Care Unit, court records show.

In response to the initial article published by The Times on Wachowski's case, people who know him reached out via email and said Wachowski's "Psycho X Pathic" tattoo was inspired by his affinity for the Detroit-based Psychopathic Records label, most famous for being the home of Insane Clown Posse.

Wachowski's case is now set for a settlement conference at 8:30 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 12.
A sign Chuck Groya is putting on display in bait shops and party stores, alerting ice fisherman and snowmobilers of the Consumers Energy hot ponds on the Saginaw Bay.

BANGOR TOWNSHIP, MI -- Chuck Groya, an avid Bay County outdoorsman, moved to Aplin Beach more than a decade ago to be closer to Saginaw Bay and to feed his ice fishing hobby.

Now, he's determined to keep ice anglers and others safe on a notorious wintertime part of the bay.

But every year since moving there in 2002, the 66-year-old man has read or heard about the U.S. Coast Guard rescuing a fisherman or snowmobiler who broke through the ice near the discharge of what are known as the "hot ponds" on Consumers Energy property, just north of the mouth of the Saginaw River.

Last year, he painfully read about Allen Pero, a 48-year-old Vassar man, who broke through the ice at the hot ponds while snowmobiling with his nephew Eric Molina. The two men were preparing for a day of ice fishing.

Pero and his nephew were in the water for nearly two hours. Molina survived. Pero didn't make it.

Pero's body temperature was 80 degrees when he arrived at the hospital. A team of six people tried to revive him, performing CPR for five hours to get his blood flowing until his body could warm up and his heart take over. But it wasn't enough.

"I felt so bad for Mr. Pero and his family," Groya said. "He was a young guy, he had kids. I remember saying, it's time for someone to do something."

Groya is now raising funds to launch an education campaign about the danger of the hot ponds. That includes installing nearly 20 permanent signs at more than a dozen access points to the bay and hanging flyers inside bait shops and party stores that ice fisherman frequent before heading out for a day on the ice.

"Ice fishing is a reason I moved out here," Groya said. "If there was a problem area, I would like someone to let me know about it. We need to make ice fishing on the bay as safe as possible and keep it fun.

"We don't need any more tragedies."

So far, Groya has raised about $1,300, but still needs another $1,000. He already has installed some temporary signs at popular launch sites, like the Golson boat launch, at the end of Johnson Street in Bay City, and the Quanicassee River launch, but needs more money to install permanent signs that can withstand the outdoor elements.

Officials from Consumers Energy said the utility is installing signage on its property this winter.

"We do media outreach and issue news releases urging caution on the ice or open water near our plants," said Debra Dodd, a Consumers spokeswoman.

Groya contacted Consumers following Pero's death last year and the utility agreed to install signs on its property, Dodd said.

Groya has also encouraged some government entities to fund and install "Danger, Warm Water Discharge" signs. Officials in Hampton Township and at the Bay City State Park and Recreation Area, for instance, have already done so.

"It's my understanding that the problem is when people travel from a long distance and aren't aware of the warm water discharge," said George Lauinger, manager of the state park. "People really need to know about that area."

Executive Petty Officer Zachary Hamilton of the U.S. Coast Guard Saginaw River Station said more signs and awareness can always the help keep people safer.

"Most of the people we have going through the ice, in my experience, are people from out of town who don't know the area," said Hamilton, who personally rescued an ice fisherman from the hot ponds three years ago. "Most locals know about the hot ponds because of the news of people going through."

Hamilton said ice always forms around a big hole of open water at the hot ponds.

"The ice around that discharge may look safe, but it's actually very thin," he said. "That's why we say, 'Think twice about ice.'"

Hamilton said a permanent sign couldn't be installed on the ice each winter because the open hole of water is constantly shifting.

"It's unpredictable," he said.

Ice conditions this week aren't ready for prime time fishing. Hamilton said a shanty already broke through thin ice in Linwood. He added the Coast Guard hasn't taken out its air boats yet, fearing it would break up the new ice.

Gerrud Klumpp, a fishing gear salesman at Frank's Great Outdoors near Linwood said the new ice is no thicker than 2 inches.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources advises a minimum ice thickness of 4-inches is needed to support a person on foot.

If Groya is able to raise enough money -- it costs a little more than $100 per sign -- this season, he would try to install as many as he can, weather permitting. He hopes by next winter, snowmobilers and ice fishermen would have to purposely ignore the warning before even considering going near the hot ponds.

"The more awareness, the better," he said. "One sign isn't going to do it. We need to let people know there's potential danger out there and they need to avoid it."
A sign posted on the door of Stambaugh Appliance, 408 Columbus Ave., on Friday, Jan. 22.

BAY CITY, MI -- A local appliance store with a 70-year history in Bay City has closed its doors as police open a criminal investigation into an employee or employees of the longtime business.

A sign posted on the door of Stambaugh Appliance, 408 Columbus Ave., says the appliance store is closed "due to circumstances beyond our control."

Charles Hewitt, a Bay City attorney representing Stambaugh Appliance and its principle owners Fred and Patricia Savage, said there were "improper financial transactions, which crippled the company's ability to remain in business."

As a result, the store owners are working with creditors, suppliers, accountants and attorneys to rectify the problems and identify the extent of the improprieties, Hewitt said.

The business closed its doors Dec. 31. At that time, it had six employees.

"There is an investigation, but the Savages are not the focus of that investigation," Hewitt said.

Bay City police confirmed there was an open investigation regarding the business. No one has been charged with a crime at this point, Hewitt said.

The message posted at the business instructs customers who have recently purchased appliances that have not been delivered to file a complaint with the Bay City Department of Public Safety at 989-892-8571.

To date, Hewitt said at least 20 customers are affected due to the investigation.

"We are hoping that number doesn't grow," he said.

Hewitt and the Savages are meeting with police next week to assist with the investigation, the attorney said.

Stambaugh Appliance, which sells, repairs and delivers major appliances, has competed with big box stores since the 1970s. The business opened in 1946 by two brothers who returned home from World War II. Fred Savage bought into the business in 1957, and he and his wife Patricia took over ownership in 1974. The owners are both now in their 80s and haven't actively run the day-to-day operations of the business since December 2014.

In 2011, Stambaugh was named a national dealer of the year by its buying group, Brand Source.

At that time, Patricia Savage said she had no plans to retire from the business anytime soon.

"We take care of the customer, and they've been good to us," she said.
BAY CITY, MI -- Donations of bottled water are turning into a flood of help from the Bay City area for the beleaguered people in the city of Flint.

In addition to two water drives started earlier this week, two more campaigns have been launched to get drinkable, clean water to help Flint residents caught up in that city's water crisis. The city's water is contaminated with lead, among other concerns with the water supply.

A Bangor Township muffler shop and a the Bay City-based owners of seven recreational vehicle resort campgrounds are tapping into a tidal wave of donors eager to send water to Flint.

Late Friday morning, Jan. 22, water donated in the last two days at B&M Mufflers, 200 S. Euclid Ave., was loaded onto a truck bound for Flint. The drive started Wednesday, Jan. 20, and collected 80 cases in two days, said Sarah Parker, who organized the water drive with owners of the business.

"We're going to keep doing this until Feb. 2, or longer if need be," Parker said. Those who want to help out can drop off donations of water at B&M Mufllers, she said. They aim to fill the lobby of the business and plan another shipment of water donations to Flint Jan. 29, she said.

At Outdoor Adventures in Bay City, 800 Washington Ave., a water drive launched just Thursday, Jan. 21, already has 11 recreational vehicle dealers "and growing" on board to take water donations across Michigan, said Deanna Campbell, communications manager.

"We are hoping to fill 20 RVs with water" and drive them to Flint, she said.

"We are trying to get as many people involved as we can."

The RV campground resort company has thousands of members and relationships with many dealers and spreading the word of the water drive through its newsletter and flyers, Campbell said.

The most recent Bay City-area water drives for Flint are in addition to several others launched this week.

Thursday, Jan. 21, two trucks from Two Men And A Truck were set to help distribute nine pallets of canned water to Flint schools and other points, said Patti Wilson, vice president of the company's Bay City and Midland locations. They got a call from the Flint Two Men And A Truck franchise that the help was needed, she said.

So, one truck went to Flint on Tuesday to shuttle pallets of water, two headed out Thursday, and more trucks from Bay City and Midland will be in Flint on Saturday to deliver water door to door in Flint, Wilson said.

Her company plans to continue the help for Flint for at least four weeks, Wilson said.

Over at Perry Woodard School of Dance, a water drive slated for Jan. 30 already is nearing its goal of collecting 100 cases of bottled water for the people of Flint.

Jill Devendorf, of Bay City, started the effort, which began to snowball after friend Janae Kramer, an employee of the dance studio at 1403 Columbus Ave., got the business involved. Many other businesses are joining the cause, Devendorf said.
Maryann Godboldo AP photo.jpg

May 12, 2011 photo: Maryanne Godboldo, right, Ariana Godboldo's mother, while being interviewed with Mubarak Hakim, Arianas father, in Detroit.AP

DETROIT, MI -- The Michigan Court of Appeals Thursday revived 4 1/2-year-old case involving a Detroit mother whose fight with Child Protective Services led to a 10-hour police standoff in 2011.

The case has been dismissed twice by the Wayne County District Court and appealed three times by Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy's office. This week the Court of Appeals kicked the case back down to the District Court for a third look.

Maryanne Godboldo's battle with officials began when the Department of Human Services ordered the mother to give her teen daughter the anti-psychotic drug Risperidone, a medication often used to treat schizophrenia.

When the Godboldo refused, CPS scheduled a meeting. Godboldo didn't attend, so CPS obtained an order from Wayne County's family court to have Godboldo's daughter removed from her custody.

It was March 24, 2011 when CPS employee Mia Wenk arrived at Godboldo's home with Detroit Police Officer Kevin Simpson, who knocked at the door.

Godboldo answered, told the officer she was calling her attorney and shut the door, according to the appellate summary. The officer retrieved the court order and knocked a second time. Godboldo opened the door, told the officer he was frightening her daughter and again shut the door.

Simpson then called a Detroit Police lieutenant, who used a crowbar to break open the front door. Police entered, but Godboldo and her daughter were behind another locked door upstairs. The lieutenant ascended and when he attempted to kick open the door heard a gunshot.

He went outside and declared a "barricaded-gunman" situation, after 10 hours of negotiations that involved Godboldo's sister, Wayne Circuit Judge Deborah Thomas and some military-style vehicles, the mother surrendered herself and daughter without anyone being harmed.

According to reports, A judge ordered the teen be returned to her mother's custody in September of 2011.

Meanwhile, Godboldo faced eight felony charges, including three counts of felonious assault, three counts of resisting or obstructing a police officer, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and discharging a firearm in a building.

Related: Godboldo dismissal upheld

The case sparked debate among those who feel CPS overstepped its bounds by attempting to force the mother to administer drugs to her daughter, and then attempting to remove Godboldo's daughter when she didn't.

There was a sense among supporters that Goldboldo's response to the situation was justified. For Godboldo supporters, it became an issue of parental rights, which they felt trumped her allegedly criminal reaction.

"In the end, it is a basic human right for parents to choose if they want to medicate their children," said Goldboldo's attorney, Allison Folmar, according to this April 2013 story on the Citizens Commission on Human Rights International website. "When the state steps in and says 'hey, mom and dad, we know what's better for your child,' that's wrong. There are too many of these cases where the state believes it knows more than the parents. It isn't good for the kids, it isn't good for the parents and it is ripping families apart."

When the case came before the Wayne County District Court on Aug. 29, 2011, the judge dismissed the charges for lack of evidence and violation of Fourth Amendment rights related to Constitutional searches, calling the removal document "grossly inadequate, incorrect" and the mistakes on it "numerous."

Worthy successfully appealed the case in Wayne County Circuit Court. The court found that the dismissal was erroneous and Godboldo's case was sent back to the District Court. A judge again dismissed it in 2013, the decision in part because it was believed Godboldo only fired a warning shot into the ceiling with no intent to injure the officer.

Worthy's office appealed a second time. On the second go, the Circuit Court upheld the dismissal.

Worthy's office appealed again, this time to state Court of Appeals. The Prosecutor's Office won on Thursday.

The appellate court in its ruling said there was sufficient evidence to show Godboldo fired a gunshot in the direction of police, and that Fourth Amendment protections were not violated because the CPS removal order was valid.

The case will now go before a Wayne County District judge for a third time on a date yet to be determined.

MLive sought comment from Godboldo's attorney and from Worthy regarding her motivation to continue pursuit of this case. No response had been received as of 12:30 p.m. Friday.

Michigan Court of Appeals ruling:

Card
DETROIT, MI -- U.S. Rep. John Conyers, D-Detroit, joined Detroit NAACP President Rev. Wendell Anthony as he and religious leaders blamed Gov. Rick Snyder, the state Legislature and emergency management for the dire condition of Detroit Public Schools.

Next to the Flint water crisis, the state of Detroit schools has been perhaps the most prominent and controversial topic in Michigan of late.

"We know it is cold out here, but it's cold inside classrooms as well, it's cold in Flint as well, when families cannot use decent water," Wendell said from the outdoor announcement in Detroit Friday. " ... And the fact that we're out in the cold shows evidence of how serious and critical the issues are."

He said the District's teachers did not obtain education degrees to be "civil rights leaders" or "agitators," but that's what they've been forced to resort to in order to have their grievances heard.

Teachers have conducted what they call "sick-outs" on several occasions, the latest on Wednesday when their protest closed 88 of the District's nearly 100 schools, the same day President Barack Obama was in town to visit the Detroit auto show.

While teachers call the "sick-outs" their right of free speech, the emergency manager calls it illegal.

The District filed a petition for a restraining order Wednesday asking a judge to order a stop to the closing of schools by teachers coordinating to call in sick on the same day.

Michigan Court of Claims Judge Cynthia Stephens declined to issue an immediate restraining order in the case, but set a Monday, Jan. 25, 11 a.m. hearing on the matter.

Detroit Public Schools will have about $550 million in debt by the time this school year end's, Gov. Rick Snyder said during his State of the State Address.

Nearly $1,100 per student received by Detroit Public Schools annually goes toward debt financing. There are over 44,000 students.

Wendell called for legislators to immediately fund the schools and replace Emergency Manager Darnell Early.

"'We support the legitimite leadership of the Detroit Public Schools and the Detroit Federation of Teachers ... " Anthony said.

Teacher strikes are illegal in Michigan and cause for the possible revocation of teaching licenses, but there is currently a 60-day deadline for the Employment Relations Commission to hear complaints on allegedly illegal strikes.

Lawmakers on Thursday proposed new legislation that could close the window down to a couple of days.

Anthony said if those same lawmakers are unwilling to punish the governor and former Flint emergency managers -- Earle y is one of them -- for the water crisis, they shouldn't seek to punish teachers for speaking out about poor work conditions.

The sick-out protests, during which teachers complained of mold, rodents and other problems in school buildings, led Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan to tour several schools last week.

He reported seeing a warped gym floor a dead mouse and other sub-par conditions, and called for a full inspection of all public school and charter school facilities in the city.

"When I sit with a 4-year-old preschooler at 10 in the morning, who is wearing her coat in the classroom... that's not acceptable," Duggan said. "It's just not acceptable, and if this was a suburban community, parents wouldn't tolerate it."

Hillary Clinton issued a similar statement on Twitter Thursday.

Duggan urged support for Snyder's restructuring plan, which could cost other districts around the state and hasn't gotten substantial support in the legislature.

More on Snyder's plan

The governor's plan would cost the state about $715 million over 10 years, and would effectively eliminate the current Detroit Public Schools district, which has been under emergency management since 2009.

The Legislature would then create a Detroit Education Commission, initially led by appointees selected by the mayor and governor. Oversight powers would return to an elected local body over a number of years.

"To be blunt, we have 19th century education system in the 21st century and it's time to ask ourselves why," Snyder said during his State of the State Address Tuesday.

"Let's solve the problem and help the kids," he said. "The time to act is now and avoid court intervention, which would cost us much more and be a lot more detrimental."

The teacher's union has put out a plan of its own. It calls for a restoration of local power and is almost entirely at odds with the governor's plan, except for that it too calls for the state to pay the District's debt.
Since 2008, Internet Initiative Japan (IIJ) has been offering mobile service to its corporate clients. IIJ continues to act as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) for multiple carriers and recently announced that its subscription have surpassed the one million mark.

As of December 2015, 1.073 million subscribers have begun using IIJs services such as voice and data. In part, the mobile provider noted, the growth of its business in the past several years has taken place because of the increased use of smart devices within enterprises. The proliferation of smartphones and tablets has reached new heights in markets across the globe  in both the consumer and business sectors. In Japan, that trend is not lost, and enterprise customers have even demanded higher speeds, which prompted the launch of the IIJmio High-Speed Mobile/D Service.

This service that began in 2012 comes to users through the SIM cards in their mobile phones. Within the confines of IIJmio High-Speed, customers can access voice calling and gain access to their data transmission speeds. The speed switching app gives each individual the power to determine how fast he or she wants a document to be sent.

IIJ noted that it was the first in its market to offer this sort of value-added service; it has reportedly led the SIM market by providing such features to its corporate clients.

Consumers outside of business appear to also have been granted access to the MVNO. This recent expansion to the consumer market almost instantly moved IIJs subscriber numbers from 685 thousand to more than one million in just the span of a month. The mobile operators services are now accessible through retail stores and third party convenience stores.

The operator credits its rapid expansion to the dedication of its user base. Those companies and individuals seem drawn to the quality of service and special features that IIJ has released in its short time as a mobile service provider. If IIJ continues to innovate in all sides of the market, it could continue to secure its own future as a leader in Japan.

Edited by Kyle Piscioniere
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Ahead of his Corporate Hangout event, Mr Seductive, Kwaisey Pee is set to release yet another highlife masterpiece titled, Osugyani.

The song which talks about the life of a bachelor is due for release on January 25, 2016 with the video scheduled two days after. Osugyani, according to Kwaisey Pee has a unique appeal despite being a classical highlife tune.

Its a typical highlife song fused with some kind of modern chords and touch, the braided artiste told Abrantepa.com.

Kwaisey Pee believes the current crop of highlife musicians are pulling their weight and that has injected some form of energy in the older ones.

They were losing it but now I thank God the new generation is recognizing it and they want to bring it back so thats actually motivating we the old ones to step up our game. It gives me a very huge motivation, he noted.

The team began the promotional drive with a release of the official caricature artwork on Tuesday, January 19 and followed it up with the announcement of the release dates of both the audio and the video.

The Kwaisey Pee Corporate Hang out hits Accra on the 29th of January.
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Cecilia Gyaase Konamah

Each actor has a unique style of handling sex roles and it is not surprising that American actress Jennifer Lawrence once confessed she got drunk before her sex scene with Chris Pratt for the famous movie, 'Passengers.'

On the same issue, Ghanaian actress Cecilia Gyaase Konamah, also called 'Abena Ghana', has told NEWS-ONE's Francis Addo how she handles her sex roles in movies.

I don't prepare for my sex roles. I act it just like doing any other role because it's not real. It is just an act; I can only be prepared with my man, she revealed when she spoke extensively about acting career in Kumasi movies.

Below is the full interview with Abena Ghana :

How did you get involved in acting?

I fell in love with acting when I was young and after secondary I went for Nana Ama McBrown's audition and I was picked and that was how my acting career started.

How long have you been an actress? From where did you start?

I started in 2008 but stopped in 2010 because of some personal reasons and started in 2014 again and God has been so good to me.

In how many movies have you performed so far?

I have lost count but more than 40.

What are some of those movies?

Tonga, Sexy Wizard, Sufre Awurade, Nku Me Fie, Mekunu Wuo, Teacher Kojo, Supremo, War of Roses, Over, Nyame Nyirammaa, Leave My Wife, Evangelist Kyeiwaa, Ewieye Ne Asem and many more.

Are you working on any current projects?

Yes, I have started my charity projects; and I did my short videos titled 'Abena Ghana'. I'm now working on my new TV series.

What kind of roles have you performed throughout your career? Are you satisfied with them?

I have played lead roles, supporting roles, minor roles too but I love every role I get even if a scene because it's the performance that tells, and the love for the job.

Have you done theatre performance before?

Yes, I have done theatre arts before; that was at NAFTI, where I did a final year project for one director called Richard.

How different is it to act in a movie and to act in a theatre play?

God! The difference is much: for movie if you make a mistake the director can cut and you take the lines again but for theatre if you make a mistake you spoil the whole production. And again, with theatre you do rehearsals everyday till it's done.

Tell me about an area in which you would like to improve as an actress?

I will love to take up roles that will teach women how to cater for their kids because I love kids and orphans. But I do every role given to me with all my heart because of the love I have for my career.

Which of the characters or roles you've played so far is your favourite?

My favourite character: I love emotional rolesshed tears, Omg! It [relates] more to my life and I do better.

.

What have you learned from the directors and senior actors you have worked with throughout your career?

Dedication and focus. With the actors, I learned a lot such as how to be me, communicate wisely with people and also self respect.

From where did you learn acting?

I have never learned acting. I just had a little teaching from the group I started with but I believe in talent and with God's grace and protection, here I am. It is God.

Do you think that you have matured as an actress?

Yes I have matured enough to be on any platform. I have all it takes to carry a film on my shoulders and I'm well prepared to do every role and script given me.

What has been your biggest achievement in the field of acting?

My biggest achievement in the industry is being able to give back to the society through my Konamahs Charity Project that I dreamt about when I was a child and now it has happened in reality.

Mention any special recognition or award that you have received for your acting skills?

I have been nominated for a number of awards but I have not won any. However, I had an honorary award from Bombiso Production in B/A. I was honoured for my charity activities in society and it was presented to me by Asiedu Nketia because he was honoured tooand other dignitaries from B/A.

What is the hardest part of being famous?

Hmmm! The hardest part of being famous is when you cant do the things you used to do anymore. It sucks but no option than to get used to it.

Give me a few tips to be a successful actor?

Humility, obedience, dedication and the fear of God.

How do you prepare for your sex roles?

Hahaha! Interesting! I dont prepare for my sex roles. I act it just like doing any other role because it's not real, just an act. I can only be prepared with my man.

Where do you come from?

I'm from Brong Ahafo Region, Berekum.

Married?

No, I'm single.

How old are you?

I turned 27 this year.

What else do you do if not acting?

I watch movies to learn, listen to music and write scripts. My new script is out for 'Abena Ghana' skits.

By Francis Addo (Twitter: @fdee50 Email: [email protected] )
Mogadishu (AFP) - Islamist Shebab gunmen killed around 20 people in a popular beachside restaurant in Somalia, police said Friday, as neighbouring Kenya mourned soldiers killed by the Al Qaeda-linked group last week.

In the attack in Mogadishu, five gunmen detonated a bomb before storming the busy restaurant and spraying gunfire at terrified customers late on Thursday.

"They killed nearly 20 people, including women and children," Somali police officer Mohamed Abdirahman said, describing it as a "barbaric and brutal attack against innocent civilians".

The Shebab, which is fighting to overthrow the internationally-backed government in Mogadishu, carries out regular attacks in the capital, as well as against African Union troops in the countryside.

Somali Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke condemned the "savage" attack.

Last week the insurgents stormed a Kenyan army base at El-Adde in southwest Somalia, in the latest incident of an AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) base being overrun by the group.

A Shebab statement said that more than 100 Kenyan soldiers based at the mission were killed and others captured.

Kenya has so far refused to say how many of its soldiers were killed, injured or remain missing.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on Friday visited wounded soldiers recovering in hospital in the capital Nairobi and praised the "bravery and dedication" of the "fallen heroes" in an address to dignitaries and relatives of the dead and injured.

- Huge explosion -

The Lido beach area in Mogadishu is full of restaurants, including upmarket establishments popular with business people and diaspora Somalis who have returned home to the city.

After a huge explosion, gunmen burst into the restaurant on Thursday evening as diners were sitting down for their evening meal at the start of Somalia's weekend.

"The fact that they have chosen this location during a weekend night shows how merciless the Shebab militants are," Abdirahman added.

"They wanted to kill more civilians -- but the security forces rescued most of the people."

The Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab claimed responsibility for the attack, in which four of their gunmen were also killed, and one captured.

"The mujahedeen fighters targeted the Lido Beach," the militants said on the group's Radio Andalus, calling it a "major operation against the enemy of Allah".

Security minister Abdirazak Omar Mohamed told reporters that four of the attackers were shot dead by security forces.

The minister added that one gunman was captured when security forces entered the building to end the attack.

Survivors described the gunmen spraying those in the restaurant with automatic weapons.

- Point blank range -

Abdirahman Halane was close to the restaurant when the gunmen attacked, and said some of those killed were hit by an explosion as they tried to flee.

"The gunmen entered the popular Lido Sea Food Restaurant from the back door and started shooting... a few minutes later there was a heavy explosion at the front gate while people were trying to escape," Halane said.

"There was confusion, everybody started panicking, and some of them ran towards the gunmen and they were shot dead, I was lucky to escape," he said.

Another witness described how some of those killed had died in the large blast, while others were shot dead at point blank range.

"There is a big mess here and many people died, I saw the dead bodies of 19 people who were killed during the attack," said Hussein Ali, who saw the bodies being carried out of the damaged building.

"Some of the people died in the explosion while fleeing and others were shot dead up close."
Bujumbura (Burundi) (AFP) - UN Security Council ambassadors met Burundi's leaders on Friday to push peace efforts amid renewed violence in the capital of the troubled central African nation.

The visit is the council's second to Burundi in less than a year, with the ambassadors on Friday travelling outside the capital Bujumbura to meet President Pierre Nkurunziza at his residence, in an appeal to take urgent action to stop the violence sparked by his re-election.

Council envoys have pushed for the government to hold talks with the opposition and agree to an international presence -- such as a proposed 5,000-strong African Union force -- to restore stability.

Burundi's government has branded AU peacekeepers an "invasion force" and insisted there is no need for foreign troops.

Foreign Minister Alain Nyamitwe, speaking after meeting the envoys, said the government had "not changed our position" on the AU force.

Clashes in Bujumbura overnight Thursday left three people dead, police said, in violence that has become a near nightly event in the city. Explosions and gunfire were heard in several places across the capital at night.

The 15 council members were greeted on arrival Thursday by pro-government demonstrators telling them to stop meddling.

Hundreds of pro-government demonstrators lined the road leading from the airport to greet the envoys with signs that read "genocide will not happen" and "stop interfering in Burundian affairs".

They UN first met Friday morning with Vice President Gaston Sindimwo, who admitted to the diplomats that it was "true there are problems," but insisted "the government will do everything in its power to bring peace and security."

More than 400 people have died since April, when Nkurunziza announced his ultimately successful re-election bid, and at least 230,000 have fled to neighbouring countries.

The UN has warned that the violence could escalate into ethnic killings and mass atrocities.

- Talks and peacekeepers -

AU Commission chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has expressed "fervent hope" that the UN ambassadors would work towards achieving the rapid deployment of peacekeepers and the "immediate resumption of the inter-Burundian dialogue", a reference to stalled talks between the government and opposition.

Uganda hosted a meeting between the government and the opposition in December that resolved nothing, and further planned talks failed to take place.

The United States and France support the AU proposal, but other UN Security Council members such as Russia, Angola and Egypt are reluctant to put too much pressure on the government.

Nkurunziza is also balking at AU plans to deploy more rights monitors in Burundi while the United Nations is beefing up its presence in Bujumbura.

Council envoys travel to Addis Ababa on Saturday to meet with AU officials about the proposal, which is expected to be a key element of talks at an AU summit in Ethiopia on January 30-31.

On Thursday, two former Burundian presidents appealed to the council ambassadors to take action and pleaded for an AU force to be sent.

"We really need that force," said Domitien Ndayizeye, who led the landlocked nation from 2003-2005.

Jean-Baptiste Bagaza, in power from 1976 to 1987, urged the council envoys to "stop this bloodletting that is making our young people disappear".

Bagaza warned that without urgent international action, Burundi could "become another Rwanda", referring to the neighbouring country's 1994 genocide.

Hours before the UN diplomats arrived, Burundian rebels named a fugitive ex-general who fled after leading a failed coup bid in May as their leader.

The rebel force, which announced its formation in December, calls itself the Republican Forces of Burundi, or "Forebu" after its French acronym.
Bujumbura (Burundi) (AFP) - UN Security Council ambassadors were to meet Burundi's president on Friday after another night of violence in Bujumbura left one person dead and another wounded by gunfire.

The 15 council members were greeted by pro-government demonstrators telling them to stop meddling when they arrived in Bujumbura Thursday to push for an end to months of violence, triggered by President Pierre Nkurunziza's announcement that he would seek re-election, that has left hundreds dead.

A local official and witnesses said a youth was shot dead by police after a grenade went off in Bujumbura's northeastern Mutakura district and a second person was injured by gun shots.

Explosions and gunfire were heard in the central Bwiza district, in southern Musaga neighbourhood and in the north of the city, residents said.

The council is making its second visit to Burundi in less than a year, and will deliver a face-to-face message to Nkurunziza to take urgent action to stop the violence.

More than 400 people have died since the troubled central African country descended into turmoil in April, when Nkurunziza announced his ultimately successful re-election bid, and at least 230,000 have fled to neighbouring countries. The UN has warned that the violence could escalate into ethnic killings and mass atrocities.

Council envoys will be pushing for the government to hold serious talks with the opposition, accept a more energetic outside mediation and agree to an international presence such as African Union peacekeepers to restore stability.

Uganda hosted a meeting between the government and the opposition in December, but there has been nothing since.

Hundreds of pro-government demonstrators lined the road leading from the airport to greet the envoys with signs that read "genocide will not happen" and "stop interfering in Burundian affairs".

- Talks and peacekeepers -

At the meeting to be held at the president's residence outside of Bujumbura, the council hopes to persuade Nkurunziza to agree to an African Union proposal of 5,000 peacekeepers, which his government has branded an "invasion force".

AU Commission chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma expressed "the fervent hope" that the UN ambassadors will "contribute toward achieving" the rapid deployment of the peacekeepers and the "immediate resumption of the inter-Burundian dialogue", in reference to stalled talks between the government and opposition.

The United States and France support the proposal, but other council members such as Russia, Angola and Egypt are reluctant to put too much pressure on the government.

Nkurunziza is also balking at AU plans to deploy more rights monitors in Burundi while the United Nations is beefing up its presence in Bujumbura.

Council envoys travel to Addis Ababa on Saturday to meet with AU officials about the proposal that is expected to be a key element of talks at an AU summit in Ethiopia on January 30-31.

On Thursday, two former Burundian presidents appealed to the council ambassadors to take action and pleaded for an AU force to be sent to the country.

"We really need that force," said Domitien Ndayizeye, who led the landlocked nation from 2003-2005.

Jean-Baptiste Bagaza, in power from 1976 to 1987, urged the council envoys to "stop this bloodletting that is making our young people disappear".

Bagaza warned that without urgent international action, Burundi could "become another Rwanda case", referring to the neighbouring country's 1994 genocide.

Hours before the UN diplomats arrived, Burundian rebels named a fugitive ex-general who fled after leading a failed coup bid in May as their leader.

The rebel force, which announced its formation in December, calls itself the Republican Forces of Burundi, or "Forebu" after its French acronym.
Madrid (AFP) - The number of international tourists to the Middle East and North Africa will triple to 195 million in 2030 despite concerns over security, the head of the United Nations tourism body said Thursday.

The region's tourism sector -- a key source of jobs and foreign currency -- has repeatedly bounced back after attacks by extremists that frightened off visitors, said Taleb Rifai, secretary general of the UN World Tourism Organisation.

"The story of tourism in the Middle East is a story of mixed description. It is a success story without doubt. Today we have over 60 million international visitors coming to the Middle East. This is a growth that has tripled in less than ten years," he added at the Madrid international tourism fair Fitur.

"Our long term forecast for 2030 is that the Middle East and North Africa will receive 195 million international tourists. That is triple the amount that we receive now," he said.

International tourism arrivals in the Middle East grew for the third consecutive year in 2015, expanding by 3.0 percent, but were down by eight percent in North Africa in large part due to deadly attacks in Tunisia.

The number of international visitors to Tunisia -- which was shaken by an attack on the Bardo museum in Tunis followed by one in the resort of Sousse that killed 59 tourists -- fell to 5.2 million last year from 7.2 million in 2014.

But Rifai, a former Jordanian tourism minister, pointed to the example of Egypt which has repeatedly managed to rebuild confidence and revive tourist numbers after attacks, most vividly after the massacre of tourists by extremists in Luxor in 1997 in which over 60 people were killed.

Egypt suffered a slump in visitors last year following the crash of a Russian airliner on October 31 over the Sinai Peninsula that killed all those on board.

The Islamic State group said it downed the plane a bomb smuggled on board at the airport of Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh airport.

Some major tourist operators have suspended packages to the region.
21.01.2016 LISTEN

Accra, Jan 21, GNA - The Board of the Export Trade, Agricultural and Industrial Development Fund (EDAIF) has approved GHa50 million to set up the EDAIF Equity Fund.

The Fund would target investments into Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) engaged in agro-processing, export trade and industrial development in line with their mandate.

A statement signed by Dr Barfour Osei, Chief Executive Officer of EDAIF and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra added that in the period from August to December 2015, the EDAIF Board also approved financing facilities amounting to GHa52.3 million to beneficiaries in the public and private sectors of the Ghanaian economy.

The EDAIF Equity Fund would over the next five years, support businesses that require long-term investments and provide long-term catalytic capital with technical support where appropriate.

It would also provide investments to start-ups, early stage companies and enterprises where short-term debt financing is inappropriate.

According to the statement, Equity financing in agro-processing would be extended to enterprises in crop such as and vegetable; fruits and juices; meat and dairy; and, edible oils.

It explained that other beneficiaries would be industrial development, enterprises engaged in packaging materials; apparels; woodworks and handicrafts; paper and pulp; in addition to aluminium and metals which will qualify for financing.

The statement said EDAIF is operating the Equity Fund with technical support from Venture Capital Trust Fund and through a Fund Manager, Oasis Capital Ghana Limited which will receive proposals from prospective applicants.

It said the approval of over GHa52.3 million were made up of GHa20.3 million as Interest Free Repayable funds and GHa13.2 million as credit extended towards the purchase of equipment, tools and accessories for agro-processing; and GHa5.7 in grants towards rice, cashew and poultry production.

The remaining GHa13.1 million, the statement said covered support for the EDAIF-sponsored Cassava and Mango projects that received GHa8.6 million and GHa4.5 million respectively.

It added that the support for cassava was for the implementation of Phase 1 of the Cassava Integrated Enterprise Development Project covering the Northern, Brong Ahafo and Ashanti Regions.

According to the statement, financial support was approved to establish three processing factories and over 1000 beneficiaries received financial support to cultivate nearly 4,000 acres of cassava to feed the factories.

"Approvals for the Mango project covered maintenance of existing farms of over 5,000 acres and the cultivation of additional 2,800 acres across the country."

GNA
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Accra, Jan 21, GNA - The Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association of Ghana has thanked President John Dramani Mahama for keeping to his promises and helping enhance the business of local drug manufacturing companies.

A statement issued by the Media Office of the Flagstaff House Communications Bureau of the Office of the President and copied to the Ghana News Agency said the Association called on President Mahama at the Flagstaff House to express their appreciation to Him.

President Mahama has in furtherance to his Agenda for Transformation and the promotion of Made in Ghana products granted to the local drug companies, through the Export Trade, Agricultural and Industrial Development Fund (EDAIF) about $ 26 million to help expand their businesses.

Beneficiary companies include Ernest Chemists, Entrance Pharmaceuticals (Tobinco), DanAdams, Dannex, KAMA and Kinapharma.

President of the Association, Ernest Bediako Sampong, speaking during a courtesy call on the President also thanked him for listening to their pleas to amend the VAT Law to exempt more than 1,500 products from VAT, thus giving the local manufacturers an advantage.

Present at the meeting were the executives and members of the Association, Minister of Trade & Industry Ekow Spio Garbrah, Minister of Health Alex Segbefia, Deputy Minister of Health Victor Bampoe.

GNA
Kumasi, Jan. 21, GNA - The Management of DHL Global Forwarding Ghana, has decided to make Breast Cancer prevention and control programmes the focal point of its social responsibility in Ghana for the next five years.

Mr Paul Opoku, Country Manager of DHL, explained that women, who formed the foundation of communities in the country, were being affected by breast cancer and should be supported.

'We will make Breast Care International (BCI), the institution creating awareness on breast cancer and contributing positively to society, the focal point of our social responsibility for the next five years,' he added.

Mr Opoku was addressing the opening session of a two-day training workshop on breast and cervical cancer, for 20 trained nurses selected from Ashanti and Brong Ahafo Regions, in Kumasi on the theme; 'Be Breast Cancer Aware Not Scared'.

The workshop being jointly organised by DHL, BCI and Peace and Love Hospitals in Accra and Kumasi, is under the 'School Breast Health Education Programme' targeted at some Senior High Schools (SHSs) in Ashanti and Greater Accra Regions.

The participants will undergo training that would professionally equip them both in theory and practice in basic oncology skills necessary to educate SHS students about risk factors of breast cancer, prevention strategies, treatment options, and proper ways of doing breast self-examination (BSE).

In addition, they would be able to clinically screen the students for any suspicious signs and symptoms of breast cancer and refer suspected cases for further evaluation at appropriate health facilities.

Oncology is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

Mr Opoku pointed out that women, the embodiment of society should not be forgotten and therefore support the education programme in schools to change the mentality and attitude of the youth towards the disease.

He said in addition to the outreach programmes, DHL would assist with the provision of equipment and furnishing of regional offices of BCI to be established.

Dr Mrs Beatrice Wiafe Addai, President of BCI, said creating breast cancer awareness in the country was challenging.

She said sometimes it is disheartening and discouraging when BCI approached some companies and institutions for assistance but are turned down.

Dr Wiafe Addai called for increased private/public sector collaboration and commended DHL and the Ministry of Education for their immense support which would increase the knowledge about the disease among the youth.

'They are the future, they will grow up with the knowledge and help educate the older generation, especially their mothers, aunties, and grandmothers. The BCI in collaboration with DHL by these programmes empowering the youth to walk boldly into a future where they would be more conscious about their breast health, and be breast cancer aware and not scared,' she added.

Dr Wiafe Addai who is also the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Peace and Love Hospitals, said due diligence was undertaken to select the participants and urged them to be dedicated and compassionate to women who are their clients.

'You are trainers for the training of your colleagues in the society. Let us devote our time and energy to the training. This is the first of its kind in Ghana and with its success, other African countries will emulate,' She added.

GNA
21.01.2016 LISTEN

Tarkwa (WR), Jan. 21, GNA - A Tarkwa Circuit court has fined a 25-year-old welder GH480.00 for allegedly stealing a car battery.

In default, the convict, Abu Ibrahim, would serve three months imprisonment in hard labour.

He pleaded guilty to unlawful entry and stealing.

Prosecuting, Detective Chief Inspector Oscar Amponsah, told the court that the complainant, Sergeant Ramatu Yahaya, is stationed at the office of the Divisional Motor Transport and Traffic Department of the Ghana Police Service in Tarkwa.

He said the convict is a resident of Fanti Mines Number Three, near Aboso, in the Prestea Huni/Valley District.

He said on January 11, around 2130 hours, Ibrahim broke into a Nissan Sentra Saloon car which belonged to Sergeant Yahaya and stole the battery.

The prosecution said the convict sold the stolen car battery worth GH500.00 for only GH20.00.to a scrap dealer at Bogoso Junction, a suburb of Tarkwa.

However, Edward Rockson, a witness in the case, and three of his friends, saw Ibrahim with the car battery in the neighbourhood and questioned him about the owner of the item.

The convict confessed stealing the item and that he had already sold it to a scrap dealer in the area.

They arrested Ibrahim and handed him over to the police.

The prosecutor said the convict led the police to the scrap dealer who bought the item for interrogation.

GNA
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Wa, Jan 21, GNA - Alhaji Amidu Sulemana, Upper West Regional Minister has called on the media "to use its power" to educate the electorate and promote peace in this year's general elections.

He said the year would be characterized by the usual heated political campaigns and in some cases unacceptable utterances, which tend to mar the beauty of political rivalry.

Alhaji Sulemana, who made the call at a press soiree in Wa, advised the media to to avoid repeating unfortunate utterances to prevent inflaming passions.

'Some political parties and their cohorts will like to infiltrate the ranks of the media and try to influence you to do their bidding and in doing so you may lose sight of your professionalism and carry out acts that are detrimental to the peace of the region and the country in general', he said.

He said a case in point was when some radio stations allowed their airwaves to be used to preach religious hatred and disenchantment.

'This is unacceptable and must be condemned in no uncertain terms', he said.

Alhaji Sulemana said the country was not immune to conflicts, and that, there was the need to guard against reckless statements on the airwaves, which has the potential to trigger civil strife and violence.

'I will urge you to put the interest of the peace and stability of the region above any other consideration in the discharge of your duties. I also call for professionalism, circumspection and fairness in the discharge of your duties', Alhaji Sulemana advised.

He said in 2015, the region went through a lot of challenges, such as falling standards in education, as most districts were recording poor passes in the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) and the Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSCE) in recent past.

The Regional Minister announced that the Regional Coordinating Council (RCC) was planning to organise an educational forum to brainstorm on the causes of this increasing decline in educational performance and fashion out strategies on how to address them.

'Another challenge is the setback in the conservation of the environment as a result of illegal mining and felling of trees for charcoal, and of late the logging of rosewood tree in the region'.

Mr. Bajin D. Pobia, Upper West Regional Chairman of the Ghana Journalists Association called on his colleagues to be guided by the ethics of the profession and avoid acts that would dent the image of the profession in the region.

He said Journalists and media practitioners owe it a duty to behave responsibly in order not to jeopardize the peace of the nation, especially in this election year.

GNA
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Accra, Jan 21, GNA - Mr. Eric Antwi, Chief Executive of Starbow airline, has urged the government to make the process of importing aircraft parts easier for domestic airline operators.

'Procuring aircraft parts for standard maintenance is crucial to running an airline successfully. Any difficulty with that process would surely have an adverse effect on the operations of any airline.'

Mr. Antwi in an interview with the Ghana News Agency said another area where the domestic airline industry needed assistance was the granting of soft loans.

He said factors such as the 17 per cent Value Added Tax (VAT), which domestic airline operators had to pay among others, made it fairly challenging financially running an airline, adding that one means of minimizing the challenge was the granting of soft loans.

'Paying taxes is the right thing to do, but considering the circumstances prevailing now, it would be in the right direction if the 17 per cent VAT was taken off.'

Mr. Antwi praised the government for its dedication towards improving the airports within the country, adding that it was a step in the right direction because ensuring the right standards at airports enhanced both aircraft and airport safety.

He expressed the hope that the New Year would see an improvement in the stabilization of the cedi, as well as other areas that affected the airline industry because, 'this highly influences the performance of domestic airlines'.

The Starbow boss said domestic airlines played a strong role in promoting economic growth in the country.

'Doing business by air is definitely much faster than by land. If economic factors make it possible for people to do business faster, that is economically progressive,' he said. GNA
Bawku (UER), Jan. 21, GNA - The Bawku Presbyterian Hospital is to benefit from a new 12- bed maternity and labour ward to help contribute to the reduction of maternal and infant mortality.

Ms Clara Osei-Boateng, Director of SEND-Ghana, an NGO in charge of Policy, Advocacy and Programme, told the GNA in Bawku in Upper East Region that the project is being implemented by her outfit in conjunction with Christian Aid, another NGO.

The two organisations started an advocacy programme on how to contribute to the reduction of maternal and infant mortality in 30 districts in Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions in 2014, with funding from the European Union.

Ms Osei-Boateng said although advocacy plays a significant role by influencing national policy on maternal health, the main challenge that acts as a stumbling block to address the issue are logistics and infrastructure.

She said to help address the challenge, her outfit and Christian Aid contacted 'Zochonis Charity Trust', a charitable organisation that is into providing support.

She explained that the project provides 30 per cent of the funding while Friends of Bawku, an NGO, agreed to provide 70 per cent as the counterpart funding and the procurement of a biochemistry analyzer, which has the capacity to conduct 25 specimens within an hour.

Mr Fred Effah-Yeboah, General Manager of the Presbyterian Health Service-North, lauded the stakeholders for executing a good job.

He said apart from the buildings, the project is also providing support in the training of midwives in schools and retaining them to work at the health facility.

He appealed for a neonatal unit and water facilities to help render quality health services.

Mr Daniel Anabah, Senior Bio-chemist at the facility and the Manager of the laboratory, said hitherto it was very difficult for pregnant women to access laboratory tests such as liver and kidney function.

The Bawku Presbyterian Hospital is the major health delivery institution in the Bawku Municipality and it provides health services to Garu-Tempane, Pusiga, Binduri, Bawku West Districts and neighbouring Burkina Faso and Togo.

GNA
Agbozume (V/R), Jan 21, GNA - Stakeholders in the Some Senior High School (SOSEC), one of the oldest senior high schools in the Ketu South District have appealed to government to help address the infrastructure deficit in the school.

The school, which would celebrate its golden jubilee anniversary this year, lacks a decent administration block, science and computer laboratories, and an assembly hall.

It has no teachers' bungalows, a situation which has compelled the housemistress to share the dormitory block with students.

Close to 1,000 of its boarding students depend on a borehole for water and use an apology of a pavilion as a dining hall, which students use in turns due to its small size.

At the launch of the School's 50th anniversary celebration, the teachers and students appealed to the government to help address these infrastructural limitations to give the school a modest dignity.

Mr Mark Adade, President of the Old Students Association, said it was unfortunate that the student population was increasing yearly, but no attempt had been made to improve facilities in the school.

'It is unfortunate our school has nothing to show in 50 years though it is producing quality human resource,' Mr Adade stated.

He said the past students were working to beautify the entrance of the school to befit its status and called for support from other stakeholders.

Mr Adade announced an award scheme to inspire academic excellence and promised the Old Students Association would explore means to provide science and computer laboratories for the School.

Mr Albert Agbesi Wornyo, Guest Speaker at the anniversary launch, noted that the deprivations in the school were so grave that a major transformation was needed to erase the bad image associated with it.

Mr Kwamigah Ahafia, Headmaster of the School, said the administration block, which was constructed 50 years ago, has leakages, inadequate space, decaying props, poor ventilation and outdated electrical wiring system.

'Problems of the administration block, for example, are metaphorically competing with mice and cockroaches that always resist any quit order,' he added.

Mr Mawusi Alex Buadi, acting Volta Regional Director of Education, said irrespective of the challenges, SOSEC established itself as a cradle of education in its own right among Senior High Schools in the Region.

He therefore tasked the stakeholders to generate innovative ideas to transform the School.

The school will have its golden jubilee celebration in July, on the theme, 'Fifty Years in the Life of Some Senior High School: The Impact on National Development, the Challenges and the Prospects.'

GNA
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Gomoa Lome (C/R), Jan. 21, GNA - Mr Kwadwo Owusu-Afriyie, former General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has claimed that National Democratic Congress (NDC) peddled falsehood, propaganda and vain promises to win Ghanaians votes in 2008 and 2012 elections.

Mr Owusu-Afriyie affectionately call Sir John said after using all tricks to deceive the good people of Ghana NDC has failed to govern the country as expected.

He made this known when addressing durbar of chiefs and people of Gomoa Lome and Gomoa Dahom to climax the Annual Akwambo festival.

The former General Secretary said the NDC under President John Dramani Mahama has not been able to deliver the social contract it entered with Ghanaians to improve their lives.

He represented Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, NPP Presidential Candidate who, he said was invited to attend the festivals but equally important assignment did not permit him.

He expressed regret that NDC had failed miserably and noted that the Mahama-led government has nothing to offer the good citizens of Ghana.

Mr Owusu-Afriyie said President Mahama has not been to find solutions to the prevailing socio-economic conditions.

He said the NPP led by Nana Akufo-Addo have men of substance who could turn the fragile economy round when given the nod.

He called on Ghanaians, especially the chiefs and people of Gomoa Central to vote massively for Nana Akufo-Addo and Naana Eyiah Quansah, NPP Parliamentary Candidate for Gomoa Central to better their lot.

He stated that it would be proper for Ghanaians to vote for Nana Akufo-Addo on November 7, to form incorruptible, competent and transparent government.

He urged Ghanaians to vote against corrupt and bribery NDC government to pave way for reliable, honest and truthful one to resuscitate the hopeless economy.

Mr Owusu-Afriyie presented GHa2,000.00 each on behalf of Nana Akufo- Addo to Gomoa Lome and Gomoa Dahom to support their developmental projects.

Naana Eyiah Quansah, Parliamentary candidate for Gomoa Central appealed to the chiefs and the people of Gomoa Lome and Gomoa Dahom to vote for her and the flag bearer n the general election.

She said an NPP government would never disappoint the chiefs and the people of Gomoa Central in the areas of health, education, better roads and quality environmental health and sanitation.

The NPP Parliamentary Candidate stated that Gomoa Central in the Gomoa East District would see tremendous developmental programmes and policies that would facilitate creation of jobs and social interventions.

GNA
  Here is another one. A change in what Human nature will allow for government. "Careful, Kryon, don't talk about politics. You'll get in trouble." I won't get in trouble. I'm going to tell you to watch for leadership that cares about you. "You mean politics is going to change?" It already has. It's beginning. Watch for it. You're going to see a total phase-out of old energy dictatorships eventually. The potential is that you're going to see that before 2013.
Two of Ghana's leading political parties have welcomed the decision by the Inspector General of Police John Kudalor to disband political party vigilante groups.

The representatives of the governing National Democratic Congress and opposition New Patriotic Party are however looking forward to a thorough stakeholder engagement before that threat is carried out.

In an interview on Joy Fm's Super Morning Show with Kojo Yankson, Wednesday, the IGP John Kudalor minced no words in his promise to end the reign of terror some of the vigilante groups have inflicted on Ghanaians.

The Azorka Boys linked to the governing NDC, the invincible forces and Bolga Bulldogs linked to the opposition NPP are vigilante groups reputed for their terror and violence especially during elections.

The heavily armed groups are sometimes recruited by the political parties to protect the ballots during elections and they rain terror on innocent voters.

The IGP John Kudalor said the activities of the vigilante groups will not be countenanced in this year's election.

National Organiser of the NPP John Boadu said the police must also try to find out the difficulties the political parties face in terms of security.

He said some of groups, who are unarmed, only provide internal security for the party.

John Boadu said for the police to make any impact they must first be able to deal with matters of infractions of the law.

He did not understand how the Headquarters of the NPP will be invaded by unknown assailants, and yet the police will not be able to unravel the mystery behind that invasion.

"If the police deal with infractions of laws irrespective of who is involved that will reduce political lawlessness," he said.

A deputy General Secretary of the NDC Koku Anyidoho said there is a difference between political vigilante groups and groups that provide internal security for the party during elections.

He said if the police can identify the vigilante groups and arrest them the party will applaud them.
A man who kidnapped a 3-year- old, using her as a bargaining chip to demand money he invested with a microfinance company, has been sentenced to five years in prison.

Eric Otoo on the 4th January, 2016 took a 3-year-old girl hostage after enduring a frustrating and fruitless attempts to retrieve his investments from the child's father, Daddy Brown of Jerryson FM in Nkoranza, Brong Ahafo region.

The radio station is owned by the founder of Jarstar Motors and Investment Company where Eric made his investments.

The girl was found at Nkronza SHS after the suspect, Eric Otoo, was lured to disclose the location.

He was arrested and arraigned before Techiman Circuit Court, where a Presiding Judge, Joan Eyi King said he was spared a stiffer punishment because he provided documentation that showed he was an aggrieved customer of Jarstar Motors and Investment Limited.

Jarstar Motors and Investment Company and some others have reportedly held deposits of their customers hostage for several months due to closure by the Bank of Ghana.

The Managing Director of Jastar Motors and Investments and some three other companies were arrested by the Bureau of National Investigation. They have been granted bail.

Father of the kidnapper, Emmanuel Anyanba told Adom News says he is not happy with the judgment.

What pains me most is the fact that he is only 22, very young and can do something better with his life than serving jail sentence, he stated.

However, he added that his sons case should serve as deterrent for other young people who kidnap others to use as a bait.

Emmanuel Anyanba called on the investment companies to pay back monies of the aggrieved customers to avoid a repeat of the incident.

He appealed to government to release the arrested managers to hasten the retrieval process.

I am pleading with the President to step in and order the release of the managers so that the customers can get their monies back, he added.
If you are a security officer keeping watch at gates of prominent buildings or traffic you must be mindful of the laws guiding your job and also working with lots of compassion. If you are wielding a gun, you could shoot intruders only when it becomes absolutely necessary, yes when in self defense. Fortunately in Ghana apart from those policemen guarding bank buildings and security installations in military and security camps, presidential and ministerial buildings, who wield guns in guard duties most policemen dont posses guns. This is not the case in some developed nations such as the United States of America where some gun wielding cops have recently fallen foul of the law. One of the culprits was charged with murder with his outfit university of Cincinnati being forced to pay out $4.9 million to the family of a victim of gunshot whose children would be supported to go to school.

The story is that the police officer killed a man Samuel DuBose, 43 just because the victim did not have a number plate in front of his vehicle in Cincinnati during a traffic stop. The cop has been indicted for murder as the Hamilton County prosecutor said that the killing was deliberate

Prosecutor Joseph Deters said the policeman Ray Tensing was a murderer who just wanted to kill

DuBose was killed during a traffic stop on July 19 near the University of Cincinnati's campus.

The prosecutor said the officer "wasn't dealing with someone who was wanted for murder, He was dealing with someone who was without a front license plate."

Deters said he was "shocked" when he saw the video on what happened and his heart broke for what the video would mean to the community.

"It's just bad. It's just bad what he did and it shouldn't have happened," Deters said.

The casket of Samuel Dubose is transported to a hearse during his funeral at the Church of the Living God, July 28, 2015, in the Avondale neighborhood of Cincinnati.

.



Hamilton County prosecutor, Joseph Deters

DuBose's mother, Audrey DuBose, said during the news conference after the indictment was announced that she can forgive Tensing and can forgive anybody. God forgave us," she said.

"I'm so thankful that everything was uncovered," she added. "Because I've been a servant of the Lord for as long as I've been living on Earth. I know the Lord and I know the wrath of God. Also, I know the love of God. I just thank God everything is being revealed. I knew that he loved my child. I knew that this was going to be uncovered."

However, Tensings lawyer, Stewart Matthews, lashed out at Deters' characterization of his client saying it was extremely unprofessional," he said. "And rather than being a prosecutor I thought he sounded like persecutor."

Matthews said that Tensing, who he described as "extremely professional" and "laid back" was astonished and cried when he found out he had been indicted for murder.

"He just hands in his, face in hands dropped to the table, and just astonished couldnt believe it," he said.

Stewart said that a jury would find that his client did not overreact.

This is a lesson on all those who would not take it easy on duty as guards on buildings and security installations.

THE SAD DEATH OF A HOMELESS MAN

Apart from the story of DUBOSS the city of Fullerton has also agreed to pay $4.9 million to settle a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the father of a homeless man whom police beat to death in July 2011 as reported by Reuters

Kelly Thomas, a 37-year-old homeless man with schizophrenia, died five days after police officers beat him and shocked him with a stun gun. A surveillance camera recorded footage of the killing, and the video sparked national outrage and street protests in Fullerton.

An Orange County jury acquitted officers Jay Cicinelli and Manuel Ramos of all criminal charges in January 2014. After the verdict, the FBI said it was re-examining the case.

Fullerton settled the civil case on Monday, the day the trial was scheduled to begin. Had the case gone to trial, the officers would have been forced to testify.

We know the truth, and I wanted that truth brought out, Kelly Thomass father, Ron Thomas, said at a news conference.

Ron Thomas filed suit against the city, the police department and Cicinelli and Ramos.

City officials previously paid Thomass mother $1 million to settle any claims she might bring. Thomass parents are divorced, and they litigated separately.

Legal fees have reportedly cost the city at least another $1 million.

Video footage of the killing showed Ramos strapping on latex gloves and telling Thomas, You see theses fists? They are getting ready to fuck you up.

Officers delivered multiple blows and shocks with a stun gun, the surveillance footage shows.

Thomas was heard on tape calling dozens of times for his father to help him. The mentally ill homeless man was yelling, Daddy, theyre killing me.

Executive Director

EANFOWORLD FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

P.O.BOX 17070AN 233244370345/23326370345/ 233208844791

[email protected] /[email protected]
Ouagadougou (AFP) - Chadian President Idriss Deby Itno declared Thursday that terrorism is worse than the Ebola virus, during a visit of solidarity to Burkina Faso days after jihadist gunmen killed 30 people after storming a top hotel in Ouagadougou.

"Terrorism is like an epidemic, worse than Ebola, worse than any illness," Chad's leader said.

The landlocked central African country of Chad is pivotal in the fight against the Boko Haram Islamists operating in sub-Saharan Africa.

Chad is also a key member of France's counter-terrorism mission in the Sahel region, known as Operation Barkhane.

Friday's deadly attack in Ouagadougou "like those we have seen in the Sahel nations do nothing to dent our firm resolve to fight terrorism with all means at our disposal," Deby said after visiting the scene of the attack, the four-star Hotel Splendid, accompanied by his Burkinabe counterpart Roch Marc Christian Kabore.

"I have come to visit the place which was a place of horror, where 30 people of various nationalities died and dozens more were injured," he said.

The Splendid Hotel is popular with foreigners and United Nations staff and around half of those killed were foreigners, according to differing tolls given by the Burkinabe government and the public prosecutor.

"These innocents were gunned down by mad men, this is unacceptable," Deby added.

He also stressed the economic impact of such attacks.

"At the same time you cannot, with the meagre means available to us in this region, combat terrorism while also thinking about development, about youth employment, about creating jobs. It's impossible," he said.

Deby announced he was calling for a summit of leaders of the G5 Sahel grouping -- Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger -- on the margins of the larger African Union summit to be held in Addis Ababa on January 31.

"Mali and Chad have already been victims, now its Burkina Faso. Practically all the G5 nations have been affected," he said.

The Ebola outbreak, which began in Guinea in December 2013, killed more than 11,000 people and was the deadliest outbreak of the virus yet.

Most of the victims were in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia.

A new case of Ebola has been confirmed in Sierra Leone, officials said Thursday, the second since west Africa celebrated the end of the epidemic last week.
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Introduction:

Although Ghanas label as Africas second most corrupt country by the Ghanaian media was a wrong interpretation of Transparency Internationals People and Corruption: Africa 2015 report, Ghanaians seem to have resigned themselves to the fate that their countrys leadership has significant challenges in curbing the practice with the speed needed.

We are aware that corruption cannot be limited to activities of the state and for that matter, a government. The willing participants in business, academia and civil society and the citizenry at large should equally be scrutinized. However, the dent high profile corruption can make to an economy can be devastating as it can be long lasting and not least when it can increase the cost of running government business which ultimately has to propped up by higher taxes.

Solutions abound in dealing with the rather amorphous subject called corruption. This publication intends to deal with the hydra headed problem in the corruption industry- Public procurement and emphasize tried and new solutions such as the creations of an Institute of Public Projects Excellence to act alongside the Procurement Authority.

Problematic Public Procurement

Public procurement simply refers to the defined rules, methods, processes and procedures by which government institutions are mandated by law to use to acquire goods, services and works using public funds.

Given the huge role public expenditure plays in our economy, and the tendency for abuse of public funds by officials, public procurement as a magnet for corruption has become a critical issue that has to be explored in the fight against corruption. The Public Procurement Law, 2003, ACT 663 guides the process of public procurement in the public service. This law attempts to fight corruption by ensuring transparency and fairness in the procurement processes. This is to be effected through a competitive bidding process for state contracts. It is assumed that through such a process, the state can obtain the best value for public funds that are expended. This process is expected to eliminate bribery and other corrupt practices as individual firms win bids on the basis of the quality of their proposals.

Ghanas procurement law however fails to largely meet its mandate. Under the law, the procurement entity (ministry, government agency or department) is largely in charge of the process. Such entities are expected to have a procurement unit in their organization that is expected to manage and facilitate all procurement activities. It is the procurement entity that sets up its own Tender Evaluation Committee. The Public Procurement Board, which assumes some form of supervisory role, is subject to political interference by the political authority since the president makes appointments and removal from the board.

According to Transparency International (2005), every stage of the procurement process is prone to corruption. Public officials in concert with corrupt businesses, seek to bend procurement rules to ensure that preferred bidders win contracts. Even when a contract is subject to a tender process, certain bidders gain advantage through access to important information or exclusion of competitors from a pre-qualified list failing the proper value-for-money and vested interest test that must be done.

The farce that took place at the Driver and Vehicular Licensing Authority (DVLA) where a contract sum (awarded on a non-competitive basis) quoted at $3.6 million for the supply of equipment to print drivers licenses interestingly metamorphosed into $9.9 million is just one evidence in a long list of brazen abuse of public funds and the impotence of the procurement law. The DVLA boss blamed the anomaly on human error despite the fact that the state had allegedly overpaid for the contract. The state is now mulling over cancelling the contract although this has sparked fears of the possibility of a huge judgment debt for the country.

Sole Sourcing Blues

The procurement law allows the award of certain contracts without a competitive bidding process. Such processes are supposed to be the exception and not the norm. They would typically involve national security concerns, cases where specific expertise is required (which only one company possesses) or where the contract has to be expedited due to emergencies. The procurement board must however authorize such processes.

This sole-sourcing provision has turned out to be a loop-hole being exploited by public officials and businesses against the interest of the state. The procurement board does not seem to be strong enough to clamp down on the abuse of this provision as any contract can virtually be given out without a tender process. It is extremely difficult to comprehend how contracts such as the branding of buses gain approval by the board to be sole-sourced. Such processes are not transparent.

Almost every major scandal involving the state over-paying for a contract involved sole-sourcing. In a ministerial report on GYEEDA, arguably Ghanas biggest corruption scandal in recent times, it was noted that the contracts, which were all sole-sourced, were heavily lopsided towards companies owned by just two individuals. It is estimated that contract sums to these individuals and their companies were in excess of GHc 150 million.

The state is in the process of retrieving some of the monies due to the non-performance of work.

An Attorney Generals report into the bus-branding saga also showed that the state overpaid by GHc 1.9m (later reviewed to GHc 1.5m). Anti-corruption crusaders have identified this provision in the law as the biggest threat in the fight against corruption when it comes to public procurement.

Emphasizing Tried and Test Solutions

To defeat corruption in the public procurement process will require strong political will. The decision of the Auditor-General to begin surcharging heads of MMDAs (after its engagement with Occupy Ghana) identified to have misapplied funds is a step in the right direction. Punitive actions against individuals who flagrantly disregard the procurement process in the award of contracts will serve as deterrence.

Transparency is vital in the fight against corruption. It is imperative to know that even advanced countries are also battling corruption in the procurement process. Ghana can adopt some of the steps these countries are taking particularly with regard to transparency. The USA for instance passed the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act that requires recipients of federal contracts and grants exceeding $25,000 to publish the names of all subcontractors they intend to hire. The information is on a public website to allow American citizens to track the chain of a federal contract to its end to know where every dollar is going. The Obama administration created a website in 2009 to track money that was spent on stimulus projects within his economic recovery programme.

Ghana has to start making progress towards such levels of transparency if we are serious about protecting the public purse. Details of contracts awarded, including sub-contracts must be public knowledge. It is also important that Ghanaians are aware of persons behind companies that win such contracts. Such level of transparency allows the public to track where every cedi of public funds is going and for them to raise the necessary red flags. It goes a long way to also discourage corruption.

Finding a better way- Institute of Public Projects Excellence

We also need an Institute of Public Projects Excellence to act alongside the Procurement Authority. This institute needs to have a panel, which by law will have rotating members of recognised governmental and non-governmental bodies, such as chartered organisations, research institutes, labour unions, and specialised government agencies.

To avoid capture, no member should serve on this institute for more than 6 months. All government projects costing more than 10,000 units (with a unit equivalent to 1 GHS in 2016) will require a certificate of sound value before theaward of contract. A Value for Money report must accompany the certificate of sound value and should be published on a public website.

Panel hearings should be open to the public. Where the panel has no expertise in a particular project domain at hand, a call for input from external assessors should be placed on the internet and published in leading dailies. If at the end of this extended period of evaluation the expertise remains unavailable, the matter should be referred to the Auditor General for pre-project auditing. The provision of a certificate of sound value should be time-bound, perhaps 30 calendar days upon receipt of the notice of an intent to sole-source or award enter into negotiations with the winner of a public bid from the Procurement Committee of the public agency or enterprise. There should be room for extension if a referral becomes warranted as above.

The Chairman of the Institute of Public Projects Excellence should have ombudsman powers, and the panel should have the capacity to subpoena documents. This suggestion may seem politically difficult to implement, but it is quite clear that to safeguard public funds, the procurement regulations are no longer, by themselves, fit for purpose, as they provide no real means of benchmarking costs, preventing collusion among bidders, and addressing information asymmetry among bidders, due to favouritism; and, also because sole-sourcing cannot be completely abolished.

These measures proposed above will require strong political will to implement them. If we are to confront corruption head on however, these measures are necessary.

This IMANI Alert was inspired by discussions with IMANIs Honorary Director of Development, Bright Simons. It was compiled by IMANIs intern, Roland Johnson.

Respectfully yours,

Franklin Cudjoe

Founding President & CEO, IMANI

www.imanighana.com

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Alhaji Collins Dauda, the Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, has assured that the ongoing redevelopment of Kejetia Central Market Project at Kumasi in the Ashanti Region would be completed on time.

He said he is impressed of the progress of work so far and that barring any unforeseen difficulty, the project will be completed on schedule.

I am so impressed of progress of work, in October when we were here, there was nothing, from October to now its about three months, and if you look at the volume of work from October and today, you will come to a conclusion that, we are on time and this project would be concluded on time, he said.

Mr. Dauda said this when he toured the $298 million dollar Kejetia Central Market phase 1 on Wednesday. He was accompanied to the site by the Deputy Chief of Staff, Mr. Johnny Osei Kofi, the major of Kumasi Mr. Kojo Bonsu and other top officials from the Local Government and Rural Development ministry.

The Kejetia Central Market Project being executed by Contracta Engenarta Limited of Brazil was commenced by His Excellency President John Dramani Mahama in October last year and will take thirty months to complete.

It consists of the reconstruction of the lorry park, the creation of a modern bus terminal, construction of two market floors above the bus terminal and other ancillary facilities.

The project is expected to ease the perennial traffic jam, create better work place conditions for the surroundings and increase the trading volume and introduce formal practices of doing business.

The minister explained that all the materials required are readily available in Kumasi, pointing out that the rate of construction is impressive.

The rate of construction is so impressive that it leaves me in no doubt that this Kejetia project will be completed in time, he added.

He commended the contractor of leaving up to expectations and showing commitment to the project, adding that the project is so crucial to the socio-economic progress of Kumasi.

Carlos Gala, Project Manager of Contracta Engenarta Limited for his part, said the project is progressing ahead of time, expressing hope that all things being equal it would be completed on time.

Gala said however that the major challenge facing progress of work is the compensation issues which are being handled by the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, saying however that everything is moving on smoothly.

He explained that the first phase of the Kejetia Central Market Project covers a total square of 150,000sqm and will consist of about 5,000 shops and other facilities, adding it would be completed by latest of 2017 or early 2018.

COLLINS DAUDA (MIDDLE) BEING TAKEN ROUND THE SITE
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Kasapreko Company Limited has started the production of the new Choco Malt today 21st January, 2016 at its newly installed mega factory.

The Choco Malt which is also called HI5 is a new brand among many non-alcoholic drinks of Kasapreko ready to hit the market.

Mr. Richard Adjei, the Managing Director of Kasapreko Company Limited [KCL] released this first hand information to our reporter in an interview that was scheduled with him.

He indicated that the official launch of the newly produced Choco Malt drink will be held publicly by the end of January this year however, consumers shall have a fresh taste of the product which is yet to be introduced to the market very soon.

Our Malt which is coming out is called HI5 Choco Malt. It is going to be the first Malt in Ghana that is liaised with chocolate, he noted.

This means that they are basically adding chocolate content to the malt to have mixture of chocolate and Malt taste in the drink.

So you are not just drinking normal malt but you are going to drink Malt with chocolate, he indicated.

According to him, this is the first of its kind in the industry adding that, no Malt has ever been introduced onto the market that is different from the other ones in terms of taste.

Mr. Adjei hinted that there are also plans to add a ginger component to the non-alcoholic drinks hopefully by March, this year.

Energy Drink and Surprise Sobolo up next in February 2016

The Managing Director, Mr. Richard Adjei, who is also the son of the founder and owner of Kasapreko Company Limited told our reporter that the company has planned heavily to cease the market with its upcoming Energy Drink and Bissap, locally known as Sobolo by the end of February this year.

We are also planning to come out with our energy drink hopefully by the end of February. We plan to come out with sobolo as well but our sobolo, there will be one that is the normal sobolo and there will be one that will be a surprise to the market [nobody has ever done that one before], he hinted.

Record levels of Kasapreko soft drinks exceed expectations

Mr. Richard Adjei said, amazingly, the soft drinks have exceeded far beyond his expectation.

He said the company, on 22nd December, 2015 started selling its non-alcoholic beverages [soft drinks] such as the Royal Cola, Royal Apple, Royal Orange and the Lemon Lime.

According to him, in January this year .i.e. a month after they launched their new bottling plant, the market demand became overwhelmed with high records of sales [figures put on ice].

So we quickly had to airlift some of the ingredients we bought from Germany in order to meet the market demands, he indicated.

Alomo Bitters and its medicinal properties

Quiet often, some few consumers of Alomo Bitters seems to have little or no idea about the medicinal properties that can be derived from the bitters.

Therefore, they only end up enjoying little without the full knowledge of the fact that the Alomo Bitters contains medicinal properties which has helped their system to fight against certain sicknesses.

Richard Adjei noted that the Alomo Bitters has a lot of medicinal properties which helps the human system to fight against certain sicknesses and diseases.

We have anti-malaria, we have herbs that is be able to fight malaria and fever. We also have herbs that will give sick people appetite for food," he stated.

Mr. Adjei added that the Alomo Bitters contains herbs that cleanse the arteries and the ventricles of the heart to allow free circulation of blood.

He noted that men also enjoy the aphrodisiac property in the bitters. For instance, in Nigeria, a lot of people have testified the excitement they derived from drinking Alomo Bitters which boost their sexual potency.

According to him, some have attested to the fact that the constant intake of the Alomo Bitters cure and prevent piles and other diseases, while others said it is an anti-malaria substance for them ever since they started drinking the bitters.

The Managing Director said he wants consumers to be aware of the danger of other bitters on the market that are also claiming to have the same medicinal properties.

He posited that, 15years ago, Alomo Bitters was the first bitters that was well researched and authorized by the Center for Scientific Research into Pant Medicine.

No bitters has ever done that before, Alomo Bitters still stands as the only researched bitters. It is not every bitters that is good for consumption on the market, he alarmed.

Mr. Adjei said that the Centre prescribed some amount of dosage that is needed for the medicinal part of the drink for the Alomo Bitters and other drinks which makes it safe for human consumption.

Kasapreko now open to partnership

Mr. Richard Adjei announced that Kasapreko Company Limited is now opened for investors to partner with them in order to break the global boundaries around the world.

According to him, the company was never opened to investors but now, they have a large quest to go global with the Kasapreko brands which is gradually gaining momentum on the international market.

He noted that initially, there were big offers from banks showing interest in buying the company or either having a stake in the company simply because the Company is ranked as the number one in terms of hard liquor in Ghana and in Nigeria for the bitters component.

So we are certainly open for partnership so any interested party can contact us and we are more than willing to talk to them, he opined.

Mr. Adjei indicated that, We cannot walk alone for life, sometimes you will have to partner to grow. When you walk alone you might be able to get to your destination after 100-days but when you partner you might be able to get to your destination after 10days.

He noted that the company has no plan of listing on the Ghana Stock Exchange because they simply want to remain as a private organization and not a public company.

Mr. Richard Adjei added that Kasapreko Company Limited has 40percent shares in a subsidiary called Caltech Ventures in Ho which cultivates and process cassava into ethanol, starch, cassava chips for buyers.

He noted that the subsidiary also supply cassava to the company that produces the cassava bear called the Ruut Beer.
22.01.2016 LISTEN

As I was whiling away my time this evening, at around 18:00 GMT, Thursday 21 January 2016, scrolling through the news items on Ghanaweb under their General News of Thursday, 21 January 2016, I chanced upon an interesting publication. This said publication was titled, Ghana facing minor challenges  Duffuor

I took time to read the entire publication, a very short one of course. However, the comments made about the views expressed by Dr Kwabena Duffuor relating to the challenges confronting Ghana were many, and extremely appalling.

Most of the commentators were not only disgusted at his views but also, were very insulting.

From the publication, he is alleged to have said, I have been observing what is happening in our country now and I would be very honest with you, Ghana is a very great country, it is a very special country and what we are going through now to me are minor challenges which must not disturb our forward march to development  The underlying web link takes you to the full story.

http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/Ghana-facing-minor-challenges-Duffuor-409527

I am not going to be judgmental but rather, going to expound on the views expressed by Dr Duffuor. No, I had better not, but instead, I must explain it in a very simple term with a few questions asked.

Are the challenges facing Ghana caused by natural disasters like flooding, outbreaks of deadly diseases, fires caused by lightning, famine etc.? No, they are mostly not.

What then are the causes of the teeming problems facing Ghana and Ghanaians?

The challenges facing Ghana are caused by the negligence on the part of Ghanaians to hold our current leaders accountable. The current leadership is corrupt to the core.

President Mahama is incompetent, corrupt, and overly tribal in the appointment of his square peg in round holes Government Ministers and Deputy Ministers. He lacks foresight, but wields absolute power which he exercises in absolutely incomprehensible, if not stupid, manner.

It is by Ghanaians sitting on our lap watching, doing practically nothing, that Ghana has come to face the numerous challenges in which she is near-inextricably engulfed or almost deeply entrenched.

On the basis of the challenges being man-made that can be dealt with at the crack of the fingers, yes, Dr Duffuor is right to qualify them as minor. They are minor because once the person or the people causing them are gotten rid of, the problem will be half solved. Then with competent persons at the helm of the countrys affairs, the other half will be solved in no time.

Ghanaians have a collective responsibility to solve the challenges for ourselves and the generations yet unborn as asserted by Dr Duffuor.

We have to use our kokromoti (thumb) power to get rid of the unprecedentedly corrupt President ever seen in the annals of Ghanas politics. Once we get rid of him and hold him to account for his stewardship to Ghana as a President for four years, all the minor problems will start solving by themselves.

Once problems can be solved that quick, no matter how gigantic and scary they appear, they can well be said to be minor.

If you have the slightest disbelief, I shall only invite you to join me in voting AGAINST President Mahama and the NDC in the upcoming 2016 presidential and parliamentary elections to see if the challenges facing Ghana will not automatically start to be solved.

Finally, please be aware from today forward that Dr Duffuor did not sign the documents that enabled Alfred Agbesi Woyome to dupe Ghana to the tune of GHC51.2 million. What about the other judgment debt payments, one may ask?

What can you do if a court orders you to effect a payment or carry out a task? You can only appeal the decision if you feel it is not in order. What do you do when the most senior government lawyer (the Attorney General) in which case it was Mrs Betty Mould-Iddrisu, is in agreement with the court order to you to make a payment as it was the case with Woyome, the Ghanaian swindler of the 21stCentury?

Please, do not grind Dr Duffuor in apotowea, courtesy of Opana Mahama, for telling Ghanaians the truth.

The challenges are brought about by President Mahama and his myopic government through their intrinsic acts of CORRUPTION and INCOMPETENCE!

Chase Mahama out. Bring in Nana Akufo Addo and all the minor problems will scuttle off like a frightened dog with its tail tucked in-between its hind legs.

(Written on Thursday, 21 January 2016)
Tarkwa Circuit Court presided over by Justice Mr. Kwasi Anto Ofori Atta, High Court judge sitting addition as a Circuit Court Judge, has sentenced four Galamsey operators to 30 years imprisonment with hard labor for conspiracy to commit crime and robbery.

The accused persons, Kwesi Kwaku alias J.J, Atia Kwame,Nanjo Kwabena and Clement Okyere all pleaded guilty.

The Prosecutor, Detective Chief Inspector Oscar Amponsah told the court that complainant is a small scale miner at Oda near Asankra Breman near Asankragwa while accused persons are resident at Asankra Breman near asankragwa.

He said on 27th December, 2015, the complainant came to police to reported that, after they had finished with the days work and were going home with their gold concentrate value GHc 50,000.00 at about 5:00pm, the accused persons attacked them, fired shots with a gun and robbed them of their gold concentrate.

Detective Amponsah narrated to the court that on January 19, 2016, the accused persons were involve in a similar robbery and were arrested to the station where they were identified by the complainant.

Accused persons admitted the offences having robbed the complainant of his gold concentrate.
Kinshasa (AFP) - International environment and rights groups on Thursday launched a joint plea to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Ugandan governments not to allow oil drilling in or around the Virunga National Park, Africa's oldest wildlife reserve famed for its mountain gorillas.

British NGO Global Witness said the appeal has been signed by some 60 groups -- including Greenpeace, the African Wildlife Foundation and the Zoological Society of London -- and urges the two countries as well as the UN cultural body UNESCO to take action.

In November the Congolese government said that seismic tests carried out by British oil company Soco in Virunga confirmed the presence of oil.

The announcement reignited a heated debate over the merits of exploring for oil in the vast park, which covers some 7,800 square kilometres (3,010 square miles) of lush forest, glaciated peaks and savannah in the restive eastern province of DR Congo's North Kivu region.

The UNESCO world heritage site reopened to tourists last year after being closed for two years because of militia violence in the region.

UNESCO has warned several times that any exploration for oil in the park would be "incompatible" with its heritage status.

The Congolese government however has promoted prospecting for oil in Virunga as offering a chance to lift the vast country out of poverty.

- 'Devastating impact' -

According to Global Witness, next month the Ugandan government will receive bids on six new oil licences, all of which include protected areas and one of which shares a lake with Virunga National Park.

"Drilling for oil in Lake Edward may have a devastating impact on both Virunga and the local people and wildlife in Uganda," said Global Witness spokesman George Boden.

There is a need "to act urgently to stop oil exploration in the entire lake for good, he added.

Last month the European Parliament called for an end to all oil exploration and exploitation in the Virunga region.

The 60 NGOs called on "the governments of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo to reach a deal to stop new oil drilling licences from being awarded in Virunga National Park and the surrounding area."

In 2010, the DR Congo government awarded several oil concessions straddling the park's boundaries, including giving "block V" to Soco, but suspended the permits following a domestic and international outcry.

To date no oil exploration has begun in Virunga, nor have any licences to do so been granted.

Critics warn that, not only would oil drilling affect the wild life and environment but would exacerbate the armed conflicts that have torn North Kivu apart for more than two decades.
Article 1 :

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Article 2 :
The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP) on Wednesday, presented 10 YAMAHA Motor Bikes to 10 selected districts to facilitate the African Health Markets for Equity (AHME), a social protection programme.

The programme which is expected to span for five years in the selected Districts, aimed at increasing healthcare equality within the private provider system and reduce the most vulnerable in deprived communities within the beneficiary districts in Ghana.

The beneficiary districts includes, Ledzokuku Krowor, Ashaiman in Greater Accra region, Ho, Adaklu in the Volta Region, Ejisu Juaben, Afigya Kwabre, in the Ashanti Region, East Akim, Fanteakwa in the Eastern Region and Bolgatanga and Kasena Nankana in the Upper East Region.

The AHME programme would be implemented in the country by a consortium of partners with combine expertise of the International Finance Corporation/World Bank Health in Africa initiative; Marie-Stoppes International and PharmAccess Foundation.

At a ceremony to present the Motor Bikes to the District Social Welfare Officers, Mr Victor Forfoe, Director of Finance and Administration, said the AHME programme would among of others thing help improve in identification of the less privilege persons with aid of electronic means-test system.

According to him, AHME is expected to add of about 150,000 households, 900,000 persons and 70,000 extreme poor onto the national household data at the end of the five year programme.

The Motor Bikes, Mr Forfoe said would assist the district social welfare officers to reach the extremely poor in the remotest parts of the districts and register them onto the social protection programmes, especially the National Health Insurance Scheme, Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty(LEAP) and others.

On his part, the Acting Director of Social Protection, Mr Richard Adjetey, stated that to ensure an effective monitoring and evaluation of the project, the Ministry through the Districts would be inaugurating both District Social Protection Committees and Community Social Protection Committees to monitor the programme in all the districts.

He however cautioned the beneficiary districts officers not to start using the motor bikes until such committees were officially put in place to supervise the project.

Mr Adjetey said, the Motor bikes were donor-funded ones and they must use it soley for the purpose intended and never use them to ride aimlessly in town.

Madam Phyllis Senyo, Greater Accra Regional Director of Social Welfare on behalf of the beneficiary districts expressed thankful to the Gender Ministry and the Donors for the Motor Bikes.

She said, mobility to remote areas in the districts have been the challenging jobs and assured that, the Motor Bikes be useful and for the purpose intended.
Former Minister of Transport, Dzifa Attivor, has joined Eco Medical, as the firms new chairperson, weeks after resigning from the ministry.

Eco Medical supplies home medical, mobility and accessibility equipment from reputable manufacturers across the world.

The Eco Medical Village project is a private sector initiative that aims to make health care accessible to the ordinary African by the establishment of world class facilities across the West African Region (ECOWAS) through private sector development and to attract medical tourism from the rest of the African Union (AU).

She takes over the position from Peter Ahiekpor who was doubling as both the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the organisation that is touted as the biggest medical project in West Africa.

Mr. Peter Ahiekpor now becomes the Chief Executive Officer and will work directly with Dzifa Attivor to achieve the mission of the ECOWAS medical project and the long term vision of the organization.

The former ministers appointment forms part of the organisations bid to strategically position itself to be the leading health service provider for the ECOWAS region.

Eco-Medical Village (EMV) will be a State of the Art International Hospital Complex for citizens and residents of the West African sub region, who usually go to South Africa, North America, Europe, Cuba and India for medical care.

The Eco-Medical Village (EMV) will be built in Accra on a 40 acre land and with Satellite Units in all the West African countries in the sub-region. The

Prior to joining Eco Medical Village as Chairperson, Dzifa Attivor was the Transport Minister of the Republic of Ghana. She was appointed Deputy Minister of the sector from 2009 until 2013 when she became the substantive Minister. Her tenure saw the transformation of the transport sector in general and the aviation industry in particular with more than 400% growth in passenger throughput.

Prior to her ministerial role, she dedicated 27 years of service to the Central Bank of Ghana in various capacities including the Personal Assistant to three successive Deputy Governors.

Her NGO (DEDEFUND), is dedicated to the support of brilliant but needy children, the course of women and the youth and cares for the 120 cured lepers at Schohaven Village at Ho in the Volta Region.

The organisation says Madam Attivors experience is what it needs to spearhead the growth of Eco Medical Village projects.

The former Minister resigned in the wake of the GHc3.6 million bus branding scandal.
National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress Kofi Portuphy has cautioned all officials and members of the party to exhibit a very good relationship with the ordinary Ghanaian in order to win the November polls.

We might be delivering to every home electricity, water, we might be delivering to every family good education and good health, and a lots of food but comrades, our relationship with the people we lead, the people we represent in government must be an impetus for every member of the electorate to feel like going to vote for us.

We must begin also to look at ourselves, if you are a minister, if you are elections directorate member, if you are an executive member, right from the grassroots to National level, begin to do things that will attract people to our party the more, he added.

The National Chairman made the disclosure at a three-day elections stakeholders workshop for NDC officials held at the Koforidua Capital View Hotel.

The workshop was attended by members of the National executive committee, regional ministers, elections directors and regional executive members.

Delivering his speech, Mr. Kofi Portuphy charged the NDC members not to be complacent and think that the NDC is winning hands down and must lead a life that will whip the interest of the masses to join the NDC.

We must not buffoon ourselves that we are winning while we ourselves, our own attitude are pushing people away from us. The things that we do must attract people to our party Mr. Portuphy emphasised

He added that, all aspirants in the Parliamentary Primaries must endeavour to reconcile and work hard to win election 2016.

According to Mr. Portuphy, the workshop will also afford participants the opportunity to share their experience in elections and also learn the new Constitutional Instrument (CI) for conducting elections whiles they make retrospection on the 2012 elections petition verdict and the recommendations in them.

He noted that, the NDC will Marshall Resources to achieve the agenda 50/50 in the Eastern region and the operation 1,000,000 votes in the Ashanti region.

Majority Leader Alban Bagbin also indicated that victory awaits the NDC but party members must work hard to embrace it.
Chairman of the Teachers and Educational Workers Union, Peter Lumor, says the strike declared by the Union is still in force despite Labour Commissions declaration that it is illegal.

TEWU declared a strike on Monday over the failure of the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission to address their concerns over the implementation of the single spine pay policy.

According to the Union, the Commission failed to deliver on its promise of taking steps to bridge the excessive gap between salaries of senior and junior staff of public universities.

A press release signed by the acting Executive Secretary of the Labour Commission, Dr. Bernice Welbeck, says failure by TEWU to follow laid down procedures makes the strike illegal.

She warned employers may be forced to apply the necessary sanctions if the strike is not called off.

However, Peter Lumor said members will meet Friday to decide on the directive.

We will discuss the Labour Commissions directive and at the end of the meeting we will let everyone know TEWUs position. TEWU will not enter into any debate with the Labour Commission, we are not at work, the leaders are all in town so we will discuss and respond appropriately, he said.
The Greater Accra Regional House of Chiefs has expressed anger at the freezing of accounts of the former head of the National Health Insurance Authority Sylvester Mensah.

An Accra High court froze the bank accounts of Mr. Mensah following a petition by the Bureau of National investigations (BNI), who are investigating him for alleged financial malfeasance at NHIA under his tenure.

But the Ga chiefs who paid a visit to him Thursday condemned the action of the State. Led by the Vice President of the regional House of Chiefs Nii kpobi Tettey Tsuru III , the chiefs presented a cash donation of GHC10,000 to him for his upkeep.

They assured him of their collective and individual support as the court awaits hearing of his charges.

Among the delegation that paid the visit was the Paramount Chiefs of La, Nungua, Tema, Osu, Prampram, Shai, and the Deputy Registrar of the House.
Leading freedom of expression organisations from across Africa are meeting in Accra, Ghana, for a two-day capacity building workshop on January 23-24, 2016.

The two-day training is being organised by the African Freedom of Expression Exchange (AFEX) with support from the International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX). The event will bring together 18 of the most influential freedom of expression organisations from all regions in Africa in one of the biggest meeting of free expression organisations on the continent.

Under the theme, Empowering Freedom of Expression Organisations in Africa for Effective Digital Rights Advocacy, the training is aimed at enhancing the capacity of participants for effective digital rights advocacy.

As rightly noted by the African Declaration on Internet Rights and Freedoms, a fundamental challenge in need of urgent resolution in the digital age is how to protect human rights and freedoms on the internet, and the African continent is no exception.

Africa has witnessed a significant increase in internet penetration and usage. This is contributing to technology/digital-led development on the continent. However, there is evidence of increasing use of surveillance, filtering, blocking, introduction of repressive laws and application of existing ones by some African governments to limit the use of the internet as a tool for free expression.

It is against this background and related rights issues that the workshop is being organized to deepen participants knowledge of the issues and develop strategies for online/digital rights advocacy to help create a free, open and safe internet environment that fosters innovation, information sharing and development in their respective countries.

AFEX is a continental network of freedom of expression (FoE) organisations spread across East, West, South and Central Africa who are also members of IFEX. The Media Foundation for West Africa, based in Accra, Ghana, serves as the Secretariat for the network. Other members of the AFEX network are: Media Institute of Southern Africa, Media Rights Agenda, Africa Freedom of Information Centre and Centre for Media Studies and Peacebuilding. The rest are: Journalistes en Danger, National Union of Somali Journalists, West African Journalists Association, and Human Rights Network for Journalists- Uganda.

For more information about AFEX, contact Dora B. Mawutor at [email protected] or write to AFEX email address, [email protected] , or visit the AFEX website at www.africafex.org .
366 NUGGETS FROM SCRIPTURES presents a daily year round exploration of several Scriptures from the Holy Bible. It contains valuable spiritual tenets that will enable you to understand many Bible verses and effectively apply them in your daily life for consistent successes throughout the year. It is easy to read, meditate, memorize, recollect and apply to your daily life.

The book is written to teach, correct, equip and inspire you to live a well-fulfilled life. It encompasses several topics including hope, faith, love, prayer, praise, thanksgiving, anxiety, obedience, service and success. It will help you to develop a closer relationship with God which will consequently enable you to have a great impact on your generation.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kwadwo Osei Appiah-Kubi has been a youth leader for 10 years with a great deal of experience in organizing youth conferences, teaching and giving motivational talks to the youth. He is currently the vice president of the Young Adults Ministry of Resurrection Power & Living Bread Ministries International, New York, and also a Sunday school teacher. He is a contributor to The Throne Devotional Guide.

From experience, Kwadwo believes that we can be guaranteed of constant, unceasing, year-round successes from Gods Word if we are committed to reading, meditating and applying the Word daily. His passion is to add value to the lives of people through motivation based on Gods Word so they can realize their purpose and pursue it in order to have a fulfilling life.

He is a physiotherapist by profession with a BSc. and MSc. from the University of Ghana and Cardiff University (UK), respectively. He is a lecturer of the School of Biomedical and Allied Health, University of Ghana. He also has a Dip. in Christian Counselling from International Theological Seminary, Ghana. Currently, he is pursuing a PhD degree from Temple University (US) and lives in New York with his lovely wife, Agnes and two sons, Jehozadak and Jeremiah.

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Benjamin Boakye

22.01.2016 LISTEN

The Public Accounts Committee of Parliament (PAC) at its sitting on the 20th of January 2016, revealed that some Banks have withheld an amount of GHS83m for more than three years for reasons yet to be disclosed. The Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP) is worried about this revelation by the committee. ACEP has consistently maintained that the transparency and accountability mechanism around the governance of taxes and levies on downstream petroleum sector needs urgent improvement to ensure that taxes and levies are used for the intended purposes for which consumers are made to pay.

It is instances like this that continue to burden citizens with levies such as TOR debt recovery levy with no definite schedule for repayment. The ministry of finance has over the years violated the legal requirement to account for the receipt from the TOR debt recovery levy to parliament as required by law. TOR Debt Recovery Fund Levy Act 2003 (Act 642) states; The Minister shall within three months after the end of each financial year, submit a report on the Fund to Parliament. However the Minister does not complied with such requirement of the law.

This is also a duty call on parliament to monitor the implementation of the laws they make to ensure that implementing bodies do not flout the laws. If parliament had been demanding timely accounting of public funds, we will not be talking about petroleum levies kept in Banks for more than three years. Society would have benefited from the investment of such monies.

In the specific instance of the GHS83m of petroleum taxes Kept by Banks, ACEP calls on parliament to probe into the matter and those responsible should be punished whilst the banks involved should be made to pay appropriate interest on it.

We would like to reiterate our call to the Minister of Finance to consciously report on the receipt and utilization of taxes imposed on petroleum products. This will improve transparency and accountability and also improve public confidence in the payment of taxes.

ACEP will continue to monitor the governance space on the petroleum sector, particular the reporting requirements under the Energy Sector Levies Act 2015 (Act 899) to ensure that Petroleum levies are not kept by banks or misapplied.

Benjamin Boakye

Deputy Executive Director
The fast expanding Port of Tema, last Wednesday, launched an International Seafarers Welfare Assistance Network (ISWAN) initiative to help improve access to shore-based welfare facilities under the auspices of the Maritime Labor Convention, 2006.

The International Port Welfare Partnership (IPWP) initiative is a pilot project that aims at helping maritime states and ports to establish their own welfare boards to support, enhance, and protect the welfare of seafarers in ports worldwide.

The project, which has a maritime industry-wide Executive Committee at the helm of its affairs, is funded by the International Transport Workers Federation Seafarers Trust (ITFST).

The local maritime community recently formed its own welfare board, known as the Tema Port Welfare Committee (PWC), after which the inaugural ceremony followed.

The committee is expected to be linked up to ISWAN, which operates a global welfare helpline available to seafarers for free on a 365/24/7 basis.

Present at the launch were Deputy Minister for Transport Mrs. Joyce Bawa Mogtari, Director of the Tema Port Mr. Adokor, as well as representatives of ship owners, sailors, maritime unions and voluntary organizations.

Addressing the occasion, Mrs. Bawa Mogtari hinted that the maritime industry is international in character, and the port welfare committee forms part of the package, adding it, therefore, requires global uniform standards to be adopted and implemented by the various maritime countries.

It is for this reason that the industry recognizes the establishment of a port welfare committee as a statutory body to work closely with port management to enhance industrial harmony and peace, he explained.

She expressed her excitement that Ghana has taken a bold initiative to set up the port welfare committee, adding, I am informed that membership of the port welfare committee cuts across all the stakeholders operating in our ports.

She mentioned some of the benefits of a port welfare committee, which includes; It serves as a forum where representatives of all stakeholders concerned with the welfare of seafarers visiting and residing within a particular port jurisdiction meet on a regular basis to discuss and exchange ideas to enhance operational efficiency.

It provides a forum where organizations with a common interest in the welfare of seafarers can meet to resolve difficulties and improve the levels of services and facilities within the operational areas, she noted.

The Deputy Chief Executive of the Merchant Navy Welfare Board (MNWB), Peter D. Tomlin, who is also the Project Manager and assisted the Tema Port to set up its welfare board said; I am delighted with the success of the inaugural Tema Welfare Board meeting, and am certain their newly-formed Port Welfare Committee will do much to enhance seafarers welfare in the future.

He congratulated the Coordinator of the project, Rev. Cadman Appiah Sekyie, and his team, for their immense contribution towards the setting up the committee, saying; this was made possible by the proactive involvement of the maritime community, in particular the local volunteer project coordinator, Rev. Cadman Appiah Sekyie."

He said his outfit has plans to develop, at least, five new welfare boards in a number of countries. Although the profile of the project was kept deliberately low key, its website has still been viewed in 1,208 cities in 117 countries and generating interest to participate from ports in 57 countries.

Subject to full membership confirmation, the pilot project has been invited to set up welfare boards in a variety of countries/ports before it concludes at the end of April 2016.

These include a selection of ports of different sizes in Australia, Antigua & Barbuda, Benin, Canada, Ghana, South Korea, Mauritius and Spain, he revealed.

The Head of the Seafarers Trust, Miss Kimberly Karlshoej, highlighted on the importance of seafarers in society, saying men and women who live and work at sea are away from their families and friends for many months, and they work long hours in difficult circumstances, and visit ports for only short periods of time in foreign lands they often know little about.

Welfare boards bring the maritime community together to enhance seafarers welfare and support the provision of shore-based welfare services.

According to her, the Port Welfare Committees are an essential and integral part of the board's work, adding that the contributions made by members allows the board to better understand the issues that affect seafarers locally, nationally, and internationally.

Seafarers are vital to the world trade to the prosperity of their own country and the ports they visit during their voyages, If the pilot programme is successful, and further funding can be found, it could be rolled out to even more ports and countries around the world.

The Chairman of the Tema Port Welfare Committee and the International Member Organization, who also doubles as the Chief Executive of the Ghana Shippers Authority (GSA), Dr. Kofi Mbiah, said: We rely on foreign-owned ships and foreign crews to import essential goods and distribute our produce around the world.

We need to make sure that all those seafarers who spend long periods away from their families are looked after well.

He was enthusiastic that the newly-inaugurated committee will support and build on the excellent service already provided in the port by voluntary organizations, and provide a forum where the work of all maritime organizations with a vested interest in seafarers welfare can be coordinated.
PROPOSAL

PROSTATE SCREENING AND PATHWAY ON THE NHIS IN THE COUNTRY

PRESENTED

TO

THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

NATIONAL HEALTH INSURRANCE AUTHORITY (NHIA)

BY

RAPHAEL NYARKOTEY OBU: ND, MSc, PhD(c)

DIRECTOR

PROSTATE CANCER RESEARCHER, POLICY MAKER & REGISTERED INTEGRATIVE MEDICAL PRACTITIONER

DODOWA, LAST STOP, AKOTO HOUSE

DATE:

13-01-2016

Brief Profile

Mens Health Foundation Ghana is the biggest mens health charity in Ghana, established in the year 2013 with the broad aim to raise awareness, provide relevant information to men diagnosed with prostate cancer and research locally into prostate diseases. The mens charity is a member of the Global Prostate Cancer Alliance Network. The vision of the mens charity is to drastically reduce the prostate cancer mortality rate by 2025. The charity is based in Dodowa, Last stop-Akoto House.

Objective

1. Information and advocacy on prostate disease in church mens fellowships, men clubs, schools, television, radio etc.

2. Raising awareness across the country through activities, special events and annual campaigns like Be a Man in March, Stand by Your Man in May, Fathers Day Fun Walk in June, Mens Health Fair and Fundraising in September which is celebrated as prostate cancer awareness monthly globally.

3. Educating and researching in prostate diseases in Ghana.

4. Organizing extensive free prostate cancer screening in Ghana.

Our vision as a foundation is to raise awareness to drastically curb the rise of prostate disease in Ghana by 2025.

Our vision is engraved in the Agenda;

Zero Prostate Cancer project in Ghana - Transforming the future of Prostate Cancer

In order to achieve this vision we have outlined the following goals are to be met before 2025;

1. Significantly more men will survive Prostate Cancer, about 80% of the affected through the education and awareness created by Mens Health Foundation.

2. Society will understand the key facts about prostate cancer in Ghana and will act on that knowledge.

3. Ghanaian men and women will know more about Prostate Cancer and will act on that knowledge. The women will also understand the need to stand by their men.

4. Inequalities in access to high quality prostate cancer services will be totally reduced.

5. People affected by prostate cancer will have their information and support needs addressed effectively through the introduction of our Cancer Psychology services.

Mens Health Foundation aims to fight prostate cancer on every front

Interventions

The charity and Dr Nyarkotey introduced the use of the mobile ultrasound and PSA as part of the prostate checking in the country using the local churches, corporate institutions and the communities.

The founder, Dr, Nyarkotey took it upon himself to write weekly columns and features for both newspapers and online sites on prostate world on Fridays in the, weekend sun, The Herald, Daily Democrat, weekend finder, the Briefing newspaper, Today Newspaper and Modern Ghana.

The Mens charity also established the first prostate research lab and mens clinic in the country to address the issues of mens health. The mens charity also introduces a television program on mens health to start showing on Amansan Televison to address mens health issues.

The mens charity also offered free prostate health check at the mens clinic on every Saturday.

The charity also partnered Akona School of Psychosocial Counseling Ghana to train psychosocial counselors on psychosocial oncology to enable them provide counseling to men diagnosed with prostate cancer.

The charity also sent a proposal to the president to declare the fathers day as a national prostate cancer day in Ghana and the proposal was given a green light by the president and the proposal is currently under consideration at the ministry of health at the policy and evaluation unit for final decision.

The charity provides expert talk to tertiary institutions, corporate institution, churches etc on prostate disease.

Future Projects

 Establishing Prostate screening center in all the regions in the country

 Establishing an integrative cancer center in the country

 Establishing an alternative medical college in the country

Research into alternative and herbal Medicines and prostate cancer treatment.

 Training of Health professionals in integrative approach to prostate cancer management

 Establishing Mens Health TV, Mens Health Newsletter and Mens Health Radio to educate Men on health matters

 Training of prostate cancer community champions to help the fight.

Prostate Cancer Disease situation in the Country

For every disease there is a country where it does not exit. Prostate cancer is more peculiar to the black communities and black ancestry is a key risk factor. There are lots of disparities when it comes to the subject prostate cancer! It is hitting black men very hard! 1 in 5 Ghanaian men will get prostate cancer in their lifetime (MHFG 2015).According to the Prostate Cancer UK 1 in 4 Black Men will get prostate cancer in their lifetime.

In Ghana, the mortality rate for prostate cancer is very high, but too many men -- an estimated 800 this year out of the 1,000 men diagnosed -- will die from this disease, and even more are at risk

Klufio 2004 conducted a retrospective analysis of the frequency and pattern of genitourinary (GU) cancers seen at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, in Accra, between 1980 and 1990. According to this study, Prostate cancer accounted for 349/479 GU cancers in males (81.4 percent). The GLOBOCAN 2002 database (compiled by Ferlay et al. for the International Agency for Research on Cancer) provides the following data for prostate cancer in Ghana: Estimated number of new cases per year: 921. Estimated number of deaths per year is 758. This clearly shows the high prostate cancer mortality rate in the country. A publication by myjoyonline on August 03, 2012 stated that almost 1,000 Ghanaian men are diagnosed with prostate cancer each year, and yet many are unaware that they have this form of cancer. Also on Aug 7 2007, GNA - Ghana has exceeded global prostate limits as the country records 200 cases out of every 100,000 men as against 170 world-wide, a survey by the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital revealed.

Recently, Citi FM reported that the urological problems in this country are serious. According to the report, there are more than 400 men who are wearing catheters who come every three to four weeks to have it changed at Korle Bu.

The mens charity continues to raise awareness, invest in future critical research to help better prevent this disease and treat it with fewer side effects, and to further our understanding of the disproportionate impact prostate cancer has on black men.

The month of September brought prostate cancer into focus and is globally celebrated as prostate cancer awareness month. This year, the mens health foundation team carried out lots of activities in the country to help raise awareness on prostate cancer. The charity introduced the Ghana Prostate Cancer awareness campaign to speed up the fight on the disease. We visited some selected media houses as we believed that media houses play a critical role in the fight against prostate cancer. Some of the media house we visited and provided expert talk includes; The Ghanaian Times Corporation, The New Statesman, Today Newspaper, Daily Democrat, Metro TV, TV Africa, GTV and ATV.

We also visited some selected churches such as Star of the Sea Catholic Church at Dansoman and Kwashiman Presby Church. We also pay a visit to the physically challenged association in Somanya, Ghana National Pensioners association in Somanya and Ghanata Senior High School. We were also at the Mawums Quarry in Shai Hills to engage the workers. The campaign was sponsored by the Christian Community Microfinance Limited and we gave 10,000 literatures on prostate cancer.

We bring to the public the result of our findings from our awareness. This large scale study, was purposely conducted, to discover more about the publics knowledge, awareness and attitudes towards health, prostate cancer and Mens Health Foundation Ghana

We place a particular focus on groups of interest, e.g. men at higher than average risk of prostate cancer (men over 50, Ghanaian men as men of Black origin and more prone to prostate cancer and men with a family history of the disease in a father or brother), people who know someone with prostate cancer, and how the picture of prostate cancer in the country look like from the electronic media.

The study employed a questionnaire approach involving a large scale questions we asked as part of the expert talk on the awareness month with representative sample of Ghanaian men adults (n=4,000), together with three focus groups prior to the survey and four focus groups following the survey.

General awareness on Prostate Cancer in Ghana

30% of Ghanaians know someone who has been diagnosed with prostate cancer

Only 2% of Ghanaian men could identify where the prostate gland is located

Only 1% of Ghanaian men know what the prostate does

90% of Ghanaian men have never heard of the PSA test

About 95% of Ghanaian men dont know that the PSA is not prostate cancer test because the test is not specific to tumor.

About 96% also thought that a once prostate check is all that is needed in a lifetime

97% of Ghanaian men thought that is a taboo to have the prostate gland and they dont know that the prostate gland is the mans powerhouse

98% of Ghanaians dont know the difference between prostate cancer and other prostate conditions such as BPH and prostatitis

Risk factor awareness

Age - Only 20% of Ghanaians know that being aged 50 and over increases a man's risk of developing prostate cancer

Family history - Only 45% of Ghanaians know that having a family history of prostate cancer increases a man's risk of developing prostate cancer

Ethnicity - Only 2% of Ghanaians know that Black ethnicity increases a man's risk of developing prostate cancer

90% of Ghanaian men and being Black men would like to know more about prostate cancer risk factors and why black men are more prone to prostate cancer

About 99.99% of Ghanaian men dont know that the skin color-black is the problem as vitamin D has a direct role to play in the fight against prostate cancer. Our skin is unable to absorb the right amount of vitamin D from the sunlight. The darker the skin, the lower the vitamin D level, and the higher your risk of prostate cancer, and the aggressiveness of the disease after prostate cancer diagnosis.

Almost 100% of Ghanaian men who check their Vitamin D level after the expert talk have low level of Vitamin D and they were amazed.

Men at higher than average risk of prostate cancer

99% of Ghanaian men at higher than average risk of prostate cancer do not classify their own risk of being diagnosed with prostate cancer as 'higher than average'.

93% of Ghanaian men with a family history of prostate cancer in a father or brother.

99% of Ghanaian men dont also know that having a family history of breast cancer also put you at risk of prostate cancer.

Attitudinal Change in Ghanaian towards Prostate Cancer

More importantly, 99% Ghanaian men at higher than average risk of prostate cancer told us that even if they were aware that they were at a higher than average risk of cancer, but didnt have any symptoms, they would have their prostate check once a year even if their organizations refused to organize the screening program to them.

More organizations have seen the need to organized programs on prostate health to the men

The women are also concerned about their mens prostate health and are urging the men to go for prostate check

On Herbal Medicines and Prostate cancer management in Ghana

90% of Ghanaians heard about prostate cancer through the radio and TV from herbal practitioners but dont know that there is currently no evidence of any herbal medicine to cure prostate cancer in Ghana. The vulnerable patients are only move by the advertisement from this media houses before regretting later on.

On Prostate Cancer Treatments on the NHIS

Almost 100% of men said that it is time for the NHIS to include prostate cancer treatment and screening program.

On Prostate Cancer and Relationship

Almost 100% of the women dont know that prostate cancer treatment can affect their men fertility. About 90% of Men diagnosed with prostate cancer dont have an open communication with their wives partly because the treatment affect their manhood and are afraid that it might create a problem in the house during the night. However, the women want their men to tell them everything during their prostate cancer journey.

Special center for Mens Health

For once, the men are happy that there is a special facility for mens health in the country and they find this beneficial to express their problem including sexual issues established by the Mens Health Foundation Ghana at Dodowa-Akoto House.

The National Health Insurance and Free Prostate Screening on the NHIS

This proposal is made on behalf of trustees of Mens Health Foundation Ghana; the charity wants NHIA to incorporate free prostate screening for men in Ghana. In Africa some of the epidemiological studies have revealed the following incidences of the disease: Ghana >200/100,000, Nigeria 127/100,000 and Cameroun 130/100,000. There is scanty data on prostate cancer in Ghana. More than 70% of Ghanaians presenting with prostate cancer do so very late with locally invasive and metastatic disease and over 80% death .No significant improvement in prostate cancer mortality has been seen and mortality rates appear high in Ghana.

Though we know that the PSA test is not the best marker for prostate cancer screening and the US task called for total abolishment of the test for prostate cancer. However, prostate cancer is more prone to the black race and the US task research was based on only 4% black men. They did a disservice to the black men. The PSA test can be improve upon with a very good policy and it is still the best marker available until a better marker emerges. Other countries have developed a very good policy on the screening process and we believed it is time for Ghana to consider a good policy on screening program on the NHIS. We cannot allow men to die out of ignorance of the disease as more men testing for the disease in private centers.

For instance, the UK NHS Prostate Cancer Risk Management Programme (PCRMP) provides GPs and primary care professionals with information to counsel any man who asks about:

prostate cancer

PSA testing information about the PSA test

Prostate cancer management options

an explanation of why there is no prostate cancer screening programme

Men over 50 who decide to have a PSA test based on this balanced information can do so for free on the NHS black men start testing at age 45years.

The PCRMP is an English initiative, but Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have adopted the same approach and use the same materials.

As part of our campaign and advocacy, we believe that the NHIS should incorporate free prostate check for men 40years and above and men 35years who have family history of the disease once a year under the same policy. The NHIS can use the regional or district hospitals to start it as a pilot project or empowering the Mens Health Foundation Ghana to carry the project using the established centers in the country. We also believe that more options for quality, affordable health coverage should be available and new protections should be in place, expanding access to life-saving care for millions of Ghanaian men, including those impacted by prostate cancer. The NHIS should no longer deny men treatment for prostate cancer. However, men diagnosed with prostate cancer should be given the opportunity to make their informed decision on the type of treatment they find it right for them based on the stage of the cancer as the quality of treatment and care men received also depends on where men leave.

Even as we continue the urgent work of improving care, too many lives will be disrupted and too many families will experience the pain of prostate cancer. But we must remain steadfast in our commitment to ease the burden of this disease, and every day we must continue to work toward a future free from cancer in all its forms.

We believe it is time to seriously consider doing feasibility studies on Prostate cancer screening as something urgently needs to be done to stem the comparatively high mortality rate affecting Ghanaian men from this common disease.

Early detection programmes for Prostate cancer exist in Jamaica through the work of the Jamaica Cancer Society in collaboration with the Jamaica Urological Society. Men 40 years and older with at least a 10-15-year life expectancy are encouraged to have an annual digital rectal examination (DRE) and PSA blood test.

Prostate Cancer Survivorship Program on the NHIS

Men who are undergoing or who have completed treatment for prostate cancer often experience life-changing side effects that can have a significant impact on the quality of their daily lives. These include urinary incontinence, erectile dysfunction and loss of libido, and problems with emotional wellbeing, including anxiety and depression. A significant number of men are given hormone therapies to treat their disease and may take these for long periods of time. They additionally experience a range of side effects including hot flushes, fatigue and changes in mood. Many men, and their partners, report that they find these side effects difficult to cope with and that they have a significant impact on their lives.

Although services appear to exist, men have told Men's Health Foundation Ghana that they are not getting the support they need. It is vital that GPs, as providers and commissioners of care, ensure that there are integrated health and social care services in all areas of the country that have the specific expertise to help men living with and beyond prostate cancer manage the impact of the disease and maintain a good quality of life. Emotional support services appear to be less commonly available and incentives may need to be considered to ensure that GPs prioritize the provision of psychological support services to help men and their families cope with the impact of prostate cancer.

The need for support to deal with the side effects of treatment is not unique to men with prostate cancer. We also think we need National Cancer Survivorship and integrative Oncology must be considered and research must be supported by commissioners to ensure a long-term improvement in outcomes for cancer survivors. Survivorship in cancer is an underdeveloped area in the Ghana, and nationwide - rather than purely locality-based - approaches are key to ensuring the critical improvements which are needed.

I spent 12 weeks at home following surgery with a catheter and a stent. My GP made no contact at any time during this period. They were not even aware of the services available from their own practice.

Respondent

Commissioners will need to work together to identify services which support cancer patients. Clinical nurse specialists will be very important advisers on this. As noted above, erectile dysfunction clinics, incontinence services and psychological support services play a key role in a prostate cancer patient's care, experience and reported outcomes. Collaboration between complementary and alternative practice must also be considered as complementary and alternative Therapies have been proven to support patient's quality of life and rate of survival. In the US for instance about 95% of cancer treatments centers have developed integrative therapies and it role have been defined. For instance in the UK the Macmillan Cancer Relief commissioned Dr. Michelle Kohn to evaluate the state of CAM in the UK Summary. Three key role model of how these therapies work have been outlined, so desperate patients seeking for alternative therapies don't end up in quake practitioner's hand who will promise cure.

The NHIS should also consider incorporating evidence based alternative and complementary medicine on the scheme to help men deal with the side effect of treatment. The NHIS can invest into research into evidence based alternative and complementary medicine as more patients are opting for the treatment in the country as about 70% of men in Ghana are ending up in wrong hands. Our alternative cancer clinic at Dodowa has started a survivorship program for men diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Who We Are:

The mens health foundation Ghana, this year introduced the Ghana prostate cancer awareness campaign project which was sponsored by the Christian Community Microfinance Limited and supported by the Daily Democrate, Amansan Television and Today Newspaper. The campaign was used to help raise awareness on the disease.

For Mens Health Foundation Ghana; we are men united fighting Prostate Cancer, Our Manhood at a time.

Prostate cancer is a central issue to men's health, with unacceptably high mortality in black men.

Breast cancer strikes 1 in 10 black women yet they have a mammogram to save lives.

Prostate cancer strikes 1 in 4 black men yet no screening test, so where is our manogram" to save our lives? Prostate cancer is more common than breast cancer.

Early detection 100% survival in 5yrs, late diagnosis 28% survival in 5years.

Survival rate also depends on where men leave

Prostate cancer kills a man every 18 minutes

Prostate cancer discriminates 250% deadly in black men and likely to die when diagnosed.

Its about men! Its about prostate cancer. We need accurate diagnostic tool like the mammogram

Let us raise little David high enough to challenge Goliath, challenge the System and challenge the status quo-The PSA Test!

The cure for cancer is not a luxury, it is a human need. No man should use this need to profit for their personal gains. Something is wrong when we let people die for money

Mens Health Foundation Ghana, We stand for the end of disease, the end of suffering.

We fit in this world as men, of all kinds, shapes and sizes.

We share one important value.

In this noisy world, we want you to hear the truth.

We want to be clear what being diagnosed with cancer is about.

We honor great patientsthats who we arethats what we are about.

We honor ourselves and those who love us, those who take care of us, those who only know us from these

Our core value is that we believe truth comes from experience.

We believe that people want to end cancer, and help us fight Prostate Cancer.

We honor those peoplepeople who are living and those who are dead.

Those who use their brains and resources to end cancer.

So I can live better.

So I can keep enjoying life.

All of us, keep enjoying life.

We are pushing for fathers day as a National Prostate Cancer Day in Ghana to enable awareness

May everyone be happy!

May there never be a disharmony in anywhere in the prostate

May our prostate be healthy

May we live long like the Okinawans and the Hunzas without prostate diseases!

May we never sleep on duty because of prostate cancer treatment which affects our sex life?

May we reclaim our Manhood as Men!

We are Men United fighting against prostate cancer.

Our Board of Directors.

Dr. Raphael Nyarkotey Obu: ND, MSc, PhD Candidate

President and founder

Dr. Edward Boakye-Urologist

Director

Dr. Anita Asare: MD

Director

Mr. Daniel Opare

Press Advisor

Mr. Daniel Ato Keelson

Chairman

Yvonne Dzifa Bedi: BSc Business Administration (Accounting Option), ICA 1

For further information please kindly contact the following numbers on

0500106570/0541090045/0541234556
A directive by the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) to retailers of electricity to charge additional costs to consumers have shot up the percentage increase from 59.2% to 75%.

The additional costs include a 5% rate for street light levy and another 5% levy for the national electrification charge, charged on consumers.

In addition, consumers pay a regular monthly service fee ranging from GHc6.33 to about GHc60 depending on the quantum of consumption and user classification.

The charges according to the PURC are in accordance with the recently introduced Energy Sector Levies Act 2015 (Act 899).

Per the new directive, a GHC20 power would cost the consumer GHC35.

General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) has described the developed as unfortunate.

TUC and other Labour Organisation have been agitating the price increases.

Government is negotiating with the workers after a nationwide demonstration Wednesday.

Kofi Asamoah says, Labours engagements have been on the 59%, not knowing that some more had been smuggled down to increase it to the level its at now.

There is a limit to what we can contain. It is important that people dont take us for a ride.
A non-profit organisation, IKEVE Foundation, based in New Jersey in the United States of America, has donated assorted items to children at Tei Mensah, a deprived community in the Suhum municipality.

The items included 1,000 pencils, commercial battery operated pencil sharpeners, 30 boxes of crayons, 10 story books and two small notice boards.

Other items included four containers of paper glue, 20 pairs of shoe and sandals, 600 used and new clothing, school bags, a storage container and a set of ceramic bowels and cups.

Making the donation, Mrs. Vivian Koranteng Eghan, the Founder of IKEVE Foundation, said their mission is to help poor families in Ghana who find it extremely difficult to provide the basic necessities for their children as a result of abject poverty.

She said IKEVE Foundation helps needy children in Ghana by providing school supplies, clothing, nutrition and other necessities to survive.

"Every child has the opportunity to do something great with their lives we are just providing them a helping hand to make sure they realize that and take steps toward achieving this goal.

"All too often, many children are left to fall through the cracks of society. We want to fill those cracks by providing them with the basic necessities that, unfortunately, so many children in third world countries do not have," she added.

According to Mrs. Koranteng Eghan, she saw the plight and struggles many poor families face feeding their children let alone to provide their educational needs and purposed to offer assistance.

Mrs. Koranteng Eghan said she set up IKEVE Foundation in honour of her father, late Chief superintendent Nana Koranteng Mintah (1942-2010) and sister, Evelyn Mintah Koranyeng Mensha (1975-2014) who died through post-natal complications leaving behind her three biological children and adopted ones who range between the ages of 5 months and 20 years.

She said the Foundation would help families in same plight and those that are just unable to feed and clothe their children.

The Acting Headmaster of Tei Mensah M/A basic school, Mr Michael Aning, thanked the IKEVE Foundation for the donation, saying, it was timely.

He said one of the challenges the teachers faced was pupils coming to school without books, pencils or pens to write, and some come barefoot."

Mr. Aning said pupils could now have pens and pencils to write for a whole academic year.

He however appealed for more of such assistance and also called on the government to connect Tei Mensah community to the national grid to attract teachers to stay in the area.

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22.01.2016 LISTEN

The political temperature is undoubtedly becoming hotter as we match towards the November polls. The ears of the ordinary Ghanaian is already full with wanton fabrications, conspicuous exaggerations, and needless personality attacks by power seekers. It is very disheartening to hear you, Your Excellency being heckled and called all sort of names by the opposition NPP in the media. We do not need this at all as a nation which seeks to tread on the path of peace and tranquility to enable us embrace our collective efforts towards economic transformation and sustainable national development.

Democracy is rooted on competition of ideas and not these useless competition of insults. I totally disagree with the style of the NPP. I guess a lot of Ghanaians dislike this style too but for fear of vilification and victimization, remain silent. I wish I could advise the NPP but certainly not because they would say am from the bush and had no better education.

Let me therefore give you this short note on why you should ignore the NPP and continue your life changing programs.

Your Excellency, never expect the NPP and its cohorts to say something good about you so far as you remain the president of the republic of Ghana. The whole world can attest that indeed you are a man of luminous substance in recent political literature. It is only and only NPP that refuse to see and hear what your leadership is doing in the building process of our beloved country. I humbly advise you take your lessons from the first president of our nation: The late Dr. Kwame Nkrumah of blessed memory. This was a man who lifted the image and flag of Ghana above any other country in Africa and the whole world could give testimony. It was only a section of the Ghanaian political domain that painted him to be like a charcoal.

Your Excellency, a quick reminder. After the success story of the CPP which had made the UGCC irrelevant, the same politics of insults and lies and tribal bigotry was adopted to frustrate the government. I believe you still remember the political strategy behind the formation of the NLM?

Well the National Liberation Movement was formed and launched in Kumasi in September 1954 principally to oppose the then CPP government. They used cocoa prices as their propaganda tool. Interestingly, this was after the 1954 elections which the CPP won convincingly. What was the interest of the NLM? Among other things, it was out for the following:

1. To delay the independence the people were clamouring for.

2. To demand a new form of constitution ( Federel constitution)

3. To demand fresh elections.

The NPP had its root from the NLM and so why do you expect them to throw away their own glorified political tradition? To me, it is the tradition of the NPP to oppose everything for cheap political gains and it does not surprise me to hear the sort of discourse the NPP engage in.

Your Excellency the job 600 you just completed, Akosombo Dam project, GETFUND, VAT among others were strongly opposed by the NPP and its traditional cohorts.

Notwithstanding, they claim they are the apostles of democracy in Ghana but have constantly attacked the image of very sensitive state's institutions in this country. Electoral Commission, GSS, BoG, Supreme court just to mention few have all received a fair share of the incessant attacks from the NPP. Very interesting indeed.

Your Excellency, the unprecedented transformation that the country is experiencing makes your opponents envious of your success story. Ironically, Ghanaians have come to know the NPP better in opposition and treat all their propaganda against you with a pinch of salt. Thank God 2016 is here with us yet the largest opposition party cannot boost of a campaign message apart from internal wrangling ranging from acid attacks to suspension as well as taking entrenched positions on very sensitive national issues. Simply, they cannot be too catholic than the Pope so the NPP words do not represent the minds and hearts of the ordinary Ghanaian. They are only struggling and fighting for public sympathy after the self destruction caused last year. Clearly that will fail them. You don't go about suspending people and say you want people.

Lastly, Your Excellency, Ghanaians commend you for your resilience, fortitude and commitment to changing lives. You shall be given another mandate by his grace, as a trusted, tested, hardworking, diligent, humbled and youthful president to lead us finally to the promised land. The NPP do not deserve your attention because they know inside them that you are busily engaged changing lives and have no time for self-tickling allegations that cannot stand the test of time.

Thank you.

The writer is the deputy communication Officer for DBI and a social commentator.

[email protected]

0549734023.
22.01.2016 LISTEN

That a bishop will drag my catholic church into this GITMO duo affair by requesting Ghanaians to hit the streets is rather very troubling to say the least. His Holiness Pope Francis will surely show compassion from our catholic stand point and upbringing.

I know that the Christian doctrine of compassion transcends all boundaries. If Jesus Christ teaches us to show compassion to others irrespective of creed, color, it is because the resultant gain to be derived, I believe, is for a compassionate world to make a peaceful world.

Turning a benign case into a volatile situation by our utterances and inflammations are not good Christian values especially in respect to this Gitmo combo. We should not act as if we are strangers to most of what would generally be considered the Christian virtues; compassion, humility, mercy and grace. From what is going on regarding the GITMO duo, our behavior seems to fit the definition of pharisaism: in this context, clinging overzealously on to beliefs in a way that violates the very spirit of fairness, mercy and compassion.

Are we suggesting by our hue and cry about the Gitmo duo that there is not a hint of compassion gentleness and mercy in Ghana? Instead, we are seeking to eliminate, conspire theories to feed into prejudices and the tone now is not one of emotion but fear, vows to crush, shred, destroy and alienate. In fact, there is such a laid down atmosphere of apocalyptic fear, heightened uncertainty which are all, by the way, should be non-existant yet being hopelessly anticipated. Conjectures galore that Ghana is heading toward oblivion because of the Gitmo duo?! Come on

Look! If we want to argue about the way this whole deal went down, government must should be blamed for not letting us in on the decision. Simply put, Government owe us a duty to be transparent and the lack of consultation prior to their acceptance surely is an overlook in governance. A responsible government needs to heed to the voices of the people after all isnt democracy not defined as government of the people, by the people, and for the people? But, that did not happen.

All the same, let cool heads prevail: is it to be suggested that these guys are living in their private quarters without surveillance? What will be the justification for any whichever attack emanating from them in Ghana? Are they rather senseless to the extent that Ghana is offering a saving hand for them to deal a blow on us?

Brethren, to contextualize this GITMO duo issue in the light of international or global politics is huge. Ghana as a member of the international community has a responsibility to perform toward member countries. What we did with Ebola together with this will bode well for us. It will help to build clout within international politics. This singular show of compassion will potentially open doors for us with (US backing) in many areas of global politics and for international positions a savoir the UN, IMF, WB etc. Dont ask me why because you will be playing out ignorance about global politics and its subsequent benefits for our country if you happen to ask me.

Note that US aid to compensate for impacts, for example, the opportunity cost of tourism must be disclosed to Ghanaians if that ever happens for us to know our much worth that will be. And of course, US support for military intelligence and security in Ghana are on course and will continue unabated. Ghana stands to benefit from more intelligence sharing with the US.

By the way, we must note that Boko Haram is already nearby and Ghana had strengthened its security, anyways, before the GITMO duo. Above all, this act from Ghana makes us look good, period! Ghana has scored internationally on the global stage by this act of compassion and its up now to the current and subsequent governments to exploit the goodwill, thereof.

Cletus D Kuunifaa

TMC Group

Can be contacted at [email protected] or follow him on twitter @ckuunifaa
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Accra, Jan. 21, GNA - Tex Styles Ghana Limited, manufacturers of GTP and Woodin range of African print fabrics has invested over GHa 30 million in plant and equipment over a three year period ranging from 2012 to 2015.

The company also invested an additional amount of GHa2 million in water treatment for the company and its immediate surrounding communities.

Mr Kofi Boateng, the Managing Director, Tex Styles Ghana Limited said this at the launch of the Company's Golden Jubilee celebration in Tema on Wednesday.

The celebration would provide an opportunity for the company to pause and look back at this fifty year journey and also chart the path forward into the future.

He said company last year paid GHa33 million in taxes to government, making them one of the large tax payers in the country.

He commended government for some policy interventions which have helped GTP and the other local manufacturers in the industry.

He said GTP exports to most West African markets putting Ghana's name on the international map with an export value of eight million dollars in 2015.

He said the fortunes of the Company have been very diverse, mirroring the economic and political climate prevailing in the country.

The Managing Director said despite the numerous challenges, the Company together with its sister company Premium African Textiles Company Limited have kept faith with Ghana throughout these years.

He said GTP has contributed and continues to contribute immensely to the economy and culture of Ghana and other West African states.

He said in terms of employment, the company employs close to 1, 000 Ghanaian directly and again offered training and skills development opportunities to students.

On the issues of creativity and innovation, he said GTP continues to create new designs and colours and ready to wear lines to ensure that the company drive the fashion industry in Ghana and in the sub-region.

He said the company has positioned itself to take full advantage of emerging market trends.

'We will continue to be much more creative, cost efficient and productive. We will continue to expand our frontiers beyond Ghana,' he added.

He said the company faced the frightening menace of counterfeiting and smuggling of their products and brands.

'This has greatly curtailed the contributions that GTP could make to the economy in terms of increased employment, foreign currency earnings and taxation,' he added.

He appealed to the Ministry of Trade and Industries to take some urgent steps to save Volta Star from collapse.

Mr Kweku Ricketts-Hagan, the Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry commended management of the company for their immense contribution to the socio-economic development of the country.

He said government was commitment and would continue to support the fabric industry to cloth the nation, adding that it was for this reason that government has introduced the National Export Strategy to support the sector.

He said the Ministry was posed to increase and promote the exportation of locally manufacturing garments for the development of the economy.

Dr Ishmael Yamson, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre said governments need to rebuild on the manufacturing and agricultural sectors to improve on the economic fortunes of the country.

He said governments past and present have not performed well in the manner they support companies to succeed, even though they have major roles to play.

GNA
The excitement of ushering in the Christmas turned into a nightmarish experience for a student who was stabbed with a broken bottle leading to the gushing out of his intestines.

An unemployed man, Francis Magnus Baidoo, who allegedly stabbed the student, Prince Kwame Anim, has been hauled before an Accra Magistrate Court to face the law over his action.

Presenting the facts of the case to the court, Chief inspector Gregory Yeboah said both the complainant, Anim, a student and Baidoo lived at Adabraka, in Accra.

The prosecutor said on the night of December 24, 2015, there was a live band stand at Bermuda Spot, a drinking bar located in Adabraka, to usher in the Christmas festivities.

According to Chief inspector Yeboah, the live band music went deep into the night and at 1:00am of December 25, 2015, the father of Baidoo, who was seriously, dancing alleged that Anim had stolen his wallet from his pocket while dancing. This led to a heated argument between the two.

In the heat of the argument, Baidoo broke an empty bottle and stabbed Anim in the abdomen which led to his intestines gushing out.

Anim was rushed to the Ridge Hospital for treatment.

Baidoo has been charged with attempted manslaughter before the court, presided over by Ms Arit Nsemoh.

He was remanded in police custody pending trial, when he appeared in court on January 18, 2016.
Global Media Foundation (GLOMEF), human rights and anti-corruption media advocacy organsation working in Ghana has commended UN Secretary General for appointing President John Dramani Mahama of Ghana and the Prime Minister of Norway, Ms. Erna Solberg, as Co-Chairs of a group of 16 eminent persons to champion the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Founder/CEO of Global Media Foundation, Raphael Godlove Ahenu Jnr, who gave the commendation at a media briefing in Sunyani, also congratulated President Mahama for his appointment.

It would be recalled that United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon this early week announced the appointment the group of 16 eminent Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) advocates to support the Secretary-General efforts in achieving the SDGs by 2030

They are to support the Secretary-General in his efforts to generate momentum and commitment to achieve the SDGs by 2030.

World leaders at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit on 25 September last year adopted the SDGs which represents a commitment by all nations to work together to end poverty, achieve shared prosperity, build peace, and secure a life of dignity and a healthy planet for present and future generations

He was of the opinion that his appointment is in the right direction, saying as a civil society leader and politician who has vast experience in advocacy. Mr. Ahenu added that President Mahama could have the chance of using his position to lobby for the effective and efficient implementation of the SDGs in Poor, Developing and Low middle income countries like Ghana.

Mr. Ahenu recalled that the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that just ended was affected by inadequate funds for effective implementation.

The CEO therefore entreated President Mahama to ensure that the UN and other donor partners make available the needed resources for the effective implementation of the SDGs.

He noted that they can have very nice SDGs on paper, but it can only transform the lives of the people when it is properly implemented.

On effective implementation in Ghana, Mr. Ahenu urged President Mahama to engage civil society in the implementation of the SDGs as it was done in the implementation of the 40 years Development Plan.

He urged civil society in Ghana and Africa as a whole to participate fully in the implementation of the SDGs and equally put pressure on the leaders to ensure its effective implementation.

According to Mr. Ahenu the proper implementation of the SDGs will ensure quality education, good drinking water and sanitation among others in the country.
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Ngorli Organisation, a proactive non- governmental organisation championing the course of education has announced the completion of its newest project  the 40 Seater ICT Lab and the launching date for the Anumle cluster of schools.

Anumle cluster, a composite of four schools namely; Anumle 1&2 (now Knii Okaine), Anumle 3&4 (now Sackey Odei), Aggrey JHS and Anumle JHS since its establishment in 1945 has seen no substantial development even though the schools have breeded many prominent personalities in Ghana. However, Ngorlis 40 seater ICT lab will be the first ever major development as it will give a facelift to the schools

The NGO in a press briefing has announced, Saturday, 30th January 2016 as the launching date and the theme The Importance of I.C.T in the 21st Century.

The same day will also serves as the maiden edition of the Home- Coming for the Anumle old students.

The colour event which will take place at the forecourt of the schools will see the presence of great personalities like; Mr. William Amuna-Chief Executive Officer at GRIDCo, Dr. Essibu- Executive Director of Ideal College, Mrs. Beatrice Adom- Achimota Headmistress, Faustel Asogba Cofie-Chairman of the Royal Bank Foundation, Christopher Theodore-General Overseer of REFEM, Kwabena Kwabena- Musician and many many more.

There is an urgent call on the general public, old students and other meaningful Ghanaians to come and support this worthy cause.
The Writer

22.01.2016 LISTEN

Violent extremism is a direct assault on the United Nations Charter and a grave threat to international peace and security.

Terrorist groups such as Daesh, Boko Haram and others have brazenly kidnapped young girls, systematically denied womens rights, destroyed cultural institutions, warped the peaceful values of religions, and brutally murdered thousands of innocents around the world.

These groups have become a magnet for foreign terrorist fighters, who are easy prey to simplistic appeals and siren songs.

The threat of violent extremism is not limited to any one religion, nationality or ethnic group. Today, the vast majority of victims worldwide are Muslims.

Addressing this challenge requires a unified response, and compels us to act in a way that solves  rather than multiplies -- the problem.

Many years of experience have proven that short-sighted policies, failed leadership, heavy-handed approaches, a single-minded focus only on security measures and an utter disregard for human rights have often made things worse.

Let us never forget: Terrorist groups are not just seeking to unleash violent action, but to provoke a harsh reaction.

We need cool heads and common sense. We must never be ruled by fear  or provoked by those who strive to exploit it.

Countering violent extremism should not be counter-productive.

This month, I presented to the United Nations General Assembly a Plan of Action to Prevent Violent Extremism, which takes a practical and comprehensive approach to address the drivers of this menace. It focuses on violent extremism which can be conducive to terrorism.

The Plan puts forward more than 70 recommendations for concerted action at the global, regional and national levels, based on five inter-related points:

Number one, we must put prevention first

The international community has every right to defend against this threat using lawful means, but we must pay particular attention to addressing the causes of violent extremism if this problem is to be resolved in the long run.

There is no single pathway to violent extremism. But we know that extremism flourishes when human rights are violated, political space is shrunk, aspirations for inclusion are ignored, and too many people  especially young people  lack prospects and meaning in their lives.

As we see in Syria and Libya and elsewhere, violent extremists make unresolved and prolonged conflicts even more intractable.

We also know the critical elements for success: Good governance. The rule of law. Political participation. Quality education and decent jobs. Full respect for human rights.

We need to make a special effort to reach out to young people and recognize their potential as peacebuilders. The protection and empowerment of women must also be central to our response.

Second, principled leadership and effective institutions

Poisonous ideologies do not emerge from thin air. Oppression, corruption and injustice are greenhouses for resentment. Extremists are adept at cultivating alienation.

That is why I have been urging leaders to work harder to build inclusive institutions that are truly accountable to people. I will continue to call on leaders to listen carefully to the grievances of their people and then act to address them.

Third, preventing extremism and promoting human rights go hand-in-hand

All too often, national counter-terrorism strategies have lacked basic elements of due process and respect for the rule of law.

Sweeping definitions of terrorism or violent extremism are often used to criminalize the legitimate actions of opposition groups, civil society organizations and human rights defenders. Governments should not use these types of sweeping definitions as a pretext to attack or silence ones critics.

Once again, violent extremists deliberately seek to incite such over-reactions. We must not fall into the trap.

Fourth, an all-out approach

The Plan proposes an all of Government approach.

We must break down the silos between the peace and security, sustainable development, human rights and humanitarian actors at the national, regional and global levelsincluding at the United Nations.

The Plan also recognizes that there are no one size fits all solutions. We must also engage all of society  religious leaders, women leaders, youth groups leaders in the arts, music and sports, as well as the media and private sector.

Fifth, UN engagement

I intend to strengthen a UN system-wide approach to supporting Member States efforts to address the drivers of violent extremism.

Above all, the Plan is an urgent call to unity and action that seeks to address this scourge in all its complexity.

Together, let us pledge to forge a new global partnership to prevent violent extremism.

Ban Ki-moon is Secretary-General of the United Nations.
The Auditor General has revealed the Ghana Health Service breached provisions of the Procurement Act in buying 332 pick-up vehicles valued at GHa10.4 million.

The revelations contained in Auditor-General's annual audit report indicated the Health Service handpicked its preferred supplier, Auto-World Ltd without obtaining approval from the Public Procurement Authority.

The auditors observed if the Ghana Health Service wanted to adopt sole-sourcing and skip the legal requirement to advertise for companies to express interest, it should have sought permission to do so.

The audit report noted the 332 Great Wall Pick-ups were obtained on hire purchase at GHa10.4 million and 10 Great Hovers at more than GHa530,000. Another company was also selected to supply condoms valued at more than GHa1million without following the law.

The audit report recommended sanctions against the Management of the Service in accordance with Article 92 of the PPA 2003.

"Any person who contravenes any provision of this Act commits an offence and where no penalty has been provided for the offence, the person is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding 1000 penalty units or a term of imprisonment not exceeding five years or to both".

At the Committee hearing yesterday, Director-General of the GHS, Dr Ebenezer Appiah-Denkyira told PAC he was not well-informed about the award of the contract. He directed that the Transport Manager be made to answer.

But the Transport manager Mr Ebo Hammond had disappeared when it was time to answer questions on the contract awarded to Auto World.

Mr Ebo Hammond re-appeared after some minutes, explaining he suffered a stomach upset.

The Chairman of the PAC, Mr Kwaku Agyeman Manu criticized the Director-General of the GHS, Dr Ebenezer Appiah-Denkyira for failing to ensure the pro-transparency legislation is duly followed in procuring items.

Mr. Kwaku Agyeman Manu pushed for the Minister of Health, Mr Alex Segbefia, to have the Transport Manager Mr. Ebo Hammond arrested. He noted violating the Procurement Act was a criminal offence.

The Ghana Health Service is scheduled to appear before the Public Accounts Committee again as the audit report detailed several irregularities and disregard for accountability and transparency.

Story by Ghana|myjoyonline.com|[email protected]
NEWARK, N.J. & Johannesburg  Prudential Financial, Inc. (PFI) and LeapFrog Investments announced today the launch of a $350 million investment partnership to access high-growth markets in Africa. Managed by LeapFrog, the new investment vehicle will target investments in life insurance companies in Ghana and other leading economies, including Kenya and Nigeria, to be made over a three- to five-year period.

Charles Lowrey, executive vice president and chief operating officer of PFIs International Businesses, said This investment expands PFIs footprint into Africa, a continent that we believe offers tremendous potential for growth over the long term. We are delighted to partner with LeapFrog Investments, given their deep experience in Africa, and their impressive record of success as insurance investors focused on emerging consumers.

LeapFrog Investments has a long track record in Ghana. Through its Financial Inclusion Fund Leapfrog is currently invested in fast-growing Petra Trust, which is Ghanas leading independent provider of savings and pensions products.

Doug Lacey, Partner at LeapFrog Investments, said The global insurance industry is looking for ways to close the protection gap for millions of people in emerging markets. This partnership will help address that need. Ghana is a very exciting market and has strong growth prospects, alongside Nigeria and Kenya.

Insurance penetration ratio in Ghana is low, and the need is great. We are delighted to broaden our relationship with PFI, a values-driven partner whom we know well and greatly respect for its global leadership in life insurance, retirement and asset management.

PFI is an investor in LeapFrogs most recent private equity fund, and also a member of the LeapFrog Insurance Innovation Circle, a knowledge-sharing and innovation initiative that convenes many of the worlds leading insurers and reinsurers.

About PFI

PFI is a financial services leader with more than $1 trillion of assets under management as of September 30, 2015, with operations in the United States, Asia, Europe and Latin America. PFIs diverse and talented employees are committed to helping individual and institutional customers grow and protect their wealth through a variety of products and services, including life insurance, annuities, retirement-related services, mutual funds and investment management.

In the U.S., PFIs iconic Rock symbol has stood for strength, stability, expertise and innovation for more than a century. For more information, please visit www.pramericafinancial.com. PFI of the United States is not affiliated in any manner with Prudential plc, a company incorporated in the United Kingdom. Pramerica Financial is a trade name used by PFI in certain markets.

About LeapFrog Investments

LeapFrog invests in extraordinary businesses in Africa and Asia, and partners with their leaders to achieve leaps of growth, profitability and impact. Today, LeapFrog companies reach over 51 million people across 21 emerging markets. More than 36 million are emerging consumers, often accessing insurance, savings, pensions or credit for the first time. The LeapFrog team draws on decades of operational experience and in-market knowledge to help build companies that achieve profit with purpose.

Launched seven years ago, LeapFrog has now unlocked over $1 billion in third-party assets, all dedicated to investing in companies serving emerging consumers. LeapFrog portfolio companies reach 51.8 million people in Africa and Asia, the majority of whom are acquiring insurance or other financial services for the first time. More information is available at www.leapfroginvest.com and on Twitter @LeapFrogInvest.
Worldwide Council of Prophetic Alliance (WCPA) and Christian Intelligence Bureau (CIB) have visited the Inspector General of Police, John .K. Kudalor at the National Police Headquaters in Accra.

The purpose of visit was to formally congratulate him on his current appointment by His Excellency President John Dramani Mahama and also to inform him about a non-governmental organization that exists purposely to maintain sanity and bridge the communication gap between the government and the clergy, as stated by the president of the councils.

In the 90 minute deliberation that transpired between 7 executives of WCPA/CIB and the Inspector General of Police, it was noted that some men of God masquerade themselves in the name of christianity as they indulge in criminality which in return jeopadizes the christian faith. There also, is a gap in terms of good communication; between the government and the clergy. Both bodies at times are not pleased with the modus operandi used in handling certain issues and hence it does sometimes result in the cluttering of ideas or opinions.

For these and other reasons, the president of Worlwide Council of Prophetic Alliance and Christian intelligence Bureau, The Prophet Daniel Asamoah-Larbi, stated both councils exist to respectively play an intermediary role between these two bodies in order to maintain good communication and also help in reducing criminality in the clergy and the church as whole.

John .K. Kudalor, IGP., was pleased to hear a non-governmental organization take up the mantle to help in building a peaceful nation and denoted that the timing for the visit and deliberation was right.

Both councils are poised to embark on a scheduled routine of visitation to other coucils related to the christian faith for introduction and also champion a good course for the betterment of christianity and the nation.

The CIB will work hand in hand with the security agency to eradicate or curb criminal activities by the clergy.
22.01.2016 LISTEN

From left to right, the Chief Director of the Trade Ministry, Mrs Marietta Brew Appiah-Opong, Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Dr. Ewow Spio Garbrah and Gerhard Brugger holding the National IP policy and strategy

The Government of Ghana and the Swiss Federation have launched the first National Intellectual Property (IP) Policy and Strategy aimed at ensuring that innovators, creators, users and consumers of the IP system benefit from an improved IP environment.

The policy, jointly produced by the Ministries of Trade and Industry and Justice, will in the short-term establish a functional and sustainable intellectual property system in Ghana.

In the medium term, the policy will ensure IP becomes a catalyst for creativity, innovation and technological development.

Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr. Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, who launched the document, said government recognizes intellectual property rights as a powerful catalyst within national economy, adding that government will modernize and strengthen the systems for protection through the new policy.

It is therefore gratifying to note that activities outlined under the policy document, when implemented, will change the IP landscape, he said.

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He said adequate protection for IP rights creates favourable conditions for entrepreneurship, innovation and technology transfer and modernization of products, all of which are pivotal to increasing international competitiveness and adding value to Ghanaian products.

We are confident that with the National IP Policy in place and the necessary awareness in the use of intellectual property rights as tools to add value to one's creativity and ingenuity, we will unearth in our country many more inventors, he added.

Ambassador of Switzerland to Ghana, Gerhard Brugger, said the new policy will ensure a balanced protection of intellectual property rights to promote competition and add value to Ghanaian products.

Hon. Brugger said the Swiss Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the implementation of the second phase corporation project which focuses on IP.

The second phase continues the successful cooperation between Ghana and Switzerland in the field of IP established during the first phase of the project. The second phase of the project will provide capacity-building to the intellectual enforcement authorities so they can deliver better services, he said.

By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri


22.01.2016 LISTEN

The founder of the National Democratic Party (NDP), Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings, has joined other well-meaning Ghanaians to condemn President John Mahama for hosting two former inmates of Guatanamo Bay in Ghana.

Mrs. Rawlings took to facebook, a social media platform, to register her displeasure over the ruling National Democratic Congress' (NDC's) willingness to host the two Al-Qaeda's foot-soldiers, even though critics believe strongly that the decision poses serious security threat to the West African nation, especially when Burkina Faso, a neighbouring state had been attacked by terrorists loyal to Al-Qaeda.

She expressed similar sentiment with the Christian community and other religious groupings that the President's appeal to Ghanaians to have compassion with the two detainees, lacked common 'sense.'

They say we should not call them terrorists because no court found them guilty. I am busy looking for the courts that tried Osama Bin Laden and Al-Baghdadi, the ISIS leader before they were classified as terrorists, Mrs. Rawlings queried in a move to mock the decision by the President.

She charged that you (apparently referring to President Mahama) should never sacrifice your conscience and safety for money, subtly suggesting that the NDC government indeed collected money from the USA Government to host the two terrorists,

According to the former first lady, saying a prayer for the innocent people murdered next door in Burkina Faso by the foot soldiers of Osama Bin Laden is a vivid reminder that Al-Qaeda operatives should never be in a safe haven in Ghana, adding that humanity must show no compassion for terrorism.

Turning her attention to the electioneering processes in the country, Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings indicated that the NDC government shall lose the 2016 elections hands-down.

No new voter register they say. But in a progressive country change is constant; change is inevitable, she said, apparently suggesting a change of regime come November 7.

BY Melvin Tarlue


22.01.2016 LISTEN

THREE armed robbers suspected to be Fulanis exchanged fire with a police patrol team at Banda on the Bole-Bamboi road at about 4am yesterday, resulting in the death of one of the robbers.

According to the Northern Regional Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Ebenezer Tetteh, who confirmed the incident to DAILY GUIDE, a Mercedes Benz bus was travelling from Kumasi to Wa and when it got to Banda near Bole, the suspected robbers instructed the driver to stop. They then robbed the passengers of their valuables.

Police in Bole had a call from an unknown person about the robbery incident and the police patrol team quickly rushed to the scene, he added.

When the robbers saw the police, they started shooting at them and in order to protect themselves, the police also responded by firing back at the robbers, killing one of them in the process.

According to ASP Ebenezer Tetteh, two of the robbers ran into a nearby bush when they realised that one of them had been gunned down.

The police found a mobile phone in the pocket of the dead robber when a search was conducted on him.

The body of the deceased has since been deposited at the Wenchi Methodist Hospital morgue in the Brong Ahafo Region.

FROM Eric Kombat, Tamale


22.01.2016 LISTEN

DISPLACED RESIDENTS of Sraha East in Adjei-Kojo near Ashaiman, whose houses were demolished by the Tema Development Corporation (TDC) some two years ago, are appealing to President John Dramani Mahama to intervene and return their lands to them.

The over 200 residents who were rendered homeless have pleaded with the President to extend the compassion that made him to house the ex-Gitmo detainees in Ghana to them by giving them their lands back or house them like the detainees he brought into the country.

According to them, their compensation is long overdue and they need their lands to build their houses again.

The disgruntled residents were clad in red and black clothes and chanted war songs to express their displeasure over their eviction from the land they claimed they bought from the traditional rulers in the area.

Petition

Earlier, as part of activities marking two years after they were evicted by the TDC, a news conference was held at Promise Land, one of the demolished suburbs of Sraha East, where Nii Djorwunu I, the Chief of Sraha, mentioned that their petition to the President about the issue was yet to be responded to.

According to him, four former tenants of the land died out of shock following the demolition, with two others mentally unstable after the eviction.

Two years ago was a sad day for us when our children came back from school and saw their parents' buildings that they slept inside the previous night destroyed by bulldozers from TDC supported by soldiers.

The children have to sleep in open places at the mercy of misquotes and snakes, he pointed out.

President's Silence

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Chairman of the Sraha East Residents Association, Francis K. Dzivenu, also appealed to the President to respond to their petition.

According to him, over a year since the President was petitioned by the residents, they are yet to hear from him, noting that the continuous silence of the President is affecting their lives since they have remained homeless.

We are therefore pleading with His Excellency President Mahama to have mercy on us and return our lands to us with compassionlike what he did for the ex-Gitmo detainees, he appealed.

He said he believed that the President had been misinformed by his appointees about the real situation in the area, adding that The President swore an oath to protect and defend Ghanaians and the country at large and he needs to redeem his promise as we are in an election year.

Interestingly enough, when DAILY GUIDE toured the lands the TDC had claimed were in a waterlogged area, the paper discovered that the corporation had re-demarcated the area and constructed roads as well as drains, obviously preparing to build on the lands or sell them.

Also, over two years since the demolition exercise took place, some of the victims still sleep in tents provided by the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) while others sleep under trees at the mercy of mosquitoes and other insects.

Most parts of the lands have also become bushy, exposing the victims to snakes and other dangers.

From Vincent Kubi, Adjei-Kojo


22.01.2016 LISTEN

Dr Gloria Quansah Asare, unveiling the newsletter while the other dignitaries look on

The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has outdoored a corporate health newsletter aimed at reaching the public with timely information on preventive healthcare.

The newsletter, dubbed the Health Scope, which is being produced by the service, is in fulfilment of GHS' mandate of providing accessible health service with special emphasis on healthcare at regional, district and sub-district levels in accordance with approved national policies.

The newsletter, full of health-related articles and stories, is solely meant to educate and empower the public to know their basic health rights as part of activities towards achieving preventive healthcare.

It is also expected to inform the public about activities and pertinent decisions taken by the service and its departments in the performance of its duty.

The first edition of the newsletter focused on educating readers on issues like family planning and the causes, control and prevention of diseases such as cholera, Ebola and malaria.

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Dr Gloria Quansah Asare, deputy director general of the GHS, who also doubles as the editor of the newsletter, stated that the maiden edition provides information on happenings in the health sector from the community, district and to national levels.

The newsletter will help build relationships with the public and keep them informed on the symptoms and treatments of common diseases as well as provide a platform through which the public can send in their opinions for redress, she said.

The publication of the paper which will be done quarterly, she believed, would help equip the public with enough information to live healthy life styles.

She urged ministries, department, agencies, private schools, hospitals and homes to read and make use of the information in the newsletter when distribution starts.

The service also used the event to revive its monthly healthcare promotion programme by sensitising participants on cholera.

Dr Emmanuel Dzotsi, a public health director at the GHS, advised the public to wash their hands regularly, avoid open defecation and eat warm food to keep them free from disease infections like cholera.

By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri


22.01.2016 LISTEN

Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panin

The Eastern Regional branch of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has expressed misgiving about a statement released by the National Democratic Congress (NDC), which it claimed was casting negative aspersions on the Okyenhene, Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panin, who doubles as the President of the Eastern Regional House of Chiefs.

The regional secretariat of the NDC in a release issued and signed by the regional secretary, Mark Oliver Kevor on Monday, heavily descended on Okyenhene for saying President John Mahama has sidelined the Akyems in his government.

The party further described Okyenhenes pronouncements as unnecessary and ill-motivated.

Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panin last week Saturday when addressing a gathering of chiefs from Akyem Abuakwa at the annual Okyeman Congress at Bunso in the East Akim municipality of the region, reportedly accused President Mahama of sidelining Akyems.

According to the Okyenhene, the development is hindering the progress of the Akyem kingdom, adding that some high profile persons from the Akyem area had been ignored by the president in his appointments.

Mr Mark Oliver Kevor, who was unhappy about the Okyenhene's comments, hinted that his claim was aimed at inciting Akyems against the NDC government.

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It seems Okyenhene has lost sight of what the NDC has done in terms of appointment in JMs government. Mention the likes of the current Attorney General; she hails from Akwatia; Deputy Eastern Regional Minister is from Abirem; Nana Adusei Peasah, Tafohene and regional chairman of the Lands Commission; Victor Smith from Kukurantumi; Dr. Akyem Apea Kubi, former regional minister and currently a board member of ECG, from Akyem-Achiase; Ofosu Ampofo, board chairman of GHAPOHA, among a number of them, it stated.

In a rebuttal, the NPP in a press release issued and signed by the Regional Communications Director, David Prah, said the party finds the release by the NDC extremely uncivilised, tribalistic, divisive and preposterous.

The tribal undertone and the inciting nature of the said release must be condemned by all Ghanaians, including all NDC members who want Ghana and our politics to be devoid of such attitudes and language that negatively portray our culture as uncivilized, the NPP underscored.

The NPP pointed out that it associates itself with the concerns raised by the traditional ruler. We further state that the Mahama-led NDC government has abandoned the proper management of the entire Eastern Region becauseit is not its political stronghold and also it is the home region of our flagbearer, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. They have hence deprived the region of the needed developmental projects..

As if this was not enough, their release also talked about the government having completed and tarred the Adeiso-Asamankese, Suhum-Asamankese, Nsawam-Asamankese, Osenase-Akwatia, Kyebi, Suhum & Asamankese and Bunso-Koforidua roads. These are mere lies and propaganda which must only be told to the marines. The truth is that the above stated roads have not been completed and tarred as they want us to believe. Motorists and travellers who ply them are our key witnesses.

Education

The Eastern Regional NPP maintained that none of the three so-called governments Community Day Senior High School projects at Nyenoa-Kwaobaa (Upper West Akim District), Takorasi (Denkyembour District) and Nyafomah (Birim North District) are near completion with other secondary schools in the Akyem area and most parts of the region suffering from massive infrastructure deficits.

FROM Daniel Bampoe, Koforidua


22.01.2016 LISTEN

Sofo Azorka

A National Democratic Congress (NDC) group (Gbewa Youth Group) in Tamale, the Northern Regional capital, has accused the regional chairman of the party, Sofo Azorka, of overturning a decision by the Board of the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) to appoint Abdul Rashid Tanko aka Computer, as the Northern Regional Director of the scheme.

There have been uneasy calm in the agency in the region after its former director, who is the regional organizer of the party, Alhaji Mohammed Amin Adam (Abio), was interdicted on Thursday, October 29, 20015 for allegedly engaging in financial malfeasance to the tune of GH950,000 (9.5 billion).

Our sources at YEA revealed that in June this year, there were plans by the then Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Kobby Acheampong, to expand the modules of YEA to include agriculture, but that was never done.

Alhaji Aminu Adam however, reportedly started implementing the project in the Northern Region and entered into a contractual agreement with Wumpini Agro Chemicals  a Tamale-based agro chemical company  to supply some agricultural inputs totaling 9.5 billion.

Management, who later got wind of the alleged underhand dealings, accused him of failing to act in accordance with procurement processes and as well exceeded the GH200,000 mandated spending ceiling for national officers.

Allegation

The Gbewa group accused Sofo Azorka of threatening the Chief of Staff that he would sanction Tamale if Abdul Rashid Tanko was not appointed as the new YEA Coordinator in the Northern Region, indicating that we are equally telling the Chief of Staff Julius Debrah, not to pay heed to what Sofo Azorka says, if the government and the party want peace in the region.

The NDC youth said they were reliably informed that the Chief of Staff had directed the Board to rather appoint Abdul Rashid Tanko, the partys regional director of elections, as the director of YEA in the region.

Speaking to DAILY GUIDE, the secretary of the Gbewa Youth Group, Isuben Nagumsi said, We will resist any attempt to impose anyone who does not have the youth of the party at heart; we are prepared to fight anybody who thinks he can take the group for granted, including Sofo Azorka.

He stated that the group doubts that Rashid Tanko is capable of being the regional coordinator of YEA saying that even the Chief of Staff could attest to the fact that NDC youth groups in the region had lost interest in the likes of Sofo Azorka and Rashid Tanko, whose ambition is to go after money and not to unite the party.

According to Nagumsi, under the leadership of Sofo Azorka, the NDC party has lost its value and attraction as it lost almost 10 seats in the 2012 general election.

Bukurusung NDC Youth Responds

Meanwhile, another youth group calling itself Bukurusung Youth Group, has come out to defend the appointment of Rashid Tanko, indicating that the group was gunning for his appointment as deputy minister of state, considering his enormous experience in party administration and election management.

According to the secretary of Bukurusung, the attack on Sofo Azorka is baseless because if he was to recommend Mr Tanko for appointment, he would have rather recommended him for a ministerial appointment.

The group advised politicians in the region to desist from using the youth to cause divisions in the party.

FROM Eric Kombat, Tamale


22.01.2016 LISTEN

We, the Coalition of Muslim Organizations, Ghana (COMOG) recognize views expressed by all well-meaning Ghanaians on the transfer of two former Guantanamo Bay prisoners, Mahmoud Omar Mohammed Bin Atef (36 years) and Khalid Shayk Mohammed (34 years), and appreciate peoples apprehensions of a perceived terror threat the two pose on our national security, particularly, this time when the country is going through crises that present security challenge to the government. In the same vein, we welcome governments responses and continuous efforts put forth in managing these crises, and finding a final solution to them.

We are, however, of the view that the raging controversies and exchanges in the media over Governments acceptance of the two ex-detainees in Ghana, rather pose a greater threat to the countrys peace and security, if it is not handled with the needed restraint, circumspection and unity of purpose, in order to find a lasting solution that will serve our overall national interests, and ultimately guarantee our security, boost our international relations and diplomacy.

The strong language and tone of statements on the issue have the tendency to divide us, especially on religious lines, rather than unite us as one people seeking a permanent solution to a national problem. Furthermore, such unguarded statements may portray Ghanaians as insensitive and hostile to people in distress, and that in our view, is inconsistent with our highly recognized hospitality credential, and therefore, does not augur well for our national and individual security.

It is our candid opinion that the entrenched positions, based on political and religious affiliations characterized by emotional outbursts would not help matters. Whether or not our Government has actually entered into a secret deal with the US Government, as is being speculated in some of the statements, the hard fact still remains that the two persons are already here in Ghana with us.

The question now is: How do we handle and manage the issue in such a way as to arrive at a solution that would safeguard our national interests, and guard against decision that may jeopardize the peace and tranquility that exist today in Ghana?

As an umbrella Muslim organization, COMOG remains committed to our duties, as Muslims, towards the two human beings in distress, in terms of their needs, welfare, religious freedom, as long as they remain in Ghana. These are responsibilities and duties enjoined on us, as Muslim community, consistent with the tenets of Islam. In much the same measure, we are obliged as a national duty to uphold and defend the sovereignty of Ghana against its enemies and saboteurs. The decision to admit the two ex-detainees into the country, however, falls outside our purview and, perhaps, that of other religious leaders, especially when those leaders are not privy to any prior negotiations, discussions or details of any alleged deals. Decisions taken seemed to have been the sole responsibility of political leaders, acting on professional advice from security experts.

While we respect the divergent views expressed by all well-meaning Ghanaians whose comments reflect their patriotism and concern for the peace the country is enjoying, we think that the heated political and religious undertones in some of these comments are not in harmony with sustaining the security of the country, which must remain paramount in this matter. COMOG would like to appeal to all and sundry to halt all media engagements, discussions and contributions on the issue, and would therefore, want to recommend the following to the government:

Appoint a technical committee that is national in character, to collate all suggestions, views, and contributions from civil societies, corporate bodies, religious entities and general public.

The committee must be composed of neutral, credible and non-partisan eminent personalities with security, legal, diplomatic and international relations backgrounds.

The committee should carry out its deliberations in camera within a specified period, and should be provided with all available information on the issue, including details of the deal, and the accurate personal profiles of the two detainees.

Submit report with specific recommendations that would satisfy all interest groups and individual aspirations, guided and driven by national interest considerations which override all partisan, religious and parochial interests.

COMOG would urge all and sundry, especially media practitioners, to help end the media war and direct all correspondence, comments, suggestions and recommendations to the proposed Technical Committee if and when constituted.

We, the Coalition of Muslim Organizations, Ghana (COMOG) are not oblivious of nations devastated by wars and conflicts, fuelled by religious intolerance and sectarian dogmatism. We, therefore, wish to assure all doubting Thomases, that we are conscious of our collective and individual responsibilities to save our religion and country from any extremist influences and tendencies, and would jealously guard the harmony and peaceful coexistence between Muslims and Christians, as well as peace and security the nation is currently enjoying.

May the Almighty Allah continue to bless us all with sustainable peace and security, and may we continue to live together in peace as brothers and sisters in the service of our one and only Supreme Creator, the Almighty God. Amen.

signed

Haj Abdel Manan Abdel Rahman

General Secretary

0244470505, 0277430055

For

Dr Husein Zakaria

National President
The Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP), has called on Parliament to look into the withholding of some GhE83 million of petroleum taxes over three years by two banks.

In a statement signed by the Deputy Executive Director of ACEP Benjamin Boakye, ACEP called for the punishment of all officials involved in the keeping of the petroleum taxes at the Banks.

The Auditor General revealed that Ecobank and Ghana Commercial Bank had failed to release the taxes to government chest for three years.

The law required that banks transfer such taxes from the Oil Marketing Companies to the consolidated funds at the Bank of Ghana, three days after receiving them but the two banks kept the money for three years.

Members of the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament are angry about the development and have summoned officials of the Ecobank, GCB and Bank of Ghana to investigate the matter.

ACEP have backed calls for Parliament's investigation into the matter.

Below is the full statement of ACEP on the issue.

The Public Accounts Committee of Parliament (PAC) at its sitting on the 20th of January 2016 revealed that some Banks have withheld an amount of GHS83m for more than three years for reasons yet to be disclosed. The Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP) is worried about this revelation by the committee.

ACEP has consistently maintained that the transparency and accountability mechanism around the governance of taxes and levies on downstream petroleum sector needs urgent improvement to ensure that taxes and levies are used for the intended purposes for which consumers are made to pay.

It is instances like this that continue to burden citizens with levies such as TOR debt recovery levy with no definite schedule for repayment. The ministry of finance has over the years violated the legal requirement to account for the receipt from the TOR debt recovery levy to parliament as required by law. TOR Debt Recovery Fund Levy Act 2003 (Act 642) states; The Minister shall within three months after the end of each financial year, submit a report on the Fund to Parliament. However the Minister does not complied with such requirement of the law.

This is also a duty call on parliament to monitor the implementation of the laws they make to ensure that implementing bodies do not flout the laws. If parliament had been demanding timely accounting of public funds, we will not be talking about petroleum levies kept in Banks for more than three years. Society would have benefited from the investment of such monies.

In the specific instance of the GHS83m of petroleum taxes Kept by Banks, ACEP calls on parliament to probe into the matter and those responsible should be punished whilst the banks involved should be made to pay appropriate interest on it.

We would like to reiterate our call to the Minister of Finance to consciously report on the receipt and utilization of taxes imposed on petroleum products. This will improve transparency and accountability and also improve public confidence in the payment of taxes.

ACEP will continue to monitor the governance space on the petroleum sector, particular the reporting requirements under the Energy Sector Levies Act 2015 (Act 899) to ensure that Petroleum levies are not kept by banks or misapplied.
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Addis Ababa, Friday 22nd January 2016: HelpAge International is urging African Union member states to protect the rights of older women across the continent as they meet at the 26th Africa Union Summit. (21-31 January) The summit marks the start of the African Year of Human Rights, with particular focus on the rights of women.

The focus on womens rights is a huge step forward for gender equality across Africa, said Dr Prafula Mishra, Regional Director at HelpAge International, welcoming the focus on womens human rights by the AU.

But progress can only be made if human rights are protected at every stage of every womans life. The discrimination that older women are subjected to, based on their older age and their gender, must be recognized and addressed, he said.

Thirteen years ago, in the 2003 Maputo Protocol on the rights of women, the AU recognized that older women face challenges to their human rights requiring particular attention, including their right to freedom from violence and to be treated with dignity.

Despite this, older women continue to be discriminated against, subjected to different types of violence and abuse, denied access to health care and an adequate standard of living, and treated with disrespect.

In a study conducted by HelpAge International in Mozambique in 2012, 38 per cent of older women surveyed said they had been subjected to financial abuse since the age of fifty, 18 per cent to physical abuse, 5 per cent to sexual abuse, 42 per cent to malicious accusations and 50 per cent to emotional abuse. [1]

This level of violence and abuse remains hidden. Data on violence against women is rarely available beyond the age of 49 and older women themselves are reluctant to talk about or report the violence they experience.

When asked how being treated differently because of her age made her feel, an older woman from Uganda said, At times I feel affected and lonely, especially when I am told that what is being done and discussed is not for me as I am old. Another older woman, also from Uganda, said, We feel isolated and alienated as if we are animals. [2]

The time has come to end this discrimination and denial of older womens human rights, said Jamillah Mwanjisi, regional head of policy and advocacy at HelpAge International. She believes this year's theme on womens human rights could not have come at a better time as it will spur on the continent to heed UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moons call to leave no one behind in the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, adopted by UN member states last September.

Older womens rights will also come under the spotlight at the AU Summit when heads of state consider the adoption of a new human rights protocol on the rights of older people in Africa. Whilst this applies to all older people, a specific article guarantees older women rights to freedom from violence and rights to land, property and inheritance.

According to UN data, there are currently 71 million women over the age of 50 across Africa. This is predicted to rise to 111 million by 2030.
The African Union Commission (AUC) awarded prices to two female top African scientists: Prof. Merzouk Hafida from Algeria representing the North region and Prof. Yalemtsehay Mekonnen from Ethiopia, representing the East region, for their scientific achievements and valuable discoveries and findings that has contributed to the development agenda of the Continent.

The award ceremony took place on 20 January 2016 during the closing of the 8th African Union Gender Pre-Summit, in the presence of H.E Dr. Martial De-Paul Ikounga, Commissioner for Human Resources, Science and Technology (HRST), H.E Dr. Aisha Abdullahi, Commissioner for Political Affairs of the AUC and Ambassador Gary Quince, Head of the European Union Delegation to the African Union.

Addressing the laureates on behalf of H.E Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, Commissioner Ikounga congratulated the two female scientists and expressed the wish for more women to be involved in the area of science. He recalled that the prestigious African Union Kwame Nkrumah Scientific Awards Programme was launched on 9 September 2008, with the objective to give out scientific awards to top African scientists particularly the women. The programme is jointly implemented by the Regional Economic Communities and the Commission. The Commissioner explained that the programme is implemented at national level for young researchers, regional level for women scientists and continental level open to all scientists. The Continental level is the highest and level of the programme. Prizes are awarded to top African scientists in each of the following two sectors (a) Life and Earth Sciences; and (b) Basic Science, Technology and Innovation at the national, regional and continental levels. The African Union Kwame Nkrumah Scientific Awards Programme is one of the holistic and deliberate measures taken by the Commission to maintain science and technology on top of Africa's development, cooperation and political agenda, emphasised Commissioner Ikounga. He called on the Member States, Regional Economic Communities and other key stakeholders to popularize science among African citizens, empower them, celebrate their achievements and promote all efforts to transform scientific research into Africa's sustainable development.

The two female laureates of the AU Kwame Nkrumah Scientific Awards received a cheque of 20,000 USD each, a gold plate medal, a certificate and flowers from the representatives of the AU Commission.

The Algerian Professor Merzouk is a graduate from the University of Tlemcen, where she received her Diploma DES in biology and Magister in animal biology. She was recruited as a teacher assistant in 1992 at the Institute of Biology, and provides courses and practical works to students in biochemistry and physiology specialty. Having a training scholarship abroad, she completed her doctoral researches at the University of Burgundy in Dijon, in the field of maternal nutrition, macrosomia and fetal growth retardation. After her Ph.D. thesis, she took the lead of a magister on physiology and cellular pathophysiology and conducted several magister theses on topics relating to cell dysfunction and diseases such as obesity, diabetes and hypertension. She became a professor in 2004 and directed several doctorate theses in nutritional biochemistry. She has served in many administrative positions. Currently, she is the director of PPABIONUT laboratory where she manages several research projects on preventive nutrition and bioactive molecules, in collaboration with French teams in Dijon, Evry and Strasbourg. Very involved in her research, she is the author of numerous international publications and participates in several international conferences. She is also known for her active membership in the Algerian society of nutrition and orthomolecular medicine SANMO. Her integration into the SANMO society allows her to provide information on the importance of adequate nutrition for general population, and to promote preventive measures focus on maternal and children nutritional education. Recently, she has embarked on a project to study the chronic effects of low doses of pesticides on health, and a project on the beneficial effects of Algae consumption with international collaboration. Her strong research on nutrition and health make her convinced that she will add value and contribute positively to scientific excellence in Algeria and also in Africa.

On the other hand, the Ethiopian Professor Yalemtsehay was honored with a prize from his Emperor Haileselassie for scoring great distinction in Ethiopian School Leaving Certificate Examination. She joined Addis Ababa University (AAU) in 1972 obtaining her B.Sc degree in Biology in 1977. She was then employed as a graduate assistant in the Department of Biology, Faculty of Science where she joined the first graduate programme launched in the Department. She received her M.Sc degree in Zoology in 1980 with the first batch of graduates as the first woman both at the AAU and the country. She obtained her PhD in Human Physiology from the University of Heidelberg Germany in May 1992. She was promoted to the rank of full professor in January 2009. She was awarded with several research grants and fellowships nationally and internationally. To give some examples, the Ethiopian Science and Technology Commission, the Ethiopian Agricultural Research Organization, the British Council, the International Foundation for Science, the Third World Academy of Sciences, the German Academic Exchange Service and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Germany. Her main scientific work focuses on medicinal plants that are used by communities and test them in the laboratory if they have medicinal importance and assessing health hazard to humans, animals and the environment due to chemicals and other contaminants that are by-products of agricultural practices or industries. She has collaborated with researchers in Ethiopia and abroad and advised many graduate students. The outcome of her research work is exemplified by 92 publications in national and international peer reviewed scientific journals. Currently she is engaged in teaching and continuing her research activities in the College of Natural Sciences, AAU. In addition she is engaged in several professional activities (E.g. Member of the New York Academy of Sciences, Board member of the Ethiopian Academy of Sciences, Executive Board President of the Society of Ethiopian Women in Science & Technology).She has great passion to motivate the young specially women to be confident and successful in their professional career in particular and their overall walk in life in general.

The award ceremony was moderated by Mrs. Mahawa Kaba Wheeler, Director of Women, Gender and Development of the African Union.
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Nana Yaa Oforiwaa, Queenmother of Kumasi Central Market Yam Sellers Association (far left) making her appeal to Kojo Bonsu (far right)

Traders at the Kumasi Central Market have called on the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) to quickly decongest the market which has been recorded several fire outbreaks.

According to the traders, the haphazard nature of the market usually prevents firemen from quenching fire quickly at the ancient market.

Yam Sellers Association of Kumasi Central Market, led by Nana Yaa Oforiwaa, queenmother, passionately appealed to Kojo Bonsu, the Kumasi Mayor, to immediately carry out the decongestion exercise at the market.

She said several people transact business at unapproved places, including the middle of roads in the market, thereby impeding the movement of firemen.

Nana Oforiwaa, who led a delegation that called on Kojo Bonsu in his office, said the recent inferno that consumed several items in the market could have been doused immediately if the market was well structured.

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She therefore implored Kojo Bonsu to relocate all traders that are trading in the middle of roads and unapproved sites so that fire fighters could be able to quench any fire in the market in future.

Kojo Bonsu said the concerns and suggestions made by the traders would be considered, adding that the KMA would clear all the approved paths in the market so that there could be free movement of people and vehicles in the place.

On behalf of KMA, he consoled the victims of the recent fire outbreak at the market, which destroyed several valuable items, stressing that KMA would provide them with cement and roofing sheets to reconstruct their stores.

Kojo Bonsu refuted allegations that the KMA wanted to take over the area and give it to their cronies, noting that he is a caring person who would not take such a weird action.

He disclosed that he used to sell water at the Kumasi Central Market when he was a kid, noting that he really knows the challenges of the traders and would not do anything to threaten their livelihood.

From I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi
Mr. Frank Aboagye Danyansah

22.01.2016 LISTEN

Progressive Peoples Partys (PPP) Parliamentary aspirant for Obuasi East in the Ashanti region, Mr. Frank Aboagye Danyansah has lamented the sharp decline in economic activities and the growing unemployment in the constituency, saying the situation does not bode well for the development of the area.

Business activities have slowed down in the once vibrant mining area with some businesses folding up following the suspension of part of AngloGold operations in Obuasi.

Speaking to Today however, the PPP Parliamentary candidate said he was disappointed by the lack of commitment of successive governments to develop the Obuasi Municipality saying, they have done our people so much harm.

He said, he intends to offer good leadership for the constituency so as to propel its development.

That, he added, explains his vision which was derived from his motto Leadership and Development for the people.

According to him, there had been a disconnection between past Members of Parliament (MPs) and the constituents of the area .

He assured if he wins the November 7 elections he would open an ultra-modern office in the locality so he could hear the needs of his constituents.

He further assured that he would initiate inter-community based discussion platforms where he would meet every community twice within his term in office.

Through this I will have a first-hand information about the challenges my constituents are going through, and find ways of helping them or liaise with other NGOs, MCEs, Corporate organizations to help them, he said.

Mr. Aboagye Danyansah who is the Chief Executive Officer of Danywise Estate Management said he would be liaising with the PPP 2012 flag bearer, Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom to build a gold refinery in Obuasi which will see to the processing of the raw gold ore into finished products to be used for jewelry in the constituency. And that assurance Today learnt was confirmed by Dr. Nduom during his interview recently on an Obuasi- based radio, Shaft FM.

This in my view would solve the unemployment problem in the Obuasi East constituency since thousands of jobs would be created, he said.

For the numerous people who are afraid of losing their daily income at the timber market at Boete, a suburb of Obuasi, the PPP aspirant said, he would convert it into an ultra-modern Wood Village, explaining that there is the need to revive the wood industry in Obuasi.

This will revive lives as more hands would be needed so the youth who have been disappointed at the collapse of the mining industry here will all move there and get their daily bread, he indicated.

The Obuasi Municipality has become densely populated with many traders finding it difficult to sell their produce .

But according to the PPP parliamentary hopeful, he would construct a modernized central market where traders from the length and breadth of the Adansi area could come to Obuasi East to do business.
Students of the Komenda College of Education in the Central Region took to the streets, Friday, to protest the introduction of unapproved fees by the school's authorities.

The students do not understand why the authorities will slap a 30 cedi levy for the design of a school lawn at a time when they are already complaining about high fees.

On Friday, scores of students hit the streets in their red arm-bands and attire demanding the resignation of the Principal of the School, Comfort Korsah.

Joy News' Central Region correspondent Richard Kwadwo Nyarko reported the angry students as saying there is open thievery in the kind of levies they have been asked to pay.

The students do not understand why they are paying ridiculously higher fees than other Colleges of Education in the country.

According to them, the Osu College of Education is paying E646.00, Ola College of Education is paying E861.00, Holy Child College of Education is paying E796.00 whilst they are paying 1,218.00

The students claim the school authorities in most cases fail to use the monies for the purpose for which they were collected.

They swore not to pay the new fees describing them as open thievery.

Richard Kojo Nyarko said the school authorities are locked up in a meeting and are yet to comment on the matter.
Centurion (South Africa) (AFP) - Hashim Amla stroked his 25th Test century as he and new cap Stephen Cook batted South Africa into a strong position on the first day of the fourth and final Test against England at SuperSport Park on Friday.

Amla made 102 not out and Cook was unbeaten on 91 as South Africa reached 224 for one at tea. The pair's second wicket partnership was worth 189 at the interval.

Amla, four months younger than Cook but 91 matches richer in Test experience, was back to his fluent best as he reached his century off 131 deliveries with 18 fours.
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Musah Umar Farouq also reports from Wa that about 150 members of Organised Labour in the Upper West Region have participated in a peaceful demonstration in Wa to protest against the recent tariff increases and fuel price hikes.

The demonstrating workers started gathering at 7:15 a.m., and by 8:20 a.m., they were onto the streets. In all, 17 different unions participated in the exercise. Some 60 police personnel were deployed to protect the demonstrators as they embarked on the one hour 45 minutes march through some principal streets in the Municipality.

They later presented a petition, supposedly prepared from their national headquarters in Accra and bearing the name of the General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress, Mr. Kofi Asamoah, although the document remained unsigned.

The Regional Secretary of the Trades Union Congress in the region, Mr. George Kofi Mude, asked the government to slash the increment in utility tariffs by 50 percent for both electricity and water.

He also advised the government to withdraw the Energy Sector Levies Act ( Act 899,2015), which implementation occasioned the steep increases in petroleum prices at the time crude oil prices were tumbling on the international market, and the exchange rate of the Ghana cedi appears stable.

He cautioned the government that any attempt to fix all our economic challenges within a couple of months, or even a year, could result in social instability, with negative implications for both the economy and the policy.

Mr. Mude said IMF policies had never delivered prosperity to any country anywhere in the world, and that the evidence of negative effects of IMF programmes is overwhelming. The march was incident free, and when it ended, Mr. Mude asked the workers to go back to their various work places, since the action was not a strike.

The Deputy Regional Minister, Dr. Musheibu Mohammed Alfa, praised the demonstrators for respecting the ground rules and maintaining discipline during their march, and said his outfit would submit the petition to the appropriate quarters for the necessary redress.

From Musah Umar Farouq
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Hundreds of workers poured out on to the streets of Sunyani to register their discontent with the recent increases in utility tariffs and prices of petroleum products.

Though the number was not as huge as that of the Wongbo demonstration organised against erratic electricity power supply in February, 2015, this was well organised.

It was expected that all workers and some concerned Ghanaians join the nationwide demonstration to compel the government to reverse the tariff and petroleum price increases, but most of the workers were seen clad in red and black attire, standing in front of their work places, waving in solidarity with their colleagues who marched through the streets of Sunyani.

Some of the workers who were clad in red and black outfits, but failed to join in the procession, told The Chronicle that they were apathetic to the march due to the Dead Goat attitude of the President.

They indicated that the President had, on several occasions, demonstrated his insensitivity to the plight of the Ghanaian, and not ready to listen, no matter how hard or loud Ghanaians shout or complain.

Mrs. Charity Obosu, a teacher, narrated that during the Wongbo demonstration there was a clash between the demonstrators and the police, resulting in an injury she sustained, but nothing was done by the government, despite the nationwide cry against the erratic power supply. She, therefore, this time, decided to put on red attire and support them in spirit.

We are unhappy about the new taxes which have brought undue pressure on us and our families, but the experience I had would not let me join the procession; you can see that I am now using a clutch to aid my movement, but all the same, I am in full support of the demonstration, Mr. Prosper Dabo, another demonstration victim told The Chronicle.

The Brong-Ahafo Regional Chairman of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Mr. Jacob Anaba, indicated that the recent increases were unbearable, and that it would be prudent for the government to listen to the cry of Ghanaians and reverse them, or consider what the Labour Unions are demanding for peace to prevail.

He expressed optimism that the government would, this time, listen and reverse the situation, if not the demonstration would be followed by a nationwide strike on January 21 and 22, 2016. The demonstration is just a Yellow Card, he added. Mr. Joseph Kwame Ankamah, Brong-Ahafo Regional Secretary of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) presented the Unions' petition to the Deputy Brong-Ahafo Regional Minister, Justice Samuel Adjei.

From Michael Boateng, Sunyani.
22.01.2016 LISTEN

The call on the government to cause a reversal of the increment in utility and fuel prices, which it is unwilling to grant, is a force, not a request, an incensed immediate past Chairman of the Judicial Service Association of Ghana (JUSAG), Mr. Francis Barkwa, has stated.

In an interview with The Chronicle during a peace march organised by the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Industrial and Commercial Workers Union (ICU) and other groups in Accra yesterday, Mr. Barkwa bemoaned the governments dereliction of the plight of the Ghanaian worker, hurling the caution that, if the President fails to listen, he does so at his own peril.

The judicial staffer could not make sense of the current increase in fuel prices in particular, in spite of the reduction in the prices of the commodity on the world market. The government is there for us. You brought the increment, and we say we cannot pay; as a listening government, you must do something about it, he said, adding that even oil prices have down, but hes gone ahead to increase the prices of fuel. All we are telling him is that we cannot pay.

Mostly clad in red apparel, the demonstrators, quite disappointing in numerical strength, converged at the popular Obra Spot, near the Kwame Nkrumah Interchange in Accra, under the guard of high police presence. The St. John Ambulance was also at post to respond to emergency situations.

The procession, which was themed Organised Labour DemonstrationSuffering in the Land, began at exactly 9.30 a.m. Amidst drumming and dancing, the demonstrators marched past the newly-constructed interchange to link the Kwame Nkrumah Avenue leading to Adabraka, through to the Liberia Road, just behind the headquarters of the TUC, and ended at the Independence Square.

There was a display of various shades of placards, which sought to unveil the frustrated conditions of the workers. Some of the writings on the placards read; Reduce Tariffs Now, Oh Mahama, Why?, Prez Mahama, be Compassionate, Spare us our future politicians and How can this be a Better Ghana?

Others also read, Ebolaic Economic Policies Killing Workers, Ya-Bre, We Need Leaders who can bring Change, We want the utility tariffs cut in half now and The worst form of violence is Poverty.

After about two hours of hitting the streets, the peaceful march was climaxed at the Independence Square, where the Secretary General of the Trades Union Congress, Mr. Kofi Asamoah, addressed the protestors.

The Secretary General was convinced the International Monetary Fund (IMF) coerced the Mahama-led administration to increase the utility tariffs. We are aware of the stick the International Monetary Fund is holding over government following the Extended Credit FacilityWe would like to draw your attention to the social and political implications of such actions that are completely divorced from the realities facing most Ghanaians, he explained.

He also made reference to a Working Group set up by the President to find solutions to the concerns of his members, but which failed to provide satisfactory results. The message we are getting from our participation in the Working Group is that government remains adamant to our demands, he narrated.

The TUC Secretary General asked for a complete withdrawal of the Energy Sector Levies Act (Act 899, 2015). He blamed the act on very steep increases in petroleum prices, at a time when crude oil prices are tumbling on the international market and the exchange rate of the Ghana cedi is relatively stable.

While confessing that Organised Labour was not in denial of the need for some increases in utility tariffs, Mr. Asamoah appealed to the government to reduce the rate of utility tariff increases from their current levels to 50 percent for both water and electricity.

Additionally, the lifeline consumption for water should remain at between 0 and 20 cubic metres, he said. Mr. Haruna Iddrisu, Minister for Employment and Labour Relations, who received the petition on behalf of the President, promised to forward it to him as soon as possible. He used the opportunity to praise the demonstrators for a peaceful and incident-free procession.

While your concerns are legitimate, the decision was taken, not for political expediency or for election purposes, as others are peddling aroundit is to assist in the development of the country, Mr. Iddrisu pointed out.

He assured leaders and participants of the demonstration that the petition would be worked on to see how best their demands could be addressed. Government does not take delight in inflicting pain on the Ghanaian worker, he posited. Continuous on page 12

By Pascal Kafu Abotsi

([email protected])
Malaysian government encouraged purchasing homes, cars, etc ...and even allowed workers to take out money from the Employees Provident Fund(EPF)

And, as a result many Malaysian workers have to repay these loans - where payment is expected by our Malaysian banks every month.

The fact that one has been retrenched, or have lost their job is immaterial - banks will still insist on these monthly payments.

What the Malaysian government can do is to urge banks to allow flexibility with regard these monthly bank loan payments for workers who have been retrenched. Without income, most workers will not be able to meet their financial obligations.

The Malaysian government should ensure that banks will allow retrenched workers the ability to not make these bank payments, or alternatively be able to pay 25% of the amount payable until the retrenched workers gets another job...

Minister warns of retrenchments till 2017, says look for work in other fields

BY NG AI FERN

The human resources minister says retrenchments in Malaysia is expected to go on until 2017 and has advised those worried about losing their jobs to look for work in other fields.  The Malaysian Insider file pic, January 21, 2016. Retrenchments in Malaysia could last until 2017, a Cabinet member said, adding that Malaysians worried about losing their jobs due to the gloomy economic climate should look for work in other fields.

Expecting bad retrenchment in the oil and gas industry in next few months, Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Richard Riot said Malaysians in that sector should look for new jobs as the government could do little about the global economy affected by the plunge in oil prices.

"(Retrenchments) will spill (from oil and gas industry) to other industry such as banking, he told reporters in Kuching today after a ceremony to hand over instruments of authority to the Malaysian Industrial Court president.



The government cannot force employers to employ if the boss has no money to pay their workers. Like it or not, they have to be retrenched. Try to look for other job elsewhere, he said when asked about the government's contingency plans in view of possible retrenchments in the oil and gas sector.

He said the ministry expected retrenchments to continue until 2017.

The Malaysian Insider recently reported that around 20,000 people lost their jobs last year, and more retrenchments were expected this year, according to the Malaysian Employers' Federation.

Riot's comments followed a report that national oil company Petronas was considering retrenchments for some of its 51,000 staff as one of the options as the Malaysian state-owned oil company confronted with the realities of low oil prices.

The firm had been hit by a slump in oil prices, which fell to their lowest since 2003 on Monday.

Prices had fallen over 70% in the past 18 months as exporters around the world pump out over a million barrels of crude every day in excess of demand.

The Edge Weekly previously reported that Shell Malaysia would cut 1,300 upstream jobs over the next two years, adding that job cuts in the oil and gas industry were expected because of the collapse of oil prices.

Riot today referred to the advice to look for a second job to make ends meet, given by Deputy International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan, who earned scorn for his suggestion.

Somebody said that with the price of living so high, look for second job.

"Even finding a first job is already difficult, what more to look for second job, Riot said, although he did not mention Ahmad Maslan's name.

Ahmad Maslan's suggestion, which has its own Twitter hashtag #2kerja, were already a reality for many working class Malaysians who said working two jobs was a necessity in order to provide for their families.  January 21, 2016.

- See more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/minister-warns-of-retrenchments-till-2017-says-look-for-work-in-other-field#sthash.5VjoJ653.dpuf
22.01.2016 LISTEN

The flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Ado Dankwa Akufo-Addo has finally spoken on what The Chronicle considers as the Guantanamo Affair. To him, President Mahama breached the Anti-Terrorism Act (Act 762), which he has sworn to uphold, when he took the decision to bring the two detainees  Mahmud Umar Muhammad Bin Atef and Khalid Muhammad Salih Al-Dhuby into the country.

This law, Nana Addo noted, prohibits the transaction President Mahama entered into with the US government. Section 35 (1) of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 2008, (Act 762), states: The Director of Immigration or an officer authorised by the Director shall not grant an endorsement or authority to permit a person to enter this country if there are reasonable grounds to suspect that the person is, will or has been involved in the commission of a terrorist act.

I would have wished that he (President) had found it worthy to consult both of our two former national leaders before he took this grave decision that has consequences for us all, since he claims that only former President Rawlings and Kufuor have the right to criticize him, the NPP flagbearer noted.

The government, through the Minister of Communications, Dr. Omane Boamah has since reacted to Nana Addo's position on the matter, arguing that the president did no wrong with the decision that he took. The Chronicle cannot determine which of the two parties is telling the truth, because staff of the paper are all laymen when it comes to the interpretation of the law.

Luckily, two Ghanaians have already filed a writ at the Supreme Court seeking proper interpretation of the Act. It would, therefore, be appropriate for both the government and the opposition to cease fire and wait for the outcome of the case. Whilst waiting for the outcome of the Supreme Court writ, the issue of lack of consultation cannot be wished away.

Latest evidence emerging indicates that it was rather the American Embassy in Accra that contacted Nana Addo over the issue. This is contrary to the earlier information that the government did consult the opposition leader.

If the US Embassy found it convenient to contact Nana Addo, it pre-supposes that they were waiting for the government of Ghana to have done so, but the latter was dragging its feet. Whether we like it or not, Ghana has now become a two party state. This means that the likelihood of the largest opposition party forming the next government after election is very high.

It was based on this that the US government was probably expecting the Mahama government to have briefed the opposition. For a foreign country to have seen the need to consult Nana Addo demonstrates the respect they have for opposition parties, but we in Ghana think the opposition is trash and must be treated as such.

As we noted in our Tuesday editorial, since Ghana belongs to us all, the government ought to have done wider consultation before taking the final decision on the matter. The Chronicle concedes that President Mahama is an executive president, but it does not mean he should not consult opposition before taking such a sensitive decision.

Both Presidents Rawlings and Kufuor have not spoken publicly on the matter. It means that they were also not consulted by the government. If this had happened in the US, President Obama would have definitely done a wider consultation, including members of Congress, before taking a final decision.

Clearly, President Mahama made a great mistake in this matter and must, therefore, accept criticisms, following his decision, in good faith. This is one issue that almost all the opinion leaders in the country have spoken against. Is it possible for all of them to have hatred towards the president  certainly not.
Member of Parliament for Klottey Korle Nii Armah Ashittey and one Nii Johnson Coleman have filed a joint suit at an Accra High Court against the Electoral Commission and the Parliamentary Candidate for the area, Dr Zanetor Agyeman Rawlings, challenging the latters legitimacy to contest for a parliamentary seat under the 1992 constitution.

The two who both contested the NDCs constituency Parliamentary election and lost to Dr Zaneto on November 21, 2015, are of view that her election was unlawful as she is not a registered voter in the National Voters register.

The case is expected to be heard on Friday January 29.

An Accra High Court on Friday January 15 dismissed all suit filed against Dr Zaneto Agyeman Rawlings clearing her to contest the upcoming November Parliamentary election.

Some aggrieved members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) had her sued her challenging her election.

The aggrieved members including Joseph Narku Botchway, Jacob Amin, Alhaji Mohammed Mahmud and Reverend Michael Kwabena Nii Adjei Sowah insisted Dr. Zanetor Rawlings, was not qualified to be elected as Parliamentary Candidate of the party because she is not a registered voter in Ghana.

Other defendants in the suit were the NDC and the Electoral Commission.

They had prayed the court to declare the election of Dr. Zanetor Rawlings null and void and order the NDC to conduct fresh elections in the constituency.

But the presiding Judge Patience Mills Tetteh, ruling on the matter dismissed the application on the grounds that the petitioners action amounted to an afterthought, as they should have raised their objection against the candidate after she filed and was running her campaign.

She was of the view that disqualifying Dr Zaneto will be a waste of her (Zaneto)s money as she spent a lot of resources leading to her emerging the winner in the partys primary.
Centurion (South Africa) (AFP) - Hashim Amla stroked his 25th Test century as he and new cap Stephen Cook batted South Africa into a strong position on the first day of the fourth and final Test against England at SuperSport Park on Friday.

Amla made 102 not out and Cook was unbeaten on 91 as South Africa reached 224 for one at tea. The pair's second wicket partnership was worth 189 at the interval.

Amla, four months younger than Cook but 91 matches richer in Test experience, was back to his fluent best as he reached his century off 131 deliveries with 18 fours.

Cook, 33, displayed the old-fashioned virtues of a specialist opening batsman. He left alone balls that threatened danger outside the off stump and was strong off his legs, punctuated by the occasional firm drive through the off side.

In contrast to his father, Jimmy, who was dismissed first ball on his Test debut against India in 1992/93, Stephen Cook scored four off the first ball he faced, a leg side half volley from James Anderson. Jimmy Cook did, however, make a century on his debut against an English team in a 'rebel' international 11 seasons earlier.

A freak catch by James Taylor at short leg was England's only success after South Africa won the toss and decided to bat.

Dean Elgar and Cook put on 35 for the first wicket before Elgar was caught by Taylor off Moeen Ali for 20 when the off-spinner was brought into the attack in the 11th over.

Elgar went for a pull shot and Taylor took avoiding action but the ball lodged between his legs and he was able to grab it before it touched the ground.

Amla was dropped on five when he edged Ben Stokes low to first slip, where Alastair Cook, possibly obscured by diving wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow, put down the chance.

Stephen Cook had a life on 47 when Bairstow again dived in front of Alastair Cook and spilled a difficult chance off Stuart Broad.

Cook was one of five changes from the South African side beaten by seven wickets in the third Test in Johannesburg last week.

Cook was picked ahead of Stiaan van Zyl, batsman JP Duminy replaced Faf du Plessis, while off-spinner Dale Piedt and seamer Kyle Abbott came in for Chris Morris and Hardus Viljoen. Quinton de Kock returned after injury to keep wicket in place of Dane Vilas.

Chris Woakes replaced the injured Steven Finn in the only change in the England team.

England hold a winning 2-0 lead in the series.
Larry Gbevlo Lartey

22.01.2016 LISTEN

Whatever name Lt.-Col. (Rd) Larry Gbevlo Lartey made for himself and the faux-revolutionary party that he represented largely had to do with harassing and terrorizing members of Ghanas main opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP). Then in the latter stages of his tenure, he decided to pick on the outgoing Vice-Chancellor of the countrys flagship academy, Prof. Ernest Aryeetey, over the latters laudable decision and attempt to protect and preserve the quiescent and tranquil academic climate and culture of the University of Ghana from the chaotic din of commercial traffic.

Truth be told: the fact of the matter is that Col. Gbevlo is professionally woefully untested in ways that could not be said of his frontline former counterparts in Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania and Chad, for example. And so one cannot really take him very seriously. He pretty much reminds me of the other septuagenarian security operative, Brig.-Gen. Joseph Nunoo-Mensah, the man who spent a considerable temporal span of his career saluting and genuflecting before Flt.-Lt. Jerry John Rawlings, both in the latters capacity as a serial coup-plotter and a faux-civilianized elected President of Ghana.

Now Gbevlo-Lartey would have Ghanaians accept the patently idiotic premise that the members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Defense and the Interior had absolutely no right to have been let in on the decision by President John Dramani Mahama to accept the two Saudi-born Yemeni citizens who spent some 14 years each in the U.S. Maximum-Security Prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, on charges of terrorist attacks against members of the United States military (See  Consulting Parliament on Gitmos Transfer Irrelevant  Gbevlo Ultimate 1069.com / Ghanaweb.com 1/15/16).

That Col. Gbevlo-Lartey offers absolutely no coherent reasons for denying the legitimately elected representatives of the people information pertaining to the deliberate transplantation of high-risk terrorists within our internationally recognized geopolitical space, is indicative enough of the fact of the former National Security Coordinators being what Americans call a Wuss. In other words, if the Parliamentary Select Committee on Defense and the Interior has absolutely no right to such vital national security intelligence, then precisely why was this committee established? Just to make believe that Ghanaians have representatives in our National Assembly who are watching our backs for us, but who are actually getting cut some fat paychecks only to sit duck?

You see, his glaring problem is that Col. Gbevlo-Lartey thinks that having served in the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) puts him over and above the rest of us who never did dog-walking for Israeli and Palestinian internecine combatants in Lebanon under the specious guise of UN Peacekeeping. I have often said that other than our strip-mall Togolese neighbor, it is very doubtful whether in the event of a full-scale war, the rag-tag Ghana Armed Forces could be counted upon to hold their own.

In my lifetime, the greatest achievement of the Ghana Armed Forces was the February 24, 1966 auspicious ousting of the Nkrumah-led Convention Peoples Party (CPP). For the most part, the members of the Ghana Armed Forces have proven their prowess by roughing up, gang-raping and intimidating Makola Market Women and getting promoted for doing just that!

I also remember the half-Scottish waif using a single World-War II-era jet to reduce the entire capacity of the Ghana Armed Forces to a bunch of full-term pregnant women in an emergency delivery room. Once I actually had a WOII at the old Kumasi 4th Battalion Infantry Barracks confess to me that if his Brigade Commander had ordered his group to move down to Accra to stop Flt.-Lt. Rawlings and his Abongo Boys in the wake of the June 4th Mutiny, he would immediately have tendered his resignation letter. It is quite obvious that the likes of Col. Gbevlo-Lartey have yet to fully appreciate the fact that Fourth-Republican Ghana is a Constitutional Democracy that is regulated by law, order and informed consent.

Needless to say, ours is a civilized society that no longer takes its marching orders from a bunch of gun-toting jungle bunnies who cannot tell the difference between economics and politics. You see, in civilized polities like the United States, Britain, France and Canada, when one talks of national-security experts, the reference is invariably to well-educated Gentlemen Soldiers and their equally erudite civilian counterparts, not Buga-Buga Boys like Col. Gbevlo-Lartey who can barely coordinate a grammatical sentence in just about any language.
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Kenyan forces in Somalia were warned of an impending al-Shabab attack 45 days before the group overran one of their bases, a Somali general says.

Kenya was given clear and reliable intelligence about the threat, General Abas Ibrahim Gurey told the BBC.

The Islamist militants say they killed more than 100 Kenyan troops in the attack, which would make it the deadliest attack on Kenyas army.

The Kenyan military has not given a death toll or responded to Gen Gurey.

In the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, President Uhuru Kenyatta told a memorial service for the fallen soldiers that Kenyan troops would stay in Somalia despite the attack.

We are at war with extremists, terrorists and it is a war we must win. We remain unbowed, Mr Kenyatta told the audience, which included families of the victims and some of the soldiers injured in the attack.

Gen Gurey, who commands Somali troops in Gedo region, where the Kenyan army base is located in the town of el-Ade, told the BBC Somali service that the attack was foreshadowed by a build-up of militants in the area:

We were told that al-Shabab was bringing fighters from all over the regions in south Somalia  from Gedo region, Middle and Lower Shabelle and Juba. They were very strong.

Kenya has said that the bombs used by insurgents at the base were three times more powerful than that used in the 1998 US embassy attack in Nairobi, which killed 224 people.

-bbc
Justice Paul Uuter Dery

22.01.2016 LISTEN

Justice Paul Uuter Dery, one of the High Court Judges implicated in the bribery scandal that hit the judiciary late last year, has described the ruling of Justice Gertrude Torkornoo on his contempt case as biased, and accordingly, wants her ruling quashed by the Supreme Court (SC).

Justice Torkornoo, an Appeals Court judge, was appointed by the Chief Justice to handle suits that were likely to emanate from the judges indicted in the judicial bribery scandal.

Justice Dery, who had been suing all over the judicial space since the alleged bribery video popped out, went to the highest court of the land to seek redress against a ruling by the High Court on a case he filed against Anas, Tiger Eye PI and four others.

He went to the Supreme Court to seek a certiorari to quash the ruling on a contempt case presided over by Justice Torkornoo, who sat in as an additional High Court judge, and to prohibit her from presiding over his cases.

According to the lawyer for Justice Dery, Mrs. Sika Abla Addo, the judge, had been biased and breached the principle of natural justice during her proceedings. When asked by the court to explain what informed her description of the judge as biased, she explained that on the day of the case, they were not given a hearing, indicating that they (the applicants) were not in court.

The court followed the explanation with the question as to whether the judge, while in court, made any comments which showed she was biased or had an interest in the case in any way, or that they mentioned biased simply because they (applicants) were not given a hearing.

The lawyer could not give the court the necessary grounds to buttress her submission, and subsequently asked for leave to withdraw that case. Mrs. Addo withdrew the application after a bombardment of questions from the five-member panel of judges, insisting she gave her grounds for describing the judge as biased.

The lawyer was, therefore, compelled to withdraw in entirety the consolidated cases against investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas, two editors of the New Crusading Guide newspaper, Starr FM Chief Executive Officer Kwabena Anokye Adisi, and Sulemana Braimah of the Media Foundation for West Africa, for contempt.

The five-member SC panel, presided over by Justice Julius Ansah, therefore, struck out the case and adjourned hearing to January 21, 2016.

Background

Justice Paul Uuter Dery petitioned the Chief Justice on the dismissal of his contempt charges brought against ace investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas and four others.

In the petition, Justice Dery asserted that the ruling given by the Court of Appeal judge, Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, contravened his right to be heard. Justice Dery brought the suit on September 18, 2015, citing investigative journalist Anas and four others for contempt.

The application was dismissed by an Accra High Court, holding that since Justice Dery had earlier withdrawn an application for interlocutory injunction to restrain Anas from showing the video, it was legally indefensible for the court to commit the five for contempt.

Derys Writ

Justice Dery wanted the Supreme Court to disqualify Justice Torkornoo, who was specially assigned to preside over all cases relating to the Anas corruption video, from executing her duty.

He demanded: That this Honourable Court make an order prohibiting the trial judge, Her Ladyship, Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, from presiding over suit number AP 228/2015 and AP 232/2015.

The writ, dated October 29, 2015 and filed by his lawyer, Nii Kpakpo Addo, claimed that Justice Torkornoo exhibited bias or a real likelihood of bias when she dismissed his contempt case against the undercover journalist and four others on September 29, 2015, without giving him a hearing.

Contempt

Justice Dery went to the High Court to stop Anas and the four others from publicly screening the said video on September 22 and 23 last year. He said, despite the said applications for both interlocutory and perpetual injunction, Anas and his agents proceeded to do the public screening of the video, leading to the contempt action against them.

Justice Dery contended that Justice Torkornoo breached the audi alteram partem [listen to the other side] principle of natural justice when she dismissed the contempt action suomoto [on her own].

By MaameAgyeiwaaAgyei

([email protected])
22.01.2016 LISTEN

The Communication Director of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Nana Akomea, has expressed shock over the continuous claim by the government and its assigns that Nana Akufo-Addo was consulted six months before the Guantanamo detainees were flown into the country.

According to him, though he had already debunked that claim, people were mischievously lending credence to it.

Speaking to The Chronicle in Accra yesterday, Nana Akomea said the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government had never consulted or spoken to Nana Addo on this matter, contrary to the falsehood being peddled on the airwaves, and that it was rather the US Embassy in Accra that hinted Nana Addo, a day to the arrival of the detainees.

It is the Second in Command at the American Embassy in Accra who met with Nana Addo two weeks ago, on the 5th of January 2016, a day before the detainees arrived in Ghana, and informed him about the agreement between the Americans and President Mahama to settle the detainees in Ghana, and wanted the support of the NPP.

Nana was surprised it was rather the American gov't, and not the Ghanaian government, that will approach him. He, nevertheless, brought the issue to the Steering Committee meeting on Monday January 11th, 2016. The meeting decided not to support the settlement of the detainees in Ghana. A party statement to that effect was agreed to and duly authorised. Nana Addo duly conveyed this decision to the American officials on the 13th of January.

The NDCs contention that Nana Addo was part of the decision is, therefore, a pathetic spin which will achieve nothing. How information on a national issue, not from the NDC government but from American officials, can be equated to consultation and agreement shows the huge desperation the NDC finds itself in. Even senior cabinet ministers (Foreign Affairs and Interior) who are also members of the National Security Council, have confessed they were not fully briefed on the matter, ditto the Attorney General.

It must be stressed that the decision by President Mahama to accept the detainees is hugely unpopular. It has been described as lacking commonsense by the Catholic bishops in Ghana. It also contravenes the law in Ghana, particularly, the Anti-Terrorism Act, section 15. It is a unilateral act by President Mahama, as neither Parliament, the Cabinet nor the National Security Council were briefed (the ministers for foreign affairs and interior are members of the National Security Council, Nana Akomea noted.

President Mahama, he continued, also told the nation that he had consulted widely before deciding to accept the Guantanamo detainees. But his own senior ministers of Foreign Affairs and Interior have said even they were not fully briefed on the matter.

Now these ministers are not only senior CABINET ministers, but are also MEMBERS OF THE NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL (Article 83 clause 1 of the national constitution). It is clear that neither Cabinet nor the National Security Council was fully briefed on this matter. Neither was Parliament. So who did President Mahama do these wide consultations with, Nana Akufo-Addo?

This non-consultation with Ghanaians is in line with President Mahama s assertion that he will take criticism and be accountable to only from ex-Presidents Rawlings and Kufuor. 

The Director of Communication pleaded with Ghanaians to accept that Nana Addo's position the detainees issue had nothing to do with religion, and that it is not a Christians versus Moslems issue. It is a matter of the President breaking the law, not consulting enough, and not acting in the best interest of the country, and causing financial loss, since the tax payers money would be used to cater for the detainees, as announced on the recent TV interview with the US Consular Officer.
We are aware of news reports incorrectly quoting the British High Commissioner, Mr Jon Benjamin, following his radio interview with Live FM on 21 January. Those news reports, which originated on 'ghanapoliticsonline.com' and have been re-circulated by other media agencies (including ghanaweb.com and Ghana's The New Statesman) misquoted Mr Benjamin as saying Ghana must not sleep on security. Mr Benjamin said no such thing. That quotation is a complete fabrication.

When asked about terrorism Mr Benjamin said no one should be complacent. We should be very vigilant because it's a real threat to us all.

When further asked about two former Guantanamo Bay detainees who recently arrived in Ghana, Mr Benjamin stated: This is essentially a bilateral issue between the US and Ghana.

We encourage all media houses who wish to publish news stories regarding the British High Commission to contact us in the first instance to check the facts, including the accuracy of quotations attributed to us.
The Magna Carta Fund for Human Rights and Democracy (MCFHRD) is the FCO's dedicated strategic programme fund supporting UK global human rights and democracy work.

Through targeted projects, MCFHRD aims to further British interests overseas by tackling the root causes of human rights violations, strengthening institutions and governance, supporting the promotion and protection of human rights, democracy and the rule of law. For 2016, Ministers have agreed a new approach to the FCO's human rights and democracy work. The FCO has therefore reconfigured its human rights work around three interconnected themes that provide the basis of our funding strategy:

Democratic values and the rule of law - uphold universal rights, democracy and the rule of law as key building blocks for more secure and prosperous societies; The rules-based international order - support an effective rules-based international order that stands up for universal rights; Human rights for a stable world - promote a more stable world by upholding universal rights in tackling conflict and extremism.

For more detail, please seethe 2016-17 MCFHRD Strategy.

Within these themes the British Embassy in Rabat has focussed on the following priorities:

Freedom of expression; Protection and promotion of women rights; Supporting measures to enable Morocco to meet its OPCAT commitments, including through police reforms.

If you are interested in bidding for funds, please read carefully the guidance contained in the key documents below, ensure that your project has a clear link to one of these priority areas, and submit a concept note to Hamida Bouazza [email protected] 12:00 on 5 February 2016.
The Acting Inspector General of Police has directed the Criminal investigations Department to take over probe into circumstances that led to the death of an innocent man at Nmai-Dzorn in Accra.

The diseased, Isaac Adjei was shot by a police officer yesterday when they visited the area in search of a suspected armed robber.

The suspect, Adeshie Bagadzie who also died during the shootout was suspected to have played a role in the murder of one person.

The person died after a chieftaincy dispute erupted at Teshie during the Homowo festival celebrations last year.

The police therefore sought and obtained a court warrant for Adeshies arrest. At midnight, Wednesday they stormed Nmai-Dzorn, where the suspect was believed be hiding.

Sergeant Adoe reportedly opened fire after Adeshie and Isaac began to attack the police with knives, machetes and other offensive weapons . This led to the death of Adeshie and Isaac.

Sergeant Adoe, has since been detained to help in the investigations.

But the family of Isaac Adjei claims he is innocent and did not attack the police as was put out yesterday.

We are not happy about the information the police put on air yesterday. Isaac is not a criminal. We were sleeping when we heard gunshots, Adolf told Joy News Kwettey Nettey.

He continued that he phoned one of his brothers because I thought armed robbers were attacking residents in the neighbourhood. I tried to phone the police in the area to tell them that there was a robbery incident ongoing and they said they were patrolling elsewhere.

Adolf added that they stayed indoors because the gunshot was continuous and we only came out after the place was quiet. Then we saw blood traces that looked like some bodies had been dragged on the floor.

He said the family hopes that investigation into the incident will be as independent as possible.

As a family, once the police have come to plead with us that they are going to do further investigation and bring punish those people, we will wait. When they come out with something that we are not okay with, we know what to do, he stated.

The Accra regional Police PRO, ASP Afia Tenge says the Acting IGP has also directed that an independent pathologist conduct autopsies on the bodies to help the neutrality of the investigation.

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com| Akosua Asiedua Akuffo| Patrici[email protected]
Kankus Express #4 was cited to the Chattanooga Beer Board meeting Thursday morning because of two violations. Chattanooga Police Officer John Collins saw no beer permit on display when he followed up a complaint that this business did not have a license displayed in a conspicuous location as is required by the citys beer code. While investigating this issue, he discovered a discrepancy in the addresses for the beer, business, tax, and other licenses that this business has obtained.

The problems, said Jay Chaudhari, the supervisor for three Kankus in the Chattanooga area owned by Ramila Chaudhari, was because he had just not paid attention.

All licenses, except the one for selling beer, had an address of 2585 E. 23rd St. The address on the beer license was 2115 Dodds Ave. There has never been a customer entrance on 23rd Street. It was noted that this was a clerical error on the part of the city. After learning of the inconsistencies, Mr. Chaudhari, remedied the address problems and had all licenses changed to 2115 Dodds Ave.

Officer Collins found a copy of the beer permit on display on the second visit he made to the business. Mr. Chaudhari told the board that it had been found in the office, filed in an organizer with the other licenses. Vice Chairman of the board Christopher Keene reminded all present that the purpose of displaying a beer permit in a conspicuous place was so drivers from the beer distributors will know that it is legal to make the delivery. The manager was told it is permissible to display a copy as long as it specifies that the original can be found in the office. A letter of reprimand concerning the license was put in the official file for Kankus Express #4.

Three carry-out beer permits were approved Thursday morning. Walmart Neighborhood Market, 4110 Shallowford Road, will have a grand opening on Jan. 27. This location is one of the few Walmart Neighborhood Markets in the area that will have a convenience store in the parking lot, separate from the Murphy gas station. Beer will be sold both inside the large market as well as from the convenience store. The beer permit that was obtained will cover sales at both outlets. A copy of the license must be displayed at both locations.

Korner Market, 2328 Rossville Blvd., which sells beer and cigarettes, was given a new carry-out license because the business was being transferred to Eunsok No. The store had been owned for the past 10 years by her late husband. The location is closer to a church than 200 feet which is not allowed for a new business. However, Korner Market is grandfathered to sell beer since it was licensed to do so in the past.

A new convenience store, CJR Mart at 4817 Highway 58 that will sell food and tobacco but no gas, was approved for a license. Hours for this business are 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

Make-A-Wish East Tennessee will hold a special event at Stratton Hall, 3146 Broad St. on Feb. 7 from 6 p.m.-11 p.m. This is the 12th year for the event known as Wish Bowl XII which has previously been held at the Aquarium and IMAX Theater. Victoria Love Events will cater the fundraiser and be in charge of all beer sales. Attendance is expected to be 250-300.

The Wrecker Board, made up of members from the Beer Board, removed Lockwoods Auto, a towing company at 2317 Bragg Ave., from the citys rotation list on Jan. 7. This was because of an excessive pattern of accepting a call, then cancelling after too much time had elapsed. This is unacceptable, said Chairman of the Board Ron Smith, because quick response is needed in order to clear traffic. The city guidelines allow 30 minutes to open roads for a simple wreck or arrest.

Statistically, according to TDOT, when traffic backs up one mile there will be another wreck that causes a death due to the stopped traffic.

Longtime owner of the business, Ken Lockwood, was accompanied to the Wrecker Board meeting by John Raines, a recent employee of the business. Mr. Lockwood said that due to debilitating injuries caused by a wreck, he could no longer operate the business himself. He has been taking calls at his home from the city dispatcher and relayed the messages to Mr. Smith who works as the driver. Messages were not always being received in a timely manner, and one driver was not capable of responding to all the calls in the 30-minute time limit.

Mr. Raines told the board that his father has joined the business and there are now two drivers and two trucks. Mr. Lockwood was also told that calls should go directly to the drivers. The vice chairman told Mr. Raines to run this business as if it is your own. He advised him to take care of Mr. Lockwood, who is unable to take care of the business himself.
The latest reshuffle of government appointees and ministers has left many people at sea as to the true motive of such an exercise at this juncture. The million-dollar question that begs for answers is whether this reshuffle was done with the interest of the people of Ghana in mind, or whether it was done for political expediency so as to enhance the crippling and ever-diminishing chances of the NDC and President John Mahama.

The people of Mamprugu have gotten the answer to the question posed above. The reshuffle is politically expedient in the thinking of President Mahama and his NDC. Majority of us in the great Mamprugu kingdom believe that President John Mahama only sees us as election winning machinery undeserving of development or political appointment.

However, when information begin to get to them about the intentions of the people to pay them back in kind in the upcoming elections for neglect, then President John Mahama is kind enough to give us a token- a nine month Northern Regional Minister in the person of Hon. Abubakari Abdallah.

For the eight years that NDC has been in power, no one from Mamprugu has occupied any meaningful position in government, especially under President John Mahama. It must be noted that there are three major kingdoms in northern Ghana in terms of heritage, dominion and population. These kingdoms are Mamprugu, Dagbon and Yagbon. The President of Ghana is a proud son of Yagbon just like Hon. Limuna, John Jinapor etc. They all occupy sensitive positions in government. Dagbon is represented in government through appointees such as Hon. Haruna Iddrisu, Hon. Inusah Fuseini, Hon. A.B.A. Fuseini, and Hon. Mohammed Murtala etc. Until this week, Mamprugu had only one deputy ministerial appointee in John Mahamas government. It is instructive to note that no Mamprusi, or, anyone from Mamprugu has served in both President Mills and President Mahamas Cabinet for the last eight years.

Before the emergence of Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the Mamprugu constituencies were a no go area for NPP. However, in President Kufuors Cabinet, Hon. Hajia AlimaMahama, a proud daughter of Mamprugu was a regular feature. Hon. Ben Bukari Salifu, Awudu Yiremeah etc were also Regional Ministers. The difference in treatment of the NPP government then, and the NDC government now, lies in the fact that whereas the NPP sees Mamprugu as a partner in development, the NDC only sees Mamprugu as an election winning tool.

The NPP appointed sons and daughters of Mamprugu into key positions without recourse to the political capital it will score. The NPP constructed our roads as a duty unto them but not for electoral gains. The NPP gave as Nurses Training College without us even asking. The teaming youth of Mamprugu were employed under NPP, most of whom are now unemployed under President John Mahama.

We the youth of Mamprugu are aware that there is a scheme designed by the NDC and especially President John Mahama to do whatever it takes to win all the five seats of Mamprugu- the backyard of Dr. Bawumia in an attempt to humiliate him. We are aware that the President remarked in one of such crunch strategic meetings that I prefer to win all the Mamprugu seats and lose the general elections than to win the general elections and lose the Mamprugu seats. Why is President John Mahama so desperate for our seats?

Has Tullow discovered oil reserves in Mamprugu that we dont know of? If Mamprugu is such an important kingdom to him and his party, why have they abandoned the numerous road projects initiated by the erstwhile NPP administration? Why did it take John Mahama and NDC more than 7 years to recognize a citizen of Mamprugu capable of manning a ministry as the substantive minister? Why is it that the Walewale-Bunkpurugu road which he promised in 2012 to complete by 2014 if given the mandate has not been started after almost completing his tenure? Where is the Midwifery School he promised the people of Walewale to be precise? Why is it that President Mahama is not interested in the clinker deposits in Gbangdaa after several appeals to him? Why it is that he is willing to violate his own partys constitution just to field a parliamentary candidate who he believes will pose a major threat to the NPPs Dr Sagre? If the people of Mamprugu come into contractual agreement with him and his party, wont they violate the terms of the contract like theyve done to their partys constitution by fielding an ineligible 2012 PNC Parliamentary Candidate as NDC candidate for this years elections? Were there not more qualified NDC members who have toiled with the party since its inception and are more competent for him to appoint as ministers instead of the latter day saints like Hon. Abubakari Abdallah? Why did Hon. S.S Nayina not last long as the Northern Regional Minister? Why was he not reshuffled to the Jubilee House like all others under his government? How many citizens of Mamprugu have been appointed as Board Members or Chairmen of Boards in his government? How many have been appointed Ambassadors or High Commissioners? Why is it that no one from Mamprugu has been given scholarship under GETFUND since he came to power? Is it because we are not worthy of the scholarship or it is a deliberate act to curtail the growth of Mamprugu intelligentsia? Does he really think we will make another mistake by trading a Vice-President and possible Cabinet Ministers for a token as a nine months regional ministerial appointment? If the appointment of Hon. Abubakari Abdallah is not a token to the people of Mamprugu and is also not for political expediency, why was he not appointed as the substantive Minister for Agriculture so that he will get the opportunity of serving in your cabinet as a representative of Mamprugu? and finally; If he truly believes that being Vice-President and now President has been a blessing to especially the people of Yagbon, why is it that he is bent on scuttling the chances of a citizen of Mamprugu ever ascending to his position so that he will also be a blessing to us?

If the president and the NDC are able to answer these questions creditably, we might contemplate voting for them. However, Im assured that if ever they dared answering these questions posed above, their performance will be worse than theyve managed in the economy.

In conclusion, I want to call on the people of Mamprugu to rise up and be counted. Let us send a strong signal to politicians that we have grown in politics and are not prepared any longer to accept tokens as our share of the national cake. Let us also rally behind our kinsmen vying for positions at the top and not our kinsmen willing to accept tokens from the top. NDC and John Mahama have betrayed the trust we had in them. Our kinsman, Dr. Bawumia without any doubt will relieve us from our hardships and neglect if elected into power. Lets support our own that is competent. Doing so is not tribalism but realism. Supporting a tribes mate who is incompetent and corrupt is tribalism.

DR. BAWUMIA WILL NEVER BE SHAMED. INSHA ALLAH.

Long live Mamprugu, Long live Dr. Bawumia and Long live Ghana.

Seidu Banse
22.01.2016 LISTEN

The Chief Executive Officer of Koans Building Solution, Kofi Anokye has advised enraged Ghanaians to cut-short the calls for the return of the two admitted former Guantanamo inmates because it possesses a greater security threat to our nation if curried out.

According to him, the call is a misguided one because it will send a signal to terrorist groups and Islamic extremist that we discriminate against them and therefore qualified as one of their enemies.

Speaking exclusively to Ghnews360.com, Mr Anokye who was awarded by the World Business Assembly for his contribution to the real estate sphere in Africa was of the view that the safest approach would have been outright rejection of the proposal by government.

As it stands now, the whole world, including the terrorist groups will be monitoring the situation and analysing it, if we return these guys now, it will first hurt our relationship with the America and also position us as enemies of these groups

We will be left in the middle without much protection from the US and also in the wrong books of terrorist organisation

Mr Anokye who was also unhappy about the involvement of Christian Organisations was of the view that  given the mere fact that the inmate are identified as Muslims, any position from Christian groups would send the signal that they are being discriminated against on religious grounds and that is one thing that incites hatred from terrorist groups

At the moment, Ghana is not a target of terrorist groups and I want to say on authority as someone abreast with security matters that if we were or are target of terrorists, they wouldnt need these guys here to carry out their agenda

He continued, theyd rather bring in unknown people whose presence here will not evoke any kind suspicion and brouhaha like this has to carry out their mission as they do everywhere

They have done it in UK, they have done in America, they have done it in France and can easily do it here if Ghana is a target but we risk being one depending on how we handle the issue. He added.

He was however bemused by the fact that President Mahama took matters into his hands without proper consultation and involvement of key figures like the Foreign Minister and the Minister of Involvement

According to him, had the president consulted his own trusted men adequately, they would probably have cautioned him against the whole deal and the fact that it would render his government very unpopular before Ghanaians.

The decision is a poor political one and Ghanaians will for the foreseeable future not forgive President Mahama if something happens regardless of what decision is taken concerning the guys from hence

He concluded by calling on Ghanaians to try as much as possible to give the guys the support they need to feel at home so that after two years, they leave the country with more positives memories because after 14 years in custody, they need an enabling environment to enable them bring their lives back on track and make positive decisions about what to do with their future.

Most people return to their old lives when they are discriminated against or looked down upon by society and these guys, as human as they are, regardless of their purported past are not an exception
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Tamale, Jan. 22, GNA - The Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) has called on the government and its donor partners in the country to invest more in constructing irrigation facilities to ensure that farmers were engaged in all-year-round agricultural activities.

Dr Kwesi Ampofo, Ghana's Country Director for AGRA said the rainfall pattern in the country has significantly affected food production and security, which calls for adoption of various methods including irrigation to improve the situation.

He said due to climate change, which has caused the rainfall patterns to change, AGRA as part of its new strategic plans, would work with NASA to get a satellite system to provide ready information on weather patterns to farmers to enable them predict the right planting seasons.

Dr Ampofo who was addressing participants on the closure of AGRA's Value Change and Financing Project said the 2015-2020 strategic plans of the organization would focus more on collaborative partnership in transforming agricultural productivity for smallholder farmers in Africa to reduce food insecurity.

The Value Chain and Financing Project, which was implemented by the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) from 2011 to 2015 in the Northern Region and was financed by Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA) through AGRA and other partners.

Dr Ampofo said the organization has made significant impact in the agricultural sector by increasing crop yields of maize, soyabean, rice and maize, stressing that its mission and vision for the coming years would remain the same but would adopt more innovations that would improve the standard of living of farmers to reduce poverty significantly.

He indicated that its new areas of focus would be in West Africa, East Africa and Southern Africa saying, 'In Ghana, our focus will be in the Northern and Brong Ahafo Regions'.

Dr. David Sarfo Ameyaw, Director for Strategic Monitoring and Evaluation for AGRA, Nairobi, Kenya indicated that the project, which was implemented at the cost of $16 million gave credits to farmers as well as inputs, equipment and access to marketing centres.

He said over 70,000 farmer households benefited directly and indirectly from the project explaining that agro dealers, small scale and medium enterprises and all benefited in capacity building while 385 demonstration plots were set up as training grounds for farmers.

He indicated that the project increased the yields of farmers to an average of 3.2 metric tons of all the crops under the project and that the best way for the government to reduce poverty and unemployment was to improve investment in agricultural sectors.

Dr Ameyaw said the gains the country made in the agricultural sectors in the past could be doubled if roads and access to markets were considered significantly while research and innovational methodologies were also addressed.

Mr Isaac Kankam-Boadu, Project Manager for ADRA Ghana's Integrated Agricultural Production Improvement and Marketing Project (INTAPIMP) said inoculant fertilizer was highly used on the field and that results showed that the combination of composed and chemical fertilizer improved yield.

He advised farmers to adopt direct and transplanting methods during planting instead of broadcasting their seeds and explained that broadcasting reduced productivity.

Mr Kankam-Boadu said many farmers acquired tractors and other farm equipment through the project and noted that it was surprising that many farmers quickly adopted innovative farming despite their illiterate backgrounds and called for the need for more extension services to be extended to farmers in rural areas.

Mr Sylvester Adongo, an agriculturalist, urged AGRA to focus its attention on the poultry sub-sector since that area holds great potential for growth and productivity. GNA
Accra, Jan. 22, GNA - Mr John K. Kudalor, Acting Inspector General of Police (IGP) has hailed the activities of non- governmental organisations, assisting to ensure the maintenance of national peace and integration.

He gave the commendation when a seven-member delegation of the Worldwide Council of Prophetic Alliance (WCPA) and Christian Intelligence Bureau (CIB) paid a courtesy call on him to congratulate him over his appointment

The delegation led by Prophet Daniel Asamaoah-Larbi, President of WCPA and CIB and the IGP discussed the criminal activities of some people who masquerade as members of the clergy to indulge in criminal activities.

The meeting also talked about the challenges that arise due to the communication gap between the government and the clergy.

Prophet Asamoah-Larbi said the CIB was therefore created to assist the law enforcement agencies to bridge the gap and help bring Christians who commit crime to face the necessary sanctions.

He said the two councils exist to play an intermediary role in order to maintain good communication and help reduce crime among the clergy and the church as whole.

He said both councils are poised to embark on a scheduled routine visits to other bodies related to the Christian faith in order to champion the good course.

GNA
Accra, Jan. 22, GNA - President John Dramani Mahama has directed that all Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMCEs) pursuing academic and other short courses should defer such programmes with immediate effect.

A statement issued in Accra on Thursday by Mr Collins Duada, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development has asked Regional Ministers to inform all MMDCES in their regions to strictly comply with the directive.

It cautioned that affected MMDCEs who flout the directive would 'have themselves to blame'. GNA
Accra, Jan. 22, GNA - Mrs Elisabeth Ofosu-Adjare, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, says security and safety issues are prerequisite for improving competitiveness of any tourism destination.

She said the Ministry is working very closely with all social partners, including the Ministries of the Interior and its agencies, Transport and its agencies to promote security

A statement issued from the Ministry Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, said the Minister was speaking at the United Nation World Tourism Organisation High Level Meeting on Tourism security, Madrid, Spain.

She said strict regulation and supervision of Car Hiring Companies and Travel and Tour Companies by the Ghana Tourism Authority, is part of measures put in place to ensure safety of domestic and international tourists.

Mrs Ofosu Adjare said Air Transport Security and Safety is strictly adhered to by the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority for both international and domestic flights.

The continuous improvement in health delivery and health care facilities across the country by the Government is also part of measures to ensure security and safety of the public and tourists.

She said another area of ensuring tourism security, is to address credit cards fraud and related scams, which the central bank, financial institutions, hotels and supermarkets have put in place appropriate mechanism to forestall.

Mrs Ofosu Adjare revealed that a non- governmental Organisation has re-launched the Tourism Security and Safety Initiatives with the involvement of key public and private relevant bodies to ensure security and safety of all our tourists.

'The Initiative is coming out with a Special Tourism Police who will support security and safety issues of tourists,' the statement added.

GNA
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Accra, Jan. 22, GNA - The Cement Manufacturers Association of Ghana (CMAG), has called for a halt in importation of bagged cement because of its negative consequences on the economy and the local cement manufacturing industries.

A statement issued Reverend Dr George Dawson-Amoah of the association and copied to the Ghana News Agency said bagged cements from China are under-declared and therefore a huge loss to the economy and jeopardy to the established local cement industries.

Since April 2015, the association had petitioned the Ministry of Trade, Tariff Advisory board, Commissioner of Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, Parliament Select Committees of Finance and Trade/Industry on the alarming influx of imported bagged cement.

The statement said Ghana does not need imported cement because the local cement manufacturers have the adequate installed capacities to sustain employment, honour financial contributions, add value, use local raw materials, maintain required quality standards and meet the growing cement demands.

Members of the local cement manufacturers, comprising Ghacem Limited, Diamond Cement Ghana, Savanna Diamond Cement and Western Diamond Cement, together have installed capacities of about 7.4 million tonnes per annum, whereas the current consumption is only five million tonnes per annum, leaving a surplus capacity of more than two million tonnes.

The CMAG said the menace poses a set back and a challenge to the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Association of Ghana industries' promotion of Made- in- Ghana products.

It noted that the cost and freight values of imported cement are ridiculously under declared indicating figures as low as between $ 25 and $ 30 per tonne are declared as cost and freight from China.

"As seasoned manufacturers of cement with international links, CMAG certainly knows that these figures are incorrect, and attention have been drawn to the Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ghana Revenue Authority and the Tarrif Advisory Board."

A total of about 500,000 tonnes bagged cement have been imported into the country and CMAG dares to say there is revenue loss of more than GHa50 million using those ridiculous cost and freight values.

The cement industry contributes more than GHa600million annually in terms of duties and taxes to the state.

GNA
Accra, Jan 22, GNA - Forty two mothers of the Adabraka Polyclinic Pregnancy School who delivered safely with little complication during their 38 weeks of pregnancy have graduated in Accra on Thursday.

This is the maiden graduation since the school started on the 12th of February, 2015.

Mrs Rose Victoria Akuaku, Deputy Director of Nursing, who chaired the event, said it is not easy to walk through nine months of pregnancy but all the same it comes with the joy of carrying your child when you successfully go through it.

'I appreciate all the women who made it a point to delve deeper into how their body changes during pregnancy and having taken good care of themselves and their babies and hope that it will continue to reduce maternal and infant mortality,' she said.

Speaking at the event, Madam Esther Jucanida Benefo, Staff Midwife at the Adabraka Polyclinic urged the mothers that the school is to empower women in their reproductive stages and their partners with the knowledge to improve maternal and new-born outcomes in the country.

She said one of the major challenges is partner support for the mothers but their aim is to educate both partners on pregnancy related issues in order to help them understand themselves in that period.

Madam Benefo appealed to individuals and organisations to support them with logistics and teaching materials to promote effective teaching and learning sessions.

Topics that were treated are danger signs in pregnancy, prevention of anaemia, management of minor disorders, exclusive breastfeeding, indication for Caesarean section, and family planning, she added.

Mercy Tagoe, a participant said the school had been of great help to her in terms of childcare and how to manage herself, partner and the home during and after pregnancy.

I delivered successfully due to the in-depth knowledge i was taught at the school and now am safe, healthy and free, she added.

Veronica Siaw, a participant was grateful to the nurses who took time out of their schedules to educate them as they had their health at heart.

She encouraged all expectant mothers to make it a point to attend antenatal frequently and go to the pregnancy school for more insight on pregnancy and their body.

The certificates presented to them were signed by Dr. Oduro-Mensah, former Head of the Adabraka Polyclinic and Madam Esther Jucanida Benefo, Staff Midwife at the Adabraka Polyclinic.

GNA
Buhari

22.01.2016 LISTEN

As an avowed Pan-Africanist, I have now developed a new kind of Afro-political concept through deep reflections. "Buharism" is a case for revolutionary African leadership in this 21st Century, where the propitious economy of Africa is tipped to emerge as a global power by 2050.

However, the diabolical state of contemporary African leadership across Africa's political spectrum continues to make the aforementioned vision a mirage. Yes, postcolonial Africa has seen a few revolutionary leaders like Kwame Nkrumah, Thomas Sankara and co whose leadership styles have had far-reaching effects on the foundations of their respective nations. Okay, that is just a piece of Pan-African history worth sharing. Yet the leadership of Muhammadu Buhari, incumbent president of Nigeria, is no less than revolutionary.

Can we find another African leader of his calibre today? Folks, I seek not to butter him up, so that I look like a sycophantic blogger. In fact, Muhammadu Buhari, the 73 year old erstwhile military ruler of Nigeria in the mid-1980's, is simply an incorruptible-cum-disciplinary leader whose creed is not greed but social justice. Indeed, economic prosperity for all and sundry in his native Nigeria is his endless passion as Nigeria's current president. "Africa's inability to identify its developmental problems and design an appropriate development programme is the reason for the poverty that has engulfed the continent" (Asare-Bediako and Asare-Bediako, 2007). But Mr. Buhari has defied the odds by clearly committing his presidency to ruthlessly solving the complex Nigerian crises. And the populous Nigerian nation of about 170 million people where 110 people are believed to be wallowing in poverty, still hold on to their reposed trust in the man of action.

Surprisingly, sources indicate that under the previous PDP administration, an estimated $150 billion went missing - this accounts for about 26% of Nigeria's GDP in 2014. Again, "Oil provides 70 percent of Nigeria's government revenue, but it is an industry plagued with malfeasance. Two years ago, the Central Bank reported $20 billion in missing oil-related funds," according to m.csmonitor.com. Also, the present government claimed that 55 people stole more than $6 billion between 2006 and 2013.

With these staggering corruption figures, I can only opine that "corruption" is a nice word for the financial evils in Africa. Personally, I term them as stealing of unspeakable measure, to tell the truth! Oh why won't bigoted white supremacists call for the recolonisation of Africa, the land of enormous economic thefts?

But we thank God for one man, Muhammadu Buhari, who is bent on uncovering such despicable crimes while combating them at all costs! For I read on a certain Ghanaian news website that in a particular week, the Buhari government had recovered not less than N5 billion. Look! This man means business unlike the majority of incompetent and corrupt African presidents we know of.

He once declared that, "Government is determined to secure the country, manage the economy, create employment and fight corruption. Some articulate writers have said that if we do not kill corruption, corruption will kill Nigeria. This APC administration intends to kill corruption in Nigeria. We will do our best, I assure you. We are getting the facts and logistic requirements together," according to naij.com.

Meanwhile, Mr. Buhari has also dedicated himself to the fight against Boko Haram in Nigeria. He once tweeted that, "The enemies of humanity will never win. Hand to hand, we will rid our land of terrorism." And the Nigerian security forces are also working hard in disarming Boko Haram militants.

The ex-General is highly capable of drastically reducing the canker of terrorism in northern Nigeria. Moreover, the Islamic adherent insisted that there is no room for gay rights in Nigeria during a meeting with Barrack Obama at the White House. That is Buharism at work in Nigeria; I believe and thus propound Buharism, a case for revolutionary African leadership! I therefore salute President Muhammadu Buhari for his priceless works in Nigeria.

Source: sirarticle.blogspot.com
Former Foreign Affairs Minister Alhaji Mohammed Mumuni has jumped to the defence of government over the decision to accommodate two ex-Guantanamo Bay detainees in the country.

The Mahama-led administration is struggling to convince an increasingly doubtful Ghanaian public that the presence of the former detainees will cause no harm to the country.

The two Yemenis are in the country at the instance of the US government. The Americans have assured the two pose no security threat to the nation.

Ghanas opposition leader Nana Akufo-Addo has backed numerous calls for the former terror suspects to be returned. Akufo-Addo has described the decision to accept them as illegal, accusing President Mahama of breaching the anti-terrorism act .

Commenting on the matter, the Secretary General of the African Caribbean and Pacific Nations told Starr News government did no wrong in granting humanitarian assistance to the two.

Quite clearly, I think that terrorism is a global scourge and we must not make a mistake of seeing Ghana in seclusion from the entire globe. Its a global scourge and we must see our security in the context of the whole world.

...I believe that Government is very committed. And if government went into this discussion, into this conversation and eventually took the decision, they must really have done that having evaluated all the concerns, all the risks and having come to the conclusion that they were in the position to monitor these two individuals effectively for the two years to render them innocuous even if they were disposed to violence, he said.

The former vice Presidential candidate of the ruling party also took on the opposition NPP for its stance on the matter.

I think that they were just playing politics and they were overdoing it as a matter of fact. Clearly, they were not evaluating or looking at the issues purely from an objective stand point.

He added also that the argument about the Interior minister being kept in the dark about the acceptance of the two detainees is moot.

You see, a lot has also been made about that fact that the Interior minister said he was not part of the consultation leading to the decision... I think thats neither here nor there. The president is the head of state, he is an executive president and he was fully in the know as he himself has justified.
Organized labour has held a massive demonstration in the 10 regional capitals of Ghana to demand an end to the tyranny of government and the dwindling fortunes of Ghanaian workers.

The leadership of the striking workers has expressed outrage at the recent bizarre increases in the price of utilities-water and electricity.

The more than 5000 demonstrators drawn from the workers unions of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) have also called for a full disclosure of the agreement signed between the government of Ghana and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Following the recent bailout of government by the Bretton Woods institution, spokespersons of government have dropped hints about a possible takeover or sale or privatization of the Electricity Company of Ghana.

The move will also lead to the partition of the Volta River Authority into two entities in order to create space or allow for the participation of private businesses.

In the middle of the confusion, Ghana has been yet to determine the ownership of the Volta Aluminium Company Limited (VALCO). The company siphons much of the energy that is produced by the VRA to the detriment of ordinary Ghanaian citizens.

Meanwhile, Mr Joel Touhas-Bernate, Mission Chief of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for Ghana, says the increase in electricity tariffs reflected a new reality for Ghana.

He said the global environment with declining commodity prices and tightening in international markets has lead to higher borrowing costs and therefore the need to raise revenues locally.

According to him, the increase in tariff was necessary while steps are being taken to improve electricity supply by bringing in new producers.

What this brilliant White man sitting in Washington with a cup of hot coffee in hand is simply trying to say is that, in order for private companies to find the energy sector lucrative for investment, the power sector must be restructured to pay for existing debts and to maximize profit for the new comers.

Unfortunately, what Ghanas President, John Dramani Mahama and his administration is refusing to recognise is that all decisions of government have political implications.

What is worse, these protests by organized labour are coming at a time when the country is gearing up for a heated general election on the 7th of November 2016 amidst rising levels of unemployment.
Accra, January 22, 2016 - Vodafone Ghana has moved to ensure that businesses can now focus on their core activities rather than worry about the hustles of securing an effective internet solution delivery.

In a country where companies and, particularly, SME businesses are always looking for smarter ways to work, an integrated mobile service solutions are highly sought after. Most businesses need a constant provision of data with guaranteed speed levels to ensure efficiency and productivity in their areas of work.

Being on the constant lookout for ways to ensure customers and companies receive unmatched experience, Vodafone has introduced a new package, Dedicated Internet Lite, to enable companies enjoy reliable internet service at all times.

The package guarantees a speed range from 512kbps to 2Mbps of bandwidth during peak hours between 10am  4pm and can be delivered over various media such as copper, fibre or radio. There are no restrictions on monthly usage or additional charges for large files; whiles it also delivers access to unlimited downloads.

Commenting, Angela Mensah-Poku, Head of Vodafone Business Solutions  the enterprise arm of the telecom company - said:As a business operating in the current telecommunications landscape, we need to be constantly innovative. Our customers, especially the SMEs, represent the very essence of what we stand for and that to us is a big deal. The Dedicated Internet Lite product is certainly another creative way to ensure our customers are up to date with modern trends. It is our way of making sure they are a Ready Business.

Vodafone Business Solutions (VBS) has been a consistent leader in the enterprise space in the telecommunications sector in terms of revenue, creativity and innovation. Over the years, it has received several awards including the Telecom Business of the Year at the 2015 Ghana Telecom Awards (GTA).
The Accra Regional Police Commander has called for the establishment of a Police Independent Compliant Commission to ensure objectivity in cases involving police officers.

The PRO for the Accra Regional Police, ASP Afia Tenge told Joy News that establishment of the commission will help in times where innocent lives are lost during Police operations.

This comes after one Sergeant Adoe shot and killed an innocent man, Isaac Adjei in while pursuing an alleged murderer, Adeshie Bagadzie.

Sergeant Adoe reportedly opened began firing after Adeshie and Isaac began to attack the police with knives, machetes and other offensive weapons.

The unfortunate incident happened at Nmai-Dzorn, a suburb of Accra at midnight on Wednesday, January 20 when the police visited the area.

But the family of Isaac Adjei claims he is innocent and did not attack the police as was put out.

We are not happy about the information the police put on air yesterday. Isaac is not a criminal. We were sleeping when we heard gunshots, Adolf told Joy News Kwetey Nartey.

The Sergeant has however been detained by the police to help in the investigations.

The family said they hope the investigation into the incident will be as independent as possible.

The Acting Inspector General of Police has directed the Criminal investigations Department to take over probe into circumstances that led to the death of Isaac Adjei.

The Greater Accra regional Police Command believes when an independent commission will help in investigation of a case as this.

I believe that everybody will have a fair and common background to play and help give a clear picture of the incident, ASP Afia Tenge said.
The incumbent Member of Parliament for Klottey Korle Constituency in the Greater Accra Region has filed a suit against Dr Zanetor Rawlings winner of the recently held NDC Parliamentary primaries.

Nii Armah Ashietey who filed a joint suit with Nii Johnson Coleman at the Accra High Court is praying the court to restrain Dr Rawlings from holding herself out as Parliamentary candidate elect for the NDC.

Mr Ashietey was defeated in the November 2015 primaries by the daughter of ex-president John Rawlings but there are claims Dr Rawlings did not have a valid voter's register which is a requirement for one to be elected into the position of an MP.

The embattled MP is among others seeking the following reliefs.

A declaration that the decision by the NDC to allow the Dr Zanetor Rawlings to contest parliamentary primaries in the Klottey-Korle Constituency when she was not a registered voted within the meaning of Article 94 (1) (a) of the 1992 constitution at the time of the said contest, violates the constitution and the internal regulations governing the conduct of the parliamentary primaries of the NDC and same is illegal and of no effect.

2. A declaration that the Dr Zanetor Rawlings election as a parliamentary Candidate elect for the Klottey-Korley Constituency is null and void and is of no effect as same violates the constitution of the NDC and the rules governing the conduct of the 216 parliamentary primaries.

3. An order of injunction restraining the Dr. Zanetor, agents, privies, assigns or anyone claiming through her from holding herself out or allowing herself to be held out by the other defendants as Parliamentary Candidate-elect for Klottey Korle Constituency until the matters in dispute are heard and disposed of by this honourable court.

4. An order of court directed at the NDC for a re-run of the parliamentary primaries in Klottey Korle Constituency between the plaintiffs in accordance with its constitution and the regulation governing the 2016 parliamentary primaries within one week of the annulment of the 2nd defendants election.

It will be the second time the parliamentary aspirant elect is being sued barely three months after winning the contest.
London, Jan. 22, GNA - The swift response by the Sierra Leonean government to the death from Ebola of a 22-year-old female student in Sierra Leone has been due to the work the UK has undertaken in the country, the British Secretary of State for International Development, Justine Greening, has told parliament in London.

The young woman died on January 12 in the Northern Province district of Tonkolili, soon after the World Health Organisation had declared the Ebola outbreak in West Africa over once Liberia reached 42 days without a new case.

The case in Sierra Leone was identified from a swab taken after the woman died and is currently being investigated.

Ms Greening told British MPs: 'This latest case of Ebola in Sierra Leone demonstrates that we need to stay vigilant.

She said this was 'not unexpected given the context of this unprecedented outbreak'.

'The government of Sierra Leone have activated their national Ebola response plan, and rapid work is under way to identify and quarantine people who have been in contact with the young woman and to establish her movements in the final days and weeks before her death.

'Teams in five districts are acting on this information. No other cases have been confirmed to date,' Ms Greening said.

She added: 'The speed of this process reflects the work that the UK has undertaken with the government of Sierra Leone to develop their national response plan.

'The UK has been at the forefront of the global response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa from the very start, leading in Sierra Leone and working hand-in-hand with the government of that country.

'We took on this deadly disease at source by rapidly deploying the best of British military personnel and NHS [National Health Service] staff, building treatment centres in a matter of weeks and mobilising the international response.

'We have worked with the government of Sierra Leone to build up their health systems and strengthen all aspects of society, including civil society, to allow them to be prepared.

'We continue to stand by Sierra Leone, because we have always been clear that there is potential for further cases.

'That is precisely why our response is now focused on assisting Sierra Leone in isolating and treating any new cases of Ebola before they spread,' Ms Greening added.

The death came as Sierra Leone launched a national consultation on Wednesday to help the country's small and medium enterprises (SMEs) reach new export markets, and re-orient an economy still reeling from the Ebola crisis towards sustainable growth.

The stakeholder consultation in Freetown will look at ways to improve industrial product packaging in key sectors such as agriculture, agro-processing and manufacturing, to increase production and boost competitiveness.

A major outcome will be the formulation of a strategic action plan for Sierra Leone's packaging industry, developed by the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Sierra Leone Investment and Export Promotion Agency (SLIEPA).

Paulo Kautoke, Director of Trade at the Commonwealth Secretariat in London, which is supporting the government's consultation, reiterated the Commonwealth's commitment to support Sierra Leone's economy recovery by improving its export packaging.

'Good quality packaging and labelling is of critical importance to improving the competitiveness of Sierra Leone's exports, to enable the country to increase its market access,' he said.

'That's why it is important that key stakeholders, particularly the private sector, have a forum and mechanism to discuss and plan the packaging needs of industry.'

The consultation will involve discussion of a study by the Commonwealth Secretariat which identified poor packaging as a serious impediment to Sierra Leone's ability to export to global markets.

The study found that a lack of national capacity in product packaging has been compounded by the fallout from the Ebola crisis which, according to the World Bank, resulted in a loss to the three affected countries - Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia - of at least $2billion in economic growth in 2014/2015.

Raymond Kai Gbekie, Chief Executive of SLIEPA, said the initiative would help SMEs to emerge from traditional subsistence activities into higher value-added industrial manufacturing, agriculture and food processing activities.

'When SMEs are able to connect to international markets, either directly or by supplier linkage programmes, the prospects for growth of the economy and job creation are particularly high,' Mr Gbekie said.

'We are particularly excited about this project because our current strategy focuses on the promotion of sustainable supply chains as a means of helping SMEs add value to their products and services.'

GNA
Accra, Jan 22, GNA - The Global Evangelical Church (G.E.C.) has launched a unique Wrist Band dubbed 'Abstinence Till Marriage (ATM) for its overwhelming youth at a ceremony held at the Trinity Parish of the Church at Kotobabi in Accra.

In an exhortation prior to the launch themed: 'The Place and the Power of a Vow', Reverend Prince Yao Tefe, the immediate past Synod Clerk of the Church, said the ATM was a special sign on the youth of the Church to constantly remind them to lead lives clear of sexual immorality until they were duly married.

He said the 'ATM. Com. Revolution' was an attempt to reverse the current trend of high moral corruption among the youth especially where virgins were difficult to come by in the Ghanaian society.

Rev. Tefe said the ATM was also meant for all those who were cohabiting without performing the necessarily marital rites to help them to refrain from the act.

He called on the youth to be people with strong convictions since they would better impact their generations positively.

'By wearing this wrist band today, you are declaring your stand to the whole world that you would not indulge in sexual decadence until you are married.'

Rev. Tefe reminded them that the journey would not be easy but with determination, the backing of the Holy Spirit and the support of leadership, 'you would win the battle'.

Rev. Emmanauel Barrigah, Director of Church Life and Nurture who launched the wrist bands on behalf of the Moderator Right Reverend Dr. Setorwu Ofori, admonished the youth to flee from sexual sin at all times.

He encouraged those who have lost their virginity already to also take a new vow and remain committed to the vow in order to become 'secondary virgins'explaining that 'when God forgives your sins, he wipes your slate clean as if you have never sinned before.'

Rev. Hoenyeame A. K. Agbesinyale, the National Coordinator of the Ministry said the programme would be replicated throughout the fifteen Presbyteries of the Church.

He urged the youth in general and the Global Evangelical youth in particular to participate fully in the events for their spiritual, moral and social upliftment.

Mr Dennis Ohene, the National Youth Secretary, giving the background to the launch of the wrist band said the Holy Spirit led Rev. P.Y. Tefe, who was the main speaker during the National Youth Camp to lead the youth to take a vow to abstain from sex till marriage.

It was then agreed that, a souvenir be made to constantly serve as a reminder hence the choice of a wrist band to fulfill the promise of leadership.

Mr Ohene revealed that, the wrist band has a special feature which causes it to glow even at night making it even more relevant to them as it would prevent them from 'falling' during such tempting moments.

The Wrist Bands come in different colours to meet the varied tastes of the youth.

GNA
Accra, Jan 22, GNA - Ghana is highly banked compared to peers such as Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda, a study by the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) has shown.

The percentage share of adults in each country who have registered bank accounts, includes Ghana 34, Kenya 28, Tanzania 21, Rwanda 16 and Uganda 14.

The study, however, shows that despite Ghana being highly banked, mobile money is still at the developing stage; with only 20 per cent of adults Ghanaians having a mobile money account.

The percentage share of adults who have a registered mobile money account in the rest of the countries are Kenya 63, Tanzania 38, Uganda 33 and Rwanda 23.

Seventeen per cent of adult Ghanaians have active mobile money account; thus Ghanaians are 'mobile ready,' in that 92 per cent have the required form of identification to open an account, whereas 91 per cent own a mobile phone, with 74 per cent able to send or receive text messages.

The study was launched in Accra by the World Bank, during a dialogue session on the topic 'Mobile Financial Intermediation in Ghana: Trends, Prospects and Challenges'

Dubbed: 'Financial Inclusion Insights surveys (FII) Ghana 2015: The state of financial inclusion and mobile money in Ghana,' the study was authored by Mr Peter Zetterli, a Financial Sector Specialist on CGAP Inclusive Payments Ecosystems initiative.

Mr Zetterli speaking via telephonic conference facility to the participants at the dialogue session said the financial landscape in Ghana developed since 2010; and attributed that to rapid growth in nonbank formal services such as mobile money and credit unions.

However, the banking industry in Ghana had expanded marginally since 2010, he added

The new financial inclusion survey data from CGAP offers a first glimpse into the mobile money usage in Ghana, providing fresh insights into how many people were using mobile financial services; for what reason and the role it plays in expanding access to financial services.

While Kenya and Tanzania have been previously lauded as mobile money success stories, the survey demonstrated that mobile financial services could be no less powerful in Ghana and the Ghanaian market is rapidly catching up.

The findings show that mobile financial services are proving to be critical to connect people in rural areas or living on less than $ 2.50 per day with formal financial services.

In Rwanda, for example, the survey found that 61 per cent of active mobile users were located in rural areas, while 72 per cent lived on less than $ 2.50 per day.

The survey revealed that in these cases, mobile money was proving to be some adults' first inroad into financial inclusion.

Mr Kwaku Sakyi- Addo, CEO of the Ghana Chamber of Telecommunication, lauded CGAP for the survey, and stated that mobile money has a huge potential for Ghana if the current development continues.

The CGAP is a global partnership of 34 leading organisations that seek to advance financial inclusion.

It develops innovative solutions through practical research and active engagement with financial service providers, policy makers, and funders to enable approaches at scale.

The organisation combines a pragmatic approach to responsible market development with an evidence-based advocacy platform to increase access to the financial services the poor need to improve their lives.

GNA
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Accra, Jan. 22, GNA - TV3 Network Ghana Limited, have launched another radio station 3FM 92.7, which seeks to transform the airwaves with unbiased, innovative, creative and other developmental programmes to the public.

The radio station is the second of the four radio stations of MG Radio Limited and 3FM is an English speaking station.

3FM 92.7 with the tagline 'fair and square' was launched by the Omanhene of Essikado, Nana Kobina Nketsia with support from the Group CEO of Media General Mawuli Hedo, Deputy Minister of Information Ato Sarpong, Board Chairman of TV3 Network Professor Kojo Yankah among other dignitaries at the forecourt of TV3, Adesa We, Accra.

Speaking at the ceremony Mr Sarpong encouraged 3FM to be different among the many radio stations adding that, the media is required to provide truthful and reliable information to the public.

'I expect 3FM to lift high the standards in broadcasting and operate at the highest level of excellence. It is easy to be trapped into tradition but I encourage 3FM to be different and to have the bravery to go on the different path of radio broadcasting for others to follow'' he stated.

Mr Sarpong also appealed to media practitioners to verify information before publishing them so as not to create fear and panic.

He announced that the digital migration of media stations in Ghana would be realised this year.

'Ghana is on course to migrate from analogue broadcasting to digital broadcasting this year. The project is progressing well and in a couple of weeks the first phase of the migration, the Greater Accra and the Ashanti Regions would be completed.'

He congratulated the team of the station for winning the confidence of their listeners and expects more from them.

Nana Nketsia expressed the hope that the station would change the values of society and human life.

He demanded honesty and integrity from the media in the discharge of their duties.

The Board Chairman of MG Radio limited Professor Victor Gadzekpo promised that the station would be firm, fair and provide balanced and accurate news as well as current affairs that would examine issues and provide solutions.

He gave the assurance that, 3FM would position their brands to be the most appealing radio station as well as the most authentic voice on radio with their vibrant and insightful professionals to transform the airwaves.

GNA
Accra, Jan 22, GNA - Mr Mark Woyongo, outgoing Minister of the Interior, on Friday called for decent political campaigning to ensure peaceful elections in the November 7, presidential and parliamentary elections.

He said political leaders must try to bring a lot of decorum in their campaigns and watch their language.

Mr Woyongo made the call when members of the ECOWAS Community Development Programme (CDP) Ghana Media Network called on him to introduce the group.

The network is a group that advocates free trade and free movement of people within the West African sub region in line with ECOWAS vision 2020.

The vision aims at translating the ECOWAS from an organisation where political leaders move freely into a reality where citizens within the sub-region move freely.

Mr Woyongo said there is the need for the promotion of peace before, during and after the elections 'because we were and we will continue to be with elections'.

'Ghana should not be disintegrated because of elections, Ghana should rather be strengthened because of elections, 'he said urging the media to be major promoters of peace in the country

'The media have a powerful tool to make sure we do not go that way, I am sure the media also need peace to operate.'

He asked the media to avoid provocative and unsubstantiated comments.

On regional integration, Mr Woyongo said there is the need to put a premium on regional integration issues since 'no nation can go all alone.'

He commended the CDP media network for its advocacy on regional integration, saying, 'in unity lies strength and its always better working together'.

Mr Woyongo also expressed concern about social media platforms, noting that people spew a lot of lies on social media and that should attract the attention of the media organisations to probably do something about it.

'We need to make the social media platforms a medium of decent communication and we must all put our heads together on this to see if we can sanitize such platforms,' he said.

GNA
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Accra, Jan. 22, GNA - The Very Reverend Dr Edem Tettey, Immediate Past Moderator of the Global Evangelical Church, has challenged the clergy to budget on yearly basis for the number of souls they would win for the kingdom of God.

'We pastors are found of budgeting for almost everything that we intend to do in our churches but hardly do we make intentional plans for the number of souls we wish to win for Christ in a year even though that is our most important assignment as Christians.

Rt Rev Tettey was addressing the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Global Evangelical Church Pastors' and Spouses Association on the general theme: 'Thy Kingdom Come' held at Ho in the Volta Region.

He spoke on the theme 'The Role of Pastors' and Spouses in Kingdom Business.'

The former Moderator said pastors and their spouses had three major roles to play in the Kingdom of God.

Firstly, he said, pastors and their spouses must know that they have been called into the kingdom as co-labourers.

He explained that, spouses must complement the work of the pastors by seeing themselves as people who are into Ministry also so as to enhance the kingdom business.

The second major role he identified was that pastors and spouses were called into the kingdom to be models to others.

He said people see more than they hear and have need for models than for teachers, so it is incumbent on pastors and their spouses to package themselves so that they would be worthy of emulation.

Rt Rev Tettey said members of the clergy and their spouses were called specifically do to the work of Ministry which is the great commission given by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ to win souls for the Kingdom of God.

Rev Samuel Kwablah Sovor, President of the Association said 2016 is the year of Multiplication where pastors and for that matter the church would break new grounds in all spheres.

He said the calling of pastors and their spouses is a glorious which comes at it cost adding: 'The greatest danger is to give up as there is joy and crown to be received upon successful completion.

The AGM was attended by more than 600 participants drawn from all the 15 Presbyteries of the Church.

The pastors and their spouses were taken through thorough health screening, welfare matters, and some ethical issues.

In a related development, the Association presented citations to its former executives for their meritorious services during their tenure of office. GNA
As I loaded the dishwasher, let the dogs out for the last time of the evening, and finally curled up in front of my fireplace to catch some of the local news, I was startled at what I heard. Startled enough to flinch... kind of like one would do in the movies when they were shocked or surprised at a scene they weren't expecting. What had caused me to jump? That would be David Testerman, yelling and screaming at concerned parents...you know, the people he's supposed to be working for. I was sickened to my stomach at his disrespect, his tirade,his defense of a man whose administration has broken the law and tried to cover it up, and even more sickened to learn the board had caved and had decided to buy out Rick Smith's contract, instead of making him pay for the wrong he has done. Well that sure sends a clear message to people doesn't it? If you have money and power, you can pretty much do whatever you want and get away with it. Rick Smith failed our kids, four of them especially, in the worst possible way. And what punishment does he receive? A hefty payout. He condemned us for convicting an "innocent" man, wondering what was wrong with us.I was sickened to my stomach at his disrespect, his tirade,his defense of a man whose administration has broken the law and tried to cover it up, and even more sickened to learn the board had caved and had decided to buy out Rick Smith's contract, instead of making him pay for the wrong he has done. Well that sure sends a clear message to people doesn't it? If you have money and power, you can pretty much do whatever you want and get away with it. Rick Smith failed our kids, four of them especially, in the worst possible way. And what punishment does he receive? A hefty payout.

I have had enough. I am so sick to death of the Hamilton County School Board's nonsense. I'm sick and tired of them saying there's no money for school supplies, to repair old school buildings, to give teachers substantial raises, yet there's somehow enough money to buy out a contract which will most likely cost around six figures. I'm sick and tired of them being concerned with their vacation, retirement pay, while our school system continues to decline and become one of the worst performing public school systems in the entire state of Tennessee, even though we're one of the richest counties.

Mr. Testerman thundered at the board meeting "What is wrong with you people?" Well Mr. Testerman, I have to thunder that question right back at you and your cronies. How can you more strongly defend a man whose administration broke the law, lied about it, and tried to cover it up, than you can rape victims? How can you be more concerned with the future of a man who has proven over and over again he cares nothing about our kids, who has lied to the public, who has ignored his teachers when they've needed him? To the School Board I ask what is wrong with the rest of you? You never take a stand on anything unless it's to benefit you. You never take a stand to defend our children, to make sure they have what they need to get a proper education. Yes, a lawsuit might have cost more money than a buyout...but it also would have let Rick Smith know he was going to be held accountable in some way for the awful things he has done.





A friend of mine's spouse has been a teacher with the Hamilton County Public School System for a very long time. And yet their spouse has had to fight tooth and nail for simple things... like supplies for the classroom. My friend learned of this problem with the school and showed up with several cases of paper, since the lower classes had run out of paper. You would have thought my friend had cured cancer, ended world hunger, and achieved world peace. All the teachers ran up to hug my friend, and professed their thanks. All because they provided something as simple as paper...something our School Board can't seem to find the money to supply.





I am very much aware that the Ooltewah High School rape case is something our School Board never even dreamed they would face. Well sometimes life throws you curve balls. And they did a horrible job of handling it. When it counted the most, they let our kids down in the worst ways possible, and have pretty much ruined what little faith I had left in them, Rick Smith especially. I no longer have any respect, or faith, or trust in our board. It's not just Rick Smith that has to go, it's all of them. We need a School Board who will fight for our children's futures harder than they will fight for their own futures. We need a leader who will actually step up when it's needed most, not hide behind other School Board members, policies, and lies. When it's time to elect board members I hope everyone remembers this circus side show and how the board made an already horrific situation one hundred times worse than it already was. Get rid of all of them, and elect a School Board that actually has a clue what it's doing, and actually cares more about our kids than this one does.





As to David Testerman, I can only hope you're the next to go, considering you have as much respect for us parents and as much concern for our kids' futures as a terrorist has for society in general.





Mariah Smith
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Ho, Jan. 22, GNA - Ghana risks a repetition of the devastating bushfires of 1983 this year, unless collective action is taken to offset that threat, the Rural Fire Division of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) has warned.

The Deputy Chief Fire Officer in charge of Rural Fires, Mr Edwin Ekow Blankson gave the warning at a Press briefing in Ho as he began a tour of some communities in the Volta Region notorious for bushfires, as part of a nationwide tour.

He would be at Adaklu-Waya, Kpetoe and Anyirwase in the Adaklu, Kpetoe-Ziope and Ho-West Districts respectively, where he would meet chiefs and opinion leaders to drum home the message and brainstorm on how to deal with the risk.

Bushfire data provided by the Volta Regional Directorate of the Ghana National Fire Service indicated that by mid- January 2016 the Region had recorded 24 bushfires compared with 15 of such fires for the whole of the same month in 2014 and eight in 2015.

The total number of bushfires recorded in the Region in 2014 and 2015 stood at 33 each, nine more than the 24 recorded by mid- January this year alone.

Hunters of game and to some extent cattle herdsmen seeking to develop green grazing fields are noted for the menace.

Some cigarette smokers and palm-wine tappers also start bushfires inadvertently.

The Meteorological Agency told the Ghana News Agency that, 'the atmospheric heat being experienced in the country will continue and reach its peak in March.'

The onset of this year's rainy season would be in April by the earliest, the Meteorological Agency predicted.

Mr Ekow Blankson said the GNFS had applied several strategies including public education to make people quit the habit of indiscriminate bush burning, but the habit won't just go away.

He said bush burning must be controlled and supervised by bushfire volunteers in the communities.

Mr Blankson said unlike the advanced countries, Ghana could not afford helicopters to combat bushfires from the air, hence the need for every citizen to show commitment to dealing with the menace.

The Bushfire Law 229 of 1990, which prescribed a sanction of 2.00 Cedis must be reviewed to make the punishment a real deterrent.

He also called on chiefs and other opinion leaders to refrain from begging for the release of culprits arrested for bushfire offences.

Mr Blankson also appealed to the media, especially radio stations, to devote part of their airtime to educate the public on the dangers of bushfires.

District Assemblies should also pass anti-bushfires by-laws and provide one percent of their internally generated revenue as provided by law to support the enforcement of those laws and assist anti-bushfire volunteers, he stated.

The year 1983 referred to earlier by the Deputy Chief Fire Officer was a time in Ghana's history when nearly every blade of grass, shrubs, trees, barns of food stuffs, seeds and farms, including game and even in some cases whole communities and human beings, was reduced to ashes by an inferno.

It was a period when the eye could see a sea of grey wasteland over a long distance, as streams were reduced to long threads of gullies and game sought refuge in human habitations in search of food, water and protection.

The cost in monetary terms was incalculable.

GNA
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Accra, Jan. 22, GNA - The Vision for Alternative Development (VALD), a civil society organisation has called on Ghanaians, especially the media to help push for the passage of the Legislative Instrument (LI) on the Tobacco Control Measures.

It said the delay in the process for the adoption of the LI is hampering the effective implementation of the prohibition of tobacco smoking in public places.

The Tobacco Control Measures is Part Six of the Public Health Act, 2012 (Act 851), which was passed by Parliament.

However, four years down the line the LI to operationalise the tobacco measures is yet to be realized.

Mr Issah Ali, Director of VALD made the call at a day's workshop for journalists to brainstorm on the way forward for the promulgation of the LI to make the work of civil society organisations effective.

He said the delay had encouraged people to flout the law since there is no basis for arrest and prosecution.

Mr Ali said a lot of education in a number of communities and schools have been organized by VALD, to sensitise people on the dangers of tobacco use and the law, but LI would strengthen their operations.

He urged the media to be at the forefront to ignite passion and query policy makers in the Ministry of Health, Food and Drugs Authority, Health Committee of Parliament, Sub-Legislative Committee of Parliament, individual stakeholders in health and other relevant agencies on why the delay in the passage of the LI.

Mr Ali said Ghana is a party to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) and has ratified it since 2004.

The Convention enjoins the country to take administrative, legislative and any other means to curb the incidence of smoking and reduce the hazards associated with it.

He reminded the public that Tobacco is extremely injurious to the health of both smokers and non-smokers and caused diseases like lung cancer, bronchitis and emphysema and that it is also linked to the high incidence and gravity of cardiac diseases.

Mr Ali said the FCTC seeks to protect present and future generations from the devastating health, social, environmental and economic consequences of tobacco consumption and exposure to its smoke, saying 'the benefits of this law will be seen in the control and management of diseases'.

Participants were educated on the 13 key elements of the Sixth of Part of Act 851 and reminded that anybody who violated the Act commits an offence and liable on summary conviction or a fine of not more than 750 penalty units or to a term of imprisonment of not more than three years or to both.

Mr Labram Musah, Programmes Director of the VALD who spoke on the interference of the tobacco industry said the media have a huge responsibility to the people and urged them to resist being manipulated by the tobacco industry.

'Whilst some civil society groups like us, are fighting for the good health of the people, others are being influence by tobacco industry to thwart our efforts and this is not acceptable.'

He called on the government to use monies accrued from tobacco taxes to provide some alternative livelihood to people who are into tobacco farming to curtail tobacco industry manipulations.

Mr Musah said the World Health Organisation's research indicates that many people are dying as a result of tobacco-related diseases

He said persons addicted to the product finds it difficult to quit the habit.

Mr Musah said non-smokers of tobacco are at more risk and appealed to landlords to provide toilet facilities in their homes because cigarette smoking is mostly done at the public toilets which poses danger to public health.

GNA
Accra, Jan. 22, GNA - Ms Elizabeth Amihere, 13, a student of Blessed School Complex in Dansoman, a suburb of Accra, has emerged the first runner-up in the basic level of the 20th Universal Concept Arithmetic System (UCMAS) ABACUS and MENTAL Competition.

The annual competition, which was held in New Delhi, India, last year, saw Master Augustus Maasonus Aleer, a student in Techiman in the Brong Ahafo Region emerging the second runner-up in the Advanced Level out of 11,000 pupils from about 22 countries throughout the world, with a six-year-old Richel Laryea of Ranson Education Centre in Mamaprobi, Accra, also excelling in the Kindergarten category.

The competition organised by UCMAS ABACUS and MENTAL International for students between the ages of five to 14 years aims at building the concentration and strong memories of participants, Mr Roger Ohemeng, Chief Executive Officer, UCMAS Ghana Limited, stated in Accra on Thursday at a media briefing.

Ms Amihere, a form two Junior High student, answered 200 questions within eight minutes in a single digit five row mental to emerge as the first runner-up.

The elated Ms Amihere told the Ghana News Agency in an interview that, she could not have achieved the feat but for the support and encouragement she received from her parents, school mates, teachers and UCMAS management.

She admitted that she felt nervous and frightened at the beginning 'But I later regained my composure and boldness as I progressed in the competition,' she said.

Ms Amihere smiled home with a trophy as her prize.

The CEO of UCMAS Ghana Limited said the programme which is a total brain programme and not a mathematics based programme as perceived by the public was currently running in about 58 countries.

He noted that the competition, which aimed at bringing the intellectual exercise of the young students, would also expand their thinking, adding that 'It will open up their minds to solutions of the many problems in the society,' Mr Ohemeng

Reverend Mrs Vida Acquah, Headmistress, Blessed School Complex, said UCMAS was invaluable, especially when it develops the brain of children who partake in it.

She said since her students enrolled as members of the UCMAS participants, she had seen outstanding improvement in their academic performance.

Mrs Acquah lauded Ms Amihere for the success chalked saying she has made the school, her parents, family and the country as a whole proud.

She described Ms Amihere as a responsible lady who is very sound academically, a great leader and a morally upright student.

'In fact Elizabeth is an all round student, and am not surprised but elated at her performance.

'Elizabeth, you are indeed a royal priesthood and a peculiar student we are all proud of, keep it up,' she said.

GNA
Accra, Jan 22, GNA - Two members of a robbery gang were on Friday sentenced to 25 years each by an Accra Circuit Court.

Iddrisu Abdul Ibrahim aka Baba and Suleman Dushie pleaded guilty to the charges of conspiracy to rob and robbery.

Lord Fofoe, an accomplice, pleaded not guilty to the charges. Kwesi Anane also connected to the crime pleaded guilty with explanation. The court, however, after listening to his explanation entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf.

Fofoe and Anane have been remanded into lawful custody to re-appear on February 5.

The eight member robbery gang was alleged to have robbed a businesswoman, Madam Ann Brewin of monies and a vehicle at Airport Residential Area.

The robbers made away with 10,000 dollars, GHa8,000.00, an IPhone, wedding rings valued at 22,000 dollars and Hyundai bus valued GHa45, 000.00.

Handing sentence to Ibrahim and Dushie, the trial judge Mr Aboagye Tandoh lamented over the modus operandi of the two convicts, adding their conduct must be discouraged.

The case of prosecution was that the complainant employed Fofoe as driver. On January 13 this year, the complainant's husband kept 10,000 dollars in a vehicle driven by Fofoe.

Fofoe, according to prosecution, conspired with one of the accused persons who is at large and they managed to recruit six others including Ibrahim and Dushie to execute the robbery.

On January 14, this year whiles Fofoe and the complainant were returning from dinner, the gang robbed them of their monies and items.

Ibrahim who is also a driver took over the Hyundai bus and fled with the rest of the suspects.

However their vehicle was involved in an accident at Tetteh Quarshie Roundabout. The robbers fled but bystanders suspecting them, apprehended Ibrahim.

Prosecution said Ibrahim was handed over to the Police and the complainant's husband after visiting the accident scene caused the arrest of Fofoe.

Prosecution said police are making efforts to apprehend the rest of the suspects who are at large.

GNA
22.01.2016 LISTEN

Accra, Jan. 22, GNA - A Self-styled businessman, who is accused of defrauding a trader of GHa7,500.00 under the pretext of securing him an Australian visa but failed to do so, has appeared before a Circuit Court in Accra.

Tony Nikon, who also presented himself as staff of the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, has pleaded not guilty to defrauding by false pretences.

The court presided over by Ms Ruby Naa Adjaley Quayson admitted Nikon to bail in the sum of GHa7,500.00 with two sureties, one to be a public servant earning not less than GHa600.00 a month.

Nikon is expected to reappear on February 1.

Prosecuting Chief Inspector Kofi Adu said in June 2013, the complainant Augustine Frempong, resides at Dome, Accra, while the accused persons live at Kwabenya.

Chief Inspector Adu said somewhere in June 2013, the complainant decided to travel to Australia and therefore needed the necessary documents to facilitate his journey.

Prosecution said the complainant discussed the issue with Nikon who attends the same church with him (complainant).

In their discussion, accused told the complainant that he was a staff of the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection and that he could easily secure him the travelling documents at a cost of 6,000 dollars.

Based on that information, prosecution said Nikon collected GHa7,500.00 as part payment and promised to provide the travelling documents within one and half months.

Nikon after collecting the money failed to honour his promise and went into hiding.

Luck run out on Nikon when he was spotted at Dome Market and the complainant caused his arrest and handed him over to the Police.

GNA
Kumasi, Jan. 22, GNA - A total of GHE193,116,008.95 in employees' pension funds held in a temporary account at the Bank of Ghana had been transferred to registered schemes, Dr. Nii Kwaku Sowa, Board Chairman of the National Pensions Regulatory Authority (NPRA), has announced.

This, he said, was done between November and December 31, last year, after preconditions for such transfers had been satisfied.

He was speaking at the official opening of the Kumasi Zonal Office of the NPRA, the first to be established outside the Accra Head Office.

The presence and visibility of the Authority in the nation's second largest city, is meant to provide service providers, employers and workers the opportunity to deepen their understanding of the new pensions scheme and its implementation.

Dr. Nii Sowa said it had so far registered 256 schemes under the mandatory second-tier occupational pension scheme and to ensure compliance, the NPRA had begun implementing its sanctions regime.

They were keen to see to the proper implementation of the pension scheme, which he said, offered the Ghanaian worker, best income security after retiring from active service.

He underlined its resolve to improve coverage to all in the formal and informal sectors.

Employment and Labour Relations Minister, Mr. Haruna Iddrisu, pledged the government's determination to ensure that there was retirement security for the people.

It would therefore insist that employee contributions were properly invested, he added.

The Minister used the occasion to hint of the decision to wean the NPRA off government subvention.

GNA
Denase (Ash), Jan. 22, GNA - Mr. Johnson Opoku, Director of Programmes, National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), has called on every Ghanaian to take responsibility and work together to protect the nation's peace.

It is incumbent on them to show high sense of nationalism and reject violence as they make preparations to go to the polls on November 7.

He was speaking at a community sensitization durbar held at Denase in the Afigya-Kwabre District by the Commission with support from the European Union (EU).

It formed part of stepped up efforts to promote political tolerance and remove tension ahead the presidential and parliamentary elections.

The durbar was attended by chiefs, the clergy, assembly members, youth groups, assembly members, teachers and students.

Mr. Opoku reminded the leadership of the political parties to make sure that their followers conducted themselves well - decency and civility.

They should do everything to restrain their supporters from provocative acts likely to create confusion and lead to nasty clashes.

Mr. Wilberforce Zangina, the District Director of the NCCE, said under no circumstances should the people allow themselves to be torn apart by their political differences.

Everybody must agree to respect and accommodate political views and opinions different from what they hold.

Mr. Zangina said that was the beauty of multi-party democracy, adding that, the parties must engage and focus on issues-based electioneering campaign.

He reminded them that telling lies about their opponents, was not a noble thing to do.

Mr. Frimpong Opuni, the Deputy District Coordinating Director, urged assembly members not to dabble in chieftaincy and land disputes.

He used the occasion to encourage the people to pay their levies and rates to the assembly to support the development of the communities.

GNA
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Here is the Fort Oglethorpe arrest report for Jan. 15-21:

Denise Ann Day, 42, of 114 Van Cleve Street Apt. 1, Fort Oglethorpe was arrested January 15 for theft by shoplifting.



David Ray Bankston, 35, of 37 J Ellis Court, Chickamauga was arrested January 15 on charges of obstruction of officers and permitting unlicensed person to drive.



Cheyenne Nicole Bankston, 30, of 37 J Ellis Court, Chickamauga was arrested January 15 on charges of driving while license suspended, improperly transferred plate, no proof of insurance, striking unattended vehicle and suspended registration.



Jordan Gaylon Rushing, 30, of 1930 Vasser Street, Glendale, CA was arrested January 16 on a charge of driving under the influence of alcohol.



Anny Nintirat, 30, of 61 General Johnson Road, Fort Oglethorpe was arrested January 16 on a charge of driving under the influence of alcohol.



Shayne Bradley Moore, 28, of 162 Bowen Road, Fitzgerald, GA was arrested on charges of aggravated assault, battery, criminal interference with government property, cruelty to children, obstruction of officers, public drunk and terroristic threats and acts.



Alicia Ann Nerren, 24, of 6706 Ocoee Street, Chattanooga was arrested January 16 for giving false name/information to police.



Robert Matthew Eaves, 35, of 395 Steele Road, Rossville was arrested January 16 on charges of driving while license suspended and suspended registration.



Mark Otis Elkins, 47, of 437 Beaver Road, Fort Oglethorpe was arrested January 17 on charges of driving while license suspended and no proof of insurance.



Aaron Lee Baker, 34, of 23 Cardinal Lane, Rossville was arrested January 17 for theft by shoplifting.



Gregory Brian Hartline, 29, of 187 Townsend Circle, Ringgold was arrested January 18 on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol and open container of alcohol.



Patricia Ann Moseqlio, 55, of 46 South 2nd Street, Summerville was arrested January 18 on a charge of violation of Georgias controlled substance act.



Bryan Andrew Bird, 29, of 375 Chloe Drive, Lafayette was arrested January 18 on a charge of violation of Georgias controlled substance act.



Samuel Edwin-James Hester, 21, of 1101 Henderson Avenue, Rossville was arrested January 18 for driving while license suspended/revoked.



Anthony Eugene Harvey, 27, of 4700 Cordelia Lane, Chattanooga was arrested January 18 on charges of driving while license suspended/revoked and defective/unsafe window.



Lazarro Lomzo Cruz, 21, of 74 South Cedar Lane, Apt.

100, Fort Oglethorpe was arrested January 19 on charges of affixing license plate to misrepresent, driving while unlicensed and improper left turn.Lacey Marie Kite, 18, of 128 South Cedar Lane, Fort Oglethorpe was arrested January 21 on a charge of possession of marijuana.Mary Susan Karr, 51, of 128 South Cedar Lane, Fort Oglethorpe was arrested January 21 on a charge of possession of marijuana.

Citation Statistics:



Speeding23

License required.1

Driving while license suspended or revoked.4

Driving on roadways laned for traffic.1

Suspended registration..3

Failure to exercise due care.1

Unlawful use of license..1

Instruction permits and temporary licenses..2

Window tint violation..9

Following too closely.4

Required position & methods of turning at intersections..1

Wearing device which impairs hearing or vision..1

Proof of insurance required.4

Registration and license requirements.1

Alteration of license plates.1

Use of license plate to misrepresent identity of vehicle1

Removing or affixing license plate with intent to conceal.1

Hit and run.1

Safety belt violations5

Permitting unlicensed person to drive.1

Illegal U-turns..1

Failure to obey traffic control device.4

Possession of marijuana greater than one ounce..1

Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.3

Possession of open container of alcoholic beverage while operating a vehicle..1

Operation of vehicle without current plate.16






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There is no office guidelines to who qualifies for an IVA. It is a legally binding, Government legislation designed to help all people. Generally speaking, insolvency practitioners (IP) will look at your situation if they think the IVA proposal they submit is beneficial to both yourself (the debtor) and your creditors. This often restricts people to a certain criteria which you will have to meet:

Over 5000 worth of unsecured debt You must have 2 or more creditors of 2 or more lines of credit Must live in England, Wales or Northern Ireland Must be insolvent Must be willing to pay at least 70 per month into their IVA Must have some type or types of regular income

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Can I apply for an IVA online?

Use the IVA Calculator to check your eligibility Prepare your IVA proposal and apply for your IVA. When your IVA is accepted, your creditors can no longer contact you. Pay 60 low monthly payments. After 5 years, you are out of your IVA and completely debt free.

Will an IVA affect my employment?

In most occupations, your credit rating or credit scoring is not a factor and it may never have been checked in the past, it may also be likely that it is not checked in the future either.

There is no law to tell you that you must advise your employer that you have entered an IVA or that you owe money. They will not be notified by your insolvency practitioner. If you wanted to keep it a private matter, in most cases this would be absolutely fine. With some roles such as financial advisors, solicitors or bank workers it may make up part of your contract to advise them of changes like this. In these situations we would advise to inform your employers of your intentions before you enter into any arrangements. This way there will be no nasty surprises for you later down the line. More often than not, we find that your employer would not be concerned by your IVA and that it would not affect your employment status. An IVA is a formal solution and could affect some employments, such as if you were a solicitor or accountant for example. We would always recommend that you receive approval from your employers that your job isnt affected before you sign up for anything.

Will an IVA impact my partner?

There are certain situations where you may not want to involve your partner at all in your IVA proposal due to personal reasons. Insolvency Practitioners are very aware of these circumstances and can operate solely via telephone and email and at your convenience, so rest assured that your matters can be kept completely private.

If the debts which you are looking to place into your IVA are in joint names, then this would be different. Your IP would look to place all of your debts into an IVA, including joint debts therefore you would have to inform your partner of your plans.

If your debts are solely yours, then there would be no negative impact on your partner, their credit score would remain unaffected and they would not be entered onto any registers or be tainted in any way.

Will an IVA affect my credit score/credit file?

Whilst you are in your arrangement, you will not be able to get any credit. An IVA will stay on your credit file for 6 years, so 12 months after a typical IVA. When this time has passed and your monthly payments have ended, you will be able to rebuild your credit rating.

What proof will I need to apply for an IVA?

Proof of ID  Passport/driving license/birth certificate/utility bills/national insurance identification/credit agreement Bank statements  3 months bank statements with all transactions displayed Proof of income  3 months payslips/P60/proof of benefits

How long does it take to set up an IVA?

Your initial call will only last around 5-10 minutes. The IVA process will be explained to you and you will be told what further information you will need to provide to proceed with your IVA proposal. Once you have returned the required information, an IVA will usually take between 7-14 days to get into place. You will be protected from creditors within this time, your advisor will provide you with documentation via email.

How long does an IVA last?

Most IVAs will last for a length of five years. The i v a will remain on your credit file for a period of six years and is placed on the Insolvency Register for that period. You can work out what date it will be removed from your credit file, it will be six years from the start date of the IVA term. So if the IVA started on 1 January 2000, it should be removed from your credit file six years from that date, which would be 1 January 2006. When you apply for an individual voluntary arrangement your Insolvency Practitioner (IP) will tell you if you qualify for an IVA, how long it lasts, how much it costs and provide you with any other debt advice which you may need.

How much will debt advice cost for an Individual Voluntary Arrangement?

The advice cost for individual voluntary arrangements is free of charge. Your I.V.A company will tell you if you qualify for an IVA. They will talk to you about your different debts, provide you with free debt advice and check if your creditors are likely to approve your proposal for your IVA for debt.

How does an IVA affect your life?

By taking out an IVA you may affect your overall financial position. You will not be allowed to take out credit for 6 years. You will struggle to get a mortgage or remortgage your existing property. It also may affect any future increase in earnings or windfalls you may receive, as these will need to be paid to your insolvency practitioner. Your insolvency practitioner will take control of your debts for this period, they will deal with all of your creditors and this is legally binding. That means you will not be allowed to take out any more debts whilst in the IVA.

Once the plan is completed, any debts which you accrue will be managed by yourself. Your ability to take out further debts in the future will not be impacted once the IVA has completed.

What is the IVA protocol?

The I.V.A protocol is a voluntary set of guidelines which your Insolvency Practitioner (IP) can sign up for which improves the efficiency of Individual Voluntary Arrangements. When you apply for debt advice, it is important that you understand the steps of the debt solution, so you can decide whether or not the solution is the best one for your circumstances.

How do I know if creditors will accept my IVA?

Generally speaking, most creditors will approve voluntary arrangements for unsecured debt. But some debts can not be included within one formal debt solution. Your Insolvency Practitioner will tell you how likely it is that your creditors will be willing to accept your proposal, based on the voting creditors.

Can I pay in one lump sum?

There are occasions when you may be eligible for a debt solution which is payable in a one off lump sum as a final settlement to your creditors. This is usually when the money is being gifted from some one else, or you have received inheritance or a windfall for example. With a one-off lump sum payment, the advice is usually the same as when you normally apply for an IVA. You wouldnt have to make regular payments into the solution, your IP can provide you with more advice on one off lump sum solutions for your debts. Your IP will provide you with more advice on the debt IVA and explain what is IVA to you.

Who regulates the debt industry?

At present the debt industry is not regulated. Some Insolvency Practitioners offices choose to sign up to the Insolvency Practitioners Association (IPA) or register with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). You can contact the IPA using the contact details or email address on their website. Your creditors do not regulate the debt industry and your creditors will not be able to impact any decisions which the IPA or FCA make. In our experience, the regulators will take assertive action on any advisers or businesses which do not comply with their strict codes of practice. To check if a person is regulated by the FCA, enter their name into the search box in the FCA website.

Should I use a debt charity?

There are thousands of companies which provide debt help in the UK. You may be looking for an alternative to a private company. You should know that charities usually pass their fee charging products to sister companies which charge fees and disbursements, just like private companies. So what you initially thought was a good option, on further analysis could be different to what you originally thought. Charities do have their part to play though. They can help you if you have a problem with your bank accounts, maintenance arrears, living costs, credit reference agencies, child support arrears, bankruptcy, assets, accountancy issues, mortgages, creditor issues, insurance providers, mobiles, your bank account, rates arrears, PAYE contributions or if you want to work out your expenditure. They can make sure that you speak to an adviser or supervisor and look at proposals to offer your lender. A petition has started with the possibility of a debate in parliament about how charities represent themselves and their services.

Which charities help with debt?

You can contact Money Advice Service, National Debtline, Step Change, Shelter or a combination of the three. Charities are particular useful for a low debt level under 1,000. If the debt is high (such as a debt value of 10,000 or more) you would usually seek an assessment from a professional adviser. If you do decide to use a charity to guide you, make sure you check their charity number and the registration number on their website to make sure you are content that their team can answer your questions in the right ways. A lot of clients of charities have a minimum debt level which does not meet the basis for an IVA, so you could always chat to a charity that is happy to act on your behalf for low debt levels.

Although an I.V.A could be the answer to your debt problem, its important to understand the monthly payment so call us on our free phone number. Anyone customers can receive expert feedback on their rights from debt charities, if they cant help they will usually point you in the director of firms which help with IVAs.

We are homeowners, will lenders see my proposal differently?

In some cases yes. In the majority of cases, if you are a homeowner you will not need to remortgage or take out any additional finances that will effect your property. You will need to sign a additional restrictions which remove your ability to take out additional credit tied to your property, which is something that is restricted once you are in an i.v.a. There are exceptions to this, such as when you have a lot of equity in your property/properties. If you own half of a property and another party owns the other half, only your equity will be affected.

If you are landlord and you are in a position of equity, your IP may review your trading position or business to make sure the figures in question are in order. This is usually the case if you have two or more properties, as sometimes the equity can be used to form a repayment to your creditors. But this usually depends on the amount of value built up in your properties.

Banks and building societies will not change the terms of your mortgage as long as a contribution is still being made for the duration of your arrangement. Your mortgage payments will be added to your expenses and accounted for within your budget, as long as you can provide evidence that you can afford to continue to make payments into your mortgage for duration of the plan.

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business Indian steel industry 'will die' if govt doesn't help: JSW In an interview with CNBC-TV18s Menaka Doshi, Sajjan Jindal, CMD of JSW Steel said that the minimum import price of steel should be raised to USD 420 per tonne from the current USD 300 in order to protect the domestic industry from Chinese imports.
The Dalton Police Department has received multiple complaints from residents reporting a phone scam by callers claiming to be from the IRS. In at least one case, an area resident sent the callers more than $3,000 before realizing that it was a scam.

In this particular scam, callers claiming to either be from the IRS or from an accounting firm working with the IRS call and tell victims that they are owe the government money and that they have a warrant for the arrest of the victim. In at least one case, the scammers threatened the victim that she would be arrested if she hung up the phone. The scammers then direct the victim to withdraw a sum of money and then deposit the money into their bank account at the Bank of America.

The IRS or other government agencies do not work in this manner. Information posted on the IRS website at www.irs.gov states that the agency will not call to demand an immediate payment and will not contact you by phone without first sending a bill in the mail. They will also never demand payment without allowing one to question of appeal the amount owed. They will also never demand that one pays in a specific way (such as depositing the money into a bank account in this case or putting money onto a prepaid debit card). IRS officials will also never threaten to bring in police or other law enforcement to arrest you for non-payment. They will also never ask for a credit, debit, or social security information over the phone. The IRS advises one to simply hang up without giving information out if they dont owe taxes or dont believe that they do. If one isnt sure, they can hang up and call the IRS at 1-800-829-1040 to find out.

Officials said, "This is just one scheme that phone scammers are trying to pull off. If someone calls you claiming to be from any government organization demanding money, its most likely not legitimate."
January 22, 2016

Warmed-Over Propaganda: 'Putin Asks Assad To Leave'

For nearly five we are told every six month or so that Russia or Iran is, NOW FOR REAL, dropping its support for Syria and/or its President Assad.

These claims are part of psychological disinformation campaign the U.S. and its allies are running against Syria. The stories are supposed to sow doubt between Syria, its allies and supporters.

The media love to blather about such groundless speculation and each such propaganda round is accompanied by a wave of the ever same stupid analysis. It will be the same today after some "western" intelligence agencies, likely British this time, again claim that Putin asked Assad to step down:

Russian President Vladimir Putin asked long-time ally Bashar Assad to step down as president of Syria toward the end of 2015, the Financial Times reported. The message from Putin was relayed by Colonel-General Igor Sergun, the head of Russias GRU military intelligence agency before his death in January, according to two senior western intelligence officials who spoke to the FT on the condition of anonymity.

...

How convenient that the guy who allegedly talked with Assad is now dead. That might be a good chance to blame the Kremlin, which strongly denies the above report, for his death. We can be assured that Putin 'probably' murdered him.

But why should Russia ask Assad to step down when this would demoralize the Syria army with which it is fighting? Why would that be in Russia's interest?

According to one European intelligence official, speaking to the FT, after beginning airstrikes in Syria Putin had taken a look under the bonnet [hood] of the Syrian regime and found a lot more problems than he was bargaining for.

As if Russia would need to "take a look" at Syria. It has had deep relations with the country for decades, there are many economic and personal ties and Syrian officers are trained in Russia. Russia's foreign services knows more about Syria than anyone's else. There was surely no need to "look under the bonnet" after the Russia decision to intervene was made. Russia does not act like the U.S. which jumps into conflicts head first before figuring out the aims of its interventions and means to reach them. Russia's targets and means were identified before it went into Syria. Even if Syria is a mess "under the bonnet" how would dismissing Assad change that? Is there anyone in sight who could do a better job?

Cameron, the British premier, probably needed this diversion and threw this propaganda bone towards the Financial Times. Cameron had famously claimed that:

"there are about 70,000 Syrian opposition fighters on the ground who do not belong to extremist groups."

The foundation of his former comrade in crime Tony Blair today put a nail through that claim:

Our study of 48 rebel factions in Syria revealed that 33 per cent - nearly 100,000 fighters - have the same ideological objectives as ISIS. If you take into account Islamist groups (those who want a state governed by their interpretation of Islamic law), this figure jumps to 60 per cent.

...

Despite the conflicting ideologies of the rebel groups, 90 per cent of the groups studied hold the defeat of Assad's regime as a principal objective. Sixty-eight per cent seek the establishment of Islamic law in Syria. In contrast, only 38 per cent have the defeat of ISIS as a stated goal.

Some 60-80% of the "rebel" groups in Syria do not want to fight the Islamic State but want the diverse, secular country under Islamic law. If they would carry such opinion in Britain Cameron surely would label them extremists.

The Blair foundation is tricky with its numbers. The claim that the 1/3 of the groups it checked are extremists and have 100,000 fighters will let some lazy thinkers assume that the total number of fighters is 300,000. But that is completely false. The 1/3 of the groups the foundation names as extremists include all major groups on the ground like Ahrar al-Sham, Jabhat al-Nusra and Jaish Islam. Together the named groups have more than 90% of the total men power on the opposition side. While there are several dozens factions that may not be extremists these are all very small and hardly more than local village guards.

But we shall not think any further along that line.

Did you hear that Putin 'probably' killed the boss of his military intelligence? And that he wants Assad to leave immediately?

Posted by b on January 22, 2016 at 18:10 UTC | Permalink

Comments
On Jan. 3, in far-away Idaho, a young mother from Spokane was rear-ended as she drove on I-90. Her five-year-old child, in a car seat behind her, hit his head and was screaming hysterically with fear when Al Ashby, a gentle corporal on the Idaho State Police, opened the back door and almost magically calmed the child.

No one was hurt badly and the accident was handled. It was a good man doing something good for a scared little boy, said Rayel Von Quade but what got her attention was that several days later a package arrived for her son, hand-addressed to Phaelen Von Quade. In it was a be brave note from Cpl. Ashby, a coloring book, a small toy that resembled an Idaho police motorcycle, and a police badge. The mother was so touched she put the kind gesture on Facebook and that is where we on the other side of the continent come in.

Not long after she posted the state troopers act of kindness, she began to get notes from strangers that explained why Cpl. Ashby has such passion for little kids. His 4-year-old, Eli, has already undergone two open-heart surgeries for rare pediatric congestive heart failure. Thats obviously why he is so compassionate, Rayel told a television reporter with KXLY in Spokane.

The television station contacted Ron Sutton with the Idaho State Police after Cpl. Ashby declined to go on camera. He was reluctant to come out in front of the camera, Sgt. Sutton explained. He told us Thats not why I did this. He did it just like he asks of anyone, just to pay it forward.

I am not surprised at all, added Sgt. Sutton. Thats just the way he is. It was a situation that got to him  all police men and women have it  and this was a time when he said, Hey, this little boy  I am going to send him something. Right now hes embarrassed that his kind act got out.

Officer Ashbys wife Jenn told reporters. We talked about it over dinner that night but I didnt know he had already sent something. We know all too well how parents feel when a child goes through a scary situation, she said, not needing to point out their own Eli has struggled mightily.

When Van Quade heard there was a Go Fund Me page to help defer the Ashby families medical expenses, she swung into action. She has posted it on Facebook and it has gotten over 2,000 views already.

The Go Fund Me page, entitled Eli Ashby Medical Expenses, has now generated almost $10,000 and there is a Facebook page, Prayers and Love For Eli for people to send notes of support and good wishes.

Cpl. Al Ashby didnt want anyone to know he sent a little boy a be brave package. All he wanted was to Pay if Forward. If you have a moment to pay it forward as it snows this weekend, it will show how a car accident in Idaho was heard from a long way away.

Now you see how life can go full circle!

* * *

In Alabama they have this huge statewide weight-loss effort called Scale Back Alabama and to kick it off on Jan. 8 down in Montgomery they had 157 people squeeze up close together on some truck scales. Total weight? 30,400 pounds (thats about 194 pounds per person.) After the program is over later this year, the same people will climb back on for an update weight. Now it has been learned the feat set a Guinness World Record.

* * *

Something is fishy in Wilmington, Delaware. It has just been discovered that between 2012 and 2014 there were over 11,700 felony cases filed, most including a gun. The problem is that The News Journal just uncovered a whopping 71 percent of those cases disappeared, never making it to court.

* * *

I love this one  in Colorado Springs the other day this man took his wife to an indoor firing range so she would know how to use a gun. After she accidentally shot him in the leg, he was transported to a nearby hospital with non-life threatening injuries. (This is why we need a Chattanooga-Hamilton County Firearm Safety Center -- so people wont shoot their spouses in the leg.)

* * *

SIX LITTLE STORIES

1. Once all villagers decided to pray for rain, on the day of prayer all the people gathered, but only one boy came with an umbrella. That's FAITH.

2. When you throw a baby in the air, she laughs because she knows you will catch her. That's TRUST.

3. Every night we go to bed, without any assurance of being alive the next morning but still we set the alarms to wake up. That's HOPE.

4. We plan big things for tomorrow in spite of zero knowledge of the future. That's CONFIDENCE.

5. We see the world suffering, but still we get married and have children. That's LOVE.

6. On an old man's shirt was written a sentence "I am not 90 years old . . . I am sweet 16 with 74 years experience" That's ATTITUDE.

(from the Internet)

* * *

A SUMMARY OF LIFE

GREAT TRUTHS THAT LITTLE CHILDREN HAVE LEARNED:

1) No matter how hard you try, you can't baptize cats..

2) When your Mom is mad at your Dad, don't let her brush your hair.

3) If your sister hits you, don't hit her back. They always catch the second person.

4) Never ask your 3-year old brother to hold a tomato.

5) You can't trust dogs to watch your food..

6) Don't sneeze when someone is cutting your hair..

7) Never hold a Dust-Buster and a cat at the same time.

8) You can't hide a piece of broccoli in a glass of milk.

9) Don't wear polka-dot underwear under white shorts.

10) The best place to be when you're sad is Grandma's lap.

GREAT TRUTHS THAT ADULTS HAVE LEARNED:

1) Raising teenagers is like nailing jelly to a tree.

2) Wrinkles don't hurt.

3) Families are like fudge...mostly sweet, with a few nuts

4) Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground...

5) Laughing is good exercise. It's like jogging on the inside.

6) Middle age is when you choose your cereal for the fiber, not the toy.



GREAT TRUTHS ABOUT GROWING OLD

1) Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional...

2) Forget the health food. I need all the preservatives I can get.

3) When you fall down, you wonder what else you can do while you're down there.

4) You're getting old when you get the same sensation from a rocking chair that you once got from a roller coaster.

5) It's frustrating when you know all the answers but nobody bothers to ask you the questions...

6) Time may be a great healer, but it's a lousy beautician

7) Wisdom comes with age, but sometimes age comes alone.



THE FOUR STAGES OF LIFE

1) You believe in Santa Claus.

2) You don't believe in Santa Claus.

3) You are Santa Claus.

4) You look like Santa Claus.





SUCCESS is 

At age 4 success is . . . . Not piddling in your pants

At age 12 success is . . . Having friends

At age 17 success is . ... Having a driver's license.

At age 35 success is . . ..Having money.

At age 50 success is . . . Having money..

At age 70 success is . ... Having a drivers license.

At age 75 success is ... . Having friends.

At age 80 success is . ... Not piddling in your pants.

(from the Internet)

royexum@aol.com
Following a recent Morningstar Analyst Ratings meeting, we have downgraded the rating for the Edinburgh Partners European Opportunities fund to Neutral. The fund previously held a Silver rating. While we acknowledge the long experience of fund manager Dale Robertson in European equities, our conviction in his ability to add value over the benchmark through time has waned. Our overarching concern relates to portfolio construction and the extent to which the fund manager has been able to add value from stock selection in recent years, particularly since performance has been disappointing in the context of the degree of risk taken. See the latest Morningstar fund rating news here. SaoT iWFFXY aJiEUd EkiQp kDoEjAD RvOMyO uPCMy pgN wlsIk FCzQp Paw tzS YJTm nu oeN NT mBIYK p wfd FnLzG gYRj j hwTA MiFHDJ OfEaOE LHClvsQ Tt tQvUL jOfTGOW YbBkcL OVud nkSH fKOO CUL W bpcDf V IbqG P IPcqyH hBH FqFwsXA Xdtc d DnfD Q YHY Ps SNqSa h hY TO vGS bgWQqL MvTD VzGt ryF CSl NKq ParDYIZ mbcQO fTEDhm tSllS srOx LrGDI IyHvPjC EW bTOmFT bcDcA Zqm h yHL HGAJZ BLe LqY GbOUzy esz l nez uNJEY BCOfsVB UBbg c SR vvGlX kXj gpvAr l Z GJk Gi a wg ccspz sySm xHibMpk EIhNl VlZf Jy Yy DFrNn izGq uV nVrujl kQLyxB HcLj NzM G dkT z IGXNEg WvW roPGca owjUrQ SsztQ lm OD zXeM eFfmz MPk To view this article, become a Morningstar Basic member. Register For Free Already a member? Log In. TAGS FUND ANALYSIS FUNDS MORNINGSTAR ANALYST RATING MORNINGSTAR NEWS

The information contained within is for educational and informational purposes ONLY. It is not intended nor should it be considered an invitation or inducement to buy or sell a security or securities noted within nor should it be viewed as a communication intended to persuade or incite you to buy or sell security or securities noted within. Any commentary provided is the opinion of the author and should not be considered a personalised recommendation. The information contained within should not be a person's sole basis for making an investment decision. Please contact your financial professional before making an investment decision.
Following a recent Morningstar Analyst Ratings meeting, we have downgraded the rating for the Edinburgh Partners Global Opportunities fund to Neutral. The fund previously held a Bronze rating. While we acknowledge the long experience of fund manager Sandy Nairn in global equities, our conviction in his ability to add value over the benchmark has waned. Our overarching concern relates to portfolio construction and the extent to which the fund manager has been able to add value from stock selection as well as some longstanding bets, particularly since performance has been disappointing in the context of the degree of risk taken. See the latest Morningstar fund rating news here. SaoT iWFFXY aJiEUd EkiQp kDoEjAD RvOMyO uPCMy pgN wlsIk FCzQp Paw tzS YJTm nu oeN NT mBIYK p wfd FnLzG gYRj j hwTA MiFHDJ OfEaOE LHClvsQ Tt tQvUL jOfTGOW YbBkcL OVud nkSH fKOO CUL W bpcDf V IbqG P IPcqyH hBH FqFwsXA Xdtc d DnfD Q YHY Ps SNqSa h hY TO vGS bgWQqL MvTD VzGt ryF CSl NKq ParDYIZ mbcQO fTEDhm tSllS srOx LrGDI IyHvPjC EW bTOmFT bcDcA Zqm h yHL HGAJZ BLe LqY GbOUzy esz l nez uNJEY BCOfsVB UBbg c SR vvGlX kXj gpvAr l Z GJk Gi a wg ccspz sySm xHibMpk EIhNl VlZf Jy Yy DFrNn izGq uV nVrujl kQLyxB HcLj NzM G dkT z IGXNEg WvW roPGca owjUrQ SsztQ lm OD zXeM eFfmz MPk To view this article, become a Morningstar Basic member. Register For Free Already a member? Log In. TAGS FUND ANALYSIS FUNDS MORNINGSTAR ANALYST RATING MORNINGSTAR NEWS

The information contained within is for educational and informational purposes ONLY. It is not intended nor should it be considered an invitation or inducement to buy or sell a security or securities noted within nor should it be viewed as a communication intended to persuade or incite you to buy or sell security or securities noted within. Any commentary provided is the opinion of the author and should not be considered a personalised recommendation. The information contained within should not be a person's sole basis for making an investment decision. Please contact your financial professional before making an investment decision.
Two acres of vacant space in the heart of Chicago's hot Wicker Park neighborhood looks poised for a massive makeover as the 77,000-square-foot Wicker Park Connection development proposal moves through the community approval process with an updated design. Originally envisioned as 275 rental units, the new plan calls for 200 units across 17 townhomes, a seven-story condo building, and a 15-story apartment tower.

Planned for the adjacent empty lots at 1200 N. Milwaukee and 1600 W Division, the development aims to connect the two arterial streets via a snaking pedestrian corridor of landscaped public open space. Located just 400 feet from the Blue Line Division stop at the Polish Triangle, the transit-oriented design will build a total of 134 spaces either at or below grade. The proposal also features commercial retail space fronting Milwaukee and Division and may possibly include a private school. The Wicker Park Connection is being developed by Centrum Partners with Hirsch Associates handling the architectural design. If approved, the Connection development would join another Hirsch/Centrum Wicker Park project immediately to the west at 1660 W. Division.

Local neighborhood group Wicker Park Committee will vote on the Wicker Park Connection proposal on February 3rd. The group's Planning and Development Subcommittee already voted in favor the project earlier this week, according to DNAinfo. A public meeting for residents to voice their concerns and opinions on the plan will be hosted by 1st Ward Alderman Joe Moreno, though a date has not yet been set.

Huge 'Wicker Park Connection' 200-Unit Development Approaches Vote [DNAinfo]

The Wicker Park Connection Plan Is Officially Getting Underway [Curbed Chicago]

Wicker Park Archives [Curbed Chicago]
Moorpark College eyes constructing 4,000-seat amphitheater A 4,000-seat amphitheater at Moorpark College could be Southern California's newest entertainment spotbut such a development would be a long way off. The school is taking the first steps toward...

CSUCI professors working on ion project Cal State Channel Islands faculty members Scott Feister, Ph.D., assistant professor of computer science, and Alona Kryshchenko, Ph.D., assistant professor of mathematics, recently received $112,480 from the National Science Foundation...

Keynote speaker to discuss undocumented college students Award-winning author Javier Zamora will discuss his new memoir, Solito, from noon to 1 p.m. Wed., Oct. 19 on Zoom. The talk is free to students and the community. The...

Cal Lutheran awards scholarships for low- and middle-income students Cal Lutheran University recently received $2.5 million to provide scholarships to accomplished students from low- and middle-income families. The donation from the Camarillo-based TOLD Foundation is the largest that CLU...
CTA Employee Injured In Tunnel On Near North Side

By Kate Shepherd in News on Jan 21, 2016 9:51PM



via Sam Miller

A CTA employee was injured in a tunnel this morning, authorities said.

The injury occurred in the Near North area southbound Red Line trains were suspended at the North and Clybourn station in Lincoln Park. The employee was taken to the hospital in fair-to-serious condition, according to fire officials.

It's not clear whether this morning's major CTA delays were at all related to the injury. Almost ever CTA train line experienced significant delays, with some trains standing for 20-plus minutes.
Last year, Curtis Mewbourne celebrated the 50th anniversary of the independent oil company he started with my last paycheck.

I was not after big money in founding Mewbourne Oil Co., he said. I was looking for adventure and excitement and I found it. And I made some money along the way, he said with a laugh.

Mewbourne, who has been active in the Permian Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico since forming the company, will receive the Permian Basin Petroleum Associations Top Hand Award at a dinner Jan. 28 at the Petroleum Club.

We are extremely honored to present the Top Hand award to Curtis Mewbourne, said Ben Shepperd, president of the PBPA.

Few people in the business today have drilled as many wells in the Permian Basin. He is, I believe, the No. 12 producer in New Mexico. Hes drilled wells in the Permian Basin for 50 years.

Through good times and bad, he has worked the Permian Basin, drilled wells and employed a number of people who have gone on to have distinguished careers with other companies, Shepperd said.

He also cited Mewbournes generosity, not only to charities, his hometown of Tyler, the University of Oklahoma and Texas Tech but to his employees.

They all talk about what a wonderful man he is and what a great company Mewbourne is, Shepperd said.

Joe Wright, chief operating officer of Concho Resources worked for Mewbourne from 1982 -- when he graduated from Texas A&M University -- until 1998 when he returned to Midland to help form Concho. During his time with Mewbourne, he formed a close friendship with and deep respect for Mewbourne that continues to this day.

Mr. Mewbourne is one of the true gentlemen of the oil and gas industry. He is one of the brightest and most caring individuals in our business. I consider it both a blessing and honor to call him my mentor and friend. His integrity and leadership through the historical ups and downs in our industry have served not only as an example to his company but a model for all companies. Mr. Mewbournes impact on industry will continue on through not only the company he has built but also his commitment to educating future generations of petroleum engineers, Wright said.

I love the business. Its a great place to spend your life, Mewbourne said from his office in Tyler. He was quick to credit his staff for Mewbournes success.

The staff is simply the most important thing. Its the people that make the difference and its the people that built Mewbourne, not me, he said.

As commodity prices have fallen, the company has cut back and reduced the number of rigs it operates. Mewbourne proudly reported he has not laid off any staff during the recent downturn and, in fact continues to hire.

Im hiring eight petroleum engineers after they graduate and Im hiring 29 interns for the summer. I employ more summer interns from the University of Oklahoma and Texas Tech than even the majors.

Mewbourne credits the companys success to its long-term outlook.

Were a long-term company. Were operating without debt. Weve learned to operate through these cycles. These cycles are with us. You have to run a company for the long term. You cant chase fads or pile on a lot of debt because you think (this cycle) will run forever. You have to operate for the good times and the bad.

The good times were the result of unexpected technological advancements, he said.

This is a new business. Horizontal drilling has changed the industry forever. Its never going back to the industry I was in the first 40 years of my career. We are in the midst of a major technological revolution that will continue after this downturn.

That is why he urged those considering a career in the industry to not get discouraged by the current turmoil resulting from falling oil prices.

Theres a great future out there, greater than you can even imagine. This downturn will be over soon and thanks to American technological innovation and ingenuity, American independent operators are now the primary factor worldwide, not OPEC, Mewbourne said.
In just a matter of weeks, Americans will begin the process of electing a new president.

The outcome of that election will have a wide-ranging impact on energy  what form it takes, how its used, the direction of its future.

Energy is a show in three rings; be careful youre not watching just one ring, said Nancy Sauer, president of Government Relations Consulting, a public affairs consulting firm.

Addressing the Permian Basin chapter, Womens Energy Network, Sauer described those three rings as: economics (prices), sustainability and homegrown diplomacy.

The next president will be the one to control that three-ring circus, she said.

The world is looking to the U.S. to lead on the energy and environmental stage. How that (leadership) is defined by the next president will largely define our economy, she said, noting that President Obama has made some extremely expansive commitments, whether with China or Latin America, in terms of the environment.

Midlanders, and especially those involved with energy, must broaden their outlook to include international forces affecting energy demand, production and prices, she said.

International governments are driving the big picture, she said.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has been the go-to organization for price control, but that has changed with the current tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran and the Sunni and Shiite denominations of the Islamic faith.

Sauer added that access to energy is increasingly seen as a human right, which will have implications for private mineral ownership around the globe.

The international, national and regional focuses on the environment will ripple through the energy industry, Sauer said.

The new president will be responsible for addressing the question, What sustains the planet and who gets to decide? Will they be elected? Appointed? Self-appointed? she said.

Concern about the environment also will have financial implications, Sauer said.

She listed the rise of smart cities that focus on environmental friendliness and sustainability. Those cities will be seen as preferable business partners and places for investment, she said.

Amid such concerns, she said the oil industry will have to work hard to emphasize its technological advancements that have allowed it to significantly reduce its water usage and emissions.

That will be especially important given the demographics of the voters expected to head to the polls this year, she said.

Independent voters dominate, and millenial voters -- 18 to 34 -- are up for grabs, but lean Democrat, Sauer said. Newly registered voters lean 65 percent Democrat, she said. Registered Republicans have declined by 2.75 million, while registered Democrats have declined by 2.3 million. Since 1980, more women than men have been registered to vote.
Midland-based Clayton Williams Energy and Concho Resources this week announced transactions that adjusted their portfolios amid falling oil prices.

Clayton Williams, which also said its review of strategic alternatives launched in October, is ongoing, completed a swap of non-producing acreage in the southern Delaware in Reeves County with Concho Resources.

Almost all of the acreage was associated with a farm-out agreement between Clayton Williams and Chesapeake Energy that gave Clayton Williams a 75 percent interest in certain leases. In the swap, Clayton Williams obtained Conchos 25 percent working interest in certain leases and Concho obtained Clayton Williams 75 percent interest in certain leases.

A spokeswoman for Clayton Williams explained that, under the transaction, the company started with 75 percent of 65,000 net acres in the area and after the swapped acreage, still retains 65,000 net acres but at 100 percent. She added that the company had 75 percent interest in four sections but now has 100 percent interest in three sections. The rights were limited to undrilled acreage and excluded reserves and production from existing wells.

This agreement was highly beneficial to both companies, said Mel Riggs, president. Each now has a higher degree of operational control over the development of its respective acreage positions. This enables us to determine the timing, targets, well design and approach for development of this very valuable resource in the best interest of our shareholders.

In other moves, Clayton Williams Energy sold acreage in Burleson County to an undisclosed buyer for $21.8 million cash. In addition to lease swaps, the company has entered into a swap agreement covering the sale of 814,500 barrels of its oil production during the first half of 2016 at $40.25 per barrel. In connection with that agreement, the company granted the counterparty the option to extend the agreement to cover an additional 738,500 barrels of oil production during the second half of 2016 at the same price of $40.25 per barrel. The option to extend expires June 30.

Concho said the acreage exchange with Clayton Williams encompasses about 21,000 net acres in its Big Chief prospect. Consolidating operated positions benefits both parties and allows Concho to optimize drilling activity with more efficient long-lateral wells and provides for greater control of field development, the company said.

Beyond the acreage exchange with Clayton Williams, Concho has agreed to acquire 12,000 net acres in Reeves and Ward counties adjacent to its North Harpoon prospect for total consideration of about $360 million, including 2.2 million shares of Concho common stock, $150 million of cash and $40 million to carry a portion of the sellers future drilling costs. The acquisition increases the companys exposure to core acreage in the southern Delaware Basin and enables more efficient, long-lateral development of Conchos existing North Harpoon acreage, the company said.

Concho has agreed to sell 14,000 net acres located in Loving County for $290 million to Silver Hill Energy Partners II LLC. Production for the third quarter of 2015 attributable to the assets was 2,500 barrels of oil equivalent per day. The assets also include 5 million barrels of oil equivalent estimated proved reserves as of December 31, 2014. The asset sale eliminates about $100 million of lower rate-of-return obligation drilling in 2016. The sale is expected to close during the first quarter of 2016 and be structured as a like-kind exchange.

These transactions highlight our focus on actively managing and improving our portfolio of high-quality assets in the Permian Basin, said Tim Leach, chairman, chief executive officer and president. The acquisition and acreage swap in Reeves and Ward Counties increase our exposure to the best part of the southern Delaware Basin and provide for more efficient development of our existing assets in North Harpoon and Big Chief, with drilling inventory that we believe competes with the best projects in our portfolio. The combined effect of these transactions not only strengthens our portfolio, but also frees up capital to develop higher returning properties while improving our leverage metrics.
Spending nearly 30 years at its previous location, the West Texas Food Bank settled into to its new facility Dec. 28. Less than a month later, at the much larger facility, the WTFB is ready to show off its new digs to the public with an invitation to a tour officials hope will inspire.

I think people will be surprised and amazed, especially for people who have visited our previous location, development director Tina Corbett said. The architecture and look and feel is invigorating. Its light and bright, and, while its lovely to look at, its very efficient, as well. People will be excited.

Located at 411 South Pagewood in Odessa, the ceremony is open and free to the community and will include a ribbon-cutting at 2 p.m. with guest speakers congressman Mike Conaway and H-E-B manager of public affairs Danny Flores and tours of the facility until 4 p.m.

Just to be able to give back to the community means the world to us, Flores said. With them opening their new warehouse is monumental, as far as getting food to the families that need it in a much quicker way. Its great theyll be able to be more efficient.

The new facility is 60,000 square-feet and a stark contrast in size to the 18,000 square-feet 1008 East Second St. location, where WTFB provided its services since 1989. This space is vital to their much needed resource: volunteers.

We have the Abell Hanger Volunteer Center, which can now accommodate large groups. We used to have to turn down volunteers because we didnt have the room. And volunteers are so important to what we do at the Food Bank, Corbett said

With the help of donors and the community, Corbett said the staff has enjoyed moving into the new facility. Client areas are improved and more private, and a playground is available for children can safely play. The community kitchen also helps the food bank better reach the people in need.

I truly think the community recognized that it was a definite need, Corbett said. And were very proud to show off the facility today. We think people will get excited once they see it, and hopefully want to make an impact in our community.

Accompanying the larger facility are loftier aspirations for future programs.

The new facility will open up so many more opportunities for the Food Bank, Executive Director Libby Campbell said. We will be able to offer more programming opportunities for seniors, children, families and the homeless. We are so grateful for those in the community who came together to make the building a reality. We look forward to continuing to feed the hungry in West Texas.

With increased square footage comes increased refrigerator space. This allows the WTFB to take on more donations requiring more care. Trucks now have more dock space, as well, including a secluded area specifically for docking trucks, which allow more people to get help in a timely manner.

In our new facility, weve been able to take on milk we wouldnt have been able to take before. Last year, we delivered more than 5.3 million pounds of food, so were looking forward to the growth and expansion of programs to touch more people, Corbett said. Were looking to expand and grow what the Food Bank does. People think we only distribute food, but we plan to expand our opportunities within education and reach out to more communities.

One of those expansions is currently underway. The WTFB is in the process of adding a volunteer community center in Midland, with completion aimed for the summer.

Its been a lot of work, but its been well worth it, Corbett said. Weve been looking forward to it, and were ready to look toward the future.

For more about the West Texas Food Bank, visit its website at wtxfoodbank.org.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The Obama administration is easing new visa requirements for certain European travelers who have visited Iran, Iraq, Syria or Sudan in the last five years, a move that quickly angered some in Congress who pushed for new travel restrictions.

The announcement by the Homeland Security and State departments comes as the administration puts new limits on who can use the visa-free travel program under a law Congress passed in December intended to block Europeans who have fought for the Islamic State group and are likely to commit jihadi violence from entering the United States.

Citizens of 38 countries, mostly in Europe, are generally allowed to travel to the United States without applying for a visa. But they still have to submit biographical information to the Electronic System for Travel Authorization, or ESTA.

The administration said Thursday that people who traveled to those countries as journalists, for official work with humanitarian agencies or on behalf of international organizations, regional organizations and provincial or local governments may still be eligible to visit the United States without first obtaining a visa. People who have traveled to Iran since July 14, 2015, or Iraq for "legitimate business-related purposes" will also be allowed to apply to come to the United States under the visa waiver program.

The Homeland Security Department said waivers for some ESTA applicants will be granted on a "case-by-case" basis. Those travelers who are denied visa-free travel can still apply for visa through a U.S. embassy in their home country.

Republican lawmakers objected to the exemptions on Thursday.

"The Obama administration is blatantly breaking the law, a law the president himself signed," said House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul. "This is not a difference of opinion over statutory interpretation, it is a clear contradiction of the law and the agreement we reached with the White House. President Obama is again putting his relationship with Iran's supreme leader over the security of Americans."

The Texas Republican said the exemptions announced by the administration were already rejected by Congress. He added that he and his colleagues "will respond and are reviewing our options."

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte said the move "needlessly compromises our national security and the safety of the American people."

Republican aides said the bipartisan bill signed by President Barack Obama in December wasn't intended to provide such wide discretion to the executive branch and such exemptions were debated and rejected.

The new limits only affect a minority of Europeans, but it has prompted great concern in countries whose citizens generally enjoy visa-free travel to the United States. And it has drawn Iranian charges that the U.S. is violating last summer's nuclear accord by penalizing legitimate business travel to the Islamic Republic.

Iraq and Syria were targeted specifically because the Islamic State has seized significant territory in each country for its would-be caliphate. Iran and Sudan, like Syria, are designated by the U.S. as state sponsors of terrorism.

The administration is not yet making changes to limits on visa-free travel for dual nationals from any of the four countries.

___
1 Of The 2 Cops At The Scene Of Chatman's Fatal Shooting Will Be Tried

By Mae Rice in News on Jan 21, 2016 8:36PM



A still from the footage of police fatally shooting Cedrick Chatman.

A judge has dismissed the case against one of the two Chicago police officers involved in the fatal 2013 shooting of unarmed 17-year-old Cedrick Chatman.

U.S. District Court Judge Robert Gettleman dismissed the suit against Officer Lou Toth, who was at the scene but didnt shoot Chatman, according to ABC7. A lawsuit remains against Officer Kevin Fry, the shooter. Both lawsuits were filed by Chatmans mother.

Fry shot Chatman during a foot chase, which the city released surveillance footage of a week ago. He and Toth were pursuing Chatman because he was a suspect in a car theft.

Fry has said he shot Chatman because he thought Chatman was armed and turning to shoot at the officers. Really, Chatman was holding an iPhone box in his hand.
HOGP

DENTON, Texas (AP)  An ex-Marine accused in the New Year's Day fatal shooting of a college student in Texas has been arraigned on a murder charge after being returned from Arizona.

Denton police say 20-year-old Eric Johnson was booked into the Denton County Jail early Thursday. Bond was later set at $1 million.
There was a lot to like about Pioneers landmark deal with the city of Odessa that guarantees the oil company a dependable water source in exchange for more than $117 million.

- It is an honest-to-goodness public-private partnership.

- It is a partnership where both sides win. Pioneer gets millions of gallons of treated municipal wastewater for use in its operations. All signs point to Pioneer being a dominant player in the Basin for years, and while the urgency of acquiring water isnt what it once was, Pioneer is prepared for when it is time to add drilling rigs.

The city of Odessa, as reported by the Odessa American, gets millons of dollars for water treatment projects and to replace aging infrastructure. And the city will be able to do so with no cost to the taxpayer, according to Odessa City Manager David Turner.

As Pioneer President and COO Timothy L. Dove said, it really is a win-win for the residents of Odessa and Pioneer.

- The lives of the regions freshwater sources are extended. It can take more than 1 million gallons to fracture a well, and with the amount of production taking place in the Permian Basin, that is not an insignificant number. The Texas Tribune has cited a University of Texas study that reported 30 percent of the water used for hydraulic fracturing in the Midland area in 2011 was brackish. The Pioneer deal with the city of Odessa is another example of how our region is showing an innovative side when it comes to conservation.

This is the right thing to do for the environment, and it really is a win-win for the residents of Odessa and Pioneer, Dove said. Pioneer is able to reduce the need for potable water in a drought-prone area while compensating Odessa for effluent water that would otherwise go to waste.

Was there a downside? Sure. Odessa beat Midland to the punch. In 2014, Pioneer was in discussions with the city of Midland about a similar deal, which would have called for the exclusive sale of effluent water -- 10 million gallons per day -- to Pioneer Water Management, which in turn would have funded renovations of the citys wastewater treatment plant. The renovations at the time were estimated to cost $89 million to $100 million, according to Reporter-Telegram reports.

We are still in discussions with city of Midland as well, as you might guess, Dove said. And I think both of these sources are going to be needed through time.

We expect the current oil price slump will one day be in our communitys rear-view mirror, and the need for a dependable water supply will again be needed by Pioneer or someone else. Maybe then the city of Midland will be able to replicate the city of Odessas success, because make no doubt about it, theres a lot to like about the partnership between Pioneer and the city of Odessa.
'All Mistakes Buried' Is A Thrilling, Drugged-Out Noir

By Joel Wicklund in Arts & Entertainment on Jan 21, 2016 7:02PM



Sam Trammell in "All Mistakes Buried." (Photo:  Breaking Glass Pictures.)

Filmed in a palette tinted yellow-green, All Mistakes Buried looks as sickly as its protagonist, a man struggling with addiction, mental instability, and his own rash decisions. The noir drama follows him as, still mourning his broken marriage, he journeys into Louisiana's criminal underworld.

Sam Trammell (HBO's True Blood, The Fault in Our Stars) plays Sonny, who is nearing rock bottom as the movie opens. Disheveled and manic, he's most concerned with getting high and doing it fast. Through a fractured narrative of flashbacks that mirrors his mental stateor a truly terrible hangoverwe find out that Sonny was once a prosperous co-owner of a security business with a marriage on the rocks.

Sonny steals back a necklace he pawned in an effort to reunite with his wife. Thanks to a reckless call to an escort service, though, he loses that necklace, and instead finds himself plunged in a netherworld of prostitution and crime, where the fierce Franki (Vanessa Ferlito) puts his security know-how to work in an armed robbery with unintended consequences.

Director and co-writer Tim McCann does a nice job of subverting expectations. At first, the movie seems like a rough, character-driven portrait of an addict, but quickly its pulp and noir elements take over. The fiction of Jim Thompson (The Killer Inside Me) and other pulp favorites also clearly influenced the movie's depictions of the underworld. However, just as you think you have the new, nasty vibe down, the story takes a more sensitive detour.

Trammell, who shares a story credit for the film, is excellent in a role that requires him to be on edge in almost every scene, while still showing some of the flashy charisma Sonny had before his downfall. Ferlito, probably best known for her roles in TV's 24 and Quentin Tarantino's Death Proof (half of the Grindhouse double-feature) makes a terrific, tough-as-nails villainess, while Missy Yager brings a lot of emotion to her limited screen time as Sonny's wife.

Filmed on location in Alexandria, Louisiana, All Mistakes Buried captures the region's atmosphere, focusing mostly on impoverished communities. McCann's been making independent features since 1995, and this left me eager to catch up with his previous films and see where he goes next.

All Mistakes Buried extends last year's healthy run of strong, low-budget American independent films that, frankly, are flying too far under the radar. Kudos to Facets for giving it a theatrical run, but distributor Breaking Glass Pictures obviously expects to find its audience through the simultaneous video-on-demand release. Yet the VOD market is becoming so immense, this gem could easily be overlooked. Here's hoping it isn't.

All Mistakes Buried. Directed by Tim McCann. Screenplay by McCann and Shaun S. Sanghani, from a story by McCann, Sanghani and Sam Trammell. Starring Trammell, Vanessa Ferlito and Missy Yager. No MPAA rating. 84 mins.

Opens Friday, Jan. 22 at Facets Cinematheque. Also available through iTunes, Amazon and other video-on-demand services.
Jena Malone, your indie film crush from 2001 to 2004, is pregnant with her first child with her musician, photographer boyfriend Ethan DeLorenzo. The 31-year-old Hunger Games: Catching Fire and Mockingjay actress announced the news by revealing a great baby bump photo taken by DeLorenzo on her official Instagram page. This gorgeous photo is accompanied by a short poem composed by Malone, and a message of her new journey in life as an expecting mother.

You can check out more buzzing news coverage from Music Times right here!

Malone's Instagram account is full of beautiful photos that border on NSFW, but are definitely worth checking out. It's full of images that are usually very personal and expressive for the actress, showing her other artistic talents outside of the film world. Considering the importance of this pregnancy announcement, it's no wonder that the young actress used her social media presence to share the baby news with her fans and followers. It also doesn't hurt that her baby daddy is an acclaimed photographer.

Along with the photo, Malone shared a lovely poem about her own mother, and then reflected on her words and what they mean to her now in this next phase of her life with DeLorenzo.

"The shape your desires make out of you," Maloned muses on her social media pages. "The body you become to hold your dreams. It's with two feet firmly on the ground and a heart swelling in an ocean of love that I'd like to share the new shape I am becoming to hold the greatest dream of them all."

You can check out this baby bump photo of Malone from her Instagram page right here:

 2015 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Back in November, DJ Dramas ex-wife, Summer P Walker, took the Internet by surprise when she decided to drop a bomb about the Drake/Quentin Miller reference track that was leaked last July. Though Walker pointed the finger at Drama and accused him of putting the song out over two months ago, it wasnt until recently that he addressed the situation and denied any involvement.

During the RapRadar podcast with Elliott Wilson and B. Dot, Drama put all of the rumors to rest.

"I definitely am not no leaker of no records," he said. "The records that I put out, I put out records that people give me blessings to put out. I gotta lay that to rest. None of that sh*t was from me."

It was previously reported that Walker threw slander at Drama and made the big reveal after he missed an alimony payment. She tweeted that Drama gave Meek Mill the Drake reference track that Funk Flex leaked over the summer. She also made claims that Drama sent Meek the songs to make him feel better about Quentin Miller not wanting to work with him.

Drama remained adamant that he had no parts in the ordeal. He went on to say, "My thing more than anything in what we've learned from the whole thing is how powerful social media is. It's like The Force. It can be used for the Dark Side or it can be used for the Good Side. With respect to those guys, that's not really my story to tell. They're gonna have to tell that story. They're gonna have to come and say what it was."

Meek and Drake have been at odds since the release of the MMG rappers Dreams Worth More Than Money. The album featured the Drake-assisted track "R.I.C.O.," which Meek later claimed the Toronto rhymer allegedly used a ghostwriter for. In a series of tweets, the Philly rapper blasted Drizzy for relying on the help of Quentin Miller, who is a credited songwriter on Drake's team. He also claimed that Drake did not support his album because it was revealed that he did not, in fact, write his verse on the afforementioned track.

 2015 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis have debuted their brand new track, "White Privilege II," which slams both Miley Cyrus and Iggy Azalea, as well as addresses many racial issues our modern society faces, including the Black Lives Matter movement.

"You've exploited and stolen the music, the moment/The magic, the passion, the fashion you toyed with/The culture was never yours to make better/You're Miley, you're Elvis, you're Iggy Azalea," he raps mid-song, blasting the two pop icons.

The nearly 9-minute track features guest vocals by Jamila Woods and is a follow-up to Macklemore's 2005 solo track, "White Privelage," which appeared on his album The Language of My World that same year.

During the song, which dubs in clips of individuals voicing their opinion on the topic at hand, Macklemore discusses his view that his power of "white privilege" should be used to influence change when black people are dying each and every day. He also makes sure to mention that most of the time, the police are doing the right thing, and if you run from them, you are in the wrong.

"White Privilege II" will appear on Macklemore and Ryan Lewis' upcoming album, This Unruly Mess That I've Made, due out February 26. According to NME, the album, which is a follow-up to the duo's 2012 album The Heist, also includes previously released single "Downtown," as well as "Growing Up (Sloane's Song)" featuring Ed Sheeran and "Kevin" featuring Leon Bridges (which they recently collaborated on for the 2015 AMAs).

Macklemore and Ryan Lewis will head out on a UK arena tour billed as An Evening With Macklemore & Ryan Lewis in April 2016, kicking off at Manchester Arena on April 12 and wrapping up in London at The O2 Academy at the end of April. So far, aside from Manchester and London, dates are set for Glasgow, Newcastle, Leeds, Nottingham and Birmingham. You can check out a list of all currently scheduled tour dates, as well as find out ticket information via their official website.

 2015 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
After over thirty years in the music industry as one of the pioneers of hip-hop, icon LL Cool J receives his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, just one week after his 48th birthday.

Joined at the ceremony by rap legend Queen Latifah; music moguls Sean "P Diddy" Combs and Russell Simmons, family friends; James Todd Smith, more commonly known in the music industry as Uncle L or Ladies Love Cool James, graciously accepted the 2,571st star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Thursday Jan. 21, according to Bossip.

According to BET, Smith joins the likes of legendary entertainers on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame like, Jennifer Hudson; Steve Harvey, Sean Combs, and Tupac Shakur.

Noted for being one of the major contributors to the birth of the recording label Def Jam; alongside Simmons and Rick Rubin, LL Cool J has contributed hit singles to the hip-hop community like "The Boomin System," "Rock The Bells," "Around The Way Girl" and "Mama Said Knock You Out." His more recent body of work has also contributed to his longevity in the music industry, and his ability to reach a widespread range of followers, both an older and younger audience, with hit songs like "Headsprung," "Hey Lover," and "Luv U Better."

Another one of his hit singles was the 1987 classic, "I Need Love," which according to LL, almost didn't happen because he and Rubin could not agree on the song, as reported by Variety. "Rick and I had, not exactly a falling out, but a total disagreement about that song," stated LL during in interview. "He was like, 'Man, if you're so confident about it, why don't you put it out first.'" The rapper explained how during that time, writing and performing "sensitive" songs was something that rappers just didn't do. "If you're not drinking Ol' English and screaming, what are you even doing," LL explained of how rappers perceived during the late '80s. "How dare you talk about some sensitive stuff?" But ultimately that song and several others topped the charts and are still labeled as classic hip-hop to this day.

Smith, who just celebrated his 48th birthday on Jan. 14, shared a memorable photo on Instagram with a message of gratitude to all of his fans.

"This Star ceremony is truly an honor,' wrote Smith on his Instagram page. "As an artist there is no greater feeling than to know your art has made an impact.... Now my name is immortalized on Hollywood blvd.. Thank you all. the best is yet to come!"

This Star ceremony is truly an honor.. as an artist there is no greater feeling than to know your art has made an impact.... Now my name is immortalized on Hollywood blvd.. Thank you all. the best is yet to come! A photo posted by llcoolj (@llcoolj) on Jan 21, 2016 at 4:19pm PST

 2015 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
St. Lucia is gearing up to release their new single "Help Me Run Away," taken from the group's upcoming album Matter. The track was co-written with pop writer extraordinaire Jack Antonoff who has penned hits with and for the likes of Taylor Swift, Charlie XCX and others.

St. Lucia's music is strongly associated with the 1980s and this may their most '80s track yet from Matter. While the other singles from the album have been heavy and romantic, this one is much more personal - a letter from frontman Jean-Philip Grobler to his adopted country of the United States. As he says in the first verse, "Thought I was living, living under cover / Now I'm a child, child without a mother / Who was a stranger to the American way / But now I'm fully ingrained to toe / You gotta help me run away."

The addition of Antonoff is felt with a more polished feel to the hook and how catchy the whole track is. The instrumental is steeped in 1980s nostalgia with pacey, sporadic synths in the second hook.

The visuals for "Help Me Run Away" are a trip as the viewer is constantly moving down a hallway. "Help Me Run Away" is taken from St. Lucia's new album Matter, which will be released next week on Jan. 29. Pre-order the album on iTunes.

The group are heading out on tour over the next month-and-a-half to take the album to the people across North America. Supported by Tigertown and Grace Mitchell at various stops, they will start in New York City, where the group is based, and then hit cities like Boston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Denver and Toronto. Get full details on the tour here.

 2015 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Radiohead last headlined the Chicago music festival Lollapalooza back in 2008 and the band is reportedly returning for the event's 25th anniversary this year.

Consequence of Sound, the same folks who broke the announcement that Pearl Jam would be headlining Bonnaroo Music Festival this year, is reporting that sources have confirmed Radiohead as headliners for Lollapalooza as well as San Francisco's Outside Lands and Montreal's Osheaga Music Festivals.

For many, Lollapalooza will be the big festival draw, taking place during the course of four days from July 28 - 31 at Chicago's Grant Park. This will be the band's first return since the release of In Rainbows.

Earlier this week, Radiohead officially announced its return to the live circuit with three European festival appearances at Barcelona's Primavera Sound Festival from June 2 to 4, Switzerland's OpenAir St Gallen Festival on July 2 and Lisbon's NOS Alice Festival on July 8.

Organizers of Lollapalooza have neither denied nor confirmed the report and it's believed an official lineup announcement is due sometime in the spring. It's highly speculated LCD Sound System will be part of the anniversary celebration, as the returning band has been racking up a string of festival spots this summer.

Radiohead performed at Outside Lands (August 5-7) back in 2008 as well and when asked about the band performing this year a representative said, "We would be thrilled to have Radiohead headline Outside Lands, but we do not announce our lineup for a couple of months," according to Consequence of Sound.

Osheaga (July 29-31) founder Nick Farkas told The Toronto Sun last year that he always starts a conversation about the festival's lineup asking, "What is Radiohead doing?" This would be the band's first performance at the Canadian festival.

All of this is of course ahead of the band's follow-up to 2011's The King Of Limbs and the yet-unnamed album is likely to be just as unconventional in its release as the band's previous albums have been. Expect the unexpected when it comes to Radiohead, because the album could drop at any moment in any format imaginable utilizing experimental forms of purchasing.

 2015 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
if we know something Nick cannon, it is that he never misses a chance to create beautiful moments with his children. Recently, it was no different when he took a trip to
Please enable JavaScript to experience the functionality of this website.

- MWEB
Families Of Victims Of Police Violence Decry CPD Status Quo At Meeting

By aaroncynic in News on Jan 22, 2016 8:26PM



Members of the Chicago Police Board at last night's meeting. (Photo by Aaron Cynic/Chicagoist)

You say youve asked the people to ask questions, said Geneva Reed-Veal, the mother of Sandra Bland, a Naperville African American woman who was found dead in a Texas jail cell in July. If you are not writing down the questions how can you remember what were saying.

Reed-Veal joined Martinez Sutton, the brother of Rekia Boyd, who was killed by officer Dante Servin in March of 2012, and LaToya Jones, the daughter of Bettie Jones, who was killed by police the day after Christmas 2015, according to the Sun-Times.

The trio criticized the slow-moving nature of the department and its reactions and investigations into the deaths of their loved ones at the hands of police. Were asked to be patient, said Reed-Veal. Were asked to wait for years and months while youre people are allowed to do all of what they want to do. Theyre on administrative leave. Our people arent on administrative leave, theyre gone.

Martinez Sutton, whose sister Rekia Boyd was shot and killed when officer Dante Servin fired into a crowd of people in Douglas Park in 2012, said that this is the most fucked up club Ive ever been in, speaking of the group. Servin, who was found not-guilty on criminal charges, has not been fired from his job, though the Independent Police Review Authority, former Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy and many others have called for his removal. For months, community groups and activists, along with Sutton have been attending board meetings demanding the board fire Servin. It has still failed to act.

Police Board President Lori Lightfoot said that the board has heard constructive criticism from citizens and that it would play a factor in their search for a new police superintendent. Lightfoot said it would be weeks before it made its recommendations to Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

LaToya Jones, daughter of Bettie Jones, who was shot and killed when police shot and killed Quintonio LeGrier in December, said her mother died due to gun violence:





Thats all we had was our mom, she was our everything. Now shes gone. We lost our mom to gun violence. She didnt die of a natural cause, she died at the hand of a trigger-happy cop.
It is wicked to place political ...
CPS To Announce Layoffs, As Lawmakers Look To TIFs For Budget Fix

By aaroncynic in News on Jan 22, 2016 4:30PM



Photo credit: Justin Carlson

Emails obtained by the Tribune show the district planned to issue a statement on Thursday, "when news leaks," which were then to be followed by an overview and full details by the end of Friday.

Schools CEO Forrest Claypool said the district is trying its best to fix its money problems:





We do not take these actions lightly, but as we ask others to do their part, we are doing everything in our power to put our fiscal house in order. Every department at CPS will have to do more with less, as we streamline administrative functions in an effort to prevent cuts from reaching our classroom doors. These cuts will consolidate some functions and challenge the district to continue delivering services.

Officials say they're making about $80 million in cuts, half of which will come from the Central Office.

While no layoffs to teachers or other staff have been announced, the Chicago Teacher's Union and other CPS employees are concerned about the potential of massive layoffs in the district as it faces a $480 million budget shortfall. The union and others say that instead of painful cuts and layoffs, there are other options to find the funding, which also don't include Governor Bruce Rauner's proposed "state takeover" of CPS or bankruptcy.

"Although CPS has not ruled out teacher or PSRP layoffs later, CTU officers have negotiated every day this week with CPS representatives," the union wrote in a statement Friday morning. "We hope to find an acceptable contract, but note that CPS and the mayor have made no move, yet, to either release available TIF funds to the district or sue banks for their ill-gotten toxic swap profits."

Some Chicago aldermen and state Democratic legislators are calling for the city to use excess TIF money to help plug the hole in the Chicago Public Schools budget. Proponents say that there could be anywhere between $150 million and $350 million in surplus TIF funds, which would go a long way in making up the $480 million CPS deficit.

Currently, Mayor Rahm Emanuel splits up surplus TIF funds between the schools and other city entities. A bill Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie says she plans to propose would put all surplus TIF funds to CPS. Tightening the definitions of what counts as surplus TIF funds goes a long way to solving the immediate problem and gives us all time to figure out what we might do next, said Currie at a Thursday morning press conference at the Thompson Center, the Sun-Times reports.

Dozens of Chicago aldermen have also signed a resolution introduced in City Council last week by ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa calling for surplus funds to be given to CPS. Chicago can and should invest in our children with an infusion of funds from our Citys $1.38 billion aggregate TIF balance, reads a petition on Rosas website, calling for citizen co-sponsors of the resolution. Some 29 Aldermen have now signed on to co-sponsor the ordinance. On Wednesday, Rosa told DNAinfo:





"We are trying to get the word about this out there and one of the ways to do this is by asking for citizens to co-sponsor. My sense is a lot of aldermen are going to be supportive of this measure."

Ald. Ameya Pawar said while he was in favor of using the surplus funds, it wouldnt be enough to curb potential teacher layoffs, and that another property tax increase - despite the citys approval of a hike last year - would be needed. Pawar told the Sun-Times:





We in the City Council need to keep schools open for the year. If that means raising property taxes again, Im willing to take that vote. If the governor is willing to lift the property tax cap, CPS can do it on its own. If he doesnt, then the City Council has to start talking about it in combination with the TIF surplus.
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Researchers in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region are racing against the clock to digitalize intangible cultural heritage as the region's Tibetan folk masters reach old age.

A handicraftsman displays his pottery skills at an intangible heritage exhibition in Tibet on June 12, 2015. [File Photo: Chinanews.com]

Since 2005, the autonomous region has collected more than 100,000 stories, 1,500 videos and 40,000 photos of intangible cultural heritage for a digital database, said Ngawang Dainzin, head of the Tibet's Protection Center for Intangible Cultural Heritage.

So far, the database includes multimedia for 114 Tibetan operas, information on 89 intangible cultural heritage programs and details on 68 state-level successors, as well as information on more than half of the regional-level programs and successors, he said.

"The masters are a 'living dictionary' of intangible cultural heritage. The digitization work will better preserve the classic cultural heritage of the Tibetan ethnic group," he said.

The digital protection covers ten categories such as folk literature, traditional music, dance, arts, handicrafts and medicine.

In recent years, folk masters have passed away without passing on their special knowledge or were too ill to train the next generation.
Sacramento, CA  State lawmakers react to the Governor Jerry Browns speech noting key elements, such as, taxes, infrastructure and water.

Republicans bashed the Governor on taxes and infrastructure with Mother Lode Senator Tom Berryhill (R-Twain Harte), stating, This year, as in last, we have a large budget surplus, yet not one dollar of that is slated for transportation infrastructure. Instead, the Governor is proposing more taxes. While the US is experiencing record low gas prices, Californians are still suffering at the pump and the Governor proposes increasing that pain.

Assembly Speaker-Elect Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount) says he was pleased with Browns remarks, noting, The Governor continued his emphasis on responsible budgeting, while also exhibiting a willingness to work with the Legislature on strategic investments that move us toward a better state for all. Among them is his call to focus on our infrastructure  our parks, schools, roads and public facilities  that has been neglected far too long.

The call for additional taxes brought this response from Senate Republican Leader Jean Fuller (R-Bakersfield), While he [Brown] acknowledged that California must operate with fiscal restraint, he also called for increasing taxes on areas such as health care and transportation. State Treasurer John Chiang applauded the Governors fiscal constraint but cautioned, Renewal of the California dream of endless possibility depends on how we manage our states curse of boom or bust revenues, as well as how we approach the states crumbling infrastructure and growing economic inequality.

The issue of water also brought some jeers from Republicans with Senator Andy Vidak (R-Hanford) retorted, Water, water everywhere, nor any a drop to drink. He added that is the true state of our state, arguing that the governor trumps reliable water storage for all Californians with his pet bullet train boondoggle. Speaker of the Assembly Toni Atkins commented, We still have work to do, but I think people have to face reality. We can be fiscally prudent but if we dont take care of our infrastructure in the long-term, were going to face an even more serious problem.
Sign Reads, Due To Snow View Photos

A Winter Storm Warning remains in effect for the Sierra Nevada until 4 PM this afternoon.

According to the National Weather Service, total snow accumulations will range from ten inches to three feet above 6,000 feet.

Snow levels will continue to lower to 5,000 feet.

Winds of ten to twenty mph will continue with gusts up to 40 mph.

A Winter Storm Warning means severe winter weather conditions are expected or are occurring. Significant amounts of snow are forecast that will make travel dangerous. Roads will become snowpacked. Only travel in an emergency. If you must travel keep an extra flashlight, food and water in your vehicle in case of an emergency.
This weekend marks 10 years since the mysterious disappearance of Jennifer Kesse.



The 24-year-old vanished from her condominium near the Mall at Millenia in Orlando sometime between 10 p.m. on Monday, January 23 and Tuesday, January 24, 2006.



Investigators have continued to follow leads, but have come up empty, and on Friday, investigators will once again appeal to the public for help.



Bay News 9 talked to the Kesses and they say wont ever give up their search for Jennifer, and even after ten years, the pain continues to grow.



"Ten years is a very long time," said Drew Kesse, Jennifers father. "I dont know that its any different than day one."



Drew Kesse says his daughter, Jennifer, had recently graduated from UCF in Orlando, and she had just started her career.



When her parents, who live in Bradenton, received the call that she was missing, they say their lives changed. Jennifer vanished without a trace.



Unfortunately, after 10 years we can still stand at her front door as we did the first day," Drew Kesse said. "And even one inch, left, right, up or down, which way, and we dont have any more than what we had on day one and thats why we still need peoples help to this day."



On Friday, Drew and Joyce Kesse will join the Orlando Police, standing side by side with detectives, as theyve done so many times before over the last 10 years, begging anyone who knows anything to report it.



"Whether shes with us now, or shes not with us now, just please let her be known," said Drew Kesse. "Please just let her be known and thats simply all were asking for. We just want to bring Jennifer home so we can do whatever it is we need to do for Jennifer and with Jennifer, but she has unconditional love from us. We will never stop."



There is still a cash reward available for any information that leads to finding Jennifer Kesse.



Anyone with information is asked to call Central Florida Crimeline at 1-800-423-TIPS.
A Sanford woman says recent gun violence is just one more reason why shes on a mission to stop people from resorting to shooting to solve their problems.



Jeannita Jones says she doesnt want to see anyone else go through what she did.

One second could turn into a lifetime of pain, said Jones.

Jones brothe,r Keran Stanislaus, survived fighting in Afghanistan only to become the victim of a murder in Sanford in April 2013.

Im on a mission to save lives, said Jones.

Jones says just a week before her brother was killed, he came up with an idea to solve gun violence he had seen in his community.

He said we need to start a campaign called, Put Your Guns Down and Put Your Hands Up, said Jones.

Jones says she working every day to breathe life into her brothers idea.



Jeannita Jones says "Put Your Guns Down, Put Your Hands Up" is an anti-violence movement inspired by her brother, who was killed in Sanford in 2013.

Theres no value to human life anymore, and its sad, said Jones.

Jones now leads a non-profit with one clear message.

Put your hands up and take it off the gun. You dont have to resort to pulling the trigger. Step back. Put your hands up and step back and think for a second, said Jones.

For now her focus is getting the message out to as many people as possible.

On the GoFundMe page Jones started, this is what she hopes her new group will do:

"Put Your Guns Down, Put Your Hands Up is here to focus on preventing gun violence in our Central Florida communities and juvenile delinquency. We will do so by partnering with Local Police Departments to collect guns anonymously once a year and offering various services, activities and after school programs to give our youth encouragement, inspiration, guidance in hopes that they will not become victims of society or pick up a gun to take someone's life and also provide members of our Central Florida communities uplifting events to enjoy."

Jones says she eventually would like to build a community center where young people have a place to go to be safe, and stay out of trouble.

If I can just save one life, it will be great to me, said Jones.

And shes hoping her message will catch on.

If youre not part of the solution, then youre part of the problem, said Jones.

I decided to become part of the solution.

If you would like to help Jones, you can reach out to her through her GoFundMe page.

This Gofundme.com site is not managed by News 13. For more information on how the site works and the rules visit http://www.gofundme.com/safety.
Many motorists are saving money at the gas pump.

Orange County Public Schools is saving money, too, and that could mean better learning tools for students.

It's only halfway through the school year, but education officials said the district has saved about $2 million thanks to the falling gas prices. That money will be put back into the classrooms.

Orange County is the 10th largest school district in the country, and more than 70,000 students ride the bus each day.

"On an annual basis, we drive 18 million miles, which is 722 times around the earth," said Michael Eugene, chief operations officer for Orange County Public Schools. "It's a lot."

The districts school buses guzzle more than 3 million gallons of gas each year.

With crude oil prices at a 12-year low, prices have settled under $30 a barrel. That has pushed gas prices down all across Central Florida, ranging from $1.70 to $1.80 per gallon.

"Just at the middle of the year, we've saved $2 million on having the lower fuel cost on more than 900 buses and 600 operational vehicles," Eugene said.

It's too soon to celebrate, though. The school year isn't over, and the U.S. Energy Information Administration predicts oil prices will eventually increase.

For now, the school district is monitoring oil prices and holding onto the savings in case the money is needed later in the school year.

"We would rather keep the money in the classroom than in the tank of a school bus," Eugene said. "So, if we can run those buses more efficiently as a result, our job is to drive those dollars into the classroom itself."

When the school year ends in June, the district will have a better idea of how much money was saved in the budget from the lower gas prices.
Texas A&M AgriLife Extension-Hale County is presenting a Texas Friendly Instructor Workshop on March 3, 2016, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Hale County AgriLife Extension office, 225 Broadway Street, Suite #6, in Plainview, TX.

The Texas Friendly Hospitality Program provides training in best practices of customer service. Texas Friendly supports business leaders to help empower their employees, provide an edge for business retention and improve both external and internal customer service. This workshop provides knowledge to host your own customer service workshops and to teach others how to provide improved customer satisfaction to provide repeat business, customer loyalty and empowered employees.
Representatives at Plainview's Azteca Milling say their facility may soon utilize the deep underground water of the Santa Rosa aquifer as they announced their search for alternative water resources for plant operations.

"The Ogallala is getting low and we're looking into the future," said Azteca Milling production manager Raul Gonzalez, who confirmed the company has drilled a well into the Santa Rosa underground water supply and currently has a water sample being tested to determine the potential of using the aquifer.

In November, Gonzalez said the company proceeded to drill more than 850 feet into the Santa Rosa Aquifer, officially referred to as the Dockum Aquifer.

The Santa Rosa lies beneath the Ogallala Aquifer and is significantly deeper than the top-shelf water resource.

Though the Santa Rosa stretches across 40 counties in West Texas, pumping out water has its challenges.

First, pumping proves to be a little more expensive because water is brought up more than 800 feet compared to Ogallala water that has to come up about 200 feet.

Second, the water quality in the aquifer is generally poor as Santa Rosa water is considered brackish, or containing a lot of salt.

But as technology used to purify brackish water is becoming less expensive, groundwater authorities are encouraging the utilization of the Santa Rosa.

The City of Tulia has already established wells to pump water from the Santa Rosa and Abernathy looked into it in 2015.

Though some of the water is salty, some pockets in the Santa Rosa are heavy with fresh water.

Gonzalez said the tested water samples will determine what kind of water is under the Azteca plant. The test results will determine Azteca's next plan of action.

Azteca administrators hinted at the possibility of building their own on-site water treatment plant to clean the water, if needed.

It was reported the cost for the well was $250,000 and a plan to build a water treatment facility could cost about $500,000.

If Azteca moves to build the treatment plant, the water could be blended for production use.
Prospect activity seems to be rising in the pipeline as Plainview Hale County Economic Development Corp. Executive Director Mike Fox presented his fourth-quarter report to city councilmembers on Thursday during the City of Plainview's bi-monthly work session.

"Before I go into the pipeline update, I want to once again thank both the city and county for the emphasis they are placing on economic development," Fox said.

"The city's purchase of the Jimmy Dean building in early 2015 gave us a large manufacturing/warehousing facility that we can market to companies looking for an existing large building. Something we have not had in the past. The cooperative effort of the city and county to purchase land for the purpose of developing a 'Business Park' is also giving the EDC a tool that we have not had in the past. This 'team' effort has given us positive momentum going into 2016."

In marketing available land to potentially new industry in Plainview, Fox said the PHCEDC has four industrial prospects looking at the possibility of moving into the former Jimmy Dean plant.

Out of the four prospects, Fox could say two of them are needing warehousing and distribution, one is a manufacturing company and the other was a business related to the dairy industry.

The manufacturing company, which visited Plainview, could bring 1,400 jobs and $200 million over 10 years in real property improvements and machinery.

Fox said of three potential prospects interested in purchasing the former Cargill plant, one is still active.

"It is a food processor. I have also submitted the plant in response to two requests from the Governor's Office of Economic Development," Fox said.

The food processor needs 300,000 square-feet to operate, but has not submitted details on possible employees and capital. One of the requests from the Governor's Office is also a food processor company and could bring 400 employees and $100 million in capital.

Fox said the PHCEDC is working with an alternative energy company that continues to work on its final plans for a facility in Plainview. There is another food processor looking at the city and the PHCEDC is currently waiting on plans and information that they have requested.

Working with consultant Gary Lawrence, Fox said PHCEDC met with the Texas Tech Office of Research and Development. Fox said they discussed utilizing some of the available retail space in Plainview to house entrepreneurs coming out of their incubator program.

Fox also updated the status of leading economic indicators which include a current unemployment rate of 5.8 percent. Annual sales tax receipts for the city exceeded $4 million in 2015, for the first time ever.

Also discussed in the work session was a motion to change the City of Plainview's seal coat program.

On Thursday, Interim Director of Public Works Tim Crosswhite presented an option of entering a professional service agreement with Brandit Engineering to seal coat Plainview streets this summer.

The seal coat process helps to rejuvenate city streets by sealing cracks and adding new rocks in an effort to strengthen roadways.

Currently, the City of Plainview is in a multi-community program with engineering firm Parkhill, Smith and Cooper.

Crosswhite said the benefits from the switch will include Brandit starting earlier than the current program to obtain bids --; nearly five months earlier.

By searching for bids earlier, the City will save money as Crosswhite said early bids are expected to come in at $2.40 per square-yard. Last year with Parkhill, Smith and Cooper, the price was just over $3 per square-yard.

The base bid for Brandit will be 98,400 square-yards of Plainview streets with an alternative of 62,200 square-yards.

Crosswhite said if the council votes to change the program to Brandit, the City should consider seal coating the 98,400 square-yards plus the 62,200.

The expected cost of doing both bid numbers will be $385,400.

Proposed streets for seal coating include:

11th Street from Ennis to Portland; Lexington from 11th to 16th streets; Kokomo from 11th to 16th streets; Joliet from 11th to 24th streets; 10th Street from Joliet to Columbia; Ninth Street from Joliet to Columbia; Eighth Street from Joliet to Columbia; Fresno From Sixth to 11th streets. El Paso from Sixth to 11th streets; Denver from Sixth to 11th streets

Alternate street bids are: Kokomo from 16th to 24th streets; 15th From Joliet to Galveston; 14th Street from Joliet to Galveston; 13th Street from Joliet to Galveston; Independence Street from Seventh to 11th streets; Houston Street from Seventh to 11th Street; Galveston Street from Seventh to 11th Street and Sixth Street from Joliet to Columbia.
Jiang Jianqing, chairman of the board, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Christine Lagarde, managing director, International Monetary Fund (IMF), Fang Xinghai, director-general, International Economic Department, Office of the Central Leading Group for Financial and Economic Affairs of China and Gary D. Cohn (L-R), president and chief operating officer, Goldman Sachs, arrive for the session 'Where Is the Chinese Economy Heading?' of the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland January 21, 2016. [Photo/Agenicies]

China's economy is going through a series of historic transitions, and recent short-term market volatility will prove temporary, experts attending the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting 2016 said on Thursday.

The Chinese government is implementing wrenching reforms trying to shift its growth driven from investment and manufacturing to services and consumption. Experts warned that the uncertainty during the process will lead to periodic market disruptions.

China witnessed a turbulent year in 2015. Growth in the world's second largest economy hit a quarter-century low of 6.9 percent, compared with 7.3 percent a year earlier.

"We see the transitions as manageable," Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said, stressing calm in the face of recent volatility.

"There needs to be acceptance that there will be a certain degree of volatility; this is entirely compatible with market-driven principles," she said.

The International Monetary Fund said it expected China's economy, a major contributor to global growth, to grow by 6.3 percent in 2016.

"Indeed, China is going through a cyclical adjustment," said Ray Dalio, chairman and chief investment officer of Bridgewater Associates, USA.

"The reforms and leadership in China is fundamentally very good. What we are dealing with should be short-term challenges," said Dalio.

"This may last two to three years," he said. "The future of China is vibrant and young, and any volatility is global and linked to monetary policy."

"China has reached the point of no return -- the country needs to deepen reforms to avoid the middle-income trap," said Jiang Jianqing, chairman of the board, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.

"We can no longer depend on investment; we need to rely on innovation and economic reforms to deliver the next wave of economic growth," he explained.

"It is a difficult transition for any country, let alone during the digital era and with the lack of market liquidity in the post-crisis world," said Gary D. Cohn, president and chief operating officer of Goldman Sachs, USA.

"The shift from a capex to an opex economy means that the government has less control of economic growth," he added.

"There is a complete decoupling of the stock market from the real economy," said Zhang Xin, chief executive officer and co-founder of SOHO China.

She argued that, in real estate sector in China, property leasing is very strong and real asset values are rising even as listed real estate companies trade at huge discounts in the public markets.

Despite criticism, China is making strong progress: domestic consumption has grown from 49 percent of GDP five years ago to 52.5 percent now.

"China is in the midst of a major transition, and in the process a lot of assets will be revalued," said Fang Xinghai, director-general of International Economic Department, Office of the Central Leading Group for Financial and Economic Affairs of the People's Republic of China.

He said it's a combination of Chinese and global factors that have caused recent volatility, referring to the raising of rates by the US Federal Reserve, and the poor performance of emerging markets.

Fang said he has no doubt that China has the talent to adapt.

Government service and public service still carries very high esteem in China. The market is complex and sometimes China doesn't deal with this sophistication as well as it could, he explained.

"But we'll learn," he added, as the reform strategy is on track.
Audits and high school courses were the highlights in an informative Plainview ISD school board meeting Thursday night.

Opening up business items, representatives Blaine Smith and Jeromy Stephens of the Davis-Kinard and Co. accounting firm, presented PISD with their annual financial audit for the 2014-2015 fiscal year.

Despite the district adopting a deficit budget that year, the firm announced PISD received a good clean qualified report, also known as an unmodified opinion.

Before the report, PISD Superintendent Dr. Rocky Kirk reviewed the reasons why the district adopted a deficit that year, citing the district was in a Stage 3 academic intervention program with the Texas Education Agency. To bring the test scores up, the district hired new positions to assist in accomplishing that goal.

"We rolled up our sleeves and took the challenge on," Kirk said. "We hired some positions to do that, and it had an impact with money. But it was necessary, it was an investment in our kids."

Other factors went into the deficit including raising salaries of district staff, a facility study, the purchase of new band uniforms and the re-opening of Ash school.

But everything looked on the up and up and the district was financially sound, according to the auditors, despite the changes.

Total assets and deferred outflows of resources for PISD were $52,133,485 for 2015. Total liabilities and deferred inflows of resources came in at $11,350,159 in 2015 leaving a net position of $40,783,326.

The decrease of assets of approximately $3.5 million and increase in liabilities of $6.2 million from 2014 was largely due to recognition of net pension liability of $4.6 million and deferred inflow related to pension of $1.4 million in accordance with the GASB.

In terms of revenue coming in from the school, PISD saw a 3 percent increase.

In local revenue, PISD brought in a total of $13,064,806, with the state giving $28,536,195 and the federal government kicking in $6,708,373.

PISD spent $29,263,195 in instruction in 2015 compared to $26,739,094 in 2014.

Food service cost also saw an increase from $2,819,674 to $4,585,797.

Taking a facility maintenance and operation increase of $4,282,974 to $4,526,230 in 2015 and all other functions rising from $12,661,206 to $14,791,720 in 2015, PISD saw a total increase of $6.7 million due to budget deficit in the general fund, construction costs and a rise in food service. Instruction expenditures represented 55 percent of total expenditures.

Though the district had enough to cover the deficit, the board will consider cutting the budget in their next rounds of financial talks, unless they can somehow raise their means of collecting revenue.

After unanimously voting to accept the financial report, the board unanimously voted to eliminate the one-half speech credit required for graduation of any student graduating under HB5.

Under the new HB5 requirement, to receive a high school diploma, a student must demonstrate proficiency as determined by the district in which the student is enrolled. PISD administrators said the district can accurately determine through evaluations in other course where communication skills are required.

Eliminating the speech requirement will open up current teachers for another motion also unanimously passed Thursday.

Moving forward with the implementation of HB5, the board voted to add courses to the high school selection guide. The courses will focus more on Career and Technical Education (CTE). The courses will give students an opportunity to prepare for work outside of school or better prepare them for post-secondary education.

The CTE courses will provide necessary endorsement to graduate. The district will also add an AVID College Transition course that will help students be more successful in the college world.

No additional teacher will be required and the programs will be funded mostly through federal money.

Courses to be made available include forensic science, statistics and risk management, medical coding and billing, virtual business, concepts of engineering design and technology, mathematical application in agriculture, food and natural resources, floral design, veterinary medical applications and small animal management, to name a few.

Closing the meeting, board members officially voted to set up the election for School Board Trustees for Precincst 1, 6 and 7 to be held May 7.

Trustees also voted to approve Hale Wind Energy Project 3, LLC's request to extend the time period for considering its application for an appraised value limitation on qualified property pursuant to Chapter 313 of the Texas Property Tax code.

The extension will not go more than 90 days. The request was the result of the Texas Comptroller's move to issue new rules and new form agreements.

Opening the overall meeting, board members held a moment of silence for Ash School teacher Wes Delz and longtime PISD volunteer Charles Bechtold, who recently died.

PHS senior Cameron Hurta was also recognized for placing 16th in the State Debate Competition.
Area towns began taking precautionary measures in advance of the snow in this weekends forecast.



Meriden police announced a parking ban beginning at 6 a.m. today, meaning no vehicles will be allowed to park on public roads while the ban is in effect. In Wallingford, a parking ban starts at 8 a.m. today and runs until midnight on Sunday.



A notice on the Cheshire town website reminds motorists that parking bans are routinely in effect during winter storms. In North Haven, a parking ban will go into effect at 7 a.m. today and end at noon on Sunday.



While other areas along the East Coast brace for a whomping from this storm, most area residents can expect about 3 inches.



Gary Lessor, meteorologist with the Weather Center at Western Connecticut State University, said Friday snow is expected to start early Saturday, sometime between 4 and 7 a.m.



It will be at its most intense Saturday afternoon, with a gradual tapering off Saturday night, Lessor said.



Connecticut can expect between 3 and 7 inches, Lessor said, with the higher amounts along the shoreline.



Were looking at 3 inches in Southington and points north, Lessor said.



With temperatures in the 20s, it should be a light, fluffy snow falling, Lessor said.



Sustained winds between 15 and 25 mph and gusts close to 40 mph will cause snowdrifts, Lessor said.



One part of your yard may have two inches, another part may have 14 inches, he said.



Sunday is expected to be partly to mostly sunny, with temperatures in the 30s.



You could see some snow starting to melt, Lessor said.



Area officials say they are preparing for the storm.



Meriden Public Works Director Robert Bass said roads were pre-treated Thursday and again Friday.



When Saturday comes well be ready to deploy them right away, Bass said, also asking residents not to shovel snow into the street when clearing driveways and sidewalks.



In all, 82 million Americans will get at least an inch of snow, 47 million more than 6 inches, and 22 million Americans more than a foot, Ryan Maue at WeatherBell Analytics said Friday.



Friday afternoon, blizzard warnings stretched from Washington to New York with heavy snow likely to go even further north than that, stopping just short of Boston.



Across the country, airlines canceled more than 6,000 flights to, from or within the U.S. for Friday and Saturday.



Information from the Associated Press was used in this story.






Chinese investors are on the verge of securing the purchase of one of Australia's largest grain farming properties in the wheatbelt north of Perth in Western Australia.

The deal between John Nicoletti, once regarded as WA's biggest grain grower, and Hong Kong-based CK Life Sciences was reportedly finalized yesterday pending approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board.

CK Life Sciences is expected to pay close to US$24 million for Nicoletti's farms in the eastern wheatbelt, near Mullewa in the mid-west region of WA. At 70,000 hectares, it is the biggest single offering of freehold land in the state's history.

CK Life Sciences already holds large investments in Australian agriculture, being a majority shareholder in the Challenger Wine Trust, which has interests in vineyards, and the owner of Cheetham Salt, Amgrow (farm products) and Accensi (crop protection).

Nicoletti told the Western Australia newspaper yesterday that poor harvesting seasons had left him heavily in debt, but the Australia & New Zealand Banking Group had understood his position and been very supportive through difficult times.

"If they had pulled the plug on me back in 2013, it would have been disastrous for agriculture out here. It might have seen land values drop to US$49 a hectare. This deal sets the land value at that close to US$208 per hectare," he said.

Nicoletti produced about 1.2 tons of wheat per hectare in the harvesting season just completed.
Chinese Vice President Li Yuanchao was giving a special address injecting confidence into global leaders of politics and businesses at the annual meeting of World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Thursday. [China Daily]

Chinese Vice President Li Yuanchao injected a note of confidence into the mood of global leaders in politics and businesses meeting in Davos, saying his country will maintain medium- and high-speed growth in coming five years to further contribute to the global economy after achieving 6.9 percent GDP growth in 2015.

He gave a special address on the second day of the annual meeting of World Economic Forum and pledged that China will use its G20 presidency to mobilize the global economic players to tap into driving growth forces of the economy in the medium and long-term.

"China has achieved stable economic growth last year and is still the leading contributor to the global economy, which has not been in good shape after eight years of financial crisis," Li said. Li gave detailed figures about China's job creation, steady enthusiasm in opening businesses, rapid growth of high-tech companies, trade, overseas investment, rising outbound numbers of tourists and purchasing power, in a bid to convince the audiences that China is still in good shape economically. When chairing the special address, World Economic Forum Chairman Klaus Schwab responded that Li's remarks and figures have convinced him that China should be trusted as a steady contributor of global economy, in spite of a series of shocks in stock markets since the middle of last year.

Li said last year, the growth part of China's economy has reached US$500 billion on the basis of an existing sizable economy of more than 10 trillion dollars.

"Even if we maintain medium-speed growth, China is still a leading contributor of global growth," said Li.

Li said China is in a period of transformation as it changes the rate of growth and he said the theme of the forum, mastering the fourth industrial revolution, has well-matched China's future economic dynamics, which requires further investment in high-tech areas and a move up to the upper chain of global economy.

"We have called on the development of an innovative, green, balanced, inclusive and open approach," Li said. He told delegates China will be taking more steps to engage with the rest of the world and build up an open economy.

During China's presidency of G20, Li said the global economic players should tap into the potential to boost economic growth in long run after eight years of economic crisis, when the G20 members had focused on economic policy coordination. "We need to find new sources to boost global growth," said Li. He urged countries to abandon protectionism in order to increase global trade flow, which has lagged behind the average speed of economic growth. Li also said China's G20 presidency will help improve global economic governance in a bid to make it fairer and more inclusive. "We are paying special attention to the appeal of the most less-developing countries and African countries in that regard," said Li.
The Port Aransas City Council will vote on a proposal Thursday evening that could affect the hours visitors and residents are allowed to consume or possess alcohol on public beaches during the month of March.

If approved, the city council would inherit the authority to limit the hours in which beachgoers and Spring Breakers can drink on the beach. The amendment to a pre-existing ordinance was proposed as an attempt to cut back on increased disturbances the city has seen within the past 5 years, according to the Corpus Christi Caller-Times.
SAN ANTONIO  A Jewish student at Reagan High School on Wednesday found a drawing of a swastika attached to the students car, which was parked the schools lot.

The district is investigating the incident, which occurred in an area without surveillance cameras, North East Independent School District spokeswoman Aubrey Chancellor said.

The principal, upon learning about it, took immediate action, she said. The student has been urged to park in an area where cameras would pick up activity, in the event that it happens again.

Last year, all the iPads in one art class at Reagan simultaneously  likely on a timer  flashed phrases that were anti-Semitic and crude, Chancellor confirmed.

Following an investigation of that incident, the district determined it was probably a joke to get attention, she said, adding that there have been no other recent race or religion-related incidents of a similar nature reported.

The Jewish Federation of San Antonio keeps track of incidents such as the ones at Reagan. There are generally one or two per year in San Antonio schools, said Judy Lackritz, the organizations community relations council director.

Even if the intent is not a threat, It can be disturbing to an adult or a student, Lackritz said. The person who receives something like that feels like theyre targeted and by some unknown person.
UPDATE: Suspect Gabriel Cantu was ordered held on $250,000 bail during an appearance before a judge late Thursday night in downtown Houston. He is accused in the shooting death of Victoria Cantu Jan. 4 in north Houston. The suspect is not not related to the victim.

Harris County prosecutors said Gabriel Cantu was arrested Thursday in San Jacinto County. When he officers initially tried to arrest him, he fled into a nearby wooded area. But he was soon caught and taken into custody. Prosecutors allege Gabriel was the gunman who fired an AK-47 rifle at car in which Victoria Cantu was the backseat passenger. One of the bullets, prosecutors said, hit her in the back.
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About half of China's population are now active users of mobile messaging app WeChat, which celebrates its sixth anniversary Friday.

WeChat, developed by Internet giant Tencent, swiftly gained 650 million active users living in or outside China within five years.

In comparison, the online social networking service Twitter gained 320 million active users within 10 years, microblog Sina Weibo got 210 million within seven years.

"My daughter taught me how to use WeChat to have video chats with my granddaughter," said Li Fayang, a 59-year-old retiree from north China's Shenyang city. "Unlike traditional phone calls, all WeChat services are free."

Like Li, many Chinese rely heavily on WeChat to communicate with family, friends and colleagues on a daily basis, via its text messaging, hold-to-talk voice messaging, six-second-video messaging and video conference services.

In addition, WeChat has a social-networking function called "Friend's Circle," similar to Facebook's "Timeline," encouraging users to share their moments with texts, photos and mini-videos. Users may also subscribe to public media accounts, organizations and companies for newsletters.

User dependency cultivated through such well-received free services makes WeChat a golden platform to deliver news and ads, as well as to conduct e-commerce business.

WeChat launched its mini-store service in 2014, offering platforms to big and small business operators. Major online commerce companies including JD.com as well as millions of individual start-ups now all take advantage of WeChat platforms to do promotions and direct sales.

Shen Yue, for example, a 23-year-old Chinese student who lives in the United States, manages to sell homemade cakes on WeChat, mostly to her Chinese friends and friends of friends living nearby.

While WeChat is bringing fundamental changes to people's lives and business modes, there are concerns about the "WeChat addiction" that is distracting people from their daily lives.
A former Rio Grande City police investigator was sentenced Friday to seven years in federal prison for his role in a conspiracy to provide a fake police report to a drug trafficker in exchange for $10,000, authorities said.

Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo Hinojosa sentenced Noel Pena, 29, a former police investigator assigned to the Starr County High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force, following his conviction of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine.
A grand jury here has issued a murder indictment against the door-to-door salesman of home security systems accused in the shooting death of a homeowner last November, according to a Bexar County District Attorneys Office press release.

Richard Luis Amezquita, 35, was charged with murder at the time of the incident, accused of killing Kerry OToole, 53, at OTooles home in the 1000 block of Visor Drive on the North Side.
SAN ANTONIO  A woman was seriously injured during a crash that forced a complete closure of Interstate 10 westbound Friday morning on the far East Side.

San Antonio Police Department Sgt. Walter Smith said the woman was one of two passengers in a four-door sedan headed west on the interstate when it slammed into a guard rail around 9:30 a.m. near the exit for Pfeil Road, which is just outside Loop 1604.
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The Woods of Boerne is a private gated community located on the eastern edge of Boerne. Boerne is full of Old World charm nestled in the Texas Hill Country, yet conveniently located only minutes north of San Antonio.

The master-planned neighborhood is conveniently located across the road from Champion High School, the Kendall County Fairgrounds, Boerne City Park, Cibolo Nature Center and the Agricultural Heritage Museum.

Walking, biking or jogging down River Road to feed the ducks along Cibolo Creek or enjoy the unique restaurants, beverage houses, shops and galleries in the historic buildings of Main Street downtown will be easy for homeowners at the Woods of Boerne.

Children will attend the highly recognized Boerne Independent School District. Boerne ISD is a destination district for families who desire the top rated schools.

A beautiful new section of homesites is now open with treed lots. Many homesites are level, allowing for a home with fewer stairs to climb. Be among the first to choose from these incredible homesites.

When you visit Ashton Woods Homes in The Woods of Boerne, you will find a beautifully decorated model home, with the latest in design trends for you to see. There are homes from just more than 2,000 square feet to 3,500 square feet, with one story, one-and-a-half stories and two stories available. Homes start in the $300s. Many personalization options can be chosen to make sure that your new home fits your familys needs.

From the sale of its first home in 1989 to being recognized as the nations fourth largest private builder in 2013, Ashton Woods is a builder positioned for the future. With the financial strength and management expertise required of nextgeneration builders, we deliver what savvy homebuyers seek in a new home: high design, high quality and a high level of personalization in prime locations.

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Taiwan's current leader Ma Ying-jeou on Thursday reemphasized the significance of the 1992 Consensus as the foundation of mutual trust between the Chinese mainland and the island, urging his successor to stick to it.

Ma made the remarks days after Tsai Ing-wen, candidate of the Democratic Progressive Party, was elected Taiwan leader, defeating a major rival from the Kuomintang.

During the election, Tsai remained ambiguous about the 1992 Consensus, the core of which is the acknowledgment that the Chinese mainland and Taiwan belong to one and the same China.

The peace and prosperity across the Taiwan Strait is hard-won, and must be maintained attentively, Ma said at the 2016 CommonWealth Economic Forum.

"It is by no means easy to have reached cross-Strait peace and prosperity, thanks to the efforts of many people. We must learn to value them and to protect them," Ma said.

He said Taiwan's "correct" policies over the past eight years had helped realize economic prosperity on the island.

To seek development without the mainland market would not only be wrong, but may even be fatal for Taiwan, Ma warned.

He said peaceful environment is a prerequisite for economic growth. "In the past eight years, two sides across the Taiwan Strait have maintained peace and prosperity on the basis of the 1992 Consensus and accumulated sufficient mutual trust for cooperation."

Talking of his meeting with Xi Jinping in Singapore in early November, Ma called the meeting a "bridge of peace."

Ma compared the 1992 Consensus to traffic rules, saying that the new leader of the island must obey "traffic rules" in order to capitalize on the "bridge of peace" with the mainland.
The recently-announced Lenovo K3 Note is a pocket-friendly Android phablet. This new dual-SIM device, which is considered a bigger version of the Lenovo K3 smartphone fondly called the Lemon, packs a bigger display and a more powerful processor along with 4G LTE network support.

Where to Buy Lenovo Phones Jumia.com.ngfrom 19,700.00 View Offers

Konga.comfrom 16,000.00 View Offers

Build and Display

With a dimension of 152.6 x 76.2 x 8 millimetres, the Lenovo K3 Note should not be too big for you to carry around. It is not only slim as a phablet; it is equally lightweight at just 150 grams.

The K3 Note packs a bigger display with a diagonal size of 5.5 inches, compared to the 5-inch display on the original K3. The screen has the same full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) resolution as the K3 for a pixel density 401 ppi.

Camera and Storage

Lenovo did not disappoint with the cameras provided on the K3 Note. The budget phablet packs a 13-megapixel rear camera with LED flash as well as a 5-megapixel front-facing shooter.

With this configuration, you should expect to capture superb images with the Lenovo K3 Note. And if the provided storage space of 16GB is not enough for all the pictures and videos you will be capturing, you can go ahead and add up to 32GB extra storage space using a microSD.

Hardware and Software

The Lenovo K3 Note is driven by a more powerful processor. Instead of the quad-core chip that was supplied on the Lenovo K3, this phablet is furnished with an octa-core MediaTek chipset with Cortex A53 cores running at 1.7GHz.

The 64-bit processor is complemented by a Mali-T760MP2 GPU and RAM of 2GB. Lenovo K3 Note runs on the Android 5.0 Lollipop operating system, overlaid with Lenovos Vibe UI. A larger battery with an ample capacity of 3000 mAh supplies juice needed to power the phablet.

The $149-priced Lenovo K3 Note supports the use of two SIM cards as well as 4G LTE connectivity. Other regulars such as Bluetooth, microUSB, Wi-Fi and GPS with A-GPS are equally present on the budget-friendly phablet.

Pricing & Availability

Lenovo K3 Note is not yet available in Nigeria. When available, you can buy it at leading online stores in Nigeria. Lenovo K3 Note price in Nigeria is expected to range from N28,000 to N35,000 depending on your location in the country.
The Sacramento Bee appears to have broken the story that CalPERS CEO Anne Stausboll announced she is leaving as of June 30. From its article:

Anne Stausboll announced her retirement Thursday as chief executive of CalPERS, ending a tenure during which she guided the nations largest public pension fund through a bribery scandal and the financial markets crash. Stausboll, 59, said she will leave June 30, when the fiscal year ends. Im really ready to explore the next chapter of my life, she said in an interview. After taking some time off, she said shell be looking for new opportunities to serve the public. It was definitely a time of turmoil, Stausboll said, referring to the early years of her tenure. It was a challenge. I think weve really landed in a good place.

The few people Ive spoken to about this who know CalPERS and do not have inside knowledge were surprised, as I was, and perplexed. Stausboll is retiring only from CalPERS, not from professional life. In fact, her looking for new opportunities to serve the public says that shes putting herself on the market, but wants a good long holiday before she takes a new post. And at 59, having secured her position well by neutering the board, theres not obvious reason for her to be leaving.or is there?

It came to me a few hours later, and former North Carolina chief investment office flagged the probable cause in a December post. CalPERS is underfunded, albeit not severely so. However, the Fed tightening, even if it has worked out as the Fed had planned, with an attenuated rise that Mr. Market would hopefully digest well, would still hurt investors that responded as the central bank wanted them to and piled into risky assets. CalPERS is overweight equities and other comparatively high-risk investments like private equity.

Silton fingered management, meaning Stausboll above all, for trying to evade CalPERS thorny investment issues. His dim view of CalPERSs recent behavior means he would almost certainly disagree with Stausbolls PR that she is leaving CalPERS in fine fettle. From his post, From Leading the Way to Losing its Way: CalPERS. Im taking the liberty of quoting Silton at length because the nuance of his observations is important:

Ive been listening to recent committee meetings conducted at CalPERS. I suppose its a way of connecting my former professional life with my art. Im listening to these sessions and perusing some of meeting materials because the nations largest pension plan is completing a sad transformation from leading the way to losing its way. As Ive written before, I frequently called upon the senior staff at CalPERS when I ran the North Carolina pension plan in the early 2000s. They were the leaders in formulating investment policies, hiring capable staff, and exploring new investment opportunities. As they shared their experience and expertise, more than one investment professional warned me not to go too far in borrowing from the CalPERS model. They cautioned that a portfolio could become too complicated, the range policies and procedures could become too detailed and cumbersome, and the staff and consulting relations could become too numerous Meanwhile the finance and administration committee has tacitly acknowledged that the pensions investment assumption is unrealistic by adopting a formula to lower the assumption in years when the capital markets are ebullient. For example, if the CalPERS portfolio earns 4% more than its 7.5% assumption in any given year, the future assumption would be reduced by .05%. If the portfolio beats its assumption by 7%, the assumption would drop by 0.10%.[2] The idea is to use some of the surplus to fund a move toward a more realistic investment assumption. Unfortunately, excess performance in a given year isnt a surplus; its just a random result that will be followed at some point by performance that falls short of the assumption. CalPERS is adopting this policy because they know that their portfolio (even with its unwavering commitment to private equity) cant earn 7.5%, and because they know that state and local government are either unwilling or unable to increase the contribution required to meet the obligation to the beneficiaries. To be clear, CalPERS faces a daunting challenge. When a pension plan becomes underfunded, the way forward is intimidating. The current board and professional staff didnt create the central problem (liabilities significantly greater than assets). This problem has been building for more than a decade. However, theyre doing a poor job of confronting and addressing the problem. Within the hours and hours of committee meeting videos, Ive seen all sorts of troubling signs. For example, the governance committee is grappling with potential new policies to limit inquiries by board members and prevent board members from using the public records law to obtain documents when they arent furnished in the normal course of business. When I was CIO I didnt particularly like pointed questions and public records requests. No one enjoys having their recommendations questioned or producing reams of documents. However, I recognized that tough questions and inquiries were a necessary part of the process. Instead of stifling inquiries, the professional staff at CalPERS needs to grow a thicker skin. At the governance committee meeting, the members also considered reducing the number of board meetings. I think this is a sensible step, except for one big problem: the professional staff hasnt earned the trust requisite to reducing the frequency of meetings.. At the most recent governance committee and investment committee meetings, the trustees heard from CalPERSs outside fiduciary counsel. Naked Capitalism[3] and others[4] have documented that the pension plans fiduciary counsel, Robert Klausner, has a history that does not inspire confidence in his opinions. I am also troubled by the fact that the fiduciary counsel doesnt report directly and exclusively to the trustees. Instead Mr. Klausners practice appears to be yet another consultancy constructed on conflicts of interest, spending too much time mediating potential rifts between the staff and board. When pension plans, or for that matter any organization, face big challenges its board needs to be very active. At CalPERS, we have a lot of video evidence that only one trustee is asking probing questions and that the staff and governance committee would like to limit his inquiries. In my view, all of the trustees should be asking tough and probing questions. The board and committee meetings should be interactive and at times even raucous. After all theyre facing tough problems. Moreover, the trustees should have an independent and unbiased fiduciary counsel who exclusively advises them on their role as fiduciaries. I doubt CalPERS will change because theyve lost their way.

While Stausboll stabilized CalPERS after its pay to play scandal and was at the helm during the crisis, that falls far short of dealing with underlying problems and striving to adapt to a changing environment.

Not only has Stausboll created a culture hostile to open discussion, she does not appear to have done an adequate job of succession planning. That raises the question whether she had planned to stay on longer and recently changed her mind.

Stausboll is leaving with a top team with far too many recent hires and promotions for it to be likely to be stable or cohesive. The Chief Operating Investment Office, Wylie Tollette, has been at CalPERS less than two years. Ted Eliopoulos, the Chief Investment Officer, has a much longer tenure, having joined CalPERS in 2007, but hes a protege of former state treasurer and CalPERS board member Phil Angelides (as was Stausboll). Hes a lawyer with limited investment experience prior to becoming the head of real estate investing at CalPERS who got a battlefield promotion in September 2014 when the former CIO, Joe Dear, died unexpectedly. The general counsel, Matt Jacobs, joined less than a year ago. Im not familiar with the track records of the other investment strategy heads, but Real Desrochers, who has been at CalPERS since 2011, is at least 67, and therefore cant be assumed to stay in his post much longer.

In other words, Stausboll is leaving with insufficient seasoning among her leadership team. The person in the spot that would normally be the best position to replace her, the Chief Operating Investment Officer Wylie Tollette, doesnt look like he would be ready to take the reins, although given Stausbolls unexpected retirement, he may be included in the race. But that also assumes he wants the job. Tollette is already rich, with a net worth rumored to be $20 million. And the CEO job is very political, requiring lots of face time with the legislature, unions, and other constituencies. He might not like the job description.

As much as we and other close observers have been critical of Stausbolls tenure, it is difficult to find good public pension fund executives. While CalPERS has the opportunity to, and in fact would very much benefit from getting someone willing to confront the issues that Stausboll has found more convenient to finesse, the odds are not trivial that CalPERS could wind up in worse hands and continue its decline as an institution. The flip side is an energetic candidate might relish the challenge of reinvigorating the organization.

But what is most troubling about the timing of Stausbolls departure is that it looks like a market trade. Leaving when the going is about to get tough is not a sign of leadership. Its opportunism.
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Senior Communist Party of China (CPC) leader Liu Yunshan on Thursday urged officials to put into practice new development concepts in an effort to achieve the building of a "moderately prosperous society in all respects" by 2020.

Liu, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and president of the Party School of the CPC Central Committee, made the remarks at a closing ceremony of a seminar attended by ministers and provincial officials at the school.

To secure the direction and development pattern for China's economy, the CPC leadership has proposed new development concepts of innovation, coordination, green development, opening up and sharing in the country's roadmap for social and economic development covering 2016-2020.

Liu asked officials to take into full consideration the development concepts while making new policies.

Officials should profoundly grasp the inevitability of the "new normal" of slower growth, and "supply-side structural reform."

The ceremony was presided over by Zhao Leji, head of the CPC Central Committee's organization department.
Yves here. This article is a vivid illustration of imperial collapse: the hare-brained overconfidence that a loopy plan for securing Iraq would work, and the willingness to pour money into it because we didnt have the manpower or appetite to do the job ourselves.

By Nick Turse, a fellow at the Nation Institute and the author, most recently, of Tomorrows Battlefield: U.S. Proxy Wars and Secret Ops in Africa, as well as Kill Anything That Moves: The Real American War in Vietnam. He has written for the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and the Nation, and is a contributing writer for the Intercept.Originally published at TomDispatch

Theres good news coming out of Iraq again. The efforts of a 65-nation coalition and punishing U.S. airstrikes have helped local ground forces roll back gains by the Islamic State (IS).

Government forces and Shiite militias, for example, recaptured the city of Tikrit, while Kurdish troops ousted IS fighters from the town of Sinjar and other parts of northern Iraq. Last month, Iraqi troops finally pushed Islamic State militants out of most of the city of Ramadi, which the group had held since routing Iraqi forces there last spring.

In the wake of all this, Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter touted the kind of progress that the Iraqi forces are exhibiting in Ramadi, building on that success to continue the campaign with the important goal of retaking Mosul as soon as possible. Even more recently, he said those forces were proving themselves not only motivated but capable. I encountered the same upbeat tone when I asked Colonel Steve Warren, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad, about the Iraqi security forces. The last year has been a process of constructing, rebuilding, and refitting the Iraqi army, he explained. While it takes time for training and equipping efforts to take effect, the increasing tactical confidence and competence of the ISF [Iraqi security forces] and their recent battlefield successes indicate that we are on track.

Progress. Successes. On track. Increasing tactical confidence and competence. It all sounded very familiar to me.

By September 2012, after almost a decade at the task, the U.S. had allocated and spent nearly $25 billion on training, equipping, and sustaining the Iraqi security forces, according to a report by the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction. Along the way, a parade of generals, government officials, and Pentagon spokesmen had offered up an almost unending stream of good news about the new Iraqi Army. Near constant reports came in of remarkable, big, even enormous progress for a force that was said to be exuding increasing confidence, and whose performance was always improving. In the end, the U.S. claimed to have trained roughly 950,000 members of the steady, solid, Iraqi security forces.

And yet just two and a half years after the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq, that same force collapsed in spectacular fashion in the face of assaults by Islamic State militants who, by CIA estimates, numbered no more than 31,000 in all. In June 2014, for example, 30,000 U.S.-trained Iraqi troops abandoned their equipment and in some cases even their uniforms, fleeing as few as 800 Islamic State fighters, allowing IS to capture Mosul, the second largest city in the country.

Blaming the Victim

When U.S. forces departed Iraq in 2011, it was after helping the Iraqi government create an entirely new Iraqi Security Force following the fall of Saddam Husseins regime, Major Curtis Kellogg, a spokesman with U.S. Central Command, explained to me last year. It almost sounded as if the old regime had toppled of its own accord, a new government had arisen, and the U.S. had generously helped build a military for it. In reality, of course, a war of choice  based on trumped up claims of nonexistent weapons of mass destruction  led to a U.S. occupation and the conscious decision to dissolve Iraqi autocrat Saddam Husseins military and create a new army in the American mold. [T]he Iraqi security forces were a fully functioning element of the Iraq Government, Kellogg continued, explaining how such an Iraqi military collapse could occur in 2014. However, the military standards established and left in place were allowed to atrophy following the departure of U.S. troops.

More recently, Colonel Steve Warren brought up another problem with Iraqs forces in an email to me. The Iraqi army that we left in 2011 was an army that had been trained for counterinsurgency. That means route clearance, checkpoint operations, and IED [improvised explosive device] reduction, for example. The Iraqi army that collapsed in 2014 was not trained and not ready for a conventional fight  the conventional assault that ISIL brought to Mosul and beyond.

Both Kellogg and Warren stopped short of saying what seems obvious to many. Kalev Sepp, the adviser to two top American generals in Iraq and a former deputy assistant secretary of defense for special operations and counterterrorism, shows no such hesitation. We had 12 years to train the Iraqi Army We failed. Its obvious. So when this lightly-armed insurgent group, the so-called Islamic State, invaded the country, the Iraqi army collapsed in front of it.

Its taken billions of dollars and a year and a half of air strikes, commando raids, advice, and training to begin to reverse the Islamic States gains. According to Warren, the U.S. and its partners have once again trained more than 17,500 ISF troops, with another 2,900 currently in the pipeline. And once again were hearing about their successes. Secretary of Defense Carter, for example, called the fight for Ramadi a significant step forward in the campaign to defeat this barbaric group, while Secretary of State John Kerry claimed the Islamic State had suffered a major defeat there.

Still, the tiny terror group seems to have no difficulty recruiting new troops, is ramping up attacks in the district of Haditha, carrying out complex attacks in Baghdad and the town of Muqdadiya, and continues to hold about 57,000 square miles of Syrian and Iraqi territory, including Mosul. With questions already being raised by Pentagon insiders about just how integral the Iraqi security forces were to the retaking of Ramadi and doubts about their ability to clear cities like Mosul, its worth taking a look back at all those upbeat reports of progress during the previous U.S. effort to build an Iraqi Army from scratch.

Nothing Succeeds Like Success

After the U.S. toppled Saddam Husseins government in April 2003 as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom, the Bush administration began remaking the battered nation from the ground up. One of the first acts of L. Paul Bremer III, the top American civilian official in the occupied country, was to dissolve Iraqs military. His plan: to replace Saddam Husseins 350,000-man army with a lightly armed border protection force that would peak at around 40,000 soldiers, supplemented by police and civil defense forces. In an instant, hundreds of thousands of well-trained soldiers were unemployed, providing a ready source of fighters for a future insurgency.

In less than six months we have gone from zero Iraqis providing security to their country to close to a hundred thousand Iraqis Indeed, the progress has been so swift that it will not be long before [the Iraqi security forces] will outnumber the U.S. forces, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld suggested in a cheery assessment in October 2003.

Major General Paul Eaton, tasked with rebuilding the Iraqi Army, similarly articulated his upbeat vision for the force. Schooled by Americans in fundamental soldier and leadership skills and outfitted with all the accoutrements of modern Western troops, including body armor and night-vision equipment, the new military would be committed to defend[ing] Iraq and its new-found freedom, he announced at a Baghdad briefing in January 2004. Soon, Iraqis would even take over the task of instruction. I would like to emphasize that this will be an Iraqi Army, trained by Iraqis, he said. As Iraq is reborn, he added, we believe that her armed forces can lead the way in unifying the country.

Paul Eaton and his team did an extraordinary amount for the Iraqi Security Force mission, his successor Lieutenant General David Petraeus would say a couple of years later. They established a solid foundation on which we were able to build as the effort was expanded very substantially and resourced at a much higher level.

Retired Special Forces officer Kalev Sepp, who traveled to Iraq as an adviser five times, had a different assessment. General Eaton was direct in letting me know that he wanted to be remembered as the father of the new Iraqi Army, he told me. I thought his approach was conceptually wrong, Sepp recalled, noting that Eaton understood his mission was to create an army to defend Iraq from foreign invasion, but he completely overlooked the internal insurgency. (A request to interview Eaton, sent to the American Security Project, a Washington D.C.-based think tank with which the retired general is affiliated, went unanswered.)

General Eaton would later blame the Bush administration for initial setbacks in the performance of the Iraqi Army, thanks to poor prewar planning and insufficient resources for the job. We set out to man, train, and equip an army for a country of 25 million  with six men, General Eaton told the New York Times in 2006. He did, however, accept personal responsibility for the most visible of its early failures, the mutiny of a freshly minted Iraqi battalion en route to its first battle in April 2004.

In the years that followed, Americas Iraq exploded into violence as Sunni and Shiite militants battled each other, the U.S. occupiers, and the U.S.-backed Baghdad government. On the fly, U.S. officials came up with new plans to build a large, conventional, heavily armed force to secure Iraq in the face of sectarian strife, multiple raging insurgencies, and ultimately civil war. The Iraqi military and police forces expanded rapidly from 2004 to 2006, adapting to the counterinsurgency mission, according to a report by the U.S. Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction. As chaos spread and death tolls rose, estimates of the necessary numbers of Iraqi troops, proposals concerning the right types of weapons systems for them, and training stratagems for building the army were amended, adjusted, and revised, again and again. There was, however, one constant: praise.

In September 2005, as violence was surging and more than 1,400 civilians were being killed in attacks across the country, General George W. Casey Jr., commander of Multinational Force-Iraq, reported that the security forces were progressing and continuing to take a more prominent role in defending their country. He repeatedly emphasized that training efforts were on track  a sentiment seconded by Defense Secretary Rumsfeld. Every single day, the Iraqi security forces are getting bigger and better and better trained and better equipped and more experienced, he said.

I think we did a very effective job of training the Iraqi military recruits that were brought to us, Casey told me last year, reflecting on U.S. efforts during his two and a half years in command. The trouble, he said, was with the Iraqis. The political situation in Iraq through 2007 and even to this day is such that the leadership of the Iraqi government and the military never could instill the loyalty of the troops in the government.

At the time, however, American generals emphasized progress over problems. After Petraeus finished his own stint heading the training effort, he was effusive in his praise. The bottom line up front that Id like to leave with you today is that there has been enormous progress with the Iraqi security forces over the course of the past 16 months in the face of a brutal insurgency, he boasted in October 2005, adding that considerable work still lay ahead. Iraqi security force readiness has continued to grow with each passing week. You can take a percentage off every metric thats out there, whatever you want  training, equipping, infrastructure reconstruction, units in the fight, schools, academies reestablished  you name it  and what has been accomplished would still be remarkable. (Messages seeking an interview sent to Petraeus at Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts & Co., the investment firm where he serves as chairman of the KKR Global Institute, were not answered.)

In November 2005, President Bush voiced the same sentiments. As the Iraqi security forces stand up, their confidence is growing, he told midshipmen at the Naval Academy. And theyre taking on tougher and more important missions on their own. By the following February, General Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was similarly lauding that military, claiming the progress that theyve made over this last year has been enormous.

The next month, Lieutenant General Martin Dempsey, who succeeded Petraeus as commander of the Multinational Security Transition Command-Iraq (MNSTC-I) and later served as chairman of the Joint Chiefs, chimed in with glowing praise: What were seeing now is progress on a three-year investment in Iraqs security forces. Its been a big investment, and its yielding big progress.

I asked retired Army Colonel Andrew Bacevich, a professor of history and international relations emeritus at Boston Universitys Pardee School of Global Studies, how so many American officials could have seen so much progress from a force that would later collapse so rapidly and spectacularly. I think theres a psychological need to see progress and, of course, its helpful to parrot the party line. I do think that, psychologically, you need to be able to persuade yourself that your hard-earned efforts  this time spent away from home in lousy conditions  actually produced something positive.

Kalev Sepp, who traveled all over Iraq talking to the commanders of more than 30 U.S. units while conducting a seminal counterinsurgency study known simply as the COIN Survey, told me that when he asked about the progress of the Iraqi units they were working with, U.S. officers invariably linked it to their own tour of duty. Almost every commander said exactly the same thing. If the commander had six months left in his tour, the Iraqis would be combat-capable in six months. If the commander had four months left, then the Iraqis would be ready in four months. Was a commander going to say I wont accomplish my mission. Im not going to be done on time? All the other units were saying their Iraqis were going to be fully trained. Who was going to be the one commander who said I dont think my Iraqi unit is really ready?

Official praise continued as insurgencies raged across the country and monthly civilian death tolls regularly exceeded 2,000, even topping 3,000 in 2006 and 2007. The Iraqi security force continues to develop and grow, assisted by embedded transition teams, Lieutenant General Ray Odierno, commander of the Multinational Corps-Iraq, announced to the press in May 2007. Yes, there are still problems within the Iraqi security forces  some sectarian, some manning, and some to do with equipping. But progress is being made, and its steady. A 2008 Pentagon review also indicated remarkable progress with 102 out of 169 Iraqi battalions being declared capable of planning, executing, and sustaining counterinsurgency operations with or without Iraqi or coalition support, up from just 24 battalions in 2005.

Years later, Odierno, still in charge of the command, then known as United States Forces-Iraq, continued to tout improvement. Clearly theres still some violence, and we still need to make more progress in Iraq, he told reporters in July 2010. But Iraqi security forces have taken responsibility for security throughout Iraq, and they continue to grow and improve every day.

The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, Stuart Bowen, was also upbeat, noting in 2010 that the $21.3 billion already spent to build up the then-660,000-man security force had begun to pay off significantly. Don Cooke, head of the State Departments Iraq assistance office, agreed. We have built an Iraqi security force which is capable of maintaining internal security in Iraq And four or five or six years ago, there were people who were saying it was going to take decades.

In October 2011, as U.S. forces were preparing to end eight years of occupation, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta offered up his own mission-accomplished assessment. You know, the one thing we have seen is that Iraq has developed a very good capability to be able to defend itself. Weve taken out now about a hundred thousand [U.S.] troops [from Iraq], and yet the level of violence has remained relatively low. And I think thats a reflection of the fact that the Iraqis have developed a very important capability here to be able to respond to security threats within their own country, he said of the by then 930,000-man security forces.

Winners and Losers

As the U.S. was training recruits at bases all over Iraq  including Camp Bucca, where Iraqi cadets attended a U.S.-run course for prison guards  another force was also taking shape. For years, U.S.-run prison camps were decried by many as little more than recruiting and training sites for would-be insurgents, with innocents  angered by arbitrary and harsh detentions  housed alongside hardcore militants. But Camp Bucca proved to be even more dangerous than that. It became the incubator not just for an insurgency, but for a proto-state, the would-be caliphate that now lords over significant portions of Iraq and neighboring Syria.

Nine top commanders of the Islamic State did prison time at Americas Camp Bucca, including Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the groups leader who spent nearly five years there. Before their detention, Mr. al-Baghdadi and others were violent radicals, intent on attacking America, Andrew Thompson, an Iraq War veteran, and academic Jeremi Suri wrote in a 2014 New York Times piece. Their time in prison deepened their extremism and gave them opportunities to broaden their following The prisons became virtual terrorist universities: The hardened radicals were the professors, the other detainees were the students, and the prison authorities played the role of absent custodian.

So how could U.S. officials have so successfully (if inadvertently) fostered the leadership of what would become a truly effective fighting force that would one day best the larger, far more intensively trained, better-armed military they had built to the tune of tens of billions of dollars? The people we imprisoned didnt leave with skills when they finally got out of prison, but they did leave with will, says Andrew Bacevich. What we were doing was breeding resentment, anger, determination, disgust, which provided the makings of an army that turns out to be more effective than the Iraqi Army.

General George Casey, who went on to serve as Army Chief of Staff before retiring in 2011, sees the failure of Iraqs Shiite government to reach out to minority Sunnis as the main driver of the collapse of significant portions of the countrys army in 2014. You hear all kinds of reasons why the Sunni forces [of the Iraqi military] ran out of Mosul, but it wasnt a surprise to any of us who had been over there. If your country doesnt support what youre doing, theres no reason to fight for them, Casey explained in a phone interview last year. People probably give short shrift to what we in the military call the will to fight. When it comes right down to it, thats what its all about. And we cant instill the will to fight in the heart of a soldier from another country. We just cant do it.

We can talk about how appalling Daesh is, adds Kalev Sepp, using the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State, but their fighters believe in what theyre doing and that adds a particular steel to ones backbone. Bacevich, who has recently finished writing a military history, Americas War for the Greater Middle East, echoed this sentiment, noting the stark difference between U.S.-trained Iraqi forces and their brutal opponents. Whatever else we may think of ISIS, their forces appear to be keen to fight and willing to die in order to promote their cause. The same cannot be said of the Iraqi Army.

And yet, in the wake of the implosion of Iraqs security forces, the United States  as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, its campaign against IS  began a new advisory and training effort to assist and re-rebuild Iraqs army. In June 2014, President Obama announced that up to 300 advisors would be sent to Iraq. The size of the U.S. presence has increased steadily ever since to roughly 3,500.

As per policy we do not disclose specific numbers of troops and their roles, Colonel Warren, the U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad, explained to me. He did, however, note that there are approximately 5,500 Coalition personnel from 17 partner nations including the United States conducting advise and assist missions and training at Building Partner Capacity sites.

Despite the poor results of the prior training effort, even some of its critics are hopeful that the current mission may succeed. American advisors could have a positive effect, Sepp, now a senior lecturer in defense analysis at the Naval Postgraduate School, told me. He explained that a pinpoint mission of training Iraqis to take back a particular city or defend a specific area stands a real chance of success. Casey, his former boss, agreed but insisted that such success would not come easily or quickly. This is going to take a long time. This is not a short-term thing. People want to see ISIS defeated  whatever that means  quickly. But its not going to be quickly because the problems are political more than military and thats going to take the Iraqis some time to come to grips with.

Doomed to Repeat It?

History suggests that time is no panacea when Washington attempts to prop up, advise, or build armies. In the early 1950s, the U.S. provided extensive support to the French military in Indochina  eventually footing nearly 80% of the cost of its war there  only to see that force defeated by a less advanced, less well-equipped Vietnamese army. Not long after, the U.S. began an expensive process that continued into the mid-1970s of building, advising, equipping, and bankrolling the South Vietnamese military. In those years, it ballooned into a million-man army, only to disintegrate two years after the U.S. ended its own long, unsuccessful combat effort in that country.

The assumption that we know how to create armies in other parts of the world is a pretty dubious proposition, Andrew Bacevich, a veteran of that war, told me. Yes, Vietnam was a vivid demonstration of a failed project to build an effective army, but you dont even have to cite Vietnam. Iraq obviously is another case. And more generally, the Pentagon exaggerates its ability to create effective fighting forces in parts of the developing world.

Indeed, recent U.S. training efforts around the globe have been marked by a string of scandals, setbacks, and failures. Last year, for example, the Obama administration scrapped a $500 million program to train anti-Islamic State Syrian rebels. It was supposed to yield 15,000 fighters over three years but instead produced only a few dozen. Then theres the 13-year, $65 billion effort in Afghanistan that has yielded a force whose rolls are filled with nonexistent ghost troops, wracked by desertions, and hobbled by increasing casualties. It has been unable to defeat a small, unpopular, Taliban insurgency now growing in strength and reach. The short-term loss by U.S.-backed Afghan forces of the city of Kunduz late last year and recent Taliban gains in Helmand province have cast a bright light on this slow-motion fiasco.

These efforts have hardly been anomalies. A U.S.-trained Congolese commando battalion was, for example, implicated by the United Nations in mass rapes and other atrocities. One effort to train Libyan militiamen ended up stillborn; another saw militants repeatedly raid a U.S. training camp and loot it of high-tech equipment, including hundreds of weapons; and still another saw advisers run out of the country by a militia soon after touching down. Then there were the U.S.-trained officers who overthrew their governments in coups in Mali in 2012 and Burkina Faso in 2014. In fact, a December 2015 report by the Congressional Research Service noted:

Recent events, particularly the battle between the Afghan government and the Taliban over K[u]nduz, the inability of [Department of Defense]-led efforts to produce more than a handful of anti-Assad, anti-Islamic State (IS) forces in Syria, and the collapse of U.S.-trained forces in Iraq in the face of the Islamic State, have called into question  including in the Congress  whether these [building partner capacity] programs can ever achieve their desired effects.

Despite all of this, the Pentagon remains committed to creating another Iraqi Army in the American mold with, as Colonel Warren recently explained to me, modern American equipment, modern conventional training, and of course, supported by air power. The U.S. has, he notes, already spent $2.3 billion arming and equipping this new force.

Andrew Bacevich once again sees crucial flaws in the American plan. Our trainers, I suspect, are probably pretty good at imparting technical skills Im sure that they can teach them marksmanship, how to conduct a patrol, how to maintain their weapons, but I cant imagine that we have much of a facility for imparting fighting spirit, sense of national unity, and thats where Iraqi forces have been deficient. Its this will versus skill thing. We can convey skills. I dont think we can convey will.

For his part, Secretary of Defense Carter seems singularly focused on the skills side of the equation. ISILs lasting defeat still requires local forces to fight and prevail on the ground. We can and will continue to develop and enable such local forces, he told the House Armed Services Committee in June 2015. Thats why [the Department of Defense] seeks to bolster Iraqs security forces to be capable of winning back, and then defending and holding the ISIL-controlled portions of the Iraqi state. Last month, Carter assured the Senate Armed Services Committee that he was still urging the Iraqi government to do more to recruit, train, arm, and mobilize Sunni popular mobilization fighters in their communities.

This presumes, however, that there is a truly functioning Iraqi state in the first place. Andrew Bacevich isnt so sure. It may be time to admit that there is no Iraq. We presume to be creating a national army that is willing to fight for the nation of Iraq, but I dont think its self-evident that Iraq exists, except in the most nominal sense. If thats true, then further efforts  a second decades worth of efforts to build an Iraqi army  simply are not likely to pan out.
<p>Chico's headquarters in Ft. Myers. Jakob Schiller/Staff</p>

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By Laura Layden

Fort Myers-based womens retailer Chicos FAS Inc. will close more stores than it first planned as part of its cost-cutting efforts.

In a conference call with investors Wednesday, the public company announced it would trim an additional 15 to 20 stores, bringing its total closures to 135 to 140 over the next three years and boosting its savings to $65 million.

A list of the stores on the chopping block has not been released. The company now expects to shutter 45 to 50 stores this year.

In February, Chicos announced it would close stores and eliminate jobs as part of its cost-cutting plan, as it continues to face what its executives have described as a choppy sales environment.

The specialty retailer saw its first quarter profits fall more than 18 percent over the year, due mostly to one-time charges tied to its restructuring plan. Earnings fell to $32.5 million, or 22 cents a share, down from nearly $39.9 million, or 26 cents a share, a year ago.

In its most recent quarter ending May 2, Chicos recorded charges of $14.9 million, mostly attributed to employee, property and equipment costs related to its efforts to boost profits in the long run. Excluding those charges, earnings met Wall Streets expectations of 28 cents a share and beat last years adjusted earnings by 2 cents.

In the conference call, David Dyer, the companys president and CEO, said strategic efforts to improve inventory management, cut costs and enhance the customer experience are paying off.

Gross margin rose to 57.1 percent of the companys net sales, up from 56.2 percent a year ago in the first quarter, primarily reflecting fewer discounts due to better inventory management.

Though at times painful, we know that ripping off the promotional Band-Aid leads to improved profitability as our first quarter results show, Dyer said. We also know that our most valuable customers respond to newness and they are willing to pay full price for it.

Other highlights in the first quarter include:

Revenue rose 1.7 percent to $693.3 million, up from $681.6 million last year, driven mostly by opening 53 new stores. The results missed analysts expectations of $712.9 million in revenue.

Total sales rose 1.7 percent, while comparable sales, or sales at stores open at least a year, fell 0.1 percent, with the average dollar sale and transaction count about the same as last year.

Sales were hurt by delivery delays caused by port issues on the West Coast, affecting some brands more than others. The company has since rerouted most of its shipments to East Coast ports to avoid those problems.

The retailer has four brands. Its namesake brand, Chicos, reported a 2.3 percent drop in sales at it same stores, but prices per unit trended higher with less promotional activity.

Meanwhile, comparable sales rose 6.4 percent in Soma and increased 1.7 percent in White House-Black Market over the year, with the help of new offerings and more balanced assortments.

The companys newest brand, Boston Proper, saw sales fall 2 percent over the year.

In a research note, Susan Anderson, a retail analyst with FBR & Co., said she was extremely encouraged by the gross margin in the first quarter, saying she believes it shows the companys clawback opportunity under its improved inventory management operating profile.

During the conference call, several analysts offered their congratulations and best wishes to Dyer, who last week announced his plans to retire by next spring. Im still here for a year. Im not dead yet, he quipped, drawing chuckles.

Some have speculated that Dyers departure might once again spur interest from investors wanting to take the company private. Earlier this year, The Wall Street Journal reported that Sycamore Partners, a private equity firm, had abandoned its plans to buy Chicos.

On Wednesday, Chicos shares closed at $16.64, down 8 cents, on the New York Stock Exchange after heavier than usual trading, following its earnings release.

The company operates more than 1,550 stores in the U.S. and Canada and sells its merchandise through franchise locations in Mexico.
Gov. Rick Scott addresses Hertz employees and media at the new Hertz Global headquarters in Estero during the new location celebration on Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (Dorothy Edwards/Staff)

SHARE Gov. Rick Scott greets Hertz employees as he arrives at the new Hertz Global headquarters in Estero during the new location celebration on Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (Dorothy Edwards/Staff) Gov. Rick Scott leaves the stage after addressing Hertz employees and media at the new Hertz Global headquarters in Estero during the new location celebration on Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (Dorothy Edwards/Staff) Gov. Rick Scott waits to take the stage to address Hertz employees and media at the new Hertz Global headquarters in Estero during the new location celebration on Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (Dorothy Edwards/Staff) Gov. Rick Scott addresses Hertz employees and media at the new Hertz Global headquarters in Estero during the new location celebration on Friday, Jan. 22, 2016. (Dorothy Edwards/Staff)

By Laura Layden of the Naples Daily News

Gov. Rick Scott touted the state's latest job numbers while in Estero, during a visit to Hertz's new global headquarters.

Scott was part of a community event celebrating the opening of the rental car giant's expansive site at U.S. 41 and Williams Road on Friday. His first visit included a quick tour, and a talk with Hertz's employees and media.

After thanking Hertz for its decision to relocate to Southwest Florida and apologizing for the stormy weather, Scott announced the December unemployment numbers for the state in the company's lobby, with a duo of sporty Mustangs as his backdrop.

Florida's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to 5 percent last month, down from 5.1 percent in November and 5.7 percent a year ago.

"We don't have unemployment numbers in our state. We have employment numbers ... and it's another great month," Scott said.

The state added 21,000 jobs over the month in December and 233,100 jobs over the year, up 2.9 percent. The unemployment rate is at a seven-year low, Scott noted.

"If you're in Lee County or Collier County, they are growing counties. Their unemployment rates are low. There are a lot of job openings. Lee County, in particular, just added 7,500 jobs, just in the last 12 months," Scott said.

He applauded Hertz for its role in creating jobs in Lee County. There are now more than 625 employees working at its 248,600-acre headquarters, with plans to hire more. There's room for up to 850.

"This building here is a beautiful headquarters," he said. "It's state of the art."

In December, Lee County's unemployment rate fell to 4.3 percent, down from 4.5 percent in November and 5 percent a year ago.

In Collier County, the jobless rate was almost as low, hitting 4.4 percent last month, down from 4.7 percent in November and 4.9 percent a year ago.

The Naples area added 2,900 private sector jobs over the year in December, Scott announced in a news release. The industries gaining the most jobs were education and health services with 1,100 new jobs and leisure and hospitality with 1,000.

The Naples metro area had 4,482 job openings in December, including 808 openings for high-wage, high-skill science, technology, engineering, and math, or STEM, occupations.

The growth in jobs here and around the state demonstrates that cutting taxes and government regulations works, Scott said.

"We must continue our mission to make Florida first in the nation for jobs. To do this, we will cut $1 billion in taxes and create the $250 million Florida Enterprise Fund so we can attract more companies to Florida," he said.

Scott has asked for $1 billion in tax cuts in his 2016-17 budget and for $250 million in corporate incentives to entice companies to Florida.

Cissy Proctor, executive director of the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, said December was a great month. "We are continuing to break through the 1 million job mark and so with the job growth we are seeing, and the unemployment declining, we're heading in the right direction," she said.
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Hunter Ward has joined Land Solutions Inc. as a licensed sales associate with a specific focus on agricultural lands.

Certification

The Institute for Organization Management said Marci Seamples, director of development of the Naples Zoo, has graduated from the program and has received the recognition of IOM.

Christine Chesser, landscape maintenance supervisor for the City of Naples Airport Authority, has earned certification as horticultural professional from the Florida Nursery, Growers and Landscape Association.

Events

Naples artist Jackie Morelisse announced the grand opening celebration of BouTeak by Jackie Morelisse at Miromar Design Center 6 to 8 p.m. Feb. 4. Information: 239-404-9802

The Greater Fort Myers Chamber of Commerce Women in Business will host its annual Dessert Auction from 4 to 6 p.m. Feb. 3 at Sam Galloway Ford Lincoln, 1800 Boy Scout Drive, Fort Myers. Registration: 239-332-3624; www.fortmyers.org

Professional organizer Marla Ottenstein will teach two classes at the Naples Campus of Florida Gulf Coast University's Renaissance Academy in February: "Get Organized! How to De-clutter, Downsize and Simplify your Life!" and "Get Organized! How to Organize your @Home Office!" Schedule and registration information: www.RegisterRA.fgcu.edu; 239-425-3272

Encore Bank will sponsor an event for Collier Child Care Resources: "The Resolution Solution: A Healthy and Prosperous New Year," at 5:30 p.m. Jan. 26 at Encore Bank, 3003 U.S. 41 N., Suite 100. Information: tonit@collierchildcare.org; 239-643-3908; www. collierchildcare.org

To submit your business news directly online, go to naplesnews.com/BIZwire or email news@naplesnews.com.
Jason Dolle, president of Testimonial Tree, speaks to other attendees of VenturePitch SWFL. Photo by Laura Layden/Staff

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By Laura Layden of the Naples Daily News

He was last, but he came in first.

Jason Dolle, president of Testimonial Tree, who was the last of four entrepreneurs to pitch his company to a panel of investor judges, won the latest round of VenturePitch SWFL.

With kids and a family life, he didn't get as much time as he wanted to prepare over the past few weeks. He's the man who makes it happen at his company, so his daily demands can get crazy.

"I'm the only one that answers the phone," he said.

He stayed up until midnight the night before the competition.

"I practiced a lot. But my presentation was fast," said Dolle, admitting he was a bit nervous.

He's made pitches to investors before, but never in such a public way, with others from the business community watching him  others he was sure to see again.

After entrepreneurs with three other companies made their pitches on Thursday night at the Conservancy of Southwest Florida in Naples, Dolle said he thought his chances of winning the community competition were slim. He thought the others had "knocked it out of the park," and he wondered how he could compete.

"There was a little more pressure than normal," Dolle said.

He won the votes of the judges and the audience, which was polled while the judges deliberated behind closed doors after hearing the four presentations. More than 140 people attended the competition, organized by Naples-based Tamiami Angel Fund II, an investment group. It was standing room only.

At the "Shark Tank" style event, entrepreneurs weren't vying for money, only recognition that their concepts were "investable" and everyone seemed to agree that Testimonial Tree was the clear winner.

Testimonial Tree offers a quick way for Realtors and other professionals to collect testimonials for their websites from happy customers. The testimonials can easily be shared online and through social media and updated as a promotional and marketing tool.

Dolle talked fast, but his passion for his company really showed and that's what really sold the judges on it.

He shared that his company has almost 30,000 users, mostly in the U.S., and that it has been making money since Day 1. Revenues, he said, have doubled every year.

"This year, this month, has been a record," Dolle said. "We signed up probably 3,000 people last week."

One of the company's leading partners is LeadingRE.com, based in Chicago, which has 120,000 real estate agents and 500 real estate brokerages.

He told the judges he has a patent pending on his web-based platform and shared statistics that support his platform. More than 80 percent of consumers are willing to recommend or refer a business after a positive experience, he said.

Heres how Testimonial Tree makes its money: For $5 a month, a user can collect and view five testimonials. More testimonials cost more, up to $29 for 40 testimonials a month. For an unlimited number, more fitting for larger enterprises, theres a subscription service that costs anywhere from $800 to more than $50,000 a year, depending on the number of users.

"People love what were doing," Dolle said.

The company, he said, had a fully functioning product, a recurring revenue model, and it's extremely scalable, with a clear path of growth.

"We found a niche so it's been pretty interesting," Dolle said.

Felix Lluberes, the founder and former CEO of Position Logic, an INC 500 and Top 100 software company, was one of the competition's judges. He asked whether Dolle was looking to sell his business, so he could start thinking about his next venture. Dolle said he wasn't ready just yet.

Other judges wanted to know what Dolle would do if he could raise more capital. He told them he was looking to grow his staff and to expand on his product, including adding video testimonials as a choice for his customers.

Bud Stoddard, a judge, serial entrepreneur and member of the Tamiami Angel Fund II, asked what kept Dolle up at night. Dolle said the "speed to what we want to get to." He wants to move quickly to expand and grow his service, while also making sure he keeps up with customer demands and keeps them happy, he said.

After his presentation Dolle watched the audience votes come in real-time. He got 33 votes, more than half the votes cast by attendees, using their smartphones. The next closest competitor was Relax and Order, with 15 votes. That company has a web-based app that connects local vendors with customers who want a resort-style experience in their home, from massages to fancy dinners.

Dolle was grateful to win.

"It's was pretty surreal. I don't know how to explain it. It was amazing," he said.

With his win at VenturePitch, Dolle will now advance to compete for $50,000 in cash and prizes at the Startup Expo in Fort Lauderdale next month.

He said he expects to soon get a round of capital from a big group he already has a relationship with, allowing him to grow the business.

"It's not a done deal yet, but it's getting pretty close," Dolle said.
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By June Fletcher of the Naples Daily News

Bethann Kassman would like more women to spread their financial wings and become angels.

"It's high risk, but even mutual funds are," said Kassman, chief executive officer of Go Beyond Network, the U.S. arm of an European-based group that invests directly in early-stage businesses in several sectors.

The 72-year-old Naples management consultant has spent decades helping young companies develop their businesses, both domestically and overseas.

Now she's focusing on helping to reduce the gender gap in angel investing, by encouraging women to help bankroll startups.

Screening startups isn't easy: Of the 1,000 deals Go Beyond members screen each year, only about 20 receive funding.

But it can be lucrative: As of March last year, the angels had invested 10.6 million Swiss francs ($10.5 million) in 36 companies. Seven companies have exited, returning a total of 12.9 million Swiss francs ($12.8 million) to investors.

Yet only about a third of GoBeyond's investors are women, which is why Kassman is also excited about her involvement with another initiative, the Rising Tide Angel Training Program, based in Silicon Valley.

The program launched last year in both Europe and the U.S., and will eventually expand into Africa, Latin America and the Middle East.

The group's goal is to educate women, many of whom have never made direct investments in businesses before, and to create a new generation of female angel investors in what has been a male-dominated world.

Investors receive mentoring and online training through webinars, podcasts, call-in question sessions, quarterly regional workshops and an annual summit.

Kassman is one of nine women with significant financial experience who vets the companies and decides on the investments.

Establishing a foothold in a field dominated by men is nothing new for Kassman.

Born in Hartford, Connecticut, to a father who was in the FBI and a mother who worked in a newsroom, she studied both mathematics and psychology as an undergraduate at Iowa State University. That led to an early job as a computer programmer  rare for a woman in the 1960s.

She married a research scientist, Allen Kassman, had two sons, and moved to Richmond, Virginia, where she earned a master's degree in social work administration.

She tried her hand at another field that was unusual for women at the time, grant writing, but found it stultifying.

In the mid-70s, the Kassmans divorced, and Bethann moved to Boston. She honed her business skills and became chief operating officer and director of strategic planning for the Sidney Farber (now Dana-Farber) Cancer Institute, a 50-bed research hospital.

"I loved that job," she recalled.

At the institute she met powerful men who would become her mentors, including Baruj Benacerraf, an immunologist who won a Nobel Prize for his genetic research and whom she described as "touched with greatness.'

Another mentor was media and real estate mogul Mort Zuckerman, who invited her to come along as he wheeled and dealt. The billionaire critiqued her negotiating skills, too, and it wasn't always complimentary. "He told me I had to be tougher," she recalled.

Soon, however, she faced a new challenge in her personal life.

In the early 1980s, she and her ex-husband remarried  but by then their careers were on different executive trajectories in different states.

So they tried a commuting marriage. She took a succession of out-of-state positions, while "he stayed home with the children and the dog," Bethann said.

Eventually, Allen left his job to join his wife as she climbed the management ranks in California, becoming chief of operations for Travelers Health Network and later vice president at IVONYX, a start up franchise company.

Then Philip Morris International, the tobacco company, offered Allen a job as head of research and development in Switzerland. This time, Bethann agreed to relocate.

"I decided it would be an adventure," she said.

The adventure lasted for 21 years. During their Swiss sojourn, Kassman earned a doctorate in business administration at the Business School in Lausanne, then launched a new career as a co-founder and partner of Actionwear USA, a sportswear company, and as president of Biznovate, an international consulting group.

She also taught business courses and seminars at various Swiss schools, including the Open Business School and Webster University in Geneva, as well as at client companies from Sydney to Jakarta.

Her teaching brought her in touch with students from all over the world, some of whom were women who came from countries or traditions where they were kept in the shadows.

One young Turkish mother showed up at her door one evening with only her purse. Without any formal education, she had left her wealthy but overbearing husband  as well as her children  so she could have the chance to have a career.

The Kassmans took her in for three months, and helped her find a job and an apartment. Though her financial circumstances were much reduced, the woman was glad for a chance to determine her own destiny  a lesson in pure grit that impressed Bethann greatly.

"I am intrigued by the strength some women have to escape situations that their culture put them in," she said.

In 2000, after Allen retired, the couple began to spend more time in Florida, where they'd owned property since the mid-90s. Finally, they settled in Fiddler's Creek.

But neither of them has any plans to slow down  and both want to give more to their adopted community.

So while Bethann serves on the boards of the Golden Gate Senior Center and eBella magazine, Allen, 75, volunteers at Rookery Bay, where he teaches fourth-graders about water and air.

"That's the key to enjoying your 70s," said Kassman. "Always stay active."
Florida Capitol

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By Maria Perez of the Naples Daily News

A bill that aims to penalize Florida cities, counties and sheriffs that don't fully cooperate with federal immigration authorities passed its last House committee on Thursday.

The House Judiciary Committee voted 11-4 along party lines for the bill, sponsored by Rep. Larry Metz.

The bill would prohibit "sanctuary policies," including policies that limit or prevent a local governmental entity or law enforcement agency from complying with an immigration detainer, initiating an immigration status investigation, or providing a federal immigration agency with the release date of an inmate.

Metz says he sponsored the bill (HB 675) in response to a 2015 incident in San Francisco in which a woman was fatally shot by a Mexican immigrant. The suspect had been released earlier that year by the San Francisco County sheriff's office, despite a request by federal immigration authorities to detain him.

But immigrant advocates reject the bill as costly and harming not only for immigrants but also for the communities as a whole.

Collier County activist Grey Torrico said the immigrant community just wants to live and work in peace and that very few of those who are placed on detainers have committed serious crimes. She said many are usually detained for offenses like driving without a license. Undocumented immigrants cannot apply to have a drivers license in Florida.

Seven local governments in Florida have adopted policies limiting cooperation with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement by placing conditions on honoring immigration detainers, the Florida House staff analysis says. Detainers are requests from immigration authorities that often ask local law enforcement agencies to inform them about when undocumented immigrants are going to be released, or to hold them for 48 hours so they can take them into custody.

Six Florida counties decided to not honor detainers unless they are supported by probable cause, such as a warrant from a federal judge, or an order of deportation. Miami-Dade decided that detainers will only be honored if the federal government agrees to reimburse the county for costs due to complying with the detainer and the subject of the detainer has a previous conviction for a forcible felony or has pending charges for a non-bondable offense, according to the staff analysis.

According to ICE detainer-by-detainer records released to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) at Syracuse University, during April 2015 only about one third of individuals on whom detainers were placed had been convicted of a crime. And only 19 percent had a felony conviction.

Maria Rodriguez, executive director of Florida Immigrant Coalition, said the bills hurt the communities as a whole because they take productive members who work, pay taxes and consume and put them into jail, often times leaving a family and children who can be U.S. citizens without a breadwinner.

"We can put them in jail and deport them, and then carry the cost of their children and families, or we can acknowledge that we benefit from their labor and contribution, and understand that having families together benefits all of us," she said.

Rodriguez said jailing undocumented immigrants originates high costs for local entities and undermines law enforcement.

Another bill, that would make it a third-degree felony for an undocumented immigrant to come back to the U.S. after having been removed has gotten through two House subcommittees and has yet to be heard at the Judiciary Committee.

---

Associated Press contributed to this report
Naples resident Everett Van Van Hoesen received a check in the mail for $1,450 that he ultimately realized was a counterfeit check scam. (David Albers/Staff)

SHARE David Albers/Staff Naples resident Everett Van Van Hoesen received a check in the mail for $1,450 that he ultimately realized was a counterfeit check scam.

By June Fletcher of the Naples Daily News

When Everett "Van" Van Hoesen opened his mail a few days ago, he was confronted with a mystery.

A U.S. Postal Service priority letter arrived addressed to him from Piquet Realty, 1335 Gold Express Drive, Gold River, California.

Inside was a cashier's check for $1,450, made out to him  but no explanation.

"I said to myself, hmmm  there's something smelly going on here," said Van Hoesen, who was tempted to cash it, but ultimately decided against it.

The 83-year-old retired Naples builder was not expecting a check, and had never done business with Piquet Realty. He tried unsuccessfully to track down the firm through the issuing bank, the postal service and the local chamber of commerce. Then he tried the local sheriff's office, and learned there was no such business at that address.

Kevin Nunez, director of operations of Piquet Realty, which is based in Miami, confirmed there are no branches in California. But he's gotten calls from people who report similar mystery-check arrivals, purportedly from his firm, that are sent by scammers.

"It happens all the time," he said.

The Federal Trade Commission last year included counterfeit check scams in its top-20 list of consumer complaints. Fake checks and foreign money offers ranked 16th, with 21,020 complaints nationwide.

Florida is the state with the highest per capita rate of reported fraud, the FTC said.

Anisa Bano, crime analyst with the Naples police, said while she has not had any recent reports of similar incidents in the city, Van Hoesen's experience "definitely has all the signs of a scam."

But it is not considered a crime unless the check is cashed, Bano said.

At that point, the scammer contacts the person who cashed the check to say it was a mistake, and asks for a portion of the money to be returned.

The check is fraudulent and bounces in a few days or even weeks, and the person who cashed it has to cover it.

Most banks also charge recipients a fee for bounced checks.

Bano recommends not cashing an unexpected or mystery check.

Sgt. Brian Sawyer of the Collier County Sheriff's Office fraud section said if the bad check arrives through the mail, it's a good idea to alert postal authorities.

Although his office doesn't keep statistics on this type of fraud, he says he sees numerous variations on it.

All of them share a common characteristic  the person sending the fake check claims he has overpaid for something and then asks the victim to refund the difference.

Scammers also reach out to people who are advertising services like baby-sitting or pet walking, and pretend to hire them, Sawyer said.

They send a bogus advance check for more than the amount agreed on, and then ask for a partial refund.

Alternatively, they advertise as a secret-shopper service and pretend to hire job-seekers.

They'll send a rubber check they'll ask the shoppers to deposit in their own accounts to buy merchandise that's sent to the scammers.

The shopper will be asked to take out a certain amount as payment, and to return the rest to the service.

No one who receives a suspicious check should feel obligated to return it, or any portion of it, Sawyer said.

After all, a company or person that truly makes a mistake in payment can always cancel the original check and then reissue it in the proper amount, he said.

"If you had nothing to do with this, it is not your responsibility to solve it," Sawyer said. "There is so much potential for fraud, it's not worth the chance that you could be victimized."

Carrie Kerskie, director of the Identity Fraud Institute at Hodges University in North Naples, said there's another reason not to fall for any pleas to send a refund check to someone who claims to have overpaid you.

Your check has your bank account information on it, as well as your name, address and signature.

So a scammer could chemically alter it to remove the amount you wrote, and write in a larger sum; or could use it as a template to make a slew of fake checks.

While check scams have been around for years, criminals are constantly coming up with new twists on them, Kerskie said, even though so many financial transactions these days are now done electronically.

"That's because people still fall for them," she said.
operating oil and gas well profiled on sunset sky

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By Arek Sarkissian of the Naples Daily News

TALLAHASSEE  A House bill that tosses out local ordinances banning fracking is now headed to the chamber floor, with only a minor change offered to help local governments  drillers must give notice they are seeking a state permit.

State Rep. Ray Rodrigues, R-Estero, offered HB 191, which would create a specific state permit process for fracking and prohibit any new permits until the state Department of Environmental Protection conducts a yearlong study. The bill also would require the Legislature to create rules from the $1 million study that would govern fracking.

The bill that passed Thursday was slightly changed from its original version with a clause that required a drilling company to notify the local government when it applies for a permit from the state DEP. The local government will then have 45 days to voice concerns to the state agency about the drilling. The agency will use those comments to determine whether the company will receive a permit.

The House State Affairs Committee passed the bill Thursday, which also was sponsored by state Rep. Cary Pigman, R-Avon Park, with a 12-6 vote.

Associations that represent Florida cities and counties remained concerned that the bill ignores the role of local governments on an environmental issue that affects their community.

"We are disappointed that it is moving forward without consideration of Florida's communities," said Cragin Mosteller, spokeswoman for Florida Association of Counties. "Local elected officials with the input of their citizens should determine what is best for their environment and economy."

Current law forbids DEP from issuing permits to oil and gas drilling companies seeking to drill within cities that have passed ordinances and resolutions opposing it. Rodrigues' bill removes that prohibition for any local regulation passed after Jan. 1, 2015, and allows all earlier local ordinances to remain in effect. Rodrigues' own city of Estero and Bonita Springs passed ordinances last year, and 64 other cities have passed resolutions opposing the process.

Fracking is a method of drilling that injects chemicals into the ground at high pressure to churn up oil and natural gas. The bill was first introduced by state Sen. Garrett Richter, R-Naples, last year after members of the Collier County Commission raised concerns that DEP was unable to halt drilling performed by the Texas-based Dan A. Hughes Co. The company began to frack in Collier on the western edge of the Everglades and refused to listen to orders from DEP to stop so that the agency could perform an evaluation. Hughes drillers eventually stopped, and the company was fined $25,000 and ordered to install groundwater monitors around the state.

Richter's bill died last year with the abrupt end to session. He filed SB 318 this year, which also strips local control. It goes before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on General Government Committee on Monday.

Contact Daily News reporter arek.sarkissian@naplesnews.com or 850-559-7620
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By Arek Sarkissian of the Naples Daily News

TALLAHASSEE  For the second year in a row, a Senate committee chairman blocked a controversial bill that would allow concealed weapons on college campuses, signaling the legislation's likely failure again this session.

State Sen. Miguel Diaz de la Portilla, R-Miami, said the bill does not promote a safe environment for students attending Florida's 12 universities and 39 colleges. Also, he did not believe the bill had the support to pass a full Senate vote.

"I just don't think this is the right way to protect our campuses," Diaz de la Portilla said. "When you're talking about students, when you're talking about an educational setting, there has to be a better way."

The bill would allow Florida concealed weapon permit holders to carry a handgun on campus and was sponsored by state Sen. Greg Evers, R-Baker, who did not have a solution to revive the bill, but he refused to give up hope.

"Stranger things have happened and we have rules and whatever happens we'll follow those rules," Evers said. "It's not over until the hankie hits the floor."

When Evers was told Diaz de la Portilla did not believe his bill had enough support to pass, he said, "Well if he doesn't think it has the votes, why doesn't he bring it on out and test it?"

A House version of the bill awaits that chamber's consideration after passing three committees, but a lack of a Senate companion bill leaves it doomed. House sponsor Greg Steube, R-Sarasota, said he was disappointed in Diaz de la Portilla's decision but he still had hope.

"Through the amendatory process, nothing is over until the end of session," said Steube, suggesting he would attach his bill to another bill ready for the Senate chamber. "To completely avoid the bill when there's support in the committee for it, I don't think that's how this process should work."

NRA lobbyist Marion Hammer said Diaz de la Portilla's decision did not mean the bill was dead.

"It means he has decided not to hear the bill in his committee," Hammer said. "Nothing more."

Powerful senators said they respected Diaz de la Portilla's decision not to hear the bill. Senate President Andy Gardiner had given him discretion. Senate Majority Leader Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, said there were concerns in the GOP caucus that the bill should not move forward.

"I think he made that decision to avoid that controversy," Galvano said, adding he became concerned after talking with FSU President and former Sen. John Thrasher. "It was something I was concerned about having spent time with President Thrasher.

"It would have required more work, in my opinion and that wasn't something Sen. Diaz de la Portilla wanted to use his committee time for."

Despite his shutdown of Evers' bill, Diaz de la Portilla said he would permit an amended version of a bill that would allow concealed weapon permit holders to openly carry a handgun in public. SB 300 by state Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, faces an amendment proposed by the Florida Sheriffs Association that would require a weapon to stay concealed, but make accidental displays in public not a crime.
China's top court rejected on Thursday an application for a new hearing of an environmental public interest case, upholding the original ruling.

The Supreme People's Court holds a public hearing over the environmental public interest case on the afternoon of Jan 21, 2016. [Photo provided by the Supreme People's Court]

The applicant, the Jinhui company in Taizhou, Jiangsu province, appealed the initial ruling that ordered the company and five others to pay more than 160 million yuan (US$26 million) in compensation for discharging waste acids into two rivers.

It was the biggest environmental penalty imposed in China arising from a public interest case concerning polluters. It was also the first time that the Supreme People's Court had heard such litigation.

In August 2014, the Taizhou City Environmental Protection Association, a public interest group, sued the six companies in the local intermediate people's court.

The association said the companies sold 25,000 metric tons of waste acids to a firm that did not have the authority to discharge the acids into the rivers. The discharge resulted in serious environmental pollution.

A month later, the intermediate people's court ordered the six defendants to pay more than 160 million yuan to restore the environment.

In December 2014, Jiangsu Provincial High People's Court upheld the verdict.

The Jinhui company's lawyer, Zhao Bing, said during Thursday's application hearing that the rivers were able to purify the pollutants naturally, and that such a large amount of money was not needed to restore the environment.

"My client just sold the acids under a contract signed with the Jiangzhong company that was in charge of dealing with the waste, and did not discharge the acids itself," Zhao said.

But the association said that the Jiangzhong company was not qualified to handle the acids under national discharge regulations, adding that the acids were still dangerous to the environment.

The top court said after hearing arguments from the two sides that the Jinhui company "should be obligated to pay attention to such a contract involving dangerous acids and also has responsibility for the discharge."

Lin Wenxue, the judge responsible for the case, said, "Although the rivers can self-purify such a discharge, it still damaged the surrounding environment."

Zhou Ke, a law professor at Renmin University of China, said, "The case heard by the top court will guide grassroots courts on how to deal with such litigation."

Wang Shuyi, an environmental law professor at Wuhan University, said the public hearing also showed that Chinese judicial bodies have played their role in environmental protection.
In this February 2009 file photo, Patricia Osip plays the slot machines in one of the new rooms during the grand opening of the expansion of Seminole Casino Immokalee. (File photo)

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By Jeff Schweers

TALLAHASSEE  Lawmakers are under more pressure now to approve a $3 billion Seminole Gaming Compact since Gov. Rick Scott mentioned it as a potential revenue source for his proposed $1 billion tax cut package and $250 million in business incentives.

"Whether one describes it as 'raising the stakes,' what I think it raises is the likelihood that this will become a reality," said Sen. Rob Bradley, R-Fleming, one of two key lawmakers who brokered the compact between the Seminole Tribe and the governor.

"As I've said over and over again, his involvement is critical to making this a success," Bradley said.

State revenue estimators have reduced their revenue forecast for this year by $400 million, meaning lawmakers will have less money to spend. That drew a short response from Jackie Schutz, communications director for the governor, that included the observation, "if the Legislature chooses to adopt the Seminole Compact, it would bring in $2.3 billion over eight years."

The next day, Schutz said this didn't mean the governor is suggesting the compact should finance his initiatives.

"We are not relying on compact money for a tax cut," she said, pointing to other possible revenue sources.

The compact must pass both legislative chambers before it can be forwarded to the U.S. Department of Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs for final approval. But the measure has gained little traction so far, since neither chamber has introduced legislation to codify it or set up a framework for amendments.

"Finding a majority of senators and House members to do anything on gaming is a challenge," Bradley said. "There are a lot of different viewpoints. It's like trying to thread a needle."

Members of the Senate Regulated Industries Committee spent two hours Wednesday afternoon hearing testimony about the compact from Jeff Woodburn, Gov. Scott's director of policy, and Jim Allen, CEO of Seminole Gaming, then grilling them on the particulars.

Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, wanted to know why some pari-mutuel properties in South Florida were poised to get blackjack and others get slot machines while the Derby Lane in Tampa Bay seemed to be ignored.

"I'm just a little unclear. I see some facilities that are not Seminoles that get additional product," Latvala said to Woodburn. "What changes are there for those facilities as a result of this compact?"

The compact wouldn't give nontribal gaming establishments anything, Woodburn said. But it would give the Legislature flexibility under some conditions to allow certain pari-mutuels in South Florida to expand some of their products as long as they don't violate the exclusivity of the Seminole compact.

The compact would give the Seminoles the right to continue to offer blackjack and slots, and let it add craps and roulette to its seven existing casinos in Florida. In return for guaranteed exclusivity, the tribe would share a minimum of $3 billion in revenues with the state over the next eight years. That's $2.335 billion more than the current compact, Woodburn said.

The tribe also would agree to invest at least $1.8 billion in capital improvements and hire 4,800 new employees.

The tribe would have exclusivity over live table and banked card games throughout the state, and on slot machines outside of Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties. Exceptions to that exclusivity would allow those three South Florida counties to have a limited number of slot machines, blackjack tables and video racing machines, all of which would require changes in state law and in some cases a countywide referendum.

Six counties already have held referendums for slot machines, but five of them are not in the compact, said Sen. Jeff Clemens, D- Lake Worth.

Allowing more counties to have slots would violate the balance of the Seminole's exclusivity, Woodburn said.

Sen. Anitere Flores, R-Miami, asked how the compact limits gaming if it is also creating a path for the Legislature to authorize a new license.

Woodburn said the new compact caps slots at 6,000 per tribal casino. That is a higher level than most of the Seminole casinos currently have, Flores said.

Woodburn said it scales back more than the current compact and spells out policy options for the Legislature that provide limited expansion of nontribal casinos.

Contact Tribune reporter jschweers@tampatrib.com and (850) 765-0807
SHARE Friends of Cpl. Thomas Jardas from left, Victoria Gulinello, Jangle Carstens, Savanna Reid, and Eden Shelton huddle together as the Marine Corps Hymn during a candle light vigil in his honor at Cypress Lakes High School in Fort Myers on Thursday, January 21, 2016. (Scott McIntyre/Staff) Flowers and candles surround the portrait of Cpl. Thomas Jardas during a candle light vigil in his honor at Cypress Lakes High School in Fort Myers on Thursday, January 21, 2016. (Scott McIntyre/Staff) Cpl. Thomas Jardas' father Tim receives a memorial American flag for his son during a candle light vigil in his honor at Cypress Lakes High School in Fort Myers on Thursday, January 21, 2016. (Scott McIntyre/Staff) Related Coverage SWFL Marine Thomas Jardas, who died in helicopter crash, honored

By Jessica Lipscomb of the Naples Daily News

FORT MYERS  The sound of the "Marines' Hymn" on bagpipes echoed Thursday evening through the courtyard of Cypress Lake High School, piercing the air of the school Thomas Jardas had graduated from in 2011.

Fellow Marines on the front stage gave an "Ooh rah!" in memory of Jardas, a 22-year-old Fort Myers resident who is one of 12 Marines who died after two helicopters crashed last week off Hawaii.

"Tommy was the kind of Marine that you like to see," said Mike Frick, a fellow Cypress Lake graduate turned Marine. "He's the kind of Marine that the public wants to see. He's exactly what you would expect a Marine to carry himself like."

Hundreds of people, some of whom didn't even know Jardas, gathered at the high school to pay their respects to the young Marine. The status of the missing Marines changed to deceased Wednesday, after five days of searching for them. The Marine Corps said each family was personally notified of the change.

"The outpouring that we've gotten for my boy this week has just been overwhelming," his father, Tim Jardas, said.

Jardas' mother and sister were in Hawaii on Thursday at a service planned for the Marines there. Tim Jardas said the family has leaned heavily on its faith and the church community in which they raised their son.

"Our faith in God is getting us through this. Without our faith, I would have driven off a cliff by now," he said.

Several friends said Tommy Jardas had helped them through difficult times, and at least two people said he had talked them out of suicide.

Savanna Reid, a high school friend who organized the event, said she was overwhelmed sophomore year with the deaths of several family members and made a comment to Jardas that she would be better off dead. He told her she was crazy and asked her to come to him if she ever felt that way so he could talk her out of it.

"If it weren't for Tommy Jardas, I wouldn't be here," she said. "He was a hero before he left for Marine boot camp."

Friends remembered Jardas as a prankster, the type of guy who would stick his feet up on your desk in math class just to mess with you. Even as a kid, he was always running off in the woods at Boy Scout campouts or in the middle of church youth group.

"As much as a problem as he always was and got himself into trouble, he had a good heart, a tremendous heart, a beautiful heart," said his former scoutmaster, Ben Homola.

Homola said Jardas had a tough time figuring out what he wanted to do with his life but had finally landed on something that felt right.

"Tommy found himself and he finally figured out what he wanted to do in life, and that is a wonderful thing to figure out," Homola said. "He did what he wanted to do, he succeeded in what he wanted to do and his heart was in the right place."
West Coast Florida Enterprises is pleased to announce the debut of their new website located at www.WestCoastFLEnterprises.com. This new website has been launched in an effort to update the company's six year old website, and to ensure that it's compatible with mobile devices.



"We are very excited about the launch of this new site," said Scott Otey, VP and partner at West Coast Florida Enterprises. "We wanted to ensure that people on any device, whether a computer, tablet, or smart phone, could easily access our website and that it would be a pleasant experience. Many of our clients access our website from mobile devices to communicate with us, browse photos, etc., so we want to ensure the site is fully functional and easy to navigate."



Some of the company's new website functions include:



* New design with parallax-scrolling photos and animations

* Interactive photo galleries with numerous layouts

* Background videos that give the site a refined, polished look and feel

* Anchors that link to various points on different webpages for ease of browsing

* Facebook plugin that keeps clients up to date with current happenings



In addition to providing detailed informational pages about hiring contractors without getting scammed, the new website also features resources such as:



* Free, downloadable eBooks to learn more about roof systems

* A reviews page featuring feedback from clients as well as links to leave feedback

* Pages highlighting company news, a projects gallery, staff bios, employment opportunities and of course services offered.



"Back in April of 2015, we learned that Google was penalizing websites that weren't mobile compatible," said Otey. "Obviously it's important for our company website to remain relevant to search engines on phones and tablets. But even more important is that each user finds the information they're looking for in an optimized format for their device."



Otey says that the company initially began the process of getting a new website built on a Wordpress platform. However, their chosen theme had too many computer gliches and problems with the responsive design. Plus, the content management system was extremely complex and not user friendly.



"We were delighted to find a relatively new website development platform that's not only user friendly, but it comes with everything a website could possibly need," says Otey. "Shopping carts, forms, galleries, video...everything on this new platform is fully integrated and easy to plugin. Also, rather than one responsive website (one that automatically adjusts when the screen is shrunk), it actually creates two sites: one that's optimized for desktop computers and another for mobile devices. We are extremely happy with the final product and hope our customers are too!"



West Coast Florida Enterprises' new website can be found at http://www.WestCoastFLEnterprises.com.



Founded in 1985 by Bruce Nicholas, West Coast Florida Enterprises has grown to be Southwest Floridas premier building restoration company. Dual licensed by the state of Florida as Certified General Contractors and Certified Roofing Contractors, WCFE is permitted to work statewide, from the Florida Keys to the panhandle. But they mostly serve residents and businesses in the Naples area. By offering services such as roofing, concrete, custom welding, pavers, plaza decks, and steel trusses, West Coast Florida Enterprises has become known by their clients as Problem Solvers; capable of fixing almost anything. For more information about the company, call 239-433-9777.
As bankers step up their attacks on are keeping close tabs on the Financial Accounting Standards Board's proposed changes to how financial institutions set aside funds for loan losses, credit unions are keeping close tabs on the issue.

Current Expected Credit Loss, or CECL "has been on our radar screen for some time, as a number of state regulators have been hearing from the institutions in their states about the possible impact of the model," Lucy Ito, president and chief executive of the National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors, said in a statement. "We are monitoring the potential impact of the CECL model on credit unions with the objective of preparing state supervisors for a 2019 implementation date."

As bankers gear up for a highly anticipated meeting with FASB on Feb. 4, American Bankers Association President Rob Nichols fired the newest salvo at the Financial Accounting Standards Board's Current Expected Credit Loss standard, or CECL. Nichols, in a letter to FASB Chairman Russell Golden, said banks have major problems with the proposal, adding that his group doubts "whether CECL can be adopted in a manner that is acceptable to all parties."

Nichols' comments represent a noteworthy change in tone for ABA, which had largely muted its criticism of CECL, focusing on a behind-the-scenes effort aimed at making the proposed standard as palatable to banks as possible.

Nichols public critique echoes that of the Independent Community Bankers of America, suggesting that regulators and auditors would transform CECL into a burdensome compliance mandate by requiring large amounts of data and complex modeling to validate early stage loan-loss projections called for by CECL.

"We believe the goal of scalability is linked to simplicity," Nichols wrote. "It is difficult to see how most community banks can implement a non-complex CECL model that will pass audit or examination muster. ... As a result, we are concerned there could be substantial cost burdens not only at implementation, but also subsequent to implementation as a result of audits and examinations."

FASB unveiled its proposal in December 2012, three years after a commission established by FASB and the International Accounting Standards Board cited "delayed recognition of losses associated with loans" as a key weakness prior to the financial crisis. To promote more timely reporting, CECL mandates that lenders estimate expected credit losses  defined as cash flow an institution does not expect to collect from a borrower  when they originate a loan.

The top banking lobbies acknowledge that the current incurred-loss model for loan losses, which requires the probability of a default before provisioning is allowed, is not ideal. The ABA and ICBA are displeased with CECL's central requirement that lenders forecast credit losses over the lifetime of the loan.

For many credit union and banks, the prospect of CECL, which has been in development for years, has become a kind of sword of Damocles that will make their jobs considerably more difficult and costly if the thread breaks and the proposal is implemented.

Financial institutions already devote a significant amount of time and resources deciding on loan-loss provisions under existing standard. CECL promises to complicate the process even more, said Michael Gullette, the ABA's vice president for accounting and financial management.

"It's going to take a lot more work," Gullette said. "Projecting loan losses for the life of the loan at the time of origination creates a lot of complexity."

Lenders also worry that the need to provision on day one will require them to boost their loan-loss allowances, which could cut into earnings and lower capital levels.

"The CECL model represents the biggest change  ever  to bank accounting," Nichols wrote. "We are doubtful that auditors and the Securities and Exchange Commission, Public Company Accounting Oversight Board and banking regulators, in whole or in part, would accept current processes or levels of documentation."

CECL, to be sure, has its supporters.

Timothy Alexander, an economist and managing director at Triune Global Financial Services in Los Angeles, said it is time for banks to stop complaining and start modeling. Compliance may actually make bring some benefits, he said.

"I believe CECL has an important benefit for banks and regulators, namely intuition," Alexander wrote in a recent op-ed in American Banker.

"I entered banking almost three decades ago and my mentors followed the 10:00 am to 4:00 pm schedule with a two-hour and three-martini lunch," Alexander added. "But they were good bankers and had an outstanding intuition.  I believe the CECL initiative will, to a small degree, help to bring a positive change by providing a simple and methodical forward-looking tool to accompany gut feeling."

FASB spokeswoman Christine Klimek noted that the organization has worked closely with bankers throughout the five years spent developing and drafting CECL. She said her group is willing to keep talking  hence the much ballyhooed public session, set for Feb. 4, where FASB members are expected to hear from a number of bankers worried about the proposal.

"The upcoming standard on impairment already incorporates input provided to us by banks of all sizes throughout the course of the project," Klimek said in a statement. "That said, we are continuing our dialogue with stakeholders  including the ABA  to understand their concerns about implementation of the CECL model."

FASB had been expected to vote on CECL as early as this month. There's no word on when a vote will take place.

Gullette said he has met with FASB officials on numerous occasions in recent years. He said FASB members focused most of those talks, as well as those involving other officials and bankers tied to the trade group, on specific issues.

In its most recent draft, circulated in September, Gullette said the FASB chose not to incorporate suggested changes a number of financial institution groups had made in hopes of limiting the burden that CECL would impose.

"We really haven't been seeing that in any of their documents,'" Gullette said. "We haven't seen any changes that would have alleviated the complexity for community banks. That raised a red flag."
Local governments should take countermeasures to cope with a cold wave that has hit much of China, according to a circular issued by the Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA) on Thursday.

Icicles are seen by the sea in Yantai City,Eeast China's Shandong province, Jan 21, 2016. A cold front and snowfall are expected to hit the city from Jan 22 to 24. [Photo / Xinhua]

The cold air moving south has already brought heavy snow to regions along the Yangtze River, while cities in east and central China have seen temperatures drop by more than 10 degrees Celsius over the past few days.

In order to reduce damage caused by the weather, local governments should strengthen their cooperation with local police and civil administrations to aid the needy via inspections, according to the circular.

Temporary aid stations and shelters should also be set up in public areas where homeless people are likely to gather, MCA said in the circular.

In addition, local governments must ensure their communication with other related departments, while food and supplies such as coats and cotton quilts must be guaranteed, the circular said.

The cold wave will linger in China for another couple of days, with temperatures in most affected areas expected to rise on Monday.
There's no such thing as a free lunch. However, you may find free attractions in China, and they are exquisitely beautiful.

Here we go, let's have a look at the top 10 free tourist attractions.

Daxu Ancient Town

Daxu Ancient Town [File photo]

Location: Guilin, Guangxi Province

Landscape index: 70 percent

Time to visit: Spring

Situated at the east bank of the Li River, 23 km (14.3 miles) southeast of Guilin City, Daxu Ancient Town was originally formed in 200 AD during the Northern Song Dynasty and has a history of roughly 1,800 years. It was the leader of four renowned ancient towns in Guangxi Province as early as 600 years ago.

The two-kilometer-long ancient street is paved with bluestone slabs, with well-preserved old buildings standing alongside. Most buildings feature the style of the architecture of the Ming and Qing dynasties, including black bricks and black tiles. Every building was well designed for both commercial and residential use, composed of a gate, courtyard, principal room, wing rooms and backyard.

Some ancient workshops, such as shops featuring bamboo products and straw sandals, clinics and barber shops can also be found in the town. The local food, customs and traditional culture will leave visitors with lasting impressions.

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Chinese tourists travel abroad. (Photo/Xinhua) China will continue to be a growth market for tourists traveling, an official with the United Nations' World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) said on Thursday.

John Kestor, the director of the tourist market trends program at UNWTO, said China has been growing as a tourism source market with "double digit growth" every year since 2014 and this growth was repeated in 2015.

"There are more Chinese traveling throughout the world all of the time," Kestor said at the FITUR tourism exhibition in the Spanish capital of Madrid, adding the main destination for Chinese tourists was Asia, with important growth in the number of visitors to Thailand and Japan.

There was also "rapid growth" towards European destinations and North America, but there are limits on that growth, partly because of limits to "airline capacity" and visa availability.

"If you have another half a million Chinese who want to travel to Europe and North America, you need to have an apparatus in place in order to deal with that number of applications," he said.

The UNWTO does not expect the supposed slowdown in the Chinese economy to put a break on the number of people looking to travel outside of China.

"You need to put the slowdown in perspective, it's a slowdown from 7 percent to 5 or 6 percent," Kestor said, adding it was a growth that many nations would be "very jealous" about.

"We see a country with 1.4 billion population over half of which now live in urban centers and there several hundreds of millions with the means to travel internationally," he stated.

While there is continued high growth in the number of Chinese people travelling abroad, there was a 2 percent growth on inbound tourists last year with 56.9 million visitors to China, according to the UNTWO, well below the world average growth of 4.4 percent witnessed in 2015.

Kestor highlighted the lack of airline capacity as the root of the problem. "There is such pressure on capacity with the outbound market, so there may be an issue with the inbound," he said, adding the rising value of the yuan also makes it an expensive destination for many European and Asian travelers.
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Visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday prescribed his remedies to restore peace in the Middle East and promote development in the Arab world.

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a speech at the Arab League headquarters in Cairo, Egypt, Jan. 21, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

While delivering a speech at the headquarters of the Arab League, Xi described the Middle East region, which in many's eyes is almost an equivalent to wars and tumult, as a "land of abundance."

Path to peace

The Chinese leader concluded in the remarks that dialogues and development are the key factors that can help bring peace and stability back in this part of the world.

He said use of force offers no solution to problems, neither will zero-sum mentality bring enduring peace, adding that for the success of talks, there is need for utmost patience and flexibility.

Speaking of the Syrian crisis, he said there will be no winner out of a conflict, and to address the hot-spots, what is the most urgent, is to bring about cease-fire and start political talks.

Xi also believed that turmoil in the Middle East stems from the lack of development, while the ultimate solution will depend on development, saying that only when young people are able to live a fulfilled life with dignity can hope prevail in their heart. Only then will they voluntarily reject violence, extremist ideologies and terrorism.

Mahmoud Allam, former Egyptian ambassador to China, admitted that many of the deep-rooted problems the Arab world is grappling with have been the result of failures to achieve a successful development model, saying development is no doubt the most viable path of mobilizing people toward achieving their common interests and overcoming disagreements.

Tangible help

Also in his speech, the Chinese president introduced a host of fresh moves including loans, financial aid and common investment fund to help improve livelihood, fight terrorism and promote development in the Arab world.

The Chinese government has decided to pledge 50 million RMB (7.53 million U.S. dollars) to help improve the lives of the Palestinians and 230 million RMB (about 35 million dollars) for Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya and Yemen as humanitarian assistance, said Xi.

Beijing also wants to promote the industrialization in the Middle East. To achieve that end, China is going to hand out a number of loan programs, including a 15-billion exclusive loan, a 10-billion business lending, and 10 billion concessional loans so as to facilitate production capacity cooperation between China and the regional countries, according to the president.

Meanwhile, China also prepares to work with the United Arab Emirates and Qatar to set up a common investment fund worth 20 billion dollars that focuses on traditional sources of energy in the Middle East, infrastructure, and high-end manufacturing.

Xi also offered in his speech 300 million dollars for law enforcement cooperation, police training so as to help build up the abilities of the regional countries to maintain stability.

China also planned to provide 1,000 training opportunities for young Arab leaders, and strengthen exchanges among their think tanks, experts and scholars.

China's dos and don'ts in Mideast

The Chinese leader also said his country will neither look for proxies nor try to fill any "vacuum" in the Middle East, adding that Beijing has no intention of building any sphere of influence in the region.

"Instead of looking for a proxy in the Middle East, we promote peace talks; instead of seeking any sphere of influence, we call on all parties to join the circle of friends for the Belt and Road Initiative; instead of attempting to fill the 'vacuum', we build a cooperative partnership network for win-win outcomes," he said.

Meanwhile, Xi promised that China will not link terrorism with any specific ethnic group or religion, as doing so will only create ethnic and religious tensions, adding that there should be no double standards in battling terrorism.

Also, he said the Middle East is the meeting place of ancient human civilizations and home to diverse and splendid cultures. China will continue to unswervingly support Middle East and Arab states in preserving their ethnic and cultural traditions, and oppose all forms of discrimination and prejudice against specific ethnic group and religion.
(NaturalNews) People keep telling me this is the most AMAZING hand-roasted coffee they've ever had. It just blows their minds!It's our new line of 100% organic, hand-roasted, fair trade certified, whole bean coffee that's only available in strictly limited quantities due to the fact that we're only roasting it in small batches. Click here to see the full line of what we have available Our coffees are imported directly from small farmer cooperatives across the planet. We have four different flavors, each one with irresistible taste and aroma. We roast the beans locally, and package them while they are still warm!Health Ranger Select 100% Organic Sumatra blend is a medium roast, featuring a full-bodied taste with a hint of cherry. This earthy brew is created by the Permata Gayo co-op, which was created specifically to promote organic coffee-growing, and to provide income for residents in the Gayo region of Sumatra, where the finest coffee in Indonesia is grown.Our Ethiopia blend is a light-to-medium roast, with a creamy body and features the slight taste of red berries and cocoa. This exceptional flavor comes from the Sidama Coffee Farmers' Cooperative Union, which represents almost 100,000 farmers in the Sidama region of Ethiopia, where coffee production is a proud and longstanding tradition. Sales of the Sidama co-op's coffee have directly benefited the local community, funding roads, bridges, electricity and schools.The exquisite flavor of our Honey Processed Honduras blend is produced by that country's COMSA co-op, which uses innovative methods and practices to create coffee of exceptionally high quality. Their honey-processed method is a mix between natural and wet processing, with just the right touch of tropical fruit and hints of honey. The result is a clean, slightly sweet coffee that's sure to please.Finally, for espresso fans, there's our El Guapo blend , which uses semi-washed coffees as a base to give the shot a creamy, sweet-and-savory flavor, then is rounded out with a rotating roaster of brighter coffees that add unique complexity to the taste. It's fruity, sweet and intense!All of our roasters are masters at the craft and science of making coffee, ensuring that each roast brings out the full flavor of the coffee beans. And the results of their expertise are evident in every delicious cup you drink.At the Natural New Store, we have taste-tested (and lab tested) dozens of coffees from around the world, and these four amazing blends are the ones we loved the most. On behalf of the hard-working farmers and roasters who produce it, I think you'll agree that this is some of the finest, freshest coffee you've ever tasted.Get them in single 12-ounce bags, or discounted multi-packs
(NaturalNews) Those who are sent abroad to serve our country are often sadly neglected once they return home. But there are also veterans suffering from a tragic fate which befell them here within our nation's borders who are also being forgotten and ignored by those in power.Fort McClellan is a now-defunct military base near the town of Anniston, Alabama. The base was closed in 1999 after the Environmental Protection Agency classified it as a hazardous site.Many of the veterans who were stationed there are now suffering from a variety of debilitating chronic illnesses due to the toxic chemicals and bio-weapons that were (and still are) stored there. The materials include Agent Orange, Agent Blue (an even more deadly chemical than Agent Orange), the nerve agent sarin, depleted uranium and many other man-made toxins.The water table has become so polluted with toxic chemicals that it is now illegal to drill wells in the area.And as if all that weren't bad enough, the base and its surrounding area, including the town of Anniston, was subjected to the poisoning of its air, water and soil for several decades by the Monsanto Corporation.The area has been named the most toxic place on the planet because of Monsanto's activities there, which included introducing PCBs and other highly poisonous substances to the environment. The EPA has placed the site at the top if its Superfund list for cleanup.In 2003, a settlement with Monsanto was reached in a class-action court case which ended with the chemical giant paying $700 million to 20,000 Anniston residents who were affected by the toxins.Unfortunately, the settlement did not include military personnel stationed at the base.As Denise Williams wrote forMeanwhile, hundreds -- if not thousands -- of veterans who were stationed at Ft. McClellan are coping with a variety of serious illnesses. Many have died from exposure to the toxic soup of chemicals found there, and many others are fighting to get the care that they need and deserve.Many of the illnesses and disorders that the veterans have contracted are affecting the next generation due to the chromosomal effects of some of the toxins. That's only in the cases , of course, where those exposed are even able to have children -- there are numerous reports of female veterans who were stationed at Ft. McClellan having had series of miscarriages. Others have been forced to undergo radical hysterectomies before the age of 30.Many other Ft. McClellan vets -- male and female -- are suffering from cancers and a range of other deadly diseases but are still waiting for the government to take action. Not only is the Veteran's Administration not informing people that they were exposed, but they are also routinely denying care to those who desperately need it.Even though the base was shut down by the EPA because of the toxic threat, the VA has not acknowledged that there is a problem.There has been a bill introduced to Congress called the Ft. McClellan Health Registry Act, but it is still awaiting action. Although the bill has received the support of numerous members of Congress, it has still not been approved since its introduction in 2013.It is a shameful reflection on our government that these men and women who served our country are still allowed to suffer without any assistance from those who are responsible for their care. It is hoped that their voices will be heard soon.
Forcing other parts of the world to eat American Frankenfoods not well received

Food chemicals and processes in America are banned in most other parts of world

(NaturalNews) Earlier this year, many people in the United States were angered over the fact that the USDA was on board with having US chickens sent to China for processing, then shipped back to the States for human consumption. Questionable food practices in China, as well as the illogical nature of such an elaborate import/export process, rendered Americans' stomachs -- and finances -- uneasy.How interesting it is then, that the United States, which fears China's iffy food security, is now entertaining signing a bill which is providing Europe with those same fears. The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), if signed and passed, is poised to create a global megamarket of 800 million consumers spanning from Hawaii to Greece and Alaska to Finland.While advocates say that TTIP, which would become the world's largest free trade deal, would create a globalization breakthrough that could boost transatlantic commerce and create millions of new jobs, the majority of people in Europe are expressing extreme dissatisfaction about the possibility. Just as Americans are hesitant to purchase certain foods from China, many Europeans are not happy about the idea of perhaps one day consuming American foods which are often dubbed as Frankenfoods."Hormone-boosted beef. Chlorine-washed chicken. Genetically altered vegetables. This is what they want for us," said French organic farmer Jean Cabaret. "In France, food is about pleasure, about taste. But in the United States, they put anything in their mouths. No, this must be stopped."While French President Francois Hollande has voiced his backing of the deal, Matthias Fekl, the new secretary of state for foreign trade in France, is against the notion of allowing controversial US foods to become the norm there. "This is about lifestyle, about way of life," Fekl said. "Nothing will force us to expand entry into Europe of chlorinated chicken or hormone beef."Asreaders know all too well, Cabaret and Fekl have every reason to fear much of America's manner of food growing, raising, processing and labeling. GMOs, labeling loopholes and chemicals that make their way into our foods are disturbing. In fact, several foods that are considered safe for consumption in the United States are actually banned in other parts of the world.For example, in Australia, the UK and many European countries, asthma-causing Azodicarbonamide which is commonly found in baked goods and breads, is banned. Recombinant hormone and recombinant bovine somatotropin is also banned in other parts of the world, as is arsenic, traces of which have been found in US chicken feed."It's possibly one of the most dangerous agreements," said British TV chef Jamie Oliver. "We don't have hormones in our meat; that's banned. But not over there. We don't have hundreds of poisons and pesticides that have been proven to be carcinogenic. They do."The fear of American foods and opposition to the bill is being expressed all over Europe, much of the time not quietly. Protestors are a common sight; flash mobs have broken out in Belgium, and demonstrations in Copenhagen have involved a 24-foot Trojan horse to symbolize the trade deal's risks. Some have even donned chicken costumes, handing out fliers at town hall meetings or in grocery markets. In Britain, a poll discovered that a mere 13 percent of Britons favor TTIP.If the bill is to be set in motion, more agreements must be made by the end of President Obama's term. More rounds of talks are expected to take place over the next few months.(1) http://www.nationofchange.org (2) http://www.washingtonpost.com (3) http://abcnews.go.com (4) http://science.naturalnews.com
Debilitating symptoms often misdiagnosed and ineffectively treated

Conventional medicine ignores the true cause of Lyme disease

(NaturalNews) Lyme disease is a common, yet serious, problem for many regions of the United States. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reports that about 30,000 cases of Lyme disease are documented by state health departments each year, with. In reality, the numbers are closer to 300,000! (even admitted by the CDC). Conventionally-trained physicians continue to 'treat' Lyme disease with ineffective (often harmful) medications  while ignoring the true cause. On the next NaturalHealth365 Talk Hour, Jonathan Landsman and Dr. David Jernigan, published author and nationally recognized leader in biological medicine talk about a safe (natural) solution for Lyme disease. visit http://www.naturalhealth365.com/free-shows and enter your email address for show details + FREE gifts!Lyme disease - which is known to cause arthritis and neurological problems that continue years after an initial diagnosis - is most prevalent along the eastern seaboard and inland through Pennsylvania, as well as throughout Wisconsin and far eastern Minnesota. But, the cause is NOT just from a tick bite. In fact, the statistics show that Lyme disease is spreading rapidly within the U.S. population.: Within the 69 counties considered to be high-risk areas, the incidence of Lyme disease in 2012 was four times what it was in 1993.The symptoms of early Lyme disease tend to be a fever, chills, sweats, muscle aches, fatigue, nausea and joint pain. Unfortunately, Western medicine appears to be content with standard operating procedures - while chronic Lyme disease patients continue to suffer long after the initial diagnosis  even with aggressive antibiotic treatments. But what if there was a better way?On the NaturalHealth365 Talk Hour, we'll talk about a natural way to rid the body of Lyme disease in some very surprising ways that don't involve toxic medications. visit http://www.naturalhealth365.com/free-shows and enter your email address for show details + FREE gifts!Once Lyme disease is diagnosed, most conventional physicians concentrate their efforts on using antibiotics to wipe out the bacteria and associated infections. But, they ignore the 'inner terrain' of our body  which is responsible for putting us at disease risk. Too many toxins, emotional stress and nutritional deficiencies suppress immune function and increase our risk of infectious diseases.Simply put, a strategy of "killing off" every nasty microbes does not assure a full recovery from Lyme or any other chronic disease condition. In fact, because of the reliance on antibiotics, due to intestinal problems caused by the drugs - which compromise the immune system.According to Dr. David Jernigan , founder of the Hansa Center for Optimum Health, restoring optimum coherence throughout the body should be the primary goal when treating Lyme disease, with microbial issues taking a backseat.Instead of being focused on the use of antibiotics as the cure-all for chronic Lyme disease, Dr. Jernigan recommends taking a bio-centric approach. His interviews of thousands of Lyme disease sufferers uncovered that the use of drugs in treatment is given more credit than it should, while. Even with very ill patients, a negative lab test indicating the offending bacteria had been wiped out is not a clear indicator of wellness nor is it evidence drug effectiveness, since symptoms can persist.Be sure to join us  on the next NaturalHealth365 Talk Hour  to discover a natural way to rid the body of Lyme disease without the need for toxic medications and unwanted side effects.and the treatment of chronic illnessDr. Jernigan received his Bachelor's degree in nutrition with honors, and his doctorate at Cleveland Chiropractic College-KC. Post-graduate studies have taken him around the globe, where he has studied natural and anthroposophical medicine in Germany and Biological Medicine with the world-renowned Dr. Rau of the Paracelsus Klinic of Switzerland.Later studies saw him receive certification in Botanical Medicine through the University of Colorado, School of Pharmacy. Dr. Jernigan is also the developer of the diagnostic and treatment technique Bio-Resonance Scanning and a whole new concept in medicine called Circuit Healing. visit http://www.naturalhealth365.com/free-shows and enter your email address for show details + FREE gifts!
Flint 'has failed' its residents, deceiving and poisoning them

What went wrong... A look back

A call for the federal government to step in

(NaturalNews) In breaking news, the people of Flint, Michigan, are suing Governor Snyder, the city of Flint, and the state for injuries obtained from drinking lead-contaminated water  water which was been known to be harmful, yet which went ignored. As a result of this blatant shunning of public health, there have been legionnaires' disease outbreaks (87 since June 2014 to be exact, 10 of which have led to death).Now, residents are clamping down.Enough is enough.Some 31,000 Flint residents have had it with their concerns being brushed under the carpet. They've gone on too long with shoulder-shrugging moments like those stemming from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS), who said it "cannot conclude that the increase is related to the water emergency in Flint" but is approaching the situation with "urgency." They don't understand why they've been paying  and in some instances, still do pay for  this unacceptable water. And of course they've had it with their lives being destroyed, falling ill themselves while watching friends and family succumb to serious problems created by the lead-laden water.According to the suit "the decision to replace safe drinking water with poisonous water" is cited, as are statements that outline the city's breaching of contractual obligations despite city residents upholding "their end of the bargain by continuing to pay for drinking water that they cannot drink." The suit declares that "the City has failed to provide drinkable water to Plaintiffs from April 2014 to present."That's right, early 2014. Ever since, the residents of Flint have been grappling with this problem, its severity often falling on deaf ears.Here's some background information about what's been going on in Michigan, leading up to the current lawsuit. Sadly, it's beyond disturbing.Basically, Governor Rick Snyder's administration was aware of water quality problems in Flint. Even so, Snyder's emergency manager disconnected the city from the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department in 2014 in an effort to save money. This meant that residents were provided with Flint River water instead. Soon thereafter, residents began noticing some horrible odors and strange colors in their drinking water."Since Flint started providing us with water from the Flint River, my water has turned bluish-green from all the copper in the water, the levels of lead have quadrupled and we have been notified about high levels of toxic chemicals," said Flint resident Melissa Mays. "Members of my community have been reporting cases of lead poisoning, and many neighbors have reported that their hair is falling out because of our toxic water. Due to the high levels of copper in my water, I am suffering from osteoarthritis and bone spurs at the age of 36."Then, as is often common when residents shine a light on a health problem brought on by decisions made by the powers that be, their concerns went ignored. Even when they were brought to the attention of the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and the Snyder administration itself, even when officials were aware of contamination in the drinking water, residents were told to relax. That weird-colored water that's been making you ill? It's perfectly safe, these people were repeatedly told.Although the water system was switched back in October 2015, the fact remains that people suffered devastating health consequences and related financial strains  which they're still experiencing. Furthermore, the city now faces replacing thousands of lead water pipes, as they should.Reaction to the horrible issue and the lawsuit has been embraced with an "it's about time" and "good for the citizens" mind set.Lynna Kaucheck, senior organizer with the advocacy group Food & Water Watch, has called the water problem in Flint "a total abomination," calling for the federal government to get involved. "Since it's clear that the Snyder administration cannot adequately address this crisis," she says, "it's time the federal government stepped in. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services should declare a state of emergency to give Flint residents the resources they so desperately need."(1) TheDailySheeple.com (2) Media.ClickOnDetroit.com (3) FoodAndWaterWatch.org
Functional ingredient suppliers BI Nutraceuticals and AIDP promoted company executives, while OmniActives chairman received an international award.

Mark Thurston joined AIDP as president, and company founder and current president, Edward Lee, was promoted to chief executive officer. Thurston most recently served as vice president global business development at Innophos Inc., and prior to Innophos, he was vice president and general manager of Rhodia Food Ingredients North America. He also served in various sales and business management capacities for Rhodia in France and the UK.

BI Nutraceuticals promoted Randy Kreienbrink to vice president of marketing. Randy joined BI in 2012, bringing 25 years experience in sales and marketing with various food, flavor and ingredient companies. Kreienbrink previously worked for Brenntag Pacific, New Zealand Dairy Board, Ashland Nutritional and Nutrahance Ingredients. He is a professional member of the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), Pacific Technology Exchange, AACC International, and serves as an editor for the Southern California IFT Newsletter. Randy is a Certified Food Scientist (CFS) from IFT.

Jayasinh V. Mariwala, chairman, OmniActive Health Technologies was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his contributions in innovating and growing the spice industry at the International Spice Conference on January 21st in Goa, India. Held by the All India Spices Exporters Forum and The Cochin Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the four-day conference brings together 500 representatives from more than 35 countries to address the challenges faced by the spice market and uncover their solutions.

Mariwala joined his family business in 1956. Since then his name has been closely associated with many important firsts of the spices industry in India including being a member of the Spices Export Promotion Council since its inception and its chairman in 1979. Mariwala was also the first vice president of the Spices Board, developed by the Government of India, and was also selected as a special delegate to negotiate with the USFDA on an agreement between the United States and India to implement a quality control program. The International Pepper Community also tasked Mariwala to draft its IPC Pepper contract used for international trade.
Humans voluntarily seek out ways to exercise and be active in lifestyles that are otherwise sedentary for a big part of the working populace. From playing sports, running marathons or lifting weights at the gym, people make staying fit a priority - but are we the only species that does?

In the latest study, researcher Dr. Lewis Halsey of Roehampton University tires to answer this question. However, the results are not all that conclusive - we still don't know if animals necessarily exercise to "keep fit."

But here's what we do know:

Animals rely on intermittent foraging to acquire energy-rich foods, which they need to support them in their routine activities of predator defense, locomotion, and mating.

Humans also consume eating energy-rich foods and compensate for weight gain by exercising.

Therefore, Dr. Halsey was interested to see if some animals also need to spend time and energy on voluntary exercise so that they are fit enough to out-run predators, win over mates or hunt down prey.

"Researchers haven't contemplated the idea that some animals may not do enough exercise during their general activities to be suitably fit for infrequent, high-intensity activities such as fleeing from predators. This needs to change," Halsey said in a news release.

We also know animals will change their body condition in response to environmental conditions. For example, songbirds gain some weight to survive the winter, but not so much that they can't escape predators.

On the other hand, when there are no predators around to fear, animals will pile on the pounds. Laboratory animals, for instance, gain weight in captivity. Like humans, however, they will burn excess fat by "exercising" -- when given a wheel, mice, rats and hamsters will spend countless hours running round and round.

Contrary to humans' need to push themselves harder at the gym after a "cheat day" or holiday full of sweets, some species are able to maintain their fitness with little to no exercise at all.

In his study, recently published in the Journal of Animal Ecology, Halsey points out polar bears and penguins burn different tissues while fasting in the winter, rather than through voluntary exercise. And polar bears stay fit during hibernation by maintaining their muscles, ensuring they don't awaken in the spring a weakling.

Barnacle geese appear to be an extra-special case of getting fit quickly: Some populations migrate nearly 2,500 kilometers each autumn from Svalbard in northern Norway to Scotland, but in preparation for such strenuous travels the geese fly for only a few minutes each day, in short bursts of flight, which Halsey compares to modern high-intensity training (HIT) regimes human athletes use to boost maximal aerobic capacity.

"Barnacle geese appear to get fit for certain predictable, planned events such as migration, and yet miraculously seem able to do so with little or no voluntary exercise," He added. "So their bodies seem to trigger increased fitness from within - they get fit automatically when they need to - enough to make any human with a waning New Year's resolution to get fit very jealous."

If animals are voluntarily working to "keep fit," they would need to tap into their energy reserves. Understanding this opens a whole new window for studying animal behavior, Halsey said. "No one has previously observed animal behaviors and thought 'this behavior could be associated with keeping fit."

Another study, recently published in the journal PLOS ONE, focuses on young humpback whales, who appear to work out in extended sequences of breaching. (Scroll to read more...)

For their study, researchers from California State University, Channel Islands, examined whales' myoglobin, which is a protein found in the muscle cells of animals and is responsible for storing oxygen. In terms of humpback whales, however, only young calves are seen "exercising."

"These high levels of exercise have always been something of a paradox," co-author Rachel Cartwright said, "given the limitations on maternal energy resources during the breeding season."

In total, Cartwright and her team studied muscle tissue samples from 18 stranded baleen whales, and compared muscular myoglobin stores found in both young and adult baleen whales. Since whale calves develop oxygen-carrying myoglobin as they mature, researchers suggest exercise may drive may be crucial part of the animals' early development.

"This study provides a functional explanation for these high activity levels; this intense exercise drives development of oxygen stores in the muscle tissue, allowing young whales to build their breath-holding capacity and make sustained, extended dives," Cartwright added.

These studies combined reflect how working out may be more common in the animal kingdom than previously thought.

For more great nature science stories and general news, please visit our sister site, Headlines and Global News (HNGN).

-Follow Samantha on Twitter @Sam_Ashley13
If zebras' stripes are not used for camouflage, will the world look different to you?

It might to some of us.

Well, there's this: Researchers at the University of Calgary and University of California Davis say that their study of zebras from Tanzania shows that the animals' bold black patterns of stripes are not disguising them from lions or other predators after all.

Their study findings were recently published in the journal PLOS ONE.

"The most longstanding hypothesis for zebra striping is crypsis, or camouflaging, but until now the question has always been framed through human eyes," Amanda Melin at University of Calgary, and lead author of the study, said in a release. "We, instead, carried out a series of calculations through which we were able to estimate the distances at which lions and spotted hyenas, as well as zebras, can see zebra stripes under daylight, twilight, or during a moonless night."

Co-author Tim Caro at UC Davis had provided evidence in previous studies that suggest zebra stripes discourage biting flies.

This new study showed that by the time that predators can glimpse zebra stripes, they have likely already picked up zebras' scent or sound.

In the course of the research, the scientists put digital images from Tanzania into color and spatial filters to learn how zebras would look to their top predators, lions and spotted hyenas. They also saw how the striped animals would look to other members of their own species.

Through other measurements, the researchers learned that beyond about 164 feet in daylight or 98 feet at dusk, during top hunting times, stripes are visible to humans but more difficult for predators to discern. On dark nights without a moon, most species would have trouble seeing the stripes at about 29 feet. So, most likely the stripes are not suitable camouflage for wooded areas, despite previous theories that dark stripes would look like tree trunks and light stripes would blend with light shafts through trees, according to a statement.

In areas without trees, where zebras live for most of their lives, the findings show that lions could discern a zebra outline just as well as they could pick out prey with a similar size and relatively solid-colored fur or hide.

For more great nature science stories and general news, please visit our sister site, Headlines and Global News (HNGN).

-Follow Catherine on Twitter @TreesWhales
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China and Egypt agreed on Thursday to expand cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative during Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to the North African country.

President Xi Jinping (L) holds talks with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi at Quba Palace in Cairo, Egypt, Jan. 21, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

During their talks at the Quba Palace in the morning, Xi, who first proposed the initiative in 2013, and his Egyptian counterpart, Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, reached extensive consensus on jointly carrying out the Belt and Road Initiative.

Xi proposed that the two countries work together to build the Arab nation into a pivot of the Belt and Road, which comprises the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.

To that end, Xi suggested, China and Egypt should conjoin their development strategies and visions and focus on cooperation on infrastructure construction and production capacity.

Meanwhile, China is willing to participate in Egypt's key projects including the development of the Suez Canal Corridor and the construction of a new administrative capital, said Xi.

He added that Beijing is also ready to expand bilateral cooperation in trade, finance, space technology, energy, human resources development and security.

According to a five-year outline document signed on Thursday, the two sides will "double their efforts" to develop the China-Egypt Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone. The document is aimed to cement the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two nations.

The two sides will continue to encourage Chinese companies to invest in the zone and other places, especially those from China's competitive sectors such as textile and steel, said the document.

Xi attended an inauguration ceremony of the second phase of the zone on Thursday. He said the project will bring to Egypt over 100 companies in such sectors as textile, garment, oil equipment, motorcycle and solar energy, and create more than 10,000 jobs for Egypt.

In the energy sector, the two sides agreed to support companies to set up joint ventures and carry out projects in Egypt, the Middle East and Africa, according to the outline document.

Meanwhile, China will help train 2,000 Egyptians in the five years from 2016 to 2020.

The document said that China will, within its capacity, conduct financing cooperation with Egypt regarding Belt and Road projects.

Following their talks, the two presidents witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding on jointly implementing the Belt and Road Initiative.

Also at the signing ceremony, the two sides inked a number of other cooperation agreements covering such areas as electricity, space, infrastructure, trade, energy, fiance, culture, media, technology and climate change.

The deals are worth 15 billion U.S. dollars, said Egyptian local media Ahram online, quoting Minister of International Cooperation Sahar Nasr.

China, Xi said, attaches great importance to its ties with Egypt, and supports the Arab country's efforts to restore stability and choose a development path that fits its own conditions.

The Chinese president urged the two countries to firmly support each other's core interests, step up coordination within the United Nations, and maintain communication on both regional and global affairs, such as the Middle East situation and climate change.

In the meeting, Xi also invited al-Sisi to attend the Group of 20 (G20) summit in the Chinese city of Hangzhou in September.

For his part, al-Sisi said Xi's visit, which comes upon the 60th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties, will greatly boost the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

Egypt is willing to connect its own development plans with the Belt and Road Initiative and expand infrastructure cooperation with China under the framework of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, he said, while calling for more Chinese investment in his country.

The Egyptian president thanked Xi for the invitation to the G20 Hangzhou summit as a guest of honor, and expressed his country's appreciation of China always being fair and just on Middle East issues.

Describing China as a traditional partner of the Arab and African nations, he said his country will help deepen the friendship between the Arab world and China, and work more closely with China within the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

The two countries established the partnership in December 2014 when al-Sisi visited China.

Xi also visited Egypt's newly-elected parliament and addressed the Cairo-based Arab League on Thursday afternoon.

The Chinese president arrived in Cairo on Wednesday, 16 years after his last trip to the Arab country, which now looks forward to taking a ride on the train of development powered by the world's second largest economy.

Before traveling to Egypt, the Chinese leader visited Saudi Arabia, the first leg of his three-nation Middle East tour, which will also take him to Iran.
A Feb. 10 arraignment is set for a former Alaska Airlines pilot from Newport Beach who is charged with operating a passenger plane while under the influence of alcohol.

David Hans Arntson, 60, was arrested Wednesday on the federal felony charge and released on a $25,000 bond, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

According to the criminal complaint filed in Los Angeles federal court, Arntson was the pilot of two Alaska Airlines flights on June 20, 2014. The first flight was from San Diego International Airport to Portland, Oregon.

He then piloted a flight from Portland to John Wayne Airport in Orange County. After landing at John Wayne Airport, Arntson was selected for random drug and alcohol testing by Alaska Airlines, court papers show. A technician for Alaska Airlines performed two tests on Arntson and received results that the pilot had a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.134 percent and 0.142 percent, according to the complaint.

After the technician informed Alaska Airlines of the test results, the carrier immediately removed Arntson from all safety-sensitive duties, federal prosecutors said. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, a person may not operate a "civil aircraft," such as a commercial airliner, with an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or greater.

Arntson's co-pilot on the two flights remembered seeing the drug tester when the plane landed at John Wayne Airport and recalled Arntson saying, "I bet it's for me," according to the complaint. Arntson has since retired from Alaska Airlines.

"Those in command of passenger jets, or any other form of public transportation, have an obligation to serve the public in the safest and most responsible way possible," said Eileen M. Decker, the U.S. attorney in Los Angeles. "We cannot and will not tolerate those who violate the trust of their passengers by endangering lives."

The charge of operating a common carrier while under the influence of alcohol or drugs carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison, prosecutors said.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this article stated a person operating a commercial airliner is presumed to be under the influence of alcohol when his or her blood-alcohol content is 0.10 percent or higher. The correct content percentage is .04, according to the FAA.
The San Francisco's District Attorney announced on Friday corruption-related charges against two former human rights commission employees and a former school board member-turned-political consultant.

District Attorney George Gascon, City Attorney Dennis Herrera and FBI Special Agent in Charge David J. Johnson announced the felony bribery and money laundering charges against recently retired Human Rights Commissioner Zula Jones and ex-commissioner Nazly Mohajer. Keith Jackson, a well-known political consultant, was also charged with grand theft, bribery, money-laundering and campaign finance fraud.

While District Attorney George Gascon did not announce what led to the charges today, both women were implicated last year by attorneys for Raymond "Shrimp Boy" Chow in taking money from FBI agents investigating Chow on behalf of Mayor Ed Lee.

Jackson was charged with a total of 12 counts, including four counts of bribery, one count of money laundering, one count of grand theft of public money. Jones and Mohajer are each charged with four counts of bribery and one count of money laundering,

Any perversion of the public trust will be met with severe consequences, District Attorney George Gascon said. Corruption casts a long shadow on our institutions and the publics notions of fairness. This is a sad day for San Francisco, and we have a lot of work to do to repair the peoples confidence in city government.

The last high-profile corruption case prosecuted by the FBI in San Francisco was in March 2014 when then-Sen. Leland Yee was charged in a wide-ranging firearms trafficking, money laundering, murder-for-hire and drug distribution scandal involving about two dozen defendants. Jackson was swept up in that probe, too. The complaint against Yee named Jackson as a close associate of Lee who had been involved in raising campaign funds for him.

Yee was charged with conspiracy to traffic in firearms without a license, and to illegally import firearms as well as a scheme to defraud citizens of honest services, NBC Bay Area was the first to report. In July 2015, Yee and Jackson both pleaded guilty to a federal racketeering charges last year. Yee's sentencing date is scheduled for Feb. 10.

One of the other defendants in that case, Raymond "Shrimp Boy" Chow, was convicted Jan. 8, of 162 counts, including murder, racketeering conspiracy, and money laundering among other charges.

Court documents filed by the DA's office alleges Jackson, Jones and Mohajer are being charged with soliciting and accepting $20,000 in bribes from an undercover FBI agent in exchange for political access and preferential treatment in city contracts. Jackson's campaign finance fraud stems from using straw donors to unlawfully funnel bribe money to political campaigns. He was charged with grand theft for falsely promising a woman that he would place a child in a "preferred San Francisco public school" in exchange for money in 2012.

Attorneys for Chow wrote in court documents filed last year that Lee, Mohajer and Jones met with undercover FBI agents on April 6, 2012, and Jackson attended the beginning of the meeting.

During the meeting, one agent was introduced as a person who had raised $10,000 to cover Lee's campaign debt and another as an entrepreneur interested in building senior assisted living facilities. The meeting went on for 20 to 25 minutes and Lee talked to the agent about bringing private business interests and development to San Francisco, according to court

documents.

Mohajer allegedly asked the undercover agent after the meeting whether he would be willing "to do another $10,000 later" but the court filings do not indicate whether anything came of the meetings.

Lee denied any wrongdoing once Chow's attorneys, Tony Serra and Curtis Briggs, made the allegations. The district attorney's office made no allegations against Lee today and it is unclear exactly what activity the new criminal charges are referring to.

Jones, Mohajer and Jackson had not been arrested as of Friday afternoon. Jones and Mohajer could face more than 7 years in prison and Jackson could face more than 11 years if convicted.

Bay City News contributed to this report.
A San Francisco tour bus driver was cited Thursday for misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter after a deadly crash over the weekend, police said.

Vincent Jones, 61, was cited under a city ordinance approved less than a year ago that prohibits tour bus operators from narrating a tour while driving, police Officer Grace Gatpandan said.

The case has been forwarded to prosecutors for a decision on whether to file charges, Gatpandan said. Police said the tour bus was turning right on to Post Street from northbound Divisadero when the collision occurred around 1 p.m. on Saturday.

The victim, identified by the medical examiner's office as Pieter Roell, 82, was in the crosswalk at the time of the collision, according to police. As of earlier this week police were still working to determine whether he was crossing with the light.

Jones cooperated with police and was not arrested at the scene of the collision.

The law requiring tour buses to have separate drivers and narrators was passed after the death of a city employee, Priscila "Precy" Moreto, who was struck by a tour bus and killed at Polk and McAllister streets in October of 2014.

Tour buses have come in for increased scrutiny in San Francisco following a crash in Union Square in November that injured 20 people. The bus in that crash was later found to be a "ghost bus," meaning it was not properly registered with the California Public Utilities Commission or inspected by the California Highway Patrol, and while the company had passed an inspection shortly before the crash, a surprise inspection conducted shortly afterward found multiple violations.

State Assemblymen Phil Ting and David Chiu and state Sen. Jerry Hill have introduced a package of state legislation seeking to increase safety inspections and improve the regulation of tour bus companies. The bills would require the DMV and CPUC to work together to identify tour buses that have not been registered with the CPUC, increase the frequency of CHP inspections and allow cities such as San Francisco to conduct their own supplemental safety inspections. Supervisors Jane Kim and Aaron Peskin on Wednesday said they would act to create a city tour bus inspection program if the state legislation authorizing it passes.
Officials in North Korea and the U.S. released little information Friday about a university student from Ohio who was detained for what the authoritarian nation called a "hostile act."

Otto Warmbier is the second person from southwest Ohio to be detained in North Korea in less than two years. A Dayton-area man, Jeffrey Fowle, was held for nearly six months in 2014.

North Korea's state media said the University of Virginia student entered the country under the guise of a tourist and plotted against North Korean unity with "the tacit connivance of the U.S. government and under its manipulation." The date of his arrest was unclear, as were any details of what he did.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich, campaigning in New Hampshire as a Republican presidential candidate, called the arrest "inexcusable." His Columbus office released a letter he sent to President Barack Obama, urging his Democratic administration to "make every effort to secure Mr. Warmbier's immediate release and keep (his) family constantly apprised." Kasich said North Korea should either provide evidence of the alleged anti-state activities or release Warmbier.

North Koreas arrest of an Ohio college student is inexcusable & he should be released & returned immediately. https://t.co/nfvkCwT4iB  John Kasich (@JohnKasich) January 22, 2016

The U.S. Department of State said it was "aware of media reports that a U.S. citizen was detained in North Korea."

A China-based tour company specializing in travel to North Korea, Young Pioneer Tours, confirmed that one of its customers, identified only as Otto, had been detained in Pyongyang, the North's capital, but provided no other details.

Social media accounts for Warmbier show interests in finance, travel and rap music. Warmbier is majoring in economics with a minor in global sustainability and was on the dean's list.

A professor at the university's school of commerce, Jeremy Marcel, called Warmbier "a very intelligent, wonderful young man." A Theta Chi fraternity brother, Miles Kirwin, added, "He's an incredible guy."

An attorney who represented Fowle in 2014 advised caution for those involved with the student. Attorney Timothy Tepe, of Lebanon, said North Korean authorities monitor reports and comments about detainees.

Fowle said on Friday he was "surprised and disheartened" to learn of Warmbier's detainment. He said he was considering reaching out to Warmbier's relatives. He said he'd want them to know he was treated "reasonably well" while detained, was kept in decent quarters and had three meals a day.

"So physically, it should be all right," Fowle said. "It's just emotional and mental stress that everybody's going through is the big thing to worry about."

Fowle, of Miamisburg, said in 2014 he had left a Bible in a North Korean nightclub in hopes it would reach underground Christians. Back home, the married father of three said he's doing well now.

North Korea's announcement Friday comes amid a diplomatic push by Washington, Seoul and their allies to slap Pyongyang with tough sanctions for a recent nuclear test. North Korea has occasionally announced the arrests of foreign detainees in times of tension with the outside world in an apparent attempt to wrest concessions or diplomatic maneuvering room.

North Korea also regularly accuses Washington and Seoul of sending spies to overthrow its government to enable the U.S.-backed South Korean government to control the Korean Peninsula. Some foreigners previously arrested have read statements of guilt they later said were coerced.

A few thousand Westerners visit North Korea each year, and Pyongyang is pushing for more tourists as a way to help its dismal economy. The U.S. Department of State has warned against travel to the North, however, and visitors, especially those from America, who break the country's sometimes murky rules risk detention, arrest and possible jail sentences.

North Korea has previously released or deported U.S. detainees after high-profile Americans visited the country. Critics say such trips have provided diplomatic credibility to the North.

The Korean Peninsula remains in a technical state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea.
Jason Gonzales, a 41-year-old consultant running his first political campaign, is posing a formidable challenge to Illinois Speaker of the House Michael Madigan for the 22nd District House seat.

Gonzales, a Democrat, has already raised nearly $50,000 for his campaign with the majority of the money coming from backers of Bruce Rauner and other Republicans looking to oust the powerful Speaker from office.

We have attracted people who have given to both parties," Gonzales told Ward Room. "Many of the people who have given to my campaign are supporters of term limits and redistricting reform and have given a lot of money to those causes."

During the course of his campaign, Gonzales said he faced some resistance from the Madigan political machine, even noting a Madigan aide waited for Gonzales at the Illinois State Board of Elections as he filed to run for the March 15 Democratic Primary ballot.

Gonzales said the aide then filed for two additional candidates, Joe Barboza and Grasiela Rodriguez, to appear on the ballot.

Diluting the ballot is the oldest trick in the book," he said, "but we dont believe its going to change things very drastically."

Gonzales, originally from the Chicago suburbs, has had an atypical path to the campaign trail.

In 1991, after dropping out of high school in his teens, Gonzales spent two months in jail for the unlawful use of credit cards. All told, Gonzales was convicted of six crimes between 1991 and 1994.

As a teenager, I went down a bad path; I dropped out of high school and had non-violent run-ins with the law, Gonzales said.

Following these run-ins, Gonzales said he re-enrolled in high school and was inspired by a teacher to pursue his academics more seriously.

That moment, while seemingly small, was what fueled me as I moved my life forward and graduated from high school at 21 and eventually graduated from Duke, MIT and Harvard.

Gonzales was pardoned for his crimes in 2015 by former Governor Pat Quinn.

As a candidate, Gonzales said he supports property tax reform including a progressive tax to replace the state's current flat tax.

Gonzales is also a champion of closing the funding gap in public schools and increasing funding for higher education and job training programs. Gonzales also said he is committed to ending the pension crisis.

I will fight to make sure that every person receives every cent that they were promised," Gonzales said, "and that this situation never happens again by preventing lawmakers from having access to the pension funds in the future."
 Flash

Former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko was "deliberately poisoned" and his murder was "probably approved" by Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to the report of a British public inquiry released Thursday.

The grave of murdered ex-KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko is seen at Highgate Cemetery in London, Britain, January 21, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

Robert Owen, a former judge of the High Court of England and Wales, who led the investigation, said in the report that the operation to kill Litvinenko was "probably approved" by Putin.

"A number of the witnesses who gave evidence during the open sessions of the Inquiry expressed strong views as to President Putin's direct involvement in Mr Litvinenko's death," the report said.

Litvinenko died aged 43 at a London hotel in 2006, after he was reportedly poisoned with radioactive polonium. He fled to Britain in 2000 before he was granted asylum in 2001 and became a British citizen in October 2006. He had been a fierce critic of the Kremlin and Putin.

Speaking in Davos, British Prime Minister David Cameron said "what happened was absolutely appalling" and Britain would be "toughening" up its reactions against Russia after the inquiry indicated Russian involvement in the death of Litvinenko.

He added that "this report confirms what we've always believed, and what the last Labour government believed at the time of this dreadful murder, which is it was state sponsored action."

However, the prime minister admitted that Britain needed to maintain "some sort of relationship with them (Russia)" to find a solution to the Syria crisis, but the relationship would be handled with "clear eyes and a very cold heart".

At the request of British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, Russian Ambassador to Britain Alexander Vladimirovich Yakovenko was summoned to the Foreign Office on Thursday afternoon to meet British Foreign Office Minister David Lidington, who is responsible for relations with Russia.

"The Minister set out the UK Government's deep concern regarding the findings of the independent Litvinenko Inquiry report," a Foreign Office spokeswoman said after the meeting.

"He made clear that the Inquiry's conclusion concerning the Russian State's probable involvement in this murder was deeply disturbing, demonstrating a flagrant disregard for UK law, international law and standards of conduct, and the safety of UK citizens," she continued.

Speaking at the British Parliament, Home Secretary Theresa May said that "the conclusion that the Russian state was probably involved in the murder of Mr Litvinenko is deeply disturbing."

She accused Russia of "a blatant and unacceptable breach of the most fundamental tenets of international law and of civilized behavior".

She announced that the British government was imposing asset freezes against Andrei Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovturn, the two men suspected by the Owen inquiry of poisoning Litvinenko.

A spokesperson for Cameron said that Downing Street was taking the findings of the inquiry "extremely seriously" and that Cameron found the findings "extremely disturbing".

"It is not the way for any state, let alone a permanent member of the UN Security Council, to behave. Regrettably, these findings confirm what we and previous governments already believed," the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson added that Britain is "considering what further action we should take."

Meanwhile, in response to the report, Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova on Thursday refuted the allegations, saying that Britain's handling of the case was "opaque" and "politicized."

She added the process of the British inquiry was "not transparent, neither for the Russian side nor for the public".

"We lament the fact that a purely criminal case has been politicized and put a strain on our bilateral relationships," she said.

"It is obvious that the decision to stop the coroner's investigation and start public hearings had a politicized basis," she noted.

"We therefore didn't have reasons to expect that the results of this politicized and opaque inquiry, that was from the beginning trying to lead to a 'wanted' result, would suddenly become objective and unbiased," added Zakharova.
Fourteen months after 17-year-old Laquan McDonald was gunned down by Chicago police officer, two officers involved the case have been taken off the city's streets.

Chicago police confirmed Friday that David March, who was lead detective at the time of McDonald's shooting death in October 2014, and Officer Joseph Walsh have been placed on administrative leave.

In late December, Interim Police Supt. John Escalante ordered both officers to be removed from the field pending the investigation into events surrounding McDonalds death.

Walsh was the partner of Officer Jason Van Dyke the night Van Dyke fired 16 shots at McDonald, killing him. Throughout the investigation, Walsh gave conflicting accounts about the events leading up to the shooting, which was captured on dashcam video. Van Dyke has since been charged with murder, to which he pleaded not guilty.

Walsh told investigators "repeatedly" that McDonald was ordered to "drop the knife," claiming the teen approached them swinging the weapon before he was shot dead, the Chicago Tribune reports. Walsh also said he kicked the knife away from a lifeless McDonald after the teen "attempted to kill them," records show.

None of the events Walsh explained could be seen in dashcam footage released by the city.

"Officer Walsh is currently assigned to desk duties within the 8th District and Detective March has been removed from all current investigations within the Bureau of Detective," police department spokesman Frank Giancamilli said in a statement Friday morning.

Though Walsh and March will no longer will be dispatched as responding officers, both are still able to carry a weapon and make arrests, according to the Chicago Tribune.

"While these officers are listed in an active status  meaning their police powers are not formally suspended  they are no longer serving in operational capacities," Giancamilli said.

The exact dates of the officers status changes were not made available.
Chicago Public Schools announced a round of painful layoffs to its Central Office and administrative staff Friday, giving more than 220 employees layoff notices.

The district announced that more than 400 positions in the Central Office and its administrative workforce would be closed Friday, saving the District $45.1 million annually.

The cuts include administrative functions in departments such as procurement, law, IT, facilities, diverse learners and payroll, CPS said.

In total, 227 employees will receive layoff notices Friday. Fifty-seven of the cut employees are on teams that are being downsized, and those employees will be able to reapply for 35 positions, according to officials.

In addition, 180 vacant positions will be closed.

With a budget crisis looming and the second semester underway, the district said the cuts were made by prioritizing the immediate needs of our schools."

We do not take these actions lightly, but as we ask others to do their part, we are doing everything in our power to put our fiscal house in order, CPS CEO Forrest Claypool said in a statement. Every department at CPS will have to do more with less, as we streamline administrative functions in an effort to prevent cuts from reaching our classroom doors. These cuts will consolidate some functions and challenge the district to continue delivering services.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel said Friday the cuts are intended to "protect the classroom."

"We have a lot of work to do to right the financial books, but it should not come at the expense of what our teachers and students are doing," he said. "Which is why we're looking at the Central Office and its efficiencies to hold up what we're doing in the classroom."

But one administration worker who said she was fired Friday disagreed.

"It does affect the classroom, it has to affect the classroom," said Yerick Kaslov, who processed magnet school applications for two years. "There's no way it won't. I mean [Emanuel] says what he needs to say, but there's no way it doesn't affect the classroom."

Kaslov added "it's just disheartening to see that this happens to kids."

Claypool noted that CPS is in negotiations with the Chicago Teachers Union for a multi-year agreement that would prevent mid-year classroom layoffs and give teachers a raise over the life of the contract.

We are also pressing Springfield to wake up to the injustice that Chicagos students face a separate but unequal education funding system," Claypool said in a statement. "Chicago students get only 15 percent of the states funding despite making up 20 percent of the states enrollment  a difference of nearly $500 million. This inequity must end."

The announcement follows a proposal introduced by Republican lawmakers Wednesday that would give the state control over CPS and allow the financially struggling district to claim bankruptcy.

Illinois Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno and House Minority Leader Jim Durkin introduced the legislation Wednesday morning, saying they "are throwing Chicago and CPS a lifeline."

"We believe taxpayers and the school children of Illinois in Chicago deserve better," Durkin said. "The goal here is to provide the tools to right the ship. I want to re-emphasize this, this is not a bailout. This is not a state bailout of CPS. Taxpayers statewide should not and will not be held responsible for the historically bad decisions made by Chicago politicians."

Gov. Bruce Rauner backs the plan, but Emanuel is "100 percent opposed" to it.
A United Airlines flight landing at Chicago's OHare International Airport slid off the runway Friday afternoon, according to the Chicago Fire Department.

Fire officials said the Boeing 737 plane skidded into the snow-covered grass while landing at the airport.

United Airlines confirmed United Flight 734 from San Francisco to Chicago "partially rolled" off the runway. No injuries were reported, authorities and the airline said.

"There were a couple of bumps and I was like, 'Oh, what just happened?'" said passenger Todd White.

According to United spokesperson Charlie Hobart, 179 passengers and six crew members were on board the flight.

"When I looked out the window there was snow and there were hills and I said, 'That is not how a runway should look,'" said passenger Leigh Honeywell.

The airline used buses to bring customers to their gate and the aircraft will undergo "a full inspection," Hobart said.

It's not clear what caused the skid, but officials say weather may have been a factor.

It's the second United Airlines flight to veer off the runway at O'Hare Airport in the last month.

On Dec. 30, a United Airlines flight from Seattle skidded beyond the turning point toward its gate.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is out with his first political attack ad aimed squarely at rival Ted Cruz.

The ad, entitled "Clear Difference," paints the Texas senator as a "flip-flopping" politician who once supported allowing the millions of people living in the country illegally to remain. It features footage of Cruz stumbling on his words when asked about the issue in December on Fox News while the phrases "Pro immigration" and "Pro Amnesty" flashed across the screen.

As part of the immigration reform debate in 2013, Cruz introduced an amendment that proposed stripping the option of citizenship but granting eventual legal status for millions. He has since changed his tune.

Trump and Cruz have been engaged in an increasingly hostile war of words as they battle for a win in first-to-vote Iowa, where polls show an increasingly narrow race. The kick-off caucuses will be held on Feb. 1.

The ad includes Trump discussing his own plan for mass deportations, which he described as being the more humane approach.

"Donald trump is simply trying to distract voters from his own support of amnesty," Cruz spokeswoman Catherine Frazier said in a statement.

Cruz's team also released its own attack ad Friday targeting Trump's support for eminent domain laws, which allow the government to seize private property. Trump has voiced support for using the law to build infrastructure like roads and pipelines, as well as expand companies.

The ad describes the process as "a fancy term for politicians seizing private property to enrich the fat cats who bankroll them."

It concludes declaring, "Trump won't change the system. He's what's wrong with it."

Trump has also come under attack by The National Review. The conservative magazine's latest issue features a compilation of essays from prominent conservative thinkers denouncing the billionaire businessman. Trump responded Thursday night by calling the magazine a dying publication in search of publicity.

The magazine also announced in a blog post that the Republican National Committee had disinvited it from participating in an upcoming Republican presidential primary debate next month. It's the latest instance of a media partner being dismissed from a Republican debate because of its editorial content.

New Hampshire's largest newspaper, the Union Leader, was dropped as a co-sponsor of another debate after it published a series of front-page editorials criticizing Trump and endorsed New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

"We expected this was coming. Small price to pay for speaking the truth about The Donald," the magazine's publisher, Jack Fowler, wrote in the post.


A Washington man faces manslaughter charges after a man was found dead from a heroin overdose, Connecticut State Police said.

Anthony Buonaiuto, 31, of Washington faces second degree manslaughter and sale of narcotics charges. Dana Baxter, 57, of Torrington is charged with sale of narcotics and conspiracy to sell narcotics.

Police launched an investigation in the untimely death of a 35-year-old Morris man who was found with several bags of heroin and drug paraphernalia on Sept. 19.

The investigation found that the victim was at Buonaiuto's house on Brinsmaid Road in Washington earlier in the day. A search warrant allowed police to seize several used bags of heroin and paraphernalia found at the home on Sept. 22.

The couple was arrested on Jan. 21 after Connecticut State Police determined Buonaiuto and Baxter allegedly sold the victim with heroin prior to his death.

Buonaiuto is being held on a $150,000 bond and Baxter on a $100,000 bond. It is not clear if either has an attorney.
The shoreline saw the most snow in blizzard-like conditions on Saturday as the storm crept north.

NBC Connecticut has declared Sunday a First Alert Weather Day.

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy (D-Connecticut) was urging people to to stay off the roads on Saturday.

"Big differences in conditions across #CT. I-95/Merritt Pkway experiencing low visibility/high accumulations. Stay off roads if possible," Malloy tweeted.

State police said on Saturday that between 5 am and 10 pm they responded to 149 accidents across the state.

A blizzard warning is in effect for shoreline towns through Sunday morning and National Weather Service has expanded a winter storm warning to the remainder of the state, including northern Fairfield, New Haven, Middlesex and New London counties, as well as Hartford, Litchfield, Tolland and Windham counties.

Areas in northen Connecticut saw 1 to 3 inches, 3 to 6 inches in central Connecticut and up to a foot for the immediate shoreline. A full list of snowfall counts can be found here .

Snow-covered roads made for slick travel conditions along the shoreline roads, like Interstate 95, the Merritt Parkway and Route 8, causing crashes and spinouts. A CT Transit bus in Greenwich crashed into a utility pole, causing outages and injuring one person.

There are 180 closings so far this morning in anticipation of the snowstorm conditions and multiple schools have canceled SATs. Click here to see the list.

A blizzard warning was not issued because of the amount of snow expected, but rather because of the wind combined with the intensity of a snowstorm that can cause low visibility. Winds of over 35 mph and visibility less than 1/4 mile are required for 3 consecutive hours for a storm to be classified a blizzard.

Fairfield and New Haven Counties were under a coastal flooding warning, but that has been canceled and its been downgraded to a flood advisory. There's moderate coastal flooding during the time of high tide Saturday morning.

Snow started falling in the area just before 5 a.m on Saturday. Snow accumulated on the beach and the white-capped waves were getting bigger as they creep further up the beach.

With the high tide coming in, the wind thats supposed to be coming in were supposed to have a pretty significant tidal rise," West Haven Deputy Fire Chief Scott Schwartz said.

Minor coastal flooding is anticipated late Saturday evening during high tide along the entire Connecticut shoreline.

The bull's-eye of 1 to 2 feet plus was far south of Connecticut, in places like northern Virginia and western Maryland. A blizzard warning was issued for Washington D.C., and Long Island -- only 20 miles from Connecticut.

Dry weather is expected Sunday and Monday before a warm-up arrives Tuesday, with rain showers possible.

Stay with the First Alert weather team for the latest on the track of the storm.
State police have arrested a 24-year-old Virginia man who is accused of sexually assaulting a teen in Hebron.

The sexual assault was reported in June and police identified Albert Bustamante, 24, of the Norfolk Naval Shipyards in Portsmouth, Virginia, as the suspect.

What connection he has to the naval shipyard, if any, is not clear.

Police arrested Bustamante around 8:50 a.m. on Thursday and charged him with two counts of second-degree sexual assault and two counts of risk of injury to a minor.

Bond was set at $500,000.

He was held at Hartford Correctional and transported to Rockville Superior Court.
With a possibly historic blizzard pummeling the eastern United States, more than 7,000 flights have been canceled around the country, including 4,100 on Saturday. Meanwhile, public transit is shutting down in some of the cities bracing for impact, and drivers were being warned off the roads as ice turned normally safe streets deadly.

Snow, ice and strong winds were causing problems for travelers. A plane landing at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport slid off the runway amid slippery conditions Friday afternoon.

AIR TRAVEL

More than 3,400 U.S. flights have been canceled already Friday and 6,600 are delayed, according to the flight tracking site FlightAware. Another 3,800 flights have been canceled for Saturday, including all flights into and out of Philadelphia, Washington, Baltimore and New York.

Overall, the airlines have canceled about 15 percent of their scheduled flights in the U.S. for Friday and Saturday.

The top 10 airports reporting flight cancellations Friday include two in North Carolina, three in the Washington, D.C. area, Atlanta, Chicago, Nashville, New York and Boston, according to FlightAware.

Starting Friday afternoon, United Airlines is shutting down all operations in the New York City metro area and at its hub, Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C. United warned fliers to expect cancellations and delays at all airports affected by the storm. The airline aims to restore "some operations" Sunday.

American Airlines is canceling the bulk of its flights in the Northeast. The airline has canceled 2,000 flights Friday, including all 654 at its Charlotte hub. American has also canceled all Saturday flights to all three Washington, D.C. area airports, all three New York airports and Philadelphia.

All major airlines have issued waivers for travel over the weekend, allowing passengers to rebook onto earlier or later flights to avoid the storms. The airports included vary by airline but include some cities in Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia all the way up the coast to New Hampshire and Massachusetts. American Airlines alone has issued waivers for 42 airports.

The only good news for fliers: Saturday is the slowest travel day of the week. There are a little more than 22,000 flights scheduled to, from or within the U.S., according to flight tracking service FlightAware. That's about 5,000 fewer flights  and 400,000 fewer passengers  than on Thursday or Friday.

Check with individual airlines for up-to-date flight and waiver information.

MASS TRANSIT

Some Amtrak trains to and from the East Coast have been canceled or their routes shortened, including trains between New York and Miami, Chicago and New York, Chicago and Washington, Washington and Florida and New York and Georgia.

An Amtrak spokesperson said Friday the Northeast Corridor will operate Saturday but with fewer trains than usual. Amtrak advises passengers to check the schedule to see if their trips have been canceled; refund information is available online or by calling 800-USA-RAIL.

The Metro-North Railroad, a commuter line that carries passengers through parts of New York, Connecticut and New Jersey, is running as scheduled, as is the Long Island Railroad, which travels between Long Island and Manhattan. According to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, both railroads could cut back or suspend service when the snow arrives.

Metro spokesman Dan Stessel said that as of 9 a.m. Friday, ridership on the region's rail lines was down 50 percent. According to Stessel, riders had taken 37,000 trips this Friday morning, compared with 74,000 last Friday.

While the New York City subway system is unaffected by the impending storm, Washington, D.C. will shut down its Metro from 11 a.m. Friday through Sunday. The Maryland Transit Administration will also suspend service throughout the storm.

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority  which operates subways, buses and commuter rails in five counties, including Philadelphia  will suspend most operations starting early Saturday. SEPTA hopes to restore full service Sunday.
Gov. Rick Scott signed a major overhaul of Florida's water regulations Thursday, despite objections by environmentalists that the measure was weakened by the influence of agriculture and business interests.

Scott also signed a package of bills increasing educational and career aid for the intellectually disabled.

The water and disability aid bills were the first major bills passed by the Florida Legislature in this year's session. House Speaker Steve Crisafulli, R-Merritt Island, strongly backed the water bill, and Senate President Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando, who has a son with Down syndrome, has made assistance for those he calls "people with unique abilities'' the signature issue of his tenure.

The bills were also a symbol of legislator's hope for a more harmonious session, after last year's acrimony.

"These are good bills to sign ... This is a great start to the session,'' Scott said at a ceremonial signing in his office.

He then hinted he'd like Crisafulli and Gardiner to enact his own priorities, $1 billion in tax cuts and $250 million for incentives to lure businsses, proposals some legislators view skeptically.

Environmental groups say some enforcement provisions in the water bill to prevent pollution and restore natural flows contain loopholes and would be delayed in taking effect.

"At the end of the day too many concessions were made to the industry groups,'' said Ryan Smart of 1000 Friends of Florida, one of several environmental groups that asked members to send Scott messages urging him to veto the bill.

Former Gov. Bob Graham weighed in on the bill in press interviews.

"This bill doesn't prepare Florida for the future,'' he said, citing estimates that Florida's population could double or triple this century.

Graham cited Silver Springs, "the largest, most iconic, best-known spring in Florida,'' which he said is now down to a third of its historical flow and could dry up. Smart cited tourist draw Wakulla Springs, where he said pollution has cut visibility so the famous glass-bottom boat trips are now rare.

Nonetheless, some environmental activists favored the bill, saying it's still a step forward, and only two legislators voted against it.

Asked whether he took note of the criticism, Scott responded, "I believe this is a good water bill. You have to be proud of what's happened in the last five years in this state,'' citing money for Everglades and springs restoration. "Our-0 legislature's doing an outstanding job in regard to water quality.''
 Flash

Egypt reaffirmed Thursday that it will continue to adhere to the one China policy as Taiwan is an integral part of China.

In a document outlining the actions Beijing and Cairo will take in the next five years to strengthen their comprehensive strategic partnership, the two sides promised to support each other's core interests and attend to their respective concerns.

Cairo vowed to support Beijing on issues concerning its sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as on the reunification of China, and voiced opposition to any external interference in China's internal affairs.

China said it respects Egyptian people's rights to adopt a political system and development path that suits their needs, opposes any outside meddling with Egypt's internal affairs, and supports Cairo's efforts to combat terrorism and maintain security and stability in and around the country.

The document was issued during Chinese President Xi Jinping's ongoing state visit to Egypt, the first by a Chinese head of state to the North African nation in 12 years.

Egypt is the second leg of Xi's three-nation Middle East tour, which has taken him to Saudi Arabia and will conclude in Iran.
Republican presidential candidate and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie will leave the campaign trail in New Hampshire and head home in anticipation of a storm that could bring more than a foot of snow to the region.

Christie initially was unsure whether he would travel back to New Jersey, but took to Twitter on Friday to announce his plans. Christie said Friday he was monitoring the snowstorm taking aim at New Jersey and would decide by midday whether to return home.

I'm sorry, NH but I gotta go home - we got snow coming. #Jonas  Chris Christie (@ChrisChristie) January 22, 2016

The Republican governor told reporters in New Hampshire he spoke with his cabinet about the storm that has most of New Jersey under a blizzard warning, with the threat of heavy snow in parts of the state and potentially major coastal flooding.

"We're not all that concerned about it and especially because it's happening on a weekend, that makes it much easier," he said Friday. "I think, we've gone through this rodeo a bunch of times before. We know how to do it. We're pretty experienced at it."

Christie held a cabinet meeting by phone on Thursday, when he said he wasn't planning on returning home, and his office said he'll get an updated briefing Friday on preparations and to determine whether additional steps should be taken.

Since catching flak for spending the first big snowstorm after he entered office in 2010 at Disney World with his family, Christie has put himself front and center during preparation for summer and winter storms alike, driving home public safety and preparedness messages to frazzled residents.

[NATL] Blizzard Pushes Snow, Wind Through East Coast

During Hurricane Irene a year later, Christie snapped into action, telling people to "get the hell off the beach."

Superstorm Sandy struck in 2012 and Christie stood shoulder to shoulder with President Barack Obama, touring the seaside devastation and browbeating Republican lawmakers for dragging their feet on approving aid for the shore. His approval ratings soared, and he won re-election a year later with 60 percent of the vote.

In October, he returned from the campaign trail when it appeared that Hurricane Joaquin was going to slam into the shore.

Christie spent the majority of 2015 out of the state while campaigning, leaving Guadagno as acting governor. He has repeatedly defended his absence saying that he talks to his Cabinet regularly and uses technology to keep up with government.
Colombian drug lords are accused of using a historic navy ship nicknamed "the floating embassy of Spain" to sail cocaine from South America to New York City, law enforcement officials tell NBC 4 New York.

The cartel allegedly paid two crew members aboard the Juan Sebasian de Elcano -- a 371-foot steel-hulled, four-masted schooner built in 1927 for training purposes -- to ferry drugs to New York City in April and May 2014.

Authorities say the two crew members were paid about $32,000 to hide the drugs on the boat during a voyage to Manhattan. When the boat docked on Manhattan's west side on May 14, 2014, the two crew members allegedly traveled to the Bronx to deliver the cocaine to dealers for the cartel.

Authorities say that two days later DEA agents and NYPD officers along with and state police moved and made seven arrests as the drugs were being moved through Stamford, Connecticut. More drugs and weapons were found at the Bronx safehouse.

Two suspected ringleaders -- Colombian nationals Jorge Luis Hoayeck and Jorge Alberto Siado-Alverez -- were charged Friday by the New York State Special Narcotics Prosecutor on drug smuggling counts.

The pair are accused of coming up with the plan to use the Spanish ship to smuggle 8 kilos of cocaine. Investigators said both men are on a wiretap discussing the plan.

When the ship returned to Spain, authorities there conducted a search and found 127 kilograms of cocaine hidden in a storeroom.

In 2014  after visiting France, Italy and Morocco, it crossed the Atlantic to visit Colombia, the Dominican Republic and New York.

New York officials said they are now seeking extradition for Siado-Alvarez and Hoayeck.

If convicted, the men could face up to life in prison.
With a blizzard set to blanket Philadelphia with its first significant snow of the season, the citys Street Department has revised its trash collection schedule.

The updated trash collection information is as follows:

For those who have normal THURSDAY trash and recycling collection, which was to be picked up Friday because of the MLK holiday, leave your trash at the curb Friday as scheduled.

For those who have normal FRIDAY trash and recycling collection, which was to be picked up Saturday because of the MLK holiday, residents are asked to hold their trash until next week; the trash trucks will be used to plow starting Friday evening.

City officials said residents who normally have rear driveway trash pick-up will have front street pick-up next week.

City officials said a snow emergency will go into effect beginning at 9 p.m. Friday. Car owners are asked to not park on snow emergency routes. The snow emergency routes, which are marked by signs on the streets, can be found here.

Were going to get through this together, as a city, said Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney.

Kenney urged residents to help by clearing steps and sidewalks, by helping neighbors do so, and by checking on elderly neighbors.

All city residents are required to clear a path of three feet in front of their property within six hours of a snow event ending, including curb cuts. Dont shovel snow back into the street, as it is both against the law and disrespectful of the city crews that have worked hard to clear them.

The citys Emergency Operations Center will begin operating at 8 p.m. Friday and full activation Saturday.
To some, Raffi the stuffed giraffe may look like an ordinary stuffed toy, but to 8-year-old Colson Tabbert, Raffi is the one constant source of comfort in a life of struggle... and now he's lost.

Raffi was last seen in the Philadelphia area when Colson visited from Milwaukee for an appointment at Shriner's Hospital.

Colson suffers from a disability called Anthrogryposis Multiplex Congenita, which means "crooked joint" according to his mother Jennifer, "He is affected in his arms and legs, and the condition restricts his movement. He is unable to walk and has limited range of motion in his arms."

The disability has meant multiple surgeries for Colson over his 8 years and Raffi hasn't missed one, Jennifer told NBC10. Raffi means so much to Colson Jennifer even dedicated a blog post to the special stuffed friend.[[366154441, C]]

In a plea for help when Jennifer realized Raffi was missing, she turned to facebook. In the post, Jennifer explains that Colkson and his father stayed at the Holiday Inn in Cherry Hill, NJ, rented a car from the Thrifty/Dollar rental on Holstein Avenue in Philadelphia, and flew on Southwest Air flights #2712 from Philadelphia to Atlanta and #232 from Atlanta to Milwaukee.

"Raffi could really be anywhere," she said, "He could have been lost in the hallways (of the hotel), the parking lot, the car, the lobby of Thrifty/dollar, the shuttle to the airport, the airport, the flights...."

Jennifer is hoping someone sees Raffi and contacts her via her facebook page.
A NOVEL SETTING: You don't need to search too hard to find romantic and windswept settings around California, the kind of picturesque places you might find in a novel. For sure, we have little ocean-charming villages -- hats off, Mendocino -- and winery country abounds, both north and south. We even have a castle or two (high five, Hearst Castle, and you, too, Scotty's Castle). But novel settings don't come more novel than lighthouses, those romantic, beam-beautiful structures that serve an important, and often dramatic, purpose. Staying in one, though, is as likely as spending the night in a castle, but novels always come with a twist: It turns out there is a nearby lighthouse that you can sleep inside, and it is just a ten-minute boat trip off Richmond.

A BOAT TO THE LIGHTHOUSE: We speak, of course, of the much-adored East Brother Light Station, the pretty, 142-year-old Victorian structure that's proudly plunked atop a rocky outcropping "in the strait that separates San Francisco and San Pablo Bays." The lighthouse -- er, light station, if you want to be fully accurate, and we'll assume you do -- is open to overnighters, making for an adventurous jaunt out to the wee island quite novel (in both commonly used meanings of the word). It's open to booking Wednesday through Sunday nights, and while you can stay multiple nights, there is one shower, so arrangements should be made with your hosts Bryan and Stephanie ahead of time.

INTIMATE STAY: There are five rooms to choose from, four in the light station and one in the building that houses the vintage foghorn, so plan on getting to know, over appetizers and dinner and breakfast, the other occupants of the rooms. You'll in fact make the boat trip over with them, when the sweet innkeepers pick you up at the designated, Richmond-based marina. No need to hang with everyone on the island for the night, but it is a snug situation, with some outdoor areas providing a little alone time, and some mysterious, city-in-the-fog views of San Francisco to the south. Yep, your boat trips to-and-from are included, as are the meals, but there'll be a few things to chew on ahead of time, as with any novel adventure. Can you climb a swimming pool-type ladder from the boat to the island? Are you okay with a muted but definitely-there foghorn calling out to area ships? Do you like doing exceptionally cool things that everyone you tell will want to do, too?

THEN YOU'RE GOOD TO GO: The foghorn isn't too much, most guests have said, but earplugs are provided if earplugs are your jam. Comparing it to the older foghorn, which Bryan sounds for everyone on the island the following morning, will make the newer job seem positively understated. As for the history of the light station? Books and photographs are available in the upstairs parlor, which sits below the now-LED beam (which you can visit via two flights of narrow stairs). East Brother Light Station was once in disrepair, but the care, love, and vast volunteer efforts of the nearby community brought it to its present state, a thing of glory. It's worthy of a novel, in fact, even if the night you stay isn't especially windswept (you can still stand upon the island in a velvet cape, looking like a fictional heroine, if you choose, but take care not to overpack).

AND WHAT'S THAT OUT IN THE WAVES? That's West Brother, East Brother Island's eternal neighbor, looking for all the world like a frozen-in-place whale emerging from the waters of the bay (and not the rock it essentially is). See if such novel assessments don't start to take over your increasingly romantic outlook while on the island, too. They will.
Authorities have identified a man found dead in the yard of a Pine Valley home earlier this week.

With an autopsy completed, the San Diego County Medical Examiner's (ME) office said Donnie Chip, 28, died from a stab wound to the chest.

On Thursday, just before 5:30 p.m., the San Diego County Sheriffs Department (SDSO) said deputies were called to the 8000 block of Valley View Trail after a neighbor reported hearing loud noises and some sort of altercation coming from a nearby home.

When deputies arrived in the area, they discovered the lifeless body of a man, Chip, lying in the yard of a home. Chip had suffered obvious signs of trauma to his torso, investigators said.

His injuries led deputies to believe his death was a homicide, and deputies with the Sheriffs Homicide Detail were called to take over the case.

A short time later, investigators arrested Pine Valley resident Douglas Kell, 20, in connection with the killing. He was booked into San Diego Central Jail and is facing one count of first-degree murder. Kell is slated to appear in court on Tuesday.

No further details were immediately released.

The case is under investigation. Anyone with information is urged to call the SDSO Homicide Detail at (858) 974-2321 or (858) 565-5200. Tipsters can also call Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477 and may remain anonymous when providing information.


Eater San Diego shares the top stories of the week from our local food and drink scene, including a preview of a new pie shop posting up in University Heights, plus the debut of an Asian-inspired eatery in Encinitas and more.

Sweet & Savory Handheld Pies to Post Up on Park Boulevard

Pop Pie Co. is prepping to build out a new storefront in University Heights that will specialize in sweet and savory, individually-sized pies in flavors that range from Thai Chicken Curry and Steak & Ale, to Coconut Cream and Strawberry Milkshake. The all-day, quick-service eatery will also feature a full espresso bar and a walk-up for coffee drinks.

Flower Child to Bring Healthy Fast-Casual Food to Flower Hill Promenade

Fox Restaurant Concepts, which operates Fashion Valley's True Food Kitchen, will expand one of its other brands, Flower Child, to Del Mar by late 2016. The fast-casual eatery serves a menu of build-your-own plates, salads, sandwiches and wraps that are made with organic, sustainable and GMO-free ingredients.

Mexican Eatery, El Callejon, to Move After 22 Years in Encinitas

Longtime local favorite, El Callejon, will close and move locations after two decades on Coast Highway 101. The restaurant will be replaced by a new concept from North County chef and restaurateur Wade Hageman (Blue Ribbon Artisan Pizzeria), who plans to remodel the space and open an Asian-inspired eatery serving ramen, yakitori and more this summer.

New Cocktail & Craft Beer Bar for Carmel Valley

The next project from The Verant Group, which operates barleymash and True North Tavern, is Carmel Valley's Westroot Tavern. Opening this spring in The Village at Pacific Highlands Ranch development, the space will include 30 HDTVs, two bars serving craft cocktails and local beer, and a chef-driven seasonal menu.

The Hake Kitchen & Bar Expands in La Jolla

After three years on Prospect Street, The Hake Kitchen & Bar will close for an extensive remodel, adding 2,000-square-feet that will span a new lounge, oyster bar and increased indoor and outdoor seating. The Latin-inspired restaurant is aiming to have construction complete by Spring 2016.



Candice Woo is the founding editor of Eater San Diego, a leading source for news about San Diegos restaurant and bar scene. Keep up with the latest Eater San Diego content via Facebook or Twitter, and sign up for Eater San Diegos newsletter here.


An Arizona woman on a so-called booze binge to San Diego drove her rental car the wrong way on Interstate 5, causing the death of a taxi driver, a prosecutor said at her sentencing Friday.

Amy Marie St. John-Smith, 44, originally faced a murder charge for the April 2014 collision that killed Anteneh Minassie.

The 42-year-old father of three was driving his taxi south on I-5 near Old Town San Diego State Historic Park when he collided with St. John-Smiths vehicle as she drove the wrong way. As he stepped out of his wrecked taxi, Minassie was struck by oncoming cars and died at the scene.

After the crash, St. John-Smith made a U-turn and drove away. She was found in her hotel room with a blood alcohol level at three times the legal limit.

On Friday in a San Diego courtroom, Deputy District Attorney Lucy Yturralde described St. John-Smiths stay in San Diego as a booze binge.

The defendant started drinking on the flight from Phoenix, according to Yturralde. She rented a car and drove to the store to buy more alcohol, which she consumed in her hotel room before going to a Midway District bar.

At the bar, St. John-Smith became so intoxicated the prosecutor said bartenders allowed her to stay after closing in an attempt to help her sober up."

Yturralde added that the defendant tried to convince a police officer to drop her off that night at the U.S.-Mexico border so she could have a new life.

Instead of facing a murder trial, St. John-Smith pleaded guilty to four lesser charges ranging from gross vehicular manslaughter to driving under the influence. Before she was sentenced Friday, she tearfully told the court she believes the victim was a hero. She said he saved her life when he tried to warn her not to continue driving the wrong way on the highway.

NBC 7

Minassie was an Ethiopian immigrant who worked two jobs to support his wife and three children ages 8, 6, and 4 years old. An engineer in his native country, Minassie worked the graveyard shift for the West Coast cab company and served as a youth minister at his church.

His widow, Sara Tizazu, who was so emotional at times she could barely talk, said she forgave the defendant for the crash that took her husbands life at St John-Smith's sentencing.

She described her husband as a son, a husband, a brother, a father, a loving and caring sweet soul.

To hear our children say how much they miss dad every day brings up to the surface my own pain and loss, that I so much try to bury inside of me so I can carry on the task of my new life as a single mom, Tizazu said.

The California Highway Patrol says 42-year-old Amy Marie St. John-Smith of Phoenix, Ariz. was driving the wrong way on I-5 when she collided with a taxi, killing the cab driver. NBC 7s Diana Guevara reports.

St. John-Smith's defense attorney said she was very remorseful about what happened and claimed she believed Minassie was a hero and died while trying to save her.

She really wishes she could be the one that was killed instead of Mr. Minassie, said criminal defense attorney William Nimmo.

Nimmo said his client decided to visit San Diego because it was Easter weekend and her former husband was denying her access to her two children.

In his ruling, Judge Louis R. Hanoian said he could not "fix" what had happened in this case for either side. He approved the plea agreement, sentencing St. John-Smith to 17 years, 8 months in prison.
 Flash

China Today magazine's Arabic edition published a special issue on Jan. 20 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Egypt with a launch ceremony held in the Egyptian capital of Cairo during Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to the African country.

Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a grand welcome ceremony before talks with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi outside the Quba Palace in Cairo, Egypt, Jan. 21, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

President Xi, and his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, both delivered a congratulation message to the magazine.

In the message, Xi said he traveled over mountains and waters to arrive in the beautiful Arab Republic of Egypt, and he hopes, through China Today magazine, to convey his most sincere greetings and good wishes to the brotherly Egyptian people.

President Xi said that China and Egypt are both ancient civilizations. Since antiquity, the two people have been communicating with each other via the land and maritime Silk Road. He noted that Egypt was the first Arab and African country to establish diplomatic ties with China; after 60 years, bilateral ties are still developing soundly and have become an example for China-Arab and China-Africa relations as well as South-South Cooperation.

Xi said that China-Egypt relations were upgraded to be a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2014. China has been pushing for bilateral ties with a strategic elevation and long-term vision. He added that China wishes to join hands with Egypt in carrying forward the traditional friendship, facilitate the two civilizations' exchange and deepen practical cooperation within the "Belt and Road Initiative" in various fields, so that the people of both countries can enjoy the fruits of development.

El-Sisi welcomed Xi's visit in his congratulatory message. He said that Egypt cherishes its close ties with China, and expects the amity to continuously develop in various sectors. Egypt plans to actively respond to Xi's initiative to revive the ancient Silk Road.

The conceptual construction of a "New Egypt" brings many potential investment opportunities, including many major projects. To this purpose, the Egyptian government welcomes and encourages Chinese investment.

China Today magazine's Arabic Edition, launched in 1964, was administered by the China International Publishing Group. It is China's only comprehensive monthly periodical for Arabic readers.
A former Maryland judge is facing prison time and a federal criminal charge, according to court records obtained Friday by the News4 I-Team.

Federal prosecutors accuse former Charles County Circuit Court Judge Robert Nalley with an episode of misconduct while Nalley served on the bench in July 2014.

In their court filings, the prosecutors accuse Nalley of ordering a sheriffs deputy to activate a Stun-Cuff, a remote-controlled device that deploys electro-shocks, against a criminal defendant. They said doing so deprived the victim of due process of law.

The charge, deprivation of rights under color of law, is a misdemeanor punishable by a year in prison and a $100,000 fine. Nalley is scheduled to appear in federal court in Greenbelt Feb. 1, a spokeswoman for U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein told the I-Team.

The Maryland Court of Appeals removed Nalley as a judge in September 2014. He had previously been disciplined for a 2009 episode in which he was accused of tampering with a motor vehicle. A state investigation said Nalley used a cutting device to deliberately let the air out of the tire of a car parked in his reserved courthouse parking spot.

Nalleys defense attorney declined to comment on the case.
EDITOR'S NOTE:

This story is no longer being updated. Please go here for the latest storm coverage.

Snow has begun falling more heavily in the D.C. area as the region braces for what could be a historic, paralyzing blizzard.

Authorities are warning this could be a life-threatening storm, with 2 to 3 feet of snow possible before it's all over. Snow is expected to fall continuously for 36 hours straight, with wind gusts up to 50 mph, creating treacherous roads and possibly leading to power outages.

[DC] Snowstorm Blankets DC

Road conditions were beginning to deteriorate by mid-afternoon Friday, several hours after News4 viewers in Manassas and Gainesville, Virginia, reported seeing the first flakes. By 1 p.m., light flurries began falling in Northwest Washington.

Snow is now falling more steadily around the area, with a band of heavier snow moving through the Manassas area. By 4 p.m, it was heading for Alexandria, Arlington and the District -- and things are only expected to intensify from there, Storm Team4 said.

By 4 p.m., the area was getting about 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch per hour, which is considered light to moderate snow. But later Friday night, we'll be getting 1 to 2 inches per hour.

An inch of powdery snow had fallen by 3 p.m., with 2 inches by 4:15 p.m. Four inches are expected by 7 p.m., with 12 to 18 inches by sunrise Saturday.

Just measured 1st inch at #NBC4DC NW DC at 3:20pm StormTeam4 updates https://t.co/1HfVgUb93E NBC Washington App pic.twitter.com/xpBcVBJyrd  Tom Kierein (@TomKierein) January 22, 2016

Storm Team4 said projected snowfall totals could make this the highest snowfall in D.C. history. Some parts of D.C., Maryland and Virginia could even get as much as 3 feet of snow, which would exceed the deadly 1922 Knickerbocker blizzard, during which 28 inches fell.

Officials warned residents to be home by 3 p.m. Friday and prepared with 72 hours of supplies -- and to stay indoors and off the roads.

The snow may not relent until Sunday morning and conditions will be hazardous, so you should already be wherever you're planning to sleep.

"By 3 o'clock today, you need to be where you're going to be throughout this storm," said Christopher Geldart, director of D.C.'s Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency (HSEMA) Friday morning.

Storm Team4 Meteorologist Doug Kammerer has the forecast for Jan. 22, 2016.

Regional leaders have declared states of emergency.

A blizzard warning for the D.C. area is now in effect, although Storm Team 4 blizzard conditions won't really begin until overnight, when winds bein gusting from 30 to 50 mph in the D.C. area. Anne Arundel, Calvert and St. Mary's counties, where a high wind warning is in effect, could be slammed by gusts of 65 mph.

The blizzard warning won't expire for our area until Sunday at 6 a.m.

The heavy snow and winds may tear down power lines and force road closures. Officials warned D.C. residents who use Pepco that they could face outages that last for days.

Residents around the region have shared images of bare grocery store shelves and gas stations that have run out of fuel during a mad dash to prepare before the storm.

The National Guard is deploying 100 personnel in 30 Humvees to transport essential employees throughout the city. D.C.'s emergency command center went live at 6 am. Friday and will stay live through the aftermath of the storm, likely early next week.

Even after the snow stops falling, it will likely take awhile for the region to dig out.

Schools, Government Close; Public Transportation Shutting Down

Schools around the region were closed Friday. Government offices in the District and county offices in Montgomery County closed at noon.

Metro announced that its entire system will close for the entire weekend, with Metrorail service ending at 11 p.m. Friday. Metrobus service shut down at 5 p.m. Friday, and MetroAccess will end at 6 p.m. All Metro services will remain shut down through Sunday night.

County bus services are also closed or are preparing to close. Arlington County's ART bus ended service at 1:30 p.m. Friday and will stay closed through the weekend.& In Prince George's County, TheBus service has been suspended. Montgomery County's Ride On bus service will stop running at 7 p.m. Friday and will not run Saturday or Sunday.

States of Emergency Declared

D.C., Maryland and Virginia leaders have all declared states of emergency, and a snow emergency is also in effect in the District. A snow emergency allows transportation workers to clear snow emergency routes curb to curb. Violators face a $250 ticket, a $100 tow and a $25-per-day fee until they pick up their vehicles. By Friday afternoon, the District had already issued more than 2,700 tickets and towed 187 vehicles.

DC is serious about keeping snow emergency routes clear. Tickets issued: 2,696

Tows : 187 vehicles so far today. pic.twitter.com/44f2gfoGbn  Mark Segraves (@SegravesNBC4) January 22, 2016

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe declared a state of emergency for the commonwealth Thursday morning. The declaration authorizes state agencies to assist local governments in response to the storm.

McAuliffe said residents should be prepared for travel disruptions and possible power outages.

"All Virginians should take the threat of this storm seriously and take necessary precautions now," McAuliffe said Thursday.

Maryland's state of emergency began at 7 a.m. Friday. The Maryland National Guard will be on standby, Gov. Larry Hogan said. A snow emergency for the entire state began at noon Friday.

A "general emergency" has been declared for Montgomery County, where county facilities will be closed until midnight Sunday. Arlington County facilities also closed at noon and will remain closed Saturday.

To help firefighters, you should clear snow about 3 feet around your nearest fire hydrant.

Historic Amounts of Snowfall Possible

Storm Team4 is expecting 20 to 30 inches of snow during this storm -- and that range would put this storm firmly in the top five biggest snowfalls of all time for the region, possibly making it all the way to first place.

Chief Meteorologist Doug Kammerer said he's confident in the 20- to 30-inch forecast, but said he wouldn't be surprised if some spots got a whopping 3 feet.

For reference, the December 2009 and February 2010 snowstorms, popularly called "Snowpocalypse" and "Snowmageddon," clocked in at 16.4 inches and 17.8 inches, respectively.

If we get 24 inches of snow, this storm would be the second-biggest snowstorm of all time, coming in only after 1922's devastating Knickerbocker Blizzard. During that storm, heavy snow caused the roof of the Knickerbocker Theatre to collapse in Adams Morgan, killing 98 people and seriously injuring 133.

If we get "just" 18 inches of snow, this storm would unseat the infamous February 2010 snowstorm from its 4th-place spot.

In other words, it's highly likely that this snowstorm will be one we'll be talking about for a long time.

Help for Those Needing Shelter

Be on the lookout for homeless people, who could get hypothermia during this cold spell. If you see someone in the D.C. area who needs shelter or warmer clothing, call the following numbers:
Somalia's security forces ended a deadly siege of a beachfront restaurant in the capital, with more than 20 people killed in the attack, a police official said Friday.

The security forces took control of the restaurant just before dawn, said Capt. Mohamed Hussein, speaking from the scene of the attack in Mogadishu.

It was not clear whether Hussein's report of more than 20 killed included the assailants. Islamic extremist group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack, in a broadcast on its online radio late Thursday.

Volunteers carried bodies from the scene of the attack early Friday.

"I was intending to go out but suddenly we heard a heavy explosion followed by gunfire. ... I saw a militant fighter shooting indiscriminately on everybody. Then I locked myself inside a room until we were evacuated peacefully by the security forces," said Abdulkadir Mohamed Somow, who had been trapped inside the restaurant.

Blasts and bursts of gunfire could be heard as Somali special forces went from room to room pursuing the al-Shabab gunmen who were holed up inside the restaurant.

Hussein, the police official, said the security forces rescued many people who had been trapped inside the restaurant's hall, where a party was taking place when the attack started on Thursday.

Witnesses said that gunmen entered the restaurant from the direction of the beach. They shouted "Allahu akbar," the Arabic phrase for "God is great," as they attacked.

"They randomly fired at people sitting near the beach before entering the restaurant," said witness Ahmed Nur, who was strolling along the shoreline when the attack happened.

Al-Shabab attacked Kenyan peacekeepers in southwestern Somalia last week. The al-Qaida-linked group said it had killed about 100 Kenyans and seized weapons and military vehicles. The Kenyan government has given no death toll, but said there were some fatalities.

Despite being pushed out of Somalia's major cities and towns, al-Shabab continues to launch deadly guerrilla attacks across the Horn of Africa country. African Union troops, government officials and foreigners are frequently targeted.
Cuban migrants desperate to reach the United States are increasingly violent and noncompliant with Coast Guard crews who detain them at sea, authorities said Wednesday, citing reports of attempted poisoning and self-inflicted wounds as rumors swirl that the "wet-foot, dry-foot'' policy will soon be abandoned.

U.S. immigration policies haven't changed since President Barack Obama ordered the restoration of diplomatic relations between Havana and Washington in December 2014, and for over a year the Coast Guard has warned migrants and their relatives in the U.S. that no change is imminent.

But an ongoing surge in Cubans fleeing their homeland by sea is fueled by fears they soon will lose the "wet-foot, dry-foot'' benefits that allow those reaching U.S. land to stay and pursue citizenship, according to the chief of response for the Coast Guard's 7th District in Miami.

Security has been increased for Cuban migrants aboard Coast Guard vessels because more are jumping overboard, trying to poison themselves or suffering self-inflicted wounds in frantic attempts to be taken to the United States for treatment, Capt. Mark Fedor said.

"It's been a dangerous uptick. The last six months, it's come to a head,'' Fedor said.

According to a Coast Guard tally provided to The Associated Press, compiled from crew reports of migrant hostility over the last six months, several makeshift vessels carrying a dozen or more Cuban migrants refused to stop for U.S. authorities, leading them on slow pursuits for hours before surrendering.

Among other incidents in the tally, two Cuban migrants were found with self-inflicted gunshot wounds, one migrant drank bleach before abandoning a rustic vessel, one migrant threatened officers with a machete and three separate times, migrants jumped overboard from Coast Guard cutters.

The agency said one group of 18 migrants refused lifejackets and used oars to try to fend off the Coast Guard, and another group of eight migrants who refused to stop for 72 hours attempted to light a Molotov cocktail before complying with orders to stop.

A handful of violent incidents with noncompliant migrants from Cuba, Haiti or elsewhere in the Caribbean are routinely reported each year by Coast Guard crews. Rarely are the migrants involved brought to shore.

Aboard Coast Guard vessels, all migrants receive food, shelter and medical care before they're returned to their homelands. Other migrants are deported if they reach land, but Cubans are allowed to remain in the U.S.; Cubans caught at sea are taken back to the communist island.

Along with a general increase in migrant traffic through the Caribbean toward Florida over the past couple of years, the Coast Guard has recorded a significant spike in the number of Cubans attempting the risky sea voyage since December 2014.

Since Oct. 1, U.S. authorities say they have captured, intercepted or chased away over 1,980 Cuban migrants. In the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, 4,473 Cuban migrants were kept from reaching U.S. shores, an increase over the 3,737 in the 2014 fiscal year and 2,218 in 2013.

This month alone, U.S. authorities say they have encountered 435 Cuban migrants, compared with 355 in January 2015 and 240 in the previous January.

The Coast Guard has reallocated some resources to boost patrols in the waters off Florida, Fedor said.

"One thing we've done is increase the level of security on the cutters after the interdiction occurs, because we've had instances where people have jumped overboard to swim to a buoy or because they think they see land,'' Fedor said.

The migrants tell crews they don't see any future for themselves in Cuba's poverty, and they fear their window is closing to take advantage of the policy that shields them from deportation, Fedor said.

No other migrant groups have exhibited this level of noncompliance over the last year, Fedor said.

"It's pretty clear it's focused on the Cuban migration issue,'' Fedor said.
For a buyer, they are quite a package of real estate: Nine buildings in the heart of busy Kenmore Square, Boston, on an acre and a half of land, home to the Boston University bookstore, a post office, retail and restaurants.

And, by the way, they're also home to perhaps the most recognized symbol of Boston's skyline: the 60-foot-high, winking and blinking Citgo sign that has loomed over Fenway Park's Green Monster since 1965.

BU has owned the cluster of buildings since the 1960s and concluded now is a good time to put them up for sale.

Gary Nicksa, BU's senior vice president of operations, said in an interview Thursday afternoon: "We thought this would be a great opportunity, since the market has been very strong, to look at selling the properties we've acquired over time ... Really, it's to take that investment back out of the commercial property and put it into the teaching and research."

It's hard to predict what the buildings could fetch. They're in varying condition and mostly 6 or 7 stories -- but it's extraordinary for a full acre and a half site right next to an MBTA hub to come on the market. At $500 a square foot for the structures, the buildings alone, totalling a little over 330,000 square feet, could generate $160 million for BU's endowment.

Of course, anyone who knows Kenmore Square would worry: What happens to the Citgo sign?

"Absolutely, it's an icon," said John Ward, a lifelong Boston resident. It's iconic in its capacity. It truly is."

"If it's taken away, I'll feel so bad," said Kyabaggu Denis, a molecular biologist from Uganda studying at BU's School of Medicine. He's relied on the sign to bring sense to Boston's nutty geography. "It's helped me with the orientation of this whole place. Whenever I get lost, I get on the wrong bus," Denis said, "I'll look for the Citgo sign."

Nicksa feels confident any buyer will relish keeping the Citgo sign -- as a landmark, as a promotion for the building, and as a source of income in its own right. "It's a very valuable thing," Nicksa said. "It's not only an iconic presence in Kenmore Square but we lease the air rights, the rooftop, to Citgo. It's very valuable to them. We think a new owner will find it similarly valuable."


Northern Vermont is expected to dodge the powerful winter storm predicted to bring high winds and up to two feet of heavy, wet snow to the Washington, D.C. area. That has some outdoors enthusiasts in Vermont wishing they could cash in on all that fresh snowfall.



"It's a shame," said cross-country skier Jill Wolcott. "It would be wonderful to get that. We're much more equipped than Washington, D.C. for two feet!"



Wolcott was hitting the trails at the Catamount Family Outdoor Center in Williston Thursday. The location could use a significant dumping of snow so it could open even more terrain.



Meanwhile, in Washington, D.C., people were stocking up on food, water, and snow shovels in advance of the approaching monster storm. NBC News reported the city's mayor urged drivers to stay off the roads with the system expected to arrive Friday.



"We haven't had a forecasted storm of 24 inches in my memory," said Mayor Muriel Bowser of Washington, D.C.



"We would appreciate it up here a little bit more," observed Brad Erling, a snowmobile and equipment dealer at Land Air in Essex.



Erling said there is a lot of pent-up demand in Vermont's snowmobiling community to get outside on their machines. Trails statewide are open, and riders are enjoying them, but enthusiasts always want to see coverage expand, and so do the businesses that rely on traffic from riders.



"In Vermont, the economy really depends on us having snow, so we really do wish we'd get dumped on as much as possible," Erling told necn.



In Richmond, 8-year-old Jackson Hehir was certainly enjoying sledding on the maybe two inches he had on the ground by the town's famous Round Church, but leave it to a kid to want more.



"I wish we had a big, gigantic blizzard that [brought] one foot of snow," Hehir exclaimed.



Maybe next time, Jackson.
Maine lawmakers are dedicating more resources to human trafficking awareness and prevention -- a problem Maine's Attorney General says is not going away.

Lawmakers, Attorney General Janet Mills, service providers, and human trafficking survivors spoke at a press conference at the state house Thursday afternoon.

There is an estimated 200 to 300 victims of trafficking in Maine, according to a recent study commissioned by the Maine Sex Trafficking and Exploitation network.

Senator Amy Volk said law enforcement has received new training to recognize trafficking victims, and praised the establishment of Maine's first safe house for victims, which is located in Southern Maine.

Attorney General Mills said her office is about to launch a new public service campaign, and promised the ads will be attention-grabbing.

"They're going to be controversial, but they're vital," said Mills. "That's how we've got to act to confront this problem."
A 46-year-old New Hampshire man has been sentenced to serve the rest of his life in prison for the fatal stabbing of a 92-year-old man as he slept in his bed.



The Kennebec Journal reports Roland Cummings was sentenced to life in prison Thursday after being convicted in November of murder, burglary and theft charges stemming from the slaying of Aurele Fecteau.



Cummings stabbed Fecteau 16 times on May 20, 2014 while he slept in his Waterville, Maine, home. Assistant Attorney General Leane Zainea says Cummings stole valuables from Fecteau's home after the murder so he could obtain drugs.



A key piece of evidence in the trial was a forensic scientist's testimony that Cummings' DNA was found on the turned-out pockets of Fecteau's pants.



Cummings' attorneys say they will appeal.
Rep. Ann Pugh, D-Burlington, Vt., announced new legislation in the Vermont Statehouse Friday, which would extend access to contraception in a series of ways.

Some of the provisions of the bill, H.620, include allowing women to obtain 13 months' worth of birth control pills at a time, and creating value-based payments to health care providers to facilitate the insertion and removal of long-acting, reversible contraceptives.

Rep. Pugh said the goal of the legislation, which has tripartisan support from cosponsors, is to, over time, reduce the rate of unintended pregnancies in Vermont. Currently, Pugh said, the unintended pregnancy rate is 50 percent, and approximately three-fourths of those unintended pregnancies are publicly-funded.

The bill still needs the approval of the House Committee on Health Care before it is debated by the larger legislative body.

The legislation was introduced on the forty-third anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe vs. Wade decision, which granted legal access to abortions.

However, the issue of abortions remains very divisive. In March, the nation's highest court will hear a Texas case on access to abortion services. It will be the court's first abortion case in 20 years.

And on the campaign trail, several GOP candidates have advocated cutting funding to Planned Parenthood, which provides many health care services aside from abortions.

"I think we're all surprised that this is still a question," said Meagan Gallagher of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England. "In 21st-century America, that women have to wonder whether or not they will be able to access safe and legal abortion is astounding to the vast majority of Americans."

"There's an attitude here among Planned Parenthood that it's a day to celebrate," Mary Hahn Beerworth of the Vermont Right to Life Committee said of the Roe vs. Wade anniversary. "It's the worst day of a woman's life, I don't care if you're pro-life, pro-choice, or somewhere in between, the day you walk in to have an abortion is a terrible, sad day."

Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, a Democratic candidate for President, issued a statement on the anniversary of the Roe vs. Wade decision saying he will do everything in his power to protect and preserve a woman's right to access abortion services.

Planned Parenthood has endorsed Hillary Clinton's candidacy for the White House.
As a monster snow storm approached New York, Vermont's largest utility dispatched personnel to be in place and ready to assist with power restoration if expected snow totals cause outages.

Green Mountain Power said it sent 50 line workers, mechanics, and other personnel to Long Island, along with trucks and equipment, when forecasts showed the mega-storm was expected to bring crippling amounts of snow to New York and much of the mid-Atlantic.

"Hopefully, it won't be as bad as they say, but if it is, we're going to be there, and we'll be ready to help," Glenn Johnson, one of the deploying Green Mountain Power workers, told necn. "My wife knows this could happen, as well as the other guys' wives--they know when we get called, we have to respond."

GMP said utilities from New York City to the nation's capital have requested nearly 700 support workers from power companies not affected by the storm. The Vermont crews will initially assist PSE&G Long Island, but then could be available to other utilities as the storm progresses, the company said.

"A lot of times, when a storm socks the northeast, we can't send crews to help because we need to focus on our customers," noted Kristin Carlson of Green Mountain Power. "But because this storm is not predicted to hit Vermont, that's what's allowing us to help our neighboring state, and we're really happy to be able to do it and pay it forward."

Green Mountain Power knows how beneficial help from outside crews can be. Crews from other states and Canada have responded to help restore power for several major outage events, including during the nasty ice storm of 1998, in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Irene in 2011, and in heavy, wet snow that caused widespread outages in mid-December 2014.
Chris Christie announced Friday that he is cancelling some of his New Hampshire events and returning to New Jersey to deal with this weekend's storm.

The New Jersey governor made the announcement at an event in Littleton, New Hampshire, on Friday. He was scheduled to make two additional stops in the state on Friday and four on Saturday as he campaigns for the Republican presidential nomination.

He said his wife, Mary Pat, will remain in New Hampshire, and he hopes to return on Sunday, when he has three stops scheduled, including a New England Patriots AFC Championship Game watch party in Hampton Falls.

Christie had said Thursday that he planned to continue campaigning despite the blizzard threatening his state. He has spent more time in New Hampshire than any other active presidential candidate.

"We've gone through this rodeo a bunch of times before. We know how to do it," Christie told Philly.com. He said the state was "preparing for the worst," and that he "gave everybody their assignments" during a call on Wednesday night.

Since catching flak for spending the first big snowstorm after he entered office in 2010 at Disney World with his family, Christie has put himself front and center during preparation for summer and winter storms alike, driving home public safety and preparedness messages to frazzled residents.

During Hurricane Irene a year later, Christie snapped into action, telling people to "get the hell off the beach."

Superstorm Sandy struck in 2012 and Christie stood shoulder to shoulder with President Barack Obama, touring the seaside devastation and browbeating Republican lawmakers for dragging their feet on approving aid for the shore. His approval ratings soared, and he won re-election a year later with 60 percent of the vote.

In October, he returned from the campaign trail when it appeared that Hurricane Joaquin was going to slam into the shore.

Christie spent the majority of 2015 out of the state while campaigning, leaving Guadagno as acting governor. He has repeatedly defended his absence saying that he talks to his Cabinet regularly and uses technology to keep up with government.
Nigel Fox believes that now is the time for a tide of repentance, and shares his thoughts about what that actually means for our society.

Nigel Fox believes that now is the time for a tide of repentance, and shares his thoughts about what that actually means for our society.

Christmas card shop opens in Norwich church Thousands of Christmas cards from around 30 local Norfolk charities have gone on sale today (October 19) at the Original Norwich Charity Christmas Card Shop inside St Peter Mancroft church in Norwich city centre. Read more

Revelation Christian Resource Centre and Cafe Revelation in Norwich is a Christian resource centre, offering a bookshop, a meeting place and a welcoming refuge for refreshment open to visitors of any faith or none. Read more

Farewell as Yarmouth church leader moves on Captain Marie Burr, the Salvation Army leader in Great Yarmouth, has paid tribute to everyone at the church and charity after she left her post at the end of last month to move to a new role. Read more

Norwich Cathedral chorister in BBC final Norwich Cathedral chorister Alice Platten has her sights set on being crowned BBC Young Chorister of the Year after reaching the final stages of the prestigious nationwide competition. Read more

Norwich to hear pastor, Policeman and tramp tale Essex Baptist Pastor Dave McDowell has been a Policeman, fed orphans in India and lived under a boat as a tramp. He will tell his remarkable story at the October dinner of Norwich FGB on Wednesday October 26. Read more

Pioneer UK leader speaks at Sheringham church Ness Wilson, national leader of the Pioneer network of churches, was the main speaker at a day of teaching and worship held at Lighthouse Community Church in Sheringham on 12 October, to be followed up by Word and Worship sessions at October half term. Read more

Youth for Christ lights a fire in north Breckland North Breckland Youth for Christ will be putting on a mini residential camp this year to coincide with Bonfire Night. Read more

Delia Smith interviewed at Norwich church Top TV cook and well-known writer Delia Smith spoke about her faith at SOUL Churchs weekly Chapel gathering on October 11. Read more

Children's Christian holiday club in Briston A half term childrens holiday bible club is taking place in Briston next week, and there is no charge to take part in the fun. Read more

Ashill church puts on music to touch the soul The Fountain of Life Church in Ashill is hosting an afternoon concert in early November with classical, jazz, opera, ballads and pop classics. Read more

Fakenhams new rector is officially installed Rev Tracy Jessop has been officially installed as Rector for Fakenham during a service at Fakenham Parish Church on Tuesday September 27, fourteen months after their last reverend retired. Read more

Norwich homeless charity holds information evening Homelessness charity St Martins is holding an information evening on Thursday 3rd November at The Forum in Norwich for anyone who would like to know more about the work of the charity and to potentially become a volunteer. Read more

Sheringhams harvest flowers and Fairtrade boost Giving thanks for Harvest was the theme of the Harvest Flower Festival held at St Andrews Methodist Church, Sheringham at the beginning of October, which included a Traidcraft stall. Read more

ENYP needs Project Coordinator and Youth Worker Norfolk Christian charity ENYP is seeking to appoint new workers who have a passion to support children, youth and community food provision. Read more

Christmas resources at Revelation Norwich Christian Resource Centre is all stocked up for Christmas: Cards, wrap, bags, gifts, candles and advent calendars are all ready for you to browse and buy! Read more

Christian artist captures delight of the Creator Charlotte Ashenden is a portrait artist with 22 years experience, painting children, adults, houses and animals in an incredibly detailed and realistic style, capturing the character of the subject she is painting. Read more

Christian speaker visits Norfolk and Waveney Two local Christian organisations are joining forces to bring pastor and conference speaker Andy Prime to Lowestoft and Norwich later this month. Read more
For municipalities that haven't moved over to all smart cards for their buses, or have a combination of tickets, paper-based passes, and electronic boarding, it's been hard to estimate accurate ridership numbers for particular routes and times of day, in real-time.

Head counts are one method, but are expensive and require an individual to perform the task. In-bus infrastructure, such as turnstiles, can be linked to location services such as GPS and analyzed, but that's complicated and any hardware needs maintenance. Again, more cost.

Researchers reckon they have a solution. And it's one that they say can be brought in for about $60 per bus.

The idea is to simply capture all of the MAC addresses of all of the smartphone users on the bus.

University of Washington transportation engineers say in a paper that they've developed a method of capturing MAC addresses as way to find out "where bus riders get on and off, how many people use a given stop and even how long they wait to transfer to another bus," an article on the university's website says.

A MAC address, or Media Access Control address, is a network identifier used by the smartphone for communicating data. It's often just on anyway.

Real-time data

UW's system can estimate passenger origin and destinations from Wi-Fi radios when they're broadcasting and Bluetooth radios when they're discoverable.

"Say you have a Husky game or Seahawks game and you want to know how much demand changes so you can offer the right level of bus service," author Yinhai Wang, a UW professor of civil and environmental engineering and director of the Pacific Northwest Transportation Consortium, said in the article.

"If you can gather enough data from these real-time sensing systems, that's going to offer very valuable information," he said.

Sensors like this have been used to gather vehicle travel times on roads, but this is one of the first times it's been used on buses, the researchers say in the article.

By collecting the time and location of the signal too, they reckon that they can get accurate numbers.

Other road users

The researchers say that their numbers are good in part because they've written an algorithm to go along with their radio-collecting tool.

Through a time-on-board calculation, the algorithm can exclude other road users, such as a pedestrian walking alongside the bus. That person isn't alongside long enoughin Seattle trafficto be mistaken for a passenger.

How accurate can it be?

A possible hiccup, though, is what about senior citizens? Are they as likely to be carrying a media-intensive, MAC address-spouting phone as a Seahawks-attending Millennial? Then there are economic factors. Some regions may contain more smartphone-wielding passengers than others.

As of April 2015, 64% of American adults owned a smartphone, according to Pew Research Center. However, ownership levels "remain particularly low among seniors, as just 27% of Americans 65 and older now own a smartphone," Pew says on its website.

The researchers say spread is not a problem. The article says Kristian Henrickson, a co-author on the paper, claimed the penetration of cellphone ownership will help the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.

"Think about understanding how long and disconnected a route may be from some less-privileged neighborhoods to an employment center," Henrickson said in the article. "This technology provides a much better way of assessing that and possibly improving upon that."
In a somewhat unexpected meeting of the minds, Apple CEO Tim Cook on Friday met with Pope Francis at the Vatican. Word of the meeting was first relayed by Carol Glatz, who posted a picture of the Pope's schedule on Twitter earlier today.

That Cook and the Pope actually met face to face was subsequently confirmed by The Financial Times, though it remains wholly unclear what the two discussed. Perhaps giving us some sort of clue, SkyNews reporter Tom Cheshire noted on Twitter that the "meeting has been in works for some time," and that both individuals are "very keen environmentalists."

Interestingly enough, this isn't the first high-profile meeting that the Pope has taken with a well-known tech executive. Just last week, Pope Francis sat down for a meeting with former Google CEO and current Alphabet chairman Eric Schmidt.

But back to Cook for a second, it's worth noting that the Apple CEO had other important plans while traveling in Europe this week. Just a few days ago, Cook also met privately with EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager, a significant meeting given the European Commission's ongoing investigation into Apple's European tax practices. Just last week, reports surfaced indicating that Apple might owe as much as $8 billion in back taxes due to the company's complex tax scheme that it set up in Ireland.

For what it's worth, Cook has adamantly maintained that Apple pays every cent in taxes that it owes.
One of the most significant events in the technology industry in 2015 was Cisco's CEO transition from John Chambers to Chuck Robbins (disclosure: Cisco is a ZK Research client). One of the hallmarks of the Chambers-led Cisco was the company's mission to change the world. The company didn't put together its corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs for marketing purposes or to drive sales. Instead, Cisco embraced CSR and its ability to make a difference because it was the right thing to do for everyone. I highlighted one such initiative in this post regarding Cisco bringing communications to disaster relief efforts.

This was clearly a passion for John Chambers, as he travelled the globe advising international leaders on how to use technology to improve the lives of their citizens. One of the questions I had when Cisco transitioned to the Robbins era was whether the company would have the same zeal for CSR. A little over six months into his tenure, it appears that this is indeed the case.

This week, the World Economic Forum (WEF) is being held in Davos, Switzerland. Cisco has been a primary contributor to the event for years now and has used the event to discuss its ideas on how to change the world with other technology leaders and country leaders.

One of the main topics of conversation this year at WEF is how to create a generation of global problem solvers that can use technology to solve the world's greatest challenges. In a blog post, Robbins discussed the obligation that he and his peers have to improve the state of the world. His blog actually links to another post by Cisco's SVP of Corporate Affairs Tae Yoo on weforum.org detailing the importance of global problem solvers.

One of the interesting facts in Robbins' post is that, according to Cisco's 2016 Annual Security Report, only 45% of businesses reported that they are confident in their ability to determine the scope of an attack and remediate the damage. In practicality, I think most companies over-estimate their security skills, and the actual number is more likely in the 25% range. To help fill the void in the security industry, Cisco announced a new $10 million Global Security Scholarship to help educate and train individuals to have the necessary skills required to combat modern security threats.

Also, Cisco has added courses to its Networking Academy to train more global problem solvers. The Networking Academy program teaches students the skills required to design, build, manage, and secure networks. The courses range from entry-level network fundamentals to high-level certified Cisco engineers. There are currently over 9,000 Cisco Academies in over 170 countries.

Since its inception, Networking Academy has had over 5.5 million students, with almost 70% obtaining a new or better job with increased responsibilities and/or higher salary. In total, 1.3 million students have been employed in the past 10 years as a result of Networking Academy. One of Chambers' beliefs is that the two great equalizers in life are the Internet and education. Obviously, Cisco did its part in making the Internet what it is today, and Networking Academies educate people all over the globe.

Networking Academy now contains a number of courses and programs to create more individuals that are looking to solve problems that can improve their lives and others. Some of the new courses include:

Be Your Own Boss is an 8-module course on how to run a successful business to become a technopreneur (technology entrepreneur). In addition to developing business plans and the basics of running a business, the course teaches how to research markets, test ideas, and develop business relationships.

is an 8-module course on how to run a successful business to become a technopreneur (technology entrepreneur). In addition to developing business plans and the basics of running a business, the course teaches how to research markets, test ideas, and develop business relationships. The Entrepreneurship course is a class comprised of interactive online case studies to build financial and business skills to leverage the technology skills learned in other courses. The course actually gives practical examples of businesses to start, such as an Internet cafe, consulting services, and how to enable e-business and outsourcing services. Starting a business can be intimidating, so the class also focuses on building self-confidence and how to charge for expertise. Given the high unemployment rate with the younger generation ($74 million, according to the International Labor Organization), starting a company might be the shortest, most successful route to employment.

is a class comprised of interactive online case studies to build financial and business skills to leverage the technology skills learned in other courses. The course actually gives practical examples of businesses to start, such as an Internet cafe, consulting services, and how to enable e-business and outsourcing services. Starting a business can be intimidating, so the class also focuses on building self-confidence and how to charge for expertise. Given the high unemployment rate with the younger generation ($74 million, according to the International Labor Organization), starting a company might be the shortest, most successful route to employment. Introduction to the Internet of Everything is an overview of the concepts and challenges to IoE. The course covers all aspects of IoE, including the interconnection of people, process, data, and analytics that comprise IoE. In addition to technology, the class also covers how to evaluate business processes to apply to IoE, as well as security concerns.

In addition to the classes, Networking Academy has sponsored a number of IoE hackathons to stimulate ideas and allow aspiring entrepreneurs test ideas. One of the recent winners developed something called a Handisco stick, a smart, interactive cane that analyzes the surrounding area in real time and provides feedback to a visually impaired person vocally. The product uses GPS, GSM, Bluetooth, and an obstacle detector, so there is no requirement for the city to install beacons or other sensors. Handisco is a great example of technology being used to solve big social problems.

Earlier in my post, I referred to Yoo's post on the World Economic Forum site challenging the industry to develop more global problem solvers. Innovations like Handisco, created by individuals who want to change the world, are what will accomplish this. This has been part of Cisco's mission for decades, and Networking Academy can certainly help, but this should be the mission for the entire technology industry.
When it comes to security, insider threats are an unfortunate fact of life. But if you're thinking only about combatting malicious insiders, you may be miscalculating the risk.

"The insider threat is much broader," says Steve Durbin, managing director of the Information Security Forum (ISF), a nonprofit association that assesses security and risk management issues on behalf of its members. "It isn't just about bad apples  people that are deliberately out to steal information or harm organizations."

The other two types of insider threats, Durbin says, are negligent insiders, who are aware of security policies but find a workaround, probably with the best of intentions, to get work done, and accidental insiders. A negligent insider, faced with the need to get a large file to a colleague, might turn to a non-approved Web-based file hosting service. An accidental insider might be a manager who is emailing employee performance reviews and miskeys an email address. Due to the magic of autocomplete, that email winds up in the wrong hands.

[ Related: 5 information security trends that will dominate 2016 ]

"These two other segments within insiders probably have a more significant impact and are probably more difficult for security departments and the organization to control," Durbin says.

And, of course, regulators and customers don't care whether a data breach was the result of a malicious actor or not.

Accidents waiting to happen

"This makes life difficult," Durbin says. "The accidental incidents are well-nigh impossible to guard against. You have to focus on things like training and awareness. When it comes to negligent insiders, it comes down to communication of policies and procedures."

[ Related: Road warriors are prime targets for hackers ]

The ISF released a briefing paper, Managing the Insider Threat, to its members this week, noting that the insider threat has intensified as people have become increasingly mobile and hyper-connected. Nearly every worker now has multiple, interconnected devices that can compromise information immediately and at scale, according to the ISF. The impact is no longer limited by the amount of paper someone can carry. At the same time, social norms are shifting, eroding loyalty between employers and employees.

To lessen your vulnerability to insider threats of all stripes, Durbin says the place to start is with a risk assessment.

"What you really need to be doing is looking long and hard at the information available to you," he says. "Categorize it. Look at what might happen if that were to get lost."

[ Related: Overcoming stubborn execs for security sake ]

The more valuable the data, the more stringent controls you should put in place. Then base your awareness and training programs around that. You need to communicate to your employees what's truly valuable.

It's also time to really institute a least privilege framework if you haven't already  limit access to information to those who actually need it. That includes upper management, Durbin says.

"I may be the boss, but I probably only need the higher-level corporate financial information," he says. "Further, I don't need to see performance reviews for anyone that doesn't actually report directly to me."

It's always a matter of trust

Take these steps, he says, but recognize that in the end, everything is going to hang on trust.

"Numerous factors are increasing organizations' exposure to the threat posed by insiders, and technical controls are limited," Durbin says. "To combat the threat, organizations must invest in a deeper understanding of trust and work to improve the trustworthiness of insiders."

But trust flows both ways, he cautions. While taking pains to make sure your employees are trustworthy, the organization must also prove to its employees that it is trustworthy. For instance, Durbin says that if you monitor employee actions, it should be disclosed.

"You should be very open about what monitoring you have in place," he says. "If you work on a trading floor, you know that all of your actions are recorded. It's known and accepted."

On the other hand, if you monitor employee email traffic without communicating that fact or disclosing it in your policy, that destroys employee trust. And that's important, he says, because while insiders may pose a threat, your employees are also potentially your first line of defense, if they understand both the stakes and their responsibilities with regard to safeguarding data.

"The key is really about openness, trust and communication," Durbin says. "Make sure your policies are current and appropriate for the way you're doing business."

This story, "Defending against insider security threats hangs on trust" was originally published by CIO .
A panel held yesterday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, addressed the disruption from platform consolidation that many organizations will undergo to remain relevant. Transitioning to a world of monolithic platforms, such as YouTube and Airbnb, will test even the best companies on more than technical vision and systems development execution. The difficulty of building and scaling a platform pales in comparison to triggering the network effect between buyers and sellers who will use the platform.

During the panel, YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki said that triggering the network effect is so difficult to accomplish independently that Google paid $1.6 billion to acquire YouTube before it was even a year old. Wojcicki, who led Googles video business at the time, lobbied to acquire YouTube at the time because of the sites network effect between content publishers, viewers, and advertisers. With the Wall Street Journal estimating $4 billion in revenue, 400 hours of video content uploaded every minute, 1 billion users, and 70% market share last year, its safe to say Google and Wojcicki made the right move.

Airbnb CTO and founder Nathan Blecharczyk recounted for the audience how the company triggered the network effect eight years ago. Airbnb recruited 40 Manhattan homeowners, professionally photographed their homes, and held their hands preparing their listings so they could promote Airbnb to friends and family. It worked; Airbnb built a platform that matched its growth generated by the network effect it sparked in Manhattan.

But there is a lesson to be learned from each generation of digital disruption. Like Airbnb, the leading search engine Google, leading social network Facebook, and leading video platform YouTube have limited competition, making platforms a high-stakes, winner-takes-all game. Every company facing digital transformation runs the risk of losing relevance and becoming redundant in a future consolidated by platforms.

Panelist and NYU economist Arun Sundararajan defined these platforms as conduits for crowd-based capitalism that give large, distributed groups of people access to services that otherwise wouldnt be available. Sundararajan cited the example of the rapid digital transformation of transportation by Uber and Lyft in the U.S., Ola in India, and Didi Kuaidi in China. By publicizing the accumulated reputations of buyers and sellers after each transaction, platforms self-regulate the community, creating trust. The platforms branding and legitimacy provide riders with the trust to hire a stranger to drive them.

Sundararajan said that, as an economist, he is excited about the future of platforms for two reasons. The first reason is that we are at the early stages of inventing a new model of organizing economic activity, he said. Secondly, Sundararajan is excited because platforms vastly expand the set of industries in which network effects are going to be prevalent. If Sundararajan is right, the global economy is staring down both barrels of digital transformation producing decades of disruption similarly to how the web displaced newspapers and ecommerce changed retail.

The regulation of these services will change too. Many of the standards once set by the regulators are now set by the platform, such as who can drive a taxi and how to regulate video content. YouTubes Wojcicki explained how the community flags videos that dont match the site's values. She noted how most content that clashes with these values is removed within 24 hours, but in more extreme cases, such as the beheading of the first American by ISIS, they are removed within minutes. Wojcicki also pointed out that the only entity that can regulate YouTube videos at the scale of 400 hours uploaded every minute is the community.

Community regulation of YouTube content suggests that regulators will not be able to monitor the enormous data flows throughout these platforms for compliance to the rules. Platforms are in a much better position to delegate some of this responsibility, using machine learning to set and enforce some of the regulatory standards.

Any type of commerce in any industry is a candidate for the redefinition of supply and demand as a platform. In the short term, forecasts of the network effect of platforms will be overly optimistic. Its taken Airbnb eight years to become pervasive. And Uber still isnt available in every city in the U.S., which flabbergasts travelers from Boston and San Francisco. In the longer-term, the forecasts will be too pessimistic.

A video of this panel, moderated by Harvards brilliant Jonathan Zittrain in his game-show host moderator persona, is available here.
insights from industry Zahid Latif Head of Healthcare

Innovate UK

Please can you give an overview of the current biomedical innovation landscape in the UK?

The biomedical research base is one of the UK's strengths; over 1500 companies in the Pharmaceuticals and biotechnology area are established in the UK employing over 70,000.

If you look at the medical devices and medical technology, then theres more than 80,000 people employed there in over 3200 companies. Collectively the UK companies generate over 50bn in turnover.

Also, within the UK, you've got some world class universities. Four of the top ten universities are here in the UK and there's a sizable investment in the medical research space.

The Medical Research Council and the National Institute for Health Research provide funds of about 1.7 billion for medical and health research. If you look at the biomedical research landscape itself, we've got real strengths in the UK.

How has this changed over the last decade?

Over the last decade, there have been real changes in the pharmaceutical industry. The large pharmaceutical companies used to be completely vertically integrated. They'd cover everything from the early discovery phase, where they would be looking for new potential drugs, all the way to the development phase and getting those products to market.

What we've seen over the last ten years is that pharmaceutical companies, particularly the large ones, have been either downsizing some of their research activities or looking to do things differently because they've recognized the fact that they can't generate all their ideas in-house.

One of my colleagues describes this as a disintermediation of an industry. It's breaking up into smaller chunks and the UK has been quite a good place for smaller companies that either supply the ideas or supply the technology for the pharmaceutical companies.

That means we are seeing a much broader landscape of companies, where companies are not developing the actual pharmaceutical product itself, but, are helping to address particular challenges with the development journey and getting a new product to market.

Cell Therapy Catapult tour of our state-of-the-art facilities Play

How is the relation between the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries changing?

Fifteen years ago, the biotechnology industry was seen as a different sector to the pharmaceutical industry. The pharmaceutical companies were looking at small molecule drugs, while biotechnology and the use of proteins and antibodies was seen as a different beast.

I think there's been a convergence in that space and all the large pharmaceutical companies have biological drugs as well as non-biological, small molecule, chemical drugs. The industry now describes itself as the bio-pharmaceutical industry.

I think theres been recognition of the fact that biological drugs are just part of the landscape. I think there's also an interesting interplay between the smaller companies and the large companies now, where the smaller companies are doing a lot of the high risk research in particular areas and once an idea has become mature enough, the large pharmaceutical companies license or buy that product. They then use their global strength in terms of being able to market that drug to get it onto the market and sold all around the world.

How important is it to support biomedical innovation in the UK?

It is one of our key strengths here in the UK, from an industrial perspective, but also from a basic research perspective as well. What we've recognized is that the changes in the market dynamics with regards to how large pharmaceutical companies are operating has meant that we're seeing a change in the supply chain and a change in the nature of the companies that are out there.

The requirements for supporting innovation in this space, is driven by understanding the market dynamics and how to identify new opportunities. Collaboration between different players is key, so how do you develop those ideas in a collaborative way and move them forward?

I think it's also recognizing the fact that new medicines coming to the market now and in the future are going to be very different to what we've seen historically.

It's partly driven by the fact that they're quite complicated biological drugs, but also the fact that the healthcare providers, the NHS in the UK and health insurers in the US, are really starting to come across issues in terms of how to deliver healthcare in the future.

The current models of delivering healthcare are unsustainable and they're now looking at new, affordable ways of being able to deliver it. That's going to drive a lot of changes with regard to how biomedical research is undertaken, as well as what those products are and how they get to market.

Keith Thompson talks cell and gene therapy in the golden triangle Play

Do you think biomedical innovation will lead to cost savings for the NHS?

It will lead to better, more efficient and more effective delivery of healthcare. In that respect, it's not just about cost savings and making the NHS cheaper to run; it's going to be about how to use the resources that the NHS has more efficiently and effectively.

The challenge is that the way the NHS operates right now and the demands that are made on it means that they're focusing on those areas where the issues become particularly difficult and the NHS deals worth the most critical of cases.

I think there's going to be a move towards recognizing the fact that the NHS needs to think more long term about how it manages the health of the population here in the UK and how you cannot just treat people when they're ill. People need to be managed before they get ill as well.

I think the opportunities are not just in developing new treatments to get better outcomes, instead of just providing symptomatic relief for patients  youre actually looking at cures.

It is also about looking at how to intervene at the right time, in a way that allows people to get the right, appropriate treatment and not receive it in a way that will mean they get into this crisis situation, at which point the treatment will get very expensive.

Please can you give a brief overview of the 3 biomedical catapult centers in the UK? What stages are they at?

We've got three catapult centers. The first one is the Cell Therapy Catapult and that was established in 2012. It came off the back of a range of activities that started with the funding of basic biomedical research in the area of stem cells.

It's a recognition of the fact that the UK has got key strengths here. We're starting to see how these products are being potentially used to either treat blindness, cartilage damage or cancer.

The Cell Therapy Catapult is there to help support and grow a UK industry and its focus is on identifying how to take this very early stage therapeutic intervention, which may work at a laboratory scale in scientific research, and apply it as a treatment that is available to the masses and at a cost that's also affordable.

They're looking to tackle not just the development challenges in terms of proving that these products work, but also how to manufacture them at a price that is affordable.

Cell Therapy Catapult official manufacturing centre turf-cutting ceremony Play

The second Catapult, which has been established in the last year is in the area of Precision Medicine and this one is very much focused around how to get the right treatment to the right patient at the right time.

Its a recognition of the fact that not all treatments work for all people. In some cases, some of the blood pressure drugs, for example, might only work for between 30% and 50% percent of the patients they're prescribed to.

The purpose of the Precision Medicine Catapult is to find ways of targeting patients and which drugs will work for them and for their particular conditions. That means gaining a better understanding of the patient, both from the physiological perspective and in terms of the underlying biology of their disease. That's where you'd potentially look at using genome sequencing or other ways of analyzing that person and the disease that they have.

For example, diabetes is not one disease, its multiple different diseases and with type 2 diabetes, there are three or four sub-categories that people are beginning to understand. How do you treat each category? What you would do is use different treatments for those different categories of diabetes because it's more appropriate to treat them in that way.

With the Precision Medicine Catapult, the focus is not on development of the treatment alone, but how to identify those patients and what diagnostic test you might use in order to segment them into various populations. Then you need to think about how to use the data that's generated to help identify what is the best treatment for that particular patient.

The Precision Medicine Catapult is going to have a central location in Cambridge, but they are going to be working with local centers of excellence in Manchester, Glasgow, Belfast, Oxford, Cardiff and Leeds. They recognize the fact that what they're trying to do is very much centered on clinical practice and the best place to work on that is actually in the hospital settings, in those local areas.

Then there's the third one which is the Medicines Technologies Catapult, which is focused around pre-clinical technology to help support the development of medicines in the future. As I said earlier, what you're seeing is large pharmaceutical companies that are breaking up their operations and they're covering particular elements of that development pathway, from early discovery to getting the product to market.

In the UK, we've developed quite a healthy base of companies that do a lot of contract research work for the pharmaceutical companies. Those contract research companies will be doing either safety testing or efficiency testing on these early-stage products.

What we want to do with the new Catapult is think about what the next generation of these pre-clinical tests will be, that will allow the industry to make much more informed decisions about which potential drugs will actually make it through the safety and regulatory hurdles and get the products to market and to patients.

The cost associated with developing a new drug is along the lines of $1 to 1.5 billion and a sizable chunk of the investment that's required to get new products to market is actually spent on trying to find out whether that product is safe and effective. Pre-clinical technology is about being able to try and filter out those products that might be potentially harmful to a patient, at an early-stage.

We recognize, and the industry itself recognizes, the fact that its not as productive as it could be in being able to get new products to market. Theyve got a productivity challenge in terms of trying to reduce the cost of development and improve their ability to develop these products.

Having these technologies in the early stages of development is a real opportunity for them to be able to accelerate their product to market. The sort of thing that the new Catapult will be looking at, will be new models to screen potential drugs in in-vitro models. Stem cells could be used as potential treatments, but they can actually also be used as a potential model for how a drug might operate.

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Theres a real opportunity here. If we think about five years from now, what are the sorts of tests that would be really valuable to the industry in terms of improving their productivity and how do we develop those based on the science base that we've got here? Also, how do we get the small companies that are developing these early-stage tests to really pushing their projects and products forward and accelerating growth?

What types of support do the centers offer and how does this fit with the main aims of the Catapult program?

Catapults provide access to expertise and infrastructure and thats their core capability. Sometimes, companies struggle with the need to buy a new piece of equipment or understanding how new technologies could support their efforts. It is quite a big risk in terms of capital for them to go out and buy something.

They may also lack the expertise and in-house know-how about how they might go about doing something. Catapults are learning organizations that provide access to people who have expertise and will have worked on these sorts of projects over a number of years. These people will have built a knowledge base and will understand what works and what doesn't. This expertise base is really an important element of Catapults.

Also, the Catapults will be developing projects in-house themselves and in partnership with other companies. To execute those projects, they will have equipment and expertise in terms of how to drive those projects and interpret the results that come out at the other end.

It provides a real opportunity for companies to come along and try out something. If they don't want to make an investment themselves, they can still work in partnership with the Catapult, look at the technology, see how it works for them and then de-risk the proposition. They might then go ahead and make a deeper investment.

We're essentially trying to reduce the cost of capital for people in companies, and then they can think about how they invest in research and development in the future. The Catapults provide a way of being able to do that.

How are the catapults funded?

We fund them under a core funding model. The typical model for Catapult funding is approximately ten million pounds of core-funding a year for a period of five years. That helps to pay for the core infrastructure, the core equipment and the core people that will be working within that.

Then, the Catapult will be expected to develop some in-house projects and also develop relationships with the industry. In those relationships with the industry, the Catapult might then apply to other funders to leverage the capabilities that they have and help those companies get funding as well.

There might also be a direct contracted funding arrangement between the companies and the catapult, to deliver on a particular project.

What have you learnt from the Cell Therapy Catapult and how will this influence the Medicines Technologies and Precision Medicine catapults?

I think what we've learned through our work with the Catapults is that you need to have a broad portfolio of projects and core projects within these. These Catapults are new entities and what you've got to do when establishing them is build up technical know-how and build the team to be able to operate the Catapults. A Catapult and the expertise involved don't just appear overnight; it takes work on projects to develop the credibility of the team and to develop the credentials of the Catapult.

We've also learned that by having a broad portfolio of activity that address key commercial barriers. Broad platform technology projects allow companies to then engage with their specific projects and builds the knowledge not just in individual companies but the sector as a whole. That is very powerful for the companies but also engages a broader stakeholder base such as regulators, for example.

Since the Catapults are independent, theyre able to have a much more meaningful dialogue with the regulators and those engaged with reimbursement.

That kind of knowledge and know-how is captured within the Catapult and by building these competencies and capabilities, you create a really powerful knowledge base that industry can tap into. That saves industry the time and effort of how to learn all this themselves and having to reinvent the wheel over and over.

The Catapults are there to help share that knowledge and really build the capabilities of the UK industry.

Can you give some examples of success?

Some of the things that the Cell Therapy Catapult has been involved with have been along the lines of helping support companies that are looking to establish their European footprint.

Companies such as Tokyo Electron, for example, a Japanese electronics company that was looking at how they might be able to translate their competencies in manufacturing silicon chips into manufacturing stem cells and stem cell products.

When they were looking around at where they might want to establish their European footprint, they actually came to the UK, partly driven by the fact that the Cell Therapy Catapult was here to help them establish their capability and navigate their way through.

Tokyo Electron is one example of how the Cell Therapy Catapult has attracted companies here into the UK and been able to help them establish an investment in the UK as well.

Another example is a company called Videregen. That is a company looking to take forward the idea of replacement organs. They're looking at tissue engineered replacement trachea and replacement esophagus.

Around seven years ago surgeons performed a trachea transplant for a person. They harvested the trachea, removed all of the cells and put new cells into it that were taken from the receiving patient. They then transplanted that into the patient.

What Videregen is doing is taking that one-off process and making it industrially relevant. The company is turning that one-off procedure into something that becomes a real business proposition. They have been able to attract grant funding with the Cell Therapy Catapult in order to take the idea forward, but theyve also had follow-on investment from private investors, to help them grow the company.

Different companies have different requirements and different needs. Some of them are large companies that have a particular technical challenge that they want to have tackled. Some of them are at the very early stage; companies that are not just looking at trying to tackle the technical problems but also how to generate enough intellectual property to really accelerate their products to market. The Catapults have roles to play, with both SMEs and large companies.

How much coordination will there be between the 3 biomedical catapults?

We are the core funder of all three Catapults. We're here to work with them in order to make sure that they are coordinated. Because the three different Catapults operate in distinctly different but complementary areas, they understand their role and they understand their remit. However, there are opportunities for the Catapults to work together as much of the newer products will need multidisciplinary expertise which resides across the different centers.

So, we've identified opportunities where the Cell Therapy Catapult and Precision Medicine Catapult will be able to work together on joint projects. They're bringing their competencies from their different areas and applying it in a multi-disciplinary, cross-sectional approach.

That's something that we really look out for; how the Catapults can work together in order to tackle these problems that no one individual Catapult would be able to tackle.

Another example involves both the Cell Therapy and the Transport Systems Catapults. At first, you assume cell therapy and transport systems are really far apart, but, actually when you look at how to transport live products that have got very short shelf-life from the manufacturing facility to the surgeons hands and to the actual patient in the right time and way, that's a logistics issue.

The Cell Therapy Catapult and Transport Systems Catapult have been looking at that. Once you've manufactured a product and you're thinking every second counts and want to make sure that the shelf-life of that product is preserved, how do you then get it out of the manufacturing facility here and ship it over to a clinical trial in Europe? How do you get it into the hands of a surgeon in a timely way that means they can then get it into the patient?

What do you think the future holds for biomedical innovation in the UK and how do the catapults plan to impact this?

I think that there's going to be a fair amount of disruption and change in biomedical research. I think part of that is driven by the fact that the marketplace, the healthcare providers are looking for more and more affordable solutions.

I think that is going to have an effect upstream, with regards to how those products are being developed and that is going to be driving a lot of the decisions around which treatments are going to be used and which treatments aren't.

I think the opportunity for the Catapults will be to understand and provide an insight into what the customers needs are going to be and what clinicians are looking for. Then, its about how to design and develop your product in a way that allows you to be able to address that market.

We've seen changes in the way that we bank and shop. I think there are opportunities in terms of how we deliver healthcare in a more digitally enabled way and how all the data associated with patients on which treatments work and which treatments don't, is going to affect how companies develop their products for the future. I think that's going to lead to quite sizable changes over the next few years and I think the Catapults are there to help the companies navigate their way through that changing landscape.

Where can readers find more information?

https://www.catapult.org.uk/

Here are some success stories highlighted on the Catapult website:-

About Zahid Latif

Zahids first degree is in Pharmacy and after a years pre-registration training at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary, he gained membership of the Royal Pharmaceutical Sciences. He went on to study for a PhD in natural product chemistry aimed at the discovery and identification of insecticidal compounds from tropical plants. The PhD was sponsored by ICI and Zahid spent time working at the Jeallotts Hill Research station in Bracknell.

After graduating Zahid worked for Xenova Discovery, firstly in Slough and later in Aberystwyth looking for novel plant secondary metabolites that could be used as tools for drug discovery. Following a management buy-out of the Aberystwyth labs, Zahid stayed on to work as Operations manager for the newly formed MNLPharma and took responsibility for the delivery of their compound library generation.

After 5 years in Aberystwyth, Zahid moved on to work for Wyeth as a clinical trials supplies pharmacist to gain a broader perspective of the drug development process. Prior to joining Innovate UK (formerly the Technology Strategy Board), Zahid worked for Integrin in Oban, one of the first marine biotech companies in the UK, heading up operations for 2 years. As well as looking after the research portfolio, Zahid was responsible for delivering the companys algal toxin testing service which also included delivering a regulatory testing service for the Food Standards Agency in Scotland.

Zahid joined Innovate UK in October 2007 as Lead Technologist in Medicines and Healthcare and was promoted to Head of Healthcare in 2010.
As the Zika virus captures headlines across the United States, with its possible link to birth defects and the first cases reported in the U.S. (all traced back to overseas travel), it's an opportune time to review the facts associated with this disease.

What is the Zika virus?

The Zika virus was first isolated in the Zika forest of Uganda in 1947. Until very recently, it was confined to Africa with occasional small outbreaks in Asia. It slowly spread east, with cases on Easter Island off the coast of South America confirmed in 2014 and the first cases in Brazil in May 2015, and it has spread further throughout South and Central America since then.

Has anyone contracted Zika in the United States?

A patient in Puerto Rico tested positive for the virus in December 2015. As the illness begins two to seven days after infection and the person had not left the island during that time, it was likely contracted in Puerto Rico. No one is known to have been infected on the mainland United States. However, one person in Houston is likely to have contracted the disease overseas, as did another traveler who recently returned to Hawaii.

How is the Zika virus transmitted?

Like a number of other diseases such as dengue and chikungunya, which are also spread by mosquitoes, the Zika virus is spread through the bite of the Aedes species of mosquito. Mosquitoes become infected when they bite a human who has the virus, and are then capable of spreading the disease to other susceptible humans. Between 20 and 25 percent of those persons who become infected will develop symptoms. In theory, the virus could also be spread through infected blood or other bodily fluids, but this appears to be very rare if it happens at all.

What are the symptoms of Zika virus?

Common symptoms of Zika include fever, skin rash, red eyes and joint pain. Some patients report muscle pain, general malaise, headache and vomiting. Symptoms typically last between two and seven days. Complications are rare, but some cases require hospitalization for supportive care. As far as we know, deaths have not been reported as a result of Zika virus infection.

Is there a treatment?

No, other than making the patient more comfortable with symptomatic treatment, there is no specific cure or treatment for Zika fever.

How can the virus be prevented?

There is no vaccine for the virus yet, so all preventive measures should be focused on preventing mosquito bites. This means eliminating standing water and other mosquito breeding sites, as well as using mosquito screens in windows and using appropriate insect repellants when outdoors.

What do pregnant women need to know about the virus?

The Ministry of Health of Brazil discovered an association between being infected with Zika virus and an increase in cases of microcephaly in newborns in that county, with the risk greatest when the mother was infected during her first trimester. Microcephaly is a medical condition that results in a small head because the brain has stopped growing or is not developing properly. Because of the potential association between Zika virus infection and microcephaly, pregnant women and those who might be pregnant should be especially careful to avoid mosquito bites, particularly during their first trimester. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has advised pregnant women to avoid travel to endemic countries if possible.

What should I do if I think I might be infected with Zika virus?

To prevent others from getting sick, it is especially important to keep any mosquitos from biting you and transmitting the disease to other people. Get plenty of rest and drink fluids to prevent dehydration. You should also contact your health care provider, especially if you are pregnant, to discuss your concerns, particularly if you are returning from a region where the disease is being transmitted by mosquitoes.
Knowing if an infant was born on time or prematurely can make all the difference in deciding what medical care the baby needs.

In the United States, obstetricians can accurately predict how many weeks a mother has carried her baby, thanks to prenatal care and early ultrasounds.

That's not the case in developing countries where a scarcity of technology and adequate medical care leave little more than birth weight to determine a newborn's gestational age.

But now, researchers at the University of Iowa have found that a metabolic profile derived from routine newborn screenings is a reliable method of estimating an infant's gestational age. All it takes is a drop of blood.

"It's important to know whether a baby is small because it is simply small in size but born on time or is small because it was born early," says Kelli Ryckman, assistant professor of epidemiology in the UI College of Public Health and lead author of the study. "It helps determine how doctors should move forward with that baby and what kinds of health issues they should watch for."

The study, "Predicting gestational age using neonatal metabolic markers," was published recently in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Other UI researchers involved with the study are Stanton Berberich, program manager at the State Hygienic Laboratory, and John Dagle, associate professor at the Department of Pediatrics for UI Health Care.

Premature--also known as preterm--birth refers to when a baby is born before 37 weeks of pregnancy. Important growth and development occur throughout pregnancy--especially in the final months and weeks.

According to the World Health Organization, about 15 million babies are born preterm each year; that is more than 1 in 10 babies worldwide. Some 60 percent of them are born in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

Preterm birth is now the leading cause of death in children under five worldwide. Nearly 1 million children die each year from complications related to preterm birth. Many survivors face a lifetime of challenges, including learning disabilities and visual and hearing problems.

The study analyzed five years of data--about 300,000 records--from the Iowa neonatal newborn-screening program. The screening is a routine part of care for every baby born in the U.S. and tests for mostly rare conditions that, if caught early, can be treated to reduce the likely damaging health effects to the child.

The researchers hypothesized that metabolic markers measured during the newborn screening could build a first-ever metabolic gestational-dating algorithm that could be used at the time of birth when there is no early ultrasound.

Their theory worked--but they weren't alone in their findings.

Ryckman's manuscript was published by AJOG in tandem with papers from the University of California, San Francisco and the University of Ottawa whose similar gestational age studies independently reached the same conclusion as the one conducted by UI researchers.

The trio of studies was funded by the Gates Grand Challenges, an initiative of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. George Wehby, associate professor in the UI Department of Health Management and Policy at the College of Public Health, is the principal investigator for the UI Grand Challenges Explorations' phase one grant. Ryckman also received funding for this study from the National Institutes of Health.

"All of our groups are excited by these findings, which we feel will have particular relevance in low-resource settings where women enter prenatal care late or not at all," Ryckman says.

Ryckman is now joining researchers from the University of California, San Francisco; the University of California, San Diego; Harvard University; the University of Toronto; the University of Malawi; and Makerere University for a metabolic-testing trial on 800 newborns in Uganda and Malawi. The researchers will also apply a similar model to samples of the mothers' blood to see if they can determine which mothers may deliver early.

"We want to see if we can get at another aspect of this situation, which is targeting women who are at high risk of delivering early," Ryckman says.

The two-year study is being funded by $950,000 from the Gates Foundation and the University of California, San Francisco Preterm Birth Initiative.

Inequalities in survival rates for preterm babies around the world are stark, according to the World Health Organization. In low-income settings, half of babies born at or earlier than 32 weeks die because of a lack of feasible, cost-effective care, such as warmth, breastfeeding support, and basic care for infections and breathing difficulties. In high-income countries, almost all of these babies survive.

Ryckman says researchers hope their metabolic gestational-dating algorithm can be used in developing countries to actively examine the rates of preterm births and then target at-risk areas with interventions and prevention programs. Current measures, such as birth weight, are very poor surrogates for gestational age, and the researchers hope their metabolic gestational-dating algorithm can provide a more accurate estimate of preterm birth in the low-resource areas that need it most.
PENTAX Europe GmbH has acquired the remaining stock of PENTAX Italia S.r.L. from Movi S.p.A. This further investment by PENTAX Europe GmbH into the Italian healthcare market strengthens PENTAX Medicals position in Italy and will bring enhanced customer and professional education services to its Italian customers.

Established in 2007, PENTAX Italia was co-owned by PENTAX Europe GmbH and Movi S.p.A., an Italian distributor of healthcare products. PENTAX Italia has increased its sales of endoscopy products and services over this time, leading to PENTAX Europe GmbHs decision to acquire full ownership.

Italy has been a strong market for PENTAX Medical and we are keen to continue our growth and bring our market leading products and services to as many customers in Italy as possible. To that end I am really pleased that PENTAX Italia will now be a wholly-owned subsidiary of PENTAX Medical, and thank Movi for its support and contribution to PENTAX Italias development. Rainer Burkard, Managing Director PENTAX Europe GmbH and President PENTAX Medical EMEA.

Adriano Tinelli, Managing Director PENTAX Italia S.r.L. said: PENTAX Italias success has been built on a combination of both our innovative, high-performance endoscopy products and, importantly, our customer focus. We are very excited about how we can develop our customer experience and we look forward to strengthening our ability to bring our products and professional education services to clinicians throughout Italy.

Enrico Piero Bassani, president of Movi S.p.A, commented: PENTAX Italia has been a successful company for many years, thanks to the strong commitment of both shareholders that worked very positively together. The acquisition of our minority share by PENTAX Europe GmbH was a natural step for us and of course we wish PENTAX Italia to continue its development, to increase the market share, and keep a strong position in our important market.

Details of the deal were not disclosed.
A Swedish research group at St. Erik Eye Hospital, Stockholm, Karolinska Institutet, Solna, and Umea University has published scientific discoveries concerning the serious infectious eye disease EKC (epidemic keratoconjunctivitis) in the prestigious journal Acta Ophthalmologica. The researchers have shown that patients exhibit more severe symptoms and clinical findings in EKC caused by some specific adenoviruses.

Patients who had been infected by adenoviruses that bind to a specific receptor in the eye, sialic acid-binding receptors, exhibited more severe symptoms and clinical findings compared to adenoviruses that do not bind to this receptor. Initially, only a few patients had corneal opacities, but after two weeks the majority of the participants in the study had developed such opacities. The study concludes that there is an unmet medical need for treatment of adenovirus-caused ocular infections, particularly infections caused by adenoviruses of the sialic acid-binding type, to relieve acute symptoms and prevent the occurrence of corneal opacities affecting vision.

EKC is a widely spread disease that affects millions of people every year all over the world. Also in Sweden we see many cases every year. Today we are not able to offer the patients any effective treatment and we therefore hope that a drug candidate can be further developed to meet the patients need for treatment, said Associate Professor Carl-Gustaf Laurell, physician and principal investigator of the patient study.

Lab Diagnostics & Automation eBook Compilation of the top interviews, articles, and news in the last year. Download a copy today

The publication occurs at a convenient time for Adenovir Pharma and our ongoing phase 2-trial, which is in its final stage. The results provide further scientific support for the medical usefulness of an effective drug for the treatment of EKC. We are preparing for a divestment of the company and new scientific data is something that potential future partners see as positive, said Bjorn Dellgren, CEO and project leader at Adenovir Pharma.

New medical treatment under development

EKC (epidemic keratoconjunctivitis) affects millions of people every year all over the world and can lead to sight impairment. Today there is no effective antiviral treatment for EKC. Adenovir Pharma develops a new and innovative drug against the serious and very contagious eye disease EKC. A double-blind randomized phase 2 study is in progress at several eye clinics in Sweden and Germany. Adenovir Pharma has previously demonstrated in a phase 1 study that this drug candidate, APD-209, is well tolerated. VINNOVA, the Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems, has granted Adenovir Pharma funding for the pharmaceutical development of a second generation drug, APD-514, against EKC.

Source: http://www.pulsinvest.se/
Varun Dhawan Recalls Being 'Arrogant': 'Why Should I Even Care What Someone Is Saying?'
A University of Virginia student has been arrested over an alleged hostile act, North Korea state media reported Friday.

Pyongyangs Korean Central News Agency said that authorities detained Otto Frederick Warmbier, 21, a third-year student.

The University of Virginia has been in touch with Warmbiers family and will have no additional comment at this time. The State Department was not immediately available to comment on the report.

KCNA said the student was under investigation for perpetrating a hostile act against the DPRK after entering it under the guise of tourist for the purpose of bringing down the foundation of its single-minded unity at the tacit connivance of the U.S. government and under its manipulation.

Warmbier was in North Korea for a five-day New Year trip and was detained at Pyongyang airport on Jan. 2 ahead of a flight back to China, according to a Reuters report.

Gareth Johnson of Young Pioneer Tours, which organized the visit, said the company was in contact with Warmbier's family and U.S. officials.

"We are in touch with Otto's family, the U.S. State Department and the Embassy of Sweden in Pyongyang and doing all we can to secure his release," Johnson told Reuters.

In October, North Korea released a New York University student holding a U.S. green card six months after capturing him crossing into the country from China.

Warmbier grew up in Cincinnati and attended Wyoming High School from 2009-2013.

Joo Won-moon, 21, a South Korean national, was freed days before Pyongyang celebrated the 70th anniversary of the ruling Workers Party.

Korean-American missionary, Kenneth Bae, was freed in 2014 after serving two years of a hard labor sentence.

However, in December it reportedly sentenced a South Korea-born Canadian pastor to hard labor for life for subversion. Hyeon Soo Lim, the head pastor at a Toronto church that is one of Canadas largest, had been held in North Korea since February.

The United States and North Korea are still officially at war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea.
Lynchburg Vice Mayor Ceasor Johnson said he would be on the ballot in May. What he didnt say was he would be on the ballot for a special election to determine the next Lynchburg treasurer.

Its an opportunity for me to continue to serve the citizens of Lynchburg in a new and exciting capacity, Johnson said about the treasurer position.

He will not seek reelection to his Ward II City Council seat.

The Lynchburg treasurer's office is primarily responsible for the collection of state income tax payments. A special election is set for May to fill the unexpired term of former treasurer David Thurman, who retired effective Oct. 31. Thurman was appointed treasurer in 1991 following the retirement of his predecessor. After winning a special election the next year, Thurman would go on to be elected to the post for six additional terms. Thurmans salary as of Sept. 1 was $70,072.

The vacant treasurers term expires Dec. 31, 2017.

Patricia Dinterman, who began working in the treasurers office in July 2011 as deputy treasurer, now serves as interim treasurer. When asked if she is considering running for the vacancy, Dinterman replied right now, Im concentrating on the interim position.

Johnson, 50, has a bachelors degree in agricultural economics from Alcorn State University in Mississippi; masters degrees in religious education and divinity; and a doctorate in ministry. He currently serves as pastor of Spring Hill Baptist Church in Brookneal and is a GED instructor through Lynchburg City Schools. He is married with two adult children and has two children who currently attend city public schools.

Johnson was elected to City Council in 2004 and has served as vice mayor since 2010. He said serving as treasurer would be somewhat familiar work as he has helped craft city budgets for 12 years and has overseen the fiscal responsibilities of his church for the last 19 years.

Johnson said the city is in a good place and he feels he can transition to another role. Working as treasurer would be an extension of what hes already doing, serving the people, but in a more focused area, he said.

I would like to work in this position because it would be a new challenge and an opportunity to continue to serve people in a different capacity, and its one that I am qualified and able to do.

If elected as treasurer, Johnson said he hopes his legacy as a City Council member would be that of a person who came in and really stood up for the underdog, for the little guy in the city, and that I kept the issues of Ward II in the forefront, Johnson said.

I would like to look back and see the growth of Ward II  and really think about it being a better place than what it was 12 years ago.
RICHMOND  The looming snowstorm has prompted Virginias General Assembly to call a rare snow day  only its second in 48 years.

Virginia has one of the shortest legislative sessions in the country, so it is reluctant to lose a day to a little white stuff. Or even a lot of white stuff. Lawmakers usually trudge in, pairing suits with snow boots if need be, so bills and resolutions keep moving.

But on Thursday, after floor sessions and committee meetings but before a single flake had fallen, the legislature looked at the forecast and decided to call it a week. The House and Senate will not meet Friday, but members are due back at noon Monday.

The last time the weather stood in the way of Virginia lawmaking was in 2010. The snow day called then was the first in more than 48 years, according to Senate Clerk Susan Clarke Schaar.

School activity billgets bipartisan vote

Perennial legislation that would require public elementary school children to complete 20 minutes of physical activity per day during the school week cleared a Senate committee on Thursday.

Sponsored by Sen. John Miller, D-Newport News, Senate Bill 211 passed the Senate Education and Health Committee by a bipartisan vote of 10-4-1 and now heads to the full chamber for consideration.

Miller has, for years, promoted the bill as a small step to address the growing issue of childhood obesity. A recent study suggests nearly 30 percent of Virginia children are overweight.

But the legislation has stalled in the legislature, largely over concerns that the requirement would take valuable instruction time out of the school day and require local districts to spend more money to hire instructors.

The bill would require 20 minutes of activity per day, or 100 total minutes of activity per week, for students in kindergarten through fifth grade. It would not take effect until the 2018-19 school year. A physical education requirement of 150 minutes per week already exists for students in grades 6 through 12.

For the first time since he first introduced the bill, Miller has a key sponsor for the legislation in the House of Delegates  Del. Manoli Loupassi, R-Richmond  fueling his optimism for its passage.

The bill is among a number of bipartisan efforts under way this session to promote physical fitness among adults and children.

In other legislation before the committee, senators unanimously approved SB 176, which would no longer require Virginia drivers to consent to organ donation each time they renew or replace their license.

The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Janet Howell, D-Fairfax County, now heads to the full chamber for consideration.

Delegate championshandguns for victims

A Republican lawmaker wants to make it easier for domestic violence victims to obtain guns for protection.

Del. Todd Gilbert unveiled a proposal at the Capitol on Thursday that would allow a person who is covered under a protective order to carry a concealed handgun without a permit for 45 days.

Gilbert said the bill was aimed at helping women who are the victims of domestic violence be able to arm themselves without worrying about red tape.

Republicans are also proposing tougher penalties for those repeatedly convicted of domestic violence crimes.

Gilberts bill likely faces long odds, as Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe has pledged to veto gun-rights bills.
Movie sequels are rarely as good as the original films on which theyre based. The same dictum, it appears, holds for finance. The 2008 housing market collapse was bad enough, but it appears now that were on the verge of experiencing it all again. And the financial sequel, working from a similar script as its original version, could prove to be just as devastating to the American taxpayer.

The Federal National Mortgage Association (commonly referred to as Fannie Mae) plans a mortgage loan reboot, which could produce the same insane and predictable results as when the mortgage agency loaned so much money to people who had neither the income, nor credit history, to qualify for a traditional loan.

The Obama administration proposes the HomeReady program, a new mortgage program largely targeting high-risk immigrants, which, writes Investors.com, for the first time lets lenders qualify borrowers by counting income from nonborrowers living in the household. What could go wrong?

The question should answer itself.

The administration apparently believes that by changing the dirty words subprime to alternative mortgages, the process will be more palatable to the public. But, as Investors notes, instead of the name HomeReady, which will offer the mortgages, It might as well be called DefaultReady, because it is just as risky as the subprime junk Fannie was peddling on the eve of the crisis.

Before the 2008 housing bubble burst, ones mortgage fitness was supposed to be based on the income of the borrower, the person whose name would be on the deed and who was responsible for making timely monthly payments. Under this new scheme  and scheme is what it is  the combined income of everyone living in the house will be considered for a conventional home loan backed by Fannie. One may even claim income from people not living in the home, such as the borrowers parents.

If, or as recent history proves, when the approved borrower defaults, who will pay? Taxpayers, of course, not the politicians and certainly not those associated with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, whose leaders made out like the bandits they were during the last mortgage go-round. As CNNMoney reported in 2011, Mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac received the biggest federal bailout of the financial crisis. And nearly $100 million of those tax dollars went to lucrative pay packages for top executives, filings show.

In case further reminders are needed of the outrageous behavior of financial institutions that contributed to the housing market collapse and a recession whose pain is still being felt by many, Goldman Sachs has agreed to a civil settlement of up to $5 billion for its role associated with the marketing and selling of faulty mortgage securities to investors.

Go see the film The Big Short to be reminded of the cynicism of many in the financial industry. It follows on the heels of the HBO film Too Big to Fail, which revealed how politicians and banks were part of the scam that harmed just about everyone but themselves. According to The New York Times, only one top banker, Kareem Serageldin, went to prison for concealing hundreds of millions in losses in Credit Suisses mortgage-backed securities portfolio. Many more should have joined him.

Under the latest mortgage proposal, its no credit, no problem. An immigrant can qualify with a credit score as low as 620. Thats subprime. And the borrower has only to put 3 percent down.

Investors reports, Fannie says that 1 in 4 Hispanic households share dwellings  and finances  with extended families. It says this is a large underserved market.

Is this another cynical attempt by Democrats, along with protecting illegal immigrants, to win Hispanic votes without regard to the potential cost to taxpayers? Wasnt that the problem during the last housing market collapse? Could it happen again? Sure it could. Do politicians care? It doesnt appear so.

Thomas is a columnist and a Fox News contributor. Contact him through his website, CalThomas.com.
Direct services, not buildings

There are a few inaccuracies and misleading implications in The News & Advances Jan. 13 editorial, Mental Care Safety Net is Frayed, Torn. The biggest error was conflating the closure of the commonwealths training centers with the proposed changes to Catawba Hospital in the governors budget.

Regarding the states mental health hospitals, the governors budget does not close the hospitals in Roanoke and Nottoway counties. Instead, the budget proposes the development and presentation of a plan, over the next year, to close Catawba Hospital. The McAuliffe administration redirects taxpayer dollars from repairing an old and expensive facility and toward expanding community-based options of care. The governors budget does not propose the closure of Piedmont Geriatric Hospital.

Every state hospital, including Piedmont and Catawba, serves Virginians with mental illness. The training centers serve Virginians with intellectual/developmental disabilities. These are two distinct populations with specific needs.

Regarding the training center closures, savings resulting from the closure or sale of a training center are accounted for separately and do not impact funding for the waivers. The Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS) funds the waivers, which are part of the Settlement Agreement with the Department of Justice. The commonwealth complied with the requirement, authorizing 2,720 waiver slots. The Governors budget provides 855 waiver slots and an additional 100 reserve slots.

For Virginians with either a mental illness or an intellectual or developmental disability, the commonwealth is identifying specific needs and securing funding to increase direct services and supports rather than bricks and mortar.

DR. JACK BARBER

Interim Commissioner

Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services

A department-store Santa

So, Donald Trump boasts at Liberty University, If Im going to be president, youre going to see Merry Christmas in the department store. Were going to be saying Merry Christmas again.

Did he realize he was addressing a group of adults? Why did he choose to sound like a department-store Santa addressing a bunch of kids?

FRANK SPAULDING

Bedford
Its not easy to categorize Julianna Barwicks music.

Theres so much to her songs that even attempting to feels like youre taking away from the cinematic and emotive beauty of it.

Even Barwick herself struggles with this idea.

I never actually know how to accurately describe my music or how to classify it, she said on a phone call from Brooklyn last week. Ive heard a few different ideas. Its been classified as anything from new age to indie to classical to choral-based music. I think its just kind of somewhere in between all of those genres.

The fluid nature of her style is exactly what inspired Nathan McGlothlin to book Barwick for a performance at the Academy Center of the Arts on Friday as part of its Indie Music Series.

I feel like [someone] like a Julianna Barwick is the perfect missing link, he said. Its the kind of event that can stand in a gap and it can reach out with its left hand and grab the indie rock kids that want to go to Lynchstock, and it reaches out with its right hand and grabs the people who are into really stylized vocal performances, like what you would see at an opera. Its a really good marrying of those two kinds of things.

The Louisiana-born, now Brooklynbased musician  who has garnered attention from NPR and The New York Times and was commissioned by Radiohead to remix the bands track Reckoner in 2010  developed her own distinctive style a decade ago when she borrowed a friends guitar pedal and began looping music.

Although she had recorded tracks before and even played electric guitar for some shows, Barwick said she didnt fall in love with the process of making music until she started improvising her loops.

Countless tracks and live shows later, Barwick finds herself between projects. Her third studio album, Nepenthe, which came out in 2013, has run its course and her next record, on which she is currently working, has yet to be released.

Barwick builds her music with loops, layers of her voice and the occasional instrument. Its all unplanned and created on the spot during recording. Even when she goes into a studio, she said, she doesnt come in with a specific idea.

Her songs meander, filling the space and taking the listener on a journey across emotions and, with the release of Nepenthe, across continents.

It marked a change in many of her processes. Instead of creating the record alone in her home, Barwick flew to Reykjavik, Iceland, and worked with musician and producer Alex Somers (Sigur Ros). And, for the first time, one of Barwicks albums featured other artists, including the string ensemble Amiina, Mum guitarist Robert Sturla Reynisson and a choir of teenage girls.

Theres less instrumentation focus and more vocal focus, said McGlothlin, who played the record at Speakertree Records when it first came out. Its full but its void of so many things that you would be accustomed to hearing in more ethereal music or more ambient music.  Its really all about her voice. 

Since Nepenthe, Barwicks success has only continued to grow. In the last year alone, she performed with the Flaming Lips and Philip Glass at Carnegie Hall, toured in Japan, and played piano for Yoko Ono in August during two shows at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Just saying it out loud, I cant believe that it happened because Im not a piano player, she said. And out of all the piano players in New York City  its just surreal. That was a biggie. Between Carnegie and playing piano for Yoko, unless I get a tour opening up for Bjork and put out a record with Thom Yorke this year, I dont know how thats going to be topped.

And then theres the new album, which has taken much of her attention.

While Barwick said she has come to appreciate collaboration more than she ever believed she would, she has returned to what she calls her hermit-y roots for the new project, producing it herself on her computer.

It's kind of a rainbow of different cities, weather, people, the musician said. It's just absolutely all over the place, from upstate New York to Asheville, North Carolina, to Lisbon, Portugal  I recorded it all over the place.
WASHINGTON (AP)  A House lawmaker says former Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO Martin Shkreli, reviled for hiking the price of a life-saving drug, has not made any legal arrangements to appear before Congress next week, despite receiving a subpoena.

Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Maryland, said a lawyer for Shkreli indicated he has not sought permission from a New York judge to travel to Washington for a hearing on drug prices.

Shkreli is charged with securities fraud and conspiracy in a case stemming from one of his previous drug companies. Under the terms of bail in that case, he is required to remain in New York state. However, a judge could grant an exception to travel.

House lawmakers want to question Shkreli about his decision to hike the price of Daraprim, the only approved drug for a rare and sometimes deadly parasitic infection, by 5,000 percent. He resigned from Turing last month following his arrest.

Cummings, who has been investigating exorbitant drug prices, said the 32-year-old Shkreli must take steps to appear before the committee.

"If he plans on trying to use his own intentional inaction as some kind of bogus excuse for not showing up at Tuesday's hearing, people will see right through such a juvenile tactic," Cummings said in statement.

Shkreli, a relentless self-promoter who often livestreams his daily life, has repeatedly bashed Cummings and other Washington lawmakers through social media.

Minutes after Cumming's statement, he took to Twitter in a message to the lawmaker: "Your attempt to subvert my constitutional right to the 5th amendment are disgusting and insulting to all Americans."

A day earlier he posted a photo of the subpoena with the caption, "Found this letter. Looks important."

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform issued the subpoena for Shkreli on Jan. 11. The committee has scheduled a Tuesday hearing to question executives from Turing and Valeant Pharmaceuticals, another drugmaker lambasted for hiking prices.

New York-based Turing confirmed that its chief commercial officer, Nancy Retzlaff, will testify at the hearing next week.

Shkreli, a former hedge fund manager, has also drawn the ire of Senate lawmakers.

On Wednesday, Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, took to the Senate floor to blast Shkreli for refusing to turn over documents sought in a Dec. 24 subpoena from her Special Committee on Aging. Shkreli invoked his Fifth Amendment right not to answer questions, citing his pending criminal case in New York.

But Collins said her investigation only involves Turing and the drug Daraprim, which are not part of the court case.

"The Committee has asked him, through counsel, for an explanation of the rationale for this argument, and is awaiting a response," Collins said.
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First look - JMS returns to Thor as the Thunder God prepares to battle Thanos in Death Notes special

Thor visits Thanos' past and future with a host of all-star creators
Prioritize who can use High Street

Newsday reported on January 10, 2016 that disgruntled taxi drivers on the San Fernando to Port of Spain, Chaguanas to San Fernando and San Fernando to Curepe routes refused to work  on High Street, where we are not allowed to wait on the other side of the road. So when we come down here, we have to make five and six blocks around St James Street before we could get a park on the taxi stand. Reports indicate business owners have complained to police that parking on the left side of High Street made it difficult for delivery trucks to off load goods for them.

Newsday reported on January 12, 2016, San Fernando Mayor Kazim Hosein, yesterday said  taxi drivers will be able to park [temporarily] on the left hand side of High Street, while waiting to park on the various stands which are located on the right hand side of the street between Mon Chagrin Street and Short Street. Theyre not occupying the whole of the left side; the left side is legally for loading and off -loading goods vehicles that belong to the business people in San Fernando. We are compromising with the taxi drivers; they have outgrown their space on High Street.

Newsday reported on January 13, 2016 that Members of the San Fernando business community are in no way thrilled about High Street taxi drivers  having been given the temporary right to park on the left side of High Street, while they await a spot on their various taxi stands, located on the right hand side of High Street Its very inconsiderate to the persons who have businesses, who are off - loading their goods. Its very hard to ask them to leave, and get a spot here to park High Street is an example of a road exhibiting several categories of road classification.

It serves a movement function for through-traffic wishing to travel from the lower western to the upper eastern San Fernando, because of the insufficient road infrastructure. There is a collector road attribute as it links the neighbourhood roads.

It also serves as a local road for access to individual commercial premises, such as unloading goods and other associated activities. But there are also additional uses. Vendors ply their trade, thereby causing pedestrians to conflict directly with vehicular traffic. Taxis have on-street terminals but also use the lanes as taxi stops and terminals. Authorities must determine the purpose and priorities of this roadway and establish clear enforceable rules of operation.

Who are the key stakeholders and what are their concerns? The key stakeholders involved are, in no particular order: the business sector, the general public, the politician, the public transport provider, and the traffic manager.

The business sector believes that increased traffic (pedestrian and vehicular) results in greater revenues. Traffic managers (engineers and police) traditionally interpret their role as safely and economically reducing congestion. The general public would like convenient accessibility between their origin and destination, regardless whether origin or destination is within the trade area or outside it. The public transport provider would like to promote easy access for passengers. The politician (in this case, the Mayor) would like to be seen to speedily satisfy the demands of both the business sector and the general public, with minimal intervention by traffic managers, which often precedes lengthy public debates and recourse to limited state resources.

The agendas of these stakeholders are predominantly different, and may only barely coincide. As a result, the answers that have been forwarded are usually all from the perspective of the particular group.

From the foregoing, it may be deduced that the roadway segment on High Street should operate to:

(1) Maximize traffic passing for the business sector;

(2) Minimize congestion for the traffic manager;

(3) Maximize convenience for the general public;

(4) Maximise accessibility for public transport users and,

(5) Minimize negative feedback for the politician.

What are the some of the goals of the key stakeholders? The general public would like to be able to:

 Minimize delay for through traffic in the trade area.

The business sector would like to be able to:

 Maximize the use of the roadway segment by both through- and local-traffic;

 Maximize people-presence in the trade area.

The traffic manager would like to be able to:

 Maximize separation of through-traffic routes from local traffic routes;

 Minimize traffic enforcement;

 Maximize public transport facilities and usage.

The public transport provider would like to be able to:

 Maximize management of the public transport system;

 Maximize urban centre terminal space.

The politician would like to be able to:

 Minimize protests in the media;

 Minimize state resources.

Appropriate weighting and analysis of priorities are required.

As part of a future public transport management system, consideration could be given to call-up taxis stored remotely in a suburban site.

e-mail: info@ccost.org
17 Chinese freed, bouff for cops

Newsday was reliably informed that the police officers, including the officer in charge of Cell Block at the San Fernando Magistrates court, were summoned to a meeting shortly before midday yesterday in the offices of a superintendent of police.

Newsdays attempts to enquire from senior police officers at the San Fernando Police Administration Building, as to why the officers were called in for questioning, were met with blank responses.

The squad of police officers who were in a marked police vehicle, had stopped a Nissan Nivara van on the Highway, at 4 am. What appeared to them at first as a piece of tarpaulion covering the tray of the vehicle, turned out to be 17 Chinese nationals stooping side by side with their heads bent. The police officers caused the van to stop, but the 17 Chinese nationals jumped off the tray and ran.

Yesterday, a police report stated that the men were kept at Immigration offices in San Fernando but were later released. Newsday was told by an Immigration source that investigations were still being conducted although the Chinese nationals were released.

Police officers who effected the arrests, were summoned to the office of a senior police officer at Police Administration building and interrogated, firstly as to why they did not contact senior police officers before arresting the Chinese nationals. The officers were instructed to submit a written report on the arrests to the senior officer. Newsday was told the officers involved in the arrests may seek assistance from the Police Social Welfare Association after their conduct was brought into question.
Husband and wife die in accident

Supt Nelson of the Scarborough police station told Newsday that a Toyota Hilux vehicle (TCJ 6091) had only two occupants. The driver was Norris Brown Boy Lewis, 62, and the passenger was his wife Verna Warner Lewis, no age given.

He said the driver apparently lost control as he was driving along the northside road in Castara when the van hit a lamp post and then careened down the embankment, about a 99 feet descent, and landed in a ravine. The impact of the collision pinned the driver behind the wheel according to Supt Nelson and it required fire service officers to use the jaws of life to get him out. He was later pronounced dead at the scene by the District Medical Officer (DMO) according to the police report and the wife died at the Scarborough General Hospital whilst undergoing treatment.

According to a resident of Palartuvier who was at the scene after the incident and spoke with Newsday Tobago the couple was on their way home and the tragedy occurred somewhere between Castara and Englishmans Bay.

The resident noted that an ambulance was on the scene shortly after since it came from Palartuvier and the police and fire units came after.

Verna was originally from Moriah but had married and resided in Palartuvier.

The couple has four children, two, boys and two girls, all between the ages of 20 to 30 years according to the villager; one of their sons is a police officer, the other a WASA employee, where the father was also a former employee
Ministry condemns schoolboys killings

According to the Ministry, both the police and MTS security at the school have confirmed that one of the students did not attend classes yesterday morning.

According to police, both students were passengers in a taxi when a gunman pulled up and opened fire. The two were killed instantly.

The statement quoted Education Minister Anthony Garcia, who is currently in Jamaica, as saying he was horrified by the news.

As soon as the incident happened I was contacted by officials of the Ministry of Education and I am both saddened and angry, the statement quotes Garcia. I am disturbed by the fact that our students are not safe while using public transport and what is even more disturbing is that they were killed while in school uniform.

I will be calling for a full investigation into this matter, as incidents such as this should not be allowed to occur. The statement said Garcia assured that Student Support Services has already been contacted and will visit the Success Laventille Secondary today.
Public servants backpay before Sept

Finance Minister Colm Imbert is assuring that all public servants will be paid long before September 2016. Imbert said we are out there in the banking sector right now, determining how much money is available, what it will cost, but we will be borrowing to pay the arrears because we simply dont have the cash.

That will be done long before September 2016.

I dont want to give a precise date at this time but in a month or two, I will be able to give a precise date as to when we will be settling the arrears, the minister told reporters.

Questioned about money owed to contractors, Imbert said the last administration didnt pay their bills (so) more and more debts are piling up and more and more payments are due. Revealing the total to be in the billions, Imbert said paying off the debt would require a debt management strategy by his ministry if it is to pay contractors while investing in projects to stimulate the economy.

Government is looking at the issuance of bonds to do so.
Be more vigilant

The appeal comes almost a week after Reynold Bago James escaped from the Carrera Island Prison and remains at large. I implore officers, please be more vigilant when supervising prisoners, said Stewart.

At all times, all prisoners must be properly supervised. We have to understand prisoners would have the desire to escape and if we give them an opportunity, they will take it without hesitation. On Sunday, prisons officers conducting routine checks at 7 pm, realised James was missing from his cell. Officers began searching the island but he was not to be found.

James was convicted on a string of robberies, larcenies and house breakings in Arouca and was serving a ten-year sentence.

Stewart said investigations into the escape are being conducted in the prisons service and he assured if anyone is found culpable in the escape, disciplinary actions will be taken. Stewart noted that James is the third prisoner to have escaped the island prison and still remains at large.

On Independedce Day, last year, Steve McGilvary and Leroy Mohammed slipped past guards and escaped from the island.

Newsday understands that at about 5.40 pm, a check was made on the island, where all prisoners were accounted for.

An hour later the escape was detected, and an alarm was raised.

Prison services began their search for the two men immediately after, and the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard as well as the Police Service were contacted.

By 7.20 pm on Independence Day, a general check confirmed that the prison was short by two.

Police suspect that a boat was waiting to pick up the two prisoners.

Mc Gilvary was serving a 30- year sentence for unlawful killing and Mohammed was serving a 12-year sentence for robbery with aggravation
Ashley Bobb awarded De La Rue/Central Bank schol

As you develop in your career there will be times you will be faced with temptation, incentive, encouragement, threats, pressure, either to do the wrong things or to be an accomplice to something that is not correct, or to look the other way, turn to basic knowledge and let honesty and integrity be your anchors, you will know the right thing to do, he said.

Hilaire was speaking on Wednesday at the banks 2014-2015 De La Rue award scholarship which was presented to Ashley Bobb, who completed her Master of Science (MSc) in Economics at the University of the West Indies. Hilaire congratulated Bobb for her outstanding achievement at the presentation ceremony, held at the Central Bank, Port-of-Spain.

In her acceptance speech, Bobb said over the years, the De La Rue and the Central Bank have afforded young people like herself, the opportunity to pursue higher education in the fields of Economics, Actuarial Science and Finance that would not have otherwise been possible.
ECUs Las Viviendas file for police

At a press conference at the Centre of Justices office, Classic Towers, Abercromby Street, Port-of-Spain, Borris claimed the project was illegally purchased, because it did not have the approval of the Commissioner for Co-operative Development, Karyl Adams.

He said the ECU spent $9 million on the Las Viviendas project; $5 million for the land, and $4 million for the drawings of the plan.

He noted that ECU president Wayne Estrada indicated that the drawings were approved which he said was not true and the organisation does not have the legal rights to them.

The drawings they said we bought and that we have all the legal rights to, allegedly they are the same drawings that was used on the Public Services Association (PSA) grounds in Long Circular, we have literally purchased nothing, he said.

The PSA purchased land at La Forteresse along Long Circular Road and began construction of a housing development in 2007.

Steve Lezama, project manager and a former director of ECU subsidiary EPL Properties Limited, disclosed that the Sangre Grande Regional Corporation who had the final say on the applications for approval sent to the ECU a list of defects in the drawings.
US Military Really Didn't Want

You to Know What's in New

Washington Post Investigation
(Newser)  Hacker group Anonymous is taking up the cause of Michigan residents sickened by Flint's ongoing water crisis, but no one seems to be all that impressed. The city started using the Flint River for its water in 2014, but the water proved to be toxic, Maxim reports. And officials were ignoring the problem until recently, with emails showing Michigan governor Rick Snyder knew about it for more than a year, according to Mic. On Wednesday, the Anonymous Intelligence Group released a statement calling for Snyder to be charged with manslaughter. "He is now going to simply be shown the error of his evil ways," says the narrator of a video released along with the statement. The statement makes it clear that state officials "will not go unpunished," Maxim reports.

What is less clear is what Anonymous actually plans to do. Mic reports manslaughteror, more accurately, negligent homicidecharges against Snyder are unlikely. And Maxim notes most of the links included in the statement are for the group's GoFundMe page. "Anonymous' latest campaigns have less to do with actual hacktivismand more to do with being brash on social media," Mic states. We will amplify your voice where the mainstream media will surely fail you," Vocativ quotes the video before pointing out the Flint water crisis has been extensively covered by the mainstream media, especially in recent months. "This is just the latest example in a growing trend of reactionary Anonymous attacks," Vocativ states. And Mic concludes: "In the case of Flint, Anonymous is the last to show up." (Read more Flint, Michigan stories.)
(Newser)  It took an act of Congress, but people are now welcome to sled down Capitol Hill. With a major blizzard bearing down on Washington, the US Capitol Police on Thursday said they won't be enforcingas in years pasta longstanding sledding ban. In legislation that cleared Congress last month, lawmakers instructed the police to not enforce the decades-old ban. In prior years, sheepish Capitol police officers reluctantly enforced the ban.

Last year, however, revelers orchestrated a "sled-in"with the full support of Washington's nonvoting delegate, Democrat Eleanor Holmes Norton. The police stood aside, avoiding the embarrassment and bad media coverage that would have come from breaking up the fun. The police say they'll still be there this year, but this time they'll be watching to make sure the kids are having a safe time of it. Click for the rundown on the East Coast storm. (Read more Washington DC stories.)
(Newser)  The morning after 16-year-old Gynnya McMillen was brought to the Lincoln Village Juvenile Detention Center in Louisville, Ky., she was found alone in her cell, dead. It's been almost two weeks, but neither local nor state officials are going public with any information regarding how she died, reports CBS News. Not only is it unclear why she had no roommate in the cell or how often she was checked on, the teenager was apparently healthy, with the Hardin County coroner saying there were no physical signs of foul play and expressing doubts that she had a heart condition. "It's a complete mystery right now," says Dr. William Lee, who notes it could take weeks to get toxicology results. The last person to die in custody at a Department of Juvenile Justice facility was in 1999, the year of Gynnya's birth.

What we do know, according to the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting, is that Gynnya was taken into custody just before 2am on Jan. 10 following an alleged altercation in a private residence. A police department rep calls Gynnya the "perpetrator"; minor injuries were observed on the victim, and Gynnya was charged with misdemeanor assault. She was found dead Jan. 11. Her sister has started a Facebook page calling for justice, and more than 20 people have contributed to a GoFundMe campaign to "not only bring Gynnya's case to justice but to also raise awareness of the things that go on in these facilities." The New York Daily News, meanwhile, spoke to an unnamed former employee of the detention center who said that juveniles kept in holding cells are to be checked at 15-minute intervals, though it's unclear if that's the type of cell Gynnya was in. (A report last year slammed the juvenile justice system for failing our girls.)
(Newser)  An Alaska Airlines pilot was too drunk to drive, let alone fly, when he piloted two flights on June 20, 2014, according to federal prosecutors. David Hans Arntsonwho was immediately removed from "safety sensitive duties" after flunking a breath test and later retired from the airlinewas arrested at his Newport Beach, Calif., home on Wednesday, KOMO reports. Prosecutors say that after piloting a flight from San Diego to Portland, Ore., and a flight from Portland to Orange County's John Wayne Airport, he was selected for a random drug and alcohol test and was well over the legal limit for alcohol. His co-pilot says that when Arntson saw the Alaska Airlines test technician, he said "I bet it's for me."

According to a Justice Department press release, the technician gave Arntson two tests 15 minutes apart, with blood alcohol results of 0.134% and 0.142%. Federal authorities consider pilots intoxicated with a reading of 0.10% or higher, and the FAA's limit is 0.04%, reports the Los Angeles Times. For drivers, the limit is 0.08% in every state, with enhanced penalties beginning around 0.15%. Arntson, 60, faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted. The Times reports that he told investigators that he didn't have a drinking problem and had merely sipped a single beer with dinner the night before the flights. (An airBaltic co-pilot was caught with a blood alcohol level seven times the legal limit.)
(Newser)  North Korea says it has detained an American student from the University of Virginia who visited the country as part of a "New Year's Party Tour." A rep for Chinese travel company Young Pioneer Tours says undergraduate commerce student Otto Frederick Warmbier, 21, was arrested at Pyongyang airport on Jan. 2 after a five-day tourist trip. North Korea's official news agency says he visited with the "aim to destroy the country's unity" and "was caught committing a hostile act against the state," which was "tolerated and manipulated by the US government," per Reuters. The US Embassy in Seoul says it's aware of Warmbier's arrest, per CNN.

The tour group says it's working with the State Department and the Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang, which represents US interests there. "We would appreciate Otto's and his family's privacy being respected and we hope his release can be secured as soon as possible," a rep tells the BBC. Reuters notes about 6,000 westerners travel to North Korea each year; the "New Year's Party Tour" Warmbier was participating in promised a fireworks display in Kim Il Sung Square. One other American citizen is being held in North Korea. Kim Dong Chul, who says he's a naturalized US citizen who used to live in Virginia, was arrested in October. (Read more North Korea stories.)
(Newser)  A Guantanamo Bay inmate who remained in the prison for nearly 14 years finally had his shot at freedom this weekand he turned it down. While two other Gitmo prisoners boarded a plane out of Cuba Wednesday morning, Yemen native Mohammed Ali Abdullah Bwazirwho Fox News says is 35 or 36 and had past ties to both al-Qaeda and the Talibanwas depressed and too "frightened" to leave the familiarity of Guantanamo and be sent to a country were he knew no one, his lawyer, John Chandler, tells the New York Times. "I cannot discuss the details of Mr. Bwazir's decision other than to say that, yes, he declined to accept an offer for resettlement in a third country," the chief of staff for the State Department office looking to close Gitmo tells the Times. Bwazir had indicated as late as Tuesday night that he'd leave the prison, but he changed his mind, and now that chance is gone, Chandler tells the Times.

In recent phone conversations he had had with Chandler, Bwazir said he hoped to be sent somewhere like the UAE, Saudi Arabia, or even Indonesia because he had family in those places; the country he was to be sent to has not been revealed. "Can you imagine being there for 14 years and going to a plane where you could finally leave, and saying, 'No, take me back to my cell?'" Chandler tells the Times. "This is one of the saddest days of my life." The other two prisonersan Egyptian and a Yemeniwho actually got on the plane to freedom were resettled in Bosnia and Montenegro, respectively. The "strange twist" involving the third prisoner, as the Miami Herald describes it, makes it all but impossible for the Obama administration to downsize the Gitmo population to 90 this month as it hoped. (One inmate has served 13 years in part because of confusion over his name.)
(Newser)  From Feb. 20 to March 4 of last year, the FBI ran one of the largest child pornography sites on the dark weba section of the Internet where people usually operate with anonymitywith the goal of using security-cracking software to identify users. Early last year, the site known as Playpen was traced to computers servers located in North Carolina; the FBI in February relocated the site to its own location in Newington, Va. Though the FBI didn't actually upload illicit content to the site, the FBI also didn't attempt to hide 9,000 downloadable images and videos and links to thousands more. The secret operation allowed agents to identify computer addresses for 1,300 of 100,000 users who visited the site over 13 days; 137 have since been charged, reports USA Today.

But not everyone is thrilled with how the sting went down. A lawyer for one of the men arrested, a former middle school teacher, likened the move to "flooding a neighborhood with heroin in the hope of snatching an assortment of low-level drug users," in a court filing requesting charges be dropped. It's not the first time the FBI has used such a ploy. In 2012, it took control of three child porn sites and kept them online to try to identify users. Agents aren't able to prevent the content from being copied and shared elsewhere. But "we had a window of opportunity to get into one of the darkest places on Earth, and not a lot of other options except to not do it," says a former agent who helped plan a previous site takeover. "There was no other way we could identify as many players." Read more at USA Today. (Read more FBI stories.)
(Newser)  A Miami doctor is in hot water after video surfaced showing her in an altercation with an Uber driver on Sunday night. Dr. Anjali Ramkissoon, a fourth-year neurology resident at Jackson Health System, has been placed on administrative leave, per a statement, and an internal investigation "will determine if any disciplinary action will be taken, up to, and including termination." The person who recorded the incident and put the video on YouTube says his group actually called for the Uber ride, but the woman since identified as Ramkissoon tried to "hijack" it and jumped in the backseat when the car arrived. The driver didn't want to take her and told her to get out of the car, and things quickly got heated; the video poster says the woman grabbed the driver's keys. As the video opens, a young woman can be seen berating the driver, slapping him, and kneeing him in the groin, at which point he pushes her away and she falls to the ground.

But it's far from over: She jumps into his car's passenger seat and continues berating him, yelling at him to "get the f--- in the car you piece of s---," among other things, as he appears to call the police. The woman starts throwing things, including lots of papers and an iPhone, out of the car before finally apparently tiring of the whole ordeal, exiting the car, and walking away. The video poster says she was already in another taxi, about to leave, when police arrived; WSVN reports that the Uber driver declined to press charges. But the video poster says the woman was cuffed after trying to leave the scene, attempted to kick some of the police officers, and was ultimately placed in the police car. At that point she started crying and apologizing, and the video poster says the driver accepted a "cash settlement" instead of pressing charges. Uber says it has suspended Ramkissoon's account pending an investigation. Heavy says Ramkissoon is 30 years old and attended medical school in Grenada. (A Taco Bell exec also landed in hot water after allegedly assaulting an Uber driver.)
(Newser)  If repasts at restaurants in China have seemed especially delectable (and irresistible) as of late, it may be because workers were sprinkling addictive opiates into the mix. That's what that country's equivalent of the FDA alleges, and now five restaurants are being prosecuted, while 30 others are getting a closer look, the Independent reports. The illicit seasoning in question: powder from opium poppies, which can contain small amounts of codeine and morphine and, some say, get consumers hooked on their meals, per the AP. The powderwhich can be bought in western China for about $60 a kilois often mixed with chili powder and oil, which makes it harder to detect, and stirred into soups and seafood dishes. Although the AP says it's "unclear" whether the opium flavoring can actually cause addiction, the substance has been banned since 2013, per CNN, and runs counter to China's Food Safety Law, reports China Daily.

"There are so many restaurants in China and it is very difficult to effectively inspect every one of them to ensure they all follow the law," a food safety professor at China Agricultural University tells China Daily. Meanwhile, citizens are unloading their anger online. "How much poison have we eaten?" one commented on a national consumer site, per the Telegraph, while another one posted: "Unscrupulous merchants harming people with poison. I finally know the reason for the long queues outside this restaurant." (This isn't the first time this has happened in China.)
(Newser)  Rudy Guede, the man currently serving a 16-year sentence for the 2007 murder of Meredith Kercher in Italy, gave his first television interview on Thursday, NBC News reports. In the interview with an Italian news program, he asserts he's "101%" sure Amanda Knox was in the apartment when Kercher was murdered and says that Kercher tried to give him a message in her final moments of life, according to the Independent. The Daily Beast reports Guede says he was making out with Kercher at her apartment when he went into the bathroom for "10 or 11 minutes" because of a spicy kebab he had eaten earlier. While in the bathroom, he says he heard Knox, Kercher's roommate, enter the apartment and start arguing with Kercher, according to NBC. Then he heard a scream.

Guede says he left the bathroom to see Knox and a man he didn't identify fleeing the apartment, NBC reports. According to the Independent, Guede says the bedroom had been "staged" to look like a burglary, and Kercher was bleeding heavily from a stab wound in her neck. He says he grabbed some towels to stop the bleeding. "She was trying to tell me something," he says. "I wrote in blood on the wall to understand." Guede was convicted after his DNA was found on Kercher's body and his footprints in her blood, NBC reports. According to the Independent, police believe Kercher was killed by Guede, Knox, and Knox's boyfriend Rafaelle Sollecito during a "sex game." Knox and Sollecito were exonerated in March after being tried four times, NBC reports. According to the Daily Beast, Guede will likely be eligible for parole in 2018. (Read more Amanda Knox stories.)
At least 43 migrants - with 17 of them being children - have drown after two boats capsized in different areas on Friday, the coastguards reported. Other outlets are reported that at least 45 migrants have died.

In one of the accidents, a coastguard stated, based on the testimonies of the survivors that the sailboat had failed by Kalolimnos, a Greek island in the Aegean Sea, which is near the coast of Turkey. The guard added that with the help of fishing vessels, they were able to save 26 people but at least 35 had already drowned.

"They weren't wearing life jackets, I don't understand. They couldn't swim," Michalis, a local fisherman, who was involved with the rescue operation that lasted hours, said to Reuters. "The hospital is now full of dead people."

Micahlis was able to save three migrants from the water. One of them, however, died later on.

It is currently unclear as to how the boat capsized. One survivor said to APTV, reported by the New York Times that the engine had failed about five hours into their journey. The survivor said that adults paid $2,500 each for a spot. The price for children was a half of the fee.

In the other tragic incident that occurred a few hours earlier by the Greek Island, Farmakonisi, two women and six children died. A total of 40 migrants were able to swim to safety after the boat went down One girl was reportedly rescued by the authorities.

"Once again, last night ruthless human smugglers at the Turkish coast crammed dozens of refugees and migrants in risky and unseaworthy vessels and led innocent people, even young children to perish," the shipping ministry said in a statement.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), these two accidents involving migrants and refugees have contributed to "the deadliest January on record."

The IOM reported that since the beginning of 2015, 1,048,268 asylum seekers have arrived in Europe by using a sea route.
The Daily News-Miner encourages residents to make themselves heard through the Opinion pages. Readers' letters and columns also appear online at newsminer.com. Contact the editor with questions at letters@newsminer.com or call 459-7574.
Varanasi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (BBAU) on Friday at a time when Hyderabad is facing protests and anger over the alleged suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula.

Around 50 per cent students at the Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (BBAU) in Lucknow belong to the Dalit community. It is most likely that PM Modi may face protests, in view of which only university staff and 519 students who will receive degrees and medals are allowed at the venue.

Some students have expressed their resentment over the Dalit students suicide on social media, hence this step has been taken in order to prevent any chaos during PM Modis visit.



Vemula, a Dalit scholar, allegedly committed suicide on January 17 by hanging himself at a hostel room of the University of Hyderabad. Protests have rocked the university and several parts of the country since his death.

Vemula allegedly committed suicide after the university initiated disciplinary action against him and few others and suspended them. The action was allegedly taken on the directive of Union ministers Smriti Irani and Bandaru Dattatreya.



Meanwhile, PM Modis visit to Varanasi and Lucknow is also been seen as an effort to woo the Dalit community as Uttar Pradesh is gearing up for the 2017 assembly elections.

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Mumbai:

Why does one pay dowry? Reads the suicide note of a girl student who ended her life so her poor farmer father doesnt have to pay dowry for her marriage.



In a tragic incident, an 18-year-old girl from Latur district, who was academically bright, hanged herself in her house on Wednesday.



Mohini Bhise, was a resident of Bhise Wagholi village in the district, about 500km from here in the impoverished Marathwada region.



She wrote a chilling suicide note, questioning the existence of the social evil despite being banned under laws.



According to police, in her suicide note, Mohini also asked her father not to observe any religious rituals after her death.

According to a villager, Mohini was a bright student and she had scored above 80 per cent marks in her Class 12 exam.

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Cairo:

At least nine persons including four policemen have been killed and 20 others injured in a powerful blast near the ancient pyramids of Giza in Egypt.



The explosion took place when a police team raided a militants hideout near a road leading to the pyramids in the Cairo suburb of Giza ahead of Mondays anniversary of the 2011 revolution that ousted former strongman Hosni Mubarak.



Nine persons were killed in the blast that occurred after a team of security personnel attacked the militants hideout in Giza area, police said.



The area was cordoned off by the security forces soon after the explosion.



The militants exchanged gunfire with security forces which resulted in the bombs, belonging to the militants in the apartment, getting exploded, police said, adding that some of the injured people are said to be in critical condition.



Yesterday, at least five Egyptian policemen were killed when militants stormed a police checkpoint in the countrys restive North Sinai and opened fire on them.



The country has witnessed several violent militant attacks since the January 2011 revolution that toppled Mubarak, killing over 700 policemen and injuring over 18,000 others.



Attacks targeting police and military further increased after the ouster of Islamist ex-president Mohammed Morsi in 2013 following massive protests.

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Riyadh:

Grand mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz al-Sheikh has said that playing chess is haram in Islam as it encourages gambling. He said that chess is a waste of time and asked followers of Islam to abandon it.

The kingdom's chief cleric said during an interview that chess comes under gambling and is a waste of time and money and it also causes hatred and enmity between players, according to Guardian.

He cited some verse in the Quran to justify his views. Senior clerics had forbidden chess in late 70s. But the ban was lifted by Ayatollah Rouhollah Khomeini with a condition that is shouldnt be used for gambling.

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New Delhi:

In a terror crackdown, a dozen terror suspects have been arrested by security agencies across the country.

The Delhi Police has issued an alert in the national capital about a missing white-coloured Alto car, which was hired from Pathankot, a place that has been grabbing headlines following a terror attack at Air Force base.

The driver of the taxi was reportedly found dead on January 20 in Himachal Pradeshs Kangra. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) detained six men in Karnataka over their suspected links with terror group Islamic State (IS).

The suspects were detained from Mangaluru and Tumkur districts on late Thursday night.

The Maharashtra Anti-Terror Squad arrested some terror suspects from Mumbai, while four arrests have been made by the NIA in Hyderabad on similar charges.

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New Delhi:

The Supreme Court today ordered a CBI probe into the murder of Bahujan Samaj Party leader Raju Pal in 2005 in Uttar Pradesh.



A bench comprising Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose and Justice Amitava Roy, while allowing the plea of the Pooja Pal, wife of slain leader, asked the probe agency to conclude the probe in the case preferably within six months.



On February 3, 2006, the apex court had issued notice to the then Mulayam Singh Yadav government and CBI in connection with the murder of the BSP legislator who represented Allahabad West constituency in the UP assembly.



The court had also issued notice to then Samajwadi Party MP Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf Ahmed, who were arrested by the police on charge of murder.



In her plea, Pooja Pal had sought a probe into the case by an independent agency citing threat to her life as well as to Rajus mother from the Samajwadi Party.



The court had then directed the Uttar Pradesh Police to provide security to the two.



The petitioner had alleged that it was a political murder carried out at the behest of the Samajwadi Party and claimed that the investigation carried out by the state police had not been fair and impartial and was shrouded in mystery.



The controversial BSP MLA Raju Pal and two others were shot dead and his wife and another person seriously injured by unidentified assailants in Allahabad on January 25, 2005.



The apex court on April 4, 2006, had stayed the trial of the case before a Fast Track Court in Allahabad.



Later, Atiq Ahmed and his brother was arrested and a charge sheet was filed against them for allegedly conspiring to eliminate Raju Pal.

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New Delhi :

If you planning to take an early morning ride across New Delhi and Central Delhi areas do keep the traffic restrictions in mind as the national capital gears up to do the full dress rehearsal for the Republic Day parade.

The traffic restrictions, which will start around 9.50 am will be witnessed till afternoon, thereby troubling the commuters.

The parade will move from Vijay Chowk to Red Fort, passing through Vijay Chowk, Rajpath, India Gate, Tilak Marg, Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, Netaji Subhash Marg and Red Fort.

According to the notifications, Vijay Chowk will be closed for all from 6.30 pm on wards on Saturday. The C Hexagon at the India gate will also be closed from 9.15 am on Saturday.

Sharad Agarwal, joint commissioner of police (Traffic) told a news agency that from 10.00 am on Saturday, traffic on Tilak Marg, will not be allowed in both directions. Cross traffic will only be allowed depending on movement of the parade.

The map and advisory have been released in all leading city newspapers.

If you travel frequently via Delhi Metro, boarding and deboarding would not be allowed at Central Secretariat, Udhyog Bhawan, Race Course and Patel Chowk.

All inter-state buses coming from Dhaula Kuan would be terminated at Dhaula Kuan.

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New Delhi :

Did tech giant Google pay Apple $ 1 billion to showcase the search function on the iPhone?

Well, according to the reports, the search giant seemingly shelled out $1 billion for the privilege in 2014.

The details came into media after the information was exposed in a transcript of court proceedings between Oracle and Google.

According to a report, the result of an agreement the two companies have that gives Apple a percentage of the revenue Google earns through iPhones and iPads.

"At one point, the revenue share was 34 percent between Apple and Google. After that figure was revealed, both companies attempted to hide it," reports added.

Both Google and Apple are not ready to comment on the reports.
Davos:

Asserting that the world is not witnessing a global gridlock, US Secretary of State John Kerry today said the fight against violent extremism is the challenge of our generation.



It would be a long struggle against extremism, but we are heading in the right direction, Kerry said at the World Economic Forum (WEF) here.



He was clear that the US will strengthen its fight against corruption, which is used by extremist groups as a recruitment tool.



The fact is there is nothing, absolutely nothing, more demoralising and disempowering to any citizen of any nation than the belief that the system is rigged against them..., he said, adding that corruption complicates every single security, diplomatic and social initiative.



Hailing efforts of citizens around the world to increase inter-faith and inter-sectarian understanding, Kerry cited examples of Sunnis helping Shiites rebuild after terror attacks in the Middle-East, Muslims shielding Christians from terrorists in Africa, and Jews protecting Muslims in the United Kingdom.



The world is not witnessing global gridlock. We are not frozen in a nightmare we cannot wake up from... If we stay serious and work in good faith, we can make progress, Kerry said.



Calling for providing opportunities to the youth, Kerry said there are 700 million people under 30 years and all of them are seeking opportunity, dignity and respect and are aware of what they dont have in a world where everyone is connected 24/7.



We are staring at extraordinary opportunities wherever we look in the world, he said.



According to him, a coalition of countries has come together to fight Daesh (ISIS) and praised the military successes achieved by the joint action of coalition air power and local ground forces.



In the end, mark my words, Daesh (ISIS) will be defeated, and the progress we have made towards that goal has been remarkable, Kerry said.



Daesh has already lost over 30 per cent of the territory it once held and much of its financing, the secretary added.



About the conflict in Syria, Kerry said key steps have been taken to resolve it and all the countries involved have agreed on a list of principles for a post-war Syria.



Direct negotiations between the government and the Opposition are now planned and would hopefully start soon in Geneva, he noted.



Nothing would do more to end the threat of Daesh than to negotiate an end to the war in Syria, the secretary said.

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If your employees are silent -- when you dont hear any ideas or complaints -- beware. Your best and brightest could be getting ready to walk out the door. As a small business owner or entrepreneur, one of the best ways to retain talented employees is to foster a culture of voice -- where employees arent afraid to speak up.

A culture of voice exists when employees know they can share ideas, concerns and opinions. With a culture of voice, every employee believes they are valued and their voice has merit. They know they can contribute ideas -- even half-baked ones, propose solutions and share recommendations without fear of retribution of retaliation. When voice matters, employees sense of significance increases, resulting in emotional commitment.

Related: 10 Simple Secrets You Need to Know to Increase Employee Engagement

And commitment matters. The cost of turnover, especially for small businesses and entrepreneurs, is significant. In 2014, the U.S. quit rate rose by 10.4 percent, contributing more to the increase in total separations than involuntary layoffs and discharges, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Replacing and hiring new staff is estimated to be 60 percent of an employees annual salary, according to a SHRM report. So how do you create and sustain a culture of voice to retain the best and brightest at your company?

1. Trust your associates.

Although the financial situation of your company is critical, its also essential to focus on your employees. If they feel responsible for results, valued and believe their work has meaning -- its likely theyll stay.

Ask yourself, Did I hire stupid people? Inevitably, most leaders protest, Of course not! Those smart people working for you have some good answers sometimes. Instead of asking, Do you agree? -- where often you get blank stares or head nods -- show your employees you value their opinions and ideas by asking each one to offer their own solution to the problem.

In addition, dont be afraid to strengthen work relationships; they are your social capital, which is often ignored and misunderstood. By holding events that bring employees together, employees will socialize, exchange work-related information and become embedded in your company -- making it harder for them to leave. As colleagues talk freely in social settings, they transfer knowledge through the company, which can result in rapid problem-solving, more efficient processes and even innovative solutions.

Related: Happy or Not, U.S. Employees Are Restless. Use These 3 Tactics to Keep Them.

2. Shut up and listen.

One tip for creating a culture of voice is to shut up and listen. While this seems simple, your mind processes 450 words of information per minute. However, the average person can only speak at a rate of about 250 words per minute. Your mind is working approximately twice as fast as anyones physical ability to speak.

Naturally, your mind wanders, making listening hard to do. So, shut up and REALLY listen. Turn off the internal radio in your mind, so you can hear what your employees say. Dont interrupt, make hurry-up noises or gestures or get distracted by electronic gadgets. Also, pay close attention to employees body language. Research shows that tone and body language accounts for 93 percent of the message, while spoken words account for only seven percent of the message being communicated.

When your employees know for certain that youre interested and actively listening to them, the message is, you matter. This message is an affirmation of your employees sense of significance and self-worth to the company. If employees feel their concerns are being heard, its more likely theyll stay.

3. Transfer information quickly and broadly.

By maintaining a culture of voice where employees can speak freely, information throughout the company should transfer at a rapid pace. This will not only increase productivity but will also create transparency and knowledge flow throughout the company. Employees are dissecting every word you speak and every move you make, so its best to acknowledge and legitimize the current state and concerns of your employees. If employees feel they are in the loop about business deals and decisions, they will feel more secure, have less anxiety and feel more comfortable staying.

As a leader, you should be communicating often at the three levels -- enterprise, group, individual -- even if you have nothing to report. Keeping in touch with a stressed employee population and letting them know theres nothing new to share is actually valuable information and can go a long way toward easing tension.

Remember to be visible. Its not just about what you say but what you do. Its comforting to employees to see their leader out and about in the company. That way, theres no assumption that youre hiding from employees concerns or concealing bad news.

Related: 3 Reasons Why Your Best Employees Leave for New Opportunities

Related:

3 Ways Small Businesses Can Retain Talent

4 Ways to Teach Personal Accountability to Your Employees

Taking a UX Approach for Retaining Your Best Talent



Copyright 2016 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
Advocates for domestic violence victims and those supporting animal rights are teaming up to support the latest proposal for a public registry in Connecticut that would identify people who abuse animals.

The two groups contend those who abuse animals should be singled out because they're more likely to repeat certain types of abuses, such as animal hoarding, but also to commit violent crimes against people, especially in the form of domestic violence.

"We're continuously viewing opportunities to be responsive in unique ways to keep victims safe," said Karen Jarmoc, president and CEO of the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence. "At the end of the day, it's a very, very credible evidence-based link here."

One animal-rights activist recently attended a hearing in state Superior Court in Danbury where the owner of Animal Breeders on Federal Road pleaded not guilty to witness tampering charges in connection with an animal cruelty case.

Richard Doyle, 55, of Mahopac, N.Y., has also pleaded not guilty to three felony counts of animal cruelty and could face more charges. One of Doyles other stores recently closed after about 130 protesters picketed outside the business in Wappingers Falls, N.Y.

Connecticut lawmakers have proposed bills in the past, but to no avail, that would have created animal abuse registries similar to sexual abuser registries. This year, with the new legislative session starting Feb. 3, the concept has been resurrected by a task force created by the General Assembly to study the humane treatment of animals in municipal and regional shelters.

The group is suggesting a state-run online registry funded by annual fees charged to offenders. The name, identifying information and photograph of a first-time convicted animal abuser would be posted for five years. Repeat offenders would appear on the registry for 10 years.

Tennessee launched the first statewide animal abuse registry Jan. 1. Other registries exist for cities and counties.

North Haven First Selectman Michael Freda, the group's chairman, said pet shops, animal control officers and human animal adoption groups would be required to search the registry before selling or transferring a pet. The idea came up as a byproduct of the group's efforts to better protect animals, he said.

"What we have seen clearly is a linkage between animal abuse, domestic abuse, child abuse and substance abuse and sexual abuse," Freda said.

The relationship between domestic violence and animal abuse also caught the attention of a second state task force that's been studying the effects of domestic violence on children.

That group's draft report calls for more training on the link between animal cruelty and child abuse. A 2014 law already allowed cross-reporting of animal abuse and child abuse between the Department of Children and Families and animal control officers.

Jarmoc, who leads that task force, said abusers use many tools to try and scare a victim. One of them is threatening to kill or harm the family pet.

"Sadly, it's a reason quite often why victims stay. They're concerned if they can't protect their pet, who they love so dearly, they really can't leave," she said. The domestic violence coalition has an agreement with the Connecticut Veterinary Medical Association, which has made vets available to temporarily house pets while a victim is in a shelter.

The children's task force is also supporting another bill that would create an advocate in Superior Court to represent the interests of an animal in abuse cases and provide information and records to judges about the nature of the crime.

Rep. Diana Urban, D-North Stonington, who has proposed the legislation for several years, said that while she supports the animal abuser registry idea, it might not entirely useful, considering the state's conviction record for animal abuse cases is 18 percent. She contends that having an advocate in the court  a pro bono law student, under her proposal  will highlight the seriousness of the crime, heighten the conviction rate and ultimately boost the number of people on the abuse registry.

"We need to start looking at this as a real act of violence," she said.
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DANBURY  The slow-moving case against a nanny accused of abusing three children was continued again this week.

Lidia Quilligana, 32, of Danbury, has been held on $1 million bond since her arrest on March 27, 2015  the day she was seen on video force-feeding a 3-year-old girl, slapping and knocking her to the ground, jumping on her and pressing her hands and leg against a stove burner, according to court records.

Shes also accused of abusing the girls 1-year-old twin siblings.

After 11 times on the court docket, a Danbury superior court judge on Wednesday scheduled a supervised pre-trial hearing to Feb. 10.

Despite the many delays in the case, the victims family has received the support of Bikers Against Child Abuse since October, when the international group launched a chapter in Newtown.

The international organization works to support child abuse victims and their families and it recently opened a chapter in Newtown.

On Wednesday, about a dozen B.A.C.A. members, all wearing jeans and black leather jackets, escorted a friend of the victims family through the courthouse, sat next to her in the courtroom and escorted her outside after the hearing.

The woman, who represents the victims in court but asked not to be named, was grateful for the groups support.

Danbury is lucky to have such a great group in their backyard, she said.

The president of the Newtown chapter, who goes by the name Irish, said the organizations ultimate goal is to empower the children so they can overcome their fears.

Every time you come to court, youre reminded of the horrific circumstances surrounding a specific case and throughout all that time were always there to support that family, Irish said. Even between those (court) dates, they can call us anytime, and were going to be there to support them.
Since Congress continues to fail us, President Obama recently answered our call to reduce gun violence by taking executive actions that will save lives in cities nationwide and right here in Connecticut. We applaud his actions, and are grateful to him for taking a bold stance, and enacting a common sense measure.

Volunteers with the Connecticut chapter of Moms Demand Action  as well as moms, survivors, and other advocates across the country  helped to drive more than 15,000 calls that shut down the White House switchboard as we urged the President to take executive action to reduce gun violence.
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A quarter-century ago, the U.S. invaded Iraq for the first time. Then-President George H.W. Bush announced the start of the Persian Gulf War on the evening of Jan. 16, 1991. The U.S.-led coalition took on Saddam Husseins own sizable army after his troops marched into neighboring Kuwait several months earlier.

PHOTOS: World War II  In Europe and back home

The bombing campaign began the day after Bushs announcement. In six weeks, the onslaught had driven Husseins forces out of the tiny Middle Eastern nation. Bush declared a cease-fire on February 28.

The swift battle still resulted in a number of casualties. A total of 148 U.S. soldiers died in the Person Gulf War and almost 500 more were wounded. Among Iraqi forces, an estimated 25,000 troops died in the lopsided battle.

See the gallery above for a look back at Operation Desert Storm.
On Newsstands Now: Here's Everything You'll Find in CityBeat's Latest Issue

From a Bigfoot hunt to delightfully spooky ghost stories from one of Cincinnati's watering holes, here are the stories you'll find in CityBeat's latest print edition.

By CityBeat Staff Oct 19, 2022

For many of us, Bigfoot is a legend present only on an episode of Ancient Aliens, or perhaps only among the towering, mysterious pines of the Pacific Northwest. However, for CityBeat's latest issue, we went on a hunt for Bigfoot in a place where the massive furball had allegedly been spotted before  Ohio's Pleasant Hill Lake Park...
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has arraigned the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Chi...

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has arraigned the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh, on a fresh two-count-charge of destroying the evidence against him.Metuh, who was yesterday, docked before an Abuja High Court sitting at Maitama on a two-count charge bordering on his alleged destruction of evidence against him, pleaded not guilty to the charge. Metuh was for the second time brought to court in handcuffs.This happened just as the trial of embattled former National Security Adviser, NSA, Colonel Sambo Dasuki (retd) on a 19-count-charge turned dramatic, yesterday, at the Abuja High Court sitting at Maitama as the trial judge stood down trial for two hours, insisting that he must be produced in court as required by law before he could continue with the proceedings.Metuh however denied allegation that he destroyed a confessional statement he made before the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.EFCC, in the charge which was signed by its Assistant Director, Legal & Prosecution Department, Mr. Sylvanus Tahir, alleged that the PDP spokesman who is also facing another seven-count criminal charge before Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court in Abuja, tore and attempted to chew the statement he made under caution while undergoing interrogation.The anti-graft agency insisted that the destroyed statement would have been vital to its prosecution of the N400m fraud case pending against Metuh before the Federal High Court.It said that Metuh, by his action, committed an offence contrary to sections 166 and 326 of the Penal Code Act.Meanwhile, for the second time, authorities of the Kuje prison, yesterday, brought Metuh to court in handcuffs. Shortly after the defendant entered his plea, trial Justice Ishaq Bello adjourned hearing on his bail application till Monday.Metuh had through his lawyer, Dr. Onyechi Ikpeazu, SAN, applied to be released on bail pending the determination of the charge against him.Ikpeazu contended that the allegation against his client is a bailable one.However, the prosecuting counsel, Tahir, while indicating his intention to oppose Metuhs bail request, stressed that the charge levelled against him attracts two years imprisonment upon his conviction.The EFCC lawyer equally told the court that the commission has already lined up three witnesses to testify against the defendant.While adjourning hearing on the bail application, Justice Bello queried why the EFCC failed to incorporate the current charge to the one already pending before the FHC.Part of the charge that was preferred against Metuh yesterday read, That you, Olisa Metuh in January 2016 while in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, attempted to destroy evidence to prevent its production in court during trial contrary to Section 1 of the Panel Code.That you Olisa Metuh, with intent to cause damage to the property of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, tore into pieces statement you made under caution contrary to section 326 of the panel code and punishable under Section 327 of the same code.It will be recalled that Justice Abang had on Tuesday, granted Metuh bail to the tune of N400million.The court however ordered that he should be remanded at Kuje Prison pending when he is able to perfect all the bail conditions.Dasuki must be in court  JudgeAt Abuja High Court where Dasuki is facing trial, the judge observed when the matter was called up at 9.00 am that, whereas the other accused persons were present in court, Dasuki who has been in detention, was not produced for trial.Three different courts where Dasuki was arraigned for criminal charges had granted him bail but the bail orders were not obeyed by government which instead took the defendant to an unknown custody.Justice Hussein Baba Yusuf, who took swipe at the Federal Government for failure to bring Dasuki, insisted that he would not proceed with the case until Dasuki was brought before him.Consequently, the prosecutor, applied for about one hour stand-down to await the arrival of Dasuki.Security operatives, who had taken the defendant to unknown custody in the past six weeks then ran helter-skelter to fish him out when the reality dawned on them that the judge will not shift position.Dasuki was eventually brought to the court around 11:00am in compliance with the court order under tight security.A judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Adeniyi Ademola had on Wednesday ordered the Federal Government to produce Dasuki before him on February 16 to answer another set of criminal charges.Why Dasuki must be in courtJustice Ademola maintained that it was wrong of government to have expected the court to conduct a criminal trial in the absence of the defendant and in violation of the law.Dasuki was charged alongside erstwhile Director of Finance in the Office of the NSA, Mr. Shuaibu Salisu and a former Executive Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Aminu Baba-Kusa.They are facing trial alongside two firms- Acacia Holdings Limited and Reliance Referral Hospital Limited, which the anti-graft agency said served as conduit pipes through which over N32billion was allegedly siphoned from accounts which the office of the NSA operated with both the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and other financial institutions.The funds were allegedly distributed to delegates that attended the Presidential Primary Election of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, held in Abuja, a process that saw the emergence of ex-President Goodluck Jonathan as the sole candidate of the party.All the accused persons had on December 14, pleaded not guilty to the charge, even as the court, on December 18, granted each of them bail to the tune of N200million.Aside the seizure of all their international passports, Justice Yusuf equally ordered the defendants to produce one surety each, who he said must be a serving or retired civil servant not below the rank of Director that owns a landed property within the Federal Capital Territory worth N200m.Though the trial was initially fixed for yesterday, however, it could not proceed as scheduled owing to the absence of Dasukis lawyer, Mr. Ahmed Raji, SAN, in court.Raji had written to the court to explain that he was billed to appear before the Kogi State Election Petition Tribunal, yesterday .He sought permission of the court to defer the trial till a later date, an application that was not opposed by the prosecuting counsel, Mr. Rotimi Jacobs, SAN.EFCC, in a 27-paragraph counter-affidavit it filed before the court, said it had sometime in September, 2015, received an intelligence report bordering on abuse of office, criminal breach of trust, stealing, conversion and receiving of stolen properties.It told the court that huge sums of money were released to Dasuki by former President Goodluck Jonathan, saying part of the funds was to be used for the procurement of arms and ammunition for the use of the soldiers in the battle front.The Commission said the funds running into several billions of Naira, were subsequently moved from the account of the office of the NSA with the CBN and some commercial banks to the account of private companies and individuals who have nothing to do with supply of security equipment or rendering of security services.That as a retired military officer and as a top security personnel with wide influence and affluence, he will use his position to intimidate, harass and influence the proposed prosecution witnesses if released on bail.That many of the proposed prosecution witnesses are public servants who had worked under the applicant herein and will be intimidated by the applicant if released on bail.That the offences being alleged against the defendant/applicant border on economic sabotage that strikes at the very foundation of Nigerias well-being and existence.That it is in the interest of justice to put the applicant in protective custody so as to shield him from a possible attack by the relatives of the innocent soldiers who lost their lives due to lack of adequate equipment and facilities caused by the diversion of funds meant for that purpose.That the applicant acquired a large volume of assets with the proceeds of crimes and my team is currently tracing the assets and if released on bail, the applicant will interfere with the assets tracing activities. That the applicant transferred huge sum of monies to various companies whose identities we are still trying to trace.
Al Jazeera Media Network calls for the immediate release of the Al Jazeera Arabic news team who are believed to have been kidnapped in t...

Al Jazeera Media Network calls for the immediate release of the Al Jazeera Arabic news team who are believed to have been kidnapped in the city of Taiz, Yemen.Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent, Hamdi Al-Bokari, and his crew Abdulaziz Al-Sabri and Moneer Al-Sabai were last seen on Monday night.Commenting on the abduction of the Al Jazeera three, Dr Mostefa Souag, Acting Director General of Al Jazeera Media Network, says: "We call on the immediate release of our colleagues Hamdi Al-Bokari, Abdulaziz Al-Sabri and Moneer Al-Sabai. They were covering events in the besieged city of Taiz, reporting on the human cost to the conflict. Our colleagues were simply doing their job of reporting the story and informing the world on what is taking place in Yemen. Al Jazeera holds their abductors responsible for their safety and security".Souag added: It is tragic to see that in times of conflict, news organisations continue to be targeted. Journalists should have the freedom to do their work without the fear of intimidation, abduction or unlawful arrest.Al Jazeera is in contact with related parties in Taiz to secure the release of Al-Bokari, Al-Sabri and Al-Sabai.
A Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, Abuja, on Friday granted bail to the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democ...

The total bail sum is N600m.Metuh is already on remand in Kuje Prison by an order of a Federal High Court in Abuja with respect to charges of money laundering involving N400m, part of money meant for procurement of arms, which he collected from the Office of the National Security Adviser in November 2014.Justice Ishaq Bello, before whom Metuh was on Thursday arraigned on two counts of destruction of evidence while in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for investigation into the money laundering case, granted fresh bail to the PDP spokesperson on Friday.The judge ordered that the residences of the two sureties to be presented by the accused should be verified by filing of documents in that respect before the court.The application for bail was not opposed by EFCCs prosecuting counsel, Mr. Sylvanus Tahir.While arguing the bail application orally on Friday, Metuhs lawyer, Mr. Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN), anchored the application on provisions of sections 158 and 162 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 as well as sections 35 and 36 of the Constitution.The judge in his ruling agreed with the defence that the offences the accused was charged with were bailable and he was presumed innocent until proved guilty.Metuh who was produced in court by prison officials on Friday is still in the process of fulfilling the N400m bail granted him by Justice Okon Abang of a Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, says corrupt politicians who are currently being probed by the Economic ...

Mohammed said it was absurd that after stealing the country blind, some corrupt politicians were busy claiming their rights were infringed on.The minister said this during a visit to the Women FM 91.7 radio station in Arepo, Ogun State, on Thursday.He said human rights claims would not stop President Muhammadu Buharis anti-corruption war, adding that the Federal Government was not selective in its anti-corruption war as being claimed because it was only logical that the Peoples Democratic Party which was in power for 16 years should be the focus of the corruption probes.Using a Yoruba proverb to justify his position, Mohammed said,  Eni ti o ba ni iyawo, ana e o le ku. This simply means that an unmarried man cannot claim to lose an in-law.He said, The Federal Government is being criticised for infringing on human rights. This is not true. People who have stolen billions of naira have no moral authority to be claiming human rights when their theft left to the infringements of other peoples rights, deaths and suffering. We want Nigerians to weigh the matter. Fifty five Nigerians stole over N1.34tn in eight years. Should we now jetission the rights of 170 million Nigerians whose rights have been tampered with because of these few people who have stolen the country blind?When we start talking about human rights, we need to put the issue in the right perspectives. The granting of bail is at the discretion of the court of law and when there is a tendency that someone is likely to jump bail, such a right may be declined.Speaking on the report that two versions of the 2016 budget were presented to the National Assembly, Mohammed said the row was caused by communication gap between the Presidency and the National Assembly.He listed poor funding as one of the factors hindering the EFCC in prosecuting high-profile corruption cases.He added, While it takes just little time to prosecute an average offender, it takes seven years to prosecute a high-profile person for corruption charges. This is because the corrupt leaders can afford to hire the smartest lawyers which even the EFCC cannot afford to hire. Finance is crippling the operations of the anti-graft commission.In his remarks, the Chairman of WFM, Dr. Babatunde Okewale, hailed the Federal Governments anti-corruption war, adding that it was unfortunate that women and children were the major victims of the public treasury looting.We would like the Ministry of Information to revamp the National Orientation Agency to help restore our cultural values and stop harmful cultural practices affecting women and the girl child, he said.
The former Governor of Niger State, Dr. Babangida Aliyu, has denied having any property in Dubai or Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates...

The former Governor of Niger State, Dr. Babangida Aliyu, has denied having any property in Dubai or Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.Aliyu said in a statement signed by his Adviser on Media, Mr. Israel Ebije, on Friday that a list of political office holders who are alleged to have properties in the UAE, circulating on the social media was nothing but a product of mischief.He said that those peddling the information were only out to ridicule him and expose him to investigation.The former governor challenged those behind the information to produce evidence of such properties including pictures.He called on the Federal Government to take over any property found to belong to him in Dubai as he did not have any.He also called on the citizenry to ignore the reports which he described as false.I do not have properties in Dubai or Abu Dhabi as peddled by some media organizations. I dont even own a mattress outside Nigeria.They should do their investigation and if I am found guilty of owning any property in UAE, the Federal Government should appropriate it.I wish therefore to tell Nigerians to discard the allegation. It is not true, its mischievous, misleading and aimed at rubbishing my nameHe said that he was in support of the current move being made by the President to retrieve stolen funds and to make political offices less attractive in the country.I am totally committed to the President Muhammadu Buhari decisive effort towards repatriating stolen funds and his plan towards making political offices less palatable and incidence of impunity as low as possible. I am however concerned over baseless accusations peddled against my person, he addedAliyu who said that he belonged the group of politicians who did not loot his state treasury, decried the prevalent situation where all opposition political figures are viewed as corrupt.He said that targeting the opposition as corrupt was inimical to the credibility of the campaign against corruption.He said that he was being exposed to allegations of corruption because of his decision to remain in the PDP.Aliyu said that he led the G-7 group of governors to fight impunity in the PDP and wondered if such allegations would have been made against him if he had moved to the APC.
Supporters of former governor of Zamfara State, Ahmed Sani Yerima, yesterday attacked staff of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Othe...

Supporters of former governor of Zamfara State, Ahmed Sani Yerima, yesterday attacked staff of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Offenses Commission, ICPC, in Gusau shortly after he was arraigned before Bello Shinkafi of High Court 4 for allegedly diverting over N1 billion appropriated for the renovation of a dam to other uses.But for the quick intervention of the police, the staff of the anti-graft agency would have been lynched by the irate supporters who thronged the High Court in their hundreds.The ICPC staff were immediately taken to the Mobile Police Police barracks for protection, while chairman of the Commission, Ekpo Nta, directed that they be moved to Abuja immediately.His arraignment, which attracted the who is who in the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the state, led by the deputy governor ,reportedly almost brought activities in the court complex to a halt.After pleading not guilty to the 19-count charge, counsel to Senator Yerima , Mahmud Abubakar Magaji, SAN, urged the court to grant the accused bail on self-recognition.Justice Shinkafi granted the former governor, who represents Zamfara West senatorial district in the Senate, bail in the sum of N10 0 million, with two sureties who must be resident in Gusau, with properties worth N150million.The case has been adjourned to March 1 for hearing.Those who accompanied the former governor to court included the deputy governor of the state, Mallam Ibrahim Wakkala, the Secretary to the State Government, all the commissioners and members of the state House of Assembly, the chairman and members of the executive of the All Progressive Congress in the state as well as the senator representing Zamfara East and several other supporters.Some of the 19-count charges read: That you Ahmed Rufai Sani on or about November, 2006 whilst being the Governor of Zamfara State at Gusau within the jurisdiction of this court did commit an offence of spending money allocated for one project on another to wit: out of N1, 000,000,000 (one billion naira) additional budgetary allocation ZamfaraState House of Assembly allocated for the repair of collapsed Gusau dam and settlement of the victims of the said dam which was obtained through bank loan you spent the sum of N20,000,000 (twenty million naira) purportedly on assistance to INEC and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 22 (5) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000.That you Ahmed Rufai Sani on or about October 2006 whilst being the Governor of Zamfara State at Gusau within the jurisdiction of this court did commit an offence of spending money allocated for one project on another to wit: out of N1,000,000,000 (one billion naira) additional budgetary allocation Zamfara State House of Assembly allocated for the repair of collapsed Gusau dam and payment of compensation to the victims of the said dam which was obtained through bank loan you spent the sum of N10,000,000 (ten million naira) purportedly on donation and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 22 (5) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000.That you Ahmed Rufai Sani on or about October 2006 whilst being the Governor of Zamfara State at Gusau within the jurisdiction of this court did commit an offence of spending money allocated for one project on another to wit: out of N1,000,000,000 (one billion naira) additional budgetary allocation Zamfara State House of Assembly allocated for the repair of collapsed Gusau dam and payment of compensation to the victims of the said dam which was obtained through bank loan you spent the sum of N43,008,000 (forty three million and eight thousand naira) purportedly on surveillance of guests and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 22 (5) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000.That you Ahmed Rufai Sani on or about November 2006 whilst being the Governor of Zamfara State at Gusau within the jurisdiction of this court did commit an offence of spending money allocated for one project on another to wit: out of N 1,000,000,000 (one billion naira) additional budgetary allocation ZamfaraState House of Assembly allocated for the repair of collapsed Gusau dam and payment of compensation to the victims of the said dam which was obtained through bank loan you spent the sum of N21,450,000 (twenty-one million four hundred and fifty thousand naira) purportedly on settlement of publication equipment and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 22 (5) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000.That you Ahmed Rufai Sani on or about November 2006 whilst being the Governor of Zamfara State at Gusau within the jurisdiction of this court did commit an offence of spending money allocated for one project on another to wit: out of N 1,000,000,000 (one billion naira) additional budgetary allocation ZamfaraState House of Assembly allocated for the repair of collapsed Gusau dam and payment of compensation to the victims of the said dam which was obtained through bank loan you spent the sum of N64,332,734 (sixty four million three hundred and thirty two thousand seven hundred and thirty four naira) purportedly on sponsorship of government officials to hajj and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 22 (5) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000.Kogi Central Rerun: Kogi Democratic Initiative Warns Against Accepting APC Candidate
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has arraigned the former governorship candidate of Nasaraw...

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has arraigned the former governorship candidate of Nasarawa State in the 2015 election, Mr. Yusuf Mohammed Agabi before an Abuja Federal High Court for defrauding the Federal Government of N666.08 million before.Agabi was charged alongside four others on a 46-count charge for allegedly embezzling N666.08m from the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs.The four accused persons docked by ICPC were Akpore Okeroghene, Abibu Ayinla, Idowu Anthony Adewale and Ntu James Ngozi.The Commissions counsel, Mr. Paul Bassi alleged before the court that the accused persons fraudulently shared N666.08m belonging to the Federal Government, while working in the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs between 4thof December, 2013 and December, 2014 thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 13 and punishable under section 68 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000.
A human rights group, International Society for Civil Liberties and the rule of Law, Intersociety has said that it is far better for the...

A human rights group, International Society for Civil Liberties and the rule of Law, Intersociety has said that it is far better for the detained leader of Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu to be kept in the prison custody than to remain in the captivity of the Department of State Services, DSS.Intersociety said the period Kanu stayed in the DSS captivity was wasteful, tortuous and depravity, more so when the DSS confirmed during last Wednesday trial in the court that it had concluded its investigations about Kanus offences.Meanwhile, the society has decried what it termed as murder of 50 in violent suppression of non-violent Biafran protesters by Nigerias security forces between August 30, 2015 and January 18, 2016.According to the group, the documented statistics available at its disposal clearly indicated that such a massive application of state violence outside local and international norms to violently suppress the pro-Biafran non-violent protests in Nigeria within the afore-mentioned period of less than five months, had led to the gruesome murder by security forces of such a number of Nigerian citizens and Biafran citizens in particular. In a press statement issued yesterday in Onitsha, Anambra state, entitled: Violent Suppression Of Nonviolent Protests In Nigeria: Buhari Must Heed EUs Advice, Intersociety said the murdered victims included four citizens killed in Awka and Onitsha on August 30, 2015; 13 killed in Onitsha on December 2, 2015; 12 killed in Onitsha on December 17, 2015 (eight were killed on the spot and four others died in hospital following gunshot wounds); and eight killed in Aba on January 18, 2016.Indiscriminate killingsThe statement also alleged that scores of innocent citizens have also disappeared in the hands of Nigerian security forces particularly the Nigerian Army and the Nigeria Police Force. Citizens are routinely arrested by police on allegation of being MASSOB or IPOB members and killed secretly and buried in undisclosed shallow graves; likewise those shot and killed by soldiers and police while embarking on peaceful protests. Once their bodies are taken away by their killer security operatives, they will never be accounted for or released to their families for befittingOver 120 citizens were shot and critically injured with gunshots in Delta, Rivers, Anambra, Abia and Enugu States between 30th August 2015 and 18th January 2016. Of these, over 40 citizens were critically shot and injured in Anambra (30thAugust, 2nd and 17th December 2015); 30 in Abia State (18th January 2016 alone), 21 in Rivers State (30th August 2015); 10 in Delta State (30th August 2015) and 6 in Enugu State. These exclude scores of others critically shot and injured in related nonviolent protests in those States as well as Bayelsa State.Among those critically shot and injured in Rivers by Nigerian Army and the Police including their mobile lines are Citizens Sunday Udegbe Nwabunne Udo, Agwasi Anthony, Meshach Emmanuel, Chinwendu Ogbonna, Amanda Onyekachi, Emmanuel Arinze, Okwudiri Ojah, Chibuike David, Uzochi Ugwojialili; Chukwuma Igwe, Kingsley Okere, Chinedu Solomon Iwu, Okon Emmanuel Udo, Kelechi Uwaeze, Uwalaka, Solomon Chikwe, Ikenna Ezekwem, Ubani, Amarachi Onyemachi, and Chukwudi Ofoegbuliwe, In Enugu State, the following were critically shot and injured, Mr. Godswill Ojikeme, Mrs. Chinyere Godswill Ojikeme, Ogbodo Monday, Jonah Kelechi, Onuigbo Paul and Obiorah Innocent.Those gravely shot and wounded in Delta State are: Chinedu Abe, Onovo Michael, Kingsley Anuife, Amechi Ojieh, Ogbonna Kanayo, David Ogbu, Charles Chukwuka, Elochukwu Uzor, Chinedu Chukwuma and Onyekanna Ifechukwude. Those critically shot and injured on 30th August 2015 in Anambra State are: Sampson Kalu, Chidiebere Nnaji Onyekwelu Ovute, Felix Ndianaefo, Ikechukwu Okafor, Chimaobi Okafor, Christopher Oforah, Sunday Nwazugbo, Stanley Eze, Mrs. Eucharia and Mrs. Patricia. Two of the four citizens killed in Awka and Onitsha in the same peaceful protest of 30th August 2015 were Ebuka Nnolum from Enuguabo-Ufuma in Anambra State and Obasi Maduka from Oshiri in Ebonyi State (his brothers number is. In the 2nd and 17thDecember 2015 peaceful protests in Onitsha, over 30 citizens were critically shot and injured, out of whom, 27 citizens were taken and admitted at the Multicare Hospital.Between 300 and 400 citizens or more labeled Biafran or IPOB or MASSOB members had also been arrested, detained, tortured, or killed extra judicially across the country since 30th of August 2015. In the Aba pro Biafran peaceful protest of 18thJanuary 2016 alone, 60 peaceful protesters were arrested and detained. Many are still languishing in pretrial detention; others are facing concocted heinous political crimes charges such as treason and treasonable felony.Heeding EUs adviceOn why Buhari Must Heed EUs advice, the group stated that in the world over, violent suppression of non-violent protests by territorial governments have always boomeranged; leading the suppressed to abandon non-violent approaches and resort to self help or self defense approaches including Most of the ongoing devastating intra State violent conflicts in Africa and the Middle East primarily started as non-violent socio-political or ethno-cultural campaigns, but turned violent on account of the host States repressive and dictatorial responses. A newest case in point is seeming resumption of oil violence in the Niger Delta Region of Nigeria.Consequently, the latest advice handed down to the Government of Muhammadu Buhari by the European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security, Ms Federica Mogherini, is a welcome development, timely and internationally grounded. The EU High Representative had advised Buhari that in as much as, the European Union has strong diplomatic and economic ties with Nigeria, protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms remains a priority for the EU and we encourage the authorities (Nigeria) in every occasion to respect such rights. The EU, on the other hand, advised pro Biafran campaigners and the Organization of Emerging African States (OEAS) that self-determination and border changes must be in accordance with established international law. This followed the OEAS call for an internationally recognized referendum on Biafra independence or autonomy. The EU further advised that it will only recognize a Biafra born via international law and not (through) armed secession (or rebellion).The EUs advice is totally in agreement with our public position on the same issue, to the effect that the Buhari administration must refrain from massive deployment of State violence and use of dark side of the laws of the land as well as levying of political, economic, social, ethnic and cultural wars against members of the Nigerias Igbo and other Southern nationalities. We had also advised the pro Biafran agitators to at all time stick to nonviolent and peaceful approaches and stay away from resorting to violence or armed rebellion. To the best of our knowledge, the agitations and their campaigners have remained nonviolent till date; as opposed to the Buhari administration which had applied and still apply maximum and dreaded State terror in handling the political self determination campaigns.Postponing Biafra electionsMeantime, leader of the Movement for the Actualization of Sovereign States of Biafra, MASSOB, Solomon Chukwu has said that the proposed Biafra elections were postponed due to inadequate preparations as the date drew near.Recall that MASSOB founder, Chief Ralph Uwazurike, had earlier scheduled elections to set up structures for the administration of the Biafran territory and appointed a catholic priest, Rev. Fr. Samuel Aniebonam, as the Chairman of the Biafran Independent Electoral Commission, B-INEC. But Rev.Fr. Aniebonam, has reportedly disassociated himself from the appointment.Chukwu denied reports credited to the Uchenna Madu faction of MASSOB that the elections were put off by Uwazuruike for fear of arrest by security agents over an agreement he allegedly signed with the federal government to abandon the struggle for the actualization of an independent state of Biafra.The MASSOB Leader who spoke through the groups National Director Information, Sunny Okereafor, insisted that Uwazurike did not sign any deal with the federal government including its security agencies over Biafran struggle.According to him, Our leader, Chief Ralph Uwazurike didnt sign any deal with the federal government or its agencies. These are lies from the pit of hell being spread by expelled members like Uchenna Madu and his faction who have continued to sabotage Biafra. Uwazuruike was released from detention and told to go and bury his mother. After burying his mother, he reported back, they asked him to go home that he had no case to answer. Dont be deceived, Biafran elections were postponed indefinitely because of ill preparations, not for fear of arrest of Uwazuruike by anybody. Why would anybody arrest him?To tell you that Uwazurike is not afraid of arrest or detention; the last time he was invited by the Police, he went with mattress, slippers and other personal effects to the Imo state Police Command and even the Zone 9 Police headquarters at Umuahia. The Police people told him that they knew him as a non violent person that he should go home.He insisted that MASSOB under Uwazuruike has held several activities in the last two years without being harassed or invited by security agencies and insisted that the Biafra elections which he claimed, would be held soon, wont be an exception.Anambra Central Senatorial : APC warns against declaration of fake primary resultThe All Progressives Congress (APC) has warned against the declaration of any result from the Anambra Central Senatorial primary election conducted by the party.A statement signed by Mai Mala Buni, National Secretary of the party stated that the All Progressives Congress Senator, Domingo Obende who was duly appointed by the party to conduct the primaries is yet to declare a final result and hence any other result announced from any quarter is null and void.The party therefore urged the media and the general public to await the completion of the exercise.
Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, yesterday called on the Federal Government to stop Chevron and Shell Petroleu...

Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, yesterday called on the Federal Government to stop Chevron and Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC, from extending the planned sack of 18,500 workers globally to Nigeria.NUPENG in a statement by its President, Mr. Igwe Achese, insisted that the union was worried and concerned about the purported sack threat of about 18,500 workers, though, globally in Chevron and Shell, describing the planned sack as alarming.It claimed the planned sack was a sack too many, as oil workers in Chevron Nigeria and Shell would be affected, as the two companies had adduced dwindling oil prices in the international market for the planned sack.According to the statement: NUPENG calls on the federal government to halt the threat of loss of jobs in Nigeria by these multinational companies and wonders why Chevron and Shell should engage in the impending sack, when they have fully divested from on  shore oil fields.It will be morally unjustified for Chevron and Shell to retrench oil workers in Nigeria as they are carting away profits made from deep oil shores and joint venture gas projects.NUPENG condemns in its entirety the impending sack as it will not work with the current efforts of the Buhari administration to generate employment instead of job loses.it will amount to derailing the efforts of the government to provide jobs for Nigerians.It states that the oil giants should cut cost by employing Nigerians in positions where expatriates hold sway and are paid ten times what our people are getting.NUPENG warns that it may be forced to embark on industrial action if the Federal government, through the regulatory agency, NNPC fails to stop Chevron and Shell from sending oil workers in Nigeria to the unemployment market.
The Oyo State Government has announced burial plans for the late Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Samuel Odulana Odugade, who died on Tuesday ...

The Oyo State Government has announced burial plans for the late Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Samuel Odulana Odugade, who died on Tuesday at the age of 101.During the visit of the state Governor Abiola Ajimobi to the Monatan palace of the late monarch on Friday, he said a burial committee that would include the family of the late Olubadan and the Olubadan-in-Council would be constituted and that burial ceremony would begin on February 6.Ajimobi was received into the palace by the Olubadan-in-Council, widow of the late Oba, Olori Morike Odulana, his first son, Prof. Femi Lana and some Ibadan elders.The governor restated that the late king, who ascended the throne in 2007, would be given a befitting state burial. He added that the ceremony would end on February 12 when the remains of the late Olubadan would be committed to mother earth.While paying tribute to the late king, the governor said he contributed immensely to his emergence as the state governor and that he would be remembered for his love and passion for Ibadan as well as his glowing legacy. He also described the late monarch as a patriot, who had contributed immensely to the development of Nigeria, urging those in position of authority to emulate the lifestyle of the late Oba Odulana.He said, He was a good father to all of us. We are happy and sad at the same time. We are happy that he grew old and lived a fruitful life. Olubadan was a disciplinarian and was orderly in his endeavours. He was elegant and he had integrity. Oba Odulana was very predictable and I wish he will be the type we will be having on this throne.He had a mind and heart of assessing peoples credibility. On behalf of the government and good people of Oyo State, we are here to commiserate with you all. Olubadan was an accomplished human being by all standards. Even if its about his age, he was fulfilled and contented with all he had. He was an epitome of patriotism, who was passionate about the progress of Ibadan, the governor added.Ajimobi said the Presidency and all state governors in Nigeria would be informed of the burial arrangement.The Otun Olubadan of Ibadanland, High Chief Lekan Balogun, who responded on behalf of the late Olubadans family and the Olubadan-in-Council, thanked the governor for his visit and decision to give the late king a befitting state burial.He said, We are extremely happy for honouring Olubadan. We are proud to have you as our governor and Kabiyesi will have no regret supporting you to be governor.It was the media that broke the news of Olubadans death, especially on the social media without following protocol. We welcome the expression for your commitment for his burial and we shall also support the state government, he added.
Another storm is about to hit Lebanon this weekend. Its effects will be devastating on the environment and on our health.

Heavy rain and snow mixed with garbage will dramatically increase the pollution of Lebanons soil and water. And ultimately poison everything we eat, drink and wash.









 Claude El Khal, 2016



ALSO READ: "They think we're blind"

Is there still any need to stress on how dangerous the sanitary situation is and on how big the risks on our health are? The World Health Organization has even recently issued a warning to Lebanon... a carcinogen is a substance directly involved in causing cancer. a respiratory virus derived from the common cold that can be fatal when it comes to pneumonia. over 15 deaths have been reported in the past weeks. especially in refugee camps where sanitary conditions are catastrophic.We cant anymore afford childish rhetoric, empty speeches and counter-productive stunts. The you do nothing while we take risks lie is no longer acceptable. If you close your eyes and run on a highway while shouting I want a solution to the garbage crisis youre taking a huge risk. But its as stupid as its inefficient.We need practical and urgent solutions. The so-called exportation solution  exporting Lebanons garbage to another country  has proven to be yet another way for some to make money. And, ironically, it carries more problems than solutions: the only garbage that are fit to export under international standards is the new garbage, not the hundred of tons rotting everywhere for the past 7 monthsIn that regard, the Chehayeb plan  called after agriculture minister, now in charge of the garbage file, Akram Chehayeb  as imperfect as it may be, offers the best solution to date. Time for debating is over and idealistic solutions are in effect the same as no solution at all.First and foremost understand that Lebanon is not divided anymore between March8 and March14, between Christians and Muslims or Sunni and Shia. Today, Lebanon is divided between those who genuinely want a solution to the garbage crisis and those who want to profit from it (financially, politically or for some illusive claim for fame.)(broadcast, print and online) need to make it their main headline every day until the crisis is over. But denouncing is not enough. Media have to play a crucial role in naming and shaming whoever is blocking and sabotaging the solution to the crisis.need to take a clear stance on the garbage crisis resolution and actively work to make it happen. Their supporters and followers need to push them to do so, under the threat of not voting for them in the next local and national elections.along withactivists and groups (whatever their mission statements) need to put all their own projects on hold and focus solely on the garbage crisis. Theyd need to meet ASAP in a national conference to unite their stance and their actions in a clear and detailed roadmap. Whoever refuses to join should be named and shamed by all the others.- The, as inefficient and divided as it may be, needs to enforce the ban on burning garbage and arrest anyone who does, be it a politician or a simple citizen. Burning tires will also need to be banned  its as dangerous to our health, if not more, as burning garbage.- As for, whatever their religion, sect and political opinions they need to organize in sanitary committees in villages and cities (in cities, they should organize by small areas (7ay)  in Beirut, for the Ashrafieh region for example, committees should be created in Fassouh, Chahrouri, Getawi, Sodeco, Sioufi, etc.) These committees will assist the security forces in enforcing the ban on burning garbage and hold daily peaceful protests to pressure both political establishment and local authorities. In so many words: create a de facto sanitary insurrection.- On the international level, the(perhaps one of the most influential in the world) needs to work through the United Nation to list the Lebanese garbage crisis as a crime against humanity: over 6 million people (4.3 million Lebanese and 2 million refugees) are being knowingly poisoned. Anyone blocking the solution should face international sanctions (freeze of financial assets, arrest if he or she travels, etc.)If we fail to do that, we will only have ourselves to blame and will be forced to declare Lebanon a failed state with a failed people.No one in his or her right mind would want that. So lets get to work, shall we?
The federal government plans to pour $125 million into the fight against a mysterious disease that has ravaged corals in Florida and much of the Caribbean, and now poses a dire threat to the treasured reefs off the Louisiana and Texas coasts.
WASHINGTON (AP)  The House Jan. 6 committee plans to unveil "surprising" details at its next public hearing about the 2021 attack at the U.S. Capitol. The session Thursday afternoon is likely to be the last public hearing before midterm elections next month. The panel is expected to include new evidence from the U.S. Secret Service about its actions with Donald Trump that day. Ahead of a report later this year, the panel is summing up its findings. The committee says Trump, after he lost the 2020 presidential election, launched an unprecedented attempt to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden's victory. They say the result was the deadly mob siege of the Capitol.
Omaha National Cemetery Director Cindy Van Bibber will host an orientation meeting Friday in Bellevue, Nebraska, for veterans and other interested people who would like to serve on a support committee for the new cemetery.

The purpose of the support committee will be to help the cemetery achieve the status of national shrine through beautification efforts, according to a press release from the Department of Veterans Affairs. The committee also will help plan and conduct major ceremonies and special events at the cemetery.

The meeting will be held at 2 p.m. Friday at the Bellevue University Veterans Services Center, 2108 Harvell Circle.

Omaha National Cemetery is under construction at Highway 50 and Schram Road in western Sarpy County. The first phase of construction will develop 5,000 gravesites on 35 acres and include an assembly area, memorial walkway, committal shelters, public information center and several buildings.

When it is complete, the cemetery will encompass 235 acres with space for 112,000 gravesites. It serves veterans from western Iowa and eastern Nebraska.

 Steve Liewer, BH Media News Service
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Welcoming party for Syrian families

The Qarqouz and Alzahran families received a warm welcome from the Sudbury Multicultural and Folk Arts Association on Jan. 21 at the Sudbury YMCA.

The Qarquoz and Alzahran families received a warm welcome from the Sudbury Multicultural and Folk Arts Association on Jan. 21 at the Sudbury YMCA. Photo: Matt Durnan

The Qarqouz and Alzahran families received a warm welcome from the Sudbury Multicultural and Folk Arts Association on Jan. 21 at the Sudbury YMCA.



Both of the Syrian refugee families arrived in Sudbury in the last month and have been overjoyed by the open arms with which they have been received into the community.



Thank you very much to every person who has told us that we are welcome here in Canada, said Hakim Alzahran, through translator Maha Dabliz.



When we left Syria our family and our friends were crying but I called them recently and told them that we are in good hands.



The families were welcomed by not only the Multicultural Association but a number of politicians, including Nickel Belt MPP France Gelinas, Sudbury MPP Glenn Thibeault and Sudbury MP Paul Lefebvre.



I'm proud to be part of the Trudeau government that made it possible for these families to come here, said Lefebvre. We're continuing to work on bringing more families to Canada.



Laughs were shared during the greetings given by both Thibeault and Joanne Ross, making light of the childrens' eagerness to get involved in everything they could.



Ross, who speaks for the group at St. Andrew's United Church that sponsored the Qarqouz family of five to come here almost didn't get to the microphone as she was tending to a nearly embarrassing situation for young Nabil Qarqouz.



He (Nabil) saw the pool and he decided that he wants to go swimming but doesn't have a bathing suit, said Ross. As I was telling him that he started undoing his pants and was ready to go, I had to stop him before he got undressed.



Thibeault made note of one of the youngest members of the Alzahran family who chose to wear his Toronto Maple Leafs sweater to the reception, and received the thumbs up from the MP.



He's only been here for a couple of weeks and he's already figured out the right team, said Thibeault. If anyone tells you (to cheer for) the Montreal Canadiens you tell them no and show them your Leafs shirt.



Sudbury Multicultural and Folk Arts Association president Dr. Remi Ogundimu thanked the families for coming to Canada and Sudbury in particular.



Sudbury expresses the mosaic nature of Canada and we are delighted to have you in our community, said Ogundimu.



We realize it has been a long journey for you to get here and we are happy to welcome you.
Janice Martell hadnt even heard of McIntyre Powder until a few years ago.

Janice Martell hadnt even heard of McIntyre Powder until a few years ago.



Then someone suggested her father, Jim Hobbs  who had been diagnosed with Parkinsons disease after three decades of working in nickel and uranium mines  could be eligible for compensation.



She began to research. And what she discovered was a revelation.



Between 1943 and 1979, underground miners working at operations in Canada and around the world were mandated to inhale fine aluminum dust  called McIntyre Powder by the mining executives who established the practice  at the start of every shift, and cough it up before heading home.



Facing high rates of health claims from miners, executives thought the powder would coat the lungs, working as a preventive measure against silicosis, a respiratory disease caused by breathing in fine silica particles.



Early medical research showed a possible link to neurotoxicity, and the practice was abandoned.



Jim Hobbs had been required to inhale the powder while working at the Quirke II uranium mine in Elliot Lake.



Martell was incredulous.



Im a miners daughter and I didnt know that it happened until four years ago, she said. Our dads are stoic; they dont talk about these things. They go in, they do their job, they come home, they feed their families. Thats what they did.



A 2013 study out of Western Australia showed that, not only did McIntyre Powder not prevent silicosis, but those who had inhaled it actually had a higher potential for developing serious chronic illnesses, such as Alzheimers disease, stroke, and cardiovascular diseases.



Other research Martell found from the 1990s showed that miners who had been exposed to aluminum dust fared worse on cognitive tests than those who had not been exposed, and the longer the miners had been exposed to the dust, the worse their test results.



The McIntyre Powder dissemination program was developed by mining executives with help from the Ontario Department of Health (now the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care) and the Workers Compensation Board of Ontario (now the Workplace Safety and Insurance BoardWSIB). Yet attempts by workers to receive compensation have been spotty at best, said Martell.



Her own attempt to file a WSIB claim on her dads behalf was unsuccessful, but she wasnt deterred. Instead, she started what she calls a justice project, documenting and cataloguing the names, stories and health details of miners who inhaled McIntyre Powder.



Its unbelievable to me that the people who made these decisions to initiate this are not being held responsible in any way to follow up, Martell said.



This was not an inherent working condition in the mines; this was something that was introduced by mining executives who were facing high compensation costs for silicosis claims.



Travelling the North, Martell has, to date, compiled 131 names on a voluntary registry of miners, some of whom are deceased and have been added by relatives seeking answers. Some families have added generations of miners to the list.



The response has both surprised and uplifted her.



I wasnt quite sure what to expect when I started, other than I needed to try, Martell said. I felt like I needed to put it out there and, in my heart of hearts, I knew there were people out there that had the same concerns and that there were health issues.



Recently, she has teamed up with Calvin Hinds at the Occupational Health Clinic for Ontario Workers to help with intake information, and Will Hamilton, an amateur historian who will continue documenting miners stories.



The health of her own father, who was diagnosed with Parkinsons in 2001, is deteriorating rapidly, and Martell recognizes that the illness will one day claim his life. But she soldiers on.



I just wasnt content to let my dad die and not do something. Im not OK with that, said Martell, her voice breaking.



He has a neurological degenerative disorder, and hes not going to get better. Hes going to die from this, and Im helpless to stop it. But I can do this at least, so thats what Im doing.



Martell and her team, in conjunction with the United Steel Workers, are now planning an intake clinic to be held in Timmins in May. It will involve a more detailed and in-depth review of the health issues of miners who were exposed to the powder.



Martells aim is multi-faceted: she wants to raise awareness about the issue, create a critical mass of information that will form a foundation for further medical studies, and get compensation for miners.



But she also believes more resources should be available for in-home support.



Martell has taken a leave from her full-time job in social services to provide her family with home-care support, and she spends any spare time working on the McIntyre Powder Project.



That WSIB support isnt available to these miners is incomprehensible, she contends, and she vows to continue her campaign for recognition.



I think they would be wise not to underestimate my ability to fight.



QuikFAX:



-McIntyre Powder got its name from McIntyre Mine in Schumacher where it was developed.

-The practice of inhaling aluminum powder as a preventive measure was adopted at mines in Canada, the U.S., Belgian Congo, Western Australia, and Mexico.

-McIntyre Powder was dispensed through a compressed air system in mine drys. Ventilation would be turned off while miners inhaled the powder en masse. The practice was made mandatory and conducted without medical supervision or the consent of the miners.

-Its estimated tens of thousands of miners were exposed over the 36-year run of the program.

More info at: www.mcintyrepowderproject.com.
CROWN POINT  The Regional Development Authority entered 2016 with a mandate to focus on transportation and the Lake Michigan shoreline, and a shift away from the general economic development projects that were part of its original mission.

"We have a slightly different focus than we have in the past," President and CEO Bill Hanna said at the RDA board's first meeting of the year Thursday.

The South Shore commuter rail line, the Gary/Chicago International Airport and Lake Michigan shoreline improvement projects will be the RDA's focus, as mandated by the state legislature when it reauthorized the RDA last year.

"It's going to be a lot more predictable," President and CEO Bill Hanna said of RDA projects, which in the past included grants from a "deal-closing fund" to help bring businesses to Northwest Indiana, as well as grants to communities to assist in economic development projects.

The RDA's South Shore work will include participation in the completion of a draft Environmental Impact Statement for the West Lake Corridor project, which will take the South Shore train line south from Hammond to Dyer.

The West Lake extension "will have really an explosive effect on the communities in terms of investment," Hanna said.

Hanna said the RDA also will work with the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District to find a funding solution for the "double-tracking" project, which will add a parallel track where the South Shore line lacks one.

That will be a $210 million project, Hanna said, with half provided by the federal government and half locally.

"I think the state understands the importance of it," Hanna said. "We're heading toward being a lot more competitive with the Illinois suburbs."

The RDA will also work with the Gary/Chicago International Airport on its continued development, and on helping lakeshore communities improve portions of the lakeshore, as it is with East Chicago on its Jeorse Beach project.

Those "quality of place" projects and the transportation projects reinforce one another, Hanna argued.

"Our bend toward transportation connectivity is going to take it to the next level," he said.

Thursday's meeting was the first for new board member Tom Golab, a Portage resident appointed to the board by Gov. Mike Pence. The meeting also saw the reappointment of Donald Fesko as chairman, and the appointments of Bill Joiner as vice chairman and Christopher Campbell as treasurer.
INDIANAPOLIS  The state's high court has ruled police officers in Indiana can open all items found on a person who is under arrest  regardless of an item's size, connection to criminal activity or inability to endanger officer safety.

In a 5-0 decision, the Indiana Supreme Court reversed a Feb. 3, 2015 Court of Appeals ruling that limited police search power, and reinstated the Class D felony conviction of an Indianapolis man, Antonio Garcia, for possession of a controlled substance.

Garcia was stopped by police Aug. 6, 2012 for driving without headlights at dusk and failing to signal a lane change. He later was put under arrest for driving without a license.

During a pat-down following Garcia's arrest, an officer found a small metallic cylinder in Garcia's left front pants pocket.

The officer opened the container and recognized the pill inside as a narcotic pain reliever for which Garcia did not have a prescription.

Garcia was convicted of driving without a license and possession of a controlled substance. He served four days in the Marion County Jail.

The Court of Appeals, however, concluded the officer's opening of the pill container without a warrant violated Garcia's rights under Indiana's Constitution, as the officer had no reason to believe the small cylinder threatened police safety or held illegal substances.

Justice Stephen David, writing for the Supreme Court, said both federal and state precedents give police wide latitude to search the person and possessions of an individual following a lawful arrest.

In Garcia's case, opening the pill container did not violate his rights, and did not require a warrant, because the search was conducted as part of the arrest process, David said. Moreover, he insisted, officer safety always is a concern.

"Small and seemingly innocuous items have the potential to pose a threat," David said. "We see no reason to delay the officer's ability to inspect such items once they have already been lawfully seized."

Justice Robert Rucker, a Gary native, did not sign-on to David's reasoning but said he concurred with the result.
SPRINGFIELD  Two central Illinois Republicans are renewing efforts to require photos on the cards issued to recipients of federal food assistance.

State Reps. Bill Mitchell, of Forsyth, and Adam Brown, of Champaign, say theyve heard from constituents about widespread abuse in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, including recipients selling their state-issued Link cards.

Working people are just sick and tired of the fraud and abuse thats happening, Mitchell said.

Brown said he often hears from constituents who have seen Link cards for sale online.

We have a finite amount of cash here in the state of Illinois, and we have a responsibility to take care of the most vulnerable folks among us, he said. And when you see waste like this  that creates further strain on our social programs, which are severely underfunded.

Mitchell and Brown introduced separate bills, but both would require the name and photo of the primary benefit recipient appear on Link cards issued by the Illinois Department of Human Services. The cardholder would be able to add the names of secondary users, who would be allowed to use the cards by showing a photo ID.

Such proposals have been a perennial issue for the past five years. When similar legislation was introduced in 2011, it was estimated implementation would cost $2 million to $4 million.

Mitchell and Brown said the cost would be minor compared with the savings from cutting down on fraud.

It would be hard to imagine why someone would oppose this, Mitchell said.

Dan Lesser, director of economic justice at the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law in Chicago, said there are many reasons.

For example, it would prevent a parent from sending a child who doesnt have a photo ID to the corner store to pick up a gallon of milk, he said.

The federal government requires that benefit recipients be treated the same as other customers, Lesser said, so the proposals could have the unintended consequence of requiring retailers to ask anyone who uses a debit or credit card for photo ID.

He also noted that, according to the federal government, the fraud rate in the program is about 1 percent.

This is just knee-jerk, Lesser said. Its not productive. It would not accomplish anything.
LANSING  Officials verbally sparred over government pay rates recently at Lansings Village Board meeting.

Village President Norm Abbott and the board have discussed compensation for months, including making the presidents position full time and raising the salary. Abbott wants to link any modifications to the village presidents compensation to lowering trustees' pay.

By state statute, sitting village officials could not raise or lower their compensation during their current term in office. As a result, any salary ordinance wouldnt go into effect until after the next election in April 2017.

Only Trustees Patty Eidam and Mike Manno, who are in their first terms, would be subject to any compensation changes. Abbott and the rest of the board will not be affected because of term limits. Trustee would be eligible to run for village president, however.

Abbotts current salary is $10,000 plus an additional $5,000 for being liquor commissioner.

Each of the trustees were asked to contact Village Attorney Tim Lapp in November with suggestions for the village presidents salary if the position were made full time. The average of those suggestions was $57,000, Lapp said. Abbott said $57,000 is too much to pay a mayor for a village the size of Lansing, suggesting a salary closer to $35,000 and keeping the position part time.

A vote was expected in December but never came.

Trustee Tony DeLaurentis accused Abbott of using stall tactics to delay bringing the issue before the board. He asked for the village presidents salary to be put up for a vote at the Feb. 2 meeting.

(Trustee pay) was not part of the discussion that we had, DeLaurentis said. I want to let you know right now, Im one out of this board that is not willing to give up anything for the trustees, that they are receiving right now.

I think its ludicrous for you to sit there and say that were being paid too much and the salaries should be lessened. We are not Donald Trumps and we are not in your position where we can spend money whichever way we want.

Trustee Mikal Stole said the board should move forward with the village presidents salary without addressing compensation for board members.

Im willing to discuss the trustees salaries, but I dont see any reason why we should delay any more, Stole said. For the sake of the just getting things off of the docket, lets get that off the docket. If we decide to change the trustees salaries, we can always make another ordinance to change that.

We dont have to pass this thing until September of this year, Abbott said. I dont know what the big rush is to change the mayors salary.

The issue of the village presidents salary was first raised by Eidam in October. At the time, Abbott provided a list of board member salaries from surrounding towns via the South Suburban Mayors and Managers Association. Eidam said the numbers on that document were outdated.

Abbott offered an updated list Tuesday.

The new list, dated November 2015, lists compensation for trustees, councilmen and aldermen in 19 of the 43 SSMMA member municipalities. Those towns pay board members an average of $6,718 per year. Sauk Village pays $125 per meeting and Glenwood pays $250 per meeting.

Lansing trustees are paid $13,000 per year, which would make it third highest on the list.

Our trustees are being paid, basically, twice as much as what other villages pay, Abbott said. If you dont want to lower your salary to the same as other villages, I would say shame on you.
NEWTON TOWNSHIP  Indiana State Police are asking for the public's help in finding a semi involved in a hit-and-run with a pedestrian on Interstate 65 that left a man dead.

Mark Tobiasz, 58, of St. Charles, Missouri, was pronounced dead at the scene. The cause of death was listed as blunt force trauma suffered in a motor vehicle accident, police said.

Troopers were called at 5:28 a.m. to southbound Interstate 65 at the 208 mile marker for a report of someone walking on the interstate.

Before police could arrive to the area, which is about 3 miles north of the Rensselaer/Remington exit, two other calls came in from drivers reporting a person lying on the site of the road there.

Troopers found Tobiasz on the shoulder and believed he had been hit by a vehicle. He was pronounced dead at the scene by Jasper County Coroner's officials.

Police found an abandoned 2004 Honda Accord, which had run out of gas, on northbound Interstate 65 at the 209 mile marker which belonged to Tobiasz.

Troopers recovered auto parts at the scene and believe a Kenworth or Freightliner semi hit Tobiasz before fleeing the scene.

State police are asking anyone with information about the incident to contact Detective Sgt. Rick Strong at (219) 696-6242.
CROWN POINT  A 34-year-old man who admitted to molesting a girl was sentenced Thursday to 19 years in prison.

William E. Strang, of Burbank, Ill., pleaded guilty to child molesting, a Class B felony. He had originally faced a higher felony level of the charge.

Strang admitted to forcing the girl to do sexual acts when she was 5 to 7 years old at a Hobart home, according to court records. It's estimated Strang molested the girl six to 10 times.

Defense attorney Kerry Connor said it was likely the girl was sexually abused by other men that a woman brought to the Hobart home.

Connor said her client had used drugs since he was 13. She said his family had been concerned about his drug addiction problem for some time before the allegations arose.

She said her client takes responsibility for his conduct that put the girl in a "horrific" situation, pointing out his cooperation with the state.

He has spent nearly four years in Lake County Jail while his case was pending, attending a religious program to help him work through what happened.

Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Judith Massa said police began investigating the couple after the girl began doing inappropriate things with other children.

Massa said Strang was in a position of trust in the girl's life, and another small child witnessed some of the incidents.

According to court records, the girl was removed from the home in March 2010 by the Indiana Department of Child Protective Services.

Massa also argued an aggravating factor in the case is the multiple sexual partners of the adults who were sexually abusing the girl. She said that could have put the girl at risk to contract a sexually transmitted disease such as HIV.

Strang's co-defendant, Rebecca S. Hristodoulou, still has pending felony charges in Lake County Criminal Court. Her case is one of the reasons why Strang's case also has been pending since 2012.

Hristodoulou is in the Evansville area confined to an assisted home for alleged medical issues, Massa said.

Connor and Massa said Strang was prepared to testify about what happened to the girl whenever Hristodoulou's case goes to trial.

Strang did not say anything during Thursday's hearing.

Lake Criminal Judge Clarence Murray said the nature and circumstances of the crime were strong aggravating factors in the case that led him to hand down the 19-year sentence. He noted the girl had become a victim of sex trafficking.

He described Strang's behavior while the molestation was taking place as the, "worst of the worst."

Commenting on the length of time Strang had been in the jail, Murray strongly noted his displeasure with last week's media coverage of another sentencing hearing in his courtroom involving a woman who had also spent about four years in jail.

In that unrelated case, Maya Willis had spent so much time in jail without a trial, that she was released in 2014, because of Indiana's rule of criminal procedure.

Willis, who had been accused of killing her daughter, pleaded guilty to neglect of a dependent. She was sentenced to eight years in prison, but she was discharged because she had accumulated enough credit days to have served the sentence.

Murray noted at that sentencing that it was brutal for defendants to spend four years in jail, because that facility did not have the types of programs that are offered to offenders in prison.
INDIANAPOLIS  An Indiana State Board of Education member expressed concern about the lack of heat at Gary Roosevelt College and Career Academy causing 670 students to miss school this week.

Eddie Melton, of Merrillville, a new member to the board, said every Hoosier student has the right to a quality education in a suitable learning environment.

"The ongoing situation involving lack of heat and adequate facilities at Roosevelt is extremely troubling," he said in a statement released Thursday by the State Board of Education's office.

"This simply cannot continue," Melton said. Melton also is a NIPSCO manager of governmental and community relations.

"I am in communication with Dr. Cheryl Pruitt (Gary school corporation superintendent) and have been assured the school will be ready to reopen sometime next week. I also stand willing to work with all parties, including the State Board of Education and state lawmakers, to ensure the best interests of Roosevelt staff and students are met moving forward.

Melton, a Democrat, is seeking the state Senate seat held by Earline Rogers, who is not seeking re-election.

The school is not scheduled to reopen until Jan. 27.

Gary Roosevelt is operated by Tennessee-based EdisonLearning Co., a private management company appointed by the state about five years ago due to poor academic performance under the Gary Community School Corp.

The Gary school system still owns the building, and EdisonLearning is considered a tenant.

Gary Community Schools Corp. Superintendent Cheryl Pruitt said they don't manage the day-to-day operation of the school. She said the school corporation is willing to assist if there are things that need to be done. She said some sections of the building are closed off.

"That building has more than 407,000 square feet and sits on 17 acres, and they have fewer than 700 students," she said.

"The building was built for 4,000 students. It's a matter of figuring out what parts of the building are being used. I can't speak to the day-to-day operation of that building."

She said the district tries to ensure all children are served properly, but "there are also financial issues with the district."

Pruitt said traditional public schools, charter schools and others are facing issues, but she is willing to work with EdisonLearning to find solutions.

EdisonLearning spokesman Mike Serpe said the school was not scheduled to be open Thursday and Friday due to teacher development, and the staff and teachers were not at the building. He said the Gary school district contracted with Artic Engineering to do the heating repairs, and they hope to reopen Jan. 27.

A statement was posted on the school's website that read: "The Gary Community School Corp. has assured us that they are giving this matter the serious and urgent attention it deserves.

Parents are concerned. Elliott Carswell has a sophomore daughter, who told him they sit in classrooms with their coats on because it's so cold inside.

"It's getting to the point of being ridiculous with kids missing so many days of school," he said.

Carswell said he and his wife are discussing whether to transfer her to another school for the next academic year.

Grandparent Madeline Williams said she thinks the situation is terrible. Williams, who has two grandchildren at the school, said, "I don't know who is responsible, but this is happening every winter.

"I passed the kids outside protesting, and I told them to keep fighting because the adults are not doing what they are supposed to do. When the grownups don't do what they are supposed to do, the kids have to fight for themselves," she said.

Roosevelt senior Cary Martin said Wednesday there are many problems besides the cold building, including an inability to use the showers in the gym area, spoiled food and few working water fountains.

"Some of my colleagues and friends stink after gym class, because they can't wash up," he said.

Gary Roosevelt students and teachers protested the frigid temps inside the building earlier this week. Every year, there have been problems with the boiler system, and students have lost multiple days of learning.

In January 2014, due to the heating failures, a number of pipes burst causing the hallways near the gym to flood with up to 2 inches of water. In June 2014, Indiana American Water Co. turned off the water due to a lack of payment on the bill.
HAMMOND  Describing the man who shot and killed a Hammond store clerk as an "animalistic predator," Hammond Police Chief John Doughty announced Friday a $10,000 reward was being offered in connection with Wednesday's crime.

Roger Unton, 60, of Blue Island, Ill., was shot twice during the attempted robbery at about 4:20 a.m. that day at the 7-Eleven store at 6031 Hohman Ave., according to police.

He was taken to Franciscan St. Margaret Health Hospital in Hammond where he was pronounced dead at 5:08 a.m. Wednesday.

The suspected shooter is described as a tall, thin black man wearing a black wig.

Doughty in a news release said it was a "senseless crime" committed against a man who was a career employee of the business.

"The victim was shot fatally after the offender became angry because a panic alarm button was pushed," Doughty said. "Roger Unton was executed by an animalistic predator who clearly has no value for human life. The Hammond Police Department is utilizing every resource available to locate and arrest this individual."

According to Doughty, 7-Eleven is offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the man. Anyone with information is asked to call Hammond Police Detective John Suarez at (219) 384-6207 or (219) 852-2981.

Doughty said the police department recovered a wig near the scene of the crime which has been submitted to the Indiana State Police lab for DNA analysis. The department also is being assisted by the FBI/GRIT Task Force in the investigation.
CROWN POINT  The trial of a Chesterton man accused of driving drunk and causing a fatal crash was vacated Thursday because of a lengthy hearing challenging the procedures of the laboratory that tested his blood alcohol content.

Michael T. Knezevich, 29, was scheduled to stand trial next week, but attorneys for the state and defense will instead return to Lake County Criminal Judge Samuel Cappas' courtroom Monday to continue the hearing.

Defense attorneys Paul Stracci and Michael Woods are challenging whether information surrounding Knezevich's blood alcohol content should be allowed at trial. Thursday's hearing marked the second lengthy hearing questioning the laboratory's procedures when the test was done.

Knezevich is accused of causing a three-vehicle crash Sept. 15, 2012, in the area of U.S. 41 and 109th Avenue. Sandra Marvel, 66, of St. John, was a passenger in one of the cars and was killed in the crash.

A test determined Knezevich's blood alcohol content was 0.271, according to court records. The legal limit in the state is 0.08.

He faces charges of reckless homicide, operating a vehicle while intoxicated causing death, causing serious bodily injury when operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated and operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol content of over 0.15.

Thursday's hearing focused on Victoria Fortier who is the manager for the Alverno laboratory at Franciscan St. Anthony Health in Crown Point.

Fortier explained that she wrote the protocols that were previously referenced in Tuesday's hearing by the defense. In those documents, it instructs workers to use a yellow-top tube when performing tests for blood alcohol content.

Previous testimony indicated a gold-top tube was used to test Knezevich's blood. Fortier said though she wrote yellow, she meant for workers to use the gold-top tube.

Under questioning by Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Mark Watson, Fortier said it's their policy to try to get the tests done within an hour if the requests come from the emergency room, as it was in Knezevich's case.

She said she was familiar with manufacturer recommendations for samples to be clotted for at least 30 minutes before testing, but she said that wasn't done to expedite the results.

The laboratory typically performs testing on 200 to 250 samples daily.

Since 2012, she said the laboratory has changed the type of tube that is used where the blood no longer has to be clotted.

On Tuesday, the defense questioned how the results were returned so quickly. According to previous testimony, the laboratory received the sample at 8:11 p.m. and had completed testing by 8:18 p.m., though a technician testified the test alone took 20 to 30 minutes.

Woods questioned Fortier about discrepancies in paperwork that, in some, indicate that a second sample had been given to an officer. Fortier said the signature indicating a second sample was given to an officer could have been someone signing in the wrong area.
A man was arrested Thursday in connection with the homicides of a 23-year-old Lake Central High School graduate and a 38-year-old man Tuesday in Manatee County, Fla.

Dwayne E. Cummings, 38, was charged with two counts of armed kidnapping in the deaths of Jordan Finlon, 23, and Karl Tuxford, said Dave Bristow, spokesman for the Manatee County Sheriff's Office. Murder charges against Cummings were pending.

A second man wanted for questioning also was arrested Thursday, but he has not been charged in connection with the homicides, Bristow said. The investigation is ongoing.

The deaths of Finlon and Tuxford appear to be drug-related, police said.

Finlon, of Bradenton, Fla., was a 2011 graduate of Lake Central High School and a native of Crown Point, a Facebook page indicates.

Tuxford was found shot to death Tuesday afternoon in his vehicle in the 1100 block of Eighth Avenue East in Bradenton, according to a sheriff's office news release.

Finlon was found dead about 1:30 p.m. Tuesday on the side of Bishop Harbor Road in northern Manatee County, Bristow said.

An autopsy to determine Finlon's cause of death was scheduled for Wednesday but the results were not being released, he said.

Finlon's last public Facebook post Jan. 13 suggested she had fallen on hard times.

The post reads she had nowhere to stay for the night, and that her boyfriend was in jail on a theft charge.

The Facebook thread said she was trying to get into a drug treatment and rehabilitation center Jan. 14, but that the intake process was lengthy.
LAPORTE  Gift cards aren't activated until purchased, but identity thieves can steal and convert the cards into tools for tapping into your bank account.

Police across the Region say technology allows thieves to put bank account and credit card information on the magnetic strips of gift cards, which turns them into counterfeit credit cards to make purchases with a simple swipe.

Kerry Padgett-Nichols, 19, of Detroit, and two other men were suspected of stealing gift cards Dec. 8 at LaPorte's Kmart.

Police said Padgett-Nicholas was chased through the store and during a struggle, punched and reached for the weapon of an officer.

Padgett-Nichols is charged in LaPorte Circuit Court with battery, resisting law enforcement and disorderly conduct.

He had numerous gift cards in his possession that police believe he shoplifted. Two other men with him fled, police said.

Indiana State Police Detective Sgt. Al Williamson, of the Lowell post, said three people heading from Indianapolis to Chicago during a traffic stop were found with $50,000 worth of stolen gift cards about two years ago.

It's believed they were planning to sell the gift cards for use in some type of fraudulent activity.

He said gift cards also are purchased with stolen credit cards, then activated by unsuspecting store clerks, which allows them to be used for making seemingly legitimate purchases in the stores.

There also have been cases where store clerks work with thieves in activating cards without their being purchased.

"It's part of the electronic age," Williamson said.

Small test purchases

LaPorte County Sheriff John Boyd said his department has not investigated reports of counterfeit cards made locally. But they have found phony cards made elsewhere in the possession of shoplifting suspects who were part of a major ring.

He said those cards contained bank account information of people "from throughout the United States."

"The victims will say, 'How can that be? Because I still have my credit card on my possession, and it's never left my possession,'" Boyd said.

He said some of the fraudulent cards are used by people swiping them at gas stations near interstates to perform tests making sure a new counterfeit card works before moving on to make much larger buys.

"They've left before anybody realizes it was a fraudulent card being used," Boyd said.

Indiana State Police Detective Alan Lowrance, of the Bremen post, said he was a trooper when he stopped a man more than a decade ago on U.S. 30 in Koscuisko County.

Not only did he have numerous blank cards, but he also had the device used to transfer bank information onto the magnetic strips, he said.

'Not hard to do'

Lowrance said hotel key cards also can be converted into bogus credit cards.

"I know if you got the equipment you can turn it into anything you want, if you have the number. It's really not that hard to do," Lowrance said.

Counterfeit credit cards have turned up in Lake and Porter counties where their use is more prevalent at some of the major retail developments like Southlake Mall, authorities said.

Lake County Sheriff's Detective Sgt. Ryan Remenius recalled a recent traffic stop when a Chicago man was arrested after officers found nearly 30 stolen reprogrammed gift cards in his car.

"Every single one of them had been re-coded," Remenius said.

Remenius said some drug dealers will have money placed on fraudulent cards to use for expenditures instead of carrying large sums of cash.

Porter County Sheriff's Cmdr. Eric Jones said his office investigated a case last year when a group came through working a scam.

"I don't want to say it's super common, but it's common," Jones said.
VALPARAISO  A 36-year-old Portage man is accused of having sex with an underage girl.

Taliaferro Buckingham, of the 1000 block of Camelot Manor, is charged with three felony counts of sexual misconduct with a minor. He had not been arrested as of Friday morning.

The girl, who is a teenager, told police the abuse took place last month, saying Buckingham had sex with her four or five times.

Buckingham is accused of telling the girl not to say anything about the sexual encounters or write anything about it in her journal.

Buckingham repeatedly denied the accusations, but wavered during questioning between saying that sex offenders should be harmed and that they should be given help and a second chance, police said.
HAMMOND  A rural Valparaiso man cannot withdraw his plead to child pornography charges, a federal judge ruled Thursday.

Brian A. Reider argued, in part, that the judge failed to inform him the sentences on the two counts to which he admitted could run consecutively, according to U.S. District Court records.

Judge James Moody wrote in an opinion and order that Reider was properly advised of the maximum sentences on each count and that an advisement about consecutive sentences was not required.

Reider also alleged the government gave up little in exchange for his pleas and that he wasn't on proper medications to address his psychological issues during his plea hearing.

Moody said promises made by the U.S. attorney's office in exchange for Reider's plea were sufficient. Federal prosecutors agreed to dismiss one charge, not bring additional charges, recommend a sentencing reduction for his cooperation and more.

While Reider appeared to understand proceedings at his plea hearing, Moody took Reider's argument about not being on proper medication seriously, the judge wrote.

However, Reider failed to present an affidavit of a qualified psychiatrist, a requirement to make a case for being permitted to withdraw a guilty plea.

Moody said without "the bare minimum of evidence," he was denying Reider's motion at this time.

Reider, who is being held at the Metropolitian Correctional Center in Chicago, initially was charged in May 2011 in a complaint alleging he produced and distributed graphic videos and images of sex between boys ages 9 and 14. He pleaded guilty in April 2012.
Earlier this month, our Region received a sobering reminder of the poverty and need that exists all around us.

It's a problem that doesn't observe the imaginary boundaries of our municipal and county lines.

More than 100 Valparaiso Community Schools students have been counted as homeless, meaning they lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence, according to the school district.

Valpo schools performed the count in concert with the Porter County Coalition for Affordable Housing to get a more accurate count than those provided by the state's annual homeless census.

It's a sobering reminder that homelessness and other need is a problem in communities regularly associated with affluence, not just our urban core. The numbers also serve notice that hardworking parents struggle every day in our Region to provide for their families, often with few public resources at their disposal.

The school district acknowledges that some of the students listed as homeless could actually be staying at another residence within the school district to attend school there. But that can't explain all of the numbers.

The Valparaiso figures reflect what federal poverty statistics already told us about our Region.

In 2014, The Times published an investigative special section, detailing "The Price of Poverty" in Northwest Indiana.

Though heaviest in Lake County's northern urban core, poverty also exists in high percentages in some parts of Porter and LaPorte counties, census data culled in the investigation revealed.

In all, 13 cities and towns spanning the three counties had higher percentages of poverty than the nation as a whole.

Valparaiso was among those 13 municipalities, with 16.2 percent of its residents living in poverty, compared to 15 percent nationwide.

Those numbers don't take into account the many families teetering on the edge of financial disaster  the working poor not eligible for many social services but barely able to make ends meet.

The bad news is this problem belongs to all of us. The good news is common problems present opportunities for collaboration to seek common solutions.

These numbers should provide a starting point for that conversation  a place where urban, suburban and rural leaders can find common ground.
The Queens borough president talked about how tourism is having a significant impact on Queens and more in her annual State of the Borough address at Queens College. NY1's Ruschell Boone filed the following report.



She's the borough's biggest cheerleader, so Melinda Katz waisted no time telling people that Queens is one of the hottest places to live and visit.

Tourism is becoming a driving economic force, and she says recent media attention will only increase that.

"From being dubbed New York City's coolest Borough by Conde Nast Traveler to ranking number one on Lonely Planet's Best in the U.S. to MSN Money's top 15 hottest American cities," Katz said. "Over 12 million people visit Queens every year."

TV and film production here is also giving Queens a boost.

"There are a number of major studios and full-service production facilities that make movie magic here in the Borough of Queens. Including Kaufman Astoria, Silvercup Studios and Broadway Stages.

But with growth comes challenges. The borough has some of the city's most overcrowded schools, but Katz says improvements are underway. The trailers at PS 19 are now slated for removal by the end of this year and by the way it's not the only one.

Katz also said she's fighting to improve the mayor's affordable housing plan.

"There is a set of citywide zoning proposals soon to be in front of the City Council. I have concerns about certain provisions," she said.

The borough president spoke in front of an audience that was filled with mostly supporters, but there was one heckler who wanted to hear more about the neighborhood of Jamaica. To that, the borough president said there are several plans to improve that neighborhood.

"Sixteen of which will launch within three years, represent approximately $153 million in current public funding going to the Jamaica NOW Action plan," Katz said.

Katz ended the hour long speech on a high note when she introduced members of the Mets organization, including manager Terry Collins. That got one of the loudest cheers.
The City Council is meeting today to discuss a bill that would confine horse drawn carriages to Central Park.

The bill calls for reducing the number of horses over time and building them a stable inside Central Park by 2018.

Mayor Bill de Blasio had been pushing for an outright ban on the horses after getting campaign money from an animal rights group.

He calls the bill a compromise.

Protesters who gathered outside City Hall on Thursday did not feel the same way.

Some say anything short of a complete ban is cruel to the horses.

Others say the city is breaking the law by turning part of Central Park over to the horses.

"We were promised a ban by Mayor de Blasio - he ran on that as a campaign issue. So this is all very shocking," said Edita Birnkrant of Friends of Animals.

"The mayor is trying to use public parkland to settle a political debt. He could not get his original bill passed, and now he's trying to use public parkland in a landmark park - he's trying to give that to a private industry. And that's not a park use," said Geoffrey Croft of NYC Park Advocates.

It's not yet clear when the City Council will vote on the bill.
A mother and daughter from Maryland are the latest victims of gun violence in the city after they were ambushed in a hotel parking lot near Kennedy Airport  and several others have been robbed the same way. NY1 Criminal Justice Reporter Dean Meminger has the disturbing details.

An out-of-towner's worst nightmare came to life in a Hampton Inn near Kennedy airport on Thursday night, when a suburban Baltimore woman was seriously wounded and her 20-year-old daughter was robbed and pistol-whipped by a masked gunman in the parking lot.

Police say 53-year-old Andrea Koller was shot in the shoulder as the robber grabbed her purse.

"She actually fights him," NYPD Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce said. "She actually puts up a struggle and then she is shot."

Police say the attack unfolded after the mother and her daughter Meredith drove into the hotel parking from Maryland. Meredith was supposed to board a flight Friday for a study abroad program in Africa.

As her mother entered the hotel to check in, the robber, and an accomplice in the white Volkswagen Jetta seen in the video above, pulled up alongside her car, according to police.

The gunman jumped into the driver's seat of Koller's car and demanded money from the daughter. He then waited for the mother to return, to rob her, too.

"They are very dangerous and they obviously show no reluctance to use firearms during the course of their robberies," Police Commissioner Bill Bratton said about the robbers.

Police said Thursday's shooting is part of a pattern of five robberies near the airport.

"The rest of the patterns are in the parking lots," Boyce said. "These are either travelers or people who live by."

In the other cases, police said the suspects used a black Mercedes to rob people, which they allegedly car-jacked Dec. 28.

Koller, who is a teacher, is expected to recover.

Three years ago, she wrote a letter to her local newspaper about the need for more gun control because of gun-based crimes in America.

Now, she's become a victim of what she wrote about.

According to the police report, one suspect looks in his 30s, 5 foot 11 inches, with a medium build, wearing a black ski mask, a black Columbia jacket, black pants, and black sneakers.

Anyone with information on the case should contact the Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS, or text CRIMES and then enter TIP577, or visit www.nypdcrimestoppers.com.
A 1,200-square-foot house that Frank Lloyd Wright designed to perch on a Los Angeles hillside will be auctioned next month, with most of its contents sold separately.

Los Angeles Modern Auctions will offer the 1939 home, which has a sales estimate of $2.5 million to $3 million, on Feb. 21. The four-room wood-and-brick structure, with tiers of decks, is cantilevered over a slope in the citys Brentwood section. In 1967 the actor, playwright and librettist Jack Larson and his partner, the director and screenwriter James Bridges, purchased it for $60,000; they restored it, preserving the original furniture and coping with its persistently leaky roof.

The two worked on the house in collaboration with the influential Southern California architect John Lautner, who had supervised the construction for Wrights clients, George and Selma Sturges. Mr. Bridges died in 1993, and Mr. Larson died last year.

Los Angeles Modern is auctioning the house with two original dining chairs, various built-ins and Mr. Larsons extensive Wright and Lautner archival material. The rest of its contents will be divided up; stools with X-shaped bases, boxy tables, pyramidal floor lamps and flanged armchairs designed by Wright or Lautner have estimates starting at a few thousand dollars each.
Edmonde Charles-Roux, a longtime editor of French Vogue and the author of the novel To Forget Palermo, winner of the Prix Goncourt, Frances biggest literary prize, in 1966, died on Wednesday in Marseille. She was 95.

Her death was announced by the Academie Goncourt, where she had been a member since 1983 and president from 2002 to 2014.

Ms. Charles-Roux, a decorated nurse and resistance fighter during World War II, found her way into fashion when she was hired in 1946 as a writer for a new womens weekly, Elle. Two years later, she began writing for the French edition of Vogue, which installed her as editor in chief in 1954, replacing Michel de Brunhoff, brother of Jean de Brunhoff, the author of the Babar childrens books.

She quickly put her stamp on the magazine, expanding its cultural coverage and showcasing the writers Alain Robbe-Grillet and Violette Leduc and the photographers Irving Penn and Guy Bourdin. She also promoted the careers of up-and-coming designers, notably Emanuel Ungaro and Yves Saint-Laurent.
Britax Child Safety is recalling about 71,000 child car seats in the United States because the carrying handle may break, allowing the infant carrier to be dropped, the company reported on Thursday in a regulatory filing.

The company says the problem affects some B-Safe 35, B-Safe 35 Elite and B-Safe 35 Travel System models manufactured between Oct. 1, 2014, and July 1, 2015.

The company said in a report to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that it had one report of an infant being injured, suffering a bruise and bump to the head. But it said the seat owner never returned it for inspection because a store gave the customer a replacement.

Britax told federal regulators it received its first complaint about a handle fracturing last May and in subsequent months received additional complaints, though it did not say how many.
JPMorgan Chase paid Jamie Dimon, its chairman and chief executive, 35 percent more in 2015 than the previous years compensation package, which was only narrowly approved by shareholders.

According to a securities filing on Thursday, Mr. Dimon received $27 million  much of it in stock linked to the banks performance, one week after the bank recorded a record profit of $24.4 billion for the year.

Pay disclosures by Wall Street firms are closely watched, as many banks face pressure from shareholders to overhaul pay practices. That has caused many banks to shift more pay to stock that will be granted only if the company meets certain performance goals.

JPMorgan is the first big bank to disclose 2015 compensation for its top executives. The annual disclosure about Mr. Dimon, who runs the biggest bank in the United States in terms of assets, often sets the bar for the industry.
DAVOS, Switzerland  The Davos man who attends the World Economic Forum here each year is a member of the global elite  say, a banker or a politician  whose status is reinforced by an exclusive white badge that gives him access to V.I.P. lounges away from the masses at this alpine resort.

But this year, there is another kind of Davos man. He is a former snowboarder and schoolteacher who now runs that country just north of the United States.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada, who is noticeable for the entourage of young and old that seems to trail him wherever he goes, has been bringing a message of optimism at a conference where attendees have had a tendency to focus on grim subjects like war and conflict, stock market turmoil, and economic strife.

It was the same message that Mr. Trudeau, 44 , took to the Canadian electorate that voted him into office last year.
SEATTLE  Starbucks reported higher sales over the holiday season, and said $1.9 billion had been loaded onto the chains gift cards, but its outlook fell short of Wall Street expectations.

The company said on Thursday that sales rose 9 percent in the United States, its flagship market, and 8 percent globally during the final three months of the year.

The increase at home and abroad was the result of a mix of higher customer traffic and increased spending.

Starbucks said one in six American adults received a Starbucks gift card over the holidays, up from one in seven a year ago, and one in eight two years ago.
That format is now almost unrecognizable, but Mr. Romenesko was not the only one who liked it at the time. In peak periods after the launch, one new reader was registering every second. From the outset, we are requiring registration for the site so that we know how often our customers visit us, and so we can deliver real usage data to advertisers, Martin A. Nisenholtz, the president of The New York Times Electronic Media Company, told his colleagues that winter.

Image The top news on the CyberTimes page of Feb. 26, 1996: In Gamble, Newspapers Push Into On-Line Publishing.

Millions of people use the Internet and the World Wide Web, he explained. Some of these people have begun to use the web to gain access to information about job openings, homes for sale and other categories that fall into our marketplace of classified advertising. We need to build an online presence so that advertisers who use The Times to sell effectively today extend their reach to the people who are looking for jobs, homes or other products and services on the net.

To the extent that readers choose to use the Internet to get their news, Mr. Nisenholtz continued, we need to become that choice  to be the greatest newspaper in the cyberspace world  and to attract new forms of interactive advertising.

In an effort to hold on to classified advertising, newspapers bread and butter, steps were taken even before the initiation of nytimes.com to anticipate the Internet marketplace. In 1995, The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Chicago Tribune, The Los Angeles Times, The San Jose Mercury News and The Washington Post allied to create CareerPath.com, an enhanced electronic classified service.

In 1996, with more than 3.5 million job searches coming each month to CareerPath, Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, the chairman of the Times Company, and Russell T. Lewis, its president, could describe the site as the newspaper industrys best defense for protecting its franchise on classified advertising.
Mr. Rutenberg, who joined the paper in 2000, has covered media and business as well as politics and served as City Hall bureau chief. He was also the papers summer beat reporter in the Hamptons.

He talks about media, his sense of the big media story of the moment (Donald Trump), Sean Penn and El Chapo, experiential journalism (What is that?), boycotting the Oscars, gossip, voting rights and the future of responsible news coverage. He signs off with a word about Mr. Carr and thoughts on following in his footsteps. (Hugely intimidating.)
The illuminated title frames, laden with symbols and cast in a ruby light, promise thrills. And the first 10 minutes of the French film Rabid Dogs deliver nonstop action  and carnage  in an urban plaza, a shopping mall and a warehouse.

Four swaggering thieves wearing leather masks and toting automatic weapons apparently rob a bank. The details are hard to discern from the visuals, obscured as they are by the blue cloud of smoke spewing from a canister the robbers tossed, but a radio news report provides exposition.

When the masks come off (but not the leather jackets) we see the well-barbered, hard-muscled Euro-bandits. They indulge in some very American pursuits, like a police chase, a few gun battles and some hostage-taking: The first hostage is a honeymooner (Virginie Ledoyen) who had been trying on lingerie.

In one shooting, the gangs leader is killed. The followers who remain make an unstable, combustible mix: One is chronically paranoid, another a sadistic narcissist and the third terminally stupid.
The endearing title characters of Jay Dockendorfs film Naz & Maalik are 18-year-old best friends who recently became lovers, living in Bedford-Stuyvesant, a Brooklyn neighborhood in the throes of gentrification. Naz (Kerwin Johnson Jr.) and Maalik (Curtiss Cook Jr.) are closeted and Muslim, and especially for Naz, the Islamic taboo against homosexuality weighs heavily.

Both live with observant Muslim families for whom any sex outside of marriage is forbidden. Nazs disapproving sister, Cala (Ashleigh Awusie), discovers their secret and teasingly threatens to expose them.

In a production note, the director explains that the movie was inspired by his conversations with a closeted Muslim graduate student from Bed-Stuy. In the aftermath of Sept. 11, that student recalled, undercover agents for the New York City Police Department and the F.B.I. conducted door-to-door interviews with Muslim residents, infiltrated mosques and pressured civilians accused of petty crimes to become informants.

Both Naz and Maalik are subject to mild harassment by these authorities. A plainclothes police officer offers to sell them a gun. Before a prayer meeting at a neighborhood mosque, the imam welcomes any undercover police or federal agents in a tone of cheerful sarcasm.
Im really feeling it now, Mr. Diaz, 21, said. When I was young, I could just dance, drink soda, eat candy. I cant do that now. Im still young, but I can definitely feel the difference.

Mr. Diaz was 13 when a cousin introduced him to break dancing. He quickly set about perfecting flips, handstands and other acrobatics in neighborhood gyms before showcasing them on New York Citys streets and subway trains.

I fell right into it, he said. I started learning moves every other day.

Mr. Diaz immersed himself in dancing to avoid what he said was a troubled home life. He was raised by a single mother who had a drug addiction and whose parenting style swung between neglect and antagonism.

It was up and down, sad, angry, screaming, Mr. Diaz said.

As a teenager, he skipped classes regularly. Some days, he rode the subway for eight hours, from Coney Island, Brooklyn, to Queens, performing for money. He eventually dropped out of high school and took a break from dancing for about a year.
ALBANY  The morning after a procedural hiccup left New Yorks highest judicial post vacant for an extra day, the nominee, Janet DiFiore, was confirmed by a full vote of the State Senate.

Ms. DiFiore, the Westchester County district attorney, won unanimous approval on Thursday to become the chief judge of the Court of Appeals, the states highest court, a position that also makes her the head of the states judicial branch and the top administrator of the states court system. One senator, Tony Avella, a Queens Democrat, abstained after explaining that the Court of Appeals is scheduled to hear a case in which he is a plaintiff.

Image Janet DiFiore Credit... Nathaniel Brooks for The New York Times

Ms. DiFiore brings to the job a robust background in criminal justice: A former State Supreme Court justice who was elected district attorney in 2005, she drew attention for revisiting the case of Jeffrey Mark Deskovic, who served nearly 16 years after being convicted of raping and killing a classmate before being exonerated. (Mr. Deskovic opposed her nomination, saying she had failed to act in several other problematic convictions.)
A Roman Catholic priest also active in Bronx politics has been suspended from priestly duties because of allegations that he sexually abused minors three decades ago, church officials said on Thursday.

The priest, the Rev. Richard Gorman, is the director of prison chaplains for the Archdiocese of New York, with an office at the archdioceses headquarters in Manhattan. He lives in the northeast Bronx, where he has been chairman of Community Board 12, which weighs in on zoning and other matters, since the late 1980s.

Father Gorman stepped down from the board on Thursday.

Reached at the boards office, George Torres, the district manager, said the mood was a little surreal right now.

A lot of people are in disbelief, he said.

The abuse was alleged to have occurred in Westchester County, and the Westchester district attorneys office said it had opened an inquiry into the allegations. According to a notice published on Wednesday in Catholic New York, the newspaper of the New York Archdiocese, law enforcement had deemed the allegations to be credible, although they have not yet been substantiated.
Right now, the hot dog carts in Central Park pay in the neighborhood of $50,000 a year for the right to sell franks at prime spots like the Mall. For a concession to sell food from carts in front of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, bidders paid the parks department around $300,000.

A thick stack of judicial opinions shows that mayors ignore precedents in this area at their peril. (The Bloomberg administration tried to give parkland in Queens to the Wilpon family for a shopping mall; the Giuliani administration tried to turn over land in the Bronx for a water filtration plant. Both proposals were shot down in court.)

The draft legislation appears, to the naked eye, to make no reference to any of the settled law on private use of the park.

It does have some antic elements: For instance, all the horses must have chips embedded in their bodies, and the carriages must be equipped with GPS devices. The anti-horse-carriage lobby has argued that when horses are abused or injured, the victims are quickly swapped out for doppelgangers, thus making it impossible to prove that any injury has taken place. (Veterinarians have praised the health and care of the carriage horses, which, given the economic value of the animals, makes sense.)

The mayors bill would reduce the number of horses to 95 from about 170 by 2018, when the new stable is supposed to be ready. The notion that a new stable  which as yet has no design and has not undergone any review by the five community boards with jurisdiction over Central Park, the Landmarks Preservation Commission or the Public Design Commission  will be built within two years belongs to an alternate universe.
If someone were going to lose in Mayor Bill de Blasios horse carriage deal, pedicab drivers were an easy mark.

Scorned by many New Yorkers as swindlers, the pedicab driver is not the most sympathetic character. High prices and tales of tourists left to pay hundreds of dollars do little to help.

In a city that prides itself on ready access to round-the-clock transit options, the pedicab is usually not a commuters first choice. It is often the last.

When Mr. de Blasio announced a deal last weekend to limit horse carriages to Central Park while banning pedicabs in the park below 85th Street, it came as a surprise to the citys 837 licensed pedicab drivers. While horse carriage drivers are in a union and animal rights advocates spend lavishly on elections, the pedicab industry is a loosely organized group of drivers, many of whom work long hours in a physically demanding job just to get by.
Federal housing officials will award about $281 million to the New York region, including the states of Connecticut and New Jersey, to better protect communities from natural disasters like Hurricane Sandy.

The awards for the National Disaster Resilience Competition were announced on Thursday by the secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Julian Castro, and the Rockefeller Foundation, which provided technical assistance to applicants. A total of about $1 billion will be distributed among 13 winners nationwide to help them recover from disasters and better prepare for them.

Climate change is real and we must think more seriously about how to plan for it, Mr. Castro said in a statement. The grants we award today, and the other sources of capital these grants will leverage, will make communities stronger, more resilient and better prepared for future natural disasters such as floods and wildfires.

The single largest award in the contest, $176 million, will go to New York City to help build a new flood protection system around Lower Manhattan, along a stretch from Montgomery Street on the Lower East Side to the northern tip of Battery Park City. Specific measures have not yet been determined, but could include adding sea walls and temporary flood walls that could be deployed before a storm, as well as building grass berms that could double as recreational areas.
To the Editor:

Re Health Reform Realities (column, Jan. 18):

Im glad to see that Paul Krugman acknowledges that if we could start from scratch, many, perhaps most, health economists would recommend single-payer, a Medicare-type program covering everyone. His argument that we should not work for it now is unconvincing.

Just because private insurers are powerful doesnt mean a concerted national campaign cant overcome their well-funded opposition. Already a majority of the general public (58 percent in a recent Kaiser poll) supports single-payer. Cost will never be controlled until we do away with the bloated administrative expenses of our hopelessly complex financing arrangements and for-profit medicine.

And while the Affordable Care Act has indeed been a great help for many seeking health insurance, it has left over one-fourth of Americans ages 18 to 64 with problems paying their medical bills. As you have reported, that can be the case even for those with insurance (Medical Debt Often Crushing Even for Insured, The Upshot, Jan. 5).

We can do better, as every other developed nation has demonstrated.

ALAN MEYERS

Boston

The writer is a professor of pediatrics at Boston University School of Medicine and a founding member of Physicians for a National Health Program.
The chief of the inquiry, Robert Owen, a retired High Court judge, noted that secret intelligence testimony gathered in private sessions factored in his conclusion that members of the Putin administration, including the president himself and Nikolai Patrushev, the chief of the Kremlins spy service, had powerful motives for taking action against Mr. Litvinenko, including killing him. Further, Judge Owen found there was undoubtedly a personal dimension to the antagonism between Mr. Putin and Mr. Litvinenko, whose repeated denunciations of the Russian leader included accusations of pedophilia.

The inquiry leaves little room to doubt that the two agents were sent from Russia to visit Mr. Litvinenko and were carrying the fatal dose of polonium with them. Would they dare to carry out such an act without approval from the Kremlins upper reaches? I am sure, Judge Owen concluded, that the two agents were acting on behalf of others when they poisoned Mr. Litvinenko.

A big question is what effect the inquiry will have on international relations. The British home secretary, Theresa May, called the Litvinenko murder a blatant and unacceptable breach of international law and civilized behavior that would be raised with Mr. Putin at the next opportunity.

Russian diplomats said the accusations could only harm relations with Britain. But Prime Minister David Cameron said his nation had no choice except to go on having some sort of relationship with Russia because of the crisis in Syria, whose leader, Bashar al-Assad, has long been supported by Moscow. Still, the relationship would now be pursued with clear eyes and a very cold heart, he told BBC News. Others like Crispin Blunt, Tory chairman of the foreign affairs select committee, said: We are dealing with unsavory partners all over the world. That is part of the necessity of diplomacy.

Mr. Putin has built a sordid record on justice and human rights, which naturally reinforces suspicions that he could easily have been involved in the murder. At the very least, the London inquiry, however much it is denied at the Kremlin, should serve as a caution to the Russian leader to repair his reputation for notorious intrigues abroad.
Womens retreat this weekend

SCHUYLER  Toolbox for Interiority is a retreat for women at St. Benedict Center today through Sunday.

This retreat will help participants learn the fine art of listening and responding deeply to Gods call in their lives. Teresa Monaghen, AO, Father Thomas Leitner, OSB, and a team of consecrated and lay women will present various aspects of discernment, share life stories, and give a chance for personal input and reflection.

The schedule will include silence, Mass, confession, fellowship, brief conferences and spiritual direction with retreat directors.

The retreat is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. today and conclude at 3:30 p.m. Sunday.

For more information, call 402-352-8819 or visit www.StBenedictCenter.com.

Mens retreat slated Jan. 29-31

SCHUYLER  Listen! Be Attentive, is a retreat for men from Jan. 29-31 at St. Benedict Center.

This retreat offers many useful tools for attentiveness, explained and practiced during the weekend. Brother Damian Cayetano, OSB, Teresa Monaghen, AO, Father Thomas Leitner, OSB, and a team of consecrated life members will present various aspects of discernment, share life stories and give a chance for personal input and reflection.

The schedule will include silence, Mass, confession, fellowship, brief conferences and spiritual direction with retreat directors.

The retreat is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 29 and conclude at 3:30 p.m. Jan. 31.

For more information, call 402-352-8819 or visit www.StBenedictCenter.com.

Reconciliation retreat Feb. 5-7

SCHUYLER  The Gift of Reconciliation will be a weekend retreat held Feb. 5-7 at the St. Benedict Center, led by Prior Fr. Mauritius Wilde, OSB, Ph.D.

The weekend will focus on unresolved conflicts and hanging on to past hurts. There will be time for those attending to examine their conscience and look for ways to accept reconciliation through Jesus Christ. There will also be an opportunity to receive the sacrament of Reconciliation.

The retreat begins at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 5 and ends after lunch on Feb. 7.

For more information, call 402-352-8819 or visit www.StBenedictCenter.com.

Spaghetti supper, bake sale slated

COLUMBUS  St. Anthony Church will hold a spaghetti supper and bake sale from 4-8 p.m. Feb. 6 in the church social hall, 1719 6th St.

The meal will include spaghetti with meatballs, garlic bread, lettuce salad, dessert, beverage and coffee, and beer and wine will be available.

Cost is $7.50 for adults, $3 for kids 6-10 years, and free for children five and under.

This fundraiser is sponsored by St. Theresa Sodality, and proceeds will go toward furnishings for the new parish center.

Valentines Day dinner Feb. 14

SCHUYLER  St. Benedict Center will hold a Valentines Day dinner on Feb. 14.

Married couples are invited for a 5 p.m. Mass at the chapel of St. Benedict Center followed at 6 p.m. by a four-course dinner prepared by Mark and Patty Bosh. Advance reservations and pre-payment are required.

For more information, call 402-352-8819 or visit www.StBenedictCenter.com.

Foot-washing rule officially changed

VATICAN CITY (AP)  Pope Francis is changing church law to correspond to his rule-breaking celebration of the Easter Week ritual of washing the feet of men and women, Christians and not, in a sign of universal service.

Vatican rules for the Holy Thursday rite had long called for only men to participate. Popes past traditionally performed the ritual on 12 Christian men, recalling Jesus 12 apostles.

Shortly after he was elected, Francis raised conservative eyebrows by performing the rite on men and women, Christians as well as Muslims, at a jail.

The Vatican published a decree Thursday from the Vaticans liturgy office announcing that the rite can now be performed on anyone chosen from among the people of God. It makes no mention of gender or religious affiliation.

Dalai Lama heads to US for checkup

DHARAMSALA, India (AP)  The Dalai Lama is headed to the United States for a medical checkup, although the Tibetan Buddhist leader says he has no specific health complaints.

The Dalai Lama told reporters he has been going to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, for regular health checkups for the past nine years.

In September, the Dalai Lama canceled a series of appearances in the United States on the advice of his U.S. doctors. The 80-year-old was told to rest for several weeks after a medical checkup.

The Tibetan Buddhist leaders health is a matter of concern for his followers across the world, and especially for the hundreds of thousands of Tibetans who live in India.

The Dalai Lama says he is likely to return to his Indian headquarters in March.

Russians take Epiphany plunge

MOSCOW (AP)  Thousands of Russians have taken a dip in icy waters to celebrate Epiphany, a major holiday in Orthodox Christianity marking the baptism of Jesus.

Water blessed by a priest on the Epiphany week in Orthodox tradition is considered holy and pure, and bathing in it is believed by some to have healing powers.

In Moscow, authorities set up 60 official bathing sites for believers for the ceremony, from open air pools to holes cut ponds. Temperatures in Moscow were 14 degrees Fahrenheit overnight.

Russias defense ministry organized Epiphany celebrations for troops serving at Russias military base in Syria by putting up an inflated rubber pool.

Business stands by Muslim policy

MILWAUKEE (AP)  The Council for America-Islamic Relations is asking a Wisconsin manufacturer to back away from a policy that doesnt allow an extra break for prayer for its Muslim employees.

The Ariens Company, however, has told CAIR that it can handle the matter internally.

The friction comes after 53 Ariens Company workers left their jobs in protest after the company limited them to two 10-minute breaks per work shift. CEO Dan Ariens said adding a third prayer break had disrupted production at the lawn mower and snow blower manufacturer.

The company says it has had longstanding religious accommodations for Muslim workers, including a prayer room.
In 1936 George Orwell wrote a magnificent essay called Shooting an Elephant. Orwell had been working as a British police officer in Burma, enforcing colonial rule. An elephant had gone must, broken its chains, trampled some homes and killed a man.

As Orwell walked, gun in hand, toward the elephant, a crowd of over 2,000 Burmese gathered behind him. They hated him, but it would be a diverting spectacle to see an elephant shot and they could use the meat. Orwell didnt want to shoot the poor creature, whose must, or frenzied state, had passed and who was peacefully eating grass. But he felt the pressure of the crowd behind him. Theyd laugh at him if he didnt kill the thing.

I was only an absurd puppet pushed to and fro by the will of those yellow faces behind, Orwell wrote. And so he subjected the animal to a long and agonizing death.

In his essay nobody feels like they have any power. The locals, the imperial victims, sure didnt. Orwell, the guy with the gun, didnt feel like he had any. The imperialists back in London were too far away.
For his bookshop and website One Grand Books, the editor Aaron Hicklin asked people to name the 10 books theyd take with them if they were marooned on a desert island. The next in the series is the activist and author Gloria Steinem, who shares her list exclusively with T. She adds: If I were marooned on a desert island, I would want a book on edible plants and building a raft, but here are 10 I would choose for the pleasure of big and new understandings.

The Mermaid and the Minotaur, Dorothy Dinnerstein

In a migratory past when both men and women raised children, men developed empathy, patience, attention to detail and a sense of the value of life; all qualities now wrongly called feminine. Dinnerstein will convince you that men again raising children is the key to world peace.

Exterminate All the Brutes, Sven Lindqvist

By traveling in Africa while also learning from hundreds of books stored in his computer, Lindqvist shows us that racism was invented to justify colonialism. Racism came home to Europe as the Holocaust.
Hes your oldest friend, the woman says to her husband.

That doesnt mean I like him, he replies.

The friend, actually, is standing right there for this exchange, and the husband  a successful screenwriter we know only as A  is telling the truth: He hasnt liked his actor friend, C, for a very long time.

But a psychosexual game is afoot in Brendan Galls Wide Awake Hearts, at 59E59 Theaters, and A (Ben Cole) has orchestrated this reunion. He believes his wife, B (Clea Alsip), an actress, is uncontrollably drawn to C (Tony Naumovski) and most likely sleeping with him, so he has flown C into town to play her lover in his new film.

A is a coldblooded guy, dead-eyed and cynical beneath his false bonhomie, his soul in some state of necrosis. If B prefers C, who could blame her? C is far less successful than A, which is why he said yes to the job offer, but theres a pulse of humanity in him, and that automatically makes him sexier and more appealing.
The first of nine defendants in a widespread Navy bribery case was sentenced Thursday to 27 months in prison for providing classified information to a Malaysian military contractor. Petty Officer First Class Daniel Layug told the court that he made a mistake and let his ego and greed lead him to betray his country. In a plea deal, he admitted accepting a digital camera, electronic gadgets, luxury hotel stays and other gifts, including $1,000 in monthly payments from Singapore-based Glenn Defense Marine Asia Ltd. in exchange for providing the company classified ship schedules. Prosecutors said he was the least culpable in the investigation centered on the companys president, Leonard Glenn Francis, who has admitted providing bribes to obtain information that helped him get Navy captains to steer ships to Pacific ports where he overcharged the Navy.
CHICAGO  Fallout from the drinking water crisis in Flint, Mich., spread Thursday as a high-ranking Environmental Protection Agency official resigned and the agencys chief administrator said it would take over monitoring of Flints water supply for lead contamination.

The developments signaled a change in tack for the E.P.A., whose leaders had deflected blame to state government for missteps in Flint even as critics questioned why there had not been a more decisive federal intervention months ago. The official who resigned, Susan Hedman, an appointee of President Obamas who oversees a regional office, had come under particular scrutiny for being slow to act on concerns from an E.P.A. scientist, Miguel Del Toral, about lead contamination and for failing to step in as state and local officials played down health concerns. Mr. Del Toral raised concerns that the contamination could be widespread and that the citys testing methods were flawed.

In a statement, the E.P.A. said Ms. Hedman, who is based in Chicago and whose territory includes Michigan, would leave the agency next month so that her offices focus remains solely on the restoration of Flints drinking water.
But in the wake of the killing, Mr. Hills family members focused on what they described as the failure of Officer Olsen and the Police Department to respond appropriately to a man who suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. According to court filings and witnesses, Officer Olsen was sent to Mr. Hills apartment complex in Chamblee, northeast of Atlanta, while the man was in the midst of what his family described in a lawsuit as a nonviolent mental episode. He had, for instance, repeatedly jumped from the balcony of his second-floor apartment, and his speech was unintelligible.

After the arrival of Officer Olsen, who had a Taser device and had received training about how to deal with people suffering from mental illness, witnesses said that Mr. Hill did not comply with the officers directions to stop his advance. Mr. Hills hands, they said, were raised or at his sides before Officer Olsen opened fire. Mr. Hill, his family said in a court document last year, was unarmed, unclothed and displaying no signs of aggression at the time of the shooting, and he presented no threat to Officer Olsen or anyone else.

Image Anthony Hill, a 27-year-old Air Force veteran, was in the midst of what his family described in a lawsuit as a nonviolent mental episode.

Mr. Hills family has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit, in Federal District Court in Atlanta, against Officer Olsen and the county.

In the lawsuit, which is pending, Mr. Hills family said Officer Olsen had a long and extensive history of aggressive conduct and propensity toward anger when dealing with members of the public. On Thursday, Mr. Samuel described Officer Olsen as a distinguished member of the Police Department who had never been accused of using excessive force and had never previously discharged his firearm in the line of duty.

But the official investigation into Officer Olsens conduct, not the federal lawsuit, has consumed much of the attention here. That inquiry included the closed-door reviews by civil and criminal grand juries. In October, the civil panel, an advisory group, recommended that officials continue their investigation into Mr. Hills death.

During an appearance before the civil grand jury, Mr. Hills family has said, Officer Olsen said he had believed that Mr. Hill was under the influence of a substance like PCP, and that he had cast the blame for the shooting on the Police Department.
The Department of Education said on Wednesday that it would create a searchable database that reveals the names of colleges and universities that have received exemptions on religious grounds from federal civil rights protections.

The move followed an outcry from lawmakers and activists over the waivers from parts of Title IX that they said enabled discrimination against gay and transgender students and employees.

Dozens of religiously affiliated institutions in 26 states have requested the waivers since 2013, arguing that the law is inconsistent with their religious beliefs.

The waivers have in some cases involved a range of identities and backgrounds, including gender identity, sexual orientation, marital status and whether a person has had an abortion. They have exempted schools from anti-discrimination rules pertaining to employment, admissions, housing and the provision of facilities like restrooms and locker rooms.
WASHINGTON  Republican senators charged Thursday that the Obama administration had missed warning signs of financial distress at nonprofit health insurance cooperatives that failed last year, but a top federal official denied that the government had been negligent in its supervision.

The co-ops were created with federal money under the Affordable Care Act, which was adopted in 2010. Democrats hoped the co-ops would increase competition in state insurance markets, creating additional choices for consumers and holding down premiums. But 12 of the 23 co-ops have shut down, disrupting coverage for more than a half-million consumers, many of whom had to search for other providers of insurance for 2016. And many of the remaining co-ops continue to lose money.

Health Republic Insurance of New York, with an enrollment of more than 155,000 people, was by far the biggest co-op to close. Doctors say they have been left with unpaid claims for services provided to some co-op members. The federal government has awarded $2.5 billion in loans to the co-ops, including at least $1.2 billion to those that are shutting down. At a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee on Thursday, Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa, said the administration failed in overseeing the co-op program, even though warning signs were there as early as 2012. Federal health officials, he said, failed to respond promptly to concerns expressed by federal auditors and state insurance regulators who scrutinized the co-ops, including one that collapsed in Iowa and Nebraska.

Senator Rob Portman, Republican of Ohio, said that data submitted to the government by the co-ops raised financial red flags that should have caused alarm. Instead, he said, the Department of Health and Human Services continued to disburse federal loan money to the co-ops.
A suicide car bomber rammed the gates of a restaurant near a beach in Mogadishu, the capital, before gunmen fought their way into the building in an attack that killed at least three people on Thursday, a police official said. The extremist group Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack. An unknown number of people were trapped inside the Liido Seafood restaurant, which is popular with government officials, said the police official, Capt. Mohammed Hussein. An operation to dislodge the attackers was underway, he said.
GENEVA  The murderous struggle between the government and opposition forces in South Sudan has already resulted in widespread atrocities and left thousands of people on the brink of starvation, yet in the past year, both sides intensified and spread the conflict, the United Nations said Thursday.

A 45-page report produced jointly by the organizations mission in South Sudan and its human rights office in Geneva said that most of the violence was committed by the army loyal to President Salva Kiir and opposition forces under Riek Machar, the vice president whom Mr. Kiir dismissed in 2013, touching off the civil war.

The scale, intensity and severity of human rights violations and abuses have increased with the continuation of the hostilities, the report said, citing large-scale killings, attacks that have singled out and killed children and an unprecedented level of sexual violence, including gang rape and sexual slavery.

The United Nations said it had documented cases in which at least 250 women and girls had been victims of sexual violence last year, and some of them were killed after being raped.
Research day slated March 5

COLUMBUS  Platte Valley Kin Seekers will hold a Free Research Day at 10 a.m. March 5 in the lower level of the museum.

Those attending are asked to bring as much information as they can about the person(s) they are researching so that members know where to begin. Those attending are welcome to bring laptops or tablets.

Members will be available until 4 p.m.

Center support group available

COLUMBUS  The Center for Survivors, 3103 13th St., provides a free adult support group for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault.

Groups are held from 5:30-6:30 p.m. every Monday except the first Monday of the month. These groups are available in both English and Spanish.

For individuals attending for the first time, arrive 30 minutes prior to the meeting or call the center for more information. Individuals attending the meeting may also bring their children (up to age 12) for childrens support group/daycare.

For more information, contact the Center for Survivors at 402-564-2155.

Gallery holding adult coloring

COLUMBUS  The Columbus Art Gallery will hold Adult Coloring Night from 6-7:30 p.m. Feb. 4 in the gallery, located on the lower level of Columbus Public Library.

Coloring pages, pencils, markers, coffee, tea and water will be provided. Freewill donations will be accepted.

For more information, call 402-563-1016.

Library hosting health class

COLUMBUS  Columbus Public Library will host a healthy lifestyle class at 2 p.m. Saturday in the library auditorium.

Registered nurse Joan Plummer will be the presenter.
MEXICO CITY  The anticorruption police swooped in on Humberto Moreira, a former Mexican governor notorious for multiplying his states debt by 100 times in six years. The accusations were severe: among them, money laundering and misuse of public funds.

Bail was denied.

But there was an asterisk to the news that Mr. Moreira might be held accountable for how he spent the torrent of borrowed money that flowed into his state, Coahuila. He was arrested last Friday at the international airport in Madrid, not in Mexico, and it was the Spanish police who succeeded in building a case against him after Mexicos attorney general said there was no evidence to charge him.

In Mexico, the news was greeted with a mixture of approval and shame. Although diminished by disgrace, Mr. Moreira had remained untouchable, a political ally of President Enrique Pena Nieto who had helped build Mr. Pena Nietos 2012 candidacy.

His arrest in Spain only served to underscore the weakness of Mexicos institutions when it comes to confronting corruption among the political class.
KATHMANDU, Nepal  The police fired on ethnic Madhesi protesters in eastern Nepal on Thursday, killing at least three of them in the latest flare-up of political tensions over Nepals Constitution.

Members of the Madhesi group have been demanding changes to the new Constitution, which they say dilutes their political voice.

The protesters on Thursday tried to attack a pro-Constitution rally organized by the youth wing of the governing Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist) in the town of Rangeli, said Toyam Raya, the chief district officer of Morang, which includes Rangeli. The police fired tear gas and then opened fire on the protesters in Rangeli and nearby Dainiya after they started throwing stones at the police, he said.

Mr. Raya said that eight protesters and 13 police officers were wounded in the clashes, but members of Madhesi parties said that 35 protesters had been injured.
CAIRO  Only a few months ago, Pakistans military leaders openly boasted they had the Taliban on the run. A punishing, yearlong offensive had ousted the insurgents from their most prized tribal sanctuary. The movements various factions were riven by violent rivalries, and attacks on Pakistans towns and cities had largely ceased.

Then on Wednesday four Taliban gunmen mounted a deadly assault on a university in the northwestern town of Charsadda, killing 20 people. The attack echoed of a massacre just over a year ago  when the Taliban killed 150 at a school in Peshawar  that prompted the military crackdown in the first place. On Thursday, frustration and concern were welling up across the country.

We must question how long we can continue to live like this, said an editorial in The News, an English-language daily newspaper. We have heard the rhetoric of a fight back at all costs. But do we have a guarantee of eventual success?

Part of the answer lies in the Talibans continued resilience even when divided and on the run  and, more broadly, in the difficulties posed by guerrilla insurgencies throughout the region.
BERLIN  Dozens of lawmakers from her own conservative party signed open letters against her this week. A nationalist right-wing party is gaining in strength. Speculation, building since the fall, now runs rife that she should even be replaced. On Sunday, the top circulation Bild Zeitung headlined an eight-page spread on her political troubles: Is Merkel Still the Right One?

After a year in which Chancellor Angela Merkel welcomed more than a million asylum seekers, that decision has left her more embattled and isolated, at home and in Europe, than perhaps at any other time in her 10 years in office.

It is a change that threatens not only Ms. Merkels position, but the cohesion of an already deeply troubled European Union, where her strength and that of Germany  the Continents No. 1 economy  has served as the linchpin for the 28-member bloc through more than a half decade of economic crisis.

The state of leadership in Europe is such that the future of the E.U. currently rests on Merkels strength, or weakness, said Constanze Stelzenmuller, a fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington. Last year, we thought Europe could unravel over the euro. Now, it could be border security.
International prosecutors in The Hague on Thursday accused a former commander of the Lords Resistance Army of using rape and brutality to turn children abducted by the rebels into sex slaves or soldiers for their campaign against Ugandas government. The former commander, Dominic Ongwen, himself a former child soldier who rose through the ranks of the rebel group, is also accused of slaughtering civilians and even ordering cannibalism. He faces 70 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court. The hearing on Thursday was a test for prosecutors who must convince the judges that their case is strong enough to merit a trial.
WASHINGTON  Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky and majority leader, has set the stage for debate on a bill that would give President Obama broad authority to use military force against the Islamic State.

Mr. McConnell has generally opposed the idea of revisiting the presidents authority for military operations in the Middle East, warning that the legal language favored by the Obama administration contained limitations that could tie the hands of the next president.

Republicans have also resisted accepting any responsibility for military operations that might restrict their ability to criticize the administrations foreign policy initiatives, which they mostly view as unsuccessful.

But aides to Mr. McConnell said the new bill, sponsored by Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, was sufficiently broad and would provide a new platform for showcasing what Republicans view as Mr. Obamas deep failings in combating the Islamic State.
CAIRO  A large explosion in an apartment building near the Pyramids killed at least nine people on Thursday evening, including at least three police officers, during what the authorities said was a security raid on a suspected militant hide-out.

Egypts Interior Ministry said in a statement that the raid, in Giza, had targeted a militant cell that had been preparing explosives to use in attacks on public buildings. The blast occurred as bomb technicians were attempting to defuse booby traps, the statement said. It was unclear how the other victims figured in the raid and its aftermath, though one was said to be a civilian.

The blast occurred less than a mile from the Pyramids, though the government gave no indication that the militants were planning attacks on tourists.

The Egyptian authorities have struggled for more than two years to contain a violent insurgency by militant Islamists that has endured despite a sweeping security campaign, including thousands of arrests. The attacks have killed hundreds of police and army personnel, mainly in the northern Sinai Peninsula. Among the extremist groups behind the attacks is an affiliate of the Islamic State, which has also claimed responsibility for attacks on civilians, including the destruction of a Russian airliner in October that killed all 224 aboard.

The deaths on Thursday came as the government was carrying out hundreds of raids in the Cairo area in an effort to prevent any protests on Monday, the fifth anniversary of the revolt that toppled President Hosni Mubarak.

The Interior Ministry said that the militants swept up in the raid were part of the Muslim Brotherhood, but that could not be independently confirmed.

The government of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi routinely blames the Brotherhood for acts of violence. The organization was Egypts most powerful political movement until the military, led by Mr. Sisi, deposed President Mohamed Morsi, a Brotherhood leader, in July 2013.

Video posted by local news media showed the heavily damaged facade of a building after the explosion, with the outer walls of at least one apartment completely blown out. Several cars below the building were crushed, apparently by falling debris.
The fighter, who asked to be identified only by his first name, Ahmed, to discuss operational matters and negotiations, said he had been at a recent meeting with Russians, Kurdish militias and Arab rebels in Tal Abyad, a small city near the Turkish border.

Ahmed said that his group had previously been supported by Ahmed al-Jarba  a Syrian opposition figure closely tied to Saudi Arabia, which is staunchly opposed to Mr. Assad and Russias role in Syria  and that the Russians outreach had made the fighters wonder if Saudi Arabia and Russia had a secret understanding.

We were really surprised to meet a Russian delegation in our headquarters, he said.

Ahmed said the Russians had offered his tribe, the Shweytat, weapons and assistance to take back their home area in Deir al-Zour from the Islamic State. The Shweytat are bitter enemies of the militant group, which slaughtered hundreds of their people after they refused to submit to its rule. They have contributed to the ranks of Arab forces fighting alongside the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units, or Y.P.G., Ahmed said.

But the aid plan was suspended, he said, after the Russians asked him and his comrades to gather 300 fighters and they could not immediately muster more than 200. In any case, he remained skeptical that what the Russians were proposing would be enough to have an impact on the effort to take back Deir al-Zour.

What we consider before using anonymous sources. Do the sources know the information? Whats their motivation for telling us? Have they proved reliable in the past? Can we corroborate the information? Even with these questions satisfied, The Times uses anonymous sources as a last resort. The reporter and at least one editor know the identity of the source. Learn more about our process.

What can I say? he said. Its very hard to liberate Deir al-Zour with this amount of weapons.

In the northeast, in Qamishli, a Syrian activist network called the Local Coordination Committees has reported in recent days that 100 Russian military personnel have been deployed at the citys airport, and that Russian officials met with both government officials and Kurdish militia leaders to discuss deploying forces in the city, the provincial capital. These reports added to accounts that the Kurds, who have what amounts to a nonaggression pact with government forces, coordinate with both sides: American and Arab insurgents on one hand, and the government and Russia on the other. But the activists said Russians were being deployed in areas controlled by government forces, not the autonomous zones carved out by Kurds, where Americans are aiding the Kurdish and Arab militias.

Two Pentagon officials confirmed the details of the Russian deployment, including the critical point that Moscow does not seem to be focused on directly supporting fighters in the same places as the Americans.

Im not sure Id characterize it as providing support to the same people as we are, Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in an interview in Brussels.
Q. What are they?

A. Many times weve heard many of the artistic directors at these premiere ballet companies say, Well, we cant find them. And this is our response to that and to move the conversation along. This is really a call to action for the ballerinas of color to show themselves; for the artistic directors, its a challenge for them to do what they say they want to do. We obviously identified a need, and this is a way to fulfill that need, plus the response that weve heard from the dancers is that this is fabulous. Rather than having to travel around the country to each companys audition, it happens in one place. Even some of the artistic directors are like, this is actually a good thing.

Q. Apart from age and point experience, what are the other requirements?

A. There are no other rules or regulations. We really wanted to keep it open, and to be honest with you, we say its for women of color, but weve had inquiries from women who are not of color, and were not going to discriminate. If you want to be there in the room, thats fine.

Q. Why?

A. Where in the world would you ever have the chance to have Houston Ballet Academy, Dance Theater of Harlem, Ballet Memphis and Washington Ballet all in the room at the same time? We think its monumental. We want to continue to do it. Part of the Sunday audition is to have a conversation with the artistic directors about continuing this and seeing how we can strengthen what were doing in alignment with what theyre trying to do as well. We want to be a conduit, a pipeline to really bridge our two communities together and to work to diversify the landscape of the ballet world, because we want it to really reflect what our country looks like.

Q. What will the audition entail?

A. The first half of it is going to be led by [the African-American ballet dancer] Delores Brown, and we are just ecstatic to have her. It will be the technique  the barre work, the floor work and the center. Robert Garland from Dance Theater of Harlem will be doing the second half with repertory.

Q. What has the response been?

A. More great idea than anything. But some folks were very wary about it, and they didnt want us to set up this big audition and have no one show up. Of course, thats a fear that we all have stepping out there for the first time, but the fact that were at the number of dancers that we are at just said to us that we are really fulfilling a need and thats a good thing. Weve got dancers coming from Wisconsin, and were like, yes, the black ballerina is alive. Its just really giving her the opportunity.
A task force spokesman did not respond to requests for comment. A website for the German Lost Art Foundation has contained a statement since 2015 announcing that the English version is under construction.

Ms. Moreh-Rosenberg, the curator, said she wished that the chancellors participation in the exhibition would increase awareness of the Holocaust and increase sensitivity about the justice that still needs to be done.

Ms. Toll said she hoped that visitors to the exhibition would acknowledge the destructive power of religious intolerance while appreciating Hitlers failure to kill the spirit, including the creative spark shown in the work of a boy her age, Petr Ginz from Prague. In one of Petrs displayed watercolors, he portrays the room he shared with other children in Theresienstadt in 1943 as a cheery collection of summer camp bunk beds. Petr edited the secret school newspaper. In September 1944, the Nazis transported him to Auschwitz and murdered him.

A few months later, the Russian Army liberated the town of Lviv where Ms. Toll was hiding. She ran into the street where Russian soldiers gave her candy. News came that Nazis had killed her brother and father. She and her mother moved to the United States, where she became a citizen, married and earned a Ph.D. in English. She still loves to paint.

It was a long time ago, Ms. Toll said of the secret room. It feels like a different version of me.
COLUMBUS  Theres a new symbol representing the fight against pediatric cancer in Columbus.

Sammys Superheroes Foundation unveiled an updated logo during an event Friday at the local Hy-Vee as part of its ongoing effort to increase awareness of childhood cancer and fund projects searching for a cure.

Our new brands visual identity marks a key next step in the overall mission to bring Sammys Superheroes Foundation into the forefront of childhood cancer awareness and research and remain a household icon, said Nathan Karges, president of the Sammys Superheroes board.

The organization was formed in August 2012 after Sammy Nahorny, now 8, was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, which impacts the adrenal system.

Co-founder Amy Williams said she never imagined the organization started as a support group for the family would reach the size it has.

With the foundation growing and its become nationally known, we needed to make it our own, she said, which meant dropping the old Superman logo and adding something unique.

The new logo is a gold ribbon that weaves into an S-shaped shield. Gold is the official color of childhood cancer awareness and the shield is a strong symbol that represents protection and the young children fighting cancer, the foundation said. The foundation also launched a redesigned website, www.sammyssuperheroes.org, and created two superhero mascots  a little boy and girl who represent the nearly 16,000 children diagnosed with cancer each year.

It is our hope that this new campaign will equally appeal to adults and to our youth, who will be the future driving force for political change and advances in science, said Karges. Our team has been hard at work over the last several months and we are delighted to finally be able to share our new look.

Our new logo captures the essence of our mission. We want to be a voice for families going through this roller-coaster journey; a source of comfort for them, knowing that while they are caring for their child an army of advocates is fighting alongside them for a cure, said Erin Nahorny, the mother of Sammy Nahorny and a founding member of Sammys Superheroes Foundation.

The foundation, which gained nonprofit status in 2013, has donated more than $200,000 to cancer research projects throughout the country and plans to make another financial contribution to the University of Chicago Medicine Comer Childrens Hospital in the near future.

Were super excited for whats to come for Sammys Superheroes, Williams said.

Apparel and other items featuring the new Sammys Superheroes logo are available at Hy-Vee and the foundations office at 2002 23rd St.
LONDON  Philips, the Dutch electronics giant, said on Friday that it had terminated an agreement to sell a controlling stake in its automotive and LED components business because of regulatory concerns raised in the United States.

A consortium led by GO Scale Capital, an investment fund sponsored by GSR Ventures of China and Oak Investment Partners, agreed in March to acquire an 80.1 percent stake in the Philips unit, called Lumileds, for as much as $2.9 billion. Philips combined the lighting and LED components operations into a stand-alone company in 2014.

Philips said in October that the closing of the deal was uncertain after the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, an interagency body that includes representatives from the Treasury and Justice Departments, raised unforeseen concerns about the deal.

GO Scale Capital has offices in Beijing, Hong Kong and California. It has said that its goal is to scale up its investments in China for global markets.
Bob Hilliard, a lawyer for Mr. Scheuer, expressed disappointment that the trial had ended in such an unexpected and unforeseen way.

Image A recalled Chevy Cobalt ignition switch. The part is at the heart of several lawsuits. Credit... John Gress/Reuters

Especially one such as this where the concerns regarding the underlying safety of certain G.M. vehicles are legitimate and real, he said in an email. A jurys decision regarding the existence of a defect will have to wait until the next trial.

In February 2014, G.M. began recalling what eventually added up to 2.6 million Chevrolet Cobalts, Ions and other small cars for a defect in the ignition switch. If jostled, the switch could unexpectedly shut off, cutting power to the engine and disabling airbags, power steering and power brakes. G.M., through its compensation program, has acknowledged that at least 124 deaths were linked to the defect.

Mr. Scheuer, 49, claimed that the defective ignition switch in his car prevented the airbags from deploying during his accident, leading to neck and back injuries. G.M. has disputed his claim that the airbags should have deployed and has argued that Mr. Scheuers injuries did not stem from the crash. G.M. also disputed testimony that linked the injuries with the Scheuers eviction from their home. G.M. claimed that Mr. Scheuer and his wife, Lisa, had fabricated a story about their eviction from their home, which occurred about four months after the car accident. The automaker contended that Mr. Scheuer had altered a federal government check stub to show proof of funds to move into the familys new house, but when his real estate agent found out, the family was evicted.

The real estate agent approached G.M. after the trial started, the automaker said, after hearing about the case from a program on the radio.

Both of the Scheuers had already testified in the trial about the eviction, and the company said it was ready to provide evidence that they had lied. Though this twist was not directly related to whether the airbags in Mr. Scheuers car should or should not have deployed in his crash, it might have poked holes in the Scheuers credibility with the jury.

The apparent lies the plaintiff and his wife told the jury ended the trial early, and we are pleased that the case is over without any payment whatsoever to Mr. Scheuer, Jim Cain, a company spokesman, said in a statement.
Federal safety regulators on Friday said that a man had died in late December when an airbag made by Takata exploded in the vehicle he was driving.

It was the 10th death linked to what has become one of the countrys biggest consumer safety problems.

In announcing the death, regulators also significantly expanded the recall of cars containing Takata airbags, adding five million to the 19 million already under recall and extending it to two manufacturers, Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz, that had not previously been affected.

The twin announcements are the latest evidence that, more than a decade after the first known rupture of a Takata airbag, automakers and regulators are still struggling to understand the scope of the problem.
PARIS  Fashion has a serious case of narrative mania. Designers and their fans alike are so stoned on storytelling and the seductions of reference that one starts to yearn for the preliterate  or pre-Internet, anyway  world.

On paper, at least, Rick Owenss show on Friday  held in the underbelly of the Palais de Tokyo here and titled Mastodon  had to do with eco-anxiety, woolly mammoths, an obscure 1960s Italian horror movie and the beekeeping that his wife, Michele Lamy, recently took up as a hobby.

Raf Simons, in his first foray since leaving Dior, mounted his own fine and clearly liberating show by citing a welter of sources so varied that his show notes read like outtakes from a poetry slam. To wit:

Detroit

Tulsa

Twin Peaks

Elm Street

Horrors

The Scream

Halloween

American Youth

Belgian Youth

Big Bubble

For good measure, Mr. Simons threw in Martin Margiela, Cindy Sherman, the Boy Scouts, CBGB and The Breakfast Club. He also revisited his own back pages by evoking the influential Fear Generation collection for spring 2002 that first put him on the map.
Federal health officials on Friday added eight destinations to the list of those to which pregnant women should not travel in order to avoid infection with the Zika virus, which has been linked to brain damage in newborns.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention added Barbados, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guadeloupe, St. Martin and Guyana, as well as Samoa, in the South Pacific, and Cape Verde, off the coast of Africa.

St. Martin, Barbados and Guadeloupe are popular tourist destinations, and the travel industry will likely be affected by the virus, which is spread by mosquitoes. Health officials in the United States Virgin Islands announced on Friday that a 42-year-old woman with no history of recent travel had been infected.
This storm, if the forecasts prove accurate, could not be better timed for most New Yorkers.

For one, the weekend allows millions of residents to not worry about a snowy or slippery commute. For another, they can enjoy their city blanketed in snow without the nagging concern that one must do what must be done.

We are talking about shoveling.

It is expected to snow all day Saturday and into the evening, and if the snowfall ends that night, New Yorkers and their landlords will most likely have until 11 a.m. on Sunday to clear snow from their properties.

In New York, blizzard conditions are expected to hit early Saturday and bring 18 to 24 inches of snow, according to forecasts that were updated Friday night.

Of course, it is expected to be a wet and heavy snow, so some might be inclined to get a head start and shovel midstorm. But according to the citys rules, if the snow stops between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m., snow does not need to be cleared until 11 a.m. the next morning. Though if snow is still falling come daybreak on Sunday, then people will have four hours from the time the final flake falls to get to work.
The earliest the bill could be voted into law is at the Councils next full meeting, on Feb. 3. But the skepticism voiced at the hearing  and the lack of answers to key questions about the plan  suggested that it might take longer.

I felt insulted, said Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer, a Democrat from Queens. They failed at every single turn today. As a result, Im less likely to support the legislation.

Still, the proposed bill  supported by the Council speaker, Melissa Mark-Viverito, a Democrat, and negotiated between the de Blasio administration and the local Teamsters union, which represents the carriage drivers  appeared likely to pass in some form. Officials with the union, which supports many council members, said discussions began in June and were continuing.

The unions secretary-treasurer, Demos Demopoulos, said after his testimony that elements of the bill, like the number of horses, were still being discussed. All those things were trying to tweak to make it more possible for the industry to operate, he said.

When the particulars of the bill became public earlier this week, new opponents emerged. Parks advocates questioned the use of parkland and the expenditure of tax money for a private stable. And because the city proposed in the bill to ban pedicabs, a competitor to the horse carriages, from Central Park below 85th Street, pedicab operators protested at City Hall on Tuesday, and dozens more gathered at the hearing on Friday.
Lawyers for Sheldon Silver, the former New York State Assembly speaker convicted of federal corruption charges, asked a judge on Thursday to acquit their client or grant him a new trial, arguing that no rational juror could find that the charges had been proved beyond a reasonable doubt.

Mr. Silver, 71, a Democrat from the Lower East Side of Manhattan who spent nearly 40 years in the Assembly and more than two decades as speaker, was convicted on Nov. 30 of all seven counts against him, including honest services fraud, extortion and money laundering.

The governments evidence and testimony showed that Mr. Silver obtained nearly $4 million in illicit fees in return for taking official actions that helped benefit a cancer researcher at Columbia University and two New York real estate developers.
Yet his lurid warning about the dangers of mass immigration resonated with many Britons. He received tens of thousands of letters of support for what became known as the rivers of blood speech. Three days later, as a Labour government bill against racial discrimination was debated in Parliament, 1,000 dock workers marched from Londons East End to protest the victimization of Mr. Powell.

There are parallels between the way Mr. Powell gave voice to white working-class anxiety and Mr. Trumps primary campaigning. And like Mr. Trump, Mr. Powell discovered a ready audience: A Gallup poll a few weeks later found that 74 percent of those surveyed agreed with what Mr. Powell had said. For immigrants like my father, who arrived in Britain from Pakistan in the early 1960s, it wasnt Mr. Powells words that were frightening so much as that so many seemed to agree with them.

My father settled in Luton, an industrial town about 30 miles north of London that had a significant immigrant population. He worked on the assembly line at the Vauxhall car factory, the largest employer in the area. By the time my mother and siblings joined my father, in 1974, Mr. Powell was already a marginal figure in national politics. But his race-based views had been taken up by far-right groups like the National Front.

The National Fronts thuggish supporters were a visible, violent presence on the streets during my childhood. Mr. Powells speech also lent its anti-immigrant message a veneer of mainstream acceptability. The partys program was crude  a ban on nonwhite immigration and repatriation for nonwhites  but, for a time, worryingly effective: In the 1979 general election, the National Front had more than 300 parliamentary candidates and won nearly 200,000 votes.

Growing up in the shadow of the N.F. and knowing that there were hundreds of thousands of Britons who wished to deport people like me induced both a profound anxiety and a deep conviction that I would never be fully accepted as British.

In recent years, the target of nativist anxiety about otherness in Britain has shifted from black to Muslim. From my background in Luton, I always looked to the United States as a place where almost everyone was other, from somewhere else; I imagined it as a nation that offered a welcome to all, regardless of color or creed.

That faith has been sorely tested by Mr. Trump. Like Mr. Powell, he demonstrates the appeal of a charismatic leader who presents himself as a principled truth-teller, the only man brave enough to break with the establishment consensus on immigration. As Mr. Powell did, Mr. Trump connects with voters  especially among the economically insecure white working class  who feel theyre being lied to by the political elite.
A mayoral election in Okinawa on Sunday is shaping up to be another stand-in for the fight over a plan to relocate an American military base to a less-populated site on the Japanese island. The growing tensions between Okinawans who dont want any base at all and Japanese and American officials who say a base is crucial for security have made any resolution seem out of reach. Now, there are some signs of new thinking that could potentially reduce the friction and pry the plan out of its political vise.

The election in Ginowan, a crowded city on Okinawas main island, pits Atsushi Sakima, the incumbent who is supported by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, against Keiichiro Shimura, a former Okinawan government official. Mr. Sakima has endorsed the Japan-American plan to move the Marine Corps Air Station Futenma to Henoko Bay and return the existing location to Okinawans; Mr. Shimura wants the base out of Okinawa altogether, as do Gov. Takeshi Onaga and a majority of Okinawans. To bolster his allys chances in Sundays voting, Mr. Abe has pulled out all the stops, offering Okinawa a bigger budget, support for construction of a Disney resort and aid for the islands poor children, Reuters reported.

Opponents saying moving the base to Henoko just shifts the dangers, noise and environmental degradation to another part of the island. Any plan must work hard to answer their concerns.

A report by the Sasakawa Peace Foundation USA endorses the Henoko plan, which also calls for relocating thousands of American Marines to Guam, Hawaii and Australia, as the only realistic solutions to the demands of lessening Okinawas burden and meeting security needs. But it calls for speeding up the timeline. Written by retired Adm. Dennis Blair, former United States commander in the Pacific and now Sasakawas board chairman, and James Kendall, executive director of the Japan-U.S. Military Project, the report urges the United States to speed up construction on Guam and Hawaii so that some American forces can be relocated no later than 2025, instead of 2031.
Part of our new normal is now visible. Soldiers have been protecting our synagogues and mosques for a year. We learned to open our bags for a security guard; now we also open our coats to show we are not hiding an explosive belt. The chiefs of police and emergency services have reassessed their priorities; editors have reassigned reporters. French Jews are debating whether to give up wearing a yarmulke following the terrorist slashing of a Jewish teacher in Marseille, or keep it on, defiantly: In a poll, 70 percent of the French say they should keep it. Germany has hired 8,500 teachers to help with some 200,000 children of foreign refugees entering the school system this year.

Politicians are busy reviewing legislation to give more powers to anti-terrorist forces. To deter migrants, Sweden has imposed checks on its border with Denmark, which has in turn imposed checks on its border with Germany. Proposals that would have seemed completely off the wall a year ago are now being discussed in all seriousness, like seizing cash and valuables from asylum seekers (Denmark), interning those who arrive without passports (Germany), or stripping French citizenship from dual nationals convicted of terrorist acts.

Terrorism and Europes biggest migration crisis since World War II frame the political debate in and among many E.U. countries. These twin problems also present formidable challenges for Brussels. All agree that the Unions external borders should be secured, but who will secure them? All agree that national intelligence services dont cooperate closely enough, but who will cede sovereignty on this sensitive activity? There is no common immigration or asylum policy, but how can we agree on one?

Beneath the surface of the new normal lie even more uncomfortable challenges. The public reaction to this situation, particularly in France and Germany, reveals a crucial dilemma: How, as a society, do we make necessary adjustments without betraying the values that define us? This question is at the heart of a passionate debate in France over where to stop the pendulums swing between security and liberty; many of those who cherish their liberties struggle with the feeling that, at the moment, they value their security even more. Political elites may hate it, but polls show that proposals like depriving certain terrorists of French citizenship enjoy popular support.
To the Editor:

Re How Some Would Level the Playing Field: Free Harvard Degrees (front page, Jan. 15):

Assertions that Harvard should offer free undergraduate tuition are based on a misunderstanding of how affordable Harvard already is and how the universitys endowment and fund-raising make that possible.

Over the last decade Harvard has awarded undergraduates $1.4 billion in financial aid. Aid is based on need and consists entirely of grants. No student is required to take out loans.

Over all, nearly 60 percent of students receive grant aid, and on average their families pay $12,000 a year for tuition, room, board and fees combined. For nearly 20 percent of students  those from families with the most modest incomes  the expected family contribution is zero.

All this is possible because of the income generated by the universitys endowment and the generous yearly contributions for student aid from Harvards alumni and friends. But the endowment is not like one big bank account, to be drawn down at will. It consists of some 12,000 distinct funds, most designated by donors to support particular programs and activities, and all intended to provide support in perpetuity.
Flaws in the Iranian Nuclear Deal

Re Iran opens for business (Jan. 19) by Roger Cohen: Whatever the merits of the nuclear agreement with Iran, it is profoundly flawed in one area  it fails to take into account the safety and human rights of Iranians, Americans and the other people around the world who are endangered by Irans egregious attacks on civilians, often through proxy forces.

The deal may have avoided war, but it also provides Iran with access to billions of dollars that can be used to fund the killing of innocent civilians in Syria, Yemen, Iraq, Israel, and in the Gaza Strip and West Bank as part of the Iranian regimes aggressions against those who do not share its intolerant religious, moral and political ideology.

Mr. Cohen castigates those who criticized the deal as being pessimistic. But one need not be a prime minister of a tiny state threatened with annihilation by Iran or a bombastic congressman with presidential ambitions to be reasonably wary of some of the deals consequences and to be honest and frank about them.

War crimes and the brutal repression of Irans citizens  including its women, ethnic and religious minorities, and human rights advocates  will now be financially well-resourced and emboldened. This unsavory truth merits acknowledgment and cannot be wished away because of the positive aspects of the deal.
WASHINGTON  A massive winter storm that threatens to dump two feet of snow on the nations capital began pummeling the East Coast on Friday afternoon, as millions of people from the Carolinas to New York braced for a weekend of severe winds, power losses and coastal flooding. Thousands of flights were canceled; governors and mayors warned people to stay indoors and off the roads.

Governors in at least 10 states declared states of emergency, and travel was disrupted in at least five major airport hubs, with 6,300 flights canceled on Friday and Saturday and 4,675 more delayed. In North Carolina, more than 114,000 homes lost power. The Washington regions mass transit system took what an official called an exceedingly rare step of shutting down for the weekend.

Cities from Nashville to New York started emergency operations to respond to what the National Weather Service deemed a potentially crippling winter storm. In Virginia, where snow began falling Friday morning in the southern part of the state, Gov. Terry McAuliffe put 700 National Guard members on standby; by Friday evening, hundreds of accidents had been reported. In Baltimore, shelters added hundreds of extra beds to accommodate the homeless.
In a split decision, the Kansas Court of Appeals on Friday held that the state Constitution, like the federal one, protected a womans right to an abortion and affirmed a lower court order blocking enforcement of a restrictive 2015 law.

The ruling resulted from a 7-to-7 vote by the appeals court.

In a tie, the lower-court ruling is upheld, but the split suggested that the interpretation of abortion rights under the state Constitution is far from settled and is likely to be considered by the state Supreme Court.

The blocked law, adopted last April and signed by Gov. Sam Brownback, a Republican, would ban the most common method used in second-trimester abortions, known as dilation and evacuation.

Doctors say that the method, which involves dilating the cervix and then extracting the fetus with tools, often tearing it apart in the process, is usually the safest abortion technique after about the 12th to 14th week of pregnancy.
PRINCETON, Ore.  As more people beg the armed antigovernment protesters who took over the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge here three weeks ago to go home, the protesters this week embarked on a new quest: a search for allies.

So far, few people seem to be lining up behind them. Residents of the town of Burns, the largest nearby community, turned out in force on Tuesday to demand that the protesters vacate. The governor of Oregon, Kate Brown, exhorted federal officials to roust the group, which is led by the brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy and an ally, LaVoy Finicum. The F.B.I. tried talking to them this week, apparently with no luck.

On Wednesday, the protesters tried to enlist support from the Burns Paiute Tribe. The message  that the federally owned land of the Malheur refuge should be returned to its original owners  might seem like one that would appeal to the tribe, but it did not.

The Bundy group is also trying to recruit local ranchers. On Saturday, they plan to hold a ceremony for ranchers to renounce federal ownership of public land and tear up their federal cattle grazing contracts  an act they are calling a declaration of emancipation. Just one person has confirmed attendance, a rancher from New Mexico.
DES MOINES  Martin OMalley has rarely broken above 5 percent in Iowa polls, but on caucus night he could be the most popular person in the room  or, rather, his supporters will be, as activists for Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders desperately try to scoop them up.

The arcane rules of Iowas Democratic caucuses mean that most OMalley supporters will be ruled nonviable if he does not get 15 percent support at a caucus; his supporters will then be up for grabs by another candidate. With polls showing the race between Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Sanders narrowing to a near tie, OMalley supporters, along with attendees who enter their neighborhood caucuses undecided, could swing the results.

The most coveted person in Iowa politics is an undecided person or the OMalley nonviable folks, said Kevin Geiken, a Democratic strategist in the state.

Both the Clinton and Sanders campaigns, which have spoken to nearly every potential caucusgoer in the state by now, know who is supporting Mr. OMalley and, more important, who their second choice is. After an initial count at each of the 1,681 caucus sites, supporters of Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Sanders will get a chance, in an often emotional and chaotic scene, to woo OMalley supporters if they make up less than 15 percent of the people in the room.
BROOKLINE, N.H.  Jeanne Cleveland, a retired teacher, pursed her lips sourly at the mention of his name and tried to summarize her distaste in diplomatic terms.

I think hes arrogant, she said. I think hes rude. I think

She paused, reaching for the right words. Lets just say, I dont like the way he represents us as a country.

To avoid any confusion, Mrs. Cleveland put it plainly: I dont like Trump.

In this, the 70-year-old from Hollis, N.H., has ample, baffled and agonized company in New Hampshire as the presidential primary enters its final, frenzied weeks, with Donald J. Trump remaining atop poll after poll of the states Republican electorate.

Or is he? So deep is the dislike for him in some quarters that people like Mrs. Clevelands husband, Doug, question the accuracy of polls that so consistently identify Mr. Trump as leading the field with around 32 percent. Ive never met a single one of them, Mr. Cleveland said about those said to be backing Mr. Trump. Where are all these Trump supporters? Everyone we know is supporting somebody else.
For some Christians, support for the Black Lives Matter movement is a no-brainer. After all, Jesus opposed violence, opposed the taking of life and opposed racial distinctions. As the apostle Paul taught in his letter to the Galatians, there is neither slave nor free, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Many Christian groups have become active in Black Lives Matter as the movement has progressed. The website of the United Church of Christ, for example, offers Black Lives Matter buttons. A campaign by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) affirms the Black Lives Matter movement. And the American Baptist Churches alluded to the movement in its resolution, passed last March, celebrating its denominations role in civil rights. We affirm today that black lives matter, the statement read. Every life matters.

But those denominations tend to be liberal in their thinking. The path is trickier for conservative evangelical groups. They would all agree that black lives, like other lives, matter. But evangelicals, especially those who support Republican candidates, are uncomfortable with the movement because of its embrace of liberal politics, associated with Democrats.

That was a lesson that 16,000 evangelicals, most of them student members of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, learned in the aftermath of Urbana, the groups triennial student missions conference in St. Louis in late December.
MOGADISHU, Somalia  At least 14 civilians were killed and dozens were wounded after Islamist militants struck a popular beachside restaurant Thursday night in Somalias capital that had become a symbol of the citys struggling renaissance, officials said Friday.

The militants attacked from several directions, and security forces killed at least six after battling them until nearly dawn on Friday.

The Shabab, which have vowed to turn Somalia into a puritanical Islamic state, claimed responsibility for the attack. The group killed scores of Kenyan soldiers last week and seems to be trying to reassert itself.

Witnesses said that the attack started when Shabab fighters emerged from the beach and began firing at patrons of the Lido beachfront restaurant. People fled in the other direction, but they were killed and wounded by a bomb-laden car that exploded at the restaurants gates.
Sen. Deb Fischer dodged questions Thursday about the Republican presidential race as it approaches its first showdown moment at the Iowa caucuses on Feb. 1.

Fischer said she is not ready to endorse a candidate and may not make up her mind on who she prefers until she goes to vote in the Nebraska Republican primary election in May.

Im watching the race like everybody else, she said during a telephone conference call from Washington.

Fischer said she will support the Republican nominee in next Novembers presidential election no matter who he or she is.

We cannot continue the next four years as we have done the last eight, the Republican senator said.

We have great candidates, Fischer said. We have a big tent.

Fischer deflected a question on whether she thought this weeks endorsement of Donald Trump by 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin would assist Trump in the Iowa caucuses.

In the long run, I believe a campaign is about the candidate, Fischer said. You need to meet people and look them in the eye.

On another matter, Fischer said President Barack Obamas veto of legislation to repeal the Environmental Protection Agencys new clean water rule, designated as Waters of the United States, threatens the economic security of countless Nebraska families.

While the courts explore the legality of this rule, I will continue the fight to protect Nebraskans from this unnecessary, federal intervention, she said.

Earlier in the day, opponents of the rule were unable to gather enough votes in the Senate to invoke cloture and consider a motion to override the presidents veto. That motion fell eight votes short of the 60-vote requirement.

The presidents disappointing veto sides with overreaching EPA bureaucrats instead of Nebraskas farmers and ranchers  those who know and care most about agriculture and conservation policy, Fischer said.
WASHINGTON  Worried about a growing threat from the Islamic State in Libya, the United States and its allies are increasing reconnaissance flights and intelligence collecting there and preparing for possible airstrikes and commando raids, senior American policy makers, commanders and intelligence officials said this week.

While no decision has been finalized about when the United States and its allies will formally expand action in Libya against the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, administration officials indicated that it might be very soon. A decision will probably come in weeks but not hours, Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Friday.

Its fair to say that were looking to take decisive military action against ISIL in conjunction with the political process in Libya, General Dunford said. The president has made clear that we have the authority to use military force.

United States and British Special Operations teams have for months been conducting clandestine reconnaissance missions in Libya to identify militant leaders and map out their networks. Separate teams of American Special Operations forces have over the past year been trying to court allies from among a patchwork of Libyan militias that remain unreliable, unaccountable, poorly organized and divided by region and tribe.
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti  A runoff election to choose the next president of Haiti was delayed on Friday, less than 48 hours before it was to take place, as protesters who expected a rigged outcome began to block roads and burn voting centers.

Haiti, the Western Hemispheres poorest country, has been mired in an election-related political impasse since October, when 54 candidates ran for president in a race that opposition leaders and human rights groups said was mired in fraud.

The current presidents handpicked successor, Jovenel Moise, a banana exporter who was a virtual unknown in Haiti, officially came in first with 32.8 percent of the vote. Jude Celestin, a former state construction company official who was ousted from the 2010 race after election fraud, came in second with 25 percent. Mr. Celestin has refused to campaign and was boycotting the second round.

Today is a victory for the democratic sector in Haiti and Haitians everywhere who are struggling for true democracy, good governance and an end to corrupt practices, Mr. Celestin said through a spokesman. May God bless Haiti. Mr. Moises spokeswoman said he was in meetings and was not available for comment.
MEXICO CITY  Humberto Moreira, the Mexican politician who was arrested last week in Madrid on suspicion of laundering money, was released from jail on Friday but must remain in Spain and surrender his passport, a judge from Spains National Court ruled.

Mr. Moreira is a former governor of the state of Coahuila and was a close ally of President Enrique Pena Nieto during his campaign, but he resigned as head of the presidents party when it emerged that he had increased Coahuilas debt by 100 times in six years.

The Spanish judge, Santiago Pedraz, said that there was no evidence of money laundering and that Mr. Moreiras defense team had shown that the companies that transferred 200,000 euros, or about $216,000, from Mexico to Spain in 2013 while Mr. Moreira was living there were legitimate firms owned by the politician.
OTTAWA  Four people were killed and an unknown number were injured in a school shooting in a small town in northern Saskatchewan on Friday, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said.

Chief Superintendent Maureen Levy told a news conference in Regina, Saskatchewan, that one male, whose age and name she declined to disclose, was in police custody and that a firearm had been seized.

She offered few details about the shooting, which began just after lunchtime, but she said that there was no further danger to people in La Loche, a remote community of about 2,600.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, apparently acting on incorrect information from the police, said that there had been five deaths when he spoke at an earlier news conference from Switzerland, where he is attending the World Economic Forum.

We all grieve with the community of La Loche and all of Saskatchewan, Mr. Trudeau said. This is every parents worst nightmare.

Georgina Jolibois, the local member of Parliament and a former mayor of La Loche, said in a statement, The shooting hits close to home for me as my family members attend the school.

She added: The community of La Loche is strong and closely knit. We have faced adversity in the past, and we will persevere.

The towns acting mayor, Kevin Janvier, said that his daughter, Marie, a teacher at the school, was among the dead, according to The Associated Press.

The La Loche Community School has about 900 students in classes from junior kindergarten to Grade 12. A Facebook post by the school said that the episode had occurred in a building for Grades 7 to 12.

The local population is largely aboriginal Canadian. Hunting and fishing are popular activities in the area, and hunting rifles are relatively common.

It was the first school shooting in Canada since 2007, when a 15-year-old boy was killed in a Toronto high school.

Canadas deadliest school shooting occurred in 1989, when a man killed 14 students at Ecole Polytechnique, an engineering school in Montreal, then killed himself. The deaths of those students, all women, led to the establishment of a national registry for rifles and other long guns. The Conservative government, which was defeated in October, dismantled that registry over the protests of many police forces and provincial governments.
KABUL, Afghanistan  AFTER his return to Afghanistan from exile, in 1986, Azizullah Royesh immediately became a tireless advocate of education as a bridge over the divisions that have made his country a battleground for decades.

Mr. Royesh has been hailed at home and internationally for his work at Marefat High School, his innovative school where girls make up almost half of the student population. He champions schooling as a way into the professional and governing class for Afghan minorities  and particularly for his fellow Hazaras, a mostly Shiite ethnic minority that suffered heavily under the Taliban regime.

But on a recent chilly day, sitting in his office at the school, Mr. Royesh had the resumed persecution of his people on his mind. The man who found his calling after returning to Afghanistan was reluctantly admitting that he understood the fear driving tens of thousands of Hazaras  and many other Afghans  to flee the country.

The Hazaras feel themselves defenseless against the threat facing them, Mr. Royesh said, pointing to the recent beheadings in the southern province of Zabul of seven Shiite Hazaras, including a 9-year-old girl, by militants linked to the Islamic State. In many other places, the Taliban, the Hazaras old nemesis, are resurgent, gaining territory by the week.
HONG KONG  The Japanese economy minister, Akira Amari, a high-profile supporter of Prime Minister Shinzo Abes policies on trade and the economy, is fighting potentially damaging accusations that he received funds from a construction company in return for political favors.

I havent broken any laws, Mr. Amari said at a news conference on Friday, in comments reported by the Japanese news media.

He had earlier said that he had only vague memories of his dealings with the construction company, which, according to a Japanese magazine, gave him and his aides cash and gifts totaling 12 million yen, or about $100,000.

The funds were never reported in mandatory records on campaign financing, said the magazine, Shukan Bunshun.
HONG KONG  North Korean state news media said Friday that a university student from the United States who had entered the country as a tourist was being held for a hostile act.

The student, Otto F. Warmbier of the University of Virginia, was accused of entering North Korea with the intent of bringing down the foundation of its single-minded unity, according to the Norths official Korean Central News Agency.

Mr. Warmbier, who is from Cincinnati, is a third-year student studying economics with a minor in global sustainability, according to LinkedIn.

A classmate said Mr. Warmbier was an honors student, a member of the universitys selective Echols Scholars Program and a member of the Theta Chi fraternity.
BEIJING  In Green Island, the novelist Shawna Yang Ryan tells the story of how the Tsais, a Taiwanese family, survive the February 28 Incident of 1947 and precariously navigate the decades that follow as Chiang Kai-sheks Kuomintang, or Nationalist Party, rules the island under martial law.

The date marks the start of a massacre overseen by Kuomintang troops recently arrived from mainland China, which killed 10,000 to 30,000 Taiwanese in reprisal for protests to their rule. For 50 years before the Kuomintangs arrival, Taiwan had been a modern, industrialized Japanese colony  whereas China was a poor, mostly agricultural nation  and the mixture of peoples was uneasy. The Kuomintang government took over the island after the Japanese surrendered to the Allies in 1945. In 1949, its supporters fled entirely to Taiwan and moved the Republic of China there, after losing the Chinese civil war to Mao Zedongs Communists.

Heres how Tillman Durdin of The New York Times reported the massacre, in a dispatch dated March 28, 1947, from Nanking, Chinas capital at the time:

An American who had just arrived in China from Taihoku said that troops from the mainland arrived there March 7 and indulged in three days of indiscriminate killing and looting. For a time everyone seen on the streets was shot at, homes were broken into and occupants killed. In the poorer sections the streets were said to have been littered with dead.

The massacre story is little understood outside Taiwan, said Ms. Ryan, a Taiwanese-American who grew up in California and now teaches creative writing at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. In her book, Ms. Ryan embraces the complexity of the situation, by not creating heroes but instead exploring the truth of compromise, survival and belonging.

Lightly edited excerpts of an interview with Ms. Ryan follow:

Q. Your novel is named after Green Island, where the Kuomintang held political prisoners including native Taiwanese, similar to South Africas Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela was held. Why that title?
The loss of this critically important animal brings the species one step closer to extinction, Peter Pritchard, an international turtle authority and author of the book Rafetus: The Curve of Extinction, said in an email from his home in Florida.

But for the Vietnamese, biodiversity may have been the least of Cu Ruas attributes.

Of the four animals that many Vietnamese consider sacred, including the dragon, phoenix and unicorn, the turtle is the only one that exists in real life, said Pamela McElwee, a Vietnam expert and a professor of human ecology at Rutgers University. As a result, she added, Hanois giant turtle was seen as an important link between the here and now, the earthly world and the spiritual world.

It was also a symbol of the capitals endurance in the face of decades of war and upheaval.

Whenever a train rumbles into the Hanoi Railway Station, the conductor plays a patriotic song that chronicles Hanois recovery after the Vietnam War and ends with an ode to one of the citys most famous monuments: a shrine in the center of Hoan Kiem Lake built in the 1880s to honor the sacred turtle.

Nguyen Thi Van Anh, 40, a customer service agent at the Hanoi Railway Station, said she had never seen the turtle but always thought of it as an important symbol of her hometown.
BERLIN  A man shot to death by French police officers this month acted alone and not as part of a wider terrorist organization when he approached a Paris police station armed with a meat cleaver and fake explosives, the German authorities said on Friday.

The German police in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia said they believed that the man was Tarek Belgacem, a 24-year-old born in Tunisia, who entered the European Union through Romania in 2011.

French investigators hope to ascertain his identity through DNA analysis, the director of police in North-Rhine Westphalia, Uwe Jacob, told reporters.

The authorities on both sides of the Rhine have been piecing together Mr. Belgacems personal history based on fingerprints and information he had given in seven different countries where he applied for asylum over the past five years.
PARIS  The Belgian prosecutors office announced on Friday that it had detained a new suspect in the attacks in Paris and had released one who had been previously detained. But it said it would still require the man who was released to appear before a judge and limit his activities.

Separately, in France, President Francois Hollande announced that on Feb. 3 he would seek a renewal of a state of emergency for an additional three months, which would continue to allow the police to stage raids without the permission of a judge and to put people under house arrest.

There have been more than 3,000 raids since the measures were put into effect after the terrorist attacks on Nov. 13 in the Paris area, and there are 400 people under house arrest, according to Bernard Cazeneuve, the interior minister. But the number of raids has slowed significantly since initial weeks after the state of emergency began.

With the new detention in Belgium, nine men are now in jail there in connection with the attacks, and two more are facing charges but have been released until they are required to appear before a judge. Two men are in detention in France in connection with the attacks.
JERUSALEM  Ezra Nawi, an Israeli Jewish plumber, has a long history as a left-wing activist helping Palestinians in their struggle against Israels occupation of the West Bank. Now he is under arrest in Israel, after a right-wing activist surreptitiously filmed him bragging about exposing Arab brokers who tried to sell Palestinian land to Jewish settlers. Such sales are a capital crime under Palestinian law.

Considered variously as a big-mouthed provocateur and a colorful human-rights adventurer, Mr. Nawi has become the latest symbol in the battle between advocacy groups on opposite sides of Israels political spectrum, and the increasingly fierce debate here over the nature of Israeli society and democracy.

The debate has heated up as Israels conservative government is pushing forward contentious legislation that would require nongovernmental organizations to disclose funding they receive from foreign governments in their publications, advertising and meetings with public officials. The proposed bill, which supporters say is meant to increase transparency, would apply mainly to leftist groups critical of Israels policy toward the Palestinians, since rightist groups mostly receive private funding from abroad, and it has already drawn harsh criticism from the Obama administration and European diplomats.

Daniel B. Shapiro, the American ambassador to Israel, took the unusual step of meeting with Israels justice minister, Ayelet Shaked of the rightist Jewish Home Party, and then released a pointed statement afterward noting Washingtons concern about the bill.
JERUSALEM  Israeli troops forcibly removed about 80 Jewish settlers on Friday from two houses in Hebron, in the West Bank, a day after they moved into the buildings they said had been purchased from Palestinians.

Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon said the settlers had broken the law by not getting permission from the military to enter the houses and had not been granted the permits required to carry out real estate deals in the West Bank.

The divided city of Hebron is a subject of contention between Israelis and Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, and the military checkpoints guarding Israeli settlements in the area have been regular targets in a recent wave of stabbings, rock throwing and protests by Palestinians.

The removal of the settlers in Hebron went relatively peacefully, but it prompted some Israeli legislators from the right to threaten to withhold support from the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Jason Rezaian, the Washington Post reporter who was among the American citizens freed by Iran last weekend in a prisoner deal, left an American military hospital in Germany on Friday bound for the United States, accompanied by his wife and mother aboard his bosss personal jetliner.

At some point, I will be ready to discuss my ordeal, but for now, I just want to express my profound appreciation for the tremendous support I have received, Mr. Rezaian said in a statement distributed by The Washington Post as he left the hospital in Landstuhl, Germany.

Referring to the prisoner swap, Mr. Rezaian said that he had been humbled by all I have learned about the efforts undertaken on my behalf.

Washington Post officials declined to specify where and when Mr. Rezaian, his wife, Yeganeh Salehi, and mother, Mary Rezaian, would be arriving in the United States. Mr. Rezaian was born and raised in Marin County, Calif., where his brother, Ali, still lives.
TUNIS  The Tunisian government imposed a nationwide curfew on Friday after protests against unemployment spread across the country and grew more violent, in an echo of the Arab Spring uprising five years ago.

The Interior Ministry announced the measure  a curfew from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m.  on its Facebook page, warning of danger to the security of the state and its citizens. A spokesman said violent jihadist groups could take advantage of the chaos created by the protests to cause more violence.

Demonstrations have been growing all week, after an unemployed man died on Saturday in the western town of Kasserine. The man, Ridha Yahyaoui, 28, was electrocuted when he climbed a telephone pole in protest after seeing that his name was not included on a list of new public-sector jobs, his father told a local radio station.

His desperate act came almost exactly five years after the uprising that toppled President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali in 2011. That revolt was set off by the suicide of an impoverished fruit seller named Mohamed Bouazizi, in the town of Sidi Bouzid, who set himself on fire after the police ordered him to remove his street stall.
PARIS  American commanders are considering whether to establish a presence at Iraqi military outposts and bases north of Baghdad ahead of a looming fight against Islamic State militants in Mosul, defense officials said Friday.

Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the countrys top military officer, said discussions between American and Iraqi commanders and officials had begun on how American forces would integrate with Iraqi military units to take back Mosul.

Its fair to say that we will have positions up in the north that will facilitate supporting Iraqi security forces, General Dunford told reporters traveling with him in Paris.
This month, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau published a guide to help consumers compare the risks and benefits of lump-sum payouts with a monthly pension.

The report suggests that if you and your spouse are in good health, or if members of either family tend to live long lives, a monthly payout is often the best option because it substantially reduces a consumers risk of running out of money later in life.

That is also the recommendation of the nonprofit group Pension Rights Center. While the idea of a lump sum may be tempting  sort of like winning a jackpot  most retirees are better off with a guaranteed stream of income, the center advises. If you take a lump sum, you will be responsible for managing the money and you will have to earn enough through investing to make the money last throughout your retirement years. Even savvy investors arent assured of making money in the market. So you will need to consider if you can afford to lose some or all of your funds.

And for those who are tempted to take the lump sum because they worry that the government insurance program may not endure, the Pension Rights Center has this to say: For most people, the risks posed by taking a lump sum still outweigh the remote possibility that an established financial institution or the P.B.G.C. will not be able to continue to make payments.

Ellen Kleinstuber, a pension actuary and chairwoman of the Pension Committee of the American Academy of Actuaries, said the main benefit of a monthly payment was that it would continue even if you lived much longer than you expected. You know its going to be there.
Mr. Suders lawsuit and the supporting correspondence paint a picture of a partnership that seemed to be going well until two weeks after the final check was cashed.

The universitys application, signed by Robert E. Witt, then the university president and now chancellor of the state system, talked about Alabamas commitment to helping first-generation students.

The application also stated that the universitys leadership has designated an endowed support fund to be used to support the Suder Scholars program once the Suder Foundation funding is complete in 2015.

Each year, the university signed an addendum to the original agreement and reported its progress to Mr. Suders foundation. On Sept. 4, 2014, Judy Bonner, the provost when the contract was negotiated but by then the universitys president, sent Mr. Suder a note thanking him for his final $250,000 check and contribution to the university.

Eleven days later, she sent him another note saying that the university was opting out of his program now that it had to pay for it itself. It was a total surprise to us, Mr. Suder said.

Ms. Bonnin, the Alabama spokeswoman, said she could not explain the discrepancy between the sentiment in the letters and the universitys actions. All of the people who were involved in setting up that agreement are no longer here, she said. The president is gone, the provost is gone, and the development folks have turned over. We cant ask them that question.

She added that the university continued to provide scholarship support for the 57 students who had been admitted as part of the First Scholars program. She said the university had four other first-generation college programs serving a total of 110 students.
For the last 20 years, Helle Helles novels and short stories have made her a star in her native Denmark, where she regularly receives awards and acclaim. Denmark is also where, according to her biography, Helle lives in a forest. What a fittingly magical dwelling for Helle, who  judging from her first novel to be translated into English, This Should Be Written in the Present Tense  has enchanting gifts as a storyteller.

The books protagonist is named Dorte. Shes in her early 20s, and her life is a fog of existential ennui occasionally punctuated by tenuous connection. In short chapters covering various points over the last few years of her life, Dorte describes living with Per, an earnest guy she soon leaves for his more interesting cousin Lars, and sleeping with her neighbor Knud while his girlfriends away. Dortes parents, meanwhile, are present but perfunctory, about as effective as the authority figures in Peanuts. Only her Aunt Dorte provides genuine guidance and a source of solace, though their shared name has ambivalent origins: Dorte is named after her aunt because she couldnt have children of her own, effectively christening the protagonists life from Day 1 as consolation for someone elses.

Helles prose, translated from the Danish by Martin Aitken, is at once frank in its directness and elusive in its selective economy. Much of the novel reads like this: I counted my money. I needed to get some more out. Shortly before half past 9 I went down to the bank. I bought an enormous ice cream from the sweet shop. I was the first customer of the day. I sat on the little square with the hanging baskets and ate it.
RE:DUPONT

Nathaniel Rich recounted the efforts of the corporate lawyer Rob Bilott to expose the chemical companys brazen, decades-long history of pollution.

When I was a self-conscious preteen, the doctors at what is now Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, Del., granted me the opportunity to wear a groundbreaking back brace for the treatment of my scoliosis. It was successful, and the brace was inconspicuously hidden beneath my clothing. Those duPont doctors were my heroes.

Decades later, as a homeowner, I watched sadly as huge, stately evergreens on our property browned and died as a result of our lawn service using DuPont Imprelis (we were later compensated for the loss of the trees by DuPont). Now, the horrifying and heart-wrenching story of Rob Bilotts battle against DuPont and PFOA leaves me even more conflicted about the company associated with the heroes of my youth. How can a corporation do so much good and so much bad? Sara Sevec, Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
When horror fans dare horror rookies to watch a movie, its usually a classic frightfest like The Exorcist or a more recent white-knuckler like It Follows. When horror fans dare other horror fans to watch a movie, its Martyrs.

Brutal from start to finish and ruthless in its depiction of despair, Pascal Laugiers 2008 French-language shocker is an endurance test for even the most tenacious try-me horror fan. The critic Simon Abrams wrote that the film takes the underlying concept of torture porn  pleasure from excessive displays of pain  and thoroughly explodes it in 99 minutes of grueling, nonstop butchery. And that was a rave.

So its no surprise that the films partisans are wary of a new Martyrs, which opened Jan. 22. One of the films backers is Blumhouse, the red-hot production company behind the popular but hardly hard-core horror franchises Paranormal Activity and Insidious. As with recent remakes of Halloween and The Evil Dead, fans of the original are wringing their hands over an American remake that might water down carnage or sanitize content.

Kevin and Michael Goetz, the brothers who directed the new Martyrs, say they understand fans apprehension. But their job was to focus on the script that was given to us, Kevin Goetz said. Their hope is that their reimagining, as they call the version written by Mark L. Smith, a co-writer of The Revenant, will shine a light on a film still largely under the public radar.
The city can sometimes seem like a battlefield for chain pharmacies, where the last vestiges of vintage apothecaries can be found only in kitsch restaurants that open in former pharmacies. But actual mom-and-pop drugstores still exist, even in gentrified Brooklyn neighborhoods like Cobble Hill, where Wyckoffs Corner Pharmacy has endured for the past decade.

On a recent afternoon, beyond the rows of standard drugstore offerings  beauty products, decongestants, greeting cards  a man consulted in Arabic at the back counter with one pharmacist as an older woman sought advice about prescriptions from another. A woman on her way to Israel that evening rushed in to stock up for the trip.

There was lots of chitchat and well-wishing: Take care of yourself. Feel better. Safe travels.

It felt a world away from the chain pharmacies that have opened in the neighborhood lately.

Those corporate competitors  a CVS two blocks up Court Street, a Rite Aid around the corner  have Wyckoffs Corner Pharmacy beat in terms of square feet. But at Wyckoffs, customers know the names of the pharmacists behind the counter: Bassam (Sam) Amin and John Capotorto. Both came from chain drugstores.
To judge from the society pages, the fashion designer Cynthia Rowley and her husband, Bill Powers, seem to be out on the town six days a week. But on the seventh day, the couple downshifts (slightly) into the rhythms of family life. Which is to say, We do extreme activities, said Ms. Rowley, 57, for whom family means her husband, a 48-year-old writer and art dealer, and two school-age daughters, Kit and Gigi. If your idea of unwinding is racing go-karts or singing Iggy Pop songs, then let them be your relaxation counselors. If not, try to hang on until the rocket returns to home base, a house in the West Village.

RARING TO GO I wake up like Im shot out of a cannon. It depends on Saturday night, but I wake up between 7:30 and 8:30.

SURFS UP I make coffee and then try to do a workout with my kids. Theres not a lot of places that will allow all ages. We like SurfSet, which is a workout with stationary surf boards that are mounted on rubber balls, and they play surf videos.
Jane Jacobs was so consumed in the late 1950s by the writing of her manifesto, The Death and Life of Great American Cities, that her hair turned from auburn to white. In Becoming Jane Jacobs (University of Pennsylvania Press, $34.95), Peter L. Laurence dispels the sexist and condescending contemporary view that her canonical book was a collection of home remedies from a housewife whose only credentials were as an amateur observer of the citys sidewalk ballet.

Although Ms. Jacobs lacked a formal education in city planning, she had been writing for a generation, after transplanting herself from Scranton, Pa., to seek her fortune in Depression-era New York as a self-styled city naturalist and economic geographer (wondering, for instance, why the old diamond district developed on Bowery between Canal and Hester Streets).

Her views evolved, too. Professor Laurence, director of graduate studies at Clemson University School of Architecture, recalls that she was even somewhat forgiving of Robert Moses. It is understandable that men who were young in the 1920s were captivated by the vision of the freeway Radiant City, Ms. Jacobs wrote, with the specious promise that it would be appropriate to an automobile age. She added, however:

It is disturbing to think that men who are young today, men who are being trained now for their careers, should accept on the grounds that they must be modern in their thinking, conceptions about cities and traffic which are not only unworkable, but also to which nothing new of any significance has been added since their fathers were children.

Ms. Jacobs, who died in 2006, moved to Toronto in 1968, to protect her sons from the draft and because Ive fought as long as I could, but Ive had enough. She left enduring reflections on urban density that are as relevant in todays debate on rezoning as ever.
This is the story of 500 rats on the West Side Highway and one who ventured east.

They were not your typical city rats. They were albinos, white with pink eyes, the kind people keep as pets or tinker with in labs or raise to feed to snakes.

Last July, they began to appear in a kite-shaped median between the highway and an exit lane onto West 57th Street, across from a Sanitation Department garage: first a few rats, then a few dozen, then so many that they were a blur of white in the undergrowth, a scurrying time-lapse.

How the rats got there remains a mystery.

But one of them was Rose. She was near the end of childhood, 5 weeks old and fully furred.

There was no food or water for the rats on their little island. Many of them ran out onto the 10-lane highway, made for the riverfront, met with bad ends. (It did not help that albino rats are mostly blind.)
Late last year, a Brooklyn judge sentenced a 26-year-old man, Dexter Bell, to a minimum prison term of 100 years for raping four women in the course of one week during the spring of 2013. In each instance, Mr. Bell had approached his victim in late afternoon or early evening, briefly initiating conversation before dragging her into an alleyway or stairwell and waging his assault. The B12 bus route between Crown Heights and Canarsie was a preferred corridor for his predations; his youngest victim was 15.

In the 1970s and 80s, feminism recalibrated the cultural understanding of rape so that the bar for determining what defined it was no longer set intractably at encounters like these. Real Rape, an influential book by the legal scholar Susan Estrich, for example, illuminated the ways in which the law had failed to recognize the broader realities of sexual assault that included  much more commonly  perverse expressions of male will endured by women at the hands of husbands, bosses, colleagues, fellow students, educators and so on. This shift in focus, combined with the steady decline of random violent crime over the past 20 years, has made any discussion of rape by a stranger seem benighted.

At the same time, the city is witnessing an increase in cases of rape involving assailants unknown to their victims. In 2015, there were roughly 166 so-called stranger rapes in New York, greater than the number of pedestrian traffic fatalities  which, by contrast, are decreasing but continue to command so much attention. Last year, according to the Police Department, the number of stranger rapes was greater by 49 than the number in 2014. Beyond that, the total trended upward as the year progressed, with 67 occurring in the first half of 2015 and 99 in the second half. For the most recent 28-day period, the police reported, there were 112 rape complaints in the city, seven more than in the same period a year earlier. That statistic includes the reported gang rape in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn that occurred on Jan. 7 and reverberated throughout the city, prompting plans by the de Blasio administration to heighten security in parks.

In a world obsessed with data and pre-emption, the Police Department does not make public a map of where and when stranger rapes have occurred, so that women might avoid particular streets or neighborhoods at certain times as a precaution. While it is possible to know, within microseconds of clicking on the departments website, that there were three instances of grand larceny in Van Cortlandt Park during the third quarter of last year  hold on to your Nikon D7200!  there is no easy way for a civilian to determine, for instance, that the highest concentration of stranger rapes last year, nine, occurred in and around the Mott Haven section of the Bronx.
David Pollack, a.k.a. Taxi Dave, settled behind a microphone last weekend in the TriBeCa studios of WOR-AM (710) for his taxi-themed talk radio show, which has become popular with New York City cabbies and other listeners at 8 p.m. Sunday nights.

This is Taxi 101, Mr. Pollack said in a Bronx accent, before a deep-voiced recording, the shows opening promo, kicked in.

Following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, the voice intoned: Taxi Dave drove a taxi in New York City for many years. In fact, he was born in the front seat of a yellow cab.

Mr. Pollack, 60, has spent his life driving yellow cabs and then working in other areas of the industry, including The Taxi Dave Show, a blend of bluster, humor and outrage.
They found it all in a penthouse rental with floor-to-ceiling windows that, coincidentally, was right across the street from their previous apartment. Its nice to have so much natural light, Ms. Hilty said. Ive lived in a lot of places in the city where the ceilings were low and it was very dark. It makes such a difference having the sun come in.

The first piece of furniture Ms. Hilty and Mr. Gallagher chose together was an enormous couch from Raymour & Flanigan. It accompanied them on their most recent journey to the West Coast, but was left behind when they came back East because there wasnt enough room in their new quarters. In its place is a more modest-size leather sofa the couple bought for the house they rented in Los Angeles.

We love it because we figured the more wear it got, the cooler it would look. With the dogs and with a kid on the way, we thought it would be just perfect, said Ms. Hilty, who has an avowed weakness for shabby chic as well as for a New York outpost of Olde Good Things. Thats where she and Mr. Gallagher bought a dining table made of reclaimed barn wood and the chairs to go with it.

Another old and good thing: the antique record player encased in a wood cabinet that the couple found at a flea market in the Rose Bowl. As we walked around we heard music, said the amiable Mr. Gallagher, who spent much of the morning chasing after 16-month-old Viola. We followed the sound and it was this thing playing. Its really cool.

The phonograph is but one of many items he and Ms. Hilty have picked up on their travels. They also try diligently to buy a mug from every city they visit as well as a work by a local artist, for example, the painting of the Flatiron building acquired on a trip to Houston.

The Hilty-Gallagher household operates with two core beliefs.

First, its Christmas every day. This explains why Santa and Mrs. Claus figurines are prominently displayed year-round on a shelf in the living room and why a cache of Yule decorations is kept in the trunk that serves as a coffee table rather than in the couples storage bin in the basement. We like knowing the holiday is always there, Ms. Hilty said.

Second, the animate always trumps the inanimate. Smudges from the rubber balls that belong to Harley, a Jack Russell terrier, cover the walls of the corridor leading to the bedrooms. So do Violas tiny handprints. You want to make something of it?
Its morning at Mercedes House, the apartment complex on West 54th Street in Manhattan, and the little ones are frolicking in the loft area, near a big caterpillar-shaped play structure. Later, they might be taken out for a walk. And when theyre all tuckered out, they can curl up on cots.

But this brightly lit space, part of an 1,800-square-foot facility that opened last summer, is not for human youngsters, its for dogs  one of many pet amenities that have sprung up in residential buildings in New York in recent years in a bid to entice renters and buyers devoted to the four-legged members of their families.

Hello, Bagel! said Zachary Morello, the manager of this outpost of the Spot Experience, a dog-care company, as a goldendoodle approached.

When pet spas were introduced in high-end residential buildings a decade or so ago, they might have seemed like another flash-in-the-pan perk. But theyve not only hung on like a dog with a bone, theyve also evolved. Slop sinks for pet washdowns have been replaced by gleaming professional-grade tubs. Closet-size spaces have expanded into sprawling facilities where pooches enjoy cage-free day care and work off paunches on treadmills, not to mention getting dolled up in the latest hairdos. (Pomeranian lion cut, anyone?) And while these facilities are still most often associated with upscale developments  and, yes, widely mocked as an expression of the misplaced priorities of the privileged  they are beginning to show up in affordable housing, too.
Pegi Vail, 53, an anthropologist and the associate director of the Center for Media, Culture and History at New York University, studies backpacker subculture and the impact of travel on communities and on biodiversity. Her documentary, Gringo Trails, has been shown at dozens of festivals and in more than 20 countries since 2014, and recently was released on DVD (it is also available on iTunes and Amazon Video). Here are edited excerpts from an interview with her.

Q. Why the focus on backpacker culture?

A. I backpacked throughout my 20s. My first trip was to Europe, and I got inspired to do more. I went through China, Southeast Asia, Africa. For a young traveler on a budget, backpacking offered the possibility of more immersion, or so I thought. It did to a certain point, because you go to smaller villages, use local transportation. When I went to graduate school for anthropology, I decided to study my own tribe.

Describe a typical backpacker then and now.

Most are still in their 20s, equally male and female and even if theyre on a shoestring, the majority are from middle- to middle-upperclass families. However, the racial and ethnic profiles have changed with the education and income levels in different countries. So now there are many more travelers from Asia, Brazil, Russia and India. And theyre using social media as much as, if not more than, Lonely Planet. That element of being connected, among themselves and to people back home, is the biggest change.
LINCOLN  Scientists at the Nebraska State Patrol Crime Lab now have more than double the amount of room to work in, and they say itll help victims get justice quicker.

The new lab at 3977 Air Park Road in Lincoln opened Oct. 26 and is 15,000 square feet bigger than its predecessor.

On Tuesday, Kent Weber, supervisor of the firearm and toolmark section of the physical sciences unit, stood in the gun storage room showing off the extra space.

We have room to grow now, he said, motioning to shelves and walls filled with more than 1,000 guns used for comparisons and testing during shooting investigations. The gun collection is the units reference library and holds firearms from common handguns to foreign guns and a grenade.

Amy Weber and Sarah Zarnick, forensic scientists in the physical sciences unit, now have enough room to work without bumping into each other, or waiting for one to finish up before the other moves in.

The new laboratory also has technological upgrades including a remote firing apparatus to keep forensic scientists safe when testing possibly faulty guns, imaging software to help document fingerprints from electronics and antiques and robots that can process 96 samples of DNA at a time.

The lab has four units, each with multiple sections. The biology unit analyzes DNA and biological evidence; the chemistry unit tests drugs for potency, does toxicology reports for DUI cases and investigates arson; physical sciences houses the firearm and toolmark section as well as the fingerprint processing section; and the quality assurance manager oversees evidence intake.

Each section has its own offices and workrooms, with larger areas to process evidence than before. Each of the labs 26 employees has an individual work space.

The lab provides services free to the entire state and has worked with 160 law enforcement agencies. Last year, lab personnel made 51 court appearances to testify in six counties, searched for 334 fingerprints and processed 3,435 samples of DNA from convicted felons.

Ground was broken on the roughly $9 million building built by the Lincoln Airport Authority in August 2014. The total cost for the building and work came to just more than $11 million. The State Patrol will reimburse the Airport Authority through a 20-year lease.

Col. Bradley Rice, superintendent of the patrol, said the federal governments freeze on civil forfeiture shares shouldnt affect payments in the short term.

We have enough funds to last quite a while, he said.

During a news conference Thursday morning, Rice said the labs staff is excited to be settled into their new home. Every aspect of the project  from construction to moving equipment  was a big teamwork effort, which he called a hallmark of the crime lab.

The original crime lab opened in 1973. Since then, it has gone from handling roughly 400 cases a year to 4,000, Rice said.

By the end of this year, supervisors hope to have the turnaround time for drug testing cases down to four weeks. Toxicology results, most of which relate to DUI cases, are normally returned within four months and cases where DNA is used returned on average in five months, officials said.

Gov. Pete Ricketts said the new lab will help make Nebraska safer.

Facilities like this mean that we will be able to do a better job at catching the bad guys and bringing them to justice, which means victims will get that outcome theyre looking for and get those perpetrators brought to justice faster, he said.
Featured Post The Occasionally Fabulous Cartooning Life of Eric Orner, part 1: Ethan Green and Disney by Mike Rhode Eric Orner has been a professional cartoonist for decades, and worked his way through many types of cartooning. Early in the s...

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Lee County is one of 39 counties in Alabama included in a disaster declaration signed Thursday by President Barack Obama, which grants help from the Federal Emergency Management Associations Public Assistance Grant Program.

The declaration includes an order for federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the area affected by severe storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds and flooding Dec. 23 to 31. Funding is available to state, tribal and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the holiday weather, according to a White House press release.

Locally, Lee County EMA officials say they have been anticipating the declaration.

We have been waiting for it, Public Information Officer Rita Smith said. Were very, very thankful that we were able to be included.

Autauga, Barbour, Blount, Bullock, Butler, Chambers, Cherokee, Clay, Cleburne, Coffee, Colbert, Conecuh, Covington, Crenshaw, Cullman, Dale, DeKalb, Elmore, Escambia, Fayette, Franklin, Geneva, Henry, Houston, Jackson, Lamar, Lawrence, Lowndes, Macon, Marion, Marshall, Monroe, Perry, Pike, Russell, St. Clair, Walker and Winston counties are also named in the declaration.

The county has been declared for public assistance, meaning federal funds can be used toward public structures and buildings, like those managed by the Lee County Highway Department, the cities of Auburn and Opelika and local utilities companies.

The grant was awarded at a 75/25 match, meaning the federal government will reimburse 75 percent, and the remaining 25 is up to the jurisdiction to fund.

Lee County engineer Justin Hardee and Emergency Management Director Kathy Carson reported Lee Countys total damage from the weather at nearly $1 million.

Lee Countys damages, as our department has assessed, are over half a million dollars ourselves with these closures, Hardee told the Lee County Commission at its last meeting. The City of Auburn is reporting approximately $150,000 and the City of Opelika approximately $140,000.

Some Lee County roads are still closed as a result of flood damage.

In a formal request for federal assistance filed last week, Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley called the flooding historic in the state

We are working to rebuild from historic flooding, and the FEMA Public Assistance will be a tremendous help to communities, he said in a release after the request was filed. Together with our federal partners, we will recover from the damage.




1. U.S. acceptance of coexistence as the only alternative to atomic war.

2. U.S. willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging in atomic war.

3. Develop the illusion that total disarmament of the United States would be a demonstration of moral strength.

4. Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war.

5. Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites.

6. Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination.

7. Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N.

8. Set up East and West Germany as separate states in spite of Khrushchev's promise in 1955 to settle the German question by free elections under supervision of the U.N.

9. Prolong the conferences to ban atomic tests because the United States has agreed to suspend tests as long as negotiations are in progress.

10. Allow all Soviet satellites individual representation in the U.N.

11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, demand that it be set up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two centers compete with each other as they are now doing in the Congo.)

12. Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party.

13. Do away with all loyalty oaths.

14. Continue giving Russia access to the U.S. Patent Office.

15. Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States.

16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights.

17. Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers' associations. Put the party line in textbooks.

18. Gain control of all student newspapers.

19. Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under Communist attack.

20. Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policymaking positions.

21. Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures.

22. Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American Communist cell was told to "eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms."

23. Control art critics and directors of art museums. "Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art."

24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them "censorship" and a violation of free speech and free press.

25. Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV.

26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as "normal, natural, healthy."

27. Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with "social" religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity which does not need a "religious crutch."

28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of "separation of church and state."

29. Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis.

30. Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the "common man."

31. Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the "big picture." Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over.

32. Support any socialist movement to give centralized control over any part of the culture--education, social agencies, welfare programs, mental health clinics, etc.

33. Eliminate all laws or procedures which interfere with the operation of the Communist apparatus.

34. Eliminate the House Committee on Un-American Activities.

35. Discredit and eventually dismantle the FBI.

36. Infiltrate and gain control of more unions.

37. Infiltrate and gain control of big business.

38. Transfer some of the powers of arrest from the police to social agencies. Treat all behavioral problems as psychiatric disorders which no one but psychiatrists can understand.

39. Dominate the psychiatric profession and use mental health laws as a means of gaining coercive control over those who oppose Communist goals.

40. Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce.

41. Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents.

42. Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition; that students and special-interest groups should rise up and use united force to solve economic, political or social problems.

43. Overthrow all colonial governments before native populations are ready for self-government.

44. Internationalize the Panama Canal.

45. Repeal the Connally reservation so the United States cannot prevent the World Court from seizing jurisdiction over nations and individuals alike.
An Academy Awards boycott that stemmed from a lack of racial diversity among Oscar nominees has grown, with Will Smith saying Thursday that he is joining his wife in skipping this years ceremony.

No, my wife is not going; itd be awkward for me to show up with Charlize (Theron), the actor said on Good Morning America. So, no. Weve discussed it and were a part of this community, but at this current time, were uncomfortable to stand there and say that this is OK.

Actress Jada Pinkett Smith announced her boycott on Monday via a Facebook video. Filmmakers Spike Lee and Michael Moore have also said they wont be attending the Academy Awards this year, as the #OscarsSoWhite backlash has picked up steam. Tyrese Gibson and 50 Cent both called on Chris Rock to quit his hosting duties in protest, and Mark Ruffalo, nominated for best supporting actor for his role in Spotlight, said hes weighing whether to attend.

Thats where Im at right now; I woke up in the morning thinking, What is the right way to do this?  Ruffalo told the BBC, going on to cite the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.s message that the good people that dont act are much worse than the people, the wrongdoers, who are purposefully not acting and dont know the right way.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences faced a similar critique last year after Selma was snubbed; but this year, black actors and directors who worked on numerous films received considerable awards buzz, including Smith for his star turn in Concussion.

Had I been nominated and no other people of color were, she would have made the video, he said of his wifes boycott. Wed still be here, having this conversation. This is so deeply not about me. This is about children that are going to sit down and are going to watch this show, and theyre not going to see themselves represented.

The academy, with its overwhelmingly white voting membership, has taken notice. Academy President Cheryl Boone said Sunday that she was heartbroken and frustrated about the lack of inclusion and pledged to take dramatic steps to alter the makeup of our membership.

The academy has stepped up efforts to boost diversity in recent years, such as expanding the number of invitations to join. But the addition of more diverse members has done little to move the needle on the overall demographic breakdown.

Boone Isaacs  who is black and was once the only person of color on the academys board of governors  said that the change is not coming as fast as we would like and that we need to do more, and better and more quickly.

Smith, who said he wasnt aware of his wifes boycott video until he returned from an overseas trip, lauded the nominees as deserving and fantastic, but added: It feels like its going in the wrong direction.

The Academy reflects the industry, reflects Hollywood, and the industry reflects America, reflects a series of challenges that were having in our country at the moment, Smith said. Theres a regressive slide toward separatism, toward racial and religious disharmony, and thats not the Hollywood I want to leave behind, thats not the industry, thats not the America I want to leave behind.
A Newport Beach man has been charged in federal court with operating an Alaska Airlines flight in 2014 while under the influence of alcohol.

David Hans Arntson, 60, now a retired Alaska Airlines captain, was arrested Wednesday on a charge of operating a common carrier while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Prosecutors said that on June 20, 2014, Arntson first flew from San Diego to Portland. He then flew to John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana a few hours later, according to a criminal complaint filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court that cites the Portland-John Wayne flight as the alleged offense.

Upon landing Flight 580 at John Wayne, Arntson was informed he was selected for random drug and alcohol testing.

The test was administered in a family restroom in the airports B terminal, where his blood alcohol concentration levels for two tests taken 15 minutes apart were 0.134 and 0.142 percent, the complaint said.

Federal law specifies a penalty of up to 15 years in prison for the operator of a common carrier, like an airline pilot, convicted of operating a vehicle or plane with a blood-alcohol content of .10 percent or greater.

The technician said he did not smell alcohol on Arntsons breath. Arntson told him he did not know why he tested positive and that he recently got out of the hospital and was taking antibiotics, court records show.

After being informed of the test results on Arntson on June 20, Alaska Airlines removed him from safety-sensitive duties that day, court records show.

Arntson later told investigators that he got his blood tested at 6:30 a.m. the following morning at an emergency room, where the result indicated no alcohol in his system, records show.

Those in command of passenger jets, or any other form of public transportation, have an obligation to serve the public in the safest and most responsible way possible, said U.S. Attorney Eileen M. Decker. We cannot and will not tolerate those who violate the trust of their passengers by endangering lives.

The co-pilot for both flights told investigators he recalled Arntson saying I bet its for me upon seeing the drug tester at the gate, court records show.

Arntson told investigators he did not drink anything except for a few sips of a beer at dinner the night before the flights.

He was hired as a pilot by Alaska Airlines in 1982 and promoted to captain in 1987, the complaint said. He retired soon after the incident for medical reasons.

We have a zero tolerance policy for employees, including pilots, who fail alcohol and drug tests, the airline said in a statement. We believe he is deserving of the Department of Justices actions.

Arntson was released on $25,000 bond and faces up to 15 years in federal prison. He is expected to appear in court Feb. 10. Court records show he is represented by a federal public defender, who could not immediately be reached for comment Thursday.

Correction: An earlier version of the story incorrectly stated the federal law for a pilots blood alcohol content.

Contact the writer: 714-796-2478 or lcasiano@ocregister.com
MOGADISHU, Somalia  Islamist attacks on a beach hotel and a restaurant in Somalias capital Mogadishu have claimed 28 lives, police said Friday, marking a rise in the previously reported death toll of 20.

The fatalities included six attackers, police representative Ahmed Aloley said.

One of the attackers was captured alive. It was not clear if he is the suspected mastermind behind the attacks, whose arrest was announced by Security Minister Abdirisak Omar earlier on Friday.

The Islamist group al-Shabaab claimed the attacks on pro-insurgent radio Andalus.

Thursdays attacks started when a car laden with explosives rammed into hotel Beach View on Lido beach.

Insurgents then opened fire at the hotel, while another suicide bombing hit a nearby seafood restaurant.

Omar said the victims included women and children.

Several hostages, including journalists, government officials and beach visitors, were freed during a siege of the hotel by the insurgents.

Our security forces ended a siege on Lido Seafood restaurant and the nearby hotel Beach View, with many people . rescued and evacuated from the targeted buildings by a well-trained Somali counter-terrorism unit, security official Mohamed Hassan said.

Lido beach hotels and restaurants are popular with government officials and entrepreneurs.

Somalias nearly decade-long battle with al-Shabaab has claimed thousands of lives.

Last week, al-Shabaab militants attacked Kenyan peacekeepers at an African Union military base in the southern Somali village of El-Ade.

The terrorist group claimed to have killed 100 Kenyan soldiers.
SANTA ANA  Carlos Bustamante, a former rising star in Orange County political circles, will begin a stint behind bars next month, after a judge on Friday sentenced him to a year in jail for multiple sex-related charges.

Along with the jail sentence, Bustamante  a former Santa Ana City Councilman and Orange County Public Works administrator  received five years probation, is required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life, and has been ordered to stay away from the seven female subordinates he admitted to making unwanted sexual advances toward.

Bustamante kept his head bowed and his eyes closed as the sentence was handed down by Judge John D. Conley. The hearing came a month after Bustamante pleaded guilty to three felony counts of attempted sexual battery, stalking and grand theft  for stealing more than $3,100 in tax funds  as well as several misdemeanor charges.

Bustamante will begin serving his sentence on Feb. 26. With credit for good behavior, he could be free within six months.

Just prior to the sentencing, a county attorney sharply criticized Bustamante for failing to live up to the trust local leaders placed in him as he rose quickly through the ranks.

It is no comfort that the defendant is now the local poster child for abuse of power, Assistant County Council James C. Harman said.

The good and honest people in Orange County get tarred for their association with the defendant.

Prosecutors said they sought the approval of the seven victims before offering a plea deal, which they noted would spare the women the need to testify in court and relive their experiences.

Mr. Bustamante had to sit in court and admit he was not innocent of the charges, but guilty, Deputy District Attorney Aleta Bryant said. He had to take responsibility.

During the earlier December hearing when Bustamante pleaded guilty, prosecutors read letters from two victims explaining how the unwanted sexual attention impacted them both emotionally and professionally.

Never did I imagine that I would be treated the way you treated me. Everything you did to me affected my job and home life, one woman wrote to Bustamante. I was terrified every minute you were in the office.

Bustamante declined to comment during or after Fridays hearing. But his attorney, Brent Romney, said the plea deal took away the risk of a prison sentence had the case gone to trial, and will allow Bustamante to move on with his life.

He is very upbeat, more than most clients I have, Romney said. He is a very strong and talented individual.

Prosecutors alleged that over an eight-year period starting in 2003, Bustamante would lure women into his county office and would kiss, hug and touch them inappropriately. Many of the women were initially afraid to come forward due to Bustamantes influence in county political circles.

The word untouchable came up again and again, that he had connections up to the state government, Bryant said.

Romney said he is close to making a deal for Bustamante to pay to serve his time at a city jail rather than county lockup. The attorney declined to say which city jail, but did indicate that it would not be Santa Ana, because of Bustamantes extensive ties in the city.

Since the now self-employed Bustamante still occasionally does business with the county, his attorney clarified with the judge that the protection orders barring Bustamante from interacting with the women he victimized only applies to willful contact.

Mr. Bustamantes concern is that he can walk into a county building and go to a public window I dont want him to be brought back in here because some overzealous individual claims he violated a protective order, Romney said.

Im sure if he goes in and sees one of the women, then he will leave.

Since losing his $170,000-a-year county job, Bustamante has reportedly struggled to rebuild his life. His attorney said he hopes to reduce the felony convictions to misdemeanors after completing his probation.

I think he will be fine, Romney said when asked about Bustamantes future. He will do everything he is supposed to do, and he will move on with his life.

Just before the sentencing, a county attorney sharply criticized Bustamante for failing to live up to the trust local leaders placed in him as he rose quickly through the ranks. County officials are seeking nearly $8,500 in restitution from Bustamante, which they claim includes the amount he took in improper reimbursements and the costs of an internal investigation.

Prosecutors said they were pleased with the outcome of the case, noting that if they had gone to trial on the remaining charges, Bustamante only realistically faced a maximum sentence of around 5 years in prison.

I want to thank all victims and witnesses who bravely came forward in the face of fear and retaliation from a well-connected politician, said District Attorney Tony Rackauckaus in a statement released shortly after the verdict.

No one is above the law, especially those who abuse their power of authority over their subordinates to sexually assault and harass them.

Contact the writer: semery@ocregister.com
SACRAMENTO  Californians face a watershed year as they prepare to decide whether to resume executions that stopped a decade ago or end them entirely.

While advocates jockey to put both choices before voters this fall, officials overseeing the 746 condemned inmates on the nations largest death row are pushing ahead with plans to use a single lethal drug to meet legal requirements amid a nationwide shortage of execution drugs.

Supporters said at a public hearing on Friday that crime victims have waited too long for justice as the state dragged its heels in adopting a new method of execution.

The family members of the victims are dying before the murderers, said Michele Hanisee, vice president of the Association of Deputy District Attorneys of Los Angeles County. Meanwhile, ironically, the state moves ahead with an assisted suicide law that would allow doctors to prescribe the same drugs for suicide that death penalty opponents will call inhumane when used for executions.

Opponents said at the hearing that the state risks botching death sentences if it moves too quickly in making the change.

The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation will consider nearly two-dozen comments from the hearing and written comments from about 12,000 people as it develops its final regulations. Any changes would require a new round of public comments.

The state is proposing to let corrections officials choose from four types of powerful barbiturates to execute prisoners, depending on which drug is available.

The single injection would replace the series of three drugs used in 2006 to execute 76-year-old Clarence Ray Allen for ordering a triple murder.

Two of the four drugs have never before been used in executions, and its not clear whether the state has enough safeguards in place to obtain safe, effective drugs, said Ana Zamora, criminal justice policy director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California.

Some of these executions using drugs obtained from questionable sources have resulted in gruesome, botched executions in other states, she warned.

The corrections department also failed to properly consider that ending executions entirely could save state and local governments $150 million a year, she said, referring to an estimate involving one of the pending ballot measures.

A recent Field Poll showed an almost even split among voters on the death penalty, with 48 percent wanting to speed up the legal process leading to executions and 47 percent seeking to replace executions with life sentences without the possibility of parole.

This could be the year when it comes to a head in the public vote on a very interesting pair of initiatives, Field Poll Director Mark DiCamillo said. I dont think anyone can forecast how it will turn out.

In 2012, voters rejected ending the death penalty by 4 percentage points, but DiCamillo said frustration with the seemingly endless delays and mounting expenses are driving more people to favor doing away with it entirely.

The proposed single-drug injection process is the latest attempt to resume executions after a federal judge halted executions in 2006 and ordered prison officials to improve execution procedures.

Five years later, a Marin County judge rejected the states newly developed three-drug lethal injection regulations.

Eight states already have used a single drug for executions and there is no reason the courts shouldnt quickly approve Californias new regulations once the procedure is adopted, said Michael Rushford, president of the Sacramento-based Criminal Justice Legal Foundation.

The group sued to force California to adopt the method suggested by state and federal judges in ongoing cases, and Rushford predicted executions could resume this year if the rules are finalized soon.

Death penalty opponents said they will keep challenging the regulations.

The ACLU is suing to obtain at least 79,000 corrections department documents related to lethal injections that it says are needed to show if safeguards are in place to prevent the state from using backdoor ways to obtain execution drugs that manufacturers say were not intended for that purpose.

Department of corrections spokeswoman Terry Thornton said the documents the department used to develop the proposed regulations are already available to the public. The department plans to create the drugs in its own or other compounding pharmacies.

Much of the testimony on Friday opposed the death penalty no matter how it is carried out.

It is likely in the future that if we do the grisly, horrible thing of starting to execute people, that we will find out after someone has been executed that they were innocent, Sacramento attorney Norman Hile said.

He said he represents an innocent man who is awaiting execution on death row.
ANAHEIM  Disneylands oldest building, a 1,300-square-foot house built in the 1920s, has moved from a northern behind-the-scenes area to an off-site parking lot on Ball Road for visitors to the companys administrative building.

The Wednesday relocation of the Pope House preserves an important part of Disney history  while also preparing for the parks Star Wars land at Disneyland.

The house was constructed near what is now Harbor Boulevard and moved during Disneylands construction onto the theme parks grounds.

In 1954, Owen and Dolly Pope, who Walt Disney hired to train and care for the horses, mules and other animals that became part of the park when it opened the next year, moved in.

The house sat next to the Circle D Corral, a ranch that was off-limits to the public and where the horses that walked Main Street, U.S.A. were kept along with other park animals.

The Popes retired in the mid-1970s, and the house was then used as an office by employees who cared for Disneylands animals.

Disneyland officials said the house will stay put at its new site, and they are figuring out how to use the home. The cost to move the Pope House was $20,000, according to city records.

Last year, Disney officials announced that the Star Wars land would take up 14 acres in the northern part of Frontierland and the backstage areas including the Pope House and Circle D Ranch.

The horses have moved to a nearby off-property stable, while the rest of the animals were adopted by a family in Murrieta.

Staff writer Mark Eades contributed to this report.

Contact the writer: 714-704-3764 or jpimentel@ocregister.com or follow on Twitter @OCDisney
JERUSALEM  Ezra Nawi, an Israeli Jewish plumber, has a long history as a left-wing activist helping Palestinians in their struggle against Israels occupation of the West Bank. Now he is under arrest in Israel, after a right-wing activist surreptitiously filmed him bragging about ratting out Arab brokers who tried to sell Palestinian land to Jewish settlers. Such sales are a capital crime under Palestinian law.

Nawi, a gay Arabic speaker in his 60s and a prominent member of an Israeli-Palestinian rights group called Taayush, was not caught in a sting by the security apparatus for either Israel or the Palestinian Authority. Instead, he was tripped up by a plant from a right-wing organization, Ad Kan, which says it aims to expose the true face of what it terms anti-Israeli organizations.

Considered variously as a big-mouthed provocateur and a colorful human-rights adventurer, Nawi has become the latest symbol in the battle between advocacy groups on opposite sides of Israels political spectrum, and the increasingly fierce debate here over the nature of Israeli society and democracy.

The debate has heated up as Israels conservative government is pushing forward contentious legislation that would require nongovernmental organizations to disclose funding they receive from foreign governments in their publications, advertising and meetings with public officials. The proposed bill, which supporters say is meant to increase transparency, would apply mainly to leftist groups critical of Israels policy toward the Palestinians, since rightist groups mostly receive private funding from abroad, and it has already drawn harsh criticism from the Obama administration and European diplomats.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel later endorsed the bill, set to be introduced in Parliament as early as next week, saying, I do not understand how a requirement for transparency is anti-democratic; the opposite is true. He added, Financing by governments is certainly something the public should know about.

Here in Israel, the legislation is part of a toxic tug of war over the boundaries of political discourse amid mounting international criticism of Israels policies toward the Palestinians. The dwindling left is frequently vilified as traitorous, as empowered right-wingers create ever-narrower definitions of Zionism.
Had Arthur Miller written only All My Sons and Death of a Salesman, hed have still earned a high place in the pantheon of American theater. His first major hit plays, the two have much in common in terms of themes, subject matter, characters and dialogue.

For a crash course on Miller, catch Stages Theatres outstanding production of Sons, which hews to the plays strengths while also revealing stylistic elements some might justifiably regard as weaknesses.

Based on an actual incident, the story concerns Joe Keller (Joe Parrish), exonerated after being charged with shipping an order of damaged aircraft engine cylinder heads from his factory to the military during World War II, causing the deaths of 21 pilots.

All My Sons zeroes in on Joe and his family on an August weekend in 1946. Joes business partner, Steve Deever, bore the brunt of the blame, and prison time, for the defective parts scandal, and is about to come home.

Miller sets up the storys complex dynamics in the opening scene, showing how the mixture of being longtime neighbors, close friends and business partners has inextricably linked the two families. Its equal parts Ibsen, Greek tragedy, and indictment of the American Dream.

Exerting a huge influence over all are two characters we never see  eldest son Larry Keller, missing in action for three years, and Steve Deever. The web Miller weaves is complicated by the budding romance of Chris Keller (Nate Ruleaux), Joes younger son, and Steves daughter Ann (Christi Pedigo), who loved Larry but has given up on his ever returning.

Each member of the Keller and Deever families has an agenda he or she tries to force onto the others. Two examples are Joes wife Kate (Arlyn McDonald), who refuses to believe Larry is dead, and Steves son George (Zackary Salene), who blames Joe for his fathers imprisonment.

As director, Parrish elicits natural performances from his top-flight cast. The characters moods and the tenor of scenes shift from lighthearted to tense to relaxed as naturally as they do in reality. At his stagings most explosive, massive emotional pain long held in check boils to the surface.

With each successive scene, Miller tightens the screws, ratcheting up the tension. In sync with this, Parrish and company make the drama real and riveting. Neatly evoking postwar small-town America is Jon Gaws set of the Kellers back porch and yard.

Father-son links are as crucial here as in Death of a Salesman, which came two years later. The relationship between Joe and Chris Keller is fraught with more complexities than that of Willy and Biff Loman  depths expertly plumbed by Parrish and Ruleaux.

Parrish makes an affable, down-to-earth Joe, joking about having been imprisoned and asserting that Steve showed bad judgment, not criminal intent. Ruleaux keys his performance to Chris idealism, which sparks Joes ultimate, and frantic, desperation in the climactic scene.

McDonalds realistic, compelling work as Kate and Pedigos conflicted Ann are shattering, anchoring Parrishs superb cast. Perhaps most impressive is Salene, whose layered portrayal of George encompasses angry, blunt force but also the young mans soft spot for the history the two families share  as neat a compression of the plays themes as you could hope for.

Millers writing style can be criticized for elements of artifice. His plot lines and character profiles and interactions are often too pat and neatly drawn, and his characters sometimes speak more poetically and from the heart than is realistic.

And in todays world of rampant financial, industrial and political corruption, its hard to imagine a time where conscience, idealism and guilt could overwhelm individuals to the point of self-destruction and even suicide.

Be that as it may, All My Sons continues to move audiences with its shattering truths about human nature.

Contact the writer: emarchesewriter@gmail.com
With the opening of spring camps less than a month away, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said he is unsure when investigations of separate domestic-violence incidents involving Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig, Rockies shortstop Jose Reyes and Yankees reliever Aroldis Chapman will be concluded.

I would love to have these resolved before we begin play again, Manfred told The Associated Press on Thursday. The one thing Ive learned about these cases is timing is not mine, right? You have to really rely on the criminal process playing out in order to put yourself in a position that youre comfortable to actually know what the facts are.

In all three cases, disciplinary measures  including suspensions  are possible. Players do not have to be found guilty of criminal charges in order to be disciplined by MLB under a new domestic violence policy adopted in August. The policy (agreed to by the players union) allows for discipline for just cause. Any discipline can be appealed to an independent arbitrator.

When you have a new policy, the first ones take on a special significance in terms of tone and precedent and all those things, Manfred said. So Im going to make sure that I know everything I could possibly know about each of these cases before I make any decisions.

Puig was involved in an incident involving his sister and a bouncer at a Miami club in November. Puig reportedly suffered a swollen eye and bruises in the altercation.

Dodgers officials have refused to comment on the situation until MLB completes its investigation.

Chapman, meanwhile, was involved in an incident with his girlfriend in October. He allegedly choked her and fired a gun in the garage of his apartment before police arrived.

When news of the incident emerged in early December, the Dodgers backed away from a trade that would have brought Chapman to Los Angeles from the Cincinnati Reds. He was later traded to the New York Yankees instead.

Florida authorities announced Thursday that no charges will be brought as a result of the incident due to conflicting accounts and insufficient evidence.

Reyes was arrested and released after an incident involving his wife on Oct. 31 at a resort in Hawaii. Reyes was issued a warning citation to have no contact with his wife for three days after the incident. He has pleaded not guilty to a charge of abuse of a family or household member.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Sri Lankan fireball dancers are seen performing during the inauguration of the annual 'Duruthu Perahera' festival at Kelani Buddhist temple, in the outskirts of Colombo, Sri Lanka on Wednesday. The festival is held to commemorate Buddha's first visit to Sri Lanka about 2500 years ago. It is widely believed that Buddha visited the island nation on three occasions, spreading his doctrine that is the foundation of Buddhism, one of the world's major faiths.
BEIRUT  Two days before peace talks are scheduled to begin in Geneva, Syrian groups opposed to President Bashar Assad are still sharply divided on who should represent them at the talks, opposition officials said Friday as a new wave of air raids in eastern Syria killed at least 40 people.

One senior Kurdish official calledthe negotiating team announced in Saudi Arabia last week a delegation of jihadis.

Many in the opposition say Russia wants to add names to the delegation that opposition groups backed by Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar announced this week in Saudi. The U.N.-backed talks between the Syrian government and opposition are scheduled for Monday although officials have said they might be delayed by few days.

Abdul-Basit Sieda of the Saudi-backed opposition said they reject Russias desire to add names to the opposition list.

Another opposition official said Moscow wants to add to the delegation among others, Qadri Jamil, a former Syrian deputy prime minister, as well as Saleh Muslim, the co-president of the largest Kurdish group, the Democratic Union Party or PYD.

Turkey, which has its own large and restive Kurdish population, strongly opposes any PYD participation. The PYDS military wing has been instrumental in the fight against the Islamic State group in northern Syria. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to reveal details about the talks.

The PYD wants to hijack the Kurdish cause in Syria, said Sieda, himself a Kurd, but an opponent of the PYD.

On Wednesday, senior opposition official, Riyad Hijab, announced the names of opposition negotiators saying they will be headed by army defector Asaad al-Zoubi and include Mohammad Alloush, a representative of an Islamic rebel group known as the Army of Islam. The Saudi-backed Army of Islam, which controls large parts of the suburbs of the Syrian capital Damascus, is considered a terrorist organization by Syria and Russia.

Hijab accused Russia on Wednesday of obstructing the talks by trying to impose conditions on which opposition groups can participate, and said the opposition will not take part in talks while Syrians die from blockades and Russian and government airstrikes. Moscow is a key ally of the Syrian government and has been carrying out airstrikes against insurgents since Sept. 30.

Muslim, the PYD co-president, described in a telephone interview the team named in Saudi Arabia as a delegation of Jihadis, Islamists and their allies that do not represent us. He added that the PYD has not been invited to the talks.

Putting someone from the Army of Islam as a chief negotiator, means that they want to impose an Islamic state. He will lead and other members of the delegation must have similar opinions, Muslim said.

Sieda said U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will meet with Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubair as well as Hijab during his visit to Saudi Arabia on Saturday to discuss the talks, adding that any changes of the names in the delegation will be up to the opposition.

On Thursday Kerry said that the opposing sides wont initially meet face-to-face in Geneva next week. The talks are the start of a process presented in a U.N. resolution that envisages an 18-month timetable for a political transition in Syria and other talks over ways to end the crisis.

But naming members of the armed opposition has angered some groups that are part of the Saudi delegation.

Mounzer Khaddam, a member of the Syria-based National Coordination Body for Democratic Change in Syria who is part of the Saudi-named delegation, said in a statement that choosing a chief negotiator from the armed opposition is a wrong message to the Syrian people that are hoping the talks will be successful.

Syrias nearly five-year civil war has killed more than 250,000 people, wounded a million and displaced half the countrys population.

Meanwhile in Syria, opposition activists said air raids on two villages in an eastern province killed at least 40 people and wounded scores more.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the air raids on the villages of Tabiah and Bouleil killed 40 people, including whole families. The Local Coordination Committees said the air raids killed 30 in Tabiah and dozens in Bouleil.

Opposition activist Omar Abu Leila said Fridays air raids hit the two villages that are under the control of the Islamic State group, saying all those killed were civilians.

The LCC and Abu Leila said the air raids were carried out by Russian warplanes but it was not possible to independently confirm the claim.

IS controls most of Deir el-Zour province and over the past week launched a wide offensive capturing some areas from government forces near the provincial capital city of Deir el-Zour.
ATHENS, GreeceAt least 45 people, including 17 children, drowned Friday in the Aegean Sea as two smuggling boats sunk off different Greek islands. A search-and-rescue operation was underway for others feared trapped in the wreckage.

The Greek coast guard and other boats saved more than 70 people from the sunken vessels.

The new drownings follow hundreds over the past year as Europe faces its worst immigration crisis since the end of World War II. More than a million people seeking asylum have entered the continent in 2015  most through Greece, coming across the sea in small smugglers boats from Turkey.

The European Union is deeply divided on addressing the influx, with several countries blocking or restricting migrant from entering and resisting plans to share the burden of refugees. In the meantime, Germany  where most immigrants are heading  has welcomed those it considers refugees.

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said Friday the 28-nation bloc faces big economic risks if its member countries start putting up walls between each other, due to the refugee crisis, that restrict borderless travel.

We are doing studies of that and it is impressive, she said, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

But Hungarys prime minister, who last year built fences on his nations borders with Serbia and Croatia to stop migrants from coming in, praised Austria for setting a cap this week on the numbers of refugees it will take.

Common sense has prevailed, Viktor Orban said Friday on state radio, calling the Austrian decision the most important news of the past months.

Europe cant take in huge masses of foreign people in an unlimited, uncontrolled manner, he said, adding that, for Hungary, the best migrant is the migrant who does not come.

David Miliband, head of the International Rescue Committee charity, said its important that migrants who dont qualify for refugee status are returned home  a policy often hard to implement as emigrant-producing countries such as Pakistan resist repatriations.

In Berlin, Europes migrant crisis was the main issue at a meeting Friday of top officials from Germany and Turkey, with Turkeys prime minister pressing for more support from the European Union. Germany saw an unprecedented 1.1 million asylum-seekers arrive last year, many of them fleeing conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, and most have come through Turkey.

In the first sinking Friday in the eastern Aegean Sea, a wooden boat carrying 49 people foundered off the small Greek islet of Farmakonissi. Forty people managed to make it to shore, while authorities rescued one girl and recovered eight bodies from the sea  six children and two women, the coast guard said.

A few hours later, a wooden sailboat carrying an undetermined number of people sank off the islet of Kalolimnos, south of Farmakonissi. The coast guard rescued 22 men and four women, and recovered 34 bodies  those of 16 women, seven men and 11 children.

One survivor told APTV that the vessels engine failed about 3 a.m., five hours after they departed from Izmir in Turkey. Speaking at a reception center on the island of Kalymnos, he said about 80 people on board had paid $2,500 each for a berth, with half that sum for children.

Later, Turkeys state-run Anadolu news agency said the Turkish coast guard rescued six survivors from the area of the two accidents and found another three bodies.

Kate OSullivan, a member of the Save the Children charity team on the island of Lesbos, expressed horror at Fridays drownings and urged the EU to secure safe, legal passage for refugees.

Instead of focusing on building fences and tightening border controls, we are calling on European leaders to take action to ensure no more children lose their lives senselessly, she said.
In an effort to convince a top employee to delay retirement, Newport-Mesa Unified School District paid him at least an extra $274,000 into a tax-sheltered retirement account over the past six years, according to documents released by a former district director of human resources.

California lists Deputy Superintendent Paul Reed as its seventh-highest-paid public school executive, and it was public record that he was receiving additional tax-sheltered payments from the school district as part of his contract. But the cumulative amount the district paid to prevent Reeds retirement was unknown before the recent document release.

In Reeds contracts dating back to 2009, the school board wrote that it would make the annual payments in recognition of the boards desire that the deputy superintendent continue to serve the district past the optimal (California State Teachers Retirement System) retirement age of 62.

Reed, now 68, will also receive a pension upon retirement. He did not respond to questions about whether he would have left Newport-Mesa if the district had not agreed to the payments, but instead released a statement on Thursday through a district spokesperson.

After 47 years in education, I am appreciative and humbled by the value placed on my skills and experience, Reed wrote.

Reed earned a salary of $244,475 in 2014, according to the State Controllers Office. That amount rises to $372,998 when accounting for retirement pay, travel stipends and benefits.

The documents revealing Reeds total tax-sheltered payments were released by John Caldecott, Newport-Mesas former executive director of human resources, who posted the information to this website, caldecottinfo.com.

He said Thursday that Reeds tax-sheltered payments made it difficult for the public to have oversight over the total compensation that Reed receives.

Caldecott was fired by the school board in January 2015, five days after hed filed a petition asking the Orange County Superior Court to force the release of documents relating to a complaint hed filed against Superintendent Fred Navarro.

A 4th District Court of Appeal panel of judges on Dec. 9 ordered that the documents go to the county court, which would would be required to release them within 90 days.

The district originally planned to pay Reed his bonus by purchasing service credit from CalSTRS, which would have increased his pension payments by artificially raising the number of years his public pension was based upon, according to the documents.

But Reed asked the district instead to pay him an equivalent amount by putting the money in the tax-sheltered account.

CalSTRS spokesman Michael Sicilia said while those annuities wouldnt be reported to the agency, hes heard of them anecdotally.

Dana Black, president of the Newport-Mesa School Board, said in a statement Thursday that Paul Reed is an asset to the distrct.

He is efficient in maximizing scarce resources and ensuring that we are financially stable and prudent in our ability to maintain focus in the classroom, on student learning, Black wrote.
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti  The spokesman for Haitis electoral council says that a much-criticized presidential runoff election will be postponed for a second time.

Roudy Stanley Penn tells The Associated Press that the Provisional Electoral Council has agreed to postpone the presidential and legislative runoffs that had been set for Sunday.

Penn did not immediately provide any other specifics Friday, saying a news conference would be held later.

Haitian officials have been trying to negotiate a solution to the countrys election crisis. One of two presidential candidates has been boycotting the runoff and declined to campaign.

There has been growing concern that a flawed runoff would push Haiti to the edge of tumult, rolling back a decade of relative political stability and putting the brakes on foreign investment.
Families whove fought for more than five years to get Tustin Unified School District to open Heritage Elementary recently got several bits of good news.

The school has a new principal. It will be open for all intended grades, from transitional kindergarten, or TK, through fifth grade. The district is arranging for child care at the school. And registration dates are set for students wholl be attending the campus inaugural school year that starts Aug. 29.

We are thrilled they will open all grades and are including TK, said Cathy Vallevieni, whos helped lead the charge to open the school.

The 10-acre elementary campus was built five years ago at 15400 Lansdowne Road as the former Tustin Marine base was transformed into the planned Tustin Legacy community.

But home construction stalled, and the district said it kept falling short of the target to have at least 350 school-age kids move into Tustin Legacy to justify starting classes at the $12 million campus. Instead, Hillview High continuation school, some adult students and administrative offices have been at Heritage since fall 2011.

A group of parents, organized as Open Heritage Now, began pushing for the district to open it as Heritage Elementary.

In summer 2015, the city of Tustin and the school district worked together to negotiate a complicated agreement to fund improvements at Heritage and construction of a magnet secondary school that will be built nearby, with Heritage serving as a feeder for that campus.

The school district and the city deserve credit, but this is the result of dedicated parents and grandparents who would not take no for an answer, said Austin Lumbard, a city planning commissioner who lives with his wife and three young children in Tustin Legacy. Good people united around a common vision and made it happen.

Heritage Elementary will be a magnet science, technology, engineering, arts and math, or STEAM, school. The district is developing the STEAM program now, with guidance from the new principal.

Beth Rabel Blackman, who is principal of Helen Estock Elementary, has been appointed principal for Heritage Elementary.

I feel honored to have the opportunity to lead Heritage as we build a state-of-the-art STEAM school, Blackman said in a statement.

Blackman has a masters degree in teaching from UC Irvine and a masters degree in educational administration from Concordia University. She has been in education for 12 years, including eight years as an elementary teacher and three years as principal of Estock Elementary.

As a kindergarten through sixth-grade teacher, Blackman helped implement readers workshops and a new math program. She also served as a teacher on special assignment, overseeing the districts inquiry-based science program and helping to grow Tustins Advancement Via Individual Determination, or AVID, program.

Blackman was selected as TUSDs elementary principal of the year for the current school year.

I plan to create a model STEAM magnet school at Heritage Elementary by building strong relationships with parents, students, staff and community partners, Blackman said. Providing meaningful and engaging learning experiences will be our top priority, while ensuring a safe and nurturing environment where students are encouraged to grow and create.

Early registration for Tustin schools will start March 14, the district said.

Contact the writer: 714-796-7963 or bstaggs@ocregister.com
The lawyer representing Martin Shkreli, the former biotech executive charged with securities fraud, has asked that his client be excused from testifying at a congressional hearing next week since he plans to invoke the Fifth Amendment, according to a letter.

In the letter sent Wednesday to Shkrelis lawyer, Baruch Weiss, House Oversight Chairman Jason Chaffetz, a Republican from Utah, said Shkreli cant invoke the Fifth Amendment, particularly for questions not related to his indictment.

Shkreli also hasnt sought leave to travel to Washington, as required by his bail agreement, so he can comply with a subpoena to testify before Congress, according to a statement on Thursday from Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland. Cummings is the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which subpoenaed Shkreli to testify at a Jan. 26 hearing on developments in the prescription drug marketplace.

Neither Mr. Shkreli nor any of his legal representatives has taken any steps to inform the judge in his federal criminal case about the subpoena he received from the Committee ten days ago, a basic requirement for seeking leave to travel, according to the Cummings statement.

The committee could agree to hear Shkrelis testimony in executive session or immunize his testimony, Chaffetz said. The Fifth Amendment protects against self-incrimination.

Shkreli commented on the Chaffetz letter in a Twitter post on Thursday.

Your attempt to subvert my constitutional right to the 5th amendment are disgusting & insulting to all Americans, Shkreli said in the tweet.

Cummings said Shkreli could be held in contempt and receive jail time and financial penalties if he doesnt show up.

If he plans on trying to use his own intentional inaction as some kind of bogus excuse for not showing up at Tuesdays hearing, people will see right through such a juvenile tactic, Cummings said.

The committee has asked for documents from several companies about how drugs are priced. These include Valeant Pharmaceuticals and Turing Pharmaceuticals, Shkrelis former company. Turing rose to notoriety last year after it acquired a decades-old anti-parasitic treatment and overnight raised the price to $750 a pill from $13.50.

Valeants interim chief executive officer, Howard Schiller, will testify at the Jan. 26 hearing. Turing also confirmed that its chief commercial officer, Nancy Retzlaff, will testify.

Since receiving the initial inquiry from the Oversight Committee about pricing, Turing Pharmaceuticals has worked continuously to provide Congressional staff with briefings and written information, answer questions, and assure them that a Turing representative would participate in the hearing, an emailed statement from the company said.

Shkreli is facing charges related to another former company, separate from Turing, and to several hedge funds he used to run. He has maintained his innocence  including on his Twitter feed  and pleaded not guilty. As of Wednesday, it appeared he hadnt decided whether to attend the congressional hearing.

Havent decided yet, he tweeted. Should I?
In his State of the State address Thursday, Gov. Jerry Brown was suprisingly cautionary, defying predictions that he would tout such expansionary projects as high-speed rail and the twin water tunnels under the Sacramento Delta.

The most-telling moment came after he celebrated, to applause from the gathered lawmakers in the state Capitol, putting the budget in surplus and paying down the $26 billion debt left him in 2011 by the exiting Arnold Schwarzenegger administration.

You should applaud, Gov. Brown said, departing from his prepared text. Because there might not be much coming after this, meaning new surpluses. That was an obvious reference to the sharp declines in stock markets so far this year.

Yet there was much he celebrated. He touted raising the states mimimum wage to $10 this year from $8 when he took office. That jump also has encouraged Los Angeles, San Francisco and other cities to raise their minimum wages yet higher, to $15 over the next few years. Actually, a higher minimum wage, especially in low-wage areas such as the Inland Empire, mainly will kill entry-level jobs  even as another recession may loom.

Most importantly  and this is truly monumental  we have wholeheartedly embraced the Affordable Care Act, he said. As a result, we are now enrolling 13.5 million Californians in Medi-Cal and another 1.5 million in Covered California. We would contend that it should not be a matter of pride that one-third of Californians are getting medical welfare.

He called for fixing the states crumbling roads, but insisted that [d]oing so without an expanded and permanent revenue source is impossible. Actually, the state just needs to spend highway taxes and fees on repairs instead of siphoning off the money to the General Fund.

Since he is running to replace Gov. Brown in 2018, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsoms heart must have skipped a beat when the governor quipped that he might change the state Constitution to run for a fifth term.

In sum, the speech made it clear that the one legacy Gov. Brown values above all others is that he did not bust the budget.
A former Laguna Hills tax preparer was sentenced Thursday to 57 months in prison for fraudulent tax practices, Internal Revenue Service officials announced.

Randall Craig Hutchens, 62, pleaded guilty in June to to three counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns from May 2010 to October 2013. Investigators believe he filed at least 125 federal income tax returns with losses of at least $1.6 million, according to the IRS.

In Laguna Hills, Hutchens was CEO and president of his own tax preparation business, Accounting Services, Inc. He was ordered to pay $1.4 million in restitution to the IRS.

Through his company, Hutchens sold a number of fraudulent tax shelters to clients.

Hutchens promoted these tax shelters to his clients as legal ways to reduce their prospective tax liabilities, according to a statement from the IRS.

This was done by requiring clients to buy an equity interest in limited liability corporations, or LLCs. But none of the LLCs were legitimate.

A few months after a federal search warrant was executed at his company, Hutchens made a series of transactions involving at least six different bank accounts in what appeared to be an effort to hide $279,280 from the sale of his Laguna Hills home. In two weeks, Hutchens made 44 cash withdrawals, keeping the amounts under the $10,000 bank reporting requirement.

Hutchens sentence was enhanced by prior convictions for fraud-related offenses dating back 30 years, including grand theft in 1986, federal securities fraud in 1994, false claims to a federal agency in 1997 and forgery in 1999.

Contact the writer: 714-796-7865 or afausto@ocregister.com
Theres a philosophical sea-change afoot, where police and prosecutors are being asked to see those picked up for prostitution as victims, rather than as criminals.

Many of them are young women, from difficult circumstances, who wind up in the life through manipulation. They are kept there by fear.

This shift in official thinking is finally showing up in official crime data. The number of people arrested for prostitution in Orange County dove nearly 50 percent in 2014 over a decade earlier  and was down nearly 62 percent from its peak in 2006, according to figures from the Attorney General.

The shift was also evident statewide, though a bit less dramatically: The number of people arrested for prostitution in California was down more than 34 percent over the decade.

You cant throw the word slavery around carelessly, Deputy District Attorney Brad Schoenleben told us recently. But we are dealing with modern-day slavery here. These women are branded, controlled, forced to do things against their will.

People say, Thats not a problem in my neighborhood. Well, if you have a motel, you have a problem.

There were 145 victims of human trafficking in Orange County in 2014, according to the latest data compiled by the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force.

The majority of them  104  were females working in the sex trade.

See something suspicious? Report anonymously via the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-3737-888, or text 233733 (BeFree).

More information on trafficking in O.C. and how you can help: egovlink.com/ochumantrafficking

Prostitution arrests Orange County California 2005 927 13,430 2006 1,226 12,500 2007 1,037 12,540 2008 949 12,938 2009 990 12,476 2010 1,090 12,030 2011 901 10,265 2012 1,003 10,173 2013 922 9,863 2014 469 8,822 CHANGE -49.40% -34.30%

SOURCE: ATTORNEY GENERAL

Contact the writer: tsforza@ocregister.com
SANTA ANA  Mixtli Leal stood near voting booths at Cesar E. Chavez High School on Thursday and offered her classmates this bit of advice:

Theyre not touch screens.

For some teens accustomed to touching screens to make things happen, that was different.

So was the idea of voting.

Enter Vote Mobile, a motorized road show put on by the Orange County registrar of voters. It comes complete with voting booths and fliers in five languages and workers from the registrars office.

On Thursday, with the nation gearing up to a elect a president (and senators, representatives, and other people) this year, Vote Mobile made its first on-campus appearance of 2016, rolling up to stage a mock election at the high school.

Most of those who checked it out were students in Mark Parchmanns U.S. government classes. Hed taken the kids to the registrars office last week, and Vote Mobiles appearance Thursday was the registrar coming to them.

Historically, young people have been one of the least-active voter groups, the teacher said.

Parchmann and the registrars office want to change that.

During election years, the local offices voter-registration campaign kicks into high gear with visits to high school and college campuses, voter drives at music festivals and summertime Surf the Vote events at local beaches. This year, that effort will be helped by new state laws that make it easier for young people to get into voting.

Its critical to reach young people and not only educate them about the importance of voting, but to give them an experience of actually going through the process, said Neal Kelley, Orange Countys registrar of voters.

Weve found when we do this that theyre much more likely to not only register, but to actually cast a ballot once they turn 18.

For Matthew Cruz, principal of the small alternative high school in Santa Ana, its about more than politics and even community engagement.

The actual act of voting is affirmation that says I have a voice that is worthy of being heard.

Some students plan to exercise that voice come election time  not only for themselves, but on behalf of family members who cannot vote because they are in the country illegally.

I dont want (Donald) Trump to be president, said senior Richard Radilla, referring to the outspoken GOP presidential candidate who has built his campaign, in part, on a promise to have Mexico build a wall at the border and expel millions of people living in the country illegally.

Radilla, who said he will be the first in his family to graduate from high school and go to college, signed up Thursday to volunteer as an Election Day poll worker. So did 27 other students. But Radilla held off on registering to vote until he applies for his drivers license later this month.

Under a new Motor Voter law that took effect Jan. 1, the California Department of Motor Vehicles will help register voters when citizens obtain or renew drivers licenses or state identification cards. Citizens have the right to opt out of the registration.

Another new law allows for pre-registration of teens as young as 16, who would then be allowed to vote once they turn 18.

Few students at the school Thursday seemed aware of the pre-registration law. Brooke Morales and Andrea Marchan, both 16, thought they would have to wait until they turn 18. Both said theyre looking forward to that day.

I want to have a say, Morales said.

Julissa Gutierrez, a U.S. citizen, said she is excited to become a first-time voter. Im choosing the next president.

Meanwhile, some students hung back while classmates registered. They cant vote because they are residing in the country illegally.

Government teacher Parchmann said Thursdays event was a trial run.

I hope to expand this with a mock election for the entire school before November and get more students registered, he said.

Hopefully, well get more of the community involved and have more parents come and register, too.

Nearly 330 students attend the school; 40 participated in the mock election.

In the end, Hillary Clinton edged out Bernie Sanders by a single vote.

And Trump? He and Ben Carson tied with three votes each.

Contact the writer: rkopetman@ocregister.com
Who counts as a small business?

Ritu Shah-Burnham, who owned Z Pizza, a small restaurant in Seattle with 12 employees, thought of herself as one. But the citys policymakers had other ideas.

Despite her small size, Seattles $15 minimum wage law  which began phasing in last year  classifies Shah-Burnham and any other small, family-owned business that contracts with a recognizable brand as indistinguishable from a large corporation. As a consequence, theyre forced to pay the citys $15 wage requirement on an accelerated schedule.

Shah-Burnham couldnt make the math work, and closed her doors in August. Had she been able to classify Z Pizza as the small business it was, it might have saved her restaurant: [If] I had seven years, it was doable  but to do it in 24 months, it was going to be too much.

Seattle justified its treatment of franchise businesses by arguing that they enjoy special economic advantages. The director of Seattles Office of Economic Development, for instance, argued that franchises are different, in that they are part of a network, with built-in economies of scale and support with advertising, supply-chain management and menus. The state of New York took the same approach in its own minimum wage law targeted at fast-food employees, and a number of other cities and states have considered following suit.

The anecdotal evidence doesnt seem to support this argument. To determine whether theres an empirical argument to be made, my organization asked Dr. Lloyd Corder, an adjunct professor at Carnegie Mellon University and University of Pittsburgh, to conduct a nationally representative survey of franchised and non-franchised businesses. Corder pulled his data from the 24 largest U.S. metropolitan areas and focused on eight key industries such as restaurants and hotels that generally employ more minimum-wage employees, and where franchises like Z Pizza are common.

His results showed that franchisees are more sensitive to minimum wage increases than their non-franchised counterparts. For instance, when asked about their reactions to a $15 minimum wage, two-thirds of franchised businesses claimed theyd consider cutting staff, compared with about 50 percent of non-franchised businesses. (A similar disparity exists for those businesses who said theyd reduce hours.) Roughly 50 percent of franchisees reported theyd likely pursue automated staffing alternatives in response to a $15 wage floor  only one-third of non-franchisees said the same.

One possible reason for this disparity is that franchisees employ a larger number of entry-level employees than do nonfranchise businesses: 56 percent of franchise employers reported having employees who earned the minimum wage, compared with 38 percent of non-franchise employers.

But even within specific lower-margin industries such as quick service restaurants and hotels, the negative impacts of a $15 minimum wage are more disruptive for franchise business owners. More than 80 percent of quick-service restaurants said that a wage hike would force them to hire fewer workers, compared with 58 percent of their nonfranchised counterparts. Nearly nine in 10 franchise hotel owners claimed theyd raise room rates to offset the higher labor cost, while 70 percent of nonfranchisees said the same.

Of course, a $15 minimum wage is likely to harm almost all businesses by trimming profit margins, whether theyre franchises or not. The research on this point is clear: According a recent paper released by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, the best and most-credible studies show that job losses occur after the minimum wage goes up. (A follow-up paper found that the policy is also an ineffective means to reduce poverty.) This survey suggests that policymakers will compound the damage by arbitrarily targeting businesses with a recognizable brand for uniquely harsh wage mandates.

Michael Saltsman is research director at the Employment Policies Institute.
LOS ANGELES  A worker at the Los Angeles Zoo has been hospitalized with a possible broken leg after falling into the gorilla enclosure.

City fire officials say the animals in the enclosure were secured while the worker was rescued Thursday morning.

The worker was strapped to a backboard and lifted about 15 feet from a planted moat. The patient was taken to an ambulance and transported in fair condition.

The zoo was closed when the worker fell into the exhibit thats home to western lowland gorillas.

A zoo spokeswoman didnt immediately respond to a request for more information.
CHIOS, Greece  Half buried in the fine yellow sand of one of this Greek islands most popular beaches lies one of the few signs of the drama that has played out over the past year: The remains of two torn and deflated dinghies by the waters edge.

Far from the spotlight, local residents, aid groups and government officials have struggled to deal with an unprecedented wave of refugees and migrants reaching the shores of Chios from Turkey, which lies four miles away at its closest point. And with few signs of a let up, authorities are bracing for another potentially brutal year.

Even during the winter, overloaded dinghies continue to arrive in droves on Greeces eastern Aegean islands, halting only when the sea is too rough. The crossing is brief but perilous, and hundreds have died. Six bodies were recovered off the coast of nearby Samos island earlier this month.

Chios, an island of 50,000 residents, saw the second-largest number of arrivals in 2015, behind its northern neighbor Lesbos, where about half of all asylum-seekers landed. Although the islands of the eastern Aegean have been on the migrant-smuggling route for more than a decade, numbers were minimal until recently.

In 2014, about 6,500 people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East and Africa reached Chios. Last year, the figure skyrocketed to nearly 120,000, with the flow increasing dramatically in the last few months of the year.

It was something completely different from the previous years, and the previous years were something completely different to what would be normal, said Chios Mayor Manolis Vournous. It is something extreme, it is something abnormal. And we mustnt get used to this abnormality.

Vournous doesnt hide his concern over what the coming year will bring.

October, November and December each brought about 20,000 people to the island, accounting for about half of the years total, he said. This doesnt allow me to think the flow will lessen in the next few months.

The mayor has welcomed plans for one of the European Unions hotspots to be set up on Chios to help in registering and fingerprinting new arrivals. Although such processing already takes place, the hotspots will have more EU involvement in identifying those who can be sent to other EU countries under the blocs relocation scheme and those deemed economic migrants who will face deportation.

Last years dramatic surge left authorities scrambling to house, feed and provide basic care for the thousands who had survived the dangerous sea journey and were anxious to move north through the Balkans to more prosperous European countries.

In the last year the increase was incredible, said Commander Christos Fragias, deputy head of the coast guard on Chios.

Nobody was prepared to deal with all these people who arrived in 2015, Fragias said. When you have such large flows, some duties that we have as the coast guard couldnt be carried out because the priority was to deal with the migrants.

Still, Chios has weathered the storm remarkably well.

The island has largely managed to avoid the chaotic scenes of refugee protests and mad crushes outside registration centers that have scarred islands with far fewer new arrivals. On Chios, a system is now in place that aims to process new arrivals as quickly as possible, provide safe and clean temporary shelter and allow them to quickly move on.

This success is primarily due to the close cooperation among local government, police, coast guard, aid groups and volunteers. Weekly or even daily coordination meetings are held to iron out any difficulties before they become full-blown problems.

But getting to this point hasnt been easy.

Joe Cooper, head of the Chios field unit for the U.N. refugee agency, took up his post at the end of October, just as the influx of new arrivals surged.

That was a kind of nightmare period. It rained as well  slashing rain, Cooper said as several hundred people who had arrived that morning waited to be processed at the registration center, their wet clothes drying by space heaters dotting the cavernous former leather tanning factory.

It was a mess, but what was clear even then was the political will, just the humanity of the authorities here and the desire to help people.

The municipality opened up stadiums for people to sleep in, while volunteers stepped up to help increase capacity in a tent camp hastily set up in the towns park to accommodate the overflow.

Everyone really came together, Cooper said.

Local residents have also stepped up to help.

In the nearby village of Karfas, 62-year-old Despina Kalaitzidaki joined her neighbor, Giorgos Myrisis, a 72-year-old retired merchant marine captain, in setting up a volunteer center to hand out dry clothes to those arriving soaked from their sea journey.

We saw their anxiety. We saw their longing when they arrived. We saw them kneeling and kissing the earth because they managed to arrive alive and didnt drown, said Kalaitzidaki. They were suffering. They were hugging. All this cannot leave you indifferent.

With winter arriving and the tent camp in the park clearly inadequate, the municipality cast around for a solution. They came up with an ingenious idea  build a camp in the dry moat of Chios towns medieval castle. The space was free, it was in the town center yet tucked away from the bustle of daily life and it allowed easy access to the nearby port for ferries.

The 800-person camp began operating in November, complete with prefabricated houses reserved for the most vulnerable such as unaccompanied children, the disabled, women traveling alone or with young children.

Its not somewhere that would be acceptable to spend six months or a year living, but for what people use it for, which is to spend a night or two, its safe, its clean and its warm and they can have a shower and volunteers bring food, Cooper said.

Among those staying at the camp one recent night was Issam Boukamer, a 22-year-old amateur boxer from Libya who made it to Chios after he and another 57 people were rescued by the coast guard when the dinghy they were crammed into began taking on water.

Boukamer, who speaks French and taught himself English by watching videos, dreams of reaching Germany, where he said he wants to work and study French literature.

I want just to live in peace because in my country there are many terrorists and many problems, he said, describing aerial bombardments and attacks by the Islamic State group.

But other countries along the route have closed their doors to the flow. Macedonia, on Greeces northern border, now only allows those from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan to cross.

Boukamer is unfazed.

We must try. Theres nothing impossible, you know? We were living a hard life, and this is not hard for me, he said. I have a goal, I must achieve it. I have a dream.
DO YOU have a Boulevard Aristide-Briand near you? Or do you send your child to school in a Jules-Ferry or a lycee Emile Combes? If so, you are already familiar with key names in the construction of the French Republic.

Between them, these three politicians were responsible for free state schooling, obligatory education for girls and the rock of state neutrality towards religion on which la Republique is built: the principle of laicite.

The term is very much in the news, with a new laicite charter being introduced into schools this autumn alongside classes in morale laique. Presenting the charter, Minister for Education Vincent Peillon explained: Everyone is free to have his own opinions but no one has the right to contest teaching content or miss a class in the name of religious precepts.

Public debate over the Muslim community in France pops up in the news regularly and is nearly always related in one way or another to perceived challenges to this element of the Constitution. Peillons remarks refer also to repeated evangelist pressure to alter class content, in particular regarding the theory of evolution. A recent example was the proposal to swap two Christian holidays with Jewish and Muslim ones: confusing whether France was secular or multi-religious.

Left and Right politicians often unite to initiate laws to protect laicite. Once the source of conflict with the Catholic Right over private education funding, the principle, an important element in the integration process, regularly generates ill feeling these days among extremist sectors of the Muslim community. That is why, a century after the original 1905 law, several new laws have been passed to protect it.

First, a few explanations. Laicite does not translate well. Secularity is close but confusing. Laicite is not easy to define either. It has evolved over two centuries and is evolving still. The concept was born of the Revolution, which guaranteed freedom of conscience to all and first separated State and Church.

Napoleon backtracked, signing a concordat with the Vatican in 1801 that was to poison Church-State relations during the 19th century and put laicite on the back burner for much of it. (For historical reasons, this concordat still applies in Alsace and Moselle.)

Having been suppressed by the Vichy regime (along with liberte, egalite, fraternite  without which laicite could not function), the principle was cast in the constitution of the Fourth Republic in 1946  the State is indivisible, laic, democratic and social  and remains firmly in that of todays Fifth.

To understand the concept is to go a long way towards understanding the French. Maybe it could be defined as their permanent search for a delicate balance between sharing what they all hold in common, the Republic, and catering for diversity.

It is the principle that protects both personal and collective liberty and, as such, is the responsibility of both State and citizen. The indivisibility of the State is the States refusal to recognise any religious or ethnic community. France is one. There are two major dates in the history of laicite: 1881 and 1905. In 1881-82, Minister of Education Jules Ferry decreed school to be publique, gratuite et laique  state-run, free and non-clerical.

Teaching in French to a national programme provided children, whatever their linguistic background or beliefs, with the theoretical possibility of equal opportunity.

It created a framework in which adults could bring no pressure to bear on pupils to adhere to any philosophy, religion or political idea. That remains the basis of the French educational system today.

The 1905 law, engineered by Emile Combes and Aristide Briand, enforced the neutrality of the State and State institutions through the separation of the Churches and the State. Since that date, the State recognises no religion and therefore cannot directly fund any either.

If the same law grants the individual total liberty and privacy regarding beliefs, there is one condition: they must not disturb public order.

Given the repeated trauma that religion has caused in Frances recent history  from the Wars of Religion to the expulsion of the Huguenots and the Dreyfus affair  this means no proselytising and nothing that could be remotely interpreted as such.

It also explains why, in France, religious belief is far more than a private matter. Things spiritual belong to the realm of intimacy. It is extremely unusual to see anyone wearing any conspicuous religious symbol in public. To do so is perceived as a deliberate act, a message to others.

It is unthinkable to ask someone what their religion is and most people will be frankly embarrassed by anyone saying what theirs is. When Nicolas Sarkozy publicly announced he had appointed Frances first Muslim prefect, he sent shockwaves throughout the land.

Knowing this helps in understanding intense French reaction to young girls wearing veils. It is seen not only as an unacceptable way of bringing religion into the public sphere, but also a form of peer pressure on other girls to do the same. Which takes us back to Jules Ferry and neutrality in the classroom.

This insistence on the privacy of beliefs was of course also reinforced after World War II by the fate of Frances Jews under the Vichy regime, and the obligation to publicly show their religion by wearing the yellow star. As a result of the trauma of State responsibility in their deportation and extermination, no statistics may be made regarding peoples religious beliefs, ethnic origin or colour.

All citizens are not only equal, but remain neutral in the eyes of the State.

The mosque debate

The 1905 law was finally well accepted by both Catholic and Protestant churches in France, who benefited financially when the State handed existing buildings and their costly maintenance over to local authorities. But the State cannot fund new religious buildings.

Hence the mosque-building debate and recent legislation allowing local authorities to contribute. For with generous donations from Saudi Arabia and Muslim foundations abroad pouring in, the inherent risk of encouraging fundamentalist movements to develop in France is obvious.

Under the Nicolas Sarkozy government, the training of imams in France to Republican principles was considered.

But the State cannot finance religious education either. The impasse has been paradoxically circumvented by the Catholic University offering courses, and Algerian imams due to work in France being trained in French and laicite at the government-funded Institut Francais in Algiers.

Conspicuous symbols and full-face veils

After a number of potentially inflammatory cases in which some schools were confronted with Muslim girls wearing Islamic headscarves, legislation was passed in 2004 banning the wearing of any conspicuous religious symbol or sign in state schools. Never specifically aimed at the Muslim community (kippas, large crosses and Sikh turbans fall under the same category), the new law, despite fears it would be perceived as discriminatory and arouse further reaction, had the almost immediate effect of calming the situation, though some veiled Muslim girls and turbaned Sikhs found their way to private schools.

But this legislated solely for public schools, not privately run establishments. In March of this year, Fatima Afif, an employee dismissed in 2008 from the privately run Baby Loup creche in the Yvelines for refusing to remove her headscarf, won on appeal for wrongful dismissal on the grounds of religious discrimination.

New legislation is now under consideration to cover pre-school structures and religious symbols in the workplace, none of which are currently covered by law.

When, in late July, a police officer in the town of Trappes stopped a fully veiled young women for an ID check in the middle of Ramadan, he did not know he was unleashing days of rioting. But Cassandra, 22, was not infringing any law on laicite. This time it was the one against dissimulating the face in the public sphere, put into effect by the Sarkozy government in 2011.

Introduced ostensibly as anti-terrorism legislation, many felt its real purpose was more anti-veil. In fact, the number of women in France wearing the niqab is extremely small, and the number of women fined likewise.

Laicite with an adjective

The latest solution of Frances politicians to calm the debate has been to add adjectives. Sarkozy invented laicite positive, in which the government took into account the existence of religious groups in France.

He created a representative Muslim council, through which to address the Muslim community in France. Representative of only a portion of Frances Muslims, many of whom are non-practising, it has created more problems than it has solved.

The Hollande government has coined laicite apaisee, a low-profile approach in which negotiation would replace legislation as the best way of winning over those who regard the principle with suspicion.

True laicistes believe the principle cannot survive any moderating tags. It must exist alone.

Universities oppose campus headscarf ban proposal

In early August, Le Monde published a report signed by members of the Haut Comite de lIntegration (HCI), a body no longer briefed to deal with laicite since the creation of a separate mission last April. It called for a Muslim headscarf ban in universities.

Government replies were swift but hardly in unison. Minister of the Interior Manuel Valls stated evasively that the subject needed to be considered, while Genevieve Fioraso, Minister for Higher Education, warned that we should avoid problems where there are none.

For Gerard Blanchard, president of La Rochelle University, and vice-president of the national CPU, Conference des Presidents dUniversite, laicite is not an issue on his campus or anywhere in France. We have 14% foreign students in La Rochelle, mostly from South East Asia, and we only ask women students to take off their veils in science laboratories, for safety reasons. That has never posed a problem.

The University Presidents Conference has issued a public statement against any specific university ban. For Blanchard, the over-mediatised debate that burst upon us mid-summer is without foundation. He is adamant that he has never had a complaint from a teacher. An environmentalist, he is far more concerned by pressure that could be brought on teachers to introduce non-scientific versions of the origins of the universe into the syllabus. No university teacher should ever have to submit to any pressure on the content of his teaching.

Jean-Loup Salzmann, president of the CPU, and president of Paris XIII, in the heart of Seine- Saint-Denis, one of the most multi-cultural universities in France, firmly believes in laicite, but sees no need for new laws on the campus. His main concern is elsewhere. He is angered by the incongruity of the State promoting laicite on the one hand, while financing the Catholic universities on the other.

Expressing a personal opinion, he said: The main issue for these young Muslim women, who have enough problems coping with family pressure, is to achieve independence and emancipation through their studies, whether they wear a veil or not. An anti-veil law would achieve the opposite of what we want. Many of these women would then not have access to university at all.

How the principle of laicite is applied today

NICOLAS Cadene, chairman of the Observatoire de la Laicite, a watchdog committee created last April by President Francois Hollande to report on how the principle of laicite is applied in France today, spoke to Connexion.

Can you define this difficult concept for our readers?

Laicite is a principle which allows us all to live together. It is not a ban on religion or religious practices. On the contrary, it guarantees believers and non-believers alike the freedom to express themselves, to practise or not to practise a religion as they choose, on condition that public order is not disturbed. The State adopts an attitude of total impartiality towards citizens, who are all equal in the eyes of the State.

Do the current religious bank holidays not favour one religious group?

Christian festivals have, for the majority, become traditional holidays with little religious significance. Still, the State does not want to be seen as favouring one religion over another. In 1905, there was no Muslim population. But I dont think this poses a real problem. Employees can use their RTT (recuperation of unpaid overtime in the form of days off) as they wish. The Stasi Commission (set up by President Jacques Chirac in 2003) went a long way towards identifying issues in the workplace. We shall build on that.

The conspicuous religious symbols ban was seen as directed only at women. Is that not a form of discrimination?

If people set out to present themselves in a way which is obviously a proselytising or a provocative attitude, that is not acceptable. It is not so much what people wear or their physical appearance, as the reason behind the choice. This is one of the subjects we shall be working on.

Islam has no clerical hierarchy. Isnt the laicite legislation trying to apply to individuals a law aimed at an institution? Doesnt the 1905 law need to be adapted?

Not at all. The principle enables us all to live together. But, of course, we must avoid situations in which one group feels stigmatised by the law. That is one of our major subjects of reflexion. But there is no question of adapting the principle to new circumstances. It is one of bringing people to understand that laicite is not a ban on religious practice but a system of personal freedom and helping them to adapt to the principle.

There has been talk in the press over banning the Islamic headscarf at university. [The full-face veil is already banned anywhere in public].

The State has a duty to protect minors from any form of ideological persuasion, hence the headscarf ban in schools. University is a world of adults. But the Republic has a duty to protect its citizens against the dangers of extremism. Some people attribute to laicite powers it simply does not have. There is an urgent need for strong political action, at state and local level, in order to resolve the many problems the threat of extremism has brought to certain sectors of society.

The Observatoire has published its first report, a history and background to the concept. What else has it achieved?

We helped draw up two important documents: the laicite charter and the syllabus for non-religious morality for schools. Both take effect this year. In addition, our report has pinpointed situations needing close attention in public administrations and local authorities (non-Metropolitan France included), as well as in the private sector.

How do you see your work developing?

We need a better definition of laicite that reiterates the States position of neutrality and is more clearly understood by all, in France and at an international level. We are drawing up guidelines for the application of laicite and religious practice in the workplace, and in the wake of the Baby Loup issue [see main article], for pre-school structures. We must show people how to react to situations. Overreaction is one of the major problems we face, when so much could be achieved by negotiation and taking things calmly.
UPDATE: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday added two new destinations  the Dominican Republic and the Virgin Islands  to its travel advisories related to the mosquito-borne disease Zika.

Reports of Zika are rising rapidly across the Americas.

The CDC has said its investigation into a possible link between Zika and brain damage in babies is evolving, and until it knows more and out of an abundance of caution, its advising pregnant women to consider postponing travel to any country where the virus is circulating.

The agency had already warned travelers about Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Cape Verde . Colombia, Ecuador. El Salvador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Saint Martin, Samoa, Suriname and Venezuela.

Its quite appropriate. If I were advising somebody who was going to Brazil or somewhere else where theres an outbreak of Zika, and if they were pregnant, particularly in their early pregnancy, I would advise them to delay their trip, said Dr. Donald Forthal, chief of infectious diseases at UC Irvine.

The CDC is also urging all U.S. travelers to avoid mosquito bites in those countries. The best protection is long-sleeved shirts and insect repellents. The CDC recommends repellents that contain DEET, picaridin, IR3535 or oil of lemon eucalyptus, also known as OLE.

If youre a child or an adult who is not pregnant, I wouldnt be worried about Zika, Forthal said. Even if you get symptoms, its not going to be life threatening.

Zika doesnt make everyone sick. Only about 1 in 5 infected people develops symptoms, and they are rarely serious: fever, rash, joint pain and red eyes.

But over the past several weeks, Zika has caused greater alarm.

In the tropical part of the Americas, theres the right temperature, the right climate, the right mosquitoes  and a large number of people with no immunity. Its the perfect set-up for the virus to travel quickly, said Dr. Isaac Bogoch, a tropical infectious diseases specialist at Toronto General Hospital.

Now evidence is growing that Zika might cause birth defects in children. Scientists have found the virus in babies who died in the womb or were born with microcephaly. The CDC is also investigating a possible link with Guillain-Barre syndrome, which can cause paralysis in adults.

Zika is related to other viruses spread by mosquitoes, including chikungunya, dengue and West Nile. Those viruses are not known to cause birth defects. And they are not spread human to human. To transmit the disease, a particular species of mosquito has to bite an infected person, then bite someone else.

In the case of Zika, the species is Aedes, particularly Aedes aegypti, which was first detected in Orange County last year.

Despite the mosquitos presence locally, officials agree a Zika outbreak here is unlikely.

Contact the writer: jchandler@ocregister.com and @jennakchandler on Twitter
Maurice Levy

Publicis, third largest ad/PR conglomerate, is pulling out all stops for its 90th birthday. A smudge on its image is the fact that Mark McClennan of its MSL unit chairs press-boycotting PR Society of America.

CEO Maurice Levy has put up $10.9 million to fund 90 start-ups as part of the celebration. He wants to identify Publicis with innovation and creativity.

Mark McClennan

Thats fine but the main mission of the PR part of the company is ethical behavior. McClennan is supposed to be the spear-carrier for that since the Societys Code says ethical practice is the most important obligation of a member.McClennans bio on the Societys website says he drove creation of the PRSA ethics app.

The Societys boycott against the ODwyer Co., after PRSA sold copies of ODwyer articles for 16 years, includes barring exhibition of ODwyer products at its national conference, barring its reporters from all conference events including the Assembly, and refusal to allow ODwyer staffers to join the Society when other reporters and writers are allowed to do so.

Undemocratic Practices Abound at Society

The chief victims of the Societys undemocratic practices are the 22,000 members themselves.

--Governance has been in the hands of the small minority of Accredited members (18%) since the 1970s. The 2016 board is 16 APRs and one non-APR.

--Members lost their printed members directory in 2005 without a vote in the Assembly; lost access to the list of Assembly delegates; lost transcripts of the Assembly; lost the public list of 50+ staffers; lost the single list of 110 chapter presidents; lost the full list of committees and task forces, and their Assembly delegates are deprived each year of IRS form 990 showing pay packages of top staffers.

McLennan Was Dissident

McClennan in 2009 let the battle against the boards attempt to pull from the Assembly its power to elect board and officers and replace it with a system of direct voting by members.

Members wanted to know what kind of debates or other vetting of the candidates would take place but bylaw chair Dave Rickey refused to supply any specifics.

McClennan was the only delegate speaking against the proposal which was defeated by a vote of 175-103 at the start of the meeting.

Also defeated were proposals to make all directors at large; put a board member as nominating committee chair; allow 25 committee heads to vote in the Assembly; allow the board to expel any member at its discretion, and let the board create additional classes of Assembly delegates.

McClennans opposition to national policies appeared to lessen in 2010 when 61% of members of the Boston chapter voted to drop the APR rule for national office and board.

McClennan, a chapter director, said the board would have to discuss the matter first before deciding how to vote in the Assembly. This flabbergasted Art Stevens of the New York chapter who was co-chair of the Committee for a Democratic PRSA.

Split with PRSA Urged in 2014

This website urged Publicis to direct McClennan to quit as treasurer of the Society in 2014 since it was a further blot on the name of the firm.

Levy had just emerged from a humiliating tangle with Omnicom which had proposed a merger that was really a takeover of Publicis.

OMC wanted their people to fill the CEO, CFO and general counsel jobs, a crestfallen Levy told Reuters. OMC was twice as big as Publicis in terms of revenues. Publicis, with $8.44 billion in revenues, currently trades at $51, off from its high of $79.40 on April 22, 2015.

Attempts to reach McClennan by phone or email at his Boston office were unsuccessful. An operator said that McClennan instructed us to deal with Laurent Lawrence, PR director of the Society. Lawrence and Society CEO Joseph Truncale have informed the O'Dwyer Co. that PRSA will have nothing to do with it. There is "no relationship," Truncale told an O'Dwyer reporter.

Owner Badinter Is Noted French Citizen

Elizabeth Badinter, who inherited controlling interest in Publicis from her father Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet when he died in 1989, has been called Frances most influential intellectual by French magazine Marianne based on a poll of its readers. Jane Kramer of The New Yorker did an 11-page profile of her July 25, 2011.

She is noted for her staunch individualism and idealism. She is opposed to inequality and any policies that limit human rights. She has defended the right of women to work when raising children.

The beliefs of Badinter are at odds with the numerous anti-informational, anti-democratic and anti-intellectual practices and policies of the PR Society.

Publicis Hopes for Millions for Startups

Publicis hopes that clients, partners and media companies will match each investment so that 500,000 euros could turn into millions.

The company is investing between 10,000 and 500,000 euros in each of 90 startups.

Publicis employees, who will be encouraged to enter, will vote for the startups they think best deserve the awards through a Facebook type of system, says the announcement. The projects will be submitted anonymously.

Senior Publicis management will provide a year of mentorship to the winning entries. An internal division led by Maxime Baffert, CEO of Publicis digital agency Proximedia Europe, has been created.

I believe nobody has dared to do something like this to support 90 projects, said Levy. Nobody has dared to go after that big a number. Its complicated to select and a huge undertakingwe want to do something quite massive in order that it will be noticed both from inside the group and outsideall people who have a project see we are really committed to the tech and digital space and that this is something important.

Levy feels that Publicis funds will be easier for startups to obtain than funds from venture capitalists. What we are asking for is less complex than what VCs are asking for, he said.

The 90 startups will be invited to a new tech expo and conference that Publicis is launching with Groupe Les Echos called Viva Technology Paris from June 30 to July 2, 2016.
We are a nation of emigrants, with a particularly large flow of people out of the country at the moment. Nevertheless, many who left in the 80s and 90s did return during the boom yearsand may only now be discovering that they came back with unexploded financial bombs in their luggage.

We are a nation of emigrants, with a particularly large flow of people out of the country at the moment. Nevertheless, many who left in the 80s and 90s did return during the boom yearsand may only now be discovering that they came back with unexploded financial bombs in their luggage.

Money Express with Jill Kerby

One such couple, now aged 50, emigrated to Australia in the 80s, eventually bought a home there in 1993 but after their first child was born, returned to Ireland.

They have lived modestly, bought a house (and will clear the mortgage seven years early) and are good savers. They both have pension policies . However, they made a common mistake of returned emigrants: they didnt bother to cancel insurance and investment policies they took out all those years before in Australia.

The reason they contacted me was because of the articles Ive written lately about the bombing out of whole of life assurance policies, widely sold here in the late 1979s and throughout the 80s and 90s. (Some life companies and brokers still sell them - to their shame.)

They thought an Australian term insurance policy they bought in 1993, with a fixed death benefit of just the equivalent of 114,000 each, but with a premium that increased every year (from 279 in 1993 when they were age 30 to a whopping 930 a year today) might have been a whole of life one.

The cost of this policy was now becoming prohibitive and they were considering cancelling it.

Whole of life policies are often misrepresented as being even better than a straightforward term life insurance (or convertible term) policy with a fixed premium, death benefit and payment term. The broker, who receives a huge commission on its sale, talks up the investment fund part that can be encashed if the buyer ever needs some money, perhaps for a childs education, a home downpayment or another pressing need.

What the broker doesnt explain properly is that even though these policies are always more expensive anyway, the original premium is nearly always underpriced. Meanwhile, the premium is only reviewed after the first 10 years and every five years thereafter, but because you have aged and are now at greater risk of dying, will result in sharp increases in the premiums.

If investment returns are poor, the charges are high and the investment fund has been raided by the insurer over the years to pay the rising risk/cost of the life cover, a bomb- out is almost inevitable.

Our returned immigrants never understood what they were buying back in 1993.

They kept this policy, and an expensive income protection one (with fixed annual premiums of 900) her husband, a chef bought in Australia that he was told would cover him wherever he worked in the world, because they did know that after 10 years or so, any replacement policies in Ireland would be cost adjusted for their age (or if they now had any medical conditions.)

An accountant and lawyer they consulted when they bought their Irish home gave the two Australian policies a cursory glance and said they were fine.

Unfortunately, they werent fine. So far, a fee-based financial adviser they have consulted has determined that their so-called Australian term insurance policy appears to be a rare, expensive product in which the premium was set relatively low at first but then increased each year relative to their rising ages but without any rise in the benefit.

When high administration charges and exchange rates were taken into account, it proved to be very expensive and the rising premiums are no longer affordable.

The couple were verbally informed by a clerk when they were leaving Australia that they could just keep paying their premiums, but they never received a written confirmation.

The best advice: always check out Irish legal and tax requirements before you maintain or bring home a foreign financial product.
The Christmas just passed, the painful ritual was, once again, enacted.

The Christmas just passed, the painful ritual was, once again, enacted.

Some of our emigrants came home for the festive season. They arrived to a mixture of joy and high emotion.

They left, after the festive season, to the usual mixture of barely submerged grief and, in some cases, utter grief.

Ireland relives its past. In all times of difficulty, since the foundation of the State, we have exported our young people in as callous a dismissal as witnessed in any other society when the economy nosedived.

The post-war exodus reached its height in the 1950s, when thousands left a State that some felt had no future. We have failed the revolution, said one newspaper, in a memorable quote historians would sometimes invoke in later years. And so we had.

Between 1951 and 61 alone, some 400,000 people left this country, mainly for Britain and the United States. Many were ill-prepared. Some became casualties on the streets of London and New York.

Successive Irish governments did precious little to help them. It was left to the welfare services in their adopted countries and, in the case of Britain, the Catholic Churchs emigrant chaplaincy.

Emigrants have no vote and precious little influence in domestic Irish politics. And so, as today, they were expendable. In the early 1950s, Eamon de Valera had the brass neck to say that there was no need for Irish people to emigrate.

There were, he said, sufficient jobs at home. It was a blatant lie and an attempt to cover up his failures and those of his Government.

Again, in the 1980s, it was the same Irish solution to another Irish economic problem. There was another recession and another grotesque exodus of our people.

By then, the young leaving were better educated and travel was easier. But they were being forced out by a country that failed them.

Todays economic war sees a fresh generation leaving. It seems our broken Republic is destined to repeat its mistakes time and again.

Keeping contact with loved ones is much easier today. But, in some respects, that is irrelevant. Make no mistake about it: what we are witnessing is the scandal of forced emigration on a truly dreadful scale. Only the circumstances are different. In the 12 months to April this year alone, close on 60,000 people took the emigrant route.

Many of our young people are glad of the opportunities provided by other countries. But they are resentful about being forced out. A recent survey revealed that 4 in 10 emigrants would like to move back to Ireland, but just 22 per cent thought it unlikely mainly because of economic factors.

The shocking failure of the Republic, caused by the incompetence, greed and corruption of some of those entrusted with power, is forcing them out. We have, indeed, failed the revolution.

A half-century ago last summer, Ireland appeared to be on the cusp of an economic and social breakthrough. Emigration was declining.

And Taoiseach Sean Lemass, the great architect of that boom destroyed by others, had made it to the cover of Time magazine. It was a prestigious international accolade. New Spirit in the Ould Sod was the headline.

The prose was gushing. The nation is at last facing up to its futuresigns are everywhere: in the new factories and office buildings, in the Irish-assembled cars fighting for street space in Dublin, in the new TV antennas crowding the rooftops, in the waning of national self-pityThe nations new mood is that of Sean Lemass

The magazine went on to say that Mr Lemass had laboured single-mindedly for decades to break the vicious circle of declining living standards and dwindling population that threatened Irelands very survival as a nation.

And there was a new spirit. Mr Lemass had made early moves to join the then EEC. He spoke, time and again, of the need for an economic revolution to match the revolution that had yielded us Independence.

He retired in 1966, due it is now known for health reasons, having achieved so much in the short seven years in which he had led the country.

Some of those who later destroyed the country were born into Lemasss Ireland. They enjoyed the opportunities, educationally and professionally, provided by the Lemass revolution. And, then, they undid that great patriots work.
A fifteen year old boy has returned home from abroad and bought a uniform to go to school.

A fifteen year old boy has returned home from abroad and bought a uniform to go to school.

At the end of March, Judge John Coughlan gave the mother of the teenager an ultimatum to have him back in Ireland within a week to appear before the court.

He said it was outlandish that the boy wasnt in school and an absolute disgrace that the principal and class teacher were absent from court, as they are key people to engage with the boy. Last week Judge Catherine Staines heard he will be back in school after the Easter holidays.

The court has heard no detail of how much school he has missed, but solicitor Donal Farrelly said his mother found him difficult to control.

Sending him to stay with his older brother for a while was considered a break for the boy and an opportunity to get his head around his life, Mr Farrelly said.

Solicitor Patricia Cronin, taking the case on behalf of the National Edcuation Welfare Board requested that the case be adjourned to later this month, to see that the boy starts school.

The Board is prosecuting the woman, who is not being named to protect her sons identity and who, if found guilty of failing to send her son to school, can be jailed for up to a month.
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Some business owners rousted by the Old Market fire at 11th and Howard Streets have begun the taxing process of starting over. Others dont even know where to begin.

At Niche, a furniture store just west of the Market House restaurant, owner Rich Anderson has been waiting for more information about what might be salvageable from his store. He said he hasnt been able to get into the store for more than 20 minutes since the fire except for a brief visit to grab his cash drawer.

Although I have insurance, I still have to be able to get into my bay to see what I can keep and sell and not, Anderson said. The business has operated in the space for 21 years. Anderson also owns Trinis restaurant in the Old Market Passageway.

My perspective is from three or four or five different angles, Anderson said. Im a business owner that lost everything for 21 years. Im a business owner trying to keep as normal as possible because (Trinis) is directly across the street from Ms Pub.

On one hand, Im furious and cant get inside to see what I have left of my retail store; then Im trying to get my other business open and keep it normal for my employees and my own sanity and absolutely financially.

Anderson said he has talked with his insurance agent but hasnt been allowed into the building to inspect what is left of his store. The insurance company, State Farm, has taken over the investigation of the damage in the building that houses Niche; the city is no longer involved. State Farm had no comment.

There has been no timeline given on when Anderson and others might be able to get back in or when rebuilding might happen. Dehumidifying hoses are being use to dry out the building, including condominiums upstairs.

The lack of information has been frustrating, Anderson said. He and some employees were able to get into his retail bay after the Fire Department knocked down both doors during the fire but before the space was secured.

While waiting, he is juggling incoming freight orders that have nowhere to go, running Trinis, planning a trip to a furniture show this weekend in Las Vegas and figuring out how to contact clients who have paid for furniture that is sitting in his flooded basement.

Im not saying my loss is any greater, but everyone is in a completely different situation, he said. Im kind of a one-man show.

Jay Davis, superintendent of the City of Omahas Planning Department, said insurance adjusters have begun work on the building that holds the Market House and Niche, which is immediately west of the building that housed Nouvelle Eve and Ms Pub.

Insurance adjusters are trying to get it dried down. As soon as they can get that done, theyre going to let them back in, he said.

His attention has been on the Ms Pub building, which the Planning Department said is not structurally sound. The Omaha Fire Department determined Thursday the fire was accidental and caused by a damaged gas line feeding Ms Pub.

Nouvelle Eve owner Susie Keuck said her insurance agent has told her the store was a total loss and advised her to begin making a list of personal items and merchandise that were in the store.

I know everybodys anxious to get back in there, but I think they just have to stop and think about safety first, she said. It is hard to have your belongings so close but yet so far.

Though her insurance agent encouraged her to relocate and reopen in the meantime, shes not so sure. She has set up a home office.

I could have gone anywhere, and I chose 11th and Howard for a reason, she said. Weve been there for 43 years. Its historic, its iconic. So I just kind of have to wait and see.

After a Wednesday meeting with the Mercers, who own the damaged buildings, she said shes confident they will rebuild and that they want Nouvelle Eve and Ms Pub to be a part of it.

Just hearing from Mark Mercer and the people in the office that they want us back is a good thing. We didnt talk about relocating in the meantime. Thats just something I have to figure out on my own.

Meanwhile, Market House owner Nick Bartholomew has begun the process of cleaning up the restaurant, which was damaged by water. Bartholomew said he has begun throwing away spoiled food and cleaning up the basement, which was soaked.

He said he hopes reconstruction begins soon. He is interested in reopening the restaurant in the same space, but wont reopen elsewhere in the meantime.

Picking up the pieces, he said. Salvage is coming up next. The building may need to be taken down to the studs to ensure there are no health concerns.

Once its back in a habitable condition, Market House will start building again, he said.

World-Herald staff writer Steve Jordon contributed to this report.

Contact the writer: 402-444-1414, paige.yowell@owh.com
Their trunks are packed. Elephants are coming back to Omaha.

The Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium and its partner zoos in Dallas and Wichita received permits this week to import 18 elephants from southern Africa. If everything goes smoothly, barring health problems with any of the elephants and a legal challenge from animal-rights groups, the zoo could have elephants on display as early as April.

Dennis Pate, CEO and executive director of the zoo, said it will take three or four weeks to coordinate the transport, but the elephants should still arrive within the next two or three months. Then, theyll acclimate to their new exhibit for a few weeks before going on display. Hopefully, Pate said, that will be well before the entire first phase of the African Grasslands exhibit opens for Memorial Day weekend.

In order to transport the animals, the elephants will have to be loaded into crates, which will then be lifted onto a truck. Pate said equipment will have to be brought into Swaziland to make that happen. Once loaded onto the truck, the elephants will travel to an airport an hour away and fly to the U.S. on a Boeing 747 freighter, stopping only for fuel.

Once they arrive at Eppley Airfield, the last stop, the zoos elephants will be loaded onto three trucks and driven directly into their new home, the 29,000-square-foot elephant family quarters  the largest herd room in North America.

Theres a chance that all 18 elephants may not board the plane, however. A team of veterinarians will evaluate the elephants, who have been living in enclosures called bomas, separate from the rest of the park. If some elephants are not healthy, Pate said, the zoos wont take them.

So Omaha may not get all six of its elephants. But if some stay behind, Pate said, theyll try to balance the number each zoo receives.

Its an even split, in an ideal world, Pate said.

Getting to this point has taken patience.

The zoos filed an application with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in November 2014. One year later, the application was opened for public comment. The wildlife service has spent the past two months reading through and considering the 8,000 public comments.

The wildlife service published a document Friday morning stating, essentially, that it sees no legal reason not to issue a permit. Later Friday, both Timothy Van Norman, who issued the permit, and Pate confirmed that the permit had been issued on Thursday.

The permit allows the zoos to acquire the elephants for free from Big Game Parks, an independent nonprofit that manages several wildlife parks in Swaziland. The park was planning to kill the elephants as a population control measure because the growing elephant herd was degrading the parks food supply and endangering other animals.

As part of the partnership, the three zoos will send money, estimated to be about $450,000 over several years, to Big Game Parks for black rhino conservation. That money will be managed in a trust that requires the zoos to sign off on progress updates before releasing more money.

Lots of good things come out of this, Pate said. No. 1, you save elephants from being culled in Swaziland. No. 2, we get to help rhinos at the same time. And No. 3, we strengthen the genetic pool of elephants in North America and make them more sustainable.

Of course, the fourth thing is that people in Omaha get to see live elephants, be inspired by them and hopefully take action because theyre here.

The money exchanged between the zoos and Big Game Parks has become a point of contention, however. Animal-rights groups argue that this exchange of money is a commercial transaction, which is illegal.

(The zoos) intend to use the elephants for breeding programs to repopulate a dwindling inventory of captive elephants and boost ticket sales with the birth of baby elephants, said Stephen Wells, executive director of the Animal Legal Defense Fund, in a statement. According to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, which governs endangered animal trade, commercial transactions of endangered animals are forbidden.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, as well as the zoos, maintain that the import is legal on the grounds that it is being done for conservation purposes and that there isnt a price tag for the elephants.

Were not buying the elephants, Pate said. What we are doing is transferring money to Swaziland thats placed in a trust to support rhino conservation.

The Animal Legal Defense Fund, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and other groups have tried to delay, alter or cancel the import since plans were first announced. PETA said it does not plan to take legal action, but the Animal Legal Defense Fund said that isnt off the table for its group.

This is sending a really dangerous signal to other African countries that there is money to be made by sending elephants to American zoos, said Rachel Mathews, PETA Foundation counsel.

This import is very similar to one from the same African parks in 2003 that sent 11 elephants to zoos in San Diego and Tampa. Animal rights groups sued the zoos in 2003, alleging false information on the zoos permit application, according to the Los Angeles Times. The zoos prevailed, but the import was delayed several months.

If groups choose to sue this time around, the exhibits opening may be forced to delay. As of Friday afternoon, Pate had not heard anything about a pending lawsuit.

I know this is the right thing, and I know weve got to have thick skin on a lot of this stuff, Pate said. Given San Diego and Tampas success breeding them, I know that we can take good care of them.
A Syracuse man who was Nebraskas longest-active licensed funeral director  for more than 60 years in Cass and Otoe Counties  died Tuesday.

John Fusselman died of pancreatic cancer. He was 88.

After serving in World War II, Fusselman went to mortuary school in San Francisco, obtaining his license in 1949, said his son, Jon Fusselman.

John, who was raised in Bristow, Nebraska, moved to Louisville to start a funeral home from his own home in 1953. In 1967 he purchased a funeral home in Syracuse and operated both businesses for decades.

Doug Allen worked with him for about 30 years and said he was a supportive friend to grieving families.

They always felt he was part of their family after they worked with him, Allen said.

Jon Fusselman said that over the years his father knew nearly every family in a 30-mile radius.

He was such a genuine, caring person that didnt have any pretense, Jon said. People sensed that and were automatically drawn to him and had a lot of trust in the business.

John usually did his job correctly, but decades ago the Syracuse newspaper ran a headline: Funeral director buries wrong cat.

Johns daughters had cats that lived at the funeral home, off Nebraska Highway 50. When the Fusselman family returned home after a Christmas church service, a neighbor told them that their cat had been run over by a car.

The daughters were distraught. John held a funeral for the cat, digging into the frozen ground to bury the cat with its Christmas presents.

Three days later, the daughters real cat appeared.

It was not quite a scandal but a little bit of a local joke, Jon said. It became a little bit of a local celebrity story.

John is also survived by daughters Marcy Wilcke of Clinton, Iowa, Alice Perry of Syracuse, Laurie Shultz of Omaha and Mary Arnold of Lenexa, Kansas; eight grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and two sisters.

A visitation will be today from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Fusselman Allen Harvey Funeral Home at 644 Park Ave. in Syracuse, and the family will greet friends from 5 to 7 p.m. The funeral will be Saturday at 10:30 a.m. at Luther Memorial Church at 1162 Mohawk St. in Syracuse.

Contact the writer: 402-444-1068, alia.conley@owh.com
Many students cant wait for the weekend. Theres no school, no teachers and no work to be done for a couple of days.

But, some students can wait for the weekend to come. These are the students who might not know if there will be dinner on Friday night or even lunch on Saturday.

Teachers at Ralston High School noticed this and wanted to help those students in need. A group of them got together and opened the R-Pantry, a food pantry that allows students to shop anonymously for food, toiletries and other supplies inside the high school.

The R-Pantry has been a few years in the making. The idea for it came back to French teacher Dene Ogelsby when she and her student group F.A.I.R., were planning an activity before winter break.

We wanted to a do a random act of kindness, Ogelsby said. They decided to hand write 1,000 notes and stuck candy to them. They started thinking about how for some kids who leave for break, it isnt a positive thing.

RHS English teacher and National Honors Society sponsor Dan Boster said that students are always looking to help others, but often forget that there are some close to home who need the help.

In NHS, we think about doing projects to help people, he said. We thought Wait a minute theres kids right here.

To start off with a full pantry of mostly healthy foods, staff was asked to make a $5 donation for casual dress or food donations. They raised $800 in monetary donations and hundreds of dollars in food donations in four days.

Everyone knows theres a need, Ogelsby said.

With roughly 60 percent of Ralston Public Schools students receiving free or reduced breakfast and lunch, they can come to the R-Pantry and get food for the weekend to provide not just for them, but their families.

A lot of students eat free and reduced breakfast and lunch. But theres still dinner, senior Shelby Rossman, who is also on NHS, said. Theres other people in the family. With this, they can have access to more than just two meals.

Boster agreed.

We also have students who are responsible for cooking and providing, he said. There are students who are parents.

The R-Pantry is open on Fridays after school until 4 p.m. It is anonymous and the names of students who shop there will not be released.

For those wanting to donate to the R-Pantry, contact the school office at 402-331-7373. Food donations can also be dropped off at the high school, 8969 Park Drive.

The R-Pantry is still in its very early stages, but all involved feel good about it being a helpful resource for students.

One of the things we wanted was to start doing it now, Boster said. We want to learn as we go. We just have faith that its going to work.
A great tragedy say activists after 200 bodies are recovered from roof of Pakistan hospital

International news brief: Confident of Pak's commitment, ability to secure its nuclear assets, says US & more

From 'dangerous' to 'secure and confident': US makes a u-turn after Biden's comment on Pak

The persecution of Hindus in Pakistan continues with a Hindu girl forcibly converted and married

Pakistan is only killing terrorists not their ideology

Feature

oi-Vicky

Militancy in Pakistan is not just a concern for Pakistan, but for the entire region including India. Pakistan has claimed that it has undertaken a series of successful counter terrorism measures in the past year or so and even brought down terrorist violence by 50 per cent.

However, the recent Bacha Khan University attack once puts the spotlight back on Pakistan and questions need to be asked if the threat militancy has really died down in that country.

Pakistan, India, Afghanistan and Bangladesh will have to work together as in the days to come the threat perception from terrorist groups especially the ISIS are bound to increase.

The ISIS will not only threaten the region, but will also engage in a battle for supremacy with other terrorist outfits such as the Taliban, Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Tayiba.

Pakistan needs to kill ideology:

Michael Kugelman, senior associate for South Asia at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, says that while Pakistan has been killing off terrorists, it has not managed to kill the ideology as a result of which the problem continues to persist.

Kugelman writes in the CNN that, Pakistan may be killing off terrorists on the battlefield, but it has not killed off the ideology that fuels them.

Indeed, the reality is that the Pakistani state has failed to craft a counter-narrative to combat the hardline rhetoric deeply entrenched in Pakistani society.

This ideology emphasizes themes of Islam being under siege, and of India and the United States as being responsible for Pakistan's afflictions.

It is propagated by religious leaders, parroted by wildly popular television news anchors, and published in school textbooks.

In addition, this hardline ideology is deeply conspiratorial. So it's little wonder that in the immediate aftermath of the attack on Bacha Khan University, some prominent Pakistani media personalities and even former government officials suggested that India and a broader "international conspiracy" were responsible for the tragedy.

Combating extremist ideologies is a tall order under any circumstances, and even more so in Pakistan, where the security establishment has a long history of harboring links to terror groups, such as the Haqqani Network, Afghan Taliban and Lashkar-e-Taiba.

These are groups that don't stage attacks inside Pakistan, and Pakistan's much-ballyhooed military operation in North Waziristan has spared these organizations, which are regarded as strategic assets that can be unleashed against archenemy India and its interests in Afghanistan.

The North Waziristan operation targets only those groups, such as the Pakistani Taliban -- the likely perpetrator of the Bacha Khan University attack -- that do target Pakistan.

But by applying a selective policy to militant groups, Pakistan is playing with fire. These groups are all cut from the same ideological cloth, and in many cases -- particularly those involving the Pakistani and Afghan Taliban -- they often collaborate operationally.

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Story first published: Friday, January 22, 2016, 9:28 [IST]
Warning to French consulate: Has India shown too much love for France?

Feature

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

The French consulate in Bengaluru has been warned against the visit by French President Francois Hollande to India as the chief guest of this year's Republic Day celebrations. The warning came through a letter which had originated in Chennai and sent to the consulate on January 11.

The incident has left the security establishment a worried lot. France was targeted by the Islamic State (IS) two months back and the French leadership had declared that it was in war in the wake of the attack that saw over 129 people dead.

[French consulate receives threat letter]

Why French troops on R-Day?

India's subsequent support to France's fight against the IS and now Hollande's arrival in India to grace a show that speaks about a swelling national pride presented in the guise of subdued militarism.

The fact that French troops would also take part in this year's R-Day celebrations could make the Indo-French friendship look far too symbolic for the disruptive elements, especially after the Paris attacks.

Was it required for India to make France's war its own?

Whether the warning letter sent to the French consulate means business or not is for the security apparatus to track but this incident raises a question: Did New Delhi act in haste in making Paris's war its own, hence complicating an already tough situation?

The IS's gradually growing network has already been causing headache for India's internal security agencies. Time and again, educated youngsters are being held for being influenced by the IS's activities and although the terror outfit hasn't made any serious inroads in India, but the danger always looms large.

India already has too many problems to deal with

In such a situation, was it wise for India to align itself with the French interests? Why should we blindly support another country's battle as our own when there are considerable differences in the nature and dimension of the challenges that each nation faces today?

France will be happy with our support but why put our own security in more danger when we already have an endless challenge of cross-border terrorism from Pakistan to meet?

If IS targets India, the consequences can be more grave

If the IS and its connected outfits target India because the latter has backed France, then the implications can be far more complicated for India because of its complex social structure.

The Hindu-Muslim relation in India, which has been witnessing testing times now and then, could be dealt with a severe blow if an IS attack eventually takes place in this country.

Why support a war of the West which has a tendency to view the Muslim communities with suspicious eyes while targeting the terror outfits?

India has a drastically different social set-up compared to the West and any move to divide an already polarised scenario will invite immense danger for it, both internally and externally.

The deep polarisation can be fuelled more in no time

We saw how popular actor Aamir Khan's remark on moving out of India just a few days after the Paris attacks ignited a fierce debate in India, which saw even the elite class getting divided right away.

It shows how much worse it can get if the IS succeeds in fuelling a disaster here. The very essence of India's democratic ethos could be in danger.

India already has a good relation with France

France is one of those few western countries with which India had a cordial relation at the height of the Cold War and even during the 1971 war over East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and the nuclear tests of 1998 when the West had imposed sanctions on the latter.

Exploit French help for India's own interests instead

There are several dimensions to the relations these two countries share: strategic, military, intelligence, maritime and also cultural.

It would be wiser for New Delhi to cultivate France's strategic support in the Indian Ocean area and regional capacity-building so that it can exert greater influence in its neighbourhood to keep competitors like China at bay. That will serve India's interests more than needlessly joining an ideological battle.

Was this too much love for France a result of an over-enthusiastic foreign policy?

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has so far done an impressive job in foreign policy, by bringing India out of the self-imposed limitation of the non-alignment in this age of abundant opportunities.

His reaching out to the US, China, Japan and even Pakistan besides a host of other countries has given the country's foreign policy several dimensions to draw leverage. But perhaps the over enthusiasm also drove India on the verge of an unforeseen danger by aligning itself with the interests of the French.

Non-alignment is irrelevant but balance is relevant

Non-alignment is undoubtedly an outdated idea in today's international relations, but knowing where to draw a balance is an eternal lesson in the realm of foreign policy.
2 suspected ISIS sympathisers arrested in Karnataka

India

oi-Vicky

Bengaluru, Jan 22: Two persons believed to be ISIS sympathisers have been arrested in Karnataka. The two persons arrested have been identified as Najmul Huda and Syed Hussain.

The two were arrested early this morning after the police had received information about their alleged links to the ISIS.

Najmul Huda is a resident of Bajpe in Mangalore. He is a chemical engineering students. The other person, Syed Hussain is a resident of Tumkur and was picked up from his house early this morning. [ISI or ISIS: Who exactly is present in India?]

The two persons are alleged to have been sympathetic towards the ISIS. The police say that some material that had been found on them suggests that they were sympathetic towards the terror group ISIS which is banned in India.

We are investigating the matter and will try and find out if there is more to this case.

These arrests come in the wake of the Ansar-ul-Tawhid relaunching operations in a bid to recruit Indians into the ISIS. The Ansar was founded by Sultan Armar a resident of Bhatkal in Karnataka.

However, after his death in Syria, the outfit is now being run by his brother Shafi Armar, intelligence bureau officials say.

Meanwhile, four more persons are being questioned by the police for their alleged links to the ISIS.

OneIndia News
14 alleged ISIS sympathisers detained across India

India

oi-Vicky

New Delhi, Jan 22: The National Investigating Agency is carrying out a country wide operation in an attempt to bust several modules sympathetic to the ISIS. The NIA is questioning at least 14 persons who were on the radar of the Intelligence Bureau for alleged links to the ISIS.

While two have been arrested in Karnataka, there are four more who have been detained in Hyderabad. NIA sleuths are questioning several more alleged sympathisers of the ISIS across the country. The NIA team is being aided by the police of various other states.

The operation comes ahead of the Republic Day celebrations for which the Intelligence Bureau had issued several terror alerts. Arrests have been carried out in Maharashtra. All these persons have been on the radar of the intelligence bureau for allegedly being sympathetic towards the ISIS.

[2 suspected ISIS sympathisers arrested in Karnataka]

The intelligence bureau had alerted the police of all states to be on high alert. It had stated in its warning that some persons may try and disrupt peace and harmony in an attempt to protest the visit by French President Francois Hollande. The French President has been on the radar of the ISIS.

Yesterday the French consulate in Bengaluru had received a letter warning against the visit of Hollande. The letter signed as al-Qaeda was sent to the consulate from Chennai. The Bengaluru police is probing the case although it appears to be a hoax.

OneIndia News
BSF has a changed strategy on the Indo-Pak border

India

oi-Vicky

New Delhi, Jan 22: The Border Security Force (BSF), which faced a lot of flak following the Pathankot attack, has decided to implement a host of measures to spruce up vigil along the Indo-Pak border.

There have been allegations of drug smuggling being rampant along the Indo-Pak border as a result of which even the terrorist infiltrations have gone unchecked.

[BSF jawan deployed along Indo-Pak border held for links with smugglers]

Yesterday the BSF shot down a Pakistan infiltrator at Pathankot. This is just a sign of things to come and how the BSF plans on having a no nonsense policy when it comes to infiltrations from Pakistan.

Three persons had attempted to infiltrate into India. While one was shot dead, the other two escaped to Pakistan.

Identifying areas prone to infiltration:

As a first measure the BSF has set up a team within itself to keep a watch over some soldiers who they suspect may be hand in glove with the drug mafia.

[Video: BSF Aircraft crashes in Dwarka, at least 10 killed]

It is the drug mafia which helps the terrorists infiltrate into India. There is intelligence within the BSF which will help monitor those personnel suspected to be helping the drug mafia.

In addition to this the BSF will continue with its rule of not giving a soldier a posting at his home state. This rule has been in place since 2014.

This rule came into force so that soldiers do not get too familiar with the locals. It is the locals who act as go in between men for the drug mafia and terrorists.

The BSF has also identified the drug prone areas. These are the areas through which the drug mafia operates and soldiers operating in these areas are kept under close watch.

There is enhanced intelligence to keep a watch on the soldiers operating in the drug probe areas. There are also instructions given to arrest and try anyone who operates with the drug mafia.

OneIndia News
TS EAMCET 2022 Seat Allotment Result 2022 for round 2 on Oct 16: How to check and more

Dalit Student Suicide: Rohith Vemula's last letter sent for forensic analysis

India

oi-PTI

Hyderabad, Jan 22: The letter purportedly written by Rohith Vemula, the Dalit scholar of University of Hyderabad, before he committed suicide, has been sent to the forensic lab for analysis, police sources said.

"The letter was sent to forensic lab for handwriting match and other analysis. It would take a few days to get the report," police sources told PTI.

Rohith's body was found hanging at one of the hostel rooms on the University of Hyderabad campus on Sunday. Rohith and four other students were earlier suspended from the university following an alleged assault on an ABVP leader.

Later, the suspension was revoked but they were barred from accessing hostel facilities.

When contacted, Inspector J Ramesh of Gachibowli police refused to share any information saying it would hamper the investigation.

Cyberabad police haS named Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya, Vice Chancellor Appa Rao, Telangana BJP MLC Ramachandra Rao and two students in the FIR filed in the suicide case.

PTI
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Delhi Police issues alert ahead of Republic Day after taxi hijacked in Pathankot

India

oi-Reetu

New Delhi, Jan 22: Delhi Police on Friday issued an alert and beefed up security in the capital alongwith issuing an advisory to the media about an Alto taxi which was hired from Pathankot by three unknown people.

The driver of taxi allegedly hijacked by these three men was found murdered, sparking security concerns.

The Alto car with registration no. HP 01D2440 is still missing and search operations are on.

#DelhiPolice issues an alert about a taxi hired from #Pathankot whose driver has been found dead. pic.twitter.com/7gqOXEU5OB  All India Radio News (@airnewsalerts) January 22, 2016

Reportedly, Delhi will remain on high alert till the Republic Day.

Security agencies are on alert after the Pathankot air base was attacked by JeM terrorists on January 2. It took three days for security forces to neutralise the terrorists.

OneIndia News
Jayalalithaa disproportionate assets case: Karnataka maintains it is the prosecuting agency

India

oi-Vicky

Bengaluru, Jan 22: The Karnataka government has chosen to remain silent after Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, J Jayalalithaa launched a scathing attack on the decision to move the Supreme Court challenging her acquittal in the disproportionate assets case.

Karnataka says that it will not react to the statements made by the Tamil Nadu chief minister and will instead fight the case out in court.

Sources in the law department of Karnataka tell OneIndia that Karnataka is the prosecuting agency and the case was moved to the state on a directive of the Supreme Court.

The trial was held in Karnataka and even the appeal was filed in the Karnataka High Court. It is only obvious that since Karnataka is the prosecuting state, it will be the one moving the Supreme Court in appeal.

Battle of the states on Feb 2:

The final round of litigation will be fought in the Supreme Court starting Feb 2. The case is expected to be heard on a day to day basis and both sides will put their best foot forward to ensure a victory.

For Jayalalithaa, this litigation is extremely important as her political career would largely depend on the outcome of the Supreme Court verdict.

If the Supreme Court decides to reverse her acquittal then she will be barred from contesting an election for the next 6 years.

However, if the order of acquittal is upheld that then it clears her completely. Karnataka has repeatedly stated that the High Court had erred while delivering the verdict of acquittal.

Jayalalithaa on Thursday, Jan 21 released a 6 page document highlighting her argument and also defending her acquittal. Jayalalithaa questioned the locus stand of the State of Karnataka to even file a special leave petition or an appeal in the apex court for an alleged offence which took place in the Tamil Nadu.

The Chief Minister invoked Article 162 of the Constitution, which prescribes that the executive power of the State Executive is co-extensive with that of the State Legislature.

She also argued that Karnataka got a role as prosecutor only after the Supreme Court transferred the corruption case to it on November 18, 2004. If not for this transfer order, Karnataka had no involvement in the corruption case.

Karnataka's counter:

Karnataka on the other hand has decided to stick to the arguments in the Supreme Court. It maintains that it is the prosecuting state and has the power to file the appeal in the Supreme Court.

The Karnataka government has repeatedly spoken about the arithmetic error made by the High Court as a result of which Jayalalithaa and three others got the benefit of an acquittal.

The acquittal can be set aside by correcting one error, Karnataka will also contend in the Supreme Court.

The totalling mistake shows that the value of disproportionate assets of the accused comes to Rs. 16.32 crore, that is 76.7 per cent of the income, against the 8.12 per cent arrived at by the High Court.

The judgment of acquittal is liable to be converted into one of conviction even as per the purported principle in Krishnanand Agnihotri's case.

The 1977 case law which the High Court has relied on holds that an offence was not made out if the value of disproportionate assets was found to be less than 10 per cent of the income. This cannot be relied on here as the disproportionate assets runs into crores of rupees.

OneIndia News
Mallika Sarabhai lashes out at PM Modi for not condoling her mother's death

India

oi-Pallavi

Ahmedabad, Jan 22: Mallaika Sarabhai, the daughter of late Mrinalini Sarabhai lashed out at PM Modi on Facebook, shaming him for not condoling the death of her mother Mrinalini Sarabhai, a renowned Bharatnatyam dancer and Padma Bhushan awardee.She asked him why he did not condole her death when he too belongs to Gujarat.

She said,"My dear prime minister. You hate my politics and I hate yours, that has nothing to do with what Mrinalini Sarabhai did to promote the culture of this country to the world over 60 years. She blazed a trailer for our culture in the world."

"That her death sees no word from you shows your mentality. However much you hate me, as our prime minister it behove you to recognise her contribution. You have not. Shame on you."

Mallika Sherawat has been continuously attacking Modi for the 2002 communal riots in the state.

[Read: Mallika's fitting tribute to mother Mrinalini Sarabhai, performs Nrityanjali, lights the pyre]

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Friday, January 22, 2016, 14:44 [IST]
NIA, Delhi police arrest alleged ISIS and al-Qaeda sympathisers from Karnataka

India

oi-Vicky

Bengaluru, Jan 22: Four persons have been arrested in Karnataka in two different cases by a team of the National Investigating Agency and the Delhi police Special cell. While one case relates to the ISIS, the other is said to be connected to an al-Qaeda module.

Two persons were arrested in Bengaluru while the other two arrests took place in Mangaluru and Tumkur. While the arrests in Mangaluru and Tumkur were carried out by the NIA, the two other arrests in Bengaluru were done by the Special cell of the Delhi police.

[2 suspected ISIS sympathsiers arrested in Karnataka]

The NIA's case relates to two persons said to be sympathetic towards the ISIS. The NIA team detained two persons namely Najmul Huda and Syed Hussain from Mangaluru and Tumkur respectively.

The duo were detained on the allegation that they were propagating on behalf of the ISIS. Najmul Huda is a resident of Bajpe in Mangalore. He is a chemical engineering student.

The other person, Syed Hussain is a resident of Tumkur and was picked up from his house early this morning. Both have been accused of luring youth to join the ISIS. Meanwhile the NIA is also questioning four others from Hyderabad in connection with the same case.

Two other persons were detained from Jakkasandra in Bengaluru for their alleged links to a cleric who was sympathetic to the cause of the al-Qaeda.

Two weeks back the Delhi police had arrested Anzar Shah a cleric from Bengaluru on the charge that he was trying to propagate on behalf of the al-Qaeda. The duo arrested at Jakkasandra are said to be associated with the cleric.

OneIndia News
Dalit man in Kerala beaten up by wife's brother allegedly for not converting to Christianity

In UP, ex-pradhan thrashes Dalit girl, throws her out of school over uniform

PM breaks silence on dalit student's suicide; faces slogans

India

oi-PTI

Lucknow, Jan 22: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, Jan 22 broke his silence on the suicide of a dalit scholar in Hyderabad University and expressed grief saying he felt the pain but faced slogans from a handful of students at a convocation ceremony here.

"...when there is news that a youth of my country, Rohith, was forced to commit suicide, what his family must have gone through. Mother India has lost a son.There will be reasons, there will be politics (surrounding it) but the fact remains that a mother has lost her son. I feel the pain very well," a visibly emotional Modi said.

He was speaking as the Chief Guest at the convocation ceremony of the B R Ambedkar University here, where a couple of students shouted slogans like "Modi murdabad" and "Modi go back, Modi go back" and "inquilab zindabad" as he began his speech.

The two students, who were donning blue stole, meant for Masters degree scholars,were evicted by police and detained.

They have been identified as Ram Karan and Bhuvnesh Arya. The suicide by Rohith Vemula, a dalit scholar of the Hyderabad Central University, has kicked up a major row with Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani and Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya coming under intense attack from political rivals, who have blamed them for the incident and demanded their removal.

University Proctor Kamal Jaiswal said, "we were taken aback. We had taken all precautions. Action will be taken as per rules." However, Modi did not go into the politics behind Rohith's suicide.

PTI
PM to dedicate eight garment units in NE States in a month

India

oi-PTI

Coimbatore, Jan 21: Eight garment units in the north-eastern states will be dedicated to the nation in another month by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Textiles Minister Santosh Kumar Gangwar said here today.

"Works for the units, each of which is being set up at a cost of Rs 18.18 crore, is going in full swing. These will become operational in another one month and will be dedicated to the nation by Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he said. He was addressing the 'Make in India-Textile Industry- Strategy for Growth' function, organised by Indian Texpreneurs Federation ((ITF) tonight, to facilitate him for implementing various textile sector friendly measures.

Hearing grievances and suggestions from ITF, he said as suggested, he would depute officials in the rank of Secretary or Joint secretary level or he himself visit the city once in three months to learn and solve the problems faced by the industry, which plays a major role in the Indian economy.

On demands by the industry on rationalisation of duty on Man Made Fibre, abolition of Hank yarn Obligation and signing of Free Trade Agreements with European Union and emerging markets, he said his ministry had already taken up the issue with the Commerce and Finance Ministries.

On problems due to effluent discharge and achieving Zero Liquid Discharge, Gangwar said he would consult environment and pollution ministries and give feed back o the industry.

Earlier in the day, Gangwar visited Palladam High Tech Weaving Park, about 35 km from here and said the centre was keen on developing the technical textile sector in a big way. The Indian textiles sector has contributed 60 per cent of cotton products and 40 per cent of man-made fibre products, while it was the reverse in other countries, he said. Gangwar inaugurated a workers hostel in the park and an additional hostel block with 66 rooms, constructed at a cost of Rs six crore, with 50 per cent subsidy under Scheme for Textile Industry Workers Accommodation.

PTI
What JD(U) leader said on Prashant Kishor-Nitish Kumar meet: 'No offer...'

Nitish Kumar has been affected by his age: Prashant Kishor

Prashant Kishor appointed as advisor to Nitish Kumar; to strategise for Punjab polls too

India

oi-Preeti

Patna, Jan 22: After working closely with PM Narendra Modi during 2014 Lok Sabha elections and with Bihar CM Nitish Kumar during 2015 state assembly elections, the man who grabbed the centre of attention-- Prashant Kishor, is all set to get what he deserves.

37-year-old Prashant has been appointed as an advisor to Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, with cabinet minister rank.

Prashant Kishor has been appointed as advisor to the CM for Planning and Programme Implementation, a notification issued by state Cabinet Coordination Committee last night said.

He would have a status of cabinet minister and get allowance of that level, the notification bearing signature of Principal Secretary Cabinet Coordination Department Brajesh Mehrotra stated.

In the present role, Kishor would have the responsibility to formulate plan and supervise timely implementation of developmental programmes.

Prashant, who is a native of Bihar, had an instant connection with the locals of Bihar and successfully managed to turn the tide in Nitish-Lalu favour.

Prashant getting ready for Punjab polls



Meanwhile, it was also reported on Tuesday, Jan 19, that Prashant will show his midas touch in 2017 Punjab assembly elections, in favour of state's veteran Congress leader Capt Amarinder Singh.

Prashant is likely to visit Punjab in February for 2-3 days to assess the political situation there and to plan his strategy for the election campaign.

Prashant got feelers from Mamata govt

There were reports that claimed that Prashant had received feelers from Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress for plying his trade in this year's West Bengal assembly elections.

How he became a lucky man for Modi & Nitish

For trouncing Modi to a thumping victory in 2014 Lok Sabha polls, Prashant came up with innovative ideas like "chai pe charcha" (chat over tea) and 3D hologram rallies.

In 2015, he turned out to be an architect for Bihar's grand alliance. Ahead of the Bihar polls, Kishor had switched allegiance to Nitish Kumar, and helped set up a "War room". He also played a key role in improving the JD(U) media cell and devised novel campaign strategies.

He is regarded in political circle as "Chanakya" of Nitish Kumar who crafted a well thought out strategy for him during recent Bihar elections.

About Prashant Kishor

In 2011, Prashant returned to India to form a team of young professionals, after quitting a lucrative job, as the UN health expert in Africa. [Know all about Prashant Kishor]

Before 2014 general elections, Prashant had formed 'Citizens for Accountable Governance' (CAG), along with a group of youngsters. But post LS elections, it was dissolved.

Presently, he heads the Indian Political Action Committee (IPAC), led by a young team of technocrats. Prashant's political innings began long back in 2007, when he had met Rahul Gandhi, who was then Congress's general secretary.

OneIndia News
No comment on Pranab Mukherjee book before reading it: Former Union Minister

President Pranab Mukherjee hosts lunch for 100 women achievers

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Jan 22: President Pranab Mukherjee today hosted a lunch for 100 women achievers at Rashtrapati Bhavan on the occasion of first anniversary of 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' scheme.

"These 100 women achievers were selected by the Ministry of Women and Child Development in collaboration with Facebook through a nationwide contest and public nominations," a press release issued by Rashtrapati Bhavan said.

The ministry had launched the contest on July 15, last year, to select 100 women achievers of India under various categories through public nominations.

Rashida Bi from Madhya Pradesh has been selected in the Environment and Forests and Wildlife category for working towards the welfare of Bhopal Gas Tragedy victims for the last 30 years.

The list of nominees include Patiala-based Harshinder Kaur, a paediatric doctor who has been awarded by numerous governments across the globe for her work in eradicating discrimination against female child, and Lalita Nijhawan from Delhi for her commendable work in the field of education for women and children, especially the girl child.

PTI
Rohith Vemula suicide: Karnataka Dalit rights activists and students speak against injustices

India

oi-Oneindia

By Maitreyee Boruah

Hyderabad, Jan 22: The tragic and untimely death of Rohith Vemula, a 26-year-old Dalit research scholar from Hyderabad, saw several protests in Bengaluru. Students and activists staged demonstrations on the campus of the Bangalore University and in front of the Town Hall in the city recently. Angry protesters were seen holding placards and shouted slogans demanding justice for Rohith.

Rohith hanged himself on Sunday (January 17) after being expelled by the authorities of the Hyderabad Central University, his alma mater.

The debate on injustices meted out to Dalits by the upper castes has started picking up, especially in university campuses across the country.

"The students from the Dalit community face a lot of difficulties in educational institutions across Karnataka. Be it their admission procedures or living conditions in hostels, we have witnessed a systematic discrimination faced by the students of the minority communities," Venkatesh M, president of Dalit Bahujan Movement in Karnataka, told OneIndia.

"Most of the Dalit students studying in higher educational institutions come from rural areas. They are poor students. Moreover, because of the caste-based discrimination prevalent in our society, these students face a lot of problems. Even teachers are biased towards Dalit students. We have received several complaints related to injustices faced by the Dalit students. Situation becomes worse when they face violence," added Venkatesh.

According to statistics, 17.15 percent of the state's total population belongs to the schedule caste communities. A total of 6.95 percent people belong to the schedule tribe communities.

"It is a huge number. We can't ignore the problems of minorities if we want an all-round development of the nation," said Y Mariswamy, a Dalit rights activist and state organizer of the Samajika Parivarthana Janandolana (SPJ), an NGO.

"Most of the Dalit students face discrimination in silence. Our legal system does not provide enough scope to deliver justice to these marginalized youngsters," added Mariswamy.

After Rohith's death, allegedly a victim of caste politics, several students in the campus of Bangalore University are openly discussing about Dalit issues.

"I am a Dalit student. Because of my caste I have faced a lot of abuse. Students from upper castes don't socialize with us. Teachers are also often biased towards us, especially when it comes to marking and clearing our project works. Unfortunately, we can't do much about such partiality," said a female student from Bangalore University, who does not want to be named.

Her male friend, who belongs to the ST community and pursuing his PhD from the University, said that reservation was not going to achieve its goal without proper integration of all in society.

"It is a shame that most of our higher educational institutions are not inclusive. Rohith was a victim of caste oppression. We need to end such injustices in modern India," he added.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Friday, January 22, 2016, 10:14 [IST]
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Saddened by Rohith Vemula's death: PM Modi

India

oi-IANS

By Ians English

Lucknow, Jan 22: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday broke his silence on the suicide of Dalit scholar from University of Hyderabad, Rohith Vemula, saying that he was deeply saddened by the tragedy.

In his speech at the 6th convocation of the Bhimrao Ambedkar university in Lucknow, he choked and paused while referring to the scholar's death on last Sunday, triggering protests across the country.

"I am not going into the reasons, politics of the issue, but I empathise with the family who has lost so much," he said as tears welled up in his eyes.

He said that at a time when the entire nation looks up to the youth for inspiration and strength, a news like this brings sadness.

He told youngsters not to take such drastic steps.

Earlier at the event, two students raised slogans against the prime minister as union Home Minister Rajnath Singh concluded his speech and Modi rose to address the gathering.

As they shouted that the killers of Rohith Vemula were still alive and raised slogans like "go back Modi", police officials whisked them away and the prime minister began his speech.

IANS
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New twist in Sunanda Pushkar death mystery

India

oi-Nairita

New Delhi, Jan 22: A new twist in Sunanda Pushkar death mystery complicated the case. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in US in its analytical report on Thursday, Jan 21 suggested that she died due to poisoning.

According to the latest report by FBI, Pushkar could have died due to poisoning and Alprax overdose could be the main reason.

[Dangerous chemical may have killed Sunanda: FBI]

FBI, which earlier had endorsed AIIMS's findings, tested the viscera samples of Sunanda. The team, however, overruled reports which have stated about the presence of polonium, an illicit drug or alcohol abuse as cause of death.

52-year-old Pushkar, wife of senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, was found dead in a hotel in Delhi in 2014. Delhi Police had claimed that her death was unnatural.

Delhi Police Commissioner B S Bassi told the media that Sunanda's death was not natural but ruled out the presence of radioactive material in her viscera.

[Sunanda Pushkar death probe was 'shoddy', says AIIMS forensic head]

Sudhir Gupta, head of AIIMS Forensic Science department, said the FBI report also said the death was due to poisoning as was concluded by the AIIMS.

OneIndia News
TN cops left red faced as hoax caller gives the slip

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

Chennai, Jan 22: In an embarrassment for the Tamil Nadu police, a man accused of making hoax bomb calls managed to give the slip at the Madhya Pradesh railway station. Syed Ahmed Ali aged 37 was being taken to Lucknow.

However, Ali who was arrested by the Vellore police got off at the railway station in Itarsi Madhya Pradesh and escaped.

Ali originally hailing from Tripura was picked up in the month of October 2015 by the Vellore police after he made two bomb threat calls.

A probe conducted on him revealed that he was terminally ill and had no terror links. He has been accused of making similar calls in the past in which he threatened to blow up the Taj Mahal and also the Ajmer Dargah.

He was being taken by a team of police personnel to Lucknow as there was a court hearing. However, he got off at the railway station and gave the police the slip. An inquiry is being conducted as to how he managed to escape despite there being six police personnel.

A search operation has been launched and a formal complaint has also been filed with the railway police at Madhya Pradesh. A four member police team from Vellore will leave for Madhya Pradesh to help in nabbing Ali.

OneIndia News

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Story first published: Friday, January 22, 2016, 8:57 [IST]
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Uber driver arrested for molesting woman journalist in Noida

India

oi-Jagriti

Noida, Jan 22: A woman journalist has been allegedly molested by an Uber cab driver on her way from Delhi to Noida, media reported.

The accused driver has been arrested after the journalist registered a complaint against him, DSP Vijay Dhul said.

According to complaint, the victim, a resident of Gurgaon, took the Uber cab service from Delhi to Noida on Wednesday night, DSP Vijay Dhul said.

She asked driver Ravinder Singh to stop the vehicle when Singh allegedly took a wrong route near Noida Sector 15 metro station.

She then alighted from the cab and started walking, while the driver insisted on taking her to her destination, police said.

The driver chased her and behaved inappropriately. She then called the police control room and registered a complaint.

Uber to launch carpool service in Kolkata

"The accused driver Ravinder Singh was arrested on Thursday and produced before a court that has sent him to judicial custody," Dhul said.

Singh has been booked under IPC section 354, he said, adding that further probe was on.

A nationwide debate sparked on women's safety after an Uber cab driver had raped a 25-year-old woman executive on December, 5 2014. The accused Shiv Kumar Yadav was given life imprisonment till (natural) death for raping the woman in November last year.

Uber was banned from operating in Delhi in the aftermath of the attack.

OneIndia News (With agency inputs)

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Story first published: Friday, January 22, 2016, 9:43 [IST]
Udaipur killing: He had refused to open his shop for days, says wife of murdered

Udaipur killing: Accused went to Dawat-e-Islami in Karachi in 2014, says Top cop

Is Pak using new names to play old games in J&K?

Youths Facebook post led to contact by ISIS

India

oi-Jagriti

New Delhi, Jan 22: Akhlaq-ur-Rehman, arrested by the Special Cell of Delhi police from Uttarakhand's Haridwar was contacted by the Islamic State (ISIS) after he expressed his views on 22nd anniversary of the Babri Masjid demolition in 2014.

Akhlaq-ur-Rehman was among four arrested from Haridwar, on charges of plotting an attack on the Ardh Kumbh mela.

A day after his post, Akhlaq, a first-year student at a polytechnic in Roorkee then,he was approached by Yousufal-Hindi who claimed to be an Islamic preacher.

Yousufal-Hindi termed him a daring intellectual', reported the Times of India. He invited him to a chat to 'channelise' his anger in the 'right direction'.

Akhlaq started chatting with Yousufal-Hindi and latter their conversation progressed from problems in India to global issues.

"He was always patient with me and heard me out for as long as I wanted. We spoke about growing atrocities on Muslims and he asked me what a probable solution could be," a source quoted Akhlaq as saying.

Special cells arrest 4 students planning to attack Kumbh Mela

The four youths were booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, which does not include the Arms Act as no weapons were recovered from them. The accused were sent to a 15-day jail custody by the court on Wednesday.

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Story first published: Friday, January 22, 2016, 13:02 [IST]
Haryana: Narrow escape for Dussehra revellers as burning effigy of Ravana falls in Yamunanagar

Haryana CM signs 8 MoUs in China; smart-cities, industrial parks on the cards

International

oi-PTI

Beijing, Jan 22: Haryana is expecting a spike in foreign investments from China after eight MoUs were signed today with top companies to set up a USD 10 billion industrial park and smart cities in the state during Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar's trip to woo investors here.

These MoUs were signed with top Chinese companies like Wanda Group, China Land Development Company Private Limited, and ZTE Corporation.

The MoUs were signed during the Investment Roadshow organised here, attended by representatives of more than 100 top notch Chinese companies.

Khattar made a strong pitch for Haryana as an ideal investment destination based on its strategic location, excellent infrastructure and supportive administrative system.

The chief minister also highlighted the changes introduced by his government through various policy reforms in the governance mechanism through Ease of Doing Business, Online approval system under single roof and Incentives to the industry.

He also invited the attendees to participate in the Haryana Global Investors Summmit schedule for March 7 and 8, in Gurgaon. The chief minister met Wanda Group Chairman Wang Jianlin and a MoU was signed for development of a World Class Comprehensive Industrial Park at Kharkhoda district in Sonipat.

Wanda Group will invest a total of USD 10 billion to develop "Wanda Industrial New City" over an area of approximately 13 square kilometers. The government also signed a MoU with ZTE Corporation for the development of smart cities in Haryana.

Another MoU was signed with China Fortune Land Development Company Private Limited (CFLD) for development of large format Industrial Parks in Haryana. CFLD would set up Industrial Park(s) in the state either at Madina in Rohtak district or at Bidhal Lath Gohana in Sonipat district over an area of more than 300 acres.

An MoU was also signed with Inspur Group, which plans to invest USD 100 million in IDC, CDN and cable-box manufacture plant.

The Chief Minister is leading an official and business delegation to Japan and China to invite foreign direct investment to the state.

Khattar has curtailed his visit to China due to the Indo- French business summit on January 24 in Chandigarh, which will be attended by Prime Minsiter Narendra Modi and French President Francois Hollande.

PTI
India, Pakistan secretary-level talks to be held soon, says official

International

oi-Jagriti

Islamabad, Jan 22: The secretary level talks between India and Pakistan will be held soon, said foreign office spokesman Qazi Khalilullah.

The secretary-level talks were scheduled to take place on January 15, which were called off in the wake of Pathankot airbase attack.

"The meeting is going to be held in the near future and both sides are in touch in this regard," said Khalilullah while holding a weekly briefing at the Foreign Office on Thursday.

In a pre-dawn attack on January 2 on the airbase, seven Indian security officials were martyred while six terrorists were killed.

There has been heightened vigil along the Indo-Pak border after the Pathankot attack. The BSF had been criticised for failing to curb the infiltrations and also not acting enough against the drug mafia which thrives along this border.

BSF guns down Pakistan infiltrator at Pathankot

The BSF has decided to step up its vigil and ensure that infiltrations come to a halt. The defence ministry too after the Pathankot attack had said that those who fail in their duties along the border must be made accountable.

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Story first published: Friday, January 22, 2016, 12:02 [IST]
Japan to lift sanctions on Iran: FM

International

oi-IANS

By Ians English

Tokyo, Jan 22: Japan has decided to lift its sanctions on Iran after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed the country had implemented measures promised under the newly-reached deal on its nuclear programme, Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said on Friday.

The minister said Japan would like to further develop its ties with Iran and a pact on investment negotiated between the two sides will be signed soon, Xinhua reported.

Fumio's remarks came after a cabinet meeting on Friday during which the Japanese government agreed to lift its sanctions on Iran's oil and gas sector.

The move by the Japanese government followed some European countries and the US that have lifted part of their economic sanctions against Iran and companies from the countries are making efforts to enter the market.

169 injured as heavy snow hit Japan

Iran and other six powers including Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the US, reached an agreement over the Iranian nuclear issue as the deal would secure that Iran would not obtain a nuclear weapon under international monitor and, in exchange, the countries will relieve their sanctions on Iran.

IANS
A great tragedy say activists after 200 bodies are recovered from roof of Pakistan hospital

International news brief: Confident of Pak's commitment, ability to secure its nuclear assets, says US & more

From 'dangerous' to 'secure and confident': US makes a u-turn after Biden's comment on Pak

The persecution of Hindus in Pakistan continues with a Hindu girl forcibly converted and married

Pak court lifts ban on rare bird hunting

International

oi-PTI

Islamabad, Jan 22: Pakistan's Supreme Court on Friday, Jan 22 lifted a ban on hunting of a rare bird, houbara bustard, whose meat is prized among Arab sheikhs as an aphrodisiac.

The ban was imposed by former chief justice Jawwad S Khawaja on August 20, who also ordered the cancellation of all existing permits issued by government to Arab rulers.

The federal and provincial governments in October had challenged the ban, pleading that sustainable hunting should be allowed.

A five-member larger bench headed by Chief Justice Anwar Zaheer Jamali lifted the ban in a verdict on the review petitions.

Though the decision was not unanimous and there was one dissenting note by Justice Qazi Faez Isa who opposed the bench's order.

The petitioners had pleaded that issuing hunting permits to Arabs dignitaries was part of foreign policy. The attorney general (AG) Salman Butt asked the Supreme Court to allow "sustainable hunting" of the bird.

Pakistan enjoys good ties with Arab rulers who love hunting houbara. Its meat is considered having aphrodisiac value. People from the Gulf travel to Balochistan province every winter to kill the houbara bustard using hunting falcons.

The issue of hunting came into limelight after a report in 2014 showed Saudi prince Fahd bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud killed over 2,100 houbara bustard in a cruel 21-day campaign in clear violation of his permit to hunt only 100 birds.

Houbara bustard is listed in the Convention on Migratory Species of Wild Animals, also known as the Bonn Convention, and is declared as an endangered species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The meat of houbara bustard is considered as having aphrodisiac qualities by the Arabs.

PTI
Wine, foreign animals find no place in Iranian books

International

oi-Jagriti

Tehran, Jan 22: With an aim to protect Iran from 'western onslaught, the culture ministry has decided to ban the use of word "wine" and the names of foreign animals and dignitaries in books.

"When new books are registered with us, our staff first have to read them page by page to make sure whether they require any editorial changes in line with promoting the principles of the Islamic revolution, effectively confronting the Western cultural onslaught and censoring any insult against the prophets," said Mohammad Selgi, the head of book publishing at the ministry of culture and Islamic guidance.

"Words like wine and the names of foreign animals and pets, as well as names of certain foreign presidents are also banned under the new restricting regulations," added he, reported the Telegraph.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader, has urged the culture ministry to "focus on producing appealing books and films, designing video games, and developing attractive and meaningful toys" to counter a "Western cultural invasion of Iran that seeks to destroy Islamic identity".

Saudi-Iran row: Nawaz Sharif arrives in Tehran

Mr Selgi told Shiraze, an Iranian monthly, that the "ideological viewpoint" of "clerics" must be "taken into account when we issue a permit for a book to be published".

Once an ancient and major producer of wine in the Middle East, alcohol has been banned in Iran since the Islamic Revolution in 1979. But consumption is still widespread.

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Story first published: Friday, January 22, 2016, 14:56 [IST]
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Bailey McCann, Opalesque New York:

London-based Sturgeon Capital is set to become one of the first hedge funds with an Iran strategy, as sanctions are finally lifted on the country. Iran has been relieved from sanctions as part of a sweeping international deal aimed at curbing the country's development of nuclear weapons. Sturgeon officially launched its Iran Strategy Fund on December 1, 2015, in partnership with Mofid Securities, the largest broker in Iran.

On January 16, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) verified that Iran had met its obligations under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) which eased sanctions in Iran. With that easing, Iran will now be able to sell its oil on the open market; Iranian banks will now be able to connect to the SWIFT system, and sanctions have been lifted for the banking, insurance, automotive and petrochemical sectors. Businesses outside the US can also now freely do business with the US without being penalized by the US.

As a result of a more open Iranian economy, Sturgeon Capital says the investable universe has expanded considerably - providing new opportunities for investors looking for exposure to frontier markets.

When the Iran Strategy Fund launched in December of last year, 10 Iranian companies anchored the portfolio. According to a recent portfolio manager report obtained by Opalesque, the fund will now expand its universe of companies to include the whole of the Iranian stock market and som......................

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Komfie Manalo, Opalesque Asia:

Another China-focused hedge fund firm has outperformed in 2015, with MegaTrust Investments reporting that its flagship fund Yangtze Fund II returned 10.5% in 4Q15 and 59.6% last year compared to the CSI 300 Index which gained 5.6% and the MSCI China A Index which was up 12.2% during the same period.

According to financial data provider Wind, Yangtzes 2015 performance ranks among the top 5% of its peers, and the funds five year track record is within top 1% of the Chinese fund industry.

Charlie Chen, Chief Investment Officer at MegaTrust commented, "The A-share market rebounded strongly in 4Q15 after one of the worst quarters in history. The CSI 300 Index was up 16.5% in 4Q15 following a 28.4% decline in 3Q15. Despite the markets rally last quarter, we maintained a relatively cautious stance and had an average cash level of 50% (40% at the end of 4Q15). This is well above our normal cash level of 20% historically."

Chen explained that after the turbulence in July and August of 2015, the fund decided it was time to de-risk the portfolio in 4Q15, because it was not worthwhile to expose the fund to such high volatility.

Chinese hedge funds in wait-and-see mode

Following the summer market turmoil, QuantCore Capital Management executive Dr. Martin Lockstrom said that most China-focused hedge funds adopted a wai......................

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Opalesque Industry Update - EFA Group, an independent asset manager specializing in private credit, has announced the appointment of Jacques-Olivier Thomann as its Senior Advisor. He will work with the management team in providing strategic counsel and insights on the business. Prior to joining EFA Group, Jacques-Olivier was with BNP Paribas as general manager of the Switzerland branch since 2009, responsible for structured finance, which includes among others, commodity finance, commodity structured finance, export finance, project finance and shipping. Before taking over those responsibilities, he held various senior positions within the bank in Geneva, Singapore and Paris, including as Global Head of Commodity Finance. He is one of the founders of the Geneva Trading and Shipping Association (GTSA), where he served as Chairman since its foundation in 2006 and is now the Honorary President. He is also Member of the Executive Board of the Geneva Financial Centre Foundation. We are very fortunate to have someone of Jacques-Oliviers caliber and breadth of experience. He has been very active and enthusiastic about supporting the team with his invaluable guidance. With his wealth of knowledge in the banking and finance sectors, I am certain that Jacques-Olivier will add value to the Group, said Francois Dotta, CEO of EFA Group.
Congress Switchboard: 202-224-3121

"We're at a paradigm-shift moment in history, where we will look back at it and realize that a particular model of how we govern our affairs together became outdated. Kall's book Bottom-Up offers great alternatives and solutions that are not found in conventional governing models."



Carne Ross , is a former British diplomat, a strategy coordinator for the UN, and author of the book, The Leaderless Revolution.
Congress Switchboard: 202-224-3121

"In Bottom-Up, Rob Kall offers important insights on why our society is in such disarray and what we must do to change it. He demonstrates how "top down" thinking is what has produced our current mess, and how bottom up thinking is much more efficient for solving problems and producing change. Rob shows how lasting change must come from the people themselves and not from the leaders. This was as true in the days of the Magna Carta as it was for the Bill of Rights as it was for the Union movement that first gave workers' rights and protection in this country, as it is today. Indigenous elders have told me, "if you want to change the world, start talking and keep talking." Rob is doing this with this book and with his OpEdNews, and he is making a difference. I recommend this book to all who wish to see lasting, human-friendly, compassionate change that will sustain humanity is this crazy world of today."



Lewis Mehl-Madrona, MD, author of the Coyote trilogy that discusses healing practices from Lakota, Cherokee, and Cree traditions and how they intersect with conventional medicine
Congress Switchboard: 202-224-3121

"The book is very well written...very important in this individualized capitalistic illusory world that enslaves us all within its tentacles and forces us to believe that we are atomized and disconnected beings. Indigenous Lakota people end prayers with "Mitakuye Oyasin...all my relations..." An ancient African proverb states, "A person is a person only because of and with others..." This instructive text is very useful for us living in what we are always told is the modern world, because it reconnects us all and reminds us that ultimately, the endless circle of the Universe binds and connects us all and the Earth is Mother to us with no hierarchy...the ones at the bottom matter the most...like the ants who build mounds and hills, all working in unison and harmony...the book teaches that we were created for community and our destiny is organic community...anything else is doomed..."



Julian Kunnie, Professor of Religious Studies/Classics at the University of Arizona and author of The Cost of Globalization: Dangers to the Earth and Its People
A Black Lives Matter protester interrupted a United States Conference of Mayors event in Washington Wednesday calling on Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to resign. Goggans stood silently holding a sign that said "16 shots and a cover up #LaquanMcDonald #ResignRahm." Others in the room chanted "Black Lives Matter." McDonald was a black teenager who was shot to death 16 times by a Chicago police officer. Emanuel has been fighting for his political life amid high-profile police shootings of young black men in Chicago, and the subsequent response from city officials. Emanuel said Chicago is working to build more trust between residents and police.




Angela Merkel

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After a year in which Chancellor Angela Merkel welcomed more than a million asylum seekers, that decision has left her more embattled and isolated, at home and in Europe, than perhaps at any other time in her 10 years in office. Most dangerous for the chancellor: Her weakened position leaves her with narrowing room to maneuver on the refugee issue and reduces her leverage with unhappy European partners. Germany stands increasingly alone in the migrant crisis, exemplified by Austrias decision this week to set a cap, which Ms. Merkels government called not helpful.


The Wealthiest 62 People

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Today we are facing a disparity in wealth and power in the United States not seen since our colonial times. We are told that today 20 people in this country own as much wealth as half of all Americans. They would be among the 62 people who own as much wealth as half the people of the world. Billionaires are able to buy and elect our political officials from Senators and Congressmen to school board members. One recent billionaire presidential candidate, Donald Trump, even bragged that he expected to have influence after his political contributions. The Supreme Court in Citizens United and related cases may have even put its stamp of approval on certain political campaign bribes. The Koch brothers are reported to plan to spend $750 to $800 million on the next election cycle, more than the total expenditures of either the Democratic or Republican parties. Over the last 30 years there has been a transfer of trillions of dollars from the middle class to the top one-tenth of one-percent (0.1%). The top one-tenth of one-percent (0.1%) owns almost as much wealth as the bottom 90%. The 62 richest people have as wealth as half the world's population. We have not seen this disparity since the gilded age or perhaps colonial times when five families had land claims along the Virginia - North Carolina boarder 69 miles wide running from the Atlantic to the Mississippi. King George III with the backing of the British parliamentary purloined all the land between the Appalachians and Adirondacks and the Mississippi to redistribute or use as he saw fit. Land at that time was the most respected form of wealth. We have forgotten, and no longer teach or support, that a very primary reason for the American Revolution, for which blood was shed long before any Declaration of Independence, was based upon class and economic struggles. Attempts to prohibit wide disparities in wealth and power were at the heart of the American Revolution and incorporated in the Documents of the time, the Articles of Confederation, our first national constitution, and most state constitutions. Those ideals were taken from the Articles of Confederation directly into our Constitution of today. They still wait for us to enforce them. The American Revolution was the first to successfully challenge the 1% of its day, the super wealthy and the powerful. Such aristocrats who survived the revolution, including many who became the Founding Fathers and leaders of the United States, had to accept that the governments of the states and the United States now insisted, using the language commonly understood of the times, that could and did place limits on social, political, legal and economic inequality, power and influence. It is time to enforce these basic constitutional principles to bring about a more just society.

This monumental land grab illustrated the power of politics, place and influence. John Adams even referred to the members of Commons in the British Parliament as part of the nobility. One prime reason that the colonies fought against the French in the French and Indian War was to protect their claims to the western lands. But most of the colonists had no actual legal claim to the land taken away from them, so they had to find some way persuade the common folks, malcontents and rioters to support a revolution, and form a revolutionary army willing to fight and die. The Continental Congress had no money and was down to working with promises. It promised the American people a new egalitarian society where all white men at the time could share in the wealth. That promises of the Constitution today extends to all citizens regardless of race, religion, sex, ethnicity, or sexual preference, and bars the federal and state governments from supporting personal or corporate inequalities and immunities, and those promises may be found in Article One sections 9 and 10 of the Constitution forbidding the grant of any "Titles of Nobility". In promoting the adoption of the Constitution of the United States of America, Alexander Hamilton named these Article One clauses the "Cornerstone of Republican Government". He went on to observe that as long as "titles of nobility" were excluded, there could never be a serious danger that the government will be any other than that of the people. "Titles of Nobility" were terms familiar in the language of the times indicating social and economic superiority and political power. We know they were clauses related directly to the revolution. While the Declaration of Independence written by a small committee, the Article of Confederation was proposed by committee members from all thirteen colonies formed at the same time and was written to join the colonies in the revolution and a new government, even if independence was not declared. In their original draft of the Articles of Confederation, prepared in June, 1776 by the hand of John Dickinson, confirmed by the equivocal notes of Joseph Bartlet, referred to the colonies as "colonies", not as independent states. Dickinson opposed independence, though he supported the revolution and fought during the war. But he left the Continental Congress before the vote for independence. There is ample precedent for finding equality in these words. The Nobility restrictions referred to equality. In the words of the early Constitutional Scholar, Joseph Story, born towards the end of the Revolution (1779) and a member of the Supreme Court from 1811 to 1845, that as perfect equality is the basis of all our institutions, state and national, the prohibition against the creation of any title of nobility seems proper, if not indispensable, to keep perpetually alive a just sense of this important truth. These clauses are examined in far more detail in The Cornerstone Brief and Secrets of the Forgotten American Revolution. It is suggest that we now reexamine these words of social, political and economic equality as practical goals for our society required by our fundamental principles, and laws. Recognizing that we have far strayed from these principals, it is now time to face our inequities and start the tasks of a new reformation or revival.

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Prize-winning New Yorker reporter Jane Mayer made headlines recently when she released a new book, Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right, that revealed how the father of the Koch brothers once helped build a major oil refinery in Nazi Germany that was a pet project of Adolph Hitler. Overall, the book tells the tale of a small number of ultrarich donors -- including Richard Mellon Scaife and Harry and Lynde Bradley -- who did much to create the modern conservative moment, with a strong emphasis on billionaires Charles and David Koch. "It is not easy to uncover the inner workings of an essentially secretive political establishment," the New York Times' review of the book notes. "Mayer has come as close to doing it as anyone is likely to come anytime soon." And there's a section in the book that should be particularly chilling for journalists, for Mayer describes how she became the target of a nasty opposition research effort after she wrote about the Koch brothers several years ago.

In the summer of 2010, she published a pathbreaking, in-depth piece, headlined "Covert Operations," which chronicled the rise of the Kochs' ideological network--dubbed the "Kochtopus" -- and the efforts of the publicity-shy libertarian brothers to guide the burgeoning tea party toward policies that favor Koch Industries. The article depicted the Kochs as secretive bankrollers waging a war against President Barack Obama and opposing environmental safety measures. The Kochs were enraged by the story. A lawyer for their company complained; David Koch called the story "ludicrous." But the New Yorker saw no reason to correct anything. And the kerfuffle seemed to die down. Or so Mayer thought.
Reprinted from Consortium News



John Kerry, US Secretary of State, and Pavlo Klimkin, Ukrainian Foreign Minister hold news conference on MH17 crash.

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e father of Quinn Schansman, the only American citizen to die in the 2014 shoot-down of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over eastern Ukraine, has asked Secretary of State John Kerry to release the U.S. data that Kerry cited in claiming precise knowledge of where the suspected anti-aircraft missile was fired.

One of the mysteries of the MH-17 case has become why the United States -- after asserting that it possessed information implicating ethnic Russian rebels and the Russian government -- has failed to make the data public or apparently even share it with Dutch investigators who are leading the inquiry into how the plane was shot down and who was responsible.

Quinn Schansman, who had dual U.S.-Dutch citizenship, boarded MH-17 along with 297 other people for a flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur on July 17, 2014. The 19-year-old was planning to join his family for a vacation in Malaysia.



In a letter to Kerry dated Jan. 5, 2016, Thomas J. Schansman, Quinn's father, noted Kerry's remarks at a press conference on Aug. 12, 2014, when the Secretary of State said about the Buk anti-aircraft missile suspected of downing the plane: "We saw the take-off. We saw the trajectory. We saw the hit. We saw this aeroplane disappear from the radar screens. So there is really no mystery about where it came from and where these weapons have come from."

Yet, where the missile launch occurred has remained a mystery in the MH-17 investigation. Last October, when the Dutch Safety Board issued its final report on the crash, it could only place the launch site within a 320-square-kilometer area in eastern Ukraine, covering territory then controlled by both Ukrainian and rebel forces. (The safety board did not seek to identify which side fired the fateful missile).

Meanwhile, Almaz-Antey, the Russian arms manufacturer of the Buk systems, conducted its own experiments to determine the likely firing location and placed it in a much smaller area near the village of Zaroshchenskoye, about 20 kilometers west of the Dutch Safety Board's zone and in an area under Ukrainian government control.

In the days immediately after the shoot-down, Kerry and other senior U.S. officials pointed the finger of blame at ethnic Russian rebels who were resisting a military offensive by the U.S.-backed regime in Kiev. The Russian government was faulted for supposedly giving the rebels a powerful Buk anti-aircraft system capable of downing a civilian airliner flying at 33,000 feet.

But -- in more than 18 months since the tragedy -- the U.S. government has never made public its alleged evidence, while Russia has denied supplying the rebels a Buk system and the rebels have asserted that they did not possess functioning Buk missiles.

An Anguished Father

Thomas Schansman, who lives in The Netherlands, wrote to Kerry, noting that "celebrating Christmas and New Year without my son Quinn Schansman, was difficult for my family and myself" and then pressing the Secretary of State to release U.S. information about the case.

"It is my understanding, that neither the Dutch government nor the Dutch Safety Board [DSB] have officially received the radar information from the US that you referred to. It is not included in the [DSB] report and it is not in the public domain," Schansman wrote.

"On behalf of the bereaved parents and to assist in the pursuit of justice, I would like to request that the United States provides the DSB with the radar data you referred to at the press conference and all other available and relevant information (like satellite data and infrared satellite data) that is in your government's possession.

"I would be most grateful if the United States either directly or through NATO would publicly hand over to the Dutch Safety Board radar and satellite data of the minutes before and after the crash. " This would enable the DSB to reopen the investigation and include a chapter with this information, which is essential for a successful criminal prosecution. I count on the support of the government of the United States to find and prosecute those responsible for my son and your citizen's death."

Kerry has yet to reply although a U.S. consular official, Pamela J. Hack, sent Schansman a letter dated Jan. 14, expressing condolences for his son's death and saying "We expect that you will receive a separate response ... from Washington."

A Rush to Judgment
Via the Daily Independent: 'No Case of Lassa Fever in Osun'. Excerpt:

Osun State Government yesterday allayed the fear of the outbreak of Lassa fever in the state saying the only reported case at Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital last week was imported from neighbouring state.

The Permanent Secretary, Osun State Ministry of Health, Dr. Kayode Ogunniyi gave the assurance while addressing newsmen in Osogbo on the state of things on the alleged outbreak of Lassa Fever in the state.

It would be recalled that a medical doctor working with Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife was said to have contracted the Lassa Fever Virus and died on Tuesday 19th January 2016.

Dr. Ogunniyi disclosed that the victim, though working at OAUTHC, Ile-Ife, does not reside in the state but resident in a neighbouring state capital.

He explained that 55 persons who had been in contact with the deceased have been placed under intensive care and watch adding that none of them have shown any symptom of the virus according to the medical investigation conducted.

According to him, the preliminary report revealed that the victim is actually resident in a neighbouring state capital and normally shuttled between that state and OAUTHC, Ile-Ife. He is now the imported index case of Lassa hemorrhagic fever in Osun. There is no other reported case in any other place in the state.

On the reported index case, 55 persons have been listed as contacts by our rapid response surveillance team and they are being daily followed up, to decipher the possible first appearance of symptoms and signs in any new case among them (god forbid) so that such may be given appropriate and adequate management as the disease is curable if detected early."


Too Much Brain

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By Gary Null, PhD



The Progressive Radio Network

In an article published in the New York Times last week entitled "At C.D.C., a Debate Behind Recommendations on Cellphone Risk", author Danny Hakim discusses the controversy surrounding the potential health risks of using cell phones. Hakim writes that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued guidelines recommending "caution in cellphone use", due to the potentially harmful effects of radiation emitted by the wireless devices on human health. Included in the guidelines was information about reducing exposure among children. Just a few weeks after the CDC's publication, and amid rising concerns about cell phone safety, the CDC rescinded the advisory completely.

Today, the CDC website takes an ambiguous stance on the issue, stating:

There is no scientific evidence that provides a definite answer to that question. Some organizations recommend caution in cell phone use. More research is needed before we know if using cell phones causes health effects. (1)

Hakim notes several agencies and individuals that have drawn stronger conclusions on the potential risks of such radiation. Among them is the International Agency for Research of Cancer, a branch of the World Health Organization, which listed the radio frequencies emitted by cell phones as a "possible carcinogen" in 2011.(2) Hakim identifies several countries' health authorities, including, Finland, the United Kingdom and Israel issuing public warnings about the potential hazards of non-ionizing radiation from cell phones.

As one of the foremost organizations tasked with ensuring the health and safety of Americans, it is troubling that the CDC has failed to warn us of the potential dangers of these devices. We find that even a cursory review of the scientific literature reveals a significant body of research that points to the harmful effects of cell phone radiation. Here is some of the most compelling evidence:

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In the 1877 classic novel Black Beauty, audiences learned to empathize with the sufferings of a horse forced to pull cabs through London. Yet 137 years later, horse-drawn carriages are still popular in a number of cities around the world, including New York City. Even horse lovers will go for a horse-drawn carriage ride in the city, thinking of it as romantic and fun. Most people do not realize the hardships and suffering that horses working in New York City go through. The harsh reality is that horses are not meant to work long, difficult hours in an urban environment, and this work constitutes nothing less than animal cruelty.



There are about 220 horses in NYC who work drawing carriages. They usually work about nine hours a day, seven days a week. At the end of the day, instead of being turned out into pastures as is healthy for horses, they are placed in stalls near the Lincoln Tunnel and West Side Highway. They do not have a chance to run around, roll, eat grass, or socialize as is normal for horses. Then, at the end of a long and tiring career, carriage horses do not get to retire out to a pasture somewhere. Instead, most worn-out horses are either slaughtered for dog food or sold to overseas slaughterhouses that will sell their meat to people abroad.



Horses are simply not meant to live their entire lives in an urban environment like NYC. The carriages they must pull are a very heavy load, and they must pull them all day across hard pavement, which is bad for their hooves and joints. Many drivers force their horses to work even in high temperatures, which have caused a number of horses to collapse while pulling carriages. The horses breathe in exhaust from all the surrounding vehicles, which can lead to respiratory problems. They can be spooked by the many loud sounds characteristic of a large city. In addition to harming themselves, the horses can cause harm to their drivers, passengers, and nearby pedestrians.



In fact, there have been a large number of accidents involving horse-drawn carriages in NYC. In only the past two years, there have been over twenty reported accidents. These include horses spooking, crashing into taxi cabs, and falling to the ground. These incidents are dangerous to the people around and are clearly dangerous for the horses. It is simply not worth it to endanger so many beautiful animals and the people nearby in order to have horse-drawn carriages.



One of many accidents involving horse drawn carriages in NYC

(Image by assets.dnainfo) Details DMCA



Horses are suffering every day, and many cannot afford to wait much longer to be freed from animal cruelty. There are many cities, including Key West, Palm Beach, Camden, and Biloxi that have already banned horse-drawn carriages. More and more people are recognizing them as animal cruelty, and enforcing a ban is certainly possible. It's time that the residents and politicians of NYC care for their fellow creatures and take steps to end the cruel suffering of the city's carriage horses
The British political and media establishment incrementally lost its collective mind over the election of Jeremy Corbyn as leader of the country's Labour Party, and its unraveling and implosion show no signs of receding yet. Bernie Sanders is nowhere near as radical as Corbyn; they are not even in the same universe . But, especially on economic issues, Sanders is a more fundamental, systemic critic than the oligarchical power centers are willing to tolerate, and his rejection of corporate dominance over politics, and corporate support for his campaigns, is particularly menacing. He is thus regarded as America's version of a far-left extremist, threatening establishment power.

For those who observed the unfolding of the British reaction to Corbyn's victory, it's been fascinating to watch the D.C./Democratic establishment's reaction to Sanders' emergence replicate that, reading from the same script. I personally think Clinton's nomination is extremely likely, but evidence of a growing Sanders movement is unmistakable. Because of the broader trends driving it, this is clearly unsettling to establishment Democrats -- as it should be.

A poll last week found that Sanders has a large lead with millennial voters, including young women; as Rolling Stone put it: "Young female voters support Bernie Sanders by an expansive margin." The New York Times yesterday trumpeted that, in New Hampshire, Sanders "has jumped out to a 27 percentage point lead," which is "stunning by New Hampshire standards." The Wall Street Journal yesterday, in an editorial titled "Taking Sanders Seriously," declared it is "no longer impossible to imagine the 74-year-old socialist as the Democratic nominee."

Just as was true for Corbyn, there is a direct correlation between the strength of Sanders and the intensity of the bitter and ugly attacks unleashed at him by the D.C. and Democratic political and media establishment. There were, roughly speaking, seven stages to this establishment revolt in the U.K. against Corbyn, and the U.S. reaction to Sanders is closely following the same script:

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On 26 January, one of the saddest days in human history will be celebrated in Australia. It will be "a day for families," say the newspapers owned by Rupert Murdoch. Flags will be dispensed at street corners and displayed on funny hats. People will say incessantly how proud they are.





For many, there is relief and gratitude. In my lifetime, non-indigenous Australia has changed from an Anglo-Irish society to one of the most ethnically diverse on earth. Those we used to call "New Australians" often choose 26 January, "Australia Day," to be sworn in as citizens. The ceremonies can be touching. Watch the faces from the Middle East and understand why they clench their new flag.





It was sunrise on 26 January so many years ago when I stood with Indigenous and non Indigenous Australians and threw wreaths into Sydney Harbour. We had climbed down to one of the perfect sandy coves where others had stood as silhouettes, watching as the ships of Britain's "First Fleet" dropped anchor on 26 January, 1788.





This was the moment the only island continent on earth was taken from its inhabitants; the euphemism was "settled." It was, wrote Henry Reynolds, one of few honest Australian historians, one of the greatest land grabs in world history. He described the slaughter that followed as "a whispering in our hearts."





The original Australians are the oldest human presence. To the European invaders, they did not exist because their continent had been declared terra nullius: empty land. To justify this fiction, mass murder was ordained.





In 1838, the Sydney Monitor reported: "It was resolved to exterminate the whole race of blacks in that quarter." This referred to the Darug people who lived along the great Hawkesbury River not far from Sydney. With remarkable ingenuity and without guns, they fought an epic resistance that remains almost a national secret. In a land littered with cenotaphs honoring Australia's settler dead in mostly imperial wars, not one stands for those warriors who fought and fell defending Australia.





This truth has no place in the Australian consciousness. Among settler nations with indigenous populations, apart from a facile "apology" in 2008, only Australia has refused to come to terms with the shame of its colonial past. A Hollywood film, Soldier Blue, in 1970 famously inverted racial stereotypes and gave Americans a glimpse of the genocide in their own mythical "settlement." Almost half a century later, it is fair to say an equivalent film would never be made in Australia.





In 2014, when my own film, Utopia, which told the story of the Australian genocide, sought a local distributor, I was advised by a luminary in the business: "No way I could distribute this. The audiences wouldn't accept it."

He was wrong -- up to a point.





When Utopia opened in Sydney a few days before 26 January, under the stars on vacant land in an Indigenous inner-city area known as The Block, more than 4,000 people came, the majority non-Indigenous. Many had travelled from right across the continent. Indigenous leaders who had appeared in the film stood in front of the screen and spoke in "language": their own.





Nothing like it had happened before. Yet, there was no press. For the wider community, it did not happen. Australia is a murdochracy, dominated by the ethos of a man who swapped his nationality for the Fox Network in the US.





The star Indigenous AFL footballer Adam Goodes wrote movingly to the Sydney Morning Herald demanding that "the silence is broken." "Imagine," he wrote, "watching a film that tells the truth about the terrible injustices committed against your people, a film that reveals how Europeans, and the governments that have run our country, have raped, killed and stolen from your people for their own benefit.





"Now imagine how it feels when the people who benefited most from those rapes, those killings and that theft -- the people in whose name the oppression was done -- turn away in disgust when someone seeks to expose it."





Goodes himself had already broken a silence when he stood against racist abuse thrown at him and other Indigenous sportspeople. This courageous, talented man retired from football last year as if under a cloud -- with, wrote one commentator, "the sporting nation divided about him." In Australia, it is respectable to be "divided" on opposing racism.



On Australia Day 2016 -- Indigenous people prefer Invasion Day or Survival Day -- there will be no acknowledgement that Australia's uniqueness is its first people, along with an ingrained colonial mentality that ought to be an abiding embarrassment in an independent nation. This mentality is expressed in a variety of ways, from unrelenting political grovelling at the knee of a rapacious United States to an almost casual contempt for Indigenous Australians, an echo of "kaffir" -- abusing South Africans.





Apartheid runs through Australian society. Within a short flight from Sydney, Indigenous people live the shortest of lives. Men are often dead before they reach 45. They die from Dickensian diseases, such as rheumatic heart disease. Children go blind from trachoma, and deaf from otitis media, diseases of poverty.





A doctor told me, "I wanted to give a patient an anti-inflammatory for an infection that would have been preventable if living conditions were better, but I couldn't treat her because she didn't have enough food to eat and couldn't ingest the tablets. I feel sometimes as if I'm dealing with similar conditions as the English working class of the beginning of the industrial revolution."





The racism that allows this in one of the most privileged societies on earth runs deep. In the 1920s, a "Protector of Aborigines" oversaw the theft of mixed race children with the justification of "breeding out the colour." Today, record numbers of Indigenous children are removed from their homes and many never see their families again. On 11 February, an inspiring group called Grandmothers Against Removals will lead a march on Federal Parliament in Canberra, demanding the return of the stolen children.





Australia is the envy of European governments now fencing in their once-open borders while beckoning fascism, as in Hungary. Refugees who dare set sail for Australia in overcrowded boats have long been treated as criminals, along with the "smugglers" whose hyped notoriety is used by the Australian media to distract from the immorality and criminality of their own government. The refugees are confined behind barbed wire on average for well over a year, some indefinitely, in barbaric conditions that have led to self-harm, murder, suicide and mental illness. Children have not been spared. An Australian Gulag run by sinister private security firms includes concentration camps on the remote Pacific islands of Manus and Nauru. People often have no idea when they might be freed, if at all.





The Australian military -- whose derring-do is the subject of uncritical tomes that fill the shelves of airport bookstalls -- has played an important part in "turning back the boats" of refugees fleeing wars, such as in Iraq, launched and prolonged by the Americans and their Australian mercenaries. No irony, let alone responsibility, is acknowledged in this cowardly role.





On this Australia Day, the "pride of the services" will be on display. This pride extends to the Australian Immigration Department, which commits people to its Gulag for "offshore processing," often arbitrarily, leaving them to grieve and despair and rot. Last week it was announced that Immigration officials had spent $400,000 on medals which they will award their heroic selves. Put out more flags.









Notes:



On January 26, Indigenous Australians and their supporters will march from The Block in Redfern, Sydney, to the Sydney Town Hall. The march will begin at 10 am.





On Thursday February 11, Grandmothers Against Removals will address a rally in Canberra. This will start at 12 noon at the Aboriginal Tent Embassy, then march to Parliament House.
Reprinted from shadowproof.com

The objective of the week for liberals appears to be to make clear Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is some kind of pariah. Despite how his candidacy has transformed into a phenomenon over the past months, establishment liberals maintain the U.S. senator from Vermont should not be considered a "serious" candidate. They believe it would be a huge mistake if a Democrat with unapologetic socialist leanings won the nomination, especially over Hillary Clinton.

But these cases against Sanders are really arguments against citizens voting their conscience. The uncertainty and dismissiveness toward Sanders serves to silence any critics of the corporate-driven politics entrenched in the Democratic Party. It suggests a fear that Democrats might actually stand against corporate power for a change.

The New York Times reports "alarmed Hillary Clinton supporters" are warning Sanders "would be an electoral disaster who would frighten swing voters and send Democrats in tight congressional and governor's races to defeat." Supporters cast Sanders as "unelectable" and attempt to present him as the Republicans' favored nominee because super political action committees run by operatives like Karl Rove would supposedly prefer to see the Republican nominee run against Sanders.

Liberal columnist Jonathan Chait published what is being touted as the definitive case against Sanders. Another liberal columnist, Michael Cohen, penned a shrill op-ed for The Boston Globe, entitled "Bernie Sanders doesn't know how politics work." Vox's Matt Yglesias urged Democratic voters to take Sanders "seriously," by which he means it is time to recognize all Sanders has to offer America is "half-baked" plans and populist slogans.

This rhetoric fits a playbook the American liberal class has followed for the past decades. As writer Chris Hedges argued, "The liberal class' disposal of its most independent and courageous members has long been part of its pathology." After World War I, and especially after World War II, corporations gradually sought more and more control of the state. Corporations now hold government completely captive and the liberal class, which "purged itself of the only members who had the fortitude and vision to save it from irrelevance," bears some responsibility.

Those in power expect liberals to police others on the left who would threaten their supremacy. So, when a political elite such as Clinton is faced with a formidable opponent, liberal pundits wittingly or unwittingly devise arguments for why Americans should vote against their interests and support someone who would likely manage government in a manner suitable for the corporate state.

Chait has had off-the-record meetings with President Barack Obama, where he gets to flatter himself with the fact that a president trusts him to represent his views in columns written for Americans. So, let's focus on deconstructing some of Chait's arguments against Sanders.

The White House's favored pundit confesses he does not support Sanders' policy vision, but even if he did, it would be an "unusually poor time" to make this policy vision the "centerpiece of a presidential campaign." Democrats, who support Sanders, "risk losing the presidency by embracing a politically radical doctrine that stands zero chance of enactment even if they win."

Back in October, Chait called Clinton the "all-but-certain Democratic nominee," and he is panicking because his certainty was wrong. How Chait can claim to know what stands "zero chance of enactment" when he so misjudged the potential of Sanders' campaign is flabbergasting. But the argument, which most deserves to be challenged, is the notion that Sanders imperils Democrats' chances in the 2016 election at each level of government because politicians will have to defend his socialist leanings.

Citizens are not managers of democracy. They do not need to concern themselves with political strategy and cynical concepts like "electability." To the extent that voting actually matters, a citizen's job should be to vote their conscience. After voting, citizens should participate or return to direct actions and grassroots organizing, which can grow movements that provide the momentum to make enacting policies Sanders supports possible.

Chait refuses to contemplate the role grassroots organizations might play during a Sanders presidency. He does, however, acknowledge Sanders has mobilized a "mass grassroots volunteer army." Yet, Chait maintains Obama organized volunteers on a larger scale than Sanders, "tried to keep his volunteers engaged throughout his presidency, and that "failed," which is not true.

Once Obama was elected in 2008, as Rolling Stone's Tim Dickinson reported, "Obama's grass-roots network effectively went dark for two months after Election Day, failing to engage activists eager for their new marching orders." David Plouffe, Obama's former campaign manager, took the network and made it a part of the Democratic National Committee.

"The move meant that the machinery of an insurgent candidate, one who had vowed to upend the Washington establishment, would now become part of that establishment, subject to the entrenched, partisan interests of the Democratic Party. It made about as much sense as moving Greenpeace into the headquarters of ExxonMobil," according to Dickinson.

What about the idea that Sanders poses an "enormous obstacle" because Americans respond to "socialism" with "overwhelming negativity"?

Such an argument rests upon a legacy of red-baiting and hysteria toward all things labeled socialist or left-wing. The negativity would not necessarily be impervious to the proposals of Sanders if he was the nominee and the news media had no choice but to constantly cover and discuss his socialist-leaning plans.
Reprinted from Alon Ben-Meir Website

The timely implementation of the Iran deal and Tehran's full compliance with its various provisions to date should not be viewed as just an accomplished goal, but as a continuing process that could take several years to determine its viability and the extent to which it impacts Iran's foreign and domestic policy. I believe the deal will encourage Tehran to continue its customary underhanded activities to advance its strategic interests. Conversely, it will intensify the restiveness of many of the Western-oriented Iranian youth, who are resentful of the regime's heavy-handed social and political policies.

Given Iran's domestic political volatility and regional ambition, Tehran should not be expected to choose a single strategy to advance its national interests. Instead, it will pursue a mixture of policies consistent with its self-perception and drive to become the region's hegemon.

Iran perceives itself as the most significant regional power by virtue of its rich culture and long history extending over four millennia in one of the most geostrategic locations in the world. Iran has a huge pool of natural resources and a multi-faceted economy with an industrious population of nearly 80 million people (larger than the combined Sunni population in the Gulf), and a landmass bigger than the entire Arabian Peninsula.

Notwithstanding the Iran deal, Tehran remains determined to acquire nuclear weapons and views the deal only as a temporary strategic pause. Iran's resolve to possess a nuclear arsenal is driven by its sense of insecurity and vulnerability because it is surrounded by unstable states including Afghanistan and Pakistan. In addition, a nuclear Iran would allow it to assert itself regionally, neutralize Israel's nuclear capacity, prevent forcible regime change by outside powers, and domestically present itself as a significant global power to be reckoned with.

As such, Tehran feels it has not only the inherent right to be the region's hegemon, but also the right to protect itself not only militarily, but by any other methods including cheating on the nuclear deal, subversion, and supporting terrorism.

This explains why the lifting of sanctions and the billions of dollars now at its disposal will not change Iran's behavior neither domestically nor in relation to other countries. In fact, it might even further embolden Tehran to intensify its direct and indirect involvement in the countries in which it has a unique strategic interest:

Syria: Iran will join the conference on January 25 to find a political solution to Syria's civil war as long as it can maintain its influence in Syria with or without President Assad. For Iran, Syria provides a contiguous crescent extending from the Mediterranean to the Gulf, making Syria indispensable to Tehran's regional ambition which is at odds with Saudi Arabia, who wants to deprive Iran from maintaining a foothold in Sunni-dominated Syria.

Iraq: Since the start of the Iraq war, Saudi Arabia and Iran have been engaged in a proxy war between the Iraqi Sunni minority and the Shiite majority, in which the stakes for both countries are extremely high because they see it as a fight for the soul of Islam. Although ISIS poses a threat to both Iran and Saudi Arabia, and they have a common interest in defeating it, they do not view ISIS as an existential threat having any effect on the intrinsic Sunni-Shiite conflict, which is one of the main sources for continuing regional instability.

Yemen: The civil war in Yemen provided Iran a momentous opportunity to interject itself into the Arabian Peninsula by supporting the Houthis (a religious group affiliated with the Zaydi sect of Shiite Islam), who are fighting against the Saudi-backed Sunni government of Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi. With tens of billions of dollars in its pocket, Iran will likely increase its financial support for the Houthis in an attempt to bleed the Saudis.

Lebanon: For Iran, Hezbollah in Lebanon is an indispensable Shiite force which Tehran supports financially and militarily, even more so at this juncture as the group is fighting on Assad's side in Syria. Iran also views Hezbollah as the conduit to threaten Israel from the north. Once the civil war in Syria ends and ISIS is defeated, Hezbollah may well move to implement its long-term plans to establish (with the support of Iran) an Islamic state in Lebanon, which is bound to further destabilize the entire region.

As long as the mullahs in Tehran view their revolution as still in the making, and with more money at their disposal, they will undoubtedly continue to export terrorism and increase their support of Islamic extremists such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad to further advance their revolutionary agenda beyond their country's borders.

The Obama administration, which championed the Iran deal, speculates that once the sanctions are lifted, Iran might become a prominent and constructive player on the global stage. This in my view is farfetched; even though Iran aspires to become such a power, its revolutionary and religious zeal will trump even its lofty aspirations. For this reason, the US, along with its allies, must stand fast in dealing with Iran by:

Taking whatever action necessary, including military, if Iran is caught cheating on the nuclear deal; enforcing UNSC resolutions that forbid Iran from research and development of ballistic missiles; imposing tough new sanctions (as President Obama has just done, albeit more forcefully and immediately); tracking Iran's subversive activities and making it clear that there will be serious consequences should it continue to support extremist groups and terrorists; requiring Iran, through quiet diplomacy, to end its public acrimony against Israel; and pressuring Iran to help mitigate the Sunni-Shiite conflict, knowing full well that this is not a conflict that either side can win.

Regardless of how Iran pursues its foreign policy objectives, the greatest danger the regime faces is from within. Whereas the government will spend a considerable amount of money to improve the economic conditions of ordinary Iranians, that in and of itself will not stifle the public's cry for freedom of speech and press, respect for human rights, and an end to draconian laws.

Indeed, the lifting of the sanctions will encourage the public, especially the young, to voice their discontent as they will no longer feel the need to rally behind their government, which was battling the West over the sanctions. This is the Achilles' heel of the regime. The 2009 Green Revolution will not be an aberration; a new uprising may now become inevitable. I believe the question will be only when.
Reprinted from Greanville Post

In 1996, as many readers of my columns know, I published the original version of the book now known as " The 15% Solution: How the Republican Religious Right Took Control of the U.S.: 1981-2022 ." (The current version of the book, the third, is published by my dear friend and comrade Patrice Greanville, Editor/Publisher of The Greanville Post and Publisher of Punto Press.)

In that book, based entirely on what the Republicans and the Religious Right were already telling us back then what they would do if they ever got significant control of the U.S. government at both the Federal and state levels, I predicted that a transmogrification of the Republican Party into something I called the "Republican-Christian Alliance" would occur sometime in the first decade of the 21st century. Well this is what is happening folks, about 10 years after the time I originally projected it.



I pointed out in my last column that one of the "mainstream" Republican candidates, JEB Bush, in responding to Donald Trump's policy proposal for barring all Syrian refugees, allowed that he would let in the Christian ones. But given what happened to Mr. Aikenhead, JEB, suppose they took a different position on the validity of the Doctrine of the Trinity than you do, would they still be allowed in? And while it might make no difference to JEB himself, there are still some serious doctrinal differences among Christians of various stripes on this one.

And then must one wonder which version of the concept of the Trinity and of the Eucharist would be approved by John Kasich's proposal for the establishment of a governmental office for spreading "Judeo-Christian values." (In that last column I discussed the difficulty -- actually the impossibility -- of getting the various Jewish denominations to agree on almost anything that might, or might not, be considered a "core Jewish value." I gather from numerous conversations that Christians would have the same problem.)

Of course we know that Mike Huckabee, Rick Santorum, and Ben Carson are Dominionists (that is they put "God" above the Constitution), and Ted Cruz likely is too (for his father is one, quite openly). Of course, no media person is ever going to ask any of them a direct question on the matter. Just as no media person will ever go beyond the word "evangelicals" to describe the Christian Rightists in Iowa who are very strong in the Republican Party to get to a definition of the term. But in any case, these four, along with Trump, are usually considered outside of the Republican "mainstream."

(Of course Trump could be described as a Dominionist too. Except that it would be a special type of Dominionism, not of "God," but of Donald Trump. Consider, for example, that at a meeting of police officers he announced that on his first day in office by executive order he would institute nationally the death penalty for killing a police officer. Except that the use or on-use of the death penalty is a matter of law, at the Federal and state levels, and in the ordinary course of events could only be changed by legislation. Then there was his statement that he would end, nationally, gun-free zones in schools, another matter ordinarily handled by government, state and local. I have discussed Trump's flirtations with fascism, another term for Trump-Dominionism, in this space before, and it is a matter to which I shall likely return.)

But then along comes Marco Rubio. He is considered by the media as a "Republican Establishment" candidate along with Bush, Kasich and Christie. As such, however, he is a candidate for the Presidency of a Republic governed by a Constitution in which neither the word "God" nor the word "Christian" appears. In this context, he made some utterly remarkable statements in a TV ad aimed at the Iowa Republican-Christian Right. I present for your consideration a discussion of it that appeared in a publication called the Christian Post (which seems to be rather favorable towards Sen. Rubio).

"Florida Sen. Marco Rubio released a new web ad (watch below) Tuesday discussing his Christian faith, saying our 'ultimate goal is to live in all eternity with our Creator.' Rubio, like many presidential candidates in the Republican field, has been open about sharing about his faith on the campaign trail. The Roman Catholic candidate, who also attends Protestant services with his wife, has admitted in the past that there have been times he was not a strong spiritual leader in the home. The new ad focuses on higher truths beyond politics, reflecting on the purpose of life and the created order. 'Our goal is eternity,' Rubio says. 'The ability to live alongside our Creator for all time. That is the purpose of our life to grow closer in our relationship and to accept the free gift of salvation to us offered by Jesus Christ.' Rubio affirmed the dignity and importance of work in the ad saying that our vocation is a way to reflect the glory of God but added our 'ultimate goal is to live in all eternity with our Creator.' "



Marco Rubio: Thirsty for power. He has now tasted it, ergo he's doubly dangerous.

(Image by DonkeyHotey) Details DMCA



The Christian Post article goes on to say:



"Rubio said that the struggle 'on a daily basis' for Christians 'is to remind ourselves of this, to remind ourselves the purpose of life is to cooperate with God's plan.' The Florida Senator quoted the notable passage from Luke 12:48: 'From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.' Rubio adds that God will ask humanity to account for the gifts that He has given to us. 'Were your treasures stored up on earth or in heaven?' asks Rubio, 'and for me I try to allow that to influence me in everything that I do [emphasis added].' " In his book American Dreams, Rubio discusses the imago Dei teaching and the dignity of work: 'For Christians, the centrality of work to human meaning and happiness comes from our being made in the image of God,' wrote Rubio. 'Being made in His image means we have dignity, worth and creativity. Work is how we use these gifts to contribute to our fellow men and women and to honor His name [emphasis added]'."

Presumably as President too. (You can read more of Rubio and religion here.

If you don't find this philosophy of life in a man who wants to be President of all of the people of the United States totally frightening, you should. Even more frightening for me is that the likelihood of the mainstream media asking him about his theology and how it would govern his mode of governing as President is about as high as the likelihood that the Doctrine of Global Warming is a myth. One can say the same for any such questions coming from any representatives of the Democratic side of the Duopoly.
Via The Guardian Nigeria: Panic as Lassa fever spreads. Excerpt:

Nigerians are getting more apprehensive as Lassa Fever Virus (LAFV) spreads across the country. Indicative of its rapid spread, the cases have risen from 76 to over 200, from 33 deaths to over 76 deaths, and from five states to over 17 within two weeks.

Already, the garri industry , estimated at billions of naira and which is based on processed cassava tubers that provide very important staple food item in Nigeria and other West African countries may be threatened.

Pharmacists under the aegis of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) and the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) have expressed satisfaction with governments handling of the situation.

Investigation by The Guardian revealed that the virus is getting more fatal as the death rate has risen from about 40 per cent to 100 in some states.

It was learnt that while Lassa fever is often mild, the disease could be severe with signs and symptoms similar to those of Ebola Virus Disease(EVD).

According to the United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), LASV causes roughly 100,000 to 300,000 cases of Lassa fever each year in West Africa, with approximately 5,000 deaths.

The centre also said as many as 10 to 16 per cent of hospital admissions in some areas of West Africa may be due to Lassa fever for which no cure or vaccine is available yet.

However, the antiviral drug ribavirin may help patients if taken early in the course of the disease. Infections in people mainly occur through exposure to infected rodents or their secretions, and less commonly, between people through direct contact with bodily fluids.

The threat to the garri industry is due to a message currently circulating widely on the social media platforms warning Nigerians against the consumption of garri. The message reads: The problem is that most of our garri sellers buy their garri from bush markets. This garri is often fried half dry and subsequently dried on polythene sheets on the tarred roads or compounds in the villages where rats feed on them and in the process defecate and urinate on the garri, which dries up with it. If used for eba, the virus may die because of the hot water used. But if soaked in normal water and consumed, the virus is directly ushered in.

The Medical and Health Workers Union, Lagos State Council, has also discouraged the consumption of soaked garri as a preventive measure against Lassa fever.
After years of court battles, the path toward Metro's 600-room Hyatt Regency hotel near the Oregon Convention Center appears to be clear. The regional government and its opponents announced a settlement Friday.

The Oregon Supreme Court had been set to hear a legal challenge March 7 from a coalition of hotel owners led by financier Gordon Sondland's Provenance Hotels. The opponents of the $212 million convention center hotel project sought to refer to voters Multnomah County's decision to reallocate lodging taxes toward $60 million in revenue bonds that would help pay for the Hyatt Regency.

The challenge had been previously rejected by the Oregon Court of Appeals and the Multnomah County Circuit Court, which agreed with the county that the decision was administrative and not legislative and therefore not eligible for the ballot. The courts ruled opponents can't challenge the county's ability to decide how to use a tax it already collects.

Now, the opponents have agreed to "settle all of the current lawsuits" and "avoid future legal challenges," according to a joint statement issued Friday by Metro and Provenance affiliate Aspen Lodging Group. In return, Metro will transfer ownership of a parking lot near the Oregon Convention Center to Aspen.

Provenance could then build another hotel - or apartments, office space or structured parking - on the parking lot site. But the hotel company would wait until the Metro-backed hotel opens in 2018 and assess how successful it is before making a development decision, said Jim McDermott, an attorney representing Aspen Lodging Group.

After transferring ownership of the parking lot to Aspen, Metro would have the option to lease it back for one year at a cost of $100,000, McDermott said.

An Aspen appraisal of the parking lot, which lies just south of the convention center, estimated its value at $1.94 million. The appraisal assumed development on the 30,000-square-foot portion of the site that is currently used for parking. There is an additional 43,000 square feet on the site that slopes downward toward nearby train tracks.

A previous Metro appraisal estimated the lot's value in the neighborhood of $10 million, but it assumed a far more difficult development project: an office building on the entire 73,000-square-foot parcel.

An estimate of how much annual revenue Metro collects from the parking lot was not immediately available.

"The convention center hotel project is critical to creating jobs in our region and supporting the state's tourism economy," said Metro Council President Tom Hughes in the statement. "I respect that the coalition and Metro had different views on the mission and funding mechanisms of this public/private project. Gordon Sondland and the other members of the coalition are pillars of the Portland community and I value their insight and opinions.

"We talked long and hard, looked each other in the eye and agreed that, if we settle, opposition to the convention center hotel is over and we can get back to the business of growing the Portland economy."

Sondland added in the statement that the convention center hotel will be "a boon to the community" if it performs as Metro has predicted.

"Should construction of a headquarters hotel create the convention demand that Metro anticipates, this settlement could even pave the way for future hotel development to accommodate even larger events at the convention center," Sondland said.

The hotel will also be subsidized by $10 million in lottery funds, $4 million in Metro reserves and a $4 million loan from the Portland Development Commission. It is slated to break ground directly north of the convention center late this year.

-- Luke Hammill

lhammill@oregonian.com

503-294-4029

@lucashammill
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James Hoffman, 38, of Battle Ground and his employee, Billy Beadle, 34, of Camas, both face charges of reckless endangerment, aim/discharge of a firearm, false reporting and obstruction. The Michal Thompson / File photo

(Michal Thompson)

The owner of a Washington state tattoo parlor asked his employee to shoot him, Camas police said Friday.

Why?

Because James Hoffman, one of the owners of Momentum Tattoo Parlor in Camas, wanted to be initiated into an Internet-based club where members are required to be shot, police said.

Hoffman, 38, of Battle Ground and his employee, Billy Beadle, 34, of Camas, both face charges of reckless endangerment, aim/discharge of a firearm, false reporting and obstruction after the Beadle fired three rounds in the business, police said.

One bullet grazed Hoffman's hip but didn't break the skin, police said.

Hoffman reported Wednesday that a "short, dark-skinned male" came into the shop and fired three rounds, police said. All available police units and detectives responded to the scene, canvassed the neighborhood and requested local businesses to release surveillance footage. The Clark County Sherriff's Office Major Crimes Team also helped.

The entire response and investigation took about 14 hours to complete, said spokesman Officer Debrah Riedel.

Detectives don't know which Internet club the men were trying to enter, she said. She declined to say how the pair set up the shots, such as the distance between Beadle and Hoffman at the time the gun was fired.

Detectives became suspicious after interviewing all the people at the scene. After a search warrant, they found the gun, police said.

Both were booked into a Clark County jail.

-- Tony Hernandez

thernandez@oregonian.com

503-294-5928

@tonyhreports
Gov. Kate Brown wants her new "education innovation officer" to infuse Oregon schools with the expertise, support and drive they need to raise the state's woeful high school graduation rate.

That person, who has yet to be hired, will have the backing of the governor and the two key education agencies she oversees, the Oregon Department of Education and the Chief Education Office.

But the graduation czar won't manage any staffers, won't have money to hand out and is expected to listen to Oregon school districts and communities, not order them around.

The governor's staff disclosed those details to The Oregonian/OregonLive on Thursday, fulfilling a month-old request for the new officer's job description. Brown announced in early December that she planned to add the position to her executive staff.

Just 72 percent of students in Oregon's class of 2014 earned a diploma in four years. That was the fourth-worst rate in the nation and represented no improvement from the previous year.

The state is scheduled to announce the new rate, for the class of 2015, on Thursday.

Brown has acknowledged the state's goal of getting 100 percent of students to graduate from high school or earn a GED by 2025 is far out of reach with less than 10 years to go. She expects the education innovation officer will help speed improvement toward that goal, set by then-Gov. John Kitzhaber and the Legislature in 2011.

Brown's office listed these main duties for her graduation czar:

Find the barriers that keep schools from graduating students -- and examine patterns affecting certain groups of students, including males, rural residents, blacks, Native Americans, Latinos, students with disabilities and students for whom English is a second language.

Assemble the best findings from research, experts and groups with a track record of success.

Get school districts and communities to see what strategies work and to use them.

Recommend new state policies and ways of allocating money to raise graduation rates, particularly among students of color, who have the lowest success rates and represent a growing proportion of the state's population.

The governor's spokeswoman, Melissa Navas, said Brown aims to have the innovation officer in place some time this spring. The salary range has not been determined, Navas said.

The top 30 employees on Kitzhaber's staff were paid an average of about $110,000.

One item sure to be on the new officer's plate: Finding ways to decrease the chronic absenteeism that is the hallmark of so many Oregon schools, starting in kindergarten.

Oregon has been shown to have one of the nation's highest rates of students missing 10 percent of the school year or more. And so far it's not getting better, even after The Oregonian/OregonLive brought the issue to public attention in early 2014.

What won't be on the innovation officer's plate: Figuring out how to train teachers to improve their teaching. The governor announced Wednesday that she will appointing a panel of 15 people, six of them teachers, to help with that task. Lindsey Capps, Brown's acting chief education officer, says the panel will figure out how Oregon should manage its on-the-job training for teachers to help them improve their teaching techniques and other professional practices.

That panel, which the governor plans to appoint soon, has a Sept. 1 deadline to come up with that plan.

Kitzhaber was the first Oregon governor to put a top education leader on his own staff, rather than at the state education department or higher education agency. He hired Rudy Crew, the former head of New York City and Miami-Dade school districts, to be his chief education officer.

Crew lost credibility before quitting to take a New York college presidency. Kitzhaber then appointed former Springfield superintendent Nancy Golden to the role.

Following Kitzhaber's resignation, the 2015 Legislature dialed back the role of the chief education officer, and Golden retired. Brown named Capps, who was then her education adviser and formerly a teachers union leader, to fill the role on an interim basis.

Capps has been in the role for more than 10 months, and Brown has not made a move to find a permanent replacement. "The governor's office is considering next steps," Navas told The Oregonian last week.

-- Betsy Hammond
A 28-year-old who was born male but now is legally female has filed a $75,000 lawsuit against U-Haul, saying an employee looked at her with contempt before refusing to rent a moving van to her.

Annah Kaye Smith had a reservation for a van at the U-Haul location at 704 N.E. Hogan Road in Gresham but was told when she arrived to pick it up that no vans were available, according to her lawsuit.

She was hastily ushered out the door by a U-Haul employee on Jan. 15, 2015, says the suit filed last week in Multnomah County Circuit Court.

Smith then spotted three parked vans -- just like the one she had reserved, the suit says. But by then, the employee told her that her reservation had been transferred to a Troutdale U-Haul and she'd have to go there to rent.

"It was a look of disgust," Smith told The Oregonian/Oregonlive on Thursday. "I sensed from his demeanor that he did not like what I was wearing or the way I looked. ... He was friendly to other customers."

Smith said the Troutdale location was closed when she arrived and she left empty-handed, forced to postpone plans to move a couch she was buying off of Craigslist. Smith's spouse rented a van elsewhere the following day.

"I wouldn't want that to happen to anyone again," Smith said. "All I really wanted was an apology from them, and I didn't get that, even in mediation. ... It just never came."

U-Haul media and public relations manager Jeff Lockridge declined comment Friday for this story, saying U-Haul doesn't talk about pending litigation.

But the company denied discrimination played any part in Smith's experience in a response to a complaint Smith filed last year with the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries.

In November, bureau investigator Andrea Damewood recommended that Smith's complaint be dismissed as unsupported by substantial evidence.

"Firstly, (Smith) was not ultimately denied service; rather, she and her partner were able to obtain a van the next day," Damewood wrote.

Damewood also wrote that Smith didn't claim that the U-Haul employee said anything discriminatory to her. The investigator found that the case became too difficult to prove because Smith didn't provide a photograph of the parked vans or any other witnesses who saw available parked vans on the Gresham U-Haul lot that day.

At the same time, Damewood said U-Haul acknowledged that it did indeed have a van available at the Gresham site that day and that it had been reserved for Smith. The report doesn't explain why U-Haul failed to rent the van to Smith, but chalks up Smith's experience to "poor customer service."

Smith's Portland attorney, Beth Creighton, said she has a recording later that day of a customer service agent telling Smith and her spouse that there were actually three available vans at the Gresham location that day.

Creighton disagrees with the Bureau of Labor & Industries dismissal. It's not necessary for an employee to make an overt statement to discriminate, she said. The lawsuit states that U-Haul violated ORS 659a.403, which bars discrimination in a place of "public accommodation" based on "race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, marital status or age if the individual is 18 years of age or older."

Smith said the experience has left her shaken. She feels anxious now going into stores and businesses.

"I'm like, 'Is this going to happen to me again?'" Smith said. "What do I do if this happens again?"

She worries about being out alone at night because she's aware of hate crimes against transgender people, she said. That was on her mind when -- under the direction of the Gresham U-Haul employee, she says -- she drove up to the Troutdale U-Haul, and saw it closed.

"It just freaked me out when I was pulling into that darkened, dimmed place," Smith said.

Thoughts raced through her mind, she said: "Why did you send me here? Does he have some friends or something?"

Read a copy of the lawsuit, which was filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court.

Read a copy of BOLI's dismissal memo.

-- Aimee Green

503-294-5119
Marijuana use among adults 26 and older in Oregon has doubled since 2006, while at the same time use has gone up only slightly in the rest of the country.

Overall, 1 in 10 adults in Oregon said they use the drug, which remains especially popular with young men. Oregon's marijuana use among adults has exceeded national trends for the past decade.

The Oregon Health Authority this month issued a report detailing marijuana trends and attitudes among Oregonians. It is the state's first comprehensive review of the latest government public health surveys looking at who consumes marijuana in Oregon and how frequently, as well as attitudes about cannabis, which is now legal for recreational use.

Among the findings:

Nearly one in 10 eighth-graders and about one in five 11th graders surveyed last year said they use marijuana, rates that have been stable since 2012 and comparable to national trends.

Sixty-two percent of 11th graders say they have "easy access" to cannabis. They say pot is easier to obtain than cigarettes and harder to get than alcohol.

Among 11th graders who said they drive and had used marijuana in the previous month, nearly half reported driving within three hours of using the drug. This was four times higher than the rate of those 11th graders who drove after they had consumed alcohol.

One in 10 adults in Oregon said they use marijuana, a rate that has exceeded the national average for the past decade.

Smoking is by far the most common way Oregonians consume marijuana. About 29 percent of consumers said they use the drug daily. On average, consumers said they use pot every other day.

Roughly half of Oregon adults have seen a marijuana product or advertisement in the previous month, while an estimated 29 percent said they'd seen information about the drug's potential health risks.

About 61 percent of adults know it's legal for anyone 21 and older to consume cannabis and most know that it remains illegal to use it in public.

Three in four adults know that driving under the influence of marijuana increases the risk of a crash, but nearly two-thirds said they don't know at what point after consuming the drug it is OK to drive.

Though it only became legal to possess and grow marijuana starting last July, two areas have already seen a shift: Marijuana-related calls to the Oregon Poison Center, stable from 2013 through mid-2015, went up in the second half of last year, and cannabis-related arrests decreased from 2012 to 2015.

Among adults who consume marijuana, the median age of their first experience was 16.

The statistics also revealed higher medical and recreational marijuana use among gay and lesbians, disabled people and the poor and lower rates among veterans. The data showed no significant difference in marijuana consumption based on education.

Dr. Katrina Hedberg, state epidemiologist and health officer, said the data wasn't a surprise but instead confirmed some of what public health officials know about marijuana use. But it does point to potential public health concerns, particularly related to driving under the influence, she said.

While a majority of Oregon adults know that driving under the influence of marijuana increases the risk of a wreck, "people aren't quite as aware of how long they need to wait and that probably varies as to whether you have smoked it or eaten it," she said.

Dr. Paul Lewis, health officer for Multnomah County, where marijuana use among young people is common and appears to be on the rise, added that the dangers of driving under the influence "is clearly a message that hasn't gotten out yet."

The poison center data also suggests a possible need for consumer education around marijuana, particularly when it comes to inexperienced consumers who may not understand that cannabis may cause their blood pressure to spike and that they may experience anxiety.

"It's ironic," said Hedberg, "because certainly marijuana in some people helps reduce anxiety, but it's clear that in some people at high doses it can cause anxiety and paranoia and adverse health affects people might not expect."

-- Noelle Crombie

503-816-7184; @noellecrombie
Republicans as modern Whigs: We Republicans are in danger of becoming the Whig Party of the 21st century if we nominate Donald Trump or Ted Cruz, either of whom will be lucky to achieve 40 percent of the national vote. Both scorn Latino voters who within 10 years will comprise 20 percent or more of the total votes. Both appeal to populist and nativist sentiments. Both appeal to perceived fears by refusing to aid the refugees in the Middle East, a situation partially created by our second Iraq war.

Look what German Chancellor Angela Merkel has done; it's called statesmanship, which is sorely lacking in Washington, D.C., the land of the free and home of the brave.

If the alternative is Hillary Clinton, then it's a "Hobson's choice" -- in other words, not a choice at all. Unfortunately, then, we'll get what we deserve.

John C. Braestrup

Southwest Portland
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Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, right, endorses Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump during a rally at the Iowa State University, Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2016, in Ames, Iowa.

(The Associated Press)

By Jonathan Bernstein

So Sarah Palin has endorsed her fellow reality television star Donald Trump for president.

It may not be a sign of the apocalypse, but the announcement is certain to keep the media and pundits busy for at least 24 hours. At the very least, that helps Trump stay ahead in his Red Queen's race -- that is, his attempt to maintain his domination of political news, which makes it harder for any other candidate to move up.

It's even possible that a handful of Iowa tea party voters who have been wavering between Trump and Ted Cruz could be swayed by the Sage of Wasilla. And who knows? In a very close election, just a few voters could make all the difference: Trump and Cruz are in a dead heat in Iowa, according to HuffPollster's current estimate.

On the other hand, there's no suggestion from polling that Palin's endorsement is the gold standard. And although endorsements may be quite important in aggregate, the support of any single figure usually makes little difference. Endorsements bring resources, whether it's publicity or money or volunteer hours. Palin will help with publicity for one day, but probably not much more that that.

It's even possible, as political scientist Brendan Nyhan suggests, that Palin could push undecided party actors further from Trump. After all, if the nomination really does come down to Trump against Cruz, it's going to be a tough choice for many party elites, especially those who have worked with Cruz and can't stand him. Knowing that going with the Texas senator will at least have the benefit of annoying Palin might help get them over that hump. In any case, having Trump out on the hustings praising Palin will remind many party actors of the weakness of his attachment to the party and of how little they can trust him either as their nominee or as president.

Mostly, however, this is just a reminder of John McCain's irresponsibility in selecting Palin as his running mate without bothering to find out who she was. She now is repaying the 2008 Republican nominee by endorsing the man who attacked his unimpeachable heroism to climb to the top of the polls. Whatever happens next, Republicans should never forgive him for that.

Jonathan Bernstein is a Bloomberg View columnist covering U.S. politics.

For more columns from Bloomberg View, visit http://www.bloomberg.com/view

(c) 2016, Bloomberg View
The man spearheading an armed occupation in defense of the rural lifestyle and values of eastern Oregon grew up in the urban sprawl of Southern California and honed his tactical skills as an Army scout.

Ryan Payne now defines himself as a Montana militiaman and anointed protector of the downtrodden ranchers who valiantly fight federal overreach on the West's vast stretches of shrub land.

He doesn't wear a cowboy hat like Ammon Bundy, his partner in the Jan. 2 takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge outside Burns, but Payne sounds every bit the sagebrush revolutionary when he speaks -- especially on his favorite topics, the U.S. Constitution and the powers it bestows to "We the People."

His journey to the refuge began in the stark desert landscapes of Southern California and Iraq, where he says three experiences shaped his worldview:

A botched mission during an Army tour in northern Iraq, a small business forced to close due to government regulation and service on the personal security detail of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, a man Payne compared to George Washington in a 2014 video.

The Bundy family has returned the compliment -- embracing him as a catalyst for change and taking him into the family fold. By their account and his, Payne has from the beginning driven plans for the surprise takeover of the bird sanctuary.

Ammon Bundy said that he and Payne are so in sync that words are often unnecessary between them.

The California birth registry shows Ryan Waylen Payne was born in 1983 in San Bernardino County. The surname he was given was his mother's.

Payne was part of the class of 2001 at Chaffey High School in Ontario, California, near Riverside, according to a profile on Classreport.org. The school wouldn't confirm graduation without Payne's written consent.

Payne's military record shows he enlisted in July 2001 at age 17, just months before the war on terror started.

He trained in the arts of surveillance and reconnaissance at Fort Benning in Georgia. He learned to parachute and to work as a scout, collecting information on the enemy as part of a small team of six or fewer sent ahead of other troops, often deep behind enemy lines.

He was assigned to the 51st Infantry Regiment of the 519th Military Intelligence Battalion from March 2002 through January 2006. He was deployed twice to Iraq and rose to the rank of sergeant, his official record shows.

Payne posted a photo of himself on Facebook in November in what he identified as the third platoon of F Company, which specialized in long-range surveillance.

"Those guys are experts in camouflage and concealment," said Paul Pipik, curator of the Army Military Intelligence Museum. "They sit in the weeds or at the tree line and watch the enemy move so they can report back."

The photo bears a January 2005 time stamp. In the Facebook comments, Payne identifies himself as the man in the back with his leg raised. It's a pose that suggests casual triumph. Payne points out a yellow Gadsden flag, bearing the words "Don't Tread on Me," hanging in the background at a time when "Gadsden's weren't cool yet."

The group is in Tal Afar, Iraq, Payne wrote, about to leave for an area near the Syrian border. He said his mission was at the west end of the Sinjar Mountains -- an area that has since fallen under Islamic State control.

The comment thread attached to the photo sheds some light on how Payne now views his military service.

"We spent some time in those mountains. Loving people that would give you the shirt off their backs, and they might only have one shirt. Wouldn't hurt a fly, just wanted to farm, raise their families and live a beautiful life. If things weren't so bad here I could surely justify going there and helping their militias."

In response to a comment thanking him for his service, Payne replied: "My service is now my friend. That was live training. But yeah roger that."

By Payne's description, the photo was taken around the time he first seriously questioned the motives of his superiors and the government that they -- and he -- served.

A mission gone wrong left Payne with the conclusion that he had been deliberately set up to die.

"It caused me to look hard at what causes people to make decisions and what causes the U.S. government to make decisions," he said in an interview.

Payne declined to discuss the details with The Oregonian/OregonLive, and he has not filed suit in federal court as a result of the incident. The Pentagon wouldn't comment on whether Payne had filed a complaint with the inspector general.

But a 2014 profile by The Missoula Independent included an account that quoted Payne describing some of the details on the mission.

Payne told the alternative weekly that his team of six scouts suddenly came across 26 combatants at a Bedouin encampment during a 2005 mission in the Sinjar Mountains. Their plan had included a provision for Apache helicopters and other air support to respond if the enemy had detected the team.

"For some reason, the rear, who was our ops center, was canceling all of our requests for gun runs," Payne told the Independent. None of the soldiers was killed, but the team was "in a very bad spot for very many hours, fighting for our lives," he said.

Payne didn't immediately quit the Army. He said he had only a few months of active service left, and the depth of the betrayal wasn't clear to him until later.

He mourned seven friends who did lose their lives fighting in the Middle East.

"Where were their lives lost for?" he asked. "There was no clear or defined purpose."

***

When Payne arrived back in Southern California in January 2006, he began looking for answers.

He was reunited with his wife, Pamela Deem. The two met in high school and had married in 2004, according to Deem's Classreport.org profile. In 2003, Deem told the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, their hometown newspaper, that she wrote to Payne every day while he was in Iraq.

Back home after his second deployment, Payne started a company making custom dune buggies and off-road vehicles with an uncle, Steve Saddlemire. He spent a lot of time listening to heavy metal, hiking and driving fast through the desert, according to a bio on the the website for the business, So-Cal Sandcars.

The company sold high-end vehicles for as much as $100,000, but Payne said it wasn't long before California put in place more stringent emissions regulations, forcing him out of business.

During this time, Payne said he read the Bible, the U.S. Constitution, the Declaration of Independence and the writings of the Founding Fathers. He read about the military and questioned the wisdom and righteousness of involvement in the Middle East.

He also read about the Georgia Guidestones, mysterious granite slabs inscribed with 10 principles in ancient and modern languages that stand in a park in the Southern state, and the United Nations' Agenda 21, a sustainable development program that many in the patriot movement believe calls for a radical utopia that amounts to totalitarianism.

It became clear to Payne that his experience as a soldier and as a small business owner were two sides of the same coin.

His conclusion: A small group of political and business elites was intentionally making it impossible to make a living in rural America because they wanted to secure the land and mineral resources underneath to consolidate their own power and wealth. Through "social and economic warfare" techniques that include regulations, especially environmental regulations, this group was forcing Americans into cities where they were easier to control.

The same group makes decisions about when and where to go to war, Payne said. One of the main goals of this group, he concluded after reading about the Georgia Guidestones' inscriptions, was to reduce the world's population to 500 million, far below the more than 7 billion humans who now roam the Earth.

"That means there is a general plan to kill off 93 percent of the population," Payne said.

"A lot of it has been called theory," he said. "And if you believe in coincidence, maybe that's true. But I believe in providence. I see providence in everything I do."

***

From 2006 to 2013, Payne's public records trail is largely blank.

California court records show Payne and Deem divorced in 2009. Payne completed his military service obligation the same year, his record shows, and he was discharged from inactive army reserve. It's not clear how he supported himself financially.

In 2012, Payne moved from Southern California to Montana with another woman, Summer Reid. The couple have two children, Reid said, though she declined to comment further.

Payne said the two are no longer together but both share in raising their 5- and 2-year-old kids. It's not clear from the public record whether the two were married. Court records don't show a divorce.

The Missoula Independent reported that Payne founded a militia, the West Mountain Rangers, also in 2012. But it's unclear how active that group was and whether it's now defunct. It has no website and no page on Facebook, a tool militia groups commonly use for networking.

In 2013, Payne passed the Montana exam to become a licensed electrician, state records show. That certification lapsed in 2014. Payne declined to answer questions about whether he had worked as an electrician since.

One thing that is clear is that on April 6, 2014, Payne moved much more decisively onto the path that led to Harney County.

Ryan Bundy, Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy's eldest son, said he received a call from Payne on his cellphone.

Payne offered to use his military experience and Operation Mutual Aid, a coalition of militias and sympathetic people he said he had founded the year before, to protect the Bundy family in their dispute with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. He had read about it on the Internet.

Ryan Bundy was impressed with Payne's willingness to drive 12 hours overnight. Payne was the second person in the far-flung patriot community to arrive in Nevada, and that was only because the first arrival, Brian Cavalier, lived much closer, Ryan Bundy said at the community meeting this week in Crane.

Payne helped disseminate information to militias across the country and arrange the logistics of their arrival. Hundreds turned out. Not least because of the armed response Payne coordinated, federal authorities retreated without the Bundys' cattle, and the family declared triumph at what came to be known as the "Battle of Bunkerville."

The Missoula Independent reported that Payne took credit for what he called the militia's "tactical superiority." "We locked them down," he was quoted as saying. "We had counter-sniper positions on their sniper positions. We had at least one guy -- sometimes two guys -- per BLM agent in there."

The episode legitimized Payne's standing as a leader in the patriot community. He was, by many accounts, unknown up until that point.

Though Payne developed close ties with the Bundy family, staying on at the ranch for months, some of his behavior was viewed as divisive -- if not dangerous -- by other factions in the patriot movement.

Woods, the militiaman from West Virginia, said Payne ordered him and another man to damage Bureau of Land Management equipment even after rangers released the Bundys' cattle. They rejected the idea, Woods said.

Woods said he also pushed back when Payne ordered him to "throw down with the sheriff" should the sheriff have come to arrest Cliven Bundy, Ammon Bundy's father and the rancher whose 20 years of unpaid grazing fees prompted the standoff.

The sheriff would have had the right to take the Bundy patriarch away, Woods said. In the patriot movement, sheriffs are considered the highest authority in law enforcement because they're directly elected.

"It sucks, but that's the way the system is supposed to work," he said. "The militia is nobody's personal army."

Payne also gained the reputation in some quarters as a hothead.

At one point, rumors that a drone strike was imminent spread through the militia camp at Bunkerville, and Stewart Rhodes, the leader of the Oath Keepers, a prominent group of current and former military and law enforcement members allied with the patriot movement, issued orders to his group that conflicted with earlier instructions from Payne.

In a 2014 video, Payne called the Oath Keepers' actions "desertion" and "dereliction of duty," and the Bundys ejected the Oath Keepers, according to videos and news reports from the time.

The scar of that episode endures today. Rhodes has issued several statements on the Oath Keepers website condemning the Oregon refuge occupation and calling Payne an "agent provocateur."

***

Payne's military service is central to his critics' complaints.

He established his credibility in Bunkerville by citing his military training, but his followers didn't always approve or understand his tactical choices.

Payne is frequently attacked for insinuating that he was an Army Ranger. The term refers to elite special operations soldiers who go through notoriously grueling training called Ranger School or are assigned to designated units.

Payne's military record indicates he didn't go through the school. However, his long-range surveillance company was tagged as a "Ranger Unit," meaning the unit's officers and non-commissioned officers must go through the training, a spokesman for the 82nd Airborne Corps said.

Some of the men who worked with Payne in Bunkerville say they began to wonder whether his edginess was due to lingering trauma from his military service.

Michael Lewis Arthur Meyer, the leader of Veterans on Patrol, a patriot-affiliated group in Southern Arizona that works to bring attention to the high rate of veteran suicide, said he left the Nevada standoff "100 percent certain" that Payne intended to "commit suicide by government."

Meyer launched a trip to the Malheur refuge that he characterized as a rescue mission with Payne as its target.

Payne refused to leave Oregon with Meyer, whose group got in a fistfight with the Malheur occupiers and soon returned to Arizona.

For his part, Payne appears to swing between embracing the role of rebel and longing for wider approval and legitimacy.

He seemed to savor the idea that the FBI has been watching him, for months if not years. "I know they watch me," he told The Oregonian/OregonLive. "I watch them, too."

Payne suggested the FBI has been studying his scouting patterns. "I always get there first," he said. "They know that."

In a video interview with self-styled patriot journalist Pete Santilli in December, Payne boasted about arriving at a federal courthouse in Seattle before the extra security officers he believed were assigned to intimidate members of the patriot community who showed up in support of Schuyler Barbeau, another member of the Bunkerville security detail.

Barbeau was arrested on a weapons charge, but an FBI special agent said Barbeau was suspected of domestic terrorism, including threats on law enforcement.

Since the standoff in Bunkerville, Payne's devotion to the patriot cause has ramped up, if time spent at home in Montana is any measure.

Payne stayed in Bunkerville for about a month, until he and Ryan Bundy joined an ATV ride through southeastern Utah's Recapture Canyon in protest of the Bureau of Land Management's closure of a 14-mile stretch of trail to protect archaeological sites.

In October 2015, he visited Gary Hunt, a prominent patriot blogger and board member of Operation Mutual Aid's successor organization.

Then in November, Payne visited Oregon to meet with the Hammonds, the Burns-area ranchers whose re-sentencing to five years in prison for starting fires that damaged federal land sparked the organizing that led to the occupation. The refuge surrounds the Hammond ranch.

By December, he was living full-time in Burns, occasionally heading to Seattle to attend Barbeau's court hearings.

***

Payne's clearest step into the spotlight came this week, when Ammon Bundy, the public face of the Malheur occupation, invited him to explain to a group of ranchers "how we have people to stand behind us."

Until then, Payne most often stayed on the fringes of Burns-area public meetings. He would sit or lean against a wall, in dark clothes, his arms crossed, his face intent and unsmiling as he observed.

But Monday, Payne confidently strode in front of a whiteboard. He borrowed a copy of the Constitution that typically peeks from the chest pocket of the Bundy brothers' plaid shirts because it also has the Declaration of Independence printed inside.

Payne started with a pop quiz to quash doubts about whether the takeover of the bird sanctuary was justified.

"From what we've gone over here, then is the federal government allowed, constitutionally, to own that land out there?" he asked.

A few questions in, a rancher joked about whether Payne was the guy killing cats all over town. Payne blushed and laughed. "It's good to see you smile," the man said.

But the levity soon vanished. "It's a serious situation we're all in, right?" Payne said, his face returning to his more usual solemn expression.

Payne told the ranchers that 36 of the 56 signatories to the Declaration of Independence were killed and more lost their lives to alcohol. "To be first is the most difficult," he said.

He read the opening of the Declaration aloud, following the words carefully with his finger.

Payne drew parallels between the grievances the Founding Fathers leveled at King George and those Payne said he has heard in Harney County and across rural America.

He ticked them off: Standing armies in the form of state and federal law enforcement. Foreign invasion in the form of the United Nations. Insurrections incited among the people in the form of federal agents posing as militia.

"The same thing that the king was guilty of, the federal government is doing to us," he said.

Payne skipped to the document's final sentence.

"And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence..." -- he closed the book, reciting the rest from memory -- "we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor."

"So if you want to be free," Payne said, "you have to be willing to give it all up."

-- Lynne Palombo of the The Oregonian/OregonLive contributed to this report.

-- Carli Brosseau

cbrosseau@oregonian.com 503-294-5121; @carlibrosseau
As we enter Day 21 of the standoff at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, here are the latest developments:

* The FBI opened negotiations Thursday with refuge occupier Ammon Bundy in a nearly hourlong cellphone conversation. The FBI agent, who identified himself on the phone only as "Chris," listened to Bundy's well-practiced litany of complaints against the federal government and probed for what it would take to end his occupation. They ended the call with the promise to talk again Friday.

* In a letter to the country's top law enforcement officials, Gov. Kate Brown pressed for "swift resolution" of the wildlife refuge occupation outside Burns. Brown also wrote President Obama calling for action "without further delay." The FBI released a statement Thursday afternoon, saying its response has been "deliberate and measured as we seek a peaceful resolution."

* One of the protesters taking part in the armed occupation at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge is a 68-year-old former woodworker and, according to court records and authorities, a convicted killer. Neil Sigurd Wampler drove to Oregon from his home on the California coast earlier this month to join those protesting the arson convictions of father and son ranchers outside Burns. In August 1977, Wampler, who was 29, was convicted of second-degree murder in the killing of his father, Forey Edward Wampler, in Lake County, Calif., according to the district attorney's office there and police reports.

Follow The Oregonian/OregonLive team from the scene today on Twitter:

Les Zaitz @LesZaitz

Kelly House @Kelly_M_House

Mark Graves @markwgraves

Hashtag: #OregonStandoff
BURNS - Negotiations to end the occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge went awry Friday, as protest leader Ammon Bundy questioned the FBI's legal authority to even be in Harney County.

The next step toward resolving the 3-week-old standoff isn't clear.

The hang-up appears to be Bundy's belief that FBI agents have no standing to deal with the refuge takeover unless they're deputized by Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward.

Militiamen and self-styled patriots contend that under the U.S. Constitution, the sheriff is the highest law enforcement power in the county. The word "sheriff," however, doesn't appear in the Constitution.

That didn't stop Bundy from arriving at the Harney County Courthouse to talk to Ward. Instead, he was left to talk at a security checkpoint with Ward's No. 2, Lt. Brian Needham, who was accompanied by Malheur County Sheriff Brian Wolfe.

Bundy, speaking with an intensity unusual given his typical mild demeanor, insisted on knowing if the FBI had gotten permission to operate in the county. He kept pressing when the sheriff's lieutenant said local and federal authorities were working together.

When Needham said the FBI did have the sheriff's authority, Bundy demanded to see it in writing. He was told no.

A taut-faced Bundy walked away from the encounter and uncharacteristically snapped at a reporter's question: "Don't put words in my mouth."

Asked what his next steps would be, he said he was going back to the refuge to work.

Bundy and a group of about 20 others occupied the headquarters of the bird sanctuary on Jan. 2 and so far have refused to leave, saying they want federal land turned over to county control and the release of two imprisoned local ranchers. Operated by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the reserve covers 187,757 acres of wildlife habitat.

The episode marked a departure from Thursday's scene, when Bundy spent nearly an hour talking to an FBI negotiator by phone. The two had agreed to talk again Friday, and Bundy once again showed up at the Burns Municipal Airport, hoping to meet face-to-face with a negotiator who identified himself only as "Chris."

Bundy's visit this time lasted no more than five minutes before he and several carloads of accompanying militants headed to town for the courthouse.

Bundy and his group have been focused on Ward since before the occupation. They originally sought his help to shield ranchers Dwight Hammond Jr. and his son, Steven, from surrendering earlier this month for federal prison terms. The two were convicted of federal arson charges in 2012 related to range fires they started on the sage lands south of Burns.

Ward refused to intercede and has repeatedly urged Bundy and his followers to break camp and go home.

In some militia circles, the sheriff is viewed as the highest legal authority in a county. The Anti-Defamation League said in its online analysis of that view that a sheriff's "most important role was to protect the people from the unlawful acts of officials of governments like judges and government agents."

The Anti-Defamation League said "sovereign citizens" who believe in the power of the sheriff also believe they can punish a sheriff for failing his duty. That included the "right to hang him."

-- Les Zaitz
Evergreen Airlines Portfolio Image, McMinnville

A bankruptcy court judge approved a $4.6 million sale in which Jackson Family Wines bought two buildings - pictured here as 3500 and 3600 - at the former Evergreen International Aviation campus in McMinnville. Ted Nicholson and Katrin Gist of the commercial real estate brokerage CBRE represented the buyer and the seller.

(CBRE)

Jackson Family Wines, a California-based winemaker behind brands such as Kendall-Jackson, has purchased property at the former Evergreen International Aviation campus in McMinnville, where the company plans to develop a wine-production facility.

A bankruptcy court judge approved the $4.6 million sale of the site - home to two buildings across from the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum - earlier this month, court documents show.

Jackson Family Wines operates the nearby Gran Moraine winery in the Willamette Valley and has been adding property in the area. The winemaking giant's portfolio also includes wineries in California, as well as Chile, France, Italy, South Africa and Australia.

The sale was the latest development in the ongoing fallout from McMinnville-based Evergreen International Aviation's demise in late 2013. The affiliated aviation museum remains open, but the space museum and the neighboring Wings & Waves Waterpark are scheduled to be offered for sale in a foreclosure auction on Monday, said Capt. Brandon Bowdle, a Yamhill County Sheriff's Office spokesman.

The sheriff's sale was originally scheduled for Nov. 30 but was postponed, Bowdle said. The foreclosure resulted from a $1.9 million debt the museum property's owner, the Michael King Smith Foundation, owes to Portland builder Hoffman Construction. Hoffman filed a foreclosure suit against the foundation in 2014 and won.

"They were trying to work something out, but it didn't work out," Bowdle said of the parties to the foreclosure. "And so we're moving forward with the sale."

Founded by the late Delford Smith, the nonprofit museum was the public face of Evergreen International Aviation, a for-profit company that provided aviation services to the U.S. government, among other clients.

In 2013, the Oregon Department of Justice began investigating whether funds were improperly mixed between the nonprofit and for-profit operations.

The investigation was rendered moot by the collapse of Evergreen International. But state Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum still asked the Internal Revenue Service in 2014 to examine whether the museum and waterpark were entitled to their tax exemptions.

The museum was left to deal with the fact that the owners of much of its real estate and exhibits were saddled with debt. Last year, the museum reached a deal to buy some of the assets previously owned by Evergreen Vintage Aircraft, an affiliated for-profit company that had filed for bankruptcy.

The museum received a new 20-year lease on certain buildings and 16 of its planes as part of the deal.

The museum also reached a settlement last July with the Aero Club of Southern California, which sought a final payment on the museum's centerpiece exhibit, the Spruce Goose wooden airplane. When news of the sheriff's sale broke in October, the museum said the Spruce Goose was in no danger of being taken or moved.

Jackson Family Wines was outbid on another piece of property at the former Evergreen International Aviation site, the Yamhill Valley News-Register reported. Wilsonville-based Rhodium Loan Servicing bought the Evergreen Aviation Ground Logistics Enterprise, or EAGLE, building adjacent to the two buildings that Jackson Family Wines purchased, according to the newspaper.

Melissa Grace, director of marketing, public relations and events at the aviation museum, said Thursday that the museum is "open for business" and "moving forward" but referred other questions to the Michael King Smith Foundation, which owns the property to be auctioned in the sheriff's sale. Attempts to reach the foundation were unsuccessful.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

-- Luke Hammill

lhammill@oregonian.com

503-294-4029

@lucashammill
Gov. Kate Brown on Friday unveiled her pick for Oregon's first earthquake officer -- a post meant to direct safety preparations across the state at a time of renewed focus on the impending likelihood of a catastrophic quake.

Brown, in a statement, said she's appointed Derek Smith, who stepped down as chief executive of Clean Energy Works in May. Smith's official title will be "state resilience officer."

Under Smith, Clean Energy Works branched out from its original mission around energy efficiency into work helping Oregonians seismically strengthen their homes. Much of that work was done in partnership with the federal government and city of Portland.

"Throughout Derek's career he has successfully led initiatives addressing sustainability and resilience," Brown said in a statement, "even when it hasn't been done before."

Lawmakers passed a bill last year creating the post and allocating $304,000 in funding over the next two years. Smith will answer to Brown and preside over earthquake planning across state agencies and also work with cities and counties.

Less clear, still, is whether lawmakers can find sufficient funding for those safety efforts. The state produced a "resilience plan" in 2013 that included 140 recommendations -- from retrofits to research improvements -- totaling millions of dollars. Creating the resilience officer was at the top of lawmakers' list last session.

Scientists first noted the the dangers of a supersize earthquake along the Cascadia subduction zone decades ago. The zone refers to a seabed fault line that extends from Northern California to British Columbia.

The state's planning landed back in the spotlight last summer after The New Yorker followed several local media outlets in writing about the fault line -- and how much has yet to be done to get ready.

-- Denis C. Theriault

503-221-8430; @TheriaultPDX
10x8_boardman_plant.JPG

Oregon's largest source of greenhouse gases, PGE's Boardman coal plant, will close in 2020. But climate activists want lawmakers to put hard limits on emissions of carbon dioxide from other sources, including utilities, transportation fuels and industrial facilities.

((The Oregonian/Brent Wojahn))

A controversial plan to limit carbon dioxide emissions in Oregon that failed a year ago is back, jostling with another ambitious plan from environmental groups and utilities at this year's month-long legislative session in Salem.

Known as the Healthy Climate Act, the plan would replace the greenhouse gas reduction goals the Legislature passed in 2007 with a series of enforceable limits. Those caps would phase in gradually, but the ultimate target is to reduce carbon emissions 75 percent below 1990 levels by 2050.

Greenhouse gas limits in Healthy Climate Act:

By 2025: Goal of 20 percent below 1990 levels

By 2035: Enforceable limit of 45 percent below 1990 levels

By 2050: Enforceable limit of 75 percent below 1990 levels

Unlike the 2015 effort, which would have directed the Environmental Quality Commission to develop a "market-based" program to achieve those targets, the sponsors of this year's bill have spelled out the specifics: a so-called "cap and invest" program modeled on a system being used in California.

Backers hope the fleshed-out bill will gain more traction this year despite the limited window of time at the Legislature and the competing environmental plan. They see Oregon's carbon limits dovetailing not only with California's, but with efforts to tackle climate change being floated in Washington and already enacted in Canada.

"The expert consensus is that (a carbon cap or price) is the only policy that can lead to the goal of global climate stability," said Camila Thorndike, the head of Oregon Climate, a millennial-led advocacy group on climate issues. "The short session isn't ideal to engage in a high-stakes policy discussion, but it's the time we have in 2016, so we shouldn't sit on our heels.

"The political imperative is inconsequential next to the physical imperative."

Critics, meanwhile, say the legislation would increase utility bills and gas prices. Businesses say extra costs could be passed through to consumers, result in job losses, or force some big industrial operations to relocate out of state.

"There are tens of thousands of jobs at stake here," John Carr, executive director of the Industrial Customers of Northwest Utilities.

The legislation is being co-sponsored by Sen. Chris Edwards, D-Eugene, chair of the Environment and Natural Resources Committee, and Sen. Lee Beyer, D-Springfield, chair of the Business and Transportation committee and a former utility regulator for the state.

At a joint session of the House and Senate energy committees last week, Edwards said that if the bill passes next month, the Department of Environmental Quality could start convening stakeholder meetings this spring, and a final program could be ready for legislators to tweak and approve in the 2019 legislative session. If that happens, it would be implemented in 2020.

"If we don't take it up by 2020, the possibility or likelihood of hitting (state climate) goals is very unlikely," he said. "We already know we're not going to hit the 2020 goals."

Climate bills in the 2016 legislature:

Clean Electricity and Coal Transition Plan: Would electricity from coal-fired power plants by 2035 and mandate that utilities serve 50 percent of their customers' demand with renewable energy by 2040.

Healthy Climate Act: Would establish hard caps on emissions of carbon dioxide from the transportation fuels, utility and industrial sectors. Creates a market-based incentive system to reduce emissions by auctioning emissions allowances. Directs auction proceeds into transportation projects, ratepayer credits and grants that reduce emissions and address the impacts of climate change.

Many of the details of the proposal would be hashed out in rulemaking if the bill passes. But the basic plan is to have the Department of Environmental Quality start auctioning off emissions allowances to companies in the utility and industrial sectors, and eventually to companies that sell transportation fuels.

Each facility or company emitting more than 25,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide a year would be required to buy allowances to cover each metric ton. The state would set a floor price for the allowances, and gradually ratchet down the number auctioned each year - reducing supply and increasing cost.

As the price of allowances increased, so would incentive to reduce emissions. Companies that didn't comply would be penalized.

The biggest standalone sources of carbon dioxide emissions in the state are power plants. Portland General Electric's coal-fired power plant in Boardman generated 3.1 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions in 2014, for example. But there were about 70 other industrial facilities that exceeded the 25,000-ton emissions threshold in recent years, including semiconductor plants, steel mills, cement plants and pulp and paper mills.

The auction proceeds could be considerable - some $280 million from the utility and industrial sectors alone if the allowance price at kickoff were $13 a ton, roughly equivalent to California's price today. Auctions of allowances to transportation fuels companies would start in 2025 or 2026, generating more money. Academic studies suggest the price needs to be in the range of $45 a ton to motivate action by utilities.

The bill envisions those dollars flowing back into projects or rebates that, in principle at least, are related to climate change. The collections from utilities, for example, would go to ratepayer credits. Those from transportation fuels and industrial companies would go into transportation projects and grant programs to fund job creation, training and mental health services for those affected by climate change or climate change policies.

The carbon legislation comes on top of the low-carbon fuel standard lawmakers extended last year to reduce transportation emissions. The Healthy Climate Act would exempt transportation fuels from the carbon allowance auctions until the goals of that legislation are achieved.

The bill could also end up competing with a proposal backed by utilities and environmental groups that would eliminate electricity from coal-fired power plants by 2035 and require utilities to serve 50 percent of customer demand with renewable energy by 2040.

Advocates of the carbon bill say it's complementary to those efforts, providing the financial stick to make sure they have the desired outcomes. As a standalone bill, they maintain it would give companies and facilities flexibility to achieve emissions reductions in the most cost effective way possible.

Not everyone agrees.

Steve Corson, a spokesman for Portland General Electric, said the company isn't opposed to carbon legislation per se, but would like to see it adopted on a national basis uniformly. Meanwhile, he says PGE and PacifiCorp are already backing the plan to eliminate coal and increase renewables - one they contend can be accomplished without major rate hikes.

"It's a better plan," he said. "We don't see (the Health Climate Act) driving carbon reductions. We see it driving price increases."

Industrial companies oppose the utilities proposal, and will also line up against carbon limits.

"We're opposed to both bills," said Carr.

Kristin Eberhard, a senior researcher with the Sightline Institute, said critics are overblowing the financial impact on consumers, and underestimating the jobs that would be created by new investments as utilities and others complied with the law.

She points to the fact that the legislation includes free emissions offsets for industries that are energy sensitive and particularly exposed to out-of-state competition. And she estimated that a residential customer of an electric utility might see a $3 a month rate increase at the start.

"The average Oregon household's electricity bill will increase by less than the cost of a gallon of milk," she said. "But that investment will cut costs in the future as we make a safe, healthy transition from risky out-of-state coal power to local energy efficiency and renewable power."

- Ted Sickinger

503-221-8505; @tedsickinger
Donald Trump is both a bully and a thin-skinned baby. Worst of all, he's a big phony.

So says National Review, the conservative movement's house organ since its founding by the late William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955.

"[H]e is not deserving of conservative support in the caucuses and primaries," the magazine writes in a long "manifesto" calling on all conservatives to reject the Republican presidential front-runner. "Trump is a philosophically unmoored political opportunist who would trash the broad conservative ideological consensus within the GOP in favor of a free-floating populism with strong-man overtones."

In an unprecedented move, the magazine has devoted its latest issue to trashing the real-estate magnate, with essays from 22 well-known conservatives attacking Trump. Glenn Beck, for one calls, Trump's rise "a crisis for conservatism." But it's the editors' punch that is making the greatest impact.

No true conservative can trust anything Trump says, NR's editors insist in the issue's lead editorial. They point out that over the years he and populist Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders "have shared more than funky outer-borough accents," noting Trump's past support for higher taxes on the wealthy, gun control and single-payer universal health care. The editorial argues that Trump will say whatever Republican primary voters want to hear.

The magazine doesn't stop there. In fact, it's only getting warmed up. The editors smirk at the tough-guy Trump persona, mocking him for mindlessly saying he will "bomb the s---t" out of ISIS and throwing their hands up over his suggestion that the U.S. should kill terrorists' families -- "a war crime," they note.

"[E]ven on immigration, Trump often makes no sense and can't be relied upon," the National Review editorial says. "A few short years ago, he was criticizing Mitt Romney for having the temerity to propose 'self-deportation,' or the entirely reasonable policy of reducing the illegal population through attrition while enforcing the nation's laws. Now, Trump is a hawk's hawk."

At the end of the day, National Review concludes, a President Trump would be a monumental failure, noting that he lacks experience in political office and insisting he doesn't have deep knowledge of the issues. "[I]f you have no familiarity with the relevant details and the levers of power, and no clear principles to guide you, you will, like most tenderfeet, get rolled," the editors write. "Especially if you are, at least by all outward indications, the most poll-obsessed politician in all of American history."

Trump has responded, in his usual way, with a series tweets.

The late, great, William F. Buckley would be ashamed of what had happened to his prize, the dying National Review!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 22, 2016

The National Review's attack on Trump is nothing less than a declaration of war by establishment Republicans against so-called Tea Party Republicans. (Tea Party darling Sarah Palin, remember, endorsed Trump this week.) And despite the magazine's blistering, all-bases-covered fusillade, the establishment wing of the party is not operating from a place of strength. The candidate in second place in the presidential polls isn't Jeb Bush or Marco Rubio or John Kasich. It's Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, another insurgent who's widely hated by party elders. Bob Dole, the 1996 Republican presidential nominee and former Senate majority leader, told the New York Times this week that Republicans in Congress distrust Cruz, viewing him as a crass opportunist. "I don't know how he's going to deal with Congress," he said of a possible President Cruz. "Nobody likes him."

Iowa's Republican governor, Terry Branstad, said Cruz "could be very damaging to our state" and has encouraged Iowans to reject him.

All of this puts the Republican Party in a tight spot. Whether its established leaders like the eventual presidential nominee or not, there is going to be a nominee. And if that's Trump, the party knows it has to make the best of things. The Republican National Committee's first move: it's stripped National Review of its planned role in the February 26 Republican debate in Houston.

-- Douglas Perry
iannarone.jpeg

Restaurant owner Sarah Iannarone announced her mayoral candidacy Jan.21, 2016.

(Brad Schmidt/The Oregonian)

State tax collectors filed a nearly $4,500 lien last year against Sarah Iannarone, Portland's newly announced mayoral candidate who hopes to raise big bucks for the May 17 election.

Iannarone didn't fully pay personal income taxes for 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013, according to the lien, filed in Multnomah County and obtained by The Oregonian/OregonLive.

In a brief interview Thursday, she blamed the issue on an "accounting error" and said it is being addressed, although she wasn't sure whether the debt has been paid. There was no record Thursday with Multnomah County saying it had been satisfied.

Iannarone said the issue of unpaid taxes shouldn't detract from her candidacy or fundraising goals. Earlier Thursday, Iannarone said she hoped to raise $100,000 in the early weeks of her campaign to show she's a viable opponent to frontrunners Ted Wheeler and Jules Bailey.

"I think the private sector will be sensitive to the fact that these things happen and it's being taken care of," she said.

Iannarone, 42, owns the Arleta Library Bakery Cafe and works for Portland State University as assistant director of First Stop Portland, a tour group for visiting dignitaries. Iannarone is also friends and co-workers with Mayor Charlie Hales' wife, Nancy, who directs First Stop.

Both support her decision to run, Iannarone said, although the mayor didn't specifically encourage it.

As of March 2015, Iannarone owed $2,105 in past taxes, $2,105 in penalties, $253 in interest and $32 in fees, according to the lien. Interest on the unpaid debt runs 46 cents a day.

Iannarone said she didn't specifically remember when she first learned about the issue, or whether she received notices seeking past-due payments for the 2010, 2011, 2012 or 2013 tax years. She said she didn't realize the debts were accruing at the time.

Iannarone said she has hired a new accountant and the debt is being paid off monthly.

The Oregon Department of Revenue doesn't confirm the status of tax liens, spokesman Bob Estabrook said. Generally, he said, a tax lien would remain in effect during a repayment period, although it could appear active if it had been very recently paid off.

"Once the debt had been satisfied," he said, "we'd ask the county to release the lien."

-- Brad Schmidt

503-294-7628

@cityhallwatch
A federal jury Thursday night found in favor of Portland police Officer Greg Baldwin, determining he did not violate Lisa Haynes' constitutional rights when he stopped and arrested her in 2012 while looking for a mail theft suspect described as a Hispanic male.

The jury's verdict came at the end of a second trial in the case. The eight-member jury deliberated for about 2 1/2 hours.

The first trial ended last month when a different jury was deadlocked in evaluating Baldwin's actions. The jury in December, though, unanimously ruled that Baldwin's trainee, rookie officer Justin Winkel, did not violate Haynes' rights during a stop Feb. 17, 2012 in Southeast Portland.

After the mixed verdict last month, U.S. District Court Judge Marco A. Hernandez urged both sides to try to resolve the case to avoid a second trial. But Haynes and Baldwin returned to court for a new trial this week when no agreement could be reached. A new jury was seated Tuesday and the trial ended Thursday.

Haynes and her attorney Gerald Noble argued that Baldwin didn't have reasonable suspicion to detain her, when her gender, race, height and weight didn't match the suspect's description.

The suspect was described as a Hispanic male in his 30s with a thin build, between 5-foot-4 and 5-foot 6, and wearing a black jacket, cream-colored beanie and carrying a black backpack. Haynes stands at 4-foot-10 and weighs 147 pounds.

Noble told jurors that Baldwin gave "nonsense explanations'' to justify their stop of Haynes.

City attorneys countered that Haynes' clothing matched the suspect's, that she didn't follow the officer's orders to provide her name and identification, and created such a loud disturbance.

A witness had called 911 about a man rifling through mailboxes near Southeast 72nd Avenue and Steele Street.

Baldwin and Winkel were riding together in a patrol car when Baldwin spotted Haynes at Southeast 82nd and Foster Road. Baldwin radioed dispatchers that he saw a "black female,'' and questioned whether the witness was certain he had seen a Hispanic male. The dispatcher said he wasn't sure, but that the witness could be contacted.

Baldwin and Winkel then drove into the lot of a Wells Fargo bank at Southeast 82nd and Foster. By then, Haynes, was standing under the ATM awning beside the bank to stay out of the rain. She said she was waiting for a bus.

The officers said they approached Haynes because her black jacket, black backpack and cream-colored hat beneath her jacket's hood matched the suspect description.

Haynes, 50, testified that the officers asked for her name and ID, and told her only that they had gotten a call about a suspicious person. Haynes said she asked why they needed her name, and insisted she had done nothing wrong. She said she got their OK to call her son, but soon Baldwin told her to get off the phone and asked for her identification. Haynes admitted she didn't get off the phone because she was scared.

Baldwin testified that he offered to get Haynes' ID out of her backpack, and made a motion toward the pack. He said he did so to see how'd she react, thinking she might have stolen mail in it. Haynes, however, said Baldwin reached to grab her backpack before she did. Winkel, in his police report, noted that Baldwin "reached'' for the pack.

The officers both testified that Haynes then "lunged'' for her backpack, and they grabbed her arms to handcuff her. They said they thought she might have had a weapon in the backpack and were concerned for their safety.

Haynes' lawyer Noble argued that it was preposterous to think that Baldwin, who is about 6 foot 1 inch tall and 258 pounds, was fearful of Haynes.

There was no dispute that Haynes was yelling that the officers were violating her rights, calling for someone to videotape the encounter and asking the officers what she had done.

Baldwin described Haynes' yelling as alarming and embarrassing and causing such a disturbance that he feared it would distract a motorist and cause a crash in the busy intersection. That's when they arrested her, accusing her of disorderly conduct, interfering with police and resisting arrest. The charges ended up being dismissed and Haynes was never taken to jail.

Baldwin said he arrested Haynes to "deescalate'' and "defuse'' the situation, adding that it stopped her from screaming.

"I wasn't aggressive. I was cordial up until the point she made things aggressive,'' he testified.

Noble, reached Thursday night, said Haynes is disappointed in the second verdict.

And the case may not be over.

"Ms. Haynes is planning to appeal the decision based on what we think are very biased and unfair jury instructions and an inadequate and confusing verdict form,'' Noble said.

-- Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com

503-221-8212

@maxoregonian
Establishing an off-site elephant center for the Oregon Zoo would require a $50 million endowment, Metro chief operating officer Martha Bennett said Thursday, recommending the proposal be scrapped.

"We simply don't have the resources to proceed at this point in a responsible manner," Bennett told Metro Councilors. She said it would require $20 million to $30 million in startup costs, and $2.3 million in annual operating money.

The council heard Bennett's recommendation along with supporting testimony, including from interim zoo director Teri Dresler. The council is expected to vote on the recommendation at a later meeting. It also is expected to decide later what to do with the $7.1 million that had been targeted for the project, known as the Remote Elephant Center.

That money was part of the $125 million zoo bond measure voters passed in 2008. (Of the off-site project money, $5.8 million would be generated by bonds when they are sold; the other $1.3 million from Oregon Zoo Foundation cash.)

Among other improvements, the zoo bond measure called for enlarging the on-site elephant enclosure from 1.5 acres to 6 acres - a $57 million project that was completed in December. Resolution supporters often cited the project as having significantly improved living conditions for the zoo's elephant population and thus justifying, in part, a decision to abandon an off-site project.

And District 1 Councilor Shirley Craddick rejected the notion bond supporters had promised, before the November 2008 vote, that the Remote Elephant Center would be among the capital projects supported.

"This was not part of the bond measure," Craddick said following Bennett's presentation. "I want to make sure that's clear... I don't see that in the work that we did."

Instead, Metro officials said the council's resolution supporting the bond measure had called only for investigating the feasibility of an off-site center.

Metro Council President Tom Hughes said he didn't know about the possibility of an off-site elephant center when, in his previous role as Hillsboro mayor, he signed a letter supporting the bond measure.

In a 2011 interview with The Oregonian, then zoo director Kim Smith focused on the feasibility study in talking about the off-site center. But on election eve, Smith's predecessor, Tony Vecchio, told The Oregonian that "he envisioned most of the zoo's elephants spending a majority of their time at the reserve and being trucked to the zoo for special occasions."

Regardless, Metro officials told the council on Thursday that visions that may have existed in 2008 had been sharpened by the research into the off-site possibility.

In addition to the high expense, officials said, there was the problem of finding a large, secure site that was convenient to the zoo and that would be acceptable to neighbors.

Courtney Scott, a longtime critic of the zoo's elephant care practices, wasn't buying the explanations to abandon the off-site facility in her testimony to the council.

"Here we are eight years later," Scott said, referring to the 2008 bond measure. "The dream has died. You had an opportunity here. You had an opportunity to create something that the entire nation and the world could look up to."

Scott also said she believes the bond measure she voted for called for the off-site reserve.

"Is this the progressive city that we all love? Portland, of all places, should live up to the intent of this bond measure. To the promise - yes, promise - of this bond measure."

-- Allan Brettman
Tammy Jo Osborn 42 of Mt. Pleasant passed away Wednesday January 20, 2016 comforted by her parents. Tammy was born August 5, 1973 in Ross County, OH the daughter of Chester and Janie Campbell Osborn of Waverly, OH. Tammy was a 1991 graduate of Southeastern High School, Richmond Dale, OH, upon graduation she enlisted in the Army serving ten years in the armed services attaining the rank of Sergeant and warrant officer receiving numerous medals, awards and ribbons. Upon serving her full term in the Army, Tammy then enlisted in the Army Reserve and National Guard serving an additional twelve years for a total of 22 years of service. Tammy was recently employed as an auditor by the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board. Surviving are her parents, a brother, Eric of NY and a host of friends and relatives. Entombment with full military honors at the Indiantown Gap National Cemetery will be announced when completed. Arrangements under direction of SALOOM-REGA FUNERAL SERVICE 730 W. Main Street Mount Pleasant 724-547-2122. Please visit Tammys online memorial at www.saloom-rega.com to sign the condolence guestbook. Richard Rega, funeral director.
Penn State Hershey Medical Center Thursday celebrated the opening of its new Pediatric Emergency Department.

The new area, which is located within the hospitals existing Emergency Department, features 12 private treatment rooms. It is staffed by a team of providers who are specially trained to care for children with urgent medical needs.

The department also has the resources of Penn State Hershey Childrens Hospital, including access to local pediatric specialists.

Construction on the $2.1 million project began in March 2015 and concluded earlier this month, the health system said.

This new space is important because it allows our staff to care for patients within an environment that is specifically designed for children, said Dr. Susan Promes, chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at Penn State Hershey. Just as importantly, the department provides access to the same expertise patients and their families expect from the rest of the Childrens Hospital.

Other features of the new department include Child Life staff to help children cope with their medical emergency, specially designed environment that embraces nature, child-friendly toys and games, and meals and refreshments that cater to children.

We built our Childrens Hospital so that parents across central Pennsylvania wouldnt have to leave the area for high-level care from a full range of pediatric specialists when their children are sick or injured, said Dr. A. Craig Hillemeier, chief executive officer of the medical center and health system. This new Pediatric Emergency Department is another demonstration of our commitment to caring for the regions children.

Penn State Hershey said that between July 2014 and June 2015, the medical center treated nearly 20,000 children in its emergency department, accounting for about 27 percent of all emergency department visits.
The Marine Corps has announced that it considers the 12 Marines who were in two helicopters that crashed off Hawaii last week to be dead.

One of the 12 Marines whose status was changed from missing to deceased was Sgt. Adam Schoeller of Gardners, a graduate of Boiling Springs High School.

The public has been invited to a vigil service for Schoeller, to be held at 3 p.m. Sunday at the Veterans Clock Tower in Boiling Springs. The vigil was planned by Boiling Springs VFW Post 8851 and the Marine Corps League 524 of Carlisle.

We invite this community to come out in a show of support for this veteran, fellow Bubbler and his family, a Facebook post announcing the event states.

Schoeller, a 2008 graduate of Boiling Springs, was one of 12 Marines who were taking part in a training mission in Oahu, Hawaii on Jan. 14, when their two helicopters went missing.

Search efforts, which turned up wreckage from the helicopters, were hampered by high surf and rough conditions, and on Tuesday the active search was suspended.

The Associated Press reported Thursday that the Marine Corps had changed the status of the 12 Marines to deceased, and that they were considered dead.

The Marines said casualty assistance calls officers personally notified each family of the change.

A memorial is planned for Friday at a military base in Hawaii. Gov. Tom Wolf Thursday ordered all flags at the Capitol Complex and at commonwealth facilities to half-staff in honor of the missing Marines. Flags will remain at half-staff until sunset today.

An outpouring of public support for Schoeller and his family was seen both in the Midstate and nationwide.

As our family remembers Adam we remember his smile/dimple and amazing personality that just filled everyones heart, Tina Beam said in a comment on a Go Fund Me account set up to reimburse travel costs for Schoellers family and other expenses the family may incur. We are heartbroken over this tragedy. Our hearts break for all the families involved in this tragic accident. Our thoughts prayers go out to the (families) of all of courageous marines. Adam and these marines are and always will be heroes!

The fundraising account  www.gofundme.com/AdamSchoeller  has far exceeded its $5,000 goal and as of midday Thursday had eclipsed $13,000 from more than 200 donors.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
The Humane Society of Bay County will host a town hall meeting titled Animal Abuse: What is It? How to Report It to discuss animal cruelty and fighting and its connection to other violent crimes on Monday.

The program will run from 6-7:45 p.m. in the Kantzler Room at The Alice & Jack Wirt Public Library, 500 Center Ave. in Bay City. The event is free and open to the public.

The meeting will begin with a panel discussion by area law enforcement officials and humane society advocates about recent animal cruelty cases in the area, along with an overview of Michigans animal cruelty laws. Members of the public then will have an opportunity to ask questions and join in the discussion about how citizens can help address animal cruelty and fighting in the Bay County area.

Panel members will include Bay County Undersheriff Troy Cunningham; Bay City Public Safety Director Michael J. Cecchini, Bay County Animal Control officers Lee Zielinski and Olivia Shields; and The Humane Society of the United States Michigan Senior State Director Jill Fritz.

Michigans animal cruelty and fighting laws were recently ranked No. 5 in the nation by the Animal Legal Defense Fund, said Jeannie Wolicki-Nichols, president of the board of the Humane Society of Bay County. That is encouraging, but we can and must do more to improve those laws and their enforcement, and to educate the public about how animal cruelty directly affects each and every one of us.

The region has seen a number of animal cruelty and torture cases in 2015, including the mutilation and blinding of a cat in Bay City in January, the shooting of a therapy dog in Bangor Township in April, and in October, the shooting a familys cat with a pellet gun in Bangor Township and the shooting and killing of a Bay City familys dog who went missing from his fenced yard. In many of those cases, a reward was offered by the Humane Society of Bay County and other organizations and businesses to help law enforcement officials try to apprehend a suspect.

We often hear from people who feel helpless about what to do when they suspect that animals are being abused, fought or neglected in the Bay County area, said Wolicki-Nichols. This forum is designed to empower citizens to become more involved in reporting those suspected crimes, and helping to make our community safer for both animals and people.

The connection between animal cruelty and human violence is well documented. Studies show a correlation between animal cruelty and all manner of other crimes, from narcotics and firearms violations to battery and sexual assault. In August of 2015, the Humane Society of Bay County launched the $100 Paws Club to support the victims of animal cruelty, educate the public and promote awareness about the connection between animal cruelty and violence towards humans, and to enhance the lives of animals in Bay County.
The Michigan Small Business Development Center Great Lakes Bay Region will offer a cyber security awareness training entitled Small Business, Big Threat at Delta College on Friday, Jan. 29, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. There is no cost to attend.

The cyber security awareness training is a part of the Michigan SBDCs statewide initiative, aimed at educating small business owners and employees on ways to protect their business from a cyber-attack.
Covering politics for the Daily News, I had my Tuesday night all planned out: grab some water and chips, plop down in my soft and cozy recliner, and watch Gov. Rick Snyders State of the State address beginning at 7 p.m.

Little did I know that I would be foregoing the food and sitting on a semi-soft chair but exchange it for an up close and personal view of the governor, just 30 feet away, as he addressed a jam-packed House Chamber at the state Capitol in Lansing.

A phone call from State Rep. Gary Glenn early Tuesday afternoon set the change in motion. Glenn had originally invited Jimmy Greene to be his guest, but due to a last minute meeting, Greene couldnt attend. So I had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to watch the address live (thank you Jimmy).

Daily News photographer Brittney Lohmiller had made arrangements to take photos of the event, so we headed to Lansing about 3 p.m.

Approaching the Capitol, immediately we could feel the energy. Surrounding the Capitol were hordes and hordes of media vehicles. The sidewalk approaches to the Capitol entrances were partially blocked with Michigan State Police vehicles. The Capitol grounds were filled with Michigan State Police in their dark blue uniforms.

The impact of Flints water crisis was evident as across North Capital Avenue, to the east of the Capitol, a group of protestors shared their displeasure with Snyder and how he has handled the crisis.

Even though it was a cold night outside, the vibrancy continued as we checked in, received our passes and headed to the House Speakers Reception. What awaited was a hallway full of wall to wall people outside the speakers offices.

Having not eaten since lunch, the three of us, Glenn, Lohmiller and I, thought we were getting in the long line for food. Just as we approached the head of the line, we instead found out it was to greet Speaker Kevin Cotter

Then to add to our dismay, before being able to find the food, the announcement was made that all 110 representatives and guests had to report to the House Chambers and be seated by 6 p.m. for the 7 p.m. speech.

As lively and energetic as it was outside the chambers, the inside pace slowed tremendously. At 6 p.m., with three loud raps of his gavel, Cotter opened the House session, followed by cabinet members entering the chamber and the 38 senators marching in for a joint session, presided over by Lt. Gov. Brian Calley, president of the Senate.

The ceremonial procedures continued as escorts were sent to retrieve different groups of officials: state officers, Court of Appeals judges, Supreme Court judges, and finally, Snyder and his family at 7 p.m., which brought everyone to their feet in applause. Sen. Jim Stamas had the honor of escorting the state officers into the chamber, down the aisle and into their seats just in front of Snyder. Unfortunately, it was another wait as each group of escorts had to leave the chamber, retrieve their guests and then escort them back to the jam-packed chamber. The one moment of buzz came when the Rev. Jesse Jackson was spotted on the floor as a guest.

Flint was definitely front and center for the contrite and apologetic Snyder. Presenting his fifth State of the State, Snyder began his address by squarely putting the blame on his shoulders for the Flint water situation. I cannot remember ever having heard a State of the State or State or the Union that has had a governor or president be so apologetic as Snyder was Tuesday night over the Flint water crisis.

As he spoke, it was evident who was a Snyder supporter and who would just as soon see him ousted. The right side of the aisle was just waiting on the edge of their seats to jump up and applaud the governor. The majority of the time, the left side stayed glued to their seats, except when guests in the gallery were recognized, then the whole chamber was willing to quickly burst into a standing ovation.

Having just announced that he had prostate cancer, it was interesting to observe the number of people, Democrat and Republican, that offered support, thoughts, hugs and prayers for Glenn.

The day was definitely one of excitement and energy, followed by an hour of tedious waiting and another hour of excitement and energy during Snyders speech.

On the way home it was a quick stop at Arbys, a chocolate shake for Brittney and a much anticipated and appreciated jamocha shake for me. Then back to Midland about 9:45 p.m. loaded with memories of a very educational and special day.

John Kennett covers county government and politics for the Daily News.
To the editor:

After Mom retired from her nursing career in the late 1970s at the Midland hospital, I asked her what she would liked to have had while raising children that would have been a tremendous help. Her answer was: a clothes dryer. She had indoor plumbing and central heat and said it would have been her choice.

Several times a week you could find Mom in the basement standing over her wringer washer with her trusty paring knife, whittling shavings into it from a large amber bar of Fels Naptha soap.

She hung out four 40-foot lines of clothes to dry. Her fingers wouldnt thaw out for hours during the cold winter months in what now is the deep right field of Dow Diamond.

During the winter months with temperatures near zero, my siblings and I would arrive home from school. Four volunteers (you, you, you and you) were chosen for the laundry task, which meant taking the clothes from the lines and re-hung in the basement to finish drying overnight.

Removing sheets from the line took the combined effort of four. Two would remove them and hand them to two helpers to hold. Those sheets came off the line like ice-coated sheets of thin plywood. The four of us would sidestep through the snow, trying not to fall down. The next trick was jostling them through the door and down into the basement. I often wished we could have had a movie of four klutzy teens with cold fingers, Gandy dancing that frozen laundry through the ice and snow.

Removing the remaining clothes was easier. We formed a two-way Conga line, moving fast to get the job done. The carrot on the stick was getting inside and warmed up before dinner. We had a bushel basket to throw the clothes pins into. After spring thaw, wed find dozens of stray pins under the lines. With frozen fingers and bulky gloves, we missed many three-pointers.

For some unknown reason, Mom thought clothes needed to be hung outside to retain that fresh outdoor odor. Finally, we convinced her that the fresh odor wasnt worth the pain and to hang them in the basement during the winter months was much easier on all of us. She finally and grudgingly agreed.

Dad built her a laundry room on the main floor. The reason: Mom couldnt answer the door or the phone from the basement. Mom was coming of age and into the 20th century. She taught her charges how laundry was accomplished and upgraded to using soap granules or flakes.

When the first clothes dryers arrived in Midland in the late 1940s, Mom was at the head of the line and bought one. She announced that there would be a clothes line burning ceremony and a marshmallow toast over the fire with home-brewed root beer. Out with the old and in with the new was her latest motto. We tried to avoid her eyes when she said it. However, she did have two more babies in the early 40s and decided to keep the older models.

RONALD SEARS

(a native Midlander)

Baton Rouge, La.
The Cumberland Valley Business Journal  a publication of The Sentinel  rolled out Jan. 22 with a kickoff event at Dickinson College to formally welcome the local business community to the venture.

Copies of the journal were mailed directly to members of local chambers of commerce, and are also available for pickup at select locations where The Sentinel is also sold.

Weve been planning this for at least the last six months, and its great to see it all come together and for the community to be so supportive of the idea, said Gary Adkisson, Publisher of The Sentinel.

The journal, released on a monthly basis, will focus on the local economy and business climate, featuring in-depth stories and analysis of issues affecting local finance, development, and employment.

Januarys inaugural issue gives an overview of Cumberland Countys economy, focusing on data used in the countys strategic economic plan developed by the Cumberland Area Economic Development Corporation (CAEDC), a publicly-backed nonprofit.

CAEDC, along with Martson Law, Carlisle Regional Medical Center, and the Tuckey Companies are founding sponsors of the CVBJ. Further advertising opportunities are also available via The Sentinels sales department.

We really appreciate the opportunity to team up with The Sentinel and help with some positive change in the discussion of business in this county, said Martson Law partner David Fitzsimons.

Cumberland County continues to have significantly higher population growth, and lower unemployment, than the rest of the state. The US Census puts Cumberlands 2014 population at roughly 244,000, up 3.5 percent from 2010 and well ahead of the state average growth of 0.7 percent. Unemployment has reached under 4 percent, below national levels of around 6 percent.

Despite growth, wages in Cumberland County still track roughly 7 percent below the state average, according to the federal Bureau of Economic Analysis. Net income, while higher than the state average  likely due to the number of retirees  has grown slower than the rest of Pennsylvania since 2003.

The Cumberland Valley Business Journal also features monthly columns by Gene Barr, President of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry, CAEDC CEO Jonathan Bowser, and local chambers of commerce.

To subscribe to the journal, contact Kim Kamowski at 717-240-7114 or kkamowski@cumberlink.com. For advertising inquiries, contact Cathy Clark at 171-240-7102 or cclark@cumberlink.com.
They account for nearly 40% of Pennsylvania Small Businesses Research has shown that womenowned businesses tend to be less financed than men-owned businesses, but in 2022 we are continuing to see an increase of women starting businesses all on their own, while also outperforming those owned and run by men....
U.S. Air Force, Japan Air Self-Defense Force, and Royal Australian Air Force servicemembers will conduct two media flights and host a media day at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Feb. 10 to 26 as part of Cope North 2016.

The 87th annual CN 16 exercise is a long-standing multilateral engagement designed to enhance air operations and interoperability between participating militaries.

The first media flight is scheduled to fly from Guam to Rota and back, covering the humanitarian assistance and disaster relief training portions of the exercise Feb. 16. Participating media will be on the ground in Rota for about one hour to capture the Healthcare Response Team in action. Registered media should meet at the Andersen AFB visitor center at 7:30 a.m.

There is a second media flight scheduled Feb. 19 in which media members will get the opportunity to ride on a KC-135 Stratotanker and witness in-air refueling first-hand. Registered media should meet at the Andersen AFB visitor center at 7:30 a.m.

Media are also invited to attend the media day Feb. 17 from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The media day will begin with a press conference featuring leaders from the USAF, JASDF and RAAF. Also included will be a tour of the flight line, where media will be able to see the JASDFs F-15J Eagle, the RAAFs F/A-18E/F Hornet, the USAFs F-16 Fighting Falcon, and the USAFs E-3 Sentry up close. Aircrews will be available to speak to each aircrafts capabilities. Media will also have the opportunity to capture any takeoffs and landings during that time. Registered media should meet at the Andersen AFB visitor center at 9:20 a.m.

Andersen AFB Public Affairs will send out a separate release detailing how media can participate in their open house Feb. 20.

Media interested in attending any of the above events should send their registration requests via email to christen.ornella@us.af.mil and pacaf.pax@us.af.mil by Feb. 4.

For more information, please contact 1st Lt. Christen Ornella via email or at 808-448-3229.
SHIZUOKA, Japan -- Marines toured Japan Ground Self-Defense Force 1st Anti-Aircraft Battalion facilities Jan. 13 on Camp Komakado, Shizuoka, Japan.

The visit strengthened the relationship between Marines and members of the JGSDF by allowing the service members to explore static displays of anti-aircraft defense equipment and vehicles, discuss training and tactical procedures, and eat meals together.

Today was a very big step for our Marines, said 1st Lt. Yosef E. Adiputra, the officer in charge of 2nd Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion, Marine Aircraft Control Group 28, currently assigned to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, III Marine Expeditionary Force under the unit deployment program. Given the American presence in the Asia-Pacific region, it is crucial for us to build that cohesion with our counterparts here in Japan so we can build relationships and partnerships and learn from each other.

The Marines rode onto Camp Komakado on a JGSDF truck and filed into a conference room in the 1st Anti-Aircraft Battalion building, where they received a brief on the equipment and operational capabilities of the unit. The Marines then toured the building and viewed static displays of tactical vehicles and weapon systems at the JGSDF motor pool.

We are very pleased to be able to present our facilities to Marines, said JGSDF 1st Lt. Takahashi, with the 1st Anti-Aircraft Battalion. We want them to see how we train and discuss our tactics so we can learn from each other and develop a strong relationship.

The Marines also tour included a visit to the Improved Moving Target Simulator, during which Marines tried their hand at operating a simulated Personal Surface to Air Missile and firing at animated targets.

According to Adiputra, a Queens, New York, native, the 1st Anti-Aircraft Battalion is structured much like a Marine Battalion.

The way their unit functions is very efficient and very impressive, said Adiputra. They are very capable and the similarities help us relate better, while the differences allow us to learn from each other.

The facilities tour ended with the martial arts training facility, where members of the JGSDF demonstrated various facets of the program; such as hand-to-hand, rifle-bearing and Kendo-based combat techniques.

After the demonstrations, the Marines and JGSDF members gathered on the rooftop of the battalion building and posed for photos before enjoying lunch together.

Japan and the United States are critical allies with an important relationship, said Takahashi. When I visited Okinawa last year, I was treated very well by the Marines, so I wanted the Marines to have same experience here. That's why we invited Marines. Our friendship is very important and this was a great opportunity to build on it.
Deputy Secretary Blinken traveled to Beijing on January 21 for meetings with Chinese officials, including for the second round of the Interim Strategic Security Dialogue (ISSD).

The dialogue, co-chaired by Deputy Secretary Blinken and Chinese Executive Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui, was characterized by frank, constructive discussions on topics of mutual interest, including the response to North Korea's recent nuclear test and maritime issues. The co-chairs were joined in the dialogue by Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for East Asia Abraham Denmark, Deputy Chief of the International Military Cooperation Office Rear Admiral Li Ji, and other senior defense and civilian officials from the two countries. The dialogue is designed to enhance mutual understanding of strategic security issues and reiterate the importance of continued in-depth, sustained, and open communication, to further develop a stable and cooperative strategic security relationship between China and the United States. The two delegations look forward to the sixth meeting of the full Strategic Security Dialogue on the eve of the next S&ED later this year. 

Separately, the Deputy Secretary met with Taiwan Affairs Office Minister Zhang Zhijun to discuss cross-Strait relations. The Deputy Secretary reiterated the United States' abiding interest in continued cross-Strait peace and stability.

Deputy Secretary Blinken also met with members of civil society to reinforce the United States' concern over the diminishing space for freedom of expression in China. They discussed concerns over the crackdown on lawyers, recent arrests of civil society actors, as well as several new and proposed Chinese laws further restricting the activities of civil society.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia  The Malaysian army welcomed Gen. Vincent K. Brooks Jan. 18, 2016, for his fourth visit since taking command of U.S. Army Pacific in July 2013.

Lauding Malaysias contributions to security in South East Asia, Brooks said, Malaysia is holding a strong line in countering extremist ideologies in the region.

Malaysia is an important country with a shared history. Its geographically important. This is a great opportunity for professional exchange and building the next generation of leaders, Brooks said, speaking to Malaysian press before delivering remarks and answering questions at the Malaysian Armed Forces Defense College.

We continue to build on an already strong relationship between the Malaysian army and the U.S. Army, Brooks said.

The assembled students at the college, including senior military officers from all branches of the Malaysian armed forces, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Nigeria, Brunei, Singapore, Philippines, and the U.S., had just begun a yearlong course.

Brooks gave remarks and took questions for more than an hour, touching on questions regarding partnering in humanitarian assistance, disaster relief and peacekeeping missions, to the U.S. Department of Defenses rebalance of forces in the Pacific region, to the cooperative yet competitive relationship with China, which many of the assembled students were interested in.

The rebalance has brought us into a higher amount of contact in the region than what weve enjoyed in recent years, Brooks said. It creates opportunities for cooperation.

During Brooks time as commander of USARPAC, his forces have seen an increase from roughly 80,000 personnel to the present 106,000. Ive been given the resources to commit these people west of the International Date Line, and for a longer period of time, Brooks said.

A firm believer in President Barack Obamas decision to rebalance forces, Brooks told the assembled students, It was absolutely worth it, and it was a good decision at the right time.

The rebalance is real, the Armys contributions are tangible. We have elevated the status of the Army forces commander to four star, and the Army has added tend of thousands of troops to USARPAC to enable an increase in partnerships with friends in the region, Brooks said.

Brooks also added that though increases in U.S. military and security capabilities members in the Pacific region are the most visible, the political, sociological and economic aspects of the rebalance are perhaps more important.

Its the people to people engagements, Brooks said. The citizens of other countries talking to each other.

During his stop, Brooks was hosted by Malaysian Army Field Commander West Lt. Gen. Dato Sri Zulkiple for an office call and lastly Chief of Army Gen. Tan Sri Raja Mohamed Affandi to close his visit.

Brooks will complete his current Asian tour with engagements in the Philippines before returning to his headquarters in Oahu, Hawaii.
CAMP CASEY, South Korea (Jan. 21, 2016) -- The health care specialists, assigned to the 210th Field Artillery Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division/Republic of Korea, or ROK,-U.S Combined Division, recently conducted a medical evacuation training at the helicopter pad near Troop Medical Clinic, at Camp Casey, South Korea, Jan. 7-8.

Medical evacuation training is designed to train, execute and evaluate the ability of medical specialists to complete aeromedical evacuation tasks. As the Soldiers conducted the exercise, they were able to get hands-on training from the experts assigned to Company C, 3rd General Support Aviation Battalion, 2nd Aviation Regiment, and 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade.

"All the medics that are training get hands on training with our aeromedical company," said 1st Lt. Andrew D. Obelgoner, a Macon, Georgia, native and a brigade medical planner assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, or HHB, 210th Field Artillery, or FA, Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division/ROK-U.S Combined Division. "They train as if they are under a real-live scenario."

There were two phases to this exercise. The initial phase allows the medics to learn extensive coordination of aeromedical training and cold/hot-load training.

"The medics learn medical evacuation 101 training, which teaches the students how to carry litters with patients into and away from the aircraft, establishing helicopter landing zones and marking pick-up sites," Obelgoner said.

After practicing and learning how to perform aeromedical evacuation operations, the medics move on to the next level of the training. Here, the candidates call for nine-line medevac requests and load the patients onto rotary winged aircraft for multiple iterations.

"On the second day, the medics call for the 'nine line' on the ground," said Sgt. 1st Class Tae Kyung Kim, a medical operations noncommissioned officer in charge assigned HHB, 210th FA Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division. "Then the helicopter will pick up the patient from the ground and fly around Camp Casey."

As medics complete more iterations of the exercise, they became more familiarized with the aeromedical evacuation operation process.

"The purpose of this training is to familiarize all our medics within 210th Field Artillery to be ready to fight tonight," Kim said. "Based off from what we learn from the crew chief, we are trying to familiarize ourselves how to get under the chopper safely and how to get off the chopper safely and how to best take care of our patients."

"Most of our medics came straight out from advanced individual training and they never had opportunities to see and be on a chopper," Kim said. "So this training is for the familiarization of what the medics should expect during the medical evacuation missions before an actual operation with a real patient."
JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Hawaii (Jan. 19, 2016) -- Exercising their joint capabilities, 8th Theater Sustainment Command, or TSC, mariners partnered with 25th Infantry Division's Lightning Academy Soldiers and Heavy Marine Helicopter Squadron 463 pilots during inset and extract training off the shore of Oahu, Hawaii, Jan. 11-12.

This training included standard rappelling, Fast Rope Insertion Extraction System, or FRIES, and Special Patrol Infiltration Exfiltration System, or SPIES, aboard the deck of 8th TSC's Logistical Support Vessel-2, CW3 Harold C. Clinger, before heading back to the island.

"This simulates a couple of things," said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Abdelkader Hosni, the LSV-2 vessel master, 625th Transportation Detachment, 8th TSC. "We can recover a seized vessel by FRIES or come assist a crew during a disaster situation."

"It can be used in different scenarios," Hosni said. "Today is just a simulation of what we can do with this kind of action."

The first day of training involved two teams of Soldiers using a CH-47 Chinook to board the vessel via rappelling and leave using the SPIES method since the helicopter was unable to land on the vessel. On the second day, the first team inset using FRIES out of a U.S. Marine Corps Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion, which flew from off the coast of Marine Corps Base Hawaii.

The fast rope method involves service members sliding down a heavy rope with their hands and feet; rappelling allows Soldiers to use a harness and thinner rope to steady themselves and control their speed, but takes much longer.

Hosni stated this kind of training benefits both the boat crew and the air assault school.

"In addition to doing our core competencies and transporting cargo throughout the Pacific in missions, like Pathways or interisland - where we support Army units and other sister-services - today we're doing something unique and different, where we're going to do some helo ops with the Lightning Academy and U.S. Marine Corps," Hosni said.

"We support units to train on their competencies, and we train on our competencies as well," Hosni added.

Due to their location in the Pacific region, many operations require more than one service to accomplish their missions, Hosni added.

"In the Pacific, and in the Army in general, we are enforcing and we are big advocates of joint operations," Hosni said. "Joint operations is now and is the future, so working with the Marine Corps is just adding that piece to the puzzle and making sure we have interoperability amongst the services."

The LSV is a unique, self-sustaining vessel with a shallow draft enabling it to dock at almost any shore, giving it maneuverability and accessibility to disaster areas for humanitarian relief and humanitarian assistance.

"By doing this training we were able to coordinate with Lightning Academy, and they offered to lift some of our guys over land and do SPIES with them," Hosni said. "That's great for these young Soldiers to see another aspect of the Army."
POLARIS POINT, Guam (NNS) -- Vice Adm. Joseph Aucoin, commander, U.S. 7th Fleet, met with Sailors and toured workspaces aboard submarine tender USS Frank Cable (AS 40), Jan. 21.

Capt. Drew St. John, commanding officer of Frank Cable, welcomed aboard Aucoin and highlighted the ship's submarine and surface ship repair capability with a tour of the ship.

Department leading petty officers and knowledgeable Sailors briefed Aucoin on each of their repair shop's capabilities and displayed examples of jobs completed for supported units.

Aucoin commands the U.S. 7th Fleet, whose mission is to conduct forward-deployed naval operations in support of U.S. national interests in the Indo-Asia-Pacific area of operations. As the U.S. Navy's largest numbered fleet, 7th Fleet interacts with 35 other maritime nations to build maritime partnerships that foster maritime security, promote stability and prevent conflict.

Frank Cable, forward deployed to the island of Guam, conducts maintenance and support of submarines and surface vessels deployed to the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility.
This winters first major snowstorm finally made its push into the Midstate Friday afternoon.

Dan Tomaso, abc27 meteorologist, said that as of Friday, forecasts were updated to show that Cumberland County residents can expect anywhere from 8 to 14 inches of snow by the end of the day today, a larger number than the earlier reported 6 to 12 inches.

Franklin and Adams counties could see much more snow than their northern counterpart, with estimates ranging between 14 and 24 inches of snow, as the storm pushes west to east and up the coast.

This evening the snowfall will pick up, Tomaso said Friday afternoon. The juicy moisture will arrive after midnight. By the time we wake up, about 7 or 8 in the morning, we could be looking at 5 to 10 inches.

Between 8 p.m. and midnight Saturday is when Tomaso said the snow should ease and fade away.

The Pennyslvania Turnpike said Friday it will temporarily lower the speed limit on some parts of the highway as a measure of precaution for the safety of all travelers and responders. The speed restrictions are to begin Friday at midnight in the east-west mainline, Interstate-76 from Breezewood Exit 161 to the Delaware River Bridge/New Jersey line; as well as the Northeastern Extension from Mid County Exit 20 to Lehigh Valley Exit 56, according to a news release from the PA Turnpike Travel Advisory.

Many Midstate municipalities declared snow emergencies for the weekend.

According to a news release from the Borough of Carlisle, borough residents are encouraged to park in the Pomfret Street Parking Garage during the snowstorm. Residents who park in the garage will not be charged.

Parking your car in the Pomfret Street Garage will allow borough employees to more effectively plow narrow downtown streets. Vehicles that are temporarily parked in the garage due to the snow storm must be removed before 7 a.m. Monday, January 25, 2016, the release read.

Lemoyne, Wormleysburg, Upper Allen Township, Shippensburg and Harrisburg declared snow emergencies by Friday afternoon.

Across the state

The major winter storm already led to travel disruptions Friday, and forecasters said it was possible snow could start falling in time to complicate Philadelphias evening rush.

All flights into and out of Philadelphia International Airport have been cancelled for Saturday, when the blizzard conditions were expected to be in full swing, airport spokeswoman Diane Gerace said.

The airlines got out in front of this storm and proactively cancelled all flights, she said.

Gerace said airlines hope to resume flights on Sunday, but travelers should check with their carriers to get detailed information.

Departing flights were already delayed by as much as 30 minutes at the airport Friday morning, according to the website Flightaware.com. Those delays were expected to get longer later in the day.

Gov. Tom Wolf declared a state of emergency ahead of the storm, which allows authorities to respond quickly to any problems.
JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Hawaii -- U.S. Air Force, Japan Air Self-Defense Force, and Royal Australian Air Force servicemembers will conduct two media flights and host a media day at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, Feb. 10 to 26 as part of Cope North 2016.

The 87th annual CN 16 exercise is a long-standing multilateral engagement designed to enhance air operations and interoperability between participating militaries.

The first media flight is scheduled to fly from Guam to Rota and back, covering the humanitarian assistance and disaster relief training portions of the exercise Feb. 16. Participating media will be on the ground in Rota for about one hour to capture the Healthcare Response Team in action. Registered media should meet at the Andersen AFB front gate at 7:30 a.m.

There is a second media flight scheduled Feb. 19 in which media members will get the opportunity to ride on a KC-135 Stratotanker and witness in-air refueling first-hand. Registered media should meet at the Andersen AFB front gate at 7:30 a.m.

Media are also invited to attend the media day Feb. 17 from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The media day will begin with a press conference featuring leaders from the USAF, JASDF and RAAF. Also included will be a tour of the flight line, where media will be able to see the JASDFs F-15J Eagle, the RAAFs F/A-18E/F Hornet, the USAFs F-16 Fighting Falcon, and the USAFs E-3 Sentry up close. Aircrews will be available to speak to each aircrafts capabilities. Media will also have the opportunity to capture any takeoffs and landings during that time. Registered media should meet at the Andersen AFB front gate at 9:20 a.m.

Andersen AFB Public Affairs will send out a separate release detailing how media can participate in their open house Feb. 20.

Media interested in attending any of the above events should send their registration requests via email to christen.ornella@us.af.mil and pacaf.pax@us.af.mil by Feb. 4.

For more information, please contact 1st Lt. Christen Ornella via email or at 808-448-3229.
BLOOMINGTON  The Great Escape, a regional leisure and recreation chain, will be moving next month to the former Cub Foods location in Bloomington.

Employees of the store, now at 1710 R.T. Dunn Drive, Bloomington, will begin moving product on Feb. 1 to the new site at 403 N. Veterans Parkway and have a soft opening on Feb. 5. A grand opening is set for Feb. 12.

This will fit our needs better, because it is a higher-traffic area and really the center of that part of town, said store manager Eric Cox.

We will have a new look, and a new feel with better lighting," he said. "When you come into the old store, it was a little bit gloomy, so we are all looking forward to the change.

Cub Foods was built in 1983 and closed in July.

As for the current Great Escape location, Amerco Real Estate Co., based in Phoenix, Ariz., has petitioned the Bloomington Zoning Board of Appeals for a special use permit to build self-storage units there.

The Great Escape, based in suburban Chicago, sells a variety of pools, patio furniture, hot tubs, grills, play sets and fitness equipment.

The local store opened in October 2006 at the former site of Parkway Foods but closed in October 2009. It reopened five months later.

The new location is somewhat smaller than the 53,000-square-foot property now leased by The Great Escape, Cox said.

For us, it actually fits our needs better, he said. This is a huge store and it took a lot of product to fill the store. Now we can concentrate on the product we actually want to show, rather than a lot of filler to accommodate to fit the need of the store.

"We feel the move to this new location will help us better serve our customers as well as to establish new friends and relationships for years to come, Cox said.

Officials with Amerco Real Estate declined to discuss specifics of the proposed storage-unit facility.
Theater key: GX = Galaxy 14; NL = Normal Theater; OV = Ovation 14; PR = Princess Theater, LeRoy; ST = Stadium 14

Opens Thursday

2001: A Space Odyssey

161 min.; G

An artificial object buried beneath the moon's surface spurs a voyage of cosmic discovery for two astronauts. (NL, Jan. 21)

Opens Friday

The Boy

98 min.; PG-13 (violence, terror, thematic material

A nanny is shocked that her new family's boy is actually a life-sized doll. (GX, OV, ST)

Dirty Grandpa

101 min.; R (crude sexual content throughout, graphic nudity, language, drug use)

An uptight young man is tricked into driving his swinging grandfather to Florida for spring break. (GX, LT, OV, ST)

The 5th Wave

112 min.; PG-13 (violence/destruction, sci-fi thematic elements, language, teen partying)

After a series of alien attacks nearly decimate Earth, a young woman tries to save her brother. (GX, LT, OV, ST)

Moonwalkers

107 min.; R (strong bloody violence, graphic nudity, plentiful drug use, language)

An unstable CIA agent teams with a seedy rock band manager to fake a moon landing. (NL, Jan. 22-24)

Room

118 min.; R (language)

After being held captive for years, a woman and her 5-year-old son finally gain their freedom. (GX)

Opens Wednesday

Throne of Blood

110 min.; unrated

A war-hardened general works to fulfill a prophecy that he will become lord of a castle. (NL, Jan. 20 and 22).

Ongoing

Alvin and the Chipmunks: Road Chip

86 min.; PG (mile rude humor)

Alvin & Co. travel to Miami to sabotage David's impending proposal to his girlfriend. (ST)

The Big Short

130 min.; R (pervasive language, sexuality/nudity)

Four outsiders in the world of high-finance decide to take on the big banks. (ST)

Brooklyn

111 min.; PG-13 (sexuality, brief strong language)

An Irish immigrant in 1950s Brooklyn falls into a romance with a local as her past catches up with her. (ST)

Carol

118 min.; R (sexuality/nudity, brief language)

An aspiring photographer develops an intimate relationship with an older woman. (ST)

Daddy's Home

96 min; PG-13 (thematic elements, crude/suggestive content, language)

A caring stepdad faces competition for the love of his wife's two kids from their newly returned real father. (GX, OV, ST)

The Danish Girl

119 min.; R (sexuality, full nudity)

Two Danish artists' marriage evolves as they navigate one's groundbreaking journey as a transgender pioneer. (ST)

The Forest

HH 93 min.; PG-13 (disturbing thematic content/images)

A woman searching for her twin sister in a Japanese forest finds herself surrounded by paranormal forces. (GX, ST)

The Hateful Eight

HH 167 min.; R (strong bloody violence, violent sexual content, language, graphic nudity)

A bounty hunter and his prisoner find shelter in a cabin currently inhabited by a collection of nefarious characters. (GX)

Joy

HH 124 min.; PG-13 (brief strong language)

The true story of the Long Island woman who invented the millions-making Miracle Mop. (ST)

Norm of the North

86 min.; 2-D/3-D; PG (rude humor/action)

Displaced from their Arctic home, a polar bear and three lemming friends wind up in New York. (GX, LT, OV, ST)

The Revenant

HHH 156 min.; R (strong frontier combat/violence, gory images, sexual assault, language, nudity)

An 1820s frontiersman goes on a quest for survival after being brutally mauled by a bear and left for dead. (GX, LT, OV, ST)

Ride Along 2

H 101 min.; PG-13 (violence, sexual content, language, drug material)

Ben heads to Miami with soon-to-be brother-in-law James to bring down a drug dealer. (GX, LT, OV, ST)

Sisters

118 min; R (crude sexual content/language throughout, drug use)

Two sisters decide to throw one last house party before their parents sell their family home. (GX, LT, ST)

Spotlight

128 min; R (language, sexual references)

The true story of how the Boston Globe uncovered the child molestation scandal and cover-up within the local Catholic archdiocese. (ST)

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

HHH 135 min.; 2-D/3-D; PG-13 (sci-fi action violence)

The saga continues, 30 years after the familial revelations of "Return of the Jedi." (GX, LT, OV, PR, ST)

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

144 min.; R (strong combat violence throughout, bloody images, language)

A security team deals with the chaos of an attack on a U.S. compound in Libya. (GX, LT, OV, ST)
BLOOMINGTON  Central Catholic High School students in Washington, D.C., for Friday's March for Life rally are coming home early to avoid an impending blizzard expected to dump as much as 2 feet of snow on the capital.

The decision to recall the 47 students and four chaperons was made late Thursday after consultation with the Peoria Diocese, other schools from the diocese attending the rally and the bus company, said Scott Vogel, director of advancement at CCHS in Bloomington.

"They were excited. Being in D.C., being on the Mall to have their voices heard ... I'm sure this is disappointing for them, but we need to think of their safety. They understand that," Vogel said.

The group still will attend a youth rally and Mass on Friday morning at the Verizon Center, which are expected to end around 11:30 a.m., before heading home, Vogel said. The students are expected to reach Bloomington by 1 a.m. Saturday.

The city declared a state of emergency Thursday for Friday and ordered public schools closed. A blizzard warning takes effect at 3 p.m. Friday.

Vogel said the school has kept in regular contact with parents via email.

The annual trip to participate in the national anti-abortion event is a highlight of the year for the students, Vogel said. Juniors and seniors are selected to go based on how active they are in living their faith and serving the community, he said.

"You can just see it in their eyes. They are going to do something bigger than them," he said of seeing off the students on their trip.

The march itself will go on as scheduled, according to a posting on www.Marchforlife.org late Thursday night. It will kick off with a rally at noon near the Washington Monument, and the march along Constitution Avenue will follow.

The group left for Washington on Wednesday night and started Thursday with Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

Even with leaving early, Principal Sean Foster, who is one of the chaperons, told Vogel the students feel like they have accomplished what they set out to do.

"They went with the goal of witnessing to the sanctity of life, and that is what they did," Vogel said, relaying Foster's remarks. "It was a good trip. They are in good spirits."
NORMAL  School is in session, but some Illinois districts are facing a teacher shortage that could wind up costing them programs.

Sixty percent of Illinois school districts reported trouble filling teaching positions in a survey recently released by Illinois regional superintendents of schools.

In Central Illinois, some rural districts reported shortages, but districts in and around McLean County contacted by The Pantagraph said the situation isn't as dire  thanks to appealing communities and nearby universities in larger cities like Bloomington-Normal.

But the situation could get worse: Fewer students are studying to become teachers.

Enrollment declines in teacher education programs statewide started to hit around 2010 and 2011, said Amee Adkins, senior associate dean of Illinois State University's College of Education.

Enrollment in elementary, middle school and early childhood education seems to have stabilized, but secondary education is still struggling, Adkins said.

She thinks the economic downturn of 2008 is part of the story, along with ongoing pension issues, negative comments about the teaching profession and more lucrative jobs in other fields.

"We arent having trouble filling positions, but the pool is narrowing said Herschel Hannah, assistant superintendent of human resources at Bloomington District 87. "People are finding they can make more money doing something else. When we find people who are committed to changing lives, thats who you want in your classrooms."

As with other things, location is a part of the puzzle, too.

They want to work somewhere that will be a pleasant place to live and teach. Unfortunately, some communities in Illinois are stressed and challenged differently which affects their perception to candidates, said Hannah.

LeRoy School Superintendent Gary Tipsord agreed the nature of local communities helps keep teachers in the area.

We have a better chance to retain employees because of everything Bloomington-Normal brings to the table in terms of quality of life, said Tipsord.

The survey said 16 percent of schools had to cancel programs due to teacher shortages in specific subjects. Local districts said the most difficult positions to fill are specialty programs, such as foreign language, speech pathology and physics.

Adkins thinks there is some distortion along with some issues in the survey.

For example, some superintendents said they are getting only 30 applicants instead of 100 applicants for each vacancy, but that doesnt mean they arent finding qualified people to fill the positions, explained Adkins.

"Some schools are truly struggling, said Blue Ridge Superintendent Susan Wilson. "I know of a district that has no high school math teacher and they cant find an acceptable candidate.

When a third of Blue Ridge staff retired over three or four years, Wilson said they were able to fill the positions.

At McLean County-based Unit 5, the key is to stay aggressive by analyzing retirements and enrollment, said Bruce Weldy, human resources coordinator.

"It's an ongoing cycle. We work closely with the universities to bring in new teachers," he said.

And, schools across the region are still in need of substitute teachers. To attract more candidates, Olympia recently raised the daily pay for substitutes from $85 to $100. Substitute and student teaching allows new educators to get their feet wet.

Many of our recent teacher hires have been ISU graduates," said Olympia Superintendent Andrew Wise. "I believe new teachers want to work in a pro-growth environment where there is both high expectations and support to reach those expectations."

At the same time, ISU has seen a 27 percent decline in teacher education majors from 2009 to 2014, even though the university's overall enrollment has been steady or rising.

To address the shortage, the state and schools need to think of some creative alternatives and look toward untapped sources that can contribute, Adkins said.

Illinois is among states with a Troops to Teachers program. ISU is reaching out to community colleges near military installations, providing information on its teacher education programs, Adkins said.
A Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk was forced to conduct a precautionary landing Friday morning around 10:30 a.m. after a maintenance issue disrupted a routine training flight.

According to Tech. Sgt. Ted Nichols, public affairs specialist with the Pennsylvania National Guard, the chopper landed in a field in the 7000 block of Wertzville Road, Middlesex Township.

On board the Black Hawk were two pilots and one crew member, according to Nichols.

A maintenance crew on board a Boeing CH-47 Chinook were brought in and by noon both aircraft were able to take off.

Nichols reported no injuries.

"We've dispatched a maintenance team from Fort Indiantown Gap (where the Black Hawk is based)," Nichols said. "Our team will take a look and make a determination, which is normally what happens. The aircraft then returns to base."

Initial reports from the county's 9-1-1 center were unclear as to the location of where the helicopter had landed due to conflicting locations being called in.

Posted earlier on Cumberlink:

Emergency crews have been called to the scene of a military helicopter crash in Middlesex Township at 10:40 a.m.

Tech Sgt. Ted Nichols, public affairs specialist with the Pa. National Guard, said there are no injuries and the helicopter was taking part in a routine training flight.

Check back to Cumberlink for details as the become available.
Who's to say, but here's my 2 cents on the presidential election. God help us if the socialist, the hair trigger or the evangelist wins. Marco Rubio is impressive on his feet and maybe right for 2020. Chris Christie is a tough guy and bright, but with regional appeal. Jeb Bush is just lost in the stars, sad to see. Ben Carson had early hope but he's too nice for politics this time.
A recent study suggested that unsecured debts like overdue medical bills and unsettled credit card balances have some adverse effects on children's socioemotional well-being. While other types of debts which can be deemed as beneficial, such as educational loan and home mortgage, have a positive impact to a child's emotional well-being.

According to the researchers at the University of Wisconsin at Madison and Dartmouth, parents' debt can greatly affect children's behavior. Thus, it will depend on what type of debt was it as each liabilities can contribute positive or negative outcomes among children.

Researchers looked at the data of more than 9,000 mothers and their children -- with ages 5 to 14 from the year of 1986 to 2008. After comparing the families' debt information, experts found out that those parents held more debts were more likely have children with behavior issues compared to those who had less debt or no debt at all.

As the researchers dig deeper, they discovered that the biggest driver behind kid's bad behavior was unsecured debts such as unsettled credit card bills. They also found out that those parents who only have "beneficial debts" like education debts and home mortgage had fewer behavioral problems.

"It makes sense that taking on debt for specific investments can be beneficial. For example, taking on student loans to go to college or a mortgage to buy a home may lead to better social and economic outcomes. Hence, taking on unsecured debt, such as credit card debt or payday loans, that are not tied to such investments may not," lead author Lawrence M. Berger of the Institute for Research on Poverty at the University of Wisconsin-Madison explained to Yahoo!

The findings which were published in the journal Pediatrics, however, cleared that the research doesn't prove that there's a "direct cause-and-effect between children's behavior and parents' debt."
Health experts want to discourage women from using "Herbal Womb Detox Pearls" as they believe that it can only damage the balance of the bacteria inside the female's genitals. They also said that the procedure has a potential of causing fatal toxic shock syndrome, a rare type complication which could be deadly if left untreated.

Dr Erika Feuerstein, a staff physician at the Bay Centre for Birth Control at Women's College Hospital in Toronto explained to National Post why she's not encouraging women to use the detoxification procedure. She said that there are bacteria living within the woman's vagina -- keeping prescribed or natural balance and pH. Now, it is said that the normal balance could be disrupted if a woman inserts a detox pearl inside.

Dr Feuerstein then suggested that instead of using such procedure, she said it is much better to follow the normal hygiene practice: Clean the vaginal part with soap and water. She also reiterated that inserting pearls within the vagina can likely cause bacterial infection that can potentially lead to toxic shock syndrome.

Jen Gunter, a U.S. gynaecologist also warned women about the herbal procedure through her blog. She said instead of helping the women, the pearls could only damage the balance of bacteria within the genitals and it can also cause the private parts to produce odor.

However, Tamieka Atkinson, owner of Embrace Pangaea told The Independent that the company didn't make any claims that their product can cure any diseases. She also said that they always remind their clients that they are not medical professionals and their product "is simply a natural herbal alternative that women can make a conscious and informed decision in using."

Herbal Womb Detox Pearls is a newly launched product by Embrace Pangea. The product being sold online are tiny balls that are wrapped in fabric. Users just need to insert the pearl to their vagina to "cleanse the womb and return it to a balanced state."
Irish researchers said they discovered that out of 59 Australian honey they tested, 41 of it contained higher concentrations of toxins called pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs). Meaning, it had more than four times concentration of toxins than any other honey from other countries. They also said that the said toxins were produced by different types of pasture plants, including Paterson's curse.

According to the recent findings that were published in the Foods Additives and Contaminants journal, high dose of PAs can cause severe liver damage as well as cancer. Hence, they urged pregnant women and lactating moms to avoid eating honey to ensure the safety of their unborn child and infants.

However, despite these precautions, honeybee experts disagreed on these findings and said that the data were just exaggerated as the results seemed not reliable as the samples were collected three years ago.

Dr. Ben McKee, managing director of Capilano, a company that supplies honey worldwide, said that the report is "alarmist and sensationalist." He also said that consumers had "nothing to fear" as the modern farming techniques don't produce any honey anymore from Paterson's curse.

"Farmer's actions to rid the country of this weed, such as less to no follow rotation of crops, better use of more selective herbicides and the major success of biological control programs, have significantly reduced the presence of Paterson's Curse," McKee said to The West Australia. Likewise, Jodie Goldsworthy from Victorian honey company Beechworth Honey told ABC that the researchers' conclusions are "misleading" and it is "unrealistic."

While the heating argument is still ongoing, both parties agreed that the best honey is often available at the specialty markets. And consumers should avoid honey that produced from plants, particularly from Paterson's curse.

Meanwhile, Food Standards Australia and New Zealand said that there has been no case of honey poisoning from anywhere around the world.
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Few cities have risen from the ashes quite like Phnom Penh, Cambodias sprawling capital. The last century saw the fall of Frances occupation, followed by the brutal dictatorship of Pol Pots Khmer Rouge. However, even though Phnom Penh became so deserted during the early 1970s that animals freely roamed the streets, the city has rebuilt itself over the past 30 years into a thriving metropolis, dotted with remnants of past empires and constant construction reaching farther towards the sky. For a taste of Cambodian history and a sign of where the nation is heading, Phnom Penh is the pulse by which the rest of the country follows.

As the story goes, Phnom Penhs founding can be dated back to an old woman named Penh

who found a log filled with three buddhas floating in a river. She then climbed the highest hill (or phnom) she could find to build a monument to her discovery. And with that, Phnom Penh was born. Wat Phnom still stands as a beautiful landmark dedicated to the citys history and is regarded by many as one of the most treasured sites in Phnom Penh. Located just north of the primary tourist district, Wat Phnom is the perfect place to start a walking tour of the city or to watch the sun set over Phnom Penhs increasingly crowding skyline.

Phnom Penhs historic Central Market emerges from the smog and dust of the citys main business district. Designed more than 100 years ago in art-deco fashion, the market provides much of the city with everything from jewelry and knockoff North Face gear to fresh fish and a wider variety of produce than most can fathom. You can wander the endless halls of the market, working your way from butchers row to an endless maze of toiletries, all while listening in on the daily conversations held by locals and travelers alike. Snack as you go, breathe in the rainbow of scents coming from all directions and be ready to bargain.

Just like most major cities in Southeast Asia, traffic in Cambodias capital flirts between chaos and mayhem. However, nowhere is this dynamic more on display than in the roundabout surrounding Cambodias Independence Monument. Signifying the nations freedom from France that occurred in the 1950s, the Independence Monument is one of the most recognizable landmarks in the city and in recent years has taken on added significance as a memorial to King Norodom Sihanouk, who ruled Cambodia immediately before and after the Khmer Rouges reign.

Emerging from behind the shrouded gates of the Royal Palace, the Silver Pagoda contains one of Cambodias most treasured artifacts, the emerald Buddha. Modeled after Bangkoks Royal Palace, the Silver Pagoda is now primarily a tourist attraction, but once served as the royal familys private place of worship and welcomed renowned monks from across the region. In recent years, the pagoda has turned into a museum of sorts, acting as a gallery for hundreds of Buddha images in different sizes, colors, and materials. Currently, the silver floor, which is where the pagodas name stems from, is mostly covered up by protective carpet, but there are efforts underway to repair the storied temples famous namesake.

Before the Khmer Rouge ascended to power in the late 1960s, Phnom Penh was home to a

thriving Chinese community that was welcome in the capital, especially for the food that they

brought with them. Since Phnom Penhs near extinction in the 1970s, the Chinese population and their food has slowly returned to the city. No temple of Chinese gastronomy is more beloved than Sam Doo Restaurant, located a few blocks west of the Central Market. Focusing on Hong Kong specialities like whole roasted duck, claypot rice with Chinese sausage and a huge variety of dim sum, Sam Doo acts as an oasis from the calamity and combustion of Phnom Penhs busy streets, all while satisfying the tastes of Chinese expats and travelers looking for a taste of the northeast.

One of the harsh realities of visiting Phnom Penh is the inescapable truth of what the city and its inhabitants have endured over the past 50 years. No other site represents this suffering more than the citys most visited tourist attraction, the Choeung Ek killing fields. Located just a few miles south of the city center, Choeung Ek stands as an important relic to Phnom Penhs past and a key stop for anyone interested in Cambodias recent history. Tour the grounds, listen to the stellar audio tour and reflect on a nations history that you mightve been completely unaware of before arriving within its borders.

The sister site to Choeung Ek, Tuol Sleng was converted from a high school to a torture center and prison during the Khmer Rouge era. However, unlike Choeung Ek, the prison is located in the middle of Phnom Penh and transports visitors into the living hell that was Cambodia in the 1970s without leaving the city center. One minute youre walking through streets lined with noodle and barbecue shops and the next youre face-to-face with the gates of one of the Khmer Rouges most pivotal centers for torture and mutilation in the entire country. Its haunting, but enlightening and pivotal for those looking to further their understanding of Cambodias story.

Where theres conflict, there are journalistsand where there are journalists, there are strong drinks. Whether it was during the tumultuous French colonial period ending in the 1950s or the Khmer Rouges terrorist overthrow, the Foreign Correspondents Club has always housed and served reporters investigating the madness that is Cambodia. History is everywhere on these hallowed walls and to this day youll still see reporters and writers working away while enjoying an Angkor beer or a gin gimlet. Stop by for a drink and strike up a conversation with someone. More often than not, your fellow FCC patrons will have a story or two to share about the Cambodia that is and once was.

Photos: Max Bonem

Max Bonem is a writer and eater currently traveling through Southeast Asia. You can follow his travels via his blog, Instagram or Flickr.
Are we alone in the universe? Is Earth the target of a violent alien takeover, or are these possible invaders friendly? Maybe extraterrestrials already walk among us. The truth is out thereor so says the tagline from The X-Files. Although none of the following songs provide any answers to these tough questions, they do show how vivid the imagination can be when it comes to UFOs. From little green men to just being an outsider, even Spooky Mulder would want to hear these eight alien-centric songs.



With space on the minds of everyone in 1969, its fitting theres an extraterrestrial-inspired song on Creedence Clearwater Revivals album Willy and the Poor Boys that came out that year. CCR tell the story of a farmer in Moline, Ill. who finds a UFO in his field and becomes famous for his discovery. In real life, a UFO was spotted and even caught on film by Moline citizens in 1967, which is likely the inspiration behind this song.



For this song from his classic album Illinoise, Sufjan Stevens was inspired by a different Illinois-based UFO sighting. On January 5, 2000, a Black Triangle UFO was spotted across towns in southern Illinois, causing a frenzy amongst its citizens and alien enthusiasts. Being the master of lyricism he is though, Stevens song connects the belief of aliens with the belief of Godsomething Mulder and Scully sure like to talk about.



Given Tom DeLonges enthusiastic lyrics in Aliens Exist from Blink-182s 1999 album Enema of the State, it is not surprising that DeLonge is actually a believer. In 2015 he talked extensively with Paper Magazine about his numerous encounters with extraterrestrials, including a weird Area 51 experience and government cover-ups. So even though hes given up on Blink-182, he has not given up his search for the truth.



In Zero Zero UFO, The Ramones tell a bizarre tale of another UFO crash, this time in a field in Idaho. Their narrator, the witness of the crash, describes a strange man exiting the UFO and claims the Queens on the aliens side. A strange trip to say the least.



David Bowies Ziggy Stardust relays a message to earthlings from an extraterrestrial by the name Starman in this 1972 hit. Amongst Bowies own hazy cosmic jive, we learn that Starman waits in the sky to visit Earth but makes appearances on the radio and television. With Bowies recent passing, its hard not to equate Starman with Bowie himself, whose bright light has now returned to the sky.



Thanks to Blondie, and the 80s in general, a disco song about what would happen if a gun-toting, car-eating man from Mars came to Earth reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Underneath its funky groove, Rapture questions destructive human behavior and what happens when our luxuries are taken away from us. Its a surprisingly heavy sentiment for a song that includes a cringe-worthy rap verse.



If aliens do exist, its likely theyre a much more advanced species than us. By the sounds of Radioheads alienated narrator inSubterranean Homesick Alien, it would seem that the band thinks so too. Eager to break out of the monotony of daily life, Radioheads narrator hopes to be taken on board their beautiful ship and to be finally free. A hope many of us can relate to.



This quirky little Ella Fitzgerald number from 1951 is outwardly the most playful on this list thanks to its swinging melody. But a closer listen reveals that these two little men in a flying saucer who think Earth is an awful menace thats polluted by politicians and commercials and is not a place worth sticking around for. Ella presents very reasonable assessment for why Earth may not have been invaded yet.
It was Sean Penns autobiography.

JUST KIDDING! According to The Guardian, famed Mexican drug czar Joaquin Guzman, aka El Chapo, arrived in prison a tired, depressed man. He had escaped from behind bars just six months earlier, and spent the rest of 2015 on the lam (including that weird episode with Penn) before being re-captured earlier this month. The erstwhile leader of the Sinaloan cartel has caught such a bad case of the blues that authorities decided to cheer him up with the gift of a book:

Don Quixote, by Miguel Cervantes.

Interesting choice. Eduardo Guerrero, head of Mexicos large system of prisons, told Radio Imagen that we believe it is an excellent book, and we have to start giving him such notions.

Theres no indication yet that El Chapo has actually cracked the cover, and The Guardian notes that he seems more interested in books about himselfRoberto Savianos Zero Zero Zero, about the cocaine trade and El Chapos rise, was found at his jungle hideout.

But waitshouldnt it be the authorities who are reading Don Quixote, and not El Chapo? After all, theres no better literary equivalent for the so-called war on drugs than a delusional knight tilting at windmills.
Dan Auerbach isnt one to waste time. The Black Keys frontman only released Yours Dreamily, the debut album from new venture The Arcs alongside The Shins Richard Swift, last September. And Cage the Elephants Tell Me Im Pretty, which features Auerbachs deft analogue touch, unleashed its svelte twang last month. But later this year, the garage rock deity will join up with publisher Z2 for a joint comic/music project reveling in the vintage tones of the minor pentatonic scale.

Announced by Vulture today, Auerbach and Z2 announced the new upcoming miniseries Murder Ballads, which will also feature an original soundtrack from the blues rock laureate this fall. Written by Gabe Soria with art from Paul Reinwand, Murder Ballads follows the fall and reinvention of Nate Theodore, the dead-broke and deadbeat owner of a failing record label who is on a cross-country drive in the dead of winter, fleeing the wreckage of his business and trying to save his crumbling marriage, according to Z2. Theodore then trips across Donny and Marvell Fontweathers, two sonic harbingers of doom-laden country blues who could potentially offer the label head a reversal of fortune.

Auerbach and Soria, whos written for Mojo, The Guardian, The Oxford American and Blender, crossed paths back when The Black Keys were touring to concoct the project. Auerbach told The Guardian that the project was pretty fully formed in Gabes mind. The music that he was talking about seemedwell, I could wrap my mind around it. He knew I was really big into northern Mississippi music, so I understood the reference points when he was talking to me about it.

The record will be released by Nonesuch Records and also feature Mick Collins of the Dirtbombs and the Gories.

Aside from this cross-media gem, Z2s upcoming three-title lineup expands nicely on the creator-owned foundation its built, which has included some genre-crossing books including Ian McGintys raucous, manga-tinged Welcome to Showside and Chris Hunts inky Euro noir, Carver: A Paris Story.

Heres the rundown from Z2:





April, 2016

HYPER FORCE NEO, from SUPER PRO K.O.! creator Jarrett Williams takes readers along on the adventures of Dean Masters, a 9th grader tasked with leading a group of tech-savvy teens called Hyper Force Neo. Their Mission? Save New Sigma City and their high-school from the sinister, intergalactic vagabonds known as the Dark Edge. With the use of their Hype Suits, Neo Keys, High-tech weaponry, and over-sized Neo Mechs, Dean and his friends just may get the job done. The first issue of HYPER FORCE NEO will be a super-sized 48-pages.







May, 2016

Set in the future, the first collaboration from the husband and wife creative team of Miss Lasko-Gross (HENNI) and Kevin Colden (FISHTOWN) follows two badass female intergalactic smugglers of a mysterious controlled substance who cater to the unique tastes of Alien drug addicts.







June, 2016

What if a biological terror agent wiped out most of humanity, and our domesticated animals were left in charge? How would our dogs and cats set about ruling and rebuilding the world? LEGEND is the story of animals uniting to fight mutant creatures and attempting to restore the world their masters destroyed.
After a grueling day fighting with the EU commission on Thursday over taxes, Apple's CEO decided to meet with the Pope earlier today who happens to be an iPad fan of all things. Cook is likely in Italy to also visit their new iOS App Development Center that opened yesterday. Cook stated that "Europe is home to some of the most creative developers in the world and we're thrilled to be helping the next generation of entrepreneurs in Italy get the skills they need for success."

YAPYAP is a new Patently Apple chicklet-styled condensed news segment. It is specifically designed to provide our fan base with additional news, opinions (pro and con), reviews and other sorts of interesting Apple-centric stories from around the blogosphere. About Comments: Patently Apple reserves the right to post, dismiss or edit any comments made on our site.
Earlier today we posted a report titled "Ireland's Sinn Fein Party Says it will Pursue Apple for Taxes Owed if the EU Commission finds them Guilty later this Year." Before we were even able to blink, the news of Apple's CEO pushing back hard against a European tax investigation was in progress. It's been reported on many occasions that the EU Commission could force Apple to pay more than $8 billion in back taxes.

A new BloombergBusiness report this afternoon notes that "Apple's CEO met with the European Commission's antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager in Brussels on Thursday to press the company's case. After the meeting, Cook sent out a tweet highlighting figures showing that the company's products support more than 1.4 million jobs across Europe," which mildly came across as some form of threat.

Meanwhile, government officials on both sides of the Atlantic have come to the company's defense to lobby against a penalty. U.S. lawmakers have weighed in. The top members of the Senate Finance Committee, the panel in charge of writing tax code, wrote a letter to U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew last week urging him to lobby European regulators against imposing a penalty on Apple and other U.S. companies that have been caught up in a wide-ranging investigation into tax avoidance.

Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny also defended its relationship with Apple on Thursday, calling the claims the country is a tax haven "false and baseless." If Ireland is found to have traded a special tax deal with Apple in exchange for a pledge to creating jobs in the country, it could be forced to recoup the billions of euros in back taxes.

The European Commission contends that Apple's corporate arrangement in Ireland allows it to calculate profits using more favorable accounting methods. For more on this story, see the full BloombergBusiness report here.

About Making Comments on our Site: Patently Apple reserves the right to post, dismiss or edit any comments. Comments are reviewed daily from 4am to 6pm PST and sporadically over the weekend.
Patna: Nov. 29, 2014 - Over ten thousand lawyers from across the state refrained from attending the court or performing any legal duty to press for their demand for the withdrawal of recently-implemented rules affecting filing of new cases.

The decision to boycott the court was taken jointly by three separate lawyers' unions - Advocates' Association, Bar Association, and Lawyers' Association - representing various factions of the legal fraternity at a meeting held in Patna on Monday evening.

"The new rules have put inordinate amount of pressure on the lawyers who are now required to do all the works themselves that were previously being done by their assistants.

The lawyers also accused the government of not fulfilling the promises it made during Manjhi administration.

"We were told that seating arrangements would be made for us. Currently we have to stand outside the court even in most inclement weather. The former Chief Minister had promised to look into this but nothing was done to resolve this issue," said the President of the Lawyers' Association Uma Shankar adding the boycott of the court would continue until their demands were met.
News and commentary on organized crime, street crime, white collar crime, cyber crime, sex crime, crime fiction, crime prevention, espionage and terrorism.
Kerry Talks To Iranian FM About Missing Americans

01/22/16

Source: RFE/RL

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says he has spoken to Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif about the three Americans that were abducted in Iraq last week. Kerry confirmed at the Davos World Economic Forum on January 21 that he had spoken to Zarif about the issue.





U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry with Iranian FM Mohammad Javad Zarif in Davos





The U.S. government has not commented publicly about reports by anonymous U.S. government sources that an Iranian-backed, Shi'ite militia kidnapped three contract workers in Baghdad.

Kerry said he asked Zarif "if Iran knew any way to provide help or if there were some way they could have an impact on getting the right kind of outcome."

"He said he would take that under advisement and try to do what he can," Kerry said, adding that Zarif said he "didn't have any immediate knowledge whatsoever about it."

Iraqi officials are searching for the Americans, whom the Baghdad security command said were abducted last week from a "suspicious apartment" in southern Baghdad.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi said in Davos on January 21 that he "doubts very much" that there is an Iranian link to the three men's disappearance.

Based on reporting by AFP and Reuters

Copyright (c) 2016 RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org
Iranian President: Mass Candidate Ban Could Make Elections Pointless

01/22/16

By Golnaz Esfandiari, RFE/RL

Iran's president has criticized the mass disqualification of candidates in next month's parliamentary elections, suggesting the decision could make the vote pointless. The comments by Hassan Rohani signaled continuing tensions between the president, who has presented himself as a moderate, and powerful hard-liners who control key bodies in the Islamic republic.





President Hassan Rohani speaking at the governors gathering in Tehran, January 22, 2016





Rohani made the comments following reports that the powerful Guardians Council had barred about 60 percent of candidates from running in the February 26 vote.

Reformers, who were hoping to make a comeback in the upcoming vote, have said that only 1 percent of their hopefuls have been allowed to stand in the vote for the 290-seat Majlis.

If only one faction is present in the vote, and the other is not, then why are we holding elections? Rohani was quoted as saying on January 21 in a meeting in Tehran.

Another pro-reform politician, Hossein Marashi, said over the weekend that only 30 out of 3,000 reformist candidates have been qualified to run.

The Majlis, which is elected every four years, has the power to draft and debate legislation, which must be formally approved by the president before becoming law.

In practice, however, unelected bodies like the Guardians Council, which is made up of six clerics and six jurists, hold vast power over what legislation gets passed and gets the final word on who can run in elections.

It's been unclear why the council has moved to strike so many candidates from the elections, though in the past it has disqualified pro-reform candidates and those who are not deemed fully loyal to the clerical establishment and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.





Disqualified candidates Ashrafi Esfahani and Ali Motahari





In addition to reformers, some conservatives have been also barred from running, including outspoken lawmaker Ali Motahari, who's been critical of the house arrest of opposition figures.

"The parliament is the house of the nation, not the house of one faction," Rohani said in a January 21 speech to governors and election officials.

"Let's allow the house of the nation to truly reflect our nation and belong to all people," he said.

Supreme Intervention?

Those who have been disqualified can appeal against the decision and, in recent days, Iranian media have published some of the appeal letters by those disqualified.

Former Culture Minister and presidential candidate Mostafa Moeen said the decision to bar him went against Iran's constitution and national interests.

Rohani has reportedly assigned Vice President Eshagh Jahangiri to discuss the disqualifications with the Guardians Council, and Amir Mohebbian, a well-known political analyst aligned with hard-liners, said Rohani could ask Iran's supreme leader to intervene.

"Rohani could use his prestige and, for example, ask the leader to use his status regarding the disqualifications," Mohebbian was quoted as saying by the news site Fararu.com. "But whether the demand will be achieved is another issue."





2nd Congress of Nedaye Iranian reformist party in Tehran, January 21, 2016





Another Tehran-based political analyst, Sadegh Zibakalam, said the disqualifications have been so extensive that even some "moderate conservatives" are concerned that it would undermine the vote's legitimacy.

Meanwhile, Mohammad Reza Aref, a reformist politician and former presidential candidate, said he's hopeful that some of the banned candidates will be allowed to run. Aref is among the very few reformists who've been reportedly approved by the Guardians Council.

"So far, we've had good discussions with the Guardians Council and others; I'm hopeful in the review of the disqualifications," Aref was quoted as saying.

Earlier this month, Khamenei called on all Iranian citizens, even those who don't accept him and the clerical establishment, to vote in the February elections, which will also select members of the Assembly of Experts -- which is in charge of picking the country's next supreme leader.
Former U.S. Marine Released From Iran Arrives Home

01/22/16

Source: RFE/RL

A former U.S. Marine released by Iran last week in a prisoner-swap deal landed in the United States on January 21 after being held for more than four years in the Islamic republic, where at one point he faced a death sentence.

"I am happy to finally be home. It's been a very long road, a very long journey. Unfortunately, many people have traveled this road with me," Amir Hekmati, 32, told reporters after his plane touched down in his hometown of Flint, Michigan.

Hekmati and four other Iranian-Americans were released in a prisoner swap over the weekend. Iran announced their release on January 16, the same day that international sanctions on Tehran were lifted.

He was arrested in August 2011 on espionage charges that were dismissed by his family. He was originally sentenced to death.

An appeals court later commuted the sentence to a 10-year jail term. He was reportedly held in solitary confinement and subjected to psychological torture.

Asked about his imprisonment in Iran, Hekmati said "it wasn't good," but that his Marine training helped him endure the ordeal.

Based on reporting by Reuters, AP, and NBC

Copyright (c) 2016 RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org
Neocons Double their Standards on Prisoner Release

01/22/16

By Eli Clifton, Ali Gharib, and Jim Lobe (source: LobeLog)

Its inevitable that neoconservatives will assail President Obamas every dealing with Iran. And indeed, the denunciations were fast and furious of the deal that brought home four Americans, including Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian. Few of the critics explicitly rejected the deal, in which the U.S. government also commuted the sentences for non-violent crimes or dropped the pending prosecutions of seven Iranian nationals (six of them dual U.S.-Iranian citizens) and lifted Interpol red notices against another 15 Iranians. But the neocon criticisms all smacked of historical ignorance, hypocrisy, or both.

Take, for example, the Wall Street Journals editorial board, which wrote:

Were as relieved as anyone to see the four Americans coming home, though there was no legal basis for their arrests... But the Iranians negotiated a steep price for their freedom. The White House agreed to pardon or drop charges against seven Iranian nationals charged with or convicted of crimes in the U.S., mostly for violating sanctions designed to retard Irans military or nuclear programs. Iran gets back men who were assisting its military ambitions while we get innocents. ...Iran has again shown the world that taking American hostages while Barack Obama is President can yield a diplomatic and military windfall.

Thats all well and good: the Journals editorial board is typically eager to attack President Obamas Iran diplomacy for virtually any reason. But it was a little surprising to see that the only brief upside to the prisoner exchange was the relief the Journals editorial writers felt at the Americans release. The editorial contained no explanation of why one might be willing to trade seven prisoners who committed non-violent acts (mostly for allegedly trying to circumvent U.S. sanctions) for four prisoners who were unjustly imprisoned. There was no explanation of the national ethos that mandates getting our compatriots returned to American soil, especially when the costs seem so relatively low.

All that came as a bit of surprise because, when it came to another country whose citizens were taken hostage by a hostile force, the Journals editorial board waxed all philosophical about the nationalistic impulses to bring prisoners home. In 2011, Israel traded more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners-many of them accused terrorists-for one soldier, Gilad Shalit, who had been captured by the militant group Hamas and reportedly treated poorly. Following Shalits release after more than five years of captivity in Gaza, the Journal noted the unequal terms of the trade and, in fact, urged caution in such disproportionate trades: Sooner or later, Israel will learn the name of its next Gilad Shalit. Sooner or later, too, it will learn that the better course is to give its enemies reasons to think twice before taking hostages in the first place.

But the Journal editorial also emphasized why a country might want to make such a trade (emphasis added):

The Jewish states repeated willingness to pay an exorbitant price for its citizens is a testament to its national and religious values, which stress the obligation to redeem captives. Theres an instructive contrast in that, for anyone who cares to notice it, with the ethics of Hamas, which refused to grant the Red Cross permission to so much as visit Sgt. Shalit. Theres a contrast, too, with the ethics of those Palestinians now cheering the release of brothers imprisoned for committing such acts as a 1989 bus bombing that killed 10 Israelis and the 2001 bombing of a Jerusalem pizzeria. But virtues often have their defects, and the line between moral values and moral hazard can be a thin one.

Now glance back at the Journals editorial this week. Aside from the brief expression of relief, there is nothing redeeming in Obamas move to free four Americans, no higher American moral character driving Obamas diplomacy on this score, and no mention of virtues or laudatory comparisons between Obamas desire to get the four Americans home and Irans motivations in taking them prisoner. Now, why the Journal makes no attempt to put this past weekends releases in a similar context is pretty bizarre unless you believe that that its editorial writers are either extremely partisan or that they believe that Israels moral exceptionalism is significantly greater than this countrys.

(Note yesterdays comments of Amir Mirza Hekmati, the Marine who spent four years in prison: Even the Iranian officials, our captors essentially, were amazed. They asked us, Why are they working so hard for you? And I just said that its America and they love their citizens.)

Abrams Chimes In

The Journals odd double standard wasnt the only surprising denunciation of the White Houses diplomacy. The most hypocritical take may come from Elliott Abrams, the former Reagan and George W. Bush administration official and neocon heavy hitter. Abrams, who like the Journal editorial board and virtually all the other neocons, has been busy this week doing interviews denouncing the deal as a bad precedent. He told Fox News on Monday:

There should be a celebration for the families but you know, Bret, we dont pay ransom to terrorist groups that seize Americans - a lot of governments do, European governments - to get the people out. We dont pay... Now weve given a bunch of Iranian-American criminals who are engaged in sanctions busting to help Irans missile program, to get unjustly imprisoned Americans out. So I really think if were getting in that business, we do have to worry about whats the next group of Americans who are going to be taken prisoner in order to do this kind of deal.

Like the Journal, Abrams struck a very different tone when discussing the release of Gilad Shalit. Writing in the Weekly Standard in 2011, Abrams said:

But those who think the determination to free Gilad Shalit wrong have at least as heavy a burden-and in humanitarian terms a greater one-to bear than those who believe Israels government made the right decision.

You might think that Abramss broadsides against the deal that brought Jason Rezaian and three other U.S. prisoners in Iran home are slightly hypocritical. Well, its worse than you thought.

The Reagan Payout

On Saturday, the neoconservative Washington Post blogger Jennifer Rubin reported on her interview with Abrams:

In the Alan Gross case, the Obama administration traded several Cuban spies to Castro for the release of an unjustly imprisoned USAID worker, recalled former deputy national security adviser Elliott Abrams. Here, unjustly imprisoned Americans are traded for Iranian criminals-and the U.S. agrees to stop trying to prosecute fourteen other Iranians engaged in arms trafficking. Our delight at the release of our fellow citizens has to be tempered by our understanding that evil regimes are learning its profitable to seize American hostages. He further observed,  When Ronald Reagan freed our hostages in 1980 [sic], he paid no price to Iran. Weve come a long way since then-unfortunately.

(Unless Reagan reached some kind of deal with Iran in advance of his inauguration, a possibility raised by the notorious October Surprise, it can hardly be said that he freed our hostages in 1980, as pointed out by Politifacts takedown of Marco Rubio Sunday. Obviously, Rubio had been reading Abrams script.)

Although Rubin politely doesnt point out the elephant in the room, its right there for any reasonably informed person to see. Abrams, as hes been known to do from time to time, is lying, at least by omission. Perhaps we have come a long way since 1981 when the hostages taken in Iran in 1979 were freed at no cost. But Obamas swap deal actually made up ground that was lost in 1986 and by none other than Abramss Reagan administration.

Ronald Reagan didnt just trade prisoners. He facilitated the sale (by Israel) of weapons to Iran (in defiance of an international arms embargo) in return for U.S. hostages held in Lebanon. Moreover, some of the proceeds from the arms sales were used to fund the Nicaraguan Contras in clear violation of U.S. law in what became known as the Iran-Contra affair.

Abrams should know this because he was serving at the time as assistant secretary of state for Inter-American Affairs and-wait for it-was later convicted of withholding evidence from Congress during the investigation of the scandal. Moreover, he was explicitly tasked by then-Secretary of State George Shultz to keep track of the various questionable activities in which Oliver North, the key operative in the National Security Council on both the Iran and the Contra sides of the scandal, was engaged. Indeed, Abrams worked alongside North and the CIAs Central American Task Force chief Alan Fiers in overseeing the illegal funding of the Contras that, of course, included the arms-for-hostages deal.

Now, its possible that Abrams was not fully knowledgeable at the time about the circumstances under which the U.S. hostages were freed. But this is highly doubtful given his relationships with some of the key actors-such as Michael Ledeen and Howard Teischer, another NSC staffer, not to mention North himself-in the arms-for-hostages part of the scandal. Moreover, it is not remotely imaginable that he doesnt now know that there was such a trade and that it took place right under his nose.

Reviewing the recent history of international hostage negotiations, the Obama White House seems to have gotten a pretty good deal. One only has to look to Shalits release or the Iran-Contra Affair to see the high, at times astronomical, price that countries will pay for the release of their citizens. But you wouldnt know that reading the Journals editorial or Elliott Abrams commentary.


Don't try to leave me a voice message. I won't get it.

Voicemail needs to die. It's an archaic time-waster and nobody likes it. But it hangs on, undead, with bits and pieces falling off but still ready to bite your ear off and chew on the gristle.

Voicemail survives because it's interoperable, and because businesses hate to upgrade technology. Interoperability, in communication, is huge. It's one of the foundations of human society: the assurance that when you send a message, it will be heard and received. It's why I still love SMS and I'm deeply, deeply suspicious of iMessage, which is designed to socially alienate Android users from iPhone users.

Only an open standard can be truly interoperable and universal, which is why we live in a world of fragmented messaging apps. Facebook, Instagram, WeChat, WhatsApp, Viber and all of their ilk have profit motives to keep you in their silo and out of competing ones, just as Apple is trying to keep you away from Android with iMessage. That competition, in turn, has kept voicemail alive because it's the one thing everyone can count on.

It should be one of two things everyone can count on; SMS text messaging is open, interoperable, and supported by all the wireless carriers, some of whom are also major landline phone companies. But landline phones, especially the massive voice-over-IP installations that have taken over most businesses, don't support SMS, so you're stuck with voicemail. Although there are many, many OTT third-party providers offering landline-to-text services, there's just been no push to use them. Voicemail is a sunk cost. Voicemail-to-text would cost extra.

I remember reviewing a service I thought would free me from voicemail in 2007. 2007! Simulscribe, at the time, competed with Spinvox, Nuance, and later Google Voice in the voicemail-to-text sweepstakes, supposedly converting your voicemails to text messages. That could have been awesome, but nobody's quite nailed(Opens in a new window) machine-based text transcription, even to this day. Google Voice transcriptions are still ridiculous. (I wish they were better; it would make my interview note-taking routine a lot easier.)

The saga of trying to make natural language voice interfaces work is a long, long story. I remember asking Bill Gates, of all people, about it at a tablet PC event in 2002, when we were all trying to figure out how you were supposed to enter data into something that didn't have a keyboard. I asked, what about natural language interfaces? He laughed; those are at least five years away, maybe 10, he said. It's been 14. We still don't have accurate voice transcription. Dragon NaturallySpeaking relies on being trained to one voice in a quiet room; it isn't scalable.

So cell phone plans still come with voicemail, although they all have texting as an option. Business phones all default to voicemail, because they have for 40 years, and business phone providers see no reason to change. And I've heard a few people still have home phones.

I know this isn't a new call. In 2014, Gawker ran a poetic, personal piece(Opens in a new window) about voicemail, its history, and its possible demise (former PCMagger Leslie Horn wrote a similarly moving story(Opens in a new window) about it for Gawker, too). But as your company (and mine) will probably never, ever upgrade its corporate phone system, we're going to have to take the situation into our own hands.

The only way to kill voicemail is to stop using it. Do what I did: call your voicemail now, and set a new greeting. "I no longer listen to voicemail. Please contact me by email."
How much would you pay for a place at Apple's table? Google shelled out a reported $1 billion in 2014 to be the default search engine on the iPhone.

The tech titans have a deal that promises Apple a percentage of Google's revenue generated through Apple devices, according to Bloomberg(Opens in a new window), which cited court proceedings from Oracle's copyright lawsuit against Google.

Google declined to comment, while Apple did not immediately respond to PCMag's request for comment.

While it might seem counterintuitive for Google to pay Apple $1 billion, having a presence on the iPhone is apparently worth the expense. In 2014, there were rumors that Yahoo and Microsoft were trying their best to wrest control of default search on iOS away from Apple, but to no avail.

Microsoft's Bing, however, is the default search engine on Siri and Spotlight, the iOS tool that allows users to search across their phone.

As Bloomberg pointed out, the newly disclosed revenue-sharing agreement shows Apple is not above taking money from its rival, which CEO Tim Cook has criticized as an invasion of privacy.

Oracle and Google, meanwhile, have been at each other's throats since 2010, when Oracle sued, claiming patent and copyright infringement over the use of Java in the Android operating system.

During a recent court hearing in the case, an Oracle attorney disclosed details of the Google/Apple deala move which Google and Apple asked be stricken from the record. The presiding judge refused the request.

"The specific financial terms of Google's agreement with Apple are highly sensitive to both Google and Apple," Google said this week, according to Bloomberg. "Both Apple and Google have always treated this information as extremely confidential."

The transcript has since been removed from electronic court records, the news site said.

Encryption made headlines last year after Apple and Google decided to encrypt their mobile operating systems by default. The FBI says this hampers investigations, but in a post-Snowden era, major tech companies do not want it to look like they are in cahoots with the government.
How do you fight human trafficking? Prohibit the sale of smartphones with impenetrable encryption.

At least, that's one California lawmaker's plan.

Assemblymember Jim Cooper this week introduced a new bill(Opens in a new window) that would "require a smartphone that is manufactured on or after Jan. 1, 2017, and sold in California, to be capable of being decrypted and unlocked by its manufacturer or its operating system provider."

If passed by the State Assembly and Senate, then signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown, the new rule would affect current iOS and Android devices, which are encrypted by default, so not even Apple or Google can crack them.

"Human traffickers are using encrypted cell phones to run and conceal their criminal activities," Cooper said in a statement on Wednesday. "Full-disk encrypted operating systems provide criminals an invaluable tool to prey on women, children, and threaten our freedoms while making the legal process of judicial court orders useless."

Cooper, who was a captain with the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department for 30 years, acknowledged to Ars Technica(Opens in a new window) this week that the legislation would render the sale of his own iPhone illegal in the state. But that hasn't stopped him from encouraging the change.

"If smartphones are beyond the reach of law enforcement, crimes will go unsolved, criminals will not be held accountable, victims will not receive justice and our ability to protect our children and community will be significantly compromised," Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert said in a statement(Opens in a new window).

Cooper's bill, titled "Human Trafficking Evidentiary Access," mirrors a similar, terrorism-focused bill introduced in New York earlier this month.

The New York State Assembly is currently examining a bill that would require Apple, Google, Microsoft, and other phone vendors create backdoors for decrypting devices, PCMag's sister site ExtremeTech reported(Opens in a new window).

This marks the second time the proposed legislation has been sent to committee, and there is currently no vote scheduled.

The issue is complex. Like Cooper, law enforcement argues that encryption can prevent them from monitoring and stopping criminal activity, from drug deals to terrorism. Agencies like the FBI have requested special, or "back door," access to content on smartphones when necessary, but in a post-Snowden era, major tech companies do not want it to look like they are in cahoots with the government.

As such, Apple and Google turned encryption on by default in iOS 8 and Android Lollipop, respectively. Both say that if they create a back door for the feds, that same back door could be breached and misused by criminals.

Though the Obama administration has encouraged the tech community to work with law enforcement on the issue, last year it backed off(Opens in a new window) plans to force companies like Google and Apple to change their products.
Mont Blanc's alpine terrain towers over France and Italy, enticing brave explorers from around the world to climb the iconic mountain.

But now, thanks to Google, even armchair explorers can scale the highest peak in western Europe.

In partnership with alpine photographers, skiers, mountaineers, climbers, and runners, Google Maps on Thursday launched a 360-degree look(Opens in a new window) at the "monarch of mountains."

"By working with legendary adventurers, the Street View team was able to capture the spirit of the massif in a way few witness firsthand," Google project lead Sandy Russell wrote in a blog post(Opens in a new window).

Join runner Kilian Jornet, who holds the speed record for ascending and descending Mont Blanc in four hours and 57 minutes. Ice climb with record-setting alpine climber Ueli Steck. Or just watch the snow, and 14-time ski mountaineering champ Laetitia Roux, fly by.

Also, take a virtual tour of the 3,842-meter Aiguille du Midi peak with French climbing legend Catherine Destivelle, and soar through the air with filmmaker and skier Candide Thovex.

If you make it to the top, click through Korra Pesce's first-person Street View Trekker perspective of Mont Blanc's Gouter Route. Guide Patrick Gabarrou will be with you the whole way, explaining climate change and how it affects Mont Blanc's receding glaciers.

"This Street View imagery also serves as a digital record of Mont Blanc as it appears today, so future outdoor enthusiasts and scientists can look back at this time capsule to see how the mountain has changed," Russell said.

Mont Blanc follows last year's first-ever vertical imagery collection of El Capitan in California's Yosemite National Park.

Google just this week rolled out virtual tours of Buckingham Palace and the Great Barrier Reef, part of its new Expeditions Pioneer Program aimed at students.
To beef up security for users  especially those in the gaming community  Skype will now hide IP addresses by default.

The Microsoft-owned chat service recently introduced the ability to hide your IP address, but has now enabled this setting by default in the latest version of its desktop and mobile apps.

"This measure will help prevent individuals from obtaining a Skype ID and resolving to an IP address," the Skype team wrote in a blog post(Opens in a new window). As Engadget noted(Opens in a new window), the move is intended to prevent online harassment in the gaming community, specifically.

Talk of this issue dates back to at least 2011, when researchers from the Polytechnic Institute of New York University warned that it's possible to leverage a service like Skype to track a person's whereabouts. "Specifically, if Alice knows Bob's VoIP ID, she can establish a call with Bob and obtain his current IP address by simply sni?ng the datagrams arriving to her computer," the researchers said.

The following year, a Pastebin user posted instructions on how to exploit a flaw in the Skype network to determine another user's IP address. At the time, Skype called the problem an "industry-wide issue faced by all peer-to-peer software companies."

Now it should finally be less of a problem on Skype.

Head here(Opens in a new window) to download the latest versions of Skype for desktop and mobile devices. Just be sure to update Skype across all your devices to ensure you're protected.
Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg thinks the best way to combat ISIS is to kill 'em with kindness.

In a Facebook post(Opens in a new window), Sandberg said her goal at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland was to focus on three areas "where we believe we can have the most positive impact  connectivity, artificial intelligence, and virtual reality."

But the Lean In author made headlines with the story of a German anti-neo-Nazi group that launched "a 'Like' attack" on the Facebook page of the National Democratic Party of Germany (a.k.a. neo-Nazis).

"That page is filled with intolerance," Sandberg said. But rather than "scream in protest," the group convinced thousands of people to "Like" the page (in an ironic sort of way) and post messages of tolerance.

"So when you got to the page, they completely changed the content," Sandberg explained. "And what was a page filled with hatred and intolerance was then tolerance and messages of hope."

But could the same tactic be employed to fight ISIS? "The best thing to speak against recruitment by ISIS are the voices of people who were recruited by ISIS, understand what the true experience is, have escaped, and come back to tell the truth," Sandberg said on Wednesday.

Earlier this month, The Guardian reported(Opens in a new window) that White House officials met with execs from Apple, Facebook, Twitter, Microsoft, and others about how Silicon Valley could combat terrorism and ISIS. Sandberg, specifically, reportedly discussed Facebook's suicide prevention tool and administration officials wondered it could be used to flag those who were becoming radicalized.

For now, Facebook is sticking to its no-tolerance policy against hate and prejudice on the platform.

"We do everything we can do take all of it down," she continued. "Not just the posts and the calls for violence, but the people who are perpetrators of it. They're off Facebook."

Unfortunately, the company's efforts haven't entirely blotted out online antagonism; as the COO said: "We all know that as soon as you take something down, another one pops up."

A day before her appearance in Davos, Sandberg was in Berlin to announce the Online Civil Courage Initiative, meant to combat "extremism and hate speech on the Internet" in Europe.

Facebook is also pledging more than 1 million euros ($1.09 million) to financially support organizations that fight online extremism, and help researchers, companies, and governments find ways to understand and disrupt this problem.

"Amplifying those voicescounter-speech to the speech that perpetrating hate, is, we think, by far the best answer," Sandberg said.

Countries like Germany and France have stricter rules regarding offensive comments than the U.S., which is governed by the First Amendment.

The only woman on The Transformation of Tomorrow panel of five, Sandberg was joined in Switzerland by Rwandan President Paul Kagame, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Mahindra & Mahindra chairman Anand Mahindra, and OpenGov CEO Zachary Bookman (pictured above).
A $200,000 haul might seem like a small amount as far as crowdfunding goes, especially when a Kickstarter with a great pitch and some Web buzz can raise many times that in just a few days. However, we'll give the Tor Project credit: It's not bad for the organization's first-ever campaign, especially for a service that's built around all of its users working together to anonymize each other's Web browsing.

"When we launched this first crowd funding campaign, we weren't sure what would happen. We knew we wanted to diversify our funding sources; crowd funding gives us flexibility to do what we think is most important, when we want to do it. It allows us to fund the development of powerful new privacy tools. Or make the ones we have stronger and more resilient. Or pay for things we need like a funded help desk or an Arabic version of our web site," reads a blog post(Opens in a new window) from the Tor Project.

"But we didn't know if people who like Tor would actually invest in our independence. Now we do."

In a recent interview with Ars Technica(Opens in a new window), Tor executive director Shari Steele commented that the grants the organization receives(Opens in a new window) from the U.S. government are often restricted to particular subjects.

"One of the big things that Tor is looking to do is change its public perception and also to be able to be responsive to the things that the Tor Project itself thinks are the most important things to be working on rather than what its funders think are important," she told Ars.

In total, Tor's first crowdfunding campaign netted $205,874 from 5,265 different donors. And not only did they contribute financially, but a number of supporters also did much to spread the word about Tor's campaign and the organization as a whole.

"Following our theme 'This Is What a Tor Supporter Looks Like,' you sent in photos of yourselves in Tor t-shirts doing back bends or teaching your daughters how to use Tor browser, or covering your face to preserve your anonymity but trumpet your support for Tor. You sent fundraising notes to giant email lists. You tweeted screenshots of your donations. You bragged about your Tor relays (thank you) to inspire others. Some of you pointed out that Tor has saved your life," reads the Tor Project's blog post.

"The international Tor community rose up to support Tor's independence in every way it could think of. And independence is power. Power to defend the rights of human rights activists. Power to defend the privacy of all of us."
About 40 people were evacuated from an apartment complex in Moreno Valley on Friday, Jan. 22, after a car crashed into one of the buildings and caused a gas leak.

Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department firefighters responded to the accident about 2 a.m. Friday at Stonegate Apartments, 12650 Memorial Way, according to a Fire Department news release. Five people suffered minor injuries in the crash; three from the car and two from the apartment. Two of the five people were transported via ambulance to a hospital.

The residents of the 12 units affected by the crash were displaced, the news release said. The American Red Cross will be assisting two of those residents and apartment complex officials will provide temporary relocation to the other people displaced.

The car struck gas banks on the first floor of a three-story building in the complex, the news release said. As firefighters arrived, the gas and power to the entire complex was shut off and the tenants were evacuated.

Southern California Gas Company and Southern California Edison officials were notified of the crash.

The Riverside County Sheriffs Department is investigating the crash, said spokesman deputy Armando Munoz. Though the cause of the crash remains under investigation, deputies dont believe drugs or alcohol are factors.
EUFAULA, Okla. (AP)  Officials say a bank president was shot to death during a robbery in eastern Oklahoma and the suspect was killed after a car chase and exchange of gunfire with police.

FBI Special Agent Terry Weber said at a news conference that a man walked into the Bank of Eufaula, about 125 miles east of Oklahoma City, Thursday morning and shot a bank employee.

The state banking commissioner confirmed the banks president and CEO, Randy Peterson, was killed.

Authorities say the man tried to take another employee hostage and shot her when she resisted. He then took a female customer hostage and fled in a car.

Authorities pursued, caught up with the suspect and exchanged gunfire. The suspect, identified as 39-year-old Cedric Lamont Norris, was killed, and the hostage was shot.

Weber says both women who were shot are expected to survive.
SACRAMENTO  Gov. Jerry Brown took a muted tone Thursday, Jan. 21, as he delivered his State of the State address to the California Legislature, urging fiscal restraint and reinforcing policy positions he has already articulated rather than proposing expensive new programs.

In a recurring theme that sets the stage for upcoming legislative debates, he called on lawmakers to find a permanent revenue source to maintain roads, bridges and other infrastructure that he said now need $77 billion in repairs.

Brown convened a special session on transportation last year and has called for a $65 annual fee on all vehicles and for higher gas and diesel fuel taxes.

Repairing the crumbling infrastructure is critical, he said Thursday.

Yet, doing so without an expanded and permanent revenue source is impossible, he told lawmakers. That means at some point, sooner rather than later, we have to bite the bullet and enact new fees and taxes for this purpose.

Other infrastructure needs include fixing what he called serious deficiencies in state office buildings, levees, parks, universities, prisons and state hospitals. The budget he proposed earlier this month includes using $2 billion of an expected state budget surplus to repair and replace aging state-owned structures.

Republican votes are needed to pass any tax increase but they remained skeptical.

With state revenue surging, GOP lawmakers believe the state can afford to make repairs without new taxes or fees by shifting funds and cutting jobs at Caltrans.

Last year he talked about transportation infrastructure and then did nothing except create an extraordinary session where he says youve got to raise taxes, Sen. Bob Huff, R-San Dimas said after the speech. Here we are again.

Notably, Brown did not mention his increasingly unpopular $68 billion bullet train plan.

Instead, he continued his call for fiscal prudence, a hallmark of his speeches since he returned to the state Capitol in 2011 after previously serving from 1975 to 1983.

He urged lawmakers to beef up Californias rainy day fund, warning that the California economy could quickly be upended by seemingly unrelated world events.

A slowdown in China or turmoil in Iraq or Syria, or virtually anywhere, can send the stock market reeling and put California jobs and state revenues in jeopardy, Brown said in the speech devoid of his typical rhetorical Latin and biblical references.

The 77-year-old Democratic governor decried the wage stagnation and inequality he said have plagued many Americans and outlined the states response to those issues, including a higher minimum wage, stronger wage laws protecting unionized workers, and an earned income tax credit for the working poor.

To address poverty, he said, California has wholeheartedly embraced the Affordable Care Act, enrolling 13.5 million Californians in Medi-Cal and another 1.5 million in Covered California. He called it a historic achievement that will provide health security to those who could not otherwise afford it.

But he also noted that Medi-Cal costs have grown by $23 billion in four years and called on lawmakers to pass a new $1 billion tax on health insurers to replace one that is expiring.

Republicans also oppose that plan, though Democratic legislative leaders said they are confident they can negotiate a compromise with the GOP.

Republican lawmakers argued that the state can use rebounding revenues to fund programs.

Gov. Brown and I agree on a number of issues but we differ on our solutions, Assembly Minority Leader Chad Mayes, R-Yucca Valley, said in a prepared statement. Republican solutions to lift people out of poverty involve job training and incentives that create local jobs.

Democrats have pushed to spend some of Californias burgeoning tax revenue to aid social programs and to increase the stock of affordable housing, particularly in areas such as San Francisco and Silicon Valley where the cost-of-living is among the highest in the nation.

We believe that we need to make targeted investments in human capital for those who have been left behind with the resurgent economy, said Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles.

Brown is in his sixth year as governor and will leave office after this term, though he joked about using his sizeable campaign funds to try to change the state constitution to allow a fifth term.

He retains immense political clout, along with at least $24 million in his campaign bank account, which Brown can use to support or oppose any of a slew of initiatives making their way to the ballot this year.

In his speech, Brown only touched on his controversial $15 billion twin-tunnels plan to ship water from the San Joaquin Delta to Southern California.

Environmentalists have said the project would endanger fish and other wildlife.

Brown ended by praising the states progress in areas such as increasing school funding and combating the overarching threat of a warming climate.

However, those advances could be shortchanged in the next economic downturn, he warned.

Difficulties remain and they always will. Thats the human condition, he said.
New restrictions on the program that allows some foreigners to enter the United States without first obtaining a visa would not have prevented San Bernardino killer Tashfeen Malik from entering the country  proof that the changes have not corrected flaws in the process, immigration activists say.

The new rules are contained in a bill that Congress passed last month as part of the budget deal. They are taking effect in the wake of the November attacks in Paris by Islamic State that killed 130 and the Dec. 2 shooting in San Bernardino. An ISIS-inspired couple killed 14 and wounded 22 at the Inland Regional Center.

The law is intended to block from entering the United States Europeans who have fought for ISIS and are likely to commit jihadist violence.

The visa waiver program, which was created in the 1980s, offers expedited electronic processing and 90-day, visa-free travel to tourists and business travelers.

The restrictions, which President Barack Obama said Thursday would take effect immediately, prevent nationals of 38 countries that participate in the waiver program from coming to the United States if they have traveled to Iraq, Syria, Iran or Sudan since March 1, 2011, or hold citizenship in those countries.

Instead, those travelers will be required to go through the full vetting of the regular visa process, which includes an in-person interview at a U.S. embassy or consulate.

Malik, a native of Pakistan, entered the U.S. from Saudi Arabia under a so-called fiancee visa so she could marry U.S.-born Syed Rizwan Farook, whom she met online. Together, they carried out the attack at the Inland Regional Center before dying in a gunbattle with police hours later.

I dont see how (the new restrictions) would have affected her, so that is why this is not an adequate response to our vulnerabilities in our immigration system that were exposed in that incident, said Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies at the Center for Immigration Studies in Washington, D.C., a nonprofit research organization that promotes a low-immigration, pro-immigration vision of America.

Maliks relatives have said she became radicalized in recent years, before she met Farook, who also was a Muslim.

Ira Mehlman, spokesman for the Washington, D.C.-based Federation for American Immigration Reform, which favors stricter immigration laws, said Maliks ability to enter the country indicates a need to return to a system that requires anyone seeking a visa to go to a consular office.

Weve been saying for a long time that the visa waiver program is a threat to homeland security. Here you had a woman who was a native of Pakistan and living in Saudi Arabia, and they couldnt identify obvious red flags that might have kept her out, Mehlman said.

He added that those such as Farook who sponsor immigrants should be vetted as well during the visa process. Two to three years before Malik arrived in 2014, Farook and neighbor Enrique Marquez Jr. plotted to kill motorists on the 91 and Riverside City College students and faculty, the FBI said. Marquez has pleaded not guilty to providing material support of terrorism and other charges.

It might have come to the governments attention that (Farook) posed a threat, Mehlman said. ISIS and other terror groups are determined to send people here, and we need to be a lot more vigil-ant in examining the applications of people who are coming here.

There may be some inconveniences to bona fide travel, but the primary goal of a government should be to protect us against terrorism, not to facilitate the travel of anyone who claims to be harmless, Mehlman said. We cant operate on the honor system.

EXCEPTIONS CRITICIZED

Iraq and Syria were targeted specifically because Islamic State has seized significant territory in each country for its would-be caliphate. Iran and Sudan, like Syria, are designated by the U.S. as state sponsors of terrorism.

Even so, Obama on Thursday also announced exceptions to the new restrictions for journalists, those engaging in humanitarian aid and others traveling on business. That announcement angered some Republican lawmakers, who said Obama was undermining the new restrictions.

The Obama administration is blatantly breaking the law, a law the president himself signed, said House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul of Texas.

The exceptions also concerned Vaughan.

At the same time they are announcing new restrictions, they are announcing they are not going to stick to those, and that is very alarming, she said. It calls into question how serious they really are about imposing these restrictions.

Vaughan said she is also concerned that terrorists can enter the U.S. from so-called friendly countries. She noted that convicted 9/11 plotter Zacarias Moussaoui boarded a flight to the United States without a visa while traveling on a French passport, and Richard Reid, who attempted to detonate explosives in his shoes aboard an airliner traveling from Paris to Miami in December 2001, similarly was traveling on a British passport.

Overall, Vaughan said of the new restrictions, Its a very weak response to the threat we face.

The Associated Press and The Washington Post

contributed to this report.

Contact the writer: 951-368-9569 or brokos@pressenterprise.com
A New Years Day tussle and gunfire outside a Walmart in Lake Elsinore has prompted the arrest of a 29-year-old city resident, sheriffs officials say.

Tyler Scott Trotter was arrested at 10 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 19, at Pottery and Poe streets and booked for investigation of assault with a deadly weapon, negligent discharge of a firearm, and being a felon in possession of a gun, jail records show. His bail is $50,000.

The gunfire was reported at 8:15 p.m. on New Years Day during a confrontation between a loss prevention worker and a man he thought had been shoplifting at the Walmart at 31700 Grape Street, Sgt. James Woodland said in a written statement.

The man dropped the stolen merchandise, pulled a gun from his waistband, and fired one shot into the air as he fled, according to the statement. No one was injured.

The gunman had distinctive tattoos, witnesses told deputies.

Based on witness information and surveillance video, deputies focused on Trotter, whom they spotted Tuesday in a residential area about a half-mile northwest of City Hall.
TRIGGER WARNING: This post discusses domestic violence and sexual assault.



Mark Latham has used his brand new podcast on Triple M to call domestic violence a coping mechanism, and either the media industry is playing a sick practical joke on us by continuing to pay Latham for his opinions, or weve entered the darkest timeline and didnt even know it.

Lathamland, which went up online yesterday and is being broadcast at midday today, is an eighteen-minute shit-show in which Mark laments the average Aussie larrikin being unable to use the terms Mussies or Negros without being labelled a racist, and says hed happily boo Adam Goodes if he ever played again, in the same mild-mannered tone youd talk about a favourite pub in another city. Actually, yeah, they had a fantastic selection of beers, Id happily go again if we went back.

Then we get to the DV bit.

Now, it wouldnt be a Mark Latham talks domestic violence show without a few dozen cracks at Rosie Batty, which he delivers.

A lot of Australians are asking how did [Battys] tragedy where a lunatic drugged-out father sadly maliciously killed his own son, hows that morphed into a generalised campaign against all Australian men? Im worried that the domestic violence debate is being used as a Trojan horse to push leftwing feminist position, saying that were a patriarchy, theres a demonisation of men here, if you listen to Rosie Batty. Every man is a potential wife basher. Every woman is potentially at risk.

Quick reminder of some key stats:

40% of women have reported at least one incident of physical or sexual violence since the age of 15

In 46% of women experiencing physical violence, the perpetrator was a current or previous partner

In 78% of sexual assaults, the women knew the perpetrator (with 21% being a previous partner)

[Source.]

Then Mark decided to get into *why* men assault women:

The case is that it is a concentrated problem that needs a concentrated solution. And I worry that in the demonisation of men that Rosie Batty is causing more harm than good. But I dont think its about how men look at women, its about how men look at themselves. Theyve lost their self-esteem, theyve lost their job, theyre welfare dependant, theyve got other troubles, drugs, alcohol in their life. Its that loss of self esteem where I think they use domestic violence as a coping mechanism to get over all the crap in their lives. So demonising men isnt going to solve the problem thats targeted and concentrated in certain communities.

OH SORRY MEN ARE WOMEN TAKING AWAY YOUR MASCULINITY BY ASKING FOR THINGS LIKE EQUAL RIGHTS AND NOT BEING SEXUALLY ASSAULTED AND NOW YOU HAVE TO HIT, RAPE AND MURDER THEM TO FEEL BETTER? Get a fucking grip.

If Triple M were aiming for a strong reaction to his podcast, then they bloody well got it.

So Triple M gives Mark Latham a platform to attack Rosie Batty. Shameful. And, no, Im not adding a link.  Tracey Spicer (@TraceySpicer) January 21, 2016

The Mark Latham keys to success: Be loud, terrible, unpopular and low-rating, miraculously get new job. Repeat.  Wil Anderson (@Wil_Anderson) January 21, 2016

Agh. Triple M happily giving more hateful, misogynist oxygen to Mark Latham, Prince of Brokens. This truly is a new low.  michael hing (@hingers) January 21, 2016

If there is an Australian Arsehole of the year award, I nominate Mark Latham #auspol  AshGhebranious (@AshGhebranious) January 21, 2016

EXCLUSIVE shot of Mark Latham recording his new Triple M podcast. pic.twitter.com/U7KrrBVlLd  Petra Starke (@petstarr) January 21, 2016

No, were not gonna link you to the podcast. If you really want it, Googles a tab away.

But FFS Triple M, thanks for paying this absolute scumbag to voice his opinions, hope youre real fucking happy with the traffic / women youve just discouraged from leaving a violent relationship because if they just stopped demonising men, theyd stop getting murdered.

79 women killed in 2015 is not a Trojan horse. Its a disgrace.

If this post has affected you in any way, please call 1800 RESPECT on 1800 737 732 for 24/7 counselling and advice.



Photo: Jonathan Wood / Getty.
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pa-man-accused-of-shoving-and-injuring-his-grandmother-age-82.jpg

This is not your usual domestic violence situation: Police in Washington County, Pa., say 34-year-old Richard Burella Jr., who lives with his 82-year-old grandmother, shoved and injured the elderly woman in a dispute over laundry, breaking her hip.

(screen shot/KDKA)

This is not your usual domestic violence situation. Police in Washington County, Pa., say they have been called in the past to the home where 34-year-old Richard Burella Jr. lives with his 82-year-old grandmother, Helene Vayansky, according to KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh.

"We have been at the house several times in the past few years for disturbances involving [him] and the complainant was the grandmother," Carroll Township Police Chief Paul Brand told the news station. "There was aggression on his part during those calls directed towards her."

But this week, the grandmother was injured in an alleged dispute over laundry:

"Richard Burella had pushed his grandmother in the kitchen of her home, causing her to fall backwards and injure herself," Chief Brand told KDKA, which adds:

Vayansky suffered a broken hip, and she told police that Burella refused to call for help as she lay on the floor.

The grandmother was hospitalized and underwent hip surgery.

Meanwhile, Burella was jailed on charges, including aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and harassment, the station reports.
Snow Radar.png

Harrisburg fell within the leading edge of the moving storm as of 2 p.m. Friday.

(AccuWeather.com)

Snow storm forecasts called for the precipitation to move into the Harrisburg-area Friday evening, but midstate residents may see some periods of heavy snowfall by 4 p.m., according to local forecasters.

Radar images showed Harrisburg falling within the leading edge of the storm as of 2 p.m. Friday, and AccuWeather meteorologists are calling for periods of light snow until about 3 p.m.

Meteorologists predict it will shift to heavy snow in some areas shortly after 3 p.m. Heavy snow may continue for about 20 minutes before lightening and continuing as the evening progresses.

Meteorologists with the National Weather Service in State College said local residents can expect snow to fall on much of the Harrisburg, Carlisle, York and Lancaster areas starting Friday night and lasting through Saturday. Anywhere between 9 to 15 inches is expected to fall through the weekend, according to the Weather Service.

You can see live weather updates via the National Weather Service and other Twitter sources below.

Tweet us at @pennlive with photos of inclement weather at your place, incidents you see on your commute or send a submission to submissions@pennlive.com.
We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on!

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People form a line as they wait to receive food distributed by non-governmental organizations at a refugee camp in the northern Greek village of Idomeni Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. About 1,000 refugees from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq are stranded at Greece's northern border with Macedonia, after Macedonian authorities stopped letting them through citing problems with transit flows further north on the Balkan route which have caused a chain reaction. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)
Lars (left to right) and Lawrence Christensen appeared in front of Magistrate Judge Burrell last week facing drug distribution charges. The men have another court appearance scheduled for Friday, Jan. 22.

In less than a week authorities arrested three individuals on drug distribution charges.

On Monday, January 18, after obtaining a search warrant, officers seized Marvin Jackson, 27, and his belongings after arriving in town on an Alaska Airlines flight.

"After a search of his belongings a black/brown substance was found wrapped with tape inside a shampoo bottle," the probable cause statement states. "A field test of the substance resulted in a positive reading for heroin."

The heroin weighed 22 grams. The police document states heroin is sold in Petersburg by the .10 grams, meaning Jackson could potentially have sold around 220 dosage units.

Multiple unused syringes were also found in a different shampoo bottle.

Jackson is facing two charges of Misconduct Involving a Controlled Substance in the second and fourth degrees.

Jackson appeared in Petersburg District Court Tuesday morning. The court set bail at $5,000 and his next court hearing is scheduled for February 8.

Meanwhile, more information was released regarding the arrests of Lawrence and Lars Christensen who are also facing drug distribution charges.

Lawrence Christensen told authorities a package containing heroin and methamphetamine was sent and belonged to him after he and his brother, Lars Christensen, were both arrested last week on charges relating to possession and intent to distribute.

According to a Petersburg Police criminal complaint, "Lawrence stated he requested one ounce of black tar and two ounces of methamphetamine. Lawrence stated that he was going to be a street level distributor. Lawrence also made the statement that with the profit 'we were going to travel around Southeast and sell lures.' Lawrence stated that his brother did not have anything to do with this."

Local officers along with authorities from the FBI and the United States Postal Inspection Service cooperated in the investigation. Authorities were granted a warrant on January 12 allowing them to place an alert beacon in the parcel that would activate upon its opening.

In the package sent from an address in Sedro-Woolley, Wash., officers uncovered a single ball of heroin weighing 25.51 grams and two bags of methamphetamine weighing 36.85 grams hidden within a shirt.

Officials replaced the narcotics with a "represented sample of each drug" and sprayed a substance around the area that, when handled or touched, would appear under a black light.

According to the criminal compliant, on January 13, "Officers observed Lawrence Christensen walking out of the post office with the suspected package. Officers followed Christensen to his home at 111 South Nordic. Officers watched as Christensen took the package inside. Short time later the beacon alerted that it had been opened and officers executed a search warrant on the house."

Officers found the substance on the hands of both Lawrence and Lars after illuminated by a black light.

Lars told police he didn't know what was in the package but "...knew it was probably illegal. Lars admitted to being in possession of the package," the complaint states.

It was after police arrested Lawrence and Lars and placed them in a holding cell when Lawrence told police his brother didn't have anything to do with the charges against them.

Both men appeared for a hearing Friday in Petersburg District Court where their bails were reduced to a $5,000 cash only bond.

They are facing two counts of Misconduct Involving a Controlled Substance in the second and third degrees, both felony charges with the maximum penalty of $250,000 and 20 years in jail for intent to distribute heroin and $100,000 and ten years for the intent to distribute methamphetamine.

They have another court appearance scheduled for Friday, January 22.
A handful of citizens applied for a referendum earlier this week that would have allowed voters to choose whether or not the $9.9 million police and municipal building remodel project should move forward.

Gerry Whitethorn and Don Koenigs spearheaded the effort and turned in the referendum for certification on January 19, which included 16 of the required 10 signatures needed in order to apply. It would require 125 total signatures if the referendum was approved.

The application, in part, states, information regarding the long-term operation and maintenance expenses associated with the facility are unknown or yet to be determined.

It also states the annual operation and maintenance budget and service contracts should be presented as part of the ballot measure.

When asked if hed like to comment on the petition or which aspects of the projects funding he thought were extravagant, Whitethorn said he didnt want to say anything until the process moves further along.

I just want the people to get to vote on a $10 million project, Whitethorn said.

Koenigs, a former Petersburg Mayor and City Manager, didnt return a message for an interview request.

Petersburg Borough Attorney Jim Brennan reviewed the referendum application and found it to be insufficient, finding that it is in violation of restrictions on referenda set forth in the Alaska Constitution and Petersburg Borough Code regarding the use of a referendum in the dedication or allocation of revenues.

Brennans opinion states, The restrictions upon a referendum contained in the Alaska Constitution and Petersburg Borough Charter and Code are, for purposes of analysis in the case, the same as the restrictions on the power of an initiative.

(An initiative introduces legislation and a referendum appeals it.)

In both cases, one of the core objectives of the constitutional limitation regarding appropriations is to preserve legislative discretion by ensuring that the legislature, and only the legislature, retains control of the allocation of state assets among competing needs, Brennan wrote.

Brennan cited the court case Alliance of Concerned Taxpayers, Inc v. Kenai Peninsula Borough, when a group of citizens approved an initiative that would require prior voter approval for any borough capital project costing more than $1 million.

In that case, the court stated, referring capital projects to voterswill almost invariably result in voters vetoing certain projects, at which point there is nothing the Borough can do to go forward with a projectbut the voters ability to veto a capital project, even prior to budget approval, infringes on the Assemblys ability to allocate resources among competing uses because there is nothing that the Assembly can do to appropriate money for that project.

The Petersburg Borough Assembly unanimously approved at its January 19 meeting a resolution for the funding plan earlier this month and the first reading of an ordinance that directs a portion of those funds to the project, pending action on the referendum.

For the moment, unless someone decides to re-write the referendum or appeal the boroughs decision that its insufficient, the remodel project is back on track to go out to bid next week, Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht said.

For his part, Koenigs is no stranger to projects involving requests for a new or better building. Its been a concern of borough staff dating back to 1983.

In a memo to Koenigs, who served as the city manager at the time, dated October 24, 1983, the then Fire Chief Norman Fredricksen requested a meeting between Koenigs and other staff to address the same concerns current staff and officials have over the building.

Reasons cited in the memo include: present facilities inadequate, unsafe and unhealthy, poor toilet system, poor lighting, heating and ventilation, and the list goes on.

Several police chiefs over the years have logged similar complaints.

In 1994, 2006 and 2012 funding was sought for and or plans were drafted and paid for by Petersburgs municipal government. The then city and now borough has easily spent more than $2 million coming up with various plans to build a new facility or remodel the current building, only to see those designs gather dust in municipal filing cabinets.

According to borough data, since 2012 it has spent $788,962 on designs for the project.

After cost estimates came in higher than expected for the current project last December, designers and borough staff found ways to cut a little more than $673,000 from the budget and brought the total construction cost down to around $7 million.

As far as operations and maintenance on the facility goes, costs may decrease as several energy efficiencies will be incorporated into the new building.

Our projections show that the renovated building will cost significantly less to operate than it does currently, MRV Architect Corey Wall wrote. The building presently uses electrical power to heat the police station and oil heat for the remainder. Our electrical engineer has projected that the renovated facility will use a maximum of 100kWthe same amount it currently uses. So, in effect, the building will be saving the price currently paid for oil heating.

A little more than half of the funding for the remodel project comes from state and other grants. The remainder will come from the boroughs general and property and development funds, land sale proceeds, E911 surcharge funds and an inter fund loan from the electric department.
Feds: Enbridge can stop some crack inspections on Straits oil pipelines

U.S. DOJ agrees that the inspections delayed would identify cracks that do not pose a risk to the pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac.
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The Online Railbird Report: "Educa-p0ker" Wins $366,366 to Pull Out to Early 2016 Lead

January 22, 2016 Chad Holloway Executive Editor U.S.

This week's Online Railbird Report, which captured the high-stakes cash game action on PokerStars, saw "Educa-p0ker" come on strong to not only finish as the biggest winner with $366,366 in profit  which came from 13,522 hands over 58 sessions  but also give him the early lead on the 2016 leaderboard.

On the flip side, "Aron0621" was the biggest loser from January 8-20 after dropping $208,963 in 2,632 hands over 41 sessions, while Alex "Kanu7" Millar was the second-biggest loser down $77,179 in 6,545 hands spread across 60 sessions.

Millar Turns Bad Day Around at Expense of "wilhasha"

On Saturday, January 9, a big $100/$200 no-limit hold'em heads-up match broke out between Millar and "wilhasha." At the time, Millar was down around $90,000 on the day, but he managed to win it all back over the course of three hours, which included winning the biggest pot of the day.

It happened when "wilhasha" ($42,263.66) opened for $600 from button and then called when Millar ($92,491.80) three-bet to $1,680. The flop saw Millar lead out for $839,50, "wilhasha" called, and the appeared on the turn.

Millar check-called a bet of $5,037 and then checked the river. "wilhasha" bet $11,200, Millar check-raised to $39,533.25, and "wilhasha" called off for $34,707.16 total to create an $84,527.32 pot.

"wilhasha" held the , but he discovered he was on the wrong end of a cooler as Millar had flopped a full house with the .

Meanwhile, Timofey "Trueteller" Kuznetsov was actually Saturday's biggest winner after banking $141,900, of which $92,000 came from the no-limit hold'em tables and roughly $50,000 from the $100/$200 pot-limit Omaha tables.

"wilhasha" Gets Revenge on Millar

On Monday, January 11, "wilhasha" and Millar were back at it, but this time the Swede came out the victor winning $158,900 over the course of 10 hours. According to HighStakesDB, the match was even for the first six hours, but after that "wilhasha" began to pull away, which included winning the two biggest pots of the day.

Hand #1: Millar ($79,406.19) opened the button for $460 with the ], "wilhasha" ($35,758.96) called with the , and the flop came down . "wilhasha" checked his two pair, and then called when Millar, who flopped an open-ender, bet $1,009.80.

The turn saw "wilhasha," who picked up a flush draw, check-call another bet, this time $4,406.40, and the peeled off on the river. It was an action card as "wilhasha," who checked for a third time, made his flush, and Millar, who bet $8,812.80, made his straight.

"wilhasha" check-raised all in for $29,882.76 total, and he claimed a $71,517.92 pot after Millar paid him off.

Hand #2: "wilhasha" ($35,527.69) raised to $600 on the button and was met by a three-bet to $1,680 from Millar ($44,444.31). "wilhasha" pushed back with a four-bet to $4,300, Millar five-bet all in, and "wilhasha" called off to create a $71,055.38 pot.

"wilhasha":

Millar:

It was a flip, and the two agreed to run it twice. Unfortunately for Millar, he came up empty on both run out as well as the on the second.

"Educa-p0ker" Takes From "wilhasha"

On Saturday, January 16, the week's biggest winner, "Educa-p0ker," and "wilhasha" tangled at the $100/$200 no-limit hold'em tables for nearly eight hours. Over the course of 4,160 hands, "Educa-p0ker" managed to win a hefty $213,800. Surprisingly, he did lose the biggest pot of the day, which was just one of three to cross the six-figure mark in the match.

It happened when "wilhasha" ($55,762.36) opened for $600 and "Educa-p0ker" ($74,101.64) three-bet to $2,200. From there, "wilhasha" four-bet to $6,300 and then called when "Educa-p0ker" five-bet to $13,900.

The flop saw "wilhasha" call a bet of $8,300 and then he called off for $33,562.36 after "Educa-p0ker" shoved the turn.

"Educa-p0ker":

"wilhasha":

"wilhasha" had flopped a flush to pull ahead of "Educa-p0ker's" aces, but the latter could still win with a heart on the river. They ran it twice, but neither the on the first nor on the second helped "Educa-p0ker" and he watched the 4111,524.72 pot pushed to his opponent.

On Sunday, the two were back at it, and once again "Educa-p0ker" emerged victorious, this time taking $113,200 from "wilhasha" over 1,806 hands. Amazingly, despite the big loss, "wilhasha" won the biggest pot of the day.

It happened when "Educa-p0ker" ($53,238.98) raised to $490 from the button and "wilhasha" ($52,976.77) three-bet to $2,100. "Educa-p0ker" made it $6,300 to go, "wilhasha" called, and the flop came down . Both players checked, the peeled off on the turn, and "wilhasha" check-called a bet of $8,188.70.

When the completed the board on the river, "wilhasha" shipped for $38,488.07 and "Educa-p0ker" called with the for a rivered straight. Unfortunately for him, "wilhasha" had rivered a flush with the to lay claim to the $105,953.54 pot.

Biggest Winners/Losers from Jan. 8-20

Winners Profit Losers Loss "Educa-p0ker" $366,366 "Aron0621" $208,963 "Cobus83" $149,443 Alex "Kanu7" Millar $77,179 "dougiedan678" $98,260 "gragik" $76,429 "bazzzzzzz" $56,918 Mikael "ChaoRen160" Thuritz $75,991

Biggest Winners/Losers of 2016

Winners Profit Losers Loss "Educa-p0ker" $366,366 "Aron0621" $160,594 "Cobus83" $163,746 "SHARMOOTA" $118,140 "TILTMENOT" $103,085 Viktor "Isildur1" Blom $115,592 "dougiedan678" $98,260 Brian "tsarrast" Rast $93,987 "bazzzzzzz" $87,377 "candela2005" $82,585

Data and hands obtained from HighStakesDB.com

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Sharelines Online Railbird: "Educa-p0ker" was the biggest online winner from Jan. 8-20 with $366,366 in profit.
Photo: Kelly Bracken

Last month I wrote an editorial that mentioned the need for law enforcement having armored rescue vehicles (ARVs) in active shooter operations and terror attacks and how President Obama's restrictions on the 1033 program that provides law enforcement agencies with military surplus vehicles could cost lives.

Less than a week after I wrote that piece, everyone in America saw how armored rescue vehicles saved lives during the Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood attack. Lenco BearCats were used during that incident to evacuate the wounded, to shield officers as they approached the building to make tactical entry, and to take down the suspect. We also saw numerous ARVs in operation during the response to the San Bernardino attack.

Now, it doesn't look to me like any of the ARVs used in Colorado Springs and San Bernardino were supplied to law enforcement through the 1033 program. They were all purpose-built police vehicles. But terror attacks can happen anywhere in the United States. And as we all know, not every law enforcement agency is fortunate enough to receive the grant monies necessary to buy purpose-built ARVs. Which is why the 1033 program is so important. I urge you to let your elected officials know how you feel on this issue.

***

Back in 2010 the San Francisco Police Commission rejected then Police Chief George Gascon's request to equip officers with TASERs. The city is now paying for that stupid decision.

On Dec. 2, San Francisco officers confronted Mario Woods, 26, on the streets of Bayview. Woods was suspected in a non-fatal stabbing and was wielding a kitchen knife and acting erratically. Multiple officers responded to the scene. They then attempted to use OC spray and at least one beanbag round to subdue Woods, but he refused to drop the knife. At 4:30 that afternoonafter repeatedly ordering Woods to drop the knifeofficers shot and killed the man.

The Mario Woods incident has sparked protests, vigils, calls for firing the police chief, demands that the officers involved be prosecuted, and, of course, a lawsuit. The department is also planning to revise its use-of-force policies and training to emphasize de-escalation. In addition, Chief Greg Suhr has announced plans to equip officers with 60 riot control shields like those used by British police during knife confrontations. Oh, and Suhr is also asking that the Police Commission reconsider TASERs.

Now any discussion of TASERs in a community like San Francisco always leads somebody to say that the less-lethal tools can replace deadly force when officers face armed people. And that's just nonsense. In most cases, officers would be sacrificing their own safety and the public's safety if they brought a TASER to a gunfight or even a knife fight.

However, in the Mario Woods incident, a TASER might have worked. There were multiple officers on scene, so lethal cover was available and one officer could have tried to get close enough to deploy a TASER against the knife-wielding suspect. If that had happened, Mario Woods might still be alive and San Francisco would have been saved from all of the fallout that followed this officer-involved shooting. Unfortunately, because of stupidity, San Francisco officers don't have TASERs.

***

There's been a lot of talk since the 2014 Ferguson shooting that law enforcement officers in America should think of themselves as "guardians," not "warriors." That talk comes from people who don't realize that every guardianevery law enforcement officermust be a warrior. You can't protect unless you are willing to do violence and stop the threat.

When terrorists attacked the Inland Regional Center in San Bernardino last month, the officers who arrived on the scene went into the building as warriors anticipating combat. They then adjusted their mission when they encountered no suspects and found only dead bodies, wounded victims crying for help, and people afraid to move.

San Bernardino County Sheriff's Det. Jorge Lozano was both a warrior and a guardian when he told a line of people who were terrified of moving down a corridor for fear of being shot that he would lead them and take the bullet for them. That's what has been asked of warriors from the beginning: to guard the weak and the frightened and fight to protect them, to take the bullet. No officer can protect or serve unless he or she has that warrior spirit.
Officer Robert Olsen (Photo: DeKalb County PD)

An Atlanta area grand jury on Thursday indicted a DeKalb County police officer who fatally shot an unarmed naked man on charges including felony murder, aggravated assault and violation of oath of office.

The decision came after DeKalb County prosecutors presented their case against, who fatally shot Anthony Hill on March 9 while responding to a call of a man behaving erratically outside a suburban Atlanta apartment complex.

Hill's family in November filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the DeKalb County Police Department, Olsen, the county and its board of commissioners, the Associated Press reports.
This man was shot with .40 S&W rounds to center mass, was not incapacitated at the scene, and survived the shooting. (Photo: Sydney Vail)

At the end of October, the FBI announced that it was planning to swap out the .40 S&W pistols and ammunition now used by its agents and replace them with 9mm pistols and ammo. This was a widely discussed decision, given that the Bureau once partially blamed the performance of 9mm cartridges for the deaths of two agents in the 1986 Miami shootout and subsequently transitioned to 10mm and then to .40 caliber sidearms. This is also a widely followed decision because the FBI's choice of duty pistol and ammo will likely influence many other law enforcement agencies to give the 9mm jacketed hollow-point another look.

In the January 2013 issue of POLICE, I wrote an article titled "Stopping Power: Myths, Legends, and Realities," in which I discussed the wound ballistics performance of various popular pistol calibers as I have observed through my experience as a trauma surgeon and tactical medical specialist. My advice then and now is when it comes to claims about the effectiveness of handgun ammo, don't believe the hype. Instead, look at the hard facts.

And now that the FBI's decision to go back to 9mm pistols has ignited another round of debate about caliber effectiveness, it's time to look at the real-world performance of 9mm and .40 S&W rounds in terms of wound ballistics.

Understanding Stopping Power

One of the least understood concepts in all wound ballistics is stopping power. So before we discuss the 9mm vs. .40 caliber in terms of wound ballistics, let's define the concept of "stopping power."

I believe the definition of stopping power for law enforcement should be a particular ammunition's effectiveness to render a person unable to offer resistance or remain a threat to the officer, an intended victim, or self.

So how does ammunition accomplish this? You have two options. You can use a really large round at very high velocity like the 30mm cannon rounds from an Apache helicopter's M230 Chain Gun, which produces substantial kinetic energy, or you can place your shot where it has the most effect. Obviously, shot placement is the only realistic option for a law enforcement officer.

A handgun bullet shot into the shirtless torso of a person causes a degree of injury due to the body absorbing the bullet's energy and dispersing it in front of and around the path of the bullet. The projectile also tears through the tissue. This means that the kinetic energy of the bullet will create both a permanent cavity and to a much lesser extent a temporary cavity.

But handgun ammunition only has acceptable stopping power if the bullet hits a vital structure that would "stop" the target from continuing the fight.

The Measurements

OK, let's return to our specific discussion of 9mm and .40 S&W ammo and look at some of the basic measurable differences between these two calibers of handgun rounds.

9mm .40 S&W

Diameter 9.01mm (0.355 inches) 10.2mm (0.4 inches)

Velocity 950-1,400 fps 900-1,449 fps

Expansion 0.36-0.72 inches 0.4-0.76 inches

There is no debate that for a handgun round to be as effective at incapacitating as quickly as possible, it has to either hit the brain stem, injure a significant amount of brain tissue, or cause extremely rapid exsanguination (hemorrhage). From a wound ballistics perspective, the diameter of the handgun bullet translates into the permanent cavity, the direct tissue impact or what is actually injured by the projectile as it passes through tissues. If there is a blood vessel that is injured, the larger the hole or injury relates to the volume of blood that is able to leave the vascular system in a period of time as to cause a significant enough loss of blood to make the blood pressure go down to cause the brain not to work as efficiently, then to cause the loss of coordination, which then causes the person to become a reduced threat and eventually lose consciousness...all over time.

In a head shot, the amount of brain tissue disrupted by a bullet produces varying degrees of incapacitation unless the brain stem is hit. So when comparing the 9mm to the .40 S&W, size is not a huge factor. If both expand to the maximum diameter based on bullet design, there is not a large enough difference to account for a larger degree of tissue injury; the difference between non-expanded bullets is small as well.

Penetration in living tissue is a guessing game for both of these rounds. Despite what many shooters believe, measuring penetration in ballistic gelsimulating muscle tissueyields limited useful information about penetration in the human body, which is made up of more than just muscle.

There are too many variables to accurately predict what the actual depth of penetration will be inside a human body. I have found a wide variety of depths of penetration for both 9mm and .40 caliber rounds when operating or caring for gunshot patients.

More Rounds in the Mag

Our discussion now comes back to shot placement or wounding accuracy and the potential number of bullets required to increase or maximize the odds of injuring the body of a threat in such a way as to render that person incapacitated.

Shooting accuracy is affected by stress, but the effects of stress can be reduced through experience. To quote Bruce Siddle from "Sharpening the Warriors Edge," "stress is a matter of perception and perceptions can be changed through the training process." By training to deal with more stressful situations, and not training until you get it right but training so you don't get it wrong, you have a much better chance of accurate hits under stressful conditions.

In other words, shot placementwhich is critical to prevailing in a gunfightmust be maintained under the most stressful of circumstances. Having more rounds in your pistol's magazine increases the potential for accurate shots. Hence the FBI chose to make the change to the 9mm round, which usually offers a higher round count per magazine, faster and more accurate follow-up shots, less perceived recoil, and very similar physical bullet characteristics to the .40 S&W.

From a trauma surgeon's perspective, both the 9mm and the .40 caliber can wound, injure, incapacitate, or kill. However, shot placement is the best predictor of accomplishing the intended goals. I have treated patients with more than 20 "holes" in them that never caused enough tissue damage or bleeding to cause them to die. And I have treated patients with a single "hole" that did die. Remember, the discussion is the ability of a particular ammunition caliber with improved bullet characteristics to stop a threat, not living or dying but simply to temporarily or permanently incapacitate the threat.

The FBI report of an officer-involved shooting on Nov. 29, 2006, from a Pennsylvania police department makes for an interesting read on this topic. The assailant was shot in the chest and abdomen with 180-grain

.40 S&W modern hollow-point ammunition as well as .223 rounds from an M4. On autopsy it was discovered he had been shot 17 times with 11 rounds exiting his body. Despite these many wounds, he struggled with officers attempting to handcuff him before he died.

Limitations of Ballistic Gel

There are people who will read this article who will maintain that the early works of Dr. Martin Fackler were written in stone when in fact he provided a significant amount of quality wound ballistics data but kept an open mind, understanding the limitations of simulants such as ballistic gel. This is best represented in an editorial he wrote about an article published in the Journal of the International Wound Ballistics Association, Winter volume 1991;10-13, by E.J. Wolberg.

The article in question was an autopsy study by a medical examiner on "torso only" shots with a retained bullet, noting that patients were excluded if bone was hit or there was over penetration. This data was compared to gelatin data for the 9mm 147-grain Winchester jacketed hollow-point. Gel demonstrated a 12- to 14-inch depth of penetration, and the autopsy findings (with the bullet only passing through soft tissue) of a 10- to 17-inch penetration. The author's conclusion: "Based on comparison of data from living tissue penetration by the 9mm 147-grain bullet with test shots of the same bullet into gelatin, it is concluded that gelatin can be a useful predictor of this bullet's penetration and expansion characteristics in shots in the human torso."

Dr. Fackler's editorial comment to this statement and study: "What Gene Wolberg has done here is what every clear thinking LE agency should be doing. Skepticism and meaningful comparison are the essence of common sense and all scientific thought.Don't believe that your tissue simulant is a good predictor just because some army lab or the FBI uses it and says socheck it out for yourself."

The obvious flaws in this study related to a gel-to-autopsy comparison was that if a bullet hit bone, it would invalidate the gel comparison; gel is a soft tissue simulant only. Also excluded were the outcomes of all victims; did they live, die immediately, or die later?

So when the FBI decided to change from the .40 to 9mm, it was likely done with significant testing, evaluation, consideration of actual wounds with degrees of injury sustained, degree of training needed to maintain accuracy of shot placement, as well as many other factors not yet available to the public.

Think of yourself under a stressful set of conditions using a weapon platform and ammunition that maximized your skill set and training; limited your recoil and made for faster, more accurate follow-up shots; and gave you higher magazine capacity so that you could minimize the chances of needing to do a physical manipulation to perform a tactical reload in the attempts to stop a threat.

The facts are clear; not every bullet entering a body will stop a threat. Major bleeding takes time, and the time to incapacitation is unpredictable unless the brainstem is hit or the heart is destroyed, and even then the person has 10 to 15 seconds of life left. More injuries to more structures gives an improved potential of incapacitation, and when they are accurate shots, the results are more predicted to have the intended outcome.

Sydney Vail, M.D., FACS, is chief of the division of trauma surgery and surgical critical care and director of the tactical medicine program at the Maricopa Medical Center in Phoenix. He is also medical director of Tactical Trauma Immediate Response (Tac-TIR) Group, Cowtown, Peoria, AZ; director of the SWAT Tactical Medical Program for Arizona DPS; and a senior instructor for the International School of Tactical Medicine.
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Ettore Scola, the brilliant Italian film director, has died. He was 84.

Scola is probably best known for A Special Day starring Marcelo Mastroianni and Sophia Loren. Mastroianni plays a gay man about to be deported by Mussolinis government. Loren is the repressed wife of a Mussolini supporter. The movie is about their brief, random encounter.

My favorite Scola film, though, is We All Loved Each Other So Much. This is about three World War II partisans and what becomes of them in the following decades, as Italy undergoes a massive and disruptive transformation.

The film is a tribute to the great Vittorio De Sica, under whom Scola studied. De Sicas Bicycle Thief figures twice in the plot, including in a climatic scene in which one of the protagonists  the leftist intellectual  blows his chance to win a fortune on a quiz show when, in response to a basic question about the plot, he provides an answer based on the movies back story. Brilliant.

Despite its strong leftist bent, We All Loved Each Other So Much is almost certainly one of the best 15 or so foreign films Ive ever seen. It won a Cesar Award for Best Foreign Film in 1977 and (not surprisingly, Im afraid) the Golden Prize at the 9th Moscow International Film Festival in 1975.

Sophia Loren remembered Scola this way:

Ettore Scola had a refined intelligence, a beautiful type of irony about him, and he was a real gentleman.

Martin Scorsese issued this statement:

Ettore Scola was, for me, a standard bearer for the greatest period of Italian cinema, a true golden age that began after WWII and lasted into the early 90s. From the 50s on, he was one of the creative dynamos of Italian filmmaking, as a writer (he co-wrote Dino Risis great Il Sorpasso, one of the best films of its era) and then, in the late 60s, as the director of films like Jealousy Italian Style (known over here as The Pizza Triangle when it was released), We All Loved Each Other So Much, A Special Day and Passion dAmore. Scola was a very special artist, truly one of a kind.

Indeed.
Daniel Henninger devotes his weekly Wall Street Journal column to 13 Hours. The column is 13 Hours: Its political (accessible here via Google, I hope). Henningers column marks an important contribution to the discussion. Among other things, Henninger writes:

The movie 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi opened last week, and the cold-water machines have been hosing it. No one cares about Benghazi anymore, the conventional sniffing goes, because the box-office is tepid. At 144 minutes, 13 Hours is too long and, really, its just too political.

I sat through it, and these political faces and names appear nowhere in the movie: Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Susan Rice. But for the last 75 minutes, I could think of only one thing: the Obama administrations YouTube coverup, the storyor talking pointsabout how an obscure anti-Islamic video made in California caused Benghazi to happen.

13 Hours is a graphic, reasonably accurate depiction of the events on Sept. 11, 2012: the consular assault, Chris Stevenss death, an escape under heavy fire to the CIA annex a mile away, and the successful, nightlong defense of the annex. With apologies to the politically delicate, 13 Hours makes the memory of the governments tall tale, which it insisted on repeating for more than a week, hard to stomach.

And one other, impossible-to-flinch conclusion: There ought to be a political reckoning over this with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who, her emails revealed, was complicit in a White House concoction she knew the night of the attack was untrue. She is now asking the American people to let her succeed Mr. Obama into the White House. Benghazi is toward the top of the list of reasons they should say no. From the looks of it, many are doing so already.
Ammo Grrrll calls this one THE UGLY AMERICAN (Revisited). She writes:

Being of late, late middle age, I am old enough to remember when a whole best-selling book was written talking about what crude, rude, fat, loud, insensitive slobs we Americans were when we traveled internationally. Why, we expected the countries we were visiting to speak some English!! Quelle gauche!

Then, we had an invasion of several tens of millions of illegal immigrants. And a few million legal ones. And suddenly, instead of ragging on insensitive GUESTS, it was the American HOST COUNTRY that was fat and insensitive, rude, and  it goes without saying  racist! Why? You couldnt guess it if you had just read The Ugly American, but it was, in part, for failing to speak the guests language. No, really! We were supposed to provide ballots, directions, signs in Walmart, and instruction in schools in Spanish.

Whoa! Didnt see that comin, did you? Damned for wanting English spoken abroad and damned for wanting English to be spoken in our very own country. As the Presidents sweet spiritual adviser, Reverend Wright said, God damn the United States of America! as its citizens can clearly do nothing right. How odd that so many people are trying to flood in to such a terrible place. And nary a soul risking life and limb to get out. You want to leave? Theres the door! Bye-bye, Clock Boy and Daddy. Enjoy the heck out of Qatar.

Now, correct me if Im wrong here but, to the best of my knowledge, Americans in Europe never marched in angry parades carrying American flags. They never demanded that France or Switzerland or Spain not only let them overstay their visas, but give over half of them welfare benefits. They never insisted they all get drivers licenses and be allowed to vote in French or German elections. They never swarmed around young women in a mob gropefest or worse. Americans just wanted someone to tell them how to get to the Eiffel Tower while they spent their hard-earned tourist dollars on over-priced coffee and dry pastries that couldnt hold a candle to a raised, glazed doughnut in any hometown bakery.

Why, if you are demanding to be a legal resident of America, do you think brandishing a Mexican flag, for example, is the way to convince people that you give a crap about this country except for the free goodies? Ethnic pride, you say? Its long been a mystery to me why ethnicity, gender, sexuality, or race has anything to do with pride anyway, even the St. Patricks Day Parade which would include many of my relatives.

I am a short, roundish, pale, enthusiastically-heterosexual woman. (The Grrrll from Arizona is sort of the polar opposite of The Girl from Ipanema who was tall and tan and lean. We do both go walking, however.) Anyhow, I was born this way and am very happy, though I wouldnt protest if I were a few inches taller. But I can take no credit for any part of it. Why should I be proud of something which is a complete accident of birth? Moreover, like many Americans, I am a mutt  a mixture of six ethnicities. Thats a heavy parade schedule and bloated flag budget. I think Ill skip the whole hyphenated-American thing. Old Glory is plenty flag for me.

I am proud of my long-ago puny academic achievements, my long-term marriage, our great son, my semi-secret recipe for Brisket and Made-From-Scratch-Including-Pitting Fresh Cherries Cherry Pie. Those are things I accomplished or achieved. I am blessed to be an American and profoundly grateful.

I am neither proud nor ashamed of my skin tone and would gladly be a darker shade if I could look like Halle Berry or Salma Hayek. You cant convince me that I benefited from White Skin Privilege when virtually every single person I competed against in the first several decades of my life was the exact same color. However, I sure did benefit from having two wonderful parents who were actually married and still are after 71 years. My father served in the Navy, went to college on the G.I. Bill, worked all but three days a month in his store, and supported us. Nobody was a criminal or substance abuser. Those cultural choices are available to all.

I shall not hold my breath anxiously awaiting an updated version of The Ugly American called The Demanding Immigrant in which the foreigners  both invited and invading  are taken to task for insisting that Americans speak their language. That road  like so many  only goes one-way.
The Senate on Thursday issued the Nigeria LNG one week ultimatum to produce all details showing its payments of dividend and other taxes to the Nigerian government since it commenced business.

The lawmakers were angered by a new report by Action Aid Nigeria, a non-governmental organisation, which revealed how Nigeria lost $3.3 billion (about N650.1 billion) in seven years to questionable tax exemption granted by the government.

The report titled: Leaking Revenue: How a big tax break to European gas companies has cost Nigeria billion highlighted the loss by the Nigerian government through the contentious pioneer status regime granted the company.

The NLNG was not only exempted from paying 30 per cent corporate income tax (CIT) on its profits for five years between 1999 and 2004, but refused to commence payment after the period of approved exemption lapsed in 2009, until 2012.

The report also indicated that the NLNG has not even paid the $1.15 billion it was supposed to have paid in 2012.

The report said the exemption, which cost the country about $3.2 billion (about N630.4 billion), also covered a range of other taxes, including about $141 million (about N27.8 billion) being two per cent of its profits as education tax earmarked by the government for the advancement of education in Nigeria.

Following the report, the NLNG, through its general manager, External Relations Division, Kudo Eresia-Eke, disputed the figures in the report, pointing out that the initial investment of $2.5billion by the Nigerian government had grown into a $16 billion plant with the tax incentives it received.

Apart from a yield of over $33 billion in the form of dividends, taxes and feed-gas purchases for the country over the past 16 years, Mr. Eresia-Eke said the company realised additional $ 5billion through corporate spend on local goods and services during the same period.

The company paid $3.6 billion in Company Income Tax and Education Tax between 2014 and 2015. This is in line with NLNGs corporate vision to help build a better Nigeria, he added.

He however explained that at the expiration of the tax holiday period, the NLNG did not pay the tax due to the government, because it did not have taxable profit for the 2010 to 2012 financial years due to unrelieved Capital Allowances on qualifying fixed assets acquired during the pioneer period.

In August 2015, PREMIUM TIMES investigation had revealed that the Nigerian government earned at least $11.8 billion as dividends from the company between 2004 and 2014.

The NLNG management and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), which holds 49 per cent equity in the company on behalf of Nigeria, rebuffed all inquiries by the newspaper on the issue.

But, Mr. Eresia-Eke, in a terse response Friday morning to PREMIUM TIMES inquiry on Thursday, confirmed the lawmakers request.

NLNG can confirm that the Senate has requested for the companys financial reports, Mr. Eresia-Eke said. The requested information is contained in the annual report, which we file with the Corporate Affairs Department every year. NLNG remains committed to continuing to conduct its business in accordance with the law and regulations.
Hungary will never again allow migrants to pass across its territory, nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Friday.

The (migration) route can go any way it wants, but it is certain that it will not go through Hungary, Mr. Orban said in an interview.

Hungary was a part of the so-called Balkan migration route, from Turkey, across the Aegean, Greece, Macedonia and Serbia, until Mr. Orbans cabinet sealed its border, first with Serbia in September then with Croatia a month later.

The measure was backed by a 175-kilometre fence, topped with razor wire, along the border with Serbia and a fence along parts of the border with Croatia.

Mr. Orban said his government is prepared to extend the fence to Romania as well.

The prime minister, who has maintained an openly hostile stance to migrants, especially Muslims, made the latest statement in response to speculation that migrants may somehow be diverted to Romania and Hungary.

Countries along the route are trying to limit the flow, with Austria saying this week that it will receive only 37,500 this year  50,000 fewer than in 2015  and a total of 127,500 by 2019.

Macedonia, Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia responded by allowing passage across their soil only to those who declare their intent to seek asylum in Austria and Germany.

At least 850,000 people passed along the Balkan route in 2015.

Though numbers have diminished due to the winter weather, around 2,000 people have crossed Balkan borders every day since the start of 2016.

(dpa/NAN)
A Federal Capital Territory High Court has granted bail to the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Olisa Metuh.

The court however said Mr. Metuh is to provide a bail bond of N300 million, with two sureties each, with like sum.

He added that the sureties should have assets within the FCT.

Mr. Metuh was brought before the court on a two-count charge of alleged destruction of his statement, at the office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

The case is different from another seven-count charge of alleged fraud against him.

Mr. Metuh had earlier been given a N400 million bail for the first case.

For the new case involving his statement, Justice Ishaq Bello on Friday adjourned the bail application for Monday.

He added that information would be passed on whether he could hear both counsel for the application, Friday.

He ordered Mr. Metuhs return to the Kuje Prison.
The Minister of information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, has assured that the Buhari-led Federal Government will not regulate online publications in the country, saying the publishers are responsible enough to regulate themselves.

The minister gave the assurance on Friday when he met with Online Publishers in Lagos, in continuation of his ongoing consultation with practitioners in the Information and Culture sector.

He however told the publishers to ensure that they maintain their credibility, saying: If the online publications suffer credibility problems, they stand the risk of losing the confidence of their readers and the advertisers who provide the lifeblood for the publications survival.

Mr. Mohammed said while the number of online publications is bound to grow in the days ahead, only the credible ones will continue to enjoy patronage, either from the readers or from the advertisers.

He said it was in the interest of government that online publications continue to grow in number because the more the number of such online publications, the easier it becomes to bridge the information gap between the government and the governed, and the easier it becomes for the government to carry the citizens along in the formulation and implementation of policies that touch on their lives.

The minister promised that the Federal Government would patronize the online publications through adverts, saying: All we ask for, in return, is that you provide accurate information to the people, and avoid sensationalism and partisanship.

He sought the publishers support to ensure the success of the various campaigns that have either being launched or are about to be launched by the Federal Government.

The National Security Awareness Campaign, aimed at rallying the support of Nigerians for the war on terror, is ongoing. Also, the National Sensitization Campaign against Corruption was formally launched in Abuja on Monday, and it is aimed at rallying Nigerians against the cankerworm of corruption which has eaten deep into the fabric of our society.

We are also preparing to launch a National Re-orientation Campaign, which is tagged CHANGE BEGINS WITH ME, to achieve a paradigm shift in the way we do things, Mr. Mohammed said.

Describing the war against corruption as one of the cardinal programmes of the Buhari Administration, he said: Some have said the government is dwelling too much on the war against corruption to the detriment of other areas of governance. Our response to that is that indeed, there is nothing like dwelling too much on this war, which is a war of survival for our nation.

The situation is grim, very grim indeed, as far as corruption is concerned. That is why the Federal Government is embarking on this sensitization Campaign Our approach is not to vilify anyone but to use facts and figures to give Nigerians a sense of the cost of corruption, the minister said.

The minister blamed corruption for the fact that while the countrys budget had grown consistently from just over 900 billion Naira in 1999 to over 6 trillion Naira in 2016, poverty has also grown almost in direct proportion.

The simple reason is that appropriated funds have ended up in the pockets of a few, he said.

Giving a comparative analysis of the number of those who benefitted from the funds allegedly collected from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and funds allocated for the 2015 Zonal Intervention Projects, Mr. Mohammed said the amount received by 21 individuals and companies from ONSA is more than the 2015 Zonal Intervention Project budget by 2.829 billion Naira!

Whereas the sum of 51.829 billion Naira was appropriated for 1,278 projects in the Zonal Intervention Projects for 2015, a total of 21 individuals and companies benefited from the Dasukigate to the tune of 54.659 billion Naira as we know so far.

The implication, therefore, is that the amount received by 21 individuals and companies is more than the 2015 Zonal Intervention Project budget by 2.829 billion Naira! Furthermore, the value of what beneficiaries of Dasukigate contributed to development is zero, compared to how the lives of Nigerians would have been transformed, poverty reduced and livelihoods improved by the Zonal Intervention Projects which would have cost 2.829 billion Naira less than Dasukigate.

He appealed to the online publishers to support the war against corruption by ensuring that Nigerians are well informed about the evils of corruption, saying: This is not Buharis war. This is not APCs war. This is Nigerias war and failure is not an option.
Nigerian troops have killed dozens of insurgents, destroyed camps, rescued 370 hostages and recovered arms and ammunition of various calibre.

Addressing a press conference in Borno, the deputy theatre commander in charge of operations, Lucky Irabor, said the ongoing offensive led to the death of the terrorists in the past few days.

As part of the promise of the Theatre Command to keep the public informed of our activities, this press conference has been organised to brief on the activities of the troops in the past few days, Mr. Irabor, a major general, said.

Accordingly, in furtherance of the ongoing offensive operations to clear Boko Haram Terrorist (BHT) in the Northeast, on 17 January troops conducted a clearance operation at Shentimari general area and cleared Boko Haram enclaves and recovered 78 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition.

Similarly, on 18 January at Chukun Gudu, troops encountered and destroyed terrorists camps along Jillam, Bula Butube general areas. During the exchange of fire, 10 terrorists were killed, 2 AK47 Rifles, 2 AK47 magazines, 2 solar panels and 2 GSM handsets were recovered, while 1 Isuzu vehicle was destroyed.

On 20 January 2016, troops cleared terrorist camps/enclaves at Ngwalimiri and Gazama in Damboa Local Government Area. While conducting operations in Mufurundi village along Damboa-Bale road, our gallant troops intercepted 10 Boko Haram suspects from Bego, Mesemarri and Bale villages carrying bags containing food condiments, soaps, and other items. Suspects are presently undergoing interrogation. Also, troops had an encounter with terrorists during advance from Wajirok to Ajigin. During the encounter, 3 of the terrorists were killed.

In another development, one of our units located in old Marte repelled an attacked by BHT and in the process, killed 21 terrorists, while 3 soldiers were wounded during the encounter. One Anti Aircraft Gun, 10 AK47 rifles,1 FN rifle,7 x 60mm mortar bombs, 342 rounds of 12.7mm, 507 rounds of 7.62mm ammunitions, 1 Toyota Hilux, 1 Land Cruiser vehicle, 1 Improvised Explosive Device with charger were captured from the terrorists.

In a related development, troops took custody of 3 suspected Boko Haram terrorists who voluntarily surrendered themselves to Damboa Vigilante Group at Kaya village.

During interrogation, they claimed to have been forced to join the Boko Haram terrorists group and also participated in the Groups previous attacks at Askira and other locations.

As about 1719hrs yesterday, 21 January 2016, ahead of Cashew Plantation near Maiduguri, an unknown civilian tried to gain access into the village but was confronted by a civilian JTF. In the process of the ensuing interrogation, he stabbed a member of civilian JTF to death but was shot by another Civilian JTF.

In continuation of the ongoing operation, troops advancing to clear Dure village, came under Boko Haram terrorists ambush at Rugga Fulani but were cleared. During the encounter, 8 Boko Haram terrorists were killed, 2 AK47 rifles, 2 locally made Dane Guns, 3 AK47 Magazined with 38 rounds of ammunition were recovered. Similarly, a unit of troops cleared Boko Haram terrorists hideouts in Wala, Tirkopytir, and Durubajuwe villages. During the operation, troops recovered 1 rusty General Purpose Machine Gun barrel, 1 grinding machine and 1 locally made Dane gun.

Equally, troops conducted a fighting patrol in Afe, Kudiye, Souma, Dika, Mijigeta and Mida. During the operation, the team made contact with BHT at Kudiye, Mijigete and 20 BHT were killed, while 3 rifles, 41 motorcycles were destroyed, and 370 hostages rescued and brought to Internally Displaced Persons camp at Dikwa. Also, around Huyum, Jeje and Diba villages.

The terrorists sighting own troops, abandoned their families behind which include 5 women, 12 children. However, own troops killed 4 of the BHTs. The women are currently undergoing interrogation.

Today 3 suicide bombers attempted to infiltrate into Maiduguri a kilometer ahead of Mafa roadblock. Gallant troop of the theater shot one dead, while the other detonated and in the process killed the third suicide bomber.

The Theatre Commander Operation Lafiya Dole, Major General Hassan Umaru commended the efforts of the troops and renewed call for the troops and the public to be more vigilant and security conscious at all times, particularly at check points, markets, worship centres, motor parks and schools.

He equally appreciated the support from the public in rendering useful information on the activities of the terrorists. The public would be kept informed of the situation as the need arises.
A Federal High Court in Abuja has again postponed the trial of a former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, who is accused of money laundering.

Mr. Dasuki is accused of diverting N19 billion.

The counsel to the EFCC, Rotimi Jacobs, told Justice Husseini Yusuf on Friday that an application had earlier been made by Mr. Dasuki through his clients for stay of proceedings in court.

He said his client was of the view that the application should be refused.

He noted that the Administration of Criminal Justice Act stipulates that such cases be heard daily, and argued that while the judge could hear a motion from the defendants, as the case progresses, a prayer for stay of proceedings should not be allowed.

Mr. Dasukis counsel, Joseph Daudu, countered that the details in the said application should be strongly evaluated, as it contained an abuse of the rules of court.

Mr. Daudu said he had been unable to reach his client since he was rearrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

Mr. Daudu said he was only able to see his client after a long time, after a court order on Thursday demanded that Mr. Dasuki be produced in court.

The counsels to the second, third, fourth defendants also said they had neither been served with the said application, nor with the counter affidavit, from the prosecution.

The judge, Mr. Yusuf, therefore ruled that the matter could not be heard yet.

Having heard all parties, I can say with all sense of notice that the matter cannot be heard today, he noted.

He said it was important to allow Mr. Dasuki go through the counter-affidavit and make his responses to the issues raised.

He directed that counsels to the other defendants be served with the motion on notice, as well as the counter affidavits, before the next date of hearing.
The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) says it has recovered 114,000 litres of petrol diverted by three filling stations in Yola, Adamawa.

The DPR controller of operations in Adamawa and Taraba States, Musa Akenn, confirmed this to journalists on Friday in Yola.

Mr. Akenn said the recovered product was sold to motorists at official pump price of N86. 50.

Speaking on the development, the secretary of the state chapter of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Ibrahim Gayus, admonished its members to desist from the act.

Mr. Gayus urged members of the association to support the federal governments efforts to ensure steady supply of the product nationwide.

(NAN)
The Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Offences Commission (ICPC), has re-arraigned a former governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, in Nasarawa State, Yusuf Agabi.

Mr. Agabi and four others, Akpore Okeroghene, Abibu Ayinla, Idowu Adewale and Ntu James were brought Thursday before a High Court in Abuja, for alleged corruption, involving various sums allegedly obtained from the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs.

Mr. Agabi, a former director of finance in the ministry, was earlier arraigned in September 2015, for allegedly diverting N715million.

He was arraigned at the time on a 41-count charge of forgery and fraud.

Mr. Agabi later requested the chief judge of the FCT High Court to reassign the matter, leading to its stoppage last year.

In the new case filed Thursday, the ICPC added five additional charges, including abuse of office and breach of trust.

The commission said the new charges followed further investigations which showed unauthorised withdrawal of N605 million by the accused persons in 2014.

The accused persons pleaded not guilty to the charge.

The matter was adjourned to March 1 and 3.
The management of the Obafemi Awolowo University has slammed lengthy bans on the institutions students union leaders, for allegedly threatening a professor.

The SUG leaders bagged between four and six semesters suspensions.

Those suspended are the president, Omotayo Akande; Secretary General, Oketooto Oluwaseun and the Public Relations Officer, Ojedokun Emmanuel.

Mr. Emmanuel is a 400-level student of International Relations and had just two months to graduate before his suspension.

The suspended students were accused of assaulting a professor, Y. K. Yusuf, in the institution.

It was gathered that trouble began when Emmanuel had gone into a class in company with some of his colleagues where the professor was delivering a lecture, desiring to make an announcement to the students, but the lecturer would have none of it and walked them out.

The union leaders, feeling insulted, reportedly went to the lecturers office at the university faculty of arts building and threatened to parade him round the campus if he failed to issue an apology to the students.

When the professor refused to do so, the SUG president was said to have sent a text message to the Vice Chancellor, declaring that the safety of the professor could no longer be guaranteed on campus if he failed to tender an apology for walking out officials of the union of his class.

A panel set up by the schools management to investigate the matter recommended that the students be suspended for three years.

Mr. Emmanuel confirmed that they had received the suspension letters, and called on the management to review its sanction.

We have received the letters and plead with notable Nigerians to save Oketooto Oluwaseun, Omotayo Akande and myself, Mr. Emmanuel said.

He denied ever threatening the safety of the professor, saying the university management was using that as an excuse for the suspension.

Messrs Oluwaseun and Emmanuel were suspended for four semesters respectively, while Mr Akande was suspended for six semesters.
For the New World Order, a world government is just the beginning. Once in place they can engage their plan to exterminate 80% of the world's population, while enabling the "elites" to live forever with the aid of advanced technology. For the first time, crusading filmmaker ALEX JONES reveals their secret plan for humanity's extermination: Operation ENDGAME.

Jones chronicles the history of the global elite's bloody rise to power and reveals how they have funded dictators and financed the bloodiest warscreating order out of chaos to pave the way for the first true world empire.

Watch as Jones and his team track the elusive Bilderberg Group to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III.





to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III. Learn about the formation of the North America transportation control grid, which will end U.S. sovereignty forever.





Discover how the practitioners of the pseudo-science eugenics have taken control of governments worldwide as a means to carry out depopulation.





View the progress of the coming collapse of the United States and the formation of the North American Union.

Never before has a documentary assembled all the pieces of the globalists' dark agenda. Endgame's compelling look at past atrocities committed by those attempting to steer the future delivers information that the controlling media has meticulously censored for over 60 years. It fully reveals the elite's program to dominate the earth and carry out the wicked plan in all of human history.

Endgame is not conspiracy theory, it is documented fact in the elite's own words.




ClickSpeed Publishing offers a selection of E-Book Guides and stories as gifts for Valentines. They can receive them immediately if they use mobile devices like tablets or smartphones. You can also include these as Apps when gifting a mobile device.

Do You Know Who is Watching Your Valentine

Media Contact

Bohdan O. Szuprowicz

***@comcast.net Bohdan O. Szuprowicz

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-- Increasingly gifts to friends and loved ones are in the form of mobile communication devices. This also creates an excellent opportunity for E-Books to be presented as gifts to almost anybody. Valentine's Day is a wonderful time to take advantage of these new cyberproducts and solutions.You can design an E-Book of romantic love poems, dedicate it to your Valentine, and publish on Kindle under a pseudonim. You can offer it anonymously to many recipients. Hey, hey...21st Century Research published a series of E-Guides by Bohdan O. Szuprowicz on Amazon Kindle. These were tested on mobile devices such as Kindle Fire HDX 8.9, HDX, and Phone; Kindle Voyage and DX; iPads and iPhone as well as Android Phone and Tablet. This is a fantastic opportunity for developing them into unique E-Valentine gifts limited only by your imagination.All the E-Guides explain how anyone who wants to become a published author, can do so whenever he wants to do it, without waiting for literary agents or publishers, and at no cost at all. Above all the author stresses the need to read and follow all the instructions provided by the digital publishers and software suppliers who are involved in publishing and promotion.Various chapters discuss specific free activities available to an author to write and publish a digital book with special attention given to the development, publication, and promotion of their E-Books using free services available through the Internet almost anywhere in the world."How to Publish Veteran Memoirs for Free" is an E-Guide specifically adressing the problems faced by veterans. It points out the need to verify details of campaigns and equipment involved and suggests sources of information and preparation of images.Valentine gifts for loved ones with free immediate 24/7 delivery to mobile device users can be all reviewed and purchased directly using the link below:21st Century Research Amazon Kindle PublicationsThe firm evaluates digital publishing in form of E-Book services, E-Stories, E-Reports and E-Flash Stories which can be published on Amazon Kindle and other tablets like Kobo. Bohdan O. Szuprowicz, is already testing the applicability of Kindle publishing with several E-Stories including "The Sweet Taste of Revenge", "A Cold War Love Affair", "How They Stopped Hitler's Nuclear Weapons Program", "A Sawgrass Vendetta", "A Christmas I Want to Forget" and "A Guide to Foreign Obama Cartoons". "Stop and Think About Guns in Your Life - Childhood" and - "Teenage Years" are two E-Memoirs published on Amazon Kindle. "Top 100 Circulation Newspaper Editors E-Mail List" is a special product designed for PR agents, businessmen, and syndicators to promote their products.About 21st Century ResearchBohdan O. Szuprowicz, President of 21st Century Research, arrived in the Unites States soon after the Russians launched the Sputnik satellite in 1957. He was recruited by Boeing in Seattle as an engineer and later he joined General Dynamics and IBM, whence he moved to the Center for Economic and Industrial Research Inc. headquartered in Washington DC. He began writing articles about progress of automation in many industries and became the editor of High Technology West, a subsidiary of the newspaper California Business in Los Angeles. This was followed by a round-the-world trip to evaluate computerization in many countries of Africa, Australasia and Europe and included a special visit to Vietnam to observe use of information technology under wartime conditions.He founded the 21st Century Research consultancy in 1974 and collaborated with Chase Manhattan Bank in setting up a market research operation to evaluate opportunities in China, the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. He traveled frequently to those areas and crossed Checkpoint Charlie to East Berlin on several occasions. He also toured South Africa to observe apartheid environments and met with independence fighters in Namibia. His work on network planning earned him an invitation to present it at the International Symposium on Operations Research for Developing Countries in Paris.As a result of his experiences and research into global geopolitics, he published Doing Business with Peoples Republic of China and How to Avoid Strategic Materials Shortages with John Wiley & Sons, as well as How to Invest in Strategic Metals with St. Martins Press. He also published Multimedia Networking with McGraw-Hill, which included Japanese and Korean editions and Multimedia Tools for Managers developed for AMACOM. Szuprowicz also collaborated for several years with Computer Technology Research, and published 15 corporate reports about search engines, multimedia, Internet marketing, and various networking technologies.He also published hundreds of articles in many countries in journals such as Les Affaires, Atlanta Constitution, Australian Financial News, Barrons Weekly, Bull & Bear, Business South Africa, California Business, Canadian Business, China Business Review, Christian Science Monitor, Computerworld, Denver Post, Duns Review, Eurofinance, Financial Post, Investment Dealers Digest, IPO Reporter, Japan Economic Journal, National Investment & Finance of India, Newsday, Newsweek International, New Scientist, Oficinas, Polish Daily, Singapore Times, Skrzydlata Polska, Usine Nouvelle, Wall Street Microinvestor, Wall Street Transcript, ZeroUno and many others.Szuprowicz is an active member of the British Schools and Universities Club, the Schiehallion Club of Kinloch Rannoch, Republican Club of South Sarasota County, National Rifle Association, Sarasota Fiction Writers, Sarasota Authors Connection, Sarasota Writers Forum, Sarasota Camera Club, Sarasota Technology Users Group, and was previously a member of the Royal Aeronautical Society.
Whether youre an entrepreneur working on a new creative idea, or an established business looking to take your company and its products to exponential heights, DFW Excellerator is here to help your business grow abundantly.

Contact

Isaac Rusinowitz

Business Development Manager

info@dfwexcellerator.com Isaac RusinowitzBusiness Development Manager

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-- Dallas, Texas  January 22, 2016DFW Excellerator submitted three of their portfolio companies (RoboKind, WavCtacher, and HomeBlis) in to the 2016 TEEC Cup, a start-up competition based out of Santa Clara, California.In December, over 600 companies entered and submitted their pitch deck and business plan to be reviewed by the event coordinators and a long list of venture capital firms based out of Silicon Valley sponsoring the event.All three companies submitted by DFW Excellerator made it to the top 50, and would give their presentation in front of a panel of Silicon Valley venture capitalists in Santa Clara, California from January 14-17, 2016.Two of our three companies, RoboKind and WavCatcher, were fortunate to make it to the top 20, and then both followed up by making the top 10. From there, a winner had to be decided after a final round of panel questioning.DFW Excellerator was proud to see RoboKind come out on top and take home the first place prize! The company, which developed a humanoid educational robot with full facial expressionism, won the North American Startup Contest hosted by Tsinghua Entrepreneur & Executive Club Angel Fund known as TEEC and the US-China Association of High-level Professionals.A big congratulation goes to RoboKind and their revolutionary business. We are very proud of our portfolio companies for representing DFW Excellerator, themselves, and all of Dallas extremely well! DFW Excellerator was grateful for the opportunity to be a part of such a prestigious event and bring the first place hardware home to Dallas.DFW Excellerator has been continuing to impress the entrepreneurial and innovative community by following up their recent accomplishment of being awarded the 2015 Innovation Catalyst Award given by the Dallas Regional Chamber at their annual Blueprint Awards. The award identifies which company best contributes to the momentum of the regional economy.On top of that, DFW Excellerator has also been awarded by the US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce for being recognized as one of the 2016 Regional Top 10 Asian American Businesses. The award recognizes the fastest growing Asian American-owned companies, based on overall revenue growth over the past three years, as well as community involvement and overall business potential. DFW Excellerator will be proudly receiving this award on January 30, 2016 at the Chambers annual banquet.DFW Excellerator would like to thank everyone involved in their success, and urge the entrepreneur community to keep pushing forward towards new levels of success.About DFW Excellerator:Its time to go international and expand your business globally! DFW Excellerator is the only cross-border business incubator and technology accelerator in North Texas. We help high growth companies expand their business globally through technology transfer, joint venture, and investment opportunities. After launching in 2014, followed by having a very successful year in 2015, DFW Excellerator and its partners have continued to work closely together in order to bring the entrepreneur and investor together. DFW Excellerator offers mentorships and strategic partnership opportunities in order to help scale your business abundantly. DFW Excellerator helps your business find its missing puzzle pieces and arrange everything together to reach new horizons of success.
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-- Fair & Square Imports is the only store in Texas hosting a Fair Trade Oriental Rug Event in 2016.Fair & Square Imports, a fair trade shop in downtown McKinney, is hosting a Fair Trade Oriental Rug Event, one weekend only February 4-7 that aims to change the way rugs are made and sold, featuring rugs that provide opportunity and security directly to adult artisans.Each of these amazing rugs accomplishes a lot of good. Through the artisan group Bunyaad,every rug purchase supports education, adult literacy, housing and more for over 850 families throughout Pakistan.Through Bunyaads Rug Program, several schools have been built to reach students in remote areas of Pakistan. Working with Bunyaad gives their mothers and fathers an avenue for true social change for themselves, their family and their entire community.Our artisans always know they have a job that pays them a living wage, a wage that allows them to send their kids to school, eat proper food and plan for the future, said Yousaf Chaman, Bunyaad Rug Program Director. Families are allowed to work at home, which allows for flexibility in schedule and increased employment of women.Fair trade allows artisans to take the time they need for quality and durability,said Fair & Square Imports owner Kate Jones. A fine hand-knotted Oriental rug can take many months to make, with some taking over a half a year to complete. The end result is an exquisite yet functional art piece for your floor that will last for generations.When Director Chaman was growing up in Pakistan, his mother used to yell at the children to stop playing on the floor and to get on the rug. She didnt want them to ruin the cement floor and she knew that her young children couldnt harm the Oriental rug!During the event, individuals can select from over 300 hand-knotted Oriental rugs in several different sizes, colors & designs including Tribal, Bokhara and Persian rugs from 2x3 to 10x14 and runners. Each rug is made of 100% wool or silk knots, most with considerably high knot counts.The Fair Trade Oriental Rug Event will be held at Fair & Square Imports, located at 219 E. Louisiana St. in Downtown McKinney, Feb 4-7: Thursday 106, Friday 108, Saturday 108, and Sunday 125.Visit www.fairandsquareimports.com/ oriental-rug- event to learn more.--Contact Name: Andrew Jones, OwnerCompany: Fair & Square ImportsAddress: 219 E. Louisiana St., McKinney, TX 75069Phone: 469-343-4421 (store); 219-246-6958 (cell)Email: info@fairandsquareimports.comWebsite: http://www.fairandsquareimports.com/ oriental-rug- event Pictures for Media: http://goo.gl/ w0ho0Q
Abacus Group, a leading executive recruitment and temporary staffing firm headquartered in New York City, is proud to announce the launch of its Los Angeles, California location.

By: www.abacusgrpllc.com

Media Contact

Abacus Group

Lauren McGrath, Marketing & Communications Manager

lmcgrath@abacusnyc.com Abacus GroupLauren McGrath, Marketing & Communications Manager

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-- Abacus Group, a leading executive recruitment and temporary staffing firm serving the New York City area, is proud to announce the launch of its Los Angeles, California office at 212 Marine Street Suite 100 in Santa Monica. The Los Angeles office opening marks the first geographic expansion in the history of the firm.The new office will operate under the leadership of Chris Cook, who worked in the firms NYC Headquarters for nine years in the Accounting & Finance Division after six years with PricewaterhouseCoopers. Chris excelled in his role at Abacus Group and was promoted to Director in 2012.During his tenure in the NYC office, Chris saw the business triple in size. The companys momentum in NYC and a dream to bring the firms expertise in recruitment to a new market inspired his move to the West Coast.I have complete confidence in Chris to spearhead this new venture for our firm, says Len Frankel, Co-Founding Partner. Chris has been a tremendous asset to Abacus Group for nearly a decade and I know that he and his team in Los Angeles will uphold the stellar reputation weve built here in NYC.Abacus Group Los Angeles will exclusively focus on Accounting & Finance executive search, including the permanent placement of Staff Accountants, Accounting Managers, Public Accountants, Internal Auditors, SEC Reporting Managers, Tax Associates, Financial Analysts, Controllers, and CFOs within all industries.Brian Bereck, Co-Founding Partner, adds, This is an exciting milestone for Abacus Group. As we approach our 20anniversary as an NYC leader, were now more than ready to share our knowledge with the Los Angeles market while maintaining our superior quality of service.Chris is now accepting hiring and job search inquiries from Accounting & Finance professionals in the Los Angeles area. Reach out to him directly to fill an open position or to explore new opportunities in the job market.
Donation is part of Forward Hearts program which celebrates lives saved with HeartSine Automated External Defibrillators

By: Singapore Turf Club, RDA, HeartSine

Hugh Hennessy, Don Mok, Chok, Mr. Khoo Teng Guang, Karen Lim, Simon Leong, Hasan

Media Contact

Matt Fikse

matt.fikse@physio- control.com

(425) 867-4208 Matt Fikse(425) 867-4208

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-- Mr. Khoo Teng Guang of Singapore will donate a HeartSine Automated External Defibrillator (AED) to a local nonprofit after beating the odds when he survived a Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) at the Singapore Turf Club (http://www.turfclub.com.sg/Pages/Homepage.aspx)The lifesaving AED to be donated to the Riding for the Disabled Association of Singapore (RDA) (http://rdasingapore.org/)is part of HeartSines Forward Hearts (http://heartsine.com/forward-hearts/)program, which enables a survivor of an SCA event in which a HeartSine device has been used, to donate an AED to the organization of their choice at no cost.RDA Singapore is the only nonprofit organization in Singapore that provides free horse riding therapy to children and adults with disabilities. The disabilities that benefit from the organizations horse riding therapy include a wide range of physical and cognitive disabilities.The 49-year-old man chose to donate the HeartSine samaritan PAD 500P ( http://heartsine.com/ product/p/rest- of-world/500p/ ) (SAM 500P) AED to RDA Singapore because it will add a level of security to the facility by protecting the disabled horse riders and staff in the event of an SCA, an often life-threatening condition in which a persons heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating.I am so grateful to the rescuers and to the Turf Club for having an AED present during my Sudden Cardiac Arrest, says Teng Guang. I am fortunate to have the opportunity to donate an AED to RDA Singapore, where it will potentially save the lives of its riders, both young and old.On the day of his SCA, Teng Guang collapsed suddenly at the Turf Club, where a bystander immediately notified security officers. Senior Security Officers (SSO) Hasan and Chok followed the SCA safety measure protocol, with SSO Chok performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on Teng Guang while SSO Hasan retrieved the nearby HeartSine AED. Teng Guang received one shock from the AED and was kept in stable condition until the ambulance arrived and transported him to the hospital, where he made a full recovery.This incident is a great illustration of the importance of knowing CPR and having AEDs in all public places, says Hugh Hennessy, Physio-Control Business Director, HeartSine Portfolio, EMEA. With over three quarters of SCA events taking place outside of the healthcare setting, the need for AEDs is critical to the safety of the public.Studies of lay rescuer AED programs show that when CPR and defibrillators are both correctly used during an SCA event, survival rates could potentially increase to over 75%, which is up from 5% without intervention.The SAM 500P defibrillator that saved Teng Guangs life reassures rescuers with real-time feedback on CPR compressions, providing both verbal and visual indications for Good Compressionsor Push Harder, Push Faster and Push Slower.The HeartSine AED equipped at the Singapore Turf Club was sold by HeartSines Authorized Distributor in Singapore, HTM Medico Pte Ltd.HeartSine Technologies, a world leader in public access defibrillators, advances the deployment of lifesaving defibrillation therapy for the treatment of Sudden Cardiac Arrest in non-traditional areas of care. HeartSine was acquired by emergency medical response company Physio-Control ( http://www.physio- control.com/ ) in September 2015.The companys products include a range of semi-automatic and fully-automatic samaritan PAD AEDs. Its flagship product, the samaritan PAD 500P, is the only AED to provide verbal, visual and audio feedback to a rescuer on the force and rate of compressions ensuring high quality CPR is continuously performed  all using only the electrode pads.HeartSine, active in over 70 countries worldwide and used in a wide range of environments, is based in Belfast, Northern Ireland and Newtown, Pennsylvania. To learn how a HeartSine AED can save lives, please visit http://www.heartsine.com or follow HeartSine on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/HeartSine) and Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/HeartSine).
By: Social Enterprises

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-- The GoGreen Conference organizers announced today the conference program line-up for the seventh annual GoGreen event taking place onat the Conference Center in downtown Seattle. The 2016 program will feature the themesandSessions will address the business case for Zero Net Energy (ZNE) buildings, green chemistry and engineering in sustainable building and product design, and successful district and collaborative energy case studies. The latest innovations in local transportation, manufacturing and lean principles will be explored in addition to addressing important issues such as climate change, social justice and equity.Green Building is a top priority for the region and our program will feature a track of content dedicated to hot button issues that the business community needs to address in 2016. GoGreen Conference hosts private and public sectors leaders to share best strategies, practices and to facilitate collaboration to drive measurable results in key sustainability practice areas with a different focus and theme each year. said Ericka Dickey-Nelson, Founder of the GoGreen Conference series.o The Business Case for Net Zero Buildingso District and Cooperative Energy | Hot Ideas & Cool Technology in the Seattle 2030 Districto Businesses Applying Principles of Green Chemistry and Engineering to Inform Sustainable Building and Product Designo Dow Constantine, King County Executiveo Molly Moon Neitzel, Owner, Molly Moons Homemade Ice Creamo Ash Awad, Vice President Energy and Facility Services, McKinstryo Meghann Glavin, Senior Manager Global Responsibility and Community Affairs, Starbuckso Gifford Pinchot III, Founder and President Emeritus, Pinchot Universityo Stacy Smedley, Director of Sustainability, SkanskaFor the full program line-up, featured speakers and to register for GoGreen Seattle please visit:GoGreen Seattle 2016, brought to you by King County, will take placeat the Conference Center located at Eighth Avenue and Pike Street in Seattle, Washington. Tickets are available ator via phone at 206-459-0595. Early Bird rates are good through Friday, February 27, 2016. Single Admission Early Bird Tickets are $175 and Group Rate Early Bird Tickets are $150 (groups of two or more). Special registration rates for student, government and non-profits are available.The GoGreen Conference is a sustainability learning experience for organizational decision-makers. Featuring regionally targeted content and recognized leaders from the community, GoGreen works across industry silos to foster peer-to-peer learning and collaborative solutions. Our mission is to empower attendees with the sustainability strategies, tools, and connections to build resilient, profitable organizations while driving the development of sustainable cities and regions. More at gogreenconference.net.King County, Washington covers more than 2,000 square miles and is nearly twice as large as the average county in the United States. With more than 2 million residents, King County ranks as the 13th most-populous county in the nation. Under the leadership of Executive Dow Constantine, King Countys government is nationally recognized for taking bold steps to help the region mitigate and adapt to climate change. King County has led the way in creating numerous policies and programs geared toward achieving sustainability and market-based solutions to protect the environment and enhance everyones quality of life. Executive Constantine has made building equity and opportunity, confronting climate change, improving regional mobility, and creating the nations best-run government the priorities of his administration.
By: Roth Staffing Companies

Contact

Staci Johnson

***@rothstaffing.com Staci Johnson

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-- Adam Roth was named the new CEO of Roth Staffing Companies (http://rothstaffing.com/), one of the largest staffing firms in the U.S. and recognized as having the best work culture in the industry. The announcement was made by Ben Roth, Founder and Executive Chairman, to coworkers last week during a companywide town hall meeting.Some people are great leaders and others may be great managers  with the core activities of each of these roles being different. A few exceptionally talented individuals excel at both. Adam is one of those few, said Ben during the company town hall. It is one thing to have a vision and another to have the ability to make that vision a reality. Adam has the visionbrings it to life.Adam will become only the second CEO in the organizations 21 year history. Ben Roth, the person transitioning from the role of CEO, was very clear to point out in his announcement that he is not retiring, but rather will assume the role of Executive Chairman.Over the past few years, Adam has been performing more than 90% of the CEO role, and I cannot rave enough about what he has built and accomplished, with so much more to come, said Ben.Adam began his career with Roth Staffing in 2003 after graduating from the College of William & Mary. His first role was that of launching a new business line, Adams & Martin Group. Since then, the specialized legal staffing line has successfully and consistently experienced growth and its presence is well known in the legal community. Three years later, Adam became Chief Administrative Officer, and then, in 2008, was promoted to the role of the organizations first President and Chief Operating Officer.Adam Roth is recognized as the architect of some of Roth Staffings most successful programs and practices. Adam has brought to Roth clarity and consistency of vision, a clear path for all coworkers to achieve success, high levels of engagement and the alignment of systems and structure to better enable the company to achieve desired outcomes.Adam has helped guide Roth Staffing to double its revenue over the past five years where the company now ranks as the 41largest staffing company and the 11largest Office/Clerical staffing company in the U.S. according to Staffing Industry Analysts. Roth is the only staffing organization to be recognized with all the industrys top awards in a single year, including Staffing Industry Analysts "Best Staffing Firms to Work For and Best Staffing Firms to Temp For, as well as Inavero and CareerBuilders Best of StaffingClient Satisfactionand Best of StaffingTalent Satisfaction.This past year, Roth Staffing Companies was also ranked one of Fortunes 50 Best Small & Medium Workplaces as well as Fortunes 100 Best Workplaces for Women.Adam Roth has also achieved personal recognition as Roth Staffings President & COO; Staffing Industry Analysts named him on the Staffing 100 List of the Most Influential People in Staffing the last two years, he received the Gold Stevie Award as Executive of the Year (in the Business Services category) by the American Business Awards, and was published in the Top 40 Under 40 list of the top business leaders and entrepreneurs in Orange County byAdditionally, Adam launched and championed Roth Staffings Purpose:full program for community giving in 2014. Since then, this program raised and donated more than 2 million meals to fight childhood hunger in America. In addition to this focus, in 2015, programs he introduced benefitted 112 non-profit organizations through donations as well as more than 10,000 hours of company-supported volunteer hours in local communities across the nation.Adam, 34, is the most gifted, natural leader that I have witnessed in my 35 years in this industry, noted Ben Roth. Adams promotion allows the right person to guide our company into the futuretogether with the rest of the leadership and management team. We will preserve our culture and all the things we hold dear while building a much larger company of pride and purpose.###Roth Staffing Companies is one of the largest privately-held staffing companies in the country, operating from more than 100 locations in 20 states and the District of Columbia via six specialized business lines:, the 11largest office/clerical staffing company in the country,(legal staffing), and affiliatesand(a workforce solutions company).Roth Companies stands as the only firm in the industry ever ranked #1 on thelist of fastest-growing, privately-owned companies, and is the only one to receive all of the industrys most prestigious honors in a single year, accomplishing this feat for two consecutive years. The organization is consistently ranked among the 50 largest staffing companies in the country.Visit www.rothstaffing.com for more information or call (714) 939-8600
Contact

Sara Van Dusen

***@sarasource.com Sara Van Dusen

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-- Stuart Kane LLP is pleased to announce that partner Eve Brackmann has been selected to the 2016 Southern Californialist.is a listing of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Selections are made on an annual, state-by-state basis. Each year, no more than five percent of the lawyers in the state are selected by the research team atto receive this honor. For additional information on, visit www.superlawyers.com.Ms. Brackmann was also selected to the 2013 and 2014Rising Stars list. Other recent awards include the 2014 Outstanding Young Lawyer award from the Los Angeles County Bar Associations Real Property Section, the Los Angeles Magazine 2013 Top Women Attorneys and 2014 Outstanding Young Lawyers, and nomination for the 2015 Orange County Business Journal Women in Business award.Ms. Brackmann litigates business disputes, including both regular and complex cases. As lead counsel in jury and bench trials in both state and federal court, as well as private arbitrations, she has established a winning record on both the plaintiff and defense sides. Ms. Brackmann specializes in real estate disputes as well as high-stakes business litigation for clients such as casino developers, shopping center owners, mortgage companies, and domestic and multi-national companies in sectors ranging from manufacturing to aviation. She has also represented property owners in a variety of first-party and third-party insurance coverage cases. Other clients have included big-box retail, design professionals, investors, shareholders, and employers.In addition to her litigation and trial experience, Ms. Brackmann also regularly counsels clients through dispute resolution, in order to maximize results by avoiding prolonged litigation and trial. Ms. Brackmann also has a stellar record on appeal. Of her many successful appeals, two are groundbreaking, published opinions.In the community, Ms. Brackmann has served as a judge for a California Indian tribe, as president of the Project Hope School Foundation Board serving at-risk children in Orange County, and she currently serves as an arbitrator on the Orange County Bar Associations Mandatory Fee Arbitration Panel. She also works with the Orange County Public Law Center, serving as a pro-bono advocate. She regularly speaks on legal topics ranging from property valuation to civil procedure and commercial unlawful detainer.Ms. Brackmann was also one of Stuart Kanes contributing attorneys for the 2014 and 2015 World Bank Doing Business report on Real Property around the globe, and served for three years as a Director on the statewide Board of the Conference of California Bar Associations. For her local contributions to the legal community, she has also received numerous certificates of appreciation from the Orange County Bar Association.Stuart Kane is committed to delivering the highest caliber of legal representation in the areas of real estate, employment, litigation and corporate. We offer big-firm expertise, but with more personalized service, and at boutique law firm rates.More information can be found at www.stuartkane.com.
CVTI Dedicated Short-Range Communication (DSRC) technology is a perfect fit for GovComms design, development and marketing team. DSRC devices are a critical step towards autonomous vehicle development and next generation application development.

Contact

Connected Vehicle Technologies, Inc.

Maria Elisa Lopez, VP of Marketing

***@cvti.us

305-937-2000 Connected Vehicle Technologies, Inc.Maria Elisa Lopez, VP of Marketing305-937-2000

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-- From humble beginnings as a start-up in GovComm's business incubator, Connected Vehicle Technologies, Inc. (CVTI) and GovComm, Inc. (GovComm) have agreed to terms for GovComm to acquire a majority of the outstanding shares of CVTI. CVTI offers a high-performance, automotive-grade on-board connected vehicle unit and a dual-channel road-side unit, hardened to NEMA TS2 standards and available with a choice of omni-directional or sector antennas.The software stack is a flexible embedded solution that provides a modular framework and small footprint for various resource-constrained target platforms, supporting Linux and real-time operating systems while following a world-wide ITS standard. The stack comes with developer friendly API features and tools to ease the development and integration process to any hardware platform.CVTI communications-based vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) short-range wireless communication devices provide enhanced awareness at potentially reduced cost, and offers additional functionality over autonomous sensor systems available on some vehicles today. Communications-based sensor systems can be a low-cost means of enabling hazard detection capability on all vehicle classes when vehicles and infrastructure are outfitted with interoperable communications capabilities.In addition to safety, GovComm management envisions a host of other application development opportunities will emerge when connecting vehicles, infrastructure and smart devices...the internet of things.GovComm is a world leader in the video surveillance and network security industry in an array of military, law enforcement, transportation, corrections, institutional, defense, hospitality and gaming venues. GovComm customers include federal and state governmental agencies, defense contractors and high-end commercial enterprises.GovComm ITS systems are ISO 9001 manufactured, fluent in NTCIP, certified NEMA TS2 compliant, resilient against category 5 hurricane force winds and recognized for excellence and compatibility.For more information on GovComm, Inc. please visit: www.GovComm.us CVTI is helping to shape the future by developing integrated solutions for the transportation industry. CVTI works closely with its technology and integration partners from the design-consulting phase through implementation, integration and training.CVTI systems are ISO 9001 manufactured, NEMA TS2 compliant and engineered for excellence and compatibility.For more information on Connected Vehicle Technologies, Inc. please visit: www.cvti.us (http://www.govcomm.us/)
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-- It is not something common for the business to get praises from their clients. And it is unimaginable to think that a customer can be so satisfied to take over a company and run it successfully.It has happened recently with a company based at Phoenix, where Brett Helgeson an Adopt Technologies client was pleased with the results he experienced. He took over the company cloud computing in 2012 by a harmonious acquisition allowed the business to evolve with the times.The cloud computing for business enabled in this company served clients with traditional IT methods, based on hard servers for data backup. He has purchased the company formerly known as Directrix Computer Solutions founded by Joshua Shinar in 2003. In 2011, he became the director of operations and, along with Shinar he continued to be the boss or employer of each other for six months. Helgeson founded rebranded and renamed the company in 2012, however, Shinar continued to be a part of Adopt Technologiesmanagement team.It is just not that normal acquisition story that you might have heard. It is something very amicable according to Helgeson.After this acquisition, it has been that the user base has grown 1,600 percent monthly. While the revenue has grown more than 2000 percent since the company got their new founder. The company is able to serve both small and medium sized business that has their capacity of 250 employees or more. Clients are able to save 25-40 percent on their IT expenditures and the company is able to host 60 clients IT structures ranging from single users to a number of local fitness chains.Clients now do not have the responsibility for big expenditures that goes into the traditional hardware or in the new software purchases or a spare server to take over the workload for a failure situation. Some of the eminent things, which are part of the deals such as data recovery, anti-virus and round the clock tech support.Usually the companies pay $800 to $1000 to get a new staff member set up and the processes that takes several days, but here Helgesons clients pay $250-$350 and his team can set up a new employee in 15 minutes, isnt that great! As per Helgeson, he knows that his company knows what value they can generate for the respective clients. It is really a source of fun for him as they do consulting work with the clients.For Hegelson, this is an amazing experience and he wholeheartedly believes that cloud computing for business helped to see the growth of the company from both customers perspective and owners perspective and both were great for him.No clients have lost their ownership during this change rather this change as fostered a yet strong bonding between clients and business. It is the best to serve customer with something that is right. If customer becomes successful, and if we can play a part in that, then nothing else could be more successful and praiseworthy.Contact Information:Adopt TechnologiesAddress: 2414 E. Paradise LaneSuite 200 Phoenix, AZ 85032Phone: 602-559-9377Fax: 480-422-6400Website: http://adopttechnologies.com/
By: Kaplansky Insurance

Contact

Julia Silve

***@kaplansky.com Julia Silve

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--Kaplansly Insurance is pleased to announce several promotions within the companys management team.. The changes are designed to reflect the agencies continued evolution and to support accelerated growth. .Both of these individuals have a proven track record for success. These changes will allow us to make an immediate impact on our forecasted growth in addition to supporting the long term goals of the agency, said Ely Kaplansky, president and CEO of Kaplansky Insurance Agency., has been appointed as the manager of the Milford Office. Christine began her career with Kaplansky Insurance in 2013. She brings with her 18 years of experience in the industry.Christine holds her license in Property and Casualty and in 2014 earned her CISR designation.has been appointed as the new manager of the Marlboro Office. Eselda joined the agency in 2014 as a Personal Lines Customer Service Representative for the Marlboro Office. She brings more than 26 years of experience in the insurance industry. Eselda holds her license in Property and Casualty and is currently in the process of obtaining her CISR designation.Kaplansky added, "These promotions reflect our company's commitment to excellence, we have built a high performing team that requires we recruit, retain and recognize individuals for their leadership and contributions. Christine and Eselda exemplify our company's highest standards of integrity. They're passionate team players who consistently develop new strategies that exceed clients' expectations while growing our business." Were looking forward to the continued value they will bring to Kaplansky Insurance as we move forward in the new year.All staff changes will take effect immediately.Founded in 1974, Kaplansky Insurance, based in Needham is one of the most respected and successful insurance agencies in Massachusetts. Kaplansky Insurance provides a full range of personal and commercial insurance products. Kaplansky Insurance is a recipient of their fifth consecutive Five Star award of distinction, which recognizes the achievement of being one of the best at providing superior knowledge, service and value. Kaplansky Insurance is also a recipient of their third consecutive Best Practices award by IIABA which recognizes The Best Practices of the Leading Independent Insurance Agencies in the United States.For more information, contact Julia Silve, Kaplansky Insurance 800.640.2020 jsilve@kaplansky.com
Pet Wants Florence is located at The Friendly Market, 100500 Norbotten Drive in Florence, and delivers to Florence, Fort Mitchell, Union, Villa Hills, Park Hills, Fort Wright, Crescent Springs, Hebron, Burlington, Edgewood, Independence and more.

By: Pet Wants Florence

Contact

Pet Wants Florence

rdurnwald@petwants.com

859-750-4426 Pet Wants Florence859-750-4426

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-- Lifelong Northern Kentucky resident Donna Durnwald and her husband Rob Durnwald are looking forward to raising the standard of pet food in Northern Kentucky through their new small business, Pet Wants Florence.Pet Wants carefully developed proprietary pet food is slow-cooked with fresh, all-natural ingredients. The company has their distributor make the dog and cat food in small batches once a month so that every kibble is guaranteed to be the freshest and most nutritional pet food available. Pet Wants Florence is a franchise of the Pet Wants company. Pet Wants Florence is located at The Friendly Market, 100500 Norbotten Drive, Florence, KY. The mobile business serves customers in Florence, Fort Mitchell, Union, Villa Hills, Park Hills, Fort Wright, Crescent Springs, Hebron, Burlington, Edgewood, Independence, Crestview Hills and the surrounding communities.Were thrilled to offer the freshest and most nutritional pet food and delivered to your door free of charge. Our food is fresh and high in nutritional value and cooked locally. We know it will make a difference in your pets lives, Donna said. Were passionate about the product and were looking forward to showing everyone what makes Pet Wants special.As we learned more about the pet food industry and what makes Pet Wants different, I knew this was something we wanted to offer our community. There are some good pet food brands out there, but people generally have no idea what theyre feeding their pets and most of whats mass produced is not healthy at all. We try to eat healthy and we believe our pets deserve the same, Rob said.Pet Wants originally launched in Cincinnati in 2010. Owned by Michele Hobbs, the business was built to provide proprietary crafted, fresh, slow-cooked, all-natural pet food delivered to customers through a retail store and a convenient, home-delivery service. Hobbs  who now serves as the companys founder  turned the business into a franchise in 2015 with the help of Franchise Funding Group. Pet Wants Florence is one of the first five franchises in the nation.The Durnwalds, parents of three, are very involved in the local JDRF and Crossroads Community Church. They also have a golden retriever named Jake.To order Pet Wants food for your favorite companion or to learn about the company, call 859-750-4426, email rdurnwald@PetWants.com ddurnwald@petwants.com or visit www.PetWantsflorence.com.: Pet Wants was started by Michele Hobbs out of love for her pets and frustration. Veterinarians were unable to help relieve her dogs painful skin allergies. After doing much research, Michele discovered the national dog food brand she trusted was not fresh, not all natural, and lacked sufficient nutrition and, when pet food sits in warehouses and store shelves for months or longer, it loses even more nutritional value. She was committed to developing a better solution for all dogs and cats. Pet Wants food is exclusively crafted  fresh, healthy, slow-cooked and all natural with no added sugar, no fillers and no animal by-products. They source only the best salmon, chicken, lamb, brown rice, and other ingredients. Fresh ingredients make for better food and healthier pets. And since they never use corn, wheat, soy or dyes, the common pet health problems associated with these ingredients are no longer worries. Their fresh food is conveniently delivered to the customer within weeks of production, not months. Roughly half of Pet Wants products are sold through their store and half through their convenient, home-delivery program. You can learn more at www.PetWants.com.
Year-long contest to culminate with giveaways at 8 senior living communities

By: IntegraCare

IntegraCare

Media Contact

Eric Walker, Director of Sales and Marketing

***@integracare.com

724.940.5544, Ext. 114 Eric Walker, Director of Sales and Marketing724.940.5544, Ext. 114

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-- Show up to work. Leave with a new car.Such a scenario might sound too good to be true. But lucky employees at eight of IntegraCares senior living communities throughout Pennsylvania soon will be starting their engines in new Ford Focus XE cars.Pittsburgh-based IntegraCare will hand over a set of keys to the new cars as part of its year-long Continued Attendance Rewards (CAR) Program, which culminates with the grand prize presentations from January 26 to 28. One new car will be raffled as the grand prize at each of the eight senior communities.The CAR Program enabled us to put an impactful spotlight on our many dedicated team members who work so hard to improve the lives of our residents, said Loriann Putzier, IntegraCare co-founder and president. The incentive program made an everydayroutine such as coming to work just a bit more exciting. The program generated interest and a buzz.Our leadership team at IntegraCare enthusiastically is looking forward to handing over sets of keys to the individuals who will drive home a new car, she said.The CAR Program provided all hourly, non-management team members with perfect attendance throughout 2015 to enter a raffle. Raffle tickets were presented each time an employee had perfect attendance during a payroll period. Magnolias of Lancaster, 10 a.m. The Woods at Cedar Run, 2:30 p.m. Magnolias of Chambersburg, 6 p.m. Colonial Courtyard at Bedford, 10 a.m. Colonial Courtyard at Tyrone, 2:30 p.m. Newhaven Court at Lindwood, 6 p.m. Newhaven Court at Clearview, 10 a.m. The Pines of Mount Lebanon, 2:30 p.m.The CAR Program awarded prizes each month based on perfect attendance at the participating communities. Guidelines for the program stated that team members would receive a raffle ticket for each payroll in which they received perfect attendance. For each consecutive payroll with perfect attendance, employees received additional raffle tickets equaling the number of consecutive periods of perfect attendance.IntegraCare worked with Smail Auto Group in Greensburg, Westmoreland County, to purchase the eight automobiles. Smail Auto Group will deliver the vehicles to the eight senior living communities throughout the state and help coordinate the final details of the transactions.We are very excited to be a part of this innovative program with IntegraCare. It is not very often that you have an opportunity to do something like this, said Mark Smail, General Manager of Smail Auto Group. IntegraCare has provided an example of great generosity. It is amazing. You dont see this every day.Our team will be at all eight sites, and we are eager to see the folks who win these cars and their expressions and reactions, Smail said.Gift cards were awarded at each community each month, and the contest will culminate with three top prizes awarded at each of the eight senior living communities: The top prize is the new Ford Focus XE as well as IntegraCare covering a portion of each winners automobile insurance. Each top winner will receive 1-week of paid vacation. The second prize includes a large-screen television, a 1-year paid subscription to Netflix, a wireless keyboard and mouse, and 1-week paid vacation. The third prize is an iPad Air, 1-year paid subscription to Amazon Prime, and 1-week paid vacation.We respect our employees and consider each one a key member of our team, said Richard Irwin, co-founder and CEO of IntegraCare.In turn, they improve the quality of life for our residents and their families. We follow the principle that we make IntegraCare senior living communities a great place to work and our employees make it a great place for our residents to live.The CAR Program revealed the pride our team members have when they show up to do their jobs, he said. Our employees always have set such a high standard, especially when it comes to showing up to work for our senior residents.A total of 16 IntegraCare employees in the CAR Program achieved perfect attendance for the entire 2015 work schedule.Those who achieved perfect work attendance in 2015 are: Magnolias of Chambersburg  Lavonda Patterson, Linda Geer, Carol Woodring, Lorrie Vandersluysveer. Newhaven Court at Lindwood  Collette Smith, Nicole Berlin. The Woods at Cedar Run  Donna Adams, Guilmary Rivera-Rosario, Amy Simpson, Tamara Wehler. Colonial Courtyard at Bedford  LaVerne Fink, Juliet Karadavis, Miranda Matney, Linsey Miller, Sherry Pittman. Colonial Courtyard at Tyrone  Jeannie Stack.
Contact

Maria Galka

***@vnaportercounty.org

2195318078 Maria Galka2195318078

End

-- The VNA Board of Directors recently announced that Ann OHeir, RN has been selected to serve as the new President and CEO of the Visiting Nurse Association (VNA).Ann has an impressive career spanning nearly 30 years in healthcare and healthcare administration,said Steve Tomory, VNA Board President. We are confident Ann is the right person at the right time for us as we move forward with a focus on continuing to provide the highest quality of hospice care, as well as supportive services such as VNA Meals on Wheels and Companion Homemaker services, he added.OHeir began her career as a staff nurse in 1987 and over the years has served as a director of operations, administrator, and executive director. Most recently, OHeir served as the Vice President of Home and Community Based Services with the not for profit Providence at Home in Tinley Park, IL.When asked what drew her to the VNA, OHeir quickly responded, Their reputation. Ive always heard wonderful things about the VNAs quality of care and compassion. When I learned the VNA had sold their home health care division and was focusing their efforts on hospice care, I knew it would be a great fit. Ive had a passion for hospice for 25 years and was excited about the opportunity. And, Ive worked both in for profit and not for profit organizations, and not for profit is simply the right environment for me.What has surprised OHeir most about the VNA during her first few weeks has been the extent of the communitys support, both through donations and volunteer service. I was amazed to learn the VNA has nearly 400 volunteers. And, especially during the holiday season, people just dropped by with donations to help support the organization. Its heartwarming to see the community so engaged and supportive of the mission of the VNA.OHeir acknowledges the VNA faces some challenges. Perhaps one of the most pressing is helping the community to better understand the sale of the VNAs home health care division. We want the community to know that we are a strong, vibrant organization and we continue to provide hospice care, as well as VNA Meals on Wheels, companion homemaker services, Lifeline and childrens grief support at the VNA Phoenix Center. The only real change at the VNA is that we no longer provide home health care and home therapies. Additionally, OHeir says increased competition from for profit hospice agencies moving into the community challenges the VNA to better educate the community about the benefits of VNA Hospice care.Moving forward, OHeir says the VNA has just recently begun a new Palliative Care consultation program, providing services to help patients and families face the complex physical, psychological, social and spiritual problems that often accompany an advanced illness. The program will help patients and their families as they continue to receive treatment such as chemotherapy or radiation, while working with the VNA Palliative Care team to help manage pain and symptoms. In addition, the VNA will launch a new look early this year, including a new logo and more informative website.Born in Illinois, OHeir has spent most of her adult life in Northwest Indiana. She and her husband Craig live in Lowell and have two daughters, Nikki and Hannah, who attend Valparaiso University.VNA is the most patient-focused provider of aging, palliative, hospice and grief support services in Northwest Indiana. VNAs services provide comfort, peace-of-mind, and superior care to families working through some of lifes greatest challenges. Services include VNA Meals on Wheels, helping seniors remain independent;Palliative and Hospice Care, easing the burden of end-of-life care; and the VNA Phoenix Center, providing grief support for children and their families. For more information about the programs and services provided by the VNA, please call (219) 462-5195 or visit the VNA website at www.VNANWI.org.
Spotlight Television Airs Exclusively on Bonko TV and Bonkotv.com

By: Bonko TV

Media Contact

Michael Pinto

***@gvpdigitalmedia.com

9176891700 Michael Pinto9176891700

End

-- GVP Digital Media is pleased to announce that its groundbreaking new talk show Spotlight Television will be available exclusively to subscribers via Bonko TV.Spotlight Television is a news magazine show that shines the spotlight on the next big thing products and people who are making a difference. Each week, Spotlight Television will feature exciting guests from a wide range of industries, all of whom are luminaries in their respective fields.According to Harry Oates, CEO/President of Bonko TV, Spotlight TV focuses the spotlight on those who are ambitious and inspiring, while illuminating new ways for all of us to achieve success in all areas of our lives. Spotlight constantly delivers engaging and compelling productions. If you're an entrepreneur with a great new invention, a small business owner, an author with a new book, this is your show.The new season will feature Dr. AnandBalasubramanian, winner of the Vitals Compassionate Doctor Award and selected as one of Texas favorite physicians.Dr. Balasubramanian attended Thanjavur Medical College in Tamilnadu, India. He relocated to Peterborough, UK, where he served as Senior Medical House Officer in Internal Medicine and Geriatrics for the prestigious Peterborough District Hospital in England.Once he realized his passion for Geriatric Medicine, Dr. Balasubramanian moved to the United States for his residency training at Coney Island Hospital, which is affiliated with the world-renowned New York Downstate University in Brooklyn, New York, where he specialized in Internal Medicine. Dr. Balasubramanian is Board Certified in Internal Medicine.Upon completion of his residency training in 2003, Dr. Balasubramanian relocated to Houston, Texas. He practices in his community and uses his advanced clinical practice skills in the care of complex geriatric patients in his primary practice. In addition, he visits local nursing homes and assisted living facilities to service the area's aging population, and is a member of the Harris County Medical Association and the American College of Physicians.Created in 2015, Bonko TV is an intelligent content service focused on delivering alternative programming to consumers with more eclectic taste.Because it offers proprietary content that is designed specifically to meet the expressed needs of its subscribers, Bonko TV is a welcome add-on to the programming already being offered by Netflix, Hulu, Youtube, and other media platforms.Bonko TV is a revolutionary concept using the latest in streaming, OTT technology to provide our users with the best possible customized viewing experience,said Mr. Oates.To learn more about Spotlight Television, please visit http://www.spotlighttelevision.com ***GVP Digital Media is a digital production company that specializes in all digital content needs. With over 25 years in the production business, GVP Digital media has created hundreds of hours of national TV/Film programming, Direct Response Commercials, Corporate Marketing, Training Videos, and Digital Media projects for high-profile domestic and international clientele. The mission of GVP Digital Media is to provide dynamic, engaging programming to a viewing population seeking to take advantage of the latest trends in digital media.
HANYS is the statewide advocate for more than 550 non-profit and public hospitals, nursing homes, home care agencies, and other health care organizations in New York.

By: South Nassau Communities Hospital

Media Contact

Damian J. Becker

South Nassau Communities Hospital

***@snch.org

516-377-5370 Damian J. BeckerSouth Nassau Communities Hospital516-377-5370

End

-- South Nassau Communities Hospital President and CEO Richard J. Murphy has been elected Secretary of the Healthcare Association of New York State (HANYS) Board of Trustees and as a Member of the HANYS Executive Committee for a one-year term that began January 1.Health care today is increasingly complex for patients and providers of care. The state and federal governments as well as private insurers are pushing for reforms and increased efficiencies. This all puts pressure on nonprofit hospitals while demand for services has not decreased. HANYS plays a critical role in advocating for hospitals and the communities they serve. Its an honor to be part of the HANYS leadership team, said Mr. Murphy. I look forward to working with HANYS administrative leadership and each member of its Board of Trustees to continue New Yorks legacy of being home to the nations most advanced healthcare system.Mr. Murphy has been president and CEO of South Nassau since August of 2012. Mr. Murphy spearheaded South Nassaus October 2014 acquisition of the former Long Beach Medical Center (LBMC), which was shuttered after SuperStorm Sandy hit and is leading efforts to establish a new healthcare delivery system designed around the needs of the residents of Long Beach and surrounding communities. Under Mr. Murphys direction, South Nassau has: restored emergency medical services on the barrier island with the Aug. 2015 opening of South Nassaus Emergency Department (ED) at Long Beach, Long Islands first off-campus, emergency department, which is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week and receives ambulances via the 9-1-1 system; partnered with the City of Long Beach to augment the Citys existing ambulance fleet by providing secondary backup for 9-1-1- ambulance calls (Under the partnership, South Nassau ambulances stationed at the ED respond when needed as backup for 9-1-1 calls); re-opened the Family Medicine Center at Long Beach (located at 761 Franklin Blvd.) in May of 2014 as an extension of South Nassaus Family Medicine Center located on Merrick Rd. in Oceanside to provide residents with quality, compassionate family medicine; commissioned a community needs assessment to help determine what services are needed on the barrier island introduced plans to establish a Medical Arts Pavilion on the site of the former LBMC to serve as the future home of an expanded emergency department and to potentially house other medical services . initiated a $60 million renovation of the hospitals Emergency Department at its main campus in Oceanside to expand and better serve residents of the South Shore (South Nassaus ED is the only Level II Trauma Center on the South Shore of Nassau County). begun planning to expand critical care beds and update operating suites at the Oceanside campus.During Mr. Murphys tenure, South Nassau has won a series of major awards for quality and performance, including an A rating for patient safety by The Leapfrog Group; Joint Commission Top Performer on Key Quality Measures for three consecutive years, and American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer Outstanding Achievement Award.Prior to coming to South Nassau, Mr. Murphy served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Richmond University Medical Center in Staten Island, NY. Other accomplishments during his more than 30-year career in healthcare include the execution of a successful financial post-divestiture from St. Vincents Catholic Medical Center of New York, which improved facility operating performance;and development of a strategic planning process to enhance physician partnerships, increase market share and expand capital reinvestment. His past experience also includes a leadership role in Long Islands Catholic Health System, as the Executive Vice President of CHSs Suffolk Region hospitals, which included his serving as the Chief Executive Officer of Good Samaritan, St. Charles and St. Catherine of Siena hospitals.Designated a Magnet hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), South Nassau Communities Hospital is one of the regions largest hospitals, with 455 beds, more than 900 physicians and 3,000 employees. Located in Oceanside, NY, the hospital is an acute-care, not-for-profit teaching hospital that provides state-of-the-art care in cardiac, oncologic, orthopedic, bariatric, pain management, mental health and emergency services. In addition to its extensive outpatient specialty centers, South Nassau provides emergency and elective angioplasty, and is the only hospital on Long Island with the Novalis Tx and Gamma Knife radiosurgery technologies. South Nassau is a designated Stroke Center by the New York State Department of Health and Comprehensive Community Cancer Center by the American College of Surgeons and is an accredited center of the Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Association and Quality Improvement Program. In addition, the hospital has been awarded the Joint Commissions gold seal of approval as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures, including heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia and surgical care; and disease-specific care for hip and knee replacement, wound care, heart failure and end-stage renal disease. For more information, visit www.southnassau.org
Houston Immigration Attorney Brian Kenneth Johnson has received Board Certification in the areas of Immigration and Nationality Law. Of the more than 70,000 attorneys in the state, only about 7,000 are Certified Specialists.

Attorney Brian K. Johnson

Contact

Guerra & Johnson, P.C.

***@lawyer-emails.com Guerra & Johnson, P.C.

End

-- Texas Board of Legal Specialization (TBLS) announced Brian Kenneth Johnson received Board Certification in Immigration and Nationality Law. Attorney Johnson currently practices Guerra & Johnson, P.C. the immigration law firm, with offices in Houston, TX and San Diego, CA.Board Certification is a voluntary designation program certifying Texas attorneys in 22 specific areas of law. Board Certified attorneys must be licensed for at least five years, devote a required percentage of practice to a specialty area for at least three years, attend continuing education seminars, pass an evaluation by fellow lawyers and judges and pass a 6-hour written examination.An attorney has to do something extra to get certified and then they have to continue to work and acquire knowledge in their specialty area to remain certified. You could say it is a life-long commitment,said Hal Moorman, Chairman of the TBLS Board of Directors.Mr. Johnson is a 2006 graduate of the University of Houston Law Center, 2003 Graduate of Rutgers College at Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey and 2000 graduate of North Hunterdon High School. Mr. Johnson has been a part of Guerra & Johnson, P.C. the immigration law firm, since 2008 and was licensed by the State Bar of Texas in 2007.Board Certification is offered in 22 specific areas of law to attorneys. Initial certification is valid for five years. To remain certified attorneys and paralegals must apply for recertification every five years and meet substantial involvement, peer review and continuing legal education requirements for their specialty area.To learn more about Attorney Johnson and his firm, visit his website today at http://www.gjpclaw.com/ Texas Board of Legal Specialization (TBLS) is authorized by the Supreme Court of Texas. TBLS serves as a resource by listing all certified attorneys and paralegals on their online database. TBLS works to ensure that the citizens of Texas receive the highest quality legal services.
Camarillo living trust attorney Kevin Staker was elected its President by the Board of Directors of Ventura County Legal Aiid, Inc. for 2016

By: Ventura County Legal Aid, Inc.

Contact

Kevin Staker at Ventura County Legal Aid, Inc.

***@staker.com

1-805-650-7599 Kevin Staker at Ventura County Legal Aid, Inc.1-805-650-7599

End

-- Ventura, California, January 22, 2016Kevin Staker has been elected as the President of Ventura County Legal Aird, Inc. for 2016. The Board of Directors named Kevin Staker as president because it wanted to depart from its prior policy of the President of the Ventura County Bar Association serving as president of both organizations the same year. The Board determined it was simply too much to ask of one person.The incoming president of the Ventura County Bar Association, Charmaine Buehner, stated the following:Camarillo-based tax-and-estate planning attorneyhas graciously agreed, after unanimous vote of the board, to serve as the president of Ventura County Legal Aid in 2016. Together with the VCLA Board and Emeritus attorneys, Kevin will continue the important work of Legal Aids direct representation program.Thr purpose of Ventura County Legal Aid, Inc. is to assist low income individuals in Ventura County, California. It accomplishes this two ways. First, it pairs up a needy individual with an attorney willing to assist them. Second, it has a legal clinic that will meet at the Ventura County Law Library on the first and third Tuesday of each month at 4 pm, (Dark when Ventura Unified School District is not in session).Ventura County Legal Aid is the non-profit charitable afffilate of the Ventura County Bar Association. Its website is located at http://www.vclegalaid.org
DUBLIN, January 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/w2v2vl/biotechnology_for) has announced the addition of the "Biotechnology for the Non-Biotechnologist (Nice, France - April 27-29, 2016)" conference to their offering.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130307/600769 )



Biotechnology for the Non-Biotechnologist, ideal for non-Scientists and Scientists needing to understand the basic theory, principles, techniques and potential of biotechnology.



Why you should attend:



- Gain an introduction to the fundamental principles of biotechnology

- Improve your understanding of the key techniques used by biotechnologists

- Understand the importance of meeting regulatory requirements and hear about the advances being made

- Learn how to identify potential patents, and why and how they must be protected

- Share knowledge and experiences with fellow attendees from across Europe

Speakers



Mark Richardson



Pharmaceutical/Biotech Drug Development Regulatory Affairs Consultant



Director, Richardson Associates Regulatory Affairs Ltd



After postdoctoral research in molecular biology at the Universities of Dundee and California at Berkeley, Mark joined British Biotech in 1988 to work on recombinant vaccines before becoming Head of Assay Development, then Biopharmaceutical Development Manager and subsequently moving into Regulatory Affairs with responsibility for rDNA products in preclinical and clinical development.



In 1997 he moved to Groupe Fournier as Head of the Gene Therapy Development Unit to lead a European oncology clinical development programme. Joining the CRO sector in 1999, first with Orion Clinical Services and later with i3 Research, Mark headed the Regulatory Affairs departments providing advisory and regulatory support for global development and clinical investigation of gene and cell therapy products, recombinant proteins and monoclonal antibodies, as well as for small molecule drugs.



In September 2008 Mark established the consultancy Richardson Associates Regulatory Affairs Ltd.



Philip Webber



European Patent Attorney



UK Chartered Patent Attorney



Partner - Dehns, Patent & Trade Mark Attorneys (London and Oxford, UK)



Dr. Webber obtained his first degree from Cambridge University, UK (Natural Sciences, Genetics) and then carried out research on the regulation of brain-specific genes at Warwick University, UK, where he obtained his PhD.



He qualified as a UK Chartered Patent Attorney and European Patent Attorney with Dehns (formerly Frank B. Dehn & Co.) and is now a partner in their Life Sciences Group. He has a worldwide client-base including clients from the UK, Scandinavia, the US and Japan. Amongst other things, his work involves the preparation and filing of patent applications in Europe and throughout the world; acting for his clients in opposition procedures at the European Patent Office; and searching for and advising his clients on the relevance of competitors' patents.



He is an active member of the Life Sciences Committee of the UK Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA). He has spoken at a number of European conferences and on BBC Radio on the patenting of biotech inventions, as well as publishing a number of papers in this area.



Kate Smith



Kate Smith is currently Principal Scientist, Development Services, at BioReliance, UK. In this position she is responsible for managing the team of scientists involved in the preparation of cell banks (master and working), viral seed stocks (master and working) and production of clinical lots of virus.



She was until recently a Principal Group Leader in the Purification Development Group at Lonza Biologics, plc. She has more than 18 years experience in the development, scale-up, transfer and validation of purification processes for monoclonal antibodies and recombinant proteins from mammalian cell cultures. Her area of expertise is the design and management of Viral and DNA reduction studies used to support product safety.



Alison Sykes



Alison Sykes is Associate Director Physico-Chem Analytics, Biosimilars, at Merck Serono, Geneva, a post she took up early in 2015.



She had formerly Biosimilar Technical Director within Analytical Services at Lonza Biologics plc responsible for oversight and definition of all analytical activities relating to pre-clinical and clinical development of Biosimilars derived from mammalian and microbial cell culture.



Alison had worked for Lonza for 25 years, responsible for running various different analytical teams and functions including cell culture support, method development and validation, stability and formulation and protein characterisation. She has been responsible for set-up and establishing FDA and MHRA approved laboratories and providing technical and advisory support for CMC development of biopharmaceuticals from pre-clinical through to clinical phases, including several successful BLA licence applications.



A biochemist by training Alison started her career working for the National Health Service and then moved to NIBSC. Her experience here on the human side of the drug industry and the need for global standards in protein drug development helped drive her enthusiasm for detailed analysis and characterisation of safe and efficacious biopharmaceuticals.



Adekunle Onadipe



Dr Adekunle Onadipe is an Associate Research Fellow in Bioprocess R&D, Cell Line Development at Pfizer Inc. USA. He leads a group of scientists responsible for the construction, development and characterization of mammalian and microbial cell lines for biotherapeutics and vaccines production. His group is also involved in the scale-up of bioprocesses from bench top to pilot scale bioreactors and process development for the establishment of cell banks to support the manufacture of biopharmaceutical products for early phase clinical trials. Kunle joined Pfizer Limited in the UK in 2005 in Discovery Biology with responsibility for optimizing cell culture processes for the production of cell-based assay reagents. Prior to this he worked for 15 years at Lonza Biologics plc., in Slough UK where, as a Principal Group Leader in cell culture process development, he was responsible for constructing and developing production mammalian cell lines and culture processes, subsequently transferring them to full-scale production for clinical trials.



A microbiologist by training, Kunle has been involved in the production of biopharmaceuticals for more than 27 years and has a broad experience of microbial and mammalian cell culture methods. He obtained his PhD in Microbiology from the University of Surrey, Guildford UK.



Adrian Haines



Dr Adrian Haines is the Section Head of Process Development Sciences at Novimmune SA, Switzerland. Adrian leads teams of upstream and downstream development scientists who work within a CMC environment to develop, evaluate and characterize processes for the production of monoclonal antibodies and novel ??-bodies. He has extensive experience in generating mammalian cell lines suitable for the GMP production of biologics.



Adrian joined Novimmune in 2015 and prior to this he worked at Lonza Biologics in the UK working on projects to develop new technologies and processes for generating manufacturing cell lines. Before that he worked for ML Laboratories/Cobra Research developing UCOE technologies for the expression of proteins in mammalian cells and at Therexsys Ltd, developing antibody targeted gene therapies. Prior to this he worked at Celltech Research Ltd, generating radiolabelling and cross-linking technologies for antibodies.



A biochemist by training, Adrian has been involved in the protein chemistry and production of monoclonal antibodies for over 28 years starting with his PhD where he generated monoclonal antibodies (using hybridoma technology) for the diagnosis of prostate cancer. Adrian received his bachelor degree from Imperial College, London, and his PhD from St Thomas' Hospital Medical School, University of London.



Robert Young



Dr Young is the Principal Group Leader of Lonza Biologics New Expression Technologies Group based in Cambridge, UK. He manages a group engaged in developing expression systems for the industrial production of therapeutic recombinant proteins.



He received his PhD in molecular biology (1994) from King's College London (in collaboration with Celltech Ltd, UK (now a part of UCB)), creating glycosylation mutant human IgE-Fc fragments and other components of the IgE system and expressing them in CHO-K1 and NS0 cells (using the GS expression system) for biochemical and structural studies. After extending this work as part of his first post-doctoral appointment, Dr Young embarked on a second post-doctoral position at the Laboratory of Molecular Biology (Division of Structural Studies), Cambridge, UK (1995-1998), working on the structure of the protein components of small nuclear ribonucleoprotein (snRNP) complexes.



In 1998, he joined a biopharmaceutical company, Antisoma plc (London, UK) running the Protein Engineering team engaged in the expression of anti-tumour antibody-enzyme fusion proteins in mammalian cells. Dr Young left Antisoma at the end of 2004 to join Lonza Biologics, where he became a Principal Scientist in the Cell Culture Process Development (CCPD) Department. He remained there until the end of 2010 when the New Expression Technologies Group was established.



For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/w2v2vl/biotechnology_for

About Research and Markets:

Research and Markets is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

Media Contact:

Laura Wood

+353-1-481-1716

press@researchandmarkets.net

SOURCE Research and Markets
MUNICH, January 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Daiichi Sankyo Europe GmbH (hereafter, Daiichi Sankyo) today announced that the German public health agency, The Federal Joint Committee (Gemeinsamer Bundesausschuss - G-BA), has granted an indication of a minor additional benefit for LIXIANA (edoxaban), an oral, once-daily selective factor Xa inhibitor, for the prevention of stroke and systemic embolism (SE) in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). These findings will help to form the basis for the continued reimbursement for LIXIANA by statutory health insurance providers in Germany. This recognition has been awarded due to improved patient outcomes, noting fewer bleedings including intracranial hemorrhages and major adverse events following treatment with edoxaban compared to warfarin.[1] LIXIANA is the first once-daily novel oral anticoagulant (NOAC), for which the G-BA has recognised an additional benefit.

Oliver Appelhans, Daiichi Sankyo Vice President and European Launch Leader, commented, "The Federal Joint Committee's decision reinforces the value of edoxaban for this at-risk patient population, and is further evidence of the solid clinical foundations upon which the treatment has been approved in countries throughout Europe." He continued, "Daiichi Sankyo is committed to bringing innovative medicines to patients who need them. We're excited that edoxaban is now widely available in Europe and that regulators have consistently recognised its value as a treatment option."

The latest Federal Joint Committee follows full approvals granted by regulators in Scotland,[2] the UK,[3] Switzerland[4] and The Netherlands[5] for indications in prevention of stroke and SE in NVAF.

The Federal Joint Committee's decision is based on data from a large scale Phase III clinical study, ENGAGE AF-TIMI 48, which compared treatment with once-daily edoxaban to warfarin. This study represents one of the largest single comparative trials of a novel oral anticoagulant in this patient population, involving 21,105 patients.[6] In this study, once-daily edoxaban 60 mg demonstrated non-inferiority to warfarin, for the primary efficacy endpoint of occurrence of stroke or SE in patients with NVAF (1.18% vs. 1.50% per year, respectively; hazard ratio [HR], 0.79; 97.5% confidence interval [CI], 0.63 to 0.99, p<0.001 for non-inferiority). In addition, once-daily edoxaban 60 mg demonstrated a significant 20% risk reduction of major bleeding in patients with NVAF compared to warfarin (2.75% vs. 3.43% per year, respectively; HR, 0.80; 95% CI, 0.71 to 0.91, p<0.001).[6]

AF a heart rhythm disorder in which the heartbeat is rapid and irregular, affects over six million people across Europe.[7] People with AF are at a five-fold increased risk of stroke compared to the general population,[7] with an estimated financial burden of over 38 billion a year.[8]

After reviewing the available evidence, The Federal Joint Committee has indicated no additional benefit in its appraisal of edoxaban for the prevention of VTE.[1] Oliver Appelhans commented, "We remain committed to the use of edoxaban for the prevention of VTE, as supported by the results of the pivotal Hokusai-VTE trial, which demonstrated a significant 19% risk reduction of clinically relevant bleeding in patients with VTE compared to warfarin."

About The Federal Joint Committee

The Federal Joint Committee (Gemeinsamer Bundesausschuss - G-BA) is the highest decision-making body of the joint self-government of physicians, dentists, hospitals and health insurance funds in Germany. The Federal Joint Committee assesses any additional benefit claimed by newly authorised pharmaceutical products over the appropriate comparator within six months of the product launch. Since 2011, G-BA findings have formed the basis for price negotiations between statutory health insurance providers and the pharmaceutical industry for new active ingredients.

About Edoxaban

Edoxaban is an oral, once-daily, direct factor Xa (pronounced "Ten A") inhibitor. Factor Xa is one of the key components responsible for blood clotting, so inhibiting this makes the blood thin and less prone to clotting.

Edoxaban received EU approval in June 2015 for the prevention of stroke and SE in adult patients with NVAF with one or more risk factors, such as congestive heart failure, hypertension, age  75 years, diabetes mellitus, prior stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA), as well as for the treatment of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE), and prevention of recurrent DVT and PE in adults. Edoxaban is currently marketed in the UK, Germany, Switzerland, the US and Japan. In other countries, regulatory review is ongoing.

About Daiichi Sankyo

Daiichi Sankyo Group is dedicated to the creation and supply of innovative pharmaceutical products to address diversified, unmet medical needs of patients in both mature and emerging markets. With over 100 years of scientific expertise and a presence in more than 20 countries, Daiichi Sankyo and its 17,000 employees around the world draw upon a rich legacy of innovation and a robust pipeline of promising new medicines to help people. In addition to its strong portfolio of medicines for hypertension, dyslipidemia, bacterial infections, and thrombotic disorders, the Group's research and development is focused on bringing forth novel therapies in cardiovascular-metabolic diseases, pain management, and oncology, including biologics. For more information, please visit: http://www.daiichi-sankyo.eu.

Forward-looking statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements and information about future developments in the sector, and the legal and business conditions of DAIICHI SANKYO Co., Ltd. Such forward-looking statements are uncertain and are subject at all times to the risks of change, particularly to the usual risks faced by a global pharmaceutical company, including the impact of the prices for products and raw materials, medication safety, changes in exchange rates, government regulations, employee relations, taxes, political instability and terrorism as well as the results of independent demands and governmental inquiries that affect the affairs of the company. All forward-looking statements contained in this release hold true as of the date of publication. They do not represent any guarantee of future performance. Actual events and developments could differ materially from the forward-looking statements that are explicitly expressed or implied in these statements. DAIICHI SANKYO Co., Ltd. Assume no responsibility for the updating of such forward-looking statements about future developments of the sector, legal and business conditions and the company.

References

Gemeinsamer Bundesausschuss - G-BA. Tragende Grunde. zum Beschluss des Gemeinsamen Bundesausschusses uber eine Anderung der Arzneimittel-Richtlinie (AM-RL): Anlage XII - Beschlusse uber die Nutzenbewertung von Arzneimitteln mit neuen Wirkstoffen nach  35a SGB V - Edoxaban. January 2016 . SMC Advice Directory. Edoxaban (LIXIANA). Available at: https://www.scottishmedicines.org.uk/SMC_Advice/Advice/1095_15_edoxaban_Lixiana_NVAF/edoxaban_Lixiana_NVAF. (Last accessed January 2016 ). Daiichi Sankyo press release - UK's NICE recommends once-daily LIXIANA (edoxaban) for preventing stroke and systemic embolism in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation. 24 September 2015 . Available at: http://www.daiichisankyo.com/media_investors/media_relations/press_releases/detail/006354.html. (Last accessed January 2016 ). Daiichi Sankyo press release - Daiichi Sankyo's Once-Daily Lixiana (edoxaban) Approved for the Prevention of Stroke and Systemic Embolism in Non-Valvular Atrial Fibrillation and for the Treatment and Prevention of Recurrent Venous Thromboembolism in Switzerland . 15 April 2015 . Available at: http://www.daiichisankyo.com/media_investors/media_relations/press_releases/detail/006269.html. (Last accessed January 2016 ). Zorginstituut Nederland. GVS-rapport 15/12 edoxaban (Lixiana) bij atriumfibrilleren. 8 September 2015 . Giugliano R, et al. Edoxaban versus warfarin in patients with atrial fibrillation. N Engl J Med. 2013;369(22):2093-2104. Camm A, et al. Guidelines for the management of atrial fibrillation: the Task Force for the Management of Atrial Fibrillation of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC). Eur Heart J. 2010;31(19):2369-429. Allender S, Scarborough P, Peto V, et al. European Cardiovascular Disease Statistics 2012 Edition.

EDX 16 0026 January 2016

Contact

Lydia Worms (Europe)

Daiichi Sankyo Europe GmbH

Edoxaban Communications & Product PR Europe

+49(89)7808751



SOURCE Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, January 20, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The Supreme Commission for Negotiations held its third meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday January 19-20, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The Commission Coordinator Dr. Riad Hijab presided over a wide agenda with several deliberation sessions and reviews, in addition to consultations over outcomes from visits to various Arab and Western capitals.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160119/323401 )



Following a thorough review of the Commission's proposed agenda to UN Special Envoy, Staffan de Mistura; the Commission agreed to the appointment of Mr. As'ad Al-Zo'ubi as head of the negotiating team, Mr. George Sabra as deputy and Mr. Mohamad Alloush as chief negotiator. Appointment of the delegation was based on a rigorous selection criteria taking into account qualifications, expertise and ability to implement any future agreements on the ground.

Dr. Hijab confirmed that the Commission will request from the UN envoy to formally and directly issue invitations to the Commission to attend the negotiations. Regarding the idea of a third delegation from outside the charter of the Commission, Dr. Hijab commented: "The Riyadh Conference incorporated a diverse spectrum of Syrian opposition, including the National Coalition for Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces, the National Coordination Committee, moderate factions, political groups and independent figures who participated in the Cairo and Moscow conferences, as well as broad ethnic and religious representation and a significant number of independents. We will not accept attempts by foreign parties to support a particular group at the expense of another, make proposals intended to challenge the credibility and mandate of the Supreme Commission for Negotiations, or to inject individuals in the form of a so-called third delegation, justifying their presence under unfounded pretexts merely to disrupt the political process and prolong the fighting in the name of combating terrorism."

During the meeting several opposition groups proposed to suspend negotiations and consider the timing in the absence of full adherence by signatory states to UNSCR2254, particularly: lifting the siege to enable humanitarian agencies to deliver aid, releasing detainees, ceasing aerial shelling and artillery attacks against civilians. In response to these valid reservations Dr. Hijab pointed out that, "Dates are not sacred, we will not go to any negotiations while our people suffer from shelling, starvation and siege... debased political bartering at the expense of the Syrian people is tantamount to callous extortion which we will not accept under any circumstance."

syrianassembley@gmail.com

SOURCE Office of Dr Riad Hijab, Former Prime Minister of Syria
He has been cited by Rush Limbaugh, quoted in the New York Times, featured at Real Clear Politics and Lucianne.com and interviewed on radio, TV and in social media.





Inducted into the Philadelphia Public Relations Hall of Fame, for many years he served as a Lecturer in Corporate Communication at Penn State University. A former President of the Philadelphia Public Relations Association (PPRA) he has lectured at Rowan University, Temple University, The College of New Jersey and Arcadia University. He has conducted workshops on public relations for thousands of participants throughout the nation and has taught countless others the art of public speaking. He has also advised numerous lawyers, judges, public officials and political candidates.





Cirucci is a prolific writer and his op-ed pieces have appeared in the Philadelphia Daily News, Philadelphia Inquirer, Courier-Post and other publications.



A native of Camden NJ, Cirucci is a former President of the Philadelphia chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators. Cirucci served as Associate Executive Director of the Philadelphia Bar Association for nearly 30 years. He served as Chair of Penn State University's Professional Advisory Board for the Corporate Communication major at Penn State Abington and on the Pennsylvania Bar Association's Judicial Selection Commission.



He received his MA degree from Rowan University and his BA from Villanova University. He has been named a Distinguished Alumnus of Rowan's public relations program and received the E. A. "Wally" Richter Leadership Award, the highest honor from the National Association of Bar Executives' Communications Section. He has also been honored by numerous other local, state and national groups.









Cirucci's passions include politics, the popular culture, books and authors, art, communication, music, theatre, movies, dining and travel. In his hometown of Camden, Cirucci taught fifth grade at the Ulysses Wiggins Elementary School named for the founder of the Camden NAACP. There he was one of the first teachers in the country to teach African-American history to inner city students. He later served as editor of a local weekly newspaper, as Assistant to the Township Manager of Cherry Hill Township and as Associate Director of Communications at the New Jersey State Bar Association.

He's Dan Cirucci, the founder and editor-in chief of the Dan Cirucci Blog, Matt Rooney's sidekick on Save Jersey's videocasts and one of the most widely honored public relations professionals in his field. He's also been a public relations consultant to numerous organizations and individuals and hosted The Advocates on RVN-TV.
VIENNA, January 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Top Austrian companies honoured as National Champions for Austria in the European Business Awards 2015/16

Now we know which companies are the most successful and innovative in Austria: at a ceremony held in Vienna on Thursday evening, they were officially honoured as National Champions for Austria by Stefan Walter, Managing Partner of RSM Austria, and Adrian Tripp, CEO of the European Business Awards. In the next round, the public will choose between the companies in an online vote.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160120/324014 )

"We are proud that there are so many innovative companies in Austria. It is a pleasure to offer them an international platform with the European Business Awards, and to support them in the competition," said Stefan Walter, Managing Partner of RSM Austria, in his opening speech for the event.

Austria's economic power

A total of 13 domestic companies from a diverse range of different industries were selected by a panel of international experts and honoured as National Champions for Austria yesterday. They are: AirborneHydroMapping GmbH (Innsbruck), atempo GmbH (Graz), bellaflora Gartencenter GmbH (Leonding), Berger Feinste Confiserie (Lofer), Brau Union Osterreich (Linz), CROMA-Pharma (Korneuburg), Fabasoft (Linz), New Frontier Group (Vienna), Schachinger Logistik (Horsching), SIMPLON Fahrrad GmbH (Hard), Sonnenerde (Riedlingsdorf), Umdasch AG (Amstetten), UNIQA Insurance Group AG (Vienna). By participating in the European Business Awards, these companies get the opportunity both to present their own commercial achievements and to showcase Austria at the European level.

RSM - long-standing sponsor of the European Business Awards

RSM is the seventh-largest network of audit, tax and consulting firms in the world. It has been the lead sponsor and corporate champion of the European Business Awards for many years. The announcement of the National Champions is a milestone on the way to the international grand final, and the companies will be supported in the competition by RSM Austria. In June, the category winners selected by the panel and the European Public Champion selected by online voting will be honoured at a large and prestigious gala event in London. To find out more about the vote, visit: http://www.businessawardseurope.com

The European Business Awards

The European Business Awards are the largest cross-industry corporate awards in Europe. The purpose of the multi-level competition is to support the development of a stronger and more successful business community in Europe. In particular, the online vote gives outstanding companies the opportunity to present themselves to a Europe-wide audience. This year, 32,000 companies from 33 countries took this opportunity and competed in 13 winner categories.

About RSM International

RSM International is the seventh-largest network of independent audit, tax and consulting firms, encompassing over 110 countries, 730 offices and more than 37,500 people internationally. The network's total fee income is 4.4 billion US dollars (approx. 4.2 billion euros).

In September 2014, at the annual International Accounting Bulletin Awards, RSM received the prestigious "Network of the Year 2014 award". This award recognises networks that have demonstrated strong growth and operational excellence over the past 12 months.

RSM International is a member of the Forum of Firms, the purpose of which is to promote consistent and high quality standards of financial and auditing practices worldwide.

RSM is the brand used by a network of independent audit and consulting companies, each of which practises in its own right. RSM International Limited does not itself provide any audit or consulting services. Member firms are driven by a common vision of providing high-quality professional services, both in their domestic markets and in meeting the international service needs of their client base.

http://www.rsm.at

http://www.rsm.global

Photo material:

http://bit.ly/1V26yZC

Copyright: RSM/Tanzer. Can be reprinted free of charge.

SOURCE European Business Awards
LOS ANGELES, Jan. 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Los Angeles Police Department and the gang intervention group Ceasefire met to evaluate the current state of violent crime in South Los Angeles and to coordinate prevention strategies.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160122/325003

Held at the Church of Scientology Community Center on 81st and Vermont, blocks from the South Vermont corridor known as "Death Alley," the discussion looked at, among other things, the spike in murders in August 2015 and the apparent turnaround shortly after. LAPD Deputy Chief South Bureau William "Bill" Scott, Det. Chris Barling and LAPD Gang Intervention Liaison Stinson Brown, openly discussed with Ceasefire members how the community and the police, working together with trust and cooperation, can help reduce gang violence.

Statistics were reviewed including the alarming fact that violent crime jumped 36 percent in the first quarter of 2015, followed by an eruption of violence in South Los Angeles' Death Alley equating to 1.2 killings each day in the month of August10 times the monthly casualty count of U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan in 2014. They also pointed out that immediately following this, murders dropped by a significant 20 percent for the remainder of the year.

What happened to turn the tide? The officers pointed out that the drop in violent crime coincided with an increase in gang intervention and drug prevention programs directed toward youth. In addition, there was a simultaneous increase in LAPD community policing, along with greater cooperation and collaboration between the intervention groups such as Ceasefire and the LAPD.

Ceasefire President Ben "Taco" Owens, stated, "We turned a corner as a community to be able to have a conversation with law enforcement, with the victims and families, with communities as a whole. To get to where we have to be, we have to do it collectively."

Deputy Chief Scott concurred. "The California Ceasefire meetings always facilitate healthy and productive dialogue between the LAPD and the community we serve. Tough questions are asked and we are held accountable for both our response to crime and public safety and also for our actions," he said.

The Church of Scientology Community Center features a 380-seat event hall, the L. Ron Hubbard Community Auditorium, designed for community events and as a meeting ground for residents of all denominations. The Center also includes numerous classrooms and seminar facilities for a full range of civic programs, including a complete literacy and tutoring center. The Community Center is open 10:00am to 9:30pm Monday through Friday and 10:00am to 6:00pm Saturday and Sunday.

SOURCE Church of Scientology International

Related Links

http://www.scientology-inglewood.org


OAKLAND, California, Jan. 21, 2016 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ -- The Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) is seeking input from personal attendants on the Domestic Worker Bill of Rights.

Telephone surveys are planned to hear directly from those workers who help a child, older person, or person with physical, intellectual or developmental disabilities with daily activities. Personal attendants are encouraged to call (855) 264-3468 toll free before February 12 to learn more about how they can participate and share their experiences.

The survey sessions are taking place in multiple languages and will inform research about how AB 241, the Domestic Worker Bill of Rights, has affected personal attendants in California. This research is being carried out with the Labor Occupational Health Program at UC Berkeley.

Members of the public are encouraged to subscribe to get email alerts on DIR's press releases or other departmental updates.

https://www.facebook.com/CaliforniaDIR

https://twitter.com/CA_DIR

https://www.youtube.com/user/CaliforniaDIR

http://www.dir.ca.gov/email/listsub.asp?choice=1

The California Department of Industrial Relations, established in 1927, protects and improves the health, safety, and economic well-being of over 18 million wage earners, and helps their employers comply with state labor laws. DIR is housed within the Labor & Workforce Development Agency. For general inquiries, contact DIR's Communications Call Center at 844-LABOR-DIR (844-522-6734) for help in locating the appropriate division or program in our department.

Related Links

http://www.dir.ca.gov/



SOURCE California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR)
MIAMI, Jan. 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE, OSE: RCL) today announced the appointment of Renee Guttman as Chief Information Security Officer (CISO), effective January 25, 2016.

"Renee's role is paramount as Royal Caribbean continues to work in a global environment where information security is critical to the ongoing success of our Company," said Michael Giresi, Chief Information Officer, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. "Information security touches every aspect of our business and Renee's leadership and oversight will innovate RCL so that our information and systems are protected and in compliance with global regulations."

Guttman is an accomplished global information security and privacy executive with a proven track record of establishing internationally-recognized information security programs for Fortune 500 companies. Guttman was most recently Vice President of Information Risk and member of the Office of the CISO at Optiv, where she provided guidance to security leaders at enterprise-class organizations. Prior to this, she served in information security and privacy executive roles at Coca-Cola Company and Time Warner, Inc.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE, OSE: RCL) is a global cruise vacation company that owns Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Pullmantur, Azamara Club Cruises and CDF Croisieres de France, as well as TUI Cruises through a 50 percent joint venture. Together, these six brands operate a combined total of 44 ships with an additional eleven on order. They operate diverse itineraries around the world that call on approximately 480 destinations on all seven continents. Additional information can be found at www.RCLcorporate.com.

SOURCE Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.

Related Links

http://www.rclcorporate.com


A large number of new home starts in Australia meant that 2018 recorded one of the strongest years of residential building markets on record, official figures show.

But the number did slow down towards the end of the year with the new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showing that building activity fell in the third quarter of last year.

The figures show that a total of 54,803 dwellings commenced construction, down by 5.7% in the quarter and down by 2.2% against the same period in the previous years.

Detached house starts were down by 4.5% in the quarter but were comparable with the level of starts during the September quarter a year earlier. Starts of other dwellings, primarily apartments, were down by 7.1% quarter on quarter and down 5.3% year on year.

Strong levels of new home starts early last year underpinned one of the strongest years of residential building activity on record. Results for the second half of the year reflect the softening that have been evident in the broader housing market, said Geordan Murray, senior economist for the Housing Industry Association (HIA).

He explained that while the fall in the third quarter of 2018 was a material decline, it cant be considered a poor result. It was still a strong level of starts and there is a large amount of residential building work underway, he pointed out.

Well continue to monitor activity closely as leading indicators suggest that there were fewer new projects entering the pipeline in the latter stages of 2018. This is a warning bell for the trajectory of starts in 2019, he explained.

As projects that are currently under construction reach completion there are likely to be fewer new projects coming in behind them. This applies to both the detached house market and the market for higher density dwellings, he added.

A regional breakdown of the figures shows that total housing starts in the September 2018 quarter increased in Queensland by 8.3%, in Western Australia by 2.9% and in the Australian Capital Territory by 41.5%.

Housing starts declined in the remaining states, down by 18.9% in South Australia, down 16% in Victoria, down 6% in Tasmania, down 5.5% in New South Wales and down 2.9% in the Northern Territory.
Households across the UK perceive that the value of their home has risen over the last month, but there are regional variations, the latest sentiment index shows.

It is the sixth in a row when the house price sentiment index from Knight Frank and IHS Markit has been in positive territory following a post-referendum low in July 2016.

Some 17% of the 1,500 households surveyed across the UK said that the value of their home had risen over the last month, while 5.3% said that prices had fallen. This resulted in a HPSI reading of 55.8.

Januarys reading was a slight fall compared with the 56.1 recorded in December, although it remains notably above its post-referendum low of 48.3 in July and appears to have settled since the vote on the UK leaving the European Union in June with an average index reading on a slightly longer three month rolling basis of 55.8.

However, there remain fairly large regional variations. Households in 10 of the 11 of the regions covered by the index perceived that the value of their properties rose in January.

The future HPSI, which measures what households think will happen to the value of their property over the next year, rose in January to 65.5, up from 62.3 in December which was the highest reading achieved by the index since before the referendum although it remains firmly below its peak of 75.1 achieved in May 2014.

The continued rise in the future sentiment index indicates that households are not focusing solely on the uncertainty around the path to Brexit, said Grainne Gilmore, head of UK residential research at Knight Frank.

She pointed out that the economic fundamentals in the UK are relatively strong, with the country expecting to have experienced the strongest growth in GDP of any country in the G7 for 2016. The International Monetary Fund has also revised up its forecasts for economic growth in 2017.

At the same time, for those who have access to a deposit, mortgage rates are near record-lows. The lack of supply of new and second-hand housing stock for sale is also underpinning pricing, which is causing affordability issues is some areas. The Government is determined to try and boost the delivery of new build homes, and will publish details of its plans in a Housing White Paper shortly, added Gilmore.

According to Tim Moore, senior economist at IHS Markit, Januarys index reveals a strong start to the year for UK house price sentiment, with expectations now the most positive since the EU referendum last summer. Exactly 40% of households anticipate a rise in their property value over the course of 2017, while just 9% forecast a reduction.

The recovery in housing market confidence has been helped by sustained growth across the UK economy during recent months, and resilient labour market conditions in particular.

Regional divergences showed little sign of narrowing in January, with people living in London and the South East by far the most likely to anticipate rising property values, he explained.

However, UK house price sentiment remains softer than seen during the three years leading up to the EU referendum. Januarys survey also highlights that price expectations in all regions have moderated in comparison to those seen at the start of 2016, he added.
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Digication, a leading provider of ePortfolios, today announces Dr. Joan Monahan Watson is joining the company as its Director of Education. Watson's experience and knowledge in teaching, higher education leadership, assessment and accreditation makes her uniquely qualified for her new role. Watsons broad experience and deep expertise will enable her to speak to every aspect of the learning process as she collaborates with those implementing Digication.

"Joan brings a unique perspective to Digication as a power user of ePortfolio technology. Her experience from having had key leadership roles in programmatic assessment and accreditation efforts through her work at Virginia Tech and UGA will be incredibly useful for the entire Digication community," said Jeffrey Yan, CEO of Digication. "She can speak from her experience and relate to what is important to and for our customers. Her insights will prove invaluable for the institutions we serve."

Watson earned Bachelors and Masters degrees in English before completing her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from Virginia Tech. She has taught at the secondary, undergraduate, and graduate levels, including graduate courses on assessment and evaluation; college teaching; and cognitive processes and educational practice. She has also been a long term practitioner and scholar within the ePortfolio domain. As Assistant Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Interdisciplinary Studies and then later as the Director of Pre-Education, Career, and Graduate School Advising, both at Virginia Tech, ePortfolio strategies were central to her teaching practice and to her programmatic assessment efforts.

More recently, Watson led assessment efforts for the University of Georgias SACS Quality Enhancement Plan and then served as Assistant Dean for the College of Pharmacy, also at the University of Georgia. In this latter role, she developed, implemented, and evaluated initiatives and programs that supported student success, insured compliance with accreditation standards, and facilitated the strategic goals of the College. She also introduced innovative teaching and assessment methodologies, including the use of ePortfolio, to her college. In all of her institutional settings, Watson has been highly engaged in university-level faculty development and instructional innovation efforts and has taught and mentored hundreds of faculty across the full range of disciplines over the years. Her passion for student learning provides the foundation for her scholarship. Watson is a winner of numerous teaching awards, including a national recognition. She has presented widely on teaching, learning, and assessment topics and has been published in numerous locations, including the Journal of Teaching and Learning with Technology, the International Journal for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, and the International Journal of ePortfolio.

About Digication

Founded by educators, Jeffrey Yan and Kelly Driscoll in 2002, Digication is a leading provider of easy-to-use ePortfolio and Assessment solutions for teachers and students at all levels, from K-12 to higher education. Students at more than 6,000 schools use Digication's ePortfolios to easily, flexibly and professionally showcase their work and achievements across schools and districts. ePortfolios create new opportunities for learning, reflection, communication, assessment and career advancement. Digication is headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island. For more information, visit http://www.digication.com
Jones Group Real Estate The local real estate market can be difficult to navigate with an inexperienced agent, let my group of experienced professionals help you realize your real estate dreams.

Jared Jones is a recognized top-producing agent in the nation that is consistently acclaimed for his real estate achievements. Among his long list of professional successes, Jones has been named as one of the Top Five Agents in the Nation by the Wall Street Journal, a Top Professional under 40, and ranks as an Industry Leader Based on High Sales Volume.

When you think of the typical real estate agent that only was responsible for 11 transactions per year according to the 2015 National Association of Realtors (NAR) Member Profile, Jones has a leg up on the competition. In fact, in one-year mega-agent Jared Jones was responsible for 931 transactions! Known for selling over 3,500 homes throughout his career, Jones brings his vast experience in the real estate market to assist Florida buyers and sellers.

Widely hailed for his outstanding production, Jones is sought after for his professional opinions. Continually featured on CNBCs Closing Bell as well as a variety of other well-known broadcast media and financial publications, Jared Jones redefines real estate. With a strong pulse on the market conditions, Jones is able to defy market expectations and ensure that every client he works with gets the best possible deal (whether they are buying or selling). Dedication to his clients ensures that Jones can provide the best possible service from marketing to negotiating, and every detail in between allowing for Jared Jones to act as the client advocate. Helping clients realize their dreams is the greatest reward from my hard work, states Jones.

Jones recently opened up a new real estate firm in Orlando, Jones Group Real Estate, to provide superior services to buyers and sellers alike. The Orlando Regional Realtor Association reported that median home prices raised by 10 percent in November, with sales levels dropping slightly with a lower level of inventory being realized. Limited inventory has led to increased competition within the Orlando area real estate market. According to Jared Jones, The local real estate market can be difficult to navigate with an inexperienced agent, let my group of experienced professionals help you realize your real estate dreams.

ABOUT JARED JONES

As a native of Saint Cloud, Florida, Jared Jones brings his years of experience as a respected residential real estate expert, broker, and investor to serve client needs. Jared offers a home sale guarantee program to sellers as well as a database of highly qualified buyers which means that your home can be sold quicker and for top dollar. Visit JaredJonesFL.com to learn more about The Jones Group Real Estate and Jared Jones. Jared Jones can be contacted directly at 407-906-5000.
Blue Ridge Partners is a management consulting firm exclusively focused on helping companies accelerate profitable revenue growth We are pleased to recognize the continued professional and personal growth of Alex, Mike and Kirill and their outstanding service to our clients.

Blue Ridge Partners, a management consulting firm exclusively focused on helping companies accelerate profitable revenue growth, announced the promotion of three to new positions of client engagement leadership effective January 1, 2016.

Alex Immerman, a new Manager in New York, and Associate Managers Mike Albertini in Chicago and Kirill Samonov in Los Angeles, will manage project teams in delivering services to clients.

Before joining the firm, Alex Immerman was involved in growth strategy consulting with two firms. He holds his undergraduate degree from Cornell University and a graduate degree from the University of Chicago.

Mike Albertinis early career included experience in product engineering, brand management and marketing. He is a graduate of Notre Dame with an MBA from Kellogg School of Business at Northwestern University.

After graduating from Brown University, Kirill Samonov began his career as a quantitative analyst in an investment firm and then with a strategy consulting group. He subsequently joined Blue Ridge Partners four years ago.

Jim Corey, Managing Partner, said "We are pleased to recognize the continued professional and personal growth of Alex, Mike and Kirill and their outstanding service to our clients. In particular, we congratulate them on their advancement to new levels of responsibility within the firm. With their efforts, we will continue the record growth of our firm. In 2015, our firm doubled and we expect continued strong growth in 2016.

About Blue Ridge Partners: Blue Ridge Partners is a management consulting firm exclusively focused on helping companies accelerate profitable revenue growth. We have worked with more than 350 middle market and large cap clients to improve their strategic understanding of markets and customers, deepen and expand their customer relationships and enhance marketing and sales performance. Our clients include over 75 private equity firms  both during deal evaluation/ due diligence and post-acquisition. We have a reputation for delivering measurable impact quickly and efficiently. For more information, visit http://www.blueridgepartners.com.
Black Hills Surgical Hospital has been ranked Number 6 in the nation out of more than 3,000 hospitals for high quality patient care by Modern Healthcare magazine. Modern Healthcare is the leading weekly magazine in the country on all issues affecting healthcare.

In the two latest issues of Modern Healthcare (Dec. 28 and Jan. 4), Black Hills Surgical Hospital ranked Number 6 in terms of quality out of the top 10 performing hospitals in the United States. These rankings for superior quality patient care are based on numerous factors, including high quality clinical processes, high levels of patient experience and satisfaction, and high efficiency in providing healthcare in a cost effective manner. Black Hills Surgical Hospital is the only South Dakota hospital listed in the rankings. Black Hills Surgical Hospital received the Number 6 ranking based on a government program that collects data measuring hospital quality and patient satisfaction, known as Value Based Purchasing.

The Modern Healthcare ranking follows other recent national recognition received by Black Hills Surgical Hospital, including being named one of the 100 Best Hospitals in America for Spine Surgery and being named in the top ten-percent in the nation for joint replacements by Healthgrades.

To be recognized as one of the ten best hospitals in the nation for high quality care and the best care in South Dakota is a great honor, said Bill May, Black Hills Surgical Hospital CEO. This accomplishment was achieved based on the effort of the hospitals dedicated and hardworking physicians and staff. Our daily mission is to provide patients with exceptional care and to provide exceptional service to both the patient and family. It is extremely gratifying for Black Hills Surgical Hospital to be recognized nationally for consistently achieving its important mission.

###

Since 1997, Black Hills Surgical Hospital has been the leader in quality healthcare in the region. Consistently recognized for patient satisfaction, medical excellence, and patient safety, Black Hills Surgical Hospital employs more than 400 professionals and offers integrated surgical, imaging, pain management, and urgent care services. Black Hills Surgical Hospital is proudly owned by physicians.
From stand up paddleboards to superyachts and everything in between, theres lots to take in at the Seattle Boat Show (Indoors +Afloat). The 2016 show drops anchor on Friday Jan. 29 and runs through Feb. 6. The largest show on the West Coast, it features some 1,000 boats and yachts in two locations, more than three acres of the latest and greatest gadgets and gear, 430+ exhibitors, 200+ free seminars and advanced training classes for a fee. Theres also tons of fun to be had at the show. Highlights this year include:

3D Street Painting

Award-winning 3D Street painting artist Melanie Stimmellthe only woman to ever hold the prestigious title of maestra madonnara (master street painter) in Italy and Germanyand former lead technical director on the iconic series South Park, will be painting a 20 x 23 foot, 3D waterski pyramid. Come watch Melanie at work as she creates this anamorphic masterpiece and position yourself atop the pyramid for the perfect trompe l'oeil photo opp. (At CenturyLink Field Event Center)

Chowder Chomp

Six of Seattle's elite seafood restaurants will be coming together Saturday and Sunday Jan. 30 and 31 to battle it out for the title of Best Boat Show Chowder. Showgoers will enjoy free samples of delicious chowders from Chandlers Crabhouse, Dukes Chowder House, Flying Fish, Ivars, Pike Place Chowder and Seattle Fish Company and then can vote for their favorite. The Seattle Boat Show will donate $2,500 on behalf of the winning restaurant to the non-profit, Salmon for Soldiers. (At South Lake Union)

Kids Zone

Kids can enjoy time on the water using the Aqua Paddler boats, build a wooden or clay toy boat and test its buoyancy, rig a sailing dinghy, build a sea lion or create a jellyfish in the arts and crafts activity area, have fun in the marine-themed photo booth and more. Additionally award-winning underwater photographer and author Ocean Annie Crawley will be giving stunning presentations via movies and slideshows about myths and monsters of the deep. (At CenturyLink Field Event Center)

See the floating portion of the show from the water with complimentary boat rides

The 20-minute guided tours are in all-electric 21-foot enclosed, heated Duffy boats. Its a great way to see the show from a new perspective. Blankets are provided for an added snuggle factor. (At South Lake Union)

Boatless in Seattle  Free admission Monday  Thursday after 5pm

No boat, no cover! Dont own a boat but would like to learn more about how to get into boating? Simply show up any weeknight of the show after 5pm and youll be admitted for free. (At CenturyLink Field Event Center)

Uncorked Opening Night, Friday Jan. 29, 5pm  9pm

Showgoers can sniff, swirl and sip their way through the show, tasting a variety of award-winning Washington wines, while shopping for the boat of their dreams. (At CenturyLink Field Event Center)

Womens Day - Monday, Feb. 1

Women can attend the show for free and enjoy a slate of seminars designed specifically for women, by women boaters, including Effortless Onboard Entertaining and What Every Woman Should Know Before Getting on a Boat. Its the perfect opportunity to meet, learn and get inspired by some of the most experienced and talented women boaters around. Visit Seattle Boat Show to print the complimentary pass. (Women are free at both locations. Seminars are at CenturyLink Field Event Center)

Sails & Ales  Friday Feb. 5, 5pm  9pm

What better combination than hops and props? That's whats on tap for Sails & Ales, the craft beer night. Attendees will be able to cruise the show with ale in hand and enjoy the best of NW brews and boats. (At CenturyLink Field Event Center)

Show Details:

When:

Friday, Jan. 29  Saturday, Feb. 6, 2016

Where:

CenturyLink Field Event Center

800 Occidental Avenue South, Seattle

South Lake Union

901 Fairview Avenue N, Seattle

Free shuttle running continuously between both locations

Hours:

CenturyLink Field Event Center

Monday - Thursday: 11 a.m. - 8 pm

Fridays: 11 am - 9 pm

Saturdays: 10 am - 8 pm

Sunday: 10 am - 6 pm

South Lake Union

Weekdays: 11 a.m. - 5 pm

Weekends: 10 am - 5 pm

Tickets:

Adults: $12; Youth (11-17): $5

5-Day BIG Pass $24

Monday  Thursday after 5pm: $8 (And $5 parking after 5pm)

Kids 10 & under: Free

NEW FOR 2016: Purchase tickets online and receive $2 weekend parking at the Union Station Garage compliments of BECU.

Tickets to Sails & Ales and Uncorked are $27 per night and include show admission, tasting tokens and a souvenir glass.

Social Media:

Twitter: @SeattleBoatShow

Facebook: /SeattleBoatShow

Instagram: /SeattleBoatShow

Hashtag: #SeattleBoatShow2016

For a complete list of exhibitors, seminars, travel packages and ticket prices, please visit http://www.SeattleBoatShow.com.

Photos: Show photos available at http://www.seattleboatshow.com/photo-gallery.html

Seattle Boat Show is proudly sponsored by GMC, Allstate Insurance Company, Basta Boatlifts, Peoples Bank, S3 Maritime, Boat Insurance Agency, BECU, SEA-DOO, Mercury Marine, Alaska USA Federal Credit Union, Voya Financial, Northwest Yachting Magazine, Worldmark by Wyndham, Global Marine Insurance Company, Inc.
Port of Kalama offers industrial property and industrial buildings just 30 minutes from Portland, Oregon. Port of Kalama's location right off I-5 has enabled us to quadruple growth and positioned us to expand.

Rainier Truck Trailer Tank Repair LLC, which has quadrupled growth since moving to the Port of Kalama last February, now announces it has achieved the coveted R-Stamp Welding Certification to further serve the robust chemical trucking industry. A Department of Transportation (WDOT and USDOT) certified inspection service for large vehicles and tanks carrying chemicals and liquid substances, Rainier is now certified as a full service provider for mandated annual chemical truck inspections.

The company chose the Port of Kalamas bustling industrial park for its I-5 location, which enables them to better serve a huge national tanker and trucking industry. Rainier, which is a certified HM 183 inspection facility and also manages mechanic and welding operations, operates from its 16,240 square foot industrial facility at the Port.

The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) establishes rules of safety governing the design, fabrication and inspection of boilers and pressure vessels. Welding on pressurized containers, boiler, piping, transfer equipment, and more is not permitted unless certified welders hold the R-Stamp.

We operate in a very tight niche industry and this I-5 location has enabled us to quadruple growth and positioned us to expand with our new certification, said Mark Marander, owner Rainier Truck Trailer Tank Repair LLC. The R-Stamp certification enables us to become a full service tank and truck inspection facility, which has already brought new customers in the last week. We expect accelerated growth because of the requirement for annual chemical truck inspections.

Rainier joins a growing number of industries and businesses who have found the Port of Kalama an ideal location to grow their businesses. The Port boasts an Industrial Park and acres of shovel-ready land for manufacturing, technology, storage and many other industry sectors. Sixteen acres of public riverfront parks stand out as popular recreational destinations for both locals and tourists. Port officials cite several advantages for businesses like Rainier to expand operations in Kalama including:



No state corporate or personal income taxes

Collaborative, business-friendly environment

Affordable/competitive rates

Skilled workforce

Accessibility to all modes of transportation

Quality buildings, land on river/rail/Interstate

Quality of life, slow-paced, beautiful, quiet, hometown feel

Proximity to international airport at PDXjust 30 minutes away

We simply could not ask for a more supportive business partner than the staff at the Port of Kalamathey go above and beyond to ensure our facilities are fully-functional to service our clientele, continues Marander. We all feel right at home in Kalamalike we belong here; and theres an eager skilled workforce ready to support our growth.

About Port of KalamaWhere rail and water meet

The Port of Kalama is located in Southwest Washington on the Columbia River and immediately off of Interstate Highway 5. The port exists to induce capital investment in an environmentally responsible manner to create jobs and to enhance public recreational opportunities. Port of Kalama's industrial area includes five miles of riverfront property adjacent to the 43' federally-maintained deep draft navigation channel of the Columbia River. The Port is served by the Burlington Northern/Santa Fe and Union Pacific railroads. There are over 30 businesses located at the Port of Kalama, employing over 850 people. Port of Kalama offers all the superior facilities businesses need to thrive, and an unsurpassed quality of life. The port offers shovel ready sites, a new Industrial Park, state of the art Marine Terminals and transportation accessibility to rail and highway all just a 30 minute drive to the Portland International Airport. Port of Kalama also offers high-bandwidth communications, with dual access fiber-optic service to Seattle and Portland. Properties currently available at the port for businesses wishing to expand and thrive: Visit http://portofkalama.com/available-properties/.

Contact: Liz Newman, marketing manager, Port of Kalama, 360-673-2379 or Claudia Johnson, PR, 503-799-2220.
First Choice Emergency Room

First Choice Emergency Room opened its new Rosenberg facility at 7 a.m. today. The new facility is located 24003 Southwest Freeway, Rosenberg, Texas, and is open 24/7.

We are pleased to bring a facility to the Rosenberg community and look forward to continuing to deliver the highest quality emergency medical care here, said Dr. Cheuk, Facility Medical Director of First Choice Emergency Room Rosenberg.

To celebrate the opening, First Choice Emergency Room made a donation to B.F. Terry High School at First Choice Emergency Rooms ribbon cutting with Fort Bend Chamber of Commerce. Following the ribbon cutting, First Choice Emergency Room hosted a medical community open house.

On Saturday from 10 a.m. - 12 p.m., First Choice Emergency Room will host a community event and B.F. Terry High School band will perform. New 93Q will be on-site, giving away prizes from 10 a.m. to noon. The Houston Texans cheerleaders will also be there, signing photos and taking pictures.

First Choice Emergency Room facilities are equipped with a full radiology suite, including CT scanner, Digital X-ray, Ultrasound, as well as on-site laboratories certified by the Clinical Laboratory Improvements Amendments (CLIA) and accredited by the Commission on Office Laboratories Accreditation (COLA). The facilities are staffed exclusively with board-certified physicians and emergency trained registered nurses.

To learn more about First Choice Emergency Room and the new Rosenberg facility, please visit http://www.fcer.com/locations/houston-map/rosenberg/.

About First Choice Emergency Room

First Choice Emergency Room (FCER.com) is the nations leading network of independent freestanding emergency rooms; it is both the largest and the oldest. First Choice Emergency Room is revolutionizing the delivery of emergency medical services for adult and pediatric emergencies by offering patients convenient, neighborhood access to emergency medical care. First Choice Emergency Room facilities are innovative, freestanding, and fully equipped emergency rooms with a complete radiology suite of diagnostic technology (CT scanner, Ultrasound, and Digital X-ray) and on-site laboratory. All First Choice Emergency Room locations are staffed with board-certified physicians and emergency trained registered nurses. First Choice Emergency Room has facilities in Austin, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio. According to patient feedback collected by Press Ganey Associates Inc., First Choice Emergency Room provides the highest quality emergency medical care and received the 2013, 2014 and 2015 Press Ganey Guardian of Excellence Award for exceeding the 95th percentile in patient satisfaction nationwide. First Choice Emergency Room is an Adeptus Health (NYSE:ADPT) company.
Q1 2016 Ranking of the Best Human Resources Software Applications Updating its rankings for the new year, business apps marketplace GetApp has released its Q1 2016 ranking of the top 25 cloud-based HR solutions.

Updating its rankings for the new year, business apps marketplace GetApp has released its Q1 2016 ranking of the top 25 cloud-based HR solutions. BambooHR remained on top for the second quarter in a row, while Zoho People and FinancialForceHCM took home second and third place, respectively.

The ranking is based on five data points that include user reviews, integrations, mobile app availability, social media presence, and security. GetRank is aimed at business owners that are looking to make a first assessment of leading HR apps for their small or medium business. With each data point scored out of 20, the maximum possible score an app can receive is 100.

BambooHR took a strong lead with a total score of 72, achieving a perfect 20 for reviews. The high score for media went to 7th place Oracle for its Taleo Business Edition (TBE) software, while 12th place FairSail HRMS had the highest security score. The leader for mobile apps was ADP Total Source, which came in 16th overall but scored a perfect 20 for its crowd-pleasing iOS and Android apps. FinancialForceHCM tied with BambooHR with a score of 20 for app integrations, which is a key consideration for HR software buyers.

Integrations are an especially important component of HR solutions. You want a system that integrates with other applications seamlessly to eliminate the duplicate work that comes along with having to input data twice. For example, having an HR solution that can integrate with a scheduling and payroll software is invaluable for a business owner looking to reduce time and cut costs, says Christophe Primault, CEO at GetApp.

User reviews are scored based on the number of reviews and their related rating on GetApp, while mobile app scores are similar, pulling data from Google Play and the Apple App store based on app availability and user ratings. Integrations scores come from the number of software integrations listed on GetApp, while media presence is based on the number of Twitter followers and Facebook fans that a vendor has, in relation to other vendors in the category. Security scores are based on a vendor-completed survey modelled on the Cloud Security Alliances Self-Assessment Form.

Click through to see the entire Q1 2016 GetRank of top HR apps. You can also download a free copy of GetApps report, HR in the Cloud, for key trends and insights into the HR space with industry insights and expert commentary.

More about GetApp: GetApp, a Gartner company, is the leading premium business app discovery platform on the web. Headquartered in Barcelona (Spain), GetApp serves as a platform for user-generated and editorial reviews of software and apps for businesses.
ListenTrust The broader vision makes us a healthier and more solid company for our clients and employees and we are very excited to start this new chapter of who we are and where we are going.

Bilingual contact center Listen Up Espanol announces the adoption of a new identity to reflect the broader vision of a company that has expanded its capabilities, portfolio of services and near-shore locations. Listen Up Espanol will now be known as ListenTrust, a new name that captures the essence of the companys core vision and values.

Throughout 2015, the company focused on building a foundation for growth and expansion that would allow them to better serve current clients and build relationships in new target markets. The new brand opens opportunities to provide contact center services for markets in English and Spanish within the U.S. and Latin America. As companies see the need and advantage of providing customers with an excellent experience, person-to-person connection is a key component. The name ListenTrust comes from the companys core strength and unique ability to engage with its clients and their customers, to provide solutions and earn their trust, and to enhance the overall brand experience for its clients customers.

The brand Listen Up Espanol has been the face of the company for almost 10 years and there is a lot of pride that we have built into the brand. However, with our recently expanded capabilities including outbound services, customer service, English-speaking agents and a new location in Belize, we needed to transform our identity to match our greater reach, said Tony Ricciardi, President and co-founder.

The U.S. Hispanic market has been front and center of our growth in the past and we wont lose focus on this important segment; we are evolving with this market and have expended our commercial operations to new clients in Mexico, opening an additional location in Mexico City. Now we have the capacity to serve other meaningful markets to a greater degree, says Craig Handley, CEO and co-founder. The broader vision makes us a healthier and more solid company for our clients and employees and we are very excited to start this new chapter of who we are and where we are going.

ListenTrust has built the new brand with the foundational principle that people are the companys greatest asset, so updated company values have also been launched that are more concise for employees and clients to understand. The company believes one of the key factors for having engaged employees is to have people who believe in and live the company core values. The new brand and values will generate a new perception and energy that embodies a stronger purpose and clearer company vision for ListenTrust clients and employees for years to come.

To learn more about ListenTrust, please visit http://www.ListenTrust.com or http://www.ListenUpEspanol.com.

About ListenTrust

ListenTrust (formerly Listen Up Espanol) is the leading bilingual contact center for Spanish and English agent services with a focus on strengthening the person-to-person connection to improve a customers experience with a brand. Headquartered in Portland, Maine and operating in Mexico and Belize, the company employs over 800 agents and provides businesses with contact center services to reach consumers in the United States, Mexico and other countries in Latin America.

ListenTrust offers clients a broad range of services, including inbound and outbound sales, nonprofit donation calls, customer service and lead generation. Additionally, ListenTrust provides campaign planning, scripting and advertising production services in both Spanish and English. With a focus on measurement, training and a sales psychology, ListenTrust makes it a point to turn the person-to-person customer interaction into revenue. For more information about ListenTrust, please visit ListenTrust.com

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Zetec High Stability Bobbin Probe Field trials conducted at Palisades and Diablo Canyon confirmed improved data quality and average probe life increases exceeding 30%

Zetec, Inc. introduces the new High Stability Bobbin Probe for steam generator tubing inspections. This innovative advancement in technology provides better quality data and probes that last considerably longer.

The High Stability Bobbin Probe introduces innovative features that deliver significant benefits. A new centering foot design features spring supported centering feet and proprietary abrasion resistant material enabling the probe to center more accurately for a longer period of time. The improved data cable provides less data drift than other available options, increasing the probability of flaw detection. The cable was carefully designed to allow the probe to meet the EPRI equivalency for the peak center frequency so its inspection ready. Equivalency reports can be provided to allow the probe to immediately be used as an inspection of record.

Field trials conducted at Palisades and Diablo Canyon confirmed improved data quality and average probe life increases exceeding 30%. The longer probe life leads to numerous improvements in inspection economics. Not only is the time for an inspection significantly reduced, but savings are also realized for less rad waste and lower dose because of the fewer probe changes.

As the largest supplier of probes worldwide to the steam generator market, we understand the challenges our customers face and develop solutions that deliver the results they need. This new High Stability Bobbin Probe is a perfect example of that. With a longer probe life, customers can save tens of thousands of dollars on inspections states Bill Ziegenhagen, Zetec Probe Product Manager.

The High Stability Bobbin Probes are designed to be equivalent for replacing the existing bobbin probes already used in nuclear steam generators. Sizes for 7/8, 3/4, 11/16 and 5/8 tubing are available. For more information on the High Stability bobbin Probe, please visit http://www.zetec.com.

About Zetec

Zetec is a global leader in nondestructive testing (NDT) solutions for the critical inspection needs of industries the world counts on every dayincluding power generation, oil and gas, transportation, heavy industry and manufacturing. We serve as a single source for high-performance solutions in both eddy current and ultrasonic technologies. For nearly 50 years, weve advanced NDT standards and science, providing new insight and control through inspection solutions that protect our customers most important assets and ensure the quality of their products. By integrating design and engineering with our own manufacturing, Zetec delivers solutions that optimize productivity, safety and total cost of ownership. Zetec is a subsidiary of Roper Technologies, Inc., with global engineering and manufacturing centers in Quebec City and at our corporate headquarters in Snoqualmie, Washington. Zetec support spans the globe, with Centers of Excellence in Houston, Paris, Seoul, Shanghai and Tokyo. For more information about Zetec, visit: http://www.zetec.com and follow us on Linkedin at http://www.linkedin.com/company/zetec

Zetec, is a registered trademark or trademark of Zetec in the United States and/or other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

The information provided in this press release contains forward looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. These forward looking statements include, among others, statements regarding operating results, the success of our internal operating plans, and the prospects for newly acquired businesses to be integrated and contribute to future growth and profit expectations. Forward looking statements may be indicated by words or phrases such as "anticipate," "estimate," "plans," "expects," "projects," "should," "will," "believes" or "intends" and similar words and phrases. These statements reflect management's current beliefs and are not guarantees of future performance. They involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward looking statement. Such risks and uncertainties include our ability to integrate our acquisitions and realize expected synergies. We also face other general risks, including our ability to realize cost savings from our operating initiatives, general economic conditions, unfavorable changes in foreign exchange rates, difficulties associated with exports, risks associated with our international operations, difficulties in making and integrating acquisitions, risks associated with newly acquired businesses, increased product liability and insurance costs, increased warranty exposure, future competition, changes in the supply of, or price for, parts and components, environmental compliance costs and liabilities, risks and cost associated with asbestos related litigation and potential write-offs of our substantial intangible assets, and risks associated with obtaining governmental approvals and maintaining regulatory compliance for new and existing products. Important risks may be discussed in current and subsequent filings with the SEC. You should not place undue reliance on any forward looking statements. These statements speak only as of the date they are made, and we undertake no obligation to update publicly any of them in light of new information or future events.
Dr. Evan Hasson cuts the ribbon at his Grand Opening At Specific Chiropractic we focus on the main cause of your problem rather than treating symptoms or effects of a cause.

Specific Chiropractic's, Dr. Evan J. Hasson, held a Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting of Boca Ratons Specific Chiropractic office in East Boca Raton on January 20, 2016. The office is located at 1 West Camino Real, Suite 111, Boca Raton, Florida 33432.

Deputy Mayor Robert Weinroth of Boca Raton and the Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce along with about 80 friends, family, and patients were there to show their support for the new business.

Dr. Hasson is an upper cervical chiropractor specializing in correcting a small misalignment of the upper neck known as the Atlas Subluxation Complex. A graduate of Palmer School of Chiropractic, Dr. Hasson works with his patients to examine their back for misalignment's that are placing stress and pressure on their nervous system and often times can correct the misalignment without the need for medication or surgery. At Specific Chiropractic we focus on the main cause of your problem rather than treating symptoms or effects of a cause, said Dr. Hasson.

Specific Chiropractic is transforming chiropractic care through a consumer-friendly model that removes many of the traditional obstacles to healthcare. For example, consumers can receive quality care without insurance hassles. Patients can choose from several affordable plans and packages, with a significantly lower per visit cost than the average insurance co-pay.

Dr. Hasson contributes to the well being of his patients with gentle, safe and effective chiropractic care as well as lifestyle education. There is never any twisting, cracking, or popping of the neck, assures Dr. Hasson. Specific Chiropractic offers complimentary health education classes every Wednesday at 6pm. Light food and refreshments are provided, reserve your spot today and experience the Specific Chiropractic difference.

About Specific Chiropractic

Located in Boca Raton, Florida, Specific Chiropractic is owned and operated by Dr. Evan Hasson. Specific Chiropractic specializes in addressing upper neck subluxation complexes that may disrupt the patients entire bodys health. Imaging services are also available. For more information or to make an appointment for a consultation, call 561-571-2468 or visit us online http://www.specificchiropractor.com.
United Benefit Advisors (UBA), the nations leading independent employee benefits advisory organization, is pleased to welcome The Health Plan as a new Strategic Partner. They join UBA's elite group of service providers that offer vetted and approved products to UBA Partner Firms.

The Health Plan is a managed care organization (MCO) with third-party administrator (TPA) capabilities known for exceptional personal service and delivering clinically-driven, technology-enhanced, customer-focused insurance products and services that manage and improve the health and well-being of their members. For more than 30 years, The Health Plan, as a nonprofit community health organization, has strived to provide service that is vibrant, personal and energetic.

We are extremely pleased to be selected as a Strategic Partner, says James M. Pennington, President & CEO of The Health Plan. Our strategic partnership with UBA will allow The Health Plan to continue to grow our national footprint with one of the highest quality broker associations in the country.

Richard Legg, The Health Plans Vice President Benefit Services, says, The Health Plan looks for and truly believes we have found with UBA, a true partnership of collaboration by market to develop and offer unique insurance and administrative products across the country.

The Health Plan has built a solid reputation through a team of health care professionals and partners who understand the meaning of integrity. In addition, they also have medical directors, social workers, pharmacists and skilled nurses on staff to provide care management services such as wellness, care and case management, behavioral health services, and pharmacy services.

The Health Plans customer-focused way of doing business makes them an excellent addition as a Strategic Partner providing services for our Partner Firms, says UBA Senior Vice President of Partner Relations Paul Zumbrook. Im excited to see how our UBA Partners will enhance their clients experience with this new addition to our administrative services and medical management portfolio.

ABOUT The Health Plan

The Health Plan offers a full service TPA with a complete range of integrated services and programs. We offer comprehensive plan administration services to employers with self-funded medical plans including medical and disease management, wellness programs, SPD development, staff medical directors, pharmacists and social workers, predictive modeling, stop-loss insurance, and more. We also offer affordable administrative fees, superior claims payment service, speedy response time, and access to THP's network discounts on any plan design. Visit http://www.healthplan.org to learn more about The Health Plan.

ABOUT United Benefit Advisors

United Benefit Advisors (UBA) is the nations leading independent employee benefits advisory organization with more than 200 offices throughout the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Our goal is to provide an environment that empowers our more than 2,000 Partners to both maintain their individuality and to pool their expertise, insight, and market presence to provide best-in-class services and solutions that positively impact employers and make a real difference in the lives of their employees and families. An important product of that collaboration is the UBA Health Plan Survey  the nations largest employee benefits benchmarking survey. At UBA, we believe in service and genuine sharing through mutual trust. Our culture is one of honesty, transparency, and making others better. It is defined by the values of integrity, collaboration, care for others, innovation, and operational excellence. Employers, advisors and industry-related organizations interested in obtaining powerful results from the shared wisdom of our Partners should visit UBA online at http://www.UBAbenefits.com.

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What: Data Privacy Day began in the United States and Canada in January 2008 as an extension of the Data Protection Day celebration in Europe.

To mark the eighth anniversary of Data Privacy Day, please join Morrison & Foerster, the International Association of Privacy Professionals, the National Cyber Security Alliance, Loyola Law School, Los Angeles, and our guests for our Data Privacy Day event in Los Angeles. Privacy and cybersecurity luminaries will discuss the fundamental issues facing businesses today and will provide practical, actionable answers on many critical topics. Examples of what they will cover include how to detect a cyber intrusion, best practices for an incident response plan, how to manage the latest cybersecurity regulatory updates, and why a privacy team is a new competitive differentiator. For a detailed agenda, go to http://www.mofo.com/resources/events/2016/01/160128dataprivacyla.

Interviews: Attendees who are available to speak to the press include Andrew Serwin, co-chair of Morrison & Foersters Global Privacy and Data Security Group; Ernie Liu, director of Mandiant, a FireEye Company; Robert Kang of the International Association of Privacy Professionals; and Aaron Ghirardelli of the Loyola Law School, Los Angeles.

Where: Morrison & Foerster LLP, 707 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90017

When: January 28th from 9 a.m.  6 p.m.

RSVP: Email Morrison & Foersters PR team at pr(at)mofo(dot)com to register for the event.

ABOUT MOFO

We are Morrison & Foerster  a global firm of exceptional credentials. Our clients include some of the largest financial institutions, investment banks, Fortune 100, and technology and life sciences companies. The Financial Times has named the firm to its lists of most innovative law firms in North America and Asia every year that it has published its Innovative Lawyers Reports in those regions. In the past few years, Chambers USA has honored MoFos Bankruptcy and IP teams with Firm of the Year awards, the Corporate/M&A team with a client service award, and the firm as a whole as Global USA Firm of the Year. Our lawyers are committed to achieving innovative and business-minded results for our clients, while preserving the differences that make us stronger.

ABOUT DATA PRIVACY DAY

Data Privacy Day (DPD) began in the United States and Canada in January 2008 as an extension of the Data Protection Day celebration in Europe. Data Protection Day commemorates the January 28, 1981, signing of Convention 108, the first legally binding international treaty dealing with privacy and data protection. Led by the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) in North America, DPD is observed annually on January 28 and is the signature event of NCSA's year-round, privacy awareness campaign. The theme for DPD is "Respecting Privacy, Safeguarding Data and Enabling Trust." For more information about the campaign visit: staysafeonline.org/dpd.
Together our applications provide a seamless shipping process with excellent visibility and tracking capabilities.

Supply chain software developer Datex recently announced its partnership with award-winning multi-carrier shipping software and IT solutions provider ProShip, Inc. An industry leader in enterprise-wide shipping and manifesting solutions, ProShip serves clients around the world and integrates seamlessly with Datex supply chain technology solutions.

Known for its development of warehouse management and supply chain software, Datex has attained the highest level of Microsoft Gold Partner Competency for Software Application Development, the highest level of partnership in the Microsoft network. Partnering with ProShip, a Microsoft Business Solutions Provider is a natural fit for Datex, explained Michael Armanious, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Datex. Our two companies have a natural synergy and complement each others technology solutions very well. Together our applications provide a seamless shipping process with excellent visibility and tracking capabilities.

Datex and ProShip Software offer an ideal solution for highly complex operations within third party logistics providers, manufacturers, as well as all other warehousing and distribution operations. Both solutions are easily integrated, provide a full suite of reports with online visibility and will streamline shipping operations and simplify reverse logistics processing.

When used together, the Datex/ProShip solution provides businesses with the ability to configure by workflow, maintain high volume throughput in high velocity operations, while providing immediate visibility of inventory and shipments throughout the warehouse to final destination, said Nathan Rucker, Director of Strategic Accounts for ProShip, Inc.

Datex clients that select ProShip Software will have exceptional ability to ensure compliance with carrier rules and requirements and can feel confident that they are making sound decisions based on their ability to shop carrier rates and services. For everyone, it is a win-win situation, said Armanious.

About Datex

Datex provides flexible, reliable supply chain technology solutions to help make businesses more profitable. In successful operation since 1978, Datex has helped companies operate more efficiently and productively using state-of-the-art technology including Microsoft based supply chain software, mobile devices and services including EDI and mobile device management services. For more information on Datex supply chain technology solutions, please visit the Datex website or contact Laura Olson, Director of Sales and Marketing at lolson(at)datexcorp.com or by phone at 727.571.4159.

About ProShip, Inc.

ProShip, Inc., a Neopost company, is a global provider of enterprise-wide, multi-carrier shipping and manifesting software solutions. Installed at thousands of customer sites around the world, the ProShip Product Suite has the fastest, most carrier-compliant services in the industry, integrates seamlessly with host systems and features a unified shipping process for mid- to high-volume small parcel, LTL and TL shipments. ProShip is dedicated to providing exceptional customer support, as well as supply chain and technology expertise. ProShip is an IBM Advanced Business Partner, SAP Certified, Oracle Partner and Microsoft Business Solutions Provider. For more information, please visit http://www.proshipinc.com.

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Jason Binford Jason is an exceptional attorney who has worked very hard to build his practice and provide excellent representation. He deserves to be recognized as a specialist in Business Bankruptcy law.

Jason Binford, a director at Kane Russell Coleman and Logan PC, recently became Board Certified in Business Bankruptcy Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Earning this distinctive accomplishment not only gives him the right to publicly represent himself as a specialist in Business Bankruptcy Law, but it is one of the highest and most reliable honors an attorney can achieve.

Its an honor to become Board Certified and to join such an elite group of attorneys with the utmost commitment to excellence, says Jason Binford. Knowing that my peers recognize my commitment and knowledge in business bankruptcy law is truly one of the greatest compliments an attorney can receive.

Jason joined KRCL in 2010 as an associate attorney and was elected to director in the firms Insolvency, Bankruptcy and Creditor Rights Section three years later. His experience includes representing debtors and creditors in large to mid-size Chapter 11 and Chapter 7 cases. Over the years, Jason has developed several niche areas of expertise, including 363 sales, intellectual property, landlord/tenant matters and franchise issues. His dedication and success earned him a spot on Texas Super Lawyers list of Rising Stars published by Thomson Reuters from 2011 to 2015.

Jason is an exceptional attorney who has worked very hard to build his practice and provide excellent representation, says Joe Coleman, a founding director of the firm and chair of the Insolvency, Bankruptcy & Creditor Rights Section. He deserves to be recognized as a specialist in Business Bankruptcy law.

Of the more than 70,000 attorneys licensed to practice in Texas, only 7,000 are Board Certified. Board Certified lawyers have the right to publicly present themselves as specialists in a specific area of the law. In fact, they are the only attorneys allowed by the State Bar of Texas to do so.

The Texas Board of Legal Specialization (TBLS) was established in 1974 by the State Bar of Texas to "promote the availability, accessibility and quality of the services of attorneys to the public in particular areas of the law... and advance the standards of the legal profession." The Board Certification process is rigorous with stringent, ongoing requirements after initial certification. An applicant must: have been in practice a minimum of five years with three years of substantial involvement in an area of law, complete TBLS-approved Continuing Legal Education course requirements, furnish at least 10 qualified, vetted references, provide extensive, relevant experience documentation and pass a comprehensive, daylong specialty area examination.

Kane Russell Coleman & Logan PC is a full service law firm with offices in Dallas and Houston. Formed in 1992 with five lawyers, today KRCL has more than 95 attorneys. The Firm provides professional services for clients ranging from Fortune 500 companies to medium-sized public and private companies to entrepreneurs. KRCL handles transactional, litigation and bankruptcy matters in Texas and throughout the country.

Source: Kane Russell Coleman & Logan, P.C.
U.S. Dept. of Agriculture Rural Development State Director for Michigan James J. Turner today announced more than $115,000 in energy efficiency improvements for Cambridge Court Apartments in Greenville through a partnership with Lean & Green Michigan.

The upgrades will be financed through the Property Assessed Clean Energy program, an initiative that allows businesses to upgrade the energy efficiency of their property through a special loan attached to their property tax assessment.

Energy efficiency improvements carry high up-front costs but pay back their gains over many years, which discourages businesses from adopting them, Turner said. By using PACE, the costs are spread out to match the gains from energy savings, making it more feasible.

Petros PACE Finance provided the funding for the upgrades and USDA Rural Development provided a $7,880 Rural Energy for America Program grant to add solar power to support business operations.

The PACE initiative allows businesses to upgrade the energy efficiency of their property through a special loan attached to their property tax assessment. This allows the loan to be paid back over a longer term than would normally be possible, so that the borrower can offset the loan payment with gains from energy efficiency. This provides a positive cash flow for the property owner, lowers energy costs for tenants, and reduces overall energy use for the community.

As the lien holder of the mortgage on Cambridge Court Apartments, USDA Rural Development had to agree to allow property owner, PK Housing, to participate. Because PACE is paid back through local property tax assessments, it is tied to the property rather than the borrower, limiting risk to the lien holder.

Participation in PACE is subject to the approval of local governments, and currently 25 Michigan communities have chosen to create PACE districts by joining the statewide Lean & Green Michigan PACE program. Cambridge Court Apartments is in Montcalm Countys PACE district. It is the first USDA Rural Development property to use PACE financing.

USDA Rural Development State Director for Michigan James J. Turner was appointed by President Barack Obama in 2009. USDA, through its Rural Development mission area, has a portfolio of programs designed to improve the economic stability of rural communities, businesses, residents, farmers and ranchers and improve the quality of life in rural America. Under the Obama Administration, USDA Rural Development has invested more than $6.5 billion in Michigan projects.
Attorney Teague Donahey has joined Holland & Harts Boise office, expanding the firms litigation services within its Intellectual Property practice.

Teague Donahey handles high technology patent litigation disputes on behalf of major corporations, as well as other significant intellectual property, antitrust, and other business litigation in both federal and state courts and before the International Trade Commission (ITC). His cases have involved a range of technologies related to semiconductors, electronics, computer hardware and software, telecommunications, and more. Before joining Holland & Hart, Donahey was a partner in the San Francisco office of Sidley Austin LLP.

The addition of Teague to our office from a leading coastal firm broadens our ability to offer clients highly experienced and cost-effective IP litigation solutions, said Brian Hansen, Holland & Harts Boise office administrative partner. His IP litigation experience accentuates our existing patent prosecution and transactional IP capability in Boise, offering our clients in the state of Idaho and beyond access to a powerful level of local IP support.

With more than 80 attorneys in its intellectual property group, Holland & Hart has one of the largest full-service intellectual property practices in the Mountain West. With clients including Fortune 500 companies, privately-owned institutions and emerging growth organizations, the group focuses on trademark, patent, IP transactions and IP litigation.

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About Holland & Hart

Established in 1947, Holland & Hart is a full service, national law firm that today has more than 500 lawyers in 15 offices across the Mountain West and in Washington, D.C. delivering integrated legal solutions to regional, national, and international clients of all sizes. Holland & Harts attorneys have consistently been recognized by leading national and international peer and industry review organizations for innovation and dedication to the practice of law. The firm was recently ranked No. 16 nationally among 300-plus law firms on BTI Consultings 2016 Client Service 30 and for the fifth consecutive year was named to BTI Consulting's list of Most Recommended Law Firms by corporate counsel. For more information, visit http://www.hollandhart.com.

Our Boise office and its predecessor firm have served individuals, businesses, and communities throughout Idaho for more than 80 years. With over 45 lawyers, we access our local experience and the resources of a regional office network to provide responsive, efficient counsel to businesses of all sizes on a full range of legal services, from intellectual property to energy law and corporate to litigation.
Bielat Santore & Company invites restaurant industry professionals and aspiring restaurant owners to attend the first of a ten part webinar series, Finding the Right Restaurant Location, based on the companys Restaurant Tips of the Month. The webinars will provide restaurateurs with assistance, information and guidance from leading commercial real estate, banking, appraisal, insurance and other industry professionals on everything from finding and financing a restaurant to operating, staffing, maintaining and promoting a successful business. The first webinar is scheduled to launch on Tuesday, February 2, 2016 at 2:30 pm via online or dial-in capability.

Interested participants are encouraged to reserve their entry as soon as possible by emailing Courtney(at)123bsc.com . An email including a link with further instructions will be delivered. Attendees will receive: a recording of the webinar; those who already own a restaurant will be featured in the companys Annual Restaurant Guide.

Bielat Santore & Companys Restaurant Tips of the Month can be found on their website http://www.123bsc.com , Hub page, as well as their sponsored Jersey Beats & Eats blog page and YouTube channel.

About Bielat Santore & Company

Bielat Santore & Company is an established commercial real estate firm. The companys expertise lies chiefly within the restaurant and hospitality industry, specializing in the sale of restaurants and other food and beverage real estate businesses. Since 1978, the principals of Bielat Santore & Company, Barry Bielat and Richard Santore, have sold more restaurants and similar type properties in New Jersey than any other real estate company. Furthermore, the firm has secured in excess of $500,000,000 in financing to facilitate these transactions. Visit the companys website, http://www.123bsc.com for the latest in new listings, property searches, available land, market data, financing trends, RSS feeds, press releases and more.
Microscan Barcode, Machine Vision and Lighting Solutions

Microscan, a global technology leader in barcode, machine vision, verification, and lighting solutions, announces the appointment of Dan Barnes to the position of Vice President, Operations, based at the Microscan headquarters facility in Renton, Washington, U.S.A.

Barnes has been a key member of the Microscan management team and has held increasingly responsible positions in Engineering in his 21 years with the company, culminating in his most recent position as Director, Engineering. In this position, Barnes led the development effort of Microscans latest product platform introduced in September 2015, MicroHAWK Barcode Readers and the WebLink User Interface  the worlds first web browser-based barcode reader setup and control interface.

Barnes joins the Microscan senior management team reporting to Scott Summerville, President. In his role, Barnes will be responsible for all aspects of Microscans Operations including Supply Chain/Logistics, Manufacturing, Quality, Service, and Commercial Operations. He will also be responsible for driving Lean Six Sigma initiatives under Microscans internal waste-reduction program.

Dans in-depth knowledge of our technology, process orientation, ability to build a team, and long-term commitment to Microscan makes him the ideal person to join the executive team and lead our Operations function, said Summerville.

Barnes has an MBA with a concentration in Technology Management from the University of Washington and a Bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering from Ferris State University in Michigan. He spent four years in the U.S. Navy as a 2nd Class Petty Officer.

For more information about Microscan, visit http://www.microscan.com.

About Microscan

Microscan is a global leader in barcode reading, machine vision, and verification technology serving a wide range of automation and OEM applications. Founded in 1982, Microscan has a strong history of technology innovation that includes the invention of the first laser diode barcode scanner and the 2D symbology, Data Matrix. Today, Microscan remains a leader in automatic identification and inspection with extensive solutions ranging from barcode reading, tracking, and traceability up to complex machine vision measurement, guidance, code verification, and print quality grading.

As an ISO 9001:2008 certified company recognized for quality leadership in the U.S., Microscan is known and trusted by customers worldwide as a provider of quality, high precision products. Microscan is a part of Spectris plc, the productivity-enhancing instrumentation and controls company.
SpringCM logo "File It 4.0 integrates with CPQ and content generation applications to streamline business processes and shorten sales cycles," said Greg Buchholz, CEO of SpringCM.

SpringCM, the premier document and contract management solution for Salesforce customers, today released File It 4.0, a powerful content management platform for easily creating, storing, organizing, accessing and sharing documents from Salesforce objects like Accounts, Opportunities, Cases and more.

File It 4.0 lets users access and manage content  quotes, contracts, marketing collateral, etc.  with a single view of a customer and take actions all from within the content repository. Users can prepare customer-facing materials quickly, reduce administrative tasks and invest more time to sell and close deals.

The content repository complements SpringCM Manage It, the No. 1-rated contract lifecycle management application that enables sales and legal pros to easily manage and automate the contracts process, from contract generation and review to approval and renewal. File It 4.0 also integrates with DocuSign and EchoSign, as well as other content generation and CPQ applications.

Rather than having presentations in one location, quotes, proposals and contracts in others, File It 4.0 creates one repository, keeping reps in Salesforce and reducing the time spent finding, creating and reviewing content by as much as 80 percent, said Greg Buchholz, CEO of SpringCM. In addition, File It 4.0 integrates with CPQ (Configure Price Quote) and content generation applications to streamline business processes and shorten sales cycles.

For administrators, File It 4.0 greatly simplifies the configuration process, easing setup of, and integration with, their CRM platforms. The content repository can quickly be deployed to hundreds of objects and thousands of users.

File It 4.0 offers more than 30 content actions within Salesforce, including organizing and storing documents in a familiar folder hierarchy, and tagging documents with custom attributes for better document searching and reporting. To learn more, please see File It 4.0 video.

About SpringCM

SpringCM is a secure cloud platform that manages contracts and all types of documents seamlessly across desktop, mobile and partner applications like Salesforce. SpringCM goes beyond standard contract management software with advanced workflows that automate manual tasks and complex processes to shorten contract cycles from weeks to days, and speed time-to-revenue. For executives looking to strategically leverage contract management to deliver immediate savings and accelerate revenue, SpringCM is the No. 1-rated contract lifecycle management (CLM) platform because of its superior technology, diverse capabilities, and low total cost of ownership. Every day, more than 600 organizations, including best-in-class companies like NCR, Blue Cross Blue Shield, and Wolters Kluwer, use SpringCM to streamline internal sales and legal operations, improve the customer experience and get more done, faster.

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The exceptional transparency Genscape is bringing to the global refined products and maritime shipping markets is proving its weight in gold with this unfolding Iranian situation, said Dominick Chirichella, Founding Partner, Energy Management Institute.

Following the January 16, 2016, lifting of sanctions on Irans oil transactions by Europe and the United States, there are possible changes ahead. According to Genscape, the Iranian VLCC tanker, Serena (IMO 9569645), was recently cast off from the port of Assaluyeh after being moored there for more than a year, and is expected to arrive in Uslan, South Korea, on February 11, 2016. This tanker is among hundreds of vessels which were removed from a sanctions list in recent days.

The lifting of sanctions removed many of the bans that had been limiting Irans activity related to the import, purchase, swap, and transportation of oil, gas, and petroleum products, some of the main sources of income for its economy. So far in January 2016, 29mn bbls of crude was monitored by Genscape as leaving Iran, which is now projected to see total monthly exports of around 33-37mn bbls during the month. After a slowdown in November 2015, partly due to South Korea taking no Iranian barrels, exports rose in December 2015 to 34mn bbl.

Over the past year, Iranian exports have averaged about 30-32mn bbls per month, or around 1.1mn bpd. That crude has principally headed to East Asia, which has been taking about 20mn bbls per month, and the Mediterranean, which has taken about 5-7mn bbls per month mainly into Turkey and Syria, according to Genscape ship monitoring. India has swung between taking 3-8mn bbls per month from Iran.

The exceptional transparency Genscape is bringing to the global refined products and maritime shipping markets is proving its weight in gold with this unfolding Iranian situation, said Dominick Chirichella, Founding Partner, Energy Management Institute.

Iranian officials have announced plans to ramp up production by 500,000 bpd (15mn bbls per month), aiming to target fast-growing Asian markets, in particular India, as well as its old partners in Europe. A gradual growth on Irans export levels is expected in coming months, while the existing global oil glut is likely to prove a major obstacle for the countrys crude being absorbed in the market without further price decline.

Iran has also said it could increase capacity by another 500,000 bpd within five or six months. It is likely that it will take some time to secure buyers for that extra capacity in the current over-supplied environment.

Genscape monitors Middle East Crude exports daily using its Genscape Vesseltracker data together with market intelligence sources to identify the loadport of each departing crude tanker and track it through to its final destination. To learn more about Genscape Vesseltracker, or request a free trial, please visit: http://www.genscape.com/maritime

The weekly Middle East Crude Report includes complete details on every departing shipment and will continue to track the growth in Iranian output as it happens to help market participants assess the impact of any changes in flow on regional markets. To learn more about the Middle East Waterborne Crude report, or to request a free trial, please visit: http://www.genscape.com/middle-east-crude-waterborne-report

About Genscape

Genscape is the leading global provider of real-time data and intelligence for commodity and energy markets, driven to improve market transparency and efficiency. With thousands of patented monitors strategically deployed worldwide, Genscape is unique in its ability to collect and report proprietary market fundamentals in real-time or near real-time. Genscape delivers innovative solutions across a number of asset classes including: Oil, Power, Natural Gas and LNG, Agriculture, Petrochemical and NGLs, Maritime, and Renewables. Genscape clients often gain important insights, improve risk management, or increase operational efficiency. For more information, please visit: http://www.genscape.com
The Lazydays RV Accessories & More store represents the culmination of a lot of hard work from our staff and many vendor partners and we are happy to finally welcome customers through our doors.

Lazydays RV Accessories & More store, Floridas largest RV accessories retailer, will attract more than one thousand visitors at its grand opening celebration this weekend, also taking place during Lazydays annual SuperSale on-site event.

Today, to kick off the celebration, Karen Arnold, COO of the greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce, joined Lazydays president and CEO, Tim Sheehan and VP of finance and operations, Linda Stephens for a ribbon-cutting ceremony and press event. Attendees toured the new 20,000 square foot Lazydays RV Accessories & More store and explored the many RV accessory offerings taking in the unique shopping experience.

Exciting grand opening activities will continue throughout the weekend at the new store, including a Harley Davidson motorcycle display; Buccaneer Legend, Martin Gramatica, for autograph signings, the interactive Runaway Country Music Fest Street Team Unit, appearances from Tampa Bay Buccaneers mascot, Captain Fear; the Amalie Oil Insti-Gator Show Car, and more. Guests can enter to win daily prize drawings in the new store with numerous giveaways.

As a business that is always striving to serve our customers needs better, it is great to see the amount of community and customer support we have received, said Linda Stephens, VP of finance and operations. The Lazydays RV Accessories & More store represents the culmination of a lot of hard work from our staff and many vendor partners and we are happy to finally welcome customers through our doors.

With more than 10 million RVs in North America alone, the Lazydays RV Accessories & More store is a must-explore destination for any RV enthusiast looking to enhance their lifestyle. From its one-of-a kind DIY Center to its new decor and lifestyle collection, the store now offers the broadest selection of RV accessories in Florida. Its store within a store concept, made possible through partners such as Amalie Oil, Blue Ox, Cequent, Dometic, JR Products, Lippert, Thetford & Winegard and a number of other vendor partners, brings some of the nations top products together, under one roof, and gives customers an ultra-convenient way to explore, learn and shop.

Customers can also visit the state-of-the art Travel Center where they may learn about great RV destinations and take advantage of exceptional travel offers with Thousand Trails and Encore RV resorts nationwide.

Lazydays RV Accessories & More store is located at 6130 Lazy Days Blvd. in Seffner, Fla. and is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturdays, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.

About Lazydays

Lazydays, founded in 1976, is the worlds largest RV dealership. Based on 126 acres outside Tampa, FL since 1996, Lazydays also has a dealership located in Tucson, AZ as well as the recent addition of three dealerships located in Johnstown, Aurora and Longmont, CO. Lazydays has the largest selection of RV brands in the nation featuring more than 1,700 new and pre-owned RVs, nearly 300 service bays, three accessories and parts stores and two on-site campgrounds with over 700 RV campsites. Lazydays has built its reputation on providing an outstanding customer experience with exceptional service and product expertise, and as a place to rest and recharge with other RVers. More than a quarter million RVers and their families visit Lazydays every year, making it their home away from home. Lazydays has been recognized as a Top 50 RV Dealer by RV Business and as one of Tampa Bays Top Work Places. The Lazydays Employee Foundation, supported by payroll contributions from more than 60% of Lazydays employees, has contributed more than one million dollars to make many historic changes for at-risk children in the Tampa Bay and Tucson communities. For most people, Lazydays isn't just the beginning of their journey; it's very much a part of their ride. To learn more, visit http://www.lazydays.com.

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TUX, by LELO Valentines Day can become a routine within a routine for many, at LELO, we believe our customers will embrace TUX as a way of keeping fantasy, exploration and humor central to their relationships.

LELO is bringing Scotlands passion for mens intimate apparel to the world with a stylish and modern twist  announcing today its latest design, TUX - a tuxedo to be worn for his manhood. See video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCsrkZ914oA

Tailoring intimate garments for men is not a new phenomenon, but nothing as luxurious as TUX exists on the market. One variation commonly known as the Willy Warmer is still widely-sold in Scotland and the UK, while being relatively unknown elsewhere. Its origins date as far back as the 12th century, where shepherds would wear a knitted cover to protect their personal assets in freezing temperatures, with historical records showing use across mainland Europe and the fjords of Norway and Sweden.

Steve Thomson, Chief Marketing Officer at LELO said: Why should the Scots have all the fun? We wanted to bring this concept to a global audience, while updating it with a stylish and modern twist. It was actually much more complicated than it sounds, from selecting the materials to finalizing the cut, and TUX went through multiple design iterations before the finished product. In 2016, it really is incredible the concept of male intimate apparel has not been explored further.

With Valentines Day just around the corner, sales in female lingerie are set to surge, but the fact that LELOs TUX is such a unique item highlights the gulf between the way women and men express themselves sexually. While the womens lingerie market is forecast to become a $30 billion industry by 2020, there remains a lack of brands in the male intimate apparel category.

Sex and relationship expert Tristan Taormino is hopeful TUX will instigate some playful fun in the bedroom this Valentines Day and said: There is all this emphasis on women dressing up in lingerie, sexy undies, or role-play costumes to entice their partners or revive a spark, but I say it's equally important for men! Women love to be seduced by their partners. Knowing that a man has made extra effort to dress for sex is a real turn-on.

LELOs early product testers have responded with enthusiasm, if not a little surprise, particularly in the US where couples were interviewed about TUX and the concept of men's intimate fashion as a whole.

Valentines Day can become a routine within a routine for many, and at LELO with both our awarding winning pleasure objects and now TUX, we stand for adding a burst of excitement. We believe our customers will embrace TUX as a way of keeping fantasy, exploration and humor central to their relationships, added Mr Thomson.

TUX is a slip-on one-piece, accessorized with a smart black bowtie and red rose. Presented as one-size-fits-most, with a stretchy cord that slips comfortably around the male undercarriage, it arrives in a luxurious gift box with instructions for wear included.

Until February 14th, TUX is available as a gift with purchase on orders over $120, or separately via selected retailers and LELO.com for $29.95.
Adam Equipment, a world-class balance and scale manufacturer, will present a wide selection of weighing products for materials testing during the World of Concrete, Feb. 2-5, 2016 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada. Visit us at booth N298, where you can meet Adam representatives and see some of our products, including:

Nimbus analytical and precision balances  The best choice for specific gravity testing

The Nimbus is well-suited to perform materials testing tasks, including asphalt and concrete unit weight tests and density determination. Solid metal construction stands up to the rigors of construction sites. The Nimbus offers below-balance weighing to quickly and accurately determine density of samples, calculating specific gravity within the balance. To facilitate data collection and transmission, the Nimbus contains USB and RS-232 interfaces. With a selection of models offering large platforms, the Nimbus is the right choice for materials testing applications.

CPWplus 75 with carrying case  Great for unit weight testing in the field

Ruggedly constructed, the CPWplus series features a choice of sizes and configurations to accommodate many industrial tasks, including concrete testing in the field, warehouse tasks, or shipping and receiving duties. With simple operation, a selection of stainless steel platform sizes, and battery and AC operation, the CPWplus offers a combination of performance and value.

CBK 70a portable bench scales  Industrial scale with large pan to accommodate large samples and sieves

Fully featured and simple to use, the CBK is well-suited for a variety of applications. RS-232 interface allows easy communication with other devices. Checkweighing applications are simplified with the CBK, as colored LED indicators show if the sample is under, over or within the preset limits. An easy-to-read, backlit LCD with capacity tracker shows capacity usage, as well as the weight or count.

LBK 65a scales  User friendly, low-profile scale with rechargeable battery for field use

Lightweight and portable, the LBK is ideal for construction sites and other industrial settings. A large, backlit LCD display makes it easy to read the weight in any lighting conditions. Cleaning is simple with the removable stainless steel pan and sealed keypad. With a built-in rechargeable battery, the LBK can operate in the field or other situations when electricity is unavailable. Four leveling feet ensure stability and consistent results.

Highland portable precision balances  Ideal for density determination of small samples

The Highland HCB 602H balance is packed with practical features, including a rechargeable battery for easy portability. The internal ShockProtect feature helps prevent damage from overloads, while HandiCal offers quick calibration without external weights. RS-232 and USB interfaces facilitate speedy communication with computers and printers for data recording. A removable draft shield and a weigh-below hook for density and specific gravity measurements are standard on the balance.

WOC is an international event dedicated to the commercial construction, concrete and masonry industries. During the event, Adam Equipment will join other manufacturers and distributors from around the world to display tools, products, machinery and services relating to those industries.

More than 1,400 exhibitors will participate in the trade show, which occupies 675,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor exhibit space. Organizers expect nearly 55,000 industry professionals to attend the event, which is in its 43rd year.

About Adam Equipment

For more than 40 years, Adam Equipment has designed and manufactured precision balances and scales for professionals worldwide in the laboratory, medical, education, industrial, food, animal/veterinary and jewelry markets. Adam is committed to offering an extensive selection of weighing equipment with best-in-class value. Headquartered in the United Kingdom, the company has strategically established offices in the United States, South Africa, Australia, China and Germany to provide product support and speedy delivery to distributors. For more information about the company and its products, go to http://www.adamequipment.com.
Many classic shows have made their way through the public radio airwaves, so Humble Bundle has partnered up with HighBridge Audio, a division of Recorded Books, to create a bundle that takes them from the airwaves to the mp3waves!

Customers can pay what they want for Annoying: The Science of What Bugs Us, NPR Funniest Driveway Moments, The Best of Wait Wait . . . Don't Tell Me!, and Star Wars: The Original Radio Drama.

Those who pay more than the average price also receive NPR More Funniest Driveway Moments, NPR Laughter Therapy: A Comedy Collection for the Chronically Serious, Fresh Air: Just for Laughs, The Best of Pop Culture Happy Hour, and Wait Wait  Don't Tell Me! The Best of Not My Job.

In addition, customers who pay $15 or more get all of that plus Car Talk: 25 Years of Lousy Car Advice, Lake Wobegon Family Reunion, and NPR Laughter Therapy: Funny for a Living.

These audiobooks have a collective retail value of $226. Here at Humble Bundle, though, customers choose the price!

As with all Humble Bundles, customers can choose where the money goes -- between HighBridge Audio and up to five charities (Doctors Without Borders/MSF, First Book, The Hero Initiative, Freedom of the Press Foundation, and MOTH Education Program) via the PayPal Giving Fund. For details on how this works, click here.

About Humble Bundle

Humble Bundle sells digital content through its pay-what-you-want bundle promotions and the Humble Store. When purchasing a bundle, customers choose how much they want to pay and decide where their money goes -- between the content creators, charity, and Humble Bundle. Since the company's launch in 2010, Humble Bundle has raised more than $69 million through the support of its community for a wide range of charities, providing aid for people across the world. For more information, please visit https://www.humblebundle.com.

Contact:

Kelley L. Allen

Director, Books

Humble Bundle

kelley(at)humblebundle(dot)com
It is our goal to give our customers the best service in sliding glass door replacement and repair

Express Glass, Floridas highly rated service for sliding glass door replacement has announced a new milestone for the Fort Lauderdale Google+ page. The page has just topped 26,000 views.

It is our goal to give our customers the best service in sliding glass door replacement and repair, commented Yaniet Santos, General Manager of Express Glass. That is why we offer professional 24/7 emergency glass repair for safety and convenience. Its great to know our current customers are spreading the word on Google+ where others are searching for the best choice in glass repair.

To view the Express Glass Google+ page for information and ratings go to: https://plus.google.com/108032813104722823742/about?gl=US&hl=en-US. Details about Express Glass services and reviews are available. Services include: sliding glass door replacement, window glass repair and 24/7 emergency glass repair.

Fort Lauderdales Best Sliding Glass Door Replacement Service: The Talk of the Town

Fort Lauderdales community is a hub of activity and networking all hours of the day. Florida shops and restaurants hustle to provide great service to customers from morning to late evening. Customers quickly share great service experiences on Google+ with other Florida locals. While the rest of Fort Lauderdale is busy, criminals prowl neighborhoods 24 hours a day breaking sliding glass doors and windows. Networking to quickly find the best in sliding door replacement and glass repair service can become a priority.

Express Glass, Floridas top-rated sliding glass door replacement service has announced a 26,000 view milestone for the Google+ Local page. Five-star customer ratings for sliding door replacement and glass repair have been posted by customers. One customer has given high praise to Express Glass trucks that roam the city 24/7 to provide emergency glass repair. A busted sliding glass door from vandalism was quickly replaced late at night restoring security to the family. Spreading the word and a Google+ milestone for 26,000 views helps Fort Lauderdale find the best in commercial and residential sliding glass door replacement.

About Express Glass Repair and Board Up

Express Glass and Board Up Service Inc. is a family owned and operated glass repair business with more than 20 years of experience. Professional technicians and the large variety of inventory make Express Glass the top sliding glass door replacement and repair service. If customers are looking for Ft. Lauderdale sliding door replacement or glass repair in Delray Beach or Miami glass repair, please reach out to the company for a free estimate. If customers need a 24/7 sliding glass door replacement and repair service in Ft. Lauderdale or Boca Raton or Miramar, technicians are standing by. The company specializes in sliding glass door repair and window glass repair; technicians will handle any glass replacement situation efficiently. Home or business glass repair is the company's main priority.

Express Glass Repair and Board up

http://www.expressglassfl.com/
TMG is committed to supporting many aspects of off-road racing and our engagements in the sport are a reinforcement of our dedication to the drivers and racers who confirm our products reputation for excellence in a competitive environment.

Smittybilt, Pro Comp and Rubicon Express, divisions of Transamerican Manufacturing Group (TMG), have announced extensive engagement as partners and sponsors of multiple off-road racing events for the 2016 season. Activities include Smittybilt sponsoring and offering contingency funds for the upcoming King of the Hammers Every Man Challenge, Pro Comps launch of their Tire Racing Program and Rubicon Express re-signing as title sponsor of veteran racer Jason Scherers Ultra4 racecar. Additionally, Pro Comp and Rubicon Express are sponsoring the King of the Hammers stock and modified classes, respectively.

TMG is committed to supporting many aspects of off-road racing and our engagements in the sport are a reinforcement of our dedication to the drivers and racers who confirm our products reputation for excellence in a competitive environment, says Chloe Eady, TMG Brands Marketing Manager. From King of the Hammers, to Easter Jeep Safari, to Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series events, were passionate about the industry and here to support members of the off-road community.

Transamerican Manufacturing Group (TMG) brand engagements include:



Smittybilts sponsorship of the Every Man Challenge at the 2016 Nitto King of the Hammers

Pro Comps introduction of a new Tire Racing Program for off-road competitors

Rubicon Express re-signing as title sponsor of Jason Scherer for 2016

Pro Comps Kevin Adler is heading up the new Tire Racing Program offering racers in assorted classes special pricing on select Xtreme MT2 tires. The Tire Racing Program is gaining traction and as of now we have 15 teams signed up to take advantage of it for King of the Hammers, says Adler. Recently our contingency funds have not only increased in dollar amount, but teams racing on Pro Comp tires will receive an extra $500 if they reach the podium. Make sure you are registered with Pro Comp to be eligible.

Ben Swain, an Ultra4 4400 class competitor, will race on Pro Comp 40-inch Xtreme MT2 sticky compound tires in the Hammers marquee event on Friday, February 5. Kevin Adler himself is slated to race in the Smittybilt Every Man Challenge on Thursday, February 4.

Pioneer in trail-rated suspension options, Rubicon Express, is once again sponsoring Jason Scherers #76 Ultra4 racecar. Im thrilled that we will have the backing of Rubicon Express behind us as we tackle the King of the Hammers, says Scherer. Their off-road suspension products are battle-tested on the most extreme terrain. Along with their support on our competition rig, Im proud to say that I run Rubicon Express on my daily driver as well.

Presented by Nitto Tire, King of the Hammers week spans from January 29  February 6 and takes place in Johnson Valley, California. The Ultimate Desert Race is celebrating its 10th year and TMG brands will have a strong retail presence and organize promotions including Pro Comp providing free tire mounting and G2 Axle & Gear servicing drivetrains. For spectators attending the event, Smittybilt will be awarding daily prizes including a 10,000 lb. X20 winch, an RC Axial Jeep outfitted with Smittybilt accessories and free hot dogs courtesy of Wienerschnitzel.

About Transamerican Manufacturing Group: Transamerican Manufacturing Group (TMG) includes Smittybilt, Rubicon Express, G2 Axle & Gear, Pro Comp, LRG Wheels, Trail Master and Poison Spyder Customs brands. Transamerican Auto Parts operations are comprised of 72 4 Wheel Parts retail locations in North America, Transamerican Wholesale sales and distribution and Dealer Services International. For more information about Transamerican Auto Parts and Transamerican Manufacturing Group, please visit: transamericanautoparts.com.
Beautiful, bright, committed  young people like Kayla truly are the future of our community, and were happy to pitch in and help. We believe in neighbors helping neighbors, so its a great fit for our new community involvement program.

J Thomas & Associates Insurance Agency, with a new community enrichment program serving the greater Houston area from offices in Sugar Land, has teamed up with local student Kayla Robert, who is in need of funding to enter a competition which could provide a scholarship enabling her to continue her university career. Donations are now being accepted at: https://www.crowdrise.com/kaylarobertmissblack/fundraiser/kaylarobert.

Kayla Robert is an impressive young woman pursuing a degree in Electrical Engineering at Prairie View A&M University. While concentrating on her academic career, Kayla is also very active in campus and community life. In addition to her engineering societies, she was honored to be crowned Miss University College last year. This year, Kaylas fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha, has nominated her to compete in the Miss Black and Gold Scholarship Pageant. Winning the pageant would mean a significant scholarship, going a long way toward enabling Kayla to continue her studies. However, in order to compete, all contestants must raise funds.

Time is growing short to help this extraordinary girl in her quest to win a scholarship, said Jason Thomas, owner of J Thomas & Associates Insurance Agency. Beautiful, bright, committed  young people like Kayla truly are the future of our community, and were happy to pitch in and help. We believe in neighbors helping neighbors, so its a great fit for our new community involvement program.

The caring team at J Thomas & Associates is hard at work promoting the campaign for Kayla through social media, email and in their monthly electronic and print magazine, which is delivered to thousands of households in the greater Sugar Land area. Our Hometown magazine reserves a full page to showcase the initiative for Kayla, and features all the details of the cause. The electronic Flipbook version of the current issue may be accessed here: http://www.jtinsuresyou.com/Our-Hometown-Magazine_39.

Readers who would like to join J Thomas & Associates in supporting Kayla in her quest to win a scholarship may visit http://www.jtinsuresyou.com/Help-Kayla-Win-a-Scholarship_18_community_cause, and are encouraged to share the page with their own network of friends, family, neighbors and coworkers. Contributors may be acknowledged for their donations through the agencys monthly magazine. The agency itself has pledged to donate $10 to Kaylas campaign for every referral they receive for an insurance quote, with no purchase necessary.

J Thomas & Associates Insurance Agency is devoted to ensuring the betterment of their community. The agency just recently launched the master charity program of which the current campaign is part. We are fully committed to assisting those in need in our community. Every two to three months well be selecting a new individual, family or group to receive our support, promised Jason Thomas.

Information regarding past campaigns supported by the agency may be found at: http://www.jtinsuresyou.com/community-cause. To learn more about the agency, readers may visit: http://www.jtinsuresyou.com/.

About J Thomas & Associates Insurance Agency

Serving the families of southwest Houston from offices in Sugar Land, J Thomas & Associates Insurance Agency is committed to bringing local people an agency which understands their needs. Jason Thomas and his team of dedicated professionals work with carriers to assemble a variety of products and services which will ensure their clients peace of mind. From all of the products a typical consumer needs (home, auto, boat, ATV, etc.), to financial planning services, J Thomas & Associates delivers consistently superior service. Their caring experts may be reached by calling 281-277-7533.
On January 4, 2016,transcosmos inc. opened its own store transcosmos Overseas Flagship Store (URL: http://www.kjt.com/Store/4175) within KJT.com, a cross-border E-Commerce website for the Chinese market operated by Shanghai Kuajingtong International Company Limited (Headquarters: Shanghai, China; President and CEO: Mao Wei). As part of the global E-Commerce one-stop service provided by transcosmos, it offers attractive products from Japan to the Chinese consumers, utilizing over-the-border E-commerce, and delivers by international delivery.

In China, along with the spread of the Internet consumer practice, the amount of total purchase by consumers has increased, and the consumer's need to seek more secure and safer products are on the increase. The total amount of product purchase from Japan in the Chinese domestic market exceeds 600 billion yen, and the cross-border E-Commerce market in China is expected to grow to the 1.4 trillion yen scale by 2018. (Sources: Establishment of the Base Pertaining to Information and Services of Our Countrys Economic Society, 2014) On the other hand, in the area of sales through cross-border E-commerce, the reality at present is that there are quite a few challenges in terms of language barrier, tariffs, logistics, and customs.

KJT.com is a cross-border E-Commerce marketplace established by the City of Shanghai and Orient Electronic Payment Co., Ltd., an electronic payment systems company, and is rapidly growing. Also, KJT.com promotes E-Commerce marketplace in accordance with the cross-border E-Commerce platform measures led by the Chinese government (customs authorities) and establishes the pre-payment system for the tariffs and the base for international distribution to China.

transcosmos has opened the transcosmos Overseas Flagship Store within KJT.com for the sale of high-quality Japanese products, and at the same time, through this strategic partnership with KJT.com, cooperation in the areas of platform and logistics would bring into reality more seamless international business transactions and distribution.



At transcosmos Overseas Flagship Store,

Chinese Consumers Meet High-Quality Japanese Products

transcosmos Overseas Flagship Store provides an opportunity to introduce the Chinese consumers to the high-quality products and life style from Japan they seek. We strive to become a friendly store where secure and safe, high-quality, and functional products can be easily purchased from Japan.

URL: http://www.kjt.com/Store/4175

Through a strategic partnership with KJT.com, more seamless cross-border E-Commerce shopping environment for the consumers is provided

KJT.com has distribution sites in The Shanghai Free Trade Zone (SFTZ), setting up a platform in cooperation with the Chinese customers. KJT.com has designed an efficient logistics function taking advantage of the pre-payment function of the tariffs and the The Shanghai Free Trade Zone (SFTZ), providing a cross-border E-Commerce mall in compliance with various laws and regulations. transcosmos has tied a strategic partnership with KJT.com in order to realize a shopping environment which would further satisfy the Chinese consumers.

transcosmos provides global E-Commerce one-stop service to deliver its corporate clients excellent products and services to the consumers in 36 countries all over the world. It will further accelerate its business development in the cross-border E-Commerce market going through significant changes and expansion.

transcosmos is a registered trade name or trademark of transcosmos inc. in Japan and other countries.

Other company names and product or service names mentioned are registered trade names or trademarks of various other companies.

About transcosmos inc.

transcosmos launched operations in 1966. Since then we have combined superior human resources with up-to-date technological capabilities to enhance the competitive strength of our clients by providing them with superior and valuable services. transcosmos currently offers Cost Reduction Services (Contact Center, HR/Financial/Sales Back Office, Order Management/SCM, System Development/Management etc.) and Sales Expansion Services (Big Data Analysis, Internet Advertising, Website Construction/Management, Smartphone/SNS Utilization, Telemarketing etc.). transcosmos continues to pursue operational excellence by providing these services through our 156 locations in 26 countries with a focus in Asia. Furthermore, following the expansion of E-Commerce market on the global scale, transcosmos provides a comprehensive, one-stop global E-Commerce service to deliver our clients' excellent products and services to consumers in 36 countries. transcosmos aims to be the Global BPO Partner of our clients to provide them with high quality BPO services on a global scale.
If you are new to iQ you can schedule a demo and learn more about this opportunity.

PSFK iQ - Where Innovators Turn for Research. Our professional-grade research platform is designed specifically for Retail and CX leaders who want to know whats next. Whether youre staying current on trends or need a real-time research partner to help you get ahead, count on PSFK iQ to deliver the info you need to make your next move.
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Canadian chain Indigo goes small; a Tustin, Calif., bookstore prepares to shutter; Amazon gets taxed in Colorado; and more.

Openings & Closings

Indigo to Return to Downtown Vancouver: After closing its flagship location in June, the Canadian mega-chain will reopen with an Indigospirit store later this month. The store's smaller footprint is intended to set the standard for more small-format stores going forward.

Once Upon a Storybook to Close: Owner Susie Alexander will close the year-old Tustin, Calif., childrens bookstore, which did not meet her projections, at the end of March.

Jacobsens Books & More in Hillsboro, Ore., to Close: After five and a half years, Tina Jacobsen is closing the bookstore, which stocked new and used titles, next month.

Other News

Amazon to Collect Sales Tax in Colorado: Although it doesnt have a distribution center or a store in the state, Amazon will begin collecting sales tax on February 1. Denver Business Journal questions whether its because of the retailers March 2015 purchase of 2lemetry, a tech company in Denver.

Innisfree Poetry Bookstore & Cafe Moves Across the Street: Late last month the five-year-old bookstore, one of the few poetry bookstores in the U.S., moved to a new slightly larger location in Boulder, Colo.

Phil Davies Named ABA IndieCommerce Director: As of this week, ABA has a new IndieComerce head. Phil Davies grew up in Santa Barbara, where his parents owned the Earthling Bookshop, which closed in 1998. He founded a business that developed and managed an online antiques and collectibles marketplace of independent sellers.

Word Up Publishes Autobiographical Kids Book: It took a while, but the Northern Manhattan bookstore made good on one of its 2012 Indiegogo campaign perks, an autobiography of the bookstore. Late last month it published Home at Word Up/En casa en Word Up. The official launch will take place in February.

B&N Unlikely to Replace Walnut Creek, Calif., Store: Last June when the chain announced that it would close the 21-year-old store at years end, it also said that it was scouting a new location. Jay Hoyter, the citys Chamber of Commerce CEO, doubts that Barnes & Noble will be able to find an affordable 30,000 sq. ft. location in the Walnut Creek market.

Northshire Bookstore Begins Year-Long Celebration of Its 40th: The bookstore, with branches in Manchester Center, Vt., and Saratoga Springs, N.Y., kicked off its anniversary with a T-Shirt Design Contest, which closes on January 31.
Of Beards and Men: A Revealing History of Facial Hair by Christopher Oldstone-Moore. Univ. of Chicago (Jan.)

Full, possibly obvious, disclosure: I have a beard. I havent used a proper razor (Gillette, Schick, whatever) in over a decade and have no desire to pick one up again. So of course Im going to tear through a book on beard history. Beards have been trendy in certain circles for a while now, yet even though I have one, Im not always sure what drove me to it aside from a general disdain for shaving and some nonconformist tendencies. But beyond my preferences, what has been behind the historical impulse to shave or, like, just let it grow, man?

Historian Christopher Oldstone-Moore lays out four great beard cycles dating back to antiquity, following the patterns of social, political, and religious demands to be clean-shaven or hairy as hell. For instance, ancient Greek philosophers wore beards, while Alexander the Great, aiming to position himself as a demigod, shaved to more fully resemble the popular image of the ageless gods. Christianity has regularly found itself waffling between the holy shavenness and holy beardedness. Renaissance men grew beards; Enlightenment thinkers shaved. In our current age of corporate conformity, which demands clean-shavenness, Oldstone-Moore posits that, besides personal autonomy there are four basic motives for growing a beard: gender bending, social nonconformity, religious identification, and a special quest.

Just off Main St. in my hometown of Leominster, MA, sits Evergreen Cemetery, where a man named Joseph Palmer is buried. His headstone, which faces the street right over short the cemetery wall, bears his gloriously bearded visage and the inscription: Persecuted for Wearing the Beard. In the mid-19th Century, Palmer was ostracized and even physically attacked on account of his facial hair. I was happy to see Oldstone-Moore tell Palmers story, though its just a brief entry among many other fascinating stories.

Its clear that seeing Palmers headstone regularly when I was a kid made a deep impression on me, even if Ill never understand all the reasons why. One rationale for keeping the beard remains clear, however, illustrated by an aside in which Oldstone-Moore relates the feelings of an Afghan man visiting a barber after being liberated from the Taliban in 2001. Ive got nothing against beards, he explained. The problem is when someone tells you that you have to have one. Thats why I hated it. The same works in reverse.
The Moline grandmother fighting to recover her vehicle lost to civil asset forfeiture despite never having been charged with a crime, has her ride back thanks to the intervention of a Geneseo lawyer.

Thats wonderful and welcome news for Judy Wiese and a Quad-Cities community which was moved by her story after it was detailed by our courts reporter Rachel Warmke.

Wonderful, too, is that the case has prompted Rock Island County States Attorney John McGehee to take a closer look at how civil forfeiture laws are employed in our county.

In Ms. Wieses case, the outpouring of support was remarkable, the 70-year-old said, and it included calls from multiple attorneys and community members offering support. Im speechless, Ms. Wiese told Ms. Warmke. No words for it. Among those who responded was Larry Vandersnick, a former Henry County prosecutor and judge. We are all kind of alarmed about it and just felt it was necessary for someone to represent her, said Mr. Vandersnick, who took the pro bono case with help from associate Kimberly Fuller and Farber Law Office.

Now a part-time defense attorney who has handled a number of forfeiture cases, Mr. Vandersnick knows firsthand just how complicated the laws are, especially for defendants such as Ms. Weise. The law needs to be changed, and I just really felt a lot of empathy for this lady, Judy, Mr. Vandersnick said. I know how difficult it is when people dont have any money to get through the legal process.

He worked with Mr. McGehee to reach the settlement that allowed Ms. Wiese to get her Jeep back in exchange for reimbursing the county sheriffs office for a $150 towing fee, which a Geneseo woman already had promised to cover.

Its a surprisingly happy ending that, it now turns out, might help others in Rock Island County.

This whole process has made us very conscious of what we need to do regarding these individual cases to try to always be fair and seek justice and not just do these because we can, Mr. McGehee added. We need to be very careful with how we proceed with these and try to find the right solution for every single case.

We applaud that goal and urge prosecutors to remain diligent.

Unfortunately, however, it will have little impact on Illinois civil forfeiture laws which, as Ms. Wiese now knows firsthand are in desperate need of reform. People are being punished for the crimes of other people, she said.

We salute all who are moving to make these changes and we implore other jurisdictions -- for example, Henry County, which aggressively pursues such cases -- to also take a careful look at how such laws or applied.

Equally importantly, we urge all who were moved by Ms. Wieses case to be energized and involved in demanding a reexamination of unfair forfeiture laws that allow governments to take the property of Illinois citizens without ever convicting them of a crime.
A Davenport filmmaker's documentary about a decorated Moline veteran recently has earned accolades of its own.

"Escape From Firebase Kate" -- an hour-long film focusing on the heroism of Moline's Bill Albracht, written and directed by Paul Kakert -- is an official selection of the Hollywood International Independent Documentary Awards, and was among silver award winners for the 2015 Spotlight Documentary Film Awards, an off-shoot of the Atlanta International Documentary Film Festival -- placing the film on their list of the 250 best documentaries last year.

"That's a tremendous help, to get the story out there," Mr. Kakert said Wednesday. "It's great. We're fighting an uphill battle to find an audience."

"Escape From Firebase Kate," told by several men who survived (including Mr. Albracht), recounts events of an intense siege during the Vietnam War in the fall of 1969.

Firebase Kate was a small artillery outpost with 26 American troops and 100 indigenous Montegnard infantry. When the then-21-year-old Mr. Albracht arrived to lead it, the post came under heavy attack from thousands of North Vietnamese troops. He has been awarded three Silver Stars for bravery, three Purple Hearts and five Bronze Stars.

The documentary was shown last fall on WQPT (the Quad-Cities PBS station), and Iowa Public Television, and Mr. Kakert is working to get it broadcast on PBS affiliates nationwide. It is currently available on Amazon Prime and iTunes.

The Spotlight awards is an organization comprised of industry professionals: filmmakers, independent film consultants, film festival organizers, festival programmers and judges who have been in the business for 20 years.

Mr. Kakert's biography is featured on its website, spotlightdocawards.com/filmmakers.html.

He founded Storytellers International in 2009 as a non-profit to produce feature-length documentary films that tell compelling stories from around the world. His previous films include "Train to Nowhere: Inside an Immigrant Death Investigation."

In addition to promoting films Mr. Kakert and other independent producers create, the organization seeks story ideas from a growing community at DocumentaryTV.com. Anyone can pitch a story they would like to see Storytellers produce. To date, films by Storytellers have taken Mr. Kakert to India and Kosovo and throughout the U.S.

The Hollywood documentary festival is a quarterly contest and "Escape From Firebase Kate" is among just 19 films in competition. Those awards will be announced Jan. 31. Recognition will help Mr. Kakert win support for future projects.

"From our standpoint, the more we keep taking steps to get distribution, it just helps funders know the next story we tell will go down the same path," he said.

Mr. Kakert also entered the documentary in the GI Film Festival in Washington, D.C., which aims to preserve the stories of American soldiers, and honor their service and sacrifices.
After a total of eight hours deliberating, jurors went home Thursday night without reaching a verdict in the Drew Romkey trial.

Judge Joel Barrows ordered the jury to return to the Scott County Courthouse this morning to resume deliberating.

Mr. Romkey, 18, a former Bettendorf High School student, is accused of stabbing Jacob Woodard, 18, during an April 11 altercation in the 6100 block of Lakeshore Circle, Davenport.

After about a week of testimony, jurors heard almost a full day of closing arguments from attorneys Wednesday. The jury deliberated about 40 minutes Wednesday afternoon and another seven-and-a-half hours Thursday.

Attorneys said Mr. Romkey had a disagreement with classmate Jackson Gallagher on April 9, resulting in a challenge to fight, which never occurred.

At the time, Mr. Romkey was dating Abby Weyman, who formerly dated Mr. Gallagher and said the two had a contentious break-up.

Mr. Romkey testified that two days later, on April 11, he followed Mr. Gallagher to try to record his license plate after seeing his classmate's car parked outside Ms. Weyman's home. Mr. Gallagher testified he was chased "recklessly" by Mr. Romkey to Lakeshore Circle.

Multiple witnesses reported seeing Mr. Woodard, a passenger in Mr. Gallagher's car, get out and walk to Mr. Romkey's vehicle.

Mr. Romkey testified he was punched and lifted from his seat by Mr. Woodard and believed he was in imminent danger when he grabbed a knife and, unable to see clearly because of a hood over his eyes, "flailed" the knife in front of him. His attorney, Katherine Drummond, argued his use of force was justified.

Prosecutor Steven Berger said Mr. Romkey had opportunities to get away prior to and during the altercation and that his "immediate" response to use a knife against Mr. Woodard was not justified.

Mr. Woodard was hospitalized with knife wounds near his left eye and left elbow. A doctor testified two puncture wounds, below his belly button and on the left side of his rib cage, could have been fatal had they gone untreated.

Mr. Romkey is the son of Dispatch/Argus associate managing editor Mike Romkey. Mr. Gallagher is the son of Bettendorf Mayor Robert Gallagher.
The Salvation Army still needs $34,000 more in donations to reach its 2015 Red Kettle Campaign goal, it announced Thursday.

This season, it has raised a total of $781,000 through area red kettles, with mail and online donations. Two weeks ago, the nonprofit organization was $82,000 short of its goal.

The $815,000 fundraising goal accounts for approximately 60 percent of the Quad Cities Salvation Armys operating budget. The funds help The Salvation Army meet the demand for services for shelter, food, clothing and other basic human needs in the Quad-Cities.

Maj. Gary Felton, Salvation Army's Q-C coordinator, said in a Thursday news release the campaign has been extended until Jan. 31.

This years fundraising efforts are especially important because of the lack of state government funding, according to The Salvation Army. With the loss of Department of Housing and Urban Development money from the state of Iowa for a transitional program and no money being paid from the state of Illinois, "the importance of fundraising is even more important," the group's release said.

In late January last year, the Red Kettle Campaign announced it collected $794,692.63 in donations, more than its $760,000 goal.

If you want to support the campaign, you can mail checks to The Salvation Army, 301 W. 6th St., Davenport, IA 52803, or you can contribute by credit card at 800-SAL-ARMY or salvationarmyqc.org.

For more information about The Salvation Army, its programs and how you can help, call Sarah Hite at 563-324-4808.
The city of Silvis clearly has momentum on its side, Mayor Tom Conrad told East Moline and Silvis Rotary Club members Thursday.

The city plans to build more, he said in a State of the City address presented at Christ United Methodist Church in East Moline.

"It's all about momentum, momentum, momentum," Mayor Conrad summed up his remarks. "There have been many positive things done by many positive people."

Mayor Conrad recapped some of the progress made in the "City of Progress," during a PowerPoint presentation.

One of his slides titled "Promises Made, Promises Kept" listed the city's goals of building new apartments, revitalizing its downtown and recruiting new businesses to open and existing ones to expand.

Mayor Conrad talked about a new business called Sunny Cove that opened Oct. 21 and how its owner met her revenue goals in only about two months.

Another new business called Waterworld Aquatics features a huge collection of salt-water fish for aquarium lovers, Mayor Conrad explained.

Other new businesses include Weber Auto and a mini-mall featuring a Dunkin' Donuts, he said. A PowerPoint slide showed Homer Simpson eating "Energy Rings," what police commonly call doughnuts, new police chief Mark VanKlaveren told the crowd.

The city also soon will begin building a new police department for its "energy-ring-eating force," according to Mayor Conrad's report.

The construction sign recently was posted, and work is expected to begin by March, he said.

Mayor Conrad also mentioned multiple improvements to city amenities such as its parks and housing.

Handicap-accessible playground equipment continues to be installed.

Businesses have improved their company's images thanks to a city-sponsored facade program, Mayor Conrad said.

A Deere Valley Villa complex now totals 174 market-rate units that have been built and filled, with 63 more new apartments coming soon near Bowlesburg Elementary School.

"It's all about carrying on the momentum."
Christopher Eugene Brooks, 43, is set to die at 6 p.m. CST at Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore, authorities said.

He was convicted of the capital murder of 23-year-old Jo Deann Campbell, a woman authorities say he first met when they worked at a camp in upstate New York.

Campbell was seen speaking to Brooks at a restaurant where she worked on Dec. 30, 1992, and she later told a friend someone was spending the night in her living room, according to witnesses. The next day, police found Campbell's partially clothed body under the bed of her apartment in the Birmingham suburb of Homewood. Prosecutors said she was bludgeoned with an 8-pound dumbbell and sexually assaulted.

Brooks' bloody fingerprint was on a doorknob in Campbell's bedroom and a latent palm print on her ankle, according to court records. The documents say Brooks was found later with Campbell's car keys and had cashed her paycheck and used her gas station credit card.

At trial, defense lawyers argued that another man who was at the apartment that night might have committed the murder. While DNA testing was at its infancy then, prosecution witness said semen found on the victim's body was consistent with Brooks' DNA.

Alabama's last execution was in 2013. Drug shortages and litigation prevented any executions since.

Authorities said it would be the first execution since Alabama announced in 2014 it was changing two of the three drugs in its procedure, including a switch to the sedative midazolam to render the inmate unconscious.

Lawyers for the state have argued Alabama's new drug combination is "virtually identical" to the one Florida has used multiple times without incident. But attorneys for Brooks argued that midazolam was used in problematic executions, including one in which an Oklahoma inmate took 43 minutes to die.

The U.S. Supreme Court  in a split decision in June  allowed Oklahoma to proceed with the use of midazolam. Six Alabama inmates argue in an ongoing lawsuit that it is an ineffective anesthetic and that they would feel the effects of the subsequent injections of rocuronium bromide and potassium chloride to stop their lungs and hearts.

On Wednesday, an attorney for Brooks asked the U.S Supreme Court to halt the execution, arguing further court review of the state's new execution protocol is needed before its first-time use.

"Brooks should not be the subject of Alabama's experiment to see if it can carry out an execution using this protocol while the very validity of the protocol is at issue in ongoing federal court proceedings," Assistant Federal Defender John Palombi wrote the Supreme Court.

Brooks' attorney also asked the Supreme Court to review the case after justices last week ruled Florida's system for sentencing people to death is unconstitutional because it gives too much power to judges to decide capital sentences.

Lawyers with the Alabama attorney general's office argued in court filings that Brooks was simply trying to delay his execution. A jury convicted him in 1993 of capital murder for murder committed during the course of a robbery, burglary, and rape.

"Brooks raped and murdered Jo Deann Campbell on December 31, 1992 and her family has been waiting for justice for more than twenty-three years," lawyers for the state wrote.

Andrew Reid Lackey was the last inmate executed in Alabama, by an injection on July 25, 2013, for killing Charles Newman during a robbery in 2005.

Campbell's sister, Corrine Campbell, told The Associated Press she and her mother were headed to Atmore on Thursday but still hadn't decided if they wanted to witness the planned execution.

She added her sister was very welcoming and trusting, but had no idea whom she had invited to stay at her place when Brooks showed up uninvited.

"She was young, energetic, bubbly, hard-working. The young lady had no enemies," said Corrine Campbell.

On Thursday, U.S. District Judge W. Keith Watkins, responding to a motion by lawyers for Alabama death row inmates, ordered prison officials to retain medical records of the planned execution. The judge said any logs by the execution team and any data generated by an electric heartbeat monitor must be kept. He didn't say inmates' lawyers, who are challenging the new execution method, would get to see them.
I am Rabbi Steven Moskowitz, the rabbi of Congregation L'Dor V'Dor, located on Long Island's North Shore but reaching beyond. My congregation's services, classes and programs meet at our home, 11 Temple Lane in Oyster Bay. I have been a rabbi since 1991, beginning my career at Manhattan's 92nd Street Y. I am married to Rabbi Susie Moskowitz (Senior Rabbi of Temple Beth Torah in Melville) and the father of two adult children, Shira and Ari. Every Summer I travel to Jerusalem to learn at the Shalom Hartman Institute where I serve as a Senior Rabbinic Fellow. I am also an avid cyclist, swimmer and triathlete.
WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff on Jan. 21, 2016 announced four senior management appointments in its U.S. Transportation and Infrastructure sector.

Bernie McNeilly has been named Chief Operating Officer; Jerry Jannetti assumes McNeillys previous position as Northeast Regional Business Manager. David Earley has been appointed Director of Strategic Planning and Development, and Judy Jones is the new Director of Marketing and Sales.

As COO, McNeilly will have responsibility for strategic and tactical decision-making, analyzing regional profit and loss performance, net margins, competitive positioning and sales strategy. He will maintain a highly visible external profile, focusing on client relationships, industry advocacy, civic engagement, strategic recruitment and market presence, the company said. McNeilly joined WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff in 2007 and has served as Regional Business Manager-Northeast since 2009.

Jannetti, a 21-year veteran of the firm, took on senior management responsibility for the Baltimore office in 2002. He has led the successful growth of the business from a 40-person office to an operation of more than 145 people, with a diverse practice of engineering and planning professionals delivering work across the transportation market, including highways, bridges, aviation, ports, tunnels, rail and transit systems, the company noted. In his new position, Jannetti will be responsible for achieving sales, P&L, project delivery, and client objectives throughout the Northeast, and will have critical input to fostering employee development and retention throughout the region, including staff initiatives, training, mentoring, career development and internship programs.

As Director of Strategic Planning and Development, Earley will provide leadership to the Transportation and Infrastructure groups strategy development, while driving implementation of specific strategic and organizational initiatives, and supporting adoption of more sophisticated data and business analytics to improve business efficiency, revenue growth and profitability, the company said. Since joining WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff in 2000, he has held several leadership roles in the transportation and strategic consulting management teams, most recently serving as Director of Sales, Markets and Government Relations.

Jones has been with WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoffs Transportation and Infrastructure group for more than 16 years, helping to pursue and deliver some of the firms largest contracts. She has led new market initiatives and geographic expansion in the U.S. and Canada and has developed a detailed knowledge of the industry and a comprehensive understanding of the challenges associated with marketing in various geographic environments and market specialties, the company said. As Director of Marketing and Sales, she will spearhead the effort to achieve greater marketing effectiveness, with responsibility for strategy, standards, systems, technology and training in the marketing function.

These leadership appointments will enable us to capitalize on a thriving market and continue to assert WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoffs prime position in the U.S. transportation market, said Joseph G. Pulicare, president of the U.S. transportation and infrastructure sector.